The Shadow's Gamble
It was something he could not believe even with both eyes. As if he were trapped in a terrible nightmare.
Thud!
Whenever a blue flower of light bloomed from the darkness, a red flower bloomed right along with it.
"Th-They're gone!"
"Where is he! Where did he go!"
In an instant, three of their comrades died right before their eyes. Yet even more astonishing was the figure of the one who killed them—vanishing into the darkness the moment the deed was done.
How could anyone move like that?
Never mind the mana control that can be switched on and off like a light…
Bowukartaon's eyes darted left and right. The instant he thought he had locked onto the movement, the bastard vanished again.
An exceptional assassin? Did he possess an artifact that granted stealth?
…No. It's not that.
Even among the Kar Tribe there were warriors specialized in assassination. And if the man were using a stealth artifact, there would at least have been a mana reaction. His movements were completely different from anything of that sort.
Simply put…
He's far too familiar with the darkness of the North.
In this moonlit moment—how the shadows stretching from the reed beds shifted; the direction sound traveled with the wind; the blind spots of the enemies before him and how to use their own bodies as cover—every one of those elements formed a separate piece that seemed to click into a completed puzzle.
He would swear to it.
This kind of fighting… even among those people, only a very few.
It was a movement that only those who had desperately survived more than a decade on this northern battlefield could make—something like a medal of honor earned in blood.
Bowukartaon found it nearly impossible to hold onto his reason as the scene unfolded before his eyes.
But then—
"What the hell are you doing!"
"…!"
With a thunderous shout, Ulke, standing at the edge of the reeds, yelled toward Bowukartaon.
"Find him and give the orders! Right now you're the only one who can chase that bastard!"
The number of remaining subordinates had fallen to roughly thirty. They had lost half their forces. If they lost any more here, even killing the man would leave the damage far too great.
Just to catch a single Imperial dog…
Dozens of his and Bowukartaon's men had died. The reek of their blood vibrated through the air so thickly it nearly paralyzed the nose.
But…
"…"
From within the darkness, Arteon sharpened his senses to a razor's edge as he watched them. Not a single mistake could be allowed. Dozens of eyes were hunting him; the moment his position was exposed, their swords and axes would pour down. And above all, there was that one man watching the entire field from a short distance away.
His senses are better than I expected.
Bowukartaon. Though only for an instant, Arteon had nearly been detected by him several times already. Yet as the seconds stretched, Arteon felt himself recovering a sensation from his past life—the chilling feeling of a blade pressed right against his throat. On this northern battlefield there had never been a single moment when he held the advantage. The experience of having to win even when everything stood against him was now awakening the senses of the Arteon who stood here.
About twenty left from here on…
He had already killed roughly half of them. But—
It's taking longer than I thought.
He had given away the artifact that warded off the cold; the longer this dragged on, the less he could stop the chill boring into his body.
The moment I use mana, my position will be exposed.
If it were only ordinary subordinates it wouldn't matter, but—
Those two…
Ulke and Bowukartaon. Coldly assessed, facing both of them at once in his present state would not be easy. Above all, the arrows Bowukartaon loosed were attacks even he found considerably burdensome. Dodging those while fighting the others would be no simple task.
At least ten more.
He had to cut that number further if he wanted to create a chance to escape. Arteon, hidden in the dark, watched them with the eyes of a predator. Yet the Karu warriors were already guarding their surroundings with cautious, hard expressions. Half their comrades had already died screaming. Despite suffering such losses, they still had not managed to touch a single hair on the man.
This humiliation…
We have to kill him. No matter what.
They could not allow an Imperial dog to run wild in the front yard of those who ruled the North.
Whoooosh—
The cold northern wind swept through, pressing a heavy tension down over the field. It would not be strange no matter when, where, or what erupted. A silence so complete that not even the sound of breathing escaped began to squeeze their chests and wring their hearts.
Yet they could not simply stand and stare forever. The first to move was the one doing the hunting—Arteon.
Swish.
With footsteps light as a brush over snow, his form slid away like a shadow being drawn into the dark.
"He's coming!"
The distance was only a meter or two at most. Beyond the darkness where they had no choice but to rely on pure sense, they knew the bastard was approaching.
"Watch the flanks!"
Swoosh!
A Karu warrior ducked hastily beneath a blue aura that thrust forward like a striking serpent. They had already learned from the deaths of their comrades that taking it head-on was impossible.
But—
Slash!
"Gah!"
Even having deliberately dodged, perfectly avoiding the attack proved impossible.
"Bowukartaon!"
The instant Arteon appeared, Ulke roared. Bowukartaon released the bowstring he had held drawn, as if he had been waiting for exactly this.
Screeeeech—!
With a sound like tearing air, a single arrow streaked toward Arteon's chest. He had wanted the head or neck, but he had to aim for the broadest possible target. The bastard's movements were simply too ghostlike.
"Pounce on him!"
Everywhere except the path of the arrow. At Ulke's command the Karu warriors charged. They had to become obstacles so that Arteon could not freely evade Bowukartaon's shot—even if it meant dying here.
Pabat!
"Uwaaaaaah!"
"Die, you monster!"
In the eyes of the Karu warriors, Arteon was a monster pure and simple. Despite that young face he freely wielded aura and slipped through the darkness like a wraith.
Arteon took in the arrow screaming in from the side and the warriors throwing themselves at him.
They prepared thoroughly.
Taking their comrades' deaths as lessons, they had arranged the single best move that could kill him. It was, without question, a dangerous situation.
…You just had bad luck.
Because he had lived through this exact kind of experience more than once in his previous life.
Tadak!
Arteon immediately rested the middle of the spear shaft across his shoulder, seized the end, and swung it like a lever. Leaning forward, he sent the spear carving a great semicircle that swept out toward them in a deadly arc. Yet the warriors charged as if unafraid of death—and that very recklessness gave him the perfect formation to use as a shield.
Bang!
The spear that had been swung high crashed down into the ground.
Whirl!
Using the shaft as a fulcrum, Arteon spun his body and kicked the men beside him away. The lightning-swift attack sent three Karu warriors flying. And the moment he lifted the spear he had used as a pivot—
Swooooosh! Clangggg!
Bowukartaon's arrow and Arteon's spear collided in midair, exploding with fierce light.
KABOOOOOM!
The shockwave that burst from the clash of aura against aura was ferocious. The three Karu warriors who had fallen nearby were swept up in the blast and screamed.
"…Crazy."
Bowukartaon, who had loosed the arrow, could not trust his own eyes. It had been a timing that allowed neither dodge nor block.
He blocked it, but… the impact should still be considerable…!
"Ulke! Attack him! Now's the chance!"
Bowukartaon shouted as he nocked another arrow. But just as the blinding light and the waves of force began to fade—
"Isn't that chance mine as well?"
"…!"
At the voice that came from directly behind him, Bowukartaon spun and swung his bow in desperation.
But—
Thud! Thud!
"Gyaaaaaaaah!"
In a single heartbeat Arteon drove his spear through both of the archer's thighs. Bowukartaon screamed and collapsed where he stood. Ulke and the remaining Karu warriors stared, eyes wide.
When had he gotten over there? They had completely lost track of his movements.
Arteon looked at them with an expression that suggested real exhaustion, then rested the tip of his spear against the fallen Bowukartaon's throat.
"…If you mean to chase me, chase me all you like. But you'll have to trade for this one."
Slash!
Arteon sliced a thin line across Bowukartaon's carotid artery.
"…Ghk!"
Bowukartaon instinctively clamped both hands over his neck. The volume of red blood welling between his fingers was anything but ordinary.
"Keep pressing hard and you'll keep your life. Of course… if you don't get treatment in time, you'll die."
"Bowukartaon!"
"Lord Bowukartaon!"
Ulke and the Karu warriors shouted as they rushed toward the wounded archer. Arteon did not look back. He reeled in his mana and hurled himself into the darkness.
If by any chance they abandoned the archer and came after him instead—
…I'll die here.
But from the atmosphere, the archer clearly held the status of their most important commander. He could afford to throw the dice.
And then—
"Huff…! Huff…! Huff…!"
Without using even a thread of mana he ran like a madman across the snow-covered plain. Fortunately the gamble seemed to have succeeded; no one followed.
However—
Thud.
"Cough!"
Arteon collapsed onto the ground and bent double, coughing up blood. The arms propping him up trembled violently; both eyes were bloodshot, as if they might spill crimson at any second.
…Did I grow arrogant?
No. Absolutely not. On this northern battlefield, fighting the Karu, he had never once been careless. He had always given everything, fought with every last scrap of strength. Perhaps that was why.
"I think… I'm starting to understand a little."
That final clash. Because of it, for the briefest instant, he had glimpsed the path to the next stage. If he could just stretch out his hand a little farther—
5-Star…
The extreme realm he had never touched in his previous life. He felt as if he could reach it.
Is this as far as it goes?
His eyes were closing. The faces of the subordinates who had once followed him flashed past in rapid succession.
"…Sorry."
For being such a pathetic superior. Arteon muttered the words as he unconsciously let his eyes slip shut.
But then—
Wooooong!
Something stirred in his lower abdomen, and a foreign energy flooded every corner of his body. Just before consciousness fled, the Ether's Heart seated in his mana hole poured vitality through his entire frame. Full recovery was impossible, of course—but it was enough to keep the dying ember of his life from going out.
And at the very moment he weathered that crisis—
"Platoon Leadeeeeeer!"
Arteon felt a faint smile touch his lips at the distant voice, and let his head drop to the ground.