Leo suddenly had an idea.
"How about this? I can help you guys hunt another Magical Beast and then I will take this Beast Core. Does that sound good?" He suggested.
Clarice thought for a moment.
"That will be risky. We weren't supposed to meet a Peak-Stage 1st Circle Magical Beast in the first place. This is only the Outer Forest. If we keep hunting it will be dangerous. Some of us are injured, after all." She said.
Lucas butted in. "We can do that. We are definitely strong enough, and there is still time before the day ends. We can get back before it gets dark."
Leo nodded. This was the first time he heard something useful come out of Lucas' mouth. They would have to leave before the night arrived because he knew it was harder dealing with Magical Beasts in the dark. It would be the same as begging them to kill him.
He looked at the rest of the party to judge their reaction. They were all a little better than when they had started off. They seemed to be in fighting condition.
"Okay, we can do that. I will be depending on you, Leo." Clarice said.
"I will go ahead and start scouting then," Evelyn said. She immediately jumped onto the tree and vanished into the forest.
The rest of the party started dissecting the loot. They were skinning the bear down and dismantling its corpse. They quickly took out the Beast Core and neatly skinned the fur. They looked very experienced with it.
"What are you guys going to do with the fur?" Leo asked them. He thought that the Beast Core was the only valuable item.
Lucas gave him a gaze of contempt. Tobias explained what they were doing.
"The fur can be used to make luxury coats for nobles. Since it's the fur of a 1st Circle Magical Beast, it has some defensive properties as well. It can sell for 5000 to 6000 Star coins."
Leo nodded. He saw that Lucas had pocketed the Beast Core.
"If we manage to hunt another Magical Beast, then I'll hand this over to you. But I doubt you will be useful then," he said to Leo.
Leo just ignored him and talked to Clarice instead.
"How long ago did you guys start being adventurers?" He asked.
"We started around 5 years ago. We were 18-19 years old then. Now all of us are in our early 20s." Clarice said. "Also, we are mercenaries. Not adventurers. We are the Red Claw Mercenary Team. We were just finishing a subjugation mission that the city posted. If we kill a 1st Circle Magical Beast, we can get 2000 Star coins on top of what we normally get by selling the Beast Core."
"Is the Magical Beast problem that huge that there is a mission by the city?" Leo asked.
"The situation is becoming worse. 1st Circle Magical Beasts are now coming into the Outer Forest. We just saw a Peak-Stage Black-Eyed Bear. It's only a matter of time before 2nd Circle Magical Beasts leave the Inner Forest too." She said.
"Do they normally stay in the Inner Forest only?" Leo asked.
"Yes. The Inner Forest is a better place for Magical Herbs to grow. The only time Magical Beasts leave the Inner Forest is when an anomaly occurs. We don't know for sure what it is this time, but the last time it happened, it was a disaster."
Before Leo could ask anything further, he was interrupted by Evelyn. She had come back from scouting.
"I found a Green Mantis. It's a Mid-Stage 1st Circle Magical Beast. It should be an easy kill." She said.
"Everybody, get ready! Tobias, can you still tank?" Clarice immediately started giving orders.
"Yes. I can handle a Mantis." Tobias said.
"Good. Ranged dealers, keep some distance. Leo, you are with me for close range, right?" She said.
Leo nodded.
"Okay. Let's go then!" She shouted. They all moved toward the direction of the Mantis.
Leo and Clarice followed behind Tobias while Evelyn and Lucas stayed back. They reached the Mantis in about 5 minutes.
The Mantis was resting on the ground of the forest. It seemed like it was tired. It was nested in the back of a tree. It noticed the intruders immediately and got up.
Tobias lifted his shield and charged toward the Mantis. Leo and Clarice circled around the Mantis while Lucas and Evelyn bombarded the animal with arrows.
Leo reached the Mantis before Evelyn did and almost struck it while it was distracted by Tobias. However, before he could land the hit, an arrow grazed his cheek. He was able to dodge just in time, but he lost the opportunity to attack it.
He jumped back before the Mantis could attack him. He was too close to the Mantis, so he immediately ducked in time. The Mantis swiped at him with its arms, almost slicing him into two.
Clarice was able to cut off the other arm of the Mantis during this time, taking advantage of the Mantis being distracted by Leo. Leo also sliced off the other arm of the Mantis before it could recover.
An arrow dug into the eyes of the Mantis. It shrieked in pain. Its legs glowed a bright green. It jumped and tried to kick Leo with them. Tobias got in the way and took the hit with his shield.
Leo and Clarice both capitalized on the moment and dug their weapons into the Mantis. The Mantis wailed for a few seconds before falling to the ground.
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