Only I Am A Reader

'This is getting old.'

Considering how much he gritted his teeth while reading about them in the novel, Leo expected to feel some level of satisfaction when he punished them. However, after handling the first two, his emotions were starting to die down.

It was like dealing with the same monster that hurt you over and over. The first time might feel great, but the achievement would quickly lose its luster. No one liked hunting Goblins after passing the preliminary levels.

'Only the show-off is left.'

Thankfully, Leo's little play would soon come to an end. After handling the cornered lamb that was left behind, all that would be left was the final confrontation with Aurora.

However, a few steps away from the location of his battle with Jane, Leo's contemplation was broken by something akin to deja vu.

The same arrow that he struck away with his sword was back in front of his face!

Clang!

Repeating the same defensive action as last time, Leo mobilized his senses, but the archer didn't seem to have moved from his place.

It didn't seem like he followed them and discovered how much of a threat Leo was. Rather, this arrow was sent out with a different purpose.

'Did he seriously go crazy?'

To begin with, the Imaginary Archer wasn't just a fancy title that had no meaning, it was something that successfully encapsulated its wielder's ability.

Despite being the team's long-range dealer, the Imaginary Archer required no bows, guns, or anything of that sort. Whatever he needed, he just had to imagine it!

Of course, there was no way such an overpowered ability existed, but crazy abilities that had certain limits were abundant. 

In the Imaginary Archer's case, he had a specific affinity with bows and arrows. Any kind of bow that he needed could be created, and any arrow that was shot by him had a little extra something added to it.

For example, the first arrow that was about to hit Leo was imagined in a certain manner. 'This is an arrow that targets anything that can move', this excerpt was one of the archer's favorite imaginations. It was his most common arrow.

As for the second arrow…

'This is a flying arrow that can follow any target to the end of the world.'

It was an arrow that the Imaginary Archer used only as a last resort, a homing shot specialized in taking down tricky monsters!

'Were Jane's suggestions too much for him?'

It was only okay to use that arrow when none of the team was in the archer's line of sight. As long as they stayed behind him, the arrow wouldn't turn around and target them.

Instead, it would target anything in front of him. By releasing that arrow in this stage where Leo and Jane were supposedly clearing the rest of the monsters, it meant that the Imaginary Archer no longer cared for their lives!

In fact, he might even be aiming for them!

'Trust none other than yourself.'

Jane abused her ability whenever needed, but in reality, it was like playing with fire. If those exposed to her hints lacked the right mental stability, things could go ugly real quick.

In a tense environment, the seeds of doubt were no different than a viral infection. Leo didn't expect that the Imaginary Archer's mental fortitude was that bad, but he could now guess his state.

What if they died to a stronger monster? What if he was an illusion that killed her? What if they were devoured by the Gate? The more time he spent alone, the worse the scenarios that he could imagine.

By now, the man was likely hoping to kill everything that he would encounter until he managed to leave this Gate.

'This is even more of a reason to take it away.'

Ironically enough, that only justified Leo's intentions even more. A person on the brink of mental collapse couldn't be allowed to handle a Special Ability any longer.

Putting away the rest of his thoughts, Leo melted into the ground as his shadow sped toward the Imaginary Archer.

There wasn't going to be any showdown or face reveal event. What Leo had in mind was closer to a hit-and-run!

Once Leo could see his target, he quickly noticed the signs of his stress, the archer's eyes were not only bloodshot, but he was sweating like crazy.

'Jane's hints might have been too effective.'

Even hypnosis wouldn't have normally pushed someone this far!

'They probably had bad compatibility.'

Many factors played into this, mainly time, but Leo's guess came down to the nature of the Imaginary Archer's ability. 

As someone who could materialize his imagination, passing thoughts likely had a more realistic meaning. An ability's trait was still a crucial decision-maker in a lot of things.

Just like Miyu's Sword Spirit might have allowed her to resist the deprivation procedure if her opponent was weaker than Leo, the archer's realistic imagination made him vulnerable to thought infections.

"Stop!"

The moment Leo's figure started appearing, the archer issued a verbal warning, but his arrows had long shot out before he did. 

In the short second that passed, five arrows were all heading toward Leo.

"Don't come any closer! Stay away from me, all of you!"

Somehow, going crazy like this had made the archer more skillful with his ability. This was already something that Leo expected. Since it was an ability of mental origin, mentality changes had to have visible effects, be that something positive or negative.

"Alright, Alright, just pipe down."

This time, Leo didn't rely on his Shadow tendrils to give the first hit. He himself rose behind the archer before striking the back of his neck. This rampage had gone on for long enough.

'It won't take long.'

Even in his fainted state, the archer's expression was only getting worse. It looked like the nightmare was still going on in his unconsciousness.

However, after Leo swiftly deprived him of his imaginative ability, his complexion quickly started going back to normal!

From everyone whom Leo operated on, he was probably the only one who ended up feeling relieved, but Leo wasn't done just yet.

Crack!

'There we go.'

Just because he had been manipulated a bit by his teammate, it didn't mean that he could escape the bone alterations! Even without Jane forcing him to do something, the Imaginary Archer was just as bad as the others.

The only one who could receive a pardon from that was the best of the worst, and that spot had already been taken.

'That settles it.'

Looking at the six shadow cocoons in his possession, Leo felt one last surge of satisfaction. This half a dozen performance assistants were all he needed for the final piece.

After quickly getting rid of the remaining monsters including the safety pin, Leo proceeded into the portal. This was his 80th challenge. Even if Aurora did nothing from the very start till now…

'After this, only 20 more to go.'

Thankfully, the follow-up encounter trend didn't continue, the third maze that seemed like it was bound to appear didn't come out. It was just another selective hunting challenge. 

However, before Leo could get to effortlessly speed through it…

[ Congratulations! ]

The familiar sound that had been instructing him all the way to this point suddenly popped up without an invitation!