After the laughter settled, Jurian walked several steps forward. He faced Dante.
"Our conditions."
He looked toward Aishwani.
"We'll fight together."
She stepped beside him. Neither of them objected.
Jurian continued.
"But don't hold back. We don't want a spar. We want to know exactly where we stand."
Aishwani nodded.
"If we're going to follow you... then we need to witness your limits ourselves."
Dante looked at the two of them. Internally, he couldn't help shaking his head.
You two are only Level One Mythical Beings. If I fought seriously... I'd kill you almost instantly.
His thoughts were interrupted.
[Master.]
Dante responded mentally.
System?
[You already have a personal reason for never exceeding eighty percent of your power. Why not simply accept their request while remaining within that restriction?]
Dante considered it.
...Fair. Seventy percent should be enough.
[An appropriate estimate.]
A small smile appeared on Dante's face. He looked at the two Mythical Beings standing before him.
"...Very well."
He slowly removed his hands from his pockets.
"Start."
The moment Dante removed his hands from his pockets... the atmosphere changed.
No. It wasn't the atmosphere.
Something invisible swept across the battlefield, washing over everyone present.
Psychic Domination.
Every instinct screamed the same command.
Bow. Run. Flee. Beg.
It wasn't fear. It wasn't killing intent. It was something far more primitive—an order that reached directly into the soul.
Even the spectators felt it.
Amber instinctively took half a step backward. Elric's hand moved toward his dagger before he realized what he was doing. Gorgon unconsciously tightened his grip around his war hammer. Lexa merely narrowed her eyes. Only Vexion remained completely calm.
Jurian and Aishwani looked at one another for the briefest instant. They reached the same conclusion.
A mental skill...
Neither hesitated.
Jurian moved first. Light erupted beneath his feet. Two effortless steps. His figure dissolved into countless streaks of light before reappearing nearly a kilometer away.
His golden eyes immediately searched for Dante.
I'm... still inside its range?
The pressure hadn't weakened in the slightest. His heartbeat skipped.
How large is this skill...?
BOOM!
The explosion answered him. Jurian's head snapped toward the sound.
Aishwani had been launched straight through a rocky cliff. She tumbled across broken stone before forcefully regaining her footing.
"...!"
A crimson-black blade suddenly burst into existence. Dark crimson energy wrapped around it like smoke as the sword instinctively coiled around her body—like a serpent protecting its master.
She frowned.
What...?
She hadn't summoned it. Her skill had moved by itself.
Before she could think—
CLANG!
The sword jerked violently. Sparks exploded into the air. It had intercepted something. Something she couldn't see.
No mana. No movement. Her weapon had simply reacted on instinct.
What hit me? Where is he?
CLANG!!
The sword moved again, twisting around her body, intercepting another invisible strike before she even understood the first.
The impact still blasted her backwards. Her boots carved trenches across solid rock.
She stared at the battlefield. Nothing made sense. For the first time in years... she couldn't read what was happening.
Jurian flashed beside her.
"We attack."
No discussion. No hesitation. Waiting meant death.
Both Mythical Beings disappeared simultaneously. Aishwani blurred forward. Jurian became a streak of golden light.
Dante... didn't move. His expression remained completely relaxed. Almost amused.
BOOM!!
Jurian barely crossed his sword in time. A fist had appeared in front of him. Not swung. Appeared.
Steel met flesh. The collision shook the surrounding mountains. Jurian was launched backwards, carving through stone before finally stabilizing himself. His wrists trembled.
Ridiculous... His physical strength alone is this high?
After witnessing Vexion and Lexa, he should have expected it. Their master couldn't possibly be weaker.
Aishwani arrived from Dante's blind side. The crimson sword surrounding her body changed. Its rigid form softened. The blade extended, lengthened. The center remained wrapped around her body in a defensive spiral while the remaining length transformed into a flexible whip-like sword.
It descended with terrifying force. Fast. Precise. Powerful enough to split apart a mountain.
Dante merely glanced sideways. An invisible barrier formed. The whip struck it. Stopped. Not an inch further.
Aishwani's eyes narrowed.
Telekinesis...?
Jurian gave Dante no time to breathe. Light exploded around him. He attacked again.
Downward slash. Upward slash. Horizontal. Diagonal. A thrust. Then another.
Each strike was faster than the last. Each one capable of cleaving enormous boulders apart.
Yet... none connected. His sword passed straight through Dante.
Jurian clicked his tongue.
"Spatial skills..."
Before he could reposition—
A fist appeared beside his face. Jurian instinctively leaned away. The punch missed him by mere centimeters. The mountain behind him exploded. Fragments of stone rained across the battlefield.
Jurian never even looked back.
This is exactly what I should've expected. The master of monsters... is an even greater monster.
Aishwani attacked again. Her whip-like sword curved through the air from an impossible angle while Jurian assaulted Dante from the front. A perfect pincer attack.
Dante finally spoke.
"System."
[Elevating your Legendary-tier skills to temporary Mythical equivalence is consuming approximately five percent of your mana every five minutes.]
I see. So I can comfortably maintain this for around twenty minutes before dropping below eighty percent.
[Correct, Master. Your mastery continues increasing rapidly. Unfortunately, all Legendary skills remain capped at Level Twenty-Four until advancement.]
That's fine. Continue Thought Acceleration. Jurian's speed is absurd. Instinct alone won't keep up forever.
[Understood, Master.]
Dante took a single step backward.
He vanished.
Jurian and Aishwani's eyes widened. He hadn't teleported. He had simply... disappeared.
Then he was behind Aishwani.
His leg swept around. A perfect roundhouse kick.
No wasted movement. No excess force. Every muscle. Every joint. Every degree of rotation...
Perfect Technique. Flawless Execution.