Chapter 349 Chapter 81.4 - Close
In this world, how do you catch a fish bigger than you? No, it is not necessarily confined to this world.
In any world, how does one defeat the thing that is above them in terms of natural order? Can a cat hunt a lion? Can a normal jellyfish hunt a shark? Can a deer hunt a bear?
Are there any examples of such a thing happening in the world?
The answer is obvious.
The humans, we, are the prime example of that. From the moment we are born, do you think we have the necessary physical aspects to deal with a bear or any type of predator?
No, we do not.
But we are still in this world, living around for countless centuries or even millenniums.
That alone is an example.
Then how did we do it? At first, we were overwhelmed, but then we started adapting and getting crafty. We started utilizing the most important thing in this world.
Being able to think and plan.
The key to catching a bigger fish is here. To outsmart them, to plan your actions.
You first throw the bait.
Someone will bite it eventually.
The reason why I had made Ethan connect with Emily was for this purpose. After all, Emily was the main character of one of the side-quests, and her questline was long.
Therefore, there needed to be certain key elements that wouldn't change even now. And that was the case. As the guild conflicts over Azure Crest Guild's area intensified, people were bound to be sent by the demon contractors.
After all, the mobs can no longer deal with Emily and the area since the Hartleys are now looking over this district. Though Hartley's, in general, are a lot better compared to other families, this is not the case when you try to harm their descendants.
Especially Ethan, who has been doted on thanks to his lack of strength. Ethan's mother and father still dote on him, and they can never overlook such a matter.
Thus, they were bound to get desperate. And, just as I had thought, an assassination request had been sent via InfenalCovenant.
And then, utilizing Fred's smartwatch and identity, I was easily able to infiltrate as an assassin. After all, Fred was kind of a freelancer. Thus, he lacked conditions when I had first hunted him. Therefore, his death was overlooked, and nobody cared, thinking he just disappeared after failing to achieve his mission.
Also, the InfernalCovenant had yet to develop a method of self-destructiveness. Therefore, their smartwatches can be used for a long time.
It also doesn't always connect to the central server only when it is initiated from the smartwatch.
Therefore, they still lack in terms of this, though they are developing.
In any case, by pretending to be an assassin, I followed the notice, seemingly interested in the job, and checked the developments.
After that, it wasn't hard to learn the narrowed time to a certain extent since the employer seemed to be restless and wanted to achieve the result clearly.
It seemed they didn't trust the ones taking the job and wanted to guarantee it. Therefore, after getting the information, it wasn't hard to inform Ethan and track Emily using Horde.
Though I spent some money to invest in Horde, that was fine since they are doing their job clearly well, and also, I am frankly a lot richer compared to how I was before.
In any case, Horde tracked Emily with their newly bought equipment, and then they informed her that someone was indeed trailing her.
From that point on, I confirmed Emily would be attacked and informed Ethan.
Then, after he left, I followed him. Thanks to my improved endurance and the distance being relatively close to the Academy, it wasn't hard for me to follow Ethan without completely tiring myself out.
My speed does not lack compared to Ethan's.
As I watched Ethan approach the scene, my senses tingled with a faint disturbance in the air. It was subtle but unmistakable—a telltale sign of an artifact at work, weaving its veil of concealment around the area.
My specialized vision allowed me to perceive the subtle distortions in the surroundings, indicating the presence of the enchantment. The darkness cloaked the area, making it difficult to discern what lay beyond.
With Ethan drawing closer, I knew he needed to proceed with caution. The concealed area could be a trap, a haven for unseen dangers lurking in the shadows.
His whole hand was missing, severed cleanly at the wrist.
"Urghk-!"
As he coughed blood, his vision blurred.
Turning his head, the master assassin's eyes widened in horror as he saw the assailant manipulating the chakrams connected to him with silvery threads.
It dawned on him that the assailant had not been affected by his 'Dream Ailment' at all, and he had fallen into a trap of his own making.
There were two people who were strong against his dream attacks!
First, this blue-haired bastard, and now this newly arriving guy.
"Burghk-!"
He coughed another mouthful of blood as he struggled to stand. His body was on the verge of collapsing.
"Grrrr....."
Slowly, the emotions he suppressed to think logically started getting out of control.
As the assassin struggled to stand, his body wracked with pain and his vision growing dimmer with each passing moment, a wave of intense hatred washed over him.
'It is because of you!' He realized that he could no longer escape without finishing this bastard, without avenging himself against those who dared to defy him.
"Grrrr..."
With a growl of fury, the assassin's mind was consumed by thoughts of revenge. He knew that he was facing two formidable foes, but he refused to go down without a fight. If he was going to die, he would take them with him.
With a hateful glare directed at the newly arriving adversary, the assassin made a desperate move.
Ignoring the pain coursing through his body, he attempted to bite down on the small capsule hidden in his teeth, a last resort that he had kept as a failsafe.
–SWOOSH!
But before he could even sink his teeth into the capsule, the assailant appeared right before his face as if materializing from the shadows.
In a blur of motion, the assailant slashed at his mouth with the chakrams, moving with such speed that the assassin could barely react. It was as if his thoughts had been read.
–CRACK! The chakrams sliced through the air with deadly precision, cutting into the assassin's flesh with a sickening sound. Blood sprayed from the wound as the assassin's mouth was torn open, his scream of agony muffled by the onslaught.
But that wasn't the end, as the assailant attempted to grab the capsule inside his mouth as if he knew the exact location.
And then, the assailant grabbed the capsule.
However, the Master Assassin's eyes shone bright for a split second.
'You dared to come close to me!'
In an instant, the assassin channeled every bit of his remaining mana and even his life force. It was the same technique Ethan had used, but Assassin did it to the extreme that he would be dead one hundred percent after using it.
A crimson aura erupted from his body, a bloodlust aura of his peak strength, enveloping the assailant before him. And just as he expected, the assailant wasn't able to resist his full aura, meaning he was weak.
'DIE!'
Because his mouth was ripped open, Assassin could only scream inwardly. He channeled his aura into his arms, creating a blade.
STAB! And then he stabbed the black-cloaked assailant in his chest, his arm passing through the assailant's body.
'Hehehehe...Now, due to the poison, you bastard.'
On the tip of his nails, he hid poison after all.
SLASH!
But this was his last thought as his neck was severed. The last scene he saw was the assailant, whose chest now had a hole in it.
