Or at least attempted to.
That couldn’t even be called a proper run.
Truth is, he was hurting. The damage that he did to himself was there, undoubtedly, so I was able to catch up with him in no time.
I was about to say something, but he was first.
-We are running as far as we can see, straight forward. You understand?
-Sure, but… - I pointed to his leg. - With that? How…
-I am aware. Can I trust you?
That was surprising.
Where did that even come from? Trust? Me? After all that?
Can I trust him even?
-Er…? Why…?
-You’re going to be carrying me, that’s why?
-Huh?
-I am limping. I cannot run like that. Even with spells…
-Can’t you just fix your leg?
-No I can’t.
-Why…?
-Because I am not turning into a crystal.
Right. He and his problems.
I swear, he only mentions this when there are problems.
-I can’t see why that would…
-My body, my rules.
-Whatever… I suppose we can be slower, they aren’t that fast to begin with…
Wait.
Were they slower?
Hell no.
They were getting closer. I mean, we weren’t really in a hurry beforehand, so I guess that’s our fault, but…
Yeah. They were getting faster.
I think Mike noticed that too.
-Fuck. We need to hurry.
-We? More like “you”. Heal your leg.
-Told you already.
-And so did I. I can just run without you, you know.
-Go ahead. I know you don’t know how to stop. You’re going to be stuck in hyperspeed forever.
Well, not forever, but…
How did he know I even intended to use that ability?
Of course I could return… a lot later, but…
-Carry me.
-Excuse me?
His request was so sudden, I didn’t know what to think of it.
-Carry me. When we’re far enough away from them I’ll just stop you.
-Er… Won’t you get… I don’t know, damaged in the process?
-And you care?
-I guess not…
-So do it. Come on, they are getting closer.
-Why am I even doing this… - I mumbled to myself, but stopped and looked him over. - Don’t expect princess carry.
-You what… HEY!
I warned him.
I wasn’t going to try and be gentle or considerate. I straight up just picked him up and flinged him against my shoulder like a sack of potatoes.
He wasn’t happy about that.
-Can you at least not treat me like an item?! What…
-Shut up, I’m concentrating.
-You fucking…
I didn’t get to hear the rest of the insults. The moment I put my mind to it, everything suddenly stopped.
Just like before.
I was wondering how hard it was going to be to move with him on my shoulder? I mean, I had problems moving other items before, so he probably was going to be slowing me down…
But that was not the case.
I could move like usual.
A bit strange, but I was not complaining. My bet was on the fact that he was also able to cast the same magic. That or it was just the Origin Crystal again being an anomaly in one way or another.
Speaking of anomalies…
I now realized that it was a really good idea to utilize this method.
The fact that our pursuers have not slowed down and were instead getting faster was an understatement. They were already here.
I realized that if I had not used this thing, I would already be in the middle of a fight. Hell, I kind of was already.
When the time froze… or slowed down, rather, something was already emerging from the trees nearby.
I thought it was going to be a spell, judging by mana density, but it was a person. I am unsure what they were looking like, because the mana was blinding me.
Was that on purpose?
Maybe, who knows. After all, this was a pursuit.
I could tell that even in this slowed time, I could see them moving. Maybe not rapidly, but that movement was clearly visible, meaning whoever they were, they had to be really fast.
So, no time to dawdle.
I started running.
Having to carry him with me was annoying, but not as much as trying to get through the thick branches that oftentimes were blocking my way.
Sure, I was able to break or drain them almost instantly, but so what? Even while destroyed, they weren’t just disappearing: it still was taking time for them to either fall on the ground or for me to push the dust away from me.
Annoying.
But, I was pushing through, wondering how long I was going to have to do this.
The answer was: a whole day.
And it was not because Mike had stopped me, no. It was because I finally found myself on some kind of a road.
It didn’t really lead in an exact direction I was pointed towards, but who cares? I was going to use it anyway. It’s going to be faster this way. A lot faster.
Not like it mattered much. I already had left my pursuers long behind.
I was wondering what this road was exactly, though.
It seemed modern-ish. Regular asphalt, with some signs of paint here and there, but was overgrown. I mean, obviously, we were still in the part where the forest has been the dominant force over anything else.
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I doubt it was used, but I was checking for any signs of people or vehicles.
I wasn’t really that worried about our pursuit. I was more considering that if the spell would be suddenly broken I would’ve found myself in a head on collision with a truck or something along those lines.
But, it didn’t seem like that was in the cards. The closest living thing was our pursuit, and that soon also vanished from my range.
Everything clear.
I wondered how long I was going to have to run before he finally decided to break me out, but there was absolutely no indication of that.
I was paying attention to the baggage I was hauling, but he was barely moving. I mean, obviously, but he probably would’ve noticed the change in environment. Or at least the road. And since I was running for at least the same amount of time using the road as I was through the wooded and unwelcome branches, I assume he had no issues with me going this way.
Works with me.
I still had plenty of strength with me left, and even if I wasn’t, there were still a lot of sources from which I could regenerate.
And I was going to need that strength.
I got used to carrying him with me and it was still less annoying than dragging him through the bushes and all that, but that didn’t mean I liked it. More than the difficulty… The run was just plain boring.
I probably should say that it was good, right?
It meant that there were no problems with pursuit. But it was giving me that sense of unease…
Sure, nothing was to be detected, but that also meant that Mike should have broken me out of the spell already. And yet, I was still enhanced.
I could try and break out of it myself, but I decided not to for now. Just to be safe, I thought I would run at least until I found some kind of landmark or something. Being on a road I thought it should be pretty soon. But…
One hour…
Nothing.
Two.
Still nothing.
Three.
I was starting to get worried.
Four.
Should I just stop anywhere? Everything looked the same… maybe the road was a bit more cracked.
Five.
Finally, some change. Not much, though, it was just that the greenery around us was getting a bit different. Thinning a little bit? Maybe…
Six.
Yeah, definitely thinning. Before it looked like a jungle, now it was just more of a regular forest. The trunks were thinner. And I could actually see the sky this time! No more canopy blocking the sun.
At the start of the next hour I finally found something.
A cabin.
We definitely were far enough, right?
And with no one else around…
I decided to stop. Or at least take a moment to rest and think.
Mostly think.
I wanted to take a better look at the cabin I found.
To be honest, it was more like a shack than a cabin. I knew I probably should be weary, remembering Melle’s place, but the spot here didn’t seem to have any more mana than I’d see anywhere else. It was just a regular shack. Door, one window. It probably was broken or just straight up too old, because there was no sign of glass. Same with the roof: plenty of holes through which I could see greenery was trying to get in and claim the insides for themselves. As for the material of the roof, I couldn’t be sure; it was completely covered in moss, but if I was to guess, I’d say it was just some random planks put together hastily.
I was about to try and open the rickety door when I stopped myself.
I was still enhanced.
I remembered how it looked when I tried interacting with something last time. If I was to touch this, I’d definitely leave it in ruin. Or, at best, I would’ve torn the old door apart.
And Mike was still not betraying any signs of him attempting to cut me off.
Hmm.
Should I do it myself?
I mean, probably? It’s not like there was any danger near us. And in any case, I could just repeat what we did without much effort. I think.
I sat down next to the shack, trying to find a spot that had a bunch of grass and trees near me so I could regenerate if I needed to and focused.
Having Mike with me that whole time was not helping and I considered just dropping him near me, but…
What would that do to him?
He wasn’t “sped up” so to speak, so I was sort of worried that I might slam him a bit too hard to the ground. And on top of that, I would lose my contact with him. I assume he needed that to help me break out… But was he going to, anyway?
It’s been so long that I honestly was losing my patience. Hell, I was about to try and do it myself. The threat was long gone.
Eh, whatever. It’s not like I don’t have time to waste. What does it matter that I have a bit of weight on my shoulders?
And, I tried going back.
It wasn’t an easy nor fast process. Funny, considering the situation I was in. I had to focus and remember how exactly that did happen last time, but had not much success at first.
I think I’ve sat there for a good hour at least before I finally managed to break out and be back to normal.
The change itself was abrupt.
After that long of a time being in that state, the moment everything turned normal I was assaulted with so much information that I felt my head hurt.
The noise was the worst.
I barely heard anything for the longest time, especially since we were in the woods, but the moment I got out, I heard the flailing of Mike mixed with curses and… spells? I am not sure. He wasn’t using any mana though, so I guess I was just wrong.
Thanks to the sudden return, I immediately dropped him next to me, making him realize what happened.
-What are you doing?!
-What are you doing? - I asked in kind. - You said you’re going to help me break out.
-Yes! But only after we escape let’s move, they are just about to…
He stopped.
I think he finally realized where we were.
Really, how much time had passed for him?
-I think we’re good - I said and sighed. - Eh, whatever. Did I manhandle you a bit too much?
He didn’t answer.
I think he was processing what just happened to him, because he seemed a bit out of it.
-Mike?
-AH! Right. Yes. I mean, no. I didn’t expect…
-I thought you used this before?
-I did! But I’ve never seen it from the outside… I mean…
-Oh. I get it. Well, I was running for a long while. To me that is. I can’t sense anyone anymore. I mean, I couldn’t for a while.
-Yeah, yeah we’re good. I think.
-I found this place, so I thought it would be a good stop to take a break - I pointed towards the shack.
-Right, right…
I think he finally started to understand what happened.
Really, was it that confusing to him? It was just speed… and it’s not like he didn’t know what was going to happen. And even with that, it just should feel like teleportation to him. That’s not too weird, is it?
-Okay… so let’s go inside…? What were you waiting for?
-I didn’t want to break this… I am not in full control when in that form.
-It’s… wow.
Okay, I had enough.
What was wrong with him?
-Okay, can you explain? What the fuck are you on about. First you tell me to do this, tell me that you’ll break me out, then act like this whole ordeal was some unthinkable event? What gives?
He looked me in the eyes.
-I told you to do this. Yes. Because I thought you’re going to speed up, but not to this degree! It’s… overwhelming?
-Overwhelming?
-Yes! When I did this… if that even can be called the same thing, that is, I am just three times as fast as normal. Maybe a bit more. And I can just keep it up for a minute or so. What you did…
-Oh. I guess it was a bit longer.
-A bit? How many days have you been walking?! We are so far away I don’t even recognize this place.
-Days? Nah, it’s been a few hours… well, maybe more than a few hours.
-Just hours? Did you really go where I told you?
-Generally, yes. I did change the direction a bit when I got to the road.
-Road…
-Something wrong…?
-I… don’t remember this place having any roads.
-Well, it’s an old one…
-Obviously…
-Let’s get inside. Maybe there’ll be a chair or something.
-What, you got tired? I guess running that far…
-Nah. But it would be nice to sit nonetheless.
-Hm.
The earlier speculation about the shack was absolutely correct.
Inside, there was barely anything different than outside. The whole place was overgrown by the greenery. While the roots weren’t breaking any walls or the ceiling, they were going through the floor, some small trees growing inside. Apparently holes in the roof were giving enough light and water to sustain some life.
-That’s an interesting carpet.
-You mean moss.
-Natural carpet.
As we walked in, both of us almost instantly realized that there was no point in even investigating this place. Whoever was living here had abandoned it a long time ago and hadn't left anything inside.
-Well shit. I guess I was too hopeful.
-You expected a bed?
-Whatever. What was that you were saying about a road?
-Road… ah, right. I don’t remember this place having a road built. It has to be a remnant from an earlier age.
-You mean before our experiment.
-Yeah.
-That’s a lot of range.
-You said it.
I stepped outside, sitting on the doorstep.
-Anyway… - I started. - What are we doing with the pursuit?
-Pursuit?! They’re here!?
-Well, no. You can tell there is no one nearby, right?
-You think they’re ever going to find us?
-Well, no. But we can’t exactly just be in hiding forever. Since I got outside of the barrier, I’d rather go to a more civilized place.
-Right… civilization…
-I might not need it, but I’d like to at least give it a glance. See what changed, that stuff.
-I feel like that’s going to be a bit hard for you…
-Who cares. Weren’t you the one who changed it yourself?
-Yes, but it’s not that easy!
-I do have time.
-I guess… But do you have any idea how that even works?
-What, you won’t tell me?
-I…
Before he finished speaking we both stiffened.
Something was wrong.