"You think I would just let you go?"
My aura burst out. I gathered all my strength and threw the spear.
He laughed, thinking it was too late.
Big mistake.
The spear vanished in midair and appeared directly towards his chest.
BOOOM!
The explosion tore through the sky. The shockwave stopped him from escaping and threw him into another building owned by Mythical.
I chased right away.
"Moonlight Thrust!-Shadow Wind!"
He countered quickly. Bullets flew at , ant to stop my montum like last ti.
I move aside and let them pass.
"My turn."
Space bent for a mont. I appeared at his side, driving my weapon for a fatal blow.
Clang!
His jacket glowed, and he was sent flying. However, the strike felt empty. No damage.
"Moonlight Slash—Shadow Wind, Expanded!"
The floor beneath us shattered. Concrete split apart as the ground collapsed, dust rising in thick clouds.
’I’m not done yet.’
Shadow daggers burst from the cloud, filling the space and hiding my movent as I moved to a new position.
Even with all that distraction, he stayed calm.
Each strike t a clean counter. Every feint failed. His senses were very strong, like he could feel where I would appear before I moved.
"Kid, I admit you’re strong, but if this keeps going, the collateral—"
I teleported above him, my spear already crashing down toward his head.
For a split second, his composure broke.
A ring on his finger glowed, and white light burst out, blocking my attack head‑on.
BOOM!
To his surprise, the strike carried more force than his weak shield could handle. The light shattered and the tip cut through his shoulder.
BANG!
He fired at as he jumped back. The bullet slamd into my chest, but my shadow armor absorbed most of it.
"Well, well. Where did that arrogance go?" I asked, already settling back into my fighting stance.
His eyes narrowed, and for the first ti, I saw genuine caution in them.
"Arrogance?" He spat blood to the side, his shoulder already knitting itself together with threads of white light. "I’m not even serious yet."
I didn’t buy it. Not anymore.
The way he fought—always countering, always defending. Never pursuing. Never closing distance unless I forced him to.
And that "teleportation" from before? Just misdirection.
He couldn’t teleport like I could. Maybe once, with preparation. But not freely. Not repeatedly.
That was why I had to kill him now. If he had ti to prepare, I would end up in the sa situation as before.
My strength and speed would be sealed again. No, it would be worse next ti, since he had already seen what I could do.
Letting him escape was not an option. No matter the cost.
I vanished.
His gun snapped up imdiately, tracking where I would appear. Good. But not fast enough.
I reappeared behind him, spear already thrusting toward his spine.
A barrier erupted from his back, my weapon scraping along hardened magic. He spun, pistol aid at my face, but I was already gone.
Left side. Low strike.
He twisted, firing blind. The bullet grazed my cheek as I teleported again.
Right. High.
Another barrier. Another desperate counter.
My eyes could see it now—the slight delay. The way his rings flared after I moved, not before.
He was reacting to sound, to air displacent, maybe even so kind of enchantnt that detected spatial distortion.
But he could not completely predict my movents.
"Shadow Bind!"
Tendrils of darkness erupted from the rubble around us, grasping at his legs and arms. He snarled, light burning them away, but it bought the opening I needed.
I appeared directly in front of him, point-blank range.
"Moonlight—"
Click.
His gun pressed against my ribs.
"Pierce."
Bang.
We both attacked at once.
My spear punched through his chest, shadow energy erupting from the wound. His bullet tore into my side, the impact hurling backward through a concrete pillar.
His last attack had pierced through the shadow armor, leaving down to my final Aegis protection.
I must admit that this was the most difficult fight I experienced so far.
"Kid , let’s postpone this fight." He let out a deep sighed.
"You think I will just let you go after what you did to my guild?"
He shook his head. " Why are you so loyal to that rcer boy? You will get more benefits by joining us."
"No thanks. I’m good right now. I’ll just kill you instead. That should make your group leave us alone."
His eyes narrowed.
"Then how about this? Join us, and we’ll turn a blind eye to your guild. They’ve been a problem, but we ignored them since they were just a small fry."
He continued."Once you’re gone, they would no longer be an issue."
I let out a short laugh. "Do you really think I’d believe you?"
His smile faded. A flicker of irritation crossed his face before it hardened into focus.
"I already gave you a chance, and you ignored my generosity ti and ti again. Very well. I’ll show you the true power of a five‑star."
"Five‑star?" I repeated, confused. Maybe the intel Samantha gave was wrong.
Before any question left my mouth, he drew another pistol.
"Ti to die, kid—" He stopped mid‑sentence.
Space twisted behind him, and a man appeared.
He wore a dark robe that hung loose. His skin looked half rotten, gray and peeling, as if death had tried and failed to claim him.
One eye sagged lower than the other. The sll of decay followed his very presence.
"It seems my friend has overstayed his welco" the robe figure spoke. "I’ll take him now "
"Who gave you the right to leave?"
The mont the words left my mouth, lightning, wind, and fla burst in from outside the building.
Alexa appeared through the chaos. She struck the gunslinger at once, using the elent of surprise to land a clean hit.
However, a cluster of bones erupted from the walls out of nowhere, shielding the two from any real damage.
Still, having several top‑class S‑Ranks on my side ant I could take on those two.
"Buy so ti," I commanded.
They moved at once.
The air filled with sound and motion while I drew in a slow breath. My chest tightened as I released my Evil Qi again.
Darkness seeped from my skin like smoke.
The floor beneath my feet cracked from the pressure.
The corpse‑like man noticed it right away.
He raised his hand and attacked without warning.
Bones burst from the walls, tearing free with a violent screech. They flew toward like spears.
I vanished.
The hail of bones missed by a hair. In the next instant, I appeared right in front of them.
Both reacted at the sa ti, casting their defense magic in unison.
I did not slow down..
My feet dug into the ground as I pushed forward.
Evil Qi surged through my arms and into the spear. Power gathered at the tip, twisting the air around it.
I thrust.
The force exploded, crushing the shields in a blink. Their defense magic shattered into fragnts of light.
Stone collapsed. Steel bent. Floors caved as the blast tore straight through every level.
The gunslinger was sent flying, his body slamd through concrete and buried under rubble. Blood stained the air as he crashed out of sight.
The corpse‑like man fared no better. His spell failed mid‑cast, backlash tearing through his body as he skidded across the ruined floor.
And without a pause, the girls unleashed their abilities, raining destruction down on them and adding even more damage.
I joined the assault, pouring every ounce of power I had into the attack.
When it finally cleared, the ruins stood silent.
Broken beams jutted at odd angles, walls were reduced to rubble, and the ground was scarred with deep holes from the impact of our attacks.
But there were no bodies. No sign of movent. No trace of our enemies.
My chest tightened as I scanned the destruction.
’Shit,’ I muttered under my breath, anger and frustration rising in equal asure.
Even after everything we had thrown at them—everything—they had managed to slip away.
I slamd my spear into the ground, sending a small tremor through the rubble.
My hands were trembling, part from the effort, part from the surge of rage that I couldn’t contain.
Around , the girls were catching their breath, their faces sared with dust, eyes alert , scanning for any sign of our targets.
The emptiness of the ruins mocked us, a stark reminder that power alone wasn’t enough.
Strategy, speed, and cunning had allowed them to escape. And that thought burned hotter than any fla we unleashed.
We won the battle, but the war was far from over. The enemies who had slipped through our fingers would co back. And next ti, we needed to be more ready.
"Let’s get out of here." I turned and started walking toward the exit.
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