Elites…The very word carried weight.
Individuals like the boy standing before Zephyr were not ordinary. They were forged through relentless, hellish training. Refined and tempered from a young age until they became weapons in human form.
Clans were entirely different from the rest of the world.
They did not simply exist,they dominated.
Within the human domain, power was everything. Control was everything. And to maintain that control, sacrifices had to be made.
Countless sacrifices.
Vassals, such as minor clans, were bound to play their roles within this unending struggle. They existed to serve, to support, or to be consumed by those above them.
It was the natural order of this world.The strong devoured the weak.
That was all there was to it.
*****
Zephyr exhaled slowly as he regained his bearings.
Pain coursed through his body, yet his mind remained sharp focused,he lifted his head while gazing.
The boy was already moving, sprinting straight toward him with lethal intent.
Zephyr narrowed his eyes then he positioned himself,Left foot forward.Right foot bent.Both hands gripping his katana, raised high above his head.The same stance and the same form.
The one he had used to kill the mountain boar.
A Simple posture, unrefined one. Yet deadly.
His condition was far from ideal ,breathing was uneven while his body screamed in protest.
There was a high chance he was already suffering from internal bleeding.
After receiving those brutal kicked.
And yet....He felt nothing or rather...Compared to what he had endured before…this pain was insignificant.
Losing an intere arm while having his eyes burst. Burning from inside out by those accursed hellfire and lastly. Experiencing death, again and again while fully aware of how it felt each time.That kind of suffering changed a person.
It dulled fear and numbed pain.What he felt now was nothing in comparison.
Zephyr inhaled deeply then he gathered everything, every ounce of strength remaining within his battered body....Focused into a single point...
From his arms to his legs. He destributed all possible strength he can muster, just for a single attack,this would be his final move.
One attack and only one chance. No more,no less.
Then...His entire form vanished.
*****
"Where the hell did he go?!"The boy's voice broke, tinged with disbelief.
Even with his mutated eyes,he could not track Zephyr's body.
His vision, once superior, had already begun to falter. The strain from his earlier skill weighed heavily upon him, limiting his perception.
What should have been a decisive advantage had become a burden, it was a futile effort.
He clenched his teeth and raised his guard to the utmost of his ability, muscles tensing as he braced for impact.
But it wasn't enough.
****
Zephyr appeared, within a single second,he closed the distance to the boy without any hesitation and restraint. Using all his lower and momentum...
Poured into a single, devastating strike the katana descended. A simple downward slash.
The boy reacted instantly, bringing up his sword to blockz but the moment the blades met it shattered.
The weapon split cleanly into two, offering almost no resistance. The force behind Zephyr's attack was overwhelming, unstoppable.
The blade continued, relentless assault toward the boy's shoulder the boy's expression twisted.
Horror,Dread, and Disbelief.
All of it surfaced in that fleeting moment.
Yet beneath it...something darker emerged.
Twisted Rage, pure unfiltered fury and deep humiliation. It consumed him entirely but it was too late.
The slash completed its path without any obstruction. Just a clean and precise slash.
The body of the boy was severed from shoulder down to wrist it was split apart.
Then...Golden particles erupted.
They shimmered briefly, enveloping his form before dispersing into the air.The talisman had activated.Saving his dear life, while also marking his defeat.
Zephyr stood still for a moment.
Then his body gave in.His knees buckled as he nearly collapsed, blood dripping from multiple wounds. His muscles trembled violently, pushed far beyond their limits.
His legs felt as though they might tear apart at any moment.
His arms were no longer responsive.
Zephyr couldn't even lift them.
"That… hah… was… hah… intense…"The words barely escaped his lips, broken and uneven, even speaking felt exhausting.
Using his skill...pushing his body to its absolute limit,had taken a severe toll. The strain on both his mind and body was immense.
Overexertion is hard to miss while damage and pain was evident but despite all of it, everything was worth it.He had won....
With trembling hands, Zephyr summoned his talisman the interface appeared before him.
Name: Zephyr
Points: 112
Hunted Beasts:
Lower Beast – Burrower Rat
Normal Beast – Mountain Boar
Elite Beast – Bloodfang Wolf
Ranking: 50 / 105
"Whoa…"
His eyes widened slightly.
"I have to admit… that's a huge jump!!!"A faint spark of excitement lit within him from rank 87 to rank 50. A really significant leap.
"Hmm…? I wonder how many points the top ten have…"He pondered briefly, curiosity flickering through his thoughts.If one hundred twelve points only placed him at rank fifty then what about those above him?
The gap must be enormous.
Well that's not his problem to begin with, he is just trying to survive, he didn't dwell on it for long.
There was no point, not now...
"You were just lucky to win, Zep."Maw's voice echoed as he circled above Zephyr's head.
Zephyr remained silent he didn't argue he just can't simply deny it.
Because everything Maw said was true. Everything that had just happened…was just the result of sheer luck.
If the boy had not used his ability prematurely and only relied solely on his physical prowess Zephyr would have lost..
Even without his skill, the boy's raw speed alone was enough to rival Zephyr's Super Speed.
That was the reality and that was the difference between him and true elites.
Clan heirs and scions those monsters in human form.
"…Yeah."Zephyr lowered his gaze slightly, his breathing gradually stabilizing.
A quiet acknowledgment not because of defeat but because it was reality and in that reality Zephyr found something else.
A reason to grow stronger..