The woman, her boots kicking up clouds of dust, skidded to a halt on the rugged terrain, confronting him with fiery eyes.
"You sure have a lot of gall showing up in territory that belongs to someone else, especially being so weak!" she declared, her voice echoing with scorn and disbelief.
In a fleeting attempt at defense, Ty reached out to catch an arrow mid-flight, but his timing faltered. The arrow, with unrelenting speed, plunged deep into his hand.
Despite the sharp pain, Ty managed a mocking smile, a hint of defiance flickering in his eyes.
Wincing as he held his wounded hand, the arrow still impaled in his flesh, Ty responded with a tone of confusion and distress. "I don’t know what’s going on. You must have me mixed up with someone else. I just woke up in this field out of nowhere."
The woman’s eyes narrowed, her stance unwavering. "Don’t think you can fool me with your lies," she snapped. "Just stop fighting and surrender yourself. If you’re lucky, you might have a chance to fight for your freedom in the Arena of Life!"
Ty retorted with bewilderment and frustration, "Excuse me?! You tried to kill me from the jump!"
At that moment, Ty’s blue fairy, her emotions as vivid as her azure hue, pushed her way out of his hands. "Yeah! You attacked before we could explain, you rude, pompous, sweet-snack-looking weirdo!" she exclaimed.
Her tiny face was contorted with anger, and specks of dirt adorned her blue hair, evidence of their rough encounter.
The tension in the air thickened as the woman raised her bow, an arrow nocked and ready. "What demon have you conjured to your side!" she demanded, her suspicion and fear evident in her voice. She fully drew her bow, her eyes fixed on the blue fairy.
Ty, in a protective gesture, grabbed the blue fairy, trying to defuse the situation. "She’s not even mine! My friend stuffed her with me before I blacked out and wound up here!
I’m telling you, this is some misunderstanding," he pleaded, his voice laced with urgency.
The woman’s eyes narrowed, her resolve unwavering. "I saw your eyes bleed red and you use black flames, like almost all creatures from the demon race," she accused, her bowstring taut with tension. "Now choose: surrender or find yourself waking up in hell!"
Ty sighed, resignation and defiance in his voice. "Fine," he said, taking a slight breath to steady himself. "I will not fight you, but I’m not going to any dungeon. I’ve done nothing wrong.
Just waking up in a field isn’t grounds for you to try and kill me!"
"If you refuse to go to jail, then you are picking the latter option," the woman declared, her voice cold and resolute. She released the bowstring, sending the arrow hurtling towards Ty.
This time, the arrow tip carried a menacing green hue, bright enough for Ty to notice too late.
Ty watched the arrow’s approach, his perception oddly slowing its flight. In a display of reflex and precision, he caught it by the wooden shaft, mere inches from his face.
The green-tipped arrow halted in its deadly path, proving his reflexes still had some bite.
Scuffing, Ty held the arrow up, relief and bravado in his voice. "See, this is nothing. I caught it with ease," he boasted, trying to mask the tension of the moment.
The woman, however, was unfazed. A sly grin spread across her face as she prepared her next move. "How good do you do against sleep gas?" she asked, her tone laced with a challenging curiosity.
Ty, momentarily confused by her question, quickly recalled his recent past experiences, especially his time as a skeleton. However, before he could fully process her intent, the green tip of the arrow burst, releasing a cloud of green gas that enveloped him.
The blue fairy, sensing the imminent danger, screamed in alarm, "Get out of the smoke!"
Trying to reassure her, Ty began, "Don’t worry, poison is--" His words trailed off as his vision began to blur. Overcome by the gas, he stumbled to one knee, a wave of realization washing over him. "Oh.. right, not a skeleton anymore.
Damn it!" he muttered, frustration and regret in his voice.
As the green smoke swirled around them, the blue fairy, overwhelmed by the toxic fumes, lost consciousness and fell. Ty, struggling to maintain his focus amidst the encroaching haze, noticed the woman approaching him.
Her expression hardened with determination and scorn.
"I will not fall prey to the lies of a demon!" she declared resolutely. She delivered a heavy blow with her metal boot to the side of Ty’s head. The impact was sudden and brutal.
As Ty’s vision blurred and his senses dulled, the world around him faded to black.
The last thing he saw was the sun, hanging heavy in the sky, casting a glaring light over the unfolding scene. His consciousness slipped away, leaving him in the grips of darkness.
The woman stood over Ty, her expression one of contemplation. She pondered whether to finish him off, but as she observed his unconscious form, with bits of blood trailing from his head, a different thought crossed her mind.
Despite the circumstances, there was something unexpectedly endearing about his appearance in this vulnerable state.
Shaking her head as if to dispel these thoughts, she reached into the pockets of her blue jeans, which were concealed beneath her armor. Extracting a mobile device, she dialed a series of numbers from memory.
After a moment, a voice emerged from the other end of the line, breaking the tense silence.
"What is it, Yun-Jin?"
"I caught someone from the Demon Kind lurking in the fields of prosperity during my patrols," Yun-Jin reported, her tone firm yet laced with a hint of uncertainty. "He was surprisingly powerful.
I managed to subdue him with some smoke gas, but it was a close call."
"Did you kill him?" the voice on the other end of the line asked bluntly.