Water Magician-Chapter 536: Tiger Mountain Exploration

Editor: Tseirp

Ryo and Abel volunteered to cut timber.

Their task was to extract suitable trees from the forest right next to the village.

“This is a perfect chance to show the true power of a water-attribute magician!”

Ryo was brimming with enthusiasm.

As usual, Abel looked at him with half-lidded eyes.

“Why are you looking at me like that, Abel?”

“I mean… carrying logs is heavy, isn’t it?”

Abel responded with an entirely reasonable answer to Ryo’s question.

“It’s fine! I have !”

“Oh, the ice floor spell? Yeah, I guess that would make transporting easier.”

Hearing Ryo’s rational response, Abel felt reassured.

That being said, the first step was to cut the trees.

The forest they would be working in was on the opposite side of Tiger Mountain, with Spring Village in between.

“”

A spinning saw blade made of water, about ten centimeters in diameter, formed above Ryo’s palm. He pressed it against the trunk of a tree.

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A high-pitched sound echoed through the forest where the two stood.

At roughly the same speed as a chainsaw, Ryo successfully cut through the trunk.

It was a spell he had frequently used in Rondo Forest as well.

“Cutting timber is fun!”

Ryo happily patted the coniferous tree, about ten meters tall, which resembled a cedar.

Abel, watching him from the side, seemed like he had something to say.

“What is it, Abel?”

“Well…this might just be my amateur opinion, but…wouldn’t it be possible to cut trees with that thin water line you always use?”

“Huh…?”

“You know, . With that, you could cut the trunk and trim branches without even moving.”

Ryo completely froze at Abel’s words.

“Uh… I was just thinking out loud. Don’t worry about it.”

Abel quickly added, startled by Ryo’s reaction.

He looked incredibly uncomfortable.

“No, it’s fine, Abel. You’re right.

could cut trees. And for trimming branches… if I controlled multiple

at once, I could finish in an instant.”

Though Ryo acknowledged the truth, his expression darkened.

And then…

He dropped to his hands and knees.

The pose of utter despair.

“Ryo…uh, sorry?”

Abel felt compelled to apologize.

“This isn’t your fault, Abel. I just assumed cutting trees meant using . And the fact that I never even considered using

until you pointed it out… that’s what really shocks me.”

“Uh…”

At a loss for words, Abel simply watched over Ryo.

Originally,

had been developed before Ryo could fully master

and increase its power.

Now, a new spell was rendering an older one obsolete… they stood at a turning point in magical history.

Okay, that was a bit dramatic.

Thirty seconds later.

“Hup!”

With a strange battle cry, Ryo leaped to his feet.

“I won’t lose to you, Abel!”

He declared with determination.

“Why am I suddenly the villain here?”

Abel’s expression was full of doubt.

Still, if Ryo had recovered, that was what mattered.

Abel was a really good guy.

And incredibly broad-minded.

A king needed at least this level of patience…

Ryo cut down two logs, each ten meters long.

He and Abel took one each and carried them to the village square.

Abel led the way, while Ryo followed behind.

That way, Ryo could cast

only under the log he was carrying, as well as under Abel’s.

If he cast it under their feet, it would be a disaster.

The logs were also wrapped in chains of ice, which they pulled along.

At a glance, it looked like a feat of brute strength, but thanks to , barely any effort was required…

“We’ve brought them.”

Deputy Governor Fu Ten, along with his entourage and the transport workers, gathered around.

They were astonished at the sight of the logs.

“…You’re telling me you carried these one by one? What kind of monstrous strength is that?”

The transport workers, who normally carried heavy loads, were in disbelief.

“There’s a perfect water-attribute magic for this.”

Ryo answered with a smile.

“Alright, we’ll cut these down further and start building the fence. Ryo, Abel, keep bringing in more logs at this pace.”

Deputy Governor Fu Ten instructed, and the two nodded.

The fence construction progressed steadily.

Since it was only a temporary barrier, a two-and-a-half-meter ogre with brute strength could likely break through, but it should be enough to keep goblins out.

Starting in the morning, by evening, the fence was mostly complete.

The section facing Tiger Mountain was made especially sturdy.

“For something built in a day, this turned out pretty impressive.”

“Yeah. The deputy governor and his team are really skilled.”

Ryo was impressed, and Abel agreed.

However…

“It’s thanks to how quickly you two brought in the wood.”

Fu Ten said as he approached.

“Heh, it was nothing.”

Ryo replied, looking embarrassed at the praise.

Abel, standing beside him, simply shook his head slightly.

“The frontline team isn’t coming down from the mountain tonight, right?”

“Yes. They’re venturing deeper in, hoping to locate the goblin settlement by tomorrow or the day after…”

Fu Ten nodded in response to Ryo’s question, but his expression was grim.

“You’re keeping information from us, aren’t you?”

Abel said, and Fu Ten turned toward him but said nothing.

“I’m not asking you to tell us. I know different organizations handle information carefully.”

Fu Ten’s eyes widened slightly at Abel’s words. Then, after a pause, he replied:

“I appreciate your understanding.”

With that… he acknowledged there were things he couldn’t say.

“That information… is it shared with the frontline personnel?”

“It seems that Jun Luo and the other Level 3 adventurers have received official documents directly from the governor. I haven’t been informed of their contents.”

Fu Ten frowned as he answered Abel’s question.

Hearing that, Abel also frowned.

“Even though you’re the deputy governor, you’re not informed?”

“No. I was only appointed last month… to be honest, I haven’t yet built a relationship of trust with the governor.”

“That must be tough.”

“It is unfortunate.”

Building trust is one of the most important priorities.

But the truth is, trust isn’t something that can be established so easily.

Human relationships are complicated.

“You two seem quite strong.”

“Jun Luo said the same thing.”

Ryo nodded happily at Fu Ten’s words.

“The other eight are still just children…”

Fu Ten glanced at the younger adventurers ranked Level 7 and below.

“Are you asking us to protect them if something happens?”

“I don’t think anything will, but in case of an emergency, yes.”

Abel asked, and Fu Ten nodded.

To Fu Ten, those lower-ranked adventurers must have seemed like grandchildren.

Perhaps, deep down, he didn’t want them to fight at all.

“I don’t know about myself, but when it comes to protecting others, no one surpasses Ryo. Right, Ryo?”

“Leave it to me! I’ll show you the true power of a water-attribute magician.”

“That’s reassuring.”

Abel spoke, Ryo struck a dramatic pose, and finally, a smile broke across Fu Ten’s face.

The next morning. The frontline unit, composed of Level 6 and higher adventurers along with soldiers, was ready.

“Alright, follow the goblin tracks carefully and advance with caution!”

Level 3 adventurer Jun Luo gave the order, and all sixty members of the frontline unit nodded.

There didn’t seem to be any tension between the adventurers and the soldiers.

(Good. Any conflict here would be a major problem.)

Jun Luo muttered in his mind.

The information document from the governor hadn’t contained anything particularly useful.

(Be cautious and prepare for anything? We already know that. What exactly are they trying to say?)

As he pondered this, he shook his head slightly.

Getting too caught up in unnecessary thoughts could blind him to what truly mattered.

And in battle, that could mean death.

To Jun Luo, this place was already a battlefield.

“Squad Leader.”

The scout at the front, Chunk, spoke in a low voice.

Walking just behind him, Jun Luo stretched his neck to look over Chunk’s shoulder at the ground.

“Fresh footprints?”

“Likely made last night.”

Jun Luo assessed, and Chunk nodded in agreement.

“Combat formation!”

At Jun Luo’s quiet command, the sixty members of the frontline unit shifted from an exploration formation to a combat formation.

The magicians, sorcerers, and healers were positioned in the center, while physical fighters lined up on both sides.

Chunk remained at the front, but now Jun Luo was flanked by another swordsman.

Level 4 adventurer Loso.

“Chunk, Loso, proceed with caution.”

“Got it.”

“Understood.”

Chunk and Loso both responded softly.

At that moment, Jun Luo’s gaze landed on a particular tree in the distance.

He didn’t know why that specific tree caught his attention.

But something about it felt off.

He focused his gaze.

After staring at it for a few moments, he realized why it had drawn his attention.

“A broken branch. And it’s fresh…”

But beneath the tree, there were no footprints.

The broken branch was a tiny, thin twig… something must have passed by and snapped it.

But why were there no footprints on the ground beneath it?

Suddenly, realization struck.

“The footprints are a trap!”

The transition from decision to action was instantaneous.

“Everyone, retreat in silence!”

At first, no one fully understood Jun Luo’s abrupt command.

But no one disobeyed it, either.

Jun Luo was a well-known and highly skilled Level 3 adventurer. To have suddenly ordered a retreat.

It meant he had detected something—something that could not be ignored.

To hesitate would be fatal.

The frontline unit began retreating in combat formation.

After passing the site where they had camped the night before, they continued walking until the forest cleared.

“Kiiiiiie!”

Slash!

At the very rear of the group, along with Chunk and Loso, Jun Luo suddenly cut down a creature that had leaped at them from behind.

It was only after slashing it that he recognized it—a Gray Goblin.

And of course, it wasn’t alone.

In fact, beyond the forest clearing, there were many of them.

As if they had been waiting in ambush.

However, the goblins in front of them, blocking the path back to Spring Village, were relatively few in number.

Since the group had not ventured too deep and had started retreating early, the goblins hadn’t been able to fully complete their encirclement.

“Break through the front lines with everything you’ve got! Once through, run straight to the village!”

Jun Luo shouted.

Even if they ran at full speed, it would take at least fifteen minutes to reach the village.

But there was no other choice.

The goblins in front were still a thin line, but the ones closing in from behind? Their numbers had grown well over a hundred.

Thus began the frontline unit’s desperate retreat battle.

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