The Author's POV

Not far from them was another group of lower ranked members scouting the area ahead. They were the main force in charge of the operation. On the other hand, Amber and she were merely there to ensure that nothing occurred to them. Somewhat like bodyguards in disguise.

Their presence shouldn't be out of the Monolith's calculation.

"That's good."

Amber responded, her tone sounding rather low. It was her attempt at hiding her nervousness.

"Don't worry."

Her nervousness didn't slip past Donna. She placed her hand on her shoulder and reassured.

"We've got the upper hand. We may be walking towards a trap, but the fact that we know that should already be enough of an indication that we aren't going there without a plan. Have faith in the Alliance Master."

"You're right."

Amber took a deep breath and stabilized her heartbeat.

She looked at Donna and asked.

"...Is he trustworthy?"

"The Alliance leader?"

"Yeah..."

Amber bit her bottom lip.

"He seems rather young, and there's not much that I know about him. It'd be a lie if I said I wasn't worried."

"..."

Donna wordlessly stared at Amber.

'Is he trustworthy?'

Donna's mind was just now starting to wrap around how far Kevin had come in such a short amount of time compared to when they first met. From having a rank of around a to now being on par with her.

...Then there was Ren as well. Nothing needed to be said about his accomplishments, which surprisingly overshadowed Kevin's already absurd ones.

'Now that I think about it... what kind of monsters did I train? Is my teaching that effective?'

She shuddered at the thought.

Perhaps she was a way better instructor than she had expected.

"We're here."

Raising her head, Donna's eyes focused on an enormous beacon that was

beacon, directly shooting into the sky and absorbing the mana around it,

"Mana Compressor."

long as they destroyed it, their

It was just that...

Report. There appear

...It was completely deserted.

was no one

several presences beneath the ground. There's more

body tensing. A subtle

tell their

"No."

look. With thin vines secretly

I can feel several threatening auras. About seven

"That many?"

aback. The Monolith seemed better prepared than

and cast a solemn

do we do

"I don't know."

the attack force ahead of her. They were currently pretending to scout

face Amber. She finally took a deep breath, and

location of all those that are lying in

"More or less."

her whether or not she had tracked down all of the individuals hiding in the ambush. Her vines might not have been able to extend to the spot where

She looked at Donna.

what do you want me to

"Start a direct attack."

Her amethyst colored eyes shone brighter than before, slowly extending to the area

us.

looked down

the combat team

"Got it."

Donna and fixed it on the opposing combat force that was off in the distance. Seeing their bodies tense, she knew that they'd received the direct orders from Donna, and the vines that were coming out from her fingertips started

eyes, Amber carefully sensed the auras of her opponents. She couldn't help but feel rather tense at the moment. The feedback she was receiving through the vines led her to believe that there were a significant number

I

she was locked on all the auras, she

"I'm ready."

and fixed her gaze toward the distance.

"Okay, get them out."

"You got it."

carrying out Donna's instructions, channeled all of her mana into the

Rumble―! Rumble―!

of the ground came thick vines that were about the size of three tree trunks. The very tip of them was

"We have been discovered!"

"Engage with the enem―"

the Monolith

"Stop."

battlefield, and

Click―!

clicked at her step, and she brushed her black hair

her eyes wide, the world took on a

a favor

were just a couple of words, but the moment they

few of the weaker individuals found themselves tempted by her voice, and they brought their

trickled down the side

Boom―! Boom―!

assault force and Amber attacked with everything they got. Blood sprayed all

Boom―!

of explosions reverberated throughout, drowning out the cries of desperation coming from

only those that held a considerable amount of power. As they looked at Donna, whose eyes shone brightly as she looked

are you still

movements. It was only for a moment, but it was sufficient for Amber to intervene as thick vines sprouted

"How dare you!?"