The summoner smiles, a glimmer of pride in her dark eyes.
"Tersiflare is a force to be reckoned with," she says. "But he is only as powerful as his summoner allows."
"I am Franz Dadref, and I wanted to thank you for your invaluable help," Franz Dadref flashes his best smile and steps in front of Welze, extending his hand to the pink-haired woman.
Welze, pushed aside, is hurt by her friend's attitude as he completely ignores her to focus his attention on the beautiful Xiaikai Frolich.
The woman almost looks at the blonde with disdain. "You should be concerned about your companion instead of wasting time with introductions," the summoner points to the agonizing Jarica Fluebert on the ground.
Welze realizes that her injured classmate is indeed the priority.
She turns behind her and sees Gallo kneeling, trying to help in some way.
The blue-haired girl rushes over to the two of them.
Jarica continues to agonize, with foam spilling from her mouth.
"How is she?" Welze asks almost stupidly.
"Very bad," the silver-haired boy responds without mincing words.
Jarica coughs loudly, and mucus and saliva stain her clothes.
Among the fluids, there's also blood. The blue-haired girl realizes that the situation is dire.
Gallo has a backpack with him. He places it on the ground and opens it, searching for something inside.
After a short while, he pulls out a vial.
"What's that?" the Wizard asks curiously.
"An antidote for poison. I've been carrying it with me recently... But she was bitten by a spider, I don't know if it will work," he responds doubtfully.
"Do we have any other options?"
"No, let's hope it works," Gallo says, pouring the contents of the antidote directly into Jarica's mouth.
The brown-haired woman swallows all the liquid to the last drop.
After that, she begins to have strong convulsions.
"Argh... AH... Argh!" she cries out while writhing.
"Fluebert!" Gallo tries to hold her still, and Welze helps him.
Then Jarica loses consciousness again.
Gallo quickly checks for a heartbeat.
"She's still alive..." After confirming a pulse, he reassures Welze, who has a terrified expression, even though his voice conveys uncertainty about the woman's fate.
Welze Juble doesn't have a close relationship with Jarica Fleubert, but she is a very sensitive girl, and tears begin to flow from her face.
"I-if only Strauss were here..."
Strauss is a capable cleric with healing magic and alchemical skills.
With his abilities and intelligence, he would surely be able to heal their classmate.
Gallo leans in close to Welze's ear and whispers softly, making sure not to be heard.
"This antidote was made by Wagner." Upon hearing Gallo's revelation, Welze's face lights up, and she almost wants to rejoice, but Gallo silences her with a gesture to be quiet.
"I don't want Franz to know."
Welze is aware that there's bad blood between Franz and Strauss.
She can't fathom how Gallo Schrecken has potions made by Strauss.
Did he steal them? Did he buy them? She can't help but worry about her dear friend.
Despite her curiosity, she decides not to ask further questions.
The important thing is that if Strauss Wagner really created the antidote, it should be able to help Jarica.
"What's the situation?" In the meantime, Xiaikai has approached the three, with Franz following her like a little puppy.
"I administered an antidote, but it's not specific, and I'm not sure if it's suitable for the venom of these spiders," Gallo informs her.
"It's likely not enough, but it might still slow down the venom's effects," says the woman with pink hair with a serious expression, showing more experience than the others. Welze can see that she's older, even though there's only about two years' difference, but it feels like much more. The woman exudes confidence and self-assuredness, and Welze sees in her what she aspires to be.
"Frolich, do you know anything about healing magic?" Franz asks, looking for any excuse to strike up a conversation.
The question seems to annoy the woman, as if she took it as an insult to belittle her.
"Unfortunately, that's not within my skill set," she admits.
"I didn't mean to offend you. If I gave that impression, I apologize," Franz tries to make amends, looking embarrassed.
"Dadref, right?" the woman addresses the blonde, and he nods in confirmation.
"I don't need your apologies. I don't need anything from you," her words sound final.
"Did I do something to offend you?" he asks, surprised by Xiaikai's harsh words.
The woman with pink hair clicks her tongue in annoyance. "You're supposed to be a rank A, right? According to your academic results, you should be at the top of the academy. Yet, in this situation, you've shown complete incompetence, putting all your comrades in danger," she voices her harsh thoughts.
Franz is shocked by the Empress's criticism.
"Are you trying to impress me? I admire skill and intelligence. I didn't see them in you. If I hadn't arrived, you would all be dead. But that was just luck. Next time, I won't be there," Xiaikai is very direct in her communication.
Welze doesn't like that she's talking bad about Franz, but she has to admit that the woman has some valid points.
Plus, she's relieved to know that she's not interested in the blonde at all.
"We were taken by surprise! It was an ambush! Tell her, Gallo! We suddenly found ourselves in a dungeon!" wounded in his pride, Franz tries to offer some explanations.
Gallo confirms his classmate's words with a nod. "It's true, we didn't have time to prepare."
"Do you think inexperience and carelessness are justifications? In an environment like this, they're equivalent to death," the woman remains unmoved by their justifications.
With a hint of sadness in her eyes, which Welze manages to catch for a moment, the woman continues to speak.
"There is nothing more precious than one's own life."
Welze is drawn to those black eyes, much in the same way she loses herself in Strauss's gaze.
Besides her beauty, the woman is surrounded by an aura that Welze can't quite explain.
The Wizard thinks that despite her toughness, Xiaikai Frolich is a very sensitive person. She can't help but find her cool, and she feels a growing admiration for her.
"I'm sorry... I'll try to be more careful," mutters Franz Dadref.
"I hope so," she responds.
"F-fortunately... we have your guidance now, Frolich! What should we do?" Welze asks the summoner.
"I won't be coming with you," The Empress chills them with her response.
Welze tries to protest. From her perspective, it doesn't make sense to split up in this situation.
Unity is strength, especially in a dangerous place like this.
"But—"
"In the direction I came from, you'll find a man from your year. He's a cleric, and I believe he has healing magic for the poison in your companion's body." Xiaikai doesn't let Welze finish speaking and points in the direction she came from with her finger.
The blue-haired girl startles. Could it be Strauss Wagner?
Franz has a similar reaction but in a negative way.
He wouldn't want to meet the man again, but he's aware of how useful he could be in this situation.
Gallo, on the other hand, gives a half-smile.
"Why don't you come with us? We're inexperienced, as you've mentioned," Gallo asks.
"I have my own objectives to consider, and I want to stay away from that man," the pink-haired woman cryptically replies and seems almost worried.
"Who are you referring to?" Welze asks, curious.
"It's not important, and I don't want to talk about it," Xiaikai cuts short. "Instead, I noticed your Wizard skills. They will be very useful here, and you did well earlier in using Tersiflare's flames to amplify your fire spells."
Welze is thrilled at the thought of being praised by this skilled and charismatic woman.
However, the woman quickly dampens the mage's enthusiasm.
"However, I saw you waste your mana points, of which you have few. In battle, you must plan the use of your spells and avoid unnecessary MP consumption unless absolutely necessary," she admonishes, as a teacher would.
"Y-you're right... but I do have some potions to restore mana," Welze says embarrassed, pulling out a blue potion from her bag. "I imagine summoning also costs quite a few MP. Do you want one?" Welze offers her a vial, as if she wants to thank her for helping them.
Xiaikai looks at the potion with suspicion.
"Who gave this to you?" she asks.
"My friend who is an alchemist prepared it for me," Welze replies.
Strauss had given it to her so she could practice her magic.
"Strauss Wagner?" the pink-haired woman immediately guesses the producer of the liquid.
"Yes, how did you know?" Welze is surprised that Xiaikai knows her friend.
"I appreciate the offer, but I can't accept it," the summoner refuses.
Welze is a bit saddened by the refusal, but she doesn't feel like insisting.
The tone of the woman doesn't allow for further discussion.
She looks at Welze for a moment as if she feels pity for her.
The pink-haired woman takes out a knife that appears to be for hunting and moves away from the three towards a nearby carcass.
Xiaikai then begins to use the knife to dig into one of the spider corpses.
"What are you doing?" Franz asks, drawn to the summoner as if she were a magnet.
"You don't even know this?" she replies irritably.
Not afraid to get dirty, she inserts her arm behind the spider's head where she has opened a hole.
Immediately, she pulls her arm out with a translucent sphere.
The woman looks at it with satisfaction.
"Magicore."
Franz and Welze simultaneously startle, remembering Professor Sfanzeen's lessons.
"Since I saved your lives, as payment, all the magicore belongs to me," the woman says with a smile.