"Huh? It hurts!" Jean's eyes fluttered open, her body wracked with discomfort and spasms.
"Wait, where are my clothes?" She sat up, suddenly feeling the chill. Glancing down, she noticed her nakedness, her face flushing deep red.
"Must have been the high voltage; it burned your clothes to ashes!" Logan laughed despite the pain, trying to lighten the mood amidst their harrowing escape.
His attire was also reduced to ashes, but thankfully, his armor remained intact, modestly shielding everything essential.
"What are you staring at? Don't look!" Jean said, her cheeks coloring with embarrassment as she covered her chest with one hand and attempted to block Logan's eyes with the other.
"If you won't let me see, I'll just go look at someone else!" Logan retorted playfully.
"Also, it's not I haven't seen anything, so why are you blocking my view?" he added with a hint of irritation.
"Ugh, you're incorrigible!" Jean exclaimed, dropping her hands in resignation.
She then retrieved a new set of clothes from her space ring and quickly dressed herself.
"You were so reckless jumping down there. Weren't you afraid of landing right on the Thunderbird's face?" Logan chided, recalling how he had noticed her daring leap too late to intervene.
"Hmph, when I jump, it's reckless, but when you do, it's what, heroic?" Jean countered as she adjusted her clothes. "Besides, if I hadn't jumped, you might have been electrocuted to death. Better to jump and face it together!"
Logan said nothing, but deep down, he was profoundly moved. Jean had risked her life for him, what more could he possibly ask for?
Just then, a pitiful "Chirp~~~!" reached their ears.
"My God, this beast is so stubborn. I slashed at it, you slashed at it, and it still isn't dead after falling from such a height," Logan said, amazed at the Thunderbird's tenacity.
"If it's still alive, let's finish it off. If we get hungry, we can eat its meat!" Jean suggested with a grim determination.
"Okay!" Logan agreed, knowing well the rarity of meat from a fifth-level monster.
After their prolonged battle with the Thunderbird, both were thoroughly exhausted.
Suddenly, Manticore neighed sharply and beat its wings vigorously, veering southward.
"What's happening?" Jean asked, alarmed.
Logan's expression turned grave. "Manticore is fleeing. Could there be a more powerful monster nearby?"
Just as he spoke, a series of desperate chirps filled the air.
"Chirp..."
"Chirp~~~..."
"Chirp~~chirp~"
Logan and Jean turned around, their faces blanching as they beheld the sight.
A whole flock of Thunderbirds approached, darkening the sky with their numbers, hundreds of them!
Ten minutes had passed.
Logan felt a twinge of helplessness; he had just achieved a significant breakthrough and was eager to test his enhanced abilities, yet he was unarmed.
"Should we continue this way?" Jean asked, uncertainty marking his tone.
Logan glanced back over the barren landscape below. They were only thirty miles from the Silver Mane Tribe. An idea sparked in his eyes, and a sly grin spread across his face.
"Wait, let's go towards east!" he suggested with sudden inspiration.
"Alright!"
With that, the Manticore swiveled, its massive body cutting through the air towards the east. The thunderbirds, relentless as ever, adjusted their course to match.
"Jean, do you see that settlement over there?" Logan pointed towards the horizon where a large werewolf settlement loomed, grander than their own Silver Mane Tribe. The advantage of their aerial position was clear, offering them a strategic view of their surroundings, revealing a haven over ten miles away.
"I see it!"
"Let's head there. We'll make our descent into that tribe!" Logan decided, hoping that the size and strength of the werewolf settlement could provide them with a respite and possibly aid against their relentless pursuers.
"Ah???"
Jean's shock was palpable. The strategy seemed reckless, even dangerous. "Are you suggesting we dive straight into another tribe's territory? The thunderbirds will attack them!"
"Ah what, indeed!" Logan retorted sharply. "We're not just fleeing for our lives here. That tribe is a major adversary of the Silver Mane Tribe within a hundred miles. We could use the thunderbirds' assault to our advantage, strike them hard."
The tribe to the east, the Duskin Tribe, a settlement of about five to six thousand beastmen, had always been a thorn in their side. If they could turn the thunderbirds' menace against them, why not indeed?
"I see your point," Jean conceded.
"Airlan, set course for that location!"
With no further objections and understanding the strategy, Jean directed the Manticore to head towards the Duskin Tribe.
Soon, they neared the outskirts of the Duskin settlement. Their approach did not go unnoticed; the beastmen below quickly gathered, their expressions a mix of curiosity and alarm.
"Descend now!"
Under Jean's command, the Manticore swiftly descended into the heart of the Duskin Tribe. The surrounding beastmen looked on in surprise, but it wasn't long before soldiers started converging on their location.
"Airlan, run!" Logan urged as he spotted the soldiers closing in. Without wasting a moment, he instructed the Manticore to plunge deeper into the tribal territory.
The Manticore, a formidable beast on the ground, scurried forward. Its scorpion-like limbs, allowed it to move with astonishing speed, far outpacing its aerial capabilities.
In their rapid dash, some of the Duskin beastmen were unable to dodge in time. They were either knocked aside or ensnared by the thorns adorning the Manticore's robust body.
"It's time for some tricks," Logan muttered to himself, settling into what felt like a sports car version of the Manticore.
He discreetly accessed the system panel. Given the strength of the Duskin Tribe, which hosted several sixth-level warriors but seemingly no seventh-level ones, evidenced by their previous concessions during Mamuti's kidnapping, it was a risky situation. Logan prepared to employ some strategic trickery, readying to use a thousand reputation points for an essential upgrade.
This wasn't just about survival now; it was about turning the tables in an audacious game of power and prowess.
Soon, the milky white aura of fighting energy surrounding Logan surged with newfound intensity, becoming several times more formidable than before.
Jean shot Logan a puzzled look. "Why are you flaunting your power now? Showing off that you've broken through to the sixth level again?"
Little did Jean know, Logan had clandestinely used a gaming enhancement, propelling him to the status of a seventh-level warrior.