Malice was human nature…

However, tragedy could sometimes nurture this feeling. Hatred, sadness; envy… were fuel to a fire.

"S-Sis...!" In front of the burning building he used to call his home, Arthur stuttered while holding the sister. The girl who used to dote on him in her own way. Tears streamed down his face as he did so...

"D-don't c-cry. I'm f-fine." Rebecca barely spoke out this lie while coughing out blood. There was a hole in her chest, and the signs of a struggle was obvious just by looking where she had fallen.

Two charred bodies could be seen in front of the doorstep. The little boy tried stopping the blood flowing out of his twin sister's wound. He could barely hear her voice as he was thinking to himself:

'It... It is… because… I left...!' Arthur was trembling all over. He noticed the symbol of the Mirror Cult in Rebecca's hand. There was a rectangular piece of a necklace with a white sword engraved onto it.

'If I had just stayed at home...' He knew it was because of him... Why did he have to offend them?

His mind spun as he blamed himself. Why wasn't he with them when they needed help most? They died a dishonourable death as 'victims', rather than as the Warriors they were... It was then he was woken out of his daze by a light slap on his cheek.

"L-look at my eyes." He dazedly looked down to the girl in his arms, who forced herself to smile.

"T-thanks for finally c-coming." She continued with a look that spoke of how much she missed him.

"Don't talk. I-I'll get a Healer!" Arthur looked around for somebody… ANYBODY that could help.

He knew the words coming out of his mouth was nonsense. There were barely any Elixirs that could cure fatal injuries, let alone a Healer that could save his sister's out here in the countryside.

"Y-you better not t-try fighting those p-people. I d-don't want y-you to die...! D-don't you-you dare try avenging us, o-okay?" Rebecca spoke in a tone that almost sounded like she was begging.

"Don't go! You said you'll stay with me! You can't leave me alone! I'll go crazy...! I'll go crazy if you die like this! You can't go-" His violent cries were interrupted. Rebecca couldn't bear to see him this way. She knew a lot about Arthur's 'adventure'.

She was hiding a secret, but she was resolute in taking the truth of what happened to her grave...

Once again, she hit his head to snap him out of it.

"Lil' Bro." Her words woke him up again. He held her hand that was touching his cheek blankly.

"Live well." Was the last words she spoke as her breathing came to a stop. Her hand lifelessly fell from Arthur's own and hit the ground. He was looking at her with eyes unable to process things.

"Aaaaagh! AAAAAGH!! AAAAARGH!!! NO!!! NOOOOOO!!!!! I'M SORRY!! I'M SORRY!!! I'M-"

It was so absurd that it took nearly an hour of sitting there trying to process things before he could finally express pure, unbridled sadness and rage. Tears of blood fell from his eyes as he roared to the top of his lungs. He couldn't accept it at all.

Moaning like a beast. Like an animal that had lost its relatives under the moonlight of the silent night.

They didn't deserve to die this way...! Sure, death was a part of life in any world. However, what the Mirror Cult had deprived his entire family was an honourable departure. One that they could at least have some content in, rather than this bitter end...!

Even after giving his family a funeral, this seething rage only seemed to grow stronger with time rather mellowing down for sake of his mental health. He truly felt like he was going crazy in their absence.

Before, he could live well knowing that his family was happy, but after that tragic day, it was hard for him to even sleep without being scared awake by ghosts of his family members. They asked him why he was slacking off every time he went to sleep.

Truthfully, he was feeling self-destructive ever since they died... It was the reason he was suicidal enough to trust Lily's unproven theories regarding magic and why he trained so hard. It was these chaotic feelings of rage that were driving him...

There were times he wanted to forget and move on, but his heart was always too honest.

Arthur found it impossible to fight against these feelings. He could only bottle them up on a normal day in order to stop those still living from worrying about him. His malice started nurturing over time.

To the point it became near inhuman…

He did his best to act like an idiot and smile in front of Alex, but the words spoken today had triggered his PTSD... making him unable to stop thinking of savagely biting into the flesh of that Cult Leader!

The thirst for blood in his heart was like hunger…

It couldn't be erased.

The violent emotions bled into his Mana, which was unconsciously being released as flames aligned with the 'Wrath Attribute'. Before he charged at Alex, there was a few things that happened.

The first being that the scholarly freak had, for the first time in a long while, felt terrified to his core.

Who was Alex Stuman? He was a man who had looked at death in the face and spat on it multiple times. He was an old freak who defied fate for as long as he could remember... that kind of guy.

How could a mere fifteen-year-old brat release a scary 'Aura' that was able to make him feel fear-?

No, it was exactly that!

Arthur was expelling an 'Aura' from his body unconsciously, one that contained the essence of fury that could strike fear to all living individuals. It was turning him into an incarnation of destruction.

A walking bundle of malice…

Converting emotions into power was pretty much a cheat even by a Martial Artist's standards.

All Earthlings could do with regular Aura was essentially 'express emotions', rather than turn into power like 'True Aura' could. Arthur's power was now on the list of abilities Alex was envious of.

He hadn't been able to experience such a thing on Earth. This was his first time actually facing it.

Though that didn't mean he was powerless to do anything. Gus body was paralysed with fear from being the target of Arthur's bloodlust. The pure savagery in the brawny youth's True Aura was similar to how a tiger would look down on its prey.

[Transcendent Burst- Divine Heart!]

[True Aura- Wrathful Intent!]

'So this is it...' Many thoughts flashed in Alex's mind. He forced his body to face its primal fears.

Death normally couldn't be sensed, but the harmful and malicious intentions to murder someone could petrify even a Martial Artist after being expressed through 'Aura'. There was a difference between speculating your demise and truly sensing it...

The first thing he needed to do was find a way to move... but how? His fingers wouldn't budge!

He could only make use of his knowledge on Runes and Magic at this moment to find a way to counter the True Aura that pressured his body... which had quickly lead him to the conclusion of counteracting Arthur's 'evil' with his own brand of 'evil'.

This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

Evil Runes couldn't be generated on his body without warning like Space and Time Runes, since those two concepts were more omnipresent than the vague notion of 'evil'. He had to find a relating object that he could draw the Evil Attribute from, just like how he normally drew the Metal Attribute from his steel bat wonderfully named NAC NAC.

'You think only you can get angry?' Therefore, he used the feeling of anger he felt at this absurd situation to draw a Wrath Rune on himself. As anger existed more prominently on the heart of men than pure 'evil' that did nothing but harm.

Just because the Wrath Attribute originated from the Evil Attribute didn't mean that anger itself was evil. Wrath was a sin, but that didn't change the fact that everyone experienced rage as a human.

In fact, considering what Alex heard, it would be weird if Arthur wasn't angry, or at least filled with prejudice towards the Mirror Cult. He sympathised with his friend, but couldn't accept his 'violence'.

"I guess WE are the crazy ones, aren't we?" He murmured under his breath. Even though using violence against violence was already wrong in its own way, he had no choice in order to survive.

Sure, he wasn't helping out his good friend in front him out like always. However, did that mean he was wrong? Wasn't the berserker about to charge at him after being engulfed by fury in the wrong?

All he could do now was channel that reluctance he felt... The outrage from being 'bullied' by Arthur.

This was different from his friend in every way.

Nothing about his 'Expressed Intentions' were similar. However, it somehow seemed to work.

Even though he could barely use his 'expression' to combat the overwhelming flames of fury weighing down on him, he had enough anger at the fact that he could sense Arthur's intention to kill him.

But was this enough to face an accumulation of malicious hatred? No, it was not by a long shot.

There was something else in that 'Evil Rune'…

By applying it to his body, he was able to override the primal fear by awakening his own emotions.

Although it was specifically 'Wrath', there was a more spiritual difference between the two of them.

Mainly, was that Alex already experienced 'death'.

For others, malicious intentions would activate their primal fears towards death they couldn't overcome. The only exceptions were those who became insensitive to death, or in Alex's case…

…they would need to have OVERCOME death.

The latter took away one of the core fears of a human being, which changed him innately.

It gave his 'rage' a different nature from Arthur's endless inferno of hostility nurtured over the years.

To call it an 'emotion' would be inaccurate.

It was better to call it his sheer might of 'Ego'!

Against an inferno spilling out crimson flames towards him, Alex stood with tranquility and fury.

The scholarly freak wasn't going to go easy on him.

The ground shook as the brawny youth kicked off the grassy soil to create a shockwave. He strongly sprinted towards the target he was venting at, and his fist was thrown forward with strength far above what any Gaia Human could ever produce...!

Even the old freak Alex became in his past life wouldn't be able to handle this terrifying fist…

This 'meteor' that was being thrown towards him.

He had to dodge!

If he didn't want to die miserably, he had to dodge it fast...! There was no other option for survival!

However, he chose not to….

Instead, the Arcanist just stood there with eyes fixated on the nearly unstoppable force before him.

He would never back down, he would answer the young Warrior's 'strength' with his own 'power'.

These words sound very similar, but were essentially different from each other by essence.

Power was now equivalent to overwhelming strength, nor was it the absence of weakness.

True power could only be attained through thorough understanding of one's own weakness.

This was a thing Alex lacked in his past life's long years. The freak cultivated his physique wrongly.

He had so much strength that he became unaware of his own weaknesses, to the point even mere Master martial artists exploited him good... Though it was thanks to that that he tasted 'The Zone'.

Just like how one who has entered the temporary state of 'Transcendent Burst' would be like a chef who has tasted his ingredients, and therefore gained enlightenment on how to manage what they have and bring out its best qualities...

Those who've entered The Zone would be able to bring out the essence of 'martial arts' to its fullest.

As a practitioner of two styles of martial arts that had been hybridised thoroughly…

…and one who furiously 'sharpened' his techniques through battles of life and death. He cut off any excess movements that wasted his stamina; now realising the 'essence' of those two styles.

He then fused his family's martial arts together.

Alex knew the weaknesses of his style, but that didn't mean he couldn't cover these weaknesses after identifying them and use his strength to exploit the worse aspects of his opponent.

This was what it meant to be in The Zone...

And now, he entered a state similar to that.

Arthur had produced a Transcendent Burst? Well, it didn't matter to him. Control mattered most here.

In a form similar to Aikido, he created a steady 'flow' of momentum when stepping towards Arthur.

Alex's arms reached out towards Arthur's fist first.

[Runic Skill- Supersonic Green!]

With speed, he approached the comet-like strike. It took only one bodily reinforcement for his Runes!

[Runic Skill- Dense Brown!]

He caught the fist, but immediately felt the density of his arms not being enough to catch the incoming strike. The Arcanist's felt his arms creaking while being pushed back through soil.

Anchoring down wasn't enough…!

Then, he applied a third 'Runic Skill' on himself.

[Runic Skill- Flexible Blue!]

Suddenly, the creakiness of his arms went away and was replaced by a strong spring-like elasticity.

The force of the punch was mitigated greatly…

[Runic Skill- Trance Purple!]

The moment Arthur tried to react, Alex delicately shifted his body to off-balance his good friend.

That level of technical proficiency he showed was the result of the fourth reinforcement. It was at that moment that the last power he was capable of using was applied. The tables were turned!

[Runic Skill- Intense Red!]

Like a bowstring finally being released, the force he carried into his arms was returned back graciously.

It was like a tiny volcano had erupted…

And the wrathful flames around his body weren't much. The 'Evil Rune' was already deactivated.

This became purely Alex's own ego…

"Stop. Don't fight me any further, or…" Just as he was about to threaten, Arthur charged once again.

His eyes had already been lost in rage…

This caused a speck of merciless feelings appear the freak's heart again. Just like a 'Black Dragon'.

He was no longer taking any more of this!

[Karate Style- Low Kick!]

The moment Arthur came into range, he used one of the most basic kicks of a Black Dragon's 'Unorthodox Karate'. It was used to approach the charging berserker and stab his foot into his tall friend's kneecap. Longest weapon, nearest target.

The teachings of Bruce Lee wasn't lost on him.

This wasn't to break it though.

Alex only put enough strength into his foot to offset his opponent's balance. He then threw a punch.

[Boxing Style- Cross Counter!]

The White Dragon's 'Street Boxing' took centre stage at this moment, using the small opening that presented itself to utilise Arthur's own forward momentum against him. It was an advanced tactic.

Alex's fist also made use of the power of his brawny friend's reckless sprint to kill him.

He placed his punch in an angle that the berserk Warrior would run into, then punched!

However, Arthur still didn't seemed to be pushed back... continuing to fight like an untamed beast.

The 'Wrathful Flames' empowering the Warrior seemed to make his already terrifying endurance be paired with the numbness to pain. The blood vessels in the youth's nose started to burst.

His face was impacted right on the cheek, causing his head to take a unbearably sharp turn, but the Warrior ignored his injury for the sake of continuing the 'rush' he was unconsciously trying to execute.

[Karate Style- Basic Punch!]

The unstoppable force met and immovable object that wouldn't budge an inch. Alex met his brawny friend's feelings head on as he used the most versatile and practiced punch in his arsenal. It was a fist that also made use of Arthur's stubbornness.

He didn't even bother switching his five stacks.

The calibration he had on right now was the best used in combat. It heightened his strength.

His toes dug into the ground.

He threw what would be considered a 'straight' in Western Boxing without wasting any energy.

The impact of the punch rebounded him back by a centimetre, and Alex's fist was mangled further after using that same bruised right hand to execute it, but that only renewed the Arcanist's conviction.

He threw his last punch.

[Boxing Style- Body Straight!]

This was the trickiest punch to actually land on an opponent even in Street Boxing. A blow to the body was bolstered by Alex's own momentum, while the dynamic and sharp turn of his body was factored in as his fist shot forward like a cannonball, hitting Arthur in a place it'd hurt dead on...! There was the sound of metal clashing at that exact moment.

This final punch finally broke the youth's rush before it could even properly start and threw him back uncontrollably. The five magic reinforcement only served to make him more like a War God.

Those bright colours were beautiful…

Even though his 'Strong Physique' couldn't compare to his opponent's 'Five Elemental God Physique' refined through extreme hardships, he was able to use skill and technique to overcome the difference in physical strength.

'He is out cold...' Was what Alex believed in his heart at first after seeing the berserk Warrior being thrown back, seeing Arthur's body falling to the ground made him almost relieved in some way...

However, his celebration was short-lived as the worst case scenario arose at that moment.

[Wrathful Corruption- Inheritance Flame!]

An explosion flames arose in a black barrier that turned the sky black. It was a great turn in events!

In order to stop anyone from finding out what was happening here in this emergency situation that unfolded, Samuel activated the internal defences of Alex's mansion to isolate the massive pillar of flames from the rest of the world at large.

The time-traveller could see through the veil of destructive flames that only sought annihilation, a burning figure like that of a infernal Fire Elemental from a volcano was standing there in the flames.

Only this figure seemed a hundred times more menacing than a spirit of fire as his flames held no hint of 'warmth', only having the wretched and destructive 'heat' used to completely burn anything that gets in his way into ashes.

"I hope they watch well.' Samuel muttered. His magical eyes saw past the rooftop he was on and onto the three individuals watching what was happening in horror from within Alex's mansion.

The fear-inducing True Aura of the berserk Warrior made their bodies tremble and unable to move.

All they could do it pray for Alex to win...!