I am the Enchantress!

Chapter 149 The Wound That Cannot Be Exposed

The rustling sound grew closer.

Until they were almost within reach.

The sound suddenly stopped.

Wilder could sense that the other person was probably behind the bushes ahead.

They became aware of each other, creating a subtle standoff.

Is it a monster?

Or an adventurer?

Wilder shielded Bruce, who was carrying Talia, behind him, and then drew another staff from his back.

Left hand: oak staff; right hand: hazel staff.

If it's a monster, it will be met with four fireballs.

A thought subtly stirred within me.

The crystals on both staffs emitted a faint glow at the same time.

"Wild?"

A familiar voice came from behind the bushes directly in front of them.

Immediately afterwards, the lush foliage of the bushes was parted by a large human hand.

Hollen came out from inside.

Under the combined illumination of the priest crystal and the obsidian crystal, Wilder's face appeared exceptionally clear in the darkness, which made Hollen recognize him immediately.

"Professor Hollen? Is that you?"

Wilder was stunned, unable to understand why he was there.

However, the two figures following closely behind Hollen immediately answered his question.

One is Monk, the mage from the survey team who cast [Blizzard] and [Ice Wall] in yesterday's battle.

The other one was a pastor in the investigation team, whose name I think was Harrison.

Two high-ranking mages and one high-ranking priest.

Four fireballs might not be enough to handle it.

Fortunately, Hollen was an acquaintance.

Wilder immediately lowered the two staffs he had been holding high, but did not rush forward.

"Yes, it's me."

Hollen took a few steps forward, and his weathered face, a rare sight among mages, became even more clearly visible to Wilder.

A slight fluctuation of magical energy suddenly surged behind him.

Immediately, Monk's staff became exceptionally bright, emitting a soft and quiet white light.

Level 1 spell.

Illumination

He stared at Wilder's face for a few seconds, surprised by his connection with this novice mage.

This seems to be the third time we've met, right?

The first time was on the second floor of the association, the second time was on the battlefield yesterday, and now it's the third time.

His gaze passed over Wilder and landed on Bruce, who was hiding behind him.

On the back of that light gray wolf lay a girl with brown hair and a round face.

Late at night, in the border forest.

One man, one woman, and one wolf.

It's really hard to understand.

He didn't speak, but glanced at Hollen with an inquisitive look on his face.

Hollen understood immediately that this meant he was to ask him a few questions.

"Wild, what brings you to the border forest so late?"

He asked, "And what about the girl on the wolf's back?"

"This one—"

Wilder immediately and secretly activated [Performance], allowing him to get away with rambling nonsense.

"This is my friend. She didn't come back very late today, so I came to the border forest to look for her. I just found her."

Welde spoke slowly and naturally.

What he said was indeed true, but he omitted the location of Talia's mission to avoid any connection with the battle yesterday afternoon.

"Oh, I see. It's good that the person has been found."

Hollen still trusted Wilder, and said with a hint of concern.

"Um."

Wilder did not end the conversation there.

The best defense is offense.

This statement also applies to lying.

If you want to appear that everything is normal, you can't just answer questions; you also need to ask them appropriately.

"Instructor Hollen, what brings you to the forest so late?"

"It's nothing, I just happened to be passing by."

Hollen declined to answer, giving him an apologetic smile.

Wilder nodded, feigning confusion.

He was well aware of the purpose of their trip.

Searching for the wounded red dragon.

It seems that the investigation team also deduced the possible landing location of the red dragon, and that they took the same route as him.

"Then I'll head back now, Instructor Hollen."

Wilder smiled and said, "Any later and we might miss the town's breakfast."

"Okay, be careful."

As a mentor, Hollen didn't forget to offer some pointers: "Next time you encounter a potential enemy at night, don't immediately let the crystal on your staff light up, as it will reveal your location and profession."

"I've got it."

Wilder replied, "Then I'll be going."

He also politely nodded to Monk and Harrison behind Hollen, and once the "performance" began, there were always some unnecessary details added.

Monk didn't react much, but as Wilder passed by him, he suddenly spoke up: "Your friend seems to be injured."

Wilder was suddenly startled.

A quick glance behind him revealed that the bloodstains on Talia's robe were indeed pointing towards Monk.

Damn!

He must never see Talia's injuries.

Otherwise, with the experience of a senior mage, he would definitely be able to tell that the frostbite came from the spell he cast when he fought the red dragon yesterday!

His heart trembled, but his expression remained calm as he replied almost without hesitation, "Yes, we encountered a kobold. She was stabbed in the stomach."

His handsome face showed a genuine anxiety and lingering fear, but no tension or terror whatsoever.

The two emotions were so different, yet they were portrayed with remarkable accuracy on his face.

Monk didn't see anything unusual on Wilder's face, but he had a feeling that he wanted to investigate further.

"Since you're Hollen's friend, why don't you let Harris treat your friend?"

He said, "He's a senior priest; he can heal this kind of knife wound very easily."

"What?"

Harris, standing to the side, looked somewhat reluctant.

Monk and Hollen were from the same school, but he wasn't.

As a senior priest in Danube, he was unwilling to waste his divine favors on a complete stranger.

"Thank you very much!"

Wilder's reaction surprised Monk.

He actually bowed deeply to Harris and said sincerely, "If you were a senior priest, you could certainly heal her immediately."

"Um----"

Harris was still reluctant, but since Monk had already spoken, he couldn't very well refuse outright.

"only----"

Wilder then looked slightly embarrassed. "My friend isn't wearing any clothes underneath. Could you please close your eyes while you're treating him?"

"What did you say?"

Harris snorted angrily.

It was already a rare privilege to have a senior priest like him treat her, yet she was asked to close her eyes?

That's so rude!

As a nobleman, Harrison was furious.

"Because she's the person I like, if another man sees her body—"

Wilder scratched his head, revealing the bewildered expression typical of a naive young boy.

"never mind."

Monk shook his head. "The kobold's knife wound shouldn't be serious. You should hurry back to town."

"Well----"

Wilder paused for a moment, slightly disappointed, before saying, "Alright then."

Monk didn't say anything more.