There was no time for inquiries or questions...

From the way Fear and Vhalen were acting surprised in that moment, he knew this wasn't their plan. The spearman was attacking him without any prompt on their end and acted independently.

But there was something even HE didn't realise...

Those two friends who were about to assist him stopped momentarily. Their eyes were confused.

Using my omniscience as a narrator, I could instinctively sense something had been 'erased'.

Their memories of the spearman were gone...

I didn't even sense a Spell being used through my omniscience, so this situation was perplexing.

Why couldn't they remember that Dragoon...?

It took remembering that Alex was being attacked to move again, but it was too late at that point.

The helmeted assailant had the Arcanist right where he wanted him... The 'still' world was silent.

Because this distortion in time was only in the perspective of those with high cognitive capabilities, not even the Second Prince could help even if he wanted to. It was just fast for his eyes...

However, the Dragoon seemed to not think much of it. He approached Alex while burning in a white flame of magical energy. He casually burnt an exceedingly high amount of magical energy.

The Arcanist's amethyst glowing eyes widened...

He recognised the Advanced Skill- No, the 'Extreme Skill' that rivalled that of a Spell.

This was Skill aptly named:

[Body Whitening of Candlelight Brilliance!]

It wasn't a Skill he'd seen used before. No... It was actually more of a 'theoretical', yet impossible Skill.

There was a reason 'Lighten' was used by Lily and Arthur to catch up instead of Body Whitening.

The first reason was speed. Even if you had it, to predict where you ended up required calculation.

That... or an extremely powerful cognitive mind.

The second was durability. It wasn't a secret that applying so much energy to a singular point of the body strained it. That's why if someone wanted to go fast, they'd use Leg Whitening instead.

This extended to the last and biggest reason Body Whitening was used: It required too much Mana!

'Candlelight Brilliance' didn't refer to the blazing flames of magical energy that covered the Dragoon's body. It referred to the burning of one's Life Force and body to utilise this technique.

And yet... the spearman seemed perfectly fine.

Alex couldn't read him using Runic Insight, but the density and purity of the man's Mana was too high!

This had nothing to do with his Class. The base capabilities of this time traveller was too incredible!

He realised that he couldn't hesitate anymore...

The assailant likely thought Alex was cornered, but to think he had forgot just who he was dealing with!

An explosive trap of Light Runes exploded in front of the man, which distracted him for a moment.

This was enough time for the Arcanist to open his Portable Space with a Dark Rune and take 'it' out.

What was revealed in his hand was a white gem...

The spearman likely realised that this was a Mana Crystal of the highest class. It stored Light Mana.

He didn't have to be told what it'd be used for.

'Arcane Fingers' could instantaneously Buff the user, but Alex didn't have time to weave enough Light Mana from surroundings. That's why he used a precious and expensive treasure he kept hidden.

It hurt his heart to waste so much wealth for one Buff, but he wouldn't survive if he didn't do it.

His amethyst glowing eyes looked at the calamity before him: The unknown, mysterious spearman.

That man was like a force of nature...!

He came out of nowhere and likely wanted him dead, so the Arcanist could only endure the pain.

The crystal in his hand shattered into Runes...

[Runic Skill- 20 Second Body Whitening!]

Two out of the five Rune conjured Buffs he could use were stacked, but only for 20 seconds!

Not only would the Buff run out after that. His body wouldn't be able to take any more strain as well...

The only good thing was that stacking it with Trance Burst optimised the effects of the Buff.

His speed has heightened...

However, this only allowed him to barely reach the physical capabilities of the Dragoon before him.

The spearman looked down on him proudly. The man was sure he'd defeat Alex with minimal effort.

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He reached out to grab the Arcanist's head...

...only to have his body kicked powerfully!

Stumbling back, the man was surprised at the fact that even his feet were dragged back by the collision. That strength... It was similar to Alex's initial strike. He now realised that it wasn't a fluke.

That's just me guessing anyway...

Of course, Alex hid the secret to his success by covering himself with his last three Buffs.

[Runic Skill- Supersonic Green!]

[Runic Skill- Intense Red!]

[Runic Skill- Armoured Skin!]

Two Buffs from his right hand, and one from his left. This likely left the spearman in confusion.

The only way to find out more was through battle!

That's probably why he stepped forward. His eyes burned with a purplish black flame while fighting.

"Five Buffs..." Alex thought he was hearing things when these words entered his ear at such speeds.

His opponent was likely talking really fast...

This only unnerved him. The amount of Buffs he could handle was easily found out by the assailant.

But that didn't mean he'd give up to fate...

As a man who had always flipped the outcome whenever outmatched, he pulled out a two guns.

In his left hand was the 'Doom Revolver'.

It was a futuristic 'Magic Gun' that shot spherical bullets of concentrated Dark Mana at the enemy.

In his right hand was the 'Brilliant Pistol'.

Shaped like a military firearm, the white Magic Gun shot spinning arrow-like bullets of Light Mana.

These were his favourite weapons...

He'd created them himself over the years. You could even say that they were his 'first inventions'.

Undoing the 'Armoured Skin' and 'Intense Red' Buffs, he attacked by quickly pulling the triggers.

A flurry of bullets traversed through the air...

"Is that all you got?!" The spearman couldn't help laughing. What was the point in even resisting?

Getting into a thrusting stance, twinkling starlights emerged on every single bullet aimed towards him.

Even while they flew through the air at incredible speeds. They couldn't escape his influence.

Then... every single bullet was deflected down!

Using only the tip of his spear, the spearman was absolute in his controlled over the battlefield.

He purposely allowed Alex to watch him approach at a speed that showed he ignored the bullets.

Then discarded his spear entirely after getting close. After the spear-like Spirit Essence was retrieved, he slapped the barrels of the guns to each side and opened him up. This was the end...!

There was nothing Alex could do but powerlessly take a punch from this unbeatable figure cleanly.

Was he going to die...?

No, a 'veteran' protagonist wasn't so easy to beat.

I noticed that at the critical moment, the emerald flames of Mana on his intensified by one level.

Followed by a second heightening of intensity...!

For the first time, the tables had turned. With the speed of a God, the two firearms slammed into the spearman's temples. Several strikes followed that dismantled and readjusted the man's striking pose.

The man's eyesight momentarily blurred from the intense pain, then found barrels pointed at him.

Gunshots resounded...

A silent roar released from Alex's mouth.

This was the secret he'd kept hidden for this climactic moment. Everything fell into place.

What the Dragoon experienced wasn't the 'Supersonic Green' Buff. Instead, it was...

...Supersonic Green plus Supersonic Green plus Supersonic Green. A threefold of the same Buffs!

He stacked them for a combination effect!

And that wasn't all...

With the speed of the 'Supersonic Green' Buff, he repositioned his arms to better apply his strength.

With the strength of the 'Intense Red' Buff, his muscles released a terrifying power when thrusting the barrels into the spearman's chest. He was able to combine the two effects into his Martial Arts!

However, even that wouldn't have been enough.

No matter how hard the materials, firearms didn't have much durability even if made using magic.

The complex nature of putting together components made them different from swords.

And that's where his last Buff came in!

At the exact point before each impact. Just in the tiny gap before each stroke... The young Arcanist's whole arm, from his shoulder all the way to the Magic Guns themselves, covered in silvery steel.

Heaviness of iron was added each thrust!

Gunshots pierced through ears, and the magical bullets themselves pierced through each time.

In the eyes of everyone else, it sounded more like a one-sided slaughter. 60 strikes done each second.

Once the 20 seconds were about to end, the young man stopped to let the spearman fall forward.

A barrel of the gun was placed on his neck and heart. Alex made a hard decision at that moment.

He turned off the 'safety' of his guns...

Strong murderous intentions were applied to the magical energy the bullets in his cartridges.

The young man didn't hesitate to pull the trigger.

His first adventure taught him to shoot first, ask questions later. Plus, he was running out of time.

Magical strength, injuries, and stamina could be recovered. However, mental strength was finite.

Twenty seconds of Trance Burst to this extent already strained his mind to its absolute limit.

There was no other chance...!

The trigger was pulled, and two energy bullets imbued with threefold piercing Buffs shot out.

Red fluids bloomed from the back of his neck...

...and behind his chest. The impact dragged his body right back to the doorway he stood at.

( º _ º) Why was I so relieved?

This was the first time I, a narrator, felt so happy to see a 'character' die. Why did it feel so wrong...?

Was I scared of him?

Yeah, that was probably it. His existence was too much of 'glitch' to me. I wasn't curious anymore...

It would be better if he just died!

(-_-|||) But my hopes were dashed...

Hah... He had self-healing as well? I mean, why not? This Dragoon already had everything else.

I wasn't even surprised anymore...

Unlike me, Alex felt like his blood was about to flow backwards when he saw the spearman survive.

His consciousness started to fade away...

Even his Buff could no longer maintain themselves.

But that wasn't what needed to be focused on.

Finally, the young man's Runic Insight finally got something. He saw two surprising words...

[Magic Trait€$%#]

From what he could tell, the opponent before him was able to mimic the runic skills he was so proud of by using what seemed to be a 'Magic Trait'. This was an ability normally associated with Beasts, who gained 'specialisations' just like Humans.

Unlike 'Spell Slots' that worked like Active Abilities in video games, the Magic Traits of Beast were more like Passive Abilities. They were easier to handle despite being weaker in explosive strength.

He couldn't understand why the man before him had two Magic Traits despite holding onto a Spirit Essence!

Could he have both a Spirit Essence AND Body Enhancement?! But... HOW?! That couldn't-

That was completely impossible!!! Even that mad scientist shouldn't be able to bestow this...!

Dr Frank hadn't reached that level yet...

It was only after intensely scanning the spearman with runic eyes did his face pale considerably.

Even the 'errors' in his vision became greater...

The information started to hide itself again. Though this didn't stop him from looking at what was left.

Alex could even 'see' the existence of two strange energies he had never encountered before, which seemed to be held back from being used in their battle. His brain was hit with a flurry of question marks as he couldn't comprehend his opponent.

"Watch out! He has a Beast Flame!" The scholarly young man yelled towards the two in fright.

Lily and Arthur didn't seem to hear him. They only took the opportunity to ambush the assailant.

They had just now appeared behind the spearman.

What happened earlier was too fast for them to have seen. They only saw him fall unconscious.

Besides Alex, the Second Prince and former Priestess didn't know what to do right now.

Fear didn't help them. It wasn't because she was scared, but due to not having a reason to assist.

She was also feeling petty about what happened earlier. Her mind was a bit confused though...

The masked girl couldn't remember why she came to this mansion, other than Vhalen bringing her.

It was weird how the Dragoon wasn't familiar to her. Almost like this was her first time seeing him.

On the other hand, Vhalen followed his instincts and started to cure Alex with his 'Healing Touch'.

Fear wanted to stop him, but eventually decided to just leave it be. The Dragoon didn't seem to care.

She silently watched the intense battle continue...