Chapter 55

Chapter 55: Chapter 55

A map appeared in her mind, displaying their current position and a route leading toward the distant gathering. Ingrid studied it as quickly as she could, memorizing the direction and the turns they would need to take.

"Lysander, I know where we need to go!" She said urgently, leaning closer to his ear so he could hear her over the sound of breaking branches.

"Where?" Lysander asked immediately, without wasting a moment questioning her, he actually trusted her unconditionally. For a moment, Ingrid’s heart went warm before she focused on the task at hand. His purple eyes remained fixed on the path ahead, and his arms tightened around her as he prepared to change direction.

"Once you get to that part of the forest, at that big tree" Ingrid said, pointing towards the tree that looked the biggest in the clearing from far away, "Swerve left! You’ll see a part where there are the same trees just like that, but in a circle. They serve as a barrier for the hunters in that direction. Go there, and we’ll be saved!"

Just as Ingrid finished pointing out their route, the timer vanished from her mind.

A thunderous roar erupted behind them, so powerful that several birds burst out of the trees in fright. Ingrid twisted around and saw the Evolved One tearing itself free from the hardened earth, its enormous legs finally breaking through the solid ground. The monster threw its head back and roared again, its glowing red eyes burning with fury as it searched for the people who had dared to escape it.

"It’s free!" Ingrid shouted, tightening her arms around Lysander’s neck.

Lysander didn’t need to be told twice. He pushed himself to move even faster, leaping across a wide gap between two trees before landing heavily on a thick branch. Pain flashed across his face when his injured leg struck the wood, but he barely paused before continuing forward. Behind them, the foxes struggled to maintain their pace, and Soren repeatedly called out to make sure none of the smaller ones had fallen behind.

"Keep up!" Lysander shouted to them, his voice carrying through the trees. "Don’t stop for anything, and stay together!"

The scent of smoke suddenly reached his nose, faint at first but growing stronger with every passing moment. Lysander’s expression sharpened as he recognized it, and he looked toward the direction Ingrid had indicated.

Whatever awaited them ahead, there was definitely a fire burning somewhere nearby, and the smell suggested that they were getting closer to the place she wanted to reach.

Unfortunately, the Evolved One was catching up faster than Ingrid had expected. Although it couldn’t move through the trees as easily as they could, its enormous strength allowed it to tear through obstacles that would have slowed an ordinary creature.

It swung one massive arm into a cluster of trees, snapping several thick trunks with a single blow. The trees crashed together, and before Ingrid could even catch her breath, the monster seized another enormous trunk and hurled it in their direction.

"Look out!" Ingrid screamed.

Lysander twisted in midair, trying to change their direction, but another tree came flying toward them from the opposite side. Ingrid stared over his shoulder, her blood turning cold as she realized they wouldn’t be able to avoid every projectile.

The trees were enormous, and their broken branches had splintered into countless sharp points that could easily pierce their bodies. If even one of those splinters struck Lysander in the wrong place, his already serious injuries might become fatal.

’No, no, no! There has to be a way out of this!’ Ingrid thought desperately, watching the trees close in around them. She could hear the foxes shouting behind them, but there was nowhere safe for any of them to jump.

Lysander tried to twist away from the largest trunk, yet another branch blocked their escape route, leaving them dangerously exposed. For the first time since the chase began, Ingrid couldn’t see any possible way for them to survive.

Was this really how they were going to die?

She squeezed her eyes shut as the massive tree rushed toward them, its sharp branches pointed directly at their bodies. Her arms tightened around Lysander, and she braced herself for the impact, unable to do anything except hope that the pain would be quick.

The sound of rushing wood filled her ears, growing louder until she could barely hear anything else. Then, just as the tree was about to crush them, a tremendous metallic clang rang out, followed by the unmistakable sound of wood splitting apart.

Ingrid opened her eyes as her pupils widened in disbelief.

The enormous tree that was headed towards them had been divided cleanly into two pieces, with both halves flying past them instead of striking their bodies. Lysander twisted in the air and landed on the ground, his boots scraping against the soil as he struggled to keep his balance with Ingrid still in his arms. He immediately placed himself between her and the direction of the attack, his purple eyes narrowing as he assessed the two figures standing ahead of them.

One was a woman, and the other was a man, both of whom looked as though they had stepped directly into the middle of a battlefield without the slightest concern for their safety.

The woman held a gigantic mace that was even larger than her entire body, gripping its handle as though the enormous weapon weighed nothing at all. The weapon had a red tassel with 4 bells at the tip of the handle, and the woman also wore a red bandana around her neck.

Beside her, the man held a Barrett M82 rifle fitted with a drum magazine, he also had the red tassel and the 4 bells but his was on his belt and he was already turning his attention toward the roaring Evolved One. Ingrid stared at them, unable to understand how the woman had sliced through a tree of that size so effortlessly.

Before Ingrid could ask who they were, the woman glanced back at them over her shoulder. A confident smile spread across her face as she rested the gigantic mace against one shoulder, looking far too relaxed for someone standing in front of a monster that had just destroyed several trees.

"Don’t worry, you two. You’ve done enough running for today, so leave the rest to us," she said, her smile widening as the Evolved One roared behind them. "We’ve got it from here!"