Villain: Ultimate Mutation System in the Alternate World

Reign's instincts kicked in immediately. Without thinking, he swung his right hand like a claw, aiming straight for the the neck.

But just as his nails was about to hit, the Madman moved slightly, and dodged to the side with ease, almost like he knew what was coming.

"Oh, someone's a little impatience," the Madman teased, his voice light and unsettling.

He wasn't just some random illusion—he was something far more dangerous.

Determined not to be outdone, Reign didn't pause.

He hurriedly swung his right hand again, attacking with a series of rapid strikes.

His movements were a blur, each swing coming faster than the last. He was trying to overwhelm his opponent with his speed and ferocity.

But no matter how quickly Reign attacked, none of his strikes connected.Nôv(el)B\\jnn

It wasn't because his opponent was faster; rather, he seemed to predict every move.

'What's happening here' Reign's frustration grew with every missed strike.

'If only I had my original speed!' he clicked his tongue in annoyance.

'I need to come up with a new plan to make up for my lack of speed,'

He spotted a katana on the ground and kicked it up into the air.

As it spun, he caught and, without missing a beat, swung it down hard.

SLASH!

This time, he was faster and had a longer range.

The blade came close, but at the last second, the Madman jumped back, creating some distance between them.

He waved a finger, teasing Reign. "You'll have to do better than that, little one."

Reign's eyes narrowed, "Who are you?" he demanded, keeping his stance ready for another attack.

The Madman smirked and shook his head.

"You think you can just ask me who I am and expect an answer right away? You're a bit spoiled, aren't you?

"Maybe you're a genius who got your power without any real effort, and now you take everything for granted." He paused, his smile growing wider.

"Or maybe you're using a borrowed power?"

Reign's instinctively tightened the grip on his sword. 'Does he know about the system?'

"Was I right ?" The Madman started laughing, his eyes sparking with mischief.

"Stop messing around! Tell me who you are and what you have to do with Aika."

The Madman's grin didn't fade. Instead, it grew wider, he was enjoying himself.

"I have my own reasons, which you'll find out about later. For now, I can't let you trap her soul or kill her."

"So you know about my plans?" Reign asked.

"Yes, I'm the one who link your consciousness here after all,"

"Link my consciousness? What did you do to me?" he demanded, his voice rising, ready to attack again.

"Don't worry, your soul is intact. That benefactor of yours was really stubborn, though. If I push too hard, it would drag me down with you," he said, sighing heavily .

"Benefactor? What are you talking about?"

Reign wasn't sure if his opponent was just rambling or if it was trying to mess with his mind.

"You're not the only one with a benefactor, you know. In fact, yours seems even more sinister than me. Don't trust it too easily." The madman warned.

"What makes you think I'd trust you, let alone believe your warnings? If you're trying to scare me off, you're wasting your time."

"Little One, I'm just giving you some friendly advice. You might think your benefactor is helping you, but just like me, who wanted Aika to live and grow for my own gain, what do you think its true intentions are? You're not so naive that you believe it's giving you power for free, are you?"

Reign flinched slightly.

This idea had been troubling him for a while, and it was part of why he had grown suspicious of the system.

Now that his strange opponent had brought it up, his doubts grew even stronger.

However, he couldn't ignore the possibility that his opponent was just trying to mess with his head, aiming to create doubts about his relationship with the system.

For all he knew, the more he doubted the system, the less chance he had of getting out of this situation.

'I can't be influenced. No matter what the system motives are, it's still the only thing I can rely on.'

It had been helping him throughout his second life. In fact, he would have died long ago without it pulling him out of dangerous situations from time to time.

Reign's eyes narrowed, his grip on the sword tightening. "I'm not here to play games or listen to your lies. If you're standing in my way, then I'll kill you,"

"Lies ?" The Madman shook his head.

"You're too dependent on it, or maybe it's made you too dependent. Let me guess: as soon as you lost your power here, you started feeling worthless again."

Reign flinched again, feeling like his thoughts were being read.

This reaction didn't escape the madman, who seized the moment to speak further.

"You're counting on your benefactor to save you, right ? Because deep down, you think you're just a weak, useless child."

"If you had even a fraction of your father's power, maybe you wouldn't feel so small and insecure. Did all the experiments made you dumb?"

"H — How do you know that?" Reign's voice wavered

Those memories were from his past life, something only he should have known.

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"Little One, I know more about you than you know about yourself,"

"When Aika's soul and yours merged, I saw some of your memories. I linked your consciousness here so we could talk without your over protective benefactor overhearing us."

The madman paused, letting his words sink in.

"But I have to admit, you're impressive. I saw how Aika fell short compared to you in many ways."

A smirk spread across his face. "Unlike her, you're focused solely on growing stronger. You don't seem to care about anything else. Your benefactor must be thrilled to have you around," he added, his voice dripping with sarcasm.