The man with the great axe paced the room with impatience. He kept on glancing at Little John and the desire in his eyes was so obvious that the woman with the staff shook her head helplessly.
"You shouldn't be too anxious, Amar," the woman with the staff said while tying Little John with an enchanted rope. "This boy is not going anywhere."
Amar stopped his pacing and snorted. "I've been looking for the bloodline of the giant races for years. Mia, you should know more than anyone else how long I've waited for this day to arrive!"
Mia sighed because she understood more than anyone else. However, they still had things to do and the blood extraction ceremony would take half a day to complete.
"Be that as it may, you can't touch him until the boss arrives. He already gave him to us as a reward; can't you just wait a little bit longer?"
The man resumed his pacing in the room. He understood that his partner was right, but the yearning to complete his own bloodline was making him restless. When he first started as a bloodline hunter, he discovered that he had the faint traces of the Cyclops bloodline.
Although he had faint traces of the giant's bloodline in his veins, it was not enough to awaken any of its ability. The only thing it did for him was strengthen his body and gave him the [Class B] body physique.
Their organization had extensive knowledge about bloodline fusion and-- according to the records-- similar bloodlines can fuse together in order to awaken the hidden powers of the bloodline.
There was even a possibility that a new variant or mutation could take place which would give birth to a more powerful bloodline ability. For that to happen, he needed to acquire the blood of any of the giant lineage that was [Class A] or Higher.
When the woman performed an initial test on their captive, she discovered that Little John has a [Class SR] bloodline. This information nearly drove Amar crazy. If Mia was not around, he would have already performed the blood extraction ceremony without care for the consequences!
The sound of a carriage approaching snapped him back to his senses. He immediately approached the window to take a peek. When he saw the emblem on the carriage, he breathed a sigh of relief. Their boss finally arrived and their business would soon be over.
He made a gesture to Mia and the two of them left the room to meet their leader.
A minute after they left Little John opened his eyes. 'Your insight is accurate as always Kei.'
He tested the bindings on his hands and feet and confirmed their tightness. 'That old witch sure knows how to tie her captives. It's a good thing I've come prepared.'
Little John gently moved his tongue and held a small crystal bead the size of a bean between his teeth. He bit on it and his body was covered in crimson flames. The enchanted rope burned off, but his clothing remain unscathed.
It was an invention that his father and Kei's mother collaborated together and they called it the [Crimson Breaker]. Its main purpose was to burn down anything that bound the user's body.
Once he was free, he tapped the bracelet on his wrist twice. It gave off a small vibration and Little John knew that the message has been passed to his best friend. All he needed to do was wait.
-------------------------
'The outskirts of the city?' Kei frowned. Since he received Little John's signal, it meant that he was safe for the time being. 'Should I act alone or should I wait for reinforcements?'
{What do you think Grandma?}
{I think, you're about go get spooked.}
{What do you mean about to get spoo-}
A seductive voice whispered in his ear, "What are you doing here little goblin boy?"
Kei was caught off guard. He jumped off his feet in fright. He turned his head to look at the person behind him while his right hand held his chest.
A beautiful lady wearing skimpy clothing winked back at him. Her long, dark brown hair swayed softly in the breeze.
"Sister, you almost gave me a heart-attack!" Kei massaged his chest while looking at the woman with an aggrieve expression.
The beautiful lady chuckled. Her laughter echoed in the quiet night and her emerald green eyes glowed as if to further tease him.
"Auntie Ishtar, you shouldn't scare me ah!" Kei said in distress.
The lady's laughter stopped and she took a step forward. Kei was about to run away when a hand grabbed his ear and pinched it.
"Noooo! Auntie it hurts!" Kei yelped. "My ear ah! Stop ah!"
The beautiful lady, Ishtar, pulled Kei's ear in annoyance. "Who are you calling Auntie you little goblin?"
"Auntie ah! Stop ah!"
"You little twerp!"
Ishtar moved her hand away from Kei's ear and grabbed his cheek instead. She pinched it hard which made Kei yell like a pig being slaughtered.
"You dare call me Auntie when I'm just 8 years older than you?" Ishtar asked while her free hand spanked Kei's little bum. "Your mother had spoiled you rotten! Allow me to discipline you so that you will know how to respect beautiful ladies like me!"
A few minutes passed and Kei was lying on the ground with tears flowing like a river. Ishtar looked at the distance and scoffed. "Did you enjoy the show?"
Thirty men wearing capes suddenly appeared, enclosing the two of them.
"Ai~ the young miss sure is feisty."
"The young master should know better than to annoy her."
"Their family sure has a lot of hot tempered women."
"Still, to think that we would be dealing with those bloodline hunters. This makes my blood boil."
Ishtar turned her head to look at the crying Kei near her foot. "Oi, we don't have all night little goblin. You better hurry up and tell us where they are located."
Kei wiped his tears and grudgingly stood up. "Aun- Sister, you shouldn't be too hard on me ah! I'm your cousin ah!"
Ishtar flicked his forehead with a finger. "Stop talking nonsense and guide us to their location!" The anger in her voice was clearly evident, but it was not due to Kei's whining. It was her inherent hatred towards the bloodline hunters.
Kei shut up and his face turned serious. He knew that they wasted enough time already with their bantering. He nodded his head and allowed Ishtar to carry him like a princess.
"Little John is in that direction." Kei said with certainty.
Ishtar flew to the sky. "Follow me," she ordered her men.
""By your command, Young Mistress!""
Their group headed to the outskirts of Veritas with Kei guiding them to the right direction. They knew that a battle was eminent, but they were not afraid.
Grandma Sophie chuckled within the Exceed Break. {Finally, It's time for the hunters to become the hunted.}