The Founder's POV

Chapter 30: Unexpected [1]

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A giant iron arm fell beside Jin, its yellow eyes glowing brighter and brighter as if representing its rage.

A rusty scream echoed through the entire palace, loud enough to be heard clearly outside.

'This is bad... I need to end this quickly...'

Jin's blade moved with incredible speed, trying to strike the puppet more and more, but it seemed to be prepared this time.

Its body became inexplicably stronger, while certain areas softened.

"It can concentrate its defense in one area! But that makes it weaker in other spots!" Lyra shouted from a distance, not hesitating to share information that could lead to their victory.

Several arrows shot out at the same moment she spoke. Her task here was to support Jin, not just give advice from the back. It seemed the puppet understood what was happening and began moving away from Jin, specifically towards a corner of the room.

Clearly, it was planning something, but it was hard to deduce what in the short time they had.

Jin could only sigh as he slowly approached his enemy, raising his guard to the maximum.

He wouldn't hesitate to strike, even if it meant taking a hit himself. His new body was designed to operate in extremely harsh conditions, whether outside hunting travelers or in various industries. Jin considered several scenarios and plans. That was one of his skills as an assassin – coming up with strategies.

But he didn't expect what happened next... not even in his wildest dreams.

The puppet grabbed a piece of the stone wall like it was nothing and threw it at Jin, then another and another...

The puppet's throws were incredibly fast, even faster than bullets. This demonstrated its immense strength...

Jin dodged the first easily, the second threw him off balance, and the third almost hit him. He had to use his sword to deal with the third one, turning it to dust with the mist covering his blade.

However, what he faced after the rock was not another one but a massive metal fist. He attacked with his sword unconsciously, but it wasn't sharp enough...

A cracking sound was heard in the room, as the sword couldn't withstand the immense weight of the Puppet's blow. Lyra tried to continuously support him with arrows, but the puppet skillfully blocked everything, stopping the explosive arrows by throwing large chunks of rocks at them.

The doll had many arms and could focus on both of them at the same time.

Despair filled the room at that moment. If things continued as they were, they might die before even starting. If the guard at the gate was this strong, what about the one inside?

How could they defeat someone stronger than them in rank, while struggling against a mindless doll of the same rank?

Was there any hope for this plan to succeed? Was there really a point in continuing to try? It was clear the result would be the same, endless slavery.

A strong metal punch hit Jin like a hammer, smashing him to the other side of the room. The wall forcibly stopped him, almost throwing him outside. He lost consciousness for a few seconds, his ability to breathe was compromised, and he felt his ribs break, perhaps his ribcage had turned to shreds.

However, he managed to stand up and moved like a ghost towards Lyra, as the puppet charged at her the moment Jin was thrown away.

A few more seconds and he would be able to complete the attack he had been preparing for a while, he would succeed in killing the Puppet but needed to save Lyra first.