-BOOM!!

-BOOM!!

The deafening cracks of thunder rolled across the ground, each blast shaking the space as lightning slithered like serpents, splitting and scattering in every direction. The air reeked of ozone, sharp and burning, as the explosions faded into silence.

That was close...

Roan thought, his figure gliding through the shadows. At the very last moment, he had merged with them, letting the darkness swallow him whole. Only that had saved him from the chain of explosions that tore apart the space where he had stood.

His mind was steady, sharpened to a killing edge. Although he usually showed little emotion, right now he was nothing less than a predator in his prime, a full-fledged assassin who lived only for the strike. Yet, beneath that calm, there was a trace of confusion gnawing at him...

Why is the poison not working on this bastard...

The formless poison was one of the deadliest in the world, a rare toxin feared even by the strongest. Almost no one knew its cure, and those who did could be counted on a single hand. The thought that it had failed here was unsettling, though he forced the unease down and kept moving.

Slipping deeper into the shadows, Roan widened the distance between them. The battlefield was unnaturally clear, without a trace of dust or debris, since this was an isolated space. Nothing obscured his sight, and yet the emptiness pressed against him.

Ash was nowhere to be seen.

Where did he go now...?

Roan extended his senses outward, his awareness crawling over every inch of the battlefield. But there was nothing. No breath, no ripple of energy. It was as if Ash had dissolved into the air itself.

Cautiously, he stepped out from the veil of shadows. His body was ragged, clothes torn and skin marked with wounds that weighed him down. The pain burned through his nerves, sharp and unrelenting, but still something he forced himself to bear.

And then, the moment he revealed himself, Ash appeared before him. His blade crackled with lightning, the arcs dancing wildly around the steel.

-Swish!!!

The strike came without warning. Roan reacted instantly, parrying with his dagger while twisting his other hand forward, aiming straight for Ash's heart. Yet the blade cut through nothing. Ash had already vanished, his presence flickering out like smoke.

-Clang!!!

The sound erupted behind him. Roan spun just in time, his daggers meeting Ash's sword as sparks scattered through the air. The force of the impact rattled through their bones, each clash leaving a dull ache in their arms.

Roan had strength. With three of his stats already at six hundred, his attacks carried crushing weight. Yet his vitality remained under four hundred, leaving his defense weaker than it should have been. Against Ash, that gap showed itself clearly.

Each strike from Roan was powerful enough to send Ash flying, but Ash never gave him the chance. At the very instant the recoil should have taken hold, Ash used Transcendent Step, shifting his body and cancelling the momentum, reappearing at another angle to attack again. Again and again, the pattern repeated, faster than most eyes could follow.

This world often spat on the laws of physics, twisting reality into shapes of fantasy. And what unfolded now was one of those impossible sights.

This is too humiliating....

Roan gritted his teeth as his daggers blurred, intercepting strike after strike. The rhythm was relentless, the pressure unyielding. He could not continue like this. His wounds were piling up, and each clash only deepened the pain tearing through his body.

If only I could have gained enlightenment....

The thought surfaced bitterly. Standing at the peak of Grandmaster rank, his only desire was to reach enlightenment. That single step would allow him to form his domain and cross into the legendary rank.

But enlightenment was not something that bent to will. It did not come simply because one sought it. It arrived like a storm, on its own accord, and never when called.

Let's break this stalemate first....

His eyes sharpened with resolve. Roan hurled one of his daggers onto the ground, while the other remained in his grip to guard against Ash's unending strikes. The primordial aura pressing down on him already slowed his movements, and with one weapon less, the burden only grew heavier.

Ash's blade slipped through, cutting into him again, but Roan accepted the wounds. They were sacrifices he chose to make.

The dagger hit the ground, sinking into the shadows as if devoured. At once, the darkness all around surged to life, rippling and stretching like living flame.

From every direction, blades of pure shadow rose and lunged at Ash. Each dagger was identical in size, shape, and weight, and each one carried killing intent no weaker than the real thing.

This was the second form of Roan's dagger arts. His trait bound him to the shadows, letting him merge with them and shape them as he pleased. But his control had limits. To truly manifest them, he always needed a medium.

Right now, that medium was the dagger. Without it, his manipulation was too weak, barely enough to lift an opponent into the air. But with it, the shadows answered him fully, their edge sharpened into weapons that sought his enemy's life.

***

Would you look at that…..!!

Ash thought, as a smile crept onto his usually emotionless face. The expression looked almost out of place, but it carried a strange sharpness, like a blade flashing in the dark. Daggers were closing in from all sides, their glinting edges cutting through the air.

He could have easily avoided every single one if he wanted to. All it would take was a moment of teleportation out of the isolated space, and then he could return without a scratch.

But, I want to try facing them head-on…..

He knew he was being reckless, yet he still welcomed it. He had already faced this kind of trial once before in the Dragon Continent, but this time he wanted to see just how far he had come since then.

His will had grown strong enough that he did not have to fear the strain of using Omni Thought for extended periods of time. Even now, it was flowing through him like a second heartbeat, calm and unshakable.

{Lightning Reflex}

Outwardly nothing seemed to change, but the truth was hidden beneath layers of runic concealment. The phenomenon of runic symbols moving, twisting, and forming spells remained invisible to outside eyes, veiled by the Rune of Concealment. It was an ability Ash had acquired after fusing the rune into his very Soul Tree.

The Rune of knowledge granted him elemental sight, letting him perceive what others could not. The Rune of life sustained him, giving his body power to survive without food and water.

As soon as the spell activated, the world around him seemed to slow. Every motion stretched into clarity, every shadow sharpened into detail. He began weaving between the storm of flying daggers, his body moving with precision that bordered on artistry.

His movements looked hypnotic, like a graceful dance performed upon the edge of death. When Roan saw this, even he could not help but stare, his eyes wide with disbelief. The daggers were so fast that even Roan himself was barely able to keep track of them, yet Ash moved as if he already knew where each blade would strike before it was even released.

Time stretched on, and eventually Roan stopped the attack. The second form of his technique consumed too much mana, draining his reserves far quicker than he expected. He knew it was wasteful to keep pushing when his energy was already thinning.

The shadow daggers dissolved, melting back into the darkness from which they were born. Ash finally stopped as well, his chest rising and falling heavily, each breath sharp as if the air itself resisted him. Thin wisps of smoke rose from his skin, which had turned faintly red from the strain.

That…..was fun…..

The words echoed within him, and a strange satisfaction welled up in his chest. He dodged every single one of the daggers, and that act boosted his confidence.

No matter what anyone said, he found entertainment in this struggle, and that's what all mattered to him.

As his gaze shifted toward Roan, he expected to meet his opponent's eyes. Instead, he saw only empty space. A cold realization brushed against him, and before his thoughts could settle, an overwhelming presence appeared behind him.

A sharp sound tore through the silence.

And something pierced through his heart from behind.

Ash's expression froze, and the triumphant sound of laughter filled his ears.

"I did it….. I actually did it. Now all those precious artifacts and all that power will finally be mine. The ancient legacy will belong to me…"

The dagger protruded from his chest, lodged exactly where his heart should have been. Blood stained the steel as Roan kicked Ash's back, forcing the blade in deeper. Ash staggered, his body trembling as he struggled to turn around, but in doing so he only drove the dagger further into himself.

His eyes lifted, locking onto Roan. His opponent was covered in blood and wounds, yet still smiling with a menacing satisfaction. Each step Roan took toward him was slow, deliberate, almost savoring the sight of Ash's fall.

Ash's expression was one of disbelief, as if he had just witnessed something beyond comprehension. Standing before him, looking down with mocking reverence, Roan spoke.

"You were quite a tough opponent. I will remember your name, Ash Burn, for you are the only one who managed to push me this far and leave me in this state. For that, I would even commend you."

Ash said nothing. He only stared back at him, his silence heavier than any reply could have been.

****

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