Chapter 52: Real ’Training’ End : BONUS -

Chapter 52: Real ’Training’ End : BONUS Chapter

The next few seconds became a blur.

Cashel and Wolf attacked seamlessly, moving as though they had already discussed every attack without saying a word, while Amia stayed behind them and acted as support.

Five minutes had already gone by with the relentless exchange.

Amia was exhausted, but not from the fighting alone. Every time she tried to gather mana, the energy seemed to thin around her, as though the air itself was swallowing it before she could properly use it.

Cashel, on the other hand, was mad with adrenaline. When Wolf distanced himself to take a breather, Cashel attacked headfirst.

He dropped his weapon and attacked with his fist, and once again, Nathan met the same attack. Their fists collided, creating a burst of energy from the impact.

"Let your mana flow through your body, Cashel. You’re doing it wrong." Nathan whispered, stepping back slightly to create distance. Then he dropped the barrier around himself.

Cashel raised a brow, then looked at his fists. He hadn’t thought to try that since he used weapons. Focusing on the intense surge of energy in his chest, he let it flow through all parts of his body, filling his veins with cool energy like mint.

His eyes suddenly glowed a faint silver.

"Ohhhh," he shuddered. "That feels good."

Nathan smiled.

"Don’t rely on one class." His voice came quietly despite the distance between them. "You may be a hitman and assassin-focused awakener, but you’re overlooking the basics."

Cashel’s eyes narrowed.

"There are abilities your body develops naturally to support your main class. Speed is one of them."

Cashel nodded, already gearing up for an attack. With the energy flowing through him, he felt a lot lighter, lighter than the cards, skills, or potions he got from the System.

Charging forward, their fists met again.

Sparks of white and blue flew from each hit. Strikes to the head came countless times in an attempt to take Nathan down.

Nathan countered with strikes to Cashel’s face, but with each hit came a force that pushed his hands back. A built-in defense system for the mask, which was very handy.

They both leapt back to create distance between themselves, and Cashel was actually enjoying it.

"Use your abilities," he said to Nathan and earned himself a nasty look. "What?"

Nathan hesitated, his eyes lifting to the observation deck for a second before landing on Cashel again. He forced a smile.

"Fine," he said, ignoring the dull throb behind his eyes. "Let’s do that."

---

Twenty minutes later, there wasn’t a single Hunter standing properly.

The Unaffiliated Hunters were scattered across the ruined training ground, some sitting against rocks, others lying flat on their backs and staring blankly at the ceiling.

The BMM Hunters weren’t much better.

Wolf was sitting on the ground with his back against a broken pillar, his wolf mask hanging loosely from one hand while his other hand was over his face, covering it.

Amia was lying on her back nearby, staring silently at the ceiling her eyes fogged over. She was bleeding from her neck and head.

Cashel was facedown not far from her. His gun was nowhere to be found, his coat was reduced to just sleeves, his mask was cracked in half, and every part of his body felt like it had been hit by a truck.

There were swollen areas on his stomach, purple marks on his shoulder, and a very ugly cut along his back.

Twenty straight shockwaves directly into his body were no joke. He had managed to counter the first five, but after that, the attacks rained down on him like a meteor shower.

Nathan stood in the middle of the entire thing, not a single scratch on him. He lowered his glasses, staring at the fogged-over lenses. The cross in his eyes had long since returned to the red dot in his eyes.

Nathan quickly wiped beneath his nose and frowned at the blood staining his fingers. Reaching into his pocket, he took out his handkerchief and raised it to his nose.

[Sealing Ability, Proceed?]

’Yes, please,’ he answered briefly and muttered, "That was fun."

Nathan looked around, smiling despite the destruction he had caused.

"Did everyone enjoy themselves?"

Wolf slowly raised his middle finger as he wore his mask over his face.

Nathan laughed.

"Good."

The doors finally opened.

Several medical personnel rushed inside with stretchers, healing equipment, and emergency mana restorers.

One healer stopped beside Cashel as he brought his already destroyed mask up to his face.

"Can you stand?"

Cashel didn’t move.

"No."

"Are you seriously injured?"

"No."

"Then why can’t you stand?"

Cashel turned his head slightly, smiling bitterly.

"I’m emotionally injured."

In the distance, Wolf muttered, "Same."

Amia quietly raised her hand.

"Me too."

Even one of the Unaffiliated Hunters raised his hand from the ground.

"Same here."

The healer sighed.

"Fine, put him on the stretcher."

As Cashel was lifted onto a cool bed while the healer moved to begin work, he heard Nathan approaching and turned his head slightly.

"Cashel."

Cashel made a face when he saw Nathan.

"What is it now?"

Nathan smiled.

"You did well."

Cashel stared at him for several seconds, then smirked and closed his eyes.

"That’s something coming from an asshole like you." He paused. "So much for a real training, that was a real fight with our lives on the line."

Nathan tilted his head, "If I was a couple of years older, you wouldn’t be running your mouth like that."

Cashel chuckled softly. "Well, I’m glad you aren’t."

When he opened his eyes again, he saw blood stains on Nathan’s shoulder and a fresh line of blood running from his ears.

He frowned, "Overload?"

Nathan’s brows furrowed in confusion. When he noticed the blood, he smiled again.

"Yeah, this is why I don’t enjoy using my abilities."

"Wow, you’re even in denial," Cashel commented and shook his head. "If that’s just what one ability is, what would happen if you used them all?"

Nathan’s expression faltered for a bit. He just laughed softly and leaned close, then whispered, "If you can beat a Supreme Ranker, then I’ll let you know. Maybe I’ll even throw in some stories about my niece."

He added the last part before straightening up, just as they both caught sight of Lionface approaching from the distance.

The healer started working on Cashel before he could say anything, so he could only watch Nathan hurry off towards Lionface.

He saw the smile on Nathan’s face and how he hid his pain, and just shook his head.

’I’m so going to need therapy if I ever get deeper into their family, how much is that even?’

He slowly shut his eyes and relaxed into the stretcher.

"I still hate you, though," he muttered, making the healer pause briefly, completely confused and offended.