Seven minutes after Alen left to follow those three bandits.
On a street where five students are currently sitting on, a deep and uncomfortable silence could be felt by every single one of them
"I hope you peasants are greatful for us helping you" the princess that had minimal to negative relations with the group hated waiting there alone.
While she may not say it out loud, as it'd be too embarrassing for her, she missed Alen's company.
"I'll make sure to remember it princess Von Themys" the redhead forced a smile while her pink haired friend nodded along.
"We didn't need your help. We could've continued doing what we were doing and we would've been just fine" an angry Tirino who was tired of the white haired princess' attitude yelled at her.
He was standing far away from her as he was indeed afraid of the princess.
"Thanks to Alen you won't have to waste weeks trying to get the whole group" she replied, cold as ever.
"And where is he? If he's so great then why is he taking so long?"
"It's only been like seven minutes Tirino..." the big guy of the group calmly answered to his teammate "We usually took this long when they weren't here... maybe even more"
"Y-yeah Tirino, C-cole's right" the shy pink haired finally decided to talk "I trust that Alen's giving his all on this" she believed in the first person that defended her after that incident in which she became a sinner to everyone else.
"He has way more experience than you'll ever dream to achieve, bug" while it pained the villainess to agree with the girl she hated, she disliked the distrustful accusations towards her first friend even more.
"Yea, didn't you see him fight? He can cast without the need for incantations" the serious Cole added to the praise of the low tier character.
Fran wanted to intervene because, as far as she knew, incantationless had it's requirements to be used. But she decided against it as it was probably something her friend wanted to keep a secret.
*Bam*
An explosion that happened in the sky was heard by the group.
It was a sizeable distance away but they all instantly knew that it had to mean something with their mission.
The first one to run in the direction of the explosion was the princess of the Montanev kingdom.
She ran faster than the rest of the group, knowing that Alen had no explosives with him. She started to sweat cold as the possibilities of his friend fighting a whole group of bandits by himself appeared into her mind.
"!!" What surprised the princess the most was that, out of everyone on that group, the one who she hated the most was keeping up with her.
She saw in the pink haired girl a worried face that only cared about getting to that place as fast as she could.
Seeing her like that, the princess felt a knot deep on her stomach. She felt angrier than ever, and she didn't know if it was because of the thought of his friend getting hurt, or seeing that sinner care about him to this extent.
They both arrived at a dilapidated, run down house covered in a big sandstorm. The smell of puke and alcohol extended even to the houses around it.
And the screams of the people inside of it made both girls think of the worst possible outcome.
Franchesca Von Themys, princess of the Montanev kingdom, feared that his one and only friend could be in danger, her hand tremblimg due to the sheer uncertanty and anger she felt.
Kaida Thican, a disgraced noble, was on the verge of crying, feeling guilty over the thought of getting the one who protected her involved in something that ended up hurting him.
"Unshatering ice, that has shaped the lands of the north into a frigid and desolate plane, unfitting for human survival. Catapult yourself in a shape that causes damages even to the greatest of fortresses"
"Dark clouds, the ones who bring with them a storm that causes every single loving being to be terrified of your pressence. Grant me your power to smite all the enemies who wronged me in my life"
[Iceball]
[Lightning Bolt]
Both girls casted a tier two spell, in hopes that it'll hit whoever could be damaging the guy that caused them to worry.
The spells combined easily broke through a wall, causing dust to be raised.
The other members of the group arrived just a moment after both girls casted their spell.
"Kaida!" Yani rushed to the side of her friend. The use of a tier two spell was too much for her and they both knew it.
"D-don't worry Yani. I-I can fight" while she said that in a confident voice... as confident as she could... both girls knew that Kaida won't be able to use magic after that spell.
Primcess Fran only had her eyes set on what she thought was the worst possible option.
She saw her friend's face bleeding on his forehead, eyebrow, mouth and nose, bruises on his arms.
But she saw that, despite his state, he was still standing with his daggers in front of him, he still didn't give up.
"Finally!! I'm sorry guys but I let my guard down and I got caught" the injured boy waved his hand at the group.
"Alen! You... I'm going to punish you after this" the princess yelled, angry at this whole situation. At his friend that didn't escape, and specially at the ones that hurt him.
"But I already said I'm sorry" the brown haired boy said in a defeated tone.
"I do-"
"So now you want to talk little rat?" The leader went for a kick to Alen's left arm.
The boy evaded it and jumped back, creating more space between them.
"I'm not your enemy big boss" said the boy before starting to run at the warrior woman "I leave him to you Fran!" He clashed his blades against Gissy's.
"I would've attacked him regardless of what you said" she answered her friend's order with a fast charge at Yute.
He blocked it with his axe on the last second. Fran's charge made both of them end up on the backyard of the house.
"And you! Kaida and company! Fight against those two!" Alen pointed at the scrawny older brother Yorolo and the bigger sized younger brother Yirili.
"Take care of those other brats!" Gissy ordered the two brothers to attack the other group while she kept fightimg against this kid.
"Aye aye cap'n" both brothers said in unison as they looked at the movement of the warrior woman's chest as she kept swinging her sword before leaving the house and going to the streets to fight Kaida's group.
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"Look what we have here Yorolo"
"Oh I see it very clearly Yirili"
Both the skinny thief and burly bandit stood on the entrance to the dilapidated house.
Yani prepared herself, aiming her bow at their opponents.
"Oh I won't let ya" Yorolo quickly started running towards the redhead, going past Cole and Tirino.
*Ching*
"I can't believe that I'm dealing with you, your boss was way more entretaining" both Yorolo's knife and Kaida's rapier clashed.
With Kaida defending Yani, she made it her mission to take down this guy, leaving the axe guy to the boys of her team.
"Uh, you'll neer hit me with that pitiful shot missy"
Yani felt a chill run down ger spine at the mere mention of her coming out from this bandit's mouth.
"T-that's not your objective!" The pink haired girl attacked the thief with repeated stabs that all ended up on failures.
"Hahaha, don't be so full of yourself little girl. My dust shouldn't even consider itself as something worth my time" to everyone else watching, this felt like the skinny thief is currently the one in control of the fight.
His movements are speedy and unpredictable, he has way more experience than them.
He even dodged the second arrow that Yani shot.
"Wind spirits, bless my weapons"
[Wind infusion]
The tip of Yani's arrow begins to be surrounded in a thin but sharp wind, adding some damage to her arrows.
But for all three that are experiencing the fight in real time.
They were on a stalemate.
He can only parry and dodge both Kaida and Yani's attack. While the two students can not land a hit.
They both negate the other's attack.
"If you both give up, maybe I'll be gentle when you both become my personal slaves" he started to maniacally laugh as he deluded himself in his fantasies.
The kind of fantasies that made both girls hate him even more.
But it seems that Kaida's recent words weren't dismissed by Yani.
She looked to the side.
Cole's heavy armor could barely withstand the attacks from that axe, and Tirino was having trouble with landing a single hit.
Yani took that opportunity, Yirili was completely distracted and Kaida was holding off Yirili.
"!!!"
Flying through the air, that arrow that was aimed specifically at the axe bandit's shoulder, piercing the aimed body part.
The small wind infusion made it so that the pain of being pierced continued with the constant movement of the arrow's wind coated tip.
"Aaaagh" the big man started thrashing his axe, causing the heavy armored Cole to fly away as he defended himself.
Tirino simply stepped away in hopes that the thrashing man would stop his incoherent movements.
The skinny thief didn't even care that his brother got injured, he just continued to clash with Kaida.
"So I'm only a side onjective to you too?" A long sigh escaped from his lips, he was starting to get tired of always being a second priority "You should learn to know who's the real threat here!"
He quickly sped his movements, while it was still on par with Kaida's speed, it was enough to reach the side of her stomach.
It was a superficial cut, but it managed to open more oportunities to overpower her.
"That bitch of a sub-boss always thinking so high of herself because she sucks up to cap'n. And you two that ignore my threat as if I was a mere distraction" he started to lick his mouth at the thought of overpowering his opponents.
"Stun my enemies"
"[Shock]"
An electric current came out of Kaida's hand, a spell that causes the one who revieved it to be paralyzed. The quick version only paralyzes for a few seconds.
But those few seconds were enough to allow Yani to shoot at the skinny man.
Her shot managed to pierce his head. And after a few seconds of standing still, his body plummeted to the ground.
"That's what you deserve, you disgusting creep" Yani managed to say in between heavy sighs.
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