You're alive?! I thought you were just a mechanical crane!
Five Evil crows dived down like bombs. It looked as if Set had killed their whole family, they dove down towards Set with such ferocity that you wouldn't think otherwise. Set was looking at the crows as they fell towards him. He immediately brought out his sword and commanded the metal crane to dive down. Of course, it flew while suppressing its speed but even though it was suppressed, it was still faster than the crows.
Set commanded the crane to change its direction. Heeding the command, the crane started to circle down the mountain. Set immediately went to the system to ask, "System, I would like to use the full speed of the metal crane without falling any suggestions?". Set had thought a lot about this, he had a couple of ideas such as using his GOD'S WILL ability. But it wasn't enough! Although using his GOD'S WILL ability will allow him to utilize the crane's full speed, he couldn't make any movements except for sticking to the crane, like glue. And in a situation as this where he was forced to fight, that wasn't really an option.
[You could buy safety gear for 20 blood points]
Set without hesitation bought the so-called "Safty gear". But what happened next almost made him fall off the crane. The safety gear the system suggested was just a flimsy-looking rope that had one end skillfully tied around the body of the crane and the other tied around Set's waist.
"WHAT THE FUCK IS THIS SHIT?! System! Explain yourself!!!"
The system didn't say anything as if it had run away after ripping someone off. Set was furious he paid twenty blood points for this rope. And it wasn't even special it was just a normal-looking rope. Set being ignored decided to ignore the system. With tears in his eyes he looked at the rope he had bought with twenty precious blood points and decided to put some faith in the system. Although the chances were slim, it was worth the shot!
"Let's show them what we've got", Set commanded the crane to fly at its max speed. The five Evil crows were closely tailing them from behind, that was until the metal crane flapped his wings. It was a normal flap but the power contained within that single flap was enough to part the clouds! And within that same moment, the crane disappeared from the sights of its pursuers!
When it appeared again it was behind the Evil crows. All this transpired within a single second, the poor crows didn't even have a chance to react. Set who was surprisingly still seated on the crane, smiled as he pulled out his Titan Blade and with a single stroke, he had split a crow in two.
[Blood point gained]
Even though he had killed one of the Crows, it was very difficult for him. The speed he was moving at was insane but his reaction speed wasn't. If his reaction speed wasn't up to par with the flight speed of the crane then it wouldn't matter how fast he was, he had a small chance of actually getting things done.
Knowing this he was actually flying at half the speed of the metal crane. But even with the speed suppressed he had a hard time working on that level. He might have killed that Evil crow but he had done that with difficulty. Even though he couldn't match the speed, he only had to predict where the crow was going to be next. With a tight grip on his sword and his GOD'S WILL ability backing it up and prohibiting it from moving backward, with the speed the crane was flying at the crows were no more than sitting ducks ready to meet their maker!
Set using this method, quickly killed the rest of the Evil crows, making them fall to the ground in two and earning four blood points as well. Although Set was happy by his gain, he was more surprised by the rope he had bought. It had stayed firm and strong when Set was flying not allowing him to fall. For some reason, even his legs were firmly wrapped around the belly of the crane, as if they were sculpted there. Set flew down to the dead bodies and proceeded to carve out their beast cores. But before he could leave he saw the crane looking at the dead bodies as if he had something in mind.
He look at the crane with curiosity but what happened next was something he would never have anticipated. The crane waltzed its way towards the bodies and started eating them! Set was flabbergasted, the crane was created by humans. And now it is eating?
He was so surprised he couldn't help but blurt out, "You're alive?! I thought you were just a mechanical crane!" hearing this the crane lifted its head to stare at Set, nodded, and kept on munching. Set was not expecting to get a nod. The significance of that nod was even more appalling than the cranes eating. The nod meant that the crane had developed consciousness!
"How could she give me such a precious treasure? Or is it that it became like this after gaining that sun mark?"
Set had now grown curious of the sun mark. But as he hadn't the information or the time to research, he sat down and waited for the crane to finish. But he was given more surprises. No matter how much the crane ate it wasn't full. It was as if there was a black hole inside the crane's stomach. The crane ate and ate and ate, by the time it finished it was already nighttime.
Set had started a bonfire and was roasting an evenly sliced slab of Evil crow meat. But as he was waiting for it to cook, from the distance he heard voices. Thankfully Set hadn't taken off the Crimson Curse and his face was still in disguises so he wasn't worried. After a minute or two, he saw a man and a woman walk towards him. The man was of normal stature and was wearing expensive armor. He was in his late twenties and had two daggers behind his waist, their handles were pointing to the sides, making it easy to draw them.
The woman beside him was wearing a purple robe reinforced with beast cores and had a bow set on her back, but surprisingly she had no quiver. As for her appearance, she had a petite body and a delicate face. She seemed to be in her late teens. Her temperament was one of kindness and elegance. She had deep black hair that was tied up in a ponytail. The two people did have two things in common though. They both had dry lips, anyone who saw them would think their lips would break with the slightest of breeze. The other things were their eyes, their eyes had so many blood vessels showing, that they looked as if they were possessed by demons from the pits of hell. They looked hungry, thirsty, and sleep-deprived.
When both of them saw the load of perfectly sliced meat, their mouths couldn't help but get watery. They looked like a pack of hungry wolves that had just stumbled upon a defenseless slice of roasted meat. They eyed it so much, Set actually feel sad for the meat. But it was only after some time that the duo acknowledged his presence.
They stood in front of Set. The man stepped forward and politely asked, "May we have some of your food, friend?" Set looked at them for a moment before shaking his head. The duo was surprised, they expected him to share a little or even put a price on the food but they never expected he would flat out say no.
Set wasn't dumb, he could tell the armor the man was wearing was expensive. And when the man stepped forward and asked Set on the duo's behalf, Set knew he was just a guard and nothing more making the woman behind him important. The man moved closer to Set and asked again.
"Friend we can negotiate on the price and don't worry, money isn't a problem." This was what Set wanted. He stood up and said in an annoyed tone, "Don't you have any food pills or something?", the man truthfully answered, "No, we don't. We used up all of them a week before, it's a miracle we survived this long." said the man while constantly eying the slab of roasting meat.
Set paused as if he was having an internal debate before finally saying, "It won't be cheap tho..."
"As I said, money is not an issue". Hearing this, Set under his mask smiled deviously. "One hundred thousand gold coins!" the duo was smacked out of their dream. One hundred thousand gold coins?!?! Who does this guy think he is? Even rich people would lose sleep over this type of money. "Brother, please that kind of money is not a small amount you know..." but before he could finish Set cut him off.
"You haven't eaten in days, you are as hungry as wolves. The shelter is six hours south of here. But by your current state, you would be lucky to get there in under two days. That is if you don't get attacked by celestial beasts. But if I give you this perfectly sliced slab of meat, roasted to just the right temperature, then you guy would have a chance of surviving. And that is only the first part of the service I will provide. The second being I will personally escort you to the Shelter. As you can see I have a World-class mechanical crane mount, and with its highest speed, we could reach the Shelter in about five minutes."
Hearing Set out the two were a bit hesitant. Although his temptations were good one hundred thousand gold coins were still nothing to scoff about.
But Set didn't finish, he went on to say, "If you guys decline and wish to go to the shelter I won't stop you. But now that it has reached midnight, if you do go I can 100% guarantee you that you will die. And if you think you could get lucky and meet someone else, I can tell you that your chances are lower than ZERO! If you think your lives aren't worth one hundred thousand gold coins, then I wish you good luck. But remember, live or die... it's your choice".
Set had smacked them with so many facts they only had one choice. The man gritted his teeth and said, "Brother, when I said that money wasn't an issue I meant it but we currently don't have that kind of sum."
The two were nervous they didn't know if Set would agree or not. What Set had said was all true so much so that they thought he was reading it off a book.
"No worries, just empty out your wrist badges and I will give you your food and then some."