"Swift Sword Technique – Storm Slash!"
Rennes gripped his greatsword tightly and swung it downward with precision.
In the next second—
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Countless crescent-shaped arcs of blue sword energy howled through the air like a violent tempest, slashing toward the canopy of a massive tree just behind and to the right.
Everyone stood frozen, confused by Rennes' sudden action.
Before they could even react—
A massive tiger, nearly five meters long, suddenly emerged from the treetop, caught mid-ambush by the cutting waves of energy. Its fur was a deep crimson, flames danced beneath its paws, and a crown-like marking adorned its head. The beast radiated power and dominance.
It was none other than the target of their expedition: the Blazing Fire Tiger.
"ROAR!"
The Blazing Fire Tiger howled in pain. Rennes' storm-infused sword slash had landed hard.
Though the strike had been sharp and sudden, it wasn't enough to take the creature down.
The wounded beast gritted through the pain and, without hesitation, cast wind magic—Invisibility Technique—vanishing once more into the thick forest shadows.
All of this happened in less than two seconds.
Everyone broke out into a cold sweat. It had been far too close.
No one had expected the Blazing Fire Tiger to possess wind-elemental magic—let alone use it to silently hide in the trees and wait to ambush them from behind.
Had Rennes not sensed something off and struck first, Freya and the rest of the party at the rear could have been its first victims.
"How does the Blazing Fire Tiger have wind attribute magic?" asked Lifa, the hunter of the Purple Lilac adventuring party, her voice trembling with disbelief.
According to the Adventurer's Guild's official bestiary, the Blazing Fire Tiger was a fire-type beast. It wasn't supposed to have access to wind-elemental spells—especially stealth spells like Invisibility Technique.
Rennes remained calm and focused, his eyes scanning the area. "This one probably consumed a rare wind-elemental plant and mutated into a Wind-Fire Magic Tiger."
This was no ordinary beast.
The Wind-Fire Magic Tiger, a rare subspecies, possessed both wind and fire elemental abilities. Its strength easily surpassed that of a standard fire tiger. This encounter was going to be far more dangerous than they had anticipated.
"Wind-Fire Magic Tiger…" The name alone made the team tense up, the threat level in their minds escalating.
Reacting quickly, the group formed a defensive back-to-back formation, each member alert and guarding against another invisible ambush.
"Thank you for saving me," Freya, the half-elf captain of the adventuring party, said softly. Her cheeks flushed.
She had misjudged Rennes.
What she initially thought was a soft-handed nobleman had, in fact, just saved her life.
As a ranged archer, if the tiger had pounced on her, there would've been no time to react. Just imagining the possible outcome made her shudder.
"It was nothing," Rennes replied, brushing it off.
"Um... could you... let go of me now?" Freya mumbled, her ears turning a shade of red.
Only then did Rennes realize he was still holding her tightly—one arm wrapped protectively around her, his hand awkwardly pressing against a rather... delicate area, due to their height difference.
The moment was quiet, awkward.
"Oh! Sorry." Rennes quickly let go, a bit embarrassed.
"It's okay," Freya replied, stepping out of his arms and exhaling softly. She felt a strange sense of relief—but also an odd tinge of disappointment she didn't quite understand.
Thankfully, the moment was broken when someone else spoke up.
"Lord Rennes, how were you able to detect the Wind-Fire Magic Tiger's invisibility earlier?" asked Betty, the team's healer. "Do you have a special technique? Can you do it again?"
Rennes shook his head. "No special trick. My senses are just... particularly sharp."
He explained, "Because I've mastered the Gale Sword Technique, I can sense subtle shifts in the airflow around me. But my range is limited—ten meters at most. The Wind-Fire Magic Tiger's last attack put it on alert. It won't come near me again so easily."
Everyone's expressions darkened.
That meant Rennes' ability to track the beast through air movement wouldn't help them unless it foolishly got close again—which was unlikely.
"So what do we do now?" someone asked nervously.
Everyone knew this couldn't last forever. Right now, they were on high alert, their focus razor-sharp. But as time passed, fatigue would set in. And the tiger was patient.
It would wait.
Then strike when they least expected.
"We draw it out," Rennes said calmly.
"Advanced magical beasts like this one are vengeful. After the damage I dealt it, it won't let me go so easily. We just need to expose a weakness—something that tempts it—and lure it into the open."
The team exchanged glances. The idea had merit.
Everyone nodded in agreement.
Rennes quickly began assigning roles and positioning for the trap.
No one objected. After that last ambush, the entire Purple Lilac team viewed Rennes with new respect. He was no longer a "burden"—he was their anchor.
But Rennes' plan came with a catch.
Someone had to act as the bait.
That person would stand alone, exposed, vulnerable to the beast's deadly stealth attack.
If he could, Rennes would've done it himself. But he had already injured the tiger. It would be too wary to approach him again.
Everyone knew it.
In the end, Ada, the team's vice-captain and a seasoned shield warrior, volunteered.
She was confident in her ability to take a hit and survive—her shield and armor were built for moments like this.
After confirming everyone's tasks, the group set the trap.
They lowered their weapons and deliberately relaxed their stances, as if their guard was down.
Ada placed her shield on the ground and casually stepped away from the group.
She walked forward in exaggerated strides.
10 meters...
20 meters...
30 meters...
And then—