Kelemen's head turned towards the direction of the attack as he tried to see who the attackers were. Thankfully with his improved eyesight, he could see several people sitting in the trees nearby as they notched another red arrow in their bow. At the sight, Kelemen sat with indecision. It was one thing to be a bystander to the situation and another to try and be a hero. No matter what, he needed to have the capabilities to back up his decision.
He wasn't some arbiter of justice and if the attackers were brave enough to attack the herd of iron deer, they definitely prepared themselves otherwise they were as good as dead. No matter what choice he chose, Kelemen was stuck with a hard decision to make.
As he froze with indecision Mire stepped forward and jumped into the battle. Kelemen stared dumbfoundedly at the sight as this was the first time that Mire had done something so forthright. In a whirl of acid and slime, Mire unreservedly unleashed the full extent of her abilities as she covered the whole area the archers were in with a zone of deadly acid. At the sight, Kelemen decided to throw caution to the wind and also stepped forward. He couldn't just leave Mire behind to run for his own safety. Besides, although Kelemen might not be able to win, he still had some tricks he could use to preserve his life and Mire's if he had to.
Nonetheless, Kelemen complained inwardly, "I should have trained more, damnit." In his mind Kelemen lamented the fact that he wasn't stronger, otherwise, he wouldn't have anything to fear even if Mire was being reckless. That thought took a mere moment as Kelemen sent forth multiple normal-sized arrows to directly collide against the exploding arrows. Apparently Mire's acid zone wasn't enough to take out all the archers as some continued shooting albeit with less vigor and quantity.
In a flash, a chain of explosions sounded throughout the air as a wave of smoke flew across the fields. For a second Kelemen couldn't see as he immediately connected his senses to Mire in response. Right away Kelemen noticed his hearing improve as he heard a stampede of iron deer coming closer and the tearing sound of air. Kelemen could feel his heart racing and his blood pumping vigorously as he took a deep breath and relaxed. He focused his mana in on the arrows flying through the air as he imagined a wall of mana being extended to stop them.
In an instant, Kelemen felt the drain of mana being sucked out of his body as a dimly colored light was reflected on the surface of the newly emerged mana wall. He gave a slight frown amidst his sweat-stained face as one after another, explosions rang forth. Kelemen focused as he continuously reinvigorated the wall with wave after wave of mana to stop the arrows and he could only fend off a couple of waves of arrows at most as he felt his mana slowly drying up.
Meanwhile, Mire continued her attack across the field right into the enemy lines. Together with the iron deer, she wildly unleashed her acid burning down swathes of trees and turning the grass into a bubbling pit of acid. The iron deer fearlessly rushed over the acid as it barely hurt them thanks to their reinforced bodies. However, the same couldn't be said for the attackers. Quickly seven or so archers hiding in the trees dropped down and rushed backward occasionally firing arrows. However, thanks to Mire's acid, the arrows were melted into globs of ash before disappearing forever. At the sight, the archers quickly retreated running back into the inner part of the forest.
The iron deer didn't miss a beat, as they continued their furious pursuit with Kelemen right behind. Mire was right beside the front vanguard as they rushed in. However, the tides of battle turned in just an instant, and the iron deer weren't prepared. A batch of new bombs descended from the skies as a mist-like gas filled the forest when they exploded one after another. The iron deer's eyes became glazed over as they began running slower and slower until they became still. One after another they began falling over. Kelemen and Mire were relatively better off as Mire could just ignore the gas, for the most part, thanks to her high resistance as a greater being while Kelemen could keep it out using a mana sphere to surround himself. Unfortunately, this was an expenditure that threatened to drain the remaining mana he had left, and he wasn't sure how long he could keep up the shield. In the end, only a handful of the bigger iron deer remained as they roared out in fury.
Meanwhile, the iron deer that had fallen were being retrieved by the archers who had covered themselves in a weird suit. It was a pitiful sight as these fearsome creatures fell one after another to the scheming minds of man. From the start to the finish, the iron deer were being played into the palm of their hands. If not for Kelemen and Mire, they might have even fallen at the first onslaught of exploding arrows. Unfortunately for them, the hunters weren't going to wait as the remaining iron deers tried to gather their fallen friends, and arrows exploded as the pillars collapsed exposing the remaining iron deers. Mire was largely unaffected by the strange gas, but she could also feel herself slowly getting weaker and weaker.
As she felt a loss at what to do, Kelemen appeared. Surrounding him was a dim barrier similar to the mana wall he conjured up earlier. This, however, was his defensive ability. It was basically a mana armor that blocked out the harmful mist as he walked forward. "Mire, please let me borrow your mana." Right now, the only thing Kelemen could do was borrow Mire's power. He was simply too weak, and then an incredible thing occurred. As if a dried spring brought back to life, Kelemen could feel Mana vigorously pouring in for him to use. Mire's grade of life was on another level and her mana proved it.
Unfortunately for the hunters, they had no clue about what was happening and they continued sneering. Kelemen however, was deadly calm as Mire's emotions began to cross over as well. Slowly at first, and then rapidly, a mana arrow was being formed. The archer's faces rapidly changed as they noticed the screech of wind grated on everyone's ears as mana unceasingly poured into the mana arrow. The arrow itself became visible as it flickered from it's dim blue to a deep purple color and gave off a crackling noise. Then there was nothing. Kelemen let go of the arrow and as if space itself seemed threatened, everything within a 50-meter line disappeared.
A laser-like light had appeared and disappeared just as quickly as it came. Kelemen collapsed while Mire also fell over. They had both over drained their mana cores during this battle and that last attack contained the last vestiges of power they could muster. Deafening silence descended as even the remaining iron deer stared at Kelemen with a mix of awe and horror.
However, for the archers, a nightmare had fallen. The archers sneering faces slowly turned to horror until they turned ghostly white. "I-IM-IMPOSSIBLE, HOW COULD SOMEONE WHO CAN USE MANA BE HERE IN THE FORSAKEN LANDS. IT'S NOT POS—"
"..."
Minutes passed as Kelemen felt the exhaustion and pain of everything come down. His body ached, as he sat there drained. A complex emotion-filled Kelemen's heart as he registered the sights and events that transpired today. Kelemen and Mire sat still as Kelemen quietly absorbed mana from the surroundings. After a few minutes, Kelemen got up.
He felt lost as he sighed out and grabbed Mire. "We're leaving." Just as Kelemen was getting ready to leave, a young iron deer shakily wobbled up to Kelemen and Mire before collapsing onto the ground. Only a stub remained of one of the characteristic antlers that iron deer prided themselves on and blood stained the grass as it feebly opened its eyes and got up once more to butt its head against Kelemen's foot. Seeing the sight, Kelemen slowly put his hand on top of its head ready to be bitten or attacked but nothing happened.
Instead, Kelemen could suddenly feel the fury, anger, and sadness as revenge and madness threatened to consume the young iron deer's mind. The young iron deer closed its eyes and just let his hand stay there as Kelemen slowly went through the slew of emotions he was now feeling. The older iron deer stared at the sight silently. One..., two..., three..., and eventually it began walking away. It looked back only once before leaving the clearing with its remaining comrades.
A new notification sounded in Kelemen's ears.
"Congratulations to the host [Kelemen] for taming the magical beast [Iron Deer]!"
Kelemen looked at the young deer with a sad look.
"..."
Kelemen pinched his nose as a sign of exhaustion exited his mouth. Normally he would be excited and tirelessly jumping if he could tame a familiar, especially a magical beast, but he just felt tired. He was mentally and physically drained from the fight and the aftermath of blood that stained the field. The iron deer left nothing behind as the attackers forever disappeared from the world while a complex emotion filled his heart.
He wasn't sure that what he did was correct, but there wasn't any time for him to lament or regret it. He was clearer than ever that this was a product of weakness and the only thing he could do now, was to become stronger. If he and Mire were any weaker than it could very well be their blood that stained the ground. As he made his way back, Kelemen saw a group of iron deer bringing their dead companions back as some younger ones stared listlessly. Their eyes no longer held the playful innocence it held only hours ago.