Chapter 193 - 183

With Rhea preparing to cast a transmutation spell on their enemies and Elia busy dealing with the other melee fighters, Nick had to face everyone else. Up until now, that hadn't been a problem. Everyone they had to fight could either be overwhelmed by sheer power or outsmarted, but these particular individuals seemed determined not to fit into either of those categories. The dwarves kept using their weird, almost invisible mind magic, which forced Nick to use [Spirit Blast] repeatedly to disrupt them, lest they interrupt Rhea. At the same time, the bearkin wailed on his [Force Barrier], and while Nick felt he could have hunkered down and resisted the assault if he had nothing else to worry about, he remained a novice at spiritual magic, and casting [Spirit Blast] consumed too much of his attention to reinforce the shields as much as he should have. This was demonstrated when, rather than just punching, the bearkin opened his mouth and unleashed a point-blank beam of light at him. The [Force Barrier] shattered for the first time in a long while, opening the way. The long claws at the ends of the bearkin's paws made it obvious that he would be disemboweled if he allowed them to reach him. Still, Nick was nothing if not prepared, and so the bearkin ended up slamming into his [Wind Armor], failing to find purchase. "Surprise." He grinned, punching out with his left hand and unleashing a [Jet Stream] straight into his chest. The bearkin went flying back, tumbling, and finally, Nick had the wherewithal to strike back at the dwarves, summoning several more [Jet Streams] and forcing them to duck. The spells crashed into the ground, unleashing powerful gusts of wind that spiraled upward, but only managed to delay another barrage. They are annoyingly fast for being so stocky. Winning so often might have inflated his ego a bit too much, because Nick was becoming increasingly frustrated with his inability to eliminate them. Even worse, the bearkin stood up, revealing that while [Jet Stream] had caused some damage, as shown by the extensive bleeding from a wound in his chest, he wasn't done yet. If anything, he seemed even stronger as he crossed the distance in a flash, his paw crackling with ominous light. Instead of remaining passive and tanking the hit as he had up to this point, Nick chose to shake things up. He couldn't exactly move too far since Rhea was still busy preparing her spell, but that didn't mean he couldn't use the environment to his advantage. [Minor Elemental Manipulation] had become a familiar spell for him, and although he couldn't use it to create powerful attacks, it was more than capable of altering the landscape. The ground opened up just as the bearkin took the last step to reach Nick, causing him to stumble. Simultaneously, another wave of invisible, mind-altering magic surged, but Nick didn't bother counteracting this time. The dwarves had made the mistake of assuming he was disrupting their spells out of fear. This was perfectly understandable, given that Nick had done his best to prevent them from landing even a single attack, but this time, he didn't do anything to stop them. Instead, he used the time to summon a much more powerful spell. After all, he had set things up. It would be a waste not to use it. [Wind Burst] slammed into the dwarves from the skies above, completely blindsiding them. It wasn't a spell Nick used often these days, given how much more effective [Vacuum Sphere] was, but in this instance, it turned out to be just perfect. The ground around them cratered as a powerful downburst howled, slamming them hard into the ground and even disrupting Elia's fight by knocking one of her opponents aside. That gave her the leeway to backflip away from a particularly vicious thrust that she would have had to tank otherwise, while simultaneously unleashing another wave of flames, this time tinged with silver. They emerged much faster, engulfing the surprised ranger who had made the mistake of thinking he had her measure. A paw slammed into Nick, staggering him. The bearkin looked confused for a moment, clearly having expected that to carve right through him, but it was too late for regrets. This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author's consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. Nick didn't even need to do anything. "[Transmute!]" echoed from behind him, and the massive enemy had a moment to realize he'd forgotten Nick wasn't alone before a scream ripped from his throat as his limbs began turning into stone. Fear and pain were powerful sources of strength, and he erupted into a corona of mana, desperately trying to stop the petrification of his flesh, but that was the wrong choice to make. Rhea may have needed time to cast her magic, but she was no slouch, and her understanding came directly from Ogden. There was no way that uncontrolled bursts of mana would defeat her. Nick hardly paid the bearkin any attention, considering him already dead. Now that he was finally free to move, he truly began participating in the battle in earnest. Elia had done a great job keeping the other enemies occupied and had even eliminated one, but it was clear that she wasn't accustomed to fighting so many thinking beings at once. [Spirit Blast] after [Spirit Blast] rained down on them, dropping them like flies as Nick channeled his emotions into the magic, hurting something much more delicate than their flesh. It was interesting to note that those who were hit didn't die on the spot like the rock worm had. Rather, they seemed to shut down, overwhelmed, and fell to the ground, unresponsive to external stimuli. "Enough!" A voice rumbled, and Nick was surprised to find that one of the dwarves, the one he'd marked as more dangerous, was still well enough to stand, despite having taken a [Wind Burst] directly. He must have a very high CON. The other one was still face down in the mud, broken. A significant amount of mana started to build up as the dwarf's eyes blazed with fury. Grey mist began to cover the battlefield, and Nick knew that allowing him to launch that attack would be very bad. Even with the spell incomplete, Nick could already see Elia stumble, as if she couldn't tell which way was up or down. Surprisingly, her last opponent also appeared to be affected, which explained why the dwarf had waited so long to cast such a powerful spell. If this is just the beginning, it will be impossible to fight if it completes. Just as he was about to try to disrupt the magic with more spiritual attacks, he felt a spark of alien hunger. It took him a moment to realize where it was coming from, and a devious smile spread across his face. Unsheathing his dagger and coating it with a powerful [Jet Stream] took only a moment. He didn't even need to guide it, as the spirit within seemed to have locked onto the dwarf. Whatever he was trying to do, the remnant within the dagger wanted to consume it, and so Nick, as a generous owner, allowed it. The dagger shot from his hand, crossing the distance in a flash. To his credit, the dwarf noticed it coming and, with a grunt of irritation, redirected some of his mist in its path, perhaps thinking it would be enough to stop the seemingly desperate attack. Dark power erupted, and the dagger pierced through without slowing, even as the mist swirled angrily, as if someone had taken a bite out of it. A thump. A groan. The dwarf fell, and the mind-altering mist cleared. The snap of bones that followed as the dagger greedily fed on his corpse was nauseating, but Nick didn't particularly care, as he quickly began to snipe the last enemy, who was clearly still woozy from the mist. It didn't take long for silence to fall. CONGRATULATIONS! You have participated in the defeat of [Emor the Big Game Hunter - Lv. 60] … .. . You have participated in the defeat of [Tundur Brainleaker - Lv. 48] + 146.250 Exp Just level forty-eight? I would have sworn that damn dwarf was much stronger. It was unfortunate that the dagger had likely taken much of the exp he would have gained from his defeat, and probably rendered the corpse useless, but at least he still had the other one. Walking over, he crooked a finger and turned the last living enemy so that he was facing up. His face was a mess, as blood had flowed down his cracked skull. His bones were broken and, in parts, flattened. He was wheezing softly, evidently having trouble getting enough oxygen into his collapsed lungs. Given that he had been struck by [Wind Burst] at point-blank range without any chance to defend himself, it was surprising that he was even alive. Unfortunately, Nick doubted that they could obtain much information from him. "Let me." He heard Rhea say, and shrugged, gesturing for her to have at it. She took out a vial and tipped it into the dwarf's mouth, causing the ragged wheezes to cease. "If you tell us what we want, I can heal you." She quickly pulled out another vial, this one thin and golden, and held it in front of his eyes. A light of recognition and hope flickered, and for a moment, Nick thought they might actually get a reasonable enemy. With some effort, the dwarf shook his head, closing his eyes as if to ward off the offer. "I gave you a temporary stasis brew. If you don't consume the elixir, you'll revert to your previous state in just a few minutes. And you will die." Rhea tried again, annoyed. "We just want some answers about your presence in the temple and why two dark dwarves would ever get this far from the mountains." The dwarf remained motionless. He had clearly heard them, yet no response was forthcoming. Either he believed they'd kill him anyway, or the stories about their legendary stubbornness were true. "You know what, I don't think you guys came here voluntarily," Nick said abruptly. There was something strange about this entire situation. Sure, an abandoned temple might make sense as a secret base for a bandit camp, but the people here hadn't acted like typical bandits. They were certainly strong enough to intimidate the nearby farming communities, and given that Nick hadn't seen a single female, they likely would have wanted to get their hands on some pretty girls. However, there was no loot lying around, nor any signs of people having been held here against their will. This, combined with their hunting down of every aggressive monster in the area, painted a different picture he was only now beginning to see. "I think you were ordered to come here and to take over a defensible position." He concluded, and that was enough to get a reaction. The dwarf's eyes twitched open, and Nick was surprised to see a profound depth of spite and dark amusement. "It doesn't matter." He croaked. "What doesn't matter?" "It is too late. The Sleeping One is about to be awakened. Nothing matters anymore." And before Nick could ask for clarification or even curse the dwarf out, he began shaking. Softly at first, as if he were rocking himself, but it quickly grew stronger, until the dwarf was thrashing. A cackle erupted from his throat, wild and desperate, as mana Nick hadn't even known he possessed began to build up. All Nick could do was grab the girls and summon the most powerful [Force Shield] he could, putting all his available mana into it. The detonation that followed shook the ground, sending a plume of fire into the sky and consuming them completely. Purple flames roared and raged around the spherical barrier for several seconds, and Nick could feel them clawing at his magic, looking for purchase. They didn't, but had Nick been just a bit sloppier in his casting, he knew he would have died. He waited another minute after the fires died down, staring at the spot where the dwarf had once been. Only a charred husk remained.