[Beta] Ashborn - 2. Bounty (Patreon)

II

Bounty

I nearly moaned as a rush of cold energy shot into my veins and cooled my thoughts. A smile couldn’t help but adorn my face.

The smell of searing meat entered the air, mixing with a sense of sheer shock. The fiery-orange and black striped feline released the girl’s neck and strode towards me, blood dripping down its fangs which painted the snow.

My hand reached out to stroke it underneath the chin.

[Ashenblood Cub]

“Good boy,” I whispered with a sense of familiarity I couldn’t explain.

It purred. I could listen to the soft, rasping sound forever. It brought me back…back to…the remembrance played at the very edge of my mind. And I would’ve had it if not for Alex’s voice.

“You…you’re not a summoner.”

I turned around, slightly annoyed.

The boy was completely wide eyed.

“Saber is not a summon,” I said, my voice cold. “He’s family.”

Alex stepped back as if I struck him.

Queen’s Court activated.

Family Trait Scion’s Blood activated. Gain an intimidating aura when in the presence of your peers and lessers. Dexterity +5.

Family Skill: locked.

Locked…I needed to reach a higher level in the skill, something told me.

I rose with a huff and freed my blade from its sheathe. “I will offer you the same as you did me. Answer my questions, and you may leave this place with your life.”

Given his shock, I thought my family trait would’ve been enough to convince him, but Alex’s hands clasped around his spear and his face grew darker than thunder.

“You will pay for that,” he promised.

He rushed me.

I ducked without looking behind me, and the arrow sailed overhead.

“Go for the archer,” I told Saber.

The tiger roared and dashed over the snowy field. Then Alex was on me.

Knowledge ingrained into my body deflected a thrust aimed at my throat. It was a simple tap that allowed me to counterattack and end this in a single stroke, but I placed too little weight behind the strike. I missed completely.

“Amateur,” Alex snarled. His spear came back around.

I jumped away and created distance. But, again, there was little force behind it, and a single step brought Alex back into striking range.

My lips pulled tight. ‘It’s like my body is only half listening to what I’m telling it to do.’

As if I was a cripple who had their limb healed and had to relearn how to use it.

Alex pressed his advantage, his spearpoint stabbing through the air. I was barely in time to deflect his barrage. Some hits slipped my defence and scraped my shoulders and thighs. But my robes glowed as the weapon struck me.

‘Enchanted armour. Good.’

I blocked an overhead strike, locking into a brief struggle of power. My eyes stole a glance. Jake had climbed a tree and fired at Saber from the treetops, slowing the tiger’s advance. It would take at least ten seconds before Saber got his hands on the boy.

“Eyes on me!”

The pressure on my blade vanished all at once. I whirled around in time to drop my sword and swerve around a heel to the face which would’ve knocked out all of my teeth.

I wasn’t quick enough to dodge the roundhouse kick but blocked the hit on my arm. The force nearly sent me flying anyway.

Alex tried to continue his chain of attack when I called more essence into my finger and swiped a circle in the air. The gate appeared next to his head.

Alex’s sweat-matted hair tumbled as he leapt backwards. His arms flexed, an earthy-green hue flashing over his skin. He frowned when nothing came out of the portal.

I smiled. Saber was my only summon at the moment—nothing else would come out.

Jake fell for the trap as well, because the gate I shaped in front of Saber disappeared right before he leapt through, and the tiger clawed at the boy’s face.

The archer fell from the tree. From there, it was all she wrote. Jake didn’t even get the time to cry out as Saber ripped through his throat.

Another shot of cold energy darted through me.

[Archer - lvl. 2] killed. Extra experience gained for killing a higher level enemy.

“Jake!”

Alex rushed to his feet and dashed for his spear. I wouldn’t beat him to my weapon. But I didn’t need to.

One more portal—the sluggishness of the energy told me I was reaching the limit of how many I could form—and Saber was on him.

Alex protected his throat, the same earthly glow keeping his arm from being snapped like Judith’s neck. Saber wrestled him to the ground. The two tossed and struggled for dominance.

I strolled towards my blade and picked up Alex’s spear while I was at it. Moving to the pair, I picked the right moment, then jabbed the spear through Alex’s leg.

His screams roiled over the corpses of his dead teammates.

‘Guess he can’t protect his entire body at once.’

“Stay on his throat,” I said.

Then my sword pierced the other leg.

The crescendo of his wails reached the very top of the rising trees around us.

I sauntered and stopped beside his head. My hand stroked Saber’s fur. Multiple arrows were stuck in his hide. But as Saber was nearly the size of a person standing on his hind legs, it would take more than a few arrow to take him out.

“Let up on the pressure,” I said.

Saber’s muscles relaxed.

Alex tried to use the moment to throw Saber off him. I waited until he realised how futile his attempt was and caught his gaze.

“My offer remains. Answer my questions, and I’ll let you go.”

“…Fuck you.” He grumbled.

I blinked. “Saber.”

His jaws clamped down in an instant, battling the magic armour keeping Alex alive.

“Though I don’t like the term,” I said, “Saber is a summon. He won’t run out before your essence does.” I patted Saber on the back, and the pressure let up again. “Last chance.”

There was no expletive this time.

I nodded. “Why were you trying to kill me? You mentioned me being the last Sunstrider?”

Alex coughed. Saber’s teeth had pierced his armour slightly and drawn blood. I motioned back. Saber sat down at my side and began cleaning his fur.

The cultivator stroked his throat. “Why are you asking me this? You should know.”

“Humour me.”

An unsolicited tear streamed down his face. He snapped his head the other way. “I only know what everyone knows—your family was hunted down but you managed to escape into Everwinter. Now there’s a bounty on your head.”

“Who hunted my family down?”

“I don’t know.”

“How did I escape?”

“I don’t know! Stop asking me bullshit or kill me if you’re going to!”

I hummed. If I had escaped into a mystic realm with a test, then Alex was likely a random participant. He would be speaking the truth when he said he only knew general information.

“How much is the bounty on my head?” I turned to something closer to home.

“…I’m note sure.”

My brow raised. “You came to kill me but don’t even know the bounty?”

“It’s a blank cheque.”

‘A blank cheque? Only notable families could write blank cheques, especially if more powerful cultivators than novices could go for my head.’

What had this Sunstrider family gotten themselves into? I played with Saber as I thought.

“You mentioned your clan. Are you here under their authority? Is everyone in this mystic realm a part of a house?”

“…only some,” he wept, gnashing his teeth and clutching his legs. “…most are wild cultivators pouncing on the opportunity the Seven Pillars presented them.”

“The Seven Pillars?”

Alex let his head fall back and smiled grimly. “Are you certain you didn’t hit your head?”

“I’m not certain.”

He chuckled. Saber purred in tune. The two and the breeze were the sole sounds.

“So?” I said.

Alex sighed.

“The seven sects that organised this event. You already heard of two. Should I explain the test while I’m at it, or will you continue playing dumb?”

“Please do.”

A pause.

“No,” he said. All pain vanished from his voice, a calm air settled around him.

My head tilted, and Saber got to his feet.

Alex stared into my eyes. “You think I’m dumb? You’re not letting me leave here alive.”

Well, he was right about that. If there was a bounty on my head, letting Alex go was about the dumbest thing I could do. Especially when I was still catching my bearing.

Shrugging, I motioned Saber forwards.

“You’re...gonna die,” Alex laughed, his armour barely holding out against the cat’s fangs. “My clan will come for you. You’ll never make it into the settlements! Freeze to death you wretched whore—”

Stone cracked and Alex’s voice was cut off.

[Spearman - lvl. 3] killed. Extra experience gained for killing a higher level enemy.

I stood to collect the other corpses. Let’s see if they had some loot.