The Gbahali slowly rose to its feet, blood dripping down its face. The creature roared in defiance as Lyra slowly stalked towards it. The Gbahali ran towards Lyra trying to catch her by surprise.
Lyra appeared right next to it, hitting the creature in the middle of its back.. The Gbahali sent tumbling on the ground. Its breath came out in a wheeze, as if its ribs were bruised. Stunned at the strength of Lyra.
"That was for my friends, you ugly fucking son of a bitch.," Lyra spat, her red hair matted to her face as sweat continued to fall to the ground.
Lyra approached the creature, intending to finish it. The Gbahali surprised Lyra by kicking her full force ten feet away into the forest. You could hear trees breaking from her body colluding with them.
Sami felt a crack in the barrier that took the damage from the impact, but couldn't reinforce since she was out of his range.
"Lyra!" Sami screamed, as he bent over and clutched his head in pain. A throbbing headache as if a drum was pounding in his head.
After a couple of seconds, the pain started to go away, allowing him to stand up straight. Sami finally noticed that the Gbahali was getting closer. Sami quickly began to walk backward, freaking out as the Gbahali stalked towards him.
"Oh shit, oh shit," Sami muttered. "Think, okay I'm not strong like Lyra so maybe I should try to tire him out."
Sami was trying to come up with an idea to fight as he began to try and run away from the Gbahali. He remembered the spell Lyra used to summon the swords but was scared to waste any extra energy.
The Gbahali quickly caught up to Sami slashing at Sam's back to injure him. Sami clapped his hands together, summoning a barrier that deflected the attack. A small headache formed in Sami;s head, before quickly disappearing as the barrier lowered.
Sami tried to read the next attack as the monster raised its claws. Sadly, the Gbahali moved too fast for him to block. Thinking quickly his form flickered causing the attack to go through his body before becoming solid once again.
Once the monster went through his body, Sami turned around a shield wrapping around his hand. With the extra force he punched The Gbahali in its lower back.
The Gbahali roared before spinning around with its arm hoping to hit Sami. Sami allowed the attack to go through his body before jumping back. Trying to catch his breath, as sweat began to fall down his face.
The Gbahali didn't allow him to rest quickly following after Sami. Soon it became a dance between them. As he began to get used to fighting the monster, learning when to deflect and when to allow the attack to go through his body.
-
"My foolish, stubborn grandson," Mercer muttered to himself as he watched Sami from his vantage point in the treeline.The moonlight allowed him to see the fight.
Mercer was amazed at how his grandson had handled the situation so far. He has been here watching the fight since The Gbahali attacked both Sami and Lyra. Mercer was going to step, but watching his grandson unleash his magic shocked him.
Mercer thought Sami didn't inherit any abilities just like his sign. It's one of the major reasons why he didn't want Sami to train. Why give him hope of something that won't come true? Maybe he should've trained him together with Lyra, imagine how strong his grandson will be now.
If he had known his grandson possessed this much talent, he wouldn't have kept him hidden for so long. Even now, watching his grandson retreat, he felt proud of how much he had stood up to a monster for the first time.
This entire day has been nothing but trouble for Mercer, he lost one trainee out of the three he'd sent to check for monsters in the area. He only brought Lyra's team so he could see his grandson for the first time in a year.
In the future, he would have to redo his intelligence network, because there weren't supposed to be any monsters in this area.which usually. Somehow they ended up facing an A-rank, borderline S-rank monster.
Granted, his apprentice handled the battle as best she could. Switching to her hammer sooner would have been smarter. Soon, the sound of sticks breaking behind him though he knew it was Lyra already.
"Master, sir, I–" Lyra started.
"Are you injured?" Mercer interrupted with slight concern in his voice.
"No, sir, I'm only slightly tired from the use of magic," Lyra replied. "Honestly, that last attack could've killed me if it wasn't for the shield Sami used to protect me."
"Hmm, I see," Mercer said, saying nothing else.
Mercer was lucky she wasn't injured, knowing her family is all gone. The weight of leadership isn't easy especially when it involves the loss of a student. Sometimes he would even pay for the funeral himself. Feeling responsible for every death that happens under his watch.
The two members he assigned to Lyra were supposed to be her new team going forward, all with decent talents. He wanted her to learn how to be patient, not take risks. How to finally make friends. Sadly one is dead and the other in coma for injuries.
He was able to save Poke before he died of blood loss. Sadly Gin was ripped to pieces, barely enough of a body for a funeral. Mercer decided to turn his focus back to Sami.
Mercer could tell his grandson was starting to get the hang of the spells he had learned. Shockingly he can use them without chanting and no issues at all. Sadly no other spells came forth during the end of the battle.
Beside him, Lyra shifted her weight restlessly, wanting to eagerly rejoin the battle. Her impatience stemmed from watching her teammates get killed, and wanting to kill the monster in an act of revenge.
"I command thee, yield, Vincula Constrictoria!" a deep voice chanted out as a bright red chain circled the Gbahali, forcing it down to its knees.
The Gbahali froze, its red eyes swiveling towards the source of the voice, trying to fight against the chains holding it against its will. Standing at the edge of the trees was Mercer. His posture was rigid, in his hands he held an old-looking staff.
Sami's eyes snapped open, relief washing over him in a dizzying wave. "Grandfather!" Sami quickly ran to his grandfather.
Mercer glanced at Sami with pride on his weathered face. Before returning his attention to the Gbahali, his grip tightening on the staff. Behind Mercer limped Lyra, her top armor gone, leaving her in just her shirt.
As Mercer quietly passed by Sami, he raised his staff forming a sharp edge on the end of it. Swinging it down, cutting the head off the Gbahali. Blood splashing all over the place as it died.
Sami didn't notice when Lyra stepped up next to him, his attention fully on his grandfather. With a sharp snap of his fingers, Mercer engulfed the Gbahali's body in flames, officially ending the night of danger.
Lyra playfully bumped Sami's shoulder to get his attention. "So, grandfather, huh?" she questioned with a teasing grin.
"Haha, yeah," Sami replied awkwardly, scratching the back of his head. "I never really had the chance to mention it before, you know, with the whole monster attack and all."
"Master Mercer would always take time off during the summer," Lyra explained. "We always wondered where he went. It makes sense now that he is coming to you."
"Yeah, remember that village you mentioned? My parents died during that invasion," Sami said, his voice a little shaky as he thought back on those events. "My grandfather and I during his summer visits light candles to honor the lives lost that night."
"I didn't know" Lyra finished lamely, unsure how to respond to that somber revelation.
Before Sami could say another word, Mercer was upon him. His grandfather moved with surprising speed, his fist connecting sharply with the side of Sami's head.
"Idiot!" Mercer barked, his voice low and furious. Sami stumbled back, clutching his head, a look of disbelief on his face. Lyra gasped, her face in shock with how Mercer was acting.
Sami blinked, trying to process the sudden pain and the unexpected aggression. "Grandfather? What the—?"
"DON'T GRANDFATHER ME! WHY WOULD YOU STAND THERE AND TALK IN THE MIDDLE OF BATTLE AGAINST SOMETHING THAT COULD'VE KILLED YOU EASILY?" Mercer yelled.
"Grandfather you were there for-", Sami began rubbing his head from the pain
Mercer hit again making Sami scream out. "Only an idiot would talk when an enemy is near. I taught you tactics and how to hunt. Next time do better.", he interrupted.
"I'm sorry grandfather", Sami cried bowing to Mercer.
"Sir, it's not all of his fault..." Lyra trailed off as Mercer began to look at her.
"Don't get me started on you!," Mercer growled, fully glaring at her as she squirmed under his gaze. "Not only did you entertain his conversation, but it got worse. You decided to not switch weapons sooner, wasting precious time and energy when you could've beaten the Gbahali sooner."
"You're right, sir. I enjoyed the battle too much when I should've ended it," Lyra said apologetically.
Mercer just shook his head as he began muttering to himself and walking away. Sami and Lyra looked at each other before quickly following behind him. The body behind them turned into full ash as they began their journey out of the woods.
Sami could only wonder how his future could change after this, finally learning magic is true. Maybe he will be able to finally train as a knight or better yet make it into the academy.