Chapter 61: The Terror of Alex

"Come on, Alex!"

"Bring it on!"

Excitement—tinged with a touch of madness—flickered in Erik's eyes. It had been a long time since he felt this kind of crushing pressure.

Every muscle in his body tensed. His nerves stretched taut like steel wires.

He could barely breathe… and he loved it.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Clang! Clang! Clang!

With each rhythmically echoing crash of metal, Alex bulldozed his way forward—step by relentless step—until he was face to face with Erik.

Then he swung a steel-like fist, launching a brutal punch straight at him.

Erik felt a wave of suffocation.

In that instant, it was like a wild beast lunging at him.

His pupils shrank sharply. His adrenaline spiked.

"Hah!"

With a low growl, Erik yanked a chunk of reinforced concrete—almost as big as a person—into the air and hurled it at Alex.

Before, he never would have had the precision or control to manipulate something so massive.

Boom!

A moment later, it shattered into a thousand pieces.

Alex had punched it—straight through.

Hiss!

Before Erik could react, twin beams of blazing heat blasted from Alex's eyes, firing directly at him.

Erik's whole body spasmed.

Even his… rear end clenched in fear.

Goosebumps prickled all over his skin.

He smelled the scent of death.

That surge of danger pushed his reflexes into overdrive.

In that split-second, he pulled a steel pipe from the rubble and raised it just in time to block the heat vision.

Clang!

The beam slammed into the pipe.

But…

While it blocked the beam itself, it couldn't stop the force behind it.

The pipe shot backward like a cannonball and smashed straight into Erik.

Bang!

He was sent flying, slamming into the ground with a heavy thud.

It looked painful.

But Erik acted like nothing had happened. He got up without hesitation, grinned, and shouted, "Again! Keep it coming, Alex!"

…Okay, maybe Erik had a bit of a masochistic streak.

Alex raised an eyebrow but didn't bother commenting. He charged again.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Smash! Smash! Smash!

Erik was knocked down again and again, soon looking bruised and battered.

Of course, Alex was holding back—carefully. Erik looked like a mess, but he wasn't seriously hurt.

"Damn, Erik's getting wrecked."

"Has Alex really become this strong?"

"Poor Erik!"

The young mutants watching nearby were stunned, shaking their heads in disbelief.

They'd expected a fierce showdown. What they got was a one-sided beatdown.

Everyone had suspected Alex might've surpassed Erik—but the gap was this huge? No one saw that coming.

Even Charles couldn't help but shake his head.

Despite how badly Erik was getting beaten, Charles could tell at a glance—Alex was holding back.

No—he was seriously holding back.

If he hadn't, Erik would've been dead eight hundred times over by now.

Still, Charles had to admit—Erik might look miserable, but this… actually seemed to be helping.

"Havok, Sean, Darwin—you three, join Erik. Attack Alex together!"

Charles made the decision immediately, calling out to the young mutants still watching.

They were momentarily stunned—then lit up with excitement.

"Alex, huh? I've been itching to test him out," said Havok with a manic grin. He pounded his chest, and a wave of energy shot toward Alex.

Whoosh!

But Alex's body blurred, leaving only a flickering afterimage—he'd dodged in a blink.

"I'm in too!"

From the side, Banshee had been waiting. He opened his mouth and unleashed a sonic scream.

Whoosh!

Alex vanished again.

"…What kind of speed is that?"

Raven and Hank were speechless.

At that speed, even if he stood there and let them attack, they still wouldn't land a hit.

"Gotcha!"

A voice shouted behind Alex—Darwin had snuck up and grabbed him.

Of course, he didn't know Alex let him do it.

Crack, crack, crack!

Darwin's body morphed into living stone, locking around Alex like a statue.

The others didn't waste the opportunity. They fired off their attacks all at once—energy blasts, sonic waves, and Erik's metal surged toward Alex.

Alex grabbed Darwin with one hand and effortlessly hoisted him like a sack of potatoes.

Then he chucked him—dozens of meters away.

And that's when the real attacks arrived—blocking off every escape route, surrounding Alex in a deadly crossfire.

"This time we've got you!" Havok, Banshee, and even Darwin—still midair—grinned confidently.

But then—

CRACK!

With a single stomp, Alex shattered the ground beneath his feet.

And shot straight up—ten meters into the air.

All the attacks swept beneath him.

Not even brushing a hair on his body.

The young mutants were stunned.

He could do that?!

"Guys, I was only planning to beat up Erik," Alex said as he landed with a heavy thud, flashing a toothy smile. "But hey, you asked for it."

The young mutants shivered.

They glanced at Erik, who was still lying on the ground, looking like roadkill. All of them shook their heads like bobbleheads.

"Alex, this was Charles' idea!"

"Don't come any closer!"

"Heh. Like you have a choice."

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Crash! Crash! Crash!

"Nooo!"

"Ahhh!"

The training grounds descended into chaos.

And when it was all over—every single mutant who'd taken part in the fight, aside from Charles and the few who stayed back—was lying flat on the ground.

Like a bunch of broken dolls, limp and motionless.

That day, they finally understood… just how terrifying Alex really was.

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