Lucas's eyes locked onto the scarred woman leading the Legion soldiers.

Analyze.

[Target: Veronica Bavres]

[Rank: Iron (Mid-Stage)]

[Position: Legion Leader]

[Affiliation: The Legion - Eastern Division]

[Notable Abilities: ???]

[Threat Level: EXTREME]

[Description: A veteran Legion operative who has survived countless battles. Known for her ruthless efficiency and peculiar combat abilities. Has personally killed over three hundred enemies in service to the Legion's cause.]

Lucas's remembered the Legion's hierarchy: Head at the top, then Generals, Majors, Captains, Vice Captains, Leaders, and finally Grunts at the bottom.

This woman was a Leader, three ranks above a basic grunt, and she was Iron rank.

Her soldiers were all Copper rank, which meant they completely outclassed everyone in the group except...

Lucas glanced at Damion and Zacard, both already in combat stances. They were Copper rank, the only ones in the group who had formed mana cores.

Of course they have, Lucas thought. They're protagonist and rival. Different rules apply to them.

For everyone else, it was illegal to form a core before sixteen. The body simply couldn't handle the strain: the mana channels weren't developed enough, the skeletal structure wasn't ready.

Attempting it early usually resulted in the core destabilizing and the person exploding from the inside out.

Even after sixteen, the academy strongly discouraged students from forming cores before completing their first year of theoretical study.

The reasoning was sound: a blank slate could be molded more easily, taught proper techniques without having to unlearn bad habits formed from self-teaching.

But Damion and Zacard clearly hadn't followed those guidelines.

"Damion, she's Iron rank!" Lucas shouted. "Be careful!"

Damion didn't acknowledge the warning. He was already moving, his golden blade cutting through the air in a blindingly fast arc aimed at Veronica's throat.

The attack should have ended the fight instantly.

Instead, Veronica simply raised her hand.

Her fingers didn't even touch the blade. She stopped it with what looked like pure willpower, the golden light halting inches from her palm as if it had hit an invisible wall.

"Interesting," Veronica said calmly. "A soul weapon at your age. You must be quite talented."

She flicked her wrist, and Damion went flying backward, his feet skidding across the cobblestones as he struggled to maintain balance.

"Now," Veronica said, her smile widening. "Kill them all. Except the boy with the golden sword. The Legion would love to study him."

Her grunts surged forward from both sides

Whoosh!

Lucas barely got his stolen sword up in time to block the first strike.

The impact jarred his arm, nearly making him drop the weapon.

I'm going to die, Lucas thought. This guy is Copper rank and I'm still Common rank. This isn't even close to fair.

To his left, Raymond was already on the ground, his sword knocked away, scrambling backward as a Legion soldier advanced on him.

Charlotte screamed as another soldier grabbed her arm, yanking her forward.

Then Zacard was there, his lightning spear pierced through the soldier threatening Raymond. The man convulsed and fell.

"Stay together!" Zacard shouted.

He was already moving to intercept the soldier holding Charlotte.

Marie and Lydia were fighting back-to-back, their movements surprisingly coordinated for people without combat training.

Marie was using her dagger defensively. She was blocking and deflecting rather than attacking. Lydia was doing something similar. She probably learned it from Marie.

Celeste moved ruthlessly. She wasn't as skilled as Damion or Zacard, but she was surprisingly skilled.

I guess she wasn't lying. She's had training, Lucas thought. Serious training.

Lucas's opponent pressed the attack, forcing him backward. The soldier was toying with him, Lucas could tell.

Any of those strikes could have been fatal if the man wanted.

"System," Lucas thought, "any suggestions?"

[Host should use Intimidating Presence to create an opening, then aim for the eyes. Copper rank or not, everyone has weak points.]

Lucas gritted his teeth and activated the skill.

[Skill Activated: Intimidating Presence]

[Duration: 30 seconds]

The change was so drastic that even a ruthless killer like his opponent actually hesitated.

That split second was all Lucas needed.

He hurriedly grabbed a handful of dirt and directly into the soldier's face.

The man stumbled back. He was temporarily blinded.

"Lydia, now!" Lucas shouted.

Lydia threw her dagger and the blade buried itself in the soldier's throat.

The man gurgled and collapsed.

One down. Five to go, not counting Veronica.

Two more soldiers turned toward Lucas after seeing what he'd done.

Sh*t.

Then something happened

Charlotte, timid, quiet Charlotte raised her hands.

"Shield!" She shouted.

A shimmering barrier of golden light materialized between Lucas and the approaching soldiers.

It wasn't large, maybe six feet across, but it was solid.

"I... I can't hold it long!" Charlotte said.

"You don't have to!" Damion appeared from above, having somehow gotten onto a rooftop.

His golden blade extended impossibly long and killed both soldiers in one strike.

Two more down. Three soldiers remaining, plus Veronica who was watching the fight with an amused expression.

The remaining three soldiers regrouped. They formed a triangle formation, protecting each other's backs while looking for openings.

"Marie, Lydia, with me!" Zacard called out. "We're going to try something risky!"

The three of them moved together. Zacard thrust his spear forward. The soldiers moved to dodge...

And that's when Marie threw her dagger, not at the soldiers but at a pile of crates stacked against the alley wall.

The crates toppled, spilling their contents, some kind of oil or alcohol from the smell, across the cobblestones.

Lydia had somehow retrieved her thrown dagger and was already moving.

She struck her blade against the ground and ignited.

Fire erupted across the ground.

The soldiers tried to dodge, but Zacard's lightning provided the perfect conductor.

Two of the three soldiers went down screaming.

The third managed to leap clear, but he landed badly and his ankle twisted with a loud crack.

Damion didn't give him a chance to recover.

His golden blade flashed once, and the soldier fell.

All six grunts were down.

But Veronica was still standing.

"Impressive," she said, slowly clapping her hands. "Truly impressive. You managed to kill trained Copper rank soldiers despite most of you being Core-less civilians.

Although they were merely mind controlled mercenaries who could only use 1/8 of their full power, it's still impressive. The Legion could use talent like yours."

No wonder it was so easy.

"We're not interested," Damion said.

"Oh, I wasn't offering recruitment." Veronica said. "I was just making conversation before I kill you all."

She took a step forward and suddenly there were two of her.

Lucas blinked. No, that wasn't right. It wasn't an illusion or afterimage.

There were literally two Veronica Bavres standing in the alley.

Then there were four.

Then eight.

"My special ability," all eight voices said in perfect unison. "Perfect Self-Replication. Each copy has exactly the same strength, speed, and skill as the original. Can you tell which one is real? Does it even matter?"

[Current situation: Catastrophically dangerous. Probability of Host's death: 94%]

"We're fucked, aren't we?" Lucas said to no one in particular.

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