Harita stepped forward with the cadence of a morning stroll. Soft, casual, and free from all that the dark, dark world held.
His eyes, however, told a different story. A much darker and grim one.
First immediately stepped between the two, putting his large, muscular body in front of the sudden beast.
"Where… how did you find us?"
Harita smiled, his eyes glaring darkly.
"Instinct, my burly friend. The primal kind."
First flinched, recoiling from the sudden onrush of menacing pressure that those green eyes exuded on the three of them
First flinched, recoiling from the sudden onrush of menacing pressure that those green eyes exuded on the three of them like a hungry monster. He was just like a Grim Saint waiting to devour its prey in a ravenous and most gruesome fate.
His gaze was both inescapable and inevitable.
Second, however, did not back down, summoning a silver rapier into her left hand and brandishing it with practiced rhythm.
Her gaze held true as she stared the grinning monster with resolute, potent eyes.
"Good. This is good. So you at least know how to use a sword. That's good. This would have been very disappointing if you hadn't."
The light of materialized mana shone brightly in the dark, shadowed alley. It pierced the darkness like a silver arrow, shining luminously.
A large metallic mace appeared in First's grasp, almost as tall he was, towering at over three meters in length with the hammer being about as big as his head, sturdy and rigid, ready to crush all in its way.
Harita raised a brow.
"Curious. Two Creators in one cell? That's quite an odd pairing, even for a bunch of thugs. If I hadn't known any better, I would have thought that one of you were actually trying to misdirecting me with your spells. How devious."
Seeing the pair tense up and hold their weapons defensively, Harita raised his arm, as if to surrender.
He said in a berating voice:
"Hey, you're the ones trying to mug me here. Why are you both so rigid? Besides, your weapons quite over-the-top. For a bunch of assassins, or was it thieves? Mercenaries? Well, it doesn't matter. All of you are clearly unfit for this kind of mission. There's no point in continuing to work in such an unsuitable position."
Harita glanced to the left, watching intently as a pale arm reached out for his neck. He took a brief step back, feeling he wind brush his face as a scrawny man flew past him, his eyes practically burning with intense anger.
"…Well, except one."
He locked eyes with the man and met his gaze, meeting and beating his stare.
Third muttered mockingly:
"Big talk for a guy with only one arm."
Harita scowled deeply, his eyes blazing and his breathing slowing down. There was a cold cadence in his step as he lowered his center of gravity, preparing every muscle in his body to fight.
"Oh? You are that confident, huh? Who's the idiot now."
Third's tone was mocking, fierce, and unrelenting, but his intent was not. Deep inside, he knew without a doubt, that the man in front of him was way beyond his league in terms of power, experience, and technique.
"It'll be fine," Second reassured. Her voice was gentle but sharp, almost the same as her blade.
She had always been there, through thick and thin, defying all odds. If she wasn't fighting with him, then who else would? He really couldn't think of anybody.
He smiled, invisible with his mask, but Second could feel the intent he wanted convey regardless. They were close that way.
"Right."
Third faced forward, his eyes narrowing on one person alone, deleting everything else.
He yelled madly, his voice on the verge of breaking:
"Attack—"
◇◆◇◆◇
With a loud thud, the scrawny man's head fell to the ground unceremoniously, the resounding echoes traveling the shadowed alley like dissonant whisper. It echoed to all present… and listening, in the tight space.
If it weren't for the horrors all of them had seen in their lifetimes, they could never had been able to stomach the sight of Second's head rolling on the ground as his body fell limp to the floor, like a puppet that had lost its strings, like a slave without a master.
His eyes weren't full of shock or horror. Rather, it was filled with the very same wonder and determination he had just a moment ago, now seeming like a lifetime with each second passing.
Second could not believe what she had seen… what she could not see, rather.
It happened so fast that, even with her trained eyes, she had barely caught a glimpse of it.
And yet, it told her everything she needed to know… whether she would have wanted to or not.
In a gruesome and blurry flash, the green-eyed man cruelly and efficiently beheaded the man with nothing but a simple dagger the length of her forearm. It had a subtle sheen to it, with unrecognizable runes engraved on it that was too blurry with the man's astounding speed to read or study.
His face was a mask of indifference as he beheaded her friend with remarkable ease.
Swinging his dagger and wiping the blood from it, the man stared at the two, his eyes peering through darkness like a lair of luminescent eyes, more feline than man.
"Well, what are you waiting for?"
His eyes was a mask of cold apathy, his facial muscles relaxed completely, without even the smallest hint of expression. All except for one thing…
Boredom.
It only infuriated Second with even more rage and frustration, to the point where she felt she was boiling over, reaching and going past her breaking point multiple times over.
"Bian! No! We can't beat him!"
She did not whether it was the rage and frustration of losing her longtime friend, or the confusion and anxiety of meeting a being way beyond her capabilities, it could have even been her rebellious and disobedient nature pushing her on. One she knew for certain though, was that she knew, deep down, that she had to do this.
'No matter what.'
It did not matter if it was simply one strike—no, even just a light graze will do. As long as she can imbed her rapier, cause a wound, and see the blood dripping down the man's disgusting face… all will be well.
In fact, it would be perfect.
As long as she could just get one hit in, she would be satisfied. Completely satisfied.
The winds blew strenuously, pushing her onward with a gust of magical gale, increasing her already heightened speed to even higher heights. Feeling the massive boost, she pushed herself to continue on, not missing a single beat.
…And yet, it was not enough.
"Nice try. But you're going to need better than that up if you want to catch up to me."
Bian thrust forth her silver rapier, feeling it whistle through the air in one quick thrust of dexterous power, enhanced by her mana and the effects of the construct itself.
She closed her eyes.
'I never was enough when it came to the important things.'
With a flash of cold steel, the blue luster of the man's blade drew a mesmerizing arc in the air. It mover gracefully like air, flowing like water, and devastated like fire.
As her flesh, skin, and nerves were severed as the man carved a deep wound from her forearm up to her elbow in one swift stroke, Bian felt the familiar sensation of burning, along with the accompanying panic and terror. As well as the empowering toxins engulfing her brain with numbing and emboldening poison, keeping her awake… unfortunately.
She was unfortunate enough to have to bear the pain that followed with full, undivided awareness.
A horrible scream tore from Bian's throat as the ground seemed to come alive beneath her. Two humanoid limbs reached for the man and her, pushing the other away from other, putting distance between the two.
"Bian!"
First yelled in a panicked voice. There was terror and dread mixed into the message.