The crushing gravity that had been suffocating the room suddenly vanished without a trace.
Shattered glass stopped trembling, and the air became breathable once more.
The mysterious entity withdrew its aura, restoring the room to its original state yet the deadly tension still lingered thickly in the air.
The entity stared straight at Steve, but its gaze pierced deeper… into the soul residing within him.
"Who… is this child?"
Its voice was flat, yet echoed sharply inside the mind.
"Why are you hiding inside his body… No Name?"
Inside Steve's consciousness, Unknown was shaken to his core.
His arrogance collapsed instantly under absolute shock.
"(Impossible… how is this even possible?!)" Unknown growled in disbelief.
"(I erased every version of myself across the multiverse long ago!)"
As if hearing that inner voice, the dark entity smirked faintly.
"I am not another version of you. I am you," it replied coldly.
"I was born from those who wished for your death… from the dawn of creation until now."
Cold sweat trickled down Steve's temple.
His survival instinct screamed maximum danger.
"What are you?! And who is he, Unknown?!" Steve shouted in panic.
Without turning back, he spread his arms to shield Pulchra behind him.
"Senior Pulchra, run! Hurry! This guy is dangerous!"
The entity tilted its head slightly, as if amused.
"Hah…? Who is 'Unknown'?" it scoffed.
"Oh… so you're hiding behind that ridiculous name now? Heh… remember this you are the nameless one. You never had one of that. You are… No Name."
"(Tch!)" Unknown clicked his tongue in anger.
The entity lowered its hand casually, glancing briefly at Pulchra before fixing its gaze back on Steve.
"Relax. I'm not like you, No Name," it said calmly.
"I'm only here for you. I'm not some mad creature that kills innocent lives for no reason… like you."
Steve was just about to respond
but in a single blink
the entity was already standing right in front of him.
Its speed was beyond the limits of the nervous system.
Its hand pulled back slightly… only an inch away from Steve's chest.
"One inch punch."
Steve's eyes widened in horror.
"Hah?! OPEN!" he shouted at the top of his lungs, dropping his defenses at the last second so Unknown could take over.
BOOOOOOOM!!!
The close-range strike exploded with absurd kinetic force.
Steve's body was blasted backward like a cannonball piercing through the steel walls of TGH headquarters, then continuing on to obliterate entire mountain ranges behind it, flattening them into nothing.
Amid the shattered remains of the mountains, thick dust rose into the sky.
Unknown, now in control, coughed violently.
His hand trembled as he wiped blood from the corner of his lips.
His eyes widened in disbelief as he recognized the stance… the technique…
"Cough… Jeet Kune Do…?"