Hellbents
Chapter 15: The Old Servant

The night wind blew cold, the leaves of trees fell along with the rattling of crickets that echoed among the forest. On his native earth starting to enter autumn, the atmosphere here was not too far away either. But the moon shining with a reddish circle reminded him again and again that Ava was not part of this fantasy world.

The girl reached into the backpack she was still carrying, then took out her large make-up bag. The smartphone that has been turned off is now on, the existing battery is still quite full, 88%. Ava scrolls through her screen, entering the music player app. Not long after that, a cheerful groove with a fast tempo came out of the existing speakers.

Ava must find a way to charge her phone. Her emotional stability is at stake, and no Lexa will calm her down, so she needs a new “reset” button.

“What is it?” Ava turned to a man wrapped in a blanket next to a bonfire. River asked with a peaceful expression on his face. “Artifak,” Ava has prepared an answer from yesterday-yesterday. What he carries is mostly absent in this world, ranging from makeup supplies, pistols and bullets, phones and chargers, even the clothes he initially wears will look strange, deviate from the fashion trend here which is more like the western civilization of the past. So if someone questions the object, he will reply to artifacts or items from the gate.

“Oh! I've never seen an artifact like that. What does it do?”

“Capture photos, then record pictures and sounds.” There will be more if there is a signal here.

“Wah, so the song you played came from the voice recording you captured?” Ava downloads her songs online. “I got it after traveling here and there.” But of course River wouldn't understand that, so he lied.

“Can you record my voice then?” Drowsiness seemed to have disappeared from the look on the man's face. Ava pressing icon for voice recording, “Speak anything you want.”

“Oh! Hello, hello! This River Doyle.” An enthusiastic screech came out of River's throat hearing his voice coming out of the phone in Ava's grasp.

“I'll appreciate it if you lower the volume of your conversation, my colleague is asleep,” Al interrupts their chat before continuing further.

“Ah, sorry,” is aware of his mistake, River awkwardly justifies his blanket position. He then looked at Ava to make sure again, “You know, I'm still willing to replace you if you're still tired.”

“Just sleep, I'll wake you up when it's your turn to arrive.” River half-heartedly nodded.

Ava glanced at the middle-aged man next to her. Ava and Al become a couple to keep up the night, both rejecting River's proposal so that he can accompany Ava and Al to stay with Ezra. When two parties do not know each other, it is better to keep the night of each round represented by one of them each. That way, the opportunity to take advantage of parties who are asleep is smaller. If Ava was paired with River, Ezra and Al who were then in turn to sleep would feel restless, as well as should. Because their togetherness is based on the relationship of Ava and Ezra which is practically still categorized as a stranger, imposed by the guise of chance, which even his motives are still hidden, although Ava more or less already knows.

And he refused to be paired with Ezra. Well, the reason is clear. The prince is in power, a royal family in a monarchical state.

That's why, although a little uncomfortable, he prefers to be with Al, a high-level but quiet person.

“Seeing how he treats you, I thought you guys had been partners for a long time.” Why was this man suddenly curious. What is the complaint from his employer?

“We only know each other for less than two weeks, I just look like her little sister, so she's acting like that to me.”

“Oh, but wouldn't it still be strange if he spoiled you to such an extent?”

Pampering? What nonsense is that. “The original nature is too good,” who has past wounds and a sad story, but this person does not need to know deeply. The issue is also too private, which River shared with Ava at the moment of its vulnerability. Ava's memory is still clear how the man cried when he hugged her tightly.

“Good? With such a gentle character, I don't think he's suitable to be a fighter.”

Well, so leave us both out of your political game! Ava put on a smile of her business.

The flames they made were not only to raise the temperature on a cold night, but also to keep away small, low-level animals or monsters. If there is still someone approaching, it means whatever it will be ferocious, forest predators. Dangerous.

But he still did not catch another movement, his instinct was still calm even though his chest was pounding.

“Ah, sorry. I'm jamming you guys.” A tall man brushed away the bushes that covered him. Deja vu's.

And it's true.

Name: Delroy Collado

Race : Human

Level 25

Coin: 745291

Power :6

Speed: 7

Duration : 9

The head of “bandit” appears again, but this time his face is free from the covering cloth, Ava now sees clearly the fine pieces of the male jaw along with spots on the bridge of his nose, a teenager. Is this part of another test?

Posture Al is back to relax. “Include, he is my nephew. Roy.” Oh, so uncle-nephew.

“I don't know if you guys call someone else.”

“Care cost for you we will add.”

“But I don't think our horse-drawn carriage will fit one more person.” The real horse-drawn carriage intended for two people, the more stuffy since Al and Ezra followed them, if Roy also rode wouldn't it be crowded?

“Oh, I brought my own horse, now I'm strapping it on the nearest river to drink.”

“Alright then, just bring it here immediately, before any monsters come after it.”

In this way, has Ava been freed from the fake bandit scenario? But the girl still could not believe that Ezra had given up before seeing him fight head-on. From the beginning, what was the reason the prince was convinced that Ava had high abilities. To his knowledge, Ava only had time to attack two city thugs secretly, besides the hunt that Ezra observed also mostly came from the traps he set, he said, only a few that he caught directly then Ava slammed into the rock. If only that, wouldn't there still be many people who have the same skills? The prince could have hired a more experienced hunter and secured his credibility from the guild center in the capital.

Thenwhat?