Endless Evolution: Last Star

"Fuck... I guess motivation alone isn't enough sometimes, right?" Magnus muttered awkwardly, scratching the back of his head.

He watched as Plague Reaper responded to Nessa's attack in the most humiliating way possible.

Plague Reaper didn't just repel her attack in one move, he plunged her head into the ground, carrying her across the entire battlefield like she was a complete lowlife.

Refesa sighed heavily.

"This Plague Reaper... Specifically, that one is really amazing and after the fall of the Midnight Crystal, besides the desire to fight, he has a higher level of motivation."

Magnus nodded with a frown on his face.

"Yeah, and not only that. When Nessa attacked him he got angry..." Magnus narrowed his eyes looking at Plague Reaper's face, "That's not good. She failed to show that she's a serious enemy."

Refesa shrugged.

"It would seem so. Unless there's a backstory or personal motive, you don't get angry at worthy opponents, you either have wariness or respect. He's angry because her interference annoyed him and her powers weren't enough to interest him."

Magnus scratched his cheek, gazing deeply at Nessa's sore face, many places already covered in scratches due to collisions with sharp rocks.

"Well... Hopefully, she'll come to her senses after the first failure, otherwise, they won't win."

...

"Bastard! How dare you treat me like this!!! I'll kill you!" Nessa angrily exclaimed swallowing the clots of dust falling into her mouth.

Bam.

Nessa plunged her fist into the ground in an attempt to stop Plague Reaper's rush.

Then, she stood confidently on her powerful legs, making contact with the ground, causing Plague Reaper to raise an eyebrow as she watched his victim slowly ascend.

"Rgha..."

Plague Reaper let out a short sigh before jerking his hand sharply, dragging Nessa by her hair.

Nessa clenched her teeth tightly, despite the pain she wasn't going to give up and take even a step away.

Bam.

But... a powerful punch to her stomach, made her change her plans.

Nessa's eyes went wide and her mouth opened at the vivid pain she was completely unprepared for.

Then, before Nessa could realize anything, Plague Reaper's fist slammed into her jaw from below, lifting her off the ground.

'What the hell...? What's going on...?' Nessa thought as the world in front of her eyes tilted, and her mind was consumed by pain new flares of which kept appearing.

Whooooosh.

Plague Reaper jumped up, getting on the same level as Nessa. His eyes narrowed slightly, he clearly hadn't expected Nessa's body to be so sturdy. Moreover, he began to feel that she was more like a monsters than Phantoms or ordinary humans.

He didn't know what the explanation for that was, but it didn't matter at the time, as his goal was to get rid of the annoying enemy as soon as possible.

"Wha..."

Plague Reaper took a deep breath, filling his lungs before abruptly twisting his entire body.

After a few spins, like a black whirlwind, Plague Reaper stopped, plunging his left leg into Nessa's stomach while simultaneously exhaling all the air from his lungs.

Never in all her battles against Crown Monsters, had Nessa received such a honed and powerful strike.

All her muscles strained to save her organs from destruction after Plague Reaper's kick.

Whoooooooooooooosh.

The impact provoked an air ring followed by an impulse that threw Nessa far back.

She rolled over the ground like a corpse with no control over her body. In fact, Nessa tried to do something, but the speed was too great.

All she could do was wait until she finally stopped. It didn't happen until a hundred meters later, hitting the ground more than ten times along the way.

Bam.

Nessa crashed into a wisp of dust, partially sinking into it.

Osana frowned.

"Oh... Looks like she turned out to be overconfident. But, I didn't expect Plague Reaper to be so threatening in close combat."

Katrin gulped. She realized that it wasn't Nessa who was weak, it was Plague Reaper who was just on a whole different level.

"But... If he dealt with her so easily, even though she's definitely physically strong, how has Adam not been hit by a similar series of blows so far?"

Osana glanced at Adam who was keeping a safe distance from Plague Reaper, assessing the situation. He didn't know if he should cover Nessa or immediately attack Plague Reaper, preferring to wait for the first move from his opponent.

"Well, it's simple. He just wouldn't let him do it. That girl, Nessa... she was taken by surprise when Plague Reaper repelled her attack. She may have enough speed, but she has no experience fighting against such an opponent, while Adam is gaining more knowledge with every second."

Katrin shuddered nervously, realizing that to fight Plague Reaper on the same level she needed to feel the power of this monster with her body and mind.

"Yeah, you're probably right, but... that girl did accomplish something." Katrin smirked looking at the scythe, its black blade was deeply sunk into the ground.

"He may have beaten her, but now he's lost his weapon. I'm sure Adam won't let him get his scythe back so easily."

Osana shook her head as if Katrin was talking complete nonsense.

"I wouldn't be so sure of that."

"Agh? What are you talking about!"

Plague Reaper crouched down, turning his head toward his scythe, not far from where Adam stood.

Then, Plague Reaper reached his hand forward.

Tremble. Tremble. Tremble.

The scythe shuddered vigorously as dark smoke began to emanate from the black blade. As if gaining will, the scythe began to actively rotate, cutting through the dust with its blade to get out of the ground and like a disk head towards its owner.

With a face devoid of emotion, Plague Reaper grabbed his weapon, gripping its hilt tightly.

He glanced at Adam, and nodded slightly as if in respect, or rather he apologized? Following, Plague Reaper turned to Nessa's side, who was slowly rising from the ground.

And... the first thing Nessa saw was Plague Reaper's scornful look.

It immediately made her mind recall the way Adam had stared at her in the lab when he had protected her from Snow Follower.

But... something was still different.

Adam had looked at her with pity, he was frustrated that she couldn't show her full potential even though she was a hybrid, he wanted her to use her powers to their full potential.

Plague Reaper on the other hand looked at her as a pathetic insect that decided to interfere in his fight with someone he thought was truly worthy.

Plague Reaper didn't need to be able to speak or make any gestures to show it.

Sometimes, a gaze was more than enough to show something that not even all the words in the world were free to do.

Nessa could feel Plague Reaper's silhouette growing larger with every beat of her heart, while she gradually shrank, becoming the insect he thought she was.

It was a disgusting feeling that resonated with what she'd felt the last time she'd gotten into her fighting form for the first time in her life.

Then, Nessa's veins began to swell, and energy waves began to emanate from her body.