"Surrender," Raiden commanded, his voice cutting into the man's mind like a sharp whisper, who didn't even noticed that Raiden voice came straight into his mind.
The man let out a harsh, mocking laugh. "Hah! That's not going to happen." Electricity surged around his body, intensifying around his hands and feet.
With a burst of speed, he launched himself off the walls, bounding between them like a lightning bolt, rapidly closing the distance to Raiden's altitude.
Raiden's eyes narrowed as he assessed the incoming attack. In an instant, he activated three abilities simultaneously—Agility, Calm Mind, and Laser Focus. His movements sharpened, his mind steadied, and his precision locked in.
The moment the man lunged toward him, Raiden twisted midair, narrowly dodging. With fluid precision, he countered with a Psyshock, his psychic energy striking the man's back and slamming him into the pavement once more.
Raiden didn't let up. He extended his hand, focusing on the energy forming in his palm. "Let's test this new thing in real combat," he muttered, watching as a swirling mass of black energy began to condense in his grasp. Unlike his usual psychic attacks, this one felt different—darker, heavier.
"Shadow Ball."
The orb shot forward at blistering speed, leaving a faint trail of eerie energy in its wake. The man, August, barely had time to react before the attack struck him dead-on. The explosion sent him hurtling through the street, crashing into another alley with enough force to break the pavement multiple times before coming into an stop.
Nearby pedestrians screamed and fled in all directions. Dust and debris filled the air.
August groaned, trying to push himself up. His arms trembled from the impact, blood trickling from fresh wounds. His muscles were swollen and throbbing painfully.
His mind raced.
'I was supposed to be stronger. How… how is this happening? what hero is this?'
He clenched his teeth, watching Raiden approach with an unwavering, relentless stare. August knew now—if this fight continued like this, he would lose without a doubt, the kid was stronger than him, for a lot.
"The emergency kit…" he muttered under his breath before turning sharply and sprinting away.
But Raiden was fast. Too fast.
August couldn't afford to run into populated areas—maybe more heroes could be lurking. He frantically searched his pockets while maintaining his speed, fingers fumbling until they closed around a small, black metal box.
He didn't hesitate.
Flipping it open mid-stride, he pulled out a syringe filled with a swirling, blue-purple liquid.
A serum.
A voice echoed in his mind—the words of the person who had given it to him.
"This is a prototype, it can have ugly side effects, to not have them… Mental strength is fundamental to the process, use it only in emergency cases."
Without a second thought, August plunged the needle into his leg, injecting the substance directly into his bloodstream.
The effect was immediate.
Dark purple veins spread rapidly across his neck and face, his body trembling as he fought against the wave of dizziness threatening to pull him under. His vision blurred for a moment, his knees nearly buckling.
Then, his senses sharpened.
His breathing steadied.
And as Raiden closed the gap, mere feet away—August moved.
In a blink, he reappeared right in front of Raiden, his fist surging forward in a devastating strike aimed directly at the young hero's face.
Raiden's eyes widened as he saw the sudden shift in August—not in appearance, but in sheer speed. The man moved in an instant, closing the gap between them like a blur.
Acting on instinct, Raiden clenched his fist and countered with a Mega Punch.
The impact was devastating. The collision of their strikes sent a shockwave rippling through the street, shaking windows and rattling signs. Both fighters were launched backward from the force. Raiden twisted midair, using his agility to control his trajectory before landing smoothly.
August, on the other hand, crashed onto the pavement again, his body skidding several meters before grinding to a halt. Yet, to Raiden's surprise, the man recovered almost instantly, rising to his feet with eerie ease. A thin trail of blood dripped from his knuckles, but he barely seemed to notice.
Raiden flexed his fingers. His body had taken no significant damage, but his arm throbbed with a deep, numbing sensation—residual electricity from the clash.
'This man... don't tell me he's like the ones from the hotel.!?'
But as Raiden studied him further, he realized something was different.
Unlike the woman he had encountered at the hotel, this man wasn't losing control. His form remained unchanged, and the dark veins spreading across his skin were already beginning to fade. Instead of struggling against the effects, he stood firm—composed, even confident.
A smirk curled at the edges of August lips.
"They perfected the method, didn't they?" Raiden asked, attempting to pull some extra information from him. But the man remained silent, with his eerie grin refusing to fade.
Raiden's expression hardened.
'Kaina, they're using some drug to enhance their quirks. I think they're connected to the hotel incident. I'm sending the info now.'
With a swift thought, he relayed the message to Lady Nagant. At the same time, he used his telekinesis to activate his helmet's recording function, transmitting a live feed to Detective Kumawara.
No sooner had he finished than August launched himself forward once again. But this time, Raiden was ready.
With a flick of his wrist, he sent a Swift attack straight at the man. The glowing projectiles streaked toward their target, but Agustín deflected them with an arc of crackling electricity. While the attack failed to deal damage, it gave Raiden exactly what he needed—a moment's distraction.
Seizing the opportunity, he shot upward into the air, Energy swirled in his palm as he formed another Shadow Ball, the black sphere of pulsing black energy.
Just as he released the attack, it detonated midair a couple of feet way from the man, bursting apart in a sudden explosion.
A cold sensation crept down his spine. His eyes darted downward—and there stood August, unfazed, with two Electro Balls crackling ominously in his hands.
"You're not the only one who can fight at a distance," August sneered before hurling both orbs straight at Raiden.
Reacting instantly, Raiden countered with two Shadow Balls of his own. The attacks collided in midair, creating twin explosions that lit up the night sky. Smoke and sparks rained down over the battlefield.
But Raiden wasn't finished.
Before Agustín could regain his footing, Raiden unleashed two consecutive Swift attacks. The golden stars shot forward, striking the man square in the chest with pinpoint accuracy. The impact sent him flying backward.
Raiden didn't waited.
He rushed forward at high speed, closing the distance in seconds. Before Agustín could even touch the ground, Raiden struck again—this time with a combined Confusion and Psyshock attack.
The psychic energy slammed into August like a wrecking ball, launching him down the block. He crashed hard, rolling to a stop in the middle of the street.
The city was quiet. Late at night, the streets were mostly deserted—no civilians to worry about.
August lay there, groaning, his chest rising and falling in ragged breaths. The relentless barrage of attacks had left him battered and gasping for air.
Seeing the man battered and struggling to breathe, Raiden gave him one last chance.
"Surrender," he demanded, with a firm voice as he floated above August.
But the man only smirked, dismissing the offer with a slow shake of his head.
"Surrender? Never," he spat. "Do you have any idea what's happened to me? My Quirk used to be garbage—just a few weak sparks, barely enough to light up a room. And now? Now I can go toe-to-toe with a damn hero. Why would I give that up? I won't betray my boss. He's the one guiding us, he is like a father to me."
Raiden frowned at the way he spoke—almost reverent, like a fanatic clinging to a prophecy.
"What are you guys, some kind of apostles in a cult?" he asked, keeping his stance firm.
It wasn't the first time he'd heard members of this organization talk about their leader in such a way. There was an unsettling devotion in their words, an almost religious zeal. And if there was one thing Raiden knew, it was that blind faith in a man like this was dangerous.
The villain laughed, the sound rough and unhinged. "An apostle? Me? Hah! That's way too much credit. I'm just a follower and a witness of what our boss can do—nothing more."
Raiden studied him carefully. "He's more talkative than before. That drug is still affecting him.?.."
If that was the case, he could use it to his advantage.
"Then I'm guessing the one with four arms—that guy—he's someone who actually fits the apostle category, doesn't he?" Raiden asked, keeping his expression neutral while closely watching the man's reaction.
The villain chuckled again, a knowing gleam in his eyes. "Hah, yeah… that guy's a real lunatic, ah, I told him to not keep looking for you guys, it was obvious you were going to figure it out, but for some reason, he changed two months ago. But whatever, I wouldn't worry about him right now if I were you."
His smirk widened as electricity crackled between his fingertips.
"Not when there's someone of his caliber even closer."
Without warning, he attacked again.
Twin arcs of electricity surged toward Raiden, taking the shape of football-sized spheres. The air around them crackled with energy, the pavement beneath them scorching from the sheer heat.
Raiden reacted instantly. He twisted his body, deflecting one of the strikes with a quick burst of telekinetic force while narrowly dodging the other. But the villain didn't stop—he kept hurling electric projectiles one after another, his power seemingly endless.
Raiden kept blocking the attacks, deflecting some with his own abilities, but the man showed no signs of slowing down. It was as if his energy had no limits. Then again, the villain probably thought the same about Raiden.
But something was off.
Unlike the others who had attacked the hotel earlier, this man still wasn't showing any signs of exhaustion. In fact, he seemed to be getting stronger. His posture was more upright, his movements sharper. Even his skin looked smoother, his face more youthful—almost like he was reversing the effects of time itself.
Raiden's jaw tightened. He had suspected they were using his blood for something, but seeing it firsthand, watching this man with unnatural vitality, filled him with cold, simmering rage, and mostly with a question, if it was his blood why the fuck it did worked that way with himself?.
And to make it worse, the bastard didn't even care about the destruction he was causing, well it wasn't like Raiden was being too careful either.
Raiden exhaled sharply, lifting both hands as power surged through his fingertips. He whispered two words.
"Ancient Power."
The ground trembled in response. Five massive stones erupted from beneath the battlefield, each as large as a boulder, crackling with energy as they hurtled toward the enemy.
The villain didn't flinch. Instead of dodging, he charged forward, slamming into one of the stones head-on, letting the other four pass by him—at least, that's what he thought.
Raiden smirked. 'Big mistake.'
With a flick of his fingers, he redirected the trajectory of the flying stones. In an instant, all five converged on the man, smashing into him with devastating force. The ground split open beneath him as he was buried under layers of rock, vanishing from sight.
Raiden exhaled, catching his breath.
"Shit… I didn't kill him, did I?" he muttered, staring at the pile of rubble where his opponent had disappeared.
But his worry didn't last long.
A low hum of electricity crackled beneath the debris, and then—BOOM!
The rocks shattered as bolts of lightning surged outward. From the dust and destruction, the villain emerged, his entire body wrapped in a new, more defined lightning armor.
His legs had transformed into jagged, golden talons, crackling with raw energy. His arms and chest glowed with shifting arcs of electricity, forming an almost organic exoskeleton. Even wings, made of pure lightning, had sprouted from his back, flickering like a storm barely contained.
He let out a breathless laugh, exhilarated.
"Hahaha… I felt it! Now I understand why Edward is like this…" His grin widened, eyes wild with revelation. "This power—it doesn't stop growing."
Raiden's eyes narrowed. Edward.
That was a name. A crucial piece of information.
And it was all he needed. That was the director's name.
This was enough. Enough to launch a full-scale attack against the organization. Enough to end this madness once and for all.
End of the chapter.
l