Chapter 63: Semel’s Appearance
"!!" Duwei yelled and pushed down the mercenary next to him. He then took out his dagger and stabbed into the thigh of that mercenary without hesitation! He hoped that the pain could wake him up…but Duwei was disappointed!
That guy had been stabbed, but he didn't feel anything. He struggled and climbed up, ignoring Duwei while climbing towards the lake. His thigh was still bleeding. The blood stained the the ground…
Duwei felt hopeless. He used some magic, but a fireball could not be shot too far …the distance between that ghost and the shore was around five to six hundred steps!
Duwei was still unable to master the flying magic of the wind element. Otherwise, he would fly into the sky and throw a fireball!
Spiritual magic! This was *** spiritual magic!!
Duwei hurriedly struggled to remember what he had read about spiritual magic. But he felt helpless because the magic he knew was not related to spiritual magic. A spiritual magician was at the intermediate level. Based on the current strength of Duwei, he still could not reach that level.
What he could do! The second mercenary had already jumped into the ice hole. Duwei slapped himself. He ran to the front with his utmost speed. There he knocked down a different mercenary, and used rope to tie his legs. Then he used the same rope to tie down another mercenary...
Although Duwei tried his best, he was only one person. After tying up three people, two more mercenaries had dropped down the ice hole!
Duwei wheezed and shouted loudly, "What the hell is that thing!!!!"
"It's an attack from the 'Magic Lake Monster'."Semel said from the back.
Duwei looked back and saw Semel in a red gown standing behind him. This lady looked overwhelmed with fear and surprise. Duwei saw that even her red gown was shaking; you could tell that she was not calm!
"Semel! Shit! Why you are so late!" Duwei shouted loudly, "You know that thing? What is that! How to crack that?! Oh man! The mercenaries are going to die!"
Semel seemed confused. She was stressed and clutching her head tightly. "I…I should know that…I've heard that before. What I am doing! What's going on? I know what this thing is called! Why…there are so many things in my mind…
"There is no time for you to figure out these things!" If Semel were a real person, Duwei probably would have grabbed her and yelled at her. Unfortunately, Semel was just a shadow; he could only stare at her, "Tell me! How do I defeat this thing!"
While Duwei was yelling, at the same time, he was busy tying up Bein Heinrich and Dardanelle. To lessen their speed, he even took out his knife and tried his best to stab the thighs of each mercenary in order to slow them down! Even wounding their legs to stop them was better than letting them drop into that ice hole!
"Think quickly! Semel! Think of the *** way quickly!!" Duwei pushed another mercenary down, then fell to the ground. Duwei was panting. He used the dagger to stab the leg of the mercenary. His hands were bloody and he rubbed his face a bit.
Semel looked at Duwei confusedly. But when she saw the bloody Duwei, she saw that Duwei was ferociously staring at her. When his anxious voice began to call out…
Inside the beautiful eyes of Semel, there was a sudden flash! Then the panic and pain felt by this lady suddenly disappeared. She stood up and her eyes were blank!
Then, this beautiful lady walked towards the lake slowly with her bare feet. The red gown was fluttering slightly. She lifted up her hands behind Duwei…
A sharp melodic voice came from Semel!
The sound was similar to an array; it pierced straight into Duwei's mind! This sound was so beautiful…but it made people feel a headache, just like something was stabbing into your forehead!
This almost stabbed into the bone marrow… No, it's as painful as stabbing into the soul! Duwei felt fear and was freaking frightened!
Semel kept singing. It seemed that there were many difficult and strange words and symbols within the sound! Duwei was very sure that the sound was a magic spell!
Semel's voice overrode the voice of that ghost! The mercenaries stopped at the same time and felt shocked! Then everyone fell down!
It was like they had woken up from a nightmare. After everybody fell down, they shouted loudly! Semel's voice shadowed everybody's ears and minds, even their souls! Everybody was trying their best to cover their ears instinctively! But the terrible pain could still not be suppressed!
But because of that pain, everybody regained their mind and their bodies were no longer numb and stiff!
Semel's voice was getting louder and louder! The song was becoming sharper suddenly! That pitch was fluctuating and became sharper and higher… it felt like it was pushed toward the point of the wave, and went down repeatedly!
Duwei already felt that the sound vibration would split his brain! He protected his head tightly. He shouted, "Semel! Stop it! Stop!"
Semel seemingly could not hear him. She was serious and walking on the ice step by step! Her body was light and she kept making the sound. The sound wave kept going…
The ghost on the ice suddenly screamed creepily. It made an erotic sound and escaped beneath the ice quickly!
"Huh, want to escape!" Semel sneered, and that horrible sound wave finally stopped!
Duwei was startled! When Semel sneered, the voice was still Semel's voice…but the tone was…!
It was indifferent with pride, even a bit cold, disgusting and despising! It was not the same as the clone magical creature that had always followed Duwei!
Semel floated on the air! She lifted her slim fingers up and her silver long hair cascaded like a waterfall. Within the freezing windy, the red gown was floating around. Then several currents started to swirl!
Semel's fingertip quickly formed a kind light spot. That light spot then became a small light ball. The sparkle of the light ball was flashing!
"Humble and ugly magic monster…" Semel who was floating in the sky with arrogance and indifference spoke, " How dare you show your poor spiritual magic in front of me, Semel."
Semel laughed even colder than before. She just pointed her finger slightly; there was a flash coming out from that light ball...
Snip!
There was a creepy sound coming out from the ice layer; then a huge crack extended! Far away from Duwei, a faint roar immediately came out from the ice, and it separated towards both sides!
Underneath the ice, the lake water was churning…Soon, there were several mercenaries coming out from the lake!
That distant ghost screamed miserably. Semel then moved her finger a bit; there was an aura enveloping that ghost!
It was like an invisible hand, grabbing the ghost. The body was torn away from the ice surface!
That ghost was struggling in the air, but it could not make any complete sound. The miserable scream continuously came. It appeared to be begging for something.
" Oh…Beg for mercy?" Semel sneered. She looked down on her opponent and whispered, "You use your dirty voice to take away other's soul with such a dirty method? Oh…let me see what your dirty face looks like…your camouflage is too ugly!"
Her slim hands pulled slightly on the air!
Duwei was shocked to see that the body of the ghost was split in two by an invisible force!
The body was split into two and dropped into the water, disappearing very quickly. There was a small thing left in the air!
That thing looked like meat covered with sticky mucus. The beige body was just like an octopus without tentacles. There was a little crack; it seems that was its mouth. The bottom part was like the tail fin of the fish. It kept struggling...
"Oh, that's really a 'Magic Lake Monster', you're such an ugly creature. Still not dead yet?" Semel was smiling callously. Then she stretched out a fingertip, the sharp nail scratched in the air slightly...
Suddenly, that monster got one more wound! There was some green mucus coming out from the wound. Then in it screeched, its upper body and bottom body were dissolved! Semel hummed and continued to scratch with her fingers. The monster was disintegrated and fell into the water. After that, she grabbed something; a green gem flew towards her palm.
"Huh, an adult lake monster." Semel said, "The magic nucleus is quite big."
Semel waved her sleeves. There were many bubbles on the lake. The wave pulled the mercenaries who had just fallen into the hole, towards the shore!
Duwei was shocked!
His mind was confused…But the one point he was sure of was: This lady in front was not Semel! He hadn't known this lady before; she must not be the magical creature who liked swinging her pretty legs in front of him!
She…her tone…and…Shit, she knew magic! She could use magic!
The magic creature, who was an illusion, could use magic?!
She...
Suddenly, an unbelievable idea popped into Duwei's mind:
She...perhaps, based on the tone she spoke with and the attitude...how she looked when she was teasing the opponent. She was similar to…the real great female astrology teacher! Semel Kira!
While Duwei was still thinking, Semel had walked back to the ground and approached Duwei.
This lady was looking at Duwei who was lying on the ground. There was still some blood on his face...
Semel was standing there and looking at Duwei. There were many stars above her head, but her eyes glistened brighter than the stars!
She kept looking at Duwei for a long time; there was something in her eyes which was indescribably...soft!
" Dear…the trouble is solved." Semel's voice was so soft, like the spring breeze. The callous feeling had disappeared. "Right…Sorry, I promise you I won't use magic again. But when I know that you are in danger, I am so worried…Zach, you know how much I love you!"
After that, the lady closed her eyes and fell down in front of Duwei!
The first thing came up in Duwei's mind was: Who was the lady?
The second thing was: Who was the mentioned "Zach"?!
Wait...wait!
Duwei jumped up suddenly!
Zach...Zach?!!
Shit! I remembered this name! This name was on the Family Genealogy!
Zach Rollin!! The Patriarch of the Rollin Family History! That was…the husband of the real female astrology teacher! Duwei's ancestor?!
Ok! Now, he knew who Zach was...so that lady was...
She...Duwei moaned, "Oh my god…she is the real Semel…she is not the clone?"
ED notes:
Duwei's so awesome he can speak using only exclamation marks!!
'Freaking frightened' is the worst state of being frightened.
Semel is totally a diva, she won't stop singing even if it's painful.
Zach … seems familiar… where did I hear that name before… *wink wink*
Chapter 64: Charnel on the Snow
"Okay, first is the 'Magic Lake Monster'. It used magic to make all the mercenaries incoherent and uncontrollably walk towards the middle of the ice to commit suicide. I couldn't do anything to break that magic, but you, my dear Semel, just show up and break that magic! You showed me your stronger side! Your magic power from then amazed me! Just from moving your finger, you could crack the ice. Then when you move it again, not only do you kill that monster, you even obtained it's magic nuclei! Finally…you seemingly knew me as another person named 'Zach", and while standing in front of me, said you loved me."
Duwei sat next to the fire talking casually, while breaking tree branches into pieces and throwing them into the fire.
.
No one sat next to him. All the mercenaries were busy; some of them were bandaging, some were lighting fires, and some were helping the wounded. The unfortunate mercenares who had dropped into the lake were being healed by Semel. Since they had fallen into the lake in the freezing weather, they had nearly died.
"What?" Semel stood next to Duwei. Her beautiful face looked confused,"I did such an act? How come I don't remember anything?"
Duwei laughed and looked at Semel complicatedly, "Look…You killed a very strong magic monster and saved a lot of people. Then, after you stood in front of me and fainted…you woke up and told me 'I didn't do anything'. So, Semel, don't look at me this way. If you really don't know, then we have a problem! We need to figure out what's happening with you!"
"...What?"
"Magic!" Duwei suddenly jumped up and took a deep breath. He looked at Semel carefully, "You can use magic! And, from my point of view…your magic is very strong! Extremely strong! But isn't that a bit strange? You don't even have a real body…you are only a shadow, an illusion! An illusion that can use magic! How is this possible?"
'And you also called me "Zach"…'—— Duwei said in his mind.
Only the real Semel, the real female astrology teacher, would use that tone when speaking!
"Do you feel anything, perhaps some strange feeling? Or in your memory, is there anything that can explain this? Even a little bit?" Duwei looked at Semel seriously.
"No."Semel answered quickly and firmly. She shook her head, "I am the cloned memory of Semel. I am a magic creature who was sealed in the oil painting and I am just a visual illusion. I only have part of the memories related to Semel...and I don't know magic. I really don't know any at all."
Her pretty eyes looked innocent and confused, even a bit helpless.
With those eyes, Duwei could not believe she was lying. She seemed to be telling the truth...otherwise, she must be frighteningly good at telling lies.
Duwei decided he would rather believe the former.
"Puff."
A purple crystal-like object was thrown by Duwei into the snow. "That's the magic nuclei of the magic lake monster. It shouldn't be fake. I don't have the ability to kill an adult magic lake monster, and yet you killed it in front of me and got the monster nuclei from it."
Semel was confused and she tried her best to remember what happened, "I….I don't know. I really can't remember..."
At that moment, Dardanelle and Heinrich were approaching them.
Semel looked at Duwei and sighed, then became invisible.
"Mr. Magician." Heinrich looked serious. He stood in front of Duwei, then he saluted, "Thank you so much for saving me and my people!"
Duwei sighed but didn't say anything. Although this wasn't done by him, he couldn't think of anything to say, and he couldn't tell them the truth…so, he just admitted to it.
Heinrich took out a leather pocket, and gave it to Duwei: "Mr. Magician. I know this is not enough for a reward, but please accept it. At least it can show our appreciation! From now on, if you ever need anything, the Snow Wolf Mercenary Group will always stand beside you!"
Then Heinrich opened the pouch, and inside were many colourful stones…and all of them were magic nuclei!
These were the magic nuclei of many different kinds of magic monsters…these were all of the harvests the Snow Wolf Mercenary group made during this trip! Although the leather of a magic monster could be sold at a nice price, the most valuable part of them were their magic nuclei! There were about thirty magic nuclei in the pocket, and the quality was very good too. Heinrich almost gave out every single one they had obtained.
This was the result of the hard work put in by the Snow Wolf Mercenary Group in this journey. They worked hard for the magic nuclei, and some even lost their lives in the process.
"No, commander." Duwei surely couldn't accept these things. First, these people were not saved by him. Even if they were saved by him, he still wouldn't accept this expensive gift. In his heart, Heinrich was his friend and thus: "I cannot such an expensive gift."
"But you saved our lives!" Heinrich insisted, "Without you, at this moment, the Snow Wolf Mercenary Group would not even exist in this world!"
Duwei thought for a bit and changed his tone, "Ok, if I'm a magician, even if I think your things are expensive, it's still not enough to buy a magician, right?"
"..." Heinrich felt weird. "That's true. Although these were the harvests from this journey, for buying a magician, it's not enough obviously… Everyone knows that magicians have unique identities. If one wanted to hire a magician, this small mercenary group is not able to pay for it!"
"Don't misunderstand." Duwei laughed immediately, "I am not saying it's too few. But…Mr. Commander, I mean, out here I am not just a magician! You are not only a mercenary either. Do you know what I mean? Do you remember what we talked last night behind the snow? I treat you as my friend! Friends must help friends! When one sees his friend in danger, he must help him. This is logical, right? Please, keep your things, otherwise, it will be rude of me to my friend!"
Heinrich was shocked. This Commander with a beard looked at Duwei. He spread his arms and hugged Duwei tightly. Then he suppressed his passion and whispered, "My friend! Thank you! You are right, my friend! Sorry! My behaviour offended you! I take my words back!"
But this commander was a bit smart. He grabbed some magic nuclei from the pocket, around seven to eight magic nuclei and gave them to Duwei. He tried to stop Duwei and said, "Ok! This is not a reward! I am giving you this not because you saved our lives, but because my best friend is going to leave! This is a farewell present, a gift, not a reward. So you have to keep it!"
Duwei laughed and loosened his hands, then he hugged Heinrich tightly. They laughed loudly on the snow.
"Anytime, anywhere, the Snow Wolf Mercenary group is willing to do anythings for friends!"
This was the promise from Heinrich at their farewell. Duwei believed that this man who loved adventure would abide by his commitment.
As they left the Snow Wolf Mercenary group, the mercenaries gave their best weapon in appreciation.
The old Cyclops made some fried meat for Duwei. And Commander Bein gave the last bottle of wine, which was made from the magic nuclei of a frame rhino, to them. The mercenaries gave their best two sword to Duwei. Chester, the archer with eight fingers, gave his bow to Dardanelle.
If they were not worrying about the load, the Snow Wolf Mercenary Group would've given them even more things.
Walking along the lakeside of the Big Circle Lake, there were two series of footprint left upon the snow. Dardanelle carried most of the luggage, and still walked in front of Duwei.
According to what Heinrich said, by bypassing the Big Circle Lake and heading to the north, he had heard that there was someone who caught the golden eye python when he was young.
"Dardanelle." Duwei suddenly asked,"You seem very calm…I am talking about last night."
Dardanelle laughed. He said seriously, "Harry, you have saved my life twice including last night! This cannot be settled by simply saying 'thank you'! If I can stay alive this time after helping mistress, I will leave the Lister family. I, Dardanelle, would like to become the squire of Mr. Harry the Magician."
"What are you talking about?" Duwei was shocked.
"I would like to be your squire." Dardanelle replied calmly, "I owe you two lives now, maybe even more…you are such a good person, Harry. I like you, and want to be your friend. Also, I think that since you are so great, I am afraid I cannot repay you for the grace. So, why don't I become your assistant for life? You are a magician. Magicians should always have someone helping them. You need a servant…But unfortunately, I am not a magic student, so I could not be your servant… But I am a warrior! I can be your squire! I think I can do it well."
In the Roland Continent, many magicians also hired warriors as their squires.
It was because although magicians had great power, their weakness was the close quarters combat! It was the truth that magicians were weak at close battle. So there were many magicians that hired warriors as their squires. When they were in battle, if the opponent stayed close to them, then the warrior could protect them. This was a sort of way of offsetting the weakness of the magicians.
Of course, only the famously strong people in the continent had the qualification to do that. This was because hiring great warriors was costly! Also, if they were hired, they won't hire junior warriors, because if they did, it was useless. But those great warriors were always arrogant! If not working for the famously strong people in the continent, they were not willing to work for them.
So, when Dardanelle asked to become the squire of Duwei, Duwei was shocked.
Firstly, Duwei thought that he didn't have the qualification to hire squire. Many magicians, who were above level eight, still didn't have this qualification!
Secondly, he thought that Dardanelle was too kind and he could not accept this kindness.
When he looked at Dardanelle's resolute eyes, Duwei sighed...nevermind, when they returned, he could leave alone. As long as he didn't know his real name, even Dardenelle wanted to repay him, he wouldn't be able to find him.
They had been walking along the lake for two days. This lake was unexpectedly large. They still could not bypass this lake completely after a full two days of walking.
In the afternoon on that day, Dardanelle suddenly pulled Duwei.
"Wait, Harry!" Dardanelle pulled Duwei carefully aside and pointed at the snowdrift aside.
Duwei was shocked. Dardanelle had already approached there, and then pulled out his knife and slightly stirred the snowdrift.
After stirring the snowdrift, there was a frozen hand!
Dardanelle looked serious, he kept on digging the snow aside, then he the found someone…or to be more accurate, he found a corpse!
The corpse was a knight. The badge on his chest had shown his identity. He was a level four knight! He had died miserably. His body was cut in half by some sharp weapon! His face was distorted showing how painfully he had died. The body was frozen, even harder than the ice. The whole body had turned grey, and it was quite creepy.
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