Becoming The Strongest Using My Would-You-Rather System!-Chapter 55 - Owen’s Special Situation

As they made their way through the forest, Owen and Theo slowed their pace slightly, falling behind on purpose.

Once the distance between them and the rest had grown, Theo turned to Owen expectantly.

"So?" he asked quietly. "What the hell happened?"

Owen glanced around hesitantly once.

Finally, he turned to Theo.

"Where do I even start..." he muttered, pressing his lips together. "I guess from when you were fighting that crazy guy."

Theo nodded slowly.

He had no idea what exactly had led to the wolf crushing the three of them, as his back had been turned to them the entire time.

"At the start, we were still able to handle it," Owen started slowly. "With Emma’s plants and Iris’s continuous attacks seemed to be holding it off really well."

He paused for a moment.

"But as more of that liquid was pumped into it, we seemed to start losing bit by bit."

Theo nodded once, his gaze shifting to the forest in front of him.

"That’s my fault," he said. "I should’ve dealt with that maniac faster."

Owen’s head snapped up, turning to Theo immediately.

Then he suddenly punched Theo in the shoulder.

"Are you crazy or something?" Owen said, his eyes narrowed. "You were dealing with someone above your level and you wanted to win faster?"

Theo frowned, glancing back at him as he rubbed his shoulder.

"Don’t put this shit on yourself," Owen continued, a hint of annoyance in his voice. "We just weren’t strong enough to keep it at bay. That’s it."

Owen clicked his tongue, looking away for a moment.

"It’s genuinely annoying to hear you say stuff like that," he added. "You’re talking about getting stronger after handling both those things on your own."

Theo’s expression stiffened slightly. 𝙛𝒓𝒆𝙚𝒘𝒆𝓫𝙣𝓸𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝒄𝒐𝓶

"Sorry," he muttered, scratching the back of his head. "I didn’t realize I sounded like that."

Owen looked at him for a moment, then snorted.

"Relax," he said, waving it off. "I get to be an asshole like you now too."

Theo raised an eyebrow, turning to him with a confused but expectant look.

Owen’s grin simply grew wider.

"I’ll continue from after I took the hit," he said, pushing away a tree branch.

Owen’s grin didn’t fade as his gaze shifted forward again.

"For a second, I thought that was it," he said. "I couldn’t feel my arm anymore... and my chest felt like it got crushed in."

Theo’s expression darkened, though he stayed silent.

"I hit that glass tank pretty hard," Owen continued. "I could barely breathe, and everything just sort of... slowed down."

He paused for a moment, scratching his chest.

"And then I felt that liquid seep into my wounds."

Theo narrowed his eyes slightly.

He knew what it was and what was supposed to happen to Owen thanks to the Calamity Covenant member.

"It was the worst pain I’ve ever felt in my life," Owen said, grimacing as he thought about it. "That stuff went straight for my core, ripping into it and breaking it apart in seconds."

Owen let out a slow breath, his gaze fixed ahead.

"As it did that..." he said, his voice lowering slightly, "I remembered what you told me."

Theo frowned.

"...What?"

"About your lightning," Owen said slowly. "And how it strengthened your affinity."

Theo’s eyes widened immediately.

"And I thought..." he continued, scratching the back of his head, "why the hell don’t I try the same thing?"

Theo slowed down, his mouth wide open.

"You’re joking," he said, his expression faltering.

That was something he’d told him to cover up the system... yet he’d believed it and even used it in a life-or-death situation.

Owen, on the other hand, didn’t seem to notice his expression.

"I didn’t really have another choice," he replied, chuckling. "It was that or die."

He paused for a moment, glancing up at a moving tree branch nearby.

"As it was tearing through my body, I pushed all of that stuff into my affinity."

Owen raised his fist, clenching it tightly.

"I felt such immense pain it almost felt like my body was going to explode," he said. "But slowly, my earth affinity started changing."

Theo stayed absolutely silent.

Not just because it seemed completely surreal.

But also because he figured how immensely painful something like that must’ve been, as he’d been through it himself.

’At least mine was guided by the system,’ he thought, staring at Owen. ’But he pushed through it with sheer will.’

"Finally," Owen said, raising his finger. "All that liquid was absorbed into my affinity, and everything settled down again."

Theo stopped walking for a moment, a deep frown appearing on his face.

"But your core...?" he asked, tilting his head. "Without it, you should be dead right now."

Owen scratched the back of his head again, looking a bit awkward.

"Yeah... about that," he said. "That’s the special situation I was talking about."

Theo just stared at him.

His emotions had been triggered so much, he wasn’t sure if he could be surprised by another thing today.

"Right now..." Owen continued, "there’s basically a rock sphere around it."

He flexed his fingers slightly.

"And I can’t really use my mana at all."

Theo’s mouth fell open, not even sure what to say.

"...You’re kidding."

Owen just shrugged, a wide grin still spread across his face.

Theo finally let out a slow breath, running a hand through his hair.

"That thing around your core," he said. "Is it stable?"

Owen pushed his lips together, wobbling his hand side to side.

"It doesn’t hurt anymore..." he said. "But I don’t really feel anything around there either way."

Theo frowned slightly, his thoughts racing.

Before he could ask anything else, voices echoed from up ahead.

"We’re here!" the healer called out.

The trees up ahead began to thin, the crystal ceiling curving down into a familiar rock opening.

Now all that was left was the final path up, leading them through the barrier and out of the dungeon.

As the others regrouped again and the distance between them closed, Theo glanced at Owen one final time.

"...We’ll figure it out later."