"This can't be real...!"
In're the healer popped out of her hiding spot, clenching a vibrating medallion in her hand.
"That tiny guy! He's an undead!"
She exclaimed excitedly and started running after the undead who just downed a griffin from the sky with one kick.
"Stop that necrophiliac bitch before she'll get herself killed!"
Lairs jumped out from the bushes after the speeding healer.
"In-in! Come back, you dumb slut!"
The mage shouted.
"My innate skill! Subdue undead! I can use it! That little guy is so strong! I'll tame him and finally show everyone!"
"In-in, you are going to fucking die!"
The only two spellcasters have left shouting to each other without stopping.
"..."
Uresha, Shanks, and Rotte left the cover too.
The tank and the warrior were looking dumbfounded at the thief.
"W-we can't just leave them! After them!"
The rat-faced man shouted and dashed after the two women and the other two followed after him.
In're arrived first, with her chest rising up and down with her heavy breaths she hid behind a tree and observed.
"What the fuck do you think you're doing, In-in, you moron?!"
After arriving, Lairs grabbed her by the hood of her priest robe and started pulling her back.
"No! Leave me alone! This is my chance!"
The healer struggled to shake the mage off.
"This medallion is finally useful! This guy is a strong undead!"
She growled while struggling for air since the collar of her robe was tightening around her neck the more Lairs was pulling on it.
window.pubfuturetag = window.pubfuturetag || [];window.pubfuturetag.push({unit: "64ce79d606107d003c23ea27", id: "pf-5140-1"})"Why are you two even doing?! We have to get out of here!"
Shanks and the rest of the party arrived and joined Lairs in pulling the healer away.
"Noo! You don't understand! This is my chance!"
In're wailed, she was holding on to a tree so strongly, that she was ripping the bark off of it.
"A chance for what?! An early dea...?"
*WHOOOOSH*
"SCREEE!"
Something suddenly flew past the Dandelions like a cannonball and the griffin screech pierced the air.
The adventurers shut up and hurriedly hide.
In the clearance between the trees, the massive griffin with a broken wing was limping around.
Its other wing was fully stretched and the beast was looking in the direction of the hidden Dandelions. There was no sign of the small undead anywhere.
"H-hey, do you think that this thing that flew by was the undead? it must have been hit by the griffin's wing- Ah! It must be wounded! A perfect chance!"
In're started fidgeting and tried to sneak away but got instantly grabbed by everyone else.
"Shut your whore mouth! The griffin will tear us to fucking shreds if it'll spot us!"
Lairs ended up sitting on In're's back.
"Shh! Both of you, shut up! Something's coming!"
Shanks silenced both of them, his eyes and ears were glowing and he wasn't looking towards where the undead was flung to, but behind the griffin.
"SCREE!"
Even the monster flinched and turned its head.
"Crack*
Even the rest of the Dandelions, that didn't have skills that could enhance their senses, heard the footsteps of someone coming.
That person either didn't know that they were walking towards an injured griffin, or simply didn't care about the danger.
"SCREEE!"
window.pubfuturetag = window.pubfuturetag || [];window.pubfuturetag.push({unit: "64cc9e79c7059f003e4ad4b0", id: "pf-5109-1"})The griffin screeched as if it was trying to scare off the newcomer, but there was no change in the peace of the footsteps.
And what came from between the trees was...
"Haa... Finally."
A tall, red-haired girl looking as if she was preparing to go for a horse ride.
She patted her raiding pants and frowned at the griffin as if she just noticed it.
"SCREE!"
The monster roared at her but she didn't even flinch.
Instead, she smirked and rested her weapon on her shoulder.
It looked like a thin mace but had intricate carvings all over.
"Who is that bitch...?"
Lairs frowned and her eyes darted towards Shanks.
"She doesn't look like any adventurer I know, and I would've heard some rumors about someone using a weird weapon like that"
The rat-faced man shook his head.
"So what? She's just some random bitch that doesn't fucking know what's good for her? Let's just let herself get fucking killed and get away while the griffin is ripping her to fucking shreds."
The mage shrugged her shoulders.
"No! What about the undead?!"
In're cried while struggling to break free.
"..."
Lairs and Shanks looked at each other.
"That is a good question... the undead isn't returning... Maybe it's not with the girl...?"
Shanks wondered.
"She doesn't look like a corpse puppeteer, that's for fucking sure."
Lairs shrugged again.
window.pubfuturetag = window.pubfuturetag || [];window.pubfuturetag.push({unit: "663633fa8ebf7442f0652b33", id: "pf-8817-1"})While the Dandelions were busy talking, the red-haired girl casually walked over towards the monster.
"SCREE!"
The griffin backed of and its talons ripped through the air in front of the girl as a warning.
The girl's eyes turned cold.
She put one hand forward, readied the bat in the other, and started circling around the monster while keeping a constant eye-contact.
"Scree..."
Griffin let out a low screech and started turning after her cautiously.
They looked like they were dancing albeit very slowly.
Their careful movement showed that both the monster and the girl, despite her age since she looked to be fourteen at most, showed experience in their movement.
Both were looking for a chance to strike, for the opponent to show the weakness.
The Dandelions watching from their hiding spots didn't even dare to breathe, and the notion of coming out and helping the girl hadn't even crossed their minds.
The tension-filled calmness finally broke when the griffin ended up blinking first.
In an instant, the girl's eyes and body started glowing and she lunged at the monster.
"NO! THAT'S A FAINT!"
Shanks couldn't stop himself and shouted, trying to warn the girl.
And indeed, the beast climbed on its hind legs, the girl's weapon ripped through the empty air, and the griffin's talons shone and dropped right at the girl's unguarded head.
*CLANG!*
"!!!"
The bat in the girl's hand flashed and without even changing the uncomfortable stance she struck at the talons, countering them with such force that the griffin lost its balance and started falling backward.
The beast tried to keep itself steady using the one working wing but that wasn't something that its opponent would let it do.
The girl's whole body and even her weapon started glowing.
Not only that, a purple light started coiling around the bat as she gripped it so hard that her knuckles turned white.
The next attack sent chills down the spine of every Dandelion.
The girl launched at the griffin, dodged the wildly swinging talons, and delivered a horrifying swing that cleaved the griffin's eagle head clean off in a single strike.
The girl landed safely on the ground at the same time as the monster's head.
"Watch out!"
Shanks shouted again.
Even though it should be dead, the decapitated body of the beast, spurting blood from its neck, stepped forward wailing its talons.
"GRAOUGH!"
With a deafening growl a small undead, with its body glowing brightly, dashed past the Dandelions hiding spot and landed between the monster and the girl.
Talons thick as a human arm fell at the small figure and mercilessly ripped into it.
"Zombie, what took you so long?"
The slightly annoyed girl asked calmly watching her protector take on attack after attack.
"Garough..."
The undead groaned a complaint and raised its left foot.
The shoe he was wearing, which was a high boot with a high heel, was actually missing the heel.
"Haa... I see. Don't worry, I'll buy you another pair."
The girl sighed and waved her hand dismissively.
"Now, how long will you get that headless chicken to ruin your clothes? Get rid of it."
"Graough!"
She commanded and the small undead growled in affirmation.
While it was taking the hits, its body was still glowing, and when the chance arrived, he struck the body of the griffin with a wide roundhouse kick that sent it crashing into a tree on the opposite side of the clearance.
"Haa... Now since that's dealt with..."
The red-haired girl breathed out and raised her bat, pointing it exactly where the five Dandelions were hiding.
"Come out."
She ordered in an ice-cold voice.
