Chapter 673

Chapter 673: The Passion of the Fire Element

"It couldn’t be more than in Stormwind," Ursula said as she took a vial of potion from the back kitchen. "They know I’m a pharmacist. Take this purification potion with you. Once you take down that succubus, sprinkle it on the demon’s corpse. If it has any sense, it will realize I’m sending a warning."

Jesse took the potion and said, "Dark Iron Dwarves and a succubus—those traits are pretty obvious. I think I know what to expect. I’ll go check it out."

Even though he was about to face a succubus, Jesse didn’t plan to bring Molofeel along. He had to go to Dalaran, see his parents, and visit Quel’Thalas… There was no place safe for a succubus to show up and risk trouble.

If he still couldn’t handle a summoned creature from a Dark Iron Dwarf assassin, he might as well forget about being the hero who saves the Red Dragon Queen.

"One more thing. I want to go to the practice room to try a spell, Ursula," Jesse said. "I want to summon a Felhound as a practice target. Can you bring Mr. Basadre to help? Felhounds are made to deal with spellcasters, and I’m worried something might go wrong."

"Ah… right, one practice room has a demon locked up now," Ursula said. "We’ll use another one."

"Jarel told me earlier," Jesse said. "I heard it’s a Voidwalker, right?"

"Voidwalker," Ursula raised her eyebrows. "It seemed that kind of demon—just a mass of shadows. Very scary, like a ghost. Thankfully, it didn’t attack us right away when it came out, thanks to your binding magic circle, Jesse. But we couldn’t hurt that Voidwalker at all. Erlan was thinking of finding a trusted priest to handle it."

"That would be dangerous for a priest too," Jesse said. "Did Zardeth summon this demon?"

Ursula replied, "Of course. No one else could make the spell work. Surena tried first but couldn’t activate it. Zardeth used that necklace a few times and succeeded… his talent is really high."

"A necklace? What kind?" Jesse asked.

Ursula explained, "A necklace with a blood-red stone that Erlan found on an Orc corpse in the Black Morass. The Dark Iron Dwarves said that kind of necklace could summon a small Void demon as casting material. With your magic circle, Zardeth wanted to try it as practice for summoning a Demon Guard. But we couldn’t enslave even that Void demon or figure out how to make a master-servant contract with it."

"Normally, you’d need to subdue the Void demon first, but…" Jesse said. "I’ll go back and ask my demon servants. Maybe they’ll have an answer."

"Zardeth also said you might know how," Ursula said, then spoke in Demonic, "Basadre, come here and help your master."

She spoke Demonic fluently, which surprised Jesse. But he hadn’t stayed at The Slaughtered Lamb for over half a year. The people there must have learned Demonic well to study Black Magic and summon stronger demons.

It felt a bit like coming back after a long absence to find everyone had moved ahead. "Come on, Jesse," Ursula said as she left the Alchemy Room. "What magic do you want to try?"

Jesse followed her into the corridor. "Fire."

"Fire again?" Ursula raised an eyebrow. "Last time, I asked you to test that potion, the Ignition Elixir, remember? Want a bottle to help? I have two left in the cupboard."

"You have a supply of Dark Iron Dwarf gunpowder now?" Jesse asked.

Ursula shook her head. "Zardeth was helping me get it, but that merchant’s detective kept causing trouble… I can’t make it steadily anymore. Luckily, I have some stock left."

"Well, I don’t need it for now."

Jesse thought the Red Dragon Queen had warned him to be careful with fire magic. Adding that Ignition Elixir, which nearly blew him and Ursula up, could lead to trouble.

Walking through the hall, they avoided looking at the group’s activities and headed to another practice room.

His usual spell-practice room was sealed off, covered in demon sigils and magic circles.

Jesse pulled out a small Soul Shard he’d prepared and tossed it on the ground. He chanted the Felhound summoning spell smoothly. Soon, a rift opened at the room’s end, and the Felhound was pulled into the space, landing on the floor.

This Felhound was much smaller than when he held Gorefiend’s magic wand, but it was perfect for practicing attack magic. If he summoned a huge monster like last time for enslaving practice, without Molofeel nearby, a slip could let it turn on them and take out both spellcasters and the small Felhound.

"Protect Jesse, Basadre."

Ursula said this, but she looked uneasy seeing the Felhound Jesse summoned.

Jesse didn’t hesitate and chanted the Scorch Curse. He’d been itching to test the "Essence of the Red Dragon Queen" for a while…

At the first syllable, he felt his blood vessels boil. The just-landed Felhound sensed his aggression and the gathering elemental power…

The Felhound lunged, its tendrils stretching out greedily. It was terrifyingly fast—he probably wouldn’t finish the spell… But the Felhound only took a step before a burst of bright flames swallowed it whole!

Jesse and Ursula stumbled back from the heat blast, watching the demon burn like a fireball!

The flames devoured the demon fast and even splattered onto the walls, forcing them to the corner. They opened the door, ready to run.

There was no shadow in this fire—Jesse had held back his dark energy. Yet the Felhound turned to black ash in seconds, unrecognizable.

He stared at the ash pile when Ursula gasped and frantically patted Jesse’s shoulder. Jesse realized his clothes were on fire.

They struggled to put out the flames on Jesse’s hair and clothes. Gasping, Ursula asked, "Are you burned?" Jesse touched his neck and scalp. "Seems fine. Lucky."

"Glad you didn’t drink that potion," Ursula said. "That fire was scary, Jesse. Your magic is strong, but… maybe tone it down a bit?"

Jesse nodded blankly. "You’re not the first to tell me that."