An Odd Illustration
Damon paid for their food with a heavy heart. He dragged Mikha'el outside Acedia, which confused her.
"Why are we leaving? I thought we needed to help them solve… the problem," Mikha'el whispered while looking around. Even though she was confused, she let Damon drag her away.
Damon stopped walking and faced Mikha'el. "You're the problem," he stated flatly and continued walking.
Mikha'el opened her mouth, horrified. She didn't expect Damon to rub it in her face.
The Knights guarding the gate looked at them since Mikha'el looked devastated while letting a kid drag her around.
"Tsk! You're at fault as well. Like 90% of it," Mikha'el exclaimed while gritting her teeth.
"Sure, that's why we need to solve the problem you caused. We don't want to repeat another 'Dragon attack' here," Damon whispered and went into the direction of the nearest forest where he could hide Mikha'el.
"I won't attack anyone!" Mikha'el yelled. She disliked the accusations placed on her even though she didn't do it intentionally.
"I know," Damon replied, looking at the screen floating in his vision. It was the timer of Mikha'el's Overshadow Transformation spell, and it only lasted fifteen minutes before she returned as a Dragon.
Damon was angry at himself for forgetting the timer, and that caused him a panic attack. He could imagine Mikha'el transforming into her Dragon form, and the people of Acedia would be consumed with fear.
Along with this, the Knights of Hippotades would take extreme measures to subdue Mikha'el, and the Myrmidon would join, endangering her life.
"Then what's the hurry?" Mikha'el asked, sensing the distress Damon was excreting.
Damon looked back with a cold sweat. "You're about to become a Dragon… In seven minutes, ehee," he laughed awkwardly after seeing Mikha'el panicked.
Without a word, Mikha'el picked Damon up like a bag of rice and ran as fast as she could. They weren't that far and in an open space as well.
"You could have told me earlier!" Mikha'el shouted while trying to catch her breath.
"I did," Damon replied, thinking he had told Mikha'el about the timer a minute ago.
"Tsk," Mikha'el flicked her tongue and focused on running instead of getting even more pissed at her Master.
For the next five minutes, Mikha'el ran nonstop even though every muscle on her lower extremity screamed in fatigue.
They finally arrived at the area where thick trees were growing. It was enough to hide in the meantime.
"Ten seconds," Damon whispered and started to countdown.
"Ah! This body is weak. I need to train hard again," Mikha'el complained before slumping into the ground and breathing heavily.
"3… 2… 1," Damon watched as Mikha'el's body glowed in gold before it was consumed with a black cloud of smoke that grew bigger and wider. "…0," he whispered.
The black clouds vanished, and Mikha'el returned to her majestic Dragon form.
"Ah, now I'm big and fat!" Mikha'el whined and made a loud cry. She was overwhelmed with emotions upon seeing her original form.
"No, you're not. You look magnificent instead," Damon forced a smile. He couldn't understand why Mikha'el reacted negatively after returning as a Dragon.
"How much longer do I need to stay like this?" Mikha'el asked before lying on the ground.
"Three hours," Damon replied.
"That's too long!" Mikha'el grumbled, and her voice was too loud, making the birds nearby fly away.
"Let's go back to the camp first," Damon stated hurriedly, afraid Mikha'el might attract unwanted attention, especially from the Obsidian Order.
"Okay," Mikha'el stood up slowly. Even though she was tired, she forced herself since it was the only way to remain hidden.
Damon climbed on top of Mikha'el and settled himself rightly in case he would be blown away.
"Three hours of waiting sucks," Mikha'el rolled her eyes as she flew upward. It was slower than usual, but she made it.
As Mikha'el ascended, she saw a figure below, staring at her, but it vanished in the blink of an eye. She shrugged it off, thinking she was hallucinating from the fatigue.
After a couple minutes, they arrived back at their camp near the cliff, but a surprise awaited them.
"Oh no," Damon gasped in dread.
The camp Damon had built was wrecked and trashed around. The cloths used as their roof were burnt, and nothing was left.
"The Pookas might have done it after you stole their camp," Mikha'el stated after seeing the situation.
"No, the Pookas are not this petty. They would rather use the place as their camp rather than destroy it," Damon replied and scowled. He didn't bother coming down to check the camp.
"What should we do now?" Mikha'el asked in concern.
"Let's go back to the broken tower where we first met," Damon stated sternly. He looked sullen while staring at the destroyed camp that he spent sweat to steal from the Pookas.
"Why will we go back there again? Didn't you say it's dangerous?" Mikha'el was stunned at Damon's decision.
"I'll explain later. For now, let's leave immediately before they find us here," Damon muttered, indicating the Obsidian Order and tapping Mikha'el to go.
Mikha'el squinted her eyes as she followed Damon's orders. She flew as fast as she could, thinking they were being followed.
"Can you tell me now, Ma— Damon?" Mikha'el asked curiously. If it was her decision, she would choose a place farther away, but Damon was choosing the opposite approach.
"If you're playing hide-and-seek. Are you returning to the place you already went and searched?" Damon asked, chuckling.
"No… that's an odd illustration," Mikha'el replied while shaking her Dragon head.
"Well, let me say this. The Obsidian Order knows that we won't return to that tower since it's basically a danger zone for us, a battlefield. They think we'll go somewhere else, far from here, for our safety. Hence, they will ignore the broken tower again because, let's face it. Who in their right mind will return to where the enemy has great access to it? Hmm," Damon explained, followed by a laughter.
"Damon… are you saying you're not mentally stable right now?" Mikha'el asked nervously after hearing Damon's explanation, and her question made him shut up.