"Lord Jesus…"

Quaneesha couldn't believe it, not at all. She thought that with her long life, she'd already seen a lot of things—even before the Game, she'd traveled the world and seen lots of bizarre things.

But not like this, never like this.

Before her stood a figure in black armor, smoke rising from his body where her lightning should have struck him. No—it did.

It hit him dead-on. Even his long weapon glowed from the heat of her attack.

Adam's flesh was charred, blackened in places where the current had burned through his armor. But he was standing. Still breathing. Still alive.

"How…?" Quaneesha whispered. "You ain't right, boy. That should have stopped your heart, fried your brain, turned your blood to steam. Jesus—"

Quaneesha's words stopped. How could they not… when Adam suddenly glared at him with his empty eyes?

And without saying a word, he turned toward the light of their Middle Inner Crystal.

Adam said nothing. He just stared at her with those empty eyes, then turned toward the Inner Crystal.

"Oy!" Quaneesha called after him. "I'm talking to you!"

But Adam already ran away.

Quaneesha cursed and gave chase, electricity crackling around her as she pushed her speed to its limits. She was faster—much faster. She closed the distance in seconds.

She struck him from behind, her electrified fist slamming into his spine with enough force to shatter concrete. Adam rolled violently forward… but he stood up and continued running. Didn't even slow down.

"You sum' kind of devil or somethin'?!" she snarled, hitting him again. And again.

Each blow should have dropped him. Each surge of electricity should have locked his muscles, stopped his heart. But Adam just kept running.

Half an hour passed. Quaneesha's breathing grew labored, her attacks less frequent. The constant use of her abilities was draining her, but Adam showed no signs of fatigue.

If anything, he seemed to be getting stronger.

And soon, the Inner Crystal came into view. Thousands of Blue creeps were in front of it. They looked up as Adam and Quaneesha approached, confusion spreading through their ranks.

"Stop him!" Quaneesha shouted. "Don't let him reach the crystal!"

But Adam didn't engage. Instead, he leaped over the first line of defenders, using their heads as stepping stones. His boots connected with skulls and shoulders, propelling him forward.

The Blue creeps panicked. Some tried to grab him, others swung their weapons, but Adam moved like water through their ranks. They didn't know what to do at all.

When they heard the Middle Crystal was destroyed, they resolved themselves to fight against the incoming army of Red creeps… but Adam was alone.

They had no strategy for this at all. Their bodies soon pressed together in the chaos. Creeps trampled each other trying to get out of the way or reach Adam. Screams filled the air as their formation slowly turned into a deadly stampede.

And after several minutes that seemed forever, Adam landed at the very back of their clumsy formation. His… body was covered in swords and blades pierced through him. He almost looked like a porcupine, even.

But he didn't care—he didn't even stop to remove the embedded blades.

He just kept running.

And that was when Quaneesha finally realized something was wrong. This… wasn't a normal Creep at all. Just… what sort of monster was this?

She raised her hand to the sky, electricity gathering in her palm until it formed a brilliant flare. The lightning shot into the sky like a rocket, forming words as it reached its apex—Need Backup.

Then she resumed her pursuit, her own Blue creeps streaming behind her.

Adam neared the Inner Crystal; it still wasn't in reach—but it didn't matter to him. He pulled out the weapons embedded in him and began throwing them toward the Crystal.

And once it was actually within reach, he began his assault. He was… relentless. The Shion rang against the crystal's surface, each impact sending ripples through the air, causing its pillar of light to dance. Cracks appeared, spread, deepened.

Quaneesha attacked from behind, her lightning taking the form of a serpentine dragon that coiled through the air. The lightning struck Adam right in the back, its jaws clamping down on his spine.

"Grkh…kh…" Adam convulsed for a moment, his muscles seizing as thousands of volts coursed through his body. But then… his body began to calm down, almost as if adapting to the electricity going wild inside him.

And slowly, he glanced back at Quaneesha again—his eyes were red, completely red from bleeding inside… and then, he just resumed his attack on the Crystal.

This. This was exactly what happened at the Middle Crystal, too. Quaneesha attacked Adam with all her strength, but Adam just… absorbed everything, like her attack did nothing.

But it did—Adam's crackling face proved that she was doing something to him. What sort of… tenacity was this? Just what was—

"W-wait!"

Her thoughts were interrupted by the sound of rushing feet. The Blue creeps had caught up, and with their roars, they weren't going to let anything stop them from massacring Adam. But of course, that was a mistake.

"No!" Quaneesha screamed. "Stay back! Don't touch him!"

But it was too late.

The first creep to reach Adam grabbed his shoulder, trying to pull him away from the crystal. The moment skin made contact with Adam, the man's flesh began to smoke. He screamed, his hand dissolving like it had been dipped in acid.

Others pressed forward, not understanding the danger even though they'd already seen it. They grabbed at Adam's arms, his legs, trying to drag him down through sheer numbers.

They all began to disintegrate slowly.

Quaneesha watched in horror as her own people melted away, their bodies unable to withstand her power.

This. This is what should be happening to Adam right now. But instead, he stood there, taking it all like nothing.

"What… what manner of devil are you…?" Quaneesha whispered. And without thinking about it, without knowing it…

…she was slowly backing away.

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