Faerun: The arcane mage is still too imprisoned.

Cohen's hunting knife drew an arc in the air.

"So what?" he gritted his teeth, his eyes turning sinister. "It's just a trick. I don't believe a little girl like you can use a first-level spell!"

She took a step back, while raising her other hand, her fingertips radiating a transparent force field.

[First-level spell - Mage Armor!]

An invisible force field unfolded around her, like a transparent armor, enveloping her from head to toe.

Cohen's hunting knife slashed down, scraping across the force field.

It felt like cutting into tough leather.

"What?!"

Cohen stared wide-eyed, unable to believe it.

This feel... is like [Mage Armor]!!!

Taking advantage of his momentary lapse in concentration, Cielsa slashed at him with her sword.

The scimitar slashed, and blood splattered.

Cohen screamed in agony as a deep, bone-revealing wound appeared on his shoulder, the flesh torn open and blood gushing out.

"Damn it..."

He clutched his wound, staggered backward, and fear appeared in his eyes for the first time.

"You...you actually know a first-level spell?! And it's [Mage Armor]!!!"

She didn't answer, but simply shook the blood off her knife and looked at him calmly with her purple eyes.

"How dare you, a mere ranger, learn [Mage Armor]?!"

Cohen's eyes were bloodshot, and veins bulged on his forehead; it was an intense jealousy that was almost overflowing.

"snort!"

He snorted coldly, gritted his teeth, and forcibly suppressed the shock in his heart.

"So what if you know first-level spells?" he said viciously.

"I don't believe you have a second first-level spell slot! Rangers already have few spell slots, how could a little girl like you possibly have two? Dream on!"

Cielsa looked at him, a slight smile playing on her lips.

She raised her hand.

A transparent glimmer appeared at my fingertips—but it wasn't a force field; rather, it was a fluctuation of some kind of distorted light.

[First-level spell - Invisibility!]

Her figure vanished into thin air in an instant.

Cohen was stunned.

He stared wide-eyed at the spot where Cielsa had disappeared, his mind blank.

"Invisibility... invisibility magic?"

"Why? Why?!"

He roared, gripping his hunting knife and swinging it wildly, the blade cutting through the air but hitting nothing.

"If you're so capable, use a second-level spell! Only elite-ranked rangers have second-level spell slots, you..."

Next second,

Sielsa casts a spell while invisible.

[Second-level spell - Lesser Spirit Bomb!]

A blue energy ball the size of a fist flew out from her palm, trailing a streak of light, heading straight for Cohen's left leg!

At the same time, Sielsa's invisibility effect is canceled.

Cohen's pupils contracted sharply; he tried to dodge, but there was no way to escape.

"boom--!"

The energy ball hit his left knee.

Flesh and blood exploded, bones shattered.

Cohen screamed and tilted to the left before crashing heavily to the ground.

He looked down at his left leg—below the knee, only half of his bloodied calf remained, with white bone fragments clearly visible at the break, and blood gushing out like a fountain.

"ah--!!!"

He screamed in agony, clutching his broken leg with both hands, but blood still seeped out from between his fingers.

Cielsa stood still, calmly watching him.

"Second-circle spell..." Cohen gasped for breath, cold sweat beading on his forehead. His eyes held not only fear, but also a strange despair.

"I don't believe it... I don't believe you can have a second second-circle spell slot..."

Sissa chose to grant his request.

A bright blue light emanated from his hand once again.

[Second-level spell - Lesser Spirit Bomb!]

A second blue energy ball flew out from the palm.

Cohen stared wide-eyed as the energy ball hurtled toward him, only one thought in his mind:

She really still has...

"boom--!"

The energy ball hit his right knee.

The same flesh and blood exploded, the same bones shattered.

Cohen's right leg was severed at the knee.

He collapsed to the ground, his legs reduced to two severed limbs, blood staining the rubble beneath him.

"Ah...ah..."

He could no longer scream; he just opened his mouth and made meaningless groans.

His eyes were unfocused, his face was deathly pale, and his lips were bloodless.

Cielsa walked up to him and looked down at him.

Cohen struggled to lift his head and look at her.

There was no emotion in those purple eyes.

"You... what kind of monster are you..." he murmured, his voice hoarse and inhuman, "A ranger... how could you possibly have so many spell slots..."

Sissa did not answer.

She excitedly continued casting the spell.

A pale green light emanated from his fingertips.

[Zero-level spell - Mana Burst!]

A ghastly green beam of light shot from his fingertips, striking Cohen's left wrist with pinpoint accuracy.

"puff--!"

His wrist exploded, and his palm flew out, landing on the gravel ground two meters away.

Cohen screamed and his body convulsed violently.

Sissa raised her hand again.

A second, ghastly green beam of light.

[Zero-level spell - Mana Burst!]

It hit the right wrist.

Cohen's hands were both broken.

He is now completely crippled, lying paralyzed in a pool of blood like a human pig.

He stared wide-eyed at his empty wrist, then at Cielsa, his lips moving but unable to utter a single word.

Cielsa sheathed her scimitar and looked down at him.

This level 6 ranger is now completely useless.

Blood was everywhere, his face was deathly pale, and his eyes were vacant.

Although he is still alive, he will die soon.

Cohen closed his eyes.

He had been a wandering knight-errant for twenty-two years.

Starting at the age of fifteen, he followed the old wandering knights in town to learn tracking, setting traps, and using hunting knives, thus becoming a quasi-wandering knight.

He became a Ranger at the age of eighteen and obtained his first job level.

He was promoted to level 2 at the age of 20.

He was promoted to level 3 at the age of 24.

He was promoted to level 4 at the age of 30.

He was promoted to level 5 at the age of 35.

He is thirty-seven years old this year and is a level 6 Ranger.

Twenty-two years.

Throughout his life, he killed countless prey and nearly four-figure numbers of people.

He had seen spellcasters before—those high and mighty mages, dressed in magnificent robes, standing at the back of the battlefield, casually tossing out a few spells that could decide the outcome of a battle.

Cohen was very envious.

But he has yet to learn a single magic trick.

This is the tragedy of their profession as semi-spellcasters.

Learning spells requires intelligence, but the key spellcasting attribute for a ranger is not intelligence, but perception.

He wasn't very intelligent, but even after countless attempts, he painstakingly studied the magical knowledge he had acquired from the military, which he had paid a large sum of money to obtain, word by word.

But those complex spell models were simply beyond his comprehension.

"I really envy priests and paladins; they don't have to learn spells themselves..."

The thought flashed through his mind.

Then he felt a warm golden light fall on him.

[First-Circle Spell - Healing Mantra!]

Golden light fell on Cohen, and his wounds began to heal—the bleeding from the broken legs stopped, and the wounds on his wrists closed up.