Re:Birth: A Slow Burn LitRPG Mage Regressor-Chapter 47. The Promised Day - Part 3

The hour of the wolf.

Coldest, darkest part of the night, when even the stars seem to dim and huddle together for warmth. When old folk say evil spirits walk freely, when madmen hear their demons clearest, when the world belongs more to monster than man.

A blizzard ripped through the air, winds screaming between trees and hills, snow cutting sideways like shards of glass. The cold was the kind that burned, that crept into bones and stayed there. It had turned Arkhos into a city of ghosts.

And through all this mess moved the wolves. A hundred of them, iron-clad, their armor dark beneath snow-laden cloaks.

Arthur led his men. Forward, towards the city.

His enhanced senses picked through the storm's chaos. Imperial boots scraping against stone - guards taking positions in the streets ahead. A cat yowling as it fought over scraps in an alley. A cart wheel's creak as someone hurried to get it under cover. A child's voice, high and worried: "Papa, why are the soldiers-" followed by a sharp "Shh. Away from the window."

The city lived and breathed ahead of them, but quietly, like a creature trying not to draw attention. Above them, through the blizzard, the floating buildings of Xerkes stood out - the only place still alive with light. The mage council was in session by now.

"They're watching," one of the men muttered, eyes up.

Arthur followed his gaze. Dark figures hung in the storm-torn sky, some on brooms, others floating freely, their robes and mana cutting through the snow. Even through the blizzard, he could see the gleam of their attention. Mages - Probably affiliated with the magisterium - waiting to see which way the wind would blow.

They wouldn't interfere - not unless the fighting spilled into civilian quarters.

The wolves kept moving, the city's walls growing taller with each step. Finally, they reached the gates of Arkhos.

A magical barrier shimmered before them, thick and greenish in the storm. Arthur reached out, touched it. Pretty solid.

Not that it would do much, were they to enter.

"They're punctual," muttered one of his men, his voice barely carrying over the wind. "Got to give them that."

The gates suddenly groaned open, metal shrieking against ice. Through the gap, hundreds and hundreds of soldiers stood in formation, red capes thrashing in the wind, silver armor everywhere. But you could see some gold among that silver. Those were Star Knights. At least two hundred of them.

Arthur studied them. Some turned away from his gaze. One barely had stubble on his chin. Another's hands shook on his sword hilt. Through his enhanced senses, he could hear rapid heartbeats, shaky breaths. A lot of them weren't hardened warriors - just boys in silver armor. In a few years, Adom would be their age too, young adults.

They were all so damn young.

A single, golden-armored figure stepped forward from their ranks. Tall, broad-shouldered, moving with the easy confidence of someone used to command. "Commander Arthur Sylla. It is an honor to meet the leader of the Iron Wolves again." His voice carried clear despite the wind. "Though I wish it were under better circumstances."

"Captain Darius." Arthur's voice was flat. "Heard you made quite a name for yourself in the southern campaigns."

"And you in the north." Darius gestured at the gathered forces. "Shame we had to meet like this."

"Is it?"

"When dawn comes," Darius said, "and the morning bell rings, if you're still at these gates..." He shrugged. "Well. The empire doesn't look kindly on rebels."

"Rebels?" Arthur's laugh held no humor. "That what they're calling us now?"

"That's what you'll be. And we'll have to deal with you accordingly."

"I'd like to see you try."

Neither man moved. Behind them, soldiers and knights stood ready, hands on weapons, breath frosting in the air. The storm raged around them, but here, in this moment, everything was still.

Somewhere in the city, Adom had until dawn. The Imperial forces would be occupied here, their attention fixed on the wolves at their door. Whatever needed to be done in the shadows of Arkhos, this was the time to do it.

*****

"Adom? Adom Sylla? Is that you?!" Professor Kim squinted at Adom, his hands fidgeting with his sleeve cuffs. He seemed more erratic than usual, his movements sharp and jerky. "No, no, you can't be here. This is- there are guards everywhere, and-"

"Took care of some of them already," Adom said, checking the room. There were mana supressors here. No way to summon the Golem from the room.

"And we've handled the rest," Vex added as she surveyed the professor with open interest. "Nice digs they gave you, Professor. Better than I expected for a prisoner."

Kim's eyes widened at the sight of her, mouth working soundlessly for a moment before he managed, "Who... who are you people?"

Anders appeared at the opposite side of the doorway, his boyish face belying the professional way he scanned the room for threats. "Iron Wolves. We're here to extract you." His tone was clipped, efficient. "Area's secure for now, but we need to move quickly."

"Iron Wolves?" Kim's gaze darted between the knights, then back to Adom. "But they're- you're with-" He ran a hand through his already disheveled hair. "You brought Iron Wolves here? Professional killers? The elite military unit of the empire?"

"Aw, he's heard of us," Vex grinned, pushing off the doorframe. "And yes, professor, we are very professional killers." She winked at him. "Among other talents."

Kim's face flushed immediately.

Anders rolled his eyes. "Vex, can we focus? Time-sensitive mission here."

"I am focused," she replied, still studying Kim. "Just getting to know our package. Huh. Not bad for an academic."

The professor tugged nervously at his collar, clearly unsure how to respond.

"The entire city's about to explode," Adom interrupted, shooting Vex a look that she completely ignored. "The Iron Wolves are at the gates. Imperial forces are mobilizing. And the Mage Council's in session right now, discussing your prototype."

That snapped Kim's attention back. "The Council? Why would they..." His eyes widened. "Oh. Oh no."

"Yeah."

"But that means..." Kim's fingers drummed against his thigh. "They tricked me. All of them. I thought- they seemed so reasonable, so interested in the research. And they just..." His hands started shaking. "They're turning it into a weapon. My life's work, all of it, they're going to..." He grabbed Adom's shoulders. "I didn't know. You have to believe me. I thought they were good people, trustworthy people. I never meant for-"

"No one's blaming you, Professor," Anders cut in, his voice gentler now. "But we need to move. The commander's waiting, and we've got a narrow window to get you out safely."

"Commander?" Kim blinked. "You mean-"

"My father," Adom confirmed.

Kim's mouth fell open. "Arthur Sylla is your father? The Arthur Sylla?" His eyes widened. "Oh! Sylla! That makes sense!"

"Runs in the family, doesn't it?" Vex smirked, stepping closer to Kim. "Smart, talented, good-looking..."

Kim's blush deepened, and he suddenly seemed very interested in straightening his wrinkled coat. "I, um, that's... quite the lineage."

Anders cleared his throat. "Perimeter check. Now." He stepped into the corridor, signaling an all-clear before glancing back at them. "We've got little time before someone comes."

Vex nodded, her demeanor shifting to business despite the playful gleam still in her eyes. "Professor, anything you need to take with you? Research notes? Personal effects?"

Kim patted his pockets absently. "They... they took everything when they brought me here. My notes, my calculations... twenty-three years of research, just..." He shook his head.

"We'll get it back eventually," Adom said. "But first, we need to get you out safely."

"You shouldn't be here," Kim said suddenly, looking at Adom with renewed concern. "You're just a student. You're what, thirteen?"

"Twelve," Adom corrected. "Thirteen in a week or so."

"Twelve?!" Kim's eyes widened again. He turned to the knights. "And you brought a child into this? What kind of—"

"Trust me, Professor," Vex interrupted, "the kid's more capable than most men I know. He took down three guards on the way here before we could even draw our weapons."

"Four," Anders corrected, still watching the corridor.

"Four," Vex amended with a nod. "And he didn't even break a sweat."

Kim looked back at Adom, really seeing him for the first time—the white streak in his hair, the battle-worn armor, the way Fluid moved around him like living fire. "Oh."

"Yeah," Adom said.

"Still." Kim straightened his wrinkled coat. "What kind of professor would I be if I let a student risk their life for me? It's... it's unprofessional. Get behind me, at least."

Vex let out a short laugh. "That's adorable, Professor. But right now, the best thing you can do is follow instructions and let us get you out of here safely. The longer we stay, the more danger we're all in—including Adom."

A sound from the corridor. Boots on stone.

Anders moved like lightning, drawing his sword in one fluid motion. Vex pushed both Adom and Kim behind her, a curved dagger appearing in each hand.

"Six hostiles approaching from the east corridor," Anders whispered. "Heavy footsteps. Armored."

"Behind me," Kim whispered to Adom, trying to shuffle in front of him.

Adom suppressed a sigh. This was getting quite annoying.

Vex glanced over her shoulder at Kim, an amused smile playing at her lips. "Protective. I like that in a man."

Kim's face turned an even deeper shade of red, but he held his ground.

"Professor," Anders hissed, "get back. Let us handle this."

"I'm not letting a child—"

"Listen to the man, handsome," Vex whispered. "Let the professionals work."

Kim gulped, his fingers drumming against his thigh nervously. He looked at Adom, who just nodded toward the knights.

"Fine," Kim conceded reluctantly, stepping back. "But I'm still keeping an eye on the boy."

"You can keep an eye on whatever you like," Vex winked, causing Kim to nearly trip over his own feet as he retreated.

Anders rolled his eyes. "Vex. Focus."

"I am focused," she replied, twirling her daggers. "Just lightening the mood. Better than letting him panic."

The footsteps grew louder. Anders signaled to Vex, who nodded and melted into the shadows beside the door.

"Stay with the professor," Anders whispered to Adom. "We'll take care of this."

Adom frowned. "I can help—"

"Your job is to detect any magical disturbance and pinpoint them to us since you're the mage here. Not to protect our package," Anders cut him off. "That's what the commander ordered."

The footsteps stopped just outside. A voice called out, "Cell check! Open up!"

Anders gave them one last look, then shifted into the shadows opposite Vex, both knights now invisible in the darkness flanking the doorway.

"What should we do?" Kim whispered, grabbing Adom's sleeve.

"Trust them," Adom replied. "They know what they're doing."

The door burst open, and two guards stepped in, weapons drawn. They froze at the sight of Kim and Adom.

"What the—" one began, reaching for an alarm whistle at his belt.

He never finished the sentence. Anders and Vex moved in perfect synchronization, emerging from the shadows like wraiths. There was no wasted motion, no dramatic flourish—just clean, efficient strikes that left both guards unconscious before they could even register what had happened.

More guards appeared in the doorway. Vex flowed between them, her daggers finding gaps in armor—not killing, but disabling. Anders moved like water, his sword a blur that somehow never drew blood but left men crumpling to the ground all the same.

In seconds, it was over. Six armored men lay sprawled on the floor, all breathing but none conscious.

"Clear," Anders announced, resheathing his sword.

Vex grinned as she spun her daggers before tucking them away. "That was fun. Been a while since we've done a clean extraction."

Kim stared at the fallen guards, mouth agape. "That was... you didn't even..."

"Kill them? Not our orders," Vex said, brushing past him. Her shoulder touched his as she passed, and Kim nearly jumped. "Commander was clear - make as little casualties as possible. Unnecessary bloodshed would just complicate things." She glanced back at the unconscious guards. "Though we can do that too, if you'd prefer a more permanent solution."

"N-no, no, this is... this is fine," Kim stuttered.

"I thought so," she smiled. "You strike me as the merciful type, Professor. Soft hands." She glanced down at his hands, then back to his face. "I like that."

Kim looked to Adom, clearly pleading for help.

Adom just shrugged, not entirely sure what to make of Vex's behavior. Was she actually interested in the professor, or just messing with him to keep him off-balance? Either way, it was working—Kim seemed too flustered to panic about their situation.

"We need to move," Anders announced, checking the corridor. "

"Do you even know where to go?" Kim asked, still trying to regain his composure.

"Every corridor, every stairwell, every guard post," Vex answered. "We've explored most of the place, Professor."

Kim gulped, his fingers drumming against the doorframe. For a moment, he looked like he might argue more. Then his shoulders slumped, and he nodded. "What... what should I do?"

"Follow us." Adom moved to the door. "And please stay close."

*****

A few moments later...

"So what's the plan?" Kim asked, trying to keep up as they moved through the corridors.

"We're getting you out of here," Adom said firmly. "Right now."

"Now?" Kim looked between them. "But there are guards everywhere, and-"

Vex placed a hand on the professor's shoulder. "That's why we brought the kid."

Adom closed his eyes, his consciousness splitting. Through the golem's eyes, he could see Dirk and Bram waiting, weapons ready. He made the hand signals they'd practiced - Found him. Clear to transport.

Dirk nodded, touching the golem's shoulder. Bram did the same.

"Stand back," Adom instructed, opening his eyes.

The air before them shimmered, reality folding in on itself. A flash of blue light, and suddenly the golem stood there - massive, armored, imposing. Behind it, Dirk and Bram appeared, weapons drawn, looking momentarily disoriented from the teleportation.

Kim stumbled back, eyes wide with shock. "What in the- that's the golem!" He turned to Adom. "That was you? You built that?"

"I'll explain later," Adom said. "Professor, grab onto the golem's arm. It'll teleport you to safety."

A pulse of energy suddenly rippled through the air. Adom felt it immediately - a dampening field, subtle but unmistakable. The golem's runes flickered, its steady blue glow faltering momentarily.

"Something's wrong," Adom said, his senses tingling with warning. "The transportation crystal is being interfered with."

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Anders drew his sword in one smooth motion. "Trap?"

Vex was already moving, daggers appearing in her hands. "I'll check the-"

"No need for that," a voice called from the shadows. "I'm right here."

Gale stepped into view, looking exactly as relaxed as he had when Adom first met him. His sword hung loosely at his side.

"Well, well," Gale said, his eyes fixed on the golem. "Didn't think I'd see this beauty again so soon." His gaze shifted to Adom. "Twice now, you've used it to escape me. Quite the clever trick."

The Iron Wolves moved as one, forming a protective semicircle around Adom and Kim. Dirk and Bram flanked the left, Vex and Anders the right. The golem stood center, its massive frame dwarfing everyone.

"Oh, hi everyone!" Gale called out, spreading his arms wide. "I'm Gale. Pleasure to meet you all properly."

Dirk's grip tightened on his sword. "We know who you are."

"And we know what you've done," Vex added, her voice cold.

"Perfect!" Gale clapped his hands together. "Then we can skip the introductions. Good, because I've been preparing this monologue for a while now, and I'd hate to waste it."

He cleared his throat dramatically, rolling his shoulders. "You see, where I come from, we have a saying: 'Fool me one time, shame on you. Fool me twice, can't put the blame on you. Fool me three times?'" His smile turned cold. "'Fuck the peace signs.'"

Adom's mind raced. The mana dampening field - that's what was interfering with the golem's transportation ability. Gale must have set it up, but where was the artifact doing that?

"You know," Gale said, "teleportation magic is fascinating stuff. So convenient... until someone introduces the right countermeasures." He pointed at them. "I was kind of hoping to see this golem again." His eyes then drifted to Adom. "Ah. Adom. How ironic. I've been searching for you all this time, and you were right under my nose. At the academy I visited so many times."

Anders shifted his stance. "Six against one, Gale. Not great odds, even for you."

"Oh, I'm well aware," Gale replied, not looking the least bit concerned. "But your extraction window is closing fast. " He tapped his ear. "I heard there's a full battalion moving this way as we speak."

Was he stalling for time?

"The Iron Wolves may be at the gates," Gale continued, "but down here? This is still our territory. And you're about to be very, very outnumbered."

Bram stepped forward, his war hammer held ready. "Then we'll just have to finish this quickly."

"I wouldn't," Gale warned, gesturing to the walls around them. "This section of the Undertow is... structurally unsound. Start throwing around that kind of force, you might bring the whole thing down on our heads." His gaze fixed on Adom. "And I'm guessing you wouldn't want anything to happen to the professor."

Kim's hand gripped Adom's shoulder. "Don't listen to him," he whispered. "Just go. Take your people and go."

Adom did not listen.

Riddler's Bane activated, the world sharpening into focus as he saw the mana structures around him.

Adom scanned the corridor. Something about the dampening field felt... familiar. Not natural mana interference, but engineered - precise.

Then he saw it. Tiny crystals embedded in the stonework, barely visible except for their faint purple glow. Arranged in a geometric pattern that created overlapping fields of disruption.

"Modified amethyst crystals," he muttered. "Hexagonal arrangement. They're creating a counter-resonance field that disrupts teleportation by inverting the harmonic frequency."

Vex glanced at him. "What?"

"The walls," Adom pointed. "Those crystals. They're creating the dampening field, but they're interdependent. If we damage enough of them..."

Anders caught on immediately. "The whole network collapses."

"Exactly," Adom nodded. "Hit them hard enough, create enough structural damage-"

"And we can teleport again," Dirk finished, gripping his sword tighter.

"So we just need to break things," Bram grinned. "That, I can do."

"Go all out," Adom instructed. "The crystals need to be-"

[Flow Prediction] triggered.

The world slowed. Air pressure shifted. Instinct screamed danger before his conscious mind could process why.

Gale was moving - not where they expected, but in a blur that bypassed the knights entirely. Heading straight for Kim.

Damn was he fast.

Even with [Flow Prediction], Adom couldn't intercept in time.

A flash of steel. Anders' sword cut through the space where Gale had been a millisecond before. The mercenary pivoted, impossibly quick, still reaching for the professor.

Then - impact.

Bram's war hammer connected with Gale's side. The blow would have shattered a normal man's ribcage. The mercenary flew sideways, crashing into the wall with such force that stonework cracked and crumbled. Dust and debris rained down as he disappeared into a pile of rubble.

"Professor!" Adom shouted, "behind me, now!"

Kim scrambled to comply as Adom activated Wam and Bam, blue runes igniting along their surfaces.

The rubble shifted. Gale emerged, brushing dust from his shoulders. His clothes were more tattered now, but otherwise, he appeared completely unharmed. That blow should have killed him, or at least broken bones.

"Whew!" Gale shouted, rolling his neck with an audible crack. "Almost felt that one."

A faint glow emanated from beneath his shirt - a protective artifact.

"You know," Gale said, stepping out of the debris, "I think I should start by shutting you up, kid." His eyes fixed on Adom. "You're far too clever for your own good."

Adom took a step back.

"Haah.." Gale exhaled then out of nowhere, he moved like a serpent, all coiled power and controlled strikes. The knights reacted instantly, forming a tighter perimeter around Adom and Kim.

"The crystals!" Adom shouted, pointing at the faintly glowing structures embedded in the walls. "Target them!"

Bram didn't hesitate. His war hammer swung in a vicious arc toward the nearest crystal cluster. Gale was there in a blur of motion, deflecting the blow with his sword. The impact sent shockwaves through the corridor, stone dust raining from the ceiling.

"Careful now," Gale said. "Wouldn't want to bring the whole place down."

Anders and Vex coordinated their attack, coming at Gale from opposite sides. The mercenary twisted impossibly, evading both strikes while maintaining his position between them and the crystals.

Adom's mind went overdrive, analyzing Gale's movements. The mercenary was deliberately keeping himself between the knights and the dampening crystals. And that glow beneath his shirt—that was the key.

"Dirk, the ceiling!" Adom called out.

Dirk understood immediately. His sword flashed upward, sending a wave of energy into the ceiling above one of the crystal clusters. Stone cracked and groaned.

Gale's eyes narrowed. He flicked something from his belt—a small bronze sphere that clattered across the floor. It did not take long before Adom could recognize the artifact with [Identify].

[Rupture Orbs: Spheres inscribed with destabilization runes that contain compressed mana programmed to detonate in controlled bursts]

"Move!" he shouted.

But it was too late.

The sphere erupted, not with fire but with a pulse of dark energy that rippled outward. The golem staggered, its runes flickering wildly. A second sphere followed the first, rolling toward a different section of the corridor.

"He's trying to split us up!" Adom realized. "Don't let him—"

The second sphere detonated. This time, the blast struck the weakened ceiling section. Stone and masonry crashed down, dust billowing through the corridor.

Vex and Anders pulled Adom and Kim back from the falling debris. Dirk and Bram were suddenly on the other side of a growing wall of rubble, the golem between them.

Gale capitalized on the chaos, moving with shocking speed. His sword flashed, catching Dirk across the arm.

Slash

The knight roared in pain as his limb dangled uselessly, blood spattering the wall behind him.

"Get the professor out!" Dirk shouted through the narrowing gap in the debris.

Bram's hammer smashed into Gale's back with enough force to shatter stone. The mercenary barely flinched, that strange glow beneath his shirt pulsing brighter. He turned and drove his knee into Bram's chest, sending the larger man crashing into the wall.

"It's some kind of absorption artifact," Adom said, watching the glow intensify with each attack.

"Then we just have to take it away," Vex said, pulling another dagger from her belt. She threw it, aiming not at Gale but at one of the dampening crystals.

Gale moved faster than should have been possible, snatching the dagger from the air. His smile widened. "Clever! You guys really are a menace!""

He flicked his wrist, and a third sphere rolled across the floor—directly toward Adom, Vex, Anders, and Kim. Anders lunged for it, but Gale was already there, driving his elbow into the knight's temple. Anders crumpled.

"No!" Vex cried, moving to intercept Gale. Her daggers slashed in tight arcs, driving him back momentarily.

The sphere detonated, and the floor beneath them collapsed.

Adom grabbed Kim's arm as they fell, twisting to take the brunt of the impact. They landed hard on cold stone, a level below the main corridor. Dust and debris rained down, cutting off their view of the battle above.

Through the settling dust, Adom could see Gale landing lightly a few yards away, completely unharmed by the fall. Vex lay crumpled nearby, unconscious or worse.

"And then there were two," Gale said, advancing slowly. "Just you and me now, kid. Well, and the professor."

Adom stood, placing himself between Gale and Kim. He used Riddler's Bane, analyzing the artifact on Gale. Somehow, he needed to neutralize that artifact. It was the only thing allowing Gale to not get beaten by the Iron wolves.

Above them, he could hear the sounds of boots on stone—multiple sets, moving quickly. Reinforcements were coming.

Gale tilted his head, listening. A slow smile spread across his face. "Ah, and right on schedule. The reinforcements are here." He glanced upward, then back to Adom. "They won't be able to stop your knight friends up there, not permanently. But they'll buy me enough time to take the professor and be gone."

"Get behind me, Adom," Kim said, stepping forward. His hands moved in practiced patterns, Fluid gathering between his fingers.

A fireball erupted from his palms, hurtling toward Gale. The mercenary didn't move, didn't even flinch as the flames washed over him. The glow beneath his shirt pulsed brighter.

Kim tried again. Another fireball, larger this time. Then another. Each one crashed against Gale with no visible effect.

"Are you done?" Gale asked, brushing a speck of ash from his shoulder. "All you're doing is useless, Professor. Please stop complicating things and come here."

Kim faltered, his hands dropping to his sides.

Adom shifted his weight, ready to move, eyes still tracking the artifact.

"Had the Iron Wolves not been patrolling the waterfront the past few days, we would have already extracted you," Gale continued, taking a step forward. "I knew this would happen eventually. Your protectors were inevitable. Just not as... numerous as they turned out to be."

"Hey! Stop staring at me, it's creepy!" His eyes shifted to Adom, then sighed. "Look, kid, I don't like beating children, much less killing them. That's why you're still breathing, by the way."

He gestured at Adom's stance. "But I was always underestimated as a kid too. Took advantage of it against much stronger opponents. I have a feeling you're the same. You killed Helios, didn't you?" He winked. "Game recognizes game, after all."

Gale's Fluid flared green. "So fair warning—I won't underestimate you and won't hesitate to incapacitate you if you don't stop getting in my way."

There was something Adom noticed thanks to Riddler's Bane.

During the earlier fight, each time the knights struck Gale, the artifact pulsed brighter. Each fireball Kim threw, the glow intensified.

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Something clicked in his mind. The artifact was storing energy - absorbing impacts and maybe converting them to power. Every attack on Gale was rendered useless.

The mercenary noticed Adom's focused stare. "Boy. I told you to stop. It's really not polite to stare like that. Plus you're making me uncomfortable, I'm shy you know?"

Above them, the sounds of combat intensified. The knights were fighting hard.

"Why?" Adom asked, mind racing through options. "You probably already got what you wanted from the professor's research. Why bother now?"

Gale's smile tightened just slightly. "You like running your mouth, don't you?" He took a step forward, and both Adom and Kim tensed.

No way out. The knights couldn't reach them fast enough.

Keep him talking. Buy time.

Huh?

Adom was in the air.

I'm in the air?

How was he in the air?

None of that mattered right now. Adom's hand shot to his inventory. The potion his mother made - she'd fought against it, warned him about the risks, but right now? Right now he needed every advantage.

The bottle came free. Liquid sloshed out as he yanked the cork, droplets hanging in the air around him like suspended stars. The sweet taste hit his tongue - different from the white concoction in the dungeon. Had his mother tweaked the formula?

His last gulp coincided with the apex of his arc through the air. Then everything sharpened.

Colors intensified. Sounds crystallized. His heart hammered against his ribs, but it wasn't fear - it was power, raw and electric. The world slowed down just enough to matter.

[Fluid Control at 80% Capacity]

Blue fire erupted across his skin as his whole body warmed up, Fluid and mana mixing into something new. Wam and Bam activated on his hands.

The [Fire] rune on Wam flared white-hot. Flame exploded from Adom's palm, throwing him forward like a rocket. His other hand - Bam - shot out at Gale's face, enhanced by momentum and gravity.

But Gale's eyes widened, and he was already moving. The mercenary flowed backwards like water, Adom's strike cutting through empty air. He landed hard, rolled, came up in a boxer's stance.

A whistle from Gale. Behind him, Kim had a fireball ready, face twisted with concentration.

"You're quite full of-"

Adom closed the distance. [Flow Prediction] struggled to track Gale's movements - the man was too fast, too unpredictable, his feints masking his true intentions. Still, [Boxing Mastery] guided Adom's strikes - short, sharp jabs, no wasted motion. He froze the ground under Gale's feet, followed with a wind blast to push him off balance.

But it was like fighting smoke. Each time [Flow Prediction] caught a pattern, Gale would shift, change, adapt. A feint to the left became a strike from the right. A step back turned into a sudden advance. The mercenary's movements defied prediction, each feint layered with another feint, each attack coming from an impossible angle.

[-7 Life Force]

[+4 White wyrm's body]

[++6 Healing Factor]

Gale's counter caught him in the liver. Clean hit.

It hurt. Despite the potion, the adrenaline, it still hurt so much.

But Adom pressed forward. Couldn't give him space. Couldn't let him set up. Lightning crackled between his fingers as he threw combinations - jab-cross-hook, each strike backed by magic, each movement calculated.

[-5 Life Force]

An elbow slipped through his guard. Stars exploded behind his eyes.

Where did that c-

[-3 Life Force]

A kick swept his legs out. He rolled with it, barely avoiding the follow-up that would have crushed his windpipe.

Gale moved like a damn snake, each attack flowing into the next. That smile never left his face, even as Adom's frost spell caught his sleeve, even as a lightning-enhanced straight almost connected with his jaw.

[-5 Life Force]

A knee to the solar plexus. Adom's lungs seized.

"Hey. You're making me look bad beating up a child. How come you're not knocked out already? Your body's quite sturdy for your age."

He needed seconds. Just seconds. But Gale wasn't giving them. The mercenary pressed forward, that casual smile becoming something predatory, and Adom realized with crystal clarity that he was playing with his food.

Kim's hands moved in desperate patterns as Adom dropped, gasping. The fireball that erupted was massive, roaring through the corridor like a small sun.

And Gale... Gale just walked straight through it.

When the flames died, he didn't have a single scorch mark. Adom's eyes widened - how? Come to think of it, the golem's explosive punch to the chest, the port detonation... he'd walked away from those too. Just how? An artifact? Magic? He needed to know, to identify it, and find a way to get rid of it.

Kim was shouting something at him. Run? The word seemed to come from far away, like he was underwater, and then-

Gale appeared in front of Kim. One punch. The professor folded like paper, body convulsing violently as he dropped. Retching.

Adom's palm immediately ignited. The [Fire] rune launched him forward while Gale's attention was on Kim. For a split second, he thought he had him.

Then his world exploded.

The hit came from nowhere. His right eye filled with red, swelling instantly. Colors burst across his vision - green, purple, white. The adrenaline shot in his system made everything too bright, too sharp, even as darkness crept in from the edges. His enhanced senses picked up every detail of his own collapse - the way his legs gave out, how his arms went limp, the copper taste flooding his mouth.

His brain was out of service, and his body was following.

Aaah, I hate this feeling...was the thought Adom had as the he lost consciousness while falling.

He got beat down again.

What was he even thinking? The gap was ridiculous. He should've kept talking, found another way. And yet, here he was, knocked out like he was nothing. How unnerving.

That powerlessness - Adom knew it so well. Had tasted it too many times. Through Damus, through the wars, through life...

He was nothing. Frail and small and skinny, like... like a shrimp.

Shrimp.

For a while, that word had haunted him, defined him in his first life. Too small, too weak, too easy to beat down. But during his training sessions with Kaius, between getting thrown around and learning to take hits, his vulnerability made him think about something interesting.

See, there was this creature somewhere in the Thousand Seas, right where all the currents met. Tiny thing. Pathetic, really. The kind of monster most adventurers wouldn't even bother with. They call it the Thunder Shrimp.

Funny thing about the Thunder Shrimp - it had this claw that snapped shut so fast it created a bubble in the water. When that bubble collapsed, it generated a shock wave hot as the surface of the sun. Seriously. The impact could stun creatures ten times its size. A hit so devastating it seemed impossible from something so small.

The Thunder Shrimp shouldn't be able to survive its own attack. The force should tear it apart. But it did. Every single time.

That's when Adom started thinking of himself as a Thunder Shrimp.

Started working out how to recreate that impossible hit. The math was simple - horrifying amounts of mana, concentrated and released in a single point, creating a cavitation bubble that would collapse with devastating force. The kind of hit that would shatter every bone in his arms if he tried it bare-handed.

Wam and Bam flared to life, drinking in Fluid and mana even as his consciousness flickered. The rune patterns weren't complex just for show. Each spiral and intersection had been designed with this in mind - containment arrays to handle the pressure, conversion matrices to channel the energy, stabilization networks to protect the wielder.

He'd never actually tried it. The theory was solid though - use the gauntlets to create a sealed space, pump it full of concentrated mana, then collapse it just like the Thunder Shrimp's bubble. The runes would handle the recoil, direct the force outward instead of back through his arms. The math worked. The principles were sound.

Whether his body could handle it was another question entirely.

[Indomitable Will]

[Push] threw him forward just as Gale looked up. Wam ignited with blinding light, mana rushing through the runes like a dam breaking. Adom screamed - not from pain, but from the sheer pressure building in his arm.

Time seemed to slow in [Flow Prediction]. Gale's eyes widened - the first real surprise Adom had seen on his face. The world tunneled as Adom's body accelerated, everything narrowing to that single point of impact.

WAM

At long last, his fist connected and - ah, there it was.

Blink and you'd miss it. A shimmering barrier materialized around Gale, emanating from something glowing beneath his clothes. The artifact's effect.

The Thunder Shrimp's punch met the barrier. For a split second, nothing happened. Then - crack.

The barrier shattered like glass, the concentrated force finding its target. The boom was deafening, contained and focused into a single point of impact. Physics bent as the cavitation bubble collapsed, unleashing force that should have spread through the tunnel but instead drove straight into Gale's chest.

But something else happened.

Through Riddler's Bane, Adom could see the overloaded artifact couldn't absorb this new surge of energy. Its capacity had probably been reached, pushed beyond limits. The artifact itself fractured, releasing all its stored energy at once.

The mercenary flew backward, smashing through the tunnel like a cannonball. The sound echoed for seconds afterward, stone cracking and settling in his wake.

Wam went dead, suddenly heavy as lead. Adom stripped it off - the gauntlet had channeled more power than it was ever meant to handle. The runes were burnt out, scoring patterns into the metal like acid.

A hit that would have leveled half the tunnel, compressed into a space smaller than his fist. The math had worked. The theory had held.

Hah.

"Are... are you okay?" Kim's voice came from behind, shaky and raw. The professor was trying to stand, clutching his stomach where Gale had hit him.

Adom's fingers fumbled with Wam, finally managing to store it in his inventory. The gauntlet had served its purpose - maybe too well. He grabbed Kim's arm, hauling him up. "We need to move. Now." His own arm tingled where he'd thrown the punch, but the pain was manageable. Without the gauntlets' protection, that hit would've liquefied his bones.

"What about Vex?" Kim looked back at the fallen knight.

"Priority is your extraction," Adom said, already moving toward the corridor. "The knights know the risks."

The professor hesitated, then nodded, following Adom's lead. They had made it halfway down the corridor when a sound stopped them - shifting rubble from where Gale had been thrown.

A groan of pain echoed through the tunnel, followed by a string of curses.

"That's... that's impossible," Kim whispered. "No one could survive that kind of impact."

That familiar chill ran down Adom's spine. He couldn't waste any more time.

"Move!" he urged, pushing Kim ahead of him. "We need to reach the others before—"

Gale staggered into view, leaning heavily against the wall. His shirt was torn open, revealing the shattered remains of what had been his protective artifact. The device was cracked clean through, wisps of energy still escaping from its fractured core. His left arm hung at an unnatural angle, clearly broken.

"You..." Gale's voice was strained, his usual composure shattered along with his artifact. Blood trickled from the corner of his mouth. "What the hell was that?"

"K-keep going," Kim told Adom. "I'll hold him off."

"Don't be ridiculous, Professsor" Adom said. "He's still dangerous."

The mercenary pushed himself off the wall, wincing as he tried to straighten. "The kid's right, professor. I'm still very dangerous." Despite his injuries, Gale's eyes remained sharp, calculating. "Though I have to admit—" he coughed, spitting blood on the floor, "—that was one hell of a punch, kid. There goes my best protection artifact. You know how much that cost?"

Adom's legs tensed to dodge, but he knew he'd be too slow. His body was already reaching its limit, and Gale, even injured, was still faster than him.

The air crackled.

Three attacks sliced through the space between them - a war hammer materializing from nowhere, a bolt of lightning that made Adom's hair stand on end, and a fireball that turned the tunnel's humidity to steam. Gale weaved between them, but not with his usual fluid grace. The injuries were slowing him down.

"Too old..." Noss' voice echoed from the tunnel entrance, heavy with exertion. "Too damn old for running around like-" The words cut off. "Oi! Boy, are you- what did he do to your face?"

Right. His face. Adom could feel his right eye swelling shut, blood still trickling into it. His jaw throbbed where Gale had connected. Probably looked like he'd picked a fight with a cave troll.

Heavy footsteps announced Hugo and Kaius sprinting up behind Noss. They probably followed the battle sounds and took another route. Their weapons were drawn, faces grim. Four against one - better odds, especially with Gale injured and Noss present..

"This," Gale said, clutching his broken arm, "is getting very annoying." For the first time, there was genuine wariness in his eyes as he assessed the new arrivals.

Noss stepped forward. His knuckles cracked like miniature thunder, and the gentle uncle was gone. In his place stood someone who'd earned his reputation in the war. "Trust me," he growled, "you'll be a lot more annoyed after what you did to the kid."