Chapter 512 Slightly Irritated

"Ahhh!!!"

Miserable screams, thick with terror and agony, rang out across the battlefield.

Splashing venom ate through skin and muscle. Thugs from the Ebb Tide Gang, caught in the crossfire of their leader's attack, rolled on the ground from the excruciating pain, the pus-green toxins spreading rapidly from their wounds.

Failing their Perception checks, [Night Mother's Gaze] took effect silently. Their willpower devoured by the phantom wolf howls echoing in their minds, the sahuagin lackeys plunged into endless terror. One after another, they dropped their weapons and fled in a panic toward the forest outside the warehouse.

The current situation on the battlefield was in a state of utter chaos.

However, the different sides viewed it entirely differently.

From Xia Nan's perspective, even though his temporary teammates had suffered heavy casualties, his side's remaining combat strength consisted only of himself and a Ranger.

But he had taken the opportunity to decapitate the fishman priest, the greatest threat in the enemy ranks. As for the other leader, "Carrion Vulture" Gerry, his fighting style was perfectly countered by the Snake-Scale Arm Shield.

Beyond that, the rest were ordinary gang members and fishman grunts who could be handled with relative ease.

A few charges with [Fang Hunt], topped off with [Spinning Slash] and [Heavy Tide], would essentially finish the job.

Without a doubt, the scales of victory were tipping in his favor.

Yet to "Carrion Vulture" Gerry, the situation on the field seemed to be in his favor.

Over a few hasty exchanges, he had acutely gauged Xia Nan's rough strength.

His actual combat prowess completely contradicted his overly youthful face.

Even his equipment was of such Fine quality.

In a true one-on-one fight, he really might not be a match for this black-haired adventurer.

But this was not a fair match in an underground black market arena; it was a life-and-death struggle in the middle of a mission. Even with absolute certainty of winning head-on, he would never just charge in alone.

Leveraging a numerical advantage was completely normal.

And now, he had already eliminated the boy's teammates one by one, leaving only an unremarkable human Ranger as a helper.

Meanwhile, he had a large number of sahuagin reinforcements and gang thugs at his disposal.

The advantage was entirely on his side!

These thoughts flashed through both their minds, each convinced they could claim the final victory.

Unexpectedly, in the second following the dwarf Habik's death, the first person to act was the human Ranger, Seli. Taking advantage of Xia Nan drawing the enemy's attention, she had managed to escape the encirclement and retreat to the rear.

From her perspective, it was not hard to understand what the situation on the battlefield looked like.

The Shield of Iron Rock squad had severely underestimated the enemy's strength on Wild Berry Cliff.

They had thought this was just a temporary Ebb Tide Gang outpost outside Barracuda Bay. Even if gang higher-ups were stationed here, there should have been a few low-level Class Holders at most.

To their shock, the one overseeing the island was the Ebb Tide Gang's leader, "Carrion Vulture" Gerry.

This pirate leader alone, along with his high-ranking Class Holder subordinates, was more than enough to give the Shield of Iron Rock squad a run for their money.

Now they also had to deal with a sahuagin tribe that appeared out of nowhere, with a Spellcaster priest possessing a high Class Level as their core.

This had completely exceeded everyone in the Shield of Iron Rock squad's expectations.

Worst of all, the Ebb Tide Gang had discovered their tracks, proactively called for backup, and set an ambush.

It had only been a few minutes since that fireball, blazing with orange-red flames, blasted into the warehouse.

In that time, the teammates she spent her days and nights with had been reduced to mangled corpses amid the shrieks of the fishmen and the roars of the thugs.

If not for the intervention of "Sea Fang," their temporary member, her soul would likely have already returned to the heavens.

But...

Looking at the dozens of vicious figures closing in on her, she smelled the thick stench of blood and death permeating the air.

By contrast, the young man's back, as he confronted the pirate leader on the battlefield, looked incredibly frail and powerless.

Seli admitted she had misjudged Xia Nan's strength.

Just the fluid series of movements he had used to decapitate the fishman priest was enough to prove his "Sea Fang" moniker was well-deserved.

But her teammates' corpses lay right before her eyes. Against such an overwhelming number of powerful enemies, no matter how strong he was, he could not hold them off alone.

Seli didn't believe Xia Nan could handle this many enemies by himself.

Even if she stayed to help, it would be utterly pointless.

In the blink of an eye, beneath the crushing pressure, countless thoughts raced through the human Ranger's mind; it was difficult for her to remain perfectly rational.

Her gaze flickered erratically.

Her usually proud and sometimes slightly caustic face had lost that detached superiority typical of Class Holders looking down on commoners.

Instead, her features twisted into a knot of conflicting thoughts, unabashedly revealing the calculating ruthlessness she usually kept hidden.

In an instant, Seli made her choice.

Facing Xia Nan, who had just saved her from Gerry's ambush, she felt no gratitude, nor did she muster any courage.

She didn't even say a word.

She simply shot him a deep, complicated look from behind.

Then, driving power through her legs, she twisted her waist and stowed her longbow onto her back.

She turned and ran.

Adventurers in this world were just like that.

Perhaps there were a few exceptions, but for the vast majority of Class Holders who grew up in such a harsh environment, extreme individualism was a shared trait. They chased wealth and prioritized their personal safety above all else.

To a certain extent, the profession's very filtering mechanism naturally weeded out those who were traditionally "kind" or "weak."

These veteran Class Holders, transformed from ignorant, naive rookies into their current seasoned forms, were merely the product of the adventurer industry's unspoken rules.

Seli would not regret it.

Nor did she think it was shameful to abandon Xia Nan right after he had stepped in to help her.

If she actually escaped today while Xia Nan died on this island, Seli might feel a sliver of guilt deep down, but that "sliver" would not be enough to change her, nor would it even be enough for her to build Xia Nan a grave.

At most, when drinking at a tavern in the future, she would use him as conversational fodder, putting on a facade of pity that masked thinly-veiled boasting as she recounted her battle against fishmen and pirates on this island to her drinking buddies, casually mentioning a certain young teammate who hadn't been strong enough to survive.

Of course, that was only an "if."

Looking at the present, after abandoning Xia Nan to flee alone, Ranger Seli had not earned the Goddess of Luck's favor.

She had barely turned around and only managed to take two steps forward, not even fully swinging her arms into a sprint yet.

Suddenly, the shadow beneath her feet squirmed.

It was a Level 1 Rogue from the Ebb Tide Gang.

Equally unworthy of a name, he was an orphaned vagabond who had suffered years of childhood starvation, leaving him looking sickeningly frail even in adulthood.

Fortunately, his talent was decent. Over several decades, he had painstakingly scraped together three ordinary combat techniques through various means, officially becoming a Class Holder at the age of forty-five and vaulting into the upper ranks of the Ebb Tide Gang.

Scurrying through the streets like a rat had given him rich combat experience. He had learned to hide deep in the shadows, waiting with an inhuman patience for the perfect opportunity to strike.

Ever since the battle began, he had stayed hidden at the edge of the battlefield, slowly creeping closer in search of prey.

His inherent talent for shadow energy, combined with his stunted frame, granted him innate stealth capabilities far beyond ordinary men.

Because of this, even Seli, with her decent Perception attribute, failed to notice the danger silently closing in on her.

Until she made her decision and turned to run.

Exposing her completely defenseless back.

The sharp Short Dagger, which had been waiting for its opportunity, plunged smoothly into her back, right into her heart.

The Rogue was highly experienced. The tip of the blade pierced her heart with pinpoint accuracy, and he even employed a small trick to maximize the damage, twisting his wrist upon entry to shred her heart.

Like a bee's stinger, he struck and instantly pulled away.

As the Rogue yanked the dagger out of Seli's back, a bloody, gaping hole was left in the Ranger's chest.

Seli's expression froze. Through the agony, she tried to reach for the backup weapon at her waist to counterattack, but in the very next second, the thugs and fishmen chasing her caught up.

It turned out a Ranger's physical toughness was indeed rather mediocre.

After just a few brutal chops, her body was mangled beyond recognition, reduced to a pile of mangled meat.

Seli was dead.

...

Xia Nan cast a sideways glance toward Seli with his peripheral vision.

His face remained completely devoid of emotion.

But inside... honestly, he felt somewhat disappointed.

Even though he had anticipated Seli's reaction, seeing her abandon him without a second thought to flee still inevitably stirred up some negative emotions in Xia Nan's heart.

He just felt his goodwill had been wasted—of course, that was also why, despite noticing the Rogue's presence a step ahead of Seli, he hadn't spoken up to warn her.

Since she chose to run, she had to bear the consequences.

Then again, he shouldn't have held too many expectations for adventurers in this world to begin with.

Not only did they lack systemic education, but they were also forged in an extremely vicious, hyper-competitive environment. How could there possibly be any traditional "good people" among them? If they could just uphold some basic "morality," it was already considered pretty good.

"Tsk."

Twitching his lips imperceptibly, Xia Nan's gaze darkened as a faint irritation welled up inside him.

He swiftly dismissed thoughts of his unreliable teammates, locking his pitch-black eyes on the enemy ahead.

"Carrion Vulture" Gerry was gripping his pirate cutlass, its edges glinting with a green hue. Leaning forward, the pirate shifted his footwork while staring dead at Xia Nan with his triangular eyes, as if hunting for an opening.

"Heh heh, looks like it's just you left, Sea Fang."

The vicious-looking man licked his dry, peeling lips and probed.

"This is your last chance. Put down your sword, and let's have a nice chat."

"If we can come to an agreement, I..."

Before he could finish, the rest of his sentence was swallowed by a sudden wolf's howl.

Already irritated, Xia Nan found the man tedious. He just wanted this gang boss to permanently shut his stinking mouth full of rotten teeth.

On the other hand, he also knew Gerry was stalling for time, waiting for the lackeys that Ranger Seli had lured away to return and surround him.

Perhaps it was that unspeakable feeling of being let down that fueled his rare anger, sharpening his focus into an intensely concentrated state. It was as if he could see every minute detail of his enemy's movements.

His knees bent, calf muscles bulging with power—was he trying to dodge?

Forcing back two thugs attempting a sneak attack with a sweep of his sword, Xia Nan instantly activated [Gravity Control], dropping a heavy burden of gravity onto Gerry.

The previously agile pirate boss abruptly staggered, his expression turning to shock, seemingly stunned by the heavy invisible pressure suddenly applied to his body.

Naturally, he couldn't follow through with his dodge. He had no choice but to bring his cutlass up across his chest in a desperate bid to defend.

[Spinning Slash] + [Gravity Etching] + [Heavy Tide].

The classic three-hit combo.

Ocher-red sword light flashed through the air.

In his hyper-focused state, Xia Nan did not choose to clash blades head-on with Gerry. Instead, he deftly adjusted the sword light's landing point, shifting it as low as possible toward the hilt of his opponent's sword.

As a result, the blow lost any chance of hitting the enemy's vitals.

In fact, because of the slanted downward angle of the sword light, Gerry gained an opportunity to counterattack.

With his vast combat experience, the pirate boss instantly noticed this. Assuming Xia Nan had made a mistake, Gerry immediately thrust his cutlass up to meet the sword light while simultaneously hacking his blade at Xia Nan's chest.

Trading blows like this, Gerry would come out completely ahead.

His blade would directly strike a vital organ, while the deflected sword light from the black-haired adventurer would cause a flesh wound at most. As long as he dodged just a little bit...

Before that thought could finish turning in his head, an ocher-red force field energy shield suddenly flared up around Xia Nan's body, bringing Gerry's thoughts to an abrupt halt.

—[Deathline] ring: Deflection Field!

Since it was a hasty counterattack baited out of a defensive stance, Gerry had not put his full strength into the swing. When his cutlass struck that layer of ocher-red shielding, the force behind the blade was completely absorbed and deflected.

It was like hacking into something incredibly smooth and hard. Energy ripples flared across the surface of the ocher-red shield as the cutlass slid smoothly down its curve.

At the exact same moment, the arc of sword light Xia Nan unleashed struck Gerry.

It was just a light brush.

Squelch—

Muscle and tendon tore apart as blood sprayed into the air.

His right hand, still gripping the cutlass tightly, was severed at the wrist and sent flying to the ground by the momentum of the sword light.

"Ahhhhh!!!"

Gerry shrieked in agony, yet he didn't lose his will to fight.

As the boss of the Ebb Tide Gang and a veteran Class Holder with decades of adventuring experience in the Southern Archipelagos, how could he possibly abandon his chance at survival over a bit of pain?

Even as he screamed, his legs burst with power. Dragging his extraordinarily heavy body, he scrambled rapidly backward.

At the same time, he curled the four fingers of his intact left hand, forming a tube with his thumb, and raised it to his mouth.

A pus-green liquid gathered rapidly into the hollow of his left palm, as if he were brewing up some special combat technique.

Xia Nan's assault fell like pouring rain. He had no intention of dodging.

A wolf's howl erupted as he followed through with his momentum.

Simultaneously, he deliberately released the [Gravity Control] that had been crushing the pirate's entire body.

It was like stepping out of a pool and suddenly feeling inexplicably heavy, or taking off training weights after a long session.

Having just adapted to the gravity Xia Nan had imposed, "Carrion Vulture" Gerry suddenly felt weightless, as if he were about to float into the sky.

His center of gravity instantly collapsed, and his body pitched uncontrollably backward.

Bolstered by [Fang Hunt], Xia Nan closed the distance with a single step.

His left hand slammed the Snake-Scale Arm Shield directly down into the pirate's face.

The blow forcefully interrupted Gerry's combat technique. The venom he had gathered halfway at his lips was smashed instantly, splattering his entire face with deep green, viscous slime.

Immune to corrosion and toxins, the Snake-Scale Arm Shield was completely unscathed. Riding on the shield bash, [Gravity Etching] and [Heavy Tide] triggered simultaneously.

The ocher-red force field energy instantly crushed half of the pirate leader's face, snapping his teeth and shattering his nose.

His already unstable center of gravity completely lost its balance under the gravitational wave, sending him crashing onto his back.

Xia Nan didn't give him a single second to breathe.

The exact moment the back of "Carrion Vulture" Gerry's head slammed into the ground...

...the grayish-black [Ember Fall] straight sword was already reversed in Xia Nan's grip. He dragged it horizontally across, carving a straight line through the mud, the gravel, and the pirate's neck.

Scarlet blood gushed like a fountain from the severed stump of his neck.

His smashed head, its features completely unrecognizable, rolled across the dirt like a deflated ball, reflecting the moonlight.