Chapter 39: The Investigation

The next morning, Li Si and his four companions enjoyed breakfast at Baron Tony’s castle. After sharing some fruit pudding that Li Si had prepared in advance, they set off to begin their mission.

For some unknown reason, hot dishes Li Si prepared and stored in his storage ring would taste a bit odd when taken out, but cold foods like pudding and ice cream remained unaffected.

"Ah, let's go!" Yaa, walking at the front of the group, said with great energy.

"Yes, let's do our best," Li Si nodded in agreement. The others showed no reaction; they were long accustomed to Yaa’s high spirits.

The group arrived at the spot where they had discovered the Moon-Spirit Leopard the day before. Elena leaped lightly onto the large boulder where the leopard had stood the night before, scanning the surroundings. The other four, holding the spirit that participation was what mattered, also searched the area for any traces left by the beast.

Once Elena finished her inspection and came down, the group gathered around.

"There are several claw marks on the boulder, and some are not very fresh. That Moon-Spirit Leopard must frequent this area," Elena said. She then pointed toward the east and added, "It left in this direction yesterday. Fortunately, some scent remains; I should be able to track it."

As the group's scout, Elena, an Elven Ranger, naturally possessed unique tracking methods to lock onto targets in the wild. Li Si remembered that Elven Rangers could use the "Speak with Animals" spell to obtain information from small creatures like birds or rabbits. Upon reaching the legendary rank, they could even acquire the divination spell "Ask of Nature," which allowed them to extract information from any living or non-living entity—forests, stones, and the like—a truly overpowered ability.

The others found no useful clues, only confirming that the nearby vineyards had indeed been damaged by a magical beast.

The group followed Elena as she headed east. Li Si cast "Lightness" on everyone, making their movement swifter and easier. After tracking for a long time, nearly reaching the borders of the Baron’s territory, Elena suddenly stopped.

"What's wrong?" Arsen, who was behind her, asked.

"It’s strange," Elena said, puzzled. "The Moon-Spirit Leopard suddenly changed direction here, almost turning around to head south."

They discussed it briefly and, having no other leads, decided to keep following to see if they would find anything new. Strangely, the tracks took another sharp turn in the south, heading toward the west side of the Baron’s territory.

It was fortunate that they had an Elven Ranger with them; her tracking ability was far superior to that of human hunters, or they might never have found the beast and would have wasted their time.

Because the traces left by the Moon-Spirit Leopard were sparse and intermittent, Elena had to put in a great deal of effort, repeatedly using the "Speak with Animals" spell to gain information from small creatures. It was only by midday that they finally followed the trail to a small rocky hill on the west side of Baron Tony’s domain.

This was one of the few rocky hills in the barony. It was less than a hundred meters high, bare of trees or shrubs, and filled with craggy crevices that offered numerous hiding spots. Since the area was unsuitable for grape cultivation and lacked special minerals, it sat nearly ten kilometers from the town, and local residents rarely ventured there.

"Sister Elena, is this the place?" Yaa asked.

"It should be. The scent of the Moon-Spirit Leopard is very strong here. This must be where it hides during the day." Elena pointed to the bank of a stream flowing by the hill, where a clear claw print was left in the moist soil. "It must have come here to drink. There's no mistake."

"Good," Arsen said, beginning to coordinate the mission. "Elena, you and I will take the front. The task of scouting is yours; keep an eye out for the leopard’s tracks and don't let it ambush us."

"Understood."

"Yaa, you and Li Si stay in the middle. Take care to protect Li Si and support the others when needed."

"Got it!"

"Li Si, cast your buffs and protective spells on everyone before we start. Keep the effects maintained, but most importantly, protect yourself!"

"Understood."

"Lombos, you take the rear. Stay alert and watch our backs."

"I know."

"Finally, everyone, be careful. This Moon-Spirit Leopard is extremely skilled at ambushes." Arsen emphasized this one last time before they prepared to head up the hill.

The group drew their weapons. Elena put away her longbow and took out a short sword, as the longbow had little use in such close-quarters exploration.

Li Si also took out his emerald staff and began casting.

"Armor of Light!"
"Lesser Deflection Field!"
"Energy Resistance!"
"Bear’s Endurance, Cat’s Grace, Bull’s Strength, Fox’s Cunning, Owl’s Wisdom!"
"Precision Strike!"

After applying the buffs and protective spells, Li Si breathed a sigh of relief. Although mages were not as effective as clerics in terms of blessings and protection, for the Yaa Adventuring Party, which previously lacked both, this was already quite impressive.

"Not bad, Li Si. I can clearly feel my strength increasing."

Li Si did not cast every spell on everyone, as that would have drained his mana before the fight even began. For Lombos, he cast Armor of Light, Lesser Deflection Field, Bear’s Endurance, and Bull’s Strength. For Elena and Arsen, he cast Armor of Light, Precision Strike, Bull’s Strength, and Cat’s Grace. As for Yaa and himself, he applied every spell he could; Li Si understood the art of work.

Arsen felt the effects of the buffs, which were quite substantial. He gripped his sword and said to the group, "Let’s go."

They formed a tight formation and slowly crept up the hill, vigilantly scanning their surroundings, especially the shadows where the Moon-Spirit Leopard was most likely to hide.

Just as they were meticulously searching every corner of the hill, not missing a single potential hiding spot, Li Si, who had cast the third-circle spell "Greater Magical Alarm" on himself, suddenly sensed something. He looked up, directing his gaze toward the source of his spiritual intuition.

In the shadow of a rock not far away, a pair of bright yellow eyes were staring fixedly at their group.

It was the Moon-Spirit Leopard!