As he split his attention between dodging, intercepting poison with guns and roars, and contemplating a plan, Blas realized something. The beast’s scales were surely harder than anything they could pierce without many volleys of acid… but if they could blind it, it would be in enough emotional distress to control.

He might be resisted by the coeurl now, but only because he was distracted. He couldn’t perform the full control technique, at least for now. For the time being, he could guide the basilisk to his Training Facility, which was rated to handle the raw force of Salvator; something this monster couldn’t match so easily.

The white and blue dot that was Ode and Marble mounted the basilisk with ease, its supreme climbing ability making it extremely adept for the task at hand. It would be by no means easy, with scales tougher than the ironwood trees of its homeland, but it managed.

In short order, Marble mantled the neck of the left head, the one targeting the knights, and struck. The six-legged cat found its position and dug both front paws into the creature’s giant left eye. They clung to the inside of the eye socket, the middle and back legs hooking claws beneath rough scale.

“NOW! Strike the eyes! Blind the beast!” The Duke called to all his allies, doing his best to aim the inaccurate volley of his guns.

The circling pattern collapsed, turning into a concentrated strike as the beast screamed and screeched in pain from both heads. Marble and Ode were sent flying as the right head struck at the left on impulse, twisting the whole snake around and evading most attacks. But it didn’t move enough. The outer eye on the right head was put out by a great stone spear, a creation of one of the knights - the specialty of Sir Savas.

This was it! “Press for the eyes!” he repeated as he took his focus away from all but one thing: a chant. In particular, a complex ritual spell that would leave him sore and exhausted for days upon completion, one he hadn’t used since he had to wrestle Salvator into submission. Recognizing this for what it was, a worried rumble passed through the wyvern… but it did as instructed, focusing on blinding the snake by diving into it and pinning one head, slashing at the metallic silvery eye with Salvator’s own monstrously huge wing claws.

“Thank you, Salvator. I’ll be okay. Get the other head down too, will you?”

A feeling of worried agreement passed through the wyverns mind, who countered a strike from the other head with another claw. The last eye was put out by Marble and Ode once more, who returned with a surge of fury. The cat got her close as the woman jumped off, containing between her hands a fireball as broad as her torso. She’d apparently untied herself.

“FUCK YOU!” the Duke heard as the blast went off at point-blank range, charring the eye to ash. That must have eaten up everything she had because she was ragdolled through the air when the snake jerked violently. Marble darted after her, trying to catch her in the air, but Blas had no time to see if it worked.

He had his own stupid plan.

The knights, masters of improvising, had been winding magical chain after chain of metal around the tail, finally able to show their stuff and avenge their comrade as a recovery team arrived, heavily armored and magically protected. One of the knights had called for an evacuation for the fallen knight and horse.

Forming a link with Salvator, he began using his increased energy well to create a spell of massive proportions as Salvator wrestled the snake’s heads into the dirt time after time, disorienting it with rattle after rattle. He knew that at such range, unprotected, it would burst one’s eardrums, deafening the beast as surely as it was blinded. The only useful sense it had left was smell.

This was just where he needed it. Dropping his saddle’s domed shield between rattles, the Duke made his own leap of faith - right between the two heads.

“DOMINATION, CHAINS OF EARTH! REVEAL AND BIND!”

The moment he finished the incantation with that shout, he felt every ounce of energy, borrowed or native, drain from his frame. He had to resist blacking out as vast metal chains like iron, each link tens of feet in thickness, sprouted from the earth.

This happened across the whole length of the snake was bound this way, until naught could be seen of the beast but between the holes in the chain links.

Fuck. That took even more than he expected…

A feeling of warmth flowed through him out of the blue it seemed. Literally, out of the blue sky. This was not Salvator’s energy. This was too warm, too… invigorating yet comforting.

[Nature Goddess Inya has conveyed a Blessing: Increased Mana Pool.]

Said the golden text box that appeared before him once more. What did the goddess expect of him? Was she saying she appreciated he didn’t choose to kill the snake? Whatever it was, it hardly mattered. He had to use this boon of the gods to take his chance.

“Listen to me well, beast,” he began with a deep, tired huff, infiltrating the scrambled mind of the beast.

Time to do his thing.

Even so far away, watching the knights as they circled and shot at the basilisk was an impressive sight. Alister’s arms were folded as he watched in silence, crying now, but his panic had faded.

His brain just… stopped functioning when he panicked. He felt like such a bastard child, a total brat, a mess. These people, these knights, and his father… They were respectable and powerful. He was so happy Ode was alright. Even if he didn’t know her well, he didn’t want to be responsible for her death.

Alister stared at his hands. Why was his father here in this backwater town? He was a force to be reckoned with. A duke of the kingdom… There were only four other ducal families besides his own, wasn’t there? Severin, which was of course his. Then Arfranz… Xalo… and Margrav. Not to mention the archducal family, Meran. Blas Severin was the head of one of the top families! Why was he here?

This mess… He let out a shaky sigh and closed his hands into fists.

He couldn’t help. He wanted to, but he couldn’t do anything. He should have waited at least a few months, so his core would stop leaking. At least then! His childish impatience made him want to beat himself with a cane! He could only imagine how frustrating it was to others.

What could he do? Alister looked around at the foliage. What could he do to make sure he wouldn’t be more of a nuisance to his family?

There was a knight that fell… but… no. No more impulsive actions today! As much as he wanted to help that knight, it would put him in the line of fire, and that could get more people killed. He smacked himself in the cheeks with his bloodied hands and regretted it in the same movement.

“Oww… ffff… damn it,” he mumbled, grimacing as his attention was brought to how cut up his poor palms were. Looking at his legs, they were just as bad. Gravel and dirt were mixed in with the blood jelly. His nose scrunched, “Can I stop messing up my clothes already…?”

Realizing how much that didn’t matter, considering the situation, he laughed at himself, “I’m stupid. An idiot. A super big stupid idiot.” Mother was going to beat his ass so raw… ugh…

Sounds of fighting quieted to a background hum as they got the beast under control, and Alister tried to rub blood and tears off his face. Ode appeared in front of him as a blur of fur that skidded to a stop. The two looked like they had rolled in dirt and leaves, a little scratched up, and Ode sporting some new bruises.

She gave him a wild grin, still fueled with adrenaline, intense tiredness baked into the lines of her face, “Let’s go home.”