At that very moment, from the distance, a group of small figures came walking toward them. It was the children, just back from their hunting trip. Judging from the excitement on every face, they had reaped a good haul today. Add in the herbs and natural spices they had gathered along the way, and what they brought back this time was enough for everyone to enjoy a fairly hearty meal.
-"We're back!"
Chris's group's call shattered the heavy atmosphere hanging over the place. They seemed entirely unaware of the tension among the others, or perhaps they were deliberately using their own liveliness to drive away the suffocating air. When they saw the children carrying monster corpses that could be used as food, Galahad's group instantly grimaced. It had been a long time since they had seen such wild things with their own eyes, let alone seen someone haul them back like the trophies of a hunt.
Just then, Helber hurried over to the team. Once beside Galahad, he leaned in close and quietly recounted what had just happened.
Galahad's face changed in an instant. The calm he had been maintaining all this while finally slipped; he immediately raised his voice:
-"What? What did you say? Is that true?"
-"It's true, that's exactly what he said. I'm afraid we don't have much time left."
-"Is that so... This is going to be a headache..."
Galahad rubbed his forehead and sank into deep thought. As a man who had fought on real battlefields for many years, he knew better than anyone that the battlefield was never a place to gamble on luck. Who could accomplish what, and who lacked the strength to carry it through, all of it had to be weighed carefully before he made a decision.
Tran Lac was indeed someone worth rating highly, but that did not guarantee the boy could actually defeat that man. After all, the children were only around level 18 now, and the rest of them topped out at level 15. Even if that gap could be closed sooner or later, facing a level 51 opponent, every advantage they currently held seemed far too small.
Once the enemy appeared, what could they do?
Unless they seized a chance to ambush him and land a surprise blow before he could react, meeting him head-on was no different from walking into their own graves. The problem was — how could they possibly create such a chance?
The more Galahad thought, the more his head ached. Years of combat experience told him that courage alone would never be enough to turn the tide.
Meanwhile, Chris raised his head and looked at the sky. His gaze settled on some point, as if he had just noticed an important sign. After a moment of thought, he walked over to Galahad and quietly reported what he had discovered.
When he heard it, Galahad's face grew complicated in an instant. A flash of joy appeared in his eyes, but he could not hide the worry alongside it. This might be an opportunity — but whether they had the ability to seize it was another matter entirely.
Chris himself did not dare promise anything. Still, by the knowledge he had learned, the present moment matched it perfectly, without the slightest deviation.
-"But if that's the case, how are we supposed to hold out?" Galahad frowned and turned to Chris.
Chris did not know how to answer for a moment. He understood the meaning of what he had just discovered, but knowing what was about to happen did not mean they could easily get through it. There was still far too much to prepare, and every decision made now could affect everyone's chance of survival.
After some deliberation, Galahad finally spoke, his voice far more solemn:
-"Everyone, we need to talk about something..."
Back to Tran Lac — he was jumping down from a nearby building. After checking the coordinates, he confirmed that he had moved a good distance from his original spot.
He could not keep wasting time outside. If he wanted to return to the base as quickly as possible, he had to pick up the pace. Even though monsters were still prowling everywhere, he decided to have Hina carry him and run straight ahead.
After all, it was not convenient for him to freely use the mind-map's teleport ability. Although he had shared that ability with Hina and everyone else, sharing one ability did not mean handing over everything related to it. Some things remained under his sole control, and he had no intention of using them carelessly in the current situation.
Receiving the order, Hina immediately pushed her speed to the limit. Her figure shot forward, vaulting over building after building, and before long she had carried Tran Lac a considerable distance.
However, the surrounding area was not as peaceful as it looked. The monsters lurking all about were extremely ferocious. The moment they spotted a living creature's shadow, they gave chase at once, with no intention whatsoever of letting prey that had entered their sight slip away.
Tran Lac knew this perfectly well. But instead of letting the monsters keep tagging along behind him, he decided to take advantage of the chance to wipe them out. He kept hurling low-tier spells backward, one after another, striking the pursuing monsters dead on.
The mage-branch skills he had learned before, he had already mastered. Although casting still consumed mana, the actual cost of basic spells was negligible. He could cast them continuously for quite a long time without worrying about running dry.
His mana now exceeded 1,500. Combined with the cost-reduction from his upgraded skills and the skill 「Mage's Blessing」, each of his attacks cost at most 3 mana.
But that did not mean he could easily clear out the horde behind him.
Low-tier spells could be cast again and again, but their damage had a ceiling. With Magic Damage only just over 90, he could not quickly finish off the chasing pack with a few scattered attacks. Even the area-damage spells could not settle the situation in a single cast, unless he was willing to spam them repeatedly.
If things kept going like this, the stretched-out time would become a big problem.
-"Tch, so I have to use it after all?"
Tran Lac clicked his tongue lightly, a flicker of displeasure on his face. He really did not want his mana to sink too deep — especially since his HP was only 114.65. With blood that thin, the slightest slip would put him in real danger.
He did have the skill 「Life for Mana」, which could convert HP into mana to keep casting — but that did not mean he could burn HP freely. The ability was indeed a useful backup, but if he abused it, he would be pushing himself straight toward death's door.
Still, the situation left no room for hesitation. If he wanted to deal with the pursuers quickly, he had to use a stronger spell.
Tran Lac took a deep breath and began chanting.