Lucian's back had barely touched the wall, and he had yet to settle his nerves,
when-
Boom!!!
A sonic wave struck the door from straight down the hallway like an invisible battering ram. The composite wooden door, less than two inches thick, exploded on the spot, and the frame blasted into the room along with a ring of plaster. The shock wave swept over Lucian, throwing him away from the wall. His lower back slammed into the edge of the desk, and he tasted blood in his throat.
Fragments of wood clattered to the floor, and a staggering figure walked through the dust.
His steps were unsteady, but his hands were raised before his chest, palms facing each other. All he had to do was bring them together, and a second sonic wave would follow.
He stood in the doorway, his feet planted on shattered wood and dust he had tracked in from 401.
"You were fucking lying to me, weren't you!" Quake stared fixedly at Lucian, his voice filled with the fury of humiliation. "You'd already seen those bloodstains, hadn't you?"
Lucian did not answer.
His right hand had already reached behind his waist, where a claw hammer was tucked. Before opening the door, he had slipped it behind his belt, hidden beneath the hem of his shirt.
Quake advanced another step. "You saw the blood in 402. You saw me. Then you pretended to be a fan and shook my hand."
Lucian raised his left hand to show that he meant no harm.
"Wait. Calm down. I can explain."
"Explain what? Tell me! What the hell are you-"
The more Quake spoke, the more agitated he became, his hands spreading apart as he talked-a typical foreigner's habit, as though words alone could not convey his meaning without gestures. This was exactly the moment Lucian had been waiting for. Like a feral dog lunging from the shadows, he drew the claw hammer with his right hand, lowered his body, and pushed off the floor. Before Quake's final syllable fell, the hammerhead had already struck the right side of his forehead.
Thud.
Metal struck skull with a heavy, muffled crash. Quake's head whipped to the left, a visible dent appearing at his temple. Blood mixed with tiny bone fragments flew out, spattering the wall and half of Lucian's face.
For an ordinary person, taking that blow squarely would have meant a trip to the ICU at best.
But Quake was no ordinary person. His body struck the doorframe, swayed twice, and somehow steadied again. Blood covered his right eye, but his left was wide open. The pain did not bring him to his senses. Instead, it fully ignited his savagery.
"Fuck..." Quake raised his left hand and touched the wound on his head. At the sight of blood in his palm, the muscles in his face twitched violently. Lucian gripped the hammer, feeling his heartbeat accelerate as adrenaline surged wildly through him. He was just about to swing again when Quake's left fist came hurtling toward him.
Crack.
The fist struck his right shoulder squarely, and Lucian clearly heard bone crack. Agony exploded through his shoulder. The claw hammer flew from his hand, and he spat a mouthful of blood onto Quake's hoodie.
But at the same moment the punch landed, Lucian took advantage of their proximity and clamped both hands around Quake's right wrist. For one thing, he had to keep him from clapping his hands together. For another-
Skin contact. The progress bar for the Copy left unfinished last time began jumping wildly:
[Contact reestablished] [Super Physique LV1] [Copy progress: 94%...96%...98%...]
Quake tried to pull his hand free. Lucian's right shoulder hurt so badly it had gone numb, but all ten fingers remained tightly locked, refusing to let go. Quake had just taken a blow to the head and was unsteady on his feet, while Lucian hung his entire weight from that arm. Fueled by the adrenaline surge, he unleashed two hundred percent of his strength, barely managing to hold him in place.
"Fucking let go!" Quake roared, raising his left fist again, this time aiming for Lucian's abdomen.
Lucian did not dodge. He could not. Any attempt to evade would weaken his grip. If Quake pulled his right hand free, those palms would clap together again a second later. He could only watch the fist grow larger in his vision.
[Copy progress: 99%]
Quake's left fist slammed into Lucian's left ribs. Lucian spat out another mouthful of blood, with even a little bloody froth in it. His vision rapidly darkened, and his ears were filled with buzzing noise.
But he did not let go.
Quake flew into a rage and stopped using his fists. He raised his knee, driving a vicious knee strike toward Lucian's abdomen. Just as it was about to connect.
[Copy progress: 100%]
A scorching current exploded inside Lucian. His heart contracted sharply, then began beating with greater force, pumping blood twice as fast. An intense, prickling itch spread from the fracture in his right shoulder. Muscle density restructured beneath his skin, and the microscopic structure of his bones was forcibly compacted.
LV1 Super Physique. Acquired.
Quake's knee struck Lucian's abdomen, but this time, Lucian's abdominal muscles were like a taut rubber pad, dispersing, absorbing, and dissipating the impact. His feet slid half a step backward. A sharp pain still tore through his abdomen, and his stomach churned violently. But he did not fall. This blow was no longer fatal.
The fury on Quake's face froze for a moment. He could clearly feel that the strength gripping his wrist had changed. The desperate struggle of a "drowning man" had become a hunter's "steel trap." He saw Lucian lift his head. He was still breathing hard, half his face covered in blood, but his expression had turned utterly cold.
"You..." Quake never finished.
Lucian kept his left hand locked around Quake's right wrist, preventing him from pulling free or clapping his hands to release a sonic wave. He quickly released his right hand, reached toward his feet, and picked up the hammer from the floor. Every movement sent piercing pain through the fracture, but he could move it. That was enough.
Quake's left fist came hurtling at him again. Lucian did not block. Gripping the hammer, he swung straight at the oncoming fist with precision.
Crack.
The hammerhead struck the knuckles squarely. Quake's index and middle fingers bent backward, broken bone piercing the flesh. His ring and little fingers also drooped limply, no longer able to exert any strength.
Quake let out an inhuman scream. His body instinctively leaned backward, trying to put distance between them.
But Lucian gave him no chance.
He yanked hard with his left hand, dragging him back. His right hand raised the hammer, Quake's blood and scraps of flesh still clinging to its head.
The first blow struck the top of Quake's head.
Thud.
Quake's scream cut off abruptly, leaving only an indistinct groan. His legs weakened, and his knees began to buckle.
The second blow struck the same spot.
Thud.
His skull caved in further. Quake's body lost its support and pitched forward like a sack of sand, his forehead resting against Lucian's shoulder.
The third blow.
Thud.
Warm blood spattered Lucian's neck.
The fourth blow.
Thud.
Quake went completely still. His body slid off Lucian's shoulder and collapsed onto the floor. His hoodie was soaked with blood, which spread into a dark stain on the concrete,
Lucian stood where he was, the hammer in his right hand. His shoulders rose and fell, and his body trembled-a reaction to the drop in adrenaline. Dull pain radiated from his left ribs and right shoulder, but that pain was now suppressed by something stronger: the savage vitality brought by LV1 Super Physique.
He looked down at Quake's corpse. Lucian did not vomit. Did not tremble. Did not look away.
Outside the window, beneath the night sky over Queens, came the screech of braking vehicles and the wail of police sirens. At least three vehicles. Lucian slowly rose, transferred the hammer to his left hand, and walked to the window, peering outside through a gap in the curtains.
Three black SUVs were parked downstairs.
They had arrived far too "quickly."
Before you continue