"How could I possibly be mocking you?" Riku didn't even care what he got from the chest; instead, he temporarily muted the system and kept his eyes fixed on Fia.
Fia was easily the strongest opponent he'd faced in days aside from Jibril. There was zero room for carelessness. If he let his guard down, he could get one-shotted.
"But it looks like getting out of here won't be so easy today…" Riku glanced around, voice casual.
"Princess, are you alright?" As Riku's words fell, loud voices erupted as several elite Werebeasts burst through the doors.
Each one radiated an intense aura, clearly among the strongest of the Werebeast tribe. Beyond the room, hundreds more stood ready, either to support or block Riku's escape.
"A human?!" The new arrivals eyed Riku suspiciously, brows furrowed.
"You really aren't going to escape that easily. I can sense your strength, but leaving here is impossible," Fia said coolly. "Why resist? Surrender and come quietly."
"That's something I can't do. If I want to leave, it's easy," Riku replied with a sudden grin, calm as ever.
With that, Riku triggered Skywalk, his lean body bursting with terrifying power, crushing the floor as he shot toward the ceiling.
His speed was so great, most Werebeasts couldn't even see him move.
"What the—?!" Every Werebeast's eyes widened. A human unleashing this kind of physical power, stronger than most of their own, was unthinkable.
"Hmph." As Riku moved, Fia's gaze sharpened. Her body cutting through the air, rocketing after him faster than even Riku.
BOOM!
A second later, Fia caught up to Riku's altitude. Her small fist shot forward, the punch booming so powerfully it shook the air, sending waves rippling out all around them.
BOOM!
Riku's eyes narrowed. He met her fist head-on, his own hand wrapped in intense Spirit energy.
KA-BOOM!
A thunderous crash rang out, like a sky-splitting explosion.
It was just two fists colliding, but the impact was cataclysmic, waves of force ripped the air apart, circles of white mist blooming where the pressure shattered the atmosphere.
Riku let out a grunt and shot back a hundred meters, barely stabilizing himself.
Clearly, Fia, the little Werebeast princess, had won that exchange.
"Your strength surpasses even the Blood Destruction of my kin. You've broken past physical limits, but I am not like my ordinary werebeast," she said, walking on air as if it was nothing.
"I noticed," Riku replied with a straight face, glancing at his bruised, swollen fist.
He'd eaten one fruit, and his body was this strong. But this princess had a body that was already near the limit, and she'd taken seven of those fruits.
Even if the effect decreased with each one, the results were ridiculous.
Right now, even without Blood Destruction, Fia's base form was four or five times stronger than a normal Werebeast using Blood Destruction.
If Riku hadn't shielded his fist with Spirit energy, that arm might've been broken or worse.
"You're strong, but I'm not weak, either." Riku's eyes sharpened.
"Gate Four: Gate of Pain—Open!" he shouted.
Instantly, a blue aura flared up around Riku, blasting out a surge of power that stirred the winds.
"What kind of power is that? It's terrifying!"
Below, the onlooking Werebeasts felt a boulder press on their chests. A human breaking the limits was shocking enough—now he was showing an even more overwhelming force.
With strength like this, only their princess could hope to match him. Anyone else was just crowd control.
But with this much power, Riku could just fly away if he wanted, no one could chase him.
"It's fine. Princess Fia is the strongest. She'll defeat that human!" Some Werebeasts tried to reassure themselves, but their instincts screamed danger. Even the elite warriors who could use Blood Destruction just watched from below, grim-faced at this level; they'd only get in the way.
"Blood Destruction? No… It's similar, but not quite the same. And this energy feels a lot like the disturbance from a few hours ago. Could it be…?" Fia's red eyes locked onto Riku, her usually cute face turning serious.
Huff—!
While Fia was still thinking, Riku suddenly exploded into action, vanishing from his spot and appearing right in front of her. He launched a punch straight at her, not holding back just because she looked like a little girl. In a fight for your life, winning is all that matters.
BOOM!
Fia's expression changed. At the last moment, she blocked with her arm, but the impact still sent her flying through the sky.
But Riku didn't let up. He pressed forward, unleashing a relentless storm of attacks like a raging typhoon.
Fia, her face tense, blocked and countered each move, barely keeping up. Up against Riku with the Gate of Pain open, Fia's regular form was struggling, stuck on the defensive.
In an instant, the sky was filled with booming explosions, the shockwaves shaking the clouds and sending pressure down on the werebeasts below. They all stared upward, stunned and anxious.
The speed was unreal, they could only see afterimages, unable to tell who was winning.
"You really are strong… but I haven't used my real power yet." After another fierce exchange, Fia's arms tingled from the impact. She spoke coldly, not backing down.
"HRAAAH!!"
Suddenly, Fia let out a shout. Blood-red energy exploded around her, even her fur turning crimson. Her presence and power surged to a terrifying new level.
"So this is Blood Destruction…" Riku narrowed his eyes, his face deadly serious.
But he didn't flinch. In the next moment, he stomped on the air, zipping straight at Fia again, launching a punch that blew apart everything in front of him.
BOOM!
Fia just raised her hand and caught the blow, her petite body not stepping back an inch!
—!
It felt like his hand was caught in a vice. Her claws, empowered by Blood Destruction, ripped through both Spirit energy and flesh, leaving bloody gashes in Riku's right hand.
THWACK!
Riku's mind raced, and he swung a kick at Fia's head, but she easily blocked it again.
A split second later, Fia's tiny fist shot out, slamming into Riku's stomach.
CRACK!
At the last moment, Riku concentrated his energy in his abdomen and took the hit head-on. Even so, his energy barrier cracked audibly, and he was sent flying like a meteor, crashing into the land far from the werebeast settlement.
BOOM!
The impact made the ground collapse, forming a crater nearly a kilometre wide.
"Man, that power's insane. If I hadn't defended, I'd be toast," Riku muttered, lying at the bottom of the pit, feeling his stomach sting.
She looked like an adorable werebeast girl, but her strength was just plain crazy.
"Riku, if you surrender, I won't kill you. In fact, I'll make you an honoured guest of the werebeasts. I'm really interested in your power." Fia's voice boomed overhead, her figure floating at the edge of the crater.
Riku's strength was unusual. If she could figure out how it worked, maybe all werebeasts could get much stronger.
"You're pretty confident, aren't you?" Riku stood up, brushed the dust off, and replied coolly.
"Gate Five: Gate of Limit—Open!" he roared.
Riku's power spiked again, his aura shifting toward blue.
He vanished from the crater. Fia's pupils shrank in alarm.
BOOM!
A moment later, Riku appeared right next to her and slammed a punch into her stomach.
GURK—!
CRACK!
The blow hit Fia hard. She let out a pained gasp, eyes wide. Her body was sent flying, crashing through a mountain in the distance and snapping it in two.
The force was so fierce, she blasted through several more peaks before finally stopping.
Mountains crumbled and the earth shook, an epic scene.
"His power got even stronger. Does this guy have no limits?" Fia steadied herself, legs buried in the rubble, clutching her stomach with blood at the corner of her mouth, completely shocked inside.
She was hurt. Sure, it was because she let her guard down, but she couldn't deny it. Riku's strength wasn't much less than her own.