Erica lay quietly on the ground, her breathing steady and even.
Those adventurers also gradually regained feeling in their bodies, their eyes filled with shock.
They hadn't expected that Viktor would actually kill that terrifying, gigantic monster.
The shock and astonishment continued to echo in their hearts.
Naturally, they didn't know what a calamity truly was, but they had seen it with their own eyes.
That horrifying and mysterious existence was a powerful monster unlike anything they had ever seen.
And Viktor, who had defeated such a powerful monster, now seemed even more frightening in their eyes.
But the crisis had already passed, and they no longer wanted to think about such things. Instead, their attention shifted to the girl lying unconscious on the ground.
At this sight, their expressions froze, utterly confused.
'That enormous monster just now should be… dead, right?'
Then why did a small girl they didn't recognize at all fall out of its massive body?
Who was she?
At this moment, Viktor reached into his black trench coat, pretending to rummage around for a bit, then took out a blue potion from his bag.
In front of everyone, he opened that glowing blue potion, brought it to his lips, and drank it.
Very soon, a faint blue layer spread over Viktor's body.
A cool current flowed into him, and even the exhaustion of his mind seemed to ease quite a bit.
After the faint sparkles faded, he could feel the magic within him rapidly recovering.
Seeing this, the other adventurers were still a little confused, but the only fourth-tier old mage was no longer calm.
He stared wide-eyed at that somewhat special potion bottle.
"That is… a magic potion sold exclusively in the royal capital?"
As a fourth-tier mage, Watt had naturally heard of this magic potion that circulated widely among mages.
He had even spent huge sums and offered high prices just to buy a single bottle.
Most mages were not short on money, especially fourth-tier mages. Their wealth was something some people could never touch in their entire lives.
But even so, those potions never made it to him at all.
After all, within the empire, mages were an extremely large group.
Those fifty limited bottles weren't even enough for the mages in the royal capital.
Let alone being sold elsewhere.
Although he was a fourth-tier mage, he wasn't the only one in the empire.
There were plenty of wealthy mages, how could someone obediently hand over such a miraculous potion to him just because he offered a high price?
Watt had also thought about going to the royal capital himself to buy one.
But as a high-tier mage and a member of the Adventurers' Guild, it was naturally impossible for him to spend many days traveling to the capital just for a single potion.
At this moment, Watt thought of Viktor's full name.
Viktor Clavenna.
That magic potion so eagerly sought after by countless mages seemed to be made by the Clavenna family.
In a daze, Watt immediately understood everything.
No wonder Viktor's magic power was so terrifying.
After all, he had an unlimited supply of magic potions. Just one sip could restore a great deal of mental energy.
With that, his enormous magic reserves could be explained.
The only thing he found hardest to accept was this, why could a mage, all by himself, cast those powerful and terrifying war spells as casually as eating or drinking?
He was already this strong, how were other mages supposed to live, how were they supposed to compare to him?
'Both fourth-tier, so why are you the only one this outstanding?!'
This was simply self-inflicted humiliation.
At the same time, Viktor naturally paid no attention to what the people behind him were thinking.
He looked at his status panel, watching his magic recover to the point where he could support casting some normal spells.
Then, he extended one hand.
A streak of white turned into two streams of air, winding around Viktor's forearm, following the airflow as they circled Erica's body once.
The unconscious Erica slowly floated into the air and drifted into Viktor's arms.
Holding her in a princess carry, Viktor steadily supported the unconscious Erica in his arms.
He held her close, sensing her presence. Her faint breaths brushed against Viktor's skin, warm and gentle.
She was not in any danger to her life, her body was simply a bit weak.
However, if not for her appearance, the tens of millions of residents of the Northern Territory might have been annihilated in endless storms because of Doragon's emergence.
She alone had saved tens of thousands of people.
And…
Viktor's gaze swept over her from head to toe, clearly sensing that within Erica's body, there seemed to be an additional force of wind-element energy.
That natural magic had merged into Erica's blood, making her breathing steadier and stronger.
[Erica: Lv28]
Half a year ago, when Erica had just enrolled, she had only been a mage who had just entered the second tier.
And in just the time of a single vacation, she was about to break through to the third tier.
Vega's eyes flickered with bursts of wisdom.
"It seems she has gained part of the calamity's power."
Otherwise, there was no reason for her strength to grow so quickly.
But Viktor did not respond to the crow, his face showing not the slightest ripple.
He didn't turn back, only a cold voice rang out as he questioned, "Do you know why I didn't allow any adventurers to enter the abyss?"
As soon as these words were spoken, the adventurers standing behind him shuddered.
Hearing Viktor's indifferent voice, they naturally understood that he was speaking to them.
Even though that man's voice carried no emotion at all, fear made their bodies grow cold and tremble uncontrollably.
If they were given another chance, they would absolutely not enter the abyss at this time.
After all, Viktor was so powerful that he didn't seem like a human at all.
And at this moment, they finally understood how Viktor's astonishing title of councilor had come to be.
At the same time, Hera slowly stepped out from the crowd.
Her posture was elegant, a calm and composed aura spreading from her body.
She covered her mouth with a fan, the patterns in her eyes slowly turning, like flowers gradually blooming.
"You were already prepared to fight that monster here, weren't you?"
Viktor neither spoke nor nodded, but such a reaction was already equivalent to tacit agreement.
"Is that so."
Hera lowered her head, her eyes slightly lifting upward. Those gradually blooming flowers now fully opened.
A gentle, lingering voice slowly drifted out.
"You are truly powerful… and kind."
Viktor listened to Hera's praise, turned around, and glanced at her.
His gaze remained indifferent, as if her compliment made no difference at all.
"Kind? I've never thought so."
What had happened between him and the Raythe family had already spread throughout the entire empire, there was no one who didn't know.
Just looking at how Viktor vented his anger at the Raythe family, it was hard to think of him as anything resembling a kind person.
But Hera smiled in an unusual way, her eyes narrowing as the patterns gradually stilled.
A mysterious aura suddenly burst forth from her eyes.
"Please don't misunderstand, Councilor Clavenna. What I praise is your kindness, not… the useless mercy of the weak."
Her blooming eyes continued to spin, as if a beast emerged from those dark gray flowers, opening a huge, tearing maw.
"You clearly didn't need to notify them in advance, yet you still did."
Viktor listened to her words, his tone indifferent.
"It was just something I did casually."
"But even a casual act like that was enough to keep them from losing their lives."
"That is already your kindness."
Hera chuckled softly, her smile carrying a seductive flavor.
Just as she said, if Viktor hadn't notified them beforehand, the adventurers staying within this rift might have been completely wiped out in such a battle.
Even though they were all fourth-tier adventurers, it was only because of Viktor's special consideration that they could safely act as spectators and watch the battle in peace.
And Viktor couldn't possibly look after everyone.
As she spoke, Hera deliberately glanced at the blonde girl in Viktor's arms.
She looked young, with no threat at all.
Perhaps the reason Viktor sealed off the rift was to conceal her existence.
After all, after an extremely terrifying and powerful monster was defeated, a human girl actually appeared inside its body.
Once such news spread, anywhere, in any country, it would be an explosive revelation.
At this, Viktor slowly raised his head and glanced at Hera again, his voice turning cold.
"Then who sent you here?"
Hearing his question, Hera lifted her large skirt slightly and bowed gently toward Viktor, wearing an especially mysterious smile that made her appear exceptionally refined.
"Councilor, we are the Adventurers' Guild."
"We are free. No one can command us."
"Unless…"
At this point, Hera licked her lips and looked at Viktor with anticipation.
"Someone is stronger than us."
As her words fell, Viktor couldn't help but reassess Hera and the fourth-tier adventurers behind her.
Although, aside from Hera, the strength shown by the other adventurers made Viktor feel rather dissatisfied,
they were still fourth-tier adventurers, top-tier elites wherever they went.
Viktor happened to understand the Beast Guild.
When the eldest prince was still alive, the south had been under his direct control everywhere.
Because of the presence of the army, the guilds had very little room to survive.
Even the strongest Beast Guild was heavily restricted in the City of Adventurers.
Precisely because of this, the resources available to adventurers themselves were extremely scarce.
Basically, in the south, they had no real chance to rise.
So what Hera said was already an obvious hint.
"Not a bad ambition."
Holding Erica, he turned around to face Hera directly.
"Then if I need you to obey my orders, what price would I have to pay?"
Hearing this, Hera's body paused slightly, as if she were expecting something.
Her eyes became somewhat hazy, and a faint flush appeared on her face.
The roaring beast in her eyes retreated once more, the patterns spinning rapidly. Two dark, ashen heart shapes appeared again in her eyes.
She looked at Viktor like she was gazing at a perfect treasure.
"You don't need to pay any price at all. You don't even need to move."
"I only hope that you can…"
"Have a child with me."