"No! Stop it! Stop right now!!"
"Abby, keep going. Drain him dry!"
"Nom! Flavor's nothing special, but I won't say no to seconds!"
Scar stared at Abby in horror. The fuzzy little Echo, so deceptively cute, now looked more terrifying to him than any Threnodian.
He could feel it with perfect, agonizing clarity: his Forte, the power he'd built his entire identity around, was draining away. Every instinct screamed at him to fight back, but the wounds from Rover's Starburst Stream combo were too severe to ignore.
And the other Rover had casually lassoed him with a grappling hook for good measure.
Abby's Frequency-devouring ability was brutally effective, though it came with real limitations. The weaker the target, the higher the success rate. A healthy opponent could resist and interrupt the process entirely.
Same principle as catching monsters in a game: beat them down to a sliver of health first, or stack a sleep debuff to boost your capture rate.
Tacet Discords reduced to residual echoes after defeat were the easiest to absorb.
A critically wounded Scar wasn't much harder.
"Heh heh," Abby chirped. "Scream all you want. Nobody's coming to save you!"
It's over, Scar thought. It's completely over.
When the last wisp of Resonance vanished from his body, Abby finally pulled away, satisfied, and patted its little belly.
Both Rovers felt the surge at the same time.
And it was massive.
"That's a serious boost. Almost on par with what we got from Crownless."
"Yes. The world itself feels... sharper."
Devouring an experience package the size of Scar had catapulted them up dozens of levels, or so it felt. The kind of terrifying growth that made Overlord Class enemies little more than a footnote. No threat whatsoever.
And! That! Wasn't! Even! The! Best! Part!
"Wait, hold on. Is this ability...?"
"No way... Could it be...?"
They locked eyes. Then, in perfect unison, both Rovers raised a hand and channeled the new power coursing through them. Crimson doorways bloomed open in the air before them.
Spatial Teleportation, acquired!
"Quick, test it!"
"On it!"
She didn't hesitate. One step forward, and she vanished through the portal.
Dozens of meters away, a second doorway unfolded. She walked out the other side as casually as stepping through a curtain.
"My turn!"
He tested it with barely contained excitement. Anywhere within line of sight, he could tear open a portal and cross the distance instantly.
Better still, he could do what Scar had done: construct and maintain a small pocket dimension, a stable subspace that held itself together indefinitely.
"Ha! Now this is a haul."
"Rover, I think there's even more to it!"
In the distance, she closed her eyes.
A thought, a flicker of intent, and a portal opened half a meter above his head. She dropped through, and he lunged forward on instinct, catching her in his arms before gravity could.
Her eyes opened.
"Within line of sight, we can teleport freely. Beyond that, we'd need to leave an anchor point as a coordinate. That's what Scar's cards were for, and how he built his subspace. That about covers the basics. But..." A smile spread across her face, the kind that made his brain short-circuit for half a second. "Between the two of us, there don't seem to be any limits at all."
Just between them. No distance restrictions. No anchor points required. No matter how far apart they were, if one of them wanted to reach the other, they could be there in an instant.
"That's... incredible!!"
His eyes widened, and something hit him square in the chest.
He tightened his arms around her.
Overlord Class Echoes? A massive power boost? No. This ability, this power that made the distance between them meaningless, this was the real prize. The greatest thing either of them had gained today.
In that moment, their opinion of Scar improved dramatically.
"Thanks, Scar! Your powers are amazing!"
"Let me say thank you~ because of you, the four seasons are warm~"
A thousand miles to deliver your own head on a platter. It's the thought that counts!
Scar's eye twitched violently. What was he supposed to say to that? You're welcome? More importantly, could he leave now...?
"Well, we've said our thanks. So then..."
"Time for you to move on, Fractsidus Scar."
"?!!"
The instant the pleasantries ended, both Rovers raised their swords, battered and chipped from a full day of fighting, and pressed the dulled edges against either side of Scar's neck. Smiling all the while.
Let him go? What kind of joke was that?
To properly thank Scar for sponsoring their new Spatial Resonance ability, they'd decided to give him a redemption arc. The method was simple: grant Mr. Scar a fresh start on life.
He could be a good person next time around.
It was the only redemption method the two of them knew.
This is how I die! Rovers!!
Cold sweat poured down Scar's face. His jaw clenched on reflex. The twin blades descended toward his neck...
"Honored guests, wait!!"
A breathless voice cut through the air.
They turned. Sanhua stood before them, clad in her black Magistrate's guard attire. Not a trace of surprise crossed Rover's face.
"Well, well. It's been a minute, Miss Sanhua. What brings you all the way out here?... So, what did the Magistrate just say?"
"You... already figured it out?"
"Wasn't hard. There's only one explanation, right? The Magistrate planted the keepsake's trail in this location to warn us about Fractsidus. The three-day arrangement was the time she needed to set her own pieces in motion." He allowed himself a small, knowing look. "Am I wrong?"
A minor flex, he had to admit. All of it was information the storyline had already revealed, but from Sanhua's perspective, he'd deduced Magistrate Jinhsi's entire strategy at a glance. Borderline supernatural intellect.
And both Rovers had captured Scar before the Magistrate's plan had even finished coming together.
They'd arrived in Jinzhou less than two days ago. In that time, they'd gathered intelligence, massively increased their strength, and flipped the script entirely, transforming themselves from hunted prey into hunters who'd run down their pursuer and put him in the dirt.
Sanhua glanced at the growing Echo army flanking Rover, then recalled the terrifying combat prowess both Rovers had displayed.
A chill ran through her. These were the individuals the Magistrate, the Advisor, and the Sentinel all held in such high regard. They'd earned every ounce of it.
Honestly, I'm a bit surprised myself...
Watching Sanhua's expression grow more reverent by the second, he felt a twinge of sheepishness.
His original plan had been to play along with Jinhsi's strategy. Wait three days, let Scar walk into the trap she'd prepared, then take him down in the safest, most controlled way possible.
He'd misjudged how strong he and the other Rover had become.
Together, they didn't need a plan.
The moment Scar showed his face, they could take him head-on.
That was the absolute power the two of them wielded.