Deep in the shadow of the ancient canopy, Trevor stood completely unbothered, as if the blade in his back was nothing more than an annoying insect bite. Reaching behind his hip, he casually gripped the handle of Vernon’s heavy hunting dagger and pulled it free with a dull clink.
Not a single drop of red blood trickled onto his crimson coat.
“Well...” Trevor murmured, his voice deadly steady. “This isn't even going to leave a scar. Rubix: Mode 6—Halberd.”
He pressed the hidden release on his briefcase. In less than two seconds, the dark alloy casing unfolded, snapped into interlocking plates, and extended into a heavy, razor-sharp cybernetic halberd that glinted under the filtered sunlight.
Vernon took a step back, his eyes widening. “O-Oi... Osgard! I thought you said this guy was a frontline brawler!”
“That's what his damn guild card says!” Osgard barked, drawing his longsword while sweating nervously.
“Enough talking,” Trevor said coldly, stepping forward with heavy, rhythmic footfalls. “All five of you die here today... and not a single soul in Terra Nova will ever know.”
“Alister, move!” Trevor commanded.
Understanding the cue instantly, Alister turned on his heel and sprinted into the thick undergrowth at top speed.
“Don't let the kid run!” Osgard yelled. “You two, go gut him!”
Two of Osgard’s C-Rank cronies broke away to chase the young wizard into the trees.
Before the third crony could even raise his buckler, Trevor whirled his heavy halberd in a tight, blinding arc. The heavy polearm blade sliced directly through the man's chest armor, killing him instantly before his body hit the dirt.
Osgard gasped in horror, backing up. “Gah! This bastard is actually trying to murder us!”
Vernon flicked his wrists, hurling three poisoned throwing daggers straight at Trevor's head. Trevor casually spun his halberd like a dark propeller, deflecting the flying steel with a metallic barrage of sparks.
CLANG-CLANG-CLANG!
Osgard lunged forward with a desperate, two-handed overhead sword strike. Instead of parrying with his weapon, Trevor reached up with his bare right hand and caught the razor-sharp edge mid-air.
CRACK-BEND!
Trevor’s cybernetic grip clamped down on the steel blade, bending the tempered metal like a cheap toy.
Vernon stumbled backward into a tree root, his face pale. “Oh fuck... this guy isn't human! He's too damn strong!”
Trevor leaned in close to Osgard, his eyes glowing with a cold, predatory light. “You idiots really thought you were the top predators in these woods? Today... you are the prey.”
A quarter-mile deeper into the forest, Alister slid to a stop in a narrow muddy ravine. The two C-Rank pursuers burst through the bushes behind him, weapons raised and grins plastered across their faces.
Alister didn't panic. His expression turned ice-cold as he raised his wand. “Quagmire!”
The soft mud beneath both pursuers liquefied instantly into deep, churning quicksand, swallowing their legs up to their thighs. Before they could pull themselves out, Alister pointed his wand upward.
A small source note: NovelPhoenix is where the author posts this chapter, while this copy was made without consent.
“Aqua Cannon!”
A high-pressure torrent of water blasted over both men, drenching their clothes, armor, and gear in a heavy layer of water.
Alister stepped closer, his wand tip crackling with a terrifying blue arc of raw lightning. He looked down at them without a trace of mercy.
“Any last prayers before you leave this world?” Alister asked softly.
The two men froze, horror washing over them as they realized what was coming. “Wait! No! Please! Mercy! We were just following Osgard's orders—!”
ZZZZZT-BOOOOM!
A blinding discharge of high-voltage lightning shot from Alister's wand, conducting violently through the soaked men. The intense electrical surge incinerated them instantly, turning flesh, armor, and bone into a pile of drifting black ash in seconds.
“Now you're both just ash,” Alister muttered coldly. “No one will ever prove you were murdered.”
When his own life was pushed to the line, Alister revealed a ruthless survival instinct. He used a brief swirl of water magic to wash away the burnt ash into the muddy stream, picked up their dropped high-tier weapons, and slipped them cleanly into his Guild Spatial Bag.
Back in the clearing, Trevor delivered a brutal, precise karate chop straight to Osgard’s shoulder.
CRACK-SHATTER!
Osgard’s collarbone shattered into fragments. He dropped straight to his knees, coughing up a mouthful of blood as internal hemorrhaging set in, though he remained conscious.
“Hey, Newbie Killer,” Trevor called out, turning his head. “You're next.”
Vernon didn't hesitate—he turned and bolted through the brush, running faster than his legs had ever carried him.
Trevor clicked a side dial on his weapon. “Rubix: Mode 4—Chained Grapple.”
The halberd collapsed and reconfigured into a heavy pneumatic launcher attached to a reinforced steel chain. Trevor aimed and pulled the trigger.
THWIP-BANG!
The heavy hook shot through the air like a harpoon, impaling Vernon through his armpit and pinning him directly to the ground fifty yards away.
Vernon screamed in agony as Trevor casually reeled the chain back, dragging the rogue across the dirt like a hooked fish.
Trevor stood over the bleeding killer. “So... 'Newbie Killer.' Your life is currently in the hands of a newbie.”
“Your victims had families too,” Trevor said neutrally, staring down at him. “You've been doing this for twelve fucking years, intentionally keeping your rank at D just to ambush defenseless recruits... You deserve the worst death imaginable.”
Ten minutes later, Alister walked back into the clearing to find Osgard and Vernon tightly bound with heavy rope to two massive trees. Both men were gagged with cloth, unable to scream.
Osgard was fading fast from internal bleeding, while Vernon lay slumped against his tree—minus his left foot, which Trevor had surgically severed and cauterized.
Alister blinked, looking down at Vernon's leg. “Why did you cut his foot off?”
“Because he runs too fast,” Trevor replied simply. Then he glanced at Alister. “Where are your pursuers?”
“No need to worry about them,” Alister said smoothly. “They're reduced to ash. I stashed their weapons inside my spatial bag.”
Trevor let out a faint, approving smirk. “I'm starting to like you more and more, kid. You've got a very efficient sense of justice.”
Alister looked at the two gagged men squirming against the trees. “What's the plan for these two?”
“The Head Inspector warned everyone about B-Rank hazards roaming this sector,” Trevor said, a dark glint in his eye. “Let's go find a squad of Saufischer and bring these motherfuckers right to them.”
Alister shuddered slightly, looking at Trevor. “Man... you are brutal.”
“This isn't cruelty,” Trevor replied, turning toward the thick jungle. “This is absolute justice.”
Using a small trail of monster bait, Trevor lured a pack of four intelligent, amphibious Saufischer warriors toward the tree cluster. The fish-like humanoids, wielding crude tridents, immediately caught the scent of blood.
Trevor and Alister watched from high up in the dense canopy as the wild B-Rank beasts discovered the tied-up traitors, dragged them into the shallow riverbanks, cooked them over a crude campfire, and devoured them completely—leaving nothing behind but scattered rags.
Later that evening, Trevor and Alister sprinted into the Expedition Stronghold Command post, breathless and appearing utterly frantic.
“Inspectors! Report!” Alister shouted to the guards. “We were ambushed near the river boundary by a pack of B-Rank Saufischer!”
“What?!” the Elven Head Inspector stood up.
“C-Rank Adventurer Osgard and his squad tried to reinforce us,” Trevor added, maintaining a stern, somber expression. “They fought bravely, but the pack was too large... Osgard and his entire party were dragged off and eaten near the grand river!”
The Guild Inspectors immediately dispatched a heavily armed squad to investigate the scene. Near the blood-stained riverbank, they discovered Saufischer tracks, broken tridents, and torn scraps of Osgard's leather armor.
The Head Inspector let out a dark sigh, marking five names off the active roster. “It's confirmed... Five adventurers lost to wild Saufischer threats. Apex Squad... you were lucky to escape with your lives.”
“Yes, sir...” Trevor said solemnly, bowing his head slightly. “Very lucky.” end of chapter