MMORPG: Rebirth of the Shadow Mage

128 Beauty is a Weapon

Leo carefully read over the message he had composed in the chat window. He wanted to make sure that it conveyed his thoughts clearly and accurately before sending it off to Ava. As he read through the words, he considered whether or not any changes or edits needed to be made, paying close attention to the tone and language he had used.

He felt troubled, asking for help from Ava, especially now, when she had gotten a new race.

‘Maybe I should search for the ant hive alone?’

Scratching his chin Leo thought, but soon shook his head. The Demonic Ants are one of the rarest insects in hell and finding them without the Sense attribute would take him ages.

Leo could also keep luring demons inside the temple, but that would also require time and he wanted to escape from hell as fast as possible. Having no heat or fire resistance was taking a toll on his mind.

Click...

As Leo hit the send button on the message he had written, he couldn’t help but look towards the towering structure in the horizon. He had seen pictures of Ava before, but seeing her from a distance and seeing her up close were two completely different things. If from afar, she looked like a goddess, how stunning would she look up close?

‘Control yourself...’ ????????????????e????????. c????m

Growling at himself Leo summoned Fenrir and patted his fur. He knew that the wolf wasn’t a fan of high temperatures. However, Leo couldn’t afford to move slowly through the wasteland and risk being caught by the demons.

.....

“I’ll prepare you something special, when we get out of this hell...”

As Leo scratched Fenrir’s black fur, he noticed the wolf’s eyes glisten with excitement at the mention of food.

As Leo jumped onto Fenrir’s back, he received a message from Ava. Upon reading it, he saw that she had agreed to meet him near the base of the towering spire. Leo let out a sigh, unsure of whether he was relieved or nervous about her response. While he had requested the meeting, a part of him had been unsure if he really wanted to go through with it.

‘This is for the shortcut...’

Consoling himself, Leo instructed Fenrir to run towards the towering spire in the distance. The sun was currently hovering above the peak of the structure, giving it an eerie and otherworldly appearance.

***

As they journeyed on Fenrir’s back, Leo couldn’t shake the feeling of nervousness that consumed him. The only thing that kept him from worrying too much about the upcoming meeting was the harsh and dangerous environment of the hellish wasteland they were traveling through. He had to remain vigilant, constantly on the lookout for roaming creatures and venomous yellow scorpions that threatened to sting his wolf companion.

After a few grueling hours of travel, the red sun was high in the sky and Leo was finally approaching the towering spire. As they drew closer, he could make out the silhouette of a person standing at the open door of the structure. His nerves heightened at the sight and he couldn’t help but gulp in nervousness.

The person near the tower also shifted his head towards the approaching Leo and waved.

‘Just don’t look at her face’

As Leo dismounted from Fenrir and began walking towards Ava on his own two feet, he couldn’t help but take in all of the details of her appearance. The closer he got, the more he was struck by her beauty.

Ava’s grey hair flowed in the wind, and her height seemed slightly increased, perhaps due to the black wings that were visible behind her back. Her lips were red as blood, and her blue eyes glistened in the dimly lit desert, giving her a mysterious and bewitching look.

As she greeted Leo with a smile, he couldn’t help but momentarily stumble, his heart stopping at the sight of her delicate, yet captivating face.

‘Fuck...’

Leo was happy, since his face was hidden beneath the hood and Ava couldn’t see his face.

“Hi!”

Ava sheepishly greeted him while moving closer, bringing her beautiful face right in front of Leo.

...

Feeling his blood pressure rising Leo closed his eyes.

“Hello. Sorry I’m a bit late... We should really get going. The desert is crawling with demons and it’s not safe to stay in one place for too long”

Despite his eyes being closed, Leo couldn’t help but speak at an abnormally fast pace, his nerves getting the best of him. Without even waiting for Ava’s reply, he summoned Fenrir and climbed onto the wolf’s back, gesturing for Ava to follow him.

Ava looked at Leo with slightly narrowed eyes, but the smile on her face remained unchanged. Despite the changes she noticed in his actions, she was happy to see a more human side to this usually ice cold demon.

Like a nimble bunny, Ava gracefully jumped onto Fenrir’s back and took a seat in front of Leo, rather than behind him as she had done before.

...

The silence engulfed the pair and Leo quietly patted Fenrir, gesturing him to run towards the temple. Even though his heart was beating as if he was running a marathon, he didn’t want to be killed by the demons roaming around the desert.

As Ava sat in front of him, Leo couldn’t help but notice a pleasant fragrance emanating from her, a smell of rain that shouldn’t have been possible in the hellish wasteland they were in, where only acidic liquid fell from the clouds.

Right now, he couldn’t help, but curse his senses enchanted by the Bond he had with Fenrir. He could notice, smell and see more things that a normal human could, which made Ava even more attractive.

“Why couldn’t the Angel use its Shadow Step?”

Ava suddenly spoke with a curious tone, causing Leo to slightly shudder in response. Even her voice seemed more appealing up close, and Leo found it difficult to collect his thoughts with her so near. He frowned, trying to focus on her words, but the proximity of Ava made it difficult for him to concentrate.

Despite his inner turmoil, Leo knew that he had to remain focused and do his best to keep his emotions in check.

“I’ve momentarily disabled it.”

Leo curtly replied, trying to keep his responses short and to the point. His dry throat threatened to stutter with every word, and he didn’t trust himself to speak in long sentence

Ava nodded, understanding that Leo would not elaborate further on the matter. Despite his curt responses, her smile remained unchanged, Leo was showing signs that he was more at ease with her than during their first encounter.

Since Ava didn’t quite like the silent atmosphere she was about to ask another question when the Fenrir suddenly stopped in his tracks and growled.

In a split second, Ava was suddenly pulled off of the wolf’s back and Leo quickly reached out to catch her in the midst of her fall. Even though Ava could teleport into a safe location Leo didn’t want her to use Mana, when he could help her to regain her footing.

Screech...

With a loud, earth-shattering roar, the death worm emerged from the red sand, its massive body uncoiling and writhing as it made its way to the surface. Its long, segmented body was covered in sharp, black spines, and its huge, gaping maw was filled with rows of jagged teeth. Its beady eyes glinted with malice as it scanned the area, glaring at the wolf, right beneath its insect-like legs.

Leo couldn’t help, but curse seeing its outer appearance. It was an elite monster, with size and power to devour a small vehicle.

Making sure that he and Ava were far enough, so the worm couldn’t reach them, he quickly released Ava from his hands and called Fenrir to his side.

“Be careful, it’s an elite monster!”

Leo tried to warn Ava, but she suddenly disappeared and teleported above the worm’s head. Her wings made out of black feathers were extended, allowing her to levitate in the air.

Swish...

Her Lightning Spear struck the worm’s head, making it screech in pain. Even though the creature was Lv. 75, Ava could still wound it.

Leo momentarily froze seeing a beautiful girl with wings of an angel, hovering above the creature that was supposed to be avoided rather than fought.

‘Snap out of it...’

Pinching his own cheek, Leo sighed before summoning some of his Shadow Soldiers and sending them to assist Ava, while he prepared to cast Shadow Protection to shield Ava.

He didn’t forget to use his other hand to launch Shadow Blasts at the worm’s legs and command Fenrir to attack its soft abdomen which was not covered with scales.

Leo quickly ordered his soldiers to climb the beast’s body and transform their limbs into small sickles, which they would use to tear away at the monster’s tough scales and expose its soft underskin. He knew that this was their best chance at defeating the deadly death worm.

‘He shouldn’t have attacked us...’