Chapter 255 - 231: We’ll Settle It Here
Chapter 255: Chapter 231: We’ll Settle It Here
"Hold on tight, child." Windsor grabbed Gu Ning’s hand, pulled her up, and leaped onto Ah Mo’s back with her.
Hearing a voice that was clearly female, Gu Ning looked at her face and asked, her voice trembling, "You... you are..."
Windsor took her stiff, frozen hand, wrapped it securely around one of Ah Mo’s straps, then took off her own outer robe and wrapped it around Gu Ning. She gently patted her on the head and said, "Just hold on a little longer. I’ll deal with this King Seed first."
They were flying high in the sky, the ghostly blue light chasing relentlessly beside them.
Gu Ning wasn’t wearing a winter coat, and the high-altitude wind was so cold it nearly made her pass out. The warm robe she was now wearing brought some relief.
She wanted to get a clear look at the female in front of her and their surroundings, but the great bird beneath her was flying too fast. The wind and snow made it almost impossible to open her eyes, she struggled to breathe, and the robe whipped loudly around her.
All she could do was clutch the robe, lower her body, and try her best to conserve her body heat.
As she lay down, Gu Ning discovered that the great bird’s back was very warm. She burrowed her hands into its feathers for warmth; otherwise, her hands would have been frostbitten by the end of this journey.
The King Seed continued its pursuit, getting faster and faster. But no matter how fast it went, the great bird always maintained a steady distance from it.
Gu Ning could hear from the King Seed’s cries that it was growing more and more agitated.
She looked at the female in front of her, whose back was to her. The woman remained in a crouched position, as still as a statue, which gave Gu Ning a strange sense of peace.
She looked down, trying to check on Leo. The light from her terminal didn’t illuminate a large area, but she could vaguely make out that the great bird was still holding him.
Ah Mo chirped, "This thing really has it in for that kid. You already cut it twice, and it still won’t give up."
Windsor stared intently at the King Seed. "It has regenerative abilities and recovers quickly. It knows this is its last chance, so it won’t give up easily."
They had originally thought that with the large-scale cleanup in Zone 19, the King Seed would be unable to rally its followers. They hadn’t expected to be wrong; it had been planning this all along. Without barriers and traps, those young kids were no match for it.
Ah Mo chirped again, "Zone 15 is just ahead. If it keeps chasing us, we’ll be entering the city."
Windsor glanced ahead and patted Ah Mo’s back. "We can’t let it enter Zone 15. We’ll finish it here."
A King Seed of this tier entering a city would cause even greater trouble.
Besides, these two children couldn’t last much longer at this altitude.
Windsor glanced back at the little female, who was lying prone and shivering from the cold, and tightened her grip on the hilt of her blade.
This was also their last chance to deal with the King Seed.
Ah Mo hovered to a stop in mid-air.
The King Seed didn’t dare get too close, circling them instead.
Ah Mo chirped, "This thing wants to take me out first. Darling, maybe we should just run with the two little ones. I’d like to spend a few more days with you."
Windsor gave its feathers a tug.
Gu Ning felt the biting wind stop. She lifted her head from the bird’s back, breathing out great puffs of mist. Her gaze shifted back and forth between the King Seed and the woman. ’What’s happening? Are we not running anymore?’
"Don’t be afraid, child." Windsor rested her hand on the blade at her waist and steadied her breath. "You’ll be able to get a good night’s sleep soon."
The King Seed circled them, hesitating. It saw that its minions had been all but wiped out by that group of Beastmen, and its own energy was running low. Once the little female entered the city, it would lose its chance...
After a moment of consideration, the King Seed let out a piercing shriek and charged toward the damn old bird.
Seeing the King Seed charge, Gu Ning instinctively ducked and pressed herself against the bird’s back, even wanting to pull the woman in front of her down too.
But in the blink of an eye, the mysterious woman had drawn a long, blue-glowing blade from her waist.
When the King Seed was no more than ten meters away, Ah Mo folded its wings slightly and dove downward.
In the instant their altitude difference was created, Windsor swung her long blade in an upward arc, tracing a glimmering line through the air. She executed a backward leap that Gu Ning found unbelievable, and in that same moment, the charging, ghostly blue light was sliced in two.
Something shattered next to her ear, like a blade breaking something hard.
Windsor landed lightly back on Ah Mo’s back and smoothly sheathed her blade.
The two blue lights went out one after the other, and the surroundings once again fell into darkness and silence.
Only then did Gu Ning feel the intense weightlessness of the dive.
The great bird beneath her was clearly struggling to regain control, its head pointed straight for the ground.
The woman in front of her held her tight with one arm while pulling up on the strap wrapped around her hand with the other.
Gu Ning couldn’t help but grab the strap and pull with all her might.
Feeling her small but full-force effort, Windsor’s lips curved into a slight smile.
She had just shattered the King Seed’s energy core, and the resulting blast of power had left Ah Mo a little dazed.
"Fly, Ah Mo." Windsor’s expression was calm, but her tone was a little grave. They were about to fall. She glanced at the little female in her arms, loosened her grip on the strap, and was just about to jump off with her when Ah Mo spread its wings.
"CHIRP." Ah Mo said. "Darling, heading into the city?"
The tension in Windsor’s eyes eased slightly. She felt the child’s temperature. "Down. Her body heat is dropping. She won’t make it to the city."
Gu Ning was still reeling from the shock of the battle long after Ah Mo had landed.
"CHIRP CHIRP..." Ah Mo muttered. "I’m really not as young as I used to be. Good thing this little pup changed back to his human form, or I really wouldn’t have been able to carry him."
Ah Mo hadn’t managed to land precisely at the camp they had prepared beforehand and was hopping forward on one leg.
"This is fine. Don’t jostle the kid; he’s badly hurt."
Windsor patted Ah Mo’s head, then lifted the little female, whose nose was running from the cold, off the bird’s back.
.
"Here, drink some hot water to warm up."
Gu Ning took the hot water from the woman.
Sipping from the cup’s lid, she studied the woman before her. She appeared to be in her mid-thirties, tall and slender at nearly two meters. Her features were beautiful and striking, and she exuded a powerful, calming aura that was deeply reassuring—the kind that made you instinctively want to draw closer and trust her.
This was the first time Gu Ning had seen a real female in the Beastman World. It was completely different from what she’d seen on the Claw-net.
"Still cold?"
The woman turned her head to ask.
As she spoke, she squeezed Gu Ning’s hand again before adding a piece of firewood to the stone-ringed fire pit.
"Much better." Gu Ning snapped out of her daze and turned to look at Leo lying beside her.
He was still unconscious, but his wounds had been simply dressed with the woman’s help. The bleeding had stopped, and some color had returned to his face.
"This child has strong regenerative abilities. Don’t worry, he should wake up by morning," Windsor said, reassuring the little female.
"Thank you," Gu Ning said sincerely.
"My name is Windsor," Windsor said, her gaze soft as she looked at Gu Ning.
"I... I’m Gu Ning." Gu Ning lowered her eyes shyly, but couldn’t resist looking up at her again. "Can I... ask... ask you..."
"Take your time, there’s no rush." Listening to her halting speech, Windsor tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear. Noticing the earpiece she was wearing, Windsor asked, "Is that a translation earpiece?"