Chapter 31: Broken

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(Sunday, June 16, 2026 – 2:12 AM)

Petruccio eyes snapped upward, locking onto the Ranger, who was already repositioning across the rooftops. The archer had lost the high ground advantage the moment his allies fell, and now, without backup, he was as good as dead.

The Ranger knew it too. He abandoned patience, firing arrows in rapid succession, each one glowing with mana-infused lethality. Explosive tips, piercing projectiles, even scatter shots meant to cover his retreat.

But Petruccio moved like a specter.

A twist, a sidestep, a sudden leap, his body weaved between the projectiles with inhuman precision. His phantom steps left afterimages, making it impossible to predict where he'd be next.

Then, in the blink of an eye, he was gone.

The Ranger barely had time to process it before a blade pressed against his throat.

Petruccio's voice was calm, almost amused. "Checkmate."

A single flick of his wrist. The Ranger's body crumpled, lifeless before it hit the ground.

Petruccio exhaled slowly, rolling his shoulders. 'Three down, No more interruptions.'

The HA Headquarters loomed in the distance. Without hesitation, he bolted forward, carrying the buyer toward safety.

But the real danger had come.

Boris Mikhailov, now towering at four meters tall, had turned his attention away from his wounded prey, Mattia, and toward Petruccio. With a roar of drunken fury, he grabbed the massive auction podium, its reinforced steel and marble frame cracking under his grip. Without hesitation, he hurled it across the battlefield like a missile.

Petruccio narrowed his eyes and reacted.

He twisted at the last second, narrowly avoiding the impact as the podium exploded behind him, sending shards of metal and stone flying in every direction. The force sent him skidding with his grip tightening around the buyer.

'Damn it. Too close.'

But there was no time to breathe. The Poison Sentinels surged forward. Their toxic bodies left a corrosive mist in their wake, their cold weapons dripping with venom that could melt through mana barriers. Petruccio was outnumbered, and his priority wasn't himself, it was the buyer.

If it was him alone the matter would be different, but now he needed to move carefully to not injure the frail buyer.

Each dodge became harder, each deflection cost him ground. The sheer numbers were overwhelming.

Then, the earth trembled.

A heavy presence charged forward, Boris, running on all fours like a rabid bear. His massive maw, lined with jagged teeth, gaped open as he lunged, intent on devouring Petruccio whole.

For the first time that night, Petruccio felt genuine danger.

Just before impact, a crimson blur flashed before his eyes.

Mattia.

No longer wielding his broken sword, he now held something entirely different, a new greatsword, its blade gleaming with an ancient, indomitable strength.

Titan's Resolve.

The S-Rank sword sold at the auction that Adam just threw him.

As Boris lunged, Mattia's entire form shifted. His body hardened, his muscles encased in an armored exoskeleton formed from the same Titan Bone Alloy as his weapon. The once-battle-worn swordsman now stood transformed with his very presence radiating raw power.

This was Mattia special ability, he is able to form an armor in base to the weapon he is wielding.

Boris never saw it coming.

With one foot stomp, Mattia drove Boris's head into the ground.

The street beneath them cratered from the impact, the sheer force sending shockwaves outward. A deafening BOOM echoed across the battlefield as cracks split through the concrete like a shattered mirror.

Mattia's crimson eyes glowed with contained rage as he pressed his boot deeper into Boris's skull. "You're done playing games, Mikhailov. It's time I slay a traitor."

Boris growled, his clawed fingers twitching against the ground as he tried to rise. But Mattia's strength, amplified by Titan's Resolve, held him in place like an unmovable force of nature.

"Tch." Boris grunted, voice muffled by the earth. "Fine then... let's make this fun."

(2:13 AM)

With Venin now fully sealed, Adam exhaled with his eyes shifting toward the ongoing chaos. His gaze locked onto the battlefield, but his focus was drawn to the three S-Ranks. Among them, his eyes landed on the frail, masked buyer, the one holding the Elixir of Longevity.

With a flick of his wrist, a cocoon of blue mana enveloped the buyer, lifting them gently into the air and moving them away from the danger. His voice resonated across the battlefield, reaching both Mattia and Petruccio.

"I'll safeguard the buyer. Focus on the fight."

Petruccio, locked in combat, gave a brief nod before lunging at Boris. The Russian, now enraged, let out a guttural roar with his form swelling further. His bones cracked, his skin darkened with thick fur, and his body stretched as his muscles bulged grotesquely.

"FULL SHIFT!" Boris bellowed, his voice shaking the very foundations of the ruined cityscape. A true bear now stood where the brute once had. Towering over them all, he crushed what remained of the pavement beneath his massive paws.

Adam, momentarily observing the transformation, shifted his attention back to the buyer. The blue mana faded, revealing a young girl, no older than fourteen landing on the rooftop. She clutched the ornate box containing the Elixir tightly, her hands trembling as she stared up at him with wide, fearful eyes.

Adam's expression remained calm, though his glowing gaze softened slightly. He gave her a single nod.

"You're safe now. Stay close."

The girl hesitated but stepped closer, clearly recognizing that amidst all the chaos, he was the safest place to be.

But Adam's task was far from complete.

His attention turned outward, scanning the hundreds of thousands of civilians who still littered the surrounding city. The destruction had already displaced thousands, and though he had managed to teleport and shield many, there were still too many left in harm's way.

(2:14 AM)

Adam stood on the rooftop, his glowing blue eyes calmly observing the battlefield below. The chaotic destruction, the roars of battle, the sheer weight of mana saturating the air, it was a scene that would have broken lesser Hunters. But for Adam, this was simply data.

His gaze first drifted to Venin, still locked in his spatial prison, his poison-laced body struggling against chains that refused to break. The assassin was strong.

His affinity alone made him an S-Rank at the highest level, and had Adam not sealed him first, Venin's toxins would have spread like wildfire, killing thousands in minutes.

'Awà, what's your analysis?'

[Venin is a National Level prospect.]

Adam's brow furrowed slightly. 'That's a bold statement.'

[Not really. His poison affinity is pretty good but his biggest weakness is his fragile body, but his combat style mitigates that. If he had a sturdier physique, he could already be at that rank.]

Adam's eyes flickered toward Boris and Mattia, their battle shaking the entire street. The Vodka Bear, fully transformed, stood over six meters tall, his muscles coiled with raw destruction. Mattia, armored in Titan Bone Alloy, stood firm, his massive greatsword glowing with condensed mana.

'Boris is overpowering him.'

[Yes. In his Full Shift, Boris is a lot stronger than Petruccio and slightly above Mattia, even with his armor. His sheer size, regenerative ability, and endurance put him near the top of physical-type Hunters.]

'And Petruccio?'

[Against a brute like Boris? Not a chance. His combat relies on finesse, speed, and precision. But in raw power? Boris would crush him.]

Adam sighed, rolling his shoulders. He already knew this. The only reason he could effortlessly dominate Venin wasn't because of his own rank, it was because his abilities defied the very system.

'Awà, let's be honest. I'm not A-Rank anymore, am I?'

[That rank was when you awakened. But the moment you became familiar with your abilities, you stepped straight to the top of S-Rank.]

Adam exhaled slowly. It was an odd thing to process. S-Rank was supposed to be the peak, the highest tier a Hunter could reach. Yet the gaps between S-Ranks were the largest among any other ranks. Their mana levels were so vast that no meter could measure them, which meant their power was determined entirely by their first awakening and combat ability.

And Adam? He never stopped growing.

[Your mana reserves are still expanding. It won't be long before you surpass even the strongest recorded Hunters.]

'What about my physical strength?'

[Unmatched soon. Thanks to your breathing technique, your body is evolving constantly. You'll hit a point where no Hunter, not even National Level ones, will match you in raw power.]

Adam chuckled under his breath, rubbing the back of his neck. Broken. That was the only word for it.

His mind shifted. 'The S-Rank Rune Stone from Kamish.'

'If I absorb that stone, how much stronger will I get?'

[It won't be a power boost in the traditional sense. It will give you access to dragon genes and skills, just like how you already possess the traits of Giants.]

Adam blinked. 'Wait, I have Giant skills?'

[Would you like to try?]

A slow grin spread across his face.

"Hell yeah."

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The last part was a bit of an info dump as well Adam inner thoughts, i did this to let you all actually understand the current situation as well Adam current growth rate, he is continuously growing stronger but he is not invincible since other realities exist, since the Itarims are a thing, but that will be talked about further into the story.

But yeah, this happens when authors don't nerf their MCs, damn... I want the nano machines so bad 😭

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