There was no time for looting the beasts after they were killed, for all that little remained of them after Team 0 was done.

It was something James had read online and that Miss Walker had made sure to impress upon them. As they grew stronger, so too would their attacks, meaning that getting a clean kill would be rarer.

Monster bodies were valuable in almost every industry and would be bought at high prices. Taking back one that wasn't mangled was much more complicated than one would think. Still, their priority today wasn't earning money.

I doubt anyone's going to try and steal our kills anyway. With how many Grasstalkers are out here, there is plenty for all.

James led the way forward, keeping an eye on their surroundings. Following the path the group of monsters left behind was easy, but something about the forest didn't sit right with him.

The deeper they went, the more James noticed a peculiar pattern to the mana fluctuations. It was not the random ebb and flow one might expect in a natural setting; instead, it had rhythm and structure, suggesting a deliberate manipulation.

Initially, James had thought they might simply be encountering pockets of mana stones or natural deposits that could occasionally produce similar effects. However, the complexity and subtlety of what he was sensing now went far beyond such crude formations.

It reminded him of something he had sensed long ago, though what the Golden Sun had done was a brute-force exercise in comparison to this. That was a way to push more mana than was normal for a place to contain. Here, on the other hand, the mana flowed like streams of water, intertwining and weaving through the forest with purpose and precision. It was as if the entire area was a canvas, and some unseen artist was painting with broad strokes of arcane energy.

I wouldn't say it's an active trap. The feel of it is too broad. Whatever is going on, it's not meant to affect this place directly. The best analogy is that this place acts like a nail, keeping a shelf on the wall. There is a lot of weight on a small surface, and it's essential for the stability of the whole, but it's not meant to be seen. Ugh, I'm getting lost. This is the problem with always being able to read people's minds. It's made me used to having immediate answers.

James tried to map out the flows, tracing them back to their sources. He could feel how they converged in areas, creating nodes of intense power.

As they pressed forward, James's senses finally picked up the distinct presence of Grasstalkers, who seemed to have halted their march. Pausing, he signaled for the team to stop and crouch behind a particularly dense thicket of underbrush. He could extend his senses from here without exposing them to immediate danger.

Carefully, he probed the area. Eidetic Echo painted a vivid picture: about twenty Grasstalkers roamed through a clearing ahead, their forms ghostly outlines in his psychic perception. While none bore the distinct, terrifying aura of an Alpha, several were of the larger variant they had already fought.

The clearing itself was a nexus of those strange mana flows, the energy converging in a swirling vortex that seemed to pulse. James watched, fascinated, as the creatures moved in what appeared to be a ritualistic pattern, their paths aligning with the flows of energy.

The environment around the clearing was dense with old growth, making it difficult to move quickly or quietly. Massive roots knotted the ground, and thick vines hung from the high branches, creating a natural barrier that added to the defensiveness of the location. The air here was cooler, the usual sounds of life eerily absent, as if even the forest creatures avoided this place.

"There is something weird going on here. The Grasstalkers are herding the humans without any hunger… Wait, there is someone else in there." James murmured, focusing.

His senses fixed on the central figure in the clearing as he peered through the foliage. There, surrounded by the Grasstalkers, was a being unlike any he had encountered before. The creature was sitting cross-legged on the ground, its body a fusion of human and feline features. The human half was that of a beautiful woman, while its feline side was sleek, powerful, and covered in a fine, dark fur that shimmered under the intermittent rays of light piercing the canopy.

It was completely different than the chimeras he had encountered before. Firstly, it seemed perfectly conscious and not drowning in a haze of pain like the ones he had encountered in the laboratory dungeon. Secondly, the animalistic features were smoothly integrated. If James couldn't sense how a minuscule, intricate patchwork of mana threads kept its body together, he wouldn't have suspected it to be an artificial chimera.

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The Grasstalkers seemed to orbit around this chimera, their movements deferential, almost reverential. James could see no bonds or chains in their minds forcing their allegiance; it was clear they were not coerced. Rather, they appeared to be willingly subservient, participating in whatever arcane ritual the chimera was conducting.

The chimera's hands - large paws with human-like deftness - moved with deliberate, fluid motions, drawing sigils in the air that glowed briefly with a radiant light before fading. The ground around it was etched with similar markings, creating a complex pattern that pulsed in sync with the mana flows James had sensed.

"It's manipulating the mana directly," He noted, his brow furrowing as he tried to make sense of the scene. "This isn't just a gathering spot; it's a ritual. But what are they trying to do?"

Ezekiel leaned in closer, his eyes scanning the clearing with a sharp gaze. "Whatever it is, it's big. Look at how the energy flows converge on this spot. I think this might not even be the whole thing."

“The civs don’t look worried at all. I’ll eat my shield if they aren’t drugged to the gills.” Daniel added with concern.

True enough, scattered around the perimeter of the clearing were several humans, each standing aimlessly, their eyes vacant and unseeing. They were alive but unresponsive as if their minds were somewhere far away. The Grasstalkers occasionally glanced at them but made no move to harm them. They were clearly part of the ritual, perhaps as conduits or offerings.

Maria clenched her fists, her expression hardening. "We can't let this go any longer. We have to do something."

James nodded, his mind racing as he weighed their options. "We'll need to disrupt the ritual, but carefully. We don't know what might happen if we barge in there. It could harm the hostages. And that chimera is different. It's not just some mindless beast. We need to understand what we're dealing with before we make our move."

James observed the chimera more closely, noting the precision with which it manipulated the mana flows. The energy didn't just respond to it; it seemed to anticipate its desires, weaving around the clearing in intricate patterns that resonated with the environment and the ritual symbols.

"It's using advanced mana manipulation, way beyond anything I’ve seen before," James explained, his voice low. "Whoever created it... they're leagues above the mad scientist from the lab dungeon. I can’t even begin to understand what the ritual is for.”

"So we have a very dangerous chimera who's doing who knows what with the mana in the area. What about those Grasstalkers?" Daniel asked, surreptitiously observing the great beasts move.

"As I said, not as strong as the Alpha, but taking them all on at once is not an option. They could easily kill the hostages before we even got through half of them, and that's without the chimera interfering. I can feel a lot of mana coming from it, and while it seems focused on the ritual, and interrupting it at this point would lead to a significant backlash, I still don't know if we could take it." James replied.

"Does that mean it's B-rank?" Lauren asked.

"Yeah, I think it might be. The mana concentration is not making it easy to understand, but it's almost as strong as the Alpha. And this time, we don't have the terrain prepared for an ambush." He answered.

Lauren groaned. While they had successfully killed the Alpha, it couldn't be easily repeated despite the boost they got from that victory. Considering the sheer amount of enemies and the helpless hostages, this was an impossible mission.

But there was no help coming for them. Command still wasn't answering their calls; it would take too long to get there even if they did.

"The problem is that we cannot allow it to complete the ritual, and by the feel of it, it might get there within half an hour. Less if it's as good as I think it is." James commented, earning grim looks.

"So we have a few minutes to scout more and plan an attack, but nowhere enough to get help." Daniel summarized. "James, we need as much info as possible. Try to understand what the chimera's doing and how it could react if we attack."

"It's what I’m already doing," James replied, sweat beading his forehead.

Sensing had always been an instinctual thing for him. Ever since he awakened, he had been able to perceive things outside of himself. He had never needed to exert himself beyond what his natural skill allowed.

Oh, James had trained hard. But he was a natural at it. And this was coming back to haunt him.

The chaotic weave of so much mana was muddling his senses, and picking out where the chimera ended and the ritual began was more difficult than he would like to admit.

Still, James persevered. If there was something he was good at, it was being stubborn.

Slowly, over the next ten minutes, James took note of the thousands of mana threads that covered the clearing. He noticed how dozens each covered the humans, keeping them in place. That there was nothing actively rendering them dull, which meant that they had imbibed some substance.

He saw how the chimera, who he could now clearly see was a female, directed the flows with great experience, showing how this wasn't her first rodeo. And that whatever she was doing would affect a much larger area than just the forest. In fact, James suspected that what was happening here was only a tiny part of a much larger whole.

Focusing more, James noted the subtle signs of strain on the chimera's features. There was a tightness around her eyes and a slight tremor in her hands as she maintained the flow of the spell. Clearly, she was exerting herself significantly, maintaining a spell of enormous complexity and power.

"The longer we wait, the more integrated the spell becomes. If we're going to act, it should be soon," James concluded, pulling back to rejoin his team.

Everyone accepted the conclusion. Ezekiel, the most experienced with rituals, decreed that even if they attacked the chimera, the magic in the air wouldn't explode on them.

The last thing holding them back was the hostages. With so many humans standing in the middle of the clearing, any attack they might direct at the chimera would also hit them, leading to unacceptable losses of life.

"I'll take care of them. It means I won't be able to participate in the attack, but I should be able to keep them safe," Daniel eventually said.

James knew his barrier magic had advanced significantly, but was it enough to protect dozens of individuals at once? It felt like a stretch.

Still, there wasn't anything they could do about it. Allowing the ritual to be completed was out of the question, as the backlash would be their greatest weapon against the chimera.

The whole plan hinged on it taking her out of the fight for a while.

"Alright, then we just need to kill twenty Grasstalkers," James said in a deliberately light tone, knowing that the fight ahead would be grueling.