Raven's breathing was labored...
His body was filled with exhaustion, but strangely, there was no weakness limiting his movements. His muscles seemed to obey his will without hesitation, as if his body and instincts were in perfect harmony.
He was aware that the energy he had used to finish off his previous opponent had drained him. But now, he felt something different, an instinct that seemed to have awakened deep within him.
The two people in front of him were still standing. Their faces no longer looked down on him, no longer treated him like an ant they could crush at any moment. The atmosphere had changed drastically.
The killing aura they emitted pressed down on the air around them, piercing Raven's skin like invisible needles. They were no longer playing around; they wanted to finish him off.
Raven didn't move. His eyes were sharp, locking onto every detail of their movements. In the silence, the voice returned in his head, a strange, dark cry, but not painful. Instead, it gave him encouragement, as if it were his own inner whisper.
Kill them...
kill them all...
A dry leaf fell, floating slowly between them. And when the leaf touched the ground.
The two shadows moved simultaneously. The spear shot forward with extraordinary speed, forming a zigzag pattern that his eyes could barely follow. At the same time, the figure who had been standing on the tree branch took a deep breath, aiming his arrow with full concentration at Raven.
The spear approached so quickly that its movement was like a flash of shadow. Raven didn't have time to think. But he could feel the murderous intent thick in the air signaling where the attack would come from.
"Spear Art: Sky Pierce!" shouted the spear.
The tip of the spear shot out like lightning, diving straight for Raven's heart. The speed was deadly. But before the sharp tip could strike, Raven had already moved. His body tilted as fast as lightning, lowering his center of gravity. The sharp wind from the spear blade tore his clothes, nearly lacerating his skin.
CRACK!!
The tree trunk behind him split roughly when it was hit by the attack.
And in the same split second.
SWIISH!
An arrow flew from behind the spearman's body. The archer had been waiting for the moment Raven dodged to shoot. The arrow flew straight towards Raven's head, fast and deadly.
The sharp intent to kill touched Raven's intuition. Without wasting time, he took a short breath. From behind his shirt, he pulled out a small axe he had taken from one of the previous corpses. His grip was tight, his eyes empty and focused like a sharpened knife.
To the archer, Raven's movement looked like a desperate attempt to block the arrow with a small axe.
Impossible...
He knew the qi in the arrow was strong enough to pierce a large tree. Deflecting it would only break the axe or shatter Raven's arm.
But what happened was beyond expectation.
Raven didn't block the arrow.
He changed its trajectory.
The arrow flew straight toward his face, and Raven swung the axe from below upward, sharp and precise.
In a slow motion that was almost invisible
TING!
The tip of his small axe touched the side of the arrow at the perfect angle. The touch shifted the arrow's trajectory, directing it to rise a few degrees upward and the arrow passed Raven's cheek, sliding behind him.
TWAANG!
TWAANG!
TWAANG!
The tree trunk behind him was shattered, pierced repeatedly by the arrows filled with qi.
Both the spearman and the archer froze, unable to believe what had just happened.
A terrifying reflex.
"W-what... what kind of move was that!?"
The archer's mind trembled, the hair on the back of his neck standing on end.
"Damn it! Die, kid!" shouted the spearman.
Without being stunned any longer by Raven's actions, the man twisted his wrist and pulled back his weapon. In an instant, he swung the spear horizontally. The sweep was fast, wild, and deadly, an attack that could have split Raven in two if he had remained in its path.
His movement was unexpected. He lowered his body, slipped in beside the spear, cutting the distance as close as possible so that the long blade of the weapon no longer had room to maneuver. The spearman was taken aback by this position, clearly Raven intended to slash his body.
That was what he expected.
However, the axe was not aimed at his opponent's chest. With full force and precision, Raven swung the axe at the spear shaft, right at the joint between the blade and the wooden handle!
CRACK!
The sound of wood breaking was deafening. The spear broke, splinters of wood flying everywhere. The spearman's eyes widened.
This kid wasn't blindly attacking, but reading the pattern and destroying my weapon to eliminate my distance advantage...
Instantly, the arrows flew again simultaneously!
The archer in the tree prepared another attack, anticipating that Raven would finish off the spearman at close range. However, because the target of his axe was not the opponent's body, but his weapon, his calculation was off.
The arrow hit the ground, kicking up dust.
Raven did not waste the opportunity. As soon as the spearman retreated, taking a stance with a broken handle in his hand, Raven immediately charged forward. The axe he held was still intact and ready to tear apart anything that stood in his way.
Relax... this spear shaft is still strong enough to withstand one rotten axe, thought the spearman, trying to assess the situation.
If I hold him off, the archer can finish him off.
But when Raven's axe was raised...
He threw it.
Not at the spearman, but at the archer.
WHUUM!
The axe flew like a wheel of death, forcing the archer to jump away from the branch. His arrow, which was ready to be fired, was forced to be canceled.
The axe flew like a wheel of death towards the archer, forcing him to jump from the branch. His arrow was canceled.
The spear was startled. Raven advanced without a weapon.
Was he crazy? No... this kid must have another trick up his sleeve.
"My body is big, my qi is strong... he shouldn't be my match," he thought, trying to calm himself down.
His footsteps hit the ground like a warhorse. With one last step, Raven swung his right hand, as if to punch. The spear reflexively blocked with its broken handle.
But just before the collision.
The spearman's eyes widened.
In Raven's right hand was not just an empty fist. There was a long piece of wood with a sharp, jagged edge that he had taken from the broken spear.
Raven gripped it tightly like a spear handle, mimicking his opponent's position and movements, launching a quick, sharp, deadly thrust that was not a random move.
"Spear Art: Sky Pierce..." Raven muttered, his voice low, accompanied by a thin, cold smile.
A dangerous aura immediately pressed against the spearman's chest. In an instant, he understood what was happening.
He deliberately slashed the joint of my spear and took the wooden splinter...
then hid it in his right hand?
Now he was imitating my technique?
How... ?
"You monster..." he hissed, his face pale.
His defense was futile...
The sharp wooden tip in Raven's hand pierced his defense, shooting into his chest and creating the same deadly damage as the Sky Pierce technique the spear had used earlier, as if Raven had perfectly imitated the attack.
Sluuuppp!
A wet sound echoed. Blood spurted, flowing profusely through the gaping wound in his chest. The spearman's eyes widened, his breath caught. His heart was pierced. His sturdy body swayed, his knees weak. Raven stared coldly, as if devouring his opponent's entire life through his gaze.
The archer, who had just dodged the flying axe, froze in place. His gaze was fixed on Raven, who now stood tall, hands covered in blood, breathing heavily... but with a faint smile on his face.
Silence enveloped the forest. Only the sound of blood dripping onto the ground, a slow rhythm that sounded so loud in Raven's ears.
"Damn... that kid..." muttered the bandit archer with a pale face, his eyes full of fear.
Raven turned slowly. His gaze was sharp, cold, as if looking at his last prey. With a calm but deadly movement, he pulled his hand out of his opponent's lifeless chest. Blood splattered, soaking his arms and fingers. Without giving his opponent time to breathe a sigh of relief, Raven grabbed the sharp piece of wood he had used earlier and threw it as fast as lightning.
Bugh!
The piece of wood was embedded deep in the archer's right eye.
"AGHHHHH!" The bandit's scream pierced the air, echoing among the trees. He immediately covered his face with both hands, black-red blood gushing between his fingers.
"No... it's impossible...! This kid... he doesn't have any Qi... how...how can he have this kind of power...?" He thought in panic, breathing heavily.
When he lowered his hands and saw Raven still staring at him with a gaze that made his heart sink.
Cold...
Empty...
As if saying, your turn next!!.
All his remaining courage vanished instantly.
With a trembling body and chaotic steps, the archer immediately turned and fled blindly, leaving behind his bow, arrows, and even his wits. He knew only one thing,
If he stayed there one second longer...
Death would surely come for him.
Raven just stood there, staring at the bandit's back as he disappeared among the trees. He didn't chase after him. His breathing was heavy, his body felt as if it had been completely drained, but somehow... the feeling was different. On the one hand, he was tired, but his body showed no signs of fatigue as it should have.
With both hands covered in blood, Raven looked up at the sky, obscured by tree branches. Slowly, he closed his eyes. The voices that had been echoing in his head finally subsided... only to be replaced by another voice, faint yet clear, like a whisper coming from the depths of his soul.