Chapter 87: The War Beneath the Ruins
The ruined city of Nyx burned.
Fires crackled through the wreckage of once-great towers, their collapsed remains now battlegrounds for monsters and warriors alike.
The Top Nine stood in the heart of the chaos.
Surrounded.
Bleeding.
But unyielding.
Across from them, the Xelthar Assassins shifted in the shadows—cloaked figures with mana-infused weapons, each radiating lethal intent. And between them, the mutated mana beast roared, its grotesque, pulsating form trembling as it absorbed the unstable mana around it.
The air itself felt poisoned, charged with an unnatural energy.
Lucian Eldoria exhaled, tightening his grip on his royal longsword, its draconic inscriptions glowing with golden fire. "This is getting irritating."
Kael wiped blood from his lips, eyes locked on their enemies. "Then let's end it."
And just like that—
The battle erupted.
Two assassins launched at him at once—a pair of masked warriors wielding twin curved daggers coated in a black, poison-like mana.
Kael barely dodged the first strike, twisting his body just in time for the second blade to slice his cloak instead of his throat.
They're fast.
But so was he.
His Arcane Chains flared to life, golden runes forming midair as they lashed out—binding one assassin mid-air before he could retreat.
The second assassin reacted instantly, vanishing into the shadows.
Kael's crimson eyes flickered—
He felt the shift in mana before the attack came.
The assassin reappeared behind him, daggers aimed straight for his back.
Too predictable.
Kael activated Berserker's Ascent.
His speed doubled.
The moment the assassin struck—Kael was already gone.
And before his enemy could react, Kael appeared beside him, sword coated in a crimson sigil.
One clean slash.
Blood sprayed as the assassin collapsed, lifeless.
The second, still bound by Kael's chains, struggled violently.
Kael turned to him, exhaling.
"You chose the wrong fight."
The chains constricted—and with a sharp crack, the assassin's body went limp.
Kael didn't even stop to breathe.
He turned back to the battle.
The Crown Prince of Eldoria fought as if he were untouchable.
Three assassins surrounded him, moving in perfect synchronization, striking from blind spots.
And yet—
Lucian moved like a storm given form.
His sword flickered—golden fire trailing in its wake.
One enemy lunged—Lucian sidestepped, slicing through the assassin's entire forearm in one brutal motion.
The second struck from behind—Lucian turned at the last second, parrying with one hand while blasting him point-blank with draconic mana.
The assassin was incinerated instantly.
The third hesitated.
Lucian's golden eyes gleamed.
"Go ahead. Run."
The assassin did.
Lucian let him.
He had bigger problems.
Mira clashed blades with a masked swordsman, his movements so fluid it was like fighting a shadow.
Every strike he made was silent, but every impact carried the force of a warhammer.
Mira gritted her teeth, sweat and blood running down her face.
He was stronger.
More experienced.
But she refused to fall.
She ducked low, her sword flashing as she struck at his exposed ribs—only for him to twist unnaturally, evading by an inch.
Then—he countered.
The assassin's dagger pierced her side.
Mira gasped, pain flaring through her ribs.
The assassin smirked beneath his mask.
She spat blood—then grabbed his wrist before he could pull the dagger free.
Her eyes burned with fury.
"You shouldn't have gotten that close."
Her sword flashed—
The assassin's head rolled to the ground.
She yanked the dagger from her ribs and exhaled.
Still standing.
Still fighting.
Selene didn't waste movements.
Every step, every feint, every precise thrust of her blade was calculated.
She faced two assassins—both using mana-disrupting weapons.
One tried to disable her Eclipse Sight.
It failed.
Selene moved through them like mist, her blade cutting through gaps in their armor.
One assassin collapsed before he even realized he was dead.
The second saw his fate coming.
And could do nothing to stop it.
Cassian laughed, dodging an enemy's strike with lazy grace, his rapier flicking out to sever the assassin's tendons in one quick motion.
Evelyne fought brutally, breaking bones and shattering ribs with sheer force.
Darius controlled the battlefield, his lightning chaining between enemies, stunning them long enough for the others to finish them off.
Rael was simply untouchable.
His Void Step made him a ghost on the battlefield, striking from angles no human should be able to.
Together, they pushed back the assassins.
And just when it seemed like they had the upper hand—
The mana beast mutated again.
The True Horror of Nyx
A monstrous roar shook the ruins.
The mutated mana beast, now twice its original size, lashed out in a frenzy.
Its flesh boiled and reshaped, forming new limbs, new eyes, new weapons of destruction.
It had been feeding off the battle.
And now—
It was something else entirely.
Kael turned just in time to see a massive claw heading straight for him.
He barely dodged, rolling to the side as the ground cracked beneath its strike.
Lucian cursed. "We need to put that thing down. Now."
The team converged.
But as they prepared their final attack—
A dark chuckle echoed through the ruins.
From the crumbling rooftops, a new figure emerged.
Clad in black-and-red armor, their presence alone sent a wave of suffocating pressure across the battlefield.
Kael's instincts screamed at him.
This was no ordinary assassin.
The figure tilted their head, their voice smooth but laced with amusement.
"So this is Eldoria's finest?"
Lucian's grip on his sword tightened.
"Who the hell are you?"
The armored figure smiled beneath their hood.
"I am merely here to observe."
They glanced at the mutated beast.
"And to see how long you last before it kills you."
Kael's breath slowed.
A new enemy.
A monster out of control.
And a mission spiraling into something far worse than they had imagined.
They had no choice.
They had to end this.
Now.