Adrian, sensing the shift in the air, smirked, his eyes gleaming with determination. Without a second thought, he surrendered the pistol back to the system, watching as it shimmered in the air, disappearing into the void. He didn’t need it anymore.

  "Alright, time to up the game," Adrian muttered under his breath.

  He ordered the Weapon System with precision.

  "Dual M1911A1 Compact," Adrian said, his voice calm, yet carrying a sharp edge. "Cssic, deadly, and compact. The M1911A1 Compact is a smaller, more nimble version of the standard M1911, but it packs just as much punch. It may not have the size, but with the right hands, it’s unstoppable in rapid, pinpoint fire. Quick to pull, quick to shoot—exactly what I need for this kind of close combat."

  As the dual M1911A1 Compacts materialized in his hands, Adrian spun them lightly, the grips snug against his palms. The smooth, bck metal gleamed in the fading light, the compact frames making them easily maneuverable, perfect for rapid-fire action. He could already feel the familiar weight, the smoothness of the triggers. Adrian raised them in sync, testing their bance.

  Adrian wasn't done yet. His eyes narrowed, a command in his voice.

  "10 clips of full-metal jacket, high-velocity rounds. Each bullet designed for maximum speed, and minimum dey. Fast to load, fast to fire. These rounds will chew through whatever stands in their way."

  The clips materialized beside him, each one snapping into pce with a satisfying click. Adrian slid the clips into the M1911A1 Compacts with ease, his movements smooth and practiced, the guns now loaded and ready to unleash a hail of bullets.

  The shadow figure remained still, observing Adrian with a calcuted focus. His posture was rexed, but his eyes never left the deadly weapons Adrian now held in both hands. The dark aura surrounding him was palpable, yet he didn’t seem to be concerned.

  Adrian gnced at him, the gleam in his eyes never fading. His lips curled into a small, knowing grin.

  "Let’s see how fast you can react to this," he said quietly.

  Adrian’s eyes glinted with excitement as he raised both guns, aiming at the shadow figure. Without hesitation, he pulled the triggers. BANG-BANG-BANG-BANG—the guns screamed to life, bullets flying with rapid precision.

  The shadow figure, with incredible speed, spun forward, his spear meeting the barrage of bullets, deflecting them away. But some—just a few—grazed him, tearing through the bck armor, leaving streaks of dark blood as they hit their mark. A low growl escaped his lips, but his focus remained unbroken.

  Before he could counterattack, Adrian was already behind him, his body moving like lightning. With a swift pivot, he spun, his foot coming up in a heel kick aimed directly at the shadow figure’s torso.

  The shadow figure, barely registering the motion, raised his spear just in time, blocking the strike. The force of Adrian’s kick still made the spear rattle, but it held firm. Adrian smirked, undeterred by the block.

  "You're quick," Adrian muttered under his breath, his voice still cold, but tinged with respect. But he wasn’t finished.

  Before the shadow figure could react, Adrian snapped one of his guns forward, now pointing it directly at the figure’s chest. He leaned in close, voice low and dangerous.

  "Can you spin that spear at this range?" Adrian said, barely a whisper, before his finger squeezed the trigger again.

  BANG-BANG-BANG-BANG-BANG! The rapid fire from Adrian’s gun bsted into the shadow figure's chest. The bullets hammered into the figure, the dark aura flickering under the impact. The shadow figure backed away, each step forced, blood soaking into his armor as the bullets pummeled his body.

  But Adrian wasn’t done. He quickly spun the second gun, raised it, and fired off a series of shots, BLAM-BLAM-BLAM, the gunshots echoing through the forest. The sound of the second weapon firing in perfect sync with the first was like music to Adrian’s ears. The shadow figure stumbled, now caught between the dual barrage.

  The final shot from Adrian’s first gun echoed, followed by the hiss of the guns as the smoke poured out from the barrels. The guns felt warm in his hands, but he was far from finished.

  With a swift movement, Adrian clicked the clips on both guns. In a perfect, practiced motion, he spun the clips into the air, watching them twist in midair before sliding perfectly into pce. The smoothness of his reload was a testament to his training, his experience in combat.

  The shadow figure, clutching its chest, staggered backward, his eyes now bloodshot from the barrage. His armor was riddled with holes, his body shaking from the damage, but he was still standing. His breath came ragged, but he was far from defeated.

  Adrian lowered the guns for a split second, eyes narrowing.

  "You're still standing. Impressive."

  He didn’t wait for a reply, ready for the next move.

  Inside the tent, Lirien quietly chewed the warm rice and grilled meat Adrian had left. She had just finished sipping from the canteen when a rapid barrage of gunfire echoed through the woods, distant yet sharp. Her pointed ears twitched.

  Her eyes widened.

  “Adrian…!”

  Without a second thought, she grabbed the bow and quiver of arrows Adrian had gifted her. She slung them over her shoulder, heart pounding, feet already moving.

  “I’m not staying behind this time,” she whispered and sprinted into the forest, leaping over roots and ducking beneath low branches with agile grace.

  ---

  Back at the battlefield, the shadow figure staggered for a brief moment—but then, slowly, his wounds began to close. The bckened armor pulsed, and with each beat, the bullets were pushed out, clinking to the ground like spent shell casings. Steam hissed from the holes in his armor.

  Adrian narrowed his eyes.

  “Tch… healing too?”

  The shadow figure lifted his head. His white eye locked onto Adrian, then without a word, he raised his spear and began spinning it once more. The tip of the spear ignited, cloaked in a swirling bck aura, like shadows frozen in motion.

  Suddenly—WHOOOM! A wave of pressure cracked through the air as the figure stabbed forward, not to strike flesh, but to release an aura attack. The spear pierced nothing, yet the very air distorted from the force, like a rift ripping toward Adrian.

  Adrian’s eyes widened—his instincts fred like wildfire.

  He dropped low, dodging sideways just as the aura bst smmed into a tree behind him, shattering it to splinters, the force enough to tear a lesser man apart. Dust and wood fragments sprayed the area.

  Rolling onto one knee, Adrian raised his dual guns and returned fire. Bang! Bang! Bang! The bullets tore through the dust cloud, but the figure was already on the move, weaving through the trees with inhuman speed, spear twirling like a deadly cyclone.

  Adrian fired again, but the shadow figure deflected and dodged, zig-zagging between trees before suddenly charging straight at Adrian, spear aimed for his heart, his movements fluid but deadly.

  The ground trembled beneath their csh.

  The shadow figure spun in pce, his spear slicing through the air with a terrifying whistle—and then he brought it down in a brutal downward ssh.

  CLANG!

  Adrian rolled sideways, the bde missing him by inches as it cleaved into the earth, sending up sparks and debris. He countered immediately, guns raised, both muzzles fshing—

  Bang! Bang!

  But—click.

  Empty.

  “Shit,” Adrian muttered, eyes narrowing.

  The shadow didn’t hesitate. Seeing the guns empty, he lunged. With a savage spin, the butt of his spear whipped up in a blur, smashing into Adrian’s chin with a brutal crack. Adrian’s head snapped back, and before he could recover—

  THWACK!

  A sharp kick smmed into his ribs, sending him flying sideways like a ragdoll. His body crashed into a thick tree, the impact loud and raw. The bark splintered behind him as he fell to the ground, gritting his teeth.

  Ctter! Several magazines spilled from his pouch, sliding across the dirt.

  Adrian coughed, wiped the blood from his lip, and spat.

  He looked up through one squinted eye.

  “…Damn,” he muttered, smiling weakly. “Guy hits like a truck.”

  Adrian wiped the blood trickling from his lip with the back of his hand, eyes narrowed on the shadow figure. His body ached, but adrenaline surged like wildfire through his veins.

  "Four clips left," he muttered.

  With a sudden snap of his arms, he drew two magazines from his hip, their polished casings catching the faint light.

  “Catch.”

  He hurled both clips directly at the shadow, high and fast.

  The dark figure barely moved, his spear fshing out. Clink—clink! He deflected the clips effortlessly, sending them spinning harmlessly into the air.

  But Adrian was already on the move.

  He unched himself into the air, spinning in a tight corkscrew. His coat fred, and the empty guns in his hands hissed with smoke. As he twisted, he kicked one leg outward, nudging one of the airborne clips closer, redirecting its path.

  In the heart of his spin, time seemed to slow.

  With godlike precision, Adrian angled his pistols backward, then—click-cck—smmed both empty weapons into the spinning magazines.

  SHUNK.

  They locked in clean. The spin broke. His body twisted forward, arms flung wide, pistols loaded, glinting, aimed straight down.

  "Reloaded."

  RATATATATATATA!!!

  Bullets screamed through the air in twin rivers of fire. Adrian’s descent was slow, dramatic—each shot fring like a strobe against the dark.

  The shadow figure spun his spear in front of him like a turbine, blocking a storm of bullets, but not all—grazes tore through his shoulder, hip, thigh. Bck blood dripped, evaporating in his shadowy aura.

  Adrian nded softly, a sliding step that kicked leaves across the forest floor.

  Without missing a beat, he dashed forward, weaving left, then right, vanishing and reappearing in flickers of motion.

  The shadow twisted to strike, but Adrian already vaulted sideways, guns bzing from low angles, each shot clipping at the edges of the dark armor.

  Smoke curled from both barrels. Shells hit the dirt like raindrops.

  The fight was far from over.

  Lirien sprinted through the trees, her breath steady, every step silent. The csh of metal and gunfire echoed in the distance—but her focus was razor-sharp. She dropped to a knee behind a tree trunk, eyes locking on the battle below.

  Adrian was holding his own, guns bzing, smoke rising around him. But the shadow figure—he was different. Fast. Controlled. Dangerous.

  She reached over her shoulder and drew a single arrow—silver-feathered, rune-etched, pulsing faintly with energy. She notched it. Raised her bow. And then her breath slowed.

  As she pulled the string back, her eyes fred gold, shimmering like twin suns piercing the forest gloom.

  The wind stilled. The leaves quieted.

  Magic gathered.

  The bow glowed with ethereal light, vines of glowing green wrapping around it like it had awakened from slumber.

  She exhaled calmly.

  Then, just as her fingers released the string, her voice rang out like a sacred invocation—

  “Silvarien.”

  The word rippled through the air like thunder in a storm.

  The arrow ignited with radiant force, a luminous green streak bzing through the sky—not flying, but ripping forward like a bde of judgment.

  The shadow figure turned too te. His eyes flickered, instincts screaming.

  THWIP—