Chapter 215: Assassin Golden Ticket Bonus 2/5* 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝒆𝒘𝙚𝓫𝙣𝙤𝒗𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢 *** Moon’s own dagger materialized in his grip, the assassin’s poisoned dagger met Moon’s plain one with a sharp clang of metal on metal. And stopped. The assassin’s eyes widened behind his hood as his full-force strike was casually deflected by what should have been a vastly weaker opponent. His arm actually vibrated from the impact, the shock traveling up through his shoulder. ’What—’ Moon’s counter-strike came before the thought could complete. His dagger reversed direction, the blade cutting toward the assassin’s wrist. The movement was simple, lacking the flourish of a true master, but backed by overwhelming physical power. The assassin barely managed to jerk his arm back in time, the tip of Moon’s blade passing close enough to slice through the fabric of his sleeve. They separated by a few steps, reassessing. The assassin’s mind raced, ’His technique is mediocre at best. But his strength... his speed... they’re far beyond what even an A-rank should possess.’ He adjusted his approach, relying on his superior dagger skills to compensate for the unexpected physical disparity. Years of assassination experience, countless techniques perfected through practice and real combat—that would be his advantage. The assassin launched into a complex sequence of feints and strikes, his dagger weaving through the air to confuse and overwhelm Moon. High, low, thrust, slash, each movement flowing into the next. Moon blocked them all. Clang! Clang! Clang! The exchange of blades accelerated, filling the silenced room with sounds that no one outside could hear. The assassin was giving everything he had—every technique, every trick, every ounce of skill accumulated over years of work. Moon was just... stronger. Faster. Better. It was like watching a master swordsman duel a bear. The master might have superior technique, better form, more elegant movements, but the bear simply didn’t care. It was too strong, too tough, too overwhelming in its prowess for technique alone to bridge the gap. The assassin’s breathing grew labored. Sweat dripped beneath his hood. His arms ached from the constant vibrations of striking what might as well have been an iron statue. Moon’s breathing remained steady, his expression bored. "Is that all?" Moon asked, genuine curiosity in his voice. "I expected more from an A-Rank Assassin." The words struck hard. Desperation flickered in the assassin’s movements. He committed to a full-force thrust, putting every ounce of his power into a single strike aimed at Moon’s heart, betting everything on piercing through that defense. Moon didn’t even dodge. He simply moved his weight slightly, let the blade slide past his body by millimeters, and drove his elbow into the assassin’s extended arm with crushing force. CRACK! The sound of bone breaking filled the room. The assassin’s scream was completely absorbed by the silencing rune, not a whisper escaping the room’s boundaries. His dagger clattered to the floor from nerveless fingers. His arm hung at an unnatural angle, broken in multiple places from the sheer impact force. Before he could even process the injury, Moon’s leg swept his feet out from under him. The assassin hit the floor hard, his breath driven from his lungs. Moon’s boot came down on his chest, pinning him in place. The pressure was enough to make breathing difficult but not enough to cave in his chest. "Now then," Moon said, looking down at the incapacitated assassin with the same neutral expression he’d worn throughout the entire one-sided fight. "Let’s try this again. Who sent you? And why did you think attacking me was a good idea?" The assassin gasped for air beneath Moon’s boot, his unbroken hand scrabbling uselessly against the floor. Pain radiated from his shattered arm, shock setting in from the speed of his defeat. He’d been prepared for many scenarios: the target fighting back, unexpected guards, even the possibility of the target having hidden defensive artifacts. He had not been prepared to fight an S-Ranker in a closed room. "I... I don’t..." the assassin tried to speak, his voice weak. Moon increased the pressure on his chest slightly—just enough to make the point that cooperation was in the assassin’s best interest. "Take your time," Moon said with false patience. "We have more than enough time before that silencing rune expires. And I’m very curious about who thought sending you after me was a worthwhile investment." His eyes flickered to the broken arm, then back to the assassin’s face. "Though I’m starting to think they didn’t invest very well." The assassin’s remaining hand clenched in impotent rage and pain, his fingers digging uselessly into the wooden floorboards. But pinned beneath an opponent whose strength vastly exceeded his own, with a broken arm and no backup coming, he had very limited options. The soundproof room that was supposed to be the assassin’s advantage had become his prison. "Hiss..." The assassin took a sharp breath as Moon continued to increase the pressure on his chest, making each inhalation more difficult. Moon’s eyes narrowed slightly as he observed the assassin’s equipment more carefully with his new [Appraisal] skill. The gear quality, the artifact selection, the approach—these weren’t the tools of someone working for an organization or family. They were the possessions of someone operating completely alone. ... "So you’re an outcast... huh?" Moon muttered, after hearing what the assassin had to say. "That makes sense. They wouldn’t send someone like you to fight me." He’d initially thought that perhaps the Richter family—the one whose slave contract proposal he’d rejected back in the city—might have sent an assassin to deliver a message or exact some petty revenge for the insult. But this made more sense. Apparently, Selene had created quite a ruckus when they’d arrived at the base, her level 25 aura and the confrontation with the guards drawing attention throughout Rocketer. To an outcast assassin lurking in the area, watching for opportunities, he was the perfect target, especially when Selene left him alone and left with the—blue girl—Yara. Wait until the powerful one left. Attack the seemingly weaker and unconscious companion. Take everything valuable. Disappear before anyone noticed. It was a simple, logical plan. It had just catastrophically failed due to Moon waking up.