A tremendous explosion shook the building to its foundation. Dust and debris flew through the air, obscuring vision momentarily.
"You! YOU! HOW CAN YOU BE THIS POWERFUL?!"
A panicked scream echoed through the half-destroyed room. The Young Master of the Circle family stood with a trembling body, his luxurious clothes now tattered and soaked in blood. His face, usually arrogant, was now filled with immense fear as he stared at the figure before him.
His eyes widened as he recognized the identity of his attacker—a person who had always been underestimated by his family.
"Do you think I will answer you?" Shou grinned coldly. His black eyes flashed dangerously. "Today... you will be buried along with all the members of your Family! This is what happens when you underestimate me!"
Golden lightning began to dance around his fist, twisting and hissing with pure deadly energy. The air around them grew heavy, piercing the skin. A murderous aura emanated from Shou's body.
The Young Master of Circle staggered backward. "W-wait! About that, I sincerely apologize!!" His voice broke with fear. "But if you kill me, the Association and Guilds in this city will surely investigate! When you're found, your life is over!"
"And why should I care?" Shou stared at him sharply, as if looking at a worthless insect. "Do you think I would be afraid of them?!"
His voice echoed with absolute conviction. Arrogant—perhaps, but behind that arrogance lay real power. The System inhabiting his body had made him transcend the limits of ordinary humans, especially after forming a contract with Mayuri—a being whose power was beyond human comprehension.
"Then, die!"
"W-wai-"
The Young Master's final plea was cut short by a lightning-fast movement. Shou's hand, cloaked in electricity, slashed through the air like a samurai drawing his sword.
Sraatttt!
A soft yet deadly sound marked the separation of head from neck.
The Young Master stared with disbelieving eyes, his hands trying to feel his own neck before blood spurted out like a red fountain of life. His body collapsed to the floor with a soft thud, marking the death of the young ruler of the Circle Family.
Shou shifted his cold gaze toward several servants hiding behind pillars. The servants immediately trembled violently with fear.
Shou stepped toward them with elegant yet deadly movements. "I'm sorry but..." His voice was as cold as ice, without a hint of regret. "Blame yourselves for joining this family."
He raised his glowing hand, ready to slaughter the innocent servants, but—
"...You're exactly the kind of protagonist I thought you were."
A flat yet intimidating voice broke the deadly silence.
"?!" Shou was startled, his eyes wild as he searched for the source of the voice. "WHO'S TH-"
WHUUSSSHHH!
Before he could finish his sentence, a high-speed kick landed precisely on his cheek—so fast that the naked eye could not catch it.
BOOOM...!!
Shou's body was thrown like a rag doll, crashing through wall after wall until finally stopping after the fifth. The impact caused spider-web cracks around the point of impact.
"Uhuk! Uhuk!"
Shou knelt, fresh blood spurting from his mouth. His vision blurred, his head throbbing as if about to explode. His consciousness was nearly gone, but his extraordinary determination forced him to stay awake.
With half-closed eyes, he tried to focus on the figure who had kicked him. Amidst the ruins and flying dust, a slender silhouette stood calmly, one leg still elegantly raised—evidence of the deadly kick just delivered.
The night breeze blew gently, playing with snow-white hair and the edges of the mysterious figure's black cloak. A skull mask covered his face, but his right eye, sapphire in color, gleamed through the gap in the mask—cold, sharp, and calculating.
Despite having the appearance of a 14-year-old boy, his intimidating aura made the air feel heavy. Shou immediately recognized this legendary figure—a person who always appeared on television, sought after by various Kingdoms, especially the Imperial family.
"Frost... Assassin..." The name slipped from Shou's lips with a trembling tone.
The famous S+ Rank Hunter now stood real before him. Despite the considerable distance between them, Shou could feel the choking pressure of power from the small-bodied figure.
Frost Assassin—or Lux—tilted his head with a mechanical movement. His sapphire eyes narrowed curiously, watching Shou's body and face gradually recover.
'Strange...' he thought. Usually, his kicks would instantly kill a B+ Rank Hunter, but miraculously, Shou was still breathing.
With his 'Mystic Eyes of Death Perception,' Lux could see Shou's death lines changing unnaturally—as if an invisible power was manipulating them.
'But that's what makes all this more interesting...'
"Frost Assassin... Why did you appear here?" asked Shou with labored breath. Cold sweat ran down his temple. "As far as I recall, I never offended you."
"Indeed," Lux nodded. "But I don't like your ugly face, so I kicked you."
"..." Shou's expression hardened, his jaw tightening with anger at the ridiculous reason.
But he restrained himself—his instinct as a fighter warned that he was not yet strong enough to face the Frost Assassin. At least, not now.
"Then... can you not interfere? This is between me and this family."
"Oh, certainly," said Lux with an indifferent tone. His eyes flashed dangerously. "...If you can survive against me."
Shou's expression changed to horror as a massive ice spear formed from thin air—glowing with deadly blue energy that immediately accelerated toward him.
'DAMN IT!'
With a desperate movement, Shou gathered all the lightning energy from Kerubiel and released it in one tremendous blast.
"AHHHH...!!!"
JEEDAAARRR....!!! BOOOOM...!!
The collision of the two elemental powers produced a shock wave that destroyed surrounding buildings. A brief battle occurred between the two energies, but Lux's ice spear finally shattered into glittering crystal fragments dancing in the air.
"Hah... Hah... Hah..."
Shou's breath was heavy. His body emitted steam—a sign that he had just exerted power beyond his body's limits.
[Ding! This is dangerous, Host! You must escape immediately! The being in front of you is not something you can face now!]
'I know that, damn it! But he has no intention of letting me go!' Shou screamed in his mind.
In the blink of an eye, Lux's figure disappeared like a shadow in the middle of the night. Shou didn't even have time to blink before Lux appeared right in front of him, as if distance was no limitation.
Shou's expression changed to panic, and his instinct commanded him to run, but—
BAM...!!
"GAH-?!"
Without mercy, Lux stomped on Shou's chest with enough force to crush the concrete beneath him. Cracks spread like spider webs from the point of impact, trapping the young man with no hope of escape.
'Now, I want to know how fate will help you...'
Lux stared at Shou, who was still struggling despite being severely injured—curious about the anomaly he saw. This boy should have died multiple times, yet fate seemed to have other plans.
[Ding! For pressuring and making the Son of Destiny feel fear, Host receives 20,000,000 Achievement Points!]
'It can be obtained this way too?' Lux was surprised inwardly.
Knowing this fact, his interest was further piqued.
BZTT...!
"Hm?" Lux's eyebrow raised as he saw yellow lightning beginning to gather in Shou's hand.
JEDAARR..!!
The lightning exploded in Lux's face, creating a shock wave that shattered the surrounding windows. But instead of feeling relieved, Shou's expression became even more panicked.
"Not bad, but that means absolutely nothing to me..."
Lux stood without even a scratch. With a casual movement, he dusted off imaginary dust from his cloak.
For the owner of the Divine Ice Emperor, ordinary elemental attacks were barely felt. Except for the full power of Kerubiel or Raiden Ei's Electro, lightning attacks like Shou's couldn't even damage a single thread of his cloak.
"Y-you—"
"But that's an interesting power..." Lux narrowed his eyes with interest. "I've never seen anything like it."
Then, as if knowing nothing about the source of Shou's power, he pointed to the sky—directly at the invisible creature floating there... 'Angel Kerubiel.'
"Is your power sourced from there?" he asked with a dangerously innocent tone.
"?!?!" Shou gasped, his face drastically paling. "Y-you can see it?!"
Shou's panic was not because his power source was revealed, but fear that Mayuri—the true owner of Kerubiel—would be dragged into this dangerous situation.
"Isn't that obvious?" Lux answered casually. "While the majority of people can't see it, I'm not among them. I'm in the minority category..."
His voice was so calm when explaining—as if discussing the weather. "But that's what makes it interesting. The creature in the sky should have its owner. Only..." He stared at Shou sharply. "So far I feel you are not the original owner. In my opinion, you are just 'borrowing.'"
"I am the owner! THE CREATURE ABOVE IS MINE!" Shou shouted frantically, anger and fear mixing in his voice.
He didn't want Takamiya Mayuri's existence to be known. If Frost Assassin could see Kerubiel, it meant he could also see Mayuri—and this was what ignited terror within him.
Not just Frost Assassin, Mayuri's existence could attract the attention of other powerful entities. Although Mayuri possessed unimaginable power, she wasn't yet able to fully control it. There was no way that girl could face a horde of high-ranked Hunters at once.
That's why Shou insisted on claiming Kerubiel as his own—diverting attention from Mayuri to himself.
Only God knew what would happen if Mayuri fell into the hands of those crazy humans. Especially Frost Assassin, a member of the Shadow Order!
Lux was silent, seeming to weigh something in his mind. Then, he bent down and whispered directly into Shou's ear—his voice soft yet piercing like a dagger.
"...I see, that girl is truly hidden. This becomes very enjoyable."
"..." Shou's face turned deathly pale, his mind blank for a moment before a new aura exploded from his body. "DON'T YOU DARE TRY TO TOUCH HER...!!"
BOOOM...!!
As Shou's power began to increase, Lux unhesitatingly pressed his body deeper into the ground, creating a wider crater. But instead of surrendering, Shou became even more feral. The golden energy of Kerubiel enveloped his body like blazing fire.
Seeing this phenomenon, the corner of Lux's lips rose behind his mask. A rare sight like this deserved further provocation.
"For you to react in such a way, I become even more curious about her..." His tone contained a veiled threat. "Perhaps I will visit her another time."
"DON'T YOU DARE! I WILL KILL YOU! IF YOU TOUCH EVEN A STRAND OF HER HAIR! I WILL HUNT YOU DOWN TO HELL...!!" Shou roared with pure madness, his eyes flashing with elemental anger.
Those words... managed to make Lux narrow his eyes. Dense killing intent gathered in his gaze.
'Let's see what fate will do to save you...'
Lux wanted to kill Shou and see if fate would intervene again—a small experiment that aroused his curiosity.
Lux's killing intent spread like poison in the air—its intensity capable of making SS Rank Hunters shudder. But Shou seemed immune, his anger only escalating further.
With a cold movement, Lux created a crystal ice sword that glittered. Without hesitation, he thrust it toward Sorata's heart, but at the last second, his left eye—'Mystic Eyes of Death Perception'—widened as the fate lines on Shou's body changed drastically.
Not just one line, but the entire pattern!
Lux was stunned for a moment, then—
"?!"
KABOOOOMMM...!!!
From nowhere, a fist wrapped in golden fire shot out and blasted Lux's figure. Simultaneously, several figures appeared around Shou, their positions seemingly forming a protective formation.
Krak...
"So it's no wonder he's called the Son of Destiny..." Lux rose from the ruins, his tattered cloak beginning to regenerate. "He's truly a creature that's very difficult to kill, like a cockroach."
"This is a coincidence. I didn't expect the famous 'Frost Assassin' would appear in this city."
A new echoing voice caught Lux's attention. He turned upward, his eyes finding the figure of an extremely handsome young man—his golden hair gleaming under the moonlight, his red eyes radiating aristocratic arrogance.
Behind him, three S Rank Hunter wizards followed like loyal shadows.
Feeling the air temperature suddenly rise, Lux said calmly, "And I also never expected the Third Prince of the Imperial Family would appear here... Vian Lightsun."
Vian Lightsun narrowed his eyes hearing his name mentioned. "It seems the 'Shadow Order' connection is very extensive..." His gaze shifted to the scattered corpses. His expression turned cold. "Massacring a noble family, even your Guild won't be able to save you this time."
"..."
Hearing that accusation, Lux was silent, then looked at Shou who was being treated by one of the Hunters.
'...Is this included in the power of destiny? To lower IQ and make others stupid.'
Lux felt a strange irony. He never expected the day would come when he would be misunderstood and made a scapegoat by destiny itself. However, he had no intention of correcting this misunderstanding.
After all...
"Are you sure you want to fight against me?" Lux asked in a light tone. "I don't mind, but... this city will certainly be destroyed."
"..."
Without using the 'Mystic Eyes of Death Perception,' Lux wouldn't dare claim he could defeat dozens of S Rank Hunters and Vian, who was equivalent to SS+ Rank, simultaneously.
However, conversely, they also wouldn't be able to defeat him. Such a battle would only end with the destruction of the city and innocent civilian casualties.
"...Go. But next time, you won't be this lucky," Vian finally said. His mission was only to investigate the problem in Life Forest, not to capture the legendary Assassin.
Although he wanted to catch him, the risk of city destruction was too great. Reluctantly, he let Lux go...
"That's the right choice, since I don't want to kill you yet..." Lux replied calmly. "At least, not now."
Vian frowned hearing those threatening words but chose not to respond. 'Frost Assassin... truly an arrogant figure,' he thought.
However, apparently, someone disagreed with the decision to let Lux go.
"NO! DON'T LET HIM GO! KILL! YOU MUST KILL HIM! HE'S DANGEROUS!"
Shou screamed hysterically, his eyes wild with fear and anxiety. His screams, which disrupted the tense moment, made everyone feel disturbed.
"Don't ask for foolish things. Many innocent lives would be threatened," said one of the Hunters.
"STO-"
"Knock him out."
Pak!
Before Shou could continue his protest, one of the Hunters struck the back of his neck hard. The young man's body immediately went limp.
"Deliver my message to him after he wakes up," said Lux before leaving. "'The thing in the sky and that borrowed power... will eventually become mine.'"
While uttering his final threat, Lux's body slowly broke into crystal ice fragments that danced in the air before vanishing without a trace.
Ensuring that Frost Assassin had truly departed, one of the S Rank Hunters asked his leader:
"Prince Vian, what should we do now?"
Vian glanced at him with an indifferent look. "Contact the Association and Guild in this city. There's no way they didn't notice the chaos that happened here."
"Y-yes!"
As that Hunter hurried away, Vian remembered Frost Assassin's words again.
'The thing in the sky, huh?' He closed his eyes momentarily, then looked up at the night sky.
'Who would have thought... while other Hunters can't see it, I actually can?'
His red eyes narrowed as he found what he was looking for—a giant black winged sphere floating in the sky, invisible to ordinary humans...
***
Meanwhile, Lux sat casually on one of the tall building rooftops, his lips curving into a thin smile behind his mask.
[Ding! Host has achieved a great accomplishment!]
[Ding! Host succeeded in making Son of Destiny's emotions uncontrollable, here's the reward...]
[Ding! Obtained 30,000,000 Achievement Points!]
[Ding! Progress Template Raiden Ei / Shogun increased by 5%!]
[Ding! Progress Template Takamiya Mayuri increased by 60%!]
[Ding! Congratulations! Host has obtained a new Character Template,
'The rewards given by the Son of Destiny are truly abundant, aren't they?'
Lux gazed at the brightly shining moon in the night sky. His sapphire eyes flashed with unbridled ambition. A new game had begun, and he could hardly wait to see the next move.
After all, fate always has its own way of making everything... interesting.