The caravan advanced in an orderly manner, while Geoffrey waited for news from Kiki.
However, this time, for some unknown reason, Kiki had been gone for a long time, causing a sense of unease to rise in Geoffrey's heart.
Could something have happened?
That shouldn't be the case. Although Kiki was highly curious, she was also very smart and discerning. During missions, she would suppress her curiosity as much as possible.
Aside from her curiosity, she possessed all the excellent qualities of an elite scout. If there was any danger, she would definitely report back immediately. Even if everything was safe, she would return periodically to update them.
But now, so much time had passed, and Kiki still hadn't returned. This was far beyond her usual scouting time.
Geoffrey furrowed his brows slightly, unconsciously picking up his greatsword and shield. The others also waited tensely, praying that they were just overthinking things or that Kiki had merely been delayed due to unfamiliarity with the new route.
Kiki was lively and adorable, the heart of their team. None of them wanted to lose her.
Only Caius remained sound asleep.
"Something's happening!" At that moment, Martina, the archer who had been crouched on top of the carriage keeping watch, suddenly stood up and spoke.
She saw a small figure dashing out of the distant forest.
Archers had excellent vision. The forest's edge was about seven or eight miles away, so she activated a blue glow in her eyes.
[Eagle Eye]!
This was a must-learn magical skill for archers.
Aside from mages, many professions could learn magic, though they could not master it as well as mages or achieve as powerful effects.
With Eagle Eye activated, Martina's vision greatly improved, allowing her to see clearly.
It was really Kiki!
However, she couldn't smile.
Because she could clearly see that Kiki was sprinting while clutching her arm, fresh blood seeping through her fingers. Her small face was pale, and her expression was full of panic.
She was injured?!
Before Martina could process this, another dark shadow burst out from the forest, chasing after Kiki with a speed faster than hers.
When she finally saw the figure clearly, Martina's face filled with terror.
"A magical beast is chasing Kiki!"
"Damn, it's catching up! Kiki isn't its match!"
The group was shocked upon hearing this and hurriedly grabbed their weapons, preparing to go rescue her.
However, Geoffrey's voice suddenly rang out: "Don't go!"
The group looked at him in confusion, only to see an extremely grim expression on his face. There was even a trace of... fear?
At that moment, Geoffrey had also clearly seen the dark shadow and an image of bloodshed flashed through his mind. A deep, bone-chilling fear gripped him, robbing him of the courage to face it.
He could lead the team against magical beasts below three stars in the Gold rank, but he absolutely could not face that monster!
"Captain, Kiki—"
"Don't go! You can't save her!" Geoffrey shouted before turning to the driver, "Quick! Turn around!"
"Are we really abandoning Kiki?!" Martina shouted angrily.
"If we don't, we'll all die!" Geoffrey's face grew even paler, because he realized Kiki was leading the monster toward them!
Seven or eight miles—it was just a matter of minutes. If they didn't flee now, it would be too late!
"What is that thing? Captain, why are we abandoning Kiki?!" Warren, the swordsman, asked anxiously. If Geoffrey couldn't give a good reason, he and his younger brother Walter would charge out to save her.
"That's not a magical beast, you idiot. That's a Wolf Demon!"
"A Wolf Demon from the Bloody Lands!!!"
In an instant, everyone's faces turned pale.
They had never seen one before, but they had all heard the stories.
Brutal, bloodthirsty, delighting in slaughter. There had once been an adventurer team with all members at the Silver rank, the vice-captain at Gold two-star, and the captain at Gold four-star. They encountered a single Wolf Demon.
The result? When the search team arrived, they found only severed limbs and pools of blood.
All eight members of the team had been torn apart, their remains so mangled that they couldn't even piece together a single corpse.
A skull and a severed foot were found over eight hundred meters apart!
That alone spoke to the sheer brutality of such a creature.
The escort team, including Kiki, had only five members. The rest were Silver six or seven-star, with only Geoffrey at Silver nine-star. There wasn't a single Gold-ranked warrior among them. No matter how they looked at it, they were no match for the Wolf Demon!
Staying meant death!
At that moment, everyone fell silent.
Warren and Walter sheathed their swords and stopped speaking. Geoffrey shouted at the driver to go faster.
Martina crouched atop the carriage, looking toward Kiki with sorrow.
The Wolf Demon was getting closer and closer to Kiki. It was clear what would happen next.
Before long, the Wolf Demon lunged at Kiki with its sharp claws. Martina almost couldn't bear to watch.
But at the last moment, Kiki rolled to the side and, without pausing, continued sprinting. A flash of green light surged over her, boosting her speed, while the Wolf Demon, having overcommitted to its leap, skidded forward uncontrollably.
As a result, Kiki managed to widen the gap between them again.
Martina was surprised. The Wolf Demon was faster than Kiki—she must have been using this method to dodge its attacks and escape all this way.
However, her heart soon sank again.
Kiki was still over a kilometer away. Perhaps seeing her teammates had given her hope and pushed her to her limits, making her run even faster than usual.
But the Wolf Demon was still right behind her. Having failed multiple times, it was now furious, its body glowing red as its speed increased.
At this rate, it wouldn't be long before Kiki brought the Wolf Demon to the caravan.
The pack beasts were steady but slow.
Martina's emotions were in turmoil—she wanted Kiki to escape and survive, but at the same time, she feared that Kiki might reach them and doom them all...
"Captain..." She looked at Geoffrey, torn and unwilling.
But Geoffrey remained silent.
"Help me, meow..." Kiki's desperate plea reached their ears as she drew closer.
Yet Martina could only grit her teeth, close her eyes, and turn her face away as if she hadn't heard.
She could see that Kiki had reached her limit. She wasn't going to make it...
And if, by some miracle, she did, Martina might have to notch an arrow and aim at her...
Kiki felt like her lungs were about to explode.
She had barely survived by dodging and had even been clawed on the arm. Exhausted, she was now running purely on willpower.
When she saw her team, hope ignited in her heart. She thought they would pick up their weapons and fight the monster together.
But to her shock, they turned and ran, not even looking back.
In that moment, she wanted to cry.
"Don't leave me..." She reached out, as if trying to grasp the carriage now over a hundred meters away.
With hope fading, her willpower collapsed along with her body.
She stumbled, rolled, and could no longer rise.
The Wolf Demon's roar was right behind her.
She was going to die...
But just then, a powerful gust of wind roared, and a massive figure appeared before her, like a battering ram smashing into the Wolf Demon.
The very ground trembled.
The Wolf Demon was sent flying like a hurled rock.
Kiki stared in shock at the towering figure before her and his wide, toothy grin.
"Need some help, little kitty?"