Chapter 337: Hungry for a Fight

'That pride has been the birth and death of many warriors,' Doevm thought. He leapt through a window sill two stories high, much to the surprise of those in the classroom, and to the swarm of demons to his far right. The rescue party had split off from the main cluster of demons in search of the lost scouts. "South-east corner!" he shouted as a few of them tried to dive after him.

"Fire!" It was strange hearing her bark an order, but Doevm recognized Olpi's voice. The windowsill exploded outwards to reveal the force of Demi-humans. The rescue party was flung every which way by overwhelming force. More came but Doevm had other problems, specifically the swamp rising to meet him.

The moment Doevm left solid ground, a peculiar sensation pulled one of his organs downwards. This was the first time the Lich felt his stomach drop. He struggled to shrug it off, even going so far as to check if he had been hit by a projectile. On his back appeared a magic circle much more complex than compound magic yet was only composed of a single element: air.

By sending a small, constant stream of mana through the magic circle, two pairs of insectoid wings stretched out of his back. They buzzed, their green light turning into blurs of motion. Rapid freefall slowed to a gentle standstill over a small, murky puddle hidden within the swamp's thick vegetation.

The tip of his shoe tapped the puddle's surface, sending a single ripple to the water's edge. The reflection of a filthy student covered in tattered clothes blurred into a calm, collected man cloaked in powerful energies.

Doevm willed it and he ascended through the low-hanging canopy. His stomach dropped for a second time but he was ready for it. Howling wind chilled his ears and nose.

"Keep together," he could hear Olpi pleading with the other Demis as squadrons of demon warriors closed in upon the frail magic-users. "Doevm counted on us to handle them and that's what we're going to do."

Doevm flew past them, not before making eye-contact with his most intelligent forms of Undead. Mental commands passed in an instant before he continued onwards above the battleground, above the destroyed Reach, and through the black looming above.

Cloud trailed behind the tips of his wings as he emerged to see a starry night sky. The full moon silhouetted his greenlit form and enshrouded his prey in shadow.

The Grand Shaman: a title bestowed upon the Demon King's spiritual guardian by the Rambling Prophet. Brannath, a name that Doevm had overheard, sat in a meditative position before an enormous gap in the clouds. Lit incense jutted out of her albino form, a mere portion of many poultices, charms, and arcane components attached to her thin body. Surrounding her were five demon corpses, all with their vital points crudely sliced open.

"Brannath," Zolgon's voice came through the communication stone in the Brannath's clutches. "Why aren't you firing? The mages used up most of their mana. One more push and they'll fall over dead. Why aren't your bodyguards reporting in either?"

She barely creaked open an eye, seemingly not even noticing Doevm's approach. "A moment." She reached up to one of the incense and squashed the flame. "Hellfire pillar."

A pillar of pure red flame sprouted out of the clouds like a beacon into the night sky. Doevm curled up his body as he dodged left. The proximity alone singed his hair and skin. A horrid stench fouled the clean air. He let himself fall to the ground, dismissed his wings, and bolted, all his life essence condensing around his legs. Sixty feet to go, and another pillar appeared. He dodged right into the magic circle of another Hellfire Pillar. Flame snated up his shoes and charred his toes.

He rolled forward into a stance, summoned his spear, and launched it. As it whistled through the air, a fourth pillar of flame sparked. A crack ran through an invisible barrier around Brannath, and the spear clattered to the ground. The initial spark extinguished as the Grand Shaman's concentration was broken. The gout of fire didn't emerge from the magic circle at Doevm's feet.

He let out a sigh of relief. Of course it wouldn't have been that easy but at least he was still alive. 'So this is what facing an opponent with more mana feels like,' he thought. He swallowed his saliva and examined his options. 'I can't just charge in but...' He glanced at the gap in the clouds, where a beam of destruction had passed through. 'I need to hurry.' He willed it and his spear vanished, reappearing seconds later in his hand. He got into a stance and slowly closed the distance.

Brannath tilted her head to the side, looked at the spear, the smoke drifting through the crack, and lastly Doevm. She blinked and sobered up. "Zolgon. There's someone here with me."

"What?" Zolgon responded. "All the mages should be here...unless it's the person who took down my scouting parties. I'm sending reinforcements out immediately. Please be careful. It's probably him."

"You're always too concerned about your guardian." Brannath put the communication stone away and bowed when Doevm was fifty feet away. "I thank you, for it is tradition that the Grand Shaman must fight whenever they are involved in a battle…" She sighed and prodded one of the corpses. "Even if his highness chooses to ignore that tradition. It is an honor to meet the infamous Forbidden One."

"Let's make this quick, girl." Doevm reached into his spatial ring for his throwing knives and dagger but realized that the rest of his weapons were still in his original spatial ring. Blue life essence, mana, and demonic aura emanate from his body. His wings sprouted anew.

Brannath raised an eyebrow at the demonic weapon, and responded to the show of power by pulling out her own mana. Doevm barely held a candle to the roaring whirlwind of energy that erupted from the Grand Shaman's core. She smirked: "Forbidden One, you seem to be lacking in certain departments." She gestured to all of him. "I won't give chase if you run, 'cause this won't be much of a fight." She leaned forward, practically drooling from the mouth like a dog.

"In this life, I've gone up against many powerful opponents," Doevm said. "I'm still standing. You may have power, I'll give you that. Can you, however, say the same of anything else?"

She was silent.

"It's as you said: this won't be much of a fight, little girl," He emphasised the last two words again, even if she didn't seem to be reacting to it. 'She's an Albino mutant,' he thought. 'They're born with much more mana than the typical demon, and with a lot more emotional intelligence.'

The Grand Shaman kept talking, and he pretended to listen.

'She's wearing three shrunken fairy heads at her waist, which are potential components in a total of eighteen sacrificial spells,' he thought before looking at the surroundings. 'Terrain isn't much of an issue since we're on an open plane. I'll need to change that. She'll likely wait for my first move and react with a reflection spell. I don't see any allies so she's likely to make some, especially if I show my hand. I'll trust Olpi to hold reinforcements off.'

"Forbidden One," Brannath mentioned that title again.

Doevm had stopped feeding mana into the insectoid wings but maintained the magic circle. A dense ball of mana lingered an inch behind. "How do you know who I am?" he asked.

Forty feet.

The Grand Shaman smirked, delaying in her response when she noticed how close he was getting. Doevm slowed his pace and she seemed to relax a bit. She kept a finger around an incense, waiting. "You've tried to keep your head down. Is that why you surrendered to this backwards institution, labeled by fools as a magic academy? Why did you choose this path instead of using your lost power to take over this world?"

"I choose this path?"

Thirty five feet.

Brannath shifted in place. The decision to not move weighed on her.

Doevm continued: "Anyone who knows Liches would assume I was trapped in this body by a curse. Liches hate humans after all. Stating that I chose this path means you discovered the circumstances of how I returned. There's only three who know that much, and only one who would tell you. So it was the God of Evil, huh?"

Brannath shrugged. "So what? You're just stalling while you figure out how to attack, aren't you? Don't bother. I may not match your experience level but I'm no novice."

"Are you sure about that," Doevm said when he reached the thirty foot mark. 'She knows how to dance around words. Maybe I can get the Demon King to talk instead.' "Did the God of Evil tell you about the map of the inheritances as well? He seems desperate."

"Why don't I ask some questions," Brannath said, finally choosing to back away.

'Thirty feet,' Doevm thought. 'That's the minimum distance she'll allow. Any closer and she'll fly away.'

Brannath continued: "Why not raze this kingdom to the ground instead of helping humans? What changed inside you? You lowered your head to human society. Are you really the Forbidden One? Where's your limitless mana? Where's your army?" Whether intentional or not, she stepped out of the barrier.

Doevm extended his hands: "Compound magic: Nails in the Coffin." He had a plan, and stalling was over.