<h4>Chapter 136: Hello there, Fellow Guilders! (Part 2)</h4>


    "On your guard, everyone!" another male voice said.


    <i>That''s the shaman. Surely ambushed by another enemy.</i>


    Battle cries and cries of agony were heard immediately from the two opposite directions. That was the exact moment the Pdin began sprinting in a straight line.


    <i>Ah, I see. The tworge auras the shaman detected have ambushed us. They''re literally protecting the road to the hill and theke... And this prick... He never mentioned how good his pigeon''s vision was.</i>


    Nichs watched as the Pdin went north, piercing through the crossroad. The few who remained quickly followed him. Five in total.


    <i>Yes... This asshole never mentioned the vision range of his pigeon on purpose. I bet he found a third location that neither the drone nor the Hydrolon could see.</i>


    Snickering, Nichs reached for his pockets to pull out a gold coin, but then remembered that the system was currently withholding his entire inventory. <i>Ah, crap. Unable to flip a coin. What to do?</i>


    He closed his eyes and began pointing at the two known roads while reciting a French equivalent of eenie meenie miney moe, <i>"Am, stram, gram. Pic et pic et colégram. Bour et bour et ratatam... Am, stram, gram... Pic !"</i> He opened his eyes and grimaced at the randomly picked path, theke and its ind. "Whatever."


    He then dashed forward, encountering the group led by the Medic shortly after. The eight healers seemed to look at their surroundings nervously. The panic in their eyes was palpable.


    "Hi!" Nichs offered a half-smile. "I''m joining you. What did I miss?"


    The Medic looked at him and muttered, "Oh, great. A <i>''Bribepod.''"</i>


    <i>Whoa. I haven''t been called that in a long time.</i>


    "We don''t know where that thing went!" a male healer said to Nichs while looking at the top of the trees. "It''s pretty darn quick!"


    Nichs nced down. A person lying on the ground was currently turning into vanishing pixels. Then, a whistle. His instinct told him to duck just as something flew above his head. <i>A long-range attack.</i>


    He rushed for cover as well as the others. Taking another glimpse at the surroundings did not help. <i>That thing is either moving so quickly we can''t see it, or it can camouge.</i>


    "We can''t stay here, we need to get out of here!" the healer who informed Nichs shouted, covering his head with both arms. "Let''s escape to theke and fight it there in an open area!"


    "We''re still miles from there!" the Medic yelled back. "We only took a couple of steps in that direction and this thing attacked us immediately! We won''t be able to get halfway there!"


    <i>But it''s not a bad idea.</i>


    "If we stay here, it''ll take us down one by one!" Nichs interjected, locking eyes with the Medic. "And we can''t realistically retaliate in its domain!"


    "What do you suggest then?!"


    <i>I''ll have to make a demonstration to gain their trust.</i>


    Nichs began casting. "Mid Earth Boost, Living Rock!" He then stomped forward with open arms and yelled, "Your aim sucks, whatever you are!"


    The rest stood silent, waiting. No one told him to stop being reckless and take cover. They all saw him casting a Physical Defense Boost, so they waited, but would it work?


    The familiar whistle cut through the air, and a shot impacted Nichs'' chest. He stumbled back but managed to remain standing. Then, he slowly turned around, giving them a faint smile. His HP bar had been reduced to 30%.


    "See?"


    The Medic nced at the rest before shouting, "Those who know defensive charms, cast them on the others now! Those who can''t will exclusively heal! Move, move, move! Follow me!"


    Nichs felt the warm feeling of getting healed by another person before they all ran in unison.


    Someone began casting, "Mid Earth Charm, <i>Metal Skin!"</i>


    "Mid Ice Charm, <i>Frost Armor!"</i> chanted another.


    The entire team boosted their defenses and ran forward without looking back as the enemy pursued them, shooting at their backs every 15 seconds. The area of the woods was filled with grunts and cries of pain as the enemy punished them constantly, but no one died.


    "Keep the charms active! As for the others, manage your healing cooldowns! We must be ready to cast a healing spell at any moment!"


    The wounded resisted until they were healed, and their formation never faltered, but it became clear they would be exhausted before reaching theke.


    "We need a distraction!"


    "I can take care of that," said another, whom Nichs recognized as the Druid. "I''ve been collecting leaves during our escape. Combined with the slime goo I picked up earlier, I made these!"


    He threw small round objects to the others. Nichs received one as well. It was a rudimentary sphere made of leaves. He could squeeze it and feel something squishy inside.


    "A stinky bomb," Nichs said after analyzing it with his Unique Talent.


    "What, for real?" asked another.


    "It''ll mess up its senses!" The Druidughed. "At least, I hope so. Just make sure to take turns. Don''t throw them all at once!"


    Someone threw theirs, and a huge smoke cloud was released on impact. Although they had already left the area, they still could take a sniff of it.


    "Whoa, nelly! That thing sure is strong!"


    "Good job, stranger! It wouldn''t surprise me if the enemy stops chasing us after that!"


    "I''m Liam! Nice to meet you all!"


    Just as Liam gave the group a friendly smile, he received a shot in the back of his head that almost knocked him unconscious. The group halted. One healed him, another cast another Earth charm, and another threw a stinky bomb in the direction from which the shot hade.


    "All set?" the Medic asked before nodding. "Let''s keep going! We''ve officially reached the halfway point!"


    "What, are you serious?!"


    "It''s okay! The bombs are stopping it! I guess..."


    Once the third bomb was thrown, they noticed the next enemy shot missed them considerably. Encouraged, the group pressed on, eager to see a glimpse of theke.


    "Hey, Liam, can you make more of these bombs?" Nichs asked.


    "Sorry, but I ran out of slime goo."


    Someone threw the fourth one, and by then, they had not sensed or seen any signs of their enemy.


    "Guys, give me the rest of the bombs," Nichs said aloud.


    "What are you nning, Bribepod?" the Medic asked. Nichs noticed the bomb in her hand.


    "We''re almost at our destination, and there''s no need to waste the rest. Give them to me, and I promise you the enemy''s head!"


    The Medic looked him in the eye for a moment. "Whatever," she muttered and gave him her bomb. The others did the same. A couple of secondster, a shot impacted a healer.


    "Heal him, we''re almost there!" the Medic yelled as they could see a light through the tree cover.


    A minuteter, they found a vast body of water and the promised ind in the distance, but they did not stop right away. They needed to put some distance between them and the nearest trees.