Chapter Three: Survival

While everyone's hearts trembled upon hearing the news, the companion of the man in the red cloak who had discovered the soldiers asked in a trembling voice:

"How far are they from the cave, Hain?"

Hain, closing his eyes and focusing on his magical senses, replied:

"They're just meters away... No, they've entered the cave!"

Everyone was shocked by this terrifying news, and the man asked again:

"Will they discover the spell you placed?"

Hain responded with visible worry:

"I don't know, but if they do, I fear there will be no escape from a fight."

The man, named Javier, looked at the other person beside him and said firmly:

"Alright, if they discover the spell, we will rely on you, Fred."

Fred nodded and prepared himself for battle. At that moment, the soldiers of the Ilshin family, consisting of ten men, discovered the cave where Finn and the others were hiding. They entered the cave cautiously, their footsteps trembling on the damp ground.

"Do you think anyone escaped here?" one soldier asked.

"I don't know, but according to the commander's orders, if we find any fugitives, we will kill them all," another soldier replied coldly.

They continued walking through the cave until they reached the blocked wall. Seeing the blocked wall, one of the soldiers said:

"I guess there's no one here. We should leave and search elsewhere."

Everyone agreed with him and started to leave, but one soldier among them approached the wall, muttering to himself:

"I feel there's something strange here..."

He stood before the wall and reached out to touch it, and suddenly his hand disappeared into it. He shouted loudly:

"Hey guys, there's something strange here!"

The soldiers looked at him, and at that moment, they heard a loud voice coming from inside the cave:

"Now, Fred!"

At that moment, the blocked wall revealed the hidden group. The soldiers looked at the group and raised their swords, starting the attack. But Fred quickly raised his hand, focusing his magical energy. A fireball the size of his head formed, glowing with a dark red light. The fireball shot swiftly toward the soldiers, bursting with heat and sparks.

When it hit the soldiers, it exploded with a tremendous blast. The shockwave from the explosion filled the cave with a deafening sound, causing the ground to shake violently. The air was filled with the smell of sulfur and smoke.

The soldiers scattered in all directions, some screaming in pain as their clothes caught fire, while others fell unconscious from the force of the explosion. The flames receded slightly, revealing the scene of burning soldiers and charred bodies.

At that moment, the soldiers outside heard the explosion and quickly headed toward the cave.

"Someone is using fire magic, we need to be cautious!"

The soldiers found the charred bodies, and anger appeared on their faces. A large shadow appeared at the entrance of the cave. It was their commander, his face tight with anger, shouting orders to the remaining soldiers:

"Don't let them escape!"

In the forest, amidst the trees, Finn and the others were fleeing.

"We need to split up!" Javier ordered the group fleeing among the trees. Everyone nodded in agreement, and the group divided into two, with six heading west and six heading east. Finn was in the group that fled east, running alongside Jack, Iyana, Falco, another companion, and a person in a white cloak.

The cold air stung Finn's face as he ran with the group through the dense forest, dodging branches and shrubs.

"We need to find a place to hide!" Jack shouted, his voice mixed with panic and determination.

"There they are, they fled that way," Ilshin soldiers pointed toward Finn's group.

"They've found us!" Falco shouted.

"We need to split up now," Falco told everyone.

"What?" Everyone shouted in surprise.

"But if we split up now, our numbers will be too small," Jack asked anxiously.

"It's better than being caught like rats. At least some of us should survive," Falco replied.

"But—"

"I'll take these two with me in this direction, and you go in that direction," Falco's group split and went in the opposite direction before Jack could finish speaking. Finn, Jack, and Iyana remained.

"Damn," Jack cursed, and they began to run in the opposite direction as well.

"Over here!" Finn shouted, pointing to a dense cluster of trees. The group rushed toward the trees, hiding behind the thick trunks. They held their breath, trying to listen for any sounds indicating the soldiers' approach.

"It looks like they went this way!" They heard the voices of the approaching soldiers, and their hearts trembled.

"What do we do now?" Finn asked anxiously.

Jack, breathing heavily, pulled out a piece of paper with strange symbols drawn on it from his pocket and began placing it on the ground.

"What is this?" Finn asked in amazement.

"It's a concealment spell. I'll use it now; you need to get close to me," Jack said in a low voice. Finn looked at Iyana, and they moved closer to him.

Jack began channeling his magical energy into the paper, and it started to glow, covering Jack, Finn, and Iyana in light. They all became invisible.

"This spell will last for half an hour. I hope they don't find us in that time," Jack said anxiously, and their hearts began to race.

At that moment, the soldiers arrived at the place where Finn and the others had fled. The soldiers searched the area but found only dense trees.

"Damn it, does anyone have a detection spell?" The soldiers' leader asked, and fear began to creep into the trio's hearts.

The soldiers looked at each other and didn't answer.

"No one? Damn it," the soldiers' leader cursed and began to think.

"If so, we need to search elsewhere, maybe by the river," the leader said, and they started to leave.

But as they were about to leave, another soldier approached the spot where the spell was activated, sensing something strange. He reached out to touch the area where the three were hiding. Finn froze in place, his throat dry with fear. The soldier's face was just a few centimeters away from Finn's, and he could hear his anxious breathing.

"Damn," Jack cursed in his mind, trying to stay calm.

But just as the soldier's hand was about to touch them, they heard a massive explosion from the opposite direction. "What?" The soldiers wondered, and the soldier who was about to discover them stepped back.

"All units, head to the explosion site!" their leader ordered.

Finn, Jack, and Iyana breathed a sigh of relief as the soldiers retreated and moved away. Minutes felt like hours at that moment, and their hearts were pounding.

After a while of hiding, the three revealed themselves.

"We need to stay quiet and move away slowly. We can't stay here for long," Jack said cautiously.

The three began moving slowly, carefully advancing through the forest, trying to remain calm and avoid any noise that might reveal their location. The dense trees and darkness made the task even more difficult.

"We need to reach a safer area before they kill us," Jack whispered as they moved silently behind him.

Finn felt his heart pounding with anxiety. After a short time, they found a cave in the darkness and entered it.

"I think this place is suitable for hiding," Finn said.

The other two nodded, and they sat inside, trying to catch their breath and think about their next move.

As they sat inside the cave, worry etched on their faces, Iyana suddenly stood up and said:

"I need to relieve myself. I'll be back quickly."

Finn and Jack looked at her and silently agreed. Iyana left the cave.

After she left, Finn asked Jack,

"Where did Lady Iyana come from?"

Jack replied, "I don't know. We found her on our way. She was healing a deer at that time. We asked her name, and she said it was Iyana, but when we asked about her family, she didn't answer. So we had no choice but to take her with us because we needed a healer."

Finn nodded. "Alright, I just hope we get out of this situation safely," Finn said anxiously, and Jack nodded in agreement.

Somewhere far from Jack and Finn, particularly in the main headquarters of the Ilshin family, the head of the Ilshin family sat in his office with his deputy beside him.

"So, how's the situation?" the head of the Ilshin family asked.

"Well, sir, we killed all the family heads and seized many spoils, but we lost a significant number of soldiers. Here is the report," the deputy replied respectfully, handing over the report.

Dmitri Ilshin looked at the report and sighed.

"Hah."

"Is there anything else?"

"No, sir."

"Alright, did you like this?" The head of the Ilshin family looked at the corner of the room.

The deputy felt puzzled and was about to respond to his master's question when someone emerged from the corner of the room, wearing black clothes.

"What?"

The deputy, Ryan, was astonished. He was highly skilled but had never realized someone was in the room.

The person smiled and lifted their hood to reveal long green hair and smooth skin.

"You're very perceptive, head of the Ilshin family," it was Iyana.