Maybe it was ten thousand years, maybe it was just a moment, I finally heard the creaking footsteps in the buzzing sound in the sky. A hard and strong hand grabbed the hem of my clothes and lifted me up from the cold snow. The sharp pain in my abdomen during the stretch made me see stars, and I could hardly see clearly his eyes that were almost bulging out. eyes.
Then, I was pushed viciously against the tree trunk behind me.
boom--
Suddenly, the ice and snow falling from the branches hit me on the head and face, "Oh!"
"Are you...looking for death...huh? Rhea..." Joshua's voice with a strange smile sounded next to my ears. His fingers moved slightly and pressed my throat, " Do you dare to punch me?! Do you know that the last woman who punched me... was... turned into mud..." The more he spoke, the more he gritted his teeth, and his fingers got tighter. I could hardly breathe. Got it!
I grabbed his wrist with my backhand and tried to push him away, but his arm was hard and cold and I couldn't push him at all.
I opened my mouth but couldn't breathe...
My vision is gradually turning red and black...
Just then, just when I thought I was going to die, I suddenly heard a clear and crisp sound of metal collision.
clang--
In an instant, the vicious bastard in front of me gasped and his whole body trembled.
Almost at the same moment, a handful of warm and sticky liquid was sprinkled on my face, exuding a strong fishy sweet taste.
Without even thinking about it, it smelled like blood.
But whose blood is it? !
Before I could figure it out, Joshua had already thrown me into the snow and jumped to the other side.
The air as cold as knives rushed into my lungs, pulling me back from the door of death.
I curled up into a ball and coughed violently.
Hot liquid gushed out of my sore eyelids, and finally, I saw a ray of light.
I could see clearly that there was a bloody hole on that bastard's shoulder. Even if he tried to hold his shoulder, black and red liquid kept gushing out.
He was half kneeling on the ground, staring ahead in shock and anger, his eyes extremely hateful.
Following his gaze, I looked over with difficulty.
There, on the pale snow, was a figure half-kneeling. He was breathing heavily, and waved his thick arm slightly. Suddenly, the sword still stained with blood returned to his palm.
I narrowed my eyes...
It's Redfield! He actually broke out of paralysis and coma! In such a short time!
"...Are you...also...looking for death?!" Joshua's face was completely distorted. He saw the sword flower flashing in his hand, and he held the flaming sword in his hand. The next second, He pounced forward, and his figure flashed towards the ranger with great force!
"Quick...get out of the way!" I almost screamed.
Of course I know that Joshua will most likely appear behind Redfield at the next moment and slit his throat with the sharp blade in his hand!
Obviously, Redfield did not expect Joshua's violent attack. He was slightly startled, and then he threw out the chain blade in his hand again, and the sharp weapon screamed along with his strong arm. A perfect circle was drawn in mid-air!
"Hiss--" A cry of pain immediately came from the void, and then, a translucent shadow jumped out of the air with a touch of blood. He was only three steps behind Redfield!
The ranger's pupils shrank suddenly, he spun around quickly, and the chain blade in his hand shot towards the figure on the ground like thunder and lightning. But Joshua was faster. He spat fiercely at the ranger, turned around and swept towards the deep forest as if he was weightless. Redfield's chain blade only passed through his shadow. .
His figure flickered rapidly, moving away. In just a few seconds, he was no longer visible, as was the blood on the ground.
*
It was a bottle of red potion from the ranger that revived Gerard. After that, the ranger looked around for traces, but when he came back, he shook his head at us.
For a moment, everyone sat in the snow and fell into deathly silence.
Redfield played with the two sleeping bells that exuded a hazy halo in his hands, and his thick eyebrows almost knitted together.
"...What should we do?" I asked after a while, but as soon as I opened my mouth, I couldn't help crying.
Yes, at this moment, I was frightened, anxious, scared and cold, but I was at a loss what to do.
What on earth should we do?
Where the hell is Dallion? !
One Joshua almost cost us all our lives. So, during the time when we almost died at the hands of Joshua, could Dallion have been poisoned?
He...could he really be turned into some weird "material" by that terrifying dark wizard? !
Oh my god...
What should I do if he dies? !
I shouldn't have dragged him to such a dangerous place to hunt!
it's all my fault! I killed him!
The things in my mind made me cry even more uncontrollably.
The ranger sighed, got up and left.
I couldn't help but froze for a moment and stared at the person in front of me who was unclear, "Mr. Redfield?!"
"Miss Messiah," unexpectedly, Gerard gently patted my shoulder and stood up, "Let us do the next thing..."
"What?" I was stunned for a moment, and then I understood what he meant. This made me immediately put down the hand that was rubbing my eyes and grabbed his cloak. "Without me, you would have died just now! Even if Mr. Redfield has a special physique and wakes up quickly enough!"
"So, Miss, you must stay here and protect yourself. It's too dangerous ahead..."
"You always ask me to go back? Do you think I'm one of those delicate young ladies?!"
"You are my future mistress, I can't let you..."
"I will not be your mistress!"
That angry yell made the young man stunned, "...you..." He slowly wrinkled his face, as if it was difficult to say, "You really and that young master..."
"Shut up!" I yelled even louder. I was sure that if I hadn't tried my best to endure it, I would have attacked the young man in front of me!
I guess my expression was scary, otherwise Gerard wouldn't have been so scared that he didn't lean back.
"Darian and I have nothing!" I gritted my teeth and said word by word, "But, I must save him!" Unexpectedly, those words made me cry again for no reason. The sound comes.
"...Oh..." Gerard helped my shoulders with a panic look on his face, and then scratched his dark bangs that were frozen stiff. He seemed to want to say something, but suddenly, his eyes looked at Looking to the west, "What's the sound?"
*
I also heard it, it was a very low whistling sound. If it weren't for this dark night, it would be difficult for anyone to notice it.
I jumped up in shock and held down the dagger on my waist, "Is it Joshua?! He turned back?!"
"No," the ranger five steps away flatly denied without looking back, "it doesn't smell of blood."
*
As he spoke, the sound was already approaching.
The snow was pale.
The stars are pale.
But the beetle crawling in the snow was pitch black.
I saw it paddling its legs quickly, shaking its tentacles, crawling along the undulating ground to Gerard's side, sniffing, and then crawling to my side again.
At this moment, I suddenly remembered Allen's magic of using small animals to convey messages.
Sure enough, the beetle climbed up the hem of my skirt and uttered a very low whisper-like voice, "Follow it."
It's really Allen!
*
We followed the beetle and turned all the way to a dead forest. Here, there were dry vines like snakes everywhere, and there seemed to be a faint black air coming out of those vines.
"Actually hiding here?" Gerard said slightly surprised.
"...Do you know this place?" I asked in a low voice while rubbing my hands and looking around.
"To answer your question, yes. Oh, be careful," he said, lifting up the upside-down withered vines for me and pointing to a patch of dry vines as dense as a curtain in front of him. "Look, there is a canyon in that direction. It’s called the Rift Canyon. I heard that there is a crack deep in the heart of the earth deep in the canyon. It is the wound of Azeroth, and the cold and biting shadow flames are burning inside all year round.”
"I heard? Actually you haven't been here?"
"Well... few people come here because there are very few prey here, and... uh... it's an ominous place."
"Unknown? Why unknown?"
"Uh..." He groaned, but Redfield turned around and told me, "This is a mass grave." As he said that, he kicked the thick rotten leaves under his feet, and several pale bones emerged from below. The head was exposed.
"Oh!" I took a step back and accidentally stepped on a dead vine that looked like a snake. Suddenly, several things like fireflies fluttered up around my cloak.
At that moment, I couldn't help but take a breath, was that a will-o'-the-wisp? !
*
I almost held my breath and jumped under the "curtain". From here, it looked so big, entangled, rising and falling, weaving a cliff like a dozen meters high.
Creak, creak, creak -
The beetle crawled in through the cracks in the dead vines. After looking around for a while, Redfield quietly led us to a corner of the "curtain", where he discovered a dark hole.
We quietly poked our heads out from there.
Without the cover of the trees, I could see everything ahead at a glance.
This canyon is not deep, but there are dozens of giant bears and wolves entrenched in it. They are sitting or sleeping, making thunderous snores.
Those things made my heart beat hard.
My line of sight extended, and in the innermost part of the canyon, about four to five hundred meters away, I vaguely saw a circular platform.
On the edge of the platform, there were several black robes standing, floating as if they were weightless.
The cold wind blew their clothes up and down. In the gaps between those things, I found that they were holding a heavy staff in one hand and a dark purple magic control energy ball in the other.
They seemed to be casting some kind of magic, as billowing black smoke leaked from their palms and poured toward the platform.
There seemed to be a figure lying in the center of the platform, and the surging black flames were eating away at him.
Oh my God! Could that be Dallion? !
If Redfield hadn't held my shoulders hard, I might have rushed out.
Call--
The distant wind finally reached us, bringing with it a strong stink of beasts.
I immediately covered my nose and returned my gaze to the beast. "...How did we deal with so many crazy druids? Redfield?"
"We have the Sleeping Bell." The ranger lying next to me whispered, "Gerard?" He suddenly called softly.
"Yes? Mr. Redfield?"
"You are a magician..."
"...Uh...I'm not good at..."
"You hide there." Before he could finish speaking, the ranger pointed to a dark rock half a man tall on the edge of the canyon. "You input magic into the sleeping bells continuously, and they will emit a kind of emerald." The breath of dreams, this breath can make druids fall asleep."
"Oh!" The dark-eyed young man raised his eyebrows and reached out to take the bell, "Well... I will try my best."
*
I have to say, Gerard's skills are terrible.
Like a clumsy little bear, he climbed up the abrupt rock using his hands and feet. Once, he even stepped on a stone and broke it. The rustling sound made the nearest druids shake their heads. When I tried to open my eyes, my heart almost stopped.
Still, he climbed up.
I saw him placing the Sleeping Bell upright in front of him, then taking a deep breath and covering it with his hands.
In an instant, he suddenly straightened his back.
call--
It was as if invisible wind was constantly blowing out of the void beneath his feet, blowing his black hair upside down and swaying.
The wind was gentle and soft. When it brushed my ears, for a moment, I thought that the cold winter was over, and now it was spring that was getting warmer day by day.
Ding--
A vaguely clear ringing sound also rang from there, and as the sound waves agitated, light green halos emerged from the bell.
They spread out in circles like water waves.
I also smelled the sweet aroma of wine.
Um?
The smell of wine?
Oh...Elune is indeed a big drunk! She actually used this despicable method to make the druids sleep in the Emerald Dream for a long time!
*
"...Well..." Gerard's brows became tighter and tighter, and the veins on the back of the hand covering the Sleeping Bell popped out, as if he was suffering from great pain.
The halo is getting bigger and denser.
Finally, they trapped all the druids inside.
At that moment, he opened his eyes, and the originally dark eyes actually emitted a faint green light, "...I, I've done it..." He breathed out softly, his voice weak.
The ranger nodded to him again and held the chain blade in his backhand.
Before he could take a step forward, I stopped him softly, "What about me?"
He glanced at me sideways, "...you stay here..."
"I can touch it quietly, you see..." As I said that, I closed my sore eyes hard. When I opened them again, I was standing in the shadow world, with gray fog surrounding me. Writhing, with just one step, I buried myself in it, "Can't you see..." Before I could finish my words, the ranger's strong right hand had already stretched out from outside the cloud, and held it firmly off my wrist.
"You'd better stay here." He whispered from the other side of the gray mist, word for word.
oh! Oh My God! He can actually see me? !
No...that's not right!
He definitely couldn't see me, I didn't even see my reflection in his red eyes!
"Oh, look what I found." At that moment, a hoarse voice suddenly sounded. The voice was just like Joshua, as if it came from all directions!
In an instant, the ranger withdrew the hand that was holding me tightly.
I saw his fingers clasping a bulge on the long sword like lightning. Suddenly, the sword hilt loosened with a rattling sound, revealing a section of silver chain.
Without any pause, he suddenly flipped in the air and landed in front of Gerard. At this moment, the chain blade in his hand completely spread out, drawing a sharp arc in the air.
call--
"Hiss--" Almost at the same moment, a dim shadow fell out of the void. He twisted in mid-air and landed steadily in front of the ranger.
boom--
Debris flew everywhere.
The cold wind fluttered his cloak, and the blood-red color made my heart skip a beat.
But he is not Joshua. Viewed from the side, he looks more vicissitudes of life and toughness.
I met him, he was that bastard's partner, I think his name was Dodd.
He straightened up and held the long sword at his waist with his right hand covered in black leather gloves.
"...So...that busty Rhea didn't follow you?" He quickly glanced around and smiled, "So, that idiot Joshua just let you come here. ?”
"...He should lick his wounds with tears of regret..." Redfield stared at him closely and said sarcastically, "If that guy wearing the same clothes as you is him..."
That sentence made the smile on Dude's lips freeze, but then he snorted, his bright eyes slowly narrowed, and his body bowed slightly, like a cheetah ready to hurt someone at any time, " If you fail to kill him, you'd better not sleep too deeply in the future, otherwise, your head will have to say goodbye to your neck!"
I don’t know if it’s an illusion, but I feel like his figure is beginning to loom.
"Do you, a mouse, also want to hide in the shadows?" Redfield, standing in front of Gerard, sneered. He took out a bright crystal bottle from his bag and placed it on the ground. Suddenly, the blue color The light illuminated the surrounding area several meters brightly.
At that scene, Dode's pupils suddenly became as thin as needles. He suddenly kicked the ground hard and rushed towards the ranger, as fast as lightning!
The ranger was startled and immediately raised the chain blade.
But the tip of Dude's knife grazed his shoulder.
His target is actually Gerard!
Fortunately, Redfield's reaction was not slow at all. He turned around slightly and quickly raised his hand, and Dodd's long sword dragging the afterimage crashed into the lock of the chain blade!
Even though the chain blade was made of such a strong metal, its lock deformed slightly backwards, and then bounced back suddenly!
Buzz--
The shocking blow made them both feel uncomfortable because their faces were distorted.
Daudet was almost knocked down, while Redfield slammed into the cliff behind him.
Shalala--
Gravel fell on his shoulders like a waterfall.
"Let's go." In the smoke, he turned his head and told me with his mouth.
Biting my lip, I leaned down, carefully avoided them, jumped in the gap between the sleeping druids, and quickly ran towards the deepest platform of the canyon.
"Ha!" Dude spat behind me and shouted, "I really... can't help but use your blood to temper the sword! Ranger!"
