Mark stared at the giant eye. The pupil was oddly shaped, like a star with four tips, two of which were slightly bent upward. A crimson-red iris of a strange, oval shape, placed in the center of a white circle. The sclera was, oddly, purple, fitting for an otherworldly being.

"What are we supposed to do? Even the very top of the organization wouldn’t know what to do in this scenario."

Mark listened half-heartedly to Charlotte’s fears, yet he was focused on something else entirely.

"That thing... It has no level, or rather, I can’t read it."

Mark’s eyes trembled at the sight of question marks, something that could only be interpreted in one way: that thing’s power is something entirely different.

Sebas watched in a twisted awe, fear mixed with admiration. He wasn’t the only one. Everyone felt the same thing at the same time, that imposing presence was enough to make them want to bow down to it, to sit on their knees and praise it.

"Foolishness... to think that I would have to come here and take matters into my own hands."

A voice spoke, shaking the room with every word. Mark felt sick, and Sebas puked.

"To think that such a lowly being could pose a threat... useless, all of them, unable to squash an ant. Show yourself before me, you fool who dodged certain death..."

Everyone looked up to the sky, asking themselves the same thing: Just who was that fool?

Mark already felt it coming. He had fought, and won, despite being on the verge of death.

Me? Pose a threat to that thing? I feel like vomiting just by being in its presence, and I’m sure this is only a portion of its true form.

"No matter, I shall wipe this place out of existence... Consider this a form of mercy."

Charlotte looked at Mark, yet not even he could have any hope of defeating such a threat.

"Mark, this one is dangerous. The worst possible scenario became a reality. I’m sorry, but there’s nothing you could do. Stalling for time until the gate closes is impossible, and one attack is enough to erase this city, if not the entire country. I’m sorry..."

Sys’ words were of little encouragement. All hope faded away, gone in the blink of an eye.

"Well, I guess it’s high time I do what I know best, and let my god complex take over. Time to be a narcissistic fuck who thinks he’s hot shit; but make it ten times what I’ve been doing up to this point."

"Buff Applied"

Mark was unfazed by the notification. Things that strengthened one before the system became buffs; he knew damn well it would happen.

"Oi, hot shit! Why not face me one on one!?"

The giant eye turned towards Mark, who stood there with a smug look on, casually walking around with his hands in his pockets.

You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

"YOU DARE TALK TO ME LIKE THAT, MORTAL!?"

"Yeah, I FUCKING DO! FUCK ARE YOU GOING TO DO ABOUT IT!?"

The two of them stopped, yet Mark’s glare was enough to melt iron; too bad the thing’s eye did the same. A simple staredown, yet the atmosphere was fiercer than most battlefields.

"Huhu, it’s been so long since a foolish mortal dared speak to me like that. I’ll make sure to enjoy destroying this city."

Mark started sweating, trying to make up a plan on the fly.

Sys said something about stalling for time so the gate could close. Can I do it? Fuck ye I can, this bastard is nothing compared to me!

The entire world could only watch as mana started gathering in front of the gate, forming an ominous purple sphere of light.

"So that’s how it is, huh? Welp, time to whip out my own concept too."

Mark ran for the space underneath the gate, the place where the attack would land. Moving his left leg forward, he reinforced his stance, following with the movement of his hands. His arms went to the sides, pushed to the back to create space for his maneuver.

Mana began gathering in his palms, creating quite the sight.

Different elements don’t fuse, and forcing them to do so creates a lot of energy. Combining water, fire, earth, and air is the beginning. For now, this primitive form will be enough... I pray that this will be enough.

"Buff Added"

Mark’s prayer seemed to have created a buff.

Oh, yeah, music as well, I need whatever I can get. Let’s play the same song like before, Aria it is. The chorus sure makes me feel like fighting, which is good, because I need it now more than ever before.

Forcing his fear to go into hiding, fighting the urge to give up and die, Mark got ready, slowly bringing his hands together.

"Fool... If this is how you wish to die, then so be it."

In the blink of an eye, mana started flooding in Mark’s direction, so much mana that one would think it a column made of mana, one that reached the sky.

Mark’s uptake was the same. His palms met with a swift motion, the lights in his palms mixing, creating a pure, white energy, one that shook violently. With a war cry from Mark, another column took to the skies, meeting the other one head-on. The two energies collided in the middle, creating a ripple in space. Around that point of collision, space seemed to be breaking down, as if being deleted.

Damn! This is heavy! I can barely hold.

He gritted his teeth, forcing himself to face the pain of his bones grinding against one another. His muscles soon gave way, tearing bit by bit. Mark could only pray that his defense worked.

"You sure are insane. To think you’d try to do this on your own... I’ll tell you something. Should you be forced back and come into contact with that attack, try to siphon as much power as you can from it. You will level up as long as you can store that power within you."

I might die in the process, am I right?

No answer came, which only approved Mark’s point. The point of collision was coming closer to Mark, creeping closer and closer. He could feel death coming once again, telling him that it would soon be over, no other chance to escape.

"DAMN IT ALL!"

Mark started yelling, letting out his true feelings: rage, fear, regret. He cast himself aside, putting his own life on the line for others. Both attacks were stuck; none moved. Mark could see the gate shrink little by little.

It’s working...

"FUTILE!"

The purple mana intensified, pushing back on Mark’s white light. Mark could hardly stand, falling to his knees, his legs simply giving up.

"DAMN IT!"

Blood came spurting out of Mark’s mouth, leaving behind a metallic taste. His muscles turned into juice at this point: he held on through sheer will.

I might really die this time.