She was the barefooted girl from before. Her appearance was very eye-catching; that there was no way Zephyr could forget about her. Her eyes were as clear as diamonds. She even had beautiful hands as those hands had a star crystal that shot towards the Sword Dragon Beast. Finally, under their joint attacks, the beast was defeated.

“Phew, it’s finally down!” Everyone, except for the girl and the strongest man, exhaled deeply. Their faces were filled with happiness.

“Erin, you’re much stronger than I expected,” said the strongest man amongst them all. He spoke to her with a smile on his face. He did not bother disguising the burning desire in his eyes.

Her name was Erin Rhodes and though only eighteen years old, her beauty was already renowned throughout the whole kingdom. Whoever that encountered her was never able to forget such stunning features.

“You’re not so bad yourself,” Erin replied politely. There were no emotions at all in her words.

The other three apprentices started praising him too. “Clay, you’ve improved again! I don’t expect any less from a genius who managed to shoot out ten light beams. At this rate, you’ll definitely reach an Agility of level three soon.”

“Yes, your innate talent is extraordinary. You’ll catch up to Leonard Briggs in no time.”

His face darkened at the mention of Leonard’s name.

Suddenly, they heard a hearty laugh, and ten or so men appeared. The leader of the group was an energetic, handsome, and agile man who carried himself like a king. He walked with a sword on his back.

He was holding a beast pearl in his hand which gave off a strong aura. It was obvious that the pearl had come from a high-tier beast. Speak of the devil! Leonard had graced them with his presence.

“Greetings, Leonard,” said the three apprentices respectfully. Clay Lee, did the same as well, but from the way his eyes turned cloudy, one could easily tell that his respect was surfaced leveled.

Zephyr frowned when he observed this turn of the events from his hiding place. He had heard Vert talk about Leonard before, he who was the abominable genius from Feather Peak. He had already reached Agility of level five and was also the role model for many people. The name of the sword skill he was training was named ‘Flying Feather Sword Skill’ and was a graded-skill. Therefore, its power was really terrifying.

Leonard ignored their greetings. He only looked at Erin with a smile on his face. “Erin, this is a pearl from the tier-four beast I just killed. Here, take it.” He then extended the pearl to her.

When they heard the pearl belonged to a tier-four beast, their blood ran cold. “Tier-four beast? That’s really something, Leonard. It took the effort of all five of us to take down a tier-three beast.”

The apprentices that followed Leonard all smiled cockily. “It’s not really that surprising. Leonard’s sword skill can be said to have attained the god-level. Each strike from his sword is a strike from heaven itself. We didn’t even need to assist him,” said one of the apprentices.

The apprentice was acting as a wingman to Leonard. He was hoping that by putting in a good word for Leonard, Erin would gain a more favorable attitude towards the strong man. If Erin was any other average girl, she would have been deeply moved by Leonard’s gesture. After all, he possessed many good qualities — good looks, strength, and boldness.

However, she remained unmoved as she glanced at the pearl as she spoke, “Thanks but no thanks.” Then she turned her gaze in a particular direction as something flashed by.

“Show yourself!”

Sensing himself to be exposed, Zephyr felt embarrassed. He never expected Erin to have such a keen sense. He only slightly moved and was instantly found by her.

Leonard’s expression had turned dark from the rejection. How dare she reject him when he was famous for giving out eleven light beams at the talent test. No matter what, he would one day make her his. It was only natural for a talent like him to be paired with a beautiful girl like her. He could not understand why Erin had no interest in him. The fact that someone had been watching all this from afar gave him an excuse to vent his anger towards to.

“You better show yourself now!” he shouted as he unsheathed his sword.