"That was close!"
Cold sweat slicked Steve's palms, and only he himself knew just how dangerous that moment had been.
Once he recovered his senses, he immediately looked ahead, where Leilin held a crossbow, his expression showing no particular regret. Moreover, Isabel had already retreated to his side, surrounded by Jacob and the other guards who had hurried over.
Thanks to Isabel's earlier stalling, Leilin's side had gained enough time to defeat the enemy, and they had even seized the pirate ship. Now, Jacob had arrived with the remaining guards and several crossbows from the Faolan Family's treasured collection. On the other battlefields as well, the Faolan Family's guards held the upper hand, with more and more guards converging.
Under the firelight, Steve's face was as pale as a corpse, and he knew perfectly well that after this battle, the entire Black Tiger Pirate Group might well be struck from the rolls.
"What happened? How did things turn out like this?"
Steve's mind was somewhat dazed, but the fox-like cunning honed over many years told him it was time to flee. As long as he was still alive, he could rebuild the Black Tiger Pirate Group once more. And when that time came, he would certainly launch a crazed revenge against this young wizard!
"Fire!"
But how could Leilin possibly give him that chance? At Leilin's command, the crossbows personally directed by Jacob let out terrifying whistles. Several bolts sealed off every escape route for Steve.
"Damn it!" Steve cursed, his body twisting unnaturally in midair as a dark shield materialized out of thin air and clashed with the incoming bolts.
Crack! The dark shield of light shattered completely, but the crossbow bolts had also lost most of their force, leaving only a shallow wound on his body.
Bang, bang!
Steve's body landed steadily on the ground. He shot Leilin a look filled with venomous hatred, then made to rush out of the camp. Once outside, with his strength as a tenth-level warrior, he would certainly be able to escape easily.
And just at that moment, something unexpected happened!
A massive white spider web suddenly spread open from the ground, enveloping him in its shadow.
"No—when did he—?!" Steve's face was filled with terror as he instantly recognized the origin of the web. "A second-level Web spell! Once I'm tangled in this, I'll be a sitting duck..."
Steve's expression hardened, and he raised the curved blade in his left hand. But since Leilin had long since set this trap, how could he possibly give Steve a chance to escape?
[Weakening Ray!] [Hypnosis!] [Suppression!]...
The light of several first-level spells shone directly down upon Steve's head. Because of the earlier battle and the tremendous expenditure of energy, Steve was unable to block them in time. Immediately, his head spun, and his entire body was flooded with a sense of weakness and helplessness.
Clang! The curved blade dropped to the ground, and Steve's entire body was then enveloped by the Web spell. The sticky spider web was such that even a wild bull couldn't escape from it.
"Take aim, prepare to fire! The target is still a tenth-level warrior—be careful!"
At this point, the other guards with crossbows calmly took aim at Steve. With a target that wasn't moving, anyone with half a brain could hardly miss.
"You're still thinking about escape, because you still have a trump card, don't you?"
Leilin walked straight up to the web, looking down at Steve with what seemed like amusement in his eyes. "Don't think you can hide the [Vampire's Touch] on your right hand from me! After all, I am a wizard!"
When Leilin said these words, he could see that Steve's eyes were filled with terror and despair, along with a final desperate struggle. Leilin let out a cold laugh and quickly retreated, dodging the blood-red light shot from the other's right hand.
"Be careful! The other's right-hand iron hook has the effect of [Vampire's Touch] permanently etched onto it. Don't let him touch you, or you'll drain your life force into him..."
Leilin gazed at Steve with a cold smile, causing the other's face to turn ashen. "You're a devil! A devil!!!"
This terrifying feeling of having everything about him laid bare left Steve feeling dazed and disoriented.
"Knock him out!"
Leilin frowned slightly. "Then cripple both his hands and feet!"
With injuries this horrific, unless a high-level priest came to his aid, one could essentially declare him a cripple for life.