Extra's Ascent

The rustling of the leaves nearby jolted both Ian and Camelia into action.

"I thought you said it would take a while for the Aldaman boy to get here?!" Ian questioned, his voice sharp with tension as he quickly surveyed their surroundings.

"It should!" Camelia responded, equally vigilant, her posture tense and eyes darting around.

The two were on edge, both fixated on the rustling leaves ahead of them.

Their senses were heightened, and they were prepared for anything.

But in their heightened focus, they made an amateurish mistake.

In concentrating so closely on the disturbance ahead, they neglected to watch the edges of their position.

It was then that disaster struck.

A wolf, its form resembling a massive canine with elongated fangs, sprang from behind, lunging toward the easiest prey: Trevor, still lying unconscious on the ground from his earlier weariness.

"Trevor!" Camelia shouted in alarm.

In an instant, Ian was already moving.

His hands darted through the air, making intricate, sweeping motions as he began to weave a circle of energy.

The air vibrated as he completed the pattern, and a glowing, arching gust of wind took shape.

Five sharp-edged blades of wind, aptly named "wind razors," were formed and sent hurtling toward the approaching wolf.

The wind razors struck with precision, slicing the beast into five distinct parts.

Blood splattered across the ground, and the wolf's body crumpled to the earth in a lifeless heap.

The wolf's head rolled on the ground and stopped at Ian's feet.

"Get a hold of yourself. This is no time to be emotional," Ian snapped, his voice sharp and commanding.

Camelia paused, her eyes still on the remains of the wolf, her breath quick and shallow from the sudden rush of fear.

Ian's words, however, struck home.

He could see that her immediate reaction to the situation had been driven more by emotion than rational thought.

It frustrated him greatly.

This was a life-or-death situation, and if she wasn't careful, they could both find themselves in more danger than they perceived.

"It's over now, but next time, don't let emotions cloud your judgment," Ian muttered under his breath, a slight scowl forming on his face as he glanced toward her.

Camelia quickly composed herself.

She turned her attention back to Trevor, who was still passed out, thankfully unharmed by the wolf's attack.

Ian had been quick enough, and her companion was safe for the moment.

Ian, however, was not yet done.

His sharp senses detected another sound.

A low, rumbling growl, barely audible at first, but unmistakable.

His eyes narrowed, and his posture stiffened.

"Hey!" Ian called out, his voice low and serious as his gaze swept across the forest. "There's more of them!"

As if on cue, the growls grew louder.

From the shadows of the surrounding trees, a pack of massive wolves emerged, their forms imposing and clearly not ordinary.

These wolves, their bodies well over the size of any normal animal, began to encircle the trio.

The pack had appeared out of nowhere, and their intent was clear.

"Great. Just what we need," Ian muttered, irritation creeping into his voice.

Wolves, especially of this size and with such a menacing presence, were often known to travel in packs.

It was rare for one to be solitary unless it had been cast out or was being used as bait by the others.

The first wolf that Ian had taken down was likely a diversion to allow the rest of the pack to sneak up on them.

That didn't turn out as expected seeing as how Ian had been quick to dispose of it faster than their reactive prowess to take advantage of the confusion.

"Be careful," Ian said, his voice grim. "These wolves are Walkers."

Camelia glanced at him, then back at the wolves, her intent to pick up on his claim of the wolves as Walkers.

He knew of the wolf's natures as Walkers judging from the faint traces of mana he could feel emanating off the wolves.

It wasn't much and pales in considerable figure compared to the Kraken.

But they had it nonetheless, and he could feel it... Albeit little.

His assessment was quick and precise and accurately on point by Camelia's observatory result.

Although beta-ranked walkers were typically not a threat to S-ranked students like themselves, the sheer number of these wolves could turn the tables around to make this situation worth taking note of.

There were at least twelve—no, thirteen—of them, all moving as one unit.

That could pose a significant problem.

And to make matters worse, they had no physical weapons to rely on.

The wolves, seeming to communicate without words, lunged simultaneously.

Seven of them split off toward Ian, while the remaining five targeted Camelia and the still unconscious Trevor.

Camelia's focus sharpened.

As the five wolves closed in on her, she took a deep breath and moved quickly.

Her fingers danced across the ground, drawing in swift, precise movements.

A massive wall of earth rose before her, eight feet high, just in time to halt the advancing wolves.

The sudden appearance of the earth wall caught the wolves off guard.

Their collective charge faltered as they hesitated, unsure how to proceed.

Camelia wasted no time.

She leapt over the wall with agile precision, landing lightly behind the wolves as they regrouped.

With a flick of her wrist, she summoned a series of fire daggers, sharp and deadly.

She hurled them toward the wolves, the flames lashing out with brutal force.

The wolves howled in agony as the fire daggers embedded themselves in their bodies.

The heat and intensity of the flames burned through their fur, leaving holes where they struck.

The pack writhed, their cries of pain echoing through the forest.

Ian watched for a moment, a flicker of approval crossing his mind.

Camelia was holding her own.

She was managing well, even against five beta-ranked walkers.

That brought him a sense of relief.

With his situation still at hand, Ian quickly turned his focus to the seven wolves charging at him.

He wasn't about to fall behind.

He called upon his own abilities.

Drawing symbols in the air, he invoked a gust of wind powerful enough to send the seven wolves flying.

The force of the wind slammed the animals into trees and the ground, sending some crashing and others tumbling before they finally came to a halt.

Ian's eyes locked on their positions as they struggled to recover.

Without missing a beat, he drew more symbols, summoning sharp, earthen spikes that shot up from the ground beneath the fallen wolves.

The wolves' bodies were impaled by the spikes, their struggles turning to whimpers as they were pierced through and through.

The battle was over almost as soon as it had started.

"That was too easy," Ian muttered, his expression conflicted.

Beta-ranked walkers were supposed to be tougher than this.

Even though they were at the lowest rank among walkers, they were still formidable, and Ian had expected a more challenging fight

This, however, had been surprisingly easy, too easy.

"I don't think we should wai-"

Ian's instinct screamed at him! There was something behind him! A presence loomed over!

Without hesitation, he summoned five wind razors and hurled them toward the source of the disturbance!