Chapter 47: Three Elites Fall, Acid Without Essence

The Duke ran forward, shaking the courtyard like an earthquake. Every step cracked the stone floor. The three A-Rank bodyguards ran beside him, feeling brave now that the Domain was gone.

The lance specialist attacked first.

His magic spear was shorter now—about four meters instead of six. Blood dripped from his cut wrist onto the stones. But his left hand held the weapon steady, pointed right at Alvian’s chest. An A-Rank fighter did not give up just because he lost a hand.

He poked forward with the spear.

Alvian blocked it with his sword. The Coating on the blade was thin now, but it was still working. Clearwater Coating used Talent power, not Essence. It was the simplest trick of his Talent, and it never turned off.

The magic lance hit the acid on the steel blade. The acid did its job.

The tip of the lance broke down. It dissolved and turned into small sparks that disappeared before hitting the ground. The guard opened his eyes wide as his weapon lost half its size in just one second.

Alvian turned his block into a quick attack. His sword pushed through the guard’s open defense, past his broken glove, and stabbed into his shoulder. The remaining acid hissed as it burned flesh and bone.

The man screamed and stepped back, shaking. His shoulder was a burning hole. He fell to his knees, holding the wound, and fainted from blood loss.

[Clearwater Palm combo through sword contact registered.]

[Proficiency +1. Gambler’s Delay holding.]

[Lance specialist incapacitated. Not killed.]

[Pool remains: 380 base EXP.]

[The System notes that mercy is a valid tactical choice. So is laziness. The System doesn’t judge.]

The barrier specialist created a magic box around Alvian. Four walls, a roof, and a floor made of gold energy. It was a standard way to catch dangerous Awakened fighters.

Alvian was stuck inside the box of light.

He had no Domain to dissolve it. He had no Severing Sword Aura to cut it. It was just him, his weak Coating, and a sword with dim blue light.

He put both hands against the closest wall.

The Coating touched the magic energy. Acid fought against light. It dissolved slowly. Energy walls were harder to break down than real objects. But "slow" did not mean "stopped."

The golden wall started to break. Small holes appeared. Cracks spread fast like ice on a cold window.

Five seconds of holding his hands there—

CRACK.

The barrier broke into pieces. The golden bits melted in the air, destroyed by the remaining acid. The barrier specialist fell backward, holding his head. The destroyed magic hurt his mind. His nose bled, and his vision went blurry.

Alvian walked past him.

The tracker ran away. His Talent was only used for sensing things, so it was useless in a real fight. He had stayed behind during the whole fight to give location info to the Duke. Now that his team was defeated, his instinct to survive was stronger than his training.

He turned and ran fast toward the mansion doors.

Alvian hit him on the back with a Clearwater Palm.

The acid went through his jacket, through his armor, and into his skin. The tracker screamed and fell to the ground. He rolled on the stone path, trying to slap the fire out on his back. The acid kept burning. It did not kill him, but it knocked him out of the fight.

[Tracker incapacitated. Not killed.]

[Pool remains: 380 base EXP.]

[Three A-Rank bodyguards down in under thirty seconds. None killed.]

[The System is keeping count. So is the Host’s conscience, apparently.]

The Duke watched his best guards lose.

Something inside him broke.

His Magma Behemoth form became stronger. The hard rock on his skin grew thicker as new layers of lava rock covered the old ones. The liquid fire inside him burned hotter and brighter. The lines of lava on his chest beat faster. He was using up all his Talent power to gain maximum strength, giving up long fights for pure power.

The courtyard grew very hot. Stone paths cracked and bent. The water fountains boiled until they were dry. The hot air shook so much that the mansion behind the Duke looked like a fake picture.

"YOU WORTHLESS TRASH!" The Duke’s voice barely sounded human. It was deep and heavy, like big rocks crashing down a hill. "I AM A DUKE! I HAVE AN A-RANK TALENT! YOU ARE NOTHING!"

He pulled back both hands and threw something big at Alvian.

It was not a small lava ball, but a burning rock as big as a carriage. Three hundred pounds of hot rock flew through the air, leaving behind smoke and ash.

Alvian could not dodge. The attack was too big, too fast, and too close.

He braced himself, put Coating on both hands, and caught it.

[Incoming: A-Rank magma projectile (large).]

[Clearwater Coating dissolving outer layer...]

[Thermal transfer: HIGH.]

The magma hit his hands with huge force. The Coating dissolved the outside of the rock instantly, making grey dust fall down. But the heat went straight into his hands. His skin burned, and he felt terrible pain.

[HP -15!]

[HP: 120 → 105.]

Alvian screamed through his teeth, not just from pain, but from hard work. His STR 40 and VIT 68 allowed him to hold the giant magma rock above his head while his Coating melted it. After three seconds of melting, the big rock broke into pieces because the outside was weakened.

He ripped it apart with his bare hands.

Broken pieces of melted rock flew everywhere. Alvian grabbed the biggest piece and threw it right back at the Duke.

The broken rock hit the Duke right in the face.

It did no real damage because it was just useless dust with no heat or power. But it was a huge insult. The Duke, a Level 45 A-Rank Magma Behemoth, got hit in the face by his own power turned into dust.

The Duke lost his mind with rage. He was completely wild.