The day ended up passing as normal; apart from the glaring that took place, nothing of interest happened. Both Sebas and Mark finished school for the day, then went on to focus on their powers. Sebas learned some new tricks, and Mark gave him some insight as to how he could improve them. After that, Mark went on to study some new techniques, improving his control of wind magic and the rate at which he could create weapons.

"A perfect combo if you ask me. What do you think, Sebas? I truly believe I could turn into a human machine gun, with swords instead of bullets."

"Hell yeah!"

Both of them trained as much as they could without damaging the environment around them. Mark stored his swords in his inventory, trying to create them straight inside it, while Sebas kept a low profile, trying to use his concealing technique. He had already learned two forms: one that made him invisible until he attacked someone, and another that allowed him to hide in the shadows, which exposed him to those who knew about that little trick.

As the sun went down, both of them made their way to the dorms.

"Damn, I’m hungry.", said Sebas, placing his hand on his stomach.

Mark nodded in approval, his mind focused on something else.

"Man, that duel sure is keeping you in check."

"Of course it does, going outside after 9 p.m. means that I have to find some random bullshit excuse and sleep outside, or not sleep at all. Fuck it, I've got my excuse ready, but I need a place to sleep at."

Sebas thought for a minute, then a solution popped right into his head.

"How about you sleep at Banan’s apartment tonight? I’m sure he’ll let you."

"We’ll see."

Once again, hours passed, and Mark went outside, giving his excuse of having some business with the organization. Since it wasn’t a common topic among people, they let him go without questioning him too much on the subject.

Free to roam the town as he pleased, his steps took him all around town, to places he had never been before. Every inch of the town was at his legs, which didn't seem to give up. For the next few hours, he did nothing but walk without stopping. At one point, he decided to check his status window, and to his surprise, he got one point in his agility stat, and two points in his stamina.

"How the hell? Was improving as easy even before the system? I feel like two points is too much for a simple stroll through town. Well, be as it may, that only means that I need to watch out for others rising faster than I do."

He chuckled, trying not to laugh out loud.

"Nah, that won't happen easily, and if it does, I only need to level up faster than them. Easy peasy."

Mark checked his phone.

"Only twenty minutes before midnight. Guess I better hurry."

Lucky for him, the train station was in the vicinity, which meant that, once again, he was the one who had to wait.

That’s what I hate about getting there on time. I always hurry too much and end up arriving too early.

He twitched, as if waking up.

I feel a strange presence. So she’s here. I wonder what’s with the other two people I feel.

She came face-to-face with him.

"Sorry if I kept you waiting, defeat should arrive as fast as possible."

"That’s why I came first, you bitch."

Mark’s sly smile did her no good, as seen by how tense she looked. Her eyes pierced Mark, who didn’t care about her. He only saw her as an enemy that he had to overcome.

"Now, where will we fight?"

She signaled for him to follow, which he did, but not before trying to get a look at those who followed her.

Unfortunately for him, the mixture of low light and hoods made it impossible to do without looking suspicious. He gave up on it, noticing something move in the darkness.

You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.

I must be tired; there's no way my shadow just moved without me just now.

All of a sudden, walking turned into high speed sprinting, which Mark could easily follow, even going as far as running backwards, all to prove a point that only he found worth the time.

A few minutes of running led them to the town’s outskirts, in an open field, no houses close to the area.

"This is where we fight."

Charlotte pulled a glistering sword out of her inventory. The red blade was charged with mana, making it shine in the dark.

"Don’t you think using something that flashy could make me notice your movements too easily?"

"Don’t get ahead of yourself, fool. You’ll notice my moves the moment I’ve already cut your head off."

He shrugged it off, and went on to do some stretches.

"Are you ready?"

Charlotte’s voice rang inside Mark’s head, triggering his fight-or-flight response.

"Ready wheneve-"

His words were cut short—literally—by a barrage of sword slashes and thrusts, Her skills were polished, way more than Mark’s own skills, pushing Mark into a disadvantageous position from the start.

"Better to show me what you’ve got before you’re dead."

She spoke without slowing her movements, as if breathing were useless. Mark kept parrying every hit, with his hands.

"Are you certain you want me to do that? Because it’s not that impressive, I just have to-"

Clank. Her blade stopped, not of her own will but because Mark got a hold of her sword, not letting go. She broke into a cold sweat, trying to jump back, but her weapon wouldn’t budge. Mark’s grip was so tight, to the point of blood gushing out of his palm.

"I told you I’m not to be messed with, at least not by the likes of you, lowly servants of an organization."

"Just how did you know? I made sure no one found out about it, not even-"

"Just a hunch, I guess. That’s it on being an overthinker; things tend to go your way most of the time. Now, what’s the deal with those guys you-" No one allowed him to finish his sentence. Those two hooded people came at Mark, one of them with a sword, the other with magic.

"Oh, so you’re a duo. I get it now."

The two of them fought in perfect synergy, moving in a continuous flow. Mark was pushed back, this time not of his own will. They were simply overpowering him.

I better hurry, or else these guys might fuck me up.

He had no time to rebound himself, always thrown around, either by his own dodging, or by the wind magic that kept throwing him around. Invisible blades, wind itself, kept coming for Mark’s neck. He managed to avoid some of them, yet the low light did him no good.

Shit, I’m seriously in deep shit. Where’s that bitch?

She had found him before the reverse scenario could happen. Mark stared at the red blade impaled within his chest, noticing it’s fading glow.

"So, the glow fades the moment you kill someone, or?"

"No, the glow fades the moment my target has been heavily wounded, meaning that my buff is gone. I’m only telling you this since it might as well be the last thing you’ll ever hear."

Mark barely contained his scream the moment she pulled her blade out.

DAMN IT, IT HURTS FOR FUCK’S SAKE!

Mark stumbled, each step shakier than before.

"Damn, I’m going to kill you. Lucky for you, I can fix my clothes with mana. Now, which one of you wishes to die first?"

Mark stood there, fixing his posture, strength flowing through his veins. Some sort of buff must have activated—it was his Last Stand buff, something he didn’t know he had. He still had to learn all there was about his abilities, but needless to say, he was not dying, at least not yet.

"If you wish to take me down, you better bring an army next time."

Fuckin moron, no army is needed if you’re so careless. You sure know how to be overconfident.

He raised his hand in the air, and before his enemies could even approach him, he summoned a storm of blades, all of them dancing at his finger tip. The wind magic he used pushed them back, allowing no openings. The three of them waited, ready to rush in now that the winds had calmed down.

"Nah, not so fast."

The moment one hooded person tried to rush in, one of Mark’s swords flung over, almost cutting the bastard’s arm in the process.

"Give up now, and I won’t kill you."

Mark was talking big game, despite feeling his blood slowly seeping out, even if the wound was closing bit by bit.

I don’t know how much I can hold on for. I’m screwed.

Mark was caught, like a mouse surrounded by cats, but he was no ordinary mouse; he had the ultimate offense.

"Offer me this one dance, let’s go, me against the three of you. But just so you know, if I win, I’ll make sure to fill you up nicely."

Her face trembled at the thought of losing, yet she kept reassuring herself that such a thing was impossible.