23 Fighting the Super Mutant.
Mutants, Devils, and everything in between were graded into 9 different categories.
Normal.
Elite.
Special.
Deadly.
Legendary.
Half-god.
Godly.
Heavenly.
Celestial.
Cain had only come across monsters of the first three categories, and the latter was always tougher to beat than the previous ones. Not that he was complaining.
Cain slowly sauntered towards the fight. He drew the black {Devil's Broken Claw}. The black blade released an evil, dark aura, and the eye engraved onto the hilt lit up with black light.
Sparks were created as he dragged the blade on the ground. The others were too busy engrossed with the fight to even notice his approach.
Although the Super mutant was strong, the others weren't in any danger. They might take some time to bring the monster down because of its strong defense, but Cain had other plans in mind.
His ego was what was driving him forward...
Before all this, he didn't have a reason to become the best, the strongest. He neglected his training because training his skills wasn't even necessary when it came down to handling the small fries.
Now, he had a reason to get stronger.
Survival...
Plus, he loved to fight...
When he was training with his master, whose name he didn't even know, he noticed that even when he was taking a beating, his heart still burned with the fires of excitement.
Every swing of his blade brought him a wind of calmness.
The sound of weapons clashing increased his heart rate even further.
That was why when his mysterious master suddenly departed from him without any warning, he became sad. He beat up his foster father and became notorious in school for his martial arts skills.
***
"Hey, you!"
A younger version of Cain was walking through the streets of the main campus, his head slightly tilted towards the ground, occupied with random thoughts...
'What to eat when I get back...'
He was the one responsible for his meals. Although he was given an allowance by his foster father, it was never enough to feed himself for the latter part of a month, so he always had to manage his money. He didn't consider getting a job, as almost all job positions were either operated by intelligent robots, or in the customer service department. He wasn't a robot, nor was he good at interacting with people, so the thought had died out pretty quickly.
"Hey! We're talking to you!"
'I think I'll threaten that dumb drunkard again for some cash. Or I can sell off some of the fatty's games.'
"HEY!"
"Hm?"
Cain was a bit surprised to see a bunch of dudes wearing black training gi. They were all muscular bulky dudes, their eyes flashing with a predatory light.
"What you "hm" ing about, huh?!"
"You deaf or something?!"
"Yeah! The boss is talking to you!"
"Are you talking to me?"
Cain didn't even know where they came from, and here they were, screaming into his ears.
"No, the fucker behind you, punk!"
The one in the lead spoke disdainfully. He was a head taller than Cain, and twice the body size of the lanky, training neglecting Cain.
"Oh..."
Seeing as they were not referring to him, Cain attempted to walk away, however...
"Where the fuck do you think you're going, huh?! I'm talking to you!"
"Why didn't you say so earlier."
"Well..."
The dude before Cain was slightly surprised by his oblivious behavior.
'Does he have a few loose screws?' he thought.
"Sigh... What do you want? I haven't got all day."
Cain stared at the idiot before him...
"Ha! Let's spar. I heard you can fight." The guy looks down at Cain provocatively.
Cain was silent for a while, and the dude before him took it as him being in shock from fear.
"What's the matter? Let's go a few rounds unless you're too much of a pussy, that is."
"I'm in."
"Eh?"
"Let's not waste any more time. Where and when?!"
Cain tried to mask the excitement on his face in order not to scare them away, but his eyes were already shining with excitement.
'Finally!'
He hadn't had a spar in a long time. Most of the bullies he had gotten physical with were incomparably weak to him. He didn't even need to try, and the next moment, they were a broken mess...
The ones before him looked far more promising. He could tell they had training, which would make the fight more interesting...
'Hopefully, they will be able to last longer than a single blow.'
The leading boy looked at his gang, and they let out menacing chuckles as they led Cain back to their dojo...
***
A couple of minutes later...
Bodies...
Broken bodies were all over the mats...
Amidst all these bodies, the figure of a dark-haired, thin and handsome young man stood towering over them.
'Sigh... As expected. Refreshing.'
The figure stretched out, his limbs made popping sounds as they were set back into place. Meanwhile, sobbing and groans coming from the bodies on the mats filled the air.
"You guys managed to last a few rounds more than I expected. This was such a good find. I'll be back tomorrow."
Upon hearing those words, the bodies on the ground increased the tempo of their mourning.
'My heart...'
It was only in moments like this he truly felt alive. Even if it was for a little bit.
'Now that's over, about dinner...'
***
BANG!
Faster than the wind, like a bolt of earth-shattering lightning, the ground beneath his feet splintered into a thousand pieces.
"Ha!"
Name: {Cain Lenosi}
Level: 15.
Strength: 60 (30).
Agility: 74 (20).
Stamina: 49/49.
Vitality: 32.
Defense: 22 (-5).
Control: 3.4 (0.2).
Perception: 2.5.
HP: 3,200/3,200.
MP: 1,900/2,100.
Magic: 42.
Resistance: Poison- 5%.
Skills: Golden blood, Mana Blade, Lightening Edge, Blade Mastery Lvl. 2, Burst Step, Metal Creation Lvl.1, Golden Severance, Metal Manipulation, Fear, Bloodthirsty.
Titles: Champion of Ashur (locked).
Free attribute points: 10.
System points: 0.
{Inventory}. {Shop}.
He activated {Mana Blade} and then lightning edge at once. Before the others, who were still engrossed with attacking could even realize what was going on, his blade came crashing down.
BANG!
ROAR!
The {Crimson Demon Bear} released a roar of pain as it staggered a few steps backward. Cain's attack had caused a meter-long, 3-inch wound on the mutant.
Blood gushed out like a fountain, dying the forest earth red. But Cain didn't stop there...
He proceeded to pour out a torrent of heavy slashes onto the monster. The monster was fast, faster than Cain, but that didn't seem like it mattered.
The mutant also initiated a skill, as its feet glowed red. It brought its feet down with earth's rending power. The blood-colored energy traveled through the shattered ground like a tsunami, aimed at Cain.
'This attack was very powerful and would shave half my life if I try to block it. In that case...'
Cain activated {Burst Step}, shuttling through the sky, completely dodging the attack. He landed like a feather and resumed his attack.
Metal clashed with bone as the edge of his blade and the claws of the beast clashed, creating sparks. The others just stared, mouths agape.
Cain brought his blade up, bringing it down the next second in a downward chop, but the monster was fast enough to block it with its sharp claws. The mutant thought it had successfully blocked the strike, only for it to feel a sharp stinging pain on its paw. Looking down, it noticed that half of its paw was missing. The mutant let out a roar of pain, but Cain wouldn't even give it a moment of respite.
'Do you know what martial arts is?'
With every wave of his blade, chunks of flesh and blood were removed from the corpse of the mutant.
He could hear a distant voice in his head, asking him a question he still didn't know the answer to.
'Is it this feeling?'
BANG!
ROAR!
'Is it that feeling?'
SILK!
GRAAAH!!!
'I guess we'll have to find out, no?'
His blade became parallel to the ground, at his hip. He held it with both hands for maximum power. A brief flash of light later.
THUD!
ROAR!!!!!
Cain severed the hand of the mutant beast from the elbow joint downwards. The mutant let out whimpers as took a step back, fear appearing in its eyes.
"This blade in my hand yearns for blood but has never had a taste of it. Yours will be the first."
In a calm voice, Cain passed down judgment on the mutant. The fear in the mutant's eye was quickly replaced with anger, as though it could understand the meaning behind his words.
GROWL!!!
The mutant let out a deep guttural growl, and the red runic marking on its body began to glow even brighter.
A bright red aura suddenly burst out from the beast. The smell of blood immediately permeated the air. The mutant added a whole foot of height, and even more in width. Its fur became a shade of crimson, and its already ruby eyes turned even redder.
The mutant was done joking around and had activated its skills...
