*Third-Person Narration*
-Woom!-Woom!-Woom!
Sirens were blazing loud all around, soaking the Soma Familia in an ear-piercing shriek of horrors about to come.
The entire Familia of hundreds had long encircled Soma's statue- Some stood wide-eyed- Some growled, cursed, or cried over the ones lost as they listened to the summary of the last hour, and their orders from the Dwarf standing below the statue.
The Dwarf's words were clear, cut, and short- An assassin has infiltrated our home and brutally murdered 22 of us. He is still in the vicinity, find him and bring him to the captain, either dead or alive.
While in the Room-19 were hounds snarling, sniffing through the blood flooded room full of bodies infested with gaping holes and burnt flesh. But the stench of blood was too thick for even the most sensitive of noses Soma Familia had at their disposal.
And on the roofs were tens of men and women, armed to the teeth as they stood on watch- crossbows, arrows all aimed down, eyes scanning their home, again and again, praying to their god just for a glimpse of that monster in black.
The entire Familia was howling for blood. After all, this was the first time in their history that someone infiltrated their home, savagely murdered 22 of them in cold blood, and slipped away. And a slap right across their faces- The assassin seemed to have gone out of his way to make sure they all died a horrifying death.
But they were positive that the assassin was still in their vicinity as they had activated their base's Defense Magic Formation, sealing any and all means of his escape before they assembled that small party, hoping to take him by surprise.
The Defense Magic Formation was a Billion Vali Magic Formation that encompassed the entire base, shielding it from the outside attacks while sealing any form of entry or exit.
It was a large scale Magic Formation powered by the expensive High Tier refined monster cores and was bought by Zanis with the initial intention of keeping Soma's precious wine safe from theft.
Never did they imagine a night like this happening and the Formation being used to cage an assassin
And ironically enough, away from this- away from the chaos and searches, the assassin- Argus sat on top of their God's head, quietly sipping water, and gazing at the turmoil ahead.
Back then, Argus initiated Blink Propulsion the second his head peeked out of the window, throwing the trail off his back, and aimed the follow-up Blink Propulsions towards the center of the base- Soma's residence, The Mansion.
That was the only place where people would least expect him to be, he figured.
There was also the fact that Soma Familia doesn't know he can Blink and cover great distances in an instant. Those who saw him disappearing were all lying in the pool of their own blood, having long grown cold.
So there he sat with a now clear head and a dead heart, sipping water down as he gazed at the hundreds searching for him ahead.
Each kill was flashing before his eyes in a never-ending loop, eating away the bits and pieces of sanity he still had left. And he let them eat- made no efforts to resist.
Another vision played as he closed his eyes- one of the past this time- of 5 years ago.
There stood a 17-years old Argus, back in his lavish castle, surrounded by the ones he loves- his family, and with a gun in his trembling hands.
"Do it, Eldest! These bastards deserve no mercy!" shouted his sister, gashing her teeth as she scowled at four tattooed men kneeling on the floor with gags in their mouths.
They cried, thrashed, and begged through their eyes, but the tight ropes only cut deeper.
But Argus's hand stayed trembling, his blood-shot eyes glaring at the men in absolute hatred.
"Just pull the trigger, damn it! Or I'll do it!" Spoke his little brother as he drew out a gun of his own. In place of the ever so bright smile on his face was a growl of a monster.
But Argus's hands stayed trembling, as he glared at the weeping men, jaw clenched and quivering, asking himself, 'What Amy would've wanted me to do?'
In their most beautiful moments, she would always look up with a dreamy smile and say, 'Forgiveness, acceptance, and this willingness to help and learn… these are your superpowers, Argus… Yes! That dorkiness too… I love that the most about you. So please, promise me, you'll never lose them.'
"Master," spoke his stoic maid, "They are the ones who violated and burned her… We have proof, in case you're…"
But Argus's hands stayed trembling, wishing to just… aim at his own head instead and pull the damn trigger!
"What's the matter, son? Don't have it in you? Indeed, she wouldn't have wanted you to kill… But is this really the right thing to do?" asked his father.
But Argus's hands stayed trembling.
"Eldest! Kill them!"
"If you can't… then let me!"
"Master…"
"Son…"
/ ARGUS! /
'HER' terrified scream shot his eyes open, shredding past his ugliest nightmare, but his heart never surged.
[Hmm…?]
/ What do you mean 'Hmm'? It happened again! You weren't listening! It all became so dark! /
[I-um…]
/ Not the time! Look ahead… they have spread out! /
.
.
.
*Argus's Narration*
And sure enough, their little search had spread wide enough that they were now on the garden just ahead- any closer and they'd see a guy chilling on the roof.
[Yeah… they are a little too close for comfort.] I sighed.
Didn't know the how's or the whys… there was this strange hollowness- a profound emptiness that had taken over me.
I knew at this point, I should be panicking a little, my heart should be in my throat, my head was supposed to be dizzy… but it wasn't.
There was a white 'slab' in me… supposed to be smooth and flat. But right now there was a crack in it, and I knew it wasn't supposed to be there- I don't know how- it just knew.
And something was oozing out of that crack, turning everything… my emotions, the adrenalin, everything into nothing- absolutely nothing.
I felt nothing other than the irresistible compulsion to kill my targets, and I made no efforts to resist… I gave in.
So with the last sip, I got up and locked my eyes on the open window below before activating Re-Directive Blink.
"Welp…! Now that I have officially disappointed everyone in my life~ let's get this shit done and over with… I'm getting sleepy," I spoke under my breath as I Blinked into the mansion.
Crossbow Flickered-Out in my hand the second I Blinked-Out, knees bent- crouched, shield ready and raised for impact, eyes darting… all I found was a long oval table with chairs surrounding it, and papers crumbled all around.
From what little the moonlight trickling through the window illuminated, it appeared I was in an empty conference room of some sort.
And the door out was just ahead, and I Blinked at it but didn't turn the knob just yet.
I had no idea what was on the other side, it could be a floor crawling with people, or not even a soul. Although other than the sirens, I heard nothing when I pressed the other somewhat healed but still mutilated ear on the door.
But still, I had to make sure, so I activated Dark Vision, sending a pulse out for recon… and the path ahead seemed clear too.
[Now that's odd…]
/ There's a good chance that Zanis is out there, leading the search. I suggest you skip him… he is beyond your capacity. /
[That remains to be seen… and besides, from what I remember from the anime- he never struck as someone who'd do that. He is probably in his room, jerking off to Freya while waiting for the good news]
/ Then for your sake… I hope you're wrong. /
[How kind of you.] I chuckled as I turned the doorknob before stepping out.
The interior of the mansion was a classic- The ground floor was a gigantic hall, comprising most of the floor, and had wide 'T' way stairs leading up to the floor I was on.
And the floor I stood on- the first floor was basically a rectangular corridor connected with the stairs. A classic indeed. My personal mansion was designed just like that.
Fortunately, both the floors were empty- not a soul in sight, and I was free to stroll around the bright-lit mansion, which I did. Albeit with all the vigilance and everything.
With the shield braced in my left hand and crossbow in the right, I stepped ahead, paying close attention to every room I crossed.
And I was right, Zanis was no true leader.
Didn't even took five minutes for Dark Vision to pick up an orange silhouette, pacing back and forth- hands behind his back, on the other side of the glamorously designed doubled doors.
It was almost funny, how anxious he looked for the 'news' of my capture.
[Well, it's gonna be news, alright…]
And once again, just like any civil and respectable visitor, death knocked on the door twice.
-KNOCK!-KNOCK!
"Ah! At last!" came an embarrassing attempt at aristocratic accent from behind the doors as the silhouette strode towards me- towards death.
While I prepared the welcome hug- raising the shield, I took aim at the head of the silhouette closing in.
And the second the doors opened-
-SWISH!
I pulled the trigger, raging a bolt out of the muzzle straight at his head.
But the splinter of blood, bones, and brains I expected, did not occur.
With a single bare hand, Zanis caught the bolt!
Catching it just mere inches away from his face while the glee in his eyes flipped into gaping shock.
"Wha-!" was all he could let out before I stopped time- even more shocked than he was.
[Dude literally caught a bullet with a hand!]
/ Okay! Just don't panic… we have about 30 seconds to- /
[Lady, I'm not panicking… somehow I'm not, and don't worry… I can still take him~]
/ Don't be rash! /
Aiming the Exit Point on his chest, I initiated Blink Assault, and-
-BAM!
Rammed my shield into his chest, but the man only stumbled a few steps back before stabilizing, which I half expected to happen.
-KATCH!-KATCH!-KATCH!-AAAAH!
I dashed at him and shoved the shield into him while the crossbow took aim from below before I pulled the trigger in a frenzy… shoving bolts after bolts into his gut at point-blank range, squirting blood out of the mangled mess while the man screamed out loud.
But I wasn't done just yet.
It took all my might, but I managed to push him another step back using the shield while I took a step back myself before activating Re-Directive Blink.
And there he was- for the first time I got to see his face, and the expression he had was exactly what I ordered- A hand clutching the bleeding stomach, eyes wide open flaring brutality- he stood with a look of a cornered animal on his face- a bleeding Level-2, cut open by just another guy who can 'teleport'.
Done admiring the sight I painted with love and care, I aimed the Exit Point just behind him, doing my best to force that tingling smirk down, and initiated another Blink Assault.
"AHHH!" Time moved again, so did his hysterical wails as I popped right behind him with an Axe raised high in my hands, and sharply turned back to him while bringing the 'meat chopper' down in an overhead slash at his right shoulder, and-
-KLIRDSH!-AHHHA!
Zanis screams drummed my ears as I shoved my Axe through his right shoulder, exploding a volcano of red fresh blood, dyeing the lavish room red in mere seconds.
"My arm! MY ARM! You cur! You'll pay for this! AHHA!" he roared, rolling on the floor, painting his expensive clothes red in his own blood, eyes snapped shut by the sheer torment of the arm lost. Like a fish out of water, he thrashed his legs, clinging to his blood showering shoulder with the only remaining arm in an attempt so futile that it was borderline cute.
While I… never felt so powerful. In a matter of seconds, I brought a Level 2 down from his throne above–to a withering mess of endless blood and screams.
"Now then-" but I never got finish my words.
Wounded as he was… he was, after all, a Level 2. A being we'd call a superhero back at Earth.
Even having lost his dominant arm, and at least a bucket full of blood- Zanis still got up with the agility likes of which I had never seen and leapt at me with his sword drawn.
I couldn't even pick up his movements.
By instincts alone I jumped back, raising the shield up to my face, and-
-THIRCH!-SLISH!-AHHA!
And now it was my turn to scream.
Like a truck, his sword smashed through my shield, splintering half of it in an instant… as though blasting through Polystyrene Foam. The impact was so irresistibly strong that it crouched me into a ball, bashing the shield into the floor.
And maybe retribution for all the lives I took tonight- the part of the sword that cut through the shield- just so happen to have done it in such a way that the blade slashed past the left of my face- once again splashing my face with my own warm blood, forcing my left eye shut and bloody.
But Zanis still wasn't done, "I'll cut you into pieces, you black-eyed animal!" He roared insanity as he wrenched his sword out of the shield, way before I could even register what happened, and sent my body sliding onto the bloody floor for a good few meters just from the mere force of him pulling his sword back.
/ Argus! Blink! /
And I did- stopped time along with the finishing stab he had aimed at my head.
That's when it clicked- my field of vision… it was half of what it was before- he cut through my left eye!
[No time!] Aiming the Exit Point ahead, and out of his reach, I executed Blink.
-THARSH!
And the next second, a sword plunged through where I was a second ago, splintering a cloud of wood and detritus.
"How!" Zanis screeched, wide-eyed, glaring left… glaring at the stumbling me.
While the first thing I did was smash a smoke bomb beside me, sinking the room in a thick grey vile of smoke. As for me… Dark Vision was still active.
But before I could even think of a move- at a speed faster than I could blink my eyes… eye, Zanis shot out of his room in reckless abandon, even throwing his sword away as he scrambled out and fled to the right, leaving a trail of blood and wails in his wake.
[Oh, no you don't!]
Activating Re-Directive Blink, I chased after him, and Blinked-Out of the room… and damn, he was fast!
He had covered at least 10 meters by the time I found his scurrying ass before hurling my Axe at him using Blink Assault's strike enhancement.
-Woosh!-KLATCH!-AAAH!
And Bullseye!
The Axe went spinning, splitting through the air before plunging itself into his intact left shoulder, shredding it into a shower of blood and shrieks, and toppling him over on his head as he fell face first.
Zanis twitched, his cries turned into gargles of blood and spit- he laid by the stairs slowly dying as each second passed.
I must admit though, that man- right there was no less tenacious than my nightmares!
But this was it, I let him be.
Was gonna shove a nade into his mouth and pull the pin, blasting his head into smithereens, but slowly losing blood and dying ringed a better tune than a quick death to me.
It's not like I just lost an eye or anything! Baka!
/ Argus… you're calm… /
[And your problem is I'm calm?]
/ My problem is… this is not you! It-It's like you're a different person! /
[Oh, am I now? Doesn't really matter… I feel way better than before. Never felt so… liberated!]
Indeed, I never felt so liberated, and at peace- so free of chains of the past, and it wasn't anything like 'my monsters had consumed me' either- those little puppies were so quiet that it's hard to believe they ever existed… nor was I in any pain, despite my face still dripping blood on the floor. No aspects of my past were haunting my mind as they used to in my every waking moment.
And most of all… I felt powerful!
/ Argus, this exactly like when you almost killed Lili… and back in the Dungeon when that Adventurer stabbed you in the stomach… /
[Sure seems that way, doesn't it?]
/ Argus… just don't lose yourself. /
[Remind me when I do then~] I chuckled, pouring another vial of Healing Potion on my head before shaping gauze to cover my eye and the cut.
I could totally pull an authentic Kakashi look now~
As I was shaping the bandages, my eyes… my eye gazed past Zanis's room, and guess what I found?
An open safe!
[Well… I guess I'd be heresy to not go and… borrow stuff~]