The most shameless alchemist in history

"What, Dure, do you also think what I just said was a bit excessive?" Lance was getting a little anxious.

“I know you’re saying this to remind Kelly that the girl named Hannah is suspicious, not in the sense of being rude to girls.” Dure understood Lance’s meaning and put it another way. In fact, while Lance was reminding Kelly, he had also been observing Hannah.

"That's right, it's suspicious. I don't know what Kelly was thinking, actually believing Hannah's words like that. This is the Misty Forest, a very dangerous place. When we entered the Misty Forest, we were extremely careful, on high alert, and dared not be careless in the slightest."

"But what about her? She said she starved to death on the roadside, and she said it so confidently. Such a clumsy excuse, even a three-year-old wouldn't believe it, but Kelly believed it. What else could she be but incredibly stupid?" Lance was furious whenever Kelly was mentioned, and he kept rambling on and on.

“I know you’re worried about her, but to abandon her because of that worry is completely contrary to your original intention. Since we know Hannah is suspicious, we should stay and not just watch Kelly get hurt. We’re partners, right?” Dure said solemnly.

“But Kelly said…” Lance was about to bring up Kelly’s words about “breaking up the relationship” again, which was his biggest grudge.

“She’s a girl, it’s normal for her to be a little proud and say some hurtful things. Didn’t you say a lot of hurtful things just now? Okay, let’s go back now. Let’s just let her have her way. And I know you must regret what you did just now, right?” Du Lei patted him on the shoulder.

“Who’s going to regret it?” Lance retorted immediately, though he sounded somewhat unsure of himself.

"Alright, alright, you don't regret it. Come back with me. Stop being so hesitant. You're a grown man, after all. You can't let a girl lose face by coming to you, right?" Dure pulled Lance and started walking back.

“Who’s being coy? With Kelly’s attitude, it would be strange if she came looking for me. Hey, Dure, don’t pull me away. I already said I’m not going back.” Lance tried to shake off Dure, but his attitude was much more relaxed than before; it was just for show.

But at that moment, a scream suddenly came from behind them.

"What happened? Could something have happened to Kelly? Oh no, we have to go back quickly!" Lance's expression suddenly changed, and he rushed back.

129 Jungle Fairy

Lance verbally ignored Kelly's situation, seemingly intending to sever ties with her, but now he clearly heard Kelly's screams. He instinctively turned his head and rushed towards Kelly's location without thinking, causing Dure to frown.

After all, it had only taken him about ten minutes to catch up with Lance. Everything had been peaceful since they entered the Misty Forest, and nothing unexpected had happened. But just as he left, Kelly got into trouble. Considering the suspicious behavior of the girl who claimed to be Hannah, it was hard not to be puzzled.

However, these doubts only lasted for a moment in Dure's mind. He quickly followed Lance and ran wildly, afraid that if he slowed down even a little, it would lead to irreversible consequences. The two of them were very fast, and soon they saw bursts of light ahead, which were the fires they had lit earlier.

The firelight helped to make out the surrounding light and dispel some of the fog, but in the hazy mist, Lance clearly saw a figure stabbing at another figure. He could easily tell that it was Hannah attacking Kelly, which made him furious.

"I knew you were up to no good! With Lance here, you won't hurt my companions!" Lance was furious. He picked up a branch about the thickness of his wrist from the ground and charged at Hannah's back. He had been very wary of Hannah from the very beginning.

"Lance, don't be impulsive. Wait a moment and figure out the situation first," Dure said worriedly as he rushed over from behind. Unlike the reckless Lance, he didn't vent his anger immediately. Instead, he quickly looked around, trying to pinpoint the surrounding environment and any favorable factors.

But after a moment of observation, he suddenly realized that things were not as Lance had imagined. He tried to stop Lance, but the latter had already made the move to swing the branch down, and there was no way to stop him. Unfortunately, Hannah was completely unprepared for Lance's sudden appearance.

"You're back? That's great! Come and help me! Ouch, you're in pain! Why did you hit me for no reason?" Hannah wasn't unaware of Lance and Dure, but she assumed they were there to help, so she didn't anticipate the direction Lance was rushing from.

By the time she realized that Lance was clearly going to hit her, the thick branch had already hit her head, causing Hannah to clutch her head and cry out in pain. She glared at Lance and loudly questioned him, completely bewildered by his actions.

"You ask me why I hit you? Don't you even know what you did to Kelly?" Lance originally spoke with righteous indignation. After all, in his view, Kelly had angered him and he had come back to help her, which was enough to show his magnanimity. He felt quite good about himself.

But when he saw Kelly's surprised expression, he realized that the atmosphere was a bit subtle, completely different from the scene he had imagined Kelly to be moved to tears. Moreover, following Dure's pointing, he then noticed that there was something else nearby besides Kelly and Hannah.

"Lance, you idiot, why did you hit Hannah for no reason? I know you hold a grudge against me, and I admit I went a bit too far just now, but this isn't how you retaliate against me!" Kelly felt a tiny bit touched when she saw Lance appear.

Her emotion ended when Lance hit Hannah on the head with a stick. Luckily, Hannah's forehead was hard enough that she wasn't knocked unconscious by the blow. However, it was clear that Hannah was somewhat dizzy compared to her previous energetic self.

"A misunderstanding about revenge? This is definitely a misunderstanding. And who are those eyes over there?" Lance felt the atmosphere was very awkward. Even though he was slow to react, he realized that he seemed to have done something wrong. He also noticed that there were many pairs of eyes sneaking around in the nearby mist.

“It’s a magical beast. Don’t forget this is the Misty Forest, the territory of magical beasts. Don’t you think it’s strange that no magical beasts have appeared since we entered the forest?” Du Lei pointed out the problem directly, even though he still couldn’t see what the magical beast looked like.

Through the thick fog, only outlines could be seen. These outlines were similar in size to Dure and looked a bit like children at first glance. However, it was impossible for children to appear in the misty forest at this time, especially in such a large group. Moreover, their eyes were extremely ferocious.

Dure could even hear a sinister "hee-hee-hee" laugh, which was especially jarring in the darkness and sent chills down one's spine.

“Durey, now that you mention it, it’s true. Our luck isn’t always that good. We’ve run into those damned magical beasts again. But if they’re magical beasts, aren’t they a bit too small?” Lance trusted Durey’s judgment and looked warily at the dangerous creature.

Although he had just done something incredibly foolish, both he, as the perpetrator, and Hannah, who suffered an undeserved misfortune, knew that now was not the time to dwell on trivial matters. They had to put aside their differences and work together to face the current crisis.

"This is not good luck at all. Soon after we entered the forest, I had a feeling that we were being watched. At first, I didn't pay much attention and thought that there were other students nearby, but now it seems that we were indeed being watched by those guys hiding in the fog."

Dure shook his head; he did not agree with Lance's assertion about "luck."

"Ha, you mean we were targeted from the very beginning, Dure? The reason we haven't encountered any magical beasts is because we've become prey without even realizing it? What exactly are these things? Aren't magical beasts supposed to be all very large and powerful?"

As Lance spoke, he gestured with his hands, still holding the branch he had picked up from the ground that had nearly cracked Hannah's head open. It was clear that the creatures hiding in the fog were not in a hurry to attack; they were moving slowly, using the fog as a cover.

“They’re jungle sprites, probably green ones. Only green ones are this cunning. If they were red, they would have charged at us.” Hannah rubbed her head. Although she was still a little dizzy, she had to persevere and survey her surroundings.

"What is a jungle fairy? It sounds like a cute forest fairy or something." Lance was stunned. After hearing Hannah's words, the image of a beautiful fairy immediately appeared in his mind.

130 hiding in the back

Thick fog spread rapidly in the darkness, turning everything into a white expanse. Beyond the fog, however, lay vast stretches of pitch black darkness. The romance of the forest only exists in fairy tales; the real forest is always accompanied by danger and hunting. The key question is: who is the hunter and who is the prey?

At this moment, Du Lei and his group of four undoubtedly became the targets of the hunt. The opponents, hidden in the double veil of fog and darkness, were not in a hurry to hunt their targets. They moved slowly and soon formed an encirclement, trapping Du Lei and his group in it, with no way to escape.

"You idiot, don't you even know what a jungle fairy is? Hey, are you having some weird fantasy, thinking they're some kind of beautiful thing?" Kelly harbored a lot of resentment towards Lance, even setting aside their previous argument.

Right now, Lance's slowness is giving Kelly a headache. Although her father taught her from a young age that there is strength in numbers and that she should unite with her brother, this statement is mostly true. However, Lance's current actions prove that this statement is wrong at times.

"What? I've never heard of jungle fairies. What's so shameful about that? It's shameful to do something wrong but refuse to admit it, to suffer for the sake of saving face. I'm not making any weird assumptions, so don't jump to conclusions." Lance shook his head heavily.

He quickly dismissed the strange fantasies in his mind. In fact, the grotesque outline and the chilling laughter alone were enough to send shivers down one's spine; how could anyone associate this eerie atmosphere with a beautiful fairy?

"If it's a jungle fairy, I've seen it in books. It's a kind of demonized creature unique to the forest, a low-level magical beast. They are similar in size to humans, but even smaller, with very pointed ears, a hunched and crooked body, and are very ugly."

Dure frowned as he described the jungle fairy, the image he conjured in his mind being completely different from Lance's fantasy.

"Hey, Dure, have you ever met him? How do you know so much about him?" Lance expressed his admiration for Dure. Dure was clearly a little younger than him, and according to Dure, this was his first time leaving the snow mountain for such a long trip, yet his knowledge far surpassed his own.

"Because there are illustrations in the book, I only described what the illustrations looked like; I've never actually seen the real jungle sprite." Dure shook his head to explain the situation. He kept his eyes fixed on everything that was happening in the mist, and it was clear that their opponent was a very intelligent creature.

"Durey, your description is similar to that of the jungle fairy. To be precise, there are four types of jungle fairies. The main difference is in their color. The lowest level, or low-level, is the green jungle fairy, then the mid-level is the yellow jungle fairy, and then the high-level is the red jungle fairy."

Although Kelly was very angry with Lance, she had a good impression of Dure and patiently explained things to him even in the current situation.

"These are only three types; what about higher-level ones?" Lance asked curiously.

“Above the high-rank are the steel-rank black jungle fairies, which are already a very rare species. I’ve only heard about them, I’ve never seen one in person. By the way, Hannah, you just said they are green jungle fairies.” Kelly was knowledgeable and knew more about them than Dure.

"Yes, it's green. There are only three kinds of jungle fairies in the Misty Forest: green, yellow, and red. There used to be a black one, but it died two years ago." Hannah rubbed her neck, finally catching her breath after a short rest.

"It's unbelievable that black jungle fairies exist in such a small misty forest." Kelly was taken aback. She had always thought that black jungle fairies were legendary creatures, but she never expected that they actually existed. Her impression of the misty forest continued to improve.

“Now is not the time to discuss the black jungle fairies, but to deal with the green ones right now. Although the green jungle fairies are also a type of magical beast, even among magical beasts there are different levels and strengths, so they shouldn’t be too difficult to deal with.” Du Lei’s eyes swept around.

The sinister laughter grew clearer and more frequent, putting pressure on one's nerves and forcing one to be on high alert.

"Hey Dure, do you mean we're going to confront these jungle goblins head-on? Isn't that a bit too reckless?" Lance was startled by Dure's words and asked him again to make sure he wasn't joking.

“You’ve noticed, haven’t you? They’ve completely surrounded us. Moreover, they’ve been active in the Misty Forest for a long time and are familiar with the environment. They can also fight in the dense fog. From this point of view, we are at a disadvantage,” Du Lei paused here.

"Dure, do you mean we have no chance of winning? Damn it, I didn't expect to run into something like this. Now we're in trouble." Lance clenched his fists, cold sweat beading on his forehead. No matter how much courage he possessed that far surpassed that of ordinary people, he was still just a teenager who hadn't experienced many situations.

"No, quite the opposite. Hannah was right. If they were red jungle sprites, they would have attacked from the front by now. The fact that they went to such lengths to surround us means that they don't have a complete grasp on us, so we still have a great chance."

Dure shook his head, offering his own judgment as he observed the jungle sprites' actions.

"What's wrong, Lance? You're a grown man, are you scared? I think I saw your hands shaking." Kelly glanced at Lance and said with a hint of mockery. She and Lance were like enemies who couldn't stand each other. Whenever the two of them opened their mouths, they were bound to argue.

"Damn it, who are you calling scared? How could I, Lance, be afraid of a few mere magical beasts? You're getting excited already? Excited? I never thought I'd be facing the Demon Hand before even officially enrolling at Maple Leaf Academy! This is a scene I've always dreamed of, it's amazing!"

Lance turned around and glared at Kelly. After shaking his head heavily, he held the branch horizontally, took a step back, and assumed an attacking stance. In that instant, he exuded astonishing power.

"Well, you do look quite convincing. But whether you're just bluffing or actually have the skills, I'll have to wait and see. But if you're really scared, I don't mind letting you hide behind me," Kelly continued teasingly.

"You're the one who should be hiding, woman," Lance retorted sharply.

"Alright, you two keep an eye on what's behind you. Be careful, they're coming!" Du Lei shouted a warning.

At this moment, the jungle fairies, who had been gathering their strength in the mist for a long time, suddenly rushed over, and more than a dozen of them launched an attack at the same time.

131. To look at someone with new eyes

Dure is no stranger to magical beasts. When he was young, he hunted near the hot spring village and often went into the snow mountain alone, staying for a week at a time. Back then, he could survive with just a dagger and a modified crossbow. Not long ago, he even took down several demonized gorillas.

If time were to move further back, when he left Hot Spring Village and took the train from Snow Eagle Town to Maple City, the train was attacked by snow wolves while passing through the Great Snowfield. There were hundreds of real magical beasts. At that time, he fought alongside Matthew and others and personally killed several snow wolves.

For those who were being attacked by jungle fairies who were even lower in level than snow wolves and demonized gorillas, it was a trivial matter. His judgment was correct; the jungle fairies chose to encircle them because they didn't have much of a chance of winning in a direct attack.

As they surrounded them, Dure and his companions exchanged glances and prepared to defend themselves. When the first jungle sprite broke through the mist and swung its scimitar, Lance, who was already in a defensive stance, raised the branch in his hand to resist, and the scimitar made a dull sound as it slashed.

"Don't think you can defeat me like this. I came all the way to Maple Leaf Academy, not to be intimidated by small fry like you. If I were defeated by you, I would lose face. And there's something even more important." Lance originally thought the tree branch would be cut in half by the scimitar.

He hadn't expected the branch he picked up to withstand the sharp knife; he only hoped it could block the first blow and deflect some of the force, allowing him to get closer. However, the branch's resilience exceeded his expectations, and it didn't break even when it clashed head-on with the curved blade.

If you look closely, you'll find that the branches are completely still, without leaving even the slightest mark. Of course, Lance's attention isn't on that at the moment; all his attention is focused on fighting the jungle goblin. If he gets distracted and the goblin finds an opportunity, he'll be doomed.

"You ugly creatures have completely shattered the beautiful image of fairies in my mind. My innocent boyish dream was shattered the moment I saw you. God, which bastard gave you such names? How can someone so ugly be called a fairy?"

Lance was furious. In his mind, fairies had always been pure and lovely. When he learned the word "jungle fairy" from Hannah, he thought he would have a wonderful encounter like in a fairy tale. But the reality not only proved that he was overthinking it, but was also extremely cruel.

"What nonsense are you spouting? Do you think we're on a leisurely stroll? I advise you to be fully focused. There are too many of these jungle monsters. If we don't defeat them, we'll die in the forest!" Kelly shouted at Lance, reminding him to concentrate.

“Kelly, you’re taking this too seriously. These green jungle sprites are easy to deal with. Don’t be fooled by their fierce appearance; one hit with a stick like this will bring them down.” Hannah said, swinging a wooden stick and smashing it heavily on her opponent’s head as it was about to strike her.

She looked like a thin girl, but with that one blow, the fierce jungle sprite didn't even have time to groan before collapsing to the ground. This clean and efficient strike left Kelly speechless; it was much more brutal than the blow Lance had given her earlier.

"Hannah, what is this?" Kelly had always thought Hannah was a weak person, but the spirit she was showing now was something that even most boys couldn't match.

"Be careful behind you. These jungle fairies may not be strong in combat, but they are cunning and treacherous, much smarter than those powerful magical beasts. If you're not careful, you could suffer a great loss." In the moment Kelly was stunned and lost in thought, jungle fairies rushed towards her from behind.

The latter brandished his scimitar, about to slash at her shoulder, but fortunately, Dure reacted quickly and pulled the trigger. The crossbow bolt grazed Kelly's cheek and accurately struck the jungle goblin in the head, causing it to fall to the ground. Kelly stared blankly at the scimitar lying on the ground, not yet recovered.

"What? I thought it was going to be a tough battle, but I took care of them in no time. They were all so fierce just now, like they were going to cause some big trouble, but now they've all slunk away. Durei, look how scared they are. Can you call them magical beasts with this kind of behavior?"

Lance rubbed his fists, thoroughly enjoying the feeling of each punch landing on his skin. Several jungle goblins beside him had already been beaten to the ground. Although a dozen or so jungle goblins were still standing there wielding their scimitars, it was clear that they had lost their previous ferocity.

Their formation was chaotic; they looked at each other in bewilderment, panicked and anxious, glancing around nervously. If you looked closely, you would see that they were trembling.

"If all magical beasts were as ferocious as the dragons of legend, then no matter how much humanity struggled and resisted, they would have been wiped off the world long ago. Just as there are strong and weak humans, there are also differences in levels among magical beasts. I think that's a reasonable explanation."

Dure put down his crossbow and noticed the panicked look on the jungle goblins ahead, but he wasn't as optimistic as Lance.

"Hmm, this smells really not delicious at all." Just then, Hannah squinted and twitched her nose slightly.

"Durey, thank you so much just now. If it weren't for you, I might have been hit. But how come these jungle monsters can use weapons?" Kelly recalled the scene just now with lingering fear. If Durey hadn't reacted quickly enough, she would definitely be injured and lying on the ground by now.

She picked up a scimitar left behind by a jungle fairy from the ground, frowning. In her memory, most magical beasts fought with their bare hands, relying on their claws and tough fur. She rarely heard of magical beasts using tools.

"They're similar in size to humans, and their fingers are separate, so it's not surprising they use tools. Even monkeys know to pick up stones and throw them at people. These scimitars were probably stolen from the blacksmith's shop. Dure, and Hannah, what's wrong with you two?"

Lance gave a vague guess. Even if the jungle goblins could use tools, he couldn't beat them, so he didn't take it too seriously. What concerned him more were the expressions of Dure and Hannah, as he originally had a great prejudice against Hannah.

However, firstly, he had hit Hannah on the head with a stick earlier, so he felt somewhat guilty; secondly, Hannah was a fierce fighter, and her imposing presence made Lance look at her with new respect.