Bait And Trap
Hae-Rin skidded to a stop beside me, gripping her dagger. "Something's wrong. The walls—" She did not finish her statement whe the torches along the walls suddenly flickered, revealing spectral shaped figures chained to the stone. Their faces were frozen in anguish, their bodies half-dissolved into the temple itself.
They were the last souls who failed this trial.
Jin-Ho's voice was grim. "This place doesn't just take blood. It takes something deeper."
Ahead, a stone pedestal pulsed with eerie blue light. Ancient inscriptions twisting, and shifting, to form a single sentence.
> SACRIFICE YOURSELF, OR SACRIFICE ANOTHER.
A sharp pain lanced through my head. Visions flashed—previous warriors, forced to cut down their own allies just to advance.
Jang Wu's voice echoed in the distance. Getting closer. There is no more time. I had to choose.
> SYSTEM CHOICE: BLOOD PRICE
A) Spill your own blood – Reduce max HP temporarily
B) Sacrifice an ally – Gain a combat buff, but lose trust
My hand tightened around my blade.
Jin-Ho met my gaze. "Don't even think about it."
Hae-Rin hesitated, looking at the altar. "A drop of blood isn't the same as a life. There has to be another way."
But the spirits in the walls twisted in agony, as if mocking our hesitation.
---
Kai-Hoon's Personal Guard Arrives
The moment I made my decision, the ruins shuddered.
A distant horn echoed through the corridors. The air grew heavy, thick with the scent of oil and steel.
> NEW ENEMY ALERT: KAI-HOON'S ROYAL EXECUTIONERS
Elite warlords specializing in anti-assassin combat
Deadly formation tactics – direct combat is suicidal
Must rely on stealth and environmental kills
It seemed Jang Wu wasn't alone anymore.
Hae-Rin cursed. "That's the imperial war signal. Kai-Hoon's elite are already inside."
Jin-Ho's expression darkened. "We're trapped."
---
Stealth Kill – Turning the Hunters into Prey
I took a deep breath. No panic. No hesitation.
These weren't simple soldiers. They were executioners. Warriors trained to fight assassins like me. But they weren't ghosts.
And that meant they could bleed.
> NEW OBJECTIVE: SILENT EXECUTION
✓Use traps to eliminate the executioners
✓Avoid direct combat – lethal counters detected
I melted into the shadows. My fingers traced the edge of my hidden blades, searching the room for anything I could use.
A series of cracked pillars lined the corridor. Weak supports. If I timed it right…
> SYSTEM ACTION: COLLAPSE THE ARCHWAY
Use minimal force to trigger the fall
I placed a single explosive charge at the base, and stepped back. A flick of the wrist of the detonation. And a CRACK—BOOM!
The pillars gave way, sending a rain of debris crushing the executioners beneath tons of stone.
But Jang Wu, however, had already vanished.
---
The Counter-Relic Revealed
With the path ahead cleared, I moved quickly toward the heart of the ruins. The air pulsed from the same unnatural energy from before growing stronger. Then I saw it. It is a blade. Suspended in the air, its form shifting between reality, and illusion.
> NEW LEGENDARY ITEM: THE MOONLIT DUSK
°A blade forged to counter Kai-Hoon's Relic of Dominion
°And nullifies divine magic influence for a short time
>Unlocks a unique assassination technique
Jin-Ho exhaled. "So this is what we came for."
Hae-Rin touched the inscriptions on the hilt. "It's beautiful… but something about it feels unfinished."At her words , I reached out for it, and the moment my fingers brushed the handle, the entire temple trembled.
> WARNING: BOSS ENCOUNTER IMMINENT
Suddenly, I heard Jang Wu's voice cut through the darkness.
"You should've run when you had the chance."
---
> NEXT MISSION: THE SHADOW'S FINAL TEST
✓Bae Kae vs. Jang Wu – A battle of assassins
✓Unlock the true power of the Moonlit Dusk
✓Prepare for the war against Kai-Hoon
> SYSTEM ALERT: BOSS BATTLE INITIATED
Opponent: Jang Wu – The Empire's Executioner
Combat Style: Phantom Assassin Techniques
Victory Conditions: Survive, and unlock the Moonlit Dusk's power. A duel in the darkness
CLANG! The moment I grasped the Moonlit Dusk, Jang Wu struck hard.
A flash of steel. A feel of movement, yet no wasted motion, and no warning.
I barely managed to twist away as his blade slashed through my afterimage. Sparks flew as his attack cut deep into the stone wall beside me.
> SYSTEM ALERT: JANG WU IS READING YOUR MOVEMENTS
°Direct combat will result in instant counters
°Use feints, misdirection, and environmental kills
At that moment, Jin-Ho, and Hae-Rin tried to rush in, but I snapped, "No! He's mine."
Jang Wu wasn't an ordinary soldier. He was the executioner of assassins, trained to dismantle killers like me. If I fought him head-on, I was already dead.
But this wasn't just a fight. It was a game of deception.
---
Ghost vs. Ghost – A Battle of Assassins
I dropped low to the ground, letting my breathing slow down. I vanished completely into the shadows.
Jang Wu tilted his head, smirking. "You're quick. But I know all the tricks."
Then, he did something terrifying. He disappeared too.
> STEALTH DETECTED – JANG WU IS USING SHADOWSTEP
•Enemy has entered stealth mode
•Combat now relies on perception and misdirection
I wasn't the only ghost here. My instincts screamed. A blade to my right—no, my left—no, above!. I rolled forward at the last second, just as his dagger flashes past my spine. A near-fatal strike.
Jang Wu's voice was a whisper in my ear. "You're not fast enough."
---
Environmental Kill – Reversing the Hunt
I forced myself to calm down. Think. Adapt. Use the terrain.
The ruins were falling apart—the floor beneath us cracked, and the walls unstable. If I couldn't outfight him… I'd outmaneuver him.
I reached into my belt. A single alchemy bomb—my last one.
> SYSTEM ACTION: BAIT & TRAP
•Use sound to lure Jang Wu into a kill zone
•Detonate the unstable floor beneath him.
I flicked a small stone toward the far side of the chamber. A distraction.
Jang Wu moved—fast, too fast. He dashed through the darkness, appearing just where I needed him to be. Quickly, I activated the alchemy bomb.
BOOM! The floor collapsed under his feet. For a moment, he disappeared into the chasm below.
---
The Power of the Moonlit Dusk
> SYSTEM ALERT: MOONLIT DUSK HAS AWAKENED
•Special Ability Unlocked: Phantom Requiem
•Counters divine energy-based techniques
•Allows for a single unblockable assassination strike
A surge of power coursed through my arm. The blade pulsed with an unnatural glow—neither light, nor darkness.
Jang Wu rose from the pit, bleeding but alive. He wiped the blood from his lips, eyes burning. "Not bad."
I lifted the Moonlit Dusk. "This ends now."
He smirked. "Show me."