NOVEL WEB Chapter 6: Ambush
I must have known better than to let my guard down.
The halls of the castle seemed far too quiet; that was, of course, the kind of silence which wraps around you and makes you question every creaking of the floorboards. Gregor had wanted to double the guard in the wake of the assault during the banquet, and I'd told him he could go deal with another matter. That perhaps was a mistake.
I had just passed a curve when it happened.
System Alert: Quest Available
QUEST: HUNTER IN THE SHADOWS
Objective: Survive the ambush and eliminate the assassins.
Enemies Identified: 5
Bonus Objective: Protect the castle's key areas from enemy infiltration.
Reward:100 XP
+2 Strength, +1 Agility, +1 Endurance
Item: Shadowbane Blade
I could hardly even think about the quest when lights flickered around me. Torches up the walls spat weakly, their flames shrinking with a cold breeze. The faint air touched my face and was carrying with it an odor that was wrong - earthy and sharp, like damp soil and rusted iron.
Instinct took over. My hand flew to the hilt of my sword just in time as a figure darted out of the shadows.
The first assassin came fast, his twin daggers glinting in the faint light. I barely managed to block the first strike, the force of it jarring my arm. The second dagger sliced through the air, missing my throat by inches as I twisted away.
Dark Elves.
Their skin was ashen, their eyes a piercing violet that glowed faintly in the dark. Their movements were fluid, almost hypnotic as they circled me - their cloaks blending seamlessly with shadows.
"You should have stayed dead ", 'Your Majesty,' one of them sneered, their voice a venomous hiss.
The others closed in, their blades glinting. My mind raced as I took in their formation: three in front, two behind, moving in perfect synchronization.
I gritted my teeth, raising my sword. "You'll have to try harder than that."
The first two came at me together, with deadly precision. I parried one blade and ducked under the other, then struck back with a wide sweep that forced them back.
But the third assassin was behind me. I felt the burning knife cut across my side before I could turn around.
Damn it, I hissed, stepping back. My hand pressed against the wound, warm blood seeping through my fingers.
Health: 62/100
The status window flashed in my line of sight, the number flashing at me. Then this appeared:
Bonus Goal Altered: Protect Yourself First.
I gripped the sword tighter, adrenaline pumping through my veins. My instincts screamed for me to activate Gluttony, to unleash the hunger that simmered just below the surface. But I hesitated.
The last time I'd used it, I'd lost control. If that happened here, in the middle of the castle.
No. I couldn't risk it.
Then I saw him.
"Your Majesty!" Gregor's voice echoed down the hall, and relief washed over me. He was running toward me, sword drawn, his face etched with urgency.
But something was wrong.
He wasn't in his usual armor, and his movements were a little too smooth—too practiced. My mind shot back to the warning in the status window.
A trap.
"Get back!" I shouted, focusing my eyes at him as I pointed the knife at him.
He stood there, motionless, his face changed into something icy. Then, before my very eyes, his shape began to ripple like water.
A moment ago, a dark elf, at whom Gregor once did stand, sneered upon me from violet eyes afire with malice.
"Smart" he said, no longer the voice of Gregor. Not smart enough.
The real assassins moved in. They were faster this round. Their strikes were coordinated and relentless. I was dodging one dagger then to catch another along the shoulder, the pain of which was sharp and blinding.
Health: 42/100
I wildly swung at them, clipping one of them across the arm. The elf hissed in pain but didn't stop; his movements were fluid.
I was losing.
"Okay," I whispered, gritting my teeth. "You wanted this?"
The hunger surged as I closed my eyes, willing the skill to activate.
Skill Triggered: Gluttony.
It was instant. My eyes cleared, the world slowing as the skill settled in. My movements felt lighter, faster, as though the weight of exhaustion had been stripped away.
The next assassin plunged toward me, and I deftly sidestepped him, plunging the blade into his chest. A rush hit me, wave-like, and hot, powerful fluids flooded my veins as life faded out of him.
+1 Strength Gained.
+1 Agility Acquired.
Obtained memory fragment.
There was no time to savor the power. The remaining assassins faltered, their coordination breaking as they realized what I'd done.
I did not let them catch their breath.
The next fell with a loud cry, and my sword cut through his rib cage. Another rush; another fragment of strength adds to my own.
+1 Endurance Received.
The last two assassins stepped back, their faces pale.
"Impossible," one of them whispered. "What kind of creature—
I didn't let him finish.
And when it was done, the hall lay strewn with corpses, and the air hung thick with metallic blood-stench. My chest heaved with every fading wave of the skill, as something colder left a murmur of satisfied triumph in its wake.
Quest Completed
Reward Received
100 XP
+2 Strength, +1 Agility, +1 Endurance
Acquired Item: Shadowbane Blade
The notification lingered in my face but I barely saw it.
My headache throbbed as this memory fragment bubbled to the top of my brain. Alaric stood in a dark room, his crimson eyes blazing with anger.
Before him knelt a dark elf, his hands bound and his face bruised. "They'll never stop," the elf spat. "You can kill a hundred of us, but the shadows will always rise again." Alaric's jaw went tight. "Who sent you? The elf laughed, the sound cold and hollow.
"You already know.". The memory faded, leaving me gasping for air. I stumbled against the wall, my vision blurring. Eravon. He wasn't just orchestrating human conspiracies—he was using dark elves, twisting them into tools for his schemes.
I had finally realized that it hit me like a hammer that it wasn't about the power but war. And there I was, right in the middle of it.