Death System: I awakened SSS rank System

"Zakar!!!"

The thick, commanding voice split through the burning air of the ruined chamber.

Zakar's blade froze an inch above Caslurk's skull. His chest heaved with heavy breaths, sweat and soot staining his face. Slowly, he blinked and turned his head toward the sound.

That voice was familiar. Familiar enough to make his heart skip.

"..."

From the other side of the rift, a figure stepped through the haze; broad shoulders, sharp eyes glowing with authority. Smoke trailed from his body as though the battlefield itself was his own.

General Lemon.

"General Lemon?" Zakar muttered, his voice rough with disbelief. He had expected attention from the chaos of his duel, but he had not expected General Lemon to be this close. This was absurd. And it was then that he noticed...

Behind the general stumbled another figure Justin. His body was wrecked, bruised and bloodied, his steps weak but his eyes alive.

Zakar's lips curled into a grin. "I thought as much. You were the one who sold me out, weren't you, Justin?" His voice dripped with mocking calm.

He tilted his head slightly, studying the battered player. "Hmph. Then again, maybe you did it to spare your own life. In that case, I'll consider your betrayal a desperate man's gamble."

With that, Zakar slowly lowered Tyrann Sword. The monstrous weapon shimmered faintly before vanishing into nothingness, leaving only the ghostly hum of its power lingering in the air.

Behind General Lemon, a cluster of players peered in, eyes wide at the sight of the charred room. Some covered their noses against the acrid smoke. Others whispered among themselves.

Some thought that Caslurk had destroyed the room with his flame since his flames were still scorching in the room. Others thought that Zakar had just entered the room and that it was rather Justin and Caslurk's fight.

"Zakar!!! Caslurk!!!" General Lemon barked suddenly, his voice slicing through the murmurs. His gaze narrowed, sharp as a blade.

"The two of you will follow me. I'll make you my first scapegoats." His sneer was filled with something between satisfaction and menace as he turned and began walking away.

'Was this freak crazy? What the hell happened to the guy who had killed om his first show before them? Hmph... This mam is more of a wild thing than anyone know about.'Zakar thought as he stared at General Lemon.

Zakar's gaze drifted back toward the assassin still slumped before him. His lips tugged into a sly smile. At last, a name had slipped into the open.

'Caslurk, huh? … Hmph.' His grin deepened, the syllables rolling in his mind like a coin flipped in the dark.

He stepped forward, following General Lemon without a word, though his senses remained locked on Caslurk.

Caslurk's eyes burned into Zakar's back as he moved away. A storm of emotions churned within him; anger, humiliation, fear, envy, anxiety despair and something deeper, hatred. Pure, raw hatred.

'What is this boy? Some kind of false being? Is that why Zermon demanded his death?' Caslurk's teeth clenched.

'This isn't natural. No… this boy isn't normal. He's a monster in human skin. How in the nine hells did he even get here?'

The assassin's breath rattled. He could feel his life force flickering like a candle in a storm. His HP bar hovered at the edge of critical.

'If Lemon hadn't appeared when he did… I would've been slaughtered like a dog. That brat would've cleaved me open without hesitation.' Caslurk muttered to himself, secretly thanking General Lemon.

His fists trembled as he pushed his battered body upright.

'No. I won't let it end here. Not when my mission isn't done. Not when my master demands more. He wants Zakar dead? Then so be it!!!'

With what little energy he could muster, Caslurk redirected half of his reserves into his thigh muscles, feeling his legs surge with strained power. He forced his stance wide, right foot bracing forward, left sliding back to anchor himself. His chest heaved, and he funneled the rest into his burning core.

Flames sputtered weakly in his palms before roaring alive with sudden ferocity. His voice, cracked but defiant, ripped through the smoke.

"Cataract Flame Throw!!!"

The inferno pulsed violently, condensing into a swirling dark flame orb. With a fierce roar, he hurled it toward the doorway.

BOOOOM!!!

The explosion rattled the chamber, shattering stone walls into chunks of rubble.

The blast ripped through the doorframe and sent shockwaves through the hall. Panic swept the gathered players as screams echoed. Dust and debris rained from above, plunging the corridor into chaos.

Through the haze of destruction, Caslurk bolted forward. His body blurred, speed fueled by desperation and madness. His only thought: escape.

'I'll vanish. I'll lick my wounds and I'll come back when the fire in me is whole again. But first, I'll live.'

He shot through the debris, heart pounding, flames sparking around his heels as he reached for freedom.

But just as his body surged past the threshold...

Whiiiiiisshhhhh!!!!—

Something screamed through the air, faster than his senses could process.

SLASH!!!

The Tyrann Sword whistled like death itself. In one impossibly swift arc, its edge cleaved clean through Caslurk's head.

Blood erupted in a violent spray as his body jerked, momentum dying instantly. His head split neatly into two halves, crimson painting the fractured stones beneath him.

The Caslurk's body collapsed hard against the floor, a lifeless thud echoing in the stunned silence.

From the smoke, Zakar stepped forward slowly, his expression calm, unbothered. Tyrann Sword glimmered faintly before dissolving again.

"Hmph…" he exhaled with quiet satisfaction. "I expected that. To think a fool like you could be fooled so easily by my feints… amusing." His lips curved into a cold chuckle. "Not much of an assassin, after all."

The players behind Lemon gasped in horrified shock. Then murmurs began to fill in the air while Zakar stared at his hand work.

"Did he really just kill him!!!"

"How in heavens is that possible?!"

"Are sure this freak is a D rank?!!"

Suddenly the everyone paused the murmurs and stared at him. Shock and anxiety could be written all over their faces as they stared at him.

General Lemon turned, his face hardened into stone, but his eyes… his eyes betrayed a flicker of something rare. Shock.