Point-of-View: Esta Grefiel
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"It would appear that we are close," Observed one of the Halflings, nodding at the several Wyverns and Dragons in the sky.
"We must proceed with the utmost caution from here on. Once we encounter a protective barrier, we shall split up in pairs," I surmised, as we continued sneaking forward.
There really are an alarming number of Wyverns and Lesser Dragons here...we are about halfway through the mountain range to the south of Abyss, and thus far, we had been able to avoid detection, using invisibility cast upon ourselves to conceal our presences.
We were still able to see each other, making this a highly effective method for traveling undetected. We were using teleportation to close the gap bit by bit, Lord Laus had provided us with a world map to follow...it was rather outdated, but it served adequately as a guideline.
And if I was reading it correctly, we are approximately three teleportations away before we reach the end of this mountain range, after which we will be approximately thirty-five to forty kilometers away from Abyss.
After each teleportation, we paused to inspect our surroundings. Specifically, we would check to see if any protective barriers were visible from our current positions, as well as making sure that we had not already entered such a barrier.
"It does not appear that we are within or in sight of any barrier...I believe we are being too cautious, humans are unlikely to be able to cast a barrier spell that will cover a significant distance beyond their nation," Remarked one of the Fairies.
"Perhaps so, but this is an important task given to us directly by Lord Laus, we must do all we can to ensure success," I responded firmly.
Due to my increase in power, following my resistance after a Demon attempted to possess me during the battle in the Rustlands, I was assigned to lead this team. I could sense the displeasure of the others, as I was the youngest in this group by a wide margin. But refusing to listen to me would be the same as disapproving of Lord Laus's decision, so they will not openly show any dissent.
After we made sure that there were no barriers within sight, we teleported forward again, maintaining the same level of caution as we further closed the gap bit by bit...
"Argh, something bit me!" Suddenly exclaimed one of the Halflings.
I quickly got low and scanned the ground by our feet, before swiftly reaching down and grabbing...a snake. It let out a vicious hiss, before I cut its head off with a wind slash, killing it. It is bleeding instead of disappearing...so, it was just a normal snake, not a monster.
"Stay still, I shall cast a toxin nullification spell on you," I instructed the Halflings, as the rest were either just staring, not knowing what to do, or they were looking around warily, checking for any other snakes.
"U-understood," He replied, as I began formulating the spell in my head, before finishing and casting it on him.
Hm, how did the snake know to bite him? It would not have been able to see us...perhaps smell? Or hearing? Or perhaps it was simply an instinctive reaction to being stepped on...now that I am looking closer, the end of the snake's tail is a bit damaged.
We are only one teleport away before we will be at the end of the mountain range, and once that happens, we will be well within reach of Abyss. Should I inform Lord Laus? No, not yet, there is nothing worth reporting, I would only be bothering him.
Okay, this area appears to be clear as well...a heavier concentration of Wyverns and Lesser Dragons up above, but still no sign of any barrier...the largest of the Rustlands' barriers extended to about a radius of sixty kilometers outside the nation.
We are still outside that range from Abyss, so at the very least, it does not appear that Abyss is capable of casting larger barriers than the Rustlands can. Now, then, this next teleport should take us to the north end of the mountain range, that is when this assignment will become more difficult. Time to go...
"Hm? That is strange," I muttered with a frown.
"Is something wrong?" Inquired one of the Fairies, "Why are we not teleporting?"
"My spell is not working, something is interfering with it," I replied with a grimace.
"Are you certain that you formulated the spell correctly?" Asked the other Elf that was in this team.
"Yes, I am. If you doubt me, you can try instead," I responded.
And he did try, as did a couple of the others, but of course, it did not work.
"What is going on, why is it not working?" Muttered one of the Fairies in confusion.
"There are two possibilities...we are either already inside a nullification barrier, or the area that we are attempting to teleport to is inside a nullification barrier," I deduced objectively, before deciding, "I shall try to teleport us again, but this time, I shall shorten the distance by five kilometers. If it fails again, I will reduce another five kilometers, repeating that process until it works. Any objections?"
After a few seconds passed and none of them voiced any objections, I began the process. I believe that I have earned a bit of their favor with this, they are looking at me with hints of reliance in their eyes, which had not been there before.
They had certainly not been happy with my high level of caution before, but I believe it was justified. And I believe that I know this better than most in the Laus Domain; the fact that underestimating humans is a grave mistake.
That human woman we captured when Belia's forces attacked our forest, Gela, her attitude was proof enough of the volatility and unpredictability that humans are capable of.
Ah, it finally worked...I had to reduce the teleportation distance by fifteen kilometers from the maximum distance I am able to cover, so we were still in the mountain range upon teleporting.
And within a hundred meters ahead of us, there was a large, yellow barrier, appearing to be of a dome-like shape. I then teleported again, taking us right to the edge of the barrier...hm, how do we get past this-...
"This is not a physical barrier, it is-...," Began one of the Halflings, attempting to touch the barrier, his hand going right through it, before trailing off in surprise as his invisibility spell deactivated.
"It appears to be a nullification barrier, this was what prevented the teleportation. It likely does not nullify all magic...okay, this will be risky, but we need to test the limits of this barrier, and then give that information to Lord Laus," I instructed the others, who nodded in reply.
I closed my eyes and focused, before...
Lord Laus? Are you able to hear me?
"Yes, I hear you...have you found something out about Abyss?"
We have encountered a protective barrier, it is not physical, instead nullifying some forms of magic...we are testing the limits of it right now.
"Excellent, tell me everything."
It took us approximately half an hour before Lord Laus was satisfied with our inspection of the barrier. We confirmed that the barrier prevents teleportation into and out of it, as well as inside it. It also nullifies any active spells that pass through it...and it looks like those spells can't be activated again once inside this barrier. Most other spells work fine, and Elemental Magic works too.
"Good work, this is useful. But it is not enough, I fully expect that this will not be the extent of your findings."
It is as you say, my lord...we are only getting started.
With that, the telepathic link was severed, Lord Laus satisfied with this exchange.
"Now, then, I believe that it is time for us to split up," I suggested, standing up.
I decided to split us up by pairing the two Fairies and the two of us Elves with each of the four Halflings...it would be more effective for each pair to have two Elemental Magic attributes between them instead of one.
"We will cross this barrier and then make our way around while getting closer...each group will position themselves in a different section, my group will go around to the north of Abyss. The two of you will go straight ahead, since we are already at the south...and the remaining two teams will head for the east and west, respectively. Once you are in position, head forward and contact Lord Laus whenever you discover something important, inform him immediately. Understood?" I concluded, looking around, before adding as they all nodded in response, "Good. Now, then...scatter!"
As we split up in pairs and headed in different directions, I had no way of knowing...that we were already compromised...
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