Shaan looked up, and his expression instantly stiffened. The sound came from the crate filled with alchemical salt. The binding knots that held the crate in place had nearly all snapped. The heavy load shifted with every second, putting more strain on the pulley system. The structure groaned under the pressure, and the crate’s surface began to crack.

"Sebas! The crate!" Shaan shouted in panic, pointing upward. "Don’t let it fall, or everything will be over!"

"I understand."

Sebastian rushed over to the crate and quickly placed one of his palms on the surface of the pulley’s shaft. In the blink of an eye, plant roots began to emerge and crawl rapidly like a snake, forming new knots around the box.

"Ah, thank goodness." Shaan let out a long sigh, walking toward Sebastian. "At least the salt box is safe, and we can breathe a sigh of relief for a few—"

’Whoosh!’

An arrow suddenly whizzed right past Shaan’s ear, causing his body to freeze instantly. His legs went weak. His heart seemed to stop for a moment, realizing the attack had nearly killed him on the spot. If Shaan had made even the slightest wrong move, that arrow would have instantly taken his life.

’Luckily, the arrow didn’t—’

"Ah!"

"Oh, no. Sebastian!"

Shaan ran as fast as he could until he reached Sebastian. What he saw made his expression freeze. An arrow had pierced straight through the pulley support and buried itself in Sebastian’s palm. Fresh blood kept flowing without stopping, and Sebastian’s groans grew weaker with every passing second.

"Sebastian, hang in there," Shaan said, trying to calm Sebastian. "I’m going to pull this arrow out of your hand."

"Don’t!" Sebastian shouted, silencing Shaan. "Not now, Shaan."

"Wait, what?" Shaan paused for a moment, furrowing his brow. "Sebastian, what do you mean by that? Your hand is bleeding, and we have to—"

"The pulley beam..." Sebastian spoke in a weak voice, his eyes still fixed upward. "It’s going to collapse."

He tilted his head and forced Shaan to follow his gaze. Only then did Shaan understand. Sebastian’s plant roots still wrapped tightly around the crate, holding everything in place after the ropes had nearly failed. If Sebastian pulled his hand away, the roots would disappear—and the salt crate would fall and shatter instantly.

"Damn it." Shaan gritted his teeth, clenching his fists tightly. "In that case, all I can do is protect you as much as possible from—."

Before Shaan could finish his sentence, the same arrow suddenly appeared again. This time, Shaan noticed it in time. He raised his blade and deflected it just before it could reach either of them.

’Cling!’

"That was close." Shaan let out a long sigh. "Sebastian, are you okay?"

"Y-yeah, I’m fine." Sebas quickly nodded his head.

"Sebastian, stay focused on the pulley." Shaan crossed his dual shorts, preparing to launch an attack. "I’ll be the one to find and finish off this damn creature."

Shaan scanned his surroundings and caught a glimpse of the silhouette of a strange creature holding a bow in its hand. He knew that figure was the one who had attacked them, and this time he wasn’t going to stand idly by.

He immediately channeled his mana into his legs and shot forward at breakneck speed toward the silhouette, launching an attack to incapacitate it.

’Take this, you damn creature!’

He burst out from the mist and launched his attack. The green-skinned creature froze in place. It clearly did not expect Shaan to rush in so suddenly. It tried to dodge—but it reacted too late. Shaan’s blade struck first.

’Slash!’

Like a flash of light, the creature died on the spot. Its head and body split apart and fell to the ground. Thick dark purple blood poured out without stopping, soaking the earth beneath it.

[You successfully killed a dark goblin archer]

[You obtained 4 dark goblin claws]

[Your bond increased by +4]

"Good, at least nothing will bother Sebastian now." Shaan looked around once more. "It’s safe. I need to meet up with Sebas. He might need help."

Shaan immediately ran as fast as he could and saw the box being moved up. Good, at least Sebastian’s efforts weren’t in vain. The box was safe, and everything should be going according to the plan they’d discussed earlier.

However, when Shaan saw Sebastian’s state, his smile vanished instantly. Sebastian wasn’t moving at all, and his head hung limply downward. He hadn’t even moved from the pulley pole. His head hung weakly, and his legs were limp and lifeless. This made Shaan suspect something was wrong with Sebastian, so he immediately ran over to check on him.

"Sebastian?" Shaan lifted his head and saw his pale face. "Damn it... He’s lost too much blood. Hey, Sebas. Can you hear me?" Sebastian slowly opened his eyes and looked at Shaan with a weak gaze. "Sh-Shaan... the box...?"

"It’s okay. Everything’s okay," Shaan said with a smile. "Hang in there, buddy, I’ll help you."

With all his might, Shaan pulled at the arrow, but it wasn’t as easy as he’d imagined. The arrow was lodged quite deep, and every time Shaan pulled it out, Sebastian’s groans grew louder and louder.

"Just a little more... hang in there a little longer." The arrow slowly slid outward from Sebastian’s hand. "Almost... yes, I’ve got it."

"Th-thank you, Shaan," Sebastian said weakly.

"Save your strength. I’ll take you to the others."

Shaan immediately supported Sebastian until they reached the guard tower. Several other daemonists were already there to help Shaan carry Sebastian back to Dr. Marshal’s house for further treatment.

"Thank goodness, at least Sebastian will be safe now." Shaan let out a long sigh, glancing toward the guard tower. "Thank goodness... Sebastian is safe now." Shaan let out a long breath and looked up at the watchtower. "I wonder how things are going up there. Did Sir Kael and the others manage to spread the alchemical salt?"

***

Shaan finally reached the top of the watchtower, breathing heavily. His legs burned from the long climb. His muscles tightened with every step he took up the stairs. He had not expected the tower to be this tall.

"Now..." Shaan paused for a moment, catching his breath first. "I-I need to check on Sir Kael and the others. Maybe he’s—"

"Argh, damn it! How did this happen?"

Shaan paused for a moment when he heard the shout. The voice clearly belonged to Sir Kael, and he seemed to be grumbling about something. Something must have gone wrong.

’What happened up there?’ Shaan frowned. Something felt very off.