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Chapter 284 281: Trapped
Chapter 284 281: Trapped
Chapter 284 281: Trapped
The Donkey-faced devils shared a strange connection with one another. If any one of them met their end, the others would instantly feel the weight of that loss.
Thus, the remaining four Equus sensed that the unimagianble have happened to their leader when Oliver killed him.
However, they were unwilling to believe that he had died. He was the strongest member of their group. How could he have died just a few minutes after they each went their own way in search of Oliver? They wouldn't believe it unless they have seen it with their own eyes!
Reacting swiftly to this alarming sensation, they immediately changed direction, darting towards the same area of the forest where their leader had gone to in search of Oliver.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Fueled by the urgency of the situation, they moved so fast through the forest that it made them appear as if they were rays of light, reminiscent of rockets set on a lunar course, blasting off from Earth. They too appear as just bright rays of light from afar.
Soon after, they abruptly as they came across the place where the remnants of their leader were strewn chaotically across the terrain.
Seeing what the Equus had been reduced to, a powerful tempest of emotions enveloped the four donkeu-faced devils.
Even though they were devils, embodiments of pure malevolence in every sense of the word, they weren't devoid of feelings. Not to mention, these five Equus weren't just a group; they were akin to a family. They were born from the same pool of negativity on the same night, had always been together, and their bond was strengthened by the battles they fought for each other's sake and the sacrifices they made for one another.
And within this family, their leader, now lying lifeless on the forest floor, was undoubtedly their elder sibling as he was born from the pool of negativity that gave birth to all of them before all of them on that night and he was the strongest devil amongst them, and he had been guiding and protecting them since day one!
And now, seeing him lifeless, seemingly taken down while they were searching for their target, stirred a raw anger and a deep-seated pain in their chests. A mix of sorrow, confusion, and primarily, anger simmered beneath their donkey-like visages.
Their leader, their "big brother" had been taken from them, and the sense of loss they felt was so great it filled them up with a burning thirst for vengeance, and their eyes, which usually emitted a cold, dispassionate glow, now burned with a fury so intense it seemed to light up the forest. Their nostrils flared, and their bodies tensed, each muscle taut with rage. They wanted to do nothing but find the killer of their leader and rip him to shreds!
"How did he die?! Who was behind it?" The second devil's voice cracked with emotion as he bellowed his questions at the third devil.
"From the looks of it, it seems to be the handiwork of one man," the third devil replied, trying to maintain a semblance of composure, even as his eyes scanned the scene with a mix of disbelief and rising anger.
The expressions on the faces of the second, fourth, and fifth devils changed at his words. Their expression was now a mix of shock, grief, and brewing rage.
"You mean?" The second devil's voice trembled with a blend of rage and disbelief, his eyebrows drawn tightly together in a fierce scowl, eyes burning with unspoken questions.
"I am afraid we've severely underestimated our target, and that miscalculation has tragically cost us the life of our dear comrade." the third devil replied with a somber tone.
"But he looked weak as hell! How on earth could he have bested our leader?" the fourth devil blurted out, unable to hide his confusion.
"The same weak bastard fooled all of us. Besides, our leader was never strong in the intelligence department. He must have used some kind of trick to catch him off guard and finish him," the third devil said.
The third devil's analysis was sharp and incisive, cutting through the confusion like a knife, and the logic behind his conclusion was undeniable. The remaining three devils agreed with him on this. Oliver was the killer of their big brother.
"We cannot let this transgression go unpunished! We must avenge our fallen brother!"
The second devil declared, his voice echoing the group's collective sentiment.
For them, Oliver's offense was unforgivable.
He had killed their leader so he must die at all cost.
They were willing to exhange their life to make it happen!
****
A while ago.
Oliver, having dealt the fatal blow to the first devil, made a hasty retreat from the scene.
The urgency of his exit was evident in the way he navigated through the dense forest.
He did not take the time to mask his presence or obscure his trail. He didn't know at this time thag it was an oversight that would come back to haunt him.
In his mind, Oliver believed it would already be day before the other devils realized what had transpired, that he had killed their leader. He was unaware of the unique bond the Equus devils shared, a bond so profound that they could not only sense the demise of one of their own but could also pinpoint the exact location of their fallen comrade!
This lack of awareness became Oliver's Achilles heel.
His hurried footsteps imprinted on the moist forest floor, and his distinct scent wafted in the cool breeze, marking a clear path for anyone — or anything — looking to track him down.
For the remaining devils, these unintentional breadcrumbs left behind by Oliver were nothing short of a godsend. They acted as clear indicators, beacons even, illuminating the path Oliver had taken.
They followed the trail he had left behind to chase him down.
Their rapid movement through the forest was a sight to behold. The sheer velocity at which they moved made them appear as black whirlwinds, darting between trees, rustling leaves, and disturbing the creatures of the forest.
As they were moving too fast, the distance that would have taken any normal being significant time to cover was traversed by these devils in moments.
Every second that ticked by lessened the gap between the hunters and the hunted.
And soon, they were moments away from confronting Oliver.
Oliver, who was gleefully running through the forest thinking he had shaken off his pursuers, heard rustling noises coming from far behind him.
As these noises grew clearer and nearer, he felt something was amiss and glanced back without halting his steps.
What met his gaze was a sight that sent chills down his spine, causing his pupils to widen to ten times their original size.
To his horror, the very devils he believed he had outsmarted were now just a mere 40 feet behind him, and they were moving so much more faster than him, each of their steps fueled by burning anger, that they were rapidly diminishing the distance between them.
"Little bastard, hand over your life!" The second devil, with a voice dripping in malice, bellowed as he swung his bone stave through the air. A thick skull, submerged in the aura of death and dread, emerged in the forest out of thin air and hurtled through the air straight towards Oliver, who spotted it out of the corner of his eye and yelled,
"Holy fuck."
Reacting swiftly, Oliver sidestepped to avoid the oncoming skull.
But as if it possessed eyes of its own, the skull altered its trajectory, once more aiming directly for him.
Panic coursed through Oliver's veins, pushing him to resume his sprint, and this time he was running far faster than when he first escaped from the devils.
Every ounce of his being was focused on escape, but the skull appeared to have a speed advantage over him.
It relentlessly pursued him, and with each heartbeat, the distance between them shrank ominously.
With a heart-pounding urgency, just as it seemed like the menacing skull would explode on his back, Oliver demonstrated a maneuver so amazing and clever that it would have left many in awe.
He leapt towards the towering tree right ahead of him before his foot made a solid connection with the rough bark of the tree's trunk, providing him just the right momentum to soar upwards. With impeccable precision, he reached out with one hand, grasping onto a sturdy branch, using it to further propel himself up and away from the impending doom below.
Boom!
The ominous skull collided violently with the tree as it hadn't anticipated Oliver's deft move and couldn't change its direction in time. An ear-splitting explosion followed as the skull exploded right when it impacted the tree. Fragments of wood shot out in every direction like deadly missiles, and billowing clouds of dust mushroomed into the air.
Oliver wasn't the least bit hurt as he had placed a safe distance between himself and the blast's radius before the skull crashed into the tree and exploded.
However, although he had managed to evade the immediate threat to his life with mere seconds to spare, it cost him a lot of time to get rid of the skull. And the consequences of this was finding himself being surrounded by an Equus from all side.
They had strategically positioned themselves around him, effectively cutting off his escape path!
Oliver realized with a growing dread that there was no way to escape their encirclement.
This time it seemed like he was done for!