Eternal Freedom's Ascension-Chapter 110: Third Isle

Kaiser sprawled on the grassy plains, then gently pushed Anna’s body off him. Alex also collapsed beside them, panting and wheezing.

After a brief ten-seconds rest, he forced himself to his feet and looked around. The Third Isle wasn’t like the others. It was lush with vegetation. Tall grasses reaching their knees spread across the plains. A few rocky elevations jutted from the ground, and a few trees were scattered around.

"This place looks... unusually normal."

He said, then turned to Anna. The woman was still unconscious, her battered armor still clinging to her skin.

"Hand over the bandages."

He gestured to Alex. The girl pursed her lips, then summoned her storage relic. From it, Kaiser took out the bandages.

"You..." Lying on the ground, Alex said threateningly. "Don’t you dare touch my sister inappropriately."

Kaiser regarded her empty threat with little attention, then stepped towards Anna. He broke apart several joints in her armor until it automatically dismissed itself to repair within her crystal core.

Now in her black tracksuit-like undergarments, Kaiser began tending to her wounds. He bandaged the cuts and reset her broken bones.

Once he was done, he slung her on his back and turned to Alex.

"Get up. We’re moving, and you’re covering."

Alex ignored her exhaustion and stood up, holding her bow tightly.

"Why don’t you just let me carry her?" She asked, looking annoyed.

Kaiser replied flatly. "Can you? No."

’Ugh...’ Alex’s expression crumbled at the cold truth. Her sister was quite heavy, and she was sure carrying that young woman would be almost impossible.

’How is he even carrying her?’

His strength had to be insane. Pursing her lips, she walked ahead, tensed and alert. The gentle green grass parted from their steps, revealing dark, fertile soil.

"Where are we even going?" Alex wondered, looking around. The only notable high structures were the humongous slabs of rocks resting on each other in the distance.

"There, obviously." Kaiser pointed towards that place with his chin.

Alex grunted, but didn’t say a word. Instead, she focused her attention on watching out for danger.

Frowning, Kaiser’s eyes shifted to a rock in the distance. The grass behind it was bent in an unnatural pattern. Sighing, he called out to her.

"Alex, to our left."

The girl straightened, then turned sharply. She picked one of the few remaining arrows in her quiver, then pulled it on the string.

ROAR!

From behind the jagged rock, a creature burst forth. It was a quadrupedal beast, having orange fur with black spots across its skin. Thick black fur ran from its head along its spine to the tip of its tail.

As it roared, it displayed its powerful jaws and dreadful set of canines.

"Target the head." Kaiser said calmly.

Alex drew the arrow, then fired the shot.

The arrow shot at the charging creature with deadly precision, then sank into its head. Its charge was disrupted, and it crumpled to the ground.

[You have slain an Awakened Beast, Dreadfang]

"Yes! I did it!"

Alex hissed in victory, but Kaiser didn’t share her joy.

"More are coming." He warned. The girls red eyes widened, and she immediately looked around.

From the tall grasses, four other Dreadfangs revealed themselves, calmly encircling them like predators surrounding prey.

Grrr...

Their growls were low and threatening, though it was obvious they were cautious of Alex. After all, she had just killed one of them in a single strike.

In the distance, a cohort of four Awakened watched the scene curiously. One of them, a short bald man with muscular frame, spoke. 𝑓𝑟ℯ𝘦𝓌𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝑐ℴ𝓂

"These kids. I haven’t seen them before. What clan do you think sent them here?"

Another Awakened answered him, holding a wine gourd in his hand.

"Judging from the red hair, the girls are most likely from the Emberheart Clan. As for the blue guy, I have no idea. The Frosthearts are enemies of the Emberheart, so it’s impossible for them to collaborate."

A woman in animal-skin rolled her shoulder and nodded. "You’re right. In fact, that blue hair isn’t a trademark of the Frostheart Clan. Those guys are more like blue-white."

Finally, the leader of the team spoke. "We should help them. Getting the favor of an Emberheart scion should be of great benefit to our guild."

The others nodded, and then the bald man stepped forward. "I’ll go."

The leader nodded, "Make it quick, Aman."

Aman grinned, then summoned his weapon—a chained flail. Wrapping the chains around his hand, he ran across the grassy plains with surprising speed. He even made short leaps, arriving there under seconds.

’So they finally decided to help—typical fake article.’

Kaiser was unsurprised, watching as the short man smashed his flail against one of the Dreadfangs. The creature was split into two, blood and organs gushing from the parts.

The chained flail moved like it had a mind of its own, slicing through the beasts easily.

In under a minute, he had killed the four beasts. He then turned to Alex and Kaiser, grinning subtly. His gaze passed over Kaiser briefly, then he focused on Alex.

"You kids look rough. Want us to lead you to our camp?"

Alex was surprised by the man’s power and sudden appearance.

Still, she was a bit skeptical as he was a stranger. Indecisive, she turned to Kaiser.

The boy nodded calmly, giving her slight boost in confidence.

"Alright. Thank you."

While leading them towards his remaining teammates, the man and Alex had explained several things and mentioned his name—Aman.

According to him, the island was a popular hunting ground for Awakened. Here, predator creatures filled the forest and plains, making the island very dangerous.

"There are creatures you should identity as dangerous. Such as the Dreadfangs, Thunderhorns, Skyrend Vultures, Razorback Burrowers, and most importantly... the Gravehowl."

Alex leaned forward, curious. "These sound like a lot. What makes the Gravehowl different?"

Aman’s expression hardened, and he touched a scar on his head.

"On this island, it is the undisputed king. Just pray you don’t encounter it."

Saying that, they finally met up with Aman’s teammates.