Chapter 235: Confrontation with Capricorn
“There’s another assassin?!”
That was Capricorn’s first thought.
She was utterly bewildered. Wasn’t this supposed to be an ambush targeting Taotie? Why were the assassins coming after her?
Just as she was puzzling over this, Tom leaped down from a tree, his black dagger aimed straight for the crown of her head.
Capricorn gasped and dodged frantically while simultaneously counterattacking. With a sharp crack, her whip lashed out at an eerie angle, aiming for Tom’s wrist.
Tom twisted mid-air, avoiding the whip, and closed in again, determined to draw blood.
At the same time, Hummingbird unsheathed her katana and struck from the side, slashing at Capricorn—forming a pincer attack with Tom, trapping Capricorn between them.
Recognizing Tom as the stronger opponent, Capricorn focused on defending against him, but in doing so, she left herself open to Hummingbird’s blade. A shallow cut split her arm, drawing blood.
The injury sent Capricorn into a frenzy.
With a metallic shing, she drew a slender, flexible sword hidden within the handle of her whip.
It turned out that while she excelled with the whip, her true trump card was this concealed weapon.
“Who the hell are you?” Capricorn hissed, glaring at the wound on her arm.
“Your executioners,” Tom replied coldly.
In the next instant, he blurred forward, dagger flashing.
Hummingbird struck at the same time, her katana slicing horizontally toward Capricorn’s waist.
“Tch!”
“Damn you!”
Capricorn flung her whip like a projectile at Hummingbird while her flexible sword hissed through the air like a striking viper, thrusting toward Tom.
Tom’s dagger was shorter, putting him at a disadvantage against the unpredictable, coiling blade. The bizarre weapon left him momentarily disoriented, forcing him to retreat under Capricorn’s relentless assault.
Hummingbird deflected the whip and lunged again, forcing Capricorn to split her attention.
Her katana moved like lightning, but Capricorn’s flexible sword snapped backward, parrying Tom before whipping around to stab at Hummingbird. The tip of the blade clinked against the katana’s edge, sending sparks flying.
With a flick of her wrist, Capricorn made the sword jump, its tip darting toward Hummingbird’s throat like a serpent’s strike.
Hummingbird barely managed to leap back in time.
“Hmph!”
Capricorn scoffed and prepared to pursue—she could tell Hummingbird was weaker, a full tier below her.
If she could eliminate her quickly, she could focus entirely on Tom.
With the flexible sword’s erratic movements, she might even defeat him—or at least escape.
Her plan was flawless in theory.
But execution was another matter.
And Tom had no intention of cooperating.
The moment Capricorn turned toward Hummingbird, Tom was already behind her, his dagger slicing toward her neck.
Feeling the killing intent at her back, Capricorn cursed internally and abandoned her pursuit, spinning to clash with Tom again.
Hummingbird, now ignored, steadied her breathing and charged once more, joining Tom in another pincer attack.
This time, Tom’s assault was relentless.
His dagger moved like a storm, leaving no opening for Capricorn to counter or escape.
Too occupied with Tom, she couldn’t defend against Hummingbird’s strikes—only dodging frantically.
But as the saying goes: You can’t stay on guard forever.
And in battle, even the slightest lapse was fatal.
When Capricorn barely avoided Hummingbird’s slash, Tom seized the moment—his dagger traced a crimson line across her thigh.
“Ngh—!”
Blood spilled instantly, and her movement faltered.
Seeing Tom’s blade already reversing toward her abdomen, Capricorn snapped her flexible sword at his face, forcing him to retreat to avoid a mutual injury.
Tom wasn’t foolish enough to trade wounds.
He disengaged just as Hummingbird struck again—her katana howled through the air, aimed at Capricorn’s back.
Unable to fully evade mid-counter, Capricorn twisted desperately, but the blade still grazed her, leaving a searing cut across her—
“Agh!”
Had she been even a fraction slower, the strike would have split her in half.
Though the exchange seemed prolonged, it had all happened in mere seconds.
In just their first clash, Capricorn had been hit three times.
She forced Hummingbird back with a wild swing of her sword and leaped away, putting distance between them.
Panting heavily, she glared at her two opponents.
Tom and Hummingbird exchanged a glance before splitting apart, once again encircling her—cutting off any escape while keeping the pressure on.
“Who. Are. You.” Capricorn snarled, flexing her sword in front of her.
If she was going to die, she’d at least know why. And if she somehow survived, she’d make sure to return with reinforcements and slaughter them all.
“Ragnarok—Kui Mulang,” Tom lied with a cold smirk.
Hummingbird almost blinked at the blatant deception.
“Kui Mulang?”
“What a way to shift the blame.”
“Ragnarok—Hummingbird,” she said, using her real name—but it didn’t matter.
By tomorrow, “Hummingbird” would no longer exist in the organization.
And even if Capricorn somehow survived today, she’d be hunting a ghost.
“Fine. I’ll remember that.”
Capricorn’s voice dripped with venom.
Then—
She bolted.
Tom had anticipated this.
With a flick of his wrist, a metal sphere rolled to a stop at Capricorn’s feet.
She froze.
Then her face twisted in horror.
(End of Chapter 235)
