Book 5: Chapter 35 (1/2)
Vur took in a deep breath while pulling his right arm back. His left palm was placed flat on the purple barrier, his arm fully extended. He tightened his right hand into a fist and took a step forward with his left leg. Blue scales grew on his knuckles, and he punched the barrier. There was a cracking sound, and a moment later, the barrier shattered like a pane of glass, breaking into hundreds of thousands of little pieces. The purple pieces dropped to the ground and disappeared, leaving a gaping hole in the cave wall large enough for a dragon to pass through.
Emile and Susan glanced at each other. Emile’s phoenix flames had no effect on the barrier whatsoever, but all Vur had to do was punch it to break it. It didn’t even seem like he used any mana. “Are dragons really that much stronger than phoenixes?” Emile asked and grumbled. He glanced at Tafel. “How come you can’t do that?”
Tafel glared at Emile but didn’t respond. She turned her head towards Vur. “Will you let me try to fight the creature inside alone?”
“Didn’t you say it was really strong? I thought you ran away from it and requested Vur’s help because you knew you couldn’t deal with it by yourself. Shouldn’t you just let Vur defeat it instead of messing around?”
Tafel whirled her head around. The winged woman was staring at her. “When did you get here?” Tafel asked. “Aren’t you the tour guide? I thought you stayed behind with the other group.”
“I followed you two,” the Recordkeeper said. “You probably didn’t notice me because I didn’t say anything until now. That’s a failure on your part as an adventurer, you know? How could you not notice someone following you when they weren’t even trying to hide?”
“She’s not really with the other group,” Stella said to Tafel, the fairy queen’s head sticking out of Vur’s chest. “Vur kidnapped her from somewhere else.”
“Is that so?” Tafel asked, raising an eyebrow. She shook her head at the Recordkeeper. “Well, the reasons why I do things is none of your business.” She glanced at Vur. “How about it? Don’t buff me with your elementals either.”
Vur grunted. “If that’s what you want, I’ll just watch.”
“Thanks,” Tafel said. She exhaled, and three balls of phoenix flames materialized in the air around her. She walked forward into the cave, the interior lit up in a blood-red glow. Her eyes were narrowed, and her body was tense, ready to react to anything. Vur followed behind her, occasionally glancing at the walls. There wasn’t anything interesting: no scrape marks, no scratches, nothing to indicate a large creature traversed through the area frequently. However, there were footsteps.
“What made these?” Vur asked and squatted next to an imprint in the ground. It was hooved, toed, and clawed all at the same time. There were even hints of an opposable digit behind the strange footprint. “Does anyone know?”
“I’ve never seen a footprint like this,” Diamant said. “Perhaps it’s a creature unique to the southern continent.”
“I don’t really see many footprints,” Sheryl said. “Not a lot of things traveled through the region I lived in before I met you. If you don’t know what it is, I have no clue either.”