Ideals and Reality

An azure green card flew from Rhode's hand, quickly transforming into a Spirit Bird that soared into the air, darting behind Marlene.

Marlene, however, remained completely oblivious to this anomaly. In her view, the Storm Guard she had cast was absolutely capable of repelling any sudden assault. She did not believe Rhode would refrain from attacking; the moment he made his move, she would be able to instantly transition from defense to offense and catch him off guard.

Precisely because of this, when the bird's cry suddenly rang out from behind her, the young lady's first reaction was one of bewilderment and confusion.

What happened? What was that?

The girl instinctively tried to turn around to see what was going on, but no sooner had she turned her head than a massive gust of air came crashing down.

"BOOM!!"

The Storm Guard could indeed block most attacks, but unfortunately, Rhode had employed the simplest and most lethal method—for an elemental spirit composed of wind, even a raging hurricane was like a fish in water, offering no resistance whatsoever.

Under the immense impact, Marlene was caught completely off guard and knocked to the ground. The violent collision left her vision swimming, and she nearly failed to catch her breath. However, at that moment, triggered by the external force, the Magic Robe on Marlene's body immediately flared. Soon, several golden rays of light appeared out of thin air, surrounding the girl and forming a sturdy Polyhedral Crystal Shield. Forcing herself to endure the churning sensation in her gut, Marlene turned around and quickly spotted Rhode standing behind her.

When did he appear there?

Marlene felt a surge of panic, yet she forced herself to remain calm. She raised her Magic Staff, attempting to launch another attack at Rhode, but this time, Rhode did not give her even the slightest chance.

The young miss has talent, but she lacks experience.

Having observed how Marlene dealt with the Spirit Bird earlier, Rhode had already abandoned any intention of continuing to tangle with her. The girl hadn't even tried to identify what had attacked her, instead keeping her eyes fixed on him; this proved that Marlene's combat awareness was woefully inadequate. Since that was the case, Rhode didn't mind using a crushing defeat to wake this proud young miss up. Besides—Rhode took a moment to glance at the sidelines.

Besides, Lize is here.

Thinking this, the corners of Rhode's mouth curled upward, and his right hand moved slightly.

The azure green card reappeared in his palm, then flipped abruptly, turning fiery red.

The azure green whirlwind changed color at the same time.

To the girl, everything happening before her eyes was completely beyond her imagination. In the blink of an eye, a streak of bright red flame whistled down amidst the wind, slamming into the shield. Under the force of the massive impact, the sturdy crystal shield emitted a groan of exhaustion. Just as Marlene was about to devise a countermeasure, a sharp claw suddenly reached out from the flames and struck the shield heavily.

"CLANG!!"

The shield spell was only a low-level one to begin with and could not withstand a prolonged, powerful assault. Under this strike, the girl's final line of defense shattered completely. A Black Hound then lunged out from the flames, baring its fangs and claws as it pounced toward her.

Marlene was truly terrified this time.

From the very beginning, this battle had completely exceeded her expectations. She hadn't been able to seize the upper hand as she had anticipated; on the contrary, she was passive at every turn, unable to guess what that young man intended to do. Although Marlene had never practiced this kind of combat and dueling at the academy, her previous experience felt like nothing more than empty theory when facing Rhode.

A mage should protect themselves first before launching an attack?

Strive to use the most powerful attack to inflict deterrence and damage on the enemy at the first opportunity?

I know that, of course I do, but—but what am I supposed to do now?!

Facing the assault of the Black Hound, Marlene was on the verge of a breakdown. Yet, at this moment, her aristocratic pride finally allowed her to shake off her confusion. Almost subconsciously, the girl raised her hand to point at the fierce shadow pouncing toward her and shouted.

"Jir!"

A whirlwind condensed on the ruby atop her staff, then rotated and erupted, spraying forward. Faced with this sudden attack, the Flame Slayer's body stalled in mid-air before flying backward with a wail—this brought a moment of relief to Marlene. She steadied her mind and raised her staff again.

But at that moment, the card in Rhode's hand had already turned white.

Radiance flashed.

Marlene felt a chill on her wrist. She subconsciously diverted her attention, glancing at her wrist, but then, the girl felt her entire body turn cold.

Her once gorgeous, noble Magic Robe had been torn, revealing the girl's snowy-white arm underneath. But now, on that snowy white skin, a vivid red was slowly seeping out and spreading outward.

It hurts.

This was Marlene's first thought, and her second was...

I'm hurt?

I'm hurt?

I'm hurt!?

In that instant, the girl felt her mind go completely blank. Her eyes saw nothing but that drop of bright red blood on her arm. As for the defensive plans she had just thought of, or the counterattack against Rhode, they were completely thrown to the back of her mind. She even threw away her Magic Staff as if it had burned her, clutching her wrist tightly. At this moment, combat, duels—she had abandoned it all. In her eyes, only her own injury mattered!

How could I be hurt? Why am I hurt? I'm hurt now, what should I do?!

It must be said that while Marlene was a resilient rose, she was still a flower from a greenhouse. As a genius like her, usually so self-disciplined and confident, she was naturally pampered and had rarely encountered any setbacks. But now, she had encountered something she had never faced in her life.

The biting chill brought the girl back from her daze. When she regained her senses and looked forward, the first thing that met her eyes was a cold, gleaming, flawless white longsword.

"SWISH!!"

Star Trace pierced the air, grazing the girl's neck before embedding itself into the ground.

Only then did Marlene, like a puppet with its strings cut, feel her legs go weak. She knelt on the ground, staring blankly at the sky, completely at a loss for what to do.

"Being able to fuse multiple elements for a spell shows that your understanding of magic is indeed profound."

Rhode's calm voice rang out. As he spoke, he raised his right hand, and the white card vanished from his palm, while the white longsword that had been stuck in the ground beside the girl disappeared in an instant.

"However, in actual combat, your performance is like this... If you perform like this during a mission, I will definitely abandon you. Lize, go help her treat her wound, then take her to rest. It seems this young miss won't be able to pull herself together for a while."

"Ah, yes!"

Lize, who had been watching from the side with worry, heard Rhode's command and hurried forward to begin treating Marlene's wound. Marlene, meanwhile, sat on the ground like a soul-less shell, letting Lize tend to her without saying a word, looking exactly like a puppet that had lost its spirit.

Seeing Marlene like this, Rhode frowned but didn't say anything more. He was quite confident in the girl's mental fortitude; after all, if she was to be known as the "Queen of Mercenaries" in the future, her mental strength couldn't be too poor. The rest was up to her. After all, if this young miss went into a mission in this state, a total party wipe was a foregone conclusion—and Rhode had no interest in throwing his life away.

Just as Rhode had said, Marlene's understanding of magic itself was quite thorough, but these things were completely useless in actual combat. This was a common ailment for many, and players were no exception. It was like running a dungeon: everyone knows how to read a guide, and everyone knows the boss's weaknesses, but what happens when the fight actually starts? If things go according to plan, that's fine, but what if an accident occurs? The adds are pulled too early, the boss lands a critical hit, or your positioning isn't flashy enough. If you don't handle these situations correctly, it leads to a tragic wipe. Rhode was certain that if the battle had started by following this young miss's ideas, she would have performed as valiantly as a descending magic god or a legend reborn. Unfortunately, reality is not a CG animation; it is not static. Becoming so unstable the moment an unexpected situation arises—that is the greatest hidden danger.

After giving his instructions to Lize, Rhode turned and walked back toward the old house. Old Hank, meanwhile, stood to the side with a look of utter bewilderment. He had never imagined that this young man possessed such formidable strength; the magical genius who had been held in such high regard back in the Golden City hadn't even lasted a single exchange before being completely overwhelmed. On the other hand, he was equally stunned by how cold-blooded this young man could be, showing no mercy even to such a beautiful young lady. Now, however, it was poor old Hank who was left in a bind. He looked helplessly at Rhode's retreating back, then at Marlene, who was pale and trembling like a bird that had just survived a violent storm, now slowly standing up with Lize's support. He had absolutely no idea what he was supposed to do.

Sitting listlessly on the soft bed, Marlene stared quietly out the window, saying nothing.

After that, she had been brought to her room by Lize, and it had taken quite some time for her to finally calm down. It had to be said that for Marlene, this was undoubtedly the greatest blow of her life. It felt as if an idol worshipped by others had been suddenly and violently dragged from a pedestal and kicked in the face, a shock that left her reeling.

She had heard Rhode's words, and though she was deeply unwilling to accept them, Marlene had no way to refute them. Indeed, she could complain that this man's fighting style was bizarre, underhanded, shameless, and lacked any sense of decorum. But she realized now that this was what a real battle was—a life-or-death struggle where the one who survived was the victor. If she put herself in his shoes, if Rhode had truly been her enemy, she would have been killed by him long ago. And in that moment, who could she have gone to complain about his lack of honor?

"How are you feeling, Marlene?"

Lize placed a cup of hot tea in front of Marlene and asked in a low voice.

"Much better, thank you, Lize."

Marlene managed a stiff, forced smile. While it was certainly a cause for joy to unexpectedly run into an old friend here, the impact of this battle had been far too great. It wasn't that she had never lost before, but she had never been defeated so miserably. Moreover, battles between mages were usually quite civilized, and blood was rarely shed during friendly sparring... Marlene shook her head, realizing she had acted far too weakly.

"To be honest, I really did take things too lightly."

She sighed softly.

"I had assumed that with my strength, completing these mercenary missions wouldn't be difficult. But... now I find I can't even handle a simple fight. I knew what I was supposed to do, but my body wouldn't listen to my commands, and in the end, I didn't even know what I was doing anymore."

At this, Marlene offered a wry smile.

"I used to mock those incompetent fools, but looking at it now, my performance wasn't much better than theirs, was it?"

"That's not true, Marlene."

Lize stood up, took her hand, and gazed intently into the girl's wine-red eyes.

"Real combat is different from what we imagine; it was the same for me. Marlene, before I joined the mercenary group, I was also full of fantasies. I hoped to use my abilities to help everyone overcome their injuries. They took me in when I needed help the most, and at that time, I also wanted to be of use to them."

As she spoke, a flash of sorrow crossed Lize's eyes.

"But when I first participated in a real battle, seeing everyone covered in blood and gore, I was almost paralyzed with fear. I didn't manage to heal anyone in time, and many were severely wounded. Although the leader didn't blame me, I saw the deep disappointment in everyone's eyes. I knew they needed my help, and I had the ability to give it, but I retreated at the most critical moment... The leader told me that everyone faces such trials, without exception. And after that, I worked and worked until I finally..."

"I understand..."

Marlene lowered her eyes, her beautiful pupils filled with complex emotions.

"I understand what you mean, Lize. Just as that gentleman said, if I perform so poorly during missions, it's no wonder he would want to give up on me. But..."

At this, the girl clenched her fists.

"I still want to try. I know I lack experience, and I understand that the things I used to take pride in didn't bring me any results. But I won't run away like a coward, because I am Marlene Senia. I carry the honor and pride of my family, and I will never allow myself to retreat like this. No matter how difficult or arduous it is, I will grit my teeth and endure it. I have already decided."

"The honor of the family..."

Hearing Marlene's words, Lize's expression darkened, though she said nothing more. Marlene seemed to notice that something was wrong, and she quickly looked up, gazing at Lize with confusion.

"By the way, Lize, you still haven't told me why you came here to be a mercenary? Why did you leave the Golden City? I wasn't there at the time, so I had no idea what happened. By the time I returned, you were already gone. I searched for you for a long time but couldn't find where you were. Why did you leave?"

Upon hearing Marlene's question, Lize's expression turned sorrowful. She bit her lower lip tightly, but in the end, she spoke.

"Because... it was the decision of the family council."

"You were exiled?!"

Hearing the words "family council," Marlene stood up in disbelief, looking at the girl sitting beside her with shock and anger.

"How could those old stubborn fools do such a thing! They actually dared to exile you! Didn't Mr. Drakeman stop them?!"

"Father agreed with the council's decision."

"This..."

Hearing this, Marlene felt as if all the strength had been drained from her body, her previous intensity vanishing in an instant.

"He, how could he..."

"It's not surprising."

Lize shook her head with a self-deprecating smile. She reached up and toyed with her golden ponytail.

"After all... I am different from them. I am no longer Lize Calant Belraid. I am now Lize Noel... This is who I am now."

"Those self-righteous old fools!"

Marlene arched her brows and sat back down coldly, though she soon looked at Lize with concern.

"Then, what about your future..."

"Just like it is now."

Lize answered quietly and gently.

"I will stay in the mercenary group and continue living this life. Although it is dangerous, for me, there is nothing wrong with it. Mr. Rhode promised me that he would revitalize the mercenary group, and I think that is far more meaningful than wearing luxurious gowns and circulating between balls and banquets, don't you?"

Looking at the composed girl before her, who now wore a gentle smile, Marlene felt a complex mix of emotions.

The little girl who used to cry so easily... she has grown up now.