NOVEL WEB Chapter 90: Shadow Clone[2]
He barely had time to register the message.
Because the very instant it appeared—
The clone moved.
It just vanished—and reappeared right in front of him, daggers drawn and slashing in a perfect arc.
It moved exactly like he would, from the stance down to the attack.
And it had already closed the distance in less than a second.
"—Tch!"
Riley barely brought his dagger up in time to parry the strike—steel clashing against steel with a sharp metallic ring.
The sheer force of it sent a jolt up his arm.
And as their blades locked—
He stared into his own twisted reflection.
That grin was still there.
Riley's teeth clenched as he held his blade steady against the shadow clone's.
He knew better than anyone how strong he was, and letting up for even a moment could be dire.
'It's just as strong as me…' he thought grimly. 'Maybe even a little stronger!'
His instincts suddenly screamed at him, warning him of another incoming strike.
Before he could even blink, a second slash whipped toward his neck.
Riley's body moved on its own.
He leapt backward, narrowly avoiding the blade as it cut the air in front of his face. The wind from it stung his cheek.
But there was no time to recover, because the clone didn't relent on its attacks.
Its form blurred again—the shadows around it distorting violently as its speed abruptly spiked.
Riley's eyes widened in shock. 'It used [Lunge]!'
The clone lunged forward, a line of darkness trailing behind it like a serpent.
Another dagger came flying toward the side of Riley's neck.
He swiftly twisted his body again, causing the blade to miss by mere inches.
However, that was just the bait laid out for him by the clone.
Before Riley could fully reposition, the clone's leg suddenly snapped out, launching a low kick, aimed directly at his thigh.
"Shit—!"
There was no time to dodge.
The thick shroud of dark aura wrapped around Riley's lower body parted in a split-second—
Thwack!
The kick landed with crushing force.
Riley grunted sharply, his leg buckling slightly as pain jolted up his side.
—10!
Fortunately, his high physical resistance, which was even further boosted by the three stacks of [Charge] made the damage negligible.
He shouldn't have recieved any damage even, but unfortunately, the dark shroud around his body was rendered useless against the 'shadow'.
The same thing happened during the second trial, as his dark shroud suddenly parted whenever he was attacked.
It was almost like, it was terrified of the 'shadow'.
His footing slipped—but only just.
He threw his weight back immediately and steadied himself with a sharp skid across the dirt.
His heart thundered. Read ahead and get updates by visiting M^VLEMPYR.
That wasn't just speed—it had tactical awareness.
Just as he was also aware of his strength and weakness, the shadow clone had the same knowledge.
It was making sure to predict his actions and target his weakness.
It could be said to be even better at doing that than Riley himself!
Suddenly, clone vanished from his sight.
Riley didn't need to look.
He immediately felt its presence reappear behind him.
He swiftly dropped low and in the next second—
Fwhsshh!
A dagger slash whizzed past the top of his head, barely grazing his hair.
Riley noticing this, didn't hesitate.
Spinning sharply, he twisted his entire body in one clean, fluid motion—his blade flashing in a wide arc toward the side of the clone.
Shing!
A sharp tearing sound echoed.
—1900!
A red notification flared briefly above the clone's head.
The blade of Riley's dagger tore through the clone's armour, ripping cleanly through the side of its torso.
The impact sent a ripple across its body, and its frame jerked back slightly, as if from recoil.
Riley swiftly leapt back, his boots skidding across the dirt as he widened the distance between them in an instant.
His grip tightened on the twin daggers in his hands—the curved blades humming faintly.
The crimson veins along their edges were already glowing with a soft, pulsing red light—having absorbed a portion of the shadow clone's mana from that last hit.
Thick, dark liquid slowly oozed from the deep gash across the side of the clone's chest—dripping down its body in languid trails.
But despite the injury, it didn't falter.
There was no pain in those dark eyes.
Instead, the edged of its lips curled into another twisted grin, then its body flickered.
It lunged forward again, so fast it looked like it simply vanished and reappeared before him—daggers swinging straight for Riley's throat.
But this time, Riley was already prepared.
'Expected that,' he thought coldly.
The very moment the attack came, he stepped sideways in a single, smooth motion.
The twin blades sliced past him, whistling as they tore through air where his neck had been just a second ago.
The clone was left open at the side—completely exposed.
And Riley knew better than anyone: he never gave his opponents time to breathe.
The moment his feet touched ground again, he struck.
This was a calculated bait.
He had retreated earlier on purpose—knowing full well that the clone would chase him the instant he backed off.
After all, that's what he would do—use whatever chance he saw to take down his enemy.
And now that it had taken the bait—
Riley stepped in and drove his dagger straight for the back of the clone's neck.
A precise, lethal strike.
But the clone wasn't a simple puppet.
Its body suddenly twisted mid-movement—shoulders snapping back unnaturally as it avoided the full blow.
The dagger bit into its shoulder instead of its neck—sinking deep into flesh with a wet squelch.
Splat!
Another stream of black blood burst from the wound.
Riley frowned, his eyes narrowing slightly.
It had read him too.
He yanked the blade free instantly, twisting his body for a follow-up—
And delivered a sharp, vicious knee kick toward the clone's abdomen.
But again, the clone reacted.
Its elbow snapped downward, intercepting his knee with a solid block.
Thwack!
The impact cracked through the air, both of them jolting slightly from the clash.