Atai'er didn't spend all his time watching Eric and the two girls after he left.
He found a place by himself.
He set up a shelter on the branch of an ancient tree.
The three of them returned to the shelter, slept well, ate, and then began their training in the afternoon.
Eric was the first to receive guidance, while the two girls cleaned themselves up in the shelter.
"Was that Hydra Lizard created by a black dragon?"
Eric asked.
Atai'er nodded and said,
"Yes, it should be an ancient black dragon, around 1000 years old, possibly part of Tiamat's plan."
Eric liked this about Atai'er.
He wasn't one to speak in riddles at all.
The two of them walked to an open space, and Atai'er drew the short sword from his waist, saying,
"Is there anything you want to learn?"
Eric had already decided which spells he wanted to learn before going to bed last night.
"West Wind Strike and Blazing Slash."
West Wind Strike, a classic Ranger skill.
By using Wind Element to surround his body, he could not only increase the flexibility of his movements and his speed, but also enhance Eric's Gale Slash.
As for Blazing Slash, it was more of a spell-like skill.
This skill was a fiery Chop, and its main feature was that it could ignite the wound of the target it struck.
After Eric finished speaking, he looked at Atai'er and asked,
"Teacher, is there anything else you'd like to add?"
Atai'er nodded and said,
"Let's add Hunter's Mark."
Eric narrowed his eyes.
Hunter's Mark was a skill that only those who were both a Ranger and had the Hunter class could learn.
It was a magical marking skill; marked enemies' movements were easier for the Ranger to perceive, but similarly, the Ranger's attention would also be overly drawn to a single enemy.
It was a double-edged sword.
But for dealing with a single target like a Hydra Lizard, it was indeed a very good skill.
Eric nodded and said,
"Please teach me, Teacher."
— —
After a night of rest, Margaret's body had a large layer of dead skin.
She only left the shelter after Judy helped her clean herself.
And at this time, Eric had already begun his practice.
Atai'er waved to Margaret.
The two of them walked together to another open space, and to Margaret's surprise, there were two Swamp Giant Frogs in front of them in the open space.
Smelling the strange odor from the Swamp Giant Frogs, Margaret couldn't help but gag.
Atai'er was unaffected.
He looked back at Margaret and asked,
"You are of the Knight class, and I've always wondered why you don't have a mount. Was it tricked away by a demigod?"
Margaret quickly composed herself and said,
"No, Mr. Atai'er."
Atai'er looked at Margaret, signaling her to continue.
Margaret proudly lifted her head and looked at Atai'er, saying,
"Since I was little, I grew up listening to the story of a Knight. That Knight was the founding Knight of the Leon Empire, titled Silver Knight."
"This Silver Knight slayed dragons, thwarted the schemes of the Undead Overlord Orcus, and even liberated the Wild Rakshasa Orcs of the west..."
"He is a great hero of the kingdom, and his greatest characteristic is—he had no mount."
After saying that, Margaret proudly patted her chest and said,
"It can be said that without that Silver Knight, there would be no this country. I intend to learn from that Silver Knight and become a—"
"—Hmm?"
"Mr. Atai'er, why are you covering your face?"
Atai'er lowered the hand covering his face.
He was silent for a long time.
Until Margaret reminded him again:
"Mr. Atai'er, what's wrong?"
Only then did Atai'er say,
"Don't learn from him."
"But that Knight cultivated in such a way, he must have his own path—"
"No, there's no logic to it at all."
"No, he—"
"I'm teaching you now, not him."
"Oh."
Hearing Margaret's weak response, Atai'er finally breathed a sigh of relief.
He was silent again for a while before saying,
"Half of a Knight's strength comes from his mount."
"Margaret, if you had been riding a fast horse, even a nag, when you dueled Eric, he wouldn't have dared to tease you like that."
At this, Margaret's face flushed with anger. She said,
"I didn't want to really hurt him then."
"So, Eric didn't intend to kill you at first either."
Atai'er finished speaking and walked towards the Swamp Giant Frogs behind him.
He patted the head of a Swamp Giant Frog. This gentle and brave beast extended its long tongue and licked Atai'er's hand, looking like a big dog.
"If you had a good mount, with your abilities, you could have cut off the Hydra Lizard's head yourself yesterday."
Margaret lowered her head.
She knew Atai'er was right.
But the problem was:
"But where can I find a mount in this Swamp?"
"Isn't this it?"
"Where?"
"Swamp Giant Frog."
"!"
Margaret looked at the Swamp Giant Frog by Atai'er's hand, as docile as a dog.
Its brown, lumpy skin, the unknown mucus secreted on its skin, and even as Margaret looked at it, a bubble went "poof" on its head, swelling and bursting.
Margaret was in disarray.
"No, no, no, no—"
After a world-shattering scream, Margaret broke down:
"I don't want this mount, please, Teacher Atai'er, don't do this to me, have pity on me."
"Give me another one, please, give me another one."
Atai'er said coldly,
"No, in this Swamp, this is the most suitable mount. It's heavy, has strong explosive power, and is gentle and brave. This is it."
"I want to learn from Silver Knight, I don't want a mount anymore."
Atai'er finally got angry:
"You are not allowed to mention him. Get on the mount."
"No—"
— —
That night, the group returned to the shelter together.
Eric looked at Margaret and Teacher Atai'er with confusion.
Both of them were unusually silent today.
They looked like they had lost their dreams.
"Margaret, why do you smell bad?"
Eric asked in confusion.
Judy said from the side,
"Do you? It's just the smell of the Swamp, isn't it? It seems Margaret gets along very well with Swamp creatures."
After Judy spoke, Margaret looked even more withdrawn.
Eric looked at Atai'er again.
Usually, Atai'er would read a book as soon as he returned, but today his eyes were visibly vacant, and he sat by the fireplace, looking like an old man lost in thought.
Eric blinked, but still didn't dare to poke the tiger's whiskers of Atai'er.
He wisely chose not to court death.
"Margaret, what happened today? You were screaming quite happily in the woods."
Margaret's eyes widened, her pupils trembled wildly, and her face sagged like a ghost's. She instantly grabbed Eric's shoulders and said,
"Eric, do you want to receive Knight training?"
Eric's breathing hitched.
No, this situation wasn't good.
"No, no, no, I just want to be a Ranger."
"No, Eric, you want to be a Knight, you want to ride a strange mount, you yearn..."
"Margaret, calm down, calm down."
"Eric, feel the mount's love for you."
"No—"