Chapter 744: The Battle Apprentice

Chapter 744: The Battle Apprentice

Five mages split the air, darting at the small hamlet like hawks in prey. Spells shot down, tearing structures out of the ground, surrounding them in massive spheres of purple, like enormous bubbles in the air. The only building left was a solid two-story mansion right in the middle.

Seven new mages emerged, swooping in-between the floating houses. Half of them cast illusion spells, causing them to vanish once more. The rest focused on the main building.

Streaks of light hit the upper floor, slicing off segments of the roof and upper walls as if they were puzzle pieces of a childs toy. The inside was completely revealed: old broken furniture, the remains of a bed, filled with animal poop, and rags that at some point must have been a carpet.

Every object was drawn up and encircled in a new sphere of magic, as the house continued to be deconstructed. Segments of the floor moved aside, followed by the lower walls. Soon enough, a stone stairwell became visible, winding down from the basement.

Finally, Dallion said, hovering above. His dark green robe distinguishing him from the lighter variety the other mages were wearing. His hands moved together in front of him, his fingers drawing dozens of symbols every second. An intricate spell sphere took form, shooting aether chains at everything below.

One good tug and the stairwell was ripped from the ground. Parts of two new rooms had become visible in the spot where it had been.

Instantly, four mages flew in, spells at the ready. There were several flashes of light, then silence.Alll latest novels at novelhall.com, do you sense anything? Dallion asked.

Hmm, err No, boss. A jellyfish made entirely of aether emerged above Dallion's right shoulder. There are some traces of magic, but

Theres nothing here, apprentice. One of the mages emerged from the basement area. Its all empty.

Giving a sign to the other mages to remain diligent, Dallion floated down into the lowest room. As the other mage had said, there was nothing there, not even any furniture remains. Cautiously, he stopped an inch from the ground. Several aether orbs provided light to the space, all of them cast moments ago.

He was here, Dallion said.

How can you be so sure? A woman floated beside him. The place looks like its been deserted for decades, at least.

This is the only building without a guardian. Also, its far too clean.

As he said that, all the other mages looked around. Although crude, the stone floor was spotless, lacking any dirt or animal droppings.

Apprentice! a yell came from the room above. We found something.

Quickly Dallion floated up. The new room was virtually identical to the one below. The only difference was the presence of a single quill located in the far corner. The quill was in perfect condition, and rather new. Also, it had an item guardian.

Are you Dallion? the quill asked, as Dallion approached it.

I am, Dallion replied.

He told me to tell you no hard feelings.

No hard feelings, Dallion let out a dry laugh.

Apprentice? one of the nearby mages looked at him.

This whole thing was one big wild goose chase. Afzorg wanted us to get here. Thats why he left a small present for us.

Dallion moved the fingers of his left hand. A green sphere surrounded the quill, lifting it from the ground.

Doing well, I see, Dallion said, struggling to keep a straight face. Is battle mage Katka here?

Yes, battle apprentice! half a dozen mages shouted simultaneously.

Quickly, Daillion raised his hand. He really didnt want to go through all this. Most of the mages were competent on missionsthanks to his leadership skillsbut painfully chaotic when left to their own devices.

Ill go see her. Keep on doing what youre doing.

You need to be a bit stricter with them, the armadil shield guardian said from Dallions realm. Each of them thinks of you as a buddy they want to impress.

Tell me about it, Dallion whispered. It was worse than running a guild of newbies in an MMO. Thankfully, his image provided him with a few perks, including not being bothered when he appeared annoyed or busy.

Rushing into the building, Dallion followed the staircases to the top floor, where Katkas office was located. Officially, she was supposed to spend most of her time there, but being one to get easily annoyed with crowds, she preferred to stay at the circles building cluster instead.

The door opened before Dallion got a chance to knock on it. Normally, it was Katka who did that by casting a spell from the other side of the room. This time, a crimson fury stood there, standing there with an unnerving smile.

Back so fast? Katka asked from her usual spot on the couch across the room. The old man tricked you again, eh?

Looks like. Dallion stepped in. An air current closed the door behind him.

Oh, dont worry. You can talk in front of the lieutenant. Hes just here to share a few details from the western front.

Such as? Dallion asked. I heard weve been losing a lot of clouds there.

Some setbacks are inevitable, the fury said. Very much like your attempt to capture archmage Adzorg, was it?

You know his name perfectly, Dallion thought.

His echo was my mentor for millennia. Dallion made his way towards Katka. He didnt sit on the couch, of course; he wouldnt even if he were invited to. Hes bound to have more tricks than me. Well still get him. Its a matter of time. Besides, I know what hes really after.

As is complete victory. The fury nodded.

Dallion couldnt tell whether the lieutenant was mocking him, or really believed the official propaganda. The nobles seemed to and, so far, they were proven right.

One small clarification. Im not here to talk about troop actions. I just thought youd like to know that one of our patrols spotted a vortex glimmer as they were patrolling an unclaimed area.

Both Dallion and Katka reacted. The woman even sat up from her couch upon hearing the news. Vortex glimmers were sort of premonitions associated with the appearance of a high-level vortex. When it came to time and magic, it could be said that they didnt always go hand in hand. From a scholarly point of view, glimmers were the effects of a vortex appearing before it had actually done so. A lot of unknowns remained, but it was confirmed that only high-level manifestations had them, and also the greater the level, the greater the time between the glimmer and the permanent entry in the world.

What level? Katka asked.

It was difficult to say, but at the very least, a seven. The fury smiled.

A seven, Dallion thought. That would be enough to boost his level to twenty-eight, if not more. With the war, magic had become an invaluable commodity. And while the Academy had low-level magic in abundance, any vortex that could boost ones magic level was a rarity sought by all. At present, Dallion had only managed to find a three-level vortex thanks to his aetherizer.

Ive already informed the emperor, but I thought the battle mages should know as well. It was more than clear that the lieutenant wanted something in return. Even in times of war, favors and politics took central stage.

Youll have the battle mages vast gratitude, Katka said.

Of course. Ill gladly share its location.