Shadows and Blood

In that brief period of time, it seems that people with truly diverse abilities have gathered together. 

I walked leisurely through the soldiers and took up a spot in the corner of the open space where a large cargo ship could be seen diagonally. 

There were quite a few privates who used magic detection, but it meant nothing to Leo. 

There's still some time left until Paul Ackerman arrives. 

Instead of just waiting around blankly and doing nothing, Leo decided to try something more clever. 

'It would be better to reduce the number of people in advance.' 

Change 

I gradually adjust the illusionary magic I cast on the soldiers who passed by one by one. 

He let out a small auditory hallucination in my ear and threw a faint shadow into my field of vision, raising my alertness before releasing the magic. 

"… … … " 

As they continued to block their eyes and ears and continuously pump in signals to distract them, the soldiers, unable to bear it, raised their guns and slowly began to follow the trail. 

Leo smiled faintly as he watched the soldiers approaching one by one, centered around a single container. 

You never imagined that you would be treated like this. 

Even though it is rare to meet a wizard, you probably never thought that you would meet a wizard who knows how to use illusion magic. 

[Silence] 

I brought plenty of bullets for times like this. 

Leo pulled the trigger one by one toward the soldiers slowly approaching from behind the container. 

Thump! Thump! Thump! Thump! 

Every time he pulled the trigger of his revolver, blood spurted out, and the soldiers, whose bodies were frozen stiff, fell down like helpless dolls without being able to put up much of a fight. 

Leo, who had dealt with a dozen or so soldiers in an instant, finally emerged from the back of the container and hid in a corner of the open space. 

He hides himself in the shadows of the moonlight and rummages his waist. 

In Leo's hand was the druid amulet he had received from Mila. 

After roughly rubbing the talisman with my hand a few times and hanging it back on my waist, Leo's presence soon became faint, and I could no longer feel his breathing. 

Considering that it was a consumable item, it was like wasting one of the charges, but Leo did not let his guard down. 

Paul may not know, but given that Russell was a former mercenary, it was likely that his senses would be sharper than the others. 

It was not a waste of time to use a talisman to escape his senses. 

Time goes by. 

[… … Entry complete. Now stand by and allow the one who finds the target first to send a signal.] 

… .As time goes by, even the man's words are becoming orders. 

Leo frowned slightly, but decided to wait and see until this request was over. It wasn't that bothersome. 

Soon, the entrance to the harbour became noisy for a moment, and a commotion was heard along with the sound of several footsteps. 

You can guess just by listening to the noise that is getting louder. 

'It's on my side.' 

Leo tapped his ear set, muttered a few words, and then immediately used the amulet again. 

The car's headlights shine between the containers, and suddenly a loud engine noise approaches. 

A dozen or so people entered the empty lot and looked around anxiously. 

They seemed to be distributors who dealt with Paul Ackermann. 

As we waited a little longer, a well-maintained sedan slid into the empty lot from behind. 

The car door opened wide, and a handsome middle-aged man and a black man got out together. 

Paul Ackerman and Jude Russell. 

He waved at the people with a confident smile on his face, his blue shirt loosely undone. 

"Hey, guys!! Good evening. It's a perfect day to talk business. Don't you think so?" 

"… … … " 

The distributors shrugged their shoulders in silence, saying nothing in response to his words. 

From that simple dialogue, it was clear where the hierarchy between them leaned. 

Paul boldly placed his hand on the shoulder of the distributor standing in front of him and started talking loudly. 

It seemed like he had a lot to say. 

"I want to say thank you very much for giving me this opportunity today. Actually, I had a lot of things I wanted to say to my colleagues, but it was hard to get the chance." 

"What does that mean…?" 

"I worked hard to make sure that their work went well, I gave them enough medicine, and I worked hard to grease the government officials. But I got nothing in return. I'm not doing business by digging up the ground either. There's a given, but there's no take." 

Kwaaak. 

Paul mutters, clutching the distributor's shoulder tightly. 

"This makes me a little angry too." 

"…. Ugh! Let go of this!" 

The red-faced distributor slapped Paul's arm away and made a face of regret, but Paul's emotions seemed to have already crossed a line of no return. 

Boom! 

The distributor, who had been hit hard in the jaw, fell to the ground, and Paul began to stomp on him like crazy. 

"I keep eating my money! 

Bam! Bam! Bam! 

The distributor crouched down without even protesting, and the others standing behind him watched him in silence. 

Leo watched the scene from a distance and then slowly took out the revolver from his bosom. 

I called the other team members, but I didn't plan on just watching until they arrived. 

In the end, wouldn't it be cleaner to get things done by striking first in some way? 

Timing is everything. 

The perfect gap for Leo to successfully attack and for his teammates to arrive and wipe out everyone gathered here at once. 

And Leo's vast magical powers had already accurately estimated that time. 

Pull the cock of the pre-loaded revolver and slowly place your finger on the trigger. 

The gun was aimed squarely at Paul's back. 

Stack up your auxiliary magic. 

[Aiming Correction] [Trajectory Concealment] [Rotation Acceleration] 

According to information, Paul Ackerman is an ordinary person with no magical powers. 

And Jude Russell is looking around from a distance of at least five meters. 

With three shooting support spells, the garage would be overflowing. 

[Aim Assist] will help Leo with his poor marksmanship, [Trajectory Concealment] will obscure the bullet's trajectory as it sways in the dark of the night, and [Rotation Acceleration] will shake Paul's upper body the moment it hits. 

Count to two and pull the trigger. 

[Silence] activated at the same time 

container! 

The bullet is fired, with a faint noise that only Leo could hear. 

At that very moment, the bullet, hidden in the shadow of dawn, pierced Paul's shoulder blade without a single inch of error and was about to scatter his flesh to pieces. 

Kaaaaang!! 

Jude Russell appeared right behind Paul and swung his arm like lightning, knocking away the bullet. 

In his hand he was holding a long sword that he had drawn without realizing it. 

"… … … " 

Leo lowered his smoking gun without saying a word. 

"What, what is it!!" 

"What is this!" 

"Who shot the gun!! There's someone else here!!" 

Paul sighs as he stares at the distributors in complete confusion. 

As soon as he nodded at Jude, he took action. 

Crunch!! 

"Kuaaaah!!" 

The shoulder of the distributor who was trying to run away at the forefront was deeply cut. 

Blood spurts out and the man falls down screaming. 

But on the contrary, the mouths of others were instantly shut. 

Paul, who had silenced the area with just one move, looked at the distributors and spoke. 

"Our customers, how have you been selling drugs all this time, being scared of something like this?" 

"Ha, but…." 

"I'm not dying, you little punks. Hurry up!" 

Kwaaaaang!! 

As soon as Paul finished speaking, a bright blue laser fell from the sky and swept across the ground. 

Paul and the distributors' bodies were engulfed in intense heat. 

"Kaaaah!!" 

"Ah, aaaaaaah..!!" 

"S, save me...!!" 

People screaming and crying in the scorching heat that burns their whole bodies. 

Leo glanced back at the man who had just fired upon this spot. 

The masked woman who arrived first stood on top of a three-story container and looked down at them with a pout. 

"I'm lucky I can handle all the trash at once. Is this the end of this mission?" 

"Hey, you're already getting all worked up before we even check the body? And Jude Russell wasn't even involved in it." 

Phew! 

At the scolding of the skinny woman who appeared next to the masked woman with pitch-black smoke, a blue ray of light flashed from the mask. 

It seemed like a unique expression of emotion. 

"Don't worry about it. We'll just deal with Paul Ackerman and get out." 

Leo, who had been looking up at the two women's sharp war of nerves, quietly raised the talisman again. 

While my gaze was focused on that side, I felt like I could use the talisman once more. 

Immediately, one of the patterns engraved on the amulet disappears, and Leo's presence becomes blurred again. 

The two women's argument continues, whether Leo says so or not. 

"Are you deciding that on your own? If you come out like this, I'll protest to Dyke too. Surely you don't think you were put in this mission while being treated like that?" 

"So just turn it off…." 

The moment the masked woman turned her body around with her mask flashing even brighter, 

Phew! 

A pure white blade protruded like a lightning bolt from the chest of a skinny woman. 

"… … .." 

Silence fell. 

As the skinny woman stares blankly down at her own chest, the blade slowly slips out of her body. 

Crunch! 

It was only for a moment before the woman's head flew into the sky and Jude Russell, who had been standing behind her, appeared. 

"Ladies, you shouldn't be so loud at this hour of the night. You're making my client uncomfortable." 

Jude, who had climbed up onto the container, smiled and spoke. 

The masked woman immediately took a step back, seeming to shrink. 

"How on earth… did you… get through my detection net?" 

"How can you possibly be of any use if your reaction is so slow? You managed to sneak in here without even noticing until a knife was stuck in your heart." 

Saaaa.. 

He licked the blood off his sword and nodded. 

"It tastes annoying. But it's not bad for a first taste today." 

To say such things while tasting blood… Leo's mind instantly came to a conclusion about what kind of person Jude Russell was. 

"This, this is profit…!!" 

Wheeing!! 

As the masked woman clenches her teeth, her wrists open wide and a bright blue light leaks out from within. 

Only then did Leo realize how she had managed to fire those lasers. 

Jude also looked at her with amusement. 

"Now that I look at it, you have a very stylish wrist. Are you a member of Cybride Echo?" 

Cybride Echo. A general term for a series or organization that combines the human body and the essence of magical engineering to pursue maximum functionality with minimal magical power. 

It was rare for a tea to be seen with the naked eye, so this was Leo's first time seeing it in person. 

But Jude didn't seem that surprised and just shook his head as if he was sorry. 

"Blood mixed with oil is just too greasy. I guess I'll just have to kill him."