To make you try

Phew... It's done.

The reason this took a tad longer than normal was that I actually made this today... I know I know...

It's around 2 Am now, so I'll keep this brief.

I recommend playing some cool music, it goes well with epic scenes.

This chapter was supposed to be a bit bigger, around 7K words...

But it's only 6K.

Since it's late, I ended up writing 3.5K words of chapters and added the rest through editing.

Normally, I write around 4 to 4.5K words before stopping to edit to make the story progress more, the rest are details to make things flow smoother.

Since it's a tad late, I may have added fewer details but it should be up to standard.

I hope you enjoy it, tomorrow I'll be there to add images or correct anything I missed if there are any.

See ya.

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"You mean… Directly?" She asked, gulping down slightly

He wants to... Take them down?

A-Alone?

'Even for a tough woman like her, this was already going over what she could take.'

'Not like she was in a condition to consider her options in the first place, but there was the impact of hearing it just like that.'

'The longer she thought about it, however, the more she thought that his deal was one of her best options...'

'Her first option was fleeing, although the consequences of it would follow her and her family for likely decades on end, a classing scenario where running from a problem given rise to other problems...'

'The reason for that is mostly her husband's job.'

'But even if they tried to argue and say her husband's contract clauses weren't applicable to this situation, considering how those people dealt with them so far, there is a very high chance they will merely… Toss them aside.'

'Hell, they might as well have been tossed aside already, given no one has come for them, though, given how they came to this place in the first place, this was technically their fault.'

'All due to her husband that really wanted to finish his project, but couldn't get the proper materials, so he had to search for them himself... Leading to her being captured.'

'And that is their excuse, they'll never admit to being at fault, it was all their incompetence...'

'Despite her rising suspicion all of this wasn't just an unfortunate event, but some sort of planned attack, she has no evidence apart from her intuition...'

'Their response to this will likely be the demotion if not an outright discharge of her Husband.'

'Before having someone else take over from where he stopped, even if doing so will end up killing the project.'

'They severely underestimate how important her husband is to the research as a whole... Perhaps they don't understand anything, really.'

'Only the investments and the end results matter.'

'In any case, fleeing isn't impossible.'

'Considering her estimations of the strength of the man in front of her, escaping while he does his things seems very doable.'

'And despite it all, he looks and has acted in a trustworthy way, giving her space, and time, to consider her options.'

'But for her to do so, she needed to understand fully… Just who was he?'

'It wasn't out of morbid curiosity, but if she wanted to consider the chances…'

'She had to understand the big questions... And those were all centered around one thing:'

'His chance of actually accomplishing what he came here to do.'

"..."

What am I thinking about?

'She stopped her chaotic thoughts, shaking her head.'

In the first place, I made a gamble that has proven to have been the right choice so far.

What I have to do is then clear.

2 options: the "safe" one, and the risky one.

The first one will give me immediate benefits, but the future looks bleak.

While the other one gives me a very convoluted present, that if I last through it, persevering to the end, returning to normal life doesn't seem impossible.

But in the first place, am I in a position to choose?

I owe him already, I'm already in this bet…

"Hey, I can hear you thinking from there." Philip said as he interrupted Palimo

Should I read her mind?

I... Never tried this before actually... It's too risky.

"Ah?... Sorry, I'm still a bit shaken, this situation hasn't been…"

'Philip shook his hands.'

"I understand, you aren't just a prisoner like the others… You have someone to care for after leaving it."

"And when these people are on the line, it would've been strange were you to listen to a no-name individual, one you just met at that."

'Philip got up from his seat, and as he did so, the weapons on the ground vanished.'

"I would like to wait, but unfortunately, this is as long as I can wait… And I'm sure you're the same."

Technically I have nothing to do… Yet I have to put on an act.

Besides...

"My offer still stands."

/Clang!/

'Just like before, a sword and shield fell onto the ground, but that was all.'

"You can borrow these for now."

'He then turned around, putting his hands at the door.'

"If you still wish to join me, then it's simple."

Where did I put it?... I threw it somewhere in the...

Ha! I found it.

'Philip took out a small folded note from a hidden pocket on his chest.'

'Palimo opened it.'

"This…"

A map?

'With a map in hand, the layout of this place became easier to understand.'

'It was kind of a large castle, though it had no walls.'

'A large structure composed of smaller ones fused together, so from the outside, it looks more like a series of buildings connected together, but inside, they were all one and the same.'

'There were large halls, individual rooms, at least 3 underground floors full of things... And at the very top, a fancy office.'

'The last floor was composed of a series of large rooms, likely private housing for those at the top of the chain.'

'Still... This was merely a base, not the true headquarters of the Conjunction.'

'Though it was still their largest branch, the place where the Manager Director stood and worked, and also the reason why she was brought here.'

'Surprisingly, the prison they stood at was located on the second floor somewhere in the Northern Wing, breaking the wall would lead them right outside.'

'But that didn't mean freedom, outside was still, in the end, their territory.'

'As he waited for her to finish reading the map, Philip added:'

"If you wish to help me… No, help yourself, then take care of the weaker goons that patrol this place."

"In this branch, there are no meaningful warriors that can take you on apart from some of the higher guards, they'll mostly be focused on me and won't have the time to go after you..."

While she was asleep recovering from her concussion, I went a bit further into the details of this place.

While the pieces of the situation are still scattered around the place, I can at least make sense of my surroundings.

"If they do… I'll take care of it nonetheless."

'He didn't say anything else.'

'Philip raised his fist...'

'Palimo seemed to think for a moment, before letting out a sigh…

"W-Wait!" She called quickly

/Stop.../

"..."

'Under his mask, Philip smiled, but it quickly vanished as he turned around.'

"Hm?"

"I… Don't use a sword…"

'Slightly embarrassed, she pointed at the longsword on the ground.'

"Give me a mace…"

"... Ha!"

'Philip chuckled at his oversight, it was indeed written in her report that she used maces instead of blades...'

'And as he did so, the sword vanished from the ground.'

/CLANG!/

'A large mace with sharp edges fell onto the ground, it was about the size of an adult's arm from the handle to the head.'

'There were many maces and weapons on his inventories, but this mace was something he himself made… A Hunter's weapon.'

'Taken out from his dust-filled inventory, ready to draw some blood again.'

'He only grabbed it because it was sturdy, other weapons were honestly... Fragile.'

'They were once weapons used to take down giant creatures, but in here, they would easily chip away, or bend under the force of these "Monsters in Human skin".'

'It also made him realize that he lacked weapons.'

'Right now, he was... Undergeared.'

'Despite it being saddening for him to admit, his prized Darklight Sword and Saber he infused with Nanomachines are both considerably weak.'

'In fact, the main reason he uses them both is that they were the sturdiest things in his arsenal, and also one of the reasons he stopped using Hunter Tools.'

'Once he found himself some time... It was time for an equipment overhaul.'

'As for the shield, it was one of his long-lost failed attempts at making a mobile defense against the nightmare creatures.'

'For this world's standard, this shield was terrible, a hunk of metal with little defensive capabilities, but then again, it would do the trick.'

/Grab…/

'Palimo got up from the dirty and moist ground, grabbing the shield with her right hand, and the mace with her left.'

'She was left-handed, something that didn't come as a surprise for him, it was written on her report, albeit briefly mentioned.'

It's... A bit light.

But it feels sturdy enough.

And these edges are... Decently sharp.

Not as good as my good old Trin, but it'll do the trick.

'For a mace user, one of the worst things to feel about your weapon is that it is light...'

"I'll go with you…"

"Everything you said is correct… And despite everything, I'm someone who repays my debts… Even if this isn't exactly that… You get what I mean, right?"

"But… Please understand…"

'Before she could finish, Philip finished:'

"If things do get chaotic, it would be for the best if you left."

In the end, everything I'm doing is for you.

If things get messy, it would mean that I lost control of the situation, and the worst thing would be... To have something happen to them.

"So don't hold back."

'He turned to the door for the last time.'

"I'll carve the way, you take care of the rest that slips by."

'Philip pulled his gloves tight...'

It's been a while… Since I last used these clothes.

Brings back memories.

/Clang clang... Cha cha.../

'A silver sword clad in chains appeared on his right hand, the loose chains struck against each other contunuasly, ringing out as he moved.'

'This sound was once his signature...'

Moving things from my inventory is so great.

It's so more convenient now that I have an excuse for it…

'Philip cracked his shoulders and neck as he touched the door with one hand…'

/Touch…/

/BAM!/

'His muscles twitched, and the door was flung forward.'

'One-inch punch!'

/Flash!/

'Philip vanished from Palimo's sight, testimony to his speed…'

"..."

There he goes...

Is this the...

/Shake/

'Sweating a little, she took a step outside.'

'Being as careful as she could, she inspected her surroundings first, back against the wall, shield between her waist and chest…'

"!..."

They…

'In front of her were two bodies, each with a cut in the neck, blood flowing slowly from the wounds... But their eyes were open and even relaxed.'

"Their expressions are frozen in place…"

"Soundless, traceless… "

They didn't notice a thing.

'She started sweating a little.'

"Is my situation really better now?"

I'm trapped with him now.

'Lifting her shield, she moved forward following the map, sturdy steps as she marched onward.'

'She had to meet her family, and God forgave those that stood in her way.'

'But… No one stopped her.'

/Splash… Splash…/

'The blood on the ground said it all.'

…

/A few moments later.../

"HM!"

'In a room high above the prison cells, a man holding a spear, resting his head on the wall, opened his eyes hastily and vigilantly.'

This feeling again…

'He looked around.'

Was I wrong again?

Sigh, just what's gotten into me recently? I really need that time off...

'The man was sitting on a chair close to the wall inside a fancy office.'

'To his left, a roll of bookshelves neatly ordered, to his far right, a large table with a man sitting next to it.'

'In front of him was the wall with the door, many things were laid in it as decorations such as several shelves full of exotic trinkets.'

'In the middle of the room were several chairs and couches surrounding a low table, all atop a fancy carpet and beneath a crystal lamp.'

/Scribble…/

"Is something the matter?" The man asked without turning his face, writing on his paper

"No… I... I guess."

"Uhm…"

'The man stopped writing, turning to face him.'

'He wore some pretty formal clothes, nothing fancy, but good enough to put him apart from others.'

'He wasn't playing as a Noble, though his position might as well be similar to one.'

'His hair was black and he had a small sharp beard and mustache.'

'He had an emotionless and serious gaze…'

"Explain this guess of yours."

'The man scratched his head, saying, "Uh, well... Not so long ago, I felt a bit weird… I just felt that again" In an awkward tone.'

'He raised his chin, trying to think of more details, but nothing came to his mind.'

'It was an odd situation, as if he had just met with something he had never seen before, yet had...'

"And I'm unsure how to interpret this feeling, it isn't really anything special..."

/Tap tap…/

'The serious man tapped his fingers on the table, before saying:'

"In that case, why don't you go outside and confirm it for yourself?"

'He grabbed his pen again, turning to his documents.'

"I'm almost done here, wait for me at the door after you're done, otherwise, we'll meet…"

/Tremble…/

/Dust.../

""Hm?""

'The room shook slightly, dust falling from the ceiling, an ink bottle fell on top of the man's papers, yet his expression did not change.'

"It seems your senses were right."

'This man surely had a lot of mental fortitude, his expression was unwavering even in this situation…'

'Perhaps he was used to it?'

"Allow me to escort you, sir…"

My hands are itching...

"No."

'The man got up from his seat, grabbing something from one of his table's shelves.'

'It was a key.'

'He walked to the bookshelf near the sitting man, one of his hands behind his back as he elegantly walked.'

"I'll leave first, to make sure this isn't related to that boy."

'His tone sharpened as he said "boy".'

'It certainly wasn't the first time such a thing had happened.'

"As for you, go down there and see what has happened, the others will likely gather there as well."

"So deal with it accordingly."

"You know how this goes… Jikael."

'The man pulled a book and a complicated symbol flashed on his foot before he vanished from the room.'

"..."

Deal with it... That's pretty much throwing all of the trouble at me... Again.

Sigh.

Time to work.

'Jikael rose from his seat, stretching his body, tightening his belt, and removing his spear from its long sheat.'

/Tremble…/

'The trembling was stronger this time, and with his sensitive ears, he heard the screams and the confusion below him.'

"It's been a while since trouble came to our own door…"

I guess this is expected considering our recent actions…

Sigh… And I was about to get some time off.

But... My hands are itching really badly.

'A grin formed on his face.'

"Is this the fun I so desperately needed?"

/Creak…/

'He opened the door leaving the office.'

…

/Bellow…/

'In a grand hall large enough to house a few hundred people, a bloodbath ensued.'

'Corpses littered the ground, butchered cleanly, blood stained the walls and curtains, making puddles on the ground.'

'Screams echoed, and the ground trembled as swords clashed.'

'Some fled, others fought…'

/CUT!/

/SPLATTER!/

"DAMMIT! HE KILLED KENNY!"

"SON OF A…"

/SPLATTER!/

"NOOO!"

/CUT!/

'Another man decapitated, and the culprit didn't even give the man a second glance as he moved for his next prey.'

/Swoosh/

'He merely swung his sword without much effort, letting the blood on it splash onto the ground.'

'In fact, he didn't even look special, wearing some unusual leather clothes and a thick coat, he looked more like some Dungeon explorer than a warrior…'

'A mask blocked his face from the world, keeping his identity a secret.'

'But why was he wearing a leather hat?'

/SPLASH!/

'His sword flashed, vanishing from their sights, and with it, another head was flung to the sky.'

'However, despite this, no blood stained his clothes, they looked fresh and tidy even.'

'Those with a trained eye would notice that the blood seemingly moved out of his way as if there was some sort of veil in front of him.'

"34… 3…"

According to the papers, in an emergency situation, all of them will converge to this hall.

So I just need to wait and everyone I need to deal with will come to me on their own.

The rest... I'll think about it later.

'Counting down calmly, Philip turned into smoke as another man was bifurcated.'

'In fact, Philip wasn't the only one fighting, all around him were people clashing against each other.'

'But from the start, he was here alone, those fighting weren't exactly on his side... They were forcibly made to be.'

"Shit! He isn't someone we can FUCKING TAKE! Where are the reinf…"

/SPLASH!/

'Philip appeared behind the man, cutting him down from head to toe…'

"You look half decent."

I should try that out.

'A blue ball of energy formed in front of his finger, before it was crushed, releasing a small stream of energy onto the corpse below…'

*Dead Thrall*

/Crack…/

'After a few twitches, the corpse slowly rose, its wounds regenerating faster than the eye could capture.'

/Gasp…/

'The people trembled, but not for long…'

"Make sure no one escapes." He told the zombie

'And so it did, running to them and joining in the fray.'

/Clang…/

'Some of the people turned around, dropping their weapons, they had enough.'

"That's no good." Philip said as his hands moved in the air

/Fwoosh…/

'A dark-red ball of energy formed on them…'

*Mayhem!*

/BOOM!/

'A small explosion of energy covered the entire hall in a matter of a second, and many of the fleeing thugs stopped dead on their tracks, their eyes turning bloodshot…'

/CLANG!/

/CLANG!/

'They started to fight each other, tearing themselves apart, including the few that actually managed to resist and keep their sanity.'

"..."

This should be enough.

Magic seems as effective as before, but on another note, the number of strong warriors in this place is higher than there...

The best way to put it is... It can easily be outclassed.

"Though it remains to be seen just how much is the difference between a higher Tier Wizard and a Master Mage."

'Philip looked around him, he wasn't pleased with what he was seeing.'

'He felt no pleasure in culling down nameless nobodies like weeds on a garden.'

'And although he didn't feel remorse for his actions either, there was a point where it just felt a bit…'

'Pointless.'

'Just like when he killed countless Orcs so he could protect others, he's now killing these people to save others.'

'Like the orcs, perhaps not all were deserving of this fate… To meet their end at the edge of his blade, at the tip of his fingers, at the blades of their fellow companions.'

'But Philip couldn't care, he couldn't.'

'There is no point in worrying about an enemy soldier on the battlefield.'

"Hm?"

'His eyes moved to the side, looking beyond the walls of the hall, he felt the presence of that old woman fighting.'

'Old might be harsh, she was barely middle-aged by Dwarven standards!'

'She seemed to be struggling a little, but most importantly…'

There you are.

'Next to her, 2 more people were present… Very important people.'

'Just a bit more and he would meet them...'

"!"

Wind...

/CLANG!/

'Due to his moment of distraction, something fell from the sky, piercing him with a spear!'

"..."

Unoriginal.

'But he easily blocked it.'

/CLANG!/

'Philip moved his sword horizontally, throwing the man away.'

/Thud…/

"So that didn't work? Well… That was my best idea."

'In front of Philip was a laidback man with a spear, his beard and hair were a bit disorderly, and his clothes looked light…'

{Philip...}

/Whispers…/

'But Laplabe was quick to inform him of their quality, they were much better them they seemed.'

"... I understand." He mumbled to himself as he looked at his ambusher

I know this guy.

The personal guard of the Director.

As expected, he's decent.

"Hm... Then… Shall we talk? Or… Just go at it?" Jikael asked as he touched his chinn

"?"

What's up with him?

/SCREAMS!/

"They sure are noisy."

'To his supposed subordinates' misery, Jikael merely gazed at Philip with his spear in his hands, the massacre happening around him wasn't one of his concerns.'

'Philip found him interesting, it made him remember a certain Brazilian swordsman…'

"You want to talk?"

Is he buying time so the others can come?

What a coincidence, I'm also buying time...

"Ha! You can talk, I thought you were mute." Jikael joked, though he quickly noticed it didn't quite fall through

"See… What's this shit all about, really?" He asked

"You gave yourself the trouble of coming here without anyone knowing…"

"Yet with your skill, you choose to reveal yourself and kill a bunch of goons? Surely that isn't all there is to it, no?"

"..."

Honestly… It just kind of is…

If I were to put it in words...

To understand the truth about the scientist's past actions... Or future actions... Oh well.

And in the meantime, I'll just take out everyone here, and then, I'll find out who he is contracted with and what they want from him.

Because originally, I thought he was tied with the Dwarves, but I see no representative of theirs here...

This brings me to the question of when...

When did they come into this picture? Perhaps in the future, or never.

A possible butterfly effect?

'Philip's thoughts came and went in the blink of an eye, the slow world around him came back to normal as he paid attention to Jikael's words.'

"... I'm sure we can reach a common ground..."

Hm? Who...

'He stopped suddenly, putting his hand on his neck as his eyes sharpened.'

"Well… How unfortunate."

"Unfortunate?"

Someone just contacted him… I barely missed it.

Sigh, it's the second time today I lost the chance to gain information.

I need to train a bit more on my mental abilities once I have the time, intercepting it was definitely within my capabilities.

"The plan changed…" He said, disappointed

'He slammed the base of his spear on the ground, creating a dent in it.'

"Originally, I wanted to have a talk, not really a fan of overworking myself you see…"

'He got into a stance, one foot in front of the other.'

"But you know, I got paid so I ought to work, it would look bad on me were I to not do anything."

"Heh."

'Philip chuckled.'

"Such work ethic is commendable."

Was it the manager?...

If that's so... Are they observing me?

'Philip looked around, but he couldn't tell.'

Interesting.

"Thank you, I have a pretty long record…"

'They looked at each other, the words that need to be said were pronounced.'

/FLASH!/

/CLANG!/

/TREMBLE!/

'They vanished, reappearing in the middle of the hall, sword and spear interlocked.'

/Scratch.../

'Pressing against each other, they stood in a deadlock.'

"That's a nice sword, why do you keep it chained though?"

/BAM!/

'The man pulled his spear, thrusting it again, the air crying in anguish as it made its way to Philip's head.'

/CLANG!/

'But Philip easily slid his foot, raising his sword with an angle, and the spear bounced off.'

"I made it, isn't it pretty cool?" He replied

/CLANG!/

"I like it, can't say the same for my spear though, I don't have much skill in that area…"

/CLANG!/

"But still… Mine is pretty good!"

'He clenched his teeth and stomped down, breaking the marble tiles.'

"HUPP!"

'Breathing quickly, his spear turned into an afterimage…'

/CLANG CLANG CLANG!/

/CLONG!/

'In the last strike, the spear struck the chains yet again…'

/CRACK!/

"Gotcha." The man said as he pulled his spear with force, breaking the chains apart

'All of his attacks so far were concentrated on them, he wanted to see for himself why the sword was chained.'

'So he… Broke it.'

/Clang…/

"HM!"

'As the chains fell onto the ground, Jikael felt something was wrong.'

'Shivers ran across his body as he felt something…'

'Like there was someone else in the room, looking at him.'

I... Gazing at me?!

'To this, Philip simply said:'

"Satisfied?…"

'He kicked his chains into the sky where they vanished, sucked into his inventory.'

"Well, that was some half-decent warmup."

He's an Aura Warrior, around the 3rd transformation.

Different from traditional Wizards who divide themselves into 9 stages with the 10th one being outside the norm, Aura has only 5.

And despite how symmetrical they may look, it isn't that simple to draw comparisons between the two systems.

Though if I were to say... Speed and Power into account...

7th Class?

(Though I'll still use Wizards as a comparison tool, it would be cool to have your opinions on other power systems, I might even use them as well)

/Clang/

'With a last clash, Philip rested his sword on the ground.'

"Shall we continue?"

"... HAHA!"

'But the man only laughed.'

"You sure are interesting, your sword too."

It's drawing me in...

It's my first time fighting an opponent whose sword is constantly battling against my will.

I can't take my eyes off it, but if I do, I may lose an ear...

"Name's Jikael."

"..."

"Not a man of words, that's fine by me."

"It's a bummer, but it's okay, I'll remember you nonetheless."

'He was about to grab the spear again, but he stopped.'

"Sigh… They sure are fast when no one wants them to..."

'Behind the man, two more people appeared suddenly with a flash.'

'One man with a metal plate embedded onto his skull, working as a replacement, and a woman with long grayish black hair holding a flute.'

'The man looked half-crazed, his eyes were bloodshot and he had many piercings around his body… He used little clothing and he was disgusting to look at.'

'While the woman looked very much like Viera when he first met her, dark circles around her eyes, disheveled hair… An unsightly appearance for anyone to have.'

"Had enough fun?" The woman asked Jikael

"I was about to have some…"

"LET'S GUTTER HIM!!"

"..."

"..."

"..."

"... AND THEN!..."

/SHOCK!/

'The crazed man had a sudden psychotic attack, but his piercings flared, and his body was electrocuted.'

/Thud.../

/Chaaa.../

'He fell onto the ground, smoke rising…'

"COUGH!"

'Coughing, he rose to his feet again.'

"My sincere apologies, I showed you all a disturbing side of mine."

'Like a gentleman that made Philip think of his butler, Sebastiano, the man politely replied with a bow.'

'His posture now aligned, his gaze serene, he turned to Philip.'

"Anyway… I presume this is the cause of this commotion."

"Peculiar, I do not recognize you from the database, nor do you look like a rogue..."

'His hands moved in the air as if he was checking a book.'

'It seemed that even after the shock, his mind was still a bit out of place... Or was it?'

'Perhaps he was perfectly sane before, and this is him being insane...'

"Nothing... Who might you be then?"

"Can we just end this already… Yawn…"

"If he's not in the database, it either means he's not associated with anyone and has some undisclosed objective, the stuff we leave to those guys... Siiiigh..."

"Or he's a rogue, either way..."

'She was then interrupted by Jakiel:'

"Go away, I was here first."

"No can do, we were relayed here as per..."

...

"..."

One weirdo, now there are three.

'The three of them looked at each other, blabbering on and on, ignoring Philip's existence.'

'The spearman that wanted to fight, the freak that changed personalities, and the tired lady that wanted some sleep.'

'They may look weird, but they were all… Pretty strong.'

'Regardless, Philip felt that it was a bit too much to just…'

'Disregard him like that.'

/Exhale…/

'Philip changed his breathing pattern, but he did not move.'

They didn't drop their guard, on the contrary.

But they are mistaken to think they have the luxury of not attacking me at sight.

Since you're all like this...

'His muscles tensed, and blood rushed across his body, his neck, arms, legs, and chest all puffed up in anticipation for what he was about to do.'

/CRACK!/

'His foot left a faint print on the ground as his body turned into a smoky afterimage.'

'Dark bluish light gathered on his body, with each step he took, a few flames were left behind...'

'The world around him slowed down as he used Ripper Mode, almost stopping.'

'Red flames ignite behind his sword, increasing its speed even further.'

'Philip's sword flared as it drew an arc in the air, the otherworldly runes inscribed in it lit up, drawing forth its true form, power from beyond…'

/CUT!/

'Before they could all react, his transformed Darklight Sword had already cut the woman's neck!'

'For dramatic effect, he even seemed to pose behind her as her body fell dead, though this was mostly due to his feet sliding on the ground due to his momentum rather than something he did intentionally.'

"?!"

"DAMMIT!"

'It wasn't like they were unguarded...'

'They merely acted like this because Jikael was relaxed.'

'His previous clashes with Philip made him underestimate his enemy, and the price was…'

"N... No... Shit... It... IT CAN'T BE!!!"

/BOOOOOM!/

'An explosion of electricity with the man as the center was brought forward!'

"UUUUUUURG! WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?!"

"?!"

Oh no, he's going berserk!

"FALL!"

/FUOM!/

/CRACK!/

'The metal head raised his hand, and an incredible pressure bore down on Philip's body.'

"Heh."

'But he didn't even bend down, even though the ground beneath him caved in.'

"Calm down Gulivar! Else we'll lose our advantage!" Jikael exclaimed as he grasped his spear tightly, this time, his eyes weren't relaxed

Shit, his stabilizers aren't working!

"UUURG AHHHH!"

'It was clear Gulivar had some anger issues as instead of listening, he increased the intensity of the pressure, lighting bolts jumped from his piercings, zapping his body to the point of charring his skin and muscles…'

/CRACK!/

"HAAAAAAAA! DIE YOU SON OF A BITCH!"

"GULIVAR!"

URG! The fucking pressure!

'Yet he didn't stop, instead, he pushed himself harder...'

/SPLAT!/

'The pressure now engulfed the entire hall, and all of the goons were forced onto the ground, most dying immediately, others wailing in pain, but not being able to breathe after due to the massive weight on their chests…'

'To think those were truly their last breaths…'

/CREAK.../

/CRACK!/

'The ceiling, the walls, everything started to produce some very unwelcoming sounds.'

'It seemed this entire place was about to collapse, and Gulivar didn't care at all!'

'The only thing intact here was the woman's warm body on the ground, that for some reason remained unaffected by his berserk display.'

"..."

'Philip however, remained the same.'

{Philip, I hope you had enough fun} Laplabe said as he reached out to him mentally

"?"

I can still hold on with my bare body...

{I hope you haven't forgotten where you are}

{It may look like you are on solid ground, but below you are but a few dozen meters of stone}

{But after those, a fall of a few hundred meters into the bottom of this ravine awaits you}

{That guy also seems to have some steam left in him, so before he breaks everything…}

"Fine." He mumbled, bored

I finally found a decent enemy to fight after so long…

Yet it ended up like this.

I didn't want to use my abilities much...

But this isn't the proper time to seek these things.

'Philip raised his right foot...'

/BAM!/

"!?"

'When his foot crashed against the ground, an explosion of blue flames took place in the crater he was in.'

'And at the same time, the pressure was dispelled as the metal man fell backward.'

[Predator's presence LvMax has activated]

"!"

'From within the rising flames, Philip walked, bearing down a different kind of pressure… Although heavy nonetheless.'

'The flames seemed to gather around him, shaping themselves onto armor around his body.'

*Armament*

"That is…"

'Jikael observed Philip's new state with confusion.'

'He just couldn't point out what he was seeing.'

'It wasn't Magic, nor Aura, nor anything he had seen before.'

"URG! That son of a bitch…"

'Gulivar got up from the ground, but he seemed much more tamed this time around.'

"Gulivar…"

"I know… I'm... Better, for now."

'They got up, staring down at Philip from above.'

"This won't be simple."

"I'm making the vanguard, you…"

/SPLURGE!/

"?!"

"COUGH!"

'Gulivar suddenly spat blood as he looked at his own chest.'

'A knife was currently piercing it from one way to the other.'

'Gulivar looked behind him to see the wizard girl, seemingly… Alive.'

"Two down." Philip mumbled from within the crater as he slowly climbed up

"Shit!"

Necromancy?!

'But Jikael noticed that something was wrong, so he quickly jumped back…'

"... Lind…" Guliver mumbled with some emotion

/BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!/

'Another explosion took place with Guliver at the center.'

…

"URG…"

/Thud…/

'Jikael pushed a stone aside, coughing due to the dust he had just inhaled.'

"How did it end… Cough!"

'All around him was destruction brought by the girl's self-destruction.'

'Some of the walls had collapsed, parts of the ceiling were falling, and there was no one alive in sight.'

/Twitch.../

'The only thing alive was a small charred hand next to his face, twitching...'

"I'm not paid… Enough... HUGH!... For this."

I'm not injured... Though my vision is spinning a little...

/Step…/

"Ha…"

'Realization soon fell onto him.'

Guess that's it.

'Jikael heard the sound of stone being crushed, someone was right behind him.'

'The pressure from before had disappeared, yet something seemed to linger.'

"I should've asked for that time off sooner…"

'He didn't turn his face, instead, he merely asked as his body recovered its bearings:'

"Well then, I'm not someone to ask for these things…"

'Pointing at his spear from afar, he smiled.'

"Shall we continue where we left off?"

"... Be my guest."

"Ha…"

'Jikael got up, grabbing his spear, he noticed that it wasn't in its best condition, its tip had some chips in it...'

'But it was thanks to it taking the brunt of the explosion that he was now mostly fine.'

'Yet without it, he couldn't fight... Still, he grabbed it, getting into a basic stance.'

'He looked around for a little while before smiling again.'

"This isn't bad."

"..."

'He looked at the armored figure holding the purple sword, but when his gaze fell onto it, he felt his mind drift away…'

/Shake/

'But he shook himself out of it.'

"Strange powers... Bizarre sword... Just where did someone like you come crawling out from?"

"..."

/Silence…/

'Jikael let out a dry laugh.'

'Condensing everything he had, he surged with power!'

/BAM!/

"Come!"

'Chaotic energy gathering on his spear, strong enough to scatter the surrounding stones, he stepped forward.'

/FLASH!/

'The blue knight also made its move, vanishing.'

/CLANG!/

/BAM!/

"UGH!"

/Crack…/

'Jikael barely stopped the blade, his hand's webbings split apart due to the impact...'

'But he already noticed something…'

/CLANG!/

"HA!"

/CLANG!/

/Crack.../

"HUFF!"

'With one last strike, he swiped his spear upwards, creating a moving force to blow a perfectly circular hole in the ceiling...'

'Yet the only damage on his enemy was a faint white mark that quickly vanished.'

'His armor was material yet immaterial, it could transform and mold itself on the fly, yet it was strong enough to resist his strongest moves...'

'Just what was that? Such perverse technique...'

/Chip.../

"Haa... Haa..."

'His spear was breaking, falling apart, with each strike, it became slightly corroded by the strange power within his opponent's weapon.'

'And he knew, his opponent was holding back, he only used his weapon, but he knew he could do more...'

'He saw some of it, but he felt there was more to it... Much more.'

"Well… Can't say I didn't try." He mumbled as he closed his eyes

/Crunk.../

"Urg..."

"Though, it makes me a bit disappointed."

"Did I even make you..."

/CRACK!/

'His spear finally gave in.'

"!"

/SLASH!/

'Philip's sword slashed across his body.'

/Thud... Thud.../

/Clang.../

"... It's done."

Now, time to end the big guys.

'Philip stood atop his fallen enemy, just one of the many he dealt with... And that he will in on his path towards the unknown.'

'Without looking back, Philip left the hall, searching for his target.'

/Step.../

'But soon enough, behind him, 3 people rose from the dead...'

...

.

.

.

Notes

I felt this chapter came out alright, certainly not what I usually do, if I were doing that, I would be going to sleep now before editing it again tomorrow morning.

But... I need to take a shower before going to sleep... It's like... 28 C right now.

Tell me your thoughts and all on the development and direction of this chapter.

Philip is slowly unraveling the mystery behind what happened to the Dwarven scientist and how strange it actually is...

Since there are no actual Dwarves involved by the looks of it.

As for the rest, I liked the 3 side characters I made, I wanted to give them some life apart from being villains made to be bad so we don't feel bad when they die.

Not like we'll feel anything else, but it's not like giving them SOME personality is that difficult either way.

To us, they were just a passing guy that was a bit stronger than normal, the same goes for Philip.

Next few chapters will put this search to a close, and we'll have Philip dive into his abilities and finally find out just how strong he actually is when everything he has is used together.

I made the enemies' strength a bit vague with the precise intent to give me some space for later if I do need it.

There is a lot to cover without a doubt, but I'll stop here.

It's past 3 Am already...

Bye then!