"Sharin!" Brawler roared, seething with anger.
She didn't back down. Her hatred intensified, recalling how Zain almost killed Brawler.
Zain mustered every bit of his strength.
He pulled the throwing knives from his pockets, launching them at Dorian.
The knives distracted Illusionist and Sharin, who tried to protect Dorian, and served their purpose.
Bam!
Zain tackled Brawler. The two fell to the ground.
The flames carried over from the Brawler, burning Zain's clothes and skin. He did his best to ignore the pain and exhaustion.
Brawler was momentarily stunned. Zain's will to fight was ferocious. Almost like a wild animal. Most would've given up in the same situation.
Swoosh!
Large amount of red mist gushed out from Zain. He thrust his fingers between Brawler's teeth, forcing him to inhale the poisoned mist.
With his other hand, he summoned the Godsbane Needle and tried to impale Brawler's eyeball.
Bang!
A sudden kick hit Zain in the back. His battered body skidded across the warehouse.
Sharin stretched her arm to help Brawler to his feet. However, he smacked her hand. His gaze carried visible anger.
Death would've been mercy, compared to Sharin's intervention. She didn't save him, but inflicted the greatest insult of his life upon him.
The mist slowly cleared.
They didn't find Zain inside the warehouse. Instead, a trail of blood went outside.
Illusionist covered his face. He sighed.
Zain countered his skill.
Chameleon died. Zain targeted the weakest member first.
He then engaged in combat with Brawler. Did he know about Brawler's hot-headedness?
The gauntlets were the biggest upset. Ignoring the Plasma type attack, they kept up with Brawler's speed. A Grade 3 Genius Tech? It was an exceedingly rare item, considering it seemed tailor-made.
Also, the poison resistance allowed Zain to survive Sarin's poison.
"Mediocre? How is he mediocre?" Illusionist spat. The info about Zain was not only lacking but also completely wrong.
Adding insult to injury, Zain was aware of their assault. He knew about their abilities, foiled the ambush and caught them by surprise instead.
"Keep tracking him," Illusionist growled.
Darian nodded, his eyes closed.
The air cracked like a shattering mirror. A map of the vicinity with a red dot appeared inside the crack.
"Get him first aid." Illusionist ordered as he glared at Brawler. This time his misconduct was too much. Illusionist would have to report it to the Guild leader and expel Brawler from the guild.
"What about the brat?" Sharin asked.
"He can't run away."
A blue dot, Hawk, followed the red dot representing Zain.
His struggle was applause-worthy. But he couldn't escape. Illusionist knew this. Zain knew it too. After all, he constantly aimed for Dorian, the center point of…
This Mirror world.
…
Zain POV
I dragged my battered body away from the warehouse.
The roads were devoid of people, or any living presence.
We were inside a personal Mirror Dimension created by Dorian, the Array Formation Master of Killer Seven.
'F*ck.'
It was becoming harder to breathe by the second.
The poison was viciously tearing apart my organs. I lost too much blood from Puri Puri Mist. Most of the bones in my arms, if not all, were broken. And my shoulder was crushed into a paste.
'This is the worst.'
I attacked at the best possible timing. Killed one of them in the surprise attack. Almost destroyed their teamwork.
Still, it was me on the losing end.
"I know the poison now, so I can create an antidote," I thought. I would've needed help if this was before I read up on the herbs.
I wanted to curse, but a chuckle left my mouth.
"Hehehe, I don't think I can survive for long, even with Poison Resistance. I need to escape as soon as possible."
Suddenly, Nutless appeared.
"Master!" He tried to warn me.
The ground next to me exploded.
The flying rubble hit me and the shockwaves threw me off my feet. My ears rang loudly. This attack… It was Hawk, the sixth member of Killer Seven, and a Master Archer.
'Move!' I didn't have the strength to speak, let alone escape. 'Move!'
I pushed my arms, tried to stand, but fell.
The smoke from the explosion was obstructing Hawk's vision. But I could feel it. He had his arrow prepared as he searched for the slightest movement inside the smoke.
"Nutless," I spoke between my heavy breaths. "We'll switch. You'll take full control and I'll support you."
"If Master doesn't stop, his arms have a high chance of sustaining permanent damage," Nutless warned me.
Nutless was mid Grade 3 and could exert more strength tha me through the gauntlets.
Bur if he tried to move them forcefully, it would tear my muscles.
Until now, Nutless only adjusted my movements. He never took complete control of the Fireforge Gauntlets.
"Hehe, if I stop, I don't think I'll live."
"... Understood."
My arms acted on their own. The power and speed were far more than what I could exert as a Grade 2 metahuman.
The gust swept away the dust cloud.
Something shined at the top of the tower.
The loud boom followed by a streak of golden light flew in my direction.
I stomped my foot, meeting the arrow head-on.
My arms moved like flowing water. I was grabbing the arrow shaft before I knew it. Spinning on my heel, I maintained the momentum behind the projectile and let it return to its owner.
Hawk, perhaps shocked, was late to react. The arrow hit the tower top, blowing everything to smithereens.
I didn't think Hawk was dead. But he would wait for a while before attacking me now.
It was a precious time. I sat with my back against the broken wall, then took out the potions from the Magic Pocket.
My hands were numb, I couldn't feel anything. Nutless controlled my arms through the Gauntlets, pouring the healing potion and stamina boost potion in my mouth.
Urk!
Drinking two potions at once made me feel as if my innards were melting. The excessive energy rampaged inside me.
I closed my eyes, driving the energy from the potions into my nerves.
Nutless, through the intercom's sensors, kept an eye on the surroundings.
The healing potion wasn't the type to work instantly. It would take a day to heal me completely, and it drained my stamina rapidly. Worse, the poison remained.
But I needed first aid or I couldn't continue further.
"Master should use the Godsbane Needle to escape."
"Heh"
I could only laugh at Nutless' suggestion. A silver needle materialized above my palm.
Godsbane Needle had five forms that needed to be unlocked.
The first form, Needle, had the ability to pierce the barrier of dimensions. It could tear down this Mirror World's boundary — in theory.
The Mirror Dimension was created with me as the 'focus'. It expanded around me infinitely. I could not reach its boundary, even if I tried. That made Godsbane Needle useless.
The only way to escape was to deal with Dorian directly.
"That's impossible." Nutless was against my idea. "Master barely escaped after using everything at his disposal. If Master goes back, he'll die."
I just chuckled.
If I just remained here, I would die.
But if I struggled, there was at least a minuscule chance to live.
"I've made my choice," I said, summoning the status panel.
[Constitution has been increased by 5.]
[Agility has been increased by 7.]
[Alert! At Least three stats must have reached Grade limit, before you can push a stat to higher Grade using stat points.]
It wasn't much but every little preparation could decide my life and death.
Creak!
"Hehe, did you miss me?" I asked the Killer Seven as I pushed open the warehouse's doors.
…
Storm POV
Storm, the last Killer Seven, hid behind the library counter. His job was to watch over unconscious Charlotte, while the rest dealt with Zain.
He never expected something like this to happen.
"I wasn't trying to report you!" He shouted, changing his hiding spot.
"That's what everyone says! And then they call the cops!" Hanna bolted towards Storm. She controlled the strengthened silk threads and sliced the tables.
It had been days since those Cult Bastards started chasing Hanna. To make matters worse, she was declared a Villain. The authorities were after her too.
After changing her hideout several times, Hanna came to the city library. She never expected to be recognized.
"Stop!" Storm begged Hanna. He was strong. But Hanna was Peak Grade 3, the difference between their abilities was like heaven and earth.
Before Storm could react, Hanna appeared behind him and smashed his head into the ground. Storm lost consciousness.
"Should I kill him?" She thought for a bit and decided against it. Her time was limited. The noises of their battle would've attracted attention. "I need to change my hideout… again."
Hanna lamented. She knew sooner or later, she would be caught. The best choice was to escape the planet. But she had no way of doing it.
"Hmm…." Hanna approached the door behind the main counter. Storm was trying to stop her from entering this place.
Inside the dark storage room, Hanna saw an unconscious girl. Her feet and hands were bound.
"Wh-why is she here?" Hanna trembled.
The girl was Charlotte.
She… was a nightmare!
Hanna 'coincidently' came across Charlotte at least 5 times a day during the past week. No matter where Hanna escaped, she would see this girl.
And even that damned boy was with her!
Hanna grabbed Charlotte, bringing her along.
"I can use a hostage."
In truth, Hanna didn't harm Zain or Charlotte as she felt guilty. Even if it was for her family's inheritance, Hanna almost helped Mythos Cult in ruining the lives of innocent girls.
If Zain didn't stop her…
Hanna shook her head. She was thankful to Zain, for stopping her — foiling Mythos Cult's plan at the Academy — or she could've never forgiven herself.
"Hahaha," Hanna chuckled. She was grateful to the one who made her life into a mess? Maybe she was going crazy.