Chapter 62: Escape Through the Storm

A week had passed since I left the outpost.

Finally, I arrived at a massive rocky mountain.

Although the path to the mountain wasn’t far, much time had been wasted due to the monsters I encountered along the way.

I frowned as I stared up at the towering rocky mountain.

Its peaks seemed to pierce the heavens, with wispy clouds clinging to its midsection.

Occasionally, monsters appeared beneath the cloud cover, vanishing just as quickly.

Though I couldn’t make out their exact features from a distance, their long bodies and the flapping wings on their backs were unmistakable.

And they weren’t alone—several of them moved together, indicating that they lived in packs.

I dismounted from Nightmare and pulled a piece of monster meat from my bag.

Nightmare drooled and wagged its tail upon spotting the meat, but unfortunately for it, this wasn’t its meal.

“I’ll give you some later. Step back.”

Snort

Nightmare persisted, nudging its snout toward me, but I firmly pushed it aside and began slicing the meat.

The sliced meat was to be used as bait to lure the Eagle Drakes.

Carefully, I began ascending the rocky mountain with Nightmare.

Nightmare, perhaps reminded of its homeland, moved lightly and skillfully up the steep incline, covering the rugged terrain in no time.

Riding Nightmare, I quickly reached the cloud-covered midsection of the mountain.

As my ears popped from the altitude, I scattered pieces of monster meat in an appropriate spot.

Nightmare stared longingly at the meat on the ground, drooling, but there was none left to spare at the moment.

I patted its mane and hid behind a large boulder with it.

How much time had passed while we waited in that position?

As the wind carrying the thick clouds dampened my clothes, black shadows began to emerge from the mist.

Their slit eyes, sharp yellow beaks, and heads covered in black feathers resembled eagles, but their elongated bodies were unmistakably lizard-like.

I squinted, studying the backs of the monsters that had appeared.

They looked exactly like the illustrations in the guidebook.

There was no doubt—they were Eagle Drakes.

All of the Eagle Drakes that emerged were fully grown.

Their wings lacked feathers, confirming their maturity.

Carefully, the creatures crept out, snapping up the meat scattered on the ground before retreating back into the mist.

I rested my hand on the hilt of my sword and focused on the Eagle Drake that ventured the farthest from the mist.

With the others gone, I was confident I could handle this one swiftly.

As soon as the lone Eagle Drake bit into the meat, I held my breath and charged forward.

The sigil of the Grand Warrior and my mana-enhanced legs propelled me rapidly across the ground, closing the distance in an instant.

The Eagle Drake, perhaps sensing my approach, raised its head.

Its slit eyes locked onto me.

At that moment, the Eagle Drake spread its wings, adopting a threatening posture.

I frowned and grounded my steps, slowing my charge abruptly.

My sword trajectory, which had been aiming at empty air, adjusted in response.

A sharp shift in stance followed.

Using my outstretched leg as a pivot, I redirected my unstable posture and swung my sword.

Slash!

The starlight-wreathed blade aimed for the Eagle Drake’s neck, but the resistance was shallow.

The extended blade of starlight merely grazed a few of the Drake’s scales.

Realizing my attack had failed, I immediately transitioned to my next move.

The starlight trailing in the air stretched into a new arc as I launched another strike.

The steep terrain of the rocky mountain made maintaining balance difficult, but I adjusted my stance and planted my leg firmly.

A straight thrust.

The sword, spinning in a half-turn and brimming with starlight, shot forward like a meteor.

The tip of the blade pierced the thick scales, eliciting a pained scream from the Eagle Drake.

[Screech!]

I had aimed to silence its cries by targeting its throat, but my unsteady stance had caused the strike to go awry.

Gritting my teeth, I twisted the blade.

Crunch!

With a violent motion, I wrenched the blade out, tearing through the wounded area.

Blood erupted like a fountain, soaking me, but at least the Eagle Drake’s shrill cries were silenced.

[Groan…]

Writhing in pain, the Eagle Drake collapsed onto the ground, twitching.

I bit my lip and turned my gaze toward the mist beyond.

These creatures lived in packs. They must have heard the anguished cries of their comrade.

As expected, my ominous prediction proved true.

Shadows began to emerge from the mist—Eagle Drakes.

“Damn it…”

This was the worst-case scenario.

Taking on one or two Eagle Drakes alone was manageable, but with their numbers exceeding ten, the situation was dire.

[Screech!]

The Eagle Drakes emerging from the mist let out simultaneous cries, scattering the clouds and shaking the area.

I immediately began altering the nature of my mana.

The starlight, previously emitting a cold aura, gradually shifted.

By the time the Eagle Drakes closed in on me, it had transformed into blue lightning.

I swung my lightning-infused sword in a wide arc.

Crack!

The amplified power of the mana surged forth, unleashing a massive bolt of lightning.

The blue light erupted from the blade, engulfing the Eagle Drakes charging from all directions.

However, the result was not as I had hoped.

“Damn it!”

The creatures were unscathed.

Their speed didn’t waver, and the blue lightning coating their bodies seemed to have no effect on them.

I was stunned.

Never before had I encountered such a situation.

Why hadn’t the magic worked?

Did they possess anti-magic resistance? Or were they simply immune to lightning attributes?

Thud! Thud! Thud!

My thoughts were interrupted by the sound of heavy hoofbeats.

Nightmare had grabbed me by the scruff of my neck.

As my body began to rise, it started shaking violently.

Kicking my short legs, I twisted my body and climbed onto the back of the Nightmare, which had grabbed me by the scruff of my neck.

I quickly assessed the situation.

The Nightmare must have rushed in to save me from danger.

Rather than confronting the numerous Eagle Drakes, it had chosen to flee.

I glanced back, frowning.

The Nightmare’s choice was wise, but to complete my mission, I needed to retrieve the corpse of the Eagle Drake I had killed.

“Can you run a bit faster?”

Snort!

The Nightmare let out a rough breath in response to my question.

As I pulled on its reins, it began to accelerate even more.

With the Nightmare now running in earnest, the distance between us and the pursuing Eagle Drakes started to grow.

[Screeech!]

The cries that had been so close behind us gradually faded.

Seizing the moment, I directed the Nightmare to change course.

Turning sharply on a steep, rocky mountain without slowing down was a risky move, but the Nightmare managed it effortlessly, as if the danger posed no problem at all.

The Eagle Drakes chasing us also tried to change direction, but only a few succeeded.

Most of them, unable to withstand their own momentum, tumbled down the steep rocky slope.

Thud—thud—thud!

Despite changing direction, the Nightmare didn’t slow down, and the distance between us and the Eagle Drakes continued to widen.

Returning to the original spot, I leapt off the Nightmare and plucked the decorative feather from the head of the fallen Eagle Drake.

This feather was the objective of my mission.

“Let’s go!”

After securing the feather, I climbed back onto the Nightmare’s back.

Glancing behind me, I saw the Eagle Drakes that had fallen now climbing back up the rocky slope.

Having achieved the mission’s objective, there was no need to fight them.

I pulled on the Nightmare’s reins and began descending the mountain.

Thud—thud—thud!

The Nightmare didn’t slow down this time either.

Instead, it used gravity to increase its speed.

Thud—thud!

The galloping grew so fast that the sound of its hooves became intermittent.

A sense of floating, as if flying through the air, took over.

However, the sense of freedom didn’t last long.

The Nightmare descended the massive rocky mountain at breakneck speed, almost as if falling.

Boom!

When the Nightmare landed and slowed its pace, I turned to check on the Eagle Drakes.

Below the thick clouds, over ten lizard-like creatures were sluggishly moving, but they didn’t seem inclined to come down.

We had successfully shaken them off.

“Phew… You’re not hurt, right?”

Snort.

I sighed in relief and asked, to which the Nightmare responded with a small whinny.

Judging by how it pawed at the ground with its front and back legs, it seemed fine.

I placed the decorative feather I had been holding into a small pouch attached to my bag.

With the mission complete, there was no need to linger here.

Just as I pulled the Nightmare’s reins to head back, the direction of the refreshing breeze suddenly shifted.

Following the fluttering of my hair, I turned my gaze and noticed the cloudy sky.

I tilted my head, wondering if it was going to rain. In that moment, thick, dark clouds began to spread rapidly across the sky.

As the dark clouds quickly engulfed the entire forest, rain began to pour.

Heavy rain pelted down, striking my skin.

“This is…”

I furrowed my brow and wiped away the rainwater.

The cold rain carried abundant mana within it.

Crash!

The wind grew stronger, and blue lightning flashed through the dark clouds.

Battling the torrential rain, I pulled on the Nightmare’s reins.

The sudden shift in weather, caused by the massive flow of mana, was undoubtedly a precursor to the mana storms that Selion had always warned about.

Selion had said: When a storm arrives, find a safe place to hide and wait for it to pass.

“Run!”

I urged the Nightmare forward, racing through the forest.

I searched for a place to take shelter from the storm but couldn’t find one.

As time passed, the wind grew even fiercer.

Small monsters hiding in the forest were swept into the air by the gusts.

Suddenly, the intensity of the wind surged, uprooting a massive tree in front of us.

At that moment, my body began to rise.

It felt like the same floating sensation as when we had descended the rocky mountain.

The mana storm had arrived abruptly, leaving no time to prepare.

Battling the raging storm, I held the struggling Nightmare tightly in my arms.