Chapter 208: Two Choices
On Leon's side, his response was textbook—casting Frost to freeze the flowing magma, while red and blue lights swirled around him. In a flash, a Frostfire Shield materialized, followed by a frenzy of choices. He managed to intercept all the dozen Frost Spears launched at him simultaneously...
But Fran, wielder of the Timeweaver's Hand, was far from limited to such tricks. Almost at the same moment those Frost Spears flew, Fran began chanting another spell—Dragonfire Roar, a sixth-tier spell notorious for its lengthy casting time and its power to shatter any protective magic. Not even a Frostfire Shield or Rune Shield could withstand Dragonfire Roar without comparing the casters' mana reserves.
But the casting time for Dragonfire Roar was just too long...
Every mage knew Dragonfire Roar could break any shield, but in a real duel between equals, no one would actually choose it. The timing just didn't allow for it—before you finished chanting, your enemy could slice your throat with a casual Wind Blade.
Yet now, Fran could cast Dragonfire Roar with zero risk.
That was the edge the Timeweaver's Hand bestowed...
As the Frostfire Shield spun wildly, blocking all those Frost Spears, Fran had already completed a third of the Dragonfire Roar chant, and his Rune Shield remained untouched.
In other words, this Dragonfire Roar was almost guaranteed to be unleashed...
At that moment, Salomon had readied a Spell Counter, waiting for Fran to finish Dragonfire Roar. He planned to use his peak ninth-tier Magus strength to suppress Fran and snuff out the spell. Otherwise, even ten Frostfire Shields couldn't withstand the impact of Dragonfire Roar...
Fran's chanting grew faster and faster. Fire elements boiled; the air itself grew scorching. Everyone held their breath, waiting for the moment Dragonfire Roar would be unleashed...
Just then, Leon had finally blocked the last Frost Spear. After that fierce barrage, his Frostfire Shield was already on the verge of collapse.
Strangely enough, even with a battered Frostfire Shield, Leon showed no hint of panic as Fran chanted Dragonfire Roar. He simply gripped his Soulbound Staff and started reciting a rapid-fire incantation of his own...
What the hell? How could he be chanting a spell at a time like this?
A few Grand Mages watching couldn't help but curse out loud. Was this a joke? Fran's Dragonfire Roar was nearly complete, and instead of scrambling to survive, Leon was just leisurely chanting. Even casting a Fire Elemental Avatar would at least boost his fire resistance and give him a slim chance to survive Dragonfire Roar...
Wait a minute—this incantation, this magical resonance, why does it feel so familiar?
"Dragonfire Roar!" Salomon was the first to react.
That's right—Leon was chanting Dragonfire Roar too!
Has he gone mad?!
For a moment, Salomon couldn't care less about decorum—he was about to unleash his long-prepared Spell Counter...
But just as Salomon was about to unleash his Spell Counter, he sensed something off—the rhythm of their chanting was different.
No, no, no—it wasn't Fran with the Timeweaver's Hand who was faster.
Right as Salomon's expression changed, a blinding burst of fire shot skyward. With a deafening roar, the flames formed a colossal dragon, its searing heat threatening to obliterate everything as it lunged forward...
That was Leon's Dragonfire Roar!
For a moment, time seemed frozen. Everyone just stood there, stunned, watching the fiery dragon appear out of thin air, watching the flames crash against the Rune Shield, watching brilliant magical runes ripple outward...
Finally, they watched Fran soar through the air like a kite with its string cut...
The camp fell into a deathly silence. Everyone stood like statues, disbelief frozen on their faces. It was as if they were dreaming—no one expected such a dramatic reversal in a battle that seemed so one-sided.
A Grand Mage had just cast Dragonfire Roar...
And he did it almost twice as fast as Fran, who possessed the Timeweaver's Hand.
Wh-what... what in the world just happened?
At this point, not only were the people from Seaview City baffled—even Fran himself, who had lived through it all, couldn't make sense of what just happened.
That Dragonfire Roar had its force mostly absorbed by the Rune Shield, but for a Magus like Fran, whose physical resilience was lacking, even a tenth of the spell's power was more than he could bear.
Most of his robe was incinerated by the infernal heat, and the impact had probably shattered half his ribs. Fran was left with almost no fighting strength, able only to watch as the young Grand Mage approached...
"How... how is this possible..." Fran tried to stand, but the pain made him cough up blood.
"Grandmaster Fran, you should rest. Talking won't do you any good." Leon walked up, then planted his foot on Fran's head, pressing it into the sand.
"Mmmph..." Fran struggled desperately, but he was too badly hurt to resist. His flailing only made him look like an ostrich, utterly pointless...
"But you were right about one thing—I never learned manners from Seth."
With that, Leon ignored all the stunned faces and led the Dragonblood Orc back to his carriage.
"Cousin, give me two bottles of recovery potion."
"Oh..." William Merlin quickly pulled out two bottles of recovery potion, but after glancing at the barely breathing Dragonblood Orc, he couldn't help but ask, "But he's so badly hurt—will recovery potions even work?"
"He'll be fine," Leon said with absolute certainty. This was a Dragonblood Orc, after all—blessed with both dragon and orc bloodlines, their recovery is beyond anything a human could imagine.
Sure enough, after two bottles of recovery potion, the unconscious Dragonblood Orc stirred—first his fingers twitched, then he slowly opened his eyes...
Then came a furious roar.
Before William Merlin could react, the Dragonblood Orc sprang up, his dark red arm darting out like a viper, clamping around William's neck.
"Who are you people?" the Dragonblood Orc demanded in Orcish.
"Let... let go!" William's face turned pale as the dark red arm tightened like an iron vise, squeezing the breath from him. "Cousin... cousin, help me..."
"Release him," Leon replied, also in Orcish.
"Tell me who you are, or I'll kill him!" The Dragonblood Orc was unmoved, tightening his grip, eyes blazing with menace.
"Forget it..." Leon gave up on talking, raised his hand, and unleashed a Flame Chain.
In an instant, the Flame Chain wrapped around the Dragonblood Orc's arm. The searing heat made him shriek, and he released William while desperately trying to break free.
But how could a Dragonblood Orc possibly break free from Leon's Flame Chain?
The Flame Chain tightened like a python—the more the Dragonblood Orc struggled, the tighter it became...
Just barely awake and at his weakest, the Dragonblood Orc stood no chance against Leon's Flame Chain. In moments, he was back on the ground, bound tight, his dark red skin scorched and marked, reduced to helpless screams.
"I told you to let go..." William Merlin rubbed his neck, disgruntled, and kicked the Dragonblood Orc. Damn, the one time he tries to do something good, and this is the result. If he'd known, he wouldn't have handed over those potions...
Leon waved away the burning Flame Chain. "Alright, Cousin, give him two more bottles of recovery potion."
"Huh?"
"I have questions for him."
"Fine..." William Merlin reluctantly fished out two more bottles of recovery potion.
After drinking the potions, the Dragonblood Orc quickly recovered from the burns. This time, though, he didn't dare attack William again.
The power that human mage had just displayed left a deep impression on the Dragonblood Orc. He could feel that if he dared resist again, that mage would kill him without hesitation.
"Listen up. I'm going to ask you a few questions. For each one, you have five seconds to answer. If I don't get a satisfactory reply in five seconds, or if I think you're lying, congratulations—you get two choices: lie on my alchemy table and let me dissect you, or turn into magical ingredients on the spot."
"What if he doesn't speak Common?" William Merlin asked curiously.
Leon thought for a moment. "Then he's useless to me."