They were surrounded on all sides. The zombie-like monsters kept emerging from the bushes, one after another.
"We're completely surrounded," Nain said, her panic rising.
"I have to protect these two. Jhed may be immortal, but if they bite him too, he'll become one of them. And my job is to keep Jhed safe." Shine said to himself.
Shine drew his sword.
Jhed drew his too. He understood — there was no choice left but to fight. Nain was becoming a burden. If she weren't here, the two of them could have run freely, or stood their ground without worry.
"I'll clear a path for you both. You run through it — I'll hold them off." Shine said.
"Their attacks can't touch me anyway."
The monsters were closing in fast.
The two of them were ready to run — the kind of people who, when it came down to it, thought of their own survival first. And maybe that's exactly why they moved faster than most.
"Go—"
Shine charged straight at the monsters. He cleared one side entirely, cutting through them — and when he swung in a single direction, zombies in every direction came apart.
"Run!" Jhed shouted.
Nain sprinted after him. Instead of heading back to the village, they pushed forward in the direction of Pariharlas.
If anyone wonders why they didn't use the teleportation card — the card needed to be registered at the adventurer's guild of whatever destination they wanted to reach. Right now it was only registered in Mariana. Using it would send them all the way back there, and they'd have to start the whole journey over again.
Behind them, Shine was cutting through zombies without effort. They clawed and bit at him — nothing happened. Not a mark.
"They must be far enough by now. Time for me to go too."
Shine sliced through several trees to block the path behind him, then sprinted after them toward Pariharlas.
Jhed and Nain had stopped beside a tree, both of them gasping.
"Why did the sun have to disappear right now of all times," Jhed said.
"Because you were born with terrible luck," Nain said.
Running with the heavy satchel had been brutal for Jhed.
Jhed glanced down at Nain's hand.
"How did you get that cut?" he asked.
"I don't know. But it doesn't hurt," Nain said.
"Wait — let me give you a healing potion." Jhed lowered the satchel and pulled one out, handing it to her.
"Don't waste healing potions on something this small," Nain said.
"She's doing it again."
"Fine, give it back then—" Jhed extended his hand.
But Nain had already drunk it.
"Seriously — you drink it and then tell me not to waste it. I'm the one who didn't even need it," Jhed said.
And just like that, they were arguing about the potion.
"It's pitch dark, we're in the middle of a forest, and these two are standing here fighting... unbelievable." Shine could hear them from a distance. He shook his head and walked toward them.
"Would you two stop—" Shine called out.
They both turned around.
"How did he make it out?" Nain said.
"Did you want him to die?"
"I never said that," she said sharply.
"The way you said it made it sound like it," Jhed said, pushing her buttons deliberately.
Shine reached them.
"Let's move," he said.
They pushed forward.
But — how had Nain gotten that cut? Could one of the monsters have grazed her? Probably. There was no other explanation. And if that was true — what was coming for her? Would she start turning into one of them?
For Jhed, a brand new problem had just been born.