[Energy: 47/70]

Not full, but enough to handle anything unexpected.

While he waited, he reviewed his options moving forward.

First, he could look for clues about other groups linked to the Dark Chain. It would be the fastest way to gather more livers without directly provoking the Defense Force.

However, this came with a lot of risk too.

He just destroyed two facilities and killed multiple of their men in a single night.

Their main headquarters was likely furious, and a manhunt was already underway for him.

Moving too soon meant walking into enemy territory that was already preparing for him.

Although he was more confident after absorbing more innate talents, there was no telling how many powerful individuals like Vance were working under them.

’I could probably take on two at once, but if I master my innate talents, Fighting three might even be possible.’

’But it’s still too risky.’

Stronger attacks drained more energy.

And if a fight forced him to escape or abandon his humanoid body , he would be blocked from doing so because of the "Lock" status.

Then there was also the issue of the white haired girl.

She let him go once. That didn’t mean she was harmless or passive.

He had no read yet on what she actually wanted, which made her more of an unknown variable.

In the end, his best option was to cool down for a while.

’I’ll stay low for a couple of days and train. I need somewhere more open where I can let loose without anyone noticing...’ 𝐟𝐫𝕖𝗲𝘄𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝕧𝐞𝚕.𝕔𝕠𝐦

His lips curled slightly. The answer was right in front of him all along.

The open plains were the perfect place to train. He only needed to travel a few dozen kilometers off the main highway, and he could execute moves that would otherwise wake up a whole city block.

Looking at the horizon, he knew the sun would rise in a couple of hours. This was the best time to head out and use the darkness to his advantage.

He looked around the warehouse for the last time. There was nothing left here worth his attention.

Instead of taking his motorbike, he moved through the warehouses like a shadow to avoid leaving a trail.

Then he slipped out and ran across the open land. He only pushed harder once he was far enough away.

Wind stopped feeling like wind after he hit 350 km per hour.

At that numbers, it turned into a solid force pressing against his skin, like thousands of invisible hands trying to push him back at once.

Unlike cars or planes, his body wasn’t built for aerodynamics. His limit was not raw power, but air resistance and the way he ran.

Human bodies were not made for extreme speed, but for endurance. That was why early cavemen could exhaust larger prey just by chasing it over time.

He slowed from a sprint to a jog, then stopped completely.

He turned the problem over simply.

Speed came from two things — power output and how efficiently that power moved through space. He got enough of the first. The second was the issue.

An upright body presented a wide surface to the air.

The faster he moved, the worse that problem became.

He had seen how animals solved it.

Cheetahs ran low. Their spines flexed like a spring, compressing and extending with each stride, adding force that legs alone could not generate.

Four contact points spread the load, and the entire body stayed closer to the ground where resistance was slightly lower.

The answer was already inside him.

He activated Parashift.

The change was subtle at first. His spine lengthened along its natural curve, tilting the angle of his torso forward.

His legs began to adjust below the knee. The joints stacked in a rough alignment, giving each step a deeper compression and a stronger release.

Energy gathered on the way down and pushed him forward on the way up, instead of leaking out through wasted motion.

But the change stopped there.

His body trembled slightly as the process hit its limit. The restructuring did not continue any further.

[Parashift level insufficient]

[Energy: 35/70]

He expected that much. Even so, the change he got was enough to test his theory.

’I’ll call this Speed Mode,’ he thought, locking the idea into his mind so he could repeat the process later.

He did not drop to four limbs. That was not the point.

The goal was to make his body more specialized.

He ran.

The difference was obvious from the start.

The resistance pressing against him thinned. His body cut through the air instead of colliding with it.

370

380

400

His stride lengthened without him forcing it. The restructured joints were cycling more efficiently, each step returning more than it cost.

410

420

430

He held the speed for a few seconds, then pushed further.

450.

480

500.

....

Suddenly, his vision stuttered— like the world had skipped a frame and resumed one beat too late.

Then the ground disappeared from under him.

’Damn it.’

He activated Momentum Breaker on instinct, but the force he was carrying was already beyond what it could contain.

Instead of stopping him, it redirected — launching him upward in a wild, uncontrolled arc.

For a split second, the sky was beneath him and the ground was above.

Then gravity punched him back to reality.

He hit hard, rolled, and came to a rough stop face-down in the dirt, one arm folded beneath him at a bad angle.

Francis lay flat on his back, staring up at the dark sky.

The impact had carved a shallow trench through the dirt behind him, maybe thirty meters long judging by the sound of it.

He sat up slowly.

No broken bones. Parashift had already begun repairing the surface damage.

For him, it was an inconvenience.

But it was an important one.

’That was dangerous... My brain isn’t used to such speed yet, but it will definitely adjust over time.’