Aaoron counted that it had been ten minutes of grueling stalemate. [i]Stalemate[/i], the word itself felt exaggerated. Those imbeciles barely held their ground; they were helpless, desperately hiding behind the pillar like a cornered rat. 

Even then, he thought about an alternative plan. Something his brother had taught him but he kept forgetting. But that day in the office had given him a valuable lesson, to always come prepared, and be introspective. And that had served him well today. That elven woman was no ordinary archer and the amount of destruction she could dish out in a single spell was staggering. But again, he had come prepared, this protection spell will not fail him.  This was his signature, one that he had honed over the years. While his father always had a bias toward the old adage that the best defense is the good defense, his brother had told him everyone was born with different gifts, and he should just be himself and improve what he was good at.  

In the middle of his self-admiring, the constable saw something was steaming in the murky water below. He stepped forward to peer at it and found that pesky tutor hanging for dear life on the rim not far from him and his men. He was holding a glowing metal sphere. Whatever it was, it revealed his figure rather clearly  

[color=f7941d][b]"You! Sailor,"[/b][/color] he commanded, and the best shooter in the group responded. He lowered his musket, and Aaron only needed to point at the hanging nuisance below. [b][color=f7941d]"Put one between his eyes! The rest of you stay on your targets"[/color][/b]

And he fired.

Henri's head jerked backward, indicating a bullet hitting its mark. Smiling, Aaron expected the tutor to slip down and lost in the filthy stream, but he was not dead yet. He glanced at them with one eye missing and full of vengeance.

[color=f7941d][b]"So, my brother was correct."[/b][/color] He gripped his sword tightly and with his left hand, spread some of the light onto his breastplate. His heart raced, but not in fear. Anticipation! He was ready to pay back the humiliation he suffered that afternoon. [b][color=f7941d]"Come here if you dare, you renegade!" [/color][/b]