Is it Wrong to Copy Abilities in Apocalypse?

"W-Why...?"

The moment Alex heard that broken voice of a man, his body tensed, and his steps hastened.

*Woosh*

He zoomed toward the heap of debris, not wanting to waste any more time.

"I-I can—!"

*Squelch*

With the distance getting shorter, Alex could hear things more clearly than before, and the deathly silence surrounding him just helped him with that.

He could vividly imagine the expression on the face of the woman who seemed to be begging someone, only to have her words cut short by a sickening squelch.

"I didn't have any other choice."

Alex could hear a low murmur, causing his steps to get faster and faster.

*Step**Step*...

He climbed up the pile of debris, not wanting to go face-to-face with whoever it was.

He wanted higher ground so that even if he had to face an unfavorable situation where he couldn't shoot out arrows, he would just have to drop it toward the ground—that would be enough to give it the momentum it needed.

By the time Alex reached the top of the peak made out of broken concrete and rocks, things had already reached a point of no return.

The moment Alex could get a view of everything on the other side of the heap of debris, all he could do was take out the bow and arrow from his inventory and aim at Pritesh.

He could feel some really bad vibes coming from the floating blood mass that kept getting denser and smaller as time passed, and the one who made it all possible was Pratish.

Just a glance at the guy was enough for Alex to conclude what he was doing.

The AI's words just worked as a confirming factor.

Pushing mana out of one's body or expending mana at nothing—both of them were the same thing.

This was something the humans were given information about the moment they learned the usage of mana.

Just like how we burn our mana to use our skills, we can use our mana at nothing by letting it flow out in the air.

What Pratish was doing was something like that; it was just that the mana he let out in the air was being greedily sucked in by the magic circle.

*Strain*

Alex knocked the arrow on the bow and pulled the string, aiming right at Pratish's head.

No matter what was happening, one thing was sure to Alex: Pratish was the one making it possible.

If that guy died, then the mana supply to the magic circle would pause, and whatever was being summoned would pause.

*Woosh*

Alex shot the arrow right at the guy's head, but then he frowned as he noticed the mass of blood being shot at Pratish at a pace faster than the arrow he shot.

He gritted his teeth as he raised his palm, pushing it forward, increasing the speed of the arrow by using the wind's whisper.

But...

"H-HELP—!"

As the guy tried to shout for help, the ball of blood that was now the size of a tennis ball shot inside his mouth.

*Thud*

The push from the blood ball caused Pratish's body to fall back to the ground, dodging the arrow at the same time.

*Woosh**Thunk*

The arrow was very fast, faster than any of Alex's attacks, as he had used all of his focus and a lot of mana to make it that way—so much that even trying to stop it was not possible for him, causing it to get embedded in the ground.

But that didn't deter Alex, as he knocked another arrow on his bow and shot it at Pratish, but this time...

*Swoosh*

*Grab*

Pratish's body, which had been lying motionless on the ground, jerked as the arrow was shot, and his arm snapped upward, directly stopping the arrow that was about to hit the guy's head before his body started trembling.

"Jejejejejejeje."

Then, an eerie giggle, enough to cause Alex's body to freeze, was heard from Pratish's lips, which were now forming an evil, impish grin.

*Crack**Snap*

Pratish's body slowly started to get up, but unlike a normal person, his body would creak and snap with every movement.

First, it was his leg that got stood up straight, leaving his upper body bent at an impossible angle before Pratish's body jerked, and with a final snap, his every body part was now in the right spot, all while still holding the arrow.

"Jejejejejeje."

His giggle, however, never stopped.

"Alex Matthew..."

The guy finally spoke as he fiddled with the arrow in his hand, and Alex, who wasn't even being stared at, had his senses warning him of danger.

*Woosh**Clatter*

He hurriedly jumped down the heap of debris, causing some pieces to clatter down, and the moment he did it...

*Fwish*

'Pratish' threw the arrow that he was holding right where Alex stood a second ago; the speed of the throw, however, was faster than Alex's last shot—way faster.

*Boom*

It crashed into the pile of concrete and bricks, causing them to blast off in every direction, but 'Pratish' didn't seem to be affected by it in the least.

"Jejejejejeje."

The guy just kept giggling as if he found all of this amusing.

"I would expect no less from a being who has so many major gods wanting to form a contract with."

His voice had turned sharp and slow, which would've sounded irritating to Alex if not for the fact that he was stunned the moment he saw the guy's stats and info.

"But you know..."

'Pratish's eyes, which had now turned completely black with no white part within, turned to look at Alex with a dissatisfied gleam.

"Because of you, my two to-be slaves are now dead."

*Step*

He paused as he inspected his body before taking a step forward and continuing his words.

"If you were a bit slower, then I would never have killed them; they were quite a useful pair, after all—"

*Step*

He went on at the same slow pace as his eyes stayed fixed on Alex, who now had a solemn look on his face, but then he growled as he stomped his feet.

"—Gah, this useless body!"

'Pratish' gnashed his teeth, revealing a pair of sharp canine teeth, which was not possible for a human to have as he uttered something in a language foreign to Alex, causing him to frown.

He didn't understand the meaning of those words, but from the way 'Pratish' was looking at his body as he clenched his fist and slammed his feet, one thing was clear, he couldn't completely control his body.

For Alex, who already knew who he was and what was happening, this was an opportunity better than any other, so with a resolute expression, he knocked some more arrows on the bow—two at a time—and released them at the guy.

*Swoosh* X2.

With that done, he rushed at 'Pratish' with his dagger clenched hard in his fists.

He didn't want to miss the only chance he had at defeating the guy, and at the same time, a new quest announcement was made for every single person within the surrounding 100-kilometer radius.

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