Chapter 30: Lima vs The Cultist I
"System, where is Lima right now?"
[Twenty Info Points.]
Zac almost choked. "What? But I only have 100 points after reaching D-rank."
[Do you want the information or not?]
Zac gritted his teeth. "...Fine. Tell me."
[-20 Info Points]
[She is currently on the eastern edge of the city, fighting an A-Rank monster and an A-Rank human.]
Zac froze. "Wait... fighting?"
[Correct.]
"Is she alone?"
[If you wish to know additional details, extra Info Points will be deducted.]
Zac’s eye twitched. "I already knew you were a bastard, but I never knew you were this much of a rip-off too."
[I am many things.]
"...You’re unbelievable."
[That, yes, I am.]
Without wasting another second, Zac shot toward the eastern side of the city as the ruined streets blurred past him.
Every monster that appeared in his path was crushed before it could even react. Some were split apart by raw force, and others exploded under the impact of his punches.
At this point, D-Rank monsters were nothing more than moving experience points to him.
Not only had his physical strength risen tremendously, but his ’overdrive skill’ had also evolved beyond what it once was. Previously, forcing out too much power would tear through his muscles and leave his body screaming in agony.
But now, he could maintain nearly four times his normal power with barely any strain. Which means even ’C-rank’ monsters started becoming nothing but experience points.
Zac naturally wasn’t going to waste an opportunity like this. As he tore through the city at terrifying speed, he casually used the battlefield to level up and increase his strength.
The streets behind him became a trail of mangled corpses, shattered concrete, and spreading pools of black blood.
But his mind remained fixed on only one thing: Lima was out there, fighting an A-Rank monster and a human.
***
A short while earlier, Lima had already left the association headquarters fully geared for battle.
Dark combat armor wrapped around her body while her sword rested silently at her side. She headed straight toward the A-Rank monster located in the eastern region of the city.
The deeper she went, the quieter the surroundings became.
No monster or any collapsing buildings can be seen in the place. Just an eerie silence hanging in the air like something waiting to happen.
More than a hundred meters ahead stood an enormous tree towering over the ruined streets like a living calamity. Its branches spread across the sky like twisted veins, blotting out the moonlight.
An invisible layer of protection surrounded the tree within a hundred-meter radius, keeping low-level beasts away from disturbing its maturing process.
Without hesitation, Lima raised her bare hand and tore straight through it.
"Krr-shhh-tink-crrrack!" The barrier shattered apart like thin ice.
The moment she stepped inside, the tree reacted instantly. Dozens of thick vines burst out from the trunk and shot toward her like giant serpents, tearing through the ground along the way.
Lima’s saw this and used ’Micro steps’ (Movement Skill). Her body moved with terrifying precision.
She slipped through the incoming attacks with movements so small and efficient that it looked almost unreal. The vines brushed past her body by mere centimeters before she appeared directly in front of them.
With a single swing the thick vines were instantly severed into countless pieces that crashed onto the ground with heavy thuds.
Lima continued forward without stopping.
As soon as she came within five meters of the giant tree, Lima raised her sword high into the air, preparing to cut the monster tree down in a single strike.
Then suddenly... her instincts screamed danger.
From the corner of her vision, she sensed an attack hurtling toward her at terrifying speed. She immediately twisted her body and brought up her sword at the very last second.
CLANG!
A violent shockwave exploded outward.
Even after blocking the attack, the overwhelming force still pushed her several meters backward across the ground.
Lima narrowed her eyes and looked ahead.
Standing there was a middle-aged man dressed in ash-gray robes. His face carried a bizarre smile filled with pure insanity, as though he were watching the most entertaining show in the world.
The man tilted his head slightly while staring at her. "Why are you in such a hurry? The party hasn’t even started yet... and you’re already trying to end it."
Lima’s expression turned cold. "Who are you?"
Instead of answering directly, the man slowly spread his arms, looking up to the sky.
"Only through complete darkness can a new dawn be born."
The moment she heard that phrase, realization flashed through Lima’s eyes. "You’re the one behind all of this?"
The man looked at her as if she had asked the stupidest question imaginable. "What a dumb question." A crazed laugh escaped his mouth. "If not for us, then who else would throw a party like this?"
Lima slowly lowered her stance, and mana began gathering around her blade.
"Then..." A sharp smile appeared on her face. "I’ll gladly be your party pooper."
BOOM!
The ground beneath her feet exploded apart as she instantly launched herself forward, beginning the battle.
She appeared in front of the cultist almost instantly, her sword slicing downward with enough force to split a building in half.
CLANG!
The man blocked it using the sharp black claws extending from his fingers. A violent shockwave exploded outward.
The nearby streets cracked apart while abandoned cars were sent flying through the air like toys.
The cultist grinned. "Is this all you got?" Lima didn’t answer, and her sword flashed again.
Each strike came faster than the previous one, turning into a fire storm of destruction. The cultist continuously intercepted her attacks with his claw-like nails, sparks erupting every time metal collided against those unnatural black claws.
CLANG!
CLANG!
CLANG!
The fight instantly became a blur.
The cultist lunged forward, slashing toward her throat with terrifying speed, but Lima tilted her body just enough to avoid it before countering with a thrust aimed directly at his chest.
He twisted sideways, and the sword barely missed his body, slicing apart the ruined building behind him instead.
BOOOOOOM! Concrete exploded everywhere.
The cultist suddenly appeared beside her and swung his claws toward her ribs.
Lima blocked with her sword, but the sheer force behind the attack still sent her sliding backward across the ground.
The man immediately chased after her like a beast unleashed from its cage, his claws tore through the air relentlessly.
Lima calmly dodged the incoming attacks using Micro-steps, each claw strike narrowly missing her body by centimeters.
She then retaliated using her sword, sweeping horizontally.
The cultist jumped backward just in time, but the sword pressure alone still sliced open several deep lines across his chest.
Blood splattered onto the ground. The man stared at the wounds before slowly grinning wider.
"You really are fun."
Lima narrowed her eyes. She could already tell this man was insane.
The two of them launched at each other again.
Their battle turned the entire area into a disaster zone. Buildings collapsed one after another from the shockwaves, while the ground continuously cracked beneath their feet.
Suddenly...
Both of them stopped simultaneously and jumped backward.
The giant tree behind them had completely matured. The massive trunk pulsed like a living heart while glowing veins spread across its surface.
Strange colorful bubbles slowly began floating out from the branches. Inside each bubble was swirling smoke in different colors. The entire atmosphere immediately became unsettling.
The cultist looked toward the tree... then burst into laughter.
"Hahahaha!" His crazed eyes turned toward Lima. "That’s it."
"It has finally reached the mature stage." He spread his arms dramatically. "From this point onward, no one can save this city anymore."
Lima silently rose to her feet with terrifying calmness and slowly grabbed her sword with both hands and lowered her head slightly.
"Channel... Release."
BOOOOOOM!
An overwhelming aura erupted from her body in every direction like a storm breaking free from its chains. The pressure created from the mana alone crushed the nearby ground.
The cultist’s smile faded slightly for the first time.
Lima’s black hair began fluttering violently despite the absence of wind while immense fiery energy flowed around her body like streams of light.
Then she raised her left hand.
"Domain."
HUMMMMM!
An invisible force instantly expanded outward with Lima at its center. The surrounding space distorted, with everything inside the area immediately swallowed into her domain.
The man’s expression finally changed.
"So you have already learned Domain. It seems you’re not a normal variant after all."
Then he cracked his neck casually. "Just so you know...I know that trick too."
"Channel Release."
CRACK.
His body immediately began mutating.
Muscles expanded violently beneath his skin while dark veins spread across his entire body like living worms. His claws grew even larger and sharper, becoming monstrous weapons capable of tearing through steel effortlessly.
Half human and half wolf.
A horrifying pressure exploded from him. He then looked directly at Lima and smiled with bloodthirsty excitement.
"Domain."
HUMMMMMM—
