The stun ball ignited with a blinding white flash. Percy rolled away as Viper fell on his ass, hissing. Then he reached into his storage and pulled out the Spellbolt, releasing five shots immediately.

From a distance, everyone could see the poppy field soaked in smoke and ash and hear the sound of something cracking and blue light filled the air.

Meanwhile, Viper took the first two shots to the chest, then he manifested a wind barrier without even chanting.

Percy got to his feet and ripped the gas mask off his face, gasping for air. His forehead had multiple painful stings cutting over the skin, and there was blood getting in his eyes.

He used a Rank 1 customizable reward to create water, which he poured over his aching skull. Then he used another to create adhesive bandages and wrapped them around his skull.

If blood kept getting in his eyes it would make the death match of a fight even harder. He created another gas mask with his last Rank 1 reward and pulled it over his face.

He threw some more stun balls into the field to start more fires. He needed Viper to get higher if he was going to win this fight. The wind magic was annoying though.

But he ha an interesting idea after shooting the disabling shot at Viper's first wind attack. The wind barrier around Viper was fading, and he was fumbling around trying to find his comrades

Percy would be killing the healer before that though. He had a good idea who these people were. After slowly stalking through the reeds, he found the assassins' comrades.

They were still recovering from the sound attacks that he used against them. Owl was rising to his feet when his eyes landed on Percy in the bushes.

CRACK!

Percy fired without hesitation. He used a disabling shot first. It wasn't as straight as a lethal shot; rather, it was like a small orb of blue light. This meant it was slower for some reason—magic followed the principles of aerodynamics when it wanted to.

The orb of blue light slammed into Owl's head, and his red shield vibrated as it tried to deflect the attack. But this wasn't a straight attack.

Disabling shots were a vibrating mass of spirit energy that sank into the body and painfully shook everything till you lost consciousness.

So the blue light spread over the entirety of the shield, stressing it greatly. Owl was trapped in a net of blue and red vibrating light, blinded by the interaction of spirit energy.

The net grew brighter and brighter till it exploded. White light and force rippled over the entire opium field. Percy was already flat on his back to avoid the shockwave, hands pressed against his ears.

When the explosion passed, he rose to his feet and scanned the black patch of earth. All of the assassins were blown away and slightly scorched but still alive.

Owl was alive too, just standing at the center of the explosion, face contorted in confusion. He looked all around till his eyes landed on Percy again.

He smirked at the confused man and pointed the Spellbolt at him. Owl opened his mouth to say something, but Percy shot him through the chest. No shield was there to save him this time. The lethal shot pierced his chest, sprayed his blood on the other end as it escaped his body.

The other assassins still recovering from the sonic damage recognized that they were in danger and began chanting spells.

He shot one more disable shot at one of the chanters and ran off. He saw a flash of light behind him as a fireball eradicated where he had just been standing. He circled them as they got their bearings.

They all back away as one of their people trapped in a chaotic distortion of red and blue and wondered what was happening till it exploded.

He hit the deck when the shockwave reached him, then got up and ran towards the explosion. As he expected, the assassin was standing at the center utterly confused.

Percy shot him in the back, then released another disabling shot at one of the recovering people on the floor. Then he was off again before they could even understand what was happening.

"Get the fuck up and run!" Deer warned. "He's using our shields against us."

They all ran, escaping the explosion before it happened. For the next few minutes, they engaged in a drawn-out game of tag as they tried to find the boy without being hit by the disabling shot.

Percy was having the time of his life though. He didn't know about them, but this was fun. He dodged a fireball and let out a warning shot, then escaped in the smoke.

They were also starting to lose focus with all the smoke from the opium around them. And he was ruthless with using the stun balls.

Deer was stumbling through the white smoke and leaves, still in disbelief. There was no way this was just a kid.

He coughed as the smoke strangled him, his eyes watered and swam as the high sank into his brain. He could barely concentrate enough to see the stun ball land next to him. The flash of light sent him reeling like it was a bomb.

He fell on his ass, blinded, whimpering and calling out for his mother and Viper. Blue light flashed in the darkness, the disabling shot came out of nowhere and hit his chest. He felt his shield thrumming as it fought against the attack.

"No, no, no," he whispered. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a black rod. It was a teleportation anchor, which he slammed into the ground in hopes of escaping to the hideout.

But Thalos had already sabotaged their main circle by then, and it failed to work.

He squinted, watching the blue light spread over his body frantically, his shield fighting back with a red hissing light. Deer's mind was racing, but the opium in his lungs wouldn't let him even form a coherent thought.

There was a roar of white light that blinded him for the second time. Deer couldn't even see Percy walk through the smoke, he only felt the boy's boot pressed against his chest.

"Wait, wait," Deer begged. "Please don't kill me, I'll—"

Percy shot him in the head, silencing his pleas. But it was only a non-lethal shot; he reckoned they could use the little bastard later. And Deer was the last person alive from the assassin team.

Except Viper of course. He saved a Spellbolt just for the leader of the killers. In a flash of light, the crossbow in his hands switched. The new one wasn't stained with ash, its white wood clean and its Aetherite line glowing with blue light.

"I really hoped Viper is still—"

Something slammed into his back before he could finish the sentence, hard enough to send stars flashing in his eyes as he crashed face first into the ground. He rolled over to shoot, fighting through the pain, but Viper was faster.

He appeared through the smoke and grabbed the Spellbolt from Percy's hand. His face was covered in soot and his eyes were blood red.

"You fucking bastard." Viper got down and started strangling him, eyes shaking. "I'm going to bury you here, use your blood to water some new poppy."

Percy was too focused on protecting his throat to even listen to the man's rant. He pushed his fighting spirit there and fought against Viper's titanic strength with his will.

His fighting spirit was strong, but Viper was older and had been training for longer. He could feel the bones in his throat creaking as they threatened to snap.

Meanwhile, over at Deer's unconscious body, the teleportation anchor flashed again and someone appeared in the field. Immediately there was a roar of wind and something that sounded like a truck hitting a brick wall. Viper was sent flying off him, and Percy turned to see Thalos standing over him.

His face was red with rage, and his fists were clenched hard enough to bend steel.

"Sorry I'm late."

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