The humidity in Mistvale didn't just cling; it weighed. Every breath Shino took felt like swallowing damp wool. As they stepped onto the rickety wooden pier that led into the heart of the paddies, the fog swallowed the village behind them, leaving only the emerald glow of the marsh and the unsettling, rhythmic thrum of the unseen singers.100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZtYBxxu7ZX
100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxrDisU8ORW
"This is repulsive," Elsa muttered. She was forced to lead her white mare by the bridle, her polished silver greaves sinking into the peat with every step. "My boots are ruined, and I can't see five feet in front of my blade."100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvLJH1U2jBz
100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡw7eYBFveWx
"Focus on your ears, Elsa," Kazuto advised, his hand resting on his broadsword. "The mist diffuses light, but sound travels better in the damp. Shino, what are the readings?"100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVbNqbdvu8C
100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAcPftxmWfG
The First Ambush100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8qlvVmx4OD
100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSf2Llj91Qz
Shino didn't answer immediately. Her glasses were fogging up, so she pushed them to her forehead, letting her [Analytical Eye] do the work. The world turned into a thermal map. She saw the heat signatures of dragonflies, the cold flow of the water—and then, four massive, pulsating blobs of frigid blue mana lurking just beneath the lily pads.100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1B9oLZm0ZB
100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0KkQtefJ6R
"Left! High!" Shino barked.100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡK0nx2n1iDl
100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6beYiJgsj8
Kwah-RACK!100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡciWup4UsFv
100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ07x6xUmWlE
The water exploded. A Giant Marsh Frog, the size of a carriage and mottled with toxic purple spots, launched itself into the air. Its tongue, a wet, muscular whip tipped with a serrated pad, lashed out toward Elsa’s throat.100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2UIGawW17A
100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuf42HAyuRi
The Failure of Steel100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡR7MZMbK1X7
100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjVzG23MArR
"Valerius Strike: Gale!" Elsa reacted with the speed of a veteran. Her rapier blurred, a spiral of wind mana concentrating at the tip of her blade. She lunged, aiming for the beast’s soft underbelly as it soared over her.100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡp8g2gCZb0z
100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaKNN6if7Uz
The blade hit—and then it slid.100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0EAqoNmtpQ
100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRx17dcxFY5
Instead of piercing the hide, the rapier skidded off the frog's skin as if it had hit a greased mirror. Elsa’s momentum carried her forward, and she stumbled into the knee-deep muck, her weapon splashing uselessly into the water.100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFkhnRQHAF7
100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbH2PtzPy8k
"It has a [Reflective Mucus]!" Shino shouted, her tail fluffing up in alarm. "It’s not just slippery, Elsa—it’s a non-Newtonian fluid! The harder you hit it, the more it hardens into a shell!"100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡs4cR49N0nD
100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVUuBms2nMC
Two more frogs surfaced, their throats ballooning out with a sickening, wet sound. They weren't croaking; they were vibrating, creating a sonic frequency that made Shino’s ears ring with a sharp, piercing pain.100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡq2XTtbR5OY
100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0TS1LuFf84
The Chemical Solution100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4m0s1ZLLCX
100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhvcsPgfmuD
Kazuto stepped in, swinging his broadsword in a wide arc to keep the beasts back, but even his heavy blade bounced off their backs with a dull thud. The frogs were closing in, their tongues darting out like harpoons.100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOY4jRtkDK0
100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHV44M4xy9w
"Shino! Logic! Now!" Kazuto roared, parrying a wet lash that nearly took his helmet off.100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡagg2w0a9JF
100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFC3X3sUl5k
Shino dropped to one knee, ignoring the mud staining her scholar’s robes. She reached into her pack and pulled out a vial of Concentrated Citric Essence—a byproduct of her alchemy research—and a handful of Crystalline Salt.100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBdRfs9GtRv
100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMSp9RYnGps
"In my world, we call this a 'Surfactant'!" Shino yelled.100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeRnKTI3VYe
100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxGjcu5AUTq
She didn't throw the vials at the frogs. She threw them into the water around them. Then, she snapped her fingers, igniting a tiny, precise spark of Fire mana.100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnsCSEtSltb
100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHK8upkZZ4r
[Safety Protocol: Phase 3 — Chemical Dissolution]100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBD7oeEb3t9
100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaYdMtiajGF
The spark didn't cause an explosion. Instead, it heated the water just enough to catalyze the reaction. The citric acid and salt hit the frogs' mucus, and the "Reflective" properties shattered. The thick, shimmering slime turned into a watery, bubbling froth, sliding off the frogs’ skin and leaving their soft, vulnerable hides exposed to the air.100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWo7Y7zJS5H
100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡikK0kXCywp
The Opening100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡu3NEM8i4W3
100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnLOh8QXFHZ
The frogs let out a high-pitched, pathetic shriek as their protection vanished. They looked suddenly small and fragile without their armor.100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeHraAaerVV
100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡb0EVkKZGmc
"Now, Elsa! While the pH is low!" Shino commanded.100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbuDU9lqWGV
100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡe8u6kGzHM7
Elsa didn't hesitate. She surged up from the mud, her pride stinging more than her arm. She didn't use a heavy strike this time; she used a precise, light-infused prick. The rapier sank into the frog’s shoulder like a needle into silk.100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡp0SY4ZoyLi
100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGGmv8DMwz5
Within seconds, the three smaller frogs scrambled back into the deep water, terrified by the loss of their "Invincible" skin.100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8gVQdyUXrH
100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFiMumjyCDL
The Quiet Aftermath100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡR1EpMvXxrj
100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡS80XmXRJsI
Silence returned to the marsh, save for the heavy breathing of the trio. Elsa stood in the muck, her golden armor covered in green slime and brown peat. She looked at her rapier, then at Shino, who was calmly wiping a splash of mud off her glasses.100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7H6yS1M5bC
100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbFL5YjQvKY
"You... you used fruit juice," Elsa said, her voice trembling with a mix of disbelief and exhaustion. "I used the secret technique of my house, and you used a bottle of lemon extract."100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmCYkwEIIVy
100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡR0PfnN74RB
"I used Chemistry, Elsa," Shino replied, her ears twitching as she checked the horizon. "The frogs aren't the problem. They're just the symptom. Look at the water."100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqpVCoPKxW9
100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDZpANMuQKg
Shino pointed to where the frogs had surfaced. The water was turning a faint, sickly violet—the same color as Oberis’s new eyes.100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmHkqv8exh4
100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3CBgYYMBB7
"Something is poisoning the bog from the center," Shino whispered. "And it’s much bigger than a frog."100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXvSbnOOphM
100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLw3OWEkPeu
1234 copyright protection96ＰＥＮＡＮＡivjaDLLeIb 尼100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFIH0TwwikU