Pushing far past limits.

Exhausted or not, a rush of adrenaline kicked in and sent Will into a fighting stance. It saved his life. He didn’t understand what it was or where it came from, but a human silhouette made of green-colored aether sent a heavy straight punch at his face, one he managed to catch with both hands before quickly stepping back.

A more detailed glance at the green human figure showed it was big, about two meters tall, with broad shoulders and thick arms and legs. No muscle definition, nor any facial features of any kind. The heat Will felt from it confirmed it was made of pure aether, yet the punch felt very similar to that of an actual person, if also one strengthened by magic.

“Oooh, you caught it.” Helga smiled, eyebrows shooting up. “Of course there had to be something special about you, and I’m dying to know what it is, Will.”

Couldn’t be illusion magic, could it? No. If it was, it’d be more efficient to make the silhouette look like an actual person. Then… some sort of summoning? Aoi never mentioned anything like that existing. This seemed like aether manipulation, so… Evocation magic?

‘Will, remember she might be a Specialist. This could be a skill entirely unique to her.’

“Giving me the silent treatment, are you? What happened to you, Will? You used to be so kind, so considerate, so… dumb.” Helga chuckled. “Well, it works for me. I want to do this quickly before your tough friend realizes what’s happening.”

The green silhouette rushed at Will. Its arms were high in a guard stance and it approached with weaving motions. The punches it threw were fast and snappy as well. Jabs, straights, hooks, uppercuts… All in extremely tight combinations that **** Will to squeeze his body for every bit of aether he had recovered to move well enough to dodge them. It was like fighting a real boxer.

Will ducked under a right straight, clenched his fist and landed a left punch on the green man’s stomach. It felt solid, harder than a human would feel. It was like striking a rock. But more importantly, since this thing didn’t feel pain, Will’s punch wasn’t enough to stop it.

A left uppercut hit Will directly in the chin, a punch so precise and so hard that it would’ve knocked out any normal person. But Will grit his teeth, felt his body heating up to the point it burned his very skin and withstood the punch, retaliating with an even stronger hook to the green man’s temple.

It literally blew its head away. A punch that tore through solid rock and made it disappear like he had swiped through smoke. The entire silhouette faltered, its form destabilizing before it faded away.

“Oh. Oh wow. You really beat one of my trophies? Oooh, now I’m even more interested.” Helga smirked and licked her lips. With arms crossed, two more green men appeared before Will. The first was an exact copy of the one he just beat, the other a very short humanoid figure with a long snout and claw-like hands and feet. It… it resembled a kobold.

“What are these things?” Will asked through gritted teeth, keeping his guard. He tried to hide the fact that he was breathing hard, but couldn’t.

“Not hearing well? I just said they are my trophies,” Helga said, spreading her arms before her to show them off. “Aren’t they imposing? I only collect the ones that catch my attention.”

Trophies? What…?

“Here’s the thing, Will. I’m on a job right now. One that you made a lot easier. I’ve been keeping an eye on you since that party, you know? Who could’ve guessed we were both looking for a mirrorkin? When I saw you chasing one through my little raven, I took the chance and followed you. I really need to thank you for that. Oh, but it’s not enough, you know? Will, you owe me so, so much more, and I’m taking it whether you agree or not. I’m taking you, and I’m taking whatever it is you have inside you.”

Ishtar? Did… Did Helga just say she was taking Ishtar?

‘Huh? Uh-oh. Will, calm down. Don’t do anything rash!’

Oh, he was calm alright. There was no anger in his heart. Whatever Helga was doing, she was just following her desires, much like Will had done too many times. He had no place to judge, no grounds to argue against her actions. No, all her words did was fill his heart with resolve.

“Right. You’ve always been like that. Trophies? Things I owe you? No wonder you became a puppet to greed, Helga.” Will chuckled. He stood up straight and watched the two green figures in front of him. Even if they were strong, durable and outnumbered him, they weren’t rushing in like before. They approached slowly.

Helga scowled and snarled. “And what exactly do you mean by that?”

“You know what it means.” Will’s body kept on burning, hotter and hotter with every second. Soon he truly felt pain like his own skin was being scorched. It was mainly along his left arm and close to his shoulders, approaching his collarbone. “It’s fine. Do whatever you want, Helga. Just don’t cry when I retaliate, alright? You’re not taking anything else from me.”

Helga stepped back and glared at Will. Both her soldiers stepped in front of her, now more concerned with protecting her than.

“Hah! Since when did you get so reckless?” Helga said, behind a shaky smile. “You beat one of my puppets and you think you can take two? Please, Will.”

He stepped forward. It felt like his skull was splitting open and the heat was now searing a diagonal line above his left eye. His body was tense, stiff, but he could move.

‘Will, stop! William! You’re…!’

“W-What even is that aura…!?” Helga stepped further back and a third puppet formed in front of her, this one in the shape of a man wielding a longsword pointed at Will. “Break his legs! I’ll get someone to fix him later! Whatever it takes, I WILL have what’s inside you!”

The three puppets charged, but Will moved before them. An elbow to the swordsman's stomach, an open palm to the boxer’s chin from below and kick to the side of the head of the smaller kobold. One more after the next, performed in the blink of an eye and chained into each other flawlessly, each carrying enough **** to make all three fade out of existence.

Helga looked on with absolute terror in her face, punctuated further when Will stepped closer to her. That was the last thing he saw. His body gave up, his vision went dark and the world ceased to exist.