Ryth could now see the yellow diamond-shaped panel above her head.

-------------

Azalea Bryhana

High Elf

Swordswoman

-------------

"So, how did you end up being captured by those bandits?" Ryth asked in puzzlement."

Azalea bit her lower lips nervously, looking quite awkward. "Uhm… That is…"

Ryth could see that she was still hesitant to tell him. Ryth could only sighed and said, "Well, its alright if you don"t want to tell me. You are free now, anyway," gesturing at the broken shackles near her feet.

After a few minutes of silence, Ryth asked, "So, what is your plan now?"

Azalea was still hesitant but then she answered, "…. Uh, maybe I will go to the Dark Elves Village first to seek some help."

Ryth blinked his eyes in surprise. "Oh really? Well, my friends and I will be going back to the Dark Elves Village later. Why don"t you join us?" Ryth invited. "It is much safer than being alone."

Azalea was quiet as she thinks of the pros and cons. She then nodded her head in agreement. "Um, okay then."

Ryth jumped down from the carriage, with Azalea following behind him and walked towards Llyod and Hill. The two men were burning the corpses, to make sure there are no evidences left behind.

Daedalus chortled in amus.e.m.e.nt. "Ku ku ku! Are you that nervous, boy? I can hear your heartbeat beating so fast. Are you really that nervous talking to that elf girl? Love at first sight, eh?" teased Daedalus.

Ryth became beet red in embarra.s.sment. "Shut up!" he hissed. "Or I will dig a hole and bury you there!"

"Ku ku ku! Sorry sorry!"

Ryth snorted. The real reason for him to be so nervous because he actually doesn"t know how to talk to a girl, especially one as beautiful as Azalea. In his previous life, he had never talked to a girl, nor do he have any relationship with them. He only plays with his virtual gaming helmet.

Llyod"s eyebrow furrowed in worry. "Are you alright, my lord?" he asked, looking at Ryth"s slightly red face.

Ryth"s face became more heated as he gritted out his words. "Yeah, yeah. Never mind that. Lets just get out of here."

"Yes, my lord!"

Llyod and Hill noticed the elf girl behind Ryth. Hill asked, "Is this the kidnapped elf who was inside the carriage, my lord?"

Ryth nodded.

Azalea moved forward and bowed. "My name is Azalea Bryhana. Thank you again for saving me," she introduced herself.

Hill nodded in acknowledgement.

Llyod smiled as he answered, "No problem! Our lord is the one who did most of the work! You should just thank him, instead!"

"She already thank me earlier." said Ryth.

Azalea glanced at Ryth in confused. "Lord?" she thought to herself. "Is this young human some kind of big shot somewhere…? Hm…. His name is Ryth Myrad, right…? Ryth… Myrad…?" then suddenly, recognition hits her and she said out loud, "Myrad City?!? Is he the previous Lord that was announced dead a couple of days ago?!?"

"Uhm, so you are Ryth Myrad? The lord of Myrad City?" asked Azalea, turning to Ryth.

"Ah, yes," Ryth said, scowling.

Azalea frowned in puzzlement. "But you"re still alive? The announcement of your death was published a couple of days ago. And your stepbrother took the position now."

Ryth snorted in disgust. "Ah, that brat? he sure moves fast."

"You don"t sound surprised."

"Well yeah, that brat has been plotting to kill me, by hiring those Fang bandit group that kidnapped you before."

"What?!" Azalea exclaimed in shocked.

Ryth shrugged. "Well, yeah. To be honest, that is the reason why we helped you in the first place. I just want to vent my anger on them."

"Oh… On my way here, before I got kidnapped, I heard the merchants were talking about the announcement of your death," Azalea said. "Apparently, your stepbrother was so saddened by your death, it was difficult for him to announce your death."

"The heck? What a b.a.s.t.a.r.d." Llyod cursed, while Hill furrowed his brows.

Ryth sighed and thought, "That schemer is really good in acting. He should be an actor, instead."

"What a brat! And he"s the one who set you up and he still could act like that," Daedalus snorted as well.

"Well, we will make him pay for it soon." Ryth a.s.sured Daedalus.

Ryth then walked towards the lake.

Azalea looked confused at the path Ryth was taking and asked, "Aren"t we going to the Dark Elves Village?"

Ryth scratched the back of his head awkwardly. "Uh yeah. We"ll go there after we hunt a monster first. Only then we"ll go to the Dark Elves Village, if that is alright with you?"

Azalea thought for some time and then said, "Okay, then..."

Since she has no weapon and she"s currently weak, she could not very well defend herself if she goes to the Dark Elves village. There might be some monsters nearby. So, she decided to follow Ryth and his teammates. But then, she is still cautious towards them so she distances herself a bit.

Well, when you are the only woman in a party, you will feel uncomfortable too, right?

They have walked for a few hours, where they had a break once to eat lunch and rest.

Then they finally reached the Lake of Fu. The surroundings of the lake were covered with dense forests. The lake was very beautiful, sparkling blue where your reflection can be easily seen. The wind blows as they entered the lake, making them refreshed after the b.l.o.o.d.y fight from earlier.

"This place is such a peaceful place. Such serenity," Daedalus mused in amazement.

"Yeah, it"s unfortunate if the rumour is true," Ryth interjected.

"What rumour?" asked Azalea.

"I heard that there is a serpent-like creature in the Lake of Fu. So, we are here to defeat it."

"Is this some kind of quest?" Azalea asked.

Ryth shrugged. "Nah… Just doing this for some experience and to kill time."

"But who would want to hunt a monster just to kill time?" Azalea asked again, still confused.

Ryth was actually saying the truth. He really is here, just to get more exprience while waiting for the dark elves to be done with their matters.

"So, how do we get that thing out of the lake? Or does it even exist to begin with?"

"Well, lets see."

Ryth walked towards the lake, drawn out [Ryuujin"s Will] and touched the water with the tip of it.

He let channeled his mana to his sword, and the lightning gushed out and sparkled through the lake.

"BBZZZT!"

"SPLASH!

The water in the middle of the lake suddenly gushed out like a fountain and a ma.s.sive serpent around 15 meters high with its blue skin and big fangs appeared.

"SHAAA!"

It let out a snake-like sound "Szzzzt" , a red diamond-shaped panel appeared above its head.

---------------

Blue Giant Lake Serpent

(Level 40)

HP : 550.000

(Water type monster)

Resistance :

Water type magic : 70%

Weakness :

Lightning type magic : 70%

----------------

"Wow! Look at the body! Its really huge! And that fangs!" Daedalus exclaimed in excitement. "You can use them for a good weapon! This sure is a special creature!"

Ryth tapped his chin, thinking. "Yes, it is. Even if it is a special creature, it is still weak, compare to a dragon."

"It is still a special creature! And special creature still gives great items! Its rare to get this kind of item!" Daedalus a.s.sured. "You should be happy! With me, you can make anything you want with those items!"

Azalea"s eyes widened in shock. She took a few steps back and thought to herself, "Wh What"s wrong with this people? This is obviously not something that you should hunt for fun!"

Azalea looked up at the roaring serpent and back again at Ryth.

She was surprised to see the confident look on Ryth"s face, showing no fear.

"is he some kind of a battle maniac...?" Azalea thought, looking at him weirdly.

Llyod and Hill immediately posed into their battle stance, getting their weapon ready. Hill stood near Azalea, protecting her while Llyod stood near Ryth.

Ryth patted Llyod on the shoulder. "Don"t worry. I"m confident that we can kill it!"

He then turned to Azalea and said, "Azalea, you can watch from the side." He t.i.tled his head in question. "By the way, can you use magic? If yes, that would be great! You can help us with some offensive magic if that is possible! The faster we are done with this thing, the faster we can go back to the Dark Elves Village."

Azalea was lost in thoughts until Hill cleared his throat loudly. Azalea blushed as she said, "Ah yes. I can use magic. I can help too."

Ryth raised his eyebrows in surprise. "Ohh… So, her second job is a magician," he mused thoughtfully. "But how did she end up being caught by the bandits if her main job is a swordswoman?"

He shook his head. "Ahh, never mind. We have something else more important to think about," he said softly to himself.

Ryth turned his head towards the big serpent and shouted, "Okay, then. Lets do this!"