Chapter 67 – Nakuma’s Attack

*** Nakuma ***

I walk down the alleyway towards my target with steady steps. I know I can take this branch out easily. My main problem will be Yuki. Two out of her five classes aren't that good for combat, just entertainment. Sure, improved footwork and sound control can be used, and the start of her mission will be a breeze, but the ending is the real problem. She has to get in close yet has no sure way to do that without her illusion magic. I can just close space or send a dagger through a portal. She has to buff them with sound and hope they don't have a defense against it. She said she could do it, but she's never done well in open fights.

But, she's been out here for eighty-some years; she's proven she can take care of herself.

I speed up a bit; it wouldn't hurt to finish fast and run over to check on her. I can just play it off as wanting to check if her pants got ripped off or something. I mean, I would be happy if I got to see that as well, both for the view and for her being alive.

The walk is boring. It's the same dull city the entire way. Few people are out and about now; the majority of people who are out right now are in the red light or entertainment district. Most shops have been closed, and workers and owners have gone home for the night. The housing lets out a bit of light from candles and magic bulbs. Silhouettes are painted on the drapes.

I just force open the door to the shop. I've been in here enough to have memorized the mediocre weapons they keep in stock thrown about like they don't care to sell a single thing. This small shop doesn't have anything worth stealing, so I keep heading to the back. The two guards are always in the back, boring themselves to death, watching the door.

I help them along, sending out a dagger for each as I move past the back curtain. Two guards down, six assassins, one handler, and the branch head left. Moving right on along, I pull open the trap door and hop down. Two more assassins cover the next door. A few daggers later, I've only got four assassins left.

Not breaking stride, I push past the final door to find everyone else I need to kill in the next room. The handler cowers behind her counter as the rest position themselves, thinking they actually have a chance against me.

"Can you all save me the trouble and slit your throats?" Casually moving to the middle of the room preparing the same trick I did last time. None seem any stronger than the girls I killed before. The leader is another warrior of some kind. To thin to be a knight or something, but definitely not a mage. Maybe a secondary affinity, but I doubt it. The assassins left are all mages besides one, a true warrior. Ripped muscle lifting an oversized sword. Hardly an assassin.

Did they hire some help? I'm sorry, Yuki. I'm likely going to need to help you out here.

"Slit your own throat. We've got you five to one. So slit your throat now or spill your reason for attacking us."

"I already told you all the purpose of my visits. You all need to pay attention." I pull them all in and slash out my daggers, catching the warriors off guard. Not death blows, but they'll make this fight a lot easier.

Just as quickly, I expand the distance, giving me plenty of room to work with. The same old traps and dagger tricks on the pitiful mages earn me three kills. I didn't feel like keeping track of the handler, so I put her down with two mages, leaving me a mage and the two weakened warriors in less than a minute of fighting.

I stop my dagger assault on the last mage, working my plan for the previous two warriors. They've drawn their weapons, put on the last bit of armor, and started through the maze. Like always, it's slow progress. The leader is either hiding her second affinity deeply or really is just a strange warrior build. I plan to not find out, but first, I need to finish off the last pesky mage who is currently working some ritual magic in the back.

Yuki gave me a few bomb traps I feel are a perfect thing to send her way right now. Sending two, followed by a dagger, is more than enough to kill the weak mage, leaving me with the warriors.

"Big one! Are you hired help?"

They ignore my question, continuing the slow work through the maze. The true warrior is likely here to fend off space magic; she's hiding something from me. Is it a teammate ability or one she uses on herself? I've got a few more traps I can send their way first.

I send a dagger each followed up by the trap. Both count on their armor to take the dagger. Defensive skills stop the blast from hitting them. If the skill was solo, they would've given her a mage for support. So it should be a team thing.

Do they need to be close to each other for it to work? Some type of swapping thing or a large dispel? They both put on full plate after my first attack. The hired help even took time to down a healing potion. I trap the rogue in a space distortion and bring her in close. I lash out with a knife, going for a knee joint, but send her away just as I attack. The distortion was broken, and an axe was swinging for my head.

So, one ace was found. How many does she have? Was that a skill or enchantment? Felt more like a skill.

Shit is Yuki in trouble. Her sound magic is going to be even worse against whatever they brought to counter me. Anyone brought in to counter space magic is going to laugh at her sound magic. I need to speed this up and get to her.

I start teleporting myself around the room, not giving much thought to where exactly I end up. There is no need to be strategic; that just lets the assassins guess where I will show up next. Daggers ready, I wait for the moment I end up close enough to one of them to strike.

The mercenary is first. She seemed prepared for me to show up. She must have some affinity or skill for predicting either the future or space magic.

I only get a hit on her armor before I'm plopped away to a new corner of the room, and the cycle starts again. Taking cheap shots at the two, hoping for a lucky hit.

It takes a few dozen shots before I pierce skin, the left wrist of the mercenary. It wasn't deep, but it used up the last of the potion the warrior took earlier.

I can see the frustration. I've kept my minefield and large space up on top of my many constant teleporting. I hid my bust size so they don't know the amount of mana I'm playing with. A much larger amount than they have themselves.

My next hit comes much faster this time; just three more tries before the rogue is bleeding from her left leg, right behind the knee. A perfect strike stopped her from moving. On top of the previous hit makes her my target to kill now.I start to plan my teleports and get ready to bring her to a place to finish her off. Right as I start my last teleport, I see the mercenary fling a knife to where I'm going a moment too late. I teleport through and duck. The knife finds my right shoulder, going in up to the hilt. Needing to make it worth the cost, I do a frenzy of slashes, keeping the girl on the defense till I find a slash across her neck.

Another dagger comes flying at me. I kick the poor rogue up into the knife, which deflects off her armor. My foot receives the most damage in the exchange, but it puts her in a perfect place to lose her head. I get a clean slice on the confused woman, reducing us to just one girl left.

I keep the knife in my shoulder. It hurts like a bitch, but I've got to start my teleporting again. I can't plan too much in advance, or she'll see it. Stopping to drink a potion will just get me hurt again.

With only one target, she has a lot easier time defending my assault, but I still manage a few hits to her armor. Not that it counts for much. I try putting her in a distorted space and find she just breaks it immediately. I start moving her around in the warped space. Both of us moved around the room at a crazy speed. It limits the number of times I'm close to her, but she defends less of the slashes I send her way.

"BREAK!" I hear pierce into my brain as all my magic disappears. Even my tails and ears come out.

"Oh, I'm getting toyed with, and you're hiding the best magic from me. Damn, I didn't ask enough for this job. Come on bitch. You've got a minute to live."

With that she charges as I can't cast a single space spell. I even try my illusion spells and find nothing works. Desperate for a distraction, I pop a balloon in her face. I get her to stumble a bit from the part trick, and I run. Planning to play a little game of tag while her timer runs out.

"Get back here, you bitch!" She screams as she gives chase.

I sense mana behind me, so I dive to my left, careful to fall on the non-knifed shoulder, and a slash of wind breaks the space I was just in. So, just space and illusion magic is broken right now. Or maybe my top two affinities? Either way, I'm now the one needing to dodge a barrage of skills coming my way.

In my diving and rolling, the knife came out, letting my blood flow heavily out of my shoulder. It didn't come out cleanly. The extra cutting made my right arm fall limp at my side. A few of her strikes even hurt my perfect tails. She's lucky I need to help Yuki, or I would have fun torturing the poor human.

Ten seconds left if her time is accurate. I've been trying small space magic every few steps, but I'm still not able to cast space magic. Another quick dive, and I try casting an illusion spell of her hitting the mark instead. The spell went through and tricked her into a follow-up strike on the imaginary enemy.

Not wasting my chance, I strike out, jamming a knife into the back of her knee, forcing her to fall over. I jam another into her other knee and push her down flat. My last knife went through her helmet and skull.

With them all dead, I need to heal, loot, and burn this shithole down quickly. After I get a healing potion in me, I've lost a little too much blood to do anything else first. I pick up her sword and strip the armor from the human. It isn't the best, but it's better than what is upstairs.

I searched all the drawers but found not a single bit of paper. I search the leader's body and see she has nothing on her as well. I guess they were prepared to lose. I take out a firestone and light a bunch of fires on my way out. Putting on my disguise again, I run to my Lover. She better have all her body parts when I get there.