A smell of burnt flesh and ozone wafted through the air. The two Ogres, who had seemed incredibly dangerous and pushed the "Stone" team to the brink, had been so easily defeated by a single Lightning spell.
The atmosphere became somewhat quiet. Even Captain Dosari, who had his ankle crushed and was howling in pain, quieted down at this moment.
'Discovered a third-tier magic spell, "Lightning." Requires the Basic Mage class, level requirement "15-21." Current conditions not met...'
The information appeared on Irvine Wolf's status panel. The Basic Mage class could be acquired through "Genius," but he clearly didn't meet the level requirement yet. What a pity, he thought to himself.
Noticing the quiet atmosphere, Irvine could guess the complex emotions within the Stone team. The Ogres they had struggled against with all their might were so easily dealt with by their employer. It was hard not to feel a mix of awe, gratitude, and shame. Furthermore, being able to use third-tier magic meant one was at least a Platinum-rank or even Mithril-rank adventurer . The Stone team found it difficult to even reach Gold-rank, let alone these higher echelons!
After a brief silence, Irvine was the first to break the atmosphere. He quickly moved towards Captain Dosari. Seeing the captain lying on the ground, his face twisted in intense pain, Irvine squatted down. The Ogre's severed hand was still tightly gripping the captain's ankle.
"Captain Dosari, I'll help you remove the Ogre's hand," Irvine said.
Captain Dosari subconsciously nodded, his face flushing slightly red. He didn't know if it was from the pain of Irvine prying the Ogre's fingers from his leg or from sheer embarrassment.
The rough, dark yellow hand was pried off and tossed aside. Irvine's gaze then fell on Dosari's calf. The entire limb was completely crushed, twisted into an unnatural shape. The bones inside were undoubtedly shattered. An injury of this extent would have meant permanent disability in his previous life. But in this world, while serious, it wasn't insurmountable—resurrection magic even existed.
"Lesser Healing!" Irvine extended his hands over the calf and spoke softly.
A gentle white light enveloped the injury. Under the effect of the healing magic, the flattened calf slowly inflated as if being reinflated, its twisted shape gradually repairing itself. The leg, which had gone numb, began to register intense pain again, causing Dosari to gasp sharply, though he held back from crying out.
As the light dissipated, the calf was barely recognizable again. Seeing this, Irvine cast Lesser Healing once more. By the time the second spell ended, Dosari's calf appeared to have returned to its original form on the surface.
"Superficially, it's fine, but the bones inside are still shattered," Irvine explained softly, exhaling. "Two spells can only offer a basic repair. For a complete recovery, it will probably take a few more sessions. I'll help you again once my MP recovers a bit."
Throughout this journey, the Stone team had been very good to him. Since he could help, Irvine naturally wouldn't hold back.
Captain Dosari's face was covered in sweat, his lips pale from the pain of the recovery process. "Thank you, Irvine."
"No need to be so polite, Captain Dosari," Irvine replied.
At that moment, Basck, the archer, arrived, supporting the injured brothers Rand and Ler. Seeing the captain's condition, he breathed a sigh of relief and looked at Irvine with gratitude.
"Are you two alright?" Irvine stood up and looked at the supported brothers.
"Don't worry, we won't die," Ler grinned. Aside from his equally pale face, he had no obvious external injuries. However, since Basck was supporting him, even without visible wounds, he had likely suffered internal injuries. Irvine remembered him being kicked away by the other Ogre.
"A few ribs are broken," Rand said, a trace of blood at the corner of his mouth. "But I won't die either."
"Once my MP recovers, I'll help you both heal," Irvine nodded.
Rand laughed heartily. "Good."
"Eh?" Basck's ear twitched, and he abruptly turned to look at the Ogre lying on the ground with its arm severed by lightning. "It's not completely dead yet?"
At these words, the faces of the Stone team members turned cold.
Irvine's eyes, however, lit up. Without waiting for the team to act, he walked to the downed Ogre. His short sword swung down! Following the wound left by the arrow in the Ogre's eye, he thrust the blade into its brain and twisted forcefully.
The Ogre, clinging to its last breath, perished completely.
The swift and decisive action surprised the Stone team members. Perhaps Irvine himself hadn't noticed that his movements now, unconsciously, carried a hint of ruthlessness forged in these recent days.
'Gained 300 experience points!' Irvine saw the information flash across his status panel,and a hint of pleasant surprise flashed in his eyes. So much EXP! It allowed him to level up directly. Combined with the scattered EXP gained before, his overall level had risen to 5.
"Are you alright!" Nfirea jumped down from the carriage and ran over, his face full of worry.
The Stone team members subconsciously exchanged glances, then their expressions turned respectful as they looked at Nfirea. "Don't worry, we absolutely won't delay the upcoming journey," Captain Dosari said quickly, supporting himself on one foot.
"That's not what I meant!" Nfirea's cheeks flushed upon hearing this, and he waved his arms. Just as he was about to say more, he saw the team members looking past him, their faces showing awe.
"You all should rest for a while."
Grandma Lizzie walked over, her hands behind her back, her face expressionless.
"Yes, Madam," Captain Dosari said with a solemn expression, though his one-legged stance looked comical. A magic caster capable of using third-tier magic was not someone a small team like theirs could afford to offend, especially since she had just saved their lives.
The other three members of the Stone team lowered their heads, their faces red with shame. As adventurers, being saved by their employer was truly humiliating. They just couldn't have imagined that their client possessed such strength yet would commission an adventurer team for escort. Or perhaps, from the beginning, she had only intended to recruit laborers.
Grandma Lizzie ignored the Stone team, her gaze directed towards the area where the Goblins and Ogres had emerged—the Great Forest of Tob, south of the Azellisia Mountain Range. Its area was not only immense but also very dangerous. E-Rantel was located on the edge of this forest.
"It seems it's time to clear out the monsters again," Grandma Lizzie murmured to herself.
Goblins were monsters with a very fast reproduction rate. Coupled with the wild beasts and other monsters in the forest, they launched attacks on human settlements almost annually. Therefore, the Adventurer's Guild in E-Rantel constantly had monster-clearing quests posted .