Chapter 270 Bitter Victory
Jack plummeted further and further into a rage, instinctually gaining speed and power.
In contrast, Trank was gradually losing more health and mana with each exchange. Though he could evade attacks, he couldn't fight the overwhelming heat that Jack's flame body produced. And he couldn't fight back either. Jack's sword had already melted and been forgotten while Trank's claws were gradually melting from being in such close proximity to Jack.
No matter how he thought of it, Trank knew that he had driven himself into a corner that would most likely be his end.
Not paying attention to the serious terror that Trank was revealing with his face, Jack attacked again and again with reckless abandon. All that mattered was that Trank was still breathing and he needed his life snuffed out.
"As much fun as you are, I don't think I can play anymore." Trank pulled out a spell scroll and darted away as quickly as possible. "Next time, I'll come more prepared to roughhouse."
"Time Stop!"
Just before Trank activated the spell sealed within his scroll, Jack activated his only mythic-tier spell without thinking.
The entire world froze in place, similar to what would happen during Jack's conversations with Daruun. This time, however, it would only last for a single second. But in that second, Jack could do anything.
Without wasting a moment, Jack rushed the still Trank and drove his massive, flaming fist into the perverse man's skull.
As the punch connected, it didn't stop. Jack drove his fist into Trank's head and then into the ground, crushing his skull without any opposition.
That second quickly passed, leaving the other party members perplexed.
When Trank appeared to have the ability to escape, dashing their hopes of revenge for their fallen comrades, the entire suddenly scene changed. Jack had practically teleported to exactly where Trank stood, only Trank was now a headless corpse with his brain matter sizzling away under the exposure of Jack's intense heat.
And to make matters worse, the moment Jack appeared to have killed Trank, his flame body disappeared and Jack collapsed on top of the burning corpse.
"Jack!" Eliza was the first to run to the unconscious hero.
Rydel grabbed Daliea's corpse and nodded to Dirk, who did the same for Keela. "Eliza, grab Jack. We've got to go."
"But--"
"Take the storage ring off that scoundrel and let Appa out of Jack's ring," continued Rydel. "We're getting out of here."
"And what about Bowzer?" questioned Eliza as she followed Rydel's orders.
"So long as we can let him know that Jack's alive, we should be able to stop him before his mindless rampage reaches that army."
Both Rydel and Eliza bottled up their emotions and stored their beast companions, as well as Keela's worried fairy and Daliea's fallen Flame Tiger. They hurried away on Appa, not wanting to remain in the forest now covered in unstoppable white flames.
Next, they easily spotted the massive Hell-flame Fox not too far away. Rydel took a deep breath before shouting, "Bowzer! Jack's alive!"
At first, it didn't faze the fox, but as Rydel repeated his shout and Appa got a bit closer, Bowzer turned to look at them.
As Bowzer eyed them, everyone felt a strange pressure overwhelm them. The only thing similar to that feeling was how Lunara had looked at them while in her Nine-headed Hydra form. They felt immobilized, so much so that Appa almost stopped flapping his wings.
"B-Bowzer!" Eliza was the next to shout. "Jack's alive, but we need to leave now! Please stop and come with us!
Hearing those words again from a second source brought some sense back into Bowzer's mind.
The fox squinted and took a better look at the many bodies atop Appa, including the unconscious Jack. But unlike the last time when Bowzer saw Jack's corpse, he saw red in Jack's cheeks and no holes in his chest.
With a booming howl that the party was sure the army camp had heard, Bowzer finally ceased his rampage. His shrinking body soon returned to normal before the fox collapsed due to exhaustion.
Appa descended and allowed the party to pick up their final party member. With everyone gathered and aboard the giant bird, they fled the scene of white fire overcoming the forest.
Dirk looked down, holding back his emotions as the party left the burning forest behind.
"We didn't mean for this to happen, Dirk. I'm sure you can understand that," Rydel spoke up, not wanting Dirk to misunderstand."
"I know…" sighed Dirk, still not looking away. "I had no clue that Jack had a Hell-flame Fox, one the disastrous beasts of legend."
"Are you regretting joining us?"
"No… I'm actually feeling better about that decision after seeing you all fight together. I'm just… overwhelmed with a mix of emotions and memories I guess," explained Dirk. "In all my time with the Limneer military, I've never met a bunch of idiots like you guys."
Rydel broke out in laughter, glad that Dirk wasn't so easily broken. "Idiots, huh? Care to explain?"
"You all threw yourselves over one another, disregarding your own safety for that of your companions'. Sure, I've met fools like that before, but never an entire party's worth," Dirk laughed as well. "Then again, I'm one of those idiots too."
"Then you'll fit right in back at Trodar. We're glad to have you." Extending his hand with a smile, Rydel added, "And don't worry about that fox. This was the only time he's gone crazy like that. He's actually a playful pup that prefers laying on someone's shoulders to walking."
"That beast rides on someone's shoulders?" Dirk gave Rydel a confused look.
Rydel paid the look no mind. "That pup only recently evolved. Before, he used to hide away in Jack's coat pockets most of the time."
"Oh? So, Jack had that thing since it was a pup?"
"That thing is named Bowzer," Eliza interjected. "I'm glad to have you helping our cause, but don't discriminate Bowzer like that."
"I-I'm sorry. It's just that after seeing that… After seeing Bowzer become a natural disaster I've only heard legends about, it's hard to imagine him as anything else," explained Dirk.
Eliza continued to run her fingers through Jack's hair as his head laid across her lap. "That's what Bowzer hates most, though. No one sees him as anything other than a natural disaster. And Jack's done well to keep Bowzer from being exposed to the level of hate he would normally receive."
"I'll keep that in mind. Thank you." Dirk bowed his head to the thoughtful young lady. "And I'm sorry for saying such a thing. Also, I wish Jack a full recovery. You two must be close."
"He's my husband."
Dirk swallowed the words he was about to say. He looked to Rydel, who passed him a bottle of brundy.
"Right now, things didn't go as we expected, but that's fate I guess. The least we can do is wait for Jack to come to and figure out what's next. Why sulk more than our fair share?" reasoned Rydel as he put a similar bottle to his lips. Yet, as nonchalant as the hunter acted, neither Dirk nor Eliza could see any sort of enjoyment in his dull eyes.
While Dirk did the same, Eliza was lost in thought. Her eyes wandered over the bodies of Jack, Keela, and Daliea.
She had almost lost Jack for good, making her so glad that she had given up her Phoenix Lily. But she couldn't help but feel guilty for Keela. Eliza understood that Keela had done for her, what Eliza had done for Jack. In that little letter that Keela had handed Eliza must've been Keela's Phoenix Lily.
And when she thought about the loss of Daliea, she remembered how Daliea refused to take a Phoenix Lily and how much Daliea has constantly done for the party. Then Eliza remembered how hard Daliea worked to learn massages and how sincere she was with Jack and everyone else.
No matter how she thought about it, Eliza didn't want to lose either of them.