Without that mine, how was he supposed to kill the ant? It was a mine that would go off when mana passed over it—it wasn't a precision mine!
But he was too slow.
The dragonfly had locked onto its target, the Heavy Load Ant, and was moving toward it. Both were apparently injured; perhaps they'd been fighting for a while. So they ignored their surroundings.
The ant wanted to defend its food, and the dragonfly wanted revenge.
They were soon just a step away from each other… That's when Lucius, in a desperate move to drive the dragonfly away, leaped out of the shadows.
Both beasts noticed him.
But the dragonfly didn't stop. It wasn't an enemy of humans—it just wanted to kill this ant!
It took two more steps in the air.
BOOM!
Lucius groaned and turned his head away to avoid being hit by the flying debris. The mine had exploded successfully, but it hadn't hit its intended target.
KIII
The dragonfly let out a cry of pain as it was sent flying through the air.
[You have killed the Rank F Erratic-Flight Dragonfly.]
[You can absorb its Mana Mark.]
[You have earned 10 Mana Credits.]
[Danger! You have been marked by the Heavy Load Ant.]
Lucius had no time to celebrate. It was clear that a dragonfly didn't have enough defense to withstand that explosion, even when it was 2 meters in the air.
He made the immediate decision to search for the dragonfly's body to try to obtain that mana mark.
It didn't matter if it wasn't the strongest among the F-Rank beasts; it wasn't as if he could handle any more in his current condition.
He immediately ran… but suddenly his body was brought to a halt by the pain in his chest, reminding him that he wasn't in a healthy body.
And at the same time, he saw one of this enormous ant's legs approaching his eyes. He felt, once again, death pass before his eyes.
His body moved faster than his thoughts, and he threw himself to the ground. He managed to dodge the attack by inches and used the momentum to roll into the undergrowth, disappearing from view.
The ant's thud on the ground echoed, assuring him he'd made the right decision.
With difficulty, Lucius stood up again and gripped the other tool.
"That's why you always need a Plan B."
Lucius moved quickly through the undergrowth. Taking advantage of the ant's poor eyesight and the limited range of its short antennae, he crept up behind it.
He activated the tool and hurled it until it struck the ant.
Swing!
A barrage of wind-magic-powered nails shot out and pierced the Ant's entire body with precision.
Its mana-driven scream of pain drowned out all the surrounding noises and vibrations. Lucius was able to move with complete ease in such an environment.
The ant writhed backward, trampling several roots of glassy moss. It tried to remove the nails by throwing itself backward onto the ground, but the result was the opposite.
When it opened its eyes, the face of the human who had left it in this state was smiling at her.
"Thanks, you've made my journey a little shorter." Lucius pulled out a sharp piece of metal he'd stolen from the old usurer and stabbed it right beneath the ant's head…
[You have killed an F-Rank Heavy Load Ant.]
[You can absorb its Mana Mark.]
[You have earned 10 Mana Credits.]
[Impressive feat accomplished!]
[Kill the Heavy-Load Ant and the Erratic-Flight Dragonfly in under 5 minutes: accomplished.]
[Your ranking is changing!]
[Local Ranking: #12,400,000.]
[Local Ranking: #12,200,905.]
[Local Ranking: #12,100,001.]
[Local Ranking: #12,000,005 (Rank F).]
[Great feat accomplished!]
[Climbed 450,000 spots in a single battle!]
[Preparing local announcement…!]
Lucius pressed a button on the system that read: [Pause Announcement for a while.]
[Announcement paused. A local announcement will be broadcast automatically in 48 hours if not manually resumed.]
"Be patient. I still have to go get the things my mother left for me in that mansion." He smiled coldly and looked at the ant bleeding to death at his feet and the Mana Mark from the dragonfly in his hand.
Although a red line trickled from his mouth, he was satisfied with his hunt.
He grabbed several roots glass moss, and stuffed them into a bag. He also stored the headless ant's body in the same place and removed the Mana Mark to carry it in his hand alongside the other.
"Ugh." He suddenly choked and felt the toxic air trickling down his throat, striking his internal organs.
'I have to get out of here.' He suddenly felt dizzy. He had made too many movements; his body was at its limit.
Using all his willpower, he ran outside.
.
"Tsk, why do I have to go back?" Old Garen muttered under his breath. Against his will, he was retracing his steps along the very path he had just taken to leave.
Barely an hour had passed since he left, but his conscience wouldn't let him go.
"That boy was on his last legs. Though I am too, he has his whole life ahead of him. I'd regret it if such a talented boy ended up dying here." Shaking his head helplessly, he reached the stairs leading to the Veil.
Then he froze.
Climbing the stairs, the boy was coming—bloody, but walking!
On his right hand were two mana marks. And he was using his left hand to drag a heavy bag.
When Lucius looked at him, he smiled slightly. "Old usurer, give me a hand. I'm dying inside right now. I don't know if I'll make it to the top." He joked.
Although his joke wasn't a lie. In old Garen's eyes, Lucius could collapse at any moment if he kept this up.
He quickly ran over to help him and hoisted the heavy bag onto his shoulder. "Is it the ant?" he asked, stunned.
"Yes." Lucius nodded, relieved. "That thing almost killed me. A dragonfly had a score to settle with it and triggered the trap. Good thing I had a Plan B," he told him.
Old Garen was perplexed. 'He killed two beasts in his current state, in such a short time…'
There was no doubt about it.
He was one of those hidden dragons.
"By the way, old usurer." Lucius turned to look at him. "Why did you come back? Were you worried?" Although Lucius was grateful, he couldn't help but tease him.
"Tsk, you're a crafty little bastard. I was afraid such a glorious talent for restoring tools would go to waste. We could get rich if you help me," he replied. "And stop calling me a usurer. I'm Garen."
"All right, old Garen. You can call me Lucius, The Mage."
"The Mage? Hahaha." Old Garen burst out laughing. "You should run to the Order of the Ancestral Sound then. The Great Lady Seraphina said she'd be eagerly awaiting you." He teased.
Amid the banter, they continued on their way back.