Lit

"Hmm~ Why is this one so quiet?" Nia hums, curiosity piqued as she pokes her finger into Isadora's cheek. Despite the pressure, Isadora remains impassive, her expression unchanging. Nia's mischief grows; she uses her fingers to force Isadora's lips into a smile, yet the girl's stoicism remains unbroken. "She's been like that this whole time. She hasn't said a single word," Zelo comments, masking his concern with a yawn and a stretch, revealing a sliver of intrigue beneath his laid-back demeanor.

"Now we wait," Ri declares, finding solace on a rock, embodying the calm before the storm. Nia, restless as ever, protests, "Huh? Wait? That's boring~ Let's go hunt~" She gives Isadora two light slaps, seeking any reaction, before standing with an air of dissatisfaction.

"Stop bitching and take a seat. These are a bunch of kids. I can guarantee they're on their way here. These kids and their... smooth brains. They wouldn't leave these two behind," Zelo remarks, his voice dripping with disdain yet laced with a yawn, betraying his underlying fatigue.

'I can hear you assholes! Smooth brains? Does he think we're stupid? Dammit... I'm tired of this,' Kaida complains internally, her frustration mounting with each passing moment, yet outwardly, she fidgets with her fingers, betraying her anxiety.

"Huh? Why didn't you take their pouches?" Nia muses aloud, her grin widening as she approaches the girls with predatory interest, licking her lips in anticipation of what they might conceal.

"Tsk, can you just shut the fuck up and sit down," Zelo exhales, his patience wearing thin. His glare at Nia is icy, a silent promise of violence simmering beneath the surface. 'I'm this close to killing you...' he vows silently, his gaze sharp enough to cut through the tension hanging in the air.

"Hey, what if we-" BOOM! Nia's words are abruptly cut off as fire engulfs the area, the ground beneath them quaking and fissuring with the force of the explosion. Amidst the chaos, Nia's laughter rings out, clear and unaffected. "Hahahahaha, are you sure these are just kids?" she cackles, rolling on the ground. For some reason, she finds herself at a safe distance from the flames the moment they erupt, swiftly tousling her hair to rid it of the fire's touch.

"Tsk, that didn't kill her?" Zelo mutters under his breath as the dust settles around him, the magical dome he conjured at the last possible moment fading away. Despite the intensity of the attack, he stands unscathed, his calm betraying the near miss.

"Hmm... They're all over the place. I'm guessing they want us to split up," Ri muses, his voice deep and unaffected. He hadn't made a single move to dodge or shield himself from the fiery onslaught, yet he remains completely unharmed.

Ri then stands and exhales deeply, "There's more than one boy. I'll deal with the kids over here," he declares, choosing a direction and stepping forward with a yawn.

"What about you?" Zelo turns to the nameless man, who until now had been leaning nonchalantly against a tree. The man begins to walk, whistling a tune, his voice calm yet carrying an undeniable authority. "Mmmm... I'll see what I can do, but you might want to be careful," he advises.

Zelo lets out a heavy sigh, "The child of the woman again..." Without moving his head, he flicks his finger backward, casting a magical shield in an instant as a huge lightning bolt streaks straight toward him. The impact shatters the shield, leaving Zelo in disbelief. "Huh?" he utters, managing to catch the lightning bolt with his palm. 'That should've been enough to deal with this,' he thinks, his teeth gritted as he feels the sting of the lightning coursing through his body. With a monumental effort, he redirects the energy with a BOOM! The lightning, now a wild force of nature, tears through the trees as it's blasted away into the distance.

"Tsk, what do I do, hmm..." Zelo ponders, turning his gaze towards Isadora and Kaida, a flicker of realization crossing his face. "I see what they're planning," he mumbles, his voice laced with annoyance. But before he can make his next move, whoosh! Boom! He's forced to leap back, narrowly dodging as Isabella unleashes a barrage of lightning blades. "I'm going to kill you, you damn barbarian," she states, her voice as cold as the ice, her eyes locked onto Zelo with unyielding resolve.

Zelo, ever the provocateur, merely exhales and looks up. "And how do you plan on doing that?" he taunts, stepping on a stick to propel himself up to eye level with her. 'This kid is full of herself. She had potential, but she lacks—' His thoughts are abruptly cut off as Isabella interjects, "You think I lack intelligence, don't you? Look at me," she demands, pointing at her eyes with a frosty command. "I am in charge."

With a flourish, Isabella downs a potion of dark blue, grimacing at the taste. 'This tastes horrible!' she cries internally, yet she refuses to show any sign of weakness. Zelo, watching with a mixture of curiosity and skepticism, raises an eyebrow. "What is that supposed to do?" he asks, his tone dripping with disdain.

Isabella smirks, her expression turning malevolent. "Learn your place," she declares, her voice magically amplified so all can hear her declaration of power. She raises her palm, and three immense magic circles materialize, from which huge lightning chains crackling with purple electricity shoot out, caging everyone in their vicinity. At the center, mid-air, a purple orb appears, its surface rippling like water. "This is a 'basic' spell, you fool. Your pathetic spells won't work on me."

'shit,' Zelo rubs his temples, a headache brewing from the intensity of the display. 'Is it a family trait?' he grumbles internally, his annoyance palpable. 

"Hmhmhmhm, this is interesting for sure, what an overpowered potion. To think it'd give you enough mana to cast this damn spell..." Zelo muses, his gaze sweeping the area. His mind races, 'Ri and that man should be fine. I wouldn't mind if that woman dies thanks to this, but I doubt it... This spell is meant to deal with mages...' He extends his hand, attempting to cast a counter with a magic circle. In an instant, thousands of thin lightning strands shoot out from the chains, wrapping around his arm and magic circle, delivering a vicious shock and shattering his efforts. With a heavy sigh, Zelo lowers his hand, resigning himself to the situation. "This is going to be a painful day," he states, his tone laden with weariness.

"If you kill yourself, your death won't be painful," Isabella retorts coldly, looking down at him as though he were a mere bug.

"Fuck you, you damn noble," Zelo grunts, his frustration palpable. 'I have to get rid of her before I do anything else,' he plots, his mind working overtime to find a solution.

Meanwhile, elsewhere, slash! Shoosh! "Hahahahahaha," Nia laughs, her agility on full display as she narrowly evades a sword slash that instead cleaves a tree in half. With acrobatic grace, she jumps up as a second sword swipe aims to slice her, landing upside down with her hand on the sword, she catapults herself up. "Oh, you two are a little vicious~," her tone dripping with malice, sending shivers down Aira and Sera's spines.

"Is there any criminal that's not insane?" Sera mutters, executing a flurry of twelve slashes in an instant, all of which Nia dodges with ease, her body contorting like a cat's.

"Oh, come on, darling~ The crazy ones are the fun ones~," Nia smirks, her legs twisting around Sera's neck in a sudden move, but as Sera is about to be slammed into the ground, she braces herself. The ground cracks under the force of her resistance. "Ugh! You damn criminal!" Sera grunts, managing to kick Nia away with a desperate move.

Nia, rubbing her head, chuckles with a hint of admiration. "Hehehe, you're adorable. I can't wait to eat you," she says, her lips curling into a predatory smile. 

Slash! In perfect harmony, both girls envelop their bodies in aura and mana respectively, striking with synchronized precision. Nia, with a grin that spells trouble, effortlessly dodges their assault. In a blink, she vanishes behind a tree, only to reappear right behind Aira, whispering "boo" softly in her ear. Aira, taken aback, reflexively slashes sideways, generating a shockwave. Surprisingly, Nia blocks with a tiny sword, laughably small, more befitting a child's toy than a weapon. 'How did she do that!? She was right in front of us!' Aira ponders in disbelief, retreating a step.

"Hmm~ huhuhu~ Are you curious? You want to know what I'm doing?" Nia teases, her voice dripping with mischief as she flits from behind one tree to suddenly standing behind Sera, her fingers brushing against Sera's shoulders. "I'll tell you if you hand over the boy~," she whispers enticingly into Sera's ear.

Sera, startled, screams, "AAHH! Don't do t-that, you crazy c-criminal!" She whirls around, her blade slicing through nothing but air as Nia nimbly dodges.

'How!? It doesn't make sense!' Sera's frustration mounts, her gaze sharp. "Sera, I think I know... You have an attribute, right?" 

"Bingo!" Nia's smile broadens, her agility on full display as she steps past a tree, only to emerge behind Aira. "Tell me where the boy is~," she coos, her voice a soft, dangerous whisper.

"S-stop doing this!" In unison, they attack, their blades whirling through trees and bushes, the landscape bearing witness to their determination. 'How did a criminal like her create an attribute? It's not something anyone can make. It takes more than training to create one,' Aira muses, her mind racing with questions.

"Come on, girls~ Why are you risking your lives over some ugly boy~ If you just hand him over, no one else has to die~" Nia taunts, her voice laced with false concern.

In response, Aira intensifies her aura around her sword, slashing at Nia with renewed vigor, pushing the criminal back. "I won't let someone who lives in my country with so much potential die to some backstreet criminal," Aira declares, her voice steady with a resolve that belies her calm exterior.

Nia, seemingly unfazed, stands up, rubbing her stomach. "Hmm... You must be royalty?" She tilts her head, curiosity piqued by Aira's determination.

As Sera attacks from behind, Nia effortlessly raises her tiny sword, the clash resulting in a shockwave that clears the area. 

"Ugh... girls, stop hesitating~" Nia groans, effortlessly pushing Sera away with a flick of her wrist. "134. That's the number of times I could've killed you," she declares, rubbing her head in feigned annoyance. "I don't like breaking my toys..." she mumbles, her voice a blend of boredom and contemplation, her mind racing with cruel possibilities. 'Should I break their arms? Or maybe their legs?' she ponders, all the while nimbly dodging their attacks with grace.

"You're misunderstanding something here. We haven't gone all out," Sera states, determination flaring in her eyes as she forcefully pushes herself off the ground, causing it to crack beneath her. With astonishing speed, she propels herself at Nia. Nia attempts to block with her tiny sword but finds herself lifted off the ground by the force of Sera's attack.

Running up a tree as if it were flat ground, Aira leaps towards Nia and brings her blade down in a powerful arc. Nia, with a malicious smile stretching across her face, barely manages to avert a deadly cut, her arm nearly severed in the process. However, she catches the blade with her other hand and, in a breathtaking display of agility, wraps her legs around Aira's arm mid-air. "You know what they say~ An eye for an eye~," she whispers ominously before twisting sharply, breaking Aira's bone with a sickening crack.

'Ugh... how is she so agile?' Aira hisses through clenched teeth as she retreats from Nia's grasp, pain radiating from her injured arm.

"You're insane..." Sera mutters, her voice a mixture of awe and horror, wondering if Nia is even human. 'Does she not feel pain?'

Nia, tasting her own blood with a twisted delight, responds with a grin, "I am well aware~," her voice dripping with madness and thrill for the fight.