Infinite Mana - Chapter 216: Breaking the Formation (Patreon)

Sieghart couldn’t try to choose between the Champion and the sniper. As long as both remained active, every attempt to focus on one created an opening for the other, so he needed something capable of disrupting the entire formation at once.

Mana gathered around him and rapidly took shape. One translucent sword appeared near his shoulder, followed by another, then another, until more than a dozen blades floated around Sieghart in a loose circle while the goblins cautiously adjusted their positions.

The Champion immediately raised its warped shield. Nearby goblins spread behind whatever cover remained, while several archers shifted toward windows and rooftops. The sniper stayed in the distant tower, already drawing another arrow while watching Sieghart through the smoke. Sieghart sent the Mana Swords forward.

The blades crossed the ruined street in a wide barrage, some aimed toward the Champion while others traveled at angles that looked suspiciously inaccurate. Several ordinary goblins reacted almost immediately, apparently assuming Sieghart had simply lost precision while controlling too many weapons.

The Champion moved aside from two swords instead of blocking them, while several nearby goblins ducked behind shields. What looked like Sieghart missing completely turned into something very different once the blades continued past their apparent targets. One Mana Sword pierced an archer standing behind the Champion. Another entered beneath a shield user’s jaw. Three more struck goblins approaching from the side, cutting through leather armor and turning their attempt to surround Sieghart into sudden confusion.

Sieghart smiled faintly. His aim had not been off. The Champion had simply been large enough to hide several better targets behind it, and every dodge conveniently opened paths toward the underlings following in its shadow.

The goblins finally realized the trick and scattered, but by then several bodies had already hit the ground. Sieghart redirected surviving Mana Swords with Telekinesis, forcing the remaining formation to divide its attention between him and weapons attacking from unpredictable angles.

Then he targeted the sniper. Three Mana Swords climbed sharply toward the distant tower. One came from below the window, another approached from the side, and the final blade traveled directly toward the sniper’s chest through the clearest available angle.

The goblin reacted with insulting calm. It released one arrow. The projectile struck the first Mana Sword near its center and shattered the summoned weapon. The broken magical fragments disrupted the second blade, while the sniper turned its bow and used the reinforced limb to knock the third aside.

Sieghart stared for half a second. The bastard had blocked a Mana Sword with an arrow.

He clicked his tongue and immediately abandoned the direct attack. Trying to beat a dedicated archer at a long-range accuracy contest while an eight-foot armored Champion attempted to cleave him apart sounded unnecessarily difficult.

Instead, Sieghart summoned another Mana Sword directly into his own hands. Unlike the disposable blades surrounding him, this one became denser as he fed additional mana into the structure and tightened his grip around the translucent hilt.

Elemental Imbuement followed. Fire Mana entered the summoned weapon. Red light spread along the blade until the normally pale Mana Sword glowed orange beneath the surface. Heat radiated from it, but Sieghart did not attempt to create a proper flaming weapon.

He wanted instability. The Champion charged again.

Its shield stayed high while the cleaver remained low beside its body, ready to punish Sieghart if he attempted another last-second Impulse. Steam still escaped damaged armor, but Fatigue Dart had not weakened the monster enough to remove its terrifying momentum.

Sieghart waited.

The Champion closed the distance. The cleaver rose. Sieghart stepped forward and met the attack with the enchanted Mana Sword. Metal struck magic. The Mana Sword exploded. Fire, shattered mana, and smoke burst between them in a compact detonation. The Champion’s cleaver continued through the explosion, but Sieghart had already used the impact itself as cover for Phantom Image.

His body vanished.

Not merely behind smoke.

Completely.

The Champion’s next swing passed through an empty space where Sieghart’s illusion had been moments earlier. The enormous goblin turned rapidly, searching through dust and flames while smaller fighters shouted warnings from every direction.

Sieghart had no intention of attacking the Champion first. He slipped through the confusion, using short bursts of Wind Magic instead of Impulse whenever possible to avoid creating obvious disturbances. The sniper’s tower remained visible beyond several damaged rooftops.

The distant goblin drew another arrow. Sieghart pointed one finger. Spark activated.

A thin lightning discharge crossed the distance faster than any ordinary projectile. It lacked the destructive power of his larger spells, but accuracy mattered more than force when the target was already standing beside conductive metal.

The Spark struck the sniper’s bow. Electricity jumped through the reinforced limbs, followed the goblin’s hands, and traveled across its arms. The sniper jerked violently as muscles contracted without permission, forcing the half-drawn bowstring from its fingers.

Sieghart appeared long enough to aim properly. Lava Spheres formed.

One.

Three.

Six.

Then more.

The glowing projectiles shot toward the tower before the paralyzed goblin regained control. The first struck the window frame and splashed molten material across the sniper’s shoulder. The second hit its chest. The third struck the face.

The sniper convulsed again, this time from pain rather than electricity. Molten rock spread across its helmet, jaw, and cheek, clinging to everything while the goblin desperately tried scraping the material away with shaking hands.

Sieghart kept firing. Additional Lava Spheres struck the tower opening and burst across the sniper’s upper body. Stone cracked beneath the heat while metal armor softened, leather burned, and the goblin’s features disappeared beneath glowing layers of molten material. The sniper finally fell backward from the window.

Its longbow slipped from numb fingers first, tumbling toward the street below. The goblin followed several seconds later, already motionless before its body disappeared behind the lower rooftops.

One problem solved. Unfortunately, Sieghart had spent too long solving it. Magic Vision revealed the Champion directly behind him. He turned. The cleaver was already descending. Mana Barrier appeared between them. The massive blade struck and shattered the translucent wall almost instantly, but the resistance slowed the swing enough for Sieghart to bring both hands downward toward the street.

Earth Mana surged. A thick wall erupted from the ground. The Champion’s cleaver hit it. Stone exploded. The Earth Wall cracked through its center, collapsed, and reduced the attack’s remaining speed by another fraction. That fraction prevented Sieghart from being split completely open.

It did not prevent the blade from reaching him. Protection flashed. The cleaver struck his side. Sieghart felt the spell resist for one desperate instant before the jagged edge cut through enough force to bite beneath his ribs. Sharp pain ripped across his torso as the impact threw him sideways.

He hit the ground and rolled. Blood spread beneath his coat.

The wound was not deep enough to expose bone or organs, but that felt more like luck than defense. Without Mana Barrier, Earth Wall, and Protection working consecutively, the same attack probably would have cut him nearly in half.

Sieghart forced himself upright. The Champion approached through falling stone. Its cleaver dripped blood now. His blood. The sight made something unpleasant stir inside Sieghart, but he refused to activate Fury. He had already learned how easily that spell made terrible decisions feel reasonable.

He used Spark instead. The Champion raised its shield. Wrong choice. Sieghart aimed at the face. Lightning jumped across the short distance and struck the exposed portion beneath the damaged helmet. The goblin’s head snapped backward as electricity spread through wet skin and heated armor.

The Champion staggered.

Sieghart immediately activated First Aid against his side while retreating. Warm White Mana closed damaged tissue beneath his coat as he kept one eye on the enormous goblin recovering from the electrical shock.

The Champion shook its head and raised the shield again. Still standing. Naturally. Sieghart glanced toward the distant tower where the sniper had disappeared, then back toward the monster advancing through rubble and smoke while smaller goblins regrouped around the surrounding streets.

At least the long-range specialist was gone. The Champion was still another matter entirely. But after seeing Spark interrupt it twice, Sieghart finally had something resembling a proper weakness to exploit.