The Scarlet Phoenix and the Prince of Winter

Chapter Ninety Three

What even is burning? I don't even know that word, I only have read it in books. Aunt Milca though used to say that word a lot since she works in a bakery where sometimes they make their bread burnt when things get super busy and out of hand there. I know the concept, but right now, this feels very different from what I have been imagining what it feels like. It's like a foreign word that I have only read in dusty, old books back at the Fire Academy.

But now I am feeling it--- the hot feeling surging through my body... the intense power that feels like an adrenaline rush inside of me... is this how it feels to be powerful? I like this. I think I can live with this forever. it does not only make me feel relatively formidable but it also makes me see things in a much, much, clearer way. It's like I now have a bird's eye view.

So now I can see clearly the enemies that I have to face. The three men with the arrows had tried their best to shoot us, but I already blocked it using my body. It was a nice feeling, by the way, to be able to protect someone you wanted to protect, and right now I am doing more than that for all the arrows that they sent in our direction hit the ground with loud thuds. They were all burnt. Some of them were even smoking as if they had steam in them.

But I know that it was me who did it. I don't know how on earth that happened, but I was able to reflect those sharp arrows using my own body as a shield. The three men looked surprised and dumbfounded when they saw what I involuntarily did. One of them even dropped their crossbow at the ground.

"S-She is a monster!" said the one who dropped his crossbow. He was pointing his finger at me with a horrified look on his face. "What is she?"

'Don't mind it! Maybe she is wearing something that can repel the arrows!"

"i***t! Can't you see that she is just wearing a court servant's work gown? There is no way that she can reflect those arrows with just those clothes! she must have an ability just like Master!"

That took my interest. "Ability? What are you saying?" I asked and the man sneered at me.

"It is not only you who has tricks up your sleeves, court servant girl," he said proudly. "Master Jack also has an unbelievable power. So if I were you I will just go back to the cabin peacefully. then maybe Master Jack will consider not giving you a punishment for trying to escape!"

"Rainha! We don't have time to linger here! That man right come back! We only saw him sending the snow carriage off! He might come back!" said Harvey worriedly. He has a point so I nodded at his warning. It looks like even Harvey acknowledges that Jack could be a trouble for us, so we have to get away as soon as possible.

"Come one! Let's get out of here! just ignore them!" Clayz added to it but he looked rather pale than how he acts, so I almost giggled at him with that. But I heeded their advice. I needed to be clever. My newfound ability can't always save me, so we have to flee.

But those goons don't want us to leave that easily. They started shooting at us again, but just like what happened the first time, I was able to deflect their arrows with just my body. I don't know why but they just bounce off my skin as if I was made of some rubber material that is immune to such attacks. I can see Calyx's eyes bulging as he watches me shield ourselves from those goons while we run away.

"How are you doing that?" he then asked me the moment the flying arrows stop coming. I guess they must have already used up all of their arrows. And I was right because when I looked back at them I saw them now running after us.

"I don't know what the hell is happening to me too,' I told him. "But we have to run as fast as we could first. They are coming after us!" Calyx looked behind us too and almost yelled when he saw that the three men were now close to us. "What the---? They are now catching up with us! Are they professional runners or what?"

"They are workers at the Coalstone Mines," said Harvey to us who was leading our escape into the snowy path leading outside of the old theme park. "So naturally they have athletic bodies. We will be butchered once they catch us. so we need to do something about them."

"I agree," I said. "I can't run that long, you know. they are going to catch me!"

"Then what do we do?" asked Calyx who was thinking deeply as we ran into the white snow. We just passed right through Mistyland's gate and we are now heading to the underground tunnel that will bring us to the main road. If I am correct, once we get through that tunnel we will be able to find several houses and buildings along the road. The town of Carel is just nearby, and so are the underground greenhouses that the farmers have built in this area.

"You fools! You can't get away just like that!" There was a yell from Calyx and then I stopped running as I saw how one of the armed goons was able to grab Calyx by his clothes and the two now fell to the snow and they rolled there just like that. Then after their momentum stopped, they began punching each other.

I was torn between thinking of helping him and just resume running. Harvey stopped too, and before I can talk to him he also now went to the brawl and helped Calyx fight the an. But I did not think that it was a good idea because one of the other two goons also went in to join the fight. The last one then glared at me with a wicked smile and I know that I am now doomed.

"D-Don't come near me..." I told him warily. "I cannot fight you!" I added and y knees were already shaking. This man advanced though as if he could not hear a thing from me. I also saw that he has a weapon in his right hand. It was a saber, and I can see it in his eyes that he is determined to hurt me.

"It's too late now to beg for your life, sweetie," said the man who looked like a crazed animal right now. This reminded me of that instance when we were ambushed on the way to Aurville, back when I was hiding in that gap between those huge rocks. The trauma was coming back to me again like a flashback and now I was shivering. The man went on to approach me with the weapon in his hand, and I could not even over now. It sucks how from being almost invincible, I am now helpless. this was not what I am expecting from the change in me that just happened earlier.

So when he came to me and raised his hand to hurt me with a s***h from his saber, I did the only thing that I can do at that moment--- and that was to scream. I was going to die, I thought, but it never happened. I waited for the pain to come but nothing really happened. I opened my eyes to see what just happened (because I closed them when he advanced at me like a wild animal) and saw that he was knocked out away from me. He was now unconscious in the snow, with the weapon out of his grasp.

"What happened?" I murmured to myself and then looked around if someone helped me. but no one was here with me where I was standing. And Calyx was still fighting the other guys with Harvey. All I noticed is that my hands were in front of me as if I pushed the man away. But I did not do that. I could not even move a muscle at that instance, so how come I am now in this position? Did I do something that I was not aware I was doing again? "You court servant!" said another man and I was shocked to see that it was Jack. He looked outraged at what he was seeing right now and his eyes were murderous. He was walking towards me and I could not move my body again. This was it, I told myself. Jack is going to kill me. "How did you manage to have that ability?" He was mad at me and I could see him hold his sword with such intensity that I could already feel my body being sliced by it by just looking at it. "Do not tell me that you are just like me?" he mysteriously asked and stopped right in front of me. "Tell me! Are you a deity too, born as a human just like me?"