20demayo Chapter 153 The Alpha's Final Gambit (2)
Chapter 153 The Alpha's Final Gambit (2)
The Alpha Shadow Wolf charged, crimson eyes burning with a ferocity born of desperation.
Its severed foreleg left a dark trail of ichor across the arena floor, yet the loss barely hindered its movements. The beast's remaining limbs pounded against the stone, propelling it toward Klaus and Alex with terrifying speed. Its jaws stretched wide, revealing shadow-coated fangs poised to tear flesh from bone.
The ground trembled beneath its weight.
Klaus gripped his sword with practiced calm. The survival protocol heightened his senses, magnifying every detail: the shifting of the wolf's muscles as it compensated for its missing leg, the vibrating mana currents that pulsed through its shadow-wrapped body, the faint whistling of air as the beast surged toward him.
His mind processed it all in a heartbeat.
Its weight distribution is off. Left side compromised. Lethal, but predictable.
He exhaled and moved.
Klaus sidestepped just as the wolf's claws descended. His sword blurred through the air, a gleaming arc of silver against the dark backdrop of shadowed fur. The blade sliced through the wolf's exposed flank, parting flesh and muscle with brutal precision.
The beast howled, twisting midair. Black ichor sprayed across the ground, sizzling upon contact.
Klaus adjusted his stance and struck again.
The Alpha retaliated with a backhanded swipe from its remaining foreleg. Claws like curved blades lashed toward his torso. Klaus pivoted, his sword intercepting the strike with perfect timing. The impact cracked the earth beneath his feet, yet he stood firm, forcing the beast backward with a sharp twist of his wrist.
Ding!
[Target injured. Dexterity stat increased by 0.5.]
The surge of energy coursed through his limbs, sharpening his reflexes even further.
The Alpha stumbled, its body visibly faltering. The shadow armor wrapping its limbs flickered like dying embers. Its strength, drawn from the life essence of its pack, was running out.
It's weakening.
But Klaus didn't relax.
Desperate predators were the most dangerous ones.
***
Alex groaned, forcing himself upright. His ribs felt like splintered wood, and each breath sent knives of pain through his torso. His vision swam, but the sight of Klaus standing alone against the Alpha cleared his mind.
His eyes fell to the nearest wolf corpse.
The wolves that had their essence absorbed by the Alpha didn't burst into smoke when they died; instead, their corpses remained, twisted and withered.
Like empty shells.
The pack was gone. The Alpha had consumed every ounce of their strength. No more reinforcements.
The Alpha was wounded. Vulnerable.
The core—its heart, pulsating faintly beneath the cracked armor—was within reach.
Adrenaline surged through him, dulling the pain. His sword, slick with the ichor of fallen wolves, lay nearby. He snatched it up and forced himself to his feet.
Alex's vision narrowed on the Alpha.
If I finish it, I'll get stronger.
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He charged forward, blade raised.
Klaus saw him coming and immediately recognized the intent in his eyes. That wasn't teamwork.
It was ambition.
***
***
The soldiers watching from the stands released the breaths they'd been holding.
"That thing was strong," one muttered. "Too strong for a training exercise."
"I don't know what the captains are thinking, making kids like them face such a beast."
Another nodded. "The Alpha reached power comparable to a Grade 2, Class 3 beast. If that Klaus kid hadn't been there..."
"...it would've been a massacre," the first finished.
Melo remained silent, his masked gaze locked on the two boys standing amidst the carnage: Klaus, calm and composed, and Alex, breathing heavily, his eyes filled with frustration.
He'd seen that expression before.
Ambition unchecked is a dangerous thing.
***
Klaus straightened, sheathing his sword with a quiet click. His gaze shifted toward Alex, who still knelt near the Alpha's corpse.
The faint glow of the wolf's fading core reflected in Alex's eyes. His jaw was clenched so tightly that veins bulged along his neck.
"You were reckless," Klaus said softly. His voice was devoid of judgment—just a statement of fact.
Alex didn't respond. His hands gripped his sword with white-knuckled force.
He hadn't come to help defeat the Alpha.
He'd come to claim the kill.
Klaus turned away. He'd already known that.
Alex stared at Klaus's back, hatred and envy stirring within him like molten lava.
***
A sudden movement caught everyone's attention.
Melo stepped forward onto the central platform. His silver mask gleamed under the torchlight, and his presence immediately silenced the murmurs below.
He raised his hand. The arena's enchanted amplification system carried his voice across the field.
"Congratulations," Melo said, his tone devoid of warmth. "You have survived the first wave."
The words hit the trainees like a sledgehammer.
"Wait... what?" Sarah gasped.
Nicholas's eyes narrowed. "First wave?"
Even Klaus's brow furrowed slightly.
Alex's breath caught in his throat. "That was only the first?"
Melo continued as though unaware of their disbelief.
"One-third of you have been severely wounded," he said. "Yet no one has died. Good." His gaze swept over them like a hawk studying prey. "But this was merely the introduction. The next wave will not be as forgiving."
Silence.
The exhaustion that had morphed into relief twisted into dread.
"This... this was just the beginning?" one trainee whispered.
Melo lowered his arm. "Rest. Regroup. The second wave begins soon."