Riva plunged her knife straight into the heart of the ranger who was standing the closest to her.
He died on the spot without knowing why.
Riva then used her free hand and hurled Rocky 1 at the party leader.
Despite his surprise, he evaded the sudden attack.
It would have been great if he was taken out of the fray. I underestimated them! Riva assessed.
The adventurers were experienced and quick to react to the danger.
She had planned to take out at least two people while she had the initiative.
Riva was taking a gamble not because she was confident in defeating the party. Rather, she was confident in her use of 'Haste' once she needed to make a run for it.
In total, she was facing:
one warrior, the party leader;
two mages, one male one female;
two tanks also one male one female, the male one relying on the female's shoulder, injured from the previous fight;
and finally the healer.
'The healer carries the party, always target the healer!' Riva remembered something from her past.
"Haste!"
She shot towards him, her knife raised.
Thwack~
Her knife's blade met with the staff wielded by the male mage who had quick-wittedly intercepted her at the last second.
Riva didn't delay. She used her other hand which now wielded Rocky 2 and full force smashed it into the healer's face.
Crack~
Rocky 2 directly cracked his skull.
The sound was both awful and satisfying to Riva's ears.
The healer could only watch his companion die a gruesome, bloody death. He was busy dealing with her blade.
Next, Riva targeted the mage with Rocky 2 only to feel something pierce her back.
"Haste!" she saved herself by executing a quick roll and turned towards her attacker.
The party leader had been the one to land the hit. He was also the first one to speak since the beginning of the fight.
"Damn you bitch! What's wrong with you?!" He shouted madly.
He was running at her, sword raised.
Riva evaded him with a sidestep. She didn't need to use 'Haste' since his attacks were pretty easy to read.
"Kill this witch!" He rallied his party.
Riva considered herself lucky because she wasn't affected by her wound. She was beginning to appreciate being unable to feel pain. Moreover, the gash on her back had begun to close with visible speed.
The female tank had decidedly dropped the injured guy she was carrying and was running towards Riva, meanwhile both mages initiated a combined chant.
This is turning bad. I can handle one, possibly two simultaneously. But I can't have the leader and tank pin me down. I can't stay in one place! It'd make me an easy target for the mages' spells.
"Haste!" Riva shouted for the third time.
The party leader had been waiting for this. He moved his sword to the side where she was most likely going to pass him.
His judgment was solid, Rivas's propulsion would have worked against her and made her cut herself on his blade by her own force.
But Riva had learned from her instinct-driven rampage. She used the 'Haste' skill's force and propelled herself upwards, jumping straight over the leader's head.
Thus, contrary to his expectations, Riva didn't pass by his side instead, she directly faced towards him, only to suddenly vanish from his view.
This would have been an impossible feat if Riva didn't have the excessive boost in speed.
She used the chance while in the air and hurled Rocky 2 towards the mages who were preoccupied with their spell. Such complex spell casting was reliant on the other party members' protection.
Thus Rocky 2 accurately found its mark. It hit the male mage's throat, squashing it into a mangled mess. He didn't die on the spot but it was only a matter of time.
With horror, the female mage caught his falling body in her arms. In a trance she immediately plucked Rocky 2 from his robe. The injured mage was choking and let out pained gasps.
"I will…" She began.
Uh-oh! Riva was still descending from her impossible jump.
The mage aimed at her.
"...make her PAY!" She finished with a shout and threw Rocky 2, her attention barely leaving the mage's dying body for the time it took to aim.
Rocky 2 sailed in an arc, an unexpectedly slow arc.
Riva made it to the ground in time. She plucked Rocky 2 from the air.
With yet another use of 'Haste', she evaded both incoming swords from the leader and female tank.
Riva checked Rocky 2 with surprise, a grin forming on her lips.
Even tamed rocks can't oppose their masters! She explained the phenomenon to herself.
"Shit! What freakish spell is that witch using?!" the leader cursed.
"Her speed is monstrous, let's withdraw! The female tank ordered. She had reached the party leader and pulled something from the space between her metal armor and clothes.
With sudden realization, the injured tank immediately pleaded "Don't you dare leave me behind!"
"You think, you can escape from me?!" Riva commented with scorn in her voice which faded once she saw the item in the hands of the female tank.
It was a scroll, its surface black with countless tiny runes.
Don't tell me…! Riva was flabbergast at its sight.
"Haste!"
Riva didn't lunge towards the two adventurers. It was too late even with her momentum. Instead, she used the skill's boost in speed and hurled both Rocky 2 and the knife. The insane momentum made both projectiles fly forward akin to bullets.
Meanwhile, the scroll activated and began emanating white light, that enveloped the female tank and party leader.
Rocky 2 was the first to arrive. It hit the leader straight in the chest. He was thrown back more than three meters. He had been holding onto the scroll, to share in its effects, which made him tear-off part of it.
The knife was a bit slower, likely because it hadn't been 'tamed'. It hit the female tank in her chest, yet her outcome couldn't be seen because the scroll finished its activation, teleporting her away.
Riva looked at the now empty spot.
"Damn thief, stole my knife!" She complained.
She checked the scene.
The Party leader had died on impact.
The female mage was cradling her deceased comrade, carefully caressing his face. She was deeply immersed in her own world. She didn't react to Riva's approach who promptly slit her neck with the sword 'borrowed' from the leader and whispered, "I'll let you join him."
The injured tank was the last one. He pleaded for his life, said he was a capable and loyal servant. How he realized his evil ways and his companion's betrayal awoke him to this fact.
Riva turned a death ear, made sure there were no witnesses, and enjoyed her meal.
Once she finished, she rummaged through the leftover belongings in search of the items that had caused her to provoke the fight in the first place.