The orchard was filled with people trying to break the shield, who couldn't comprehend the rune. A sweet scent wafted from the fruits of the golden-leaved trees that clung to the air.
Arthur and his group landed near the grove again, their boots pressing against the mossy ground as they looked at the trees that had barriers surrounding them. There were thousands of trees that remained untouched, their branches heavy with exotic fruits that were just out of reach behind invisible barriers.
Arthur glanced toward Selene. "Ready?"
She nodded once, and said. "Let's see if that resonance actually works."
The two stepped closer to one of the trees, stopping just before the invisible wall that rippled faintly when their hands pressed against it. Then he closed his eyes and let his mana spread across his body, syncing it to the vibration pattern he'd memorized from the obelisk's runes. Selene followed suit, her mana covered her body and started to churn before stabilizing to a soft, almost rhythmic pattern.
The next second both of their hands passed through the barrier and their body followed.
A few gasps echoed nearby. Several of the onlookers looked with their eyes wide as they saw Arthur and Selene casually step through a barrier that they had been trying to breach for so long.
They weren't the only ones to succeed, though. Across the orchard, three other figures were also inside the barriers, carefully plucking fruits from the branches. The others, still locked out, looked on with envy, and one by one began hurrying back toward the obelisk to study the runes again.
Arthur ignored the surprised looks of the onlookers and turned to Selene. "Let's move fast."
She nodded and leapt lightly onto a low hanging branch. Arthur followed, his boots barely making a sound against the wood. The tree they were currently on had fruit that looked like peaches but radiated energy so thick it prickled against their skin. When Arthur touched one, it was warm, like holding a piece of stone that had been left under sunlight.
He plucked it free, storing it in his dimensional storage before moving to the next. After a dozen or so, he decided to try something faster. He extended his hand and used telekinesis to lift several fruits at once, but the moment his mana touched them, it scattered. The telekinetic force rebounded as they were unable to affect the fruits.
Arthur grimaced. "Figures."
Selene looked down from a higher branch, a faint smirk tugging at her lips. "Were you testing the barrier's restrictions?"
He nodded. "Yeah, it seems the barrier rejects any external force used inside it, lethal or not. You can't cheat this with tricks. We've gotta do it the old-fashioned way."
He had expected it as he understood the rune used in the barrier prevented any kind of attack to be used inside it. Still, he wanted to see how it reacted to a non-lethal force, but it seems even that couldn't be used here.
"Stop wasting time and pick the fruits," Selene said, amused.
Arthur shrugged. "Well, it was worth a try."
For the next thirty minutes, they worked in rhythm, climbing and collecting the fruits from several trees from the orchard. Selene moved like a blur, her agility almost graceful, and by the end of half an hour they had already collected a few thousand fruits.
Arthur was sitting on one of the thicker branches, glancing toward the horizon as he was picking the fruits. Selene, who was perched on a nearby branch, suddenly looked up sharply. As her expression changed instantly. "They're coming."
Arthur's head snapped toward her, seeing her tensed expression. He then slid down from the tree, his boots crunching softly on the ground. "Then we're out of time."
He strode back toward his group. Leon and Finn looked up as he approached, their expressions immediately alert. Without saying a word, Arthur took out a spatial ring and pressed it into Leon's hand.
Through telepathy, his voice echoed directly in Leon's mind. 'I have put half the fruits we collected inside the storage ring. Share them with the others and leave this place immediately. It's not safe anymore.'
Leon's eyes widened. 'What about you and Selene?'
Arthur's face was calm but his tone left no room for argument. 'We'll handle what's coming. Now go.'
Leon wanted to protest, but one look at Arthur's expression silenced him. He turned to the others. "Let's move. Now."
Finn frowned. "Wait, what…"
"I'll explain on the way," Leon said quickly, already grabbing his arm and pulling him toward the edge of the floating island. Eva, Natalya, Sophia, and the others followed reluctantly, glancing back at Arthur and Selene. They didn't need an explanation to understand that whatever was approaching was far beyond their ability to handle.
Arthur watched them vanish into the misty horizon, then exhaled slowly. "That's one less thing to worry about."
Arthur would have liked to stay with them, as this place was dangerous, but the dragons were clearly tracking them and somehow were able to pinpoint their location even when Selene was suppressing her aura. So, he felt it was better for him and Selene to stay back and let his friends leave this place.
Selene landed beside him, the wind catching her hair as she looked toward the distant treeline. Her tone was soft, but there was steel beneath it. "They're close."
And she was right.
The next second, three streaks of light broke through the clouds, descending like thunderbolts. The ground shuddered when they landed, cracks spidering across the soil. As the dust settled, the three dragons stood revealed in their humanoid forms.
After arriving they noticed a few people were picking up the fruits, and the dragon with the curved horns looked around as if trying to find something. Then he looked at where Arthur and Selene were and said, "Prince Roderic, there's something weird about them. I can't sense that woman's aura; it might be her."
The one in front wore an ornate azure cloak, his silvery-blue hair gleaming under the pale sun. His sharp violet eyes locked instantly onto Selene.
Roderic smirked. "I knew it. My dear fiancée, still playing around with humans."
"So," he said coldly, "you thought suppressing your aura would let you hide from us, Princess?"
Selene's expression didn't waver, though her golden eyes instantly turned cold upon seeing him. "Roderic. You should be careful with how you address me."
Arthur's hand twitched slightly toward his sword, his expression was unreadable. "You sure act like you own this place."
Roderic's gaze shifted toward him, and said in a cold and disdainful tone. "And you are?"
Arthur met his eyes evenly. "The guy who's going to teach you how to be humble."
The lean dragon growled, "You ant! Do you know who you are speaking to!?"
Arthur replied casually, "Are you an idiot, do I need to know every stranger to talk to them?"
The dragon was fuming but Roderic raised his hands to stop him, as he narrowed his eyes at Arthur.
For a second, silence hung between them. Then the air itself trembled with mana as killing intent rippled outward from the dragons.
Selene subtly shifted her stance beside Arthur, her aura no longer suppressed and her eyes glowing faintly with intense mana. "Arthur," she said quietly, "I'll take two of them. You handle the last."
Arthur shook his head, "I will take on this Roderic guy."
Selene looked at him in shock and shook her head vehemently, "No you can't, he is much stronger than you. I will try to stall at least two of them, and you take on the other."
Arthur sighed and decided to reveal one of his greatest secrets to Selene. He put his hands on Selene's shoulder and said, "Selene, what I am going to tell you now may sound absurd, but trust me."
Selene was confused as she looked at Arthur. "What?"
He continued. "What I've told you about my power… wasn't the whole truth."
Her brows furrowed. "What are you talking about?"
Arthur nodded faintly, his gaze locked on the dragons as mana began to swirl around him like a gathering storm. "My power not only allows me to grow stronger rapidly in a fight as I take damage… but it also prevents me from dying."
Selene froze, staring at him like he was some kind of alien. "You… what? That's impossible, how can such power exist!?"
Arthur chuckled softly, as he stepped forward. "Yeah, well. I'm kind of an exception."
She opened her mouth, still processing his words, but he glanced back and grinned over his shoulder. "So if you see me dying while fighting with him, don't panic. Just think of it as me taking a power nap."
Despite the tension, Selene huffed a short laugh. "You're unbelievable."
"Yeah, I get that a lot."
By the time he turned back toward Roderic, his expression had already hardened. The dragons were walking closer, their oppressive aura flooding the orchard like a tidal wave.
Arthur's eyes glowed faintly golden, as his hand rested lightly on his sword. Selene's aura slowly rose, sparks of lightning and wind beginning to coil around her feet.
And at the center of that scene, two stood against three and their combined power cracking the air, moments away from colliding.
Roderic's grin widened. "You should've run while you could, human."
Arthur tilted his head slightly, a faint smile spreading across his lips. "We will see who will run at the end."
***
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