Chapter 11

Amidst the treacherous, fog-drenched mountain slope, a scene of impending dread unfurled. The obscurity of the blinding mist conspired with the narrow, treacherous path to challenge even the most agile souls. But that was the least of their worries.

Cerrise,ordered his companions to grip tightly to their positions as he ventured ahead, his very curiosity a harbinger of doom. Their footsteps, obscured by a sinister snowfall, silenced the natural rhythm of their approach.

In the hazy distance, the clash of titans revealed itself. Cerrise's uncanny vision pierced the veil, revealing two formidable yet inexperienced combatants. Nobles, no doubt, cast into this abyss of torment by the malevolent Hunt. One brandished a sword, a weapon of profound power, each swing laden with deadly intent. But his every assault was met with an invisible force, the wind elemental, a conjurer of havoc, hovering above and delivering explosive blows that shattered bones and dreams alike.

"What's happening?" Asnir dared to whisper.

"A fight," Cerrise replied, transfixed by the unfolding spectacle.

"Are you planning to help?" Rode inquired, a quiver of uncertainty in his voice.

"No," Cerrise stated, his focus unbroken.

"Judging by the fact you stopped here does it mean you can see the fight?"

"Yes, it's interesting, but for some reason it is also quite annoying," he says turning back to look at them.

"What do you mean?" Rode asked.

"The knight seems to think he will win but the elemental is just playing with him," from those words they got a basic picture of what was happening.

"Shouldn't one know their strength and know when to retreat, he is obviously weaker," that's what Eliphas told him.

The knight's arrogance painted a false veneer of impending victory, while the wind elemental merely toyed with his prey.

"Shouldn't one recognize their limits when outmatched?"

"Perhaps he is fighting for something more than his life," Elor speculated.

"Or he knows death awaits him even if he flees," Asnir added.

"That's sad," a situation similar to when he used to accept the beatings from the children of the village because if he ran their parents would beat him instead and when he fought back, he would be called a monster who hurts his kin, just like his mother. It brought a feeling of helplessness. It was annoying.

"Don't you wish to assist them?" Rode asked once more.

"We cannot meddle in the affairs of strangers, especially when their motives are unclear and we do not even know who is in the right," Cerrise asserted.

But then, an earth-shattering blast disrupted his contemplation. The knight had fallen, blood staining the ground, his life extinguished. The wind elemental descended, leaving death in its wake, casually slicing the knights body in two.

The sight was gruesome.

Despite standing straight and seeming well, it was clear to Cerrise that the noble was badly hurt.

He sat against the unforgiving mountain, his eyes blinking and breath erratic.

"Cerrise?" Elor's voice trembled.

"Let's go," he said and began moving again.

Even though he had covered their presence with the snow, he knew the elemental had spotted them the moment Elor spoke.

"Ease dropping is a perilous pursuit," the wind elemental remarked, his chilling laughter lingering in the air like an ominous omen.

"Are you part of the Hunt? Hoping to secure a place at the academy? intresting. You know, there, we cut the limbs of those who walk where they are not supposed to and pluck off eyes of those who see what they shouldn't,"

He slowly got up and looked at the group.

He scrutinized their eclectic group, a mix of commoners and a noble, then made a disturbing declaration: "You commoners, accompanied by a noble, present a fascinating combination. Since you accept to travel with the lowly, I suppose it won't be a bother to kill you, i hate loose ends even if they come in young unexperienced children."

"Why would you want to kill us? İt's not like we know who you killed, and even if we did which 'commoner' in their right mind would report a noble and risk offending a powerful family? ," Asnir said clearly vexed.

"Come to think of it, i never senced you till one of you spoke. You are an interesting bunch, İ won't kill you but İ will join your group, you clearly need a strong person on your side." he said looking at them as if he was looking at something filthy..

Seeing that the elemental was not even asking, Cerrise spoke, "While your company is tempting, we cannot afford additional baggage, especially in our current -"

His expression shifted abruptly. Something ominous was afoot. He stared upward.

Elor who was directly behind him noticed his sudden state of vigilance, he also looked up but of course he could see nothing, but for some reason he it felt like the fog had increased.

"What's wrong?" Elor inquired, sensing an impending malevolence.

Suddenly, a low growl echoed from behind them. They turned to face the source of the sound and found themselves face to face with a massive creature, its fur matted with ice and its eyes glowing with an eerie blue light. The creature was unlike anything they had seen before. It was a fusion of beast and a spirit, its form shifting and changing as if it were made of smoke and shadows. This was the soul beast, the entity they had been sent to hunt.

"What is that," Asnir asked shaken and only seeing a faint blue light which grinded his nerves after hearing the earth shattering roar.

"Something is coming," Cerrise whispered.

"What? What do you mean there is already a beast here." Elor asked, fear tainting his voice.

"A big bird."

"What!"

They looked up momentarily forgetting the huge beast beside them.

The ground suddenly shook. A sound of wings flapping could be heard from far, their expressions at the suddenly changed. Then, the wind elemental moved, fear etched on his face, and an object fell to the ground, chilling the air. Cerrise picked it up before the elemental could take it and as if something switched the area became colder.

"Pure Eternal frost," he muttered mostly to himself.

So this was what was drawing the birds.

At that moment, a surging screech swept out in all directions. It was so loud their ears started bleeding. Cerrise's gaze shifted. His eyes glowed a bit as he tried to resist primal urge to hunt the beast above, just how strong was it?

A flying beast was a good target for him. There weren't many of the same size back in the village.

The bird descended upon them, its wing force causing them to slam into the mountain wall. A bone-cracking sound and Asnir's pained cry echoed through the fog.

Probably because he held stone. After landing the bird moved again and its feathers stuck directly at Cerrise's head. Cerrise dodged and threw ice spears at the bird which moved back a bit disoriented then charged in again.

It's figure was like a fast as it moved through the mist as it tried to capture its target who was moving surprisingly well considering the width of the land and the mist around.

Just as Cerrise was starting to have fun he noticed other huge black objects coming their way, although smaller than the one he was dealing with, they were still big.

Cerrise halted his playful assault. They couldn't afford more battles.

He understood what attracted these creatures now.

But it seemed they weren't the only ones who knew.

it was a hunt, but also a competition.

He looked back as the wind elemental pushed Rodes at the cat like beast that was charging and jumped back proceeding to use his wind blades to cut off the cliff their way back.