*DING.*
*”Mile 71 begins now.
Hard Mode: Active.”*
Jasper took the blue pill.
Swallowed.
Took off.
*Mile 71…
72…*
The monster didn’t chase on foot.
She raised a hand.
Fireballs.
Iceballs.
Rocks.
Wind blades.
All of it came screaming at his back.
Jasper ducked.
Weaved.
Sidestepped.
A fireball scorched past his ear.
An iceball shattered on the track where his foot was a second ago.
He was faster now.
Rat Stage Level 2 made his body light.
But he had to _think_ while he ran.
The monster jogged behind him, throwing more.
“Keep dodging, baby. That’s it. Faster.”
*Mile 73…
74…
75…*
He wasn’t just running anymore.
He was running _and_ fighting the track.
Leon watched from the sideline.
“Discipline,” he muttered.
*”Mile 76…
77…”*
Jasper kept running and running.
He risked a glance back for half a second and stuck his tongue out at her.
“Oh? For play?” The monster grinned.
“I love it.” Her voice dropped.
“That’s what she said.”
Then her attacks changed.
No more fire.
No more ice.
No more rocks.
No more wind.
*Lightning.*
White bolts cracked down at his back.
He rolled.
Weaved.
A bolt sizzled past his shoulder and scorched the track.
Then *energy balls*.
Blue, humming, moving faster than the lightning.
Jasper ducked under one.
Jumped another.
“You’ll never hit me!” he shouted.
“I will not allow you to catch me!”
The monster’s grin went feral.
“Oh please.”
Her tone changed.
All teasing, gone.
Cold.
“If I wanted to catch you, Jasper Crimson… I would have done it a long time ago. Haven’t you noticed? I’ve only been toying with you this entire time.”
She stopped throwing.
And she *rushed*.
*5 feet → 2 feet → 1 foot.*
Until she was running right next to him.
Shoulder to shoulder.
She smiled.
Blew him a kiss.
Then she slowed.
Dropped back.
Gave him his *5-foot advantage* again.
A chill ran up Jasper’s spine.
*”Mile 78…
79…”*
Then the monster did something unusual.
Not a shadow clone.
A *body double*.
So it was two of them now, running behind Jasper.
Lightning from one.
Energy balls from the other.
*Mile 80…*
Then the two turned into *four*.
Four monsters.
All his age.
All smiling.
All throwing.
Lightning.
Energy balls.
Wind blades.
Ice shards.
From four different angles.
Jasper had to dodge.
Weave.
Roll.
Sidestep.
And still count miles.
*”81…
82…
83…”*
Leon’s voice from the sideline: “Keep your head, Jasper. Count the track, not the clones.”
Jasper gritted his teeth.
Rat Stage Level 2 kept his legs light.
The blue pill kept his lungs open.
But his brain?
His brain was splitting four ways.
One clone to the left.
One to the right.
Two behind.
A lightning bolt clipped his heel.
He stumbled.
Didn’t fall.
“Good,” all four monsters said at once.
“You’re learning.”
*”84…
85…”*
*”Mile 88…
89…”*
Jasper wasn’t counting anymore.
His body was moving on its own.
*”90…”*
His skin lit up again.
Red glow, stronger than at Mile 60.
It ran from his chest down to his calves, then vanished under his shirt.
He didn’t notice.
Not at all.
He just kept running.
Dodging.
Weaving.
Four monsters behind him, throwing lightning, energy balls, wind, ice.
He ducked all of it without looking.
The monster at the front smiled wide.
“Oh? He’s breaking through already. Excellent.”
Leon heard it from the sideline.
His eyes widened.
“That stage,” Leon muttered.
“The Rat Stage. That’s the easiest stage to break through from… but he just broke through. And he’s breaking through _again_.”
He stared at Jasper like he was seeing something impossible.
“This boy…” Leon’s voice dropped.
“He’s a prodigy. A true genius. What’s in a lifetime?”
*”Mile 91…
92…”*
Jasper’s steps got quieter.
Lighter.
Like he wasn’t touching the track anymore.
The 4 clones stopped throwing for a second.
All four of them tilted their heads.
“Did you feel that?” Clone #1 said.
“He’s not Level 2 anymore,” Clone #3 answered.
All four grinned at once.
****
*”Breakthrough detected.
Rat Stage Level 2 → Rat Stage Level 3.”*[System]
Jasper didn’t hear it.
He was already gone.
*Mile 93…
94…
95…* Enjoying the story? Read on at g.com.
The gap opened.
He pulled 10 feet ahead.
Then 15.
The monster didn’t chase yet.
She let him run.
“Let him cook,” she said to her clones.
“A genius who doesn’t know he’s a genius is the most dangerous kind.”
Leon was still watching.
3 silver coins in his palm, forgotten.
“Rat Stage Level 3… at Mile 95…” he whispered.
“With attacks live. With no break.”
*”Mile 96…
97…
98…”*
The monster stopped playing.
All 4 clones snapped back into one body.
No more 5-foot rule.
*Lightning.* Then *Water Lightning*.
Water and lightning together, screaming at his back.
Then *Earth + Fire = Lava*.
A wall of it.
Then she combined it all.
*Wind + Energy Ball.* One massive attack, condensed.
She let it go.
And she *ran*.
*5 feet → 3 feet → 2 feet.*
She was right on his heels now
Point blank, she fired *Lightning* at his back.
Jasper saw it coming.
He didn’t dodge.
He *sped up*.
His body flared.
Red glow → White-hot glow.
It wasn’t Level 3 anymore.
***_
*”Breakthrough detected.
Rat Stage Level 3 → Level 4 → Level 5.
Rat Peak.”*[System]
This wasn’t normal.
Two breakthroughs, then a double-jump straight to peak.
All before Mile 100.
Leon dropped the 3 silver coins.
They hit the track with a _clink_.
“Impossible,” he breathed.
“How? Two breakthroughs already… and he’s not even done with this marathon.”
He started laughing.
Proud.
Satisfied.
Happy.
“Ah Sarah, Jake… if you could only see your son now.” His voice went soft.
“I promise to save you guys. I’ll find a way.”
He looked back at Jasper.
*”Mile 99…
100…”*
Jasper was flying.
Rat Peak made the track feel like air.
The gap blew open.
*15 feet* between him and the monster.
She stopped.
Stared.
Then a wicked smile spread on her face.
“Oh? Oh you’re really good.” She licked her lips.
“You got away from me by fifteen feet? Well, let me do something about that.”
Her eyes flashed *blue*.
She moved.
Blinding speed.
She closed 15 feet in an instant.
She was right next to him again.
Shoulder to shoulder.
But she wasn’t attacking.
She was *racing* him.
Blowing kisses at him, trying to throw him off.
“Come on, baby,” she purred, running beside him.
“First one to the finish wins… but don’t worry. I’ll let you win.”
Jasper didn’t answer.
He just ran faster.
*Mile 101…
102…*
She wasn’t trying to catch him anymore.
She was trying to _distract* him.