The caravan proceeded in an orderly fashion, with Geoff waiting for news from Qiqi. However, Qiqi had been gone for an unusually long time, causing a twinge of unease in Geoff's heart. Could something have happened to her? It seemed unlikely. Although Qiqi was very curious, she was also very smart and discerning. During missions, she suppressed her curiosity as much as possible.
Apart from her curiosity, Qiqi possessed all the excellent qualities of an elite scout. If there was any situation or danger, she would return to report it immediately. Even if there was no situation and everything was safe, she would return periodically to report.
But it had been too long, and Qiqi still hadn't returned. This far exceeded her usual scouting time. Geoff furrowed his brow slightly and involuntarily picked up his large sword and shield. The others were also waiting tensely, praying that their worries were unfounded or that Qiqi was simply delayed by unfamiliarity with the new route. Qiqi was lively and adorable, a beloved member of the team, and they didn't want to lose her.
Only Mike was still snoring loudly.
"Something's up!" Suddenly, Martina, the archer who had been on the lookout atop a wagon, stood up and spoke. She saw a small figure darting out from the distant forest. Archers had excellent eyesight, and the forest edge was about seven or eight miles away. Martina's hands glowed blue, and she swept them over her eyes.
[Hawkeye]
This was a must-learn skill for archers. Besides mages, many professions could learn magic, though they could not master it as well as mages or achieve the same powerful effects.
With Hawkeye activated, her vision greatly enhanced, and Martina finally saw clearly. It was Qiqi! But she couldn't smile because she saw Qiqi running frantically, clutching her arm with blood seeping through her fingers. Her little face was pale, and she looked terrified.
Injured?!
Before Martina could process it, a dark shadow burst out of the forest, moving faster than Qiqi and heading straight for her. When she saw the shadow's appearance, Martina's face turned to one of horror.
"A magical beast is chasing Qiqi!"
"Damn, it's almost caught her, and Qiqi isn't its match!"
Hearing this, everyone was shocked. They quickly grabbed their weapons, ready to rush to help. But just then, Geoff's voice rang out, "Don't go!"
The group looked at Geoff in confusion, only to see his face extremely grim, even showing... fear. Geoff had also seen the shadow's appearance and a bloody scene flashed through his mind, filling him with a bone-deep terror that left him with no courage to face it.
He could lead the team against magical beasts below a three-star gold rank, but he couldn't face such a monster!
"Captain, Qiqi..."
"Don't go, we can't save her!" Geoff immediately shouted to the driver, "Quick, turn the caravan around!"
"Are we just going to abandon Qiqi?!" Martina shouted angrily.
"If we don't leave her, we'll all die!" Geoff's face grew paler as he realized Qiqi was leading the monster toward them! With only seven or eight miles to cover, they had mere minutes left to escape!
"What is that, Captain? Why are we leaving Qiqi?!" Warren, the swordsman, asked anxiously. If Geoff didn't give a proper reason, he and his brother Walter would rush out to save her.
"That's not a magical beast, you fool! That's a Wolf Demon!"
"A Wolf Demon from the Land of Blood!!!"
In an instant, everyone's faces turned white. Although they had never seen one, they had all heard about it. Brutal and bloodthirsty, it took pleasure in slaughter. Once, an adventurer team with all members at the silver rank, a deputy leader at two-star gold, and a leader at four-star gold encountered a Wolf Demon. The result was that when rescuers arrived, they only found dismembered limbs and blood.
All eight members of the team were so mangled that their remains couldn't form a single complete body! Skull fragments and severed legs were found over eight hundred meters apart! It was unimaginable how savage this creature was.
The guard team, including Qiqi, had only five people. The others were six or seven-star silver, with only Geoff at nine-star silver, and one rookie mercenary. Without a gold-rank strongman, they stood no chance against the Wolf Demon!
Staying meant death!
At that moment, everyone fell silent.
Warren and Walter sheathed their long swords and remained silent as Geoff shouted furiously at the driver to go faster. Martina crouched on the rooftop, looking sorrowfully in Qiqi's direction.
The Wolf Demon was closing in on Qiqi, and it was clear what would happen next. Before long, the Wolf Demon neared Qiqi and lunged at her with its claws. Martina could hardly bear to watch. But at the critical moment, Qiqi rolled away and, without pausing, got back on her feet and continued running. Her body flashed with a green glow, her speed surging, while the Wolf Demon, unable to stop its momentum, skidded far ahead.
This gave Qiqi a little more distance from the Wolf Demon. Martina was surprised, realizing that Qiqi had been using such evasive maneuvers to narrowly escape the Wolf Demon's attacks all the way here. However, her heart soon sank again.
Qiqi was still over a kilometer away. Perhaps spurred by the sight of her comrades and a renewed sense of hope, Qiqi's speed had increased significantly. But the Wolf Demon was still right behind her, growing angrier with each missed attack, its body glowing with a red light, and it was getting faster.
At this rate, it wouldn't be long before Qiqi brought the Wolf Demon to the caravan. Though the beasts pulling the wagons were steady, they couldn't move quickly. Martina felt conflicted. She desperately hoped Qiqi could shake off the Wolf Demon and survive but also feared Qiqi would fall, be caught by the Wolf Demon, and not lead it to them.
"Captain..." Martina turned to Geoff, torn and distressed. But Geoff remained silent.
"Help me..." Qiqi was getting closer, her cries for help reaching everyone's ears. Martina gritted her teeth, closing her eyes and turning away as if she hadn't heard. She realized that Qiqi's last burst of speed had exhausted her. There was no way she could catch up to the caravan now.
If Qiqi somehow managed to reach the caravan, Martina might have to use her bow to shoot her.
Qiqi felt like her lungs were about to explode. She had been running frantically, narrowly dodging the Wolf Demon's attacks, and her arm was injured from a close call with its claws. She was running on sheer willpower. When she saw her team, hope flared within her, believing they would grab their weapons and fight the monster together.
But to her shock, they turned around and fled without looking back. At that moment, she felt like crying.
"Don't leave me..." she reached out as if trying to grasp the distant carriage. As her hope faded, her will crumbled, and her body collapsed. She stumbled, rolling several times due to her momentum, unable to get up again. She struggled to lift her head and look towards the caravan, but no one met her eyes, as if they were all avoiding her gaze. A gaze filled with despair and heartbreak.
They had promised... to be comrades...
The Wolf Demon's roar was close. She had no strength left to dodge. She was going to die...
But then, a gust of wind blew, and a massive figure suddenly appeared before her, like a battering ram slamming into the Wolf Demon. The ground trembled with the impact. The Wolf Demon's body flew back like a stone thrown away.
Qiqi stared, dazed, at the towering figure before her and the white teeth revealed by his grinning mouth.
"Need some help, little kitty?"