“Is it really not… some sort of trap…?”

“I… don’t think so… After all, I can’t detect any mana . There’s no magic formation on the ground, either . I don’t think anything would happen even if we went over to it . ”

Mommy Vyvyan and I sat behind a tree to wait for the owner of the crucible to show up for it . The crucible was our bait . I was sure that as long as it remained here, the owner would come for it . However, the two of us staked out fo long time . We waited from morning until the sun was down behind the trees, yet n.o.body came .

I wondered if the crucible would rust if n.o.body came for it . I suspected it was a trap, in that it was bait to lure us over . Mommy Vyvyan clearly shared my thought . Mom backed off a little then examined the nearby mana again . But nonetheless, it was affirmative that there was no magic formation . In other words, it was a trap without a magic formation . I confidently scanned our surroundings . I didn’t find anything to suggest that there was a trap in the trees… I looked in the direction of the crucible .

We were in a dilemma . Should we approach the crucible of our own volition? It could’ve been a trap but might not have been . Alternatively, we could keep waiting . If we activated the trap, the culprit would spring . If we continued patiently waiting, we might’ve won . It might not have been so complex .

The creatures all had issues with their mana . Based off the information we had on hand, it wasn’t a problem . We didn’t know if it’d evolve into a problem when their mana surged on the full-moon night, though . If we didn’t resolve the issue, we might’ve had a tragedy on our hands as a consequence .

I glanced over to Mom . Mom didn’t look panicked . Elves were much more patient than humans . Mommy Vyvyan didn’t think a contest of patience would be an issue . She wasn’t in a rush to resolve the issue, but I wasn’t too enthusiastic about waiting . Who could guarantee the culprit didn’t forget it there? If we went over to it, we might’ve been able to find out what they used it for .

“Mom, I want to go and check the crucible out . ”

Mom gave me a smile: “Do you? It’s not too safe to do that . Frankly, Son, if it’s a trap, an accident might happen when you touch it . Mommy told you already: dark elves might be in possession of some strange magic . ”

“If it’s a trap, it’s best if I touch it, since I have my dragon scales protecting me . Common weapons designed to deal specifically with elves and magic are ineffective against me . It’s pointless for us to wait here . In fact, we may miss out on a good opportunity . If this criminal’s plan was to make us want until the full-moon night, when mana levels are boosted, it’d make the trip here for nothing . ”

“Mommy should go and touch it, then . It’s a disgrace for a mother to make her child take the risk . ”

“No, leave it to me, Mom . Just as you can’t accept letting me take the risk, I can’t accept letting you take the risk, either . It’s safer for me to go . ”

Though I refused Mom, Mom tightly hugged me exuberantly . She kissed my forehead: “Mommy is so happy to hear that, Son, so, so happy . However, since neither of us can take the risk, neither of us should touch it, then . ”

“But that’s not a plausible solution . How long will we wait here for? If something happens as a result of our delay, we’ll be held responsible; therefore, Mom, let me go . I’ll be all right . I have dragon scales now, so it’s very unlikely a trap will hurt me . Plus, didn’t you say there was no magic formation, Mom? It must be a human style trap, then . Humanity’s traps can’t possibly hurt me, so don’t worry . ”

I didn’t give Mom a chance to continue arguing . I headed over to the crucible . Mom watched me with a dumbfounded look then intently surveyed the direction I headed . She kept her hand on my back the entire time so that she could immediately cast magic on me if needed . I cautiously walked over to the empty spot . There was no obvious fake gra.s.s on the ground, so I doubted there were any traps . The surroundings looked normal, and there were no mouse traps on the ground .

I arrived before the crucible . The empty s.p.a.ce wasn’t actually very s.p.a.cious . There were no traps . Thus, it would seem that the crucible was the only thing there . I turned my head around to look at Mom . She nodded . She stood straight up to try and come in front of me, but I stopped her .

It was a common looking crucible . There was nothing that made it stand out . There were some dregs left inside . I surmised it must’ve been used for boiling something, specifically the man-made mana source .

The instant my hand gently touched the crucible, it suddenly began to tremble . A cold breeze suddenly dispersed and froze all of the gra.s.s in front, turning it into a field of ice . The trap wasn’t set in the land but on the crucible .

I was completely indifferent to the ice on the lawn and my hand . Mom, to the contrary, was horrified . If I was my old self, I’d probably be an ice block already . Fortunately, I was immune to mana thanks to my dragon scales and, therefore, didn’t take any damage .

“Are you all right, Son?!!”

I quickly stopped Mom from rus.h.i.+ng over to me . All of a sudden, I felt a p.r.i.c.kly sensation on my face . A crisp sound came from my face . I stopped Mom from approaching me, as I heard the vibration of a bowstring . The arrow accurately hit my temple; unfortunately for my a.s.sailant, my dragon scales deflected it .

Mom froze stiff for a moment before blasting a fire ball over in the direction the arrow came from . An elf donning a cloak pathetically rolled out from the bushes and landed in front of us . She didn’t hesitate to fire another three arrows . Before I guarded against them, Mom sent the three arrows flying elsewhere with a flick of her hand, frightening the girl . She scuttled along the ground and threw a handful of dirt at us then immediately teleported away .

“She has a target to teleport to? It looks as though she really was prepared,” Mom cursed, expression violent . “n.o.body is allowed to fire arrows at my son . She may have teleported away, but I can sense her traces . Let’s go, Son . We’re going to erase her existence now . ”

I nodded . I snapped the arrows with a stomp then went to Mom’s side . Mom looked genuinely furious . I suppose she couldn’t accept me being attacked despite me not getting hurt .