One-Eyed Monster

The wind was rising!

On the mountaintop, the wind gusted, at times swirling dust from the slopes, at others rustling the trees on the peak.

This wind was peculiar; it didn’t seem to be a natural breeze. One could usually sense the general direction of a natural wind, but this gust was erratic and directionless.

Dark Wizard Gus felt the wind brush over his head, then whip around to slap the back of his skull. Its strange behavior prevented him from determining its course, let alone gauging the strength it carried.

So, this is the Natural Force a Wind Wizard can control, Gus pondered. After converting to the Darkness Type, he was no longer capable of fully accepting the theories of wizards and could no longer sense the various elemental forces of nature. At that moment, he also felt a surge of relief. He was glad he had maintained his composure and not lost his reason earlier. If he had attacked impulsively moments ago, he would most likely have been caught in this confounding wind.

So, the witch has finally revealed her hidden capabilities, Gus thought. I knew an Adventurer with Class would never lay everything bare. The fox has finally shown its tail. Thankfully, I held back; otherwise, I wouldn’t know what to do right now.

As the wind stirred, Wizard Gus became even more cautious. His basic wizardly senses allowed him to perceive the anomaly in the wind. The Great Witch’s astounding calmness only made him more guarded.

What Wizard Gus didn’t realize was that his caution had cost him the best opportunity to strike. He didn’t know that the Great Witch had been genuinely immobilized at that moment, not merely setting a trap. He would not find such an opportunity again. As the wind picked up, Natural Force and Spirit Power began to course through the Great Witch’s body.

After her advancement, Great Witch Biggs had become almost idiotic, seemingly incapable of anything. Fear, surprise, and anxiety had left her utterly helpless and bewildered.

Perhaps helplessness was part of her nature. This helplessness allowed her to reconnect with the elements that became visible after her advancement—specifically, that mischievous child.

Natural Force could be manipulated, but this manipulation was mutual. In other words, although a wizard could master the techniques of controlling Natural Force after advancement, the Natural Force, in turn, could also control the wizard.

This kind of control, however, was rather peculiar.

The Wind Elemental that the Great Witch now perceived was a mischievous child. The child grinned cheekily at her, sometimes even making faces, completely disregarding her authority.

All she could do was merely point the child in a direction.

Most of the time, it was the child leading her.

Wasn’t this somewhat ironic?

An advanced Great Witch, unable to fully control Natural Force, was instead being led around by the nose by it.

What kind of a state was this?

Perhaps only the Great Witch herself could truly understand this state.

Go that way, go that way, the Great Witch mentally chanted the rhyme the Spirit Book had once taught her—a rhyme said to control the wind, the earth, and all elements.

Yet, the Wind Elemental paid no heed to her rhyme. It darted around like a headless fly, making faces at the Great Witch.

The Great Witch, pulled along by it, looked this way and that, almost as if her feet were about to move on their own.

Wizard Gus moved cautiously. He was somewhat unfamiliar with this kind of battle; it wasn’t his specialty. Even though he had unhesitatingly activated the Forbidden Spell, he was still somewhat unsure.

He was uncertain of the power this Wind Wizard wielded and could only continue to observe cautiously.

Twirling his fingers, Wizard Gus decided to try another probing spell. The witch before him hadn’t moved much, merely releasing a gust of eerie wind, which clarified little.

This time, the spell wouldn’t be as simple as the previous binding spell. This probing spell was closely related to the Forbidden Spell he had already activated. So, although it was a probe, it was also effectively an attack.

As a Dark Wizard, his Spellcraft still relied on props for execution. He himself lacked the cohesive power to control Natural Force directly. Therefore, he needed to use elemental powders to help him form the spell.

These powders were Darkness Type items, which he had not yet mastered. He only knew that these powders could help him achieve his objective.

Two small, vividly patterned snakes, flicking their tongues, slithered towards the Great Witch, their bodies swaying.

A single glance revealed the snakes were highly venomous. However, the Great Witch’s Spirit Power was currently preoccupied with the mischievous Wind Elemental. She hadn’t noticed this sudden development at all.

The two small snakes had already slithered up the Great Witch’s robes and onto her body...

Yet, the Great Witch still showed no sign of reaction...

This... Wizard Gus was flabbergasted!

These were Poisonous Snakes! Even as Illusions, they carried significant venomous power. While the venom couldn’t cause physical injury, it should at least cause discomfort.

But the Great Witch showed no reaction whatsoever. Had she become immune to such natural toxins?

Had her advancement been this rapid?

Was she looking down on him?

How dare she look down on the leader of the Black Crow? This was intolerable!

Wizard Gus began to pant; he had lost his patience. He took out all the remaining powder he had, apparently not planning to hold anything back.

”It’s time you witnessed the Black Crow’s Anger!” Wizard Gus roared. His appearance began to transform as he executed the Forbidden Spell, which was primarily an Illusion Spell.

To trap someone in an illusion, a normal wizard would use a specially crafted substance—in other words, a trap. But Gus was a Dark Wizard; he didn’t need such troublesome methods. He merely had to drag his opponent into his Illusionary Realm.

His method for dragging them in was simple and crude: total coverage.

Even though the wind had risen, even though his opponent’s strength was unfathomable, and even though he wasn’t skilled in direct confrontation... Gus was still the leader of the Black Crow. He would not tolerate being looked down upon.

He felt his caution hadn’t earned him his opponent’s respect, so he would no longer be courteous.

Complete coverage. Wizard Gus released all his powder, which formed a thick Black Smoke above his head.

He had prepared this spell for a long time; just arranging the powder had taken him quite a while.

Now that he had fully unleashed the spell, he only needed to envelop his opponent. Once inside this Black Smoke, his opponent would be completely within his Illusionary Realm. That was where the true contest would unfold.

Within the Illusionary Realm, he could fully leverage his strengths.

Now, he just needed to send this Black Smoke over to her.

”Expansion Spell!” Wizard Gus chanted a mantra, and the Black Smoke above his head swelled, growing larger and larger.

Unfortunately, this Black Smoke had a limit; it could only envelop one person. Otherwise, he truly wished he could use this spell on everyone...

Lying on the ground and kicking its small feet, the Wind Elemental turned its head to the Great Witch. ”Some strange Smoke is coming from over there. Want to go play with it?”

”What?” Great Witch Biggs was startled, then froze on the spot.