A Badass Nobody (4)

Atop a lonely clifftop thousands of miles away, a duo spectated the ongoing fight. One stood a step behind the other, both nearing the peak as even a gentle breeze could push them straight into the endless abyss.

Both of them were dressed in white monastic robes, the only stark difference between the two was their age.

The older one, probably around his 80s, rubbed his chin in curiosity while the other stood respectfully behind him, not making any noise.

The senior watched on with a glint of amusement in his dark brown eyes. "A grave error indeed."

"That Angel's abilities..." The younger man standing him behind voiced out in concern.

The old man turned towards the young man behind him. "It is very unique, no?"

"The source from which he drew that power," The younger man hesitated for a second as a strand of long hair drifted across his face, "I don't believe it exists in this realm."

The elder did not bother replying, turning back towards the spectacle.

Seeing that the elder did not make any comments, the younger man continued. "By infiltrating into 7th Heaven, I've gained access to the Sacred Gear System and memorized most, if not all, of the Sacred Gears. During my time there, I've observed the so-called 'System of Miracles,' or as the Biblical God called them, the 'Sacred Gears System.'"

"And...?"

"While there are many Sacred Gears capable of giving strength boosts, there was not a Sacred Gear that could also grant the utility abilities used by that particular Angel."

What about the possibility of magic?

It was never considered because there was not a trace of mana!

Not to mention, there weren't any pure Angels with Sacred Gears!

"While his current abilities are much weaker than most combat-oriented Sacred Gears, I have a... wild speculation."

"..."

Taking the silence as a 'go-ahead' the younger man continued. "The growth of his abilities is likely that of an exponential growth rather than a linear one, this is assuming that he would survive this. Of course, this is just complete speculation, but my intuition tells me this is the case."

"I see."

"Are you... interested in recruiting him? If so, shall I make a move?"

"No. We will continue watching like the other non-Abrahamic factions."

"By your will, elder. I've noticed others locking onto our position."

"Later than expected."

The young man waited.

"Let's have a better view then."

As soon as the elder finished, their body started to disappear part by part!

It was like that of a painter 'erasing' everything with white paint on a white canvas!

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Survive.

It was at this moment that Lin Zhi knew he had messed up. He had only thought of doing a good job but he hadn't considered the ramifications of his actions.

This was what the System meant when they said: "you dug your own grave, now lie in it!"

Lin Zhi got caught up in the flow of things, from his System activating out of nowhere to being dropped in the middle of an army about to begin a war.

When Lin Zhi received the mission and passed the spatial portal, he paid too much attention to his new 'identity' and the current situation, subconsciously forgetting that he didn't belong!

He slipped into Method Acting without even realizing it! A technique of acting where the actor 'becomes' the character both consciously and subconsciously to better act out their given role!

Angels, to Lin Zhi, are selfless holy beings that won't let acts of evil go unpunished, even willing to sacrifice themselves for the righteous. He had subconsciously let go of his more rational side that cared about his wellbeing and shifted it towards the more impulsive/righteous type that didn't care if he would die or not!

'Is this why the System is called the Trope-Based System?'

'I'm only playing a trope and not becoming it!'

Lin Zhi knew he had asked the System about his 'actor role' before, but seeing his actions and the consequences that resulted from them really cemented the idea in his head!

It's like your parents telling you to not stay out too late, you don't pay much heed to it until you actually get robbed on your way back!

Now you'll never forget it!

'Ahhh, this is embarrassing.'

He turned towards the three middle-class Devils obstructing him, his eyes wandered to that of the side of peripherals displaying a small 'bag' icon. 'Should I...? No. I need to save it for later.'

This is a trial he must overcome!

Since he had an initial start, the Devils closing in from behind wouldn't matter, so the real problem lies in the three middle-class Devils in front of him.

How can he survive the onslaught of spells? A simple two or three 'pellets' from a torrent of medium-level spells could severely injure him!

'I'll figure it out when I get there!' There was simply no time to think!

He spread his wings wide before flapping them strongly, propelling him towards onto the incoming Devils. They were centered in a triangle formation, with what appears to be the 'leader' of the middle-class Devils in the front and two other Devils 4-5 meters behind him on his left and right.

Seeing his reckless action, they smiled devilishly as circles of magic of varying colors started appearing around them.

A torrent of spells flooded straight at him, covering every single angle!

Lin Zhi brought out his hand and closed his eyes before a magic circle the size of his body conjured itself into existence.

He smiled self-deprecating, 'Let's hope this will be enough.'

Bam!

Sizz!

Zz!

Crack!

Within a mere half-second of contact, his magic barrier had already started to crumble!

His teeth clenched against his molars as he transferred more mana into the defensive barrier, pushing it to its limits. The cracks formed by the spells started to reform itself as it then begins to crack again, repeating the process continuously. 'I can't let this continue!'

Within 2 seconds, they'll meet face to face.

Surprisingly, instead of using both of his hands to supply mana into the barrier, he let one of them go!

With the free arm, sparks of light formed into a spear. With his arms tightened, he shot out the spear of light towards the middle-class Devil in the center!

Since he had let an arm go, as soon as the spear shot out, a loud final crack could be heard!

The barrier had collapsed!

An amalgamation of fire, water, ice, and lightning clashed together before a loud resounding explosion rang throughout the battlefield followed by a flood of smoke.

Confused at why the Angel would throw a spear at him despite his circumstances, the middle-class Devil narrowed his eyes in deep contemplation before a flash of understanding crossed his eyes.

The Devil did something even more surprising!

Instead of dodging or casting a defensive spell against the spear of light half-a-meter away from him, the Devil struck the spear with his right arm!

Just as his fist was a centimeter away from the spear, a loud thud could be heard before a cry of pain followed up!

"Gagh!"

The voice wasn't from the Devil!

The figure of an Angel started to color itself into existence, revealing the very same Angel that should've been dead!

The middle-class Devil had unexpectedly figured out that the 'spear of light' was actually Lin Zhi in disguise!

Coughing out blood, Lin Zhi's vision started to blur before an invisible force quickly started to converge onto his body, augmenting him!

Instead of falling back, Lin Zhi grabbed the Devil's arm that had previously struck him and kicked the Devil with his left leg against the Devil's chest, propelling himself backward from the force of impact!

Using the Devil's arm as an anchor, Lin Zhi transferred the rebounding force of his first kick by twisting his body almost 360 degrees almost instantaneously—before delivering a strong roundhouse kick with his other leg!

Bam!

With the Arbiter's ability to deal with the 'unexpected,' Lin Zhi's kicks were enhanced by a whole level, temporarily giving him the strength of the middle-class.

With the Devil slouched from the impact of the roundhouse kick, Lin Zhi used his body to 'slide across' the Devil's bent form! Since he still had the Devil by his arm, when Lin Zhi landed on the other side of the Devil, he immediately flung the 'boss' Devil into the middle-class Devil on the left!

With the middle-class 'boss' Devil acting as a wall between Lin Zhi and the Devil on the left, Lin Zhi still had to deal with the Devil on the right.

By this point, the power to 'deal with the unexpected' had already disappeared from his body!

Swiftly pulling out his sword from his scabbard, Lin Zhi immediately parried the incoming strike of the ax-halberd weapon of the Devil on the right!

Clang!

Lin Zhi was immediately pushed back by the strength disparity.

Through his peripherals, Lin Zhi had seen the Devil on the left managed to throw a quick but decently powered fireball flying straight at him before he got 'bodyslammed' by the 'boss' Devil!

'&@$#!'

Clang!

Contrary to everyone's surprise, the blazing ball of fire had smashed into a large orange 'octagon' that contains even smaller octagons inside!

Absolute Terror Field! A barrier that only activates when something 'collides' against the owner.

However, as soon as the A.T. Field appeared, it quickly shattered into smaller geometric shapes and then disappeared!

According to the System, the A.T. Field could take 2 low-tier spells, this hastily casted spell was just about the strength of two.

With the two Devils to his left readying up for the counteroffensive and being forced into a defensive position, Lin Zhi's chances of survival grew dimmer and dimmer.

As Lin Zhi was distracted by the fireball earlier, the Devil attacking him with the halberd immediately seized the moment of opportunity!

Transferring all the force into his arm holding the halberd, the Devil immediately delivered a strong thrust!

Piercing Lin Zhi's lower chest, slightly missing his heart, the raw strength of the thrust immediately forced Lin Zhi to cough out a liter of blood onto the halberd.

With the halberd still inside of Lin Zhi's body, the Devil forcefully pulled it back out!

"URGH!"

More and more blood gushed out of his body.

From his rapidly fading vision, Lin Zhi could see a follow-up attack.

The executioners strike!

Before Lin Zhi could pull out the [Pill of Temporary Enlightenment] from his inventory, a spear of light immediately penetrated the Devil who was about finish off Lin Zhi in the chest!

Following that—another one in the head!

'R...Re...or...ments...' Lin Zhi managed to force out a smile before using his Swindler ability to overlay an illusion of him that had already 'died' on top of himself, deceiving those close to him.

With the Devils around him being skewered with spears of light, Lin Zhi started dropping down from the sky.

Left with no energy, his eyes started to close.

[Side Quest Objective Fulfilled!]

Lin Zhi had finally lost consciousness.