Chapter 18

The first few days of traveling weren't difficult. It was, in fact, pretty easy. He had grown strong enough to be able to spend the entire day swimming within the shadows. It was just that he had to shift into his human form when the sun appeared, as there was a lack of obstacles in the vicinity.

Currently, he was approaching a dense forest as little droplets fell from the sky. Some time ago, it started raining heavily.

For some reason, Blake got a really bad feeling once he entered the forest, and he almost debated himself to go back. Relying on instincts always worked well for him. Unfortunately, he didn't have enough time, and a screen popped up in front of him.

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[Quest: Slay 11 D-grade warriors]

[Description: You have entered the territory of a party of D-grade otherworlds. As a superior C-grade, you are obliged to portray your supremacy. However, those at the bottom won't just accept their fate, resistance is certain. Both sides will be provided with a map of their enemies]

[Reward: Permanent Strong Potion]

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Blake stared at the floating screen for a few moments, utterly disjointed. He then clicked his tongue, as killing intent spread from his body. Just when he thought that things wouldn't get any worse, this Ruthless Heaven creates a quest like this?

Kill 11 D-grade warriors? Sure, he was stronger than most of them, but could he actually defeat so many of them? He had struggled against three of them just not long ago, and Ruthless Heaven knew about it.

'I need to calm down. Panicking is never an option.' Blake pinched his own skin, removing all these thoughts. He felt angry at this floating screen, but he had to focus right now. Maria had said that this screen never gave quests that were impossible to do, it was just that they could be extremely difficult.

This was no exception. Blake glanced at another screen that had popped into the corner of his vision. There was a large map with several dots on it. Four of them were away from the main bunch, but they had already begun their sprint back.

Blake didn't even think twice before jumping into the shadows. He moved faster than ever, utilizing his dexterity attribute to the maximum. If those four dots connected with other, then he would basically have no chance of completing this mission.

As he crossed half of the distance towards those four, he noticed that the other group started moving towards him. It seems that they had understood his plan and wanted to stop it as soon as possible.

Unfortunately for them, Blake's speed was superior and he had finally reached his destination. There was a group of three men and one woman, and all of them were staring in his direction, confused.

"I clearly see a dot right in front of me, but there is no one here. Is this screen tripping or something?" A robust man said, weapon at the ready. "Abdul, what about you? Does it show the same thing?"

"Yeah," Abdul answered, frowning once he saw the dot moving closer to them. He spread his hands outward, forming a translucent barrier around them. So far, nothing had ever broken it.

A figure rose from the shadows just outside of the barrier, wearing a mask and holding a menacing axe in his hand. Abdul felt goosebumps spreading through his back. He felt the danger of that man.

Blake's axe got coated in darkness as he swung at full strength. The barrier didn't put any resistance at all, and the shield cracked immediately. Abdul coughed some blood, but he kept standing on his feet.

Once the path was open, Blake once again disappeared into the shadows, reappearing a moment later in the rear. His dark axe moved towards the woman, who looked at the impending doom in dear. Others couldn't react properly before a head was sent flying into the air.

Blake didn't stop, once again dipping into the shadows. He rose in the middle of the group, wanting to take them all out together with one swing, but it proved impossible. They had caught on, understanding that using the map was indeed the correct answer.

Blake put his axe against his body, managing to deal with the biggest threat. A huge sword collided with his axe, occupying Blake's hands. At the same time, those two at back didn't just stand still, as Abdul took a dagger and threw it at him. The other one pointed his finger at his neck, forcing his nail to suddenly detach from his body and fly off.

Utilizing [Authority of Time], Blake knew the trajectory of the attacks, but he couldn't escape them entirely due to the sword pressing down on him. Thus, he shifted his body in a way that the attacks would cause the least amount of damage. The dagger penetrated his back, but it didn't foist any of his organs. That nasty nail, on the other hand, was an entirely different story.

It seemed like its owner had some manual control over it, as the nail shifted in the air, suddenly becoming faster. Blake predicted this as well, so he had at least a second to decide on what he should do now.

Soughing, he rose one of his hands into the air, as the nail ripped into it, yet not managing to come through the other side. It was probably due to his bones being much tougher in comparison to before.

The pain was great, but not blinding. The robust man with the sword already retracted his sword, preparing to strike again. However, he never got the chance to do so. Another Blake appeared behind the enemy, removing his head from his shoulder in a swift motion.

Blood spluttered into the air, covering all of them. The real Blake turned around immediately, seeing that the nail man was cooking up something bad again. Blake didn't hesitate to throw his axe at the enemy, sticking it deep inside his forehead.

Another body fell, causing Abdul's eyes to widen in shock. He glanced at the screen, seeing that the six dots were still some distance away. Panicking, Abdul clicked his fingers, as a white light sprinkled into the air. It was similar to a flashbang.

Then, Abdul started running away. There was no point in fighting against this monster. Little did he know that Blake had closed his eyes beforehand, fully knowing what was going to happen.

Blake appeared in front of the man and sliced him into two parts, causing blood to cover the ground again. He felt the surge of power in his veins, but he didn't relax, for the job wasn't done.

Even now, he had gotten some bothersome injuries. Glancing at the screen, a plan started forming in his head. Ruthless Heaven wouldn't give impossible missions. He could do it.

He had to.