Returning to the front of the cemetery, Lug saw that the soldiers were no longer there. They had likely returned to their nearby camp.

As he moved forward, he saw Hannah lying on the wall, her head turned towards him.

"Hey, did you enjoy the show?" he asked as he climbed the wall.

Hannah looked at him for a moment. His muscles were trembling, betraying his struggle to climb. Once he was seated, she began to speak.

"You've improved in strengthening. Not long ago, after boosting your muscles so much, you'd be bedridden," she said.

She straightened herself and sat up. Both were looking out over the valley. The sun was slowly beginning to set behind the mountain. It set early here.

"What did you bring with you?" Hannah asked, pointing at the sword wrapped in cloth.

Lug took it and unwrapped the cloth to reveal the item.

"A gift from the commander. A sword. It's magnificent," Lug said, lightly waving the sword in front of him. The last few rays of sunlight danced on the blade.

"This sword is... Different," Hannah said, her eyes fixed on it.

Lug nodded. "I feel it too," he said, sheathing it.

Hannah cleared her throat and asked, "What are you going to do now?"

"I'll keep working here and see what happens," Lug replied.

He then asked her the same question.

"I don't know," she said pensively. "All these new things I've learned... The world will never be the same again... I need to think."

They had both achieved their goal of mastering their powers, and like any goal met, it left a void behind, a question: What now?

That night, Lug tossed and turned in his small, cramped house, finding little respite from his thoughts.

Meanwhile, Hannah paced the floor of her dimly lit apartment, her mind consumed by contemplation. Their restlessness mirrored the repulsion of two magnets, the emptiness within them at odds with the vacant embrace of sleep.

As Lug stared at the ceiling, unanswered questions swirled in his mind. In her apartment, Hannah gazed out the window, the city lights reflecting in her eyes as she considered the possibilities of tomorrow. The night seemed to stretch on endlessly, but the morning brought the promise of a new path, shimmering with hope like the first light of dawn.

Lug drank his coffee and left his home as soon as the sun rose. He was thinking about what he would do with his day, but his thoughts were interrupted by a knock at the cemetery gate.

"That's impossible, no one comes here and certainly not this early," Lug thought.

He approached the gate, which was covered with black metal plates that prevented curious eyes from peeking inside.

Lug had installed a small sliding plate that allowed him to see what was happening outside.

He opened this small hatch, revealing only his eyes.

He saw no one. His eyes lingered for a moment on the sandy ground in front of the gate.

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Then he closed the hatch and walked away from the gate, puzzled by what he had just experienced.

He had barely taken three steps when the door started to shake again.

He wasn't dreaming; someone was knocking. This time, he decided to open the door directly. He grabbed the handle, turned it, and pulled hard. There, right in front of him, stood a man.

The man was about Lug's height with short black hair and brown eyes. He was wearing a khaki military uniform with a bulletproof vest over his shirt.

Lug froze for a moment.

The man looked at him, then smiled.

Suddenly, and without warning, he grabbed Lug by the collar and pulled him outside. Lug was thrown a few meters away. The man's strength was tremendous.

Lug was stunned, his back, hands, and knees were scraped. He felt a sharp pain in his left wrist. Thoughts raced through his head: "Who is this man? What does he want from me? Why is he so strong? Does he also have powers? Am I going to die?"

But suddenly, seeing his attacker approaching him, Lug snapped back to reality.

His breathing calmed down. He took a deep breath and began to enhance his body up to 25% of his limit. His legs dug into the ground and he suddenly leapt at his adversary.

He threw a punch, then another, and another. None hit the mark. The soldier dodged everything with minimal movements. And then a counterattack from an unexpected angle.

The punch hit Lug's face and dazed him, then a knee to the stomach made him reel backward. He tried to breathe but air wouldn't fill his lungs, he felt like he was suffocating. The weight of the blows was too much.

In panic, he grabbed a handful of dirt and sand from the ground and threw it into his opponent's eyes. The man raised his arm to protect his eyes, and Lug took advantage of the moment to jump back. There, he could finally catch his breath.

"I need my sword..." he thought.

But he quickly dismissed the idea, remembering that it was under his bed, in his little house. "Too far, I have to act here and now, or I'll die."

Lug planted his feet firmly on the ground and took a deep breath. "All or nothing... double isn't enough... I'll try 75%."

Lug drew on the energy contained in his reserves and used it to enhance all his muscles. But he knew that the strength and speed he was about to unlock would be uncontrollable if he didn't also enhance his brain.

His senses, reflexes, and analysis speed had to be able to keep up with his movements.

He dreaded this enhancement because of a bad past experience which had nearly cost him his life. But now, there was no room for hesitation.

He concentrated on his head, visualizing his blood vessels and nerve networks receiving energy.

Boosting his brain gave him a strange feeling.

First, it felt like falling, then this unpleasant feeling was replaced by an expansion.

An expansion of everything; his sight, his hearing, the sounds around him.

Everything seemed closer, more intense.

Lug felt a sense of tranquility. As if everything that was happening around him, so worrisome a moment ago, was now predictable.

The butterfly flying around that flower - about 100 feet away - followed a precise rhythm, there was no question about its next movement. And there, the stones of the cemetery wall, Lug noticed for the first time that they were moving very slightly, a vibration similar to his sword, but more subtle.

The man in front of him, his movements were slower, less intimidating. Time seemed to slow down.

Lug charged at his adversary and floored him with a powerful shoulder charge to the stomach. The soldier didn't have time to react; he was on the ground in an instant.

The next moment, he was receiving an elbow strike to the head.

That blow would have split open a normal’s man head.

Lug prepared another blow but didn't have time to land it; the soldier had managed to keep his cool and adapt.

He launched a punch that grazed Lug's face.

Lug had no choice but to step back.

The fight had resumed for about ten seconds and Lug already felt his muscles burning.

His body was not used to such intensity.

He had to finish the fight in the next few seconds, before he fell apart.

His feet dug into the ground, he was about to charge again when he saw the facial expression of his adversary change.

His eyes widened and his mouth opened slightly, his features relaxed and he seemed to age several years.

Suddenly, Lug understood that the source of his fear was right behind him.

He had been so absorbed in the battle that he hadn't noticed two figures lurking nearby.

The soldier in front of him stammered out a single word, "You..." before a gunshot sounded and a bullet passed through his head.

In an instant, Lug spun around and sidestepped to dodge any incoming attack.

About ten yards away, he spotted two men dressed in black tactical gear.

One was holding a smoking pistol, while the other was casually standing with his hands in his pockets.

"Nice to meet you, Lug," the man without the weapon said, his voice cool and steady.