The man was short with brown hair, his black eyes uncaring in the situation.
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He flicked his wrist, his sword becoming a flash of light.
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The alpha's head fell with a thud.
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Leo's body tensed instinctively. The dangerous foe was dead.
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Leo's shoulders trembled.
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The wolf he was risking his all to kill died so easily.
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Realizing this, he began weakening.
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His knees were trembling after the consecutive severe injuries.
His vision blurred, but he controlled himself.
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Now wasn't the time to pass out. After all, the flame form had already healed him.
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An immense, controlled pressure poured out of the man. Nearby flames vanished.
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The flames that threatened to burn the forest down were suppressed so easily, as if it was a child's game.
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As he was thinking this, the short man noticed the fire spreading to other areas in the forest.
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With a wave of his hand, his pressure pressed the fires, stopping them.
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The pressure hit Leo's own flames, his form disappearing.
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'What!? All he did was wave his hands. How did he force me out of my form?' Leo's heart started pounding rapidly. His breath was short as he panicked.
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Leo's hands were clenched. A feeling of weakness filled his heart. He didn't like this.
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'I vow to become the strongest ever. I won't be pushed to the brink like this again,' he vowed internally.
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The man walked to Leo, eyes assessing his condition.
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"That was a stupid thing to do. Had I not come in time, you would've burned this entire forest to ash, burning yourself in the process!" He reprimanded Leo.
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'I wonder how he's going to handle the side effects of that form?' The man thought.
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"From now on, don't do something so stupid. But that was the correct choice for the situation. Good job."
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"...I apologize for my mistakes."
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"I'm Leo von Rosenhart... Thank you for your teachings." Leo's words came out slowly
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"...I am Arnold, of the physical professors," he said, walking away.
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Leo's nose was hit by the smell of blood immediately. The alpha's body was still gushing out blood.
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The corpses of the other wolves were ripped apart by him.
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As silence washed over the forest, Leo felt a sense of relief, happy he didn't have to fight more.
Then he heard the sound of a footstep.
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The girl Leo saved came out of the trees.
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By now, she had stopped the bleeding from the wound on her arm.
She walked towards him.
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Leo noticed her beauty for the first time, especially her beautiful red eyes and white hair.
Leo couldn't help but be captivated.
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As she reached him, she spoke. "Thank you! If you hadn't come, I would have been a feast for the wolves," she said with a thankful expression, her hands held close to her heart.
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"...No need to thank me. I was only close and decided to fight. Frankly speaking, if I knew about that alpha, I wouldn't have helped," Leo muttered, speaking the truth.
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"Haha, I wouldn't blame you if you just left. Normally, the wolves would have been nothing for me," she said, catching her breath.
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"But they attacked when I was still getting adjusted to all the fog, so I couldn't prepare any spell." Her face was twisted at the unfair situation.
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"I would have attacked with a fireball spell." As she said that, she snapped her fingers. A large ball of flames appeared, looking very stable.
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But that wasn't what amazed Leo. 'She can actually cast without chanting or symbols. Just how talented is she?'
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'I know better than most how hard this is.'
'Violet told me all the time that silent casting was one of the hardest things to master in magic'
'Just who is this girl?'
"You look amazed at my silent cast, right? Normally only mages who reach a high level can attempt this, or talented people."
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A proud smile spread on her face. "I happen to have both. While I'm nowhere as strong as senior mages, I have the talent, and I've been trained by my master as a mage since I was a child."
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"Oh, that must be great," Leo said, acknowledging her strength.
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"Well, never mind that. My name is Vietra. I'm a mage." She cheerfully changed the subject and opened her hand, waiting for a handshake.
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"My name is Leo von Rosenhart. Nice to meet you," Leo said as he shook her hand.
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"Von Rosenhart!? You must be that rumored genius." Her eyes trembled when she heard the Grand Duke's family name.
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"Want to form a team, seeing as how we're both alone?"
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"Uh... sure. There's no harm in that," Leo accepted.
⠀
Professor Arnold was exasperated at them breaking the rules in front of him.
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"Both of you know you can't just form a team, right? You had to do that in the start. Well, whatever. I'm leaving. Be careful." As he said that, he disappeared.
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Leo could still sense him a distance away, probably worried about him.
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"Should we go now-" As Leo was speaking, he began coughing out blood.
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He fell to the ground, shaking.
Pain churned his insides.
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He knew this was the side effect of the flame form.
He got off easy considering he didn't take long.
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If he actually went through with that all-out attack at the end, he would've been left with a permanent injury.
⠀
Vietra was shocked at Leo's condition.
Realizing she was the cause of this, she knelt beside him, unsure of what to do.
She tried to pull out a healing potion, but Leo pushed her away.
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His ears were ringing. He couldn't hear any of her words.
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The air left his lungs as if he was punched in the stomach.
He struggled to breathe.
Coughing into his palm, he saw it was full of blood.
⠀
Normally he would have used a healing spell, but he had a raging headache.
He instinctively knew that if he used any more magic for now, it would be of no help.
⠀
As he stabilized himself enough to walk, Vietra held out her hand, offering him support. Her face was full of guilt.
⠀
"...I'm sorry. You're going through this because of me." Her eyes were avoiding his, ashamed.
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Leo held her offered hand and stood up.
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"I'm fine. Let's go. We shouldn't stay here any longer. The blood will draw out other beasts."