165 Another Alias (1/2)

Although she's reluctant to admit her defeat, Adalia has to since it's very clear to everyone that Mia had won against her the moment she decided to use the orb. So, she somewhat nodded her head in response to Mia's question. Although she looks calm despite having a small frown on her face, she's still upset about it inside her mind. Just when the two finally put their guard down and the crowd started cheering for the winner, suddenly, a dark figure could be seen speeding toward Mia with a dagger in his hand. One can safely assume that the dark figure must have been hiding within the crowd and decided to make his move upon noticing the two relaxing their shoulders, it's hard to come by chance!

Of course, when the two finally noticed his appearance, it was already too late for them to do anything. He was already right behind Mia, slashing his dagger ferociously toward her as if his life depended on it. Just when the assassin and everyone above and on top of the platform thought Mia would get her head separated from her body in a bloody way, a slim figure suddenly appeared halfway from Mia's shadow like a ghost as if she was already right underneath from the beginning.

Clank!

”I have been waiting for you.”

From the head, one can see beautiful silver-white hair flowing freely down to the shoulder but if one looked even closer, they could see a few pieces of hair dyed in crimson red. Judging by the hair alone, one can safely assume that no matter the gender, he or she would definitely have a good looking face but sadly, they couldn't see the true appearance due to the eyes covered with a half fox mask, leaving the mouth free for all to see. To make others even more confusing, when he or she speaks, the voice coming out of the mouth sounds like an androgynous voice that can attract both female and male without any discrimination.

But most of the crowd's attention was focused on the lower half of the figure. No, it's not anything lewd like what you gods think. When they looked down after admiring the appearance, the crowd once again were dumbfounded to behold a fog of shadow blocking them from gazing at the lower half. 'What a shame, truly,' that was the thought of everyone beneath the platform as a few could be seen sighing like a disappointed pervert old man.

The most confused one here is definitely Mia as she didn't expect someone so powerful to remain hidden inside her shadow without her realizing it. Just thinking about it gives her the creeps followed by the chills to her body. If he or she ever thought of killing her, Mia won't know about it even to her death. But since the suspicious mask had just saved her from the assassin, it might not be her enemy as she thought. Even so, she still needs to be cautious, just for the sake of it.

”Who are you?”

”Shiro is the name, and I'm your worst possible matchup. Is that good enough for you?”

The suspicious mask person chuckled after saying that, perhaps finding the lie it just made up on the spot to be funny.

”Shiro, huh? And you are my worst possible matchup, you say? Hah, what a jest. I was still holding my strength, you know?”

The assassin snorted, it seemed he didn't realize yet how powerful his opponent is. But that was obvious since Sheila didn't active her intimidate skill. If she had used the skill, the assassin companion hiding within the crowd would definitely retreat upon realizing they couldn't win against her. She didn't want that to happen. And yes, the suspicious mask person that everyone was staring at is none other than Sheila. Shiro is just an alias she had made up on the spot. In Japanese, the name has the meaning of 'White' so, the moment it appeared inside her mind, it just clicked.

As to the reason why Sheila was lurking within Mia's shadow, one can spell it in one word, curiosity. She knew it's a dangerous thing to do but, she believes that no matter what kind of danger it is, she can simply escape into the Trial Tower and holed up inside for a few days. Ria had also given her permission to do this dangerous act after listening to her reasoning and, realizing that no matter what she says, she can't stop the latter. After all, what kind of person would let their best friend willingly get themselves into danger? Especially knowing the fact that Sheila sometimes did a reckless thing, one couldn't blame Ria for worrying about her.

'Since the assassin is not making his move, I wonder what's going on through his mind. I thought of going on offense but, is he buying time for something? Tsu—perhaps, the friend of his hiding within the crowd is going to use that wicked spell again?! I can't let that happen.' With that thought in mind, her pupils immediately into bluish light— it's the sign that she had activated the 'Mana Eyes' skill. Looking at the crowd from the platform, it's not that hard to find the friend of that assassin with her current set of eyes. Just as Sheila found her target amidst the crowd, the assassin seemed to come into realization when he saw where she was looking and immediately start speeding toward her.

Even an idiot would be able to guess that the assassin is trying to distract her by going on offense but, it's a futile effort. When the assassin reached close enough to hear her breathing, he immediately thrust his dagger toward her, aiming precisely at her heart.