Chapter 88: Ambush
Thud! Thud! Thud!
Several distinct sounds of metal piercing wood echoed overhead. Sharp arrowheads protruded halfway through the wagon’s roof, but hadn’t penetrated completely.
“Hand crossbows!” Leona exclaimed, instantly recognizing the type of projectiles from the sound and the shape of the arrowheads. She was knowledgeable about various weapons.
“They didn’t pierce the roof?” Veronica, who had been pushed down by Leona, looked up at the arrowheads in surprise.
What kind of enemy would use such weak hand crossbows to attack a wagon with a wooden roof? They should know it wouldn’t be effective…
Flora shielded the sleeping Abyss with her body, her mind racing. “These bolts are enchanted with magical markers! Get out of the wagon!” she shouted.
Before Veronica could react, Leona scooped her up and leaped out of the wagon. Flora followed closely behind, carrying Abyss.
Boom!
The moment they were clear, a pillar of fire erupted from beneath the wagon, engulfing it in flames. Searing heat engulfed the coachman, who hadn’t managed to escape in time. His legs were vaporized below the knees, and he screamed in agony, rolling on the ground.
The mercenaries drew their weapons, those with shields raising them. The one in command shouted orders in the Ossi language, directing some to surround Veronica and Santos, while others formed a protective circle.
They were indeed from the Ossi Kingdom! But Leona couldn’t worry about that now. “Don’t get too close! The enemy has an Elemental mage!” she shouted urgently.
Many of the mercenaries, seemingly unable to understand Common Tongue, hesitated. Veronica, rescued by Leona, quickly drew a dagger and translated Leona’s words into Ossi. The mercenaries immediately spread out, forming a wider circle around Veronica.
As they did so, war cries echoed from the slopes on both sides of the valley. A group of short, stocky figures charged out of the dense forest. They were dwarves, clad in mismatched heavy armor, carrying steel battleaxes as tall as themselves and wielding powerful crossbows. Without hesitation, they fired at the mercenaries.
Clank! Clank! Clank!
The sound of crossbow bolts firing filled the air, a symphony of death approaching from all directions. Dozens of steel-tipped bolts ripped through the air, hurtling towards the mercenaries.
The mercenaries roared, their bodies glowing with various colored Dou Qi auras. They swung their weapons, deflecting the incoming bolts, the sounds of metal clashing ringing out. Two mercenaries were struck, the force of the bolts sending them flying off their horses, crashing to the ground, clearly dead. The mercenaries with bows retaliated, their arrows finding their marks, but only penetrating the dwarves’ thick armor, lodging in their tough muscles.
The dwarves, after firing a volley, immediately retreated. Their short stature gave them an advantage in the dense forest, making pursuit impossible.
At the same time, the ground trembled, and a figure, taller than two men, emerged from the earth. It was an earth elemental, as large as an ogre, its body composed of rocks and soil, covered in brown runes. It slammed its fist into the ground, creating tremors, and charged towards the mercenaries.
The mercenaries dismounted, their bodies blazing with Dou Qi flames, engaging the earth elemental, preventing it from reaching Veronica.
Their weapons chipped away at the elemental’s body, but it retaliated, sending mercenaries flying with its punches. Some managed to get up and continue fighting, others lay dead.
“Dwarf mercenaries and a mage? Fire pillar and earth elemental… At least seventh-tier,” Leona said, casually tossing aside the two crossbow bolts she had caught. “Flora, watch over Abyss and Veronica. I’ll find that mage!”
“Leave it to me!” Flora nodded firmly.
Leona charged forward, her small figure leaving a trail of orange flames, transforming into a meteor that shattered the earth elemental. Without pausing, she continued her ascent, racing up the nearby slope.
Veronica, shielded by Flora, watched in awe. She had initially assumed Leona was just a spoiled noble girl who had dabbled in Dou Qi. Now, she realized she was wrong.
But how could they encounter such a powerful Dou Warrior in this remote area? And so young? Leona looked barely ten years old. Could she be something other than human?
…
Leona sprinted, each stride covering over ten meters, her footsteps creating small craters in the ground. She plunged into the dense forest, casually shattering the shoulder blade of an unfortunate dwarf who got in her way, heading towards the source of the magical energy signature.
She couldn’t allow that annoying mage to cast any more spells. Among the five main schools of magic, the Elemental school possessed the greatest destructive power. If he continued…
It would be too noisy.
Leona didn’t consider the enemy a threat. Her sharp senses and her basic understanding of magic quickly pinpointed the mage’s likely location. She accelerated again, like an arrow loosed from a bow, heading straight for her target!
“Found you!” Leona exclaimed, spotting a figure in a brown mage robe standing on a hilltop. He held an iron staff, his face hidden beneath a large hood, only his mouth visible. He was chanting a spell.
This was clearly no ordinary bandit attack. Bandits wouldn’t hire well-equipped and experienced dwarf mercenaries. Those short, vicious creatures were willing to take on any dangerous job and excelled at ambushes. But their equipment and skills came at a price, and no bandit group would waste their resources on such expensive mercenaries. As for the seventh-tier mage—he could easily find lucrative employment anywhere. Why would he resort to such a risky and laborious task as highway robbery?
But Leona didn’t bother pondering these questions. She would simply beat the answers out of him!
“Ora!” she shouted, throwing a powerful punch at the figure on the hilltop!
Poof!
However, her fist didn’t connect with anything solid. The mage’s figure dissipated like smoke as her attack passed through it, then reformed. Leona, unable to stop her momentum, continued forward.
As she passed through the smoky figure, a wave of drowsiness washed over her.
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