Zoran remained in a state of shock as he watched Maveth confront the injured Twintails. It wasn't Maveth's ability to fight the creature that left him stunned, Zoran had known from their first encounter that Maveth was far from ordinary. What truly shocked him was the manner in which he fought.
Maveth battled with an absolute disregard for pain or injury, enduring blow after blow without so much as a flinch or a cry of pain. The Twintails' strikes were far more vicious than a mere whip, yet Maveth seemed entirely unaffected as he swung his weapon in an unrefined and unpracticed manner. That was the second thing Zoran noticed, just how unskilled Maveth truly was.
During his training, Zoran's drill sergeant had refused to let recruits touch a weapon until they had mastered the basics of combat: when to block versus when to dodge, how to maintain proper balance, and the weak points to aim for. Maveth reminded him of fresh recruits, those who had neither training nor real combat experience. On top of that, Maveth could only use his left arm. His right arm, despite Silvia's best efforts, was utterly useless and would require professional healing.
Zoran wanted to help Maveth finish off the beast, but the aftermath of his own trump card had already taken its toll. His ability was only effective if he could ensure victory in a single decisive blow. The attack acted like a small explosive, delivering a critical strike that could inflict massive damage, if it hit. The downside, however, was severe: after using it, he would be immobilized for about ten minutes. In a battle, ten minutes might as well be an eternity, and his chances of survival while incapacitated were next to none.
In the heat of desperation, he had inadvertently used his ability to kill the first Twintails, leaving himself completely vulnerable to the second. If not for Maveth's intervention, both he and Asha would have surely perished.
Freir, who had been too distracted and stunned to act earlier, finally sprang into motion, intent on getting the unconscious Asha away from danger. She also noticed Zoran's vulnerable state and moved to help him as well.
"What are you doing, idiot?! Get her to her mother!" Zoran barked at the approaching Freir.
"But y—"
"I'll be fine! Now get going!" Zoran snapped, leaving no room for argument. Despite his injuries, his focus remained solely on Asha. He couldn't shake the guilt he felt, after all, it was his fault she had been drawn into this mess.
From his perspective, it was his morning training session that had inspired the child to take such a reckless action. Moreover, he hadn't even obtained Silvia's permission before starting.
Freir didn't waste time and maneuvered past the growing crowd of onlookers, some trying to help, others merely gawking at the unfolding battle.
Meanwhile, the fight between Maveth and the Twintails continued, albeit slowly. Maveth's strikes, though relentless, barely penetrated the creature's tough hide, leaving only shallow wounds. Physically, he was superior to the beast, but his lack of skill made it nearly impossible for him to land a decisive blow.
The Twintails, in contrast, was gradually weakening. It was losing stamina, mana, and blood at an alarming rate, while its opponent showed no signs of tiring.
"Cahooooo!" the Twintails cried, mustering all its remaining strength for a final, desperate attack. If it succeeded, it would feast on the flesh of everyone who had provoked it. If it failed, it planned to retreat and recover. Its two tails moved in perfect unison, wrapping around Maveth's limp right arm.
The beast had noticed his obvious weak point and seized the opportunity to deal a fatal blow. With a sickening and faintly echoing tearing sound, Maveth's already mangled arm was ripped clean from his body.
The crowd of spectators gasped in horror, many turning away to suppress their nausea or screams. Zoran tried to stand, managing to get one foot under him before collapsing back onto his knees. "Dammit!" he thought, picturing both his and Maveth's imminent deaths.
The Twintails wasted no time and lunged forward, its sharp teeth aimed to finish the fight and claim its victory.
"Hmmmm, unexpected," Maveth murmured in his usual monotone, as if commenting on the weather. With unexpected precision, he thrust his scythe upward, driving the blade into the creature's open mouth and piercing its brain. The beast collapsed instantly, its massive body crumpling like a marionette with severed strings.
Silvia was having an absolutely terrible day. After a sleepless night dealing with an unexpected visitor and the ongoing struggles with her daughter, her plans to visit the city had to be postponed. That alone would have been manageable, after all, the city wasn't going anywhere, but a sudden beast attack had turned her day into utter chaos, putting several lives in jeopardy.
Her once peaceful home had been transformed into a makeshift hospital, with several inexperienced villagers pressed into service as nurses. Silvia flitted from one patient to another, tirelessly patching wounds, applying salves, and wrapping bandages. The greatest challenge, however, was her inability to be everywhere at once. She found herself barking instructions, demanding that others handle tasks she couldn't attend to personally.
She wasn't resentful, far from it. Her primary emotion was fear: the fear that she might fail to save someone during this critical moment. Thankfully, after an exhausting stretch, the influx of new arrivals began to slow, giving her a brief sense of control over the situation. That fragile equilibrium was shattered when Freir arrived.
"Silvia! It's Asha!"
Those words froze her world. Her thoughts sharpened to a singular focus as adrenaline coursed through her veins. Without a word, she rushed over and practically snatched the unconscious girl from Freir's arms, her hands immediately beginning a thorough examination. Muttering softly under her breath as she worked, she ensured her daughter's safety before speaking.
"What happened?" she demanded without looking up.
Freir stammered, struggling to get the words out. "Sh-she got caught up in the beast's attack and fainted. I don't think she's hurt, but I wasn't sure what to do, and Zor—"
"How close did it get?" Silvia interrupted sharply, flipping Asha over to check for hidden injuries.
"Too close. She… she threw a spear into its eye and—"
"Where's Zoran?" she cut him off again, her voice ice-cold.
"Still there. He used his explosive ability, and then Maveth—"
Before Freir could finish, Silvia turned on her heel and carried Asha into their home. She emerged moments later, now equipped with a large medical bag.
"Let's go," she commanded, her tone leaving no room for argument, before striding briskly toward the battlefield.
"What about Asha? And the others?" Freir asked hesitantly, following her.
"They're stable. I need a word with Zoran," she replied curtly, a mother's wrath simmering just beneath the surface. Freir wisely decided not to argue further and simply fell into step behind her.
Back at the scene of the battle, Maveth stood amidst the carnage. He bent down, picked up his severed arm with the casual indifference of a child retrieving a discarded stick, and examined it briefly before letting it drop back to the ground. His gaze shifted to the beast's corpse, its massive form mostly intact, before he turned his cold, expressionless eyes toward Zoran, who was still struggling to rise.
"I see," Maveth said, observing Zoran sprawled on the ground.
"Maveth, your arm…" Zoran began, his voice tinged with disbelief.
"It is irrelevant. It merely served as a hindrance," Maveth replied flatly.
Zoran stared into Maveth's lifeless eyes, feeling both unsettled and oddly grateful. "Thank you. Seriously, thank you for saving her."
"Why do you thank me?" Maveth asked, his monotone voice tinged of curiosity.
Zoran managed a faint smile. "Because you helped someone I care about. Hell, you probably saved my life too. Why wouldn't I thank you?"
"I see," Maveth replied, turning his attention to an elderly man who approached hurriedly.
"Hello! Welcome, sir. I'm Orros, the village chief. I don't have the words to express our sincere gratitude," the older man said, his average frame trembling slightly with excitement. He hoped that this encounter might result in the village gaining the protection of two Awakened, a truly remarkable blessing.
"Why do you thank me as well?" Maveth asked, his question turning the atmosphere awkward.
"Uh, because… you stopped the beast?" Orros replied, visibly confused.
"I see."
"Don't worry, Chief. That's just how he is," Zoran explained, now managing to get to his feet with some effort.
"Ah, alright then," Orros said, forcing a smile as he shifted the conversation. "How about this: as a token of our gratitude, we'll host a feast in your honor. Thanks to your efforts, we'll have plenty of meat to go around."
Before Maveth could respond, the sharp sound of a slap echoed through the air. Everyone turned to see Silvia, who had just arrived and slapped Zoran squarely across the face.
"We'll discuss this later," she said tersely before pushing him to sit down so she could assess his injuries. As she worked, she muttered under her breath, calling him "reckless" and an "imbecile."
The tension in the air was palpable, prompting the crowd to disperse. Some returned to their daily routines, while others busied themselves with preparations for the feast. Before anyone could leave entirely, Maveth's next words stopped them in their tracks.
"What should we do with the corpses?"
"What corpses?" Silvia asked sharply, her tone tinged with urgency. She was still holding out hope that someone could be saved.
"Those ones," Maveth replied, pointing to the dozens of lifeless bodies scattered along the forest's edge.