Lysandra, who was watching through her Spiritual Sense, was also surprised. Even she didn't expect this Dark Elf to be able to reach Eric and Elara so quickly.
Elara's priority was to protect Eric, and as she noticed the massive threat approaching him, her entire mind became fully focused.
She fired rapidly like she had never before. But the time was too little for her to shoot that many arrows; in fact, she only managed to shoot once before it became too late.
Eric's expression was grave.
If possible, he didn't want to use Lysandra's help in his and Elara's fight. He wished to end any fight coming toward him by himself, even though he was extremely tired—but the Dark Elf was also tired.
He knew that melee combat was absolutely not an option. With the middle-aged Dark Elf's agility and strength, he probably wouldn't even be able to react before the Dark Elf smashed his head with a punch or twisted his neck.
Eric took a sharp breath and became extremely focused, as if nothing else mattered but to shoot a single arrow at the guy.
He had a hunch about how the Dark Elf was going to attack based on how he was charging, and he was 90% certain that the Dark Elf was targeting him first—probably because he was the one who had laughed the loudest.
With that speed, Eric knew he only truly had one single chance to shoot before the Dark Elf reached him.
So, the moment Elara fired at the Dark Elf, Eric didn't fire—he pulled his bowstring to full extent with three arrows already manifested and ready. He wanted to see if his guess was correct—and indeed, the Dark Elf dodged Elara's arrow by lunging straight forward, and with the same momentum, he shot straight like an arrow toward Eric in midair.
The middle-aged Dark Elf had used the dead bodies on the ground as a spring and thrust forward at a monstrous speed. If any other mortal had been in Eric's place, they would have already been petrified with terror—unable to even aim or fire in time, as it wasn't just about speed but the ferocious presence the Dark Elf was exuding directly at Eric.
Lysandra was ready to create a Wind Wall with her Elemental Control right in front of Eric the moment the Dark Elf reached him—otherwise, if they collided, nothing of Eric would remain.
But she was only prepared and hadn't done anything yet.
After all, it was Eric's battle, and she wanted to give him the chance first. These sorts of dangers would always accompany him throughout his life if he truly wanted to reach the peak.
Elara helplessly watched, feeling as if her soul was flying away. She wished the Dark Elf had targeted her instead of Eric.
Her eyes could only widen in horror—she didn't even have time to scream in panic as the Dark Elf was already reaching Eric. His right-hand claw was clearly aimed toward Eric's head. It was easy to see what he was trying to do—grab Eric's head and bash it against the tree behind him.
Eric was calm and focused. His expression remained indifferent, as if he wasn't the one facing danger—just playing a video game.
His aim and fully drawn arrows were already ready, and his bow was positioned completely horizontal to the ground.
Just as the Dark Elf reached approximately two meters in front, Eric released his arrows.
Among the three arrows, the middle one targeted the Dark Elf's head, and the other two targeted each of his shoulders.
The dark elf's eyes snapped wide open, and he used his full strength and momentum to dodge to his right as his instinct warned him that the arrow fired from the fully drawn bow could probably penetrate him from head to toe—just like all the dead dark elf bodies beneath them.
Previously too full of rage and completely focused on how he would smash the human's head, he hadn't paid much attention to Elara's previous shots—and didn't notice that three arrows had been fired at once. His sole focus had been on Eric—and how he would use one of the unfortunate dead Dark Elf bodies to drive straight at the human boy's head.
From the beginning, the Dark Elf man had been so filled with wrath and bloodlust that he never paid attention to anything but his goal. He thought that with his ferocious presence and sudden acceleration, he would reach the human boy long before he could even shoot.
It was a gamble—and such gambles are always actively used in real battle, as real battles aren't fought like childish playground fights where one person attacks while the other waits their turn.
So, as a barehanded warrior, he did what he normally would—smash the mortal's head before the kid even knew what hit him.
But he didn't expect the human kid to be so calm, didn't even try to dodge his charge, and fired his arrow right at his face—as if declaring he was willing to go down together with him.
The human kid was playing a much bigger gamble than even him!
Because even if the human's arrow killed him—ignoring his own high Constitution—with just the speed he was moving, it was certain that the boy would also perish, with nothing of his body remaining intact.
This fact should have been well known to the human kid—yet despite this, the boy didn't even flinch! He bet that either the mid-stage Rank 1 Warrior would dodge midair—or they would both die together.
In such a short instant, the Dark Elf had little choice—he used his body's full strength and control to twist and rotate himself to the right—and only then, with utter horror, did he notice something that made his eyes widen helplessly.
Another arrow—targeting the Dark Elf's shoulder—penetrated him from the top left side of his head, passed all the way through, and exited from his right lower waist—also pushing the Dark Elf's body slightly away from Eric's left side.
With his previous momentum, the Dark Elf continued past Eric's left shoulder and smashed into the gigantic thick tree trunk.
BOOM!
The huge tree trembled and shook violently, forming a new dent, yet it remained standing. A thick, oily mark of blood—now painted with smashed bones, brain matter, and other organs—became a new, colorful decoration on the tree.
Eric had cold sweat running down his temple.
'That was so damn close!'
He even felt his left shoulder and half his upper back burning, though his stylish dark attire remained intact. His left ear felt as if a missile had just whistled past him—and if his feet hadn't been tightly locked into the thick roots on the ground, he too would have flown backward and smashed into the tree from the wind force.
Riya also wiped her cold sweat. She felt this was one of the most extreme gambles Eric had played in both his lives—betting whether a missile or jet plane would smoothly fly past him or take him to oblivion.
It was truly too damn close!
If the Dark Elf had known it was a hopeless situation—or at least been aware that people could shoot three arrows together—or if he had paid attention to Eric's bow, he would have noticed the three arrowheads nocked and ready. If he had realized he couldn't escape and decided to take the hit, Eric would have certainly died just from colliding with a corpse.
It was a massive gamble—but there had been no other option. There was no way Eric could have completely dodged that speed—and even if he had ducked, the Warrior could have adjusted his trajectory.
Eric felt the middle-aged Dark Elf had been very close to getting his justice and revenge.
What a pity—villains have long lives.
He quietly wiped his sweat.
Lysandra also breathed a sigh of relief—that had been truly close.
She was very impressed by Eric's quick wit—not firing together with Elara, but instead making a full draw on the bow and waiting patiently. His risky gamble eventually saved his life.
Sometimes, facing extreme danger head-on is the only way to escape certain death.
Elara's face was so pale that even her natural blush—which usually remained 24/7—had disappeared.
She pounced at Eric and hugged him tightly before he could dodge, wailing loudly.
At this moment, Eric figured out that Elara's crying voice was also melodious.
"As expected of a villain—enjoying someone's misery," Riya commented.
Eric wryly smiled and gently patted Elara's bright, beautiful green hair, consoling her, "I'm fine, see? Don't cry, don't cry." And please leave my tired body alone!
Elara didn't listen and kept sobbing loudly—enough to reach the other side of the camp, where Lysandra sat like a queen on a man-made chair composed solely of headless Dark Elf Mana Wielders.
Lysandra smiled with resignation—but she was also satisfied with Eric and Elara's battle results, as she hadn't needed to intervene even once—except for draining the Dark Elves' Mana before sending them to the two mortals.
Lysandra waited for her daughter to stop wailing —but Elara didn't stop even after a full minute!
She finally had enough and roared, "Enough, Elara! You're locking both his arms! What if an enemy attacks Eric right now? Are you planning to get him killed?"
She knew the best way to teach Elara now was to throw Eric into a boiling pot—and everything would be fixed immediately.
Elara quickly snapped out of her angst, releasing Eric while glancing around in alarm.
After seeing no danger, Elara relaxed—then recalled what she'd just done and turned completely red.
She looked down at her bosom, feeling as if her heart might explode any second.
"I-I'm sorry, E-Eric. I-I didn't want to harm you..." Elara quickly apologized—her voice filled with shame, regret, and deep contentment.
Eric smiled and patted Elara's head, muttering with a nod, "Mmm... I know. Let's go before another wild escapee Mana Wielder jumps at us."
From this event, both Eric and Elara understood the extraordinary body enhancement Mana Wielders receive—a practical lesson unlike the theory they already knew. Simultaneously, they realized just how significant minor rank differences could be.
Eric had thought only major ranks mattered—and minor breakthroughs were, as the name suggested, minor. Only now did he realize that 'minor' was likely only relative to the next major rank—but overall, it wasn't 'minor' at all.
He shook his head and started walking toward the tribe's camp.
Elara quietly followed behind Eric.
Unlike her previous blushing face, Elara now wore a thoughtful expression.
She was seriously revising what had happened—what she could learn from it—and how to prevent Eric from facing such grave danger again.
There was much to contemplate—but one thing Elara was certain of:
She had to become a Mana Wielder as soon as possible.
No—today!