Cleaver Of Sin

Chapter 380: Super Speed

Samuel moved as though he were nothing more than a fleeting flash of light, his body zipping from one towering tree trunk to another with ridiculous, almost surreal speed and agility. Each time he shifted positions, a rain of senbon tore apart the tree he had just departed from, shredding bark and wood into exploding fragments. His body dove to the left once more, dodging another attack by a hair’s breadth, the air whistling violently around him as he twisted through it.

’How can they send over a hundred people against a team of eight?’ Samuel thought as he moved with blinding elegance. He simply could not understand it. To him, the number was absurd, excessive to the point of insanity. Although he didn’t know the exact amount of enemies hunting them, he knew with absolute certainty that they numbered well over a hundred, perhaps far more.

’Who is strong enough to mobilize such manpower and force?’ he wondered, frustration threading through his thoughts. But although he pondered deeply, the speed of his movements never slowed for even a moment, never once breaking rhythm. The branches above him blurred as his body became a streak of silver light.

The next moment, a twisting surge of shadow erupted forward, shadow tentacles snapping through the air like living, hunting creatures. Samuel’s figure turned into a blur so faint it almost seemed imaginary as he dodged every shadowy tendril with ridiculous precision, weaving through the assault with motions so smooth they defied physics.

Samuel’s ability was simply called: ’Super Speed.

It amplified his speed, reflexes, thought process, reaction timing, and nearly every factor involving motion within his body to an insane degree. But Samuel didn’t merely awaken this ability and remain grounded like a novice. He had trained relentlessly, learning to maneuver through narrow places, tight corners, dense forests, and cramped spaces. He knew he wouldn’t always be fighting in open plains where his speed could run wild.

Adaptation was survival.

The moment he dodged, the shadow tentacles twisted unnaturally, immediately chasing him like serpents. Samuel decided not to ignore them anymore. Astra energy surged into his katana, flooding it with shimmering power. At once, his hand blurred with ridiculous speed and finesse, tearing through every shadow tentacle as he executed a sword technique sharp enough to slice through darkness itself.

His feet finally kissed the earth as he descended from the trees he had been darting between. But the instant his boots touched the ground, it warped, turning into a brown quagmire that threatened to swallow him whole. Without hesitation, his hand flashed forward, slashing numerous times against the earth below. In a heartbeat, he diced the ground within a ten-meter radius into floating debris and shards of rock, each suspended in the air like fragments of a shattered world.

Through the floating rocks, shards, and clouds of choking dust, a dagger tore through the haze, screaming toward Samuel from behind with murderous intent.

’First one,’ Samuel noted calmly. He shifted into another sword technique, his blade flashing in a silver arc that tore through the assassin’s neck as smoothly as a hot blade through butter. As someone who relied on speed rather than brute strength, he despised being boxed in or forced into a corner. And from their movements, he could tell the assassins were trying to do exactly that, closing in from all sides.

’Since you all enjoy hiding in the darkness so much, I will send you into the real darkness,’ he thought coldly. His hand flashed to the katana hanging at his waist. Without a sound, his figure vanished in a silent blur. For a moment, the illuminated forest went eerily still as a single streak of silver carved through everything within a three-hundred-meter radius.

Within the next second, Samuel returned to where he had previously stood, his katana sliding neatly into its scabbard. The moment it clicked into place, time seemed to snap back into motion.

Instantly, the sound of countless bodies, flesh, and bones tearing apart filled the air like a chorus of ripping fabric. Trees, rocks, soil, everything within the zone, had been diced into unrecognizable pieces as though the world itself had been put through a butcher’s blade.

A wave of crushed debris slammed into the earth as the diced remains of trees and rocks fell to the ground. The smell of blood hung thick in the air, so thick one could almost taste it simply by inhaling.

The next moment, a white dome materialized around Samuel, attempting to hold him in place. He didn’t waste even a heartbeat. Astra energy poured into his katana, and he slashed out ten times in rapid succession, shattering the barrier before whatever function it had could fully activate.

’More are closing in,’ he realized, instantly moving again. Another assassin shot out from a tree, daggers aimed at Samuel’s chest with murderous speed. Samuel simply sidestepped with a twisting motion, dodging effortlessly. His blade flowed forward in a single linking motion, cutting the assassin down without pause. He continued moving as the body hit the ground with a heavy thud.

From every angle, senbon closed in. Samuel had no choice but to block, his katana becoming a flash.

Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding!

His body exploded into motion, deflecting every senbon and every needle with expert ease. But just as he stopped, an unknown mist manifested, covering hundreds of meters in a suffocating blanket.

’Must be one of the assassins’ abilities,’ he realized. Until now, he had always been too fast, too swift, barely giving the assassins any chance to use their awakened abilities. If they tried, he simply outran or outmaneuvered them. They knew this, he knew this. Using abilities against Samuel was a waste of Astra energy unless they immobilized him first.

That was what they had been desperately attempting, holding him in place while using Astra Augmentation to keep up. Unlike them, Samuel didn’t require Astra augmentation. His natural base speed was already passively enhanced by his Super Speed ability. And unlike most abilities, it didn’t require even a single mote of Astra to activate.

The mist obscured his vision. Various attacks and abilities closed in from every direction. Samuel frowned slightly, but he didn’t let the impending danger slow him.

Because of his ability, he didn’t have any direct offensive power granted by Super Speed alone. But he had created his own. By using the momentum generated from his high speed movement, he could unleash attacks stronger than normal, especially when empowered with Astra energy.

His foot dipped forward as he entered a stance, transitioning into his next katana technique. The moment the attacks closed in, he vanished in a blinding silver flash. The forest, and the entire world of Crymora, saw only streaks of silver sword lines tearing through the thick mist.

A rocketing explosion tore into the air with brutal force. Smoke, dust, and searing heat blanketed the space. Trees snapped backward, many reduced to shreds, some charred out of existence entirely, some turned into coal. Those not touched by the explosion were uprooted by the shockwave and sent flying.

Samuel, standing within the haze of smoke and dust, simply waved his hand with a burst of speed. The air detonated outward from the force, blowing the smoke apart like an overfilled balloon.

His figure emerged, covered in soot and dust, but completely uninjured. His stance was steady, unwavering, and he looked as though he could take on several more foes without the slightest hint of fatigue.