Chapter 194: Subdued with a Kiss
For the first time, Echidna’s movements stopped, not because she was physically restrained, but because something had touched the authority buried within her very existence.
She was the Mother of Monsters, a primordial being, a creature whose bloodline had produced legends, and yet Silas’s Authority had managed to reach her.
Echidna’s expression became one of genuine disbelief.
"You..." Silas’s smile widened. "...are listening."
Echidna’s fingers trembled.
"Don’t mistake that for submission."
"I won’t." Silas stepped closer. "I prefer cooperation."
Echidna tried to move, and her body responded, but slowly, far too slowly. Silas’s next skill activated.
[Prowess]
His body suddenly moved with perfect efficiency, while his posture changed. Every movement became deliberate, every step carried weight, and every breath synchronized with his body. Even with one percent mana, his physical capabilities were being used with terrifying precision.
Echidna attacked, only for Silas to slip past her claws. He ducked beneath her tail and stepped over another strike. He moved between attacks that should have been impossible to avoid.
Echidna’s eyes widened.
"How are you..."
Silas appeared beside her.
"Practice."
He tapped her shoulder. Echidna turned, but he was already gone. He appeared behind her, then beside her, then directly in front of her. He wasn’t overpowering her. He was just moving perfectly.
His next skill activated.
[Charm Reflex]
The air around him changed, and Chloe felt it immediately. Her cheeks became warm.
"Silas."
He glanced toward her.
"Sorry."
"You..." Her face became even redder. "You know exactly what you’re doing."
Silas smiled. "Maybe."
Echidna stared at him. For the first time, something other than anger or excitement appeared in her eyes: Confusion. She couldn’t understand why she was suddenly paying attention to every movement he made, why his voice seemed clearer, why her instincts were no longer screaming at her to kill him, why she was curious.
And curiosity was dangerous.
Silas took another step.
"Desire Manipulation."
The battlefield became silent. Echidna’s eyes widened. The ability didn’t force a specific desire into her mind. It reached into what was already there.
The curiosity, the fascination, the ancient loneliness, the desire to encounter something genuinely new, the desire to find something worthy of her attention- Silas touched those feelings and amplified them.
He didn’t amplify it enough to erase her mind, or enough to make her a puppet, but just enough to make her unable to ignore them.
Echidna’s breathing slowed. She felt her cheeks flush and become warm.
"What are you doing to me?"
Silas smiled. "Showing you something you haven’t felt in a very long time."
"What?"
"Interest."
Echidna stared at him. Silas’s final thread began wrapping around her.
[Targeted Obsession]
The effect was instantaneous. Echidna’s pupils contracted, and her attention narrowed completely. The battlefield disappeared, along with the military aircraft she could see from afar. Thankfully, the world had evolved to allow aircraft to stay afloat, or else there would’ve been more than just accidents.
Everything faded into the background, leaving only one person in front of her, Silas.
Her eyes followed him instinctively. Silas stopped directly before her, close enough that she could see the blood running down his face, close enough that he could see the faint reflection of himself in her golden eyes.
Echidna whispered, "You are dangerous."
"So are you." Silas smiled.
"I could still kill you."
"You could."
"Then why aren’t I?"
Silas didn’t answer immediately. Instead, he raised his hand and gently placed it against her cheek. Echidna froze.
She had fought gods, she had birthed monsters, she had survived ages that had swallowed civilizations, and yet somehow, that simple gesture unsettled her more than Silas’s attacks had.
Her eyes narrowed.
"Silas..."
He leaned closer.
"You mentioned my name correctly..."
Chloe watched from several meters away, and her face had become bright red.
"He’s actually doing it..."
Echidna’s eyes widened slightly as Silas whispered, "You wanted something interesting."
Then he kissed her. For one second, nothing happened. The battlefield remained silent. Then the pink light surrounding Silas erupted.
WHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!
The entire Blackridge Expanse trembled. Echidna’s monstrous aura collapsed, her poisonous mana vanished, the creatures under her control suddenly stopped moving, and her enormous serpent body slowly relaxed.
The cracks across the earth ceased spreading, and even Chloe’s Absolute Zero settled. Echidna’s eyes remained open for several seconds, then they slowly closed.
Silas pulled away.
Echidna stared at him. Her expression was utterly blank. Her face was as red as a tomato, and he could even see her massive chest, which he’d been ignoring all this while standing, the nipples poking through her minimal clothes.
Silas smiled.
"Subdued."
A system window appeared.
[Mission Complete!]
[Target subdued!]
[Combat objective successfully achieved!]
[No lethal damage inflicted!]
[Battle terminated!]
Silas exhaled, then his knees gave out. Chloe immediately caught him.
"Silas!"
He rested against her shoulder.
"That was exhausting."
Chloe stared at him, then at Echidna, and back at him.
"You kissed an S-Rank primordial monster."
Silas blinked.
"Yep."
"And your solution was..."
"Yep."
She stared at him.
"You’re unbelievable."
Silas smiled weakly.
"I know."
Behind them, Echidna slowly opened her golden eyes. She looked at Silas, touched her lips, then looked at Chloe. A faint smile appeared on her lips
"Interesting."
Her voice was quiet, almost amused.
"I think..." She slowly raised herself. "I like this human."
Silas’s exhausted expression froze, Chloe’s face went completely red, and somewhere above them, the battered tournament drone continued recording.
Every single second.
***
Kelvina Bradley shot upright from her bed so quickly that the blanket flew off her legs.
Her enormous room, which usually looked more like a training facility than a bedroom, had been transformed into a battlefield of its own. Two massive swords rested against the wall beside a rack of training equipment, several combat simulations were displayed across the walls, and a large holographic screen floated directly in front of her.
On that screen was the live footage from Blackridge Expanse, more specifically, Silas. Kelvina stared at the screen with her mouth hanging open.
"Did..." She pointed at the projection. "Did he just-"
The footage replayed. Silas stepped toward Echidna, placed a hand against her cheek, leaned closer, and then he kissed her.
Kelvina’s entire face went blank, while the replay ended.
"WHAT THE ACTUAL FUCK?!!!!!!!"