Chapter 101 – Attacking the Assailants
Translator: Kell | Editor: Ryunakama
Attacking the Assailants
(…There they are.) Sachylis said in a barely audible whisper as she stared at the roof of a nearby house.
Three intruders moved smoothly under the cover of darkness, careful not to make a sound. We probably wouldn’t have found them without using a Skill.
I studied the men. It seemed they didn’t notice us. I could easily take them down from afar with some spells, but I’ll let Sachylis handle this one. While I’ve taught her combat, this would be her first time to fight someone skilled. It’s not like I can deal with enemies all the time, so while I can back her up, it’s best to let her gain some experience.
(Try doing it alone. I won’t make a move until it gets dangerous.)
(Okay.)
Sachylis readied her bow. In this world, almost all the Skills of the Spirit Archer were unknown. Before, she fought like an inferior version of an Archer. But after learning some Skills, she can now fight as a real Spirit Archer.
(Here I go.)
Sachylis aimed her bow to the skies and fired. A few seconds later, one of the men fell off the roof, an arrow sticking out of his head. Most likely a quick death.
Hearing their companion drop, the other two quickly dispersed and eyed their surroundings. Sachylis fired a second shot, but this time it got deflected by a knife.
(Impressive. They can deflect an arrow even in this darkness.)
As expected, they were fairly skilled men. Deflecting an arrow in the dark is not something that can be done easily. Flustered, Sachylis nocked another arrow, but the enemy already knew her position. The intruders got down to the ground and hid.
(They’re heading this way.) she muttered.
(Of course. They know where you are. They’re coming to kill you.)
(Wh-What do we do? Should we hide?)
Sachylis’s expression was a mix of panic and confusion. I expected this to happen.
(Do you know what went wrong?)
(Well… When I killed the first guy, I didn’t prepare to kill the other two?)
(Exactly. After firing the first shot, you didn’t have to wait and see if it hit, and instead could’ve immediately fired the second shot. Either that, or you could’ve moved to a different spot before firing the second arrow.)
When you’re the one launching a surprise attack, you have an incredible advantage. Killing only one before revealing yourself is a waste.
She could’ve at least killed two and bring it down to a 1-on-1 fight. But now that they noticed her right away, it’s a 2-on1. If it were a 1-on-1, she would have the advantage since she knew the area well. But unfortunately that’s not the case. It’s much harder to fight two people at once.
(I’m sorry.)
(Nah, you did great for your first job. I’ll deal with it from here, so don’t move from this spot.)
I left her behind. Both men were going through the same route. But they were cautious and a surprise attack was not an option. Still I can deal with them.
(Ice Pillar.)
I cast a spell without chanting. Casting without incantation results in a less powerful spell, but I don’t really need power right now.
I cast the spell not over the enemies’ heads, but over a back alley far from the intruders. As soon as I activated the spell, I moved to an alley connected to the path the men were taking. They wouldn’t see me unless I actually showed my face.
A few seconds later, the ice pillar fell to the ground and made a sound as it shattered to pieces. In that instant, I peered from the alley and used Deadly Pain on one guy.
The sudden sound drew their attention. I specifically used Ice Pillar where they couldn’t see it. Otherwise, they’d find out right away that it’s just a diversion.
「Gyaaaaaaaaaaaaahhh!」
The man cried out from the pain. An assassin sent to do a high-level job like this would have been trained to endure pain. But Deadly Pain isn’t something you can withstand with training alone. You need to use actual spells beforehand to counter it.
But the intruders wouldn’t know this. The other man gave a shriek as his partner let out a scream unbefitting of a trained assassin.
Invoking another Ice Pillar, I jumped out of the alley.