Oath

Amlund and Lafi were on full alert, silently enduring the pressure of the marks coming from the distant sky, pushing their own power to the limit, as if in the very next moment, they would launch into an all-out battle.

There was no helping it. After their mark values reached ten points, killing other wizard apprentices became far too difficult. And now that the wizard apprentices had all begun forming groups, seizing marks was simply harder than hard, unless the targets were those Desperates.

Whoosh!

The instant a wind-element bat appeared in their field of vision, Lafi yanked her bow back. Terrifying fluctuations of life and wind element frantically condensed toward the arrow, and her eagle-eye constricted pupils had already locked completely onto the figure on the elemental bat, as if in the next moment, she would unleash an earth-shattering strike.

Amlund's body, meanwhile, lit up with seven or eight mysterious golden patterns. The patterns flowed and wriggled as if they had come alive, and the silver lightning on that greatsword was instantly pushed to its limit, bursting out in streaks of sparks that exploded in the air with puff, puff sounds.

Amlund shouted, "Honored Desperate, we have no intention of being your enemy. Please leave, so we may avoid conflict!"

Beside him, Lafi had her arrow locked firmly onto this Desperate. Her magic power and mental strength had both already been driven to the limit.

Though she had been unrelenting with her words just now, now that she truly might have to fight a Desperate, unease inevitably rose in her heart, and a sheen of fine sweat had unknowingly seeped across her forehead.

Puff, puff, puff...

The wind-element bat hovered in the air thirty meters away from the two of them, beating its wings nonstop, halting its intention to keep advancing.

Just as Amlund and Lafi's hearts had almost leapt into their throats, a head slowly poked out from the back of the wind-element bat. After freezing for a moment, it said in surprise, "Lafi, Amlund?"

On the other side, Lafi, who had locked onto the wind-element bat with Eagle Eye, instinctively trembled when she saw the pale mask poking out. The first thought in her mind was...

Green had been killed by this Desperate!

In an instant, an indescribable hatred and an unquenchable, surging rage erupted completely in Lafi's eagle eyes.

That was the blazing heat of love, the frenzy of hate. She had to avenge Green!

"Ah..."

With a cry of pain, Lafi released the arrow in her hand.

Whoosh!

The Hurricane Arrow turned into a savage hurricane, shooting almost instantly onto the wind-element bat.

However, it was also at that moment that Green's rather startled voice reached Lafi's and Amlund's ears.

"Green? No!!"

Along with Lafi's disbelieving scream, suddenly, the arrow's savage hurricane in the sky turned into a ball of wind, completely engulfing the wind-element bat and Green.

Within the violent wind ball, countless hard leaves formed from life magic were mixed in as well, cutting at the enemy inside like blades.

Lafi stared blankly at the sky. No one understood the terror of this strongest offensive sorcery she had designed with her own hands better than she did.

With a thump, Lafi's body seemed to lose its support. In despair, she knelt on the ground and covered her face with both hands.

Her face was as pale as a sheet of paper. As tears streamed down, she stared dazedly at the wind ball in the sky that would not disperse for a long time, sobbing until she could not form words.

"I... what have I done? I actually, actually... sob, sob, sob..."

Amlund had no sorcery that enhanced his vision. What had happened just now had occurred in an instant. Almost the moment that Desperate in the sky had called out their names, Lafi's sorcery had already erupted, completely engulfing that person.

Amlund had not even figured out what was going on.

Sensing the terrifying energy fluctuations in the air, Amlund's heart nevertheless tightened, and he even felt a chill.

No wonder this sharp-tongued queen had always run rampant without restraint. With energy fluctuations this powerful, the upper limit of her attack had probably just barely reached 100 degrees!

And on top of that, it had such a long period of sustained attack...

Just as he was about to ask what exactly had happened, Amlund saw that Lafi was already kneeling on the ground, sobbing uncontrollably, and he could not help but freeze.

On one hand, he did not understand why Lafi had reacted like this. On the other, he was shaken by the fragile beauty Lafi had revealed in this instant.

So the sharp-tongued queen had a side like this too?

Only after lasting for a full dozen breaths did the wind ball and countless life leaves in the sky gradually disappear. With a bang, a figure fell to the ground in a sorry state and said weakly, "Lafi, it's me."

On the ground.

Green's face was somewhat pale. The magic power he had expended in that instant just now almost rivaled what he had spent in his brief contact battle with Yun Li earlier.

Fortunately, he had the Pale Mask's protective shield, or else he would probably already have been shredded by Lafi's powerful sorcery.

Lafi froze for a moment. Amlund, who was beside her, had once seen Green wearing the Pale Mask at the Blood Sail Alliance ball a few days ago. Now that he saw Green again, on one hand, he thoroughly doubted his own memory; on the other, he asked tentatively, "Green?"

"Mm."

Green answered in a low voice. He was still the mysterious fellow in Amlund's memory, the one who did not speak much and did not like attending alliance gatherings.

Green's magic power had been thrown into some disorder by the excessive consumption in that instant, and even standing was somewhat difficult for him right now. However, because the mask covered his pale face, Amlund did not know.

At this moment, when Amlund saw Green emerge from that terrifying sorcery just now yet look "as if nothing had happened," he immediately felt that Green was unfathomably deep.

"No wonder, no wonder Lafi abandoned Amiida, who had pursued her for three years, and chose this person. So it turns out that within the alliance, a monster like this was actually hidden!"

Amlund murmured in a voice only he himself could hear.

Amlund's expression was truly somewhat complicated. He forced himself to maintain his bearing and smiled, knowing that the time that followed should be left to these two.

At the same time, Amlund also felt ashamed of his former arrogance. What number one on the Newcomers' Top Ten Experts List? To think he had even secretly felt pleased with himself before.

As Amlund left, Green looked at Lafi in the distance, who was still kneeling on the ground and staring blankly at him, and his heart tightened. What had to happen was still going to happen.

It was easy to imagine what Lafi—whose desire for control and need to perform had always been so strong—would feel the day she saw that the lover she had always protected was actually someone even stronger than herself.

Green was even certain that if he had shown power greater than Lafi's on the day of the ball, absolutely nothing that came afterward would have happened.

Green slowly walked toward Lafi, wanting to gently help her up, and said in a low voice, "Get up."

Lafi flung Green's hand away. Tears kept spilling from her eyes as she stared fixedly at him and asked, somewhat choked, "In your eyes, am I just a clown putting on a show all by myself?"

Green hurriedly said, "No. You are my lover, my family, the person I want to marry and make my wife!"

"Lover? Family? Wife?"

Lafi gave a derisive laugh. Tears streaming down her face, she mocked, "But I feel like all this time, I was the one wishfully playing that stupid fool, playing that ignorant admirer who only wanted to protect you. Maybe every time you watched me step forward, you were already laughing your head off at this clownish figure."

"No!"

Green hurriedly cut off Fila's words. He could not let Lafi keep letting her thoughts run wild.

Lafi sneered. "No? Then tell me, if I wasn't a clown you were trying hard not to laugh at in your eyes, what was I? Green, I was immature before, too ignorant, too childish..."

"Stop talking! Lafi, in my eyes, you will always be the vine spellcaster on the Helen who protected me at every moment, the person those childish kids on the Helen called the Vine Heavenly King. By your side, I will always be your supporter."

Green embraced Lafi, cutting her off once again.

Lafi's body stiffened.

As if in an instant, she had returned to that time. She, who had always been proud, arrogant, and looked down on everyone, could only hang from the cable by relying on vine magic. Beneath her was the endless sea, like an abyss that devoured life waiting for her.

Just when she had felt despair and silently counted down the depletion of her magic power, it was the man before her who had pulled her back.

In her life, Lafi had never imagined she would trust and adore someone so much, be willing to give him everything she had, even be willing to change herself for him.

And yet, it had to be said that the moment this man pulled her up, in the deepest part of Lafi's heart, she had truly felt that this commoner, who at the time had seemed somewhat vulgar, lowly, ignorant, and dull, had actually given her the feeling that she was willing to devote everything to him.

The cold smile slowly faded. Lafi silently gazed at Green, seeming to hesitate and struggle.

Seeing Lafi like this, Green took out a necklace. It was precisely the trophy he had obtained earlier, the one sealed with the Repelling Flame sorcery, and he gently placed it around Lafi's neck.

"No matter what it's like outside, by your side, I will always be that unknown Green who stays beside you in silence, your steadfast supporter, the pillar at your back."

Green spoke solemnly, as if making a vow to guard her for a lifetime.

Lafi looked at the Heart of Vines earring on Green's left ear, the one she had personally given him, and listened to the solemn vow Green made to her. After a long while, she finally rose silently and said softly, "Let's go. Find Yorkris, Binhanson, and the others."

Lafi left without looking back. Green nodded and silently followed.