A frozen region, gripped by a more than violent cold, capable of incapacitating and even burning anyone who even stepped foot in that place.
The trees that were part of that winter forest were almost completely covered in ice and snow, even their leaves were trapped in the ice.
In the midst of this freezing environment, however, there was someone. Their body and face were covered by a long red hood.
Their footsteps sank into the thick snow as the figure made his way towards the center of the forest.
As they walked, a sigh escaped their lips, a sigh that formed a light mist in front of her mouth.
— Damn... — A female voice came from the figure as they removed something from a small leather bag hidden inside the hood, attached to their waist.
The object was rectangular in metal, with a glass screen that extended to a certain part of its top. The object in question was a low-quality scroll, which the girl had recently acquired.
The moment the girl touched her finger to the center of the object, the glass quickly shone, revealing itself to be a screen, which currently contained an open chat.
〘Hey, sis, are you sure I'm in the right place?〙
The young woman sent the message as she leaned against one of the nearby trees, trying to rest from the long walk she had already undertaken.
However, the message seemed not to have been received, after all no matter how long she waited, there was no response.
The girl just let out a sigh, seeming to suspect that that would happen.
— I don't have much of a choice now... — she murmured as she stepped away from the tree, continuing her walk — ... I just really hope I'm not lost...
The red-hooded journey lasted a few more minutes, minutes that seemed like hours, until she finally arrived at the center of the forest. Unlike the rest of the environment, the center was empty, there were no trees, fallen leaves or animal footprints.
The young woman entered the clearing, being careful with each step taken, trying to make as little noise as possible.
This is the place. — Thought the girl, removing her hood. Her face, which has just been revealed, was illuminated by the little sunlight that reached the clearing. Her skin was fair, and her eyes shone against the sunlight, in a more than pure silver colour. Her hair was distinguished from the rest of her features, with a black color, with the ends of her strands being dark red, transitioning perfectly between colors.
Her clothes were made of silk, being a black dress with light red details, such as the laces on the corset that tightened above her hips.
Her body, not much taller than 1.52, was slim, allowing both the dress and the corset to fit her figure perfectly.
Another sigh escaped the girl's pink lips as she brought her hands to her back, removing something from it.
— If the information is right, they will appear as soon as I make a noise... — she whispered to herself while removing an object from her back.
The sunlight reflected on the rectangular object of a metallic nature, with its dye being red with black details, almost perfectly matching the young woman's hood.
With a smile on her face, the girl lifted the object, which quickly seemed to transform, lengthening in real time, becoming something similar to a huge red rifle.
Taking a deep breath, seeking previous concentration, the girl pressed the trigger. The 138 mm bullet was fired towards the sky, echoing a deafening sound, lifting the snow and shaking the leaves of the trees that surrounded the clearing.
It wasn't long before animalistic roars and groans were heard from beyond the trees, as if hungry animals were running towards the noise, ready to devour everything in their path.
Still with a confident smile, the young woman swung her rifle downwards, which caused it to quickly transform. The weapon extended further into a long, beautiful scythe. The scythe, with its design made to match the young woman's clothes, had its blade extended in a crescent shape, a blade that shone silver.
Grasping the scythe with both hands, the girl placed one of her feet back, allowing her to take a more defensive stance.
Almost as if by design, this was the moment the creatures leaped towards the clearing.
The creatures were dark as night, with eyes glowing crimson red, filled with an instinctive desire to kill. Their physical appearance was a raw mix between a human and a wolf, like a werewolf overcome by darkness. Every movement they made left a trail of black cloud, which seemed to penetrate the surrounding trees, slightly rotting them.
- Finally! — Exclaimed the girl as she the blade of the scythe behind her body and her hands ran down the handle, reaching for what was once the trigger of the rifle. When she pressed the trigger, a bullet was fired backwards, and, as planned by the girl, the enormous recoil of the shot launched her forward, allowing her to reach one of the creatures before they could even react.
Her quick reaction allowed the girl to quickly turn her body while holding the scythe, rotating so that the blade quickly cut through half of the creature's body. Instead of blood, the only thing that came out of the creature's body was more dark smoke, which spread moments before the creature's own body disappeared in that same smoke.
— Uhm... — The girl murmured as she watched each creature that came out of the forest.
Noticing the extreme amount of enemies, the young girl gulped as she gripped her scythe even tighter.
— Yang ... — A slightly irritated smile took over her face. —... You told me there would be, at most, ten...
As the girl expressed her worries, it was already possible to see that the number of creatures jumping towards the clearing exceeded twenty.
Sighing deeply, the girl prepared herself for the battle that was to come.
These creatures didn't think, much less plan, they just threw themselves towards the girl.
Two of the monsters quickly found themselves in front of the young girl, jumping at her, opening their mouths and preparing to brandish their claws.
Determined to get out of that situation alive, the girl jumped back and made a diagonal strike with her scythe, tearing apart the creatures in front of her.
Without stopping her attack, the girl pressed the trigger while the scythe was still in the air, the recoil caused the scythe to crash against the ground. She quickly squeezed the trigger again, causing the recoil to send the girl into the air.
Analyzing her surroundings as quickly as possible, taking advantage of every second she had in the air, the young woman used her eyes to mark each of her enemies.
Twenty-five...
She swung her scythe again, placing it behind her back and squeezed the trigger, throwing herself against the ground. However, before she could even touch the ground, her body glowed red for an instant and in mere seconds the girl transformed into tens of hundreds of rose petals. These petals flew towards one of the creatures. And the moment one of the petals touched the monster's dark hide, the young woman quickly transformed again, brandishing her scythe at high speed, tearing her enemy apart without mercy.
I can't stop now...
Seizing the moment, the girl used every fiber of willpower to transform again and repeat the process once more.
She would cut one of her enemies and use her special ability to go after the next one. Slicing and flying, that was the way the girl was fighting.
Before she knew it, there were only a few more creatures left in her field of vision, three to be more specific. However, unlike the others, an exoskeleton overtook certain parts of their bodies.
— ... Ha... Ha... — The girl used every ounce of her energy to face those monsters. Her body was tired, aching and her vision seemed to be blurring.
Noticing this weakness and tiredness, the creatures in front of her quickly advanced.
They were waiting!?
Before the girl could react, the first creature hit her face with its claws, causing her head to hit the ground.
Trying to react, the girl turned her scythe back into a rifle and placed its tip against the ground, pulling the trigger quickly, thus allowing the recoil to throw her body backwards, moving away from the creature while allowing her head to free itself. Her body continued to fly towards one of the trees nearby as she tried to analyze her enemies.
But, although her vision was now free, she could not see the other two creatures, only the one that had just attacked her.
The moment her body hit one of the frozen trees, she could feel a breath on her neck.
How!?
Before she turned her body, the monster's claws slashed through the frozen tree, piercing the girl's clothing and tearing the skin from her back, even the flesh and muscles.
- Ahhh! — A scream of pain escaped her as her body was forced to crouch.
The young woman closed her mouth, biting her lips enough to make them bleed, and grabbed her gun.
Without thinking twice, the girl turned her gun into a scythe again and squeezed the trigger. She could no longer move due to the pain, but using the recoil, she was able to turn her body with enough speed to cut the creature that had injured her.
After cutting the creature, the girl fell to the ground, her body was completely overcome by cramps and pain.
No... It's not over...
Using every fiber of her being, the girl gripped her scythe tightly, lifting herself once again, while using it to support herself on the floor.
One of the creatures was still in front of her, although far away, that was the first monster that tried to attack her. However, the other had completely disappeared while this one just seemed to observe the young woman's movements, waiting for something.
Where is the other one...
Even though even her thoughts were muffled and confused, she forced herself to stand, forced herself to observe the situation, and forced herself to fight.
Where...
Her eyes widened for a moment, quickly turning her face upwards, noticing that the creature was already at the top of one of the trees, ready to throw itself towards the young girl.
The moment the girl noticed the creature, it quickly jumped towards the ground, trying to hit the young girl.
Gritting her teeth, the girl squeezed her trigger once more, swinging her scythe vertically, which allowed her to cut the monster before it hit her.
At that very moment, she could hear the footsteps of the last remaining enemy, who was running towards her.
Once again, using every ounce of her determination, she used her power once more.
The moment the monster's claws touched her, her body dispersed into petals, allowing her to appear right behind her enemy.
Finally...
Pressing the trigger once again, she rotated her body and cut the last living creature there.
... It's over...
When her attack ended, the young woman quickly fell to the ground, her body was no longer able to move or get up, she could only feel pain and cold at that moment.
But something in the distance made a smile appear on her face, a noise that she would recognize from afar, the noise of the engine of a motorcycle familiar to her.
— You're late, idiot... — Murmured the girl as she passed out in the snow, stained with her own blood.