Wearing Power Armor to a Magic School (121/?) WiP 1

Hey everyone! Here is the Work in Progress for Chapter 121 I hope you guys enjoy! :D The revised version for Chapter 120 will be released tomorrow before the full release of Chapter 121!

Nexus. The Crown Herald Town of Elaseer. Ambassadorial District. Adventurer’s Guild Hall of Elaseer. Guild Master’s Office. Local Time: 1935 Hours.

Emma

Five plans had been drafted up.

Each one more ludicrous than the next.

However, all of them held a consistent theme all throughout.

A theme which more or less invalidated their use from the onset.

At least when it came to me using them.

“So… magic, huh?” I muttered out under my breath, prompting Sym to both raise a brow, and nod slowly. 

“Yes my lady.” He reaffirmed, as we both now looked up at the blackboard the bat-like Thulvahn had so eagerly rolled out from some side closet. “Or at the very least, the first two plans explicitly require the use of magic.”

His bardic sensibilities were very much on display, as each plan was illustrated with toony intent. 

Everything, from the dragon and its lair, down to my armor — and in particular my helmet — was drawn with these sketchy, super-shaky lines. Which made for really dynamic motions, all of which were very much fitting for the sorts of stunts they had drawn up.

From the first plan which required a massive distraction and the introduction of another hostile beast, to the last plan which required some Cirque Du Venus level acrobatics, there was definitely a lot of thought being put into these propositions.

Though admittedly, not a lot of practical gains could be extracted from them.

“Right, let’s take it from the top.” I began, letting out a slight exhale as I stepped up, standing next to — and towering a good few heads — above Thulvahn. 

“Plan number one — calling upon a familiar, or a hoard of loaned familiars?” I asked frankly, trying my best to hold back my disbelief.

“Yes, my lady! You see, I believe that the best plan of attack is one where you needn’t even be on the offensive!” The man beamed, taking on this car salesman-like persona as he grinned as wide as his little maw could manage. “Why risk your own life when you can instead risk the life of your own thralls!” He began, though just as quickly shifted inwardly, immediately turning timid upon hearing the words that just came out of his own mouth. The glares from everyone present definitely hammered home the awkwardness of that unfortunate phrasing. “Er, what I mean to say is, given the wildly dangerous nature of the dragon, it might be best to allow nature to take its course. Call upon beasts to fight the dragon, and in the process, a few crystals should be ripped out as collateral!” 

Thalmin was the first to raise his hand at this plan, turning towards me just for a moment as if to ask to speak on my behalf.

“With all due respect, adventurer, this plan lacks both guarantee and agency.” He began, listing those two points by raising one finger after another. “We lack any assurance that a crystal would even be knocked off the dragon for the former, and we are reduced to mere observers when it comes to the latter.” 

“I apologize, mercenary prince.” The bat-man bowed deeply in a show of apologetics. “I should have prefaced this by saying that this plan hedges on a magic user’s abilities to call upon familiars or familiars-on-loan.” 

The pocket monster plan… I thought amusingly to myself.

“Well we can immediately disregard it.” Thalmin rebutted. “We are neither tamers nor beast masters.” 

“Such a thing is far beneath our station.” Ilunor quickly added, as if to save face.

This merely elicited some neutral blinks and several nods, as I began pointing at the second… very questionable plan.

“Ah, yes! Plan two!” The bard proclaimed brightly. “Illusions! Simply have a grand illusionist conjure up an attractive dragon to distract or potentially even—”

“STOP!” All four of us shouted in unison, putting the idea down in its tracks. 

“I cannot believe you would even dare entertain such a debased idea in front of us.” Ilunor seethed, the man clearly more offended than others given his mastery over illusion magic. 

“Very well, my lord.” Thulvahn bowed deeply, simply moving his clawed hand down to point number three.

“Plan three! We bait the dragon with food! Now, as we all know, amethyst dragons, like most other gem-based dragons, hunger not merely for meat but for minerals.” He grinned, once more turning to Ilunor. “I believe you may know this best, my lord.” 

The Vunerian didn’t reply, merely glaring deep into the man’s soul, causing him to flinch.

“The idea is simple. We bait the dragon, and then, while it’s distracted, we—”

“I will not sacrifice my precious jewels for such a flight of fantasy.” Ilunor cut the man off, before turning towards me. “I must make this clear, Cadet Emma Booker. You will not be using my precious jewels as if they were worms on a hook!” 

“Yeah, there’s no need to waste your breath there, Ilunor. The bait idea is just… too risky, I think.” I offered, prompting the bat-man to move on to the fourth point on the list.

“Plan four it is.” He spoke brightly, before pointing at the convoluted set-up that would’ve made even the most egregious loony tunes stunts seem tame by comparison. “We attack from below. With some clever mathematics and subterranean expertise, we dig a hole directly underneath the dragon where it sleeps.” My eyes followed the diagram behind the man, as it detailed what was clearly Sym, tunneling through to the cave, and then chiseling out a small hole beneath a sleeping dragon. “Following which, we quickly procure ourselves one of its gems, and then escape down the small tunnel we came from!” 

“At which point we might as well be running head-first into the dragon.” Thalmin growled out. “Do you honestly believe the dragon wouldn’t simply rise upon feeling one of its gems being chiseled out?” 

“I was hoping someone could potentially utilize a spell with which to knock the dragon out—”

“I am afraid you overestimate our current capabilities, adventurer.” Thacea interjected this time around. “Such a task requires… a mage far beyond even that of graduates from the Academy. A dragon’s mind despite its bestial nature is, after all, quite difficult to influence.” 

“Right.” Thulvahn acknowledged, before moving on to what was probably the most ‘practical’ idea.

“Plan five. We simply walk around the forests until we find ourselves a crystal. Considering how many engagements the dragon has had with men-at-arms and local beasts, I assume that at least one crystal fragment can be found somewhere.” The man as if he was about ready to give up.

“Time-consuming… but probably the most reasonable plan out of all of them.” Thalmin concurred, nodding with closed eyes, miming the movements of both the guild master and Sym. 

“Why does it always have to be the least exciting one…” Thulvahn mumbled to himself before sitting back down. “I must warn you, considering the size of the forest, this particular plan may take quite a while to accomplish.”

“Moreover, it still relies on chance rather than any form of assuredness.” Thalmin quickly added.

“Exactly!” The man beamed back with a sudden burst of confidence, though he just as quickly reeled himself back in upon locking eyes with the lupinor. “Er, my lord.” He promptly added.

“In any case, I believe this should conclude our consultation.” I offered, turning to the time, as Sorecar’s cautious warnings were still fresh on my mind. “I appreciate the… creativity on display here, Adventurer Thulvahn.” I offered politely, causing the bard to puff up his chest in response.

“Thank you, my lady!” 

“Though considering everything you’ve been through, I believe all of you deserve a well earned rest. So I won’t be taking much more of your time.” I concluded diplomatically, gesturing for Ilunor to hand over the sack of gold. “As promised, your payment.” 

I spared no time, whilst savoring the moment, to untie the top of the sack then allowing it to drop with a satisfying, clinky THUD onto the table in front of us.

Gold coins practically spilled from the top following that stunt, forming a respectable pile, which caught the full and undivided attention of both kobolds present — deluxe and otherwise — along with Thulvahn. 

“I’ve always wanted to do that…” I muttered to myself under a muted microphone.