Chapter 55: Acid and Fire

Chapter 55: Acid and Fire

Fjorn managed to salvage some of the formation eyes that were draining the sap from the root, as well as the few defensive mini-formations he had created. They had both filled all their bottles with sap, which would last them for several days. If needed, they had the materials to create a new formation, although it would be good to have more vital blood from monsters.

Afterward, they surveyed the camp one last time and headed toward the leftmost tunnel. Their path was fraught with difficulties. Almost immediately, they had to fight strange, blind rats. They poured out of holes in one of the walls and were guarding a large cluster of the mushrooms they had seen earlier. There were thousands of them, and Emilia couldn't even imagine how they sustained themselves. The rats forced them to retreat and search for alternative tunnels. Fjorn asked to see the hall with the flowers, and when they visited it, despite Emilia's protests, he caught the fish with his spear. As a result, she didn't speak to him all day. But the delicious smell of roasted fish compelled her to take two of them, albeit with great reluctance.

Later, they encountered rock kobolds, groups of shadowy monsters, a massive snake guarding three apple trees, and a strange well that seemed to have no bottom. Emilia speculated for a long time about who had made it and why, and Fjorn lost his patience, threatening to throw her into the well if she didn't stop with the questions.

Emilia complained that Fjorn was far too large and wouldn't fit, otherwise, she would throw him in, and the two were forced to settle their dispute with a game of rock-paper-scissors, or “Frog-Snail-Snake” as it was known here. When she was little, Emilia couldn't understand how the snail beat the snake, until they showed her a poisonous magic snail. These predatory snails used a hollow, harpoon-like bristle filled with venom to paralyze their prey. They were so poisonous that they sometimes caught smaller animals, including small snakes.

“Only in a magical world could such a ridiculous thing exist.” she thought

She didn't know, however, that even on Earth there were predatory snails, dangerous even to humans.

Having lost the game because she never chose “Snail,” she complained about how unfair this world was, and the two continued onward. During one of their breaks, after having killed a group of monsters, Fjorn demonstrated how to enrich the mixture of vital blood and ash with his mana in a way that made it last longer. It could last up to a week that way, and if sealed in a suitable container, almost a month.

If different herbs were crushed and enriched with crushed magic crystals and stored correctly, the mixture could keep for years.

Emilia tried to memorize the different herbs, but Fjorn explained that the most important thing was the aura of the blood, and it had to match that of the herbs. The same applied to the magical gemstones and crystals. Each type had a different aura.

Emilia was forced to listen to another series of lectures, but her knowledge was enriched in this manner. In one section of the wall, a vein of copper ore was visible, shimmering with a reddish-orange tint and covered with thin bluish and greenish streaks. It looked hard and was cold to the touch.

"I wonder if we might find a vein of silver or gold?" Emilia's eyes lit up.
"Why limit ourselves to gold? We could find mithril or orichalcum."
"But wasn't orichalcum only mined in Atlantis?"
"Atlantis is the one that exports it in large quantities. That doesn't mean it's only found there."

Emilia dreamed of various treasures, but soon that good mood shifted sharply.

First, they detected a slight smell of smoke, and after cautiously following it through two tunnels, they found two of the Echidrids fighting against five enormous worms, the Earth-Eaters. These worms had burrowed a tunnel through the cave walls and launched a surprise attack on the Echidrids.

These worms were among the stronger of the cursed creatures belonging to the exiled titans. They perpetually burrowed into the depths. They were rarely encountered on the surface.

Legends of their bloodthirst were known everywhere. They were strongly attracted to warm blood and often attacked the various subterranean cities.

Sometimes, groups of smaller creatures like goblins or kobolds worked in symbiosis with them, using their tunnels to hunt and leaving small animals as sacrifices.

The Echidrids were in a desperate position, their bodies covered in multiple wounds. Fjorn immediately attacked with three magical acorns, which had lost some of their power because they had been used as eyes for the formation.

Emilia activated her talismans, firing fireballs. The Earth Worms, however, had very thick skin and were protected from fire.

"You must get closer to attack them in the face or in the mouth. Also, be careful because they can spit acid."

Emilia hesitated for a moment. These creatures were enormous for her small stature. Their mouths were full of sharp magical teeth, capable of boring tunnels through rock. They didn't merely survive in the depths. They were among the most terrifying monsters there. And now that she knew they could spit acid... But her hesitation lasted only a moment.

She circled around the battling Echidrids and decided to support them from the rear lines. Fjorn was frantically preparing some kind of formation inscribed on the dried talisman sheets. She saw out of her peripheral vision how he was liberally using the reagents he had collected all week. Emilia narrowed her eyes and began activating her talismans.

The Echidrids began to retreat under the pressure of the monsters, and the help they needed was not support from the rear lines. At that moment, one of the monsters noticed the fireballs and turned toward the new threat. It prepared for a moment, swelling slightly, and then fired a concentrated jet of acid.

Emilia, however, had been warned beforehand, and before the monster even had time to launch its stream, she was already running with all her might toward a small rock fragment. At that moment, the worm that had been hit by the fireballs also turned and began to prepare.

Emilia saw that she wouldn't have time to reach the rock and instead abruptly changed direction. Then, she grabbed two talismans of magical defense, and almost instantly, two blue ethereal walls formed in front of her. Furthermore, she crouched as low as possible to the ground, her body tense like a coiled spring.

The two streams of acid struck the talisman walls and burst into dozens of droplets, splashing the ground around. A thick, stinging steam formed around the impact site. One barrier disintegrated instantly, but the other held, though it visibly faded significantly. In places where the droplets had fallen, the stone hissed and smoked, and then blackened pits remained, in which the acid was still bubbling. A suffocating vapor rose from them, corroding the air.

Without waiting, Emilia immediately shot like a bullet toward the cover of the rock fragment. Meanwhile, the two Echidrids had time to reorganize and catch their breath.
"Fjorn, whatever you're doing, hurry up!" Emilia shouted loudly, hidden behind the rock.

"I need more time!" the talisman master cried out, and Emilia began to curse like a seasoned wagoner.

A moment later, Emilia peeked out for a fraction of a second and immediately pulled her head back. One of the monsters immediately fired more acid toward her, but significantly less this time. The other made a strange hissing sound and attacked the nearby Echidrids.

It looks like it's running out of acid, Emilia thought, and grabbed two talismans and without delay, rushed toward the Echidrids. I shouldn't have been so quick to attack. That was a strategic mistake. She watched the worms the whole time. Since neither of them turned toward her, she breathed a sigh of relief and activated two Talismans of Strength onto the Echidrids. The power of the talismans flowed into their bodies, and they received fresh vigor. Their blows became strong again, and Emilia without waiting darted back toward the rock.
"Fjorn!"

She did not receive an answer, however. Instead, the worms refocused on the Echidrids, and one of the latter acquired two new wounds. Since they lacked limbs, the worms attacked somewhat monotonously and could be easily parried by more experienced soldiers, but the Echidrids were wounded and exhausted from the battle, and slowed down by their multiple injuries. Moreover, the battle was five against two, and the otherwise easy-to-parry or avoid attacks became increasingly dangerous.

Pressed for time, Emilia reappeared and activated two combat talismans. This time she aimed more carefully and managed to hit the nearest worm in the face. It was just preparing for an attack, but its face suddenly burst into flames. Loud groans immediately rang out, and its skin began to peel and crack. Instead of continuing its attack, the worm immediately plunged headfirst into the ground, trying to extinguish the magical fire.

Meanwhile, one of the Echidrids took advantage and, with two quick strides, approached the fallen worm and pierced it with its sword between the plates of its shell-like armor. Then it immediately turned and deflected another attack with its shield, warped from numerous blows.

"Fjorn!" Emilia cried out desperately. She saw one of the worms preparing to shoot its acid. It was unclear whom it would aim for—either her or one of the Echidrids. A second later, two things happened simultaneously. First, Emilia rushed toward the Echidrid and activated her magical shield.

During this time, Fjorn emerged from his cover and ran toward the battle. He easily reached the two worms preoccupied with fighting and using his magic quickly stuck the strange leaves, finely inscribed with lines, onto them. He made a few hand gestures, and his mana swirled. The magical formations activated directly on the bodies of two of the worms, and the very blood within them began to become unstable. Different glyphs began to activate one after another, each aiming to pierce their aura and transfer its magical heat directly to the blood in their veins.

The first destabilizing glyph had disrupted their aura and thus reduced their natural resistance to external mana. Then, the other parts of the formation activated and began to fight the natural defense of their bodies.

Fjorn controlled the formations' auras with his mind and directed the energy of the cores embedded in the glyphs. The main energy came from the booming acorns, the reinforced blood from the monsters' hearts, and various herbs. The formation's energy proved sufficient and sharply broke through the already scattered aura of the Earth Worms.

The temperature from the heat glyphs found a weak spot, immediately created a connection, and began to transfer its heat. The monsters' blood began to heat up sharply, burning them from the inside. Emilia saw the horror in their eyes and heard their groans. Her heart thumped heavily in her small chest. She abruptly took a breath and, with a resolute gesture, pulled out two more attacking talismans.

One of the creatures turned toward Fjorn and prepared to attack. However, Emilia shot her orbs, striking it on the side of the head. This stopped its attack and gave Fjorn time to join the group. The two Echidrids had only one opponent left, and the Talisman of Power had given them fresh strength. They attacked the monster as one, showering it with a multitude of blows. It was repelled and gravely wounded.

Emilia was breathing heavily, having expended a great deal of her spiritual energy to manage the talismans. On the ground, two of the monsters lay dying beneath Fjorn's mighty formation, two were wounded but returning to the fight, and the third was struggling under the Echidrids' strikes. Emilia pulled out a single talisman and launched a fireball at the half-recovered worm, then, without looking back, grabbed Fjorn's hand and ran toward the rock debris.

The battle continued for a few more minutes, during which she launched two more fireballs. They had to deal with the gigantic Stone-Eater Worms quickly, as the effect of the Talismans of Power was ending, and its negative recoil would significantly weaken the already tired and injured Echidrids.

However, it was no coincidence that the Echidrids had survived millennia in the icy fields of Normor. They lived a hard life, full of countless battles. They had developed their skills since the day they were first able to wield weapons. The Great System had endowed them with many skills, and these two Echidrids had unlocked mana. Despite their fatigue and wounds, they frequently found gaps in the Stone-Eaters' armor, and their blows were heavy and merciless. One by one, the beasts lost their lives, and the battle soon ended.

"Emilia, hurry, a strange ball wrapped in fresh, newly created scales should have formed on the tails of the worms. Cut them from their bodies and absorb their energy. These worms have the ability to regenerate even after they die. They create these strange balls on their tails, and between one and five worms can be born from the body of each dead Stone-Eater."

Fjorn suspected that Emilia possessed strange skills for absorbing vital energy. She had managed to absorb the cores of the mushroom, which were rich in life force. If he was right, she would be able to absorb the nascent worms as well. They would still be in the process of forming, their aura would be weak, and they would be vulnerable.

He had seen all sorts of skills among the nobles he had worked with and suspected that Emilia was the illegitimate child of a powerful noble. She was incredibly strong for her age; her mana was pure and dense. She had a very good foundation, and if she could obtain the right resources, she would have an incredible future.

Emilia did not wait for a second invitation. She hurried and began cutting the balls from the tails of the worms. Two of them had not formed any embryos, and the rest had a total of seven embryo balls among them. After finishing her task, she took out a handful of dried leaves with healing talismans inscribed on them and gave them to the two wounded Echidrids. Then, she sat down heavily away from the battle and began to absorb the spiritual and magical energy from the worm embryos.