Yannik grinned as he watched the cloud of poison gas engulf the small caravan on the empty road just up ahead.

  “Told you that trap would work!” the [Trapmaster] said, turning to the white-haired man standing next to him. “And you thought it would fail and we’ll have to hijack the caravan the old-fashioned way.”

  Caspar— the white-haired man— scoffed as he lowered the pair of clawed gloves he wore on his hands. “The last few traps you set up have failed miserably. Don’t forget, because of you, that adventurer nearly escaped last week. If he did, our entire operation here would’ve been jeopardized.”

  “Don’t talk to me like I’m an incompetent buffoon,” Yannik scoffed as he got to his feet and gestured at Caspar’s claws. “Remember, it’s only thanks to my poisons that you managed to finally hit Gold Rank like me.”

  Caspar clicked his tongue as Yannik sneered back at him. In comparison to Yannik who was a chubby and short man, Caspar was a battle-hardened and muscular man who looked like he could rip the other man apart in an instant. However, Yannik knew that Caspar could not do a thing to him, so that was why he didn’t shy back.

  But as the two bandits glared at each other, a voice piped up from the side. It was Carl— one of the new recruits of the Gold Skulls.

  “Hey, uh, guys?” he said as he pointed past the two bickering men. They turned to him with a frown as he continued. “What is that?”

  “What is what—” Yannik started, looking back in the direction of the road.

  And then he froze when he saw his poisonous green gas dispersing, revealing a dome of white light surrounding the caravan. Caspar’s brows snapped together as he adjusted his clawed gloves.

  “Life be damned, it seems like we get to do it the old-fashioned way, after all,” he said as he stepped forward with a savage grin.

  ***

  I had to think fast when the cloud of poisonous gas engulfed the caravan. Everyone— Richard, Bran, and even Frida— broke out into a coughing fit as they covered their faces. Their skin began to discolor as their veins popped out. The only reason I was unaffected was thanks to the protection spell I cast on myself yesterday. It kept the poison gas out of my system, giving me a second to think of a plan of action

  I knew they would have died— or at the very least, passed out— if I hadn’t intervened. So I acted quickly, casting [Lesser Domain Of Light]. All at once, the dome of light fell upon the caravan, and I began to heal everyone, counteracting the damage the poison was doing to their body.

  Their skin began to return to a normal color as they stopped coughing. Frida looked up at me with wide eyes, and the poisonous cloud began to dissipate. The [Nun] rose to her feet as she produced her giant hammer. However, as she hopped off the wagon, it was clear that her movements were still hampered, compared to before.

  And the same could be said for Bran and his team of adventurers. They all moved sluggishly as they reached for their weapons, preparing for battle. It was evident the poison was still in their system, and I was only able to keep it from incapacitating with my constant output of healing.

  Unfortunately, my healing was not strong enough to cure them of the poison’s effects. Which meant that the poison was concocted by a Silver Rank— or more likely a Gold Rank. So I just continued upkeeping my [Lesser Domain Of Light] as I glanced back in the direction where I saw the moving shadows. There, I saw a group of about a dozen or so figures ready their weapons, before bursting out of the trees.

  “That way!” I shouted as I pointed past Frida who was still trying to regain her bearings.

  She spun around right as a white-haired bounded towards her and reached her. The two of them clashed— his claws striking her hammer as she gritted her teeth, forcing her to take a step back.

  “Oh, a [Nun] who can fight, huh? Interesting…” the white-haired man said as he met Frida’s gaze.

  And behind him, a dozen bandits carrying swords and axes rallied, rushing past him. But Bran and his team moved to intercept them.

  “Bandits—” the leader of the adventurers cursed as a pair of the bandits flanked him. “Life be damned, we’re outnumbered two-to-one!”

  My eyes flickered as I watched the bandits move to surround us from all sides. Bran, Mark, Elise, and Jerome all had two or three opponents standing before them. And not only were we outnumbered, but Frida and the adventurers had their movements hindered by the poison still in their system.

  They tried to fight back. Bran’s blade blurred as he swung out at two of the bandits at the same time, keeping them back. But a third bandit flanked him from behind, slashing his back open as he cried out in pain.

  Mark tried to rush to his leader’s aid, but a pair of bandits intercepted him. His movements were too slow due to the poison. They kept him back, all the while Elise and Jerome failed to make enough distance between themselves and their opponents, barely avoiding the oncoming swings of blades.

  The adventurers were being overwhelmed by the sheer number of their opponents. And Frida was faced with an enemy who was too fast for her to keep up with at her current state. She struck out with a kick, but the white-haired man easily leapt back and avoided the strike.

  He cackled wildly as his body flashed with a crimson aura, before he swung out at her with a triple strike in an instant. Frida barely parried two of the attacks as she was pushed back, but the third narrowly got through, cutting her shoulder open as she gritted her teeth.

  It was evident this situation was dire. If this kept up, we were going to lose.

  And so, I moved quickly, trying to turn the tides of battle with my Skills as a [Healer Of The Hearth].

  I raised a hand as a magic circle formed on my finger tips. Strands of white light poured out of my hand and seemingly connected to the adventurers and Frida. One of the bandits grinned as he swung out at Bran.

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  The leader of the adventurers braced himself, unable to block the attack in time. But there was a flash of light as a white aura overcame his body. The bandit’s sword struck the aura, and sparks flew out as he blinked.

  Even Bran was taken off guard by it. He stood there in shock as the wound on his back slowly began to close up thanks to my constant healing— although, it didn’t heal as fast as it could, due to my constant healing of the poison.

  The same white aura overcame Frida and the other adventurers alike as Bran blinked and looked around in confusion.

  “What is this?” he asked, before glancing towards me.

  I nodded back at him. “With [Basic Light Magic Control], I can make alterations to my [Lesser Domain Of Light]. All I can do right now is give you some extra protection, but it won’t be enough to save you from anything more than ordinary attacks. However—”

  I took in a deep breath as I focused on my comrades once again. This time, they were enveloped by a green light that seemed to wash over them like splashing water for a moment.

  “[Basic Blessing Of Life],” I whispered.

  Instantly, it was like the adventurers were revitalized, their strength returning to them. Their movements were no longer worn down like they were moving underwater. While the boost in Attributes offered by the Skill was not the most significant, I was able to cast it on multiple people, including myself. And it was just enough to counteract the poison in their body weighing them down.

  “You’re a lifesaver, aren’t you, kid?” Bran grinned at me as he swung out with his sword, cutting down a bandit with his renewed speed and strength. “To me, my team! We can fend off these bandits as long as we’re together!”

  The rest of his team blinked in confusion, but did as they were told. They circled away from the bandits back towards each other. All the while, their wounds began to slowly close up.

  The bandits tried to stop them. But it was evidently clear that the adventurers were stronger— especially when considering the healing and protection I was giving them.

  Ordinarily, casting multiple spells like I was doing was not easy— especially for someone of my Rank. Not only that, it was also extremely draining to a Bronze Rank’s mana pool. They wouldn’t be able to upkeep this for more than a minute at most. But I had the experience from my past life with rapidly multicasting dozens of spells at once, paired together with my abundance of mana, I was able to help turn the tide of battle for the adventurers.

  The four of them regrouped and fought with their backs against each other, cutting down the bandits one after another as they cheered. However, despite my additional aid, the same couldn’t be said for Sister Frida.

  Because despite the boost provided to her Attributes by [Basic Blessing Of Life], she was moving even more sluggish than before, being completely overwhelmed by the white-haired man attacking her.

  But why? My mind raced as I realized that the white-haired man was going to defeat the [Nun]. And if he did win, then that meant Bran and his team would be doomed too.

  I furrowed my brows as I watched the white-haired man strike at Frida with his claws once more. He barely got around her guard, tearing through the white aura protecting her and cutting her sides open. And that was when I noticed that the very tip of his gloves were dipped in a green liquid.

  More poison? I realized as Frida’s movements grew even slower compared to before, despite the small wound healing a few seconds after. At this rate, she’s going to die…

  And I knew I had to act quickly to save her, or else we’d lose.

  ***

  Frida could barely breathe. Her entire body was numb. Her mind barely even functioned. The poison was taking a toll on her body. Despite Eli’s constant healing saving her from succumbing to the deadly toxins running through her bloodstream, she was still hindered by the other effects of the poison afflicting her.

  So she could barely fight back against the white-haired man attacking her. Even as she tried to attack him with some of her strongest Skills, it was to no avail.

  “[Lightning Of Retribution]!” she called out as she pointed at him.

  A bolt of electricity shot out, arcing straight for the white-haired man. But he just laughed as he leapt to the side. His body flickered with a crimson aura, and he laughed as he dashed forward.

  “[Zealous Charge].”

  His body blurred into a flurry of crimson slashes. Frida couldn’t dodge him in time. She could only raise her hammer as she braced for his attack. He tore through her defenses as she let out a cry of pain, a dozen deep cuts opening up across her body.

  Frida dropped to a knee as she cried out in pain. The white-haired man landed right behind her, turning to face her with a smirk on his face.

  “You’re a tough one. But that makes it all the more fun, bringing you down.”

  The [Nun] cursed internally as her eyes darted towards Eli who was standing off to the side, watching the fighting. A glyph was forming underneath his feet as he closed his eyes for a moment.

  Do something, you damn false [Hero], she thought as she tried to pick herself, but was forced to steady herself with her giant hammer. Prove that you are who Reverend Donovan says you are, or we’ll all die!

  And right as the thought that all hope was lost crossed the [Nun]’s mind, Eli whispered the name of another Skill as he pointed two fingers at her.

  “[Boon Of Vitality].”

  Blinking, a ring of light fell upon Frida as her entire body shone for a moment. It engulfed her as the white-haired man stared, taken aback at what was going on. And that was when the [Nun] felt the numbing feeling wearing her down— the exhaustion that seemed to drag her limbs to the ground— it all vanished.

  This is…? Frida stared at herself for a moment.

  But she immediately snapped her gaze up as the white-haired man growled.

  “I don’t know what you just did, but it’s over for you— take this!” he yelled as he bounded forward on all fours. “[Wrath Of The Lion—”

  And Frida clicked her tongue as she raised a hand. She caught the man before he could reach her. His claws dug deep into the palm of her hand as she grabbed onto him, stopping him in his tracks.

  He paused as he realized she had intercepted his attack with ease. “How…?”

  He stared at her in shock. And Frida just raised her giant hammer with her free hand.

  “[Heavenly Smite].”

  “No—” The white-haired man tried to pull away, but she grasped onto him tightly.

  And she swung down with her hammer and crushed him in a single strike. His head was smashed open as his body was crushed under the weight of the glowing hammer. His body lay there, crumpled into a mess of broken bones and blood as a notification resounded in Frida’s head.

  Then it was over.

  She sighed in relief as she drew back from the dead bandit. Sweeping her gaze over her surroundings, she watched as the adventures took out the last of the remaining bandits on the scene. Even if she hated to admit it, it was only thanks to Eli that they were able to—

  “Don’t move!” a voice shouted, cutting her thoughts off.

  Her eyes darted to the side as she stared at a short and plump man holding a dagger coated in poison against Eli’s neck. The man looked to be with the bandits, although he didn’t seem like he was a proper combatant like the white-haired man or the other bandits. Nevertheless, he had somehow snuck up on the boy without Frida or the adventurers noticing.

  “Drop your weapons!” the plump man demanded as Bran and his team froze. Frida pursed her lips, and Eli just blinked as the plump man finished. “Or the kid gets it!”