༺ CHAPTER 72 - ACT 1 (9) ༻

“His cloak is a relic… it lets him blend into nearby terrain. It’s not perfect, it can be countered.”

Soren’s voice cut through the heavy air, thin but steady enough to grab attention.

Heads turned, for the first time, they were looking at him, not with annoyance or pity, but with expectation.

“Felix,” he continued. Each word dragged out of him like a stone from the earth. “Prepare intermediate magic. We need to restrain his movements. I’ll get rid of his stealth. For now, we need to take back the initiative.”

His words were still hesitant, broken around the edges, but they were words of action.

They stared at him, stunned for a moment, then moved, trusting his words, even when they came from a voice lacking confidence.

Light began to form in Felix’s palm.

Olivia kept her eyes wide open with her divine power, ready to respond to any sudden movements, and Alex tightened the grip on his sword.

Soren’s legs felt like lead as he planted his feet on the floor, but the weight settled into purpose instead of paralysis.

He could still taste bile and blood, and his palms were numb, but his breath came easier, no longer just shallow gasps of fear.

His mind didn’t feel whole; there were still jagged edges, memories that he knew would reopen later, but for the first time since Aria had passed away, he chose action.

Murmur’s head turned, lips stretching into a grotesque grin.

The demon’s laughter bubbled up, delighted by the change in atmosphere.

[Heehee, how fun! Fun! Fun! Fun!]

He giggled as he vanished, his cloak melding into the nearby terrain.

It was impossible to tell exactly where the demon was now that he had made use of the cloak, but Soren didn’t panic.

“...Olivia, prepare [Heal],” he whispered those orders to the girl standing next to him as he carefully constructed a magic circle.

She nodded, hands glowing faintly, her eyes darting between shadows.

Soren attached Labrys to his belt and spread his senses, his ears straining.

He wouldn’t wait for Murmur’s game this time.

Then…

A ripple.

So faint that most would miss it, behind the magician of Alex’s group.

Soren moved.

His charge was clumsy, slower than Murmur by a large margin, but the demon hadn’t expected to be seen.

A dagger arced high, about to plunge down into the unsuspecting magician’s back.

[Heehee… You saw me?]

Murmur’s grin twitched, surprise flashing across his hollow face.

He twisted his body, redirecting the strike straight at Soren.

Stab!

The blade drove clean through Soren’s open hand.

Hot agony shot up Soren’s arm, the pain only slightly dulled by his skill, but his grip clamped around the dagger, locking it in place briefly.

Murmur’s expression cracked, and for the first time, the demon looked caught.

Blood spilt from between Soren’s fingers, but his lips parted.

An orange light glowed between his teeth; his words were slurred, but audible.

“「Ig-ishon」”

Fwwaaaaa!!

Flames burst forth from his mouth in a torrent like dragonfire, engulfing Murmur’s cloak.

The fabric shrieked as it burned, smoke rolling across the ceiling.

Murmur hissed, recoil throwing him back, his camouflage flickered, breaking apart under the fire's heat.

“「Stitch thy flesh, I end thy agony. In the name of Aryn, 「Heal」」” Olivia’s hasty, panicked voice was heard, and warm light bathed Soren’s body, healing his burned mouth and torn hand.

“Soren!” Alex’s shout cut through the chaos.

He lunged, his sword blazing in bright white light, striking toward the staggering shadow.

「Fialova Swordsmanship - Downward Slash」

Steel descended like judgment, but Murmur wasn’t so easily caught off guard.

The cloak, half-burned and tattered, no longer concealed him; his form flickered in and out, but the advantage was gone.

He tore the knife from Soren’s hand, rendering it unusable and pouring blood, before leaping backwards to create distance.

He tossed aside the cloak, realising it no longer served any purpose.

Without his cloak, Murmur’s appearance was out in the open for everyone to see.

His tan skin contrasted with his silver hair under the firelight.

“A dark elf…?” someone muttered.

Murmur’s eyes curved into crescents as he traced his face with his dagger, creating small cuts as it ran along.

[Heehee… This is a surprise. That cloak was a gift… a gift…]

The blood trickling down his cheek only added to his haunting appearance.

An elf should have been the pinnacle of beauty, the race closest to the gods, and yet the being before them could only be seen as pure evil.

“Soren!” Felix’s loud voice cut through the tension; it was a signal.

“Everyone! Pull back!” Soren commanded.

The dark green circle in Felix’s palm flooded the surroundings with light as he slowly parted his lips, sweat trickling down his forehead.

“「Nature’s Strength!」”

RUMBLE RUMBLE

The ground shook widely as those words escaped Felix’s mouth, vines tearing through the stone from all angles.

The path before and behind them had been blocked, but it was intentional.

Now, with the sharp vines blocking the escape route, Murmur couldn’t run or hide any longer.

It was the worst position for an assassin like himself to be in.

Rumble!

Another set of vines shot out of the floor from right under Murmur, clinging to and scratching his arms brutally.

Murmur shrieked, a shrill, grating sound; he tore free with brute force, but the opening was there.

Soren lurched forward; his previously torn hand throbbed, but he continued moving, his memory and instinct guiding him.

He snatched Labrys from his belt, placing the head of the heavy axe on his shoulder as he filled the weapon with mana.

He swung.

「Einhardt Axemanship - Crescent」

The blade carved a brutal arc, but it was too slow.

Murmur bent backwards at an impossible angle, the edge slicing just a whisper of his silver hair, and his dagger hissed up the axe’s haft, slipping toward Soren’s hand.

The dark elf's empty eyes locked onto Soren, studying him, interested in his change in demeanour, but he noticed it.

[Heehee, still trembling… still broken…]

His words hit the mark perfectly.

Soren staggered, bile rising in his throat.

His knees nearly buckled, but Olivia’s voice snapped him back.

“Quiet thy storm, still thy heart. In the name of Aryn, peace shall find thee. 「Mental Care」”

Olivia’s desperate cry bathed him in a fragile calm; her eyes were bloodshot, her shoulders trembled, but her voice held steady.

“Soren! Don’t stop now! We will win!”

Her voice was filled with a flame of determination to survive.

Tinder's of that determination flowed into Soren; at first, it was just a spark.

He clenched his teeth, forcing air into his lungs.

He couldn’t collapse.

They were depending on him.

They had to win.

The spark grew into an ember.

Across the corridor, Alex slammed his sword against Murmur’s dagger, sparks flying.

“We can do this!” he shouted, teeth gritted. “Soren! What next?”

They weren’t treating him like dead weight; they were waiting on him, depending on him.

The ember inside his chest flared, growing slowly.

He wanted to survive, not by the skin of his teeth, but with everyone.

He didn’t care about the story anymore; he just wanted to be useful, to throw away that version of himself that had been so helpless until now.

The fire inside him burned brightly, his determination growing as he cried out.

“He’s an assassin! Keep pressing the attack! His speed is all he has!”

The command was carried out with no hesitation, not anymore.

[Heehee…]

Murmur giggled again, but the tone had shifted, higher, weaker.

[You’re different now… No fun…]

His body blurred into the stonework once more, vanishing from sight.

But this time, every eye was able to track him.

Felix’s vines erupted from the ground, cracking stone and whipping the air; some lashed too close, cutting Alex’s arm and narrowly missing Soren, but they sealed Murmur’s paths.

Olivia’s gaze scanned every ripple of shadow, lips already whispering her next prayer.

Alex stayed ready, sword blazing with white light.

Soren’s heart pounded, the sound roaring in his ears.

His mana began surging too fast, racing through him like it wanted to escape.

Ting-♪

The sound rang sharper now, vibrating in his skull.

He clenched his teeth, raised his palm, and shaped the circle.

‘Now!’

“「Shockwave!」”

The grey circle formed, then split.

Another ring spiralled out, then another, distorting like ripples colliding in water.

It was only after a couple more seconds had passed that the spell was finally released.

ROARRR—!

The labyrinth itself screamed.

Stone walls cracked under the pressure, and dust fell from the ceiling.

The wave fanned outward, flinging Soren off his feet; yet the circle didn’t collapse; it expanded, shrieking as raw sound smashed into everything.

Murmur appeared mid-step, eyes wide in genuine shock.

His dagger screeched as it caught part of the force, but the blast tore him from the ground and hurled him backwards, his hair fluttering in the gale.

For the first time, his laughter stopped.

Silence followed, broken only by the ringing in Soren’s head; his hand still glowed faintly, the warped circle finally shattering after doing its job.

“That… wasn’t [Shockwave]...” he whispered, horror and awe tangled in his voice.

————「❤︎」————