A Narrow Victory (4k)

Although he had no idea who the third party lurking in the shadows was, nor what their purpose was.

It was best not to wade into muddy waters he could avoid.

While they were focused on that adventurer party, he needed to get out of there!

Lin Mo reacted swiftly, and his movements were fast enough that he did not hesitate in the slightest.

Yet the other side seemingly had no intention of letting him go from the very beginning. Almost the instant the second arrow was fired, they made their move.

"Rustle—"

Like the faint sound of a breeze passing through leaves, it silently blended into the sound of Lin Mo's running footsteps, so slight and inconspicuous.

Yet hidden within it was an incomparably vicious killing move.

"Tap!"

Lin Mo's foot landed on the solid ground as his body continued bounding forward. The scenery around him flashed past, his chest rose slightly, and the instant he inhaled, a warning like blades against his back made his scalp feel as though it were about to explode, leaving it numb.

He spun around, the blade in his hand swinging out almost instinctively—

"Slash!"

Time seemed to freeze at that moment. In his vision, that glint of cold light was especially dazzling beneath the sunlight. He stared at the fleeting reflection, his eyes following it as they widened until his sockets ached.

At last, he saw the blurred trajectory. In less than half a second, he rapidly mobilized every muscle in his body and shifted his blade roughly ten centimeters.

"Clang—!"

The crisp ring of metal striking metal reverberated beside him. A clear recoil traveled through his hand, and the tangible sensation of hitting something solid snapped Lin Mo out of that strange state.

He quickly retreated, his gaze turning solemn as he looked at the attacker.

It was a man clad entirely in a fitted emerald-green outfit. A headscarf covered his hair, while a black cloth covered his face, concealing his features.

The only visible things were his narrow, deep-set eyes and the fine wrinkles around them.

Assassin!

An Assassin whose speed was no lower than his—perhaps even faster!

The Assassin was equally shocked. He tightly gripped the short blade in his hand, feeling the force that had left his forearm slightly numb. The astonishment and disbelief in his deep eyes were impossible to conceal.

What he had thought was a certain killing blow had actually been blocked with such precision.

Even such a hurried counterattack possessed such terrifying power that he had nearly been unable to withstand it.

This brat seemed far stronger than he had expected.

Without another thought, he swung his blade again. At such close range, a short blade held an absolute speed advantage over a longsword. Lin Mo could only retreat quickly and evade the strike.

However, the Assassin had anticipated his reaction. With a flick of his wrist, he followed up with a direct thrust aimed straight at Lin Mo's heart!

This was what a truly experienced and well-trained Assassin was like. Every strike targeted a vital weak point.

Lin Mo had nowhere to dodge. He could only twist his body aside as the sharp short blade pierced his chest. He could clearly feel the blade scrape past his breastbone. After the momentary impact came a surging wave of heat.

The burning sensation completely enraged Lin Mo. He stretched out his left hand, seized the Assassin's wrist, and squeezed hard.

The excruciating pain instantly robbed the man's hand of strength, making him release the hilt. Before the triumph in his eyes could turn to panic, Lin Mo's sharp blade had already slashed upward diagonally from below the right side, entering through his waist and abdomen before striking hard against his spine.

Amid the hard resistance, the blade continued inching forward. Lin Mo did not stop exerting force. With a furious roar, bloodshot veins filling his eyes, he yanked the Assassin's wrist fiercely in the opposite direction of his sword.

"Crack—!"

After the crisp sound, nothing remained to obstruct the blade. It slid through smoothly.

Lin Mo released his left hand in advance. Half the Assassin's body flew away, while the other half crashed to the ground, red and green spilling everywhere.

"Huff—! Huff—!"

Lin Mo panted heavily. Only now did the intense pain in his chest surge up, twisting his face into a particularly savage expression.

He backed up a few steps and leaned against a tree, lowering his head to inspect the wound.

The short blade had pierced almost right beside the central breastbone, sinking in roughly three or four centimeters. It had not gone deeper only because it had lodged precisely between two ribs.

Lucky...

If he had twisted even a little slower just now, or if the angle had been even slightly off, then even if it had not struck his heart, a blade piercing his lung would have been a seriously troublesome injury.

Lin Mo adjusted his breathing to slowly calm himself while remaining wary of another possible attack from ahead.

At the same time, the adventurer party behind him had also fallen into a bitter battle.

The figures hiding in the shadows finally emerged from the dense forest. They wore outfits similar to the Assassin Lin Mo had just killed. One carried a greatsword, one wielded a heavy axe, another used a rapier, and the last stood at the back of their formation—the Ranger who had fired the arrows earlier.

There were four of them in total, exactly matching the number in the adventurer party.

However, the Combat strength of the two sides was clearly unbalanced.

Bern charged ahead at the front of the party, directly meeting the warrior wielding the greatsword.

The greatsword crashed against the iron shield, and the tremendous recoil forced both men back. Yet Bern was clearly less affected. Seizing the chance, he stepped forward, borrowed strength from the ground, and swung his blade at his opponent's throat.

However, that perfectly timed strike failed to land, blocked instead by a rapier.

"This one's hard to handle. The two of us will surround him!"

After a hurried exchange, the two men glanced at each other and attacked Bern simultaneously.

The man wielding the heavy axe charged at the remaining three.

He swung the enormous axe in his hand and chopped down from above.

Evan's eyes were visibly flustered. Though he had spent nearly two years adventuring, the opponents he had faced in the past had only been low-level monsters like Goblins, creatures completely beneath him in terms of Combat strength.

Even when he encountered a slightly stronger Goblin, he would hide behind his uncle and watch Uncle Bern deal with it.

But now, he had to face an opponent broad-shouldered and powerfully built, clearly much stronger than himself.

Evan gritted his teeth as if throwing caution to the wind. Gripping his sword hilt with both hands, he forcefully met the blow.

"Clang—!"

A force even fiercer than he had imagined struck him, nearly making him lose his grip on his sword. His entire body trembled as he forced strength back into his aching arms, barely maintaining the brief stalemate.

The next instant, a fierce wind came from the side as a short blade stabbed toward the burly man's neck.

The Great Axe warrior clearly noticed the attack from the side and had no choice but to withdraw, avoiding it.

The sudden release of pressure made Evan collapse to his knees. He panted heavily, feeling as though his entire body had been filled with lead, making it hard to move.

But the battlefield gave him no time to rest. The next moment, an arrow that had long been waiting shot straight toward him.

"Watch out!"

Assassin Kent had the sharpest eyes and noticed the danger immediately. He kicked Evan aside.

Evan toppled over, and the arrow grazed his arm, leaving a bloody mark.

"Hiss—!"

The fiery pain made Evan suck in a sharp breath. At the same time, the Great Axe warrior who had just been forced back had rallied and attacked again.

"Get up, Evan!"

Kent urged anxiously. As an Assassin, he could not confront a warrior head-on. They had to rely on Evan to restrain their opponent if they wanted any chance of winning.

Miriam was not merely standing behind and watching. Though she was slower than her opponent, she released an arrow at that moment, targeting the burly man wielding the Great Axe.

But he was no novice like Evan. His combat experience was clearly far richer. He quickly stopped and sidestepped the arrow.

The little time Miriam had bought finally allowed Evan to recover. He gripped his sword tightly, let out a roar, and took the initiative to attack.

The burly man hastily met him. Sword and axe collided, and each retreated two steps, ending in a draw.

"You little brat!"

The burly man across from him immediately flew into a rage. With a roar, he swung his Great Axe down. This blow was immensely powerful, clearly unlike his earlier hurried counterattack.

But Evan was not stupid. Knowing he could not match the other man in strength and anticipating the counterattack, he had already retreated to widen the distance. Then, in the opening after his opponent had just exerted his strength, he thrust his sword straight forward.

"Clink—"

The sword tip struck the axe head with a crisp ring.

The Great Axe indeed held an advantage in head-on clashes, but it also had the obvious drawback of being far more cumbersome. Evan made excellent use of that weakness, creating a brief stalemate.

"Miriam!"

The next instant, he shouted. The girl, who had hesitated for a long time, finally seemed to make up her mind and released the bowstring beneath her fingertips. A sharp arrow flew out, grazing Evan's scalp before burying itself deeply in the burly man's right shoulder.

The intense pain caused his strength to falter. Evan seized the opportunity, swung his sword in a full arc, and cut off his opponent's head.

After swinging that sword, he was completely exhausted. He could no longer hold his weapon and lay on the ground, gasping for breath.

Meanwhile, Kent had already circled behind the enemy. A short blade swiftly and precisely struck toward the opposing Ranger from behind.

As an Assassin, his task was to harass from the flanks and threaten the enemy's rear line.

From that perspective, there was nothing wrong with Kent's plan.

But—

The Ranger, who had been drawing his bow and taking aim, suddenly turned around. The white feathers at the arrow's tail brushed past his fingertips as a swift and precise shot flew out, piercing Kent's heart.

Kent did not react at all. He only felt a crushing heaviness in his chest before his entire body fell backward, his vision gradually blurring...

"Kent!"

Bern noticed what had happened and shouted, but he was under siege by two opponents and had already been completely forced onto the defensive. He could not spare even the slightest bit of strength.

Though neither of those two was as strong as him, two fists could not fend off four hands. Before becoming true Professionals, the numerical advantage was still difficult to overcome.

If Bern had not been a Knight-type profession skilled in defense, he would likely have been taken down long ago.

Although Evan and Miriam had worked together to eliminate one opponent, their own side had lost a member as well. Evan was also completely exhausted and clearly unable to fight again. For the adventurer party, the situation could be called extremely unfavorable.

Miriam looked at the fallen Kent and Evan, her expression momentarily blank as her arm trembled uncontrollably.

In the distance, the opposing Ranger seemed to reveal a mocking smile. He nocked another arrow, aiming straight at Miriam!

Miriam seemed to understand something. With trembling hands, she drew an arrow from her quiver.

Clearly, this would be a confrontation between Rangers. If Miriam lost, their entire party would be wiped out. And whether in experience, strength, or even mentality, the other Ranger far surpassed Miriam.

He seemed to already see the inexperienced girl across from him collapsing with an arrow through her chest, crying out in despair through her pain.

Yet just as he drew his bowstring to its limit and was about to fire, a chill suddenly came from behind him, instantly making him feel as though he had fallen into an ice pit.

There's someone else?!

He quickly turned around and fired an arrow in the same manner, only to see a flying short blade knocked down by the arrow.

The next instant, a blurred figure flashed past the corner of his eye. The world in his vision suddenly inverted, and he saw his own body falling...

Lin Mo kicked aside the head that rolled to his feet and spat. "So you're the bastard who ambushed me just now?"

After personally witnessing Kent's failed sneak attack, he naturally would not fall for the same trick twice. So he had deliberately thrown out the short blade to draw attention before quickly circling to the flank and delivering the Ranger a fatal blow.

With the help of the Stealth skill, his plan went exceptionally smoothly.

Slash Proficiency +1

Stealth Proficiency +1

His gaze swept over the prompt in the corner of his vision. It was not just monsters—killing humans could also increase skill proficiency.

He had learned that when he killed the Assassin earlier.

"You—!"

Noticing that the Ranger had been cut down, the remaining two immediately panicked. They stared in horror at Lin Mo, who had a short blade "stuck" in his chest.

"Taine actually failed?"

Taine was the Assassin among them.

They had assigned their tasks earlier. Taine had been responsible for dealing with Lin Mo, and they had all assumed that the boy who had fled in panic would soon become a corpse.

After all, Taine had never failed before. As a seasoned Assassin, he had even killed a Quasi-Professional Warrior through a sneak attack!

But now, Lin Mo standing before them undoubtedly told them that Taine was dead.

"Retreat!"

Realizing that the situation was bad, the man wielding the rapier quickly withdrew.

The warrior with the greatsword also hastily pulled back his attack, intending to flee.

However, at that moment, a Feathered Arrow suddenly shot out and struck his calf with perfect accuracy.

It was Miriam!

Bern also reacted in time, swiftly shifting from defense to pursuit.

"You think you can run?!"

He had been attacked for no reason, lost a member of his party, and been ganged up on by two men who had suppressed him for so long. He had been holding in a bellyful of rage, and now it finally erupted completely.

"Shield Bash!"

The heavy square shield slammed forward with tremendous force, crashing into the man. The warrior immediately spat out a mouthful of blood and was sent flying.

Bern quickly followed up, bringing his sword down—

The blade did not strike a vital point. Instead, it pierced through the man's thigh and pinned him to the ground.

On the other side, Lin Mo wanted to pursue the man with the rapier, but his injury affected his movements somewhat. Moreover, the other man was an agility-focused warrior who favored speed and ran extremely fast. After trying for a while and seeing that he could not catch up, Lin Mo could only give up.

The battle came to a temporary end. Lin Mo and Bern both turned their eyes toward the warrior lying on the ground, crying out in pain.

They both had many questions about this rather inexplicable battle, questions waiting to be answered...