Tension Rising

"Hah!? You coward—!"

Laxus' veins bulged on his forehead, his eyes wide with fury.

"We scout the enemy's strength first. And confirm if all of them are back," Rayne cut in coldly, shutting down Laxus' outburst. "If we rush in and some are still out kidnapping kids, they'll bolt at the first sign of trouble."

"Plus, that sprint drained stamina. We recover now." He met Laxus' glare unflinching. "Anything else to add?"

"Tch! Those bastards aren't even our main targets anyway!" Laxus snarled, looking away—but the fight in his stance faded. For now.

"Tsundere's outdated. Especially on a grown man." Rayne tugged Kanna forward, ignoring the twitch in Laxus' eye.

"Tsun… what?!" The term meant nothing to Laxus, but his instincts screamed insult. He filed it away for payback—preferably in their next brawl.

Scouting the Enemy

"Kanna. Any watchers?" Rayne whispered.

"No." Her reply was instant.

"No sentries? Complacency… or preparing to leave?" Rayne's gaze swept the forest before locking onto a slanted tree ahead.

Noticing, Laxus bent his knees—then launched upward like a cannonball. He grabbed a branch, hauled himself higher, and scanned ahead.

"Kanna. Up." Rayne tossed her without hesitation.

Instead of fear, her eyes sparkled. She caught the branch, spun mid-air with a soft "Oh~", and landed lightly.

"Play later. Mission first." Rayne scaled the tree more methodically, joining them at the top.

Through the foliage, a vine-woven hideout came into view.

"No wonder they're lax." Rayne's lips thinned. The structure blended perfectly with the forest. Without detection magic or sheer luck, no villager would ever stumble upon it—let alone brave the monster-infested woods in force.

Peering through the hideout's "doorway," Rayne's hopes sank.

"Tch. Not them."

No uniforms. No masks. No Black Magic cult insignias. Just a ragged dark guild.

Still, he counted: Thirteen members. Two kids confirmed alive in a corner—maybe more out of sight.

"One uses vine magic. Others unknown. Leader's probably the robed guy or the axe-wielder."

No one below reacted to their gaze—a good sign. If the enemies couldn't sense this much, they weren't that strong.

"We wait. Catch them all at once."

Rayne sat, conserving energy. Kanna, ever-patient, settled beside him. To a dragon, hours were but a blink.

The Trap Springs

As the sun dipped, painting the forest in shadows, a crunch of leaves snapped Rayne's focus downward.

Two figures emerged from the path he and Laxus had taken. One carried a limp boy—freshly snatched.

"Will Leer be pissed we're late?" the kidnapper fretted.

"We brought a 'piglet.' He'll forgive us," his partner chuckled, nudging the child. "Shame those guild rats are coming. Could've grabbed more."

"Yeah. Wonder what the buyers want 'em for."

"Who cares? Easy money."

Then—the pair froze.

One knelt, staring at the ground. At footprints.

Laxus' footprints.

The air turned to ice.

Somewhere, crickets chirped—a morbid soundtrack to the storm about to break.

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