As they were passing by their room, accompanied by other waiters, the cultivators’ eyes met. The clang of blades being unsheathed filled the air.
Chapter 494
“Dora.” The young heir of the Predatory Blades clan greeted the elf girl with a nod. “I didn’t expect to see you here today.”
“Hello, Tom,” she replied stiffly. “You didn’t? Really?”
If a wall of steel had suddenly appeared between the two of them, it would’ve crumpled like a simple sheet of paper. Tension hung in the air.
“You really are a barbarian, my enemy! No one can drink a whole sea!”
“Ha! You’re a coward, Price!”
“Me? A coward? We’re going to the South Sea right now to see which one of us can drink all of it!”
Compared to the tense exchange between Tom and Dora, the drunken shouts sounded somewhat surreal.
“You doubt my honesty, eldest heiress of House Marnil?” Tom’s eyes flashed with a sinister light.
Anise tightened her grip on her long, narrow blade. Einen, in turn, held up his spear-staff in front of him.
“Not at all, Tom.” Dora looked belligerent. “But every time I visit this restaurant, you and your sister are always somewhere nearby.”
“And now you’re accusing me of stalking you?”
Dora remained silent. The waiters disappeared again. Hadjar and Price continued to discuss the South Sea and which of them would be the first to drain it without noticing what was happening around them. They seemed to have drunk a bit too much.
Suddenly, Tom sighed disappointedly and rubbed the bridge of his nose.
“I thought that the fact you joined me in the Valley of Swamps meant you wanted to tell me something.”
Dora flinched. Einen tensed up even more. He didn’t like this one bit.
“It had nothing to do with you!” The elf retorted sharply.
Tom’s eyes shone even brighter than before. He turned to Einen and almost pinned him to the floor with his gaze.
“Was it about him, then? This miserable, stinking commoner?”
Dora sprang to her feet and snatched her hammer from the wall. She aimed it at Tom’s chest. At the same time, Anise drew her blade and stood in front of her brother.
“Don’t make me do this, Dora,” she whispered.
“Get out of here, Tom. I have no desire to talk to you.”
“Because you prefer the company of these bastards?” There was contempt and disgust in Tom’s voice.
“I’d rather spend time with rats than with you!”
Tom’s hand jerked toward his blade, but he pulled himself together just in time. Attacking the elf Princess wouldn’t be the best way to end his day.
He turned to Einen, who was holding his spear-staff in one hand and a mug of juice in the other.
“You, bastard, why are you staying silent? Are you really content to hide behind her skirt?”
Einen’s eyes widened, letting everyone see their frightening and inhuman purple color. It wasn’t just the Dinos siblings who recoiled, Dora did as well.
None of them noticed the suddenly silent drunkards standing on either side of the door with their weapons at the ready. While the rest didn’t see them, the frightened waiters sure did.
“I think it’s you, honorable young heir,” Einen bowed without getting up, “who’s hiding behind someone’s skirt at the moment.”
The obvious allusion to the fact that Anise was protecting Tom struck a nerve. He flushed red and drew his blade.
“Worm, you’ll pay for your insolence with your life!”
Who knew what would’ve happened next had the window facing the yard not suddenly exploded.
Iridescent, scaly armor flashed around Einen. It clung to the darkness, which, having assumed the form of an ape’s paw, had encircled Dora. A crossbow bolt that had broken through the window sunk into it up to its fletching, but didn’t touch Dora’s back. However, Einen, who was directly connected to his Technique, coughed and spat out blood. There was a bloodstain on his left hand.
Hadjar was shocked. Who was this assassin capable of breaking through the Defensive Techniques of a cultivator who was at the Weapon’s Heart level of weapon mastery and specialized in defense? They hadn’t even used any Techniques, as far as Hadjar could tell.
What followed could only be described as chaos. There were shouts and sounds of fighting coming from the first floor, the clanging of steel against steel, the groans of the dying, and the crunch of broken furniture and bones.
Out of the corner of his eye, Hadjar saw black shadows entering the first floor. Summoning his slumbering inner dragon, he drew the Black Blade into the physical world. Armed with short blades and wrapped from head to toe in black cloth, the attackers rushed toward the stairs.
On the street behind them lay the dismembered bodies of the guards. The two Spirit Knights, judging by their wounds, hadn’t even managed to draw their blades. Whoever the attackers were, they were skilled professionals.
A second bolt flew into the room. With a dull, metallic clang, it sank into green Imperial level armor. Price stood over the injured Einen and the slowly recovering Dora.
“We’re being attacked...”
The waitress trailed off, gurgling as she died. After breaking through the fragile door, she collapsed to the floor, staining it crimson.
“We need to get out of here!” Hadjar shouted.
Walking over to Price, he deflected several bolts with two slashes of his sword. They broke through the walls and continued on deep into the third floor. The screams were now much closer. Hadjar cursed. There was almost no room to maneuver in here.
“We’ll get out somehow,” Tom muttered.
Just like Anise and the no longer dazed Dora, he was also clad in steel armor. It was light enough for a swordsman to fight in, but also sturdy enough to protect the wearer from even a direct hit.
“How’re you doing, Einen?” Dora leaned over the pale-faced islander who was still spitting out blood. One glance was enough to determine that the wound had been inflicted on both his physical and energy body.
“I’m okay.” Einen coughed and tried to get up, but couldn’t.
His Call disintegrated into multicolored dust.
“I see.” Dora immediately put her hammer away in her spatial artifact and helped Einen up. She slung his right arm over her shoulder and headed for the exit. Price and Hadjar covered their retreat, deflecting a hail of crossbow bolts. They tried to deflect them back at the assassins, but they failed sometimes. Scattering in all directions, the deflected bolts reaped a bloody harvest. Each of the rooms had a sound-suppressing veil on it, which was now playing a cruel joke on the guests.
“Leave him, Dora!” Tom shouted as he followed after them.
“Shut up, Tom,” she snapped back.
Staying behind in the room for a second, Price and Hadjar looked at each other. The shower of crossbow bolts had stopped the moment Dora had left the room, confirming that the assassins were after her.
“If they come down...”
“...there’ll be an ambush waiting for them,” Hadjar finished Geran’s sentence.
Lowering the visor of his heavy helmet, Price held his sword with both hands. “I wanted to fight you in a fair duel,” he growled, swinging the massive blade around. “And now, my nemesis, we’ll be fighting back to back instead.”
“It’s an honor!” Hadjar shouted, blue-black energy swirling around him.
“Likewise, my enemy!”
War cries erupted from them. Together, they pushed off the floor and jumped out the broken window. When they landed on the ground floor, they found themselves surrounded by a dozen assassins.
“Whoever loses has to drain a full mug in one go!”
Chapter 495
As soon as Hadjar and Price landed on the wooden boards of the first floor, they were attacked by assassins. Wearing black, tight-fitting clothing and armed with short blades, they looked like a swarm of inse
cts. Except each of these bugs was at the middle stage of the Heaven Soldier level.
Dodging a dagger wrapped in energy that had assumed the form of a rhinoceros beetle, Hadjar elbowed his attacker in the face. There was an unpleasant crunch and the back of the assassin’s head touched his lower back. His broken body collapsed to the floor, burst into purple flames, and disappeared, turning to dust.
Price didn’t waste any time either. The steel giant in green, full plate armor ignored most of the attacks he was struck by. The assassins’ quick but light strikes hit their mark and left deep scratches in his armor, but couldn’t really hurt him. The assassins didn’t have enough power to break through his Imperial artifact.
“By the demons and gods, what’s going on here?” Price shouted.
After beheading one of their foes, he once again moved to stand back to back with Hadjar. Despite them breathing heavily, they were still alert and carefully observing the dozens of assassins surrounding them.
“Something’s off,” Hadjar said, holding the Black Blade’s hilt more comfortably.
“That’s it.” Price parried a dagger, sending it back at its owner and almost piercing their chest. “Assassins don’t usually act like this. If an assassination attempt fails, they immediately retreat.”
Hadjar, using the ‘Strong Wind’ stance, summoned a black fog that trailed after his sword. The assassins recoiled slightly when they saw the Technique. It wasn’t every day that they encountered a mere fully-fledged disciple who could use an Earth level Technique.
“I wonder where Dora’s bodyguards are,” Hadjar growled.
He’d never detected their presence, but he was certain that the clan leaders didn’t let their heirs go anywhere without them. Blades had to be tempered, of course, but weapons sometimes weren’t ready for the process and would crack and fall apart if not handled with care.
“Do you really have time to chat?” One of the assassins asked.
Having lost two of their ‘colleagues’, they were now much more wary.
“Are you even allowed to speak?” Price’s voice, coming from beneath his heavy helmet, was a little muffled and metallic.
“We only need the elf,” the assassin said, ignoring his mocking question. “You don’t need to die today.”
Hadjar had faced assassins before. However, they’d just been simple practitioners from Lidus. Even so, they didn’t usually go after ‘targets’ that the customer hadn’t paid them to kill.
“Stop talking.”
Saying nothing further, Hadjar used the sixth stance of the ‘Light Breeze’ Technique. Shrouded in a plume of black fog that looked like a small dragon, he charged at the enemy.
The assassins, who specialized in speed, easily dodged his fastest Technique. When the Black Blade, trailing the veil of darkness behind it, beheaded one of the assassins, the one who had talked to them was no longer where he’d been a moment ago. At the moment of impact, part of the ‘Strong Wind’ separated, slid down the blade, and turned into a dragon’s fang. It sank into the floor. Deep cracks scattered in all directions. Razor-sharp splinters, slicing through the assassins’ hands held out in an effort to shield their faces, rained down on the hired killers. Most of them managed to activate their Defensive Techniques, but the clothes of some of them changed color, going from black to dark red.
Hadjar didn’t stop. After he’d mastered the Weapon’s Heart, the time his Call could stay up had increased to two minutes, but he doubted that would be enough. Turning on his heel, he swung his sword in a wide arc. The Black Blade flew through the air. Its edge flashed white, reflecting the light. The crescent created by his ‘Strong Wind’ looked similar to the ones that the Dinos siblings were able to use.
The first assassin in its path decided to use a simple Defensive Technique. If this had been an attack supported by the mysteries of the Wielder level, he would’ve survived, but against the might of the Sword’s Heart level...
“Fool!” The leader of the assassins shouted, but it was already too late.
The black ribbons that came out of the assassin’s wrists, weaving into a shield, could do nothing to counter Hadjar’s attack. The crescent cut through them as easily as if they were simple decorations, not an energy-based shield. Before the assassin could even scream, his body fell to the floor, split in half. Blood covered the ground.
Eat, Hadjar ordered mentally, but the Black Blade didn’t react. Hadjar frowned, but didn’t have time to ponder why the weapon refused to devour the Heaven Soldier’s core. It might’ve gotten a couple of small specks of Spirit out of it, if nothing else. The two halves of the assassin’s body, like the other two before it, turned into a pillar of purple flame and were reduced to dust.
“Kill them!” The assassins’ leader commanded.
They were clearly running out of time. And even though it might’ve seemed like a lot of time had already passed, only fifteen seconds had gone by since they’d jumped out of the window. By this point, Dora and Einen, accompanied by the Dinos siblings, should’ve already been on the second floor and would be reaching the first floor soon enough. If the assassins didn’t kill the two swordsmen by then, they would have no chance of completing their mission.
Hearing the order, the assassins rushed in to attack. Dagger Techniques rained down on Hadjar from three different directions. Quick and light, they turned into the stingers of various insects.
The black cloak of fog rose up, absorbing one of the thrusts. With a wave of his hand, Hadjar spun its hem, breaking one of the assassins’ arms. With a kick, he sent that foe flying. Screaming in agony, the man flew at least six feet through the air, knocking several of his companions down. Price immediately attacked them.
“Emerald River!” He shouted.
He swung his sword and unleashed a river of green energy. The torrent roared as a dragon’s head appeared inside it. Tracing a pattern of incredible complexity in the air, it engulfed both the screaming dagger thrower and the assassins he’d shot down. Cutting them into hundreds of pieces, it generated flashes of purple fire within its emerald depths.
Hadjar, who was still spinning, soon lost sight of Price. Bending at an unnatural angle, he let his enemy’s blade pass right above his nose. Pushing himself off the floor with one hand, Hadjar surged into the air, spinning like a top. His sword swung in a wide arc and cut his second attacker once again. The mysteries of the Sword Spirit, which looked like a quivering, wide band of darkness, burst forth from the Black Blade. This time, the assassin was ready for it. Putting up a Defensive Technique, he reinforced it with his own mysteries and didn’t try to completely block the strike. Instead, the shield of black ribbons that had appeared in front of him reflected the attack. The wall of the restaurant wasn’t a significant obstacle to the sword strike. It easily cut through the logs and continued toward the street.
The building creaked slightly, but withstood the damage and didn’t collapse after losing one of its supporting pillars.
Hadjar, still spinning in the air, waved his hand. His cloak shot toward the ground and, anchoring there, redirected his rotation. Swooping down like a falcon coming for its prey, he plunged his sword up to the hilt in the third attacker’s throat.
When Hadjar’s feet touched the ground, he shook the walls of the restaurant with an inhuman roar and waved his hand again. The body, like a stone launched from a trebuchet, flew off his blade and crashed into another assassin. He didn’t even have time to react. Falling back, he was immediately swallowed up by Price’s ‘Emerald River’.
Hadjar paused, bewildered. He could feel his sword ‘feeding’. It had just swallowed up the pitiful bit of Spirit that the Heaven Soldier had been able to cultivate.
“So that’s how it is.”
Chapter 496
Hadjar looked down at the Black Blade and immediately understood what he’d been doing wrong. It had been unreasonable to assume that it’d be enough to hit someone with a Technique for the sword to absorb a piece of their Spirit. No, it was
both a lot simpler and much more complicated at the same time: the Black Blade needed to taste their flesh.
Hadjar suddenly sensed danger. Acting on instinct alone, he jumped back. Still reinforced by the sixth stance of the ‘Light Breeze’ Technique, he moved as fast as he could manage. Turning into a plume of black fog, he matched the assassin’s speed. However, that wasn’t enough to completely avoid the attack.
Beneath him, right where he’d just stood, a blood flower bloomed. Rising some three feet into the air, it opened, revealing twelve bloody blades instead of a bud. One of them managed to graze Hadjar’s leg. A deep cut appeared on his calf, and the blood from it was drawn into the flower, making it even bigger. It was easy to imagine what would’ve happened if he hadn’t dodged — the deadly flower would’ve drained him dry.
As soon as Hadjar landed back on the ground, his sense of danger went off like a siren once more. He saw the threat and realized that he wouldn’t be leaving this battle unscathed.
A crossbow bolt flew toward him from the third floor window overlooking the garden of the ‘Heaven’s Pond’. The same kind of bolt that had almost broken through Einen’s defenses and wounded him. Leaving behind a white trail, the bolt flew at an unthinkable speed. Hadjar couldn’t defend himself or dodge. The bolt, which had initially been heading for his hip, suddenly changed direction and went straight into his stomach. Hadjar, exerting every ounce of speed he could muster, tried to raise the Black Blade to stop the bolt, but he knew that he wouldn’t be able to do so in time. He was too slow. At times like these, he always lamented the fact he didn’t have a good Technique for Strengthening the Body. It could’ve saved his life right then.
May the forefathers be kind to me-
He didn’t get to finish his prayer.
There was a ringing echo from the impact. A mountain of metal had appeared in the bolt’s path. Price had managed to get between him and his death. The crossbow bolt sank a full inch into the armor that Hadjar’s strongest attack had only been able to scratch.
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