A mass of deep blue light hovered quietly above Levi's palm.
It wasn't dazzling—instead, it was gentle, like a flawless sapphire.
This was a brand-new ability he'd gained after copying the Tesseract's power.
[Spatial Curvature Barrier]
A distorted layer of space constructed around the body, capable of deflecting attacks.
Levi felt the unfamiliar energy flowing smoothly inside him, and the corners of his mouth lifted unconsciously.
He'd gambled right.
He'd nearly frozen himself to death in the ice—but looking at the results, this trade was worth it.
Inside the drainage tunnel, everyone had frozen in place, staring at the tiny "starfield" in Levi's hand.
The Howling Commandos had just escaped HYDRA's base and were still shaken. Now, none of them even dared to breathe.
That light felt more terrifying than death itself.
"…Holy shit."
Logan's muscles tensed, a low beastlike growl rumbling in his throat.
That scent.
That same damn scent again.
Exactly like the metal sphere embedded in that monster's chest back in the HYDRA base.
But also completely different.
That thing had been a rabid, chaotic mad dog.
What Levi held now felt tame—almost docile.
Had this kid… actually tamed that power?
On the other side, Steve Rogers' pupils shrank to pinpoints.
His brain hadn't caught up yet, but his combat instincts were screaming.
Danger.
That blue light didn't radiate heat or conventional energy—it radiated something Steve couldn't comprehend.
Something that mocked the laws of physics.
Steve had the chilling certainty that if Levi wanted to, he could twist this steel tunnel into a pretzel.
In the silence, the sound of metal boots echoed closer.
Clack. Clack. Clack.
HYDRA pursuers.
Levi's smile widened.
Perfect timing to test a new toy.
At the corner, flashlight beams cut through the darkness as HYDRA soldiers poured out, MP40s raised.
The officer in front immediately spotted Steve's blue-white-red uniform, ecstasy flashing across his face.
"Fire! Tear them apart!"
Ratatatatatat—!
More than a dozen submachine guns roared at once, a storm of bullets screaming toward them.
"Down!"
Steve bellowed, tackling a wounded soldier aside and raising his vibranium shield.
Logan roared and stepped forward, chest bared, ready to tank the gunfire head-on.
Only Levi didn't move.
He stood calmly at the very center of the barrage, raising his glowing right hand.
He's lost his mind.
That thought hit Steve and Logan simultaneously.
Then—
Something impossible happened.
The bullets curved.
At roughly one meter from Levi's body, the rounds abruptly traced smooth arcs in midair.
They weren't blocked.
They weren't deflected.
They were guided, sliding past everyone and slamming into the tunnel walls.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Metallic impacts exploded across the walls, ceiling, and floor.
Every single bullet—without exception—missed its target.
One round skimmed past Steve's ear, the heat scorching several strands of his blond hair.
Five seconds later, the gunfire stopped.
The HYDRA soldiers remained frozen in firing stances, completely dumbfounded.
Were they firing blanks?
The Howling Commandos were equally petrified, mouths hanging open wide enough to swallow grenades.
A miracle? Divine intervention?
Only Steve and Logan vaguely perceived the truth.
Steve stared at the air in front of Levi.
He couldn't see anything—but his instincts were howling.
That space was warped.
The bullets' trajectories had been forcibly bent.
Levi exhaled slowly, his face paling slightly.
Maintaining the barrier had consumed roughly ten percent of his energy.
He now had a clear understanding of the skill:
[Spatial Curvature Barrier] was costly, small in range, effective only against straight-line attacks. It wouldn't stop grenades or close-quarters combat.
A situational god-tier move—but far from invincible.
"Das… was ist das?!"
(What… what is that?!)
The HYDRA officer snapped out of his shock, pointing at Levi with a trembling hand.
"Charge! Bayonets! Chop them into meat paste!"
He fired his Luger into the air, trying to crush his men's fear.
"For HYDRA!"
A dozen soldiers screamed and rushed forward with bayonets.
"Perfect."
Levi locked eyes with the burly man at the front.
You'll do.
He focused intensely, locking onto a point one meter in front of the charging soldier.
Compress.
Hum—
A nearly inaudible vibration passed through the air.
The charging soldier slammed into an invisible wall.
Thud.
No scream.
His body collapsed like a water balloon crushed by a hydraulic press—splat.
Bones shattered. Red and white matter sprayed outward.
The soldiers behind him couldn't stop in time, crashing into the pile of mangled flesh, then getting shoved forward by those behind them.
Screams, stumbling, bodies stacking—
In an instant, the narrow tunnel was clogged by a grotesque pile of meat.
The entire process was over in a blink.
Levi hadn't moved an inch.
Another twenty percent of his energy vanished.
This move—[Spatial Fixed-Point Compression]—was devastating and expensive. It worked by compressing a tiny section of three-dimensional space into an infinitely thin "sheet." Anything that collided with it was annihilated by its own momentum.
Against brainless charging fodder, it was perfect.
"Trash mobs cleared."
Levi lowered his hand. The blue glow faded back into his body.
He turned around and grinned at the utterly stunned Steve and Logan.
"Your turn."
Both men snapped out of it, suppressed battle lust erupting instantly.
"RAAAH—!"
Logan launched himself over the pile of bodies like a missile, six gleaming bone claws snapping out midair. He plunged into the remaining enemies, tearing through them in a storm of blood and steel.
Steve was even more efficient.
With a flick of his wrist, the vibranium shield became a red-white-blue comet.
Whoosh—!
It didn't fly straight.
First bounce—left wall.
Clang!
Perfect geometry. Accelerating rebound.
The shield sliced between two soldiers' necks.
Second bounce. Third. Fourth.
Each ricochet harvested a life.
As Logan was still finishing his slaughter, the shield arced back through the air and slammed cleanly into Steve's arm.
Clang.
Locked in place.
No enemies remained standing.
The fight was over—in under thirty seconds.
Blood hung thick in the air, mixed with a faint ozone scent.
The surviving Commandos collapsed to the ground, panting, their eyes filled with awe.
Steve slowly turned, blue eyes locking onto Levi.
"What was that?"
His voice was calm—but carried unmistakable authority.
Levi's heart skipped.
I overdid it.
He immediately slumped, faking exhaustion, dropping to the ground with a pale face and labored breathing.
"I… I don't really know…" he said weakly, forcing a bitter smile.
"It feels like… something awakened. I call it a… biological force field? Or maybe… a high-frequency vibration barrier?"
"I can sort of… change the density of the air in front of me. Turn it into an invisible wall."
"What I did just now—that was my limit. I'm completely drained."
He carefully avoided mentioning space, deliberately steering the explanation toward something "scientific."
Force fields. Vibrations. Air density.
Concepts still barely acceptable within the super-soldier worldview.
Most importantly, his apparent weakness and "limits" drastically reduced his threat level.
As expected, the sharp scrutiny in Steve's eyes slowly softened.
Altering air density? Vibrational barriers?
Absurd—but in a world with the Tesseract, not impossible.
"We move."
Steve didn't press further. He stepped forward and helped the "exhausted" Levi up, draping Levi's arm over his shoulder.
"Collect weapons, carry the wounded. We leave before reinforcements arrive!"
"Yes, sir!"
Levi leaned into Steve, finally relaxing.
Got away with it.
He felt the energy inside him slowly recovering.
This world was getting more dangerous—
and far more interesting.
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