NOVEL WEB Chapter 25: Battle Part 1
The guards around us were all terrified. I was wondering if they would hold the wall. Hopefully once we engaged the enemy they would find their courage. It was time to start. I focused my power to summon an elemental lord and she answered.
“Helloooooooo! Are we going to kill things today?”
It looked like I managed to summon the same one as last time. She seemed rather enthusiastic. “Yes. By the way, do you have a name? I forgot to ask last time.”
“Yes! I am Shani.”, she said.
“So we do have some demons to kill. I will summon a storm that will help. I would like you to keep our backs clear while we engage the demon lord.”
Shani looked towards the forest. By now thousands of demons emerged and marched towards the city. “Yay! That looks like a lot of fun! Try not to die horribly. I would like to be summoned again in the future!” She sounded giddy.
Next Lucy and myself used Storm’s Embrace, a 9th circle spell. It creates an armour of wind that offers protection from attacks. It also allows one to fly. A serious consideration in any magical battle would be dispel magic. A 9th rank spell is very hard to counter. Flying with lower tier magic had the serious risk of an enemy removing the spell while airborne.
While we were preparing Nicholas arrived and landed next to us.
“Amaya, Lucy.” He said in greeting. “William told me you would engage Mantus on your own. I wish you luck. I will do my best to hold the wall.”
I looked at Nicholas and nodded. I was already preparing my next 9th circle spell, Storm’s Wrath. When I said I would cover the area in a storm that is what I was talking about. The spell affected a circle with a 500 metre radius. I aimed the centre at the edge of the forest. That meant it would cover most of the open field in front of the city.
Black clouds formed in the sky. First came the wind and the rain. Then lightning bolts fell from the sky, hundreds of them. They would strike randomly in the area. I had no control of who or what they hit. The storm would last for 15 minutes. Each individual lightning bolt was not strong enough to outright kill a demon but it would weaken them. And many would be hit by more than one.
“Lucy, Shani, let’s go!”
I flew straight into the storm. Shani, being a storm elemental, was immune to lightning, just like Lucy and myself. With black clouds covering the sun it was dark inside the storm. Or it would have been if it were not for the constant lightning striking around us. Screams filled the air as demons were electrocuted, accompanied by the insane laughter of Shani. The elemental lord engaged the enemy with glee.
I flew straight towards Mantus. The lightning bolts hitting him were deflected by a shimmering red shield. He was still just standing there looking at me. He seemed comfortable waiting for my arrival.
“YOU SEEK TO CHALLENGE ME? FOOLISH MORTAL. I SHALL…”
I saw no reason to let him talk. Once I was close I teleported straight behind him and swung my sword at his neck. Unfortunately he managed to dodge most of the strike and I only grazed him.
“INSOLENCE. HOW DARE…”
He seemed to really like talking. Meanwhile, I just tried to stab him. This time he used his sword to parry. Mantus was a lot quicker than he looked. We exchanged a series of blows. It became clear that he was stronger than me but I was faster. For the first time since I entered this world I used the ability of my cloak. While he was focusing on me, a giant purple cat appeared behind the demon. It pounced immediately. The cat’s claws connected with his shoulder and sparks flew. The demon lord answered with magic. Fire erupted from his body in a sphere. I was swallowed by a wall of flame. I had a certain resistance to fire, I had Storm’s Embrace protecting me and still it was not enough. My skin started to blister and I felt pain. The purple cat was gone. That was the power of a demon lord.
While my magical equipment was unharmed my clothes turned to ash. I was now only wearing a breastplate, bracers, boots and a cloak. That was not important though. A giant sword was coming for my head. I used my teleportation spell to get some distance. By pushing it 2 circles higher I was able to make it instant. The blisters on my skin were already healing thanks to my regeneration.
I needed to pin him down and allow Lucy to strike. She was lurking in the area, hiding. Another lightning bolt struck him, blocked by the shimmering shield. Maybe it was time to deal with his magical protections. And I had just the spell for that.