The morning of the next day.
Kazuya trained in the abandoned mansion, sparring hand-to-hand against Ling Wu.
He threw a barrage of strikes, but Ling Wu blocked most of them and evaded the rest. To Kazuya, her defense felt absolute.
Strong. Too strong.
That was the exact impression she left on him every time they sparred.
Thud!
A split second of distraction was all it took. Ling Wu swept Kazuya's legs, sending him crashing onto his rear.
"You mustn't lose yourself in thought amidst battle," she warned, standing over him. "A mere fraction of a second could decide whether you live for another day or die a pathetic death."
Kazuya cataloged the advice. Whether he could actually execute it in a real fight would depend entirely on the situation.
Ling Wu extended her hand and pulled him up.
Kazuya brushed the dust off his trousers and immediately reset his stance to resume training.
Ling Wu watched his posture. In a remarkably short period, the boy had shown incredible progress. It was far from perfect, but his rate of improvement was anomalous for the amount of time he had trained.
When the sparring session ended, Ling Wu ordered him to begin conditioning to build his raw muscle and physical power.
Once his workout was finished, she signaled for him to follow her into the city.
...
Down in the crowded streets, two men walked side by side.
One had messy, dark blue hair, a low hood, and a mask obscuring the lower half of his face. The other was slightly shorter, a blond man with sharp blue eyes.
They were Nergal and Euris.
Nergal's fatigued eyes systematically scanned the thoroughfare, while Euris maintained a bored expression, though his posture remained guarded.
Both were thinking about the emergency message they had received the previous night warning of an impending catastrophe.
They walked in silence, highly vigilant. The message had classified the anomaly as a Class 4 threat, with a low probability of escalating to Class 3.
Euris muttered in an irritated tone, "I hate this entire mission. Being dragged around while facing lethal danger, I'm seriously considering quitting."
Nergal didn't offer a reply, his fatigued gaze never wavering from the road ahead.
Suddenly, both men stopped in their tracks as a figure approached.
It was a woman with vibrant red hair and a white bandages wrapped over her eyes. Her appearance stood out instantly.
Nergal's eyes narrowed, while Euris showed a flicker of curiosity.
The two pairs passed each other in the crowd without a word.
But the moment Kazuya brushed past Nergal, the blue-haired man froze completely.
Euris noticed the sudden halt and frowned. "What's the matter?"
Nergal stood paralyzed. His pupils contracted and wavered as cold sweat broke out across his forehead.
W-What was that...?
A sudden wave of instinctual fear hit him. He turned around slowly, watching the backs of the retreating pair. Ling Wu and Kazuya were walking at a leisurely pace, chatting normally as the woman laughed.
Nergal's heart hammered in absolute perplexity.
Could that woman be the threat? The source of the upcoming catastrophe? No, I passed her yesterday and felt nothing. Does that mean...
His gaze locked onto the dark-haired boy walking beside her.
...That boy is the threat?
"Why are you ignoring me?" Euris demanded, his irritation mounting.
Nergal tore himself from his daze, stabilizing his breathing as he looked back at his partner.
"Euris, we're leaving right now."
"What? Why so suddenly? We haven't even purchased the supplies we were tasked to secure," Euris said, hurrying to keep up as Nergal abruptly changed direction.
Nergal waved his hand dismissively. "I don't care anymore. Let them dispatch a replacement team. We'll formulate an excuse on the way back."
Euris opened his mouth to argue, but a violent detonation cut him off.
Bam!
The shockwave rattled the entire street, forcing several citizens to duck instinctively for cover.
Ling Wu and Kazuya halted, snapping their heads toward the source of the noise. Nergal and Euris stopped as well, their eyes widening at the sight.
A massive creature, the size of a large house, had emerged. It was a grotesque mound of compacted earth and vegetation, covered in thick grass and writhing vines that slithered like snakes.
Fused into the top of the entity was a human torso. The man was shirtless and lean, with a necrotic green coloration spreading outward from the fusion point, making him look like an extension of the monster itself.
It was Kalthor, the person Ling Wu had previously defeated.
"Ling Wu!" Kalthor roared, his voice a distorted, raspy blend of human and monster vocal cords. "I've come to execute revenge on you!"
Every eye in the street locked onto him. Nergal and Euris reached the exact same conclusion.
The catastrophe! A Class 4 threat, it might actually be Class 3!
We have to run!
Ling Wu focused her bandage-covered gaze on the entity, her jaw tightening.
This maniac... what kind of shit did he do to become like that?
Before the thoughts could settle, she violently pushed Kazuya away. "Leave! Kalthor is completely unstable. This is going to get extremely dangerous."
Kazuya stumbled from the sudden force but maintained his balance. He looked at her, his voice remaining entirely flat.
"What about you? Do you possess the capacity to deal with him alone?"
Ling Wu didn't look back, but a smile returned to her face. "It's not about if I can or not. It's about the fact that I have to."
Kazuya observed her intently. "Why? You could easily exploit your speed to flee. Why risk yourself for a population that actively resents you?"
Ling Wu chuckled softly. "These people hate me, that's true. And I hate them right back. But I don't resent them to the point of wishing them death. I want to prove to them and the world that I can achieve great things without bringing destruction upon myself through their jealousy, envy, and fear."
Kazuya remained silent for a moment before letting out a controlled sigh. "I don't understand your logic. But..." He stepped forward. "...I'm fighting too."
Ling Wu cast a mocking glance over her shoulder. "I highly doubt you're doing this out of filial piety for your master?"
Kazuya's expressionless face didn't shift as he tracked Kalthor's movements. "Sparring and working out are good for the foundation, but I can never grow strong without actual battles. Real life experiences far surpass books or mere training."
Ling Wu opened her mouth to argue, but stopped herself. Turning her head back toward the monster, she said, "If you're ready to fight, then... shall we entertain our guest?"
"Hahahaha!" Kalthor laughed maniacally from above. "I'm looking forward to hearing you scream in pain, Ling Wu!"
The massive earthen body surged forward. Thick roots erupted from its base, anchoring the bulk of its weight and dragging it down the street like a giant spider.
Screaming civilians fled for their lives. The buildings Kalthor brushed against groaned as their front facades were pulverized into debris.
In an instant, Ling Wu vanished.
She reappeared ten meters ahead, flashing repeatedly across the distance until she reached the monster's perimeter.
Kalthor directed a cluster of vines toward her. They wiggled like snakes before striking downward, but Ling Wu continuous-flashed to different coordinates, effortlessly evading the volley.
By then, Kazuya had closed the distance to the entity. He dropped his weight, channeling strength into his leg muscles, and pushed off the ground with a sharp bam, launching himself high into the air.
The sheer height of the jump caught him by surprise; he hadn't tested his limits yet.
Mid-air, several vines shot toward his torso. He twisted his body to evade the primary arcs and managed to clamp his hands onto a thick root, using his upper-body strength to pull himself up and sprint along it.
Kalthor noticed the movement and clicked his tongue. "Get lost, insect!"
He violently retracted the specific vine Kazuya was navigating.
My footing...
Kazuya fell through the air. He braced for impact and went into a tight shoulder roll across the cobblestones, minimizing the structural damage to his body.
He looked up as another volley of vines rained down. He ran from spot to spot, twisting his torso or rolling across the ground to avoid being impaled.
Kalthor controlled the entire network, but because Ling Wu represented the primary tactical threat, the vast majority of his offensive output remained locked onto her.
Ling Wu flashed across the flanks, locking eyes with Kalthor. The mutated enemy smirked.
He brought his right hand to his chest, pointing his index and middle fingers upward as he performed a silent incantation.
Ling Wu's perception sharpened. He can chant silently?
The acceleration in Kalthor's power output since their last battle was absurd. Attaining this level of strength and mastering silent casting in such a short timeframe was statistically impossible. However, given Kalthor's natural talent for ritual arts, it remained a distinct, if far-fetched, possibility.
Ling Wu flashed repeatedly, appearing directly on top of the earthen mass in front of him.
Before she could land a blow, thorny vines erupted from the soil beneath, targeting her ankles. She was forced to flash away continuously, dropping back down to the street level to avoid being pinned.
Kalthor smiled as she retreated. "I haven't figured out your ability completely, but I'm getting close to figuring it out."
He snapped his fingers, and a sharp crackle echoed through the writhing network. Instantly, the vines exploded into roaring flames, turning the surroundings into a fiery chaos.
Ling Wu was forced to widen the distance of her flashes to navigate the thermal radius. Her teeth bared as a calculation troubled her.
This doesn't make sense. Kalthor's powers have always been nature-based. Even this monstrous form of his is made of dirt and grass. So why is he using fire?
He doesn't have a Foci, so he's not actually ranked. But if you had to put a number on him, he'd be around Class 5. There's no way he should be able to use flames like that without burning himself alive at his current level.
Spotting a broken wooden pole amidst the debris, she snatched it up. As a flaming vine lunged for her throat, she swung the pole in a heavy arc.
The wood caught fire and shattered instantly, but the impact pulverized the vine, reducing it to falling ash.
Just as I thought. The fire increases his offensive output, but it's literally consuming his own body. It's a double-edged sword.
Kalthor's expression contorted in pure annoyance as he saw her realize his weakness.
Meanwhile, Kazuya was finding it increasingly difficult to dodge.
The addition of fire meant a single mistake would result in severe burns that would expose his regeneration. He gritted his teeth, twisting his body to avoid the descending tendrils.
If this baseline exchange continues, I will fall into a disadvantage and lose.
He executed a hard roll to avoid a plunging strike, but as he stood up, a flaming vine zipped through his blind spot, piercing directly through his left forearm.
"Ugh—"
Kazuya winced as the heat seared his flesh. He braced for the remaining vines to impale him, but before they could land, they suddenly began to wither. The flames died out, the vines turned a sickly yellow, and the entire cluster crumbled into dust.
Kazuya stepped back in brief confusion. A heavy hand dropped onto his shoulder.
He turned to find the blue-haired man from earlier standing right behind him.
"You..."
Nergal drew an obsidian-hilted dagger and held it out. Kazuya stared at the blade before grabbing it and asking, "What are you doing?"
Nergal spoke from beneath his mask, his fatigued eyes locked on Kazuya. "Don't misunderstand. My partner and I want to exploit this situation. Since you and the woman are intent on killing this guy, you don't care about what happens to his remains post-mortem, correct?"
Kazuya remained silent, listening.
"We want to harvest his corpse for utility," Nergal continued.
Kazuya's expressionless face was slick with sweat. "Make use of it how?"
Nergal's fatigued red eyes focused intently on him. In his heart, a sudden, inexplicable sense of dread flared from this ordinary-looking boy. It was bizarre to feel fear from someone who was clearly struggling, leading Nergal to assume the boy might be masking his true threshold.
He kept the observation to himself and replied coldly, "Does it matter to you?"
Kazuya didn't pursue the question. The long-term status of Kalthor's body was irrelevant; his only objective here was combat experience to increase his strength.
He looked past Nergal's shoulder, noting the blond man, Euris, standing nearby with an arrogant smirk as he stared at the monster.
Kazuya straightened his back. "Are you two going to provide reinforcement to bring him down?"
Euris scoffed, his tone dripping with smugness. "Reinforcement ? Hmph. We will do as we please, just ensure you don't obstruct me."
Nergal let out a sharp sigh. "Come on, we're wasting time."
The vines recovered and grew back, though they were no longer on fire.
Nergal moved forward, quickening his pace before launching himself high into the air. As the roots swarmed toward him like snakes, he clasped his hands tightly in front of his chest.
The vines that entered his immediate radius turned pale yellow, losing their moisture and crumbling into dust.
He broke through the defensive perimeter effortlessly, landing directly on Kalthor's earthen frame.
Kalthor sensed the intrusion and snapped his head around, his eyes widening as he saw his defenses turning to powder. Panic flared through his mania.
Why? Why does someone who completely counters me show up now of all times?
Buried deep within the soil, Kalthor twisted his upper body as if moving through deep water, throwing his arms outward. "Get lost!"
A massive wave of roots shot toward Nergal. The volume was too dense for his localized withering aura to completely dissolve, and the mass was closing in fast. Nergal prepared to disengage and drop back to the street.
"It seems we overestimated you," a voice laughed from the side.
The descending wall of roots instantly froze solid, encased in a thick layer of jagged blue ice. Euris landed lightly on the creature's back, his palms emitting a freezing mist.
With two Class 5 combatants operating in perfect elemental synchronization on his body, Kalthor's tactical position collapsed into a total checkmate.
Exploiting the shift in focus, Kazuya ran back to Ling Wu's side, parrying a stray root that drifted toward her flank. With Kalthor's primary output locked onto the two newcomers, the pressure on the street level vanished.
Ling Wu glanced down, her bandage-covered gaze fixing on Kazuya's left forearm. "Kazuya, your wound..."
Recognizing the threat of discovery, Kazuya spoke instantly, his voice a low whisper. "I will keep aggravating the wound with my blade to keep the laceration open until we leave this place. It will prevent the regeneration from being seen by others."
Ling Wu's posture stiffened in mild shock. The boy's calculated coldness toward his own physical pain was terrifying. He was willing to injure himself repeatedly just to protect his secret.
"Unnecessary," she muttered. She reached down, tore a long strip of fabric from her clothes, and wound it tightly around his bleeding forearm, knotting it securely. "There. Now even when it heals under the bandage, no one will see a thing."
Kazuya nodded once.
They both turned their focus back to the apex of the monster.
"Those two..." Ling Wu murmured.
"They are harvesting the target's remains for utility after the kill," Kazuya reported flatly.
Ling Wu's expression darkened for a fraction of a second before she let out a sharp sigh. "Their motives are questionable, but right now, they're our best shot at winning. Come on, let's back them up and finish this quickly."
Ling Wu vanished into a sequence of rapid flashes, while Kazuya broke into a sprint.
From the street level, Kazuya tracked the execution. Kalthor was entirely neutralized. A thick crust of frost was locking his lower mass, while Nergal's corruption marks crawled up his skin, decaying his cells. Ling Wu appeared in a blur of motion, delivering a rapid barrage of heavy and precise blows that shattered Kalthor's collarbone and left him spraying dark crimson onto the ice.
Kalthor thrashed like a caged animal, his vines flailing uselessly against Euris's frost walls and Nergal's decaying aura.
Just as Kazuya reached the base of the construct, a sound cut through the chaos.
"Hahahaha!"
Kalthor was laughing. A wild sound that echoed off the ruined buildings. He was bleeding from his eyes and nose, his body failing, yet his grin was manic.
The three combatants froze instantly, jumping backward to create distance. In combat, a cornered beast on the verge of death is an unpredictable wildcard.
Kalthor spat a mouthful of dark blood, his raspy voice dropping into a chilling cadence.
"Even if it's a dreadful situation... so what?"
Kazuya's boots skidded to a halt on the cobblestones. His jaw tightened, his expressionless mask twitching in a rare moment of stark recognition.
Those were his words.
Those were the exact words he had spoken on that dark night, the night Kalthor had saved his life.