As Kyoji took his position at the front of the formation, his face remained cold and focused as he gripped his sword tightly.
Just then, he felt a gaze land on him.
Turning his head slightly, he saw Frederick staring at him with a strange smile, his eyes analyzing every detail.
Kyoji's brows furrowed as he turned fully to face him. Frederick, however, only flashed a casual smile.
"You fought well earlier. Honestly, I thought I'd be the only one here not pissing myself," Frederick said, looking at Kyoji with a mix of arrogance and acknowledgment.
"Hmm." Kyoji replied before turning back to face forward.
Frederick's face stiffened for a moment at the response, but then his smile widened—he was amused.
"You know that was a compliment," he said toward Kyoji.
"You know that was a response," Kyoji shot back without even turning, his voice cold and sharp.
Frederick was taken aback, but before he could say anything else, Miss Anna's line of defense crumbled. A group of mutants slipped past her, charging toward them. It seemed she could no longer hold them all back.
"Alright, everyone, get ready to battle!" Mr. Sawyer's loud voice cut through the air.
No one needed to be told twice. They could already see the mutants closing in on them.
"Just as we discussed, hold your position!" Mr. Sawyer yelled. "Reinforcements are already on the way—just hold on until they arrive!"
Hearing this, the students steeled their resolve, tightening their grip on their weapons as their expressions hardened. The thought of reinforcements coming gave them hope.
The first wave of mutants arrived—ten in total. One of them rushed straight toward Kyoji, who stood at the front of the formation.
It was a grotesque abomination resembling a mantis, its obsidian-like blade arms slashing wildly, aiming to cut him in half.
Without hesitation, Kyoji activated TimeDome. A transparent dome formed around him, and instantly, time within it slowed.
From the previous fight, he had learned that the smaller the dome's range, the less energy it consumed and the more control he had over time inside it. So this time, he limited the dome to cover only himself and the beast, maximizing efficiency.
And it worked perfectly.
The mutant's blade moved at a crawl compared to its usual speed, giving Kyoji ample time to dodge.
Of course, he still needed to react quickly, but the urgency was no longer the same.
Stepping out of the attack's path, Kyoji swung his sword in a wide arc without wasting any movement.
In an instant, the mutant's head was severed, blood spraying everywhere.
Kyoji was pleased. By reducing the dome's range, its efficiency had increased significantly. He was tempted to shrink it even further.
But any smaller, and there wouldn't be enough space to fit both him and the mutant.
Plus, he wasn't sure if he could manipulate time for an object only partially inside the dome.
The risk wasn't worth it—if there was even a reward to reap.
Right now, the dome's size was the bare minimum. Any further reduction might be pointless.
Before he could even take a breath, another mutant was already upon him.
This one was a twisted mass of muscle and flesh, with deformed bones jutting out from all over its body, making it look even more menacing.
But something about this mutant was different from the others—it was a Variant Two Mutant.
Kyoji prepared to use his usual strategy—slowing time, dodging, then striking—when suddenly, an intense sense of danger overtook him.
While he wasn't a seasoned warrior, his instincts were sharp enough to react.
Without thinking, he kicked off the ground as hard as he could, sliding backward.
Just in time.
A jagged spike of earth shot up from the ground where he had just been standing. If he had hesitated for even a second, it would have impaled him.
But the danger wasn't over.
The tip of the earth spike suddenly detached, shooting toward him at high speed.
Kyoji's eyes widened—this was unexpected.
Without hesitation, he activated Time Dome again, slowing time.
But that alone wouldn't be enough.
He was in no position to dodge. His body was still leaned back from avoiding the first attack, and there was no way he could recover fast enough to move out of the way.
He needed another solution.
Blood Manipulation.
Activating Crimson Arsenal, a thick red mist poured from Kyoji's hand, swirling in front of him before solidifying into a Crimson Shield.
Just as the transformation completed, the incoming earth spike slammed into the shield.
The shield held firm, stopping the spike in its tracks, but the force of impact sent a tremor through Kyoji's arm, numbing it slightly.
ARGH!
A scream of pain rang out behind him.
Kyoji's gaze flicked back. Two people had been caught in the mutant's attack as well.
One had barely managed to dodge the main spike, but he had been caught off guard by the detached tip, which pierced his thigh, leaving him injured but alive.
The other wasn't so lucky.
The detached spike punched straight through his chest, piercing a vital organ. He was dead before he could even react.
Variant Two Mutants were truly a pain in the ass.
The support team immediately rushed in to tend to the injured, while Kyoji turned his attention back to the mutant.
Slowing down time, he sidestepped the mutant's massive claw and countered with a swift sword strike.
But this one wasn't like the others.
The moment Kyoji's blade made contact, the mutant manipulated the earth, forming a thick layer of hardened rock over its skin.
Kyoji's sword barely cut through, the resistance sending a harsh vibration up his arm.
"Tch. Annoying."
The mutant roared in anger. Slamming its massive fist into the ground, it shook the surrounding battlefield, throwing Kyoji and several nearby students off balance.
Then, with shocking speed, it lunged straight at him.
Kyoji found himself vulnerable, struggling to regain his footing. The mutant was seconds away from crushing him.
But just before it could land a hit—
A figure flashed past.
The mutant sensed the threat and immediately reinforced its defense, layering itself in even more hardened earth.
But it didn't matter.
Frederick's blade sliced through it like paper, leaving a deep gash across the mutant's neck.
Blood gushed out.
ROAR!
The mutant let out a furious, pain-filled howl, its attention now completely focused on Frederick, forgetting about Kyoji entirely.
Not wasting this chance, Kyoji moved swiftly.
Aiming for the exposed wound Frederick had created, he drove his sword deep into the mutant's neck.
A gurgling sound escaped the mutant's throat as it tried to roar, but instead, it choked on its own blood.
Its body twitched, then went stiff.
With a soft thud, the mutant collapsed to the ground.
Kyoji pulled his sword free, then turned toward Frederick.
Frederick stood a few feet away, his sword resting on his shoulder, a smug smile tugging at his lips.
Kyoji stared at him expressionlessly.
Frederick's brow twitched.
"No 'thank you'?"
Kyoji didn't respond. Instead, he ignored him completely, turning to scan the battlefield.
To his surprise, things weren't as bad as he had expected.
The others were holding their ground.
Despite their fear, the students were doing their best to survive.
It was impressive.
Fear can really push people beyond their limits.
"They're doing better than I expected," Frederick commented from beside him.
Kyoji nodded slightly. "If they want to live, they have no choice but to fight. It's only natural."
Frederick hummed in thought, rubbing his chin. "Fair point."
Then, with a sigh, he gestured at the battlefield. "Looks like most of the fun is over. I was hoping to cut down a few more mutants."
Kyoji frowned at his words.
"There are still plenty left." He pointed toward the center of the battlefield, where Miss Anna and Major Gareth were fighting.
Due to the dust and debris, they couldn't see Gareth clearly, but from the sounds of battle, it was obvious he wasn't faring well.
Frederick immediately shook his head. "Nope. Not happening."
Kyoji scoffed. "At least you know your limit."
Just as he was about to turn away, something caught his eye.
His expression darkened.
At the far end of the temple ruins, it was moving.
The Dominator Mutant.
Its frog-like body, with long, slimy limbs and multiple writhing tentacles sprouting from its back.
Unlike the others, it wasn't fighting.
Instead, it was slowly retreating, inching toward a secluded part of the ruins.
As it moved, its tentacles snatched up the corpses of fallen mutants, devouring them whole.
Kyoji's eyes narrowed.
It was already preparing for it's breakthrough.
By absorbing the corpses, it was gathering energy—finding a safe spot away from the battle to complete its evolution.
A smart move.
Wait.
Kyoji's pulse quickened.
Intelligence?
Since when were Mutants supposed to be intelligent?