Chapter 345 Criminal Mercenaries
An hour later.
The morning sun was basking the forest with a soft radiance. The leaves in the trees were whistling under the fluttering winds.
It was a very lovely environment, but currently, Zed sighed. Ashlyn stood beside him, her expression the same as ever.
Some fifty meters ahead, a group of ten mercenaries stood, making sure there were no spots for escape.
They were middle-aged men, sporting improper expressions, lust flashing in their eyes.
This group of mercenaries was in the vicinity when they noticed Ashlyn and Zed. Normally, they wouldn't care about two youths, but when they saw Ashlyn and her flawless figure, their hormones went out of control.
The forest made it close to impossible for them to satisfy their natural urges. Now, such a gorgeous woman was in the area, and they found her perfect to vent on.
It wasn't every day they get to meet a young woman, much less such a stunning woman! Naturally, their old bones ached for action!
What they had planned in mind was rather something very common in Desolate Blood Forest and even in the core region.
In civil society, the apprehension of law and fear of being outcast reduces such crimes. But in a desolate place like the forest, the criminal-minded people had no such fear. This was especially true when such people find a fragile woman.
"Sadly for them, she is not fragile."
Zed recalled how previously bad men have tried to capture her. The result was something that would scare the hell out of every man in existence.
Of course, for men like them, they wouldn't care if a woman was fierce. They believed the true fun was breaking a strong woman.
"Haah~ Men in The Fair were smarter," Zed thought as he saw the lewd looks on the group.
"We can do it the easy way or the hard way," A bulky man spoke first.
He was wielding a sharp knife which he pointed at Ashlyn.
"Result would be same, but if you cooperate, you can save yourself some pain, and even have fun," Another man said.
His arms were artificial enhancements in the form of metallic pincers. With just a snap, he could crush a tree into splinters.
The men laughed in delight at the scene that was about to unfold. They were ten and there was no way two youngsters would dare challenge them.
Even if they did, just how hard it would be to overpower them?!
Ten against two! Old vs young!
The result was very obvious and didn't even need much thought.
The group of mercenaries continued to smile, their eyes locked on Ashlyn, and they licked their lips greedily. They felt there couldn't be a better start to the day.
The morning sun has brought them a gift on plates, and it would be rude if they didn't accept the gift.
Ashlyn observed the expressions of the men and studied their tones. Based on this, she classified them into "Rock your world" category of men.
She was thinking of using the second lesson Kiba taught her (based on wedding dinner story), but then she remembered Zed was with her and not Kiba.
So far, it was evident to her that Zed hasn't learned anything from Kiba. This made her hesitant, but by now, the men made their moves.
They rushed at her with sinister smiles. A few of them even removed their shirts and unbuckled their pants as they proceeded forward.
They didn't want to wait anymore! Now was the time to enjoy the delicious feast!
"Bitch, get ready---!!"
"Language!" Zed raised a hand and a stream of fire shot out from his palm, blazing with blistering heat.
The man who has just spoken was caught off-guard. Even before he could blink or twist his body to avoid the attack, the stream of fire quickly crashed on his chest. Like a net, the fire wrapped his entire chest.
"AHHHH! Save me!"
The man's scream was heartwrenching, filled with agony. His skin was burning with a sharp pain that made his bones rattle.
He brought his hands to extinguish the fire, but alas, they too caught fire.
In just a few moments, he has turned into a human torch! He could no longer scream or do anything, except wait for death.
"What?!"
The other men were startled.
It wasn't like they had ignored Zed but the speed of his attack was far too swift, like lightning, giving them no time to react.
By the appearance of their comrade, they knew he couldn't be saved even if they acted now.
"Kid! We would have allowed you to live but you don't know what's good for you!"
The man with a knife stabbed out at Zed. He was some fifteen meters away, and as the knife approached Zed, it suddenly stretched out with a sharp edge that radiated pulses of red energy.
This hidden mechanism of sudden elongation would often catch enemies unprepared. They would get no time to dodge!
"Die!"
The knife stabbed in Zed's heart, and the man's lips curled up in happiness.
"So easy!"
But his happiness didn't even last for a second and his eyes turned wide in disbelief.
Even though the knife has pierced throughout Zed's heart, there was no splash of blood or scream as the man expected.
On the contrary, much to his horror, the next moment, 'Zed' faded in thin air like water ripples.
"Afterimage?! But how is that possible?!"
The man didn't get much time to think. He has an uneasy feeling, and he instinctively tried to defend himself.
"Farewell."
A voice came from behind.
The man shuddered as Zed's word entered his ears. He leaped forward to create distance while thinking of his next course of action.
Just then, a fireball swept forward, leaving behind a trail of fire.
As the man was about to land, the fireball ruthlessly slammed on his back. He emitted a miserable scream and he was sent tumbling to the ground, stirring up dust.
His back was ripped, showcasing the scorched insides. The heat from the fireball continued to penetrate further into his tissues, igniting them.
The man rolled on the ground, trying to extinguish the fire without any success...
A few steps away, Zed lowered his hand.
While it was true that he didn't even have 1% the strength of Kiba, but that didn't mean he was weak.
Long before he became Kiba, he was only Zed.
It was Zed who survived dangers which not even mutants far more powerful than him could survive.
So how could he be killed by likes of these mercenaries?
With time and resources, he has mastered his ability to limits his young age would allow.
The true worth of an Elementalist was not mastery over his own element, but rather using own element to control the opposite element.
A minute ago, Zed used water vapors in the air to converge them into a specter of himself. This specter was what got stabbed by the knife.
Just as Zed lowered his hand, from high above a tree, the man with metallic pincers jumped in action. This man was stunned by the deaths of his two comrades and it angered him greatly.
"How dare he!" The man thought as he rapidly cleaved downwards, his pincers wide open.
"Hmm?"
Zed felt a strong gust of wind from above. As the pincers arrived to snap his head, he quickly crouched down.
All the pincers could snip was air and nothing else. The man with metallic enhancements was startled by such fast reflexes of his opponent.
He was still in mid-air when Zed reacted extremely fast.
Flames exploded under Zed's feet, and he borrowed momentum from this to propel himself into the air.
The man with pincers was coming down while Zed was moving up.
As their bodies arrived at the same level for a moment, Zed sent a palm crashing on the man's face.
"No!"
The man's face turned pale and his pupils dilated. His face was shrouded by the palm, and for a second there was darkness, but then a cluster of fire broke out, like rays of sun in the night sky.
The heat was so intense that he unconsciously shut his eyes. Not like it did him any good, for the fire burned his eyelids as if they were made of paper!
Quickly, the fire engulfed his eyeballs before enveloping his entire face.
"ARGHHHHHHH!"
The screams were filled with unspeakable agony. The pain from eyes being melted under volcanic heat was not something that could be described by words.
Like wax, his blood and flesh fell off, exposing a white skull...