Is Math Needed to Solve (Rune Hunting 1/5) ? [w. Leila]

In the end, the guild still appeared as a rather strange one. It left like Golden Phoenix was the only guild that actually had their hall beneath the water's surface and only accessible through a teleportation gate on the surface, guarded by many magical birds called phoenixes. It was a good security system for a treasure hunting guild for sure, but what would outsiders think of this? Well, Leila was about to find that out as she slowly made her way up to the gate with another figure by her side, one that overshadowed her with ease. There was no doubt that this figure was almost about twice the girl's actual size, which would probably appear quite frightening to some. Indeed, his appearance as whole was one that probably wasn't like by many. Though the Eden's mage herself absolutely adored this person. He was like her father and teacher after all! And right now, they were about the enter the guild together. "Are you sure you want to go in there with me? There's to way of telling if I'll even be able to find a suitable contract for me, so this could be just a big waste of time you know?" The figure would slowly turn it's head towards the girl below his gaze, it's mechanical mouth opening in response. "There is no need to question my decision. I have been pardoned of my history recording duty by my creator and now I am free to do as I please. What I wish to be doing right now is spending time with you, Leila. After all, we lost a lot of time together when I was... in the state of disrepair."

With a sigh, but also a smile, the girl just activated the gate and entered it together with the golem, their figures now appearing in the guild hall, or rather, at the entrance to the underwater city that all belonged to the Golden Phoenix. Still impressive, the sight of it all. "I see. So structures like this exist beneath the surface of water as well. Impressive indeed. This will stay recorded in my database, even if my duty is no longer. You performed good, choosing a guild of this magnitude." Leila could only chuckle as she hopped few steps ahead, turning to face the golem. "What can I say, I was thought by the best! Now c'mon, the board is this way!" She would encourage him to speed up as she moved closer to him and tugged on the heavy coat that he was now wearing once more, almost as if she was a small child that wanted her parent to hurry up towards the candy shop. An interesting duo these two were, that much was certain as different guild members and other inhabitants of this place stared at them, especially the cloaked tall figure as they walked towards the main hall that hosted the board with jobs and contracts from all over the nation. Finding suitable contracts was actually starting to be a problem for the silver haired maiden, as people started noticing her lack of power. Which meant that she was no longer getting as many requests as in the old days. It was only natural of course, but it still made the girl wish that her powers would return sooner. With that said, she also started looking all over the place in hopes that she would maybe spot a familiar face that could join her on this mysterious quest that was surely ahead of her! The lack of interactions with old friends was making her feel a tad bit lonely, although the mechanical father was now also making a good job of filling that gap every single moment.

Just as the girl feared, most of the jobs required mages of much higher power than she currently possessed or they were about some trivial matters like helping gardening or repairing someone's house. While the silver haired maiden didn't have many problems doing jobs like those, she was in the mood for something more "important" right now. Especially since her mechanical father was standing right behind her and willing to help. Surely he too craved adventure deeply after his long slumber, even if his lack of facial emotions didn't allow him to make that clear. With a sigh, the girl would rub her head and turn around to face the rest of this room. Maybe there was someone who already signed up for a contract that she could perform? If that was the case then surely she could join them and then split the rewards by the end of it all! Wouldn't be the first time she did that. Though the number of people in here seemed to be quite limited right now. Well, it wasn't like the entirety of the underwater city was gathering here at all times, so not much else could be expected.

"Seems like we're fresh out of luck right now. Seems like we'll have to visit other guilds, maybe those will have tasks that need someone to tend to them."

The golem would nod to those words, showing off his usually silent nature. So as the Eden's witch tried to leave this place, he followed. Something else interrupted that walk, however. A brief eye contact with a lady sitting all alone at one of the tables. For some reason, it made Leila stop dead in her tracks as she continued looking at this unknown girl. Unknown? She was once an Ace of this guild and managed to memorize names and faces of all the other members. At that time, this one was definitely not present on the roaster, that much she was certain about. The red haired girl must have been a newer addition to the guild and that meant Leila should probably introduce herself. Even the golem was surprised when his adopted daughter suddenly stopped and then started walking towards a random individual.

"Um... excuse me, but are you new here perhaps? My name is Leila Vergious, a fellow member of this guild and I don't believe I've seen you around yet."

She tried to introduce herself to the best of her abilities, albeit maybe a little bit awkward while doing so. When it was one on one, she usually had no problems with this whatsoever. But presence of other members in this room made the Eden's witch slightly uncomfortable and reluctant to say anything at all. Her words were forced out of her throat all at once, so now she could only stand there and hope for the best while sizing this girl up. For some reason, the crimson red hair appeared rather alluring to her, like flames drawing moths closer with each second. Probably not the most flattering compliment ever, but at least it was not said out loud. Not yet anyway... The golem made his way to the table as well after few seconds, his giant figure that towered a fair bit over 8 feed being perhaps little frightening in combination with the inhuman parts. And yet, he was perfectly peaceful and kind until provoked, such seemed to be the nature of many Machias.

"Someone you know, Leila?"

It was probably natural to be little curious. After all, even if he was not a real father to Leila, as that wasn't quite possible with him being a machine and all that, he was still rather protective of her. And after being gone for a whole year if not longer, he wished to learn all he could about the small silver haired daughter of his, so that they could be a good family again.

"Ah, no. Someone I didn't recognize in fact. Sorry, father can appear pretty scary but he's actually a really good guy!"

Trying to make sure the redhead would not be afraid of the giant, the girl flailed her arms around in somewhat comical fashion for a moment before smiling warmly. It would be rather nice if she could make a new friend right here.

Yes, it surely have been strange for Leila to just walk up to someone and randomly introduce herself like that. Normally, she would not do something like that without a good reason. But while inside of the guild, well... perhaps this was still something left inside of her from the days when she was much more for this guild that just a regular member. It was probably wrong to say it that way, as they were still family and everyone was equally important, but that did not really change the fact that there were official positions, making some more important than others. In any case, the silver haired maiden would smile at the girl who introduced herself as Lise or Leah while tipping her top hat slightly, a gesture of greetings from someone who was wearing an outfit as fancy as Leila.

"I see. In that case, it's a great pleasure to meet you, Leah! My apologies if this seems strange to you... I was an Ace of this guild some time back. Managed to memorize every single member in those days, so new faces always surprise me a bit, make me feel like I should introduce myself to them. Just like you."

There was probably absolutely no need to justify her actions, but she did so anyway. Thankfully Leah seemed to be pretty friendly and understanding of matters, even offering macaroons to Leila who just now introduced herself. Well, she was always thought that refusing kindness of another was rude, so she smiled and grabbed a green colored one. "Thank you very much~" She loved sweets and this managed to bring a big, childish smile to her face as she bit into it, her mouth waving into a pleased shape. If something like this were to become common, then the two of them would surely not have any problems getting along at all! Ah, the good old greedy Leila that loved money and other things that could benefit her more than anything. There was some of that persona inside of her still after all. Then things came to the matter of what she was doing here. Well, answer to that would be quite simple indeed.

"Ah, just was searching for a suitable contr-"

She did not finish however, as something managed to interrupt her. A wave of magical energy from the center of the room where magical flames suddenly sparked, taking on a strange shape of letters that arranged themselves in a neat manner. And soon, something even more strange was spelled out.


Everyone in the room was staring at it, though many just dismissed it as a joke from another of the members. After all, they were in the underwater city. Magic from outside should not really reach this palce under any normal circumstances. Leila was intrigued however. She was an adventurous type after all. And even if this was nothing more than a simple prank, she still wanted to investigate it.

"Well, this is interesting. Seems like we found our contract, father."

After she said those words, the gaze of those ocean blue eyes was directed back at Leah who was seemingly still sitting there in wonder and expectation to how she would react to such an event. They did just meet, but perhaps... perhaps they could take that few steps further today?

Leila noticed the expression that Leah was making and chuckled. She probably managed to figure out exactly what the redhead was thinking, which was in a certain context rather amusing. Even the Golem standing nearby had to question it, however. He too was unaware of this little fact now that the silver haired girl thought about it. Well, he was to know sooner or later, so why not tell him now? "Think that the 'too strong' part applies to you, Leah? Don't worry, you should meet my sister one of these days. She is pretty much the textbook definition of 'way too strong'." It was quite unclear if she should be proud of this fact or feel different. Having the embodiment of devastation as a relative was a strange feeling indeed, though one could argue just how exactly they were connected due to their rather uncommon circumstance.

"So there were more after all... I did not realize."

The golem would say, mostly to him self as his eye-less gaze redirected itself from his daughter to the floor, as if he was in deep thought. In any case, the girl was glad that she now had a new companion for this quest, however it would really turn out. With a welcoming smile, she would offer a handshake before all. "In that case, I'm looking forward to working with you Leah!" Once that was done with, the Eden's mage would step away from the table and stretch a bit before looking around. So the journey would lead to another world from the sound of it, huh? That was quite exciting! "Sukai... sounds like our destination is Wakusei Portals. Huh, was there last with my sis too... alright, follow me!" She threw her fist into the air in victorious manner as she started sprinting out of the guild hall and towards the teleporter that lead back to the surface.

However, a slight issue presented itself there. They were atop the mountains of phoenixes, place that was somewhat far from their destination. So once Leah caught up, Leila would look at her with somewhat mischievous expression. Suddenly, several branches sprouted from her back, growing many different leaves and beautiful flowers. And in no time at all, the silver haired girl was now adorned with wings of nature that rested behind her. Same happened for the golem as well, though his wings simply unfolded from his back, metallic and brown in color. They were assembled from metal plates infused with magical power as well as many running metal cogs you could normally find inside of machines. "This will probably sound a little weird, but... do you have any issues with heights or being carried like a princess~?"

It was a serious question and yet, it's other half played on a teasing note that accompanied Leila's smile. There was a rather pretty girl in front of her after all. This was a golden opportunity to have some fun, even if it would be one-sided. And it seemed like the best way of reaching their destination too, as there wasn't exactly much traffic in the air. Traveling on the ground would take them several hours at least, unless Leah had some way of teleporting all of them there instantly. Actually, Leila herself had ability like that. But it only worked on her own body, which meant she would abandon these two if she was to transport herself to the portals. And surely, even someone like that had to be enticed by the thought of seeing the world from a great height like that! It was an experience that could even change the way some people think, seeing the world so small and almost insignificant.

Leila chucked lightly. Indeed, Meshi was the land completely made out of sweets. The girl herself had to yet visit the place, but she knew quite a bit about it and was eager to jump through the portal that lead to that world one day. It was a shame that it would not be today now that she was reminded of it like that, but oh well. Adventure for another day instead of the dreadful boredom, right? And right now, they would have some fun too! Or at least the Eden's mage would have as her floral wings fluttered in the breeze that was quite apparent atop the phoenix mountains. If Leah had no problems with being carried or being high above the ground, then everything was prepared and pretty much perfect for this interesting sounding journey. Offering another rather mischievous smile, she jumped right next to her new friend, swiftly grabbing her in such manner that she started carrying her one hand below her knees and the other one below her shoulders. Thank goodness for the added strength that came from stronger magical power. Not that Leah was heavy or anything, but it would be hard for anyone to carry another person in such way for too long.

"Alright, time to jump of the cliff~!"

She shouted out in rather excited voice and started sprinting to the nearest edge. And just as her partner worried, she did indeed jump! Of course there was no real danger, as the fragile looking wings were actually very powerful and capable of lifting multiple people with ease. And so, the two of them would find themselves gliding on the wind, quickly gaining distance from the point where they just stood. And in couple of seconds, the giant golem joined the due as well. His wings were different, and not only in the sense that they were made out of metals. They were not flapping at all when he needed to lift his body. Instead, each segment of the wings was almost like a small thruster you could see on a flying machine, propelling him higher via the power of science rather than magic. In any case, they were all soaring through the air now, straight line towards the portals. Leila's grip on her red haired princess would tighten slightly, ensuring that she would not let her fall to her death under any circumstances. Nothing could make friends faster than a situation where one's own life was involved, so this was unintentionally perfect, right?

Enjoying the view? We should arrive at our destination in an hour or so with this speed, so feel free to gaze at it all for as long as you want~

She would playful inform the girl in her arms as they continued forward. Time flew by and eventually, they arrived where they needed to be. Wakusei portals in their full glory! Slowly descending, the silver haired maiden made sure to have a smooth landing as she carefully placed Leah back on her feet. Hopefully that experience was more enjoyable than frightening overall, but she would not know until it was said verbally. Whatever the case, they now had the access to Sukai. If the girl recalled correctly, it was a mysterious land that existed mostly high in the skies, above the clouds. Seemed like they would spend entirety of today in high altitude. Not that she would mind that in any way. Approaching the light blue portal, she took in it's majestic appearance once more. A giant gate filled with ever-changing portal that lead to another world. Many ripples danced on it's surface as the land of another dimension could be faintly seen on the other side. Turning towards Leah once more, Leila beckoned and smiled.

"Okay, ready for some neat adventure together?"

Despite her early warnings at protests, Leah eventually found herself just fine with the idea of flying over Earthland's wast visage. And just how she said, it truly was beautiful, breath taking even. Or was that comment directed at something else? Nah, surely not. After all, what else could possibly compare to the moment when you finally see just how big this world is, the infinite potential hiding within it. The view offered just that at this moment, a sight of true wonder. It was only shame that there was a sense of purpose behind the silver haired girl's flight, a destination they would eventually reach. And when that came to pass, they once more had to walk the earth beneath their feet, devoid of the grand space offered in the skies. Perhaps another day, the girl could take her crimson haired partner to the skies for the sole purpose of enjoying the freedom of it all. Why not, if they would get along. But that fact had to yet be decided by the upcoming adventure the two of them would have. But already, the Eden's mage sensed that it would be a grand one indeed. After all, they were even vising a completely foreign world for it. And that certainly had to add some mystery points to it all.

"At any time. These wings were designed for a purpose after all. And they finally had the chance of shining in the eyes of others~"

The girl would answer with a teasing and playful note, her smile dancing on the pale skin which adorned her body ever so gently. It was sometimes surprising just how well she could take care of her own physical form while still going through difficult contracts where one would receive more than just few minor bumps and bruises. Well, being made out of magical energy rather than proper flesh and blood probably helped some. It recalled to a moment when Leila met a funny young blonde-haired lass who asked what shampoo she was using the moment they started talking. Simply remembering such event made the girl chuckle as her hand was suddenly grabbed, both her and Leah suddenly dragged through the mythical portal into unknown by her partner's strength and resolve alone. Thankfully, it was not one of those situations where there would be danger waiting on the beyond the door. Instead, they were greeted by somewhat lackluster environment surrounding them. But that probably just had to be expected from this one spot.

"Don't worry. This is but one of the many hill peaks that we can visit in this world. As the one with the portal itself on it, it's unfortunately only natural that this place is nothing but dirt. People already ravaged it's beauty. On the other hand, the way this world is, not many can reach other places here. Means they should look much more pretty than this one!"

She tried to share some of her otherworldly knowledge as the nameless golem emerged from the portal as well, clearly not phased by it, nor exceedingly excited in any matter. Not that it was easy to read emotions from mister leather-face in any way. Leila on the other hand laughed some again as she heard Leah's remark on stairs being anywhere in this world. Maybe there was someone mad enough to actually build some somewhere, but none right around this place it looked like. And as their goal clearly wasn't in this particular location, the silver haired maiden would approach her new partner and kneel down in front of her in rather fancy manner, even taking away her top hat to gesture with it in some way, offering her other hand towards the red haired lady.

"Does the princess require transporting service again? Me, the humble servant, is ready to use these wings to their purpose at any moment!"

She joked too in her own way, playing on the fact that she would probably hold Leah in her embrace few more times today. Definitely wasn't a bad thing for her, but how did the other girl feel about it? There were no complaints when they flew across Earthland, but now could be a bit different, seeing how she would not be as distracted by a beautiful scenery as before. Still was worth a shot in her opinion though. Never waste an opportunity to get close to a pretty girl! For if Leila was cursed enough to never have a functioning relationship in her life, at least she could try to enjoy herself some, right? And she actually kinda liked playing the knight for a not-so-fragile princess, strangely enough.

Leah did appear perfectly human, both with her appearance and the power that radiated from her very being. Of course that was not the best way of judging one's true origin, for Leila seemed pretty much the same. However, it would explain the way of thinking this female had. It somehow placed a faint smile onto the silver haired maiden's expression. Humans were extremely greedy creatures that tried to bind the nature itself to their command, using all of it's natural resources just to make their lives a bit easier. But what would happen once these resources run out? What will the humanity do then? Will it simply perish, or will it continue on to a different world, destroying it just as they did Earthland? No one could know the answer to that question as of yet. But the girl knew how certain humans tried to subdue the power of her own world, Gardens of Eden. A portion of the azure green forest was still corrupted because of that, not a very pretty sight in the slightest. But even then, the goddess that created the gardens forgave the humans in the end. And now, that world was slowly coming back to life.

"There is. And I am sure you will be able to see it one day!"

She then finally replied to Leah about the words that she let loose. If nothing else, she herself could show the redhead. That world which was so precious to her. Though that was a story for another day, as right now, they had to explore Sukai first. And what a journey it was already with her partner already getting somewhat embarrassed and defensive about things. Leila could only laugh lightly at the words she said and as she helped her get back up to her feet. "Serve the earth or the good of all, you say? All includes you as well, Leah~
 And right now, I won't be stopped from playing a flying knight for you. She spoke out in teasing voice, playing with the other female a bit. This was definitely not a bad thing. The desire to serve... no, to help someone whenever you could. It meant that the person has yet to give up on the world. And Leila was most definitely not giving up. But perhaps it was little to soon to be playing these games, as the two girls did not quite know each other that well yet.

So for now, the silver haired maiden would embrace Leah once more and firmly hold her in those hands of hers as they took off, the golem revealing his mechanical wings behind them as well. He was silent through the entire ordeal, which was probably fine. But it was interesting to observe the change, as he was completely different when it was just him and her on the journey. Still, she knew that her father was content with simply observing how his daughter gets along with others. This time, the flight did not take as long, for it was simply just them diving into the blanket of clouds, piercing it in swift motion and leaving a trail of white behind them. Leila herself did this few times already on her own, pretty much as soon as she gained the ability to freely fly in the skies. Why? Because she was curious like a little child, why else? But she did get this strange feeling that Leah did enjoy it some as well, even if the experience did leave them somewhat wet. At least their attires were not of the kind that turned transparent when exposed to liquid.

"Zap us? I don't really feel anything off, but best to not risk it. If princess says we should land, then we shall~"

Once again with the teasing, perhaps Leila was enjoying herself too much? Well, she stopped for now as their feet touched the solid ground once more, trees suddenly enveloping them from all sides. The forest seemed thick and almost never-ending. Not that it was a bad thing, at least for the Eden's mage. After all, she was something akin to a nature spirit and places like this one were pretty much perfect for her. Once Leah got her own space to move around, Leila would stretch a little and look around. "Well, a walk through some pretty nature should be fine too, yes? And there are three of us, so if any forest predators show up, we should be fine in terms of defending ourselves." Little did she know that it was not beasts that would be coming after them soon but something possibly even worse.

It was amusing to watch Leah's face turn redder by the moment due to one single word, yet the girl couldn't adore it for too long as she had to focus on making sure that they don't crash into the many trees around them. This forest was thick and almost resembling a jungle if the vegetation was of slightly different type. It was actually quite surprising, how she got to such place with this attitude. It was best to not think about it, but now that her thoughts wandered there on their own... she grew rather sad. It didn't seem like the other girl really noticed that, as it was quite momentary, the Eden girl's expression shifting back into smile in mere moments. But it would probably be few more minutes before she could call Leah 'princess' again. Was it even right to call anyone that? After all, her true princess and the one she wished to be with had abandoned her for a man who did what she could never do. And now it was all lost, impossible to recover for the saddened female. Such was her tale, one of irony and cruel goodbyes. Perhaps seeing others in such high regard was but a method of hers to deal with it. A selfish act that others would frown upon.

But the nature around them was something different, something she had true connection to. One which would never be severed, even by death itself. It helped ease her mind, focus on the task at hand. Without a single word, they would start walking forward into the unknown depths of this place, Leila right by the redhead's side while the Golem moved swiftly behind them, scanning the area for possible hostiles. After all, they had absolutely no idea what could jump on them here. Thankfully that too was part of the fun, as unknown itself was great motivation factor for the silver haired maiden. She was a wanderer, explorer. And while this place hid seemingly nothing new for humans as a whole race, it was still all new for herself. Not only what was around them, but also those that would surround them in mere moments. Leah was the first one to notice it, clearly showing that she was more experienced or at least more powerful than the rest of the group. But even the golem silently and carefully placed his mechanical hand on his daughter's shoulder from behind, stopping her in her tracks.

"Hm? What's up...?"

Instead of a verbal answer, she would notice it too. One of the goons that move out from the bushes, brandishing a sword in his tight grip. Well, this was unexpected. If something was to attack them, she had thought it really would be some interesting beast, native to this world and this forest. Instead, they got mere humans, thieves on top of that. It actually forced a sigh between the girl's lips as she scratched her head a bit, listening to the clown speak and then her partner's actions. Well, she certainly was something. Re-quip magic? An actual one too. Leila herself possessed the magic, but had absolutely no objects of worth that could be used for it. So instead, she just had it in case she ever wanted to change her casual outfit or something. Though even for that she now had a special pendant that rested in one of her pockets, an item that grew quite dear to her.

But back to the situation, it was obvious that this guy was not here alone. Closing her eyes, the Eden's mage would strengthen the connection between her body and this palce, starting to count. Ten... twenty... about thirty along with this one. That was quite the gang indeed, how did they managed to surround them so effectively without having them notice? Well, at least they didn't seem too powerful so it shouldn't be that hard to fight through. Those were Leila's thoughts, quickly dispersed by her partner who asked her if she trusted her? Well, that was kinda odd question. In situation like this, it had to mean that Leah had an ace up her sleeve that could be a bit questionable in it's nature, at last at first gaze. But that too was a factor which brought excitement and a smile to the girl's face as she nodded quickly.

"Of course I trust you. Do your magic!"

She honestly expected Leah to bring out some majestic weapon of mass destruction or something with potential to harm Leila as well. What she did not expect was for the other girl to grab her like that and suddenly whisk her away from this place, leaving the gang confused and baffled. Just like that, the duo ended up someplace different, though still very much in the thick of this vegetation. Wait... duo? The golem was not transported, presumably because he was not holding on to Leah when the teleportation occurred. Well, it was probably fine. Despite the girl's unsure gaze towards the other part of the forest, he was strong and fast. Surely he would get out of that situation by himself just as fine. Trust was important in situations like these. So instead of worrying herself, she would wrap her hands around the redhead's neck neck she still held her, grinning.

"My hero~"

Unfortunately there was not much time to stand by. Those goons were not the only ones in this forest, not by far. Even where they teleported too, hostile presence could be sensed. And soon, more would emerged from behind the trees. At the start there were five, then ten. Looking different from those before, these guys held unpleasant looking syringes in their hands and one look at their eyes could tell that whatever was inside of those was probably inside of them as well. As much s the blue eyed girl disliked it, she jumped down from her partner's embrace and prepared herself, smile still adorning her expression even when facing so many threats. She knew that Leah was strong, but so was she! At least in one way or another. And she wanted to get that message across, so that the other girl wouldn't have to worry about her in case something bad was to happen.

"I already got used to this forest. And I absolutely cannot stand seeing pretty girls assaulted by brutes, so let me handle these guys, Leah."

Hopefully the girl would listen at least to some extend. And as the junkies started charging at them one by one, Leila simply extended her hand forward. There was a meaning to her saying that she got used to this forest. Activating her magic, one of the large nearby trees started moving as if it was sentient living being, it's flexible trunk turning and twisting as it suddenly swooped down and crashed into those that decided it was good idea to attack the duo head on. While her main source of power were the Gardens of Eden, normal nature obeyed Leila as well. And in this place there was plenty of it! All the nearby trees started shifting around and lowering themselves to form a cage around the enemies.

Simple gesture of clenching her fist was then enough to make the cage start getting smaller until it started crushing several of them. But just as Leah thought, Leila was rather against killing sentient creatures. She would stop as soon as her enemies passed out from the pressure placed on their body and then the trees started moving back to their original place. Several were still around though. This time, she herself started charging towards them, slipping past the slower reacting red eyes of theirs, punching one in the face as her own hand transformed slightly, looking like if it was made out of wood. And as he was about to fly back from the force hitting him, that very hand started transforming further, several branches extending from it to hit the man few more times and send him literally flying and crashing into a nearby tree.

A silver longbow materialized in her other hand as she aimed it at another one, her arrows forming as she pulled back the string. They were blue in color and made purely out of magical energy, making sure that the girl had no need for any regular arrows that could run out. Shooting several times in quick succession, the blows pierced the junkie but left no visible damage even as he fell to the ground unmoving, but still breathing. Only one left, approaching her from behind with the needle ready, wanting to inject whatever was inside of it into her neck. Was it too late for her to dodge it? Yes. But the blow still did not connect, as an explosion tore the man's back apart. Not a lethal strike, but a damn painful one that would leave a good burn mark. It was from her father who now stood between the trees, finally catching up tho the girls, his hand reassembled into a cannot capable of shooting explosive bolts. With a sigh of relief, she winked at her father and then showed thumbs up to Leah. Hopefully this was enough of a display for now.