“Damina, I am going to stop Beatrix for a second. You should take the others out and escape this cave.
“What the hell are you talking about. Hurry up and think of a way out. We can leave these losers here to die.”
Damian sounded pissed as he tried to get Rita to leave. But the redhead did not bulge from her position in front of the group.
“Aurora asked me to make sure that these people live. So I will do my best to make it happen.”
Rita was resolved to do what was asked of her. She quickly took out a defensive talisman and stopped the clumsy attack of the firebird.
She succeeded in fending off the damage but she was not able to stop her skin from getting burned by the attack fully. Her arm was red and bleeding where the phoenix’s power had managed to gaze it.
“Don’t be an idiot. Aurora would not want you to sacrifice your life for these people. Don’t be stubborn and follow after me.”
“I cannot. I need to complete the task given to me.”
“But you will die. If Aurora told you to die, then would you? I trust Aurora but I will prioritize my life above her order if needed. It’s not logical for you to die here.”.
“Would you prioritize your life if Aurora asked for you to lay it down? Maybe you would but you are not me. And love was never a logical thing in the first place.”
Rita pulled out the last of her talisman Aurora had given her. She would need to make it last as long as she could.
The phoenix was flying far above them now and they were sitting ducks for his attack. They had lost their opportunity to be able to get out of this situation a while back.
“Darn it. I guess we will be fighting that thing now.”
Damian decided to stay back as well. He might not like Rita personally but he did appreciate her dedication to their cause.
So just this once, he will help her out.
The phoenix let out a cry and went in for another swoop. This attack was laced with a heavy amount of magical energy which would cause a huge blast when it hit the ground.
Rita was confident that she would not be able to stop it in time. But the kidnappers were lying behind her so she had to try.
“Duck your head. The debris will protect you.”
“Huges, you’re here.”
Two cries reacher the pair simultaneously and Rita’s body moved on reflexes. She quickly covered Damina with her body to reduce the impact of the falling rocks.
The rocks must be magical because they created a barrier between the group and the Swarm-level beast attacking them.
As soon as Beatrix’s attack hit the rocks, he decided he had enough and flew away without complaint.
Somehow, the party had been spared from experiencing a horrible death.
“Huges, what are you doing here? I thought you were done with us after last time and vowed to never come here again? Now help me out and we can deal with those kids and sacrifice them.”
The kidnappers’ leader looked a little too happy at seeing his companion.
Rita watched Damian go tense at her side. The kid was likely contemplating different ways to snap the human’s neck.
Not that Rita was not interested to do the same. She would kill the man if he became a danger to her and Damina.
“Shut your mouth, Arlo. You’ve caused me enough problems so don’t even try complaining now. I am not here to save you but to make a deal with them,”
Rita instantly went on alert. Anyone who approached them with an alternative condition had to be taken into account.
“Make a deal with us? Why do you think we want to make a deal with you of all people?”
Damian was the one who asked this question. The suspicion in his eyes was a given and even Rita was curious to know the answer.
If she did not like the answer, then she could always kill this man and be done with it. Aurora had not asked her to let an outsider live.
“I’m sure your leader, the lady with blue hair, will be interested in our proposal. But if you are still suspicious, then you can hold my good friend here as a hostage. Kill him if I do something bad.”
“Oi Huges, what are you saying? Is my life so cheap to you?”
The kidnapper sounded panicked at being used as a bargaining chip. His panic was real meaning that this was not something the due had planned.
“I’m not sure I can believe your words. You were ready to let your ‘friend’ get killed so easily. How can we believe anything that comes out of your mouth?”
“True, True. Hughes is not someone I am well familiar with so do not make a deal with him. Killing me will not be worth it.”
The leader of the kidnappers was getting more and more desperate. Just listening to him gave Rita a headache.
“Awww. Don’t be like that Arlo. I will not let your sacrifice be in vain. I just want to exchange some information with that blue-haired lady. Something she is desperately looking for.”
The man sounded so confident in his claim that Rita felt her consciousness waver. Maybe she should let him meet Aurora after all.
And it was not like this man would be able to over-power Aurora anyway. Aurora will be alright and they could kill this man if he tried anything.
“Fine, you can come along. But only if you take a temporary mark of obedience. We will not risk you attacking any of our people.”
Rita’s proposal was met with silence. For a second she was sure that the man would not take up on her offer.
But then the man let out a chuckle and his expression softened into an acceptance.
“Alright. I will take that mark but only a temporary one. That much is easy for me to compromise.”
Once the man agreed, Damian opened the system to transfer the mark onto the man. It didn’t take long before the magic took root.
“So this is her magic? It is indeed stronger than I was led to believe. Never mind, it seems I cannot trick this mark even if I wanted to so don’t give me suspicious looks.”
The more this man spoke, the more his words sounded weird.
Even the kidnapper’s leader, Arlo looked suspicious of his ‘friend’. Maybe the feeling Rita was getting was not wrong after all. Maybe this man was dangerous.
The sourc𝗲 of this content is free(w)ebnov(𝒆)l