Diona stared at the hourglass intensely, wishing the sands could empty out faster. With no way to tamper with the hourglass, she simply eyed it unblinkingly, as if doing so would shame the sands into moving more quickly.
Five minutes was a short time, yet it felt like five years to her. When there were only two minutes left, she and the Catkin warriors readied themselves to hunt down the fleeing Oathkeeper.
———
Inside the Forest…
As everyone else waited for the grace period to end, Alex ventured deeper into the forest.
Alex wouldn't be Alex if all he did was run. To set up the scheme, he'd throw daggers at some of the trees he passed by.
Knowing he'd be up against hundreds of warriors at once, he had prepared considerably before their trip. The daggers he threw went through Nessia, who imbued them with rune magic.
The runes inscribed in the daggers had two effects.
One, it masked Alex's scent. This partially negated the advantage of the Catkins, who had superhuman senses.
