It was a nerve wracking time, waiting around a campfire while his spirits scouted the surrounding area.


    Melisande and Everett hardly talked, obviously tense from the looming threat that they were intentionally provoking.


    Only briefly could he see the demi-human rogue in the shadows around the trees, slinging ropes over branches and assembling traps around the perimeter.


    I’ve got to be prepared. This was my idea…Dragging a dangerous killer like Amon straight to the group. One wrong move, and somebody can die, he thought.


    “So…nice night, isn’t it?” Everett nervously made conversation.


    “Not for long,” Melisande replied.


    “Hey! I mean…you’re probably not wrong, but stay positive!” Everett said.


    It was relieving to see that the bumpkin shielder was still as energetic as ever, though it onlysted so long as he saw a twinkle of blue light approaching in the distance.


    At first, he didn’t quite understand what he was looking at, as he leaned forward from the log he was sitting on, looking directly past Melisande, who blushed slightly at the misunderstood stare.


    “Wh-what is it?” Melisande asked.


    Emilio didn’t answer until he figured it out, “…It’s Undyne.”


    They all turned back now, watching as the lesser spirit of water hovered past the shrubs and trees, passing by the others and stopping in front of Emilio.


    “Did you find him? Did you lure him?” Emilio quietly asked.


    A few blinks came from the spirit in confirmation, prompting him to look up at the expressions of the others, who now held serious expressions, ready for what wasing.


    “Alright, good job…” He quietly said.


    Through an internal call of his mana, the other of the lesser elemental spirits returned to him, which he kept on hisp to keep them hidden from the sight of Amon.


    “Get ready,” Emilio said.


    “Don’t have to tell me–I’m ready to go whenever,” Everett responded.


    “I’m ready too,” Melisande assured him.


    Getting confirmation of their preparedness, he nodded and looked towards the trees in the near distance, seeing Yuna stationed stealthily high up on the branches, exchanging a nod with her for further confirmation.


    He’sing…I still don’t know what style of swordy he was using, but it definitely was at a high-level–still, I’m not alone, he thought.


    An eerily silent few minutes passed, crawling on slowly as they sat quietly, tense and ready to move at any moment. It felt as though the entire jungle was watching him; every de of grass, each piece of bark attached to the trunks of trees, and every breath of air, befalling the back of his neck.


    It was the loudest silence he’d heard; keeping his staff held tightly in his hand as he looked forward.


    Everett was the same, having his shield ready in front of him while Melisande held her hand in such a way as though constantly envisioning a spell at her fingertips.


    The gnawing silence was finally interrupted as a rustling of bushes was heard, startling them all as Emilio immediately looked towards where it wasing from.


    Is it time? He questioned.


    As he got ready to fight, he found himself utterly confused by what happened next: all at once, every trapid around the perimeter of the campsite went off. Ropes flung up, smacking against branches in a frightening orchestra.


    The sound of steel shing resounded through the silent forest, prompting them all to be alert.


    Yuna jumped from the obscurance of the trees, holding two daggers as she breathed heavily, facing towards the forest.


    “What happened?!” Melisande got up.


    Before any answer coulde, Emilio saw it: the figure dressed in all ck, with ck hair, and eyes just as dark, dashing in like a shadow of the night with his des aimed towards the silver-haired girl’s neck.


    He’s here…! Emilio thought.


    Raising his staff, he intercepted the lethal assault with a quickly released bullet of wind, shooting towards Amon, who easily evaded it with a swift flip to the side.


    “Good reaction,” Amon smiled, “A nice little trap you set up, though it didn’t work out as nned, did it?”


    The bloodthirsty recruit held his twin daggers, flipping them rapidly before bursting forward again without a further word.


    This time, the group was prepared as Everett charged foremost with explosive strength, pushing his shield forward through the soil.


    “Raaaaaagh-!” Everett roared out a warcry.


    Amon jumped out of the way of the blunt attack, “Quite boorish, no?”


    Though the evasion didn’t get the ck-dressed killer free from harm as a st of wind shot towards him, knocking against the man and redirecting his movement.


    “Oh–” Amon reacted in surprise, catching himself on his feet, “Not bad, Melisande.”


    The spell hade from the beginner mage’s hand, though she felt disgusted to have her name used by the dead-eyed man.


    No harm befell the agile man from the spell, though it allowed Yuna to get in close, who used a swiftbination of shes aimed for Amon’s neck, though not a single cutnded as the man proved to be apetent user of daggers himself.


    There was a constant smile on his lips with an unchanging void of emotion in his eyes as he nonchntly countered each of the demi-human’s strikes.


    “The Godless Style, yes?” Amon asked, “Respectable, but you’re not quite there yet.”


    Yuna ignored him, but was visibly annoyed as she tried ducking low, going for an evisceration on his abdominal region, though her steel only dragged through shadows.


    “–!”


    The dagger-wielding woman was left in shock at the mystical evasion, looking up to find Amon directly above her with his dark boots pressed against the tree, rearing his daggers back for an attack of his own.


    “Jump back!” Emilio called out.


    Yuna didn’t hesitate to listen to the callout from the young Dragonheart as she leapt back, allowing Emilio to unleash a spear forged of water straight towards Amon’s position.


    As it sailed through the air, traveling alongside Everett who intended to lock down the man with his shield, both the aquatic spear and Everett’s shield were evaded as Amon dashed forward with unnatural swiftness.


    “You’ll never hit me with obvious attacks like that, big man,” Amon taunted.


    What they were fighting felt like a natural disaster; a sweeping tide of death that moved impeded forward, bringing death in its wake with a smile on his face.


    It was as if the dual dagger-wielding man had shifted into the very essence of shadows themselves, moving quietly and through the darkness as he dashed through the air,unching directly towards Emilio and Melisande.


    …Fast! What the hell is this ability of his?! Emilio thought.


    Just before Amon got within range of the two, the young mage conjured a wall of stone between them, reinforcing it though it mattered little.


    The clean slice that Amon unleashed proved that he wasn’t just swift, but packed power as well, emitting a darkness from the edge of his daggers that cleanly bisected the wall of stone.


    Emilio was ready though, stomping down as he summoned a geyser of water directly beneath Amon: “Pir of The Ocean’s Depth.”


    It took Amon by surprise; the water seemed to m against him with pressure equal to the deepest level of the ocean.


    “Did you get him?!” Melisande asked.


    “Don’t jinx it–!” Emilio responded.


    Toote was it for such a callout as he noticed that he in fact failed tond a direct blow once again, finding it necessary to draw his sword now as the shadow of Amon swept through the water directly towards him.


    CLANG.


    The daggers wielded by the man shed against his sword, prompting Emilio to dig his boots down and summon his internal strength as he pushed back.


    “You’re a troublesome one,” Amon smiled.


    In a movement like a snake lunging forward, the ck-dressed killer managed to slip right through his guard, nearing the edge of his dagger towards Emilio’s neck.


    “Ghh…!”


    Before it could decapitate him, he summoned his scale armor, condensing it to his throat as Amon’s de bounced off.


    “Oh?” Amon reacted in surprise.


    The scales crumbled from the blow, leaving no evidence, though Emilio, feeling the true danger of the enemy before him now, dashed forward with reinforcement bolstering his speed, mming his fist forward.


    It wasn’t an ordinary blow, instead summoning the draconic strength within into Dragon Strike, attempting to use blunt force against Amon, though that was insufficient as the man spun around the punch, causing them to meet de-to-de again.


    “Very interesting,” Amon said, “As I thought–it really is fun fighting you!”


    Though before their sh could go further, the cold-blooded man of little mercy was forced to evade through the shadows once more as Yuna swiped at him from behind and Melisande used a st of wind.


    It felt impossible tond a blow on the elusive killer; he moved as the shadows themselves, racing across the open clearing between the trees as traces of darkness.


    “What kind of magic is this?…I’ve never seen something like it. Have you?” Melisande asked, catching her breath.


    Emilio wiped the sweat from his chin, “…No. It looks like he’s using darkness itself.”


    Maybe this is one of those special affinities that Roan mentioned…He thought.