“I’d like to see just where you think you can run!”
The black figure flew toward the direction Ian was escaping, erupting with a speed much faster than Ian’s.
‘Damn it, who exactly is this person? Why target Veronica?’
Ian racked his brain, but he couldn’t match the black figure before him to any game character in his memory.
Logically, the current Veronica shouldn’t have any enemies!
‘The only enemy might be me, and I couldn’t possibly attack Veronica. So where did things go wrong?’
“Kid, your escape speed isn’t much. Can you go any faster?”
Before Ian could figure out who the figure was, a mocking voice suddenly sounded beside him.
Ian turned his head and saw that the figure was already neck and neck with him.
**Dark Magic — Flash Step.**
Sensing a dangerous aura, Ian hastily cast his teleportation magic.
In the blink of an eye, Ian appeared hundreds of meters away with Veronica on his back.
Ian hadn’t originally intended to use this teleportation magic because, while it could move him elsewhere in an instant, its destination was uncontrollable.
Consequently, after Ian used the spell, his figure not only failed to get closer to Far East City but actually moved further away from it.
“Oh? Teleportation magic? Interesting.”
The black figure clearly hadn’t expected Ian to use such a spell.
‘I can’t get any closer to Far East City. The terrain here is too open and isn’t suitable for escaping.’
Ian looked toward the Magic Beast Forest where he had previously gathered herbs and made a decision in his heart.
The forest had complex terrain, making it a good place to run.
Once he made up his mind, Ian didn’t hesitate and flew toward the Magic Beast Forest.
‘I hope reinforcements from the Duke’s Mansion arrive early; otherwise, I’m definitely going to fail today!’
“Trying to run?”
The black figure noticed Ian’s intention and followed behind him, starting a pursuit through the Magic Beast Forest.
Relying on the complex terrain of the Magic Beast Forest and occasionally using **Dark Magic — Flash Step**, Ian managed to avoid being caught by the black figure for the time being.
“I’d like to see how many more times your Mana can support those displacement skills.”
Seeing that they couldn’t catch Ian immediately, the black figure wasn’t in a hurry.
Their Mana was greater than Ian’s, and once Ian’s Mana was exhausted, they could easily capture them both.
At this moment, cold sweat poured down Ian’s forehead.
His Mana was nearly depleted; he could use displacement skills two more times at most.
If he couldn’t use his displacement skills, he would definitely be caught, even with the complex terrain of the Magic Beast Forest.
‘Damn it, the rescue is taking too long!’
As Ian complained in his heart, Veronica, who was on his back, regained consciousness.
‘Where am I?’
‘I remember being ambushed from behind by an attack.’
‘Was I not killed?’
After all, based on the strength of that person’s attack, they had intended to kill her.
She had only managed to survive the strike by relying on the physical enhancement effect of the Sword of Courage.
If that figure had followed up with another blow, she would have certainly died.
‘Also, I thought I saw Ian before I was attacked. He should have escaped, right?’
Having just woken up, Veronica was clearly still dazed and couldn’t distinguish the situation.
“Damn it, they’re about to catch up again.”
“**Dark Magic — Flash Step!**”
Just as the black figure drew close, Ian activated his Flash Step again, appearing hundreds of meters away.
Feeling the change in position, Veronica snapped out of her dazed state.
‘Is this Ian?’
Veronica couldn’t believe the scene before her eyes.
‘Why is Ian carrying me?’
‘Could it be that Ian saved me after I was hit by that magic attack?’
Thinking of this, Veronica was shocked again, unable to believe this was actually happening.
‘What is Ian’s purpose in helping me?’
Veronica frowned.
‘Is there something he wants to get from me?’
It wasn’t that Veronica overthought things; her suspicion of Ian was related to her experiences since childhood.
This was a plot point that even Ian didn’t know because the original game never mentioned exactly why Veronica liked women and became a lesbian.
It was possible the players simply didn’t care about that part of the story.
The reason Veronica liked women was that she had been betrayed by a man when she was very young, which led to her entire family being killed.
If Aetherinra hadn’t appeared in time, she wouldn’t have escaped death herself.
While this event didn’t lead her to believe that all men in the world were evil, it did give her a physiological aversion to the male gender that she couldn’t control.
Aetherinra, who had saved her, naturally became another pillar of support in her heart.
It was likely then that she became disappointed in men and turned toward women.
Yet, as Veronica leaned against Ian’s back now, she didn’t feel that physiological aversion.
Why?
Even Veronica couldn’t understand it.
Due to lying on Ian’s back for so long, Veronica’s cold body greedily absorbed his warmth.
Unconsciously, she tightened her grip around Ian.
Feeling this change, Ian subconsciously asked her a question.
“You’re awake?”
Realizing her own actions, Veronica’s face flushed with shame, and she quickly loosened her hold on his shoulders.
“Don’t move around.”
Ian had adjusted her position so that her arms were looped over his shoulders, which helped him save energy.
“Since you’re awake, how much Mana do you have left?”
Ian asked her.
Having been forced to flee passively, he had thought of a possible countermeasure once he realized she was awake — but it required her to have Mana.
“I can use one **Intermediate Magic** spell.”
“Because of the prolonged battle with the Fang Wolf Leader earlier, I don’t have much Mana left.”
“That’s enough,” Ian told her.
The method Ian had devised involved utilizing the Sword of Courage in her hands.
As a sword left on the Faloran Continent by the God of Courage, it contained extremely powerful magical effects.
It shouldn’t be difficult to kill the black figure behind them.
As long as the person chosen by the God of Courage — Veronica — poured all of her Mana into it, the Sword of Courage could unleash incredibly powerful magic.
Even Veronica, the owner of the blade, didn’t know about this effect; Ian only knew it from the game.
“Wait until that figure gets close. I’ll use Flash Step to teleport behind them. When that happens, use all your strength to slash at them with the Sword of Courage.”
“Understood.”
Veronica chose to believe Ian’s words.
After all, if it wasn’t for Ian, she might have died a long time ago.
However, once Ian explained how to use the Sword of Courage, it became even clearer to Veronica that the mysterious person in black who gave her the sword was Ian.
The only thing she still couldn’t understand was why Ian was helping her.