Two orcs attacked from his left and right simultaneously, spears thrusting for his sides in a coordinated pincer. Their nightmare-projections showed their full intent clearly—they expected him to dodge backward to avoid the spears, which would put him directly in line with Kelvin's waiting spear thrust from behind. A classic three-way trap.

Instead, Satou used [Phase Step] another ability gained from the nightmare demons, specifically from one called a Phase Walker that had been particularly annoying to fight. His body became partially intangible for exactly one second, the technique requiring careful mana control but providing perfect results. Both spear thrusts passed harmlessly through him as if he were made of mist, the orc warriors' momentum carrying them forward even as their weapons found no resistance.

The warriors' eyes widened in shock and incomprehension. They'd never seen anything like that before, never even imagined such an ability was possible. How do you fight someone who can become incorporeal?

Satou reformed fully solid and immediately activated [Shadow Manipulation], one of the more versatile abilities he'd integrated. The pre-dawn darkness responded instantly to his will, shadows stretching and solidifying into tendrils that moved like living things. They wrapped around the two orcs' legs like serpents, jerking hard.

Both warriors went down, their legs swept completely out from under them. They hit the ground hard.

"What the—" one of them managed before Satou's fist caught him in the solar plexus. The strike was enhanced by [Strength Enhancement], another nightmare demon ability, multiplying his already considerable strength to truly devastating levels. The orc flew backward like he'd been kicked by a horse, crashing into two of his companions and taking all three out of the fight temporarily in a tangle of limbs and groans.

Kelvin attacked from behind exactly as his nightmare-projection had indicated he would, his spear moving in a perfect thrust aimed at Satou's back. It was textbook technique—low strike that would be hard to defend against even if noticed, the thrust perfectly balanced between speed and control. Under normal circumstances, even knowing it was coming, avoiding it would be difficult.

But Satou's [Enhanced Reflexes], yet another integrated ability, made the attack seem to move in slow motion. He had all the time in the world to react. He twisted his torso, minimum movement required, caught the spear shaft with one hand just behind the tip, and activated [Life Drain (Dream-Type)] on contact.

Kelvin gasped audibly as energy drained from him through the point of contact, flowing like water into Satou's body. It wasn't enough to seriously harm the spearman—Satou was being careful about that—but it was more than sufficient to make his legs buckle, his enhanced strength suddenly failing him. He stumbled back, releasing the spear, his face pale.

Urgot tried to capitalize on what he thought was an opening, his warhammer coming down in a crushing overhead blow that would have shattered a skull. The young orc put everything he had into it, roaring with effort.

Satou raised one hand casually, almost dismissively, catching the hammer mid-swing with [Damage Reflection] active. The ability was fascinating—it didn't just block attacks but reversed their force.

The impact should have shattered every bone in Satou's hand and arm. Instead, the force reversed, traveling back up the warhammer's shaft and into Urgot's arms with doubled intensity. The young orc cried out in surprise and pain, his weapon flying from suddenly numb hands, his arms hanging uselessly at his sides from the shock.

"Impossible," someone muttered from the circle of warriors. The word was repeated by others, disbelief evident.

Satou spun in place, movements flowing like water, and activated [Mental Attack (Basic)]. It was a subtle ability, one that required finesse rather than raw power. Invisible waves of psychic pressure rippled outward from Satou in a controlled burst, targeting only those in front of him.

Three goblins who'd been coordinating an attack suddenly faltered, their minds momentarily clouded with confusion and mild disorientation. Not enough to truly harm them, but enough to break their formation completely.

"Regroup!" Grendel's voice cut through the chaos, trying to restore order. "Don't attack individually! Maintain formation!"

But maintaining formation against someone who could phase through attacks, manipulate shadows, drain energy, and assault the mind itself was proving nearly impossible. The warriors were discovering firsthand just how terrifying a nightmare demon hunter truly was when they turned their accumulated arsenal against normal opponents.

A female orc named Thora—one of their fastest fighters—tried a different approach. Instead of attacking directly, she hurled three training knives in rapid succession, each one aimed at a different angle, forcing Satou to either dodge or defend multiple trajectories at once. Smart thinking. The nightmare-projection had shown her strategy clearly.

Satou activated [Spatial Awareness], another nightmare demon ability that expanded his perception in all directions simultaneously. He could sense the knives' trajectories as clearly as if they were moving through molasses. He plucked the first one from the air without looking, deflected the second with his forearm, and caught the third between two fingers, all in one fluid motion that seemed almost lazy in its ease.

"Nice try," Satou said, genuine appreciation in his voice. He flicked the captured knife back—not at Thora, but at the ground by her feet—the blade embedding itself in the dirt as a returned courtesy. "Creative approach. But you're still thinking too linearly."

Thora's eyes narrowed. "Then we'll think differently."

She made a hand signal to the other warriors, some kind of prearranged code. Immediately, the entire group's tactics shifted. Instead of coordinated attacks, they went completely chaotic—random strikes from random angles with no pattern whatsoever, no coordination, pure unpredictable aggression.

Satou's eyebrows rose slightly. Clever. By removing all coordination, they'd eliminated the predictability that [Nightmare Sight] relied on. If they had no plan, there was no plan for him to foresee.

A goblin came in low with a sweeping leg kick. An orc attacked high with a overhead club strike. Another goblin threw a handful of dirt at his eyes. A fourth warrior simply charged straight at him, roaring. All at the same time, all from different angles, complete chaos.

For the first time in the fight, Satou had to actually work for it.

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