SSS-RANK SUMMONING WEAPON SYSTEM-Chapter 41: Unexpected Attack

Xavier couldn’t breathe; the pressure was so strong that it was making him sink to the ground. This entity, before him, was on a higher level. He wasn’t even sure he could even lay a finger on him.

The Higher Demaranian gave a bright smile as he bowed. The creature was grey in colour, with two red horns that sprouted from his neck, and his hair was blue with a white tint on the front. He wore a long white robe and he looked human.

Xavier turned to Aria. He looked exactly like her.

"Well, it seems I would have to introduce myself." The creature drawled out as he bowed. "My name is Darakos, a higher Demaranian under Lord Vardos, who had demanded that I return with you two unconscious. I would prefer it if you allow me to do that quickly."

Xavier’s eyes widened at the name ’Vardos’. He had heard it in Carragis and now he was hearing it again. It didn’t take him long to figure it out.

’They’re after me because of Aria," he thought, realising quickly.

He needed to escape. His eyes searched for ways to exit quickly with Aria. He was no fool, he wasn’t strong enough to beat this figure before him.

Darakos smiled as he saw Xavier looking for ways to escape. "How foolish. It amuses me that you’re thinking of ways to escape."

The cavern was still dripping with blood when Darakos stepped forward, his grin wide, his aura suffocating. The goblins had fled, the warlord lay broken, but now something far worse had arrived.

Xavier’s chest heaved, his daggers slick, his body aching from the battle. He studied the figure carefully, his instincts sharp. Darakos was no ordinary foe—his presence pressed against the stone itself, heavy, unnatural. Xavier’s mind raced. What is his ability? He had seen countless powers before, but this one was hidden, cloaked in menace. He had destroyed Ezra’s head like it was a watermelon, and nothing visible was seen.

Darakos tilted his head, his voice smooth, mocking.

"Black human. I must admit, I’ve been craving this. I want your special ability. I want to see it unleashed. Fight me with it."

Xavier’s jaw tightened. He did not answer the way Darakos expected. He would not admit the truth—that his ability had not awakened. Instead, he let silence hang, his eyes narrowing, his daggers gleaming faintly in the firelight.

’If I can’t reveal weakness’, he thought. ’Maybe I’ll throw him off his game.’

"You’re not strong enough," Xavier said coldly, his voice sharp. "You want me to fight you with something you haven’t even earned the right to see? Pathetic."

Darakos chuckled, low and amused, his grin widening. He lifted his hand, fingers curling like claws.

"As expected of one of the black race, " he spoke. "Then I’ll beat it out of you."

He snapped his fingers.

The air cracked. Invisible bullets tore through the cavern, unseen but deadly. One struck the stone beside Xavier, exploding it into shards. Another grazed his shoulder, ripping flesh, spraying blood. Xavier staggered, his breath catching, his daggers flashing as he tried to track the unseen assault.

So that’s it, Xavier thought, his mind racing. Invisible projectiles. He uses his fingers to fire them. They’re precise, unerring... and deadly.

"Shit!" He muttered. "I’m in trouble."

Darakos moved with ease, his fingers twitching, each motion releasing another invisible shot. They whistled through the air, silent until they struck, each impact precise. Xavier ducked, twisted, and rolled across the blood‑slick floor, but the bullets found him. One slammed into his thigh, burning through muscle, forcing him to stumble. Another struck his chest, the force driving him back, his breath ragged.

Lyra cowered in the corner, her madness shattered, her eyes wide with terror. She pressed against the stone, trembling, whispering broken words. "No... not him... not Demaranian..."

Xavier gritted his teeth, his daggers flashing as he lunged forward. He struck at Darakos, his blades carving arcs of steel, but the Higher Demaranian was faster. He snapped his fingers again, bullets slamming into Xavier’s side, his arm, his leg. Blood sprayed, hot and thick, soaking his cloak.

Darakos laughed, his voice echoing through the cavern. "You’re slow. Weak. I thought you’d be more. Where is it, you animal? Where is the power I came for?"

Xavier staggered, his breath heavy, his body broken. He twisted, struck again, his daggers carving across Darakos’s chest. The blade bit deep, blood spraying, but the Higher Demaranian did not falter. He grinned wider, his eyes burning, his fingers twitching. Another volley of invisible bullets tore through the air, slamming into Xavier’s shoulder, his ribs, his thigh.

He collapsed to one knee, his daggers trembling in his hands, his breath ragged. Blood dripped from his wounds, pooling across the stone. His vision blurred, his strength fading.

Darakos stepped closer, his grin sharp, his voice mocking. "Pathetic. I’ll carve it out of you. I’ll rip your power from your bones."

Xavier lifted his head, his eyes burning, his voice low, steady, unyielding. "You’ll have to fucking kill me first."

Darakos chuckled, his grin widening. "Gladly."

The bullets tore through the air, invisible, unstoppable, each one aimed to kill. Xavier braced himself, his daggers flashing,.

The cavern was a graveyard of echoes—blood dripping from stone, Xavier’s body broken, his daggers fallen from his hands. Darakos stood over him, grinning, his fingers twitching with casual menace.

He snapped once more, and the air cracked. A final invisible bullet slammed into Xavier’s chest, the force lifting him off his knees and hurling him against the wall. His body crumpled, unconscious, blood pooling beneath him. Darakos chuckled, stepping closer, his grin sharp as a blade.

"At last," he murmured, his voice smooth, mocking. "I’ll take what I came for." 𝓯𝓻𝒆𝙚𝒘𝓮𝙗𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝒍.𝙘𝓸𝙢

But before his hand could reach Xavier, Aria rushed forward, her silver aura blazing, her eyes cold. She planted herself between Darakos and the fallen warrior, her presence sharp, unyielding.

Darakos tilted his head, his grin widening. "Ah... the special project." His voice dripped with amusement. "You’re next. I’ve been waiting for you too."

Aria’s aura flared brighter, her resolve unbroken, but Darakos only chuckled, his fingers twitching, invisible death ready to strike.

Then it happened.

A ripple tore through the cavern, sharp and sudden. Darakos’s eyes widened, his grin faltering for the first time. From the shadows, a figure stepped forward—a woman, her skin dark as midnight, her presence heavy, commanding. A black human.

Darakos froze, his gaze locked on her, his voice low, almost disbelieving. "Impossible... another one."

The woman said nothing. She raised a strange device, its surface glowing with runes that pulsed like living veins. The air cracked, light flooding the chamber, wrapping around Xavier’s unconscious body, Aria’s blazing form, and even Lyra’s trembling figure in the corner.

"Dammit!!!!"Darakos cursed. "You rotten animal!"

Darakos snapped his fingers, bullets tearing through the air, but they vanished into the light, swallowed whole. The device hummed, the glow intensifying, and in a heartbeat, the three were gone—transported away, ripped from the cavern.

Silence fell.

Darakos stood alone, his grin gone, his eyes narrowed, his fingers twitching with restrained fury. He frowned, his displeasure heavy, his voice low, venomous.

"So... another player enters the game."

The cavern trembled under his aura, but the prey had slipped from his grasp.

And for the first time, Darakos was left unsatisfied.