It seemed they had overlooked something. Riska scratched his head, "But what was it?" Unfortunately, he just could not recall. "Alright, no more wasting time. I need to start meditating. At this moment, nothing is more urgent than replenishing my magic."
Riska sat on the ground and lounged against a tree stump. In the past, he refused to meditate unless he was perched in a comfortable chair. However, on their escape journey from the Sacred City, he had learned to enter mediation in any posture – he had no other choice. Otherwise he would not have the necessary supply of magic to continue his journey the following day. Sometimes, having "no other choice" could do wonders; Riska was a good example.
After a moment, Riska, who had been deep into his meditation, was awakened by a subconscious fear and quickly opened his eyes. Immediately, he saw a tall shadow appear to his left, and vaguely heard a muffled breath.
A wyvern! Riska was nearly scared to death. He suddenly remembered what Anfey had said before they left for this assignment: "Ensure that you always have enough magic. When you have depleted more than half of your reserves, do not continue to use the eye of the sky. Wait until you get the chance to meditate and restore your supply of magic before you cast that spell again."
Foolishly, during the long wait, both Suzanne and he had neglected Anfey's advice. They were more and more anxious, and released the eye of the sky for longer and longer intervals. The last two times, Riska stopped only because he had exhausted his magic.
Now Riska finally understood that he should never, ever ignore Anfey’s warning. Had he maintained some magic, he would have levitated to escape back to their camp. Instead, he had put himself in such a crisis without being able to do anything but to try to restore his magic!
Although wyverns, like unicorns and manticores, were classified as high-level magic beasts, they were much slower than their magical counterparts. However, they had a well-known nickname: Forest Stalker!
Wyverns’ bodies were heavy. Therefore, whether flying in the sky or fighting on the ground, they could not be compared to other high-level beasts, and as a result, were not very effective hunters. On the other hand, wyverns had flexible necks, and could release a concentrated venom from their menacing fangs. If the poison were injected into a human body, within a few minutes the body would turn into a pool of bloody liquid. Even contacting the venom with the skin would cause permanent trauma. Wyverns thus liked to hunt by hiding themselves and waiting for prey to pass by. Once there was opportunity, they would use their flexible neck and quickly capture the prey.
Wyverns were not as dangerous as some other high-level magical beasts. This was evident by the fact they lived in groups instead of alone: the pack provided protection. However, they were still threatening creatures. Had Riska stored enough magic, he could have escaped easily, but now he was in serious peril with little hope to survive.
Magic beast forests could be filled with danger. While Riska and Suzanna had been safe thus far, that did not mean they would be safe going forward. A mage without reserves of power was equivalent to a paralyzed patient in the human world. Riska realized how foolish he was. Both he and Suzanna knew wyverns were social animals. Seeing one made it likely that they would see a second, but neither of them had thought this through. Riska cursed his own stupidity, but this was no help in his current situation. He had to deal with the aftermath of his poor judgement.
Riska covertly sent out a magic signal. "Suzanna…I need help. Now!" Riska prayed while nervously eyeing the shadow of the wyvern.
Across the forest, Suzanna watched as the big manticore slowly approached and growled deeply at a wyvern who had invaded its territory. This was an attempt to intimidate the intruder. High-level magical beasts were intelligent, but they were still animals after all. They would not start a fight with others simply to improve their combat skills; they did not have any ambition to dominate the entire forest. Their goals were much humbler. They wanted enough food and to be able to produce their next generation in relative peace. It was obvious that the big manticore would prefer to scare the opponent away without engaging in battle.
The wyvern hissed as it stepped back, but it was not ready to give up yet.
The manticore was irritated. Its red, shiny tail stood upright, and the tip of the tail flashed with danger.
"Move back more, move back more!" Suzanna prayed. This distance was still risky for her to put her plan into action. If the manticore would move to the wyvern’s position, it would allow her to not only kill the small manticore, but also have enough time to escape.
The big manticore was still menacing the wyvern, who was staring back at its adversary nervously. The small manticore popped its little head out from the grass and looked curiously at its mother. None of the three beasts was aware of the hidden guest.
At that moment, Suzanna sensed a magic surge in the distance, and her heart skipped a beat. Riska was in danger!
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