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764 - The Start of the Hunt
🕑 Added 2024-10-19 11:17:51 +0000 UTCBOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM
Aron stared at the massive explosion he had created, the remnants of his latest attack churning in a mushroom cloud. But rather than savoring the apparent victory, he muttered, “It worked four times. I should be happy with that,” his gaze locked on the shifting scene ahead.
Before him, the mushroom cloud split in two, rapidly dissipating under immense air pressure, revealing the figure at its core. A winged fighter emerged from the chaos, unscathed and brimming with power. Though the massive wings hovered behind the warrior, they weren’t physically connected, adding an eerie quality to the figure’s presence. The armor encasing him shimmered in perfect synchronization with the ethereal wings, both sharing the same dark, metallic hue.
Without hesitation, the Feryn fighter shot forward, moving with such speed that it would only take him a few seconds to close the distance to Aron, clearly intending to finish the fight swiftly.
Aron clapped his hands, brushing away the last remnants of the disintegrated gun, and watched the oncoming fighter with sharp focus. “Time to get serious,” he murmured, his tone calm but purposeful.
As the Feryn warrior closed in, Aron began hovering effortlessly, and within moments, he launched himself forward, flying headlong to meet his opponent in midair.
The Feryn fighter didn’t flinch as Aron surged toward him. In a fluid motion, the hovering wings behind the warrior adjusted, releasing two massive, laser-like blasts. The energy bolts streaked through the air at impossible speeds, far too fast for Aron to dodge.
The force of the impact not only halted Aron mid-flight but also sent him hurtling backward at an uncontrollable velocity. He tumbled through the air like a ragdoll before slamming into the ground, skimming and bouncing along the surface like a skipping stone on water, each impact tearing up the terrain beneath him.
The spectators watched in stunned silence as the Terran fighter was thrown back for kilometers, ricocheting off the ground multiple times before finally coming to a halt. Dust clouds trailed behind his path, marking each violent bounce.
The sight of Aron being flung across the arena was a dramatic shift from his previous one-shot victories, leaving the audience divided in their reactions. For those who had been rooting for his opponents, there was a palpable sense of anticipation—hoping that this sudden setback would mean the end of his dominance and either he dies or be injured heavily enough that he wouldn’t be able to recover in time to deliver another decisive blow.
On the other hand, citizens of the Terran Empire watched with growing anxiety. Aron’s previous victories had been swift and absolute, but now, seeing him brought down so harshly raised a different kind of fear. They knew the stakes; if Aron couldn’t get back up and turn the tide, it wasn’t just this fight that would be lost. With the number of remaining battles, a defeat here would mean the empire risked losing the overall contest by default.
Despite the viewers' silence, the Feryn fighter didn’t relent. He shot forward in the direction Aron had been hurled, unleashing a relentless barrage of attacks to ensure the emperor was either killed or forced to surrender. The sheer volume of energy blasts was so overwhelming that Aron’s figure became completely obscured from the audience’s view, hidden within the relentless storm of explosions and laser fire.
In the eyes of the viewers, the fight appeared to be over, with many assuming that Aron was already dead. The Feryn fighter seemed to share the same belief, halting his relentless assault after more than a minute to cool his wings. He stood still, waiting for the dust to clear and for the AI referee to announce his victory.
However, as thirty seconds passed, the dust showed no signs of dissipating, and the anticipated announcement never came. While a few sharp-minded spectators noticed the absence of the verdict, most were still captivated by the sheer brutality of the assault they had just witnessed, stunned by the merciless onslaught that had unfolded before them.
……………
{Sir, wake up.} Nova's urgent voice echoed in Aron's mind, jolting him awake from his momentary unconsciousness.
His eyes shot open, only for him to shut them again as searing light flooded his vision, the remnants of the relentless barrage from the Feryn fighter still raining down upon him. The attack, which would have killed most combatants, had been thwarted only by his shield—one that stayed active as long as he didn't deactivate it manually or deplete his mana reserves, even in a state of unconsciousness.
“Did I just... faint?” Aron asked, bewildered. It was a rare occurrence—something he hadn’t experienced in real life since acquiring his system. He seemed almost detached, ignoring the ongoing bombardment, holding a casual conversation with Nova while operating with near-peak mental clarity, thanks to his heightened perception.
{Yes, sir, but I had to induce it for a moment,} Nova explained calmly. {Your brain was at risk of suffering from a perception lock due to the dissonance between what your senses were processing and how your body was reacting in such chaotic conditions.}
Aron exhaled sharply, quickly grasping the situation. A perception lock—being trapped in a state where your body couldn't keep up with your mind—could have left him helpless, if not permanently impaired for other people had they been in the same situation. It made sense why Nova had taken such a drastic measure.
Perception without movement was manageable, as only the brain had to keep up. But the moment physical actions were introduced, the brain’s ability to coordinate became strained. Too much acceleration created a "ping lag" effect: Aron’s brain might initiate a movement, but his body would only respond several seconds later according to his enhanced perception. Worse still, the actions would be erratic, with no real way to control or sync them smoothly.
This was why every imperial soldier trained to find the "sweet spot" of perception acceleration—balancing heightened awareness with enough control to coordinate physical actions seamlessly. Each individual’s threshold varied, and Aron’s was the highest. Even so, there were limits.
But even with this sweet spot of perception acceleration, Aron found it wasn’t fast enough to react to the incoming laser bullet.
Listening to Nova’s explanation, he asked, “Can we adjust the perception to operate dynamically? Keep it fast when I’m just floating or activating runes, and lower it when I want to move my body?”
{It's possible, but I’ll need direct access to your continuously updating brain data. This way, I can make adjustments without waiting for your commands, which would waste precious time. However, your brain will require prolonged rest after this to avoid any long-term side effects,} Nova replied after a moment of calculations.
“We’ll have plenty of time for that later, so let’s do it,” Aron said, his gaze focused on the shield he had augmented with light-filtering properties, watching the lasers continue to rain down, even as he maintained his highest perception acceleration.
{Yes, sir.} Nova responded before attempting to access Aron’s brain data. As expected, this triggered the system permission screen, prompting Aron to approve or deny her request. He immediately granted permission.
“No holding back,” he declared, fully aware that the longer he used the dynamic perception acceleration, the longer he would need to rest afterward. He had decided to go all in from now on, aiming to finish the remaining fights as quickly as possible within a believable range. He didn’t want to reveal his full capabilities just yet; doing so would allow others to prepare against him and potentially devise ways to eliminate him. Which, despite looking almost impossible, was a possibility nonetheless.
After saying that, he stood up from the ground where he had been lying. With Nova's direct coordination, his perception acceleration was adjusted in real time, either sped up or slowed down without any microsecond lag. He planned to use the dust still covering him to finish this fight as quickly as possible.
He stood still for a moment as a flight rune manifested and integrated into the shield that had conformed to his body shape. The instant it was activated, he vanished at such incredible speed that a mirror image of him remained in his previous location, as if he hadn’t moved at all. With that, he had begun his hunt.
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