Chapter 46: Skia 3
The heroes clashed against each other, and the distance between the minions shortened.
The enemy minions were led by their novices. They were wild, and that was due to their tribal nature.
Junhyuk grabbed his swords and looked at them, preparing. Their armors did not pose problems. Bebe’s basic longsword cost 10,000G, and it was able to tear the armors apart. The main problem was the novices’ powers.
One of the novices was huge, and he stepped forward and yelled:
"Kill that guy!"
Junhyuk realized that the enemy heroes had already told the minions and novices about him. When he was set against enemy heroes, he was like a mouse in front of cats, but he did not want to hear a mere novice mouthing off.
Junhyuk went straight toward the novice. The novice saw Junhyuk running toward him and lifted both of the hammers he was holding and smiled cunningly. Junhyuk’s longsword hit the novice.
At that moment, the novice’s body turned to stone.
Clink!
The longsword bounced off, and Junhyuk was really surprised. Then, a hammer dropped toward his head, but Junhyuk moved aside quickly.
The other novice aimed for his ribs and swung his hammer.
Clang!
Junhyuk held the longsword with his right hand and blocked the hammer. He could no longer hold off the hammer with just one hand.
The novice who turned to stone also swung his hammers, and Junhyuk dodged him while frowning.
"Is it some sort of petrification?"
The novice had a surprising increase in defensive power, but his movement speed had decreased. Junhyuk distanced himself and circled around them, aiming for the other novice, but the first novice, the one who petrified himself, began calling an attack on him. The minions surrounded him, and he had a difficult time moving around.
The allied minions were holding their shields up to protect from attacks, and it was not possible to ask them for help.
Junhyuk clicked his tongue and ran toward the novice who had the ability to petrify. The stone novice dropped both hammers on Junhyuk’s head, but Junhyuk was so focused that he was able to block the attacks.
He dodged the stone novice and ran toward the novice on his left because he did not know what power that novice had. Still, it would be good idea to kill that novice before he had a chance to use it.
Then, the stone novice smiled cunningly again and attacked with his hammers. The stone novice had done that before, and Junhyuk dodged both hammers again, curious as to why the stone novice continued to attack in the same manner.
Junhyuk counterattacked, but suddenly, there were shockwaves coming from the ground.
"What?!"
Junhyuk was ten feet above the ground. He didn’t expect that, and knew that he wouldn’t be heavily injured, but he was in the air and couldn’t control his body. Both novices aimed for him with their hammers.
Junhyuk was superior in physical makeup to the novices, but he couldn’t dodge their attacks while in the air.
He was dropping to the ground and saw the stone novice changing his body composition. The novices meant to attack him while Junhyuk fell. The stone novice had only meant to draw Junhyuk’s attention.
"They are idiots," Junhyuk uttered these words and, when the novices’ hammers closed on him, moved by spatial relocation. He stood behind the stone novice, and his longsword penetrated the novice’s neck.
"Arg-glug!"
The novice vomited heavy amounts of blood, and Junhyuk pulled out his longsword and looked at the other novice, who looked anxious. The stone novice died, and the other novice was angry rather than scared and swung his hammer. Junhyuk lifted his longsword.
Clang, clang, clang!
The novice was agitated, and his attack pattern became simple. Junhyuk parried the novice’s attack with his sword and moved to the novice’s side and swung his longsword. The novice dodged by moving his head, but still had his carotid artery cut.
Blood gushed out, and the novice held his neck with one hand and swung his hammer with the other. Junhyuk could see openings when the novice swung both hammers, and at that moment, the novice was swinging just one hammer.
Junhyuk didn’t hesitate and hit the hammer with the sword in his left hand.
Clang!
Experts were stronger than novices, and Junhyuk hit the hammer with force. Following that, Junhyuk stabbed the novice with his longsword. The novice did not dodge or block, and the longsword went through his body.
"Argh!"
The novice vomited blood, and Junhyuk kicked his chest hard. His dead body flew toward the enemy minions. Junhyuk swung his longsword to clean the blood dripping from the blade.
Two dead novices. Their attacks had been excellent, but Junhyuk had used his spatial relocation to crush their simultaneous attacks. It all depended on how one used one’s powers.
Junhyuk saw the minions heading toward him. The novices might give him trouble, but minions stood no chance against him.
Junhyuk massacred the minions and looked over to where the heroes were fighting. He still had his force field and he could use it on an allied hero, but first, he scoped out the enemy heroes who might be after him.
---
The heroes’ team battle didn’t show an absolute advantage for either side. Each hero knew how to use his or her power to the fullest. When a team battle took place, what decided the momentum were the powers they’d brought into the fight.
Junhyuk was able to help Artlan out big time, and Artlan fought well, but at that moment, they lacked Junhyuk’s power, so both sides were evenly matched.
Lybia and Skia were fighting Artlan and Halo at the front, and just behind them, Minota went wild.
Ellic and Warren were trying to get to Vera and Diane, but Nudra stood between them.
It looked as though both sides were evenly matched, but soon, Skia made the difference. Skia disappeared and reappeared from Halo’s shadow and swung a dagger.
Halo staggered, and Minota rushed him, sending him into the air.
Skia and Minota’s next target was Artlan, but Nudra joined him quickly. Skia escaped Nudra, and Ellic and Warren ran toward Vera.
Vera’s magic was very potent. They wanted to pay her back for what she had done before. Skia also ran toward Vera, but then, saw Junhyuk killing the two novices.
Skia had had confidence in the novices. Even though their powers had been low ranking, Skia believed the two novices could have taken care of Junhyuk, but Junhyuk had finished them and was massacring the minions.
Vera made a firewall, and Skia’s mind was made. In the past, Junhyuk had used his force field on the heroes. Without his force field, Junhyuk was just another expert.
Skia looked at Ellic trying to destroy Vera’s firewall. Skia hid behind Ellic and, soon, Skia hid in Vera’s shadow.
Ellic attacked from the front, and Skia would get Vera from behind. For assassins and magicians, taking the lead was important.
Vera saw them both and tried to retread, but Ellic gave her no room to do so.
"Where are you going?!"
Ellic hammered the ground, and concentric circles spreaded out from the spot he hit. The circles surround Vera just as Skia popped out of her shadow.
Diane was fighting Warren and couldn’t help.
Skia’s dagger slashed Vera’s back.
"Argh!"
Vera bled from her back, and Skia continued slashing her. Soon, an ivory-colored force field surrounded Vera.
Thunk!
"Of course."
The force field was something with which they had to reckon, but it was also like a lifeline for Junhyuk. Without it, he could die.
Skia saw Vera weaving her magic and escaped. Skia moved toward Junhyuk, closing in fast.
Junhyuk faced a dilemma. He had used his force field on Vera to save her. He had meant to be inside the force field with Vera, but Skia moved very fast and was already between him and the force field.
Vera was readying her magic when Ellic hit the force field, and the force field bounced away with her. The enemy heroes knew all about the force field at that point.
Junhyuk held his swords, and Skia moved toward him. His skill was not match for Skia. He had to escape, but couldn’t think of anything.
Junhyuk looked into Vera’s eyes. Vera signaled him with her eyes and made a firewall in front of Skia. Junhyuk ran to the left side of the firewall.
Skia jumped over the firewall and continued chasing Junhyuk. A fire orb appeared in front of Skia.
Vera knew Skia would continue chasing him, so she made the fire orb, and it exploded, slowing Skia down. Junhyuk got closer to Vera.
Skia moved quickly, but Junhyuk got inside of the force field.
"Whew!"
Junhyuk gathered his breath, and Vera said:
"Be very careful!"
"Of course."
Ellic comes went toward them with his hammer, and Vera threw a fire spear at him. Ellic blocked it with the hammer, and Skia hid behind him.
"That force field won’t last forever!"
Junhyuk looked for Skia, who was hiding behind Ellic. If Skia disappeared, it meant Skia had moved to a shadow. They had to restrain Skia.
Vera attacked Skia, who was still hiding behind Ellic. A firewall appeared behind Ellic, and Skia moved back from it.
Vera smiled at Ellic.
"It’s too late."
"What?"
Nudra showed up from behind and kicked Ellic. Ellic was pushed forward to Vera, and she threw another fire spear. It was a direct hit on Ellic.
Boom!
Ellic was hit by the fire spear, and Nudra lifted both hands. Nudra created a strong wind and pushed Ellic. Ellic turned around, and a fire orb hit the back of his skull.
Boom!
Ellic was strong, but not strong enough to withstand attacks from Nudra and Vera. Ellic was dying when Junhyuk realized that Skia was gone.
"Skia is gone!"
Vera frowned and shouted:
"Everyone, be wary of the shadows!"
Vera created a firewall behind her back and a fire orb on Junhyuk’s back. They were preparations for the worst.
The force field disappeared.
Junhyuk was very strained as he looked around and couldn’t find Skia.
"Where is Skia?"
Skia could hide in a shadow for five seconds, but they did not know when Skia had disappeared. There was a fire orb on Junhyuk, and he held fast to his swords.
The fire orb would explode first, before Skia had the chance to attack him.
Boom!
Skia jumped out from Junhyuk’s shadow, and the fire orb exploded. Junhyuk looked at Skia as Skia disappeared into thin air again.
Vera shouted:
"Move!"
Junhyuk moved by spatial relocation as Skia started turning into smoke. Junhyuk relocated twenty feet and swung his swords. The swords didn’t touch anything.
Junhyuk sighed in relief, but suddenly, he felt a burning sensation in his chest. He looked down slowly and saw a dagger sticking out of his chest.
Skia whispered in Junhyuk’s ear:
"I told you I would kill you!"