Genetic Ascension

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His gaze moved toward the town. It was hard to see as the portal became larger and larger, but whatever was on the other side couldn't have been good.

'They shouldn't be hopeless… the strength of these beasts isn't enough to act with impunity. Thirty to forty strength isn't even enough to knock down a barricade door, and most guns don't need technology to work.'

Morality wasn't something that Sylas often concerned himself with. Well, more accurately, he didn't concern himself with the same arbitrary lines of morality drawn by everyone else. He hadn't even hesitated to kill humans in the Trial.

However, he had his own bottom line about certain things. If Lucius wanted to use the sacrifice of the town to establish some sort of dominance or prestige over them, which was likely where this was going, Sylas himself wouldn't feel too chipper about that.

That said, he wouldn't stop it either. Now wasn't the time to stand opposed to the Browns. So he could only comfort himself with those thoughts.

"Incoming!" Mark called out.

[Dire Wolf (F+)]

[Level: 1]

[Physical: 49]

[Mental: 13]

[Will: 21]

A trio of dire wolves charged forward, their tufts of black fur pressing against their bodies beneath the wind pressure.

They were large, standing at a meter and a half tall, and their length, even excluding their tails, was easily over two.

The extinct creature carried a speed with its enormous body that defied logic, and it closed in with untold swiftness.

"I can't block all three of them, look alive!"

Mark took a heavy step forward and thrust his shield forward. He angled it perfectly, throwing the first-in-line dire wolf into the running lane of another.

The third burst through the line, appearing before Bloom in a flash.

Bloom's spear danced, an odd sudden burst of strength rushing out from her as she thrust thrice in quick succession.

The first, aimed at the wolf's front paw, forced it to dodge swiftly to the side.

The second, aimed right at its landing spot before it could even regain its bearing, tearing into its chest.

The third swiped up and to the side, slashing into the beast's maw, opened in a bid for immediate retaliation.

'Skilled,' Sylas thought as his kunai sprung into action. They swept at the wolf's front paw as it was distracted by its pain, leaving it with just three.

The three kunai flew in a line, seemingly gathering strength from one another. When they struck, they struck at the same place continuously, eventually severing the stubborn leg as though a tough cut of meat.

Losing its balance, the wolf stumbled to one side, just in time for Bloom to follow up with another spear strike, this time right through its open maw and into its brain.

The beast collapsed while Sylas had already turned his attention to Mark's situation.

The man was about to be pincered by two enraged wolves. He propped up his shield to defend against one while he swung his ax at the head of the other.

Without the support of Aether, Mark could only use his shield in the most basic of ways. If not for this restriction, blocking those three would have been a walk in the park.

Sylas had seen the skills of a shield man before, namely from Brant. So he knew exactly how troublesome they could be to deal with. Right now, Mark was practically fighting with a hand tied behind his back.

Mark was forced back a step as the wolf collided into the shield. The sudden change forced his ax swing off the mark, leaving him a bit flustered.

Sylas frowned. 'The warriors of the Browns should be much stronger than this, what—'

His eyes widened in realization.

The strongest reliance of the Browns should be their Blade Aura, but that Gene Talent was useless without Aether. At the same time, whatever advantage of Level they had gained from the Trial was also useless because there was no Aether here.

It was likely that any stat boosts they had gained from leveling Aura, but that Gene Talent was useless without Aether. At the same time, whatever advantage of Level they had gained from up had actually regressed or atrophied, likely to only return after a steady supply of Aether was provided.

Was that why Lucius wanted this town so badly? The portal was a headache to deal with, but it was also the only thing pumping out Aether on Earth right now other than, obviously, other portals.

Not only was it worth it to deal with the hassle in this situation, but these portals would even become strategic resources.

'No, this is just a hypothesis for now. Technically speaking, the Browns' base stat limits should also be exceptional. Mark is currently fighting two wolves, so that could throw off my estimations a bit…'

On Earth, even the heavyweight boxing champion of the world wouldn't be able to fight two people at once with ease. Sylas only gained the ability to control a battlefield against multiple people at once after he gained Skills to support his battle style.

For Mark, who had grown used to fighting a certain way for the last three months, to have to adjust to a new style, it would be troublesome.

If only he could take the risk to scan their stats, then he wouldn't have to do all this guesswork.

Despite his flood of thoughts, neither Sylas nor Bloom was slow to react.

Bloom was a step slower, so Sylas' kunai rushed forward, blocking the path of the wolf before it could lunge at Mark. It was forced to dodge to the side, unwilling to get caught up.

"Mark, you fucking idiot. I swear to god if you die because of these little dogs, I'm going to piss on your grave."

Sylas blinked.

It was the first time Bloom spoke, and he thought for a moment that it was Cassarae instead. It seems he finally found someone who could give her a run for her money.

Bloom seemed to truly be pissed off. Sylas was going to act again, but he quickly found that he didn't even get the opportunity to.

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