Luke was slammed against the wall, pinned by a hand he couldn't even see. But when he swung his kukri through the air, the blade scraped something metallic. The Midnight Warden Captain could turn invisible.

"Damn it!" He dismissed the kukris, grabbed the unseen hand, and threw himself to the side.

A heartbeat later, the monster's sword struck where he'd been, still cloaked from sight.

Even my Predator's Mark is gone.

The thought hit hard. He remembered the assassin who'd erased his mark before. This thing had done the same. He tried triggering Assassin's Tracking, but the Captain's power… even its mana was invisible. Not just to his eyes; his perception field couldn't detect a thing. He ducked on pure instinct, the sound of slicing wind brushing past his ear. The sword again. He lashed out straight ahead and felt his blade hit something solid. The monster was big, heavy, yet even its noise was muted in this state.

Luke's kukris met the Captain's sword, but before he could follow up, a punch slammed into him. He hit the ground hard. Lances whistled toward him, followed by a rush of Wardens. Six of them closed in at once, stabbing down. Luke twisted, parried, countered. One charged with a spear; he caught the shaft, then movement in the corridor pulled his attention. Charlie was sent flying, crashing into the stone.

He's targeting her!

Luke spun into the Demonic Blade Dance.

[You have slain a Midnight Warden - Lvl 40]

[You have slain a Midnight Warden - Lvl 40]

[You have slain a Midnight Warden - Lvl 40]

He pushed forward, but the Wardens filled the passage, cutting him off. He tried to turn into mist, but they whipped their weapons, forcing him to rematerialize. At least thirty of them now stood between him and Charlie, every spear aimed his way. She was locked in with the Captain.

This isn't random. It's military tactics.

Three Wardens charged with swords. Behind them, more with spears. Others filtered in from the hallway, closing ranks. Luke clicked his tongue. Stamina and mana surged into his kukris, hairline cracks crawling along the blades. They couldn't hold this much power forever. But he pressed on, channeling strength into his legs, bringing the blades forward like fangs.

He crashed into the front line, scattering them. The momentum built, bodies falling like rows of dominoes as he forced his way through. The corridor ceiling cut off his leap, slamming his head into stone, but he dropped down swinging, tearing another path. At the end of the gap, he saw her. Charlie lay on the ground, sword limp in one hand. Her leg was gone.

Where's the bastard?!

A punch exploded against his face. Pain blinded him for half a breath, just enough for the blade to follow, piercing deep. The hit had been coordinated: strike to the head to stun, blade to finish.

A spear slammed into his back from behind. Luke spat blood.

"Guess you're not as stupid as you look," he growled, twisting to drive a kukri into a Warden's helmet.

[You have slain a Midnight Warden - Lvl 40]

He turned straight toward the empty space ahead, where drops of blood floated in midair. He lunged. The strike connected, smashing the Captain into the wall, and Luke spun his blades in a relentless flurry. The Captain slipped aside. The blood vanished. Invisible again.

Luke pulled Princess Charlie into his soul, making her vanish, and sprinted through the corridors. A roar shook the walls. The Midnight Warden Captain charged after him. The metallic thud of its boots echoed through the stone halls.

At least the bastard makes noise when it runs.

He glanced down at his kukris. Cracks spiderwebbed along the blades. Too much mana had been channeled through them. He stashed them in his inventory before they shattered completely. At the corridor's end, he spun, summoned his bow, and grabbed arrows from the quiver.

He poured stamina into each shot, loosing arrow after arrow in a relentless rhythm. They struck the invisible monster as it barreled forward, roaring, but the impacts barely registered. Against something like this, the arrows were even weaker than the kukris. They couldn't handle mana or stamina properly.

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He dodged at the last second. The Captain slammed into the wall. Luke backpedaled, drawing in more stamina.

[Stamina: 1716/2630] [-200 Stamina] [Stamina: 1516/2630]

The next arrow detonated on impact with the unseen foe, shattering on contact. A grin tugged at his mouth. He turned and ran, the beast's footsteps pounding behind him. His time training for the Beast Lord hunt, and later during his so-called vacation, had taught him how to channel stamina into a weapon with lethal speed. He stopped at a bend in the corridor, drew another arrow, and pushed harder.

[Stamina: 1516/2630] [-300 Stamina] [Stamina: 1216/2630]

The shot ripped forward, only for a Midnight Warden to leap into its path. The arrow punched through its armor and flung it down the hall.

[You have slain a Midnight Warden - Lvl 40]

The same instant, the Warden Captain was knocked back as well, still cloaked in invisibility. Luke clicked his tongue and kept running, the predator still on his heels. He drew again, cramming stamina into the arrow. The moment he tried adding mana, it snapped in his grip. He tossed it aside, pulled another, and didn't slow his pace.

He knew the way. The walls bore his marks, smears of monster blood he'd kept stored in buckets, now painted as a trail. With every turn, he made sure he was never too far from the monster to lose control of the chase, nor too close to be caught. He guided himself only by the sound of the Warden Captain's boots pounding behind him. And with each twist and turn, it seemed to make the monster even more furious at letting him escape the fortress.

Up ahead, light cut through the darkness. The entrance was close. Luke turned mid-run, notching the arrow.

[Stamina: 1214/2630] [-300 Stamina] [Stamina: 914/2630]

The shot slammed into the invisible Captain, hurling it into the bend's wall. Luke drew his axe.

[Forest Minotaur's Axe (Rare)

Description: A sturdy and well-balanced axe, forged by devout followers of the God of the Forge. Though its design appears standard, the craftsmanship and embedded enchantment make it a reliable weapon favored by frontline warriors, especially those who fight deep within the wilds.

Enchantments: [Heated Edge (Uncommon)]: Channeling magic causes the blade to radiate heat, ideal for cutting through armor.]

Mana surged into the weapon's edge, cracks racing along the haft and blade. The axe didn't quite match the attributes of his assassin class, but that didn't matter. The fissures glowed white-hot.

[Mana Points (MP): 2639/3800] [-500 Mana] [Mana Points (MP): 2139/3800]

He swung with all his strength, triggering the heated blade enchantment. The axe struck home, and the Captain's roar tore through the corridor, right before the weapon exploded. Both of them were blasted apart. Luke rolled, came up on his feet, and hissed through clenched teeth.

"Son of a—" His fingers throbbed, damaged even with the gloves on; at least two were broken, and his palm was torn open.

[Warning: Your item 'Forest Minotaur's Axe' has been completely destroyed and is reconstructing inside your inventory.]

The axe vanished in the blast. Luke saw the creature rise from the ground, now fully visible.

"That was for my servant," he told it.

The breastplate still bore the tear from the axe strike. Then it began to mend. Fast. In seconds, the armor was whole again.

"Oh, come on… that's a little unfair," Luke muttered.

The monster stared at him, and he caught a short, sharp laugh. The Warden Captain leveled his sword at Luke, a silent challenge, then vanished, slipping into invisibility. Luke backed away, loosing arrows as he retreated. They hit nothing, passing harmlessly through the air. As he ran, he spotted more Midnight Wardens ahead in the corridor, spears raised, blocking the exit.

He grabbed an arrow and glanced at his stamina bar.

[Stamina: 914/2630] [Stamina -200] [Stamina: 714/2630]

The arrow shot forward at blistering speed, slamming into a Warden's chestplate. The creature flew back like a bowling pin, smashing into the others.

[You have slain a Midnight Warden - Lvl 40]

Luke sprinted past their crumpled forms and burst out into the open air beyond the fortress. Pulling a blood-filled bucket from his necklace, he spilled it onto the ground as he ran. He turned, storing his bow away and drawing both kukris.

He stood waiting, eyes on the blood pooling at the fortress entrance. If the monster stepped through, he'd know.

His stamina was low, but mana was still in reserve. The kukris were damaged, but he'd tested this before with his axe. Destroying a rare-tier item once was fine. When he had broken a common-tier bow, the system had warned him that doing it again would destroy it permanently. But the kukris? Thanks to the axe, he knew he could risk it without guilt.

Come on. Show yourself.

Mana surged into the blades. He wouldn't throw them both at once. One to bait the monster into the grass, then he would use his plant powers to tilt the fight in his favor, studying the enemy outside its own territory. Maybe even bring Charlie back from his soul; at least she could reattach limbs and keep fighting beside him. But nothing happened. The Wardens at the gate turned and marched back inside, and nothing emerged.

"Damn it! Clever bastards."

The monster didn't come out. Luke fired an arrow to test the corridor. It sailed straight down the fortress hallway with no hit. The creature wasn't even lurking there. It had retreated deeper inside.

"This is gonna be a problem…" he muttered, dropping onto the grass with a sigh.

He pulled one of his four precious healing potions and downed it.

"Yeah, Luke, you've got yourself in deep trouble," Artemis said.

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