Clyde hovered above the city, his coat billowing in the wind as he surveyed the chaos below.
The streets were in complete disarray right now, civilians ran for their lives, some scrambling for protection place while others were too frozen by terror to even move.
The monstrous creatures that had spilled out of the rifts wasted no time in hunting them down, their unnatural forms twisting and snapping as they pursued the weak.
His gaze swept across the cityscape, his mind working through possibilities. If this world’s Selection Stage functioned like the others he had seen, then the World Master wouldn’t bother revealing themselves unless something forced them to act.
A "special circumstance", that was the key to make them appear.
Clyde narrowed his eyes. There were two ways to trigger that kind of response. First, an individual with overwhelming power could make a move that disrupted the natural flow of the Selection Stage. Second, something that threatened the stability of the world itself could force the World Master to intervene.
Or so he thought, he didn’t really know for sure except from his experience.
The first option suited him just fine.
"If I kill enough monsters and create a big enough commotion... the World Master will have no choice but to take notice."
His decision was made. Without hesitation, Clyde surged forward, lightning crackling in his wake.
He descended like a storm, his presence alone sending a shockwave through the battlefield. The first monster to notice him — a grotesque, multi-limbed abomination perched on the side of a high-rise — turned its hollow gaze toward him. It barely had time to react before a bolt of lightning shot through its skull and reducing it to a smoking husk in the blink of an eye.
Clyde didn’t stop there.
He flying through the ai and striking down creatures wherever he found them. On the streets, he unleashed arcs of lightning and fire and frying dozens of beasts at once. On rooftops, he landed with terrifying force, shattering the concrete beneath him as he crushed the enemies in his path. In the sky, winged monsters tried to swarm him, only to be disintegrated mid-flight by his crackling of lightning.
A monstrous huge serpent like creature coiled around a building, its many eyes glowing. Clyde shot toward it, blades of lightning forming around his hands as he carved through its flesh.
The beast let out a deafening screech before collapsing into a pile of ash.
He moved relentlessly, effortlessly, and mercilessly. Everybody can see that he wasn’t a mere survivor of this world.
But as much as he was slaughtering the creatures, something else was happening, he was saving people.
Survivors who had been on the brink of death suddenly found themselves freed and saved. Clyde saved a man trapped beneath a collapsed signpost, a woman shielding her child as a grotesque beast loomed over them, a group of office workers cornered in an alley, and the others lucky enough when he passing around.
Everywhere Clyde moved, lives were spared. But that’s not because he intended to save them, but because anything in his way was simply erased.
At first, the civilians were too stunned to react. But then, realization sank in. Hope flickered in their eyes.
Some began to run toward safer locations – Clyde said about the Checkpoint. Others hesitated, watching the destruction Clyde was unleashing upon their nightmare.
A few who was emboldened by his presence, even attempted to also tried to fight back. They grabbing makeshift weapons, attacking weaker monsters, doing whatever they could to cling to survival.
Clyde didn’t acknowledge them. His focus remained locked on one goal. The more monsters he killed, the greater the disturbance. And the greater the disturbance, the higher the chance that the World Master would appear.
He ascended once more, surveying the battlefield. The city was burning and breaking.
But he wasn’t done yet. Clyde pushed even further.
He wasn’t just going to make a commotion. He was going to make it impossible to ignore.
So just he kept moving and tearing through the battlefield like a force of nature. He leaving behind nothing but the burned, shattered remnants of whatever unfortunate creature had stood in his way. He fought with an terrifying efficiency, cutting through the monsters regardless of their rank or size with the same ease one might swat away a fly.
Everywhere he went, the battlefield changed. What was once a one-sided slaughter of the city’s survivors had shifted into something else entirely. Now, the monsters were the ones being hunted.
It wasn’t long before the effects of his rampage reached beyond the city.
Meanwhile, in the White Room.
Agatha sat in her pristine, almost sterile white chamber, a single screen floating before her. She leaned forward, fingers laced together, her eyes narrowing as she watched the unfolding chaos.
Her lips parted slightly, then curled into a scowl.
"Is that... who I think he is?"
The image on the screen showed a figure clad in black, tearing through the Selection Stage like a storm in human form.
Lightning arced across the battlefield. Fire rained down like judgment. A massive, hulking beast was felled in less than three seconds.
Her fingers tapped against the smooth surface of her desk, her annoyance only growing as she confirmed his identity.
Of course, she knew him. They had already made contact once before. In fact, they had even struck a deal.
But then Luccio had noticed him, too. And as always, he had tried to take advantage of the situation, seeing Clyde as a useful pawn to manipulate for his purpose.
Then, suddenly, Clyde just... disappeared.
And Luccio got punished. She was happy for this.
But then Agatha’s frown deepened. Something still irritated her. Clyde had mysteriously vanished from the Selection Stage. Because of that, Luccio had been punished but not eliminated. However, her chance to advance also gone.
Now, Clyde was back. And if the devastation he was causing right now was anything to go by, he had only grown stronger. Much much stronger.
Agatha sighed, rubbing her temples.
She glanced at the screen once more, watching as Clyde cut through yet another wave of creatures. He wasn’t just trying to survive the Selection Stage. He was deliberately forcing a response.
"Well, I will need to go."
Agatha raised from her seat.