68 The Headless Riders Part 1 (1/2)

The Grade 2 magic Windspeed spell was a very practical technique; it gave a very low-grade mage the ability to move quickly, as fast as a galloping stead.

The Windspeed spell could be sustained for as long as an hour, and within this hour, the person with the Windspeed spell could run at a speed of sixty kilometers an hour.

The best war horses could possibly run faster than this but would not be able to sustain the speed for so long. If they wanted to run at a constant speed, it would not be at this speed.

What Aini could not tolerate was that Nailisi, who did not have Windspeed spell and was carrying Saleen on her back, was running ahead of him and Sika.

Nailisi exposed her pale, slender calves, her crystal-like toes making faint marks on the ground. The explosive power from her muscles was comparable to that of a senior swordsman.

The theory was the same. To run as fast as them, a senior swordsman would need to depend on the movement of the sword aura and could not sustain it for too long of a duration.

The stiff wind blew onto Nailisi’s face. It was pleasant to her. She thought she could go even faster, without any need for other demons to be chasing her.

Usually, after a demon had deployed a high-level transformation skill, its power would decline. Nailisi had no such feeling. She even felt that after the transformation, her muscles had been continuously regulated and had even produced more power.

This was the effect upon the completion of the transformation skill. Since the transformation skill was connected to a demon’s pulse, could she have become of age already?

Wide, boundless fields came into view as the four of them quickly left the battle area behind. The ancient castle was far behind them, and the sounds of killings and explosions could no longer be heard. Instead, they felt wind passing their ears and were under the moonlight, offering them a refreshing view.

They did not suffer any ambush attacks along the way. The black puppets seemed to have been focused on the attack of the castle. One hour passed quickly, and Nailisi slowed down and stopped. The Windspeed spell on Aini and Sika had disappeared.

Saleen was too ill at ease to continue leaning on Nailisi’s back, despite it being comfortable and helping conserve his energy. He jumped down and asked, ”Aini, how far away is the city?”

Aini caught his breath and looked at the starry sky to determine their location. Although Nailisi had always run ahead, she had not swayed from their direction. He made a calculation and then answered, ”About thirty kilometers. We have yet to walk along the main road.”

Saleen was somewhat relieved. They were near the city and there would be larger villages or even the manor of some nobleman. Saleen looked at the still panting Aini and asked, ”Can you go on?”

”Yes,” Aini answered with grit teeth. Thirty kilometres, without the help of the Windspeed spell, would take six hours on foot. He also knew that it was not yet safe to take a rest.

Because it was autumn, the dry weather of Phoenix Duchy helped reduce Aini’s suffering. Otherwise, his sickly body would have collapsed from fatigue after a few kilometers of walking on the muddy ground. After more than an hour, Saleen saw a manor.

Under the moonlight, startling bloodstains could be seen on the manor’s walls.

”Protect Aini,” Saleen ordered Sika. He quickened his footsteps as he walked towards the manor’s main door with Nailisi.

The mud, which had been soaked with blood, had turned a blackish purple. There was a stink in the air, but not one corpse could be seen. What was surprising was that there was not a single being, not even a housefly. Saleen squatted down and dug up a pile of mud, giving it a sniff. There was no life, only coagulated blood in the mud. There was nothing to search for, not even the usual bugs.

The black mage had been here. Saleen stood up and retreated. He did not know if there would be an ambush in the manor. Aini saw Saleen retreat from the manor’s main door, shaking his head. He knew that the situation did not look good. If the black mage had caused a bloodbath here, what about the town not far from here?