Chapter 30: Slain

(Sunday, June 16, 2026 – 2:10 AM)

The auction hall was in complete chaos, the once-grand chamber now a battlefield of shifting allegiances and violent destruction. Petruccio moved swiftly, his body flickering like a speedster between the masked buyer and the three High A-Rank False Rankers. Their killing intent was suffocating, but his calm, razor-sharp focus didn't waver.

The Elixir of Longevity, a legendary relic worth fortunes, was still in the buyer's possession, but keeping it that way was proving difficult. Venin's venomous constructs lashed forward, twisting through the air like sentient blades, seeking to claim the Elixir for the False Rankers.

Petruccio clicked his tongue. 'This is getting out of hand.'

He pivoted, slicing through an incoming construct with a precise dagger swipe, but more were forming, each more relentless than the last. The buyer, still cloaked, remained silent, trusting him entirely for survival.

"Stay close." Petruccio muttered before grabbing the buyer and launching himself out of the collapsing auction house. The moment his feet hit open ground, he bolted toward HA Headquarters, weaving through the destruction with deadly precision.

Behind him, the False Rankers pursued while the Poison Sentinels closed in rapidly, each was High A-Rank, strong enough to slaughter dozens of lower Hunters.

'They won't let us leave.'

Just as he anticipated a clash, a light blue streak of mana descended between him and the pursuers. Adam materialized like a phantom, intercepting Venin mid-flight with their collision shaking the very air.

The assassin's mask exhaled a mechanical hiss as he twisted to attack, but Adam folded space itself, freezing Venin's movements momentarily, before teleporting their battle away from the fleeing duo, leaving Petruccio to his mission.

(2:11 AM)

Petruccio sprinted through the ruined streets, the masked buyer held tightly in his grasp. He could feel their trembling body through the fabric, but there was no time to reassure them. The Poison Sentinels were relentless, their grotesque, ever-shifting forms closing in from all sides. Above him, the night sky pulsed with eerie green as venomous mist from their bodies corroded the very air.

A wet screech echoed from behind. One of the Sentinels leaped forward, its elongated limbs bending at unnatural angles. Its blade-like claw lashed out, striking toward his back. Petruccio twisted mid-stride, shifting his grip on the buyer just enough to avoid the swipe. The claw carved through the stone wall beside him, melting the surface into a bubbling mess.

'Regenerative bodies, venom-infused attacks, and inhuman speed. Annoying bastards.'

A sharp whizz cut through the air. Petruccio tilted his head just in time to dodge a crackling arrow that slammed into the ground beside him, erupting into a burst of concussive force. He didn't need to look to know, the Ranger had lined up his shot from the rooftops.

Another screech. A second Sentinel lunged from the right. This one didn't swipe, it exploded into a mass of acidic tendrils, trying to engulf him entirely.

Petruccio exhaled sharply. 'Fine.'

His dagger flashed. A burst of mana pulsed from his palm, coating the blade in a thin, almost invisible layer of energy. With a flick of his wrist, he sliced through the core into the Sentinel's chest. The moment the blade connected, the construct convulsed violently before shattering into liquefied sludge.

'Mana-infused strikes work.'

But there was no time to celebrate. The Tank had finally caught up.

A shadow loomed over Petruccio as the brute slammed a reinforced fist down.

Petruccio managed to sidestep, the ground beneath him caving inward from the sheer force of the impact. Dust and debris shot into the air, momentarily obscuring his vision.

And then..

The Magician's voice echoed through the battlefield. A chilling incantation, layered with mana.

Petruccio's instincts flared.

A pulse of pure darkness surged toward him, tendrils of cursed energy twisting through the air like grasping hands. His eyes flicked toward an abandoned building up ahead.

'Need higher ground.'

Without hesitation, he kicked off the pavement, flipping mid-air as the cursed tendrils slammed into the spot where he once stood. The moment his feet touched the windowsill of the second floor, he was gone, vanishing into the depths of the building.

The False Rankers and Sentinels hesitated for only a moment before pursuing.

But Petruccio was already moving.

....

Inside the abandoned building, shadows stretched long and uneven, cast by flickering streetlights outside. Petruccio darted through the empty offices, his footfalls eerily silent. His grip on the buyer tightened as he leapt over a toppled desk, slipping through a doorway just as a Sentinel crashed through the ceiling behind him with venom splattering across the walls.

'They're getting annoying.'

With no choice but to fight, Petruccio pivoted, flipping the buyer onto his back with a single motion to free his arms. His daggers flashed, both infused with mana, slicing through the Sentinel's extended claws before they could reach him. But even as he cut, the severed limbs regrew almost instantly.

A hiss behind him. Another Sentinel crashed through the wall, forcing him into a roll as its claw tore through where his head had been. He twisted, launching a precise mana-infused dagger into its core. The construct convulsed before collapsing into a pool of sludge.

Before he could recover, the Tank barged through the wall, bringing the entire section of the building down.

Petruccio reacted instantly, grabbing the buyer and vaulting through a shattered window, landing gracefully on the fire escape. He barely had time to move before another arrow, this time coated in venom, nearly grazed his shoulder.

'Tch. They're adapting to my movement.'

He leapt onto the adjacent building's rooftop, but the moment he landed, the Magician raised his staff. The entire rooftop caved in.

Petruccio plummeted inside, twisting mid-air to absorb the impact. He landed in a crouch, barely shielding the buyer from the falling debris.

A Sentinel was already waiting.

Its claw sliced across his arm.

Pain flared, but he didn't flinch. His mana surged to counteract the venom spreading into his bloodstream. With a snap of his wrist, he buried his dagger into the creature's core, dissolving it instantly.

Another crash. The Tank followed him down, the floor trembling beneath its weight. Petruccio darted between falling beams, shifting the buyer to his other arm. His green eyes burned with focus.

'I'm not making it to HQ at this pace.'

They were forcing him into corners, limiting his movement. The Sentinels were herding him, keeping him trapped.

The Magician loomed above the hole in the ceiling, a dark orb of energy gathering in his palm. The Ranger nocked another arrow, the tip glowing with stored energy.

Petruccio exhaled. They wanted to pin him down?

'Time to end this.'

He darted forward, straight at the Tank. The brute swung, but Petruccio slid beneath the strike, kicking off the floor and flipping up to land on the creature's shoulders. Before the Tank could react, Petruccio drove both daggers into the back of its helmet, sending a concentrated pulse of mana directly into its skull. The force melted the man brain.

Then the Magician's spell fired.

Petruccio pushed off the dead Tank at the last second, landing and flipping away as the spell obliterated the ground where he once stood. He rebounded off the crumbling wall, closing the distance to the Magician in a single instant.

Before burying the dagger into the mage's heart.

The Ranger loosed an arrow. Petruccio caught it mid-air, snapping it in half before disappearing and rushing towards him.

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I'm still practicing with fighting scenes and i hope it was a satisfying battle, more are to come from this story so i will improve for sure.