Chapter LXII - Dice (part 3)

Valey pulled her bow, and aimed the arrow towards the assassin.

"Sorry! But you weren't invited to our sleepover."

The assassin didn't seem to mind her at all. He simply stares at me, as if studying my very existence. I felt a little bit disturbed, but the fact that he is the person who was sent to assassinate me, I don't have to hold back at all.

A grin came up on my face.

"I don't care who you are… If you dare come to assassinate me, then prepare to be assassinated."

This guy, Dice, tilted his head towards my sentence. And then out of nowhere, he bursts into laughter.

It was a manic laugh. He bent his back as he clawed his mask and shoulder, as if seeing something incredibly funny and disgusting at the same time.

I have seen this kind of laughter in movies before. But seeing them in person feels scary. He was acting like some sort of nobleman, and suddenly turned into a maniac.

Everyone was confused by the situation. Even I had to be on guard. Usually, dealing with maniacs was never easy. Ask batman.

"Oh man, oh man. Please, Ritzeeee~."

He tilted his face and looked back at me. He lifted his right hand with his palms closed towards me.

"Do. Entertain. Me. Yes???"

With a flick of his thumb, he threw a small white item mid-air, and it landed back on his hand. He showed the result to everyone, as if it was something amazing.

Looking closer using my enchanted eyes, what was inside his hand is a single dice. 

And it shows the number six.

"Haha!"

He dropped the dice on the ground and took a very deep breath, all the way until his back bent.

"Oh dear... We are dealing with a crazy one."

Cony mumbles loudly, and Valey nodded.

A few seconds later, my eyes turned wide. A heavy pressure suddenly emerges from him. Sparks appeared in the air around him, and his body was slowly cladded itself in an explosive tornado.

The wind force pushes us just slightly. We tried to look at him, but the swirling sun covering his entire area is blinding us a little. It was night after all, and our eyes adjusted to the darkness. It could blind us if we just looked at something that bright.

"Level…!!-"

BAARR!!

A single boom of explosion exploded at where he stood, pushing us further from the force.

"Six!!!"

BAAAARRRR!!!!!

I enchanted my eyes so that it can withstand the brightness. And I can see that behind the bright swirling yellow flames, Dice is trying so hard to keep his sanity in control. He moved his body and hands crazily, as if he had nearly lost it.

"EXPLOSION!!!"

BLAAAAARRRRRRRR!!!!!!

A bigger explosion occurred. It shoved us away with an even bigger force. And this time, Cony got thrown away.

"Cony!"

I turned my gaze to her and saw her flying to the back. But I can't help her right now. I just have to finish this guy quick-

VWOOOMMMM!!!!!!!!!!!!!

By the time I turned my face front, a very hot fireball was already right in front of my face. With what little time I had, I covered my whole body in magic energy so that I could withstand the explosion.

But what I didn't realize was that the fireball stopped before it could hit me. And that is when I sensed something wrong.

This fireball... from the force alone, it should have been ten times bigger.

That's when I realize how powerful it actually is.

BLAAAARRRR!!!!!!

A huge explosion, much larger than I expected, occurred right on my face. Valey went to try covering Cony from the explosion's force, while everyone behind the house stared back at the bright explosion that occurred from above the house.

The explosion threw me back, and I crashed into the house. I crashed and went all the way, until I came out of the backyard and hit the back wall.

My whole body, especially my back, was screaming as I coughed up a bunch of blood.

I landed on the ground with my face downwards.

I didn't protect my body with a magic layer to take a heavy punch. I only covered it to withstand the heat. As a result, my body is now nearly destroyed. I can feel the extreme sting right on my back as I try to move.

Trying very hard to not mind the pain, I activated my healing magic.

Meanwhile, Valey and Cony are facing the opponent on their own.

"Rize..."

Cony looked back at the giant hole at the house that Rize made when she crashed through it. She couldn't imagine the pain that Rize took from that attack. She cursed herself for allowing Rize to look away.

"Cony, look forward!"

Cony turned her head back to Valey, who was keeping her eye at the opponent. Valey's fierce expression reactivates Cony's fighting instinct and makes her forget about the guilt attack she just had.

Cony turned her sword towards the opponent.

The opponent, however, does not use any weapons. But right above him, anyone can see the floating fireballs. But judging from how powerful their forces are, those do not look like regular fireballs.

The fireballs looked warped. There's little waves coming out from the fireballs' surface. And from those waves, Cony can feel some heavy force from just being still.

Without a doubt, those balls are bombs. Very powerful bombs.

Cony counted six firebombs floating. But deep down, she knows the enemy could make more.

She turned her gaze to Valey, and seeing that Valey was also looking at those firebombs made her glad.

"Those firebombs--"

"I'm going to shoot it."

Cony was about to ask, but Valey answered it immediately.

"I will shoot the bombs, making the explosion right above him. You will run through the dust and slice his head. Got it?"

Valey pulled her bow with three arrows on it. Cony fixed her stance, and prepared to dash forward.

"Go!"

Valey released the three lightning-enchanted arrows that were magnetic with one another. The arrows were able to keep the same distance from one another thanks to the magnetic abilities that Valey had enchanted on the tips. Thanks to this, the arrows were able to shoot on a stable formation.

BOOOOOOMMMMMMMMMM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The arrows landed on the firebombs, and as Valey guessed, the bombs exploded. It was a large explosion, nearly pushing Cony away from her feet.

The explosion from the firebombs rendered the other firebombs to explode as well. And now it's like a chain explosion has occurred on top of Dice's head, a chain of powerful explosions.

After the explosion occurred, black smoke envelopes the area. Cony fixed her stance again and prepared to dash forward.

Valey enchanted her eyes to see if the heat is still dangerous for Cony. Once she made sure all flames were gone, she shouted.

"Now, go!"

Cony dashed forward and sliced her way through the path. She arrived at the cloud of black smoke and dashed through it. Using her keen magic senses, she scanned the area for the location of her enemy. She detects her enemy only a few meters in front of her.

'Gotcha!'

Cony said in her mind as she quickened her steps. And when she was about to slice a head, her sword stopped.

"Guh!!"

Her sword… it was as if the sword was being pulled the other way. She just couldn't move the sword strong enough to slice the head of her enemy.

The black smoke quickly disperses, as if commanded. The masked Dice is standing right in front of her, with his left hand in the air. The hand looked like it was holding an invisible item. 

It took Cony a second to realize what was going on.

This guy... can use wind magic.