The room trembled beneath their feet. Fire and frost clashed in the air, forming a haze that shimmered like heat mirage. The broken kitchen glowed dimly from scattered flames licking against the cold steel of shattered counters. The monster stood motionless—its crystalline arm gleaming blue-white, its chest pulsing with slow, deliberate rhythm.
Eliel's knuckles whitened around the hilt of his greatsword. His breath came heavy, steam curling from his lips in the freezing air. Blood ran down his forearm, soaking into his shirt, and every heartbeat sent a sharp pain across his ribs. He could feel the end creeping closer—but his eyes didn't waver.
Across from him, Patoa straightened. The aura that had flickered moments ago now burned steady. Red-gold light traced patterns across his forearms, veins glowing like molten steel beneath his skin. He clenched his fists and exhaled slowly, his breath glowing faintly in the cold.
"Eliel," he said, his accent rough but sure. "Dis one mi fi deal wid."
Eliel looked at him through sweat-slick hair. "You can barely stand."
"Maybe so," Patoa grinned, blood at the corner of his mouth. "But mi hand still know di rhythm."
The monster moved first. One blink, and it was gone from sight—its speed a streak of blue light across the ruined kitchen. The air cracked.
But this time, Patoa didn't flinch. He stepped in.
The monster's claw slashed through where his head had been—but Patoa had already moved, pivoting on his back foot, his body flowing with eerie precision. His palm met the creature's elbow mid-swing—redirecting the blow with minimal effort. The sound was like stone snapping.
"Wha—" Eliel blinked.
Patoa twisted his hips, his right arm pulling back like a spring. "Dis new."
He struck.
The blow landed square in the creature's torso with a thunderous crack. Energy rippled outward from the point of impact, shaking dust loose from the ceiling. The monster flew backward, smashing through a refrigerator and embedding itself in the wall.
Eliel's mouth went dry.
[Skill Activated: Martial Arts – Level 1]
Patoa flexed his fingers, light still tracing his arms. "So dat's how it feel, eh?" He smiled—wide, fierce, and full of awe. "Like di world slow down."
The monster screeched, dragging itself from the wall. Its torso was caved in, ribs cracked like porcelain—but it wasn't dead. The veins along its body flared brighter, almost frantic, as if rage itself fueled its regeneration.
Eliel picked up his sword, the blade trembling slightly in his grip. "Don't get cocky. That just made it angry."
"Anger nuh help if yuh can't touch mi," Patoa replied, cracking his neck. "Let's go, beast."
The monster lunged again, faster than before.
Patoa ducked under its swing, pivoted, and slammed an elbow into its gut. Then, before it could react, his other fist glowed and connected with its jaw. The impact sent blue saliva spraying through the air.
He spun, planted a knee into its ribs, and followed with an upward palm strike to its chin—a clean, brutal combo that looked both instinctive and impossibly smooth.
Eliel had seen skilled fighters before—but this was different. Patoa wasn't just moving. He was flowing. Every strike, every dodge, followed a rhythm his body alone understood.
"Yuh see it, mi boss?" Patoa shouted between blows. "It like music, yuh know! Every beat—BOOM!" His next punch shattered part of the creature's shoulder. "Every pause—BOOM!" A kick to the chest sent it stumbling. "Every note—"
He caught its claw mid-swing, twisting sharply until the bone snapped with a sickening crack. "—end wid silence."
For a second, the kitchen was silent except for the hiss of burning oil and Patoa's heavy breathing.
Then the creature screamed.
Its body convulsed, veins flaring in violent, uncontrollable patterns. It slammed both hands into the ground, sending a shockwave through the room. Frost and flame collided, walls cracking outward.
Eliel threw himself behind a counter, gripping his sword tight. "It's going berserk!"
"Let it!" Patoa roared. His aura flared brighter, washing the floor in red-gold light.
The monster charged again—reckless, howling. It clawed wildly, tearing through steel and tile. Patoa sidestepped, ducked, and slammed his glowing fist into its ribs again. Bones shattered under the impact.
But this time, the creature countered—its crystalline arm whipping across, grazing Patoa's chest and cutting deep. Blood sprayed across the floor.
"Patoa!"
Patoa staggered, clutching the wound. "Mi good! Mi good!" He spat blood, eyes burning bright. "Mi nuh done yet!"
He lunged forward, ignoring the pain, and pressed his palm against the creature's stomach. The faint shimmer of a mark appeared and vanished instantly.
"Boom."
The explosion tore through the creature's midsection, hurling it backward into a collapsed wall. The sound was deafening, the shockwave shaking the floor beneath them.
Eliel shielded his face from the debris. When he looked again, the monster was half-buried in rubble, twitching violently. Its glowing veins flickered erratically, fading in and out.
Patoa slumped against a counter, his breathing ragged. "Dat… mi call di final verse."
Eliel stumbled over to him, gripping his shoulder. "You're bleeding out."
"Better dan being dead, mi boss." He smiled weakly. "Mi tink mi like dis talent."
The system chimed again, faint but clear amidst the chaos.
[ Talent: Explosion (Stage 1 – Awakened) ]
[ Talent Effect: Mark detonation now enhanced by physical rhythm and energy flow ]
[ Condition: User must maintain heartbeat rhythm during activation ]
Eliel's brow furrowed as he read the translucent text. "Heartbeat rhythm…"
"Mi did tell yuh," Patoa said with a grin, eyes half-open. "Everything got rhythm."
The monster twitched again, its body jerking. Its left leg snapped back into place, bones reforming.
Eliel looked up sharply. "No. Not yet."
Patoa's head rolled to the side, exhaustion creeping into his tone. "Boss… it nuh done?"
The creature's chest pulsed one last time—slow, steady, deliberate. Then, like a dying flame reigniting, the veins across its body flared one final blinding blue.
The walls groaned. The floor cracked.
It stood.
Eliel's sword gleamed faintly, reflecting the blue light that now swallowed the room.
Patoa pushed himself up, blood running down his side. "Round… three point five?"
Eliel smirked through the fatigue. "Let's finish the song."
The creature's eyes glowed brighter than ever.
And the dormitory—already half in ruins—trembled in anticipation.
---
End of Chapter 9 – "The Awakening"