Besides Ehre, there was one other person present who couldn't comprehend the situation—Wirbel.
Of course, what surprised him wasn't the fact that the Demon Race had launched a surprise attack; after all, he had prepared for the worst ever since leaving the encampment.
Like Ehre, he couldn't understand why the demons' attack had prioritized the warriors... and even the ordinary soldiers.
The instant he realized an attack was coming, he had already activated his Defensive Magic a step ahead of Ehre, perfectly covering himself and the old priest beside him.
In his mind, if the Demon Race were to launch a surprise attack, their target would surely be the old man... which was why he had stayed by the priest's side.
But now, having reflexively cast his Defensive Magic, he was powerless to warn his subordinates.
He even felt a pang of retrospective fear... if those attacks had been aimed at the third- or even fourth-class mages, how many of them would have been able to react in time?
The lethal white rays continued to spread, brushing past the group of mages. In that moment, Wirbel felt only immense self-reproach.
He was the one who had anticipated the possibility of a surprise attack from the demons, and so had moved the mages to the front of the column to prepare for a potential magical assault.
But he had completely miscalculated, because the enemy's target was never them to begin with.
Fíliya...
He thought of Fíliya at once.
Just a short while ago, he had spoken with Fíliya, and she had confidently sworn she could protect the soldier formations.
But Wirbel still felt uneasy.
A surprise attack launched while the demons concealed their mana... could that girl really react in time and mount a perfect defense?
After all... he himself had only just managed to deploy a magical barrier that could protect two people, and that was with him being on full alert.
As for Ehre, she was casting purely on muscle memory and could, at best, protect only herself.
In a situation like this, in such a critical moment.
Just what was Fíliya capable of?
The moment, less than a second long, felt as if it were stretched out infinitely, and everyone's thoughts became abnormally slow.
Finally, with a thunderous explosion, Fíliya's figure, along with several columns of soldiers, was engulfed in the smoke and dust kicked up by the magical bombardment.
"Fíliya!"
Ehre cried out anxiously, trying to check on Fíliya's situation.
Although she subconsciously felt Fíliya couldn't possibly be in trouble—after all... even she and Wirbel had reacted to the attack...—she was still worried.
Meanwhile, the low-ranking mages took several seconds to grasp the situation, their faces uniformly showing expressions of having just survived a disaster.
Wirbel took two deep breaths, then grabbed hold of Ehre, who was about to rush into the smoke to check on things.
"Ehre, calm down. Fíliya's fine... Think about it. That attack was dangerous, but not enough to kill so many people instantly... and besides, there wasn't a single scream, was there?"
Wirbel's words immediately put Ehre at ease, and then... she decisively raised her staff and returned fire in the direction the attack had come from.
[Ordinary Attack Magic]and[Stone Missile Magic]
The two attacks represented energy and matter respectively, a combination meant to make them harder for the opponent to block.
After all, [Defensive Magic] had good resistance against all magical attacks, and from her many past experiences fighting the Demon Race, Ehre already knew that some demons could also use [Defensive Magic].
That was why she had added [Stone Missile Magic], hoping to achieve results with a mass-based attack.
Following her opening move, Wirbel and the remaining mages also responded.
Attack spells of various colors exploded like fireworks in the forest ahead.
The explosions and flames from the magic successfully burned away a clearing, exposing the hidden figures completely.
Standing before them were four members of the Demon Race.
But... what felt wrong to both Ehre and Wirbel was...
...that the demons before them seemed... lifeless.
Because from the moment they attacked, to being counter-attacked, to having their hiding spot burned down and being forced to reveal themselves... they hadn't said a single word.
You have to understand... the Demon Race looks down on humans more than anything.
Normally, these demons would have been spouting trash talk like, "Humans, do not resist futilely," or "It is your honor to become food for the Demon Race."
How had these damned demon beasts suddenly become so "quiet"?
Wirbel couldn't help but narrow his eyes.
Suddenly, a gentle breeze swept through, but it wasn't from nature.
The thick smoke and dust from the demons' surprise attack just moments before was blown away by this wind.
This was [Mist-Clearing Magic].
And revealed within the dissipating smoke was, of course, Fíliya's figure. Behind her, the warriors and the contingent of ordinary soldiers were... completely unscathed.
Seeing this, Wirbel couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.
He didn't care how Fíliya did it; all he needed to know was that she had, in fact, done it.
"Alright, it's time to counter-attack... My apologies, I'm not very skilled with offensive magic... so please allow me to provide support. May I leave the attack to you, Ehre, Wirbel?"
"Understood."
Wirbel nodded, then immediately increased his mana output against the demons.
As for Fíliya's claim of "not being skilled with offensive magic," he didn't believe a single word of it.
He just chalked it up to some nonsense she made up to save face, assuming that after casting some kind of large-scale defensive spell, she didn't have enough mana left to join the attack.
Ehre didn't say much either, quickly engaging one of the demons in battle.
And Fíliya, just as she'd said, had no intention of attacking. She was currently observing every detail of the battlefield before them with great care.
"Hmm... Wirbel and Ehre should have no trouble taking one each. As for the remaining two... hey now, how are three mages struggling against one demon?"
Fíliya shook her head with a hint of resignation.
After all, those third- and fourth-class mages just weren't powerful enough.
"Um... Lady Mage, shouldn't we go support them...?"
Just as Fíliya was thinking, a weary-looking, middle-aged warrior behind her posed a question.
Fíliya turned to look at the middle-aged man and saw his expression was full of indignation, his hands gripping his weapon tightly.
"Mm, a good question... but allow me to answer your question with a question of my own."
Fíliya chuckled softly and continued.
"Why do you think those demons didn't focus their fire on the priest first? Even taking out one or two mages would have been a huge win for them... but they aimed their first volley at you... Why do you think that is?"
...The middle-aged man's expression went blank, and he scratched the back of his head.
"I don't know."
He said as much.
"Mhm, very honest... Actually, I don't know either."
Fíliya shrugged.
Er... The middle-aged man was a bit speechless, wondering if he could really rely on this mage... but at least she had definitely protected everyone during the attack just now.
"But I do know one thing... to those demons, your importance and priority seem to be ranked higher than us mages and the priest. Knowing that is enough. All of you warriors, don't move. Hold your formation, and just make sure none of you die. For now, leave fighting the demons to them."
____
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