Chapter 9: The Assassination Begins

Clop, clop, clop.

On the ancient road crossing the wasteland, the empty surroundings offered almost no obstacles to sound.

Echoing through this dark-toned world was the rhythmic clash of metal horseshoes against gravel.

It was a robust brown horse.

Under the night’s tint, its coat appeared even closer to darkness itself.

Crimson eyes stretched into afterimages during the high-speed gallop, extending endlessly behind the horse.

Level with the curved reins hung two thick ropes that firmly hooked a black coffin.

“Hey, scrap metal—”

The voice from the brown horse’s back was extremely rough, like fabric being repeatedly torn and rubbed.

“Why does KING want us to transport this armament? Isn’t it a bit overkill?”

“I’ve said it many times already.”

A low, icy reply came from above the coffin.

“My character name is ‘Steel Scarecrow,’ not scrap metal.”

That figure blended almost completely with the black coffin.

If he had not spoken, it would have been impossible to tell whether a “guard” even existed on the coffin.

But as the gaze drew closer, it became clear.

It was indeed a being pieced together from steel.

Several steel plates and iron frames barely formed a humanoid outline, while the rest was haphazardly decorated with various household items.

At first glance, one could not help but wonder.

“Isn’t this just a pile of junk tossed onto a coffin?”

“Ah, what tier of armament is this anyway?”

The one controlling the brown horse was a burly, shirtless man—the same one who had produced the “torn-fabric” voice.

“Could it be an S-rank item?”

Such physique and voice made for a fitting pair.

What truly felt out of place was that he was conversing with the pile of steel.

“Rending Claw Werewolf.”

Steel Scarecrow spoke in a low voice.

“Do you have any improper thoughts about KING’s armament?”

As he spoke, he slowly leaned his upper body forward.

The front ends of the steel plates that served as arms deformed, and rolling serrated teeth unfolded.

Zzzzt—

The sound of metal scraping made the air feel several degrees colder.

“Hey, hey, don’t be so touchy!”

Rending Claw Werewolf waved his hands hastily.

“I’m just curious, that’s all!”

“I see.”

A brief silence followed.

“You should know very well what betrayal means in BHAO.”

After those words fell, the silence was not immediately broken.

It was only a blank space seemingly meant to ease the awkwardness.

Then Steel Scarecrow pulled his body back, returning to his original posture.

“Sigh—I just feel a little unwilling, that’s all.”

Rending Claw Werewolf dragged out his tone, sounding like he was complaining.

“A ‘delivery’ job like this could be left to the Tier 5 guys in the territory, right?

We’re Tier 10, and direct subordinates of KING.”

The tone clashed violently with his rough voice.

It made Steel Scarecrow unconsciously shift backward a few steps.

“Do not underestimate low-tier bandits.”

Steel Scarecrow responded calmly.

“In BHAO, ‘tier’ only affects the number of skills, not their quality.”

The hollow steel core suddenly lit up with blue light.

From the outside it looked like an ordinary neon tube.

In truth, it was Steel Scarecrow’s “eyes.”

At this moment, he was activating the skill—NIGHT VISION SCAN.

“Stay vigilant at all times.”

“Ensure KING’s armament remains safe.”

“Yeah, yeah—vigilant Mr. Scrap Metal.”

Rending Claw Werewolf answered carelessly.

Steel Scarecrow acted as if he had heard nothing and continued scanning the surroundings.

NIGHT VISION SCAN was only a basic detection skill.

Steel Scarecrow had not invested many points into it.

Its range was limited and its scanning speed slow.

But it was more than enough for detecting stealth-type skills.

As long as it was not a close-range ambush, they would have enough reaction time.

—!

The scan had not yet finished.

A violent jolt and inertia nearly flung the parts off Steel Scarecrow’s body.

“What—?”

Steel Scarecrow’s words were not even finished before they were completely swallowed by the frightened neigh of the brown horse.

“Werewolf! What happened?”

The power core issued a danger alert.

Intense unease forced Steel Scarecrow to quickly reassemble into a more humanoid combat stance.

“Ahead.”

Rending Claw Werewolf pointed with his index finger.

“Something seems to be there.”

Following the direction he indicated, a small black shadow could indeed be seen.

Its volume was no larger than three palms, collapsed in the center of the ancient road.

But that area was too dark.

The scan range could not fully cover it.

An item?

Some kind of soft remnant?

The brown horse refused to advance.

They could only rely on naked eyes.

Thud—crack.

The moment he stepped onto the ancient road, the stone slabs cracked.

Rending Claw Werewolf dismounted and shrugged.

“I’ll go take a look.”

“You watch the armament. Don’t let bandits lure you away.”

“Be extremely careful.”

“Relax~”

Rending Claw Werewolf waved casually, his movements light.

He lowered his posture and slowly approached the unknown object.

The sharp claws on his fingertips extended, ready to fight at any moment.

“That’s…”

He narrowed his eyes.

His vision had cleared a little.

“A doll? …A western doll?”

The tense beast instincts instantly relaxed.

It was just an utterly ordinary doll.

“Tch, how scary.”

He casually picked up the doll.

“Scrap Metal, it’s nothing!”

Rending Claw Werewolf held the doll high, showing how ridiculous their earlier vigilance had been.

But the next second.

While he continued his smug evaluation.

Consciousness and body suddenly lost connection.

It felt as if his head had been forcibly separated from his lower body.

He instinctively, desperately looked at the doll in his hand.

On that originally ugly and simple face.

An extremely eerie smile had appeared.

“…!!”

In an indistinct whimper.

Rending Claw Werewolf squeezed out his final warning.

“Careful… that doll.”

Thump.

A heavy thud sounded.

The Werewolf’s head and body were completely separated.

The combat-type character known for strength and speed.

Retired from the stage without any resistance.

Turning into countless square particles and data streams.

Slowly dissipating in the night.

“Found you, Mommy…”

A childish yet twisted voice echoed across the wasteland.

“You’re here too, right? You’re watching Xiao Kui’s hard work, right? Hee hee…”

That frenzied yet sugary voice made Steel Scarecrow’s entire body tremble.

He had heard the rumors.

The legend recently circulating in BHAO.

The player who could not be locked onto.

The existence that ignored life bars and erased targets directly.

And.

The voodoo doll that brought despair.

No matter how high-end the scanning skill, her figure could not be captured.

“…Night Witch.”

Steel Scarecrow murmured her name.