Proofread by Thomas F
Julian Pierce
Bang!
We destroyed through another trap, while containing its sound and vibrations. We didn't want to let them know we are coming.
They might expect it, but knowing it is a different thing.
We are closing in and moving quickly toward them. Still, I wish we could go faster. That bastard is wily. I don't want him to slip away like he did so many times.
Minutes passed, and then another before we finally reached the end of the map.
"It's a dead end," said Muriel. There is no way the cave ends in here. We cannot see any doors or other entrances.
"No," I replied as my eyes focused on the cave wall on the left. They hid it very well; that is a false cave wall made through skill.
To not arouse any suspicion, they didn't put any alarms or traps on it.
"Mage Harbour, blast that wall," I ordered, taking the steps back. "It's a cave wall commissioner. Even a High Mage spell wouldn't be able to do much," she replied.
"Don't worry about," I said calmly, before turning to everyone. "Be ready to storm in," I ordered.
A moment later, the staff of Mage Harbour lit, and a pale green Wind Lance shot out of it.
…
Ball Juras
"Nearly finished!" replied Rados with gritted teeth. Eyes focused on the enchantment circle.
The gut feeling is growing intense by the second. That I ordered my men to be ready and set a trap, I am sure he is coming, well, he won't be returning.
He will be in for a big surprise. Even Karig didn't know everything.
Bang!
"Boss, I" Merson, was saying something, when suddenly. The entrance exploded, sending the rubble across the cavern; a few pieces hit my chest.
Through the dust, I saw the man. I have only seen from a distance and via hidden gaps.
Bang Bang Bang!
He took a step forward, but then he stopped. I felt his skill, and a moment later, the mines I had placed around the entrance began to explode harmlessly.
'Fuck!' I cursed, but quickly calmed myself.
"Lay down your weapons and surrender. I promise you will get a fair trial. Resist, and there will only be pain and death," his voice boomed across the cavern, filled with righteousness and persuasion.
Crime Is My Right.
I activated my own skill to resist its effect and opened my mouth to reply.
…
Julian Pierce
"Boys, the enemies have come knocking on our doors. Let's show them the hospitality of White Crown!" said the gang leader and came toward us with his men.
A lot of men, thirty-one to be exact. There aren't supposed to be this many.
The intelligence stated that there were only eleven, including the gang leader, but there are more. It is unexpected, but not surprising.
Such things happen when dealing with people like Juras.
My men will handle it; I may have brought only a small number, but each of them is above Lv. 25 and has extensive battle experience.
Most importantly, all their classes had changed into police classes.
The skills these classes provide are very good at dealing with criminals.
"Police, move forward. Kill anyone who resists the arrest!" I roared with Justice Rally as I let my men go against the criminals, more than twice our numbers.
Juras came toward me, with twin daggers, while I unsheathed my sword and unclipped my Shield from my back.
Juras is fast, and his movements are ghostly. He appeared in front of me like an apparition before attacking.
Seeing that, I turned fast with Dash and activated Enforcer's Shield.
Clang!
His knife clashed against my Shield, and he shook a little before surprise appeared on his face as he saw my attack coming.
Speed is my speciality. I might not be as fast as rogues, but I have always been very good at dealing with them.
I had become better after transferring to the police. Rogue classes are ubiquitous among criminals. I had gained quite good experience in dealing with them.
My class and skills also contribute significantly. They have become specialised in dealing with criminals. I get a boost when I use these skills against them.
I had also trained with Jon Sands, Zela's friend. He even teaches my people how to deal with the rogues.
He reacted quickly. Instead of engaging, he retreated. He is smart; he is rogue. They never engage directly; they find gaps and slip through.
Seeing that, I smiled and moved.
My speed is even faster than his. The skill has changed, like many of my skills. It is now Pursuit Dash. It is quicker than the old speed skill, but it becomes even faster when I am pursuing criminals.
Clang!
He defended against my sword, but saw my Shield coming toward him.
He is very good and fast. He is at Lv. 39 like me; intelligence said, he was just close to that, but fighting him. I know, he is at the same level as me, with a class as powerful as mine.
Still, mine is law enforcement, while his is criminal. We suppress them; that is what our whole job is about.
Seeing he couldn't dodge, he brought his daggers forward.
Bam!
My Shield crashed against his daggers, shaking him before forcing him to take a step back rapidly. Enforcer's Shield is both a defensive and offensive skill.
It has shock absorption and a stunning effect.
Rip!
I took the chance and attacked. He tried to defend, but my sword was able to sneak past and cut his arm, before attacking him with the shield.
…
Ball Juras
Bam!
'Goddammit!' I cursed as I defended against the shield and felt that familiar stun effect.
I knew he was powerful, but I didn't expect him to be this powerful. He is suppressing me; he shouldn't have. I have one of the most powerful rogue classes below the level. 40, but his is as strong as mine.
On top of that, it is a guard class. These classes have a suppressive effect on classes like mine.
Still, I had fought against the same level of those guard classes before, and not a single one of them was able to suppress me, but this bastard is.
If that wasn't bad enough, my people are getting killed despite having more than double the numbers.
Two are already dead within seconds. One has surrendered; I could feel morale was going down as the guards showed no hesitation in killing them.
If this continued, it won't be long before they all throw down their weapons.
That would be bad.
I don't care about their lives, but I need them to keep these guards busy at least until I deal with the despicable bastard in front of me.
'It seemed like I had to waste some product,' I thought, but the next moment. I activated Drugfire Detonation.
Bang Bang Bang!
The product begins to explode. In an instant, it had covered the whole cavern in the glittering pink, blue, and red.
I could see the surprise in that Bastard's eyes.
"I am not finished," I replied, and a moment later, I activated Drugged Frenzy. Immediately, the powder moved toward the people.
Glowleaf is a powerful drug. It is most dangerous when inhaled, but it also affects the skin upon contact.
…
Julian Pierce
"You shouldn't have come here. Now, you will pay the price with your men," he said with a grin.
Thick Glowleaf powder covered the cavern. I am inhaling it with every breath. So is every person here; he had activated the skill that made the drug move toward everyone.
It had already begun to affect the people.
"You have excellent skills, but unfortunately, it's not going to work," I said and pushed with the attack.
Of course, we would come prepared when we are coming to a raid, filled with drugs as dangerous as the glowleaf. We also had knowledge of his skills.
So, we drank the potions; they were very expensive, but we had them.
Lord Silver likes his people to be prepared, and he provides them with a wide range of resources. In the whole of the Renwell Region, no city guards could be compared to us.
Even in the whole empire, there are only a few places like Namdar that are better equipped or trained than us.
We are new, and the city isn't rich, with the army taking nearly half of the budget, but I could say this with confidence. In ten years or even less, ours will be the best police force within the entire empire.
We might even be able to contend against those at the merchant state.
"So, what if you are prepared. The Frenzy will not spare you!" he replied, and he is right. It had already begun to affect his people.
They have begun to lose their inhibitions, and soon, they will no longer care about their lives.
These kinds of enemies are most dangerous; they are in the same category as those with rage skills.
I didn't say anything and attacked him again. The drugs didn't impede my vision. He tried to hide in it, but he could not.
Vigilant Watch is an excellent skill. It is for finding alarms and traps, but it also improves the vision.
When combined with Keen Instinct, there is barely anything that could be hidden from me.
Clang Clang Rip!
He defended against my sword and then defended against my shield, before I was able to cut across his stomach. Like the one before, it is shallow.
I may have the edge, but it's not that significant.
I have to widen that, but it's not easy; this man is powerful and very experienced. Still, I will keep trying until I succeed.
I attacked one after another; he defended against most of them, but I was still able to land the cuts, and slowly their numbers began to increase.
Even if they are shallow, they have built up. It had started to affect the man.
It will still be some time before they give me a significant edge, but I am willing to wait. There is no way he will escape today; he will leave this place in either a body bag or in cuffs.
The same couldn't be said for the rest of his people.
They had lost themselves in frenzy, lost a sense of self, and become so mindless that they are thinking of nothing other than killing.