The killing feast Richard orchestrated did not last long.
In fact, it lasted just over a minute.
Yet for those watching through screens across the country, it felt far longer. What they witnessed did not resemble a standard law enforcement clash. It resembled something closer to a restricted horror film—raw, violent, and merciless.
The television station broadcasting the scene reacted quickly. The footage was blurred mid-battle. Visual filters obscured the most graphic details, cutting away from the clearest angles of severed limbs and collapsing bodies.
Even so, the outlines were visible.
Silhouettes falling.
Flashes of blood.
Explosions of frost and lightning.
That was enough.
Many viewers felt their stomachs churn. Some turned away. Others sat frozen in place, unable to look but unable to change the channel.
The once-chaotic livestream comment section became eerily silent. The scrolling barrage of mocking remarks and confident predictions disappeared.
Users who had been ridiculing him minutes earlier began deleting their posts one by one.
No one believed he would track them down over a few sarcastic comments. But instinctively, they erased the evidence anyway.
Before the battle, they had watched with detached amusement. They expected to see a reckless fugitive crushed by elite agents. They had anticipated spectacle.
Instead, they had witnessed execution.
The realization settled in uncomfortably.
He had destroyed multiple Sentinels. He had waited calmly in the open square. He had clearly expected the agents to arrive.
And they had still assumed he would be overwhelmed.
That was not miscalculation.
That was ignorance.
Other mutants registered under the Mutant Restriction Act because they lacked power. Because they could not resist.
Richard was not one of them.
If anything, the live broadcast forced a question into public consciousness.
Was this what a top-tier mutant truly looked like?
And if so, why had the Los Angeles branch provoked him at all?
As viewers quietly deleted their ridicule, frustration shifted direction. Instead of mocking him, many began questioning the competence of the agents who had engaged him.
Richard, of course, had no idea.
He did not know that the online crowd had turned from spectators to uneasy critics. He did not care.
After the last mutant agent fell, he did not leave immediately.
Instead, he began harvesting.
Even those who died without activating their abilities still possessed power worth taking. The two agents cut down by Eight Swords Flash. The blonde agent executed from behind. Their silence in battle did not mean their abilities were insignificant.
Agents in the Operations Department were never weak.
At minimum, most carried reliable Beta-tier abilities. If not that, then strong Delta-tier powers refined through training. The Department did not recruit mediocrity for its elite field teams.
One by one, he completed the plunder.
Only after the system finished processing did he activate Flash and disappear from the square.
As he left, the towering wall of fire surrounding the battleground began to shrink. Flames receded gradually until they extinguished completely.
Police and tactical units still hesitated.
Minutes passed before they dared enter the square. Only when it became clear he had truly gone did they step cautiously forward to recover the bodies.
…
Sabretooth's apartment.
After executing more than twenty consecutive Flashes to ensure distance and avoid tracking, Richard finally returned.
The moment he appeared in the living room, Sabretooth approached him.
"So your 'private matter' was wiping out the entire Operations Department team?" Sabretooth asked bluntly.
Richard raised an eyebrow.
"Problem?"
Sabretooth frowned.
"You're strong. I'll give you that. But this guarantees they'll escalate. They'll send stronger agents next time."
Richard's tone remained calm.
"They were never going to let me go," he said. "Whether I killed them or not."
He waved the topic away.
"Forget that. You've got contacts. You can reach the mutant school, right?"
Sabretooth nodded.
"Already did. I contacted someone I know. They sent me the number."
"Then call them," Richard said. "Have them take the kids."
Sabretooth gave him a strange look.
"They're already on their way."
Richard narrowed his eyes slightly.
"To pick up the kids?"
"Technically," Sabretooth replied. "But they left before I even contacted them."
The subtext was obvious.
"They're coming for me," Richard said calmly.
Clarice spoke up before Sabretooth could respond.
"They're not coming to arrest you. They want you to meet Professor X."
"No," Richard replied without hesitation. "Not now."
He moved toward the window.
"The branch situation is over. It's time to separate."
Clarice looked at him seriously.
"They really just want to talk."
"Maybe later," he said. "When I decide."
He paused briefly and added with a faint smile, "Your cooking's excellent. I liked it."
Then he activated Flash.
He vanished.
…
Suburbs of Los Angeles.
A modest house with a For Sale sign hanging near the front door.
Richard sat alone on the sofa in the quiet living room and summoned the system interface.
Text unfolded before him.
[New abilities acquired: Super Strength, Super Speed, Super Self-Healing, Energy Absorption, Attack Diversion, Air Bomb, Illusion Creation, Hurricane Manipulation, Invisibility, Super Vision, Mental Whip, Hypnotic Suggestion.]
[Duplicate abilities detected. Fusion initiated.]
[Super Strength, Super Physique, Super Self-Healing, Energy Absorption, and Super Vision enhanced.]
[Hurricane Manipulation can convert into skill "Great Wind." Convert?]
He did not hesitate.
"Yes."
[Skill Great Wind awakened.]
[Great Wind – Level 1 (0/100)]
[X-Gene Ability Update]
[Alpha Tier: Plunder, Super Strength, Super Physique, Super Self-Healing]
[Beta Tier: Flash, Bounce, Rock Body, Ion Shockwave, Mind Isolation, Mind Charm, Attack Diversion, Air Bomb, Illusion Creation, Invisibility, Super Vision, Mental Whip, Hypnotic Suggestion]
[Delta Tier: Energy Absorption, Telekinesis, Beast Instinct, Bone Claws]
Richard leaned back slightly, studying the updated list.
He had not acquired a new Alpha-tier ability tonight. But the overall gains were substantial.
Super Strength, Super Physique, and Super Self-Healing had all undergone further enhancement. His baseline physical parameters had climbed again.
Even Energy Absorption, still categorized as Delta, had strengthened.
Super Vision had fused with his previously acquired enhanced sensory traits, streamlining his ability list and reducing redundancy.
The newly obtained abilities were also valuable.
Attack Diversion offered tactical defense.
Air Bomb provided ranged pressure.
Illusion Creation and Hypnotic Suggestion expanded psychological control options.
Mental Whip enhanced direct psychic offense.
Invisibility increased infiltration flexibility.
And now, Great Wind added large-scale environmental manipulation.
Richard smiled faintly.
Tonight had not only completed a mission.
It had accelerated his evolution.
.....
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