Boom!!!
The ground shattered again.
Cracks spread wildly along the street.
Both sides of the buildings emitted sharp fracturing sounds.
Large chunks of debris fell from above.
Dust kept expanding outward.
Grave Hound stood at the center of the collapse.
Like a real monster that had broken into the battlefield.
He had no weapon.
No tactical movement.
Just pure destruction.
And that made him even more dangerous.
Because no one could predict his next move.
"Spread out!"
Bear growled immediately.
The escort unit quickly widened their distance.
The next second—
Grave Hound raised his foot.
Boom!!!
The ground beneath him exploded again.
Chunks of concrete were blasted into the air like shells.
Several members rolled away instantly to evade.
An abandoned vehicle was flipped by the shockwave,
slamming violently into a nearby building.
The screech of twisting metal echoed sharply.
An entire wall cracked apart.
And the most chaotic ones—
were the Cobra members.
They retreated even faster than the escort unit.
Someone shouted wildly—
"Don't get close to him!"
"Get off that street!"
"The lunatic's out of control!"
But it was already too late.
Grave Hound suddenly grabbed a half-collapsed wall beside him.
The muscles in his arm bulged violently.
Veins throbbed visibly beneath his skin.
The next second—
he tore the entire concrete structure apart.
And hurled it.
A heavy tearing sound ripped through the air.
Several armed Cobra members in the distance didn't even have time to react.
Their bodies were smashed straight into the ruins.
Blood sprayed instantly.
Some didn't even manage a scream
before being crushed into broken steel and rubble.
And Grave Hound—
didn't even seem to notice.
He simply grinned,
revealing a twisted smile.
He seemed to enjoy it.
Not fighting.
But destruction.
As if watching things collapse
excited him.
Lucian stood at the rear.
Watching quietly.
This was his first time truly seeing this type of ability user.
No precision control.
No complex techniques.
Only raw violence.
Yet the level of danger was abnormally high.
Because once someone like this entered a battlefield,
the surrounding environment itself became a weapon.
And most dangerous of all—
Grave Hound didn't seem to care about his own people.
Those outer members he had crushed to death
were nothing more than insects to him.
Scope's voice came through the comms again.
"Don't stay near structures."
"He'll use collapses to expand the range."
Bear immediately growled—
"All units, move to open ground!"
The escort unit adjusted formation at once.
They no longer relied on buildings for cover.
Because now—
the buildings themselves had become the threat.
Two members rushed toward an open intersection.
Using abandoned vehicles to rebuild a firing position.
Rear members began retrieving the wounded.
Even in this chaos,
the unit never truly lost control.
That was the result of training.
They were not facing ability users for the first time.
Though they had never fought one at this level head-on,
long-term training allowed them to instinctively maintain formation.
Grave Hound slowly turned his head.
His gaze finally landed on the escort unit.
More precisely—
on Bear.
The two locked eyes through the dust.
For a brief moment,
the air seemed to go still.
The next second—
Grave Hound charged.
Boom!
The ground collapsed instantly beneath him.
His speed far exceeded expectations.
His massive body surged forward like a shell.
The air itself let out a low explosion.
Debris was thrown aside along his path.
Bear's pupils shrank.
"He's coming head-on!"
The next instant—
Grave Hound was already in front of him.
His fist slammed down.
Bear crossed his arms and blocked directly.
Boom!!!
The impact exploded outward.
The ground beneath them shattered instantly.
Bear was forced back several meters.
His mechanical frame emitted a harsh grinding sound.
The outer armor even showed slight deformation.
The shock transmitted through the armor into his body.
A dull pressure hit his chest.
But he didn't step back.
The expressions of nearby team members changed at the same time.
Because Bear was already the strongest frontline fighter in the unit.
And yet—
he had been pushed back head-on.
Grave Hound simply grinned.
As if he had finally found something interesting.
He charged again.
Boom!
Boom!!
Boom!!!
Heavy strikes detonated one after another.
Bear was almost entirely on the defensive now.
Taking the hits head-on.
High-load warnings echoed within his mechanical frame.
Some joint structures were beginning to heat up.
Every collision
shook the air violently.
The ground continued to fracture.
The surrounding ruins began collapsing further.
And Bear—
did not retreat.
Because he knew—
if that monster broke into the formation,
the rear line would collapse instantly.
So he had to hold.
Each collision between them
was like two high-speed steel machines crashing together.
An abandoned truck nearby was flipped by the shockwave.
Glass shattered in large sections in the distance.
Lucian still didn't move.
He only observed.
At the same time—
Scope was also observing.
He didn't fire yet.
Because normal attacks meant little.
And—
he was analyzing.
Every time Grave Hound attacked,
the ground vibrated first.
Not automatic ability spread—
but:
force transmission.
His ability wasn't just physical enhancement.
It was something like "vibration release."
Scope narrowed his eyes.
His gaze shifted continuously.
Shoulders.
Legs.
Footwork.
Force generation.
Everything was being recorded.
His voice returned to the comms.
"Bear."
"Don't take him head-on."
"His force spreads through the ground."
Bear abruptly shifted sideways.
The next second—
the spot he had been standing on exploded.
The impact surged upward from underground.
If he had stayed,
his entire leg would have been shattered.
Grave Hound's grin twisted wider.
He charged again.
But this time—
Bear didn't hold position.
He kept moving.
Using the mechanical frame to enhance mobility.
Forcing distance.
Meanwhile—
Scope continued observing.
Because he noticed—
although Grave Hound's destructive power was terrifying,
his movements weren't refined.
He lacked real tactics.
More like fighting on instinct.
Which meant—
if they could find a rhythm,
there was a chance.
On the other side,
the rest of the escort unit had already begun coordinating.
Some detonated abandoned vehicles.
Using flames to block routes.
Others collapsed nearby structures in advance.
Creating obstacle zones.
The battlefield kept shifting.
They were forcibly restricting Grave Hound's movement space.
And Grave Hound—
was clearly becoming more agitated.
Because these weren't ordinary enemies.
They didn't break.
They didn't panic.
Instead—
they kept pulling away.
Retreating.
Wearing him down.
He suddenly roared.
And smashed both fists into the ground.
Boom!!!!!
This time—
the entire street exploded.
Cracks spread wildly.
Several nearby buildings tilted at once.
Steel reinforcements snapped from within.
A three-story abandoned building
even began to sink as a whole.
The outer Cobra members completely lost control.
Some fled wildly.
Some even dropped their weapons.
"Get out of here!"
"Run!!"
"That monster's gone insane!!"
And amid the chaos—
At the top of a distant building,
Crow had already left his observation position.
No one knew—
that while the battlefield continued expanding,
he had begun withdrawing from the entire area.
Because in Crow's eyes—
this fight
was no longer something outer forces could control.
A true cadre-level battle
was about to begin.
Below—
Grave Hound stomped the ground again.
Boom!!!
A massive crack spread instantly.
The entire street collapsed completely.
Buildings began to tilt.
Bear suddenly looked up.
Because the building in front of them—
was collapsing toward their direction.