Azarinth Healer: Book One - A LitRPG Adventure, page 30
“What the fuck, John?” a voice came from the other side of the gate.
“There’s someone here looking for his lordship, Prince Dale. Would you allow an audience for… what’s your name, lass?” John asked, turning to her with the question.
Nice touch with the prince bit.
“Ilea the healer.”
After Ilea had been waiting at the gate for five minutes, it was finally opened from the other side.
“He says it’s fine. Come on in, my lady.” The guard motioned for her to follow.
The guard station was clean, and everyone seemed ready and on alert, albeit in a relaxed way. Very professional, to say the least. Considering the action they get, it’s no surprise, Ilea thought as they rounded a corner where the sound of metal meeting metal could be heard.
“Good. Another one,” Dale’s voice rang out.
Arriving in a walled-off square with a gravel floor, Ilea and John entered a scene of two guards squaring off against Dale in mock combat.
[Warrior – lvl 83]
‘ding’ Identify reaches lvl 4
Having identified him, she was happy to note that she could finally see his level. The other two were in a level range of fifty to sixty. The ten or so spectators were even lower-leveled than that.
The two warriors slowly circled Dale. One was wielding a broadsword and the other a scimitar. With a sudden explosion of speed and power, they struck at him at the same time from different angles.
Dale was unfazed. He crouched in a smooth movement and lifted his sword and shield to intercept both attacks simultaneously. Following up with an elbow to the swordsman’s ribs, he quickly turned to the other to block another scimitar strike with his shield.
Ilea felt a quick surge of mana exiting Dale’s shield as his opponent’s weapon was deflected off his shield right on impact. As soon as the opening appeared, he thrust his own sword at the man’s throat in a practiced and fast motion and held it with blade pressing skin, ending the practice bout right there.
Some of the men clapped, while others exchanged tickets. Seemingly there was a betting system.
Her guide coughed and, in an exaggerated voice, announced, “Ilea, the Healer Queen! Here to see the Prince of Practice Square, Dale Langston!”
All eyes immediately turned first to Ilea’s guide and then to her. Some of them chuckled.
She walked in front of her guide in the most noble way she could think of. Standing ten meters before Dale, she bowed deeply, getting whistles and applause for the act.
Standing up straight again, she smirked at Dale. “Been a while, Mr. 83.”
“Indeed it has, Ms… 75? Well, that is indeed quite a change. Are you still running into battle to heal your enemies to death?” he joked.
“Oh, don’t be so mean, you know how I like it…”
Some of the men laughed, while two of them got up from their lounging positions.
“We’re next, Dale. You up for another, or do you have to attend to the princess?”
Shooting a glare at the man and activating her buffs, she declared, “It’s queen.”
The man stopped in his tracks as some tense stares were exchanged before Dale started laughing. They relaxed again, and the man who had called her princess flushed red.
“We can catch up later,” Dale continued. “I’d love to hear what you’ve been up to. I do have my duties though, and today that duty is to whip this bunch into at least somewhat capable warriors.”
Getting an idea, Ilea walked closer to him. Talking in a much lower voice than before, she said, “You know, about the ‘running in’ part… that wasn’t because I was reckless or stupid. I’m not exactly just a healer.” His eyebrows rose at that. “And even though I’ve fought monsters more than people since then, maybe some pointers against swords and other weapons might come in handy… You’ll get it once I start fighting. I won’t kill you, don’t worry,” she winked.
“What you’re saying is a bit confusing, but you don’t seem the type to lie. First, prove yourself against the royal offender there, and then I’ll face you. What do you say?”
TWENTY-FIVE
Woman and Monster
Dale smiled, amused at the turn of events. Ilea definitely knew how to make an entrance. This is already the most interesting day in a week, Dale thought as he motioned to Gary.
“Gary, you’ll face Her Highness for your royal insult. See what the Queen can do. And don’t hold back, she can heal herself…”
He smiled at her as he joined the other spectators.
She’s leveled up absurdly fast. If she’s just a healer, she’ll still get messed up by Gary, but something tells me that isn’t quite what will happen…
Gary, a level 43 warrior, unsheathed his sword and stiffly bowed to her. He carried the standard guard-issued sword and shield and wore leather armor. He had a lean, muscular build and was one of the more experienced recruits. Because of this, his eyes turned from embarrassed to focused in an instant. Dale was proud that even in a situation like this, his men always became serious and professional when asked to do so. Ilea also got into a fighting stance.
She’s going to fight unarmed? Hmm… even more interesting. The blue aura she had briefly activated earlier wasn’t present now, yet her eyes were focused as well. A grin was spreading on her face.
She’s changed more than just her levels, hasn’t she?
Gary wasn’t bothered by the lack of a weapon and assumed she was a mage. Raising his shield a bit more, ready to dodge a ranged attack, he waited for Dale’s signal.
“Go!” Dale shouted, and both of them sprang into action.
She’s graceful. At least one dedicated fighting skill there. And she’s fast. Her reflexes are good too. Why would a healer invest in any of that? Dale thought as the two advanced on each other, Ilea with aggressive abandon and Gary in a careful defensive fashion.
They came together, and Gary slashed at her horizontally. Ilea dodged the blow and closed the distance in seconds. Her punch was blocked by his shield, and the guard skidded back from the impact.
So she’s a hand-to-hand fighter. That was a powerful strike but nothing special for someone her level. Being able to heal oneself though…
Dale mused about the possibilities but came to the conclusion that using a sword and being able to heal would still be the superior style.
It’s certainly a surprise, especially with her healer class. Most healers forced to do any kind of fighting use ranged weapons.
He analyzed the fight as three more blows were blocked by Gary, now fully on the defensive. The young guard slashed at her from above, and Ilea simply caught his sword.
“What the…?” a guard next to Dale exclaimed, his jaw hanging open.
Turning the blade aside, Ilea smiled at Gary and punched him square in the chest, sending the man tumbling to the ground some distance away.
She caught the sword? What are you doing, girl?
“So, whatcha think?” she asked Dale, having helped Gary back to his feet. She was smiling, clearly pleased with herself. Many of the guardsmen were clapping, but Dale himself was not as easily impressed.
In fact, Dale could tell Ilea had held back most of her skills. He had a skill that told him she hadn’t expended a single point of mana during the fight.
“You’re very graceful and strong. Your movements are… how should I put it… they seem exaggerated. The first blow you dodged from Gary, for example. It was executed well, but you moved too far, losing the opening it would’ve given you.”
Ilea leaned in like she was soaking in his words. Had she never had an instructor before? It was lucky she’d come to him then – he’d been whipping amateur brawlers into proper fighters for years.
“You have a skill for moving, for fighting with your body. Or am I wrong?” he asked, and she just nodded. “Then you should use it. Either the skill isn’t high-level enough, or you’re disregarding parts of what it’s telling you.”
She looked confused. It seems no one has taught her the basics of how martial skills operate.
“I’m not sure what you mean, Dale. I don’t think the level of the skill is the problem though.”
He grunted affirmatively to her reply. “All fighting classes or skills will let you move instinctively in the right way. You have to trust them, even if your mind is telling you that that sword will hit you. If you trust the skill and its level is high enough, you’ll be fine.”
The way she looked at him made him continue. “I know it might sound stupid. Compare it to an ice mage instinctively knowing how to control or create the element with his mana. That comes from a passive skill the class grants him. A comparable passive skill for a warrior is Battle Sense or Swordsmanship.
“As soon as the skills reach a higher level, you know instinctively how to get better at it. Continuous training will let you level up the skill, and the skill will help you move in the right direction. In a fight, you have to be able to trust your instincts. Your mind will often be too slow to react.”
Ilea muttered to herself, likely thinking Dale couldn’t hear, but his Perception skills were rather high.
“Insightful… sounds like something that would be said in a samurai movie…”
Dale wasn’t sure what a ‘samurai movie’ was, but then Ilea had always been a strange one.
“The comparison with ice manipulation makes sense to me… my fire manipulation works similarly, and when I try to consciously control it with my mind, it’s much harder than just feeling it out.”
It sounded like her thoughts were going in the right direction, so Dale said nothing. New recruits needed to figure some things out for themselves.
She went back to where she had stood at the start of the fight.
“Thank you for the guidance.” She looked at her beaten opponent. “Gary, was it? Another round?”
Dale leaned in to give Gary a few pointers – this was a learning opportunity for the lad as well. Gary nodded to Ilea and got back into a fighting stance.
Let’s see if that helped, he thought, and he watched as Ilea closed her eyes. Wait, she’s closed her eyes? Well that’s a first…
“Go!” he shouted, and Gary immediately advanced. Knowing now that she was a hand-to-hand fighter, he was less wary of ranged attacks. He reached her in seconds, slashing at her from the side. He didn’t hesitate for a moment, despite his opponent’s closed eyes.
Good lad.
At the last moment, Ilea took a small step backward, the sword passing centimeters before her. Gary followed up with a twirl of his body and a shield bash with his left arm. Ilea, still with her eyes closed, crouched and turned with him, dodging the shield entirely. Her movement was more akin to dancing than fighting.
Turning around, Gary slashed from above. A small sidestep from her and his sword passed harmlessly through the air, the flat part of his weapon briefly touching her scale bracer.
Ilea opened her eyes as Gary thrust his sword directly at her, and a metallic ringing noise reverberated through the training area. She had deflected the blow with her left arm and bracer.
A grin grew on Ilea’s face, and she got into a fighting stance again.
“Let’s go another round.”
Gary didn’t let himself be taunted and unleashed a flurry of sword slashes and thrusts at her, interspersed by a couple of shield thrusts, kicks, and even punches. All of them were swiftly dodged or deflected at the last moment with incredible ease.
The other guardsmen were speechless, as they likely couldn’t believe the girl was the same person they had seen fighting just a moment before. Dale was less surprised. He’d known there was more to this girl than meets the eye.
His time is up, he thought as a lightning-quick punch crashed into Gary’s stomach after a fluid dodge had seen Ilea pass within a hair’s breadth of his sword.
Gary buckled as air exploded from his lungs, the sword falling to his side, but Ilea caught him as he fell and propped him back up.
“Thank you for the fight,” she said. Gary struggled even to bow to her in response.
“Thank you… for… the demonstration,” he wheezed, still catching his breath after being thoroughly winded. “I’ll work harder to improve. Next time we meet, I won’t be bested that easily.”
But Dale knew that what the girl had just demonstrated was a level of skill that Gary wouldn’t reach in the near future, if ever. She was something else.
The onlookers clapped. They’d all seen good fighters before, so this wasn’t something completely mind-blowing, but it was definitely impressive. Dale knew they were all a little jealous – some likely writing off her superior skills as a result of her being born talented or coming from a family of privilege. Dale himself though, and hopefully most of the others, was happy to have another healer around, especially one who could defend herself.
“That was quite a demonstration. I don’t think I could beat you with skill alone, but I’ll definitely give it my best shot,” Dale said from the side as he prepared his gear. Donning his helmet and shield, he walked to where Gary had stood before.
Facing the girl he had seen in her first real fight, he was proud in a way to see she had reached this level. Dale cared a lot for the people he trained and fought with, and he counted strays like her to be part of the family just as much as he did his own men. Also, she had listened to his advice even though she had seemed cocky at first, which showed she had at least some brains as well as brawn.
On the other hand, he was also excited to fight her and – hopefully – teach her a lesson or two. He was her senior, after all, and his experience vastly outclassed hers.
“Are you ready?” he called out as the girl changed into her fighting stance.
“Yes, sir!” she shouted back, which put a smile on his face.
Maybe we can recruit her after all…
Activating his aura skill that strengthened his muscles and heightened his reactions, he crouched low and readied his shield. I’ll have to end this one quickly, don’t want it to turn out like with Gary.
Using his Dash skill, he closed the distance in a blur, following up with Shield Bash. The skill released a burst of kinetic force much greater than the shield itself could ever produce.
A shockwave ran through his left arm as he was stopped in his tracks. Locking eyes with Ilea, she grinned. The shield bash had only pushed her back half a meter, and she had blocked the full force of it with her arms crossed.
Stronger than I thought. Gary would have been hurled like a ragdoll into the opposite wall if I’d used that technique on him.
He followed up with a sword strike, but Ilea dodged it seemingly just as easily as the slashes from Gary. Dale confirmed her superior movement when a kick and two more sword strikes were dodged just as easily as the first.
Dale immediately stepped back to get some distance. He wanted to prevent her from using any openings she created by dodging his swings.
Let her come then, he thought and, he raised his shield. His sword was poised for a quick jab.
Ilea approached.
Dale’s sword lashed out like a cobra striking its prey… and flew harmlessly past the girl’s side as she dodged it with the smallest of movements.
He activated Cognitive Burst, a trump skill of his, and his perception and speed immediately accelerated. Predicting her next attack, the world slowed down to a crawl for him as he redirected his sword jab with unnatural force toward her again.
Got you now, he thought. Their eyes locked, and he saw the grin still plastered on her face.
A sudden blue glow flared to life from the rows of runic tattoos that covered Ilea’s body. It was barely noticeable in the sunlight, but Dale knew the girl had activated her own trump card. His strike was unerring, but only air was there to greet it. Then a pain blossomed in his side, just behind his shield, and a shockwave rocked through him. The world spun and his back smashed into something solid, pushing the last remaining air out of his lungs.
His ears rang as he heard muffled shouting from around him. He started to fall, but then he was caught as blood filled his mouth.
Teach her a lesson, eh? Huh… was all he could think before unconsciousness took him.
“Oh fuck, fuck, sorry sorry sorry! I overdid it!” Ilea shouted. She was the first one to arrive at Dale’s side. The man had been half embedded in one of the sparring square’s walls. She had caught him as he fell and immediately started to heal his injuries.
Six minutes later, two guards came rushing into the training yard, a small, lithe man in leather armor in tow. He breathed heavily as he knelt down next to Ilea and checked on Dale.
“He’s fine. Why did you call me, you idiots?! You said he was heavily injured! Life-threatening!”
Noticing an unpleasant smell, Ilea looked at the man and realized where he had come from. .
“It’s ok. I’m a healer too. They didn’t trust me. It’s fine if you go back and clean up.” She smiled at the man as she identified him.
[Healer – lvl 53]
His face turned a bit red. “Apologies. I do have to take these claims seriously though.” He turned away from Ilea.
“You guys owe me!” he shouted at the two guards, who winced at his rage as the healer walked back the way he’d come, a brown stain clearly visible on his undergarments.
Dale woke up in a daze, coughing a couple of times while getting his bearings. The coughing hurt.
“I passed out,” he said quietly and rested his head back on the ground. “Healer my ass.”
He closed his eyes and smiled.
“You might’ve won had it not been for your advice before…”
It was Ilea’s voice, but he didn’t answer. I doubt it, he thought to himself.
Once he was fully healed, which happened surprisingly quickly, Dale excused himself from the other guards and led Ilea to his office.
“You were holding back the whole time, weren’t you?”
