Supreme Magus novel Chapter 337

"That’s it?" Phillard whispered despite his frustration. He couldn’t risk alerting the trolls.

"What are we going to do with just twenty stooges?"

"Twenty one." Reaper said, pointing at the Lindwurm. "I brought only champions. Weaklings would only be dead weight or food for the trolls. Besides, why so gloomy? We almost outnumber them two to one."

"Dream on." Phillard sighed. "There are sixteen now."

Trolls reproduced asexually. Whenever one of them was full enough, it would give birth to a new creature.

"Dammit!" Reaper cursed. "We have to move fast. Here’s my plan."

Everyone nodded in agreement, except the Byks.

"We don’t trust birds. They’ll fly away like the cowards they are." Said Cormr, their leader.

"Shut up, Cormr." Reaper commanded him. "I know you can’t stand Crons. I only asked for your help because Byks are the only ones beside the Rys that can use fire magic."

"One more thing, before I forget. Whatever happens, do not use darkness magic." Phillard chimed in, enraging both Byks and Crons.

"Why is that? It’s the most destructive element!" They said in unison, leaving Reaper flabbergasted. It was the first time they had agreed on anything.

"I don’t remember." Phillard shrugged. "Sentar told me so. She is a Cron too, so she can use air and darkness magic. I trust her and so does Boss Scarlett. She’s the next in line to become Lord of the forest."

Despite being an Evolved Monster, Phillard lacked the imposing aura of a King, so both tribes refused to listen to his advice. Only Lifebringer and Reaper managed to stop their bickering.

"He may not seem very bright, but he fought them twice and lived to tell the tale." Said Lifebringer, the King in the south.

"I’d have liked to meet you in more happy circumstances, Phillard. These two are Guardian and Thunder, the two new Kings." He pointed at the biggest among the Rys and the Crons respectively.

"Everyone, get into position. If we fail, the woods will belong either to the trolls or the humans. We have to pick the lesser evil and cooperate."

The idea of losing their ancestral home was enough for all the clans to agree to a truce.

Reaper’s plan was simple. A few gutted rabbits were enough to lure the trolls to a large clearing. The smell of blood was for them like a flame to a moth. They moved so fast that the magical beasts only saw a blur until the trolls stopped to consumed their meal.

At that point, the Gylads, Shyfs, and Phillard used earth magic to turn the clearing into a crater ten meters (33 feet) deep while the Rys and the Byks unleashed fire on the trolls.

The mad creatures ignored everything around them. They kept fighting among themselves until the last shred of flesh and bones was consumed. Only the four newborns died. The adults were too strong, most of their injuries healed so fast that even the magical flames couldn’t keep up.

Only then did the trolls notice the magical beasts and rushed towards their new prey. The Crons attempted to hit them with lightning while the earth magic users turned the ground into quicksand and erected stone walls to protect their allies.

The trolls were too fast for the quicksand to be effective. They even managed to dodge most lightning bolts. The trolls reached the stone walls, tearing through them like they were made of paper.

One of the Byks was caught off guard, the troll’s arm had pierced the wall and grabbed her by the neck. She didn’t have the time to call for help, her throat had already been replaced by a gaping hole.

The maw on the troll’s palm opened and closed repeatedly, eating its way to the spine. The other magical beasts didn’t understand what was happening until the troll smashed through the wall, embracing the Byk.

The odd looking scars turned out to be more maws, consuming the poor creature in the blink of an eye. Cursing their bad luck, Guardian used a blast of air magic to send the troll back to the center of the crater, exploiting its feeding frenzy.