That evening, Wolf instructed Anna and Matilda to prepare as many Swiftness spells as possible while Wayde and Barbara were to prepare Lethargy.

By halving their enemy’s speed and doubling their own, the flow of time for Wolf’s party would effectively be four times that of their enemies’. That way, they wouldn’t need to waste Frost Bolts to cover up Wolf’s true prowess. He’d also noticed Barbara’s hesitation and felt guilty about having the gang spend so much money on nothing.

Over the course of five days, Wolf’s choice of spells proved to be correct. The battles they fought grew more difficult as both Order and number of Monster Beasts they encountered increased.

However, even when fighting a pair of ferocious Fleshraker Panthers, which were Fifth Order Monster Beasts, the party suffered no injuries. These lightning fast felines moved like snails and Wayde and Barbara could keep them busy, giving Anna and Matilda enough time to kill them from safety.

The party was forced to use this tactic three times. Once against Fleshraker Panthers, once against another Ironback Razortusk and once against a giant pack of Rocktooth Rats, which were Third Order Monster Beasts.

Even though things were looking good, Wolf left nothing to chance. He prepared a full assortment of spells to keep his friends safe. Most of these were Subtle spells which focused on muddling their enemies. None of them had visible effects as they affected the enemy’s mind, impaired their senses and there was even a spell Wolf was curious about since he’d learned it, but never got to use it. Allegedly, it cursed the enemy with terrible luck.

Fortunately, up until the sixth day, there was no reason to use his contingencies. All Wolf had to do was eliminate the sneaky monsters in an above board manner while helping his friends as if he were a regular Fifth Order Mage.

It was already high noon on the sixth day since the party had entered the danger zone. Wolf wore a monocle, squinting through it as he turned his head from side to side.

The fancy item, coupled with the Mage Academy uniform, made him appear oddly posh. So much so that Anna couldn’t help laughing when she first saw the complete getup. Even Matilda covered her mouth and mumbled something about Wolf dressing sharply today.

Wolf didn’t care about the muffled laughs, nor the Alchemists’ odd looks. In fact Wolf joined in on the fun.

“I actually wanted to buy glasses,” he said. “But I’m so poor, I couldn’t afford the whole thing.”

The reason he didn’t care about the laughs, and why he was in such a great mood was because the item on his right eye was practically a cheat. Thanks to it, they had ambushed an ambush predator four times already.

In fact the first Fleshraker Panther they encountered was shot to death in this manner, turning a difficult fight into target practice.

Now, the monocle proved its worth once more. Wolf raised his clenched fist. About a hundred meters away, he saw a heat signature. It looked like a long, very thick hose randomly thrown about the treetop. Some pieces were missing and the body seemed disconnected. Thanks to its shape, Wolf recognized it as a serpentine Monster Beast.

“There’s some kind of snake ahead of us.” Wolf whispered as everyone stopped. Even Tommy and Alfred had learned the basic signs and how this team’s tactics worked.

“What kind of snake?” Alfred asked.

“Beats me.” Wolf shrugged. “It’s too far away, and there are hundreds of species of serpentine Monster Beasts. I can guarantee that it’s a Monster Beast though. There’s no way a regular snake would grow that big.”

“So what do we do?” Alfred asked with an inquisitive smile.

The man wasn’t worried. Rather, he wanted to know how these youngsters planned to solve this situation.

“We prepare a counter ambush. Since we have no information on the enemy, assume it’s a Tenth Order Monster Beast and be ready to flee at the drop of a hat.” Wolf turned around to look at everyone’s faces.

“You guys prepare for a fight here. I’ll take the shot once I’m some fifty meters away from it. You just have to stay sharp. If I tell you to run, then get the hell out of here, and remember to follow the path we used to come here. We don’t want to attract any new Monster Beasts by walking into their territory.”

Nobody argued against Wolf’s plan. So far they followed his instructions and everyone was safe and sound.

“All right, I’m off.” Wolf turned around, and Anna reached out to stop him, but in the end she hesitated and let her man creep forward.

Once he was some fifty-odd meters away from the monstrous python, Van Dale’s bow appeared in Wolf’s hands. For a moment he considered casting a Subtle Swiftness on himself.

Nah, my movement speed is already enhanced. I’d be screwed only if a dragon somehow made an appearance, he thought confidently, but Van Dale’s shadow still made him act with full caution. The bow he currently held had punched a giant gaping wound in his side and destroyed an internal organ not too long ago.

Wolf carefully looked one more time, awakening his senses to a quarter, but couldn’t see anything from the leaves.

For a moment the youth considered using Detached Eye, but the snake would probably react to its movement. If he’s already provoking it, better to do it with an attack than a futile scouting effort.

Wolf aimed at the thickest reddish-yellow patch he could see, then let the arrow loose.

The arrow soared through the air, then, with a clear metallic sound, it ricocheted off the snake’s skin. Suddenly, the peaceful patches of red and yellow exploded into violent motion. The whole tree shook and its branches loudly snapped one after another.

“Shit,” Wolf shouted. “It’s a Rockcrusher Python!”

“A Seventh Order Monster,” Barbara shouted back. “The name comes from the legends that it can constrict rocks into fine powder. Its skin is supposedly impervious to non-magical weapons and all forms of bludgeoning damage—”

Barbara listed the monster’s characteristics out of habit, since Wolf’s been drilling her about Monster Beasts for the upcoming exam. However, Matilda stopped her recitation.

“Run you dummy,” Matilda growled.

She’d already started running away. Now she ran back, grabbed Barbara’s hand and started pulling her away from Wolf and the monster. Barbara was sometimes silly. She said that this was a Seventh Order Monster Beast and that it was more or less impervious to physical harm. Yet she still stood there dumbly, apparently with blind faith in Wolf’s ability to keep them safe.

With her fully awakened senses, Matilda heard Wolf whisper the chant for the Lethargy spell behind her. She took a moment to process this information, then slowed down.

Rockcrusher Pythons had explosive striking speed, but their land movement was fairly sluggish, especially considering their Order. If Wolf slowed it down further than there was no need for a panicked retreat. They might even be able to simply walk around it.

“Wolf, what’s the plan? Do you have a way of killing it?” Matilda asked without raising her voice. If she could hear Wolf’s whispered chant, he could definitely hear her just fine.

A couple of moments later the speed with which the python descended from the tree slowed down considerably.

“No plan, but I think it won’t be too dangerous for a while. Normal weapons are useless against higher Order Monster Beasts, especially things like this. We could try pelting it with spells, I guess? But we would have to make sure not to draw in other monsters, otherwise things could turn ugly really fast.” Satisfied with the result, Wolf replied to Matilda.

“That’s not a plan! That’s just rambling! What do we do?” Matilda didn’t hold back at all.

With their lives at stake Wolf’s idea just now was utterly useless.

“You guys back up two hundred meters. I’ll see if I can kill it,” Wolf said.

“All right,” Matilda said and led everyone into a tactical retreat, leaving behind only Anna.

“Stay safe,” the young woman worriedly said before leaving, drawing a smile from Wolf.

It really shouldn’t be too hard, he thought. Quickest way to kill it is to use Weapon Splitter, which should negate a part of its defenses. I can start with Charging Bull’s Pierce, then follow up with Mighty Slash. They won’t deal any damage, but the warmup will save me some Internal Energy. However, that might not kill it.

Wolf had a vague outline of a plan, he just wasn’t sure what the odds were of killing a defensive earth attributed Monster Beast with a single Weapon Splitter. Sunder the Mountains would be an overkill, and it wasted too much Internal Energy. Besides, Wolf still couldn’t release that much Internal Energy with a single strike without getting dizzy.

Earth attributed Monster Beasts are innately weak against acid, Wolf thought, using his brains instead of just recklessly charging in.

By the time the python slithered down and slowly started crawling towards him, Wolf came up with a plan and had a sword in hand. He murmured the chant for Elemental Weapon while tracing the blade’s edge with two fingers.

As Wolf’s hand moved the sword’s metallic shin disappeared and was replaced by a yellowish caustic tint. As Wolf chanted, the toxic yellowish-green grew deeper, consuming the original mithril color of the blade’s edge. When Wolf finished his mantra the sword had become a blade of vile acid.

This stinks. I practiced with a flaming sword and it looked really cool, but this one…smells real bad. Minor adjustments to the spell allowed Wolf to create a sword of fire, ice, lightning or acid, but he’d only ever used the fire one to learn how to cast the spell.

While Wolf inwardly whined about the stench, the snake slithered closer very slowly.

Once the python finally slithered into range, Wolf used Charging Bull’s Pierce. He dashed across the uneven terrain, holding the sword in front of himself in a way Wolf couldn’t help but find idiotic.

This move is useless, unless you have absolute advantage in speed, he thought. Anyone with decent senses could dodge such an inflexible attack.

Unfortunately for it, Rockcrusher Python’s body was huge, and its movements were even further slowed by magic.

With a hiss, the edge of Wolf’s acidic blade sank into the python’s scaly hide. Unfortunately, despite Wolf’s best effort, he barely stabbed his sword half a palm deep. Such a wound amounted to merely scratching the snake.

The python shrieked, but Wolf ignored its hisses. With a Mighty Slash, the young Mage freed his blade, sending blood splashing. The youth took a deep breath as he raised the blade then cleaved down with everything he had.

His blow landed a meter below the giant head, splashing the ground with blood. Unfortunately, while Wolf’s sword managed to pierce the thick scaly hide, it simply bounced off bone.

Damn, I need a heavier strike, Wolf thought, then heard the whooshing of air.

Wounded, the python instinctively lashed out with its tail. The air screamed as the whiplike appendage struck towards Wolf.

Damn, that’s fast, Wolf thought as he realized the tail was heading straight towards his head. And that’s when it’s under Lethargy. I shouldn’t look down on higher Order Monster Beasts.

Wolf jumped up from the ground and onto the python’s head. With an explosion and shower of earth, the tail missed the youth by a fraction of a second.

That could work, Wolf thought when he saw the devastation caused by that tail slam.

Standing on the serpent’s head, Wolf executed Rabid Tiger’s Flurry, raining a series of blows onto the Rockcrusher’s thick skull, melting skin and bone with his acidic weapon. The damage wasn’t worth mentioning, even if slightly higher than the First Order attacks. But Wolf’s aim wasn’t to kill, but to infuriate.

The python hissed in pain and anger, sweeping its tail at Wolf once more, this time in a slower upward motion. Wolf ducked, but then the frenzied Monster Beast shook its head to throw him off.

Wolf stabbed his sword and used it to maintain balance. The wound sizzled and smoke rose from it, as the reptile’s flesh melted, further infuriating it. Then, Wolf smiled. He heard the awaited sharp sound of that long tail tearing through the air.

The youth dismissed Energy Weapon and stored his sword into the Ring of Holding, letting the Rockcrusher Python’s bucking fling him away to safety.

As Wolf flew through the air, he awakened his senses and watched as the tail slowly descended. With a thunderous boom the python’s head first deformed then shattered like a pumpkin. The Monster Beast killed itself with a single blow, impressing Wolf and showing him the great difference between manlings and Monster Beasts.

This was a fully grown Rockcrusher Python, he thought. It should be a Seventh Order Monster Beast and nominally comparable to a Seventh Order Sword-Sage, but I used two Sixth Order maneuvers and barely made several superficial wounds.

Wolf reckoned that even if he’d used Seventh Order Maneuvers he’d need to expend a decent chunk of his Internal Energy before slaying this python. Wolf was so shocked by the force of that blow that he forgot the basic hypothesis on Monster Beast evolution.

As a Monster Beast’s Order increased, so did their speed, power, toughness and intelligence. Pythons in general focused on power and toughness, foregoing intelligence and speed. Vipers were the opposite. They focused on speed and strong toxins which were lethal combined with their above average intellect.

Wolf already knew this in theory. But knowing the fact and personally witnessing it were two very different things.

A moment later Wolf gathered his senses and made a mental note on how to kill Monster Beasts similar to Rockcrusher Pythons.

“I’m alright guys. The snake’s dead. It wasn’t that tough and I know how to kill them now,” Wolf said with a slightly raised voice, refraining from shouting.

“We’ll be over in a moment.” Anna said just as loudly, and after a minute, the party was together once more. Wolf was struggling to skin the Rockcrusher Python, but managing to make progress slowly.

When Anna saw the gigantic snake her jaw dropped. “How did you kill that thing?”

“I told him that the Human Emperor plans to introduce his social reformation in Mirkwood as well. The snake voluntarily decided to end its misery sooner rather than later,” Wolf said seriously, staring straight into Anna’s eyes, thinking how good it was that True-Namers were at least allowed to joke, if their words were obviously absurd enough.

For a moment Anna was too dumbfounded, but off to the side Matilda chortled. She already saw the snake had killed itself for some reason.

“What did you really do?” she asked, stifling her laugh.

“Nothing. I played the part of an annoying, buzzing fly and the snake killed itself while trying to smash me to death. It’s even dumber than what it says in the books,” Wolf shrugged his shoulders and said a convoluted version of the truth.

The two Alchemists gazed at the oversized snake, then at the boy who went back to skinning it and finally looked at each other, seeming to say ‘I guess that’s one way to do it?’.