Chapter 57: Suffering From Success (II)

Killian was furious, and it was showing through his usual stoic façade. Despite all his preparations, he had failed to hunt down the noble girl. He had to give her some credit. For someone so naïve, Killian didn't believe she possessed such combat abilities.

Yes, he had caught a glimpse of some of that beforehand, but there was a difference between having skill and actually being sharp in combat.

Killian thought he'd accounted for anything unforeseen. He had trailed her for days, looking for the optimal position to make his move. Even after learning she had no hidden protectors guarding her, he didn't act immediately. With his expertise, Killian always tried to be as thorough as possible in his fieldwork. His caution might seem excessive, but it was the sole reason he was still breathing after hunting so many lesser nobles and gifted individuals over the years.

His current target appeared to be from some prestigious house, though he couldn't pinpoint her exact background. As for why she had no guardians, he did not dwell on it. She might even have fled from home, for all he cared. While Killian had to fight daily to make ends meet when he was her age, for someone born with a silver spoon, wealth and attention might be suffocating. He'd seen and heard of many such cases over the years.

Regardless, he believed he had finally found a golden goose. The girl even possessed a spatial device. Only the Lord knew what riches and extravagant items lay hidden within it. Hell, a spatial storage device alone would fetch an astronomical price on the black market. Killian was almost certain that if he succeeded in this operation, he would be well set for his Silver advancement.

So much so that he even broke his own rule of never going after someone from a Bloodline clan. For him to come across such an easy target on a silver platter, Killian couldn't help but think that he was finally receiving some of the Lord's grace. After all, it wasn't easy for a no-name nobody like him to advance to Silver.

Still, he spared no effort in scouting her out. First, he attempted to gauge her abilities by setting wild animals upon her camp. While using wild animals as proxies hadn't worked as well as he had hoped, it did take a toll on her body, as the noble lass hadn't had a good night's sleep since encountering him.

It was only after making certain that she was completely worn out, with little to no capacity to endure his assault, that Killian made his move. He also had his two apprentices in support. Not to mention, the region he had chosen was not somewhere she could easily flee from.

Now, consider his surprise that not only had he failed in his assault, but she had managed to flee the encirclement, injuring all three of them. Killian himself hadn't suffered anything dire, but his two young apprentices weren't as lucky. Abyss devour her, the girl even had opportunities to dispatch them completely. Given how rigorously she had hunted goblins, Killian was sure she could have easily seized the chance to end them for good, only to be surprised that she hadn't made any killing moves against them.

She really was too naïve. Unfortunately, he had still underestimated her capabilities. Most of her killing power had been focused on creating an escape for herself.

During his scouting, he had discovered that she had a decent grasp of kinetic and fire spells, along with a movement skill. Yet, during his assault, he found that not only was she capable of casting wind and light spells, and possessed a high Life attunement, but she also had at least a couple of good Silver skills under her belt.

Hell, if not for that cursed self-healing ability, she would have already been dead half a dozen times under his blade. That at least helped him narrow down her background, though it only chilled his heart with worry. Another concern was the sheer amount of mana she had access to. It seemed to be far higher than that of a classed ascendant like him.

She had managed to stay alive despite Killian chasing her for miles through the Subterranean region. Then, finally, she had slipped from his perception by creating chaos with a pack of goblins.

Of course, the battle had taken its toll on her body. She couldn't have fled the Subterranean region.

Killian would give himself half a day to find and finish what he had started. If not, he might have to change regions and lay low for a couple of years. No Bloodline clan would take an assault on one of their own lightly. Dealing with someone like Killian would be as effortless as breathing for them.

Yes, there might be some loss in fleeing from Illclave, but it was still better to be alive. He had a good chunk of his wealth in liquid assets, at least. The biggest loss would be his two apprentices. They were of acceptable talent, and Killian had spent a good deal of effort training them, but they were almost half-crippled in the battle. It would take no less than a small miracle for them to amount to much in life.

"Well, as long as I am alive, I can train many more talents to my heart's desire," Killian muttered under his breath. After all, there was no shortage of gifted individuals, only the resources to train them.

Now that he was considering running away, he wondered if he should assault some other noble youths and seize whatever he could before escaping, if he couldn't get hold of that girl. Most of them certainly had a guardian or two protecting them. And those that didn't hardly ever had much on their person to make the hunt worthwhile.

Still, he couldn't get his head around the fact that he had failed to hunt down an unclassed ascendant as naïve as her.

"She couldn't have possibly reached Tier 8 at such a tender age, could she?" he thought. The girl still seemed to have a year or so before her class ascension. Could she have reached the legendary Tier 9 before that? Such achievements were unprecedented, even among the Bloodline clans.

Then he shook his head, realising the slim chance of that. Some of her abilities could be attributed to the artefacts she bore. Although her clothes didn't seem extravagant at first glance, they were all highly enchanted items. Not to mention, she lacked no equipment either, such as the magic staff she brought out or the cape that seemed to accelerate her movement skill.

As he thought about it, Killian could not help but feel a pang of regret at failing to claim all those riches.

Abruptly, a piercing cry echoed in his ears, accompanied by slight tremors in the ground, pulling him out of his reverie. Killian frowned, his eyes narrowing as he turned his head.

"Who is deranged enough to anger one of the Silver Kings of the Mirewood?" Even Killian himself didn't have such balls.

At least, he didn't have to wait long for an answer, as a boy barely reaching his chest blurred towards him, with a humongous serpent trailing behind. Shards of stone flew about in their wake as the boy foolishly cast his minuscule spells at the monstrosity.

Killian thought about getting out of his way and concealing himself with his shadow mana in case he incurred the basilisk's ire. Yet, to his utter fury, the kid shot right after him no matter which direction he chose.

"Uncle, help!" shouted the kid.

"Who's your uncle?! Go die in the ditch you have pulled yourself up from, brat!"

"Uncle, please," the boy pleaded. "With yours and my abilities combined, we can hunt it down easily."

"That seems very plausible," Killian shouted furiously. "I have an idea. Why don't you keep it at bay for a moment while I prepare my strongest attack?"

"Uncle, do you need to flee to prepare your attack?"

"No, that's just to keep myself alive," Killian fumed. "Now get the fuck out of my sight."

****

It took Ember only a couple of minutes to realise he was not capable of hunting down a Silver-ranked creature, even when it was grievously wounded. He had no choice but to run once again. Even that would have proved impossible after the toll he had taken, if not for the good uncle he had unexpectedly met on the path.

Although the man seemed shady enough to abandon a kid as young as him to his death, Ember had shamelessly clung to his coattails to find a way out.

Hopefully, his good uncle was also lucky enough to find himself an escape route. After all, Ember had managed it, and he was unclassed.

However, even after escaping, his misery did not end there. While Mind Wall could prevent his sensory receptors from sending the sensations of agony to his brain, it was no real solution. Then, once he had dragged himself out of the basilisk's pursuit, all the battering, pain, and torment his body had been forced through seemed to surge up all at once, almost rendering him incapable of utilising any of his skills.

On top of that, in his panic, Ember had dashed off in whichever direction he felt was strategically best for his survival, losing the path that would lead him out of this goblin lair. Now, carving his way out would require no small effort, and Ember was not foolish enough to attempt that in such a grievous state.

So, he looked for somewhere to conceal himself and rest. Ember had been searching for some crevices to hide in. As far as he was concerned, that goliath would never consider someone hiding inside a crevice in the ceiling.

It didn't take him long to find a fissure high in the stony wall. It seemed deep enough and offered sufficient space for him to at least sit down and meditate. Who could have known that someone else had already claimed it and had set security measures?

With his mind fuzzy from all the chaos, Ember was a moment too late to notice whatever cantrip he had triggered as a terrible force hurtled towards him.

Thankfully, Ember managed to evade most of its force. Otherwise, the spell would not only have reopened his wounds but also sent him hurtling down the wall. Ember barely had any kinetic mana left to cushion another fall.

Now, he only had to endure his back digging into the rugged wall. Yet, as he oriented himself, Ember found a girl no older than a couple of years above him standing before him with a blasted staff pointed at his skull, ready to fire at even the slightest disturbance.

========

Another one coming in about an hour.