The adventurer's rest was short. Shine did not want to stay in this confined room. She stood up and commanded the young man,
"The deed is done. Let's go outside. I want to swim in the river."
He did not object. The crypt made an impression, but there was nothing special about it. Now the summoner wanted to see daylight, too.
They walked slowly. Shine walked ahead along the wall. The young man followed her and tried to see the trap marks on the wall. Now he was thinking of the traps. Were they real? Perhaps she was mocking him and there were no traps in the crypt.
It was nice for them to come out of the enclosed room. The forest rustled with the soft sounds of its life. There were chairs not far away and the temporary camp called out for a pleasant time.
Suddenly Pete felt a strangeness. It was as if nature had sighed in frustration.
"Shine. Wait. We have guests. Not good guests."
The girl stopped before she could say anything. Pete added with an expression of firm confidence in his words,
"I'm sure. It's more than just my feeling. It's a feeling of me and dracat."
Shine froze and squinted her eyes. She listened to her surroundings. She sensed no danger. But she did not immediately refute her partner's apprehension. The summoner and his pet were worthy of attention.
The attack was swift and almost sudden.
Just then Shine was standing still, and the next moment she was leaping swiftly toward the river. Pete was expecting trouble, too. He didn't have time to be surprised.
The little black beast jumped from his shoulder and hid in the low grass. There was a strange and unpleasant change with the summoner.
A mysterious force pressed on his shoulders and made him crouch sharply on the spot. The movement was so fast that he felt a sharp pain in his legs.
Before the summoner's eyes appeared the swift figure of a stranger with a sword.
Pete realized with horror that he had narrowly escaped death. The strike of the sword went right over his head. The enemy darted past but quickly stopped. He turned and the young man was able to make out his enemy's face. There was an expression of surprise and anger on his enemy's face. How could he have missed it? The man took two quick steps forward and swung his sword from above. He wanted to split the young man's head open in one hard blow. But the young man proved to be an uncomfortable opponent.
Pete felt real terror and intense anguish. He was not ready for such an experience. One part of his mind screamed in pain and fear. And Pete didn't hide his emotions; he screamed. It wasn't swearing or other reasonable words, the young man just yelled,
"Aaah!"
His body became a disobedient instrument of another will. The alien will did not care for the young man's comfort. Pete had time in his mind to realize how quickly and deftly he was avoiding more deadly blows. He dodged and jumped sideways. His legs ached and the summoner felt as if he were moving through invisible flames. His whole body burned with an inner fire. This fire was merciless to friend and enemy alike. This fire burned away any hope of success for the enemy. Angry cries and unfamiliar words began to burst from the stranger's lips. Part of the young man's mind reacted to the events,
"It's the citizens of Plas! It's an ambush! Shine you're so cool!"
Pete shouted and his ligaments ached with exertion. He moved like a fast and sassy dodge master! Occasionally his hands would strike with quick counterattacks. The enemy would try to get close and strike exactly at the young man's body. In response, the enemy would receive painful blows to the face. One of the man's eyes was no longer seeing. The nasty young brute whipped at his face and his nails inflicted nasty scratches and small wounds. The swordsman had already realized that he was facing a master of hand-to-hand combat. Anger changed to irritation. The man didn't understand and thoughts flashed through his mind about his strange opponent, "What kind of skill is this? Why doesn't this fool use a weapon? Is he hoping to win with a punch of his hand?"
Pete was silent; he had no energy for useless action. All his energy went into fighting the swordsman. He had neither the strength nor the will to be surprised.
Events shifted with brutal swiftness. And these changes carried a threat to Shine's enemies. She was ready. The first thing she did was activate the emergency portal and summon a protector!
"El! Help!"
One dagger flew toward the enemy. The nimble bastard dodged the blade and tried to strike her with his sword. The second dagger flew at the mage with the staff. In this case, the attack was successful. It didn't hit the enemy, but it broke his concentration. Shine changed her stance and glanced in the direction of the savage. The wanderer had already fallen to his knees. "Weakling!"
From a low pillar of light, a woman jumped out. She already had swords in both hands. She immediately took part in the fight and quickly attacked one of the swordsmen. Her appearance forced the enemies to change their plans. The mage fell to the ground! The trickster realized that the trap for Ark had failed. He gripped his staff tightly and activated his portal. There is no shame in escaping. Lucky is the one who managed to evade the poisonous blades of the Black Poisoness of Ark. The mage rolled into the portal field and immediately discontinued the artifact. His partners must take care of their fate. He had messed with these losers for nothing!
One swordsman was bound by the duel with Elvira the Poisoness. He exhaled a curse and changed position. It is necessary to keep these brutes in line! And one must find the strength to kill a dangerous opponent. The squad leader knew he had little chance of winning. The young bitch turned out to be a good helper for the experienced Ark swordswoman. The swordsman was able to parry one attack. In a swift movement, he approached the woman in the black dress and struck her with his dagger. The dagger struck an obstacle. The brunette's voice was full of venom,
"I put on my chainmail right after my morning bath."
The swordsman from Plas had time to enjoy the expression of cold dignity and arrogance on his opponent's calm face. Her black eyes stared at him like he was a small insect. With one sword stroke, she blocked the attack. With another sword, she struck the hilt into her opponent's temple. She could not kill her enemy with that blow. But he fell out of reality for a moment. Elvira bounced back and slashed her enemy's neck with a sharp movement of the blade. She was no longer paying attention to this enemy. She was drawn to the amusing scene. The sight broke her self-control. Elvira laughed at the flow of the ridiculous and unusual fight. A battle of strength and dexterity was going on ahead. The swordsman from Plas was trying to strike a boy in strange clothes. This tallboy had a strange way of fighting. This young master of hand-to-hand combat showed a funny style. He fought spectacularly but not effectively. His dexterity and skill made a strong impression. He successfully dodged lethal blows with his sword. But the boy's fighting style was ineffective; his rare attacks had no significant effect. Elvira noticed with delight that this impudent boy allowed himself to taunt his opponent. She had already approached her opponents and noticed that the boy's expression was tense and detached from reality. She didn't allow herself to be distracted. A punch in the back? It's a good punch if you can hit an enemy from a foreign city. The woman had style, too. Her style was known for insidious efficiency. She didn't hit in the back. The body usually has the protection of armor. Elvira hit in the neck. Her blades were enough to scratch Arc's enemies. The strong venom served to support her deadly glory.
The sharp and narrow blade pierced the swordsman's neck and he dropped his weapon. The woman kicked the would-be dead man and addressed her ally in a hoarse voice,
"Who taught you to kill? Where are your weapons boy?"
She saw that it was not a boy, but a young man. However, her sense of dignity and peculiar sense of humor had long forged her style of dealing with the male townspeople.
She had a man. The rest of the townspeople were divided into boys and old men. This boy managed to get her attention. But his manners were as ridiculous as his clothes. The impudent boy said no words of greeting or thanks. He dropped to his knees and rolled onto his side. Elvira had long dealt with mages. Everyone has their abilities, everyone pays their price for their successes. She cast one last look at the young man. He didn't lose consciousness, he lay on his side and moaned softly. The woman turned and walked toward her acquaintance.
"Hello, girl. Did you get in trouble again?"
Shine sighed and said her greetings,
"Bad day. Hi, El. Thanks for your help. Bastards from Plas! Half the proceeds will go to the new portal."
The woman looked around and listened to her surroundings. With a sharp movement, she returned the swords to the scabbards on her belt. She had done her duty and wanted to return to the city. As she said goodbye, she wagged her finger at the girl,
"The boy can have my trophies from that corpse. He amused me. You can search for this swordsman. Stay away from the boy. He's strange."
Elvira paid no attention to the girl's reaction. Job has done, she should get back to town. She could get another challenge at any moment! She smiled at her thoughts, "Good day. Two losers from the Plas. I'm closing the gap. Soon I'll overtake this big-eared handsome guy!"
The woman activated her portal and returned to her business and duties.
Shine looked at the young man and snorted. The wretched weakling! He escaped death, but he acted like a jerk. He probably got a few wounds and is now lying on the grass bleeding. First, she will gather her weapons. Then she will collect her trophies. Elvira is as benevolent and caring as ever. Good armor and weapons can be taken off any corpse from the Plas. It would make up for the expense of a new emergency portal. The girl moved swiftly, her eyes carefully fixed on the ground. The master of the short blade has special weapons. Her daggers are enchanted by a good artifactor. The girl leaned the thumb of her right hand against the ring on her little finger. The ring artifact made the dagger she threw at the mage recoil. Coward! He managed to escape. Snake of Plas, slippery and cowardly. He knew at once that he had to save his skin. The girl went over and picked up the dagger from the ground. Now it was time to examine the trophies.
With a satisfied and cruel smile, she walked toward the corpse. Shine laughed in response to the sudden thought,
"This wanderer could work as good trap bait!"