The Strongest Human

Chapter 2: Aetherium

Thick, violet blood splattered across the jagged rocks of the Abyssal Chasm floor. The carcass of the Abyssal Warden lay shattered alongside three other abyss monsters; their ribs collapsed, their skulls pulverized into unrecognizable shapes. Alden Vance stood tall in the center of the carnage. He clenched his trembling fists—not from fear, but from a surge of power that threatened to shatter his very nerves.

"My heart... why does it feel like it’s about to explode?" Alden muttered, his fingers clawing tightly at his chest.

THUMP! THUMP! THUMP!

Every heartbeat echoed thunderously inside his skull. His human cells were working like a frantic furnace, devouring the raw Aetherium radiation from the monster carcasses surrounding him. His arm muscles hardened, and the deep lacerations on his back knit together within seconds, leaving behind thick, calloused skin that felt impervious to ordinary blades.

"Somatic Resonance..." Alden tightened his grip until his knuckles cracked. "The human body from Earth doesn’t need spells. My body is a pure vessel that devours your magic."

Before Alden could take a deep breath, the sound of iron-clad footsteps echoed from a fissure in the chasm wall. The rasp of thick armor and the clinking of chains pierced the heavy silence.

"Check that area! The Abyssal Warden’s magic signal just vanished!" a hoarse, authoritative voice barked from the darkness.

"Copy that, Captain Vaelen! But wasn’t the broken human Arch-Sovereign Malakor discarded supposed to have fallen around here?" another voice replied, dripping with condescension.

"A human? Hahaha! Don’t joke, Kael! Falling from thousands of meters without magic protection turns you into raw meat. No piece-of-shit human survives this hell!"

Four soldiers wearing silver armor engraved with the Sovereign Concord emblem stepped out of the violet fog. At their lead stood a massive Daemonicus soldier with two black, curved horns on his forehead—Captain Vaelen. Behind them, two skeletal humans were dragged by chains, used as monster bait.

The soldiers’ footsteps stopped instantly as their eyes landed on the pulverized remains of the Abyssal Warden.

"What the hell is this?!" Kael, an Alvari warrior, gasped. "The Abyssal Warden... slaughtered? Who did this?!"

"Looking for my handiwork, you bastard?"

A cold voice sliced through their panic. From behind the monster’s carcass, Alden stepped out. He was shirtless, stained in violet monster blood, his wounds completely sealed. His sharp eyes locked onto the five soldiers like a predator discovering easy prey.

Captain Vaelen gaped in disbelief. "You... that damn human who fought Lord Malakor in the arena?! How are you still alive?!"

"Stupid question," Alden replied flatly, wiping dried blood from his forehead with the back of his hand. "You were the ones who threw me down here. You should have known the risk if I didn't die."

Kael laughed loudly, though a tremor remained in his voice. "Arrogant bastard! You’re just a human with no magic core! The monster probably died from infighting! Grab him! We’ll take his head to the Arch-Sovereign as a prize!"

The two armored soldiers beside Kael immediately drew broadswords wreathed in violet flames. "Die, trash!"

They leaped forward, slicing through the air with fire-enchanted blades that scorched the stone corridor. Yet, Alden didn't even blink.

"Slow magic," Alden hissed.

As the first blade came inches from his neck, Alden shifted his feet slightly to the left—dodging with the high-precision grace of a street fighter. His left hand whipped around, gripping the soldier’s wrist, and jerked him forward with brutal force.

CRACK!

Alden drove his elbow into the soldier’s joint, snapping the arm backward. A hysterical shriek tore through the air.

"Arghhh! My arm!"

"Screaming already?" Alden mocked coldly.

Without pause, Alden spun one hundred and eighty degrees and unleashed a roundhouse heel kick—Apex Arts: Axe Kick! His heel smashed into the second soldier's chest with the full, augmented force of his Somatic Resonance.

BOOM!

The heavy steel armor buckled inward. Ribs shattered into dust, piercing the soldier’s heart and lungs. The warrior vomited black blood before being launched a dozen meters, slamming into the stone wall with a sickening thud.

"One dead, one crippled," Alden said casually, turning toward Kael and Vaelen. "Who’s next?"

The air grew deathly still. The two chained human slaves stared at Alden with wide, shocked eyes. They had never seen a human capable of butchering Sovereign Concord magic warriors with nothing but his bare hands.

"You son of a bitch! What kind of magic are you using?!" Kael screamed in panic. He frantically summoned a massive magic circle before his chest. Four thick ice spears manifested in the air. "Die! Abyss Ice Piercer!"

The enchanted ice spears hissed through the air with lethal velocity.

Alden dropped into a low stance. Instead of retreating, he lunged forward, charging directly at the incoming magic. His right fist clenched, drawing every ounce of Aetherium energy from his bloodstream.

"Apex Arts: Straight Core Breaker!"

BOOM!

Alden’s naked fist slammed into the tip of the first ice spear. A violent shockwave erupted. Instead of Alden’s hand being shredded, all four enchanted ice spears shattered into particles of light. More terrifyingly, the exploding magic particles were absorbed into his skin, causing the veins in his arms to pulse with even greater power.

"Your shitty magic is just breakfast for my muscles, you dog!" Alden barked.

In a heartbeat, Alden was in front of Kael. He crossed the distance like lightning.

"T-that’s impossible—"

CRAK!

Alden’s right hand shot out, clutching Kael’s throat and lifting the Alvari mage into the air with a single hand.

"Mercy... please..." Kael clawed at Alden’s arm in a panic, his eyes wide with pure terror.

"When you enslaved humans and tossed us out like garbage, did you ever show mercy?" Alden whispered into Kael’s ear.

KREK!

With one powerful squeeze, Alden snapped Kael’s neck without hesitation. He tossed the lifeless body onto the ground like an old sack of flour.

Now only Captain Vaelen remained, shaking. The once-arrogant Daemonicus warrior clutched his sword hilt with sweat-drenched hands.

"You... you’re not human! You’re a monster!" Vaelen screamed, his voice cracking.

"I’m pure human, bastard. You all are just so used to relying on magic that you’ve forgotten the weight of a real punch," Alden stepped closer, each footfall leaving cracks in the stone floor.

"Die! For Arch-Sovereign Malakor!" Vaelen drew his massive greatsword, coating his body in a thick aura of dark magic. He leaped, swinging with every ounce of his strength.

Alden stood firm. He let the massive blade slash toward his shoulder. As the magical steel made contact with his skin...

TRANG!

A ringing sound of metal hitting steel echoed through the chamber. Vaelen’s blade cracked and stopped dead against Alden’s shoulder! The skin reinforced by Somatic Resonance was far too dense to be pierced by ordinary iron.

"What... what are you made of, you freak?!" Vaelen shrieked in frustration.

"You ask too many questions," Alden replied coldly.

CRAASH!

Alden’s left fist drove through Vaelen’s breastplate, crushing ribs and burying itself deep into his internal organs. Vaelen coughed up thick blood, his eyes bulging in agony.

Before Vaelen could collapse, Alden gripped the black horns on his head and yanked his face close.

"Speak before I crush your skull," Alden hissed. "How do I get out of this Abyssal Chasm? And where is the human territory that fights you people?"

Vaelen winced in pain, his eyes filled with dread. "D-dead... you’ll surely die... If you go up through the Main Gate... the Concord army will slaughter you..."

"I’m not asking about my army. I’m asking for the way out, you dog!" Alden pressed his fist deeper into Vaelen’s chest.

"Arghhh! In... in the west corridor! There’s an ancient drainage pipe... leading to the Deadlands! A rebel faction... the Ashen Vanguard... is based there! But you’ll never reach—"

PLAK!

Alden twisted Vaelen’s neck until it snapped instantly, silencing him mid-sentence. Captain Vaelen’s carcass slumped to the ground.

Alden let out a long breath, flicking the enemy’s blood from his hand. The Aetherium energy from Vaelen and his men absorbed rapidly into his body, further stabilizing his Somatic Resonance.

He turned to the two remaining human slaves. They knelt on the ground, trembling as they looked at Alden as if beholding a god of death.

"You two," Alden called out firmly. "Can you walk?"

One of the slaves, a man with a burn scar on his face, nodded haltingly. "Y-yes, sir! Thank you... thank you for killing those demons!"

"Don’t call me sir. I’m no one’s master," Alden said, grabbing a sword from a fallen soldier and cutting the chains off their necks. "What are your names?"

"My name is Bran, and this is my younger brother, Kaelen. We were taken from the borders of the Deadlands last week," the slave replied quickly.

"The Deadlands... the place that Daemonicus soldier mentioned?"

"Yes! It’s a wasteland where the remnants of humanity are dumped and hunted. But there’s a rebel group there called the Ashen Vanguard, led by Garrick Ironwill! They are our only hope!"

"Garrick Ironwill..." Alden muttered the name, committing it to memory. "Good. Do you know the way to that ancient drainage pipe the horn-head mentioned?"

Bran nodded steadily. "Yes! We were forced to haul stones from there. We can guide you!"

Alden picked up a heavy iron blade as a temporary weapon, though his fists remained his primary tool. He stared into the dark corridor ahead.

"Good. Lead the way," Alden said coldly, his hands pulsing with power. "Malakor and those magic masters think this Chasm is my grave. They don’t know... they’ve just unleashed the worst predator they will ever face."