Everyone rubbed their eyes hard.
Only in the dim twilight could they finally make out Lock's figure—one that looked unreal, yet undeniably real.
His bronze-toned skin gleamed with a faint, radiant luster. Streams of lightning and flame coiled around his body, intertwining like the outline of a dragon's form, exuding an overwhelming draconic might.
"So this is Thunder Flame Dragon Mode…"
Lock clenched his fists, feeling the surging magic and explosive strength coursing through him.
"In terms of raw combat power, I'm already at the very top of the pseudo–ceiling level."
It was a pity he still hadn't mastered a Dragon Slayer Secret Art.
After all, even the most basic Dragon Slayer Mystery required ten thousand Fame Points as a foundation—and for now, he was reluctant to spend that much.
Boom!
Nomu, which had been blasted away earlier, stood up once more. The gaping hole in its chest rapidly regenerated.
Again.
Like a warrior charging toward death, it rushed straight at Lock.
A mindless corpse.
A weapon that knew only one command from Tomura Shigaraki—
Attack. Kill. Destroy.
"Sandbag Nomu," Lock said lazily, the corners of his mouth lifting.
"You were just a test run for this power."
His aura continued to rise. Flames spiraled around his body, wrapping him layer by layer.
"Thunder Flame Dragon's Roar!"
Magic gathered at his fists. A massive magic circle—symbolizing the fusion of thunder and fire—appeared.
Lock opened his mouth.
Inside, an extremely violent concentration of magic churned, utterly different from the Fire Dragon's roar. Within the raging flames, arcs of lightning danced wildly.
The next instant—
A colossal wave of thunder-flame blasted forward, roaring with pure destruction.
Even those standing far away felt their faces drain of color under the sheer pressure.
A sea of thunder.
In an instant, the raging thunder-flames swallowed Nomu whole.
Tomura Shigaraki and Kurogiri, positioned even farther back, turned and fled without hesitation, terrified of being caught in the aftermath.
"My god… this power…"
"Is Lock really this strong?!"
"I'm blind again!"
Behind Lock, the students of Class A cried out miserably, once more unable to open their eyes. In a single day, they had already lost count of how many times this had happened.
At last, as the thunder gradually subsided, the scene ahead slowly became clear.
What appeared before them was even more horrifying.
The entire area in front of Lock had been cleared.
No—excavated.
Like the path of a giant laser sweep, or a tide of scorching flames, the ground had been gouged out to a depth of over a meter. Even deeper layers had been scorched black by residual heat, melting into brown, mottled magma. Waves of hot air distorted the atmosphere.
The sound of people swallowing nervously echoed throughout the USJ facility.
No one could speak.
"Is… is this really destruction that a human can cause…?"
Even Kirishima Eijiro, usually so loud and passionate, stuttered, unable to finish his sentence.
"…Yeah."
He wasn't alone. The others could only nod, their disbelief written plainly on their faces.
As the scorching heat met the cooler outside air, thick white steam rose, obscuring everything.
When the mist finally thinned—
Nomu's figure emerged.
And it was miserable.
Golden lightning flickered endlessly across its body, electrical currents still raging. The terrifying heat had melted its outer layer just like the ground itself. Its shape was barely recognizable as humanoid anymore, accompanied by the foul stench of burning flesh.
"This is boring," Lock said, clicking his tongue.
"Being a sandbag isn't even enough to warm me up."
He had ended Nomu with a single move—and hadn't even enjoyed the fight.
With that thought, he deactivated Thunder Flame Dragon Mode. His body returned to normal. Maintaining that state consumed an enormous amount of magic, after all.
His gaze shifted.
To Tomura Shigaraki.
To Kurogiri.
And to Yamamoto Ape, lying half-frozen and barely alive on the ground.
The moment Lock looked at them—
Tomura Shigaraki's entire body began to tremble violently. Cold sweat poured down his face.
Failure.
Again and again.
At the hands of the same person.
Lock's presence alone was enough to carve an indelible shadow into Tomura's heart.
"H-how did it… end up like this…?"
Tomura's voice broke, distorted by terror. Forcing himself not to collapse, he screamed hysterically,
"Nomu! Nomu! Move! Get up!"
He resisted the fear with sheer will—but Nomu did not respond.
It lay motionless.
"Can't you tell?" Lock sneered.
"Your Nomu is already overwhelmed."
He watched with faint curiosity as Nomu's Super Regeneration continued to operate.
Its entire body was being rapidly carbonized by the residual heat. Super Regeneration forced it to heal again and again—only for the damage to repeat in an endless cycle.
But the injuries were too severe.
Every bit of its power was being used just to exist.
It couldn't fight anymore.
"Forget it," Lock said calmly.
"A dead thing should look like a dead thing."
The wings of magic behind his back flapped. His body slowly rose into the sky as he looked down from above.
Thunder Dragon Slayer Magic wasn't only about Thunder Flame Dragon Mode.
It also granted terrifying pure lightning magic.
Floating high above, Lock seemed to declare the sky itself as his domain.
In response, the clouds overhead lit up with golden arcs of lightning, turning the entire sky into a radiant stormscape.
"Thunder Dragon Fang Tian Halberd!"
Lock raised his hand.
A massive golden magic circle bloomed. From within it, a colossal weapon emerged—formed of lightning shaped like a roaring thunder dragon.
A Fang Tian Halberd.
He grasped it firmly.
Whoosh!
With a powerful throw, the several-meter-long Thunder Dragon Fang Tian Halberd streaked downward.
The force alone seemed to warp space itself.
It pierced straight through Nomu's chest, leaving a gaping hole you could see through.
BOOM!
The halberd slammed into the ground, detonating in another wave of terrifying magic power.
Golden light flooded the area once more, forcing everyone to shield their eyes.
When the brilliance finally faded—
The first thing they saw was Lock, floating in the sky like a supreme king.
And then—
Nomu's body, pierced through the chest, collapsed to the ground without the slightest struggle.
The secondary damage from the Thunder Dragon Fang Tian Halberd had completely exceeded the limits of Shock Absorption and Super Regeneration.
There was no healing it.
Nomu—
Was dead beyond any doubt.
[Congratulations to the host for completing the side mission.]
[Reward obtained: One A-rank Lottery Draw.]
That invincible monster—
That terrifying weapon with overwhelming power and monstrous defense—
Had been crushed by Lock as easily as stepping on an ant.
The gap was so vast that even those who had already been speechless found themselves even more at a loss for words.
The entire USJ facility—
Was swallowed by a profound, mysterious silence.
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A/N: 40+ Advance Chapter Has Been Uploaded.
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