The Song of Sword and Magic - Chapter 63

Chapter 63: Survivors

[Translator — Asuka]

[Proofreader — Karane]

After leaving the ice swamp, Rae and Stan started running at full speed on a snow-covered flatland. However, they were both famished and exhausted. After they left the swamp, they didn’t dare to drink a lot of water, for they knew that it wouldn’t be a pleasant feeling to keep running with a stomach full of water.

As Rae was trotting forward, she also tried to sense the Dark Tide’s army behind them. “They’re circling around the ice swamp, and that’d mean that there’s more time for us to escape because there’s extra miles for them to run.”

Stan kept looking around, trying to look for a forest where they could take a rest. If they still didn’t eat anything, they wouldn’t be able to last any longer. “We have to look for a place to rest and eat something. Since we’ve bought more time now, we should take advantage of it.”

“That’s too dangerous. What if they reach us when we take a break—” Before she finished her words, she suddenly plunged into the snow.

Stan hurriedly helped her get up and asked anxiously, “What happened, Rae?”

“No, nothing. I just tripped over.” Rae gazed at the snow block behind her. “I’m too tired to control my balance.” Upon finishing her words, she tried to get up, but she soon felt a sharp pain in her left ankle, which caused her to lose her balance again.

Stan quickly supported her weight and crouched down to examine her left ankle. “Your ankle is twisted, so you can’t run anymore.” He tried to help her massage, but her face soon contorted. “Although you grew up in Sara, you’re a girl after all. So, you’re no match for a man when it comes to strength. Come on, I’ll carry you on my back.”

“No, Stan. If you do that, both of us won’t be able to escape from the Dark Tide. Ignore me and leave now.” Rae said grimly. The decision she just made was basically a death sentence for herself.

“You were not like this when you chided Fern. Are you learning from him now?” Stan directly faced away from her and crouched down. After pulling her hands closer to his chest, he then carried her legs up. “Grab me tightly!” After getting up, he started running at full speed.

“Thanks, Stan…” Lying on his back, she soon felt that exhaustion was washing over her. She had exceeded the limit of her physical strength, but she wasn’t willing to make him take a risk. “Stan, when you feel that you can’t run anymore, just put me down, and I’ll hold up the Dark Tide’s army for you. I won’t let you lose your life because of me.”

Stan’s breathing grew heavier, and he couldn’t speak firmly. “Rae, whatever happens, I will never leave my companions behind. Furthermore, I’m a Doylan, so I’m willing to risk my life to compensate for Sara. In that case, you should run away first.”

Frustrated over his stubbornness, Rae growled, “Why are you so foolish? My ankle is twisted, so even if you stay back, I won’t be able to escape. I should stay back instead so that you’ll still stand a chance to live.”

Ignoring her infuriation, Stan looked fixedly at the front. “There will only be two outcomes today. We’ll either escape safely together or lose our lives here together. Both of us should stop speaking as I have to save some energy.”

“You’re such a fool…” Rae’s eyes welled up with tears.

***

Stan’s stamina was beyond her expectation. Even with her on his back, he still managed to run for a long time. In the distance where the gloomy sky and snow-covered land seemed to have merged, they saw a large area of forest in front of them.

“That’s…” Stan was panting heavily. Even one extra word would take him a lot of effort to utter.

“That’s Tiel Forest, which covers almost half of the East of Sara.” Rae wanted to speak more to save him the trouble of asking more questions. “The forest is mostly made up of pine and cedar trees, which don’t grow many leaves on their twigs. Moreover, it’s winter, so most of the leaves have fallen. There’s nowhere we can remain hidden in the forest.”

“It’s much better than staying on the flatland.” Stan replied briefly and stopped talking. He could feel that he was about to reach his limit, so he had to get into the forest before that happened. Their chance of survival inside the forest would be higher than if they stayed put.

“They have left the ice swamp, and they’re now on the flatland behind us.” Rae would report to him their enemies’ location from time to time.

Stan nodded slightly and charged toward Tiel Forest.

Before he used up his energy, he managed to bring Rae into the forest. In an instant, the atmosphere turned dark. The tree leaves were sparse, but they still managed to block out most of the sunlight in the already gloomy weather. However, Stan never stopped in his tracks as he didn’t know what else he could do other than to keep running. He could feel that he was about to reach his limit, but there was nothing he could do as his heart was filled with despair.

***

All of a sudden, a faint light flashed across his eyes, causing him to stop in his tracks. Once he stopped, he couldn’t move again. Five yards away from them, there was an arrow that had been shot into the soil. The body of the arrow was smooth and reflective of light. The back of the arrow was tied with tree leaves, so it looked different from any normal arrow.

“Who is it?” Stan looked around vigilantly as they were surrounded by trees. Other than the open space in front of them, there was no one else in this place.

Rae stuck out her head from his shoulder and examined the arrow, whereupon she said in shock, “It’s an arrow from Sara. There’s a Sara citizen here!”

As soon as she finished her words, a man was heard saying from their left, “Oh? How did you know it’s our arrow?”

Seeing the silver lining, Rae turned her head to the left and replied excitedly, “It’s because I’m a Sara citizen as well. Are you my fellow countryman? Are there any survivors around here?”

“Yes, we’re Saras, but you don’t look like a Sara citizen. Your hair—” the man said slowly.

Agitated, Rae interrupted the man. “You mean there are more Saras here? That’s wonderful! I’ll explain why I have black hair later. But now, a Dark Tide’s army is racing after us. There’s one fiend among them. We have to deal with them, but we’re exhausted now.”

“Have you attracted a fiend to this place?” the man questioned with disdain. “Alright, come what may.”

“What should we do now?” Stan looked around, but he couldn’t find the source of the voice.

After a pause, the man went on to say, “Do you see the pine tree on your right? Climb up and take a rest. However, it isn’t easy to climb up a pine tree. By the way, don’t forget to hide the arrow.”

Stan sized up the pine tree and realized that the trunk was thick. However, the tree branches were hanging very high. The branch closest to them was about three times his height. “What the heck! There’s no way we can climb up the tree in our current state.” he cursed.

“Don’t worry, Stan. Just try to climb up. I’ll use flying magic and pull you up. Although my ankle is twisted, it doesn’t affect my ability to use magic. Moreover, after a long rest on your back, my energy has recovered a little.” Rae said. “Put me down. We’ll have a try.”

After putting her down gently and making sure that she could stand stably, he pulled out the arrow and hurled it into the distance. After that, he walked up to the tree and nodded at her before hugging the tree trunk with all his limbs as he climbed up with difficulty.

Rae started chanting a spell as her hair and cloak swayed along in the air. After her feet left the ground, she started flying toward the knight. Noises could be heard from behind them as the Saras were amazed by her magic.

Upon extending her hands below his arms, she started pulling Stan up as he was also using his last bit of energy to climb up. Eventually, they were getting closer to the branch.

Stan draped his right arm around the branch and pulled himself up before he raised his right leg and wrapped it around the branch. When he was able to lie on it stably, he started panting heavily. Rae landed on the branch and crouched down to stabilize herself. The branch was thick, so there was enough space for them to hide together.

Just then, the sky was turning dark as it was covered with the seemingly endless dark clouds. The snow started falling, which signaled an imminent snowstorm. In the distance, rapid footsteps and growling could be heard clearly. In an instant, all of them held their breath and waited for the army’s arrival. The forest fell into dead silence again.

***