All Chapters of Jade: The Hybrid Mage: Chapter 11 - Chapter 20

The carriage loomed ahead like a relic from a storybook—sleek and metallic, with intricate engravings glowing faintly in the early morning light. Its structure was unlike anything I had ever seen. No horses were tethered to it, yet it rested firmly on the ground, humming faintly with energy.“This is your ride?” I asked, my voice betraying my disbelief.“You’ve never seen magic engineering before?” Lydia asked, an amused glint in her eyes.“Not like this.” My gaze traced the gleaming lines along the carriage, the faint blue aura emanating from its underside. “It moves without horses?”Gidon snickered from behind me. “Not just moves, girl—it flies. Okay, maybe not flies, but it’s fast. Faster than anything you’ve ridden before.”Inside, the wonder only grew. The carriage’s interior was a marvel of intricate machinery and cozy design. Gears and pipes ran along the walls, glowing softly as if alive. The seats were cushioned leather, worn but sturdy, and a centerpiece dominated the room:

"Blooby!" Lydia shouted, her voice cutting through the rising tension as we stood on the brink of chaos. She fiddled nervously with her glasses, one foot tapping incessantly against the dirt. "What are our chances of survival?"Blooby's copper head tilted slightly, gears whirring as he calculated."Bloob . . . I estimate we have a 57% chance of defeating them.""Fifty-seven?" Butcher's deep laugh rumbled through the group like thunder."That's good enough for me!" Не slammed his axes together, sparks flying from the collision."Why am I not surprised you think that's good odds?" Gidon muttered, already pulling a smoke flare from his cross-bag. "Thicker mist. Better cover. We can run for it."Before anyone could respond, he hurled the flare at the orc-monkeys."You dumb prick!" Lydia yelled, her voice a mix of panic and frustration. "What makes you think a smoke flare will stop a bunch of orc-monkeys?"With a sharp motion, she pulled a glowing device from her belt and flung it toward t

“How can someone so smart be so reckless?” Gidon muttered, following after her.“She knows you’ll come to her rescue, idiot,” Butcher said with a laugh, paddling next to me.One moment Lydia was ahead of us, and the next, she was gone.“Where has . . . bloob . . . master gone?” Blooby asked, his voice tinged with worry.“Let’s get to the sound first,” the boss said, his calm tone masking the tension in his movements."Whoa!"Suddenly, a powerful force yanked me forward, and the world blurred. In an instant, I was standing in a triangular room, Lydia and Gidon already there, looking equally disoriented.“Welcome,” Lydia said, seeming too amused for the situation we were in.“What just happened?” Butcher asked as he appeared beside us.“Look up,” Lydia whispered, her voice tinged with awe.Above us, suspended in the center of the room, was a sleek, oval object. Its surface gleamed like polished silver, and faint red patterns pulsed along its edges.“I am G-Mech, 0100,” a feminine voice

“I see you wrinkling your nose, weird woman.” The boy looked over his shoulder, then turned back toward the foggy path ahead. “That smell? That’s nature having intercourse with the stench of monster droppings to create a whole new kind of garbage aroma. Learn to live with it. Like the fog, it’s here to stay.”I grimaced. “The air feels thicker, too.” I touched my dampened hair, my fingers brushing the beads of moisture clinging to it.“Learn to live with that too,” he said nonchalantly. “You’ll also notice the ground vibrating beneath your feet. That’s the earth whispering to you, weird woman. It never stops.”“You don’t say?” I limped slightly, having tripped on a sharp stone earlier.Without a word, the boy had pulled a small container from his cross-bag and smeared a pungent paste over my knee. It stung, but I realized quickly it wasn’t for the pain—it was to mask the scent of my blood.“You feel it in your belly, don’t you?” he asked, his sharp laughter echoing through the trees.

The next morning, I’d just finished washing up in the bamboo bathroom when the village erupted into chaos.“There’s a wild boar heading toward the Shelter!” someone shouted, their voice tinged with panic.I rushed outside, my hair still damp, and found the settlement in uproar.“That’s free food! A few of our finest hunters can surely kill a wild boar!” an Oldling roared, his grin wide.“The Duwlamarey has it, Elder,” another voice countered, silencing the crowd.The air grew heavy with fear. People scrambled toward underground rooms as the Chief, his staff adorned with its human skull, barked orders.“Hurry! Everyone underground! Hunters, to your positions!”“What are you doing?” Gib hissed, grabbing my arm.“I want to see it,” I replied, breaking free and crawling beneath one of the huts.“That’s crazy! Let’s go!”But I ignored him, too curious to turn back.The boar shattered the bamboo gate with a single strike, its roar echoing through the village. The sound pierced my heightened