The artifact information gave a brief introduction on several paths of magic, and their classes. And one of those classes; was the potion magician!
This class was a branch of the scholar magic path, the same as Brent's inscription class. It was a none-combat class. However, and unlike inscription magicians, potion magicians weren't proficient at making inscriptions; instead, they use their specialized spells to concoct potions.
They do that by extracting active substances from specific parts of magical beasts and magical plants and use them to make potions that mimics spells and sometimes pull off some feats that not even spells can do.
If a potion magician can get access to the material he needs for concocting potions, then he can be even more frightening than inscription magician.
As such, the sight of the magic recovery potion in the bloodline magician's hand indicated that the attacking group had a scholar magician in their rank.
No one had any doubts that this wasn't a magic energy recovery potion, as according to the artifact's information, the blue color was the standard color for this type of potions.
This was beyond bad news for the compound side!
Emptying the veil's content in his mouth, Derek's eyes gleamed with a faint blue light, as his magic energy started recovering at a fast rate.
"Keep shooting out arrows at him, don't give him the chance to fully recover his energy!" few panicking shouts ranged from the compound side.
Following which, arrows that were flickering with lightning sparks streaked toward Derek, carrying the hopes of the panicking warriors to finish him off.
Cling! Clang!
Cling! Clang!
Cling! Clang!
However, the same spectacle repeated itself yet again.
The arrows couldn't even break through his thin energy membrane, not to mention inflicting damage on him.
It wasn't only the bowmen that attacked, but even Gregory threw some of his inscribed javelins at the bloodline magician. However, even that didn't work.
With this, Ramie's hopes of this fight coming to an end were completely shattered.
"It seems that I have no other choice but to do resort to that… and bear the risk…!"
The bloodline magician having a magic energy recovery potion meant that unless he's taking down, the bombardment will continue, and more will fall. This would severely weakened them, and encourage the attacking group to launch another assault.
Having made up his mind, Ramie's eyes gleamed with a faint yellow light under the shadow of the hood.
With his balaclava on, his face was completely concealed, so no one in the enemy camp aside from the flaying magician had any idea that he was bloodline magician.
Ramie moved closer to Gregory, and he whispered few words to him…
...
Right now, Brian was so frustrated, that he was grounding his teeth to the point of almost shattering them.
Today was like an endless nightmare. And the bloodline magician flying above was the reason behind it.
In his entire lifetime, he had never suffered to this degree, nor had he hated anyone or anything this much. His heart was like a volcano, about to erupt, but couldn't. His blood was like a highly pressurized magma that had no way to go.
His breathing was unstable, and his veins were swelling so much that they looked like worms crawling under his skin. His eyes were completely bloodshot, and were staring without blinking at the flaying mage, as though there was nothing in this world but him.
Right now, even the warriors that were next to Brian felt the pressure of his anger. His life energy was very unstable, to the point of causing a fluctuating air current to twirl around him.
At the moment, Brian's life goal was to catch that mage. And if he could achieve this, then, nothing else mattered in his life.
This was how much he hated that magician!
Unfortunately for him, as long as that magician stayed in the air, there was nothing he could do to him.
As the situation descended to this point, Brian felt a sense of weakness and despair creeps to him…
Even though he was the strongest warrior around, even though he was sure that he could severely injure or even kill this bloodline magician if he fought him in close quarter combat, but… in the end, this magician was able to fly, and also had ranged attacks!
These were things that life energy doesn't grant to the warriors!
Generally, warriors were stronger than magicians and faster. A warrior could thrash a magician to death if got close to him. However, on the other hand, magicians were capable of casting spells, something that warriors couldn't.
This point was precisely the reason why even despite that Brian was an entire level higher than Derek, he was still unable to do anything to him… as to defeat an opponent, one has to get close to him first.
Reaching this point, Brian could only hope that Ramie was going to do something. As right now, he was the only one in his mind that could alter this situation.
…
Incineration bomb!
Incineration bomb!
Upon Derek's cry, two flaming globes shoot down, creating two pillars of flame, and incineration 3 warriors to ash.
'This is the chance!' as the two fire pillars raged about, Ramie spoke to Gregory is haste: "quickly, before he forms another globe of fire, do it, NOW!!"
As his words fell, Gregory instantly grabbed ramie, and in a ridiculous and somewhat even comical sight, threw him up with all of his might!
Like a dashing bird, Ramie was launched through the air, toward the flying magician.
As simple and as ridiculous this plan was, this was the only way he could think of to get in range to cast his spells.
Upon seeing the compound's bloodline magician fly toward him in such comical way, Derek didn't laugh, nor was he amused. Instead, a horrified look soon covered his face.
'He's coming…!'
Feeling an alarming sense of threat from this mage, Derek's heart sank. He flapped his massive wings frantically, so as to widen the distance. He was very frightened of the prospect of this magician having powerful spell. So, his plan was to avoid getting close to this man at all times, and let the others bear the risks of killing him.
This was precisely the reason why he flew to the sky and resorted to using ranged attacks in the first place. He didn't want to give this man any chance to cast his spells on him.
Derek's eyes turned bloodshot, his weight was too heavy, and so, he knew that he wouldn't be able to get away in time.
"$%^&#* dog shit! You wanna kill me…! Dream on #$%^&*!"
Feeling the severity of the situation, he roared with anger, before muttering some incoherent curses, and then aimed his two arms at the shooting man…
Piercing scales!
Piercing scales!
Piercing scales!
Following his cries, a dozen scales were shoot off his arms, and tore their way through the air, streaking toward Ramie.
Feeling the intensifying killing intent, Ramie gritted his teeth, and activated his energy shield inscription, to block the incoming attacks.
Ramie's Ghost glare spell had a range of 50 meter, while the bloodline magician on the other hand was flying much further than that. So, and since this spell was the only thing ramie was sure that it could impact this magician, Ramie came up with this desperate move.
His plan was that to have Gregory throw him at the bloodline magician, to get him into the range that enables him to cast his ghost glare spell at the mage, to stop his assault. Afterward, his group would capture this fellow, and use him as a bargaining chip to end this bloody fight.
This plan was very dangerous to ramie himself, as it involved him directly approaching that mage. Thus, and to prevent this magician from using his incineration bomb on him, ramie waited till this mage finish casting his spell to attack.
The reason ramie did so, was that because the process of forming this spell takes time, so ramie wanted to attack the moment the mage cast this spell of his, so that when ramie attack, the mage wouldn't have the time to form another one.
Now, speaking to this point, this left the other spell as threat to ramie – the piercing scales spell, as shooting these scales was almost instantaneous, which meant that ramie had to survive several waves of attack first, before getting to cast his spell.
Anyway, with the absence of any other choice, Ramie had to gamble.
Whizzzzz!
Activating his energy shield inscription, ramie placed the shield in front of him, to block the attacks.
Shatter!
As the first wave of four streaking scales collided with the shield, a powerful, sharp penetrative force was transmitted to the shield, causing it to vibrate with intensity. Unable to withstand the force, the energy shield fluctuated forcefully, and then it shattered, causing sparks of energy to scatter in all directions.
The four scales shot right through him, like hot knives through fragile butter.
Losing his only defense measure, ramie was left defenseless against the scale barrage. At least eight scales landed on him, three of which inflicted heavy damage.
Being a magician, his body's defense was nothing in front of the highly penetrative scales.
One scale brushed his chest, inflicting long wound, and continued its way, hitting his foot, and emerging from the other side.
The second scale struck his clavicle bone, shattering its way through his chest, where his lung should be.
The third scale struck his chest, tore its way through his flesh, and emerged from his back.
If he had lungs, then he had just lost the two of them.
Another one hit him in the thigh, emerging from the shin, while shattering the kneecap and the other bones in its way. The rest fell on various places on his two arms.
Cough! Splatter!
Ramie coughed up a mouthful of blood, and with it, a mush of flesh. Obviously, the second and third strike gave him a severe injury. If he had normal physic, he should have turned to corpse by now.
However, and instead of feeling fear for his life, Ramie smiled, revealing two rows of blood dyed teeth.
Finally, he had gotten in range, while still alive.
Just as his opponent was about to cast another wave of scales at him…
Ramie injected magic energy into the artifact and roared: "Ghost glare…!"
…