"My brother has always been pompous. He is the personification of pride. After he attained his powers, his shoulders only rose higher."
"He thinks he is absolute. He will surely pick a fight."
"Be attentive. If you are sure he'll lose…"
"Leave him."
---
"How does the dirt taste down there?" Kovac asks, his tone dripping with mockery, his accent a strange blend of British and Scouse.
He crouches down, removing his hands from his pockets and resting them on his knees. His head tilts slightly, his gaze locked onto the duo.
"Hehehe… This is the result of foolish martial artists such as yourselves thinking you could punch and kick your way out of my authority," he scoffs, rising back to his feet and slipping his hands into his pockets once more.
Tap. Tap. Tap.
He walks back to his original position before coming to a halt. Turning his head, he sees the hostility radiating from Cross and Park's faces. A smile cracks across his own in response.
"You're so angry… But what could you even do?"
"…!"
"You really thought you were smart," Kovac scoffs.
His eyes drift forward.
The ground where his guards once stood is empty.
He looks further.
Retreating figures.
A sigh escapes him.
His right hand rises, palm spread wide, all five fingers directed at a single point.
"Ignite."
Mana particles cluster together, colliding violently toward a single objective.
To explode.
BOOM.
A massive fiery blast shatters the silence. The two guards, the surrounding trees, the very soil itself—engulfed in the explosion.
Holy shit. What kind of OP constitution is this?! Cross thinks, a bead of sweat rolling down his brow.
—!
Wait. Park! Cross realizes, mentally notifying him.
Yeah. I realized it too…
…The pressure is vanishing, Park deduces, pushing himself upward against the fading force.
"Hm?" Kovac hums, turning his head back toward them.
"Oh…"
"Now!" Park affirms.
Both leap toward Kovac, weapons raised.
"…Looks like you got free," Kovac muses calmly, his hands still buried in his pockets.
Cross swings his chain forward.
Park draws his arm back, ready to punch.
"Sto—"
Kovac pauses, brows furrowing in confusion.
"—!"
Cross and Park halt mid-attack.
A shiver runs down their spines simultaneously. Sweat trickles down their faces.
The surroundings suddenly fall silent.
Thud. Thud. Thud.
Only the footsteps of an approaching figure echo through the air.
Gulp.
Park swallows.
"…?!"
"Ha… I can't believe it," Kovac scoffs, a smile forming before slowly fading.
"They really allow anyone in here," he continues, disgust coating his tone.
"Even a lifer."
"…."
SMASH.
A fist slams into Kovac's face.
Dark pink blood splatters into the air as the impact sends him flying—crashing into a tree, unconscious.
Sharon straightens, her fist dripping with blood. Her snowy grey eyes lock onto her new targets.
"That's one," she notes calmly, opening her inventory and drawing out her nagamaki. "Just two left."
Cross and Park straighten, brandishing their weapons.
Round two.
---
Park dashes in from the right, skidding to a halt.
"Hap!"
Three strikes in succession.
Knee. Liver. Head.
Clang. Clang. Clang.
Sharon effortlessly blocks each blow with the sheathed nagamaki.
Step. Step.
Cross advances, his spinning kusarigama trailing behind him.
Whoosh.
He launches it forward—the sickle slicing toward Sharon's face.
She tilts her head slightly, the blade missing by inches.
"Haaah!" Cross grunts, yanking the chain back and sending the sickle whipping toward her once more.
"Smart," Sharon remarks, flaring her mana and deflecting the attack.
"I'm here, bitch!" Park shouts, his fist rocketing toward the right side of Sharon's face.
She leans back smoothly, dodging the punch, her hand raising the nagamaki.
Grab.
Park intercepts the movement, following with a left jab.
She leans back again—
"—!"
Shing.
A blade shoots out from Park's extended wrist.
Sharon surges her mana just in time, blocking the strike.
"Very smart," she says, brows slightly furrowed in focus and interest.
She frees herself from Park's grip and hops backward.
"To be expected from a top five hunter," Park remarks, straightening his posture.
Let's increase the tempo, Park informs Cross mentally.
Aiit. Let's get it, Cross affirms, eyes burning with resolve.
Focus.
The air rages. Dust and debris swirl violently as both men surge with mana.
"LET'S FUCKING GO!" they roar in unison.
The Jump Arts.
The result of perfect coordination and teamwork—a martial art embodying the belief that two heads are better than one.
Park rushes in.
Sharon raises her hand to strike—
Swish.
Cross's kusarigama wraps around her arm, halting it.
Park throws a jab.
Sharon blocks with the sheath of her nagamaki.
Shiik.
Park's fist blades extend, piercing through the sheath and stopping inches from Sharon's face.
Shiik.
Retracted.
"Haah!" Cross grunts, dragging her bound arm backward.
Her guard exposed—
Whoosh.
She hurls the nagamaki toward Cross.
Duck! Park warns mentally.
Cross drops instantly, the blade slicing past him.
Park unleashes a flurry of blows.
Thud. Thud. Thud. Thud.
Sharon coats her body in mana, absorbing every strike.
Her eyes widen slightly.
The veins in her extended arm bulge.
The chains begin loosening.
The thrown nagamaki halts mid-air.
Mana envelops the blade entirely.
To enhance the effectiveness of the Jump Arts, they created a mana technique allowing telepathic communication.
By manually accelerating the body's mana absorption and transmission process, they reduced the delay to a tenth of a second.
"Behind you!" Park warns.
Cross snaps his head back—
The blade inches from his face.
Clang.
His teeth clamp down on the weapon mid-flight.
"—!"
Drool trails from his chin as orange mana surges around him, his jaw trembling under the pressure.
He grips the blade and slowly drags it from his mouth, forcing it downward as its momentum weakens.
Sharon retrieves her weapon and slashes at Park.
Park leaps back, narrowly evading.
This technique at maximum output…
Grants them both a singular mind.
"Impressive," Sharon says, a smile creeping onto her face, her icy demeanor fading.
In the presence of genius, one must know how to appreciate it.