A few days after obtaining Beleth’s power, Miko had returned to his usual training. Well, not usual.
*Bam!*
In the usual plains where he would train, explosive sounds rang out. The source of it was the collision of flesh onto flesh. Ace and Miko’s fists collided back to back as they sparred with each other. Miko looked the same as always, but Ace was different. He was using his Brawler Character.
He stepped in and swung his fist. Miko lifted both arms to block it. He was forced back a few meters with his feet skidding on the ground. He brought his arms down, keeping an eye on Ace.
“Talk about overwhelming strength. His Brawler Character is something else.”
He checked to see if his arms were in one piece.
(I heard this character mainly focuses on physical prowess. It's the character that can use all of Ace’s physical strength without restriction.)
“I’m honestly surprised. Since this is a character of his, that means the strength he’s using is his own right? Then Ace is incredibly strong when he’s not restrained.”
Momo praised.
“When he uses his characters, he’s able to train them through activities that fit them. If they level up, so does the trait that the character specializes in. This way he can train certain traits and achieve faster results than others because every EXP he gains using this character will go towards that trait and that trait alone.”
Sora was watching beside her.
“So you mean that if this character gets stronger in any way by sparring with Miko, his physical strength will also increase even if he didn’t do any strength training? That’s pretty much cheating.”
“We say the same thing all the time.”
Hina showed a bitter smile.
“Come on, Miko. This is the perfect chance for both of us to become stronger. Stop cowering and come!”
“…We forgot to mention that his personality changes with every character.”
Hina shook her head with a low chuckle.
“Cower?”
Miko smiled and started walking towards him. His presence grew as his body was covered in a black glow. This was him activating his Vita.
“Let’s go then. Just don’t start crying later.”
“You took the words out of my mouth!”
The two rushed toward each other at the same time. Miko jumped into the air and aimed a flying kick. Ace countered the kick with a punch of his own. Miko twisted his body and aimed another kick at Ace’s face. Ace ducked under it and countered with a jumping uppercut at Miko, who was still above him. Miko unbelievably dodged it by the skin of his teeth.
He landed on the ground and leaped back to avoid a kick to the neck. The moment his feet touch the ground, he pounced back at Ace and released his claws. He swung his claws at Ace, who blocked them with his arms. Ace slammed his fist into Miko’s midsection, and sent him flying back. He chased after him swinging his large fist. Miko evaded with a jump. He swung down his heel on top of Ace’s head. He then distanced himself and moved to attack Ace again.
“?!”
He blinked and Ace’s fist was suddenly a few inches away from his face. Miko moved his head out of the way so fast, it looked like he almost broke his neck.
He stepped forward and slammed his palms in Ace’s midsection.
*Bam!*
Ace’s body was blown back by a powerful shockwave. Miko leaped into the air again and aimed a kicked at his face. Ace couldn’t move out of the way in time. He was kicked on the side of his head.
“?!”
He lost his balance and started falling on his side. Miko suddenly sped up as he was falling.
Ace watched him land and pounced at him again. Miko hit him with three jabs and two hooks to his body. Ace hit the ground. Pain surged through in waves. However, he couldn’t wither in pain for long. A foot was falling towards his face. He quickly moved out of the way and got to his feet.
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*Bam!*
He immediately received a body blow before even standing firmly.
(What’s with this speed?!)
Ace screamed in his head.
He threw an uppercut but only hit air. He looked at Miko again. That’s when Ace noticed he had activated his Dragon Rage at some point during their fight. He then saw him deactivate it and switched to his Vita.
“So that’s how it is. He was switching between his Vita and Dragon Rage to change up his speed every time he attacks and defends to mess up my timing.”
He muttered to himself.
“No matter how many times I see it, Miko really is something else.”
Sora mumbled.
“Ace’s Brawler Character was made for close combat, but even it’s getting overpowered by him.”
“Overpowered isn’t the right word. It’s just that Miko’s reactions, reflexes, combat sense, and instincts give him the advantage.”
Momo added.
“It’s been like this since he was a child. The longer Miko fights, the sharper he gets. It’s like he’s a slow starter, who turns into a monster once his engines get running.”
“……..”
Ace stared down at Miko, whose gaze looked incredibly sharp. It felt like Miko was even analyzing the way how he breathe.
“Creepy.”
That’s the only way he could describe the opponent in front of him. Miko gave him the feeling that he was prey slowly getting cornered by a predator.
Even so, he smiled.
“Fighting you really is the fastest way to level up my characters.”
He slammed his fists together.
“Let’s take up a notch.”
Red light covered his legs.
“Leg Boost!”
His leg suddenly became slightly more muscular. He popped up in front of Miko.
“?!”
*Bam!*
Miko was hit in the stomach and was sent flying. Before his feet could touch the ground, he saw Ace running beside him. He bent his back to avoid a jab to the face.
“You can still react?”
Ace spoke with an impressed tone. He aimed a barrage of kicks at Miko. Miko avoided a couple of them, but it didn’t take long for him to start taking hits. Miko’s body swayed left and right from the barrage of kicks he was receiving. Ace stopped and lifted his right leg into the air. He swung down his heel.
*Bam!*
“Huh?”
He was surprised to see Miko cross his arms above his head to stop it.
“You’re really tough, huh?”
Miko pushed his leg back. He grabbed his belt and threw him away from him. This didn’t affect Ace much. He only twisted his body to land on his feet.
“Looks like you’re reaching your limit.”
Ace smirked.
“If this wasn’t a hand-to-hand only spar, I’m sure you wouldn’t be in such a situation. Your Dragon Shot would’ve easily overpowered me. Well, only this character though.”
“No, this is fine.”
Miko was breathing heavily with blood flowing from his mouth and nose.
“Fine? You’re beaten up, and I still have more Boosts I can use to increase my strength and speed. How is this fine?”
“………”
Miko didn’t respond and only glared at him with his terrifyingly sharp gaze.
(Despite being beaten, he looks even more alive than ever.)
Ace took a fight pose again.
“As I thought, you’re pretty creepy.”
He smiled.
“But you’re the type of creepy that I like.”
He rushed towards Miko and quickly arrived in front of him. Ace threw a punch and glanced at Miko.
“?!”
That’s when he realized that Miko was following him with his eyes.
(He’s already used to this speed?!)
*Bam!*
Miko slammed his fist in Ace’s face with all of his body weight behind it.
*Bam!*
Ace landed on his head with his body laid out on the floor. His body was twitching a little, but other than that he didn’t move at all.
“……..”
Ace’s eyes were open, but whether he was conscious or not was hard to tell.
“Ace got cocky.”
Sora sighed.
“If he had gone for a Leg BoostX2 plus an Arm Boost, he could’ve overpowered and beaten Miko. After all, he has more destructive power than I do, so he could’ve done better in a fistfight than I did.”
“I think he underestimated Miko.”
Hina agreed with Sora.
“Since it was a hand-to-hand fight, he thought Miko couldn’t produce the destructive power he showed against you. So he didn’t want to overdo it and hurt Miko. He decided that ordinary boosts would be enough.”
She shook her head disappointed.
“He wasn’t completely wrong. Miko was one step away from defeat.”
“Is that what you think?”
Momo asked Sora.
“Miko was indeed in a tough spot, but to him, that’s the best thing he could ask for.”
“What do you mean?”
“I think you should realize it by now, but Miko evolves through intense situations.”
“Well, it's true that when we fought, no matter how hard I push him, he would somehow push back with twice the force. At one point, it felt like it would never end, and that he would continue to get stronger.”
Momo nodded in agreement with Sora.
“I call it evolving through battle. Basically, Miko is one of those types who performs best under pressure. That’s why I said he was a slow starter.”
She became silent.
(There are only two ways to defeat Miko. The first one is to crush him swiftly before he has any time to get his engines running. This is hard if you’re close in strength with him. The second way is to crush him with overwhelming strength, which he has no way to retaliate against.)
Momo smirked.
(Of course, I would never tell you that.)
She looked at Miko who was breathing heavily while standing over ace’s body. There was a frown on his face as if he wasn’t satisfied. Momo saw that and also frowned.
(My biggest concern right now is his insatiable desire for strength. If I’m not careful, Miko might end up trying to devour everything around him including himself.’
She sighed.
(Gramps said I should monitor him, while Tia said I should let him be. I agree more with gramps. Miko’s current state of mind is dangerous. It won’t be long before no one can control him if this continues.)
At that moment, Miko glanced at her. She could sense a terrifying lust for power flowing from him. It kept screaming-
“Stronger, I can become far stronger than this! I must get stronger and faster than before!”
Momo put on a troubled expression. After a while of thinking, she whispered to herself.
“I wonder if I should call back Aunty and see if she can do anything about it?”