Desperate Stand

Under the magnificent starry sky, there was now a blaze, and two young men stood facing it, their forms dimly lit by the distant lights.

One of them was in shock, from the magnificence of the spectacle created by his colleague.

'Infernal Cage, I must admit that name sounds cool.' Jaden thought, with his battered body.

He then turned to Kenzo, who was in no better condition than him, if not worse. Being in better shape here didn't mean being in a good state.

"Impressive, this Infernal Cage." Jaden said with a smile, and he meant it.

They say this guy isn't smart, but he used the sudden change from cold to hot to create an explosion that contained all the damage within a certain diameter. Honestly, if this guy wasn't smart, then he really needed to revisit the definition of the word.

"Do you think so? If you want, I can teach it to you. You're my sidekick, you know." Kenzo replied, looking quite pleased with himself. He even lifted his chin, as if he were the smartest person in the world.

As they tried to relax, their expressions returned to seriousness, and both of them turned their gazes toward the Infernal Cage.

The black smoke caused by the explosion began to dissipate gradually. First, there was a silhouette, and as the smoke cleared, the silhouette took form.

He was there, not at all burned as they had hoped. He was in much better shape, exuding even greater pressure, and his dark essence seemed more powerful, which boded ill.

"How? But it's..." Kenzo was cut off by his own eyes, unable to finish his sentence because the appearance of the HOUM explained the "how" and made possible what he had thought impossible.

On the other side, the shock forced Jaden to speak out loud instead of just thinking. "Disordered scales all over the body, it's a... it's a..."

"Level B." the hero finished the sentence that Jaden couldn't complete, and his voice no longer carried the same ambition as before.

One of the characteristics of Level B middle-class HOUMs was that they had incomplete beast-like features on their bodies, such as scales or half-horns.

"Where are the reinforcements, damn it!?" Jaden shouted.

He wasn't really afraid for himself, but rather for those around him, because if he died, he would lose someone.

He was irritated first by his bad luck and also by the fact that no teams had appeared despite telling their friends to call the association.

Kenzo, on the other hand, slapped his cheeks, making a slapping sound, before saying. "The path of a hero is filled with hurdles. Only true heroes can reach the end of the road." to motivate himself.

"We'll have to make do with what we have." Kenzo told Jaden as he positioned himself for the fight.

Jaden, however, was lost in thought. 'I can't die. I don't have the right to die.'

'I just have to get stronger to beat this HOUM. It's only one level above our abilities.' Jaden thought, though there was a small doubt when he said it was only one level, as a whole level was much more than just a level. Furthermore, this HOUM was an exception.

However, instead of diminishing, Jaden's will to fight was increasing. He didn't want to lose his life; there was too much at stake.

As both of them solidified their resolve, the HOUM appeared out of nowhere, and in a sudden motion, Kenzo noticed that his feet were no longer touching the ground. Then he found himself on his back on the ground, spitting blood violently.

The HOUM had its hand around his neck, lifting him by the throat before brutally slamming him to the ground, which explained why he had been floating in the air before hitting the ground, causing the bleeding.

The HOUM opened its mouth while Kenzo was still underneath, and it seemed like it wanted to disintegrate him. In a panic, Jaden positioned his hands like a gun, pointing them at the HOUM's head.

At that precise moment, following the line of Jaden's gun-hand direction, everything froze before a block of ice formed from Jaden's finger to the HOUM's head.

The world around Kenzo and the HOUM became cold, as if heat had never existed. Kenzo was frozen and had no idea what was happening.

The cold he felt was unlike anything he knew; it was as if the world itself was this cold, as if he were in a place where the only reality was the cold.

This action slowed the HOUM down, giving Jaden the opportunity to continue his attack, which had manifested in the form of the ice block.

The HOUM didn't feel any danger, except for the sudden change in temperature. However, it sensed that it had to act quickly and leave the area. So it continued with the creation of its flame.

But just before the HOUM could finish its attack, Jaden murmured. "Corruption."

Right after that, the block of ice gradually turned violet, starting from Jaden's hand. At that moment, just before the black flame could disintegrate Kenzo, the HOUM abruptly moved its head and sent the flame toward the ice block.

Upon contact with the ice, there was an explosion. Kenzo underneath received the shock of the explosion, but it was better than taking the flame directly. The pressure sent the HOUM flying a few meters back.

Jaden then launched himself by increasing the gravity all around him and then drastically lowering it, giving him a speed that allowed him to arrive almost instantly in front of the HOUM.

He struck a high kick that the HOUM parried with its hand, resulting in a heavy sound like that of a drum. Besides the sound, there were also violet sparks.

Just before Jaden could strike his next blow, the HOUM countered with a punch from its seemingly unaffected hand. Jaden increased the resistance of the air in front of him because it was all he could do.

His opponent had countered too quickly. However, this time, the punch only pushed him back a few centimeters.

The HOUM immediately pursued him and punched him in the face. Jaden raised his fists in an X shape and once again murmured, "Corruption."

When the HOUM's punch landed on Jaden's guard, the impact sent him flying far behind, but the HOUM's fist had aged, and there was no sign of regeneration.

Jaden's face remained indifferent, showing nothing but concentration. He had noticed that the HOUM was alert when he used the violet energy within him, so he decided to capitalize on it.

While the HOUM was looking at its hand, Kenzo came from behind and struck a fiery blow, creating a hole in the HOUM's abdomen. The HOUM turned around and kicked at Kenzo's head level.

The kick was too fast for Kenzo, so he positioned his hand toward his head to cushion the impact. He was violently thrown back and still coughing up blood.

'It's not enough, we're too slow.' Kenzo thought as he saw how quickly the hole he had just created in the HOUM's abdomen closed up. He was almost desperate, but he knew he couldn't act in his current condition.

While Kenzo tried to focus better, Jaden launched himself at the HOUM, who was ready to pursue Kenzo. He jumped and struck both his feet at the level of the HOUM's face, causing the same effect as when he hit with his hands on the HOUM's face, albeit to a lesser extent.

Seeing the same effect again, Kenzo wondered.

'What is this violet thing?'

This kind of flame or rather illumination seemed to be very dangerous for the HOUM.

Kenzo had never seen or heard of this kind of ability before, so he was truly shocked because, so far, the HOUM's hand wasn't regenerating.

Once on the ground, Jaden got up with a somersault and dodged to the right to avoid his opponent's punch. He then followed up with a kick aimed at his opponent's thigh, but the HOUM backed away to avoid it.

Due to the pressure around them, Jaden had to pivot on his foot and then use it as leverage once his back was facing the HOUM to strike with his other leg.

The movement was fast, but the HOUM managed to grab Jaden's leg and forcefully slammed it against the ground, creating a loud drum-like sound. Blood gushed from Jaden's mouth like a fountain.

Jaden then released a large amount of that violet energy onto the leg that had been seized. He was immediately let go and backed away.

'Damn it, shit, shit!' Jaden screamed in his mind, feeling pain throughout his body. He knew he was reaching his limits, but the HOUM... well, it only had a few scratches, and its abdomen had fully regenerated.

Kenzo didn't look any better. They had given it their all, but this level was just beyond their capabilities. Both of them were starting to despair.

The HOUM seemed to be enjoying itself, as if watching them give their all was pleasing to it.

However, the HOUM looked at its hands, which showed no signs of regeneration, and then it looked at Jaden.

'This doesn't bode well.' Jaden thought as he observed the HOUM's reaction.

It seemed like it was no longer interested in having fun, as things were apparently getting risky.

Jaden could barely stand, and he knew he had almost nothing left in him. The violet energy in the form of flames was draining his energy at an alarming rate.

He wasn't sure if he could bring it back if he tried to contain it, so he decided against it. It was too risky to lose one of his only cards against this formidable creature.

As for Kenzo, he might still have some cards up his sleeve, but given his current condition, he couldn't tap into his resources effectively.

Who could guarantee them that an extremely powerful move on their part would be fatal to the HOUM? They knew the HOUM was incredibly strong, and they were just trying to buy as much time as possible.