I Reincarnated to Another World as a Woman-Chapter 117: Team Work

"I really can’t hold it any longer. Aldriana!" Maeve’s voice crackles through the comm, laced with desperation and fear.

Arthur visibly shakes and snaps out of his stupor, but he still doesn’t know what to do.

Suddenly, Aldriana’s voice cuts in, calm and gentle.

"Arthur, what are you doing? If you want to try flying fire, you must do it now. Maeve is having trouble. And don’t expect that you can produce thousands of fires like I can. Three is already very good for you."

She continues evenly, "And the size. Remember what I said before? Size doesn’t matter. What matters is the intensity of the fire."

"Ten big fires are useless if they can’t kill anything. But even one flying fire arrow, if it can pierce through a haelion and kill it, is more than enough. I don’t know what you’re waiting for. Just do it. Concentrate."

Arthur has no other choice. He steels himself and sends the five small flying fire arrows toward the scattered haelions.

He half-expects to hear laughter from his teammates, or even from Aldriana.

But instead—

"Jesus, Arthur! You can do this?!" Liam’s surprised voice bursts through. "Why didn’t you tell me? What else have you been hiding from me?"

"Whoa, Art! Those are tripping cool!" Julian’s admiration is unmistakable. "Look at those haelions burning!"

"Oh my god, Arthur! Thank you for taking over. I really can’t hold on anymore. I’m going to take a break now!" Maeve sounds relieved, grateful.

"Excellent, Arthur. Really excellent." Aldriana’s voice comes through the comm, unmistakably proud.

Arthur exhales loudly.

Without realizing it, he puffs his chest a little, just for a second, before forcing himself to focus again on controlling the fire arrows.

The effect of the fire arrows is immediate and unmistakable.

As Maeve’s power weakens, the connections begin to strengthen again, and the haelions start to regain their formations. But before they can stabilize, Arthur’s arrows cut through them, flying between and straight through their ranks, piercing and burning at the same time.

The haelions are thrown into a new kind of chaos.

Before, when Aldriana launched thousands of blue fire arrows, the haelions could still see them. The dungeon was dark, and the blue flames stood out clearly against the shadows. They could track them, anticipate them, even try to dodge.

But now, surrounded by ungodly brightness, they can’t see Arthur’s arrows properly at all.

The smaller size makes it worse.

The arrows slip through gaps Aldriana’s couldn’t. They weave between bodies, strike from unexpected angles, and burn straight through before the haelions even realize what hit them.

These smaller fire arrows have their own advantages.

And Arthur is beginning to understand that.

Confidence seeps back into him.

He adjusts instinctively, guiding the arrows with sharper focus, no longer doubting himself. He is now single-handedly cutting down haelions while his teammates pull back, watching, catching their breath, and openly admiring his new skill.

"Aldriana!" Liam’s voice bursts through the comm, half-laughing, half-whining. "What else can I do with my water? I want to do something too!"

He sounds like a child watching his sibling play with a brand-new toy.

"Hah! What? You’re not happy Arthur gets to play? You want to play too?" Aldriana’s voice snaps through the comm. "This is not a playground, Liam. This is a battlefield. Remember that!"

Liam pouts, shoulders slumping.

"I just want to practice my magic," he mutters.

"But then again," Aldriana continues, her tone shifting into something almost teasing, "it’s not like there’s nothing you can do." She sounds annoyingly like an older sister deliberately baiting her younger brothers.

"I’m all ears!" Liam perks up instantly.

"Be creative. Think, Liam. As you, Arthur, and Julian have already proven, magic can do almost anything. You don’t need to think about how yet. Just think what."

Liam falls silent, thinking hard.

He looks back at the battlefield.

The haelions are scrambling, desperately trying to avoid Arthur’s fire arrows, which is proving nearly impossible. They burn, collide, and crash into one another. But Arthur’s fire, while deadly, isn’t Aldriana’s. The burn is slower.

And during that delay, something changes.

The haelions begin to adapt.

As they collide, they smother the flames on each other. Some manage to extinguish the fire entirely. The ones pierced clean through still fall, but the burning bodies no longer pose a threat to the rest.

Arthur’s fire is devastating at first.

But once the general notices the pattern, the haelions respond.

They help each other.

"Look at the battlefield," Aldriana says quietly. "Think about what you can contribute with your magic. Don’t think about competing. Think about complementing."

"I think I know," Liam says suddenly, his voice cutting through the chaos. "But I’m going to need Julian’s and Maeve’s help for this."

"I’m here," Julian replies immediately, no hesitation at all.

"Here," Maeve answers too. She sounds exhausted, but there’s still resolve in her voice.

Aldriana stays silent.

Liam takes that as permission to continue.

"As we can all see, Arthur’s fire isn’t killing them at the same rate anymore," he says, Sentinel instincts fully engaged now. "They adapted. His fire is still the fastest way to kill them, but they’re learning how to put it out."

He pauses, watching the battlefield, watching the way the haelions collide, smother flames, recover.

"So we make sure they can’t put out the fire."

Julian lets out a low whistle. "I like where this is going."

"I can pour water onto the ground," Liam continues, momentum building, "and with Julian’s help, we turn it into thick, sticky mud. If they can’t move properly, they can’t collide, they can’t help each other, and they definitely can’t escape."

"They’ll be sitting ducks," Julian finishes for him, clearly pleased.

"I love this idea," Julian adds immediately. "Absolutely love it."

"And my part?" Maeve asks.

"You’ll be our eyes," Liam answers without missing a beat. "From where you are, you can see the whole field. If any haelion manages to move, break free, or avoid the mud, you call it out. The three of us can’t see that clearly from our positions."

"I can do that!" Maeve says quickly, almost relieved. 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝙚𝔀𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝒐𝒎

Her mana is nearly depleted. Her body aches. But watching, observing, guiding? That she can still do. And for once, it feels exactly right.

Aldriana remains silent.

Liam exhales slowly.

I guess she’s waiting to see the results, he thinks.

"Okay," he says, voice firm now. "Let’s get to work."