"I don't know whether this is the saddest or most effective pity ploy I've received, young man." A deep, feminine voice cut through the darkness. "Either way, consider my attention obtained."
As Noah roused, he found himself almost immediately sagging back into place as the sweltering heat enveloped his very being. And yet, even as he stared into the lava pool in front of him, he realized that his head was lying on something soft, and a clawed hand was caressing his face.
Looking up, he saw the smiling face of what an elf would probably look like if someone set one on fire and it somehow failed to bother her.
Salamander. And he was laying on her thighs, with her kneeling on the ground, and her hands holding his head. How had he gotten here?
But as his brain addled by the heat failed to compute for that second longer, her gentle smile turned sharper. "Oh, please." The hand that was previously caressing his face flicked his nose. "If I wanted to do something nefarious, the situation would look totally different."
Panic kept coursing through his veins for a moment longer... before he sagged back into her embrace. "Point taken." He'd already gotten... not comfortable, but at least used to being around a devastatingly powerful individual who wanted to interact with him, what was one more? His life was in jeopardy all the goddamn time.
"Good. You don't let yourself be ruled over by fear. There may be hope for you yet." Salamander commented. "Now boy, do you understand why you found yourself passed out on the floor of my cave, at any monster's mercy?"
"Can't say I do." Noah huffed, attempting to stand back up only for her to push him back down.
"Then I'll tell you, since I happened to be watching." Salamander jabbed him in the forehead with two of her fingers. "The woman you were traveling with betrayed you. The moment you pulled out a certain item I didn't get a good look at, there was a burst of holy and dark energy that knocked you out, and after inspecting her spoils, she vanished, leaving you for dead."
"That doesn't..." Noah began, but didn't it? He was an idle curiosity for Promestein, and later on, a complication. He mouthed off to her a whole lot, and... well, she already got what she wanted from him, given that he didn't feel the tome's weight anymore. "No, it actually does make sense. I bit off far more than I could chew." He sagged. Taking a few deep breaths, despite the fact that he felt his lungs burn with the scorching air, helped a little. "What now?"
"That is something only you can answer. What was your purpose for coming here?"
"Well... you were." Noah grimaced. "I'm in need of someone to teach me magic, and I was hoping you would be willing to. I've heard stories of the Spirit of Fire taking on students."
The glowing embers that were her eyes blinked for a moment, taking in his request. And then the temperature spiked considerably... as Salamander threw her head back and let out a grand roar of laughter.
Noah, wincing from the heat, couldn't nonetheless hide his glare. Thankfully, the reaction was short-lived, and noticing his annoyance, Salamander patted him on the cheek.
"Oh, don't worry. I was not laughing at you, your situation is just... amusing. It's not false that I took on a student or two here and there, though most failed to impress me." Except Granberia, but Noah wasn't supposed to know that. "But what you seem to be missing is that all of them were monsters, and powerful ones at that. What makes you think yourself worthy of my guidance?"
For a moment, anger spiked through Noah's system like a potent venom. He felt ready to shout, bolt up, even challenge the spirit, if need be... but something held him back. Maybe it was the fact that Salamander had rescued him. Maybe it was the eager way that she was staring at him, gently holding him in her lap.
...she wasn't asking it to mock him or anything, was she? She was just asking him to justify his convictions.
As he stood up and turned around to face her, this time Salamander didn't prevent him from doing so. He didn't feel... terrible, though sapped by the heat of the volcano. It felt surprisingly... survivable, even this close to the lava. "I'll admit that I doubt anything I could do can impress you. But I'm still here. And I'm still asking. If there's something I need to do, like a trial or something, I'll do it. Remaining powerless is not an option for me." He paused for a moment. "I'm... apparently also a natural talent at magic. Moreso than any other human, from what I'm told."
"Well, you've got spirit, I'll say that much." Salamander grinned back at him. "But do you have the spine to back up your conviction?"
"...I'd rather not fight the one who saved me, but I will if you think it necessary." he gulped, feeling his throat dry.
"That's what I like to hear. Show me your will to earn my power, boy!" Her grin turned slightly malicious. "And if you prove unworthy... well, you already owe me, don't you? I'll treat you nicely." ...that something dark that had come up before, and yet again when he held the library hostage to save his life. Hatred chipped within his mind, eager to be let loose. "Come and get me, then."
As he drew his crossbow from behind his back, he saw Salamander smirk, closing the distance far quicker than he could fire. "No time for ranged weapons!" She laughed jubilantly, snaking her arm around his neck for a lariat that tossed him straight to the ground- and would've snapped his neck, if she'd actually wanted. As he groaned and tried to regain his bearings, she leaped on him…
But this time, he was ready. Gripping his crossbow with one hand, he used the fact that he was taller to grab her arm before she could grab at him and used his legs to catapult her away from him; it didn't matter that the spirit had ten times his physical strength if she didn't weigh more than him, allowing him to gain distance. Snapping his crossbow arm up, he let loose bolt after bolt.
Of the five bolts he managed to get off, three sunk in various places on her body with a satisfying crack of the crossbow each time, while two openly missed. Still, he noted that these acted more like he expected a crossbow to do- stick inside and cause the wound to bleed. And yet, when he'd attacked that man... it punched straight through.
This was the power of a monster.
As he reared the crank back for yet another bolt, Salamander growled as she sprung up from the ground. "I'm not in the mood to be a pincushion. Combust!" Suddenly, intense heat burned his hands as his crossbow exploded, a burst of metal and wooden shrapnel just barely not injuring him further.
He winced. He'd managed to score a few good hits on Salamander and had hoped to use the siphoned mana towards strengthening himself or a good spell, but- "Tranquil winds of life..." he winced. "Restore my wounded body."
Energy rushed through him, thankfully not taking all of the mana he'd gathered, and as Salamander smirked at him after ripping out all the bolts, she took a ready stance. "Well? Going to come and fight me like a man?"
Noah's brain kicked into overdrive, trying to analyze the situation. A distant part of his brain noted that being a six foot two decently muscular man with a head of height over his opponent should mean that any bout of fisticuffs should end in his favor.
The way she'd previously swept him completely off his feet with casual ease shattered that notion, but it didn't mean that it was completely wrong. In theory, if she just wanted to fight him hand to hand, he still had reach over her, and he'd personally tested just a moment ago that her weight was more in line with what he expected.
Slowly, he shifted his center of balance to be lower to the ground, hands open. "Like riding a bike, I just need to remember and muscle memory will do the rest," he murmured.
"I don't know what a bike is, but the only one who'll be ridden is you at this rate." Salamander joked. "Well, I'm tired of waiting. Ready or not!" She called, before throwing out a spinning kick at Noah. Crossing his arms in front of his chest, he made the mistake of trying to protect himself and felt the bones in his arms nearly snap under the strike as he skidded back and tumbled to the ground, somehow managing to not split his head open on the floor.
As he went to recover, Salamander patiently waited for him to get back up. He took the time offered for what it was, moving slowly as he murmured to himself. "Torrent of white, lighten my step with your swift grace." Blocking was absolutely out of the question- he'd felt his bones bend with that last blow. As soon as he was up, however, she was back on the assault. He threw himself back to dodge another spinning kick aimed at his neck, and found himself responding in a way that even he didn't imagine himself doing- he bashed Salamander's head with a sharp rock.
She was stunned for a moment. Not by the blow, no, she'd barely felt that even if the volcanic rock was sharp and cut her a little, but because of the sheer brazenness. Still, Noah capitalized on the moment to jump back.
Shaking her head a moment later, she charged him again, but frustratingly, his enhanced speed meant that he was successfully dodging her. She was going easy, clearly, but any faster and she might snap his bones on accident. As she resolved to simply wait out the spell, however, she found herself overextending for a punch and thrown to the floor. This time, the hammer blow that came to the back of the head with the rock hurt a little.
By the time she spun herself back to standing with a spinning kick, he was already out of reach, clutching the rock as one would a dagger.
"Well? So far, I've seen you cast only one spell and your crossbow. Is that the end of your prowess, mage boy? A bit of martial arts and cheap tricks?" She grinned in challenge.
Wiping his brow, he huffed, trying to maintain his concentration to draw the mana out of the air while talking. It was slower than whacking the lifeforce out of her, but he didn't picture himself getting another blow on Salamander without getting grappled or directly taking a blow to the head. "I have a name, I'll have you know. It's Noah."
Thankfully, she seemed to take the bait. "Well, Noah, so far you've shown me that you have an inkling of magic talent and little else. If you surrender, I might even let you go after claiming my prize." She licked her lips seductively, causing a shudder of fear to run through Noah.
He huffed and puffed, angry fire mana entering through his lungs with each scorching breath. Fire needed oxygen, right? In an attempt to get more of the magical substance, picturing himself as a fan to the flame. "I... I won't lose..." he breathed, incapable of getting out more than that.
"Well, don't say I didn't warn you. Let's finish this, then. Combust!" she pointed at the rock held in his hand, but what she didn't expect was for him to be ready for it- as soon as she was pointing, the rock was already flying in her direction, and a moment later, it exploded in a burst of debris and a cloud of dust.
She wasn't hurt, but she couldn't see him and realized it was a smokescreen. A moment later, she found something thrown over her that she promptly went to smolder to cinders- only to realize that it was his fireproof cape. Bundled up in it, she was bodily picked up off of the floor and thrown with an angry yell.
Off of the platform they were fighting on. Into the lava. Momentarily losing physical form, she felt herself become one with the liquid fire, wounds regenerating, and temper rising. After a few moments where she allowed herself to lounge, she rocketed back out of the lava with a laugh.
"HAHAHA! Oh, you've got stones boy, I'll give you that!" She laughed. "I want to keep you for real, you're adorable! Never seen a human so determined in a few hundred years."
"Watch me." he bit out. While she had been busy returning, he had found himself attuning more and more to the power he'd drawn from Salamander, as well as the magic with which Gold Volcano was saturated with.
"You're looking a little green around the gills there... are you sure?" She teased. What else could he feed to the flame? Carbon... carbon was combustible. Suddenly, heat washed over him, but he paid it no mind. "Wait- what are you doing?"
Now to convert- flame to pure mana, he need to siphon out the heat, and to let that out- he breathed, watching flame pour out of his throat, splitting his lips.
"Did you-?!" Salamander startled, alarmed. "How did you attain a fiery spirit?!"
"You wanted magic?" He panted, at his absolute limit. His mind, previously screaming at him with pain and alarm, had gone silent. "I'll show you magic. Entomb everything in the frost of-"
"Silence!" A voice cut through the chant, as a presence stepped into the room like a bolt of lightning, the unexpected blow letting out a satisfying crack against the back of the human's head.
Frankly, it was more of a mercy knockout, preventing him from doing more damage to himself, but Granberia still wouldn't forgive someone trying to kill her mother.
"Oh, come on! I had it handled." Salamander suddenly appeared in front of her, pouting. "Do you believe me so old I couldn't beat one uppity human? Now you have broken the terms of our duel."
Her daughter's eyes widened. "I apologize, Salamander." Granberia grimaced, glancing at the downed human. "I sensed the buildup of ice magic after witnessing an angel fly over in this direction and I thought that there might have been an assassin." Rolling him on the floor with her foot to face up, she squinted her eyes. "To believe it was a sole human..."
"Is something the matter?" Salamander asked.
"This boy... I think I recognize him." She blinked. "Yes, I remember his unbaptized scent too. Back when I was patrolling Grand Noa, I came across a contingent of heroes slaughtered in Plansect. I'd managed to save him as the only civilian survivor. But he's become far different since then. These burns... to have a spirit so fiery that he immolated himself with it and still kept going requires the spirit of a true berserker. Perhaps I've made a mistake in allowing him to live then. It's clear that the weak flock to Ilias when faced with hardship."
"I see." Salamander nodded. "Well, I believe I've made up my mind. I will contract with this human... once he is sensate enough to do so, at least."
"What?! That is-"
"Unheard of? I would not say so. After all, Heinrich Hein was my student once." Salamander smirked before her smile lost its edge and turned sadder. "He needs guidance, Granberia, like you did. Trauma and betrayal cling to him like an aura. He threw himself at me with suicidal abandon simply for a chance to gain power for himself."
"To slay monsters, since some of us wronged him?" Granberia challenged. To her daughter's credit, Salamander considered the possibility.
"Perhaps... but I do not believe so. His plead came from the heart- if his flames truly are so fueled with hate, then I'll take responsibility and personally stamp it out."
"...I see. I pray that you are not making a mistake."
"So do I."
Not once before in her life had Promestein felt herself getting so worked up. It shouldn't have been possible. And most definitely not because of what a human did. As she flew over Gold, trying to regain her composure as she shrouded herself once more, free of the human burden she'd been carrying.
Clearly, she had been playing around a bit too much lately. And yet... tsk. Well, it mattered little now. She had the book, and the area that she had left the human in only had mild possibilities of actually killing him. If he was lucky, then he would survive the ordeal, only humiliated and alive. If not, then it was easy to justify to Ilias that the human was being tested and that he simply proved himself unworthy.
Honestly, he deserved it. The human was getting far too cocky in his interactions with her, and pulling out that particular book, nonchalantly reading off of it as though it was no problem?
She nearly felt the angelic compulsion to smite him then and there. Especially after he so carelessly broke the seal she had placed on it. She refrained, of course, because she wasn't… the urges she felt in regards to the human felt oddly allegorical to the things that Ilias does to her lessers. That alone was enough to stay her hand a little.
And she realized, that if another her sent him, then perhaps the unsealing of the book was the purpose. Even though he clearly didn't know it. Had she used hypnosis to plant a hidden suggestion that prompted him to take this book in particular?
…but why now?
Doubt and confusion would consume her thoughts for a while, as she decided that the human could cope with his situation, and if he died, then she'd probably go fetch his soul in heaven and stuff it into a clone body made with the appropriate modifications. She'd already taken his samples, after all, when he was knocked out by the explosion of the seal's release.
...on that note, actually, the seal had most definitely been released, but for some reason, the one contained within still failed to appear. As Promestein flipped open the book, reading its contents, a positively ancient note fell out that she quickly snatched out before it could fall. Written with a messy, chicken scratch of a calligraphy was a hasty note.
On my authority as the Monster Lord
DO NOT let humans (or angels) see this
If you make anything out of this, let me know at the nearest occurrence
Or die. :)
Charming. And just the trademark signature of one the people she'd never wanted to get her filthy hands on the book. Promestein closed her eyes. Her plans were unchanged. She was aware that Black Alice was a being who only knew evil and that there was no love lost between the two of them- the bimbo was the only reason Promestein even believed in the existence of good and evil to begin with, if only because the former Monster Lord was positively radiating with the latter, like a particularly vile chunk of toxic waste. They were allies by convenience; Promestein sought Black Alice's power, and Black Alice sought Promestein's knowledge.
Still. Apparently, the violent bitch had gotten her hands on the tome. Possible collateral? A hostage? Who could say, really? What mattered was that it now was back in Promestein's hands where it belonged.
There was work to be done, and a broken seal to figure out. And if by the time the Hero rolled around back to San Ilia and didn't destroy its denizens… well, perhaps it was high time to teach a book monster or two the wondrous temperatures hydrogen fission could reach.
"Perhaps I'll let you do the deed yourself if you feel like it. You always did say that books are for nerds, Heca."
That day is not today.
And it looks like we'll be seeing a lot more of Salamander and a lot less of Promestein, in the very near future... surely you didn't believe that all his sass and poking the hornet nest wouldn't get back to him, did you? Though it seems that there's more underneath than meets the eye.
Fun fact! According to MGQ: Paradox, Promestein really doesn't like books, considering them an outdated, inferior method of acquiring and storing information. And this is a younger Promestein! Clearly, she is more a Kindle reader.
If you wish to support my writing, you can check me out at Sekaiboija on the place of patrons where I post five chapters ahea- if you can't find the link, it's always up on my discord server. Alternatively, you can always PM me in private if you wish to commission something written where we can hash out the details. Otherwise, a review is still more than enough, and I can't be thankful enough for it.
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Drink water, stay awesome. Nick of Name, out. :)