The Baptized One

When—

The triangular mobile "fortress" had just stepped over the fat man's corpse and moved only a few steps into the room when it seemed to trigger another trap. A sharp arrow shot out of a wall-mounted wardrobe and struck the fortress's metal surface, ringing out with a piercing clang!

"This guy's incredibly alert! How many more traps did he set?!"

The leader at the center of the triangular fortress grew even more grim.

Without the protection of the shell, he and his men would probably have died under the various traps before they ever laid eyes on their target.

But that only made this guy even less fit to be left alive!

He didn't want traps made by someone else scattered all over the territory he controlled.

It made him feel as if he were someone else's prey.

That was absolutely unacceptable!!

When they entered the living room with the utmost caution, they saw the Giant Armor Beetle's remains on the floor and the Ghost-Faced Spider's limbs still twitching faintly.

They could more or less guess that the one who had set the traps must have fought the Ghost-Faced Spider, which had only just been killed. The noise must have been made accidentally during the fight, not as a deliberate attempt to lure them in.

But aside from the signs of the fight, there was no one else in sight.

"What's going on? Can he turn invisible or something?"

The leader didn't let his guard down for a moment. He rested his fingertip against the top of the trigger on his homemade crossbow. The moment he spotted his target, he'd shoot an arrow straight into the enemy's forehead without hesitation.

In this world, there was no such thing as negotiation. It was either you or me.

"Boss, look! The window's still swaying a little. Could that guy have jumped out?!"

Just then, the tall, skinny man noticed the rusty glass window, which opened outward from the living room. It was swaying gently in a steady rhythm, and the movement was gradually slowing.

There was no wind tonight, so the breeze couldn't be responsible. If they looked closely, they could even make out a clear handprint on the dusty glass in the crimson moonlight.

The building was three stories tall. A person could survive a jump if they landed properly, but they would at least injure their legs, if not break them.

And in a dangerous apocalypse, a broken leg that left someone unable to move was as good as a death sentence.

"Damn it! We can't let him get away!"

The leader shoved the wooden panel aside and started toward the window to check.

But after taking only a few steps, he remembered all the traps the other man had set and couldn't help slowing down.

The few men behind him weren't nearly as cautious. Eager to impress their boss, the short man bypassed the leader and ran to the window first.

He stuck his head out, but saw no one among the ruins in the street below.

"Uh..."

As the short man instinctively lowered his head, he suddenly seemed to see something horrifying. His mouth gaped open as he tried to shout!

Shhk!

In an instant!

Before he could make a sound, a sharp white bone blade with tiny serrations shot up from below, pierced his open jaw, and plunged through his palate and into his skull, forcing his mouth shut again!

Xia Leng gripped the edge of the windowsill with his left hand, suspending his entire body three stories above the ground.

With his other hand, he clutched a bone dagger and held it high, making the short man above him "shut up."

Warm blood dripped from the ghastly wound beneath the man's chin onto Xia Leng's cold, resolute face. One down, three left!

If he jumped from here and injured his legs, he'd become a sitting target for the crossbow bolts at the leader's waist!

The others saw the short man stick his head out and then freeze. A gurgling sound came from his throat, as if something were blocking his mouth.

"Hey, what did you see?! Why aren't you saying anything?"

Seeing this, a hideous, hunchbacked man started toward the window. Suddenly, there was a creak, like bones sliding against each other!

The short man's whole body was yanked out of the window by some outside force and fell.

Two seconds later, a heavy thud sounded from below!

By then, the tall, skinny man had also spotted four fingers gripping the windowsill.

"That guy hasn't left! He's hanging onto the windowsill!!"

The moment he finished speaking, the four fingers disappeared too. A muffled sound followed.

Xia Leng let go and dropped down, landing right on the short man's corpse, which had fallen first. It cushioned his landing considerably. Other than some pain in his ankles, he suffered no injuries that affected his ability to move.

"Boss, let me deal with him!! I'll avenge our two brothers!"

The ugly hunchback pulled a crude crossbow from his waist. In their hunting party, his eyesight and marksmanship were among the best.

But this time, he was extra cautious as he approached the window. He held the wooden panel crosswise in front of himself as he moved closer, in case the other guy also had a ranged weapon like a crossbow and was waiting to shoot him the moment he showed his head.

But there was no one there. When he peered out the window, he saw the skinny, dark figure below taking off at a full sprint...

"Damn you! Let's see how far you get!"

Feeling that he'd been toyed with, the hunchback raised his crossbow. Without thinking, he pushed the half-closed window all the way open and aimed its crude sight at Xia Leng, who hadn't yet gotten far.

As soon as his hand touched the other half of the window frame, he felt a sharp prick at his fingertips. Looking down, he saw a few drops of blood welling from a nail that had pierced his index finger.

The hunchback didn't pay much attention to the small injury. But when he tried to raise his crossbow again, he found that his hand wouldn't obey him.

Thump~

In less than three seconds, he collapsed to the ground and began convulsing violently. Before he fell, he saw green liquid smeared on the inconspicuous, sharp nails. It was Ghost-Faced Spider venom...

The leader stared in shock as his third subordinate's body swelled up, bloated by the bodily fluids melting inside him. He foamed at the mouth, eyes wide, seemingly enduring unimaginable pain.

But the leader burst into laughter, a terrifying grin on his face!

"Impressive. He took out three of my useless men in no time at all. I almost don't want to kill him."

The traps Xia Leng had laid, along with the way he'd escaped, made the leader feel an impulse to recruit him.

"Carry that woman. This time, I'll capture him myself."

After giving instructions to the only subordinate left, the tall, skinny man, the leader went to the window and saw the figure growing ever more distant.

He let out a cold snort, then leaped straight out of the third-story window, plummeting toward the ground!

Bang!

The instant he landed, a thick cloud of dust billowed up. The broken bricks beneath his feet were crushed into powder, yet his legs suffered no harm from the fall!

Hearing the heavy impact behind him, Xia Leng glanced back as he ran. The scene behind him made his eyes fly wide in shock!

The brawny leader was gripping a steel blade that glowed an eerie red beneath the crimson moon. With a ferocious grin on his face, he was charging after Xia Leng at the speed of a hundred meters in eight seconds, kicking up clouds of dust as he tore through the ruins!

"A Baptized One?! There are Baptized Ones in this hellhole too?!"