154 Going against a Titled Ranker

..... The Dark Elf Master Twilight in front of Shin is currently smirking at him while playing with his daggers. 'D*mn! Is this my bad luck or something? And where that heck is that Charlotte girl? Didn't she supposedly assisting me? And she is just a few distances behind me earlier, now she is gone somewhere?' Shin got a lot of complaints while looking at the details of the opponent in front of him. --------------------- Name: Vega Race: Dark Elf Level: 104 Class: •Main: Master Twilight (Tier 2) •Poisoner: (Intermediate) Affiliation: •Guild: Miracle •Adventurer Team: N/A Player Recognition: Ranker (Titled) Ranker's Title: Thief of the Eastern Valley --------------------- The corner of Shin's mouth suddenly twitched after seeing that. 'Everything seems fine, but what's with that title? No... Is that even a proper title?' "Tsk! Looks like you are abandoned by your group, buddy. And–...." Vega is currently talking when he saw Shin transformed into a stick of silver light and came rushing at him, so he immediately stopped what he wants to say and dodge towards his left. He didn't bother to use an escaping skill since he is quite confident about himself. What's more, he already studied Shin's movements for a few times before coming here, so he knows some things from Shin's skill set. Shing! And that his when Vega heard a metallic sound of the sword when it is being pulled out from its sheath with a great speed. 'Class Fighting Style: Moonlight Splitter' Since Shin is already used at combining his breathing technique with the execution of his skills, he can freely change the trajectory of his attacks. And just like now, when Vega gets away from the path of 'Moonlight Splitter' skill, Shin is are twisting his waist while swinging his sword. And with that, the [Yamato] seems to be chasing after the dodging opponent. Vega was surprised at Shin's fast reaction and great control, but that was it. He is still a player that stood of the peak after all. He gently taps his toes on the ground, moving backward, and dodging the tip of the sword. Shin didn't wait for his sword-swing to end, he immediately flipped his grip on the sheath of his sword before transforming it into a straight sword with a narrow blade and sharp edges. 'Legacy Skill: Mondi's Style: Conviction Form' But before Shin managed to do an attack, he suddenly felt a bunch of needles flying towards him, through his 'Sensing Circle'. And since his posture is a little awkward to defend, those needles successfully land on different parts of his body and immobilizing him in the process. 'Extra Skill: Paralysis Needles' 'Extra Skill: Heart Seeker' Well, Shin is also not sure about how he can move his body despite being hit by those needles. All he knows is when he is done changing the form of his sheath, those needles also landed on his body at the same time. And for some unknown reason, he felt a warm energy coming from the rapier on his left hand, making those needles to become ineffective on him. But he don't remember the [Piercing Thorn] having that kind of special effect. Well, he doesn't have time to think about it now, he is going against a Title Ranker after all so he needs to focus on the fight first. Swoosh! The [Piercing Thorn] is traveling fast with Shin's sword thrust, together with the sudden turn of event, whoever on the other end will become helpless in that situation. But Vega is not you ordinary John Doe, he is a Titled Ranker. The moment his feet landed on the ground, he moves his left shoulder backwards before slowly turning his body around. And with that, he skillfully dodged the sword-thrust of Shin. And while Shin is brushing past him, Vega uses the momentum of his spin to throw a horizontal slash with his dagger, targeting the left side of Shin's waist. 'Twilight Skill: Counter-Strike' Shin can't block or dodge with his current position so he was forced to take that counter head-on while using one of his lifesaving skills. He enfolds his body with a bunch of sword Qi, protecting him from harm. 'Extra Skill: Swordsman Resolve' Ding! A metallic sound was created when Vega's dagger touched Shin's body.And Vega frowned his brows when he see that. 'This guy's Reaction Speed must be really high to be able to respond that fast. And maybe he can also use some breathing technique to able to execute those skills without delay.' 'Tsk! This guy is quite scary, his battle standards must be a little bit higher than a High Ranker even if it is lower than a Titled Ranker. Maybe our stats and equipments are the only difference between him and us, Titled ones, and also a little bit of experience.' After having that train of thoughts, Vega immediately use some footwork to position himself properly at the back of Shin while stabbing the dagger on his right hand. 'Twilight Skill: Backstab' And that strike successfully landed on Shin's back. And even if it didn't deal any kind of damage, it still removed the buff skill cast on Shin's body. And while pulling his right-hand dagger, he is simultaneously swinging the other dagger on his left hand at Shin's back. 'Extra Skill: Backbreaker' Shin immediately use his 'Moonlight Steps' backwards to passed through Vega's body and dodge that attack. Swoosh! Without looking back, Vega threw his right dagger behind, and that dagger chased after Shin. At first, that dagger passed through his body since he is still in spiritual form, but the moment his body materialized, he felt that he had been immobilized for some unknown reason. 'Twilight Skill: Spiritual Lock' After that, Vega immediately turns his body around and rush towards Shin. And during his run, his figure suddenly disappeared from Shin's sight. Without further ado, Shin immediately uses one of the anti-CC Skill in his arsenal. And his trousers suddenly release a silver light, before spreading on his whole body. 'Equipment Skill (Lower Armor): Spirit Immunity' Then Shin immediately regained his control on his body. But at that very same moment, Vega suddenly appeared in front of him while stabbing his right-hand dagger straight to Shin's chest. 'Master Twilight Skill (Tier2): Heart Stopper' Pssk! (-115 523) The dagger successfully landed at Shin's left chest and ripping off more than 15% of his total HP! 'D*mn! That was a massive damage!' thought Shin to himself while gritting his teeth and swing the [Yamato] in a powerful manner. 'Extra Skill: Destructive Slash' 'What!?' Vega was gotten off-guard when saw Shin moving his body after receiving his 'Heart Stopper' skill. He is already expecting Shin to use an anti-CC skill after getting hit by the 'Spiritual Lock', that is why he immediately used a fatal skill with a stunning effect as a follow-up. That was supposedly a perfect combo, and Shin is supposedly going to become a sitting duck after that and can be finished off by his chain of more CC-Skills and Fatal Skills. Well, unfortunately for him, the 'Spirit Immunity' attached to [Megumi's Shadow] can not only remove a debuff or immobilizing effects but also gave him a 10-second immunity for any CC-Skills. Pssk! -68 262(Stunned) -4 020(Burning Damage) +6 826(Lifesteal) Because of the successful hit of his sword skill, the 'Laceration' passive skill of Shin's 'Dissonant Wish' ring, the [Sword and Shadow], immediately took effect and reducing Vega's physical defense by 20%. At the same, the 'Sword Dance' attached to that ring also been activated, giving Shin an additional Attack Speed. Shin didn't want to let that opportunity slip away and immediately swings the [Yamato] and [Piercing Thorn] at Vega. His arms transformed into a blur as he throws three consecutive slashes with a force stronger than the other. 'Self-Created Skill (Personalized): Triple Slash' -24 210 -4 020(Burning Damage) +2 421(Lifesteal) .. -48 240 -4 020(Burning Damage) +4 8240(Lifesteal) .. -72 260 -4 020(Burning Damage) +7 260(Lifesteal) And since he doesn't have much time to execute another skill he just followed it with four more basic attacks. And each of those sword-strikes deals 10,000 damage on each. Vega was shocked at Shin's attack speed. In just a span of a second, he immediately received a massive damage from that combo! So without further ado, he immediately used one of his lifesaving skills to get away from his current predicament. His body suddenly disappeared in front of Shin while also removing all of the overlapping burning effects on his body. 'Twilight Skill: Gale Steps' Swoosh! Shin had already been expecting that, so he immediately gathers a bunch of Mana on both of his eyes, giving him an ability to see through disguise and invisibility. 'Extra Skill: True Sight' Then Shin saw Vega rapidly moving backwards, trying to widen the distance between the two of them. And since Shin is in the upper hand for a little bit, he needs to move and continue taking the initiative, or else, he is going to be in the passive state just like before. He just got lucky earlier so he can't let this chance slipped away from his fingers! Shin immediately charges forward and chase after Vega while thrusting the [Piercing Thorn] towards his front as his body suddenly get enfold by some sword Qi. 'Extra Skill: Sword Rush: Thrusting Dash' Swoosh! 'Tsk! I've been too careless earlier and gave this chap a good chance to take the initiative!' thought Vega when he saw Shin charging at him. 'Well, a single mistake is enough. I will not let you do anything from now on.' Vega slowed his movement for a moment and wait for Shin to catch up with him, and when the [Piercing Thorn] is only a few centimeters away from him, his feet suddenly move with some footwork and make his body to turn into a blur before disappearing on Shin's front completely. 'Advanced Combat Technique: Spectral Steps' 'This movement is similar to Vanishing Steps but a level higher and a level lower than my Ghost Evanescent. I can still catch him.' Shin's head is moving fast when he saw Vega disappeared from his front. Then he focus all of his senses trying to find Vega's location by utilizing his 'Sensing Circle' to the max while being reinforce by his Awareness Stat. And immediately after that, he felt a movement a few meters behind him and throwing an attack towards his back. He immediately stopped his first charge before turning his body around. Then he charged for another time while brandishing the [Yamato] towards the empty space on his front. 'Extra Skill: Sword Rush: Slicing Dash' Cling! The [Yamato] collided on something and creates a metallic sound together with some sparks that are flying in the air. Then Vega appeared and materialized in front of Shin. After that, Vega do some strange movements before closing the distance between him and Shin in a blink of an eye with a single dash while slashing his dagger at the swordsman's waist. 'Twilight Skill: Shining Cut' (-48 725) And with that move, Vega positioned himself at Shin's back once again. Then he immediately turned his body around before throwing a powerful stab with his right-hand dagger while targeting Shin's waist once again. 'Extra Skill: Vital Strike' (-127 092)(Critical) 'D*mn! This is how a Fatal Skill should be like!' Shin can't help himself but shivers when he experienced those series of damages. Then he immediately gathers some fire Elemental Mana from the surroundings before turning it into the power of the Black Sun that enfolds his entire body. After that, he dashes forward, leaving Vega behind. 'Slayer Skill: Sunlight Movement' "Going somewhere?" During the dash, Shin heard Vega's voice right beside him. He frowned his brows since he knew that he can't outrun a Master Twilight because the latter's speed is much higher than him.With that, Shin immediately stopped his forward charge before throwing a six-consecutive stab towards his right using the rapier on his left hand. 'Extra Skill: Multiple Stab' Cling! Cling! Cling! All of Shin's stabs were blocked by Vega effortlessly, but he didn't get frustrated yet, he gathers some water/ice elemental Mana towards his body and turned it into the power of the Silver Moon while guiding it towards the [Yamato]. And without further ado, Shin immediately brandishes his right-hand sword towards his front and sending a silver crescent-shaped sword Qi. 'Slayer Skill: Half-Moon Slash' Swoosh! Vega formed a smirking smile with his lips while having a ridiculing look at his face. After that, his body suddenly exploded into a bunch of black smoke when the 'Half-Moon Slash' sliced through his body. 'Master Twilight Skill (Tier 2): Extreme Disappear' Vega's presence suddenly disappeared from Shin's perception range, making him frown his brows further. After that, he immediately releases the 'Conviction Form' of the 'Mondi's Style' and turning the [Piercing Thorn] back to its sheath form before putting the [Yamato] in it. He doesn't have time to think further and just acted based on his instincts. He gathers another bunch of water/ice elemental Mana once again and transformed it into the power of the Silver Moon before transferring it towards the sheathed sword. The next instant, he swiftly pulled the [Yamato] out from its sheath and intending to slash it forward. Unfortunately, a hand materialized in front of him while pushing his right wrist backwards, and making the execution of his 'Lunar Flash' to become canceled. After that, Vega materialized in front of Shin while saying. "Ah-Ah~♪... That skill is too strong and quite dangerous so I can't let you pulled your sword anymore." The expression on Shin become solemn in this situation. After that, he immediately hopped backwards trying to create some space. But Vega is following closely after him while slashing his daggers at Shin. Shin forced himself to the limits and used the 'Mystic Movements' with all of his might as he tried to dodge some of Vega's attacks while trying to find the right timing to pulled his sword out. "Nice moves you got there. That Movement Combat Technique must be a high ranking one. Unfortunately, your speed is not fast enough to shake me off." sneered by Vega while he continuously throws some slashes with his daggers to harass Shin. After a few more moments, Vega notices that Shin's speed is continuously increasing as time goes by. No, it is more accurate to say that his speed is increasing every time his HP fall by 10% of it Total! 'Equipment Skill (Foot Armor): Death Approach' And Shin let it happens because he knows this is the only way to much Vega's speed. He didn't even dare to cast some heal on his body because his bonus speed will disappear the moment he did it. And the moment Shin's HP reached the 30% mark of its total, Vega decided to end it here. He crossed his arms in front of his chest, indicating that he is about to execute a finishing move. On one of the branches of one of the trees around the two, Faker, who is currently watching, is about to make his move to save Shin from his predicament. But he immediately stopped himself from moving when he saw what happened next. His mouth suddenly curves into an interested smile before muttering to himself. "You really are a stubborn one, aren't you? Not giving up even at this point, Huh?" ...