
Myrese couldn't explain it, but in that moment, she felt a strange sense of relief wash over her. After having been alone for so long, she had found two people who genuinely cared for her, and she decided right then and there that she wasn't about to let them go without a fight.
"What's this? A sorceress and the Traveler?" Mr. Vales sneered, eyeing Talia with newfound interest. "You've picked up quite the entourage, haven't you, Myrese?"
"Myrese, come on, let's go," Talia calmly said, ignoring Mr. Vales.
"Wh-what? Do you not see the crossbows my men have aimed at your hearts?" Mr. Vales taunted, his smile twisted with malice.
Before their arrival, Myrese was rightfully scared and nervous. But after the appearance of two people she had quickly befriended, she was no longer afraid. Talia, a 12th Circle Rank sorceress, was one of the strongest people Myrese had met in her life, and she knew that the black-haired woman had the capability to wipe the floor with the goons that surrounded her.
On the other hand, while Erik was the weakest of the three, his tenacity, cunning, and ability to think outside the box had surprised her more than once. Faced with the duo, Myrese was confident there wasn't anything Mr. Vales could do to her that they couldn't handle together.
With a relieved sigh, Myrese got to her feet and strolled over to Talia and Erik, the mana-resistant ropes still binding her wrists. She couldn't help but feel a flicker of pride in their bravado.
"Thank you for coming," she whispered to them, her eyes shimmering with gratitude. It was the first time she had ever relied on someone other than herself.
"Of course. You think I'd ever let an asset- er, friend of mine be taken?" Erik quipped, unfazed by the situation. Myrese realized just how comforting Erik's unshakeable confidence was.
Talia stepped forward, her eyes narrowing as the crossbows remained trained on them. "Lower your weapons," she ordered, her voice resonating with power. The goons glanced at Mr. Vales for direction.
"The Traveler is rumored to be less than a 3rd Circle Rank, so take him out first!" Mr. Vales snarled as red mana formed within his hands. "I'll take care of the sorceress!"
Unfortunately, it seemed as though Mr. Vales was unaware that Talia was a 12th Circle Rank, the highest tier of sorcery second only to the strongest recorded 15th Circle Rank. The room tensed as the man's mana began to swirl around him, forming a crimson sphere of power in his palm.
Talia simply stood there, relaxed and composed, as if Mr. Vales's display of power was nothing more than a child playing with sparklers. The crimson mana in his hand grew to the size of a watermelon before he threw it at them with a furious shout. But to their surprise, the sphere of power didn't fly straight; it took a peculiar path, arcing upward and then plummeting down at a 45-degree angle.
Simultaneously, all the arrows that Mr. Vale's men shot at Erik curved away from him as if repelled by an invisible force. The crimson sphere he had thrown at Talia was met with a flick of her wrist, redirecting its trajectory back to its origin. It hit Mr. Vales with the force of a meteor, sending him flying through the wall with a bone-crushing thud.
Erik cheered loudly from behind Talia, pumping his fist in victory. The goons, stunned by the display of power, didn't know what to do. Most of them froze in their tracks, while some dropped their crossbows and bolted for the door. Myrese couldn't help but smirk as she watched the chaos unfold.
"Let's go," Talia said firmly, cutting through the tension like a hot knife through butter. Her voice was calm and steady, a stark contrast to the panic that had gripped the room. She reached out and sliced through the ropes binding Myrese's wrists with the glowing knife, handing it back to the elf afterwards. "I think this is yours."
Myrese took the knife gratefully, feeling its warm, reassuring weight in her hand. She glanced at the retreating men and the gaping hole in the wall where Mr. Vales had been thrown. "Thank you," she said, her voice low. "I owe you one."
"You're already indebted to us, so I'm gonna have to find something extra for you to do," Erik joked, or at least, Myrese thought he was. It was hard to tell with him.
"N-not... so fast..." Mr. Vales managed to spit out as he clambered to his feet, his body bruised and his clothes in tatters. His red eyes gleamed with a malicious intent as he stared at Talia. "Do you peasants not know who I am?"
"Should we?" Erik began to ask, looking at Talia for guidance, but she had already stepped forward, her crimson robes billowing around her.
"You are simply a royal coward who knows nothing of who you are talking to," Talia replied coolly, her voice echoing in the dusty air. The goons, who had been slowly backing away, paused, their fear of Mr. Vales now overshadowed by the aura of power that surrounded the sorceress.
Mr. Vales' eyes twitched, as if finally grasping the weight of Talia's magic. "What the... this aura is... at least an 8th Circle Rank..."
Myrese fought the urge to smile. Talia had never used more aura than a 9th Circle Rank, and that was against Ulrich, so it was satisfying to see her former contractor begin to cower at what he thought was an 8th Circle Rank. She knew that he was roughly a 6th Circle Rank- one step higher than Myrese herself, which was why she didn't have a good chance of defeating him. But with Talia cutting loose a bit more power than normal, Mr. Vales was in for a surprise.
"Wait... black hair, crimson robes, and incredible magic... it couldn't be a Prodigy..." Mr. Vales staggered backward, his eyes wide with fear and disbelief. "But that's impossible! Why would a Prodigy be here in a run-down village?!"
Myrese noticed Erik opening his mouth, but then he closed it. The both of them knew that the real reason Talia was here was because she became desolate and poor, but it was something that Mr. Vales didn't need to know.
It seemed as though Talia was aware of this as well, as she faltered slightly, a small note of embarrassment flickering in her eyes. "It's... complicated," she replied smoothly. "But that is something you need not be concerned with. What matters is that you have trespassed in this village and committed a crime."
Mr. Vales twitched, but gritted his teeth. "A crime? This is no mere village. This is the future of the three kingdoms! And I will not let you stand in my way!"
The royal charged up another sphere of mana, this time aiming it at Talia. The room vibrated with the power building up in his hand, and Myrese could feel the heat from the magic. He flicked his hand, sending the blazing ruby sphere at her.
Instead of reacting, Talia simply sneezed, and the red orb immediately fizzled out. She stared at Mr. Vales with a look that was both annoyed and amused. "Your magic is... dusty," she said, waving her hand in the air. "Let me show you what real magic is like."
With a flick of her wrist, she sent a whirlwind of golden mana at him. The winds grew stronger and stronger, lifting Mr. Vales into the air and tossing him around the room like a ragdoll. The goons, who had paused in their retreat, bolted again.
A satisfied smirk rested on Erik's face, causing Myrese to realize she had the same expression too. Watching Mr. Vales flail around in the air was oddly cathartic after everything he'd put her through.
Talia released the whirlwind, letting Mr. Vales hit the ground with a thud. The once-intimidating man laid there, his body bruised and his eyes glazed over. He was out cold. Erik went over to Myrese, helping her to her feet. She winced but took his hand gratefully.
"Thanks, Erik... Talia... you guys are lifesavers," Myrese said, her voice trembling slightly.
"Hey, you two came and found me when I was hunted by that one dude. It's only right to repay a debt," Erik said, patting her shoulder. "And before then, it was Talia who found me when you kidnapped me and Mr. Mort-"
"Just accept the gratitude," Myrese interrupted with a blush, cutting off the conversation before it could delve into the awkwardness of their first encounter. She knew Erik was just trying to lighten the mood, but she couldn't help the embarrassment that bubbled up from the memory of her own failure.
"Sure, sure," Erik snickered, clearly enjoying the moment. Talia, however, remained focused. She bent down and picked up a piece of paper from the floor. It was a map detailing the layout of the village and the surrounding lands.
"It seems your 'boss' had grand plans," she said, eyeing Mr. Vales' unconscious form with disgust. "But they've just been blown away."
"What? Lemme see," Erik demanded, peering over Talia's shoulder at the map. His eyebrows furrowed as concern creeped into his face.
"Is... what was he planning?" Myrese asked, feeling nervous upon seeing the look on his face.
"It's pretty bad," Erik replied, gravely. "He wanted to start construction of more housing, but his designs are awful."
The former elf assassin was speechless for a moment, trying to process the sheer absurdity of the situation. "What are you talking about?" she finally managed to ask.
"Look at this. He has wood as a foundation, but I can already tell the compound mixture used for holding it together will never be durable," Erik said, pointing at the map. "And he's scribbled some plans for manual labor- without the use of machines. What kind of psycho does that?"
Myrese and Talia could only stare at Erik as he ranted about the architectural flaws of Mr. Vales' plan. "Erik, focus," Talia said, her voice firm but her eyes sparkling with amusement. "We need to figure out if there are more of his men around."
"Yeah, you guys go do that. I'm gonna see if this villain is awake and ask him about his projects," Erik replied, kneeling beside Mr. Vales and slapping his face a few times. The man's eyes fluttered open, and he groaned in pain.
"Where... where am I?" he mumbled, his vision blurry.
"In trouble. Now look here, you've got an efficiency deficit if you were planning to start housing construction. There's no way you can finish the work in a month if you've only got primitive tools and this many workers..."
Myrese tore her eyes away and turned to Talia. "Er, I guess we'll go see if there are any more enemies around? And hopefully leave soon?"
Talia nodded, her gaze shifting to the defeated men before she turned and left the room with the confidence of a battle-hardened warrior.