Amber, with blood splattered across her face and clothes, exclaimed, "I am alive!"

On the other hand, the soldier who had just attacked had his pupils constrict to the size of needles. He had struck with full intent to end his target’s life, and just as he was about to bring down his sword on Amber, his movements faltered as he did not expect a figure to suddenly appear in the path of his blade. He was very familiar with the person, but it was too late to stop his sword as it cleaved the person in half.

Thud

Amber looked at the corpse of the person, her eyes widening. "Andrew!"

She looked at Andrew’s corpse, cut in half, his expression before death filled with fear and confusion—he had not expected to die in such a manner. 𝙛𝒓𝒆𝙚𝒘𝒆𝓫𝙣𝓸𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝒄𝒐𝓶

"Heh..." both Amber and the assassin looked at the soldier before Amber, who had shoved Andrew into the path of the attack to shield her.

"Who are you, bastard? How dare you interfere with my assignment!" the assassin shouted, his face slightly pale as he recognized Andrew—the son of his employer, whom he was supposed to protect. Not only had he failed his mission, but he had killed him with his own hands.

The soldier placed his hand on his face and seemed to peel off a skin mask, revealing a familiar person beneath.

"Victor!" Amber exclaimed. She had been wondering why Victor had not joined the battlefield, but who would have thought he was already beside her?

Seeing him, the assassin frowned and said with a malicious smile, "Good, both of my targets are here—it saves me the trouble of finding you."

Victor was also one of his assassination targets. After killing Amber, he had planned to search for him, but he did not expect Victor to come voluntarily. He was confident, as Victor was merely Tier 0, and no matter what Warlock Bloodline he had, he did not fear him as he himself was Tier 3. Not for a moment did he suspect Victor to be the one behind the black lightning—if he knew, he would have reconsidered.

"I did not expect the Hall of Assassins to be active in this kingdom," Victor said with a smile, which widened as he sensed the assassin’s killing intent intensify.

--------

"No, I have to join them," Callum said through gritted teeth as he rummaged through his spatial storage and brought out a health potion.

"!!!" As he was about to drink it, he felt a chill run down his spine and jumped backward as the potion was shattered by a slash.

Callum narrowed his eyes at the newcomer, his heart tightening as he cried inwardly, ’Damn, a Tier 3 opponent—and this guy seems to be a Warlock.’

"Who are you?" Callum asked, looking at the person in a butler uniform who had appeared before him.

"I am Edward, the loyal butler of the Silvernum Barony and a Warlock," Edward said with a polite smile, and Callum, upon hearing this, had his expression change.

"Impossible, other than the newly awakened Lord there should be no Warlock—unless I was given wrong information," Callum’s face darkened as he said the last part.

"Indeed, you are right—whoever gave you the information was wrong, as I was always a Tier 3 human. It seems your informant did not properly gather intelligence..." Edward said with a smile as he saw Callum’s expression visibly darken, and then he added with a playful chuckle, "Hehe, but he was right about one thing."

"Oh? What would that be?" despite being wary and alert, he could not help but ask what that wretched informant had gotten right.

In his eyes, that informant was utterly useless—not only had he failed to report about the giant steel behemoths and powerful defenses, but he had also failed to report that the butler was such a formidable Warlock. Honestly, he was certain he would die today. Even if he were at full health, he was not sure a Tier 2 being like him could face the butler, who was one tier above him—moreover when he was severely injured. Sure, if Edward were not a Warlock, he might have had a faint chance of escaping.

"Well, I was not a Warlock originally, but you see, I encountered a fortuitous opportunity which allowed me to awaken a Warlock Bloodline just before you arrived," he said with a chuckle as he opened his panel and looked at the bloodline section with a smile.

---------

Shadow Assassin (S Rank)

Description: The ultimate assassin who is one with shadow and darkness. This bloodline is most suited for assassins and allows them to merge with darkness and shadows to conceal themselves and strike their enemies. It also allows the user to control the power of shadows. The target cannot leave unless the user deactivates the technique or one of them dies.

Awakened Skills:

Room of Darkness and Shadows

Rank: S

Description: Creates a dome that traps the target with the user and forms an area of pure darkness. While inside this dome, the user becomes invisible.

Shadow Binding

Rank: A

Description: Uses shadows to bind the target and restrict movement.

-------

Edward had obtained this as a reward from conquering the Forest of Darkness dungeon when he went out Victor and the troops. It was more like a seed that had been implanted within him, which matured just before the arrival of the Black Church. He immediately reported it to Lord Victor, who was dumbfounded; the shocked look had made him chuckle, and he was relieved that Victor was not angry as he had reported it late.

Hearing this, Callum’s expression darkened as he cursed the heavens in angry voice, "Damn, is my luck really this bad?!"

"!!!!" Suddenly, he saw Edward smiling at him, and he could feel that the smile was filled with malice directed at him. Just as he was about to react, he saw the butler vanish from his spot and felt his surroundings turn pitch black.