Returning several minutes in the past, Nathan and company were preparing to face off against Cryostasis.

"I've conversed with you bastards long enough," Cryostasis remarked. "Prepare to be eliminated now."

Cryostasis raised his arm and performed the finger gun gesture, which alarmed Nathan and Lilith.

"Run!" Understanding the urgency of the situation, Nathan yelled. Nathan and Lilith hastily ran upstairs, which Zack and Olivia quickly followed.

Simultaneously, Cryostasis released a chilly air that flash-froze several pieces of furniture and a portion of the walls. Fortunately, the group had run out of the freezing range in time.

"It's best if we split up," Nathan advised. "Of course, you're staying with me, Lilith."

"No problem!" Zack agreed. Olivia expressed her agreement with a slight nod before they all ventured through different areas of the hotel.

Cryostasis, surprised by their quick reaction, stood still on the hotel's frozen floor.

"Hmm, they managed to move, huh? I was expecting to freeze them without effort," Cryostasis said as he rubbed his chin. "Well, I suppose they're capable of thinking quickly."

Well, it doesn't matter. Cryostasis thought. These people are nothing more than scrubs that happen to ally with people like Jack the Ripper and the battle-crazed killer.

With a serious and determined expression, Cryostasis ran up the stairs to find the criminals.

Meanwhile, Nathan locked himself in a room with Lilith. It was a normal guest room with a Victorian-style bedroom.

"Nathan, are you sure it's the best idea to hide in this room?" Lilith questioned. "Aren't we trapping ourselves?"

"I doubt he's going to destroy the entire building, especially if he's not desperate yet," Nathan explained. "And don't worry, I didn't come here for no reason."

"I see," Lilith said as she sat on the bed. She sat in silence as she twiddled her thumbs. "Nathan, can you give me my sword?"

"Huh?"

"C'mon, you let me train with the NPC, and this is a pretty serious situation," Lilith said. "Even if you're saying you'll protect me, it wouldn't hurt to give me my weapon."

Nathan stood there in silence as he began to plan his next move.

"Sigh, fine," Nathan relented as he materialized Lilith's katana and handed it to her. It was in its black sheath.

"Thank you so much, Nathan," Lilith said with a bright smile, causing Nathan to turn away.

"Yeah, yeah..." Nathan muttered. Suddenly, footsteps were audible, which snapped Nathan out of his flustered behavior.

He's coming! Nathan thought as he set himself at the door side. He materialized a SCAR assault rifle in preparation for the inevitable battle. Lilith also hid herself at the bedside.

The footsteps increased in loudness as Cryostasis drew nearer to their room. Nonchalantly, Cryostasis opened the door. Upon entering, he noticed Nathan at the side in his peripheral vision.

Nathan didn't hesitate and proceeded to shoot him several times with his firearm. His casual expression quickly morphed into one of extreme shock as the bullets pelted Cryostasis's body. Despite the blessed hunter's extremely durable body, the bullets pierced into his chest and his arm, which Cryostasis had used to protect his head.

What!? It's piercing me!? Cryostasis thought.

The super-piercing ammo didn't go through his body, but it's nice that it's effective against this bastard. Nathan pondered. I bet he thought these were regular bullets and never bothered to dodge them.

In response to the gunfire, Cryostasis sidestepped out of the way before immediately rushing Nathan to strike him. Much to his surprise, Nathan had perceived this and immediately switched from his assault rifle to his blessed shield in his inventory to block the blow.

Failing to punch Nathan, the super soldier delivered a straight punch to the shield. His punch produced a loud bang due to his immense strength.

"Urgh!" Cryostasis groaned as he injured his hand. The blessed shield had redirected some of the force back to his arm. He reacted to my speed!?

Simultaneously, Lilith rushed Cryostasis, which he noticed in the side of his eye. She attempted to slash his head, but Cryostasis lifted his arm to block. He successfully blocked, but Lilith's slash left a laceration in his arm.

Tsk, she cut me!? Cryostasis thought. What the hell is going on!?

"Lilith! You don't need to fight!" Nathan, who lost his focus, advised. "You don't have to get your hands dirty--"

Cryostasis, who took advantage of Nathan's distraction, went behind him and grabbed the side of his head before slamming him through the wall.

"Ugh!" Nathan uttered as he was sent through the hotel walls before falling to the first floor.

"Nathan!" Lilith called out. Cryostasis took advantage of her distraction as he quickly rushed her.

"You better worry about yourself!" Cryostasis advised as he performed a right and left hook, which Lilith barely weaved. He followed up with a feint, which Lilith had fallen for by trying to weave. Without hesitation, Cryostasis attempted a powerful straight. Lilith had quickly recovered from mistakenly weaving his feint and used the side of her sword to parry Cryostasis's straight.

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"Ugh!" Lilith groaned as she still felt the sheer force of his strike, even after blocking. She was then blasted into the walls of the hotel before landing multiple rooms away.

It seems this woman is rather tough. She's the only criminal we don't know about. She was never registered as an S-Class criminal, after all. Cryostasis pondered. Nathan Hayes should be out of commission after taking an attack from me. I'll finish this woman, whose powers I don't know about.

As he walked up, Cryostasis noticed another person in his peripheral vision. It was Zack who entered the room and was in the process of tossing several miniature explosives from his pouch at the super soldier.

"Wha--"

BOOM!

Before the super soldier could do anything, the balls released several explosives which utterly destroyed the room they were in. It was so powerful that the neighboring rooms were affected as the furniture and light fixtures got significantly damaged.

Meanwhile, Nathan had got back on his feet on the first floor. With the help of his natural durability and the armored combat suit he was currently wearing, Nathan only suffered minor injuries.

"Freaking hell! I'm such an idiot!" Nathan said as he insulted himself.

I lost my focus just because Lilith was helping me. How can I help her if I get so uptight about these things!? Nathan pondered. But I want Lilith to have a happy life. I don't want anything, whether out of her volition or not, to take away that happiness from her. Although, I already failed at stopping her from taking a life...

"Damn it...why am I here invested in my thoughts when Lilith's alone with that bastard!" Nathan remarked. Showcasing impressive athleticism, Nathan hopped up a floor with no effort. "It doesn't matter if Lilith helps. I just gotta be the one that murders him!"

As Nathan hopped up, he noticed Zack, who had entered the room.

"Zack--"

The room Cryostasis was in blew up due to Zack's explosives. Nathan reflexively shielded himself from the blast.

"H-Hey! What the hell are you doing!?" Nathan questioned with a concerned expression. "Lilith's in there, you know!"

As he said that, Lilith exited the room she was in.

"Don't worry, Nathan! I'm alright!" Lilith assured, much to Nathan's relief. She had sustained slight bruises, and dust was on her face.

"Heh, instead of quarreling with me, you should thank me for saving your girlfriend!" Zack remarked with a smug smile.

"Tsk, what happened to you? There's dust all over your face!" Ignoring Zack's comment, Nathan remarked. "It's dirting your beautiful face!"

Hearing that, Lilith blushed, and Zack looked at him with a raised eyebrow.

"Do you guys flirt on purpose or..." Zack questioned.

"W-What are you talking about!?" Nathan stuttered. Through the smoking room, Nathan perceived Cryostasis charging towards Zack. The explosions seemed effective on Cryostasis, as he had visible burns and injuries on his body.

In Cryostasis's hands was an ice flail - a spiky ball and chain weapon crafted completely of ice. Using the chain, Cryostasis spun the ball around to gain immense momentum. He spun it so fast that the air was converging towards the ball.

Attempting to kill Zack, Cryostasis swung the ball towards his side, but in a clutch save, Nathan came in front and blocked it with his blessed shield. Not only did Nathan manage to block surprised Cryostasis, but he was also shocked by the spiked ball breaking apart upon impact.

Ugh! Strong! Nathan thought as his arms shook slightly, although he blocked with the shield.

What!? How can this bastard still move!? Didn't I knock him through the wall? Cryostasis thought with a dropped jaw. He quickly jumped back to gain distance. Damn it! The bullets wouldn't have stopped me, but those explosions did sting quite a bit! If I didn't get hit by that bastard's explosives, I wouldn't have gotten slower!

Without wasting any time, Nathan switched to his assault rifle and began firing super-piercing ammo at Cryostasis. Despite the narrow hallway, Cryostasis avoided them by hopping on the walls and rushing them.

Cryostasis attempted to freeze them as he did the finger gun gesture, but Zack immediately tossed out more explosives from his pouch. Simultaneously, Nathan reequiped his shield, and it suddenly extended a transparent barrier around itself, protecting the three of them.

"Shit!" Cryostasis uttered as he reflexively outstretched the palm of his hand after seeing the explosives hurdle at him.

BOOM!

The bombs decimated the hallway and brought down a lot of the ceiling, as Cryostasis was violently knocked away. Nathan and company were fine as he protected them with the shield.

It's good that the blacksmith gave this the ability to extend itself. Nathan pondered as he stored his shield and materialized his rifle. And training with the NPC helped me switch between weapons and tools much faster. I should thank them both.

While Cryostasis pulled himself out of the end of the hallway after being propelled into it, Nathan relentlessly fired at him. In response, he shielded his face.

Damn it! How can this be the same criminals Pyrostasis and I toyed around with!? They would have died with the slightest touch! Is this the potential of a blessed human!? Cryostasis thought with an annoyed expression. Meanwhile, Zack was preparing to throw another set of explosives.

Amid the bullet fire, Cryostasis recalled his partner, Pyrostasis. Recalling the horrible feeling of carrying the bloodied corpse of his long-time partner due to Zack blowing him up sparked immense determination in Cryostasis.

Suddenly, his palms began emitting chilly air.

It doesn't matter how much potential these damn criminals have...I made a promise to my partner that I would kill them! Cryostasis thought as the area began freezing, much to the trio's bewilderment. I'll make sure to kill all of them!

He immediately aimed his palms toward the group, and a large amount of icy air rushed out. The air traveled at extreme speeds, and flash froze everything in its range. The game characters couldn't react, and most of their bodies, especially their legs, were frozen.

S-Shit! I thought this was over! Nathan thought. But he could still attack!

"S-So...cold..." Zack muttered as his body shivered.

My right hand isn't fully frozen. I can materialize something to melt or destroy this ice--

Before Nathan could think of a counter, Cryostasis instantly rushed up to the restrained Lilith.

"Wah--"

Cryostasis delivered a powerful spin kick onto Lilith's side, and all she could do was watch. The kick was so powerful that it broke apart a large portion of the ice and blasted Lilith right out of the hotel and through several buildings.

"AAHHHHH!!!" Lilith released an ear-splitting scream before crashing into a building.

Lilith, who was unresponsive, lay in a bunch of rubble from a building she crashed into.

Although Nathan and Zack were freed (with a bit of ice on them) from Cryostasis's kick, they didn't seem happy at all. Nathan especially looked rather stunned.

"L-Lilith?" Nathan muttered as he gazed through the hole Lilith created in the walls when she was blasted through the hotel. His heart rapidly accelerated to the point of it being audible to Zack. "N-No...Why did this happen...?"

"S-Shit...Nathan, stay calm!" Zack advised. Damn it! Just when I was bragging about protecting my friend's girlfriend!

"Ugh, that's...one down..." The injured Cryostasis said. "I'll finish...the rest of you...now."

Multiple arteries became visible on Nathan's head in response to Cryostasis's words. His eyebrows became furrowed, and he gritted his teeth in extreme rage.

"You goddamned bastard! You dare...hurt...my Lilith...!?" Nathan questioned in his ire. "I'm going to murder you!"