Apocalypse: becoming the hidden Ruler[English]

Almost at the same time, in another clearing deeper within the valley—

“I didn’t want to use that move.” From the smoking crater at the center of the blast, Isos slowly rose to his feet, a cold smile spreading across his face. “You idiots killed Quinlan for me. Perfect.”

His skin was charred black, cracked like burnt clay. But within seconds, the dead flesh flaked away. Beneath it, new skin regenerated—pink, tender, horrifyingly alive.

“That brat…” Isos’ smile twitched as a spike of pain lanced through his skull. “He actually managed to damage my mental energy while attacking physically.”

His brow furrowed. If his mind hadn’t been unusually resilient, that barrage would’ve knocked him unconscious—or worse, fractured his consciousness permanently.

What shocked him more was the explosion. It had been nearly twice as powerful as he’d calculated. If he hadn’t stacked enough defensive amplification beforehand, that detonation might have taken him out.

That… was probably that kid’s doing too. Still.

He had survived. And surviving meant profit. “Search the area. Something like that shouldn’t be easily—”

He froze. “What the hell…? How is this possible?!”

“What’s impossible?” Axel’s voice drifted casually from behind him.

Isos spun. Axel stepped out from the smoke, long sword resting on his shoulder, clothes immaculate—not even singed.

“You don’t seriously think you’re the only one who can tank an explosion like that?” Axel chuckled. “Nothing special.”

Isos stared at him, disbelief cracking through his composure. “That’s impossible!”

Axel just smiled. When the blast went off, he had activated both **Return to Origin** and Thorn Body’s absorption mode simultaneously. The absorption shield from Return to Origin had shattered instantly—but Thorn Body had barely managed to endure the catastrophic impact. Even so…

After absorbing that absurd amount of destructive energy, the rebound still hadn’t killed Isos. That alone told Axel something important. Even some Level 7 Awakeners wouldn’t possess defense this exaggerated.

“Interesting,” Lilith’s voice echoed softly as her figure emerged from a tear in empty space. “Don’t let him escape. He’s hiding something big.”

“Phase Shift?” Axel and Isos said at the same time.

That was an advanced spatial awakening technique—extremely rare, extremely difficult. A short-term transition into a parallel spatial layer to avoid damage entirely.

Isos’ earlier arrogance faded. Yehuda alone had been troublesome. Now this fake Saka possessed high-level spatial talent. The balance wasn’t in his favor anymore.

Axel, despite his relaxed smile, was equally cautious. Isos was a walking anomaly.

First, that self-destructive detonation—transforming accumulated damage into a catastrophic release. It resembled Thorn Body, but twisted, evolved.

When he activated it, the Sunfire stacks vanished instantly. He could convert not only damage—but negative statuses as well. Burns. Poisons. Debuffs. All erased.

Against him, damage-over-time effects were nearly useless. And his abilities layered perfectly: Monstrous defense. Stacking amplification. Delayed catastrophic release.

This wasn’t normal. This was a complete system. This man carried a secret.

“Isos,” Axel said lightly, blade angled downward, “you’re hiding something big. Even with Quinlan alive, you didn’t use that move. Morris probably doesn’t even know about it, does he?”

His smile sharpened. “If the other commanders found out… that would be interesting, wouldn’t it?”

Isos’ lips curled. “Oh? And what about you?” His gaze flicked to Axel’s face.

Felicia’s facial disguise had been obliterated by the explosion. Axel’s true features were now exposed. “Yehuda isn’t your real identity either.”

Then his eyes shifted to Lilith. “And you—fake Saka. You’re even worse. Once this gets out, you won’t just lose your position in the City of Sin Legion. Penny will skin you alive.”

Lilith laughed softly, alluring and cold. “Do you think I give a damn about being a commander? If I weren’t helping some brat here, I’d have left long ago.”

Axel felt a faint stab of guilt.

Isos, meanwhile, frowned slightly. She really didn’t care about the identity. Then why was she here?

“Enough,” Axel cut in smoothly. “Hand over your secret.” His voice dropped. “Or you die.”

He was certain now. Whatever Isos possessed—it was tied directly to why Isos had targeted him from the beginning.

“Want to know?” Isos’ grin widened. “Vajra Running.” He kicked off the ground. The distance between them stretched instantly.

“So fast?!” Axel’s pupils shrank. He immediately activated Burning Fighting Spirit and Cloud-Chasing Boots, surging forward in pursuit. Then—

Axel’s expression changed sharply. Not good. Isos wasn’t suppressing his aura. He wasn’t controlling his speed. He didn’t even try to maintain concealment.

He blasted straight through the barrier created by the Original Instruments. In the next instant—

The mountains roared.

One roar.

Then another.

Then dozens.

Hundreds.

Shock. Fury. Hunger. Countless mutated beasts had been alerted. The entire mountain range awakened.

......

“What the hell was that?”

“What just happened?!”

Deep in the valley, Geoffrey and his squad were advancing cautiously under the concealment of their formation array when a thunderous detonation erupted from the mountains ahead. A second later, the ground began to tremble as waves of mutated beasts surged toward the source of the disturbance.

“Commander Geoffrey… do we stick to the original plan, or…?”

For a brief moment, Geoffrey hesitated.

The plan had been clear: infiltrate to the outer edge of the blockade line, then deliberately release their auras to draw off as many mutated beasts as possible. According to the timetable, Mr. Zephyr would soon issue the order to abandon the city and break out. If they could divert even a portion of the beasts’ strength and attention, it might tip the balance.

That had been their mission when they left the pass. But now—

Something had changed. Geoffrey’s hesitation lasted less than a heartbeat.

“Accelerate,” he ordered sharply. “Head toward the disturbance.”

His gaze hardened. “This anomaly could be good or bad for Krythos. Either way, we’re responsible for gathering intelligence and getting it back to the city.”

He drew in a steady breath. “Maybe… the fate of Krythos hinges on whatever just happened.”

The squad immediately shifted formation and sped toward the heart of the valley.

.......

“Damn it… these Cloud-Chasing Boots aren’t cutting it.” Axel grit his teeth as he pushed his speed to the limit. For the first time, he felt genuinely dissatisfied with his equipment.

Until now, his base speed had crushed nearly everyone at his level. Add Burning Fighting Spirit on top of that, and he had never lost a speed contest. But this—

This was different. Isos was absurdly fast.

If Axel hadn’t gone all out from the start—and if Isos hadn’t been slowed slightly by the mutated beasts flooding the area—Axel wouldn’t even be able to see his silhouette by now.

“How the hell is he that fast?!” Lilith shouted from behind, equally stunned.

Isos wasn’t suppressing anything. The moment he started running, he drew in swarms of mutated beasts that converged from every direction. The three of them were small targets and moving at extreme speed, so for the moment, none of the beasts could land a decisive blow.

But this wasn’t sustainable.

“Should we… pull back?” Lilith asked through clenched teeth.

She was using Force manipulation to distort spatial resistance around her body, reducing drag and boosting her speed. But the cost was massive. She couldn’t maintain it for long.

“No.” Axel’s answer was immediate. “This guy’s too dangerous.”

Too strong. Too mysterious. Who knew what kind of secret he carried? If Isos lived, it would only spell disaster—for Axel and everyone around him.

“If you don’t rip the weeds out by the root, they grow back in spring.” Axel had always believed that.

Ahead of them, the density of mutated beasts grew thicker and thicker.

“ROAR—!” A “mountain” in front of Isos suddenly moved.

It wasn’t a mountain at all. It was a Level 6 mutated beast—the Mountain Ape. The colossal creature slammed its massive palm downward like a collapsing cliff.

Isos’s speed dropped sharply. He raised both arms over his head in a defensive posture.