My brain only thought of one thing: Move or Die. At that very moment, it wasn't just the bipedal wolves coming at me—several iron spears, similar to my v3 spheres, were flying straight toward me. Without caring about the consequences of revealing my abilities, I moved using my electrified steps, and my wounds started to heal. But something felt off—my healing ability was taking longer than usual.

I constructed two ice swords at maximum power, each infused with my pseudo Law of Ice, Law of Death, Imra, and electricity. It took me a second of focus to create a skill at full strength. While dodging the spears, I formed another layer of protection over my chest and arms. It wasn't just spears anymore—tiny knives made entirely of steel were trying to stab me from every direction. Without my Domain, I'd already be full of holes like a piece of cheese.

I kept one charge of my movement skill ready and used only a hint of my electric affinity to speed up. I had to rely on my swords constantly to defend against the blades—they were as tough as they looked. I dodged every spear as long as I could; just deflecting one nearly numbed my arm.

"Do those spears carry a pseudo Law? Or maybe two?" That would explain why they're so hard and durable. Even with my swords, I could only deflect them and leave a small crack—and that nearly cost me my arm from the recoil. I took a second to observe him—based on the force of his Imra, I was certain. He was a Sapphire-ranked fighter—and a powerful one.

"What is someone like him doing in the middle of a forest? Why did he attack me? Did he plan all this?" I doubted it. He was too weak to have created or controlled a dungeon. He must be part of the group behind this mess. That made him an enemy.

My emotional sensitivity toward him dropped to zero. I no longer saw him as a human being, but just another monster. And for the first time in this life, I wanted to kill a human. I released all my bloodlust in his direction—and saw him jump back.

At that moment, he wasn't just dealing with me anymore. A few wolves went for him, and thanks to that, I had a few seconds of breathing room, and the number of monsters dropped. I built two v4 spheres and launched them at him. Caught off guard, he took another step back and summoned a steel wall. It didn't hold up at all—it was like tearing through a piece of paper.

He looked alarmed and used a repositioning skill to retreat a few meters. We stared at each other, and I saw it in his eyes—he was hesitating. He couldn't believe what was happening. A kid had forced him back with pure bloodlust and just shattered his wall, even if it was hastily made.

"Who are you?" He took a moment to study me. "Take off that shit covering your face." I didn't answer, and I saw his eyes fill with rage. "I was going to take it slow, but now you're going to regret ignoring me."

He kept a steel barrier near him—this one was completely different, tougher and more solid. He started manipulating the knives and spears with precision, trying to trap me. I focused on closing the distance. He was a textbook mage—I had to get close if I wanted a chance.

My arms were growing tired little by little. Each clash with the spears felt like striking a steel wall. The knives were less solid, but their numbers were alarming—he was controlling six spears and around twenty knives while maintaining his shield.

I started carefully managing my mana. I was exhausted, and if I ran out, I'd either die or be captured—not sure which was worse. I stopped launching spheres and kept two nearby for defense, using them to deflect knives when repositioning in tight spots.

Point of View: ???

"Who the hell is this kid? How can an Emerald-rank move like that? How many combat-oriented skills does he have? How is his magic this strong?"

Just watching him dodge my attacks like he had eyes on his back stunned me. With every second, my rage grew. This was supposed to be easy—just watch this dungeon for a while and let it overflow.

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I fell asleep waiting, and when I woke up, I saw this brat killing everything and ruining my plans. "I WAS JUST SUPPOSED TO GUARD THE DUNGEON! Why are you in my way?"

I was starting to panic—I couldn't land a single hit. "Die already, damn it! I'm already in enough trouble because of you!" I just had to direct that stampede toward the city and make those people believe their home wasn't safe anymore.

"He's closer? No, that can't be. He shouldn't be able to get this close." Time to end this—I wasn't wasting another second on some Emerald-ranked kid.

Point of View: Maki

Step by step, I closed in—slow and steady. Some of the knives clashing with my swords or spheres were destroyed, and the mage instantly replaced them. He wasn't letting up. Then I noticed something—the spears stopped attacking me and started gathering in the sky.

Then a support skill made them spin, and they came at me full speed. "This is my moment!" Because he focused so much on this powerful attack, his guard was slightly down. I used my charged step to get out of the danger zone and appeared much closer to him. I sprinted toward him, and when he noticed me, I was just meters away.

I aimed a slash at his left arm, but a giant steel wall blocked it. I used my left sword to hit the wall and propel myself again. I charged him once more—and again, the wall stopped my left hand. "Shit!"

In just a few seconds, our exchange turned into a deadly dance. I realized knives were flying toward my back. Even though I had infiltrated his defenses, I was about to take a direct hit.

"Let's trade blows!" Looking closely, I saw his steel affinity covering his head, torso, and arms. Although similar to my fortification spell, his looked sturdier, more solid. "Don't think that can stop my sword!"

I slashed with my right arm at full force. The speed caught him off guard—he didn't react in time. His armor held for a moment, but then I took the knives to my back. My head and torso were protected, so I was okay for now, but one knife buried into my right thigh and another into my left arm.

I poured all my strength into the slash and watched his triumphant expression twist into fear and panic. He tried to back away and stab me with a spear—"Too late!" My sword cut through and severed half his arm. His hand down to below the elbow went flying and hit the ground. As he screamed in pain, I took the chance to retreat.

"What's happening to me?" My vision blurred slightly, and my head throbbed. "Shit, I'm almost out of mana." I only had enough to heal my arm and leg. After that, I'd barely have enough to stay conscious.

The mage kept screaming, clutching his bleeding stump. He glared at me with pure hatred, breathing heavily in rage, baring his teeth like an animal.

"I'm going to kill you, you damn brat!" He took a deep breath. "No—you're going to wish you were dead. I'll make you beg for it!" He started laughing maniacally while preparing another spell.

A ray of light appeared—the light of hope. Something entered my Domain at full speed. A smile spread across my face, and I dropped to the ground, landing on my rear.

"Who do you think you're threatening?" My grandmother appeared beside him, her voice heavier than I'd ever heard it. I could feel her murderous intent aimed straight at the mage.

"You're a worthless bastard who never deserved to exist." At the same time, the mage froze like a statue—not just because of her voice or presence. I could sense her magic of light mixed with Imra holding him in place like a prison. I could also feel at least one Law and something else I didn't recognize.

"I have a lot of questions, and that's the only reason you're still alive, you bastard." My grandmother stepped in front of him and stared him in the eyes. "You're going to wish you were dead. I'll make you beg for it." She repeated his words back at him.

I stood up slowly and walked toward her, healing my wounds along the way. My head still buzzed with pain, but I could manage since I no longer needed to use mana for anything else.

"Took you long enough. You're never late." I tried to joke with her. It was a serious and dangerous situation, but I didn't want her to act on impulse out of rage.

She looked directly at me, scanning my entire body with her eyes—like a scanner searching for injuries. "I'm fine. No wounds left." I glanced at the mage and saw his expression twist in fear. He was terrified of my grandmother. He understood exactly where he stood. I raised my left arm, showing the back where the knife or wound should've been. Seeing I was fully healed made him even more afraid.

"I'm glad you're okay." She gave me a soft smile, then turned back to the mage—her bloodlust returned full force. The pressure was overwhelming, even though it wasn't directed at me. "So this is what it must've felt like when I unleashed my own killing intent…"

"Time to go." My grandmother scanned the whole area with one look and turned back to me. "You did better than I imagined. I'll send some kids to clean up and collect the monsters with cores." I gave her a genuine smile, and she returned it—halfway.

She stared at the idiot still frozen in place and said, "This rat's about to learn not to steal another's cheese." And with that, we headed back to Mancor—where I could only imagine what awaited that bastard.

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