Chapter 80: Unintentionally

Seeing the noble squad charge out from their makeshift cover, I hurriedly scrambled out from behind my small dirt mound and followed them forward.
Staying put meant certain death.
Realizing our group had a caster like me, the dark elves instantly spread out into a wider skirmish line to avoid being wiped out by another of my fireball spells, which they mistook for a flame burst.

Still, my earlier fireball had taken out eight of their fighters, and with the grenades killing or injuring a few more, they’d lost about twelve in total.
Even so, there were still nearly twenty or thirty dark elves left on the field.

If I didn’t want to die, I had to act fast!
No hesitation, or I’d be unintentionally left behind by the noble squad’s relentless pace.

The five of them moved with incredible speed, seemingly unaware that my frail stamina couldn’t keep up.
Carter slammed his giant shield into two dark elves, the powerful impact and sturdy shield leaving them dazed.

Meanwhile, Katherine and Emil swung their massive blades on either side of Carter, covering him as he advanced.
Nico and Daniel flanked further out, breaking through simultaneously.

Carter’s shield charge was unstoppable, like an armored vehicle the dark elves couldn’t evade.
When they were stunned by his slams or dodged frantically, the others seized the openings to strike or kill outright.

Clearly, the five had fought together countless times, their coordination seamless.
But even with enemies ahead, their pace was far faster than mine.

In the blink of an eye, I was almost left behind!
No matter how you look at it, my strength was barely bronze-rank, while Carter and the others were near golden-rank warriors.
The gap was obvious, and I quickly fell behind.

“Wait, wait for me!”

I shouted desperately—I knew they weren’t deliberately abandoning me.
They were just moving at their trained, instinctive speed, because even a moment’s delay could mean life or death.

“Nico! Daniel! Cover Su Mengmeng!”

Hearing my voice, Carter jolted, seemingly realizing this little pharmacist was struggling to keep up.
He shouted to Nico and Daniel.

“Mengmeng, I’m here! Don’t worry, I’ve got you!”

Nico had already noticed my situation and, at Carter’s command, leapt to my side.
She whipped out a small knife and flung it at a dark elf chasing me.

The sharp blade shot like an arrow, piercing the dark elf’s throat.
Eyes wide, he clutched his neck and collapsed slowly.

Nico might seem like a bubbly, energetic girl, but her attacks were ruthless, showing no mercy.
“…Thanks.”

I glanced at Nico, who’d appeared beside me in an instant, and nodded in gratitude.
At that moment, Daniel reached me too, his giant shield blocking an arrow aimed my way.

“Move!”
“Okay, okay!”

Daniel, who hadn’t spoken much to me, shouted, and I nodded, immediately following.
At the same time, I conjured a small flame in my palm and, after a brief moment, hurled it at the dark elves behind me!

“BOOM!”

The fireball, like a flame burst, erupted with a massive roar, engulfing three dark elves in flames.
The others chasing me scattered, temporarily halting their pursuit.