10. The Mermen Twins 

Part I 

Mai tried to answer but couldn't speak as her throat was locked in his grip, so she waited for him to let go. Seconds passed with no movement, but he didn't squeeze tighter.

"Then give her to me if you don't want her." the woman said.

The man continued to stare at Mai, and suddenly, her eyes emitted a whitish glow. He raised his eyebrows and released his grip.

"I'll keep her. I said she's mine." he declared.

Mai held her throat, coughing and responding with a hoarse voice.

"I belong to no one."

"She's boring. I've already grown tired of her." said the woman, and her words made Mai's heart skip a beat.

*Snap*

The woman snapped her fingers, and large snowflakes the size of plates appeared all over the sky. They raced towards Mai at full speed, matching the rhythm of her clenched fists as best as she could. It wasn't easy with countless snowflakes, and she quickly grew exhausted, stopping to catch her breath.

*Swish*

The snowflakes cut through her coat, penetrating her skin. Something cold pricked her, and she felt a stinging sensation. Her body began to shake, shivers ran down her spine, and her teeth started to chatter. Holding her arms, she took deep breaths, now resembling thick white smoke.

Suddenly, the man started laughing with a mocking undertone, which she immediately noticed. So, he finds it amusing! She gritted her teeth, rubbed her fingers together, clenched her fists, and with her right hand, she struck the man as hard as she could.

*Crack*

His nose broke, but she wasn't done with him. She unleashed her fury, feeling warmth and excitement, a smile spreading across her lips. The man didn't fall, but he was forced several meters back, causing the woman to raise her eyebrows.

"Why are you fooling around? We've already wasted enough time on her." her words were cutting.

The man grunted, wiping blood from his mouth, and adjusting his nose.

*Crack*

It snapped back into place, and he massaged it gently, grunting again.

Mai raised her eyebrows. Is his nose made of jelly? She felt exhausted and knelt, taking slow breaths. Why was she so weak? She grew tired from just a few blows. Could she train her stamina, or was it too late?

"The chimeras were paper compared to him." she mumbled.

She sat on the grass, and Kenta sniffed her while glaring at the couple. The piercing pain in her body wasn't as bad, but now it felt like something was crawling inside her. It tingled a bit in her stomach and head, but it only felt like the time she had a bad case of diarrhea.

*Whoosh*

Suddenly, the woman pulled a gleaming blue longbow out of ice with a blue arrow, its tip black with a blue zigzag. She prepared and shot it towards Mai, who hadn't noticed.

Kenta turned his head, barking fiercely, causing her to turn hers as well. She blocked with her hands and felt the arrow pierce through her right hand, followed by a cool, almost stinging sensation.

The woman held her right hand forward and clenched it. 

"Bloom." 

*Whoosh* 

Mai felt something cool trying to crawl out of her body, as if it were inside her bones. She gritted her teeth because she could figure out what was going to happen. She placed her hands on her chest.

 "Heal." 

Nothing happened, and she tried repeatedly. 

"Heal, dammit." 

She knew swearing wouldn't help, but she was truly desperate.

The woman smiled, revealing with a cold voice. 

"You need to purify, but it seems you can only heal."

"Are all as weak as you here?" she added with a mocking undertone.

She shook her head. 

"I can't believe your race got abilities. Such a waste when other beings, smarter than you, could have gotten them."

She slowly approached Mai and spat on her head, which turned blue and immediately froze into ice. Mai, still in severe pain, had no idea what was happening above her head because her body was already very cold.

"Die." the woman squeezed her right hand. 

*Boom*

The ground shook violently, and the woman and the man were thrown back by an invisible force. 

*Bump*

The man hit a tree and broke his neck. 

The woman was luckier, landing in a meadow and sliding over a frozen lake before ending up in a swamp of short reeds resembling small, brown, hard bumps. 

They groaned and quickly got to their feet.

"The Northern lapwing breeds here, and it's a preserved area. Your filthy ass has no business here." A man remarked, casting a glance at the reed area.

Mai could sense what was happening but was solely focused on staying alive, concentrating on her deep breaths while futilely attempting to heal herself. Suddenly, she felt something heavy and soft placed over her shoulders, and warmth spread through her body, slowly starting to relax. The tingling sensation was still there but now seemed restrained from breaking out.

"We run into each other again, Miss-Who-Has-Rejected-Me." 

It was a familiar male voice, and she turned her head to the right, looking up.

There stood a handsome man with blond hair and bright blue eyes, wearing a white cloak with a fur hood that made her blink a few times. Miss-Who-Has-Rejected-Me? Was that her new name?

She coughed lightly, attempting to speak, but her voice was too hoarse.

"Save your voice. We can talk afterward." said the general in a gentle tone.

Mai nodded, smiled, and covered herself entirely in the blanket with Kenta.

Part II 

*Whoosh*

A white sphere formed around her, and the grass beneath her began to warm. 

Kenta lay down, resting his head on her legs and closed his eyes.

The general looked at the couple standing beside each other, seemingly unharmed. He glanced quickly at Mai, furrowing his brows, looking concerned.

"The blanket only holds it back temporarily, but you need to go to the Spirit Temple to be purified," he said, turning towards the couple.

"Unfortunately, I can't stay for your picnic trip." he added.

"We don't have time for that either." the woman commented with a cold voice.

As she was about to make a gesture with her right hand, the general snapped his fingers.

*Crack*

The woman's hand broke, and bones protruded, releasing a reddish flow of blood.

"Grr. Fucking human. Have you no respect?" 

She gritted her teeth and fell to her knees, trying to set her hand back in place, but it didn't work.

"The Mermen are a respectful race, but you did not show respect to this woman when you attacked her. Two against one is unfair. Your bodies can regenerate, but it requires there to be enough water in the area."

*Snap*

*Crack. Crack*

The man's knees broke, and he fell to the grass, writhing and contorting in pain as he curled into a ball.

"Impossible. How can you break our bones?"

*Snap. Snap. Snap*

The general snapped repeatedly.

*Crack. Crack. Crack*

More bones broke loudly, and now they both writhed in pain, biting their teeth. Several bones protruded from their bodies, and blood flowed as their wounds expanded from rolling around on the grass.

"Lucky, we came prepared." the woman's voice was clear, though low.

The general shook his head, about to turn away, but then he suddenly saw the woman sticking her hand between her breasts, trying to pull something out, causing him to raise his eyebrows.

"What do you think you're doing?"

Out of her chest, she suddenly pulled a black wooden talisman shaped like a hexagon with strange symbols engraved. She tried to place it in the ground.

*Snap*

The general snapped loudly again, and the talisman flew out of her hand quickly toward him, which he caught with his left hand.

"It's dangerous play for children." He placed the talisman in his pocket without studying it closely.

Mai suddenly felt a dry throat and tried to cough it away, but it quickly escalated into a violent fit. She held her throat, feeling something move in her vocal cords, sending a chill through her stomach. What the hell is this?

She hurried to the general, extending her right hand and making a gesture.

The general's right ears twitched, and he raised his eyebrows, immediately spreading his arms in front of him and splaying his fingers, his expression turning serious.

"Inferno Abyss." 

*Whoosh* 

An intense, scorching heat spread in the area, and heatwaves became visible behind the couple. 

A massive bluish round portal emerged behind them, with dancing blue flames around the edges. The portal itself resembled a sea of nuanced large flames constantly changing color. 

*Crackle*

An invisible force suddenly pulled the couple towards the portal, and they immediately tried to resist as best they could.

"We have Cores and so-called Spirit Pearls!" the woman shouted as a last resort.

The general smiled lightly, and his eyes emitted a sharp gleam.

"Why should I be interested in that? What do you take me for?" He sounded almost offended.

The man gritted his teeth and shouted, "Our Elder is on the way. If you kill us, there will be consequences."

The general narrowed his eyes, and his eyes suddenly shot flames that changed color.

"Are you threatening me?" His voice was cold and echoed in the area.

*Snap*

The portal quickly pulled the couple in, closing.

*Poof*

It disappeared, and there was complete silence in the meadow, only Mai's breathing could be heard.

Mai wanted to get up, but there was a piercing pain in her stomach that forced her to remain seated. Suddenly, she felt the general bend down beside her, and he looked deep into her eyes.

"Can you hold on a little longer?"

Mai hated asking for help and had always fended for herself, but she nodded because, right now, she was helpless. She felt his warm, large hands beneath her, and with a quick, gentle movement, he lifted her into his arms, carrying her bridal style. She placed her arms around his neck and suddenly caught a whiff of his body scent, which was pleasant. It was refreshing, like the scent of the wilderness.

"Um, I hope I'm not heavy." she apologized, feeling embarrassed.

"You weigh nothing," the general replied, looking down at Kenta, who stared up at him in silence with curious eyes.

"I assume your dog needs to come along."

"Of course. That's Kenta. He's my best friend in the world." 

*Whoosh* 

Kenta barked sharply and suddenly hovered beside her. She looked at him and smiled warmly.

"There, there. It's just a friend," her voice softened, causing Kenta to quiet down, and he now stared at the general, blinking a few times.

The general lifted off the ground, and they soared into the sky, now painted beautifully red by the warm sun.

"So, I'm your friend? But you haven't mentioned your name yet." the general suddenly said.

Mai furrowed her brow. We met yesterday!

"It's Mai," she reintroduced herself, lips pursed.

"I'm Liam, but everyone calls me L, so that's fine too." the general introduced.

"You have a beautiful name. Liam sounds better, but L is cool too." commented Mai.

"You're the first to praise my name." chuckled Liam.

Mai closed her eyes, buried her head in his chest, and felt a delightful warmth spreading through her body, bringing a smile to her lips.

"You smell good." she mumbled, falling asleep instantly.

Liam's cheeks reddened, and he coughed lightly, clearing his throat. 

"Thank you. You do too."

He looked down at her, but when he saw she was in deep sleep, he smiled and glanced at Kenta, who flew to his left, having witnessed their interaction.

"Is she single?" 

*Woof*

He looked back down at the vast meadow, and when his eyes caught sight of the reed area where the woman had been, he furrowed his brow.

"The Elder is wasting his time. Those two should only be around 100 years old. Why send kids?" 

He shook his head and quickly flew away from the meadow.