"Ack!" Max groaned as a claw grazed across his cheek, drawing a thin line of blood. He was sent skidding a few inches backward by a powerful punch from the demon vessel. His boots dug into the ground as he struggled to regain his footing.
"Kek!" the vessel cackled as it bolted forward with terrifying speed, its obsidian claws glinting.
It hurled a punch straight for Max’s face, but before it could connect, Damian had already moved. Pivoting sharply on one foot, he slipped past the blow. The air cracked loudly as the missed strike echoed through the street.
In a blur, Max appeared behind the vessel and slammed his palm against its back with all his strength. The impact drove the creature forward, its heels carving trenches into the earth as it skidded across the ground.
"Is that all you’ve got? For real?" the vessel taunted, licking its dark claws with a glint in its eye.
"I’m just getting started," Max grinned, his breath ragged but his will unbroken. In a flash, he dashed forward and leapt high into the air.
The vessel attempted to slice him mid-flight, swinging its claws upward. But Max landed on its arm, used the momentum to spring off, twisted in the air, and delivered a powerful roundhouse kick to its jaw.
The strike lifted the vessel clean off its feet, sending it crashing into the distance.
Damian landed with a heavy thud, wincing from the strain of his battered body. His chest rose and fell with shallow breaths, but he forced himself onward, dashing at the vessel as it tried to push itself off the ground.
Max launched himself high again, attempting to crash down upon the staggering foe. But the gang leader rolled at the last second, and Max instead slammed into the earth. The impact split the ground apart, cracks webbing out from where he landed.
"Peek-a-boo!" the vessel cackled as it swung its clawed fist at Max’s head.
Anticipating the attack, Max jerked his head to the side, narrowly avoiding the blow. His arm shot up, blocking the vessel’s hand. With gritted teeth, he countered with a sharp punch into the creature’s gut.
But unlike what he expected, the vessel didn’t flinch. It stood there smirking wickedly, absorbing the blow without so much as a grunt. Then, without warning, it leaned forward, ramming its horned head toward Max’s face.
Max’s eyes widened in horror. He tried to dodge, twisting his neck as far as he could, but it wasn’t enough.
The horn struck, tearing a line across his face. Blood gushed hot and fast, dripping down his chin.
"Shit!" Max hissed through clenched teeth, his face twisting in both agony and fury. His blood boiled with wrath as he roared and slammed his own head forward.
His skull collided with the vessel’s nose, crunching bone and forcing the creature back. The demon vessel staggered, its vision briefly disoriented.
"Ack!" Max coughed, specks of blood staining the ground as he dropped to his knees. His chest heaved, every breath a struggle, while he fixed his gaze on the staggering gang leader.
’How do I defeat something ? I’ve never faced an enemy of this level. Just from this short exchange, I know it’s far stronger than me.
I shouldn’t even be standing. So how the hell am I still avoiding its lethal strikes? My body... my reflexes... it feels like my stats are boosted somehow.
Wait... yes! That’s it. I completed a few quests earlier that rewarded me with extra stats, didn’t I?’
Max quickly pulled up his system, his trembling fingers swiping through the glowing interface until his status tab opened before his eyes.
{Race: Draconic Vessel}
{HP: 100/100} {MP: 100/100}
{INT: 34} {Partners: 2}
’That’s right! I got a +4 STR stat from defeating Carl and his men a while back. Coupled with those XP from defeating them, I leveled up twice, and I think I got a +1 because of it. That makes my agility and strength on par with each other. No wonder I feel slightly stro...’
The demon vessel exploded from where it stood and blitzed towards Max, who scrambled to his feet just in time as a claw strike came hurtling at his face.
"I never told you that I need a tribal mark, did I?" Max asked, leaping back to avoid the claw strike that sliced through the air with a whistling sound.
The moment his feet hit the ground, Damian dashed forward, completely focused, eyes fixed on the demon vessel before him.
As he reached the vessel, he sent an uppercut flying, aiming straight at its chin. But the gang leader reacted instantly, bringing his palms forward and blocking the punch with brutal precision.
Max didn’t relent. He pushed off the ground, twirled in mid-air, and slammed a solid knee strike into the vessel’s neck.
The sound echoed across the street the moment Max’s knee made contact, and the vessel staggered back in pain. Max landed gracefully, a grim grin spreading across his face despite the blood and dust surrounding him.
At the far end, where the civilians had gathered, jaws dropped as they witnessed the brutal exchange. Among them, the man who always educated the town’s people about events in the upper city had his eyes widened in sheer disbelief.
’Wait a freaking moment! Is that... is that what I think it is? That man is no hybrid, he is a freaking demon vessel. But how the fuck did he become that? Oh right! The syringe.’ His gaze darted to Max.
’And that kid... to go toe to toe with a demon vessel, you either have to be a hybrid, or he has to be the one. From what I know, only the kings, some of their right hands, a few hunters and some lucky gang members who are backed by a corporation are hybrids.
Which means... he is the one.’ The man moved his hand to his waist, pushing his long trench coat slightly aside to reveal the hilt of a sword glinting under the sunlight.
"Arghhhhh!" Max roared, pain slicing through him as the vessel’s claws dug deep into his shoulders, drawing blood in rivers.
"Just die!" the gang leader roared, swinging his foot and planting a devastating kick into Max’s abdomen, sending his body hurling through the air.