Malik and Qiqi stood before a Hub, but neither was speaking. The former was covered in wounds, an arm was gone, and a leg was limping. Drenched in his own blood, it didn't seem like he should even be breathing right now.
By comparison, Qiqi didn't have a speck of dust on her. Instead, her dress was sticking to her as though she had been dunked in a pool off the deep end. But in reality, it was her own sweat.
Her face seemed drained of color as well, her blood barely pumping through her body. If not for the fact she leaned against Malik's arm—the only one of them that remained—it would be a wonder for her to even stand at all.
The two looked like they had been through hell and back. But at the very least, their situation was much better than a certain other soul here.
A behemoth of a corpse lay a distance away, buried in a crater. His body was a grey mass etched as though ancient stone and cracked like modern concrete. It was an odd mix of flesh, but all things considered, the young man was very handsome—or had been, before he lay there in a pit of his wasted potential.
This behemoth was the representative of the Imperial Earth Lineage, Obesan. One of the seven Demons.
But now, he was dead. And it seemed that it was because of Malik and Qiqi, triggered over a fight for this Hub.
"This time… it really is thanks to you…" Malik said calmly, as though he wasn't bleeding out and moments from death.
"No, it's thanks to that bitch you keep talking about," Qiqi said with a slight harrumph, but it was clear she didn't have much energy left to keep fighting—even if it was with just her tongue alone.
"Is that… the true… extent of your… Talent?"
"Why did you say that like I didn't tell you from the very start? You're the one who thinks everyone is always lying to you."
"You said you could copy the abilities of Turned, not that you could literally become one of them."
"No. I said that I could become them. You're the one who assumed that meant just copying because you thought I was trying to hide the true extent of what I could do. Now you're delirious from blood loss and tripping up over your own logic. Why would I lie like that?"
Malik didn't respond, seemingly realizing that she was correct. He really was having a hard time thinking straight.
But when Qiqi just suddenly turned into the Violet Enchantress as though that was just normal… well, how the hell was he supposed to react to that?
It wasn't just that either. Thanks to Qiqi, they had the first A Class confirmed kill, and were actually rewarded beyond that.
When Obesan appeared, Malik thought everything was over. He had never fought someone so powerful, and though his Talent helped him bridge the gap a bit, he was no Zarek—though his Growth Potentials were far beyond that of the current Zarek.
Thanks to his Growth Potentials, Malik was actually far closer to C Class than Zarek had been when they first entered this place. But up against one of the Demons that seemed to have turned their attention to this Hub as well, he stood no chance.
But then Qiqi suddenly became the Violet Enchantress.
Not far from here, one of the A Class imprisoned beasts was trapped. While Malik was locked in battle trying to preserve their lives, Qiqi had run off.
Back then, he had thought the same thing that always happened had occurred once again. He had been betrayed, just like he always was.
But then she actually came back—and riding the back of a rhino Turned like it was a horse or something.
The rhino Turned, surprisingly, still seemed asleep, while Qiqi herself had become half incorporeal, like she had become the Violet Enchantress herself.
Radiating that foggy, violet Godsfall, Qiqi controlled the A Class rhino Turned to support Malik until they whittled down Obesan, hounding him to death.
Of course, the battle should have ended quite quickly. The Demons had a ton of trump cards and great strength, but so early in the game, no one but the two best of the Demons were quite ready to face off against A Class threats.
However, Qiqi knew that once Obesan was dead, they wouldn't have many more options left to deal with the A Class rhino Turned. So, she had to control it in such a way that Obesan had a chance to win, heavily injuring it in the process.
The end result was a battle that drained them both, and they very nearly died. But… it was so very worth it.
Qiqi's Talent had evolved. And she had Awakened a second Talent that left her fingers itching.
"I Awakened another Talent," Qiqi said.
"Yeah? What is it?"
—
Name: [Qiqi Synghe]
Role: [N/A]
Core Stats:
>[Strength: E-]
>[Dexterity: E-]
>[Intelligence: C]
>[Endurance: E+]
>[Charisma: C+]
Talents:
>[Hollow Sense: C+]
>>[Abilities: Copy Sense]
[When observing a Turned touched by Godsfall, you can learn from them, grow from them, copy them, become them]
>>[Abilities: Copy Sense Amplify]
[Take an observed ability, increase its potential, then take it into yourself]
>>[Abilities: Copy Sense Nullify]
[Take an observed ability, weaken an aspect of it to remove a weakness to take it for yourself, or destroy it entirely, using this process to learn of its weak points and counters]
>[Hollow Compulsion: F-]
>>[Abilities: Compulsion Sense]
[Forcefully assimilate a Turned touched by Godsfall, reforming your body and evolving beyond the realms of reason. Suppress their mind and assimilate it into your own]
>[Unawakened]
Skills:
>[C Class Scouting]
—
If Zarek had seen this sort of status screen… to say that he would be taken aback was an understatement.
There were a few humans on Earth that simply had Talents that were beyond the realms of reason—Talents that made them a breath of gods themselves.
And it seemed that while Malik was busy moping about, wondering whether to trust Qiqi or not…
She had a Talent in her arsenal that practically placed her in a category all to her own.
She, too… was a monster.