- Before -

Aki flashed behind a dark figure hiding amongst the trees who was emitting a strong killing intent and slashed downwards with Shinsu. There was a cruel light in her eyes as she softened the impact of body as it fell, silencing it.

This was already the ten or eleventh assassin that she had gotten rid of and Aki was starting to lose count. They all wore a black cape, but what set them apart was a blood red star that was embroidered at the back. Aki frowned as she pondered over the star.

Was it a fashion statement now to announce your affiliation or was it done for a purpose? It all seemed so contrived, as if they were shouting who they were and lining up just to get eliminated.

Aki first discovered the red star assassins when she heard a desperate cry. Going to investigate, not far from the magic extraordinaire, she saw a group of students desperately trying to fend off the assassin while their protector laid dead on the forest floor. Easily getting rid of the said assassin, she got the students to use their teleportation crystal to return. After all, they had lost their protector and being in severe shock and chaos, they were in no state to continue with the assessment.

But what Aki did not know was that the assassins that were seen as amateurs and easy pickings for her had already eliminated one-third of the protectors. A few students had also fallen victims but most were able to use their teleportation crystals in time to escape.

Suddenly sensing something, Aki swung Shinsu backwards and a sound of metal clashing was heard.

“Woah, hey Aki. It’s me.”

The first thing that she noticed was the crimson eyes and then the signature lazy grin. Aki relaxed as she withdrew Shinsu and looked at Roku questioningly. Her eyes were practically saying ‘Why are you here?’

“Ahh.. just a job. Got it from the first prince to protect the second one.”

Roku’s response made Aki even more bewildered. If his job was to protect the second prince then why is he here? As if knowing Aki’s thoughts, Roku smiled wryly and ruffled Aki’s head as if to hide his embarrassment.

Just like Aki, Roku was trailing after the party from a distance away. He kept separate from Aki, not wanting to distract her but still kept her in his view, just in case. And the just-in-case happened, since Aki discovered the red star assassins and began to periodically clean up the surroundings. The more Aki eliminated her targets, the more her sense of presence faded. It was as if she was getting colder and colder, slipping into a particular state of being. Or non-being.

His sword, a cursed sword that gained awareness due to centuries of blood shed, sensed Aki’s aura and was getting more and more excited by the bloodlust it sensed. Feeling a bit worried, Roku went after Aki to check up on her, after judging that the party would not encounter any danger in a short while.

“You okay? That should be the last of them around here.”

Aki gave a curt nod as they quickly moved back to the party. Aki and Roku quickly exchanged their findings and the implied conclusion they came to was grim. The Red Star assassins felt like they did not have a specific target in mind but were here to wipe out as many students as they could. They were on a massacre.

If that was the case, they might have something else planned, as they are nearing the end of the test and it was too inefficient with the Protectors hovering over the students.

As they arrived near the party, suddenly the ground trembled as a huge roar vibrated through the air.

“You should also not count on the protectors to save you as they now have a bigger problem to deal with.”

Aki saw the racked state Heiki and Takeshi were in, and evaluated the situation in a second. Her mind went blank and she felt as if something click within her. Aki was still a distance away from them and her first instinct was to use a long distance magic spell. But the spell failed to invoke and Aki felt a coldness wash over her. Quick-drawing Shinsu, Aki cut in the direction of Luna while closing the distance at a rapid pace.

With blood splurging out, Luna’s body collapsed onto Tsukasa and revealed Aki who appeared behind her.

This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it

The moonlight filtered through the clearing, casting dancing light and shadows upon Aki. The party was startled as everything came to a sudden halt, frozen in the moment.

There was something different about Aki. All the light had disappeared from her eyes as she moved forward to grab Luna’s body by her hair. It was as if… it was as if she was just a sword set out to eliminate her targets.

The atmosphere was suffocating and was suppressed by an aura so heavy that the party scattered around had difficulties breathing. Pulling Luna up, she coldly determined if she was dead and cast the body aside.

The party felt like they were looking at a death god incarnate, so cold and so cruel, yet still bearing a morbid beauty, with almost a sense of purity and devotion to her sacred duty. No one uttered a word like they were either afraid of breaking this moment of transcendence.

All Aki could see was the target. Her actions were just to personally check that the target has been eliminated.

Suddenly a hand gripped Aki’s wirst, forcing her out of her thoughts.

Her first instinct was to lash out at whoever that was, but feeling the familiar breath, Aki simply turned to look at the pair of worried crimson eyes.

“Aki, we need to secure the party and check out the situation.”

Another roar sounded followed by screams and this time it felt even closer to them. Aki blinked and her vision cleared. She registered the rest of the party and their condition. Although beyond exhausted, the party had not suffered any life threatening injuries.

“Heiki, Takeshi. Use the emergency teleportation crystals and evacuate. Bring Tsukasa with you and explain the situation.”

Aki tossed them her’s as well in order to provide enough magic power to teleport them all together at once. Although they could not invoke any spells, it seems like the special teleportation magic made by Axel still worked.

“AKI! REMEMBER TO BE CAREFUL AND TAKE CARE OF YOURSELF!!”

Heiki, who was supporting Takeshi, nodded to Aki and looked at Roku. Although he did not know who he was, being able to confront Aki would at least signify that he had enough capabilities to back her up.

A light blue magic circle spreaded out on the ground at the group’s feet. A flash and the party was gone, leaving Luna’s body behind which was slowly turning cold.

-

A towering golem swung his hand and swept several protectors away. Although it was termed as a golem, every time that someone was killed, flesh, skin and bones could be seen growing on its body. At this rate, when it has absorbed enough blood shed, it would be turned into a living and breathing giant creature.

Golems were naturally sturdy against physical attacks and with the magic sequence that was carved into the golem’s body, somehow magic spells were unable to be invoked around it. This made it difficult for the protectors to defeat it.

Aki wielding Shinsu tried to cut it but the flesh that fell just regrew back and it did not even scratch on the golem’s original body.

“That's a death golem. A guard commonly seen in ancient Temples of Death. Only when the temple itself is in danger will it activate. Someone must have found a way to move it out and inscribed additional magic sequences on it.”

Roku explained to Aki as they regrouped a distance away from the golem.

“We should wait for reinforcements but based on what that girl said, this golem might only be a distraction and their main purpose lies somewhere else. Reinforcements will be trying to crack down the main force which leaves the remaining us to deal with this.”

Sighing and with a tone saying it was all a pain in the ass, Roku blocked an incoming magic attack from the golem. The golem let out another desperate roar, which sounded like it was in pain to Aki. Besides absorbing blood and flesh, it also seemed like it was taking in knowledge and experience during the battle. It would be bad if the fight becomes overdrawn.

“Then what should we… ROKU!!”

As Roku was dealing with the golem’s magic attacks, it used its newly formed tail to swipe at Roku. The surprise attack was too fast to dodge and Roku was flung back on impact, breaking several trees in his course and ended up quite a distance away. It was too far for Aki to see if he was okay.

“Tsk.”

Aki gritted her teeth and clutched Shinsu tightly in her hands. At this rate if she continues to parry attacks from the golem, Aki was only going to expend all her energy without making substantial damage on the golem.

“What are you doing, Kai?”

“Oh this? I’m reading about Samskara. There’s this particular sentence ‘Form is voidness, voidness is form.’ It is really interesting...”

“But what is mana... energy from the universe and as we too are part of the universe…”

As Aki continued to exchange blows with the golem, flashes of conversations appeared in her mind as she thought hard for a solution. The reason why magic does not invoke is due to the magic sequence that was inscribed on the golem. And that inscription had become the founding laws that defined the golem’s existence, making it impossible to nullify without getting rid of the entire golem itself. And vice versa, if she eliminates the laws that bound the golem, the golem will also disappear.

The laws which seemed impervious were just prior perspectives formed by the protectors due to them unable to take it down and Aki who affected and believed this to be true as well.

Breaking away, Aki panted from the physical exertion as she tried to calm her mind. What was needed in magic was the intent. And if Aki believed what she casted was not magic but interfering with the laws itself…

“Form… Form is Voidness, Voidness is Form!”

Aki raised a hand forward in the direction of the golem and chanted for the first time.

Nothing happened.

Putting her hand down, Aki frowned. Did she fail?

Wanting to try again, Aki raised her hand. It was at this moment that light specks floated out from the golem as the golem slowly stopped. At first it was just a few specks which quickly spread to the rest of the golem. As much as the light specks were floating off and disappearing, the golem was disappearing in equal amounts as well.

It looked like fireflies dissipating into the air.

It was a short while later that the entire golem was gone. The whole battlefield fell into a stunned silence. Behind Aki stood Roku who had just returned to see this shocking phenomenon. He was in awe of the execution of the magic.

The magic was silent and did not even have a trace of aggressiveness in it, carrying an almost peaceful entity. The golem disappeared as if returning back to nature naturally, back to its original form of voidness.

Aki stood before the falling lights as it casted a glow over her silhouette and this incident closed with a hush silence blanketed in darkness.