jackal-among-snakes-16091326
chapter-202

Argrave felt a fog within all of his body. His actions were stiff and vague as though he had just been thawed out after being frozen for years. He could barely focus on the task at hand, and even keeping his head held up was difficult. All he wanted to do was go to sleep. But he’d long ago set aside what he wanted. This was about what needed to be done.

Kill the enemy, kill the enemy, kill the enemy, he repeated again and again, half of the time saying it aloud, and the other half saying it in his head. It was the only way he could stay focused on the task before him. He felt as though he was fumbling for a light switch while drunk as he tried to recall how to use the Blessing of Supersession.

Yet once he felt the spring of limitless power vested in him by Erlebnis permeate his being… he felt like a dull knife that had finally found a whetstone, and everything fell into place.

His vision sharpened, and his ears felt as though earplugs had been removed from them. His golden-eyed gaze fell upon the scene before him, and he straightened, now aware Anneliese had been the only reason Argrave was standing up.

The Waxknights, alongside Durran, struggled against a tide of vicious Sentinels and supporting animals. More had joined since Argrave last saw them—the towering rockhide hippos, the gibbons in no small numbers… now, the Barefaced Bard fought directly against Silvic, their war a proxy battle of twisting roots and writhing plants. Silvic was losing, and badly.

Argrave straightened his back and held out both of his hands. Sword and shield, he remembered: sword and shield. His right hand conjured [Electric Eels], and the C-rank spells danced upwards into the sky, awaiting his command. His left became ablaze with wide, sweeping spells that carved a path before him.

He pressed deeper and deeper into the thick of things, adrenaline keeping his mind utterly focused despite his aching mind and body. He never wanted for foes—their rush at him was unending, and even though the animals feared him, they charged. He called upon every resource, using Garm’s eyes to cast spells with abandon. He felt he could not stop walking forward, strangely.

“Guard the back! Reinforcements approach!” he heard Anneliese command. That meant she had confidence he alone was enough to handle all before him. That stuck in the back of his head, making his task seem all the more urgent.

Teeth, claw, fang, and nature itself sought to tear into Argrave’s throat and end him. Drawing upon instinct, he met them with teeth and claw of his own. He conjured great maws of flame from [Wargfire], the icy claws of [Wraith’s Grasp], thick [Windswept Blades] cutting through them all. The enemies were blasted away, some dying outright. Those that did not die met his sword—dozens of [Electric Eels] striking from the sky like lightning, dispatching any hardy foes.

Argrave felt like he could not stop—he felt as though he held on to a machine that was running wild, and that if he released it, it would spell his death. He felt ash beneath his boots, frozen corpses, and the faint shock of still-sparking electricity, yet still he pressed. At some point, his vision became a mix of so many lights, he questioned if he was still in the Archduke’s palace.

Yet then, the Barefaced Bard came into his view. The former wetland spirit towered over him, and yet it was the one shying away from him, childlike but eyeless face looking as though it was going to cry. It regarded him like a hedgehog, a pufferfish, or a burning flame, backing away cautiously. Yet like a cat hunting a scorpion, it swung out its hands, giving testing blows.

Argrave moved to the side, and the Barefaced Bard moved opposite him, the two circling each other. In truth, Argrave merely wished to have his back to the wall so that no foes could circle around him. All the while, he warded his foes away, still using his tried-and-true strategy—a sword and shield. He was an indomitable giant of a knight, he told himself.

The Barefaced Bard climbed to the wall of the Archduke’s palace, almost in a panic. It sought refuge behind a tower. As it fled, Argrave’s [Electric Eels] grew all the more numerous in the sky, and the attacking force grew demoralized from their leader’s retreat.

Silvic, who was badly beaten from doing battle with the Barefaced Bard, did not remain idle. She assaulted the bard even still, staying his retreat. As the number of sparking eels neared the hundreds… Argrave’s blessing wore out.

His shield of wide, sweeping spells faltered as the limitless magic within dissipated… yet his sword persisted still. He spurred the electric eels, and the countless sparking constructs pursued the Barefaced Bard as was his will. The bolts of lightning rained down upon the childlike face embedded in the bard’s wooden body. The attacks were relentless and seemingly unceasing, and the bard became a great glow of light before emerging changed, naught but a smoking pile of wreckage.

The bard still lived, yet barely. It tumbled over the wall, falling in the courtyard while scrabbling desperately to move. Silvic disentangled her roots from the ground and sprinted across the badly destroyed granite pathway. Her hand morphed into a spike… and she put an end to the Barefaced Bard, plunging her arm right into that childlike face.

Argrave leaned against a wall, all fight lost. His foes, unaware of their commander’s death, rushed at him. All Argrave could do was curl up, relying on his enchanted duster to shield him while protecting his neck and his head.

Blows and bites and scratches rained upon him, and pain assailed every part of his body. It never overwhelmed him, though, as much as he waited for it to end. Gradually, the sensation faded. He was vaguely aware of people trying to move him, help him. They received blows in his stead. Nevertheless, he faded away.

I’ve done enough. Everyone else can handle the rest, he thought, happily embracing the grayness.