Avoidance

The projectiles shot by the orb didn’t just hit me; one of them also grazed Res’s arm. The resulting burn, though tiny at the start, spread rapidly out from the contact point. Watching Res’s wound, I quickly sheathed the dagger and exhaled a horrified breath. My enhanced toughness and regeneration might have saved me from instant death. It was like Sabedra said; my fire necklace was no help at all.

“Don’t come close to me, soldiers! Or this will happen again!” I adjusted my threat. Res was writhing in pain, clear for the soldiers to see. The soldiers stopped in their tracks; some begged me to save Res, while others protested how dishonorable I was for using Res as a hostage.

I didn’t see you complaining when Res threatened Coyote.

Lyla glanced between Res and me, plagued by indecision. Time was running out, so I decided for her. “Her wounds are more severe! Use the Heal spell!”

Lyla sprang into action. “Heal.”

Res’s burn shrank but didn’t vanish completely. “Are you using the spell right?” I asked.

“It must be the mana handcuffs. We either have to take it off, or I would have to heal her continuously,” Lyla replied.

I examined Res’s charred spots. It was diffusing more slowly than before. “Just keep healing her from time to time. But first, heal my wounds. Then, we are leaving. Oh, and cast Clarity on Coyote and Zeroc.”

“Wait, Coyote and Zeroc are here?” I guess I could cut her some slack, since she had been evading soldiers from all sides.

The soldiers stayed put because I had Res in my hands. That allowed Lyla uninterrupted focus to heal my burns. Where my natural regeneration couldn’t overpower the injury, the Heal spell recovered my body in an instant. It was as if splinters were plucked from my skin; there was still a soreness afterwards, but compared to before, it was heaven.

Coyote returned to her senses after Lyla canceled out the effect of the drug with the Clarity spell. She immediately gave Lyla a warm hug. “You came back!”

I smiled at Coyote. “I’ll hug you later. We have to leave now.” Coyote scanned around, at the soldiers glaring at us and at Res, whom I was pressing on the floor. She nodded, grasping the situation.

Zeroc had been struggling to stand back up ever since I had bound his arms. Lyla could get close enough to cast Clarity, but again because of the handcuffs, the spell couldn’t wake Zeroc up at all.

A crate of the anesthetic drug was lying nearby, so I used a needle to inject the drug into Res and Zeroc to stop them from thrashing around. It would normally be reckless to do this without measuring the exact doses, but I was listening to their heartbeats the whole time, and Lyla could use healing magic if anything went wrong.

In the end, we settled on Lyla carrying Res and me carrying Zeroc. Because of the size difference, I had to lift Zeroc’s body from under him, like an ant bringing a breadcrumb back to its hive. I asked Coyote to pick up Res’s pile of paper, as there might be something useful inside.

I forced the soldiers to tell us how to get to the exit trapdoor. With Coyote leading the way, we got out of the secret tunnel onto the grass field. A few soldiers had tried to follow us, but after I reminded them out loud that I could hear their movements, they hesitantly pulled back.

Coyote still wobbled with her steps, troubled by the aftereffects of the drug. Lyla explained it would take some time for the drug to fade thoroughly from the body, even with the help of the Clarity spell.

We returned to the tent of our operations with no resistance in our way. Lyla filled Cyrus in on the situation. Some of the elf warriors tended to the two bound people we dragged in.

Coyote played with my hair while taking cover behind me, wary of Sabedra. Sabedra didn’t mind Coyote’s mistrust. I wondered if she even noticed Coyote at all, as she was busy gushing over the miniature sun. “That is often used to protect nobles in combat. You will see them a lot in wars.” She kept going on and on, and I started to regret asking her about it.

“Excuse me, Lord Cyrus…” An elf warrior glided into the tent and whispered something into Cyrus’s ear. And I could hear all of it thanks to the spirit owl’s ability. The warrior had noticed a group of people heading our way: the knights from the royal outpost.

“Dear travelers from Melhnora, we heard you were harboring criminals who kidnapped a royalty-appointed ambassador. Hand them over, or we will have to force you to.” The knights broadcast this message from afar. The elf warrior estimated they would arrive within five minutes.

“We will surrender and let them check the tent,” Cyrus said after explaining the situation to the others. “A confrontation with the royal knights is out of the question. We can’t afford to start a civil war.” When looking from an outside perspective, the city soldiers were entirely justified in pursuing Lyla and me, who snuck into the city and captured Zeroc. The knight might have genuinely believed in what they claimed.

“You can move that woman to my cave,” Sabedra suggested. And thus, our next course of action was decided.

“Be careful. Some of the knights might be brainwashed.” Lyla said to Cyrus.

“Why are you speaking as if you were also going with them?” Cyrus replied, but he conceded instantly after a glare from Lyla. “Do what you like. I’ve given up on convincing you at this point.”

With Res as our hostage, they wouldn’t act recklessly. But we had to ensure that they couldn’t take their very own hostages to threaten us back. “Don’t worry. We will protect the little girl. And we are no less powerful than any royal knights. In the worst scenario, escaping won’t be a problem. Also, the buff guy should wake up soon. That’s another fighter on our side,” Cyrus reassured me.

“Check if he is of sound mind first before releasing him from the mana handcuffs.” I gave this final warning to Cyrus, then I hurled the half-conscious Res onto my shoulder and left the tent with Lyla and Sabedra.

Coyote appeared heartbroken, having to part with Lyla and me again. But she ultimately understood the gravity of our situation, so she put on a brave face and waved us goodbye.

We kept our bodies close to the ground while making a run to the forest, hoping the terrain could cover us from the knights. Except for Sabedra. She didn’t even run, though her power walk was fast enough to keep up with us.

“Stop right there, or we will attack,” a voice shouted from the distance, just as we were getting close to the forest. Glancing at the source of the voice, I could see a crowd of figures several hills over. Those must be the royal knights.