"What's happening?" Meryl asked anxiously as Alvin and Elena ran outside together. Another explosion echoed through the air, startling Tulip awake in fright.
In the garden, their eyes landed on nine hunters flying on witches' brooms.
Some of them laughed mockingly before one of them summoned a whirlwind and sent it crashing into the transparent barrier surrounding the house.
'Those bastards, how dare they attack my home?' spoke cloud angrily from beside Alvin. Alvin ignored it and muttered in a confused tone, "How can they see the house?"
Since cloud was invisible to everyone except Alvin, the others assumed he was talking to himself.
"I didn't activate the 'concealment' feature because I didn't expect anyone to show up in such a remote place!" cloud replied, her eyes never leaving the hunters outside.
"There she is!" one of them shouted, pointing at Meryl who was standing near the lemon tree. But when someone called out the name 'Tulip,' Alvin realized they weren't referring to Meryl.
Why do they want Tulip? Rage surged through Alvin's veins—this was the second time hunters had shown interest in this child!
"Why do you want Tulip?" Elena asked curiously. The only people who knew about Tulip were the gypsies—and these hunters definitely didn't look like gypsies!
"Let's play with him a little!" one of them replied with a wicked tone. In the next moment, Alvin vanished from the garden and appeared directly in front of that hunter, raising his sword with the intent to cut off his head.
Out of nowhere, black ash appeared—seemingly mixed with other substances—and surrounded Alvin, then tightened around him. From behind, a hunter emerged with sharp spikes protruding from his body. He smirked slyly before moving toward Alvin to finish him off.
The hunter was focused on Alvin—until he felt two feet slam into his face. It was Meryl, who had jumped from the garden and used both feet to strike him.
The ash still encased Alvin, who was falling downward. Elena moved swiftly, plunging her hand into the black whirlwind, grabbing Alvin's hand and pulling him out.
As they landed, Meryl fell from above. Alvin leapt quickly to catch her before she hit the ground. "cloud, hide the house!" Alvin shouted angrily.
The hunters, who were also descending, didn't understand what was happening—until the house suddenly vanished from the sky.
Now, with all of them on the ground, Tulip was the only one standing in the garden, watching from above and listening to what the hunters and his companions were saying.
"We outnumber you. Give us the child, or we'll kill you all," one of them said calmly after seeing the house disappear by Alvin's command. They needed his consent to get to Tulip.
"Go to hell, you bastards!" Meryl shouted furiously from behind, as Alvin and Elena stood in front of her, blocking anyone from reaching her.
There was something strange—Elena didn't believe their earlier claim about what they wanted from Tulip. There was something else, and these hunters weren't revealing the true reason.
"Ask your planets what's going on while I distract them," Elena said, then immediately launched herself toward the enemies. She leapt high, almost like flying, spinning three and a half times in the air before crashing her heel onto one of their shoulders.
The hunter bent his knees quickly and lowered his torso completely, allowing her to pass right over him. He placed his hands on the ground and pushed off with a backward thrust, jumping at an angle to spin around her body and reach her back.
Sensing his movement behind her, Elena planted her hand on the ground and twisted her body sideways in a fast spin, her hair whipping around her like a whirlwind, causing his attack to slide past her.
Then she extended her other leg straight and landed a sidekick to his ribs mid-spin, using his momentum against him.
As he stumbled back a step, she sprang upward, using his hands as a launchpad to vault over him, turning in midair, ready to deliver a harsh kick to his face.
But as soon as her feet touched the ground, Elena realized she was trapped between two opponents—one with a supernatural ability and a seemingly endless storm of attacks.
The man on the left had the power to manipulate ash, and the woman on the right likely had a power as well.
The man raised his arm, releasing a whirlwind of ash that spread through the air. Elena coughed harshly from inhaling it, covering her nose and mouth with her arm while trying to pick up the sounds around her.
But there wasn't even the faintest sound! It was as if the area was completely empty—devoid of anything. Suddenly, she felt a sharp blow to her chest.
Before she could be forced back, she grabbed the foot aimed at her and used it to spin her enemy's body, dispersing the ash around her.
Elena lowered her left leg before completing her final spin, then hurled the woman into the sky.
She followed swiftly with a graceful leap, spinning once mid-air to gain momentum. Wrapping her arms tightly around the woman's torso to prevent any escape, she spun again in the air, creating a rapid spiral motion.
The two of them plummeted toward the ground at breakneck speed.
In the final moments before impact, Elena let go, allowing her opponent's head to crash violently into the ground. Her skull shattered, with pieces scattering around her.
Now, eight hunters remained!
—[You have wonderful friends, little one,] said Lady Ivara to Tulip, who was watching the battle with a rapidly pounding heart.
These hunters wanted him, and Alvin and the others might get hurt because of it. Tulip didn't want to see them suffer—especially Alvin.
"Milady, I have to go down and fight," Tulip whispered.
—[You don't have to. Sometimes, it's a beautiful thing to stay behind and let our friends protect us.]
—"But… they might get hurt because of me!"
—[Don't worry about them. They're strong and can protect themselves.]
Meryl was supposed to stay behind and heal Elena and Alvin. That was her role in the group—as the healer. But unfortunately, one of the huntresses noticed her and moved in to fight.
If the healer dies, the entire team collapses, no matter how powerful its members are. And it seemed her opponent understood that well—leaving the fights with Alvin and Elena just to kill Meryl.
Meryl drew her sword from its sheath, ready to fight at any moment. But the woman didn't move.
She didn't even blink. She just stared directly into Meryl's eyes. Meryl decided not to make the first move, focusing her awareness instead on her teammates fighting in the field.
On the battlefield, one of the hunters struck Alvin with a sneak attack, slashing his back and leaving a long wound along his body.
Elena immediately withdrew from her own battle and rushed to guard Alvin's back while Meryl treated his wound.
But Meryl's focus was broken by the sudden attack from that huntress. Apparently, she had been waiting for Meryl's attention to waver so she could betray her—just as her comrade had betrayed Alven.
The woman spun halfway around and swung her arm back to slash Meryl's face with the sharp dagger in her hand.
Meryl saw it coming and could have dodged the strike, but… her heart sank when she realized she couldn't move a single finger.
At this rate, her face would be torn apart—from her left cheek all the way to the right!
— [She's too beautiful to die now!]
Message from "The Womanizer" in the public chat.
— [Death is everyone's fate!]
Message from "The Sad Clown" in the public chat.