’No, no, no! None of them needs to be facing this, they have no reason to fight. Freaking run away you dumbasses! ARGHHHH!’ Max roared internally in pain as the only thing he could move at this point was his head to watch the different fights unfold before his very eyes.
His limbs were now completely unresponsive, and in the past ten minutes since the battle began, he had already lost twenty-five HP.
Bringing his total to seventy HP.
’Come on damn it! I need to help, I need to freaking help!’ Max cried out in his mind, frustration boiling inside him at just how useless and helpless he felt in this moment.
Meanwhile, another member of his party was locked in a fierce fight of her own. The newest addition — Daki — was currently facing off against two spear-wielding hunters.
"Alright, so listen up." Daki said coldly as she straightened her whip, her sharp eyes never leaving the men, who were staring at her like predators who had found their prey.
At first, they were stunned by her beauty and showed hesitation, but knowing who Zach was, they understood perfectly well that hesitation would not be forgiven. If they failed, Zach wouldn’t spare them in the slightest. They had no choice but to put her down.
"Though I’m a C ranker, I need to warn you that I’m not so soft. So choose your battle wisely. I mean, I’ll even be kind enough to let you go." Daki said with calm confidence, stretching her whip until it cracked through the air with a thunderous snap.
"What do you say?" the first hunter asked, glancing sideways at his partner.
"I say after we defeat her... not kill her, but once she’s down, we take her back and have all the fun in the world with her. I mean, she’s a beauty to behold." the second spear hunter replied, his tongue slithering across his lips with a dangerous glint flashing in his eyes.
The sound escaped Daki’s lips as she slowly shook her head, clear disappointment flashing across her expression. She swung her whip into the air, the snap booming out like a gunshot.
"Fine then. Let’s finish this quickly." She muttered.
And without hesitation, the men bolted toward her with all the speed their bodies could muster.
Daki shifted her stance, waiting for the right moment. Her eyes darted sharply between the two of them, reading their movements and baiting them into action. The first hunter suddenly leaped high into the air, spear thrusting down toward her neck with the force of a hammer.
In a flash, she twisted to the side, the spear slicing past her face with a whistle that made her heart thump louder. But before she could breathe, the second man was already behind her, swinging his spear like a massive baseball bat aimed to crush her spine.
"Tch." Daki scoffed, dropping low in an instant before springing upward into the air. The strike cut through the empty space beneath her feet.
Without losing momentum, she lashed her whip outward, wrapping it tightly around a discarded bat lying on the ground. With a flick of her wrist, she hurled the bat toward one of the hunters like a bullet.
Seeing this, he snarled and swung his spear horizontally, the weapon colliding dead-center with the bat and knocking it aside like it was nothing. But that was exactly what Daki wanted. The bat was only a distraction.
By the time the weapon flew off course, she was already lunging toward him, her fist cocked back and directed squarely at his face with bone-shattering force. But before her punch could connect, the second hunter’s spear shot forward, the tip lunging straight toward her knuckles in an attempt to smash her hand apart.
Sensing the danger, Daki immediately spun backward into a clean series of flips, her body gliding through the air before she landed gracefully on her feet once again. Without missing a beat, she whipped her weapon forward, the tip cracking like lightning as it shot for the first hunter’s head.
He grunted and lifted his spear just in time, the shaft blocking the whip’s tip from smashing into his skull. Still, the sheer force of the strike sent him skidding back several feet, his heels grinding against the dirt as he tried to hold his ground.
The second spearman took the liberty to bolt forward almost like a blur as he appeared before Daki, his weapon jamming forward toward her head with lethal intent.
The speed caught her off guard, but unfortunately for the man, her reaction time was exceptional. Without hesitation, she leaned backward, causing the spear to whistle harmlessly over her head, and in the same motion, she smashed her foot into his abdomen with ruthless precision.
The strike was devastating. Pain shot through his body as he was sent skidding across the ground for several meters, his breath stolen and blood coughing out of his lips uncontrollably.
’What monstrous strength is this? Isn’t she human? I’m dead sure she isn’t a hybrid, so how does she have this kind of crushing power while being just a C ranker? No... something doesn’t feel right.’ His thoughts spiraled, brows furrowing in disbelief as fear began to gnaw at him.
"Looks like you’re figuring something out." A voice suddenly wafted into his ears, chilling and playful, as Daki appeared right beside him, her body blurring like a phantom.
’Holy crap, that speed... too great. She’s different... she’s dangerous,’ the man thought in panic, realizing his body refused to respond. His limbs felt frozen, weighed down by fear.
"I gave you a choice, but you chose not to accept my generous offer." Daki’s whisper was cold yet almost teasing, like a predator humoring its prey.
"Ahhhhhhh!" A sudden cry broke through as the second spearman charged, his weapon thrust forward in desperation as he dashed toward her with reckless courage.
Daki tilted her head back, an amused smile tugging her lips. She sighed softly, then leaped into the air gracefully, just as the man reached where she had been standing, his spear cutting through nothing but empty space.
Now airborne, she wasted no time. Her whip lashed out with terrifying speed, slicing through the air with a shrill crack. Googlᴇ search novel-fire.ɴet
The hunter tried to raise his weapon to defend himself, but it was already too late. The whip coiled mid-flight as though alive, then struck viciously, jamming directly into the back of his skull.
His body froze instantly. His grip slackened, and the spear clattered to the ground with a hollow clang.
Seeing his comrade collapse lifelessly, the second hunter’s eyes widened in horror. His breathing grew erratic as he stumbled backward step by step, fear dripping from every pore.
"Don’t run," Daki said smoothly as she landed with feline grace, her whip still buried in the back of the fallen man’s head.
"Don’t you want to have some fun?" Her grin widened, wicked and mocking, her voice heavy with taunt.
Something inside the surviving hunter snapped. Terror consumed him, and without thinking, he bolted away. His instincts screamed at him to flee, every hair on his body rising.
But he didn’t make it far. Daki’s whip cracked forward again, this time dragging the corpse with it.
A heavy sound echoed as the lifeless body attached to her weapon tore through the air at frightening speed. The fleeing hunter glanced back in reflex, and that single mistake sealed his fate.
The corpse slammed into him with bone-crushing force, lifting him violently off the ground and hurling him several meters away like a ragdoll.
His eyes rolled back as consciousness abandoned him, his body crumpling mid-flight before crashing into the earth.
"Oops." Daki muttered with a mischievous smile tugging her lips. "I should have pretended I was struggling a little... would have been more fun."