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10.36% Bride of the Demon Lord / Chapter 34: Flower of Darkness (2)

บท 34: Flower of Darkness (2)

Lord Kieran could see that Iris was struggling to remain calm. For someone who's never been in tune with her magic, Iris surely was oblivious to how odd she was, even for a magus. The demon lord couldn't surmise what kind of elemental magic Iris had affinity with, but one thing was sure—she was able to perform creation magic, something that not many maguses nor darklings were capable of.

For this reason, he wanted to test how much control she had over her seemingly overflowing mana and how it would respond to her. She didn't have a magical crest that would identify her heritage, nor did she have any proper education on magecraft. The demon lord believed that she would have to rely more on her magic if she truly wanted to survive in Asnar.

He watched as Iris took a steadying breath, willing herself to calm down before drawing the bow, pulling the string as far as she could. Her eyes widened slightly as she realized that the resisting pressure was far stronger than what she was accustomed to, but she kept her pose.

Iris kept her movements minimal and efficient, telling the demon lord that her experience with hunting was decent enough for her to use the weapon he just handed to her. Her eyes then shifted ahead of them, her green eyes glowing as her magic responded to her call.

"I see it." She whispered, but loud enough for Lord Kieran to hear.

He saw her tremble as she sat on top of his steed, face blanched with fear as she looked at something. What could she have seen for her to react this way?

Lord Kieran followed his gaze and cursed inwardly. No wonder this human suddenly became afraid. Hundreds of meters ahead of them, a darkling dressed in a priest robe with golden crown leaf was leading the second swarm. It was mounted on an obviously dead black horse with blazing red eyes.

The second swarm grew closer while Aiden and his troop engaged with the previous one. As soon as he saw what was heading their way, he made a sound of disapproval.

"Come on. That's basically cheating!" He yelled. "A necromancer? Really?"

This only meant that no matter how many times they slashed and defeated the other darklings, as long as there was a necromancer leading them, they would rise from the ground and draw their weapons again. He slashed the last Night Critter obstructing his way and joined his lord and the magus.

"Don't get distracted. If you aren't able to kill it in one shot, then it only means your magic has no effect on it." Lord Kieran told Iris as he summoned several swords midair, waving his left hand down for her to see. Hundreds of blades descended from the night sky like falling rain, stabbing the Night Critters at the same time.

"Just like that, but use your own magic." He added.

"I can just call as many arrows as I need?" The demon lord heard her ask.

"It relies on how much mana and control you have. Projection magic requires high magical energy, so you would have to be certain and efficient to make sure whatever things or weapons you need will materialize."

Aiden furrowed his brow and rested his long sword over his armored shoulder. He looked at his liege and Iris with a confused expression, wondering why Lord Kieran was wasting his time giving the magus a crash course in performing Projection Magic. They should be thinking of a way to defeat the necromancer by now.

'It's a necromancer. I doubt that Lady Iris's magic would be able to defeat it.' He thought.

Even Lord Kieran would have a hard time dealing with a necromancer, because he would need to destroy every piece of its body until it turned into dust to make sure that it wouldn't be able to revive itself. So how could a mere magus with no proper training kill a High Night Critter?

Also, the amount of magical energy a magus can release at one time was restricted by its body's limitations. This was why there were many magi who lost their lives being devoured by the overwhelming mana they were born with, because they weren't able to contain it unlike darklings could. Maguses who were born from the union of a darkling and a human had a higher rate of survival compared to those who were born from humans.

The second swarm crept closer and to be able to stop them from obstructing Iris, Lord Kieran concentrated his magical energy on the fingertips of his left hand until it created five small black orbs before firing it towards their enemies.

The Night Critters on the front lines fell one after another from the demon lord's attack while Iris concentrated her attention, by pulling the string of the bow, imagining herself holding an arrow that could strike the necromancer's head.

Suddenly, she felt something warm tingling at the ends of her fingers that were holding the string. It didn't take long before an apparition of what seemed to be an arrow appeared in her hand, its pointed end rested slightly on her left hand that was holding the bow in place.

Iris fired the arrow as soon as she saw an opening as Lord Kieran continued his attack. The arrow found itself embedded in the chest of the high Night Critter, who was slightly confused by what had hit it. It whirled its head towards Iris and even though its eye sockets didn't have actual eyes in them, it made Iris shudder in fear.

Aiden was about to make a comment, but stopped midway as the High Night Critter suddenly collapsed and fell from its horse. The Night Critters around it were frozen in place as it struggled to get up. Black thorned vines sprouted from the point that Iris's arrow hit, and a low growl reverberated from the High Night Critter as she prepared for another shot.


บท 35: Flower of Darkness (3)

Iris didn't waste time and immediately released her second shot. This time, she didn't miss and was able to hit the High Night Critter on its forehead. Its loud scream broke through the night as the black thorny vines burst from the High Night Critter's body, its tendrils swishing violently around it, piercing and slashing its mindless subordinates.

She was taken aback, not sure of what was happening. She hadn't intended any of these to happen, nor did she have any idea how to proceed after her attack. As the black vines rapidly grew, Iris didn't have time to pull the rein of the steed to run away. She could only look as the vines rushed to her at an insane speed.

Would this be the end for her? She wondered. The more she knew about these darklings, the more she realized how deadly they could be. She had yet to arrive in Asnar, but they had already encountered enemies on their way.

Iris shut her eyes and braced herself, waiting for the pain that was about to consume her. However, seconds passed and it never arrived. Did something happen?

She opened her eyes only to realize that she was in Lord Kieran's arms as they floated midair while the black vines continued to spread and attack the other Night Critters. His black steed had already vanished into thin air as the demon lord took her before the vines reached her.

"You did well." The demon lord said impassively.

She was taken aback and went stiff in his arms. Iris had never been this close with a man before. Iris dared not to wound her arms around the demon lord and chose to hold on to the bow tighter.

"W-what…" Her question was forgotten when her eyes caught what was happening below them.

The demon lord didn't give her an answer, but the way he furrowed his eyebrows let Iris know that Lord Kieran was also confused by the sudden turn of events. His eyes were fixated on the wild black vines that were spreading below them.

"Everyone, be clear and retreat! Don't let the vines get you!"

Meanwhile, Aiden and his troop had also ceased their attacks and decided to pull back. None of them was sure what was happening and where these black vines came from, but seeing how it sucked out the remaining magic from those who were trapped in it, none of them dared to get closer to it.

They watched as the necromancer's body turned into ash as soon as the black vines dried it out of its magic, forbidding it to revive not only itself but also the other Night Critters around it. For Iris to be able to kill and annihilate all the Night Critters in just two shots, it was quite impressive.

Lord Kieran and the rest of the Frost Guards didn't need to do anything else, as the black vines did the job for them. They flew to a safe distance and joined Aiden's group on top of a hill. He helped get Iris back on her feet and she immediately stepped back, making sure to keep a safe distance between them.

Yuri joined them shortly after killing the first High Night Critter that arrived earlier and watched in surprise as the black vines grew in front of them.

"Huh? Isn't that the Black Mage's 'Flower of Darkness'?" He commented, catching Aiden and Iris's attention.

"Are you sure?" Aiden furrowed his brows in response. "It doesn't look like one to me."

"I'm certain that it is." Yuri said confidently. "It's partial though, and I doubt that it will bloom."

"What will happen if it blooms?" Iris asked curiously. "Are these Night Critters related to the Black Mage?"

Regardless if one lived in Asnar or Dravial, everyone knew or at least had heard about the Black Mage. For Yuri to mention the Black Mage, did it mean that they were dealing with blind followers that wanted to resurrect him?

In the end, there's a limit to what humans like her were capable of. There were forces in this world far beyond humanity was capable of contending with. There were other unimaginable beings living in Asnar that a mortal human wouldn't even imagine existed.

In the face of a deadly situation, Iris could do nothing but watch as the Night Critters were devoured and ravaged by the black vines that sprouted from the necromancer's body. A direct attack on the Night Critters and the necromancer wouldn't be possible even if she was a magus.

"The vines will stop growing and red flowers will spring from it. Once they bloom, they will detonate and make an explosion huge enough to flatten a mountain to the ground." Yuri explained nonchalantly, his eyes locked on the abandoned battlefield. "But it won't happen. This skill is incomplete and it will disintegrate on its own because the Night Critters wouldn't be enough to fulfill its ravenous appetite for mana."

The Night Critters had no chance to stand against the black vines. Although partial, it was ravenous enough to absorb as much mana it could, regardless of the source. However, there was something Yuri couldn't understand. The Flower of Darkness was made by the Black Mage himself and only he could utilize this skill, so who was the one that attempted to use it?

Yuri looked around, trying to see if another High Night Critter aside from the dead necromancer was in sight, but there was none. He couldn't fathom what caused the 'Flower of Darkness' to trigger itself. Or was it something that High Night Critters chose to use to keep their people in line?

As soon as the black vines consumed every single Night Critter in sight, it stopped growing and disintegrated into ashes, just as Yuri had mentioned.

While Yuri was conflicted over the events, Iris suddenly felt heavy and dizzy. Her eyesight blurred as she struggled to keep herself up. Just as she was about to hit the ground and lose her consciousness, an arm stopped her from falling.


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