"--If it's a kid, they need our help!" Celly yelled back, not stopping.
Though he didn't get an opportunity to discuss anything in the slightest, he couldn't help but share that same mindset: if there was a kid in danger, it was their duty to rescue them. He ran alongside Celly, quickly reaching a separated area in the cave where a small spring of water flowed.
"There…!" Celly gasped, spotting the source of the initial yell.
"Nngh…"
Sitting there on the ground was a crying child–a boy with short, brown hair cut nearly, though tears trailed down his cheeks as he clearly whimpered in pain.
"His leg…" Emilio realized.
The boy's leg had a large gash running along his calf, bleeding profusely onto the ground as it seemed the boy had been running from something, stumbling upon the current area.
Celly didn't hesitate to rush over, comforting the boy as she knelt down, already casting a healing spell on his leg, "It's okay now. I'm here. You're safe."
"Nnn…" The boy quietly whimpered.
Keeping an eye out, Emilio looked around, studying the walls for any suspicious movement while his companion tended to the child's wound, though he found himself suspicious about one thing.
'Why did he scream? There's nothing around here–it's weird, actually. We've moved pretty deep in, but there hasn't been a single kobold in awhile. Why would he scream if there's nothing around here?' He thought.
"Celly," he called the woman's name.
Though as he said her name, the archmage didn't stop what she was doing, still assuring the boy of his safety:
"Did you come here alone? Where are your parents? We'll take you back to them–"
"Celly!" He yelled out.
–Before the eyes of the gentle mage, she witnessed the wounded boy morph before her eyes; the once whimpering, helpless child's body contorted, shifting forms into the unsightly, mangy fur of a whiskered creature.
"Ngh!"
Celly winced, raising her arm just as the deceitful creature swiped its curved claws, slashing her forearm.
'Dammit!' Emilio thought.
Dashing across the length of the room in an instant, Emilio pulled the archmage back before blocking another strike from the lonesome kobold with a stomp of his boot, summoning a barrier of stone.
It was enormous; unlike any of the others, though lanky and lacking in mass, having a crooked neck and a sight more abhorrent than any others; fur that was crimson, seeming painted in the blood of other creatures.
"Emilio…I'm sorry," Celly said, holding her bleeding arm.
"Don't be. This is what kobolds are all about," Emilio said, facing off against the crooked kobold, "--Even a goblin can get the advantage on a veteran through lowly tactics. It's all about being aware of who and what you're up against–question everything. That's what Vandread taught me."
Whatever it was, the kobold before them seemed different from the rest; its blood fur and lanky, crooked appearance was one thing, but what both of the adventurers sensed was even more concerning: a mana signature from the beast.
'It reeks of miasma,' he thought.
"Emilio," Celly said.
"I know. It's got some sort of magical ability," he said, wielding his sword and standing between his companion and the unique kobold, "Heal your arm–I'll handle this one."
Celly seemed to have guilt over falling for the deceitful tactic of the creature, though nodded as she began focusing her healing magecraft on her sliced forearm, "Okay…Be careful, Emilio."
"Careful is my middle name," he assured, "Dangerous also happens to be my middle name."
The crooked kobold bolted across the chamber in an instant, running with a low stance almost as if on all fours, but remaining bipedal as it attempted to eviscerate the man with its claws.
Emilio pivoted past its attack, retaliating with an overhead strike of his sword primed for its neck, though surprised as he witnessed the crimson kobold lean back to avoid his blade's edge.
'It's nimble, and skilled,' he thought.
"Hyaaack!"
"--!"
Straight from its mouth, the kobold parted its maw as it unleashed a liquid from its bowels, spitting it out at a high speed. Side-stepping the projectile of fluid, Emilio watched as it splattered against the back corner of stone, splashing against it with a black shade, melting the rock instantly.
'Corrosive spit? Some sort of form of water magic?' He thought.
He made it a personal goal of his not to rely on his own Dragonheart transformations, instead utilizing his own physical strengths as he continued weaving through the strikes and melting spit of the crooked kobold.
"Emilio!" Celly called out, "Watch out for its claws! It has some sort of venom it injects through cutting you!"
As he glanced back, he could see that the half-elf's forearm had black, miasmic spots where it had been afflicted.
Just as he was about to disengage the persistent enemy, Celly yelled to him again, "I'm fine! This is nothing I can't recover! Just watch out for yourself!"
Being assured of such, he nodded before turning his focus back to the crooked kobold, weaving through its attacks flawlessly, surprised that a creature from such a species packed the sort of speed that it did.
'It's using magical reinforcement. It's probably even faster than Father with its attacks–sound doesn't even emit from its swipes until a moment later. It's a good thing we took this quest,' he thought.
As he flipped his sword around, going for a few, quick slashes, the crooked kobold managed to use a freaky flexibility that dislocated its own joints in order to dodge.
Still, Emilio didn't hesitate to snap his fingers just after being evaded, unleashing a fast burst of wind that stunned the kobold. It wasn't just an ordinary blast of wind; it used lightning-fast vibrations that rippled against the creature's body with a shuddering violence.
"Emilio!"
A quick glance over at the yell of his name allowed him to see that his companion had healed her arm; a small wound meant fast recovery. The reason Celly had yelled was to signal that she could attack now, leading him to nod before ducking beneath a wild swipe from the kobold.
"You might be bigger than the others, but you're just as predictable–!" Emilio said before shooting back up.
As he stood, he sprung up, rocketing his fist against its jaw with a vicious uppercut, fueled by his own heightened physiology as the impact cracked the bones of the creature.
"Graaahh…" The crimson kobold stumbled back, left groggy from the brutal blow.
"Let him have it, Celly!" Emilio yelled with a smile.
The moment he moved out of the way, the proper room was given for Celly as she held her staff forward, invoking a burst of heat as a star-shaped blast of fire shot from her catalyst.
Before the kobold could regain itself, the piercing blaze etched itself into the creature's body, permeating into its flesh the mark of the flaming star–the result of the full branding caused the kobold to be relinquished to ash.
"Phew," Celly breathed out, briefly closing her eyes.
Emilio walked over to her, holding his hand up, "Good work out there, partner."
For a moment, the silver-haired archmage looked at his hand before smiling with a nod, giving him the high-five he was waiting for, "Mhm!"
More eventful than planned, the quest to clear out the kobolds dwelling within the mountain was complete, and with it, a nice sum from the Yullim Guild lined their pockets.
After returning from their quest, the two relaxed beside the Dragonheart residence, where a hammock was propped up; Emilio lounged in the hammock while Celly sat on a chair near him, reading a book.
As he relaxed on the hammock, he bounced the sack of coins he had acquired from the quest in his hand monotonously.
"You know, I haven't seen you study once since I've come here," Celly remarked, looking up from her book.
Beneath the calm, blue skies of Yullim, Emilio relaxed as he looked up towards those skies, keeping his arms behind his head as he laid on the wool hammock before sitting up to respond, "That's because I've been spending my time with you–err, well, yeah."
"Hmm…How about we study together, then?" Celly offered.
"Really? Sure. That sounds great," he said with a smile.
The two sat side-by-side, looking upon the same book that had teachings of water magic transcribed into its pages; a grimoire known as the "Mystical Art of The Moving Sea". Fortunately, the handwriting was clear and legible; making it easy to read alongside the archmage:
["As I believe, the element of water can both be one of life, and one that ushers death. A flicker of intent can weave it from a tranquil element to one that possesses destructive capabilities not inferior to fire. That brings us to a spell crafted for both purposes: "Flow of Between"—an art that regenerates your flesh and destroys your enemy's."]
"Interesting. This is different from other books I've seen when it comes to water magic," he remarked quietly.
Celly nodded, "Lars Gravona—the man who wrote this—is considered one of the greatest users of water magic of all time. The same is said for his contribution to creating new spells; he's said to be comparable to the Founders of Magic in his mastery of water."
"You seem to be pretty familiar with him," he remarked.
"Academy teaches a lot about the history of mages, especially those who wrote recognized grimoires," Celly told him with a smile.
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