Catching Kurina in my arms before she collapsed onto the ground, I gently leaned her against a nearby tree and used [Heroes Gaze] to check her and the two children for injuries, but other than exhaustion, they were completely fine, causing me to sigh in relief, though it was only briefly as I focused on what she had said earlier.
"Jackal? What's wrong with Jackal, Kurina?" Asked Alexander in concern as he looked down at Kurina, who was gasping for air while tightly holding her children.
"Bandits. P-Please, Alexander, h-help him, please! I-I'll do anything! Please." Replied Kurina pleadingly as she anxiously looked at Alexander, who deeply frowned before nodding.
"Of course, Jackals a good friend of mine." Stated Alexander firmly, his [Heroes Aura] helping to soothe her and her children while he glanced up at Talis, who was perched on a tree.
"Talis, lead them to the carriage; I'll find Jackal." Added Alexander as he gestured to Talis while helping Kurina and her child onto their feet.
"Okay, be careful; once I bring them back to the carriage, I'll quickly find you!" Stated Talis seriously as she flew off the tree and hovered in the air before Alexander.
"Alright, follow me." Said Talis as she waved her wings before slowly heading back towards the carriage, her chirps leading the way for Kurina and her children.
With Talis leading them toward the carriage, I gave Kurina a reassuring smile as I swiftly dashed through the forest, heading in the same direction that they were initially running from, using [Lightning Cloak], [Speed Augment], and [Wind Steps], I speedily ran through the forest, easily breaking through the sound barrier in the process.
Intently eyeing my surroundings, searching for any signs of battle, after a few seconds of running, I eventually exited from the forest and arrived back on the dirt road; not too far off in the distance, I spotted a broken down carriage, the same one Jackal and his family had departed in. However, as I narrowed my eyes, I noticed what looked to be numerous bodies sprawled all over the ground, and when I arrived at the scene a few seconds later, my assumption was correct, as several corpses were lying everywhere. Limbs, blood, guts, weapons, and decapitated heads littered the ground surrounding the carriage, prompting me to summon also Zartha as I upped my guard while intently eyeing everybody, searching for Jackal.
'Please don't be a body with no head.' Thought Alexander anxiously as he tightly clenched his two greatswords while leaving behind bloody footprints.
Arriving at the front of the carriage, there were even more bodies sprawled out on the ground, at least thirty men in total, which only made me more worried for Jackal; he was a C-class Adventurer, so he wasn't weak; heck, he could most likely defeat me in combat. However, everybody I spotted only lowered my confidence, and just when I was about to search the scene again for Jackal, I suddenly saw a body leaning against the tree in the distance; when I saw that face, I immediately knew who it was. Jackal had been stabbed through by two swords in the chest, a spear through his leg, and a battle axe embedded into his back, yet despite all of that, he was still tightly clutching his sword in hand.
"J-Jackal!?" Exclaimed Alexander as he swiftly lunged towards Jackal, only to kneel before him.
Although Jackal looked like he should be dead, he was still breathing, though he was currently drowning in his blood, so without any hesitation, I reached into my space pouch and grabbed a vial of my golden blood, yet before I fed it to him, I carefully removed the two swords, spear and axe in his body, causing him to bleed everywhere.
"C'mon, you better not die, Jackal." Muttered Alexander as he laid Jackal onto the ground before popping the cork off the vial of his golden blood.
Pouring my blood into his mouth, I made sure it slid down his throat, and when it finally reached his stomach, it began working its magic as he was swiftly healing; within one minute, he was in perfect health, causing me to sigh in relief, though it wasn't over yet since he was still drowning in his blood.
Placing my hands on his stomach, I began pumping, hoping to stir the blood out of his lungs, though whether it worked or not was up for debate since a few moments later, Jackal regained consciousness and began coughing blood.
"How are you fee-" Asked Alexander in concern as he leaned closer to Jackal, who punched him instantly after noticing him.
Skidding across the ground from the unexpected punch, I slammed into the carriage and quickly covered my nose, which was bleeding slightly, though it healed almost immediately; wiping my nose, I removed myself from the carriage and eyed Jackal.
"Ugh, that's not a nice way to greet your savior, Jackal." Remarked Alexander in annoyance as he stared at Jackal, whose expression began to soften.
"Alex? I-Is that you?" Asked Jackal in confusion as he rubbed his head while slowly standing up with the help of the tree and gazed at the slaughter he had caused.
"Yeah, it's me. So, are you going to apologize, or what?" Asked Alexander with a slight frown as he approached Jackal before grabbing his swords and holstering them onto his back while he nodded.
"S-Sorry, I-I was still in attack mode." Muttered Jackal apologetically with a slight frown as he leaned against the tree, only to suddenly widen his eyes before turning around and dashing through the forest.
Seeing Jackal run into the forest, most likely searching for his family, I used [Teleport] to appear right before him, causing him to slam into me as we rolled over the ground before crashing into a tree.
"Let go, Alex! I need to find Kurina!" Yelled Jackal angrily as he tried breaking free from Alexander's hold, yet it proved to be rather difficult.
"T-They're alive, c-calm down!" Yelled Alexander as he aggressively headbutted Jackal, causing him to hold his head in pain while he began calming down.
"T-They're alive!?" Asked Jackal anxiously as he grabbed Alexander by the shoulders, his sharp nails digging into his flesh, nearly drawing blood.
"Y-Yes, Kurina and your children are alive. They're with my group, and they're doing fine." Replied Alexander with a nod, his words causing Jackal to sigh in relief as he collapsed onto the ground beside him.
"Alex! There you are!" Stated Talis loudly as she dived through the canopy before softly landing atop Alexander's chest, causing him to sit upright while stroking her.
"Yeah, so, did you bring Kurina to the carriage?" Asked Alexander curiously as he held Talis in his hands while Jackal quickly looked at them.
"Yep, Cath and Michelle are taking care of them." Replied Talis with a nod, causing Alexander to nod before standing up, prompting Jackal to do the same.
"Alright, Jackal, let's get you reunited with your family." Said Alexander with a faint smile as he gestured to Jackal, who sported an eager expression.
___
___
"You should've seen the slaughter he caused; there were at least 30 to 40 corpses." Said Alexander lightly as he sat in between Cath and Michelle while they watched Jackal and Kurina hugging in the distance.
"Well, what do you expect? His family's life was on the line. He's a pervert and not the most faithful husband, but he dearly loves his family." Said Cath faintly with a slight smile as she looked at Jackal, causing Alexander to nod.
"Haa, I'm jealous of Kurina." Muttered Michelle with a sigh as she enviously stared at Jackal and Kurina, only to suddenly squeal.
"Those aren't things you should be saying when I'm sitting right next to you, Michelle." Said Alexander with a blank expression as he eyed Michelle, who softly blushed while rubbing her side.
"I-I'm speaking on behalf of Chloe, y-you know that, Alexander." Said Michelle lightly with an awkward expression as she grabbed Alexander's hand, placing his arm between her voluptuous breasts, causing him to scoff before looking away.
"Hmph, sure." Muttered Alexander with a fake pout, causing Michelle to suddenly kiss him on the cheek.
"Um, is that better?" Asked Michelle with a blush as she looked at Alexander, who smirked before grabbing her head and kissing passionately.
"Hey! I also want to be kissed!" Stated Yuki with a frown as she folded her fours arms and eyed Alexander, who was dominating Michelle with his superior technique.
"Heh, of course, Yuki, you know I'd never forget about my lovely little monster." Said Alexander with a lovely smile as he removed his mouth from the blushing Michelle before standing on the carriage and staring Yuki in the eyes.
Grabbing the back of Yuki's head, we passionately kissed, our tongues dancing about in each other's mouth, yet even though I had superior technique, her aggressiveness was hard to combat, and before I knew it, she had me completely on the defensive, her tongue dominated my mouth.
"Haa, ridiculous. I'm leaving." Muttered Cath in slight annoyance as she looked at Yuki, Michelle, and Alexander before shaking her head and walking away.
While Yuki and I passionately kissed, expressing our love for one another, someone pulled me by the leg, causing me to fall, though Jackal caught me as he tightly embraced me, even going so far as to kiss my cheek several times.
"I love you, Alex!" Stated Jackal happily as he kissed Alexander's cheek, only for him to suddenly vanish from his embrace.