Endel charged forward, rage flooding his body as though every atom of his being was set ablaze. Berserk, his new power, quickly took control, and now nothing could stop him. Adrenaline, hot and merciless, roared through his veins, and the world around him faded to black and white: there was only him and the monster. Nothing else.
Like a crashing wave, Endel hurled himself at the creature with unrelenting fury. His fists clenched tight, and his first act was to shove Kael away from the monster. Caught off guard, Kael was thrown back, his body slamming into the wall with such force that cracks spread across the concrete. He collapsed to the floor, unconscious.
"Aaaaaaaaah!" Lyra screamed at the sight of her husband, but before she could take a step, her vision went dark. She crumpled, unconscious, onto the floor.
Carlos and Leina, frozen with panic, grabbed hold of her, dragging her to safety — yet their eyes never left the brutal fight unfolding in the living room.
Endel glided across the floor with inhuman speed, closing in on the monster. His body felt alive with every surge of fury, as though the entire world had turned into an empty battlefield meant only for him. There was no fear in his eyes now — only raw, unfiltered rage. His fist slammed into the creature's abdomen with a thunderous crack, driving the air out of its lungs. But the small yet powerful beast refused to yield. It roared, a piercing shriek tearing from its throat, shaking the walls of the room.
The monster was small but vicious, with a twisted, deformed green body and glowing red eyes — the embodiment of a nightmare. Its claws, sharp as blades, flashed in the dim light as it tore toward Endel. He struck with his elbow, but the monster caught his wrist and flung him across the room. Endel staggered, but with a wild roar, he rose again.
He seized whatever he could find — the broken leg of a stool from Kael's earlier strike, a table, scraps of metal — wielding anything that could inflict damage. Pain and fear no longer existed for him. His mind had narrowed to a single thought: victory. He hurled himself back into the fray again and again.
The monster's claws slashed into his flesh, tearing at him, but each blow only made Endel's movements more savage, his madness more consuming. His every thought dissolved into a single word:
KILL. KILL. KILL. KILL. KILL.
He ducked beneath another swipe and smashed his fist into the monster's gut. He felt the creature's hard body shudder under the blow, but it wasn't enough. He struck again, harder, faster, feeding his fury with every resistance the beast showed.
The monster retaliated with a crushing strike to Endel's chest, as though an iron vice had clamped around his ribs. Pain tore through him, but in his berserk state it did not stop him — it only fed the fire. His rage exploded anew.
He was a caged beast unleashed. Every blow he landed was heavier, more brutal, his body moving with the rhythm of a colossal hammer. He struck the monster in the neck, staggering it, but its claws lashed out again, ripping through his thigh and shredding the fabric of his clothes. Blood welled, but Endel no longer noticed.
He was covered in deep scratches, his body battered and bleeding — but his fury consumed all sense of pain. With a roar, he snatched up a length of metal pipe and drove it straight into the monster's chest.
The creature howled in agony, but it did not fall. It wheezed, breath ragged, before lunging again, its claws plunging into Endel's side, piercing his liver. He staggered, nearly collapsing, but his eyes burned crimson with rage.
"Endel!" Leina screamed, her voice shaking with terror, but she could not reach him. Carlos pulled her back, gripping her hand, trying to lead her away from the chaos. Yet neither of them could look away.
Endel twisted, dodging another slash, and slammed into the monster with all his weight, toppling it. His fury surged, boiling over. He hammered the creature with savage strikes, so ferocious that its screeches turned into choked, gurgling cries.
Bam.
Bam.
Bam.
The table he'd grabbed rose and fell against the monster's skull, over and over. The beast writhed, its body warping and breaking under the relentless barrage.
It staggered back, struggling to rise, but every movement was weaker than the last. Endel didn't stop. He couldn't. His madness drove him forward, merciless and blind.
Carlos and Leina could only watch in horror, their hearts frozen. Their friend no longer looked human. He was a raging storm of violence — yet he was alive, fighting, no longer the empty shell they had feared.
Every blow struck their own souls like a hammer, each second of the fight tearing at them. But as the monster weakened, hope began to flicker. No matter how monstrous Endel seemed, he was here, battling. He was not gone.
Finally, Endel dropped to his knees, his chest heaving. His body was torn, scarred, drenched in blood. His muscles trembled, refusing to obey, but the fury in him still burned, even as the enemy lay shattered. His gaze was vacant, clouded. There was no triumph in him, no sense of victory — only exhaustion and pain.
Every breath was agony, every movement a torment. His body felt alien, like a broken shell. The Berserk state ebbed, leaving only ruin in its wake. His heart pounded like a war drum, and every twitch of muscle sent waves of pain through him.
He lowered his head, dazed, his thoughts unraveling into chaos. He wanted to vanish, to sink into the dark, to rest. Just rest. Yet his eyes locked onto his friends — alive, breathing.
Leina and Carlos stood nearby, their faces etched with fear and worry. Leina trembled, tears spilling as she watched him. Carlos still held Lyra in his arms, his own expression taut and grim.
For a moment, it all felt unreal. But Endel understood one thing: they lived. They had survived. Unlike the first regression, they were not dead. That was all that mattered.
Then, a new screen shimmered into existence before his eyes — blue letters floating in the air.
[You are the first to kill an E-class monster.Reward: 1000 points and one E-rank skill of your choice.]
But it meant nothing to him. Endel could not care less about points or skills. His mind was fog, retreating from reality. His battered body screamed for rest, but he lacked even the strength to seek it.
He toppled sideways, his arms useless, collapsing like a sack of stones. Unconscious.
Leina rushed to him, her steps clumsy and frantic, tears blurring her vision. She cradled his head against her shoulder, her hands shaking as she tried to hold him.
"Endel…" she whispered, broken, her voice trembling. She gripped his hand tighter, staring at his ruined body — shredded with gashes, broken bones, torn flesh, his side pierced deep.
Carlos laid Lyra on the couch and came to stand beside her. He said nothing, only watching in stunned silence. His mind could not process what had just unfolded before his eyes.