“You… brat…” Liliana muttered, straining her voice.


    It was no use, yet the captured woman still seemed not no have given in to the situation. Suddenly, I saw her face stretch and her lips curl up in a disgusting grin. Her eyes widened as she gave me a distorted evil grin.


    “W-what the-?!” I eximed, noticing something strange about her.


    I instantly sensed danger and leaped away from her body, suddenly feeling a great amount of pressure well up within her.


    VOOOOMMM!!!


    The tension in the atmosphere suddenly shifted and an ominous aura started leaking out of Liliana. The paralyzed body of hers slowly began moving and before I knew it, she stood upright, now flexing her hands and looking at me.


    The fierce expression on her face made me gulp, and the intense pressure she emitted caused a few beads of sweat to appear on my cheeks and forehead.


    “You little shit… you got too cocky!” She said, cracking her stiff neck.


    Somehow she had gained the ability to move, despite the drug I gave her. This situation was the worst possible oue, something that guaranteed a total disadvantage for someone like me who wanted to avoid a direct confrontation, to begin with.


    “You’re one hell of a smart bastard, I’ll give you that. I didn’t think you nned that far ahead and yed me for a fool…” She began speaking, digging her hands into her maid uniform to bring out several more needles from within it.


    “… However… it seems you’ve overlooked one simple factor. Magic!” Her demented grin grew wider.


    Instantly, her body became coated with mana, shining in a faint color in the darkness that surrounded us.


    “Y-you… why are you using magic? The rms will be sure to-” I said, showing nervousness.


    “Don’t bother! No one will being to your aid and no rm will be set off!” Liliana stated, clearly enjoying how my eyes darted all around me.


    “W-wha-?! What did you do?!” I burst out, ring at the devilish assassin.


    “You really didn’t think this through, did you? I was using magic tomunicate with my employer, yet the magic detector never picked up the mana being used to transmit our sounds.” She smiled.


    “A-ah…?!” My eyes bulged as more sweat ran down my cheeks.


    “That’s right! For a few minutes, I can disable the magic detector with a counter magic tool, a jammer to be precise!” She replied, bringing out a tiny object from her maid outfit.


    ‘Just how many things does she have hidden underneath that garment?!’ My mind rang.


    “It’s a good thing you bbed away like a fool while I slowly used my magic to cure myself of the paralytic effects of the drug you gave me, undoing its effects,” Liliana remarked.


    “My body still feels weak, and my nerves aren’t in their top form, but with enhancement magic, that poses no problem. It appears your n has failed, you lose!”


    Apparently, it wasn’t ‘Checkmate’! Was I being in too much of a hurry? Did I rush things too much? Had I underestimated my opponent?


    Liliana began advancing slowly, filling the needles she had with magic. This caused the tiny, sharp spikes of death to glow light blue.


    “You had me flustered for a second, but this is truly the end! I’ll wrap things up quickly since I can’t use the jammer for very long. It’s a shame… I really would have enjoyed making you suffer!”


    With this final statement, and a cruel smile clearly written on her face, Liliana lunged at me, having three needles on each hand, interlocked between her fingers. A single hit would prove fatal since she was targetingpromising spots in my body.


    ‘I’m too slow to dodge her enhanced movements. The magically strengthened needles will easily tear through my skin like butter and pierce even my most inner recesses.’


    As her pace quickened and dust flew from the contact her feet made with the ground, it appeared as though I neared my death.


    I should have known that she would be able to use magic. Since Liliana was able to interfere with my Lightning magic, she had to be a skilled mage. Using healing magic and enhancements were not beyond her.


    “Now die, brat!” She yelled excitedly.


    If only I had thought of it… I would have made a countermeasure… Why didn’t I think of a scenario like this?


    A smile formed on my face as I closed my eyes.


    ‘It looks like this is the end…’


    Liliana’s mana slowly faded the closer she got to me, and her enhanced body suddenly trembled, causing it to grow stiff once again. The woman’s eyes bulged as she noticed the changes that were urring, and without her volition, her body came to an abrupt halt.


    I opened my eyes to find her needles once again close to my body, merely inches apart. Her body trembled and it was clear the youngdy had lost control.


    “W-wha-?!” She suddenly lost her ability to speak, and her face depicted severe pain and shock.


    My smile grew wider and the scared, shocked, and flustered look I had feigned vanished. Instead, my expression was reced with a condescending one. With a stoic face and dead, cold eyes, I stared at the suffering woman.


    Her eyes depicted that she had tons of questions which was totally understandable.


    Anyone who witnessed the scene would be confused.


    “You stalled for time by letting me waste my time exining the details of my ns to you. You healed yourself with magic and enhanced your body so it would be in an optimal state. You killed me andpleted your mission. The end…” I mumbled, walking past her while observing her frozen body.


    She seemed to be trying to say something, struggling to form words, but it was of no use.


    “… At least, that was how it was supposed to go. Right, Liliana? However, this sudden situation has urred, and you have no idea what has happened.”


    I circled the poor maid, like a shark revolving around its prey, finally arriving once again in front of her.


    “You must be utterly confused right now. I should enlighten you, shouldn’t I?”