The beast curled up as much as its huge body allowed, and jumped. In seconds it crossed over thirty metres, dangerously nearing Garry and his teammates.
They tensed in return, ready to dodge, as blocking such a beast's charge can be done only by professional defenders, and even then, they have a high probability of being knocked into the air. Well, the defender didn't prepare to dodge, he stepped forward and braced himself for the impact. As he prepared, his shield and lower body started to emit a faint hue.
But the impact never came.
The wolf circled them and attacked the other swordsman, who in turn threw himself to the side, avoiding a murderous paw.
The captain capitalized on the situation and neared the beast in an instant, then he swung his hue-covered sword at the monster. Wolf tried to escape the pursuit of the blade but didn't manage to do it in its entirety.
Garry's sword cut deep into its side, leaving a bloody wound behind.
The beast backed off from the fighters, making as much distance from the dangerous swordsman as it could. Unfortunately for it, it backed off into the defender, who used his shining mace to his it mightly in the beast's kneecap.
A loud crack resounded throughout the forest, as a wolf's bone shattered.
The best stumbled, stunned and practically deprived of a leg.
A string cracked and another arrow flew through the air, this time it didn't shine, but it travelled much faster. It hit the beast in its torso just before its front leg, the one before the crushed knee. The arrow stuck in the flesh, hindering its movements.
Garry, approached the Wild beast from its incapacitated side, together with Brad. The defender and other swordsman neared from the other side, the first covering the second with his shield.
Brad thrust his spear in the front leg, making a safe passage for Garry to advance towards its head. At the time, the defender fought with the wolf over his shield, which was clutched in the beast's enormous jaws, The swordsman behind him helped as he could, keeping his companion in place, not letting their enemy throw them in the air.
The eyes of two swordsmen crossed, Garry nodded in the direction of the wolf's head, and the swordsman answered with a nod of his own.
Suddenly, he let go of the defender he rushed in Wild Beast's direction, swinging his sword in a wide arc. The wolf noticed it immediately, tuning its defences towards the attacker and letting the shield go. It raised its paw and bared its fangs, ready to strike.
But the strike never came.
The wolf's head rolled on the ground, cut off cleanly by the captain's shining sword.
The wolf died, and its body fell to the ground.
Captain approached the wolf's corpse, cut into its torso and took a bloody orb, from inside.
The fight ended, and fighters started to go down the hill towards their companions.
No one suffered any injury.
-----------------
After gathering themselves, the group went back to the mansion. It was the Refrigerator's last day here, as the party would commence the day after tomorrow, so they walked in a light atmosphere.
"Captain, I have a few questions. Do you mind answering some?" Adam asked Garry while walking on the forest trail.
"I don't mind, go on." He acknowledged Adam's request.
"Firstly, You, Haga and that Defender used something similar to mana, The thing that glowed on your weapons. It was aura, wasn't it?" Adam had to quench his thirst for magical knowledge, then he would ask other questions.
"Yes, It was an aura. I am myself an intermediate swordsman, as you know. All intermediate realm fighters already know how to use aura and have their cores." Answered Garry.
"Aha, so... what's the difference between aura and mana? Could I also use it?" Inquired Adam.
"I don't think so. There is a big difference between mana and aura. While aura relies on mana to exist, it is a different energy. Don't get me wrong, it is rumoured that people in the southern empire can use both, but from what I hear they require both talents in those two energies, and a fitting absorption technique. I doubt you have the first, let alone the second." Garry explained.
"What about its prowess? I noticed that when Haga used her aura, her arrows would be much stealthier, and when you used it, your sword was much sharper, I guess. I haven't seen you use the sword without aura, so I can only speculate. Does aura work like an enhancer, which strengthens the aspect chosen by the wielder?" Asked Adam, while also sharing his observations, in the hope that showing his eagerness and perceptivity would make the captain divulge more of his knowledge.
"Yes, it acts like an enhancer, and it's left in the wielder's imagination and ability to make it enhance something."
"Oh, what about that ball that you cut out from the wolf? Was that the core?" Asked Adam while looking at the captain's bag, where the orb was located.
"Another right guess. We were lucky it was freshly ascended, if not, it would use aura against us."
"How would that look like?" Adam asked in puzzlement.
"Some are faster, some stronger. Most use it to sharpen their claws and teeth. But I remember one unique one.
We hunted that one around two years ago. It was a massive bear, that terrorized a small town a few hours north of the capital."
"Yeah, that one was crazy." Interrupted him the defender.
"Ey! Don't interrupt me when I tell a story!" Said the captain angryly towards his subordinate.
"Okay, okay, just don't shout at me." Replied the defender.
The captain threw him a glance and continued.
"So, we found the bear deep in the forest, where it made itself a lair.
We tried to fight it multiple times, but it was elusive, the smart bastard even changed homes after we went there a few times.
Eventually, we managed to attack it, which was honestly a mistake. After a moment, the beast created something like a halo, enveloping it from all sides and angles. The problem was, that it was corporeal, meaning it gained like one or two additional metres in height. And all those additional meters also functioned as a shield.
We as we are now, would probably take care of it, I think. But then, it was us who ran from it, instead of what happened before..." The captain ended his tale with a long sigh.
They continued the question and answer session while walking down the forest path. Towards Viscount Jared's mansion, then to the camp.
------------------
After the mission ended and everyone was left to their devices, Adam and Max left the camp and went to the city. As their first mission already concluded, they wouldn't get another one for at least three days, if there was no emergency.
Max chose to visit his mother and younger siblings. He didn't see them for a few months, and even after they arrived in the capital about a week ago, he had some urgent matters to attend to, making him unable to visit his family. He asked Adam if he wanted to meet them, but Adam refused, not wanting butt in the reunion.
Either way, he had important things to do while on leave from the army. He had to finally start making his absorption technique.
The first thing on his list was obtaining an intact corpse of a wild beast, a corpse in the intermediate realm. He also had to learn how to dissect it, as his expertise in butchering only applied to a small game. He learned that such beasts had a core, and today, it was proven true. He intended to check with his own eyes, how the core looked inside the beast, what distinguished a beast with a core, from that without one, and few other things related.
There was only one problem delaying his research, money.
He had very little of it.
But it wasn't a huge problem, as, after asking Max about it, the answer was simple. He just had to borrow the gold from a bank. Apparently, mages were trusted by nearly every official facility, so getting a loan shouldn't be hard.
In the capital, there were two active banks. Royal bank and bank of the Casfon. Casfon were a noblehouse dealing in various businesses, mainly in banking and merchandise trading. The head of house Casfon was a Marquess.
Adam was heading towards the royal one. Even though Casfon Bank was generally more trusted by the public. Both banks were supervised by the kingdom's administration, and as the King was both the highest supervisor and the owner of the royal bank, common people trusted it less. After all, there was no one to supervise the king.
But that wasn't a problem for Adam, as the king's nephew was his friend. And that friend gave him a letter for loan officials, vouching for him.
Even if he wasn't Max's friend, Adam wasn't that cautious and suspicious. What would the King even gain from embezzling his own money?
But first, he had to go and change his clothes. Bloody sleeves don't make a good first impression.