Part Fifty

My shift finished uneventfully. It was actually disappointing, as something had happened the last two times. But this might be for the better, as it was unlikely any one else wanted something to happen tonight. I know I was more than ready for bed.

As a side note, I’d finally gotten a new set of gloves to replace the Moray Gauntlets that were damaged by Malignant Aura. They didn’t have any special abilities, but did boost both my Agility and Dexterity, so they were better than the Striker’s Gloves I had been using. They also had this weird effect that made it feel like I wasn’t wearing gloves in the first place.

If I could get a new armor piece, then I’d be back to full power.

“Grrrrrrr!”

A low pitched growling broke me out of my thoughts. It was coming from a nearby alley, faint enough that I could barely hear it. Now I know what you’re thinking. This was obviously a trap, it was too suspicious not to be. I highly doubt there was any way for a monster to still be in the fort after all this time. But, so long as I knew it was a trap then I should be able to utilize it to my advantage. Hehehe, whoever you are, I hope you’re ready to play.

I immediately used Sonic Burst to accelerate down the alley. I felt mana swirl from somewhere, and then heard several dull popping sounds. Clouds of a noxiously pink vapor floated into the air all along the alley, including in front of me.

I covered my face with a rag and held my breath as I rummaged for something in my bag, which I downed it as soon as I found it. There, that should help to deal with the clouds, which are most likely poisonous. So they’re making their move? Well come at me, I’m more than ready for you. I just hope you’re as prepared to die as you are to kill.

[Number 8’s POV]

“Shit! Switch to plan C! He’s making a run for it!”

What kind of madman runs into poison clouds?

That was exactly why Michael had done it. There had been Poison Bombs scattered all about the alley. It was a trap designed to pin him in place, while the pawns bombarded him from safety. But since he’d ran, the pawns had no choice but to pursue. Four of them, including 8, dropped into the alley and ran after Michael, while the other five fanned out to entrap him.

They’d already taken Antidotes made exactly for this purpose, so there was no threat of them being poisoned. They absolutely had to catch up to him before he ran into someone else. While the odds were low, if it did happen, it would jeopardize the rest of their operations.

Where the fuck is that bastard when we need him? He’s the only one who can stand up to this guy. Please let the poison have worked. I don’t want to die. It looked like his prayers were heard, as Michael was slumped against the wall of the alley. They could hear him panting for breath.

“Phew, we got him. So, who finishes him off?”

That was the big question. Only things they killed would give them greater strength due to the System, so it actually mattered who dealt the final blow. Some extermination parties had been destroyed in the past because of the arguing that had let their prey recover and fight back. But the pawns had a foolproof way to decide.

“Let’s see, today would be the 12th? Guess that means you’re up 8.”

That was the rule. Whatever the date was, that was who delivered the killing blow in situations like this. If that specific pawn was unavailable, then the closest numbered would get it. The closest number was decided by alternating directions. If the date was even, then they counted down, if odd then up.

8 approached Michael while drawing his sword, fully intent on stabbing him through the head. But he never reached him.

*Whoosh*

Something black struck him in the face and the next thing he knew, all of his senses had been stolen and he was in blinding agony. But thankfully it wouldn’t last long, as he was soon decapitated.

[Protag’s POV]

Damn, that was gruesome. But it’s good to know that [Rot] works just as well on humans as it does monsters. Now, let’s see if I can capture at least one of them alive.

“S-Shit! Retreat!”

“Oh no you don’t. You’ve got some splainin' to do, Lucy.”

I activated Beast of the Nightmare, and was on them before they could react. I may not have known exactly what he said, but the context was clear.

I hit one with a [Rot] in the leg and used my sword to cut another’s arm off. The third one was ready for me though, and used his sword to block my attack. We exchanged several blows before his sword broke in half from the impacts.

Tch, I knew it. They’re using cheap, easily replaceable equipment. Stuff that’s impossible to identify. If they get away, I’ll never track them down. And to make things worse, there’s probably more of them.

I kicked the one in front of me, before whipping around and blocking the thrust of the one-armed enemy. He gasped in surprise, then screamed as I cut off his other arm. I wanted to finish him, but had to move because of the flare of mana I felt nearby. A bolt of fire impacted where I was. I looked around and saw the caster standing on the roof of a building.

Seriously? Now they can use magic? Fucking hell, these guys are annoying.

“17, 18 get back! Leave 19. We can’t afford to take too many casualties!”

“Damnit, stop talking gibberish!”

I hit the no-armed guy with [Rot] before he could move, but the other guy was quicker on his feet than I thought. He turned and ran down the alley, leaving the two dying guys behind. I followed after him, but the mage tried to impede me with more [Firebolts]. Fortunately, his aim was shit, so I was able to weave in-between the bolts and catch up to the other guy. I cut him down this time. Didn’t want any loose ends.

“Fuck you, you native bastard! You don’t know who the fuck you’re dealing with!”

“I still don’t understand you, but I just know that that was an insult!”

I fired another [Rot] at him, but the angle allowed him simply lean back to avoid it. Cocky bastard. I seriously wanted to climb up there and kill him, but I had no way to do that without being a sitting duck for his magic. Hm, this is odd. Only five attackers of this degree? Are they idiots, or do they have….backup. fuck.

Four more assailants filed into the alley, only to recoil from the scene found within. They must’ve tried to entrap me by spreading out, but it backfired on them spectacularly. If I’d been up against all nine, I would’ve had no choice but to continue fleeing. Ah, where are my manners?

“Good evening gentlemen. Lovely night for a stroll, wouldn’t you say?”

I smiled at them before rushing into the fray once more.

[Number 2’s POV]

Oh my God. What kind of a monster is he?

The fight below him was that horrifying. It was four-on-one, but the four were being utterly torn apart. Just from what you could see, one would be inclined to think that the pawns were weak, but that wasn’t true. They certainly weren’t strong by any means, but they would at least be comparable to the weaker mercenaries on the assault squad.

But compared to Michael, they might as well have been unconnected for all it mattered. Even worse was the fact that he clearly wasn’t trying to kill them. Each blow was aimed at a pawn’s extremities. He was trying to take them alive.

Oh god no! I can’t get captured by him! He’s a Grudge Mage, can you imagine the pain and suffering that can cause!? Aside from one particular school of Focus Magics, there was no other magic more suited to torture then Grudge Magic. Having your body slowly rotted away while you could feel it was a living nightmare. A hell of unknowable depths.

I’ve got to get out of here! I’m almost out of mana anyway, and I don’t have any combat Skills aside from magic! If he catches me, I’ll die!

Each of the pawns possessed only one or two Skills. House Valec loathed the idea of giving too much power to those they’d enslaved, so they were strictly monitored. The fact that Number 2 had Awakened was actually a big deal, as the House usually kept them from ever knowing how to do so. It was this that gave their platoon hope that they could one day escape their lives of servitude. But now it appeared that they never would.

I have to warn the others! We can’t fight this guy. He’s much stronger than us, so we’ll just die! If we hide in the fort, we can just wait for that monster to kill Sávos and Finnél. His panic and fear had caused him to make a drastic error. He forgot who owned him.

“I’m disappointed Number 2. I thought you were better than that.”

Intense pain wracked his whole body a moment after he’d heard Sávos’s voice. All of House Valec’s pawns were fitted with a series of special piercings set deep into their flesh. These piercings had several effects, ranging from throttling the pawn's power, to tracking their movements. But they also possessed a self-destruct ability.

“I thought I warned you. Never rebel against the House. It’s not worth it.”

Those were the last words he ever heard.

[Protag’s POV]

“For all your preparations, you guys didn’t amount to much. Now, let’s get to splainin'.”

Anyone who saw this would think I was the bad guy. That’s how bad these idiots looked. I’d focused on delivering multiple small cuts to each of them, so that Cursed Blade would slowly sap their strength. It had worked perfectly, so much so that I was highly surprised. They were now all splayed out on the ground. I had to get to work fast or they’d bleed out before I could learn anything.

Now, which one to start with? I guess this one will do. He’s already lost an arm, so he won’t last as long. Maybe making an example of him will cause the others to talk. I don’t think they’re completely behind this. Something tells me there a ringmaster here and I’m gonna find them.

I was assuming that this was the second time these fuckers had tried to kill me, so I was especially livid. I wasn’t one for causing undue pain, but I felt a little torture would be admissible here. Though I’d quickly finish them once I had what I wanted. I wasn’t a monster after all.

But before I could start, I felt mana swell up again from nearby. I used Sonic Burst to get away, just before a massive fireball struck where I’d been, killing the assailants. Shit! I thought that guy was out of mana!

I was once again faced with the same dilemma, I couldn’t climb up without risking being bombarded by magic. But as I waited, no more magic was cast at me. Whoever was up there was either out of mana, or patiently waiting for me. And who was I to keep them waiting?

I scurried up the wall, constantly keeping an eye out for swelling mana, but I reached the roof unharmed. Waiting for me was not the mage I’d seen before, but an elderly man. Between his perfect posture and immaculate clothing, all I could think was that he fit the stereotype of a butler to a tee. Oh, and the mage was still here, writhing in a pool of his own blood.

“Wow. I know they say that the butler always does it, but this is ridiculous. Who the hell brings a butler to a Dungeon?”

“Cute.”

“Why thank you. Now I don’t suppose you’d be willing to come along quietly, would you?”

His mana exploded outward almost as soon as I said that, and he rushed straight for me. Hey! You’re supposed to banter before fighting to the death!

Where the Shortsword he wielded had come from, I didn’t know, but the thrust he unleashed with it was deadly all the same. I managed to deflect it with the white sword, while bringing the black one up to cast [Rot]. But before I could, I felt mana from behind me.

*Clang*

How I managed to block the dagger aimed for my back, I don’t know, but I used the momentum from that to push the butler away from me. As we both back-pedaled away from each other, we each sent a knife at the other, which collided in mid-air.

This is bad. He’s definitely more experienced than I am, though I think I’ve got the advantage in pure strength. But where did that dagger come from? I don’t sense anyone else, and he didn’t throw it. Wait, why did I feel mana from an ordinary dagger? Oh shit.

I could feel several more small sources of mana around me. And since the first dagger was still floating, they must’ve been more daggers. I don’t know if it was magic, Aura, or the effects of the daggers themselves, but this was going to be a pain.

As one, the daggers flew towards me on all sides. I wasn’t going to be able to deflect them all, so I made a drastic decision. I charged straight at my opponent while activating all of my relevant Skills. In such close quarters, the speed I could attain with both Sonic Burst and Beast of the Nightmare should’ve allowed me to end the fight then and there. But things were never that easy. Just before I reached him, he simply disappeared.

What!? But how? I didn’t even feel any mana, so it couldn’t be a spell. Can he teleport at will? Hm, maybe it’s a Skill. If that’s the case, I’ve got an idea. Let’s see if you can follow this, butler man.

Instead of trying to reverse course, I used my momentum to leap to the next building, and then to the next one. Then I dropped down into an alley, determined to lose the butler. Time for a game of cat-and-mouse.

[Sávos’s POV]

He’d been so close. Just a bit more and he could’ve ended the fight. His plan hadn’t gone quite the way he wanted it to, but it had succeeded in bringing the boy onto the rooftop. The pawns had only known about the first segment, where they were to wear him down for Sávos to finish off. That every single pawn had died wasn’t part of the plan, but it wasn’t a significant loss, so long as Michael died.

Tch, that boy has the devil's luck. To be able to sense the minuet quantities of mana in my Mind-Linked Daggers and to be able to react isn’t something someone of his level should be capable of. He is most likely pushing right against the boundary.

In all honesty, he would’ve died if he hadn’t been able to use Vanish. The Skill had just saved his life, but it didn’t guarantee it. Vanish required a lot of mana to activate, leaving Sávos with very little. His greatest advantage had been neutralized, but he couldn’t just give up. No only would Michael be hunting him now, but Finnél was very clear. He wanted the boy dead.

But catching him was beyond Sávos at the moment. Not only did Vanish have a high mana cost, but it also took a severe toll on the body when it was used. Combined with the exhaustion he usually felt and there was little chance of him catching up to Michael. He would have to search for him, and hope he wasn’t ambushed.

With this much mana left, my only hope is [Spark Storm]. It’ll take every last drop of mana I have left, but it’s the only chance I have.

[Spark Storm] was a Lightning and Wind Magic combination spell, one that trapped the target inside of a whirlwind while blasting them with bolts of electricity. The only issue was that the spell was incredibly loud and would undoubtedly attract attention. He would need to vacate the area quickly after using it. He’d already left the barriers they’d set up, so a large noise would attract someone.

The flare of mana was his only warning. He barely managed to get out of the way of the black sphere before it hit the ground. That was undoubtedly Grudge Magic. If it had hit him, it would’ve killed or crippled him.

Two more spheres followed the first, each one a near-miss. It was only due to Sávos’s experience that he was able to read the flow of mana to avoid the attacks. But he had no way to counter attack. All he could do was to weather the assault until the boy ran out of mana himself. And it either didn’t take long, or he got impatient, as Michael soon dropped from the roof and charged at him.

The two were soon embroiled in a close quarter brawl. Since Michael used two swords, Sávos was using one of his daggers in his left hand to even things out. It turned out he was just as skilled with two weapons as with one.

*Clang clang clang*

“I don’t know what you’re doing, but do you think I’m just going to let you do it?”

Sávos was attempting to cast [Spark Storm] while fighting. Not only was this incredibly difficult to do, but there was a significant chance that he’d be caught up in it. [Spark Storm] wasn’t a graded spell, but it was equivalent to a Grade-8 spell. You can imagine the destruction it can cause, especially since [Fireball], the spell he’d used earlier, was Grade-3.

As he continued to gather mana and form glyphs, his concentration on the fight slipped the tiniest little bit. It wasn’t enough to create a fatal opening, but it was enough that he didn’t completely parry an attack aimed at his arm and suffered a small scratch because of it. Under normal circumstances, this wouldn’t have meant anything. It wasn’t enough to shake his concentration, nor was it enough to affect his ability to fight. But these were not normal circumstances and his opponent was someone capable of using one of the foulest magics possible.

Only seconds. That was how long it took for him to notice the searing pain.

[Protag’s POV]

“Gyaaaaaaaaaaaagh!”

It worked! What I had just used was [Seize], the very spell I’d been practicing for a while now. I hadn’t fully cast it since I’d had minimal contact, but that brief moment was enough for it to affect him a little. Even a small amount of Miasma entering the bloodstream would be agonizing for most people, and the butler was no exception.

With him no longer quite in control of his right arm, cutting his hand off was easy. I did have to give him credit though. He didn’t give up. Even with only one weapon, he still tried to fight back. And he started to use his daggers again, dragging the fight out.

“Don’t think you’ve won boy. I’m not done yet.”

“That’s what every villain says just before they die. That, or they make some lame threat that ultimately gets them killed even faster.”

I deflected each dagger that came for me, striking a few of them hard enough to break them. The butler was carefully watching me, looking for an opportunity. An opportunity for what, I didn’t know. Maybe he would try to escape or get reinforcements, but I intended on ending this now. I had to actually, he wasn’t the only one low on mana.

I’d noticed something earlier. It seemed that he couldn’t move much when manipulating the daggers. I need to get closer. I don’t have enough mana to use Beast of the Nightmare or Sonic Burst. I used too much dealing with the other attackers. What other options do I have? I know how to kill him, I just need a proper opening.

There were so many daggers, that the smallest slip in concentration could get me skewered. Even subtracting those that broke, there were still enough to turn me into a pincushion. And I was starting to flag a little, getting nicked more and more in the process. I didn’t even have time to cast [Rot].

Tch, gotta focus. I know I can win this, I just need a good idea to get me there. Just one good idea to overcome this. Getting closer will take too long. Skanda is the only thing keeping me alive at the moment, so once its bank is used up, it’ll be over. Wait, I never tried Bloodthirst on him, did I? Would that really work? I mean, he’s weaker then me, but I can’t imagine that it’ll effect him the way I want it to. Well, why not? What do I have to lose?

*Vrrrrrrr*

And wouldn’t you know it? He flinched. It wasn’t the overblown reaction weak monsters had, but he visibly flinched away. And that caused his daggers to hesitate, giving me the opening I wanted. The Combustion Bomb I’d hidden in a pocket earlier flew forward and exploded into a brilliant crimson flower that consumed him. He barely had time to scream before the flames consumed him, but I didn’t know if he’d died yet. And I was close enough to the explosion that it threw me into the wall. Gaah! This is becoming a habit of mine!

This time wasn’t as bad though, and it merely knocked the wind out of me. Oh, and it saved my life. The butler must’ve gotten one more command off before dying, as the daggers all darted forward to where I’d stood, before piercing into the ground, where they stuck and stilled. I took that as a sign that he was either dead or unconscious, which was good because I’d still gotten stabbed. I’d flowed into one of the daggers, but thankfully it hadn’t penetrated all the way through my armor. But I could still feel it sticking into my back, and I was definitely bleeding.

Haah, haah, haaah. Oh gross. Humans look disgusting when they’ve been burnt to a crisp. And he’s twitching. Not sure if he’s dead, I can’t really move yet. So I’ll uh, just lay here for now. I can hear yelling in the distance. I actually think it’s kinda odd that no one’s come before now. We were pretty loud before. Did they do something to keep people from noticing?

Who was that guy anyway? I didn’t recognize him from any meetings. Someone that strong who was that old should stick out. And yet, I never saw him. I was hoping that this would settle things, but I think there’s more to it. Whoever he was, he was far too strong. The strongest person I’ve seen has to be Sampson, and this guy could’ve killed him.

Ugh, I hate, loose ends……