The acrid scent of charred flesh lingered in the air.
The two ogres — once seemingly overwhelming threats that had cornered the Rock team — now lay defeated, their bodies scorched and smoldering. A single, powerful Lightning Strike had ended them in an instant.
The battlefield fell silent.
Even Captain Dosari, who had been writhing in pain from his crushed ankle just moments ago, lay still and quiet.
"Ding! Discovered Third-Tier Magic: [Lightning Strike]. Requires: Basic Mage Class (Level 15-21). Current conditions not met..."
The notification flashed across Sakeer's property panel.
Though his [Genius] class could technically allow him to acquire a mage class, his current level was still far too low to meet the requirements.
"What a shame."
Sakeer sighed inwardly.
As he glanced around, he noticed the awkward stillness hanging over the group. The Rock team's faces betrayed their complicated emotions — frustration, disbelief, maybe even a touch of embarrassment.
It wasn't hard to guess what they were thinking.
They had struggled so fiercely against the ogres, fighting with everything they had — yet the powerful beasts had been felled effortlessly by their own client.
It stung.
Especially considering that wielding third-tier magic placed one among platinum- or even mithril-rank adventurers.
For a silver-ranked team like TheRock, reaching gold rank alone was a daunting challenge. The gap between their strength and an old woman's sudden display of power must have been hard to swallow.
After a brief silence, Sakeer took the initiative to break the tension.
"I'll check on Captain Dosari," he said, hurrying toward the injured leader.
Dosari lay on the ground, his face twisted with pain. His breathing was labored, and sweat clung to his brow.
Squatting down beside him, Sakeer examined the gruesome injury. The ogre's severed hand was still clamped tightly around Dosari's ankle — the dark yellow skin rough and calloused.
"Captain Dosari, I'll get this off you," Sakeer said quietly.
Dosari gave a strained nod.
Grasping the ogre's lifeless hand, Sakeer pried its fingers apart and tossed the severed limb aside. As he turned back to examine the wound, his expression hardened.
Dosari's calf was mangled — flattened almost beyond recognition. It lay twisted unnaturally on the ground, the crushed bones beneath the flesh unmistakably shattered.
In his old world, an injury like this would've meant permanent disability.
But here...
"Minor Injury Heal."
Sakeer placed his hands over the damaged limb and channeled magic into the wound.
A soft white glow enveloped Dosari's leg. Slowly, the distorted shape of his calf began to change— like a deflated balloon being reinflated. The crushed muscle and sinew shifted, and the twisted form gradually straightened.
Pain returned to Dosari's face, and he sucked in a sharp breath — but to his credit, he gritted his teeth and endured it without a sound.
As the light faded, the mangled limb now resembled a proper calf — barely recognizable before, but now whole enough to resemble its original form.
"That's better," Sakeer muttered.
Without hesitation, he cast Minor Injury Heal a second time.
This time, Dosari's calf restored itself even further — the bruising faded, and the swelling receded. Though the injury still wasn't fully healed, the worst of the damage had been reversed.
"On the surface, it's mostly back to normal," Sakeer said, rising to his feet. "But your bones are still fractured. I'll need to heal you a few more times once my magic recovers."
Dosari exhaled heavily, his face still pale but now showing signs of relief.
"Thank you..." he muttered hoarsely.
Sakeer smiled faintly. "Don't worry about it. You've all been good to me so far — it's the least I can do."
Captain Dosari's face was slick with sweat, his lips pale from the lingering pain of his partially healed injury. The intense discomfort was evident, yet he forced a smile.
"Thank you, Sakeer," Dosari said, his voice strained.
"There's no need to be so formal, Captain Dosari," Sakeer replied with a casual wave of his hand.
Moments later, Basque arrived, supporting the injured brothers, Rand and Lehr. Seeing Dosari's improved condition, Basque let out a sigh of relief. He glanced at Sakeer, his eyes reflecting gratitude.
"Are you two alright?" Sakeer asked, standing up and turning toward the brothers.
"Don't worry, we're not dying anytime soon," Lehr grinned faintly. His face was pale, and though no visible injuries marked his body, the fact that Basque was helping him stand suggested otherwise. Sakeer suspected Lehr had taken a hard blow, likely from one of the ogres.
"A couple of broken ribs," Rand added, wiping a trickle of blood from the corner of his mouth. "But nothing that'll kill me."
"When my magic recovers, I'll heal you both properly," Sakeer assured him.
Rand chuckled, wincing slightly. "I'll hold you to that."
Suddenly, Basque's ears twitched. His head snapped toward the fallen ogre, the one struck down by Sakeer's lightning spell.
"Wait… it's still alive?" Basque muttered, his face darkening.
The Rock team's expressions turned grim.
Before anyone else could react, Sakeer had already stepped forward.
He moved swiftly, his short sword flashing in the air. Without hesitation, he drove the blade into the ogre's skull, plunging it deep into the eye socket where Basque's arrow had struck earlier. With a firm twist of the blade, he stirred the ogre's brain, ensuring its death.
The monstrous body gave one final twitch before falling completely still.
The efficiency and cold precision of Sakeer's actions left TheRock team stunned.
Even Sakeer himself didn't fully register how instinctively ruthless his movements had become.
"Ding! Gained 300 Experience!"
The notification appeared on his attribute panel, and Sakeer's eyes flickered with surprise.
That much experience...
The kill had pushed him to level 5, thanks to the experience he'd accumulated from earlier encounters.
"Are you all okay?"
Nfirea's voice rang out as he rushed over from the carriage, his face full of concern.
The Rock team exchanged glances before shifting their attention to the young man. Despite his youthful appearance, their faces showed nothing but respect.
"Don't worry," Captain Dosari said, propping himself up on one knee. "We won't slow down the journey."
"That's not what I meant," Nfirea said quickly, his face flushing slightly. He raised a hand, flustered. Just as he was about to continue, he noticed the Rock team's gazes shifting past him, their eyes widening.
Turning around, Nfirea froze.
Grandmother Lizzie approached with her hands clasped behind her back, her face calm and expressionless.
"You should all rest for a while," she said flatly.
"Yes, ma'am," Captain Dosari responded instinctively, his serious tone contrasting with his awkward attempt to balance on one foot.
Despite his strained posture, the respect in his voice was unmistakable. A third-tier magic caster — someone capable of wielding power like Lizzie's — wasn't someone a silver-ranked team could afford to offend.
More importantly, Lizzie had just saved their lives.
The other members of the Rock team stood awkwardly behind Dosari, their faces flushed with embarrassment. Being rescued by the very client they were hired to protect was… shameful.
Was she just using us as labor from the start? they couldn't help but wonder.
Lizzie ignored their discomfort. Her gaze turned toward the edge of the forest — the direction from which the goblins and ogres had emerged.
The dense trees marked the border of the Great Forest of Tob, a sprawling and dangerous wilderness that stretched along the southern edge of the Azerlisia Mountains. Just beyond lay the city of E-Rantel.
"Looks like it's time to clean up the monsters again," Lizzie muttered to herself.
The goblins bred rapidly, and with beasts and other creatures lurking in the forest, attacks on humans were an annual occurrence. The Adventurer's Guild in E-Rantel maintained a standing mission to cull the growing monster population.
(End of chapter)