Faty fell flat on his ass onto the ground. He was utterly exhausted, panting nonstop as if he had just finished a marathon that lasted several days.
These were the consequences of completely draining all the mana in one's body.
Without wasting time, I rummaged through my pockets and pulled out a small glass vial. Inside it was a dark blue liquid.
It was a high-grade option for mana recovery, a gift from my master.
Faty downed the entire potion in a single gulp. The effect was instantaneous. I could see the fatigue fade from his face, replaced by vigor.
He stood up.
Things were not over.
On top of the carriage, Pérez continued aiming his crossbow at the dense thicket. He did not move. He watched, waited, and then fired.
The bolt whistled.
A dry gurgle answered from the darkness.
I saw how Pérez reloaded his crossbow at a speed that denied his identity as a traveling brewer.He fired again, another scream, then silence.
The old rodent's aim was not normal. No, that was not amateur work; it was something else. For a moment, I feared that the Castillo family might be hiding a dark secret, and that later we would be silenced to keep it buried.
I pushed those useless thoughts out of my mind. The current situation was not suited for dwelling on pointless things. I would worry about it later. First, we had to get out of this alive.
"Something's not right with the old man."Faty whispered to me.
"I know," I replied in a low voice.
"What do we do?" he asked, his brow furrowed.
As I looked around and saw the members of the Castillo family gripping their daggers tightly, I sighed and said,
"If we're going to help, then we help until the end."
We jumped onto the roofs of the carriages. The wood creaked beneath our feet, but it endured the strain.
The grass was so tall that it served as the perfect hiding place.It was a shame this grass couldn't be burned, otherwise it would have been checkmate for the attackers.
I shuddered at my own thought.
Once again, I pushed the idea away. There was no time for that.
Pérez fired again, another agonized scream could be heard.
'How the hell does he do it?' I wondered.
First, we needed to clear the battlefield before the ambushers did something drastic. The reason they had not attacked yet was due to Faty's sudden strike.
I made a decision immediately.
"Faty, C_CA."
Faty understood me. He brought his hands together, his fingers forming seals. He clapped.
The ground trembled.
A gigantic blade of water emerged a quarter above the ground, cutting through stone, grass, flesh, bone, and above all, the feet of those who were too slow to jump.
The screams were immediate. This time, I could tell there were many people.
The enemy was exposed. There were too many of them, armed with swords or spears, disorganized, and the vast majority were writhing in immense pain after having their feet severed.
Once again, I witnessed the lethality of those individuals who had been whispered to by that existence, blessing them with abilities.
The damage was brutal. I felt nauseous at the sight of shattered bodies and limbs scattered everywhere. Not to mention the blood.
Faty sat down again. I immediately pulled out another potion.
Then I sensed danger.
I lunged, stabbing with my dagger.
I felt the blade pierce the belly of someone who had suddenly appeared behind Faty. I twisted the blade and lifted it. Blood and viscera spilled out, splattering my hands and the roof of the carriage once more.
I was starting to hate this world.
Faty stood up after drinking the potion and looked toward where everyone else was staring.
"They're the leaders…"Faty murmured.
I frowned when I saw them.Twenty meters away from us, a dozen ambushers stood behind a group of individuals.
Two humans. A dog hybrid. A lizardman. And… a centaur, radiating a powerful killing intent.
He gripped the handle of his massive axe tightly.
He was furious. He had not expected to lose so much.
Pérez approached us. Kicking a corpse aside, he stood next to me.
"You kids really know how to surprise an old man like me."
He said it while resting his crossbow on his shoulder.
"Looks like we caught ourselves a very big fish," he added, confusing me with his comment.
"Old man, what is really going on here? More importantly, who are they really?"
I couldn't help it. I couldn't stand all this confusion anymore.
"Later… For now, just watch. You're still inexperienced against opponents of their caliber. Even you," he glanced at Faty. "Your power is still green. One mistake and you're dead."
The way he spoke was completely different from that friendly old man.
This time, it was an authoritative tone, not that of a predator about to devour its prey.
"Withdraw."
Before I could protest, I saw the lizardman charge forward at an impossible speed, only to be stopped halfway by one of the Castillo. A burly ratman wielding a butcher's knife.
No matter what, he was the one who drank the most in the group, and who, for some reason, had grown fond of Faty.
He was the one who gave him advice on how to better handle his crossbow.
The impact of the knife against the gloved claws marked the beginning of the fight.
The dogman pulled out a small wand and, drawing through the air at incredible speed, the earth rose like liquid serpents and crawled toward us.
Another of the Castillo stepped forward. His hands were covered in rings that began to glow a strong red hue, and a blade of fire cut through the spell. Both were mages, and not of a low rank.
The remaining ambushers made their moves. Above all, the centaur, who swung his great axe.
The axe descended.
It struck the ground, shattering it into thousands of cracks like spiderwebs, and a blue light filled those fissures, forming an explosion.
Sending debris flying everywhere.Affecting enemies and allies alike.
I saw a group of the Castillo forming hand seals as massive walls made of earth rose up,
Shielding us.
With surprise and disbelief, I witnessed more members of that family joining the battle.
…..
"Are you angry with me?"
Sonnia asked me, sounding a little worried about finding out that they were not what they claimed to be.
I shook my head.
Today had been complete madness.So many things had happened that even now I couldn't fully process them.
"But, but you look uncomfortable, I, I don't want you to see me as a…"
I stopped her rambling when I pulled her in and kissed her impulsively. After the surprise passed, she returned the kiss.
This world might be insane, but so what. I live in this world now. One more madman in this world isn't going to make things any worse than they already are.