Chapter 56: The Blessing of Two Lovers Accompanied by Pain

This great canyon was flanked by towering slopes, with a five-meter-wide passage between them—a place perfectly suited for bandits to lay traps. Since everyone had agreed with Han Shuo’s plan, they set to work immediately. Han Shuo didn’t know much about setting traps, but first, the group used strong ropes to create horse-tripping reins across the passage. Then, Vannie and Jean, both skilled in the necromantic arts, cast an advanced acid marsh spell just beyond the reins.

Acid Marsh, a high-level spell of the necromancer school, forms a large, muddy swamp on the ground. Once conjured, it can corrode anyone who wanders into it, reducing them to a skeleton in an instant—a truly vicious magic of the necromantic domain. However, casting this spell required considerable mental strength, and the area covered depended on the caster’s power. Even with Vannie and Jean working together, they could only conjure a marsh roughly five meters in length and width, and their exhausted faces showed this was their limit.

Huge boulders were placed on the slopes on both sides, ready to be hurled at the orc wolf riders when they arrived. The necromancer students and teachers were physically frail compared to Han Shuo, so moving the stones was left entirely to him. Once all the preparations were complete, Jean, Bella, and several others hid on one side of the passage’s slope, while Han Shuo, Vannie, and Lisa took their positions on the other.

“You’ve changed so much. If we survive and return to Babylon Academy of Magic and Martial Arts, your contribution will be the greatest. I’ll make sure the academy rewards you,” Vannie whispered, lying behind a massive stone, her bright eyes scanning Han Shuo.

Han Shuo sat in the middle, Lisa on his left, Vannie on his right. They were close together, and as Vannie spoke, the fragrant warmth of her breath brushed his cheek, filling him with a distracting scent. Suddenly, the danger seemed tinged with romance.

He scratched his head out of habit and smiled sheepishly, boldly gazing at Vannie’s delicate face. Her hair was disheveled, her cheeks pale from the exertion of casting Acid Marsh, making her look fragile—quite different from her usual dazzling and domineering presence. It lent her a certain vulnerable beauty that struck Han Shuo.

“Damn it, I’m talking to you! Don’t stare at me like that!” Vannie’s heart fluttered with annoyance as she saw Han Shuo’s intense gaze, thinking he’d grown far too bold to look at her so brazenly.

“Heh, Vannie, you’re beautiful. There’s no harm in admiring you a bit more—why be so stingy?” Han Shuo teased with a light laugh.

Suddenly, pain shot through Han Shuo’s left arm. His face twisted in discomfort as he glanced at Lisa, who glared at him with resentment. Quickly, he forced a smile. “Of course, Lisa, you’re beautiful too. Heh.”

Lisa snorted and glared at him, pouting. “Don’t think you’re untouchable now. Tell me how you gained mental strength, mastered Bone Arrow magic, and what other secrets you’re hiding from me.”

“Uh, I don’t have any secrets. If I can use Bone Arrow, it’s all thanks to you. If you hadn’t nearly killed me with Soul Pain, I’d still be useless like before. Thank you!”

Lisa’s face darkened. She lowered her head and sighed softly, saying, “You still haven’t forgiven me. I know you hated me for using Soul Pain, but I didn’t mean to—how could I know it would nearly kill you?”

“No, I really don’t blame you, Lisa. Don’t overthink it. You know how I feel about you, so how could I resent you?” Han Shuo, startled, remembered the role he was playing and hurried to comfort her.

Just then, pain flared in his right arm as well. He turned to see Vannie’s slender fingers pinching him hard. Han Shuo grimaced, lamenting inwardly that such blessings were hard to bear, and asked, “Vannie, what’s wrong now?”

Vannie paused, wondering why she was involved in this conversation. What did their words have to do with her, and why did she feel the urge to pinch him? She shook her head, snorted, and then, with a faint smile and raised voice, asked, “Lisa, just now he said something about his feelings for you. What’s that about?”

Lisa’s face turned suddenly flustered. She hurriedly waved her hands to cover up, saying, “It’s nothing, Vannie. You must’ve heard wrong. Right, Bryan?” She shot Han Shuo a warning look—if he dared to speak, she wouldn’t let him off.

Han Shuo nodded with a strained smile and laughed, “Yes, Vannie, you must be exhausted. Your hearing is probably off.”

“Really?” Vannie eyed Han Shuo suspiciously, her tone odd.

“Of course. By the way, Vannie, when we return to Babylon Academy, I want to lift my slave status. I’ve earned enough gold in the Dark Forest and don’t want to carry this label forever!”

“Don’t worry. If we make it back, I’ll negotiate with the academy for you. Not only will your slave status be revoked, I’ll also try to have your menial service status lifted. You’ll become a necromancer student, and I’ll personally teach you advanced magic. With your talent, I believe you’ll surpass all current necromancer students!” Vannie reassured him warmly, secretly thinking that if he improved quickly, he could finally break free from his current chains. Then, perhaps... Wait, what am I thinking? I must be truly exhausted to let my mind wander like this.

Just then, Han Shuo’s face, which had been filled with joy, suddenly tightened. He closed his eyes and listened intently, then shouted across the canyon, “Jean, be careful! I hear heavy footsteps. The orc wolf riders must be coming!”

“Got it! You all be careful too. Bryan, Vannie and I have spent much of our energy; you must protect her!” Jean called back.

“Don’t worry. As long as Vannie is with me, unless I die first, she won’t be harmed!” Han Shuo declared.

With his words, Han Shuo felt another sharp pain in his left arm—Lisa’s irritation made itself known, and he quickly turned to explain. But he failed to notice the complex look in Vannie’s eyes as she gazed at him.

Finally, the heavy thudding grew louder, approaching from afar. Even the ordinary necromancer students and teachers heard it, and everyone tensed, preparing for the sudden assault to come.

“Damn it, it’s not the orc wolf riders—it’s the light mages, Bechir and her group!”

As everyone held their breath, ready to roll the boulders, Han Shuo’s sharp eyes realized that the newcomers were not orc wolf riders, but Bechir, Irene, and others from Babylon Academy’s light magic division, fleeing in panic. Among them were several unfamiliar mage-warriors, all riding exhausted, snorting horses and looking utterly worn out.

Vannie frowned, suddenly poking her head out from behind the stone and shouting, “Bechir, stop! We’ve set traps here for the wolf riders!”

Bechir and her group, about to charge into the trip ropes, stopped just in time. Looking up at the necromancer students and teachers on the slopes, Bechir immediately grasped the situation and shouted, “The orc wolf riders are right behind us! What do we do?”

“Abandon your mounts and drive them back, then hurry across on foot. We’ll tell you where the traps are. If you stay here, it’s certain death!” Han Shuo called out calmly.

Bechir’s group hesitated only briefly, then followed Han Shuo’s instructions—dismounting, stabbing their daggers into the horses’ haunches to send them running back, and scrambling up the slopes as Vannie directed, carefully avoiding the trip ropes and acid marsh.

Another wave of heavy footsteps echoed in everyone’s ears. This time, they knew the pursuing orc wolf riders had arrived.

“Hide yourselves! Prepare for battle!” Han Shuo shouted, and everyone carefully concealed themselves, ready to give the marauding orc wolf riders a bloody lesson.