Chapter 134. The Charm of That Kick
The two Erumpents shielded Duncan and Olivia between them, blocking spells flying in from every direction.
One particularly dazzling beam struck Ari's body.
It went rigid for a few seconds before shaking it off.
"Duncan, the spells they're casting are getting stronger," Ari said through gritted teeth.
Duncan's mood grew heavier.
After coming off worse in the first exchange, those wizards had grown cannier.
They spread out at a distance and lobbed spells at them now and then, neither trading volleys head-on nor letting them leave.
"They're probably stalling, waiting for reinforcements, then giving us a killing blow."
So thought Duncan, as his gaze swept around and he barely picked out a slightly weaker spot in the defence on the forward flank.
"Ari, Charlie, charge through there.
I'll cover you!" Duncan ordered in a low voice.
"Right!"
The Erumpents threw back their heads with a long bellow, lowered them again, horns levelled forward, and dashed madly without a care.
Duncan's expression was grave as he watched his surroundings, constantly flicking away the spells that looked the most powerful to help the two beasts.
Olivia, lips pale and pressed tight, kept close to Duncan, working her wand hard to contribute what she could.
"Stop them!" a harsh order rang out from a house to the side.
Duncan's brows lifted.
His wand swung back towards that house, and the magic in him surged.
The broad, sturdy building looked as though a god had seized both ends, and in an instant it was pulled out into thin strands like dough.
Shrill screams sounded inside, but after only a few they ceased.
The people within had likely been crushed to pulp.
A touch of fear entered Olivia's eyes when she looked at Duncan.
The magic he was using was, to her, simply unimaginable.
No casting movement, no incantation—just a point of the wand to unleash high-level Transfiguration.
She had only ever seen such things in textbooks, and they were techniques attributed to legendary wizards.
Yet the boy before her didn't even look older than she was!
A faint, hard-to-describe sadness rose in Olivia's heart.
All at once she felt the past decade or so of her life had been lived by a dog.
Those black-robed wizards likely felt much the same just now; even their shouts unconsciously dropped in volume.
Seizing the chance, Duncan urged Ari and Charlie on, wanting to force a breakout before those people recovered.
"You're not getting away!"
A black-robed wizard suddenly sprang out.
He wore a mask carved with a chess-piece motif.
"Out of the way!" Duncan shouted, instantly grabbing Olivia and hurling himself to the side.
The two Erumpents also hurriedly dodged aside.
With a boom, the flat ground blew open into a great pit, and the flying earth nearly buried the two of them.
"This fellow's a bit fierce..." Duncan murmured, his peripheral vision sweeping the surroundings.
The wizards he had cowed earlier also mustered their courage, edging in to encircle them as spell after spell shot out.
Thankfully there was no terrifying green light to be seen.
Relying on his clothing to ward them, Duncan shielded Olivia as they reached the Erumpents.
"Are you all right?" Olivia came back to herself and called out.
Her eardrums were still buzzing from the blast.
"I'm fine," Duncan replied, and together with the Erumpents they fell back into a relatively safer courtyard.
But more wizards seemed to be hurrying over from the other end of the street, and the difficulty of breaking out now soared straight up.
"Don't delude yourselves.
There's no way you're escaping from here today," the chess-mask wizard said coldly.
"But if you hand over the key right now, we can let you die less painfully."
"Idiot.
Is that how you negotiate?" Duncan grumbled inwardly, and the pouch holding his props rose before his mind's eye.
If he released the hero statue and the swordsman statue at the same time, they had a very high chance of getting out of here.
But when it came to actually using them, Duncan hesitated again, feeling it would be a waste to use the statues on this lot of wizards before him.
"Unwilling, are you?" the chess-mask wizard's voice grew lower.
"I hope you two won't regret it when the time comes."
Spells that had only just ceased came at them again.
Ice and fire interwove before them, walls collapsed, and the ground sank.
Even the big, simple Erumpents shrank their necks at the terrifying scene, a little afraid, clamouring for Duncan to think of something fast.
"Looks like this is the only way..." Duncan took out the statues, and at once a surge of bravado welled up all over him.
He felt he could charge out and slaughter every wizard hemming them in.
"These statues' effect is too fierce!" Duncan forced down the suicidal impulse in his heart and opened his mouth, ready to speak the incantation.
But at that moment the clear sky darkened in an instant.
Black clouds sealed it over, rain poured, thunder flashed, and lightning rumbled.
A large, agile raptor dropped straight down from high above along with the rain, its cry echoing in everyone's ears.
"Thunderbird?" the chess-mask man exclaimed in surprise, and hastily ordered, "Don't let it get close!"
Beams of many different colours instantly lanced upward, and the pressure directly in front of Duncan and Olivia eased greatly.
"Nice one, Kray!"
Watching Kray weave swiftly through the spells without the slightest loss of speed, Duncan couldn't help but exclaim.
At the same time, Duncan increased the tempo of his wandwork, making trouble for those wizards and helping Kray to land.
"Duncan, get ready.
In a moment, grab my foot, and I'll take you away," Kray cried loudly once he could see Duncan clearly.
With a flick of one hand, Duncan quickly opened the case and said to the Erumpents, "Get into the case, quick."
"Huh?"
With Kray coming to help and their forelegs scraping the ground, ready to charge out and ram again, the two Erumpents were taken aback.
"Quickly!"
Seeing Kray about to descend, Duncan's tone involuntarily turned stern.
"Oh..." Ari and Charlie answered, lowered their heads unwillingly, and squeezed in at speed.
"You get in the case as well," Duncan said to Olivia.
"But you alone..." Olivia hesitated, uneasy about Duncan—chiefly because she couldn't understand what Kray was saying.
"No time to explain!"
Duncan lifted a foot and kicked Olivia.
Feeling the tremendous force from her side, Olivia's face showed startled bewilderment.
She toppled and tumbled down through the case entrance.
Hearing the crackle and clatter of her rolling below, Duncan shouted a loud apology.
Then he tossed both Mori and Pickett from around his neck inside, and shut the case.
After that he raised his wand high, and the nearby ground heaved at once like waves.
Cries of alarm went up from the surrounding wizards as they struggled to keep their footing, but the ground in front lifted and surged towards them like a tide.
A few whose nerves weren't steady enough backed away in fright at once.
Duncan shook his somewhat woozy head to keep himself clear-minded.
He was still forcing it a bit when using Transfiguration on this sort of scale.
At that moment Kray seized the chance Duncan had made and dove at extreme speed.
The instant it drew near, Duncan leapt high, wrapped his arms around Kray's thick talon, and followed it up into the sky.
But the chess-mask wizard still did not give up.
He strode forward, the heaving ground flattening under his steps, then raised his wand at Duncan.
Green light gathered at the tip, and he bellowed as if Death itself were pronouncing judgement: "You deserve to die!"
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