Vile Evil Hides Under The Veil

Kieee!

Katalina's contract beast released a shriek that didn't sound very owl-like. The fire-element mana of Tuan's meteor-like attack had struck the beast's back with such momentum and force that it crashed to the ground without making any attempts with its large wings to stabilize its flight.

Boom!

The beast landed on the same spot where Tuan had stood earlier. It had crashed right in the middle of a previously existing crater that had been made by Katalina's wind blades colliding against each other from multiple directions. That crater only widened after the fallen bird made contact with the ground.

Boom!

Another small crater was formed beside the crater made by the beast's fall. But unlike the beast, his attacker was seen standing upright when the dust settled. His swords drawn and his fire-element mana still circulating throughout his body. His large Fire Wings added another layer of intimidation to his image.

'This is… do all guys turn monsters after their girls ditch them?'

Katalina wondered as she saw Tuan while maintaining her distance from him. She felt her contract's beast's condition through her connection with it and found out that it wasn't doing well.

The owl's white feathers were burning. Tuan's fire element mana had penetrated his mana body and was affecting its foundation. It was corrupting the wind mana that was acting as the body's primal element.

"Tu… Tuan, can we talk?"

With stress lines visible on her forehead, Katalina asked. She would be foolish to engage with such a monster if the rewards were not worth the efforts. She wasn't even sure she could fight with the guy on equal grounds anymore.

Tuan didn't turn back. He stayed in his position only to see that Katalina had dispersed her beast contract spell. The beast was in pain. Such wounds on its mana body were going to affect its soul as well. So its master decided that there was no need to make those injuries more severe.

Katalina clenched her fists and spoke up.

"That drop. I give up my claim on it. In exchange for co-operation in raids. What… what do you think?"

Katalina couldn't back down without gaining anything in return due to her viewers watching her move. Furthermore, she could not continue battling with the maniac either. So, she decided to give up the claim on the reward to gain him as a raid partner. This way, her image won't be ruined.

"Hmm. That's a smart suggestion. I can't help but agree. Hehe!

But we'll talk later, miss. Let me get my reward first."

Tuan responded without giving the suggestion much of a thought. He then started walking in a particular direction without worrying about Katalina.

The latter felt a bit aggravated by the fact that she had to take a step back. But the next moment, she took a breath of relief at the fact that she didn't have to engage in confrontation with the fire monster in front of her.

Eren scanned the region with his mana sense and found an anomaly at a place which didn't generate any feedback for him. He walked towards that area and imbued his mana through the ground.

A pair of identical swords appeared out of thin air and were seen levitating in front of Tuan immediately after he did what he did. These were fire-element swords meant to be used by battle mages like Tuan's current fighting style. They supported close range as well as mid-range attacks.

The swords had an orange-yellow tint on them as if they had just come out of the smithy. It was as if yellow and orange fires had been condensed to make these swords. They had fire-element runes etched onto them close to the hilt that attested to their nearly flawless compatibility with anything that was related to fire.

The weapons had a simple hilt that offered an optimal grip. The crescent guard of each sword was inscribed with hybrid runes to make the sword lightweight.

These hybrid runes enabled the weapons to be used for close-quarters and mid-range combat. These runes alone made the weapons exceptionally exquisite.

Eren gripped both the swords in either of his hands and imbued them with his mana. Then he swung them a few times to get a better feel for them. He was immediately satisfied with the weapons. They seemed like the right match for him to carry out fire-element attacks.

'These blades are exceptionally lightweight despite the mana-influenced metal that is used in their construction. They are perfect for my close-combat moves. Plus, the spell that is inscribed onto them…'

Eren channelled his fire-element mana through the weapons and swung them to release the flying slashes at an empty area in front of him. Yet, he couldn't see anything but two blurred and hazy crescent-shaped lines travelling towards the ground.

Immediately afterwards the ground in front of Eren caught fire in a stretched X format. This was the effect of his weapons' slashes that he had performed just now. And yet, the slashes released by the weapons using fire-element mana were so compressed and un-mana-like that he could barely sense them.

The cut the swords had generated on the ground was exceptionally distinct even though Tuan had barely put any mana into them. Plus, the fire ignited by fire-element mana had the property of accelerated burning. It meant that the attacks would inflict more damage over time in a short span.

'Hehe! This is like me trying to copy Al's attacks. Real or fake, it doesn't matter if the results are the same.

In any case, they sure are keepers. I'll let Tuan announce that he had gifted these blades to me.'

The butcher said to himself and swung his weapons a few more times and used the inscribed spell some more. He named the spell Invi Blaze because of its effects.

His excitement for the weapons was natural. He hadn't wielded elemental weapons of such quality in his previous life.

Plus, the butcher now had two sets of weapons for his two elements. And both weapons had their own spells inscribed on them. The butcher would have never thought that he would be able to diversify his attacks so much in this timeline in such a short time.

Tuan kept the weapons in his storage after playing with them a few more times. He couldn't help carrying a cheerful glee on his face. Coming from a guy like him, it looked downright maniacal.

Anduril.

That's what he had named his new set of weapons.