Rescued?

"Cough, cough! That was close..." Ri gasps, his body heaving as he grasps his head, his muscles twitching as they begin to regain their normal form. Sweat drenches him, dripping down his face and arms as he lifts one to inspect the glowing seals—yellowish white markings that resemble butterfly patterns tattooed around his wrists. "I haven't seen these in a while. These damn seals I've had for ages, I accidentally activated them, I won't be able to use mana until they disappear again," he mutters under his breath, a tone of annoyance seeping through as he resumes his pace, leaving the half-empty lake behind him in haste.

Meanwhile, the scene at the battlefield is grim. "Oh fuck... um... I think she's not getting back up," Uda states, her voice tinged with panic as she turns Saelin over. Blood soaks Saelin's clothing, a severe cut on her waist painting the ground red. "She should have just followed the plan, ugh... this is why I can't stand her," Caelir grumbles, rolling his eyes in frustration as he digs through his bag.

'Why are you such a dumbass?' Caelir silently berates Saelin as he hurriedly wraps bandages around her, his hands swift and efficient despite his irritation. "This is gonna cost you," he mumbles, pouring a healing potion into her mouth, 'It's about time they save those three, right?'

High above, Olivier watches the chaos unfold with a mixture of curiosity and amusement. "I might not be a fighter, but I can defend myself, you know," he yawns, nonchalantly breaking a glowing potion in his hands that transforms into a sphere-like magic shield enveloping him. Boom! Ri's fist sends a shockwave through the area, rattling the trees and disturbing the quiet of the forest. Inside his sphere, Olivier rolls, the ground beneath him vibrating with the force of Ri's anger.

'Is it because he's demi-human? No way. That doesn't make sense. In order to live through my potion, he needed to drink at least 100,000 gallons of water...' Olivier puzzles, his thoughts swirling with intrigue and confusion. 

★ ★ ★ ★ ★

"Hehehehe, ready? We're going to save that idiot Isadora. Although it seems like they're in the open, that mage is keeping an eye on them and he definitely set up some traps," Biana mumbles from her hiding spot in a bush, her eyes twinkling with mischief. 'I can't wait~ This is the second time I'm going to save that damn bitch~' she laughs silently to herself, her anticipation barely contained.

"Ugh... yeah, yeah." Lysandra rolls her eyes and yawns, her boredom palpable. 'Why did he have to leave me with her... I want to be with him, I don't want to be with this lazy asshole,' she complains internally, her frustration mounting.

"Oi, you need to protect me," Biana exhales sharply, poking Lysandra in the back, her tone playful yet commanding. "I don't care what the hell you're made of, but if they attack me, you're going to be my meat shield," she smirks, pulling Lysandra along as they crawl through the underbrush, dodging constant shockwaves that ripple through the ground.

"Hmhmhmhm, hey look," Biana suddenly pulls Lysandra by the face, forcing her to look in a certain direction. With a mischievous smile, she nods towards Isadora, Kaida, and Lúthien who are sitting down by a rock. "Pfff, look at Isadora, she can't break free from some magic chains."

As they approach stealthily, Biana whispers, "Hey, you." Turning to look around, Kaida responds with a puzzled expression. "Huh? Biana?"

Ignoring her, Biana takes out her pen and stabs it into the ground. The pen slightly glows and slowly reveals a rune pattern etched into the earth. 'An explosion trap? Wait...' Biana exhales, drawing two lines of runic patterns which, upon completion, reveal another trap above them on the trees. 'What is this? I'm not a mage so I have no clue... eh, who cares? I'll just get rid of them,' she decides with a nonchalant shrug.

Reaching into her bag, Biana pulls out a potion—a bottle filled with dark purple liquid that emits a light purple glow that constantly shifts. 'This is something I stole from the devil, it's supposed to dissolve magic spells. Since she left it so easily accessible, I doubt it's expensive,' she thinks, a sly grin spreading across her face.

"Ugh... huh..." Biana scratches her head in puzzlement, peering at the mysterious potion in her hand. Nearby, Lysandra lets out an exasperated sigh and collapses face-first into the grassy ground. "What's taking so long?" she moans, her voice muffled by the earth.

"Shut up, there were no instructions on how to use this. Will it work if I just throw it? I mean, it's a simple potion..." Biana mumbles, taking out her MST and calling Oliver. His face appears on the tiny screen, looking slightly disheveled. "What do you want? I'm busy right now," he asks, just before spinning around in a circle.

"What the hell are you doing? Are you playing around?" Biana raises an eyebrow, her tone a mix of annoyance and curiosity.

"No, I'm not playing! I'm getting thrown around like a damn ball! Now what the hell do you want, you lazy bitch?" Oliver snaps back, clearly in no mood for pleasantries.

Biana, unfazed, shows him the potion. "This potion is meant to dissolve spells. How do I use it?" she asks bluntly.

Oliver glances at the screen, his expression turning serious for a split second. "Huh? A C-type potion? You usually just feed it a lot of mana before throwing it—" he begins to explain but suddenly stops, his eyes widening in alarm. "No wait! Where the hell did you get that!? That's not an av—" However, before he can finish his warning, Biana hangs up and silences her MST.

"Okay, I think I have enough mana," she mumbles to herself, deciding to ignore Oliver's incomplete caution. 'Hmm... Should I feed it most of my mana? Eh, fuck it,' she decides with a reckless shrug and shoots her mana into the potion. The liquid inside begins to glow intensely.

"Wow, this thing is bright," Lysandra comments, shielding her eyes with her hand.

"I know, it's a bit exaggerated for a single potion," Biana replies nonchalantly, holding it up high and then hurling it at the center of the magic spells. Once it breaks, it evaporates into a purple mist. Almost immediately, clouds start forming above them, and lightning strikes down, creating a dramatic scene. It becomes super rainy and windy, with constant purple lightning striking down trees.

"Hey, are you sure it's simple? I mean... do potions normally do this?" Lysandra asks, looking up as the grounds spin in a circle around the area where the potion broke, her voice laced with disbelief and a hint of fear.

"Probably, I don't use potions," Biana shrugs casually, seemingly unfazed by the apocalyptic weather she's unleashed.

Then, as if by magic, the rain begins melting away the magic spells binding the girls. "I mean, it worked right? That's all that matters," Biana smirks, walking up to Isadora with a triumphant grin. 

"Tsk tsk tsk," Biana clicks her tongue, shaking her head left and right with exaggerated disappointment as she crouches to make eye contact with Isadora. "Look at you, to think the one and only 'Isadora' was beaten in a two-on-one fight at that."

Isadora, ever expressionless, merely scans her surroundings, ignoring Biana's taunts. Frustrated, Biana rolls her eyes dramatically. "Hey, look at me dammit! Not even a 'thank you'? Is that too hard for you?" she exhales sharply, the annoyance clear in her voice.

"Ugh... all our pressure points were hit so we can't really move," Kaida mumbles from the side, her voice strained.

"Where is V?" Lúthien asks, desperation coloring her tone as she forces her head to turn in search. 

"Oh, that guy? I don't know, somewhere running around like a roach I think," Biana shrugs nonchalantly, tapping her temple as if trying to remember. 'Let me see if I can remember how pressure points work...' she muses internally.

Lysandra takes a deep breath and walks up to them, beginning to poke them methodically. 'Dammit, he was right, I didn't think learning this would be useful,' she thinks, a smirk creeping onto her face as the others slowly start to regain their mobility.

"Wait!" Kaida suddenly grabs Isadora's arm before she can run off. "L-let me help you. I'm not strong but I can do this much," she declares, closing her eyes and slowly removing all the mana Zelo forced into her.

"You're not going anywhere," Biana scoffs, grabbing onto Isadora to prevent her from escaping. "V said you need to help out Sera when you're free." She then turns to Lúthien. "And you need to help out Oliver's group."

Lúthien nods, her expression serious. "I know, just please tell V to stay safe." With that, she runs off, her thoughts racing. 'Dammit, I need to help them out. I saw Saelin fighting that monster for a slight second. There's no way she can deal with someone like him,' she thinks anxiously as she disappears into the foliage.

Boom! Suddenly, a blast of fire is shot in Biana's direction, the fire attack huge, like a storm of flames enveloping them. Just as Isadora is about to react, Lysandra yawns, stepping closer to the flames. She inhales deeply, sucking all the flames up before letting out a loud burp.

"What the fuck," Biana and Kaida exclaim simultaneously, their faces a picture of shock and bewilderment.

'Now that I think about it, I know very little about Lysandra, only that she only trains with V. What type of physique does she have...' Kaida ponders, rubbing her head in disbelief at the bizarre spectacle they've just witnessed.

"There, I saved you. I'm going now," Lysandra mumbles nonchalantly, slipping on her shades. Behind the dark lenses, her eyes morph into their true dragon form—gleaming, predatory. 'Where are you, Kael...' she scans the horizon, her gaze intense. 'That direction... why are you so far?' With a powerful thrust, she breaks the ground beneath her feet, propelling herself forward with supernatural speed.

"Hey wait up!" Biana calls out, rubbing her temples, but her voice is drowned out by the chaos. BOOM! A gust of wind blasts through the area, and Isabella crashes into the ground, coughing up blood. "Who was it!" she grits her teeth in fury, blood leaking from her lips. "Who was the moron who decided to melt my spell!?" Both Kaida and Isadora slowly turn to Biana with accusing stares.

Biana shifts her gaze away, but her eyes sneakily flick back to them. "Why are you looking at me?" she mumbles, feigning innocence.

From above, Zelo glides down, rubbing his neck. "Seriously, thanks for that, girl," he calls out to Biana with a smirk. "Thanks for spawning this rain. I was having a hard time fighting her due to that damn cage spell."

Biana whistles innocently, trying to deflect. "W-what are you talking about? I-I'm not a mage, I can't do stuff like that," she stutters, her voice laced with feigned ignorance. 'Fuck, just take the bait. How was I supposed to know it affected such a large area?' she screams internally, her frustration mounting.

Isabella glares at Biana, her eyes icy with rage. 'Dammit... I was this close, this close to beating him. I'm going to kill you if I live through this,' she seethes internally, her mind swirling with thoughts of revenge.

"Just give it up already," Biana rolls her eyes, swiftly changing the subject. "You won't get V, he's not even here so shoo, get out of here," she dismisses him with a wave of her hand, trying to diffuse the tension.

"Hmm... that man is likely looking for him," Zelo muses, catching on to something in the dynamics before them. "As for you all," he raises his hand, conjuring a massive fireball, "We each need to kill at least one person to be free from prison, this isn't personal."