Chapter 154: Bull vs. Hippogryph Knight.

“Nature, RISE to my call!” With a booming war cry from Cernust, tree roots began to grow in size and move like the tentacles of an octopus.

“What is this?!” Antonio exclaimed as these roots advanced towards him in an attempt to entangle him; however, the hippogryph Bornelli was fast as he was flexible. He had no problems jumping and sidestepping to avoid them.

What is this?!

Moving roots? I was expecting some rocks being thrown and shot by Cernust, but never did I imagine that I would see plants moving. At this point, I wasn’t sure if Cernust was controlling them through some unique skill he had or if this was some kinda custom earth magic — or maybe it’s even an empty vessel-like skill like my [White Flames] and [Corrosive Fire] — but I did know that his mana was flowing through them.

Like a plant himself, I was able to confirm a network similar to a root system with my [Mana Eyes] originating from Cernust completely composed out of mana. Now, I had no details of his skills, so I couldn’t be sure of how it worked unless I looked at his profile. Mana was everywhere — in the land and the air — so he could also be using the mana from the environment to control the plants for all I know.

Appraising an enemy’s profile without their knowledge was alright. After all, all is fair in love and war, right? However, what about a friend or a good acquaintance? You know, for this reason, people create principles. That’s why I won’t check Cernust’s profile even if I was sure that he wasn’t wealthy enough to buy one of those identify bracelets the nobles have.

The trees around Aurora showed movement, bending their branches and trunks to block Severa’s and our way into the fighting and turn the area between Cernust and Antonio into a dueling field. Unfortunately for the knight and mount duo, this arena was far too small for the hippogryph to take full advantage of its size, its wings in danger of being entangled by the animated roots.

Cernust raised his arms like a boxer, activated [Gale Steps], and dashed forward. He entered within melee range of the pair, initiating the battle’s first attack with a right hook, aiming to knock out the hippogryph; however, the beast wasn’t fazed by the surprise attack and ducked out of the way. Normally, Cernust might have been able to link another punch if he were a competent boxer or monk-style fighter, but Antonio wouldn’t let that happen.

“Swift Strike!” Bending his body forward, Antonio slashed down at Cernust with remarkable speed with his blade.

Footwork! Cernust dodged the attack by pivoting his body to the side before swinging it back into its former location and launching an uppercut with the full momentum of the move, sending Bornelli recoiling upwards. Antonio, understanding his partner was in a vulnerable position after that attack, immediately dismounted and charged at Cernust with his shield.

Switching to the defensive, Cernust stomped at Antonio’s shield to throw himself back, creating some distance for himself. “Shield Charge!” Antonio roared, once again activating a weapon ability, one that allowed the knight to simultaneously ignore the knockback of the Cernust’s kick as well as charge forward like a bull.

“I call upon the earth’s protection, Earth Wall.” Instead of attacking, Cernust created a wall to fully block Antonio’s advance, forcing the oncoming swordsman to stop himself and move around the side of the wall. That was a mistake on Antonio’s part.

Cernust took advantage of the concealment in order to ambush Antonio. He grabbed Antonio’s arm, knocked his sword away with his gauntlet, then threw the knight over his shoulder. Antonio landed on his back, causing the air to escape his lungs and his weapon to go flying from the impact. He didn’t cushion his fall properly.

“Brother!” Severa cried out the moment she saw this, covering her wide mouth out of worry for her brother.

“Severa, I won’t hurt him badly, I promise! Woah-Shit!” Once again, Cernust’s loud mouth backfired on him as the hippogryph began a flurry of attacks to defend his master. “Damn! I fucking hate these shitty birds!”

The savagery described in the hippogryph’s System analysis came into effect. Slashing with his front claws, biting with his sturdy beak, and swiping with those large feathered wings. Bornelli attacked with every body part he could use to fight, forcing Cernust into the defensive entirely, the bovline unable to retaliate against the larger foe.

Unlike before, he didn’t have the time to focus on a spell, showing he wasn’t as experienced with magic as I had initially thought. Antonio had called him an “Arcane Brawler” or something, so I presumed he had augmented his fighting style with magic, similar to Saori whom Ellaine had described as an “Arcane Trickster.”

“Fuck! Can’t help it, urgh,” Cernust frowned deeply as he realized his situation, even noticing that Antonio had already recovered. While keeping his footwork steady, he quickly grabbed something from his backpack and threw the contents at Bornelli.

“Grow!” That something he threw turned out to be a bunch of seeds, plant seeds!

What the hell is he trying to do?! I wanted to shout out but I stopped myself the moment those seeds shook mid-air, roots burst out from them before they even hit the ground. Bornelli screeched out in surprise at this sudden attack, but the bloodthirsty hippogryph couldn’t be intimidated that easily, as it immediately started ripping apart the seeds and their roots.

I thought that was it for Cernust’s “attack,” but my mind was quickly changed as a larger white cloud burst from the ravaged seeds, engulfing Bornelli’s eyes for a good moment. The hippogryph released another ear-splitting shriek in surprise; however, this time, it flinched back as its sight was blocked. The bird-horse may have been on guard for enemies, but all it did at the moment was simply turn his head from side to side, completely contrary to his aggressive nature from earlier.

Its behavior now was baffling, and we didn’t have anybody knowledgeable on hippogryphs to comment on what was happening to Bornelli.

“Thankfully those damn birds react more on sight than their other senses,” Cernust said as he quickly gulped down a green potion, which I presume is an agility potion.

Well, thank you very much for the info, Mister Commentator. It’s as if you heard my prayers.

“Wind Bullet!” Antonio, having recovered his sword and bearing, shot out a long-chanted wind spell at Cernust, blasting the white smoke away around Bornelli’s head. Cernust reacted to it by blocking the spell with his gauntlets, nullifying the attack, and then took out a pouch from his backpack before throwing the latter on the ground, freeing his movements a bit more.

Cernust pulled out seeds from this pouch and spread them before him like a farmer, where a brown magic circle appeared. Even as Bornelli gave a great “Kiyahhhhhh!” as its vision cleared up, Cernust’s spell activated.

“Nature’s blessing upon you, the bounty of the earth Goddess. Flourish, live and grow, for I call for your aid, my brethren. Accelerated Growth!” The seeds rattled like popcorn as cracks appeared on them and roots sprouted out. Unlike before, where I presume he only poured mana into those seeds, this was an actual showcase of his magic similar to how he had controlled the trees in the beginning.

Bornelli wanted to continue his attack on Cernust, and Antonio had nearly returned to the fight, but the seeds had experienced a supernatural growth where the plants grew to maturity in a matter of seconds. The moment those roots burst out, they grew in size, transforming into massive trees with thin trunks that would make the ones in this forest envious.

The trees quickly entangled their branches around Bornelli’s wings and legs, preventing him from doing anything as he was attempting to break through them. Despite having a bird brain, the Strength of a D rank monster like a hippogryph couldn’t be underestimated as he broke apart these wooden restraints, clawing and breaking through the wooden trunk of the tree in pursuit of Cernust.

However, Cernust remained steadfast, simply pulling out more seeds and spreading them before him. If I remembered correctly, Cernust had a ton of herbs and alchemical ingredients in his backpack, and if he also had the ability to rapidly grow plants, then shouldn’t there be more lethal plants in his arsenal?

Whether he understood this or not, Antonio quickly cried out to his mount. “Bornelli, to me! Don’t forget our training, partner!” That was all that was needed for the ferocious murder bird to finally calm down and dodge backward, and not a moment too soon, as another batch of trees grew up in size right where the hippogryph had been. Seeing as Cernust clicked his tongue, he probably was aiming to fully constrict and immobilize the hippogryph, removing him from the fight altogether.

“Yo, mate, I suggest you give up. You can’t win while we’re in my turf,” Cernust called out to Antonio in an attempt to settle this situation without more fighting, but the prideful knight wouldn’t accept it.

“Silence, beast! As if a knight of the White Talon would give up now!” he declared, mounting his hippogryph. “Even if it costs my life, you will pay for kidnapping my youngest sister! Beast!”

Cernust couldn’t help but cradle his head as he kept hearing the same sorta answer from the honor-bound knight. “By the Six, does that helmet of yours stop your hearing or— fuck! Move, now!” Whatever he wanted to say was interrupted as Antonio charged forwards, forcing Cernust to control his trees to move their branches in an attempt to block it.

However, unlike their individual actions taken earlier, together the duo were far more competent. Under Antonio’s control, Bornelli slipped through the slow-moving branches, showcasing deft movements, unlike how straightforward it was fighting alone.

Cernust dodged the first attack the duo launched, assuming his boxer stance once again. With the combination of savage and precise attacks coming from the respective fighters, Cernust finally had to block attacks with his gauntlet instead of dodging. The reach difference between the combatants finally showed itself, as Bornelli’s claws and Antonio’s sword kept Cernust from closing in enough for another sucker punch.

“Yop!” Cernust then dodged the next attack by sliding under the hippogryph. Instead of a counterattack, Cernust stood back up and sprinted towards his trees. Bornelli flapped its wings, fluttering slightly off the ground where it could twist its body and use the momentum to glide towards Cernust like a bird of prey.

Another brown magic circle appeared on the ground while this all happened. “Nutrients and mana I pour into you, so grow to hide me in my sleep! Overgreen!” The moment the spell finished, the grass surrounding the fighting ground grew in size, hiding Cernust from Bornelli’s view.

Antonio clicked his tongue and pulled the reins on Bornelli, ordering him to land on the branch of one of the trees, as it wasn’t moving currently. I honestly thought it would have difficulties standing on a branch like a bird as his hind legs had hooves like a horse, but it turned out that I was wrong. It clutched onto the branch with its avian front claws while balancing itself on one hind leg.

Peering down like an eagle hunting down a mouse hiding in high grass, Bornelli analyzed the surroundings. The battle slowed down as it turned into a detection vs. stealth battle, but that soon changed as Bornell screeched in a direction. The moment that happened, the trees began moving again, forcing the hippogryph to take flight, coasting around the battlefield while dodging the branches trying to swat him out of the sky.

Seeing as his trees weren’t doing too well, Cernust shot out a few [Rock Bullet]s aimed at the hippogryph’s wings; however, it was futile against somebody so used to flying. The bird-horse anticipated these attacks and glided through everything Cernust had sent at him before diving towards the beastman. Looking at Antonio and Bornelli, I couldn’t help but think of them as cool at this moment. I mean, a knight on a giant hippogryph is just cool, right?

The grass moved; Cernust had to dodge away as Bornelli’s peck and claw attacks drove the brawler away from the area where he stood, destroying earth and plants alike with the attack. As he wasn’t able to catch Cernust, Bornelli didn’t dawdle for a second on land, soaring back into the sky to hunt down its enemy.

As the hippogryph dove once again to strike, Cernust once again cast [Accelerated Growth].However, this time it wasn’t a tree, but something entirely different.

“To the side, Bornelli!” Antonio called out as a massive venus fly trap-like plant erupted from the ground, baring its green needle-like teeth at the bird. Luckily, the duo managed to dodge the side, but that wasn’t the end of their trial.

“Accelerated Growth!” This time, a massive red sunflower-like plant grew and began rotating its flowerhead, shooting its seeds like missiles at them.

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“Bornelli!” Antonio shouted and was answered by the bird’s shriek. Instead of dodging around, the bird threw its rider onto one of the surrounding trees where Antonio activated another ability. “Taunt!”

Taunt! It exists!

Antonio banged on his shield with his sword before shouting the name of his ability. The moment he did that, both the sunflower and venus fly trap began attacking the knight while leaving Bornelli free to attack Cernust.

Unfortunately for the knight and hippogryph duo, it seemed as if Cernust’s repertoire of plants was truly versatile. With another [Accelerated Growth] a giant white mushroom grew from the ground, blocking Bornell’s attack by trapping his claws in the sticky mushroom’s cap. Cernust then jumped out from the bird’s flank and used [Gale Steps], closing the distance between them to land a charged up right hook at the beast’s stomach.

“Focused Punch!”

“Kiyaaaaaaaaarrrrrh!!!” It was a direct hit, causing the hippogryph to fall off the mushroom and tumble to the ground. As he was recovering from the attack, roots began to entangle the bird, trapping him on the ground.

“Damn, I hate flyers! Why couldn’t I grow wings?!” Cernust complained

However, that victory was short-lived.

“Bornelli, get away!” Antonio cried out from the side for a very good reason — the tree, no, the trees around him were falling them at Bornelli and Cernust. The giant sunflower and venus fly trap, without Cernust to guide them, accidentally destroyed the trunks of the trees.

“Nooo!” Severa cried out.

“Shit! Nature’s blessing upon you, the bounty of th-fuck!” Seeing the trees crashing down on him, Cernust attempted to cast another [Accelerated Growth] to stop them, but his casting was too long with to his chant. He looked at Bornelli, who was still trapped by roots and was struggling desperately to free himself, and back at the falling tree; in the end, he stopped trying to cast the spell and ordered the roots to free Bornelli.

He then approached the hippogryph, helped it onto its feet and kicked it away from the area where the trees would fall. Saori, Tasianna, and I were confident that Cernust would be able to get out in time according to what we saw of his abilities, so we didn’t respond in time when the unexpected actually happened. Cernust tripped on his own trees’ roots.

“Saori!” I called out to get her to rescue Cernust, but it was already too late.

“Cernust!” Severa cried out from the bottom of her lungs as the trees crashed onto Cernust.

I clicked my tongue and ripped through the roots blocking my path like butter, running over to where Cernust was. I dispersed the dust with [Aerokinesis] to see where Cernust was, hoping his muscles helped him cushion the crash. I really, really hoped so.

“Urgh...help.” And thankfully, his luck was no more mediocre than his Strength. Cernust was struggling, but he was safe, holding up one of his trees while lying on the ground. Honestly, if he hadn’t made the trees so damn big, I am pretty sure he could have freed himself alone.

“You…,” Antonio also noticed Cernust holding up the tree. In this position, Antonio had all the tools to arrest Cernust without worry, but he was hesitating for a reason. Was it cause he saw Cernust help his mount?

“Sir Antonio, please, this is enough,” I finally said, having enough of this feud. “As you can see, this person doesn’t mean your sister any harm. He did not take her hostage like an actual bandit, nor did he leave your Bornelli to be crushed under those trees, although he had every reason to, considering your hostility.”

“Lady Shrine Maiden, Lamreeta, the Goddess of Justice, would not agree with this statement. If we were to let every thief free simply because they are feeding their family, then our society will fall. They must learn how to work properly, become a contributing part to our proud kingdom,” Antonio argued, but I wouldn’t let him persuade me with some religious stuff. I was the priestess here, mate, and I read a bloody book on the gods!

“If you are bringing subordinate gods into this argument, then let me remind you of the subordinate gods under our goddess’s command. Goddess of Nobility and Wealth, Erithia, would not consider what you are doing noble, especially after he risked his life for Bornelli. Goddess of Fairness and Equality, Andira, would condemn your action here; instead of listening to what he has to say, you declared him a criminal before he could dispute it. God of Knighthood, Bravery, and Loyalty, Yeostar, should be someone you understand better, am I not correct, Sir Antonio?”

With the help of Tasianna’s theology lessons and the books I read in Firwood, my knowledge of the different gods of Peolynca had grown. Honestly, there were too many to wrap my head around. About Yeostar, I actually heard about him from Ellaine and Jonathan themselves, as they mentioned the latter had to learn a rite in the god’s name before he became a squire in a knights’ order. Yeostar watched over all knights’ orders according to them, so this rite was there so he could become aware of a new squire’s existence.

Antonio, thankfully, shuddered as he couldn’t find another word to argue back. Now, if Cernust wasn’t actually a bad guy, this whole situation would probably be resolved. I mean, I saw Cernust enter Firwood with Severa in the middle of winter, so it’s been two months since then. In all that time, you have to wonder why Severa was still here despite being “kidnapped.” It can’t be caused by Stockholm syndrome right?

I mean, even now, Severa was-

“Miss Severa watch out, behind you!” Tasianna shouted as I was about to look over at our Quest’s “objective.”

“Hu-Kiyaaaaaa!” a scream of pure fear and surprise entered my ears, causing my eyes to widen as my [Detection Sensor] informed me that four presences had appeared near Severa. They jumped out of the bush, revealing a massive grizzly and three wargs.

Scheiße!

None of my skills had warned me about this threat, since they weren’t directing their hostility or killing intent at me or my teammates. [Detection Sensor] could tell me where the enemy was, but I couldn’t say how strong they were from it. To me, everything in this forest was like a mouse.

“Severa!” Antonio shouted in despair, running towards his sister with all he could. Bornelli, sensing the danger, ignored Cernust and shot into a gallop to save his master’s sister.

Tasianna shot out some ice spikes, Saori jumped into her shadow, while my purple magic circle was materializing at this very moment. We had to make it time, we just had to!

“SEVERA!”

But none of us saved her…because the loudest amongst us did.

A blue mist exuded from Cernust’s body. The cracking of wood could be heard as the mist grew evermore in size, even pushing Tasianna and me away. For some reason, at this very moment, my senses became clearer all of a sudden. My nose recognized an extremely sweet smell, a feeling of extreme competitiveness grew inside me, igniting a fire as I looked towards Cernust’s direction.

The trees around Severa suddenly shivered before branches and roots grew in size and length in a matter of seconds, so fast it put Cernust’s previous actions to shame. The roots constricted the grizzly and wargs before the branches turned into spears, piercing their chests with numerous tree branches. It consequently destroyed their chests, probably leaving nothing but a large gaping hole behind.

Just as I saw Saori emerge next to Severa, it finally hit me what had happened. I used [Aerokinesis], dispelling all the mana mist away to reveal what was hidden behind all of this.

It wasn’t the bovline Cernust.

No.

With the form of a komodo dragon, a wood-like carapace armor could be seen on the back of this emerald-green scaled beast. Moss could be seen growing out of the carapace and under its chin, like frills. Two antler-like horns were attached to the head of this komodo dragon, however, it didn’t possess any wings. Size-wise, it was around the size of my dragon form.

“C-Cernust?” Tasianna asked the giant beast, slowly approaching Severa with earth-quaking steps.

It wasn’t a dragon, no. Dragon’s could fly and had wings, but I could feel it. I knew instinctively that the monster in front of me was nothing else but a dragonkin. A wingless, land-locked dragon.

A drake.

“KRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!” I instinctively roared out, causing Tasianna to block her ears. My scale-dust ignited around me as if I was preparing to fight.

The drake, having heard this, turned his head towards me…and roared. “KRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAK!”

Something was telling me I just greeted him with a “Nice to meet you.”

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