Following Hades' command, his follower stepped forward intending to draw out the souls of the dead villagers. However, before he could do so, a warm and gentle breeze swept through the village.
Sensing danger, the man jumped back, creating a distance between him and the bodies.
"Shouldn't you ask us before killing our citizens?" The winds circled around itself, transforming into a silver haired man.whose eyes glowed with mysterious calmness.
His glasses glistened in the sunlight as he stepped forward, his voice filled with authority. "Don't you think we deserve an explanation?"
"So the insects have started to gather." Hades was about to leave in his chase after Raven and Zephyr, but with the arrival of a new guest, he stopped.
"That's a bit harsh." The silver haired man laughed. "Rather, it would be more accurate to say that the spectators have started to gather to witness Olympus' failure."
"Are you looking for a fight, Merlin?" Hades turned around, his aura suppressing everything around him as if this place was his domain now. "Don't forget, even Arthur won't be able to save you the moment I let go."
Despite the sharp reaction, Merlin seemed unafraid, his calm smile never leaving his face. "Who knows. Slaying you seems easier than slaying dragons, especially now that you don't have your immortality. Should we try?"
"You are trying to start a fight with me, even though you know you'd lose... Why does it feel like something more is at play?" Hades asked. Although he had heard that Merlin was known to be slightly crazy, he believed that wasn't quite the case. "Why does it feel like you're trying to delay me?"
He looked around, as if trying to find someone.
"I don't see Arthur here either. Knowing him, he wouldn't have sent you alone to this place. Unless...."
His expressions darkened as he thought of something. He was certain that Arthur had already arrived. Since he wasn't here, it could only mean he had already gone ahead to find Raven.
"I don't have time to play with you!" Hades exclaimed, the ground trembling beneath his feet. With a swift motion, he transformed into a dark shadow, ready to dart off in pursuit of Raven and Zephyr.
But Merlin remained unfazed, his eyes locking onto the shadow as he muttered a few ancient words under his breath. In an instant, the shadow froze in place, unable to move.
"Looks like I'll have to hold you off a little longer," Merlin said with a shine in his eye. "Arthur has entrusted me with this task, and I will not fail him."
Hades seethed with anger. "You will regret standing in my way, Merlin."
With a wave of his hand, Hades destroyed the Merlin's spell.
He turned to Merlin. "I was about to let you go, but looks like I'll be bringing a nice gift for Arthur... Your head."
But Merlin simply laughed. He was confident that even if the Lord of Hell was before him, he could at least retreat when he was truly in danger. For now, he was burning with a fighting spirit to see if Olympus deserved the reputation it had.
....
Zephyr sat next to Raven, wondering how they could travel with him in this condition.
His plan was to help Raven break through the curse and leaving would've been easier. But he hadn't realised that he was going to be one step short. Not only had they failed to break the curse, but he had also brought Raven to this hard to avoid situation.
"I should've helped him escape from the prison only. Entering the Sky Fortress was my mistake. And it's because of my mistake, you..." He let out a sigh.
"I wonder how long she would take to arrive here. She should've received my message by now. But if she didn't..."
For the time being, he could only wait while trying to lower Raven's temperature. He gently placed a damp cloth on Raven's forehead, hoping to provide some relief as they waited.
As minutes turned into hours, he found himself growing restless. There was only one good news and it was that Raven's temperature was going down.
"It looks like tonight is going to be a really long night." He looked in the direction where they came from. "They're on our trail, even though I changed directions multiple times."
"I'm afraid I'll have to leave you." Zephyr looked at Raven, a strange emotion flickering in his eyes. "I'm not sure if I'll return alive, but even if I don't, you must live."
He placed the earring in Raven's pocket.
Raven had told him to make him wear the earring in case there was a danger. However, looking at his condition, Zephyr didn't feel that Raven could bear the burden.
"I won't be able to follow your command. If I return alive, I'll let you punish me." He waved his hand, hiding Raven and his aura in the shadow of the tree, making it impossible to find him unless someone was at his spot.
He didn't know who was trailing after them, but he couldn't afford for Raven to be caught. His shadow split apart, taking Raven's shape.
He carried the clone in his arms as he started running away from the forest.
After leaving the forest, he split into multiple clones of himself, all going in different directions.
Each clone ran at top speed, zigzagging through the fields and disappearing into the darkness. Zephyr hoped that by creating multiple decoys, he could confuse their pursuers while also convincing them that it wasn't a trick.
Only after losing the trail, he planned to return to Raven. However, he wasn't confident enough. Although he didn't know who was on the trail, he had a feeling that it wasn't anyone simple.
Even as Zephyr ran, he could feel his clones being killed one after another. Every second, a clone of his died, even though they were far away from him. It convinced him that the person chasing after him wasn't weak.
Finally, as the last of his clones dispersed, Zephyr found himself alone in the vast wilderness. He paused for a moment, catching his breath and listening for any signs of pursuit. The silence was deafening, and a sense of unease washed over him.
Just as he was about to continue on his journey, a voice broke through the stillness. "Aren't you going to run anymore?"