'Lord Eos, do you know what they injected us with?' Maintaining his composure despite the apparent dire situation, Adonis consulted the deity.

As he did so, the teenager glanced around at his teammates, who were all ensnared by vines and fast asleep.

{It seems it is a strange combination of Arbor Abomination toxin and Pink Rank Viper venom.}

'That'd be pretty potent, they won't wake up for quite a while unless they experience extreme pain or shock.'

'Then why aren't I asleep?' Curiously, Adonis inquired, his gaze fixated on the two syringes lying at Jerald's feet, who were also trapped by the vines.

{Poison and venom don't affect you dumbass.}

'Why didn't you tell me this from the beginning!'

{You didn't ask.}

'Whatever...' Adonis sighed.

With her back turned away from the ensnared prodigies, Wendy persisted in consulting the rest of the traitors. In her hands, she held a mirror-like artifact powered by a vivid purple magic crystal.

"The captain says, they'll pick us up tomorrow at the meeting point."

"Does that mean we still need to stay in this scary forest by ourselves?" Leaf voiced his concerns, his tone trembling with fear.

"Oh grow up!" Carl shouted in irritation, his voice echoing through the tense atmosphere.

"Shh, what if they wake up." Timidly, Jessie tried to hush her teammates.

"They won't so shut up, I'm trying to find a better signal." Wendy raised the magic crystal above her head, dismissing her teammates with a commanding gesture.

"Leader..."

"What Carl?"

"When can we change out of these itchy skins." Carl voiced the issue that had been bothering him since they had begun their covert mission in the Caelum Empire as he scratched his neck.

"How many times do I have to say it, you can change once we finish the mission."

"But we're done, we've captured all the first-year Rising Stars."

"There's still John van Ani, plus us changing right now will only add further unnecessary risk."

'Those magic skins seem pretty useful.' Adonis acknowledged.

"John's group is nearby, there's no need to be impatient."

'This is really uncomfortable.' Losing interest in the conversation, Adonis attempted to stretch his arms, acknowledging the impressive strength of the vines that held him captive.

{Just break out.}

'That'll be troublesome, it'll be strange if I'm the only one unaffected by the mixture.'

{Just kill them all after you break out.}

Ignoring the deity's persistent temptation towards mass homicide, Adonis shifted his gaze to his left, where Amber, the teenage girl, lay sound asleep and ensnared by the vines.

'Looks like I'll be giving you the bait earlier than I expected.' Adonis sighed.

{What do you plan on doing Oizys?}

'Waking her up.' Adonis shrugged, his silver eyes subtly vibrating as they began to undergo a gradual transformation.

{Are you sure that's wise?}

'Since when were you rational?'

{True, do what you want.}

His eyes now a fiery shade of orange silver, Adonis sharply exhaled, causing the air in the atmosphere to vibrate violently.

DEMMMM

'Wake up!' Widening his eyes, Adonis released a massive burst of Wicked Aura, causing everyone around him to feel a seething hot sensation in their abdomens, as they were assaulted by a chilling fear.

"A Damon?!" Instantly recognizing the aura emanating from Adonis, every member of Wendy's squad snapped their heads backward to study the trapped First Years, attempting to identify the source of the frightening aura.

Due to her heightened sensitivity to Demonic energy, granted by her Blessed status, Amber jolted awake from her slumber, breaking free from the hold of the Arbor Abomination toxin and the Viper venom.

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'A Damon?! Who is it?!' Detecting the wave of Wicked Aura, her golden eyes paled and widened in fear as her pupils darted around.

Failing to identify the source of the aura due to the close proximity of everyone and Adonis's even dispersal of it, Amber began to study the situation.

After careful observation, she came up with a rough assumption of what had happened.

"Carter!" Amber scowled as she brainstormed a way to escape.

"Amber?" Still shaken by the burst of Wicked Aura, Wendy gasped.

"Let us go!" Her golden eyes glowing with authority, Amber exuded a sharp wave of Holy Aura, designed to intimidate Wendy into obeying her instructions.

DIMMMMM

"You'll have to try harder than that, Amber." Wendy scoffed, summoning two one-handed axes from a storage ring. She gripped them tightly within her grasp, ready to execute Amber if necessary.

"Light magic: Holy Pillar!"

Utilizing a magic circle situated above her head, Amber summoned a beam of light that struck all of the entrapped first years.

The light vaporized the vines, freeing the first years, and consequently, waking every single one of them up.

'That makes things much easier.' Adonis groaned, making it seem as though he had just woken up. He held his head wearily, attempting to blend in with the waking crowd.

"What happened?" Maxwell groaned, still feeling sluggish from the effects of the substance injected into all of them.

"Wendy is Norse." Grunting softly, Lutz stood up, his eyes scanning the surroundings as he tried to find his rapier.

"What makes you so sure?" Stretching his muscular frame, Tarzy questioned the assumptions of his peer.

"Her weapons idiot," Luna said softly her head pounding repeatedly.

'Veda!' His frown deepened, Jerald looked around, feeling more sluggish than the others and seemingly still heavily affected by the substance.

'They took our weapons...' Lutz acknowledged.

'Even though they're awake, they won't be able to fight to the best of their ability' Adonis analyzed.

'At least the princess is okay.' Tarzy exhaled.

'The mission was to capture them, but if necessary we have permission to kill.' Wendy narrowed her eyes, releasing a full burst of her Earthly Aura, showcasing her full power without any concern for attracting nearby magic beasts or monsters.

DUMMMM

Vera gasped.

{Tier 10 high rank.} Eos identified.

"Do we have permission to engage Wendy?" Carl, who had also summoned his weapon—a large wooden bow—steeled his resolve.

He released his menacing aura, ready to stand his ground.

DUMMMM

'Slightly weaker but still stronger than most.'

"Permission granted, capture alive. Kill if necessary. Remember the priorities are Luna Tricksta, Amber Shine, and Marie Jupiter."

"Ya." Leaf whispered, summoning a large steel broadsword that looked perfect in the hands of the burly, green-haired youth.

"Yes ma'am." With a stern expression and her short blonde hair being tousled by the wind, Jessie summoned a short Viking sword, its blade seemingly hungry for blood.

"Are you all okay?" Ignoring the powerful opponents who were determined to capture or kill them, Adonis turned to face his comrades who were each internally weighing the odds of survival.

Under normal conditions, they faced a 65% survival rate. Despite the Norse spies being individually more powerful, they currently outnumbered them 8 to 4 due to Marie and Veda not being in any fighting shape.

However, due to the effects of the neurotoxin from the Pink Rank Serpent as well as the tranquilizing toxin of the arbor abomination, they were all injected with, the group now stood a 40% chance at survival.

When considering the compounding factor that the group's weapons were all taken when they were knocked out, their chances plummeted to a mere 15% survival rate.

This harsh reality struck them during further deliberation, and for the first time since entering the forest, genuine fear began to grip them. They started losing their composure, with the weakest among them, Vera, being the first to break.

"What're we going to do." The shaken Vera whispered, her fear palpable as her eyes drifted towards her leader.

{What's your plan?}

'It's rather simple really.' Adonis shrugged.

"Run." Turning to the rest of the group, Adonis released a burst of Earthly Aura, carefully crafted to inspire his comrades with a sense of hope.

DUMMMM

"What?" Turning her head to the youth, Amber narrowed her brows.

"I said run, I'll take care of Wendy. You guys fight the rest, but make sure to get as far as possible." Adonis emphasized, making his intentions more easy to understand.

'If he holds off Wendy while we fight the others seven on three. It certainly increases her odds, but that also means that...' Lutz analyzed the situation carefully, his attention fully focused as he listened to Adonis' words.

"Then you'll die!" Vera screamed, her worry piercing the atmosphere.

"..." Reaching the same conclusion as both Lutz and Vera, Maxwell grimaced.

"I'll stay behind instead." Shaking her head, Amber shot a sharp glare at Wendy.

"That makes no sense, you're a 'priority'. Plus you're a greater asset to both the academy and the Gods."

"I'll stay with you, Donny!" Determined to keep his friend alive, Maxwell steeled his resolve, mentally preparing himself for the possibility of death.

"No, you take Vera and leave. And Jerald, make sure Veda doesn't engage in battle and rests safely."

"Okay." Not wanting to spoil the atmosphere by rebelling against his group leader, as he usually would, Jerald nodded in compliance.

He scooped up Veda gracefully, who merely groaned in response. After gathering the strength in his tight muscles, Jerald burst forward with determined force leaving a sharp imprint in the ground.

"Wendy!" Leaf panicked as he spotted two of their prey escaping. He quickly turned to his group leader for guidance, his eyes wide with urgency.

"What're you waiting for? Chase them!"

Following orders, Leaf dashed forward, trailing behind the speeding Jerald. His eyes scrunched in determination as he realized the boy was faster than him, despite the added weight he carried.

"Max! Vera!" His voice filled with authority, Adonis commanded his group members to assist their escaping comrades.

Without waiting for their leader to issue orders, Carl took the initiative and followed, recognizing that even Leaf couldn't take on the three of them at once.

His action triggered a chain reaction. Tarzy held Marie, and then Lutz, Amber, and Luna followed suit. Finally, Jessie joined in, resulting in the entire group leaving Adonis alone with Wendy, exactly as he had initially intended.