Chapter 36: One Hit Knockout
Holy light enveloped Mark’s battered body, carrying powerful healing energy. His heart, which had only stopped beating moments ago, started beating once again. Mark’s body was lifted off the ground by a strange force, scaring Ron into taking several steps back.
Just a moment ago, Ron had been furious and aggressive. Now, he was trembling just as much. Unless someone gave him another life, there was no way he would try to stop Mark from coming back to life.
The holy power descending from heaven carried an overwhelming pressure that made everyone present feel the urge to kneel in worship.
But that feeling suddenly disappeared, leaving everyone confused as they instinctively turned to look at Nexus with fearful eyes.
Of course, it wasn’t Nexus who did it, but the system. It was clearly the system’s authority, yet these people had no intention of kneeling before the system, making it unhappy, so it erased the pressure that had spread while bringing Mark’s soul back.
Mark’s tightly shut eyes suddenly opened, shining with dazzling golden light. He floated in midair with his arms spread wide. His radiance completely overshadowed the moonlight, as if he were the brightest existence in the night.
The people who had been about to attack Mark just moments ago all dropped to their knees in fear. Even though the weather wasn’t cold, they felt as if they were trapped inside a freezer.
"It was my fault for being blind and offending you. Please spare my life."
"Please spare me. Please spare me!"
"My family still has an eighty-year-old mother and a newborn child. Please have mercy."
...
The miserable cries from those scruffy men reached Mark’s ears, but they couldn’t make him feel even the slightest bit of sympathy.
"Offending me? Hahahaha..."
Mark was so furious that he burst into laughter. Those people had just killed him! Could killing someone really be brushed off with a mild word like ’offending’?
The loud laughter from someone they had treated like trash just moments ago now made them tremble, not daring to raise their heads.
We’ll die... If we fight him, we’ll definitely die!
In their minds, there was nothing left now except fear and despair in the face of the absolute power radiating from Mark.
Even Ron was trembling before the man he had just killed, but he refused to let himself kneel.
Even trash like Mark never gave in until the very end, so how could he accept the humiliation of kneeling?
Ron had never experienced the greatest glory in his life, but at the very least, he wanted to die with dignity so he could shine one last time.
"Stop putting on an act! You’re just an F-rank piece of trash with unbelievably good luck. Trash like you will never kill me!"
Ron used every ounce of his willpower to stand firm against the pressure of the holy radiance. Every muscle in his body tensed up and burned, preparing for his final resistance.
"Even if I die today, I’ll die because of him, not because of a piece of trash like you who can only rely on others!"
"Arghhhh!"
With a loud roar, Ron’s courage surged. Ron’s body was covered in incredibly heavy stone, yet he still shot forward like an arrow.
The tremendous strain on his muscles continuously tore them apart. Pain spread throughout his entire body, but the constant flow of adrenaline from his brain suppressed it.
Ron felt his whole body overflowing with power, stronger than ever before. Since becoming a hunter, this was the moment Ron’s strength reached its absolute peak.
"A brainless brute like you has no right to judge me."
Mark floated in midair, calmly looking down at Ron like a fish flopping around on dry land.
The holy power flowing through his body instantly restored the confidence Mark had always possessed. He had even imagined smashing the Wolf guild headquarters with one hand, stepping on Bell’s head, while Mia cried and begged to come back to him.
"I am the true protagonist! The one chosen by fate to reach the very top."
Facing Ron’s fist, as big as his own face, tearing through the air toward him, Nexus merely smirked and raised his right hand.
No magic, no special power. Mark wanted to use the extraordinary physical strength he now possessed to casually block the attack Ron was most proud of.
It seemed he had learned from Nexus. Mark’s calm demeanor and absolute confidence right now really did look cool.
Forget Ron, even Bell took a step back to observe the situation instead of letting his guard down after seeing Mark’s presence at this moment.
"Don’t joke with me!"
With all his willpower, Ron refused to let the overwhelming radiance coming from Mark make him lose his nerve. It wasn’t that he wasn’t afraid, but he knew that the moment he wanted to back down, his strongest attack would be ruined.
The adrenaline was keeping him going for now, but it had its limits. His already damaged muscles didn’t have enough strength left to unleash another attack like this.
"Take my strongest attack!"
"Come on then, trash."
The powerful punch, carrying the force of a cannonball, slammed directly into Mark’s right palm. The terrifying impact sent a chill down the spines of the ordinary people watching.
A flash of light burst forth, making everyone watching even more tense. Their eyes were opened as wide as possible as each of them desperately tried to see the outcome of this battle.
Fragments of shattered stone flew across the sky before raining down on the spectators, who swallowed nervously.
When they finally saw what had happened, several people collapsed in terror. Their trembling legs refused every command from their brains, leaving them unable to stand back up.
They were just ordinary people who had never stepped onto a battlefield, so how could they have witnessed something this horrifying?
[...]
Even the system, which was always arrogant, fell silent for several seconds at this sight. Honestly, it hadn’t expected things to go this far.
The lower half of his body was falling from the sky, while the upper half had already been blasted away and slammed hard into the street. The impact shattered the road, leaving behind a crater covered in blood.