The explosion of force scattered shattered branches in every direction, but the path ahead remained open.
"Run!" Sage shouted.
This time nobody needed to be told twice. Gregor grabbed Lyana again and pulled her forward, while Brutus and Caelis moved beside the slower adventurers to keep them from falling behind.
Vanthrice ran near the rear with her bronze spear held low, her sharp eyes scanning both the sky and the sides of the path, ready to intercept anything that slipped through Valeria's defense.
Boren, somehow faster than before, pumped his arms with a desperate expression that made his entire body jiggle violently with each step, but he did not complain this time. Even he understood that if he slowed down now, no amount of shameless begging would save him from becoming serpentfood.
