Evolving Infinitely From An E-Class Hero-Chapter 105: Calamity At My Door
The warehouse was a mess, the concrete flooring was cratered here and there, dust still swirling like a bad omen. My knuckles twiched, if not for my incredible endurance I wouldn’t have been able to withstand the pounding I’d taken from The Apostle’s cubes.
His scarred face grinned at me from the exit of the warehouse, the same mix of glee and menace written all over him as he brushed off his torn t-shirt.
"Oi... Reno, you held back didn’t you?" He said with a clear mocking time attached to it. "No armor, sure but you didn’t even tap the full juice if the Forever Core... Next time, bring it all... Don’t insult me!"
I smirked, catching my breath. "IF there’s a next time, Apostle."
He threw his head back and laughed loudly so much that it echoed through the walls of the warehouse. "Oh, there will be, kid. Count on it!"
I rolled my shoulders, ready to head out, but he stepped closer.
"Before you go, we need to talk business...", his tone changed into something colder and deeper than before.
I squinted at him, knowing exactly what he had in mind.
"Bakuzan..." We said in unison.
"The Hero Hunter, he’s top priority for the ISA... But as it stands now, the guy’s a ghost, slipping through every way a person could be found".
"And now, it’s confirmed that he summons these Calamity Creatures like they’re his pets. He seems to be unstoppable and he’s only going to get stronger and get dirtier unless someone like you Reno, SSS-Class hero take him down... "
My jaws tightened.
Bakuzan.
The Apostle’s eyes narrowing, "Like we discussed last night, he’s not just killing heroes, he’s breaking them, stealing what makes them tick. And it seems these Calamity Creatures are heavily tied to him in one way or the other if he’s able to summon them... Viola wants him gone yesterday!"
I nodded softly while I thought of what he said, honestly it just felt like he repeated the same thing over na over again, which was understandable because that was the only thing we had on him— Bakuzan.
Before I could open my mouth to speak—
Tti-ring.
[Master, Alert: Unidentified Movement Detected]
[Tactical Swarm Drone Feed Activated]
My blood ran cold instantly, the drones I left at the apartment to watch over my Mom.
I raised a hand, silencing The Apostle mid- sentence.
"Hold up..."
I focused, and the drone’s video feed flickered into my vision.
The apartment building’s stairwell; dark l, narrow, and crawling with pale blue skin. Calamity Creatures, their bodies twisting masses of shadow and pointy claw and their black eyes glowed like a dark night.
They tore through the stairwell, ripping through the metal railing like paper, heading straight for my apartment.
I switched to the tactical swarm drone feed that was beside my mother, she was still asleep, oblivious to the eminent danger coming her way.
I felt hot blood rush throughout my body, "Bakuzan!" I growled with a low voice.
"He sent Calamity Creatures after my Mom"
"Tch! He’s crossed a line I can not forgive!"
The Apostle’s grin vanished upon hearing my words and a rare flicker of concern plastered across his face. "Need backup? I can send in a hero or—"
"No!" I snapped at him.
The Calamity Creatures were already in the building, making their way to my apartment. So, there was simply no time to spare for a hero to make any meaningful impact. Before any hero would arrive, the worst case scenario would have already happened to my Mom.
My heart pounded. This was no coincidence— Bakuzan targeting my Mom right after the train incident? Either he now has his eyes set in me or someone was pulling strings. But there was no time to play detective. Those creatures were seconds from her door and I was halfway across the Sector.
"How do I get there this instant!"
Then, it hit me. The Exchange Skill.
My new ace m which I acquired recently allows me to instantly swap places with a tactical swarm drone. No barriers, no distance.
It was the perfect way to get to Mom before those monsters did anything.
The thirty minute cool down was a risk, but I had no choice. I had to test it NOW!.
I locked eyes with The Apostle, who was watching me like he knew what was coming.
"Skill: Exchange," I said with a steady voice.
Tti-ring.
[New Skill: Exchange]
[Skill: Exchange]
Composition:
Allows vessel to switch places with a designated Tactical Swarm Drone. Both vessel and the target must not be within line of sight. The exchange is instantaneous and ignores physical barriers or distance.
Limitations:
Can only be used once every 30 mins.]
Tti-ring.
[Active Skill: Exchange.] 𝚏𝕣𝐞𝗲𝐰𝕖𝐛𝐧𝕠𝕧𝚎𝚕.𝐜𝚘𝗺
[Target: Tactical Swarm Drone #9]
My body shimmered, golden and black light swirling around me like a mini storm. The warehouse blurred from my vision as if space folded in on itself.
For a split second, I felt weightless, like I was everywhere and nowhere all at once.
Then.
Whoosh-
I was standing in the living room of the apartment, the tactical drone I swapped with zipping back to the warehouse simultaneously.
The door to the apartment rattled, I turned immediately.
Claws screeching against it as if it were alive.
My perception caught three Calamity Creatures outside, they were strong— Compass Needle strength levels were equivalent to B-Class maybe A-Class at best and their forms pulsing with that usual purple bluish aura.
My Mom was in her room, still sleeping but the front door wouldn’t hold for long.
I didn’t think, I moved.
My feet carried me to the door just as it splintered. The first creature lunged immediately it layed its eyes on me. Its claws aimed for my chest.
I side stepped, turned and drove my fist into its core.
Shriek!
It shrieked with that usual reality tearing scream and fell limp to the ground.
Tti-ring.
[Enemies Defeated ✓/3]
The second Calamity Creature came from the side, it must have slipped in while I was taking out the last one. It’s body stretched unusually like a gluey liquid.
"What kind of animal dies that..." I said to myself as I ducked, as I doged a grazing hit that burned like acid.
"Tch!"
"Skill: Regenerate."
I analyzed its pattern, it was an unusual one if I was being honest, but nonetheless it was still several times weaker than other ones I have faced in the past.
"Strike, retract, strike..." I said to myself softly.
I waited for the retract, then grabbed its arm, twisting and slamming it into the wall. Plaster cracked and it fell to the ground and its shade changed to reddish.
Tti-ring.
[Enemies Defeated: ✓✓/3]
The last one, I could tell was a little stronger than the rest, it moved intelligently looming in the stairwell, twice my size, its body a writhing mass of shadows with eyes like miniature rifts.
It didn’t rush, it twisting and twisting. Then, the creature swung, claws slicing.
I needed to end this before it reached Mom. I leaped, aiming a kick at its head. It raised a claw, blocking, but the impact sent it staggering.
I pressed the attack, fists flying, each hit fueled by strength and rage. The creature’s body flickered, adapting to my blows, but the Forever Core pulsed in my chest, analyzing, learning.
Then I heard it—
Ahhhhh! Ahhhhh!
A scream from Mom’s room. My heart stopped. One of the creatures must have gone around and attacked Mom in her sleep.
I dashed to her room and blasted the door down, and there she was, she was awake now, eyes wide with terror, struggling against the grip of a creature.
"Reno!!"
The room exploded into motion.
The creature clutching my Mom hissed, its breath a poisonous fog. I didn’t think—I moved. My body blurred as I shot across the room, slamming a shoulder into the thing’s side. It let out a howl as it crashed into the wall, drywall and splinters flying in every direction.
"Get behind me!" I barked at Mom, guiding her to the corner with one arm as the creature rose again, writhing with fury.
My mother’s eyes were still wide, chest heaving. "Reno—!"
"I’ve got this!" I snapped, cutting off the panic. "Just stay down. Don’t move!"
Then the walls bent.
Two more Calamity Creatures came crashing in through the hallway—one slithered low like a snake with jagged limbs, the other stomped with heavy thuds, its eyes glowing like searing coals. These weren’t the same ones from the door. They were reinforcements.
Tch! So there were more!
Three of them now.
One behind me. Two in front.
I squared my shoulders, chest rising with every breath. There was no room to breathe, no time to think.
This had become a fist fight to survive.
The snake-like one came first, darting like lightning. I dropped, rolled, and snapped a low kick into its midsection. It flipped, screeching, but lashed a tail at me. I caught it midair, twisting, and hurled it at the heavier one.
The big brute caught its partner midflight and tossed it aside like a rag doll.
Adaptable, I thought grimly.
The creature that had grabbed my Mom earlier lunged again from behind. I felt the air twist—too close.
I spun mid-jump, letting my feet brace against the bedroom wall for a split-second before launching backward. My elbow crashed against its face, and it reeled. Before it could recover, I followed up with a brutal knee into its gut, feeling the shadowy frame crack beneath my blow.
Tti-ring.
[Enemies Defeated: ✓✓✓/3]
"Of course..." I muttered.
A large one snarled, pounding toward me with both fists like jackhammers. I raised my arms, blocked the first
Boom!
The impact forced me back several steps, my boots grinding across the floor. My forearms screamed in protest.
Then it came again—left, right, left! I ducked, slid under the next swing, and drove a rising uppercut under its chin.
The creature’s jaw snapped backward unnaturally, but it kept coming.
I needed to end it.
Mom’s terrified breaths were still behind me, but too close—too close!
I ducked beneath another blow, grabbed the beast’s arm, pivoted, and threw it through the hallway door.
The snake-like one came again, darting low with its tongue flicking acid. I stomped on it mid-slide, pressing its face into the floor with one foot while grabbing its spine-like tail and tearing upward.
It howled—then dissolved into smoke.
Tti-ring.
[Enemies Defeated: ✓✓✓✓/4]
