Billy decided to focus on speed and search around as fast as possible. While that would decrease the operation time of his armor, he didn't have the leisure to change any other option. Still, despite that, he only found destroyed villages and entire annihilated fields where he could only imagine that a meteor destroyed everything around… without creating a crater or spreading too much damage. It was pretty similar to the epicenter of the earthquake. Regardless, there was no sign of the morons or of other villages. He could think of a few answers as to why things were like that, but it was hard to be sure for certain, he would need more data to find his answer.
"Maybe I should change my approach," Billy thought while rubbing his chin.
While looking around, Billy recalled that creating towns and villages and plain sight wouldn't be the smartest thing to do when one wants to keep some secrets. With that in mind, some tribes probably would create hidden villages. Using the environment or even magic is probably where the best option. Underground, inside mountains, or hidden inside mana barriers… Those were the possibilities that Billy considered.
"The mana level here is too high for me to see or sense anything underground or inside mountains, but I suppose looking for trails around will be my best option," Billy thought.
Billy had a time limit to do that. However, there was a better way to look for the possible inhabitants of that area. Billy looked around again and saw some rain clouds approaching in the distance… Those would give him the chance to remain hidden while he acts.
After waiting for a couple of minutes, the clouds approached and began to bathe the entire area. Even the rain there was a lot more intense than expected. Using his eyes alone, Billy was only able to see things in a few hundred meters away from him. He had quite a confidence in his eyes, so Billy was almost certain that no one would be able to see him…
Billy flew high in the sky, and then he suddenly began to fly downward without holding back on speed. In the end, he landed on one of the spots that looked like some massive erase had destroyed things from reality… His attack caused another tremor and even opened a crater that was one hundred meters wide. Several trees in the vicinity began to fall since their roots had been damaged… In any case, Billy quickly returned to the sky while invisible.
Billy's attack changed the undulations of the mana around quite a bit… it turned an area of dozens of kilometers into a completely plain and unmovable sea of mana. At least it looked like one under his magic telescope. Thanks to that, it would be easy to find anything with a decent chunk of mana moving around. Considering what he just did, it was bound for someone to come and check things eventually… if his theory that some inhabitants were hidden nearby.
In the end, Billy had to wait for two hours for the rain to die down and the weather and visibility to improve. At the same time, Billy also realized that things like the rain could change the mana around and completely erase all traces left behind by monsters and people.
"I guess I was lucky in coming here before the rain…" Billy thought.
While Billy was thinking about that, he found some undulations in the mana around. Still, he couldn't see anyone or anything. After a closer look, he found some shadows made of mana moving around using some trees to hide while approaching.
"I guess they are using some invisibility spell…" Billy thought. "It doesn't surprise me."
Regardless, the first part of Billy's plan worked, so he had to decide his next steps. He could either attack them and force them to tell him everything they know or follow them until they head to their base. Billy couldn't say if they were the ones who got Icarus and Lucyna. Still, people that could become invisible certainly would cause them trouble. At the same time… Billy confirmed that they weren't that suited for combat.
Slagrer - Lv 172
HP: 103/ 103
MP: 1741/ 1741
SP: 245/ 245
Strength: 31
Speed: 55
Magic: 842
Endurance: 25
Dexterity: 68
Status Points: 00
Skills:
Spells: Invisibility Lv 146, Fake Reflex Lv 44
Passive:
Skill Points: 00
"They are just like those guys that could manipulate those giant monsters. They only have one specialty," Billy thought.
Billy didn't know if that was a trait that certain tribes would have or if they focused on only using that to survive, but either way, it was quite handy. Regardless, those guys approached the area that Billy attacked, but not enough to check the whole crater. They were either cautious or very afraid of enemies…
After a couple of minutes, they began to retreat, and Billy followed them. Eventually, they reached the base of a mountain, and Billy almost blinked his eyes in surprise when they suddenly disappeared. However, after checking the mana around, Billy saw that some rocks at the base of the mountain had a lot of mana… Apparently, they used their invisibility spell to create a barrier in front of their hideout… An illusory one.
"I already know where that is, but I need to check if others will come. If they don't, I already know what to do…" Billy furrowed his eyebrows.
Billy waited for three hours, and then eventually, it got dark. Most likely, there was a chance that some others would come to check things at night, but Billy couldn't wait for that long. If anything goes wrong, he can check the traces left by them once he deals with the guys inside the hideout in the mountain.
"I won't take any chances, so I guess I will kill without asking anything…" Billy thought.
That kind of approach was new for Billy, but he couldn't hesitate in enemy territory. It did or die now…
