Meteor Sword — Part 3
Rumble!
Just extending his fist made the air tremble.
It felt like a full-blown typhoon was approaching.
‘I can’t block this.’
Gritting my teeth, I threw my body to the side.
To the right, in the direction that took me even a little farther from Park Daeyeop.
“Hmph!”
Park Daeyeop scoffed.
Retracting his fist, he slowly clenched both hands.
Then, after taking a deep breath…
“Uoooooooh!”
He let out a roar.
A battle cry.
The magic-infused sound wave pummeled me mercilessly.
“Guh!”
If I hadn’t immediately switched to defensive traits, the fight would’ve ended right there.
Like the Vice Chairman who got hit by the EMP bomb.
I bit my lip and launched myself forward, pounding the ground.
Soaring straight toward him like a cannonball, I thrust my holy sword.
I switched traits, releasing mana to its extreme!
One Point!
Flash!
A cold light gleamed at the tip of the sword.
But Park Daeyeop just sneered.
“Is that all you’ve got?”
He blocked my thrust with his left forearm, lowering it at a right angle.
A simple, almost playful move.
But my sword stopped dead, sliding off as it merely scratched the surface of the modified steel gauntlet protecting his forearm.
“Die!”
It didn’t matter.
I immediately followed up with a second strike.
Pulling out my magic gun, I shot, pouring every ounce of mana stored in my ring into it.
The dark blast hit Park Daeyeop directly, and black flames immediately began to flare up.
“Hahahaha! Not bad!”
Park Daeyeop laughed boisterously, flexing his abdomen.
Beneath his torn suit, the defined “king” (王) symbol of his abs rippled like waves.
At the same time, an invisible power radiated from his heart.
A mana shield.
The black flames were quickly overwhelmed.
In that brief moment, I thrust my holy sword again, but Park Daeyeop once more blocked it with his forearm, easily deflecting the sword.
“This game is over!”
With a booming roar, he unleashed a storm of relentless blows.
His fists hammered my face, shoulders, chest, stomach, thighs, and knees without mercy.
I blocked with the holy sword and shielded myself with my mana barrier, but I was reaching my limit.
A crushing shock pierced through my spine and struck my brain, forcing blood out of my mouth as I was sent flying.
“Guh!”
Blood spewed out as if it had been waiting for the moment.
I tried to push myself up, bracing the ground with my right hand, but a scream got caught in my throat.
The holy sword was nowhere to be seen, and a sharp pain shot through my hand as if the bones had cracked.
Damn it. Why is he so strong?
The difference in level was undeniable.
[SR Park Daeyeop]
It was hard to believe that I had once easily crushed him, just another common brute-type warrior.
“Is that it?”
Park Daeyeop smirked.
“Then it’s time for you to die.”
He extended his right hand, making a fist slowly, starting from his pinky, one finger at a time.
That menacing gesture oddly calmed my mind.
‘So it was impossible after all.’
Even if I had used Flash instead of One Point, it would’ve been the same.
He was on a different level than Ebony, Viper, or the Cyborg.
Reinforced soldiers and warriors who traded rapid growth for one or two weaknesses could never compare to him.
There had always been only one way.
I slowly rose to my feet.
Planting my right foot on the ground, I straightened my left knee, lifted my waist, and held my head high.
Park Daeyeop looked at me as if I were pitiful.
Then, a hint of curiosity flashed in his eyes.
Because I had swapped my traits.
With each movement, one by one, in real-time.
[Strength]
My lean frame bulked up, stretching the fabric of my protective suit.
[Endurance]
My body noticeably grew as my bones thickened.
[Einherjar Cultivation Technique]
Dense waves of mana surged, causing my blood to evaporate and release mana steam.
But the real transformation started now.
[Mutant Muscle]
My muscle fibers multiplied. Each fiber became two or three times thicker, causing the bulging muscles to push against my protective suit, as if ready to tear it apart.
[Mutant Body]
I grew taller. My body enlarged, grotesquely mutating until I stood half a head taller than Park Daeyeop.
[Mutant]
My protective suit? Completely shredded. My skin flushed blood-red, and my hair stood up like bristling spikes. In Park Daeyeop’s pupils, I was no longer a promising young superhuman but a monster, a mutant.
“What… what is this…?”
His wide, horrified eyes mirrored his shock.
Before him, I let out a long, guttural cry.
“Kraaaahhh!”
It wasn’t a roar or a battle cry, just a primal scream from the depths of my being.
The necklace around my neck blinked repeatedly, pulsing with light.
The glove on my right hand greedily sucked up my blood.
And from that, strength surged—an overwhelming healing ability and the [Toughness] trait sent me spiraling into madness.
There was one more thing.
With the last shreds of my sanity, I rummaged through my protective suit’s pants pocket.
Thankfully, that part was still intact.
I pulled out the glasses stored inside and jammed them into my thigh with all my might.
The lenses shattered, and crimson mana circuits spread like a spiderweb, taking over my body.
The magic formation etched itself into my vision.
Through Park Daeyeop’s eyes, the process was vividly reflected.
My once black eyes turned blood-red, and my hair bleached white.
“You… you crazy bastard! Frenzy? What the hell kind of drug did you take?!”
My vision was red.
Everything in the world turned red.
Blood, death, and rage blended together in a frenzied festival!
And then, an ominous desire surged from deep within my heart.
Him.
That guy.
I wanted to kill that arrogant bastard standing there, so full of himself.
That desire, that urge completely filled my mind.
I didn’t hold back.
I threw myself at him.
I stumbled and lunged, swinging wildly at the bastard, as big as I was, who dared to stand his ground.
“You punk!”
Park Daeyeop didn’t just take it, though.
He quickly assumed a combat stance, blocking my attack.
The movements were familiar.
He angled his arms, deflecting with his forearm guard, a simple but flawless technique.
Thud!
A dull impact reverberated through me.
Amidst the all-red world, his silver-glowing fist slammed into my stomach.
He had blocked with his left forearm and countered with a right punch.
Park Daeyeop stared at me coldly.
Even in the midst of battle, the smug look in his eyes—the arrogance—made my blood boil.
“Kekekekeke!”
I drooled and laughed.
It didn’t hurt.
It was just laughable.
A smaller guy trying to act tough?
Die!
I swung my fist.
I smashed his face.
I drove my knuckles into his gut.
I kicked his knee.
I charged him with my body.
I headbutted him.
I hit him again and again and again.
“Ugh!”
Park Daeyeop was indeed a highly skilled fighter.
He blocked each of my frenzied attacks with precision and near-perfect form.
My punches, my kicks, my headbutts—nothing landed cleanly.
But defending could only last so long before you were overwhelmed.
At one point, with a shout, he exploded with a burst of mana.
“You bastard!”
Blood energy surged.
His face flushed bright red, his eyes bloodshot.
He gritted his teeth loudly.
His muscles swelled even further, matching the outpour of mana.
[Anger] trait.
It was an inferior version of Frenzy but allowed him to maintain his reason.
This was also the trait that, along with his relentless barrage, mana shield, and battle cries, made Park Daeyeop an SR-ranked warrior.
He roared and charged with wild, untamed energy.
No more defending.
It was all offense now.
Bam! Bam! Bam!
His fists pounded brutally.
Both of us hammered at each other’s bodies relentlessly.
My mind went blank.
Entrusting my body to the frenzy, driven purely by instinct, I assaulted him.
Neither of us backed down.
Like iron towers, we stood firm, trading blow after blow.
“Grrk!”
Park Daeyeop groaned, spitting out blood.
“Kyakakaka!”
I cackled, spraying frothy, blood-tinged spit.
It had turned into a contest of endurance.
A battle of who could outlast the other, who was more consumed by madness and rage.
I didn’t care.
By now, my reason had long flown out the window.
I wasn’t thinking about what came after.
I was lost in the sheer thrill of it all, throwing my entire being into this ecstasy, into this frenzy, focused only on destroying the loathsome figure before me.
Thud!
I smashed his face.
In return, I took a hit to my jaw but grinned.
If I were human, the force of the blow would’ve sent me tumbling, my balance shattered.
But as a mutant? I laughed it off and swung again.
Thud!
This time, my fist slammed into his lower abdomen.
A perfectly executed uppercut.
Though he blocked it with his mana shield and hardened physique, Park Daeyeop couldn’t stop the curse that slipped from his lips.
“You monster.”
Of course, I couldn’t hear it.
I only saw his lips twitching.
It didn’t matter what he said. I just grinned.
I swung my fist again.
Another hit. And another.
He counterattacked, but I brushed it off like it was nothing.
Ignoring the accumulated blows on my body, I kept piling on more and more attacks.
My whole body felt like it was burning.
My mind? Long since scorched to ashes.
Every muscle fiber, every thread of my being, felt like it was on fire, blazing with an intense, scorching heat.
And it all converged in my arms.
It felt as if molten lava ran through my muscles instead of fibers.
Whoosh!
Bam!
“What the…?!”
With a thunderous boom, Park Daeyeop was pushed back, sliding across the ground.
His face was painted with shock as he stared at me.
I didn’t know why this was happening.
I didn’t even bother thinking about it.
I was just thrilled to see that bastard, the one I wanted to crush so badly, finally pushed back. That was enough for me.
I lunged forward again, fists flying.
Boom! Boom!
The impact of each punch felt like explosions.
Park Daeyeop grit his teeth, pushing his mana shield to its maximum as he charged at me.
His blows rained down, but my punch missed, and he slipped inside my guard.
Before I could react, his fists were hammering into my chest.
“How’s that?!”
A perfectly executed combo!
I coughed up blood, my ribs cracking audibly.
But I endured.
Even as my ribs punctured my lungs, I stood tall.
Ignoring the pain of my healing flesh and regenerating bones, I thrust my chest out and swung my fist.
“You son of a—! Uoooooh!”
Park Daeyeop screamed, unleashing another roar.
His second battle cry.
But it was meaningless.
The magical resistance of my mutated body easily nullified the battle cry of a mere warrior.
Instead, it was Park Daeyeop whose eyes began to bleed.
He had pushed himself beyond his limit.
His anger trait had evolved into a near-frenzied state as he charged at me.
Bam! Bam! Bam!
Unceasing strikes!
My punches were wild, clumsy at best, while Park Daeyeop’s hits were sharp, precise.
But the sheer gap in our stats, the difference between a human and a mutant, kept us on even footing.
The balance finally tipped when his barrage of strikes shattered my ribs and sternum once again.
“Kekekeke!”
Suddenly, a new transformation began.
My body, my skin, underwent a second mutation.
Hard scales started to sprout from my skin, merging with the remains of my protective suit.
The suit, which had been torn to shreds, was now fusing with my body, evolving into something new.
Not scales, no… it was more like the shell of a turtle, or maybe the scales of a snake.
It was an armor—no, it was [Iron Skin].
Together with [Mighty Strength], which I had just acquired, this was the clear evolution of my strength and endurance traits.
“You bastard!”
Park Daeyeop screamed, but his voice was drowned out by the chaos of battle.
There was no point in shouting.
I had replaced [Strength] with [Mighty Strength] and [Endurance] with [Iron Skin].
The mass of my muscles had decreased slightly, and my overall size had shrunk a bit. But my arms had grown thicker, and the armor that covered me now nullified and even reflected some of the damage.
In this state, trying to fight me head-on?
No matter how skilled he was in martial arts, it wouldn’t be enough.
Now, I began to overwhelm Park Daeyeop.
Bam! Bam! Bam!
Each punch landed cleanly.
With my newfound [Mighty Strength], my blows started to pierce through his mana shield.
Each time my fist connected, Park Daeyeop’s eyes widened, and his once imposing body trembled.
He spat out so much blood that his chin, chest, and stomach were like a crimson waterfall, reminiscent of Niagara Falls.
“You bastard! You… bastard!”
Yet he still refused to back down.
Each time my punches landed, he looked like he was about to collapse, but his eyes stayed sharp, determined.
He was waiting.
Waiting for me to run out of steam and collapse first.
Because in his mind, I was just some freak high on drugs, a mutant who’d lose his strength when the frenzy wore off.
Even if he was wrong, it didn’t matter.
Mutants had no time limit on their traits, but Frenzy did. It would wear off eventually, and the aftereffects were brutal.
‘I need to end this.’
Somehow, my reason was starting to return.
The fact that I could even think like this meant that Frenzy was coming to an end.
But that didn’t stop me.
I didn’t pause to catch my breath.
I kept advancing, fists swinging, one after another.
At the same time, I switched my traits.
[Einherjar Cultivation Technique], [Mana Core], [Flash]
[Mutant Muscle], [Mutant Body], [Mutant]
Gone were the traits of [Mighty Strength] and [Iron Skin].
They were replaced by [Mana Core] and [Flash].
Woong… woong.
Mana surged throughout my body.
It boiled like molten lava, coursing through my veins and filling my entire being with heat and power.
At the same time, a mana wave exploded from my body!
Although my size had shrunk, and my arms had become thinner, the sheer intensity of my mana aura more than made up for the loss.
“What… what are you trying to do?!”
Instinctively sensing danger, Park Daeyeop’s expression twisted with panic.
He started to hammer me with wild blows, targeting my face and chest.
But it didn’t matter anymore.
As Frenzy faded and my instincts and reason intersected in perfect harmony, my mind was crystal clear.
And all I saw in my vision was one thing.
I threw a punch.
A surge of mana followed.
The Mana Core let out a roar.
Through the mana channels I had honed through the Einherjar technique, a dragon-like force surged.
And then, a blinding light erupted.
Park Daeyeop’s eyes widened in shock.
In his final moment, his gaze locked onto my fist.
He was disintegrating.
As the mana coursed through my bones and burst from my fist, his skin, muscle, veins, and nerves all began to tear apart.
What remained was nothing but bone.
Even that, however, was ground down to dust, disintegrating little by little, down to his fingers, leaving only the stubs of his hand.
And yet, the light still shone.
Even with my body pushed to the brink, my transcendent focus kept the mana alive.
And with that, I pierced through him.
My blunted, skeletal fist—now more like a bony dagger—tore through Park Daeyeop.
My hand drove through his chest, and out the other side of his body.
Light still lingered on my hand, forming the shape of a sword.
Park Daeyeop spat out a mouthful of blood.
“Ugh…”
He stared at me, his face full of disbelief.
I was still in my mutant form, a grotesque creature, and yet Park Daeyeop, in his dying moments, spoke haltingly.
“What… what is this?”
“This…”
I mumbled, my tongue barely cooperating.
“This… is Flash.”
Upon hearing my words, Park Daeyeop’s expression became one of utter defeat.
“Flash… Flash, you say?”
He slowly lifted his head, looking up at the sky.
His mana was dissipating.
And along with it, it began to coalesce.
Behind him, where I had pierced him, a new mana circuit was forming.
But instead of taking hold inside him, it was scattering into the air, where it would vanish without purpose.
Park Daeyeop chuckled softly, a hollow, bitter smile crossing his face.
“I finally… finally made it…”
Was it that my Flash had sparked some sort of revelation for him?
In his final moments, Park Daeyeop had reached the 5th level.
But it was meaningless.
My Flash had shattered his mana circuits, and the new circuits forming in him were scattered, useless.
“All I ask is that… you call it… Meteor Sword…”
Those were the last words Park Daeyeop ever spoke.
–TL Notes–
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