บท 24: Chapter 23 - Encounter
My eyes jolt open as I'm awoken by the sound of loud ringing.
This must be the alarm that Serena set up.
Is it because it's magic that I'm hearing it without any kind of muffling even though I'm in a tent?
No, now that I'm wide awake I can tell that the sound isn't actually outside. It's being directly transmitted into my mind.
As I'm still studying the attributes of the spell, the tent door opens.
It's Serena.
"What are you still doing in here? Can't you hear the alarm?"
Ah. That's right.
Usually alarms mean danger.
"Sorry, I was distracted."
"I understand you feel safe since I'm here, but you need to train yourself to always be alert when you're travelling."
"Yes teacher. It won't happen again."
She gives me a nod and waits for me outside. I don't want to embarass myself further, so I hurriedly climb out and prepare myself, grabbing my sword. Thankfully Serena isn't the spiteful or petty kind, so instead of lingering on the issue she instead turns her focus towards the potential attackers.
As I'm wondering where they are, I spot a large, green-skinned creature moving towards us from the forest, encroaching at a steady pace while a rattling sound accompanies each of its footsteps. It doesn't take long before it nears the edge of the barrier, and by then I can determine its features.
Short, pointed ears, like a mix between an elves and a humans. A protruding jaw with tusks jutting upwards and a mouth filled with sharp teeth. I can hear it breathing heavily from its pierced nose that could be mistaken for a pigs.
This must be an Orc right?
It's wearing grey furs and a necklace adorned with bones, its height towering above us as he stares at Serena.
I'm guessing he doesn't want to be friends with us as I can see him lick his lips, salivating at the thought of devouring us. He pulls his axe out from behind his back hefting it into the air like he's signalling something and soon there are more approaching, wielding a variety of weapons.
I suppose they think we're easy prey.
Gradually they surround us, and the first Orc, who I presume is the leader, starts speaking in an unfamiliar tongue.
"Is he trying to communicate with us?", I ask Serena.
"He's just telling us what he'll do to us, and that we should surrender."
"How do you know that?"
Instead of replying, I sense Serena channel her mana into her ear, or to be more exact, the earring that's hanging from it.
Once she's done I can still hear the Orc speaking in his language, but in my mind I can understand what he's saying.
"... chance to escape. Do not struggle, and I shall let you live and bear my children. Surrender and your child will be given a painless death. Otherwise we shall feast on the both of you, ensuring you do not die until the final moment, when our fangs pierce your puny skulls."
How disgusting.
I can't help but imagine how many innocent people have been toyed with and tortured by these foul creatures.
What if my parents or Annette were to encounter these things and get caught off guard?
My blood is boiling.
Seeing how we're not answering, the leader starts moving towards us once more.
I'm ready to fight them to the death.
I prepare myself in a fighting stance, my sword pointed towards the Orc.
Seeing this, he hefts his axe threateningly.
With each step he takes, the bones on his neck clink together.
He grows closer and closer until finally...
*THUNK*
He's halted in his tracks as he crashes face first into the invisible barrier that still surrounds the camp.
"HAHAHA!"
Suddenly Serena starts laughing while the Orc, still dazed by what just happened, is clutching his nose in pain. His confusion doesn't last long though, as he begins hacking at the barrier, now furious.
Serena wipes a tear from her eye and turns to me.
"The first rule of combat as a mage. Always make sure you prepare defenses."
The Orc is still hacking away at the barrier, while his allies seem puzzled as to why their leader is swinging his weapon at thin air.
"The second rule. There's no such thing as foul play."
Serena begins channeling mana into one of her rings this time, and before a second has passed, I can feel the temperature instantly grow cold. We're surrounded by a wall of stalagmites made of ice, upon which the corpses of Orcs are pierced.
'Amazing.'
So this the strength of tier 7.
She instantly cast multiple ice stalagmites with pinpoint precision at a distance of over several dozen metres. While I'm lost in thought Serena gives her ring a kiss, and as if it were a signal, the ice spears disappear, dropping the Orcs from the sky with a thump as they hit the ground.
I can't help but stare at the multitude of assorted jewelry Serena wears, each one a runestone made of mana conducting material and inscribed with a different spell.
There's one thing about this whole situation that I don't quite understand though. The 500 year treaty was signed in year 32, but it's still only the year 530, and yet we're already being invaded by Demons.
"Teacher, why are there Demons attacking us when the treaty is still in effect?"
Serena lets out a sigh while she beckons me to help her dispose of the Orc bodies.
"Ever since the archmage Merlin died, Humanity hasn't had a single tier 9 mage. Though our ancestors tried to hide this fact, it didn't take long for the Demons to find out the information. The Demon continent is ruled by a coalition of high-ranking Demons, and while some of them want to make peace with us, others are not so tolerant."
As we finish dragging all of the orcs into a pile, Serena pauses to cast a spell.
*FWOOSH*
The mountain of corpses lights up in a blaze as the green bodies begin to turn black, charred from the flames. Serena stares into the bonfire as her face lights up in the night from the warm orange glow, and the temperature gradually rises.
She continues,
"Because of the peaceful Demon faction paying reparations and our lack of a tier 9 mage, the king is unwilling to retaliate against them. The only thing we can do is try our best to protect ourselves, and that's why you need to become stronger."
We both gaze into the fire in silence.
'So humanity doesn't have any more tier 9 mages. And from the sound of it, it's been like that for a few hundred years. If that's the case, then aren't we in quite a bit of danger? If one day the warmongering faction takes over, it will be an all-out war.'
Thankfully Serena snaps me out of my depressing thoughts before I get too deep.
"You should get some rest now Cain. We've still got a few more days before we reach our first stop."
She leads me to my tent before heading to her own. The coachman seems to have expected this kind of outcome as he hasn't left his tent.
I climb into my bedroll and close my eyes. The adrenaline from earlier is gone, and all I'm left with is a feeling of exhaustion.
It doesn't take long before I drift off to sleep.
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