Anser's own strength went without saying. Combined with Elemental Oath, Elemental Affinity, Elemental Adept, and his many other traits and Feats, it had allowed his Wildfire Spirit to receive an unprecedented boost.
His familiar Rex stared blankly at the Wildfire Spirit from the side, not daring to approach it at all.
Anyone other than Anser who approached the Wildfire Spirit would indiscriminately take fire damage.
The Wildfire Spirit had two primary abilities: "Flame Seed" and "Fiery Teleportation."
"Flame Seed" was a ranged weapon attack that dealt 2d6 (2–12) + 5 fire damage, roughly equivalent to a 1st-level spell, yet cost nothing to use.
"Fiery Teleportation" was essentially a Misty Step that could bring others along, while also leaving flames behind to attack enemies. One ability served several purposes.
'Not bad. Quite a bit better than I expected.'
The Circle of Wildfire wasn't particularly strong at the early levels.
With a wave of his hand, he sent the Wildfire Spirit back to the Elemental Plane.
Its manner of existence was somewhat similar to that of a summoned creature, with the cost of remaining on the Material Plane borne by its master.
Anser brought up his Character Sheet and examined the other changes from leveling up.
He now had more beasts he could transform into, but the owlbear wasn't among them. He would have to reach at least level six before he could master that one.
His Magic Power had reached 328, further improving his staying power.
Beyond that, there was a huge number of cantrips and spells. There were more than fifty 1st- and 2nd-level Druid spells combined, and he could freely choose among all of them.
Enlarge/Reduce, Barkskin, Air Bubble, Lesser Restoration...
Then there were the four Wizard spells granted by Elemental Resonance. They could both strengthen Maeve's spellcasting capabilities and be traded to others.
With a flash, he teleported out of the Black Tower. At a thought, his body abruptly swelled—dragon head, dragon claws, dragon wings, dragon body...
His wings beat as Anser flew out over the calm sea. Lowering his head, he examined his drastically altered form.
He was now a Large dragon, long and sleek, with a torso nearly ten meters in length and a tail just as long. Metallic scales of silver tinged with gold covered his body, while three enormous pairs of dragon wings were large enough to completely conceal his body beneath them.
'Sure enough, I'm completely different from other metallic dragons.' He wasn't surprised.
Wild Shape worked by imitating other creatures, whereas "Dragonkind Transformation" transformed him into himself. His human form, half-dragon form, and metallic dragon form were, in essence, simply different forms of his own body.
He could also use Wild Shape to transform himself into a young gold dragon, in which case that portion of his physical attributes would use the gold dragon's statistics.
'A dragon's size really is better suited for melee combat.'
Anser swept out with a claw, feeling the explosive power within his body as the thought crossed his mind.
The sky was growing dark, so he immediately changed direction and flew back to the Black Tower. He landed directly in the plaza and transformed back into human form.
Bright bonfires flickered as more than two hundred people stared at him, dumbfounded. Their expressions were filled with shock, as though they were seeing him for the first time.
"How are the preparations coming along?" Anser asked with an amused smile, casually walking over to Bratt as though nothing unusual had happened.
He was definitely going to use his dragon form, and those distinctive six wings would be difficult to conceal anyway. He might as well let everyone know in advance so they could mentally prepare themselves and coordinate with him more easily in future battles.
That way, when he transformed into a gold dragon, people would be even less likely to connect it to him.
Everyone knew he had multiclassed into Paladin and Wizard, which was already pushing things to the limit. Multiclassing into Druid on top of that would be getting a little ridiculous.
"I get it now." Bratt suddenly snapped out of his daze. Realization dawned on him, and he leaned close to Anser's ear. "You were a dragon all along!"
Once he thought of it that way, a lot of things suddenly made sense.
"Then I must have an incredibly convoluted backstory," Anser said teasingly.
"It must be quite the story..." Bratt marveled with exaggerated seriousness.
"Quite the story, my ass. You've got quite the imagination." Anser cut him off. "How are the preparations for the banquet coming along?"
He swept his gaze around the plaza. There were a lot of people here. Besides the hundred or so core personnel who lived in the Black Tower, some people from the two villages had also come.
It was just that everyone became somewhat reserved upon seeing him. They wanted to look but didn't quite dare to, and they were hesitant to speak. The atmosphere was nowhere near as lively as before.
"Everything's ready. We've got all the meat and booze anyone could want. We're just waiting for you to give a speech." Bratt smiled and pointed toward the row of turning spits and large cooking pots.
"You're the one in charge around here. You can handle it..."
After giving him a few instructions, Anser teleported back to Fort Jacqueline and brought Iris over.
She had never met Gwyneth before, so this was a good opportunity for them to get acquainted and avoid any misunderstandings in the future.
Gwyneth showed no outward change and got along quite well with Iris. Once the two of them got together, they always seemed to have endless things to talk about.
Anser ate a little before returning to his room. With him around, many people wouldn't be able to fully relax.
...
Waterdeep.
Long columns of torchlight moved along the roads inside and outside the city. Before long, dozens of locations, including the Cassalanter estate, had been completely surrounded.
The Cassalanter estate in particular was sealed off from every direction, both in the sky and on the ground.
Torches blazed brightly, while armor and weapons gleamed coldly in vast ranks, enough to send a chill through anyone who saw them.
The surrounding houses quietly extinguished their lights, but countless curious eyes flickered in the darkness.
Boom—
The gates were violently smashed open, and the sound of footsteps and clattering armor echoed throughout the estate.
A masked old man strode inside and made his way straight into the great hall.
There were dozens of people in the hall. Aside from the soldiers, everyone was dressed in ordinary clothes, and no one carried a weapon.
Seated at the head of the hall was a middle-aged woman. Her hair was pinned up behind her head, accentuating her long neck. She carried herself with elegance and still retained much of her beauty; she must have been beautiful in her youth.
She calmly raised her cup and took a sip of tea, her expression completely unruffled.
"Lady Matilda, I must say, you've made me see you in an entirely new light." The masked old man's voice was dry and hoarse, though it was impossible to tell whether that was natural or deliberately disguised.
"We're old friends. Why bother with the mask?" Matilda set down her teacup, her gaze settling on the old man's mask.
"Nothing you want to say?" There was a note of regret in the old man's voice.
"What a pity. We were only one step away. Just one step..." Matilda sighed softly, as calmly as though she were telling someone else's story.
"Even now, you don't think you were wrong?"
"We lost. We lost. What does right or wrong have to do with it?"
"What deal did you make with the devils?"
"I want to see the Lady."
The old man swept his gaze around the room. "You'll have to talk sooner or later. Judging by all this, you've admitted it?"
"What's done is done. House Cassalanter will submit to whatever judgment the Lords of Waterdeep see fit." Matilda's tone remained placid.
She had never intended to oppose the Lady, much less raise troops in resistance.
Given the choice, of course she didn't want the family's elite to sacrifice themselves for nothing. But if they failed to satisfy the Lady, even fleeing to the Sea of Fallen Stars would do House Cassalanter no good.
This wasn't cowardice. It was the only way to ensure the family's survival.
"Take them all away. The nobles' court will give House Cassalanter a fair trial."
The old man waved a hand. The soldiers surged forward at once and placed everyone in shackles.
Waterdeep was unusually quiet that night, but everyone knew it was only the calm on the surface. The city's power structure, unchanged for years, was about to undergo a major upheaval.
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