Chapter 700: Running

Isolde ran without any clear idea of where she was going, her breath coming in short, painful gasps as the cold air scraped against her throat.

The uneven ground forced her to watch every step, but she couldn’t stop herself from glancing back, each look confirming that the two men were coming after her.

"Stop running, you little bitch!"

The shout made her flinch, and she hurried around a low outcropping, nearly losing her footing on the loose stones beneath it.

She caught herself before falling, but the brief stumble cost her precious distance. Heavy footsteps were already approaching from behind, far quicker than her own.

’Please... Where is everyone?’

She searched desperately for something familiar, some sign of the depression where they had made camp, but the pale stretches of ground ahead looked no different from those she had already crossed.

Her eyes were swimming with tears, making it even harder to see, and she wiped at them hurriedly without slowing down.

One of the men laughed behind her.

"You’re only going to wear yourself out!"

She could hear how little effort the chase was taking him. Meanwhile, her chest was beginning to hurt, and every breath seemed to bring less air than she needed.

She tried to call for help, but her voice died in her throat, leaving her with little more than a frightened gasp.

A figure appeared beyond the rocks ahead.

Isolde almost turned away, terrified that someone else had come to block her path, but the moonlight caught the long shaft of a spear, followed by a familiar face.

"R-Rina!"

Rina turned toward the voice, her expression brightening as she saw the elf running toward her.

She had barely taken a step forward before Isolde reached her, clutching at her sleeve with trembling fingers.

"Isolde? What happened?"

The elf opened her mouth, but no words came out. She could only shake her head, struggling to catch her breath as tears slipped down her cheeks.

Rina helped her stand with one hand, as she looked past her when the approaching footsteps finally reached her ears.

The two men slowed a short distance away.

She recognised them without much difficulty, and the sight of their faces made the unease in her stomach churn into disgust.

Isolde’s grip tightened around her sleeve, and the elf tried to move behind her, keeping her horrified gaze fixed upon the pair.

"What are you doing?" Rina demanded.

Her anger was already written plainly across her features, but neither man seemed particularly concerned.

One glanced at the spear in her hand before looking back toward his companion, an unpleasant grin spreading across his face.

"Well, would you look at that. Another one."

"Have you come to play as well?" the other asked, laughing as though they had merely stumbled across something amusing.

Rina went still for a moment. She looked back at Isolde, at the tears on her face and the way she was struggling to keep herself standing, then turned toward the men again.

She didn’t need the elf to explain any further.

"Disgusting bastards," she hissed.

Pulling her sleeve gently from Isolde’s grasp, she guided the girl behind her before taking her spear in both hands.

The weapon swung forward, its sharpened tip catching the moonlight as she planted her feet between Isolde and the two men.

Rina flashed forward with a sharp thrust, driving the point of her spear toward the nearest man’s chest.

His wolfish smile vanished as he drew a sword out of nowhere, knocking the weapon aside, the harsh clang of metal echoing through the night.

She turned with the deflection instead of resisting it, bringing the shaft around in a sweeping blow that forced his companion to halt his advance.

"Stay behind me, Isolde!"

The elf backed away, watching with trembling eyes as Rina pulled her spear into position again.

The two men separated, approaching from either side, and Rina adjusted her footing to keep them both in view. She couldn’t afford to let either of them slip past her.

The guy with a sword in hand attacked first, bringing his blade down with so much force that it made her arms shake when she caught it on her spear.

Rina pushed the strike aside and thrust toward his throat, but he leaned away, letting the point pass close to his cheek. Before she could draw it back, his companion lunged at her from the side.

She barely managed to twist out of his reach. Her spear swept across his path, forcing him back, but the movement tugged painfully at the injuries she had been carrying for days.

Her grip tightened as she ignored the pain and stepped toward him, hoping to drive him away before the swordsman could attack again.

It wasn’t enough.

The sword struck her spear from the side, jolting the shaft violently in her hands. Rina stumbled, caught herself, and pulled it back across her body just in time to stop another blow.

Each clash forced her farther backward, and whenever she tried to create an opening, the second man moved in to close it.

’Damnit...!’

She thrust again, aiming low this time, but the swordsman turned his blade and caught the shaft near its tip.

With a powerful shove, he forced her spear aside, wrenching her arms out of position. Rina tried to recover, only to see his companion already stepping into the opening.

A heavy blow struck her beneath the ribs.

"Ahhhh!"

Her feet left the ground, and she landed heavily several paces away, rolling across the loose stones before coming to a stop. Her spear clattered out of her grasp, while the air left her lungs in a painful gasp.

"Rina!"

Isolde rushed to her side and dropped to her knees, reaching for her shoulder.

Rina tried to draw breath, one hand pressed against her aching side as she struggled to push herself upright.

"They’re too strong," she wheezed out, getting one knee beneath her before wincing sharply.

Her spear lay beyond her reach. Without it, she had nothing to defend herself with, and when she looked up, her eyes trembled.

The men were already towering over them.

Isolde’s wand flashed into her hand before either could move closer.

She raised it with trembling fingers, mana rushing through the wand as a curtain of water rose between them.

The swordsman jumped back, but the curtain swelled before he could retreat.

With a rushing roar, it surged forward like a towering wall, striking both men and washing them away from the girls.

Their shouts were swallowed by the crashing water as their feet left the ground, their bodies tumbling across the ground beneath the force of the spell.

Isolde didn’t wait to see how quickly they would recover.

She slipped an arm beneath Rina’s and helped her onto her feet, then hurried to retrieve the fallen spear while the men were still struggling in the water.

"Here," she said breathlessly, pressing it into Rina’s hands before looking toward the pair.

One was already trying to rise, coughing out mouthfuls of water as he dragged himself onto his elbows. Isolde caught Rina’s arm again.

"We have to run! While they’re still down!"