Chapter 25
“Little brother Dilias, we’ve been walking for a long time, but we’re just going in circles. This isn’t looking good.”
How many times have we seen the sword-cross mark Dilias drew in the mud?
Dyne’s heavy eye bags sagged under his eyes, the dark wrinkles clearly visible.
Everyone’s condition wasn’t particularly good.
“Lina, Miss Lina?”
Her body slowly tilted, falling toward the ground. Dilias hurriedly stepped forward to support Lina.
“What’s wrong with Lina?”
Phyllis, the chatterbox, had almost stopped speaking. Having lost his usual mischievous look, he used his spear as a crutch, walking with difficulty. His face was pale, whether from exhaustion or the cold, no one knew.
Without his chatter, the excessive silence tormented every team member with voiceless fear. Seeing the Ranger responsible for scouting in such a frail state, one could imagine the consequences if magical beasts attacked.
“She fainted. Probably too tired. We’ve been here too long, the mist is getting thicker, and breathing is becoming harder.”
“If this goes on, will we die here?”
Dyne sat on the ground, resting his poleaxe on his thigh, staring blankly at the surrounding woods. The only response was the endless white mist.
“Sorry, everyone. I didn’t think this through.”
Dilias felt deep self-blame. If he had considered things more carefully and been more cautious, the team wouldn’t have ended up like this. They should have been happily drinking and eating in a tavern, not gradually being swallowed by the mist here.
As the youngest, Dilias was actually in the best condition of the team.
“No, Little brother Dilias. We were also blinded by greed. It’s not your fault.”
Dyne stood up unsteadily.
Multiple shadows appeared in the mist, slowly approaching Dilias’s team.
These shadows were not humanoid but quadrupedal. Soft paw pads stepped on the soil, emitting muffled growls.
“Fierce-Toothed Leopards, and there are six of them.”
Dilias warned his teammates.
“That’s… a magical beast that takes an Orichalcum-rank Demon Hunter to handle alone. These beasts really know how to pick their time.”
“It’s no use. In our current state… even if the three of us go together, we can’t take down two of them. Our most important magical support can’t fight either. Are we going to end here?”
Phyllis raised his spear, pointing the tip at the distant leopard shadows.
Dilias turned to look at the unconscious Lina. Her mage robe was stained with mud, and her exposed thighs had quite a few scratches from thorns.
He swallowed his saliva.
“Dyne, Phyllis, you two take Lina and go first. I’ll hold off these leopards.”
He didn’t know why he said such a thing. Maybe with death approaching, he wanted to be a hero for once? He knew very well this wasn’t out of love for Lina; Dilias just felt that a girl like her shouldn’t die in a place like this.
“Dilias… we are your seniors…”
“Alright, go quickly. I’ll be fine, leave it to me.”
How could I be fine? There’s only one outcome, and that is death, becoming a delicious meal for the leopards. Whether a Demon Hunter kills a magical beast or feeds a magical beast depends entirely on the Demon Hunter’s own strength. This is the only surviving law in this world where the weak are prey to the strong.
And right now, Dilias is the weak one, and the Fierce-Toothed Leopards are the strong ones. The result is obvious.
“I’ll stay and fight with Dilias. Dyne, you take Lina and go!”
Dilias initially thought the glib-tongued Phyllis was mostly a coward who feared death, but he didn’t expect him to offer to stay and die with him.
But he appreciated the gesture.
“Let’s go, Phyllis. Don’t let Little brother Dilias’s good intentions go to waste. You don’t want to see Dilias’s sad face when Lina dies, do you?”
Dyne carried Lina on his back and beckoned Phyllis to hurry.
“Damn it! You must survive, Dilias.”
Stomping his foot hard, Phyllis ran after Dyne. He knew Dilias’s chances of survival were slim.
“Yeah.”
The black-haired youth only responded softly.
His slightly trembling hand tightly gripped the dull iron longsword.
“Sorry, please accompany me on this last journey, partner.”
It had been two years since he bought this dull iron longsword from the weapon shop. It had gained quite a few scratches, but it was still sharp. Having gone through life and death with him, Dilias had long regarded it as a partner, not just a sword.
