His cloak fluttered as he drew his string and pulled an arrow. Suna’s heartbeat drummed from a mix of fear and excitement.

  The Drow burst forward, obsidian sword in tow, with enhanced speed and power.

  Suna loosed arrow after arrow; his arm moved with deadly precision, and his aim was steady and true—Which was why, when the Drow blocked three arrows with her fluid grace, it sent fear to overtake his excitement.

  In the blink of an eye, the Drow was in front of him, dark sword swinging down, a hair's breadth away from cleaving his head. Suna skidded back with an archer backstep, arrow released as he slid on the bottom of the stairwell. Without looking, he stepped on the stairs, his feet climbed up, and his hand kept barraging arrows as he ascended.

  The Drow tried to rush forward, but Suna kept letting out arrows one after another—she was forced to advance a tad more slowly than she liked, and her sword kept moving to parry every last shot.

  Suna climbed up, running upstairs, stopping his barrage of arrows. In his hand, he summoned a bright blue arrow that formed in three seconds. Not long after, the Drow was already behind him. Turning to face her, Suna drew the bright blue arrow and let it loose on the Drow below.

  His arrow buzzed with a faint taint of magic breathed out from his bow. The Drow cleaved her sword forward, meeting the blue arrow. She tried to deflect it like she did with normal ones, but the moment they met, her obsidian blade emitted a rasping chime. The Drow screamed, the Mana Arrow refused to budge, and it crashed straight through the Drow's stomach, puncturing her.

  But, the power of the Mana Arrow has lessened greatly thanks to her block, if Suna’s Arcanery was on a better number, like his agility was… He wondered how potent that would be, that arrow already boosted from the Cloak Slea gave him. Well, it's no use wondering about that; besides, he probably wouldn’t swap both attribute numbers if he had the choice.

  He wouldn’t be able to draw an arrow this fast if his agility were low after all.

  Suna volleyed arrow after arrow. He drew and snapped his string in less than a second. His hand moved at terrifying speed. The Drow managed to wrench down her sword to Suna's annoyance. She blocked the first arrow, but the force of it sent the Drow to take a step back. Suna kept going, shortening their distance now. The Drow kept parrying, but the fifth arrow slipped through her defense and landed on her shoulder blade.

  That snapped her body back, and with it her sword too.

  Arrows darkened the torchlight between their two shadows.

  At this close distance, Suna kept peppering the Matriarch with relentless vigor.

  Her chest, gut, hip, and hands had been pierced. None was on a vital body part. Suna did not focus on aim—he focused on pure quantity. Each arrow he delivered pushed the Drow back, and each tore her skin and life away.

  He paused; a dozen arrows had stuck into her. The Matriarch fell to her knees. Suna took aim, initially at her chest, but he decided against it–he wanted her Rune not destroyed yet. So he buried his arrow in her throat, she went reeling from the impact, her breath chortled.

  Suna summoned his Mana Arrow, and tore through the Matriarch, splattering her in blood and gore.

  [You have Slain Drow Matriarch. Lvl 15]

  [Level up]

  How many levels was that? Five? Four?

  Suna sat on the stairwell, letting his body calm down and lose its battle heat.

  He groaned as the arrow of the Drow that had hit him still stung. He lifted the golden chain.

  [Paladin Chainmail] [Uncommon] – Wrought by light, the force of light has blessed this chainmail from evil, and it shall protect you from corrupted magic and alike. Strength + 30.

  [Mage Speed Cloak] [Rare] – Magic took time, as does art. Boost your spell casting speed by just donning this cloak. Arcanery + 20.

  That office worker could’ve given him better armor… He had traded with Reki for all the Tiefling Runes he had obtained in their battle. That had gained him one palm-sized Rune, and of course, he was excited to have the office worker break it for him. But what he got was not a rare but an uncommon item.

  Suna at first didn’t think much of it. This chainmail was way better than his previous armor. And it was great to use at practice. But on the fifth day, he started to think about getting into real combat, especially after hearing that Min was closing on his level. He had asked Reki for some kind of better armor, but he reasoned that he had been giving it all away per James's request. Suna had tried to insist again, even though he knew keeping him alive was very important.

  But, those palm-sized runes were small in number, and every last one had been cracked by Reki or Slea.

  It was a bit annoying that the office worker didn’t think to save him and Pito some armor. Well, Pito didn’t need it since Noa’s armor fit the Monk more than it does Suna.

  He and Reki got into a bit of a scuffle; the office worker enjoyed being pampered a bit too much by the Tiefling.

  Slea had chased him and actually had been saving this cloak he wore for when he eventually went out.

  Suna wondered if she would get angry about the slight hole here. Was there even a way to fix it? He didn’t think it necessary since the enhancement was still there anyway.

  He looked around. The corpses of eight Drow sprawled all over the place. And four more lay outside.

  Might as well get help.

  Suna went out of the tower, and a hail of ashes greeted him. He grunted, shielding his nose; at least it had been lessening.

  Conjuring a bright blue arrow, Suna waved it above his head. He spotted two figures descending from the rooftop. Min and Noa went running to him, each wearing a cloak, shielding themselves from these ashes.

  “You actually did it?” Noa gaped at him, peering around to see the corpses of the Matriarch.

  Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation.

  “And hit level twenty at it too,” Min added. “I really should learn to draw and shoot in close combat, too,” she muttered in the last part.

  Name: Suna Amor

  Level. 16 → 21

  Class: [Archer]

  Rune: 16

  Feat: 5

  Mana: 215/300 → 215/450

  Class Skill (4/8) → (4/15)

  - Archer Sense [Common]

  - Archer Backstep [Common]

  - Mana Arrow [Uncommon]

  - Moving Shot [Uncommon]

  General Skill (2/8) → (2/15)

  - Quick Draw [Common]

  - Drowfication [Rare]

  Strength: 192 →209

  Dexterity: 334 → 353

  Vitality: 37 → 45

  Arcanery: 37 → 52

  Sense: 74 → 97

  [Skill Choice] [Select one to Proceed]

  [Flint Draw] [Uncommon] – The archer's fingertip shall blaze an arrow with the magic of fire. This shall be the archer's step to Arcanery. Conjure flint of fire from your fingertip and let it flow inside drawn arrows.

  [Heavy Draw] [Uncommon] – Archer forces needed to be strong, what better than to crush through any defense. Draw much farther than what was possible while offering the string reinforcement so that it does not break. The arrow shall possess much more potency and force behind it.

  This was actually a hard choice. Also, one thing Suna noticed was his Arcanery sure does increase a lot compared to usual, maybe it was because he had been using Mana Arrow? And with this Flint Draw, what would happen if he used a mana arrow with it? Will that even work? He wished he had known before deciding.

  “I got to choose a skill,” Suna said to the two.

  “So it's level twenty,” Min groaned, shaking her head as she made her way inside the tower. “If gods decided to have us this game’s system, I wish they made it easier, y’know.”

  “And without the threat of dying too,” Noa added.

  Noa and Suna followed her in, and they began to lay the corpses next to each other. He slid off his knife and was ready to harvest the runes, especially the Matriarch one.

  “Ah, Noa? Can you loot the Matriarch's room?” Min asked; she tried to spare the [Warrior] who had decided not to fight.

  “I can do this much,” Noa said, drawing his knife.

  “Right,” Min mumbled, watching him begin carving into the Drow’s chest. “I will go then,” Min said as she made her way upstairs. Suna’s eyes followed her, and she clasped her hand, muttering Sorry to him.

  Min and Noa had been awkward around each other. And honestly, he did not blame Noa. After Min had said she would rather leave Noa if he wanted to be protected and not fight in this world, how could it not be awkward?

  “I haven’t cleared any floor up!” Suna called over Min.

  “Don’t worry, I got it,” she called back, before disappearing upstairs.

  They fell into silence as they worked. Noa carved in with his knife; he shuddered as blood began to creep out.

  Suna looked down at his own work, thick blood marred his finger as he brought his knife up. Its metallic smell oozed up, making him crunch his nose.

  He extracted the rune, sliding out the palm-sized crystal. It shone with a yellow color, marking it as an equipment rune. Suna grinned, forgetting the smell of blood around him.

  He pocketed the Rune, wrapping it with a cloth he brought. James had said, it's a custom within the Tiefling to cover their runes with black cloth so their shine won't be a problem.

  “Do you want some?” Suna asked as he began harvesting another body.

  Noa jerked up, a greenish rune on his blood-soaked hand. “Me?”

  “Who else is here?”

  “No, no. These are too much.” Noa stammered. The rugby player pushed two runes he had just harvested to Suna. Their blood-soaked hands clasped, and Noa hurriedly dropped them on Suna's palm.

  The rugby player is desperate to be useful. And it was painfully obvious.

  Noa began carving into another Drow again, eyes intent despite his obvious reluctance.

  “You know, I'm not going to let you be left here all alone,” Suna said absentmindedly as he began harvesting another.

  The rugby player let out a thin smile. “Maybe it's only you and Pito who are willing to take me.”

  “That's not true, Slea would–”

  Suna paused. Noa's hand stopped working; he lost himself in his own thoughts, even as his hand was inside the Drow's body.

  “Right,” Noa whispered before his hand moved again.

  The surrounding air told Suna to just leave it alone; a slight heaviness settled the moment he mentioned Slea's name. Quenches of blood rattled as they moved their knives.

  Suna battles a sigh. If they are fighting again… honestly, he would rather not know. But he needed to.

  “So… what happened? Pito and I literally trained under James for the entire week.”

  Noa's eyes peered at him, and he bit his cheek. The reluctance behind those motions was obvious.

  “I–I tried to get Slea out.”

  “Try to get her out?”

  “Yes,” Noa muttered.

  When did this even happen?

  “Why would you get her out? You can just see her anytime.”

  Noa paused, his body shuddering once more, but this was not because of the blood. “I'm trying to get her out of this city. With me.”

  Suna stifled a groan that was building up in his throat. He eyed the [Warrior]. No, maybe he couldn't call him a warrior anymore.

  “I suppose the plan did not include the rest of us.”

  “No, I figure if it was a group decision, then all of you would just stay anyway.”

  “And you were right,” Suna said, and Noa flinched. “It's not working out then?”

  “I tried to get along with her, but Tiefling always follows to get new equipment from her. She got a break and came with me to the upper city. I thought we were alone, so I told her my plan…”

  “Did she accept?” Suna asked and hoped with all his being that she said no. Slea was an important strength for them; if she leaves, then things might as well be twice as hard.

  “I don't know! It was on the tip of her tongue. Suddenly, three Tieflings appeared and got angry with us. And… and it turned ugly. Slea killed all three of them when they pushed me down. And, I took the blame…”

  “You took the blame? Wouldn't her attack leave so much evidence? Like, didn’t she spirit bomb–I mean, blasted anything?”

  “It was a new skill of hers.”

  New skills? She has been practicing, too?

  James found us, and he recommended the plan. He said, Slea was still needed, and he would guarantee our safety, and this doesn't matter. I don't know what he meant by that! And, Slea.. She changes a lot. I don’t know what happened to her. The way she just casually killed them…”

  That will mean the Thiefmaster has been keeping this secret from him and Pito, too.

  Suna wondered why.

  Even though he had already told him and Pito his grand plan.

  “They're from the fifth faction?”

  “Yes… Suna? How come you're not surprised?”

  “What? Oh, I'm surprised, you shouldn't do that, Noa. Leaving us…”

  “No, I meant about James. What did he mean by it doesn't matter? And Slea, what was happening to her? She was down there all the time, right? Or did she get into a fight too?”

  “Suna! Noa! I'm done,” Min called. She brought a black rucksack filled with clinking noises. She descended the stairs and tilted her head. “We're done here? I would rather not risk this revenge force the Tiefling always warned me about.”

  “Yes,” Suna said as he stood. “Let's go.”

  Min opened the tower doorway, and night shadows filtered in.

  Suna stepped into the shadow, but a voice cut him off from going further.

  “Suna?” Noa asked in a small voice, the rugby player still basked in the torchlight of the tower. “What will happen?”

  “Just stick with us, Noa.” He muttered, unsure what else to say. “Just be ready.”