<div> The abandoned manor was closer to the Black Forest camp than Luca had anticipated. They reached the entrance in half the time they had originally planned.
 At the entrance, Lucas gathered everyone together and gave his final instructions in a low voice.
 "Everyone should have the plan firmly in mind, right? This is your first time executing a mission. I know you're all very nervous, so it's even more important to keep the plan clear in your minds."
 He glanced over the group. Except for Luca, everyone else looked very anxious. Lucas couldn't help but place even more importance on Luca.
 "If, during the mission, you encounter something you can't handle, you must ask me or Cole for help. We'll take care of it."
 Although Luca had no prior experience on missions, Lucas had already considered him to be at least on the same level as himself. He believed Luca could stay calm in a crisis and help others when needed.
 The team members nodded solemnly.
 "Alright! Since everyone is ready, let's get moving. We must complete the mission before dark. If we can't finish, you must exit the manor before nightfall."
 With these final words, Lucas led the group into the abandoned manor according to their plan.
 After passing through the desolate manor's open area, they were blocked by a wall that suddenly appeared in the middle of the road.
 "Captain, according to the map, this wall shouldn't be here! What do we do now? This wall is blocking our way."
 A team member holding the map anxiously asked Lucas.
 <div style="margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:10px;text-align:center">
 <div>
 
 </div>
 </div> Lucas didn't respond immediately. He was also surprised, but as someone who had executed many missions, he knew not to show his surprise or anxiety in front of the rookies.
 He feigned calmness and said, "Don't worry, there's another path on the map. We can bypass that building and continue as planned!"
 He turned to head toward the alternate route, but just then, Luca stopped him.
 "What's wrong? Cole, did you notice something?"
 Lucas frowned and asked.
 He didn't want a conflict to arise between the two strongest members during the mission.
 Luca didn't respond to Lucas' question. Instead, he motioned with his eyes for Lucas to look in the direction of the wall.
 Lucas followed Luca's gaze toward the suddenly appearing wall, and he saw a shadow flickering in the distance.
 In that instant, he understood what Luca meant.
 They had come here to eliminate all the monsters in the abandoned manor. Since the monsters had already appeared, they couldn't afford to take a detour.
 If they turned around here, they might never encounter monsters again. They might even miss their only opportunity.
 Lucas nodded.
 "Everyone, get ready for battle! We've come here to eliminate all the monsters in the manor. Since the monsters have appeared, we have no reason to retreat."
 With that, he immediately transformed into a giant bear.
 The rest of the team, except for Luca, gasped in surprise.
 While they knew Lucas had immense combat abilities, they had never seen him transform into a phantom giant bear before.
 Luca coldly addressed the others.
 "You all must be ready for battle. I don't believe there is only one monster around us."
 With that, he charged forward, following Lucas toward the shadowy figure ahead.
 He didn't intend to use the Dragon-Slayer Greatsword. He didn't even want to use his powerful skills.
 He had to conceal his true strength, at least for now, so no one would recognize his true identity. If his true identity were discovered, forces from the Eternal World would quickly come after him.
 That would ruin his plan entirely.
 As Lucas and Luca moved forward, the other team members began to carefully observe their surroundings.
 Just as Luca had predicted, there weren't just one monster here.
 When Lucas and Luca separated from the others, a large group of monsters suddenly emerged from the shadows. These monsters all appeared as vague humanoid figures.
 The team members were terrified by the sight of these monsters.
 In their panic, they instinctively huddled together, using their weak combat abilities to try to resist the monsters' attacks.
 Both Lucas and Luca noticed what was happening behind them.
 But they didn't intend to turn back, because the monsters attacking the other team members were weak.
 Even an ordinary person with strong physical fitness, but without training, could repel those monsters.
 The two of them had to focus their attention on the powerful monster behind the wall.
 As they quickly approached, the monster did not take any action.
 It merely coldly watched their movements.
 During the rush, both Lucas and Luca had doubts.
 However, neither of them had any way out, as they had to finish this mission as quickly as possible.
𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝚠𝕖𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝕖𝚕.𝚌𝗼𝗺 Lucas, in his phantom giant bear form, was the first to engage with the monster.
 The giant bear's claws swiped directly at the monster, but the attack didn't cause any damage to the shadowy monster.
 <div style="margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:10px;text-align:center">
 <div></div>
 </div> The claws passed right through the monster's body.
 Lucas was slightly surprised, and just as he was stunned, the shadowy monster used its shadow to generate a mass of ropes.
 These ropes quickly bound the phantom giant bear form of Lucas.
 In that instant, Lucas realized his actions had been reckless.
 It would be very difficult for him to escape unscathed this time.
 Just then, a fiery blast suddenly shot from behind and hit the shadowy monster directly.
 Lucas turned to look and indeed saw Luca, with a serious expression on his face.
 "Well done, Cole!"
 Lucas praised, then attacked the shadowy monster again.
 This time, his attack landed.
 The fiery blast just now was created by Luca, activating the fire magic runes.
 The flames from the fire magic runes could, to some extent, trap a phantom monster in its illusionary state.
 With Lucas attacking the monster once more, Luca finally relaxed.
 He felt that he wouldn't need to intervene anymore.
 Lucas could easily eliminate the shadowy monster on his own.
 However, just as he began to relax, a sudden feeling of panic overtook him.
 It was a clear danger warning.
 After gaining such powerful strength, his max-level Perception ability gave him a strong sense of danger.
 Luca quickly scanned his surroundings.
 He didn't see any immediate danger.
 The danger warning didn't provide a very clear indication, so he had to rely on his observation to find the source of the threat.
 As he scanned his surroundings, a sudden sound of something slicing through the air came from nearby.
 The moment Luca heard the sound, he instinctively took a step to the side.
 As soon as his movement was completed, an arrow glowing with an unsettling green light flew past, grazing his cheek.
 In that instant, he realized there were other enemies present.
 Without hesitation, he activated the defense magic runes.
 At the same time, he sent a warning to his teammates.
 "Be careful! There are other enemies here! And the hidden ones are the biggest threat to us!"
 Luca's warning came a little too late.
 As soon as his words left his mouth, the sound of something slicing through the air rang out again and again.
 Almost all of the other team members, except for him and Lucas, were killed instantly.
 Meanwhile, Lucas found himself in a tough battle.
 Although in his phantom giant bear form, he was somewhat immune to physical damage, it was clear that the arrows fired by the hidden enemies had been specially treated.
 Lucas had numerous bleeding wounds all over his body.
 At this point, both Luca and Lucas found themselves in a desperate situation.
 They had to quickly escape the battlefield, but neither the shadowy monster nor the hidden enemies would let them leave easily.
 Just a few seconds later, the sound of something slicing through the air became increasingly intense.
 Although Luca had already activated the defense magic runes, he felt he couldn't hold out much longer.
 <div style="margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:10px;text-align:center">
 <div></div>
 </div> Every time an arrow hit the shield, it weakened the shield's power.
 From the first arrow until now, less than ten seconds had passed.
 The shield generated by the defense magic runes had already been significantly weakened.
 Luca realized he could no longer hesitate.
 No matter what, he had to get Lucas out of there.
 Only by taking Lucas with him could he convince the forces of Crimson King that what he said was true.
 If he ran off alone, they would find it hard to believe him.
 He quickly moved to Lucas' side, who was still struggling with the shadowy monster.
 "We're in an ambush! We must get out of here quickly!"
 Without waiting for Lucas to respond, Luca grabbed the giant bear form of Lucas and ran towards the nearest building at full speed.
 Finding a place to evade the hidden enemies' attacks was the most important thing.
 Although there might be some monsters inside the building, staying inside was still far better than being outside, surrounded by the barrage of dark arrows fired by numerous enemies.</div>
 

<div style="margin-top:10px;margin-bottom:0px;text-align:center">
 <div>
 
 </div>
</div>

Chapter 495: The Predicament

The abandoned manor was closer to the Black Forest camp than Luca had anticipated. They reached the entrance in half the time they had originally planned. At the entrance, Lucas gathered everyone together and gave his final instructions in a low voice. "Everyone should have the plan firmly in mind, right? This is your first time executing a mission. I know you're all very nervous, so it's even more important to keep the plan clear in your minds." He glanced over the group. Except for Luca,...

Online Game: I Started with Max Charisma and Caught the Goddess's Eye

Chapter 495: The Predicament

Online Game: I Started with Max Charisma and Caught the Goddess's Eye - Chapter 495: The Predicament