Chapter 60: A Brutal Challenge

He was a young man dressed in a thick black hoodie and trousers, with only his face and hands exposed, and speaking of his face, he was far too handsome.

It certainly wasn’t helping the situation he was in, but something else about him caught everyone’s attention even more, namely the small smirk resting on his lips, just short of becoming a grin.

One thing was immediately obvious.

Unlike Edgar’s previous opponents, who had always shown at least some fear or caution when standing before him, this young man looked excited.

"Let the Challenge Begin!"

The instructor’s voice rang through the arena.

Edgar flexed his shoulder, causing the robe draped over him to slide down and fall onto the ground, before stepping forward and casually covering the five-meter distance between them.

"I have a challenge with Number 12 tomorrow morning. I’ll accept you backing off now."

He stopped two meters away from Declan, who could no longer keep his smirk contained, and as it widened into a grin, he raised his head and met Edgar’s gaze.

"Me back off? Hehehe."

The next moment, Declan moved.

VROOOOOOOM!

The air in front of Edgar seemed to explode as he blinked once, and when his eyes opened again, Declan’s leg was already sweeping toward his face.

Edgar instinctively raised his arm to protect his head, but the attack arrived with terrifying force.

BOOOOOM!

CRAAACK!

The heavy impact exploded through the arena, followed by the unmistakable sound of bones cracking as Declan, already airborne, drove his leg into Edgar’s guard, and the force of the swing tore a half-moon-shaped line through the air before sending the hulking fighter flying off his feet.

Edgar’s eyes widened in shock as his body was thrown backward.

The instant Declan landed back on the ground, another explosive force erupted beneath him.

BOOOOOOM!

The ground shook, and Declan was gone again.

DRAAAGGG!

Edgar’s foot slammed into the arena floor as he landed, scraping backward while he struggled to regain his balance, but he had barely steadied himself when he suddenly felt a breeze brush against his face.

So fas...

BOOOOOOM!

A punch crashed into the side of his ribs, blasting him toward the far end of the arena.

Before Edgar could reach the wall, Declan had already appeared there like a mirage, his legs covered in squirming green veins as he swung them forward with another devastating strike.

BOOOOOM!

Edgar was sent flying once more, his massive body tumbling across the ground five times before finally slamming into the wall.

Dust immediately erupted from the impact, obscuring the entire area and the howling arena fell completely silent.

Students who had been cheering only moments earlier jumped to their feet, staring at the scene in disbelief.

"What the fuck just happened!?"

It had all happened too fast, far too fast for most of them to properly follow.

One moment, they had been waiting for Declan to surrender, and the next, Edgar had been hurled across the arena before crashing into the wall.

Declan landed steadily on both feet and slowly turned around, his eyes fixed on the dust still hanging around the cracked wall, and as it gradually settled, a figure emerged from the impact site.

Declan watched in silence, the grin on his face never fading.

It was Edgar.

The young man slowly brought his hands up toward his ear, wiping at it before looking down at what covered his fingers.

Edgar froze, unable to believe what he was seeing.

Blood...His own blood.

The last kick had sliced across his ear, tearing through the side of it and leaving a long cut that extended toward his jaw.

"I... I got hurt."

Edgar murmured the words in disbelief before turning his gaze toward Declan.

"You still worried about the fight tomorrow?"

__________________

Declan’s teasing remark came out casually, and Edgar’s teeth ground together as veins bulged across his face.

He swung both hands backward, and in the next moment,

GRRRRRRRRRRRR!

A spine-chilling noise tore through the arena.

It was a rough, aggressive sound that immediately made Declan’s eyes glint as he noticed the change in Edgar.

The scars that ran from Edgar’s elbows down to his wrists suddenly split open, revealing chainsaws piercing out through the gaps and spinning at incredible speed.

BOOOOOOOM!

The ground shifted beneath Edgar’s feet as he suddenly burst forward with terrifying speed.

SLASSSSHHH!

The air was violently torn apart as the edge of the revolving chainsaw passed barely an inch from Declan’s nose.

He jumped backward.

BAAAAAANG!

The ground shattered as Edgar swung the chainsaw downward, brutally cleaving through the floor.

’What the hell!?’

"Scared now!?"

Edgar roared viciously as both arms swung wildly toward Declan, who took repeated steps backward, narrowly avoiding the vicious edges of the chainsaws as though his life depended on it.

And in a way, it did as if those things cut him, forget his flesh, even his bones would be ripped apart.

Once again, the students erupted into deafening cheers throughout the arena.

This was exactly what they loved about Edgar.

He possessed one of the most brutal Mech Modules among the students, with both arms fully equipped with incredibly fast-revolving chainsaw machines.

His previous fights had always been insanely brutal, often leaving his opponents’ severed body parts scattered across the ground.

And now, they were certain they were about to witness another bloody spectacle.

_________

"RUN! RUN ALL YOU WANT!"

GRRRRRRHHHHHHH!

BOOOOOOOOOOM!

A section of the arena wall was cleaved apart as the chainsaws tore across its surface.

Declan jumped backward, landing several meters away as Edgar slowly turned his head toward him.

The crazily spinning chainsaw machines on both of his arms were beginning to glow with a crimson light.

"YOU WILL BE CLEAVED TO PIECES VERY SOON!"

Edgar roared, his eyes turning completely white.

He flashed forward, moving even faster than before, and jumping high into the air, swung both chainsaws down upon Declan, who hurriedly retreated.

BAAAAAANG!

The ground was sliced apart like butter in an instant.

Edgar surged forward with even greater speed, swinging one chainsaw toward Declan’s neck.

Declan stepped backward, avoiding the machine’s edge, only for the second chainsaw to immediately slash toward his waist.

He jumped off the ground, spinning through the narrow space between both chainsaws before landing safely.

He tried to create some distance between them, but then,

BOOOOOM!

The ground shattered as Edgar cleaved his chainsaw through it, sending a wave of sand flying directly into Declan’s face.

’What the—!?’

One of his eyes was immediately blinded by the sand.

GRRHHHSSS!

GRHRHRHS!

Edgar recklessly slashed forward, aiming directly at Declan as he repeatedly backed away, narrowly avoiding each spinning chainsaw.

But it was as though Edgar had completely lost his mind.

His laughter grew louder and more sinister as the chainsaws screamed through the air, their crimson glow intensifying until they appeared red-hot, while their already terrifying speed continued to increase.

RIIIIIIIP!

RIIIIIIIP!

Declan dodged two chainsaws slicing toward his neck, but blood suddenly sprayed through the air when the spinning edge clipped his arm.

"DIIIIIIIEEEEEEE!"

Edgar roared as both chainsaws stabbed toward Declan’s stomach.

Declan crossed his arms, catching one of the vicious chainsaws between his hands, but Edgar’s grin immediately widened as he twisted his wrist.

The chainsaw tore through flesh and bone.

Declan immediately drove his knee forward, slamming it into Edgar’s hand and forcing the chainsaws upward.

His leg followed through, smashing into Edgar’s side and sending him stumbling backward several steps.

It finally gave Declan enough space to wipe the sand from his eyes, but when his vision cleared, all he saw was blood raining down across his face.

He lowered his gaze toward his hands.

They had been brutally sliced open, exposing the bloody bones beneath them where chunks of flesh had been cleaved away.

"What madness is this?"

Declan muttered as he turned his gaze toward Edgar, whose chainsaws were now dripping with his own blood.

This was supposed to be a challenge for points.

Yet those chainsaws had repeatedly gone for his neck, making it painfully obvious that Edgar was trying to kill him.

Declan slowly raised his gaze toward the audience, noticing the students still roaring for Edgar, screaming for more carnage.

He then looked toward the instructors and noticed that none of them had moved an inch from their seats.

Instead, one of them wore a faint smirk when they noticed Declan looking in their direction.

"You think they’ll stop the fight!?"

Edgar’s voice pulled his attention back.

One of his eyes had regained its black iris, while the other remained completely white, as though it had rolled toward the back of his head.

"You’re naive!"

Edgar stretched both chainsaws toward him.

"This arena has already sent three souls to Hell this week, and the same instructors you see watched it happen with smirks on their faces while the other students roared for more!"

Declan couldn’t believe what he was hearing.

Students had died in these challenges?

Then what was the point of having instructors act as judges? Wasn’t their purpose to prevent casualties?

Yet, as he looked at the frantic students and the silent instructors, even while blood continued spurting from his wounded arm, Declan finally understood the brutal truth.

"So, that’s how it is, huh?"

He muttered to himself, and ind in the next moment—

BOOOOM!

BOOOOM!

BOOOOM!

The ground shook violently as Edgar charged forward, jumping high into the air just a meter away from Declan as both chainsaws cleaved downward with reckless abandon.

"Surrender or die!"

HUUUUUUM!

A ripple of energy surged through Declan’s body as something deep within his chest suddenly hummed to life.

BOOOOOOOOM!