Chapter 455 - Trials and Tribulations V

  Chloe watched her mistress with a strained smile as they crossed the mountains on dogback. It was early in the morning. The frenzy and the subsequent moment of repose had both come to an end, and the monster density was back up to its daily peak. But at Arciel’s behest, the pooch was no longer making detours or otherwise attempting to avoid any of the monsters along the path. The birds and beasts in question were simply obliterated, deleted in an instant by the magic that poured from the tip of the vampire squid’s wand.

  “Are you sure you’re not wasting too much mana?” asked Chloe.

  The queen, who was dressed in a fresh set of clothes, had been attacking nonstop for the better part of an hour. It wasn’t like she was just throwing out her costless cantrips. The individual spells left clear marks in the mountains. Sometimes, she would punch holes in the terrain, leading to devastating avalanches and landslides. Others, she would obliterate the summits outright, leaving nothing in their wake but a clear view of the sky. The most terrifying part of all was that the power was entirely her own. No longer was her firepower locked behind the presence of the moon.

  “There is little reason to be concerned,” said Ciel. “I require only a moment to restore any mana spent.”

  “Are you sure? I know you’ve ascended, but it still seems like you might be going a little overboard.”

  “I have yet to leverage any of the functionality I unlocked in the wake of my ascension.” The queen puffed up her mathematically correct chest and twisted her lips into a devilishly proud smile. “Certainly, there has been a reduction in the cost of my attacks, but it has yet to prove consequential given the little I have demonstrated.”

  “I don’t remember any of your attacks being quite this potent.”

  “The increase in firepower followed shortly after our separation.” Arciel raised her fan to her lips and hid another smug grin. “I discovered, during my fourth consecutive day of desperately casting without rest, that I needed only a sacrifice of blood to empower my attacks. From then I simply mingled it with my mana to increase my output tenfold,” she explained. “I later discovered a similar multiplicative increase upon linking my circuits to my veins directly.”

  “You did what!? How did you even manage that!?”

  “I was quite fortunate. Were it anything but a full moon that night, I doubt I would have survived the procedure. I have learned now that perhaps it is not wise to perform surgery on oneself, regardless of whether the task is assigned to an autonomous summon.”

  Chloe felt like she was going to faint. She had certainly been able to tell that her mistress’ blood had seemed a little more magically attuned than usual, but she was too panicked to think much of it at the time. The usual response to such an insane operation was instant death. Sure, blood was packed with magic and capable of functioning as an excellent catalyst for all sorts of spellwork, but magic circuits were specialized organs. One could not simply fill them with a completely different substance and expect them to retain their function. That was one of the very first lessons that Chloe had learned from Allegra, after becoming a mage.

  “Isn’t that really dangerous? Are you okay?”

  “It was hardly a risk compared to any of the insanity that Claire has attempted for power.”

  Chloe smiled awkwardly. She wasn’t about to say it out loud when her mistress was so enthusiastic, but Claire clearly wasn’t the best example.

  “Did you just say you slung spells for four straight days?”

  “I did,” said Arciel. “I must admit, while he is certainly rather suspicious, Panda serves well as a guide. He provided precisely what I hoped to find when I requested a dungeon capable of testing my mettle.”

  “Hey, I’m not that shady,” said Panda. The raccoon appeared atop their mount as soon as his name was called, arms crossed and his lips a playful grin.

  “You’re about the shadiest character I know,” said Chloe.

  “Oh, come on! I’m not even straddling the line anymore. I’m straight up helping you idiots even though it’s eating into my profits.”

  “Perhaps so, but your purpose remains indiscernible.” The squid blasted a bolt of darkness at a stray griffon and blew its body to bits. “If you wished to lure us into a trap, you would have long done so, and with all of the abilities you have demonstrated, I see no reason for you to require us for your plans. You could very well orchestrate the fall of any nation should you simply find yourself in favour.”

  “Heh. Can’t say you’ve read me too wrong, but flattery ain’t getting you nowhere,” said the raccoon. “Not like you’re that different anymore. How’s it feel to be an aspect?”

  “Excellent,” said Ciel, “but I do find it unfortunate that I have yet to experience an opportunity to evaluate the extent of my growth.”

  “Thought you’d say that,” said the ring-tailed pest. “Turns out, I’ve got something that happens to be right on the money.”

  He pointed a finger towards the south. “Head about two hundred kilometers that way. Or just follow the ley lines, whichever works better.”

  “I shall handle the transportation,” said Arciel. “We shall leverage Claire’s method of locomotion.”

  Chloe suddenly felt a headache come on. Only then, following the reminder, did she recall that her mistress was probably in the least danger of them all—Arciel could have teleported out of the Langgbjerns and out to safety whenever she wished. Panda’s violent cackling only worsened the pain. He wasn’t even trying to hide his laughter as he rolled around on the dog-carpet.

  She was so embarrassed that she buried her face in her hands and screamed, prompting a curious look from her mistress.

  “Is something the matter?”

  “Nah, nothing. She’s just an idiot is all. I’m pretty sure her brain shuts down altogether the moment she gets heated,” said Panda, as he wiped away his tears. “You better watch out, girlie, or you’re gonna get your dumb ass scammed.”

  “Can we just get moving, please?” asked the maid, quietly.

  “I suppose it would be in our best interest,” said Arciel. She raised her wand, but Panda stepped in front of her before she could cast the spell, his hands inside of the fur of his thighs, as he might have, had he a pair of pockets.

  “Wait, wait, don’t do that,” he said. “They’re gonna do the same thing they did last time if you do, and this time, they’ll actually try to kill you for real.”

  Chloe gulped.

  “I trust that you shall have our backs then,” said Arciel.

  “I wish,” said Panda. “But they’ve got me by the pursestrings. There’s nothing I can do, honest.”

  “Would it be too much for you to explain further?”

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  The raccoon sighed. “You’re not gonna believe me, but they’ve got a literal god watching for your sorta teleportation. Nothing I can do against that.”

  “Would our method of locomotion truly make so much of a difference if they’ve a god willing to intervene in mortal affairs? Would the same fate not befall us regardless?”

  “I mean, they’re gonna be trying to ambush you either way, sure, but they’ve got different plans for different cases. Best thing we can do is get them to play their worst hand.”

  “So what’s this ‘worst hand,’ exactly?” asked Chloe.

  “It’ll be more or less an ambush,” said Panda. “There’s a wide open field where we’re headed, and they’re lying in wait. You’ll know it when you see it.”

  “Wouldn’t it be better if we avoided the field then?”

  “Well, it depends. Do you want to finish Griselda’s quest or not?”

  Arciel snapped her fan shut and gave the raccoon a glare. “You intend to frame yourself as one of Griselda’s heralds?”

  “No, no, nothing of the sort.” Panda laughed. “There’s only one real reason anyone that knows anything comes up into these mountains. I know it, your goddess knows it, hell, even your enemies know it. That’s why they’re lying in wait. If you want to cash in, then the only choice you’ve got is to put it all on the table.”

  “How are we supposed to deal with the ambush?”

  “Beats me.”

  “I presume you are mentioning this because you believe in our success?” All the question got was a light shrug, but Arciel continued regardless. “We shall endeavour to live up to your expectations.”

  Grabbing hold of her hat, Arciel gave her wand a flick and lifted the magical dog carpet above the trees. A second such movement sent it spiralling through the mountains, moving at five times its prior speed.

  It was Claire’s magic.

  Borrowed without a hint of distortion.

  Despite the lack of a bloody throne.

  ___

  Panda crossed his arms and lazily tapped a foot as he watched over the group with a frown. They had attempted the orniferin challenge so many times that he had long lost track of the number. It was probably at least a few hundred. As far as real time went, it had been two weeks—twenty full days since their first attempt, and they’d been wiped once every few minutes ever since. Frankly, he was surprised that they were still willing to try, given the lack of progress.

  At most, they had learned to better stall for time. They’d managed to take off a few of the orniferin’s legs throughout the extended encounter, but while Panda had almost gotten excited and thought them on the cusp of victory, they never managed to press the advantage derived from their lucky strikes.

  It wasn’t like they were necessarily weak or otherwise incapable. At the very least, they were more proficient than most, and not just on account of their levels. Even considering those in the same range, he would have confidently labeled them as standing among the elite.

  But they still weren’t up to par.

  It was Allegra’s tutelage that had broken them free from mediocrity, and that was precisely the problem. They were far from the only students that the rabbit had ever instructed, nor were they the brightest among them.

  Over the years, Allegra had raised thousands of bonafide elites, few of whom were in the running for the coveted positions. It wasn’t like they had all died off or simply gone their separate ways as soon as Cadria ran out of major conflicts. Sure, some of them had given up on warfare and traded their swords for hoes, but most remained in fields that leveraged their past proficiency. They were guards, mercenaries, and adventurers. Artificers, alchemists, and scholars. Whatever their precise professions, their goals were all the same. Like their master, they worked tirelessly in pursuit of bettering the nation.

  Many had come out of retirement to answer the call, to volunteer themselves as one of the seven. And many had found themselves weeded.

  Because elites meant nothing before true champions.

  That was why he had pitted the Vel’khanese against the orniferin crown.

  He had hoped for at least one of the three to awaken to something when backed into a corner, but they had yet to break from the cycle of death. Panda—Constantius—would have loved to keep spinning the wheel. Gambling was one of life’s greatest pleasures, and he had always been one to indulge. Alas, it was time to accept that the dice had landed on a pair of snake eyes.

  He was disappointed, sure, but he wasn’t particularly hung up over it. The real risk of failure was precisely the thrill of throwing the die, and the mishap at hand would only serve to heighten the excitement of a future payoff.

  In the first place, strengthening the northern brigade was more of a side project, an optional objective that he’d chased for his own entertainment. His main goal was to deliver his niece to the goddess, and in that, he had already prevailed.

  Well, sort of.

  He needed her to pass the trial for everything to click into place. In any ordinary circumstance, he would have been right to stress and worry, to roll the dice again and pray for luck to take his side. Aurora configured her tests based on the individual’s strength, such that an equally difficult challenge was delivered to each of its contenders. But Claire was Virillius’ daughter.

  If he had to guess, she was probably wrapping up already, hence the casino’s closing.

  Sighing, Constantius turned his eyes back to the trio and awaited their impending doom. It didn’t take long, only about twenty minutes before all three met their ends. Quickly reviving them, by exchanging their lives for those of a few unfortunate fruit flies, the raccoon kicked the party awake whilst crossing his arms and leaning against a tree.

  “Ready,” said Lana, as she grabbed a fallen branch. “This time, I’ll charge in.”

  “Flanking didn’t work last time you did that. I’ll go in with you,” said Jules. “Krail, you provide air support.”

  “Consider it done.”

  All three immediately got to their feet and turned towards the rushing orniferin, but returning to his cervitaurian form, Constantius grabbed them by their collars and stopped them in their tracks.

  “Hold your horses,” he said.

  “Can’t,” said Lana. “It’s coming.”

  “Doesn’t matter. Time’s up,” he said. “You’re gonna miss the finale if you don’t move on.”

  “The finale? The fuck’s that supposed to mean?” asked Jules.

  “Well, I would imagine it’s meant to indicate some sort of epic conclus—”

  “Shut up, Krail. No one asked your dumb ass.”

  “I felt like the question was fairly open-ended,” grumbled the elf.

  “Well, if it makes you feel any better, you were mostly right,” said the raccoon. “You wouldn’t want to miss out on front-row seats now, would you?”

  “I was under the impression that we were meant to be active participants,” said Krail.

  “Extras,” said Lana, with a nod.

  “All that really means is that your seats are even better than front-row,” said Constantius. “Now hurry up. Let’s go.”

  “We can try,” said Lana. “But it’s still chasing us. The orniferin.”

  “God, you will not shut up about that thing, will you?” Constantius shook his head and sighed.

  “It’s close.”

  The comment stemmed from neither a sixth sense nor a mysterious power. Rather, it was a simple observation made by all four present. The orniferin king, who still seemed full of energy in spite of the extended engagement, was charging right at them.

  “What are you so worked up for? It’s just a bug.”

  Setting the others down, Constantius stepped forward with one arm casually extended. The limb exploded the moment it made contact with the charging beast. His shoulder gave out, ground to dust, and his legs were broken after he failed to stop the raging monster in its tracks. The crab-centipede explicitly broke past him and closed in on the trio that had bugged it for the past two weeks. Or at least, that was what was supposed to happen.

  There was a distortion, a strange blurring of the world wherein everything started bleeding sideways. Colours and shapes were warped and twisted until they blended together.

  It only lasted for a moment. But everything was changed by the time it was undone.

  The crabipede was stuck in front of Constantius’ still intact arm, struggling as it pushed and flailed. It tried to break free, but it was unable. The magic that flowed from the cervitaur soon infected its mind and brought it under control.

  “See? He’s friendly,” said the moose, as he gave his new pet a pat.

  “That’s bullshit,” muttered Jules. “You literally took him down in half of a fucking second.”

  “If you think this is bullshit, you should see my brother,” said the moose, with a chuckle. “Anyway, let’s go. Some major shit’s about to hit the fan, and I wouldn’t miss this for the world.”