Bump bump bump
The carriage appeared to be gliding through the snow-covered forest like a large spectre. It was eerily quiet for a large moving object aside from the occasional bumps, Sebastian thought to himself. The secret was in the magick-reinforced springs attached to the wheels. It served as a shock absorber and also reinforced the carrying capacity of carriages in this world. It made transporting fairly easy and comfortable, considering that they were in a rush. Looking at the coachman and the other adventurer beside him, they looked tense - and for good reason.
The other adventurer with him was Frederick or Fred for short. He was the archer and scout of the other adventurer's party hired alongside Sebastian's party. Both Sebastian and Fred were seated in the first carriage since they served as the scouting carriage. Their role was to monitor for any signs of dangers up ahead and relay it accordingly to the other carriages following them. In essence, it was similar to a group of adventurers mobilising a narrow passageway. The scouts were at the helm of the expedition, while the close-combat damage dealers followed suit, and finally, behind the ensemble was the long range or the support adventurers. Since they were working with another party, it was decided that they would mix the members to avoid any gaps in their security.
Fred caught Sebastian staring at him blankly. "Sebastian was it? It's better to look ahead. Mutated beasts are known to frequent this area. Please stay alert."
"Ah yes. I was simply fascinated at how you scout ahead. For archers, sight is always best, right? I can utilise my sight and hearing so even if I'm looking elsewhere, I am still aware of our surroundings." Sebastian smiled before looking ahead where Fred was pointing. He was only partially lying since he was continuously using his [Augment] Hyper senses. It was already at a point where he can maintain it for an entire day with mana to spare.
Fred's eyebrows raised after hearing Sebastian's excuse. "Really? You might not want to risk it. Werewolves and wolfbears are not something to take lightly."
Recalling the briefing before they left Wildecross City, the parties involved were mainly concerned about these two types of mutated beasts. Werewolves were bipedal wolves that used their agility and speed to slash and mangle unsuspecting adventurers with their sharp claws and powerful jaws. Wolfbears were more dangerous as far as Sebastian was concerned. They were similar to bears in size, but with the snout and jaws of a wolf. They were massive in stature, but their lethality was in their agility and speed as well. Nobody would expect a 200 kg bear to move faster than a seasoned adventurer. This was the reason why Fred and the coachman in the first carriage were deathly quiet and serious in their respective roles.
Early in the trip, Sebastian tried to infuse his mana with his surroundings in an effort to scout better, but the carriage speed was making it difficult. By the time his mana came back to him, they were already too far ahead. He simply couldn't use it to assess his surroundings. Going with a different tactic, he settled on using [Augment] Hyper senses. He mainly focused on his sight and hearing to spy ahead. He pulled the hood of his cloak down to cover his eyes. With their speed, the cold wind almost felt like it was continuously cutting his exposed his skin.
Hearing movement and low growling noises ahead, Sebastian poked Fred with his elbow.
"Movement up ahead, on your side. I think there are 3 or 4 werewolves."
With a start, Fred immediately grabbed his bow and nocked 3 arrows. This was the maximum number of arrows he could infuse with mana for his offence. With a hushed tone, he calmly ordered the coachman. "Keep driving no matter what. They won't be able to catch up with this reinforced carriage. I'll shoot them down if they chase us." Turning to Sebastian, he also gave him something to do. "Signal the rest of the carriages to prepare for encounter, however, we're not stopping."
Sebastian raised a small blue flag while waving it forward and backwards. It was the expedition's agreed signal to prepare for combat while maintaining their speed.
"I can't believe this party doesn't have a dedicated archer. Tsk." Fred mumbled to himself as he circulated his mana around his arrows. He was still unable to see the aforementioned werewolves, but he didn't want to risk being unprepared. He ran this route many times and he saw firsthand the amount of damage mutated beasts could do even to a reinforced carriage. After a few seconds of tension, he finally saw the pack behind a copse of trees. It was thick for him to see clearly, but he managed to make their silhouettes out using a self-reinforcement skill, [Archer's Concentration].
TWANG!
With a single release, three illuminated arrows flew from his bow. They disappeared into the thicket before he heard a faint thud. Even if one werewolf survived, they wouldn't act on revenge, not unless their food was short. Immediately he nocked another three arrows as he prepared for a chase. After another few tense seconds, he wasn't able to sense them. As if reading his mind, Sebastian again tapped his shoulder. "They've gone deeper into the woods. You killed one while maiming the other two. It seemed there were only three."
Fred stared at him with wonder. "Did you sense that from that quick encounter?"
"I told you I have my other means to sense my surroundings aside from my sight." Sebastian's brown eyes shimmered in the white forest backdrop.
Fred was about to place the three arrows back into his quiver when Sebastian unsheathed his two swords and looked straight ahead.
This time it was Sebastian's hushed voice that came out like a growl. "Wolfbear in front. We can't avoid it. We need to prepare for combat. Coachman, prepare to stop." He turned to Fred with his cold stare. "Signal the carriages for combat. As soon as we stop, I'll head down to engage it first. You support me with your arrows."
Fumbling for the flags beside him, Fred didn't even realise his three arrows fell off the carriage. He quickly waved a red flag in a circular motion. The carriages behind him also waved a red flag around. It meant they were waiting for the first carriage to stop. They were still ready for combat from the previous signal.
Within seconds, the wolfbear's massive frame came into view. It was blocking the entire path, providing no means to go around. The coachman pulled back the reins, slowing the horses down to a stop. They were still a few hundred meters away from the monster, however, it was their last safe distance given the monster's speed.
Even while the carriage was still skidding to a stop, Sebastian used the momentum and launched himself forward to the coachman and Fred's surprise.
"[Augment] Hyper Senses, Steel body and mind, Max physical reinforcement!"
Before the wolfbear lifted its head to look at the ruckus approaching it, Sebastian was already at the bear's side. As he flew in mid-air, he plunged his two swords into the bear's left side.
GRRWWAAAA!!
Sebastian found it strange to see a massive wolf head growl with a bear's roar, but he didn't have time to stop and appreciate the freak of nature in front of him. While he was trying to remove his swords, the wolfbear suddenly jumped and did a barrel roll!
It was obviously meant to remove Sebastian and his two swords from the wolfbear's side. Sebastian didn't realise that the wolfbear was spinning until he found himself upside down. If not for his reinforced thinking speed he wouldn't have time to react.
TWOCK! TWOCK! TWANG!
Three arrows whistled through the air before finding their mark in the wolfbear's throat. Considering that Sebastian was still attached to the wolfbear's side moments ago, and considering the fact that the wolfbear was in the middle of his barrel roll, finding his throat was definitely an impressive feat.
Due to the meddling of Fred's arrows, the wolfbear was caught surprised and fell on his back.
Sebastian used his entire strength to remove the swords. It finally dawned on him that this massive mutated monster was made up entirely of muscles. If the wolfbear was able to tense his muscles continuously, Sebastian wouldn't be able to remove his swords at all. Sebastian guessed that its muscular frame was probably the secret to its shocking speed on top of its power.
Sebastian circulated his mana through Fulgur, enveloping it with a thin electric current. The wolfbear noted this sudden mana change as it looked at Sebastian with fury in its eyes. With a swipe down, the wolfbear quickly brought its front paws down without a sound.
Sebastian sensed it with his heightened senses and jumped back accordingly. The wolfbear's paws shook the ground as its raw force was transferred, unhindered. As soon as he landed on his feet, Sebastian immediately prepared to dash and stab the wolfbear with his activated Fulgur. He was planning to inject more mana when it was embedded in the wolfbear's head. However as soon as he prepared to dash, Sebastian found himself flying to the side.
'Eh? I was - kicked?'
BLAM!
Sebastian was knocked into a nearby tree with such ferocity that his body was half embedded in the tree trunk.
Kuhak!
He coughed up a huge amount of blood as he dropped his two swords with a clatter.
"Sebastian!" Fred jumped down from the carriage as he continued to fire normal and mana-infused arrows into the wolfbear. He was trying to draw the wolfbear's attention as he tried to get the wolfbear to look away from the fallen adventurer. While it had one paw buried in the ground from the missed paw strike, the wolfbear used it as a pole to swing itself around and kicked Sebastian.
Sebastian looked up half dazed from the tree trunk when he saw Fred getting the wolfbear's attention. The other carriages were already behind the scout carriage, the adventurers were on their way to support them.
'Shit. Is he crazy? Heal.' Sebastian quickly circulated his mana to repair the damage from within as he tried to pick up his swords and stand.
"Frederick! We're here." Gomauss, a male beastkin in Fred's party quickly ran from the second carriage to support an archer trying to get close to a wolfbear. He reinforced his body with mana, wrapping his entire body and battle axe with a pale, blue light. "Bastard!" Gomauss attempted to get the wolfbear's attention even before he was in striking distance.
"I knew you would be here soon enough." Fred put his bow down and turned around to face Gomauss. Within that moment's rest, the wolfbear didn't miss the opening it was given. It seemingly disappeared from everyone's view before reappearing in front of Fred.
"FRED!" Gomauss shouted before he could use his axe appropriately.
With a single swipe, the wolfbear smacked Fred to the side. It was done with almost no effort from the wolfbear, however, Fred flew in a grotesque manner as he disappeared into the thicket.
"GGWWAAHHH!!" Gomauss couldn't even call out his skill name as he launched his axe into the wolfbear's neck.
"Aima please look for Fred. Zes look for Sebastian. Mel and Elora on me!" Jin appeared from nowhere as he started commanding the other adventurers that showed up with him. Everyone ran to their designated responsibilities without saying anything.
Jin and Mel each took a side and surrounded the wolfbear along with Gomauss. Elora, which was the other party's elven spellcaster remained at the back, preparing her spells.
"Spear Thrust!"
"Cross Slash!"
"Lightning Strike!"
Skills rained down on the pained wolfbear, causing it to run amok with confusion. Even with its confused state, it was even more dangerous due to its increased speed and power. Tension hung in the air while the adventurers filled their lungs with the cold air.
***
Sebastian managed to heal himself to the point where he could walk. He cast another [Heal] spell on himself before he slowly walked towards the fight. Before he could announce his presence to the wolfbear again, he saw Fred being flung like a ragdoll to the side. Without any spare thought, he ran to where Fred's body flew disgracefully.
Fred lay on his back with a gaping wound on his abdomen. To call it a 'gaping wound' was an understatement as Sebastian quickly found out. Fred's innards were spilling out of his wound - it seemed the wolfbear almost severed him into two halves with that simple swipe.
'Fuck. I need an operating theatre for this. Wait. I need to cast [Heal]. I can't cast it on another person. I can only apply emergency treatment for now. Fuck!'
Sebastian quickly positioned Fred to lie completely flat on his back with his knees bent. He then applied pressure on the wound in an attempt to stop the bleeding. However, given the extent of the wound, it was like using a muslin cloth to plug a proverbial leaking water dam. Fred was now coughing up blood while soaking the white snow around him a fresh tinge of red.
'I can't push his organs back inside. I need to wrap it with plastic and prepare for surgery. I can't do anything! Fuck!' Screaming in his mind, Sebastian felt that he was running out of options while Fred was running out of blood and life force.
'Why the fuck can't I heal someone! [Heal]!' Seeing no change to the adventurer bleeding out in front of him, Sebastian ransacked his brain for other options.
'He will need a transfusion at this rate! Transfusion?' Sebastian cocked his head to the side as an idea came. It might be due to his enhanced thinking capacity as well, but he thought a mana transfusion might be possible. 'I can't do a blood transfusion - I don't think it's ever been done in a world of magick before. However, a mana transfusion might be possible. I don't have any options.'
"Whoo." Closing his eyes and breathing out, Sebastian swirled all of the mana in his body. He was planning to concentrate it to a single point before passing it into Fred's now-pale body. When he opened his eyes, he instinctively held his breath.
He saw mana tendrils all around him.