LIGHTNOVELWORLD Chapter 64
Chapter 64
“Is anyone there?”
Yan entered the village, scanning his surroundings.
He could feel the concentrated gaze from all directions.
A single line of cold sweat trickled down.
‘Were there always this many?’
At least twenty people registered in his senses.
Their force was nothing compared to Yan’s, but…
‘The Special Task Force isn’t feared just for their powerful skills.’
A middle-aged man, looking like a villager, approached with a shovel on his shoulder.
“What brings a stranger here?”
His face was the epitome of naivety.
Anyone other than Yan would have been completely fooled.
But Yan didn’t miss the distinctive discomfort hidden behind the man’s face.
And his senses, sharpened by the breathing techniques of the Divine Dragon, told him.
He could feel the energy of the Special Task Force’s exclusive skill, the Dark Soul Technique.
“I got lost while searching for something. May I rest here for a moment before I continue?”
A look of inconvenience crossed the man’s face.
“We’re not welcoming outsiders in the village right now. If you go straight ahead, you’ll find your way out of this forest. Could you head that way?”
“Is that so?”
Yan smiled broadly. The middle-aged man returned the smile with equal simplicity.
To an outsider, it would seem like a warm exchange.
“But why do I feel like what I’m searching for is right here?”
“Eh? What do you mean?”
“The stale scent of the Dark Soul Technique is quite strong here.”
As soon as he finished speaking, a dart flew towards Yan’s throat with deadly speed.
Swoosh!
Yan leaned back, effortlessly dodging the incoming dart.
Thud.
The dart embedded itself in the tree behind Yan.
The tree, once reaching for the sky, withered rapidly, its leaves turning dark and falling.
It was the poison on the dart – a deadly toxin commonly used by the Special Task Force for assassinations.
Yan’s eyes grew cold.
The Special Task Force valued hidden weapons and poisons over conventional arms and artifacts.
Even the weak could easily massacre with such terrifying tools at their disposal.
In the wrong hands, they could claim dozens, hundreds, even thousands of lives.
Such deadly toxins were not permitted for use unless the mission was of utmost importance.
‘So, they weren’t just protecting the Task Force leader’s daughter.’
If the Task Force leader had indeed sent them for protection, they wouldn’t carry such perilous items.
A single mistake could dissolve his daughter into a pool of blood.
“The welcome seems rather aggressive.”
“Who are you?”
The middle-aged man’s tone shifted as Yan easily avoided the dart.
“I’ve come to escort the Task Force leader’s daughter.”
At Yan’s words, a strange light flickered across the disguised Task Force member’s face.
“The Task Force leader’s daughter?”
“Yes.”
Yan didn’t miss the fleeting look of panic on the man’s face.
The Task Force member’s expression hardened as he reached into his pocket.
“I don’t know where you heard such nonsense.”
When he withdrew his hand, he was holding an object the size of a fist.
“Die, dog of the Grand Instructor!”
Boom!
The object hurled at Yan exploded mid-air.
Most of the spherical ammunition within was aimed at Yan.
Yan’s eyes widened in shock.
‘Grenades too? What kind of mission requires…’
Grenades were weapons of war, capable of claiming dozens of lives in one go.
The numerous spherical ammunitions were all magically treated to cause explosions equivalent to a third-circle spell.
Individually, they weren’t much of a threat, but…
‘It’s hard to block hundreds of them with a shield spell.’
Yan didn’t have time to ponder.
He awakened Mercury and summoned the cold.
The chill, cycled through his heart and lungs, extended towards his hand.
Sssshhh.
Compared to the overwhelming aura of Duke Beowulf or Hans’s Ice Flower, it was insignificant.
But that wasn’t because Yan was weak; it was because they were monsters.
Sssshhh.
The cold emitted from Yan’s hand engulfed the incoming ammunition.
Crackle.
The barrage of bullets crumbled powerlessly.
The gunpowder within the ammunition was neutralized by the moisture in the cold.
It was an impeccable defense.
“What, what!”
The Task Force member who threw the grenade was shocked, his eyes wide open.
He quickly turned, intending to call for his comrades.
But Yan wasn’t about to let him get away.
Tap!
Yan kicked off the ground and closed the distance in an instant.
“Damn it!”
Yan plunged a dagger into the throat of the bewildered Task Force member.
“Gurk!”
The Task Force member spat out a mouthful of blood and began to collapse.
Ping! Ping!
At that moment, Yan’s senses caught several darts flying towards him from afar.
He used the body of the Task Force member as a shield and dashed forward.
Ratatat!
As the darts embedded themselves in the body, it began to convulse, the face turning black.
Soon, even the sound of breathing ceased.
“Tch.”
Yan frowned as he felt a stinging sensation in his hand holding the Task Force member.
The poison was so potent it tried to affect even him.
Whoosh!
Yan discarded the body and hid behind a nearby tree.
Rustle.
He could feel the village stirring.
It seemed the other watchers had called for reinforcements.
“Black Shadow Wolf.”
At Yan’s call, a long shadow behind him began to wriggle.
-Growl.
A wolf made of black mist, the Black Shadow Wolf, revealed itself.
* * *
At the Village Chief’s House
In that place, Shark, the Secretary of the Special Task Force, rose from his rest at the report of a subordinate who had come to report.
“Intruder!”
“Who is it?”
“Seems like one of the Grand Instructor’s faction, but we can’t be sure of the exact identity.”
“You don’t know who it is?”
I know the faces of all the instructors from the Dragon Child Project. If his identity is unknown…
“This bastard must have brought in an outsider!”
Shark threw the teacup he was holding against the wall.
Crash!
No matter how much one covets the position of Task Force leader, there are limits.
“Even if mixed with His Majesty’s blood, this is going too far!”
“What should we do about the intruder?”
“Can you subdue him?”
The Task Force member showed hesitation.
“If you command us to subdue him, we will… but he’s no ordinary man. Five have already fallen to him.”
“What’s the level of his force?”
“I’m not sure of his force level, but it seems he can control the wind spirits.”
A spirit master can exert superior power compared to a magician or knight of a similar level.
As such, spirit masters are rare beings, hard to find even within the empire.
A fourth-grade spirit master could overturn the land, create a sea of fire, or cause disasters like tornadoes or floods. If there were many of them, the continent’s landscape would have changed.
But the chronic weakness of a spirit master…
“A spirit master? Then why haven’t you dealt with him yet!”
A spirit master ultimately creates miracles through spirits, not themselves.
Since communicating with spirits takes time, they are easy to defeat if you target that interval.
And the Special Task Force has had many experiences subduing spirit masters who have committed terror.
“He’s mastered the art of dealing with assassins. Not only that, but his personal force is not weak either.”
At the Task Force member’s report, Shark scratched his head vigorously.
If he’s talking like that, it seems like they’ve hired a well-known mercenary or a famous assassin.
‘Why now of all times!’
Shark sighed deeply and then spoke.
“I’ll get ready and go out too, so do your best to obstruct his view.”
“Yes!”
As the subordinate left, Shark pressed his throbbing temples.
It hurts to think about fieldwork after such a long time.
* * *
Yan, perched atop a tree, was engaged in a fierce battle, masterfully controlling the Black Shadow Wolf to confound his opponent.
“Return, Black Shadow Wolf.”
The Black Shadow Wolf, having torn the throat of a Special Task Force member, melted into the shadows at Yan’s command.
Yan inspected the spoils brought by the Black Shadow Wolf.
Two grenades and ten darts coated with the deadly poison ‘Black Sand’.
“This should prove useful in the future.”
He had dispatched merely five men.
If he could annihilate the remaining Task Force members and seize their spoils, it would greatly aid his upcoming plans.
Yan carefully stowed the items in his pocket to prevent damage while surveying the village’s situation.
“Spread out and search for the enemy!”
“Yes!”
The Task Force members began to disperse.
Their division of forces meant they had identified him as a spirit master, which was exactly what Yan had intended.
“Time to make a move.”
Spotting a Task Force member searching below, Yan drew his sword Ascalon and descended from the tree.
He then stealthily approached from behind and thrust Ascalon into the man’s back.
“Guh, gack.”
“One down.”
After ensuring the Task Force member’s eyes had lost focus, Yan quickly stripped him of his clothes and the mask he wore.
He changed into the man’s clothes and attached the mask to his own face.
Satisfied with his reflection on Ascalon’s blade, Yan smiled.
“They won’t recognize me this easily.”
He had transformed into the exact likeness of the Task Force member he had slain.
With his plan set, Yan kicked off the ground.
Thump!
He needed to secure the Task Force leader’s daughter quickly.
Yan sped towards the largest house in the village with fierce urgency.
‘The only place to hide a carriage is there.’
* * *
The Creaking Silence
The house was eerily quiet, enough to send shivers down one’s spine.
There, someone sat in a chair with a grave expression, his face etched with seriousness.
Upon seeing Yan, his eyebrows arched in question.
“Number 8. Why have you returned alone?”
Yan’s eyes widened in shock upon recognizing the man’s face.
It was a face he knew all too well.
‘Shark, the vice-captain?’
He was the right-hand man of the current Task Force leader, a figure Yan had served under during his lowest days in the Task Force.
And…
‘The same bastard who tried to drive us all to our doom.’
Shark had needed achievements to climb to the position of vice-captain, and dozens of comrades were sacrificed for it.
Of course, he himself had emerged unscathed, promoted to vice-captain, and later retired in one piece.
But enough of the chatter.
It meant they were not exactly friends.
“Why the silence?”
Quietly, Yan drew Ascalon and advanced towards Shark.
Startled by Yan’s actions, Shark leaped from his seat.
“You, you cur!”
Before Shark could even call out to his men, his voice was cut short.
Thud!
Yan had made his move.
Ascalon traced a blue arc through the air, lunging towards Shark.
“Damn it!”
Shark, unable to summon his men, crossed swords with Yan.
Clang, clang, clang!
With each passing moment, Shark’s unease grew, cold sweat beading on his forehead.
‘What is this? I thought he was a spirit master!’
The supposed spirit master wielded his sword with skill.
But that wasn’t all.
Every time his own sword energy collided with Yan’s blade, it shattered like glass, powerless.
Yan’s sword bore no trace of sword energy.
Swoosh.
Suddenly, Yan spun, kicking Shark in the ribs with a swift turn.
Thump! Crack!
“Argh!”
Shark’s body flew, hitting the wall and sliding down in a painful heap.
It seemed his ribs had broken from the impact.
“Ah, I think I’ve got the hang of it.”
Yan turned away from Shark, looking at Ascalon with a sly grin.
It was a satisfactory test of Ascalon’s abilities.
Sword energy could only be broken by an equal force or something stronger.
But with Ascalon’s unique properties, it could shatter sword energy effortlessly, like breaking glass.
The destructive power and solidity contained in the sword energy were lost upon contact with Ascalon.
“Do I even need to bother with them one by one now?”
With a countermeasure against mana in place, the only concern was the deadly poison ‘Black Sand.’
He had already tested a method against grenades using the essence of water.
As Yan finished his thought…
Ssshh.
Sounds of movement began to emerge in the house where Shark and Yan were.
The Task Force members, having chased an unwelcome guest outside, realized the situation and returned.
Shark, clutching his side in agony, shouted.
“Kill that bastard!”
Yan, seeing the Task Force members sending murderous intent his way, slightly lifted Ascalon.
The corner of his mouth curled up.
“Come on in.”
It was time to see just how strong he had become.