Before today, Ervin read some amount of information on the Twilight Woods. He couldn't devote too much time to it because he was focused on his Mana control.
Thus, as they were approaching close to one of the exits in the city, Ervin spoke up to ask, "I always had an interest in just what is in the Twilight Wood. Just what kind of Demonic Beasts are in the outer area?"
"Oh, it's not the stronger variants of Class 1 beasts if that's what you're thinking of. The outer area is relatively tame. Some Demonic tigers, wolves, and the occasional birds. At times, we may encounter a Demonic bear, but they're not too much trouble to handle. At the very least, exploring not too deeply in the outer area won't let us get ambushed by the surrounding beasts." Sydney smiled as she was the one to answer.
Her voice brought Harvey's attention back to the group. He directly asked, "It sounds safe, but to even know that must take a lot of time to experience. Just how many hours do you all dedicate to a shift?"
Jerry was the one to answer as he said, "Obviously since our job is more important than most, we need to dedicate large hours of the day. Sometimes, we can even go for 12 hours a day. But it's not like we have to do long hours every single day. That's why we have so many patrol teams. We take over shifts for one another to try and attain a fair system. It's not all perfect, but it works. On our time off, we find a balance between magical studies and our other life."
"Mn. That's all true." Dylan spoke up this time. "We all will have our time to relax and enjoy ourselves. But never forget that what's out here is no game. Any of our deaths can lead to thousands of other innocents, never forget that."
"Understood." Harvey and seemingly Ervin seriously nodded.
The only intriguing part to Ervin was finding out what kinds of Demonic Beasts were out there. He had to ask, "Speaking off, is it true that even Class 1 Demonic Beasts are physically superior to most Novice Mages and are more likely to have Innate abilities?"
"Tch. More than just true." Jorge nearly spat out from a rise of frustration. "You will soon see, but those bastards out there can easily rip a grown man to shreds in just two seconds. While their Mana control is nowhere as great as ours, the sheer power of some beasts' innate abilities can even overpower Mages with the greatest of defenses. It's a true wildcard once you step out of the city."
Harvey's hands slightly twitched, his expression gaining more focus. While Ervin deeply ponders on the various possibilities of beasts to fight.
By the time their talk had ended, the patrol team was already at the exit of the city. The magical car was an excellent way to make minor travel that much quicker.
Parking at a space special for them, the team got out and made their way over to the city's exit.
Dylan saluted at the entrance guard who nodded back and opened up the gates for them.
What was presented before them was a mystical jungle forest radiating an ominous presence to shiver the souls of even Novice Mages and make mortals tremble in utter fear.
Rays of beautiful magical light could even be seen deep into the jungle forest. But there was nothing inviting or radiant about these lights. They seemed like an attraction for danger, possibly even a mark of death.
Others would hesitate at this moment.
But everyone in Dylan's patrol team took an unhesitating step into the Twilight Wood.
"Stay right on our trail." Dylan spoke without looking back.
No other words needed to be shared. As the gates closed behind them, Dylan led the mock patrol team down their routine path.
Everyone had their Common Magical Weapons in hand just in case of anything happening.
Dylan's team had high-graded Common Magical Weapons, allowing their Mana to exude greater power. Each of them moved with swift precision, seemingly calculating every single step they took on the dirt path.
Harvy didn't cower away. But he was a bit unsettled at the ominous atmosphere seemingly permeating every inch of the Twilight Woods.
Ervin was keeping his focus on any sign of a Demonic Beast. He, most among them all, wanted to test the limits of his Mana.
Their walk wasn't too slow or too fast. Time flew by when nearly an hour of no Demonic Beasts passed.
Just when the hour mark had hit, a large rustling nose reverberated.
A tree burst apart as dust flew across the air. Waves of horrifying killing intent began to howl out. The sharp cry of a feral tiger reverberated through the area.
Dylan's team looked to their right to see that several hundred meters away was a large Demonic Tiger beast.
The Demonic Tiger was three times larger than any mortal tiger, having a domineering height advantage to amplify its intimidating stance. Its fur was coated in an eerie black light, its eyes were a contrasting mix of blood-red and its razor-sharp teeth glinted, seemingly like they can shred through a sharp metal building with ease.
The wave of killing intent rippling from the Demonic Tiger didn't make Harvey freeze, but a bead of cold sweat rolled down his face.
Dylan, Jerry, Jorge, and Sydney made no attempt to move, waiting to see how the new recruits would fight.
Right at the moment the Demonic Tiger appeared, it savagely rushed straight down towards them, uncaring about the stronger magical presence.
The Demonic Tiger soared at inhuman speeds. Dust blew about in its wake. Its claws began to glitter with the dark light of Mana, amplifying its horrendous aura to murder.
At the very moment the Demonic Tiger moved, instead of making a quick plan with Harvey, Ervin instantly soared straight into battle!
His swift speed surprised Harvey and even made Dylan's team curious about his actions.
Mana flowed through Ervin as he activated his Physical Mage Arts. In that split-second, Ervin pumped Mana into his Magical Sword, encountering zero resistance in fusing his Magical power.
Even more power erupted through Ervin. The sword in hand felt as if could easily slash through a large stone boulder!
His Mana power was great. But Ervin knew just this wasn't enough.
It's why he specifically waited until he was only mere inches away from the Demonic Tiger.
The Demonic Tiger savagely roared, swinging its gleaming black claws to burst apart Ervin's head in a horrific mess.
The sheer force behind these gleaming black claws would easily crack apart a large hole in the ground.
However, right before the Demonic Tiger claws struck him, Ervin activated his Complete Invisibility state!
He directed the Mana to only flow through his face and torso to make these parts of his body intangible.
With the way Ervin positioned himself, the others could only see his back.
Dylan and the others actually focused themselves on seeing Ervin's reckless dash.
At the same time, the Demonic Tiger's claws swung down. But to the beast's utter dismay and horror, its powerful claws went straight through Ervin's face and torso without hitting any flesh!
The powerful beast's claws touched nothing. As if Ervin wasn't there at all.
Ervin didn't want to give anything away. Thus, he seemingly took a precise step back to make the illusion the claws missed him.
Using this momentum, Ervin thrust his Magical Sword straight into the Demonic Tiger's eyes!
'Chi!'
Blood wildly splashed out. The sheer force of Ervin's Magical Sword tore through the Demonic Tiger's eyes, sliced through its flesh, and pierced deep into its brain.
No Demonic Beast could live without a brain. The Demonic Tiger's corpse violently jerked. The light left its eyes as it slumped down on Ervin's magical sword.
Ervin calmly pulled out his magical sword, completely unfazed at the gross flesh and white brain matter now coating his blade. He simply used Mana to flick off the putrid guts of his blade.
At this time, Dylan with the others had already reached Ervin.
Nodding with praise, Dylan said, "It was a bit reckless to just charge in like that. But your reaction speed is excellent to dodge like that. That was only a weak early Class 1 Demonic Beast, but still a Demonic Beast, nonetheless. I hope to see the same hustle from you Harvey." "
Right!" Harvey seriously nodded. A bit of pressure began to weigh down on his shoulders.
The performance from Ervin was just good enough to show he can certainly be trained harder in the future.
Mage Enforcers wants people who know how to take action and unleash their magical weapons at a moment's notice. Falling behind on this can lead to the end of his dreams.
No matter what, Harvey was prepared to face off against a Class 1 Demonic Beast.