Follow me or die!

Reunited with my girls, I ran forward toward the Formless trio. The wind on my body felt refreshing. Stepping in sync with me, the girls all followed. 

"You aren't even surprised, Honey? Were you expecting us?" 

"Yes, I knew my girls would never back down." 

"Wow! My girls? You are, how you say… Manly! My heart is beating so fast, Darling!" 

"Manly? Did you not notice how cringe-worthy the nonsense he keeps spouting is?" 

"Stop lying, Jas, you are adorable when you blush scarlet. Ah! You're doing it again! See! Your cheeks are red!" 

"Please be quiet, Jo. You will give John and Isabella the wrong idea." 

The girls formed around me: Jo at the front, Jasmine beside me, and Isabella covering my back. It was our original formation. As the sisters joked, I couldn't help but feel elated. 

None of these women were flowers in a garden. They were warriors who happened to be of the opposite gender. Only those who were beyond normal could banter like this in the current situation. 

When I checked back on the trio, they were all fighting back to back. The Viking was defending against the brunt of the zombies, but the ninja and the kid were no slouches either. Yet, from where I stood, I could tell that they were all exhausted, bleeding, and bruised. 

'Hmm. Not good. Without any help, they would die before they could become of any use.' 

"Bella," I called. 

"Yes, Mr. Code?" 

"The group we are about to save are all Formless. They were part of Gori's assault unit. I want them." 

"Hmm. They must have made a good impression on you, huh? Why are they isolated now?" my partner asked in confusion. 

"An asshole leading the assault group picked up the kid and used him as bait for the undead. The Viking and the ninja broke off from the main group to save him. Red didn't bother returning and left them to die." 

"This assault group is the one led by the redheaded Reaper with a lightning sword {Fate}?" Jasmine asked. 

"Same one. Anyway, I like the balls of these three. Let's save them. We will murder the assault group afterwards." 

At this point, while dashing, we began to run into zombies. Due to the goal of saving the trio, we didn't bother to stop, nor did we kill everything. Josephine stabbed and kicked the Normies away with impressive elegance. 

"Hmm. Despite their dire situation, they are plenty capable. Since you asked, let me see what I can do, Mr. Code. But I expect a reward." 

"Anything you want. But please, do it in 5 minutes. I will be heading for the assault group immediately after," I requested. 

My blood boiled at the thought of shooting Red's kneecaps and throwing him to the undead. It was to the point that I would put a bullet in anyone who got in my way. 

"I do feel their treatment of the child was excessive, but John, your bloodlust is suffocating. Is there someone in the assault group you particularly hate?" 

Caught off guard by Jasmine's sensitivity, I answered curtly. It was not like I intended to hide it, at least not from the girls. 

"There is. The redheaded swordsman leading them. I am going to butcher him." My words came out more heartless than I imagined. 

"Uwahh! Scary. I am starting to feel sorry for the ginger bastard. Darling, you will be happy if you get to kill him sooner, right?" 

"Yes," I answered as I blew zombie brains away. 

"Okay, Darling, leave it to me! Jas! I am going all out! You should know what I mean, right? Come with me, please?" 

"Jo! It is theoretically possible, but are you sure?" 

"I am. Bella! Look closely! This is my answer to your question!" 

"Huh? What are you going to do?" the Brazilian replied in confusion. 

"Hehehe! You will understand soon! Jas, come on!" 

Jas then exhaled deeply before she answered. "Sigh, fine. Okay, let's go! Might as well go out with a bang! Ready?" 

"YES!" Jo shouted at the top of her voice! 

"{SAVE}!" x2 

Josephine acting like the Energizer Bunny was nothing new. But Jasmine's yell surprised me. Bella and I were barely keeping up with them as it was. And the two of them were saying they could go even harder? 

'Descendants are broken as fuck.' 

"Darling! Remember to praise me, okay? JAS LET'S GO!!!!!!!" 

"All right. Match my timing, Jo!" her sister replied. 

"{SOUL BREAKER}!" x2 

At that moment, an insane amount of energy enveloped Josephine and Jasmine. Green and indigo shrouds of dazzling light wrapped around their bodies like a cloak. 

Beside me, Jas suddenly increased in speed, leaving me in the dust. Faster than lightning, she raced. Jo acted in the same manner but charged with her rapier outstretched. 

Like a bullet, Josephine dashed so fast that a cone of wind covered her body. The undead, helpless against the Italian's momentum, got smashed away as if run over by a truck. Her sister, on the other hand, used her head start to leap 50 ft into the air. She began firing arrows three at a time. 

Under Jasmine's barrage, dozens of arrows broke the sound barrier and fell like meteors around the Formless trio. Forget being torn to bits; a hundred zombies all got vaporized by that one attack. 

Due to her inhuman accuracy, the explosions didn't hurt the Viking and her group. Yet, the powerful impacts ruptured the ground, leaving deep craters. Dumbfounded, the trio we intended to save stood still like mannequins. 

Jasmine's attack gained a few seconds of peace. But the Vikings' group was still surrounded by over a hundred zombies. Before the undead could reach the trio, Josephine finally arrived. 

With her melodic voice, the Italian ordered, "Get down if you don't want to die!" 

In response, the Viking pulled the shinobi and the kid to the ground. He then covered them with his body. A moment later, Josephine's body shone like a shooting star, then exploded like a grenade. 

A hundred transparent versions of her emerged from the fragments of light. Each of them, rapier in hand, stabbed a single enemy in the forehead then vanished. Within seconds, another hundred zombies fell to the ground. 

"How is that fucking fair?" I uttered in envy. 

But, using {Perceive}, I saw Josephine's white skin smeared red. It was as if every pore on her body had exploded. Jasmine was no better as she fell from the sky; her dark skin appeared severely bruised. 

"So, it was real. An attack that consumed the user's entire soul as compensation. {Soul Breaker}. How foolhardy," my partner concluded. 

An attack that consumed your soul? So, it was basically a suicide attack? Why were they so reckless? Possibly picking up on my confusion, Bella answered while we were running. 

"This was likely intended to prove their determination. We had a long talk before. It seems they made their choice. They intend to help you become a Revenant or die trying." 

I bit my lip in both frustration and gratitude. My grandiose claims were forcing those around me to follow. While I did not do it for them, knowing they had such faith in me made my heart swell with pride. I would never betray such goodwill. 

"Come on, come on, come on {Rewind} already," I worried. 

Josephine collapsed and fell to the ground. Jasmine was seconds away from crashing. My heart hurt as I saw their gruesome states. 

'Come on, come on, come on.' I continued to chant in silence. 

"{Rewind}." x2 

Finally invoking my {Fate} the sisters' bodies broke into small lights and vanished. I turned around and saw they were both back on their feet and running behind us. 

Jas smiled and gave a thumbs-up. Jo waved, grinning smugly. Her high-strung energy showed in every move. These girls were crazy, and they had balls of steel. 

'FUCK! That gave me a heart attack. But that was so fucking awesome! If they didn't have {Rewind} they wouldn't be able to do such tactics. Let's ask that they tell me first in the future if they do something like that,' I decided in my mind. 

As Bella and I didn't stop running, we finally arrived to meet the abandoned trio. 

High from the excitement of the sisters' performance, I spoke arrogantly like a king. "Follow me or die!" 

"I refuse; I bow only to the strong!" 

"My allegiance lies only to my Master." 

"Fuck off, you cunt!" 

Such colorful replies. But why did they all sound feminine? Not that it mattered. The sisters' power changed my mind. With {Soul Breaker} in our cards, we didn't need more people. If these three didn't want to join us, then as a final mercy to them, I would send them to the afterlife. 

"Then die." 

I aimed at the Viking and squeezed the trigger. 

"No!" 

A gunshot echoed in the air as Bella diverted my pistol with her knife. "Honey, I know you're in a hurry, but calm down! Leave this to me!" Bella pleaded with a face full of surprise. 

Seeing my partner's reaction, I felt myself jolted awake. 

'What the fuck did I just do? Why did I suddenly shoot these people? Didn't I intend to recruit them?' 

Unsure what the fuck happened, I took a deep breath before answering, "You have five minutes." 

Bella nodded and gave my cheek a quick peck before whispering in my ear, "That was perfect, Mr. Code." 

I moved away in silence to let Bella talk to them. 

"Greetings, I will be quick. We are aware of your circumstances and that you three are Formless. My partner has a grudge against the redheaded swordsman who betrayed you. We aim to kill his entire group, then attack the boss. If you have nothing better to do why not join us?"