The Assistant's Credentials

Vereesa wasn't rattled by his words. On the contrary, his reaction only confirmed the label she'd given him in her mind.

If the Farstriders had their eyes on him, then he had to be a bad guy. One day, sooner or later, I'll bring you to justice!

"Untie me if you've got the guts, you little coward who can only run his mouth."

Seeing the girl's eyes blazing, as if she couldn't wait to pummel him, Lanlos didn't know what to say. Twice. She'd lost to him twice, and she was still so confident?

"Sure."

Vereesa was caught off guard when the rope binding her suddenly loosened. This mage had actually untied her at such close range?

Suppressing the urge to act, Vereesa picked up the short blade that had fallen to the ground and slowly stood. She quickly worked to restore the flow of blood and magic that the bindings had constricted. "Hmph. Don't think I'll go easy on you just because of this. You'll pay for what you've done."

It was true that she'd lost twice, and both times she'd been caught off guard. But this time, it had been a trap. And if she'd been holding a blade instead of a wooden stick last time, she'd have taken this guy's shoulder clean off.

In experience and composure, I'm nowhere near his equal. But in a close-quarters fight, he's a mage in a robe. How could I possibly lose?

Vereesa glared at the taunting mage, gritted her teeth, tightened her grip on the short blade, and prepared to charge.

"Roar!"

A feral growl suddenly rang out across the clearing. Both of them changed expression and looked in the same direction. The bushes rustled, and a muscular Mana Spring Leopard emerged from the undergrowth. Unlike its kin, whose fur was smooth and tawny, this leopard's coat was matted and lusterless, with patches of fur missing and dried blood covering its body. It was not merely ugly; it was downright terrifying.

More importantly, irregular blue lines covered the exposed patches of skin where its fur had fallen away.

Mana corruption.

Though there were no signs of crystallization yet.

Remembering the lines that had recently appeared on his own face, Lanlos's expression grew more serious.

Ordinary magic was stable, but it was not orderly. It drifted aimlessly through every corner of space, and when its concentration reached a certain level, it glowed blue. Purple light appeared when a certain amount of magic formed an ordered structure.

Solid mana crystals, liquid Waters of the Well of Eternity, and the fixed spell nodes in a spell array all glowed that same color.

The purple glow of magic was generally called Arcane energy. Never assume that because it is orderly, it is safe. On the contrary, because of its uniformity, this energy has a tendency to attract its own kind.

Once a being has been invaded by magic, and some of that magic has become Arcane energy, if the Arcane energy grows stronger than the being's natural resistance to magic, then all the other magic within it—even the magic in its own flesh and blood—will transform into Arcane energy as well.

Severe cases quickly lead to crystallization. Even if the magic is too weak to cause crystallization, or the being's resistance is strong enough to hold it off, Arcane corruption can still make the victim more vulnerable to magic and increase the chance of spell failure. At that point, it's dangerous whether your enemy is a mage or you are one yourself.

The Mana Spring Leopard's corruption had already reached the point where it affected its physical and mental health.

As if to confirm Lanlos's suspicions, the leopard that had entered the clearing didn't avoid the elves, who were usually in harmony with nature. Instead, it growled menacingly at them, viscous drool dripping from its mouth full of sharp teeth.

Bloodstains and bloodshot, vertical pupils laid its murderous intent bare. Its savage presence bore down on Lanlos and Vereesa, fixing its attention on them.

"This is your chance to prove yourself," the mage said, suddenly relaxing his brow and smiling at the girl. "Make the most of it."

"What?" Vereesa froze, about to ask what he meant, when the guy waved at her—and then vanished before her eyes, as if erased by a rubber.

A 2nd-circle spell, Invisibility!

Coward! Wimp!

Lanlos's move left Vereesa utterly dumbfounded. What made her even angrier was that one of its two targets had disappeared, clearly provoking the Mana Spring Leopard. It charged straight at her without another moment's hesitation.

The cloak's magic was only a disguise, nowhere near as complete as Invisibility, and it worked better the less you moved. There was no way she could use it to escape now.

Vereesa raised her short blade, but the bandage around her wrist caught the corner of her eye.

"Tch!" She pursed her lips in frustration, then immediately leaped toward the tree behind her.

Bang!

Almost as soon as she jumped, the Mana Spring Leopard had already crossed dozens of meters and pounced at her. Thanks to the ranger's agility, she was able to drive her curved blade into the trunk and scramble upward, narrowly escaping its attack.

The leopard even felt its claws brush her shoe, but she still got away, and it slammed hard into the tree. Pain turned to rage. With a roar, it dug its claws into the trunk and tried to climb after her.

Vereesa wasn't simply running away. Pausing on the section of tree trunk that had been used to tie her up, she took out her bow and fired an arrow at the beast bounding below. She didn't even need to aim.

"Yowl!"

The arrow grazed the leopard's eye and struck its shoulder. The sharp pain made the beast whimper. After throwing the elf a vicious look, it turned and bolted into the woods behind it.

It wasn't running away, either. It had headed into denser woods, bounding between several tree trunks. In the blink of an eye, it vanished among the trees.

Vereesa pinched the arrow's fletching and drew her bowstring, tracking the beast as it moved through the undergrowth and adjusting the arrowhead's direction.

Closer. Closer...

Vereesa's expression darkened. She didn't blink, focusing all her attention on the spot where the beast would burst from the bushes so she could shoot it in a vital area.

Her first shot had gone astray because the injury to her wrist had thrown off the connection between muscle memory and movement. But this time, she held her breath and focused. She was certain she could bring it down!

Rustle!

The sound of leaves stopped in the nearest patch of undergrowth. Vereesa's fingers didn't move as she stared intently at the bushes, still swaying ever so slightly.

A bead of cold sweat slipped down her temple, soaking her lashes and burning her eyes with an unbearable sting. Still, she didn't blink. Even as her tightly furrowed brows trembled, the rest of her body remained perfectly still.

She could almost see the beast crouching behind the leaves, its powerful limbs tensing. She could almost see its vicious, vertical pupils.

Now!

Whoosh!

Twanging!

The Mana Spring Leopard tore through the bushes and leaped into the air. Almost at the same instant, Vereesa's shortbow let out a sharp twang.

Neither of them noticed the two streaks of purple light flying in from afar. As soon as the leopard appeared, they slammed into its head.

Bang!

The beast's powerful body was hurled far away by the tremendous force. A spray of crimson blood burst through the air, splattering everywhere. Vereesa wiped the blood from her face and turned to look in the direction the overpowering Arcane energy had come from.

Just as she expected, Lanlos stood in the clearing, waving at her with a faint smile, as if showing off.

Empowered Arcane Blast.

With enough time to cast, the power of this 2nd-circle spell had grown terrifyingly strong, nearly blowing off half of the Mana Spring Leopard's head.

The head was a vital spot, but the skull was the hardest bone in any creature's body. Even so, that Arcane Blast had caused such devastating damage. The Mana Spring Leopard's corruption must have contributed.

Looking at the gruesome corpse, Lanlos felt sick to his stomach. Then he pulled the mostly intact arrow from its eye socket and walked over to Vereesa. As for the arrow in its shoulder, the Arcane Blast had sent it flying somewhere.

When she saw Lanlos approaching, Vereesa swallowed hard where she sat leaning against the tree. Her legs were too weak to stand, but she stubbornly raised her short blade with her left hand and glared at him defiantly.

The Mana Spring Leopard had been incredibly fast. Now that its savage instincts had taken over, its brutal ferocity had been overwhelming for Vereesa, who had never experienced a real fight like this before.

There was no need to mention the fear she felt now. Even while facing it from the tree, terror had been written all over her face. But what surprised Lanlos was that even though she was pale and her pupils were constricted, even though her wrist was injured, her movements had remained flawless. She'd even managed to hit the leopard in the eye under those circumstances.

Such willpower was admirable.

"Nicely done." Lanlos wiped the arrow clean and gently set it by her feet. "This time, you won."