Chapter 205 Through The Vines

Melisande found herself wandering in the crimson section of the Valley of Parmesus, carefully walking past tall plants that breathed embers.

“Uegh...Where did I end up?” She mumbled to herself.

It was embarrassing for the silver-haired girl to admit to herself, but her feet carried her far out of fear. Once she began running, taking in the serious words of Emilio, the fear of the savage man caused her to sprint away without remembering a single step of the path she took.

Due to this, she now found herself in the bright-red forest within the valley, a stunning contrast to the verdant section she was just in.UppTodated from nô/v/e/lb(i)n.c(o)/m

I hope you’re alright, Emilio...She thought.

Though she found herself thinking that her worries might be better saved for herself as she looked around nervously at the scarlet and crimson plants that occupied the dry forest, watching as embers lightly spewed from their cores.

What’s this place?...It’s so dry–my lips feel all dry, too, she thought.

As she felt her lips, they were definitely chapped from the lack of moisture in the air, leaving her feeling dehydrated by its suffocating atmosphere.

The first thing that came to her mind was that she needed to find her way out of the red-hot forest, but that was a tall task in itself as she stopped and spun around, finding herself completely devoid of direction.

“Urgh...What do I do now?...” She mumbled.

Adjusting her skirt, she sat down for a moment to get her bearings, trying to see if any part of the tree line or its various directions seemed familiar to her.

A sigh left her lips as she dropped her head.

Nope...none of it looks right. I’m totally lost, she thought.

Just as she was holding her own cheeks in her hands, the sound of something rustling through the foliage caused her to look up.

“–?”

Glancing around, she didn’t see anything in front of her, though as a sharp ‘hissss’ emitted from a source behind her, she jumped up, spinning around in a fight to face the stealthy critter.

Though ‘critter’ could hardly be used to describe the creature. To Melisande, that term felt more appropriate for small animals–usually cute, tiny bunnies or mischievous foxes.

Definitely not for a massive, red-scaled, black striped snake that towered over her, hissing out with a malignant look in its beady eyes.

“Eep–”

Its body was as thick as the trees it slithered past, coiling its tail around one of the trunks as it stretched itself forward, inching closer to the silver-haired meal that reflected off of its predatory eyes.

“Wind Blast!”

A massive release of wind propelled outward from her outstretched hand, conjuring a momentary condensement of a storm’s breath as it swept through the clearing in front of her, digging up patches of coil, uprooting trees, and slamming into the serpent.

The simple spell was honed to perfection, amplified by her naturally rich mana to create an aspect of magic in which even an experienced mage would find themselves surpassed in.

What usually manifested as a concussion force of wind that pushed things back harshly also birthed a visceral nature as it sliced up the crimson-scaled serpentine, causing the reptile to hiss out in pain as its purple blood spilled on the soil below.

“...I did it...” Melisande muttered in surprise, catching her breath.

Still holding her hand in front of her out of disbelief of what just occurred, she looked towards the aftermath of the emotion-driven spell; the immediate area was completely disheveled as branches were torn from trees and lines of dirt carved out from the ground.

I didn’t use an incantation...It’s like Emilio said...I perfectly envisioned it–I felt the wind at my fingertips and every part of me willed it, she thought.

There was a dull pain aching through the arm used to manifest the spell, but overall, the adrenaline of victory flooding through her body mitigated any pain as a triumphant smile stretched across her lips.

“I can do this!”

It was a small victory in the grand scope of things, but for Melisande, it was tangible proof that she belonged on the path she walked.

Still, after seeping in the joys of a win, she found herself still faced with the same problem:

I’m totally lost, she thought.

–

Trudging through the dry, hot forest of fire, Emilio could hear heavy breathing from the armorclad man behind him.

As he glanced back, he could see Everett was sweating bullets and breathing like a dog with his mouth open and tongue out.

“...Do you want to take a break?” Emilio asked.

Everett breathed heavily, catching his breath before responding, “No...I’m...good...”

“Are you sure?”

The man, completely enveloped in heavy armor which likely multiplied the strain of the high-temperature area, plopped down on his back, breathing out, “...Just a minute or two.”

“That’s what I thought,” Emilio sighed before sitting down against a tree.

Though the shield-wielding, large-build recruit claimed to only need to rest for a couple minutes, as Emilio watched the tree line for any nefarious critters or ill-willed people, snoring met his ears.

As he looked back, there Everett was with his mouth wide open, snoring like a bear while nestling against the crimson grass as if it were a proper, cushioned bed.

“You’ve got to be kidding me...” He breathed out, shaking his head.