There was a saying: no thief leaves empty-handed!
He had only reached this place after risking his life. If he simply turned and left, wouldn't that be a waste of Sinbad's 'Wonderful Hospitality'?
Leon activated his Elementium Vision and began to scan the cave.
Among the odds and ends piled up like a mountain, Leon found only a few items he considered useful. For these Ghost Nannies trapped in the swamp, opportunities to find good loot were rare, so although it seemed like there was a lot of 'treasure' gathered here, only a handful was truly valuable.
Seven to eight high-quality blood sacs, which looked like red spheres; a broken piece of magical equipment, so degraded that no one could tell what it originally was; a fist-sized metallic ore glowing a strange blue; a peculiar white stone the size of an egg… Without a second thought, he grabbed everything and stuffed it into his waist pocket.
All of these items were precisely picked by Leon, as he could sense the faint Elementium ripples they emanated. As for the other dirty and messy items, he simply ignored them. After all, he was in the middle of a life-or-death run. Carrying too much would greatly reduce his chances of escape.
As the hidden nest of the Ghost Nannies, there was more than one tunnel leading to this cave. Clearly, their leader, Sinbad, knew the saying, "A cunning rabbit has three burrows." However, this clever arrangement worked to Leon's advantage, as a part-time thief. He took a brief moment to get his bearings, then squeezed into a damp tunnel leading away from the muddy lake.
Some time later, a strangely human-like head emerged from a small muddy pond in the swamp. As the viscous mud slid slowly off, Leon exposed only the upper part of his head, silently observing the distant movement.
There should have originally been a few Ghost Nannies living in this muddy pond, but obviously, they had been drawn by the massive battle happening in the distance, responding to Sinbad's furious calls and joining the fight. This allowed Leon to move freely, with no one around to oppose him. He took a deep breath and began to climb out of the pond.
While the battle raged in the distance under the thick, sticky mud, the only signs were the roars and cries of the Ghost Nannies and the occasional bursting bubbles on the surface. Leon never wanted to see that terrifying little Lolita again. He moved away from the fight and swam toward the banks of the muddy pond.
He bet that the Ghost Nannies were struggling under the strange, unpredictable spatial attacks of Lucy!
"Advance~~"
But just as he was nearing the edge of the pond and preparing to climb out, an explosion occurred in the muddy water behind him, revealing a Giant Crocodile with its mouth wide open, lunging at Leon.
"BITE!"
Everything happened so suddenly, and the hostile environment provided perfect cover for the Giant Crocodile, so until the moment it attacked, the only warning Leon received was a sudden beep from the Chip.
After a series of rolls and twists, Leon barely avoided the deadly bite by mere millimeters. The massive mouth, full of sharp teeth, snapped shut next to his waist, creating a small breeze carrying a putrid stench that made Leon's hair stand on end.
Had he not been alerted by the Chip, just one bite from this ferocious Giant Crocodile would have easily snapped his body in half. If that had happened, all his great ambitions would have been in vain.
Seizing the opportunity when his enemy missed its attack, Leon scrambled on his hands and knees and rushed to the edge of the pond. He turned and quickly summoned a Fire Arrow, aiming at the giant mouth that was opening for a second strike.
"Zosh~~"
The 'Fire Arrow' spell, which had been in the process of solidification, was finally ready, allowing him to complete his attack smoothly.
"Bang~~"
The Fire Element spell exploded, engulfing the entire head of the Giant Crocodile.
The fiery blast was followed by a rain of shattered teeth and chunks of flesh around the pond's edge. Writhing in intense pain, the Giant Crocodile's body thrashed wildly, creating a mud wave several meters high and turning the surrounding area into an even messier mire.
The main reason Leon chose Fire Arrow instead of Fireball as his first long-range offensive spell was because it also dealt physical damage upon impact. This trait was especially significant when dealing with wild creatures that had high resistance to Elementium-based attacks.
Of course, Leon would never admit it, but the real reason he gave up on learning the Fireball spell was the extremely difficult 54 Magical Syllables he would have to memorize and correctly chant to cast the spell.
Returning to his current situation, Leon's attack had obviously exposed his position.
"Oh. So you were hiding there! Don't even think about escaping from me again…"
A shrill female voice suddenly came from afar. Within her protective barrier, the fearsome Lucy struggled to rise out of the muddy lake, letting out a furious roar in Leon's direction.
Unfortunately for her, the next moment a long whip made of some native vine shot out from the water, wrapping tightly around Lucy's invisible barrier. Thus, the little Lolita could only show half of her body, getting stuck in the pond, unable to break free from the water's surface.
Countless Ghost Nannies kept battering the protective barrier like wild beasts. However, their sharp claws and aggressive attacks were futile against the Barrier, so more and more Ghost Nannies threw themselves at it, trying to use their combined body weight to drag that filthy human, who had killed so many of their sisters, back into the muddy lake.
Like dumplings being dropped into boiling water, one after another, the Ghost Nannies kept swimming around the invisible barrier, stepping over the bodies of their allies and leaping out of the water, recklessly striking at Lucy as she struggled to free herself. The horde's relentless actions only made Lucy even angrier.
No longer holding back, countless visible spatial cracks appeared, slicing through everything that approached the barrier. Whenever a Ghost Nanny came into contact with these spatial cracks, whether it was an arm or its strong, resilient body, whatever touched the cracks was cut in half, sending sticky black blood splattering everywhere.
Even so, the Ghost Nannies continued to rush in, wave after wave, never showing any sign of stopping.
Not only that, but even Sinbad's Giant Lizard charged at Lucy. Using its tail, it slammed against the indestructible barrier, forcing most of its body to sink back into the muddy water again. The massive impact transferred to Lucy, causing blood to spurt from her nose and mouth.
Thus, a fierce battle once again erupted between Lucy and the Ghost Nannies, who swarmed like a horde of wasps. Meanwhile, Leon was trapped in a perilous fight with a Giant Crocodile.
Although his Fire Arrow had severely injured the Giant Crocodile's mouth and created a bloody mess inside, it was still a ferocious demon with immense vitality. This type of damage was far from fatal. As a result, the furious Giant Crocodile channeled all its pain into rage, directing it at Leon as it pulled its massive, scale-covered body from the mud and launched continuous attacks at him.
Fearing the Giant Crocodile's 'Slowing Ray,' Leon ran tirelessly to save his life. Most of these swamp demons had Earth Elementium abilities, and with their thick hides, powerful bodies, sharp claws, and pointed teeth, fighting them in this muddy swamp was asking for death.
Meanwhile, thanks to a warning from the Chip, Leon discovered that there were some underwater creatures sneaking toward him.
Damn it. Why did he decide to come to a nest of these damned demons?
Muttering and cursing under his breath, Leon followed the Chip's instructions, narrowly avoiding the relentless attacks of the horrifying Giant Crocodile behind him.
Rather than calling his current location the lake's edge, it was more like a narrow, poorly made strip of land between two muddy lakes. The ground was soft, and every step was a struggle, as his feet kept sinking into the mud. Thus, escaping these giant crocodiles in such an environment was extremely difficult. Too bad he couldn't fly like Lucy.
At this very moment, it was too late to regret never trying to learn the Wind Element Levitation Spell. Leon pushed forward, doing his best to stumble his way to safety. Watching the swift approach of the sneaky aquatic beasts, his heart was now full of misery. He had activated the Magic Talisman in his hand several times, but it just didn't seem to have any effect.
Under more normal circumstances, a Mage's deterrent effect was enormous against these swamp demons. But the aggression of these demons had been heightened by the scent of blood, making it very difficult to fend them off.
A foul wind brushed against his face.
"Boom~~"
The water's surface erupted as two Giant Crocodiles leaped simultaneously, their enormous jaws wide open, each capable of swallowing Leon whole in a single bite.
"BITE!"
Staring at the massive jaws that were now within reach, seeing the gleaming, jagged teeth and the throats leading to a digestive purgatory… there was no way he could save himself from this dire situation.
Just as Leon closed his eyes, bracing for death, something suddenly slammed into him, and he was lifted into the air.
The heart-stopping sound of the Giant Crocodiles' massive jaws snapping shut followed, but Leon once again narrowly escaped their bloody maws. He opened his eyes when he heard their furious roars coming from far behind. He was flying just an inch above the water's surface at an incredible speed.
"What was happening?"
His heart was pounding, full of fear and uncertainty about his current situation. Leon could clearly see something reflected on the murky water's surface beneath him, and he heard the sound of wings flapping above him.
He craned his neck, struggling to see what was above him. To his surprise, an enormous humanoid bat was carrying him while flying strenuously.
Yes, it was struggling to fly!
This humanoid bat had a pair of massive fire-red leather wings, each about 4 to 5 meters long, but a rather slim and small body. Of course, its wings could carry it perfectly well if it were flying alone. But flying along with Leon clearly exceeded its strength.
A new type of swamp demon? Of course not. Leon could sense a faint magical aura and a familiar scent emanating from its body. With the help of the Chip, and by seeing its strange but familiar face, a certain girl came to Leon's mind.
"Bleia?! The Vampire Pussy?"
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