The assassin’s codename in Neon Nightmare was “Dead Skewer,” a silver-ranked killer of the second tier and a mainstay for most of the assassination orders in Neon Nightmare.
He was given this codename because, as a genuine level four mage, he had long combined his style with sharp weapons, centering his unique spells around the “iron skewer.”
He referred to his own magic as “Skewer Arts,” pursuing extreme speed and penetration. Although its effective range was limited, at medium distances it was nearly unstoppable. Even an S-class defensive spell rated at 80,000 specifications would be instantly pierced by his iron skewers, achieving a one-hit kill.
Of course, his recent skewer attack hadn’t broken through the silver-haired girl’s defenses; she had blocked it with her hand.
However, Dead Skewer was not surprised. This wasn’t a completely prepared ambush; he was still tracking down Nameless, and she had just happened to appear—an unplanned encounter. A hasty strike was to be expected; it was completely normal if this Nameless had some real skills to block it.
Moreover, from the red light flashing on the girl, he could gauge the level of her defensive spells.
A high-quality defensive spell centered around “Force Field Magic”? That seemed a bit challenging… He sneered internally, lurking in the dark as he quietly cast his spell.
Since he had taken special precautions, his spellcasting was without any visible runic rings, making it look as if iron skewers flew out of his waist pouch on their own, forming several rows beside him, poised to strike.
On the muddy road outside the forest, under the dim light of street lamps, the silver-haired girl still stood in place, bathing in the falling rain, seemingly unaware of the impending attack.
After waiting for a while, and not hearing Dead Skewer explain what Neon Nightmare was, the girl spoke again: “I really haven’t heard of it.”Her tone even seemed a bit sincere, which made Dead Skewer want to laugh. He thought, such a clumsy excuse, yet with such an innocent expression. If Miss Nameless didn’t become a mercenary, she could easily transition to the acting world.
Unfortunately, there would be no future for that. He thought, then he waved his hand as if directing soldiers, sending the iron skewers flying from different angles toward her.
“Die!” Dead Skewer whispered to himself, as he envisioned the silver-haired girl being pierced to death by countless skewers.
A storm of iron skewers rained down upon the silver-haired girl, blazing red light shimmering around her as countless cracks formed. In just a few breaths, her high-quality defensive spell was crumbling and seemed on the verge of collapse.
But just as Dead Skewer believed he had accomplished his task, accompanied by the cracking of red light, another layer of defensive spell composed of numerous red runes appeared around the silver-haired girl, protecting her from injury.
Another layer? Dead Skewer was astonished, but the attack did not stop; he still had two-thirds of his specially crafted iron skewers left—plenty enough to take down this target.
Continuing to manipulate the skewers for attack, one layer shattered, then another, and after breaking through three layers of defense, Dead Skewer’s expression finally changed as he saw another layer still remaining.
He was running low on the specially crafted iron skewers required for his skewer magic!
Why hadn’t she fallen yet?
What was that strange red defensive spell? Why was there another layer after breaking the first one? How many layers were there in total?
As a professional assassin, Dead Skewer quickly realized that the situation was going awry and began to entertain thoughts of retreat. He felt a sting in his heart knowing the cost of those skewers—they were quite expensive. Spraying out most of them like this was truly counterproductive.
Cursing under his breath, Dead Skewer turned to leave. He had a unique light and shadow magic that allowed him to merge with the darkness, making it impossible for a normal person’s eyes to discern him. With this spell, he could always retreat unharmed even after a failed nighttime strike.
Yet just as he silently turned to leave, a calm voice, ghostly like a specter, echoed behind him: “There you are.”
How did she find me?!
Dead Skewer’s heart raced with shock, instinctively wanting to turn and retaliate. But having traditionally relied on skewer arts for assassination and often escaping with a single strike, his grasp of other spells had become rusty. He tried to unleash a long-unused “Flame Fist,” only to forget to cast a physical enhancement spell on himself and was instead seized by the silver-haired girl.
With a gentle twist, she locked his wrist behind him, rendering him immobile.
Before he could even cast a defensive spell for himself, the silver-haired girl kicked him in the abdomen, sending him crashing against a nearby tree, breaking the slender trunk in half as if it were a twig.
“Spare… spare me… I’m just… working for money…” Dead Skewer curled up on the ground like a shrimp, groaning in pain.
He had only just cast a defensive spell on himself, yet the girl’s kick, infused with powerful wind magic, had shattered his defensive spell in one go.
This was truly incredible; the only explanation was that her wind magic was at least a high-spec spell of 60,000 or more. But such a high-spec spell exhibited such simplicity—no flashy movements or loud sounds, and low elemental fluctuations. Was her control over spells so profound?
How skilled must one be to achieve that?
……
Yvette stopped in front of Dead Skewer.
The reason she had endured the onslaught of his skewers at the outset wasn’t to show off the solidity of her four-layer crimson armor, but rather to utilize the operational traces associated with the skewers to pinpoint his exact location. Without this, even with the aid of light and shadow magic, she wouldn’t be able to distinguish him from the surrounding darkness when standing in front of him.
Now that he had revealed himself, it made things much easier. She didn’t rush to act but instead asked, “Who hired you?”
“I… I don’t know… The identity of the employer is confidential. I can only choose from the orders issued by the organization… I only know the person to be killed…” Dead Skewer replied. Noticing Yvette narrowing her eyes, he hurriedly added, “Everyone in this line of work is like that… Otherwise, they could sell out employer information at any time. Where does the organization get its credibility from?”
This made some sense, but if he couldn’t provide anything, what use was he? Yvette’s gaze turned even colder as it fell on Dead Skewer.
“I… I can buy my life! Miss Nameless, what do you think?” Dead Skewer hastily said, “Otherwise, if I die, the organization will come after you too, which is not good for you, right?”
This was, of course, a lie.
For Neon Nightmare, the death of a subordinate assassin was just part of the game; after all, being an assassin is a high-mortality job. If someone was weak and ended up dead, expecting the organization to cover for them would just annoy every other power out there.
Rather, it could be said that Neon Nightmare, as a killer organization, operated with not only profit as their goal but also a degree of self-preservation. Only someone like Yvette, a free agent, would be permitted to become a target. For high-level executives from the eight major companies, the organization would often refuse to take the job entirely.
“How much can you afford to buy your life?”
“500,000… no, how about 1,000,000!” the assassin gritted his teeth.
“Only 1,000,000? Is your life worth that little?”
“Y-You… how much do you want?”
“2,000,000.”
“I… I need some time to gather the funds; just wait for me…” Dead Skewer gritted his teeth, appearing to have resigned to reality, but in truth, his mental focus was already concentrated on a certain spot on his thigh.
There was a specially crafted iron skewer hidden there, his trump card, powerful enough to penetrate even the defensive spells of level five mages. As long as he could connect it to the opponent’s spell without being noticed…
He operated cautiously, his heart racing. But just a few seconds later, as he finally connected it to the skewer using the most discreet method, the next moment, “thud,” the skewer suddenly moved forward, piercing straight through his heart.
“?!” Dead Skewer’s eyes went wide, producing a sound of shock, then he noticed the calm expression on the silver-haired girl’s face, suddenly realizing, in disbelief, “You… hijacked my spell…”
Yvette said nothing, merely acknowledging.
Dead Skewer began to tremble. As an assassin who walked on the edge of life and death, he was psychologically prepared to die on a mission, but he had never imagined he would die like this. After all, he was a level four mage, and for someone at that level to have their spell commandeered silently? That was beyond imagination!
Was she a level five mage? But could a level five mage allow him to have no awareness of the hijacking process at all?
Could it be that she was actually level six…
As he thought to this point, Dead Skewer’s eyes suddenly widened in shock. How could that be? A level six mage was a national treasure-level existence; how could he have encountered one in such a desolate forest?
However, the remaining moments of life would not be enough for him to continue to ponder. With endless bewilderment and regret in his eyes, his vitality faded away, and he fell silent.