Mia?

Chapter 86 - Mia?

Claire sat with her back against the warehouse wall, her body resting heavily against the cold concrete. Blood still ran down her face and soaked the front of her shirt. One eye was almost swollen shut, and every breath came out rough and wet. Her chest rose and fell as she struggled for air, but even after everything that had happened, she kept laughing. The sound bounced off the concrete walls and broken crates, filling the empty warehouse as she watched Mike kneeling beside Mia’s still body.

Mike’s head snapped toward her. His eyes were red and wet, tears still running down his face. For a moment, he simply stared at Claire. Then he noticed the small glass bottle in her hand. A soft green liquid glowed inside it, casting a faint light across her blood-covered fingers.

Claire raised the bottle to her lips and drank every drop without taking her eyes off him. When it was empty, she lowered her hand and let the bottle fall. It struck the concrete, rolled several feet across the floor, and finally came to a stop.

Mike watched her body closely.

The change began almost immediately.

The cuts across Claire’s face slowly pulled themselves closed. The bleeding stopped, and the torn skin sealed as though the wounds had never been there. The swelling around her eye faded before his eyes, revealing her face again. The color returned to her pale skin, and the roughness in her breathing disappeared.

Claire placed one hand against the wall and pushed herself upright. She rolled her shoulders once, stretched her neck, and straightened her back. The limp she had carried after the fight was gone. She stood completely straight, looking almost untouched.

Mike carefully moved Mia’s body to the side and lowered her onto the concrete. He wiped the tears from his face with the back of his hand and slowly stood. His expression had changed. The grief was still there, but something harder had settled over it.

“I will kill you myself, bitch.” He lifted one hand.

The clone standing nearby faded away, disappearing from the warehouse as if he had never been there. Mike felt power rush through his body the moment the clone vanished. Iron Body locked into place first. His skin felt thicker and heavier, his body becoming harder beneath the surface. Jab Jolt sparked along his arms, making small bursts of energy crawl across his muscles. Nail Hook made his fingers tingle as if his nails had suddenly become sharp enough to tear through metal. Sonic Footwork settled into his legs, filling them with a strange lightness that made every movement feel faster and easier. All four skills burned through him at once.

Mike charged.

His boots hammered against the concrete as he rushed straight toward Claire. She did not retreat. She stood waiting for him, her body completely recovered from the beating she had taken only moments earlier. Her lips moved as she muttered something under her breath. The words were quiet enough that Mike could barely hear them over the sound of his own footsteps.

He kept running. The distance between them disappeared quickly.

Then he heard two words clearly.

“Sonic Footwork.”

Mike’s eyes narrowed.

Claire moved.

At the same instant, Mike kicked off the floor and used Sonic Footwork himself, putting ten meters between them before she could close the distance. He landed in a low stance, his feet sliding slightly across the concrete before stopping. His eyes remained fixed on her.

“You bitch. Your system was copying my skills?”

Claire’s good eye widened for half a second.

Then her smile returned. “So you know, huh?” she said. “Mike, I have a system too. I know your quests. I also know you fucked your aunt at the hospital to reach this point.”

Mike’s expression hardened.

Claire took one slow step toward him, enjoying the reaction on his face.

“What if her husband finds out? She will be abandoned. You know your step-aunt and stepmom come from that family, right? Those people are elites. They will make her disappear in an instant.”

She stopped and looked directly into his eyes. “So follow me without a sound.”

Mike spat onto the concrete. The spit landed with a wet slap between them.

“Bitch, you are dead. You think I did not know?” His fists tightened. “I will kill you here. How dare you kill Mia? How dare you threaten my aunt. I will not let Nancy suffer under that douchebag husband of hers.”

He took one careful step toward her. A loud bang suddenly cracked through the warehouse. Something hard slammed into the back of his head.

Pain exploded behind his eyes.

Mike's vision flashed white. His balance disappeared, and his knees buckled beneath him. His body pitched forward as the warehouse seemed to tilt around him. For a moment, he thought of the man who had been with Claire earlier.

As he fell, Mike twisted his body and looked behind him. The first thing he saw was the iron rod.

Then the hand holding it.

Then he saw the face of the attacker; his eyes widened.

Mia stood over him.

Her eyes were open.

An evil little smile rested on her lips.

Blood was still smeared across her cheek from earlier, but there was no weakness in her expression. She looked nothing like the lifeless body Mike had just held in his arms.

His breath caught.

“Mia…”

His hand reached toward her even as the floor rushed up to meet him. His fingers stretched toward her. He never reached her. Darkness swallowed everything.

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