An orange and pink hue was spreading across the dark canopy, a signal of the rising sun.

There, at the center of the small and calm pond, Arthur stood behind Amare, a standard steel sword in his hand as he looked around.

After having her mouth covered for several seconds, Amare stopped trying to talk and just stood there, not particularly afraid but still doubtful of his tactic.

A deafening bout of silence flowed between the two of them as the sky was getting brighter and the expected assailant did not show up.

Time crept by yet the parasite did not move an inch, seemingly confident that Addy wouldn’t give up on this opportunity.

‘His ability is similar to the Bloated Murderer, but it’s not the exact same. Let’s see…’

A thin mist was spreading around the pond, though it was hard to differentiate it from common morning fog, seen frequently in these types of forests.

The mist, or better call it fog, was getting denser, making it difficult to see through. The trees were obscured by it and the only visible thing was the clear pond reflecting the orange sky.

‘Mists and fogs are different. He can use the latter, apparently.’

“I guess you’re attacking me due to what happened to the Bloated Murderer, isn’t that right, Addy?”

Arthur stated with a clarion voice, which was met with only an eerie silence. Nevertheless, he didn’t stop.

“He and you both have the same ability, so it’s safe to assume you are- or were- related, yes? If so, this revenge-driven act of yours is reasonable.”

Still silence, but Arthur let out a mocking chuckle as he swept his gaze from left to right, focusing on the white fog creeping above the ground and closer to the pond.

“If you didn’t want him to get caught, you should’ve done a better job at protecting him. Technically, as a private investigator, you were supposed to ‘catch’ him, isn’t that right? Randy was close to figuring out the truth so he was killed. Better your long-time partner than family.”

“What I can’t understand is the killings, though. It would have been better to lay low and live your own lives. Why risk it all? Did you really expect no repercussions? Or were you hoping that, by leading any person curious about the case to your office, you would be able to detract them from the real evidence?”

“Ultimately, all your efforts were for naught. The Bloated Murderer is dead and if exacting vengeance on me is what you want then… I’ll welcome you with open arms.”

Green mist burst from Arthur’s hand, swirling like a tornado and shrouding him and Amare. Right when it appeared, Addy, who had been listening since the beginning, finally attacked.

The fog spread across the pond from all directions, arrow-like projectiles shot at the Mist of Decay, but they were easily stopped by the Sanguis Barrier.

With the barrier raised, Arthur looked down at the hideous hole in his chest. Leonis was, by far, his favorite host, and such an injury wasn’t that easy to hide, especially without proper Healing Magic.

Like last time, Addy conjured the horrifying skull, which crashed into the barrier and shattered it. Moreover, it sucked all of the green mist, revealing Amare and Arthur, who didn’t move an inch.

With the target in sight, Addy spared no effort, his fog raging like an unstoppable tornado as an illusory milky-colored spear shot from within it.

While still binding the vampire, Arthur raised his free hand and brandished the sword, using [Sword Blast] for the first time.

He felt Mana traveling across his body and getting channeled into the standard steel sword, which was swung diagonally.

A glistening silver blast was shot unidirectionally, clashing with the incoming spear and extinguishing it almost instantly.

Arthur didn’t stand there and watch, he followed up with [Half a Moon], which cost more Mana.

As the skill description had stated, a translucent and beautiful half moon was conjured, floating upwards then unleashing a devastating blast.

Addy’s fog was dispersed and his silhouette could be seen a dozen meters away. He crashed onto the edge of the pond and rolled a few times, blood leaking out of his lips.

‘In comparison to Amare, he’s not that strong. No, it’s not just that… I seem to have underestimated what sword skills were capable of.’

Addy hastily got up to his feet and tried to use his ability but he was bashed on the side by the Sanguis Barrier, which sent him flying. Before he even landed, the rectangular and relatively big yellow-ish barrier struck him from above, pressing his body against the ground and breaking a few bones in the process.

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“Argh!! Ahhhh!”

The frail-looking man let out a frightening screech as he struggled against the barrier. A wave of fog pierced through the barrier then transformed into the large skull.

While holding his broken shoulder and gasping for breath, Addy’s narrowed eyes glared daggers at the parasite.

There was a hint of craziness in those eyes, causing Arthur to call back the barrier to his side and use [Enhanced Spell] to strengthen it.

Fortunately, that was the right decision as the skull became twice as large and, with lightning speed, descended upon the two of them.

The Sanguis Barrier got small and was raised slightly above the parasite, meeting the incoming skull head-on

Unexpectedly, when it touched the barrier, the skull dispersed into a fog, alerting Arthur.

He saw another skull come from the side, so he let go of Amare and kicked her to the front while he used [Mist of Decay] to shroud himself and leap back.

Although he was hit in the end, he didn’t sustain any heavy injuries. His ribs were fractured and his left arm was stiff, but he was still able to move.

While holding the sword with both hands, Arthur used [Sword Blast] again, sacrificing over half of his remaining Mana; The result was, quite literally, a sharp blast that drilled into the ground as it cut the fog around Addy and struck his body.

As the man’s mangled and bloody body crashed into the tree then limply fell to the ground, Arthur didn’t attack it again and, instead, turn his attention to Amare.

The girl was still tied with a rope, but he was still wary of her, expecting her to flee after being kicked. However, he was surprised to see her thrash around in the pond, her face half-submerged as she let out muffled sounds.

He walked to the girl and pulled her up, consequently making her spit water and sniff.

“Is twis te tortuv yu-”

She tried to say something but all that left her mouth was gibberish.

Arthur gave her a strange look and held her shoulder, pushing her forward as they approached Addy.

He was bloodied all over and seemingly on the brink of death. Yet, even at such a moment, he kept his fully-opened and reddened eyes glued on the parasite.

“This… isn’t…”

Arthur didn’t let him continue as the sword pierced his head, ending his life. However, the man’s body instantly dispersed into fog, which disappeared thereafter.

“You kicked me.”

Begrudgingly muttered the girl as she took deep breaths and struggled momentarily, attempting to wipe her dirt-filled face.

“I saved you.”

“No, you kicked me and made me fall. I almost suffocated to death.”

Unwilling to start an argument over that, Arthur sighed and opted for silence while Amare cursed under her breath.

Arthur looked around, knowing that it wasn’t over yet. He had killed Addy, but it wasn’t a definitive death, from the looks of it.

‘Either his ability allows for some sort of resurrection, or it was a trick to fool me.’

Arthur ripped a small bit of the bloodied clothes of the now-gone Addy and wrapped it around the vampire’s head, covering her eyes.

“So you’re going to take me to a secluded place and dump me there? What makes you think I won’t be able to track you down?”

“Perhaps you will chase after me again. And again, you will get beaten… harder this time. I won’t kill you, but that doesn’t mean I won’t hurt you.”

“It’s not like you haven’t already. After I revealed your true name, I was hoping for a friendly discussion. You give me Rodrick, and I will leave you alone.”

As he walked behind her, Arthur let out a soft laugh, “It isn’t that easy. I could give you false information or I could tell you the truth, either way, it will depend on whether it will satisfy you or not.”

“You’ll only know if you try. Furthermore, you’re lucky that I’ve been tasked to look for Rodrick, because if it was my mother, you would’ve spilled the beans already.”

“You’re not your mother, though. The tales I’ve heard about the Masked Queen do give rise to some dread within me, but I’m dealing with you now. And you, little girl, aren’t as much of a threat as I thought you’re going to be.”

----------------------------------------

Addy’s body twitched and drew a long breath as it came back to life. He was covered in a cold sweat as he sat up and examined himself, his hands trembling ever-so-slightly.

It was his second time experiencing ‘death’, and, just like the first time, the experience was traumatizing, to say the least.

“You’re awake, which means you failed.”

Addy was on the back of a shabby and small wooden wagon dragged by someone clad in silver armor.

“It doesn’t matter. He’s in the vicinity of Smithy Town.”

“Yeah but our objective is ‘slightly’ different, wouldn’t you agree? Mister Phantomciel.”

“...”

Addy frowned and looked at the man dragging the wagon with nothing but brute strength. His old age notwithstanding, the elderly was stalwart and emitted a domineering aura, as befitting someone of his caliber.

He was none other than Lexander Biax, Leonis Sanguis’ good friend and a renowned Knight, currently working under Sancha Sanguis.

As a matter of fact, Addy’s meeting with Lexander was purely coincidental, and it happened right after he had failed his assassination attempt on the day the undead was spotted in Blackcrest.

Lexander Biax came to him seeking help, specifically asking him to find someone that fitted Leonis’ description.

Addy rejected him at first, but when the Duke refused to lend a hand, he had to cooperate with the knight.

“I need to ask him something first. I also need the body.”

“And I want him dead. You told me a parasite can switch bodies, so he will most likely do that after I injured him.”

“What kind of injury it was?” Asked Lexander while halting his feet and massaging his shoulders. Now that Addy returned to his real body, so to speak, he no longer needed to drag the wagon.

“A hole in the chest… right here.”

As if he heard a joke, Lexander chuckled and unceremoniously waved his hand.

“That’s a superficial wound. You kill a parasite either by locating and destroying the real body, which is close to impossible considering their minuscule size, or you aim for the neck. Decapitation is a common method that, in most cases, would render their host ‘unusable’ and consequently eject them outside, thus making them defenseless and vulnerable. You missed your chance and that’s why I was against you going alone.”

Addy gritted his teeth and grunted, “I had to. In case you’re not aware, your large frame and loud armor aren’t suitable for stealth. I used that idiotic vampire girl, hoping she could distract them for long enough, but the battle ended quickly.”

“Of course it did.” Lexander checked his armor and caressed the hilt of his longsword as he remembered the maid.

“Evelyn is one nasty lass. I still don’t know why she chose his side, though. I guess I’ll find out soon. Come on.”