SHUUU!
The harsh whistling of the boomerang hit a peak, passing through the wind like arrows slicing through the air. The wind kicked up, a rotating cyclone of it, making it look more like a flying silver disk than a boomerang.
It passed right through Theron’s head.
The expression of the Metal Mancer changed, confusion coloring his eyes for a brief instant before another head flew through the air.
‘40%.’ Theron thought to himself. He was running out of Mana too quickly. Fooling the eyes of a Ninth Resonance Mancer wasn’t easy even with an Adept Boundary [Touch of Mirage].
He landed on the ground nimbly and then took an explosive step backward.
His timing was perfect. The other Bronze Assassins were still rushing ahead, many of whom hadn’t quite reacted to the changes just yet. In one moment, Theron was ahead of everyone, and in the next instant, he had slipped into the group.
Theron’s mode changed and his focus shifted from attack to conserving and recovering energy.
Without a choice, the Bronze Assassins were forced into an all-out battle, and the Metal Mancer realized quickly that they were outnumbered by far.
‘More are coming.’
Theron took in the battlefield with a quick shift of his eyes. There wasn’t much space at all. The walls were barely three or so meters apart. There was only one way in, though there were branching paths behind the Metal Mancer. And right now, they held the advantage of numbers, but considering the fact the Metal Mancer hadn’t run yet, the odds that this would remain the case for long were slim.
A frown wrinkled Theron’s eyebrows as he felt an attack coming from his back. No, it wasn’t an attack. Instead, it was a push.
“Hey, rookie! What do you think you’re doing? Go fight!”
A gruff voice practically hissed in Theron’s ears as a hand slammed at his shoulder.
Theron shifted to the side, slipping through the sea of people and out of the way of the hand. He was already ready for others to try and take advantage of the situation—no one here was a fool. But he was hoping he would at least get a little more time.
The Bronze Assassin didn’t expect Theron to be so alert. Though there was a flash of anger in his eyes, the situation didn’t allow them to be so willful.
Calculations danced through Theron’s mind. He knew this would cause problems, and the odds that these would be the last of them was unlikely.
Theron suddenly raised his short sword, a glint of blue coming from it as a boomerang slammed into it, sending him flying backward.
This time, he made no attempt to dodge it, his wrist trembling beneath the strain.
Even so, he landed softly behind the group. Looking back, he saw that more Bronze Assassins were running in this direction.
‘We’re still a distance away from wherever the exit is, and I’m no longer leading the group. This can be troublesome.’
Theron’s eyes narrowed when he recognized someone in the second oncoming group of assassins. But he looked away so as not to draw attention.
Everyone was cloaked, their faces well covered. But if one was observant enough, it was possible to recognize someone by their gait and their weapons of choice.
Theron marked this person and chose to be careful in the future. There was something else that he was worried about, but he could only hope that the worst-case scenario didn’t come to fruition.
‘Be ready for anything.’
Theron sank back into his focused state. The ground rumbled again and he knew it was coming.
Shouts echoed and when Theron looked ahead, he saw another group of enemies pouring in from one of the tunnels ahead.
‘That direction…’
Theron’s Mana recovery pace was quick. A bottle rattled about in his cloak, and in just these few minutes, he had ticked back up to 50%.
Then, from lingering in the back, he shot forward once again.
The Metal Mancer was stuck in a battle with the very same Bronze Assassin that tried to force him to fight. Because of Theron slipping away, he had had no choice but to engage.
Oddly enough, the Metal Mancer seemed to be a close combat expert. The Bronze Assassin had engaged in hopes of gaining an advantage, only to find himself on his back foot.
A fragrance passed by Theron’s nose as he weaved through the battle, accelerating forward. By his side, he found yet another Bronze Assassin following him closely. It wasn’t the person he had picked out before, but yet another Ninth Resonance master.
A woman.
‘Something is off. Why is her…’
Then it clicked.
Theron’s eyes narrowed. There was no way any assassin worth their salt would have such an obvious fragrance to them. This person was like him, being forced to come here before she could properly get rid of such an obvious liability.
She was smart enough to follow him, but all Theron saw was a pawn to use.
He didn’t make a move to stop her at all. In fact, he pretended he didn’t notice her. In the chaos of the battlefield, with the two of them of relatively small stature weaving through, it would have been easy to miss her entirely.
Theron could still feel the senses of the Metal Mancer on him. His gaze shifted to the female assassin for just the briefest moment.
Their gazes met and Theron stomped a foot into the ground, rushing toward her.
They were close. With how narrow the tunnel was, it was impossible for them to have been very far apart to begin with.
Theron’s shoulder crashed into hers and her expression couldn’t help but change. She didn’t really understand why this boy was doing this.
Taken off guard, she stumbled, but regained her footing quickly. With nimble and agile steps, she slipped between a round of attacks, twisting in the air, rebounding off the wall, and landing elegantly in a location without the slightest hint of danger.
Her eyes flickered toward where Theron should have been, and she spotted him oddly easily. But he had already slipped by the Metal Mancer without another word. It was as though he had only been there to greet her.
However, at that moment her expression changed as a boomerang suddenly came right for her.
Just what happened?