The male assassin in front of him threw a small knife at Dany. Its silver blade glimmered under the dim light.
Dany lifted his dagger to deflect the knife, followed by a 'clink'.
In that moment, his eyes saw a blade inching over from his pupil, and with trained movement, he tilted his head barely dodging the strike.
"Tch, just die already!".
The enemy came with ferocity, swung, stabbed and used feint tricks to distract Dany's attention even for a moment.
However, unlike his opponent, who was agitated by something for some reason.
Dany was calm, although his heart was crushed with a weight of guilt, leaving Yuto alone to deal with that monster.
Finding his enemy's movement dulled and repetitive, he gripped the dagger tightly and pushed forward.
'I got you…!?'.
But that momentum he grasped must be halted by the appearance of another person.
"Calm down!".
A feminine voice that radiated a chilling command stood in between while brandishing her shortsword.
Dany furrowed his brows and leapt back to regain some breath.
"I'm sorry, boss".
"...".
He gritted his teeth, feeling all tingling around his neck.
'She's strong!'.
At a glance, his experience as an adventurer. Dany could faintly grasp the extent of her power.
They were at least above him in terms of decisiveness and combat power.
Sure, Dany still conserved his tricks on his sleeves, but the same could be said about his enemies.
Worse, there were two of them.
His thoughts spiralled forward, while his fingers tightly gripped the dagger.
'...It's about time!'.
Dany inhaled and dashed forward while his other hand slid into his pouch.
The opponent noticed Dany as her eyes narrowed, and with a flick of her fingers.
Beneath them, a small magic circle flashed before it spewed a large amount of smoke, blocking Dany's night vision.
'This is bad!'.
Instinctively, he pinched his nose and tried to leap back, but seemed to find no exit within this cloud.
'Tch, there's no way for me to run! Wait!?'
As the smoke grazed his skin, the man gasped because he felt nothing behind it, not even a shred of touch to skin.
"Illusion!?".
"That's right!".
A cold, murderous voice rang beside him, and he felt something pierce his right abdomen.
Cold steel twisted the intensities inside. Then, it gradually turned into searing heat, with blood oozing and staining his outfits.
"Kuh!".
Dany spat a mouthful of blood out of his mouth. Before him, the male assassin's eyes shrank in the pool of madness.
He could see his reflection in those eyes—a pale face dyed with regret and atonement for what he had done earlier.
'Is this my punishment?'.
Yet, in the face of death, the flame in his heart was set ablaze. His hand grabbed the assassin's wrist, locked it tight.
Dany lifted his frozen lips and twisted them into a fearless smile.
"You should aim for my neck!".
"Wha!?".
"Like this!".
He didn't let the man finish as Dany's hand moved lightning fast, plunging the dagger into the assassin's neck.
Dread washed away the blood in the enemy before him. Then, as a payment for what he did, Dany twisted his wrist and slashed open the assassin's neck, almost separating its head.
Fresh blood spurted like a fountain, smearing Dany's half face and the tree beside.
As he saw the body slumped to the ground, the smoke around him also faded, and so did the corpse beneath.
'What!?'.
The man widened his eyes as he couldn't believe what had happened. A realization dawned on him like a heavy waterfall.
"End him now!".
A cold and menacing voice from the woman sent chills down his spine. Each step echoed from behind was like a blade slicing through his blurred consciousness.
But the fire in Dany's eyes still lingered as his lips parted in relief.
"Get away from my brother!".
Deni threw a dagger that whistled through the air, but the assassins easily deflected it.
"Shield master abilities: Bash!".
A towering shield that covered his entire body. Doni charged and levelled everything on its path. The ground beneath him shook, feeling the tremendous power it carries.
Clicked his tongue, the enemy jumped back, regrouping with his boss.
Dany smiled, but that didn't last long as he gnashed his teeth while gripping the dagger hilt on his stomach.
"Aaakh!".
He yanked it in one move, spilling blood everywhere, and the feeling of wind entered his open wounds; it made him shudder.
His hand blurred, snatching a red potion from his pouch before pouring it into his wound.
The torn flesh began to close by itself, leaving nothing but sticky fluid that smells tangy.
"Dany, you alright?".
"Yeah, I used an advanced potion".
"Good then!".
Looking to his right, Deni, his eldest brother, stood still, gripping the sword hilt tightly. His eyes were sharp, never leaving the enemies before him.
It seemed his strategy to call them was proven successful.
At the first encounter with enemies, the birdlike whistle was a sign the trio had decided on when something needed immediate attention.
This also included protection for the clients left behind in that village.
*Thud!
The air turned still when Doni slammed his shield to the ground, causing it to shake.
Dany inhaled deeply, clenching his fists several times, ensuring everything was alright before abruptly standing up.
"Big brother?".
Doni's concerned voice rang before him, but the man kept his sight straight.
"I'm fine, let's finish this quick!".
"Tch, they kept appearing like rats!".
A voice laced with contempt spat from the male assassins who glared at them.
"Don't get ahead of yourself, you lowly bastard!".
Seeing the riled assassin, Dany fell into thought.
True, since their first encounter, the enemy had been thoughtfully agitated, as if something had touched its reverse scales.
'Is it because of the knife I threw?'.
Dany glanced at the man clad in black and shook his head.
'No, It wasn't. Then…'.
His eyes widened as flashes of memories resurfaced when Yuto killed one of the assassins in a blink.
'It's worth a shot!'.
"Pfft, hahaha".
All eyes turned to his side, suddenly wondering what had just happened for him to laugh at this time.
As the one in the middle of tension, Dany utilized his stern and menacing expressions to agitate the enemies further.
"Khuhuaha, how do you feel when a brat kills your comrade, huh?".
"...".
Silence stretched infinitely as the time itself slowed down. Then, a howl of resentment exploded from the pit of the abyss.
"I'll kill you!".
However, his voice sank when another explosion occurred, followed by chaotic destruction from the destroyed trees.
"Raawr!".
A looming disaster approached, and its roar caused the atmosphere to freeze in fear.
Dany stopped breathing, witnessing the Phantom Jaguar that should be far away from his place, but one thing that made him petrified was a wound on its body.
Then, a savage madness clad in a crimson aura and human skin dyed with blood stood up from under the pile of destroyed trees.
"...I'm not done yet!".