The bait's role had not changed—they were still expendable distractions ant to draw the attention and fury of the Malice Beasts. Yet, unexpectedly, this tactic proved effective. Or rather, it was the experienced teams' ability to ruthlessly exploit the bait that made it work.
The teams showed no concern for the safety of the bait, throwing them into the path of the beasts without hesitation. They used the bait to lure the creatures, forcing the beasts to redirect their attention. When the beasts' guard dropped, the teams struck swiftly, exploiting the openings with deadly precision.
Adding to the bait's expendability, they had taken a cue from Gin's group by donning black masks. The masks not only shielded their identities but also marked them as bait, making it easier for the teams to identify and use them accordingly.
The bait, for their part, fought desperately for survival. They dashed and rolled across the battlefield, narrowly avoiding death. However, their frantic movents sotis led them into the range of other Malice Beasts, causing greater chaos. One such mont occurred with Gin's group.
A beast lunged toward a fleeing bait mber, its claws tearing through the air. But before it could strike, the creature was abruptly thrown sideways, as though struck by an invisible force. It tumbled violently across the ground, roaring in frustration before charging back toward its target.
The bait escaped by a hair's breadth, and the team quickly sward the beast, hamring it with attacks. Gin observed the scene, his frustration simring as he watched the inefficiency of their tactics.
"They're wasting their magic," he thought.
The teams fought by clumsily enveloping their fists with raw magic and swinging wildly, expending vast amounts of energy for minimal damage.Gin shook his head. They lacked the precision to penetrate the beasts' tough hides or deal significant internal damage. If only they could focus their magic into piercing blows or use weapons imbued with magic to strike deeper.
No one dared to speak or move, their minds struggling to comprehend the spectacle they had just witnessed.
The fearso beast had been felled, not by brute strength, but by an unseen mage whose power defied their understanding.
Jaiden was the first to break the silence. Though shaken, he quickly regained his composure. Where is this mage hiding? he wondered, scanning the area for any sign of the mysterious figure. But no trace of the caster could be found.
"Move!" Jaiden barked, his voice cutting through the oppressive atmosphere. "Everyone inside, now! Anyone who hesitates forfeits the contract and pays triple the fee as penalty!"
Spurred by fear of financial ruin, the bait team scrambled into the breeding facility. Jaiden lingered for a mont, sparing a glance at the fallen beast before following them inside.
The interior of the breeding facility was in utter disarray. All around, Malice Beasts and hired fighters clashed in a chaotic lee.
Four additional beasts prowled the vast space, each engaged with a different team of hunters.
Among them was Team Y1, locked in combat with a monstrous humanoid creature standing over three ters tall. Its body was covered in overlapping scales that shimred with an eerie light. A thick, muscular tail lashed out violently, sweeping through the air with devastating force.
"Get back!" shouted Alberta, the team's leader, as she darted forward. Her fist, glowing faintly with mana, struck the beast's torso with a resounding thud before she swiftly retreated.
The creature's tail whipped through the space she had occupied re monts before, narrowly missing her.
Her teammates followed her lead, each landing quick, mana-infused strikes before retreating. But their efforts yielded little effect.
The beast's scales absorbed the force of their attacks, dissipating the energy harmlessly. Worse still, the absorbed energy was channeled through its tail, amplifying its destructive power.
In the early monts of the fight, Michael, the team's sole elental user, had been struck by the tail and rendered unconscious. His absence left the team without the elental magic needed to overco the beast's defenses.
"Damn it, Michael!" Alberta cursed under her breath as she dodged another swipe of the tail. "You couldn't go one day without causing trouble, could you?"
Her frustration was palpable, but she knew their only option was to hold the line until Alberta regained consciousness. The beast's scales were a near-impenetrable defense, and without elental magic, their attacks were little more than distractions.
From a distance, Gin watched the battle unfold with a calculating gaze.
He noted the way the team's mana output had drastically increased since their arrival in this world. Their reserves are nearly a hundred tis greater than they were on Earth, he observed.
This phenonon confird his earlier suspicions about the unique properties of this world's mana. It wasn't just the environnt that was different—the very nature of mana seed to alter those who wielded it, amplifying their capacity and potential.
As he analyzed the battle, Gin couldn't help but notice the inefficiency of Team Y1's tactics. They were skilled, but their reliance on brute force and direct confrontation left much to be desired. They lack precision. Strategy.
Still, their determination was admirable. Alberta, in particular, stood out for her courage and tenacity. She fought with a ferocity that belied her petite fra, her every movent driven by a fierce resolve to protect her team.
Impressive, Gin thought, his lips curling into a faint smile. But this battle won't end without intervention.
He began to weave mana into a new spell, his mind already calculating the most efficient way to turn the tide. Ti to lend another invisible hand.
Gin recalled the mont he first crossed the portal into this world. At that ti, the alien energy of this realm's magic had poured relentlessly into his body.
To protect himself, he had instinctively wrapped the invading magic beneath his skin, keeping it contained with a rotation of his own power. He couldn't allow a foreign, uncontrollable force to take over his body.
He realized now that Alberta must have experienced the sa overwhelming surge. Unlike him, however, she had accepted the magic, letting it infuse her. The result was clear.
She now wielded an imnse reservoir of magic throughout her body, utilizing it in combat with remarkable force and precision.
Yet, Gin knew this borrowed magic wouldn't last. It would disappear entirely once she returned to Earth.
That realization brought with it another: the portal was the key. The sa portal that had brought them here would likely be the way back.
He was certain of it now.
But the portal wasn't rely a passage. It was a phenonon of incredible complexity, one that bestowed magic upon its travelers and withdrew it when they returned.
He yearned to study it, to peel back the layers of its arcane chanisms. Surely, such a portal contained an intricate and advanced magical system, the kind that could elevate his understanding of magic to entirely new heights.
His thoughts shifted back to the battlefield within the Beast Breeding Grounds.
Here too, as in every corner of this world, there was a notable absence of magic cores among the humans.
Only the beasts, the fearso Malice Creatures, seed to possess such cores. The humans relied instead on raw, untad magic dispersed throughout their bodies.
And how they used that magic—inefficiently, clumsily, lacking finesse.
Gin couldn't fathom wasting power in such a way.
Even if he had no core and his magic were scattered like theirs, he would never use it so recklessly.
As the new arrivals—rcenaries and "bait"—entered the breeding grounds, they split into smaller groups, joining the experienced teams already locked in combat with the beasts. Of course, their addition didn't imdiately shift the tide of battle.
Most of the bait lacked the skills or courage to make a significant impact.
But the seasoned teams were quick to adapt.
They observed, strategized, and soon found ways to integrate the newcors into their efforts. Even inexperienced hands, if properly directed, could serve as tools in the larger fight.
Gin stood apart, watching it all unfold with a detached curiosity. He could see the inefficiencies, the gaps in coordination, the raw desperation of those flung into the fray. And yet, amidst the chaos, there was a kind of order—a crude but undeniable determination to survive.
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