Chapter 312 – Fear

Chapter 312 – Fear

 

Kai pointed his spear where the cultist had disappeared. Dense plumes of fog swept over them, chilling his skin and obscuring his senses. The burnt woods turned swirling white, though he couldn’t perceive the use of skill or spell.

 

Another ambush?

 

A deep sense of wrongness gripped his guts. Without realizing it, Mana Observer retreated into his body.

 

Kai reached for Water Magic to push back the fog—nothing happened. His mana wasn’t responding. It flowed steadily in his veins, but when he called, an invisible barrier stood between them.

 

No, no, no…

 

It couldn’t happen again. Like when he woke up shackled in the cell, he was powerless. He knew where his skills should be. He could feel them, just a hairwidth away—so close and forever out of reach.

 

Kai brushed his bruised wrists together. He wasn’t chained. None of the cultists had even touched him; he made sure of it.

 

Did we step into a warded field?

 

His boots cracked in the frozen grass around him. He could have missed the activation if the runes had been set before their arrival. But why use it now, after a dozen cultists died? Even a group of lunatics wouldn’t sacrifice their members for nothing, would they?

 

It didn’t make sense.

 

What else? There wasn’t—

 

A grim memory, one he had often replayed in the last month. When Niel was abducted, the fog had grown denser and he lost access to his mana.

 

Shit. Shit. Shit.

 

“Cursed Depths.” Rain blew at the mist. Three drops whirled above his face before dropping into the mud. His left arm hung limp at his side while the right leaned heavily on his trident. “How bothersome…”

 

“Can you cast spells?” Kai positioned his back against Rain’s. They might already be surrounded.

 

“Only on myself,” Rain said. His jaw clenched as if he were exerting physical effort. “There are too many of them. I can’t pierce the void field. Not in the time we have.”

 

“You mean…” Kai bit his cheek, drawing his own answers. Rain recognized this power—somewhat reassuring. A team was using some kind of joint ability to suppress mana and skills—less reassuring.

 

If it’s a field, it must have a border.

 

Could they escape it? The mist was so dense, he wasn’t confident he could run in a straight line. And where would they go? On an island, the cultists could simply follow.

 

Running’s not an option.

 

They had escaped a lair of psychos, won a battle against terrible odds, only to encounter a team of bastards with cheat-like powers.

 

Why did I say we got lucky? I jinxed it.

 

Kai found himself smiling at the hopeless situation. He was too exhausted to even be angry, but gods be damned if he went down without a fight.

 

Fuck this.

 

“Can you fight without mana?” He asked. Despite the siren’s monstrous power, he nursed a broken arm and leg.

 

Rain glanced at him with a chuckle. “Yeah, I’ll manage. I can still use Gravity Magic and my enhancing skill on myself.”

 

A little effort. Kai shook his head. He couldn’t help feeling sour that he couldn’t touch his own mana, and then laugh at himself for being ridiculous. “How many—”

A blade sliced the fog toward his neck. Kai angled the spear to parry. The strike made the silver blade ring with a tail of sparks. He swept a horizontal blow in retaliation, only meeting air.

 

We were talking, you know. Where has courtesy gone…

 

“About ten people.” Rain guessed his question, raising the trident with his good arm. “It’ll get easier if we take down a few.”

 

Just kill a couple invisible foes. Right.

 

“Arrow!” Kai twisted his upper body to dodge. The dart whistled past him, clashing on Rain’s trident and off into the mist.

 

“Nice reflexes.”

 

“Uhm… Thanks,” Kai scanned their surroundings. Only Hallowed Intuition’s soft whispers hadn’t abandoned him. “You to—”

 

A spearhead lunged at his head. As he sidestepped the attack, a blade slashed at his leg and an arrow whistled toward his chest. Diving to the side, the arrow drew a bloody line through his shirt.

 

Fuck.

 

Kai spun the silver spear to make space, failing to find the attackers.

 

Behind him, clashes of metal echoed around Rain. Fresh blood gleamed on the blades of his trident, just a scratch from the absence of exclamations.

 

Another set of attacks forced Kai to worry about his own safety. The hidden assailants retreated after every strike without space for a counterattack.

 

Dammit.

 

“Is this the best you can do? Can’t even beat me three on one.” Kai snorted. Taunts were his only means to get them closer. “Or are you scared you’ll end up like your friends?”

 

He leaned on his spear, slightly panting. “I can do this all day.” His mind searched for murmurs of danger. The sudden quiet unnerved him more than the combined assault.

 

Was I too obvious?

 

He squinted at the mist in vain. Twice, he spotted a shadow; twice, it was gone before he could react.

 

Scaredy cats.

 

“You’re wounded…” A cultist grunted, the sound echoing around him. “I can smell your blood.”

 

“…how long can he really last?” A female voice sneered. “Getting desperate, boy?”

 

“Stop running and let’s see who wins!” Kai pivoted on his right leg to follow the voices. If his taunt weren’t working, the truth could serve him just as well. “Have you finished counting the bodies I left underground? I’m standing and your friends are dead.”

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“You’ll pay a hundredfold for each of them.” The woman snapped with a distinct edge.

 

“Yeah…” Kai snorted, his tone dripping with sarcasm. “Can you only spew threats from across the island? It doesn’t sound very intimidating when you couldn’t catch me in your hideout.”

 

“…you bastard—” the woman seethed.

 

“He’s barking like a cornered dog.” An older man interrupted. “You think you ever had a chance to escape…? We’ve tracked you since you crawled out of your cell. Don’t mistake luck for skill. Nothing happens without our knowledge…”

 

“Right…” Kai rolled his eyes, hoping Rain could break the void field with enough time. “And you let me kill your buddies because…?”

 

He had suspected they had found a way to locate him after the alarm was raised, though they were probably overselling their abilities.

 

Wait…

 

Kai fished out the blue bead from his pocket. A web of unknown enchantments covered the glassy surface, warning him when the alarm was raised. Was it also—

 

“…he figured it out.” The woman giggled. “And I thought he was just a pretty face. A bit late now though…”

 

“He thought he could use our wards against us?” The first male cultists laughed. “Not one of you is going to escape. We already know where your friends ran. They must have already been caught.”

 

What? They can’t…

 

Panic choked his breathing. Mouth dry, Kai tried to keep a steady voice and threw away the bead. He had done everything he could to keep them safe. They couldn’t… “You’re lying.”

 

“Am I…?” He cackled, circling in the fog. “Is there someone you care about in that group? If you kneel and beg, I’ll give you a cell beside them…”

 

“This is the last chance you get, boy.” The older cultist grunted. “You can give your life for a higher purpose. We won’t be nice if you continue this pointless escape.”

 

Yeah, I’d sooner trust Hobbes with a tuna snack.

 

“Are you scared you won’t win?” Kai chuckled without mirth. “I promise if you leave, you won’t end up like the others.”

 

“Arrogant brat. Whoever you’re worried about, I promise you’ll hear their screams.”

 

Ripples of anger shook his focus. If something happened to Kea, Niel or Flynn… He’d hunt down every single one of these psychos, no matter how long it took.

 

Keep calm. They must be safe.

 

“It’s you who’s hiding.” Kai raised his guard—the talks were over.

 

Come closer.

 

An arrow whistled by his ear. Kai had already moved to dodge; two more strikes headed for him. Interpreting Hallowed Intuition’s muffled whispers took his entire focus; conveniently, it was the only skill he could use.

 

Under the relentless assault, his worries and fears slipped away, leaving only space for survival. The enhancing elixirs flowing through his veins boosted his attributes. His body recalled spearmanship lessons learned ages ago. He would have been more comfortable wielding a sword, though an unbreakable staff of mana alloy had its perks.