The duo froze, surprise locking their faces. Assassins circled them. Above, the girls—former teammates—watched with sharp eyes and sharper smiles.
"What's wrong?!" Lora demanded, fear cutting into her voice when she saw their expressions.
"The Guns took over our base!" Bray answered. His voice carried sorrow like a funeral bell.
Lora gasped, her heart skipping a beat. Jamie…! Her mind cried out, her chest twisting. She still loved him—she knew it, even now.
"We need to check it out!" Bray said, desperation bleeding through his tone. They all knew what it meant—the Commander had upgraded. If the base was gone… Greg hadn't stood a chance either.
The assassins struck. Blades shimmered in the dark, their precision enough to split silence itself. The girls moved too, former teammates attacking without hesitation.
"Someone has to go check it out!" Alexander shouted, his blade meeting steel as three assassins swirled around him, searching for an opening.
"Bray, you go! We'll cover you!" Lora snapped, peeling away from the girls' formation, sliding into place beside Alexander.
Bray didn't hesitate. He bolted, legs hammering the ground harder with every step.
"Wait for me, Jamie. I'm coming." His thoughts burned as his eyes locked forward, cutting through the streets.
"You've made a mistake," one assassin sneered as Bray vanished. "Now you're the only one left."
Alexander's lips curled into something between defiance and mockery. "Don't worry. I planned on taking you too. Alone." His eyes glowed with confidence that bordered on madness. "I'm a one-man army."
" I'll enjoy shattering that arrogance."
Twin blades flashed. The assassins lunged, their movements seamless, forcing him into a cage. From the front came a strike; from behind, another. Dodge left? Another blade waited.
Alexander fended one off, sparks screaming. Another came. He kicked one weapon aside, spun—only to meet the identical strike from the second assassin. They pressed him, merciless, unrelenting.
Then—steel found flesh.
The blade plunged into his back, bursting out through his chest. Blood poured, hot and unstoppable.
"No! Alexander!!" Charlotte's scream cracked the air, her voice raw with care that she hadn't realized she still carried.
The assassin leaned in, whispering venom. "I told you—I'd shatter your confidence." Blood spilled from Alexander's mouth, his eyes trembling with nausea, darkness dragging him down.
And then—
His body glitched.
Pixels erupted where flesh should've been. His form collapsed into fragments, dissolving into nothingness.
The assassin froze, eyes widening.
"I told you…" Alexander's voice echoed through the air. His body shimmered back into existence—not once, not twice—tenfold.
One Alexander after another materialized, each stepping from thin air until the assassins were surrounded.
[Special Skill>One Man Army]
The assassins' confidence snapped. Their blades trembled. For the first time, fear ate at them.
---
BROKEN SHIELDS BASE
"Yellow sun …" The commander muttered, eyes locked on Jamie.
There was no question—this boy was now a contender for the very top of the food chain. But how? His stats were low. Too low.
" It has to be the Skill. Yellow Sun… that glitch." Jamei pondered.
He remembered the numbers running wild in his memory. The mysterious lady… she's behind all this.
Jamie stepped closer, lightning flickering along his skin, only for the Commander's shout to crack the air.
"Jamie!!" It was the first time he said his name.
"Your Yellow Sun is just a skill. It'll go on cooldown! Then you'll be weak again!" His voice thundered, but his eyes gleamed—trying to bait Jamie, drag him into a desperate fight.
"He's right," Jamie thought grimly. Like any other skill, if I overuse it, my body will tear apart.
He tightened his fists. "Then I'll end this fast."
He shot forward. The air shrieked in his wake. His punch cracked across the commander's chest, slamming him into a fence. The commander staggered back, eyes wide—his body burned, as if stabbed by a thousand needles.
"Shit—he's fast!"
Jamie followed with a kick, but the commander shifted, slipping away with perfect flow. Dust curled where his body should have broken.
Jamie landed, jaw tight. "Overanalyzing will get you killed!"
"What do you mean by that?"
"You stepped away from the fence deliberately—to see how my skill reacts against stone!"
His eyes glowed with fury. "Alright then. If you want to die quickly—I'll do you the favor!"
They clashed. Blows blurred—fist to gut, kick to jaw, elbow to ribs. Each strike was answered with one just as brutal. Jamie winced; pain flared with every movement. His aura sparked erratically, becoming unstable.
"It's taking a toll." He thought as he fended off the deadly attacks.
"I can't hold Yellow Sun forever. I need to turn it off."
The light dimmed. The golden thunder faded. His aura cracked away.
The commander's eyes widened. He turned it off? To… preserve himself?
Then realization struck him. That was his only chance. Now he's just flesh and bone.
"Do you think you'll last long like this?!" he mocked, voice thick with cruel confidence.
Jamie smirked despite the ache tearing through him. "I'd say the same to you."
Their weapons flared. They rushed again—this time the commander had the edge. He was faster, stronger; the stat difference was brutal. Jamie's blows landed but did little. His body screamed with every clash, but his spirit refused to yield.
Endurance isn't in the numbers… it's in the will.
He fought harder. Every parry led into another strike, every stumble into another attack. The commander's axe split the air, parrying Jamie back. But even in midair, balance lost, Jamie surged forward again.
The commander's grin widened. He had been studying every movement. This time, I'll predict you. You'll go low. Try to blindside me.
He raised his axe, muscles swelling, veins bulging. "Got you."
Jamie slid low, exactly as expected. The commander lunged, his strike thundering toward Jamie's chest—enough force to split his heart apart.
The axe hit nothing.
Air.
"What—?!" The commander's pupils shrank. He twisted, searching.
Jamie wasn't slower. He was faster.
So fast the commander couldn't even believe it.
Jamie himself was stunned. His body blurred, moving beyond his own comprehension. How…?
Then his system screen lit. Stats rolled across his vision.
Strength: 9
Agility: 30
Endurance: 20
Speed: 20
Intelligence: 10
Mana: 15
Combat Experience: 20
The numbers spun—then froze.
Speed: 20 + 10 points
His eyes widened. "Wait… my stats… they're increasing on their own?!"
A notification burned across his vision, radiant as the dawn.
[Acquired God Feature > Infinity!]
[Your stats increase by fighting and training.]
Jamie's breath caught. His eyes widened, heart thundering.
He wasn't just alive.
He had a chance… to become the strongest of them all.