Apocalypse: becoming the hidden Ruler[English]

Humphrey then spoke casually, “That former member—Axel—he stayed in Everton because of the Saints, right? Now that the Saints’ information is public, why hasn’t he come back?”

The lively atmosphere instantly died.

The table fell into an awkward silence.

Humphrey sensed it and forced a chuckle.

“I mean, Axel really is impressive. So young, already mid-level Rank Five. He even won the Havoc Division tournament.”

He kept talking, unaware—or pretending not to notice—

“And in just over a month, he’s built connections with several aristocratic families in Everton.”

“If I were him, I’d stay there too. The future’s bright.”

The expressions around the table darkened.

Rosaline set down her knife and fork and stood up slowly. Her voice was cold.

“Just focus on your job.”

She glanced at Humphrey.

“And from now on… don’t talk about Axel.”

*Clatter.*

As Rosaline stood, everyone except Vince rose as well.

“Captain, I’m full,” Kaia said quickly. “I’m going home to watch TV.”

“Captain, I’ve got a date,” Millers added, already backing away.

Humphrey’s face flushed red.

Vince smiled faintly at him. “Everyone needs time to relax. Don’t take it personally.”

He ate a few symbolic bites, then stood and left as well.

Humphrey stared at the untouched drink in front of him. His face burned, fists tightening beneath the table, resentment flickering in his eyes.

......

Back in his apartment, Axel received a message from Sergio.

Sergio had successfully mastered a third-tier Awakening skill and advanced to a mid–Rank Five Awakener. However, his family had immediately supplied him with several rare medicinal herbs and arranged for an expert to help stabilize his realm, so the two of them couldn’t meet for the time being.

> The others should be close as well. Once everyone completes their awakening and we’re all together, we can discuss recruiting additional members.

Sergio’s tone was as pragmatic as ever, and Axel understood it well.

Once they saw Lilith’s strength, Axel was confident there wouldn’t be any objections.

Big families really are something else, Axel thought with a faint shake of his head. Advance once, and the resources come pouring in.

He took out the USB drive Walter had given him and plugged it in.

Note: Please use your mental power to memorize the contents. The data will self-destruct after three viewings.

The moment the prompt appeared, Axel focused.

The recent surge in his mental power had drastically expanded his cognitive capacity. After a single read-through, he remembered nearly everything. One more pass would be enough to commit it completely to memory.

This is nothing like basic combat techniques…

Advanced combat techniques were perfectly synchronized with an Awakened’s Force. They were killing arts—designed around explosive Force output rather than simple physical movement.

Ancestral Flame — Advanced Fist Techniques

Three forms in total:

Broken Halberd.

Dragon’s Roar.

Thunderstorm.

All three maximized the body’s potential to release Force, but their effects were entirely different.

Broken Halberd emphasized terrifying penetration.

Dragon’s Roar dispersed Force outward, devastating a wide area.

Thunderstorm used the arm as a conduit, injecting Force directly into the opponent’s body before detonating it from within.

Axel had already memorized the operational principles.

He stepped out into the courtyard, lost in thought.

Then why didn’t the three Ancestral Flame brothers ever use this?

If the Boyd brothers were still here, they would have shouted back in fury:

Because you didn’t give us a single damn chance!

“Practicing combat techniques, huh? Or should I—”

Butcher strolled over with a grin, only to watch Axel suddenly dart back into his room and slam the door.

Butcher’s smile froze.

“…The hell?”

His face darkened as he dropped into a nearby chair.

“I offered to teach him, and this is the attitude I get?!”

He crossed his arms angrily.

“Fine. Let’s see how long it takes before he comes begging.”

Riley opened the window and glanced outside. Ever since Butcher had started showing up so shamelessly, she’d had a three-meter-high wall built around the courtyard. She wasn’t worried about attracting attention.

“You two,” she muttered, shaking her head before returning to the kitchen.

Axel hadn’t ignored Butcher on purpose. He simply wanted to enter his inner vision as quickly as possible.

When he’d been learning basic combat techniques, Orion had helped him immensely.

More precisely—the deceased Orion.

I’ve lost some of the joy of learning, Axel thought calmly, but I’m willing to give that up.

With a clear conscience, he entered his inner vision space.

The Heavenly Spirit Fruit sapling immediately leaned toward him, its small branches swaying.

“Little guy,” Axel said gently, “I’ll need your help later.”

To Axel, the sapling was already a real companion—and it clearly understood him. Its branches trembled excitedly in response.

“Let’s see… what are you all good at?”

As Axel activated the Ancestral Flame fist techniques, several afterimages appeared before him.

“…Who are you?”

He frowned, thinking hard before realization dawned.

One was the crystal of a spy from the Stormhold Imperium he’d killed back in Northern Suppression Town.

Another belonged to one of Dale’s teammates—killed during the operation to capture Valerie.

Not surprising, Axel thought. I haven’t collected many Rank Five crystals yet.

Valerie and Jeremiah were both mental-type Awakeners. Combat techniques weren’t their specialty.

His thoughts drifted to another figure—the barefoot, dangerously alluring Savannah.

The Saints truly were abnormal.

If I could obtain a Saint’s crystal… my combat techniques would probably skyrocket.

“For now, this will have to do.”

Choosing the most solid phantom, Axel relaxed completely, allowing a torrent of information to pour into his mind.

Even in his introspective state, his entire body was soon drenched in cold sweat. Physical pain and mental tearing assaulted him nonstop.

“Fuck… this hurts.”

The pain rivaled what he’d felt when absorbing the Fire Spirit and the Rock Spinal Cord.

More than ten minutes later, Axel finally emerged from his inner vision. He changed into clean clothes and clenched his fist.

A sensation both familiar and strange surged through him.

“The way advanced combat techniques interact with Force is similar,” he muttered. “It’s just that we know far too little.”

He had fully mastered only Broken Halberd.

The other two would have to wait—until he collected more crystals.

When he stepped back into the courtyard, he saw Butcher sitting there with a crooked grin, curling a finger at him.

“Hit a wall, huh? Now you know how to ask for help properly?”

“…What did you say?”

Axel’s genuinely confused expression nearly sent Butcher over the edge.

“If I ever offer to teach you again,” Butcher snapped, “I’m a pig.”

Axel rubbed his chin awkwardly.“How could you be a pig? You’re a pig butcher.”

Butcher’s lips twitched.

“That doesn’t make me feel better unless you beg.”

Axel stared at him for a moment, speechless.

“…Then please. Kindly. Guide me.”

Looking at Axel’s half-hearted plea, Butcher sighed deeply and cursed under his breath.

“I’m such an idiot. Fine. What’s the problem?”

Butcher’s combat ability was solid—he was a close-combat Awakener through and through.

“Watch carefully,” Axel said. “I’ve only mastered one and a half moves.”

“Hm.”

Butcher leaned back casually—then abruptly froze.

“…Wait. What the hell did you just say? You’ve mastered it? Are you screwing with me?”

“Riley!” Butcher yelled. “Listen to this! What kind of bullshit is that?!”

Riley, who was watering the grass nearby, replied lazily,

“You guys keep playing.”

“Then I’ll begin.”

Axel took a slow, steady breath as countless fragments of advanced combat techniques surged through his mind.

Broken Halberd.

He funneled nearly half of his Force into his fist. The energy condensed and expanded within his arm, compressing again and again until it sharpened into something like a feathered arrow, tearing through the natural restraints of flesh with ruthless precision.

His punch tore through the air.

Boom.

It struck the grass and bored straight down, leaving behind a hole as thick as an arm.

A thin wisp of white smoke rose from the scorched earth.

Axel shook his head, clearly dissatisfied.

According to the Ancestral Flame combat manual, Broken Halberd only reached peak penetration when compressed to the width of a finger.