Observing Richard's stance from a distance as he brandished Masamune, Benjamin anticipated the release of those crescent-shaped energy blades he'd witnessed earlier.
Within moments, however, he realized Richard's impending attack manifested as something entirely different.
Standing before the final Sentinel, Benjamin experienced a sensation he'd never encountered—as if the space behind him had suddenly warped, generating gravitational attraction comparable to a miniature black hole.
His instincts weren't mistaken. The spatial fabric behind him had indeed distorted, producing unprecedented attractive forces.
Yet Benjamin wasn't Richard's intended target—the Sentinel positioned behind him was.
With the mechanical hunter as its focal point, the surrounding space within a several-meter radius underwent bizarre distortion. Shadowy rifts appeared, as if reality itself had been lacerated.
Simultaneously, crescent-shaped energy projections—"sword energy" manifesting devastating cutting potential—materialized from multiple vectors, converging on the Sentinel from various angles.
SLASH! SLASH! SLASH!
Compared to organic targets, the Sentinel certainly demonstrated superior defensive capabilities.
But confronted with Richard's Judgement Cut End, the advanced machine proved as vulnerable as confectionery.
In mere moments, the energy crescents dissected the Sentinel into fragments of varying sizes, which succumbed to gravity and clattered to the ground in rapid succession.
Witnessing Judgement Cut End effortlessly dismantle the system-crashed Sentinel, Richard couldn't suppress his satisfaction.
Among his current skill repertoire, Judgement Cut End unquestionably represented his most devastating offensive technique.
Though Octaslash had been upgraded to Level 2, it still marginally underperformed Judgement Cut End in raw destructive potential.
While Octaslash disregarded conventional physics to some degree, it operated within far more "normal" parameters than Judgement Cut End.
The extraordinary cutting capability of Octaslash derived primarily from mana enhancement—essentially equivalent to enchanting a weapon with "extreme sharpness" properties.
Judgement Cut End operated on fundamentally different principles.
Beyond mana amplification, Judgement Cut End incorporated spatial manipulation.
In essence, the technique possessed distinct spatial properties.
Though this didn't grant it universal cutting capabilities against all possible substances, Judgement Cut End could penetrate most conventional matter.
The Sentinel robots undeniably represented the Department's technological apex.
But Judgement Cut End constituted Richard's supreme technique.
Though both qualified as "trump cards," Richard's clearly surpassed the Department's in effectiveness.
Benjamin hadn't directly observed how Judgement Cut End destroyed the Sentinel, but he'd heard the unmistakable sounds of the machine being sectioned and its components impacting the ground.
Though uncertain of Richard's specific methodology, Benjamin immediately registered profound danger.
Defensively, his Steel Skin transformation significantly outclassed the Sentinel's armor.
Yet this enhanced durability wasn't absolute.
Richard had already penetrated his defenses with Gravesong, inflicting four wounds several dozen centimeters in length across his body.
While non-fatal, these injuries conclusively demonstrated Richard's capacity to overcome the Steel Skin's protection.
Benjamin might have dismissed this threat if Richard could only breach his defenses through close-quarters combat.
During approach, Benjamin could counterattack effectively.
But a defense-penetrating technique that could be deployed at range presented an entirely different tactical problem.
Though Benjamin didn't play video games, he understood the concept of "kiting"—attacking while maintaining distance from an opponent unable to respond in kind.
This is extremely problematic.
Acknowledging this reality, Benjamin's already grave expression darkened further.
Though reluctant to admit it, he recognized that alone, he stood minimal chances of subduing Richard.
Moreover, without additional mutant agents providing support, he would likely perish at Richard's hands.
After this realization, Benjamin immediately located a surveillance camera in the plaza and shouted toward it:
"Alert all agents! I don't care about their current location or assignment—order them to return immediately!"
Though unable to observe the monitoring center directly, Benjamin knew its personnel were tracking his confrontation with Richard in real-time.
Consequently, upon hearing his command, monitoring staff would immediately contact all available Operations Division agents.
Richard overhead Benjamin's instructions but made no attempt to interrupt him.
The reason was straightforward.
After eliminating multiple normies guard from the Los Angeles branch, Richard had deduced that the facility's mutant agents appeared to be off-duty.
Had mutant agents been present, they would have responded immediately after the first security team fell.
Instead, Benjamin remained the only mutant agent Richard had encountered.
Whether mutants guarded the second and third underground levels remained uncertain.
If present, however, those mutants now faced Sabretooth rather than Richard.
While the absence of additional mutant agents might have surprised others, Richard had anticipated this scenario.
Indeed, he and Sabretooth had deliberately factored this probability into their decision to strike at night.
Department of Mutant Affairs agents were fundamentally government employees.
Though the United States operated under capitalism, American workers generally enjoyed better conditions than outsiders might assume.
The notorious "996" work schedule (9AM to 9PM, six days weekly) remained exceptionally rare in American employment.
Whether Department agents or LAPD, extended hours usually weren't required absent genuine emergencies.
Simply put, standard working hours applied—arrive on schedule, depart on schedule.
While many mutants harbored resentment toward the Department, few possessed the audacity to launch direct assaults against it.
Most mutation-enhanced individuals lacked significant combat capabilities.
Additionally, the majority of mutants opposing the Restriction Act and resenting the Department limited their resistance to verbal protests or minor infractions.
When contemplating armed insurrection against the Department, most mutants lacked the necessary resolve.
This hesitation largely explained why the Mutant Restriction Act had been implemented with minimal resistance.
Justice requires the capacity for force!
If you lack the courage to resist, you forfeit the right to complain about exploitation!
As Benjamin finished addressing the surveillance system, Richard called out to him:
"Are you the Operations Director for the Los Angeles branch?"
Benjamin declined to answer, assuming a defensive posture instead.
Noting Benjamin's unwillingness to engage verbally, Richard abandoned further attempts at conversation.
Judgement Cut End!
Without hesitation, he raised Masamune and executed a powerful swing, once again implementing Judgement Cut End.
Upon seeing Richard elevate his blade, Benjamin refused to await his fate passively. Instead, he explosively engaged his legs and charged directly toward Richard.
His reaction time proved remarkable.
However, Judgement Cut End defied conventional evasion tactics.
If simple relocation could negate Judgement Cut End, the technique's limitations would be excessively apparent.
Benjamin had covered only a few meters when he realized he'd inadvertently rushed directly into Judgement Cut End's effective radius. The surrounding space underwent inexplicable distortions that defied scientific explanation.
And Benjamin now occupied the precise epicenter of this spatial anomaly.
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