This was the first time Kyle had witnessed a Rift appear and mature before his eyes. No, perhaps it was the first time he had actually seen a Rift descend into the mortal plane.
The beasts that had emerged so far made it seem like a First-grade Rift. After all, Majins appearing this early usually meant something far more dangerous was waiting to come through.
That was why he decided that once this wave was dealt with, he would contact the base and report the situation.
They might be able to handle things for now, but not if a Ghoul emerged. The destruction would be immense, and if the base learned about it through the CPV instead of an active officer on site, Kyle would be in for far more trouble than he cared to imagine.
’Just once I finish these six...’
SHUANK
Suddenly, an arrow wrapped in faint golden energy shot past his face and pierced the Majin that had been sneaking up behind him.
Kyle stumbled back and looked at the struggling beast.
Without wasting a second, he drew his bow and fired another arrow, ending its suffering.
He immediately turned toward another charging Nightmare, pulled the string, and released. A golden streak tore through the air and buried itself in the creature’s head.
Another one down.
"Thanks for the help."
He finally looked toward the girl, who was calmly weaving around a Majin’s attacks as though the creature itself was telling her exactly how it planned to strike.
"No worries. You looked a little distracted, so I figured I’d buy you some time."
She cartwheeled gracefully over the Majin as its jaws snapped shut on the empty space where she had been just a moment before.
Her body spun with effortless elegance before she landed lightly behind the beast.
Before the Majin could react, she fired an arrow from point-blank range. It pierced the creature’s left eye, then its chest, and finally its right eye.
Her hands moved so quickly between nocking and releasing each arrow that Kyle silently thanked God’s Eye. Without it, he would have thought she was summoning the arrows out of thin air.
"KHRUNKK!"
A guttural growl echoed near his feet.
Kyle instinctively jumped back before his gaze landed on a wooden sword lying nearby.
Without a moment’s hesitation, he picked it up and dismissed Aquilla.
"Oh?" Maya tilted her head. "You can use a sword too?"
Kyle adjusted his stance. "Let’s find out."
The Nightmare lunged.
At the exact same moment, Kyle swung.
A faint layer of Genesis wrapped around the wooden blade as it sliced through the creature.
The Nightmare landed several meters away, its attack having missed completely.
The reason?
Its body had been cleanly split in two.
Kyle couldn’t help but grin.
’Did you see that, System? I infused Genesis into the weapon.’
[Indeed, Host. That is one of the advantages of utilizing God’s Eye on your own. Just remember, your weapon isn’t reinforced, so it won’t be able to withstand Genesis for long.]
Keeping that in mind, Kyle charged forward.
A spider-like Majin leaped high into the air and spat a stream of venom at him.
Kyle’s golden eyes caught the attack instantly. He twisted his body and dropped low, letting the venom sail harmlessly overhead.
The Majin had anticipated that.
It spat another mouthful of venom, this time aimed directly at his lowered head. With Kyle ducking and unable to keep his eyes on the creature, the attack had a much better chance of landing.
But Kyle didn’t need to see it with his own eyes.
The moment he crouched, his vision shifted into Third Person Perception.
Everything came into view.
The battlefield.
Maya’s occasional glance toward him even as she effortlessly butchered another Majin.
And the venom descending toward him.
At the very last moment, Kyle deactivated God’s Eye and cut off the flow of Genesis.
TNG
The effect was immediate.
Golden Limb took over, and the venom infused with Absence failed to touch him.
Kyle slid to a stop and turned toward the mutated spider, whose mandibles clacked furiously in frustration.
A grin spread across his face as he rested the wooden sword over his shoulder.
He could already hear the wood groaning under the strain.
At most, it had four seconds before it broke apart.
That was more than enough.
"Haa!"
Kyle charged forward.
The monster reacted instantly, springing backward without even turning its body.
Yet Genesis did something Kyle hadn’t known was possible.
For a brief instant, the blade extended by nearly an inch.
It was enough.
The sharpened edge caught the Majin in the middle of its leap.
[That was augmentation, Host.]
Ignoring the System’s explanation, Kyle lunged after the shrieking Majin.
He spun the sword in his hand before raising it high, the blade held perfectly straight.
Genesis surged into the wooden weapon.
With every ounce of strength he had, he drove it downward.
THUMP
CRACK
The wooden sword shattered the moment it struck.
Genesis erupted with it.
The Majin exploded into pieces.
"That was a brilliant display of swordsmanship," Maya muttered.
When Kyle turned around, his heart sank.
The satisfaction of bringing down a single Majin vanished the moment he saw the graveyard of twelve corpses lying at Maya’s feet.
Their bodies were already fading away.
Not one of them had managed to leave so much as a scratch on her.
Heck, her breathing was as steady as if she had just finished a relaxing bath.
"I have to admit, I’m impressed by how calm you are in combat." He brushed the dust from his hands. "Not once did I see you struggle against those monsters. Tell me, are you a First-grade?"
For the briefest moment, panic flashed across her eyes.
She looked... unsure of how to answer.
That was strange.
He wasn’t asking about her unique skill, only her rank. Was it actually lower than he expected? Was that why she seemed flustered?
Before he could ask anything else, the Rift quivered.
Both warriors immediately took their stances, every trace of casual conversation disappearing.
The Rift trembled.
So did the air around it.
"This isn’t normal," Maya said, her eyes narrowing.
Kyle could feel it too.
That explained why Aquilla was already back in his hand.
The Rift slowly began to split even wider.
Something was tearing it open from the other side.
Kyle had seen this happen before.
The last time it did, something enormous had emerged.
And this time as well, the Rift didn’t disappoint.
A behemoth Ghoul stepped through.
Over the meters tall, the Ghoul looked less like a living being and more like a walking fortress of flesh and bone.
Its body was wrapped in layers of jagged black scale s that seemed to have grown directly from its skin, every movement producing the sound of grinding rock.
Broad shoulders carried rows of vicious bone spikes, while thick chains hung loosely around its waist, clattering with each step. A weapon, adding cherry on top, was carried by it which looked thick enough to break a wall with a casual swing.
The high ceiling of the academy was advantageous for it.
But not for them. This whole situation wasn’t
And the fun part?
Kyle still hadn’t informed the base.
°°°°°°°°
A/N:- Thanks for reading. If you are enjoying the story so far, you know what you have to do.