Chapter 11: Elf's Defensive Magic
"I see."
Kurtz felt no particular disappointment at the limitation; he'd only asked out of idle curiosity anyway.
Smithing had never been among his primary interests or goals.
"However," he mused aloud, his mind already racing with possibilities, "perhaps I could develop magic with similar effects. Temporary weapon enchantment, for instance..."
His muttered theorising was quiet enough that only Serie caught the words.
Hearing him, she felt her lips curve slightly upward. She found herself genuinely anticipating whatever unconventional magical solutions her little disciple might devise next.
But for now, it would be better to focus on defeating this presumptuous dwarf who clearly didn't understand what he was getting himself into.
…
In an open clearing not far from the village proper, Kurtz raised his hand and conjured a brilliant Light Arrow that hovered above them like a miniature sun.
The magical illumination banished the evening shadows, creating a natural arena for their impromptu combat demonstration.
He'd also cast a detection spell as a precaution, confirming no monsters lurked in the surrounding forest. The bright light wouldn't attract unwanted attention from predators.
Amuro stared at the floating orb with obvious longing. Such consistent, controllable illumination was far superior to any bonfire for practical purposes.
His fingers twitched with the instinct to reach for something he could never truly grasp.
Not far away, Serie stood with deceptive casualness, her posture relaxed and seemingly unguarded.
Yet something in her bearing made Somo, positioned across from her in the makeshift arena, refuse to underestimate her for even a moment.
He drew a deep, steadying breath and adjusted his grip on the ancestral battle axe. The silver-white blade caught and reflected the magical light, creating dancing patterns across his determined face.
"Ready?" Kurtz called out.
Before Somo could even open his mouth to respond, Serie had already moved.
She raised her hand with fluid grace and unleashed a devastating volley of Light Arrows that filled the air like falling stars.
"Be careful!" Kurtz shouted in alarm, his voice cracking slightly with concern.
If she accidentally killed the young dwarf, this friendly cultural exchange would turn into a diplomatic disaster.
Serie didn't acknowledge his warning. In truth, she had already significantly reduced the power behind her attack, these arrows would at most force Somo to spend a week or two recovering in bed, hardly fatal.
Moreover, if this young dwarf truly intended to venture forth into the Age of Mythology, he needed to prove he could handle unexpected attacks.
If he couldn't even dodge a clear assault like this one, he'd be far better off staying safely within his village walls.
Seeing Serie's sudden, explosive offensive, Somo's eyes went wide with shock. His body's survival instincts kicked in immediately, sending him diving and rolling to avoid the initial barrage.
But just as he completed his desperate evasion, the next wave of attacks followed seamlessly.
Serie's casting rhythm was relentless, each volley timed to catch him as he recovered from dodging the previous one. Somo found himself too slow to maintain pure evasion and was forced to go on the defensive.
He swung his battle axe in wide, sweeping arcs, deflecting the incoming arrows with metallic rings that echoed across the clearing.
But each successful parry sent jarring vibrations up his arms, and the continuous impacts forced him to give ground step by step.
"Let me see how long you can maintain this," Serie said, her smile taking on a distinctly predatory quality.
Somo's breathing grew laboured as he realised the fundamental problem with his current strategy. He couldn't last indefinitely on pure defence.
Serie's magical reserves far exceeded his physical stamina. He needed to seize the initiative and create opportunities for counterattack.
He knew the elf before him was a formidable mage. He'd witnessed her devastating power during the afternoon's battle against the Wolf Fiends firsthand.
But he refused to surrender so easily.
Adventure was his only path to gaining recognition from the villagers. If he could prove himself capable here, perhaps they'd finally see him as something more than the village oddity.
Gathering his courage, Somo suddenly charged forward, his battle axe tracing a brilliant silver arc through the magical light.
"Too slow," Serie observed with clinical detachment.
She didn't even shift her feet. Instead, she simply raised her free hand with elegant economy of motion.
A translucent magical barrier materialised instantly in the air between them.
Somo's axe struck the defensive wall with a thunderous clang, the reverberating shock sending painful vibrations through his hands and up his arms. His grip nearly faltered from the numbing impact.
'Damn elven defensive magic,' Somo thought bitterly.
"If this represents the extent of your abilities," Serie said, raising one eyebrow with aristocratic disdain, "you should surrender now."
She was conducting a professional assessment as much as a combat demonstration: insufficient strength, average agility, but respectable physical conditioning.
His fighting technique showed evident inexperience, though she detected hints of tactical cunning that likely came from Amuro's training and natural, inherited instincts for dwarven combat doctrine.
Ultimately, though, he remained painfully green. His entire combat experience probably consisted of repelling the occasional monster raid on the village.
Faced with Serie's calculated taunting, Somo gritted his teeth and suddenly shifted tactics entirely.
He retreated several quick steps, then released his grip on the battle axe.
The weapon spun through the air in a gleaming arc, while he simultaneously circled around Serie's flank and drew two smaller throwing axes from his back harness.
The kid came prepared for versatility, and his tactical adaptation showed genuine cleverness.
Kurtz, observing from the sidelines, nodded with grudging approval. Serie's magical barrier only protected the space directly in front of her.
By attacking from multiple angles simultaneously, Somo had created a genuine tactical dilemma that couldn't be solved with simple positioning.
"Oh?" A flash of genuine surprise flickered through Serie's golden eyes.
A new magic circle materialised in her palm, and she unleashed another large-scale Light Arrow volley with devastating efficiency.
Her barrier deflected the spinning battle axe, while the concentrated arrow rain intercepted and destroyed both throwing axes mid-flight. Simultaneously, several arrows impacted the ground directly in Somo's path, forcing him to skid to an abrupt halt to avoid impaling himself.
"Good tactical thinking," Serie acknowledged with something approaching respect, "but far too many exploitable weaknesses."
From beginning to end, she hadn't moved so much as a single step. Her overwhelming magical superiority was becoming embarrassingly apparent.
Somo stared at the destruction around him, his throwing axes reduced to splinters, scorch marks where Serie's arrows had struck the earth, his own breathing ragged from exertion.
The gap between them wasn't just large; it was an unbridgeable chasm.
But instead of despair, something stubborn and defiant flared in his eyes.
He recalled the runes carved into his ancestral weapon, the patterns his grandfather had spent years perfecting. There was one more enchantment he could try, though using it would be incredibly risky.
Somo raised his battle axe high, and the runes along its blade began to glow with brilliant red light.
"Somo, no!" Amuro shouted from the sidelines, recognising what his son was about to attempt. "That enchantment is too dangerous!"
But the young dwarf had already committed to his course of action.
He charged forward one final time, pouring every ounce of his remaining strength into the assault. As his axe struck Serie's renewed barrier, the weapon's explosive enchantment activated.
"Boom!"
The blast wave tore up chunks of earth and sent debris flying in all directions.
If Amuro hadn't warned the village beforehand, every dwarf in the settlement would probably be running toward them in a panic right now.
Through the swirling dust and smoke, Serie's golden hair fluttered gently in the artificial breeze. Her magical barrier had completely vanished, though she herself appeared entirely unharmed.
"That was reckless beyond belief!" Kurtz strode forward, his voice sharp with concern and relief.
Seeing that Serie had emerged from the blast without injury, his anxiety finally began to subside. He turned toward Amuro with obvious displeasure.
"You could have mentioned that particular enchantment beforehand," he said accusingly.
Amuro looked genuinely embarrassed, scratching his head with one massive hand. "Ahem. I honestly didn't expect this rebellious son of mine to attempt something so desperate. Thank the gods Miss Serie emerged unscathed."
Somo himself had been caught in his own weapon's blast radius and now lay unconscious several yards away, thrown clear by the explosion's force.
Apart from his armour being somewhat scorched and blackened, he appeared physically uninjured, though his pride had undoubtedly taken a severe beating.
"Are you hurt?" Kurtz asked, approaching Serie with visible concern.
"I'm perfectly fine." Her tone carried a hint of surprise rather than injury. "I simply didn't expect him actually to manage breaking through my magical barrier."
She found herself genuinely impressed by Somo's reckless fighting style, despite its obvious flaws.
Ever since that embarrassing incident where she'd been caught off-guard by Kurtz's Light Arrow, she'd developed the habit of maintaining layered defensive enchantments at all times.
Therefore, Serie had emerged from the encounter virtually unharmed, having lost only a negligible amount of magical energy.
"However," she continued thoughtfully, "he must have committed his full power to destroying that barrier. Otherwise, it would be impossible to breach elven defensive magic through brute force alone."
Elven magical barriers represented the pinnacle of defensive spellwork in this world. The fact that Somo had managed to shatter hers, even with magical assistance and at considerable cost, was genuinely unprecedented in her experience.
She found herself looking at the unconscious dwarf with something approaching respect.
"Could you teach me that technique?" Kurtz asked, studying the space where Serie's barrier had manifested with obvious envy.
Having reliable defensive magic would dramatically improve his survival odds during future encounters.
"Very well," Serie agreed readily.
Amuro approached them with obvious embarrassment written across his bearded features. "My deepest apologies, Miss Serie. I should have warned you about the axe's explosive capabilities."
"He possesses considerable talent," Serie replied, her calm tone filling the patriarch with unexpected delight. "Given proper training and experience, he could develop into a truly formidable warrior."
To be able to forcefully breach elven defensive magic through raw determination, even with magical enhancement, was something Serie had never witnessed before. The achievement spoke to both skill and courage, qualities that would serve any adventurer well.
If she weren't a mage herself, Amuro might have begged her to take Somo as an apprentice on the spot.
Neither of them noticed that the supposedly unconscious dwarf's ears had begun twitching slightly as he listened to their conversation.
__________________
Check out more than 30+ chapters right now! 🔥
👉 patreon.com/Mr UmU
https://www.patreon.com/Mr_UmU
__________________