"Ugh…" Tessa groaned in pain as her body flew through the air, blood trickling from her mouth.
The force behind Alex's kick was so strong she nearly threw up everything in her stomach.
After crashing through the third tree, she finally landed hard on the ground, coughing up more blood.
Arin, seeing this, squinted as he observed her. "I think it's finally time… time for me to intervene..."
In that same moment, his fingernails began to elongate, transforming into claws. The real battle was about to begin.
Arin shifted his gaze toward Alex, who was panting and clutching his leg, an expression of pain on his face.
It wasn't from just kicking Tessa; something else was clearly affecting him.
"Tch…" Alex clicked his tongue in annoyance, gripping his leg tighter and closing his eyes.
Ignoring him for the moment, Arin approached Tessa, who lay on the ground, groaning and writhing in pain.
He crouched down and placed a hand on her back, helping her sit up against a tree for support.
Although her face was hidden, blood was seeping from beneath her mask, showing she was still bleeding.
Slowly, she opened her eyes, staring straight at Arin, who was now close.
Her eyes widened, and she tried to push him back. "Be… careful."
Her voice was weak and strained from the pain, but she managed to get the words out.
"He… might attack you…"
Arin smiled lightly, though she couldn't see it beneath his mask. "Don't worry. He's dealing with some pain in his leg. Probably injured."
Hearing this, Tessa relaxed a little, clutching her stomach.
Suddenly, Arin held up a vial with a green liquid inside.
Tessa managed a weak chuckle, though it clearly hurt. "I'll… never get used to you just… pulling things out of thin air."
"Stop talking," Arin whispered, uncorking the vial. A sweet scent drifted from the liquid, but he ignored it.
"Chaos," Tessa murmured, her voice barely above a whisper. "I tried… but I couldn't kill him."
Without a word, Arin lifted the bottom of her mask, revealing only her mouth.
'It seems my theory was correct,' he thought.
The mask couldn't be removed by anyone apart from the wearer, but since it was originally Arin's item, he was the only exception to this feature.
He brought the vial to Tessa's mouth. "Open up."
She weakly parted her lips, and he poured the liquid into her mouth.
Tessa swallowed the potion, and immediately, her stomach glowed with a faint green light.
This was a healing potion, crafted by potion makers—people skilled in using the special properties of certain plants. Potions were ranked similarly to Mages and Weapons, and it was an entirely different profession that one could learn if they wished to.
Tessa had given him a few potions the day before the expedition, which he kept in his inventory.
Her breathing finally steadied, and she unclenched her hands from her stomach, the pain gradually fading.
"Nobody said it would be easy," Arin said, wiping away a bit of the potion from the corner of her mouth before standing up.
Tessa clenched her fists, closing her eyes and taking a deep breath.
By this time, Arin had already turned toward Alex. "You know what to do the moment you start feeling better."
"Yes," Tessa whispered.
With that, Arin began walking toward Alex, hearing Tessa's soft words as he did.
Arin smirked, thinking, 'You have nothing to worry about.…'
Within moments, he reached Alex, who still hadn't moved. From the way he had seen Alex earlier, he knew that he could attend to Tessa first before anything else. He knew that Alex was in no state to run.
Not that Alex would run; he was far too strong and prideful for that.
Arin's cloak fluttered as he placed his hands behind his back, staring at Alex, who was still clutching his leg.
"Tch…" Alex clicked his tongue in annoyance. "It's been a while since I used 'it'—maybe that's why it's acting up so much."
He raised his head briefly, meeting Arin's gaze with a smirk. "Finally decided to join in, huh? Guess taking care of those two was enough to get you moving."
For a moment, silence filled the air as Arin's eyes shifted toward Alex's right leg that was now emitting a faint smoke.
"Why are you letting yourself get beaten up?" Arin asked, his voice muffled by his mask.
Alex's expression shifted, clearly confused. "Uh, I think there's a bit of a misunderstanding here. I should be the one asking questions, don't you think?"
He added with a smirk, "I'm pretty sure you all know who I am. So, who are you?"
Silence stretched as the two stared each other down. By now, Alex had let go of his leg, and the smoke had started to dissipate.
Arin closed his eyes, sighing as he took another step toward Alex.
Suddenly, Red Energy began to seep from his hands. His fingernails transformed fully into claws, his fangs extended, though they remained hidden behind his mask, and his eyes turned blood-red.
His hair changed from brown to white, growing until it reached his lower back.
[An Unwritten Event is happening.]
Alex's eyes widened as he watched the transformation, and he wasn't the only one.
Tessa, still seated against the tree, gasped, her eyes widening as she stared at Chaos in his transformed state. "Wh… what just happened?"
Meanwhile, Arin kept moving toward the stunned Alex, a grin hidden beneath his mask.
"You want to know who I am?" he said, voice dark with amusement. "Then you'll just have to find out yourself....."
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