Chapter 234 Salvation
Tap. Tap. Tap.
A squad of five Fate Knights was passing in an unusual location. They were surrounded by stone ruins, and the ground was covered with tall, fluffy white grass. There were many dewdrops on the tips of the grass, which were actually here at all times of the day, day and night.
Because of the dew drops, the grass was slippery, so one wrong step could lead to a fall, especially for a person dressed in heavy, massive armor.
However, they had already run several kilometers, and still no one had fallen. Marcus was running in front, and right behind him was Sara, she kept closer to him than the others.
Fosca and the other two Fate Knights were a few meters away in the distance.
'Hmph... Looks like we need to take a short break. We've been running nonstop for half an hour now and have practically passed a third of the way. We're lucky that nothing has happened yet.'' Marcus internally muttered with a glance at black.
Sara began to move slower as she breathed heavily at times, but compared to Fosca and the two Fate Knights, she was full of energy. The three of them were already tired, which was obvious from their intermittent sighs and sweaty foreheads.
Yeah, a professional athlete or marathon runner could easily run a lot more, but they were wearing armor and moving much faster than any ordinary person could. Also, with each step, they had to watch their balance to avoid falling over the slippery surface.
Marcus stopped abruptly, raising his hand up. The others did the same as Fosca breathed a sigh of relief.
"We'll rest for a few minutes, then continue on our way. You can have a snack if you want, but I wouldn't recommend it. It's best to just drink water." Marcus said calmly, then he pointed to a massive fallen column.
"Stay here. It's a good place in case of emergencies. I'll keep an eye on the neighborhood." Marcus uttered before jumping high up.
Unlike the others, he wasn't the least bit tired. His stamina was enough to run to the northern part of the Dark Mist Forest without stopping. However, in that case, he would lose his entire squad, which he could not allow under any circumstances.
Fosca wanted to ask something, but before she could even utter a word, Marcus disappeared, finding himself on one of the tallest pillars.
From here they had a view of most of the ruins and some of the other areas. However, Dark Mist Forest was just over the horizon, still remaining hidden from Marcus's gaze.
'Well, looks like today's a good day. Usually, there's always someone fighting in these ruins, even though we took the safe path, it's still rare.'' Marcus internally muttered before taking out his cigarettes and lighter.
Even for a Third Rank Fate Knight, it was a ruinous habit, much worse than alcohol, however, Marcus had long since gotten used to it. It was an addiction he was willing to give himself over to completely because it allowed his mind to relax.
As Fate Knight Commander on the Border, he had a tremendous amount of stress, almost every day. Given his circumstances, just a warm bath in the evenings wasn't enough.
"Agh? Did we just lose our luck?" Marcus muttered, looking at the white flashes occasionally appearing behind the ruins and fallen columns.
Marcus knew this location well, as well as every monster that could appear in this area.
"Lightfangs... Damn, there are quite a few of them, well, this will be a good warm-up for them. It's practically luck to meet them here." Marcus shrugged nonchalantly before lighting another cigarette.
The white flares gradually approached Sara, Fosca, and the others, trying to completely hide their presence. Thanks to the ruins and white grass, the monsters managed to do it unnoticed. Only Marcus could see them, but for now, he wasn't going to take part in the battle.
'Let's see what a brilliant rookie can do...' Marcus internally muttered while looking at Fosca, 'Damn, to become a First Rank Fate Knight at 18... Whoever promoted her is either insane or a brilliant teacher... or... she's a monster.'
After a while, the flashes stopped, and some creature emerged from one massive stone rubble.
"Agh...? What is that?" Fosca pointed at the small beast in surprise.
The beast had four short legs, thick white fur, and two long tails that swayed slowly from the occasional wind currents. It had two large eyes with blue pupils, looking cute and harmless. Also, the beast had no ears, just a tiny nose, and a cute little mouth.
Fosca's eyes sparkled, the creature walking towards her looked cuter than anything she had seen before, her heart was enchanted.
'Hah, I bet she wants to throw to it and start stroking it right now...' Marcus smirked, 'However, that would be a serious mistake.
Then, Lightfang turned his head, meeting Fosca's gaze, which made her smile.
"What the hell are you doing?" Sara said sternly, approaching Fosca, then she noticed a Lightfang standing a few meters in front of Fosca.
"What? I just..."
Crackle.
Before Fosca could finis, speaking, Sara pounced on her, knocking her to the ground. Fosca was surprised, she didn't understand why Sara would do something so rough.
However, then she realized.
Whooooooooooooosh.
At the same moment, a white flash swept over them, right over Sara's back, as if trying to get to its victim before it disappeared.
Sara and Fosca were unharmed, after the fall they quickly got to their feet and prepared to fight, or rather only Sara. Fosca continued to lie on the ground with her eyes wide open, looking at the cute animal.
Then, a Lightfang opened its mouth inside of which were only two long fangs, emitting white light. They were covered in blood, fresh as drops dripped from their tips.
"Fosca, didn't you prepare yourself before going to Falrin?!" Sara exclaimed with a great frown.
Fosca didn't answer anything, she just guiltily turned her head away, slowly rising from the ground.
"Tsk." Sara snorted.
The two Fate Knights quickly prepared for battle while more Lightfangs appeared around them. They didn't rush to attack, just took up their positions, staring intently at the four Fate Knights.
"Look, I'll reprimand you later, but right now you should listen to me very carefully. We don't have much time." Sara said sternly, looking reproachfully at Fosca.
"Sure." Fosca nodded, she didn't argue as she realized that this was her fault.
She didn't have enough time to learn about the territory outside of the Border before going on a rescue mission, but she should have done it sooner.
She had a few days before going to Falrin. That was enough time to learn about the locations beyond the Border and their monsters. Not all of them, but the most basic and closest ones for sure.
However, Fosca had ignored it and now she was nearly dead. If it wasn't for Sara, who knew about how dangerous Lightfangs were, the cute little beast she was looking at would have torn her neck apart.
"Mrs. Sara..." Fosca said respectfully, "Thank you for saving me, and... where is Commander Marcus?"
Sara lifted her head up, looking at the column Marcus had jumped onto earlier, but now he wasn't there. Sara nodded slightly, she knew that if Marcus went somewhere, there was an important reason for it.
"It doesn't matter right now. We have to deal with this problem on our own and without severe wounds!" Sara said confidently while pointing her sword at one beast, "These monsters are called Lightfangs, usually they are no stronger than Champion Grade, these ones are for sure."
As soon as those words were spoken, a confident smirk appeared on Fosca's face.
'Just Champion Grade! If I use everything I have, I can defeat a Terror Grade Monster, maybe even a few! Those cute bastards won't be a problem, I can easily deal with them!'' Fosca inwardly exclaimed, pulling out the blades from her belt.
''They only have a few attacks, but mostly you need to fear their sharp lunges and tail attacks. When their tails shine brightly then you should immediately step aside. Do you understand?!" Sara said sternly.
"Yes. I won't let you down! I'm sure we'll deal with them in just a few minutes!" Fosca replied confidently.
Sara nodded, "Fine, in that case, go ahead!"
Sara ran at Lightfang, the Monster didn't move, it was waiting for the right moment to attack which came very soon.
Whoooooooosh.
Lightfang turned into a white flash, heading straight for Sara. A pair of razor-sharp claws emerged from Lightfang's furry paws. They were short, but at high speed, they could easily cut through even thick armor, much less delicate maiden skin.
Sara did not dodge, instead, she stopped abruptly, raising a light cloud of dust, then made a smooth swing of her sword.
A black streak ran down Lightfang's body before it split in two. Leaving a trail of blood, the two parts of the monster fell to the ground next to Sara's feet.
She just wiped the blood off her cheek and headed forward, looking for the next target. While the Commander was away she was in charge and it was important for her to do whatever was necessary to successfully complete the mission.
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