The Scrap Tamer

Bang!

The training room shook as Reid and Marcus clashed again. Although he was massively holding back, he couldn't deny Marcus' strength.

Ever since Reid advanced to Platinum tier, his team had been motivated to catch up.

The entire week had been spent either training together or absorbing energy from cores, pushing everyone close to the threshold of Platinum rank.

The only exceptions were Reid who was already at platinum rank and Owen, whose sudden rank-up caught the team off guard since he barely ever trained, preferring to spend the entire day sleeping.

Reid dodged Marcus' gauntlet fist and countered with an upward slash which Marcus barely managed to block.

It was clear that Reid had both the strength and speed advantage but Marcus wasn't far off, which was impressive for a tamer at Gold rank.

Before Marcus could regain his footing after blocking the slash, Reid was already upon him again, flickering behind him in a blur.

Clang!

Marcus barely managed to twist his body and raise his gauntlets in time, absorbing the brunt of Reid's kick with a grunt. The force sent him skidding backwards across the training ground, almost sending him out of the arena.

"Damn it," Marcus muttered, shaking out his arms. "You're too fast."

"You're improving," Reid said with a smile. "Your reaction time's faster than it was two days ago."

Marcus chuckled at his words before saying, "how about we kick it up a notch?"

As soon as the words left his mouth, a heavy pressure fell in the training room. Under Marcus' training suit, a red glow appeared, noting that he was accessing his berserker's wrath.

The dragon tattoos on his arms also started glowing, almost making them seem alive. The air around them immediately became heated and when Marcus opened his eyes next, his scalera was completely red.

Reid wasn't surprised at Marcus' new form since he had used it multiple times during their training.

Although it served as a power boost for Marcus, it was also a boost for Reid—every time Marcus activated that form, Reid felt stronger too.

Owen let out a lazy yawn from the observer's stand, barely keeping his eyes open. If anything, his Platinum rank-up had only made him sleepier—if that was even possible.

"Do you think Marcus stands a chance this time?" Clara asked, standing beside Owen with the rest of the team.

"Nope," Damien replied flatly, not even bothering to look away from the fight.

Clara pouted slightly, crossing her arms. "You could at least pretend to have some faith in him."

"I would if he wasn't fighting Reid," Damien said, finally turning toward her with a shrug. "Power gap aside, Reid's terrifying. Even without trying, he's still the better fighter."

They turned back to the arena just in time to see Marcus vanish in a crimson blur, the red aura around him flaring violently. His gauntlets clashed with Reid's blade mid-air, sending out a ripple of force that cracked the reinforced floor beneath them.

Boom!

Reid was pushed back a few steps, surprise flashing in his eyes as he steadied himself.

"You really have gotten stronger," he commented, raising his blade again.

"And I'm just getting started," Marcus said, in a deeper voice.

He dashed forward again, unleashing a barrage of punches so fast that the air itself seemed to distort around them.

Reid parried and dodged most of them, but one managed to graze his shoulder, making him wince a bit.

The observers widened their eyes.

"Whoa…" Clara muttered. "He actually landed a hit?"

"Well, that's an improvement," Damien replied. "But, can he string enough of those together to matter. He's still burning energy at an insane rate and we've seen that he can't maintain that form for long."

Owen let out another yawn, "Mmm… doesn't matter. Reid's still holding back."

Lisa stood quietly, observing the fight. Although she had also improved a lot this past week and was on the cusp of reaching platinum rank, it wasn't enough.

She watched Reid fight and couldn't help but think of how wide the gap between them was getting.

"You okay?" Clara nudged her and asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine." She replied, although that was far from the truth and Clara could see it.

Clara gave Lisa a long look but didn't press further. Now wasn't the time. The fight was reaching its peak, so she just opted to hold Lisa's hand.

Back in the arena, Marcus let out a roar as he slammed both fists on the ground. A crimson shockwave, originating from the point he slammed his fist, headed towards Reid, destroying the floor as it moved.

Before the shockwave could reach him, Reid dashed towards the opposite direction but before he could counter with an attack of his own, Marcus was already there, fist folded and aimed directly at his face.

Reid barely managed to raise his sword, blocking the attack. The force sent him skidding backwards, only for Marcus to catch up again and launch a second attack, this one landing straight on his guts.

Marcus then relented, watching with a smile as Reid recovered from the punch, a punch that was capable of taking out a platinum tier Voidspawn.

Reid stood up, wiping the blood on his lips before saying with a chuckle, "I guess I really don't have to hold back anymore."

The pressure in the room shifted again, this time pressing down directly on Marcus.

Although Reid said he'd stop holding back, there was no way he actually would, after all, Marcus wasn't ready to face his monarch forms yet.

So instead, he just copied an ability from Atlas, one that would make Marcus struggle but not completely overwhelm him.

Mass Shift.

Marcus launched himself towards Reid, his red aura protecting him from the pressure Reid released.

But before he could completely close the distance—

[Mass shift]

His body dipped for just a split second, knees buckling slightly mid-air as the gravity holding him multiplied in an instant.

Thud!

Marcus landed sooner than expected, his boots slamming hard into the reinforced floor and cracks spiderwebbed beneath him.

"Tch—what the hell?" he grunted, adjusting his stance as the invisible force pulled at every inch of his body.

His muscles screamed in pain, and even drawing breath took a lot more effort than required.

Reid stood a few meters away, blade resting on his shoulder while he calmly looked at Marcus struggling under the weight of gravity.

"I told you I wasn't holding back anymore," he simply said.

Boom!

Having enough, Marcus stomped the ground, using the shockwave as a boost, and launched himself forward again, albeit slower.

Reid didn't bother dodging. Instead, he lifted his sword with one hand and angled it towards the approaching Marcus.

Just as Marcus approached, the air distorted again. The gravity in front of Reid doubled, then tripled, this caused the space before him to ripple.

Crash!

Marcus slammed into it with full force.

His aura flared violently, trying to resist the gravitational pressure, but it was like running headfirst into a collapsing mountain. His speed quickly bled away and his momentum failed him.

Still, he didn't give up.

Step by step with trembling muscles he pushed forward with a roar.

"Come on!" Marcus shouted, teeth clenched.

Reid's smiled as his eyes shone in respect. Marcus really was strong, and any other platinum rank would, who was not him, would have a hard time dealing with Marcus.

But unfortunately for Marcus, he was facing Reid, a bigger monster than himself.

[Gravity Inversion]

His rank up had allowed him to copy up to two abilities from his forged beasts, hence why he could use another ability from Atlas.

"Grr—!"

Marcus' body was pulled upwards into the air by the inverted gravity, disorienting him, before Reid vanished and reappeared above him.

A heavy slam from the flat of Reid's blade sent Marcus hurtling downward like a meteor.

BOOM!

The arena floor caved in as Marcus struck the ground, dust and debris flying into the air.

There was a moment of silence before the dust in the arena cleared up.

Marcus rolled onto his side, coughing from the impact but laughing through the pain. "You're… such a dick…"

Reid landed softly nearby, no longer suppressing his aura but still far from using his full power.

"You did good," Reid said with a faint smile as he offered Marcus a hand up."That last push… you almost caught me."

The rest of the team exhaled collectively.

"Damn," Clara whispered. "He really tried."

Damien on the other hand watched them with a frown. He was supposed to be Reid's rival, but from what he just saw, he'd have a hard time facing even Marcus.

Much less Reid, who could beat him while holding back.

"He really is a monster," Ethan, who stood behind Damien, muttered his thoughts.

"Yeah," Damien nodded before adding, "that means I'll have to work harder to become a monster too."

Clap! Clap! Clap!

They were interrupted by a sudden clap making them all turn towards the entrance of the training room.

Standing there was someone they all recognized, especially Reid.

Elizabeth Cross had an annoyed look on her face, but she wasn't the one clapping. Behind her was a tall man, with long black hair and casual white clothes.

He had the kindest smile on his face but the team could immediately tell how dangerous he was, just by looking at him.

"Well, that was entertaining." The man spoke up.