The atmosphere inside the abandoned warehouse, once raucous with mocking laughter, had now fallen dead silent, leaving behind only the cloying scent of blood and the corpses of low-level minions scattered breathlessly across the floor. The dust kicked up by the explosion of the [Asura Palm] moments earlier still hung in the air like a mist of death.
In the dark shadows behind, Finley, still bound and hanging in mid-air, squinted through a curtain of tears and pain. She saw the figure of her beloved brother standing firm and alone, facing off against a demon that towered over him like a mountain.
Jagger slowly straightened up to his full height. He raised a hand to brush the dust off his shirt nonchalantly, before using his thumb to wipe the blood from the corner of his mouth with a relaxed demeanor. His eyes shone with the look of a winner who had read the game perfectly... He had waited a long time for this the moment when the enemy's "battery" would drain to the desired level.
"Heh heh..." Jagger chuckled low in his throat and slowly walked toward Owen. His heavy combat boots crushed debris into fine powder with every step.
"I have to admit, Owen... you're very good..." Jagger praised with a voice dripping with mockery, his gaze observing Owen's condition with satisfaction. "Great at handling all my minions without getting a speck of dust on yourself..."
He paused slightly before grinning wide enough to show his white teeth. A cruel glint replaced his previous carelessness.
"But... your battery seems to have drained a lot! Hahaha"
Massive pressure began to radiate from Jagger's giant body again, but this time it was several times more violent and savage than before. Waves of pitch-black mana swirled around him like a storm forming.
"Playtime is over... Let's start the real thing!"
As soon as he finished speaking, Jagger tensed his body and roared!
"Yaaaahhh!!"
Rip!!
Amidst the roar, Jagger unleashed his true power. He flexed his muscles until his already tattered black shirt shredded apart, revealing intimidating muscles that bulged and twisted as if living things were squirming beneath the skin.
Crack... Snap...!
The sound of bones cracking echoed thunderously like snapping wood, mingling with the sickening sound of tearing tendons and flesh, so horrifying that Finley, watching from afar, had to look away.
"Arghhhhh!!"
Jagger continued to roar. His dark tan human skin began to transform... Pitch-black pigment surged up to cover his skin rapidly, hardening into thick, glossy armor plates that reflected the light, resembling biological steel armor.
From the center of his forehead, a pitch-black sharp horn slowly grew out, curved and pointed like the horn of a giant 'Rhinoceros Beetle'. His body expanded continuously. From a giant man of 2 meters, he had now transformed into an insectoid monster encased in armor, standing nearly 2.5 meters tall!
And this was the ability of the man named Jagger, an Awakened of the Body-Transformation Type [Rhinoceros Beetle: Rank B+].
An aura of death radiated from that pitch-black figure. He looked like a living tank ready to crush everything in his path.
Thud! Thud!
Jagger, in his "Half-Human Half-Beetle" form, marched through the dust toward Owen. His massive weight caused the concrete floor to vibrate with every step.
However... Owen, standing face-to-face with that terror, showed no sign of panic. On the contrary, he let out a soft breath of relief.
'Finally... the last variable is revealed.'
Owen smiled internally. What he feared most wasn't strength, but 'the unknown'. Now that the enemy had revealed their hand, that anxiety vanished.
'Body-Transformation Type... a beetle species with a hard shell (Chitin), combined with the [Mana Armor] technique he specializes in...'
Owen's genius-level brain processed the information instantly.
'High physical defense merged with energy armor that blocks almost all attacks... This guy is basically a 'Living Fortress'.'
Even with that analysis, Owen wasn't one to believe a hypothesis without testing. He still needed to verify the strength of that armor with his own eyes.
"Let's test it..."
Vwoom!
Owen flicked his right palm forward. Crimson mana formed into a giant [Asura Palm], shooting out to slam into the center of Jagger's chitin-covered chest in the blink of an eye!
BANG!!!
The sound of impact roared. Dust billowed through the area. But... when the dust cleared, the image that appeared caused the hearts of onlookers to skip a beat.
Jagger's giant 2.5-meter frame had merely staggered back half a step. His feet remained planted firmly, not budging an inch. And what was more shocking was that on that glossy black carapace... there wasn't even a single scratch!
Jagger looked down at his chest. He used a hand equipped with sharp insect claws to brush the dust off the impact point lightly, completely unfazed, before looking up to smirk hideously with a mouth that stretched unnaturally wide.
"Hahaha! Is that all?" His voice was deep and resonant. "I knew the weakness of this skill long ago, Owen... It's fast, true, but it lacks penetration power! No matter how fast you attack... what use is it if you can't even scratch my skin!"
Owen watched the result with an impassive face. His brain rapidly calculated the damage numbers and cost-efficiency.
'Damage... Zero.'
'Mana consumption... Too high.'
If he stubbornly continued using the [Asura Palm] to attack, it would only waste his remaining mana for nothing, without inflicting any wounds on this fortress.
"Sigh..."
Owen feigned a long, loud sigh, as if weary of facing such a tough task. He released his mana control, letting the red Asura Palm dissipate into the air.
'Since long-range won't work... I have to change methods.'
Click...
Owen shifted his feet, placing his left foot forward, right foot back, digging his toes firmly into the ground. He bent his knees slightly, raising his elbows high to guard his chin, shifting his stance from an elegant mage to an aggressive Muay Thai fighter.
His goal had changed... He would no longer use mana to push the enemy back. He would use it for a single purpose: to exchange blows in close combat, slowly accumulating heat for his trusty gauntlets.
'Massage gently, calm and cool, avoiding as much damage as possible... then finish it in one blow. That is the plan...'
Vwoom... Vwoom...
The moment his killing intent focused on the clash, the air around the [Sun God's Gauntlets] began to distort. A faint, scorching heat wafted out, like a mirage in a desert, indicating the energy reactor was waking up for the coming battle.
Jagger raised an eyebrow slightly upon seeing the stance. "Hmm? That stance... seems the intel about you learning martial arts was correct..."
He scoffed, looking at Owen like a giant ant challenging an elephant.
"But... are you so desperate you've lost your mind? Thinking of using bare fists to punch a tank? The outcome has already been decided, you idiot!"
Owen didn't respond with a single word. His golden eyes blazed with flames of determination.
Thud!!
He channeled mana into his right arm, using the [Reinforcement] technique until his muscles tensed tight. Veins expanded to pump energy before he launched himself toward the enemy at the maximum speed a Rank B body could muster.
The target was Jagger's lower body, which appeared to have less thick armor than the chest.
"Hup!"
Owen twisted his waist to send force, driving a straight right punch through the air to crash squarely into Jagger's glossy black chitin-covered stomach!
THUD!!!
The sound wasn't the 'Smack' of flesh hitting flesh, nor the 'Crack' of breaking bones... but a dull, heavy sound, like someone striking a sledgehammer against a thick truck tire or a solid steel plate that would never dent.
"Ugh..."
Owen gritted his teeth as massive recoil shot back through the knuckles of the [Sun God's Gauntlets], through his wrist and elbow, running up to his right shoulder like an electric shock, causing his entire arm to go "numb" for a moment.
The result was despairing... Jagger's giant insectoid body merely vibrated slightly from the impact. Both his feet remained planted in the same spot, solid and unmoving, not retreating even a single millimeter.
The pitch-black armor surface rippled only slightly before returning to its rigid state, as if mocking the ant's worthless effort.
However... in the split second the punch connected with the armor, if one looked closely, the heat generated from the impact was silently absorbed by the gauntlets, causing their temperature to warm up slightly. And of course, Jagger wasn't a thermometer; there was no way he would notice this change.
"Heh..."
Jagger looked down at the fist sunk superficially into his armor and smirked ruthlessly. He didn't even bother to guard or dodge, because his instinct and experience told him, 'This guy can't pierce through.'
"My turn!"
With a roar, the giant beetle monster began to move. Jagger chose the most brutal method... turning his body into a living tank and rushing in to crush the enemy flat!
BOOM!
Jagger launched himself forward with incredible speed for his size. A massive right fist encased in thick armor swung down, intending to smash Owen into the dirt.
However... in Owen's eyes, fully activating the [Insight Field], Jagger's movement was "read" completely in advance.
Red trajectory lines appeared in his vision, clearly identifying the impact point and blast radius.
'Right... Smash down.'
Owen didn't panic. He simply stepped back and swayed to the left with footwork as fluid as water.
Whoosh!
Jagger's giant fist swept past his face by a hair's breadth. The wind from the attack whipped Owen's hair, before the fist slammed into the concrete floor, shattering it into a deep crater.
CRASH!
Jagger didn't let the momentum break his rhythm. He used the centrifugal force to spin back, using the sharp "horn" on his forehead to sweep horizontally across a wide area to cut off escape routes.
'Horizontal sweep... Must duck.'
Owen's brain commanded faster than light. He chose not to retreat but dropped low, ducking under the lethal horn beautifully.
Fwip!
The sound of air slicing whistled above his head, but Owen didn't let the golden opportunity slip. In the moment he ducked into the inner circle, he seized the chance to drive two right uppercuts into Jagger's ribs.
Thud! Thud!
Although the echoing sound indicated it didn't penetrate, Owen didn't care. He sprang back to the outer ring immediately as Jagger began to thrash and smash the ground wildly.
The image Finley saw from afar was unbelievable... Owen was like a leaf floating amidst a raging storm. No matter how violent or fast Jagger attacked, Owen could read the path and dodge by the skin of his teeth every time, as if he could see the future.
But... the cruel reality began to emerge as the fight dragged on.
'Damn it... my body is starting to lag behind my thoughts.'
Owen cursed internally. Although the [Insight Field] allowed him to see attack trajectories 99% in advance, his non-speed-type Rank B body was starting to respond slower little by little. Meanwhile, Jagger, with Rank B+ physical strength and insect stamina, was getting faster the longer he fought!
"Gotcha, kid!!"
Jagger roared as he cornered Owen against a wall. He used his entire "body" to charge in a shoulder tackle, covering such a wide area that escape was impossible.
In that split second, Owen's brain flashed red warning text dodge impossible!
Knowing space and time didn't allow for footwork, Owen had to grit his teeth and play his secondary card. He crossed both arms in front of him, accelerating mana to conjure a localized [Mana Armor] to protect his arms in a flash.
BANG!!!!
The heavy impact, like a ten-wheel truck collision, slammed into the Sun God's Gauntlets and the [Mana Armor] squarely!
The transparent red armor plate shattered and exploded into shards of light. Owen gritted his teeth as the impact transferred to his body. He was sent flying, sliding across the floor for several meters, his boots screeching against the ground ear-splittingly.
"Ugh..."
Owen choked out a breath. Pain shot through his arms, but what hurt more was the feeling of emptiness in his body... A chunk of mana had been ripped away in exchange for blocking that attack.
This was the difference in class... Owen might be superior in 'Brain' and 'Agility', but in terms of 'Strength', 'Defense', and 'Mana Mastery', Jagger was clearly superior.
Jagger didn't let his prey catch a breath. He stomped forward with a ruthless smile, narrowing the space like a meat grinder at work.
The fight proceeded in a suffocating pattern... Owen dodged 7 times... but was forced to take a hit 3 times... and every time he took a hit, it meant his 'Mana' his life fuel was burning out.
"Huff... Huff..."
As time passed, Owen began to pant. His standing room was squeezed tighter and tighter, like a tiny mouse running from a rampaging elephant in a cage.
The situation had turned into an exchange that was completely "Unequal".
While Jagger grew more energetic the longer he fought, his power seemingly endless, his body unscathed and full of confidence.
Owen's condition, however, was deteriorating. His clothes were torn, revealing bruises. Fresh blood seeped from the corner of his mouth. His chest heaved violently from gasping for air. His once-steady concentration began to waver due to accumulated pain.
Yet even so... Owen still gritted his teeth, rushing in to trade punches at every opportunity.
Thud! Thud! Pow!
Punch after punch was sent crashing into the hard armor. Though it looked futile and foolish to an outsider, every time a fist hit the target... the atmosphere around Owen began to undergo a strange change.
The "Air" around his fists began to ripple, like a mirage on an asphalt road at noon. The faint smell of burnt fabric and dust singing in the heat began to drift into the nose.
And the sound of impact, once dull, began to have a soft 'Sssss...' interjected, like water dropping onto a hot pan.
On Jagger's side, his animal instinct began to scream a warning about this anomaly.
'His fist... is getting hotter?'
Jagger frowned slightly, sensing the heat radiating through his armor every time he was hit. His insect eyes fixed on Owen's gauntlets, which were now glowing redder and redder.
His brain began analyzing the situation rapidly and logically.
'This guy... does he have Fire Mana too? Or is it just heat from friction caused by rapid attacks?'
Several thoughts flashed by, but ultimately, Jagger brushed them aside with a mocking smile.
'Whatever it is, it's just the desperate struggle of a cornered dog! Using Fire Mana combined with physical attacks will only drain his stamina faster... True, my chitin armor might not like heat, but with the [Mana Armor] I coated another layer with, it blocks over 90%!'
'Nothing to fear... Crush him and end this!'
Deciding this, Jagger accelerated another level.
On Owen's side, trying to find a rhythm to counter-punch and stack more heat, suddenly his right leg gave out from exhaustion, causing him to misstep for just a split second.
And that was a disaster!
Jagger caught that mistake instantly! He spun around, swinging a backhand. His forearm, covered in sharp spikes and coated in hard armor, sliced through the air with killing speed and force!
Owen's eyes widened. He realized immediately "Too late to dodge."
No other choice but to take it! Owen clenched his jaw until it bulged, raising both arms to cross in a guard, squeezing out his last drop of mana to create a shield.
BANG!!!!
The sound of impact roared like thunder!
Owen's mana armor shattered into light shards in an instant. The massive impact force sent his body flying, crashing violently into the warehouse's concrete wall behind him.
CRASHHH!!
The thick concrete wall cracked and caved in, forming a deep depression shaped like his body. Concrete dust billowed, obscuring everything.
"B... Brother Owen!! Noooo!!"
Finley's scream rang out in extreme panic. Her face was pale, tears streaming down in despair as she saw her brother lie motionless in the pile of rubble.
Silence covered the area for a moment... Jagger stood panting slightly, but his face was full of a winner's smile. He was certain that attack must have broken at least 3 of the enemy's ribs.
But then... amidst that pile of dust, the sound of movement emerged.
Scrape... Click...
Owen slowly pushed himself up from the debris... His upper clothes were in tatters, barely holding together. Fresh red blood flowed down from his forehead, over his left eye, dripping onto the floor drip, drip. His breathing was ragged and uneven, his body trembling with pain.
But what made Jagger's smile fade... were those "Eyes".
That pair of golden eyes.
They remained calm... deep... and terrifyingly devoid of fear.
Owen flicked the blood off his hands, then slowly raised both hands to set his Muay Thai guard again... solid as a rock.
And as the dust settled, every eye witnessed the anomaly on his hands.
The [Sun God's Gauntlets] were no longer flickering with unstable heat as before... instead, they had turned a "Deep Crimson", intense, calm, and eerily stable.
The heat radiating from them was so intense it caused the surrounding air to distort frighteningly. It was as if he wasn't wearing gauntlets... but wearing a "Small Sun" whose mass had been compressed to the limit, waiting for the time to rise above the horizon and incinerate everything.
Owen stared into Jagger's eyes through that pulsing heat, before lifting the bloody corner of his mouth slightly, conveying a clear meaning without speaking a word.
"Come on... I haven't fallen yet."
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