"FIREBALL!" Linnie shouted, holding both his hands out towards the abbot.
An intense heat rushed from his chest and into his hands, manifesting as a ball of fire coming from his palm. With a pop, it shot through the air, striking the abbot on the back and leaving a blackened burn.
"I did it! I just cast a spell!"
The abbot froze, slowly turning around to face Linnie. Steam rose from his back, and his face contorted into a rageful scowl.
"A... wizard? The boy's a wizard... oh, hell. Noble Saint Ariekh, aren't I far too old for this?"
"FIREBALL!"
The abbot reflexively held out his hand and caught the ball of flame, but it only exploded, scorching his palm. He stared at the wound, surprised at the fire's potency.
"FIREBALL! FIREBALL! FIREBALL! FIREBALL!"
Aliza sat back up, trying to steady herself. "Is that... Linnie? He really did it... so he's the type that gets better in the heat of the moment! Just like a certain someone... but why's he saying 'fireball' every time he casts it!?"
The old man was clearly surprised by the sudden onslaught of spells, and tried his best to avoid fatal injury. He charged, but the severed tendon in his ankle made it easy for Linnie to avoid him.
"FIREBALL! FIREBALL! FIREBALL! FIREBALL! FIREBALL! FIREBALL...!"
"How much longer can this go on? I've fought a few wizards in my lifetime, but none were like this. Each spell the boy casts feels like the flame of hell itself. And they keep coming. My men haven't returned either... are they dead? Is this where I die, too? No, of course not!"
The abbot stopped and faced the sky. Despite the countless fireballs crashing into him each second, he stood unfazed and smoking. He roared—it was no word in particular, but it had a clear meaning.
Linnie stopped for a moment, surprised by the old man's sheer volume. The smoke cleared, and the abbot was still standing. A rough cracking sound filled the room, and two large spiraling horns sprouted from his skull, tearing through the skin and causing blood to pour down his face and body.
"SAINT ARIEKH, I WON'T LET THEM INSULT OUR CANON ANY LONGER!"
From the bone where his hand used to be, a horn also grew, and the abbot wielded it like a weapon, swinging at Linnie.
Aliza jumped in, pushing Linnie aside once again, and parried the attack with another battleaxe and started to fiercely exchange blows with him.
"You want me to cut this one off, too?" she laughed.
"Insolent wench, the ram will enjoy your blood!"
"Linnie, wake the fuck up and keep casting!"
"FIREBALL!"
This time, though, the fireball turned to steam once it reached his body. The constantly flowing blood had formed a protective barrier against the fire, rendering the spell effectively useless.
"How much blood can one guy have!?"
"FIREBALL! FIREBALL! FIREBALL! FIREBALL!"
"Linnie—damn it! Stop! You're just burning me, ow!"
"What am I supposed to do!? I don't know any other spells!"
"So I was right..." The abbot grinned. "It's over for these two. I've won, thanks to my noble saint's power!"
Aliza noticed that the abbot was distracted and threw the battleaxe at his face. With a slight turn of his head, though, it was deflected by his horns. Aliza lunged, reaching up and plunging a dagger into the middle of his forehead.
The abbot swatted her away, sending her crashing into a wall. He reached up and ripped the dagger away, causing a new horn to start sprouting from the middle of his head. In this state, he seemed to be temporarily stunned.
"Shit..." Aliza groaned. "Linnie, listen carefully! I'm going to cast a spell, and you've gotta cast a fireball right after!"
"What!? I thought you couldn't even cast spells—either way it won't work!"
"I can, and it will! I can manage a simple transfiguration spell, but I need to get close to his wounds. Then, his blood will turn into flammable oil! Then, you'll be able to light him on fire!"
"What the hell... do it! Quickly, before he starts moving again!"
Aliza broke into a sprint, rapidly moving her hands and drawing a magic circle in the air. She jumped at the abbot, reaching for his face. At the last second, the abbot unfroze, grabbing her by the neck.
She squirmed, feeling his grip tighten on her throat. Her eyes widened, and she let out a laugh. Linnie, from behind, was charging with a spear in hand. He didn't have quiet enough strength to fully pierce through the abbot's back, but it was enough to get him to let go of Aliza.
As she fell, she stretched her leg out and kicked him in the face. The spell was completed, and it caused him to fall back, making the spear wedge even further into his body.
The abbot roared in pain, and in an instant, all the blood turned black. Aliza turned and ran in the other direction, clutching her chest and trying to make as much space as possible.
"Linnie, now!"
"DIE YOU OLD PRICK! FIIIREEEBAAAALLL!!!!!!!!!" Linnie roared, a wide grin stretching across his face.
A massive fireball whizzed through the air, igniting the black blood into a massive, raging, flame. The abbot tried steadying himself, but slipped in his own blood, causing the spear to fully tear through him.
He became a flaming skewer in the center of the room, and it wasn't long before he died.
"Saint... Ariekh... why have you forsaken this old man? I... tried my hardest. Accept me into your eternal embrace."
The room was completely silent except for the crackling of the fire. After a few minutes, the crackling stopped, and it was over.
Linnie fell onto his rear, in awe. He stared at his hands, still smoking slightly. The flesh was charred. Aliza, upon seeing this, rushed to his aid.
"You were letting yourself get burned that entire time?! Gaud, that's gotta hurt..."
"I wasn't letting myself get anything... anyways, I'm all good. See?" he said, waving his hands all around the air. "Doesn't hurt at all."
Seeing her confused expression, he explained his condition. Aliza was rightfully surprised, but was glad it'd at least keep him calm until they got back to the shop.
"Uh, I'll carry the artifact. I don't want you touching anything with your hands for now... It'd be bad if they got infected."
"I almost forgot—that was the whole reason we came," Linnie laughed. "You don't think we'll have to fight all those monks now, do you? I feel like we could do it, now that I can cast fireballs..."
"We'd stand no chance, dummy. But... it's strange that they haven't already flooded the room. To be honest, they should've noticed something was up as soon as we started fighting. There's no way these twisted halls would've kept them this long..." she said, grabbing her chin.