Runes Activation

Gem's hands were still holding onto the beast's jaws.

Pulling it towards opposite directions, and with the extra surge, the beast's body was ripped into two.

It was ripped in a way that was strangely perfect, and a crystal was sent flying in the air.

"Huh!"

Gem exclaimed as he rushed forward before grabbing the crystal while it was mid-air.

"What's this?!!"

Both Zain and Dem quickly rushed towards him with curiosity in their eyes, but little did they know, the beast Gem flung towards a distance had already gotten back up to his feet.

Turning around, the trio's eyes stared at the beast in annoyance.

"I've killed a beast," Gem started, "Dem has killed a beast, and there's one more beast to kill."

"So Zain, you keep bragging that you are our leader, so I bet you know what to do, right?" Gem said, walking towards the duo, Zain and Dem.

Running backward, both Gem and Dem gave Zain the necessary space needed.

"These rank-F beasts are not a class that I can boldly call strong especially due to the fact that these are newly hatched rats, these rats only have the strength and power to be compared to a wild animal, maybe a bull," Dem thought.

"So for the meantime, I should go check out that crystal. From my point of view, it fell off the rat beast Gem killed."

"Maybe it fell from the beast's chest. Gem killed the beast too fast and unexpectedly, so..."

Dem simply pulled out the knife hanging around his waist and then went towards the beast he killed himself.

Slice! Slice! Slice!

Moments later, he found it, something inside the beast that has a crystal shape and a brown luminescent glow.

"Two crystals now!"

"So it does exist inside this beast like I assumed. Maybe it's something every beast possesses, something that differentiates them from animals and us, human beings."

Walking towards the edge of the mini-desert, Dem then started dragging his bag that he flung away to the side when he first arrived.

It was the bag he brought by himself alongside when leaving the village.

Dem dragged it towards the other bag not too far away which Gem brought, still unconcerned about what was happening to Zain.

Regardless of the hot weather, both Zain and Gem have been putting on sweaters, only for Gem's sweater to be ripped off due to the confrontation with the beast. And at that moment, Zain realized, or rather, remembered it was hiding an armor inside.

"I was so scared I forgot I was putting on armor," Zain muttered as the beast approached him with a slow walk, and its terrifying predator eyes fixed at Zain, even at this moment, were still sending shivers down his spine.

Leaping upward, the rat beast swung its claws downwards, slashing Zain at his chest. The claws were unpredictably sharp, and they sliced through Zain's armor, reaching him at his chest.

"Arrrrrrgh!!! Zain screamed. "It's surprisingly too sharp."

Zain quickly stretched his hands and grabbed the beast's limbs trying to restrain it from moving, he seems to have forgotten him and Gem are on two different levels. With a simple pull by the beast, Zain was sent hurling into a distance.

"Its strength is surprisingly incredible too. I feel like I'm fighting a bull." Zain realized as he was mid-air and upside down in the air being chased by the beast right below him.

Crash!

"Arrrrrrrrrghh!"

Crash!

"Arrrrrrghhh!"

Crash!

"Uuuhhhhhhhhhhh!"

Gem, who was assembling all their stuff that was scattered around due to the previous fight, was forced to turn around.

"Zain is going to die if we don't help."

Turning around, he saw Dem unfazed by what was going on. Dem was simply observing the crystal he was holding with his left hand and tossing the one in his right continuously.

"Damn, if it wasn't for the armor, he would have been dead." Rushing forward, Gem tensed his fist as he then smashed the beast a few times before it dropped dead.

"Bang!"

"Bang!"

"Bang!"

"Huff!!! We finally killed it, it's finally done, the last beast is dead," Zain sighed with relief. "For a moment there, I thought I was gonna die."

Dem simply gave a cold stare before replying.

"I hope you have realized how stupid you all are. You should be lucky I went against the idea of reporting you guys to your parents and the society."

Staring into the distance, the calm wind went through his body, and his blond combed hair was swept backwards.

Standing from his sitting position, Dem tossed the crystal into the air like he had been doing and stretched his hands to quickly catch it in the air. But before he could, it slipped off his hand and landed on the sandy ground.

Dem bent down to pick it, but as he did, he noticed something unusual; a drawing could be seen slowly appearing on the ground.

It looked more like a glowing rune other than a drawing, but one thing was clear: the crystal was responsible for its activation. And no matter how much Gem tried to pull the crystal off the ground, it never budged.

"Is everything alright, Dem?"

Zain couldn't help but ask. It seemed like the rune wasn't a small one after all, because it was so big it was reaching Zain's area and further.

The rune's aura was blowing away the sand on the desert ground wildly, making its blue glow more visible and creating a windy noise.

Dem turned back in shock, with his eyes wide open as he started screaming something.

The blowing dust made it hard for Zain to even see Gem, let alone hear him.

Then the effect started taking place. It was like a force from below pulled them into it.

The rune finally deactivated and the trio, along with their backpacks, were nowhere to be seen.

*****

Dear readers, I know I haven't posted lots of chapters from my book, but please, if you have enjoyed this book so far, I'll appreciate it so much if you vote.

This book needs your vote; I'm planning to make it at the top soon in the tab of novels with the highest power stones.

Show some love and motivation to me with your power stone because, of course, a happy writer makes his readers share similar emotions.