"A spell?" His tone climbs an octave. How is he supposed to believe in magic? It was a smoke bomb or something like that. It must be.

But, no, that logic crumbles the moment this man draws a staff out of thin air. Not even the best stage magicians could do that. Now he's staring at it, mouth agape, still wrestling with what he's seeing.

In this still-shocked state, he snaps back, "Stand back to where?" With only one step, his back is already hitting the wall.