"Well, that was certainly impressive," the man under the tree mused, his voice calm as he continued walking toward the Lycan.
The beast, despite its injuries, refused to back down. Its instincts dictated only one thing kill its prey. It reared its head back, flames crackling in its throat, preparing to unleash another blast.
But before it could
THWACK!
A blur of motion. A force like a boulder crashing down.
The man leaped forward, his leg snapping out in a brutal roundhouse kick that slammed into the Lycan's head.
The beast's eyes rolled back for a moment as its massive form staggered, struggling to maintain balance. But just as it steadied itself,
BOOM!
A devastating uppercut cracked against its chin, the sheer force flipping the Lycan upside down.
Draven, Serephina, and Grimwald stood frozen behind the trees, their breath caught in their throats.
They weren't watching a fight.
They were witnessing a slaughter.
The man landed gracefully atop the beast's struggling form and rained down blows, his fists striking harder than steel. Each impact sent tremors through the surroundings.
The Lycan, a creature known for its legendary defenses with its tough hide, but right now it feels like those defenses might as well have been made of paper. Its obsidian-black furred hide shattered under the relentless barrage.
THWACK…. THWACK….. THWACK...
He kept hitting it.
He could have ended it in a single strike. With his strength, one sword slash would have been enough.
But he didn't.
He chose to beat it to death with his bare hands.
A shiver ran down Draven's spine. This wasn't just power. It was cruelty.
Finally, after one last sickening crack, the Lycan stopped moving.
Silence.
The man exhaled, stepping off the lifeless beast and wiping the blood from his face with a slow, unbothered motion. The cloth he had been wearing fell to the ground, forgotten.
Then without turning around he spoke.
"Alright, the cowardly trio hiding behind the tree aren't you going to come out? It feels weird to be watched, you know."
The words sent ice through their veins.
Draven's heart pounded in his chest. What do we do? Do we run?
No. It's no use.
They had already been caught.
This was a man who had just brutalized a Lycan with his fists.
The Lycan a calamity-class creature that should have required a fully equipped Twenty-member Expert-ranked squad, or at the very least, 10 Low Master-ranked warriors to take down.
And he did it alone.
Draven clenched his jaw. We're completely out of our depth.
Draven barely had time to react before Grimwald bolted from their hiding spot.
That moron. How many times a day is he going to put us through death's door? Draven thought, gritting his teeth.
Grimwald skidded to a stop in front of the man, eyes practically glowing with excitement. "That was freaking amazing! How strong are you exactly? What are your attributes? How dense is your mana shield? What is your wielder class? How tough are your fists…?"
The barrage of questions poured out of him like a flood.
Draven and Serephina sprinted after him, desperate to stop him from saying something that might piss off the man who just beat a Lycan to death.
"Please don't mind him," Draven said smoothly, stepping in front of Grimwald. "He's just excited to see your strength."
"I don't mind." The man's voice was calm, unaffected.
Draven let out a quiet breath of relief. "Uh… thank you for saving us earlier. That idiot over here claims you were the one who distracted the Lycan. I don't know if it's true, but… allow us to thank you."
The man shrugged. "Oh, yeah. That was me." He crossed his arms. "After all, you lot seemed weak. You were lucky I was around."
Draven's eyebrow twitched.
Serephina cleared her throat, attempting to mask an awkward cough.
Meanwhile, Grimwald remained completely unfazed. "Oi, oi, brother what are your attributes? Let me see those eyes. The sun's blocking my view." He leaned in closer.
"What are they blue? So your elemental attribute is water?" Grimwald said after a closer inspection.
The man blinked, then answered nonchalantly, "No. They are purple."
Silence.
Serephina's curiosity snapped into overdrive. "Wait… what?" Her head jerked up, eyes narrowing. "Purple? I've never heard of anyone having purple before."
She crossed her arms, thinking aloud. "Red means Fire like me and Draven. Green is for Wind like Grimwald over there, blue for Water, and brown for Earth." Her gaze sharpened as she studied him.
"So… what attributes do you actually have?"
Oh great, Draven groaned internally. Now another idiot joins the bunch.
The man smirked slightly. "Why don't you take a wild guess?"
Serephina crossed her arms, deep in thought. "I've heard of people possessing multiple attributes. I saw fairly moderate amount of people who can use two attributes. 1 in a 1000 people can use them. But three attributes, they're rare. Like… one in a million rare. And their eyes are a combination of those attributes and based on their dominant elemental attribute their eye colour changes as well, so accurately determining the attributes of the people who can use multiple ones is not possible just basing on their eye color." Then, she hesitated. "Wait… don't tell me…" Her eyes widened. "Are you one of them, who can use 3 attributes?"
The man chuckled. "You're half right." He let the words settle for a moment before flashing a smug grin.
"I can use all five."
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Dead silence.
The trio stood frozen, reeling from what they just heard.
Did he really just say he can use all five attributes?
The strongest wielders ever recorded barely reached four attributes, and even that was a miracle.
He must be joking.
Grimwald scratched his head. "Oi… brother… listen. I know you're strong, but you don't have to lie, you know?" He gave him a pitying look. "You'd still be amazing even if you only had three."
The man sighed. "Ah… looks like I have no choice but to show you." His eyes flickered with amusement. "How about this if I prove it, you treat me to dinner in Vihadi. Sound good?"
Serephina scoffed. "Yeah, alright. First, let's see you do it."
Valerius grinned.
"Alright, here I go."
"First Attribute – Fire."
FWOOSH! A burst of flames shot forward, striking a nearby tree.
"Okay! That's fire done. Now do water." Grimwald urged, eyes gleaming.
Draven, standing at the side, watched the man carefully. His instincts whispered warnings in the back of his mind.
Something's off.
Valerius fired a jet of water, cleanly piercing an egg-sized hole through the trunk.
Serephina shifted slightly. "Alright, so that's fire and water. Next, try wind."
A sharp blade of compressed air sliced clean through the tree's base, splitting it in half.
Draven exhaled slowly. Shit.
Grimwald, on the other hand, was having the time of his life. "Goddamn, brother! That's three out of five done! You really are one in a million. What's next?"
Valerius tilted his head. "Hmm… since the tree is down, let's just burn it and bury it. It'll work as fertilizer."
Serephina's eyes narrowed. "Nuh-uh. That won't work. You already used fire. You can't use it again."
Valerius smirked. "Who said anything about fire?"
A lightning bolt erupted from his palm, incinerating the fallen trunk to ash in an instant.
The trio's jaws hit the ground.
Before they could recover an earth gobbling spell appeared absorbing all the ash in an instant and pushed into the ground as if nothing ever existed over where the tree was there.
Draven felt his stomach drop.
No…
My instincts were right.
Grimwald's expression lit up like a child in a candy store. "Brother… you really are amazing! I can't believe my eyes!"
Serephina, meanwhile, was staring at the spot where the tree used to be, still processing what just happened.
"This… this shouldn't be possible." She murmured, her mind racing. "History mentions a few individuals capable of four attributes. But five?"
She shook her head. "If word of this gets out, every kingdom would go to war just to claim you."
Draven took a slow, deep breath, regaining his composure.
"…Wow. My instincts were right." He stepped forward, his expression more serious now. "I'm Draven. Draven Wolfsbane. Expert-level swordsman."
He gestured behind him. "This is Serephina Thorne, our mage. She is an Expert-level too. She deals with mana-based attacks."
Then, he sighed and pointed to Grimwald. "And this idiot drooling over you is Grimwald Ashenfort. He's a warrior that fights with twin axes. Also an Expert-level. We are a humble group of expert-level wielders."
Grimwald grinned like a fool, nodding rapidly.
The man finally introduced himself, that ever-present smirk still lingering on his lips.
"I'm Valerius." He turned slightly, glancing at each of them.
"Valerius Darkridge."
His gaze settled on them, and for the first time, a glint of amusement flashed in his purple eyes.
"Pleasure to meet you all."