Chapter 18: Chase
Dwarf Somo, who hadn't been seen for nearly a week, suddenly appeared before Kurtz, who couldn't hide the surprise on his face.
The dwarf's armour bore dents, his beard matted with dried blood that wasn't entirely his own. Dark circles shadowed his eyes, and his usual boisterous energy had been replaced by grim determination.
"Somo?" Kurtz stepped forward quickly, catching the dwarf as he swayed. "Why are you here?"
Somo panted with difficulty, each breath a visible effort. "I—I encountered the Demons."
He pointed towards the depths of the swamp with a trembling hand. "They have countless monsters with them. They're surrounding both of you."
The words hit like ice water. Ever since Serie had easily defeated him last time, Somo had nursed his wounded pride in silence.
During this time, he had been following their footsteps from afar, always just beyond the edge of their perception.
He had originally planned to wait until he became stronger, then appear before them at the perfect moment and formally request to adventure with them.
A dramatic entrance, maybe saving them from some minor threat. Something to prove his worth.
But plans never survive contact with reality.
After watching Kurtz and Serie enter the Death Swamp, he followed without a second thought. His heart hammered against his ribs as he tracked their path, but determination overrode caution.
However, he lacked detection magic and couldn't avoid the monsters lurking in the fetid waters. He had plunged headfirst into the monster horde like a fool, battle axe swinging wildly as claws and fangs found gaps in his armor.
Fortune had smiled on him, barely. The Demon Race in this area had focused all their attention on Kurtz, or rather, Serie.
That singular obsession had created just enough chaos for Somo to fight his way out, leaving a trail of monster corpses behind him.
Then he had stumbled upon Kurtz and Serie.
Time pressed urgently, and Somo didn't have the luxury of detailed explanations. His words came out in gasps, each sentence a struggle.
But even this slight delay allowed the surrounding monster horde to close in. The air itself seemed to thicken with malevolent presence.
Serie's golden eyes hardened, pupils dilating as she extended her magical senses. "They're here."
The temperature seemed to drop several degrees. Branches creaked overhead without wind, and something large moved through the murky water nearby.
"Can you still fight?"
Kurtz examined the dwarf carefully.
Though Somo panted and blood covered him, looking like death warmed over, most of the crimson staining his armor belonged to monsters; his wounds were shallow, painful, but not debilitating.
"I can." Somo drew a long, shuddering breath, forcing his shoulders straight. His grip on his battle axe tightened until his knuckles went white.
"Serie, do you know healing magic?"
Serie's expression remained impassive. "Impossible. Only by interpreting the holy scripture can one learn healing magic."
Kurtz slapped his forehead, frustration mixing with embarrassment. Of course, how had he forgotten something so fundamental?
Magic wasn't just about power; it required a proper understanding and a solid foundation.
He made a mental note: add interpreting the holy scripture to his ever-growing list of skills to master.
"We can only force our way out," Serie said, her voice carrying that familiar note of cold calculation.
The monsters closed fast, within twenty meters now. The surrounding bushes shook violently, and dozens of crimson eyes gleamed like burning coals in the encroaching darkness.
Something roared in the distance, answered by another, then another. The sound made Kurtz's blood run cold.
"Hurry!" The situation deteriorated by the second. Serie didn't waste time on elaborate strategies. Her fingers closed around Kurtz's wrist with surprising strength. "Keep up!"
She directed the latter command at Somo, who hefted his battle axe and nodded grimly.
Serie raised her free hand, mana gathering around her fingers like liquid starlight. This wasn't her usual precise Light Arrow; this was something far more devastating.
Pure, overwhelming force.
A pillar of light materialised above the monster horde blocking their path, hanging in the air like a sword of judgment. For a heartbeat, everything went silent. Then it dropped with the fury of a falling star.
The explosion was deafening. White light seared through the swamp, turning night into blazing day for one terrible moment. The shockwave knocked Kurtz back a step, and even Serie's eyes watered from the intensity.
"Incredible," Kurtz breathed, awe mixing with terror.
When the light finally dissipated, a vast crater stretched before them, easily tens of meters wide.
Everything within that circle of destruction had been reduced to ash: monsters, trees, even the swamp water had boiled away, leaving only scorched earth behind.
Before Kurtz could fully process what he had witnessed, Serie pulled him forward into the devastated corridor she had carved.
For Serie to display such urgency, to use magic he had never seen before, the situation was more dire than he had imagined.
Smoke and superheated air continued to rise from the blast zone. Kurtz could feel the burning heat through his boots as Serie dragged him across the steaming ground. Each step kicked up small clouds of ash that had once been living creatures.
Somo followed close behind, his battle axe gleaming as he activated its enchantment. The weapon's magic hummed to life, and he brought it down on the first monster that dared pursue them. The beast exploded in a shower of gore and bone.
"Take the right side!" Somo shouted over the chaos.
Three crocodilian monsters burst from the remaining undergrowth, their scaled hides glistening with swamp water and malice.
They moved with frightening speed, powerful tails propelling them forward as their jaws gaped wide. More shapes moved in the shadows, too many to count.
Serie didn't even slow down.
Three Light Arrows materialised and flew with deadly precision, each one finding its mark. The monsters' heads exploded mid-leap, their corpses crashing to the ground in sprays of blood and brain matter.
Kurtz lacked Serie's surgical precision, so he opted for overwhelming firepower instead. His Arrow Rain spell lit up the swamp like a festival of death, dozens of magical projectiles ripping through the monsters attacking from the left. Their screams echoed through the night.
"Stay close to me!"
Serie's grip on his wrist tightened almost painfully. Though she already pulled him along, if Kurtz stumbled or fell behind, she wasn't sure she could reach him in time.
The thought of losing him sent an unfamiliar chill through her chest.
She should have chosen the detour. Should have listened to her instincts instead of his curiosity about the swamp's secrets.
Too late for regrets now.
"What do monsters generally rely on to catch prey?"
The question came out of nowhere, startling Serie even as they ran. But she answered automatically, her mind already working ahead to his reasoning. "Most rely on sight and scent."
"Then I have a way."
Kurtz ran while weaving magic, snatching up a fallen branch without breaking stride. Water and Fire magic flowed through him simultaneously, the opposing elements fighting each other in his grasp.
His Fire Magic was imperfect; it couldn't generate flames from nothing, requiring fuel or an igniter. But Water Magic came naturally, responding to his will like an extension of his body. He still didn't understand why.
The branch ignited just as water condensed around it. Steam hissed and billowed, expanding rapidly into thick, choking fog. Within seconds, their entire section of swamp disappeared into a gray-white wall of vapour.
The monsters' coordination shattered instantly. Roars of confusion filled the air as creatures crashed into trees, into each other, into nothing at all. Some began fighting their own allies in the chaos.
"Amazing!" Somo's grin was fierce and bloodthirsty, but he spun without warning, battle axe cleaving through the air. "Watch your back!"
A massive serpent, easily as thick as a tree trunk, had been sliding through the mist toward them. Somo's axe caught it perfectly, splitting the creature in half. Foul-smelling blood sprayed in all directions, hissing where it hit the ground. Somo danced backwards, avoiding the poisonous discharge.
"Did you create this?"
Serie's voice carried a note of genuine surprise as she felt the chaos rippling through the ranks of the monsters around them.
"You saw me putting out campfires before, right? Water and fire create steam."
Serie nodded slowly; she had indeed watched Kurtz extinguish their nightly fires, often standing motionless afterwards, staring at the rising smoke with intense concentration. She had assumed he was simply lost in thought.
Now she understood. He had been experimenting, developing this technique through trial and error.
"Don't get bogged down in battle!" Serie's sharp command cut through Somo's growing battle fury.
The dwarf had been eyeing the blinded monsters with obvious intent, his axe practically vibrating with eagerness to continue the slaughter.
But Serie was right, in the dense fog, they were barely visible to each other. Move too far apart, and they would become as lost as their enemies.
She raised both hands, and brilliant light erupted from her body like a miniature sun. The halo expanded outward in waves, and every monster it touched shrieked in agony before collapsing.
Then she shifted to a different magic entirely. Green light flickered between her fingers as Plant-type magic responded to her will. Thorny vines erupted from the swamp floor behind them, weaving together into an impenetrable barrier of razor-sharp thorns.
The pursuing monsters slammed into the wall with bone-crushing force. Their howls of pain and rage echoed through the mist, but the barrier held.
This was the first time Kurtz had seen Serie use Plant magic in all their days together. Now he understood her preference for Light magic, where her radiant spells killed instantly, Plant magic seemed designed for control and containment.
Support rather than annihilation.
Both had their place, but in a situation like this, Serie's ruthless efficiency was exactly what they needed.
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