Witch Training Manual: My Water Magic Is Wrong

The two walked down the mine tunnel.

The overhead lighting stones became increasingly sparse, and the air began to feel damp and cold.

After walking for a while, Schiller suddenly spoke.

"Aren't you going to ask me why I went down there?"

Wayne didn't turn around: "Your father and your brother are down there; you're going to save them."

Schiller was quite surprised.

"Do you know them?"

"I've seen him. Your father, Klaus, is on the third level, and your brother, Theon, is also in the camp over there. You look just like your brother; I can recognize you at a glance."

Schiller didn't speak again. After walking a while, his voice came from behind: "You probably guessed it, the relationship between my brother and my father isn't good. I've been guarding up there for years, while Theon follows him down below. Three years ago, I went down to the third floor and had a fight with the old man, almost turning into a brawl. I haven't gone down since."

Wayne didn't respond, waiting for him to continue.

Schiller coughed, seemingly a little uncomfortable: "To be honest, I don't really respect what the old man and my brother do. But no matter how much you cause trouble, you're still family. The city is about to collapse, and if you can't even take care of your own family because of a fight, that would be really despicable."

"You make a good point."

Perhaps running out of things to say, Schiller changed the subject: "Speaking of which, I feel like you've grown a bit taller than before."

Wayne nodded: "Yes, my body is recovering. The city's suppressive rules are having less of an effect on me, and once I've fully recovered, my body will return to its original size."

"That's pretty convenient for you," Schiller muttered. "Unlike us, we're just stuck with whatever we're crushed into, and we'll probably never be able to turn our lives around."

Just then, a grinding sound came from around the corner of the rock wall ahead.

A round-bodied demon squatted in the middle of the mine tunnel, its back bulging like a rotten mushroom, and it was gnawing on something indistinct.

The sound of their footsteps startled it.

The demon raised its head, its mouth splitting to its ears, and let out a low growl. It braced itself on all fours, its back bulging and throbbing, as it approached the two.

Schiller twirled the axe on his shoulder and chuckled, "Hey, you don't need to lift a finger, I can handle it."

Wayne stepped aside to make way for him.

Schiller, carrying his axe, went to meet him.

The demon moved first, its massive body lunging out along the ground, the tumor flinging out several streams of mud-like liquid with its attack.

Schiller sidestepped, his axe blade slashing down, striking the demon squarely in the side of its neck. A cracking sound rang out, and half of the demon's neck bone caved in. It collapsed to the ground without uttering a sound.

Schiller drew his axe, kicked the corpse aside, stepped on the still twitching head with the sole of his boot, twisted it, and silenced it completely.

The whole process took less than three breaths.

After leaning against the rock wall and watching, Wayne made a judgment about Schiller's strength: he was probably around the fourth rank, ruthless in his attacks, experienced, and not just a showman.

"Not bad," he said casually.

Schiller rubbed the axe blade on his trouser leg, his tone devoid of smugness: "That's how you make a living. With that door guarding it from above, you'd be swallowed up long ago if you didn't have some skills."

The two continued walking down.

"I watched that axe strike you just made. It was aimed at cutting bone, and your stance was very stable. You're not some amateur like Po Luo; you must have been taught, right?"

Schiller nodded.

"I'd say I received guidance from a renowned teacher!"

Schiller said as he walked, "My father taught me a few moves. But his style was more like a sorcerer's, while I prefer close-quarters combat. Any move that can kill the enemy is a good move."

Schiller said, "By the way, I just heard you call my brother's name. You two met down there?"

"Yes, I saw him. His wife was sick, and I gave her some medicine."

Schiller slowed his pace for a moment.

"...How is Linda doing?"

"He has Abyssal Spot Disease and is currently being kept alive by medical equipment. I've given him some medicine, which can temporarily stabilize his condition, but it won't cure him completely."

Schiller was silent for a moment before speaking: "That woman is quite nice. My brother gave her his eyes, and no one could persuade him otherwise. If it were me..."

He didn't say anything more, and quickened his pace.

The two walked for a while longer, and the mine tunnel gradually widened, revealing a cliff ahead.

The entrance to the third level. From here, the luminous minerals disappear, replaced by a faint green glow from the moss on the rock walls, and the air becomes much more humid.

The two jumped off the cliff.

The original color of the stone path underfoot was no longer discernible.

Corpses were everywhere.

There were more monster corpses than human corpses.

Some of the monsters weren't quite dead yet; occasionally, their severed limbs would twitch, making a grinding sound.

Schiller slowed his pace, his boots stepping over a pool of sticky, dark red liquid. His gaze swept around. "Where the hell did all this come from?"

"The number of people surging up from below was far greater than I had anticipated."

The two walked along the narrow path at the edge of the platform. They hadn't gone far when two dark figures suddenly darted out from the shadows of the rock wall ahead. They were incredibly fast, not large in size, but their speed was remarkable.

Schiller remained steadfast.

With a diagonal slash, the first monster was cleaved in two from shoulder to waist, its corpse flying past Schiller's knee. The second monster had just stopped its charge and tried to turn and run when the axe handle changed direction, piercing its jaw from below, forcing its head backward and flipping it over.

Schiller drew his axe and stepped back. The two monsters landed almost simultaneously, one on the left and one on the right, their blood spreading into two pools on the ground.

"Walk."

The two quickened their pace.

The further you go, the denser the corpses become on the ground, interspersed with the bodies of Black Hand members, lying haphazardly among the rubble.

The Blackhand camp's fence had been breached in three places, and flames were raging at the main gate. Both watchtowers had collapsed.

The defenders retreated to the center of the camp, where they pieced together a makeshift defensive line behind the rubble and fought against monsters that outnumbered them three to one.

The camp's defensive line is being pushed back step by step.

At the very front of the defensive line, a sturdy figure was carrying a shield in one hand and wielding a short axe in the other, clashing head-on with a monster twice his height.

The shield was dented and deformed by the impact, and he was pushed back three steps, his heel crushing a piece of gravel. He gritted his teeth and pushed back.

Theon.

Schiller recognized the figure from behind.

He forced a shout from his throat: "Theon!"

Theon heard the sound during the battle and turned around abruptly.

Upon seeing Schiller, he paused for a moment, then called out hoarsely, "Brother? Why did you come down?"

"Enough talk, hold on!"

Schiller jumped directly down towards the camp, and an axe came down from above him, cleaving a monster that lunged at him in two, shoulder and neck.

Theon grinned. "Perfect timing. The breach on the east side is about to collapse, and I was just worried about who would help me plug it."

Schiller didn't reply; he simply held his axe horizontally and stood beside him.

Two monsters pounced at the same time. Schiller took one down with an axe, while Theon held off the third with his shield and plunged his short axe into its throat.

The two brothers worked together seamlessly, and the defensive line was stabilized instantly, pushing back the previously precarious front.

When Wayne caught up, the battle at the front was already being held back by two burly men. He stood on the outskirts of the camp, his gaze sweeping around, water elementals gathering in his palm.

He raised his hand and pushed it towards the densest mass of monsters in the camp. A huge torrent of water exploded, transforming into dozens of water snakes, each as thick as an adult's arm, which coiled around the surrounding monsters and twisted them toward the ground.

The roars rose and fell, and the monsters that were pressing towards the center of the camp were thrown into disarray, with a large number being dragged away by the water snakes.

The battlefield was quickly cleared.

Wayne jumped.