Chapter 202: Basic

"Fatty! Daneli!" Adam called out. "Go ahead, I'll provide support. Don't change your combat style. Fight as you always have. I'll match your tempo."

"OHH!" The duo dashed forward while Adam remained slightly behind.

His mind worked at quick speeds, trying to come up with the best strategy to take down the orcs. He was always used to fighting alone, but this time it was a little different.

Not only did he have to fight as a team, but he also had to save enough strength to later on deal with Kurdan. Out of everyone in the group of orcs, their leader gave Adam the most dangerous aura.

So Adam had to be specially prepared to deal with him.

As for fighting alongside Edward and Daneli, the first spell he discarded was the gravity-related one that he had learned at the House of Cards. Adam was not proficient enough in them to have them not affect his allies.

If he cast a gravity spell, it would affect everyone, himself included. Although it would not hinder him in the least, the same couldn't be said for his two teammates.

In a matter of seconds, he was able to come up with a plan of action that would provide his friends with the greatest chance of victory against the two orcs they were facing.

More often than not, it was always the most basic spells that did the most harm!

Adam weaved a series of hand gestures and then clasped his hands together, resounding in a loud clap. A bright magic circle lit up between his palms, but the next moment, it vanished.

Delayed spell casting!

Such a feat was only possible if the Magus had a deep understanding of the spell in question, as well as high attainments in the fundamentals of mana control.

Adam's eyes narrowed as he focused on the movements of the two orcs, waiting for the right moment to cast the spell.

...

While Daneli had already brandished his twin scimitars, Edward decided to use his bare fists instead. Although he had acquired a great weapon inside the House of Cards, he didn't know how to properly wield it.

In this life-and-death scenario, wielding the spear would very likely become a hindrance than a support. So Edward decided to use his bare hands instead. Moreover, thanks to his brutal training with Adam, he was quite proficient at hand-to-hand combat.

Very soon, the duo clashed with the orcs. Edward's opponent was wielding a mace, whereas Daneli's was wielding a sword. As the four of them augmented their weapons—or hands—a violent skirmish began.

Edward had it relatively tough as he was not wielding a weapon. So the first few moments of the battle, he was only dodging his opponent's attacks. But by that time, he had already managed to cast a spell.

Rank 1 Spell: Terran Armor!

A protective magical force surrounded Edward, manifesting as an armor of crystal minerals that were usually found underground.

More importantly, these minerals served as the perfect conductors for lightning!

Edward, who was now donning a full-body armor of multicolored crystals, was able to go toe-to-toe with his opponent, taking the latter by surprise.

He gathered a large amount of mana in his fist, dodged an incoming mace attack, and counterattacked.

The attack definitely connected, however, Edward couldn't help but frown. At the last moment, the orc had managed to block the attack with his mace. The mace had instantly shattered and the rest of Edward's attack was subsequently blocked by the orc's forearms.

Such a level of attack should have dealt a lot of damage to the orc's arms. Breaking it even. But all it actually did was slightly burn it.

It was indeed as Adam said, Edward solemnly thought to himself.

"Hehe, you're quite shocked, aren't ya?" The bloodthirsty orc grinned, displaying his sharp teeth. The next moment, he dashed toward Edward. "Prepare to die, filthy human!"

Edward's eyes narrowed and he braced himself for the incoming attack.

But suddenly!

Just when the orc was a few steps away from him, he abruptly lost balance and fell forward. Edward was shocked at this development, but the orc was even more shocked.

Earlier when he stepped his foot on the ground, he suddenly felt the ground underneath his foot soften, causing him to lose balance. Well, he didn't have much time to think as Edward had taken advantage of this opening and delivered a solid uppercut to his chin.

Blue lightning cackled and the orc was swept off his feet and miserably fell to the ground.

Edward was still bewildered by everything that had just happened. The next moment, his eyes narrowed when he received Adam's mental transmission through Mind Whisper.

"Heh, you damn monster!" He muttered after listening to his friend's instruction.

The next moment, the youth got into a horse stance and gathered a large amount of lightning mana into his fist.

While he was doing so, the orc who was lying down on the ground and trying to recover from the brutal punch to his chin suddenly felt the ground underneath him tremble again.

It's the same feeling again! He screamed internally. Someone's casting a spell on me!

He finally realized that the perpetrator was none other than Adam who had yet to join the battle.

But so what if he realized it?

It was already too late.

The ground underneath the orc turned muddy, instantly transforming into a swamp. When the orc's body was halfway submerged, the ground turned back to solid.

Rank 1 Spell: Shape Earth!

"Argh!" The orc struggled to set himself free, but it proved to be difficult. The spell, Alleviate, had not increased his strength, only endurance. But still, the orc's natural physical strength was enough to get him out of this predicament.

The ground began to crack and slowly but surely the orc was setting himself free.

But would Adam let him?

The next moment, the orc's eyes turned wide as saucers when he saw about a dozen Magic Missiles forming one straight line and bombarding him. The orc could only grit his teeth and tank the incoming attack.

"Gaaaahhhhh!" The orc screamed in agony as Magic Missile after Magic Missile bore down on him, assaulting him at the exact same spot on his chest.

If it were any other time, the Magic Missiles would have surely torn a hole through his chest. But thanks to Alleviate, he was still alive.

The orc lay on the ground, panting for air. The spell from earlier had severely damaged his chest area, destroying his flesh and muscles.

However, he was still in fighting shape. The spell had not managed to damage his vital organ—the heart!

But the next moment, the ground under him rumbled once again. This time, however, the ground didn't turn into a swamp. Instead, a small pillar rose from underneath the orc, catapulting him straight forward.

And right in front of the orc, the person waiting was none other than Edward!

By now, the youth had already gathered a large amount of mana into his hand. Seeing the orc flying straight at him he couldn't help but grin. Moreover, seeing the heavily injured chest of his opponent, his grin turned even wider.

Bullseye!

Everything had happened so quickly that the orc couldn't even react. The only thing he could see right now was a crystal fist coated in blue lightning enlarging in his vision.

And then...

THUNDER!