Chapter 306: Claws Against Assassins

The explosion shattered the barrier like glass under pressure, spraying fragments of shimmering energy into the air. The sound rolled through the trees, followed by a wave of heat and grit that slammed into the group. Luke caught a glimpse of Ronan activating his epic skill. Skin hardening into metal, joints glinting with a heavy sheen as a massive shield materialized from his inventory. He planted himself in front of everyone, arms braced, a living bastion of steel.

Beside Luke, a black mist poured out and took shape. Charlie emerged from his soul, raising a spectral barrier that flickered like liquid glass. Smoke from the bomb was already choking the clearing, turning everything gray and suffocating.

Crouched behind a boulder, Eleanor fired arrow after arrow, muscles taut from repetition.

“They’re here!” Evangeline’s voice was nearly swallowed by the chaos as she fell back with the others.

The shadows at the edge of his vision twisted. Hooded figures, shadow assassins, slipped out of the treeline and lunged. One came straight for Jack, who threw up a mana shield just in time. The blade sparked and skittered off the barrier.

Princess Charlie moved fast, slamming her fist into the assassin and sending him tumbling backward.

“Protect Jack!” Luke’s command cut through the din.

Ronan absorbed most of the incoming strikes, his metallic body denting under the relentless hits. Luke knew the cost. Without Jack’s support, the epic skill would drain his HP dry.

More enemies emerged behind them. Luke counted five rising from a camouflaged hatch in the ground, their movements honed and silent. Allison charged to intercept. Mason blurred forward in a low dash, blade skimming the earth. A clean strike took an enemy’s leg, a pivoting follow-through finished the job.

“They really… set the trap,” Mason muttered as blood streaked the leaves.

The sound of bowstrings tightening echoed around them. Soldiers with longbows and crossbows stepped from between the trees, firing nonstop, while mages lined the back ranks. A rain of projectiles and spells threatened to crush them.

Mason’s eyes lit with an unsettling gleam.

“Now, Jack!” Eleanor fired an arrow high into the air that burst into a blinding flash.

They hadn’t walked into the lion’s mouth without a plan. They’d known the risks, calculated every move. Jack drew a deep breath, light pulsing from his body. At the tip of his wand, a yellow spark blossomed into a halo. He chanted, and around them rose a radiant golden dome. Not only did it absorb incoming strikes, it radiated a healing aura, one HP per second to every ally within range, a margin that could decide survival.

Outside the dome, Luke watched Mason break into a sprint. In the same instant, Mason unleashed the rank skill he had earned at the peak of Rank F. The power was called Featherweight. His body seemed to shed its weight, each stride gaining more speed and lift. In one smooth motion he bent his knees and leapt, rising about ten meters. Luke tracked him with his eyes as Mason cut through the smoke and flashes of spells, hanging for a moment above it all, distant from the fight. The air around him seemed to vibrate, as if the battle below were moving in slow motion.

At the apex, he triggered his epic profession skill. His hands darkened to coal, amplifying the speed and force of his fire spells. He aimed down. Instead of a single shot, he unleashed a rapid-fire barrage of Fireballs, basic in form, catastrophic in execution.

Explosions ripped through the forest like rolling thunder, tearing gaps in the enemy advance. The golden dome below wasn’t just a shield; it kept their own ally’s firestorms from roasting them alive.

Inside, Ronan dropped his epic skill long enough to chug a healing potion.

“I told you it was a trap, didn’t I?” Luke muttered, eyes following each eruption.

“I didn’t want to believe they’d betray me,” Ronan answered, frustration heavy in his voice.

“Yeah. Now you know what it feels like to get hit in this place,” Luke shot back, remembering the first time they’d faced off.

Fire detonations flared across the clearing, turning night into daylight.

“Drop the barrier!” Allison’s voice cut through the chaos, tight with urgency.

Jack had already held the spell far beyond its planned limit. Every sliver of his mana would be needed for healing and another defense if things went south.

The golden dome flashed one last time before shattering into sparks, freeing the group to move. They scattered to preassigned positions like chess pieces sliding into place on a board they knew by heart. Mason landed hard, his blacksmith skill draining his stamina. Princess Charlie reacted instantly, conjuring a spectral chain that looped around his waist and yanked him backward while she raised her round shield, deflecting a hail of arrows to protect Jack. They retreated behind a fallen trunk and a tangle of exposed roots.

Though it had lasted only seconds, Mason’s attack had been devastating. The ground ahead was scorched black, littered with corpses, snapped arrows, and shattered spell shards. The enemy’s advantage had gone up in flames. Overhead, Jerry glided silent as a shadow. Luke maintained the link, tracking enemy movements in real time. Between the trees, figures pulled back, regrouping for their next strike. It was time for the second phase of the plan.

With his bow in hand, Luke raised his palm. The air around it warped as blood seeped from his pores, not pure red but a swirl of deep black and sharp crimson. Plant magic threaded through it, solidifying into living wood. From that fusion rose the Acid Blood Arrow, thick and pulsing, veins of green flickering along its shaft.

[Mana Points (MP): 3809/5100]
[Mana Points (MP): –1000]
[Mana Points (MP): 2809/5100]

Through Jerry’s eyes, Luke spotted the survivors of Mason’s attack clustered behind logs and stones. He raised his bow, drew the string tight, and with a sharp snap loosed the Acid Blood Arrow high. The arrow arced over the treetops and vanished into the canopy before detonating on target.

The impact flashed in a muffled burst. First came a dense jet of green vapor, then it spread like a living tide, tinged at the edges with a sickly yellow. The air rippled with heat and acid. Leaves curled and dissolved; bark peeled away like wet paper. In seconds the corrosive shroud had swallowed everything ahead.

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The screams followed. Sharp, ragged sounds of people choking for breath and gagging. Silhouettes staggered out of the haze, stumbling and collapsing; others dropped to their knees as skin burned, eyes stung, and blood poured from their mouths while the acid ate through armor, leather, and flesh alike. Some thrashed on the ground, clawing at their own faces to scrape off the substance. Arrows, swords, and banners slipped from weakening hands and disappeared into the corrosive carpet.

Luke watched it all through Jerry without flinching. Inwardly, he thanked Bartholomew for the gift, the chance to finish anyone who might threaten him later.

The acid cloud ruled the clearing like a poisoned storm, rising in columns that blotted out the sky. The smell was suffocating, a mix of rotting leaves and melting flesh. Then the notifications began to roll in, one after another:

[You have slain a Human…]
[You have acquired +1 Soul Fragment]