by Unknown
The warriors were pressed to the point of abandoning their assaults and instead retreating.
The mysterious magician on the back of the Purple Demon still hadn’t moved. He let the Purple Demon deal with the threats as his lips continued to mumble.
“Dance of the Fire Serpents!”
The cold voice of the mysterious magician suddenly rang out, and in the blink of an eye, seven enormous fire serpents, each spanning tens of meters long, appeared. Howling, they erupted away from the magician in all directions. Each fire snake appeared to be a real, living creature, with distinct scales and enormous bodies that inspired fear in all who saw it.
Everyone who was watching was stunned.
A Fire Element spell of the eighth grade – Dance of the Fire Serpent!
It now became clear that this entire time, the mysterious magician was mumbling the words to a magical incantation. He was preparing this terrifying Fire Element spell of the eighth grade – Dance of the Fire Serpent! This spell could unleash seven enormous fire serpents, each of which had a simply astonishing attack power. Even the terrifying defensive ability of the Purple Demon would not be proof against it; if struck, even if it survived, it would be badly injured.
If dealing with a magician of the seventh grade, the small squad might be able to hold on for a while longer, but dealing with a magician of the eighth grade, and a Purple Demon as well? They simply did not have the power to resist.
Only now did they understand that this mysterious magician was a master of the eighth grade!
“It’s the Dance of the Fire Serpents. Quick, run away!” The red-haired warrior’s facial expression changed dramatically, and he shouted in a loud voice.
The six remaining members of the small squad were now all filled with terror.
“Too late. Prepare for the baptism of death!” The mysterious magician said in a cold, cruel voice, which pierced like a cold dagger at the hearts of the members of the small squad.
Chapter 11 – Dance of the Fire Serpents (part 2)
The seven fire serpents flew at a very high speed, and wherever they passed through, the stone houses nearby immediately began to blaze. The burning flames towered towards the high heavens, an absolutely catastrophic scene. Seeing their homes be disintegrated from afar, the denizens of Comox township, who had long since fled and hidden far away, all felt pain and sorrow in their hearts.
In front of the seven giant fire serpents, their stone houses seemed like naught but toys. They were easily demolished, and the flames in the wreckages rose towards the sky.
“Run!” The female archer no longer cared about anything else. She immediately directed her griffin to fly to a higher altitude.
There was a limit to the dispose at which a fire-element magician would be able to control the seven fire serpents. If the archer and her mount could fly beyond that point, she would be safe.
“Whooooosh.” Two of the blazing fire serpents enveloped the two female magi and the Stone Iron Bull as well. Almost instantaneously, the sound of burning, crackling flesh could be heard, and Mathias thought that he could smell hair burning.
“Big brother Kerry Save us!” The desolate cry of a female magician sounded out, filled with pain, from within the middle of the fire serpent.
“Snort. Snort.” The eyes of the Stone Iron Bull were terrifyingly red, and every single muscle in its body was quivering nonstop. It continuously roared in anger, wanting to charge past through the encircling fire serpents, but unfortunately, the restrictive power of each fire serpent was simply too great.
“Louisa!” The red-haired warrior howled angrily, his voice filled with anguish.
Very shortly afterwards, both female magi and the Stone Iron Bull were reduced to naught but gray ash. But the red-haired warrior no longer had even the opportunity to cry out. He and the other two warriors each had to face an enormous fire serpent of their own as well. In front of the titanic flaming body of the serpents, they seemed to be nothing more than youngsters, incapable of the slightest response.
They had the power to split stone with a single punch, but so what? While constricted by a huge flaming serpent, what could they do?
“Ah!” Surrounded by flaming serpents, the three warriors couldn’t help but let out torturous cries.
As they shouted, their battle-energy vanished, having been demolished. The hissing sound of burning flesh once again could be heard. The muscles on the faces of the three warriors twitched, and their eyes bulged out. All the hair on their bodies was burnt clean in the twinkling of an eye, and following that their skin, their flesh, and their bones. Nothing could withstand the terrifyingly high temperature of the fire serpents.
In a very short period of time, the three formidable warriors had also been reduced to nothing more than dust.
“Huff…huff…”
The female archer’s breath was ragged, but she had finally escaped the boundaries of the Dance of the Fire Serpents.
“Luke…Louisa…big brother Kerry…I will definitely avenge you all. Definitely.” The female archer cried bitterly, and as she did, she directed her griffin to fly still higher.”
“ZZZZT!”
An enormously thick bolt of lightning struck down from the clear, cloudless skies, striking directly down on the totally unprepared archer. Her entire body was turned directly to dust from that strike, while her griffin was scorched black as well. The two of them fell down from the sky, heavily crashing into the stone ground of the town as they crashed through a wooden roof and into the base of a dwelling.
“Want to run? Humph.” The mysterious magician let out a deep snort.
Over a hundred meters away, Davis swallowed hard, his own heart filled with a thread of inescapable fear. “Not only is he a magician of the eighth grade…he is a dual element magician!”
….
“That spell was called Dance of the Fire Serpents?” Mathias was still standing there, totally awestruck.
The sight of those enormous fire serpents and the inferno they had cast had totally shocked Mathias, like he had never been shocked before. Each of the fire serpents was as terrifying as the Purple Demon. Seven of them together? They represented an utter apocalypse. Even the stone houses were disintegrated by their flames.
In the blink of an eye, those four mighty warriors, those two magi, and that archer, as well as their two magical beast companions were utterly destroyed, with the possible exception of that griffin.
The seven fire serpents had disappeared by now, but Mathias could still feel the terrifying, seismic presence and power emanating from the area. The entire battlefield had been annihilated, leaving nothing left but the finest of debris. The debris all radiated tremendous heat, as though testifying to the power of the battle they had just endured.
“Ama…amazing.”
Mathias’s breathing slowly began to stabilize. Swimming in his mind were images of those seven fire serpents, and how they had descended on the battlefield like a catastrophe of power.
Compared to that vision, even the Purple Demon was not as impressive as before.
Mathias’s gaze suddenly turned towards the mysterious magician on the back of the Purple Demon. By appearances, the magician was much smaller and much weaker.
“Just then…just then, was he the one who cast the ‘Dance of the Fire Serpents’?” Mathias really found it a little hard to believe. A person who seemed a full size smaller than Uncle Davis was actually able to cast such an apocalyptic spell.
Mathias’s heart was suddenly filled with dread, as he stared at that far-off, distant figure.
“This…this is what a magician is?” For the first time, the concept of a magician clearly imprinted itself in Mathias’s mind.
At the same time…
Mathias suddenly had a powerful urge to become a powerful magician as well.
“If one day, I too was capable of such a powerful attack…” Fantasizing about it, Mathias felt the blood in his veins boil to the limit. He was in a state of
tremendous excitement.
Right at that moment?
Mathias knew the path that he would take in the future.
To pursue the peak, the pinnacle of power.
“Father!” Mathias suddenly saw that his own father, Alistair. Seeing how Comox township had just suffered an unmitigated catastrophe, as the lord of Comox township, Alistair’s heart was filled with helplessness.
“Don’t make a sound.” Alistair glanced at Mathias, conveying that message with his eyes.
Alistair turned towards the magician, his heart filled with ruefulness. “He’s actually a magician of the eighth grade. And a dual-element magician! Perhaps the entire kingdom of Silver moon has only a handful of people more powerful than him. Someone like him actually came to our little town…”
Alistair’s only desire, at this point, was that the mysterious magician would leave as soon as possible, and let Comox town return to its normal calmness.
The mysterious magician suddenly leapt down directly from the back of the Purple Demon. He was at least two stories up, but he descended easily with a single jump.
Striding up to the ashes of the red-haired warrior, the mysterious magician waved his hands, and the gray ash parted. A Purple, almost translucent-looking diamond suddenly appeared. With a flick of the wrist, the mysterious magician plucked out the Noor Shadow Diamond.
“Ha-ha, the Noor shadow diamond. I searched for you for ten years. Who would have thought that just because today, I decided to pass by this town, I would actually meet you by accident? Ha-ha…Heymans, now that I have this shadow diamond, once I socket it into my staff, I want to see how you will possibly stand against me next time. Ha-ha…” The mysterious magician began to laugh wildly.
Alistair and the other residents of Comox township simply watched quietly from afar, not daring to make a sound, for fear of angering this powerful, mysterious magician.
“Comox town, eh…who leads Comox town?” The mysterious magician suddenly said.
“Father…” Mathias was shocked.
At this point, Alistair had no choice but to stiffen his spine and step forward. He respectfully said, “Mighty lord magician, I am the leader of Comox town.”
“Oh.” The mysterious magician’ face was still covered by his Purple robes, preventing anyone from seeing his face. He lightly said, “Your town suffered some serious damages today. I annihilated this small adventuring party. On their bodies, there is sure to be a good amount of gold coins. The gold coins, no doubt, have been melted and reformed by my ‘Dance of the Fire Serpents’, but they are still worth some money. Just consider them yours, as my recompense for what Comox town just went through.”
Hearing the words of the mysterious magician, Alistair felt a sense of relief.
This mysterious magician probably wouldn’t go kill-crazy now.
“I, Alistair, on behalf of the entire Comox township, would like to thank you for your kindness, lord magician.” Alistair respectfully bowed down.
The mysterious magician lightly nodded, then turned and walked towards the Purple Demon. The Purple Demon immediately knelt down, stretching out his foreleg. The magician stepped onto the Purple Demon’s leg, walked two steps, then easily jumped onto the Purple Demon’s back.
“Humph.” The Purple Demon let out a lazy snort, as two plumes of white smoke once more emanated from its nostrils.
And then, the Purple Demon once more began walking, its heavy footsteps shaking the earth. Watching the enormous creature and the mysterious magician on its back walk far away and disappear off into the darkness, all the citizens of Comox township finally felt their hearts begin to calm down.
Chapter 12 – The Will (part 1)
Only after seeing the magical beast of the seventh grade, the Purple Demon, and its mysterious magician master depart, did Alistair calm down.
“Uncle Troy.” Alistair immediately turned to look at his housekeeper Troy. “Immediately order some people to recover all of the melted gold from within those piles of ashes. This adventuring party was quite extraordinary as well. No doubt, they had a great deal of wealth on them. I hope they had enough to recompense the losses we have suffered today”
Alistair stared in all directions, seeing how so many houses had been reduced to rubble.
“Yes, milord.” Troy nodded.
“Davis.” Alistair turned to look at Davis. Smiling, he said, “What do you think?”
Davis nodded as well. “I was absolutely terrified. When I saw that magical beast of the seventh grade, the Purple Demon, and that mysterious magician, I knew that Comox township didn’t have the slightest ability to fight back in any way. If such an exalted personage as a magician of the eighth grade decided to destroy our town on a whim, I doubt anyone would dare to criticize him, much less sanction or punish him.”
Magi had extremely high social standings.
Normally, even an ordinary magician had the same social standing as a noble.
And a magician of the eighth grade? Even if he was in the presence of a king, he would not need to kneel or show obeisance. He could just chat while staying standing. From this, one could tell how exalted a level an eighth grade magician held.
“Right. So, we should all celebrate the fact that not a single person from Comox town perished today.” Alistair laughed.
“It definitely is worth celebrating,” Davis nodded and laughed as well.
“Davis, take some men to assist Uncle Troy. After finishing up, please address the issue of the commoners who lost their houses.” Alistair instructed.
“Yes, lord Alistair.” Davis assented.
Alistair looked behind him carefully, then asked Davis suspiciously, “Hm? Where did Mathias go? He was just here a moment ago.”
“No idea. Didn’t notice.” Davis shook his head as well.
“My lord, young master Mathias has already gone home.” Troy said from the side. “Although, when he left, he seemed to be in a daze. No clue what he was thinking about.”
Alistair thoughtfully nodded.
==================
If there was one thing which the Tulare clan manor did not lack for, it was rooms. In the days of the Tulare clan’s glories, hundreds of people lived here. The population now was much lower than before. Even an eight-year-old child such as Mathias had his standalone quarters.
Within Mathias’s bedroom.
Mathias was kneeling on the bed, his brow furrowed in thought.
Again and again, the terrifying power of the ‘Dance of the Fire Serpents’ swam about in his mind’s eye. Those seven huge fire serpents and the tempest of flame they generated repeated in his mind over and over again, as well as how they instantly turned everything around them to ash, including the powerful warriors and magi of the small adventuring group.
“Magi are so powerful.”
Mathias felt a thread of desire in his heart. “Although I am a member of the Demonblood Warriors clan, the density of Demonblood in my veins is too low. The fact that anyone with Demonblood is totally unable to utilize any other battle-energy cultivating methods is something which will hold back my ability to develop my warrior abilities to the maximum. I wonder if it would be possible for me to be a magician, instead.”
Mathias suddenly had the desire to become a magician.
“That Purple Demon was terrifyingly powerful as well. If I were to have a Purple Demon, then…”
Mathias began to think back to the awe-inspiring might of the Purple Demon.
It’s lightning-fast, whip-like tail had so easily shattered the stone projectiles aimed at it, and had demolished any houses it touched. Its enormous body resembled huge siege weapons which armies might field in a war. Once it charged forward at a fast pace, considering how tough its scales were, the Purple Demon really would be a terrifying opponent.
“Magical Creatures…I wonder how someone acquires a magical beast.” Mathias desired to have a magical beast of his own as well.
For whatever reason, as he lay on the bed, M
athias simply couldn’t fall asleep. He tossed and turned, his mind filled with images of the Purple Demon and the ‘Dance of the Fire Serpents’ which the magician had displayed.
“Mathias, what’s wrong?” A familiar voice said.
Mathias scrambled to his feet. Raising his head, he saw that it was his father, Alistair. At the moment, a smiling, praising look was on Alistair’s face as he watched Mathias.
“Father.” Mathias said respectfully. Suddenly, Mathias felt confused. “Why is father smiling at me? And with this sort of expression?”
Alistair was extremely strict with Mathias, and rarely smiled at him in such an intimate manner. His current expression made Mathias feel all the more astonished.
“Not bad, not bad,” Alistair said proudly as he looked at Mathias. “You really are a scion of our Demonblood Warrior clan. You have our superior qualities. If a descendant of the Demonblood Warriors were to be terrified of death, terrified of blood, of slaughter, then it would be an absolute joke.”
Upon hearing these words, Mathias immediately understood. His father was happy at how he had not been terrified by the sight of the Purple Demon eating Luke alive.
Mathias said, surprised, “Father, you saw everything?”
“That Purple Demon caused such a stir. How could I not? As soon as the Purple Demon arrived at Comox township, I came out as well, but I was off to a different side. I could clearly see the expressions on your face and on Davis’s,” Alistair nodded.
Mathias grinned.
Back then, aside from the initial bit of panic, he later only felt his blood boil and surge, filling him with a thirst for bloodletting. Mathias, as well, had wondered at the time if it was because of the Demonblood in his veins.
Alistair laughed. “Mathias, did the events of today astonish you so much that you even forgot about dinner?”
“Dinner?” Mathias was startled.
“Rumble.” Mathias’s belly sounded in agreement at this time. Only now did Mathias realize that the evening training hadn’t even begun before the Purple Demon and the mysterious magician arrived.