"Woah!" A man standing on a far away mountain chuckled when he saw a giant wind ball blasting in the distance. He recognized that direction as where one of of his teammates went to.
"Looks like Bryce has started the fight early."
"Hm?"
"He's making our prey go all out that it's using a self destruct skill. Unfortunately for it, Bryce wasn't the only one it'll have to worry about." Eight of the nine people on the mountain cackled as they realized that they wouldn't have to do much in order to capture their unfortunate victim.
The imposter that had previously gone cave trespassing, was part of this confident ten man group. They felt they had the right to be prideful as they were an elite force of level 30 to 40 super humans.
In their heads, they were unstoppable, especially under the leadership of their valiant leader, and the only level fifty in their group, Albert Andre.
So to them, their fellow team member was in a heated battle with the man they were sent to capture.
"Well then, let's go join the fun, huh, leader?" The leader of the group was standing in front of them, and as he nodded, the rest took it as a signal to head into the fight.
However as they prepared for jumping off the mountain, they suddenly heard an unfamiliar voice from behind.
"Ooh, can I join this 'fun' too?"
They all subconsciously turned to look behind them. And standing not far at all from the group, was a man with flowing black hair, and in a full white outfit; a slim shirt and ankle length pants.
The man, seeing as they weren't responding, tilted his head slightly. "So?" He then tapped the shoulder of one of them.
KA!
An horrific scene soon unfolded before their wide eyes. The man who was touched by their unexpected visitor, suddenly started folding, from his legs upwards.
He screamed and screeched because of the pain he was experiencing, alas, that was the only thing he could do.
KAKAKRAKA!
His bones cracked and folded like a bloody mess of an origami figure, and when the red eyed person was done, the only thing that was left of their former teammate was a round red ball, the size of an apple.
"So?" The Infected muffled out as he began munching on his snack.
Unfortunately for him, he was probably not going to get his answer. Especially not from this crew.
Everyone apart from the red eyed man, froze in shock at what they had just witnessed. It was so unfathomable, that their brain hadn't even processed it fully. Their eyes were unblinking, hearts thumping as hard as a stampede and they were feeling deadly chills running down their spines.
The man who had just died was a level 32! How could a level 32 just die that easily, without resistance or a single chance of survival? What was even worse however, was the fact that they couldn't even move.
Was their 'prey' really an A-ranker like the reports said? Was he even a young man?
Eighteen to twenty five! How could a human gather this amount of power in only those few years of his life?
They realized they were arrogant to think of going against him and treating this man like their prey. But they really didn't know what they were up against.
"Ah~" The infected sighed. Taking one look at them again, an idea came into his head. So he took the pressure preventing them from moving and ordered in a monotonous tone,
"Run."
Without even a second thought,
BOOM!
Everybody scattered.
"Fast." The Infected chuckled as he sat down, cross-legged. Picking up a stone, he turned his head to look at one of the running figures.
He encased the stone in a thin layer of wind pressure and hurled it at the man.
BOOM!
The stone shot straight from behind his head, going out through the other end effortlessly.
The man soon fell on his knees without even knowing how he died.
Picking another stone, he encased it in an even thicker layer of wind and threw it at a small hill.
BOOM!
The man hiding behind that hill died as well.
After killing two more people with pretty much the same way, the Infected was not able to strike the four left, down.
One them was hit by a stone, but his body was impervious under the effect of his ability, another one was moving too flexibly and fast, that it was impossible for the Infected to hit her from their distance apart. While the other two were also managing, one way or another.
The Infected stood up and dusted his clothes. "Welp." He took a squatting position and then,
BOOM!
Destroyed half of the mountain he leapt from.
Albert ran with all his might, not even daring to look back. He could be classified as strong, nevertheless, even he knew his limits. But the more he ran, the more his resolve began to falter.
They were all heading towards the living parts of the highlands, were the people of this province stayed. The plan was that if they made it there, the Infected would have more people to 'play' with and then possibly let them go.
But Albert's conscience seemed to be tugging at his legs, reducing his speed. The lives that would be lost because of them, the children that would be killed.
"No!" Albert's feet scratched the ground as he stopped running. "Guys, change of plans, lead him away from the city—" He hurriedly sent a message through the band on his wrist.
"What are you saying Albert?" At this point, the remaining three couldn't care less about his position in their team.
"If you want to be stupid and die, do so yourself, we're getting out of — Aargghhh!..."
Hearing the screams through their communicator, the other two ran with more desperation.
"Oh, curse this!" Like a thousand volts had hit him, Albert's brown hair rose up to the sky as he activated his ability.
[A-rank level 3: Miser]
From his pocket, he took out an oversized gold coin, big enough to fit his entire palm. And as he clenched his fist and activated his ability, the coin disappeared and soon, golden light spread around his arm.
Now Albert had golden circuit like tattoos around the entire right side of his body; on half his face, arm and leg.
"Hm?" The Infected sensed a strange presence in the area and shot straight to it.
BOOM!
But an object suddenly fell from the sky, down to its head.
The Infected's left arm was raised above it's head with it's leg sunk a few centimeters in the ground. It was blocking some sort of gold liquid splat that was below Albert's leg.
The Infected threw a punch from below, at the gold splat, but digging both his legs into it, Albert made the splat flow down to the side, barely avoiding the Infected's punch.
BOOM!
It's fist still made quite the noise hitting the air. "Hm?" Although, he wasn't going all out, the Infected was still quite surprised that Albert was this skillful and agile in close combat.
As Albert landed beside the Infected, the splat rose up to form a six foot tall shield with spikes pointing outwards, and then he rammed the shield into the red eyed man.
The Infected blocked the attack again without moving and then activated it's own ability, making the shield suddenly fold into Alfred's arm and crushing it.
Alfred flinched, but with a mind full of resolve, he pulled back his broken arm and changed the shape of the shield.
Alfred struck his newly made greatsword right at the Infected's head. But with a simple swipe of the hand, the Infected sent both Alfred and his sword flying straight into a hill.
BOOM!!!
Albert was strong, but he was no match for a monster like the Infected.
The red eyed man walked to the foot of the hill where Alfred rested tiredly in between rocks and sand.
"We should do this again sometime. But I don't think that would be possible." With a bored look in it's eyes, the Infected raised one of his legs above Alfred's head.
BOOM!!!
In a cruel and swift manner, it stumped hard on Alfred's head.
"Oh, it could be possible." However, the Infected suddenly heard a voice from behind, and when the dust under it's feet disappeared, there was no body to be seen, just liquid gold sliding over to Alfred.
"We can both go continue our fight... in the underworld."
The Infected's eyes opened a bit more than normal in surprise as it bent it's head forward, barely dodging the greatsword that was aimed at it's neck.
Placing both arms on the floor, the Infected sprung both of it's legs backwards, aiming at Alfred's neck, but the thirty two year old man was fast enough to pull back his sword and block the incoming kick.
That didn't stop him from flying sixty feet in the air though.
BOOM!!!
Still, he used that to his advantage and flung the greatsword straight down.
The Infected caught the sword and threw it right back, but as soon as the sword met Alfred's head, it went straight in, and his golden tattoo spread all over his body.
[Skill: Wealth To Die For: has been activated.
Warning: 99% Energy will be consumed and your life force will gradually deplete. You will lose five levels per minute.
ARE YOU SURE?
"I'm going to die here anyway."
[Stats have been boosted by 200%, ability power, by 100%]
"Raaaaarrggghhh!" With loud battle cry, Alfred grabbed his broken arm with the other and slammed them down on the red eyed man's head.
BOOM!!!!!!!!!
A giant sphere of dust rose up with Albert at the center. The Infected had dodged his attack.
However, he stumped hard on the ground and blasted diagonally upwards to the floating man.
"You really do have a level rending ability! But to touch me? You're even crazier than I am!" For the first time the Infected had a meaningful expression on it's... his face.
He was laughing. His white teeth were on full display and his hair blowing to show his glowing reds as he free fell from the sky.
"Didn't I tell you kid! Since I'm gonna die, I'm taking you down with me!!"
Albert reached the Infected in the blink of an eye and swung his good fist at his head.
BOOM!!!
"Then what about your traitorous friends?" The Infected still had on a smiling face as both their fist met each other and threw them apart.
"Oh them? They were just scared." Albert leapt off the ground and attack again.
"And you're not?"
This time, the Infected fell into the ground as Albert struck, creating a large crater. "I am, but my little girl wouldn't like it if I let you go past me— Gukk!"
The Infected suddenly dug his hand into Albert's heart and pulled himself up.
As he spat blood on the Infected's hand, he added, "I'm her super hero after all."
The Infected chuckled and asked, "What's her name? If I get to her, I'll do you a favor and kill her last."
Hearing that, Albert's eyes shot open with anger. "Stay away... From my daughter... you little brat!" Finding it hard to breathe, he suddenly grabbed his broken arm and ripped it off his body.
"What the?" The Infected was clueless as to what he was doing, but Albert didn't stop there, he soon ripped off both of his legs and moved up to his chest to help Desmond pull out his heart. All this, happened while they were free falling.
"Gukh!" Blood spewed out of his mouth and between his teeth as Alfred smirked.
The tattoo on his body suddenly started to turn brighter, focusing especially, around his only other limb.
As the Infected looked at Alfred's arm's circuits increasing in brightness, and understood what Albert was doing.
[Powered parts of your organs have been removed.]
[Transferring energy...]
"Don't you touch my Chloe, you little brat!" As the color in his eyes started to fade just like his smile, Albert threw one final punch at the Infected's chest.
This punch packed at least a hundred percent more strength than his already improved self and was even faster.
The Infected couldn't dodge it, at least, not while he was still in a daze. But that was just an excuse.
As a matter of fact, he felt like he had to take that punch as an acknowledgement of Alfred's strength and his desperation in creating that attack. From one crazy man to another.
BOOM!!!
The Infected flew back almost thirty kilometers, like a thrown ragdoll, destroying every obstruction in his path.
As he broke past the final hill, splitting it into two horizontal halves, he suddenly got an update in his System.
[XX You have defeated the level 50 (-45) Albert Andre. XX]
[XX EXP: 9,657/ 999, 999, 999 XX]
"Albert?" The Infected said, neither minding the weirdness of the notification in front him nor the wide hole in his stomach.
"Meh, I'll forget it. I can't even remember my name... I think it's, Desmond something.
Blue? No, Red! Desmond Red!" He laughed as blood spilled out of his mouth.
However, as he looked down, he caught sight of a girl sitting on an owl. Then it suddenly hit him as he felt through his body.
"Crap! I need more food."