Chapter 9: Full Moon Night
Lucas knew the Canine brothers had a three-and-a-half-star strength level under the full moon, and he realized that fighting them with Ela at level 60 would be challenging.
So he adjusted his level to 80.
At level 80, his enhanced bloodline ability: Wings of Time and Space, shifted from dormant to active.
However, the power consumption increased, allowing only 60 minutes of usage.
He might need to use level 100 for the Mad Axe Gang dungeon, so he had to manage his time carefully and not waste too much on the Canine brothers.
Lucas drew his blades, and with a flash, he appeared at the brothers' side.
Ice crystals coated his left blade, the chill already enveloping the Canine brothers before he even struck.
His angelic right arm, even covered by a black long-sleeved glove, couldn't hide the white light bursting forth.
The right blade, imbued with holy energy, ignited with white holy flames.
Werewolves, being evil creatures, were especially vulnerable to holy energy, suffering 50% more damage.
Lucas launched an attack with both blades.
The Canine brothers, once engaged, quickly realized they had severely underestimated this seemingly delicate elf.
Their bodies became damp from the humid air, which quickly froze into frost under the cold.
The icy chill was piercing.
The twin blades approached their vital points, especially the holy flame-covered blade, striking terror into their hearts.
They knew their werewolf bloodline was weak against holy energy.
But... how could an elf wield holy flames?
The looming death spurred the Canine brothers into action. As experienced assassins, unlike Ron, they knew how to react in a crisis.
Dodging was out of the question.
In perfect synchronization, the brothers pushed against each other, their palms colliding, using their combined strength to push themselves apart.
Just as they thought they had evaded the slashing blades and prepared to transform, an unknown force pulled them back to their original positions.
What happened? The Canine brothers had no idea.
The blades simultaneously cut across their chests.
The holy flames ignited the evil blood, causing the younger brother to scream in agony. The holy energy assaulted his mind, disrupting his control over his transformation.
His body kept shifting between human and werewolf, as he struggled to extinguish the flames, which only burned more fiercely.
The elder brother was struck by the ice blade, his wound frozen, preventing blood loss but causing the cold to seep into his body.
This halted the werewolf's powerful regenerative abilities.
Seeing his brother's plight, the elder brother transformed into a werewolf.
Under the full moon, his fur gleamed with a dark sheen, his eyes glowed red, and pale fangs protruded from his mouth.
His enlarged body caused the wound on his chest to tear open, spraying a mix of ice and blood.
Ignoring his injury, he lunged at Lucas with his claws. He had to kill this elf quickly to save his brother.
But the elf vanished beneath his claws.
Reappearing mid-air, Lucas's right arm burst with white light, the blade covered in raging holy flames.
The elder brother tried to dodge the descending blade, but his body was mysteriously pulled back to its original position.
One slash, and a wolf head rolled to the ground.
Another slash, a long ice blade carved a deep furrow in the ground, and the younger brother's screams ceased.
His head rolled across the frosted ground. Lucas flipped in the air, regaining his balance as she landed.
Behind him, the window in the tavern door slammed shut with a "thud."
"Tess!" The window quickly reopened.
"Powerful elf lady, is there anything Tess can do for you?"
"Take care of the bodies. You can handle that, right?"
"No problem, miss. I will gather the Canine brothers' possessions and have them ready for you when you return. I apologize for any offense I may have caused and ask for your forgiveness."
Lucas sheathed his blades and adjusted Elarion's level back to 60.
"You didn't offend me... Thank you for your kind warning. I have other matters to attend to, so I'll leave this to you."
"Rest assured, miss."
Lucas leaped onto a nearby rooftop and ran towards the closest teleport anchor.
Inside the Assassins' Tavern. The atmosphere had become unusually lively due to the elf's visit.
After all, such a beautiful elf was a rare sight, and the fact that she had taken on the bounty for the Horned Demonkin Jumu sparked even more gossip among the normally stoic assassins.
"We should have captured her. No way she should end up with that bull-headed Jumu."
"Yeah! Someone would pay a fortune for someone like her."
"Mind your manners, ladies and gentlemen." The lizardman bartender tapped the bar.
"My master doesn't like infighting among assassins. Since Miss Ela took a task from here, she is recognized as an assassin by the tavern for one week based on the task level she accepted. If she fails, she won't be welcomed here for a month. If you want to make a move on Miss Ela, wait a week."
"A week? Who knows where she'll be sold by then."
At this moment, Evil Eye Tess walked in on his eight tentacles. The lizardman asked curiously, "Tess, why are you down here?"
"The Canine brothers are dead. Someone needs to help me deal with their bodies. They're still burning with holy flames, and I'm not touching that."
The news of the Canine brothers' deaths shocked everyone in the tavern.
Individually, the Canine brothers might not have been the strongest, but their coordinated attacks were something no one wanted to face.
Moreover, it was nighttime, and a full moon at that.
Who could have killed them on their own turf?
The lizardman bartender poured Tess a drink, knowing Evil Eye creatures like him had a natural fear of holy flames.
"Have a drink first, Tess. Someone will handle the bodies. Do you know who killed the Canine brothers? Was it a personal vendetta, or an attack on our Assassins' Tavern?"
This was the question on everyone's mind. If it was an attack on the tavern, it could start a war.
Tess wrapped a tentacle around the glass and downed the drink in one gulp.
Then he said, "It was that female elf… you all saw her. By your standards, she's definitely someone you'd want to capture and sell. The Canine brothers thought the same. They waited for her outside the tavern. They found her, and they lost their lives."
The lizardman bartender asked in shock, "That elf killed the Canine brothers! She… she didn't seem that powerful. Is she really that strong?"
"Don't doubt my eyes… no, this time I truly misjudged. The Canine brothers were killed without resistance, like killing insignificant ants. She wields both ice and holy energy.
She can perform short-distance spatial movement, and even… manipulate time. The Canine brothers were pulled back to a previous moment in time and slain with one strike each.
Controlling space and time consumes an enormous amount of energy, especially time... How can her body provide so much energy?"
The entire tavern fell silent.