True to being in the first realm, the second grasshopper reacted in time and threw out his arm towards Jon.
And what came from the grasshopper's arm was a wave, dark green and ominous. Jon barely had time to dodge, leaping to the side as it immediately came crashing down.
PSSSHT
The ground sizzled and warped where the attack struck, sinking in as if melting.
Jon's eyes then widened in disbelief. "Poison?"
The fight had just became more dangerous.
'Did the lion also have a skill like that.' since he finished the fight with one attack, he didn't know they got skills upon entering the first realm. He remembered seeing flames around it, but he didn't know it was a skill.
However, with the activation of his 'Composure', a wave of calm washed him. Now he was able to think better,
'I should avoid the poison at all cost, and my strength is enough to affect it so,' Without wasting another moment, Jon activated his shadow step.
At this point, the group Jon came with and grasshoppers had started engaging in a melee combat.
In a black blur, Jon immediately appeared in front of the first grasshopper he hit. This time, the grasshopper was on guard and was able to block his attack with both for legs.
CLANG...
SKREEE
It screamed as it endured the powerful punch, then suddenly another wave of green came from behind him.
'Now.' with a thought, he activated the special activation of the shadow steps and appeared behind the first grasshopper.
KIEEEEE
The first grasshopper screeched in pain as the green wave from the second grasshopper hit it.
And Jon already behind the screeching grasshopper raised his hand glowing with pure aura.
Then,
BOOM
With the lower part of the grasshopper already melted to the ground, Jon's fist landed on its head, bursting it in a rain of blood.
However, he also couldn't let the blood of the dead touch him so jumped back immediately.
PSSSHT
And true to his predictions, It's blood melted everywhere it touched without a care of who was close. Thankfully, non of the fighters were nearby, they weren't fast enough to dodge the stupendous amount of blood spraying around the floor now.
[YOU HAVE OBTAINED LEVEL 26 'GENERAL HOPPER' REMAINS]
Taking a quick glance at the notification, he activated the shadow step and appeared before the second grasshopper.
Though shocked at the death of his rival, quickly prepared itself and shot its front leg at Jon.
Dodging the sharp leg with a hair breath, he punched out with his hand to its head.
BANG....
However, it quickly raised its other leg to block the attack but the force from the punch pushed it back,
KIEEEE
The grasshopper then crossed its front legs and slashed out its green poison wave.
'Whew...one more.' With that Jon activated his shadow steps special and appeared at the side, totally ignoring the poison wave.
This time with his fist covered in aura and moon energy, he punched out again,
BOOOOOM
Krrrr...
And like that, the voice of the grasshopper died down. It couldn't withstand Jon's aura with moon energy, so together with the arm blocking and its chest, they burst open.
[YOU HAVE OBTAINED LEVEL 28 'GENERAL HOPPER' REMAINS]
"Whew....that was nerve wracking." He had exhausted quite a lot of his mana when he kept using the special activation of his shadow steps.
Looking at the grasshopper again, it had a really tough exterior and because of that, the grasshoppers only had to focus on speed, but Jon was still faster.
If it was someone else fighting with it, they would have at least gotten hit with the poison.
'Well, I can use its leg as a weapon for the mean time.' He bent and ripped of a leg from the stronger grasshopper and turned around to see the general situation.
…
Immediately the fight started, five students lost their lives.
The shock was too much for them. And before the sixth person died, Jenny stopped the fore leg of the grasshopper with her sword.
CLANG...CLANG
Pushing away the for leg, she drove her silver sword through it gaps killing it on the spot.
And without waiting, she went for another one.
Cynthia too began shooting weapons made of wind at the enemies.
It was clear, the grasshoppers were to much for the survivors, so it was Jenny and Cynthia that were holding them with the fighters who went on the first scout assisting from behind.
"Arghh..."
"I-I almost died."
"I shouldn't have come..."
Majority had stepped back, giving the people helping the space.
Jenny and Cynthia were able to hold them back because, they were so close to becoming first realm. They only had one or two requirements left. And with the grasshoppers at a level 20 as an average. It was only a matter of time,
SLASH
The grasshoppers were being dealt with.
"Haa..." Cynthia sighed as she looked at the remaining grasshoppers. It remained only about 15 grasshoppers and they were almost out of it.
"Jenny let's-" as she was about to call Jenny, a wind blew by her.
It was Jon.
It only remained a little more before they finished killing all the grasshoppers, so he decided to help out.
Using the limb of the grasshopper coated in aura and moon energy, he sliced through the grasshoppers like butter.
"Hah...was there such difference?" Cynthia couldn't help but mutter in confusion. They had been struggling with the number. However, Jon had killed two first realms and even finished before them.
"Whew...." Looking around it seemed all the grasshoppers all cleared out, except one.
Looking at the only grasshopper left, they watched her fight.
…
In another corner of the battlefield, a girl wielding a familiar sword struck at a grasshopper's leg.
CLANG
However, she couldn't slice through it. And the attack even sent shocks through her body.
"Urghh..." She groaned in pain from the shock and retreated.
It was the dark-skinned girl who had informed Jon about Cynthia and Jenny. He had also seen her when he woke up from his 2 days long dream of nothing.
However, he didn't notice her strength at that time. During the two days sleep, she had gone out with Jenny and Cynthia. And they help her level up.
She had insisted on killing her first zombie alone, and Jenny, respecting her determination, had given her sword, the sword Jon had previously given back to her, and now the sword she used.
After a death match and close calls with the zombie, she got a skill called 'Climate Control'.
Though vague in its description, it granted her control over her surroundings.
And now, she was now in level 14, she had been able to grow rapidly while Jenny and Cynthia were still trying to complete their requirements. Maybe because she had been with Cynthia for a while now, she also controlled wind.
So what she did was use the wind to run and dodge, while using using the sword to attack, swinging out wind too.
CLANG! CLANG!
The grasshopper blocked her attacks with its armored limbs, then charged towards her when her assault ceased.
She then barely evaded, stepping back just in time and swinging her sword to unleash another burst of wind. The battle had been going on like this for five minutes, a deadly dance of back-and-forth exchanges.
Her situation was dire, but she didn't try to ask for help or run away. Instead, she kept moving forward.
"What's her name?" Jon couldn't help but ask, though he had been meaning to speak with her, he didn't know her name. She was among those people someone passes by every once in a while and you want to speak to them one day, so it was natural he didn't know her name.
"Oh, are you interested?" Cynthia replied, teasing him lightly despite the grim situation. However, she continued, "We met last year on a vacation. I didn't even know she went to this school until she showed up in the cafeteria. Her name's Laura."
"Laura..." Jon murmured, his brow furrowing. "And her skill... something related to wind?"
Cynthia shrugged, "I don't know, I think she said it was called Climate Control."
Jon's interest sharpened. "Climate?...then why is she only using it like that? There has to be more, right?"
"I don't know...is there a 'correct' way to use a skill?" Cynthia replied nonchalantly.
Without giving a response, Jon stormed off toward Laura.
…
The rhythm of Laura's battle suddenly changed all of a sudden. The grasshopper that had been rushing at her stopped mid-way.
Laura suddenly seeing her chance staggered backwards, breathing heavily.
"Haa... Haa..."
This was the hardest fight she had faced till date. Zombies would have crumbled by now, and even those cats would have been pierced by her continuous air attacks, but this grasshopper was really relentless.
As she then prepared to launch another attack, not even realizing the strangeness in it's stopped movement,
Jon appeared at her front, cutting off her approach.
"You, what are you—" she stammered, her focus shattered. Her eyes then darted around the battlefield and she then saw everyone watching her fight which made her a bit embarrassed.
"I know it's not my place to say, but why are you only using wind? You're clearly not suited for close combat."
"What do you mean?" Laura's voice was sharp, but there was a hint of uncertainty. Jon's words were sinking in.
"You're not a close combat fighter, so stop pretending to be one." Jon's eyes glinted with the insight of his Martial Expert skill. He didn't even need anything, it was very clear.
"You keep stepping back when they get close, you're not even trying to land direct hits."
Laura sighed and spoke, her voice with a ting of frustration. "I know... but what else can I do?"
"Your skill is Climate Control, right? Then use it!" He spread his arm.
"W-What do you mean."
"I mean it like I said. Manipulate the earth to defend yourself, use the wind to move faster, summon lightning from the clouds to attack. You could even create weapons from fire—"
Jon continued, rattling off possibilities, each one more imaginative than the last.
And Laura's eyes widened with realization, as if a fog had lifted from her mind.
In that moment, as if something shifted inside her. And her surroundings responded to her will.
The sky darkened, clouds swirling as the wind howled. The ground rumbled beneath her feet.
RUMBLE... RUMBLE...
Thunder cracked in the heavens as the clouds converged, power gathering in their depths. A notification blinked before her eyes.
[YOU HAVE FORCIBLY EVOLVED SKILL 'CLIMATE CONTROL' (FIRST REALM) —> (SECOND REALM)]
[CLIMATE CONTROL (SECOND REALM): YOU...]