Chapter 231: The Invisible Blow

Luke was slammed against the wall, pinned by a hand he couldn’t even see. But when he swung his kukri through the air, the blade scraped something metallic. The Midnight Warden Captain could turn invisible.

“Damn it!” He dismissed the kukris, grabbed the unseen hand, and threw himself to the side.

A heartbeat later, the monster’s sword struck where he’d been, still cloaked from sight.

Even my Predator’s Mark is gone.

The thought hit hard. He remembered the assassin who’d erased his mark before. This thing had done the same. He tried triggering Assassin’s Tracking, but the Captain’s power… even its mana was invisible. Not just to his eyes; his perception field couldn’t detect a thing. He ducked on pure instinct, the sound of slicing wind brushing past his ear. The sword again. He lashed out straight ahead and felt his blade hit something solid. The monster was big, heavy, yet even its noise was muted in this state.

Luke’s kukris met the Captain’s sword, but before he could follow up, a punch slammed into him. He hit the ground hard. Lances whistled toward him, followed by a rush of Wardens. Six of them closed in at once, stabbing down. Luke twisted, parried, countered. One charged with a spear; he caught the shaft, then movement in the corridor pulled his attention. Charlie was sent flying, crashing into the stone.

He’s targeting her!

Luke spun into the Demonic Blade Dance.

[You have slain a Midnight Warden – Lvl 40]

[You have slain a Midnight Warden – Lvl 40]

[You have slain a Midnight Warden – Lvl 40]

He pushed forward, but the Wardens filled the passage, cutting him off. He tried to turn into mist, but they whipped their weapons, forcing him to rematerialize. At least thirty of them now stood between him and Charlie, every spear aimed his way. She was locked in with the Captain.

This isn’t random. It’s military tactics.

Three Wardens charged with swords. Behind them, more with spears. Others filtered in from the hallway, closing ranks. Luke clicked his tongue. Stamina and mana surged into his kukris, hairline cracks crawling along the blades. They couldn’t hold this much power forever. But he pressed on, channeling strength into his legs, bringing the blades forward like fangs.

He crashed into the front line, scattering them. The momentum built, bodies falling like rows of dominoes as he forced his way through. The corridor ceiling cut off his leap, slamming his head into stone, but he dropped down swinging, tearing another path. At the end of the gap, he saw her. Charlie lay on the ground, sword limp in one hand. Her leg was gone.

Where’s the bastard?!

A punch exploded against his face. Pain blinded him for half a breath, just enough for the blade to follow, piercing deep. The hit had been coordinated: strike to the head to stun, blade to finish.

A spear slammed into his back from behind. Luke spat blood.

“Guess you’re not as stupid as you look,” he growled, twisting to drive a kukri into a Warden’s helmet.

[You have slain a Midnight Warden – Lvl 40]

He turned straight toward the empty space ahead, where drops of blood floated in midair. He lunged. The strike connected, smashing the Captain into the wall, and Luke spun his blades in a relentless flurry. The Captain slipped aside. The blood vanished. Invisible again.

Luke pulled Princess Charlie into his soul, making her vanish, and sprinted through the corridors. A roar shook the walls. The Midnight Warden Captain charged after him. The metallic thud of its boots echoed through the stone halls.

At least the bastard makes noise when it runs.

He glanced down at his kukris. Cracks spiderwebbed along the blades. Too much mana had been channeled through them. He stashed them in his inventory before they shattered completely. At the corridor’s end, he spun, summoned his bow, and grabbed arrows from the quiver.

He poured stamina into each shot, loosing arrow after arrow in a relentless rhythm. They struck the invisible monster as it barreled forward, roaring, but the impacts barely registered. Against something like this, the arrows were even weaker than the kukris. They couldn’t handle mana or stamina properly.

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He dodged at the last second. The Captain slammed into the wall. Luke backpedaled, drawing in more stamina.

[Stamina: 1716/2630]
[-200 Stamina]
[Stamina: 1516/2630]

The next arrow detonated on impact with the unseen foe, shattering on contact. A grin tugged at his mouth. He turned and ran, the beast’s footsteps pounding behind him. His time training for the Beast Lord hunt, and later during his so-called vacation, had taught him how to channel stamina into a weapon with lethal speed. He stopped at a bend in the corridor, drew another arrow, and pushed harder.

[Stamina: 1516/2630]
[-300 Stamina]
[Stamina: 1216/2630]

The shot ripped forward, only for a Midnight Warden to leap into its path. The arrow punched through its armor and flung it down the hall.

[You have slain a Midnight Warden – Lvl 40]