Berserk

The battle began with no warning. One moment the Anomaly Hunter was a blur—the next, Kaisel's blade clashed against a dark, jagged weapon inches from Chosa's throat. The air cracked with force as the two were blown apart by the impact.

Chosa hit the ground, rolling to his feet just in time to see Kaisel and the cloaked figure vanish and reappear in flashes of violence. Blades clashed, sparks flew. Kaisel was holding his own, but barely. Each of the Hunter's strikes carried the weight of raw, unnatural strength.

"Luna!" Chosa shouted, dodging falling debris from the cave ceiling. "How do we stop him?"

"At your current level, you cannot."

Kaisel grunted as he was slammed into the wall, blood spraying from a deep cut along his ribs. Still, he got up.

The Anomaly Hunter turned his attention back to Chosa and extended a hand. Without warning, a strange energy burst forth—an invisible wave that struck Chosa's chest like a mountain.

He collapsed.

His body wouldn't move. His limbs were paralyzed, pinned to the ground by sheer pressure.

"Chosa!" Luna called. "He's used a binding force constructed of spatial compression. You're stuck."

Kaisel roared in fury and charged again, drawing out another blade—a short, obsidian-edged dagger from beneath his coat. His energy flared.

"Warning," Luna said. "He's using a forbidden ability—Berserk."

Kaisel's body was suddenly engulfed in a red aura. His muscles tensed, his strikes became faster—unpredictable, brutal. Every second, he grew stronger.

But Chosa saw the toll. Kaisel's skin began to crack with glowing red lines, his breathing ragged.

"Luna," Chosa whispered, straining against the pressure. "That skill—copy it."

"Berserk is a dangerous forbidden skill that slowly takes the life force of the one using it. Are you sure you would like to copy?"

Chosa gritted his teeth. "Just copy it. It might be the only way I survive someone like this again."

"Copying complete. Final bookmark slot filled: Skill - Berserk."

The battle intensified. The cave shook with each clash. Kaisel met the Anomaly Hunter head-on in a flurry of sword strikes that ripped through the stone. Their blades collided again and again, each blow sending out shockwaves. Kaisel's power climbed higher with every second—but so did the cost.

The Anomaly Hunter seemed amused. Despite the blows, he remained calm, grinning beneath his cowl. With a sweep of his arm, he flung Kaisel across the room, embedding him into a rock wall.

But Kaisel got back up, bloodied and breathing hard, eyes blazing.

Chosa was still pinned, watching helplessly. But inside, something was changing.

He wasn't going to stay down forever.

Not this time.