Sakura flitted across the rooftops of Puppet Town, quiet as a whisper. She came to a stop at the end of the last block, watching as Warren left through the north gate. The same gate that Edge had passed through not twenty minutes ago. When the manslayer vanished from sight, she let out a long sigh, wondering what was about to happen.

She had no clue what fate had in store today. What she did know was this: Sometime within the next few hours, their three-way game of cat and mouse would come to an end. No matter what went down when Warren found Edge, only one man would live to see the sunset.

If Sakura had to bet, she would reluctantly wager everything that she owned on Warren. The bounty hunter had decades of combat experience, while Edge was still a novice. Warren’s gear was better, and his skills were stronger. Although Edge had undergone explosive growth over the last week, he was still far behind the man who was hunting him.

Despite all of that, she was certain that Edge had a chance of making it back alive. Something that wouldn’t have been possible only a few short days ago. The deck was stacked in Warren’s favor, but that was only half the story. Both men had powers that the other wasn’t aware of, most notably the true nature of Edge’s ultimate ability [Overdrive].

Sakura had gone out on a limb to keep them apart, granting Edge every minute she could to grow stronger and come into his own. But matters had reached the point where if she did anything more, she would set the manslayer on her own trail. An outcome as certain as dusk following dawn.

Yesterday, Warren had finally caught wind of Skill-Eater’s existence. Now, matters were coming to a head like two freight trains colliding. With any luck, Edge would be strong enough to survive the impending conflict, removing the bounty hunter from the board once and for all.

Her last act had been to set the stage, making sure Edge knew that the manslayer was coming.

Before Edge left town, she had slipped a note into his belt. Warning him that Warren was hot on his heels and looking for blood. Sakura had included everything that she’d been able to uncover about the bounty hunter’s skills, tactics, and gear, including the first spellshot chambered in his revolver and an educated guess about the second.

While part of her wanted to follow them and lend aid from the shadows, the risk involved was far too great. No matter what happened, she couldn’t afford to tip Warren off. He would come after her if he suspected that she was interfering in his work, let alone caught a whiff of her own special core.

If Edge died today, she should be able to remain anonymous for a while longer. Sakura was hoping to form an alliance with Edge. But if he wasn’t strong enough to defeat the manslayer, then he wasn’t the person she was looking for after all. She would mourn his loss and start looking for a new partner instead.

But she had a good feeling about Edge, and more than that, she liked him. He was a good person, although he wasn’t a hero, which suited her fine.

What she wanted was an antihero. Someone who was willing to do what it took to survive but didn’t always enjoy what doing so would entail. Psychopaths and white knights were fated to short lives on Ord, and she needed a champion who was neither.

Sakura sat down with her back against a rain barrel, where she had a good view of the gate. Then she pulled out a book and began to read, waiting to see what would happen.

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***

Edge walked through the tall grass that gave the Ivory Plains their name, keeping one eye on the horizon and the other on the ground by his feet.

It was a hot day. Even with a hat to keep the sun off his face, he was sweating bullets. It made him glad that he had decided to travel light. He had left the cart at Trapper’s, so that he could cover as much ground as possible.

After some consideration, he had decided to head into the northeastern grasslands for his final day of hunting before his exam. He had explored the area south of town recently and hadn’t run into another promising beast.

There were bound to be more out there. But Edge was looking for another late stage-one predator, since he was prioritizing filling his empty skill slots and cycling-up over earning Credits today. With that goal in mind, he was heading toward a sub-biome that offered excellent visibility, where his view wouldn’t be obstructed by the endless prairie.

While he walked, he practiced reaching for his naginata. He needed to make the motion required to free the polearm from its harness as natural as possible, so that he could use the weapon to defend himself at a moment’s notice. He was having a hard time with the maneuver so far, but he was starting to get used to the extra weight hanging from his back.

Half an hour later, he was drawing near his destination. The shoulder-high grass came to an end just a little further ahead. Edge was about to leave dense foliage and step into a region covered in cracked red earth and bright yellow flowers. Man, it’s a real scorcher today. I wonder if I can find a skill to help me deal with the heat.

When he reached down to take a sip from his canteen, he noticed that a slip of paper was sticking out from one of his belt pouches. What in the world? He grabbed the end and pulled it out, realizing that the strip was covered in writing in a clean, compact hand.

When Edge read the first line, he froze in place. Adrenaline poured into his veins as his heart began pounding like a kettle drum. “Warren knows about Skill-Eater. He’s coming for you and will attack before you make it back to town. -Sakura.”

He had no idea who Sakura was, how she knew about his core, or why she had left the note. He didn’t have time to worry about it now. If what she had written was true, his life was in danger and there wasn’t a second to spare.

He knew from the feed that Warren preferred to ambush his prey. If the manslayer was hunting Edge, he needed to hide, or he’d be dead before he knew what hit him.

He activated conceal and kept on reading, glad that the skill didn’t obstruct his view of whatever he was holding. The rest of the paper contained a partial profile of Warren’s capabilities. It listed several of his skills, pieces of gear, and preferred tactics.

It was all useful, but Edge was most interested in two key pieces of information. The first was the contents of Warren’s spellshot revolver. Or more accurately, the details of the first two shots that he typically loaded into its chambers.

The second was a warning. “Warren has a Disruption skill that will disable your shadow step if you enter its range. He will try to trick you into closing the distance, then take you out the moment that the field deactivates your skill. It costs a lot of mana to maintain, so he will try to time its use rather than leave it on.”

Edge would have loved to consider the profile at length. Or better yet, to make it back to town, come up with a plan, then face the manslayer on the ground of his choosing. But a half-dozen frantic heartbeats later, the ink began fading away.

Even if it hadn’t, he wouldn’t have had a chance to browse it at his leisure. Because at that very moment, Warren’s voice called out to him, letting Edge know that his time was up and a fight for his life had begun.

“Vasher, I know you’re out here. I’m impressed that you sensed my presence, but it’s already too late. I’m collecting your bounty and there’s nothing you can do to stop me.” His manner was casual, almost friendly. But there was an eagerness behind the words that made Edge’s skin crawl.

“Since it’s dead or alive, I’m willing to offer you a single chance to do this the easy way. Come out from wherever you’re hiding and reach for the sky. There’s no point in running, I’m taking you in.”

When Edge glanced down, his shadow was hiding between his boots, which meant that the sun was directly overhead.

A high magic showdown at high noon was about to commence, and only one man would be walking away.