Chapter 590: 592. A Hasty Escape

Pain emerged in Dallion’s left elbow, quickly spreading to the rest of his arm. It seemed that he hadn’t managed to fully evade the full extent of the point attack after all.

Lux, where are you? Dallion asked.

Sorry, boss, the firebird chirped. The hit threw me back to the entrance.

You alright? Dallion pushed through his own pain. Awakening helped with ignoring it, but even it couldn’t remove it altogether.

A bit dazed. I’ll be with you in a bit, boss!

A bit was more than Dallion could handle right now. Bursting into instances, he ventured back into the large corridor to get an idea of what was coming from ahead. Due to his weakened state, the instances lasted slightly more than a second. Even so, in that time he was able to hear the faint sound of footsteps from down the corridor. Unfortunately, that wasn’t all. Even fainter than the footsteps was the sound of clawing.

Careful. The whip blade flew by, its tip drilling into the wyvern on the ground. Screams and screeches filled the air. The creature Dallion believed to be dead twisted, slamming against the walls and floor in its attempt to get the weapon out. Gleam, however, had no intention of letting such an opportunity pass. She kept on inching into the creature until it finally froze, collapsing back on the ground, this time permanently.

“Keep to the wall,” Dallion told Dark. “We might need you to get out of here.”

“Okay.” The dragon grabbed the hammer with both hands.

You better listen to your own advice, dear boy, Nil said. You’re in no condition to fight, even with Lux around.

I know. I just need to make sure that—

Distant screeches mixed with the sound of destruction. Someone had done another point attack, only this time it had gone in the opposite direction.

I’m here, boss! Lux said, as the dartblade flew up to Dallion.

Dallion grabbed hold. Relief spread up Dallion’s arm as the blue flames enveloped it. Even at Lux’s current level, it would be a while before Dallion’s wound was fully healed, but at least the pain was a lot less.

“Dal!” Dallion heard Eury’s voice from the distance. The light around his arm wasn’t enough for him to see her, but she clearly had. “Head for the exit!”

The instructions were clear. Even two hunters weren’t enough to defeat the monsters in the ruins. All their efforts so far had only allowed them to create an opening for escape.

“Dark!” Dallion said, checking if all his gear was present. Lux and Gleam were of no concern: both of them could fly out on their own. Nox and harp, though, were an entirely different matter. The point attack had caused him to drop both. Soon the hammer also joined them on the ground, as the dragon shifted to his original form. It was somewhat smaller, though capable of flight.

“How many can you carry?” Dallion split into instances, searching for his weapons. The harpsisword was quick to find. The Nox dagger, though, wasn’t as obvious. Being able to cut through stone, there was a chance it had stuck in the floor tiles somewhere.

“Two’s fine.” Dark flapped his wings in anticipation.

“How about three?” Dallion kept on searching, looking for cracks in the stones that would provide any clues.

“Don’t think so.”

Where are you, Lux? Dallion hissed.

Right in front of you, the crackling replied.

One of Dallion’s instances came upon a crack in the ground. Following it led to several more, leading to the hilt of the dagger sticking out.

Thanks, he grabbed it and put it away. Now all that was left was to get the hammer.

“Wyvern!” a new voice came from the corridor.

Crap! Dallion froze. In the rush, he had forgotten that Eury’s client wouldn’t be aware that he had a dragon on his side.

“Don’t attack!” Dallion shouted, waving his flame-covered arm. “It’s on our side!”

He could sense the doubt on the other side. Thankfully, no attack followed.

“Is that Dark?” Euryale asked. She was fully visible now, running towards Dallion, some hundred feet away.

“He’ll help us get out!”

Within moments of finishing the sentence, Eury and her client were already there. The gorgon was wearing the set of armor she had gotten from the hunter’s den. It was covered with grime and blood. The person accompanying her was undoubtedly a noble. At a single glance, Dallion could tell that the clothes he was wearing, even ragged, were more expensive than everything he owned. The bad news was that this was a hereditary noble. His level appeared to be in the lower sixties, which made him a liability in the current situation. He would have no problem killing off wyvern hatchlings, or possibly even a full adult—while relying on Eury’s support. But against a full nest, he was certain to cause nothing but harm.

“Climb onto him!” Dallion shouted to the noble. “We’ll grab the tail.”

A grunt of disapproval came from Dark, drowned in the quickly approaching sounds of approaching creatures.

“Are you planning on coming back here?” he asked Eury.

“Not right now,” the gorgon replied, aware of what he was going for. “On three. One. Two.”

Both Eury and Dallion struck in the direction of the approaching wyverns. Two point attacks blasted forward, pushing back everything in their path. Normally, that would have been enough to kill a whole host of creatures. Given what Dallion had seen, he hoped the attacks would delay them for long enough.

Gritting his teeth, Dallion burst into instances, sprinting to the dragon. The noble had already found his way onto Dark’s back and was eagerly looking over his shoulder.

“Give me that,” Eury took the hammer from Dallion. “Are you hurt?”

“A bit.” He grabbed the tail with his entire right arm. “You?”

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Eury did the same, choosing not to answer.

“Go!” Dallion shouted.

Flying on a dragon was a thrilling experience at the best of times. In this case, though, Dallion wasn’t riding it. Rather, he was being pulled, holding on to the creature’s tail for his life. Out of the hundred instances he split into, two-thirds fell off. Thankfully, it was the remaining ones that mattered.

Within moments Dark had covered the distance, which had taken minutes. With a twist, he pulled up, flying towards the sky.

There was no sign of the pursuing wyverns, but Eury did another two points attacks, just in case; after all the wyverns could fly as well.

Free from the confines of the corridor, Dark doubled his size to normal. However, that was the point at which Dallion’s grip began to slip. Even a hundred instances weren’t enough to keep him holding on, so he simply let go. Falling from a distance of fifty feet wasn’t much of a deal, especially since he was still holding onto his dartblade.

“Dark, land here,” Eury said in a tone that wouldn’t tolerate disobedience.

Left with little choice, the dragon did just that, swooping down and landing elegantly not too long after Dallion had reached the ground. Now, finally, everyone could relax.

“What’s wrong?” The gorgon walked up to Dallion.

“Broken arm.” Dallion replied, letting go of the dartblade for just long enough to slide his shield off. Once done he quickly grabbed it anew. “Might take a while to heal. Who did the point attack?”

“Who do you think?” Eury whispered, several of her snakes turning in the direction of the noble. “Have any food?”

“A bit.” Gleam, can you get my backpack?

Dallion had the foresight to leave it just next to the ruin's entrance. He had no intention of going there himself, though, even if no wyverns had emerged.

Anything else? Gleam didn’t sound pleased.

Thanks, Gleam. Dallion lay on the ground. No sooner had he done so than Ruby fluttered to him, landing on his chest.

“I see some things haven’t changed.” Eury shook her head. “We’ll have food in a bit,” she shouted over her shoulder. “Once we’re done eating, we head back to the city.”

“What about the hatcher?” the noble asked. “You were hired to capture it!”

“That was before you stirred up the whole nest. If you want to complain to the hunter’s den, be my guest. You’ll never have any other job accepted.”

In the light, Dallion was able to get a better look at the noble in question. He was young, more a teenager than an adult, with long hair and enough jewelry to buy a dozen towns. Despite the recent dirt and tears, it was obvious he hadn’t done a day’s work in his life. For that matter, it didn’t seem like he had done any fighting either. There was no better example of a sheltered awakened Dallion could think of. If he had to guess, the noble had received the benefit of dozens of highly competent teachers, most of which were probably in his realm even now in the form of echoes. The only redeeming factor was that he was among the few who had gone past double digits. Possibly that was the reason he was receiving so much leniency from his father.

“We’ll leave it for now,” the noble said, his expression darkening. “My father will give you what you’re owed when you get back.” He turned to Dallion. “He’s not welcome.”

“News sure travels fast,” Dallion smirked. Experience had taught him that in such instances, light sarcasm was the best policy. A hunter always had to stand his ground, though not be too insulting.

“It’s a Wetie mess and he doesn’t want to get involved in it.”

“Thank you. The warning is appreciated.”

Several clusters of snakes looked at Dallion while another focused on the noble. Eury could tell that something was going on, although unlike the noble, she was out of the loop.

“Dark, drop him off near Kereel,” she said. “That won’t be a problem, right?”

“Okay.” The dragon didn’t sound too enthusiastic about it. “See you some other time, I guess.”

“Thanks, Dark.”

Before the dragon set off, the group took advantage of what food Dallion had to restore their strength. Once Gleam brought the backpack, lunch was on. There wasn’t much, but after a week of fighting in the ruins, it seemed like a feast. The noble ate the major part, of course. Even now, Eury kept on considering him a client. With her aspirations to rise within the hunter hierarchy, Dallion could understand.

Why are you here? Eury asked, using her zoology skill. Dallion was surprised he had never considered that it could be used on people as well. In his defense, until recently, there weren’t any other people with the skill.

I came looking for you. Aren’t you pleased that I did?

I am, but that doesn’t answer the question.

This was it, the moment Dallion both dreaded and was counting on.

The countess hired me to go on a phoenix hunt, he said. I wasn’t given the option to refuse.

The gorgon didn’t respond.

You’re not surprised?

You have a knack of getting into trouble. I just didn’t think it’d be this serious. Who else is involved?

Everyone? Dallion wasn’t sure how to answer this. A pair of gorgon mercenaries have been following me for a while, it seems. A band of cultists tried to take me out when I went to the eastern forests. There might be others.

He chose not to mention the attack near the hunter’s den. That was too close to home. Knowing Eury, she would have tried to get to the bottom of that no matter who she hurt or who hurt her.

You really pick the worst timing. The gorgon sighed. Once I take the kid to his father, I’ll talk to Vela and—

Vela’s already said that she won’t allow anyone in the den to help me. That’s not why I came. I just want to know a few things about your mentor. He was the one who went on a phoenix hunt before and almost succeeded.

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