Chapter 84:RAVENNA!
Chapter 84: 84:RAVENNA!
The first exchange shattered the morning silence, steel collided with steel. Gunfire echoed through the abandoned riverbed.
Concrete splintered beneath impacts powerful enough to crack reinforced stone. For a brief instant, four figures occupied the battlefield, then they exploded into motion.
Silver’s boots dug into the dirt as he absorbed another strike from the massive contractor.
BOOM!
Their swords collided, and the impact rattled his bones. His arms went numb. The force alone threw him backward through a crumbling concrete barrier.
Chunks of cement crashed around him as dust swallowed his vision.
’Damn...’
His muscles screamed in protest. This wasn’t just a beast, a beast relied on instinct while this man knew how to fight. His stance was disciplined and timing clean with every swing aimed to kill.
There was no wasted movement or unnecessary flourish, just years of experience separating them.
The strength contractor casually rested his sword on one shoulder.
"I’ll give you one thing, kid." He smiled. "You don’t die easily."
Silver wiped blood from the corner of his mouth.
"...People keep telling me that."
The contractor laughed.
"I think I’ll fix that."
He disappeared into a sprint. Someone his size shouldn’t have been capable of moving that quickly. The earth exploded beneath every step.
Silver’s pupils narrowed, he couldn’t block that head-on.
[Short-Step Lv1 Activated.]
{Mental Energy Consumption Initiated.}
Space distorted beneath his feet, his body flickered. The contractor’s sword smashed into empty air.
BOOOOM!
The blade carved through the concrete pillar behind Silver instead. The entire support column split in half. Half of the abandoned maintenance building groaned, then collapsed.
Silver reappeared several meters away.
A sharp pain immediately stabbed behind his eyes.
’One use already...’
The side effects hadn’t lessened even after integrating another beast. He could feel the mental fatigue creeping in. Across the battlefield, Ravenna ducked beneath a flashing knife.
The assassin flowed around her like water. He was far too fast for her, his footsteps barely made a sound. One second he stood in front of her, the next, he vanished.
Her instincts screamed. She twisted.
CLANG!
His blade glanced off hers as sparks exploded between them. The assassin smiled.
"You’re better than I expected."
Ravenna didn’t answer, instead, she stepped forward. The sudden aggression caught him slightly off guard.
Her sword erupted in a diagonal slash. The assassin leaned away, still, the edge sliced across his chest. It was a shallow cut, but enough.
His smile faded.
"So...you’ve actually fought people before."
Ravenna calmly reset her stance.
"Is it that obvious?" she sarcastically said.
Silver heard none of it. The strength contractor was already on him again with another overhead strike. Silver sidestepped.
The enormous blade smashed into the ground. Before the contractor could recover, Silver fired.
BANG! BANG! BANG!
[Phantom Draw Lv3 Activated.]
{Trajectory Correction Active.}
Two bullets struck the contractor’s shoulder armor and the third ricocheted off his forearm. The giant barely flinched.
"Tch."
He swung one massive arm. Silver barely ducked. The fist missed his head, but the shockwave alone sent him stumbling.
’What kind of monster...’
The contractor grinned.
"My turn."
Silver’s Spatial Sense pulsed, something, behind him. Without thinking, he threw himself flat. A combat knife spun through the air where his neck had been.
The assassin. He’d disengaged from Ravenna for only an instant, just enough to kill Silver.
Ravenna’s voice rang across the battlefield.
"Silver!"
She charged. The Fire Wolf’s beast energy surged through her muscles and her speed increased dramatically.
The assassin clicked his tongue.
"...Persistent."
He met her charge. Steel flashed and both swords blurred. The clash became almost impossible to follow.
Silver rose from the ground, and his breathing grew heavier. He looked between both enemies. He noticed that they weren’t fighting independently, every few seconds, the assassin would pressure Ravenna before targeting him.
The strength contractor would force him backward toward the assassin’s position.
It was perfectly practiced teamwork from years of fighting together.
’That’s why they’re dangerous.’
They trusted one another and being Rank three was just a cherry on top.
Silver’s military instincts began dissecting the battlefield; distance, angles, timing, and habits.
The assassin always circled clockwise before committing. The strength user always led with his left shoulder. They were small things and tiny details, but details killed or saved.
He smiled slightly.
’I’ve got you...’
The strength contractor charged again. This time, Silver didn’t retreat, instead, he ran forward.
The giant blinked.
’Towards me?’
Their swords collided. Silver deliberately twisted his wrists and the impact redirected the heavier blade just enough. It wasn’t enough to stop it but to change its angle.
The massive sword buried itself into the earth beside Silver. For one heartbeat, the contractor’s balance shifted. Silver’s eyes sharpened.
’Now!’
His sword thrust toward the giant’s exposed ribs but it was too slow. The contractor abandoned his own weapon entirely.
His fist drove forward instead. Silver’s instincts screamed, he crossed both forearms. The punch landed.
BOOM!
Something cracked but he wasn’t sure which. Silver became airborne, his body smashed through an abandoned excavator. The rusted steel folded around him.
His vision blurred as blood filled his mouth.
"...Silver!"
Ravenna’s scream echoed through the valley. She turned instinctively, a mistake.
The assassin smiled.
"You looked away."
His knife flashed, a crimson line appeared across Ravenna’s side. Blood sprayed across the dirt as she staggered. Pain exploded through her body.
The assassin kicked her in the stomach. She flew backward, rolling several meters before crashing against broken concrete slabs.
Silver forced himself upright, everything hurt. His left forearm trembled uncontrollably, probably fractured; maybe worse.
The strength contractor calmly and unhurriedly walked toward him.
"You know...". He picked up his sword again. "...you’ve done well."
Silver spat blood onto the ground.
"I don’t need compliments."
"They’re not compliments."
The contractor stopped ten meters away.
"It’s respect." He lifted his sword. "I’ve killed plenty of talented rookies, but... you’re the first who’s actually made me work."
Silver tightened his grip, his vision briefly blurred. He was now suffering from everything; mental exhaustion, physical exhaustion, and blood loss. Everything was accumulating.
The system quietly appeared.
[Warning]
{Host Physical Condition: 41%
Mental Energy: 38%
Multiple Internal Injuries Detected.
Recommendation: Retreat.}
Silver almost laughed.
’If only.’
Across the battlefield, Ravenna slowly climbed to her feet. One hand pressed against her bleeding side.
The assassin casually spun his knife.
"Stay down."
She ignored him. Her grey eyes searched desperately and found Silver, who was barely standing. Their eyes met across the battlefield.
Neither spoke, they didn’t need to. Both understood exactly what the other was thinking.
’We can’t keep fighting like this.’
At that same moment, the strength contractor suddenly smiled, a cruel smile.
He looked past Silver, straight toward Ravenna.
"I’ve changed my mind."
Silver’s instincts sharpened. The contractor bent his knees then launched himself, not toward Silver, but toward Ravenna. Using his overwhelming strength to cover nearly twenty meters in a single leap.
Silver’s eyes widened.
"...RAVENNA!"
She saw him coming but it was too late. The giant raised his sword high overhead. It carried a strike powerful enough to split both her... and the concrete beneath her.