The Lupine System-Chapter 143: He Appears!

He Appears!

The heat was incredible.

So potent it was, that it seemed to almost dwarf what Mike and Kris had experienced when they fought the Rat King in its evolved state.

The ground melted, the surrounding vegetation spontaneously combusted, and the air didn’t just warp, it was burned away as the arrow flew, aimed straight at Mike’s head.

Mike’s eyes were wide as the arrow grew closer and closer, its radiant form reflected in his blue eyes.

There was no doubt about it, if that arrow hit him, the damage would be lethal at the very least.

But he was bound. He could free himself, but it wouldn’t be fast enough.

It seemed like... it was checkmate?

***

’Instincts.’ Mike mused as he lay on his bed, staring at the ceiling.

Of all his skills and abilities, his instincts were probably one of, if not the strangest.

It couldn’t be helped, the way they worked was just odd. Even if Mike were to somehow reduce his perception to zero, his instincts would still sort of instruct him where to go.

That wasn’t all, there was also the fact that, in some ways, they seemed to play into his desires. If he wanted to know something, like say, whether someone was trustworthy, his instincts would somehow let him know if someone had nefarious intent towards him even if they had never met before.

There was also the thing with emotions. He was always aware of what the people around him were feeling, even if he couldn’t always place the emotions properly. If someone was staring at him, even without intent, he’d know, too.

Then there were times where they just warned him something bad was gonna happen even if there was no prior signs of danger.

’But they aren’t omnipotent.’ That was the thing, as all-encompassing his instincts seemed, they were not perfect. In fact, they could be tricked, something Theresa had become particularly good at, which is why he always did his best to function independently of them, and why two of his skills, Predator’s Foresight and Primal Awareness, were focused on predicting and reading his opponent when his instincts did the same.

His instincts were, in a way, passive, but they also followed a preset series of rules that could be circumvented if an opponent knew how to work around them. So to bring out their true potential, Mike had to make conscious use of them.

’But one of the things that interests me the most would be how they respond to danger.’ He hummed.

If someone threw a punch and it was weak, Mike’s instincts would barely register the threat, and it was up to him to dodge. He usually did dodge since such attacks could easily be feints or be followed-up by more dangerous attacks.

However, if the punch was truly lethal, his instincts would go into overdrive, especially if it was something he couldn’t avoid easily.

He usually resolved issues like that with his intellect, but he always wondered. Were it left to just his instincts, how would he react in such a scenario?

***

’... Eh?’ Theresa thought vaguely.

’What... Just...’

SPLATTER

Her blood sprayed.

Three horrific gashes appeared on her body, from her head, taking one of her eyes, all the way down to her pelvis.

The gashes were so deep that her bones were clearly visible.

What’s more, her bow had also been sliced apart, and ironically, it was the only reason she hadn’t been torn through entirely. She didn’t even know why she’d raised it, she just did.

Everything happened so fast, she couldn’t even register the pain yet.

Instead, she stared at Mike, not quite processing what just occurred.

His restraints were gone, and his claws were outstretched, each one covered in his aura. But that’s not what confused her.

What happened to her arrow???

’Did he dodge it...? Block it? Deflect it?’

She was absolutely sure that the arrow would have harmed him. Yet, it was nowhere to be seen. Why? How? What did he do? It all happened to fast.

Grr

Mike growled.

Up until this point, none of Theresa’s attacks had harmed him. Not really. The closest she’d gotten to truly causing damage was the throat shot she’d landed, but he reacted accordingly, even if it was instinctive, and in the end, it wouldn’t have killed him.

As such, his instincts never truly... registered her.

Sure, he’d been attacking her relentlessly, but it was similar to how a wolf would lash out at someone it has never seen before. They move with the the preset notion that anyone and anything could be a threat.

That’s all this was, really. Mike just lashing out.

But that last attack, that changed things.

It truly could have killed him had it landed, and at that moment, his instincts did what they were best at.

No matter what they were capable of, they have, and always will have, one primary purpose.

Keep Mike alive.

So when there was a genuine threat to his life in that moment, it happened.

First, his instincts unconsciously used Primal Authority. The manner in which it was used was... messy. Not the usual controlled way Mike did. It was crude, but it was effective.

In a show of true dominance, his instincts had used the Authority to utterly grind the Empyrean shot into nothing faster than Theresa could even blink.

Second, the restraints were also removed, freeing Mike and allowing him to attack Theresa with a wild Primal Rend, which was how she’d been wounded.

As she was reeling, Mike raised his head, and roared.

Not howl. Roar.

The sound was terrifying. Every living thing still somewhat close to the scene of the battle immediately fled, and Theresa who was closest to it spat out blood from the sound alone, the wave throwing her back like a kite.

When it ended, Mike looked down, his gaze aimed straight at Theresa.

But the look in his eyes had changed.

Before, there had been ferocity and wildness, but now, now that his instincts had truly registered her as a threat, genuine desire to kill had also appeared in his gaze.

Mike had been holding back.

Seeing his gaze, Theresa felt a chill.

She completely forgot her wounds and tried to reform her bow, but–

Her good eye widened.

A clawed hand was already in front of her head.

This wasn’t a case of her forcing her body to move in time. She was physically incapable of moving fast enough to avoid or block the attack.

’Fast... far too fast. That makes no sense whatsoever!’ She’d grit her teeth if she was fast enough. Mike had practically teleported!

For the first time, despair gripped her heart. There was simply nothing she could do here. No tactics she came up with, no form her bow could take, she was completely and utterly suppressed by sheer physicality.

’No...’

The shape of the claw enlarged in her eye, about to take off her head, and–

CLANG

A literal tide of chains smashed into Mike from the side, throwing him away. But that wasn’t all.

Like a tsunami, thousands of chains swallowed him, and they were not gentle, leaving a trail of destruction in their wake.

Stupified, Theresa turned her head, and her heart couldn’t help but do a backflip of joy.

"... How dare you swat me away like that, Mike?" Kris grumbled as he stepped forward, his face dark.

Evidently, he wasn’t happy, at all.

’He’s alive!’ Theresa couldn’t help but feel a weight lift off her shoulders. She’d refused to think about what state Kris was in after Mike hit him away like that, but she’d been fearing for the worst. Thankfully, he’d survived...

’But how?’ She wondered. Kris was certainly more durable than her, but even then...

As if sensing her thoughts, Kris glanced at her and said.

"I wrapped my left side in chains right before he hit me. They took the brunt of the impact." He said, his voice a little hoarse. That’s when Theresa looked at said left side and grimaced.

His left arm was bent at an unnatural angle, and his side where his armor had been was covered in a huge and nasty purple bruise.

Evidently, he hadn’t survived unscathed.

She opened her mouth to speak, but all that came out was blood as she coughed violently.

Kris clicked his tongue.

"You can’t fight like this. Not anymore." He said, even as he heard his chains getting destroyed rapidly along with enraged roars.

"... I... I just need time," Theresa gasped out after her coughing fit. "I need you... to hold him down long enough..." Hearing this, and seeing the determination in her one good eye, Kris sighed.

".. I’ll try my best, but I can’t guarantee anything." He glanced at his chains which had streams of blue light seeping through them, looking like something was about to erupt.

"He’s a monster right now."

BOOM

A powerful blast blew away the remaining chains, revealing the hulking figure of Mike.

And he looked pissed.

Theresa limped away as Kris somehow entered a stance with his battered side, chains forming around him and aiming forward like sentries.

"Guess we’re having that rematch." Kris mumbled just as Mike shot forward.