The next day, early in the morning, a dense fog surrounded them like a wintry morning, though it was not.
Aria opened her eyes and saw Aengus by the window, gazing outside.
He had stood guard the whole night, making Aria feel bad, but it had been his insistence, and she couldn't refuse.
During the night, they had encountered a few snakes and bird monsters, but Aengus dealt with them easily, not even letting Aria know they were being attacked.
She got up, rubbing her eyes to clear her mind. Smiling, she tiptoed towards him sneakily...
She hugged him from behind, burying her face against his back.
"Ah, Aria, you're awake," Aengus said, acting surprised. He had already noticed her sneaky tricks, but he let her do as she wished.
"You have already noticed, haven't you?" Aria sulked slightly, fluttering her pretty eyebrows as she moved away from his back.
"No." Aengus replied, shrugging.
"Humph! One day, I'll catch you off guard once I'm strong enough," she resolved.
"Okay, I'll be waiting. Now, go wash your face. There's some water in the jar, or you can visit the lake nearby, though I doubt it's clean," Aengus suggested.
"We need to make a plan for today, so let's be quick."
"Okay, let me just wash my face," Aria said, trying to tie up her hair.
Aengus gently tidied her hair into a single ponytail and patted her back. "Come down when you're ready. Until then, I'll check if those two have left."
"Alright," Aria nodded in acknowledgment.
"Whoosh..."
Aengus appeared just outside Tina and Ryann's balcony.
He heard the couple talking inside and knocked on the door.
Ryann quickly opened the door.
"Good morning, Sir."
"Still... it's a big issue, Ethan. You shouldn't use it on any other woman. Never," Aria said, glaring at him.
"Fine... Now, can we discuss the plan for the hunt today?" Aengus asked, noticing the fog slowly disappearing.
Aria, slightly embarrassed, composed herself.
"Oh, of course. Tell me what plan do you have on your mind?"
Seeing her serious demeanor, Aengus began explaining the plan he devised the previous night.
"We need to lure them using my aura, like we did yesterday. Then, we'll trap them. For that, we need to build a sturdy dome to separate them from the outside. After that, we'll take them out one group at a time," he said seriously.
Aria grew worried as she listened to his plan of using himself as bait. The previous experience had been anything but pleasant.
Recalling his prowess, she decided to agree but with caution.
"Do you also have an Elemental Manipulation skill? I don't think I can make such a large dome you're talking about," Aria asked, unsure.
"Yes, I have something similar to Earth Manipulation, but much stronger."
"That's good, but what if we can't handle it if too many come?"
Aengus reassured her confidently, "Don't worry, I can summon more monsters for help like before."
"Can your Mana reserves last that long?"
"Haha, that's the last thing you should worry about, Aria. Just take down the ones you can handle. Leave the rest to me," he said, his confident demeanor easing her mind.
Though it was a risky plan, the potential gains were worth it.
"Before that..." Aengus paused before taking out seven human corpses from his bracelet, their bodies radiating a decaying odor.
"Let's power you up once again. After this, you should be at least A-Rank." He grinned, not caring about the corpses in the slightest. There were five C-Ranks and two B-Ranks. Their essence should be enough for the upgrade.
Aria resisted the urge to vomit and prepared herself once again.
She knew it was unavoidable to grow stronger. Her thoughts turned to Aengus, wondering how much he had to endure to gain so much power. Compared to him, her efforts paled in comparison.
But she was determined to help him however she could.