The clearing where Yonghoon had disappeared carrying the girl was left desolate, with only a blood-splattered corpse and a shield lying beside it.
After a moment, someone appeared there.
It was Devil Dog.
As Yonghoon had predicted, Devil Dog returned here after confirming that no one was chasing him.
He spread his Dimensional Power in all directions to confirm that nothing was nearby, then approached the corpse of his subordinate.
The headless body was grotesque to look at, but he silently inspected it and searched for other traces.
Although Devil Dog did not possess tracking abilities like Snake, he could still follow traces to this extent.
“After killing Bruce, he disappeared, appeared here, left the shield relic behind, and took only the girl away, huh.”
Devil Dog tried to assess the situation objectively.
At the very least, the opponent was on his level. It was certain he was someone who had fought on battlefields in the other world for a long time.
He thought about what he would have done in such a situation. If he had enough Dimensional Power, he would have chased down the enemy to finish him off; if not, he would have taken the shield relic and vanished.
But the opponent had taken the useless girl.
“Was he a hero of justice?”
Judging by his skill, he didn’t seem like someone who moved emotionally. At the very least, he must have had some connection to the girl. Otherwise, there must have been some greater reward.
Either way, it was clear that the opponent’s Dimensional Power had been depleted.
Thinking back, he wasn’t sure how many times the spatial sword had been used. On top of that, he had escaped an explosion, so he must have created a dimensional passage as well.
He didn’t know how the opponent had created the dimensional passage so quickly, but it would have consumed a lot of Dimensional Power. Considering the opponent was clearly C-rank, it was miraculous he had used so much Dimensional Power up to now.
After a moment of thought, Devil Dog decided to pursue him. If he retreated now, the opponent might recover his Dimensional Power and attack again.
Even if he managed to fend off the attack and return, having lost all his teammates would make him a laughingstock.
It seemed better to eliminate the opponent and take control of the city here. Using the relics here to level up and prepare for the Dimensional Beasts looked like a better plan.
He decided to leave the shield behind. It would only be a burden. He could just take it after winning the fight. Perhaps the opponent had thought the same and abandoned the shield.
Devil Dog began to move, following the traces left behind by the opponent.
As expected, it seemed the opponent had little Dimensional Power left. There were many traces left throughout the forest.
The traces followed the path the girl had taken.
Devil Dog moved slowly along the trail. He could have increased his speed to catch up, but he had already been ambushed twice moving like that.
This time, he intended to move carefully. He spread Dimensional Power all around and heightened his senses. He moved forward while checking all the information he could sense around him.
It was after some time that Devil Dog sensed the girl’s Dimensional Power. During that time, he had not been attacked. It seemed the opponent had no intention of ambushing him midway.
But even if he used all his strength to flee, it was useless.
In a state of depleted Dimensional Power, carrying another person and evading pursuit was impossible.
The girl’s Dimensional Power had stopped in one place. He grew even more cautious. This was a dense part of the forest. The enemy could ambush him at any time.
Devil Dog braced himself for the waste of Dimensional Power and activated his ability by boosting his Dimensional Power. His body began to turn invisible. It was the innate ability of an assassin-type Awakened, bending the light around him by manipulating Dimensional Power.
Nearly invisible, he quietly moved forward.
Soon, Devil Dog arrived at the place where the girl’s Dimensional Power had stopped and fell into deep thought.
It was where the forest ended and a low cliff began. In front of the cliff was a small clearing, and in the middle of the cliff was a cave that looked half-artificial. It seemed to be some sort of ruin. Perhaps they had been excavating it but stopped midway, as pickaxes and various equipment were scattered around.
The girl’s Dimensional Power was emanating from inside the cave.
The sun had already dipped quite low. The shadow cast by the cliff completely concealed the inside of the cave.
He frowned as he stared into the dark cave. It was too obvious an attempt to lure him in.
Various thoughts raced through his mind.
Choosing the cave as the battlefield was a perfectly logical move.
He was an assassin-type Awakened who used invisibility.
Knowing that, it was natural to choose a battlefield where hiding would be difficult.
‘Is that really the only reason?’
He felt a strong reluctance to enter the cave.
But if he stayed here, the opponent’s Dimensional Power would surely recover. One way or another, he had to settle this.
He entered the cave as cautiously as possible.
His nearly invisible form shimmered like the air itself.
Gradually, he grew accustomed to the interior of the cave. It extended deep inside, becoming even darker the farther it went.
But he was an Awakened who knew how to use Dimensional Power. He focused Dimensional Power into his eyes and peered deeper into the cave. Things began to appear in black and white.
He spread Dimensional Power around to monitor his surroundings as he moved deeper inside.
The cave sloped downward. Judging from the excavation marks, it seemed they had been digging until last year. Perhaps they stopped because monsters appeared.
After descending about thirty meters, the cave widened. It was a plaza-shaped cave about twenty meters in diameter. He looked around. The ruin was half-exposed here. It seemed they had broken into an ancient tomb from the side.
But he paid no attention to such sights.
He saw the girl lying in a corner of the plaza. A small lamp beside her illuminated the area.
She was still unconscious, breathing evenly as she lay there. He maximized his Dimensional Power to scan the plaza.
But nothing was caught by his Dimensional Power.
There was no enemy inside the cave.
Devil Dog clenched his teeth.
It was a trap after all.
He quickly turned around and ran toward the passage. If the opponent decided to blow up the cave entrance without regard for the girl’s life, he would be finished.
Just as he reached the entrance after passing through the passage, he saw someone standing in the middle of the passage. Devil Dog stopped running. He could recognize the opponent through his Dimensional Power.
It was him.
Yonghoon, standing across the cave, grinned as he looked at the shimmering space before him. His face was still pale from the lack of Dimensional Power, but the sword in his hand emitted a cold light even in the darkness.
“Damn it!”
Devil Dog cursed under his breath. Although he had avoided the worst-case scenario, things kept going against his expectations. He slowly backed away while still invisible.
“You’re confident enough to lure me with bait? Judging by your complexion, you still seem low on Dimensional Power.”
Devil Dog sneered at Yonghoon in English.
It was fortunate. The opponent hadn’t blocked the entrance with explosives. Perhaps he had no explosives, or he didn’t intend to let the girl die.
Yonghoon chuckled at his words. Fortunately, he understood English well enough to catch the meaning.
The opponent was right.
He was still low on Dimensional Power. He could barely use the spatial sword once or twice more or infuse Dimensional Power into his sword.
The opponent was an assassin-type Awakened. It would be hard to win with only a few uses of the spatial sword.
But Yonghoon had prepared a few tricks.
Although he wasn’t certain they would work, the cold sensation from the sword in his hand gave him confidence.
Yonghoon did not respond to his words and instead took a stance.
There was no particular reason to answer.
Seeing Yonghoon’s stance, Devil Dog groaned inwardly.
The opponent’s Strike-type abilities seemed to originate from his otherworldly persona. He had hoped it would be the now-difficult-to-use spatial abilities, but things hadn’t gone as expected. It was clear this would be a tough fight.
Devil Dog briefly considered taking the girl hostage but quickly shook his head. She had already been used as bait several times. It was highly likely the opponent wouldn’t care.
That left a direct confrontation. Devil Dog decided to finish the opponent here.
While observing Yonghoon, Devil Dog suddenly dashed backward. Though he had no interest in the hostage, as an assassin-type Awakened, he needed to fight in a wide space.
Devil Dog quickly re-entered the plaza, and Yonghoon, chasing after him, also arrived at the plaza.
The plaza resembled the interior of a tomb. Originally a square stone chamber, it had been half-excavated, with part retaining the old stone chamber structure and the rest being roughly dug cave walls.
Devil Dog swiftly pressed himself against a stone wall and leaped upward. Fortunately, there were many grooves in the wall, allowing him to climb.
Humans and animals were good at perceiving horizontal movement but poor at perceiving three-dimensional space. Assassins used this to their advantage, making three-dimensional combat their specialty.
Especially for those with invisibility abilities, dark plaza-shaped structures like this were highly favorable for battle.
Yonghoon stopped at the plaza entrance.
He saw the girl lying in one corner. Thankfully, she appeared unharmed. He had expected she would be safe, but he had still been a bit worried.
Yonghoon shifted his gaze and scanned the plaza. Although enhanced by Dimensional Power, the black-and-white vision of the cave plaza revealed no sign of the opponent. The invisibility ability of the assassin-type Awakened was truly impressive.
Now it was a battle of senses. Yonghoon slowly walked deeper into the plaza.
As he walked forward slowly with his sword raised, he suddenly swung it to the side.
Slash!
Blood spurted into the air, and blood also splattered from Yonghoon’s arm.
Yonghoon quickly lunged toward the trail of blood sprayed into the air, but he lost sight of the opponent again. Ignoring the bleeding arm, he scanned his surroundings.
Devil Dog, now hidden again in the darkness, wore a grave expression. The opponent was more skilled than he had expected. He couldn’t understand it. If the opponent was C-rank now, he must have been B-rank-or even A-rank-in the other world.
It was ridiculous that he hadn’t known about such a powerful Awakened, and moreover, the opponent’s movements didn’t match those of an A-rank Awakened.
Usually, strong Awakened couldn’t activate their senses like that because of their overwhelming abilities. The opponent moved like someone who had spent years surviving as a C-rank.
Devil Dog, having sealed his wound with Dimensional Power, looked around. He caught sight of the girl lying down. That side was the brightest part of the plaza, illuminated by the lamp. Approaching her would likely expose his concealment. Devil Dog turned his gaze away from the girl.
But this situation wasn’t too bad either.
Here, the opponent’s and his abilities were almost equal. Moreover, he hadn’t even used the special ability of his spear yet.
Moreover, if things got really dangerous, he could now escape. The opponent had moved far from the entrance.
Devil Dog moved cautiously. He crept along the wall, and when he caught sight of the opponent’s back, he immediately charged.
Time passed, and several exchanges took place.
Harsh breaths escaped from Yonghoon’s mouth. His arms and legs were bleeding from multiple wounds. Fortunately, thanks to the breastplates covering his chest, he avoided a fatal injury.
Standing before him was Devil Dog, who was also wounded in various places like Yonghoon. He had revealed himself after sustaining severe injuries while attacking Yonghoon.
Ignoring his bleeding body, Devil Dog grinned at Yonghoon.
“It was quite a fun fight. But I’m getting bored. Let’s end this now.”
Devil Dog glanced behind him. There was an exit leading outside. His retreat path was secured.
He focused Dimensional Power into his spear. The Dimensional Power flowing into the spear transformed, and the spear began to glow brightly. It was now ready to unleash its innate ability.
It felt like he had dragged this out for too long. Their levels were too close. If this attack failed, he would have to consider retreating.
Yonghoon glanced at his smart watch and grinned at Devil Dog.
“I had fun too. But it’s time for me to end this fight.”
Yonghoon replied in English. Devil Dog looked puzzled at his words. Time? In this situation? He couldn’t understand.
His confusion was soon resolved.
Boom!
With a tremendous roar, a massive shockwave blasted from the cave entrance toward the plaza. Startled, Devil Dog threw himself sideways to avoid the shockwave.
A huge cloud of dust poured in from the passage.
“You crazy bastard! Are you trying to kill us all? If the passage collapses, we’re all dead!”
Rising from the dust, Devil Dog shouted at Yonghoon. But then he quickly recalled the opponent’s innate ability.
‘But he still shouldn’t be able to create a space tunnel yet.’
He tried to recall Yonghoon’s initial appearance. That pale face was a phenomenon that occurred when Dimensional Power was depleted. There was no way it had already recovered.
Gritting his teeth, he pushed through the dust toward where Yonghoon had been.
But there was no opponent there. He immediately activated his assassination ability. And he found him. The opponent was next to the girl.
Devil Dog realized it instantly. The opponent was trying to escape through a dimensional tunnel with the girl.
‘But how did he replenish his Dimensional Power?’
Even as he lunged at Yonghoon, that question filled his mind.
Yonghoon’s face was now fully flushed with blood. He had recovered his Dimensional Power during the battle with Devil Dog.
It seemed certain that this sword had the ability to absorb the opponent’s Dimensional Power. It wasn’t a huge amount, but it was enough to make one move with the girl.
When he had rescued the girl earlier, Yonghoon had no choice but to ponder how to deal with the opponent who would surely chase after him. As a fellow C-rank Awakened, he was low on Dimensional Power and burdened with carrying another.
In such a disadvantageous situation, Yonghoon suddenly remembered this cave. It was the place he had first arrived at, guided by the girl.
There had been a bunch of excavation equipment hastily abandoned when the monster appeared. Among them, quite a lot of explosives had also been left behind.
Remembering those explosives, Yonghoon was able to come up with a plan immediately.
He had left the girl as bait inside the cave, and once the opponent entered, he lit the fuse of the explosives hidden at the entrance. He had set the fuse length to about 10 minutes, and fortunately, the timing worked out well.
Then Yonghoon had followed him into the cave. After that, he replenished his Dimensional Power through the battle with the opponent.
Yonghoon created a dimensional tunnel and looked back. The opponent was charging through the dust. His face was so twisted that he looked like a messenger from hell. Yonghoon mouthed goodbye to him and jumped into the tunnel with the girl.
Yonghoon and the girl popped out in a forest a bit away from the cave entrance, while the abandoned Devil Dog, trapped inside the oxygen-deprived cave, let out a monstrous scream.