CHAPTER 107: WASN’T NORMAL

Theo vanished for a moment, blinking forward with [Flashstep], then reappearing directly in front of the beast. With one hand, he launched a charged [Chain Shock], the arc lightning frying its arm as the electricity licked along the wet surface of the beast.

He followed immediately with [Predator Rush], his Ravager Core pumping feral energy into every step. The air cracked as he rammed into the stunned MAqua’s chest with his shoulder - Bonebreaker Frame activated - slamming it into the crumbling pool wall.

Bones cracked. The Meteorborn wailed.

Theo didn’t let up. Another Ember Step. Another cleave. His movements became a blur of ice, fire, shadow, and fury. Each strike was a symphony of destruction.

Ben stared, stunned. "He’s not just Class 4... What the hell is he?"

The Meteorborn, growing desperate, summoned a geyser, water swirling around its chest to protect the meteorite core embedded there. Theo growled, slamming his axe into the frozen ground and triggering [Seismic Counter]. A tremor rippled outward, disrupting the core’s balance.

[MAqua Core: Stability Faltering]

With a final flash of movement - [Shadow Step] through the steam - Theo appeared behind the beast and drove his axe downward, splitting its spine with a flare of [Gale Fangs] and [Pyre Burst] in one explosive strike.

[Success: Meteorborn Aqua eliminated.]

[Quest Complete: "Flood the Beast"]

[+10,000 EXP, +1,000 Gold Coins, Meteorite Core Essence Acquired]

[Bonus Reward: Epic Shard, Adaptation Trait Unlocked, Hydro Core Obtained]

[Initiating Meteorite Core Absorption...]

[Analyzing Core Type: Elemental - Waterborne Mutation (Variant)]

[Extraction complete. New ability and power acquired.]

You have acquired: Waterborn Heart Meteorite Core

Effect: Absorbs water to heal and grow stronger. Can manipulate water flow.

[Unlocked Abilities:

Surge Lash (Active): Launch a high-pressure stream of water like a whip, slashing enemies and knocking them back.

Aquatic Regeneration (Passive): Regenerate HP when near water sources. Healing speed increases the more the injured host becomes.

Theo stood at the center of the chaos, his chest rising and falling steadily as his double-sided axe disappeared into system storage with a faint flash. Water still steamed off the scorched tiles around him. The remnants of the MAqua were nothing more than twitching sludge and fractured bone, smoking where fire and lightning had collided with hydromutated flesh.

Then, slowly, he turned to face the group behind him.

Ben’s squad had been frozen in place for nearly a full minute, staring in wide-eyed disbelief. Their once-commanding confidence had completely dissolved.

No one said a word.

Ben’s eyes were stretched wide, his mouth slightly agape. His skin had gone pale. Then suddenly-

Slap!

He smacked himself across the face, hard. Then again. And again.

Theo shook his head as he watched Ben slap himself repeatedly. Seriously, this guy, he thought, struggling not to laugh at how ridiculous the scene looked.

His eyes swept the group calmly. "You’re welcome," he said, voice even and sharp like a blade. Without wasting another second, he Shadow Stepped into the rubble and vanished from sight.

He was confident Ben would keep his mouth shut about what he saw. Not because of loyalty - Ben had none - but because his pride was top-notch. The kind of pride that refused to admit someone he used to bully, someone he once looked down on, had just saved his life in the most terrifyingly powerful way.

Admitting that would be like swallowing glass. No, Ben wouldn’t tell a soul. He’d rather pretend it never happened than let anyone know that Theodore Luther - the fat kid from school - had just fought like a one-man army while he and his team stood frozen.

***

"D-Dammit," Ben muttered, rubbing his cheek and blinking rapidly. "No way. No freaking way. That... was Theo?!"

His voice cracked in disbelief, eyes scanning the battlefield for some trick, some illusion. But the crater left behind by the collapsed MAqua said otherwise.

"That fatass? That freaking-" Ben’s voice dropped to a mutter again. "Is he even human anymore?"

"I-I didn’t know he could do that..." one of the other recruits near Ben whispered. His voice trembled as if he were still processing what he’d seen.

Another nodded slowly, his face pale. "That was... wasn’t that multiple powers? But he only registered electric manipulation..."

"Was he hiding his real class?"

"No way. That guy just soloed a Meteorborn Variant. I saw him burn, shock, vanish, and slice that thing into ribbons." The recruit swallowed hard. "Is he some kind of elite sleeper agent? Like Class 2 or Class 1 disguised?"

Ben’s fists were clenched so tight his knuckles turned white. He felt heat rise to his face, not from anger, but from shame. Humiliation. He couldn’t believe the person he’d mocked all these years, the fat loser, the nobody, the kid he made cry back in school, had just wiped out a monster none of them could even scratch.

And not just wiped out... obliterated.

Ben opened his mouth, and then closed it.

The group remained stunned, silent. All that was left was the faint crackle of residual electricity and the bubbling puddle of evaporating water where the Meteorborn once stood.

Ben stared at the crater in front of him, his throat dry and heart pounding.

"No... that can’t be him," he muttered, almost to himself. "That’s not Theo. Maybe... maybe

they got the wrong guy. Must’ve been someone else using the same gear or some illusion trick."

He turned to the others, his voice desperate. "Right? Right?! It couldn’t be him!"

But no one answered. Because deep down, they all knew the truth.

And so did Ben.

Still trembling slightly, he looked back at the crater once more.

Ben’s jaw tightened as he stared at the fading trail where Theo vanished.

"What if he’s not even AMS?" he muttered, just loud enough for the others to hear. His voice was low, uncertain, laced with just enough doubt to plant seeds in their minds.

One of the recruits glanced at him nervously. "What do you mean?"

Ben shrugged, keeping his tone casual but sharp. "I mean, did you see that? That wasn’t normal. No AMS I know fights like that. What if he’s... I don’t know... some kind of monster in human form? Maybe even one of them pretending to be on our side?"

The others shifted uncomfortably, unsure whether to scoff or listen. Ben hid his clenched fists behind his back, seething. If he couldn’t beat Theo with strength, maybe he could make others doubt him.

Because if Theo kept rising like this, there’d be no room for anyone to look down on him anymore.