The air was thick with the sharp, acrid scent of burnt lightning, and the charred remains of the Boltstinger lay scattered across the ground. The heat from the flames that still lingered filled the air.
The once-glorious carriage now lay in ruins, a large hole gaping in its side, the door hanging off its hinges, and its surface marked with countless small holes—signs of the Boltstinger's strikes and the slashes from its tail.
Cael and Rowan sat on the ground, cross-legged, gasping for breath, exhaustion written all over their faces.
Lilith sat quietly on a large rock, her whip still tightly gripped in her hand. She seemed shaken, though she remained composed. Vesper stood beside her, speaking in soft tones, offering either comfort or some quiet reminder.
Meanwhile, Maxwell, the coachman, gently stroked the last remaining horse, trying to calm it down.
Cael's head was pounding, his mind blank, unable to focus on anything except the relentless replay of what had just happened—he could still feel the raw, burning power of thunder and fire interwoven, powerful and searing.
[Thunderflame Spear]
When he released the spear, crackling with both lightning and fire, bold red text flashed onto the system screen.
"Thunderflame Spear", a powerful elemental attack that combines the dual forces of thunder and fire. The caster summons both energies to form a searing spear, which is then hurled at the target.
The spear seemed to come alive, narrowly avoiding the others and striking directly at the Queen Stinger, which was heavily guarded by the other Boltstingers.
It exploded on impact, sending out a wave of lightning and fire that quickly spread, instantly consuming everything in its path.
Cael watched as the system screen showed the Queen Stinger's "Energy Value" plummeting until it reached "0 VT."
The charred Queen Stinger hit the ground with a heavy thud, lifeless, no longer moving.
With the Queen Stinger's fall, the other Boltstingers seemed to lose their focus and plunged into chaos. They scattered, flying chaotically, some even colliding with each other, creating a scene of complete disorder.
Once a well-organized swarm with deadly precision, the Boltstingers were now completely out of control. They buzzed about like headless flies, their combat prowess gone.
A few Boltstingers instinctively tried to fight back, but their attacks were scattered and unorganized, easily dealt with by the group on the carriage.
After the intense battle, everyone was utterly exhausted. There was no talking; they sat in silence, some lost in thought, others resting, each processing the shock of what had just happened.
After some time to recover, Vesper suggested they continue on. Slowly, they got to their feet, ready to continue their journey.
With the carriage heavily damaged, and the remaining horse lacked the strength to pull it properly, slowing their progress.
To help speed things up, Cael and Rowan often got out to walk, pushing the carriage whenever they could.
After a long day of struggle, they finally reached the town of Virelia by the following evening.
This town was much livelier than their villages. As the group and their battered carriage entered the town center, the locals stopped what they were doing, their curious gazes fixed on them, whispering among themselves.
Cael scanned the crowd, noting that most of them had energy values around 3,000 VT, though a few individuals stood out with values reaching between 4,000 VT and 5,000 VT.
The crowd here was diverse, with not only the Thundaris, but also the Cyclonaris and the Fluidaris.
Walking beside the carriage, Rowan kept glancing around, captivated by the variety of goods displayed in the shops. His gaze often lingered on the unique items.
At that moment, Lilith, sitting inside the carriage, spoke up:
"Vesper, find us an inn. I need to rest."
"Certainly, miss. We'll head straight to the best inn in town." Vesper responded, then knocked on the side of the carriage to signal Maxwell, who was driving outside.
Hearing this, Rowan gently nudged Cael with his elbow and whispered:
"We can't afford the inn like that."
Cael frowned: "So, are we supposed to part ways with them here?"
Rowan shook his head, looking a bit helpless, clearly unsure of what to do next.
With no clear plan in mind, the two of them fell into silence, walking alongside the carriage.
Cael thought to himself that he'd find a chance to say goodbye once they reached the inn.
The carriage finally stopped in front of a two-story stone building. The inn's exterior was beautifully carved, and the large, ancient wooden archway gave off a sense of dignity and elegance. The building looked both impressive and steeped in history.
Vesper was the first to step out of the carriage, followed by him gently helping Lilith down. Lilith gracefully lifted her skirt and stepped down from the carriage with poise.
Cael stood to the side, hesitating. He was never good at these situations. Just as he was feeling awkward, Lilith, noticing their uncertainty, spoke up:
"You two should rest here tonight as well."
Her tone wasn't harsh, but it carried a slight command.
"But we…" Rowan was quickly interrupted by Vesper:
"You two wil share a room with Maxwell. Don't worry about the cost. If the miss says you're staying, we'll cover it."
Vesper finished, then quickly followed Lilith, who had already walked into the inn on her own.
Rowan and Cael exchanged glances, both unsure of how to respond.
"Come on, you two, help me settle the horse." Maxwell said, turning to them.
The two quickly snapped out of their hesitation and followed Maxwell to the side of the inn. They helped move the carriage off the tracks, then led the horse into the stable.
Once they were done, they followed Maxwell into the inn and up to their rooms.
As the young miss, Lilith had the best room in the inn, while Vesper, as the butler, had a separate room. Cael and Rowan, on the other hand, were shown to a simple three-person room, following Maxwell.
Inside the room, Cael looked around. It reminded him a bit of a motel room from the real world.
Compared to the rough conditions they'd endured the previous night in the wild, the neat wooden bed before him brought a sense of relief.
In the real world, he often went camping, usually to chase meteors, comets, lunar eclipses, or simply to admire the Milky Way. But camping in the real world was clearly much more comfortable—at least there were tents and sleeping bags.
Last night, however, he had to use the cloth bundle as a pillow, sleeping on the uneven ground, leaving his entire body sore.
But tonight, he could finally sleep in a proper bed. Everything felt so much more comfortable.
"This is amazing! Staying in such a nice inn!"
As soon as Maxwell left the room, Rowan immediately relaxed, turning to Cael with excitement:
"Good thing I recognized Miss Lilith's carriage, or we wouldn't have gotten so lucky!"
"Did you recognize her before you got on the carriage?"
It was only now that Cael realized Rowan wasn't as clueless as he had thought! He wasn't the type to get into someone's car without a second thought.
"Of course! I saw her two years ago at the Harvest Festival in Voltwood." Rowan said with excitement:
"She was riding in this same carriage, looking so impressive as she showed up. Too bad you weren't there that day... oh, right, with your memory loss, you probably don't remember."
"Is Lilith some kind of celebrity in Voltwood Village?" Cael asked.
"Definitely! Her father is the richest man in our village!" Rowan replied.
"I didn't know she was going to school this year... and that we'd run into her on the road. What are the chances?!" Rowan went on, already lying down on the bed.
"I'm exhausted today… we've been walking all day… I'm going to sleep now…" He muttered, his eyes half-closed, clearly drifting off.
Cael wasn't quite ready for bed yet. He wanted to freshen up first, so he grabbed his toiletries and stepped out of the room.
The inn's second floor was where the rooms were, while the tavern was downstairs.
As Cael Cael made his way downstairs, he saw Maxwell sitting at one of the tables with a wooden cup in hand, sipping on a drink.
"Cael, come sit with me!" Maxwell waved at him as soon as he noticed Cael.
Cael walked over and sat beside him, feeling a little uneasy. He wasn't much of a socializer. Aside from the occasional bar hangout with other storm chaser, he rarely found himself in places like this.
"You're quite something, Cael! You've got real potential! Your performance that day was incredible!"
Maxwell had clearly been drinking. His face was flushed, and his words had a strong scent of alcohol.
"Were you at the village hall that day too?" Cael asked.
"Hmm... I saw it. I saw everything…" Maxwell squinted, his voice dripping with amusement:
"You stole Sebastian's energy, didn't you? Am I right? Haha... I knew it! I could tell from the start!"
"Tell me… how did you figure out his energy core? Come on, whisper it to me..." Maxwell leaned in closer to Cael, his eyes unfocused, clearly drunk.
"You've had too much to drink. Maybe you should head back to the room and rest."
Cael replied, not wanting to continue the conversation. He stood up, ready to leave.
"But when you absorbed my energy yesterday, you must've felt it too, right?"
Maxwell's voice suddenly dropped, his tone shifting to one of seriousness, as if he had sobered up in an instant. He leaned closer and lowered his voice, said.
Cael stopped and slowly sat back down, quietly listening.
Maxwell looked at him with a serious expression:"I carry both thunder and fire energy. I'm a Elemental-Hybrid."
Cael didn't reply immediately. He simply stared at Maxwell, processing what he'd just heard.
After a brief pause, Maxwell continued:
"As Elemental-Hybrids, we're born with two types of elemental energy. So, when someone absorbs our energy, they're actually taking in both elements at the same time."