CHAPTER 166: PROTECTOR

Lucen pulled. Not physically, magically. Mana poured from every thread in his body, pooling in his core before lashing down his arms and into the sword.

Flame burst along the steel, not orange now, but white. The heat boiled the air around him, his vision narrowing to the monster’s glaring eyes.

The system pinged, not in warning—almost in approval.

[SSS-Class Output Detected]

[User Rank Override — True Potential Partially Unlocked]

Lucen’s stomach clenched at the word "override." But the sword didn’t feel heavy anymore. It felt right.

He vanished.

No, that’s not right, he moved. But faster than his eyes could track. The stone under his first step shattered from the force, sending a shockwave through the arena.

The monster’s head was still turning when Lucen’s blade carved across its neck. Mana flared like lightning under skin, burning through muscle and vein.

It reeled back, screeching. He didn’t give it a second to recover.

Strike across the other side of the neck.

Strike through the plated foreleg.

Strike straight up the middle of its chest, splitting armor like it was wet paper.

The Rift’s molten light spilled across the wounds, steam rising in thick curls.

The creature staggered, tail flailing wildly. Lucen’s body ducked and weaved without him thinking, each movement syncing perfectly with the sword’s arc.

[Hybrid Form: Spell-Surge Blade — Mastery Progression 12% → 34%]

’Not now.’

He stepped in, blade low. Mana gathered again, but not just flame, he pulled arcane pressure, that humming static from his earlier test, and forced it to the edge. The sword’s glow shifted, blue and white intertwining.

The system pinged again.

[Custom Technique Stored: Rift Sever]

[Output: Unstable — Do not attempt without proper stabilization]

Lucen grinned. "Yeah, that’s not happening."

He lunged. The blade punched into the monster’s chest, right where the mana node pulsed brightest. Energy surged up the steel, tearing through its body like a detonating spell.

The light burst from the creature’s back, molten lines ripping up toward its head before exploding in a soundless flash.

The thing’s roar cut off mid-breath.

For a second, it stood, then collapsed like its bones had been stolen. The Rift behind it sputtered, edges fracturing, mana bleeding out in twisting arcs before sealing shut with a final shudder.

Lucen’s sword dimmed.

His arms ached. His breath came in uneven pulls. But the arena was quiet.

Too quiet.

[Boss Entity: Eliminated]

[Rank Evaluation: Impossible]

[Estimated Threat Level: SSS]

[System Note: This engagement log will not be visible to outside monitors.]

Lucen exhaled sharply, rolling his shoulder. "Covering for me again, huh?"

No answer, obviously. But the flicker in the system’s text almost looked smug.

He sheathed the sword, though the heat radiating from it still burned against his side, and walked toward the corpse. Steam hissed from the wounds, the smell of scorched hide and molten stone thick in the air.

No movement.

No pulse of mana.

Dead.

Lucen crouched low, pressing two fingers to the cracked armor where the core should’ve been. It was gone, destroyed in the surge.

"Good. One less thing to come back and bite me later."

He stood, only then noticing the cratered state of the arena floor. Whole sections were gone, tiles split, walls bowed outward from the force of the strikes.

’Yeah. Definitely can’t let them see this.’

The system pulsed again.

[Quest Complete: Solo Annihilation]

[Rewards Allocated: +3.4 Strength | +2.7 Agility | +1.9 Intelligence | New Passive — Surge Control (Lvl 1)]

Lucen smiled faintly. ’Surge control? That might keep my arms from turning to jelly next time.’

He turned for the exit, boots crunching over broken stone. The safe room would be calling his name soon enough—along with food, water, and maybe ten hours of pretending his bones weren’t trying to unionize.

Still... he couldn’t stop the thought that crept in as the door hissed shut behind him.

’If this was a warm-up... what’s coming next?’

—

The corpse still steamed behind him, but Lucen’s boots froze mid-step when a sound cut through the quiet.

Not the grinding stone or cooling metal.

A voice. Weak. Too close to the Rift for comfort.

He turned his head toward the collapsed east wall.

Another sound. A cough, wet, ragged.

’Great. Just when I thought I could clock out.’

Lucen hopped over a chunk of stone, slipping through the jagged opening where the blast had blown half the wall away. The air here was worse, dust hanging heavy, every breath tasting like iron and ash.

The corridor beyond looked like a war zone. What had been smooth tile was now a mess of fractured slabs. Light from the dying Rift leaked through the cracks, painting the walls in orange streaks.

Then he saw movement.

A man slumped against the wall, clothes torn to shreds, one leg bent wrong. Blood smeared down his temple, but his eyes were open, barely.

Lucen crouched in front of him. "You’re not supposed to be in here."

The man’s lips moved, but nothing came out except a hiss of air.

Lucen’s system pinged.

[Detected: Civilian — Critical condition]

[Recommendation: Stabilize within 4 minutes or fatal outcome 93%]

’So much for a quick exit.’

He pressed two fingers against the guy’s neck, weak pulse, fading fast. The leg was the worst part. Not just broken, shattered. That was gonna be a problem.

Lucen pulled his pack off and dug for a vial. Not a healing potion, that’d fix the bleeding but not the fact that the bone was basically gravel. Instead, he fished out a slim crystal injector. Expensive as hell. Bought one just because he figured someday he’d regret not having it.

"Lucky day for you," he muttered, slotting it against the man’s arm.

The injector hissed, light pulsing through it before fading. The man flinched, then slumped further, but Lucen checked, breathing was a little steadier.

[Stabilization: 41%]

"Still not great."

He glanced down the corridor. No more roars, no movement, but the ceiling didn’t look like it had any plans to stay up for long.

Lucen slung the man’s arm over his shoulder and stood. His legs protested under the extra weight, mana drain from the fight still chewing through his reserves. But he didn’t slow down.

Each step sent pebbles skittering. Twice, he had to duck as loose stone crashed down from above.

The man stirred once. "...my wife..."

Lucen’s jaw tightened. "Not here. I’ll get you out first."

They made it back into the arena. Or what was left of it. Most of the edges were rubble now, the air shimmering with leftover mana haze. He kept his eyes forward. If he looked back at the mess he’d made, he’d start thinking about how much the Guild would fine him if they found out.

The exit doors groaned when he shoved them open with his shoulder. Cool air hit him like water, washing out the stink of burnt scale.

"Hey!" a voice called from the far side of the hall. Boots pounded against tile, and a group of lower-ranked Hunters came into view, archers and a pair of spear users.

One of them, a tall woman with her hair in a messy braid, frowned at him. "What the hell—where did you come from? That section was locked—"

"Was," Lucen said. "Not anymore. Monster’s dead. This guy needs a medic."

They blinked at him like he’d just claimed to have killed a dragon with a spoon.

The braided woman’s eyes narrowed. "...you?"

Lucen tilted his head. "You see anyone else carrying an unconscious man?"

She opened her mouth, closed it, and finally muttered, "Right. Give him here."

Lucen adjusted his grip and passed the man off. The spearmen helped lower him onto a makeshift stretcher, one muttering about the "absolute mess" in the arena.

Lucen kept his tone flat. "Yeah, sorry. Floor lost a fight with my boots."

One of the archers glanced back at him, brow furrowed. "You’re not injured?"

Lucen shrugged. "Not my blood."

They didn’t push further, too busy hauling the civilian out toward the main transport hall.

Lucen lingered just inside the doorway, leaning against the wall. His system pinged softly in the back of his mind, listing the mission completion bonuses alongside a new, blinking note.

[Hidden Objective Complete: Civilian Rescue]

[Reward: +150% XP gain next dungeon run]

’Well. Guess I’ll take that.’

He pushed off the wall and started toward the nearest washroom. Blood, none of it his, had dried along his forearms. The faint burn of mana strain lingered in his muscles.

Halfway down the hall, another cough echoed—this one from behind a collapsed section near the stairs.

’You’ve gotta be kidding me.’

He considered walking away. The smart move would be to let the cleanup teams handle it. That’s what they got paid for. But the system pinged again.

[Detection: Secondary life signature — Weak]

Lucen sighed and turned back.

—

The stairs to the mezzanine were barely standing, but he climbed them anyway, keeping a hand on the rail in case the whole thing decided to fold. Up here, the air was cooler, less Rift heat, but filled with the sharp smell of ozone.

A small figure sat wedged between two fallen beams, knees pulled to their chest. A kid, maybe ten. Clothes torn, face streaked with grime. Eyes wide, unfocused.

Lucen stopped a few feet away, crouching. "You hurt?"

The kid flinched, then nodded toward their ankle. Swollen, but not broken.

"Alright," Lucen said, reaching out a hand. "I’ll get you out. You can walk?"

They hesitated, glancing past him toward the arena below. "It’s gone?"

"Yeah," Lucen said. "Dead and ugly."

The faintest smile twitched at the corner of their mouth before they reached for him. He pulled them free of the beams, carefully, since their ankle was clearly bad—and slung them onto his back.

The trip down was slower this time. Every creak in the stairs made the kid tighten their grip around his neck.

"You a Hunter?" they asked.

Lucen smirked. "Part-time. Mostly I do janitorial work for angry lizards."

The kid made a noise halfway between a laugh and a cough.

At the bottom, the medics from earlier spotted him again. The braid-woman stared at the kid, then back at him. "...how many people did you leave in there?"

Lucen stepped past her. "Apparently two."

The kid was whisked away, leaving Lucen standing in the suddenly quieter hall. His body was starting to feel the fight now, the dull, deep ache of mana burnout mixing with the very human need for food and sleep.

The system’s final ping of the day rolled through.

[Additional Bonus: "Protector" Tag Unlocked]

[Passive Effect: Increased civilian detection radius — Range 30m]

Lucen blinked at it. ’Protector? Bit dramatic.’

But when the hall finally emptied and he was left alone with the faint hum of the sealed Rift far behind him, he couldn’t help the thought that slipped in, quiet, quick, unspoken to anyone but himself.

’Guess I’ll keep it.’