[Two days Later.]

[Desert.]

​The desert air, a brutal mix of heat and fine sand, seemed to amplify Ash's frustration. Her spirit energy felt sluggish, a slow leak caused by the cursed chains on her wrists.

​"Hey!" she yelled, her voice dry and brittle.

​Sunny, a silhouette of focused intent walking ahead, didn't break his stride.

​"Hey!" she repeated, a hint of desperation creeping in.

​"What is it?" Sunny finally asked, his tone flat and uninviting, though he still didn't stop. He hadn't bothered to look back.

​Ash looked away, her gaze sweeping over the endless, undulating sand that stretched to a shimmering, oppressive horizon:

"Why can't you take this off me?!" she demanded, gesturing with her manacled hands.

​"Not happening," Sunny stated simply.

​"Not happening?! I helped you fight those monsters!"

​Sunny paused, turning his head slightly to look at her over his shoulder. "Correction. You were bait. I did the fighting."

​"That still counts as help! Without me distracting them, could you have taken down those sneaky foxes so cleanly?" She rubbed her chained wrists together, her voice softening to a weary plea.

"And... these chains are continuously draining my spirit energy. If you can't just let me go, kill me, I am tired!"

​Sunny stopped completely, his back to her. "You are still useful."

​"So, if that usefulness is lost? You will get rid of me?"

​"Mostly," he said, turning his face up to the harsh sun, a pragmatic, unnerving lack of emotion in his voice.

"Are you sure we aren't lost?" he asked, abruptly changing the subject.

​"Oh! Why would you ask me that?" Ash collapsed onto the hot sand.

​Sunny turned, his frown deepening. "Oh gosh, you're a peak god-rank warrior, and an adult. Why are you acting like a child?" His weariness with her antics was evident, a sharp contrast to his otherwise impenetrable demeanor.

​"Take this off me," Ash insisted, her resolve hardening. "If you don't, you'll have to leave me here, or better, kill me. Because I am not saying or telling you anything."

​"You asked me not to kill your tribe. I respected that—"

​"—And I followed you?! We are now in another tribe's territory! My tribe and theirs are bitter enemies! If they attack, I will be the first target! So get this off me!" Her self-preservation instinct, normally masked by her aggressive bravado, was laid bare.

​Sunny stared at her for a long moment, the tension between them a palpable thing in the dry air. He let out a sigh that was more an irritated exhalation. This "mutant tree" was more than a headache, but could she be trusted? He needed to know what lay ahead.

​"About this tribe, what are they like?" he asked, walking back toward her.

​"Those Beasts are hideous! Countless legs, green poisonous goo flowing out of their mouth. They're evil, disgusting, and attack without Honor!"

​"Honor? It seems both of your kind are the same," Sunny noted, his wolf ears twitching almost imperceptibly as he processed her description.

​"Never! The Tree Tribe is vastly different from these disgusting things! Didn't you see our home? It was filled with beauty! But theirs? It's a desert," she yelled, her disdain absolute.

​Sunny glanced around. 'With her words, these things are likely some creatures from the insect family...'

​He shook his head, offering her his hand. "Come on. You aren't of any good if you're dead." His reasoning was cold, but it revealed a crucial truth: he needed her alive for now.

​"I told you, I am not standing up if you don't remove these chains!" She shook her wrist at him.

​BAM!

​Sunny's ears snapped to attention, hearing the distant, muffled sound. He whipped his head to the right, seeing the ground itself rippling and moving toward them with terrifying speed.

​"Huh?" He was stunned by the unnatural movement.

​Ash followed his gaze, and her face instantly turned a horrifying pale. The fear she had been feigning moments ago was now intensely real. Without warning, she scrambled to her feet and ran, but her critically low spirit energy made her movements heavy and slow.

​Sunny watched, his eyes narrowing as the path of the moving earth shifted, heading directly for Ash.

​"Shit!!"

​He clenched his fist, and with a violent, instantaneous pull of the chains, he yanked her backward.

​BOOOOOOOM!!!

​At the precise moment Ash's spot was vacated, a huge black worm, thick as an oak tree, burst out of the ground.

​BAM!!!

​Its razor-sharp, circular teeth clamped down on empty air. Without hesitation, the monstrosity dug back into the sand and vanished.

​".....?!"

​Sunny caught the reeling Ash. He didn't hesitate, throwing her over his shoulder and rocketing forward with incredible speed.

​Ash blinked in shock, her terror briefly eclipsed by analytical curiosity. She raised her head and stared at the moving ground, taking note of something key: whenever the ground rippled into a certain proximity to Sunny, its speed dramatically slowed down.

​"Hey! Do you have a skill that slows down your enemies?!" she yelled, struggling to keep her focus amidst the jolting run.

​"What do you think?!" he snapped back.

​Without warning, Sunny tossed her high into the air. In a flash, he didn't just run—he transformed. In seconds, the man was gone, replaced by Jormungandr, a colossal serpent with iridescent scales. He caught the petrified Ash gently in one massive hand and soared into the sky.

​"....?!"

​Ash stared at the huge, awe-inspiring creature holding her, completely speechless.

​"You have such a skill!! Then why were we walking for a whole two days?!!" she snapped, her shock immediately morphing into furious indignation.

​"Conserving my strength!" Sunny's voice, a deep, resonating hum, echoed directly in her mind.

​Ash blinked, then lowered her gaze to the ground. The worm-creature had burst out again, but this time, it was transforming—shifting into a young man with slimy black skin and four muscular arms folded across his chest.

​"Why are you a hostage? You left the Tree Tribe unguarded. Hahaha!! We will see again, Ash...!" he yelled, his voice carrying clearly up to the flying serpent.

​"No!! My tribe!" Ash's face went instantly white.

"You already got everything, won't you let me go? He will attack my people!" she yelled desperately.

​'She is stubborn, but she cares for her tribe.' Sunny thought, observing her genuine panic.

​"Who are you to them? And I am sure they can take care of themselves," he asked, his serpent head tilting.

​"You?! I am the leader of my tribe! I should be there to defend! And that disgusting thing is a peak God rank! We don't have anyone at home to stop him and his men!" she explained, her voice cracking with urgency.

​"Ok... How long will it take before he reaches your tribe?"

​"If he goes alone, it'll only take him a day, but I know him... He always wants witnesses, so he'll attack with his people. That'll take them three days at most," she said, staring intently at the colossal serpent head.

​"I have a deal for you," Sunny said, his voice now a calculated rumble.

"Help me... and I will help you wipe out your enemy tribe. What do you say?"

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