Chapter 224 – Chloe vs Quinn, the Third Assassin
Chloe Evenhart:
The explosion hurled me into the water with brutal force. I had tried to form an ice barrier at the last moment, but the spell hadn't completed in time. The heatwave and shards of wood struck me like blades, cutting through my skin and tearing muscles. When my body finally hit the surface of the water, pain exploded through me, as if every nerve in my body was aflame.
I sank immediately, the force of the fall dragging me into the depths of the subterranean river. The icy water pierced my battered flesh like needles, its shock almost as intense as the pain from the debris embedded in my body and the bones that had cracked under the impact. The overwhelming sensation of suffocation began to take hold as my lungs screamed for air.
"Ah!" I cried out in a desperate effort as I managed to resurface. My head broke through the water's surface, and I gasped for air, coughing violently while fighting to stay afloat amidst the waves forming around me. Debris floated everywhere—shards of the ship, fragments of ice, and charred wood mixed with smoke.
Then, I noticed a piece of drifting ice, likely formed by my incomplete spell. With effort, I moved my injured body toward it, struggling against the treacherous current. My legs felt heavy, and each stroke seemed endless. Finally, with a final push, I grabbed the edge of the ice platform and dragged myself onto it.
Lying atop the ice, my breaths came in desperate gasps, each one sending a sharp pain through my chest. My left side was severely injured. My arm, burned and bloodied, was nearly useless. Patches of my skin were scraped raw, and blood trickled down, mixing with the cold water. The warmth of the viscous liquid contrasted starkly with the biting chill of the ice beneath me.
I glanced at my wrist and realized, with a jolt of panic, that my storage bracelet was gone. It had probably been lost to the dark depths of the subterranean river. My mind, still foggy from the explosion and the desperate fight for survival, latched onto one painfully clear memory.
In the final moments before the explosion, amidst the chaos consuming everything around me, a name had echoed in my mind—a name that now anchored my growing rage and thirst for vengeance.
"Quinn… the third assassin," I murmured.
"Kinue!" I screamed, panic surging through me as I searched desperately for my friend amidst the flaming wreckage. Each second without seeing her increased my despair. If Kinue had been knocked unconscious, she would have sunk into the dark, deep waters and drowned.
"Please, no…" I whispered, unable to finish the thought.
"Kinue!" I yelled again, frantic, using wind magic to push the ice platform closer to the wreckage.
Nothing. I couldn't find her anywhere.
"You really survived…" A voice cut through the noise of the river, cold and dripping with disdain.
I turned, still leaning on the ice, and saw hazy figures on the ship's distant deck, looking at the water in panic. But it was him who caught my eye: Quinn, standing on a piece of drifting debris, watching me from afar like a predator studying its prey.
"Quinn!" I shouted, my voice burning with hatred.
He raised an eyebrow, a sarcastic smile curling across his lips as his sharp eyes assessed me. "Even after surviving, you look… pathetic. Your arm's burnt, and that wound on your stomach looks deep. You're in terrible shape. How did you manage to escape?"
His gaze drifted to the piece of ice supporting me, and he let out a low chuckle of understanding. "Ah, I see. You must have conjured an ice wall at the last second. Clever. But even so, my bomb hit you squarely. The impact was lethal, just as I expected. Such a shame your little animal friend… wasn't as lucky."
Hatred surged like a tidal wave within me. "I'll kill you!" I growled, blood dripping from my wounded arm onto the ice beneath me.
Quinn smirked, pulling out two gleaming daggers from his storage bracelet. His eyes carried something darker—a twisted blend of vengeance and madness.
"These daggers…" He twirled them in his hands, admiring the blades as if they were sacred relics. "They belonged to my sister. I've always kept them with me. And now, with these very blades, I'll end you."
In one swift motion, he unleashed a cutting wind slash with one of the daggers, the air roaring as it raced toward me. Without thinking, I leapt to the side, freezing the water beneath my feet as I ran across the surface. Each step left a trail of ice in its wake while the wind slash narrowly missed me, slicing through the water like an invisible blade.
"Wind Slash!" Quinn shouted again, and another razor-sharp arc surged toward me, so close I could feel the air tearing at my skin. I dove to the icy ground, rolling before struggling to my feet. My body was weak, but my mind screamed at me to keep moving.
When I stood again, I saw him. Quinn was closing the distance with alarming speed, gliding effortlessly over the floating debris as if the chaos around him was merely an extension of his will. His daggers glinted menacingly, eager to strike.
I had to find Kinue, but Quinn refused to relent.
I pointed my hand at the water, summoning pillars of ice that shot up with explosive force. They rose from the river, creating a maze of obstacles between us. Quinn's wind blades struck one of the pillars, shattering it into fragments. He didn't slow down.
"You can't hide behind your ice tricks!" he roared, hurling another wind blade. It missed me but struck the frozen surface, sending cracks spidering beneath my feet.
I slipped but managed to stay upright, conjuring more ice as I ran. The relentless current of the subterranean river worked against me, its unyielding flow turning every step into a battle for balance.
"Blazing Breeze!" Quinn's voice thundered as a fiery gust surged forward, ravenous flames advancing toward me. Instinctively, I raised a barrier of ice, molding it quickly with the mana I could still muster. I pushed the barrier forward with a gust of wind, but my mind was elsewhere, distracted by my desperate need to find Kinue. I didn't want to fight here. I had to find her.
"Where do you think you're going?" Quinn's voice carried a feral growl as he propelled himself toward me with a burst of wind magic. In the blink of an eye, he was upon me. The clash of his daggers against my ice blade echoed sharply across the subterranean river. My sword shattered into shards, leaving me defenseless. With no choice, I spun my body, narrowly evading his next strike and delivering a wind-powered kick to his jaw. The impact sent us both flying apart, but it wasn't enough to gain the upper hand.
I was cornered, running out of options. My storage bracelet was lost to the river's dark depths, taking with it all my weapons, potions, and any hope of support. Each passing second, the blood pouring from the wound in my stomach drained my strength further. Pressing my hand against the injury, I channeled my magic to freeze the area and slow the bleeding.
"Get back here, you bitch!" Quinn roared, charging at me with unrelenting fury. He hurled spheres of wind that exploded around me, forcing me to weave and dodge with desperation. Every move was a frantic attempt to survive.
I needed to escape. The open water was my only chance—to find Kinue before it was too late.
My mind was in chaos, haunted by thousands of terrifying scenarios. Each step I took, the weight of fear and uncertainty pressed harder against me. "Kinue!" I shouted, my voice echoing through the vast subterranean tunnel as I ran among the floating debris. My heart clenched tighter with every passing second.
In the distance, Quinn was closing in again, his cruel smile a clear indication that he wouldn't stop until I was eliminated. But I couldn't let that happen. If Kinue was still alive, I had to find her before he did. She was my priority, my only focus. The river was deep and treacherous, and I feared the worst.
Suddenly, a guard on the ship's deck shouted firmly, "You there! Are you responsible for this attack?"
Quinn, wearing a cynical, disdainful grin, turned to the man. "Screw you! Stay out of my way!" In one swift and lethal motion, he hurled a fireball that exploded as it struck the sails. Within seconds, the ship began to transform into a blazing inferno.
The water mages aboard scrambled to contain the flames, their voices echoing frantic orders amidst the chaos. I took advantage of the brief distraction to reassess my situation. I needed to draw Quinn away, lead him far from the ship, and most importantly, buy time to search for Kinue.
"I'll burn you alive, just like my sister was burned!" Quinn roared, his voice dripping with unrestrained hatred.
The weight of his words struck me like a blow. Suddenly, everything made sense. The assassin… she was his sister.
"Eliza was your sister?" I asked, struggling to keep my voice steady as I dodged the relentless onslaught of his wind-infused daggers.
His eyes narrowed, blazing with insane fury. "She was!" he bellowed, hurling another volley of wind blades, their edges cutting through the air like invisible scythes.
I channeled wind magic to my feet, propelling myself into the air. Each movement was swift, narrowly avoiding the scorching heat of his fiery gusts as they rushed past me. Quinn was relentless; his intent to kill was unmistakable.
He lunged again, his daggers glinting with elemental energy. I blew on my finger, releasing a cloud of frost that quickly spread around us. The water beneath us began to freeze, transforming into an arena of ice where our footsteps echoed ominously.
Quinn hurled another dagger in my direction, but I slid across the ice, narrowly avoiding the attack. In one swift motion, I conjured a spear of ice in my hand and charged. With precision, I struck his hand, earning a guttural cry of pain.
"Die, you bastard!" he roared, the pain fueling his fury even further.
"Ice Art: Small Iceberg!" I shouted, raising my hands to summon an enormous block of ice. The iceberg came crashing down like a hammer, colliding with Quinn with a thunderous impact and plunging him into the water.
Wasting no time, I pressed my attack. "Frost Breath!" I exhaled again, freezing the water's surface around the spot where he had fallen. Ice formed in rapid layers, sealing the area like an improvised prison.
But my heart was heavy. No matter how desperately I wanted to keep Quinn submerged, I couldn't shake the thought of Kinue. Where was she? Was she still alive? The uncertainty clawed at my chest as I cast another spell to reinforce the ice around me.
I placed a hand over my stomach, where the mana gem of my soul rested.
Are you awake? Get ready… I'm going to need your help.
I reached out to my Soul Golem, knowing I couldn't take any further risks in this fight.
"I'm summoning my Soul Golem and killing this son of a bitch!"