Aaron, still fighting Bulat, could feel his opponent gradually adapting to his combat rhythm.
Because Aaron was adapting to this explosive speed, his own speed was still increasing.
But after his speed increased, the damage dealt to the enemy didn't increase by much, which wasn't good.
Bulat had clearly figured out his attack patterns and was beginning to parry Aaron's attacks with greater ease.
In that case, next...
"Hah!"
Seizing one of Aaron's openings, Bulat directly tanked one of Aaron's punches, then countered with his own, striking Aaron square in the abdomen.
Even though Aaron's cloak had some defensive ability, how could Bulat, having waited so long for an opportunity, only throw one punch?
After sending his enemy flying, Bulat stomped hard on the ground.
As the ground cracked, Bulat shot out a kick, precisely striking the same spot on Aaron he had just hit.
And as he leaped for the flying kick, he had already pulled Neuntote from the ground.
Without a trace of hesitation, having kicked his enemy away, Bulat now threw Neuntote at him.
The enemy had taken two consecutive heavy blows. Although he just gave a cold snort, Bulat knew very well that these two blows had dealt significant damage.
On top of that, his opponent was still in mid-air, completely unable to recover from the blow and dodge. It was a foregone conclusion that this strike would hit.
As for the opponent suddenly erupting with full power and punching Neuntote away... Bulat clearly thought that was impossible.
Although they had only fought for less than twenty seconds, Bulat had already sized up this enemy.
His fighting skills were probably much better than the average person's, but only compared to the average person.
As for combat experience, it was a disaster—he was full of openings. If it wasn't for this kid's incredible speed and that ridiculously tough cloak, Bulat might have taken him down five seconds faster.
The fight was over.
Even though he hadn't seen Neuntote hit the enemy, this thought had already appeared in Bulat's mind.
But, as the one taking the beating, was Aaron really...
——really forced into a dead end?
Back when this hidden quest started, Kiana's Kaslana bloodline awakened to the next stage.
At the time, Kiana didn't feel much of an improvement in her physical fitness.
And in fact, Aaron had confirmed this after activating Ittou Shura as well.
There was an improvement, but not much.
But... was this tiny boost really all the System gave this time?
The answer was clearly no.
From the very first second of using Ittou Shura, Aaron felt as if something inside his body was trying to devour his will.
He had been suppressing this terrifying power the entire time.
But now...
Aah, as expected, unlike a fraud like Zank the Beheader, my problems really get exposed when fighting a true master.
I didn't want to use this power that feels so dangerous, but now...
Heh. I'm about to be beaten to death. What's the point of holding back?
The thing trying to devour me... it must be the lingering factors of [That Guy], right?
In that case—let's give it a try.
Let's see who's the one who gets devoured!
Just before Neuntote could hit Aaron's body, Aaron stopped suppressing that terrifying power.
And as he released his suppression of that power...
——A terrifying power burst from his body, forming a small shockwave that blew everything around him away.
"This is..."
Bulat, using his arms to block the energy shockwave, feeling the oppressive aura that suddenly surged from his opponent, immediately sensed things were bad.
He thought the terrifying power his opponent had unleashed earlier was his all.
He never expected his enemy could still undergo a second-stage enhancement.
"Hah... hah... hah... This feels awful."
And this second-stage enhancement, no matter how Bulat looked at it, his opponent's current state seemed to have something in common with his own [Incursio].
His opponent's limbs had now become like those of a Danger Beast, looking incredibly grotesque.
And on the man's face, a carapace mask had materialized, covering his features.
Bulat could even see the opponent's eyes under that unsettling mask, glowing with a murderous light.
"Bulat of Night Raid. Seeing as you're strong, I won't hold back. Next..."
In an instant, Bulat tried to defend at his utmost speed.
But it was useless. By the time he regained his senses, he was already feeling intense pain, realizing his body was flying backward at high speed.
"Not much time."
"So, I'll finish you in ten seconds!"
...............