The grand hall was instantly thrown into chaos as two factions of mutants clashed in a ferocious battle.
Erik faced off against the ninja. The man with claws took on Darwin. The feral mutant fought the Havok. The siryn battled the wind-blade mutant. And Alex—he was up against the Windshifter.
Moira stayed close to Charles, guarding him just in case.
As for Charles and the opposing leader, Shaw—neither had made a move yet.
There was also the intangible mutant standing silently at Shaw's side.
But their situations couldn't have been more different—Charles was completely suppressed, his powers sealed off, unable to lift a finger to help. He could only watch, helpless and frustrated.
Shaw, on the other hand?
He had the upper hand and saw no need to act. He simply waited, confident and calm.
That was the fundamental difference between the two.
From the look of things, Charles' side was clearly at a disadvantage. Even though everyone had gone through intense training and grown significantly stronger, their opponents were all seasoned veterans—battle-hardened killers.
The moment the fight began, the gap became obvious.
Only Erik held his ground with poise. The others? They were overwhelmed, barely able to keep up, completely thrown off by the real fight. Training was one thing. Actual combat was another.
Alex wanted to help, but the Windshifter clung to him like a leech. She never gave him a moment's rest.
Whenever his guard dropped even a little, blades of wind would sweep in from all directions, trying to pierce him from blind spots.
And to make things worse, Alex's attacks didn't work on wind.
She couldn't hurt him, but god, was she annoying.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Just after forcing the Windshifter back with a strike, Alex was about to rush over and support his teammates—when a fierce gust came howling toward him again. A dagger silently rode the wind, aiming straight for him.
With a sudden burst of super-speed, Alex dodged the blade, then spun around and slashed at her.
But his blade cut straight through the wind.
The Windshifter's mocking voice echoed through the air. "Frustrated? Furious? Want to kill me? Too bad—you'll never lay a finger on me!"
But she didn't notice the subtle, almost imperceptible smirk curling at the corner of Alex's lips.
After all their exchanges, Alex had already seen through her rhythm.
Suddenly, Charles shouted in warning.
Across the battlefield, the feral mutant had braved a barrage of energy blasts from the Havok and leapt high into the air—wolf claws gleaming as he pounced toward his prey.
"I've got you now!" the feral mutant snarled with a wicked grin.
The Havok's eyes widened in panic. Cold sweat dripped down his forehead.
There was no time to dodge.
No time to counterattack.
But right then—Alex snapped his head toward them and fired two scorching heat beams from his eyes.
The feral mutant, just inches away from landing the finishing blow, was blasted sideways like he'd been hit by a sledgehammer. He crashed hard into a wall.
The Havok, dazed and shaken, looked at Alex with gratitude brimming in his eyes.
But in the very next moment, his expression changed drastically.
Seizing that brief window when Alex had turned his attention elsewhere, the Windshifter appeared right next to him.
Her dagger drove straight into Alex's back!
"Still distracted while fighting me?" she sneered, grinning smugly. "Clearly, you don't know the meaning of the word death."
Her smirk lasted less than a second before something felt... off.
Something about the strike didn't feel right.
She glanced down, and her expression instantly froze.
The blade had barely pierced Alex's skin. Just scratched the surface—nothing more.
It hadn't even gone in!
What?! Is this guy made of steel or something?!
Alex looked at her and chuckled. "If I hadn't shown a flaw, how would you have taken the bait?"
With that, his hand shot out and grabbed hers—the one holding the dagger.
The Windshifter's face turned pale.
"If I get a hold of you, you can't turn into wind, can you?" Alex said calmly, confident. "Otherwise, why would someone with such a broken ability stick to sneak attacks only?"
She thrashed wildly, trying to break free—but it was like being trapped under Mountain. No matter how she struggled, she couldn't escape his grip.
Her strength meant nothing in front of him.
A voice cried out in fury and panic.
It was the ninja fighting Erik. He caught sight of what was happening and immediately abandoned his opponent, charging toward Alex with his blade drawn.
The feral mutant, shaken but not out, also leapt up, bolting toward Alex in an attempt to save the Windshifter.
That only confirmed Alex's theory.
He wasn't going to give them the chance.
With a swift thrust, Alex drove the dagger into the Windshifter's heart.
The feral mutant hadn't even made it halfway before a blast of energy from the Havok intercepted him.
As for the ninja? Erik wasn't about to let him through.
Alex dropped the Windshifter's corpse to the ground without a second thought.
Then, he surged forward—moving nearly three times faster than a car on the freeway—closing the distance to the feral mutant in a blink.
He swung a punch straight at the mutant.
The power behind the blow tore through the air with a deafening whoosh, slamming toward its target with bone-crushing force.
Sensing the incoming danger, the feral mutant didn't dare hold back. He kicked off the ground, leaping at Alex.
The feral mutant was launched like a meteor, crashing into the ground again.
Only this time, he didn't get back up.
Lying there motionless, he didn't stir.
After taking a direct hit from Alex's heat vision, then a punch carrying over a hundred tons of force—it was simply too much.
The mutants on Shaw's side all fell silent.
Their eyes sharpened. Their hearts grew cold.
In just a few short moments, two of their own had fallen to this one man.
Alex turned, calmly walking toward the wind-blade mutant still locked in battle with the Siryn.
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