The adventurer at the bottom is fantasizing again.

Both men gripped their weapons tightly, keeping their eyes fixed on the bear as they cautiously retreated.

The giant bear slowly approached them, its massive body exuding an aura of oppression. With just a gentle swipe of its paws, it crushed the bushes into dust.

"Pip thinks it's not going to let us off the hook. I should have had a couple more beers before we came out."

The little guy was so engrossed in its gaze that his mind started racing.

Lorraine had no time to deal with Piper; he was still searching for a weakness in the giant bear to increase his chances of winning.

Its nose and eyes are definitely weak points, but it would be extremely difficult to attack them. Its two forearms are thicker than its waist, so its attack range must be considerable.

Will Piper create an opportunity? Hopefully, the little guy won't get slapped away...

Perhaps we can use the Shadow Step of Midnight's Touch to teleport into the shadows beneath its body and deliver a powerful blow.

It would be difficult to kill it in one go, and I would most likely get slapped myself. I don't know if the steel breastplate can withstand it.

While he was pondering, the giant bear took another step forward.

Its gaze kept shifting between the two of them, its nose twitching in mid-air, as if it was hesitating about who to attack first.

Lorraine was still calculating rapidly when he tripped over a stone, staggered, and his boot crushed a few withered leaves on the ground.

Click...

His heart sank to the bottom.

Got it!

"Awooo!—"

A thunderous roar emanated from the giant bear's chest, shaking the snow off the surrounding branches.

It pushed off the ground with all four limbs, its massive body crouching low as it charged forward, like a dump truck accelerating.

"You beast! Try your dad's hammer!"

Piper quickly entered battle mode. He shouted, and his warhammer gleamed as he charged towards the giant bear.

"Pip!"

Lorraine tried to stop him, but it was too late.

He shifted his attention to the Midnight Touch on his feet, and instantly transformed into a shadow, disappearing from his spot and reappearing in the shadow beside the giant bear.

"Drink!"

Rusty Throat slashed at the giant bear's side like lightning. He had been practicing his combo attacks for days and was now quite adept at them, even able to unleash them using muscle memory during battle.

Kororlin's hand could not go any further.

Countless tiny vines and branches rose from the ground, wrapping around his body as if they were alive, and firmly holding his hands in mid-air.

In the blink of an eye, his body was covered with a ring of thin green vines, their emerald green color clashing with the gray season.

Also trapped were the charging bear and Piper.

Although the vines were only as thick as a finger, they were exceptionally tough, pulling the charging bear back and trapping it in place, preventing it from moving an inch further.

"Tara".

A cold female voice rang out from the treetops, seemingly tinged with helplessness.

The giant bear immediately let out a pitiful whimper, making gurgling sounds in its throat, as if it were trying to explain itself.

But the vines on its legs tightened even more, and it sniffed, giving up all resistance.

Lorraine looked in the direction of the sound.

On a pine tree branch, a woman with pointed ears appeared out of nowhere. She had one leg bent and was stepping on the branch, while the other leg dangled down and swayed gently in mid-air.

She had long, black hair, which was braided into a thick braid and draped over her shoulder. A few stray strands of hair were blown by the wind to the side of her face, making her face look almost unreal and delicate.

A gray-green leather armor covered her from her shoulders to her waist, with a very tight waistline that accentuated her curves. The armor then spread out into several overlapping leather skirts that just covered her upper thighs.

"I am Sylvia Senge. What brings you here?" the woman asked coldly.

Lorraine's gaze fell on her pointed ears and the tips of her hair. He lowered his head slightly to hide his surprise.

[Wood Elf fur, female, age approximately 200 to 250 years, ¥#]

This was the first time he had ever seen an elf. He looked to be only in his early twenties, but he was actually over two hundred years old. Long-lived creatures are indeed a blessing.

But what about the garbled characters representing emotions?

Upon hearing the other person introduce themselves, Lorraine knew that they were most likely out of danger today.

He slowly sheathed his sword, no longer showing any intention to attack: "We want to gather some fire oil grass, Ms. Sylvia."

The wood elf nodded almost imperceptibly and said in a voice with barely any inflection:

"Tara meant no harm; she's just a little angry because you woke her up."

Her brown eyes fell on the longsword in Lorraine's hand, as if she had become interested: "A spellcaster skilled with a longsword, are you a descendant of battle mages?"

Battle mage? What's that?

Lorraine could only recall Haif mentioning the Sword Singers, so he asked, "You mean the Sword Singers?"

Sylvia shook her head, looking somewhat disappointed. She didn't answer Lorraine's question, but simply said, "It seems that's not the case."

"Do you know anything about the Sword Singer?"

Lorraine seized the opportunity to ask, for he had finally met an elf and naturally could not let go of this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

Upon learning that Lorraine was not a battle mage, Sylvia became even colder, saying, "You should ask the high elves about that."

"Excuse me, ma'am."

Lorraine had no idea what taboo she had broken.

"Beautiful lady, you don't seem to want to hurt us, so could you please untie Piper? Piper's hammer is about to hit himself."

Lorraine then realized that the little man had been holding the hammer above his head the whole time, and he was about to give up.

Sylvia swayed her legs slightly, then jumped down from the branch, landing almost without making a sound.

At the same time, the vines that had been binding the giant bear and the two people quickly dissipated and returned to the underground.

She reached out and patted Tara's nose.

The giant bear grunted, shook the snow off its fur, then lay down again, resting its head on its front paws and half-closing its eyes.

"Food is scarce in winter, and Tara is often hungry, but she also suffers from severe insomnia," Sylvia explained.

She looked down at the giant bear lying at her feet and reached out to scratch the thick fur behind Tara's ear.

"Insomnia?" Lorraine asked in surprise. "Bears can have insomnia too?"

"All intelligent beings are susceptible to insomnia."

Sylvia said coldly:

"Winter is too long, and she always dreams of herself as a cub, huddled in a tree hollow with her brothers and sisters. When she wakes up and finds they are not by her side, she refuses to go back to sleep."

Before Lorraine could speak, she reached into a leather pouch on the bear's neck, pulled something out, and threw it at him.

Lorraine quickly reached out and caught it, then looked down at it.

It was a small bundle of kerosene, with at least seven or eight stalks at a glance.

Sylvia sat cross-legged and said softly:

"Leave. Tara needs a quiet environment."