Chapter 44: The Hunt (1)

"Boreas!"

Hearing his name called he turned around; seeing Bonne and Clyne heading into the clearing. Bonne had a look of panic on her face, rushing over to him. She started inspecting his state, checking for severe injuries. Clyne was hanging back a bit, scanning the remnants of the area.

The forest was no more; with embers and ashes left. It wasn't the largest forest but it was big enough for its lack of presence to be distinct.

"I'm all right." Boreas said, lightly swatting Bonne's hands away. Clyne had finally reached the two, speaking next, "Seems he didn't go down easy."

The three turned their attention to the defeated warrior. He was still laying on the ground, but he no longer covered his face with his hands. His ragged state was clear because of this; with his eyelids shut tight as blood was coming from them.

"Wow, you took his eyes? That's pretty hardcore man." Clyne said, a slight grimace in his voice.

"It's only natural that I take them. He can't complain about my prize after beating him."

"Fair enough."

Ultri, though he was blind now, and heavily worn from the bombardment of ice earlier, was rising to his feet.

Bonne reached for the sword on her hip but Boreas' hand raise stopped her. A spear, clear and almost ethereal looking materialized.

"Any last words?" He asked, raising the tip to Ultri's neck.

Silence filled the desolate field. A second passed, and then another, before Ultri responded, "You'll pay."

Boreas snorted in contempt. Even to the end; Ultri was still him. In all honesty, he had hoped the man would have been broken, or cower for his life. Instead, Ultri dealt him the same spite from the beginning of their meeting. It seemed, even though Boreas had won; in the sense of spirit, he had lost.

He had to resort to an enhancement after all. If it wasn't for that, he would have surely lost. Regardless, pride had no value here. The only thing that mattered was he would live, and Ultri would die.

With a thrust of his spear, the blade pierced Ultri's neck. The man, with one last cough of blood, fell backward. As he lay on the ground, his last thought was regret. Not that Severost had died, or that he had lost to Boreas; but that he would never get to make good on his promise to Ashur.

Boreas felt a tap on his shoulder. He turned to see it was Bonne who'd done so. He perked up, remembering where he was. Currently, he was speaking with Otis, an executive in Black Jack.

Boreas had been recalling the turn of events so heavily that he had spaced out momentarily. Now, fully present again, he spoke, "So, you said that Ashur and a partner of his are coming to Lethal?"

"Yes." Otis responded, "It's estimated that they'll make it here in a day and a half. As you may be a potential partner to the organization in the future, I thought it wise to warn you."

"Hmm…" Boreas placed his finger on his chin, being deep in thought. Bonne and Clyne exchanged glances with each other.

"Well I think we should leave then." Bonne said, cutting through the silence.

All in the room turned to her. Otis spoke next, "That's not a bad idea. Ashur's very powerful after all."

"All right… I'm planning to stay. It's better to face him now than further down the line." Boreas paused for a moment, glancing between Bonne and Clyne, "You two don't have to stay. This is my problem to settle." Even though Boreas meant what he said, he wasn't surprised by the response thrown back at him.

"We're staying. No question."

An indignant sigh fell from Boreas' lips. Both his companions' faces were dressed in resolve. Even if he wanted to deny their choice, he had no right. They were adults after all, plus they had been with him the longest. If either of them were in the same position as him he would have stayed as well.

Otis spoke next, "Well, if that's your decision. Just know, if everything goes well with the fight and you decide to join our organization, I'll find you in a week."

"Understood." Boreas said. Bonne walked backward, breaking from the group to open the front door. Otis simply raised his hand at the action however. "There's no need to leave that way. I'll see you all soon, hopefully." At that moment, without any noise or extra words, Otis vanished from plain sight.

It was as if everyone blinked and the next second he had disappeared. The three adventurers realized it was the work of a blessing. With the meeting and their next course of action settled, the three stood in silence in the spacious room.

***

-The day John and Ashur left the Guild Hall-

Rox was standing, his arms crossed tightly. His deep black eyes had a glint of irritation in them as the tapping off his foot sounded throughout the small room. That action was shared with his two cohorts, as they also held similar looks of irritation in their eyes. The two alongside Rox were his party members.

They were standing side by side. Simon was a younger looking man, with deep auburn hair. His eyes were a murky brown and he had no facial hair, with the most intriguing thing about him being a snake patterned scarf around his neck.

The other man beside him was Tot. He had the build of a mammoth, being as large if not bigger than Rox. In a contest of strength the average person was likely to bet on him.

As a sea of resentment filled the room, the one individual who seemed unperturbed was Claire, she had a smile on her face, her green eyes shut. Besides the slight twitch of her index finger ever so often, she was still. They were all currently facing a mirror, making the room they were standing in the bathroom within the guild hall.

Previously, when Claire had given Rox his mission, to eliminate the demon-ranked criminal Buld, the assumption was he would go at it alone. However, with his adventuring party being close-knit, their inclusion in his assignment was accepted. Rann was the only person missing from the group, given the directive Rox had given him. Back when John and Ashur were at the guild hall, Rox had told Rann to follow the two's party.

"How much longer is that blasted woman going to take?" Rox thought to himself. While he wasn't a sage, he would say he had a decent amount of patience. However, that patience was wearing thin with every second that passed.

After what felt like an eternity more of waiting, Rox's internal question was answered, as the mirror they'd been facing that merely reflected their frustrated faces, distorted. It was reminiscent of what happens when dropping a rock into a small puddle.

Two hands poked out of it, gripping the sides of the mirror. Rox's two party members jolted back in surprise, while Rox and Claire's faces were straight-laced. With a grunt someone came falling out of the mirror, landing with a plop. "Ouch. That wasn't a good landing." The person's voice held slight pain, but there was an air of lightheartedness in it.

After raising to their feet with a small grumble their features could be seen clearly. Staring down the four individuals was a fair woman with bright pink irises. Half of her hair was platinum blonde while the other half was black.

The wide smile on her face revealed her canine-like teeth. The freckles on her face seemed like an extra detail that while unneeded amplified a certain impression, she was extremely cute.

The woman wasn't tall, but not too short either, reaching up to Rox's shoulders in height. He was 182 cm.

She rotated her head, quickly scanning the room and once they fell onto Claire they lit up. She skipped forward, giving her a big ol bear hug. "It's sooo great to see you, Claire!" She barely managed to say through her wide smile.

Claire, who maintained a stoic air the entire waiting period, had a strained smile on her face as she returned the hug. Then, she tapped on her back twice, as a signal to let her go. The woman obliged, and Claire continued speaking. "Likewise. Now, Seme, what took you so long?" She questioned.

"Oh… I got lost trying to find the bathroom."

"YEAH!?" The shout mixed with anger and disbelief belonged to Rox. He stepped forward, his eyes gleaming with anger. Seme, seeing the hostile man, quickly hopped behind Claire. She peeked around the green-haired girl. "My baad." She said with an apologetic hand raise.

"Your… bad?" Rox's head faced the ground as he clenched his fist. His two subordinates placed their hands on his shoulder as they attempted to console him.

Rox hated few things in this world more than lackadaisical people. They were hardly reliable; inconsistent on showing up on time for things or even being valuable support. In this situation in particular, when time was of the essence due to the death toll, he couldn't quell his anger. Seme for as long as he'd known her had been this way, aloof and hard to reach, even more than himself.

When he would disappear there was at least a purpose, such as training or an undercover mission but when Seme did, no acceptable explanation would ever be given. She always had an answer that left a lot to be desired.

Claire turned to Seme, who had a bead of sweat coming down her face. Her eyes were glued on Rox, waiting for any signal of danger.

"That aside, you did set a spawn point close to their base, yes?" Claire spoke, glancing between Seme and Rox who was still holding back his anger best he could.

"Oh, yes I did. It was suuuper difficult though. Their base of operations is heavily guarded." Seme responded curtly. Her eyebrows were raised as an anxious smile was on her face. She was looking directly at Rox, giving the impression she hoped her words would be acceptable to him.

Rox simply maintained his harsh gaze before speaking, "So, how close is the spawn point?"

Taking his flat tone as a sign the worst of the danger had passed, Seme's face brightened up. "About a kilometer from their base. I'm unsure if they had any mirrors or reflective surfaces inside, as I couldn't get that deep without being spotted.

"That's good enough then." Rox grumbled, raising his arms above his head to stretch. His two party members followed suit.

Claire stepped toward Rox, a concerned glint was in her eye. "I need you to listen to me on this. He's seriously dangerous."

"Right. I remember a couple years back how it took nearly everything you had to take him down. Even then, you could only capture him; killing was too difficult." As he spoke, Rox was doing several other stretches. His tone was casual, as he recalled the previous turn of events.

"Exactly. But you forgot to mention what happened to Gerald."

The instant the name was mentioned, Rox froze. Gerald. He was a fellow adventurer, being B rank. When Rox first became an adventurer, the man had taken him under his wing. It was thanks to Gerald that he survived some of the rougher jobs he took on when first starting.

Rox's face darkened, "You don't need to bring him up. I didn't forget anything, I just didn't see a reason to mention him."

"Well, I do. He was a trusted friend of mine. Back then, when he and I confronted Buld; if he hadn't jumped in front of me I would have been the one who died. Just make sure you stay focused out there, okay?" Claire seemed genuinely concerned about him. Because of that, Rox didn't want to completely disregard her words but it still frustrated him.

"Okay." He said quietly. Now, having said all she wanted to, Claire took a step back. "Good luck to you three." She said, looking at Rox, Tot, and Simon."

"Thanks Ms. Claire," Simon said with a grin. Tot simply gave a silent nod.

Seme turned around, stepping toward the bathroom mirror. She stood to the side of it, placing her hand on the surface. It started to bubble and then she spoke, "Alright. Jump inside now!"

Her voice was cheerful but it didn't inspire much confidence. Besides Rox and Claire, who already knew her, for Tot and Simon; who first met her here, following her instructions wasn't the easiest task.

However, when Rox stepped forward without another word, the other two followed suit. Rox gave one last glance toward Seme, "After the mission we're going to have a long talk okay?"

"Sir, yes sir!" Seme retorted with a sharp salute using her other hand. Rox released an indignant sigh before leaping through the mirror.

It was a weird feeling. Rox felt as if he was swimming, not in water, but something even more fluid. All around he just saw pink clouds. This was Seme's mirror dimension ability.

Using mirrors, or any sort of reflective surface, she could travel through it. He had experienced the ability a couple times, as working together with her was a must since she was an A Rank adventurer as well.

Because of his experience, he quickly spotted the exit. A bright light, far ahead. He glanced backward, seeing the outlines of two individuals. "Tot! Simon! Follow me!" He shouted.

As he neared closer and closer to the exit, he couldn't help but feel his heart start to beat faster. It wasn't a familiar feeling. He was rarely nervous, especially for combat. Buld was truly a dangerous opponent, he would not take him lightly, and if it was in the cards, he would avenge his mentor's death.

As he passed through the bright light he closed his eyes. He swore to himself, no matter what Buld would die on this day.