Awakened: SSS Ranked Soul king

"Vincent? Long time no see."

In his current position, Guilliman smirked; he had noticed Vincent inching closer and closer—a silent, invisible specter coming to take his life.

Thankfully, one of his shaman abilities allowed him to communicate with his comrade, who let him in directly through their souls without a word being spoken.

That was how he was able to coordinate with Jemie to halt this assassination attempt on his life.

"Hmm, so you really can see me," Vincent said, disappointed. He stood up, phasing through Jemie's sword—which was positioned right behind his neck in an execution style.

While using his intangibility, he couldn't attack, so Jemie allowed him to move back to safety in an attempt to defuse the situation.

"I wonder how, though," Vincent said, stopping a few meters away with a gentle smile on his face.

In the entire shelter, no one could see him; his invisibility and intangibility allowed him to move unseen—even his footprints would easily fade away.

That is, except for Guilliman here.

"Heheh, I can't see you. That stench, though—I can smell it from a mile away," Guilliman mocked, pinching his nose.

Why, in God's good name, would he tell this guy how he could see him? Was he expecting him to throw away his advantage like that? That sounded stupid.

"Hmm, such vulgarity. Befitting of a slave," Vincent sneered upon hearing Guilliman's remark. This guy was a pain; his existence, which had seemed inconsequential not so long ago, had become a reason for worry.

If not for the fear of his ability, he was sure he could dominate everyone on this mission.

"I'm a slave, am I? Why don't you put me in chains?" Guilliman slapped back.

He was making fun of what had happened in the past—his defeat in front of the Blacksteel Lord and his very own Lord Father. It was embarrassing.

"Ohh, I'm sure I can do that quite easily… or did you think my remains would remain stagnant?" Vincent smiled, releasing his aura outward as the members of the Nu behind him walked forward in preparation for a fight.

'Ohh, he entered level 8? That was fast.'

A bit taken aback by the release of aura, Guilliman frowned, firmly gripping the meat carver in his hand.

Vincent was stronger than him in level, and that was utterly embarrassing. Having an enemy much stronger than you was tantamount to being a mere slave. It was the same reasoning Victoria had when she adamantly insisted they move forward no matter what.

But even with that, it seemed like his enemy was still a step ahead.

"Scary, level 8… I've never seen that before," Guilliman scoffed.

A man can be beaten back but never defeated. His power level had nothing to do with Guilliman's strength; only a fight could really determine who was better than the other.

"Ahhh, I'm glad you've seen a lot of them. Today, I'll grant you the privilege of dying at the hands of one," Vincent smiled, then signaled the Nu behind him.

Quickly, the rest of the group was surrounded, with at least one Nu positioned near each of them, signaling that no one could interfere.

Vincent Blackberry's ability was one of their aces against the fog. His capacity to kill fog monsters and assassinate unwanteds was a real boon, granting him a sort of honorific position amongst them. Although he was not the leader of this group, he wielded a significant level of power over them.

"Hmm, Jemie. Make sure nothing happens to the old man. No need to get involved unless your life is also at stake," Guilliman said rather calmly and collectedly.

Whatever was between himself and Vincent had nothing to do with them; it was a grudge he would rather not involve others in. And besides, he had been planning to kill the guy for a while now. He had enough countermeasures against him; the only thing he hadn't accounted for was that Vincent would be at level 8.

'Can't be any worse than a mythic creature, right?' Guilliman smirked and summoned a pair of curved daggers.

They were sacred daggers he had obtained from hunting a monster in the forest a few days ago. They weren't too powerful, but they were powerful enough.

His left hand glowed with a splendid light, and a gauntlet appeared on it, immediately raising the power level of the two daggers to a grand scale, as they were a pair of the same echo.

"Don't worry, slave boy, I won't kill you. I'll just beat you into submission and make you our slave once again," Vincent smiled, materializing a slender blade in front of him.

Then, with a woosh, he sprinted forward, sending a strike toward Guilliman's heart.

In the next few seconds, a flurry of exchanges took place that pushed both parties farther and farther away from the initial gathering.

Before pushing into the thick forest, Guilliman sent several mental instructions to both Jemie and Morgan before heading in.

-clang

-clang

-clang

The sound of metal clashing against metal resounded in the air as two silhouettes fought through the forest.

Vincent had long given up on using his invisibility when fighting Guilliman, since he could clearly see him; however, his intangibility remained strong.

"Hmp," Guilliman slid his curved dagger through the side of Vincent's head as if carving a watermelon. However, it just went through him as if nothing had happened.

In response, as soon as the curved dagger passed through him, Vincent threw a punch forward. With the strength of being at level 8, he caused Guilliman to wince in pain.

Their difference in strength was obvious.

Stepping back a few steps, Guilliman cursed.

'He has gotten really good at this,' he thought.

The Vincent he had fought before was still wet behind the ears; he could manage intangibility gradients and timing, and his movements felt floppy and disorganized—allowing Guilliman to beat him easily. However, this guy in front of him was none of those things. He seemed to be faster, more efficient, and more lethal with his abilities. If not for Guilliman's fast reflexes, his heart might have been ripped out a few moves ago.

"Well? Are you going to stand there all day or come over and receive your well-deserved beating?" Vincent mocked with an evil smile on his face.

This forest was like a haven for him; his abilities had skyrocketed ever since coming here. If anyone were to ask who benefited most from being here, he could truly boast of this achievement.

Killing someone like Guilliman had become more of a symbol than something he really needed to do.

"Beating, huh? We'll see about that," Guilliman straightened his back and walked forward.

Before anyone could see it, they were already on each other's throats once again, ripping at one another in hopes of landing a fatal hit.

Guilliman was no small fry; to be able to fight someone at level 8 while still being at level 7 was a feat worth noting. If not for their grudge, he would seriously consider poaching him to the side of the Nu.

Really, what was he even doing as part of a mere hunting team? That made zero sense!

-woosh

-wooosh

-woosh

As the battle raged on—with Vincent having the upper hand the whole time—something started to seem really wrong to Guilliman.

They had been exchanging blows steadily for the past few minutes. But it wasn't just blunt blows; there were also slashes and piercings.

Yet, for some reason, Guilliman looked to be completely unharmed. Not even a trace of blood marred him.

Although the same could be said for Vincent—his ability to avoid wounds was too glaring to ignore—what was Guilliman's deal?

[Waningmoon Mind-root charm – mythic (High-lord)]

[effect: this charm gives the user the ability to control his general perception of a given target]

The moment Guilliman could confirm how powerful Vincent's strikes were, he was ready to activate the echo he had gotten from slaying the mythic tree.

It allowed him to alter the perception of others when they came into conflict with him. So all this while, when Vincent attacked him, he was merely piercing thin air.

Though there were limits, he was able to use it optimally to hold Vincent—a level 8 slayer with a broken aspect—to a standstill.

And this was without using his own aspect ability.

"Fuck!! This isn't going well at all. I can't let myself become a joke once again," Vincent gritted his teeth. Failing to kill Guilliman during the slayer competition was a stain on his reputation.

If he failed to do so again here, his standing with the Nu would fall considerably since his invincible streak would have come to an end.

Waving his hand, he dismissed the slender blade he had been holding and summoned a new one.

This one was made of a pitch-black metal that seemed not to reflect light; unlike the others, it emitted a very dangerous aura—one that could send someone into a panic.

It was a mythic sword he had obtained from killing a fog beast.