Shadow Academy 1: Trials of Magic: an Academy reverse harem fantasy romance by Natalie Kristen

Author:Natalie Kristen [Kristen, Natalie]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2019-08-11T16:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

With a terrible roar, the Manticore flew towards Wren. Wren screamed and backed away. Survival instinct took over and she exploded into action.

“No! Get away from me,” she screeched as she turned and ran for her life.

She darted between the trees, her blue hair flying out behind her.

The Manticore swished its tail and unleashed a flurry of quills.

I flattened myself behind a tree as the quills embedded themselves into the trunk.

I looked around in panic. Yohan and Yaakov were gone. Once the Manticore focused on Wren and took its eyes off them, they’d fled as fast as their legs could carry them.

They were putting as much distance between themselves and the lethal beast. I couldn’t blame them. That really was the wisest course of action. It was a matter of self-preservation.

The trouble was, I sucked at self-preservation.

I seemed to be always running towards, rather than away from, danger.

Even knowing the perilous situation I was in, I stayed where I was. I could see the Manticore raising its head to sniff the air.

It snarled and turned away from me. For some unknown, unfathomable reason, it had decided to leave me alone even though I was the only one who was standing still. Everyone else had taken off.

What did the Manticore detect from my scent? Did my scent warn the Manticore of my hidden, unpredictable powers?

Or maybe after running helter-skelter through the Dark Forest, I just smelled really bad.

Curiously, I sniffed at my arm and made a face.

I peeked around the tree at the fearsome, formidable creature. For a split-second, I thought about running. I could just run away, like Yohan and Yaakov.

The Manticore definitely knew where I was. I was just behind the tree, within striking distance. Yet the terrible beast left me alone.

The Dark Forest was the Manticore’s domain, its hunting ground. It knew every shortcut, every hiding spot, and it knew the best way to ambush its prey. Wren could run but she couldn’t hide.

The beast was letting Wren run just to toy with her, like a cat playing with a mouse. It wanted to savor the thrill of the chase and make sure its victim was thoroughly exhausted and terrified before killing her.

Fear released certain chemicals into the bloodstream and there were savage, sadistic predators who enjoyed the taste of fear.

I released a shuddering breath.

I should just run off and save my own skin.

I should do the right thing.

Oh Sadie! I heard my own exasperated sigh. For once, the two halves of my brain were in perfect agreement. My brain agreed that I was too stupid to live.

I tensed and got ready to move.

But instead of running away from the Manticore, I ran towards it.

Insane I know.

I couldn’t be trusted to preserve my own life.

Screaming like a banshee, I burst out from behind the tree and waved my arms wildly.

“Over here! Come get me, you big ugly brute! Yeah, I’m talking to you. That’s right. Come on over and get me!” I yelled. “I’ll give you something to chew on! You might want to think about changing your hairstyle.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.