Chapter 77: Desperation

"Boss, you’re never going to believe this."

One of the third-realm assassins who had watched the fight from start to finish tapped the side of his helmet-like mask and spoke, his voice filled with shock and disbelief.

[What happened?] The reply came fast. [Has he defeated the rookies?]

"Yes. But there’s more." The assassin replied, keeping up with the running Adam at a distance. "The kid is far more monstrous than the data showed. And that person was right. The boy is hiding a lot more than he let on. The way he moved... it was like the world itself was aiding him. And his strength is already at the peak of the second realm."

[...]

A moment of silence passed.

[Keep watching the boy. I’ll be there soon.]

"Boss...?"

[What is it?]

"Must we really keep what we’ve discovered a secret? We could sell his information to the others. You know how they want powerful awakeners."

[We’ll discuss this when we get back to base.] The fourth realm assassin said. [Just continue watching him.]

"Roger." The assassin replied.

He had truly seen something monstrous and impossible. Adam was too talented to make any sense. Even a monster would fall short of the boy’s level.

When he and his partner had chased after Adam, the boy had been far slower. Now, however, it was like watching something streak through the woods like a flowing river, unresisted and free.

Adam’s speed was already comparable to those at the early stages of the third realm and rising. The feat should have been an impossibility for someone who had recently awakened, but the boy was making it happen.

Back at the riverside, Captain Jack carefully watched the fourth realm assassin communicate under his breath. The assassin seemed to become distracted, as though debating whether to move or stay.

’A chance!’

The moment the lead assassin turned his head in the direction Adam had run, Captain Jackson attacked. In one fluid motion, he withdrew the blade at his blade and closed the distance between him and the assassin in a flash. He moved so fast that it looked like he had teleported.

Captain Jackson’s blade cut through the air with deadly precision, aiming to take the assassin’s head in one lethal move. But the lead assassin was by no means weak. The assassin had predicted the captain’s attack and responded by bending backwards.

The air exploded a second later, the pressure zooming past everyone’s head like a raging storm. The upper parts of trees in the distance took the full brunt of the captain’s attack, bending and breaking under the force of the wind.

"Pull back!"

The lead assassin spun and manoeuvred around the captain, sliding back to create distance. Before the captain’s men could attack as well, the other assassins jumped back, disengaging from the standoff.

The third realm assassin, who had been pressing a gun to Miss Xin’s head, delivered a heavy backhand to the lead researcher’s face, violently sending her flying.

"Ah!"

"Miss Xin!"

The woman’s cry resounded with spine-chilling dread as she crashed into the river, slamming against the rocks in the water. As everyone’s attention went to her, the assassins took off into the woods, chasing after their colleagues.

Captain Jackson’s face turned pale as he rushed to Miss Xin’s side, grabbing her by the shoulders and sitting her up. "Are you alright, Miss Xin?! Are you alright?!"

The panic and impatience in his voice could not be hidden. Miss Xin was bleeding from her lips, her glasses lost from the slap.

Heavily disoriented but mostly okay, Miss Xin mumbled a soft yeah, looking around in confusion. "I-I’ll be fine."

"Get them out of here and back to town!" Captain Jackson turned to his men and commanded, taking off with a burst of blurring speed, not bothering to get a response.

"Oh, my God! Miss Xin!"

"You’re okay! You’re okay!"

The technicians and students rushed to Miss Xin’s side, helping her get back to her feet.

Riley furrowed her brows as her gaze followed the direction in which the captain and the assassins disappeared. That attack from the captain had been terrifying.

Just the shockwaves had trimmed down and broken several trees in a wide area around the riverside with ease.

"We need to leave, now." The second-in-command urged, looking around. "There’s no telling if they’ll return."

Despite the man’s words, they knew that was unlikely. The assassins had made it clear that they were only after Adam. Striking Miss Xin had been a distraction on their part.

"Let’s hope the captain gets Adam back." One of the students muttered.

Captain Jackson dashed through the woods at incredible speeds, covering hundreds of meters in a second. His eyes darted about, swiftly picking up clues and tracks all over as he followed the assassins.

’That kid better be fine when I catch up!’

Before long, he spotted all four assassins. The third realm assassins were not as fast as fourth realm experts, especially against someone who was almost at the peak of that realm.

The lead assassin, who had been moving ahead of the other three, looked back and noticed the captain hot on their trail. He had been moving a lot slower than normal to not leave his teammates behind.

With a couple of gestures, he instructed the others to split, each assassin taking a different route. The moment they changed trajectory, the lead assassin exploded with even greater speed. He would lead the captain off course and then reconvene with his team.

’Damn it!’

Captain Jack cursed under his breath. He made a quick decision to go after the leader, as he would know more than the others. He ignored the three weaklings and stayed on the tail of the lead assassin.

The two zoomed through the woods at terrifying speeds, their figures a blur. The lead assassin led the captain deeper into the woods, way away from the town of Ashvale and Adam.

Reaching a wide clearing deep in the woods, the lead assassin spun and faced the captain, sliding backwards. He pulled out his combat daggers and prepared for a clash.

Clank!

Right on cue, Captain Jackson’s blade connected with the assassin’s daggers with tyrannical force.

Boom!

The air exploded on contact, spreading outward like an expanding bubble. Sand, rocks, leaves and twigs erupted from the ground. But the two experts were already gone, exchanging hundreds of deadly strikes in a matter of seconds.

Wherever they passed and clashed, trees and rocks exploded, the shockwaves devastating the surroundings for hundreds of meters all around.

"Where’s the boy?!" roared the captain, his anger and desperation apparent.

The assassin’s reply, however, was a mockery of the captain’s desperation. "Hahaha! Wouldn’t you like to know!"