Gerdie, now numb to the shock, walked over to the Boss's corpse and picked up the dropped blue shield, potions, and gold. She instinctively used Find Potion. Perhaps because a Boss's corpse contained more powerful energy, blood splattered everywhere, with a few drops landing on Gerdie herself. Pop! A Light Mana Potion flew out.
Gerdie stared at the bottle. Its enchanting blue luster was intoxicating; these were light-grade potions that the Rogue Encampment couldn't even brew, yet she had produced one so easily. A massive sense of achievement filled her heart. Gerdie rubbed her eyes and solemnly handed the potion to Majesty.
Seeing Gerdie's expression, Majesty couldn't help but want to laugh. Sister Gerdie was truly adorable, acting as if she had never seen a Light Potion before. "Sister Gerdie, I still have several bottles of Light Potions in my bag. If you like them, I can give you two of each kind."
Gerdie gave Majesty an embarrassed smile, politely declined, and hurried a few steps to catch up with Leo.
The three continued their hunt. Since Gerdie was already Level 6, Leo knew they could now try taking on larger groups of monsters. Currently, the hellish energy was very dense, and the number of monsters was vast; in fact, lone monsters were becoming harder to find.
Soon, the trio discovered a pack of Fallen. After observing them, they counted seven in total, all ordinary Fallen.
"Gerdie, what skills did you learn, and what are their uses?" Leo asked, feigning curiosity.
"Ah, I learned Find Potion, Howl, Taunt, and Shout," Gerdie replied, followed by a detailed explanation of several skills.
> Howl: Causes nearby monsters to flee in fear. Enemies run away for 16 yards. Duration: 3 seconds. Mana cost: 4. No prerequisites.
> Taunt: Taunts a monster into fighting you. Target damage -5%, Target accuracy -5%. Mana cost: 3. Required Level: 6. Prerequisite: Howl.
> Shout: Warns teammates and increases their defense. Defense +100%. Duration: 20 seconds. Mana cost: 6. Required Level: 6. Prerequisite: Howl.
>
Leo pulled out two Stamina Potions and handed them to Gerdie.
"Once we've buffed up, start taunting the Fallen from the very edge. We'll pull them one by one and kill them. If something goes wrong and the whole pack chases us, use Howl, and we'll run back. Keep these Stamina Potions safe—they're the ultimate escape gear."
Gerdie grumbled internally. What on earth? We haven't even started, and he's already planning the escape. However, a free potion was a free potion. She took the Stamina Potions, feeling their residual warmth, which gave her a steady sense of security. She shook her head and mocked herself: Gerdie, oh Gerdie, are you getting old and desperate for marriage? Have you forgotten the mission to revive the Barbarians?
The group took their positions. Might Aura, Burst of Speed, Shout—they layered every buff possible. Then, standing next to Leo, Gerdie activated Taunt on the outermost Fallen.
The Fallen felt a surge of power envelop its head. In an instant, it felt incredibly mighty—slaying Baal, stomping on Diablo, and romancing Andariel seemed like child's play. It looked back and saw three "little pieces of trash" spying on its "demon-god" self.
"Rakanishu!" the Fallen screamed and charged. The other Fallen watched the idiot demon with confusion, having no idea what madness had gripped it, and went back to their preferred activities—sitting, lying down, leaning, or sleeping.
Leo was delighted; it seemed pulling mobs was feasible. The three backed away slowly, waiting for the Fallen to chase them further out.
Seeing the three "trash" fleeing from it, the Fallen chased even more vigorously.
Eh? They stopped running. Looks like human meat is for dinner tonight. The Fallen swung its little piece of iron, aiming to hack the human with the most meat, only to see a shield swinging toward it. Then, it knew no more.
Gerdie shot her bow numbly. These Fallen were coming one by one to die in various ways. A flash of white light—Level 7. She felt like she was dreaming. Looking at Leo, she whispered to herself: A Paladin this majestic is truly rare.
After dealing with the Fallen, Gerdie began clearing the battlefield. It was nearing noon, so Leo decided to take a break and distribute the equipment they had found.
He tore open an Identify Scroll. Gothic Shield of Deflecting: Defense 35, +10% Increased Chance of Blocking, 15% Faster Block Rate. Medium Shield. Required Strength: 60.
Although medium equipment reduced movement speed by 5%, it was much better than his previous Bone Shield. He casually handed the old Bone Shield to Majesty.
He also distributed several white items that had dropped earlier—Studded Leather, Chain Boots, Chain Gloves, and a Belt—to Gerdie. Having added a lot of Strength from her levels, she could use them all now.
After changing gear, Gerdie briskly started cooking. It wasn't complicated: a pot of thick soup filled with meat and vegetables, aromatic and steaming. She served it with bread—simple, nutritious, and delicious.
Leo sat on a rock and ate heartily, occasionally swigging ale to quench his thirst. Suddenly, a quill shot out with a whoosh, piercing Leo's thigh and knocking him to the ground. His health dropped by about 20 points.
Leo looked heart-brokenly at his spilled food and roared, "You damn Quill Rat! How dare you knock over your grandpa's lunch! I'm going to roast you and eat you!"
He pulled out his newly acquired Gothic Shield to test it out. Holding the shield before him, he stared intently at the Quill Rat. The creature looked like a porcupine, capable of firing quills like arrows, with a chance to deal poison damage.
Another quill shot toward him. Leo adjusted his shield to block. A loud clang rang out as a massive force hit the shield, and the quill ricocheted away. Feeling the power transmitted through the shield, he realized that directly tanking monster attacks was still very straining; a projectile had nearly knocked the shield out of his hand, and the durability had dropped by one point.
The other two reacted quickly and applied their buffs. Majesty's Psychic Hammer continuously knocked the Quill Rat back.
Seizing the moment when the Quill Rat couldn't attack, Leo rushed forward and used Smite. The rat was instantly stunned, and the rest of the battle was trivial. The Quill Rat died quickly, dropping a white Long Bow and some gold.
Since the Long Bow was perfect for Gerdie, Leo handed it to her. Still unsatisfied, he pulled out The Gnasher.
Seeing Leo's practiced movements, Majesty turned pale. "Brother, don't you dare. We still have to eat. If you really like it, go roast it yourself over there."
Leo sulkily put away The Gnasher and returned to the rock he had been using as a stool. He intended to pick up his utensils and finish eating, but he noticed that the rock had been overturned, revealing an item underneath. It was a Small Charm. Leo identified it on the spot: Stout Small Charm of Life: +7 Defense, +9 Life.
Not bad. Could this be considered a blessing in disguise? He tossed it into his inventory.
Having finished lunch, the three continued leveling. Thanks to the god-tier skill Taunt, every monster they met—except for the Quill Rats—was pulled out and turned into experience. The experience gained in the afternoon rivaled the total from the previous several days, and all three successfully reached Level 9.
Additionally, quite a few items dropped, allowing all three to upgrade their gear. However, those weren't the biggest gains. The real haul was 15 Light Healing Potions, 12 Light Mana Potions, and 5 Rejuvenation Potions. These Light Potions were unavailable in the Rogue Encampment and could be sold at a monopoly price, and the Rejuvenation Potions—which instantly restored 35% of Life and Mana—were true life-savers.
Back at the camp, Leo sent Majesty and Gerdie to Charsi to repair their gear and sell the useless white items. Meanwhile, he took the potions to see Akara.
Familiar with the way, he arrived at Akara's tent and called out a greeting from outside: "Is Lady Akara in?"
The usual gentle voice replied, "Please, come in."