Why was he trying to give me advice? I wanted to question him, but I didn’t reply; there was no time for it. I tugged at the mana in the air. I felt an invisible hand appear right next to a stack of wooden boxes.
I held another spell at the ready as the Half Elf continued his monologue. "I was like that too, once. When I was still in Ghab-Ha.
"I learned magic because those foolish Humans rejected me. They rejected me for who I was, so I rejected their worldview. They forged a false treaty, pretending that our alliance made us equals. But that was never the case. They saw us as inferior. Their Great Hero wed our Princess, but never cared for our country. And when that foolish woman became Queen, she allowed us to lose our power— lose our place in the world.
"Is it not ridiculous that she teaches us to respect Humans, but doesn’t do anything when they walk all over us with their dirty feet? Even when her daughter— the child of Xander himself— is treated as less than a Lord by the Duke’s and Baron’s of the Holy Xan Empire, she says nothing. I will not allow such disgrace to continue any longer—"
I knocked over the box, toppling the entire stack down onto the ground. It landed with a crash, and Bahr turned to look at the source of the noise. I brought my other arm up, saying the name of the spell and casting it at haste.
"Lighting Strike."
A flash of light illuminated the sky, and a white beam came down from the heavens itself; it struck true and fast, falling down onto the Apostle. He couldn’t dodge. There was no time to dodge. This was a powerful spell that could kill even a Horned Viper. He was—
Still alive.
I stared in shock as Bahr simply stood in front of me, completely unharmed. He was surrounded by a sphere of darkened wood, protecting him from the spell. The Lightning Strike barely left a singe on the wood, only the trail of gray smoke indicated the attack even happened.
"Wooden Shell. It’s a powerful spell. The strongest defensive spell I know— only a Grand Fireball could possibly crack it. Perhaps if you had actually caught me off guard, I wouldn’t have cast it in time— but alas, while that simple Levitation spell manipulated too little mana for me to sense, the same can’t be said for a Lightning Strike. Especially not when quick casting it as you did."
I took a step back as he slowly approached me; I was not completely out of ideas just yet, but it was clear— he was better than me. He was more experienced in fighting with magic, and he had a wider repertoire of powerful spells than me. Was this the difference between an Apostle and a Disciple?
Victor was talented, but he still lacked experience. That Goblin Dark Acolyte was more experienced, but lacked the talent Victor had. But Bahr? He had the skill set of both, and even more.
I warily drew my dagger, realizing that I was going to be pushed to the very brink in this fight; killing him was possible, but highly unlikely. I just had to distract him until the others came to my aid. But… were they even going to come?
I could only put my faith on them to come here in time. If they were too late, I would be skewered and killed by those deadly Wood Spikes. I couldn’t just put my trust on them, could I? The smart thing to do now was run— escape with my life instead of sacrificing myself like an idiot.
And suddenly, I found myself battling with indecision as my death edged closer and closer to me; this was not the time. I had to act now. If not, he would kill me!
Bahr brought a hand up, and I tensed. But he simply smiled.
"This is my last offer to you, Miss," he said softly. He met my gaze, opening his palms up towards the sky. "Come with me. Join us— the Dark Crusaders. We don’t have to be enemies. It would be a waste to kill someone as gifted as you."
Biting my tongue, I caught myself from rebuking his offer. This was a chance. Perhaps I could delay him by talking to him. If I could do that, maybe Braz and Kai would arrive, and we would stand a chance together.
And then, The Lightbringer’s Vessel arrived. It stopped right next to us, finally drawing Bahr’s attention. I had expected him to smile. To grin triumphantly and demand me to give in. But instead, his gaze snapped to it in surprise.
"What?" The Half Elf stared aghast. He turned back to me, face contorting. "So you were the ones who got them to betray me."
I paused, cocking my head. "Betray you? What are you talking about?"
He angrily jabbed a finger in my direction, a spell circle already forming on his other hand as he raised it above his head.
"You— I wanted to spare you. But I have no choice now to kill you!"
I backed up, prepared to flee. To escape, calling it a loss. But a voice interrupted me. A laid back, high pitched voice.
"Kill her? I’m sorry, but I can’t let you do that."
A figure stepped out onto the deck of the ship. It was a young woman with light blue hair and piercing green eyes. She was maybe in her mid to late 20’s. She wore a mix of robes and light travel gear, with mana crystals
