Infinite Skill Devourer
Chapter 49: Joining A Guild III

Chapter 49: Joining A Guild III

Ryuen stared at her blankly, with no emotion in his eyes.

His brows were not raised, nor was there a smile on his lips.

But deep down, he was amused and excited for no reason.

’No restrictions, huh.’ That was a rare offer.

A very rare offer, on a norms since she was incharge of the test.

He was supposed to set rules, on what to use. Instead she was giving him free will to use whatever he wanted.

He rolled his shoulders, feeling the lingering and faint soreness from his previous fight, but it didn’t really matter.

If he was going to be tested, he would make sure it was on his terms.

And there was a possibility he would be fighting an A- or S-class fighter.

He thought about it as his eyes studied Yurei while she finished rewrapping the bandages around her fists.

If there was one thing he couldn’t understand, it was why exactly she wrapped herself in bandages.

Because he was certain she wasn’t injured.

Everything about her—from the way she stood to the way she handled her preparations, and then how she spoke—

Calculating and quiet.

It showed she was a seasoned fighter, a perfect one at that.

No wasted movements.

No unnecessary gestures.

She was dangerous and somewhat scary.

And he found it good—almost exciting.

"If I win, do I get to pick my guild?" he asked, flexing his fingers.

Yurei tilted her head slightly, a glint of amusement flickering in her silver eyes.

"Why not win first, and then we’ll talk."

She said it smoothly, and he noticed her voice was oddly satisfying.

No arrogance, yet confident enough that he knew she wasn’t worried about getting hurt or losing.

He exhaled and dipped his hands into his pockets while she got ready.

After a few rewraps and small jumps to warm up, she spoke again.

"Alright, then. Let’s begin."

Silence fell between them, one that spoke a few understandable words.

Then, Yurei moved.

Fast.

She closed the distance between them in the blink of an eye, her cloak flaring behind her despite the absence of wind.

Ryuen barely had time to shift to the side before a gust of wind followed her movement—like the aftereffects of her speed.

She was faster than she looked.

His instincts screamed at him to react, and he did.

He sidestepped Yurei’s first strike.

But she wasn’t aiming at him.

The air behind her somehow divided into orbs before exploding outward—

Towards him.

He gritted his teeth and clenched his jaw as the force sent him sliding back several feet.

He managed to stay on his feet, but the hem of his coat, up to his waist, was torn.

That managed to get a smirk out of him.

The fact that he had been too relaxed just because she didn’t give off any energy was a mistake.

And he knew it.

Then, to top it off—

She could manipulate air pressure.

Yurei didn’t give him time to recover, or catch his breath.

She charged at him again, this time taking a turn toward the edge of the hall, where she took out two daggers from the bag she had brought with her.

Then, as he blinked, she vanished from her spot and reappeared a few feet away from him.

Aiming at his neck.

But as usual, Ryuen ducked under the blade.

He grabbed the hilt of the dagger along with her hands, flashed her a smile, and flipped her over his shoulder.

Unfortunately, she didn’t let her back touch the ground.

She only lost her balance but steadied herself almost immediately.

Ryuen saw it as an opening.

The dagger he had used long ago appeared in his hand, still intact.

Except for the ichor that had spilled and dried on it.

He didn’t hesitate to throw it at her, aiming for her eyes.

WHOOSH

The blade went past her as she barely dodged it.

But when it hit the wall and dropped to the ground with a clang, he spotted strands of her hair drifting to the floor.

"Impressive... you have a wonderful aim."

She simply reached up, fingers brushed against the uneven edges where her hair had been cut.

And it made her suck her teeth and exhale.

She then moved her gaze to Ryuen, with a blank stare, then she changed her stance.

With another strategy in mind, she moved.

Not forward—down.

In a swift motion, she crouched low and vanished into the darkened portion of the room, swallowed by the shadows.

Ryuen narrowed his eyes.

He remained still, his ears sharpening, his other senses stretching to compensate for his lack of vision.

Silence.

But not an empty one.

The kind of silence that came before something deadly.

The kind that sent a chill down his spine.

Just as he guessed, he sensed movements behind him, then the sound of wind being cut by a blade, or staff.

He leaped backwards, narrowly avoiding the gleam of steel aimed at his throat.

Yurei’s dagger cut through the space where his neck had been a second ago.

But before he could counter, she had already shifted and charged at him again till he was backed up against the wall

His back hit the cold wall as he dodged another slash—this time aimed at his ribs, but she vanished again.

She was relentless, too energetic, and she barely broke a sweat.

The room belonged to her now, the half-light and c shadows warping at her command.

Her attacks came from unpredictable angles, each one forcing Ryuen into a constant state of reaction.

Still, he grinned, his senses were becoming more and more better with every strike.

’She’s good.’ He thought and straightened himself.

There.

A split-second warning was all he needed.

Yurei lunged at him from his blind spot, Infront, since she had noticed he was more focused on his back.

However, instead of dodging, Ryuen caught her wrist mid-strike, and she paused.

For the first time since the fight started, she hesitated.

Ryuen’s grip tightened just enough to keep her in place. He wasn’t weak, as she thought.

Yurei brows curved to frown, she could sense the aura within him, and something far different from others.

Not quite human, her gaze moved to his face, then she whispered.

"...Are you actually human?"

’

Ryuen shrugged. "I am." I wonder why you think I’m not...he wanted to add, but let it slide.

He then decided to change the topic immediately.

"ou’re not using your full power—say, ninety-five percent?"

She narrowed her eyes slightly.

He had managed to see through her.

Which was unusual. Everyone assumed her to be a weak fighter, with little to no energy emanating from her.

Yet he was able to notice that she wasn’t even using half.

He smirked. "Not bad."

She said nothing.

But this time, he felt the shift in her stance—something colder.

It immediately reminded him of Yuki, so much so that he ran his eyes around the room, ensuring she hadn’t broken free by mistake.

Then the room temperature dropped.

His gaze darkened, and his smirk faded when mist—or from his view, smoke—rose from the ground.

So that’s why she smelled like burnt wood.

Her ability didn’t just include wind... there was more.

"Damn," Ryuen muttered.

For the first time in a long time, he felt an unfamiliar rush of excitement.

The last time he felt this way was when he fought hand-to-hand with his boss—just to humor him.

And he had almost lost his arm.

Now, he was standing before a human with otherworldly abilities, and he knew she would do worse.

Probably kill him if she wanted to.

Yurei reached for the button holding her cloak, then let it drop to the ground, revealing her body completely.

Of course, she was wrapped in bandages—or white straps.

She wore a loose black shirt that was tied at the hem and stopped right above her navel.

At least, that’s what he thought, since he couldn’t actually see it.

And black boots.

Aside from that, she wore nothing else.

At that moment, the lights on her end went off, leaving half the room white, half dark.

Her silver eyes lost the faint gleam within them. Then, she waved—

And slowly melted into the darkness.

Blending perfectly.

As if she had never been there.

An upper hand.