Chapter 736: Book of Enhancement [1]

Chapter 736: Book of Enhancement [1]

Tik, Tik—!

I checked the time, 2:22 P.M.

“Ukh—!”

Leaning against a tree, I held onto my shoulder while waiting for my energy and wounds to recover.

‘This is rather troublesome.’

Looking around, I knew I wasn’t safe. I was still being tracked by that weird skill.

‘How do I even get rid of it…?’

This was the first time that I had encountered something like this and was rightfully confused. But it wasn’t the skill that truly bothered me.

No, what bothered me was something else entirely.

‘…The information that I’ve received is wrong. The Madhound is a lot stronger than I originally anticipated.’

He felt incredibly suffocating. That was just him alone.

With the twin added, I had no choice but to run back.

But that wasn’t the problem. The problem was that he was no longer alone. They were in a group.

It was impossible for me to ambush them or employ ‘guerrilla’ tactics like before.

‘Did I bite more than I can chew?’

I had never been fully confident in taking them all on alone, but it wasn’t as if I believed it impossible. I thought there was a chance, and that I could use it to push myself far enough to break into the next tier.

But…

“…Maybe I really did bite more than I can chew.”

They were a lot stronger than I anticipated and researched. And not by a little.

‘I really need to fire whoever gave me the information on them.’

Pushing myself away from the tree, I glanced over my shoulder. For the moment, I was safe, but I knew it was only a matter of time before they closed in and cut off every escape route.

Running was an option, but it wouldn’t solve the problem.

I was in a position where my every movement was marked. All that running would do was buy me time.

I needed to win, not run.

‘And in order to win, I need to figure out what is up with the Madhound. How is it possible that I can’t trace his movements at all?’

The main reason why I struggled so much back then was because I couldn’t pinpoint the Madhount, not with [Mana Sense] and not with the Malanchony.

‘Now that I think about it, I didn’t mention the Melanchony to the Marquis. I hope he doesn’t complain later.’

I didn’t think he would since I had already explained my situation with Pebble.

However, I could see a situation where the Marquis could complain. It was also why I made sure to hide its presence using [Veil of Deceit].

‘With neither Mana Sense, the Melanchony, nor the threads picking up its presence, how am I supposed to find him?’

The Madhound was my current priority.

The moment I found him and did something about him, I was confident in turning the entire situation in my favour. It was for that reason that it was crucial that I understood how he managed to escape all of my senses.

But what…?

What could that solution be?

Rustle~

As the leaves rustled, a black cat slipped out from the bushes. I had been aware of its presence for some time, so I wasn’t startled. It seemed to be in good shape, though its form was just a touch more transparent than usual.

“I’ve accomplished my task.”

“…Mhm. Good job.”

I paused.

“How many did you get?”

“The two weaker ones.”

“…I see.”

If two were gone, then it meant that there were only six people.

‘It’s two versus six. It does sound better than before, but it’s still somewhat troublesome. I need to—’

“….!?”

Every hair on my body stood on end as I sensed danger closing in from behind me.

I reacted without thinking, bones popping as I twisted my body, feeling something sear across my stomach. It only grazed me, but the pain was sharp and immediate.

I stumbled onto the ground before looking around.

My eyes fixed on a distant figure, its features hidden beneath a dark hood. It stood unmoving, staring straight at me, and under that gaze, my breathing grew slightly heavier.

This is it…

He was within range.

If [Mana Sense], the [Melanchony], and the threads failed, then there was only one other option left.

‘…The fifth level of emotive magic.’

So long as I used that, then I could keep track of its movements.

And that’s what I did.

I activated the fifth level of emotive magic.

The moment I did, the world around me shifted, and colourful orbs flickered into view from every direction. Within them, I saw figures closing in.

‘It’s just as I suspected. They are trying to encircle me.’

My eyes narrowed as I scanned the scene. The orbs revealed the movements of every person, making their actions clear. But they didn’t matter. What truly mattered was locating the Madhound.

I redirected my attention towards the spot he was in.

He was still there.

And—

‘I see it!’

His emotions. I could see them.

His most prominent one was the red orb, slightly bigger than the other emotions, as he stared at me.

‘Looks like he’s annoyed.’

I smiled faintly, muscles coiling with tension as I fixed my gaze on him. Seemingly aware of my attention, he met my eyes with a cold stare, drawing his hand forward. A bow materialized before him, and a surge of powerful mana rippled through the air.

A golden arrow formed on his bow as his clothes fluttered in the wind.

Time seemed to come to a standstill as we stared at each other.

I licked my lips and spread the threads around me, ready to strike the instant he moved. And just as the tension peaked…

Swoosh!

A rush of wind swept past, and his figure disappeared from view.

“Huh?”

In that instant, he vanished from my sight. I scanned the area frantically, but he was gone. Completely gone. Even his orbs had disappeared.

It was as if…

He had suddenly vanished from the world.

‘How is this possible?!’

My mind raced with all sorts of thoughts. However, not even a split second after I started thinking about them, alarm bells rang as something streaked past the area next to me, shattering the illusion that I had created.

A pair of eyes locked onto my real self shortly after that.

“….!?”

I spun around, and my gaze met the Madhound’s. He was there again, perched atop another tree, silently watching me.

My breathing stopped at the sight of him.

That’s…

His body. It had no orbs at all.

Nothing. I couldn’t see a single thing inside his body. Not even one orb.

‘How is this possible?’

Did he have no emotions at all? Was this why I couldn’t see anything…?

‘No, that’s not it.’

My mind quickly sorted through all my thoughts as a possibility crossed my mind.

‘It’s not that he doesn’t have any emotions, but it’s more like he shuts down his emotions whenever he’s hunting.’

This wasn’t an absurd concept.

It wasn’t my first time seeing something like this. In fact, I had even developed a sort of skill that was similar to this in order to clear my mind of all sorts of distracting thoughts.

Swoosh, swoosh—!

Several more streaks shot at me from all sorts of directions.

Just barely dodging them, I could feel the sweat pooling down the side of my face. Things couldn’t continue like this. I was being rendered completely helpless. I was going at their pace.

However, in order to turn things around, I needed to figure out Madhound’s weakness.

…Or at least, find him.

‘Yeah, but before that, I probably need to handle them…’

I looked ahead.

I counted the number of figures that were headed my way.

One, two, three, four…

“Hm?”

I suddenly paused.

Four?

What about the fifth?

I glanced around frantically, but just like the Madhound, they were gone. Activating [Mana Sense], I was met with even more shock. I couldn’t sense them either.

‘What the hell is going on?!’

Not just one, but two…?

Something about the situation wasn’t adding up.

It was unfortunate that I had no way to assess the situation. The temperature spiked by several degrees, warping the air around me. A crackling sound echoed as the ground beneath me began to freeze.

Domain!

Tzzz—!

Steam coiled into the air, making each breath heavier and more laboured.

My eyes narrowed, and my attention fell on the four figures that I could see. And even then…

Something about them felt off.

Taking into account the mana that lingered in the air, alongside the initial pressure that I felt coming from the ice and the fire, I slowly began to have a sinking feeling in my mind.

‘Pebble. Stay put for now.’

Communicating with Pebble, I continued to remain alert.

Even without sight, I could still track them using [Mana Sense] and emotive magic, which I had now deactivated.

‘Not yet…’

I needed to assess the situation more.

I needed more information.

It was silent.

The surroundings were unnervingly silent, steam curling lazily into the air around me. The temperature kept dropping, and my movements began to feel sluggish. From beneath my feet, a dark film started to creep outward.

At the same time, beads of sweat rolled down the sides of my face, my hair clinging to my skin as I scanned the area.

The silence persisted.

But not for long.

Swoosh—

The air twisted!

A golden streak tore through the mist, cutting through it while shooting right for my exposed back.

I spun to evade it, but just as I moved, a massive shadow loomed in front of me.

“Haa—!”

It was a large axe.

BANG!

I brought my hand up, threads shooting up as the attack collided with the treads.

“———!”

To my utter shock and horror, instead of meeting the threads, the weapon phased right through them.

The only thing I could do in that moment was imagine a certain orb.

“Ukah!”

I staggered back, a sharp pain radiating across my front as I glanced down to see a deep gash, blood steadily dripping from it.

I looked up, four streaks of gold.

A wall of fire.

Ice.

And…

The massive axe.

BANG, BANG—

I tried to defend, but I wasn’t able to. Everything was too fast and too sudden for me.

Everything…

It was messed up.

I couldn’t fight at all.

They were simply far stronger than I had anticipated. And not just by a little bit. Their strength almost seemed to be of a higher tier than they reflected. How was this possible?!

“Cough…!”

Before I knew it, I was lying down on the ground.

Tik, Tik—

The ticking of the clock still echoed in my ears.

I felt the cold, damp ground beneath me as the vapour began to dissipate. Several figures emerged before me, all gazing down, with Captain Albas at the forefront, frowning as he looked at me.

“…Is that it?” He asked, looking rather disappointed. “I expected a lot more from you. Were you holding back? Where is your Emotive Magic? As far as I’m aware, this should be your strongest ability. Why didn’t you use them? Or are you waiting to use them now…? This can’t be the full extent of your abilities, right? Did you really think you could beat us with just this much?”

His words stung a bit.

He was right to some extent, but at the same time…

“It… doesn’t really matter.”

I fixed my gaze towards the distance.

Towards a certain figure.

I smiled then.

“…I only did this to get some information. While I wanted more, this is enough for now.”

“Eh? What so—”

My vision swam, and my surroundings changed.

Tik, Tik—

“Ukh—!”

Leaning against a tree, I held onto my shoulder while waiting for my energy and wounds to recover.

At the same time, I checked the time.

2:22 P.M.

‘…I knew it.’

Something was really wrong.

Their strength made no sense at all.