Chapter 54: The Level Zero [Hero] Chapter 53

“We are the Graceful Twins, and we shall kill you.”

Both Ava and Ruven spoke at the same time as they raised their hands in unison. They wore nothing on their faces but a set of emotionless expressions as they pointed at the three A-ranked adventurers, unleashing a massive fireball.

Saros stared with wide eyes as the roiling sphere tumbled his way. It was huge! It had to have been greater than even a [Grand Fireball]. It was like a falling comet, over twenty feet in diameter. It tore through the city’s roads, and ripped apart the nearby houses, crossing the street in mere moments.

Deon and Skye both backed up, but the Gnome Inventor just stood there before the approaching fireball. Saros gritted his teeth and produced a large vial. An empty glass bottle that was about half his size. He stepped forward and uncorked it.

“Antimagic Vacuum Flask,” Saros whispered.

And all at once, a powerful suction force dragged the giant fireball into the glass vial. The flaming sphere twisted and bent, forming a thin line as it was sucked into the artifact. Saros could feel its overwhelming heat boring down on him for a moment. But moments later, the last of the Graceful Twins’ spell vanished.

He held up the vial as it was now filled with a crimson flame within.

“What do you think?” Saros asked as he turned to Deon and Skye with a grin. “It can contain up to an A-rank spell inside. Pretty impressive, huh?”

Deon blinked at the Gnome Inventor, before nodding approvingly. “I have never seen such an artifact before. Did you invent it yourself?”

Saros paused. “What? Of course not—”

“Of course he did,” Skye interjected with a scoff. “He’s not called the Gnome Inventor for nothing.”

He glanced between the other two A-ranks as he clenched his jaw. Were they messing with him? He couldn’t tell. But it looked like Deon and Skye sincerely believed he was some kind of inventor. So Saros opened his mouth to correct them.

“I—” But this time, the Graceful Twins spoke over him.

“As expected of…” Ruven started.

“...the Gnome Inventor,” Ava finished.

Saros stared at the four humans surrounding him. Two of them were his allies, and the other two were his enemies. But he hated them all equally.

“You lot are assholes,” he sighed.

As if that was some sort of signal, the Graceful Twins moved. They dashed forward, Ava leading the way as Ruven disappeared behind her. But Skye intercepted them. She leapt to their side, tossing a single throwing dagger their way.

“[Multiply Shadows]!” she yelled.

And a dozen silvery throwing daggers appeared behind the first. They looked like a replica of the original, except they lacked the same texture that made it real, and they glimmered with a sheening light.

Ava created a fiery barrier, repelling the onslaught of projectiles, while Ruven conjured up a flurry of fire arrows, and hurled them back at the Silver Shade. But Skye dove out of the way as his spell shredded the cobbled ground.

But she was merely a distraction. Deon charged straight at the Graceful Twins, raising his halberd. Before either of the two could react, he grunted and swung down.

“[Shatterstrike]!”

Ava and Ruven jumped out of the way with a burst of flames propelling them as his halberd struck the earth. The ground exploded open. A powerful shockwave rippled across the street of the city, nearly knocking Saros off balance. But he caught himself and produced a crossbow.

He pointed at the Graceful Twins as they slowly descended atop a nearby rooftop. The Gnome Inventor inserted a wand where the crossbow bolt should be, before firing it at them.

“Take that, you damn idiots!” he laughed wildly, and the wand exploded into a storm of electricity.

He watched as blasts of lightning crackled endlessly over the rooftop. Skye appeared next to him, and Deon dragged his halberd behind him as he walked up to their side.

“Did you get them?” the Virtuous Guard asked.

Skye just shook her head. “That definitely wasn’t enough. They’re probably just barely Level 50 each, but their teamwork is insane— it’s like fighting someone in their high 50s.”

And as she spoke, the crackling electricity faded away. The curtain of lightning fell, revealing the Graceful Twins standing in a fiery dome with their hands raised. Saros clicked his tongue.

The Gnome Inventor himself was only Level 56, and he highly doubted he could take on Ava and Ruven alone. But Deon and Skye were here, and they were probably Level 52 to Level 53 from what Saros had seen of their feats.

Stepping forward, the gnome looked up at the Graceful Twins as the flaming barrier dissipated.

“Those two are strong, alright,” he said and nocked another wand into his crossbow. “But they can’t take out the three of us if we work together as well.”

Both the Virtuous Guard and the Silver Shade exchanged a glance. They nodded at each other, grinning. But the Graceful Twins spoke in agreement.

“You are correct. This is a tough battle to face alone.” They started in unison, before breaking off to finish each other’s sentences.

“However—” Ruven said.

And Ava continued, “—we are not alone.”

Saros blinked. “What…?”

And that was when he heard the rapid footfalls approaching. He spun around just in time to see a figure bounding through the mist on all fours. A human man with long curly hair leapt forward, snarling like an animal as he raised a claw in his right hand.

“Die!” he snarled, aiming for Saros.

The gnome spun around and raised his crossbow, but he was too slow. Fortunately, Skye jumped in the way. She blocked his clawed strike with both her daggers, and staggered back from the impact of the strike.

“You’re—” Her eyes widened in recognition.

“I am Lionell the Crimson Claw,” the man said with a toothy grin. He kicked off her daggers, landing with a backflip a dozen feet from her. “It’s a pleasure to make your acquaintance.”

Saros froze, recognizing the name. Lionell the Crimson Claw— he was a Level 55 [Rogue] of sorts. One of the most dangerous members of the Miststorm Riders. Just as unhinged as Emory the Frenzied One.

“Now it’s three-on-three,” the gnome murmured through gritted teeth. “This isn’t going to be—” 

“Incorrect,” a curt voice cut him off.

The single word was immediately followed by an approaching scraping sound. Saros winced. It was like hearing nails on a chalkboard; a low ear-piercing screech. He glanced back to see a thin figure stalking through one of the burning houses.

A man dressed in ragged robes stepped out of the fire and came to a halt. The scraping sound stopped. He raised his head, revealing a multitude of scars on his baleful face. He dragged a set of bloodied flails behind him and spoke brusquely.

“Derell. The Bone Crusher.”

Deon just narrowed his eyes, warily glancing between the two new opponents before pursing his lips. “Now it’s three-on-four, Saros. What do we do?” 

“I feel like we’re pretty fucked here,” Skye said as she backed up. “Maybe we should run.”

The Gnome Inventor glanced up at the Graceful Twins. They hopped off the rooftop in unison, landing lithely just ahead of the three adventurers. Ava and Ruven took a single step forward together.

“...I don’t think they’ll let us off that easily,” Saros observed.

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The Graceful Twins just smiled.

“That is…” Ruven started.

“...correct!” and Ava finished.

Once again in sync, the two of them dashed forward as Saros cursed. But this time, it wasn’t just the Graceful Twins. Derell the Bone Crusher and Lionell the Crimson Claw charged forward too.

Saros backed up and reached for a bag at his side. Ava and Ruven pointed his way, unleashing a plume of flames. He hurriedly untied the bag as he pointed it at the approaching red wall. The bag shook for a moment, before releasing a deluge of dark fire.

The crimson flames clashed with his black flames as the Graceful Twins exchanged a glance. They saw the way Saros held up the small Bag of Holding. His artifact wasn’t going to run out of mana anytime soon just yet. So Ava and Ruven split off from each other, halting their own outpouring of flames.

They dodged the streak of black fire that shot out between them. Saros turned the bag, aiming it at Ruven who rapidly drew closer. But at the very last moment, Ruven dashed off to the side. The Gnome Inventor blinked, and Ava appeared at his flank.

“[Burning Tempest].” She pointed at Saros as fire coalesced in a sphere around him.

A ring flashed in his fingers, forming a white aura around him. It was a protection spell. But even still, he could feel the heat from the flames. The fiery sphere didn’t dissipate, instead raging on as it threatened to crush him where he stood. He found himself staggering backwards as the encroaching fire reached its peak in intensity.

And all at once, it exploded.

“Fuck—” The blast sent Saros flying through the air as there was a flash of light. His protection spell shattered from the explosion, and he slowly rolled to a halt.

In a daze, the gnome tried to pick himself up even as his arms and legs burned. It wasn’t a searing pain. They were mild injuries at most. But he wasn’t a [Warrior] of sorts. His durability in combat wasn’t all that high up there.

He swept his gaze over the misty street to regain his bearings. Behind him, Deon battled with Derell, while Skye and Lionell were nothing but clashing blurred streaks. But even though Saros caught a brief glimpse of the fighting, he could tell—

We’re losing, the grim thought crossed his mind. We could die here.

Deon stumbled back as the spinning flail struck him across his chest, cracking his armor. Skye yelped in pain as she was kicked out of the air and came crashing into the ground. Saros reached into his Bag of Holding and produced a dagger just as the Graceful Twins appeared before him.

They pointed at him, unleashing a wave of flames. But he sliced horizontally as he yelled.

“Disintegration Dagger!”

And the flames rapidly vanished. The Graceful Twins looked on with wide eyes as a green streak slashed its way towards them. It ate away the crimson fire, and they leapt out of the way as the attack melted everything it touched.

“That is—” Ruven started.

“—annoying,” Ava continued.

“The way you damn brats talk is annoying!” Saros yelled as he raised his crossbow, aiming at both of them.

He pulled the trigger, and another wand fired out. But before it could even reach the Graceful Twins, they blasted it out of the air. The wand exploded into icy shards, and Saros scrambled to his feet.

This was really bad. The Gnome Inventor was running out of high-leveled equipment. And he didn’t have many Skills that were useful in battle. He hurriedly rummaged through his Bag of Holding as Ava and Ruven landed just ahead of him. They brought their hands together, creating a giant fiery javelin.

“Goodbye, gnome,” the Graceful Twins said.

And at once, they threw the fiery javelin his way. He ran back as the spell swerved after him. Saros made a hard turn, and it followed. He couldn’t escape it. All he could do was repel it. But as he was about to pull out a sphere-like object from his Bag of Holding, he tripped.

“Shit—”

Saros fell on his front, tripping over a fallen spear. He could only look up just in time for the fiery javelin to reach him. He braced himself and closed his eyes as he waited for his impending demise.

And there was an explosion. A powerful blast that shook the earth. The ground rumbled as Saros waited for the scalding heat to engulf his body. But it never came.

Blinking, the Gnome Inventor looked up to find himself hovering a full foot over the ground. He glanced around, completely confused, only to see the burning street just ahead of him. That was where he had been lying just moments ago. But now, he was being carried by someone.

“Sorry I’m late,” a familiar voice said.

And he looked up. His eyes grew wide. “Noele?”

The Noble Spellsword herself nodded back at him. He stared at her as her blonde locks whipped with the wind. She lowered Saros to the ground and turned to face the Graceful Twins.

“These guys… they’re with the Miststorm Riders, aren’t they?” Noele asked.

Saros tried to work his jaw, but the pair of approaching figures replied.

“Indeed we are,” Ruven said.

“And who might you be?” Ava asked.

Noele shook her head and drew her sword. “I’m the one who will bring you two to justice.”

“Bring us…”

“...to justice?”

The Graceful Twins exchanged a glance. The apathetic looks on their faces briefly flickered. And they began to chuckle. For once, they actually wore some semblance of emotion on their faces, even if it looked so alien.

Saros would have preferred their emotionless expressions. They just looked creepy as they laughed, standing there. And just as abruptly as they started laughing, they stopped. They raised their arms, aiming at the blonde girl.

“That is…” Ruven started.

And Ava continued, “...not going to—”

But Noele moved before they could finish. “[Flash Step].”

The Noble Spellsword appeared next to Graceful Twins in an instant, her blade already raised. Neither of the two could react. Ava looked up with wide eyes as Noele swung down with a golden aura.

“Glorious Noble Slash.”

And in that instant, a blast of golden energy completely overwhelmed Ava’s entire figure as Ruven just stared in shock. The streak of light ripped through the street, shining brightly and dissipating the nearby mist. Both Lionell the Crimson Claw and Derell the Bone Crusher looked up from their injured opponents to stare at the flash of light.

The blonde girl backed away as the golden glow slowly faded. Lying there, at the center of a large crater, was Ava’s bloodied figure. She was dead. Just like that from a single strike. Ruven gaped at his twin’s corpse for a moment.

And Noele spoke, raising her glinting blade dangerously at him.

“I am Noele the Noble Spellsword. And for being responsible for the death of my sister, you’re all going to die by my blade today.”