The dark-cloaked assassin's pace quickened as she marched in my direction. My mind was rushing through several plans and ideas. Three of my splits were already running simulations based on the little knowledge I had.

As the Jester got closer, I kicked my table toward her and threw my book at her face. I was sure to be banned for my actions. I chased my throw, driving my shoulder into the shocked templar. Her blade ripped into my side and got locked on a rib. I drove through the pain. Luckily—and unluckily—the blade was lodged in my ribs. The assassin struggled to rip it free, and I continued to gain ground.

I figured I had about a hundred pounds of muscle on my opponent, which was what got me into this foolish mess. I blamed Bower. The split wasn't confident I could get a shot off in time. Tack was convinced we needed another shock-and-awe approach, and Slasher agreed—but with an emphasis on blades. Unfortunately, the librarian had a strict mana restriction. Even holding spaces like rings and bags were locked down in here. That left me without weapons or mana, which was precisely why I was committed to the terrible plan of running at a long-knife-wielding assassin.

Three more steps.

The blade ripped free, pulling out a piece of my rib. I didn't know if it was the pain or the surge of adrenaline that caused me to shout. By the time I reached the door, I was at a full holler, and my body was coated in dense black ice. I slammed the assassin onto the ground before she could stab again. I wrestled for an advantage and threw down fists. Just as she reached for her mana, her mind blanked.

An ice bulwark blocked the mana assault from the two squads waiting for me. I sensed the strength of at least two sages among the thirteen assassins. My barrier blocked most of the attacks. One of the Palers made a connection with the dead templar under me and reanimated the body.

I jumped back, pushed out my domain, and sliced the waking corpse in half. It was still moving, and I could sense that it was preparing an attack with dark mana. I kicked the top half of the body over my ice wall and then threw all sorts of rune bombs: darkness, fire, smoke.

Judging by the number of attacks thrown my way, the Jesters had a way to counter my silencing rune.

My bulwark was getting hammered—as well as my domain. I pushed more mana into the ice wall, added more reinforcement, and dedicated two of my splits to my domain. Culter and Fender were both eager for the opportunity to exercise their expertise.

It wasn't enough. There was another sleeper among the Jesters, and the silencing spell was inching closer. This one was strong.

Quickly, I pulled Snowpiercer out of my ring, and out of Lana's ring, I grabbed mana pistols, rune bombs, a couple of potions, and Light's Edge. I did my best to heal my side with as much water mana as I could, and then I drank a potion. It was good enough.

Just as my mana was cut off, I retreated back into the library.

What in Selene's Abyss was wrong with Sunset? Were the Jesters throwing a party… some kind of clown convention? Do assassins just really love beaches? And where were the guards?

I sighed.

As I looked at all the betrayers in the library, my mind mapped out a battle plan. It was pretty simple. Hide in the library and survive.

With my plans cemented, I fixed my gear to armor. Fortunately, the silencing effect of the library hadn't removed my armor. If that random bystander on the street could see my gear now, I'd be at least a three, maybe even a high four. Black custom armor. Pistols attached to my waist. Runes and potions on a bandolier. Sword and quiver on my back. Bow in hand. Hell, I might even be a five. The librarians would've tossed me out had this been a regular occasion.

"You all might want to find a corner and hide," I said to the frightened readers and pointed to the corner far away from the entrance. They acted rather quickly, and I watched all seven of them huddle in a corner. I pushed a couple of shelves and tables over to give them cover. The rest I needed for myself.

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Sunset Library was a moderate-sized library. Big enough to house thousands of books but not so large that it required a second floor, like other large city libraries. There just wasn't much demand for public reading space when the beach and sun were options. There were dozens of rows of bookshelves, pillars, tables, and chairs—all of which I would use for my own cover.

If the assassins were bold enough to step into the building, they were going to pay a high price. I cut the power rune, feeding all the light scripts. Windows prevented complete darkness. I had some runes for that if needed. Still, the low light improved my cover. And I covered the windows as much as I could.

In a way, preparing for the fight felt much like one of the several puzzles my splits created for each other to solve. Especially toward the end, when the puzzles became labyrinths filled with monsters and traps. In this case, I was both the monster and the trap. This space was my mindscape. The Jesters were the invaders. The obvious comparison fueled my drive to get out of this mess alive.

Finally, the thick barrier of ice blocking the door broke. Dark silhouettes filled the empty space.

Just as I practiced thousands of times in real life and millions of times in my mind, I pulled back an arrow, aimed, and released. It was all one fluid motion. Almost as perfect as my sword slice.

The air popped as the arrow flew through the air. I could almost see the vortex of air spinning around it. In a fraction of a second, it pierced my target. Before the body dropped, I had fired two more arrows. After the fourth, I repositioned.

The Jesters were quick to adjust their strategy. Shield bearers walked through the door. Their massive kite shields barely fit through the frame. If I was in the same position as before, there would be no shot. However, the tank's side was completely exposed. His slow steps didn't help. One arrow struck his side close to his heart. The next was his neck. The bookshelves I placed on the side of the entrance created a funnel, limiting the opening. The tank thought he was safely covered on both sides. That was precisely what I wanted.

After I downed another tank, there was a pause in action. I repositioned and waited for another attack. None came, and I couldn't get a clear view outside to see what the delay was.

"Kip. You can stop shooting." The voice was deep and sharp as a dagger.

I kept my bow at the ready.

"Just come out and talk. We do not want to fight you," said the same Jester as before.

With the light footsteps of a hunter, I moved to my next position. There were enough shadows that I could hide next to the shelf and see out the door. The Jesters gave the entrance a wide berth, staying out of what they thought was my firing zone.

I found my targets and fired three arrows. It was a perfect rapid fire. All three arrows pierced the chest, neck, and head of my intended targets. Three more assassins were eliminated…

Sogg's Breath. I sighed, remembering they had a Paler. The death cultivator was probably already reanimating the dead. Which meant my hide-and-shoot tactic wouldn't work exactly as planned. Before the reanimated Jesters could enter the library, I threw out flash and bang runes.

A bright light flashed outside the door frame, followed by explosive fire. I threw another round of rune bombs to shake the assassins. Masked by smoke and flame, there was no telling the amount of destruction the runes had caused. Hopefully, it had sown enough confusion to push my enemies on their heels.

The way I saw it, there were two choices. I could make a run for it and try to make it to the cover of the Bloodwoods—and hopefully Tom—or I could stick it out and fight. Realistically, I didn't think I had much of a shot either way. Death loomed near.

It was crazy how far things had gotten out of control. The loop started off so well. Now, it seemed like there was an endless amount of assassins hunting me. It still didn't make sense. I was nobody.

I poked my head out the door for a quick look. The assassins had expertly dealt with my bombs, and the flames were being extinguished. They still had a tight barricade, and it didn't look like their numbers had been reduced at all. Running probably wasn't an option yet. I needed to get to the Paler and Silencer in the squads and take them out of the fight. However, the high-priority targets were giving off powerful auras. They were either high-ranked templars or sages. It wouldn't be easy to get to them.

I fired three arrows at the Paler before ducking back into the dark library. Mana of all types exploded through the door, hot on my trail. If I had tried to take another shot or even track the few arrows I did fire, I wouldn't have escaped. It was foolish that I pushed my attack as far as I did.

Tucked behind a pillar, I took a deep breath and glanced out the door. The Jesters were still giving the entrance a wide berth. It wouldn't be long before the reanimated dead were sent through. As if summoned by the thought, three heavily shielded Jesters approached the library entrance.

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