Battle

Beneath his hood, a black debt collector's mask concealed Christie's calm expression, while the Ritual Blade in his hand gleamed coldly.

He did not truly intend to kill the ungrateful fool before him. After all, he had spent so long setting everything up that killing him now and starting over would be far too wasteful.

A little scare was certainly necessary.

Christie raised his Ritual Blade. Its design was better suited to attacks from behind, but right now, he wanted this old bastard to get a good look at its keen edge. That would teach him to play his little games!

When he truly faced death, a trace of regret still flashed through Lucaer's eyes. Had his earlier actions been a little too rash?

"Wait-"

Before he could finish, the sharp blade swung down at him from above. For a moment, Lucaer froze in terror.

The corners of Christie's mouth rose beneath his mask. Lucaer's fear delighted him.

Just then.

A gently spinning steel arrow slipped soundlessly into his field of vision. Before Christie could react, an immense force knocked the Ritual Blade out of his hand.

After spinning twice in midair, the alloy blade embedded itself in the nearby wall. Half the steel arrow's shaft sank into the stone pavement.

"An Armor-Piercing Arrow!" Christie's pupils contracted as he looked up toward the rooftop the arrow had come from. "Who's there?!"

Someone holding a bow stood on the rooftop, his face indistinct in the darkness.

"A Plainclothes Knight. You can't escape. Surrender."

Naturally, this was Li Qiuzhi. To make sure he had not come all this way for nothing, he still had to save the man.

Besides, as a young man with a sound moral compass, he could not stand idly by while someone bullied the weak right in front of him-not when he could do something about it.

"A Plainclothes Knight?"

Christie pulled his Ritual Blade out of the wall, unable for the moment to work out what a "Plainclothes Knight" had to do with the Knights of Favonius. What angered him was the chip in its edge.

"Hmph. Playing mysterious, are you?" Christie snorted coldly.

No one could deal with these bow-wielding fellows more easily than Debt Collectors like him, who specialized in stealth and assassination.

As long as he could get close, fighting one was no different from dealing with a helpless weakling.

As he considered this, Christie immediately entered Stealth Invisibility, vanishing all the more completely into the night. His stealth had a time limit. Ritual Blade in hand, he used the walls on either side of the alley to dart toward the man on the rooftop as swiftly as a bird.

Watching the Debt Collector suddenly disappear without a trace, Li Qiuzhi understood that he had entered stealth. This probably counted as another extraordinary ability distinct from a Vision.

Though elemental power was the dominant supernatural force in Teyvat, other powers existed too, such as Master Albedo's alchemy and Mona's astrology.

Even pure swordsmanship could possess extraordinary might if honed to its peak. After all, far away in Liyue, Captain Beidou had slain the sea monster Haishan through her own martial prowess before obtaining a Vision.

For the people of Liyue to pass the tale from mouth to mouth as a legend, Haishan surely could not have been anything like a mere Slime or Hilichurl.

That was why Li Qiuzhi was very interested in the Debt Collector's rather impressive Stealth Invisibility technique. He was also sorely lacking powerful skills like that.

There were many ways to break a Debt Collector's Stealth Invisibility.

The first was to spread elemental power throughout the surroundings. Once the Debt Collector became affected by an element, one could activate Elemental Sight and see the elemental traces on his body.

However, even among those capable of wielding elemental power, only a small number knew the Elemental Sight technique.

Naturally, Li Qiuzhi did not. Still, a Debt Collector's Stealth Invisibility only hid him from view. His feet touching the ground and the wind brushing against his body were no different from normal.

As someone who had learned Hunter's Archery and reached a certain level of proficiency, Li Qiuzhi excelled at locating targets by listening to the wind and other sounds.

He nocked a steel arrow and released it. The Armor-Piercing Arrow cut through the air and instantly lodged in the wall below. He heard the sound of clothing tearing; it seemed his opponent had dodged it.

"?!"

Christie stared at the Armor-Piercing Arrow that had passed beneath his armpit, a little cold sweat forming on his forehead. A fraction closer, and it would have pierced his arm.

He kept calm. This "Plainclothes Knight" was an accomplished archer. He could not afford to be careless before getting close.

Without pausing, he lightly pushed off the wall with his toes. Covering the remaining distance in less than two seconds, the Debt Collector Christie climbed onto the rooftop under stealth. The young man who called himself a "Plainclothes Knight" was right before him.

But the sound of his feet landing on the tiles was far too loud. Li Qiuzhi shot another steel arrow at him.

Bang.

There was a crisp crack. Though Christie reacted in time, the Armor-Piercing Arrow grazed his mask and shattered it.

His stealth was about to expire, leaving no time to circle behind his target. As he attacked with the alloy-edged Mercenary Ritual Blade, Stealth Invisibility automatically disengaged.

Before Li Qiuzhi could nock a second arrow, the cold blade sliced soundlessly through the air toward him head-on, and the Debt Collector's figure appeared with it.

"Die!"

A cold sneer curled Christie's lips beneath his black mask. You only have yourself to blame for meddling.

"Heh."

To Li Qiuzhi's eyes, the Debt Collector's attack was not particularly fast-much like the Slimes he had encountered when he first crossed over to this world.

It seemed this Debt Collector was not especially strong within his organization.

Though Li Qiuzhi moved second, he reached his target first. His left hand released the Adventurer's Hunting Bow and rose to seize Christie's wrist, stopping him from advancing even an inch. The blade was only a hair's breadth from his hair.

"How is that possible?!" Christie's voice sounded slightly hoarse through his mask, but his astonishment was impossible to conceal. "Aren't you an archer? Why..."

"Why am I so strong?"

Li Qiuzhi smiled as he finished the question for him, then twisted hard with his left hand. The Debt Collector cried out in pain.

"Aaargh!"

The pain in Christie's right hand left him unable to hold his Ritual Blade. It fell onto the tiles with a clatter, while he lost his footing and dropped to his knees.

Damn it, I've been tricked! Christie's heartbeat quickened, and a flicker of fear passed through him.

Not only is he a skilled archer, but his physique is impressive too, just like the Inspector General above me. What should I do? Beg for mercy? But how could I disgrace Her Majesty the Tsaritsa like that...

Thud!

Before he could think it through, pain struck the back of his head, and he lost consciousness.

[Defeated a powerful enemy. Gained 435 experience points.]

"Don't shout so loudly. What if you attract the Knights of Favonius on night patrol? I haven't asked you about your stealth technique yet. I can't hand you over just like that."

Looking at the notification for his experience points, Li Qiuzhi smiled and turned the Debt Collector's words to Lucaer back on him.

His gaze settled on the man sprawled across the rooftop. He picked him up and jumped down into the dark alley with him. There was still someone else down there.

A little late-my procrastination struck again. (☆_☆) Thanks to everyone who bookmarked, kept reading, and cast monthly votes and recommendation votes!