Chapter 86: Ruthless

The world was instantly slowed down in Scar's perceptive. Everyone and everything moved in slow motion.

Except for Scar.

He could see the bulky man's arm descending with agonizing slowness. He could see the trajectory of the blade, the angle, and the point of impact. He could see the knife gleaming, just inches away from Xavier's throat.

Scar didn't waste another second. He moved.

He crossed the distance in a fraction of a second, his body a blur of motion. His grabbed the bulky man's wrist mid-swing and twisted sharply, causing the knife to clatter to the floor.

The bulky man's eyes widened in shock. "What—"

But Scar didn't give him time to finish. He drove his fist into the man's throat with lethal force.

CRUNCH.

The man's windpipe was crushed instantly. He dropped to his knees, gasping for air that would never come, his hands clutching at his ruined throat. He collapsed to the ground, letting out a single ragged breath before going still. Lifeless.

Scar stood over the dead agent, his eyes burning with a cold and ruthless intensity. He had just taken a man's life, yet he felt nothing. Nothing but a dark, twisted desire to take more life.

The remaining agents froze, their heads turning toward him in shock. They had just watched him kill a man with a single blow.

"What the hell?" one of them muttered.

"He… he killed Darius… with one punch…" another stammered, still in shock by what they had just witnessed.

Even Matthew was stunned. His eyes widened in shock. "Impossible…" he rasped. "Who the hell are you?"

Xavier let out a small laugh. "You sure are full of surprises, kid."

Scar looked down at him. But he didn't utter a word. He simply let out a dark chuckle then turned back to face the terrorists.

Matthew gritted his teeth and quickly recovered his composure. He turned to the remaining three agents and frowned. "What are you all waiting for?!" he yelled at them. "Kill him!"

The agents obeyed instantly and advanced toward Scar, their weapons raised.

Scar didn't wait for them to attack. He accelerated forward with full speed. The first agent barely had time to register the movement before Scar suddenly materialized in front of him. He flinched in surprise, quickly bringing up his plasma rifle to shoot, but before he could pull the trigger, Scar grabbed the barrel of the gun, redirected it to the side, and drove his palm upward into the agent's chin.

CRACK!

The impact, backed by Scar's insane strength, shattered the agent's jaw and snapped his neck instantly. He collapsed to the floor, dead.

The second agent fired rapid, consecutive plasma shots at him, but Scar was able to evade every single one, his body weaving between the shots with fluid precision. Then, he ran forward and closed the distance in a heartbeat, driving his fist directly into the center of the man's armored chest plate. The agent's armor caved in like tin foil, his ribcage exploding inward. He flew backward and slammed into the museum wall, dead before he even hit the ground.

The third agent was a woman with long, dark hair. She threw a knife at Scar, the blade heading straight for his face. Scar tilted his head slightly, and the knife whistled past his ear. Then he closed the distance between him and the woman. She threw a kick at his head, but he caught her ankle, twisted it, and drove his knee into her stomach. She let out a sharp grunt and doubled over. Then he grabbed her head and slammed it into the marble floor with brutal force. And before she could recover, Scar summoned his pistol from his inventory and aimed at her skull. Then, without a single shred of hesitation, he pulled the trigger.

BANG!

The plasma bolt burned a clean hole straight through the agent's skull, killing her on the spot.

Scar stood in the center of the hall, surrounded by the bodies of four dead people. His breathing was steady and his expression was unreadable.

The grand hall was eerily quiet. And the ODD leader was all that remained of his group.

Matthew stared at his slaughtered squad in dismay, his chest heaving with fury. "You...!" he growled at Scar. "What have you done?!"

Scar chuckled darkly. "As you can see… I just killed all your friends," he whispered coldly.

Matthew clenched his fists so hard his fingernails dug into his palm. Then he reached up and unlatched his heavy tactical armor. He let the chest plate fall, ripping off his undershirt to reveal a muscular, almost superhuman physique that mirrored Scar's exact same unnatural build.

Scar raised an eyebrow, instantly recognizing the nature of the man's muscular body. He let out a small laugh. "You used a durability serum, didn't you?" he accused flatly, motioning to his upper body. "It's the only way an ordinary human like you can achieve this kind of physique."

Matthew was stunned for a moment, his eyes widening in shock. The kid actually was right. But how did he know?

Scar noticed Matthew's expression and smiled. "So, I am right. You did use it," he chuckled. "That's funny. You don't strike me as the type to use magic boosts."

Matthew didn't deny it. "We are the future," he spat, dropping into a heavy brawler's stance. "The Durability Serum is true human evolution. It is absolute power, without the impurity of magic involved!"

Scar laughed, a dark, mocking smirk crossing his face. "Dude, what are you talking about?" He scoffed. "What do you think is used in synthesizing the serum?"

Matthew raised a brow, clearly not aware of the answer.

"It's mana cores, you moron," Scar said calmly. "How could you not know? So all these while, you've been preaching about how magic is impure, yet you have a product of mana coursing through your veins." He scoffed. "You're just an hypocrite."

"Shut up, you deviant! You'll pay for what you've done!" Matthew roared and charged. He was incredibly fast and agile, launching a devastating right hook aimed at Scar's temple.

Scar activated Accelerated Perception and slipped beneath the punch with ease, analyzing the leader's overextended posture. They might have shared equal durability, but Scar had the overwhelming advantage in raw speed and agility. He stepped inside Matthew's guard and delivered a precise strike to the man's throat.

Matthew staggered backward, clutching his neck as he struggled to breathe.

Scar didn't give him time to recover. He raised his pistol and fired two shots in rapid succession.

Bang. Bang.

Both plasma bolts blew out the Matthew's kneecaps. The leader collapsed to the marble floor with a muffled, agonizing gurgle. Scar stepped forward, his eyes devoid of emotion. He grabbed the leader by the back of his head, forcing his face upward.

Matthew looked at Scar's face, and for the first time since he came into the museum, he was afraid. He knew he was going to die. So, he simply closed his eyes and resigned himself to his impending death at Scar's hands, whispering his final words: "Dawn will come."

Scar stared down at him with a cold, merciless expression. "Sure, whatever you say." He whispered back.

Then, he began to punch at full speed.

WHAM. WHAM. WHAM. WHAM. WHAM.

Each blow landed with devastating precision, striking the man's face with speed and force that no ordinary human could withstand. Within seconds, the leader's face was a bloody, disfigured mess. His skull had caved in completely.

He was dead.

Scar released the body, letting it fall to the floor. He looked down at the corpse, showing no ounce of remorse. He didn't feel happy, nor did he feel sad. To him, Matthew was just one of the first of many to come.

Xavier stared at Scar in disbelief. He was in shock. And not just because Scar had fought through a mana-suppression field like it was nothing, but because the boy killed with a cold, unhinged efficiency that proved he had done this countless times before.

When Scar first killed the man that tried to end his life, he didn't mind because that was just one person. He figured Scar did it to send a message and make the others fear him. He figured Scar would simply disarm and render the rest unconscious or something.

But Scar didn't.

He never had any intention of sparing a single one of the agents.

He killed them all.

Scar turned toward him, his dark expression starting to fade. "Are you okay?" he asked.

Xavier forced himself to his feet, his body still trembling from the beam's effects. "Yeah. I'm fine," he said. "The effect of the beam is starting to wear off. I should be back to full strength in a few minutes."

"Good," Scar nodded.

Just then, a sound echoed from the far end of the hall—the sound of a display case shattering. Scar's eyes snapped toward the source. It was agent Kael… the man Matthew had sent to retrieve a certain artifact earlier. He was emerging from behind the exhibit, clutching a large, ornate conch shell against his chest.

He saw the bodies of his comrade scattered across the floor, his eyes widening in shock.

Scar didn't even let the agent process the scene. He moved towards him with an intent to kill.

But Kael had already anticipated the attack. He bolted from the hall, sprinting toward the exit with the shell clutched against his chest. Scar chased after him, accelerating forward.

Kael was considerably fast for an ordinary human, and for a moment, the two of them moved at comparable speeds.

But Scar was faster.

He blurred forward, closing the distance in seconds. Kael saw him coming and threw the shell high into the air, hoping to distract Scar and buy himself a moment. But Scar didn't chase the shell. He tackled Kael instead, driving him into the wall with brutal force.

The shell clattered to the floor, rolling to a stop against a display case.

Scar pressed his forearm against Kael's throat, pinning him to the wall. "You're not getting away," he whispered coldly.

Kael's eyes widened in terror, seeing the empty void in Scar's eyes. "Please…" he pleaded. "Don't kill me, man. I'm just following orders."

"Yeah, orders of a cult." Scar scoffed. Then his expression darkened in something very terrifying. "I hate cults."

Without hesitation, he drove his fist into Kael's chest, crushing his ribcage and heart simultaneously. The man went limp instantly, his body sliding down the wall and collapsing to the floor.

Then, a system notification screen flashed in his vision.

[You have defeated Six (6) Humans]

[+600 Exp]

[Exp: 2510/2400]

[Congratulations! You have Leveled Up!]

[Level 7 >> Level 8]