"Ever dropped straight into the heart of a battlefield from the sky?"
"I pulled something like that off when I took on those Fallen Celestials."
"Feel like doing it again?"
Evan's laughter rang out as Arthur's second question reached him.
"We're already in freefall!!!"
He shouted at the top of his voice, the wind screaming in their ears as they plummeted from thousands of meters above.
"How far off did you drop us?"
Evan asked, his voice cutting through the rush of air.
"About a quarter of the way to the atmosphere. Why?"
Arthur's casual response made Evan's eyes widen in disbelief.
"How many thousands of meters are we freefalling?!"
"No idea! I didn't bother to calculate it!"
Arthur replied with a laugh, spinning mid-air before spreading his arms wide like a plane. Seeing this, Evan groaned, shaking his head as he facepalmed.
"You're unbelievable."
Arthur's laughter only grew louder in response. But as the ground grew close enough to enter his spatial perception, he turned his focus there and spoke.
"They're fighting near the sea, so it looks like you'll actually get to sink some islands. Take your pick. As for me, I'm turning myself into a meteor."
Evan nodded, his expression slowly shifting to seriousness as he responded.
"You do you…I'm going on my own."
The clouds tore past them, and the distant sounds of battle began to mix with the wind's roar.
Evan spread his wings, angling himself toward a modest island a short distance from the mainland. Arthur, meanwhile, redirected his descent to the mainland, wrapping himself in Gravity law energy.
With his Farsight skill, Evan zoomed in on the ground below, teleporting repeatedly with Blink to cut down the distance while maintaining his momentum.
As he drew closer, the scene on the ground grew clearer: an island bristling with Olrerth soldiers scrambling to board ships, preparing to reinforce their comrades on the mainland.
Not a single demon in sight.
'If that's the case, there's no problem…'
Evan mused, extending his hand and summoning his sword. The blade flared into a laser-like beam of pure energy as he finished his thought aloud.
"…if I nuke everyone."
His eyes gleamed as his magic surged, flowing into his blade, which shimmered with an intensifying prismatic glow.
"Mesarthim."
The island grew larger beneath him as he descended at dizzying speed, the ground racing up to meet him. Unfazed, Evan pulled his sword back, preparing for a decisive strike.
"Prismatic Vortex."
With a thrust of his blade, a spiralling mass of prismatic flames erupted from its tip, hurtling toward the island below. The flames, radiant and volatile, whirled into a vortex that grew fiercer with every second of descent.
On the ground, soldiers and mercenaries felt the overwhelming surge of energy and instinctively looked skyward.
Their eyes widened in horror as the heavens above them blazed with Evan's magic. Panic set in as they scrambled to retaliate, unleashing spells and projectiles in a desperate bid to halt the incoming devastation.
Their efforts were futile.
The vortex, infused with destructive energy, tore through their attacks, overwhelming and annihilating them. The prismatic flames consumed everything in their path, their radiant heat incinerating some attackers mid-air, their screams drowned out by the vortex's deafening roar.
Even the Level 700s who could use water magic tried every spell they knew but found their spells useless. Every drop of water they conjured evaporated instantly, unable to withstand the searing heat.
When the vortex finally struck the ground, the resulting impact unleashed a cataclysmic explosion that reverberated across the island.
***KA-BOOOOM!!!!!
Shockwaves rippled outward, distorting space and shattering the earth. The prismatic flames erupted into a fiery maelstrom, consuming everything within reach.
Soldiers vanished in an instant, their bodies reduced to ash as the flames gouged deep into the earth, burning through layers of rock and soil.
**RUMBLE!! **CRAAAAAACK!!!
The ground splintered and heaved, the tectonic plates beneath the island cracking under the immense force.
At the heart of the destruction, the prismatic flames carved a massive crater, reducing the centre of the island to molten ruin.
Ocean water surged in from below but evaporated on contact, leaving behind a steaming, molten chasm where the island's heart had once been.
"Oof…I think I destroyed about a third with that. And I only used half my magic power and a little bit of destruction energy."
Still in his base state without BoD or Limit Break active, Evan watched as the island fractured into two unequal halves, cracking and crumbling under the strain.
The soldiers on the remaining landmass scattered in terror, their screams of fear and despair ringing out. Some tried to flee, but the ground beneath them continued to break apart, swallowing their desperate escape attempts.
Evan's magic, which had seeped deep into the island's core, erupted in a final, devastating blast.
***BOOOOOM!!!
The explosion obliterated the island completely, reducing the fractured halves to little more than dust and vapour.
The few survivors—Level 700s with durability capable of withstanding such devastation—were left severely injured.
Their battered bodies plummeted into the boiling ocean below, where the superheated water scalded their flesh. Some succumbed to unconsciousness, sinking into the depths of the molten sea, their fates sealed in the churning grave Evan had created.
"Damn…I'm stronger than I thought."
Evan muttered this while glancing at the destruction he'd caused. Then, with a smirk, he shrugged.
"Oh well, considering my stat boosts and bonuses, it's not surprising."
He opened his Stat Boost tab briefly before turning his gaze toward the next island on the horizon.
"Arthur did say one or two, didn't he?"
The sounds of Level Ups chimed in his ears as Evan spread his wings and surged toward the nearest island, his speed leaving a shimmering trail of light in the sky.
◇ ◇ ◇
The islands of the archipelago, spread out across the ocean, stood as silent witnesses to the destruction of the first island.
Its sudden obliteration had sent shockwaves through the region, leaving the inhabitants of the remaining islands on high alert.
To them, it had been some kind of weapon—perhaps a terrifying new tool of destruction deployed by the demons.
Yet, their assumptions meant little in the face of Evan's speed. By the time they heard the roar of his movements, he was already upon the next island, his sword raised high.
The Unforged Vale trembled with power as Evan infused it with his magic power, whilst wrapping the energy of the law of destruction around its edge.
Evan couldn't deny the intoxicating sensation he felt as he used destruction law energy. It was a heady rush that coursed through his energy circuits and flooded his senses.
It felt like a dangerous drug, addictive and all-consuming.
'Is this how alcohol addicts feel?'
Evan mused silently, letting the thought flit across his mind. He began to understand why those who wielded the energy of destruction often gained a reputation for being unhinged.
If this overwhelming power was what they felt every time they used it, it was no wonder they behaved so chaotically.
Perhaps, the sensation was even worse for Evan given the fact that he possessed BoD which gave him a Destructive Energy Circuit.
Those thoughts passed in a fraction of a second as Evan twisted mid-air and swung his blade downward.
The air around him crackled with violent energy as he activated World Sunder, unleashing a devastating slash of destructive power that roared toward the island below.
The energy ripped through the sky, flames and destruction surging forward in a wild, unstoppable arc.
The island beneath him, much larger than the first, trembled under the oncoming assault.
But just as the attack was about to strike, a sudden surge of energy interrupted it.
A figure shot out of the island, hurtling upward to meet Evan in mid-air. Their presence was marked by a burst of frost and water magic, the shimmering energy of the universal laws of ice and water converging into a powerful counterforce.
Evan's destructive flames collided with their icy blast, and the clash unleashed a violent explosion.
The two forces cancelled each other out in a blinding burst of light and sound, sending shockwaves rippling outward.
The sheer force of the impact threw Evan backwards, blasting him toward the ground. He spiralled through the air, but quickly opened his wings and used them like parachutes to catch the wind and slow his descent.
He spun around mid-air, twisting his body, before landing in a perfect superhero pose on the scorched ground.
'Nailed it!'
Rising to his feet, Evan's gaze locked onto the figure hovering above him. His lips behind his mask curled into a grin as he muttered.
"Oh, someone interesting came out."
The figure descended slowly, their cold aura releasing an azure-hued mist that swirled around them, chilling the air.
In response, Evan exhaled softly, a steamy vapour escaping his lips that pushed back against the freezing mist, the two energies mingling in a battle of temperature.
Through the veil of mist, Evan scrutinized the man standing before him.
He was dressed in a military uniform marked with elaborate insignias. His short-cropped dark hair framed a face set in a deep frown, with piercing blue eyes that glowed faintly with ice law energy.
'Is he like Arthur? His affinity is so strong that his body parts are constantly infused with it?'
Evan questioned internally as he studied the man. The man, in turn, scrutinized Evan just as closely.
'A boy…No, he's a dragonkin. Maybe even a full dragon playing with polymorph for amusement. He might look young, but he could easily be decades old.'
Glancing at the mushroom cloud of smoke and fire rising from the neighbouring island behind Evan, the man continued his observation.
'What's more, his power is the real deal. I used my Unique Skill to counter his attack, and even then, it was harder than I expected.'
The furrow etched into his brows deepened as he returned his gaze to Evan who casually walked towards him, twirling his strange sword around.
'A pure energy blade? No, it has physical mass as well…'
He expanded his perception, quickly scanning the island to check on his allies. Before engaging Evan, he had ordered them to continue boarding their ships bound for the mainland, despite their protests. His decision had been firm—he would stay behind and hold Evan off.
'Now, I have to actually buy them time…'
With that thought, the man broke the silence.
"…Masked Rogue Hero."
"Huh? It's spread this far already?"
Evan muttered, the words slipping from his lips as he came to a halt.
"Looks like that title's definitely gonna stick. Makes sense why Conroe called me that in the future."