4 The ambush

The demon is likely not far ahead, so i decide upon a strategy for Judas and myself.

He will stay in my backpack in his original form. I would rather keep my ally a secret from my potential enemies. Or I will ask Judas to transform into a poisonous toad. Or

Judas's electric viper form can aid me in battle, whether he spies on the enemies or uses his quick speed and electrifying skin. If Judas stays in his original form, he can sniff out any powered adversaries before they reach me or.

Judas should scout ahead of me in his eagle form.

I choose that Judas should scout ahead of me. I unstrap the buckles on my backpack. Judas leaps into the air and flutters onto my shoulder. I rub his chin for a moment before addressing the situation. "Judas, please transform into your eagle form and search the surrounding area for anything dangerous."

Nodding, he transforms into a majestic eagle with a puff of granite-colored smoke. He clicks his beak at me before soaring into the air, quickly rising beyond the pinnacle of the forest. I wait silently until the sun is blotted out briefly by his silhouette.

He returns, gliding down and landing on my arm. His talons grip the thick chap that protects my flesh, and he informs me in various shrieks, clicks and whistles that a group of dark magic wielders are awaiting ahead to ambush me.

I ask Judas to drop my bags of iron on these dark magic users.

I empty the iron into two pouches and stride forward, my accomplice gliding peacefully above my head. As I walk beneath the leaves, i explain, "Judas, we're going to sneak up to that clearing, where I'll conceal myself in the foliage, and I need you to take these bags of iron," i say, patting the bags in question. "Fly overhead, and release them onto the assassins. I'll do the rest."

Judas nods, clicking his beak. The forest is littered with splintered branches, dead animals, and pitted soil. It's typical demonic destructiveness. It is even said they revel in the deaths of the living. Perhaps it's because they consume souls... A few minutes later, the trees thin out and a handful of large deciduous trees outline a small clearing. I kneel down, pulling my hood over my head, and peer through a dense thicket. Judas alights quietly beside me.

Three figures stand before me in the road, spaced well apart, and they make an odd trio. To my left is a heavy-set woman in a black leather suit. She carries an assortment of nasty weapons that drip with something that looks poisonous. A painfully thin woman in a crimson stockings stands to my right, and as to the middle figure...To be truthful, I feel a sudden, peculiar tag of attraction.

I m gazing at a stunning, curvaceous woman with pursed red lips. Her low-cut dress and shimmering necklace accentuate her figure perfectly. Her hair in blood red colour, and she got a tattoo at her neck ,must be some sort of demon sigil.

I stare helplessly at this amazing beauty. Her brilliant red hair flows down her back, her supple, moist lips are pursed in impatience, and her big doe-like eyes seem to swallow me. She has curves in all the right places.

She's a witch assassin, after all, and was probably sent to murder me! The other two dark magic users are old acquaintances of mine,Venesa and Hestesa are mercenaries, wanted in several provinces for their violent crimes. I have never fought either of them personally, but i briefly met once during a long job near the village of JOAJIAN, where they duo seduce the old lord disguise as an escort, burnt his penis with a magic spell,in front of everyone, and thus eventually burning down the village. I know about their weakness and power but,this third person is totally unknown to me although i assume she is also a dark magic wielder. Upon further inspection, i can see what seems to be a nearly unnoticeable shimmer around her body, though it may only be a trick of the dappled forest light. They stand before me expectantly, their expressions ranging from alert to smug. I gently set my backpack on the ground, gazing at the three figures and thinking through my strategy, when my attention is drawn to a conspicuous tattoo on the mercenaries' foreheads, invisible only when look at a particular angle.

I suddenly realize it's written in God language! This vile language is generally only known to demons, wizards, and demon ,god and i recognize the writing as an ancient ward, a type of seal that is always set on the bearer's forehead. After a moment, i translate it: "If I die, you die!" This powerful and nasty curse releases a bolt of energy into the heart of whomever kills its bearer.

Even a wizard would find it very difficult to deflect the spell and it can only ever be revoked by the caster himself or removed by intricate and very powerful spells. I will have to make sure not to use lethal force against these assassins in order to preserve my own life.

However, i will be interrogating them by any means necessary. Perhaps i can gain valuable information about this demon.

I crook a finger at Judas and he hops towards me, expectant.

Detaching the bag of iron from my belt, i hold it out and Judas seizes the strap in his beak. I instruct, "Now, when im within range, bite through the strap, and you release the iron onto the assassins. And you can leave the rest to me."

Judas dips his head, soaring lithely into the air. He soon disappears above the twining branches. Moments later, the assassins find themselves caught unaware in a massive cloud of burning iron. Scatter as they might, the metal leaves deep burn marks into any flesh it touches. Screaming in agony, they scramble frantically to escape the tiny filings. This is an excellent opportunity to defeat one of them quickly while the others are distracted.

The brutish witch stumbles towards the cover of the overhanging trees, the skeletal assassin is crawling across the starved soil, and the beautiful witch lays immobile on the ground, panting heavily.

The mysterious witch is the easiest target.

"Wait!" she protests, urgently. "I'm not your enemy! You've saved me. Those disgusting villains were holding me captive! I don't know what I would have done if you hadn't come along. They were threatening to sacrifice me to the demons! But now I'm safe, because of you..."

"Somehow, I don't find this surprising," i comment.

She pauses, looking at me with a sort of longing. "You've helped me, now let me help you. Demon hunter, my kiss has...magic to it."

She stretches out her hand to me, her body turned provocatively towards me.

I had to quickly light a blue candle, as i suspect this woman is an illusion wielder. I made a quick plan

I cautiously slip my hands into my bag retrieving a candle and a light. The witch eyes my hands nervously but makes no move to attack me. Nervous, she says, "Don't you trust me?"

"Actually, I just wanted to give you something," I reply.

Her eyes narrow in growing suspicion but i act swiftly, striking the lighter and igniting the candle. Its magic instantly takes effect, and the blue light shatters the witch's mirage. Her true form is obvious now: she is an abomination. Ugly filthy hair hangs in dull-colored clumps that look as though it they were taken from ten different beings and patched together by a barber rated being the worst,as I usually seen in the vice channel.

Her eyes, one very tiny,and one bulging out, are blood shot. I cannot see the rest of her body, but the smell is terrible. Worst of all are her lips, abnormally wide and swollen a deep red with infection. I step back quickly as the hideous monster lurches forward, arms stretched towards my neck. Raising my blade ,I strike it into her head before she can react, and it connects with a crack. Moaning, she falls to the ground and lies still, unconscious.

Judas flutters onto my shoulder, commenting, "Ugh. I knew most people were rotten on the inside, but she took it way too far."

"Well, at least that's sorted."

Judas simply shrugs in reply, so i continue, "Well, I suppose we should see what they may have for us." I quickly subdue all the remaining two.

Hestesa, Venesa, and the other one are dead unconscious, unmoving and silent. This would be a sensible time to remove their belongings. I crouch down beside the abominable witch and begin searching through her robe, trying to breathe lightly as her bad odor is almost overwhelming. She mostly carries useless items,but i also find a peculiar earthy green necklace hanging around her neck. I covered my fave with my scarf.

Cautiously retrieving it, i examine it carefully but learn nothing of interest. With a shrug, i deposit it around my neck and begin to search the others. Rummaging through Hestesa belonging, i only find useless items. With a sigh, i suspect that this was only to be expected, anyways. Quickly examining Venesa belongings, I take her sharp daggers and belt, strapping them around my chest.

Next, i relieve her of several small container of poison in a case attached to her waist. Hooking them onto my own belt, i consider using them with my own knives. However, this may be unwise because I'm unfamiliar with the venom, and don't have any sort of antidote or immunity towards it. Instead, i decide that it's better to use it for something else: perhaps a makeshift explosive, as it's surely flammable.

Her crossbow, on the other hand, is beautiful. I doubt that I could sell it even if i chose to carry it with me. It's much too large for a normal human to wield in battle, so i decide against it, as it would prove far too dangerous and will be tiy disadvantages.

I rise, quickly restraining them with my silver chain. Suddenly, the abomination awakens with a heaving, ragged breath; she begins coughing, her face twisted in pain. A warm, golden glow appears around the mercenaries. Frowning, my hand twitches to my dagger but nothing happens. When the glow subsides, i see that all three assassins are looking much better, their wounds closing as the bruises fade to faint mark.

Now back in her attractive and not monstrous form, she remarks, "I... I can't believe that you defeated us. What's your secret, Hunter, and what will you do with us now?" Raising my eyebrows incredulously, i reply, "Well, there are other things that hold sway in this world besides dark magic and evil. You would do well to learn that."

She falls silent, a stubborn look on her face. Fluttering his wings idly, my apprentice asks me "What do you think will happen to them at DOGHAVEN.

"They won't be our problem any more," I respond calmly.

"Hopefully they will realize their mistakes, but maybe that's just wishful thinking."

Eyeing the assassins with a mischievous smirk, I say, "Oh, I don't know, maybe they'll be fed to the pig.

Hestesa just rolls her eyes, and Venesa scoffs in disbelief, but the color drains from mysterious witch face. Judas giggles, twitching his tail excitedly.

"Regardless, my desire is to learn more about this demon," I say, eyeing my enemies coldly.

Laughing humorlessly, Venesa spits, "Do your worst, hunter! If you're dumb enough to kill me, I guess I'll see you in the black abyss between hell and heaven.

Frowning, I step forward, promptly slamming the bottom of my rifles into her nose. She roars at me furiously, spitting at my face her spit smell horrible wipe it clean with my scarf, and looks more angry than cooperative. Grinning dangerously, I say sharply, "Would you really like to lose your good looks over some monstrous demon?"

Seething with anger, Venesa glares at me for a moment longer, but apparently seems to see the futility in resisting. Sighing, she says tersely, "We were doing other...business, when the demon approached us, offering to increase our powers in exchange for your head. That is the only interaction we had. And if you don't believe me, well, you can go ask him yourself."

Nodding once, i decide there's no further useful information to be had. Or, at least, not any that would be worth using up more of my valuable time.