Greck covered the wound at his waist and abdomen, which was bleeding profusely, and staggered backward.
The gnolls, however, began pressing forward more aggressively.
Just as he was nearly unable to hold them off, the ground beneath his feet trembled faintly. Sharp spikes burst from the earth one after another, precisely blocking the pursuers. Forced to detour, the gnolls' assault slowed somewhat.
Was that mage? The thought flashed through Greck's mind.
Before he could think it through, a ball of blue energy came whistling toward the gnoll at the very front.
That gnoll was clearly well trained. Following the method taught by its leader, it nimbly hopped half a step backward and to the side, trying to evade the seemingly slow attack.
However, the response it received was a muffled bang!
The missile actually altered its trajectory ever so slightly at the last moment, slamming squarely into its chest. It staggered backward and coughed up a mouthful of foul-smelling blood foam.
At the sight, Greck couldn't help shouting, "Nice!"
Before his praise had faded, he heard Healy praise it softly as well, unconcealed admiration in her voice. "As expected of Mage Galen!"
He instinctively glanced at Healy. She was staring intently in He Xi's direction, and beneath her chestnut short hair, her profile shone with a radiance that the heavily made-up Nightingales in town could never hope to match.
The sight gave his heart a strange little stab.
An emotion he couldn't tell was embarrassment or irritation surged through him. The fist he had relaxed slightly as the battle improved quietly tightened again.
Damn it! That detestable mage!... he grumbled inwardly.
Before he could savor the sourness of the feeling, a second and third blue energy sphere arrived in succession, striking the previous target with pinpoint accuracy.
The gnoll was