He had never felt such relief when he saw the blue glow of a half-formed hexagonal grid of a Magic Shield surrounding Cedric, shimmering in the dissipation of the smoke, crackling with unstable energy.
But his mind was awake again, and so was his rationality. He tossed the pendant under the bed and grabbed the hilt of his sword, pointing the steel tip at the two figures steadily floating into the room through the hole in the wall.
"Hoooo…" Arthur exhaled, forcing his breath to steady.
Of course this had to be done the night that all the instructors are gone. This must be a planned attack, but could it be a test by the instructors? No, they had no guarantee that Cedric would have been able to respond to a surprise attack. This is real.
We have to survive this fight by ourselves.
Cedric took a firm stance as the figures landed on the ground. They both wore hoods and masks that covered their entire faces, leaving only narrow gaps for the eyes. Their sizes varied. The one facing Cedric was only a few inches taller than the boy and did not have the figure of a seasoned fighter, but he wielded a long, obsidian-black lance at least twice his height.
The other intruder was much taller but wielded no weapon. He only glanced at Arthur for a moment before staring down Cedric.
So they have a definitive target, huh? Judging from their appearance, they aren't mages, which means I'm going to have to be holding both of them off while Cedric supports from behind.
No one is making any moves… I don't particularly enjoy using the War God Style, but I need to get them away from Cedric.
Arthur tightened his feet against the floorboards, lowering his center of mass. He crept toward his target, the taller man, accelerating as he got closer. He brought his hand back slightly, the muscles in his forearm coiling, before charging at the one wielding the polearm with a thrust.
CLANG.
A heavy ringing sound vibrated through the air when the end of the lance struck the ground, stopping the tip of the sword completely at the center of its thin body. The impact shuddered up Arthur's arm, but he held firm.
Arthur jumped back with his weapon in hand as the sword twisted, winding around the past bind. The other man did the same, taking three casual steps back from the clash.
Arthur straightened his stance, shuffling sideways to place himself directly between the two men and Cedric.
Now that I got them away from Cedric, I need to keep them away. Ugh… He looks so much bigger up close. He might even be taller than my Sword Instructor.
The two hooded figures looked at each other before shifting their focus to Arthur. Neither of them were moving.
I can't tell what either of them are thinking with those masks. I can't see any advantages on our side. So I'll have to make one.
He readied his sword and charged at the spearman, and this time, he didn't attempt to conceal his steps. The spearman put both hands on the pole and pointed it at a downward angle. Arthur did the same, but rather than facing the spear directly, he began to circle him, staying just barely out of the spear's lethal range.
Why is he just watching?
The spear continued to adjust itself to point directly at its target, but before making a quarter of a circle around, Arthur's eyes met Cedric's, and he intentionally entered the spear range.
CLANG!
The dense metals bound together, his sword caught in the crossguard of the spear. With a quick movement, the spearman spun the pole, the end of it striking the sword with full force. The vibration traveled up Arthur's arm, shocking the bone.
My wrist!
As the spearman got his lance back into position, a brown object flashed in and out of sight. With it, the spearman jolted and stumbled, but they did not fall when the block of earth and rock did,
His head whipped toward the direction it came from.
"You!" The spearman shouted in a deep, broken voice.
His eyes were red, filled with rage in Arthur's imagination. He raised his hand, and a glowing orange circle appeared in front of it, twice the diameter of the length of his hand. Within it, there was already a symbol in the center: the symbol of Fire. Around it, more symbols began to form, and with it, twelve orbs of fire began to coalesce.
Arthur recognized all of them. They were Magic text. Runes he had learned to decipher in his Magic Engineering class. And this was a magic circle. The most advanced method of Spellcasting he had yet to learn.
He was excited, not because of his fascination with magic, but because the fool had exposed himself.
Arthur brought his sword down onto the Spearman's shoulder, the arm that held the lance stationary while casting.
"AUUGHHH!" The man screamed as the blade made contact with his body, slicing through cloth and biting into flesh.
The affected hand was barely able to keep its grip on the pole, while the other rushed to comfort the wound, releasing the magic circle before completion. And with it, the fireballs disappeared as well.
Arthur brought back his sword when he heard a heavy stomp coming from his right direction, preparing himself to face the other man, but a voice brought him back.
"DON'T ENGAGE!" The wounded one commanded, "I can do this myself."
How stubborn. I appreciate it, but your arrogance will be your downfall.
An orange light seeped through the gaps between the spearman's fingers. Arthur could see the tightening of his grip on the spear; it was trembling violently. When he removed his hand from his left shoulder, a black, uneven scar had formed, cauterized instantly.
He brought his right hand onto the top of the lance and took the same position he did when they began. This time, now that he had both time and distance, he looked into the Spearman's eyes. Was it always black?
Deep beyond his confidence, Arthur felt an unshakable feeling of doom, and he dared not enter the range of his spear like he did before.
He unconsciously jumped in the opposite direction of the spearman as he felt a strong heat signature from his right.