Amid the chaos, Silent turns his head toward Martins, sensing him charging in.
Martins closes the distance and tries to punch him, just like last time. But once again, it has no effect at all.
Silent slashes his claws down at Martins, but before the attack can reach him, a stone pillar rises from the ground, summoned by Martins, blocking the strike.
Stone spikes shoot toward the assassin, who shatters them with just a few movements.
Martins tries to slash, punch, and grab the assassin.
But Silent manages to dodge, block, and counterattack. His blow lands squarely on Martins' chin, sending him flying backward.
Celina appears beside Silent and throws a punch, but he blocks it by catching her fist and twisting it.
So fast that the eyes can barely keep up, his strike slams straight into the fairy's stomach.
Her armor caves in where the blow landed, and blood spills from the fairy's mouth.
What the hell!?
One hit and I'm already coughing up blood!?
Celina's eyes lock onto the enemy, who is already preparing another attack.
What kind of monster is he!?
But a stone pillar rises from the ground, blocking Silent's attack.
Silent turns his body to the side as Martins comes flying in with a jumping kick. He crosses his arms and blocks the strike.
Martins spins through the air, lands on his feet, and raises his fists.
Now they're standing face to face.
Silent throws a punch straight at the beastman's face.
Pain surges through Martins' entire body, but even so, he holds his ground.
He steps forward and strikes the assassin.
Silent raises his arms to block. His body trembles slightly from the impact, but he doesn't give up a single inch.
Martins charges again.
The assassin vanishes into thin air.
Martins' eyes go wide, and a cry of pain escapes him before he even realizes it. By the time he understands what happened, Silent's fist has already slammed into his stomach.
His body is sent flying, crashing through another section of the guild wall.
Above Silent, Celina appears, launching two orbs of light.
The next instant, he vanishes.
Still in midair, Celina can't catch her breath. Before she realizes it, she's already been slammed into the guild floor.
Her vision blurs, but quickly comes back into focus. She sees that it was Silent who knocked her down, and that he's gripping her neck with crushing force.
She grabs the assassin's arm with both hands, trying to break it, but she can't.
"Aaah... you damn bastard!"
Rays of light burst from the fairy's body, shooting beams in every direction.
Feeling the grip around her neck disappear, she gets back to her feet.
The Storage Ring on Celina's finger glows, and a sword appears. As she grips it, she coats the blade with her Sunlight Skill.
Silent simply appears right in front of her, completely unharmed.
But she reacts in time and brings her sword down in a powerful slash.
Silent presses his fingers together, making his long claws look like a single blade.
The assassin blocks the attack.
Celina dodges and swings again, but the tip of his claw collides with her sword. The force of the impact cracks the blade.
But the fight doesn't stop.
Sparks fly with every clash, and more cracks spread across the sword.
Celina brings her sword down, and Silent raises his claws.
The sword shatters in midair like thin glass, but Celina is already pulling another sword from her Storage Ring to keep fighting.
But she takes a slash across her right shoulder.
Forced to fall back.
"Tch!"
Blood runs from the deep wound.
How is this possible!?
I'm wearing armor, my sword and my body are both covered in sunlight... and even so, he can still wound me!?
Silent presses the attack, keeping Celina on the defensive.
Fresh cuts open across the adventurer's body, but the enemy isn't dealing any serious wounds.
Is he toying with me?
Celina grits her teeth.
"You damn bastard!"
The sunlight surrounding her shines intensely, and a beam of light shoots toward the enemy.
The beam destroys the guild's bar, leaving a trail of destruction behind. Dust rises, covering the area.
She looks from side to side, trying to locate him. Suddenly, a shadow appears through the dust, and she raises her sword on instinct, managing to block the attack.
Silent launches another series of strikes.
Celina blocks, but every time she does, she takes damage.
Her strength begins to give out. Silent brings his claws down. Martins appears in front of her, taking the blow.
But blocking this attack is almost impossible. Silent digs his fingers into the beastman's arm, causing him intense pain. Soon after, Martins is thrown away.
A sword strike comes from behind the assassin, but it doesn't hit him.
Titio charges forward, swinging the blade wrapped in flames. He's much faster than before, but even so, Silent doesn't seem pressured by it.
Their exchange becomes so fast that they turn into nothing more than blurs.
But Silent sometimes disappears, making it difficult for Titio to keep up with him.
Every collision makes Titio feel pain throughout his entire body.
On the other side, Celina feels Rit's healing taking effect and soon returns to the fight.
She reappears beside Titio. The two swordsmen advance.
Silent dodges, blocks, and creates distance.
He raises his leg for a side kick.
Titio manages to dodge, but Celina tries to block it. Unfortunately, she can't keep her stance firm, and she is sent flying away.
Martins creates stones in his hands and throws them toward Silent, who dodges without difficulty.
Titio swings his weapon, but the enemy moves to the side.
Near Silent's face, a stone appears, about to strike him. He tries to dodge, but the stone curves and hits his head.
Creating the perfect opening, they don't waste any time.
Bruno may be focusing, but he sees the opportunity.
He points his staff toward Silent.
"Ancient Art!"
"Gravity!"
Silent's body becomes completely still. The gravitational pressure is so immense that the ground cracks, trapping his feet beneath the ground.
But the gravitational force doesn't affect anyone except the enemy, so everyone charges forward.
Titio's sword is about to reach Silent's neck.
In a swift movement, Silent punches him in the chest, breaking through his armor.
Titio lets out a cry of pain and is sent flying out of the guild.
Martins appears behind the enemy, attempting to decapitate him.
However, the assassin tears his feet free from the ground and lands a quick kick.
Martins manages to defend himself, but by the time he realizes what happened, it's already too late.
Silent's hand pierces through his chest, and a punch to the chin sends him crashing into the guild's ceiling before falling back to the ground.
Seeing this, Bruno forces his Ancient Art, trying to stop Silent from moving.
"I have to hold him!"
"How can he still move even with increased gravity?!"
He intensifies the Art even further, but Silent seems completely unaffected.
Before the assassin can move, sturdy silver chains burst from the ground. They wrap around his arms and legs, restraining him.
Bruno looks in shock, but soon senses where this Art is coming from. He looks at an elf on the other side of the room, releasing Ancient Art.
Rit looks at him and nods. Bruno responds with the same gesture.
As Rit moves his hands, the chains force Silent down into the ground, leaving him buried up to his waist.
Silent tries to break free, but stones strike him, preventing him from escaping the ground.
Martins, already healed by Rit, charges forward at high speed. Reaching the assassin in an instant, ready to deliver a merciless blow.
Silent raises his face and sees Marcos appearing in the air, holding his knife, aiming to pierce through his skull.
Titio appears. He feels the healing surrounding him, removing the pain from his body. It is the elf helping him recover.
Titio stomps hard on the ground. The sword shines with an intense red glow, and he swings the blade, intending to split the enemy in half.
On the other side, Celina fires a concentrated Sunlight attack, aiming to pierce Silent.
From a distance, Rit summons more chains, binding Silent's arms even tighter.
Time seems to slow down in that instant, as if an invisible force is acting.
Some adventurers smile, while others remain serious, but everyone knows that even Silent won't escape unharmed.
At least one of these attacks will hit him, and it will be fatal.
Martins smiles.
The victory is mine. Too bad I'll have to share the money and the fame.
Celina keeps a serious expression.
Someone like him needs to die now. We can't miss this opportunity.
Rit remains focused.
Finish this already!
Bruno doesn't even blink.
Kill him!
Titio looks serious on the outside, but he smiles inwardly.
I'll be the hero of this era. Legends will be told about how I defeated the feared Silent.
Marcos smiles.
I'll definitely become the most famous assassin. Maybe they'll call me the King of Assassins.
Silent sees Martins' claws, Marcos' dagger, Titio's sword ready to split him in half, and Celina's Sunlight beam.
Unavoidable.
But suddenly, when all the attacks are only a few millimeters away from hitting him...
Silent's body releases electricity.
The smiles of the few adventurers disappear. Everyone has the same expression on their faces.
Panic.
But it's already too late. The electric discharge catches them off guard. The shock tears through the entire guild, sending everyone flying in different directions.
The force of the explosion is so powerful that it destroys not only the guild, but also the surrounding houses, leaving the entire street engulfed in flames. Many adventurers lose their lives in that instant.
In the distance, the adventurers, Martins, Rit, Celina, Titio, Marcos, and Bruno are buried beneath the rubble.
The flames consume the houses, and entire buildings collapse.
Silent steps onto the debris, his body surrounded by blue sparks.
Amid the fire, Titio and Martins rise from the rubble.
Martins on one side and Titio on the other.
Even with severe injuries, stiffness, and muscle spasms, both manage to advance toward the assassin. Titio's sword begins to burn intensely. Martins is the first to reach Silent.
But Silent is no longer playing around. His body trembles before he disappears right in front of them.
Martins and Titio's eyes freeze.
The pain comes first. Both are severely pierced. Several holes appear across their bodies, without them even understanding where the attacks came from.
They collapse to the ground, powerless. The last thing they see before losing consciousness is Silent with his hands covered in blood.
Silent...
The only one still standing.
He looks around, seeing the dead and unconscious bodies scattered across the ground.
Even though his face can't be seen, he seems... unreadable.
It's always the same scene. Always bodies lying on the ground.
He lowers his head, seeming to offer a respectful bow to the fallen.
***
After a minute, Silent walks out of the destroyed area.
Silent has already reached the city's commercial district. The destroyed guild is located on a nearby corner, where a fountain with a statue stands in the middle of the main street.
If someone follows this road straight ahead, they will leave the city through the main gates.
When Silent takes a few more steps, an arrow cuts through the air toward him.
He dodges easily, but the arrow gets stuck in the ground, sparking before exploding. The blast sends Silent flying, making him slam his back against the wall of a house.
Suddenly, people emerge from the shadows, taking the bodies of the wounded and the dead before disappearing with them.
Silent senses the presence of many people, quickly raising his guard. But at this moment, the important thing is finding out who fired the arrow.
When he turns his face, he senses her presence.
At the top of the tallest building in the city, a tall woman with a ponytail, dressed entirely in red from head to toe, stands. She holds a majestic flaming bow, ready to fire another arrow.
Quickly, hundreds, maybe thousands of arcane users and archers appear on the rooftops, surrounding Silent. Soon after, armies advance, blocking the streets.
He notices that the house behind him is about to collapse. He jumps, landing on top of the fountain.
And, as expected, the house comes crashing down, swallowed by a battalion. Many of them wear golden or silver armor. The army forms a circle around Silent.
There are so many people that, at the city's main gates, soldiers continue pouring out endlessly.
In the middle of the troops, four people riding horses approach. Two men and two women.
It's impossible not to realize they are the commanders.
They look at the partially destroyed city and then turn their eyes toward the enemy.
The four point their weapons at the assassin and, in unison, shout.
"Attack!"
"Aaaaaaaaah!!!"
The army responds to the order with deafening cries.
Everyone charges toward the enemy.
The archers fire their arrows, and the arcanes recite their Ancient Arts.
Silent raises his face and charges toward the army.