Two out of five guards heavily fell to the ground. Their bodies were writhing in pain while cold sweats drenched their bodies
On the outside, their faces only paled but nothing else can be seen from them. But inside, their vitality was being used by Reif's poison to multiply, practically killing them in the process
"Son of a bitch!" The captain cursed before he aggressively swung his sword in the air
A wave of fire spreads threatening to engulf Reif's body and burn him
"[Haste!]" Reif cast the speed-boosting spell in himself again as he dodged before he sensed the movement of mana behind him
The remaining two guards aside from the captain that can still fight created blades made from water and sent them to Reif
Sensing the danger, Reif immediately sent mana through his feet and an earth wall rose from the ground that blocks the blades of water before he sensed yet another danger
A burning sword drew a crimson arc in the air as the captain threw it at Reif. The kid dodged with the help of his great battle instincts causing the sword to slam on the earthen wall
Pieces of rocks were immediately sent flying while the captain charges at Reif's direction again
"[Tiger Fist!]" The captain circulated mana into his fist giving it a much stronger power than before
Despite having a body of a child, Reif wasn't fearful of tackling this attack head-on
A blue dim glow appeared in two fingers each for a hand of Reif. He countered the hard attack with a soft one
Instead of meeting fist with another fist, Reif only uses his fingers to send mana inside the captain's hand
Reif's mana disrupted the circulation of power inside the captain's fist causing it to momentarily lose strength
In terms of magic skills, Reif can't possibly lose out to such a lousy 3rd circle mage
Reif has mastered countless types of magic and he is also well versed in anatomy. His strike just now makes the captain lose his strength for a while and that is already enough
With the captain unable to use his hand, he would find it hard to use magic. Those that have mediocre magic skills need the assistance of bodily movements to visualize their magic
Once their hands were turned useless, they almost can't use magic anymore. Of course, Reif is not like that
Even if he just stands in his position, he can still use any magic that he knows
With his opponent as good as being handicapped, Reif grabs the captain's arm. Green vines suddenly wrapped themselves in the captain's arm and the thorns in them mercilessly drew blood from their target
Reif has sent the same type of poison he uses to two of the guards and the captain was reduced to the same state as them
Seeing that, the remaining two guards were filled with fear and tried to flee. Their [Haste] spell was weaker than Reif's spell and their running speed was not that much of a problem
Since they gave their backs to Reif, he merely conjured some leaves and have them kill the guards
Reif poisoned all the guards and waited for some time until all the vitality was used as an energy source for the poison to reproduce
Reif then absorbs the poison back into his body before exiting the Manor
Reif stood outside the Manor. Aside from the still clueless Baron Kar, there was no one else alive inside
He can finally execute the plan that formulated in his mind after the plague plan was foiled
With a wave of Reif's hand, several balls of fire appeared out of thin air and he threw them towards the Manor
With his potions not ready, his money gone, his servants and guards killed, his Manor was caught in fire, how can Kar still have the time and power to deal with Ram and Hanga Town?
He would instead be too busy to save himself from his current predicament
With his job done, Reif exited the Acre Town and met the coachman that guided him here and they returned back to the Hanga Town
—-
Few days have passed and Reif has returned to Hanga Town. The citizens are in a much better condition now
Without the fan fanning the flames of plague, the situation was being controlled already
Of course, there were some of them that die but that is life. Reif can't possibly disclose his ability to suck poison to a lot of people
He doesn't have the ability to absorb the poison from the townsmen with a mere wave of his hand. He can't possibly do anything for them and they can only lament their luck
As soon as Reif returned, Ram immediately inquired of his progress. After explaining what happened and what he had achieved, Ram was relieved
Although Ram and his brothers were guilty of some deaths, the lives of their family and citizens are still more important than the lives of people they don't even know
Aside from being guilty, they don't regret asking Reif for help at all
"Some of your citizens die while the Noble in Acre Town was in a terrible shape. Use this chance to replenish your citizens using another territory's citizens"
With some people dead and are still under the plague, Hanga Town's economy is negatively affected
To return things back to normal not only did they eliminate the plague but they also need to recover the lost people
"I understand, I will try my best" Ram answered with eyes glowing in surprise. In terms of worldly experience, he still paled in comparison to Reif
Although Reif spends a long time not minding the business of people in the secular world after he reaches his peak, he still fought in power struggles in his early days
Although Reif treated this family as a mere passerby in his life, it wouldn't hurt to help them a bit
Perhaps, this family will have a higher standing in the future that Reif would require
Life is full of surprises, you never know what will happen next
"Take this money, buy as money as many things you can that will improve a person's physique especially the blood. Prioritize the effectiveness I don't care how painful or dangerous it is to use them"
With Reif's extensive knowledge, he naturally knew that there were a lot of extremely effective potions in the world but are dangerous to use
Although he gained quite an amount of money, it was still far from enough to support him for a long time
It would be better to use the dangerous and painful medicines that are cheaper than the safe yet expensive with a low level of effectiveness
"If I'm satisfied with what you purchase, I'll give you magic theories enough to support you until the 7th circle" Reif said which surprises everyone that hears it
At first, they feel like Reif was too overbearing for ordering a mage that is 2 circles above him and a Noble Mage at that. But now, they were in disbelief for the reward he would give if the service was satisfactory
There is a reason why 4th circle mages are far stronger than 3rd circle mages
From circles 1 to 3, it can be easily achieved through accumulating enough mana. As long as a person works hard, after some decades, they can still achieve the 3rd rank
However, reaching the 4th rank is completely different. It required a certain level of understanding mana and how magic works
Magic comes from within and was visualized in the outside world but the way it works isn't necessarily something that the user knows
Not to mention, higher-level magic even combined the power from within the user and their environment
This requires magic comprehension. Ram was able to become a 5th circle mage not solely because of his own talent
As a Noble Family, they also have some magic books. However, it was not enough to support Ram into higher ranks
Comprehending magic without any guidance or books was like being in the dark while needing to understand the place they were in
It was extremely hard. Thus, Reif's offer was not only enticing, but it was also quite unbelievable since he himself is just a mere 2nd circle mage
"A-are you serious?" Ram asked with his voice shaking and Reif nodded his head
"I will give it to you if you perform well. But if you betray me, I might not have the power to kill you currently but I'm confident in fleeing and killing you after I gain more strength" Reif said with a voice filled threat
Although he was only a 2nd circle mage, his demeanor makes Ram nervous. He felt like Reif really has the ability to do what he had just said
"O-of course, I won't betray my benefactor" Ram replied while feeling that his body sweated a bit
Reif was still weak right now but his aura can't hide the beast within him. It was normal for people to feel instinctual fear for him