Skin Underneath

The shadow knight was aware of Cedric the moment he opened the door. Its figure was tall, lean, and menacing. Tendrils of shadows rose from its body, which was nothing but darkness. The knight pulled out its sword, dragging it across the floor. Cedric saw the lingering shadows latch onto the ground like flames that refused to die. As the knight prepared to attack, the summoning was done.

[You have summoned Fire Wolf (Level 25)]

[Remaining time: 8 minutes, 32 seconds.]

A creature of flames burst into existence between them. Its light shone through the courtroom, illuminating the deepest corners. The temperature rose as the wolf burned, growling at the shadow knight. Cedric smiled as he retrieved his sword. His heart beat faster in anticipation of the fight. The shadow did not scream nor attack, but it slashed the air, creating a shadow wolf before it.

The two wolves growled at each other before sprinting into action. Cedric also ran forward with Shade flying above the battlefield, channeling her lightning. The knight met Cedric head-on, and their swords collided.

Cleng!

At first, Cedric thought he had a chance against the monster, given that he invested most of his points into agility. But the moment their swords collided, Cedric felt the overwhelming difference in their strength. His feet could not remain on the ground as his body soared into the air. Cedric became a broken kite that slammed against the walls and fell to the ground. His world spun a little as his Observe Skill told him the sword was inches away from his heart.

Clang!

Cedric raised his sword to protect his body and rolled on the ground right afterward. Then, he darted forward to escape the knight. As he circled a pillar, he watched his enemy emerge from the dust cloud with a slow gait.

"You want to look badass, huh?" muttered Cedric as he checked on his wolf. The two monsters were wrestling each other to the ground, but it was clear the shadow wolf was not real. It was a part of the knight's powers to create shadows.

He could no longer be distracted as the knight bolted toward him. It struck the pillar and shattered it while Cedric rolled on the ground and escaped again. The knight chased after him, but Cedric used his Observe Skill and the pillars to remain unharmed. Shade finished charging her lightning bolts, and the attacks rained on the knight, who dodged with surprising ease. The courtroom became a mess as lightning, fire, and shadows intertwined within the rising dust.

Cedric had to survive while distracting the knight from Shade, their highest damage dealer. The knight's strength was only second to its agility as it dodged the attacks with ease. More than once, it tried to attack Shade, but Cedric hindered it.

A strange balance appeared between the four, one that could easily be broken. Once the Fire Wolf defeated its nemesis, the balance shattered as it rushed toward the knight. This time, the shadow had to defend against three instead of two.

Cedric rushed behind his Fire Wolf as he covered his sword with its flames. Then, the two of them surrounded the knight and began kiting the monster. Each time the knight turned in a certain direction, the one behind it would start attacking.

Boom!

Lightning roared through the courtroom as it slammed into the knight's chest, sending it flying. The shadow knight slammed against the wall and fell to the ground. Cedric wanted to rush forward again, but he stopped.

The knight leaned on the wall, and the place where the lightning had struck had no shadows. Instead, it revealed a bronze plate of armor with a gaping hole. Beneath the armor was human skin, scorched by the attack.

"What the hell?" muttered Cedric in confusion as he watched the shadows attempt to rejoin, hiding the human skin underneath. The shadow knight struggled to stand, staggering as it walked toward him.

Cedric was never a fan of horror stories, but he found himself in one. A monster that he was fighting suddenly turned out to have human skin underneath? It gave him goosebumps to even think about it.

The shadow knight darted forward, and Shade charged her horns with lightning. Cedric raised his hand to stop the lightning attack but allowed the Fire Wolf to stall for time. The knight was clearly weaker than before, so the wolf could buy them some time.

On the other hand, Cedric activated the narrator. It managed to tell him what was happening, and it made him sick. The summoner had fed one of the earlier party members to the shadows to create this shadow knight. It was the young warrior from earlier.

Cedric had believed he was fighting a shadow monster, but this realization changed everything. Although he killed Aric the Mask without hesitation, he could not do the same to an innocent man. This made the situation tricky.

The wolf began struggling against the shadow knight, and Cedric had to choose between being killed or killing an innocent man. Cedric could not use the skill Forgotten, nor Mimic, because he had already used them a few hours ago.

Killing the knight was not the issue, but saving him was. His expression could not be any sourer since he was having fun fighting this monster when he was slammed with this moral dilemma.

"All because of that damned summoner," spat Cedric with a frown as he watched his wolf get beat up left and right. "Stop using the lightning, Shade. We have to defeat the shadows without hurting the man underneath."

Shade could not understand, but she listened to his commands. Cedric rushed to help his wolf before it got killed. He appeared beside the two and attacked the knight's sword, attempting to send it flying. However, the difference in their strength made that plan a pipe dream.

Cedric also instructed the wolf to use ranged attacks only while he distracted the knight. The fire seemed to eliminate some of the shadows, revealing the warrior underneath. His confirmed suspicions only made the fight harder for Cedric, who didn't know what to do.

[Fire Wolf (Level 25) has reached its time limit. Your summoned monster is returning to its realm.]

The balance was once again broken when his Fire Wolf disappeared. The shadow pushed him back, and the difference in their levels became more apparent with the kiting tactic gone. Cedric had to use his Observe Skill just to stay alive, escaping death by a hairbreadth.

Shade wanted to fire the lightning again, but Cedric once again commanded her to stop. The Djinn Cat stared at the scene helplessly as Cedric suffered constant blows, each sending him rolling on the ground.

The Extra System had nothing that Cedric could use at the moment, since he needed Ember's moonlight to banish the shadows controlling it. As he struggled to escape, a crazy concept began forming in his mind.

The Shadow Roc had chosen Cedric as a vessel for shadows, and the Mark of Umbra was proof of that. Therefore, although Cedric was not the Shadeborn, he should have some control over shadows using the mark. The proof was the shadow knight before him, created by a summoner just like Cedric.

As his thoughts reached this point, Cedric did not hesitate any longer. He commanded Shade to stand by as he returned his sword to his dimensional ring. Then, he stood in the middle of the courtroom as the shadow knight rushed toward him.

Cedric spread his arms open, focusing on the Mark of Umbra on his neck. He could feel it tingling, letting him know that he had the power, but he just needed to focus.

The shadow knight bolted toward him, raising its sword of darkness to pierce through Cedric's heart. Even as the looming threat of death approached, Cedric did not dodge. He gnashed his teeth together as he poured his focus into the Mark of Umbra.

…

The shadow sword was inches away from his heart. 

...

[Umbra has heard your call.]