Simone, who had been awakened by Lucien, asked him how many of them were currently left.
Tony and Dina had gone into the Hikiri forest to fight, so there are only four of us left, Lucien.
Listen carefully, the four of you. We're going to form a circle and all look at one corner of the forest so we don't get ambushed unexpectedly. Understood, Simone?
Before forming the circle, she handed a bow to Asti. Listen, Asti, the people coming are either at rank six or above, and you're only at rank four. So try to aim at their sensitive points, okay? Come on, let's form a circle, she said.
After a few minutes, Lucien asked, "Do you see anything?"
"No, still nothing," replied Asti.
And you, Aconé? asked Lucien.
No answer from Aconé.
Aconé? Aconé! Lucien called out, trembling. Aconé's silence was perhaps a sign that he was no longer there, and someone was standing in his place.
Simone and Asti, just beside them, were under pressure and wondered why Aconé wasn't responding.
Unable to bear the silence any longer, Simone quickly turned around, ready to kill whatever was behind her.
Lucien, having followed her example, turned around and attacked with his spear.
Seeing what was behind him, Lucien's face went from fear to confusion, but upon seeing the footprints on the ground, he became enraged.
"FUCKING PIECE OF SHIT, OF ALL THE BEST TIMES, IT'S NOW THAT HE—ACONÉ, YOU DAMN SON OF A BITCH! IF YOU SURVIVE, I'LL TRACK YOU TO YOUR DEATH!" yelled Lucien.
But it's a joke—Simone already said they didn't even know who they were going to fight against, and he decided to run away out of fear, trembling like a leaf, said Asti.
"Quiet, Asti, and do what you need to do to survive. None of us want to die, but to avoid death, we have to fight. You're allowed to be afraid. I am too, but that's not going to stop me from surviving," said Lucien, skeptical about their chances of winning, but he didn't want to die here.
"YOU FEEL SO GOOD, YOU FOUR!" shouted a man emerging from the forest.
"So, it's you we have to kill, but I was told you're five," said Lucien.
"We are five, but three stayed fighting your friend who was hiding in the trees, and the other one was with me—they went after your friend who fled," said the man.
"And what do you want from us?" asked Simone.
"Of course, you're going to eat," said the man, looking at them like pieces of meat.
Cannibals. We're being pursued by cannibals? Fine, then, Lucien.
"That's it...," Lucien attacked the cannibal.
He aimed for the heart.
"Eat this, cannibal," said Lucien.
The man spread his arms and let the spear hit him.
The spear was blocked. "What is this, Lucien? Why didn't you drive your spear into his heart?" asked Simone, trying to understand why Lucien had stopped his attack.
"I'd really love to drive my spear into his heart too, but his skin is like hard stone; it stopped my spear instantly," Lucien explained.
"Girl, stop yelling at him! He's really trying to kill me, but unfortunately for you, our skin has been reinforced so much it's like stone," the man said.
He gave Lucien a violent headbutt, causing Lucien to lose consciousness as their heads collided.
"Come on, wake up, Lucien," the man said, punching him in the abdomen, which threw Lucien fifteen meters into the air.
Lucien, awakened by the punch, was hanging in the air, spitting blood.
"What's this insane strength?" he wondered as he fell back toward the ground.
"I think I'm going to die, but if I am to die, I want to die with honor," he thought.
While the man waited for Lucien to land to continue attacking, he intercepted a arrow aimed at his head with his hand.
"Well, are you crazy? Why did you catch that arrow? Isn't your skin supposed to be as resistant as stone?" asked Asti.
"You little dog," spat the man.
"You'd better look up," said Lucien, attacking with his spear aimed at the man's head.
"Like you're going to beat me with that," replied the man, retaliating with a punch.
"Idiot," Lucien muttered, pulling back his spear and using the man's point as leverage. "Now, it's your turn," he said.
Asti shot two arrows aiming for the man's eyes.
"Really think your arrows will stop me?" asked the man, just as a searing pain shot through his fingers. Two of his fingers had been cut off by Lucien.
"…Liar, little liar. Your skin's not that hard; you just have a connection to the earth affinity, don't you?" said Lucien.
"Shut up," spat the man, violently pushing Lucien against a tree. He turned toward Asti.
He was about to rush at him when a sword pierced his side.
"Who dares attack me from behind?" the man spat blood.
Simone was the last one standing. "It's probably time for you to go to hell," she said.
"How did you do that? I always protect my torso and back," the man said.
"Do you think you're the only one with an earth affinity card?" asked Simone.