CHAPTER 52: CH:52 ONE PUNCH GOLEM

Evos marched forward, each step making the obsidian floor thrum under his weight. His muscles bulged as he raised both fists overhead.

"Will-will, sissy!" he mocked with a cruel grin. "Looks like your little toy’s about to expire in my hands—BAHAHAHA!"

He slammed his fists down like twin boulders.

CRASH!

Earthrea caught the strike, stone arms groaning from the force—but it was shaking.

Meanwhile, in Dila’s head:

☆ Master... why not summon two or three golems? You’ve done that before, haven’t you? ☆

Dila’s eye twitched. She smiled stiffly, sweat sliding down her cheek.

"Hahaha... a-a fair fight, right? I mean, c-come on. One-on-one, honorable match and all that..."

☆ You’re hiding something. ☆

"I’m not—!"

☆ Master. ☆

"...Okay okay fine!" she whispered in a flustered panic. "It’s not that I won’t. I can’t!"

☆ ...Elaborate. ☆

"I can’t control multiple golems properly without draining myself dry– without using any power potions! Remember that masked elf fight? I only managed to use a full squad because I drink that power potions we rushingly crafted."

☆ ohh...yeah.... you.. you, have a point ☆

Dila ignored her.

"And before that—back when we first got yeeted into this world—I couldn’t even control a single golem properly! Remember the black giant scorpion?! I summoned multiple golems without power buff and it got wrecked like a paper puppet!"

☆ ...Sigh. Confirmed. You’re still unstable. ☆

"I prefer the term ’developing prodigy,’ thank you," Dila muttered with a pout.

Earthrea groaned again, dropping to one knee. Dila gritted her teeth, staff trembling in her hand.

"Guess we’ll have to make this one count..."

As Earthrea trembled under Evos’s pressure, Dila narrowed her eyes, still gripping her Archane staff tightly like a cane of stubborn pride.

☆ Master, ☆ Nari chimed with a slight scoff, ☆ Isn’t your Bloom Flair spell still in effect? ☆

Dila blinked. "Yeah, it’s working..." she muttered while casually inspecting her slightly glowing golem. "It’s just not powerful enough to keep up with that muscle-jerk’s punches. Feels like trying to block a boulder with a wet napkin."

☆ Hmph, ☆ Nari grumbled, her voice soft but sassy. ☆ Maybe someone shouldn’t have cast a flashy buff with a name like ’Bloom Flair chain’ if it was just going to tickle the enemy. ☆

Dila rolled her eyes. "Excuse me for starter it works but i never thought it can only give a small amount of effect without me consuming any power potions, plus I’m not trying to sound like a fancy and majestic, while casting. What did you expect me to call it, Mild Enhancement Sparkle Mode?"

☆ Honestly, that would be more accurate. ☆

She sighed dramatically, raising her staff and speaking under her breath.

"Well, at least it’s doing something. Even if it’s just... almost a moral support."

Earthrea blocked another strike and staggered back, cracks growing across its arms.

Dila whispered through clenched teeth, "Alright, Bloom Flair chaine, baby—hang in there. Don’t let that macho meathead break my only tank!"

☆ You sure you don’t wanna rename it to Flimsy Flower Mode before it shatters? ☆

"Nari, I swear I’ll uninstall you when we get home."

☆ Joke’s on you—I am home. ☆

(Dang girl.) Sigh.

Dila just grumbled, flicking her staff forward and shouting, "Earthrea, don’t you dare fall apart now! At least survive until I figure out how to cheat!"

Evos heard what dila was cheering about and than he laughed like a villain in a wrestling match, his massive fists slamming down again and again on Earthrea’s rocky frame.

BAM! BAM! BAM!

Dust and obsidian stone chips flew everywhere.

"Hahaha! Just look at your toy now, little girl!" Evos grinned wide, his knuckles steaming. "It’s already turning into marinated chicken!"

He gritted his teeth and smashed both fists down together.

CRACK!

Earthrea’s body dented more at the back, its knees buckling, its arms trembling.

☆ Integrity: 50%

Warning: Earthrea stability compromised ☆

Dila flinched. "O-Ohh ohh ohh... What do I do? What do I do?!"

She opened her status window mid-panic, flicking her fingers as fast as she could.

Name: Dila

Race: Elf

Class: Support Mage – Alchemist

Mana: 1007 / 2500 slowly depleted

Health: 16,530 / 25,000 slowly depleted bleeding

Level: 25

System Buddy: Nari

Passive Skills:

Eavesdrop

Cascade Shield

Instinct Cascade Shield- status: unusable at this point.

Usable skill spells:

Bloom Flair Chaine - status: Active

Active Skill: Earthrea – Summons earth golems

Auto Equipment:

Auto-repair enchanted clothes (other worldly clothe unique.)

She kept swiping.

"Oh come on, come on, I need something stronger!"

Then—

A hidden arrow icon blinked.

→Swipe the Bonus Skill

☆ "Oh? I forgotten about that bonus skill master" ☆

She tapped it.

Skill: Brave Aura

Temporarily boosts allies’ attack power and strengthens their will to fight.

Her eyes sparkled.

Dila: "Oh. OH. I knew I forgot something important!!"

Nari blinked.

☆ You had a high-tier combat support skill this whole time and... just forgot it existed?! ☆

Dila whispered while sweating, "I panicked okay! The dude was turning my golem into a punching bag with seasoning!"

☆ ...Fair. ☆

She raised her Archane Staff, the white shaft glowing as its orbiting shards began to spin faster like planetary rings under pressure.

She slammed it down once with a sharp ping.

"Let’s turn this chicken back into fried meatballs."

A blue aura exploded outward.

Brave Aura: ACTIVATED!

Earthrea’s crumbling body froze...

Then its blue eyes turning into red and flared back to life.

The stone around its arms crackled and reformed like magma cooling into armor.

Its fists clenched—tighter, stronger, faster.

"Integrity stabilizing," Nari reported.

"Willpower surge... detected."

Evos stepped back half a foot. "What the hell is this?"

Dila pointed her staff. "You were right, Evos."

She smiled sharply.

"My toy’s been too polite."

Earthrea suddenly charged.

A punch flew—lightning fast.

SMASH!

Straight into Evos’ gut.

The crowd gasped as Evos skidded back, feet grinding against obsidian, coughing dust.

"Guh—!"

Dila, still half-bruised, twirled her staff.

"You like punching? Let’s see how you handle mine."

☆ WARNING: Earthrea has exceeded recommended combat limits due to Brave Aura!

Status: UNSTABLE. AGGRESSIVE MODE TRIGGERED. ☆

Nari’s voice rang in Dila’s mind like a siren.

☆ Master! Your golem is no longer under precise control! It’s gone full bull-mode! ☆

Dila’s eyes widened. "Wait—what?!"

She turned just in time to see Earthrea’s glowing blue eyes has now continued flickering red. An ominous crackle of mana pulsed from its joints.

BOOM!!

The golem launched itself forward, breaking through a small section of the arena floor with sheer force. Dust exploded behind its back like a cannon just fired.

"GRRAAAAHHH!!" Earthrea roared in its low rumbling voice.

SMASH!

It punched with its left. Then its right. Then its left again, each strike a meteor crashing down.

Evos—the brutal, smug muscle giant—was now barely keeping up. He blocked one hit with his forearm, grunted at the next, ducked the third—and finally, his boots skidded back along the obsidian floor.

"Impossible!" he growled. His thick arms swung up again to defend his face. "This power... this isn’t a toy anymore—it’s a beast!"

The arena roared with cheers.

"GO LITTLE GIRL!!"

"YEAHHH PUNCH HIM AGAIN!"

"WHO GAVE THAT KID A TOY GUNDAM?!"

The once-dismissive adventurers were now on their feet, hands in the air, cheering like it was a festival brawl.

Fran clapped excitedly near the stands, her cat ears flicking with joy.

"Woooow! Sister Dila’s golem is amazing!! I didn’t know she had that kind of power!"

Sarios exhaled and sat down more properly on the bench, arms crossed but finally relaxing.

"...Guess she really does know what she’s doing," he muttered, a half-smile curling on his face. "Sort of."

Meanwhile, up above, the Guild Master stood frozen.

"No... no no no!" he sputtered, pulling at his fancy curtain at the side. "My Evos! My greater fighter! He’s getting pushed—by a twig and her... magic rock toy!?"

He pinched his mustache violently. "That golem was just supposed to be a shield, not a demon brawler in rock form!!"

Back in the arena, Dila nervously scratched her cheek.

"...Heh. So uh... Nari?"

☆ Yes, Master? ☆

"Is this safe?"

☆ Not even a little. ☆

"Cool," Dila deadpanned.

She looked at the wild golem spiraling into battle berserk mode and sighed.

"Well, at least he’s not punching me, yeah...?" she deadpanned again.

Suddenly ...

BOOM!

SMASH!

CRACK!

The sound of stone fists against flesh echoed like thunder.

Evos—once the towering menace of the underground ring—was no longer the one delivering punishment.

He was taking it. All of it.

Each blow from Earthrea drilled into him like a battering ram forged from the heart of the mountain itself. Left to the gut—

OOF!

Right to the ribs—

ARGHH!

A sharp jab to the jaw—

KRK!

His legs buckled, his footing shattered. His hulking body lurched, twitching from impact after impact.

And then came the final punch.

FWOOM!

Earthrea’s right arm coiled back with trembling power. Dust vibrated off its rock knuckles. The red glow in its eyes surged to a flash.

Evos barely had time to raise a hand—

"Grraahh—!"

THWACK!!!

The punch connected square on his jaw with a bone-rattling shockwave. His head snapped sideways, his body lifted an inch from the ground, spinning slightly midair as his limbs flailed.

He flew—launched like a broken doll—and slammed into the obsidian wall.

KA-KRACK!!!

Stone cracked. Dust rose. A tremor shook the entire arena.

But Earthrea didn’t move.

Its stone body stood frozen in the final pose—right arm extended, fist clenched mid-air, just hovering where the punch ended.

The massive golem looked like a statue of victory.

The air around its still fist shimmered with residual mana like heatwaves.

Its fingers were still trembling from the force, dust flaking off its knuckles.

Its red eyes dimmed slightly... but still locked on its target.

Everyone stared in silence.

Evos’s body slowly slid from the cratered wall and dropped to the floor with a thud, limbs limp, eyes spinning.

He groaned faintly, "Ughhh... w-what the hell was that..."

From above, someone in the crowd whispered, awe in their voice,

"...That golem didn’t just punch him... it submitted a resignation letter to his face."

Fran’s eyes sparkled. "That was... so cool."

Sarios muttered, "Remind me never to argue with Dila again."

And Dila, still holding her Archane staff, cracked a weak smile.

She pointed lazily at the still-posed Earthrea.

"...Someone take a photo. That’s going in my memory forever."

Even Nari chimed in sweetly:

☆ New pose unlocked: ’One-Punch Statue Mode!’ ☆

Dila laughed softly and said under her breath,

"...Hehe. Not bad, Earthrea."

The crowd erupted into cheers.

And the Guild Master?

He stared, mouth agape, beard trembling.

"...My Evos..." he whispered in disbelief.