Arad and Aella walked outside the city to hut the giant toads, “Listen, we’re hunting six.” Arad said with a reluctant voice.

“The quest said to hunt five.” She replied, staring at him with her head tilted to the side.

“I need one, so we’re killing six.” He lifted his staff, “Don’t cast any spells here. We still haven’t detected a toad.” She instantly commented while taking a step away.

Arad sighed, “I know. Let’s search for them around here.” Arad looked around.

^Mom, can I detect them with my powers?^

[Sadly, no. You can detect magic and see invisible creatures like ghosts, but the toads are natural creatures. You also can’t detect their smell since you don’t know how they smell.]

Arad sighed. His abilities are useless unless they find at least one to use as a reference.

Aella approached Arad, “Nina said they hide in the ground just beneath the surface. Grassless patches of the ground are a good indicator that a toad is hiding there.”

Arad nodded, looking around. There were no patches that fit a toad. The grassy hills span until the forest, and the only dirt patches he could see were about twenty feet in diameter.

“Where are the toads? Please don’t tell me this like the slimes when I can barely find them.” Arad walked around with a worried face.

“I heard from Nina that they like eating goats. We could try luring them out.” Aella rushed ahead, “MAAAA!” She yelled, “MAAAA!”

Arad walked behind her, “Do you think that will work?”

[Hold up, they eat goats?]

It was then that the realization hit Arad like a lightning bolt. ^How big are they? I thought they could be cat-sized at most.^

CRACK! In the distance, the ground shattered, and the 20-foot-tall toad emerged.

“It’s big!” Aella screamed with a happy face, swinging her arms.

[That’s what she said. Get ready for a fight.]

KA-DON! Arad engulfed his staff in flames, ready to start blasting.

“Let me take care of it.” Aella smiled, pulling her bow out. In her palm, she held three arrows between her fingers.

“You will kill at a distance? I can do that with magic.” Arad pointed his staff at the toad.

“Can you let me have it? I haven’t fought in a long time.” She smiled, standing tall and pulling the bowstring to her chin. “Their skin is tough. For arrows to penetrate it, I must be quite close.” She said, letting the toad hop closer and closer.

Arad lowered his staff, “I don’t think a mere arrow will kill such a big thing immediately.”

“It will, as long as I get through the skull to the brain. My arrow can do it.” Aella smiled, taking a deep breath and inflating her already sizeable chest.

As the toad entered the 30 feet range, she released her arrows. BAM! BAM! BAM! In quick secession, she fired three arrows in less than two seconds. She almost reached Arad’s speed with magic.

Arad started clapping as he saw the toad stop with three arrows stuck in its forehead. “Truly impressive. I have never seen someone shoot so fast.”

Aella smiled, “I’m a quick shot, you know. I can fire three arrows in about a second and with decent accuracy.”

As Aella puffed her chest again, speaking with pride, the toad moved, lowering its jaw. GULP! It swallowed her in an instant. The arrows didn’t kill it.

“Aella!” Arad screamed, KA-DON! Engulfing his arms in flames and leaping at the toad.

SWOSH! As Arad swung his fist with [Firefist]. BAM! The toad leaped into the sky, dodging the hit.

[Shoot it down.]

Arad lifted his staff, aiming at the toad. CRACKLE! Before he could fire, a massive sticky tongue slammed to his side. ^Damn it, another toad.^ He got pulled and swallowed by the second one.

***

A few moments later, Aella woke up inside the toad’s stomach, feeling a massive hit. Her skin burned from its acidic stomach and a dislocated shoulder. As she tried to move, her left leg screamed in pain.

CRACK! The toad’s giant mouth got forced open, and Arad stared down at her, “Are you all right?”

Arad grabbed her by the shoulder, but she flinched. [It looks dislocated, grab her from the other one and pull out.]

Arad grabbed her and pulled her out of the toad’s throat in one go, “Damn, you’re heavy. And stinks.” He sighed.

As he sat her on the ground, she started shaking. Her skin still burned from the acid and her vision was blurry. She was almost digested alive.

“How did you?” Aella looked back and saw a trail of torn trees and the corpses of two toads with clean holes in their bodies.

“Doesn’t matter. Let’s get you back to the guild.” Arad extended his hand to her. Thud! A crossbow bolt pierced his neck.

THUD! THUD! THUD! THUD! THUD! THUD! THUD! BAM!

After a handful of bolts rested on his side, a massive stone smacked his head, and a large man rushed from behind the bushes. CRACK! He kicked Arad’s body away.

“I got him, boys!” The man screamed, and a band of bandits rushed from behind the trees.

“Damn it. The elf is damaged!” One of them cried.

“Don’t worry about the elf; we can heal her in a few days with magic.” One of the bandits approached.

Aella looked at her bow. It has snapped. “Damn you!” She lifted her palm, “Oh’ great winds!” She yelled, trying to invoke her magic.

As the mana started collecting in her palm, images of the past disaster crossed her mind. Tens of dead elves stared at her, “Why did you do that?”

CRACK! The spell failed, shattering into a glimmer of dust.

“Trying to cast magic? We can’t have you do that!” A bandit who wore a robe approached her, carrying two crystal balls in his hand.

The ball emitted a blue light, and Aella felt her body tighten, “Glimmer, my blue balls. Override binding!” He yelled, and Aella fell on her face.

“What did you do?” Aella glared at him.

“I rewrote your slave contract. Hehe!” He laughed, “Those beauties cost us a fortune. But with them, we can catch and sell the likes of you.”

“We saw you walk out of the slave market with him. We thought we could catch and resell you with a loose contract to the right buyer.” The other bandit giggled.

Aella tried to stand up, but her body refused to move. “You’re under our control. Give up!” All the bandits started laughing.

VSSSSSSS! They started hearing a strange vibration in the air, like the sound of a massive bee hive.

“I don’t remember a wasp hive near here.” One of them scratched his head.

“The sound is coming from there.” They all looked toward Arad’s corpse. Instead, they saw a goat-sized black dot.

The dot stretched, extending four limbs, a long tail, and two jet-black wings.

Aella stared at it.

The creature moved its neck, slowly opening its eyes, which held a purple flare. Slowly, Arad glared at the bandits.

[HP Dropped to zero, we’re forced into the draconic form. Make sure no one escape alive.]

SCREEEEEEEEEEEEEECH! Opening his jaw, the tiny dragon released a horrid screech that shook the whole forest and heard from the city.

Alcott was in the guild drinking with Amber. And as he lifted his mug, SCREEEEEEEEEEEEEECH! The roar rumbled across the sky, and Alcott rushed out so fast he flipped three tables.

‘A dragon’s roar, but it’s strange. This screech is the cry of a cornered wyrmling,’ Alcott rushed as fast as he could.

‘If I don’t save it quick enough, this city will face a raging mother soon.’𝐞𝗼𝐯𝐞𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝗺