Chương 37: Chapter 41: Skirmish

Ember wiped a line of sweat and grime from his face when a chorus of ribbiting toads reverberated in his ears.

"Looks like we're close," Erming said, as they all picked up pace. Running wasn't particularly easy in the bog, not when, with each step, your feet dug half a foot into the mud. Ember took it as a challenge to improve his Blitz Steps, though he didn't like how much mud and grime caked his attire and face. Well, it would all be a small price to pay if he managed to evolve his Hunter title.

After a minute, he even picked up the cacophony of other people from the mix when a metre-and-a-half-long mirewood toad lunged towards them. Ember bolted off its path, his palms reaching for his blade and wand. For good or bad, the girl from House Huan wasn't so lucky. Whereas everyone managed to scatter in time, the massive frog pinned her into the mud. Without even paying her any glance, it hopped off, hurtling her further into the sludge.

Unbothered by her situation, Ember chased after it, firing a powerful wind blade at the toad. It had already borne several wounds, multiple arrows sticking out from its back, whereas his spell struck its hind leg, throwing it into the mud.

"Good job, Ember! Now..." Ember didn't even care who or what they were saying. He bolted forward, his figure blurring through the wetlands to appear above the creature as he thrust his blade into its neck. His wand was already brandished with the most potent wind blade it was capable of. Giving the creature or anyone in his group no chance, Ember hurled the spell at point-blank range.

He didn't forget to turn on his shield, so when the spell and his blade dug and eviscerated through its body, all the filthy and poisonous blood found no purchase on him. [Enemy slain: Mirewood Toad Level 37.] This perhaps would have been more difficult if the toad hadn't already been wounded. Moreover, his first blow had managed to cripple its leg, making the battle much easier for Ember.

That was also to say, he had given no chance to the toad or any of his companions to act, and had targeted it with his most potent attacks. Perhaps he should start with that and be bolder in his fights. He had a lot of mana to spare, after all. His Mana foundation might not be lower than Benny's, though the noble youth was Tier 6 in his race, boosting a major wind attunement. Ember kept the shield on, ready to collect his bounty, when he detected more movement from his surroundings.

Not to mention, the cacophony of screeching grew merciless to his ears.

"Everyone, get ready," Benny said, this time finally bringing out his wand. He could probably fling out wind spells potent enough to wound even iron creatures. However, that would take some time to cast, not to mention the mental toll, whereas the wand made it almost instantaneous.

"There are a number of them coming." Under Benny's command, Ember joined the formation, his position being on the left, acting as a vanguard for the others. He really didn't mind it, so long as he got to kill some more toads. Dozens of mirewood spawns surged towards them, many of them of the iron rank, leaping through the expanse as if fleeing from their arch-nemesis, which turned out to be another group of youths chasing after them from the other direction. Without a second thought, Benny cast his spell.

A burst of wind swept over the line of mirewood toads, striking a number of them off course. This had to be at least a tier 5 spell, Ember thought. If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. Although it hadn't managed to slay any of the toads, it had wounded a number of them, flinging some of them to the back. Benny's next casting was more concentrated, bisecting a metre-tall mirewood toad completely.

"Keep an eye on the other group," he said, "while I take care of these toads." Since Benny went head-on against the monsters, Ember found no lack of targets as well. And neither was too keen on leaving everything to the high noble youth. Holding the tier 4 wand in his left palm, Ember plunged his sword into a monstrous toad. The blade bit into its mucky exterior, mana surging along the edge of the razor. However, an iron-rank creature could easily overpower him.

His Might had grown to 15, but even the weakest iron creature's Might was over 40. The toad's might be well over 60. His sword could only block the large creature for a fraction of a moment, but that was more than enough for him to channel sufficient mana into his wand to fling a wind blade into its skull. The wind blade dug through its flesh, gouging into its head in a gush of blood and ichor. Tearing his eyes away from the gory sight, he targeted another that was leaping away.

The range of his wand was about nine metres, though it would be best if he could strike within two or three, or else the spell wouldn't be as potent. Blitz Steps cut the distance as Ember flung a wind blade up its rear. The marred toad vaulted over, a screech emanating from its wretched mouth. Ember was prepared to pierce his blade into its skull, ending its misery, when its tongue hurled towards his eyes.

With the protective shield on, he wouldn't have to worry about the acid, but his sword hand shifted instinctively, the blade cleaving into its pulpy tongue and cutting it in half. With another wind blade, he finished it off before returning to his designated spot. If anyone had any complaints about him momentarily breaking formation, none voiced them, already preoccupied with their targets. The team cohesion was abysmal to begin with.

Sometimes, Benny would be strict with how they operated, while on many occasions, he would lie back and let them fight it out. It was mostly during times when they were hounded by low-level creatures. For now, though, his two sycophants from House Huan were enough to look out for him. Ember managed to wound another frog, probably well into the level 30s, but before he even got to finish it off, a bolt of mana hurtled at him, prompting him to withdraw.

The next moment, another spell fell upon the wounded frog, ending it. Ember shot a glance at the person who had attacked him and stolen his target. It was a youth from the other group. A lanky boy with a darker skin tone, his hair cropped in a military style. Their eyes met. The other boy smirked, then went about engaging the frogs. Ember set his jaw. With wand and blade in hand, he too dashed off, targeting the same mirewood toad the dark-skinned youth was after.

Since the monster was approaching their group, it was much easier for Ember to intercept it. He cast his strongest wind blade, aligning it just so that even if the frog managed to dodge, it would strike the other youth. Ember might fear the consequences of butting heads with Benny or any other noble from their camp, but he had no such qualms with a hostile party. The frog wasn't cunning, but it managed to evade half of the spell, while the remnant force plunged into the boy, who swiftly moved to withdraw.

With one strike, Ember managed to hit two birds, though neither of them fell. Ember heard him curse as he struck with his blade. Advanced swordsmanship used mana along with the actual sword forms. The theory behind it was to compress mana into a thread so that its cutting power wouldn't be any less than that of a wind blade. Currently, Ember's sword light had the might of a tier 2 or tier 3 spell, which wasn't powerful enough on its own to be lethal to a tier four creature.

But the sharpness enchantment in the tier 4 sword aided enough that his blade pierced through the eye of the monster frog before digging into its brain matter. [Enemies slain: Mirewood Toad Level 29, Mirewood Toad Level 31, Mirewood Toad Level 34.] [Hunting (Copper) +5 → 6.] [Advanced Swordsmanship (Copper) +5 → 6.] [+120 EPs.] That was some good progress, and he still had more than half of his mana reserve left. Many others' bounty in the skirmish had been just as fruitful, if not more.

Benny himself had likely killed five or six of them, whereas the Huan siblings hadn't managed much. Zea worked more as support with her archery, keeping the monsters off Benny's back. It was the other group who dealt with more than two-thirds of the mirewood spawns, bringing down their numbers to a mere few. There were more of them, too, all eight bearing a wolf sigil on their chests, indicating they were from some noble clans.

Ember might have been able to figure out the name of their clan based on the sigil, but before he could think further, his instincts cried out. He shifted to his right as a potent mana bolt brushed past him. It was the same guy who had attacked him before. And not just him. Some other members of their party had decided to assault Benny, who had gotten to the very forefront of the formation.

"Watch out, My lord!"