Jackal Among Snakes

The front deck of the Sea Dragon was shrouded in fog, and as Argrave walked at the head of his people, he reviewed this battleground he’d long ago surveyed. The front deck, unlike the back, was triangular. The emperor and his guards stood in the center of this triangle, and their formation was simple. The vanguard held pavises firm against the ground, the crescent moon of the Great Chu emblazoned proudly in white on their black surface. Just behind, expert archers prepared to fire arrows of great power.

The emperor’s elite archers would undoubtedly make any approach unimaginably difficult, and the cover from the pavises would make retaliation difficult. On top of that, Argrave could see other weapons on their person—once they came close enough, they would surely switch to melee weapons, demonstrating the same devastating prowess that they had in their first encounter.

The position inclined an onlooker toward using devastating spells to break their rank, but that might be a mistake. At the midway point of the triangular front deck, two towers rose up on the left and right sides. It was from there that the S-rank spellcasters had attacked them with water dragons, and it was there two remained, sheltered from attack while within their towers. From its shelter, the powerful spellcasters perched like a hawk watching for prey. With Ji Meng on the battlefield, their role would be solely to protect him completely. They would make casting spells a laborious thing—and even if one slipped past, Emperor Ji Meng himself was an S-rank spellcaster.

It was a deadly formation… but one that Argrave and Anneliese had devised a hastily-conjured counter for. That counter, namely, was themselves.

Rather than the Veidimen or the other spellcasters along with them, Argrave, Anneliese, and Onychinusa walked straight toward the formation. Argrave’s blood echoes spread out in a line, while Anneliese remained just behind him. Onychinusa persisted as displaced magic mist, blending in with the Brumesinger’s fog, yet Argrave knew she was present.

When the first volley of magic-laced arrows came to confront their advance, Anneliese conjured wards with practiced grace. Her wards, empowered by divine creations plundered from Erlebnis’ vault, easily withstood the blow. She and Argrave were protected within, while Argrave’s blood echoes remained without.

On the right and left, the Veidimen took formation centered around their remaining spellcasters. Their task was twofold—deal with the S-rank spellcasters within the towers, and flank the emperor’s guard. Vasilisa and Vera, their two best attackers, countered every spell the S-rank spellcasters in the tower cast, while Castro and Hegazar acted as reserve and rearguard both.

“The two in the towers have some spirits—perhaps a hundred. But Ji Meng has the most,” Anneliese told him, employing her [Truesight] to evaluate these people. “Easily over a thousand.”

Argrave’s party had a straightforward victory condition. They would need to deplete their opponents of spirits using a simple shamanic spell called [Freedom], which required its caster to touch the other party. Once their foes were deprived of their spirits, they became vulnerable to shamanic magic. It was Onychinusa’s duty to then cast the S-rank spell [Subjugate], that they might subdue the emperor without killing him.

Though grateful for the enemy’s spirit count, Argrave did not respond to Anneliese—instead, he unleashed his first counterattack to the imperial guard’s formation, calling upon each of his blood echoes to attack. Argrave saw bright maroon lights before he heard the terrible noise of his attack. Seventy-two sustained bolts of blood-infused lightning came forth from eight blood echoes, casting dreadful lights across the deck. Their sheer power illuminated the fog so completely it seemed that Argrave had cast them into a ring of hell, and the sustained electric arcs emitted an intense noise that sounded like an industrial saw.

This was one of the spells he had designed in seclusion with the Alchemist, experimenting with segmenting and [Blood Infusion]. With segmenting, he turned [Nine-Tailed Bloodbriars] and its bloody whips into [Arc Whips]—a B-rank spell that projected nine deadly electric arcs that spanned the air with lightning’s speed and power. With [Blood Infusion], each of these arcs gained the power of his black blood. He might’ve made the spell A-rank, but B-rank spells were the limit his blood echoes could cast.

The Bloodbriars had already been an unstoppable wave of destruction, yet now that they were formed of electricity while retaining the destructive power of blood magic. Argrave was used to emerging from the gate with an attack so powerful that it forced his foes on the defensive, and this was his most powerful gambit yet.

Even still, the imperial guard responded with infinite composure. Though the lightning was fast enough the first wave struck his foes, the pavise-bearing frontliners imbued their magic into their shields before the second wave came, conjuring a slew of wards from their weapons. The [Arc Whips] melted through lower-ranked wards, true—but dozens stacked together was another matter. Their defense held, and the elite archers changed both their formation and projectile type. When their defense fell, Argrave once again cast [Arc Whips] from his echoes. The archers met this with a wave of water arrows, upon which the arcs faltered. Argrave was shocked they so quickly devised a counter, but also had plenty of tricks in his own bag.

Before Argrave had the chance to change his style of attack, the guards’ formation split. Ji Meng walked forward, running his hand along his dadao. Argrave saw a mana ripple split through the fog, hueing it teal, but no spell came. Instead, Argrave saw all of the emperor’s magic pour into this weapon, and knew what was coming.

“Defend,” Argrave shouted, voice eerily clear in the foggy battle.

When the last of the magic poured into his weapon, Ji Meng raised his dadao into the air and swung it horizontally. A crescent beam of concentrated electricity cut through the air, and Argrave barely conjured an A-rank ward empowered by [Blood Infusion] in time to defend. Though easily equal to any S-rank ward, his defense shattered. Anneliese’s wards next stood in its way, yet they both shattered before its might. Argrave received the blow with the jade Resonant Pillar in his hand. The slash still had tremendous force behind it, and the Inerrant Cloak that Argrave wore drew upon his magic to protect from the remainder. The majority of his personal magic vanished as it drew upon his magic supply to defend him… yet Argrave managed to emerge unharmed.

The emperor’s weapon could absorb any spell that he cast, then concentrate it into a single slash and empower it with divinity. The resulting attack was strong enough to slay even greater gods. He had caught much of that power in the Resonant Pillar, and the weapon now stood poised to deliver a devastating attack whenever he so pleased.

Ji Meng’s face was hidden behind his demonic mask, but Argrave thought he noticed surprise that they’d endured. Argrave held his gaze and calmly unclasped the Inerrant Cloak to hand to Anneliese, whose magic supply could replenish. With Argrave’s magic gone, she was better suited to wear this.

“You take the next hit, if it comes to that. But be careful,” he reminded her.

Argrave had thought Ji Meng merely poked his head out to attack, but no—his guards’ formation shifted. Rather than wait to be flanked, his troops divided into two to confront the coming Veidimen. Like parallels to Argrave and Anneliese, Emperor Ji Meng and Admiral Tan Shu stood adjacent to each other, supported by two archers each. Argrave briefly thought it was pride on the emperor’s part, but no. It was much more difficult for the group as a whole if the imperial guard contested the Veidimen.

To his right and left, battle erupted between the Chu spellcasters, the imperial guard, the Veidimen, and Argrave’s retinue of Order Magisters. The emperor and admiral both stared them down in their lamellar Chu-styled armor, demonic masks betraying no emotion. Admiral Tan Shu was an A-rank spellcaster and bore a divine bident made of bone. They were both intimidating fighters, but Argrave couldn’t hesitate. He advanced, hoping they’d do the same, as he called upon his blood echoes to cast [Arc Whips] yet again.

Ji Meng held his dadao up, imbuing it with a warding spell as Argrave’s onslaught of lightning came. Each of the arcs twisted and battered against the blade as though drawn to it, demonstrating yet another aspect of his terrifying weapon. Argrave turned his attack into a distraction, however—behind, he had his Brumesingers conjure shades of mist to assail the two archers supporting both the admiral and the emperor.

The moment Argrave’s lightning ceased, Admiral Tan Shu threw her bident. It soared through the air whistling, and Argrave conjured his A-rank ward infused with blood magic to block it. The silver bracer on his arm containing his blood essence had drained about half from merely two of these wards. When it struck his ward, the bident suspended in the air. Tan Shu simply appeared where it was, then gripped it tightly and thrust again. His ward shattered, but Argrave knew this attack was coming and sidestepped.

Argrave swung the Resonant Pillar to punish her attempt at a surprise attack, and Tan Shu barely blocked with the haft of her spear. The sheer force contained within the attack lifted her off the ground and sent her flying hundreds of feet away. She threw her bident—not at Argrave, but at the ship. It sunk deep into the deck. As her figure faded away, she once again teleported where it landed. She stumbled, her arms broken—Argrave’s attack had done some damage, even if she had blocked it. Still, it was nothing magic couldn’t heal.

“Another swing!” Anneliese shouted, drawing Argrave’s attention back to the emperor.

Just as Argrave turned his head, Ji Meng had already imbued his weapon with another S-rank spell. Anneliese stepped in front of him and cast two wards just as Ji Meng swung horizontally once more. As his crescent blade of condensed electricity cut through the air with uncanny speed, her wards barely bought Argrave enough time to cast another of his A-rank wards infused with blood magic. Once again, the Inerrant Cloak proved the only thing preventing them from perishing, and Argrave saw Anneliese’s magic drain rapidly as she blocked it with her bare hands.

If I’d known he would be so hard to approach, I’d have brought Melanie for certain, Argrave thought.

He looked to Admiral Tan Shu, considering somehow using her bident to get near. He saw no way to do it without exposing his plan, though—and the admiral wasn’t yet beaten. He needed a way to both approach quickly and distract the emperor simultaneously.

Hell, thought Argrave. Guess it’s time for good ol’ reliable.

“In this domain, any allies inside reach their peak for a short time,” Argrave declared, calling upon the Domain of Law. At once, he felt a tremendous difference. He didn’t look back as he said, “Anneliese, Onychinusa—make sure I can approach him without being intercepted.”

“Understood,” she answered, though he could hear the unease in her voice. Onychinusa did not answer, but Argrave could perceive her everywhere and knew she listened.

Argrave sent out ten blood echoes, straining his mind to its fullest. Two of them used [Arc Whips], blasting at the emperor. It was enough to keep him distracted defending, but also gave Ji Meng the opportunity to step backward and retreat. Argrave felt some panic seeing that, but stuck to his plan. All of the eight other blood echoes conjured [Electric Eels]. Argrave himself, however, cast [Bloodarc Bow], preparing a single mighty attack using the last of the blood essence within his silver bracer.

Argrave watched and waited, eyes fixed on the emperor ahead. He felt the two blood echoes deplete as they cast [Arc Whips], and moments before they finally vanished, Argrave pointed [Bloodarc Bow] into the sky, then shot up the maroon bolt of lightning. It soared toward the heavens, and following just after it was the far-slower [Electric Eels].

Argrave sprinted forth, heading for the emperor. The Admiral Tan Shu tried to intercept him, but Anneliese contested her. Some of the imperial guard broke away to try and fight Argrave, but Onychinusa manifested out of her immaterial magic form and conjured wards to block projectiles they fired.

Emperor Ji Meng saw Argrave’s approach, but rather than flee to safety, he began to once again imbue his dadao with an S-rank spell. Argrave felt rising terror as he realized that this man might intend to clash with Argrave, but it calmed when he saw the man’s neck crane to look at the approaching attack. The arrow of the [Bloodarc Bow] had flown straight upward, and now it came down with a trail of [Electric Eels].

The emperor raised his blade above his head as though to swat away the eels like flies. As the lightning descended upon him with terrifying speed, he swung his weapon and a great burst of electricity neutralized the eels. Then, just as Argrave ran at him, so too did Emperor Ji Meng rush forth to confront Argrave.

Argrave prepared [Freedom] in his left hand, ready to divest the emperor of his spirits to make him vulnerable to [Subjugate]. The emperor savagely swung his huge sword, and though Argrave was the larger man he was near certain he was weaker. All four of his Brumesingers conjured shades to assist him, receiving the blow to weaken it just before Argrave caught it with the Resonant Pillar. Argrave’s arm screamed in pain as he resisted the too-powerful blow.

Ji Meng deftly maneuvered his blade and swung at Argrave’s stomach. Under ordinary circumstances the deft movement would’ve fooled Argrave and he would’ve been gutted then and there. But the effects of the Domain of Law lingered, and Argrave only barely brought the Resonant Pillar in time to parry the blow. The Resonant Pillar returned the attack that Argrave had just received, and in tandem with his own strength, Ji Meng’s blade slipped from his grasp and he was disarmed.

Argrave completed the shamanic spell [Freedom], and thrust his left hand out at Ji Meng. The emperor blocked the attack with his forearm, but the spell did its duty. Spirits exploded outward from his body, and Argrave smiled triumphantly. His smile faded when the emperor grabbed his wrist and slammed his foot into the side of his knee in a practiced move. Argrave kneeled, crying out in pain, and the emperor then jammed his fist into Argrave’s throat.

Yet then, Onychinusa casted [Subjugate].

Wires of malicious black energy exploded outward from Onychinusa’s hands, assaulting all those she deemed in need of subjugation. Emperor Ji Meng recoiled and stepped back, clutching his head and crying out in pain. All of the imperial guard, too, staggered. Their thoughts and memories were directly assaulted, breaking beneath the spell.

Argrave coughed in pain, clutching his neck as the emperor recovered. He couldn’t breathe, and called upon healing magic to restore whatever the man had crushed—his whole throat, maybe. No one had fallen, protected by their divine armaments. In response, Onychinusa merely cast the spell again. The wires of black energy burst outward once again, assailing the guards.

Most enemies present were forced to the ground, incapacitated. Only the emperor stayed standing. Onychinusa cast the spell the third time… and finally, the indomitable Ji Meng fell to one knee. Argrave rose to his feet, neck healed, and walked up to the emperor. Ji Meng stared up at Argrave, his eyes bugging out.

“We’ll talk soon,” Argrave told him. “Sleep well.”

The emperor collapsed to the deck, falling into unconsciousness. Argrave smiled, trying to forget the fact that the man had just nearly killed him with his bare hands, and instead focused on the victory.