Chapter 239: Dark Invasion

The Golem began moving toward them. Shaan immediately realized he had to stop the creature before it reached them. He then ordered Robin Hood to fire several arrows at once at the Golem to make it stop.

[Argh, damn it! Why aren’t my attacks hurting this thing?]

Robin Hood continued raining arrows down on the creature, but the Golem remained completely unharmed.

It kept advancing. Every statue in its path shattered beneath its enormous body, sending chunks of stone flying across the chamber. The distance between them grew smaller with every step.

"Robin Hood, we need another plan." Shaan forced himself to his feet and crossed his dual short swords in front of his chest. "I’ll try to take down that tall man. If I defeat him, the Golem should disappear with him."

[No! Have you lost your mind?] Robin Hood immediately rejected the idea. [How could you possibly—]

"Robin Hood, behind you!"

Robin Hood spun around. A massive stone head flew straight toward him. He reacted instantly, drawing his bow and firing an arrow at the incoming debris.

"CRASH!"

The arrow struck the stone head just before it reached him. The statue shattered into countless fragments. Shaan’s breath caught. His face went pale as pieces of stone scattered across the floor. Luckily, Robin Hood had reflexively fired his arrow and hit the mark; otherwise, those shards might have crushed them both.

[Pheeww...] Robin Hood let out a long sigh. [That was way too close...]

The Golem’s massive hand suddenly emerged from the cloud of dust and swung toward Robin Hood. Robin Hood tried to block it quickly, but unfortunately, he was too late. The Golem’s fist slammed into him and sent him flying away from Shaan.

[Ugh... d-damn it.]

"A weak creature like you could never possibly defeat my golem," the man laughed, walking closer to the severely injured Robin Hood. "Your strength is nothing compared to Golem."

"Damn." Shaan clenched his fists. His jaw tightened.

’I have to take this man down.Now.’

Shaan activated his dash skill, then darted swiftly past every boulder surrounding him. He swiftly swung his dual short swords, landing a powerful blow on the tall man from behind while the man wasn’t paying attention to Shaan’s presence.

’Cling!’

’W-Wait... How?’ Shaan’s eyes widened. ’How did he see me?’ I was sure he hadn’t noticed me.’

The Resistance leader smiled at his stunned expression. You really thought I’d fall for such a cheap trick?" His grip tightened around Shaan’s blades. All right." His smile widened. "Now it’s my turn to finish you!"

The tall man landed a hard punch on Shaan, destroying his guard. He instantly kicked Shaan in the leg, knocking him off balance, then landed a powerful kick in his face. Shaan couldn’t move at all, and his body slammed into a building column.

"Argh... damn it." Fresh blood filled Shaan’s mouth. "A-After all this... I still have to—

’CRASH!’

"I already told you." He stared down at Shaan. "You’re too weak. You’ll never defeat me!"

Shaan’s heart pounded. His face turned pale as the man continued walking toward him.

’I can’t die here.’ He clenched his bloodied fist.’There has to be a way. There has to be something I can use—’

’KREEK... KREEK...’

’PSSSHHH!’

Shaan froze. His eyes shifted toward the pillar behind him. A faint crack ran across its surface. A water pipe hidden inside the pillar had partially ruptured. Water sprayed through the broken pipe.

’Perfect.’ A faint smile appeared on his face. ’I can use this.’

"So, what are you going to do now, Shaan?" The tall man stopped a few steps away. He slowly twirled a small dagger between his fingers. "No one is coming to save you. Everything is over."

Shaan slowly pushed himself up. He wiped the blood from his mouth and looked straight at him. "Not for me."

Shaan ripped through the pipe’s surface with his dual shorts. A powerful stream of water burst from the broken pipe and slammed into the tall man. The force pushed him backward. His feet slipped across the wet floor until his body crashed into a pile of exposed electrical cables.

’BZzzzt!’

An electric shock coursed rapidly through the tall man’s body before he could even think of escaping. His muscles locked up. The tall man collapsed onto the floor, completely unconscious.

"Thank goodness," Shaan exhaled deeply. "At least he won’t bother me anymore."

A low groan echoed through the place. Shaan glanced. The massive creature had begun breaking apart. Tiny particles of black stone drifted from its body. More and more fragments scattered into the air until the enormous Golem completely disappeared.

[Pheeww... That was close.] Robin Hood looked toward Shaan with a relieved smile. [Thank goodness your idea worked, Shaan.]

"Yeah, but this isn’t over yet." Shaan slowly stood up. "The portal... We have to get back to the portal room."

[Shaan, but your wound...] Robin Hood frowned as he noticed the blood spreading across Shaan’s clothes. [

[It’s getting worse. Are you sure you can still move?]

Shaan gave him a faint smile while pressing a hand against the wound on his side. Blood seeped between his fingers.

"Of course, I can." He took a short breath and straightened his back. "Come on. We don’t have much time."

***

"Oh... no." Shaan froze for a moment as he watched the last dark creature walk through the portal. "I-I’m too late..."

Shaan’s whole body went limp. His gaze was blank. Everything he had done to stop the Resistance leader had failed. The resistance leader’s plan had gone off without a hitch. Soon, the darkness would spread into the human world and consume everything.

’Damn it!’ Shaan clenched his fists and slammed them against the ground again and again. ’Why... why couldn’t I—’

"The dark creatures have entered the human world." The Resistance leader’s laughter echoed throughout the room. "Now, nothing can stop me."

"I have to stop him right away." Shaan glared intently at the resistance leader, who was still standing in front of the portal. "But I’ve run out of mana from the previous battle. I can’t even use my skills or summon Robin Hood." Shaan grumbled and kicked a small pebble on the ground hard. "Argh, H-how am I supposed to—"

A thought suddenly struck him as he watched the pebble roll across the ground. Instantly, he remembered a special item he’d obtained while in the Silent Forest. Without wasting another second, he opened his system panel. His fingers quickly moved across the screen as he searched through his inventory.

"This thing should still be in—" Shaan’s fingers froze right in front of the screen. "Here it is." Shaan took a deep breath and tapped the screen in front of him. "I know this thing could be dangerous for me...." Shaan was silent for a moment, looking at the item in his hand. "But I have no other choice. I have to use it, or everything will be for nothing."