Almost One-Man Army!

"Pseudo-Behemoth! RUNNNN!" Nex's shout brought the shellshocked town peeps to their senses.

This place would soon turn into ruins, the giant cockroach feasting on whatever and whoever was left. But as they saw the nightmarish Titan, their legs turned to jelly.

"Stand up or die! There's no other option. Get a grip, you all!" Under his call, the Orphanage youngsters rose, ready to follow him to the world's end.

"B-big Brother…" Sera weakly uttered.

"Everything will be alright, there's…." But as he saw her face, he froze.

She was utterly terrified, her small frame trembling and all blood having left her face. Wait, was it because of him?! He now had mana, right?! No, that wasn't it…

"M-more rain's coming, a flood even. Unless we kill that thing in the next minutes…." That's what her keen intuition told her.

"WHAT?!" Nex exclaimed in shock.

This freaking changed everything!

He could already picture them all successfully running away from the abomination, only to get stranded under acid rain with no cover. Only he would survive!

All it took was one wrong decision to perish…

"Abort! Everyone, back to the shelters ASAP! Hide!" Nex ordered, plenty staring at him as if he had turned crazy. Run, don't run. Would he make his goddamn mind?!

A few seconds later, the Alcove looked utterly deserted. The people had either obeyed him or had run away. Hide? On the words of a kid? As if they'd risk it!

"Thanks, Sera. You've helped a lot." He gently patted her head before she hid too.

"Tch— Saved us from a Blood Rain, but everyone's still dead meat. It's the end of the Alcove." The Shadow Assassin Asher inched closer.

They gazed at the Pseudo-Behemoth in silence. It would be considered a True Behemoth as long as it annihilated a City. But to slum rats like them, Pseudo or True were all the same.

"If we can't run, we'll fight," Nex stated.

"Are you crazy?! Fight that thing directly?! It's anywhere between Disaster and Apocalypse level for sure! You want us to stand between it and its meal?!"

— Thump! Thump! Thump! —

The monster's footsteps made the entire Alcove shake. Its carapace was indubitably tougher than diamond, and its sharp legs long enough to skewer a dragon!

They didn't stand a chance!

"Fighting? Yes. Killing? No. We'll stall." Nex added.

"Counting on the Nobles and haughty adventurers to help? They'll attack while it's feasting." The shadow being flickered in his rage, showing a regretful expression.

Nex instantly recognized his look, one of a man who had given up.

"You're thinking of running using your hidden Magitek Umbrella, right? Let me guess, you'll recreate your Shadow Corps from scratch? It won't work."

"Are you trying to stop me?" The assassin emitted plenty of killing intent, but Nex didn't even flinch,

"Do you know how many enemies we've made in the recent years? So many want us dead. How long do you think you'll survive without Razark and me."

"T-that…." Asher's entire body turned pale.

"Don't worry. I already have a plan. But I'll need your help." Nex grinned before adding. "Shadow Fusion."

"YOU! HOW DO YOU KNOW ABOUT THAT?!" Asher cried out.

At this moment, the poor Shadow wasn't so sure what terrified him more between that weak-looking human and the Behemoth…

━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

— Whoosh! CRASH! —

A dark shadow exited the Alcove faster than a cannonball, only to crash violently. Nex got out of the hole, his eyes bulging. So fast! So powerful!

Luckily, he was quickly adapting, getting better at controlling this newfound power every passing second.

His new dark cloak fluttered in the wind following his movements as he dashed toward the Behemoth. It was the source of his massive upgrade in speed.

As for where it came from…

"Be careful, will you! At this rate, we'll kick the bucket before we even reach the damn thing!" The cloak, aka Asher in equipment form, complained.

Shadow Fusion: an extremely rare ability of the shadow people. Thank's to it, Nex was receiving an insane Buff to his speed. Still, even that wouldn't be enough…

As Nex reached the Titan, cold sweat dripped off his back.

— Thump! —

That single footstep almost made him reconsider his insane plan.

The shockwave made the earth rise, a wave so powerful the aftershock sent them tumbling backward. They barely managed to avoid the brunt of it.

"It almost killed us by walking, and you still want to challenge it?!"

"With your speed, why not!"

Nex aimed for the tower-like gigantic red leg. It was time to go up! He hurriedly ran upward at a speed that would have made a Creed of Assassins purple with jealousy.

They reached the top, the entire world seeming small. The cold wind bit them as they saw the Alcove in the distance. It was only a tiny dot, but one they had to protect.

As if to welcome their arrival, the creature activated its Domain ability. Behemoths were able to change the environment around them to suit their needs.

The Cockroach glowed a bright red, and then…

— Drip! Drop! Drip Drop! —

The blood rain suddenly came back, turning the land a bright crimson. Nex could already feel Asher shivering on his back.

"Don't worry. You'll be immune to it as long as I wear you."

"I'm shivering because of the Behemoth, you bastard!"

So was he. Nex braced himself as he ran across the red carapace, heading for the thing's shiny head. The whole thing was so slippery that he slid for the last meters.

His goal was obvious, the creature's antennas. But at this rate, they'd just go overboard!

"Be careful, will you! We're about to fall!" Asher screamed.

"Don't worry. I got this!" Nex reassured.

That's when they reached the edge. Nex powerfully kicked, sending them flying toward the antennas….and barely missing, falling into the abyss.

Poor Asher was already crying. Not only had he turned into a cloak for this madman, but now he'd die flattened like a pancake!

"Stop crying, will you." Nex's voice resounded.

He kicked one more time, and suddenly they magically rose. At the very last second, he had summoned his Duck, stepping on it to increase his jump distance.

The poor thing quacked as it was sent tumbling down. "Dispel Summon!" Nex calmly uttered as he landed.

"Alright, let's get to work."

Nex prayed to all the gods he knew as he grabbed his spear and started stabbing at the antennas.

— Clang! Clang! —

He couldn't even pierce the outside layer, but it didn't matter. He had already accomplished his objective.

"It's staring at us. We're going back!"

For the first time, the Cockroach stopped moving. It would be their win as long as they could keep it busy. He had just left his spot that…

— SLAM! —

The creature slammed a front leg on its antenna, as one would a mosquito. The entire thing vibrated, and they were pushed forward.

"Oh god, a millisecond later, and we'd be dust!"

"I'm aware. Focus on buffing!"

It felt like Nex was running in soap, trying to get his bearings. He kept slipping and slipping, using his spear to regain his balance.

— Clang! Clang! —

His travel path couldn't be louder than that. How many times did he barely survive? This thing's slapping game was over the top! But eventually, they did reach its back.

"I really hope it can't slap here," Nex remarked.

"What happens if it can?" Asher asked.

"We die."

Nex based his whole plan on the data he had gathered from the smaller ones. He also knew that its abilities were blood-based. Hopefully, its evolution would favor them.

The world turned silent except for the downpour. Human, Shadow, and Cockroach were utterly still in this bloody world. But then…

— Screech! —

The Behemoth's cry made the mana in the air vibrate and condense, just like it had done at the Alcove. Infinite Fatality-Ranked Cockroaches began spawning.

"Be careful. Speed alone won't cut it against so many of them. Plus, you've lost an arm, so your strikes will be weaker than before. You—"

Weaker because he had lost an arm? He was way stronger! Nex utterly ignored the warnings of his companion as he dashed in their midst.

His stats had gone from 16 in Body/Soul to 39! One had to know that those base stats were further enhanced by technique.

The cloak soon turned speechless. Asher had attributed Nex winning against the creatures earlier to a miracle, but he finally realized the truth. It was all skill!

Watching him was akin to watching an incredible choreography. He'd move randomly, and a sneak attack would miss. He'd strike at the air, and the monsters would throw themselves at his spear.

Not only was he avoiding, but he was making the creatures collide with one another. Heck, at this rate the monsters would be crowned friendly-fire kings!

Nex was manipulating the flow of battle! Asher had once marveled at how the youngster could control the flow of a duel…but only now did his true talent shine. #One-Man Army!

"How are you doing this?!" Asher asked, shocked.

"Picture yourself from above as if a Champion controlled by a godly entity. Then ask yourself, where should I send this pawn." Nex mumbled.

God? Controlling a pawn? What the hell?! What kind of answer was this?! But seeing him go, that's really how he did it. This was simply insanity.

At this moment, a strange thought went through the cold assassin's mind. Perhaps dying was worth it to see such a magnificent display of skills?

But he wasn't the only one who realized how badass Nex looked. The Behemoth had too. That's when it started rumbling crazily.

"Brace yourself. Round two's starting!" Even now, Nex was still stabbing minions. He needed more blood, far more blood...