Both men froze when they saw the red eyes staring at them from within the darkness.

The combined pressure of countless shadows bore down on them like a crushing weight. Sweat poured down their faces as they looked around in terror, then their gazes snapped toward Aren.

He stood there calmly, eyes glowing red, a faint smile stretched across his face.

"You wanted to kill me, right?" Aren said softly. "Here's your chance. But this time… it's kill or be killed."

As his words settled, the shadows crept closer.

The pressure intensified.

They might have been level fifty and above, but that meant nothing against this many enemies.

At this point, desperation ruled them.

Either they killed Aren here and somehow escaped, maybe ran back to the one who sent them, begged for protection, new identities, new lives,

Or they stayed.

And if their captain woke up,that would be the end.

If Aren didn't kill them first that is.

The first man snapped.

He rushed forward, screaming, conjuring multiple metal swords in midair. They launched toward Aren like missiles, tearing through the air at insane speed.

"AHHH!" he roared.

The blades passed straight through Aren as he vanished.

They slammed into the ground behind him, exploding violently.

The man froze.

"What's going on?!" he screamed. "Where the fuck are you?!"

The second man spun around wildly, panic fully consuming him.

It was over.

If they couldn't kill Aren, they had nothing left.

Aren appeared again, this time leaning casually against a tree.

"You really think it would be that easy to kill me?" he asked. "You tried once and failed. What makes you think you can do it now?"

The second man rushed forward.

He slammed his feet into the ground, and the earth beneath Aren turned unstable, surging upward in a violent wave that launched Aren into the air.

Midair.

The perfect chance.

The first man seized it, forming a massive metal lance and hurling it forward with everything he had, aiming straight for Aren's chest.

It passed through him.The lance crashed into the tree behind, exploding the top clean off.

Aren vanished, then reappeared on the ground.

This time, the shadows surged forward.

Rushing.

Attacking.

The men couldn't take it anymore, there was no time left.

The second man snapped completely.

He turned on his ally.

"You fucker! You fucker!" he screamed. "Die for me!"

He stomped again, and the earth transformed into thick tendrils that wrapped around the first man, binding him tightly.

"What the hell are you doing?!" the first screamed.

"This is your fault!" the second roared. "If we never took this job, none of this would be happening! You deserve to die, die for me!"

He hurled the first man straight into the center of the shadows to buy himself time.

Then he transformed the ground beneath his feet into jelly-like earth and launched himself upward, shooting into the night sky in a desperate attempt to escape.

But the moment he reached the air, he saw Aren floating there, waiting.

Fear crushed him instantly.

He lost control and plummeted.

He slammed into a tree, then hit the ground hard. Something cracked, his shoulder dislocated, bone breaking as pain exploded through him.

He groaned, trying to move, then he felt a hand grip his shoulder, rage flared. He spun, fist swinging,

Only for his punch to be caught effortlessly.

He looked up.

Their captain stared down at him, her expression completely blank.

Everything inside him collapsed.

His legs gave out.

He lost control of himself, urine soaking his pants as sweat poured from his face.

He stumbled back and fell to the ground, shaking violently, staring up at her in pure horror.

[... ]

The first fought like a madman.

Metal blades formed around him as he attacked every shadow he could see, only for each strike to pass straight through them, hitting nothing. Not a single shadow was harmed.

The horror in his eyes was real.

The anger. The rage. The desperation.

Everything boiled over.

"Arghhhhhh! Get away from me! Get the hell away from me!" he screamed, attacking wildly with everything he had.

He stopped caring about the noise, stopped caring that the explosions would wake the entire camp. He lifted both hands into the air, and massive metal blades, each the size of a human, formed above him. More than twenty of them.

They slammed down into the forest.

BOOM!

A massive explosion ripped the ground apart. Trees were torn from their roots, earth blasted into the air, everything around him reduced to destruction.

And yet, the shadows reformed. They came back, whole and untouched.

Something inside his mind cracked.

"Fuck this!" he roared.

He turned and ran.

He didn't know where he was going, he just ran.

The shadows followed.

Red eyes glowed in the darkness, tracking him, surrounding him, refusing to let him go. Growls echoed in his ears, creaking sounds following him through the forest, behind him, beside him.

He ran with everything he had.

Teeth clenched. Sweat pouring. Veins bulging. Muscles screaming.

Then he burst out of the forest.

His feet hit stone.

He slammed into the ground and rolled several meters before stopping.

He pushed himself up instantly, ready to keep running,

Only to realize where he was, he was back at the campsite. Standing right in front of him was their captain.

She stared at him with a blank, confused expression.

Every other member of the Silver Tigers had woken up by now, drawn out by the noise. They all stood around, watching him.

Running, but running from what?

There was nothing behind him.

The moment he saw the captain, his legs gave out. He collapsed face-first into the ground and began begging.

"Please… please make it stop," he cried. "I didn't, we didn't know. I didn't know, I swear…"

He kept repeating it over and over.

The captain stepped forward, she grabbed him by the back of his hair and yanked his head up.

"You didn't know what?" she asked coldly.

Hearing her voice, he froze.

Realization hit him like a hammer, in his desperation to live, he had just exposed himself.

He stuttered, mouth opening and closing, unable to form words.

Then, footsteps. Slow. Calm.

He heard them behind him.

Aren walked out of the darkness, a faint smile on his face. Behind him, dragged across the ground, was the second man.

Broken. Battered. Unconscious.

He looked like someone who had lived through absolute hell. Aren tossed the body forward.

The first man turned his head, saw his ally lying there, and in that instant, everything collapsed.

It was over.

There was nothing left to salvage.

No escape. No lies. No hope.

And in that final moment of desperation, he made a choice.

A suicidal one. He activated his skill.

Metal surged from inside his own body, flooding through his arms in liquid form. It rushed to his fingers in an instant.

Before anyone could react,

He thrust his hand forward, placing it right in front of his captain's face.

BOOM!

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