I Can Extract Game Items

As August navigated the streets, he couldn't shake the feeling of being watched.

His instincts screamed at him and he paused, ducking into an alley. A faint glint of metal in the distance confirmed his suspicions.

A figure cloaked in black with their face hidden by a mask was stalking him.

"So, the Crimson Fang sent someone after me too," August muttered to himself with a smirk. "This just got interesting."

He activated Stealth, blending seamlessly into the shadows. The figure moved closer, their August circled around them, using the narrow alleys to his advantage. When he was directly behind the figure, he whispered, "You're not very good at this, are you?"

The rival assassin spun, drawing twin daggers in a blur of motion. August dodged the first strike and drew his own dagger before he parried the second. Their blades clashed sending sparks flying in the dimly lit surroundings.

"Who are you working for?" August questioned with a calm tone calm despite the intensity of the fight.

The rival assassin said nothing and instead responded by pressing further with the attack, forcing August to backpedal. With a flick of their wrist, they threw a dagger at him, which he barely dodged.

"Alright, no talking. That's fine," August voiced while activating Phantom Splice.

Two ghostly versions of himself appeared, attacking the assassin from both sides.

The rival assassin hesitated for a split second as their focus split between the cooy and the original. It was all the opening August needed. He feinted left and struck right causing his blade to graze the assassin's arm.

They hissed in pain before retreating into the shadows.

"Run along," August called after them. "But don't get in my way again."

August couldn't give chase because he was on a timer. If the one proclaimed as his master in this test died before he could kill the target, he'd fail.

---

Lucar's warehouse was a fortress. Guards patrolled the perimeter with their eyes scanning for any sign of trouble. August perched on a nearby rooftop, studying the patterns of their movements.

"No room for mistakes," August muttered while activating Dash.

He moved like a blur, silently dispatching the guards one by one. His blade found its mark with each strike as he ended them efficiently.

Inside the warehouse, Lucar was surrounded by a dozen heavily armed guards. The merchant himself was a portly man with a nervous energy, pacing back and forth as he barked orders.

"Move the crates faster! We don't have all night!" Lucar shouted.

A small parchment materialized in August's hand. He unrolled it to reveal a sketch of his target: a slim man with a scar running down his cheek and gray eyes.

"Lucar," August muttered with a tone of confirmation.

His thoughts were interrupted by another system notification.

---

System Notification:

[ Warning: Rival assassin has begun their mission. ]

---

August cursed under his breath. The rival assassin would be gunning for his client, and any delay on his part would ensure failure. He had to move fast.

---

August activated Stealth immediately.

His form shimmered, and he became invisible, moving silently towards Lucar's position as he prepared to strike.

"Got you," August whispered while creeping closer.

---

Just as August prepared to strike, an explosive sound rocked the surroundings.

Smoke filled the room, and chaos erupted as an alarm went off.

August's heart sank as he realized the rival assassin had set a trap to delay him.

"Intruder! Intruder!" Loud yells rang out as August's stealthy figure was exposed as a shadow by the smoke.

August coughed, covering his mouth as he tried to navigate through the smoke while many guards converged on his location.

Some of the guards had Lucas immediately moved out of the surroundings while sounds of battle rang out.

Some guards had stayed behind to engage August.

August's arms move speedily in the smoke as he cut them down one after the other but unfortunately, their interference still very much delayed.

By the time August reached the exit, they were gone.

"Damn it," August growled while scanning the streets for any sign of the target.

They were gone and now he'd have to spend time that he didn't have looking for them.

August gritted his teeth but he couldn't afford to relent. There was no time to waste.

...

About thirty minutes later, he traced his target to another location.

Upon arriving there, he spotted a trail of fresh footprints in the dirt, leading toward an alley.

The alley was narrow and dark. It seemed like the perfect place for an ambush. As August followed the trail, he felt the hairs on the back of his neck rise. Something was wrong.

A glint of metal caught his eye just in time. He dodged, narrowly avoiding a tripwire that would have triggered a barrage of darts.

"Rival assassin's handiwork," he muttered. "Smart, but not smart enough."

With his path clear, August pressed on, but each step brought new challenges. A collapsed cart blocked one alley; another was filled with guards who had been paid to delay him. Each obstacle ate away at his time.

It seemed as though the rival Assassin had everything predicted to the last detail and promptly set things up to delay August till he killed August's client.

This was becoming cumbersome.

Seeing how things might continue this way, August decided to do the one thing no one would expect.

He turned around and headed back to the assassin organization.

The cold air whipped against his face, and the narrow streets stretched endlessly ahead as August dashed forward with incredible speed. Every second counted.

His mind raced as he replayed the events leading up to this moment. The target, Lucas, had been slippery, constantly surrounded by guards and hidden behind layers of deceit.

Worse still, the rival assassin had laid trap after trap to delay August. Now, with time running out and the rival assassin nearing his master—the client who had sent him on this mission—August's only option was to intercept and protect the client before it was too late.

August leapt across the rooftops toward the hidden base. The shadowy peaks of the organization's fortress came into view, concealed within a dense forest of twisted trees.

As he approached, the air grew dark with the presence of danger. He activated stealth disappearing into the shadows as he moved closer to the entrance.

---

Inside the fortress, the rival assassin crouched in a hidden alcove within the council chamber. His target, the leader of the assassin organization, sat on his throne, discussing plans with his subordinates, oblivious to the deadly threat in the shadows.

The rival assassin's hand moved, aiming at the leader with a small poisoned dart loaded into a concealed launcher. His fingers tightened around the trigger.

"Goodbye, old man," the assassin whispered.

A small whistling sound rang out as the dart was fired.