Almost a full hour had passed since the dark, panther-like beast Kaliyah had caught the scent of Jerome, Sigrid, and Oliver. The beast crawled slowly and silently, fusing with the shadows of the forest, before suddenly freezing in place.
A quiet, emotionless voice came from atop the beast. "They're camping in an open field? Interesting… Normally, it would be a poor choice, but against us, it actually works in their favor."
Kaliyah, with its crimson-red eyes like pools of fresh blood, looked ahead through the trees. "There are two tents, separated by some distance. I suggest you take the one on the right—I smell two different scents there. The healer and the woman mage will have lower defenses than the black-skinned man. I'll leave them to you," the beast said in an eerily quiet voice.
"Oh… Are you implying that I can't kill him in a single attack?" Theron, the scarred man lying on Kaliyah's back, retorted.
"Yes, exactly that. I'll shred him before he even feels pain—I'll have his head in my jaws."
"You sometimes scare me, you know?" Theron attempted to fake fear in his voice, but it still came out flat. "But I agree, let's do it your way."
Kaliyah snarled, its dark fur standing on end. "I'll have the wolves and remaining trolls take the perimeter. If something happens, they'll surround them."
"You're as careful as ever."
"Hmph, better to be careful than careless like you…"
Kaliyah then took the first step out of the forest. Now in the open field with Theron on its back, it moved even more stealthily. From the left and right sides came the frenzied wolves, with a few trolls mixed among them. Strangely, they moved without making any sound—only the billowing wind could be heard.
Meanwhile, Jerome, Sigrid, and Oliver were much closer than their enemies had anticipated. During her travels with Oliver, Sigrid had developed a highly sought-after spell of Dark magic. Night Shroud was a spell that allowed its user to fuse with the surrounding darkness of the night while standing still, creating a small radius within which even allies could be hidden. Only another dark mage of very high skill could sense or notice the people hidden within the Night Shroud.
Now hidden within the Night Shroud were Sigrid, who stood at the center, with Oliver on her left and Jerome on her right. The space was quite small to conserve Sigrid's mana, so they were huddled closely together. Sigrid was also holding two dark vortexes, which slowly spun and condensed into smaller and smaller sizes.
"Useful trick you've got here," Jerome murmured quietly, just loud enough for Sigrid and Oliver to hear. He was genuinely surprised as he peered through the shroud into the forest.
"Shut up, I'm concentrating," Sigrid spat. She not only had to keep the Night Shroud intact with three people hidden within it, but she also had to prepare her spell for the ambush. This required an exceptional level of mana control and an unbelievably sharp concentration.
Oliver, seeing their exchange, simply shook his head and kept quiet. His hand rested on Sigrid's shoulder, slowly feeding her a steady stream of mana that not only replenished her energy but also calmed her, helping her maintain focus.
Jerome turned his head slightly to look at Sigrid's focused face as she double-cast high-level spells simultaneously. Her perfectly arched eyebrows drew attention to her mesmerizing emerald eyes. Even to Jerome, who had seen and been with many women, Sigrid stood well above the rest. Not only was she extremely talented and strong, but Sigrid was also a woman of bewitching beauty, capable of driving any man insane with desire. Jerome's eyes trailed down from her mesmerizing face to her captivating body. Despite the elegant dark mage's robe hiding most of her curves, Sigrid's perky ass tempted Jerome with its voluptuous allure. The juicy roundness of Sigrid's backside drew Jerome's gaze, quickening his pulse with primal hunger. "What a shame her long legs are hidden, not to mention that perky ass of hers," Jerome thought, imagining Sigrid in a different set of clothes. "Fuck, this is not the time… But I almost can't control myself being so close to her… I could just knock her little Oliver out cold and—" Jerome's fantasies abruptly stopped as he saw the beast slowly crawl out of the woods.
"That's them," Oliver quietly confirmed to Sigrid and Jerome.
"Not gonna lie, I thought our boy just got scared and over-blew this… but I'll admit, they look strong," Jerome laughed nervously his dark eyes now focused on the enemy.
Sigrid bit her lip, hearing Jerome shit-talk even in such a situation while she was double-casting with Oliver's help was almost enough to break her concentration.
The trio, hidden by the Night Shroud, focused entirely on the cautiously prowling beast. A moment later, they saw the wolves, with a few trolls exit the woods and form a perimeter as if trying to block all of their escape routes. Now in the open field, Oliver, Sigrid, and Jerome had a perfect view of their enemies and their positions.
"Is your spell ready?" Jerome inquired, his deep voice finally sounding serious.
"Sigrid needs a bit more time. We're actually lucky they're closing in so slowly, thinking we're asleep," Oliver somberly answered.
The frown on Sigrid's face deepened, her expression darkening as she felt Oliver increase the flow of his mana. His hand glowed with a greenish light as he grasped Sigrid's shoulder.
"I'm finished," Sigrid stuttered through clenched teeth, raising her hands, which held two small whirling balls of dark magic. At the same time, the Night Shroud that concealed them began to shrink. "I can't hold this much longer…."
"We're ready, fire it, Sig—" Oliver's words were cut off by a deafening shout.
Jerome's deep voice rumbled like thunder, halting Sigrid's movements. "HOLD IT! Hold it a bit longer, let them come in closer."
"What? She can't do it anymore!" Oliver shouted in slight panic.
"Yeah, she can, and she will," Jerome said, squeezing closer to Sigrid as the Night Shroud continued to shrink.