Cave and Shadows

Slap.

"SHUT THE HELL UP!"

Ethan slapped her hands away and weakly stand up by forcing himself on his shoulder. He didn't look up at her and keeps his head down. His expression was mixed of struggle and anguish.

"…What the hell do you think you understand about me? You just barge in out of no-where… and say what you want… What the hell do you understand…? Waking Everyday… not knowing anything… being alone… living with what I have… do you know how scary it is?"

Ethan finally raised his head to look at her and look her in her eyes.

"…What will you understand? When you have a loving mother like her… A father who dots after you… you had everything from the birth that I can only dream about… so don't you dare to tell me about how should I live, you pampered spoiled brat!"

Alice suddenly turn silent at his reaction, she didn't think he will react like this. She opened her mouth but was unable to say something as suddenly Ethan fell behind and lost his consciousness. Her eyes lowered to his abdomen and notice three big holes in it.

!

She hurriedly went closer and checked his heartbeat. His Heartbeat was really low, almost non-existent. She hurriedly pulls a mid-level potion and thrust it on his neck. It spread to his body but it didn't have any significant effect on its wound. She pulled few more and injected it in his body but it was to no avail. She can feel his breath getting weaker. He had lost too much blood and healing potions are not able to reach whole body.

She looked at him and fell into contemplation. She had an advance potion residing on her storage but she didn't want to use it. It costs million to buy one and they are only available in auction. She seriously didn't want to waste it on him but… whatever was the case, he did save her life but is it really worth it for her to use it on him? He might not be saved even with it.

She remembers how he didn't hesitate to push her away to save her. She knows he had his motive but she can't say that she didn't feel anything when he saved her like that. She is frustrated about his thinking and wants to ask him more and scold him for being such an idiot but…

Her hands hesitate but she reluctantly pulls out advance potion and thrust it in his neck after few thoughts. As she did, she promised herself that she will have him pay it back even she have to make him sell his soul for it!

Ethan twitched over ground as advance potion takes it effect. Advance potions can heal any injuries as long as consumer is not dead but it's rare as their ingredients are not easy to found. Its effect is to activate all the cells in body which leads to hyper-regeneration of body.

Alice looked at him with regret. She really felt her heart break. She really wondered why she used it on him again. He is also poor so she has no choice but looked at him bitterly.

His wound start closing and his color of the skin starts returning to normal. There was one weird fact about him that his skin over face seems unaffected by everything going on. It felt weird like his skin over the face is not even real. She stretched toward his face to touch…

Roar.

Alice looked away and tried to look for the source of the roar. She narrows her eyes in particular direction. She can tell that few savage bears are making their way toward her. She went toward the Savage bears corpses and stored it in her storage. She has no intention to share it with him after what she did for him.

She picked up Ethan, now that he had healed enough, and move along with shadow. Her condition is not good and another fight might make her pay a heavy price. She needs to first make some recovery and then try to leave the dungeon and it's going to be extremely hard while carrying a person so she is hoping that he might be awake till then.

She found a cave along with cave after few minutes of search. She check the cave and went inside to rest. She laid Ethan down by using rocks to supports his back while she just support her back on the walls of the cave. She begin to think about the class test. She will need to make some adjustment in her plan.

She turned to look at Ethan. Well, She already have a slave to do her work. He owe her too much to be left unused. She already formed the plan in her mind about how she is going to tackle the test.

…

She looked at the Ethan who seems to be sleeping without a care. High-level potion put a strain to body. It's unlikely he will wake up anytime soon. His clothes had few big holes in it. She can't help but remember his fight with bears. He killed two E-Rank Bears all alone. It might be the fact that he didn't fight any of them head-on but even that not many people can do.

She wonder what would happen if he was trained like other students in academy. He would have at the least makes his way to top 100 if not low, considering he also had an Art of his own.

She went closer to look at his wound. She looks through the tear of his clothes and saw that his wounds had healed already. There were few marks that caught her eyes. She removes his shirt further and looked at it. There was a huge crossed shape scar over his chest. She further removes his upper clothes and saw that his whole upper body had been scared brutally!

She had never seen this type of wounds. This wound doesn't have any purpose like torture or damage. It's more like they were done to open up his body. She looks away as she felt her stomach churn. It's not really a sight that she wants to see more. She closed his shirt and looked at his face. He always wears a weird mask that seems to hide his real self perfectly. She really dislikes this feeling since she doesn't understand it.

Alice supported her back on the walls of the cave. It's been an hour since they come here. She managed to make a full recovery, She will wait for ten more minutes and after that she will wake him up. There is no way she is going to carry him all the way to the portal. She had already done enough for him.

!

She turned her head and looked outside. She was able to make few… or three bear-like figures in total, standing outside the cave. She can't help but click her tongue. There is a saying that she hated, dungeon is the most unpredictable place. She just remember why she hated it in the first place.

She call out her bow and hide in the shadows of the cave.

…

Three Savage bears enters the cave and went into deeper while walking on its four feet and smelling the ground. One of them raised its head and looked around but nothing comes onto her vision. It suddenly fall back on its back. Remaining ones turned to look at it and walk toward it by galloping. There was stick stuck on its face. Savage bears looked at it and tried to went closer but suddenly one fell down and it also have same stick stuck on its face.

Last Bear become furious and looked around. It roar in fury as he saw his two comrades lying on the ground. It can tell that both of them had died and whatever killed them will be coming after it. It back off slowly while keeping an eye around. It can see much things in darkness but it will different thing and all if it outside. It swear it will tear apart the creature who killed its comrade… only he won't be able to…

Something suddenly fell from the above and landed on its nape. Savage Bear felt something pressing over its nape and raised his head and roar furiously. Alice jumped up and spin and twisted her body in mid-air and lands in front of the bear. She release the bow from bowstring and it hits it opened mouth and pierced through its hard plate of the mouth.

She stands ups and bear falls back at the same time. She looked down at it coldly. She was almost losing her confidence after her last defeat but it unlikely anyone at the F-Rank will be any opponent to her. She always thought she would have no trouble to fight monster above her rank but she didn't think she will lose like last time.

She thought of Ethan who single-handedly killed an E-Rank. It might be attributed to his quick-judgment or situation but it didn't change the fact he killed it. She can't push this thought away for some reason. She doesn't why but whenever she prepared to fight, his fight suddenly comes into her mind.

Sigh.

She sighed and tried to forget about it and went outside after collected the corpse and core fragments. There were few more bears coming toward them. She will deal wiith all F-Rank and collect their core fragments and leave this dungeon as soon as possible. She had already given up on setting up traps before the test. She is preparing a new plan that will shock everyone.

She killed five more F-Rank Savage Bears and collected their core fragment. They were all inside the cave. It seems they smell the blood and track it back to this cave. She dive into shadow and move along with it to reach Ethan who was sleeping like a dog by curling up on the floor. She hurriedly spray a chemical on him that get rid of blood smell.

She looked at him as he was lying. How should she wake him up. Should she just burn him alive? That won't be amusing enough. Should she scream in his ear? It sounds tiring. Should she use bear's head to kiss him? That will be good but not enough. She wonder if there is anything better. Last one is only seems good enough or should she just combined all of them…

Roar.

!

Alice turned to look outside as roar echoed inside the cave. She turned into shadow and move along with it. She come out of the shadow and noticed a bear, larger than last ones, standing outside the cave with it mouth wide open. It charges inside as it smells something.

Alice looked at it with cold eyes. It is another E-Rank Bear. This time, she will wash her shame from the last time with it blood. This cave had enough shadows and she can utilize her mobility to full extent. This time, she will slay an E-Rank and finally get rid of all distraction in her mind.

She released three arrows and command them from different direction. She turned into shadow and attacked it from all the angles. Bear was able to feel her presence but was unable to catch her due to all the darkness and shadows. All arrows stuck it but they didn't even penetrate his muscles. It was expected as it was repeated of last time.

Alice considered her options. She can use exploding arrows and use the opening of its body to send it inside. She aimed for joints where its muscles were weak. This time, its muscles were penetrated and it also growls in pain.

She only has nine explosive arrows left. She need to make every arrow its worth and disable its mobility completely. She will make it a turtle in the shell and destroy it completely later with her explosive arrows.