As we arrived at the entrance of the forest, we could see that the entire forest was covered in thick fog.
“If we mess this up, we might get separated from our team members.”
“Don’t wander off, stick close together.”
The initial plan was for two teams to split up and attack the orc village, but we decided to change our plan and start by searching for demons.
The advantage was that if we could lure out the demons, we could easily subdue the orcs.
Once we entered the forest, the darkness and fog made it impossible to see even a step ahead.
“Light!”
One of the Ratnia Knights summoned a ball of light, and only then could we see the surroundings a little clearer.
One of the mercenaries also used fire magic, making the area even brighter.
As we approached, the small monsters seemed frightened and quickly hid in the bushes.
“It doesn’t seem like they’re hiding because of us.”
“Probably because of the orc cluster and the demons.”
Clack. Clack. Clack.
“What is that sound?”
“I think it’s coming from over there.”
As we moved toward the source of the sound with the ball of light, we saw a dark object approaching us, wielding a sword.
Screech. Screech.
Without waiting for orders, everyone drew their weapons and assumed combat positions.
Bang!
Crack!
The black object approached us, knocking down a tree in its path.
“Is that a demon?”
What emerged from the darkness was a knight clad in full armor.
He was staring straight at us, brandishing a huge sword in his hand.
Boom! Bang!
As his sword struck the ground, the tremendous force overturned the earth.
“Don’t approach carelessly, over there!”
At Isaac’s shout, we quickly moved toward the direction of the orc village.
The demon was slowly but surely targeting us.
In the meantime, we ruthlessly cut down the trees that obstructed our path.
“It’s getting faster!”
“Run!”
As we started sprinting, the demon began to pick up speed in pursuit.
“What kind of running is that!”
Bang!
Before we knew it, the demon was blocking our way, swinging its sword at us.
Clang!
Isaac and Tooler took the lead and struck the demon’s armor with their weapons.
The slow-moving demeanor had vanished, and the demon countered with surprisingly quick movements.
Swish!
Whoosh! Thud!
One of the Ratnia knights threw the spear they held towards the demon.
The spear flew like an arrow but simply bounced off the demon’s armor.
“That’s tough.”
The blow from Tooler’s axe didn’t even leave a scratch, and the spear seemed to have little effect on the sturdy creature.
“Maintain formation and keep luring it!”
Isaac and Tooler increased the distance between themselves and the demon and began to run toward the orc village.
The demon disregarded the other raid team and began to chase after the two.
After a chase of pursuit and evasion, we arrived at a small lake in the forest.
Scattered around were poorly constructed houses.
Upon hearing the loud noise, large creatures with weapons in their hands burst out of the houses.
“Squeak!”
Without any spoken words, their expressions conveyed enough. They were astonished and puzzled as to why such a dangerous creature was there.
The orcs paid no attention to us and charged at the demon.
Thud! Thud! Thud!
The sound of multiple massive orcs charging was akin to an earthquake.
Swish!
The first orc to charge had its head sent soaring into the sky by the demon’s sword.
The orcs desperately attacked the demon’s legs and body, but there was little to be gained.
It was a brutal massacre.
We watched from a slight distance.
“That one fights well.”
“It’s good that they’re handling the orcs, but what if that thing’s left over for us?”
The monsters from the snowy mountains were leagues stronger.
I began to doubt if we would even be able to deal with it.
“Let’s at least weaken it a bit.”
One of the Ratnia knights who used a spear approached the demon.
Mana began to gather at the spear in his hand, and in an instant, it doubled in length.
It was a way to attack the demon without getting too close.
“Haah!”
The strike, filled with a battle cry, seemed powerful enough to temporarily bend one of the demon’s legs.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
The demon pounded on its bent leg with its fist a few times and stood back up straight.
“What a monstrous creature.”
The spear-wielding knight seemed to have expended most of his energy in that one attack and quickly retreated to hide.
Even the minimal attacks from the orcs contributed somewhat.
One brave orc managed to knock off the helmet the demon was wearing.
“Oh?”
Once the demon’s helmet came off, everyone present was taken aback.
There was no head, which was something they all took for granted inside the helmet.
From the moment we struck its armor, something felt off.
It echoed as if we were hitting an empty tin can.
The inside of the demon’s armor was hollow.
“Ririan, prepare your magic.”
“Okay.”
The number of orcs was gradually decreasing.
The enemy’s enemy is our ally.
At this moment, we had to rely on the orcs’ help to take down that demon.
The entire raid team jumped out to attack the demon.
All the knights of Ratnia unleashed attacks imbued with magic.
Unlike standard attacks, the magical assaults had some effect on the demon.
“Squeak!”
Thud!
The largest and crudest orc among them suddenly leaped out.
“Human! I’ll hold it down!”
That orc had been pierced in the stomach by the demon’s sword but was gripping the blade.
The demon attempted to pull its sword out, but it wouldn’t budge easily.
“I’m ready with my magic, but what about that orc?”
“Just let it go. He’s already prepared to throw his life away!”
Tsss!
Refined mana surged out and gathered in my hand.
In front of me, a large magic circle unfolded, and a spear of lightning emerged from it.
“Lightning Spear!”
The lightning spear pierced through the demon’s armor.
“Squeak!”
The orc holding the demon’s sword cried out in intense pain and fainted.
Once the orc released his grip, the demon pulled its sword out.
Clang!
Isabel and Aila sliced off one of the demon’s arms and one of its legs with their swords.
“Wow, it can actually be cut!”
Aila exclaimed in awe at the performance of the sword.
The members of the raid team silently watched the scene unfold.
Losing an arm might not be a problem, but having one leg gone was fatal for the demon.
It could no longer maintain the balance of its heavy body and collapsed to the ground.
The spear of lightning I had created was still embedded in its armor.
“When will it attack?”
“I don’t know either.”
The lightning spear was the magic I had learned from the book I bought at the bookstore east of Kant.
I began to wonder if I was using it correctly.
“Why isn’t that demon moving anymore?”
“It seems like the armor is just a shell.”
The surviving orcs no longer dared to approach the demon due to the energy emanating from the lightning.
Zzz- Zzz-
“Everyone fall back. I think it’s about to explode.”
The lightning spear embedded in the demon’s body was shining much brighter than before.
When I thought we had put enough distance, I snapped my fingers.
Zing-!
A magic circle appeared in the sky where the demon lay, and the heavens started to roar.
“Ah! Run further away!”
Isaac was the first to spot what was appearing in the sky and shouted.
A gigantic hand emerged.
From the hand, thin strands of lightning began to descend and grew thicker by the moment.
Eventually, the thick, bright yellow lightning clutched by the giant hand was released.
The lightning embedded in the demon served as a lightning rod to receive the bolts from above.
As the ground lightning met the heavenly lightning, the dark forest was instantly illuminated like morning.
“Ririan, your magic is always amazing.”
“Is that real magic people can use?”
The people from Ratnia merely had expressions of wonder.
In contrast, Roran’s mercenaries could hardly believe what they had just witnessed.
“I’ve never seen magic like that before.”
Even the demon race, who were familiar with magic in general, claimed it was their first time seeing such magic.
The book did not go into detail about the magic.
It only mentioned dropping a spear of lightning from the sky.
I had found it strange when the spearhead formed in front of me a moment ago.
However, since lightning fell from the sky in the end, the book was accurate.
The lake where the orc conflict had occurred vanished without a trace.
The demon’s form completely disappeared, and in its place lay a small mineral.
“We have successfully hunted the demon. The orcs will likely leave now that they’ve lost their leader.”
The massive orc that had been pierced by the demon’s sword was likely the head of this tribe.
With their leader gone, the orcs would wander off, either integrating into a new group or forming a new one.
“I’m feeling a bit dizzy.”
“You did well. Thanks to you, we took down the demon.”
“Really?”
Just as earlier, whenever the lightning struck the sky, the refined mana had been draining from my body.
Currently, there wasn’t a single ounce of mana left in me.
Having completed the raid, we were exiting the forest.
Lacking even the energy to walk, I was carried by Aila.
Screech. Screech.
With an ominous metallic sound, one more creature resembling the demon we had just defeated appeared.
“This time there are no orcs!”
“Don’t worry. I’ll handle it.”
Isabel strolled forward and confronted the demon’s sword.
In the meantime, the entire raid team commenced their attacks on the demon.
As soon as a gap was found, Isabel’s sword targeted the demon’s leg.
Last time, it had been severed immediately due to its reduced power, but this time only half was cut.
Everyone knew that its armor was merely a shell.
Thus, everyone didn’t put much effort into it and chose a strategy to strike at the joints of its armor to hinder its movements.
Once we figured out how to tackle the demon, it was no longer a challenge.
The sword in Isabel’s hand was systematically dismantling the demon’s armor piece by piece.
As the armor shattered everywhere except the chest, we could finally see what was inside.
A white mist resembling a human form floated within the armor.
When Isabel’s sword pierced the demon’s breastplate, a burst of light erupted, disintegrating it into dust.
In its place landed a small mineral, identical to what we had dealt with earlier.
“What is this?”
“It looks like a magic stone?”
Isabel picked it up and placed it in her bag.
No one raised any objections to Isabel taking the magic stone.
