A deafening shrill resounded the scene as the assassin's body, which was covered with thick golden Verdant Mana, flashed from his location, the assassin's launching momentum leaving behind a small crack in the ground as he simultaneously vanished from observable sight.
Mark stood with a serious demeanor as his body continuously radiated with killing intent, a look of shock appeared on his serious face as he raised an eyebrow after seeing the assassin's speed- but before Mark could even fully raise his eyebrow, a heavy force collided with his Iron Body, this force causing Mark to be sent back a hundred meters in the distance as a large path of skated earth lay before him, a look of realization crossed Mark's face as if comprehending something- but he didn't even get to finish his realization as the same unbearable force came at Mark again, this time, the speeding force used a dagger as it slashed at Mark's chest, a wide mark appearing on Mark's chest, tearing the guard uniform and revealing a chest which was completely made of iron.
Mark grunted painfully as he instinctively raised his arms to grab the speeding force which was within close range, but unfortunately, the force was too fast for Mark, as it left him hugging empty air. But then, the speeding force began an endless barrage of attacks as it left countless markings and dents on Mark's Iron Body, even attacking his neck and going for the kill, the attacks were so fierce and fast that Mark could only cover his head with his blocking arms as blood began running down his nose. Since Mark's head was looking down while blocking, he watched as the blood from his nose dripped and fell to the ground, a look of reminiscing flashed across Mark's eyes as a certain scene replayed in his mind.
_He had just lost his entire fortune and had returned to his old Gate-hunting organization for financial assistance, but instead of help, he was cut off from the Organization, declaring him an old and wasted man who has nothing to show for his decades of life work, he was called a liability and it was within the Organization's best interest to cut off their high-risk low-reward prospects. They mocked him for being incapable of increasing his rank and will forever remain as a D-rank, even future generations would be able to completely suppress him while at the identical rank. Truly a shameful day for a once fierce and domineering D-rank Awakened, Mark Willis._
These memories resurfaced in Mark's mind as the very thing he was mocked for was currently happening, he was getting suppressed by a younger generation Awakened of similar rank, and at a greater momentum at that. A look of pure rage appeared on Mark's face, Mana energy bellowing from his body as his aura erupted like an erupting volcano, his energy eruption causing the speeding force to halt its attacks and retreat in an instant. Mark now stood with raging Mana thicker the speeding force as he slowly and confidently relaxed his arms which were blocking. Spitting a mouthful of blood, Mark wiped his lips as he stared at the black-clothed assassin murderously, he spoke.
"You! You have been hiding your true strength from your comrades- haven't you?! You don't need to answer, your fighting power and utilization of your ability says it all, despite your age, you can use your speed ability where you can even cause Speed Mirage, that's not the ability of a mere D-rank, not even C-rank speedsters can cause a Speed Mirage, yet you did anyways... You... you are a B-rank aren't you?"
...!
Silence filled the scene as the speeding force instantly halted its movement, this unseeable force finally stopping as it revealed the previously D-rank black-clothed assassin. A look of shock and pure disbelief was on the assassin's face as he stared at Mark with widened eyes, but he then assumed a relaxed expression as he relaxed his widened eyes, without hesitation, the assassin placed a hand to his chin and casually pulled off his mask as he spoke.
"...Sigh! And here I thought I wouldn't be exposed that easily... you know, not even Laniz Blake could detect my true Awakened rank, and he is an A-rank, yet a mere D-rank half-century oldie like you was able to tell with the presence of a mere Speed Mirage... ok old man, I take back my words, you are quite perceptive.
But you are not entirely correct; you see, my actual rank is at the D-rank level, but my Awakened ability, 'Golden Rush,' is a B-rank ability, so you mistaking me for a B-rank isn't entirely wrong either."
The assassin spoke as he unmasked his face, revealing a young man in his late twenties with sharp eyes and a handsome face. He had black short hair and a defined jawline. Steadily cracking his neck side to side, the assassin exercised his shoulders as he spoke with a passionless tone.
"Ok- old man, enough talking... now that you know my greatest secret, you should know death is your only exit here."
"Listen boy... in all my life, not once have I ever been threatened, not even when I lost my job at an influential Gate-hunting company... and yet you, a mere baby with shit stains dare to stand before me with a dagger and threaten me?! Ok then, since you think I'm that easy to kill, why don't you try it!"
A taunted grin appeared on the assassin's face as he mockingly smiled at Mark, he did a light jump as his figure vanished again, his Golden Rush ability truly displaying its speed power as it made its user completely vanish from observable sight.
Seeing the sudden disappearance of the assassin, Mark's raging Mana continued erupting as he released tens of Detection Essences, his surrounding instantly becoming clear to him as he noticed the slightest changes. But even with his Detection Essence, Mark was unable to detect the assassin's figure. But in the midst of getting attacked, another memory of someone advising Mark instantly flashed in his mind as he remembered the exact words of this person, this person was none other than his boss, Patrick Alexander King.
_
Patrick was laying under the shade of a wide tree as he fiddled with a pen, the pen going in between his fingers as he stared at the afternoon skies. Soon later, Mark approached from the distance he greeted Patrick with a salute; a tinge of curiosity flashed in his mind as he attempted to use Detection Essence to peek at this Boss of his, who is not an Awakened- yet is capable of creating things which even surpasses the capabilities of items from Gates. A single Detection Essence echo emerged from Mark's body as it covered everything within a 100-meter radius, allowing Mark to scan everything within his scan range, including Patrick. But a look of shock and disbelief appeared on Mark's face as he expressed with a frown, his thoughts running amok as he internally voiced his shock. 'What?! I can't detect Boss?! How is that possible... Boss is not an Awakened, so how is his presence undetectable?!' Amidst his shock, Patrick's voice sounded, with an amused but passionless smile on his face.
"... I know you are using detection essence and trying to peek into my body... don't bother- my Presence Erasing Pen can make even an A rank incapable of detecting me, your D-rank Detection Essence won't even sense my breath. And also, becoming too reliant on your Awakened powers will lead you on a road of unknown calamity, which is a road eighty percent of Awakened are already far into... what if the day comes when these Awakened powers are taken from you?- since they can be given, so can they be taken.
You Awakened are so dependent on your Awakened powers that you have neglected the very natural instincts within you...Survival Instinct- the very factor which has propelled the Human race and countless other species to progress since its origin. Sometimes it's better to take a step back and return to your origins, as without our origins, we are but a feather in the wind, letting fate drift us to wherever it pleases... sigh! I'm bored already... here, these are this month's bonus rewards, remember my words if you like, or you can ignore them totally also, after all, what does an Unawakened like me know- see you around Mark."
Patrick spoke as he rose from the ground, throwing a pinky ring at Mark while dusting his back, his figure disappearing in the distance after with a confident walk as he cared less if Mark took his advice.
_
At this moment, the sudden face of someone who has been enlightened flashed across Mark's face as he closed his eyes, his raging Mana instantly calming down as it completely vanished from the scene, leaving him only with his Iron Body. Mark's face appeared calm as he exhaled from his mouth, his lips opening as he murmured lightly. "Return to your origins, let your body do its natural task of ensuring its survival- that's it!" Mark finally opened his eyes as he noticed the speeding force was already slicing down at him, aiming to split him in half. But unlike his previous self, Mark didn't bother blocking, instead- he relaxed his body as he completely gave control to his Survival Instinct... almost simultaneously, a blood-red flash occurred as it was a centimeter away from Mark's skull, but as if already expecting the attack, Mark's body reacted as he turned sideways, allowing the dagger to freely slice empty air, where Mark was supposed to be standing.
But the speeding force didn't stop, it continued with another attack- this time- thrusting at Mark's head, but again, Mark's body moved, his head slanting left as it caused the dagger to completely miss its target. Similar series of events occurred as the speeding force used different methods and styles to attack Mark, the speeding power even resorting to hand-to-hand combat as all his attacks were either dodged or completely redirected, causing the attacks to lose their momentum. After two minutes of aimless attacks, the speeding force halted again as it revealed a frustrated and exhausted young assassin.
"Haa! Haa! What the hell is going on?! What did you do- old man?! How are you able to dodge my attacks all of a sudden? You should be a lowly D-rank, whose fate was a breath away from death, and yet now you easily and effortlessly dodge my attacks as if I'm facing an A-rank. Tell me- what did you do?!" The assassin bellowed frustratingly as he breathed exhaustingly, his chest heaving up and down while staring at the calm and tranquil Mark hoping for an answer.
But contrary to his expectations, the assassin watched as Mark amazingly inspected his body like a kid discovering the existence and taste of ice cream. Mark ignored the assassin as he watched his Iron-skinned body with an amazed face, one thought ringing in his mind. 'Boss was right! Gifts from Nature beats everything else, even the powers of Awakened.'
"Not bad, Mark, you seem to have made a great psychological progress... I'm a little impressed!"
Suddenly, another voice sounded from the distance, interrupting the fight between Mark and the assassin, this voice sounded impassive yet impressed as it instantly defused the murderous intensity in the scene. A look of surprise appeared on both Mark's and the assassin's faces as they stared at a being in the air; the person's body radiated golden lights as the intricate and detailed patterns on his suit-like skin made his appearance majestic and revering. The arrived person hovered with hands behind him as he impassively stared at Mark, a vast amount of golden Mana essence bathed around him like smoke, the golden Mana essence spreading for at least a thousand meters, truly making this arrived figure a force of immense capabilities and danger.
"Boss?!" A word came from Mark's mouth as his eyes and mouth remained widened in shock; looking at the being in the sky, whose presence was too overwhelming and revering to bear, Mark subconsciously knelt on both knees as he excitedly and fanatically stared at this person he just called "Boss." But while Mark held an excited countenance, the same cannot be said for the assassin, on the contrary, a feeling of absolute terror washed over the assassin as he assumed a dreadful and terrified face, his eyes bulged out as he stared at the being in the sky.
'What!? Is he the Boss?! Wait!- the old man had said 1 would be facing his Boss... but if his Boss is here, then where is 1?! Is he already- ?!' A dreadful thought surfaced in the assassin's mind as he couldn't even dare finish it, as it was too terrifying of thought to exercise. A C-rank Awakened had died so easily that he didn't even leave a scratch on the enemy, as a D-rank Awakened, such reality was beyond comprehension, as to him, 1 was his escaping card, but now that 1 is dead, what does that say for him?!
With this thought in mind, the assassin's body instantly erupted with all of his Mana reserves as he galvanized his Golden Rush ability to the maximum, his body simultaneously vanishing and leaving a Speed Mirage to replace his physical body. The speed mirage only lasted for a millisecond.
But unbeknownst to the assassin, his body which he thought was in the process of speeding from the scene, was raised from the ground, showing his legs running fast like a blur, if he was on land, his speed can be imagined.
"Where do you think you are going- little speedster?! Have I authorized your exit?"
Suddenly, the man spoke with an impassive tone as he side-eyed the assassin, his hands behind his back, his hair fluttering in the golden Mana essence as his suit constantly pulsated with golden brilliance. A look of terror overtook the assassin's face as he realized his predicament, he was raised from the ground, rendering his ability useless; this simple yet genius method of this man sent waves of alarm in the assassin's heart as he trembled. But as if thought of something, a light of hope flashed in the assassin's eyes as he hurriedly shouted.
"You!- Do you know what you are doing? How dare you interfere in the affairs of our Shadow Knights Guild?! If you don't want the whole weight of our guild to descend upon you and your little orphanage, I suggest you let me go now, or else you will be praying for a quick death when the higher ranks of our guild notice our absence- so I would release me if I were you as to prevent total doom!"
The assassin spoke in one breath as his terrified expression lessened, his face assuming a confident mood as he stared at the being in the distance, with an expectation that this being would react to the name and reputation of his guild and back down from killing him. But suddenly, the assassin's face changed as he listened to the tall man speak. The man's voice sounded cold and filled with ridicule.
"A mere coward, who uses the power and influence of others, and yet you dare make threatening barks at me?!- You must be bored of your existence. But I shall do you the favor and end your boredom."
The tall man spoke as soon after, a whistling sound occurred, simultaneously after, the assassin's body was enshrouded in a devastating tornado as it instantly shredded him to pieces. Three seconds later, the tornado dissipated into nothingness, taking the assassin's remains with it, as of this moment, there weren't the slightest human remains of the assassin left on the scene.
Mark, who had witnessed the occurring events had a shocked face with widened eyes as he stared at the scene where the assassin got shredded into nothing, he then slowly switched his eyes to the tall man who had caused this gruesome scene as a feeling of fear and respect swelled in his heart. He had struggled with this assassin for a while now, but yet, this man he calls Boss only needed a few seconds as he completely erased the former with a mere gaze. A look of realization emerged in Mark's eyes as he thought while staring at the man in question.
'This! Could it be that Boss finally Awakened?!- If that's the case then what level of Awakened is he?!... A-rank, AA-rank, or even AAA-rank?! For him to easily use his ability to kill that kid, his Awakened ability should be at least powerful enough to be in the AAA rank, wait! Maybe even S-rank?! But that's beside the point, for a person like Boss to Awaken, what does that mean?
Boss was able to create numerous items and gadgets which even disregarded the powers of Awakened, as they completely defied logic and reason... and he accomplished all these while being an ordinary human. Now that he has become Awakened, doesn't that mean his future will be even brighter than before?! With Boss' intellect, and now coupled with his power as an Awakened, what reality-shattering creations would he be making from now on- and how powerful would they be?!'
Mark sucked in a breath of cold air as his thoughts ran to places his mind could not fathom, the mere thought of his Boss entering the world as he would be joining the power game giving him gossebumps. Mark's thoughts gathered to one conclusion as he reverentially stared at his Boss, whose presence was basked with endless golden verdant Mana essence, Mark lowly murmured.
"So the time has finally arrived... the time for Boss to step on the road of Absolute Domination."