'Run, Escape, Leave' these were the only thoughts asta had in mind as he ventured into the forest.
No matter how much he tried to reassure himself, what he had experienced just now was more than enough to make forget about logic.
Being targeted by a obsessive descendant of his trusted friend, being confessed by two girls one of which he didn't even think liked men, these events caused him a lot of mental damage to say the least.
He hadn't even properly recovered all of his mana, he had no chance to fight back if he stopped there for even a moment.
(Just to make a note, Asta had been single even after 8 lifetimes according to my fanfic backstory.)
So he ran, planning to hide in the forest until he recovered his mana which might help him fight against the awkwardness and the tension.
"You said they would be fine in a hour!!" Asta screams while taking cover under a uprooted tree trunk, his words aimed Kaelum who just picking his nose inside the mind realm.
Kaelum sighed, acting as if he was some overworked employee as he pushed himself up and called Asta into the mind realm.
(Just a small note -> Mind realm is this fanfic are accessible after stage 6 powerlevel of magic, it's in the grimoire and Kaelum just called Asta's concious to his 'Savage' Grimoire)
Asta opened his eyes, finding himself in the familiar world of the mind realm, surrounded on all sides by dense trees he couldn't see the top of and grass so tall it reached his chest.
"You said there won't be any problems after a rest." Asta repeats his words, slowly shifting his eyes to come face to face with the tribal beastmen of his past life.
Kaelum however didn't give a single s*** about Asta situation, lifted his hand and ripped out some root from the ground.
"Not my problem you scolded those two. *chomps down the radish like plant* , I told you to give them some time."
"And how long was time frame?"
"Maybe a three to four days."
Asta looked down, disappointed in himself for believing in Kaelum and pulled himself back out of the mind realm.
He returned to his body which was still under the uprooted tree, completely stressed out and In a pickle as the sound of trees falling reverberated through the forest.
The sound was far away but it grew closer and closer until it was less than a kilometre away within just 20 minsand Asta knew very well what was going on.
He stood up, lifting his grimoire as he sprinted through the forest, zooming through it to escape from his persuers which grew closer to him with each passing second.
Asta didn't fear fighting nor did he mind hurting someone to give them a lesson but... There was no way he could fight back against someone who was friend for something like love.
'Should I just surrender? It can't be that bad right?' The Thought popped up in his mind while he took a few seconds break to breath only to hear screaming.
The next second something came crashing down and fell in front of him with thud, it was a person, a person he knew very well.
"Must run, must run,mu- Asta! You need to run quickly!! Those two have –"
Gunther screamed at Asta, blood falling down his injured head as he advised him to escape that very second, warning him against something.
Boom
Another person came crashing down, colliding with Gunther as he was speaking as they were both knocked out from concession, it was quill.
Now Asta had only one thought in mind-forget about surrender, even running may not save his skin from torture that might befell him.
Asta crouches quickly, pulled out some potion bottles from the bags of his squadmates and quickly ran after shoving single healing potion down both of their throats, leaving without any delay.
"I WILL PRAY FOR YOU TWO." He yelled as he left, completely unaware of the consequences that maybe catching up to him.
**********
-somewhere a small distance away from Asta-
From high up in the trees, camoflaged with the leaves, Lily sat with a box of food as she bundled up more and more rage with each passing second, every bit of it focused on Asta for the crime he didn't even commit.
'KILL KILL KILL KILL KI- no, that would be too far... STAB STAB STAB STAB-" Lily sat on the trees, her presence hidden among the trees as she imagined herself stabbing Asta again and again.
She was unaware of the turmoil going near the town, unaware of the beating her lover had just taken from devious Combo by the duo of Mimosa and Sol.
Just as she was lost in her thoughts, her imagination was broken by Asta's yellow to Quill and Gunther, her instincts instantly rose to their limits searching every corner in her sight.
She noticed a small slithouette dashing down in the trees, her lips curling into a sadistic smile as she quickly clutches onto her dagger and licked it in a psychotic manner.
Her mind was already overloaded, thinking about nothing but venting her anger on Asta as she quickly leapt from tree to tree.
Lily was silent, dead silent, all thanks to her training she received as Garde's shadow all these years and the very appealing conditions that have given her magic a edge in the forest.
Silence magic, this was a magic she used, a element less magic that used any type of mana to work, working much similar to Attribute less magic.
The magic controlled the concept of silence, albeit without strong power of a third or fourth leaf grimoire as it could only affect sound or presence.
A magic tailor made for Lily and her position as a shadow guard but it was no wonder the grimoire was a mere two leaf as the family won't spend that much on a expendable.
But Lily didn't care because the grimoire suited her perfectly.
Currently she was trailing Asta, neither too close to be noticed nor be far away to lose track of him, a professional assassin skill that helps in ambush.
The strategy was also very effective right now as Asta was only thinking about how to avoid Mimosa and Sol, which made forget about using his ki sense.
A mistake that will cost him alot as he soon reached a small cave that went under a century old tree, completely unaware of the constantly increasing amount of his persuers.
*********
"Phew, who knew there was a place like this here." Asta commented, his body swaying and shaking in the cold dampness of the cave that seemed to go to the abyss itself.
He quickly made a some firewood after chopping some hanging roots, ignites them using his machina grimoire.
Within few moments, the damp cave was turned from a damp hell to a paradise with everything that a traveller may want, ranging from a tent to a bonfire and even a bunch of metal spears turned into barricades.
However there was still something missing- Food, which Asta forget to bring any bit of and he could imagine himself staying in this cave for days.
Asta stood up, determined to find himself some quick rations while using Yubin who despite being prideful, who agreed after haggling for a bunch of minerals.
Yubin even went as far as to make a proper written agreement in the grimoire with a horrific penalty if Asta dares bamboozle him.
The duo then went deeper into the cave, coming across various places ranging from a underground stream where Asta hogged a few fishes from, to a forest of roots with mushrooms growing here and there.
Laughing and singing as if on a vacation, Asta and Yubin returned to their camp, dumped their haul into a box of metal that Asta conjured just because he can and begins grilling them over the flames.
Asta took the fishes, Yubin took some metal ore he found underground and together they both look at eachother.
"We are gonna eat big."
"Yes we will!"
"Mind If I have that?"
The two were interrupted as a pair of hands circled around Asta's neck, a dagger in one pointed at his skin and a claw like finger from the other hand poking against his chin.
Shivers were sent down Asta's neck, his eye opening wide in shock as he just frozen there in silence.
*Gulp* "That's not a very nice way of demanding food.", Asta slowly let go of his food, placing it neatly on the extinguished bonfire.
"I was not talking about the food... Gimme your head You fraud!" Lily Screams, her weapons coming towards Asta at point blank, ready to turn him into a hornet hole.
Asta's reflexes took over, his fighting experience tilting his head which helped him escape the deadly grip with just a bleeding mark, a small price considering the danger.
He licked Lily away, his hand already going to his grimoire as he brought out Mugen and prepared for a battle.
"No sound, close range weapons and those marks... A assassin.", Asta analysed Lily's fighting style with one glance and grew even more cautious.
Now there was no room for him to move around, no place to hide. So he could only do one thing, Fight.