54 Evlins fear (1/2)

Part1

”Gustav are you sure about this?”

Evlin had fused with her pet griffin and was back to her hairy golden-winged form. Gustav had come up with a plan to try and help her get over her fear of heights.

”You just need to avoid looking down. If we help you get used to the feeling of flying, you will overcome your fear of falling.”

Right now Evlin was wearing a blindfold and trying to flap her wings once more. She could feel her feet disconnecting from the terrain and started to become nervous again.

[Evrything will be fine!]

[Gustav!? You're using telepathy?]

[I will not leave you alone. Just try to focus on the feeling of being in the air. I'll guide you all the way through.]

[I don't know...]

[Just trust me!]

[Ok... Ok... I'll trust you...]

[Good, now try to flap your wings with a little more power.]

Evlin followed his command and could feel her body being lifted by her wings again. Even being blindfolded, she knew she was getting more altitude.

[Youre doing great. Keep going!]

[I'm getting scared! Arent I too high already?]

[You're barely off the ground! Don't worry!]

That was a lie. Evlin was actually reaching a distance of twenty feet from the ground right now. She would probably be ok if she fell from that height thanks to Sphinx's strong body but she was starting to get further and further away.

[Gustav! I'm getting scared!! Can I go down!?]

[Almost, let's just try a small maneuver first... Just keep calm and try to flap your wings to push you forward.]

[Ok... Ok...]

Evlin tried to take deep breaths and forced her wings to flap in a different direction, trying very carefully not to use too much force.

[Ok that's enough!! You can start slowing down your flapping now. Try to descend.]

[Ok!!]

Evlin was about to freeze in a panic the more she continued that experiment, but hearing Gustav's voice inside her head for some reason helped her calm down as if acting as a reminder that she had someone taking care of her, even though there was nothing Gustav could do to catch her in case she started to fall.

As she continued to descend, she was surprised to feel the rocky terrain under her feet again. She spent a long time trying to elevate herself, but it only took seconds to go down. Could it be that she was mistaken and was just floating slightly above the ground this whole time? Worse even, she was doing that and acting all terrified in front of Gustav?

[Evlin, you can take your blindfold now.]

[Eh? Gustav? Why are you still using telepathy? I'm in the ground already.]

She removed the cloth that was covering her eyes and found herself surrounded by clouds. They were so close she could almost touch it. She was confused as to what was happening and finally tried to look down.

Evlin realized that she was on top of a mountain very far from Gustav's location. She spotted him very far and realized that all of her friends were by his side cheering for her.

[So? How does the sky taste like?]

[You tricked me!!! What would have happened if I had fallen!??]

[I called the rest of the group while you were ascending in case something happened. I would never let you fall!]

Evlin saw Ria down there making a gesture with her hands and suddenly the whole group was on top of a large transparent shield that was moving towards her direction on top of the mountain. Ashley jumped off from the shield and locked Evlin in a bear hug.

”You did it!!! You finally learned how to fly!!!”

”Too tight!! Too tight!! Can't breathe!!!”

”Ah! Sorry!!”

”Arf... Arf... ”

”I'm so proud of you sis!!!”

”Huh... Thanks...”

Evlin wasn't fully convinced she had conquered the sky after being tricked once, but she was happy that she at least managed to enjoy the feeling of being in the air a little bit. She spotted Daren in the group and directed a few words towards him.

”Looks like you were right after all lion-boy...”

”Huh...?”

”It was all about being able to trust your partner in the end...”

Evlin smiled at Gustav while Ashley continued to embrace her, which led to Gustav getting a little embarrassed and returning her smile with a wide grin himself.

The team continued to enjoy the cold breeze of the night for a little longer before finally coming down. Gustav at that night felt for the first time in a long time that he finally managed to do something for this group again.

Part 2

”So, how does it feel?”

Mia was inside a dark wide room sitting on a chair with her legs crossed and resting her chin on top of her arm with her katana blades placed on top of a table near her.

In front of her, a group of six men wearing trenchcoats was standing analyzing the new armor they were wearing.

The demon slayers were carrying their usual silver weapons, but this time they were also wearing pieces of armor made of the same material. Gauntlets, greaves, should pads, and chest plate under their cloth. They all looked like a group of knights trying to hide their armor under their black clothes.

”I feel... So much power...”

Clayton and the rest of the group were enjoying the new equipment they received from Mia. They all felt an immense boost of energy flowing through their bodies.

”I feel like we can take on a hundred demons without breaking a sweat this time!! Lady Mia, this is amazing!!!”

”Mmmmm... Lady Mia... I like the sound of that... You're all welcome... But you are delusional if you think just a hundred will be enough to satisfy me.”

”Of course... We know what our true goal is... Take back the south kingdom from those disgusting demons.”

”That's my boy... As long as you all rely on this metal, there is no creature that can stand up against you.”

”Lady Mia, are you not going to wear some armor yourself?”

”Of course not... Hiding my beautiful figure under some ugly armor would be a sin against nature, hihi.”

”... Is that so...?”

”Don't worry... As long as I have my trusted blades there is no beast that can lay a finger on me... You all should know after all... You still remember our little sparing game right?”

”I- Indeed...”

Clayton was honestly trying really hard to forget about that match with Mia. The way this girl moved while unleashing her attacks still haunted him during his sleep. He could not deny her skill and ability. She was much more terrifying than the actual monsters.

”With that said... How about we welcome our newest member?”

Mia grabbed the small frog that was located inside a vase that she had arranged and released him on top of the table.

”Everyone, meet the last member of our demon slayer group!”

Clayton and the rest kept staring at the small amphibian in confusion just wondering what this girl was talking about.

”Lady Mia... I think we are all in bewilderment as to how this little animal could help us...”

”I told you, this isn't a frog, it's a human... A human who hates the crossbow girl just as much as you do!!”

”I- Is that so... And how do we return him to normal...?”

”That's where I come in...”

”You, my lady?”

”God, I will never get tired of hearing that!! Yes, I may not look like it but I'm actually a champion from the god of the north.”