A plume of gray smoke from the collapsed concrete ceiling still billowed throughout the public restroom. The acrid scent of pulverized cement and dust hung thick in the air, stinging the nose. A beam of afternoon sunlight pierced through the large gaping hole in the roof, illuminating the pile of debris stacked in the center of the room.
Amidst the momentary silence following the thunderous explosion... the sounds of coughing and groans of pain began to emerge.
"Cough... cough... Damn it! Cough!"
Baton scrambled up from the pile of rubble, frantically dusting off his clothes in frustration. His face was smeared with soot and scrapes. His nose, overly sensitive to smells, was now clogged with dust, causing him to sneeze uncontrollably.
"How the hell did this crazy roof collapse!?" he shouted at his teammates in irritation, looking up at the hole in the ceiling. "Was the structure that rotten? Or was there a bomb?!"
In their current mindset, it was impossible for a "human" to crash through reinforced concrete without a scratch. A structural accident was the most logical answer.
"Shut up! Stop complaining and look at that!"
Viper, the woman with the buzz cut, pushed herself up next. She clutched her shoulder where it had impacted the floor, but her sharp eyes were fixed intently on the center of the smoke cloud... where a small silhouette was standing firm and tall.
As the dust settled... bathed in the sunlight like a spotlight, the image revealed was a young woman in a black, skin-tight workout outfit. She stood atop the mound of ruins, posing elegantly with her hands on her hips, looking every bit the hero who had just landed to save the day.
"Wait a minute..." Viper narrowed her eyes uncertainly. "Who is that? ...Did that brat just come down from above?"
Grizz, the muscle-bound giant, shoved a wooden beam off his legs violently. He spat a mouthful of bloody saliva onto the ground, furious that the mission had been interrupted.
"If you ask me, how the hell should I know!" Grizz growled in a low voice, his eyes sweeping over Talia's slender frame with disdain. "But I heard her blabbing something just now... something about a 'Master' or whatever nonsense."
A tense atmosphere began to form. Viper decided to step forward, one hand resting on the dagger sheathed at her waist, ready. Her instinct told her this woman wasn't just some random person who fell in.
"Hey! Who are you?" Viper asked with a threatening, icy tone. "Think you can meddle in other people's business, little girl? Do you have a death wish?"
Talia lightly dusted off her shoulder before lifting her chin and puffing out her chest, replying with a voice filled with pride and confidence that was almost annoying.
"I'm not someone who meddles in other people's business..." She grinned widely. "But I am Talia! The personal maid and the strongest shield of Master Owen!"
The name 'Owen' slipping from her mouth made all three of them freeze... They automatically turned to look at each other, confusion written on their faces.
"Talia?" Baton repeated, his brows knitting together into a knot. He tried to search his brain for information rapidly. "There's no such name in the target report... The intel from the informant clearly stated that besides 'Nova', who is S-Rank, Owen doesn't have any other Awakened backing him, right?"
"Is the intel wrong?" Viper gritted her teeth, starting to get suspicious. "Or maybe that bastard Owen intentionally hid her as a trump card..."
"Hah! What trump card?" Grizz scoffed. He looked Talia up and down with a gaze filled with utter contempt. "Look at her... wearing a tight outfit showing off her curves like that. She's probably just a rookie or some low-tier freelancer Owen just hired to deal with us."
"Baton! Check her!" Viper ordered to be sure.
Baton nodded. He took off his scratched sunglasses and took a deep breath... His nose twitched rapidly to separate the scent components in the air amidst the smell of cement dust and sweat.
"Hmm..." Baton made a thoughtful face. "Her scent... is weird as hell. It doesn't smell like a human at all. It has a synthetic smell, like rubber or plastic..."
He paused before smirking. "But the level of Mana waves radiating from her... is very faint. No intensity at all. At best, she's probably just an ordinary C-Rank. Not a threat."
Hearing the confirmation from the detection expert, the tension in the hunter group vanished instantly, replaced by a returning false confidence and arrogance.
"C-Rank, huh? Heh..." Viper smirked, relaxing her grip on the knife handle slightly. "What a waste of time... I thought there'd be a surprise. Turns out it's just a moth flying into the fire."
She stared at Talia with pity. "Whoever you are... just one girl, do you think you can stop the three of us? Go back home and suck your thumb, little girl."
But Talia showed no sign of fear whatsoever. Instead, she stood firmly, blocking the path to protect Jessica (who was trembling behind her).
Grizz, running out of patience, cracked his knuckles loudly - Crack, Crack - and lumbered toward Talia. His massive body, over two meters tall, cast a dark shadow over her like a giant bullying a dwarf.
"I'll give you a chance to back off..." Grizz threatened in a low voice, his eyes scanning the curves of Talia's body in her tight suit lecherously. "Otherwise, I'll smash you to pulp with my hands... or maybe do something even worse... A body like this must take impact really well, huh? Heh heh heh." He licked his lips disgustingly.
Instead of screaming or retreating, Talia did something they didn't expect. She raised a loose guard and stuck her tongue out at Grizz provocatively.
"Bleh! :P Save your rotten spit to swallow down your own throat, you empty-headed Gorilla!" she shouted back cheerfully. "Thinking of touching me? Keep dreaming for another ten lifetimes!"
The word 'Gorilla' was like pouring oil on a fire. The veins on Grizz's temple bulged instantly.
"You bitch...!! Die!!"
Grizz roared in fury. He cocked his massive right fist back, arm muscles bulging until the veins looked ready to burst. Pale blue Mana from the [Reinforcement] technique wrapped around his fist until it glowed faintly. He threw his entire weight into punching Talia's stomach without holding back!
"Kyaaa! Talia, look out!!" Jessica screamed at the top of her lungs, shutting her eyes tight in fear.
Whoosh! THUD!!!
The sound of impact was deafening! Grizz's fist slammed into Talia mercilessly!
However... the sound of breaking bones they expected did not happen... The image that appeared made Grizz's eyes widen until they almost popped out of his sockets!
Instead of Talia's body being crushed or sent flying by the force of the punch... her abdomen "caved in" softly along with his fist, smoothly, as if he were punching a giant rubber ball!
Talia's upper body "stretched" backward along with the momentum, deforming strangely. Her torso stretched out nearly a meter, yet both her feet remained planted firmly in place!
"Huh!? Wh... What the hell is this!?" Grizz exclaimed in panic. The sensation on his fist wasn't human flesh, but a sensation that was incredibly soft at first, then gradually became taut, creating massive resistance until his fist could move no further.
Talia's face, which had stretched backward with her body, slowly turned to look at Grizz. A sticky sweet smile appeared on her face... a smile that looked terrifyingly bizarre in this situation.
"Is that all the strength you have, Mr. Gorilla?" she asked in a bright voice. "Then... I'm returning it!"
"Wait! Hey!!" Grizz realized he had messed up, but it was too late to pull his fist back.
The tension of the elastic body, compressed to its limit, was now ready to snap back!
WHAM!!!
"Urgh!!"
The massive recoil force triggered in a split second! Talia's body snapped back to its original position at high speed, sending all the impact force Grizz had punched into her reflecting right back into his arm. And she deliberately "twisted" her waist slightly so that Grizz's fist, buried in her belly... bounced back to smash into its owner's face with precision!
CRACK!!!
The sound of a fist smashing into a nose bridge rang out!
Grizz's head snapped back. Fresh red blood sprayed out in a mist! His giant frame staggered back several steps before crashing onto his butt, stunned.
"Alright... who's next?"
Amidst the stunned silence of Viper and Baton... Talia stood back in her original spot. She brushed her stomach lightly as if dusting it off, then sent a sweet smile their way.
"Damn it!"
Grizz roared in frustration as he struggled to stand up. His crooked, broken nose was still bleeding profusely. Pain turned into fuel for his rage, but he was smart enough not to use his "fists" to clash directly again.
"I'm going to slam you into the ground, you arrogant brat! Let's see if you can bounce then!" Grizz charged at Talia again with amazing speed for someone his size. This time he didn't throw a punch, but spread his arms wide, preparing to wrap around her slender waist to slam her into the concrete floor!
"Too slow!"
Talia giggled, stretching her left arm out long to grab a water pipe on the ceiling tightly. She used the momentum to swing herself up into the air, dodging Grizz's bear hug beautifully. And while floating above Grizz's head, she extended her right leg out rapidly like a whip!
Smack!
The small sole of her sneaker slapped into the center of Grizz's back with full force. Though not as violent as the reflected punch, it was enough to make the giant stumble forward face-first.
And in the second Talia was floating mid-air... Baton, who had been lurking in the corner, smirked. A target floating still in the air like this was a perfect practice target that couldn't dodge!
He aimed his silenced pistol at the center of her torso. His index finger hurriedly pulled the trigger. Even so, there was something that worked faster than his trigger finger...
Vwoom!
Fine hairs all over Talia's body stood up simultaneously without coordination! It was her unique "Wild Instinct" that even Nova had to praise. Currently, it had been refined through Nova's hellish training course, so Talia's body could recognize the feeling of "Killing Intent" faster than thought.
She didn't have to look. She didn't have to wait for the gunshot. Her body responded automatically! Talia inhaled a massive breath into her lungs rapidly, commanding the muscles and skin of her chest to inflate and expand to create a pre-emptive shield immediately!
Fwoooosh!
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The gunshots followed instantly. Lead bullets reinforced with Baton's Mana tore through the air toward the target with precision... but they were too late!
What the bullets impacted was a thick rubber wall that had been expanded and reinforced with Mana, waiting to receive the attack! The rotational force of the bullets sank into the elastic flesh, followed by a clash of Mana between Baton's reinforcement technique and Talia's. The Mana latent in the bullets was slowly nullified until it was gone, before being bounced back out by Talia's massive surface tension!
Of course, all of this happened in a split second!
Clang! Clang!
The bullets fell to the floor like harmless rain. Talia landed beautifully again. She shrugged and blew a kiss to Baton, who was standing with his jaw dropped in shock.
"What was that? Shooting that slow... even the grandma next door could dodge it!"
...Three minutes later...
Amidst the clash where Talia seemed to have the upper hand... Viper stood still, leaning against a wall some distance away. Her sharp eyes, like a venomous snake, scanned every movement on the battlefield in detail.
She didn't join the fight not because she was afraid, but because she was analyzing and finding Talia's "weakness."
Viper's gaze fixed on Talia's "positioning"... Whether dodging, counter-attacking, or defending, Talia tried to keep her distance from the last restroom stall door within 2 meters at all times. And every time Baton accidentally aimed his gun that way, Talia would sacrifice her attack rhythm to throw her body in the bullet's path immediately.
"Heh..." A ruthless smile appeared at the corner of Viper's mouth. "Found it..."
"Listen up!" Viper shouted to inform her two friends. "This bitch is a body-transformation type Awakened... likely rubber or plastic like Baton smelled. Her basic ability is bulletproof and impact resistance, but her weakness should be sharp objects, or..."
She pointed her finger at the restroom door behind Talia with a mocking smile.
"...That woman hiding behind her!"
Viper's words were like unlocking the shackles on Grizz and Baton. They looked at each other and smirked knowingly. Without needing a plan, the three began to move, spreading out into a triangle formation, surrounding Talia in the middle.
Grizz walked heavily into the center to draw attention. Baton ran off to the left to find a shooting angle, while Viper moved with high speed, vanishing to the right flank.
Talia started to sweat. She realized immediately that the situation was about to change...
"Come on then, you pack of dogs!" She shouted to boost her morale, but worry began to creep into her heart.
"Take this!" Grizz roared, charging straight in like a mad truck. Talia had no choice but to stretch both arms out to push against Grizz's shoulders to resist that massive force.
Bang! Bang!
Gunshots rang out again from the left, but this time Baton's target wasn't Talia... He aimed for the rotten wooden door behind her!
"No!" Talia screamed. She twisted her waist, stretching her torso sideways like a sheet of rubber to block the bullets instead of the wooden door.
And that was the moment Viper had been waiting for...
While Talia's body stretched taut to handle two directions, Viper's black shadow lunged in from the blind spot on the right! A curved, razor-sharp Karambit dagger sliced through the air at high speed, slashing into Talia's side which was stretched tight!
Slash!
"Ouch!"
Talia cried out, her body snapping back to its original state immediately. Fresh red blood seeped from the long cut on her waist. Although not very deep, it perfectly proved Viper's theory.
Viper raised the knife to lick the blood on the tip psychotically, her eyes gleaming.
"Just as I thought... No matter how elastic the body is... it still loses to sharp objects!" She smirked coldly. "The more you stretch, the thinner your skin gets... like a balloon ready to pop at any moment. Heh heh heh~"
"Exploit her weakness!" Viper shouted the order. "Aim for her limbs when she stretches! And aim for the woman she's protecting too!"
The situation flipped in an instant. Talia was completely on the defensive. She didn't dare stretch her arms for long-range attacks anymore, fearing Viper would cut them off, and she had to keep using her body to take bullets and impacts for Jessica constantly.
"Ugh... Pant... Pant..."
Several minutes passed... Talia's tight suit was torn in many places, looking pitiful. Her body was covered in small and large cuts, soaked in blood, but it wasn't enough to make her fall. She continued to grit her teeth, standing firm, spreading her arms and legs to act as a "Human Shield" blocking the door, refusing to retreat even a single step.
"Don't hope... Pant... that you'll get past me!"
"Stubborn bitch!" Grizz roared. He took the opportunity when Talia was weak to rush in close, using his giant hands to pin her shoulders, transferring his massive weight to press her small body into the floor.
"Uggggh!" Talia tried to hold on, but the strength lost from her wounds made her unable to resist. Her knees buckled, crashing onto the concrete floor.
Viper walked in calmly twirling her knife. The sound of her boots - Click... Click… - was like a countdown clock to death. She stood in front of Talia, who was being pinned down, raising the knife high in her hand.
"Time's up for playing hero, little girl..." Viper whispered ruthlessly. "I'll slice up your pretty face first... then I'll deal with that burden in the back."
She swung the knife down, aiming to stab Talia's smooth white face!
"SCREAAAAM! NO!" Jessica's scream rang out from behind the door.
Talia shut her eyes tight, preparing to accept her fate...
But then...
Snap!
The second the sharp tip was about to touch her skin... Viper's knife "stopped dead" in mid-air! As if held in place by an invisible hand, locked tight so it couldn't move no matter how hard she pushed.
"Huh! What the hell now?" Viper's eyes widened. She tried to move the knife in her hand but couldn't. And besides the knife, her body seemed to be slowly affected by the mysterious force as well. Her entire body slowly floated up from the ground, her legs kicking helplessly in the air.
Amidst the confusion and panic of everyone, the sound of steady, icy footsteps rang out from the entrance of the ruined restroom...
Step... Step... Step...
A slender figure in a white, skin-tight workout outfit that accentuated her perfectly proportioned curves walked across the pile of debris. Her sharp eyes, glowing with a faint blue light, stared at the scene before her with utter disgust.
"Hmph... What a filthy place. Including the three pieces of trash in here too..."
Victoria spoke in a flat voice, yet it was laced with a ruthlessness that pressured the surrounding air until it felt freezing. She flicked her wrist slightly, and Viper's body was flung against the wall - Bang!
"Get your filthy hands... off Master's maid!"
—-------
From the author: We now have 15 chapters available for early access! This will soon increase to 20. Join my Patreon to get ahead of the story, along with exclusive, uncensored illustrations.
Your support is crucial in helping this story continue. Thank you very much!
[Patreon Spirit_Alphabet: https://patreon.com/SpiritAlphabet]
—-------