Chapter 51

Despite dodging the explosion, Sam wasn't immune to the shockwaves.

[-90 HP]

And that happened despite his insane durability.

Sam was sitting on top of a broken window. He looked down at Reze, waiting for the dust cloud to dissipate. Barney Stinson didn't lie when he said that the hotter they are, the crazier they would be.

But what faced him wasn't the pretty, delicate girl he came to check out. She had transformed into her fiend form.

What appeared was a creature with a missile-like head, resembling an atomic bomb. Bomb fuses covered her arms like sleeves.

Still, the only good part that wasn't affected was her short skirt and legs.

"Done checking me out?" She asked as she looked at him. Then, an explosion appeared under her feet, propelling her at Sam with tremendous speed.

'So fast,' he thought. For the first time in a long time, he had to react based on his instincts. He flipped outside the window, and when his feet reached the ground, he used flash step.

A large explosion enveloped the warehouse. Sam noticed a few rocks flying toward him. A few red spiral swords circled around him, cutting the rocks in half.

From the middle of the burned building, Reze emerged, walking slowly toward him.

Sam couldn't understand why such a person feared Makima and needed to use cheap tricks.

'Even with my current level, I can't take this girl lightly, or death would be the outcome.'

'But she is very strong. Stronger than the snake devil. Humanity fears bombs way more than they fear snakes... that's certain now.'

'Very strong, I wonder what experience it would give me to beat her.' Instead of running away, Sam decided it would be worthwhile to try and defeat her.

"You have a few interesting tricks. I wonder how Tony could defeat you." She said in a teasing voice. 

"Oh, Tony. So that's his name. I wonder too."

The spiral swords stopped spinning. One of them reached into Sam's hand, and the other flew toward Reze at blinding speed.

She extended her hand forward, releasing an explosion that deflected his attack.

Sam's heart started pounding faster. As scary as his opponent looked, it was a perfect opportunity for him to test his techniques.

He took off running to the side, dashing with high speed.

Multiple explosions followed from Reze's feet, propelling her to run alongside him, and she was catching up.

Reze's explosions gave her more momentum than his human legs could provide. She would eventually surpass him, and since she seemed immune to explosions, she wouldn't find harm in breaking the sound barrier.

But it gave Sam an idea.

'What if the momentum is too much for her? She won't be able to change direction.'

He continued running, both of them passing cars on the road.

Sam used flash steps, gaining a bit more distance. He then stopped, turned, and squatted, looking at Reze who was heading toward him.

Using Wind Cut, he dashed in her direction with more speed than he could ever muster. His only hope was for her not to explode as he hit her.

He appeared behind her, and she continued heading forward. Reze extended her hands forward, releasing a series of explosions that slowed her down. But she collided with a building, making it shake.

A large cut appeared on her chest and continued all the way down. It was so deep that she was about to be cut in half.

She extended her hand to the left, grabbing a nearby human who seemed to have been hit by her, and she took his blood. Her wound regenerated instantly, and she was back in top shape.

'Dealing with the explosion fiend is troublesome… we have someone here who can regenerate back to full power.'

Sam walked toward her, a bunch of jelly bears in his hand. He swallowed them all.

[+50 HP]

Sam reached behind him and grabbed his sword, slowly crouching.

"Well, I'll give it to you. You got me with that trick," Reze said as she stood up. "But it won't work again."

So she thought that he needed to get near her to attack her.

Sam smirked, slowly unsheathing his sword.

Surely, she was trying to bait him into get nearer.

"Let's see about that." He unsheathed his sword in a blinding speed, releasing an air blade that headed toward her.

The ex-Soviet assassin jumped and dodged, moving closer to Sam, who started waving his sword left and right. Since he had a very high MP of 900 and a high recovery rate, he didn't mind abusing small skills.

Air blades headed toward Reze, who tried to dodge, parry with explosions, and managed to get closer to him.

She extended her hand towards him. Her palm released a large-scale explosion that engulfed everything behind him, from cars to buildings, and civilians.

'She's surely a crazy bitch,' Sam thought as he appeared up in the air. He looked at Reze as he sheathed his sword. The next second, a trail of silver lights surrounded him before his sword reappeared in its sheath. Many air blades flew from every direction toward Reze, who had yet to realize what to do. Cuts appeared on her flesh from everywhere. She screamed and released her arms, exploding her whole body. A pillar of explosion that matched a high building was released.

Sam, who had yet to land on the ground, found himself flying along the shockwave.

He flipped, trying to regain his balance. Just as he looked at the ground, he saw Reze flying toward him with a series of explosions. And she already appeared next to him, her fist heading toward his stomach. He quickly unsheathed his sword and parried the first blow, cutting inside her.

Reze didn't stop. Instead, she used raw strength to direct him to the ground.

"Have a safe landing."

"Not again," Sam frowned, remembering the last time he fell from the sky.

He took his sword back and crossed his arms over his face.

BOOM

A large explosion hit him, sending him flying like a nuke to the earth, creating a massive shockwave that shook the ground and made a huge hole.

[-100 HP]

[-120 HP]

Sam coughed up some blood as he felt severe pain. He was still fine, but he started getting frustrated as he stood up.

A few cuts and wounds appeared on him, but no serious injuries were sustained. Nothing that some gummy bears couldn't fix.

Reze flew toward the ground, ready for a second explosion. He could see where she was heading.

Sam unsheathed his sword and waved it before turning and walking away.

From his sword, an air blade flew above Reze and curved, covered in fire, forming three large swords that headed down behind her.

The three swords pierced her legs and back, giving her momentum to reach the ground. Just as she hit it, the three swords exploded, each sword creating a crack in the ground.

"Even with that, you're still alive," Sam thought as he had yet to hear the notification. He turned to her, and she was struggling to stand up, already losing her fiend form.

"For real. How did Tony really beat you?" she asked.

"We bet in a scissor-paper-rock match. And he defeated me."

An utterly confused look appeared on Reze's face as she reached for her neck ring. An angry expression took over her face when she seemed to realize that he was messing up with her. 

Sam cracked his fist. "Believe it, motherfuckah."

"I think I should attack you with the intent of killing you if I want to take you down." Reze said as she took a very long deep breath. 

"It's too late for that." Sam's heart started beating louder and louder. His veins became more apparent, and his skin took on a redder tone. The heat of his body created a steamy aura around him. "You've wasted your chance to do that."