CHAPTER 44: SHADOW STRIKER HAD EVOLVED!

"Here’s the traitor!" the bald-headed man shouted as he lunged forward.

Dust and debris kicked up beneath his boots as the ground seemed to quiver with the sheer force of his steps. His eyes locked onto Seraphine, and a cruel grin twisted across his scarred face.

Two of Edward’s Shadow Warriors reacted instantly.

They intercepted the attacker before he could reach her, forming a moving wall of shadow against the man’s deadly advance.

But the attacker was fast, unnaturally so, and the earth itself seemed to obey him. Cracks split the floor beneath the Shadow Warriors’ feet, uneven stone forcing them to stumble, and jagged protrusions erupted to block their movements. Each swing of the bald man’s blade was augmented by precise manipulations of earth magic, creating openings for attacks and forcing the shadow soldiers to stumble into his strikes.

Edward had already arrived at Seraphine’s side. He snatched a random sword from a fallen royal guard. His heart hammered as he lifted the sword and readied his stance in anticipation.

Seraphine, who had moments ago frozen in terror, now lifted her staff once more. Lightning crackled along its tip, surging in jagged arcs toward the bald-headed attacker.

The man, however, was ready.

With a swift motion of his hand, he summoned a wall of earth, stopping the strikes midair with a resonant thud. Sparks flew where magic and stone met, and the lightning fizzled uselessly against the earthen shield.

Meanwhile, the Shadow Warriors fighting him faltered. With a single sweeping motion, the attacker cut through their forms, the shadows dissipating into nothingness.

[Shadow Warrior had been eliminated.]

[Shadow Warrior had been eliminated.]

Edward’s chest tightened as he watched the two shadowy figures disappear.

He barely had a moment to spare before his gaze swept to the corpses littering the floor.

Without hesitation, he uttered a single word, which left his mouth before his mind could catch up.

"Extract"

Shadows stirred and rose from the ground, forming new soldiers in an instant.

But this time, something felt different.

A strange pull of energy surged through him, coiling in his chest and lacing his limbs with newfound power.

[All Requirements Met!]

[Rank Up! E → D]

A sudden wave of strength and mana coursed through Edward’s body.

The force tugged at his abdomen, threatening to unbalance him, but with barely a moment’s space between him and the attacker, he regained composure just in time to—

CLANG!

Steel met steel as Edward raised his sword just in time to meet the man’s attack.

The collision reverberated up his arms, but now, movement seemed clearer, the attacker’s strikes slightly slower, and the weight of the attack was almost manageable.

The man pivoted, attempting a wide horizontal sweep, but Edward’s weapon blocked it once more.

Tremors ran through his arms, but he gritted his teeth and held.

Before the man could strike again, three newly-extracted Shadow Soldiers moved into action. Their attacks weren’t lethal enough to fell him outright, but they disrupted his rhythm, breaking the flow of his blade strikes.

Edward pushed forward, thrusting his sword toward the attacker. The man deflected and pivoted gracefully, cutting down one of the Shadow Soldiers in a fluid motion.

But Edward didn’t hesitate, he swung his blade in a horizontal arc, forcing the man backwards—right where more Shadow Soldiers were waiting.

The bald-headed man’s speed was unnatural.

Each step he took was precise, and his grin grew only wider as he cut down another Shadow Soldier.

[Shadow Soldier had been eliminated.]

Edward’s heart hammered, the fight teetering on a knife’s edge. If it weren’t for his sudden rank-up, he would have been dead already.

Then, in a moment that froze the battlefield, a black shortblade shot through the man’s back and out through his chest.

Edward watched silently as dread washed over the attacker’s face, his eyes wide in disbelief. Fury and instinct surged as he tried to step forward, but his legs faltered, and with a heavy thud, his body collapsed onto the stone floor.

At the same moment, shadows within the Shadow Striker stirred violently.

[Shadow Striker had Evolved!]

[Shadow Striker → Shadow Assassin]

Edward’s eyes widened at the notification, but to his surprise, it didn’t end there.

[Shadow Soldier had Evolved!]

[Shadow Soldier → Shadow Warrior]

A smirk crept onto his face as he witnessed his summon grow stronger before him, their forms appeared more defined, their presence more commanding. He surveyed the battlefield and realised, for the first time, that the battle had come to a sudden, almost unnatural stop.

Prince Arthur stood beside four Royal Guards, looking at their six fallen comrades. Blood smeared their armour, and exhaustion painted their features, yet their eyes glimmered with a mix of relief and grief.

Aeris, covered in streaks of blood, breathed heavily, her wide eyes locking onto Edward with surprise and disbelief.

Their eyes locked for a couple of breaths before Edward’s gaze shifted back to his own surroundings.

There, standing loyally by his side, was a Shadow Assassin, two Shadow Warriors, a Shadow Fire Mage, and five Shadow Soldiers. The scale of the force made even Edward pause, scratching the back of his head in slight embarrassment at the confused looks from the Prince and the remaining Royal Guards.

Before he could even think of an explanation, Seraphine’s voice called from behind.

"You did it!"

He turned to face her, and she leapt into him, wrapping her arms tightly around him.

"C-Cant breathe!" he managed to gasp, words barely escaping between suffocating breaths.

"Oops, sorry!" she said with a grin, pulling back slightly but still holding him close.

For a heartbeat, the world seemed to stop. The chaos of battle, the fallen, and the looming threat of the Crimson Oath faded into a muted echo. Edward’s mind buzzed with the lingering adrenaline and the surge from his recent rank-up.

Yet even in this rare moment of respite, a chill crawled down his spine.

The Crimson Oath knew they were coming—and they had laid a trap.

But even after surviving it, an unwelcome thought crept into his mind:

"Is this the best trap they could’ve set?"