*Blood Burst!!!*
The Enormous Bear made no sound when William's imposing spear pierced its throat; the rings of cartilage that made up its windpipe could offer no resistance.
"I never thought my hunting target would be a Selkie, and a very strange variant at that."
William whispered, then pressed the emblem on Titan's handle. Two long horizontal blades grew out from either side of the main blade, opening two new holes in the Black Demon's neck.
The Selkies, beings mentioned in Scottish, Irish and Icelandic mythology, were large seals that lived in the sea with the peculiar ability to shed their skin and change shape into beautiful women with soft, snow-white skin and red hair that seemed to burn with fire.
According to ancient legends, the luckiest fishermen, whether by luck or skill, stole the Selkies' skins. Captivated by their incredible beauty, they forced them to marry them and bear their children, who, realising their mother's longing for the sea, would give her back her skin.
They would only look at their children's faces one last time before disappearing into the waves, never to return.
The books on Unusual Beasts in the Nevermore library recount legends little known to Normies, a stronger and more aggressive variant of Selkies, those born on land, large bears that enjoy hunting and stalking their prey.
Unlike their marine counterparts, land Selkies almost never shed their skin, except on rare occasions when they need to stalk their prey more closely or prevent someone from following their trail.
Their large antlers were a distinctive feature of their species, apart from their large size and pure coat colour. According to ancient writings, their horns attract good fortune from the air and they use them to save their lives.
(It's a bear that can change shape into a human, I don't feel sorry for it).
*CRACK!!!*
Sekie's spine made a loud crack when Titan broke it in two. William executed a 180-degree sweep from left to right for a perfect decapitation, and the still-warm blood splattered his face.
"I think I'm starting to enjoy this kind of thing!"
A whisper spoken with honesty.
William suddenly let his body fall forward, just centimetres from touching the ground, and stopped his fall by supporting himself with his left arm, successfully dodging Noah's slash that cleared another section of the forest near the lake.
The enormous body of the Black Demon, this ferocious beast, was now just a pile of flesh, without an arm, without a head, and with its body split in half. Noah's sword had easily cut the Bear in two from a distance.
"..."
Noah didn't say a word, he just kept going, rushing towards William and cutting with his sword from top to bottom.
Sparks flew everywhere. The runes on Noah's sword were almost at their limit; he would only be able to unleash the Sky Cut a couple more times before it became completely useless.
*Shing!* *Shing!**Shing!**Shing!**Shing!*
(This is what they call a desperate attack!!)
William stopped all of Noah's attacks, which were getting faster and faster, only a few of them managing to cut his long-sleeved shirt.
*Spit Saliva*
Noah was sent flying towards the grass, a full-power kick from William so close to him easily lifting Noah's 80 kilos.
"Someone like you should know that you should never fix all your attention on your enemy's weapon."
*Bang* *Bang**Bang**Bang**Bang**Bang**Bang*
Noah didn't seem to care about William's words. Still lying on the ground, he pulled the revolver from his waistband, the golden markings on its surface reflecting that it was no ordinary weapon.
Each bullet was faster and more powerful than a sniper rifle, the red flashes left by each bullet easily visible in the night.
(Danger!!!)
William sensed the danger of those bullets and covered his body behind the remains of the bear, its hard chest armour would stop the bullets for him.
He was half right. The bullets lost power but still pierced the corpse, one of them piercing William's left arm.
"Quick, quick, quick!!!
Noah's hands trembled as he tried to load more cartridges into the cylinder of his revolver. Each of these bullets was very expensive to make and very difficult to buy.
Mostly they weren't necessary; with normal bullets and his skills, dealing with Normies was like eating a slice of cake.
*Chuck*
Noah raised his revolver hastily and fired without even aiming. The gusts of air against his face had already warned him that something was approaching him, and whatever it was, he didn't want a hug.
*Bang* *Bang* *Bang*
The bullets pierced the Grimm's body, his illusory body also preventing him from biting Noah's head off, and only passing through him to stop behind Noah.
William is capable of turning his entire body or only certain parts of his body into an illusion at will, but without knowing where Noah was aiming, it was risky. It would not be nice if, by chance, one of the shots hit him right in the head.
"Grrr!!!"
The Grimm let out a low growl, his spectral figure looking particularly fierce in the night, the flames of the fire that had been burning a few minutes ago now extinguished.
The darkness reclaimed its territory, leaving Noah in a worse situation.
*Heavy breathing*
"I still have four bullets left. Want to see who's faster?"
The Great Grimm ignored Noah's words and just walked slowly around him, his eyes fixed on him, sweat dripping from Noah's forehead.
*Bang*
Noah fired a warning shot, which William took advantage of and disappeared behind a tree.
"Am I going crazy or is it my nerves? There's no way something that size could disappear behind such a thin tree."
Noah took the opportunity to stand up, nervous murmurs escaping his lips, and the hand holding his sword tightened its grip silently.
Ten minutes earlier – Forest east of Firefly Lake.
"...the silence is killing me, let's talk about something, Sheriff. How's Tyler?"
Ritchie couldn't stand the uncomfortable silence deep in the forest; the calm and darkness made her feel anxious.
"I haven't seen him in Jericho lately. He's with some family members."
"Tyr, I sent him to a training camp."
Galpin answered Ritchie's question without much enthusiasm.
"What? Why did you do that?"
Ritchie thought she had misheard and stopped in her tracks, the light from her torch fixed on her boss's back.
"He disobeyed me. I told him not to go near the Nevermore students."
"It was because of the incident where the mayor's son and his friends were beaten up."
Ritchie drew his own conclusions, the incident with the incredible mural by two Nevermore students.
"What happened to make you punish him like that?"
"I don't know, and Tyr wouldn't tell me, but he knows they're dangerous. He should devote his time to his studies and waste less time."
"They're just teenagers, a childish fight. You didn't have to push him away like that. The boy lost his mother. He needs you."
"Enough..."
"I know it's none of my business, but..."
"It's not that. Elvis picked up on something."
Galpin let go of the tracking dog's leash, Elvis ran straight into the woods, Galpin and Ritchie hurried after him.
Small branches and dry leaves crunched under their shoes.
"Rrrrawr!"
"Woof, woof!"
Elvis barked at a black bear, who was doing his best to catch the elusive dog running around him.
"Shoot him in the head, Ritchie."
"Bang" "Bang" "Bang" "Bang"
Galpin's shotgun spat fire, red flashes lit up the night, the poor black bear who was only looking for food didn't stand a chance, his thick fur couldn't withstand the .20 cartridges from the Sheriff's Remington 870 shotgun.
"Sheriff, I think it's dead. Jericho's torment is finally over. Let's hope more tourists visit the county during the holidays."
"Let me give it one last shot."
Galpin fired one last shot at the bear's back, just as a golden needle the size of a pen stuck into its fur.
"BOOM!!!"
The dog named Elvis was covered in sticky blood, guts and fur all over his little body. Galpin fell on his backside, the small shockwave affecting him even though he was a few metres away from the impact zone.
"Damn it, Sheriff, is this some new kind of cartridge?!"
Ritchie was startled by the sudden explosion of the Bear's body.
"I haven't a bloody clue, but whatever it was, it's incredibly powerful..."
Galpin stood up with some effort and saw that half of that big American black bear had been turned to mush and painted red on the surrounding trees.
Lake of the Fireflies
"Stop, William, it's me, Valérie. We talked and laughed at the Veleta."
"I didn't want to do this. They forced me. They said that if I didn't do what they wanted and find the person who was on the mountain that day..."
The pleasant voice of a girl came from Valérie's pink lips. Her hair, once silky and soft, was now covered in dirt, but that only slightly affected her beauty.
*Swallow*
"They would kill me and my family. My little brother is only eight years old. They said they would pay me a hundred thousand dollars to help them. His name is Ricky, and I'm all he has."
"My mother died when he was 5, and our father is just a fat alcoholic..."
The attractive girl dressed in a thin olive green T-shirt told her story with deep sadness in her voice, her eyes reddened and threatening to spill crystal tears.
The huge eagle, which had one of its large talons on the girl's thin neck, tilted its head curiously.
It seemed attentive to her words. Valérie did her best to endure the pain of having both her hands crushed; William's talons in his Eagle Fury form had easily crushed her bones.
"I don't know who the hell Noah is, they just told me to find you and use your image in the process..."
"That money would change my life and Ricky's..."
Tears ran down Valerie's soft cheeks, her ample chest rose and fell with agitation, revealing her prominent curves and hardened nipples.
"I beg you, just give me one chance to prove my innocence!"
William spread his broad wings and moved a few steps away from Valerie before changing shape again.
Valerie looked hopefully at the attractive golden-haired boy, whose upper body was covered in thin, majestic silver armour. A new piece of armour had been added to the previous ones.
A shoulder pad that connected the armour of the right arm and chest into one piece was decorated with the realistic head of a bear.
The silvery shine and sparkle in the moonlight was characteristic of adamantite, one of the rarest metals in the world, renowned for its hardness, strength and lightness, yet incredibly difficult for humans to manipulate.