[System Initialization: 97%…98%…99%…100%]
Shauwn had resisted the assimilation as best he could. It wasn't easy—his consciousness wavered from time to time, coming back in a dizzying rush whenever the process filled him with revulsion. Finally, he had reached 100%.
He was still immobilized, yet he knew he could break free with force. The solid structure of hands holding him began to crack under his pressure. That was when everything changed.
The three figures seated in the back observed silently. Each had a distinct throne. The first was embedded with five swords. Its occupant wore blood-stained silver armor, the only cloth showing a stitched X on the chest. A massive sword rested at the center of the throne, its wielder gripping it tightly.
The second throne was dilapidated and cracked. Shauwn couldn't clearly make out the figure sitting there—it was a compact, misty form with feminine traits. Legs crossed, head resting on a wrist, she looked bored, her gaze vacant.
The third throne had crystalline protrusions along its edges. Inside lay a misty male figure, casually playing with an ice dagger, seemingly uninterested in the chaos around him.
[Antithesis Gene Awakening: 15%]
"What?! Another… what is this Antithesis Gene?"
The reflection was cut short. The armored figure and its throne vanished, leaving only the giant sword planted in the bloody sea. Shauwn's survival instincts screamed at him to flee—but he barely had time. As soon as he freed his arms, the armored figure was already upon him.
Huh?!
The armored man lunged like a storm unleashed, his arm slicing across Shauwn's throat with a sharp, violent crack, sending his immobilized body flying backward. There was nothing he could do. Even the structure he had embedded himself in shattered on impact.
The force of the blow sent him rolling across the air, crashing onto his stomach. He struggled to rise, his throat burned, vision blurred, and breathing was difficult. Even his saliva threatened to choke him, but thankfully, he spat enough to free himself.
[Antithesis Gene Awakening: 22%]
"So that's how it is…" he muttered, staggering.
His hand grazed his throat—minor damage. Shauwn turned—but the armored figure was gone. The sword trembled, moving under some unknown force toward its owner, who had returned a few meters from his original position.
The third throne had disappeared. The figure now stood a few meters away, not attacking directly. Instead, his ice dagger struck the water, and reddish stalactites shot toward Shauwn. He dodged to the side.
The armored man, sword on shoulder, charged relentlessly. He was fast—too fast. In one leap, he reached Shauwn, swinging a downward strike. Shauwn barely avoided it, strands of hair cut in the process—not a significant loss. But he needed to retreat.
A punch from the armored man smashed into Shauwn's ribs, cracking them. The little energy he had regained to recover from the earlier lariat was spent, and he planted a foot on the ground.
"Damn it."
[Antithesis Gene Awakening: 28%]
Shauwn had miscalculated when dodging sideways, exposing a vulnerable area. The giant-sword wielder approached calmly, blade at his neck, ready to decapitate.
An executioner, he thought.
He positioned the edge of the sword precisely around Shauwn's neck, drew back, and struck. The sea trembled, and stalactites rose from the bloody water in his direction. It was a targeted attack. The clash between sword and ice spikes threw the executioner off, and Shauwn dove back, using the icy structures as leverage.
Had the other figure saved him? No—he had clearly seen that the strike aimed for Shauwn's head, meant to impale him.
Five points sparkled in the sky. As they drew closer, he could make out their shapes.
"Shit."
Ice swords rained from above, targeting him. He rolled to the side, narrowly evading. One of the swords bore the dagger-wielding figure. It didn't hurry, waiting for Shauwn to rise. When he did, the assault began.
Close-quarters combat ensued. The dagger aimed at vital points. Even when Shauwn dodged, it managed to leave small scratches.
This time, the dagger feigned a strike at his neck—a decoy. As Shauwn prepared to intercept, the dagger was thrown into the other hand, plunging deep into his leg. Using both hands, the attacker carved a semicircular arc through muscle tissue.
Astonishingly, Shauwn felt no real pain. Instead, a sharp chill surged through his leg. The attacker was harming him while the cold mitigated the pain, allowing continued damage.
He should have noticed sooner. Despite multiple encounters, he hadn't bled. But as the fight dragged on, he slowed—the wounds infused with ice slowed his body. Even the rib injury seemed to ease.
An assassin.
Besides the frostbite, he lost all sensation in the leg, aiding his balance. The assassin now aimed for his head, dagger ready to pierce his skull.
Shauwn intercepted midway—not strong enough to repel, but enough to redirect the strike to the shoulder. A clever tactic, yet as he moved, the assassin released his left hand, gripped the dagger's pommel, pivoted it like a lever, and ripped backward through flesh.
"Aarrgh!"
In pain, Shauwn thought of one thing: throw him off balance. One leg still planted, he swept the assassin's feet. Joining both hands like a hammer, he struck down. He felt he hit something.
Only he was wrong: it was ice shards. The dagger-wielding assassin had used his ice generation to propel backward and avoid the strike.
[Antithesis Gene Awakening: 50%]
Almost there…
Meanwhile, the executioner performed a large vertical strike, breaking all spikes that blocked him from finishing his prey. Shauwn was now two against one.
[Antithesis Gene Awakening: 52%]