The trio ran far, with a squad of guards behind them. "You're in a lot of trouble, Ares! You and your friends too!" One guard spoke up. They were within arms reach to capture Lea who was dead last behind. Sal was the first to snatch Lea by the collar of her dress

"Eep!" She squeaked out as she was quickly dragged off like luggage by Sal. Her hat fell off of her head which she caught almost immediately out of reflex and held it firmly on her head with her hand gripped on it.

"Lea! Now's a good time to use your magic!" Sal said, barely struggling to keep up her pace with the new weight of carrying Lea.

"Now? I-I don't wanna hurt them!"

"You're not gonna fight them! Just make a diversion for us to get away!"

Lea looked at the pursuing guards and at the ground. If it's a distraction, she can most definitely do it. "Alright." She spoke. Channeling all her magical energy into the crystal ball of her oak staff, the energy covered itself all over the staff. "Durability. Force. Impact." Each word gave the glow a pulse of light with the staff's outline becoming a piercing white glow. She lifted her staff up in the air.

She took a deep breath. "HAAAAAAAAHHH!!!" She screamed. She swung her staff down on the ground and created an explosion that resulted in everyone, including herself, be blasted away from the force of her own attack. The guards were blown away with minor injuries resulting from being knocked back from the blast.

The trio was blasted away and was lucky to be blown away further from the guards. The three quickly recovered and retreated into the woods

The guards groaned a bit from being blasted as one slowly recovered and stood up. "Is everyone all right?" He asked his squad with most of them saying they are fine while some just had some light bruises from the fall.

"These kids...fall back, we'll do a search after we call for back up." They are lacking in numbers to do a search party in the forest. Till then they will need a larger squad. They'll need it.

The three ran and ran deeper until they didn't see the large cloud of dirt caused by the explosion of Lea's magic. "We finally got the Guards off our tail..." Alex said as the three are deep into the woods, so far they are not seeing anything but the trees and birds.

The trio were exhausted and tired from running that both dropped on the ground rested on the soft soil. Alex took a deep breath and sighed out in relief and exhaustion. "Thank the gods they stopped..." They were forced to fall back because the guards were caught from a diversion Lea caused, losing track of where they are. Giving the three some time to rest.

"...You're...you're welcome... " Lea spoke in-between breaths. If it wasn't obvious she's not exactly the athletic type like her two friends are. She's just glad she can still move after running that long and creating a diversion using her magic to keep the guards at bay and disorient them to lose track of the three.

After a short break, the trio, now on their feet are going deep into the woods. They trekked through tall grass and shrubs with Alex creating a transparent white machete made of light and chopped a clearer path for his friends.

This was the ability that Alex used previously. He actually has two abilities. Passed down by his father and mother. The ability to create weapons and the ability to make armor. He inherited both essences from them.

"Alex. By now they probably went to your mother to report what you've done...but it's too late to warn you about that." Lea broke the silence during their walk while kicking off a branch that caught her stockings and almost stumbled before Sal helped catch her balance. "W-Woa—! Thanks Sal..."

"Watch your step. Also, damn right it's too late!" She gently shoved Lea forward to catch up with Alex as she readied her shield but kept her sword at her hip for now. "But we know what we're signing up for when we decided to stick around with Sharky for this long." She was treating this situation as if it were the same level of trouble they normally cause. "Anyways bring out your monster book will you?"

"Unfortunately what we're after is not a monster. Alex. The mission you took is to hunt a Megafauna." Lea looked at Alex who continued clearing the path they walked.

"So?" He said with each swing of his blade becoming slower as fewer branches are in the way of their walk.

"So? Alex. Megafauna are beasts that are more dangerous than their normal counterparts. They are freaks of nature that are so dangerous they are capable of even doing things that no normal animal is supposed to do."

She dreaded as she read the Megafauna Bestiary to know more about these dangerous giants. They are especially scary to her for one reason. "And certain megafauna are resistant to magic. My attacks won't be strong enough to help. And were fighting a Megaboar. Who knows how tough its hide is!"

"It's a Megaboar Youngling." Now it's his turn to correct her. "It's weaker because it's young so if we consider that factor, we have a chance to kill it." He assured her as he unsummoned the machete as the path was clear and the trees gave the three shade with specks of sunlight piercing through.

He turned around to face his friends and simply smiled, showing a bit of his teeth, looking determined and pumped. "We've trained our asses off for five years by beating up creeps and regular wild animals. Lea, I know you're scared but listen to yourself. Does this sound like someone who's trained to fight for five years to act like?"

Lea felt flustered. She didn't realize the things coming out of her mouth were counterproductive to what she went through with Sal and Alex. Clutching her staff with both hands as she looked up Alex. "I'm just...I'm worried that you guys will get hurt because I can't do much to something that's resistant to magic. But you're right."

She felt conflicted to agree yet to also disagree with Alex. But she gave him a determined and brave smile. "I'm sorry for whining. I didn't realize it but I've been acting like your mother the entire time. worried and disagreeing with you when I should be your friend supporting y—ah!" Lea squeaked when Sal cut her off by suddenly resting her arm around her, pulling her close and grinned.

"But that's also what a friend should be. There's nothing wrong with being worried. If you're not around I would've been doing your job in whining and reasoning him out. But I trust his strength. And fighters trust strength more than anything else." Sal looked at Alex to see that shark-toothed smile of his grew wider.

"You guys...let's go kill a Boar."

"Mhh!" The two nodded as the trio are motivated and are now ready more than ever and ready to fight the Megaboar.

Meanwhile, Michel and Julius who were currently traveling deeper into the woods. Michel had his eyes shifted and glanced, focusing on any signs for tracks caused by a Megaboar.

Julius followed behind, The only weapon he had ready with him was a kitchen knife, but he doesn't look that worried being under-equipped. His worries lie with Alex and his friends hunting down a Megafauna for the first time. So to ease him he attempted to try and talk to his brother despite how he acts in general. "Mitch, if you don't want to take your job seriously then why be an Official to begin with?" A question repeated this morning from Alex and now onto his brother.

Michel turned his head to give his brother the usual look he had plastered on his face. Pure annoyance. "You think now is a good time to talk when your brat is probably going to die soon?" He kneels down to inspect the ground looking for a large hoof print.

"Please don't ever joke about that." He retorted with a low growl. He's had to deal with losing a daughter. He's not gonna lose a son who's impulsiveness leads him to try and hunt with his friends. "I'm going to be honest. You're not fit to be an Official. The only reason you're one is that you had to replace the previous Head Demonslayer."

"And to this day no one's tried to take me down to get this spot. Those who did got their asses handed to me. As much as I don't want to be an Official, I'm not letting a weakling take my spot." He stated his reason for still being an Official through all these years.

"But Officials don't need to be strong to be one." He corrected him as he and Amanda used to be in the Guild, they know how the ranks work. D-Rank and ascending all the way to the highest existing rank.

"That may be true. But this is to be the Official of the Slayers Division. Strength is a requirement and you know it." He didn't want to continue talking. But his brat of a brother will persist to keep trying to talk to him. It's better to answer than bottle that stress up. "I don't give a damn being an Official. But I won't stand letting someone weaker than me be taking the title of Head Demonslayer." His pride is to be respected at the very least.

"You got me there." As much of a prick his brother was, he can't help but also respect him for his choice to continue being an Official for years. "At least you still respect the position. But why avoid the work?"

"Because it'll make Slater work twice as hard doing my paperwork." He pulled out a cigar from his pocket, igniting it by placing his thumb that had a small flame on top.

"You dropped your minigun but brought your cigars? Whatever happened to not sticking out like a sore thumb."

He took a deep huff, holding out the cigar with his left hand and puffed a thick cloud of smoke. "Were far away enough for me to do this. You know damn well this makes me less pissed than I already am."

His long break from the guild is over and he's out here helping his useless brother to find his impulsive brat. So he was not in the best mood right now, more than usual. Michel put the cigar into the side of his mouth so he can both smoke and talk at the same time.

"Your grudge for Slater makes me surprised he still lets you be an Official in the first place."

"Because even he knows that the title of Head Demonslayer can't be easily replaced by some random schmuck. He's still a prick." Said the hypocrite.

"Care to elaborate on how the nicest man I have ever met and is your boss, a prick?"

"His genuine kindness is sickening. No matter how hard I spite him he takes it like it's nothing. Even now I spite him by avoiding paperwork yet the bastard simply just shoves the pile of papers to me and does his half with me beside him. Spiting me back because the prick knows he pisses me off."

He puffed out a darker blow of smoke as the cigar was already half its original length with the rest nothing but clinging cindering ashes. He sets the cigar to tap out the ashes before placing it for another puff. "The last time he got pissed was before he became Guild Master. When I dissed his girlfriend and we were both Elites back then."

"But. Why spite him all the time? He has to carry the Guild after what Crane did. Cut him some slack and set aside your stupid rivalry with him."

"Screw that." He retorted immediately. "I've always hated his guts. Because no matter what the world throws at him he stands tall and strong. That kind of trait will make others become like him, positive and naive brats that can be easily taken advantage of."

His motto in living is that he sees and accepts the cruel and harsh world through cynicism to become hard-boiled and grow thicker skin. "Hunters these days need to know that this world is ugly. Having Slater's attitude will give the Fodders false hope."

Julius didn't like how he used that word to describe the general members of the Guild. "Mitch. Is that how you see every member in the guild?"

"That's how I see everyone weaker than me and die be seen as fodder. Even your own br—AGCHK!!" His cigar fell off as he was suddenly struck by Julius doing an immediate swing of his fist. He staggered back and slumped behind a tree. Michel rubbed his face where he got punched and looked at his brother. "Damn. That's quite a swing."

"Don't you ever. Call my kids. Fodder." He didn't know what came over him. But he instinctively knew that he would insult his children next. That also meant both Alex and Lexa. Julius has had enough of his older brother freeloading in his house. Smoking, drinking in broad daylight, and even telling Alex what happened to Lexa which they kept a secret to not get him any ideas. He tried to endure his attitude because he's his brother, but he snapped at the most inopportune moment.

"You were right about being rusty. Impressive as that swing was. That shit didn't make me spit blood." He stood up straight and cracked his knuckles. Loud snaps of bones and his eyes are glowing with the color of flames. "How about we do a quick warm-up before your brat gets crushed or Gormin finds us?" For once that constantly annoyed and jaded face is replaced with a thrilling smirk.

Julius immediately knew what he was doing. He always spites everyone he meets and insults them for one reason alone. To fight them. And he spited him to get some fight he thought he lost after settling down.

"Come on. If you want me to take back what I said. Prove your strength if you want me to apologize." Michel lunged at Julius, winding his right fist to immediately take a swing at his idle brother but halfway through mid-swing his fist was halted not by Julius's hand. But a transparent orange armored arm, seeing through the armor it's Julius's arm. It's an essence, the essence of Julius Ares. The essence of war.

"If fighting you is what it takes to make you say sorry. I'll gladly beat that face of yours into a bloody pulp." He growled as Julius's other arm created the same transparent armored arm as he pulled Michel closer to strike his gut with his other arm. The impact is strong that the force of the blow made the grass under their feet dance as if a gust of wind passed by.

The strength of his armored punch lifted Michel off the ground. He coughed as the air in his lungs was forced out before being launched a far distance from where he initially stood. He harshly crashed on a tree, his back taking most of the impact and the tree's leaves falling off from it. He slumped down but immediately recovered and sprinted at his brother. "You call that a punch?" He taunted, Michel leaped at Julius to prepare the same strike. Julius raised his arm to catch his fist only to have his armor shatter upon the impact of his fist hitting his armored hand.

"Hgh!" Julius grunted as he left himself vulnerable for a second in surprise but before he can even act to reform the armor he felt Michel's fist on his face as he was knocked out of the ground, spinning for a split second and falling face-first onto the ground.

"That. Is a punch. Holding yourself back because I'm your brother? Don't pull your punches in a fight. If you're honoring a fight, you've already lost."

Julius slowly recovered, rubbing his face as he looked at him. "...You're right. I shouldn't be looking at you as my brother in this fight...I should be looking at you as the asshole that freeloads around my house. Drinking and leaving cigar ashes around the table and told my son what happened to Lexa."

"Hmph." He smirked. "That's a good start. After I told him that and he declared that he would save everyone in Hell once he gets stronger. I thought I was gonna vomit from his naivety."

Julius felt a surge of immediate anger from his words. It's sickening he resorts to insulting other people that are dear to them. Because he knows that they care more about them than themselves. And it's working on him.

Julius's anger manifested with a burst of heat as his entire body was lifted an inch off the ground as what's touching was his armor, now opaque and his head now covered by a corinthian helmet with the Plume entirely made of fire.

"Heh. Haven't seen that armor in years. Show me what you got. War god." Michel taunted, cracking his knuckles as flames danced around his arms.

Julius recovered by immediately leaping with the force of his jump leaving behind a trail of burnt grass as he struck Michel with his armored kneecap by his chin. Michel staggered back and his head knocked back and forced to look up from the harsh blow but he countered by grabbing his leg to quickly slam him down on the ground. Then quickly lift him back up to smash Julius against a tree.

Julius while being slammed against a tree lifted Michel by grabbing onto the tree and lifted him up before dropping him down on the ground harshly, forcing Michel to let go and give Julius the time to let go of the tree and immediately elbow dropped his brother, making a deep crater caused by the impact.

In short, the two brothers are having a brotherly time settling their differences in a brawl. Like most siblings are.