There was only so much ‘sunlight’ available, and he wished to make proper use of it so as not to go the night being separated from Melisande. This seemed to be a far-off desire as his companion was clearly in a deep, unimpeded slumber.
…I’d be making a serious mistake if I left her alone for any longer than I have to in this place, he thought.
Though there was a part of him that felt that his thought process was flawed, perhaps not wrong from a pragmatic standpoint, but he remembered the times in which the girl had to reassure him of her own capabilities, time and time again.
Many times he found himself being reprimanded by Melisande for looming over her with his protective nature too often and in the process, wounding her independence and self-worth.
As he sat there, listening to the snores of his newfound friend, he fiddled with the dragon-designed necklace he was gifted by Irene.
Should I be worrying about her? If she plans on becoming a world-class adventurer…this is something she has to overcome, he thought, if I stand in front of her too much…I’ll be doing more harm than good.
He was conflicted on how he should act, but in his current situation, he decided to wait things out while Everett rested.
As his stomach lightly rumbled, he found a necessity to find food, and that it would likely be needed anyway for whenever the bear-like man woke up from his loud slumber.
Alright…Well, I can’t just leave him out like this, he thought.
Looking at Everett, who was completely defenseless, snuggling up against the grass, Emilio took a measure to protect him in his brief absence, creating a small dome of stone to act as a cover for the sleeping recruit.
That should work, he thought.
As he ventured into the crimson forest, he scanned his surroundings for anything that looked edible. The definition of ‘edible’ had to be changed as he looked around, finding berries that oozed spicy-smelling juices and spiked berries that were attached to mean-looking shrubs.
It was anything but a peaceful cut of nature, seeming more like a garden straight out of the nether.
…I do not trust anything growing on these plants, he shuttered.
What was truly getting to him was the severe dryness, finding his lips becoming dry and the moisture in his mouth becoming non-existent, though he knew finding a source of water would be far-fetched.
Instead, he put his magic to use, tilting his head back and holding his hand above his opened mouth before conjuring a stream of fresh water straight into his mouth.
At times like this, magic is seriously the best, he thought, gulping it down.
Still, after hydrating himself, the temperature still got to him as he rolled up his sleeves and loosened his collar.
As he hunted for some sort of caloric sustenance, he finally found a critter lurking the forest ground, prompting him to duck behind a tree before it spotted him.
It was the size of a large dog with a broad girth and long, black fur that had a patch of bright-red colored fur running down its back.
While it was somewhat cute in appearance at first, he changed his mind on this perception once noticing its vicious claws, which it was using to dig up soil as if hunting prey itself.
Though as he stared at it, he realized what it seemed to be related to from his earthly knowledge:
A honey badger? He thought.
It was a lot larger than the ones he saw online in his previous life, built with clear muscle. Still, he was hardly fearful of it when he had magic and a sword at his side.
…Quick and easy, quick and easy, he thought to himself.
As he pointed a finger towards the red-striped badger, he concentrated to create a small, condensed spiral of wind that acted like a bullet.
…Easy does it. And…He thought.
Getting a lock on his prey, he released the wind bullet as it bored forward, only taking a split-second to traverse the dozen of meters before slamming straight into the creature.
It was a direct-hit.
“Gotcha,” he mumbled.
As he revealed himself from his hiding spot behind the tree, he approached the badger that was laying on its back.
“Sorry, little guy–”
Apologizing for claiming its life, as he got close enough to be able to bend down and retrieve it, he found himself shocked to find that the spot in which the wind bullet landed was not drilled through.
“What…?” He muttered, perplexed.
Just as he put two-and-two together, he stood up straight and held his staff forward as the badger jumped up, growling as it showed its razor sharp teeth to the young mage.
You’ve got to be kidding me! What is it with the cutesy animals in this valley!? He questioned, I know badgers have a thick hide, but a wind bullet should’ve gone straight through it!
It was clear he wasn’t dealing with a normal badger by any means as he backed up, witnessing the creature charge him swiftly as its long claws carved up the soil in its path.
Though it was much smaller than himself, it felt larger than its own stature as it kicked up a cloud of sediment in its rabid rush towards him.
“No–!”
Before it could leap towards him with those weaponized fangs and claws, he jumped up with a boost of air beneath him, hovering several meters high as the fiery badger jumped up, only barely failing to latch onto his leg.
Too close! He thought.
Preparing to finish it with a more powerful blast of magic, he couldn’t pinpoint it as it rapidly ascended a tree, climbing up it in a spiral that made it difficult to track.
What are they feeding these animals?! He questioned.
It required a heavy amount of concentration to maintain a perfect slow and spread of air beneath his boots while making precise movements to dodge the leaps of the beaver as it used the tree to gain height.
“I’m trying to give you a quick death, you know?! Don’t make this harder than it needs to be!” He gritted his teeth.
Through his experience with wind, he was able to move smoothly through the air by manipulating the air at his feet like propellers, evading the rabid leaps and swipes that the monstrous mammal took towards him.
The main issue he had with this method of movement is the continuous usage of mana it required, prompting him to speed up the process as he spun around while levitating, finally catching the badger as it gained momentum for another leap.
“Gotcha!”
Through a squeeze of his catalyst, he turned the soil it ran on into softened mud, causing it to be caught in the sticky substance.
As he landed back on the ground, he was about to finish the red-striped carnivore off with a reinforced bullet of stone, he was surprised to find that even the mud wasn’t enough to hold the aggressive creature as its fur flared up.
Fire?! He realized.
From its fur, the badger hissed out as embers sparked like fireworks before a blaze emitted from its body, sweeping away the mud that held it.
It kept him from coming closer, giving the badger an opportunity to sprint forward before the young Dragonheart found himself tired of fighting a small creature.
“–Alright! Enough!”
Stomping down, he took matters into his own hands as he sheathed his staff and instead drew Silver Wing from its sheath, dashing forward as the badger leapt towards him.
In a clash all too climactic for Emilio’s liking, he used reinforcement to increase the speed and force of his sword thrust, stabbing straight through the feral creature’s body.
“…Gotcha…” Emilio huffed.
As the creature growled for a bit, it twitched before finally succumbing to its lethal injury, allowing the blonde-and-black haired Dragonheart to slide it off of his steel blade, scruffing it as he inspected it to make sure it was dead.
I will take this encounter to the grave with me. I have had enough intense battles with forest critters for a lifetime, he thought.
Taking his prize back with him, he found his way back easily through his own tracks in the soil, which he purposefully stepped with more weight to create visible imprints.
Just as he arrived back at the small, circular clearing between a boulder and trees where he left the protective dome of rock around Everett, a scream resounded from within the structure.
“Huh–?”
A yell boomed from the one trapped in the dome, “Get me outta here–!!!”
Absolutely confused by what was going on, Emilio waved his staff to deconstruct the stone dome he had initially summoned to protect Everett, but now it seemed to have the opposite effect.
“What’s going on–?”
As he asked this, the answer came to his vision as the structure crumbled, revealing the armored youth thrashing about as what looked like fluffy moles were clinging to his steel equipment.
“Get off! Get off!”
It was comedic for Emilio to watch the large man flail around, tossing his arms side to side and stomping his feet in the presence of relatively small, forest critters.
Still, it did seem as though the moles weren’t exactly harmless as they used their claws to latch onto Everett’s armor, trying to reach the flesh beneath.
“A little help, please-!” Everett pleaded amidst his flailing.
“…Alright, coming right up,” Emilio said.
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