Chapter 15 (1/2)

Chapter 15: Summoning the Hailstorm

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

Gladstone City, the Old City Quarters, the MI3 outpost.

The Dark Elf Assassins’ patience had worn out. Their leader hid silently on the landing of the stairs leading up to the second floor, waiting for his subordinates to fall into place.

They should have launched their main attack half an hour ago, but unexpectedly, two allies of their opponents had appeared, setting fire to the buildings around them. It had forced them to spend manpower on putting out the rapidly spreading flames around the fountain square, throwing their plans into disarray.

But now that the fire had been put out, it was finally time to put an end the confrontation.

Ting! Ting! Ting!

The Dark Elf Assassin Leader heard the distinct clash of weapons from somewhere outside the stone building. It was the signal they’d agreed upon, signaling that the Dark Elves there were already in place.

Three more positions left. The Dark Elf Assassin Leader thought to himself. His plan was simple. When all his subordinates were in place, blocking their opponents’ escape routes, they would shoot fire arrows throw the windows and into the room where their opponents hid. Then, three Dark Elf Assassins would break down the eastern wall of the room, letting more of the elves into the midst of the chaos. While the powerful human female Assassin was engaged, he would barge in through the door, capturing her alive quickly!

Annie Abel. I wonder what that sly old duke’s expression will be when he finds out that his only daughter has been captured. Hahaha. The Dark Elf Assassin Leader sneered coldly to himself.

Capturing Annie Abel was an important objective in this ambush of Gladstone.

Out of the blue, three white, glowing orbs shot out of the room. Gliding in a smooth arc, they shot out towards the Dark Elf Assassin Leader’s head.

His pupils constricted as he took in the attack.

Fireballs! It’s that Magician!

Fireballs were just Level-0 Spells. The Dark Elf Assassin Leader was just slightly taken aback. Composing himself, Battle Aura enveloped him in a faint gray glow. Then, he moved.

His speed was leaps and bounds beyond the average person’s limits. His torso twisted abruptly, the dagger in his left hand shooting out with deadly accuracy. He was as quick as a flash of lightning, storming towards one of the fireballs.

With a light poof, he hit the fireball, which had been flying in an unpredictable path! It exploded into a harmless cloud of sparks.

One down. Two more to go.

This time, the Dark Elf Assassin Leader didn’t use his dagger. He lifted a foot, the gray glow at its tip growing brighter, to kick the second ball of flame.

It extinguished with another poof!

One last fireball remained. The Assassin swung his arm up to cover his face, protecting his eyes.

Bang! It smashed into his arm, exploding into a ball of flame, yet it barely managed to shake his arm.

What a joke, using Level-0 Spells against me, the Dark Elf Assassin Leader thought contemptuously.

Within a split second, his contempt turned to horror.

When he removed his arm, he saw that a figure, covered by a hazy glow had charged forward within six feet of him. The Dark Elf Assassin Leader recognized it to be a special kind of Battle Aura.

The figure was much more petite than he was—only about 5’5” in height, but they were fast. It took only a split second to travel the distance between them, bringing two ice-cold gusts of wind as they swung their daggers at him.

Shit! It’s Annie! This is the Battle Skill, Dagger Storm! The Dark Elf Assassin Leader’s heart shook.

Dagger Storm was a classical Assassin Battle Skill. Once activated, it would stab the target’s vitals several times within a split second. Augmented by Battle Aura, the speed was even faster, such as now. The daggers in Annie’s hands blurred with the sheer speed in which they moved.

But the Assassin Leader wasn’t a normal person either, after all. With his life in danger, he gave it his all and countered with the same Battle Skill, Dagger Storm.

The rapid clashes of their weapons rang out in the dark, bringing up a flurry of sparks that lit up the narrow stairway landing from time to time.

Dagger Storm against Dagger Storm.

Annie stabbed her dagger eight times almost simultaneously, each time clashing with the Assassin Leader’s own dagger. Her Battle Skill was countered perfectly.

The Dark Elf Assassins on the first floor reacted. The two closest to the fight rushed to the aid of their leader.

But their leader wasn’t the only one who had help.

Fwoosh! Fwoosh! Two more fireballs flew out of the room on the second floor. Making sharp turns at the stairway landing, they each shot towards a Dark Elf Assassin.

Recognizing the location of the source of a sound was an essential skill for Battle Mages. If a Magician’s attacks were only limited to his field of vision, it would really be a waste of magic.

With the fireballs flying right in their faces, the two Dark Elf Assassins had no choice but to stop and defend themselves.

Link’s spell had bought Annie more time.

The Dark Elf Assassin Leader had managed to counter her Dagger Storm, though largely due to luck. And he had used most of his strength on the same Battle Skill. Annie could feel that his reactions were slower, though just by a hair. She, on the other hand, felt perfectly fine and in fact, was still at her peak.

She didn’t use any Battle Skills after the first Dagger Storm. Quick as lightning, she swung a dagger towards her opponent’s neck, while her other dagger stabbed towards his chest.

The Dark Elf Assassin Leader had countered her Battle Skill with difficulty. His arms were numb and he was unable to react in time.