Dual Awakening: Elemental and Beast Transformation Paths

Axel didn’t answer immediately.

He was still furious with Bernard’s decision, but at the same time, he refused to abandon their quest.

They had done a lot for the mission, so he didn’t want it all to be in vain.

After thinking carefully for several seconds, he made up his mind. "Rian, heal Vito and the rest. I will go to the Village Head’s house now."

Rian turned to Axel in surprise. "Are you going alone?"

"Yes." Axel nodded. "Don’t worry. Nothing will happen to me."

"Be careful!" they said in unison.

"We will think of a way to seek revenge after I return." Axel would not forgive them so easily.

"Alright." They agreed.

A moment later, Axel arrived.

Bernard was pleasantly surprised when he saw Axel. Axel looked so angry before, so he had previously thought Axel would not take part in making the plan.

During the discussion, Axel had disagreements with Lily and David several times, but Bernard managed to control the situation.

Of course, they still yelled and insulted one another since they hated each other to the bone.

"Their leader is a Red Hobgoblin. He is two meters tall and uses a sword as his weapon." Victor explained. "He also has a goblin shaman by his side. She is dangerous and will be a huge threat in the upcoming battle."

"What makes you think like that?" Bernard asked curiously.

"Village Head, we saw the shaman performing a ritual on all the goblins and hobgoblins yesterday," Gilbert replied. "We had no idea what she was doing, but once it was finished, a totem mark appeared on their foreheads."

"Does that mean the shaman has buff magic or something like that?" Lily touched her chin.

In this world, there were two types of shamans.

One who could only control a single element, like mages, while the other could use more unique magic, such as curses, buffs, and other uncommon spells.

Since the shaman could place totem marks on them, that meant she belonged to the latter.

"It seems so." David had the same thought.

"Then, this will be troublesome!" Even though Bernard was not an awakener, he knew what buff magic was.

Lily shifted her gaze to Axel and said, "You and your subordinates will face that shaman. We will take care of their leader."

"Who do you think you are to give me an order like that?" Axel refused to follow her suggestion right away.

"You are a mage, damn it!" Lily replied in annoyance. "Don’t you know the basics? Mages versus mages and warriors face warriors."

"Just because we are mages, you want us to fight the shaman? You just want to be hailed as a hero by killing their leader, right?" Axel would not let them make the most contribution in the battle again.

"We are not like you, who are crazy about popularity and praise!" Lily sneered.

"What a load of bullshit!" Axel didn’t believe it. "Wait!"

His lips curled up into a mocking smile when something came to his mind.

"Don’t tell me, you are afraid of the shaman?" he took the chance to ridicule her.

"I’m not!" Lily shouted. "I just want to follow the rules. That’s all!"

"There are no such rules in this world." It was his first time hearing it.

"Alright, alright. Stop it." Bernard stopped their quarrel. "Clara, is there any important information you want to share with us?"

"Yes," Clara replied. "There is also a skilled archer by his side. It seems like he is his right hand."

Bernard found a good solution to mediate the argument between Lily and Axel. "How about this? Your team faces the shaman while hers fights the archer. Whoever kills the enemy first can face their leader."

"I agree!" Lily liked his idea.

"Me too!" Axel had no problem with it.

"Great!" Bernard smiled happily.

They continued discussing the plan.

Once they were done, Ren and the others left.

Axel and his group were given a new place to stay. Of course, it was not as big as their previous house because it belonged to one of his people.

After he returned, Axel discussed their revenge plans with his group.

"Axel, I have an idea." Vito was already fine since Rian had treated him with his healing magic.

"What is it?" Axel asked.

Rian and the others turned to Vito, waiting to hear his idea.

"We should not kill the shaman right away and should let them face their leader first," Vito told them that they could use the chaotic situation to seek revenge.

"But what if they manage to kill the leader later?" Axel hated to admit it, but Ren and his group were powerful.

If they faced their leader together, the possibility of them killing it was high.

"Don’t worry about it." Vito understood Axel’s concern. "We will lure the other monsters to attack that bitch and her friends. This way, only Ren will face the leader."

He then continued, "When they are exhausted from their battle, you take advantage of the situation to launch a deadly strike at Ren. After dealing with him, you can kill their leader. This would be like killing two birds with one stone."

Axel’s lips curled up into a sinister smile. "Good idea!"

"Yeah! We agree!" Luka and the others said in unison.

Once they finished making plans, they went to sleep.

----

The moon set and the sun rose.

When the other members of the Aether Organization were still sleeping, Virelia was enjoying the morning atmosphere on the terrace alone.

All the wounds on her body had disappeared, and her skin was smooth once more. There was not even the slightest trace of a scar, as if she were not in a dangerous situation yesterday.

While she was savoring the beautiful scenery around her, some of her subordinates approached her.

They all wore happy expressions since their leader had fully recovered.

"Good morning, young leader!"

"Young leader, are you thinking about something?"

"I’m glad you’ve fully recovered, young leader."

One by one, they greeted her.

"What are you doing here?" Virelia had never expected to see them so early in the morning.

"We just want to know your condition." The red-haired man answered.

"That’s right." The blue-haired woman added. "We were worried about you, so we decided to visit you."

"I’m already fine now." Virelia was touched by their concern for her.

The brown-haired man sat on the wooden chair beside her and said, "Young leader, did you know that Ren and the others fought Axel and his group yesterday?"

"Really?" Virelia asked in surprise. "Why were they fighting?"

"They attacked Axel and his followers to avenge you." The yellow-haired woman answered.

"Yeah!" The black-haired man nodded. "They suspected Axel and his underlings were the masterminds behind everything that happened to you, so they came to their guest house to teach them a lesson."

"Ren and the others beat them until their bodies were full of bruises and wounds." The red-haired man said in an excited tone.

"Yes." The yellow-haired woman wore a happy face since she disliked Axel and his group. "Lily injured Vito until his T-shirt turned red with his blood. Ren also beat Axel mercilessly."

"Don’t forget! Elara and David also crushed Luka, Rian, and Jax." The red-haired man said. "They really did a number on the trio."

Virelia’s surprised face turned into a smile.

She had guessed they were the kind of people who valued friendship, but she had never expected them to go that far for her.

Of course, she was thrilled.

After all, their actions showed just how much they valued her.

"Young leader, your friends are all powerful!" the black-haired man praised Ren and the others.

"Of course, they are!" the blue-haired woman said. "Their senior is a powerful shifter, so their abilities are beyond doubt. Isn’t that right, young leader?"

Virelia placed her fists on her waist and lifted her chin slightly. "Naturally. With me as their senior, how could they be weak?"

"As expected of our young leader, you are sure amazing!" they praised her, one by one.

The happiness within her grew bigger.

Even though she was used to being praised, it felt different because it proved her worth as an awakener.

"Hmm? What are you doing here?" Ren was startled the moment he stepped onto the terrace.

"Morning, Ren!"

"We are checking on her condition."

"That’s right."

They answered and greeted him at once.

Virelia rose from her seat and tapped Ren’s shoulder. "Little brother, this big sister will treat you and the rest to a luxurious restaurant after the quest."

Ren tilted his head in confusion.

’What’s going on here? Why does she want to treat us out of the blue?’