Glecy snapped her team back to reality, cutting their questions short. It bought her time to think, keeping them from digging into details that might blow Cana's cover. Once they quieted down, she took charge, stepping up to lead in Kyla's place.
"We can't wait for backup. We kill these beasts now, before they reach the city," Glecy said.
She was clumsy and usually slacked off during physical drills, but her mind was top-tier. Her curiosity never let up until she solved a problem herself. When she spoke with this kind of dead-serious focus, no one argued.
"When I was pulled up close to the beast, I saw the gap between its two heads. It's just soft skin—no scales," Glecy pointed out. "And I felt its core. It's right next to the heart."
"We need to pry that ribcage open before we kill it," Ryden said. "Otherwise, this whole area turns into a dump site."
"Dead dragon crawler blood poisons everything it touches," Glecy agreed. She stopped, looking at the squad. "Wait—who's opening the chest? And did you feel anything weird after my area heal?"
"Area heal? You—"
Kyla cut Akiro off before he could derail the conversation. "Yes. It didn't just refill our mana. We're stronger than before."
"Which means you can push harder now," Glecy said. "Just like my area heal."
"She's right," Verna said, staring at her hands. "My shield density feels doubled."
A silent look passed between them. They didn't need to lay out every detail to know the plan.
"Leave the core to me," Ryden said.
Beside him, two shadow wolves rose from the ground—larger, darker, and far meaner than before.
"Okay. One at a time," Kyla said. "Glecy, focus on Ryden."
Glecy nodded, her grip tightening on her scepter as her blood boiled with raw excitement. This wasn't her usual passive routine. For the first time, she had a real reason to push her limits—and a desperate need to impress Cana.
Ryden caught her eye with a sharp nod before lunging forward, riding a surge of wind straight at the lone dragon crawler. Beside him, his shadow wolf sprinted a few paces before plunging straight into the earth, vanishing like ink into water. No one else could see it, but Ryden felt its dark presence tearing through the ground right beneath him.
Kyla flanked the beast's opposite side, where a group of hunters stood on standby. With a sharp wave of her hand, the defenders moved into position, chanting fast protection spells to seal off the creature's escape route. Kyla threw out her own incantation, summoning vines from beneath the pavement. Instead of standard green stems, the sprouting tendrils were thick, stone-hardened roots that wrapped around the monster's legs. The grip held like iron, locking the struggling beast in place and giving Ryden a clear lane.
Deep beneath the dirt, the shadow wolf burrowed like a drill, sharing a mental vision of the monster's pulsing heart straight to Ryden's mind. Ryden gestured left, signaling Akiro to move. Akiro picked up the cue instantly, leaping into the air to draw the beast's aggro. He unleashed a barrage of rapid-fire water blades from his swords—his go-to method for high-speed attacks without losing time to long chants.
Even pinned, the dragon crawler was a nightmare. It thrashed violently, spewing streams of black, corrosive spit into the air. But Verna was already there. Her upgraded holy shield absorbed the venomous acid without taking a scratch, forming a moving bunker for Ryden and Akiro as they closed in.
"Found it!" Ryden called out, zeroing in on the target. "Aki, now!"
Akiro's mouth pulled into a ruthless grin. He sliced his own palm across his blade, letting the steel drink his blood. The sword surged, transforming into a massive, crimson heavy blade with wave-patterned edges that hummed with pure power. There was no time to question the sudden boost. Holding the weapon tight in a two-handed grip, Akiro angled himself mid-air and plunged straight down, spear-first into the monster's vulnerable skin.
Seeing the blade drive deep into the wound, Ryden signaled his shadow wolf. The dark familiar shot straight through the open tear, snapping its jaws around the pulsing core and ripping it free.
The dragon crawler went wild in its death throes, thrashing violently. Akiro and Ryden leaped back simultaneously to clear the kill zone.
"Glecy!" Ryden shouted mid-air, already channeling his wind magic.
Glecy didn't hesitate, slamming her enhancement straight into him. Powered up, Ryden twisted his hands in the air, creating a swirling vortex of wind around the monster's two thrashing heads. Instead of pushing the venom away, he bent the air currents inward, forcing both gaping maws to spray their black, corrosive acid directly onto their own exposed flesh.
The beast's own venom hissed violently as it ate through scales, muscle, and bone, melting the dragon crawler from the neck down into a smoking pile of sludge. Through pure tactical improvisation, they had just uncovered a crucial flaw in the creature's defenses.
One down, two to go.
Glecy's lips pulled into a grin.
Cana hadn't handed them an impossible test after all. Had she known all along that they could handle these monsters without their captain? Even so, Glecy knew none of this would have been possible without the insane surge of power Cana's support had unlocked in them.
Solari wasn't keeping just any mere apprentice, was he?
Even after slaying one beast, it was far from guaranteed they could handle the remaining two without running their energy dry. To make matters worse, the surviving dragon crawlers had turned on each other, tearing into a wild, uncontrolled clash as their primitive instincts took over.
"What do we do now?" Verna asked, keeping her guard up.
Watching the monsters rip each other apart was entertaining, but their venomous spit was spraying everywhere, melting whatever it touched. Besides, no matter how much damage they dealt each other, the beasts could not die without taking the core first.
"I got an idea!" Kyla exclaimed, a wild gleam in her eyes. "Glecy, I'm all yours!" she called out, asking for a support boost.
"Got you, Vice!" Glecy answered.
Kyla signaled Ryden and Akiro to follow her, and both men nodded without hesitation. Verna kept a watchful eye, maintaining active shields over every member of the squad.
Sprinting toward the fighting monsters, Kyla threw out a rapid double-binding spell. Thick, stone-hardened vines burst from the dirt, locking the necks of the two beasts together the moment an opening appeared. Entangled head-to-head, neither dragon crawler could move freely.
"Wow. Talk about a reality check," Akiro muttered at his sister's move.
Kyla didn't reply, her full concentration pinned on tightening the binding. Anchoring two massive beasts at once was draining her fast, so they had to strike now.
Ryden gestured for a synchronized attack. He and Akiro leaped mid-air, plunging their blades deep into the exposed skin of each beast. Shadows darted into the open wounds as Ryden's wolf snatched both cores at once. With the targets secured, the two men leaped back to clear the kill zone as the coreless beasts went wild.
But before Akiro could land safely, his body gave out. The massive crimson sword had drained his mana to zero, causing him to blackout mid-air. If Ryden hadn't caught him in a split second, Akiro would have plunged straight into a pool of corrosive spit.
"Akiro?" Ryden called out, worry bleeding into his voice, but got no response.
Akiro's blood-thirsty sword shrank back to its normal state on its own.
"Akiro! Ryden!" Kyla yelled, turning back in a panic. "Get out of there!"
A dying beast whipped its head around, spewing a direct torrent of venom straight at the two men. Verna scrambled to chant a massive barrier to cover them without dropping Kyla's protection. Still adjusting to her newly boosted strength, she had no idea if her shield could hold out in time.
Before the toxic acid could touch a single strand of hair on them, it froze solid in mid-air.
The flash-freeze spread down to the dragon crawler's body in a fraction of a second, engulfing the second entangled beast as well. In the blink of an eye, both ice sculptures shattered, exploding into tiny glinting fragments that rained onto the pavement. Even the burning pool of venom on the ground was turned to solid ice.
Silence fell over the ruins. Shock paralyzed the squad as a biting, unnatural cold settled over the battlefield. Before curiosity could even take hold, survival instinct kicked in—the temperature was dropping so fast it felt lethal. Saved from the beasts, they were about to freeze to death instead.
Even Ryden's shadow wolves retreated straight into his shadow out of pure terror.
Then, as suddenly as it appeared, the ice dissolved into thin air, leaving behind clean, empty ruins.
Another terrifying display of sheer power that left everyone in complete awe.
"Oh my gosh! We won!" Glecy cheered, totally oblivious to the deadly chill that had just terrified the others.
She glanced up at the rooftop for Cana, but the spot was empty. A wave of disappointment hit her. Did Cana watch them finish the fight, or did she leave right after boosting their mana? The thought made Glecy feel like a burnt-out bulb.
Sighing, she looked back at her squad. Akiro was unconscious, his head resting on Ryden's lap. Glecy jogged over, raising her scepter to start healing him.
"We... actually killed three dragon crawlers!" Verna said, the reality finally setting in, though no one had the energy to cheer.
Even the standby hunters didn't celebrate. They were still frozen in awe at the absurd power display they had just witnessed, completely clueless as to who had pulled it off.
A few minutes after the dust settled, the backup squad finally arrived, completely bewildered by the scene. The beasts were gone, leaving only destroyed ruins and the lingering sting of an unnatural, biting cold in the air.
Half an hour had passed in the kitchen, and Mesi couldn't stop swallowing his own spit as the rich aroma of Erus's cooking filled the room. He still couldn't bring himself to believe it—this absolute brute was actually a master chef. If he hadn't witnessed it with his own eyes today, he would have dismissed any rumors about a tyrant in the kitchen as pure nonsense. Aside from having him wash and peel a few potatoes, Erus hadn't asked for a single shred of help. He simply took over, moving around the kitchen as if he owned the place.
"Smells good."
Mesi almost jumped out of his skin at the sound of Cana's soft voice behind him.
"Please check if it's to your taste," Erus said casually, handing her a spoon as if he hadn't just taken over her house.
Standing frozen in the corner, Mesi tried to calculate whether he should stay or quietly slide out of the room. He clearly didn't fit into whatever sacred atmosphere was going on between them, especially when his brain was still short-circuiting over the hows of the entire situation.
When Cana stepped up to take a taste, Erus stared down at her for a few long seconds, as if trying to read right through her.
"What?" Cana asked, a bit thrown off by his sudden gaze.
"Nothing. Just felt a sudden draft when you walked in," Erus replied smoothly, dropping a quiet hint.
Cana took a quiet sip of the food, playing it cool to hide the fact that she had just snuck out to play with his squad without his knowledge.
"Must be the cold air from outside," she lied without blinking. "Wow, this is really good! You have to teach me this recipe next time."
Erus tilted his head, fully aware that she was deliberately dodging the topic. "Of course," he said, a faint smirk playing on his lips. "I made it, after all. Almost done here. You may sit and wait," he added proudly.
Cana nodded, her eyes drifting toward Mesi quietly standing in the corner. "Mesi, I almost didn't notice you there," she greeted him with a grin.
She had noticed him the second she stepped into the kitchen, of course—this was just her way of trying to break the tension.
"Ah," Mesi forced an awkward laugh, feeling like he was holding onto the very last thread of his life. "I was just standing by in case Solari needed my help."
"Oh? Why not form a pact with him, then?" Cana asked.
"What?" Erus reacted instantly, turning around to fully face them.
Mesi's immediate reaction was to wave both hands in panic, frantically shaking his head with terrified eyes.
Cana chuckled. "You're acting like I'm sending you to your death." She turned back to Erus. "Did you bully him or something?"
"Bully? That's bullshit. I'd rather just kill a person if I don't like them," Erus answered bluntly. He shot a quick look at the terrified fox, then sighed. "Stop acting like I'm planning to cook you."
He went back to the food. It was already done, but the thought lingered for a second before he started plating. What if this old fox actually formed a pact with him? Despite his severed tails and mortal state, he was still useful. Erus could tell Mesi was a skilled fighter, regardless of his current status. If anything, Mesi would be his very first familiar.
Then again, the guy is terrified of me. That'd be too much of a mess to handle.
"I don't want any misunderstanding, but I don't think I'm worthy enough to serve you, Solari. I'm nothing but a mortal now—too weak and too old to even support you," Mesi blurted out, his words tumbling over each other at breakneck speed as panic took over.
"Said by a mystical beast? Not to mention one of royal lineage," Cana sarcastically commented. She turned a sharp grin toward Erus. "Maybe you're just so intimidating that familiars feel like they're dying before you can even form a contract with them."
Erus froze completely.
How the hell did she know he didn't have a single familiar? Had someone already opened their mouth to her?
But whatever—it wasn't like it was a secret anyway. The whole kingdom knew he couldn't form a contract, not even with the weakest familiar out there.
"Don't take what I said earlier too seriously," Cana spoke up, her tone shifting slightly. "But if you ever decide you want a familiar, I only approve of this fox. I won't have some worthless beast that'll turn its back on you the moment things get rough."
Erus's brow arched. Why did he feel like Cana was passing judgment on how he should choose a familiar? She spoke like some big boss who had met every beast in existence, giving her the audacity to measure their loyalty. And why only this fox they had just met?
"If you don't want to, I'm still here to take very good care of you," Cana added, emphasizing the word "very" when Erus didn't respond.
Erus turned back to glance at her, giving her a questioning look. Her words didn't quite sound right to his ears.
Meanwhile, Mesi was still standing in the corner, looking back and forth between them like a confused dog trying to decipher its owners' strange dynamic.