Chapter 52 - Dangerous Wolf Den

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Lucian remained in his position, with one hand braced on the ground as he read the astonishing news. Truth be told, this elated him as it was the first true experience with his new abilities.

〈Alert: Possible «Duplication» target located. Target: «Recovery» D Rank. Assessing chances of success. Prerequisite analysis of the ability concluded. Required understanding obtained.〉

〈Alert: Probability: 100%. Do you wish to duplicate this ability? [Y/N]?〉

The message flashed before Lucian's eyes repeatedly as he took in the events of the battlefield. If he relied upon Quinn as their sole means of healing, then there was a chance that they would fail. After all, a large portion of the prior failures resulted from horrid timing.

Thus, Lucian made the only acceptable choice.

"I accept," Lucian muttered. Immediately after, there were countless digitals lines flowing in his eyes and they darted around aimlessly. The frantic eye movement was similar to REM sleep or a seizure, however, Lucian's body was completely still.

Even the incoming wolves didn't rouse his reaction. As a result, a vicious glint circulated in their eyes. A large amount of Mana gathered within their claws in preparation to attack.

Without a second thought, they pounced.

Ahri's eyes widened upon noticing this scene, "Lucian!"

This was the first time she saw him freeze up. At first, she thought fear overcame him, but then she noticed this body movement. Or rather, the lack thereof. In cases of terror, the victim would usually tremble uncontrollably. Since this sign was absent from Lucian's display, Ahri couldn't understand the reason for his actions.

Fortunately, Lucian didn't linger in this state for too long.

Right before the wolves landed their attacks, Lucian made a sudden movement and launched his right fist towards the jaw of one of the wolves. Simultaneously, he also angled his body so that the claws would only scratch a minimal surface.

Before the wolves could retaliate properly, Lucian flipped over and delivered a sharp kick to the target of his earlier punch. As a result, the wolf's jaw shattered and became unhinged.

Pained yelps sounded, inciting the other wolves in the area to respond coldly. Rather than focusing on the others, Lucian drew all of their attention with this one action. Compared to the others, Lucian's attacks were far more brutal.

Aeran's strikes were clean and dealt with the targets efficiently after disorienting them with his vibrational ability. Although it was less effective on these wolves than the others, it still helped immensely. Especially in the event of dealing with 2 or more wolves simultaneously.

Finally, Quinn glanced over to Adonis and paled as he saw the gruesome wounds on his shoulders and thigh. This sight caused a flashback, which subsequently made him freeze up. He was of no service in this state, despite Ahri's attempts to gain his attention.

"Lucian! Quinn is unresponsive," Ahri exclaimed. Her arm glimmered with a soft yellow light, indicating the ensuing use of her ability.

Lucian immediately noticed this and shook his head, "Don't!"

Instead of Quinn, Lucian raised his arm in Adonis' direction with a focused expression. His internal Mana changed before adopting the needed healing properties. Afterward, a pleasant aura encased Adonis and healed him at a visible rate.

Compared to Quinn's heals on prior runs, Lucian's was much more efficient despite being the same ability. As Quinn said before, he compromised most of his Mana flow when he entered this fragile state, resulting in an inadequate effect.

Meanwhile, Adonis' eyes widened when he felt the refreshing sensation of Lucian's healing. "W-what the hell? You can heal too? Damn, just what can't you do!?"

"That's beside the point. We're wasting time, so we need to hurry this along. Based on my estimations, this den is at least 2km deep. It'll take some time before we reach the expected boss. We can't afford to dawdle now," Lucian responded.

"Understood," Adonis nodded before instantly wreathing his feet with swirls of air. As he focused, the air underneath slowly morphed into the shape of a spring. Since he was used to high-speed combat, it only made sense to hasten it even further.

Whoosh!

With the assistance of his ability, Adonis rushed forth and nearly broke the sound barrier. However, with his Dexterity being higher than a D Ranked Awakened, he manipulated his body to properly channel most of the kinetic energy summoned by his movements.

Lucian, on the other hand, focused on employing his crude method of flooding his muscles with Mana. Since he didn't possess the ability to warp his external conditions, he had to rely on Amplification to maximize his vessel.

His muscle swelled as a result of the Mana influx.

Lucian then rushed forth without a second thought, "Sylvia, use your ability, please. Just not at maximum output, okay?"

"Okay," Sylvia responded.

With only 20-odd wolves left in the area, Lucian couldn't justify sacrificing so much of her Mana. Thus, Sylvia employed her ability to restrict their movements marginally. This would limit the time spent traveling between foes.

While rushing towards the wolves, Lucian's hand flickered with minor explosions. The torrent of Mana activated the Meteorite Knuckle's ability at its highest capacity. Hence, some of the explosions surged from within.

Boom!

Before even reaching the wolves, Lucian threw a frightening punching. Once again, the effects were similar to an air cannon, and the force imposed on the atmosphere caused a condensed block of air supercharged with Mana to hurtle towards the center of the wolves.

Because Sylvia stood towards the area's center, most of them were pulled without means to resist.

And, as one would expect. The attack caused quite a few wolves to explode into a mess of shattered bones and pulverized flush. Without sparing them another glance, Lucian rushed forward before dealing with the other wolves.

〈Alert: You have killed an Infernal Dire Wolf (D Rank). [Reward: 1.0 Enhancement Point]〉

〈Alert: You have killed an Infernal Dire Wolf (D Rank). [Reward: 1.0 Enhancement Point]〉

The message appeared within Lucian's retina many times, but it wasn't of importance right now. With just a few opponents left, their eradication took precedence.

With shoddy rhythm, Lucian and the others killed the last of the wolves 20 seconds later.

Once done, Lucian immediately walked towards Quinn and gave him a glare capable of chilling even the most hardened criminal's bones, "Quinn!"

"Agggggh!" Quinn screamed hysterically before covering his ears. The only thing the team could do was frown when they saw this performance. While they understand that death wasn't easy to cope with, being this fragile wasn't ideal for a Guardian.

After all, they were beings surrounded by death without end. In fact, death was their quickest way to grow. At some point, it was recommended to just become inured to it.

Nevertheless, Lucian couldn't accept this state of mind.

He grabbed Quinn's collar and jostled him, "Get ahold of yourself. Think! What do you aim for in this life? To remain a coward who accomplishes nothing, or to become someone capable of supporting those who depend on him?"

"I... I don't know," Quinn muttered in a powerless tone. Tears fell from his eyes as if he was conflicted about something. "I am never enough…"

"You can be," Lucian responded. From prior experiences, Lucian learned that consoling someone never really helped the issue. The best route was to determine a surefire way of instilling them with resolve.

"No. You don't understand. You haven't watched your mother die to Outlaws!" Quinn screamed frantically.

The moment Lucian heard Outlaw, he remembered a certain section of society. One that the Federation or Republic failed to regulate. In this district, all types of crimes took shelter. However, Outlaws were something much worse than a typical criminal.

They are Awakeneds who used their powers for nefarious deeds. They couldn't care less about the Fractured Monolith or the state of the world.

Their only goal is to use their powers for personal gain, even if that meant others had to sacrifice in the process.

Meanwhile, Lucian finally understood why Quinn felt so powerless. He possessed a share of personal deep-rooted trauma.

"I can assist you. If it is vengeance you seek, then grow strong. Gain allies who align with your views and annihilate your enemies with your own hands. But, to do that, you'll require genuine power; power that starts with this dangerous wolf den!"

Listening to Lucian's words, Quinn's fist eventually clenched.

"O-okay! You will help me?" Quinn asked before lifting his head to look into Lucian's crimson eyes. They swirled with an enrapturing light while Lucian pondered an answer. Eventually, he found his answer.

"But first, I need you to help us clear this place. This will be our first step."

Before responding, Quinn exhaled. Difficult as it may be, Quinn tried to expel his negative thoughts. Almost as if a blockage was cleared, a vibrant stream of Mana flowed from his hands!