Chapter One-hundred and Eighteen: Lines that won’t be crossed.
<span style="font-weight:400">Shigure might have epted the contract but was still skeptical about the whole premise of Drake not suddenly changing his mind. Sherry was, after all, part of his group. But for now, it was enough.
<span style="font-weight:400">Shigure wasn’t able to press the matter. It seemed that Bjorn and Drake had a better rtionship than he had with Bjorn even after their time together. And this truly aggravated Shigure.
<span style="font-weight:400">He thought he had gotten over the jealousy he was feeling but it somehow boiled up once again, and what wasing did not help.
<span style="font-weight:400">“Alright, so we all good now? No more at each other’s throats for the time being ‘kay?” Drake said casually, his hair shimmering to blue from his original ck.
<span style="font-weight:400">Drake addressed Shigure, but his eyes nced to the rest of the group from Shigure’s camp standing behind him. Some recoiled from the stare, others still struggling to get up from the ground, Drake’s and Bjorn’s Auras doing significant damage to their posture and egos as they scowled back at him.
<span style="font-weight:400">Then two voices came from Drake’s side.
<span style="font-weight:400">“What happened?! What was that light!?” ire shouted, stopping next to Drake, her hands finding her knees as she gasped for breath.
<span style="font-weight:400">“Seriously, that sounded like lightning struck right next to us. What in the world did you do?!” Chelsea asked, pointing at Drake.
<span style="font-weight:400">“Why is it my fault?” Drake asked.
<span style="font-weight:400">“Because it’s always something you did!” Chelsea snapped back.
<span style="font-weight:400">“Ok, fair, guilty as charged, sue me!” Drakeughed, shrugging.
<span style="font-weight:400">“We would if we could!” they both screamed.
<span style="font-weight:400">“Okay calm down. I didn’t know I had three moms, jeez,” Drake scoffed, “ Where is you know who?” Drake asked, suddenly realizing they had left the tent without Natto.
<span style="font-weight:400">“Oh… Um, we left her to see what was going on, with the girl called Uta,” ire answered sheepishly.
<span style="font-weight:400">Drake’s eyes snapped to Shigure. The teen paling suddenly under Drake’s primal stare.
<span style="font-weight:400">“Exin,” Drake said, bloodlust spilling off the single word, “Exin why she is still there.”
<span style="font-weight:400">“Wait! We only wanted to tal-” Shigure tried exining but was cut off by a lightning spear passing his cheek close enough to burn the hair on it.
<span style="font-weight:400">“Then speak to me,” Drake growled, “If even a hair on her head is out of ce, you will find out just how <em><span style="font-weight:400">tyrannical</em><span style="font-weight:400"> I can be.”
<span style="font-weight:400">Drake’s threat was not empty, as once again his Aura pressed outward, chilling Shigure’s entire side of the field.
<span style="font-weight:400">“Y-you wouldn’t dare! You would ha-” someone from behind Shigure spat, but was stopped, another bolt of lightning crackling past the person’s face, but this time taking their right ear from their head as they shrieked in pain.
<span style="font-weight:400">“I’m speaking to Shigure. Do not interrupt. It’s rude,” Drake said, his face scowling.
<span style="font-weight:400">Drake slowly moved his mask back into ce, his eyes shimmering from color to color.
<span style="font-weight:400">“Well, I’m listening,” Drake pressed.
<span style="font-weight:400">“I-we wanted to trade voting for you at the World Summit, in exchange for information we would help you outside the tutorial…” Shigure exined quickly.
<span style="font-weight:400">“World Summit…? This is the first I’m hearing of it,” Drake paused, “Don’t move, I’ll be right back,” Drake stated tersely, his hair shimmering to a brilliant yellow with a snap of his fingers as he took a step moving out of view.
<span style="font-weight:400">An instantter he returned seemingly the same, but he had recovered Natto as she had merged with him. And Drake was not pleased.
<span style="font-weight:400">Uta had held her at knifepoint, and even with Natto doing her best to dismiss the action as irrelevant. Drake was livid.
<span style="font-weight:400">“Where is she?” Drake asked.
<span style="font-weight:400">“W-why..?” Shigure stammered.
<span style="font-weight:400">“She has harmed someone dear to me. I knew she entered the tent to speak, but she went too far. So either you bring her here to deal with the consequences of her actions. Or I go find her. And I’m very good at hide and seek,” Drake joked, but his demeanor, aura, and re were anything but.
<span style="font-weight:400">“I will no-” Shigure tried to say, but Drake had moved as the words left his mouth, his arm only inches from his face, glowing in a deep azure above the brilliant yellow of his tattoo.
<span style="font-weight:400">Drake looked over at the man who stopped him, “Bear, he volunteered to take the punishment. Let go.”
<span style="font-weight:400">“Come on bro, you don’t need to kill him. Is the littledy alright?” Bjorn asked honestly concerned.
<span style="font-weight:400">“She has a scratch,” Drake replied tersely, his eyes still trained on the shivering Shigure despite their casual conversation.
<span style="font-weight:400">“Then you are going way overboard. At least only give him a scratch. We can have a calm discussion where everyone isn’t trying to kill each other after,” Bjorn said, his eyes moving to Shigure, honestly disappointed with the teen.
<span style="font-weight:400">“Fine,” Drake let out, “Just a scratch then,” he growled, extending his finger from his closed fist, the air pressure pushing past Shigure, blowing his hair wildly but not harming the teen, instead it hit the mess of people behind him pushing them backward in a gust of wind.
<span style="font-weight:400">Drake rxed, and Bjorn released him as Drake moved his mask again to the side of his head so that Shigure could see his expression.
<span style="font-weight:400">“Just kidding. I can’t hurt him anyway. But the contract doesn’t say anything about anyone else. Now does it <em><span style="font-weight:400">Shigure</em><span style="font-weight:400">?” Drake stated suggestively.
<span style="font-weight:400">The teen''s head moved eerily slow from left to right, his face pale and pooling sweat as he looked back at Drake.
<span style="font-weight:400">“If you touch my family again. You will not like what happens. Next time you want to talk, you talk to <em><span style="font-weight:400">me</em><span style="font-weight:400"> and me alone,” Drake said, pausing afterward to drive home the point.
<span style="font-weight:400">“Now get me those people I need. But you lost the reward of skill stones. From now on if you want something, it will be fair and square from us, no more beneficial trades, nothing. Only business.”
<span style="font-weight:400">Shigure stepped back slightly color slowly returning to his face and a scowl creasing it, but he nodded nheless.
<span style="font-weight:400">“And if I see Uta,” Drake added, “She better have a spectacr apology. Or it will be thest time you see her,” Drake said, then looked to the stout man behind Shigure that had spoken up earlier, “And <em><span style="font-weight:400">that</em><span style="font-weight:400">, is a threat.”
<span style="font-weight:400">The man snorted in fear of being addressed, his hand going for the hammer that had fallen next to him.
<span style="font-weight:400">Drake only looked on, waiting for him to grab it. But the man noticed the star, a faint grin on his face, and decided against it, turning his head away from Drake’s gaze.
<span style="font-weight:400">Finally, Drake looked at Shigure.
<span style="font-weight:400">“There are just some lines you don’t cross, this is going to be your only warning.”
<span style="font-weight:400">Drake let the words hang as he turned, moving past the rest of his group wordlessly, his destination his tent.
<hr>
<span style="font-weight:400">“How dare he threaten us! He is only one man!” the stout man cried when Drake was fully out of view and he knew he was safe.
<span style="font-weight:400">“Yes Darius, it seems that he is getting toorge for his britches if I do say,” a thinly looking man said next to him.
<span style="font-weight:400">“Enough…. Darius, Adam. Do you think we have a chance of going against him when he also has Sir Bear on his side?” Shigure said, deting as he looked to the back of Bjorn who walked not to Shigure’s camp but Drake’s.
<em><span style="font-weight:400">Why… What is so different!? And now I have burned a bridge that I could not afford to!</em><span style="font-weight:400"> Shigure cursed.
<span style="font-weight:400">“How is it enough? The man-child threw a tantrum and we are supposed to just take it?” Adam asked as he crossed his thin pale arms across his chest.
<span style="font-weight:400">“Then what would you have us do?” Shigure asked.
<span style="font-weight:400">“We simply take one of his people hostage and force him to cooperate,” Adam said nonchntly.
<span style="font-weight:400">“Adam! That is not how we do things! Even if Uta had hurt theirpanion I know she would not do so without good reason. And this is only for a scratch! What do you think would happen if you managed to take one of hispatriots?!” Shigure snapped, “Your personality has darkened since you changed races. I only allowed you to stay because you are an invaluable fighter, but remember your ce!”
<span style="font-weight:400">Adam scoffed, “Big talk calming from someone who just ran with his tail between his legs.”
<span style="font-weight:400">Shigure ced his hand on his weapon.
<span style="font-weight:400">Adam raised his hands cidly not wanting to push Shigure too far.
<span style="font-weight:400">“Yes, yes then leader… Whatever you say,” Adam answered, giving a sidelong nce at some of the women following slightly behind Bjorn and the now gone Drake, “Whatever, you, say….”
<hr>
<span style="font-weight:400">“Drake, what was that disy out there? You know you can not simply act on your emotions, I thought you were well past this when you received your new skills,” Natto asked from the bed where Jacqueline was standing next to her, gently touching the near-insignificant wound on her neck.
<span style="font-weight:400">“No. I don’t care the reason, if they hurt you then I will not stand for it. I can work around and bend on a lot of things, but my family. My loved ones. Those who I hold dear. If someone touches what is mine….” Drake murmured his vision reddening.
<span style="font-weight:400">“What? What did you just say? Yours? Very presumptuous I must say,” Natto scoffed, but she turned her head, her face turning a shade of scarlet.
<span style="font-weight:400">“Huh? W-why did I say that… I just meant that people won’t be doing what they want with people I care about anymore. I don’t want people I hold dear to ever have to go through the types of things I have or might have to still go through,” Drake rified, pushing the slip of words to the back of his mind.
<em><span style="font-weight:400">I thought my Tyrannical Indomitability solved this whole shit show of emotional prity. And I haven’t consumed any legendary stones like Bjorn has so what’s the deal? Is it just a matter of the person? Am I just that mentally weak?</em><span style="font-weight:400"> Drake asked himself but was brought from his thoughts when ire spoke up.
<span style="font-weight:400">“I’m sorry we left her alone… I-i thought it would be fine, and we were just concerned about what was going on outside,” she offered.
<span style="font-weight:400">Drake sighed. He knew it wasn’t entirely their fault, but he had to hold them responsible. Natto wasn’t abat-oriented Assistant and they had left her basically defenseless with a Combat Assistant. It didn’t take an anime protagonist to understand where that was going.
<span style="font-weight:400">“Look I know I asked a lot, but you two,” Drake said, addressing ire and Chelsea, both looking down now in embarrassment, “I’m disappointed. I won’t allow you to take the me for how I reacted, and I won’t say that it is your fault I had to put my foot down with that kid, but. You two severely lost points with me for that mistake,” Drake sighed again.
<span style="font-weight:400">“We’re sorry but we were just concerned…” Chelsea said, looking to Jacqueline, hoping for a lifeline, but the woman just shook her head, her expression tantly saying ‘I want no part of that mess love.’
<span style="font-weight:400">“Don’t let your infatuation with me detract from what I’ve asked you to do,” Drake said firmly, looking at them both.
<span style="font-weight:400">The pair shirked backward slightly, their embarrassment in despite their turning away.
<span style="font-weight:400">“I’ve told you both that I am not interested and that’s how it is. I’m too busy for either of you and I have no ns of fooling around with anyone for now. You want me to take an interest? Then do what I am asking of you next time. I don’t need people that can’t do a simple task of watching a 1-foot garbage disposal, let alone a lover that can''t listen to a word I say,” Drake said, crossing his arms then added in a whisper, “How is that suppose to work in bed if you can’t even listen outside of it…”
<span style="font-weight:400">Both their faces flushed even more, but they nodded reluctantly.
<span style="font-weight:400">“Then,” Drake added, his face rxing, “Thank you for worrying for me,” he said smiling, “But don’t do it again alright? Now go to your own tents before Shigure gets any wild ideas. And can you send in Bjorn, I’d like to have another conversation with him.”
<span style="font-weight:400">The pair brightened at the words of gratitude but nodded sheepishly before exiting.
<span style="font-weight:400">“You got some real serious lovesick birds there gov,” Jacqueline teased, finishing up her healing of Natto.
<span style="font-weight:400">“Oh, and that doesn''t include you?” Drake teased back.
<span style="font-weight:400">“Damn right it doesn’t ya daft bastard,” she scoffed, “Besides, I don’t like to share,” Jacqueline whispered, walking out of the tent.
<span style="font-weight:400">“Hm, I may have made a mistake teasing her too much…” Drake saidughing nervously.
<span style="font-weight:400">“Imbecile…” Natto scoffed.
<span style="font-weight:400">“What can I say? I’m a hands-on learner,” Drakeughed back, but his face turned serious, “I’m d you weren’t hurt badly Natto. But never do that again,”
<span style="font-weight:400">“It is fin-”
<span style="font-weight:400">“Never,” Drake said again firmly, “I don’t care if you cane back or whatever. I won’t allow anyone to hurt you. If it wasn’t for the contract, that boy would be on the ground with a hole in his chest the size of his ego.”
<span style="font-weight:400">The tent entrance p whipped open, and a hulking figure entered.
<span style="font-weight:400">“Oh, am I interrupting that serious movie moment thing you do? My bad bro, I’lle back in like 5 minutes then,” Bjorn said, turning around.
<span style="font-weight:400">“Shut the fuck up I don’t do that!” Drake shouted, his hand gripping Bjorn’s shoulder desperately.