"Damn I know you slayers are tough since you fight those monsters but seeing this is more impressive," Greg said with a whistle as he stares at Cyrus who is currently lifting a tractor with the damaged wheels attached over his head.
"Yeah, I'm a bit surprised myself." He chuckled, glad he had put some points into his strength.
"Okay put that over there then you can have a break, I'll give you some good booze I keep under the floorboard"
"So this is where that teleporting brat lives?" "Smells like a shithole" "Shut up and locate the old man!"
Those voices caught their attention as Cyrus quickly placed the tractor down.
"What the hell are you doing on my property?" Greg asked with anger in his voice as three lanky guys walked over.
"Go inside for a bit Greg, I'll deal with this" Cyrus said as he glanced at the glyph covered pistols at their sides.
"Guys over here I found the old bastard and someone else!" One of them yelled as more people ran over making a large group of fifty guys and girls.
"This is going to be fun and easy, my two favorite kinds of jobs" An overweight man chuckled while holding a metal baseball bat.
[NEW QUEST!!!]
[Overcome the ambush! Defeat the enemy group! If the Junkyard is destroyed, or if Greg Emmons is captured or killed, then the quest will fail!]
[Squads beaten (0/4)]
As Cyrus moved closer to the group, another pop-up screen appeared, accompanied by a booming sound that only he could hear.
[QUEST FAILED!!!]
[You neglected to help Greg clean the junkyard. Consequently, you've been afflicted with a temporary debuff, rendering the right side of your body non-functional for five hours.]
"Damn, this is becoming more annoying than fun," Cyrus muttered as the right side of his vision suddenly vanished along with his right arm hanging limply and leg being dragged behind.
"Hang on Cyrus I called the police to deal with these bastards!" Greg yelled from the window.
"Hear that guys cops coming lets make this quick!!" A stocky girl yelled while pointing her crowbar at Cyrus.
As the group rushed towards him he sound of mulitple glass breaking drew Cyrus's attention as he could see flames and black smoke coming from different areas of the junkyard.
[Junkyard Health (93/100)]
"Damn it, I can't be everywhere at once," Cyrus thought to himself as he held his position, attempting to parry the onslaught of blows from various blunt and sharp weapons. With each new bruise and cut, his defense was gradually breaking down.
"What's taking Yasha so long?" he wondered as a knife sliced open his left cheek.
[At the watertower]
Yasha's face couldn't hide his disappointment as he easily leaned out of the way of a punch and gave Ivan a swift uppercut that knocked him flat on his back with his teeth clattering on the ground a couple seconds later.
His gaze met Leon's, who was trembling, caught between fear and fury due to the unexpected rescue.
"I didn't know you were friends with a summoner brat," Leon muttered, glancing at Yasha. "And one who is skilled enough to fully manifest it into the world, be far from the creature and give it a human form."
"Oh, since you're aware of my boss's skills, I hope that means you're strong as well!" Yasha exclaimed as he charged toward Leon.
"Yes, as I know, it's pointless to fight a summoned creature without the summoner present," Leon sneered, swiftly tossing a glass marble to the ground. It shattered upon impact, releasing a thick mist.
Yasha's eyes snapped wide open as he executed a swift backflip, dodging a flurry of purple glowing arrows that shot out from the swirling mist.
As the mist cleared, Randy and Yasha found themselves facing a hobgoblin armed with a crossbow. It let out a deep cackle, then swiftly dashed to the side, firing off several more bolts.
"A slightly smarter and bigger goblin, I thought it would be something cooler," Yasha frowned as he dodged the rapid-fire and punched a hole straight through the frightened hobgoblin's leather armor and chest.
After the hobgoblin vanished, Yasha scanned the area for the person who had summoned the creature.
"Don't worry about Leon; he ran off like the cowardly rat he is," Randy said while sweat started to run down his face. "Can you get these cuffs off please?"
"Sure, hold on, kid," Yasha said as he reached for the cuffs, which immediately caused him to drop to one knee and flicker in and out of existence, prompting Randy to quickly step back.
"Sorry I didn't know that could happen," Randy said with a shocked look as he stared at the cuffs then Yasha.
"It's alright, it just stunned me for a bit. Let's get you back to the junkyard," Yasha said, crouching down and gesturing toward his back. "Hop on, kid, and keep the cuffs away. You don't want to fall from the heights I can take you."
Randy quickly snatched Ivan's leather jacket and used it to cover the cuffs before following instructions as Yasha took a powerful leap and soared through the sky.
"Please be safe, old man," Randy muttered under his breath as he observed the flashing lights of police and fire trucks speeding towards the small area of the city engulfed in thick black smoke.
He coughed roughly while the minor wound he sustained from narrowly avoiding an arrow oozed purple gunk.
[At the Junkyard]
"The chief is tied up; how about letting us go out and play?" Theo's playful and loud voice echoed in Cyrus's mind as he absorbed a baseball bat's blow to his blindside, spinning with the force to retaliate with a swift, high roundhouse kick against his burly attacker.
"For once, Theo is correct; even with the chief's speed, it will take him some time to return from such a distance. Allow us to assist you with this dreadful quest and prove our value," Kirk's gentle and calm voice followed, as Cyrus grasped the wrist of a knife-wielding assailant and swiftly bent it, flipping the young girl over.
[Junkyard Health (70/100)]
"Alright, why not? But once I do, I'm going to be somewhat sluggish because of this hindrance, so I expect you guys to put in some work," Cyrus thought, replying mentally. He was then overwhelmed by an extremely loud cheer that caused him to stumble and receive a full-on strike from a crowbar to the face.
The impact was strong enough to send him stumbling and falling onto his back as blood burst from his nose.
"Kill the bastard!" The unusual buff girl brandishing a crowbar shouted as three hefty men armed with axes charged at Cyrus, who was desperately trying to rise, unaccustomed to the paralysis gripping most of his body.
"Sorry for the loud cheering, boss, but we're just making our kick-off in this amazing world!" Theo exclaimed, his grin impish as he grasped one of the burly men by the head and hoisted him into the air with ease.
"You can rest easy, boss. I'll ensure Theo doesn't take advantage of the freedom you've given us and run wild," Kirk spoke in a serious tone, his eyes locked on his younger brother as he perched on the chest of a burly man, whose face now bore numerous bruises.
Bufkin's gaze was icy and uncaring as he tightly clasped his arms around the hefty man's neck, locking his legs around the elbows to pin the arms down. Once the gangster was knocked out, Bufkin jumped away and rushed over to Cyrus, pulling him up with a smile brimming with warmth and joy—a stark contrast to the chilling look in his eyes moments before.
"Go complete the quest, and have fun while you're at it," Cyrus said, a tired smirk on his face as he limped towards Greg's house. The old man swiftly opened the door and assisted the slayer inside.
"Got it, boss," said Theo and Kirk with a sharp nod, while Bufkin gave a thumbs up, his eyes became cold as the three brothers charged at the small, confused group. They swiftly attacked, then split up to cover the other areas of the junkyard.
[Squads beaten (1/4)]
"Cyrus, what the hell are they?" Greg asked as he quickly brought out a small medkit.
"Some new friends I met on a dangerous door exploration, believe it or not," Cyrus remarked with a smile as Greg began tending to his wounds.
"Well, I knew you slayers were odd folks, but you take the cake, don't you?" Greg chuckled. "Friends with monsters, what's next? My boy going back to school?"
"Stranger things have happened," Cyrus said with a small smile, watching his health points slowly increase and his stamina points slowly decrease.