Dragon's Tale 84

I couldn’t help but look at the mages that were closing in, my gaze on the weapons in their hand, each radiating with a distinct magical aura that showed that they were much stronger than the mages they were currently holding. 

Their armament was excessive, even by the lavish standards the secret base had displayed. Yet, their unique nature suggested they were not crafted here, and kept there to be protected — and probably as a part of the experimentation going on here — rather than being a part of the default armament. 

They were being used only due to the emergency nature of my assault. 

If they charged forward recklessly, I would have no chance to defeat them. With the ability they showed deflecting my magic, it would have been a challenging battle even if I had full access to my magic, though I was confident I would be victorious. 

Without my magic, and without an ability to move, it was much different. 

I was only alive, because they were moving forward slowly, careful to defend themselves. Even then, four of them spread in a half-circle, ready to defend the fifth who was going toward the case that held the dragon hearts. 

They were clearly afraid of another spell, but they should be able to see that I was not in a position to react. “It’s the loyalty treatment, it makes it much harder to show initiative,” she explained. 

“Oh, really,” I said as I looked at their spread, trying to suppress my instincts that begged me to push forward and kill the fifth before he could achieve his objective and complete their formation with dragon hearts, using their lack of initiative as a benefit. Yet, that was not possible, not without suffering the backlash from my core. 

Their lack of initiative and adaptation was a good way to distract them, but the pain radiating from my core suggested that any attempt to cast a spell might cost me even more. 

I was glad that they didn’t try to send another warning, because I was not in a condition to using the ward to block that. If I tried that, the backlash would have been spectacular. 

As I thought of a way to handle it, they started to get closer and closer, ready to deliver a deadly assault, highlighting a need to distract them, especially since the fifth member of their little troupe still going toward the platform that held the dragon hearts — through his slow, careful walk as he raised his spear high, ready to deflect, gave me the time I needed to come up with a plan. 

I considered sending another lightning bolt, giving the excuse to pull back, but I was afraid that the weakness of it would embolden them even more. 

Meanwhile, the unfamiliar feeling of foreign magic on my skin distracted me even more. I was certainly not happy to give a healing expert unrestricted access to my body, but I didn’t have a better option at the moment. 

“How long,” I whispered, using a little sliver of magic to prevent others from hearing, a little cantrip like that still in my capabilities despite all the pain and distraction. 

“Fifteen seconds, at a minimum,” she said, which might as well be an eternity in terms of deadly combat, with the disparity that we were facing. 

I decided to bet on their lack of adaptation. 

I slammed my foot on the floor, forcibly creating a large sword, the kind that Germanic berserkers used, overwhelming in its presence, and let my magic on the surface, the lightning crackling along its length. 

It was a domineering view, looking impressive enough to hold against their weapons. Too bad it was just an empty trick. The sword itself was made from rock from the floor, and with the minuscule amount of energy I was able to put on it, it was barely harder than cotton. The lightning on the surface was equally weak, a little trick to give a visual impression that would remind them of the lightning bolts that killed several of their numbers. 

Though, in their defense, their hesitant step back was not entirely due to their lack of adaptation. There was a reason that the lightning element had an infamous reputation for mages despite its potential. It was almost impossible to control, which meant, without the advantages I had, replicating that controlled lightning trick would have expanded a significant amount of mana. 

Combined with their ability, it was not too shocking to enable that. 

I waved the sword threateningly, leaving a white trail behind, and they took another step back. Meanwhile, their fifth member managed to reach the platform. He grabbed five dragon hearts — the smallest ones, I noticed — and moved back toward his allies, who had been watching my intimidating show carefully. 

I loathed to give them the opportunity, but intimidating them to stay away for that ten seconds was all I could afford, still waiting five seconds to fulfill. Barely more than a long breath, but under the circumstances, also the difference between life and death. No matter how intimidating my sword was, they would act after taking the dragon hearts.

I needed something special to shock them, to leverage their lack of adaptability perfectly.  

“Try to continue the treatment despite the shock,” I said to my ally, warning her before I grabbed her arm and pulled her in front of me, and pressed my lips against hers. 

Her eyes widened as my tongue slipped in, exploring her mouth, but luckily, I could feel her magic still dancing inside me. 

It was a ridiculous move to do in combat. So ridiculous that my opponents failed to react completely, their faces frozen as it clashed with their brainwashing. 

Meanwhile, I Pity that the moment was too tense to properly enjoy the body of the exotic beauty pressing against me. I continued kissing her, each second recovering my magic even more. Soon, five seconds came and pass, yet I continued kissing her, giving her even more time to fix my state.  

Unfortunately, even with the brainwashing, they wouldn’t stay like that forever. Soon, they were raising their arms, ready to cast spells empowered by the power of dragon heart, making them even more intimidating. 

Without a warning, I threw my sword at them, triggering an explosion before it could reach its target. 

It was a showy move, but yet again, it was little more than sleight of hand. The flash that went off was nothing, not even enough to rob them of their sight for more than a second or two, and the pieces of the sword that flew around were nothing more than loose piles of sand and small rocks. 

Times like that reputation was most important. Even if their brainwashing didn’t allow them to feel fear, they had just watched me killing half of their compatriots in a single spell, and that was after cutting through their ward — one that was designed to defend against another sorcerer for a decent amount of time — in less than a second. 

With the weight of such a moment, their reaction of pulling back as a group, casting a strong shield around them, was the only logical option. 

Too bad for them that it gave my reluctant — and blushing — ally a chance to further her progress even more. I felt her magic pulling back while I turned toward my enemies, finally with enough magic to resist. Yet, with them properly armed and in a defensive posture, there was no benefit of attacking immediately. 

So, I decided to use the opportunity to take revenge a little revenge on my ally for forcing me here. Rather than pulling back, I used my empty hands to cup her ass and gave a strong squeeze. “Impressive,” I said as I felt the texture. Her ass was small, but despite its size, was surprisingly tight. 

“You’re good to go,” she growled in anger as she pulled back. 

“Try to delay the reinforcements as much as you can manage,” I said to her, not expecting her to resist against that many soldiers, supported by the mages that were still outside due to the unique nature of her mana, lacking the potency of a normal sorcerer to fight against such masses. Yet, delaying them was still an option. “And, maybe we can continue where we left off once we finish it,” I added, unable to resist the temptation. 

Just because I was about to die didn’t mean I would miss the opportunity to flirt with exotic beauty. 

She didn’t appreciate that statement, her anger flashing. Yet, her anger didn’t prevent her from explaining it further. “I’ll do my best. Try to keep your magic use limited, and more importantly, don’t use any lightning,” she warned, though, despite the speed she turned away, she wasn’t able to turn back with the necessary speed. 

“Let’s do it, boys,” I said as I turned to the five that were behind the shield, whose expressions suggested the extent they were tricked, showing signs of anger despite their brainwashing. 

While they processed their anger, I looked around, hoping to find a weapon. Normally, one sorcerer against five mages should have been a gone conclusion with no suspense. Unfortunately, with my ability to use magic limited and theirs enhanced by the dragon hearts they were holding, things were not that simple. 

My restriction to use lightning made it even worse. 

I noticed several weapons sprawled on the ground, their container had been destroyed by my latest spell — or more likely the defensive strategy my enemies used. 

 They were several weapons on the ground, some glowing with ever greater potency than the ones my opponents were using, but I didn’t try to summon them. The weapons of that caliber always came with several layers of protection. 

Yet, before I could turn my attention to the more ordinary kind of weapons used by the ones that fell under my attack, I noticed a spear huddled in a corner. 

A flash of shock passed through my brain! 

It was the Spear of Scipio, a weapon that I was intensely familiar with endless sparring sessions that it had been used against me, wielded by my grandfather until his death.

Yet, it was here, hanging on the wall rather than staying back at my family estate... 

“Like I needed more reason to go back and kill you, uncle,” I growled in anger, my fury rising...