Vile Evil Hides Under The Veil

A deadly strike struck at the unprotected nape, slipping past the defenses of the Hex armor.

Eren's countdown was a clever ruse, a masked prelude to a devastating attack on the intruders at the kill site. It was a simple trick but effective nonetheless.

Since Jen and her two teammates had caught Eren at the worst possible time, he decided to return the favor.

[ Profession Change: Assassin

Dexterity: +20%

Dagger damage: +10%

Movement-type Skill Bonus: +5% ]

[ Skill: Unlimited Weapon Works ] [ Bonus Applied ]

[ Skill: Motion Manipulation ] [ Bonus Applied ]

In the blink of an eye, Eren, like a ghost, appeared behind Jen, wielding two gleaming Katars with expert precision. The cruel light reflected off the blades as Eren juggled them midair before executing his strike.

A red streak of blood painted the air as Eren's Katars breached Jen's Natural Defense Layer, slicing through her delicate-looking skin. The passive effect of the Hex Armor saved her from a clean neck cut.

"Aaaaaargh!"

Jen's cry of pain echoed as she swiftly activated her movement Skill, attempting to put distance between herself and Eren. A once-beautiful face contorted into ugly expressions as she grasped the reality of the situation.

'This man… he is not like other Rankers. What the fuck did I run into?'

Jen hurled curses at both Eren and her own choice to intervene at the kill site. She had anticipated an easy benefit from Eren's vulnerable situation, but his swift and decisive counterattack caught her off guard. His immediate response to her aggression wasn't negotiation or threats but a relentless doubling down on aggression from his end.

'Run… I must run away. He is dangerous.'

She dared not turn around to face her attacker, realizing instinctively that escaping from her current position was imperative before the temporary defense granted by her Hex Armor wore off. The looming threat of Eren decapitating her motivated her to flee.

Yet, in her haste, she unwittingly rushed into the path of Horen, who stood ready for her arrival. His broadsword swung with precision, targeting the injured neck region.

Swoosh. Zoom. Chop.

Horen managed to chop Jen's head clean off with his wide-scale broadsword attack. It also helped that Eren had launched a preemptive strike at Jen, subconsciously making her drop her guard down.

Eren did not stay quiet while the encounter between Jen and Horen was happening. He adjusted his specs for his upcoming confrontation as he closed in on Yugi.

[ Professional Change: Close Combat Warrior

Endurance: +5%

Vigor: +5%

Dexterity: +10%

Close-range Skill Bonus: +2%

Close-range weapon Bonus: +2%

Elemental damage Bonus: +1% ]

[ Skill: Unlimited Weapon Works ]

[ Skill: Hero's Heart ]

Eren cranked things up a notch by activating Hero's Heart. He would usually activate this power along with Life Drain to support the excessive Vigor consumption. However, Life Drain had demonic origins so he had to abandon the idea of opting for his usual combo.

Thankfully, the active Close Combat Warrior Profession boosted his Vigor stat to some extent. Thus, he had some leeway when it came to using the Hero's Heart at the time of the close-range confrontations.

He only hoped that Vasco would be able to support him from a distance after figuring out what had transpired within this split second. This was because he couldn't handle Yugi on his own when he was practically running on fumes.

"Jen!"

Yugi cried out in alarm and panic as she watched Jen's severed head flying into the air. Meanwhile, Horen who had just chopped the head moved on to deal with Raif Karsaal.

Yugi couldn't grieve for her ally who had lost her life. This was because she sensed danger coming her way and activated her defense Skills while turning towards her right and drawing out her rapier in front of her in a defensive formation.

Swoosh. Zoom. Clank.

Eren's Katars clashed with Yugi's rapier, creating numerous sparks in the process. The sound of metal clashing against metal filled the surroundings as the two exchanged loads of blows against each other within a few moments. Eren's barrage of attacks made Yugi change her position, making her retreat in a direction away from Raif.

'This man... engaging in close combat with him is risky.'

Yugi pondered to herself as she felt some of Eren's attacks landing on her body despite her best efforts to defend or divert them. Surprisingly, this was when she was full of energy, while Eren was supposed to be practically helpless after his continuous fights with the demonic creatures.

She concluded that she would have been riddled with fatal injuries at this point if she hadn't caught Eren at his lowest. However, it was not like she didn't have the means to go against a Close Combat Warrior.

After all, she was an Elementalist. One could say that she was more capable than Vasco because she had unlocked a sought-

after Profession-centric trait for herself.

[ Skill: Venti Transformation

Venti Form: 35% Mana Body Transformed

Active Duration: ~10 Minutes ]

Yugi, covered in scars and slash wounds from Eren's persistent attacks, suddenly activated her Elementalist-specific Skill. This Skill caused vital parts of her body to change their nature, transforming into a mana-like form.

Yugi's body was suddenly coated in a dense amount of wind mana that made her look like a Venti– a wind spirit. The wind-

element mana changed the property of her flesh at various places before turning her transparent to some extent. It was as if

The Mana Body allowed Yugi to get rid of severe injuries, gaining complete immunity to Eren's attacks whenever they landed on the body part currently under the effect of her Skill.

'Damn it. What the hell is happening? I could have bet Argo's left nut that my attacks were working against her a second ago. The fuck kinda broken Skill is this?'

Eren cursed in his head as he watched Yugi exchange blows with him in her semi-transformed form. Being from Anfang, this was his first time battling against an Elementalist who could change the nature of their bodies in such a manner.