"I must admit that you are a genius at the Foundational Level, Miss Crystal. You even managed to injure two of our people. But you could only do so because of your special tools, and I'm sure you're out of any more tricks. Besides, you are injured." The man spoke while trying to dissuade the girl from doing anything stupid. "Don't think about escaping by jumping into the river, as that will prove to be futile. So, it'd be better if you came with us."
The girl scoffed, "Ha. Do you think I'm stupid enough to jump into the river and become an easy target? I am going to kill you all here and drink this river water as my victory drink." Her body emitted a fierce aura which made it clear that she wasn't going to go down without a fight.
'Hmm. That was a cool line.' Anom had encountered some fierce girls before but this girl made a really good impression on him. Her courage was commendable.
Rustle~!
Anom looked behind and saw that the two injured people had already caught up. He looked at the three people in front of him. They were going to start fighting anytime now.
'Let's follow this cliché script.'
Anom turned back and sneaked behind the two injured people. He followed after them without making any noise.
They were still far from the other two. They couldn't see the situation out there so they were trying their best to move faster to help the other two in catching the girl.
Anom appeared behind them like a spectre. He hit both of them behind their heads with enough force to knock them out.
They weren't carrying any bags with them, so Anom checked their clothes. He was hoping to find something useful. He was a little excited about his first plundering in this world. Well, not that these people were some strong and rich people, but he was still enjoying his first robbing experience. The anticipation of not knowing what he would find was enjoyable.
The two black-clothed men and the girl named Crystal had already started fighting.
Crystal was in a bad situation as the two black-clothed men had the number advantage. Furthermore, they were forcing her into a corner and making her lose her strength faster, while they were exerting much less effort. They were still wary about the girl having another special tool.
The girl was the only one who knew that she was out of tricks. She was now regretting using all her special tools before. The tools only managed to injure one of them seriously, while the other had dodged the attack and only suffered a minor wound.
If she still had even one special tool, then the situation right now could have been different.
But it was no use regretting it now. She kept fighting with all her might. She was wielding a sleek short-sword with a blue handle. Her sword technique was good, but it was still not enough to cope with the raw force behind her two opponents' attacks who wielded long swords.
She was already at a disadvantage and soon she was forced into a defensive stance, making her unable to retaliate. The number of injuries she suffered was increasing, making her situation even more critical.
While they were locked in their fight, they heard a sound coming from the direction of the forest.
The two black-clothed men already knew that it was the other two people who were injured in the skirmish before. After taking a side along glance, they focused back on their fight while one of them shouted, "Place him down and help us take her down quickly."
The girl's reaction was the opposite of her opponents'. She despaired at the thought of facing another opponent and suffered another injury due to her distraction.
'Is this the end?' she asked herself.
The man who was carrying his friend put him down on the ground and charged towards the fight.
He was carrying two short swords as he raised them above his head while running forward. He took his hands down and…
…hit the two black-clothed men in the back of their heads with the handles of the sword.
The two black-clothed men widened their eyes while trying to turn around to see the face of the 'traitor' who hit them. But before they could do so, they fell down, passed out on the ground.
Anom placed the two short swords on his waist. It was one of the items he had plundered from the two injured men.
He looked at the girl who was standing stunned and looking at him through her cloak. Her eyes were wide in shock as she was trying to process what had happened.
Anom lowered the cloth covering his face.
"Hi!" he greeted the girl with a smile while showing his teeth. He was happy to finally find another person who he didn't have to knock out and could talk to normally.
Seeing the girl still not reacting to him, he walked forward and was about to ask about her condition when…
"Stop right there! Don't come near me! Y-You! What do you want to do? You even killed your friends!" Suddenly she acted as if she realized something horrifying as her voice was quivering as she pointed her sword at him and asked, "Don't tell me you silenced them so that you can… y-you can r-rape me?" She was so scared of such a possibility that she was shaking.
Anom sighed as he realized that the girl was close to a breakdown due to the tense situations she had faced continuously. Otherwise such a brave girl would not back down so easily.
'And seriously, do I look like a rapist?' Anom was speechless, as Cassana had also accused him the same when they met for the first time.
He spoke in a gentle tone, "Hey miss, you're misunderstanding something here. I'm not with these people. I was on my way to the nearby city when I heard the commotion you guys created during the chase. I only came here to spectate the fight. But I didn't expect to find four men bullying a lone girl. So I decided to give you a hand." He then saw the girl starting to say something, but he interjected, "AND before you something like "But I fought you before", let me make it clear that there is still another person inside the woods, knocked out. He was one of the two that you injured before."
The girl heard what he said and looked at him to check whether he was lying.
"You can check inside if you want." Anom said when he saw her still being suspicious. Well, you can never be too careful. Especially a lone girl.
The girl now started to believe him somewhat. She started walking towards the trees while keeping the sword pointed towards Anom.
Anom didn't move from where he was standing and waited for the girl to check the situation first.
Soon, she returned. Her chest was heaving up and down while her sword was dripping with blood.
Anom raised an eyebrow but didn't say anything, as it was normal for her to kill the people who were after her life. Well, even if they only wanted to kidnap her, her final outcome would have been anything but pleasant.
She took a look at Anom, then she continued killing. She first sliced the throat of the person whom Anom had placed on the ground. A gurgling sound was heard as the person seemed to have woken up due to the pain. But he was once again lying on the ground without moving. This time for good.
She walked towards Anom as he moved back to give her space. She got in front of the last two men and continued with her task.
While she was killing the last person, Anom noticed that the hand with which she was holding her sword was shaking. Cleary she was not used to such cold-blooded killings.
Anom was about to say something when he saw the girl starting to sway. She was both physically and mentally exhausted.
Anom moved forward and caught the girl in his arms and supported her back. He sighed as he placed another hand behind her legs and carried her in his arms.
He took a last look at the dead men and went into the distance along the river. He didn't even think about checking the other two men for their belongings, as they might not be carrying anything special compared to the previous two men he had plundered. These people were here on a mission, so they were carrying only the essentials with them. Some bottles containing what smelled like medicinal powders were the only things they carried besides their weapons. And he didn't need any more weapons.
And he was sure that some beasts would soon come here, attracted by the bloody smell. So it was better to leave early before he encountered anymore trouble.
Anom kept walking along the river while carrying the girl. He kept looking around to find a suitable place to take a rest. He's senses were also on the lookout for any danger.
Soon, he heard some growling sounds coming from the place where the fight had taken place. It seemed that some beasts were having a fight for food.
Anom continued walking at an unhurried pace. He was carrying another person with him but he was still fine. He realized his strength had risen considerably after he started training his internal energy.
"I can't wait to find out about this Foundational Realm." Anom muttered as he remembered the words that one of the black-clothed men had said to the girl. He had said that she was a genius of the Foundational Realm. Maybe this was the equivalent of the Chasing Energy Realm that Della had mentioned to him.
While he was lost in his thoughts, he noticed a fallen tree near the river shore. It was quite wide with a diameter of about ten feet. There were many such trees inside the forest. What was special about this tree was that was it hollow on the inside.
Anom could see that it had fallen due to its hollow trunk not being able to carry the weight of its thick branches, which must have been full of lush leaves. Plus, the soil near the river was soft, so its roots might have lost their grip.
Anom walked towards the tree and looked inside. It was dark inside but his senses notified him that it was safe to go inside.
He carried the girl as he walked inside.
A creaking sound was heard as he walked inside the trunk. This sound and the mouldy smell inside made him realize that the tree had already started rotting.
He put down the girl and took off his bag. He took out some dried grass which he had prepared for lighting a fire. There was also a smooth stone inside the bag which he used for generating a spark by striking it with his sword.
Soon the insides of the hollow tree were illuminated. Anom took out the medicinal power he had plundered before. He also took out some fruits he had selected due to their medicinal and healing properties. They can be eaten or used on wounds.
After getting everything ready, Anom got ear the girl and took off her cloak.
Long and luminous black hair spread all over as soon as her cloak was removed. Her face was also covered with a cloth which only left her beautiful eyelashes visible. Her eyebrows were curved at the end and her smooth forehead was shining in the light.
As soon as he removed the mask from her face, he sighed in amazement.
He smirked while muttering, "I love clichés."