Chapter 67: From Bait To Prey - Part 3

"Are you sure this is going to work, Lynn?" "I told you once before, Mr. Arezu... Believe in me who believes in myself... and in my sophisticated fashion sense." Lynn and Arezu's conversation stemmed from the fact that it had already been a few days—or more accurately, a few nights—since they started the bounty-hunting quest, searching in the capital of the Eileen Kingdom. Yet even now, as they stood together under the moonlit night sky, they still hadn't encountered Alex—or any weirdo resembling the so-called hooded assailant known as the Man-Hunter. Their strategy over the past few nights had been fairly simple. Lynn and Arezu would just spend time together, taking a series of late-night strolls through the dimly lit, empty streets of the capital. They'd talk about each other—or rather, Lynn would mostly tease Arezu, joking about how they were basically going on a late-night date every night. And of course, they enjoyed the midnight snacks prepared by the head chef of the Moon Pavilion. Despite not producing any tangible results regarding the bounty-hunting quest, both Lynn—and, albeit silently, Arezu—certainly enjoyed their time together. "Sadly, even our date might be coming to an end—" Lynn said, assuming Arezu's silence meant he was feeling a little lonely about the nightly strolls possibly ending soon. She paused, looked straight at him, and continued. "—But that loneliness makes you look forward to the next." Her words, unusually free of her usual teasing, came with a smile not laced with mischief but filled with genuine cheerfulness. It was a rare, honest expression from Lynn, and Arezu couldn't help but respond with a faint smile. However, that smile was soon overshadowed by the embarrassment he felt over what he was wearing. Instead of his usual outfit and brownish-gray coat—which matched his hair and eye color—Arezu now wore a formal noble suit. It gave him a handsome and dignified, albeit out-of-place, appearance. Something he clearly wasn't comfortable wearing. "Pfft—" "If you're gonna laugh, then don't hold back." "—Hahaha... If Alex doesn't come for you tonight even with that good look of yours, then we can assume Ms. Marionette's theory was wrong, and Alex isn't really after you." In addition to the unfamiliar outfit, Arezu's intimidating halberd-axe was also missing from his back, leaving him completely defenseless. Even though Lynn's plan involved making him vulnerable in hopes of attracting Alex in case of an unexpected encounter, Arezu was well aware of the flaw in her strategy. "Are we even sure that Alex is still hiding in the capital, Lynn?" "Even if he's not... under the same moon, your feelings for each other will still reach—" "Fine! I'm going then!" "Pfft—Hahaha..." Ignoring her playful teasing, Arezu went ahead with the plan, walking alone under the dim, empty streets of the capital. Meanwhile, Lynn followed further behind, not relying on her scouting skills, but sticking to the route she and Arezu had already planned. And just as the last bell rang—at midnight—Arezu finally encountered what he believed they were looking for. "...Give... it... back..." Those were the only words muttered by the hooded assailant standing a few meters ahead in the shadows. The surrounding silence only added to the eeriness of the situation. "...Give... it... back..." With the way the words were repeated, Arezu couldn't help but feel intimidated. And the moment he took a single step back—the assailant rushed to attack. If this attacker was indeed Alex in disguise, then like before, Arezu couldn't use any of his combat skills, so as not to trigger Alex's divine gift: Takeover. But even if Alex used or didn't use his divine gift to take control of Arezu's combat skills, it wouldn't have made much difference—because Arezu didn't even have his halberd-axe to use them with. In the blink of an eye, the assailant reached him, brandishing a sword imbued with a combat skill. 'Cleave' From the way the attacker charged, to how he wielded his blade, Arezu was able to gauge the opponent's combat ability even before the blade reached him. Compared to the Alex he previously fought—while corrupted by the Goblin Flasher's curse—this assailant displayed superior swordsmanship. But still not on the same level as Rust, whom Arezu had once fought under the influence of a cursed weapon. Just before the blade could reach his face, Arezu dashed forward, closing the distance at a speed the assailant couldn't react to, and landed a powerful body blow, sending the attacker stumbling to the ground. Taking a combat stance, ready for a hand-to-hand fight, Arezu waited—for the enemy to rise again, and for Lynn to arrive. "...Give... it... back..." Still muttering, the assailant slowly got up. He raised his sword—this time not to strike, but to activate mystic spells. Multiple wind blades and flame arrows manifested mid-air around him. At a single wave of his sword, all the magical projectiles were launched at Arezu. Arezu reacted quickly, leaping backward to dodge the first barrage of wind blades that struck exactly where he'd been standing a moment earlier. As soon as his feet hit the ground, he lowered his stance and sprinted forward—not toward the enemy, but to escape the incoming volley of flame arrows raining from the air. Though he avoided the first magical onslaught, the enemy wasn't done. Arezu didn't even have a moment to catch his breath. More wind blades and flame arrows appeared in mid-air, launching toward him again. He kept running in wide arcs, maintaining distance and waiting for Lynn to step in. In the meantime, he took off his coat and wrapped it around his right arm for some minimal defense. He focused on dodging the sharp wind blades, giving less priority to the flame arrows. For those he couldn't avoid, he used his coat-wrapped arm to block and absorb the blasts. But that tactic didn't last long. The coat soon caught fire, forcing Arezu to toss it aside—leaving him with no defense at all. Regardless— "That should be enough time... Lynn!" Arezu shouted, calling out—not because he sensed her presence, but because he had no choice but to hope she was close by and ready to act. "Obelisk" Her voice echoed from the darkness—and multiple stone pillars shot from the ground, forming a cage around the hooded assailant. Trapped behind the stone bars, the assailant couldn't escape. But Lynn wasn't about to let her guard down again. "Freeze" As she stepped out of the shadows, the ground beneath her feet turned to ice. The crystal-clear ice moved like it had a will of its own—spreading toward the cage, encasing both the stone bars and the assailant in solid frost. "Iron Chain" Upon reaching Arezu, Lynn cast one last mystic spell—binding the frozen cage in multiple iron chains rising from the ground. "Isn't that a bit too much?" Arezu asked, staring at the result of her efforts. "I won't go easy on anyone who might lay a hand on you, Mr. Arezu." The mischievous grin on her face, visible even in the moonlight, made Arezu realize what Lynn really meant by her protective tone. And as if to make it even clearer, Lynn said it aloud. "I will protect your chastity—" "That's enough teasing already—" While they continued their usual back-and-forth, as if jinxing themselves, something began to stir within the frozen cage. "Now, Mr. Arezu... Can you still say I went overboard?" Though the hood's enchantment prevented Lynn's eccentric eyes from seeing the assailant's mana flow, she could still sense the mana in the surrounding—and recognized the nature of the incoming mystic spell. An advanced-level mystic spell: Flamestorm. "Get behind me—" Lynn tried to counter it with another advanced-level mystic spell: Glacier. But before she could act, Arezu swept her into a bridal carry and retreated from the towering cyclone of flame now forming in the cage. The Flamestorm melted the ice, shattered the chains, and broke through the stone pillars. When the flames finally died down, the hooded assailant had vanished. Alex had escaped. Again. They would have to set another trap—with Arezu as bait. But even after their failure, Lynn wasn't mad. Not even annoyed. After all— "My, my... I wouldn't mind being carried like this until we get home, Mr. Arezu." "...Please walk on your own, Lynn."