Stepping out of the indoor stadium hidden beneath the tavern, Allen found a reasonably open clearing. He gazed up at the star-studded night sky and asked without looking back, "How much longer do you think it'll take for the Bomber trio to arrive?"
"It should be soon. Provided they're using Magnetic Force cards," Bodoro replied, pulling on metal rings as he donned his heavy suit of armor, fully prepared for battle.
In contrast, Baise's preparations were much simpler. She merely shed her outer layer to reveal black, form-fitting leather armor and two sharp claws forged from Thorium fixed to her wrists and fingers.
After a period of reflection and training, she had ultimately abandoned long-range weapons like firearms in favor of close-quarters combat. Only this way could she find an opening to kiss her opponent amidst a chaotic melee, thereby maximizing the effectiveness of her Manipulator-type Nen ability.
In particular, the two steampunk-style Thorium claws, modified by Allen, the "Master Goblin Engineer", were far more than mere cold weapons. Their palms were loaded with a small amount of high-density explosives that could be triggered by a hidden mechanism. When brought near a target's head, an instantaneous detonation could cause severe concussions, blindness, deafness, and a host of other debilitating effects.
Once an opponent lost their sensory perception of the environment, they would find it nearly impossible to dodge her lethal kiss.
Of course, this applied to Nen users; for ordinary people, their heads would likely burst like dropped watermelons, splattering vibrant red brain matter in every direction.
Because of these specialized tools, Baise was itching to find an opponent to field-test them.
After a thorough check of her gear, she stretched her limbs and complained impatiently, "What's taking these guys so long? You don't think they've chickened out, do you?"
"Patience. One should show some courtesy to those about to die; after all, this is the final leg of their life's journey," Allen said calmly.
"The usual rules?" Bodoro asked abruptly.
Baise clearly understood the martial artist's meaning and nodded without hesitation. "Fine by me! But I get first pick this time!"
"No problem. I'm not a picky man," Bodoro shrugged.
As they spoke, a golden light, the signature of Magnetic Force, traced a bright, dazzling arc across the sky, landing with a heavy thud in the clearing a short distance away.
Finally, the Bomber trio, led by Genthru, made their grand entrance.
Before they could even regain their footing, Baise pointed at the black-haired Bara and declared, "This one's mine!"
"OK! Then the blonde one is mine!" Bodoro quickly claimed Sub as his opponent.
Though these two were not as powerful as Genthru in terms of Aura and ability, one could tell by the Ten maintained around their bodies that their Aura capacity was at least 30,000. They were not to be trifled with.
"Tch! Seems we're being underestimated," Bara spat on the ground, clearly annoyed.
"If they're in such a hurry to die, let's fulfill their wish," Sub added with a cold sneer.
Moving in tandem, the two closed in from the left and right, clashing with Bodoro and Baise. The skirmish quickly drifted into the depths of the dense forest.
With his companions out of sight, Genthru summoned his Binder and asked with supreme confidence, "Let's confirm one thing before we start. If you lose, you hand over all the cards, right?"
"Of course. Provided you can win," Allen gave a crisp, affirmative reply.
"Excellent! That's exactly what I wanted to hear."
The moment the words left his mouth, Genthru stowed his Binder and charged with a predatory grin. Without a hint of hesitation, he lunged forward, grabbed Allen's wrist, and activated his ability—Little Flower.
BANG!
A brilliant flash and the roar of an explosion echoed over the trees.
As Genthru adjusted his glasses, his lips curling into a demonic smile, he suddenly realized that Allen, who should have been screaming in agony, had no reaction at all.
Not only was there no reaction, but Allen spoke in a mockingly critical tone: "Is that all the power you've got?"
"What?! Im... Impossible!"
Genthru's jaw dropped, unable to believe his eyes.
As the white smoke cleared, Allen's wrist was not only unscathed, but the sleeve of his casual shirt didn't even show a singe mark. It was glaringly obvious that Little Flower hadn't even managed to penetrate the defense of his Ten.
"Nothing is impossible. You're too weak, specifically, your understanding of and resolve toward 'explosions' are severely lacking.
"If I were you, I'd carry small animals, like rats, and pre-set Countdown on them. You could throw them like grenades just as the timer expires. Or, you could develop some Manipulation abilities to control birds for kamikaze strikes against your enemies.
"That would be a hundred times better than your current, timid approach, having to divert a massive amount of Aura into Ken just to protect your own hands every time you use Little Flower.
"Today, I'll bet all my Nen on this: let me teach you what the 'Art of Explosion' truly looks like..."
As the final word left his lips, Allen launched himself like an arrow from a bow, closing the distance at a speed nearly invisible to the naked eye.
By the time Genthru reacted, a massive barrel of explosives had appeared in Allen's hands, its fuse spitting golden sparks. Allen wore a manic, eerie grin. "Are you ready to experience the mind-blowing power of Goblin Technology?"
"NO!!!!! STOP! STOP IT! YOU DAMN LUNATIC!" Genthru screamed in terror.
To his horror, Allen did not stop. Nor did he retreat. Instead, he gripped Genthru's hand with a death vice, ensuring the man couldn't escape no matter how he struggled.
Just as the sparking fuse atop the barrel burned to nothing...
BOOM!
A blinding orange fireball surged toward the sky. The deafening roar and vibration sent birds and beasts for miles fleeing in terror.
At the center of the blast, Genthru fared poorly. Despite using Ken for a desperate, full-body defense, he was still gravely wounded. His clothes were shredded, and his chest and arms were covered in large patches of charred, blackened flesh.
His glasses, the accessory he used to maintain his sophisticated persona, had vanished into the debris. He gasped for air, his face a mask of shock and incomprehension.
Because right in front of him, his opponent, who had taken the exact same blast, was completely unharmed. Even his clothes and shoes were pristine.
"I bet you're wondering why I'm unscathed despite taking the blast right along with you, aren't you?" Allen grinned maliciously.
In truth, he wasn't "unharmed", his Hunter class template had simply absorbed all the damage.
As items produced within the "game," Goblin Sapper Charges actually functioned with two different damage calculations.
When facing semi-digitalized raid monsters or player class templates, the damage was fixed, usually ranging from a few hundred to a thousand points of fire damage.
However, against non-digitalized targets, the power multiplied several-fold, if not dozens of times. A single barrel could easily level a three or four-story building.
Just now, Allen had leveraged the advantage of his Hunter class template to tank the Goblin Sapper Charge alongside Genthru.
The result? He lost about five hundred health points, while Genthru was nearly blown to bits.