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Chapter 72 72 Search
Chapter 72 72 Search
Chapter 72 Chapter 72 Search
Water.
The sound of rushing water.
The sound of more rushing water.
That was all that could be seen or heard in those glorious moments. The old man remained in that position; arms stretched out, icy blue eyes bulging dangerously, veins popping wildly, and his white hair blowing backwards elegantly.
A few moments passed before the old man finally decided to let up.
Having executed an ordinary D-rank water explosion, he cut off the flow, and slowly lowered his arms. The water attack ceased immediately.
He was so confident that he had out the flame, that he didn't even bother to check. Feeling nothing at all, the old man turned his back to leave. He lifted his gaze to search for his cane.
As his eyes- which had now reverted from icy blue back to normal gray, searched the surrounding for the wooden stick, his gaze was arrested by yet another wonder.
A flicker of red caught the corner of his eye.
With all his might, he swerved back in the direction of the fire, and saw the brilliant red flame- still burning!
Terror, shock, and unbelief all colluded together to send the old man's head spiraling. Cold sweat broke out on his forehead, and in some other unmentionable place. His jaw dropped and his bronze colored face went pale white;
"What in the–" he staggered; "HOW?!"
That was the million dollar question.
Eyes round in shock, and trembling slightly, he approached the miraculous sight, taking tentative steps only, carefully observing the anomaly.
Clear as day, despite being literally in the middle of puddles of water, the intelligent red flame continued to burn away at the black piece of charred rock.
The old man's heart sank. His ears rang loudly with the damning judgment of his own miscalculation. It was astounding, but it seemed like this red flame possessed an unnatural burning capacity. It's sustaining effect was unlike any other fire he had ever seen.
When he thought about what it could do to humans, beasts, and even monsters, a fresh bout of cold sweat broke out all over him. He began to back away from the fire- slowly, slowly, making his way away, refusing to turn his back on it, like it was a cursed thing.
The image of the tall young man in the hat suddenly filled his mind.
And white beard was struck with double the condemnation. He had seriously misjudged him- and consequently, had underestimated the chillingly terrifying power of the red fire. His life flashed before his eyes, and he realized that this was the only mistake he had made in his lifetime.
And it had proven to be a fatal one.
Ni Yang was not a D-rank mage. He was at least a B-rank.
And that was going by the most conservative estimate.
Visibly out of breath, Nexus announced to her hearing as he struggled to make the climb;
"Go on, say it," he nudged her; "I know you want to."
Heavy beads of sweat lined up on his forehead as Nexus' face contorted in a deep frown.
"What are you talking about?" Monica asked straight-facedly with a streak of mischief flickering in her eyes.
"No need to be an asshole about it," he rasped in between deep breaths; "Right from the moment we set off, we both know you've been itching to tell me I was foolish not to have come with a horse. . ."
She whistled indifferently; "Well, I could do that, or I could just sit back and watch you suffer."
It was the second day of their journey.
And Nexus was NOT having the best time.
They were on a narrow path in between a mountain pass on the outskirts. In the western section of the evening sky, the evening sun hung lazily- casting a resplendent red glow on the walls of the mountain, giving off the illusion of a red terrain.
The hilly path had been less than hosiptable. It was rocky as hell, so bits of loose soil broke off from under their feet as they both ascended, making stability, a problem- for Nexus.
Monica sat on the back of a black stallion. With a firm grip on the reins, her hips and shoulders swayed as the horse effortlessly made the climb- keeping her comfortable, while Nexus lagged behind.
"You amuse me newbie, what the hell kind of hunter sets of on a quest without a horse?"
"My name is Ni Ya–"
"I didn't ask," she chaffed; "Look alive, we've got company."
Nexus cursed under his breath as he forced his feet to trudge on.
Above them, at the top of the mountain, a bunch of Hyenas appeared. They lined up the jagged crevice, spread out in horizontal formation.
With their hind legs tense behind them, and their heads bent forward, the animals gazed upon them. A dozen pearly black eyes with no pupils, burned in on Nexus and Monica- watching, wondering whether they were either food, or foe.
"They're not attacking?" Nexus asked.
"No. They're territorial."
"What?"
She answered impatiently; "What do you think? It means they stick to their hunting grounds. And that means the top of the mountain, the caves, and the steep slope on the other side."
Still lagging behind, he muttered; "And I'm guessing that's a good thing?"
"Obviously, but not for the reasons you think. Hyenas aren't the only ones that are territorial."
Nexus gasped; "Wind wolves?"
"Yep." she answered; "If Hyenas aren't attacking this area, that means it's right on the border of another predator's territory. In this case, my money's on the Wind wolves."
Still straining to keep up, he countered; "But the map says their territory's a flat land.."
Suddenly, her heels dug into the sides of horse, willing it to stop. Standing at the cleft of a rock, she pointed ahead;
"Over there."
Just to see what she was pointing at, he had to break into a jog to catch up with her.
Sure enough, spread out before them was an open plain of thick lush grassland. It contrasted sharply with the barrenness of the mountain pass. As far as the eye could see, rich vegetation in the form of virgin land, spanned the entire horizon.
A long stream of water snaked through the grassland. Even from that distance and elevation, the tall formidable leafy trees towered over the dwarf blades of grass. Looking at the view, Nexus understood why this was a paradise for the wind wolves.
"Come on newbie, the hunt has begun."
Again, she dug her heels into the horse's sides. The horse neighed exciedly, and broke into a full gallop. Leaning forward, and eyes blazing dangerously, the red head charged right into wind wolf territory. The wind blew her red curls backwards, sending her cape and hood flying in the wind as well.
Nexus did not have the luxury of such as glorious entrace.
Teeth gritting in infuriation, he watched her charge in the wind- leaving him behind to catch up, knowing fully well he was exhausted from the two day march. Never he he wished for anything the way he wished for a horse in that moment.
It didn't even have to be a horse. A pony, or even a donkey would do.