Revenge pact

Adonis' gaze remained unflinching as he locked eyes with the knight, his scrutiny delving deep into the labyrinthine recesses of the man's twisted soul.

"You Quin are a murderer...You're no warrior. A warrior kills with the knowledge and acceptance that they too could be killed at any moment."

As Quin's eyes fluttered open, a tremor surged shaking his entire being.

The gaze that met his was frigid and unnerving, a chilling intensity that seeped into his very core.

The boy's eyes, now an eerie silvery orange with slit pupils, held a whirlwind of emotions- rage, loathing, and even a trace of pity.

"My mama never taught me how to deal with your type." Adonis sighed.

The corners of Quin's eyes curved slightly as he heard those words, feeling a glimmer of hope.

"But...Papa taught me thoroughly how to deal with murderers." With an eerie calmness, Adonis's voice cut through the tension-laden air.

A palpable shift occurred as he unleashed a sinister aura, its malevolent energy radiating outward.

DEMMM

The unsettling presence of this aura even managed to stir unease within Naomi, despite it not being directed at her.

SLAM

Using his right hand, Adonis slammed Quin's head into the ground causing him to break multiple bones in his face.

"You're a coward."

SLAM

"But that's not the issue..."

SLAM

"The issue is you refuse to accept that..."

SLAM

"You're narcissistic..."

SLAM

"You're classist..."

SLAM

"You're entitled..."

SLAM

"You're a predator..."

SLAM

"You're..."

Adonis continued this way multiple times, and every time it seemed like the knight would die, he would heal him and then repeat.

***

By around 7 PM, the young boy had exhausted his supply of potions, and his strength-enhancing elixir had waned.

Adonis found himself succumbing to exhaustion, slumping against the wall beside Naomi.

While Quin remained in a dire state of unconsciousness, teetering on the brink of a critical condition.

***

10 PM

"AHHH!" Amid the night, Adonis jolted awake, his slumber interrupted by a high-pitched screech that echoed through the air, reminiscent of a frightened young girl.

"Get away from me! You're crazy!" Quin's distress persisted, his cries full of terror as if he had come face to face with Pluto himself.

{Kukuku...It's about damn time.}

"Is he having a nightmare?" Groaning, Adonis opened his eyes.

Upon blinking his eyes open even more, Adonis was rendered speechless. The unfolding events held an unforeseen twist.

"Mongrel, help me! She's insane."

A cry of distress escaped Quin's lips as his gaze snapped toward the slumped figure of the boy against the wall.

In a stark tableau near Quin, Rupert's presence loomed.

His ex-fiancé, her eyes brimming with a rugged blend of tears and loathing, brandished a formidable icicle, its sharpness gleaming ominously above her head.

{Finally...Someone with some sense.}

Adonis jumped up immediately.

"Naomi! Wait!" Adonis screamed as he cautiously approached the girl who radiated murderess intent.

"Adonis, thank you. You did your part... but no matter how many 'lessons' you try to teach him he won't stop!" Naomi said as she continued to hold the icicle above her head.

"Naomi, he's not worth it! If you kill him, you'll be just like him!"

{Oh, shut up!}

"Just like him!? If I kill this piece of shit I'll be doing the world a favour."

"Who lives or dies isn't your call to make, Naomi."

"And it's his!? Do you think my mother was the first of his victims?! Quin Rupert is famous in the city for going overboard with his taunts. "

"Then let someone else do it! Let him be judged by the justice system."

"Adonis, I know you aren't stupid." Turning her head gracefully, the girl addressed the boy who was steadily advancing, her gaze meeting his.

{I beg to differ.} Eos scoffed.

"Gotcha, bitch!" Quin cried out, his hand moving swiftly as he attempted to push Naomi's leg, urging her to the ground

SPLURT

Before he could execute his push, Naomi swiftly swung the icicle with full force toward his already heavily bruised head.

Quin Rupert is dead.

Adonis' eyes widened in response to the girl's action, but instead of empathy, an unexpected sensation of relief washed over him.

Relief that he wasn't the one who killed him...

However, after a brief pause, the gravity of their situation finally settled upon him. The weight of his actions became painfully clear...

Adonis had not only assaulted a noble on multiple occasions, but Naomi had just committed murder.

Regardless of Quin's crimes, the justice system was unlikely to side with them.

Contrary to her anticipation of scolding, Adonis seized her hand and initiated into a full sprint, their feet pounding the ground as they fled.

"We have to leave the city!"

Adonis propelled the girl through the alleyway, retracing the exact turns he had taken to arrive there. As they emerged from the passage, his gaze landed on two patrolling knights, their presence immediately catching his attention.

"Adonis, even if we leave. They will find us." Amidst laboured breaths, Naomi voiced her concern, her words laced with a sense of worry.

"I have a plan, don't worry about it." Adonis dismissed, studying the guards who were a few hundred meters away.

Extending his hand, Adonis conjured an aged scroll from his spatial ring. The weathered, creased paper rested in his palm as he maintained a vigilant eye.

'What a waste!' He thought as he remembered the jaw-dropping price of the scroll.

Gently unrolling the scroll, Adonis positioned it on the ground before biting his thumb, allowing his blood to drip onto the parchment.

Upon contact, a gentle vibration emanated from the scroll, and the runes etched upon it emitted a subtle, luminous glow.

"20 minutes." He whispered to the scroll as he continued to survey his surroundings.

'The City gates are more than fifty kilometres away It should take us about five hours on foot; considering the hidden paths we'll have to take, but I can cut it down to two if I carry Naomi while sprinting and leaping on roofs. Because of the commotion we made, the guards should take about ten minutes. If I can buy us an additional thirty minutes, We can escape into the forest.'

Adonis held out his hand once again and summoned several other scrolls, to which he did the same thing but whispered at different times.

The final item Adonis summoned was an enchanted chain. Despite a few minutes of persuasive effort, he succeeded in fastening Naomi securely to his back using the chain.

"Hey! There's a dead body here!" A guard yelled as he entered the vacant ally the duo had just escaped from.

"It's fresh too!" A different guard elaborated.

'Earlier than I thought...' Adonis complained as he began his dash.

The youth's sudden movement garnered the attention of a guard who patrolled the empty streets of the residential district.

"Hey! You, stop right there!" He commanded as he chased after the boy with a young lady on his back.

Disregarding the guard's words, the young boy vaulted onto the roof of an average-sized cottage, causing the structure to quiver under his weight.

The knight, taken aback by the swift manoeuvre, replicated the action effortlessly and persisted in his pursuit.

Adonis maintained his breakneck pace, but the knight remained unshaken, outpacing the boy.

The distance between them diminished rapidly.

Just as the knight was nearly at his heels, Adonis made an unexpected decision.

Rather than leaping to another rooftop, he chose to descend. The moment the knight touched the ground after his descent, he realized that the boy had vanished without a trace.

"Psst!" The guard immediately snapped his head to the side to hear where the call came from, but what he saw was...

Nothing?

***

A few minutes after Adonis managed to shake the first guard off, he encountered three more who were quicker to notice his presence than the previous one.

"It's that dwarf they're looking for!"

'Dwarf? I'm still growing!'

Adonis pressed on without casting a glance backwards, deftly navigating obstacles like fences, rooftops, and walls in his path.

These guards were a different challenge altogether, displaying a speed and determination that marked them as Intermediate knights.

In the past, their presence might have stirred fear in Adonis, but this time an unusual calm enveloped him.

It wasn't arrogance, but a deep awareness that he didn't need to confront them directly; his preparations had positioned him well for this situation.

As the chase persisted with the knights in relentless pursuit, Adonis once again propelled himself onto a building. However, this time it wasn't a cottage but a grand temple that he landed upon...

"Such disrespect!"

The guards hesitated to pursue him onto the temple's roof. Instead, one of them halted, swiftly converting their spear into a makeshift javelin.

Meanwhile, another guard opted to circle to the temple's right side, while the third guard took the left flank, their collective strategy displaying a coordinated effort.

Still, atop the temple, Adonis smiled mischievously.

His smile disappeared as quickly as it came after he noticed the missile of a spear coated in aura approach him.

"Dammit!"