"You'll hold them?" Eldros asked, his eyes flickering.
Everyone was tense as they watched the green hyenas run forward, an aura of viciousness surrounding them.
"What are they doing here? They should only be found deep in the Wilderness and not here! These monsters will eat anything, including our clothes!" Kat hissed.
But the way Eldros saw it, even though he could sense the nervousness from them, the squad didn't seem to be in full panic mode as they watched.
Jarek nodded to them and took a step forward, her eyes narrowed on the approaching monsters. She nodded at Eldros and repeated calmly, "I'll take them."
Before Eldros could ask her how she would do such a thing, an aura of rippling wave pressure exploded out of her so strong that Eldros took several steps back and his hand shot to the metal disc on his waist.
She's six star?
He was right with his assessment. He wouldn't be able to take her!
But even then, he could see more monsters coming down, following behind—a whole tide of them. And they all carried the dark energy of the Noxium corruption!
No way she would be able to stop that many.
Eldros's hand did go to his waist then and he gripped the handle of his iron disc. His face tightened and his eyes filled with coldness.
But Jarek didn't say anything else as she exploded forward, covering the distance so fast that Eldros didn't see her move. The only thing she left behind were strings of afterimages.
Within a single breath, she was in front of the first hyena. She thrust her hand forward and the air rippled with clawing energy that made the air twist.
A ripple of shockwave passed forward and slammed into the first wave of the hyenas.
Vibration!
Eldros's eyes filled with greed as he watched. Since he came to this new world, he hadn't had the chance to see much of a Magus fight. In fact, he had woken up in a ruined city and all he had done was try to survive.
The mysteries of magic had only been cruel to him. Even the fight he entered wasn't something he could marvel at.
But for a few breaths, as he watched her, he saw a Magus fight.
The first wave of the monsters exploded immediately, their bones cracking, shattering into splinters.
Jarek grinned, her hand raised in a gesture, and a wall of shaking energy of vibration appeared in front of her just in time as another wave slammed into it, shattering their heads against it. The backlash caused them to bark and growl in pain.
Without waiting, she raised her hand and the bloody shield folded into a ball that she threw. And when it hit, the ground shook as the wave of energy was released, tearing flesh into shreds.
"Have you seen enough? She said she could handle it!" Scar said as he gestured hurriedly for him to fall back.
Eldros nodded and, without saying anything, he followed behind.
It was then that he truly understood Jarek's strategy and why the squad hadn't panicked at all.
As they fell back, only Scar, Kat, and Eldros ran. Stepper stayed behind and began to cut the trees in the surroundings, swinging his hammer as if it was made of plastic. He soon made a wall of trees on either side.
Next, he slammed his hammer on the ground and his eyes narrowed. Green energy flared in his eyes and the ground rumbled as he made walls of earth rise up on each side of the fallen trees, creating something of a narrow tunnel.
Then, he fell back a few paces and waited.
Next was Kat. She removed something that resembled chalk from her bag, but it left shimmering light behind as she began to draw a series of angles and shapes on the ground.
Next, she placed different jars of powders on the ground beside her. Then she waited, sitting down.
It remained Eldros and Scar.
Scar grunted and gestured, "You stay there."
It was a long way from Kat but still a reasonable distance. Eldros looked at him and then, without speaking, he waited there. He was beginning to understand what was happening.
"You won't have to do much." Scar's tone was filled with doubt as he said that. "Just try to hold on for five minutes."
And Eldros was immediately reminded that he was the one who didn't want to let Jarek bring him on the trip to harvest the seeds. But he didn't say anything.
Scar then turned without waiting for a reply and climbed the nearest tree—a very tall one.
Eldros's heart was beating fast.
This wasn't the first time he would be killing or fighting for his life, but he always liked doing it on his own terms after he had weighed the pros and cons.
But still, if a fight comes, a threat, then he had no choice but to fight.
So he held his disc by the handle and his eyes were focused entirely on the fight ahead. Soon, he calmed down. "She won't last that long."
Even though Jarek said she would handle it, she was only a single person and the monsters were numerous. Besides, she didn't have infinite energy.
Before long, her whole clothes were splattered with blood. Bits of mushy flesh and bones surrounded her, but the monsters still continued to throw themselves at her madly.
She also wasn't using fancy Arcana Arts again. Now, she covered her hands with vibrating energy and then fought the monsters by throwing punches.
No one else spoke. The only sound was from the fighting and the monsters.
"...Six stars are really impressive... If I'm facing her, how can I kill her?" Eldros was analyzing the fight.
Before long, she suddenly raised her hand and then seemed to send her last energy into her next blow that caused the monsters in front of her to explode.
Then she turned around and ran back.