The most decrepit tub, with a magically reinforced hull that any mage could provide, and propelled forward by the power of wind or water, could achieve fantastic speeds. As a result, all trading vessels had mages as captains and senior officers; ordinary people in these positions were rarely seen, even among pirates.
Marta Tap, a native of Ur, had a maritime specialization, but her father's will had sent her far to the north and assigned her the role of a battle mage. The vampire could not pass up such valuable blood and gladly accepted the Archmage's offer to travel together. All that remained was to wait for the opportunity to touch his skin and collect a few precious drops.
— Can you really detect goblins before they attack? — the mage asked as soon as the detachment left the city.
— Yes, I can.
— Won't you share the secret? — the girl asked playfully, too playfully considering that in the mage community such a question might even get one struck. Keeping valuable secrets among the gifted was a skill not only possessed by ordinary people.
The vampire merely smirked and shook his head quietly. The Archmage, observing his reaction with curiosity, sighed in disappointment. Apparently, it was the Archmage who was interested in the spell, and the girl asked the question at his behest. Which, in general, made sense—why would one need surveillance spells at sea?
And it seemed the mage was not at all pleased with the request, for although she had complied, she would have preferred not to do so. Even a child, before turning to important matters, asks a few questions on unrelated topics to start the conversation. Alexander decided not to ease the task for his companions and remained silent, merely shaking his head.
— Would you mind if we stop for the night at the Cursed Bridge and you show me the battlefield and tell me how the battle went? — the Archmage took the initiative.
— With pleasure, but it would be better to choose the Duke or one of his officers as the storyteller. I participated in that battle rather than observing it from the sidelines, so I might miss some details, — the vampire was, of course, blatantly lying. The blood memory of dozens of participants and observers of that battle made him an ideal candidate, but he simply did not want to be the personal guide for the commander.
— I am interested in your observations as a mage. This summer, I took on the role of a battle mage for the first time and want to compare the experiences. Moreover, it wasn't new to you.
— Then as a reciprocal favor, tell me how the Archmages of Orod fought, — it was worth spending the travel time on some conversation other than the weather, and the topic was indeed interesting, as all three Orodian mages possessed skills far removed from combat, with one of them being a Life mage.
— They didn't fight at all! — Dukon said in frustration, — That's the problem! Shields were raised over the army formations as if they were made of iron! Nothing could penetrate them! And they didn't even try to attack, leaving that privilege to other mages. On our side, it was the opposite. I attacked while artifacts provided the defense. The battles were foolish. In one, there were no casualties, on either side!
— And what did you use to attack? "Water Scythes"?
— If I had known that spell, I would have used it, but instead, I used "Poison Rain," "Water Whip," "Water Spear," and "Sticky Fog." The last one was the most effective.
"Well! He doesn't know the common 'Water Scythes' among water mages, but openly uses the rare and almost forgotten spell 'Sticky Fog'."
The vampire spoke aloud, something quite different.
— It's not surprising. The "Sticky Fog" forms directly around the specified point, and you can set it right in the middle of the battle formation.
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