A tall female Ranger appeared inside the tent ahead of Karin.
Her pale golden hair fell naturally down her back, perfectly complementing her peach-colored skin and light blue eyes. The silver leather armor she wore showed off her slender, athletic figure to its fullest.
As luck would have it, Karin knew this female Ranger. In fact, he knew her quite well!
"Miss Vereesa..." Karin greeted her, unsure whether to laugh or cry, then muttered to himself, "Quel'Thalas really is a small place!"
"So it's you... that Sunfury from the Midsummer Festival?" Vereesa froze for a moment, then frowned. With a mixture of disgust and surprise, she demanded sharply, "What are you doing here?"
Karin shrugged helplessly. "A Ranger guide named Halduron brought me here... he said I'd be your squad's instructional mage!"
"You? Our instructional mage?" Vereesa's voice rose again before she could stop herself.
Several months earlier, military orders from Tranquillien had stated that every Ranger Squad would be assigned an instructional mage to teach them how to master the spell called "Melf's Acid Arrow."
Yet there had been no word from the instructional mage assigned to their squad, and Vereesa had almost forgotten about it.
Until this mage's sudden appearance brought back a memory from several months ago! It even made her forget her earlier plan to give this "mage who was so terribly late" a harsh dressing-down!
Though she had no desire to dwell on that memory... she at least remembered that, several months earlier, this mage from the Sunfury family had been nothing more than an utterly unremarkable Mage Apprentice!
Now, however, his red robes and the cross-shaped emblem on his chest revealed his current standing!
"You're a Second Ring mage now? How did you manage that in just a few months?" Vereesa blurted out.
"Who knows..." Karin waved a hand. He had no interest in explaining his studies over the past few months to Vereesa in detail, so he offered a casual, dismissive reply. "Maybe I'm just exceptionally gifted!"
All-Knowing Eye, can you assess the current gap in strength between me and her? Karin then asked the All-Knowing Eye silently in his mind.
Understood. Analyzing... please wait... Since her last encounter with the host, the target's agility and stamina have improved slightly, but this falls far short of the qualitative transformation the host has undergone during that period. If the host were to enter a conflict with the target at this stage, escalating into a fight to the death, the probability of survival would be 31.1%.
Thirty to seventy, then... Karin nodded. It seemed that if they really fought, he would not be completely helpless.
However, considering the current standing of the host and the target, the probability of a fight to the death occurring between them is only 0.76%.
Karin knew perfectly well that the All-Knowing Eye was right! Vereesa was the little moon of the Windrunner family, the Rangers' beloved darling. Though Karin's standing was lower than hers, he was now, at least, a member the Sunfury family was investing heavily in... if the two truly fought to the death, it would probably spark a war between their families!
"Mage..." Vereesa's cold voice came from ahead.
"What is it?" Karin looked up.
"Let's leave the past in the past. Neither of us owes the other anything... agreed?"
Remembering that Vereesa had tossed him a high-quality Healing Potion when he had been injured back then, easing his injuries, Karin nodded and accepted her proposal for the time being!
"Since you're now a member of our squad..." Vereesa continued, "I expect you to hold yourself to a Ranger's standards. Don't go around causing trouble, and don't... don't entertain any improper ideas!"
It seemed that, in Vereesa Windrunner's mind, Karin Sunfury was still that reckless, foolish Mage Apprentice.
Karin did not feel that his dignity had been insulted. In fact, he was not the least bit surprised that Vereesa would say such a thing. He nodded again and replied softly, "I agree to your conditions, Miss Vereesa, but-"
"Since you've proposed leaving the past in the past, I have no objection... but I also hope you'll honor that promise and won't use your position to settle personal grudges in the days ahead!"
"Of course I won't. Rest assured!" Vereesa frowned and replied with a trace of anger.
After reaching an agreement with Vereesa, Karin officially became a member of the Ranger Squad!
Besides Vereesa Windrunner, the Ranger Squad had eleven other Rangers! Nine were women, most of them fairly attractive, while only two were men... Karin could now confirm that the rumors about women vastly outnumbering men in the Ranger guard were apparently true!
"This is our new instructional mage!" Vereesa introduced Karin to the squad with an expressionless face.
The Rangers looked curious. In truth, they had little contact with mages in their daily lives.
"Hello, everyone. I'm Karin Sunfury..." Karin gave his name out of habit.
The atmosphere instantly chilled at those words.
"Karin Sunfury... that name sounds familiar?"
"You're not the... mage who insulted Miss Vereesa at the last Midsummer Festival bonfire celebration, are you?"
The speakers were the two male Rangers. Both men's faces filled with anger as they took several steps toward Karin!
Karin was startled at first, but when he saw the righteous indignation on their faces, he could not help laughing.
Miss Vereesa really is quite charming. These two young Rangers under her command seem to be admirers of hers, too... they're only rushing to defend her because they want her attention.
"Brew, Morgan..." Vereesa snapped in a low voice. "The past is in the past. Mage Karin is now a member of our squad!"
Only after hearing Vereesa's words did Brew and Morgan abandon the urge to rush over and give Karin a beating... though the anger on their faces had yet to fade!
The other female Rangers also gave Karin rather strange looks, but their reactions were nowhere near as heated as those of the two men.
"Take Mage Karin to see the common room, and show him around while you're at it!" Vereesa continued issuing orders.
"Yes, ma'am..." the two Rangers replied.