Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
On the steep and long rocky staircase, the crimson moonlight illuminated its midsection, leaving rather thick shadows along its sides.
Enzo was like a normal pedestrian at night, walking a little anxiously but without showing any signs of being flustered. He had a deep faith in his excellent good luck, being a winner in life, one that wouldn’t be caught by the Nighthawks.
Seeing that he would be done after a few more flights of steps, Enzo, who was once a Monster, suddenly sensed something as he turned his head to look at the shadows in the lowest point of the staircase.
He then saw a figure sitting there in a daze. His looks and figure appeared rather indistinct due to the lighting, and he was dressed in the standard outfit of someone from East Balam.
The figure took out a box of matchsticks and struck a match to light up the surroundings.
Enzo didn’t bother sizing up the person when he suddenly saw a scene before his eyes.
The figure threw a matchstick over as though he was gifting him something. And when the matchstick approached, it suddenly burst into a ridiculous inferno as a man wearing a formal suit and top hat walked out!
Seeing scenes he shouldn’t see, and hearing sounds he shouldn’t hear, were a daily occurrence for a Monster. Having become a Winner, Enzo was already used to all of this. Without any thought, he fully believed in his intuition and lunged forward, jumping off the staircase and making two rolls onto the lower street.
At the same time, the brown-skinned marionette, Oaf, suddenly stood up. After bending his back, he hurled the matchstick in his hand at the location where Enzo was previously standing.
Before the matchstick hit the ground, scarlet flames extended out into midair in a resplendent and brilliant manner.
Amidst the flames, Klein’s black-suited figure with a half top hat leaped out. However, he had lost sight of his target.
Klein had discovered someone rapidly coming down the staircase about ten seconds ago as though he was hiding from something. Suspecting that this was his new marionette, he immediately did a dream divination and obtained the revelation that the man was related to the Rose School of Thought and wasn’t anyone good.
With such a result, Klein didn’t hesitate to take action. Unfortunately, due to the lack of time, he didn’t have the time to use Paper Angel which had been recorded in Creeping Hunger to interfere with the target’s spiritual intuition, and as a result, it made his ambush fail.
At this moment, Oaf had already left the final flight of steps on the staircase. He was running with large strides towards Enzo, who had just stood up.
Enzo’s mind stirred. Without dodging, he nimbly turned his body to the side, avoiding the ordinary attack.
Then, he drew his gun and quickly aimed. With a bang, he shot Oaf’s chest.
As blood gushed out, Oaf staggered for a moment before collapsing. His breathing rapidly weakened.
Klein took this brief opportunity as his body vanished, phasing right in front of the target to block his escape route.
Enzo seemed to have an inexplicable strange premonition. He immediately tightly shut his eyes
He didn’t know why he did so, but as a Mid-Sequence Beyonder of the Fate pathway, believing his intuition was an instinct!
Immediately after that, Enzo frantically switched directions. Attempting to rely on his spiritual intuition, he rushed into another street, but at this moment, the man in the suit who didn’t have any outstanding features appeared in front of him again.
Klein’s figure kept disappearing and appearing in every direction, as though he was running around Enzo at high speeds, often blocking his path but not dealing any direct attacks. Whether he used Beyonder powers or not, it made Enzo face a figure wearing a black suit and half top hat no matter where he turned to.
For an instant, Enzo with his eyes clothes even imagined that he was facing a group of enemies instead of one enemy.
A Traveler was often able to create the effect of being besieged!
In just ten seconds, Enzo, who had failed to find a path to escape, suddenly jolted. His actions instantly slowed down as his mind and joints seemed to be injected with glue.
Traveling works well with a Marionettist as well. While Klein was phasing around, he kept maintaining a distance of ten meters from Enzo! He had been secretly controlling his Spirit Body Threads all this time!
No good… He doesn’t attack… and is only blocking me… not because… he is waiting… for the Nighthawks… but for… another reason… Enzo, who still had his eyes shut, felt his heart tighten. Suddenly, he stepped onto a rock, causing his body to lose balance. He slammed heavily to the ground, causing his revolver to fly several meters away.
Plop!
The pain and shock had snapped Enzo out of his suppressed state. He found his fluidity again.
Enzo was no stranger to such accidents. As a Winner, he often obtained an advantage due to all kinds of low-probability events and thus clinch victory.
Without hesitation, he was just about to dash towards the end of the street to his side and flip over the fence to jump into the sea, allowing what fate had arranged for him to escape his predicament when another scene flashed in his mind:
In it, he was breaking out into a coughing fit, to the point of not being able to stand up or open up his stride!
Ailments! The enemy can infect me with ailments! He isn’t attacking me and is simply blocking my escape route in order to keep me in this area; thus, infecting me with ailments in an unnoticeable manner! Enzo’s heart skipped a beat as he suddenly felt a strong sense of delight.
The Green Essence ring he wore came from a believer of the Primordial Moon. Upon activation, it could easily treat any ailments or injuries that weren’t too serious!
This is luck! Enzo pretended to not discover the infectious ailment in the air. Exerting strength in his palms, he lunged forward and followed his predetermined route towards the fence at the end of the street.
Moments after he took two steps, he suddenly coughed and involuntarily slowed down.
His coughing didn’t quell like usual. Instead, it was worsening as though he was about to cough out his lungs.
Klein’s figure flashed and appeared behind the target while he maintained ten meters from him.
At this moment, Enzo spread his arms and allowed invisible waves to ripple out of his body.
It was like a pure psyche storm that swept all Spirit Bodies in the vicinity, bringing with it an intense sense of drowsiness and calamity.
Klein similarly had a premonition for danger. The moment Enzo spread his arms, his body had already vanished from his spot and had appeared in the midsection of the steep staircase.
Still having his eyes closed, Enzo realized that he didn’t receive his desired effect. He immediately abandoned the idea of escaping after finishing his target. He continued running towards the fence at the end of the street.
He had a hunch that if he stalled a little longer, a number of Nighthawks would catch up to him, making the situation more chaotic.
And as a former Lucky One and a Winner, the more chaotic a situation, the higher the chances of him escaping!
At this moment, as he had repeatedly changed directions while running blindly, he once again passed by Oaf, who had been shot in the chest.
On Oaf’s left finger was a golden ring with an inlaid ruby.
A sanguine beam flashed from the beam as Oaf’s injuries began recovering. He bounced up and widened his mouth, biting down on Enzo who was running past.
His tongue seemed to lose substance as it transformed into a blob of flesh and blood.
Flower of Blood!
Oaf wore the Flower of Blood ring which Klein had obtained from Mr. X. It could randomly allow the wearer to abandon any rationality in order to become a beast. On the other hand, it could allow the wearer to control their body at a deeper level. As long as they didn’t suffer from instant death or become completely purified, they could heal from any kind of injury!
At the same time, it also came with flesh and blood magic. It was a mystical item that was very suited for marionettes!
Before Klein came out to seek a new marionette, he didn’t know which pathway or Sequence his target would be. Therefore, to make well-rounded preparations, he made Oaf wear the Flower of Blood ring. This way, he could direct a play of him being the main assailant with the marionette as the secondary assailant, but in fact, it was the exact opposite.
Just as Enzo ran past Oaf, he felt a stabbing pain in his knee as though his previous fall had given him some light injuries.
The moment this thought flashed across his mind, he hurriedly crouched down and felt a figure fly past his head. It missed!
Oaf’s sudden attack still failed to be effective against a Winner!
Enzo was just about to smile and run again when he suddenly had a premonition. He subconsciously curled up and protected his vital spots.
At the same time, Oaf suddenly swelled up and silently exploded.
Flesh and blood formed a storm, sweeping through a rather large area in the vicinity, hitting Enzo again and again.
One of the preparations Klein had done was to use a power of Creeping Hunger after its mutation. He had planted a Flesh Bomb in his marionette’s body!
WIth a clank, the golden ring with an inlaid ruby landed on the stone slabs in the street. Klein’s figure flashed to Enzo’s side.
He raised his left palm and made his palm pitch-black. As though they were formed of granules, he said a word filled with evil and corruption: “Slow!”
Thanks to his luck, Enzo had avoided most of the damage. His lightly injured body suddenly turned still as his struggling actions slowed down. His curled pose changed bit by bit.
Right on the heels of that, he opened his eyes due to the pain, and a figure wearing a black suit and half top hat was reflected in his eyes.
“Ah!”
Enzo let out a tragic cry as he raised his hands to cover his eyes.
Streams of blood seeped out from the gaps in his fingers.
Monster? Looking at his writhing target, Klein pricked up his brows. He continued controlling the Spirit Body Threads and quickly achieved initial control.
This time, there weren’t any accidents that broke the subsequent procedure. In a half-crazy state with scales growing from his body, Enzo was powerless to resist. Klein rather smoothly deepened his control.
Time ticked by when Enzo suddenly stood up and converged the protruded snake-like scales.
He pressed his hand to his chest and bowed at Klein. Then, he walked to the side and bent down to pick up the golden ring with the inlaid ruby. Wearing it on his left hand’s index finger, it matched the emerald ring on his other hand.
Klein held back the urge of looking at himself with his new marionette. He got Enzo to clear up the scene of the remnant flesh and any traces left behind.
After doing all of this, he walked into the shadows with his marionette and quickly vanished.
