Chapter 16: Legendary Beast Master...
Ruthar waited, straining to hear any sound but perceived none. His attackers were stealthier than he had anticipated. The only step he could think of now was to escape through the door, but that was a fifty-fifty chance.
There was a possibility the pack of murderers would check the door periodically to see if he was trying to escape. And a possibility they wouldn't.
'That's my only way out. I should at least be prepared to use magic to defend myself.'
Ruthar stared at the brick wall, too thick to be shattered quickly and quietly. The door was his only option.
Concluding his thoughts, he grabbed the two books he had picked from the shelves earlier, full of remorse. It would be much quieter working with what was in hand.
With a deep breath, Ruthar summoned his wind magic, making the books float in the air until they reached the far end of the room.
He dropped one first, then the other almost immediately, making two resounding thuds that were answered by almost unnoticeable footsteps around the library.
'It's time!'
Without wasting a moment, Ruthar raced out of his hiding spot into the open, fear of being seen abandoned.
He tried not to make any noise, but this was unavoidable as he dashed towards the door with all his might.
'It's actually going to work! I'm almost there.'
Ruthar stretched his hand to the door, grabbing its knob and pulling...
Before he could react, a kick struck him in the gut, throwing him to the ground.
"Arrrggfhhh!" Ruthar instantly followed up with his movements: he had been caught.
"What a pathetic prank you tried to play," one of the mercenaries said, folding his arms and mocking Ruthar.
The others simply scowled from their hidden faces, gripping their hilts and glaring at him with monstrous stares. Classic mercenaries.
'I see they knew I would make a run for it with a distraction, so they did the same for me... I ended up being the one tricked.'
Ruthar glowered at the mercenaries who had outwitted him. 'Can I perhaps strike a deal with them?'
"What can I do for you?" Ruthar kept his calm and asked.
He received a reply almost immediately as a bulky mercenary grabbed him by the shoulder and plunged the end of his dagger into Ruthar, lodging it completely in.
"KAAHHHH!" Ruthar screamed, grabbing the dagger's hilt and falling back, squirming in pain.
'Damn, I forgot these are Kithara's goons. I'm dead.'
"What does that tell you, bitch?" One of them raised his boot above Ruthar's head and stepped on him, digging the sole mercilessly into his skull.
"Tsk! AHHHHHH!"
The pain was all too much to process at once. Ruthar's instincts kicked in. He opened his palms and summoned a violent gust of wind, which he used to knock the mercenary standing on his head.
Thankfully, his attack worked, making the mercenary stumble back a few feet before regaining his footing. But before he could recalibrate, Ruthar was already upon him.
Faster than the mercenaries believed he could move, Ruthar dislodged the dagger from his shoulder, muffling the pain with his lips to avoid letting out a loud groan. But this didn't stop him as he moved faster than the mercenary could react, digging the dagger ruefully into his throat.
"Die, you bastard..." An elbow struck Ruthar in the eye, knocking him from his attack and into the door of the library.
It was one of the mercenaries trying to protect his colleague, but it was already too late as the stabbed mercenary lay on the floor, shaking subtly as his life left him.
'If not for Rotexa's extracted martial arts, I would never have been able to land that hit. Although... I am not sure I will be able to land any more.'
Ruthar opened his eyes wide, but his left, which had been bashed by the mercenary, refused to. They were truly professionals.
He could see their gazes already mad-stricken; thirsty for blood irresistibly.
'Let's just hope the Author didn't make a mistake in the Novel.'
He dropped his jaw and yelled, "YOOOOOOOHHHHHHAAAAAARRRRR!!!"
His scream was cut short as the mercenary pulled his sword right from its scabbard and threw it at him.
Ruthar tried to dodge but only managed to evade it from hitting his throat, letting it implant into his shoulder instead.
"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!" Nobody on earth or this planet could understand what Ruthar was going through now. This was his first time being stabbed, but by the looks of things, he would be dead in the next few seconds.
"You're gonna die, you brat!" The one who threw the sword raced towards Ruthar, pulling a dagger from his pouch.
Ruthar stretched out his hand, blasting a ball of flame, which the mercenary easily dodged, reaching him in the next moment with his dagger aimed at Ruthar's skull.
'I never really thought about it... But what will happen if I really die... Is it really the end this time?'
A loud explosion occurred from a wall of the library as it was destroyed in a split second by a dark blur nobody could discern.
Before the mercenaries or even Ruthar could process, the dark figure reached them, slashing at the head of the first mercenary he met.
As his attack made impact, the throat upward of the entire mercenary shattered into blood. The dark figure didn't stop there as it attacked the next mercenary, doing the same and slashing his skull into waves of blood and cranium bones.
'That speed, it wasn't a lie after all...'
Ruthar watched the two bodies collapse while the dark figure stood before him, engulfed with dark enigmatic sparks of energy.
"Are you okay, Master Ruthar?"
Ruthar hadn't noticed the loud pitch screeching in his ears until the figure spoke. Not just that, he was beginning to lose consciousness.
'If the mercenaries didn't succeed, then the bleeding surely will.'
He dropped his head and muttered a few words before letting his consciousness slip away from him. "It's Kithara."
The figure grabbed Ruthar in panic, screaming mumbled words Ruthar could not discern.
'Thank you, Hendricks, for killing those bastards.'
With that, Ruthar zoned out.