As I push forward, a shiver runs down my spine. Cold, threatening, a threat of my biggest fears, of what I don't want to ever happen.
Kathrina flashes through my mind the moment I see Aurelia in the ground with a wound of a spell that managed to pierce her.
I am not letting that happen again, not if I can stop it!
From the smoke comes other two casts of [Death Ray]. I block one with [Magic Shield], but the other forces me to dodge, grasping my arm.
[You are severely injured!]
I see my HP drop to 30% just from that spell.
"What an interesting group... I almost lost you all but I guess luck is on my side." The woman behind the smoke speaks. "I heard so many big things about you... Aurelia."
Aurelia? Not me?
Maybe what I wanted for her to be the threat is working, but I don't want her to get killed!
The smoke resides, and now I can see who is on the other side hurling the spells in our direction.
What I see is a woman, wearing a red uniform, tall, blonde long hair and red eyes. She is a human, and in her chest is an Eye.
She is a member of the Eye of Right!
She is an attractive woman, with an almost seductive posture standing in front of us like a menace that is coming our way. I growl when I see her, feeling the heavy aure that is coming from her.
"Oh?" She sees me, and starts to laugh. "Hahaha… interesting. Aren't you that mage girl, Amber? I heard you lost all your power!"
"Who gave you that information?" I ask her.
"Does it matter?" She answers with a smug smile, leaning forward. "All I care about is defeating the one that managed to make Maxwell escape with injuries!"
"What? Are you that loser's lover?" Aurelia asks.
I was going to ask the same.
"He wishes! But anyone that can beat him, is my next target! And you, dragon, managed to beat him! My name is Kaira, it is a pleasure!"
"Heh, you guys are idiots because who…"
I tap her with the tip of my scabbard. She shouldn't reveal this is different! She believes I am weaker than my current state! No one knows about my sword.
"Because what?"
"B-because… because I will kick all your asses!" She screams and stands up.
Lisa starts praying and heals her with [Light Heal] and then Blesses us.
"It barely healed me…" Aurelia says.
I don't know how much HP she has, and Lisa's healing spell is a low level one, it does not surprise me. She is a healer, but she still needs to increase her skills.
"It doesn't matter…" Aurelia buffs us. "I will break your neck…!"
"Stand back!" I order her when she takes a step forward.
"Huh?"
"I said, back!" I order her again. "Do not engage!"
"What the-?! The hell I will!"
"Take Lisa and the old man and leave, I will deal with her." I order.
"What is your problem?! Did that spell have a stupify effect?!" She is growling at me.
"I am not repeating myself! I am not letting you die!"
"What the-?! You are even dumber than I thought!"
"Is this a lover's quarrel?" The woman asks. "You know there are people around you two, right?"
"Shut up!" Aurelia answers.
And she starts running with a swing of her scythe!
"No!" I scream.
"[Etherial Daggers]!" The woman casts.
Several daggers made of ethereal energy, purple and transparent, appear behind her and floating just right over her head. Those do Pure Magic damage, they have no elemental modifiers!
And with her magic capacity, they should be capable of killing an already damaged Aurelia!
Each weapon, with the speed of a cheetah, throws themselves towards Aurelia at her face. And is faster than she can react!
"[V-vines]!" I cast at Aurelia, yelling the spell, and forcing her down to the ground.
Shit! I did that in a panic to push her down! I notice my mistake, but it was what came to my mind in the heat of the moment as I feared the spell would kill her.
"Fuck! What the hell are you doing?!" Aurelia screams.
In exchange, the daggers drop at my feet. "Ah!" I scream as each one hit around me, breaking floor and stone, creating a cloud as it made the dust rise.
"Poor thing." The woman says. "To think she would try to stop you from dying." She starts walking towards her.
"What the hell is wrong with you idiots that want to show off that much?" Aurelia says. "Stop talking and fight!"
"It is fun." She says and prepares to cast a spell. "[Fire-]"
Aurelia manages to break from the vines as I am not constantly trying to keep them on. With the agility of a cat, she turns her body completely from the ground, helping her take a fast and strong swing of her scythe against the mage before she can cast her spell.
Kaira finds herself forced to cancel her spell and block with a Magic Barrier, like the one the Lich used. With a loud clank and shattering noise, the blade's tip hits and breaks through the barrier and almost hits Kaira.
I step forward, having barely received any damage from the spell, and I pull out a Magic Bullet wand and start casting it, making sure Kaira has to stay on the defensive.
"So thats- SHIT!" She curses after stopping one of the bullets. "How you have been alive! Items!"
More than that.
My last attempt at casting fizzles away as the wand runs out of casts.
"Ha!" Kaira laughs, happy that she did not get damaged from my attacks. "Lousy mage! Depending on items to…"
ZAP ZAP ZAP!
Three electric bolts hit her in the back as Karina uses another of my wands against her, and they all hit her!
The damage was substantial, as the System indicates, and she trips forward.
Aurelia steps forward and slashes upwards with her scythe, the blade throwing sparks as it slices through the stone floor, causing more damage with a direct hit!
The impulse sends her flying to the end of the hallway.
"If you do that shit again…!" Aurelia says without looking back, her eyes still forward, audibly pissed off. "I swear I will not hold back against you!"
"I…" I try to think of what to say. Come on! At least apologize you fucking idiot!
But I cannot do it. I don't have time.
Because Kaira impulses herself from the end directly at Aurelia with her face dark as a black hole, only the red eyes visible.
"[Scythes of Curse]" she casts, and two pulses of energy appear on her side, moving with destructive speed at Aurelia's neck.