On The Other Side,
Clang!!!
Another strike met Lucas's spear and sparks erupted from the clash. He gritted his teeth and twisted, pushing his simulant back just enough to break free.
Whoosh!!!
Lucas ducked, narrowly avoiding a counter strike that would've taken his head off.
"Damn it" Lucas growled.
"Why is this thing so strong? This isn't how the simulation played out in the novel!"
Boom!!!
A crackle of lightning erupted around him, wild and untamed. His muscles burned, lungs heaving with effort. Every instinct screamed that something was off not just the strength of the simulants but how real this felt.
Too real.
Everything is already out of the script and Lucas can't figure out anything in this scenario.
Lucas's simulant didn't speak. It didn't need to. Its eyes gleamed with the same storm like intensity and it moved with a precision that mirrored his perfectly or rather improved on it.
Clang!!!
Their weapons met again. Lightning coursed through both spears in a flash, exploding in a deafening shockwave that sent both combatants skidding back.
Lucas wiped the blood trickling from the corner of his mouth. "This isn't right," he muttered, eyes narrowing.
"In the novel, the simulations were capped. They weren't supposed to surpass the characters' limits."
His mind raced.
'In the novel the simulation was where all the teams fought together but'
'Lucas also read an alternative version of the simulations that author wrote and published right after the simulation arc was over'
'There Arthur and his team did get stuck alone due to reasons that were not explained but near the end of that simulation Arthur and his team fought against their doppelganger simulants'
'But….. those simulants were not that strong'
'So why is this thing stronger than me?'
'What did the system change?'
He turned his head slightly, watching Arthur, Ryker, Lia and the others fight their simulants. All of them were struggling. Ryker was limping. Arthur looked like he'd been through a war. But there was something else, a gleam in their eyes.
They were discovering something.
Lucas clicked his tongue. "Tch. So that's it…"
"These simulants… they are not just mirrors. They are perfect versions of our selves"
Slash!!!
His simulant lunged forward, lightning surging down its arm as it brought its spear down in a sweeping arc.
Crack!!!
Lucas jumped back, the strike slamming into the floor and sending marble shards flying.
'They are fighting at full potential…but I haven't even reached mine.'
He hated it.
Not because he was losing but because he couldn't predict it. This wasn't how the arc had played out. The system was supposed to be limited. The simulations were programmed to follow a script, not rewrite it.
Lucas gritted his teeth, his mind flashing back to professor Aria's vague explanation. No mention of lifted restrictions. No hint at the true danger.
And that meant one thing.
"They are testing us," Lucas muttered.
"Someone's watching to see how far we can go."
The realization stung. Lucas had relied on his knowledge of the novel too much, assuming the story would stay the same.
'Stupid,' he cursed himself.
'This world isn't a book anymore.'
Crack!!!
Another bolt of lightning surged from his simulant's hand, forcing Lucas to slide across the ground. He winced, trying to steady his balance.
Lucas tapped his spear against the floor, building up static.
Zzzzt!!!
Electricity flared across his skin. He focused it, compressing it into his weapon. The energy hummed at his fingertips, responding more quickly than before. That was new.
'Wait…'
He narrowed his eyes.
'That wasn't me before. I couldn't do that. Not like that.'
He thrust his hand forward, unleashing a pulse of lightning from his palm without a chant or anything.
Boom!!!
It crashed into the simulant, forcing it to backpedal.
Lucas stared at his hand, stunned. The attack had been instinctual.
'I didn't channel it. It was…raw.'
The simulant was back on its feet quickly, unphased. It charged again, spear spinning in a flurry of motion.
Clang!!!
Slash!!!
Lucas blocked each strike, sparks flying. He wasn't perfect but he was adapting faster than before.
His body responded before he could think. His feet moved on instinct, his strikes sharper, faster, more efficient.
Something inside him was stirring.
Lightning sparked behind his eyes.
'Am I re-awakening?'
The thought sent a chill through him. In the novel, re-awakening your affinity meant tapping into its true form, unlocking a deeper resonance with your element. It happened during life or death moments. Most didn't even survive it.
Lucas gritted his teeth.
'I am not dying here. Not yet.'
'Not like this'
Boom!!!
Lucas slammed the butt of his spear into the floor, discharging a thunderclap that knocked the simulant off balance. Without missing a beat, he leapt into the air.
Zzzap!!!
Lightning wrapped around him like a coiled serpent. Lucas's hair stood on end. His muscles screamed.
He twisted his body mid air, channeling the full surge into his weapon.
"Take this"
He hurled his spear like a bolt of judgment.
Boom!!!
The spear struck the simulant dead center, erupting in a pillar of electricity that crackled through the entire room. Stone cracked. Lights flickered. Dust exploded upward.
The floor split beneath the simulant's feet. It crashed backward, rolling across the debris.
Lucas landed hard, falling to one knee.
Ugh!!
He groaned, clutching his chest.
His lightning had never reacted like that before. It was alive. Furious.
'That wasn't just me. That was… something more.'
His vision blurred for a second. He blinked it away.
The simulant slowly stood again. Singed. Damaged. But still functional.
It looked at him.
And for the first time… it hesitated.
Lucas rose shakily, wiping the sweat from his brow. "Yeah. That's right. You're not the only one improving."
Zzzzt!!!
Lightning danced along his fingertips, responding more eagerly now. The pressure in his core built rapidly.
It was growing stronger…
No.
He was growing stronger.
He didn't know what was re-awakening. He didn't know when it would fully manifest.
But he knew this,
This simulation was pushing him past what he thought he was capable of. And unlike the Lucas from the book, the minor villain, the throwaway. He had no intention of being left behind.
Lucas looked across the chamber.
Arthur's blade burned with violet black fire.
Ryker stood tall, light radiating from his body like a beacon.
Sasha and Lia tore through their simulants with renewed fury.
And for the first time since entering the simulation…
Lucas felt like he was part of the story.
Slash!!!
The simulant attacked again, faster, furious.
Lucas met the blow.
Clang!!!
Lightning exploded outward from the point of contact.
This time, Lucas didn't get pushed back.
He held the line.
And in that moment, something deeper stirred beneath his skin waiting.
Watching.
Not yet awakened.
But close.