When the light faded, the centaurs realized they were unharmed. Instead, their coats bristled with static electricity, faint sparks flickering across their fur. “What… what just happened?” one centaur muttered, dazed.
Alex’s voice cut through the confusion. “Don’t stand there gawking! You’re shielded now—lightning won’t harm you. Gather your wounded and stick close to me!”
The elder centaur’s eyes widened as he understood. “A lightning ward… Brilliant!” He immediately barked orders to the remaining centaurs, who quickly rallied and moved toward Alex’s position.
As they entered the range of the Thundris Vortex, they realized its devastating strikes avoided them entirely. The werewolf wizard’s face twisted in rage. “So, you’re here to interfere? Fine! Kill them all! No one leaves alive!”
With a long, guttural howl, he sent his werewolves charging forward en masse. The pack surged toward Alex and the centaurs, their glowing eyes filled with murderous intent. Alex smirked coldly. “Smart move, rushing me all at once. But did you really think I’d stand here like an idiot?”
He raised his wand in front of his chest, his left hand forming a claw-like grip. Sparks began to dance between his wand and his palm. “Tempest Orb! Arcbind Hex!” A crackling current surged between his fingers, coalescing into five orbs of concentrated lightning, each the size of a ping-pong ball. The orbs hovered in the air, crackling with energy, waiting for their target. The werewolves closed in, undeterred by the display of magic. Their primal instincts urged them forward, even as the first orb shot out.
Zap!
The orb struck the lead werewolf square in the chest. It convulsed violently as the electricity coursed through its body, then collapsed in a twitching heap. The second orb veered to the right, slamming into another werewolf mid-leap. It yelped in pain as the lightning immobilized it, leaving it vulnerable to the centaurs’ spears.
Alex flicked his wand forward, and the five Tempest Orb spread out in a circle, forming a protective ring around him and the centaurs. The werewolves, though bloodthirsty and feral, were not entirely foolish. They recognized the danger of the crackling electric spheres and instinctively dodged as they spread across the battlefield.
The magic balls hovered in midair like sentinels, sparking occasionally but remaining stationary once they reached their designated positions. Thinking they had avoided the threat, the werewolves pressed forward, accelerating toward Alex and the centaurs.
However, as soon as they passed between two of the spheres, arcs of electricity leapt from one ball to the next, creating a glowing current loop. The first werewolf to cross was caught mid-stride. It convulsed violently as the electricity coursed through its body, then collapsed, paralyzed. Another werewolf attempted to leap through but was hit midair, the current freezing it in place as if it had struck an invisible barrier. Lightning from the Thundris Vortex joined in, striking the trapped werewolf repeatedly. By the third strike, the creature was charred beyond recognition, its upper body disintegrating into ash.
“You fools!” the werewolf wizard bellowed, his voice thick with rage. “Avoid the connections! Jump over the loops!”
The remaining werewolves took his advice and began leaping, attempting to bypass the arcs of electricity. But Alex’s design wasn’t so easily circumvented. The five Tempest Orb were arranged in a five-pointed star formation, creating a complex web of interconnected loops. Not only did the outer edges link together, but the interior of the ring also formed additional circuits, creating a nearly impenetrable barrier.
This arrangement was no accident. Alex had carefully designed the spell to maximize efficiency while conserving mana. He could have deployed more than five spheres to form an even denser grid, but that would have been overkill—and costly in terms of magical energy.
The werewolves that successfully jumped one loop often found themselves caught in another. One unfortunate werewolf was bounced back and forth between multiple circuits, each strike sending it flying until it finally hit the ground, twitching and smoking. While the Arcbind Hex paralyzed and incapacitated the werewolves, Alex was far from idle. The circuit’s purpose wasn’t solely to kill but to control the battlefield, limiting the werewolves’ movements and creating opportunities for targeted strikes.
“Stormscatter Hex! Sectumsempra!” Alex sent out a combination of spells. The spell, Sectumsempra, sent an invisible slash through the air, cutting cleanly through a werewolf’s neck. Its head fell to the ground with a dull thud, the body collapsing moments later.
The other spell, Stormscatter Hex , was one of Alex’s custom creations. It concentrated electrical energy into a high-velocity bolt that struck with pinpoint accuracy. A ribbon of silver-blue lightning pierced another werewolf’s chest, leaving a gaping hole the size of a bowl. The edges of the wound crackled and smoked, the flesh charred to a crisp.
In mere moments, Alex had eliminated three werewolves, bringing the total to four since his arrival. “Destroy those spheres!” the werewolf wizard roared, his frustration boiling over. He raised his wand and cast Confringo at the nearest Tempest Orb.
The blast collided with one of the spheres, but Alex had anticipated the move. With a flick of his wand, he cast Protego Maxima around the sphere. The explosion destroyed the protective shield, but the sphere itself remained intact, its surface sparking defiantly.
“Not so fast,” Alex muttered, his focus already shifting. He ignored the wizard for now, targeting another werewolf caught in the circuit. “Stormscatter Hex!” The spell struck, electrocuting the trapped werewolf and splitting it into smoldering halves.
The carnage began to take its toll on the remaining werewolves. Though initially frenzied, their movements grew hesitant as fear crept into their bloodshot eyes. They circled the electric loops cautiously, snarling but unwilling to charge blindly. Alex, too, conserved his energy. Group battles demanded efficiency, and he knew better than to exhaust himself too quickly. Instead, he maintained the circuits, letting the Thundris Vortex and the centaurs pick off the stragglers.
During this lull, the werewolf wizard turned his attention back to Alex. Their wands clashed repeatedly, spells flying between them in bursts of light. The wizard was skilled, his curses fast and powerful, but Alex matched him move for move.
The werewolf wizard stood tens of meters away, glaring at Alex with eyes full of malice. His speed and resilience made him a difficult opponent to engage from such a distance, and Alex knew closing the gap wouldn’t be easy. “Human, why meddle in matters that don’t concern you?” the werewolf wizard growled, his tone sharp but calculated. “Protecting these centaurs will cost you dearly. Do you understand what it means to provoke the werewolf clan? Leave now, and I’ll personally ensure this is forgotten. Refuse, and you’ll face endless vengeance from my kind!”
Alex sneered, his wand held steady. “I’m not here for the centaurs. And as for provoking the werewolves? I don’t know what that entails, and frankly, I don’t care. You just happened to cross my path. Count yourself unlucky.”
The elder centaur, now half-kneeling on the ground, leaned heavily on his spear. Exhausted from the prolonged fight and the effects of the sleeping potion, he still mustered the strength to shout, “Despicable poachers! Your scheme will fail. There is still time to retreat. If you stay, only death awaits you!”
Alex turned sharply to the elder, glaring at him. ‘Why would you say that?’ He’d spent the whole battle positioning himself to trap the werewolves, and now the elder was practically inviting them to run away. If the werewolves scattered, chasing them down would be a nightmare.