Vile Evil Hides Under The Veil

"What must one do to nurture a fearsome Individuality like this?"

Valeria found herself asking a silent question, her voice lost in the depths of her mind as she observed the climactic clash between Eren and Galen unfolding before her eyes.

The conclusion of their initial exchange had left her truly awestruck, realizing that Eren's power far exceeded what he had initially revealed in his duel with Callista. The extent of his fearsome Individuality, however, was a mystery even to her until this very moment.

Witnessing Eren's formidable prowess at the Expert rank, Valeria couldn't help but wonder just how terrifying he would become as he ascended the ranks. How powerful he could be as a Sage with such a potent Individuality.

In the grand scheme of high-ranking entities, Eren still appeared to be a fledgling, a mere toddler taking his first steps without external support. Yet, his Individuality exuded the essence of an ancient monstrosity, as if his past experiences were fused with his present journey, propelling him forward with an unrivaled force.

Eren's presence had become doubly potent and awe-inspiring ever since he brandished his trusty weapons. The disparity was as glaring as the distinction between earth and sky. It was only now that Callista truly grasped the magnitude of Eren's statement when he claimed to have held back during their duel.

A profound silence enveloped the sacred ground as Eren and Galen distanced themselves from each other, locked in a momentary stalemate. The cheers of the Amazonians for Galen and their playful taunts towards Eren came to an abrupt halt as their gazes fell upon Galen's grievous state.

Galen bore severed arms and bore multiple grave lacerations and puncture wounds across his body. Eren's katars had not only breached his mana defense but also inflicted significant damage upon it. Eren's mana coursed through Galen's open wounds and kept rupturing his skin even further. The foreign mana invasion manifested in the form of lightning, flames, and other elemenets, further impeding his healing abilities and subjecting him to continuous passive harm.

"Fucccccck," Galen bellowed, his voice reverberating through the air as he stimulated his mana circuits and invoked his divine blessing simultaneously. In the next instant, a visible surge of regeneration commenced, as Galen swiftly began forming his lost limbs at an accelerated pace. Ivory-white bones materialized first, followed by motor muscles, blood, and veins. The subsequent emergence of supporting muscles and tissues enveloped the newly formed structures, and finally, the epidermis sealed the restored appendages.

A discerning eye could detect a subtle difference in the appearance of Galen's rejuvenated arms, their complexion slightly fairer and devoid of the sun-kissed hue present in the rest of his body, indicating their distinct nature from the original limbs.

Harnessing the nurturing potency of Nature mana, Galen extended his accelerated healing to absurd levels, mending both major and minor injuries that marred his physique. Within a mere span of ten seconds, Galen stood intact before Eren once more, his body unscathed, imbued with renewed determination.

During the intense first round of the duel between Eren and Galen, the absence of Eren's undead summons became evident. Galen's focus as an Evoker was more on body augmentation rather than summoning creatures, leaving him at a disadvantage in this regard.

Nevertheless, Eren's mastery of Death mana through his weapons proved formidable. Galen struggled to expel the invading mana, realizing the extent of Eren's control and proficiency over his elements and in-depth weapon comprehension.

Though Galen couldn't rely on summoned creatures like Callista, he possessed a powerful ally in his Beast Companion, a towering and ferocious Ironhide Bear named Nova. Unlike the Rankers from Anfang who tamed the souls of mana beasts, the Amazonians used the Beast Companion technique, establishing a lasting bond without sacrificing the creature's original body.

Nova stood protectively by Galen's side as the latter focused on healing himself, ensuring Eren couldn't approach easily and giving Galen the chance to recover. Eren wasn't afraid of the beast as the beast was in the C-Rank as well– something he could handle on his own even when it launched a tag-team attack with Galen. However, the butcher decided to play safe anyway since he did not know what other kinds of tricks Amazonians had in their arsenal.

Eren, undeterred by the temporary setback, addressed Galen confidently, "It seems you're not convinced. Shall we continue our duel for another round?" Eren acknowledged Galen's power-up, particularly his effective implementation of the divine blessing.

However, Eren concluded that Galen's ability to regenerate lost limbs using Mother's Embrace posed no threat. He could simply keep attacking until Galen could no longer recover.

Galen nodded, expressing his acceptance of Eren's power, and replied, "an ultimatum, huh? Haha. You've earned the right to say that, Eren.

But I'm not finished. If you're this powerful, allow me to fight you with all my might as well."

With that, Galen stimulated his mana circuits once more, drawing upon the abundant Nature mana in the surroundings. A remarkable transformation took place, causing Galen to grow taller and more muscular by the second.

The Amazonian crowd broke into cheers once again as Galen transformed. When the transformation ceased, Galen stood as a towering 15-foot mini-giant, exuding an even more intimidating presence. But the transformation didn't end there.

Galen cried out in pain as two additional pairs of arms sprouted from his torso, granting him a total of six arms. This extraordinary body augmentation made him appear like a monstrous deviant rather than a human.

Eren sensed that the transformation extended beyond the physical realm. Galen had fortified his soul, rendering it resistant to Eren's soul sense and ocular Ability. His vitality soared, accompanied by an overall elevation in all his body's stats.

Eren realized there would be consequences to such a transformation. Galen would likely experience severe weakness for a week or two when the transformation subsided. Furthermore, this enhancement might lead to a prolonged bottleneck in Galen's path as an Evoker, as it seemed to rely on his life energy to grant him unparalleled power.