The Crown's Seduction
Chapter 174: A Stalemate

Chapter 174: A Stalemate

It was a dangerous gamble. Since there was still limited knowledge regarding the power inside Mineah, Wizard Lurio quickly advised her not to use it just yet.

"Let me come with you and create the teleportation circle," the wizard suggested.

Mineah simply nodded. From where they were, it was the best option that they had. They didn’t have to bring her mother with them for now as well, which meant that Lurio could begin immediately.

With a flourish, the wizard began his work. As soon as the portal opened, Mineah quickly went through it with Lurio. The moment they were on the other side, Mineah heard Tarah calling out to her.

"Your Majesty!"

Echoing from inside the cave, Mineah quickly turned in the direction of the seer’s voice, and she gasped when she saw her holding Ezekiel’s unconscious human form. Somehow, a part of her felt relief at the sight of it, but then her eyes widened as the situation before her became clear...

"What is this?!"

The voice of a random Helion soldier echoed from behind Tarah. The seer was right in front of the enemy, and there was a only dark barrier protecting them from certain danger.

"Mine!"

She then heard Nikolai’s yell, and the next thing she knew was that she saw him blocking a fireball that was about to hit her.

Turning her gaze to the man that shot the fireball, Mineah narrowed her eyes at what she saw. That familiar man who had long ginger hair and emanated a strong and dark aura was Zoran. For some reason, just feeling his presence made the divine dagger inside her chest react again, and she couldn’t help but wonder why that was the case. Perhaps it was because it was a divine weapon that tended to destroy dark energy.

"Zoran!!!" Nikolai grunted as he protectively covered Mineah behind him with his own body.

"What, Nikolai?! Did you really think I wouldn’t be able to follow you here?" Zoran smugly snickered. "Now, while we have unfinished business to attend to, I must secure my captives first..."

Mineah’s eyes widened as he realized the man’s plans. She couldn’t let this warlock take Ezekiel.

"Wizard Lurio, please do something so that they wouldn’t be able to escape with my brother and Tarah," Mineah whispered to the older man beside her.

In that instant, Wizard Lurio created a powerful barrier spell barring anyone from escaping. From there, as if sensing the opportunity, Mineah watched as her husband together with his Scions then launched a deliberate attack as they attempted to retrieve her unconscious brother and Tarah from the wizard’s grasp.

Lunging forward, Nikolai aimed a punch straight at Zoran’s face with his Scion’s following right behind him. Zoran was quick to account for his disadvantage however as he quickly conjured up a fireball in each hand.

"Surround him!" Nikolai quickly barked aloud the moment he saw the enemy wizard move. "Don’t let him gain any advantage!"

His two Scions got his verbal command as they both flew to his sides to attack Zoran from two other angles alongside him. With Nikolai now right in front of Zoran, his fist flew straight at the wizard’s face-

"Oh no, you don’t!"

However, Zoran was quick to duck as he taunted him, forcing Nikolai to follow the momentum of his punch as he flew right over the man. That didn’t mean that he was finished trying to kick the man into the dirt though as he used the force he generated to plant his feet firmly on Zoran’s stomach.

"KHH!"

"You’ll pay for everything you’ve done, Zoran!" Nikolai growled.

As if on cue, his two other Scions swooped in to follow up with his kick, their respective attacks landing firmly on Zoran’s feet and chest respectively. Mineah felt her hopes grow as she watched the fight. Somehow, it almost looked like everything would be over as her husband all but destroyed Zoran where he stood. However...

"Don’t think I’m out of tricks just yet!"

Nikolai’s eyes widened as Zoran let out a pained scream, the fireballs in his hand immediately exploding and forcing him and his two Scions to back off. Punching through the resulting explosion of dirt and soot, his fist hit nothing but air as the cloud dissipated to reveal Zoran casting a dark barrier surrounding him. It shimmered against the soot, repelling everything from even passing through it.

"That flimsy thing won’t save you forever, Zoran," Nikolai scoffed.

With a nonverbal command, he along with his Scions renewed their attack. Their limbs and magic flying out towards Zoran, their combined might would’ve obliterated any other lesser being that would even dare to come before them. However...

"This isn’t working," Nikolai hissed as his fists landed on what felt like solid rock, the barrier keeping him and his Scions out as Zoran casually walked toward Tarah and Ezekiel.

"No matter what you do, you’ll never be able to stop me now," Zoran taunted as he cackled. "Add to that, your inferior magic is no match for my own!"

Nikolai had no choice but to back off for now. Still, he had other ideas as he swiftly positioned himself and his Scions between Zoran and the two the man was trying to get to. Even if he couldn’t pierce the barrier, he could at least delay him until another solution came up.

’I just have to delay him long enough,’ Nikolai inwardly assessed as he prepared himself for another barrage of attacks. ’Mine would think of something to get rid of that pesky shield of his. Or maybe, she might be able to get past the damn thing entirely.’

With his arms spread wide and his feet planted firmly on the ground, Nikolai grinned in the challenge as he and his Scions stood between Zoran and his targets. There was no stopping him but delaying him long enough would work just as well in the current situation.

Back on the sidelines, Mineah wasn’t currently thinking about any of those things. Instead, she was waiting anxiously for the fight to end. Unfortunately, judging by how things were going, it looked like a stalemate was more likely to form as Nikolai and his Scions hit a proverbial wall in their attempts to kill Zoran.

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