Adopted Soldier
/ Adopted Soldier 193 Fleeing
This might be his actual personality showing, Alex wasn't sure but he needed to be extremely wary.
"Alex I'll say it again, I'm not in the mood. So you better let go, or I might not be able to hold back."
"Sir Lyner I know you're angry, but you must forgive my friend. He might sound boastful and arrogant, but that's just his way to hide his insecurities, and like you said he's just a child. So shouldn't a grown man like you be magnanimous to a junior like him."
Lyner looked at Alex, his eyes were like daggers trying to pierce him. After a long silence, Lyner's bloodlust lessened a bit, but Alex didn't let his guard down. It was never simple with the man called the strongest of Berdonia. He was a person who sometimes looks foolish and impulsive, but at the same time, he also feels intelligent and wise. What you get when you mixed those things together is whatever Lyner was.
Matthew seeing Alex defend him was shocked. He knew the trouble he was getting himself into, and still went and said what he said. He was alright with dying in the hands of the strongest of Berdonia, thinking wouldn't that be a great honor. Still, if there was a way not to die, he would still take it. But seeing that it was his rival that he wanted to beat that was saving him, made Matthew feel mixed emotions.
He was grateful at the same time irritated and angry. He also didn't like the feeling that Alex was actually pitying him. He then noticed that Lyner was looking at him, which made him clench his fist in frustration.
Seeing the look of distress hiding behind the arrogance, Lyner sighed.
"I cannot let his insult slide, but you are right he is but a child. So I will give you a chance. If you two are able to flee from me for about twenty minutes, and I'm unable to catch both of you within that time limit. I will not do anything to that friend of yours, but if I do catch you, I'll be taking an arm from him, and you'll be my sparring partner for the next three days. Of course, while I give chase you two can try and kill me, that's if you can."
When Lyner said these words he shrugged his shoulders, he then continued speaking. "Do not worry the killing rule only applies to you, I won't try to kill you, but I can make this chase extremely painful. Do you agree to these conditions?"
"... I agree, but before we start can Matthew rest for a few more minutes?"
"Whatever, I'll give you about-" Lyner with his sharp eyes looked at Matthew before he continued his answer. "Fifteen minutes, that's enough time for the baby to recover." Alex nodded his head in agreement and left Lyner's side to approach Matthew who was trying to catch his breath.
"Why did you do that? I could have handled the situation myself!" The first thing that came out of Matthew's mouth was not words of gratitude, but his usual condescending words. Alex had no time to fight it out with Matthew, so he pushed the already tired Matthew and made him sit down.
"I have no time for whatever complaints you have Matthew. I don't care if it damages your pride, but you have to follow my orders."
Matthew was about to open his mouth to argue, but Alex shut it close by pinching his lips shut with his fingers. Alex who was now kneeling in front of Matthew looked at him eye to eye and spoke.
"Like I said I have no time for your complaints. We are about to face the strongest of Berdonia, and it will take everything we got just to escape. So I want you to listen carefully, the rules of this game are simple as long as he doesn't catch both of us, we win. Meaning that victory is assured as long as one of us escapes. So here's the plan."
...
Lyner watched the two kids planning what they were going to do against him. He couldn't hear them from this distance, but even if he could he wouldn't bother listening. This was the arrogance that comes with overwhelming strength.
Lyner took a cigaret from his pocket and a lighter and started smoking. While he waited he started to think about what happened moments ago. After all these years, he was still affected by the word coward.
It's been twenty years since that incident and he thought he already stopped caring, but turns out he still cared. Lyner silently smokes his cigaret as he remembered that time when he lost everything and became the man that he was now.
He remembered the scared faces of his classmates, as they looked at him asking for help. He remembers the taunting laugh of the man who called him a coward. Every time he remembers that moment Lyner no matter the circumstance gets unbelievable angry. Right now he was still able to hold it in, but for some reason he keeps on hearing Matthew's voice calling him a coward, making him want to rip off his head.
He made up this idea of a chase so he could let loose, and maybe calm himself down enough to not want to kill the kid. Cause at this moment he really wanted to tear him apart.
'It's been so long, but I guess I'm still a kid as well.' Even smoking his favorite cigaret wasn't helping him calm down today.
...
Once Alex was done briefing Matthew on what to do he let go of his mouth.
"Do you understand the plan?" Matthew glared at him and answered back.
"Of course I understand the plan, I'm not an idiot. Still, your plan has a lot of what ifs in it. I was sure you were the type of person that plans every detail and doesn't rely on guesses and hunches."
"We are facing a person strong enough to crush us with his bare hands. We are unsure were his limits lay. I do not like facing an opponent I haven't researched thoroughly, but that's what we're about to do. All the data I gathered, everything I observed about Sir Lyner has been used to make this plan." Alex who usually had a stoic expression looked at Matthew with an icy glare before continuing what he was saying.
"This plan is just an improvise version of my real plan on how to take down Sir Lyner just in case I needed to."
"Why are we using the improvise version, can't we use the actual plan?"
"The actual plan consists of twenty fully equipped people, in a designated place I have scouted in advance and filled with traps. Right now we only have two people, one is even injured, and the equipment we have is at most sub-par. So I hope you stop complaining and just do as I told you. Also, stop antagonizing Sir Lyner... No, how about you just stop talking altogether."
Matthew was about to respond to that, but Alex once again pinched his lips stopping him from talking back.
"I don't expect you to thank me or anything, but I do expect you to follow my orders so that we can survive this ordeal."
Lyner approached the two and spoke. "Are you ready? There is only a minute left until rest time is over."
"We're as ready as will ever be," Alex responded with his usual indifferent tone of voice, but this time he ended it with a sigh.
"Okay then, I'll give you guys a twenty-second head start. The timer starts now, 1,2." When Alex and Matthew heard Lyner counting they started to run deeper into the mountains. They knew they had more of a chance to escape Lyner if they hide deeper into the mountains than in the open space down below.
Lyner seeing the two boys sprinting away continued his counting. Once he was done he also moved forward jumping up a branch of a nearby tree and chased the two by jumping from branch to branch.
...
Alex and Matthew who were running away from Lyner could pretty much feel him nearing since he wasn't really hiding. There was no possible way not to notice that immense bloodlust that was chasing after them, slowly but surely nearing them.
At this moment Matthew finally understood why Lyner was called the monster of the battlefield. It wasn't because of his overwhelming strength, it was because of his presence. The way he gives chase was like that of a monster. Moving fast enough to catch up, but not fast enough to be able to reach them immediately.
The fear of him reaching you weighed down on you, as you try to go faster. When you do that you noticed that he too was going faster, but just fast enough that he was barely catching up. This entire experience was very stressful to Matthew who has never gone through such hardships.
Alex, on the other hand, was as usual calm and collected. He already knew that Lyner would be toying with them, which will give them the chance they needed to win.
Lyner was even taunting them by repeating the verse made for him.
"Run, run, run, cause here he comes.
Run, run, run, for the monster comes.
A Swish of his blade and your head begone
With the shot of his gun, you're all but done."
He kept on repeating that verse as he chased Alex and Matthew. It didn't really affect Alex too much since he already expected Lyner to act like this, but Matthew was not as mentally prepared as him. The intense bloodlust, the slow chase, as well as that verse, made him very anxious.
Alex who was running right beside Matthew spoke to him.
"Sir Lyner will continue this chase until there are only a few minutes left. Once he's done attacking us mentally, he will begin his assault. When he's trying to catch us he will try to tire us out, slowly like a predator playing with his prey. The moment he is sure of victory is our only chance, got it?"
Matthew gritted his teeth and nodded in response.
"As long as you follow my plan, we will have a chance of winning."
...
Lyner who was looking at his watch while chasing Alex and Matthew saw that there were ten minutes left.
'Now it's time for the real game. I'll start with that kid Matthew, I might have promised not to kill him, but I never said that I'm not going to torture him.'
Lyner then sped up and was about to begin the real chase.
Chapter end
|
Report
|
|
Donate
Oh o, this user has not set a donation button.
|
