"Buzz!"
A piercing pain, as though his brain had been stabbed through with needles, struck Tang Qi in an instant. His scalp went numb. "Dawn—"
Having lost his balance, unable to steady himself on the rocky slope or find a proper foothold, and with the headache making his heart seem to skip a beat as he stepped into empty air, he reflexively called out for Dawn.
"I'm here—ah!"
As she answered, an armored arm reached for Tang Qi's shoulder to grab him firmly. But the slick ground scraped beneath her iron boots, and Dawn, already weighed down by her armor, slipped and fell first. "It's a trap!"
As she cried out, Tang Qi's body was nearly parallel to the horizon.
He sighed, closed his eyes as if resigned to his fate, and played a tune, ready to cast [Healing Word] on himself at any moment. "Eek!"
The little dragon circling overhead cried out in alarm. An invisible force seemed to support Tang Qi's back.
But the push was not strong. At most, it only delayed his fall by a moment.
"[Entangle Spell]."
The soft chant by his ear was like an oasis amid sand dunes.
Tang Qi landed flat on the rocky slope, feeling as though he had fallen into the soft bed of a forest. Green grass blades stretched from cracks in the rocks, adding a touch of life to this desolate mountain range.
The scent of earth filled his nose. Vines emerging among the grass tightly wrapped around Tang Qi and anchored him in place, keeping him from falling any farther.
A series of clanging sounds rang out. Looking toward one source, he saw Dawn had fallen onto the grass as well. However, the vines seemed unable to bear the weight of her plate armor, and she was