Quick Conclusion

The world around him became unfocused as he concentrated on the scent he was following. Alban tried his utmost not to wreck up the town as he did so, to which he was met with general success. Dashing to his prey as quick as possible was the number two concern to be honest. If he screws up the town, who's he going to farm quests off of?

His hunger gnawed at his patience quite a bit though. He noticed that every time he fought since he became a monster, he felt absolutely ravenous. Alban wondered if he could put up with this if it got even worse...he hoped that the next time he evolved it would at least be a little more under control?

Suddenly, the pain in his stomach numbed as his senses became even sharper. It seemed that full powder or whatever was finally kicking in, allowing him to focus more on his surroundings instead of just blindly rushing towards the target.

Scanning the terrain, he quickly spotted a smashed in wall that he otherwise would've missed. Alban made a sharp veer towards it and finally arrived where the scent was coming from.

The place was backed up against the city's wall, the likes of which couldn't be easily smashed by the average inhabitant of the Lower District. Whether that applied to him, he didn't know, but the place was open enough to not *have* to test it.

The man wasn't even wearing a mask, his red skin and purple hair were easily identifiable in a crowd. But what drew Alban's attention wasn't the man nor his roguish attire. His gaze was fixed on the tattoo on his hand.

It had a similar vibe to his, to the point where he question if the man was a Pralet or whatever he was. Besides, he didn't have the luxury to ask. Snowman could catch up at any time and ruin his hunt, and he couldn't allow that!

"Easy there, I don't know why you're following me but I've never seen you before. Better back off while I'm acting nice." The man had an anxious expression on his face, though his body language seemed confident to Alban. He could understand why, to be fair.

The guy seemed about as strong as that giant monstrous mutant he fought back at Lat's village. Though Alban had the upper hand at that time because of how emaciated and inexperienced the mutant was, he had a feeling that this man would be a lot tougher.

'But I've gotten stronger too, right? He doesn't seem unmanageable...'

Alban decided to make a cautious approach, not using all of his skills or drawing close until he was forced to. As he sent the command to the nexus of his soul fire responded, embracing his hand and shaping into a ball.

"I warned you, ungrateful guy." A cool breeze graced the area as the man swung his hands, his hair flowing while his eyes glowed. The wind seemed to somewhat push Alban's aura away, making the passive fear effect not very potent. The man's awkward expression instantly faded, replaced by a cocky smile.

Alban frowned, not really used to someone being able to dispel his effects based on rank alone. Even that commander was afraid... 'Oh. Dispelling should exist here, right?' He found the answer quite quickly and adjusted his approach.

The fire faded and an earthen spike appeared in it's place. Alban sprinted towards the man with the stake gripped tight in his hand, his breath smoothly syncing with his movements. His opponent did not stand idle either, as the winds blew across the savage hunter's face, further invigorating the red demon like monster.

As wind buffeted his face, he realized that his mad dash slowed. Thinking fast, Alban ducked under into a roll as the terrain moved underneath his frame, propelling him towards the target. Clenching his toes on the ground, the Pralet leapt up into the air as far as his strength could carry him.

"Wir!" All of a sudden, the wind rushed towards the man and coagulated above his head, blocking Alban's ascent further. Two more orbs of wind shot towards his abdomen, carrying a chill with it. The shot hit him square in the stomach before he could react as blood that was half red and half black fell down onto the monster's face.

As he saw the hostile young man blown away easily by his attack, the monster smiled and sent three more wir spells right at him. Licking the blood off of his face, he smirked at a job well done. All he had to do was turn around and-

Burning. Suddenly his throat burst into flames as he spat hot fire out of his mouth, the heat rushing to his brain. This wasn't enough to kill him at all, it was far too weak for that. Still, it hurt so much that the man started screaming as he vomited ashes, all the while shooting out wind spells wantonly.

"Wir! Wirstrit! Wirazt! Grand Wir!" All of these spells exhausted most of the man's mana pool, causing him to slump down as he used the last of it to smother the fire on and in him. Such a cheap trick wouldn't work on him again, and this time he'll make sure that young man stays dead! That was the frustrated man's only wish at this moment.

Rays of wind, balls of wind, and a full-on person shaped wind enveloped his body, but Alban held on. He had similarly used his mana to defend himself, but the attack left him with only 50% left! His blood pulsed weakly compared to the vitality he was used to, but in turn it circulated even faster. Stuck between a rock and a hard place, Alban made a quick decision.

Still in midair, he focused all of the mana remaining in his body towards his opponent. As the liveliness of his cells decreased, even more energy than he had to spare was drawn fiercely by his body. If it was Art Gallery, the skill that consumed 50 to 90 percent of what he had, wouldn't it be enough to at least screw with the guy?

The good amount of energy did not escape the man's notice, and as he looked up to block that his gaze shifted. He was looking at a painting of him, and the painting slowly moved?

Captured on the canvas was the moment of him voicing out a myriad of wind spells, the same ones he used earlier. The paint spilled out of the canvas and blotted out the man's sight, and in the second he took to clear his gaze again he saw all of his spells flying towards him.

Desperately holding up his hands and focusing the rest of the mana left in his core, he screamed. "Shield!" A blue sphere thinly enveloped his form, deflecting only the small balls of wind. The rest pelted against his form, relegating him to a writing mass of flesh instead of a dignified monster. The man gritted his teeth and bore it.

That gave enough time for Alban to fall to the ground, the terra firma beneath his back slightly cracking due to the impact. The residual energy traveled up his spine, greatly injuring him, but Alban stood up all the same. Spitting out blood, he shambled toward the clearly stronger monster while his cells got to work, trying their hardest to restore his flesh.

The two monsters were in disrepair, and after the wind spells faded the roguish demon stared similarly at the monster who hunted him and hurt him to this extent. His pride was wounded, and the only way to repair it would be to kill that upstart as soon as possible!

The two jumped towards each other to engage in a slugfest, fists clenched tightly and legs holding firm. A right grazed Alban's cheek, while he slammed both of his fists into the monster's own stomach.

The left sought for Alban's forehead, while the monster in question flung up his leftmost bunch of fives to receive it. Though he couldn't evade the kick that smashed against his ribs, he quickly used his rightmost hand to grab the leg, fixing it in place.

"How is a mere tier 2 or 3 this strong, huh? I am blessed by the Mark Of The Abyss!" His leg held firm, the man punched wildly at Alban while trying to use whatever he could to escape the situation. Of course, Alban didn't bite, and responded in kind.

The imprint of the monster's fist dotted Alban's body, while Alban's fist was imbedded deep into the monster's eyes. Bashing the same spot repeatedly, the man eventually slumps to the ground as a loud thump rocked the air.

His tattoos glowed as the man's fist glowed in kind, and hunger ate at his senses once again. Alban's mouth watered as he brought the hand to his maw, getting ready to enjoy his meal.

"Wait! Alban! Don't eat him, we need evidence from-"

And he bit down before Snowman could finish, ripping the arm off and biting at the glowing tattoo. Red haze emerged from his own patterns once again as his body became enveloped by it, while his rightmost hand stretched towards the collapsed man. His fingers were teeth, and the yawning black hole on his hand seemed to become even deeper as he stretched his appendage towards the man's face.

"I'm not getting that back, huh." She observed the whole body disappear into the hole as the red haze subsided. She didn't know whether to laugh or cry, considering that she could've completed her mission right here.

"Wait, my mission...? I did not get a job yet, so all I have to do is report his death. I'll...leave out the details. I should not trouble the new recruits..."

'If it is not a lie, it is okay, right?'