Pet in Peril!

After the hedgehog landed, it curled into a ball. Every spine on its body flashed with dazzling purple light, and then the spines shot in all directions like a raging storm.

"Aaaah!"

A string of agonized screams rang out.

The hedgehog's spines clearly carried potent poison. Any Truth Society Wizard struck by one would convulse and collapse dead within seconds.

By the time the Truth Society Wizards finally reacted and raised their shields, half their companions had already died. Only two core members and one peripheral member remained.

Everything had changed far too quickly, like a dream.

The bald-headed leader looked at the corpses of his companions around him and clenched his teeth. With a wave of his hand, he prepared to cast a spell and kill the hedgehog, only to discover that it had vanished long ago.

"Damn it!" the bald-headed leader roared through gritted teeth.

"Calm down, Leader!" At that moment, another core member in a green robe spoke up solemnly. "Losing your temper is useless now. What matters is getting out of here and bringing the news back to tell the branch just how dangerous this forest is. Damn it, they said this place was Level 4 danger, but it's clearly beyond that. The rating has to be raised."

"Fine, I'll listen to you." The bald-headed leader took a deep breath and suppressed his emotions. "We retreat." He waved his hand and, while maintaining the shield, retreated toward the edge of the forest with his companions.

But after they had gone only a few dozen meters, the sole surviving peripheral member in a gray robe cocked his ear as though he had heard something and asked, "What's that sound?"

"Hm? What sound?" the bald-headed leader asked in confusion.

"Listen!" The gray-robed peripheral member pointed to the right