Chapter 609: I’d like to see that

"What are the chances that killed him?" Kyre asked.

"None," Hugo said with a frown.

Caius agreed. The Emissary designation to be unbeatable combined with the Emissary’s own ability was bound to be enough against the barrage. Which Caius thought was pretty unfair but alas...

A gust of wind blew the explosive cloud aside, revealing the Emissary whose hand was raised with a spell circle prepared but that spell circle spawned others, creating a network of spells that exuded an oppressive aura.

The Emissary’s eyes had been on the Palace Militants since he exited the explosive cloud but a split second before he unleashed his spell, his eyes moved over to Caius and the Leopolds.

"Take cover!" Kyre called.

Roxanne was way ahead of him with a Formation scroll in hand. She slammed her hand against it, activating the formation which surrounded them in a pyramid of layered Arcane complexities.

The Emissary’s attack struck the pyramid which trembled ans rippled but remained standing overall.

"Lessons with Athenodora have been going well, then?" Caius said with a smile.

Roxanne smiled slightly.

"I’m starting to get the hang of it, I think," she said right before her pyramid faltered and fell apart and she became a little sheepish and amended,

"It’s slow going."

"It’s fantastic," Caius said.

Meline drew her daggers from her storage ring. Nadine and Kyre drew their swords. Hugo cracked his knuckles and unsheathed his claws. As one, the Leopolds took off into the air, swinging out whatever ranged attacks they were capable of at the Emissary. They were joined by Eighth Circle Militants who had erected defenses against attacks the Emissary had tossed in their direction as well.

Roxanne remained by Caius’s side to attack from the ground and also spring to Caius’s defense if an attack was to come his way.

Arches of Mana backed by spells were sent by Nadine, Meline, and Kyre, and with a swing of his hand, the Emissary cut through them all and then, he moved to the side to avoid a kick from Hugo.

Before Hugo could twist his body in the air to strike again, the Emissary struck him with a backhand that sent him flying into one of the Palace’s Eighth Circle militants.

The others closed in, and with overwhelming might, the Emissary blocked their attacks before countering viciously. And then, his eyes fell on Caius on the ground just as he prepared to launch a spell at him but the Leopolds intercepted it.

"Why struggle?" The Emissary asked in a drawling voice that was clear and loud, "It’s not you I want. Bring me Athenodora or my next attacks will be to kill."

"Caius, you should get inside," Roxanne said.

"Why? ’Cause I’m a liability?" Caius asked.

"I didn’t say that," Roxanne rounded on him.

"It’s okay. You won’t be wrong," Caius said and popped out a Trait Acquisition Potion before Roxanne stopped him.

"Don’t," she said.

"What?" Caius said, confused.

"You’re going to drink that and go off to fight him, aren’t you?" Roxanne asked.

"Yeah," Caius said like he was stating the obvious.

"You’d be putting yourself in needless danger. There are multiple Eighth Circle Mages fighting him. You don’t need to throw yourself in the fray," Roxanne said.

"Roxanne—"

"I won’t let you," Roxanne said, "You could order me and I still won’t let you."

Caius opened his mouth to say that if he ordered she would have to let him but then he just closed his mouth because he knew she was right. Back at the Revron County when they first fought the Emissary, he had needed to act but to do so now would just be knowingly throwing himself into a fight that didn’t need him.

Besides, even though it might seem optimistic, Caius was sure the Emissary could be defeated. Even now, the rest of the Venuzze capital was being alerted to the situation and once even more Militants joined the battle— well, Caius knew for a fact that ’Emissary designation’ had its limits.

How would the Emissary handle the situation when it reached that point?

Was there an exit strategy planned?

Was simply killing as many as he could all that he had planned?

Did he hope his intimidation and combat prowess so far would get Athenodora to show before it reached that point?

But if Athenodora was thinking even slightly in line with what Caius was thinking right now, she had no reason to show. Her militants would handle the threat for her. After all, even if she did show up, what could she do in her current state—?

"There you are!" The Emissary said with a wide grin, unleashing a ripple of magical aura that pushed back those closest to him—those he hadn’t already knocked to the ground—while his eyes were directed down at the ground.

Caius and Roxanne turned around and there stood Athenodora with Elena by her side. Elena was glaring but Athenodora’s expression was less easy to read.

The Emissary descended until his bare feet were only inches above the ground. The Militants reacted and made to pursue or attack from a distance but once Athenodora raised her hand, they froze and watched.

The Emissary floated over to Athenodora, casting a quick glare at Caius and Roxanne when he passed them before returning his eyes to his target.

"Finding you has not been easy," The Emissary said and cast his eyes about with disdain, "I should have known you’d find some backwater to hole up in—"

*Smack!*

The sound was so quick, so crisp, and so resounding that everyone in the courtyard winced with surprise. But no one’s reaction was as strong as the Emissary who found his entire body turned violently to the side by the smack Athenodora delivered to his temple.

"Ow!" He let out in exasperation and turned his face back toward Athenodora whose finger was now pointing between his eyes.

"You don’t get to be condescending," she said.

"What—?"

"Apologize before I smack you again," Athenodora said.

"What—"

"Apologize," Athenodora enunciated each syllable through gritted teeth, with a malicious glint in her eyes.

"Fine. Fine, I apologize," The Emissary said with a hand to his temple, nursing where Athenodora had struck.

"There," Athenodora said with a smile, "Now, for Nyx’s sake, will you stop the hard-ass act? No one’s buying it."

’I was buying it,’ Caius thought, and by the look on the faces he observed, he knew he wasn’t the only one.

Still, when the Emissary’s feet touched the ground by Athenodora’s request, he suddenly seemed... smaller. Still powerful, no doubt. His aura and the Emissary designation that imbued him to be greater than his opponents were all still there. His image just seemed a lot tamer.

"Now, Philip, will you tell me what all the theatrics were for?" Athenodora asked and Caius couldn’t help it. He laughed.

"Philip?" He said between laughs, "Your name is Philip?"

Philip, the Noble Emissary turned around slowly until he was sneering at Caius.

"You have a problem with my name?" He asked.

"Oh come on," Caius laughed even more, "If I asked for your name at Revron County, would you have told me it was ’Philip’?"

"There’s nothing wrong with Philip," Philip said through gritted teeth.

"Yeah, but it doesn’t exactly scream ’intimidating’ does it?" Caius said.

"Well, let’s see how weak you think my name sounds when I’m wringing your neck," Philip said and stepped toward Caius.

Roxanne stepped between them, a scroll at hand, ready to activate the Formation on it. The other Leopolds drew closer as well, weapons at hand and in combat stances, ready to leap to the defense of their Lord.

Philip ignored everyone else and kept his eyes on Roxanne.

"You," he said, and pointed his claw at her, "I owe you for that detestable Formation. I owe you at least half the horrors it forced me to endure. I only wonder if we’ll have the time. Even for a vampire, I am sure you’ll die quickly."

"Ah, that must have been a humbling experience if it’s stuck to you so well," Roxanne said in a low and calm voice, "To be bound in place, revolted by your very nature. It’s said that a common side effect of experiencing the ’Circle of Retribution’ longer than five minutes is a period of blood revulsion.

You experienced it, didn’t you? You fed and found your body at odds with it as it accepted the blood as a vampire should and yet also rejected it as your newfound ’morality’ directs you.

The side effect eases of course, but vampires often have great memory. The experience must have stuck with you. Even now, as I’m talking about it, you remember and you feel close to retching out your guts.

And that was my first try with it in a tense situation.

Imagine what an improved version would do to you? It might even drive you to suicide.

I’d like to see that."

As she spoke, Roxanne twirled her inscription pen between her fingers and then at the last word, she pointed the tip at the ground.

Philip looked down and there was a flash of worry in his eyes before he realized there was nothing there and he looked back up at Roxanne who was smirking.

"Yeah," she said,

"I’d really like to see that."