Shadow Fiends, as those of the little boy's kind were known, were, like the Face-Borrowers, vengeful spirits with unique powers.
Being a spirit with a passion for knowledge, it had never taken the Players lightly, even those at low levels.
It had meticulously calculated every detail about this fight, from the angle of the sun to the choice of arena, down to the precise time and position of each party. Everything had gone according to plan, like clockwork, and it successfully lured the two Players into its perfect trap.
It had even positioned itself on the far side of the building, so that anyone on the ground would be unable to see the activity on the rooftop. In that way, it accounted for any Players who were on standby, delaying their response long enough for it to prepare its next move.
In terms of experience points, Players were like Boss creatures worth a hundred times that of a normal human. The promise of reaping a reward that much more satisfying was irresistible to the Shadow Fiend, and it thought the risk well worth taking.
Absorbing the three Players would have given the Shadow Fiend a huge power-up, which would make hunting down every human in the university a walk in the park. Thus, the plan was to devour them all in the shortest possible time and cruise to its next destination. The Shadow Fiend would have—should have—hit the jackpot, so to speak.
Everything about the situation should have been in the palm of its hand. It even knew that the Players assigned to the area would be no stronger than Level 3, given the circumstances. It had not underestimated the Players in any way, no—for all its meticulous planning, the one thing it never expected was the possibility that it would underestimate one of the normal humans.
...It hasn't even been three minutes! How did the human escape from the Shadow Dimension I constructed?
The boy gaped like a fish, as if he wanted to say something, but it was too late. That one bash straight to the dome had knocked it off-balance, giving Wu Hua the opportunity to slam his powerful fist into the creature's face. As wisps of smoke rose from where the fist had connected, the boy tumbled backward through the air with a plaintive wail, spilling the marionettes in his schoolbag as he went.
Wu Hua could spare no time to talk, but he shot a glance of intense gratitude at the youth who had suddenly burst upon the scene and saved them from certain death, then pounced toward the fallen boy.
"When they're low, deal the killing blow" were words to live by in a fight, and he knew them well. If he didn't seize this rare opportunity to take out the enemy for good, only the gods knew how things would shake out later on.
Xu Qiang was even faster than Wu Hua, and in his hand was a dagger that radiated a cold energy. With a flick of his wrist, the blade flew with unerring accuracy, pinning the fleeing boy to the ground by a sleeve.
"Ooh... As expected of the professionals..." said Bai Zhi as he watched the Players demonstrate their slick moves. Looking down, he noticed the chair leg in his hands rapidly breaking down in the sunlight, and he gave an unconcerned shrug as the particles disappeared like snowflakes.
He had found himself on the rooftop as soon as he walked through the glowing doorway, and most conveniently, right next to a certain little boy... Everything had simply lined up perfectly, giving him the chance to execute that beautiful, satisfying bash to the head.
Just as the Shadow Fiend was about to be eliminated, the door to the rooftop burst open suddenly, and out stumbled the blood-soaked figure of Wang Xuan.
"Lead—Leader! It's a trap! Enemies... down there..."
Before he could even form a complete sentence, Wang Xuan convulsed, coughing up a glob of fresh blood, and collapsed on the floor.
"Xuans!"
His expression suddenly changing, Wu Hua flew to Wang Xuan's side, all thoughts of dealing with the cornered Shadow Fiend abandoned. Frantically, he retrieved a flask—a healing potion, presumably—and applied it to Wang Xuan's wounds.
"Hang in there! What's going on down there?!"
It seemed that the potion was working, as color returned to Wang Xuan's face.
"Leader, the puppets... A bunch of murderous puppets showed up on the ground! They killed all the police officers, then went after the students. I—"
"Okay, I got it. Stop talking and rest for now," said Wu Hua. "Qiang, leave that thing. We need to deal with the situation on the ground!" he barked, his face a grim mask once more.
Without another word, he ran down the stairs, while Xu Qiang took another look at the entity on the ground—it seemed to be on its last legs and weakening every second. Weighing the time it would take to dispatch the creature against the lives of the students under imminent threat, Xu Qiang quickly decided on the best course of action.
"I'm leaving the rest here to you!" said Xu Qiang to Bai Zhi, then he followed in Wu Hua's footsteps and raced down the stairs.
Thus, in the blink of an eye, the only people left on the rooftop were Bai Zhi, the grievously wounded Wang Xuan, and the little boy, who was barely breathing and unable to move.
"Hmm..."
After a moment's thought, Bai Zhi found a piece of brick by the edge of the rooftop and walked over to Wang Xuan, who was propped up against a wall. He squatted down and greeted Wang Xuan in a friendly voice.
"Hullo, brother. Might I ask your name?"
"It's Wang… Wang Xuan. Hey, you better... save yourself. Find somewhere to... hide..." Wang Xuan said weakly as he raised his eyes to meet Bai Zhi's.
"You seem in rather bad shape. Are you sure you're all right? Can I help in any way?"
Bai Zhi tossed the brick and caught it casually, the smile never leaving his face, like he hadn't heard a word that Wang Xuan said.
"N-no, I'm good..."
As his eyes darted to the threatening item in Bai Zhi's hands, Wang Xuan shrank back involuntarily and he seemed to look around for something.
"Look at you, you're clearly badly hurt! What are you being all polite for? "
Bai Zhi looked quite severe as he raised the brick in his hand.
"Relax, my remedy is safe, swift and humane. All I gotta do is— Tch, it ran away?"
"Wang Xuan" had disappeared, and Bai Zhi gave a wry smile before standing up.
He had guessed correctly—since he knew that there was more than one supernatural entity lurking around the school, and that they were intelligent beings, he had guessed that when one of their own was in trouble, there was no way the other would stand idly by.
It was thanks to his deep understanding of the particular entity that had been bothering him since yesterday that Bai Zhi even spotted the ruse. After all, the disguises it adopted were perfect copies, down to a tee.
"Next up..." Bai Zhi turned his attention to the boy.
