Eric clenched his fists and gasped heavily, his gaze fixed on Marco, who seemed startled by his swift counterattack. It wasn't easy, but he successfully managed to deflect Marco's attacks, turning them back on him and causing him to accidentally injure himself.

After their initial confrontation, during which he was essentially beaten without offering any resistance, Eric came to realize that his strength alone couldn't hurt Marco in the slightest. The gap between them seemed like an insurmountable mountain.

I can't even imagine how high his stats must be. 100, 200, or more?

Eric was sure that the reason he couldn't injure Marco was because of the huge difference in their stats.

Even though I hit him with all my strength, he remained unfazed, showing no signs of injury or discomfort.

Despite his considerable increase in strength, Eric, who would have been considered superhuman back on Earth, found himself utterly helpless as Marco grabbed his face and nearly crushed his skull with sheer force. Every punch and kick he threw at Marco felt like hitting a boulder. Without the orb's healing powers, Eric might have succumbed already, as Marco had broken four of his ribs and nearly snapped his neck.

So, after realizing his futile struggle against Marco, Eric resorted to his last option: the martial arts he had learned from the Knowledge Book. It was the only thing he could think of that could save him and get him out of this dangerous situation.

The martial art of 'Flowing Water' proved to be the perfect defensive technique for Eric. It allowed him to deflect Marco's powerful blows and redirect them back at him with almost double the force.

I was only able to redirect his attack against him because he underestimated me.

Despite Marco's superior strength, his overconfidence and condescending attitude hindered him and prevented him from seeing Eric as a threat.

But I doubt he would be foolish enough to make the same mistake again.

Marco wiped the blood from his nose and slowly approached him before he suddenly lunged, closing the distance in the blink of an eye and leaping into the air with astonishing speed. His knee was aimed directly at Eric's face.

He's fast. Eric thought, but he had anticipated the attack and was ready. Without hesitation, he kicked off the ground and jumped out of the way just as Marco's knee crashed down, creating a massive crater in the ground. The ground shattered and spread like cobwebs.

Eric rolled across the floor before coming to a stop and quickly scrambling to his feet. There was no time to marvel at the display of pure strength. Squinting his eyes, he tried to peer through the cloud of dust that enveloped his opponent to discern his next move.

As much as I hate being passive, there's nothing I can do about it. My own strength isn't enough to hurt him, so all I can do is wait for him to attack me and try to deflect and redirect his attacks.

Where is he?! Eric's eyes darted around as he tried to pinpoint Marco's location, but the thick cloud of dust made it difficult to see.

Instead of advancing, Eric decided to retreat and create some distance so he wouldn't be caught off guard if Marco suddenly attacked. But just as he took a few steps back, the dust parted as an object suddenly shot out of it. And before he knew it, Marco had appeared right in front of him.

Eric's eyes widened as Marco's fist came crashing right into his face.

He instinctively raised both arms to protect himself, but the force of the impact was still transmitted to the rest of his body. His guard broke, and his entire body went airborne until he slammed into the wall, shattering it on impact.

He gasped in shock before spitting out a mouthful of blood. His ears rang loudly.

Eric shook his head several times. Only then did the loud ringing subsided a bit. But the much bigger problem was getting closer. His blurry vision caught Marco dashing towards him.

Eric spread his legs and assumed the same posture he remembered from 'Flowing Water', his eyes wide open and fixed on his opponent.

Eventually, Marco arrived right in front of him, and without stopping, he punched out. But Eric managed to turn his head at the last second, and the punch went past his ear. The fist went through the wall like it was made of wood.

Marco's arm was trapped, and Eric took the chance to fight back. Just as Marco attempted a left hook, Eric, with a quick motion, placed his left palm on Marco's bicep and the other on his forearm. With all the strength he could muster, he deflected the attack and returned it to Marco. The blow slammed into Marco's face, snapping his head back.

Eric did not let this chance go to waste, and just as Marco was surprised, he kicked off the ground and, without hesitation, kicked his balls.

Let's see if this doesn't hurt you.

Marco's whole body shot up in the air as he spit blood from his mouth. It looked like he didn't expect such a cheap attack from Eric and was caught off guard.

Eric did not waste the opportunity he had created, and before Marco could correct his stance, he bent down and bear-hugged Marco’s midriff, lifting him off the ground. Then he started running.

Soon after, Marco regained his senses and realized that he was being carried.

"Hehe, that was really a cheap shot," he sneered, raising his arm and striking Eric repeatedly with his elbow. Eric spat, feeling each blow like a boulder crashing into his body. But he gritted his teeth and refused to let Marco go, tightening his grip and increasing his speed.

Eric wasn't sure if it was his imagination, but he felt like he was moving much faster than when he had fought Mike. The electrifying speed sent shivers down his entire body. 'Yes, this is it. And now...'

Without hesitation, he dashed towards the nearest wall with every ounce of energy he had, gripping Marco's waist even tighter.

Of course, Eric knew that crashing into the wall at such a speed would have a considerable impact on his own body. However, he had a hidden trump card: the orb would heal any injury he sustained.

As they approached the wall, Marco seemed to understand Eric's plan.

"Alright, that's enough playing," Marco declared, clenching his fist and delivering a powerful punch to Eric's head. An audible crack echoed as the blow connected, causing Eric to lose his momentum. His eyes seemed to lose focus as his brain shook from the impact, rendering him temporarily unconscious.

Just as Eric regained focus and before he could react, Marco's right fist slammed into Eric's left cheek. The force of the blow made him stagger like a drunken man, his ears ringing loudly. Before Eric could move far, a hand gripped his leg.

"Where do you think you're going?" Marco taunted, clutching his leg.

Before Eric could free himself, he lost his balance as Marco lifted him off the ground and slammed him down.

Eric's body slammed into the floor, creating a massive crater before bouncing back up from the impact, but Marco did not stop and continued to lift him and slam him down again, repeating the same horrific attack over and over again with a smile on his face.

Suddenly, seemingly regaining his senses, Marco stopped and looked at his opponent, only to find him collapsed on the floor, covered in blood from head to toe.

"Tch, it looks like I went a little overboard," he said, clicking his tongue before releasing his grip on Eric's leg.

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"Marco."

"Captain."

Two shouts rang out, causing Marco to turn his head and look at Hawk and Mike as they made their way toward him.

"Tsk, tsk, you are really ruthless, Marco," Hawk said as he stood next to Marco. "Is he dead?"

"No, he's still breathing."

"For now," Hawk said.

***

Looking at the man who had humiliated him, who had collapsed on the ground with blood covering his body and was barely alive, Mike grinned and slowly approached him.

As he drew nearer, Mike noticed that the man was unconscious. Retrieving a small dagger from his thigh, Mike held it above the man. His grin widened as he clenched the dagger and thrust it into the man.

Die, you bastard!

Just as the dagger was about to pierce its target, a hand suddenly gripped Mike's wrist, halting his movement.

Annoyed, Mike glanced aside and met the gaze of the person who had stopped him.

"What do you think you're doing?" Hawk asked, holding Mike's hand tightly.

"Just trying to put an end to his miserable life," Mike replied, and he tried to shake Hawk's hand off, only to find himself unable to break free.

What's up with his strength? Aren't we on the same rank?!

Mike couldn't believe that his strength, which he had always been proud of, was weaker than that of the man restraining him.

"I can't let you do this," Hawk said firmly, his grip tightening.

Mike felt the pain in his wrist increase, and, unable to break free, he asked, "What's the meaning of this? Why did you stop me, Hawk?"

"We need him alive," Hawk replied calmly.

"Why?"

He was confused. He didn't understand why they insisted on capturing the bastard instead of killing him.

While it was true that it was sometimes necessary to investigate the presence of intruders, it wasn't an uncommon occurrence. Some greedy people with a death wish would sometimes sneak into the forbidden zone to salvage and steal some valuable things.

It was a well-known rule that anyone who entered the forbidden zone without permission or the temple stigma would be sentenced to death. So killing this bastard wouldn't be considered wrong, and the temple wouldn't punish him for it. If he did that, they might even consider it an accomplishment and promote him directly to the Assault Division.

"It's the Captain's order, and that's all you need to know," Hawk said firmly, locking eyes with him. "Or are you going to disobey his order?"

Mike looked surprised before he looked at Captain Marco. "Captain, is that true?"

Marco looked at his clenched fists and didn't seem to hear him, as he seemed to be in deep thought. His eyes flickered. He only snapped out of it when he felt a hand on his shoulder, shaking him gently. He glanced to the side and found Hawk beside him.

"Sorry, I didn't hear you. Did you say something?" Marco asked.

"Hm, Captain, do you really want to catch this bastard instead of killing him?" Mike asked, kicking the bastard in the head.

"Hmm, yeah, that's right. We'll take him back to headquarters and hand him over to the investigation department," Marco confirmed.

Mike opened his mouth to speak but closed it without saying a word, just gritting his teeth in silence.

"Marco, are you okay?" Hawk asked, shaking Marco's shoulder.

Marco looked at him. "Yeah, I'm fine. Why do you ask?"

"I don't know; you seemed lost in thought. We called you several times, but you didn't answer," Hawk continued. "Is something wrong?"

Marco looked at Hawk for a moment before turning his attention back to the unconscious man he had just fought.

"He was strong," Marco said.

"Strong?!" Hawk looked at the unconscious man before asking, "How so? He didn't seem that strong from what I saw."

"Hehe, yeah, what are you talking about, Captain? You were just playing with him, but you beat him one-sidedly," Mike chimed in with a grin.

"It's true that I didn't use my full strength in the fight with him, but that's not what I meant." Marco shook his head and looked deeply at the unconscious man. "I meant that his strength was comparable to that of a rank 1 hunter, and not a weak one at that."

"So... what's strange about that?" Hawk asked, confused.

"Yes, Captain." Mike continued. "As much as I hate to admit it, that bastard is as strong as me."

"Huh, what do you mean he has strength like you? Didn't he beat you until you could barely stand?" Hawk asked, looking confused, but his sarcastic tone and the slight smirk on his face revealed his thoughts.

"Hawk, you bastard. Do you want me to kill you?" Mike said with a glare.

"Scary," Hawk said as he looked dramatically startled and backed away. "If I face him, I have no chance. I don't want to get killed by a turtle."

"Bastard!"

Even though Mike was annoyed by Hawk's insults and condescending attitude, he didn't lash out at him. Fighting that slippery bastard took most of his energy, and he wasn't sure he could beat Hawk now that he had lost his weapon. Besides, after their few days of traveling together, he noticed how close Hawk and Marco were. If he started a fight, Hawk might use the opportunity to influence Captain Marco's decisions and possibly sabotage Mike's test. So, despite his frustration, Mike decided to hold back his anger and remain composed.

Seeing Mike ignore him, Hawk looked disappointed before recovering and turning to his friend. "Oh, by the way, Marco, what did you mean by that?"

Marco glanced at her but decided not to comment on the interruption.

"He indeed had an almost equal fight with you, Mike, but did you forget that he never used Mana in the fight with you? Not even once, and yet he managed to beat you."

Mike opened his mouth to argue, but Marco continued without giving him a chance.

"And even in his fight with me, he never used mana and fought me with his physical strength alone."

"So what?" Hawk interjected. "You saw it, right? That strange stance he used against you. He must be one of those crazy martial artists, just like we suspected."

"No, you're wrong," Marco said, shaking his head.

"Huh, what makes you say that?" Hawk asked curiously.

"You probably don't know this, but I remember reading once that those who trained in martial arts and were strong had a special kind of energy, different but comparable to mana," Marco explained.

"Special energy? How come I'm hearing this for the first time?" Hawk asked, looking confused.

"That's because you're lazy and you hate paperwork," Marco replied bluntly. "If you read more reports instead of wasting your time drinking and chasing skirts, you would have known this information."

"Hey, hey, no need to go that far," Hawk retorted, looking slightly embarrassed. He coughed and tried to change the subject. "Anyway, you were saying...?"

Marco looked at Hawk for a moment but decided not to embarrass him any further, much to Mike's disappointment. He had hoped to hear some embarrassing truths about Hawk that he could use against him.

Instead, Marco continued.

"This man had never used any kind of energy during our fight. So, what I'm trying to say is, " Marco paused, then continued, "I think this man is an ordinary person."

"Impossible!" Mike was the first to shout. "You mean an ordinary man without a core fought me? Impossible!" Mike shouted, unable to remain silent after hearing Marco's words.

He couldn't believe what he had just heard. It was the first time he had heard about the special energy used by martial artists, and he could accept that the intruder had fought him with it as well since it seemed similar to Mana from Marco's description. But he couldn't accept the idea that the bastard he had fought was just an ordinary person.

Ordinary, my ass! How could an ordinary person fight him? A rank 1 hunter who has already formed his core. That's impossible. The captain must be mistaken.

That bastard must have used some trick to hide his mana or special energy. Yes, that must be it. He's just a lying, cheating bastard.

"Are you doubting my words?" Marco asked sternly. "You do realize I'm rank 2, and my sensitivity to mana is much higher than yours. Do you think I wouldn't notice if he used it while fighting me?"

Mike flinched under Marco's gaze.

"N-no, that's not what I meant! That bastard must have used some trick, maybe a skill, to hide his mana."

"A skill, you say?" Marco raised his eyebrows, looking thoughtful.

"As much as I hate to admit it, I have to agree with him," Hawk chimed in. "An ordinary person fighting a rank hunter is highly unlikely. A skill to hide his mana or even an artifact would explain why we didn't feel any energy coming from him."

Marco thought for a moment, then looked at the man on the ground. "You might be right."

"Or maybe he just ran out of mana?" Mike said.

"Tell me, if you used up all your mana, would you be able to move?" Marco asked.

"Huh, barely."

"But not only did he move normally, he also fought with you and me. A person with an exhausted core wouldn't be able to do that."

"So what are you saying—that he's a normal person?" Hawk asked.

"There is another possibility..." Marco trailed off.

"Huh," Hawk looked confused, but soon his eyes widened and his expression changed to one of surprise. "It can't be... You can't mean that he..." He looked at Marco, then back at the unconscious man.

"He's what?" Mike asked, not understanding why the others had suddenly fallen silent with heavy expressions on their faces.

Hawk remained silent, his gaze fixed on the unconscious man with scrutinizing intensity. Just as Mike's patience was about to run out, Hawk finally opened his mouth.

"The captain thinks this man is one of them."

Mike noticed Hawk's voice trembling, which surprised him. Hawk always looked relaxed and calm, and this was the first time Mike had seen him so scared.

Swallowing hard, Mike asked, "He's one of what?"

"The notorious Chaos Bringer, the source of all evil..." Hawk paused, swallowed again, and said, "The Devils."