Chapter 25
TWENTY-FIVE
S till rooted to the spot, I'm so caught up in my own despair that I barely realize someone is next to me. A figure looms over me, and I slowly lift my gaze up, frowning at the familiar face. She's the girl from the club, isn't she?
"How did you get here?" she demands, a disgusted expression on her face. Black hair and equally dark eyes, she's wearing a cute costume that's cut in the back to make way for her beautiful white tail that even now sways from side to side.
"Huh?" I frown.
I stare at her, not comprehending what she's referring to. Is she mistaking me for someone else?
Behind her, I note three men with protective stances, glaring at me. She's not the only one who has a tail. The others do as well, only theirs are a combination of red, black, and white. I'm not sure what exactly they are, but maybe I should ask Thea to give me a lesson on all the species that I'm likely to encounter in this competition.
"It's her." She points at me, looking back at the other men. "She's the one who touched my tail," she accuses.
My eyes widen in shock.
Getting to my feet, I give them a shaky smile as I put my palms up.
"I didn't. It was just a misunderstanding..."
"A human touched your tail?" One of the men growls, taking a step forward.
What... How the hell did I get myself into this?
"I didn't. I really didn't. I only mentioned it was very pretty," I say, slowly backing away. But even if I had, why are they reacting like this for something as simple as touching a tail? There's a sense of danger that seeps into my bones. My fight or flight instinct is activated as I look right and left in an attempt to find an exit since I think it's high time I returned to the suite.
But just as I take a step back, I'm smacked across the face by a different tail—one that's not nearly as fluffy as the girl's. Losing my equilibrium, I fall to the grass. I bring my hand to my lips, wiping away blood from the blow.
"What the..." I mumble, half in shock. Looking back at them, I find the girl sporting a twisted smile while one of the men by her side is swaying his red tail in the air, a smug expression on his face.
"I don't know how you made it here, human , but you'll pay for your audacity," she sneers at me.
What audacity? I didn't do anything!
"You're insane," I mumble, wobbling to my feet.
She puts a hand up, calling one of the other men to her and giving him a signal. My eyes flare open with fear as I realize this won't stop at just one blow.
"Let's not get ahead of ourselves. You know I didn't touch your tail. I just complimented it." I try once more to reason with them.
But it's soon evident that not only does it not matter if I touched her tail or not, but that by taking me out, they're just eliminating competition. Since our first trial was isolated, I forgot that not only are we competing against outside obstacles, but also against each other.
The man's lips pull up in a smirk as he whispers something to her. She nods, giving him permission to act.
Oh, no, no, no. I'm not going to wait around for them to hit me again. Turning, I dash toward the apartment, running at full speed. Yet it's in vain as the man's tail extends and wraps itself around my ankle, pulling suddenly. I gasp aloud as I fall face down to the ground. Pain flares in my knees from the hard surface, and more red liquid trickles down my flesh.
I groan in pain as I raise myself on my arms. Footsteps resound behind me. Despite the biting pain, I push myself up, ready to make another go at an escape.
"Silly human," he mutters, his tone mocking. His tail moves, about to strike me again. Yet this time, the attack doesn't come.
I blink repeatedly, afraid I'm seeing things.
One flash of white and half of his tail drops to the ground, blood pouring from his open wound. He gives a harsh cry of pain as he drops to his knees.
"Why do you always attract danger?" Ze's voice echoes as he appears in front of me, blood trickling down his sword as droplets fall to the ground. The image is quite familiar as his broad back fills my entire field of vision. He's changed clothes, I notice. He's back in his black ensemble consisting of a loose tunic shirt and a pair of wide-legged linen pants. A belt holds the outfit together, which he uses to hang the scabbard of his sword.
Thea and Cer are here too, with Thea shooting murderous glances at the girl.
"I've got her," she motions to the girl, positioning herself in front of her just as her nails lengthen into claws.
"You..." the man sneers, his nostrils flaring as he stares at Ze. Releasing a sharp battle cry, he thrusts himself forward, ready to attack Ze.
My lips part in wonder just as my eyes widen in shock.
Ze doesn't move. He doesn't even dodge the incoming blow. He merely lifts his arm, his forefinger on the man's forehead as he keeps him at a distance. He stops the man's advancement with just one finger!
What the hell...
He flicks him across the forehead, and that small gesture sends the man flying in the air until he crashes into the fence surrounding the complex.
The girl cries out when her partner releases a groan of pain as he hits the fence. She turns feral as she faces Thea, her entire body changing right under my eyes. More of the same fur starts covering her limbs until she changes from a humanoid form to something resembling an oversized fox. She jumps toward Thea, but she easily evades the attack, raking her claws on the underside of the belly. The fox yelps in pain, but she doesn't give up. Still, it seems that Thea can more than handle herself.
Ze sheaths his sword as he turns toward me. His lips are flattened into a thin line as he surveys the state of my injuries. My lip is busted. My knees are bruised and bleeding. He's no doubt thinking what a weak human I am.
Taking a step forward, he extends his hand toward me.
I blink at the unexpected gesture, but I'm not in a position to refuse his help, so I grab onto his hand, letting him pull me up to my feet.
His gaze is on my bloodied lip as a scowl permeates his features.
"Who did that ?" His voice vibrates with tension.
"That guy." I point at the man with the red tail.
His cheek twitches dangerously. Pivoting on his heel, he pins the other two men with his icy glare.
"Cerenios, that one is mine," he says in a low, barely contained voice.
Cer smirks, shaking his head.
"As you wish." He inclines his head. "But remember our limitations," he mentions before he steps aside and focuses his attention on the other man.
Ze stares at the man and, raising his hand, he uses two fingers to beckon him. My lips tremble with mirth. Of course he would be awfully arrogant in combat, too.
The man bares his teeth at Ze, and with a loud howl, he shifts his form too. His fox is much bigger than the girl's, the color a deep auburn with streaks of black on the back. Its snout is protruding, its canines sharp. In this form, it's hard to believe that he was ever humanoid. There's nothing but the wildness of the beast inside of him as he charges toward Ze. Yet in contrast to the girl, whose only strategy seems to be close combat, the man can shoot power balls out of his mouth.
Wha—
"Get back, human," Ze commands. In one smooth movement, he removes the sword from his waist, deflecting the blast and sending it to the side. The fox continuously fires blasts at him, coming closer and closer.
Ze rotates his sword as he catches one blast. Tracing his fingers from the hilt of his sword to the tip, he absorbs most of the momentum of the blast before he returns it, using his sword to bounce the ball of energy back to the fox.
This catches Ze's opponent off guard and he barely has time to avoid the incoming blow. He veers to the side, but the blast is too powerful, catching him in his lower body and burning a good part of his fur. A strangled cry escapes him as he falls to the ground. There's a gaping wound in his right flank—so deep the bone is visible, the flesh around the wound raw and mangled. One would think that he'd give up at this point. But if anything, he's even more determined to strike at Ze as he gets up and inhales sharply, gathering all his energy for one last blast.
Ze is unbothered as he simply watches him with an emotionless expression. He smoothly rotates the hilt of the sword in his hand, the effortless display of strength intimidating even to my eyes— and I'm on his team !
But just as my focus is on the red fox and his incoming attack, I note movement from the corner of my eye.
I turn my head, following the motions.
To the side, Thea is still fighting the girl—or, better said, she's playing with her, baiting her here and there. Next to her, Cer is sporting a bored expression as he evades all the useless attempts of his opponent. He's clearly superior in strength and skill, but he doesn't seem to have the same thirst for blood that Ze does. He's just toying with the other man, dodging every attack and wearing him out.
But as I move my gaze even farther right, my eyes flare open in shock as I recognize the other male, now fully shifted into his fox form too. He's running at full speed toward Ze, readying himself for attack just as the red fox opens his mouth to release his energy blast.
"Ze, watch out," I call out to him, running to his side. In the moment, all my coherent thoughts vanish. It never even crosses my mind that I'm powerless and I could never possibly help him. There's only this unnatural impetus to save him as I push my battered body forward. I only cover a short distance before it becomes clear that the fox isn't running toward Ze.
He's running at me.
Ze's head whips to me, something flaring in his gaze. He moves with frightening alacrity, his sword up in the air to absorb the blast of energy. One leg slips backward as the power of the blast strains his equilibrium. He holds on to his sword as the wave of energy washes through him, his body bent forward. His entire body shakes as currents of electricity travel from the sword through him, his expression pained. Still, his attention is fully on me. Yet the distance between us is a wide gulf that he can't possibly cross in time.
I come to a complete halt, my eyes wide, my heartbeat erratic. There's no time to retreat. Not with how unresponsive my body suddenly is and certainly not with how fast the fox is moving toward me.
Everything happens in slow motion as I squeeze my eyes shut, bracing myself for the impact.
But it never comes.
A loud bang erupts in the air, sowing panic in my chest. I crack my eyes open to find myself staring at Ze's back. He's breathing hard as he holds his ground, keeping the fox away from me. His fingers are wrapped around his opponent's throat, squeezing the life out of him. His hold tightens until a snap permeates the air, the neck of the fox bending at an awkward angle. His beady eyes are wide open, unblinking, his mouth parted—in regret or shock, who knows. Ze releases him and the unmoving body drops to the ground, morphing back into its humanoid form.
"Ze..." I whisper, reaching out to touch his sleeve.
It's the first time I see him kill someone. Before, when he'd dispatched that demon, I hadn't once had second thoughts about it because it was evil, no? He was saving the souls. But this... I'm not sure how I feel about it even though the fox was going to attack me. If it weren't for him, I'd be dead, or at the very least gravely injured. It's quite obvious that the foursome had started the conflict as a way to show off and take care of a weaker contestant. The flimsy pretext they had used to attack me had been a mere front.
Ze doesn't answer. He shrugs my hand off as he stalks toward the red fox, his steps heavy and measured. By now, the man must have realized that Ze is not someone to mess with because he tries to run away. But Ze will not allow him that mercy. He vanishes from his current spot, reappearing in front of the fox. With unnatural speed, he withdraws his sword, decapitating the red fox with one smooth slide of his blade.
The head falls to the ground, rolling on the grass until it's only a few steps away from me. I stare in shock at the blood gushing from the neck, the sight of the severed spine and tendons an anatomy lesson I did not particularly need.
But Ze doesn't stop there.
It's almost as if he's no longer in control of himself as he flashes out of sight once more, appearing between Cer and his opponent. Cer's eyes widen, but he doesn't seem overly surprised, taking a step back to give Ze more room. I detect a small bow of reverence coupled with a sharp gaze as he surveys the situation in case his superior might need help. Despite their apparent friendship or friendly countenance, there's no denying that Cer is always behaving in a subtle deferential manner toward Ze—one that isn't necessarily borne out of their positions, but because he truly respects the man. That tells me everything I need to know about Ze and what type of person he is. He might be rude and arrogant and sometimes downright tyrannical. But he's someone who inspires trust and loyalty—both traits I happen to admire.
Ze doesn't hesitate. He strikes again with his sword, the head of the man flying a few meters away, rolling on the grass. I barely blink before he disappears again, only to show up in front of the girl—the last one.
He has a chilling expression on his face. Splatters of blood are on his cheeks and forehead, some droplets dripping from his chin. He looks utterly terrifying, yet it's his eyes that trigger a deep fear within me.
They're empty. Soulless.
They're a pool of nothingness as he stares at his last victim, his sword raised high.
"Ze!" I call out. He doesn't hear me.
One second the female fox is watching him with trepidation, the next she's split in half by his sword, her lifeless body parts falling to the ground, her organs spilling onto the grass and staining it with blood and various other liquids. The urge to gag is overpowering, as is the shock that claims my body and renders it immobile.
All around us, there's only destruction and bloodshed. The lush garden in which I'd hugged my husband for the first time in weeks has turned into a hellish scenery. The grass is a muddy brown. The flowers have been stained by death.
I stand there, frozen to the spot as I stare around me. My emotions are high, my morality caught in a loop, churning until it ripens, then rots.
At one point in my life, I would have regretted this, but now I can't.
Four fewer people to compete against. Four fewer people contending for the prize. It's selfish, I know. But in the grand scheme of things, it's them or Nikki.
Slowly lifting my gaze, I meet Ze's absent one. We stare at each other for moments on end, the buzz of adrenaline the only sound as everything fades away.
There's a glint in his eyes, the swirling darkness giving way to a hint of color. Yet as he blinks, it's gone, as is his murderous rage. He slowly puts his sword away, his features clearing up. He's covered from head to toe in fox blood, but as I take a step forward to go to his side, I catch sight of something on the ground.
Red blood. But next to it, there's black blood. I follow the trail around, watching a pattern unfold and remembering something Cer had said about the black magic dust.
It's made from his blood.
Without caring for the pain in my limbs or my pounding heart, I dash to him. Reaching his side, I note the small hole in his shirt as well as the slightly deeper black staining the edges.
God, he got hit. When he put himself in front of me, he must have absorbed the blow meant for me—that's the only possible explanation. Panic swells inside of me as I grab onto the material, ripping at it to check for the damage.
Smooth skin meets my eyes, and I have to blink several times to make sure I'm seeing correctly.