Hive Knight: A Dark Fantasy LitRPG (Trinity of the Hive Book 1) Grayson Sinclair (book recommendations website .TXT) 📖

I hadn’t paid enough attention to the rest of my opponents and allowed the other two members to catch up to us. Claymore retrieved his stuck sword and sauntered over to join his friends. His eyes held a gleam of superiority in them; he thought he had the upper hand here.

This battle could have ended in an instant with Dance of the Immortal, but I held off using any of my abilities. These chumps were an appetizer compared to the main course I had to look forward to, and I didn’t need to waste my trump card.

Claymore turned to look at Goon One and Goon Two, I expected, to signal a combined assault on me. Fool. As soon as his eyes left mine, I rushed them, closing the distance in under a second and shoving my sword through the gap in the metal plates across Claymore’s chest.

His look of overconfidence shattered to one of pain and despair. He was dead; his brain just hadn’t registered it. Blood pooled out of his mouth as his lungs filled with blood. His death would not be a swift one. Claymore dropped his weapon and crumpled to the ground as I pulled my sword from his chest and turned to look at the goon squad.

Both of their faces held a mixture of rage and disbelief. To give them credit, few could move as fast as me, and in their shoes, I wouldn’t have expected it either. Goon one bellowed in rage, pulling out a morningstar, while the only female goon took out a short sword and dagger.

Morningstar came at me, abandoning all reason. He flailed wildly as if swinging at a horde of invisible bees. Duel-Wielder, however, came at me slow and cautious, not willing to let any more surprises catch her off guard.

I dealt with Morningstar quickly. His unhinged swings left him vulnerable, and several wide swings later, his arms tired. I stepped forward, grabbed the handle of his weapon, and rammed the tip of my sword through his face.

He didn’t react at all, dead instantly. Morningstar gurgled a death rattle as I pulled my blood and brain coated blade from his skull.

Duel-Wielder took the death of her comrade in stride, using it as an opportunity to use Sneak Attack.

She caught me off guard, but only for a moment. Color me surprised. An NPC with an ability, that’s rare. Must have been a member of the Thieves Guild, and a damn good one if they thought it a good investment to teach her Sneak Attack.

I’d dueled against Wilson enough to know what the subtle rustle of wind behind me meant.

I rolled forward as her blades struck the ground where I’d been a split second before. As I landed out of my roll, I turned to face her, rightfully cautious now.

An NPC with an ability is rare. An NPC with two is unheard of. I doubt she has any more tricks up her sleeve.

I ducked her agile swipes, grounded my stance, and swept my leg out. I dislocated her knee with a sickening pop, which was followed by an ear-splitting shriek of agony.

Duel-wielder toppled to the ground, sobbing in pain and clutching her leg. Shards of her tibia stuck through her skin, and blood pooled beneath her fingers. I raised my sword to silence her and was mid-swing when a voice stopped me.

“Halt!”

I glanced at the person I assumed was the commander as they marched forward, with the remaining guards in tow. I got behind Duel-Wielder and placed the tip of my blade to her neck.

From first glance at the leader, I could tell it was a player rather than an NPC. They were clad in gleaming white plate mail, with a full-faced helm obscuring their features. A flowing scarlet cape billowed in the wind behind them as they approached.

Their armor was high tier and in exceptional condition. Least my guess at their level was right. I had no reason to believe this player was anything less than mid-seventies, and I would treat them with caution. A level seventy player who knew what they were doing could kill me if I was sloppy.

The commander stopped ten feet from me. The two remaining bodyguards fanned out and drew their weapons—a bow for one and another longsword for the second. I ignored the peons and focused on the actual threat in front of me.

“Who are you to give me orders?”

Their helmet scraped against their gorget as they turned their head to speak to me, “Please, don’t mistake my words.” The commander spoke with a more reasoned tone. “I did not mean to command, merely to request you lower your weapon from my friend’s throat.”

Like hell! They had me completely outnumbered, and the commander was bad news. My sword sliced into Duel-Wielder, drawing a thick heavy drip of blood down her neck.

“I don’t think I’ll be doing a damn thing you request of me.”

The commander realized I meant business, and that I wouldn't be so easily swayed. They took off their helm. Long, scarlet locks flowed out and cascaded down past their chest. A girl?

She had stern, firmly set blue eyes that shimmered in the sunlight. Her face was thin with low cheekbones, and she had naturally red lips that were striking even from this distance.

A shame, but woman or not, she came here to bring ruin to myself and my family. I’ll destroy her for that. Neither she nor any one of her men would receive mercy from me.

“Please,” she begged, her eyes softening. “There is no need to harm her further. This is all a misunderstanding. Let her go, and we can parley in peace.”

Parley in peace?

 “You want to negotiate now!” I roared. “You march onto my lands and assault my family. You and your Alliance dogs tried to steal our home! And only once