Chapter V - Clash of Strengths [Part 1/2]

Arthur couldn't believe his senses at the beginning of this confrontation. At some point in time, something must've slipped their eyes to not notice a soldier of this caliber. The aura around him brought terrible feelings, and the calmness of a person's eyes added up to this. He was unbothered by their army.

[First time seeing a person this strong? What a drag.] Regis was also concerned, but the fright was still something he couldn't feel. He did try to calm down Arthur, but it didn't work due to the latter still being a weak human.

'He is one of those... isn't he?' A sweat poured down his face, sometimes even into his eyes, making them burn. But he didn't move an inch and waited for Tessia to say something to them. Time seemed to stop. 'He must be a scythe or whatever they are.'

[Scythe? Interesting name, but surely this guy isn't an asura. There are bits of Basilisk mana in him, but nothing of an Asura.] Strength should've also been way less than that of an Asura, probably a reason why Regis wasn't intimidated by a figure.

'What are we supposed to do?!' Desperation was all over his face, almost pleading with his friends to say something else reassuring. Surely, there must be a way...

[Direct confrontation? You have no chance, but I'm not sending you to fight him either. Act smart; this retainer won't attack you either. Be aware that his main target seems to be the princess...]

.

'Sylv, I need you right here, right now. I won't be able to fight this person alone...' Tessia internally communicated with her bond. Her eyes darted around, checking if everyone else was okay. Arthur was undamaged, as was the rest of her team, but she couldn't be sure this person wouldn't hurt them.

The man was looking straight at her; his dark eyes were very persistent in instilling fear in her, but Tessia had experienced worse back in Epheotus. The man's aura was still far from that of the teacher she was being taught by. Instead, she flared her mana to protect every fiber in her body and confront the man before Sylvie's arrival.

Suddenly, "I assume you are an elven princess." the man spoke, addressing her. He hit the spot with his assumptions, raising more concerns in the girl. The man also knew of her identity, so she couldn't allow herself to be defeated or, worse, captured.

"So, what?" Tessia responded, "Even if I wasn't, would that change the outcome of the battle?"

"Certainly, it would not. This continent is deemed to have been captured one way or another and its leaders killed. But I didn't expect to see one so soon; it appears that the Asuran training you've undertaken has gifted you with some... prowess. Shame, it's not going to help." The expression on his face never changed, although it was visibly annoying for him to keep talking.

Tessia clicked her tongue, "We will see about that." Not being able to hold still for so long, the princess made the decision to strike first while the enemy still had his hands down. Her speed surpassed anything she had shown before, but to the Alacryan, it didn't matter.

He didn't say a word, took no weapon, but still managed to avoid the blow by using his speed to move to the side. Tessia's sword hit nothing but air, "Your decisions are rather hurried; I expected some more from a princess."

.

The battle resumed, though this time without Tessia, as she was too busy dealing with a newly appearing enemy. 'All these knights are now freely decimating our lines...' More capable soldiers of the Alacryan army were now confident enough to fight without Tessia's interference; they knew she wasn't able to do anything now.

[Boy, you'll have to push without the princess; think about how you do it. We close the teleportation gate, we cut off their forces, and there is no-chance of support arriving for them.] Arthur looked far into enemy lines; the gate was exposed; it was possible to fulfill. It will still take a lot of their effort to do that.

'I can't do it alone. If nobody else helps me, there's no way I can go through those Alacryans.' They were a ferocious bunch; they had no fear of losing their lives somehow; they were lying it down for their sovereigns. 'What are these sovereigns even?'

[Whatever they are, they were told quite a lot about them. Believing the cause that will eventually betray them should serve as a good lesson.] Regis felt pity. The trouble with loyalty to the cause is that the cause will always betray you. It might be no different from his, although he at least knew the whole truth about his, unlike those who are blindly fighting for it.

"Reginald! We need to push and destroy the teleportation gate!" Arthur called out the mountain of a man. A swing of his giant hammer sent the Alacryan soldier flying, allowing him to finally take a breath.

"These mana-beasts are trouble, Arthur. We need conjurers to strike them once again, otherwise, there's no way." He looked behind him; those soldiers at the back were also ready to launch spells, but it was dangerous. If they are also in the epicenter of the blow, then launching more attacks would damage them no less.

Commander Graves was also contemplating what to do; the first line of teams definitely needed some aid. 'Should I take a risk or not?' His own son was there, so if something happens to him, it'll be terrible... Clives was struggling to deal with the mana-beasts. 'We are on the battlefield. No time for this.'

"Conjurers, strike the back of the enemy lines!"

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'Mama is in danger!' Sylvie thought that, through the mental connection they had, her bond was very nervous. The dragon was running full speed from the medical encampment on her four legs; the dungeon wasn't allowing her to fly at that place. Fully transformed, she approached the mana signatures of many soldiers, both her allies and enemies.

Sylvie burst into the expanded cave and finally opened her wings. With a single jump, she was already in the air, floating over the allied soldiers. As the powerful wind washed over the soldiers, they were forced to look up and see how a literal dragon flew over them. This was the first time seeing a full blown dragon in flesh, and for some, this will be the last time as well.

'Mama!' Sylvie's eyes scanned the soldiers, looking for her bond; she found her and the enemy moving all across the battlefield at terrifying speed. Gathering all her willpower in her wings, Sylvie flew towards them. She was an Asura, and although she was very young, her powers were in place, and she was ready to attack any kind of threat that was of danger to them.

'Be careful Sylv; this is most likely Vritra-blooded soldiers they told us about!' Tessia warned the approaching Sylvie before both of them had to engage the enemy together.

"Oh, an Asura... What a surprise. The High Sovereign has been in search of you for so many years, but now here you are, right in front of me. I wonder, what should I do with the two of you?" The man spoke mid battle unconcerned about his enemy's attacks. He used his speed to avoid them; unlike him, they couldn't fly.

Tessia gritted her teeth, 'He is avoiding our attacks even when his feet aren't touching the ground. He can fly like the lances!' They needed to try something else, but she wasn't going to hurry and use her dragon's will, yet. 'This will be for the worst case scenario.'

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Tens of spells rained down on the mana-beasts and Alacryans all together, and the center of the Dicathian formation moved forward at a rapid pace. Even without Tessia, her team, along with some others, took the initiative to split the Alacryan forces into two while also pushing them from a flank.

"Conjurers, one more time!!" This time, without hesitation, Commander Graves yelled.

With Regis' assistance, Arthur was getting used to using a two-handed sword, and with all of his practice, it would be simple for him to become proficient. Nothing could be a better learning experience than this, despite practice taking place in the midst of combat. The adrenaline rush gave him some newfound senses, but his exhaustion persisted.

It was easier to cut enemies with a greatsword, but it was easier to do that with newfound confidence. His teammates, all of them okay, Clive proved to be much useful. Arthur's close combat was greatly aided by his ranged attacks, and when combined with Clive's spells that stunned the foes, it was simple for Arthur to slash and stab through Alacryan soldiers.

"Reginald!" The tall man was equally as involved as Arthur; one blow from his hammer and his powerful strength was enough to send two men flying. "Mana-beasts!" The mana-beasts could pass through while the Alacryan soldiers were moving away, leaving more openings for them to be attacked.

Clive stopped Reginald and said, "No need! I'll take care of it." Other teams began to occupy the space left by the Alacryans, and the man did nothing more than nod and concentrate on his present task. They were pushing them back.

Meanwhile, the former student council member created a torment of wind in his bow that thinned down so much that it formed a very sharp looking arrow. He let go of the arrow's tip, and it was launched. Clive wasn't aiming it anywhere else other than the mana-beast's head; speaking of which, it hit right in the brain, and the mana-beast was dropped dead. The dark purple blood was leaking out of it and the brain was falling off from the open skull.

Reginald wanted to congratulate a young teammate, but because of his size, he appeared to be the one being targeted the most by the Alacryan soldiers. Since he was the most visible one on the battlefield, his tall self was the easiest to hit. It was clear why missing such a large target was more difficult than hitting it. Reginald was struck in the shoulder at a time when he least expected it.

"Agh." He grunted and took out a massive knight that was half way into his flesh, saying, "Damn you!" He threw it back in anger but couldn't hit his opponent in rage. This mistake cost him a battle. Alacryan stepped into the defenseless area of his opponent. Reginald was unable to swing his weapon here.

"Dicathian, this is your end!" With his blunt weapon, Alacryan struck Reginald a little above the liver, making the tall man experience excruciating pain. The entire body almost shut itself off due to enormous pain; he was unable to breathe anymore, and multiple of his ribs were also crushed due to impact. "This happens to you when you go against the will of the High Sovereign. Hail Vrit- ghn!"

Someone struck him from behind; just like how he unexpectedly did it to Reginald, karma came to bite his ass. It was Arthur who drove his entire sword through the man's core and destroyed it, [You have scary face, boy.] Of course, at the request of Regis.

"Reginald!" Arthur grabbed the man by the back of his collar and harshly dragged him towards Oliver, meanwhile, the Dicathian forces advanced, covering them from incoming Alacryan attacks. "Oliver, help Reginald!" The battle-healer's were not only in certain parties; they were also supposed to help out others. At one time, Oliver had to stabilize the state of tens of soldiers at the expense of his mana. Thankfully, he was provided with some elixirs.

Arthur charged back into battle, this time with only one battle capable member of the team, Clive Graves. He once again wiped off the sweat that had accumulated on his forehead during the battle. This battle was getting even more heated as casualties reached their peak on both sides.

[Go for it, boy.] The auburn-haired boy felt some of the weight being lifted off his shoulders, and a wave of energy engulfed him. This weirded him out, but Regis had an answer to it, [This is some of the mana that I devoured, hehe.]

'What's with the creepy laugh, you sadist.'