My Tribrid System: More than a Monster-Chapter 102: The Smell of Another (1)

Chapter 100

[Done]

That single notification in his head was enough to trigger a shift in the atmosphere.

With fierce intensity, Ray’s speed increased.

The change wasn’t necessarily dramatic, but it was certainly sufficient.

It helped him close the gap between himself and Jake within a single second, a feat that stunned every spectator in the hall.

Quickly, he hauled his fist forward at full throttle, an action that took Jake by surprise for a fleeting moment.

Yet, the veteran officer simply leaned backward, refusing to abandon his set position.

But Ray was determined not only to make him move but to make him lose.

The moment Jake leaned back, Ray sidestepped, appearing behind the Captain in a heartbeat.

His velocity was blistering as he swung his leg in a high arc toward the Captain’s head.

’Humph,’ Jake mused as he quickly stood upright and spun around.

With a sharp step to the side, he successfully evaded the kick.

Yet, before he could even think to launch a counterattack, Ray was already on the move again.

His fist darted toward the man’s face with unwavering intent.

"Why are you so predictable?" Jake couldn’t help but ask aloud.

He lifted his hand, ready to intercept the blow, when all of a sudden, the anticipated punch never arrived.

’Behind me!’ Jake screamed inwardly as he spun on his heels, only to see a roundhouse kick streaking his way from the blind spot.

Ray’s eyes subtly flickered as he kept observing with predatory focus.

That was when he saw it: a tiny muscle twitch.

The Captain was preparing to vault into the air to dodge the incoming roundhouse kick.

But all of a sudden, Ray spun in the air like a lethal wheel, catching Jake completely off guard.

Then, with a final, violent rotation, he unleashed an even more powerful roundhouse kick that was now mere inches from the man’s face.

This forced Jake to leap backward, finally abandoning the original position he had stubbornly set for himself.

’I made him move.’

Everyone, including Jake himself, was shocked as they stared at Ray.

Yet, that wasn’t the end of the assault.

Exploding from where he stood, Ray appeared before the Captain in the blink of an eye.

He shaped his fingers like jagged claws.

Unfortunately, he couldn’t call upon his actual claws in this setting, so he simply curled his fingers to mimic them.

And then...

It became a total blur of movement, with Ray frantically attacking from side to side.

His strikes were wild and erratic—strikingly similar to those of a primal animal or a famished beast.

In everything he did, he refused to let Jake breathe for even a millisecond.

He was pushing the Captain back with every ounce of his might.

A slash from here, a sharp strike there.

He performed a smooth transition into a rising uppercut, followed immediately by a driving knee kick.

Everything flowed seamlessly into each other, much like an expert seamstress intricately and smoothly guiding thread through her needles to fix a dress.

That was the level of fluid precision Ray displayed with his transitions.

All of this kept Jake on his toes, rendering him unable to find an opening to counterattack.

He was barely managing to evade the onslaught.

Where Trish had been calm, efficient, and neat in her execution, Ray was simply a wild animal at this point.

— He—he is actually pushing the Captain backward?

— How is a Grade 2.5 meta pushing a Captain back like this? Who is this guy?

— Let him breathe, let him breathe! This guy isn’t even letting the man catch his breath. He just keeps going and going continuously.

Jake furrowed his brows in genuine confusion as the pressure mounted.

’He—he isn’t giving me any space. I can’t even find a window to counter. It’s as if he’s reading my moves and knows exactly where I intend to go next. But how is that possible?’

’I can do this, I can do this, I can do this. Let’s fucking go!’ Ray urged himself.

Swooosh—!

His leg coiled from the side, launching a roundhouse kick aimed directly at the man’s head.

Jake quickly ducked below the strike, avoiding it.

Then, having no other viable option left, he finally sought to end the exchange with an attack of his own.

His fist shot forward like a piston toward Ray’s abdomen.

Yet, with chilling precision, like someone who already knew exactly what would happen next, the Aspirant sidestepped the punch with insulting ease.

The next second, he darted forward, his movements blurring as he quickly transitioned into a flurry of kicks.

A three-sequence combination that instantly targeted Jake’s chest, stomach, and chin in rapid succession was unleashed, keeping the veteran on his toes with a series of frantic ducks, tilts, and desperate dodges.

The Captain lifted a foot, preparing to shift his weight to the left to create distance.

Instantly, Ray’s eyes snapped to the exact spot where Jake intended to move.

He anticipated the shift and launched a powerful, committed punch toward the Captain’s head.

’Oh. So I was right. He can somehow predict my movements, eh? That isn’t a precognitive ability; I would be able to sense the fluctuation if it were. So, how is he doing this?’ Jake wondered.

Jake moved his forearm to block the attack, expecting a feint just like the one Trisha had used.

’A kick is coming next, eh? I need to be pre—’

"Unfortunately, I’m not Trish," Ray smirked, as if reading the Captain’s internal monologue.

He fully committed to the punch.

The Captain, still half-convinced this was a diversion, kept his guard split, lifting only one hand to parry the strike.

Bam—!

The fist struck with the concentrated force of a battering ram, catching Jake completely off guard for a fraction of a second.

Simultaneously, Ray felt a wave of dizziness hit him.

A searing headache washed over his mind, threatening to buckle his knees.

’Come on! Just a second more!’

"Aaaaaargh!" he screamed into the air, the sound raw and primal.

He swung his second hand in a massive hook from the side, smashing into a stunned Jake squarely on the face and sending the Captain sliding backward across the platform.

Thud!

Ray dropped to his knees in an instant.

He was panting heavily, his chest heaving as he quickly tapped the bridge between his brows twice.

The headache slowly began to recede, but then...

Drip—!

’Huh?’

Blood. It flowed from his nose, hitting the ground in dark, heavy drops.

’Fuck. I went way past my limit with that skill. My head feels like it’s about to rupture.’

"Amazing. Seems we have got some really good Aspirants this year," Jake remarked, rubbing his jaw as he stood up.

[Congratulations! Quest Completed]

[Distributing Re...]

Ray waved the holographic screen off, ignoring the notifications.

Blood kept rolling down his nose, forcing him to cup his hand over his face to stop it from staining the floor.

He quickly shot up, meeting the stares of pure awe from every single person in the room—all except Trisha.

She didn’t even look fazed.

Deep down, she knew that wasn’t even the boy’s full power.

But to the others, the performance was legendary for a Grade 2.5 meta to exhibit.

"Step aside for you..."

"Uh... Captain. I need to see the nurse," Ray quickly interjected, his voice muffled behind his hand.

"Huh?" Jake paused, his brow furrowing.

’Probably he went past his limits in that fight and his internal circuits are on fire.’

"Uh... sure. You will get your prize tomorrow then."

"Thanks." With a quick, shaky salute, Ray dashed out of the room hurriedly.

He could feel his vision blurring slightly at the edges.

He had lied; he wasn’t heading for the infirmary.

He was currently sprinting toward the safety of his dorm room.

He wasn’t even walking at this point; he was visibly running at full speed, weaving between hallways and startled Aspirants alike.

’I know those Aspirants will be talking behind my back and challenging my win. But unfortunately, I can’t wait around to teach them a lesson,’ he mused inwardly, his heart hammering against his ribs.

Soon enough, the stairs came into view.

He rushed down them, his footsteps echoing.

’... If I lingered any longer, I would have fain...’

He reached the bottom of the stairs and was rushing into a crowd of students in the main thoroughfare when—

Sniff, Sniff—!

His nose was instantly on high alert.

His animalistic instincts overrode his headache as he unconsciously began sniffing the air.

A weirdly familiar, pleasant scent hit him like a sudden gale.

For some reason, it made his skin crawl and his mind spin.

’Huh? What’s that smell? Why does it smell so... familiar?’ he wondered, twisting his head as he tried to pinpoint the source.

Tons of students lingered in the hallway, the heavy scent of various deodorants filling the air and messing with his senses.

«That is because it is!» Bruce suddenly shouted into Ray’s mind, a note of genuine panic in his voice.

’Huh?’

«You fool, that’s the smell of another werewolf! There is another of our kind right here in the Corps!»