Chapter 254: Traumatizing his Team and the Monster

The team of Valecrest had seen Silas do a lot of things, starting from when he was just a normal human with no ability, to when he awakened after putting Damien in a coma.

Now... they were going to witness something that would change their perception of how powerful Silas was, especially Damien.

***

The forest trembled.

The illusion domain had entered its second layer, and the entire battlefield had become a nightmare of shifting trees, false monsters, and distorted space.

Valecrest stood together- at least, most of them were still standing.

Neil kept his weapon raised while watching the surrounding darkness. Peter had blood running down one cheek. Darren was breathing heavily.

Victor and Christian were trying to keep the remaining B-Rank monsters away from the formation.

Chloe looked calm, while Alpha looked focused. And Silas...

Silas was smiling.

’I’ve barely used half of my abilities.’ His eyes shifted toward the monsters. ’That seems wasteful.’

"Silas?" Neil called.

Silas raised one finger. "Give me a moment."

That sentence alone made several members of Valecrest nervous. Because whenever Silas said he needed a moment, something terrible usually happened afterward.

The Horned Chimera charged- its six limbs struck the ground, launching chunks of earth into the air, but Silas did not move.

The monster opened its jaws; a wave of black energy exploded from its mouth.

"Silas!" Peter shouted.

The blast reached him, only to stop. The energy froze in front of his face, while Silas’s eyes glowed faintly.

[Authority activated!]

The black energy twisted and bent around his body like a river flowing around a stone. Then it returned to the monster, striking it with its own attack.

BOOM!

It was thrown backward.

Neil slowly lowered his weapon. "Did he just... order the attack to stop?"

Silas glanced at him.

"Close enough."

The Horned Chimera rose from the crater, its body already repairing itself. The five B-Rank monsters rushed forward at the same time.

Silas sighed.

"Alright. Let’s try something simple."

He raised his hand, and pink threads appeared. The threads spread through the forest, crossing between branches and weaving through the air.

[Thread Perception activated!]

[Thread Sight activated!]

[Thread Analysis activated!]

[Weak Point Detection activated!]

The world changed in Silas’s eyes, where every monster became a structure of threads. He could see everything.

The B-Rank stone beast on the left had three weak points. The mantis monster had seven. The shadow panther had no physical core at all. Its existence was connected to the illusion domain.

The Horned Chimera had one weakness, and it was somewhere beneath the forest.

Silas grinned. "Oh, that’s disgusting."

The shadow panther vanished, and reappeared behind him with its claws extended. Silas did not turn.

A single pink thread wrapped around its wrist. Then another wrapped around its throat. Then another connected to its spine.

[Marionette Grip activated!]

The panther froze, its body jerking. Silas moved his fingers, and the monster turned around and attacked the other B-Rank creatures.

"What the hell?!" Darren shouted.

The shadow panther tore through the stone-plated beast. The mantis monster tried to strike it, but Silas pulled another thread, causing the panther to bend backward at an impossible angle- the blade passed over its face.

He moved his wrist, and the panther slammed the mantis into the ground.

CRACK!

The entire Valecrest team watched in horror as Silas controlled the B-Rank monsters like toys.

"Is he... puppeteering them?" Christian swallowed.

"Apparently," Victor muttered.

"Why does he know how to do that?"

"Do you think he tells us everything?"

Silas pulled harder, and the shadow panther twisted around and kicked one of the remaining monsters into the sky. Then it grabbed the monster by the leg and used it as a weapon.

THOOM!

THOOM!

THOOM!

The forest was soon filled with the sound of monsters beating other monsters.

"Not bad," Silas hummed.

"You’re enjoying this too much," Chloe muttered in annoyance.

"I’m exploring my abilities."

"You’re using a monster as a club."

"Practical exploration."

The Horned Chimera roared and charged again, causing him to release the shadow panther.

The A-Rank monster reached him in an instant, its six arms descending upon him, but Silas vanished. The monster’s claws crushed the ground.

A moment later, Silas appeared above its head, but he was not holding threads. He was holding a dagger that was gleaming with pink energy.

He dropped.

The Horned Chimera raised one arm, but he twisted midair and landed on its wrist. He ran across its arm as the monster tried to shake him off.

The dagger struck.

Each attack landed on a different weak point.

[Weak Point Detected!]

[Weak Point Exploited!]

[Damage amplified!]

The Horned Chimera howled, while Silas jumped away as the monster’s arm fell apart. Its flesh separated along the exact lines of its structure.

Neil stared.

"He cut through its regeneration points."

Silas landed lightly.

"Yep."

The monster regenerated the limb.

Silas smiled.

"Again."

He rushed forward.

This time, he did not use threads. His body moved with impossible precision.

[Prowess activated!]

[Perfect Stature activated!]

Silas slipped beneath the first arm, stepped over the second, and used the third as a platform. He struck the monster’s ribs with his elbow, then its throat with his palm, and then its knee with a spinning kick.

Every movement was clean, every attack struck a weak point, causing the Horned Chimera to stumble. Silas appeared behind it.

[Orc King’s Strength]

His fist slammed into its back.

BOOOOOOM!

The monster flew across the battlefield and crashed into the distant trees, causing the entire forest to shake.

Gromda would have been proud, but the Valecrest team was not.

Peter slowly turned toward Neil.

"Was he always able to do that?"

Neil’s face was pale.

"No."

"Are you sure?"

"No."

Silas raised both hands, and the air behind him suddenly ignited. Two enormous golden wings spread from his back.

[Solar Wings activated!]

Golden light flooded the illusion forest, causing everyone to freeze. Silas looked over his shoulder at the wings.

"Oh." He tilted his head. "These are new."

Chloe’s eyes narrowed. "Silas."

"What?"

"Don’t."

Silas smiled. "Don’t what?"

"Whatever you’re thinking."

Silas raised one hand, and a sphere of concentrated light formed above his palm.

[Sunball activated!]