Chapter 30: Another Confrontation

Seeing so many people, including skilled fighters, Rod and the others inwardly groaned. Acting now was out of the question—there was no chance at all. Under such circumstances, they could only endure. There would only be one chance, and if they failed this time, there would be no more. So, they couldn’t rush things!
As a few men carried them outside, under strict surveillance and control, the group was quickly taken outside the prison. After passing through a narrow path, they arrived on an open area.
“Jerome, that bastard still dares to show up!” Just as Rod was looking around in confusion, he heard Sambik growling furiously beside him.
This remark immediately caught everyone’s attention, and they turned to look. Sambik’s expression darkened instantly, and Jim’s was not much better. Rod, on the other hand, had a complex look on his face. Indeed, wasn’t Jerome also there? He stood in the far corner, with several of his former subordinates behind him.
“Jerome, our boss must have been blind—you bastard! I’ll tear you apart!” Struggling hard to break free from the guards behind him, Sambik wanted to pounce on Jerome and kill him.
“Boss…!” Slowly walking over to Rod and the others, Jerome paused, ignoring Sambik’s furious shouts. After hesitating for a moment, he called out to Rod.
“Damn it, Jerome! I’ll cripple you!”
“Sambik!” With a low growl, Rod pulled back Sambik, who was about to pounce, and also stopped Camby from acting rashly. Rod’s expression turned icy.
Turning to Rod in confusion, Sambik said, “Boss… let me go! I must kill this traitor today!”
“Boss…” Seeing Rod, Jerome lowered his head in shame.
“Damn it! You still have the nerve to call me boss! Die!” Struggling desperately to break free from Rod’s hold, Sambik roared.
“Boss, wait! That female mage will fight you—use this for protection! I’m trying to find a way to save you. Don’t worry!” Then, Jerome grabbed Rod’s hair, leaned in during the chaos, and whispered something.
Rod was stunned. Glancing at what he held, he saw it was a dagger. He quickly tucked it into his chest. Rod nodded at Jerome, signaling he understood.

As soon as he finished speaking, Jerome quickly kicked Rod and then jumped to the side, shouting, “Hmph, Knight Rod, I’ve had enough of you! From now on, we’re done for good. Damn it, I don’t want to suffer with you anymore!”
Stepping out of the chaotic battle zone, Jerome gave Rod a meaningful last glance.
“Jerome, I’ll remember you too, huh. Wait for it!” Rod nodded silently and cast a subtle look of gratitude, matching Jerome’s shout.
“Hehe, Jerome, it’s already over? Well, fine. Don’t blame me if I don’t give you a chance to show off!” Seeing Jerome and his men leave quickly, Roger froze for a moment before sneering.
“Hmph, you dare show up again? You even broke my magic. Today, I’ll show you what it means for a mage’s authority to be inviolable! This time, I’ll teach these reckless brats a lesson!” At that moment, the female mage snorted coldly and stepped forward, speaking indifferently, still looking as she had before, but with more hatred in her voice, holding a magic staff in her hand! She had been furious these past few days—those ruffians’ words had kept her awake at night; she had to take revenge!
“Boss, be careful! He’s probably at least an advanced mage. Watch out for his quick attacks with basic magic!”
Walking up to Rod and cautiously watching the female mage, Jim whispered. The water binding spell from last time was still fresh in his memory. Although she was considered the weakest advanced water mage, it seemed easy for her to deal with them, especially thanks to her unique ability as an advanced mage—casting basic spells just by pressing seals without reciting spells.
Narrowing his eyes at the female mage pointing at him with her magic staff, Rod nodded to show he understood.
“Hmph, so what if you’re an advanced mage? Today, I’ll take you down!” At that moment, Rod muttered to himself, a cold smirk appearing on his lips.
“Don’t underestimate her! Maybe we should be glad she doesn’t seem to be a grand mage yet—otherwise, we’d be in trouble!” Seeing Rod’s expression, Jim, who had gone through so much, could easily guess what he was thinking. After sighing, he let out a breath and said.
Indeed, water mages were known as the weakest type of mages because they had almost no combat ability even at the advanced stage, and even then, their combat skills were pitifully weak.

However, these are merely superficial phenomena. Once they reach the level of archmages, they will undergo a 180-degree transformation—or even a magnificent one. This is because water mages at this level experience a complete transformation, a qualitative change! They gain a new ability: to turn water into ice, allowing them to embark on the practice of ice magic, making their offensive power comparable to that of mages of any other element! Not only that, but archmages can also cast basic and intermediate spells instantly, combined with the gentleness of water magic and the merciless coldness of ice magic—Jem didn’t dare to imagine further. This female mage clearly couldn’t use ice magic yet; otherwise, even if they all worked together, they wouldn’t stand a chance. This was the most comforting thing at the moment, at least that’s what Jem thought. Nodding with a serious expression, the fleeting carefreeness vanished, and Rod was now in combat mode. He watched the female mage cautiously, frowning. It was her—he remembered clearly it was her. If not for her, would he have been defeated so miserably that day? He still remembered the feelings from that day vividly! A surge of anger built within him as he glared coldly at the woman. “Hmph, then let’s see. I’ll teach you a lesson, you ignorant little girl!” “Don’t give her a chance!” Though he had never seen a pig, Rod knew that when fighting mages, speed was key. One had to strike quickly before they could cast their spells, otherwise it would be troublesome once they were ready. After all, in close combat, mages had no real resistance—they were practically useless! The reason they were so popular and respected was mainly due to the status given to mages on the continent, the noble titles bestowed upon them by the empire, and their strategic importance within it. Indeed, a powerful mage could greatly enhance an army’s strength. Facing this female mage, Rod felt no tension at all. His mind was filled with calmness and his own plans. His thoughts raced as he figured out how to do things as well as possible. Channeling his combat energy to its peak, Rod shouted at the others, “Spread out! I want to see what she can do!”

As his words faded, the four of them immediately scattered and rushed toward the female mage in four different directions. The female mage wasn’t idle either; her expression remained calm as she brought her hands together, forming a circle with the palm of her left hand while pointing with her right hand. Instantly, water elements around her gathered rapidly toward her hands, gradually taking shape. There was no time to think much—Rod and the others pushed their speed to the limit as they charged at the female mage. They had to stop her from casting the spell before it could be unleashed. However, in just a short while, the female mage suddenly shouted, “Shoot!” With that word, the water elements in her hands quickly solidified into arrows that were shot at Rod! Without stopping, she used the same method to shoot three more water arrows at Judic, Kambi, and Sambik. Although they were arrows made of water, none of them dared to take them lightly and scattered in all directions to dodge them. What followed seemed like a solo performance by the female mage—she continuously formed seals and shot water arrows at them, leaving the others scrambling to avoid them in disarray. Watching the scene, Roger sitting above smirked with excitement, savoring the sight of the fleeing figures below as he quietly enjoyed the performance. After a moment, he subtly turned his head to glance at one of his guards, narrowing his eyes as if asking something. Seeing Roger’s gaze, the guard nodded and made a gesture with his hand. Upon seeing that gesture and the guard’s expression, Roger smirked wickedly at the people on the field. He didn’t know how many water arrows he had shot, but they had driven the others into a chaotic state. After much fleeing, Rod and the others were forced to gather in one place. Seeing this, the female mage’s lips curved slightly beneath her veil as she smiled, then continued without pause, forming another seal. This time, she brought her hands together inward, just like before, while beginning to chant a complicated spell: “Water, take shape! Transform into illusions! Great Goddess of Elements, grant me supreme power to bind these enemies—Water Binding Spell!”

The situation was almost identical; history seemed to repeat itself at this moment. As the spell was recited, water elements quickly gathered around the female mage, forming a thin layer of water wall in an instant.
“Dodge! This won’t work!” Seeing this, Rod glared fiercely at the female mage and shouted loudly.
The female mage’s intentions were all too obvious—how could he not see? She was using her status as a high-level mage to cast a simple spell instantly, forcing them all to gather in one place, then taking advantage of the situation to cast an encircling spell and trap them like fish in a jar.
“Don’t think you can get away with this!” With a roar, Rod kicked hard and leaped to the side!
“Water Binding Spell! Go!” At the exact moment Rod jumped away, the female mage’s spell was also ready, and it was cast immediately toward their location.
In an instant, the water curtain spread like a giant net, covering the area where Rod and the others were.
“Run!” With a loud shout, Rod used all his strength to leap further away. As for Jim and the others, they certainly wouldn’t tolerate being trapped by this spell—they had suffered enough from it before.
“Damn it!” Curses rang out one after another. Soon, Jim’s complaints were heard first, followed by the roars of Sambik and Kambi.
Unfortunately, they still hadn’t timed it right; their speed wasn’t fast enough, and they were regretfully trapped by that damned spell.
“Huff… huff…” After taking a few deep breaths and wiping the cold sweat from his forehead, he heaved a sigh of relief seeing the spell falling behind him. But soon, upon seeing Jim and the others, he began to complain.
“Don’t move! Damn it, watch me deal with this bitch! If you get caught by me, I’ll spank you!” Seeing Sambik and Kambi trying to force their way through, Rod shouted urgently. He knew all too well the power of that spell—those two would never be able to get out and would only suffer more injuries. Then, turning to look at the annoying female mage, Rod growled in displeasure.
Calm down. The situation immediately settled down. Everyone stared at Rod in shock, unable to believe he still dared say such things at this moment! Especially Roger and that Silver Warrior, whose expressions changed constantly as they pondered something.

“You… shameless wretch, scoundrel!” No one saw it, but right after Rod finished speaking, the female mage froze for a moment before turning red in the face and shouting angrily. She quickly formed hand seals again, muttering to herself as if reciting some spell, ready to confront Rod. Clearly, her target this time was definitely Rod; she had even given up controlling the magic that surrounded Jim and the other two, leaving them to fend for themselves in the next minute.