章節 48: Mike's Hunger (IV)
"What's going on?!" Stacy yelled out in panic; she didn't know what to do as she stood there in fright.
"She's going into a mana overdose!" Mike yelled, he remembered how powerful Snow was when she went into a Mana Overdose and how it could kill her. He didn't want any of that to happen to her. Without thinking, he bulldozed his way through the wall of blue fire.
"What the hell Mike?!" Stacy shouted out in panic, "Heat resistance!" Magic swirled out from her fingers, shooting towards Mike as he was covered in her magic.
The magic around his body started to heat up around him, absorbing every little fire that tried to lick and completely burn Mike alive. Pushing through, he reached out as he grabbed Snow's wrist.
"Snow!" Mike yelled, "Wake up! Don't go into a mana overdose!"
Startled by Mike's voice, she looked over her shoulder. Her dragon helmet was on with its sharp curling horns, bringing out the intimidating dragon armor. He could feel the oppressive energy that pushed him down to his very core. His leg shook, his muscle weakened, and even his teeth chattered. Her eyes glowed red inside the dragon helmet, piercing into his very soul.
Fear laced his heart.
Run. The words cut through Mike mind.
He wanted to, but he knew he couldn't. With great effort, he steeled his heart.
"S-Snow," Mike spoke with a stutter.
Snow didn't say anything, which made the edge of his skin crawl with the electrifying feeling that he was getting too close to danger.
All of a sudden, he heard Darien's voice in a hurry. "Mike!"
Mike could feel the back of his neck being roughly yanked as he was pulled backward.
"What the-!" Mike was able to snap out of his trance. He fought to get out of Dairen's pull. "What about Snow?!"
"What about Snow, you idiot?! Do you want to die?!" Dairen yelled. "Stacy! Quickly a fire-resistant barrier!" He pulled Mike towards their group.
Stacy yelled, "Fire shield!" A powerful blast of red dome-like shield appeared around them.
The blaze of the fire didn't stop; it danced with great vigor at the excitement as it seemed to vent its frustration on Snow, who was still standing in the middle of the field. She rested her arms on the nearest large rock as the blue flames bombarded her in a chain explosion.
"Snow!" Mike was about to jump back in to help, but Dairen stopped him.
"You fool!" Dairen hissed. "The Blue Flames Flower is at its final stage of death! You jumping in would just get you killed!"
Mike was flabbergasted that Dairen wouldn't jump in to save her. He thought he liked her, but maybe he was wrong.
"She's going to be fine," said Dairen, but one could tell that he too was worried. "She told me to tell you guys to stay back. You're the idiot that went in headfirst without paying attention to what I was saying." He grumbled at Mike's stupidity of selective hearing.
"When did you say that? I don't remember." Mike sharply denied it as he tried to recall, but nothing came up.
"Exactly, I told you guys when we took a break. You were in your own la-la land as usual and didn't pay attention." Dairen shot him a glare.
Mike felt embarrassed, but he didn't remember when Dairen was talking about it. Already, they could hear a bubbling laughter from Snow, who was in the middle of a firestorm. She didn't seem phased by the fire as her chuckles quickly tied down. Such scenes were mind-boggling that they didn't know what to do. It was like watching a cut scene.
Eventually, the Blue Flames dissipated, but before it could entirely vanish, the flower bulb started to enlarge. In a matter of seconds, all the flowers burst like popcorn, shooting out its seed in every direction. Some embedded into the walls broke large holes in the column, and others flew out the cave, and tried to enter into Stacy's shield, but was bounced off.
"What the hell is this?" Stacy was dripping slowly with sweat. "We're about to be killed by its seed!"
"Keep focus." Joe hissed, taking a step back when a seed hit the magical barrier, startling him. "We could die from that."
"I am!"
All the seeds popped, silencing in seconds.
Stacy's magical barrier wavered until finally, it disappeared as she was exhausted with energy. She flopped onto her knees; Frag helped her just in time before she would fall onto the ground.
"Are you okay?" Frag asked, which was a rarity to hear Frag speak.
"Yea, and thanks." Stacy let out a sigh. "I'm not doing that again."
"You and me both," Joe spoke with a hint of distaste. "I would rather be fighting monsters than magical flowers. It's too volatile."
"At least we are alive," Kim replied. "I thought we were a goner for a second."
Everyone agreed.
They all stopped to look towards where Snow was, but all they could see was a cloud of fog that slowly dissipated. For a moment, they thought they saw a living dragon, moving in the shadows.
Their eyes became wide, readying themselves into battle.
Eventually, the smoke cleared out, showing Snow standing as her gaze looked up into the sunlight. Her armor hissed, letting out steam from behind. A splutter of blue flames shot from behind her shoulder, opening up like wings.
Dazzled by sight, nobody moved.
The smoke and flames cleared up, and Snow breathed in a deep breath: relaxed. She then slowly turned her head towards the group as a few steps back in fright. A mirage of a black dragon momentarily appeared, stunning them as if they saw a ghost. Quickly the mist died down, taking away the image of the dragon present.
Snow's helmet finally came off, disappearing into the magical tattoo-like seal on her cheeks. Reaching up, she pulled back her black hair, letting it cascade down her back.
"You guys, alright?" Snow's voice chimed out. She was confused about why they were so tense.
"Yes," Dairen replied, he was the first to move towards Snow. "Are you?"
"Yep. I'm glad that the Blue Flames Flower was in its final stage. Harvesting it would be a lot easier now." She replied a bit excitedly at the thought of collecting.
"Harvesting?" Stacy looked around, confused.
One would have thought they were in a war-torn battlefield at the amount of destruction the flowers had caused; there was barely anything to pick up.
"Yes, you see the stems?" Snow pointed out. "When the Blue Flames dies, it leaves behind the fire-resistant stems. That is what we are harvesting. Great herbs for food and medicine." She cheerily said, while plucking a few stems.
"How are you fine?" Stacy blurted out, confused about how Snow was able to come out alive. The others wondered the same.
Snow smiled, "It's because of my armor. It's not a high-quality dragon armor, but it's strong enough to withstand most fire." She realized the stupor that they were in as she tried her best to clarify their confusion. "But even if you have dragon armor, not all flames are absorbent. The Blue Flame Flower is a special fire that can burn through anything, and you need the right combination of magic to withstand it with the armor. I don't suggest any of you guys try it."
Shock rippled through the group, amazed. They nodded fiercely, understanding that she was not someone to trifle with.
They knew that Mr. Everrett, Tommy, and Tamaki were terrific fighters, but when it came to magic and the deep understanding of the world, Snow outclassed them all.
"Plus," She picked one up and popped it into her mouth. "It has a minty taste, great for magical energy restoration. It's not much, but eating one a day is good for your health, though I don't suggest eating more than one or your inside will get burnt."
The others understood how unusual these plants were. They started to help Snow out, picking up as much as their hand would allow.
They quickly finished up their harvest, exiting out of the cave, and they made their way back to the village. It was a productive day, no monsters came to hunt them down, but Mike couldn't help but feel that his knowledge about the world had increased exponentially. He for sure wouldn't take any of the plants that grew in this world lightly anymore after the dangerous run-in they just went through.
Each of them handed Snow the bundle of stems. Snow gratefully took them and gave them a slip of paper with a golden marking that initiated their pay.
"Thank you, guys." Snow replied cheerfully. "I wouldn't have found such a good harvest without you guys."
"It's nothing, Snow," Dairen replied, pleased with her words. "Anyways, if you need us next time, just call for us."
"Will do." Snow nodded.
The group was about to leave when Snow called out to Mike.
"Mike!"
Mike turned around, wondering why she called him.
"Thanks for trying to save me. I appreciate it."
Confused at first, but then realizing what she meant. Mike felt a warm, bubbling feeling as a genuine smile blossomed on his face. "You're welcome, Snow."
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