They are after Something

I dragged myself behind one of the larger trees, opposite to the direction they left. One of the arrows pierced right through my leg, but the arrowhead was missing. Probably snapped off during the struggle. I had to remove the shaft anyway, no matter how painful it was. "Ungh… Damn bastards…", with the arrow removed, my bloody slowly oozed out of the wound.

Fortunately, I had access to medicine, otherwise my chances at survival would plummet drastically. With my leg somewhat sorted out, my focus shifted towards my shoulder. I had to remove the chest piece of my armour, which wasn't easy with an injured shoulder and ribs.

After a bit of struggle and groaning, I managed to get the chest piece off of my body. The wound didn't look great. Purple teeth markings were clearly visible, while swelling around the wounded area seemed to appear. The wound hurt like hell upon a single touch, but medicine had to be applied. Next was my stomach and chest. Though not as severely injured, the pain was there. I'd rather use some more medicine, than pay the price later on.

Two bottles of medicine were enough to cover all these wounds. Though my supplies of medicine weren't great, skimping in this sort of situation would be a stupid idea. After taking care of my wounds, I sat there half naked, tired and hurting all over. The medicine had to work its wonders, which gave me some time to rest and contemplate.

'My assumption about the bird was completely wrong… Though how they managed to track me is a mystery to me. They will track me again, or even attack me soon… I managed to take two of them out, this should increase my chances at escaping… Somewhere'.

What happened inside that forest, changed my mind about killing people. These Elysians were not people in my eyes. Not because they bred with animals, but because they tried to kill me for no apparent reason. I had no remorse, or bad feelings for the two guys who died. They all deserved it, I'm able to state that without any pity.

'I killed them under the influence of my anger, but… I'd do it again, even without my Aura getting involved'. Everyone told me to be prepared, to be able to take someone else's life. I finally realised what they meant. What Dawn, my father and others tried to convey. Killing was like two sides of the coin. Not always necessary, not always avoidable. My naivety disappeared that day, I didn't think of them as people anymore. They were my enemies, someone who had to die for the sake of my own survival.

That didn't mean killing anyone was right. There were boundaries I refused to cross. Murderers existed, because people were crazy. They could be considered murderers, they actively killed people. I didn't consider myself a killer, even though two lives perished in my hands. We could've gone our separate ways, I gave them that option… Just like Dawn told me in the past, they've forsaken a right to complain once they attacked me.

'These bastards will not let me off. They will pursue me, try to hunt me down. With those two archers, they have a huge advantage over me. I can't even draw Formations, which makes this situation even worse. Thankfully, they didn't take my sword. Otherwise, my only weapon would be the dagger in my backpack... They are aware of the Voltic Orb too. There are no hidden cards left for me to use. They know pretty much everything about me'. That didn't strike great confidence in me, but giving up wasn't an option either.

My father's medicine was really something else though. The pain in my leg disappeared after a while, though my shoulder's wound was much more severe comparably. 'I have to thank him for such medicine when I return… No wonder he's a master in the Art of Medicine, perhaps it's not a bad idea to learn a few things from him'. Though the situation was grim, I didn't give up hope. I thought about returning to my family. Positivity was sometimes required, even when everything turned against you.

'From what father told me, Elysians live in their own Empire. I'm pretty sure we are currently in the Endrosian Empire though. Why are they here exactly? They killed so many people to hide something, but what are they hiding?'. There was another issue with those Elysians. My father told me they avoided conflict, which was a contradiction to my experience. They had an option to simply leave, we could go our own ways... Yet they decided to attack.

'Something must be inside this forest. Something they want to get their hands on very badly. My father wouldn't lie, therefore they are choosing conflict even though they are against it? That doesn't make sense, what is so valuable to make them change their minds?'. I had no answers to those questions. There was no way to have answers, since my knowledge was limited. The two masters would be really helpful at such times, but of course they were nowhere to be found.

Another peculiarity was their numbers. The group of seven Elysians wasn't big, especially inside a forest that big. This led me to believe they were not alone. There had to be other groups, albeit spaced out, maybe even searching the other areas of that forest. 'I need a way to get myself rid of that bird. Without that bird, their tracking abilities will be severely affected', I figured.

Killing that bird wouldn't be simple. I didn't have a bow, while Formations were simply out of the question. None of my stuff contained Formations… 'Wait a minute! The dagger my parents gifted to me… I never checked it for Formations'. That thought alone gave me some hope. I was about to grab the dagger from my bag, but stopped myself. 'They might be watching me, so I can't test it out here'.

There was hope, at least potentially. While my father's medicine slowly worked its wonders, I grabbed some meat to replenish my energy. The battle and use of my Aura pretty much depleted my whole energy pool. 'They've been rather quiet. I expected them to try and shoot me from afar, but they simply left... Or so it would seem'. I thought after taking a glance behind. My instincts told me that they were there. Waiting for me to make a move.

'I have time. You sit there and wait for my wounds to heal properly'. Maybe an hour later, the archers showed up to harass me a bit. They didn't shoot normal arrows, just some sticks without the arrow heads. "What, ran out of arrows!?", I mocked them. "You seem to be in a good spirit. How long can you last with those wounds of yours? We have time, but do you?", their leader asked, in a similar mocking tone.

Two could play that game. "Since you are so free, how about playing around with animals? Don't get me wrong, I like animals too. Just not the way you do. We simply have a different definition of 'like', that's all". After these words left my mouth, a few real arrows scraped by the tree. "You ignorant bitch. You could've died a painless death, now I'll make you beg for it", the leader's angry voice sounded from afar.

"Was that offensive? Oh, sorry, my fault. Though tell me, is your father or mother a bear?", my insults didn't cease. "Bam!... I will break every bone in your body, one at a time". That made him really angry, but there was something else. He was also strong, very strong. Taking a quick glance behind, I noticed that one of the trees was slanted to the side.

'I'm not sure whether he changed into that bear-like state, or used his raw strength to achieve that… That tree looks rather thick as well'. They became quiet once more, but something felt off to me. 'They are probably making a move. He talked to me for a reason', I thought before standing up. 'Good, there's some discomfort in my leg, but no real pain. I'm sure running will change that a bit, but the effects on my speed should be minimal. Time to get away from here', I said to myself before rushing towards the north.

"Swoosh.. Swoosh…", arrows flew at me as soon as I left my cover. They probably didn't expect my leg to heal so quickly, since the arrows ceased flying at me after a while. I didn't fall into a false sense of security though. They were trailing behind me, there was no doubt about that. Especially with that black bird following me. I was heading towards the open area with a cave. The cave would protect me from their arrows, and give me some time to think in peace.

Since there were no animals around, there was no need to watch out for them. This allowed me to run as quickly as possible. The open area soon appeared in front of me. The two archers resumed their assault when the trees disappeared. They had a clear line of sight, but none of their arrows hit me. Arrows couldn't turn mid air, hence zigzagging was the best method of escaping archers.

Nonetheless, these two women were really good. A few arrows almost pierced my body, before I arrived at the cave. The arrows became useless, their archers couldn't pierce a cave's wall with arrows. "Hahaha! I can't believe you are this stupid! Where will you run away now?!", the leader shouted.

"Come over here, and I'll show you how my orb works. Who knows, maybe some electric energy will fix an animal breed like you!", I shouted back. "You are just a small rabbit, lost in a large forest. Sooner or later, your life will be mine. I'll take that orb of yours as well, so make sure not to use it!", he shouted back, though his voice wasn't collected anymore. His anger wasn't my issue, the issue was my own life and a plan to get rid of them.

'I should rest, take proper care of my shoulder then formulate a plan. I have to test the dagger out as well'. Though the situation looked rather grim and with no way out, the only comforting thought in my mind was 'I'm alive'. That mattered the most. Since when there's will, there's a way.

Of course, they could send the wolf and boar-like men to the cave. That would be a mistake on them. Dealing with two opponents wasn't impossible for me, especially in a cramped space. 'I might be wrong, but they will not try to enter. At least their leader will not. The archers are useless inside a cave. The other two will have a limited strength inside a cave too. Wolves are good hunters in the forest, not caves. Boars are even worse. Without the space to gather speed, he'd simply fall into my hands'.

As long as that leader of theirs had a brain, they wouldn't send people to attack me. Instead, they'd focus on stalling tactics. In other words, wait for me to get hungry or thirsty. 'Heh, good luck with that. I always keep a large amount of supplies. I have enough water for a few days, and enough food for a week'. The only problem was sleep. They had an advantage of numbers, therefore sleeping wouldn't be an issue for them.

Me being alone was an issue. I learned how to sleep lightly, but they could be quiet. Sneaking up on me wouldn't be impossible with their skills. Which meant, I had to come up with something. 'Hmm... I might have an idea'. There were loads of animal skins in my backpack. I could simply cover the entrance, rendering them unaware of my actions inside. That was a great idea. '...I just need some arrows… I know the perfect place to get them too', I thought.