Chapter 63: You had one job

She stepped out on the snow-covered rock like a blazing star and ran towards the griffin like a red-hot meteor, screaming without words all the while. Her auburn-red pigtails followed her like two long banners on the ball of pure fury this girl was. Her eyes, just as red, were absolutely mad. It wasn't just eyes, though. It was also the two curved axes she held in her raised hands.

Even the griffin was stunned for a moment by her. Me? I was smitten. This rage burned so hot, I was drawn to the source of it like a moth to the flame. But, even if my baser desires were at the moment all about banging this stranger, my higher wants were still about getting stronger to take my revenge, which at this moment meant eating this griffin.

This new development was actually lucky for me. I could use its distraction to attack when no one expects it, whoever would win this fight. Yes, I decided, this was an opportunity I couldn't miss.

The griffin broke out of its stupor. It spread its icy-blue wings that shone in the bright sunlight like the snow-covered mountain caps, and raised its front claws towards the attacking girl, screeching again in threat. She didn't even pause, and the griffin lowered on all fours again and crouched, ready to spring at any moment.

In a few seconds, the girl crossed the distance between them and hacked with both axes. The griffin jumped back, only to bounce forward again and swipe with its claws.

The girl was fast, but the griffin was faster. It rose again towards her, but this time its claws met the blunt side of the girl's axes. It grabbed on them, pulling them down, and reached with its beak towards the girl's head.

It was obvious that the griffin had more STR, but for a moment the girl resisted in this tug of war. Then, just before the griffin could peck her eyes out, she suddenly let her axes drop almost to the ground, without letting go of them, and at the same time crouched to avoid the griffin's beak.

It stumbled and let go, and the girl immediately struck out again. This time, the griffin was only fast enough to raise his claw in defence. If he didn't, it would've been his head that fell off, instead of the two bird claws the girl cleaved through like they were made of jello.

The griffin cried out in pain as an axe cleaved right through, cleanly taking off two claws. On three legs it hopped back, bleeding on the trampled snow and lichen, and I tensed, half-expecting it to run away.

Instead, the griffin beat its wings in the girl's direction, and this was when I saw that fabled Frost Griffin magic. Where any other wing-bearing creature would've only produced a gust of wind with this move, with the griffin it was more.

At first, I noticed nothing out of place—just snow and dust raised in the air by the powerful air currents. And then it hit, and the girl's armour and clothes just split as if hit by invisible blades. The edges of the cuts covered by a thin cover of rime, and I saw several more cuts appearing on the ground all around and behind her.

The girl raised a hand to protect her eyes, but didn't pause her movements even for a moment. She smoothly grouped into a roll forward and ended up crouching right before the griffin, with both axes ready to swing.

The griffin paused mid-beat and tried, awkwardly, to hop back again as the girl brought her weapons in an upward swing towards its head. I tensed again, expecting the girl to finish it off now, but at the last moment it tumbled to the side, falling on the ground but avoiding the blow.

Before the girl could finish what she started, the griffin jumped on all threes again and then into the air. Its wings flapped with an air-splitting noise as it took off from the ground and away from the girl's reach.

The girl was prepared for this, too. Or at least, furious enough for the move she did. With another angry scream, she simply threw her axe right at the griffin.

It flew with a swish, spinning fast enough to become a blur. The throw was good, and the griffins weren't great at mid-air manoeuvring. It was possible that it would've hit it, but I wasn't going to let things to chance. Not thinking about staying concealed anymore, I flew up as well, buzzing right towards the griffin.

The monster turned on its wing and the axe flew a palm-distance away from its wing. Then, it flapped its wings to send the girl dodging one more barrage of frosty blades, turned its tail and just dashed away. I didn't even get close to it, and I already knew I won't be able to follow in time.

In a blink, it disappeared behind a mountain peak, leaving me alone with a beautiful bubble of rage on the ground.

The girl screamed one more time and threw her second axe, aiming at me. I dodged it with much more grace than the griffin and dived towards her. She was angry? Well, now I was angry too. I opened myself up in front of a random adventurer, and she didn't even have enough skill to not let the griffin run away!

Forget about sleeping with her, I was going to eat her. I reached out with my hand. A stinger already extended from my wrist, and I intended to stick it right into her soft, too weak for success, body.

The girl pulled out a long knife from a sheath on her belt and raised it towards me. Her full lips curved in a snarl of rage when she spoke. The first words I've ever heard from her, and what words they were…

"Bring it on! I am bound to kill at least something today!"