Ingrid knew that Iris was strong. But witnessing her take on three opponents simultaneously left her in greater awe of her skills. The trio, clad in white robes, showed a level of skill that surpassed the soldiers Iris once fought in their residence. Their movements were swift and elusive, making it difficult for Ingrid to keep up with their actions. Yet, despite their immense strength, Iris managed to inflict heavy wounds on them while sustaining only a few minor scratches.
Her weapon and her skillful mastery are probably one of the reasons why she swiftly gained the upper hand. It has the ability to shrink and expand at her will, granting her unparalleled flexibility on the battlefield. This made the three men cautious about getting too close to her, as they were uncertain when she would decrease or increase the size of her weapon.
With a swift swing of her double-bladed axe using her right hand, one of the men, with his robe now adorned with blood, was forced to veer to the left. But before he could realize his mistake, in a mere millisecond, Iris swiftly shifted the giant axe to her left hand, propelling it towards him with lightning speed.
His eyes went wide as he hastily used his sword to parry Iris’s oncoming assault. The resounding clash of metal resonated in the air as their weapons collided, sending a powerful shockwave through their surroundings. The man gritted his teeth as he tried his best to stand his ground. But the force of her blow was so immense that his sword cracked under the strain, causing him to be hurled backward, crashing into a nearby tree. The impact left him gasping for breath and coughing up blood, and he was momentarily incapacitated.
Iris gaze then shifted to the other two, ready to attack them. But then something unexpected happened.
“Iris!” A gasp escaped from Ingrid’s lips, her hand instinctively flying to cover her mouth, when an arrow pierced through Iris’ left forearm.
The attack was extremely swift, catching Iris completely off guard. Throughout their confrontation, the arrows had been directed at Ingrid, so the sudden shift in target took her by surprise. It seems that seeing one of their allies get defeated made them realize that she was a bigger threat than they had anticipated.
“I’m fine, my lady,” Iris assured her as she broke the shaft of the arrow and threw it on the ground, annoyed. Their marksman is really accurate. That arrow was meant to hit her heart. If not for her quick reflex, she would have already been dead.
The two robed men took the opportunity to attack Iris, believing they now had an easier time fighting her with her left arm injured. But who would have thought that she would still switch hands, disregarding her injury? The man on her left ended up paying the price for underestimating Iris. With a wave of Iris’s axe, his head was cleanly separated from his neck and rolled on the ground.
The movement of the last remaining man halted when he saw his comrade getting killed. They were so confident with their movements before, but now he seems to be hesitating. One of them is dead, and the other is heavily injured. The tide of the battle is slowly going against them.
“Now, is any of you willing to tell me why you’re after my lady’s life?” Iris asked dangerously. Her bloodshot eyes gleamed with wild intensity. Disheveled strands of hair framed her face while her torn clothes hung on her body. With each heavy breath, her nostrils flared like a raging bull.
Over an hour has passed since the battle started. Yet, despite the prolonged fight, there were no signs of her strength diminishing. Instead, it felt like she became stronger and stronger the longer they fought.
Another arrow zoomed towards Iris. But the arrow wasn’t as accurate as the previous one, and she easily caught it with her bare hand. She looked in the direction of the forest with a taunting grin as she let the arrow slowly slide off her palm and fall to the ground.
The robed man’s eyes burned with anger, and he attacked her in a frenzy while arrows rained here and there. Iris, even with the gradual numbness of her injured arm, still held her ground against them.
“Urgh!” Iris let out a pained groan when another arrow found its mark, piercing her calf. With a grimace, she was forced to kneel on the ground as surprise and disbelief flickered across her face.
What is going on? She was sure she had evaded that arrow. Was her movement too slow? Could it be? She looked at the broken arrow still lodged on her skin. Was the arrow poisoned?
“Iris!” Ingrid shouted worriedly. She wanted to run and help her, but what exactly could she do? Besides, she was trapped inside the dome that protected her and couldn’t get out.
The last remaining man took advantage of the situation and tried to sneakily attack Iris. But because of the poison, Iris’s senses were impeded.
Seeing the precarious situation, Ingrid desperately screamed, “STOP!!!”
As though he were compelled by a force, the man’s movement stopped. He looked at Ingrid with glaring eyes. But when his gaze landed on her face, his mouth went wide open.
“Please don’t hurt my friend," Ingrid begged, her eyes glittering with tears. She was a sight to behold to begin with, and her tears added an allure of vulnerability that makes anyone just want to lay down the world under her feet.
As though hypnotized, the man swallowed, while his grip on the hilt of his sword loosened. Iris took the chance and swung her axe towards the man’s hips, whose eyes seemed to be permanently glued to Ingrid’s enchanting face. Ingrid averted her gaze as Iris’ axe cleaved the man in half, his blood spluttering everywhere.
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Iris sank to her knees while panting. The poison from the arrow coursing through her body has taken its toll on her, leaving her left arm numb and useless. As she fought to be conscious, dizziness washed over her, threatening to send her collapsing to the ground.
But she can’t afford to lose consciousness here. Not yet. There are still the marksmen that she needs to take care of. “Ugh! What’s taking those assholes so long?" She groaned. With the speed of the lightning horses, they should have already arrived.
Iris’s senses have been so completely numbed that she has failed to notice the man who was previously lying under the tree slowly rising to his feet. With blood smeared across his mouth, he charged towards Iris with a raised sword, his eyes filled with fury.
Ingrid's heart ran up to her throat when she saw the charging man. "Iris, watch out!" She yelled while banging the dome.
Iris turned her head and saw the man coming her way. She tried to dodge, but her body felt like it was chained to the ground, preventing her from moving. That last swing had completely drained her of her last remaining strength.
Ingrid’s heart skipped a beat as she witnessed the man’s sword gradually descending towards Iris neck. It was as though the world slowed its motions. Tears fell from her eyes.
Will she really have to watch her friend die?
“No, Iriiiiis!!!!!!!” She kept screaming and banging the dome with her fist until they were bruised and bleeding.
As the sharp edge of the sword slid through the skin on Iris’ neck, suddenly, a figure flashed towards the man in a white robe. It was so fast that the dust on the unpaved road billowed and obscured the view, creating dense fog that made it difficult to see.
Ingrid’s heart raced with worry and anticipation as she strained to make out what was happening within the haze. Amidst the confusion, she caught a glimpse of a silhouette, but it was hard to make out what the person looked like.
“Iris!” She anxiously called. But nobody answered. “Iris!" She kept calling, as fear gnawed on her with every passing moment. Coincidentally, the magic on the pendant ran out and the dome shattered like glass. But with the dust storm, it was impossible for her to move around.
When the dust finally settled, Ingrid froze when she saw a tall and muscular man with hideous arms filled with scars standing on the unpaved street. One scar in particular caught her attention—a deep gash on his chest, resembling the mark of a colossal bird’s claw. Ingrid couldn’t fathom the origin of such gruesome wounds. But what truly struck her was the uncanny familiarity of the man’s appearance.
The man’s gaze shifted towards Ingrid, and his eyes widened with a flicker of recognition. His reaction fueled her curiosity even more, and she began to ponder where she might have seen him.
Then suddenly, the man moved towards her with superhuman speed. Ingrid stood still like a statue, paralyzed with fear. She closed her eyes, assuming she would be hit or stabbed. But then the pain she anticipated did not come.
Slowly, Ingrid opened her eyes and found the man holding an arrow that was supposed to hit her across the forehead. A chill ran down her spine.
“Felix,” the man said in a rough and dark tone. That’s when Ingrid noticed that the man wasn’t alone. There were two others with him: a woman with short, wavy hair and a pleasant face, and a sweet, innocent-looking boy.
The young boy, Felix, gave the man a playful salute before darting towards the forest.
Ingrid watched the young boy go, feeling a mix of curiosity and confusion, when moments later, screams echoed from the depths of the forest, making her hair stand on end.
“Are you alright, my lady?” The scar-filled man towering over her asked.
Ingrid nodded. She watched the man with curious eyes. With his giant build and ugly scars, she never expected him to sound really gentle.
“My lady, your hands,” the man pointed.
Ingrid looked down and realized that her hands were bleeding. She stared at her palm absentmindedly. If the man hadn’t pointed it out, she wouldn’t have noticed that he was wounded.
“Naz, come here, hurry!”
The two of them quickly turned toward where the voice was coming from.
“Iris!” Ingrid cried out when she saw the person lying on the ground, unconscious. A woman was kneeling beside Iris with her hands hovering above her, a green light emanating from her palm.
“She’s been poisoned with the devil’s trumpet, and it is spreading rapidly. I can slow down its progression with my healing magic, but,” she looked at them with a grim expression. “Without the antidote, I’m afraid she won’t make it.”
Ingrid's ears rang. No, she won't let Iris die.
She kneeled in front of them and begged, “Please heal her. As long as you heal her, I’ll do anything. I am the daughter of the grand duke of Lennox, and no matter how much you ask, I can give it.”
“Please calm down, my lady!” Naz said, flustered. He quickly helped Ingrid off the ground. “Don’t worry, my lady. Even if I have to scour the entire world for the antidote, I won’t let your friend die.”
"Yeah, I don’t think we have that much time,” the woman interrupted.
“What do you mean?”
“She was poisoned with the Devil’s Helmet. It’s a poison that slowly kills the nerve. The first symptom is the numbing of the surrounding areas of the wound, and then, in a few minutes, you will begin to lose your senses. After an hour, you will lose all feelings of touch, and then you’ll become deaf and blind. In just two hours, you’ll die. But the Devil’s Helmet is a flower that only grows deep within Darkwood Forest. There aren’t that many people who have seen that flower, much less know that it’s poisonous.”
“Yet these people are using it like this poison flower grows in their backyard,” Naz said while checking the tips of the arrows scattered on the ground.
“Then do you know the antidote?” Ingrid asked nervously. She held Iris's cold hands, her face filled with worry and self-reproof. This all happened because of her. If Iris died, she would never forgive herself.
“There is only one antidote to it known at present. The Angel’s Trumpet is an even rarer flower than the Devil’s Helmet. It’s so rare that the last sighting of it recorded was 40 years ago.”
Ingrid’s heart sank. She began combing her hair as panic and anxiety washed over her. No, Iris can’t die. She couldn’t allow her to die just like that!
“There might be another solution.”
Ingrid's desperate eyes quickly turned towards Naz.
“But before I say it, you must swear your secrecy to the Rose first,” Naz commanded.
Although confused, Rebecca followed his command and pressed her hand on a small pouch hanging on her side. “I swear on the Rose to keep whatever I see or hear at my grave; otherwise, the grave will seek me.”
The thing inside her small pouch glowed for a second the moment she said it.
"Now, can you tell me what this other solution is?” Ingrid asked impatiently, slightly surprised by their sudden oath-taking in such a situation.
Naz looked directly into Ingrid’s eyes and said, “Your blood, my lady.”
Ingrid’s eyes went wide with horror, and her body trembled.