Return of the Mythic Bloodline

"What do you think you're doing right now, Raj?" Nymeria hissed, her eyes blazing with a death stare.

I was holding onto Ruru's neck hairs, sitting behind Nymeria as my chest touched her back."Pretty lady, if I don't hold onto Ruru like that, we're both gonna fall as soon as she starts moving," I replied in a subtle voice.

"But why does it seem like you're only making excuses to take advantage of me?" she responded, giving me side eyes.

"Whoa, that's a direct attack on my dignity you made there, pretty lady," I gasped at her sudden allegation.

"What can I say, you did take a lot of advantage of me when I was unconscious," she replied, raising both her hands and shrugging her shoulders upward, as if she didn't believe me at all.

"With that, you just hit the final nail in the coffin. If you don't believe me, then why don't we just exchange places?" I proposed, suppressing the fumes inside me.

"Oh, so you're expecting a back hug from me, huh? Well, I'll play along for now," she drawled with a little smug on her face.

"Hehehe, I'm gonna make you eat your words, Nymeria," I whispered under my breath as we exchanged our seats.

"Ruru, let's show this pretty lady what you're capable of," I shouted, digging my hands into Ruru's neck hairs.

Ruru pawed her right leg into the ground and as she launched herself, reaching the top of those gigantic trees with a single jump, I looked down to see Nymeria's hands clenching onto my stomach.

"Bwahahahaha, now who's taking advantage of whom? Look at you! Aren't you embarrassed? Even I'm getting secondhand embarrassment here,"

I laughed at the top of my lungs with the pride of victory.

She pinched my stomach with both her hands and, in a low embarrassed voice, replied,

"Shut up, jerk."

"Ow, you can't resort to physical violence, pretty lady," I replied, placing my hand

above hers.

But she just pinched me even harder.

"Owwww... Alright, alright, I apologise for my transgression, pretty lady. Please let go of my stomach or you might tear it open," I pleaded, grabbing her hands tightly.

"Jerk," she whispered in a low voice and loosened her grip.

I was too focused on taking my revenge that I didn't notice before—

She was hugging me way too tightly. Her breasts were being pressed against my back.

It was like I was on a romantic bike ride with my girlfriend.

For the rest of the ride, both of us didn't utter a single word—Nymeria, maybe because of embarrassment, and me? I was just enjoying the scenario I was put into.

After about half an hour of our romantic ride, Ruru finally slowed down and stopped at the same place where we had found Nymeria.

We got off her, and as we looked around the surroundings, the wolves that Nymeria had frozen were gone. Only the marks of the battle—broken branches, claw marks on the trees, and blood splashes on the ground—remained.

At the side of a tree, beside the red ground stained with dried-up blood, Nymeria's longsword lay.

It had a silver hilt with a red ribbon tied to it. A single word was engraved on its blade.

"Frostbite."

"I apologise for leaving you here alone, Frostbite," Nymeria spoke, taking the sword from the ground.

"If your reunion with Frostbite is complete, can we move now?" I said sarcastically.

"Sure, why not?" she replied with a little smile as she graciously took each step toward Ruru.

"Are you that happy getting your sword back?" I asked, following her.

"Of course I am. It's a gift from the person I love most," she replied, her face blushing.

"So, who is this blessed person loved by Nymeria el Snowbane herself?" I probed as we reached Ruru.

"Hmph, why should I tell you that? Shouldn't I be too embarrassed to tell you that?" she sulked, turning her face away.

"Hah, you do hold some grudges," I gasped, holding my forehead.

She was about to say something, but our conversation was interrupted as Ruru began to act strangely.

She wasn't moving from her place at all—refusing to take even a single step forward.

She was just continuously staring into the deeper forest again, as before.

Now that Nymeria had provided me with information about this forest, I had a vague idea of why she was so nervous.

The gradual change in terrain and environment here—fewer bushes, taller purple-hued flora, more suffocating air, and intense howling winds—meant we must be entering the third zone: the territory of Jambavan, God of Strength.

"Ruru, you don't have to take us any deeper from here. Just wait in your territory—we will meet you there," I spoke in a soft voice, calmly touching her cheeks.

Ruru nodded and turned, slowly fading into the darkness as she returned.

After partying with Ruru, Nymeria and I began to venture deeper into the third zone.

We walked for a few minutes, but then Nymeria suddenly stopped.

"What hap—" I was about to ask, but she suddenly covered my mouth with her hand and gestured "shhh" before jumping onto a nearby tree.

I had never thought that tree climbing could be this graceful. She didn't even use her hands while climbing, and she jumped over 10–15 feet by pushing her foot against the bark of the tree.

She sat down on a branch and stayed still for a few seconds, then jumped off.

"There are five hundred thirty-two different beasts three miles in that direction," she said, pointing towards the northeast of me.

"Are you sure there are that many beasts here?" I asked skeptically, raising one eyebrow.

"You keep disrespecting me every chance you get. Are you sure you can handle the consequences?" she whispered in a dominant tone, slowly reaching toward my ear.

"North-east it is. Don't waste any time—let's move quickly," I blurted, quickly moving toward the direction she pointed.