Varian's heart pounded at the unexpected situation.
In the split of a second, he checked his condition and realized that except for exposing his aura, there was no change.
Booom!
As Charles descended down on him, the speed with which his gigantic body moved caused the air to be compressed and sent shockwaves across the stage.
Varian was the direct target of the shockwaves and he got an approximate estimate of Charles' strength.
'Fuck everything. I'll beat him first.'
The aura in Varian's body raged like a flooding river and a dazzling light filled the room.
Varian punched out.
It was a simple and straightforward punch without any fancy technique.
But with each passing moment, it got stronger and stronger.
Telekinetic power boosted his punch. Lightning covered his fist. Space formed a protective layer. Not only that, for the first time, a layer of ice was also formed over space.
Charles' eyes widened in mid-air as he witnessed a scene that might as well be impossible.
Humans didn't decode the divine paths. But it's common sense that the most paths one could awaken were three.
But now…
"Arghhh!" A terrible headache hit his head and Charles felt like someone was piercing his brain with thin but sharp needles.
'…Just how many powers does he have?'
Charles gritted his teeth and suppressed the pain. But it wasn't very easy. As a result, veins popped up on the wolf's forehead and its eyes bulged as if they were about to fall out.
Its momentum slightly faltered, but it slapped down its paw with all its might.
Varian's punch stacked with five different powers reached the giant paw.
Then…
Boom!
The world went silent before a huge shockwave lashed outward. Even under the shockwaves that could instantly kill level 6s, the stage remained intact.
Not even a spec of dust rose.
But…
Drip! Drop! Drip!
The giant white wolf staggered back, dragging its bloody paw.
Some parts of the paw had the bones broken, other parts were electrocuted and a few were frozen.
Charles knew without any check that his paw received a significant injury. But what surprised him most was—
"You fucker!"
Varian, who was five hundred meters away, reached him in the blink of an eye and punched down.
It was the same chilling punch filled with five different powers.
Lykos bared its teeth and opened its mouth.
'You're the one who took my family.' Thick killing intent filled the air as Charles' heart thrashed against his chest.
The bits of his aunt and brother played in the back of his mind.
He, however, had only one thing in his mind.
Whooosh!
With the sound of air being cut, Varian's fist magnified in Charles' vision.
Right when it was about to connect to his forehead, the giant wolf opened its mouth.
"Roaa!"
With its sharp teeth, it bit down at the hand with a force that could crush steel to pieces.
Booom!
The sound of metal clashing against metal reverberated across the throne hall and the next thing Charles knew, he was coughing blood as enormous pain spread from his lower jaw.
"Pfoo!"
Feeling something solid in his mouth, he spat it out.
It…It was three teeth.
Charles' mind spun as reality finally set in.
"H-How?" The giant wolf muttered in human tongue.
The man in question was standing a few hundred meters away. He stood like a javelin—straight and prideful.
On his right arm, there was a large cut with a chunk of flesh missing. Blood was gushing out like there was no tomorrow.
Except for that one injury, he was fine.
In fact, even that injury started to heal as Varian's right arm turned into a branch.
"?!" Charles' eyes widened as he witnessed the seventh power displayed by Varian.
"…what the fuck is this?" Charles was feeling this for the first time.
Overwhelmed.
He was completely and utterly overwhelmed.
Since childhood, Charles encountered many people stronger than him. Level 8s and even level 9s. Moreover, the strongest man was his father himself.
Despite the power gap, Charles never had this feeling in front of them.
'I'm weaker than them now, but sooner or later, I'll catch up and surpass them.' He believed this with all his heart.
When his talent skyrocketed, this belief was entrenched.
But now…
"What the fuck is this, eh?" Varian's eyes shone with a cold light as he approached the wolf.
He didn't fly and didn't even run. He simply walked in strides.
But Charles felt an even larger pressure from that action.
What kind of opponent would do that?
Only the ones who were….
"You know, Charles," Varian stretched his palm and a white spear appeared in his hand.
The moment he came in contact with it, the white spear burst into an orange and flickered in several colors forming a special blend.
Charles felt his heart palpitate as he watched the man decrease their distance.
"I didn't want to kill you now, but you really had to bug me." Varian's eyes locked onto the white wolf, like a predator sizing its prey.
Charles' found himself shaking.
Those two exchanges were more than enough to prove who's stronger.
Varian was significantly stronger than him.
'I can't win him like this…' Charles' mind spun as he contemplated using that potion.
"I regret to say this, but I'll have to kill you as soon as possible." Varian's arm shook and the next second, a golden light flashed in the air.
Then it turned orange. Blue. And indigo before reaching Charles.
"You can't win!" Charles roared and side-stepped, narrowly dodging the spear.
Varian raised his hand and moved it to the right.
The lightning mana attached to the spear acted on it and changed its direction abruptly.
Charles tried to dodge again, but he wasn't fast enough against a spear boosted by almost three mid level 7 and two low level 7 powers.
Splish!
The spear pierced through his lower abdomen and purple blood splashed on the floor.
The wolf groaned in pain and anger as it glared at Varian with spiteful eyes.
Varian didn't spare it a thought and retrieved ten more spears.
'…The fuck!' Charles' eyes nearly popped out of their sockets and he pushed his legs onto the stage.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
As the spears shot toward him at high speeds, Charles pushed himself to the dodge.
Showing the great senses it possessed, Lykos, or rather, Charles, dodged the spears one by one.
The closest any spear got was grazing his fur.
Varian's face darkened and he kicked his ground.
Whoosh!
He reached Charles in the blink of an eye and was about to punch him down.
"Woof!"
But instead of engaging in direct combat, Charles backed off.
He didn't even fight, but just continued dodging.
Whenever Varian attacked, he'd find the perfect opportunity to evade and route to escape.
He didn't even try to meet him head-on.
"..Are you even the same Charles Xander I saw in the solar banquet? You fucking coward!" Varian cursed in irritation as Charles continued to escape.
Charles flinched at Varian's words. They were right on the mark.
Even though he gave himself many reasons, Charles wasn't the same after the solar banquet.
It fundamentally changed him.
To be precise, it removed the 'certainty' in his life.
Even though he didn't say it out loud, he wasn't certain that he'd be the one to lead humanity.
He wasn't certain whether he'd be the strongest.
He wasn't certain if he was the greatest genius.
One by one, insecurities crept into his mind and caused increased hatred toward Varian.
"You're at fault," Charles growled as he suddenly spun in mid-air and lashed his tail at Varian.
"And you," Varian smirked and chuckled. "You fell for a provocation."
The tail stopped just before him.