God of Destruction: Living Among Mortals

For a fraction of a second, Marcus felt the sting of pressure, an actual threat. His eyes gleamed with excitement. "Finally," he murmured, before vanishing forward in a burst of speed, aiming to test how far the two could really push him.

As he was a couple of meters away from the two, he decided to go on the offensive. Then, in the blink of an eye, ascending beyond a hundredfold the speed of sound, he appeared in front of them; they didn't realize what had happened. To them, he was still there.

Marcus aimed his fists at Adam first, whose body reacted instinctively, making all of Marcus's shots void. Then there was Nova, who was as still as a statue, but then, as Marcus was about to hit him, Nova's eyes moved slightly, towards him, and Marcus realized that Nova's reflexes were able to somehow ascend to Mach 100 just like him.

Nova dodged at the last second, as the time for them went back to normal. Adam still had no idea what was going on, then turned his gaze towards Nova, who was fighting offensively with Marcus.

"I didn't realize that you were this fast," Marcus murmured with an even wider grin.

"I didn't realize it as well, but my body reacted instinctively, and then I saw you," Nova said with slight arrogance, as if thinking that he was getting to Marcus's level, which he was nowhere close to.

In another split second, Nova found himself smashed into one of the walls. He didn't realize what happened. All he knew was that he was in front of Marcus, and now he was stuck to the white wall, with his entire skeletal structure nearly broken from every single corner.

Marcus turned his gaze to Adam like a demon, his head tilted, his eyes locked on the next target. Adam gulped, but then straightened, his eyes forged that spark of fire again, the sweat from his temple abruptly stopped, as he gritted his teeth and rushed in, even though his mind was telling him not to.

He slashed downward, which was blocked, then back an inch, and got into his boxing stance, where he started to, somewhat sloppily, launch punches, elbow strikes, and even some low kicks, to an attempted roundhouse kick, which left him vulnerable, which Marcus took as a chance to strike.

Just before landing a clear punch on Adam's stomach, Nova stepped in, blood spilling from some of his holes, putting his palm in front of Marcus's fist, and for the first time, Marcus felt genuine resistance, and not just a fleeting spark of reaction.

Blood trickled from Nova's hand, running down his forearms like a waterfall, but his body did not yield. His stance was weak, faltering, trembling, yet his presence was immovable. As if instinct had locked him into position at the exact moment of necessity.

Adam completely froze, his kick still in the air, eyes wide at the sheer absurdity of what had just happened. The punch Marcus had thrown should have shattered Nova clean through. It should have been the end. And yet, Nova stood, his arms stretched out, meeting destruction with sheer willpower.

Marcus's grin widened into something that of a savage. The thrill of it coursed through him. The possibility that someone, anyone, could touch the edge of his speed and strength, both slightly lower than one percent of his true power, was intoxicating.

He leaned in closer, telling him: "Not bad," Marcus whispered, his voice dripping with amusement, "but you're breaking."

The pressure mounted. The floor beneath Nova's feet cracked like a spiderweb, his boots sinking into the fractured marble. Adam, finally regaining his balance, dropped back into stance, as his mind raced.

He had no time to think, no time to strategize; the tempo of this battle was beyond thought. It was instinct versus total annihilation.

Nova's leg buckled as Marcus pulled his fist back, the release of pressure slamming Nova to the ground. The impact sent a tremor across the white chamber. Nova coughed violently, blood splattering against the floor, yet he tried to rise again.

Adam didn't hesitate. He leapt forward with all the rawness of desperation, fists blurring in a flurry of punches. His boxing form, sloppy but relentless, was nothing compared to Marcus's speed, yet there was something primal about his assault, Something unyielding.

Each strike screamed to not give up: refusing to break, refusing to surrender, refusing to let Nova's effort mean nothing.

Marcus parried each hit, his movements fluid, almost playful. "Good job," Marcus murmured as he slipped past Adam's punches, his body weaving effortlessly. "But you are burning out quickly."

Then, with one sudden twist, Marcus's knee drove upward toward Adam's ribs. The blow connected like thunder striking down a tree. It sends Adam sprawling backward, clutching his side. His breath left him in a rough gasp, almost guttural, vision blurring.

Yet even as Adam reeled, he forced himself up again, knuckles bloodied, eyes still singeing. He staggered back into a stance, thinking to himself that he was ready. Marcus cocked his head, fascinated.

"Why do you keep getting up?" Marcus asked, voice almost gentle, hiding the mask of brutality. "You're so weak. So fragile. You're slow. You're bad at everything you do. And yet..." his grin returned, as mosterous as ever. "You refuse to break."

"Because I can't give up. I can't let Nova down." Adam said furiously.

This was what Marcus wanted. He had to bring out his inner demon just for them to realize that they needed to be there for each other, as a pair.

"Good. Go help him get up. Training for today is over." Marcus said gently. His grin faded away into a gentle smile. He had returned to his more "calm" nature.

The room fell quiet after Marcus's dialogue, the heaviness in the air dissipating as if the window was opened. His grin softened, his shoulders rolled back, and that suffocating aura surrounding him disappeared.

All that remained was Marcus, calm and composed, as though the demon from seconds ago had been nothing but an illusion.

Adam collapsed to one knee, clutching his ribs, breath rattling. Nova lay sprawled on the ground, fractured. His chest was rising and falling shallowly. For a moment, silence deafened. It was then broken by Adam's rough breathing.

The doors at the end of the room opened, releasing a soft golden glow. A pair of healers in long, white robes, looking like nuns, carrying yellow mana crystals, entered. Their footsteps echoed in unison as they crossed the ruined floor, which started to rebuild itself.

Adam was taken aback seeing how the floor was essentially knitting itself back into place.

The healers stopped right in front of the two battered fighters.

"Stand back," Marcus said gently, stepping aside. His voice was soft but commanding. The healers knelt. One extended her hand over Nova's chest, the other over Adam's side.

The moment that a green glow appeared on the palms of the healers was the moment Adam and Nova felt lighter, the pain healing away. Adam gasped as the fire in his ribs cooled into something refreshing, almost ecstasy.

Nova's trembling froze, all his bruises and broken bones dissolved into faint patches before vanishing entirely.

Within minutes, both stood again, though shakily. The exhaustion in their eyes was being replaced by something else. As though the pain burned away into strength.

"Not yet," Marcus said, lifting a hand. He reached into his coat and withdrew two yellow mana crystals. He handed one to each of them.

Nova stared at the shard in his hand, getting flashbacks to what happened in his previous conflict. "Do I have to..."

"Yes," Marcus replied. "Absorb only one, and you should be fine. You won't turn out like that."

Nova's fingers tightened around the crystal. It radiated faintly, the golden light inside swirling in rhythm with his heartbeat.

The shard dissolved instantly into particles of light, seeping into his body. His eyes widened, breath catching as the energy coursed through one, burning, then soothing, stitching him back together from the inside out.

His bones snapped into alignment, muscles coiled with new vigor, and the exhaustion that had weighed him down melted away, feeling refreshed.

Adam mirrored him, pressing the crystal to his chest. The warmth spread through him like liquid fire, a current sweeping away pain and leaving behind raw vitality.

His cracked ribs mended with audible pops, bruises vanished, and his knuckles, bloody and swollen, returned to their natural state. For the first time in what felt like forever, his body felt whole, alive, and overflowing with strength.

Both stood straighter, stretching their bodies, cracking their bodies as they felt the sugar rush coursing through their body.

"Training begins tomorrow at 7 o'clock. Be there since it will give you real-life experience before you enter your first dungeon." Marcus said calmly as he got into his suit, leaving the two behind as the healers followed him.