Staring at the magic circle that suddenly appeared on the ground, Liyami was momentarily stunned, then quickly steadied herself.
She couldn’t reveal her identity just yet; maybe this was a fallback move by Furnace Hook?
But when she looked at Furnace Hook, she saw he was also staring at the magic circle on the ground with a bewildered expression.
Liyami was genuinely puzzled now.
If this wasn’t Furnace Hook’s backup plan, then where did this magic circle come from?
What was it trying to do?
At that moment, the magic circle suddenly emitted a strong, blinding light.
When the light faded, the magic circle vanished, replaced by a figure with two horns growing from its head and missing its left arm.
When the horned figure without its left arm took in its surroundings, it let out a confused sound.
Liyami and Furnace Hook echoed the same puzzled exclamations.
“Huh?”
“Ah?!”
“What on earth is going on???”
Time rewound to a day earlier.
Colin was lying leisurely in the backyard of the manor, soaking up the sun.
After the Seclusion Order was lifted, he had been going out these past few days to help others, and he felt his spirits had improved a lot.
Now, he finally felt like he was on a proper vacation, resting.
Looking at the sun on the horizon, Colin’s thoughts naturally turned to Liyami.
He wondered how Liyami was doing now.
She had mentioned needing to go undercover for an assassination mission for a while, and not to seek her out unless it was something very important during that period.
So, Colin hadn’t seen Liyami in these few days.
Although only a few days had passed, he was already a bit worried.
He was afraid something might happen to Liyami.
After all, her gender had even changed now.
Who knew if there were hidden risks still lurking around her?
But despite his worries, he couldn’t just go searching for her.
If he dragged her down, it would be bad.
Just as Colin was thinking this, a spherical light ring suddenly appeared beside him, within which a blurred figure flickered.
Colin didn’t panic.
He knew what this was—it was Communication Magic.
He just didn’t know who was contacting him.
The figure in the light ring took a while to become clear, indicating the user wasn’t very skilled—probably just over level 50.
Once the figure fully came into focus, Colin recognized who was contacting him.
The figure was a man clad in full armor, looking like a warrior.
Judging by his side, a mage was likely supporting his Communication Magic.
“Senior! Are you near Kit City now?”
It seemed this was a call from another Special Incident Response Squad, and judging by the voices, they were rookies.
Colin quickly identified them and replied, “I’m at the manor the Kingdom assigned me in Kit City. What’s the matter?”
“That’s great!”
The armored man brightened instantly.
“Do you have time now, senior? We’ve run into a tricky incident that’s beyond our capability. Could you lend us a hand?”
Colin’s interest piqued.
Although he had been helping others these days, they were all minor matters.
After finishing, not only did he feel no fatigue, but he also didn’t get to showcase his full strength.
Now, here was an incident where he could truly display his abilities—how could he refuse?
But just as he was about to agree, he recalled what Liyami and Sifney had told him and hesitated.
Although they lifted his Seclusion Order, they still required him not to involve himself in strange incidents recklessly and to rest well.
If he really needed to participate, he had to notify them first.
However, Colin’s hesitation lasted only a moment before he came to a conclusion.
Liyami was on an assassination mission and unreachable, while Sifney was investigating Alek’s residence and shouldn’t be disturbed.
So, he decided to accept the mission alone and inform them afterward.
Having made up his mind, Colin quickly responded to the warrior in the light ring, “I have plenty of time. What kind of incident is it exactly?”
“It’s related to the Demon Race. A Demon Remnant has appeared near Kit City, and we were ordered to deal with it. We’ve located its hiding place, but its strength exceeds our expectations. We have no guaranteed method to deal with it, so we’re requesting your help, senior.”
Oh?
Another Demon Remnant?
What was it doing near Kit City?
Could it be related to Alek?
No matter what, he couldn’t miss this opportunity.
“All right, where are you now? I’ll come join you immediately. After we meet, we’ll take care of that demon.”
Hearing Colin agree, the warrior was overjoyed.
He gave Colin their current location and then ended the Communication Magic, waiting for Colin’s arrival.
Seeing the Communication Magic end, a smile crept across Colin’s lips.
Who would’ve thought that just lying at home soaking up the sun, he’d find an incident that could relieve stress and might be related to Alek?
How could he not go?
Silently apologizing to Liyami and Sifney, Colin hurried to the rendezvous point.
Upon arrival, Colin met with the warrior and the rest of the Special Incident Response Squad. Together, they headed to the demon’s hideout.
At a cave where the demon was concealed, Colin took the lead, scouting ahead, while the others covered his rear and cleared obstacles.
Cutting through thorns and brambles, Colin and the squad finally faced the demon.
“Gavasa! You can’t escape! You’d better surrender now!”
Hearing the squad leader’s empty threats after a long chase, Gavasa sneered with disdain.
“Surrender? Surrendering is just suicide. Do you think I’m that foolish?”
The warrior snorted coldly.
“If you’re this stubborn, don’t blame us for being ruthless.”
“Ruthless? When are you ever not ruthless to the Demon Race? Is that your ally? Looks pretty strong, bringing someone like that to deal with me. Guess I’m quite a threat. Or maybe you’re just cowardly?”
“Enough talk, Gavasa. Prepare to die!”
The warrior stepped forward, sword raised to strike.
But Colin reached out and stopped him.
“What’s wrong, senior?”
The warrior asked in confusion, but Colin just glanced ahead and cast “Holy Nova.”
The ground before them was instantly engulfed in thick black mist, resembling a curse.
The warrior shuddered in fright but then looked gratefully at Colin.
Seeing his provocations and traps foiled, Gavasa gave up pretending.
He immediately summoned the imps hidden around, determined to tear apart the squad leader and his reinforcements.