《8 Lives of Sins; DO NOT CLICK! GONE SEXUAL DUE TO OBSCENE LEWDNESS》


 1 Prologue

    Abyss


    Abode of the afterlife


    Netherworld


    Hell


    Purgatory


    ....


    The list goes on and on as people continue to name the place whatever they wish but there is one defining feature in all of those names. This is the place for those that have died and are waiting to go to their next life.


    Demons and devils may be known for their unruliness or the chaotic mess they leave however just like any society they need a system. Jobs, entertainment all of that is necessary to appease the residences of this land.


    The voices of youth echoed "Hurry, he''s going to tell a story soon."


    A surprised demon turned to the devil and questioned "What? Who''s telling a story?"


    Without responding to him a horde of other demons followed after the youth as they rushed towards a bar that was already crowded.


    Kindly a passer by told him what was happening "The embodiment of the seven sins has just experienced his 7 lives. I think this may be his last story before he faces the embodiment of seven virtues" he pressed his finger on his chin as he continued to mull over anything else.


    The demon tipped his hat to gesture his gratitude as he also joined the heard but at a much slower pace.


    A stern voice could just be heard as the demon approached the bar. Despite the large crowd whispering and the distance away from the bar he could still hear the voice.


    The serious voice has a sort of compelling charisma as it started "Listen up men, do not create a ruckus and pay attention. You may learn a thing or two from that old manso be quiet and let your peers learn without a problem..."


    As he continued a somber tone was distorted at the end as he increased the volume "DO NOT Offend him. Even I can''t save you if you wish to stir trouble because even the Archdemons watch over his activities so don''t disturb him...."


    Before he continued ranting the crowd surrounding him hushed him as they in sync signalled him to stop "Shhhh.."


    The person in the middle of this commotion was sitting on a stool, quietly sipping ale he didn''t input a single word into the crowd''s conversation.


    Patiently he waited for silence to begin out of respect to the audience however in the meanwhile he was contemplating his thoughts.


    Going through 7 lives and remembering everything that happened to him was astonishing but there was something indescribable about those lives


    Alarms rang through his head throwing him into a panic that refused to reveal itself on his face it appeared through his thoughts ''I''m only alive to eventually fight. I lives for several lives yet the only meaning of it is to face a virtuous fellow.''


    ''My experiences... they were just setting me up for my final life.''


    ''I have reincarnated 6 times and approaching my 7th but then what? My purpose will have been served so then what? Will I just stop existing?''


    ''Who even created me? Why do they want us to fight? The injustice I have suffered is just made for me on purpose. The so called destiny has set me up and this is what I get?''


    plagued with thoughts he shook his head to awake from his blunder and turned to the crowd that has already gathered.


    Pure silence.


    Without a qualm the sinful man suddenly felt like it was the right time to tell his story. He felt a very mixed feeling within as he could see the gleaming eyes of the youth reflecting their excitement.


    ''Why are they so excited? Surely they''ll learn to not do what I have done in the past, right?''


    For the old man it felt underwhelming as he expected that from all the groups that listened to his story they would learn to never be like him


    yet they gained an admiration of respect for him.


    The praises that he felt was undeserved was showered on him and no matter how much he wanted to rebut he couldn''t help but keep quiet if Asmodeus or Mammon were to hear him.


    The main part he was afraid of was whoever created him. If they have the power to create 2 entities and create the course of their life then they can just as easily replace him.


    It was indeed troublesome as he had no choice but to keep a blank and emotionless face and if necessary relish in the moment and act as if he was flattered by the admiration.


    Or even scowl the justice that these demons hated.


    But there was never an idea that could form of this so called ''justice'' for the old man. To him it seemed that the majority is what all demons hated but when adding more details the idea of justice seemed...murky.


    He wondered about the 7 virtues fellow in heaven and question what this person may feel like ''does he accept it? With the justice brainwashing he received he probably would pray on that thought every second. As far as I remember they follow an extremely strict hierarchy in order to keep order that the cost of individuality.''


    The reminder of the laws of heaven sent shivers to the old man but to make sure he didn''t bore the audience he takes a deep breath in order to start his story.


    "Thank you for your time and patience it seems I owe youastory so I hope you pay attention to my story"


    With that the crowd went into a small uproar due to the atmosphere but they quickly hushed themselves so that they could hear the story that was about to begin.


    "This the story of the lifetimes I have experienced that made me suffer Greed, Gluttony, Lust, Pride, Wrath, Envy and Sloth....."

 2 The Friendly Group of Geniuses

    The desolate road laid silent as the wind whistled across the canyon with only the sounds of wheels coursing through the dust and a quiet whimper let out from the horse.


    Every once in a while the echo of a bullwhip would follow before the trampling of the horses'' hooves.


    The vehicle that used the wheels had excellent sound proofing as the children''s laughter left concealed as well as the muttering of old men in another carriage.


    "Elder Jin have you been spoiling your niece recently?"


    As one elder questioned Jin the rest jeered at the question


    Another added "We all saw that wind talisman on the side of Rose"


    Frustrated by the mild bullying from the rest of his friends he replied in defense "Shut it, Rose has earned that talisman after cultivating very hard"


    The rest scoffed "With your family''s resources"


    Elder Jin lightly jabbed at all the elders until it left with 6 old men having bruises on their fists. Despite the beating that all of them contributed to they laughed it off with them joking around.


    "Is Senior Elder Asher still out there?"


    One of the elders questioned this as they looked around before peering out the window to barely see the silhouette of a man on top of the carriage behind them.


    "Bah, he''ll be fine. He even wanted to watch over his nephew, so why should we worry?"


    They continued to laugh but a voice inside the carriage interrupted them "Yeah...Why should you worry?"


    Lacking any tone or human emotion the phrase was told at a slow pace that made all the elders shiver with cold sweat attaching their back to their robes as well as sweat dribbling down their forehead.


    The voice originated from the man on top of the carriage yet his voice managed to somehow get into the other carriage as the old men shut their mouths.


    Thinking "Sensitive subjects shouldn''t be mentioned...please have mercy"


    Trying to drift out of the awkward atmosphere another old man tried to make jokes that the rest could laugh to but the atmosphere couldn''t go back to how it used to be.


    In the other carriage it was much better as the children there were without the ''madness'' the elderly men possessed spent time having small chat.


    A proud voice had the perfect pitch as well as the right topic a naive child would speak "My uncle gave me this talisman. It''s super rare and makes you go super fast."


    In total there were 7 children that each had their own unique personalities.


    Rose acclaimed how special her talisman was while the rest gave her a sense of accomplishment by exclaiming in """""Wow"""""


    There was an exception to the bunch as a girl hid in the corner of the carriage keeping herself occupied by gazing coldly at the group.


    Her reputation was well known for being the absolute favorite granddaughter of an old sage who is said to have reached the peak of knowledge and excels in any memory test given.


    But because of this she is stowed away from the position of being a heir to her family but is instead doted on.


    Her family fearing that she''ll be harmed and targeted by the rest of the family had to have a change of name. Her birth name as well as her last name were stripped from her and was instead replaced with Ayesha.


    The rest were somewhat heirs to their family however in the future they may have to fight for their position but only time will tell.


    Rose was also doted on but the only special feature of her were the green eyes she was born with as well as the hairpin adorn on her blonde hair.


    Green eyes are considered to be rare and tend to be prophesied as a sign of great talent, luck and a strong mentality that the person who have these eyes will always be successful.


    A sign that she obviously came from a great family was the hairpin with a purple flower surrounded by white flowers, acting as her family''s emblem.


    Rose looking for more praises turned to her right


    "Dean, isn''t this talisman great?"


    The boy next to her smiled compassionately with gentle eyes as he responded "Of course it is" while rubbing her hair messily.


    The boy''s name was known as Dean Wilkes coming from a great family that were known for their quiet and humble origins that spanned for tens of thousands of years.


    Rose lightly laughed as she hugged Dean''s arm but saw that across from her there were two love birds flirting with each other.


    It was the boy Pierre and his fiance Anne that were engaged the moment both of them were confirmed to be boy and girl.


    Not only did that strengthen their family''s strength but it seemed that those two were truly fated as their love hit right off the bat as soon as they met.


    The boy next to those two love birds smiled and looked to the other side in order not to feel left out so in the most charming voice he could muster


    "Hey, Ayesha ca-"


    Immediately interrupted Ayesha grabbed his arm and hissed "Don''t even try."


    To save himself from embarrassment he lightly coughed but the rest of the children ignored it as they already knew the boy has been chasing her for a few years at this point.


    Although that scene would depict how he would always act it was very rare as he often tried to act as the charismatic leader due to the training he received.


    Christian Vikander was the only son of his generation with no other siblings to fight for the position so it was up to him to continue another generation for his family as well as being the head of the family in the future.


    No one in the group minded and allowed him to continue his shenanigans while the rest went towards their own business.


    The oddball Ivan chuckled at how merciless the rejection of Christian has just gone through as well as elbowed Dean softly whispering


    "You sly dog"


    The cheeky demeanor had to have originated from his upbringing but surprisingly.... he could be said to be the wisest in the group.


    Being a precocious child he was taught the older you grew the tougher life would be so their family adopted a sort of training that made their children have to be independent people.


    On average the children''s age are around 11 with the only oddball being Ivan at the age of 13 and Dean being 10.


    Dean looked around the group with the cold girl, scoundrel youth, charismatic child, pair of love birds and to his side, his potential girlfriend he couldn''t help but feel content.


    He tended to have foolish thoughts that were simple for children.


    and just like children sometimes they weren''t logical.


    ''I hope Ayesha can get along with Christian and already marry. Then we can forever be friends.''


    The young age of 10 should mean that Dean should keep away from the thought of marriage but with a clan behind him they wish for every generation to be more ''productive'' then the last.


    ''Who''ll Ivan marry? When he finds someone then we can get another friend.''


    Lost in thought Dean kept on jumping into more rabbit holes and eventually settled for the simple goal he had in mind


    ''In the future we''ll all be friends!''


    This single thought was what Dean''s life would revolve around and he was nearly on the brink of screaming that to everyone here but he didn''t wish to look too foolish in front of his seniors.


    Altogether this group of children are gifted and born with a golden spoon in their mouths.


    Born into a rich family, having natural physical endowments as well as a gifted cultivation talent. With this the family''s that contribute to this would all have a balance and especially so with the most marrying into the other''s family.


    Was it political scheming?


    Partly so however these children didn''t have the wisdom to see that besides Ivan which could be the reason why he''s not bothered by the intimacy of this group.


    But the main part was that they truly did feel not nothing could ever change this moment.

 3 Cave of Old

    True to their statuses as young masters of their family they had their own bodyguards.


    It was not an army, a mercenary organization or hired assassins. It was just a group of old men that were located in front of their carriage.


    They solved any problems that appeared along their trip but they also had their own special statuses. Many great families well have many heirs so as generations increase there would obviously be many experts in their clans.


    Although they are bodyguards they only have one mission: to guide these children.


    Currently throughout their journey there have been no problems and they''re close to their destination. It wasn''t very far and the trip would approximately last a few days to get to the location that they''re looking for.


    With a great clan behind them they not only have resources that help them cultivate but they also have services that allow for more convenience.


    Be it a large library collecting knowledge or special rooms to provide significant help for any hidden potential a great family would usually make this available for all members.


    They used the world''s cultivation levels, from lowest to highest: Body Tempering, Qi Gathering, Qi Condensation, Foundation Establishment, Core Refiner, Nascent Soul, Spiritual Transformation, Void Shattering and Ascension. Along with a number from 1-9 to locate their current strength, the higher the number meant that a person was closer to the next stage.


    With the heritage as well as the resources the children had available to them they would be considered to be the kings of their generation as they were all currently at Qi Condensation 3 with only a few attaining greater strength than theirs.


    Dean was still lost in thought but was immediately interrupted


    *Smack*


    Rose gave a light peck on Dean''s cheeks and lightly chuckled.


    Dean bashfully told her "knock it off" before rubbing his cheeks of where she kissed.


    It made him feel that Rose was a sister that knew no boundaries and continued to do weird things but he found those eccentric things interesting and accepted them with shyness.


    Suddenly they found their carriage to have stopped moving


    Pierre questioned with interest "What do you think happened?"


    everyone started voicing out their thoughts without thinking appropriately


    Christian: "A Bandit?"


    Dean: "A friend?"


    Ayesha: "..."


    Ivan"A seducing master?"


    Anne"..."


    Rose: "Did we drop something?"


    Despite their wonders they didn''t dare to open the door unless they wished to invite themselves a scolding from their elders.


    The last time it happened an arrow was caught by one of the elders while Dean commented "Cool magic trick"


    He later received a hit on the head by his senior.


    Christian''s guess was the most accurate as it was a group of people that were bandits and not just a singular one.


    One of the bandits approached the carriage and knocked the door by kicking it multiple times "To pass our mountain pay the fee"


    "3 silver coins to pass"


    No one answered from the caravan but the low voice could be heard by everyone except for the kids in the carriage.


    "So arrogant...in our territory?....deal with it yourself"


    The bandits were in a state of confusion but properly analyzing the words they became infuriated and prepared to break apart the carriage


    Before he could he tripped.


    It was odd as he never took a step forward or slipped on something so the bandit felt confused. He felt a wave of pain take over him to witness the sight of his two legs missing anything below his knee.


    Before the others could react everything went quiet.


    The vulture''s chirping could be heard as they gathered close to the carriage and began having their feast


    one of the elders sighed at their senior''s ruthlessness but to ease the atmosphere he jested "At least we don''t have to clean up"


    the other elder''s wanted to chuckle but they just quietly returned to the carriage as Senior Elder Asher continued to stay on top of the children''s carriage, guarding them in case of any events.


    Without the interruption the carriage continued just as Christian managed to point out "Oh, we''re moving already"


    As they were nearing to their destination Ivan asked a question "Did any of your elders tell you where we are going?"


    Ayesha remained quiet just as usual but everyone kept silent. Although there were many chances to ask their elders they responded with "You''ll find out" in a sneaky manor.


    Feeling this was his moment to shine and take away everyone''s attention Christian spoke up


    "Apparently an senior from one of our great families took on a mission and when trying to heal from an attack they accidentally found a cave."


    Everybody clapped out of respect for the person who found this and Christian for surprisingly knowing this. Christian waited for the applause to stop before smugly continuing


    "They read a few lines engraved on the side of the cave and found some ominous words. The main part he remembered were the restrictions. Only Qi Gathering cultivators may enter. Not any higher or any lower. What I believe is that the elders are probably bringing us here only for experience."


    The rest gasped in amazement, even Ayesha.


    Christian continued "This means that since we''re given this chance we should try and find some sort of success. And to get that success we need to work together and not separate."


    Dean was already on board with this plan as he was the first one to agree. Slowly the rest under the influence of Dean''s persuasion also agreed but Ayesha kept quiet.


    What Dean failed to notice was that there was a sense of glee reflecting from Christian''s eyes but Ayesha was the only one that managed to notice that.


    ....


    Back at the elder''s carriage


    "Everyone''s sure that they haven''t told the kid''s, right?"


    before having the ability to answer the question the elder started to stress on the trip


    "Everyone''s already received the information. Therefore we should all be up to date with what has happened. Somebody tried to forcefully get into the cave after it was discovered. We don''t know which clan this person belonged to but all we know is that after each attempt there seemed to be an increase in light."


    "When radiating the extremely bright light we could see abnormal burns on the person. According to what all of our clans have put together it doesn''t seem to be any items he carried but it mainly sourced to his cultivation, Core Refiner. An elite that may have heard of this. If outsiders have already gotten this much information we must be on guard"


    "No matter how much time it takes for the children to stay inside or whatever we here. We can only stay silent."


    Before the rebut of an elder could make way he was silenced by the next sentence.


    "Our clan leader came to have a look. He said that according to the light... the cave may be a burial for a Void Shattering cultivator, second to a person who is ascending to godhood."


    The elders didn''t dare comment but could obviously make predictions that would be common sense.


    Because of the requirements for a low cultivation level it must mean it''s aimed at people with great potential that would probably be given a secret manual to help develop their cultivation.


    Having too low of a cultivation will not allow for justifiable results and with the perfect stage of Qi Condensation this gives leeway for a secret manual for cultivation.


    The profit from this journey just clearly outweighed the losses that may happen. The children have common sense and wouldn''t easily die because they would have the ability to judge their limits.


    The elders suddenly felt a sense of excitement as similar to the children they were feeling ecstatic for the treasures that could be hidden inside that cave.


    If one of their children managed to get the treasures then that meant they would already have a potential leader in their family. Most clan leaders that are head of a great family would have the necessity of having the cultivation of Spiritual Transformation.


    Even if the child didn''t have the ability to lead a family then they would at least be an expert that can be used when needed.


    If they shamelessly took advantage of their naivety then there would be more benefits as they could take away the cultivation manual


    The only problem for those greedy elders that had that thought would be the responsibilities.


    This cave of a Void Shattering cultivator may be dead but it''s still a Void Shattering cultivator. They may place some sort of limit upon the manual.


    An example that can be recalled was that around a hundred years ago an elder did the same but the inheritance this person received was aided by the rune.


    When two or more people read this manual it would self-destruct the inherited person''s cultivation and that rune would scatter leaving the person in excruciating pain.


    Not only that but the book suddenly became cursed as anyone who read it after that would be blinded and go insane. They would cut their wrist multiple times and shower the book with their blood until they eventually died.


    If no one reminded those greedy elders of that fact... the repercussions would be....unknown

 4 Los

    Finally arriving at their destination Senior Elder Asher opened the children''s carriage where they for once could properly see his body.


    Dean felt it was really normal as the man was draped from head to toe in clothing. His face was obscured with a hoodie''s shadow and a scarf that covered his mouth.


    He would always question whenever it was summer how could he handle the heat? The other 6 children didn''t know that he came with Dean so they assumed that he joined half way through the journeywhile Ivan gazed at him before greeting his elders.


    The elders had already exited their carriage and were waiting outside a cave.


    The children were greeted with a large mountain with a small hole on the side of it and a small hill of dirt to the side. This was where the cave was excavated and discovered with small inscriptures on the side.


    The kids were amazed at the sight as the closest they had gotten to see such a real life sight would be when they read picture books or looked at paintings.


    Astonished their mouths were gaping wide but an elder coughed in order to finish what they came here for


    "Ahem, our clans have thought that we should bring you to this hidden location in order to-"


    Rose, Pierre, Anne and Dean interrupted """"We already know""""


    "Eh? Somebody told you? Who?"


    In sync they all pointed at Christian """"Christian told us""""


    The elder gave a hostile gaze to one elder as he quickly turned his head away in guilt. The elder then ran up to him to give him a few jabs before resulting into a brawl.


    Elder Jin looked at the two elders fighting and Senior Elder Asher keeping his cool. He then turned to look at two other elders but they were intrigued at the brawl as the chuckled in a low voice.


    Sighing he took the role upon himself to explain to the children


    "Since you already know. This trip is nothing more than for you to have experience. if necessary you may use an escape talisman to exit the cave if there are any unknown dangers. If you find anything please make sure to be aware of any consequences"


    Although Elder Jin said this, his eyes betrayed his true feelings as you could see a hint of green but he smiled in an attempt to conceal them.


    And with that the 7 children entered the cave without any problems.


    The elders still felt a sense of relief as they were afraid of anything unexpected happening so seeing that there was no flashing light that could harm the kids they felt a little bit ensured.


    As soon as the elders couldn''t see the kids they started to tend to their own circumstances. From setting up a comfortable tent to securing food.


    Meanwhile the children found themselves in a rather well lit cave. Orbs of fire were stuck to the walls, brightening the area and allowing the children to see that the cave looked like it never ended.


    Christian immediately nominated himself as the leader when he felt enough time has passed after entering the cave. Surprisingly there were no voices that opposed the idea and so he started to organize everything.


    He suggested that since they were in an unknown environment they should be placed into a formation where they can prepare for any situation.


    The cave was quite spacious so for Christian to assume that there may be a trial that had to do with that large space such as fighting was not a strange one at all.


    He knew Pierre and Anne had great synergy because they were very intimate so he placed them at the back in the case the group doesn''t notice an oddity.


    Dean and Ivan had quite good synergy so he placed them at the front since they were quite strong.


    Ayesha, Christian and Rose were left so he placed them in the middle of the group...is what he said. He made sure that Rose was behind Dean since they were in a weird relationship but if you looked at the placing...there seems to be an ulterior motive


    The back would probably be safe because it would have to go through 5 people before they would have to deal with something. Their main job was just to keep a look out for anything to sum it up.


    Christian was in the center meaning he was the safest from any possible danger but he explained that it was nothing more than him being given the chance to think of any more formations in any unexpected situations.


    Christian wanted to relish in the company of women so that would explain why Rose and Ayesha are next to him but to not affect Dean he purposely placed Rose behind him. This would cement Dean''s position at the front if he didn''t want any unforeseen accidents to happen to Rose.


    Ivan noticed this but didn''t say anything while Dean was too busy stopping the advances of Rose.


    Ivan felt something was suspicious going on so he made sure to be on guard against Christian but he didn''t want to make him become alert.


    As they continued through the cave they noticed that there haven''t been any other passages.


    It was just one straight path.


    if that was so it felt like they should have reached the other side of the mountain by now. Christian felt that there should have been a fight in order for the treasure of this cave to be protected but there was nothing.


    No guards were found and only a continuous straight path.


    Because of this the group''s position became much looser as most of the children started talking due to the intensity of the situation being lowered. Or could be due to their short attention?


    Christian tried to warn them about the potential danger but without anything to prove of potential danger he couldn''t stop them slightly relaxing.


    He at least made sure to pay strict attention towards how they ate.


    Rather than eating all at once in a certain interval it''s much safer to slowly eat bits of the food throughout the whole journey to be prepared for anything.


    Walking and walking there was still no sight of anything that may cause interest. Cold hard rocks were still the materials of the walls and the red fire orbs were still lighting the area


    Dean had no qualms but he fell into an awkward predicament as Rose would continue to mention that she is tired and all he could reply with was "We''ll be there soon"


    It was the best reply instead of just saying "Ok" but he had no idea how to continue that statement with any other phrase so he could only sigh at his difficult misfortune.


    It truly did feel suspicious that they couldn''t find anything new or that this seemed like an endless path.


    Ivan saw through this and so to make sure he kept track he pulled out a small blade that was made out of normal metal and wasn''t to special. Discreetly he marked the walls with certain marks in order to not affect his groups mentality.


    Although that is what he thought he had to break the news.


    Turning towards the group caused them to momentarily stop as Ivan could finally break the news "Guys...we may be walking in circles"


    Pointing towards his marks he said "After a little while I have been marking the walls with designs beneath the fire orbs in the case that something is off and it seems what I imagined as the worst situation came true."


    "We''ve been walking around in circles. This could be a test in order to ward off those who can''t even succeed the possible other tests."


    This made the group go into a state of panic but they still thought about solutions to this problem.


    Breaking the news to them inadvertently led them to believe that Ivan had a much better grasp of the situation so they started telling them their ideas


    Christian: "Check the walls and fire orbs?"


    Pierre: "Break the walls?"


    Anne: "Find a foe?"


    Dean: "..."


    Ayesha: "Hmm...."


    Rose: "Find a key?"


    Dean couldn''t think of much but he was subtly surprised as Ayesha in a low tone hummed. He looked around but noticed that not even Christian paid attention despite being next to each other, most likely caught up in finding a solution.


    Ivan saw how his friends suddenly told him ideas so he sighed and had to somehow propel himself to think of something.


    He wanted nothing more than to just point out an observation but he now became like a strategist for the group.


    Sighing he scanned through the ideas.

 5 Trials

    Ivan slowly analyzed the suggested ideas.


    "If we are looking for a key then what is the keyhole? We don''t know what we''re even going to be looking for so that is not detailed enough to find an answer."


    "If we''re going around in circles surely we should have found this ''foe''. If either one of the groups moved in a faster pace then we should''ve already met. However after walking around we haven''t noticed any traces of any ''foes''."


    "Breaking the walls.... is actually not too bad. It''s very simple and could be a possible answer for this test but the problem is... what are the repercussions? If the tomb of this cultivator were to have people breaking and destroying his cave there will be consequences. There might as well be a rune that will activate there is a certain amount of damage done that could self destruct the cave. For now... let''s not try that"


    "To check the walls and fire orbs... As long as we don''t damage anything it should be fine. This is probably our safest bet so i agree with Christian''s plan"


    Christian took advantage of this to start displaying how great his ideas were but Ivan didn''t waste time so he started to move people into positions.


    Christian would still be in the middle but that is just to keep a look out for anything.


    If they managed to find something and anything inside the cave changes then Christian should be the first to notice.


    Dean, Pierre and Rose would be on the left while Ivan, Ayesha and Anne would be on the right.


    Ivan and Dean''s job is to check the fire orbs to see if there''s anything special about them.


    Pierre and Ayesha''s job is to check the upper area of the walls while Rose and Anne''s job is to check the lower half of the walls.


    By gathering in this position they slowly walked down the cave to find anything discerning features that could be noticed.


    Checking the Fire orbs one by one Dean was surprised to suddenly find that the fire orbs were very gentle. They felt like glass but had this durability that was as strong as iron.


    However in this case that wasn''t what surprised Dean. The reason he was surprised was that for some reason this fire orb suddenly detached itself from the


    On the brink of crying Dean pointed towards the empty gap on the wall while holding the fire orb "Uhh guys, I think i broke something"


    Christian was interested about the fireball so he was about to grab it but Ivan was faster as he snatched the fire orb.


    Taking a better look at the orb there didn''t seem to be any damage "I don''t think you broke it, did you apply much force?"


    Immediately answering him Dean responded "I didn''t use much force, only when I grasped it properly did the orb fall off"


    Taking in the new source of information Ivan was able to make a conclusion "This could be like a key. Rose, maybe you were getting to something. This is just a suggestion but maybe if we collect enough of this we can then escape this place."


    Christian wanted to take the spotlight so he added his own insight "Nothing changed from what I have noticed around here so I agree that there may be more"


    Ivan felt this could be dangerous so he mentioned "Don''t use too much force or there may be an unpredictable mess."


    With the discovery of the detached fire orb Dean shed a little bit of hope to everyone here. For a while now they were just wandering around without any hope of finding a clue but this fire orb was the biggest motivation that made them continue this arduous test.


    Without rest they continued looking for any more clues an with enough hard work they were able to hear Anne suddenly scream.


    Running towards Pierre she buried her head into his chest with her hands gripping tightly


    No one wanted to take a closer look at their intimacy except for Rose that tried to show her concern for Anne.


    Ayesha looked at Anne with a little bit of disdain but focused his gaze on the subject of the matter


    What surprised Anne?


    Taking a closer look at where she first screamed Ivan, Christian, Dean and Ayesha were also surprised.


    But with Ivan''s confidence and Dean''s familiarity their surprise into a type of happiness.


    Christian picked up their expressions and quickly ran to Anne "Nice, you found another one"


    Pierre and Anne were confused but Ivan stepped in to explain "The walls have just crumbled. If you had that much strength I wouldn''t be surprised if you were a Foundation Establishment Cultivator."


    True to his words there was a large hole in the side of the wall with a few pieces of rubble beneath it. If one looked through the hole carefully they would truly notice there was a small slab of wood


    Ivan taking the slab of wood out notice that the center was caved in and the sides had runes in a symmetrical fashion.


    Everyone looked closely but they couldn''t understand what the inscriptions were.


    Ivan found the caved in center of the wooden slab to be interesting so he placed the fire orb on top of it and found that it fitted perfectly.


    Ivan told Christian to look for any changes since they found another thing and jested with Pierre "When you said to break a wall... it somehow managed to work. Maybe the next one might be finding a foe."


    Anne sighed "Please no, I have been getting a scolding from my aunty for not practicing my martial arts."


    Ivan passed the fire orb and wooden slab to Christian since he was the one who had the most free time.


    Christian felt a rage of hostility rise through him as he felt his leadership is being threatened and that Ivan was mocking him so he harshly grabbed the items away from Ivan.


    Ivan knew there was something wrong but he shrugged it off as Christian being too tense.


    It was not too long that someone would find another clue.


    Rose was the one who found the next clue and took advantage of the situation.


    Acting in a similar fashion to Anne she cried in surprise as she grabbed Dean and pressed her head against his chest.


    Dean knew that he should prioritize Rose as he already took a glimpse of what had happened and predicted that Ivan would take control of the situation.


    Dean patted Rose''s head to calm her down but everyone else could tell that she obviously did it on purpose while Dean was left to be ignorant.


    Ivan acknowledged their intimate moment and transitioned to the surprise "This.... isn''t it the same?"


    It was extremely similar to Anne''s clue as the wall had a hole on the side and rock collecting into a small mound beneath it.


    The problem was that the object inside was practically the same as Anne''s due to it being a wooden slab with the same inscriptions.


    Christian took a further look at the wooden slab and noticed something "No, it''s not the same. The inscriptions are a little different if you look here"


    Pointing towards the bottom half of Anne''s wooden slab Ivan could confirm this. He passed this to Anne, Pierre and Ayesha to have a closer look


    Ayesha"..."


    Pierre"Wah, your right."


    Anne "Really?"


    Anne took a closer looked and confirmed for herself while Dean could just barely see over her shoulder to compare the runes.


    Rose was still occupied with her business and clutched strongly onto Dean''s arm.


    Christian exuding excitement put both the slabs of wood together with the fire orb where the slabs had a caved in center.


    Ivan asserted his ideas as he mentioned "We should start moving o-"


    A flash of light surrounded the seven children as they disappeared from the cave.


    When the flash of light was gone the sight of the cave was removed from their eyes and instead replaced with a well kept rug and wooden walls.


    Dean couldn''t help but comment "Eh, where''d we go?"


    Rose clutched even harder onto Dean''s arm and the same situation could be said to be happening to Pierre with Anne.


    If Dean and Pierre payed attention they would notice they were winking to each other but they had to take care of a bigger matter.


    ""What happened to the fire orb?""


    Taking a closer inspection of Christian''s hand there were only two wooden slabs stacked on top of each other with the fire orb gone.


    "Did you drop it when the bright light flashed?"


    Having this suggestion made Christian thought carefully and for once started to doubt himself ''Did I really lost it?''


    Instead of dwelling into more doubt he started to get angry at the thought ''it''s all because of him isn''t it. It''s because of him that i''m being doubted.''


    Dean saw that Christian didn''t look too well so he was about to pat his back but Ivan started to inform everyone


    "Welcome, I see that you have managed to pass the first trial. Congratulations."


    Ivan spoke in an incredibly indifferent voice that made everyone a little bit worried.


    "You have used your wits in order to succeed, at your age this already a prosperous moment."


    "However that is not the final trial. This is the final trial. You have done a battle of wits against illusions. And now you will have a battle of strength."


    It was then that everyone looked at Ivan to see him looking at a calligraphy painting on the wall.


    Dean noticed that his hand was scrunched up with his fingernails digging into his palm.


    Ivan imparted his thoughts to his group in a cold tone "This is nothing than a game, isn''t it?"


    "To you maybe, but to me it is my life"

 6 Trial 2

    "To you maybe, but to me it is my life"


    Those same lines were spoken behind their backs.


    Blood drained from their face as cold sweat made their clothes sticky as a person appeared behind them.


    When and how?


    All at once they turned to take a look but the outcome they were looking for.... was not off.


    A monster, a guard, the security to the tomb.


    This foe would have to be powerful to protect this tomb and it must be able to live for a long time without dying if an inheritor doesn''t show up.


    All of these strict requirements usually mean that there would be a few choices for a good guard to this tomb.


    One of these foes that was in front of them was: A golem.


    The golem was at an abnormal height of approximately 2 metres and had the rough outline of a human.


    It was a clean bold head with detailed human features. The only difference was the size increase that made the muscles have an abnormal look and the fact that the golem lacked any private parts.


    The golem acknowledged their shock and allowed them to understand the situation before continuing where he left off "My master made me a long time ago. His hope all relied on me to choose who would be able to succeed."


    "A disciple that foolishly dies is not a disciple of my master but a genius that rises above the rest is a true disciple. To be able to choose a disciple that fulfill those requirements, that is my life''s purpose."


    "Is there anything you would like to ask before proceeding to the next challenge?"


    Dean scanned around him in worry to see how his friends were coping.


    Rose and Anne buried their head due to fear. Pierre stood quietly but the pale face showed his true emotion of worry. Ayesha shared the same problem but seemed more composed.


    Christian arrogantly looked down on the golem but the problem was that he had to look up to face the golem creating a foolish look overall. At the face of a mysterious foe he made quite a daring expression however the golem didn''t seem to notice or care.


    When it came to Ivan it seemed he was much more calm. Dean could see his eyes darting around the room continuously and muttering incoherently.


    Dean decided that it was the best gamble to bet his hope on waiting and seeing how Ivan would do this otherwise the only other option would be to fight this golem.


    Ivan suddenly had a revelation so he addressed his question "But didn''t yo-"


    Christian interjected him "Fine, we''ll take the challenge now."


    the golem accepted "If you would like to spread out we shall then proceed to the final trial"


    Ivan turned to Christian with a fiery gaze as he grabbed the collar of Christian and pulled him forward. "You idiot, he was giving us a chance to think. We were given a chance to either accept this, refuse this or go a third option. Even if we agreed we could have thought out strategies or learn who were fighting."


    Further frustrated Ivan''s grip tightened as Christian could feel the fabric have a slight tear "Yet your buffoonish,self-centered, conceited mind is risking everyone here."


    Dean knew this wasn''t the time to fight so he tried loosening Ivan''s grip and settled down their fight "We should comply with what the golem said first and then discuss everything."


    Ivan could only sigh and move far away from the group, in the fear that he starts getting more infuriated at Christian.


    He knew this was wrong to get mad in this situation but being the mature one in the group he could still appreciate Dean''s effort for helping.


    The golem then stated the rules "I shall be your opponent. You may all go against me as that is one of your strengths and when you first strike me will the trial truly begin"


    The golem moved towards the center of the room and awaited his challengers


    Hearing the golem mention his second sentence Dean felt that it had a weird phrasing so he turned to Ivan to see if he noticed.


    Indeed he did notice as he placed his finger to think for a while before sending a hostile glare to Christian.


    ''He probably already knows what it means''


    Dean still tried to think but he couldn''t find what was wrong with the sentence.


    Eventually there was no point in thinking anymore as Christian already struck the golem "Take my enhanced sword"


    The blade was a normal long-sword made out of iron with runes written with black ink on the blade. Supposedly the runes increased the strength of the blade and would have the capability of cutting through metal given enough effort.


    It would have a gray aura to show the effectiveness but for some reason there was no aura. It just seemed like a child drew on the sword without the threatening aura so Dean felt something was off.


    He felt a little amazed that Christian''s family would be giving him a Space Ring since Dean never saw Christian bring a sword when he entered the cave.


    A Space Ring had the capability of storing items inside a separate space. They were very rare and expensive since it needed a blacksmith to take a piece of space and refine it into a ring.


    There were other alternatives such as rare materials that could substitute the piece of space and a lower blacksmith would be able to have the ability to refine it.


    Taking a closer look he noticed the scratches on the ring that had a shiny gloss beneath the surface.


    ''I never knew he masked the ring so well. Why didn''t he tell us earlier?''


    Going back to the golem there was a slight chip on his neck. Nothing else was harmed and a small rock on the floor was evidence of the small chip.


    Christian was a little shock as he muttered "I-impossible."


    Dean was also confused as theoretically Christian''s sword would have more than enough power to slice through rocks but it only chipped it!


    The golem responded to this provocation "The challenge shall now begin"


    The golem smashed the area where Christian hit him and a loud bang was heard


    *BAM*


    The floor would''ve been completely destroyed but it was still intact with only a few small marks on the ground.


    The strength that was shown off was estimated to be at least the peak of Qi Condensation 9. Possibly even a Foundation Establishment.


    This estimation was not only made by Dean but the whole group.


    Christian felt a tinge of regret but couldn''t help have an involuntary rage against Ivan due to the shame. Ivan did the same and flared up but the distance between them helped make him cool off his hot head.


    Dean still couldn''t make any sense of how Christian''s sword can just suddenly stop working so he felt confused.


    Taking a deep breath he knew he had to be weary with attacking and defending this golem. His family only gave him a few blades for self defense and compared to the rest this was already better.


    Excluding Christian the rest had 1-2 blades with varying length and width while Dean had 3 small blades and 2 sabers.


    His elder kept on telling him that safety is number one priority so he forced him to carry all of this.


    Christian trying to keep some face attacked the golem once more in the same spot however it just made a larger chip.


    The golem noticed this and sent a small jab towards him.


    Blocking with his sword Christian still felt the brunt of the force.


    The sword accidentally cut his nose making a small blood flow dribbling down his face. It felt similar to a bloody nose with the middle of the nose having a tingly feeling.


    The rest were frightened by the substantial force of the golem and felt restless. Dean didn''t even notice the worry in Rose''s eyes.


    Seeing an injured person the situation escalated. Trying to help the situation Ayesha yelled "A golem''s weakness is its core. The core is commonly located where a human heart would be."


    Hearing this the golem chuckled "What a bright child. I hope you survive"


    No one realized the voice belonged to Ayesha due to the chaotic situation but those words helped them wake up from their stupor.


    Morale was the common factor of a strong group and using that as a starting point Ivan worked with it "This is our chance, this is our moment. We can beat him. If everyone works together we can do it."


    Christian glanced at him before turning to the golem and whispering


    "What do you mean by ''this is OUR chance''. The naivety"

 7 We Have the Numbers, We Got This

    Taking advantage of the situation Ivan needed to use motivation to inspire his friends.


    He already saw the effects of motivation and how far despair can go. After a few hours of not being able to find an exit through the cave everybody felt hopeless.


    But once Dean found that clue it made everyone feel more energetic and positive.


    It was surprising how similar the events were but as long as Ivan could lift up everyone''s spirit there should be some kind of effect.


    If the power of motivation could be that powerful then that means his friends will have a potentially higher chance.


    He only felt there was potential in the idea of this however putting it into action was a lot more difficult.


    What Ivan had to do was use the right words in the right way. One badly phrased sentence could instantly demoralize his friends.


    Currently he could just see the faintest of hope in their eyes, a seed that he needs to grow.


    "How long must one wait to be cornered and overpowered before what they hope to reach. The inadequacy we believe to have is nothing more than a figment of our imagination. Why?"


    Everyone stared at Ivan with a weird gaze but Dean saw what he was trying to do. Looking around he agreed with this tactic but couldn''t understand how charismatic the impression was made.


    He was surprised by Ivan''s capabilities but saw Christian still giving a hostile gaze.


    sighing ''Why can''t we all be friends? Even in a deadly situation like this he still wants to hold a grudge. Would I be raised this way if I was spoiled?''


    Ivan further howled his speech "Because we have the numbers. We outnumber him. We are superior in every way if we work together."


    His speech was unfortunately cut off as the golem threw a fist in Ivan''s direction with him barely dodging.


    There was a hint of appreciation from the golem for finding another skillful student.


    ''A person who is able to keep their cool in a deadly situation as well as take control is a person who deserves praise''


    Shaking his head the golem grunted ''Even so, that doesn''t mean he gets special treatment. Only if he passes the trial will he have truly earned his rights.''


    The short speech was still enough to inspire everyone as Ayesha drew a dagger, Pierre a short sword,Anne a saber, Rose a cutlass and Dean with a dagger.


    Ivan immediately yelled out a suggestion


    "Two people will fight the golem and attempt to get to the core from the back. Take turns taking feints and try to scratch or chip the surface. Once tired please take a rest and swap with another"


    This idea was quite ingenious as it did take the large numbers against a single golem into play. The speech was without unreasonable thoughts but with this, he gained more trust from his friends.


    Deciding to use the plan the 7 children took turns in pairs having a go at the golem.


    The golem''s punches were far too deadly. The hits would have a moderate rate of actually hitting the kids despite their best attempts to dodge.


    The damages that were done could be considered quite lucky for the cultivation level of the golem. If they took the punches head on without any resistance then it would be no surprise if their bodies became mush.


    The most they suffered was deficiency in energy and a few bruises. with the other 5 children taking a rest they could prepare to swap out with the pair that is currently fighting and help heal others.


    A few bandages and ointments were enough to keep the rest going and if necessary hydrate themselves with water and eat food to replenish their vitality.


    However was the golem really that dumb?


    Would the golem really watch himself get abused as other people watched to later abuse him as well?


    Taking advantage of their carelessness he feinted a punch to one of the kids he was currently fighting with to further direct that to a kid crouching.


    The kid that was crouching was Ivan. Applying ointment to a few cuts, he was stuck in his position, unable to escape from what seemed like a fist that increased the closer it got.


    Christian''s mouth curved upward as he enjoyed Ivan''s downfall but Dean was one step ahead.


    Taking advantage of the fact that Ivan wasn''t fully resting on the floor he tackled him out of the way. The mat may have scratched the both of them from the friction but it was far better than possibly getting a broken bone.


    Ayesha noticed the focus look on the golem that was immediately thrown off guard from Dean''s action. Hoping to make use of this situation she used the whole part of her dagger to completely chip off a large block of rock from the golem''s chest.


    The chest was slowly weakened from the cuts the children have given the golem but it came at a price as Ayesha had no hesitation in sacrificing her dagger to make that indent to the golem.


    Dean quickly handed her another dagger in case she needed to block an attack and just overall be ready


    The golem analyzed the situation ''A child that is a natural born leader has so much potential. An intelligent and courageous girl. What a lucky harvest. My master would''ve already accepted both if he were still alive''


    ''But the true treasure is that child who just saved the natural born leader. A child that has a heart of gold is a rarity. Those who have yet to develop tend to be apathetic yet he is the exact opposite! He knows when to not stupidly take risks from his previous fight but knows when to do what he can if he can do it.''


    judging the other children he sighed ''A pair of lovers that only know how to act when people are around are people that will survive... but not for long. A seductress that is nothing more than a puppet has no worth to be a disciple.''


    ''A real disappointment is the scheming child. Not knowing one''s position and being too ambitious is the source of trouble. He''ll grow up to be a cunning fox that only knows how to sabotage and make profit. Master would''ve immediately killed him if he were to act as idiotic as know''


    Taking note of this the golem clearly began to target Christian.


    Whenever given a chance the golem would focus on Christian which gave the rest of his friends to attack the golem and aim for his core


    It was if the cluster of rocks were made out of clay as the children gained more courage to aim for the golem''s core but along with the bravery came stupidity.


    Christian had enough of this targeting and so used his sword to try and finish off the golem by piercing the rocks in a stabbing motion. Before the sword''s point could even touch the golem''s chest it bounced off his fist.


    Recoiling Christian''s body felt jumpy as he could only helplessly watch a fist flying towards him. Without a sword to protect him and his mind in an unfortunate state his body had to take the brunt of the damage


    The sound of crackling echoed within his body as the stench of copper and iron was released. A mild taste of metallic red blood was rejected and coughed out.


    Dean tried to help Christian by jumping behind his body and used himself as a cushioning for Christian instead of a wall greeting Christian''s back.


    The golem looked at this sight and sighed ''Is it really a heart of gold? A smart move was clearly done for a friend.... but he is clearly a traitor! Why is it that kindness is joined with naivety? his distinct eyes gave him off as a traitor a long time ago so why doesn''t he notice.''


    Dean immediately checked up on Christian''s condition as he saw Ivan, Ayesha and Pierre rushing to the golem to distract him.


    It seemed it worked as the pressure of all three kids managed to put off the golem''s assault on Christian.


    Checking appropriately he discovered that one of Christian''s ribs were broken and could possibly puncture his lungs. His whole body was covered in bruises with him left aghast.


    With all of this damage done he warned the rest "Christian is heavily injured what should we do?"


    Believing that his friends may have a better idea on how to help Christian he made sure the idea got across and indeed it did.


    Ivan was the one who answered "I''m pretty sure his elder gave him a Return Talisman. He probably left it in his space ring"


    Dean had some doubt so he quickly checked the pockets to find a few pieces of paper with scribbles that had Dean and Ivan along with a few more scribbles. Another pocket had some coins.


    Having no choice, Dean took off the ring and asked Ivan in hesitation "Ummm, how do you use it?"


    Ivan wasn''t surprised and responded "Insert you qi. His ring is probably a special case where he couldn''t refine it properly."


    Dean didn''t question how Ivan knew that much but did as he said.


    The ring was packed with many items but he finally found the Return Talisman along with a few other piles of weird talismans."


    He placed the talisman on the forehead of Christian and was about to sigh in relief


    "Eh? WHY ISN''T IT WORKING?"

 8 Lets Brawl

    Ivan exclaimed in surprise "WHAT DO YOU MEAN IT DOESN''T WORK?"


    Realizing his actions were guilty of being stressed Dean calmed himself, taking a deep breath and answered


    "The talisman isn''t working. It''s not glowing and burning away. I don''t even sense any qi in it anymore."


    To him the ink scribbled on the paper didn''t look special and made it out to be a children''s poor handwriting. Having few experiences with inscriptions Dean was confused, relying on his friends for clarification.


    The golem acknowledged their difficulties "I am certainly surprised you children have yet to discover it. The young man''s sword was clearly highlighted with runes yet you never came to the conclusion why his sword wasn''t effective?"


    The ''young man'' the golem was referring to was of course Christian who lay on the mat with low growls echoing once in a while due to blood exiting his body and the intolerable pain.


    Dean dismissed his suspicion as nothing more than skepticism but never knew his doubt was very accurate.


    The golem professed information the children were ignorant to "This room is covered with an array that suppresses the addition of runes. Unless given special permission like the fire orb you may have found only then will the runes work."


    "The only way to get into this room was a teleportation inscription on the wooden slabs. To get out... the only possible way is to beat me. If you so wish to save that person then you''ll have to remove my core, killing me and take the key inside of the core."


    There was a very awkward silence. No one made a move, not even the golem. He allowed the children to slowly accept what he said but he inwardly desired something.


    ''Desperation is a scary weapon my master has used that can make a man change for the better. For others it is nothing more than suicide if they are reckless. I can only give them my best wishes''


    Dean gulped at the realization he was just generally told.


    To escape from this hellhole.


    You need to take away a life.


    It was quite strange, the notion of a golem is equal to a life. For any normal person this would be a thought of a fool but that requirement fit perfectly for Dean.To him the thought of a man-made creature was equal to a life with years of heritage.


    This golem has lived for who knows, guarding an inheritage with that one job being his only meaning in life. Surely he has gained his own experience after living for a long time.


    This was quite the opposite for Anne and Pierre


    To them they currently launched a barrage of attacks against the golem after the subtle peace. They didn''t care about the sacrifice needed and the golem was nothing more than a piece of rock in their way.


    This type of ruthless thought could be contributed to the competitive nature of great clans but to make a child devoid of sensible thoughts was... cruel in the kindest of words.


    Ivan analyzed his situation very carefully.


    Dean was tending to Christian who is already very injured.


    No matter what grudge they may have had, to wish upon Christian''s death was far too childish. Even his pride wouldn''t just allow his friend to die.


    Dean was still as ever gentle as he remembered. If the reason he made friends was only because of connections then Dean would break that principle.


    His pure kindness is the only thing that makes him reassured in the future he''ll have a good brother to rely on. To tread against a house a home full of wolves that aren''t afraid to eat their own kind can make a man heartless but Ivan was the opposite.


    He yearned to be a the top, free of all his worries. Working hard to meet the expectation of the next generation was what he hoped to accomplish but being at the top is a lonely journey.


    Without friends how painful must the process be?


    He noticed the strange attitude of Anne and Pierre. Their rash actions were unusual and Ivan felt there was something off about their sudden apprehension to their situation.


    If he had to guess what it was then he would guess they were afraid of death. A thing that barely anyone human can explain what it feels like. It is an excellent fuel for accelerating the growth of the geniuses but also a fuel for a person to drive into their death.


    Their recklessness was worrying but the both of them were still weary with the evidence of failure to dodge being Christian.


    Ayesha had no perceivable change as she remained true to her quiet nature and left resting on a wall.


    Rose on the other hand... she seemed more calm than usual.


    Was the notion of death freezing her in her tracks?


    Her deep breaths acted as a reminder for her to keep her cool but Ivan didn''t understand how her suddenly change in attitude worked.


    Rose can be frightened of many things yet she doesn''t just sit there in fear. Even if she has been spoiled by her uncles it doesn''t mean she is that immature to a situation like this.


    Letting out a sigh Ivan was not sure what to think of the golem.


    ''Was he using a ruse? Did he purposely predict this would happen and just waited for the right moment. That might''ve been the reason why he started targeting Christian.''


    ''He was trying to create a rift between us!''


    The golem was wronged in his attempt to purge a scoundrel but didn''t know that in Ivan''s mind he was an insidious mastermind who already planned all of this.


    Ivan could only let go of his premature thoughts and aid Pierre and Anne.


    He had no time to waste.


    Rose crept behind Dean, patting his back "Is Christian fine? I''m pretty sure he has a rare pill in his space ring."


    Dean didn''t question why Rose knew exactly the situation of Christian but was more focused on the task.


    His task being to save Christian


    In the distant parts of the space ring there was a small jar with green glass. The translucence allowed Dean to just have a peek of a small round pill inside the bottle.


    Taking it out he gently took it out onto his palm and made the pill roll down into Christian''s mouth. Without the need of water he ate the whole pill and before Dean''s eyes he saw Christian''s small cuts heal at a visible speed.


    It may not be fast but it was enough for the time being.


    This raised another question.


    Who''s going to protect Christian?


    The medicine may be great enough to heal Christian''s broken rib but if he is left to rest on the ground he is nothing more than an open target.


    Dean already witnessed how deadly the golem can get if he targets a person and what''ll stop him from aiming at his target once more?


    Rose looked at the emotional struggles Dean was having and hugged him "Don''t worry. I''ve got him"


    Dean gave a nod to gesture his thanks and left to go against the golem.


    Christian already has someone to protect him and there was only one way to get out of here.


    To reassure everyone else he yelled "Christian is currently healing. Don''t fight recklessly."


    As if an echo Ivan joined "If the golem is alive then Christian might die. We need to make sure he doesn''t get a chance. If we don''t focus on him now he''ll slowly kill us one by one."


    "In a game of endurance the golem has infinite stamina. If we wait it out we will tire to our deaths and die by his hands."


    The golem grumbled inwardly ''Do I look that dumb? He does know I understand his words, right? He is definitely a great potential leader but to say a plan that the enemy can take advantage of is stupid. If he works with that girl, their success is imminent.


    Ivan was extremely decisive with his words while Dean found it much more difficult.


    This was the moment.


    He was going to need to kill the golem


    Despite the short moment he felt that the golem still had a life he deserved. Dean had no right to just suddenly take it away from him.


    It was a conflicting situation Dean was in but with glossy water flowing down his cheeks he resolutely said to golem in the most foolish announcement


    "Golem, Let''s brawl"

 9 Fight to the Death

    Either I die or you die.


    This was the one conclusion that these kids came up with.


    Even the youngest, Dean knew that this was only realization he could come to. Ignoring it was what a coward will do.


    A coward is fine but a coward that drags other people to hell is a scum.


    Looking at this from a distant view, Dean tried to justify his potential actions.


    7 lives are altogether greater than a single life.


    but this single life is still a life.


    Life is important and shouldn''t be treated as something that can be calculated.


    Naive and unwise choices were the end to many people''s lives but for Dean he still understood the consequences.


    ''Why couldn''t we have settled this peacefully.''


    Walking up to the golem he challenged him in desperation


    "Golem, give us five minutes and we will fight to the death. The weak can''t be targeted and as soon as a person is incapacitated you must not harm them. Once all challengers are deprived of their strength can you execute all of them."


    Ivan stared at him in confusion.


    ''What insanity has gotten to him''


    The reason he came to this point is that realistically who would do this. To an enemy that held the most power, how would you be in a situation to create conditions.


    Those with power can just ignore that. This was a rule that was taught long ago. Those with the bigger fists are the breadwinners.


    Winners are left to be praised and showered in glory while the losers will be left with contempt and disdain.


    "Golem, do you accept?"


    Dean''s words were simply a gamble.


    This provocation could rush up the process to their death but with the golem''s actions he believed he wouldn''t be that imprudent.


    Living for an unknown amount of years he must have created some sort of serenity. This was already proven when he kindly explained the array stopping the activation of runes.


    On the other hand if the golem didn''t agree then Dean prayed for Ivan to think up of some other way. The clay and rocks covering his chest made him out to be very skinny after all the removal of the rocks.


    It seemed so close to victory but bleak. If he ignored the conditions then Christian would be a target that held everyone back.


    The thought of just abandoning him was impossible for Dean to process so he could only await the golem''s answers.


    The golem stood still as Ivan, Pierre and Anne stopped their barrage for the sentence that could control their lives.


    "I... I accept. when you have rested enough I shall fight all of you. I shall not aim for the weak, that wasn''t my style in the first case. However I will set up my own conditions. Once debilitated you shan''t heal using any medications. "


    Black lines ran through Ivan''s head as he thought ''He really is a scoundrel but why did he agree? He has such an advantage yet he is giving up on it? He''s not an almighty power that has no chance of losing but just a powerful foe.''


    ''He can still lose so why does he agree to those conditions?''


    The golem saw the utterly confused look on Ivan''s face and immediately knew what he was thinking ''He is definitely a charismatic leader but his schemes are too far-fetched. He only thinks of his own perspectives and does not think of others. Are kids nowadays not empathetic anymore?''


    ''With how merciless the world is i''m not surprised. And because of that I need to treasure that child even more.''


    Glad that the golem agreed Dean instantly fell towards the ground.


    His mentality had a change. It was the mental pressure of potential death and being a murderer altogether with the physical fatigue he has been going through it just came all at once.


    The original idea in Dean''s head was to get to golem''s core and once the core was found the golem would forfeit. As stupid as the thought was it was actually pretty reasonable.


    The challenge didn''t say you needed to kill anyone but just show your strength. If you have enough strength to threaten the golem then you should''ve passed.


    Another reason for the 5 minutes was that he saw Ayesha already tired. She was forced to go above her limits and become more aware as she could be at risk of being targeted and killed.


    One blink would be enough of a decision to decide whether she would be alive or dead.


    For Ivan, Pierre and Anne they were fighting and needed to rest. Dean relying on Ivan''s intelligence he hoped that there might be some strategy that he could think of.


    Asking Ivan he responded "For now we''ll use the same tactic. If there any new changes we can change our tactics. If not then make sure to stay cautious and not end up like Christian."


    Once hearing this Pierre and Anne sat together and rested their back on each other so that they could relax a little.


    They held each other hands as they closed their eyes and steadied their breaths.


    Rose was still tending to Christian by changing his bandages every time the old bandages were soaked in blood.


    ...


    Just like that 5 minutes passed


    It was a very short harmonious moment for the children but the grim thought of death was much more foggier after their rest.


    This was the urge of survival


    Coming into a battle and expecting to lose is an already lost battle.


    Only with the mindset of those that succeed will a person be a winner. Some may jest that they are going to lose but inwardly they know they are not telling the truth.


    The golem let out a war cry to begin the fight "Now children, it''s time to fight to the death."


    Ganging up on the golem all at once Ivan, Pierre, Anne, Dean, Ayesha and Rose surrounded him.


    Swinging punches were what they knew the golem best for but suddenly he started to kick towards them.


    With the 2 extra limbs added to the battle safety was something impossible to keep at all times.


    Blades were broken at an incredible rate with the kids sent flying in multiple directions from the destructive force the golem was hiding.


    Dean lent out all of his blades with only a saber in hand.


    Anne, Rose and Pierre were on the brink of collapsing and it was too dangerous for them to continue.


    Ivan forcefully held down Pierre from continuing even at the need to knock him out. The three were heavily injured just like Christian and could only rest in quiet peace.


    Taking the time to move them out of the way the fight still must go on.


    Ivan immediately got back to his position but remained imposed by a fist. It got bigger and bigger until it finally hit him.


    A light flashed before his eyes yet he was still alive.


    His left arm had been dislocated and bruised heavily. Fixing it to continue the fight he looked to hid right.


    Dean had pulled him out of danger.


    Dean placed a finger towards his lips to gesture silence as he threw him to the side.


    Ayesha took this chance to commit to a sneak attack and stabbed the back of the golem.


    A blue aura radiated from the surroundings as everyone saw a blue gem.


    A core that held the power to support a living being had such innumerable amounts of energy that it couldn''t help but shine so brightly.


    Winning was in sight!


    Ayesha took a sigh of relief as she was sent flying.


    A spinning kick maneuvered towards her shoulder as she rested along side her friends.


    2 were left


    The golem was still alive yet his weakness was exposed.


    Ivan glanced to Dean to look for co-operation but something was off with Dean.


    A sense of emptiness. It was as if Dean''s very existence was very blurry to Ivan.


    ''Was this the golem''s trump card?''


    The thought passed but was immediately rejected. If the golem held back his trump card why would he allow himself to be injured so badly?


    The state of Dean was very weird as he was about to grab him but was besought by Dean


    "Don''t interfere."


    It was a stern tone that he had never heard from Dean.


    This was similar to what his father sounded like.


    A person that bore the responsibilities of people lives rested on that person''s shoulder.


    A single word will erase or create a person''s existence.


    This was the tone of Dean


    The golem laughed "Good. This is the challenger I needed. This''ll be the real death fight. Only one of us will survive while that young boy will reap the harvest."


    Ivan screamed "No, Dean don''t eve-"


    A flash of resentment passed through his eyes as Dean sighed, carrying his body next to his friends.


    And so the fight will have truly started


    Was this the golem''s plan?


    Thinning out his friends to fight him?


    If it''s a fight he wants then it''s a fight he''ll get.


    Dean felt it was a weird state.


    Everything felt cold and slow.


    Something was ''off''...


    I feel something missing...


    I feel numb.


    Those words were a lie as a black eye reflected excruciating pain on his face.


    His emotions were not usual and his reactions were very ruthless.


    A metallic taste ruptured from his mouth before staining the mat.


    The robes around him slowly ripped apart as the thread created loud tears.


    Breathing was slowly becoming difficult and thoughts were nothing more than fleeting memories.


    A stab to the core was the finisher


    As a tear stained face covered half with blood looked towards the golem he saw a smile as he was patted on the head.


    Why are you smiling?

 10 The Treasure

    Disturbed and worried Dean looked to the golem


    "Why are you smiling?"


    The golem took his last breath before telling Dean


    "You....you''re the one I was looking for... keep my core....no matter what."


    The golem suddenly ripped out his core from his body, giving it to Dean with both of his hands as he made sure to grasp Dean''s hand into taking the core.


    The golem''s body crumbled into rocks, a block of rubble now appeared in the room.


    A lingering thought was heard by Dean


    "Revenge will be your guide. But be wary of the scams that will follow."


    "My core has a strong amount of qi. Make sure to share it upon your group if you want them to heal faster. Using the crack you made, split the core in half. Inside is a key. Beneath my corpse is a trapdoor that leads to the treasure."


    The sentences were short but Dean could only hear half of the words.


    A headache ruptured his mind as his 5 orifices started to bleed when the blue light shined the most.


    His last thought was a blue orb melting into his stomach.


    ....


    Having just woken up Ivan looked around.


    Pierre, Anne, Ayesha, Rose and Christian were still knocked out. The only reason Ivan woke up was that Dean didn''t knock out Ivan too strongly but just enough for a short time.


    Looking across the room it was a hideous sight


    The room was painted with blood everywhere.


    Could golem''s bleed?


    Ivan knew that the dried up blood probably came from the knocked out people but the dried blood was only part of half the blood in the room.


    Ivan went to a small puddle on the floor and glossed his finger over it.


    "Still warm."


    This meant the fight didn''t happen to long ago and the blood was still in a liquid state.


    Looking even closer he saw a rubble of rocks in front of Dean.


    Dean lied down face first on the ground in a puddle of blood.


    In his hand Ivan noticed a small key. Flipping Dean over he couldn''t help but want to slap him


    "This idiot nearly got us killed...but as long as we aren''t dead then that''s fine."


    He took note of Dean''s pulse and found that it was already stabilized.


    His face was washed with something similar to water that stopped his face from being dyed with blood but that couldn''t be said for the rest of his clothes.


    His robes were ruined with rips, cuts and holes all over them.


    He looked more pitiful than Christian but a sigh of relief was released from Ivan.


    The reason for that was that the damages actually done were healed. Scars could be seen all over his body with one scar on his face.


    It ran down from the left side of nose to the bottom half of his lips.


    Taking at the mess everyone made he sighed


    "We have a lot of cleaning to do."


    Ivan organized the area as there didn''t seem to be a foe in sight.


    One corner was for the injured where he could replace any bandages.


    Another was for any medicine, food or drinks that they still had.


    Cleaning the Looking carefully at the blood stains he found that the fight must have been very insane.


    Taking a gander around the room he accidentally tripped.


    "Who the hell placed- What?"


    Taking a closer inspection there was a small lump beneath the carpet.


    Tearing the carpet open with a broken blade he found a trapdoor. A lock was placed and taking note of the position it had on the room it was in the center.


    "Was this why the golem stayed in the center?"


    Taking a look back he finally realized what the key was for.


    It was the key to lead to the treasure room.


    He could take the key and run for the treasure but... his friends.


    They all went through a life and death battle with everyone betting their lives on the line.


    To just selfishly take it without taking consideration of the others that did the same is what a scum would do.


    I, Ivan am not some scoundrel.


    Determine to adhere to his principles Ivan diligently healed his friends.


    There was not much to do as everyone seemed to have broken through into Qi Condensation 6. The fight to the death may have been the reason for this but Ivan felt that there was something odd.


    Only when comprehending the situation and removing yourself from the stress should you make a breakthrough


    Yet everyone managed to get to the same cultivation stage.


    Eventually one by one everyone awoke from their slumber.


    Dean was the only last one to wake up.


    The problem was that he was still passed out.


    His breathing was steady and he physically had no problems.


    Ivan remembered the grim tone Dean had which he felt was probably related to this.


    ''The pressure may have just suddenly collapsed all at once. He took on the mantle of the hero yet once taking it off he is just a common mortal.''


    To the side he saw Rose and Christian whispering to each other in a very quiet voice. Ivan couldn''t make out anything from their murmurs leading to him to hypothesize


    ''Rose is probably keeping Christian up to date. For the climax of the battle he was heavily injured but the rest were knocked out for the end of the battle. If she is keeping Christian up to date why are they whispering.''


    Ivan at the start of the trip felt that something insidious was going on but the series events they went through didn''t seem like that.


    If Christian was planning something why would he gamble on losing his life with that serious injury.


    Christian won''t just wantonly place his life at risk with his intelligence so why?


    This deceptive feeling wasn''t making things better for Ivan as he acknowledged his fate


    ''What will happen is what will happen.''


    Dean woke up with a loud groan.


    Everyone stared at him to see that Dean opened his eyes as they gathered around his body to see how he was doing.


    Dean coughed in embarrassment after the staring "Ummmm, guys. I can''t move that well."


    Ivan felt that this added to the deceiving mood.


    Was Dean also in this subtly evil feeling.


    Dean was by no means injured when Ivan looked at him after waking up but what he didn''t pay attention to was that his muscle and bone were reconstructed.


    The muscles were tearing and became tougher each time which caused this uncomfortable feeling for Dean.


    Ivan shook his head


    ''Maybe i''m too paranoid. If my siblings were here they would never try to be as brave as Dean. They would merely use the golem to kill their competitors.''


    Ivan felt conflicted at his family''s teachings when looking at Dean but knew that they obviously lived in two different worlds with how they were treated.


    But because they lived in two different worlds can their friendship truly be special.


    Giving a hand to Dean he pulled Dean up and allowed Dean to hang his arm around Ivan''s shoulder as they slowly walked.


    Ivan expected to see Rose stumped that she couldn''t take advantage of Dean but he saw that Rose treated Dean a little coldly.


    Not rude enough to annoy Dean but just her eyes gleamed something....contempt?


    Dean found it still difficult to move around so he chuck the keys to Christian.


    Ivan couldn''t help smile seeing their friendship in action. Together the 7 of us managed to survive and fight a deadly battle.


    Opening the trapdoor they went down a passageway.


    It seemed very similar to the cave yet the walls were well crafted and smooth as if they were made from marble.


    At the end of the passage way was a moldy door.


    The fringes on the outside of the door was growing old.


    Everyone felt if they touched the door then it would just collapse on the spot but when Pierre opened the door with the handle it felt very vexing


    It was tough and the weight of the door was abnormally heavy.


    At the end of their journey it seemed to have finally paid off.


    Just from the outside their were many shiny precious metals.


    Herbs that could help with cultivation and many pill containers.


    In the center was a throne and a skull that rested on the seat. Behind the skull was a small book.


    This was the inheritance they fought for and they finally got what they came here for.


    It may have been for experience but now there was profit.


    Ivan grinned to Dean and Dean did the same.


    Proud of their achievement they were going to see how their friends reacted to the cove.


    Dean clueless asks "Why are you guys pointing swords at us?"

 11 Betrayal

    Taking a look at their situation Dean and Ivan were trapped in a semi circle by their friends.


    Ayesha stood off to the side and stared with confusion before changing it to a chill coldness. The abrupt change in attitude was not an unusual part of Ayesha but Dean and Ivan thought they knew her well.


    Actually, they thought they knew their friends well.


    Anne, Pierre, Christian and even Rose pointed their broken blades towards their fellow allies.


    Dean stared into Rose yet their was not a hint of emotion on her face. Heartless and emotionless she did not even blink at the direct eye contact Dean gave.


    Ivan felt fear.


    ''This was it. That odd feeling. They were the reasons for this.''


    Looking next to him, Dean held a pained expression watching his friends point blades at him.


    A fool he was but an idiot he was not, coming to the conclusion that more thanhalf his friends sold him out he didn''t shed a single tear.


    Crudely he smiled at an ironic thought


    ''A golem that is said to be nothing more than a puppet seems to be more human than what I thought were friends. Sacrificing himself at the end with dignity was something to be prideful to compared these friends''


    Ivan also didn''t shed a single tear but disciplined himself for the rude thought.


    How could Dean be involved in this sellout scheme?


    His pained expression had no way to be faked and with how emotionless Rose acted at the last few moments everything made sense.


    Despair.


    At the brink of despair Dean ripped apart a path for everyone in order to live but after that roller coaster of climax they arrived back to despair.


    Pure disappointment was what Ivan understood.


    The path behind them would not lead us to hope and there was no exit Ivan could see.


    An ending that is unsightly.


    A fight to the death had a possibility to live yet betrayal was a snake.


    It hid very carefully and attacks at the right time.


    The natural skill a snakes use has one purpose.


    To reap profit.


    Thinking of every possibility to escape they always came up with dead ends. Ivan''s face paled at his hopeless demise and still couldn''t think of anything


    Dean on the other hand was back to the state he was in during the fight against the golem.


    It felt as if the hues of the world turned grey when looking at his friends.


    Looking down he felt the his emotions started to become numb once more


    Why should I feel pain?


    I trusted these people yet they betrayed me?


    All these treasures they were supposed to be shared upon yet in the end got stolen from me.


    Trust broken, what should I do now?


    Looking closer at the area around his stomach there was a red and black aura getting brighter. The two colors welded with each other that engulfed him slowly but everything turned back to the normal


    The sensation he was numb to promptly came back as his heart began to ache.


    Ivan whispered to Dean


    "In this one life I, Ivan have lived through. I have gone through hell just for living. My brothers without hesitation would behead me. Dean you were willing to risk your life for me."


    "To me you are a brother that has surpassed blood relationships. I can only thank you in these last moments"


    Christian sneered at the last words of Ivan and commanded "Pierre, kill him now"


    Pierre silently nodded as he stabbed Ivan''s heart with the blade.


    The cruel image painted Dean''s mind with regret. The golem would only use brute force but at least it meant one wouldn''t die immediately


    Compared to this Dean couldn''t react.


    Staring he saw Pierre lift Ivan''s body and threw it to the side.


    Did Ivan just die?


    Everything felt slow yet Dean purposely tried to remain ignorant to what he saw but the truth will never always be covered.


    Dean stood still and despite his reformed muscles he didn''t feel weak. Standing there defenselessly Christian took it as his time to assert dominance


    Sending a sneer to the pitiful sight of Dean he inflated his ego.


    Christian was only 12 and desired to feel superior to everyone so he imparted his elaborate plan to Dean


    "You may be asking, when did we join each other. It was a long time ago before you even knew us. To be a mighty elite I need an army. Without subordinates how will I reach my goals? I first made Pierre join my group and because of him Anne also joined."


    Dean didn''t even bother asking any follow up questions as he felt a very...intense emotion. It was something he never felt before but it made him want to act on impulse.


    Christian followed up


    "My father already told me that Rose was designated to me as my concubine as soon as she was born. Did you honestly not notice? Ayesha... she''ll eventually be my concubine."


    Letting out a chuckle Christian spoke "As a man destined for greatness why should I be limited to a wife? Though, I do have to thank you. Let it be known that Dean fund-raised my future."


    "Originally you two could have joined but I realized you were threats more than pawns. Blame this on being born too great."


    Wishing to take a look at all the treasures in this cove he flicked his wrist "Pierre, deal with him"


    Dean accepted fate and without wanting to see what would happened next he knocked himself out.


    Without hesitation, Pierre ran up and prepared to take away another friend''s life but there was a plea


    "Pierre stop! He was once our friend... Just let him ago"


    Christian glared at Rose with hostility but grinned at her abrupt manner


    "Just cripple him."


    Rose''s sentiment disappeared as this was the only thing she could do to Dean


    ''Although the memories were fake. They were still enjoyable''


    Pierre nodded to gesture his understanding and punched the area above the stomach where the dantian was located.


    A large crack appeared and Dean''s cultivation went down to the peak of Body Tempering 9. Qi was completely erased from Dean''s dantian and his talent slowly turned to waste.


    This was a deadly move as Dean could die from the impact but this acted as a trigger for a demon in the future.


    A scratched voice that peaked between a deep and high-pitched tone echoed in Dean''s mind


    "Good, good, good. It seems no matter who it happens to there will always be betrayal. People see us as subject for pity. Pffh, who needs your sympathy. Sympathy are for the weak while we shall rise to the top."


    "The traitor before you is a stepping stone. He ambitiously declares that he wants to rule the heavens and take everything below him. HAAHHAAHHA. The last person who swore that got killed by Hermes."


    "To hide ones ambition is ambition that is just hidden. It exists but is not clear. He robbed you. It is now your job to rob everything from him. Jealous of him? Oh please, this is just revenge."


    Dean felt an indescribable agreement with the voice. He just wants revenge.


    "Come my disciple. We will ruin his parade and take back what is rightfully yours. Do you agree? Take your position as the protagonist of the world."


    "Using whatever means it takes. I''ll take you out alive. If necessary that corpse can also be brought along. Let this be my present to you my disciple."


    ...


    Christian running up to the throne he picked up the book.


    [Soul Withering Technique]


    Quickly flipping the pages he was immensely amazed by how profound this book was. Hiding it into his space ring he looked at the throne in glory.


    ''This is what I will one day sit upon. Second to none with millions below me. Who would dare to go against me?''


    Wanting to take a seat Christian pushed the skull off the seat and pressed his but onto the throne.


    *Shudder**Shudder*


    The roof of the cove creaked as Christian investigated what it was


    A few rocks dropped on top of his head before boulders started to drop.


    A light flashed transporting everyone away.


    Christian felt immense regret


    ''My fortune''


    Despite his misfortune in losing most of the items he grabbed a few herbs and precious metals as well as the manual [Soul Withering Technique].


    Upset at the substantial loss he replaced his expression with one that seemed content to conceal his disappointment.


    Opening his eyes they were greeted with the elder''s confused look.


    Stabilizing himself he tried to retain his casual look but fear crept up to him.


    A deadly aura erupted causing everyone to shiver and shake while the kids dropped to the ground out of the pressure.


    "DEAN!"


    A cold chilly voice muttered a name, in a blink of an eye he rushed towards Dean''s body and lifting him up.


    Slowly he spoke


    "WHO...DID....THIS"

 12 Return in Humiliation

    The man cloaked in black clothes revealed his cultivation to everyone for the first time. The children were too young and weak that they couldn''t fathom the aura he released


    The elders however were able to understand that aura all too well


    Spiritual Transformation 8!


    He was a whole stage above most elders in clans so the elders were confused. He already flamboyantly showed off his might and the elders were warned earlier not to offend this expert.


    But to think he was this powerful was out of the expectations of the elders.


    If Christian were to say the truth in front of the expert, he would not even be aware of how he died in this expert''s hand.


    Option 2, Christian would lie but the expert would still kill him. Would a high leveled expert not be able to tell a lie from a child?


    To make it even worse just as the mysterious voice mentioned to Dean. Christian was ambitious.


    This ambition could be hidden within his heart but that doesn''t stop people prying Christian''s secrets.


    The man tried to form his sentences with pausing but the outcome made it more menacing


    "I''ll temporarily let you off. Once I find out who has done this. They''ll die."


    Short but quick to the point the man ran.


    Because of his high prowess he would''ve been able to get back to the great family in a few hours but holding a child he had to lower his speed, in the fear he could harm him.


    He decided at the time that by going in a carriage Dean would gain experience in life but if he knew this happened he wouldn''t have done it again.


    He found Dean disheveled with his robes torn to pieces.


    When carrying him he immediately found that his dantian was empty. Taking a closer inspection he realized his meridians were completely crippled and for others his Talent Root was useless.


    All these so called judgement made by alchemists seemed the same to this expert.


    Tears built up on the edge of his eye as he murmured


    "I''m sorry...I should''ve taken care of our son better...I''ll be there soon."


    Each phrase was filled with heartache as the voice tended to be on the brink of a raspy voice.


    As the afternoon has already passed the night took its place and the Wilkes family has someone break through their defenses.


    An old man told a messenger


    "Tell the troops to stay their hands. It is Elder Asher"


    Hearing the name ''Elder Asher'' the messenger had a grim face and ran at an absurd speed. Rushing towards his allies in the hopes no one dies.


    "So you''re already here?"


    Turning around the old man saw Elder Asher holding a child.


    "What happened to my grandson"


    The old man was one who took control of the Wilkes family as he was the clan leader. To most of the people living here he was a grandfather or a father.


    "Take a look"


    The old man took a glance but couldn''t help taking a second. Cautiously he placed two finger''s above Dean''s wrist


    "WHO THE FUCK DID THIS?"


    The scream bellowed within the whole territory as the guards shivered at the yell.


    Trying to resume his calm he asked "Asher, who did it?"


    "I don''t know"


    "Asher, I use my authority as a grandpa and not the clan leader. Find those friends of his and ask in two days time. For now we should heal Dean. He may be a lost cause for martial arts but as a normal person he''ll be fine"


    "If we find out it was a scheme from one of those families...kill their elder and cut off business ties with them. The family will not take this lying down if they dared to harm this old man''s grandson."


    with resentment and determination the clan leader vowed his revenge while taking Dean into a separate room.


    ...


    On the distant training grounds of the Wilkes family was a brawl.


    Grass collected the drops of blood like dew while the soil had a puddle of blood on top.


    A group of teenagers surrounded a younger child who could only cough blood at the fate of the teen''s fist.


    Pushed around, the child didn''t respond to the provocation and continued to get bullied by his silent demeanor.


    Eventually a crowd watched the entertainment, mocking, chuckling and commenting on the misfortune of the child.


    Dean faced these insults one by one and got pummeled for not responding.


    Lately, Dean felt that he was starting to get more.... twisted.


    His expressions became more hidden and replaced easily when necessary. Thoughts would linger that were questionable and his emotions became more calm.


    If it was a few years ago he would''ve shown an expression of outright disgust at his clan-mates


    These people who shared the same blood as himself were less trustworthy than a dead corpse that gave his last words


    "...My brothers without hesitation would behead me... "


    Why is it so ironic that a rock is kinder than relatives?


    Refusing to sigh Dean still had a blank face except it was riddled with bruises.


    He had two black eyes and vomited blood after someone punched his chest due to his seeing Dean''s blank face.


    At the end of the day everyone just left.


    After releasing their stress and anger they just left.


    No repercussions. No punishment. No disciplining.


    Dean sighed as he dragged himself into a small shack. Jumping into a nearby lake he cleaned himself of his blood as well as his clothes.


    Everyday, as long as he wasn''t bullied he would go to the library.


    Studying was a necessity and in his clan''s eyes he was just trying to become a tool.


    If the family martial artists were weapons then the smart scholars were tools that helped the family use the weapons.


    Accepting his fate he bided his time, waiting patiently for what he was told.


    Approximately two years ago on this day was he told a fate-changing plan.


    To break free from the status as a cripple and reclaim what was rightfully his. To steal back what Christian stole from him.


    Wealth? Power? Love? Happiness?


    Everything will be stolen from him. The mysterious voice stated the one truth Dean agrees with


    "Jealous of him? Oh please, this is just revenge."


    That''s right, it''s just revenge and nothing else.


    Two years ago the blue orb melted past his stomach, floating before Dean''s eyes.


    Lying on his sickbed he glumly glanced with blurred eyes at the orb but was awaken by the voice.


    "Hmmph, my disciple do you already feel like dying? I already said pity and sympathy is for the weak yet here you are, laid peacefully a top a soft mattress."


    Wanting to rebuke, Dean felt wronged. He has just been injured and after that traumatizing event he was told to suddenly act like a god and decide someone''s fate?


    The voice continued before Dean could defend himself


    "I don''t have much time. Two years from now your condition will be fine. Go back to my grave and take all the resources. The blue orb is like a space ring and has a manual. Practice diligently and wait for the right time to act."


    "Don''t let this be the last of my heritage. My disciple you may leave this dreadful path and abandon it however you must leave the blue orb there. If you wish to continue down the road of what others consider to be errors then heed to your desires."


    "My name... it''s been too long. What I do remember is that my peers called me a clown...jester? I forgot. Anyways, I leave you this choice. Whatever you pick I don''t blame you."


    Dean saw the blue orb gently float towards his stomach and merged with his dantian, repairing the broken cracks.


    "Excuse me?"


    Dean felt exhausted. Assigned with this new task he just felt that everything wasn''t worth it.


    What else is there to do?


    Will I just rot like what Christian expected?


    HELL NO!


    I refuse to go down the normal path is laid down for me.


    I refuse to be a mortal that will be stepped on


    I refuse to just be a nobody that can be messed with


    I''ll be a person who rebels against your so called ''ambition''


    I''ll walk down this path that is considered to be an ''error''


    So what? I''ll do whatever it takes.


    But for now...time will only tell.


    Dean tried to jump out of bed from this new found passion the mysterious voice invigorated Dean with. The outcome was as Dean felt a shock from his wounds opening.


    Sitting down on his bed he thought what to do for the next 2 years before doing anything.


    And that''s how he arrived to today.


    Deanbowed in front of a desk with his eyes on the ground and a straight back "Grandpa, I request to go to my friend''s grave."


    Looking away from the piles of paper on his desk an old face lit up with a smile before sighing


    "Is it that time? You know the clan will stop me sojust be careful. My grandson take care, i''ll send someone to tell the message to the guards"


    The conversation was quick but that was due to the rift of the grandpa and grandson pair.


    When he Grandpa Wilkes referred to "You know the clan will stop me sojust be careful." what he meant was that the clan is not willing to help a cripple.


    Dean already expected this so he felt no trouble by this. But was he disappointed.


    Sadly that was a long time ago. He bore hatred for everything and everyone around him but slowly let it all go in the two years.


    They were blood-related but with the hell he suffered, he managed to come to one conclusion. They were nothing more than strangers that give him benefits.


    I act as a punching bag and I get free shelter, food and water.

 13 Receiving the Inheritance

    "Has he left yet?"


    A man emerged from the shadows standing straight behind Clan Leader Wilkes without a hint of respect.


    "...Are you really going to do it? You watched for two years. Two whole years, watching your son get beaten up. Are you really his father?"


    "You also watched for two whole years. Are you his Grandpa?"


    The man countered Clan Leader Wilkes with his own question but in the end they both bore a tinge of regret and guilt in their hearts.


    "I''m already at Spiritual Transformation 9. I have enough strength to finally take back my wife. Old man, you should know how difficult a lonely life is. With regret how will I ever move on. Do you want your daughter-in-law to live a pitiful life. Trapped in darkness."


    Clan Leader Wilkes kept silent at the remark and agreed he made a good point. Whether it was from a moral, fatherly or a leader''s aspect his argument was reasonable.


    Besides being objected by dozens of elders who refused to waste resources on a cripple the man before him wanted his son to be able to survive an ordeal.


    If one day he didn''t return from his trip and his son was too sheltered his mentality would collapse. They can say it hurts them to do this to Dean but inwardly they would never be able to comprehend his situation.


    A child''s mind is formed by the environment they live in. Sometimes it overpowers genetics that they are born with. Some are born leaders yet they later grew up to only be obedient henchman which was believed to be a common phenomenon.


    Believing that Dean would just grow into a stronger person, they weren''t exactly wrong. The one problem with that was Dean taking this one ideal of revenge his meaning in life.


    Would they still keep their hand on their matter if they knew Dean''s philosophy?


    No one would know because time doesn''t work like that. If so then Dean would''ve already done it.


    "If I don''t return...I won''t leave a note"


    "You, you, you...you always liked to make people speechless. At least go to your grandma''s grave before you leave."


    Clan Leader Wilkes heaved a deep sigh with his son leaving. Like father like son. His son and grandson proceeded to go on a journey.


    One may face unexpected danger while the other is doomed to either die or live hell like life.


    One will be a relief for the elders as that means one less mouth to feed while the other will cause everyone to grieve at the lost of an expert.


    But if he somehow lives then the clan will curse him for inviting a powerful calamity.


    A disaster with a force that will make sure that the name Wilkes never enters a book in this continent and corpses will be turned to dust.


    The old man sighed in his powerless state.


    His other offsprings wouldn''t care about this matter. Were they the ones suffering? No, then since it has nothing to do with them they wouldn''t care.


    It''s happening to my brother? Great, on less competitor.


    This was further reflected by their children. Without teaching them important lessons they bully those who are weak.


    Others are too afraid to help and be the first to act.


    What has happened to my family?


    "Oh, what''s this."


    There was a black scroll on the top of his desk. Before talking to his grandson and son he was busy doing some paperwork but despite his son saying he wouldn''t leave a note he left a document.


    This couldn''t have been left by Dean as he was too aloof and sadly didn''t acknowledge me as his grandfather.


    Right after Dean left his son came in so it could have only been him.


    Opening the scroll he read it. Once finishing it the paper erupted into flames.


    Growling in a hollow voice the old man bellowed his anger


    "CUT OFF ALL CONNECTIONS WITH THE VIKANDER FAMILY"


    The howl was heard throughout the whole clan with many of the elders startled.


    However Dean never heard of this incident.


    ....


    After many days of walking he came back to this accursed cave.


    A few years later and moss covered the cave but after the rupture of rocks the cave''s entrance was entirely blocked.


    Dazed Dean wondered how he would get through the rubble but the blue orb flew out of his chest and flashed a bright blue light.


    Closing his eyes instinctively Dean felt that his shoulder seemed a lot lighter than last time.


    He forgot how heavy Rose was and how comfortable it was to travel in a group.


    The cheerful laughter was gone and so was the friendly aura he used to travel in.


    Opening his eyes once more his vision returned a sight that was unusual "...I-impossible"


    Stuttering he rubbed his eyes but the sight was the same. Most of the precious herbs and precious metals were there however the manual on the throne was gone.


    Muttering to himself "I thought Christian ransacked the whole place."


    Thinking about this even more, Dean felt the incident was weird.


    "How did I even get outside. They definitely wouldn''t carry my body outside, so why?"


    "What happened?"


    What Dean didn''t know was that there was more to this array that the golem had mentioned in the past. On one hand it stopped the activation of runes but it also had the effect of casting illusions.


    For two years he hadn''t seen those people so he wasn''t able to get more information. The same could be said about their family.


    It was if nothing every happened.


    Ivan''s family had no reaction.


    Dean shook his head in rejection "What has happened, has already happened."


    Refusing to linger too long on those memories, Dean looked around the cave.


    Dean didn''t want to let go of his grudge with Christian so he kept on making excuses. He resolved himself to eventually get his hands on the book.


    Blaming it as his duty as a disciple to reclaim what was once his master.


    He dawdled past the moldy door and and continued through the passageway. Going towards the surface with an open trapdoor he was greeted with a ripped article of clothing and a pile of rocks.


    Not saying anything he placed a flower that barely touched the rocks and clothing so that it would have a delicate look.


    Leaving he didn''t say anything but he would glance at the graves a few times before returning to the treasure cove.


    Taking a deep breath he tried to organize everything in this cove. He felt that with the aid of that mysterious master he should at least show his sincerity.


    He picked up the skull that oddly fell from his throne and kowtowed three times.


    From then on he became a disciple of a master who only remembered that he was something like a clown.


    The blue orb escaped from his torso and gently floated towards his hand


    Dean grasped the orb very carefully and placed it in front of him. There was a sensual sensation that it gave off.


    Thinking about using it he suddenly saw the instead of the blue orb. The space inside was very large and in the center of the whole place was a small book.


    Imagining that he was flying closer and grabbing the book he saw it sitting on the throne. Taking a look at the title it was named


    [Battle Instinct Manual]


    Dean felt confused as most mysterious would want to make their inheritage have flashy names to interest people but this book seemed dull.


    ''hmm, Battle instinct.''


    Willing the blue orb, everything within the cove disappeared as the herbs and metals all entered the blue orb for Dean''s usage.


    Looking at the emptiness he decided to take a seat on the floor and start learning about this [Battle Instinct Manual]


    He had already accepted his fate and wanted to start making his marks on that road.


    Reading the pages he felt enlightened


    {Our path that we follow is called an ''error''. That is nothing more than an outsider''s perspective. What does that concern with you. You are you, so why should it matter?}


    {We are called demons for surviving torture and devils for scheming. In fact we are just strong at enduring and smart for thinking. That is all}


    {Are we gods? Are we mortals? Why should we be labelled by other''s definitions. We can reference them in order to act like everyone else but when in the dark our true fangs appear.}


    {Plot those who dare to sin. Kill those who rebel. Murder those that betray. We are tools. We can only be used by ourselves and by no one}


    {Heed my writings and battle everything that obstructs your path}

 14 Redwood Academy

    You can wait for time yet time doesn''t wait for you


    ...


    Strolling on a path a rugged bag hooked around the juvenile''s shoulder as he took a bite out of an animal''s leg he bought from a street vendor.


    Murmuring beneath his breath "Oh, how I missed seasonings"


    Searching for signs he failed to realize the giant banner on top of the city''s gate


    [REDWOOD CITY ENTRANCE EXAM]


    Asking a nearby adult for directions he got whacked on the head while the adult pointed at the banner.


    "...Oh"


    Trying to laugh it off as a joke the juvenile still got scolded for wasting the adult''s time but he brushed it off immediately.


    The smile he showed to the adult in order to appease him had disappeared and covered up with a cold sneer.


    "If this wasn''t the wilderness you would''ve died."


    The juvenile was Dean who was already at the age of 16. In total, 6 years from the event has already passed and Dean wanted to go schooling...


    As if, Dean found that Christian was admitted into the school two years agoalong with his other ''friends''.


    For the past four years Dean had abruptly cut off his link with the Wilkes family. Of course the Clan Leader Wilkes wouldn''t relinquish his grandson for no reason so he gave excuses.


    If Dean remembered correctly it was something along the lines of ''Dean had been in a closed training to become a hermit.''


    What nonsense, Dean had sealed himself off for a whole year inside that cove to recover his cultivation and surprisingly it was insanely fast.


    According to the [Battle Intent Manual] sitting down and cultivating is a surefire way to become stronger but compared to other manuals or techniques this one was made for one thing.


    Battling.


    Constantly walking on a tightrope between life or death was what this cultivation manual thrived on. Others can only rely on their comprehension while Dean just needed to look for more advantages.


    Taking in all the precious herbs and fighting Dean has turned into a frightening monster. A monster that has surpassed all odds.


    A Nascent Soul 2 cultivator.


    Children his age would at most be Foundation Establishment while those with gifted talents and medical resources could reach Core Refiner.


    He couldn''t just show his real cultivation to anybody so he made sure to learn a subcategory of [Battle Intent Manual].


    It revolved around the idea that battle with an unknown opponent is one of the deadliest fights. This allowed for whoever created this manual to hid their cultivation to later back stab a cultivator.


    The war against any foes he met on his path when walking in areas known to be dangerous would always lead to Dean getting stronger.


    ''Just because you have great cultivation does not mean you can rule the world''


    But because of this great strength, Dean became weary. This was especially so after he received a paper


    Dean received a letter from his grandpa. On one hand it was a letter for entering Redwood Academy without a problem while the other was a handwritten note.


    The writing was messy making it look urgent with wet patches, presumably tears.


    {Dean Wilke''s father has been killed due to a higher power.


    Do not take revenge


    Stay strong}


    At the time Dean laughed


    "I had already said I wasn''t part of your family so why are you sending rubbish?"


    It was a minor grudge Dean held. He suffered cruel torture from his cousins because he didn''t have strength and his father didn''t even interfere.


    What made it even more hilarious was the fact his grandpa said his father was killed due to mysterious circumstances.


    "If I didn''t have a strong will to survive maybe I would''ve ''died due to mysterious circumstances''"


    Because Dean refused to acknowledge his family, his ties have already been severed.


    This meant that Dean didn''t have to take ''revenge'' for his dead father.


    Dean at least learnt a valuable message from the letter. Brute strength does not mean you can always win.


    If Dean wanted revenge he had to do it subtly.


    Schemes and plots would have to be used if Dean still wanted to come out alive. Otherwise he can just resort to suicide with Christian.


    Coming closer towards the school Dean learnt of many tales about Redwood Academy.


    This school took pride in two main things


    The first was the ability to cultivate geniuses. People who were above the norm were able to go to other schools in order to get stronger. In turn for this opportunity the school receives fame for the legends that they helped made


    The second thing was only a rumor but many people believed in it. Long ago the very first principal of the school wanted to give something to the world.


    After committing many evil deeds the man turned over to a new leaf and created this school. His enemies that accumulated from those evil deeds had learnt of this.


    Planning and gathering on a day, they fought against the principal in the middle of the woods. In the end the woods were covered with blood with dozens of corpses impaled with wood.


    Apparently, till this day there is still blood on those trees.


    Dean chuckled at the thought that it''s nothing more than a false tale made to attract more students and mused over the idea that the red wood is just from a special plant.


    A teacher of the school was in front of the gates, taking a look for any students interested as well as prodigies that were given early access letters.


    It always made the teacher proud when she saw parents waving good bye to their children.


    They raised their children in the hopes that they can make their family successful and the innocence of children that only wish to do their best.


    When the children would come out from the exam they would have two options.


    One was that they failed but despite the disappointment of the parents will be subsided as they can only say ''you tried'' or ''you got next year''.


    It would be troublesome where the unreasonable parents would stuff their own logic into the teacher''s faces.


    The idea that violence will lead to infamy of the school, forced all teachers to act passive and only when in the circumstance of self-defense can they harm a person.


    ''Wasn''t Redwood Academy built on the reputation of a cold blooded murderer?''


    Scoffing at the weird policies a teen asked her a question


    "Excuse me, i''m here to hand in a letter"


    Looking closer the youth was covered with scars from head to toe. In his hand was a scroll wrapped with a thin brown rope and the important part, a wax seal with ''RWA''


    Realizing this could be an important person the teacher started to act in a professional manner. "Welcome to Redwood Academy, Follow me to take a talent inspection"


    Dean was initially confused by this as it wasn''t mentioned on the letter but the teacher thankfully explained


    "This is mainly used to compel others to have a competitive spirit. Besides that point it allows the school to mark the students."


    The conversation continued with the teacher informing Dean of anything that was deemed unusual or potentially unheard of.


    Dean payed attention to one special point


    "Most families tend to keep this a secret from youths so the school will hence forth give any information that we consider to be the norm."


    "The world knows one route ''Martial Arts'' but on the other spectrum is ''Mages''. People who manipulate the world''s essence for whatever they want. The reason this is hidden is that it mainly affects the talent of a mage"


    "Until they reach a certain maturity should they have learnt about this. You''ll also be tested for your Magic talent but this won''t take too much time."


    Dean felt slightly shocked about this. He had scoured through his clan''s library without a single hint to magic.


    His family hid this information very will, sighing Dean regretted he didn''t learn of this a little earlier but when the teacher mentioned you had to reach a certain age, Dean felt thankful that no one spoiled him.


    If one of his seniors wanted to sabotage his future then Dean could only sulk at his misfortune while laughing at this senior''s punishment.


    From what Dean inferred from those three paragraphs was that if someone were to purposely sabotage a person''s future there would of course be a punishment.


    If someone per say, paced documents everywhere there would surely be repercussions. What this could do is potentially make a whole generation forsake magic.


    "Mages follow the same cultivation names: Body Tempering, Qi Gathering, Qi Condensation, etc. The only catch is that they replace Qi with Essence. The main problem with being a mage is that it is unlikely to be talented in both Magic and Martial Arts"


    "Another is that due to studying and practicing spell Mages are prone to be weak in close combat."


    "Student, is there anything else you would like to inquire?"


    The teacher took a deep breath after her speech


    Dean felt astonished and tried to slowly take in this new influx of information.


    "No, thank you"

 15 My Potential?

    Entering a large building an attendant whispered to the teacher any remaining spots for talent inspection.


    It was not too long before Dean entered a booth. The booth was protected with an array and would block any outsider''s sight with black curtains.


    This was a large contradiction to what the teacher originally said.


    One of the purposes that she mentioned was to create a competitive sense within the school. If your potential is concealed due to the black curtains doesn''t do the opposite and instead hide their potential


    Dean shook his head as he feared an idea.


    Hidden experts.


    What may be the core of the school, are prodigies stove away from the sight of the public. Cultivated to become crouching tigers and hidden dragons, they can be the hope of the school.


    Whatever they become the school would push enough resources in the hope they get something in return.


    Dean chuckled at this shady school but immediately brushed it off in the hopes to see his talent.


    Inside the booth, consisted of a young man sitting behind a table with a suitcase off to the side. On the center of the table was a misty orb and to the side there were two chairs.


    "Would you like to take a seat?"


    The teacher had already taken a seat off to the side and brought the other seat to the table, opposite to the young man.


    "To begin your Talent Inspection please place your hand on the ball. By doing this we will be able to gather information on your Cultivation level, Magic Potential and Martial Arts Potential."


    Dean nodded and felt assured in one area; Cultivation level.


    With the sub-technique Dean learnt from the [Battle Intent Manual] his cultivation level should he hidden without a worry.


    On the other hand he wasn''t exactly sure what would happen to his Magic Potential. he studied the [Battle Intent Manual] for more than four years yet the book hadn''t mention a single thing about Magic.


    Placing his hand on the ball, the young man instructed


    "Circulate your Qi. Whenever you''re ready."


    Supplying the orb with Qi the ball lit up brightly with a spectrum of colors. Red, black, white, pink and gray shone the brightest.


    The time passed before Dean felt he couldn''t add more Qi into the orb without making it explode. Removing his hand, the young man pulled the orb closer in order to examine Dean''s talent.


    "Let''s see... your cultivation level is approximately a Qi Gathering - no, a Body Refiner - hmmm, a Core- The test was invalid. Please attempt once more."


    The young man tried to hide his embarrassment by shifting the topic quickly and replaced the orb with another one from his suitcase.


    Dean repeated the process once more yet the same thing happened.


    The young man instead took out a paper from his suitcase and asked


    "Please be honest with you cultivation level. The school will punish you in the event of causing mischief with the minimum punishment of suspension."


    Glaring down on Dean, he used an aura to imply a threat yet Dean nonchalantly admitted his cultivation level


    "Qi Condensation 5"


    The young man wrote that down but turned back to Dean to see if there was any odd reaction from him. Dean was inwardly celebrating that his cultivation level was hidden but masked his emotions.


    "Continuing on. Martial Arts talent:....trash?"


    The man sighed as he realized that Dean was in fact not lying. His cultivation level was low due to his rather...interesting potential.


    The man guessed that this student had a family hoping he would have potential for magic otherwise he could just become a scholar.


    Dean felt surprised by this since Pierre completely crippled his martial arts with his only saving grace being the blue orb.


    Meanwhile his [Battle Intent Manual] was a cultivation technique that strayed off the mainstream method.


    "Your Magic Talent is:...hmmm."


    The words consistently changed without the young man able to properly read it.


    "Your potential for Magic is what people know as Unknown. One day it could be trash but another day it could have a high affinity"


    "It mainly has a high affinity for dark magic but I should warn you to not expect something out of this. The last person who had an Unknown potential got in debt due to gambling on the chance she could become a genius."


    "In the end she died trying to make money by fighting beasts."


    The young man''s warning acted as a deterrence to Dean but would that really stop him?


    Dean sneered at the young man''s ignorance but felt console by his Magic talent


    ''I might be able to read some books and study on it. Hopefully it''s compatible with the [Battle Intent Manual]''


    "I''ll pass this on to our principal for your assigned classes. You''ll be receiving your timetable in three days time."


    Passing a book and a piece of paper to Dean he waved his hand to gesture that they were done.


    Dean left the booth but out of the corner of his eyes he saw the teacher have an expression condescension.


    ''It seems this school only love talented people.''


    The teacher and young man began a conversation as Dean exited the building


    "How long will you think he''ll last?"


    "The last one only lasted a week. Hmm, for him i''d say...5 days."


    "5? I bet less than a day"


    "You think he might have sparring classes in his first day?"


    "Nah, I bet his classmates will bully him since that happened quite a few times already"


    ...


    The book in Dean''s hand was more of a pamphlet. It contained a map and pointed out landmarks the school felt represented them the best.


    An example of that would be a statue of the first principal in all of his glory.


    Dean felt disgusted at something similar to a Publicity Stunt. This was suppose to manipulate the student''s mind into feeling this school was the greatest.


    Something to make a student reminisce or feel indebted to this school. ''Loyalty'' was just an idea used to exploit young teenagers.


    Most teenagers would be quite ignorant to this while those similar to Dean would do the same as what he is doing.


    Keep quiet.


    If they were kind then they would tell it to everyone. They would eventually get framed by the school for causing trouble and would have to face the student''s glare.


    You would just act like a madman.


    Even if you keep silent at the very least you''ll be the one who is aware of the scheming school.


    Entering the district for the male dormitories Dean found his room.


    Opening the door, the room was small but had a cozy aura around it.


    It was not over the top with decorations and it wasn''t in shambles as it presented itself in a clean state.


    There was just a single bed and space for any of the student''s needs.


    Although most would believe the school was being nice however Dean thought otherwise.


    If you were a person cultivating or maybe an alchemy apprentice you would probably practice in this room.


    But unforeseen accidents could happen.


    You''re on the brink of breaking through and increasing your strength but there is a loud bang in the room next to you.


    You''re meridians crack and instead of becoming stronger you become weaker with all you hard earned Qi disappearing.


    Maybe you have reached a new milestone in creating an amazing pill.


    You''ve spent so much time and effort. The money spent on buying so many batches of herbs only to rely on this batch to succeed.


    You''ve just about created the pill. A fortune maker that could instantly make you rich but suddenly someone knocks on the door.


    Sighing at your loss who can you blame?


    The school?


    The school will instead blame you for your foolishness. How dare you risk studying in a place that could harm your well-being.


    To solve the problem the school ''magnanimously'' created separate faculties to help your extracurricular needs.


    Dean can even imagine the price.


    If you are too into your focus of study then you may go overtime to whatever that particular skill is.


    Because you didn''t stay true to your designated time the school will make sure you aren''t interrupted.


    Kind, right?


    Wrong.


    Instead you have to rely on yourself to keep track of time otherwise you need to pay a penalty.


    This penalty will make you pay a little bit extra then usual but Redwood Academy could make excuses.


    You are preventing your peers an opportunity to further their studies. Let this be a warning for this time.


    Because there needs to be a currency to allow students to use items or go to places, this introduces contribution points.


    According to the guide you may receive contribution from teachers after doing a task, missions or trading.


    "How''s Christian doing? Has he been sucked dry by this system?"


    "Heh, watch out for your money, life, wife and reputation because i''m coming."


    An eerie chuckle echoed from the room

 16 Happy Reunion

    It was the very first day of class and someone rang a bell from a nearby mountain in the school.


    The ringing reverberated throughout the whole school however had no effect on anyone outside.


    Signaling the first class was about to begin, Dean headed towards his class in a relaxed manner by looking at his paper time to time.


    As he changed direction due to a corner he accidentally bumped into someone.


    A scabbard rang on the the floor with Dean picking it up, hoping to reconcile with whoever it was.


    "Ah, thank you"


    Handing the scabbard towards the student, Dean took a closer look.


    A red cherry like complexion surrounded her cheeks and her smile exposed a white light. Eyes gleaming with excitement and a small nose to make her an overall beauty.


    Dean was too familiar with this face.


    This face at the time was only the face of a pretty youth but now it matured into a city-destroying beauty.


    For 4 years they were considered to be together yet in an instant it seemed she disregarded that.


    Trading her dignity and reputation to just betray him for Christian.


    Why else would this face seem familiar?


    "Umm, you''re?...!!!"


    The instant shock and realization dawned upon her as Rose realized who the man before her was.


    Dean


    A person she used and threw away.


    Rose knew that Dean hadn''t completely died but she expected him to of at least still been on a sickbed.


    They were two different people living in two different worlds.


    One whose fate was sealed to be forever a mortal while the other had a bright future with Christian holding a torch to light the way.


    Dean felt as if he remembered what it was like to be bashful.


    Embarrassed to think that he actually was so naive.


    ''How could I have been tricked by a vixen?''


    Rose may have betrayed Dean but an actress will still feel a lingering sense of their role. It was not necessarily regret but rather sadness.


    Taking advantage of Dean''s foolishness they used him.


    Especially in the fight against golem who was the one who saved the group?


    Was it Christian? He was the very first to have passed out in the fight.


    But it was Dean.


    Taking the burden of a reaper''s scythe hanging over his head, he dared to have fought head to head.


    Rose still had the same personality.


    She wasn''t merciless!


    Before Pierre was going to kill Dean she called out for him to stop which saved his life.


    Dean didn''t know this so he only felt that this girl was a seductress who knew how to place a good false front.


    A scary mistress that can stab anyone''s back whenever they feel like it.


    Rose excused herself, running away


    "Um, i''m sorry...I need to head to class"


    Dean didn''t dare to look back as he held his left hand using his right to restrain himself


    Chanting "Not yet. The time is not ripe. You aren''t that foolish child who runs straight into their traps without a plan."


    Relieving himself with a deep breath, Dean shrugged off the matter and constantly tried to ignore his hatred.


    Getting back to what he originally came for was his attendance to class.


    Opening the door, he was greeted by what he expected.


    People who were acquaintances or possibly friends huddled into their own groups.


    They introduced and flattered their friends while talking about any recent news.


    For others, they sat patiently at their seats and hoped to begin their learning.


    Dean made sure to take note of the people who sat down and those who were adapting to their new social group or those who are being flattered.


    Dedication and diligence is a necessity in order to reach the top.Seeing the temperament of those ready to learn was something Dean had to fear.


    The only reason he gained a somewhat mature disposition was because of his past and motivation. Using those fact, Dean pushed himself to the limits.


    The scariest people Dean judged were the people who contained their absolute calm no matter what.


    Ayesha wouldn''t fit in as her desperation for living will restrict her while those who are able to see past that could have the ability to reach heights no one has thought of.


    Even if they are not tranquil in their heart the others have the potential to become powerhouses.


    At a young age they already have a desire to learn.


    If they are able to persist and live a long life, who knows what monsters they could become.


    The two other groups Dean became wary about was the people who could adapt or those that got praise.


    Adapting to the right situation with any personality allows this person to meld bonds with others.


    They have the potential to become sly foxes that scheme night and day or possibly leaders that will call forth thousands with only a single word.


    Judging the right moment they know what to do.


    This could also be a weak point if they are short-sighted however for those that see the bigger picture may create a profit.


    The other group was what Dean would usually disdain against but he still needed to be more considerate.


    If his agitation suddenly become out of control.... a blood bath with no point will happen.


    They were people born into powerful families.


    Families far superior than the Wilkes Family


    For some they would become incredible talents. If they wanted to create strong impressions in the hope of recruiting allies they would''ve already been taught that charming words are meaningless.


    Only hard facts will be the proof a person''s worth.


    Yet, some continue to talk with those below them and hope to be showered in praise for something they were born with.


    Still if Dean had unreasonably offended them then his chances in taking revenge would be slimmer as time goes by.


    Memorizing each individuals face he couldn''t help pause in perplexity at one of the faces.


    It was Rose, again.


    Noticing Dean''s existence Rose struggled to think of what to do next.


    Resuming how she would usually react, she took a deep breath and gleamed a smile towards Dean.


    Dean also smiled to her in a gentle manner but felt like a fire was burning his stomach.


    A raging fire that couldn''t be pacified as well as a headache that tempted him into doing what felt like a calling of his nature.


    The classroom was fairly large and there were many seats still unoccupied. There was no seating plan so Dean took a random desk and called it his own.


    The loud bang of a closing door echoed in the classroom as a man in brown robes entered the class.


    "Hello, kids! I''ll be your teacher for the years to come until your graduation. This is your general class that always begins in the morning. The school has probably informed you that the other classes for the rest of the day will have different classmates"


    "Don''t be afraid to make new friends and welcome a new life in your youth"


    The teacher was extremely eccentric in the way he talked but there was a hint of experience behind it.


    "Since it''s the first day, let''s start with some ice breakers. Please go ahead and start."


    There was a temporary silence before some couldn''t hold back and introduced themselves when the atmosphere felt awkward


    "Hello, i''m...."


    Dean didn''t pay any attention to the ice breaker but instead watched out for the reactions of some of his classmates.


    One person, particularly caught his attention.


    His nature seemed to be on the brink of indifference, a personality that ignored worldly matters unless necessary.


    Dean felt a little envious of that.


    To be unrestrained was something Dean aspired to have.


    ''Once I finish my revenge, I might want to learn a thing or two from him''


    Dean looked for others but there was nothing too outstanding out of his classmates.


    Only his ex and the nonchalant person.


    The format was an extremely common one.


    For the first few people, they struggled on what to say until it eventually molded into something like this:


    "Hello, my name is [Blank]. My cultivation is at the level of [Blank]. My hobby is [Blank]"


    It was pretty simple and soon it reached to the person Dean had been paying attention to.


    "My name is Leonard Delton. My cultivation is Core Refiner."


    Not bothering to announce his hobby, Dean assumed that it was most likely cultivating.


    From his last name he may have came from a prestigious family but having only the resources is not enough to become a Core Refiner cultivator.


    His background and his cultivation level was vague making Dean even more interested into what type of person this person will become.


    Dean heard Rose''s introduction however sneered at her hobby


    "I like to hang out with my friends and learn with them."


    The innocence of Rose peeked as the classmates began to discuss amongst themselves about Leonardo and Rose.


    Her cultivation level was not surprising to Dean as he expected her to have taken some herbs from the cove of his master.


    But the specific detail that Christian gave it to her was unbeknownst to him.


    ''To reach Foundation Establishment 8....not bad.''


    It was not a praise but a slight mock from Dean. This had to do with the fact that he still resented Rose but he couldn''t deliberately say it out loud so he could only think about it to himself.


    Finally, it was his turn

 17 Bullying

    "I am Dean Wilkes. My cultivation is Qi Condensation 5 and my hobby is studying."


    The whole atmosphere of the class turned solemn.


    A snicker escaped from a student in the corner but the teacher warned the man by giving a serious glare.


    The class erupted into whispers as the influx of new characters in their class was pack full of interesting backgrounds.


    Rose, an earnest beauty


    Leonard, the mysterious cool guy


    And then Dean, an unusually weak cultivator.


    "Is he going to drag us down?"


    "He said he likes studying so he might be a scholar."


    "His insight may be useful, should we recruit him?"


    Around the class was a sprout of interest and disdain towards Dean.


    Others dreaded the possibility of having to group or partner with Dean if they are forced into any projects while richer families were interested on how intelligent Dean was.


    A perspective held the thought that cultivation is supreme to everything else in the world while another was a perspective that held intelligence as a way for stabilizing their families situation.


    Troubled by the outburst of gossiping, Dean sighed however had no regrets.


    ''Having a bunch of children provide some disorder is not to bad compared to losing my chance of exacting revenge''


    Dean went through a process of deliberation by weighing the benefits.


    He may offend some nobles however Dean expected there to be some prodigies that wouldn''t be rash and aggressive for the smallest of grudges.


    If he got suspended from the school like that young man suggested then Dean could be expelled if he got a serious punishment.


    Given the chance, Dean could kill Christian before his punishment but then the thought of a squad full of hidden experts deterred Dean from making that choice.


    Although some classmates may grieve over the fact they have a dead weight in their class, Dean would just ignore it.


    With the new interest of his Magic Talent, Dean wanted to investigate into it more.


    This was the main reason why he said "My hobby is studying."


    Saying too much may leave loopholes while saying too less may arouse more interest similar to Leonard.


    Dean didn''t feel like he made a loss but instead a profit.


    Because Dean was one of the last people to introduce themselves, the class started to become more restless.


    By the time everyone finished introducing themselves the teacher allowed the students to talk amongst their groups.


    This may have to due to the fact that the teacher did remind everyone to get along with their classmates even if this is their only class with them.


    The reason Dean called his introduction a ''profit'' was the gossip.


    This allowed more information that he may had missed out for 4 years to be learnt within this instant.


    "Rose is pretty hot, do you think I have a chance?"


    "Hahaha, you actually thinks she would date you? I''ve heard she already has a boyfriend."


    "..."


    "Leonard Delton...I think I''ve heard of the family name Delton before"


    "Really? My parents never taught me this in my clan, are you absolutely sure?"


    "I...think so? Apparently their an old family with great heritage. Rich and prosperous they were one of the strongest families around but they suddenly became hidden."


    "Pffh, if they were that great then I should''ve already learnt of this a long time ago."


    Floating around the class were questions about Dean but in the end he ignored it because he already got what he wanted.


    The teacher couldn''t take the loud noise inside his class and yelled over them


    "AHEM, our class was allowed to borrow the training grounds. Let this be a chance for you to learn from other classmates as well as befriend them at the same time."


    There was a gasp of surprise from most of the students.


    For some they wanted to prove themselves to be great in front of other students to feel some sort of superiority or maybe to earn praise for how strong they are.


    Maybe impress the ladies, get noticed by nobles or even desire the respect of a teacher


    There were numerous motives for these teenagers but it all stemmed from their young mind.


    ...


    Ready to spar with one and another the students began to organize themselves with a partner.


    These partners could range from friends that a student felt comfortable with or maybe a love interest a student wanted to impress or take advantage of.


    While others were instead interested in their goals and what could lead them there.


    A group of people gathered around Dean, asking him to spar with them.


    Their intentions were obvious by how aggressive they acted and how respectful they were.


    Those that contained interest for Dean seemed more humble and formal however not submissive nor overbearing.


    The opposite was those that wanted fame. They acted extremely agitated but their eyes gleamed with anxiety, an obvious show of their insecurities that Dean sneered at.


    If Dean picked a random person, this could offend a petty person that could affect his daily life.


    Letting destiny choose for Dean, a fish caught the bait.


    One of the students felt bottled with anxiety if they couldn''t prove themselves and earn some sort of respect. This could have originated from the awkwardness of a teenager but whatever the reason was, Dean didn''t care.


    The student grabbed Dean and dragged him away by the hand while saying.


    "Are you ready Dean?"


    Taking a stance the young man flashed a playful smile to Dean.


    Dean wasn''t given a chance to prepare himself but he still remained clam since his real cultivation was Nascent Soul 2.


    The playful smile bothered Dean as that suggested that the man is not aiming to beat Dean at all!


    Instead he''s using Dean as a punching bag in order to dhow off his greatness.


    The fragility of a teen''s obsession was...interesting to Dean.


    Dean couldn''t just have fighting ability exceeding Qi Condensation 5 meaning he had to take a beating.


    To make it even more realistic Dean had to force his Qi to harm himself since the young man was too weak.


    ''I''m being bullied! I have to bully myself to make myself seem bullied!''


    The idea was quite comical to Dean but the young man was enjoying his time.


    He could feel a raw power inside of him just destroying a person before him. The sensation of flesh against his fist truly made him feel powerful.


    Narcissistic thoughts continued to flow into the young man''s mind, especially when he saw Dean cough blood and small bruises appeared on his arms.


    Was he a sadist?


    No


    But he did enjoy being in the position of power. Elated by this the young man took it a little too far.


    Composing himself, his attacks became weaker but Dean was in a state where it seemed a stronger attack would immediately knock him out.


    Dean wasn''t that stupid to completely injure himself.


    Although the outcome of his injuries looked serious they were actually superficial.


    The bruises were done by Dean forcing small blood vessels to burst and create that effect.


    Internally he was coughing blood that he borrowed from the whole of his body.


    The teacher didn''t see this as hew as busy calming Leonard down for his heavy handed attacks, oblivious to Dean''s beaten state.


    With the fight reaching it''s climax, a group had started to form.


    People had already finished their spar and should have partnered with different partners or go for another round.


    Instead they found it more interesting to observe this match.


    Dean looked around to find that he was encircled by many youths and the young man in front of him appeared more cocky.


    The crowd acted as a stimulant to the young man as he used more flamboyant attacks.


    Dean received the attacks without a qualm but smelt blood.


    It was this moment that Dean realized this scene was too familiar.


    The numbers around him made Dean feel overwhelmed despite their obviously weak cultivation.


    ''This position. The smell. The powerlessness."


    It felt as if Dean was living in the past and experiencing a nightmare again.


    Dean thought he could pretend to be weak but in the end he just tricked himself.


    He placed himself into a position that caused him to panic.


    Struggling to stop feeling helpless Dean tried to calm himself.


    A familiar feeling invaded Dean''s mind that pacified his racing heart.


    ''I was once weak.''


    ''I couldn''t do a thing and I was brought to the brink of despair''


    ''I could blame it on my feelings getting in my way but I obviously know what my problem was.''


    ''I was too weak!''


    This simple thought continued to echo within Dean''s mind until he started to feel a headache and wince at the shocking pain.


    Meanwhile, the young man was creating hype by purposely insulting his opponent and finally deciding that this will be his last and final punch.

 18 He Slipped

    Many of the students just watched this flamboyant battle and either cheered or kept quiet.


    The bloody sight may have been an introduction for those that were not used to seeing a mess. It was nothing more than a lesson for those that were new while for others it was something to discuss about.


    The young man''s fighting could be summed up in one word:


    Poor


    The sloppy punches and kicks were not effective and were only useful because they took advantage of a low level cultivator''s weakness in strength.


    What was even more shameful was the fact that the man seemed to take pride in bullying the weak. His inferiority was in full show for everyone to see and his false elegance was of a scammer''s quality.


    Barely considered good but cheap.


    Overall this person was considered trash for most of the nobles while those that were new to fighting found this person to be powerful.


    The only redeeming factor that caused interest in this fight was Dean!


    The pure tenacious capabilities of Dean that allowed him to stand up after every blow that was sent to him was purely amazing.


    Dean mentioned he was somewhere in the Qi condensation realm while this young man flaunted his cultivation to be around the Foundation Establishment realm.


    Dean never thrown down the towel and called for a forfeit but instead continued to act as a punching bag waiting silently.


    If this subordinate still had the capabilities of being strong willed then he would be considered to be a hidden deadly weapon.


    A weapon that no one would ever suspect until the last moment before they die.


    The nobles thought that if Dean was able to become a fairly intelligent scholar then in theory he could also become a good actor.


    Imagine sending a genius to your enemy''s kingdom, creating a good reputation and controlling a strong army before backstabbing them with their civilization collapsing just because of that one man.


    Those with goodwill had the idea to stop the fight however that would be disrespectful to both parties that are currently fighting as well as the teacher''s thought about such students.


    Because they didn''t know Dean that well, an interruption could be treated as being rude if Dean was prideful.


    The majority had a different idea.


    If they waited the fight out until Dean passed out then they could bring him to the infirmary and establish a good relationship with Dean.


    People were getting ready to save Dean so that they would have a good bond with him before anyone else however the fight wouldn''t always be so predictable.


    Dean''s thoughts became more developed as the young man continued to flaunt.


    ''Wouldn''t Christian have an army like this? Surrounding me and cheering for my downfall. Shall I just follow their expectations?''


    ''The others continue to fight, ignorant of my pain. I am just a small figure that has no effect in the grand scheme of life.''


    ''Even so. I refuse to be affected by an outsider''s view. Am I jsut supposed to throw away my hard work because a person tells me that.''


    ''I refuse!''


    It seemed similar to Ivan''s charismatic speech yet mixed with a clown''s grammar.


    The thoughts slowly began to lack logic and was devoid of reasoning while Dean failed to function as his usual self.


    The young man began his final attack, hoping to put Dean to rest from this fight.


    The built up pride made him blinded to Dean unusual behaviorbut it was already too late.


    Dean accepted the punch by grasping it with his left hand and staring the young man down with green eyes.


    It was the powerful aura that radiated from those green eyes that threatened the young man to stop.


    Dean used his right hand, pressing his index finger against the young man''s forehead.


    Dean held his stance but once realizing what he was doing there was a surging amount of regret.


    He pressed his index finger even more into the young man''s head, pushing him away from Dean while his body was lifted halfway through the air.


    Being too rash, Dean accidentally released Battle Intent.


    It may not seem to obvious to most people but Dean knew the full effects of what he has done.


    Battle Intent could be said to be similar to poison.


    Like a snake it slithered around the body until it finds multiple weak points. Its favorite treat would have to be the heartwith the brain at second place.


    After finding the weak point the snake coils around it until its hungry and decides to eat that weak point by stabbing through the organ.


    It will usually cause the person to feel an immense pain before dying.


    Another effect is the destruction of meridians.


    It was lucky for Dean that he retained his sanity otherwise this side effect would have completely given him away.


    The Battle intent will transform into a bull, ramming against the meridians of a person until it is completely crushed.


    Once this job is finished the bull will rush towards the dantian, completely destroying any qi within the person similar to what Dean had experienced.


    If the school officials found out about this then he was a dead man.


    The final form of this poison was the leeches.


    The Battle Intent would force the person''s blood into a hyper state of circulation.


    Once this effect was done, the Battle intent would destroy parts of the skin until the blood would eventually flow out.


    Similar to a leech''s saliva, the blood wouldn''t be able to coagulate to stop the bleeding.


    The person would then die either from the destruction internally, loss of blood or become a normal person to later be killed.


    Dean tried using this to hunt however found the results to be very inefficient.


    Why wait for a couple of days when you could just kill the beast before you.


    The terrifying side effects could only be noticed if there was an extensive research of the body but it was very unlikely for anybody to notice.


    The battle ended with Dean winning.


    A passed out young man and a bloodied Dean.


    If no one were to see the battle then people would jump to the conclusion that this must have been a fight that was very close.


    The teacher finished his business and finally saw Dean''s predicament. Although Dean was in a bloody mess he wasn''t passed out compared to his opponent.


    He ran pass Dean to examine the young man before propping him into a certain position.


    If the young man coughed blood, he wouldn''t drown in his own blood and in the end there was no visually serious injuries.


    "Someone, grab a teacher from our class and send this student to the infirmary"


    The situation was not as dire as it looked however the teacher didn''t want his students to have to study in a sickbed.


    "What happened!?Why did no one stop this?!"


    The teacher was slightly furious to see a simple spar to turn into an all out brawl.


    Inspecting his students'' faces there was a clear sight of guilt that caused the teacher to be disappointed.


    Scolding his students he yelled "If this happens again, all of you will be expelled"


    Attending to Dean''s injuries he was worried and realized that Dean was targeted.


    He thought that at least some people in his class would be responsible and mature enough to stop something like bullying happening but this promoted more disappointment for the teacher.


    "He slipped"


    "...huh?"


    The teacher was initially confused but Dean whisper to clarify


    "He slipped during our fight"


    Trying to reply to Dean''s statement the teacher was interrupted.


    "Dean, I challenge you!"


    Leonard brought forth his request for a duel but the teacher rebuked.


    "Child, this student is injured. How dare you take advantage of you peer in front of me"


    Preparing to scold Leonard once more, Dean tugged on his shirt.


    This was a signal to tell the teacher to just stop before Dean passed out.


    Dean wasn''t ready to face this nightmare that''ll immediately get out of hand so he left it to the teacher to solve by passing out.


    Finally, two students brought two stretchers with another two students willing to help.


    It would be unfortunate first day for the two as they would miss out on their subjects which was when most social groups would start to form.


    Th teacher sighed and just treated this event as something to learn form in the future.


    ....


    "I''ve given you both your prescriptions. Please take them everyday for a week."


    The two were both excused, exiting out of the infirmary with the young man sending a nervous glance to Dean.


    Dean greeted his glance by glaring back.


    This frightened the young man as he ran away.


    "Do you accept my challenge? Your injuries can fool anybody except for me."


    Seeing Leonard, Dean grinned


    "Oh? I accept your challenge."

 19 Leonard vs Dean

    Accepting the challenge Leonard led Dean to a hidden place.


    The hidden place was surrounded by healthy oak trees with a desolate feeling. Completely silent there was no other people here during the night.


    Dean didn''t mind the surroundings as long as there was no one to interrupt this battle. Given the obstacles such as trees in the forest territory gave Dean an advantage to showcase his scheming he''s learnt within these 4 years.


    There was one bargaining chip that gave reason for Dean to participate in this duel.


    Leonard''s talent


    His pure potential on cultivation enabled him to allow himself to enter the Core Refiner stage.


    Personality wise, he would be a great ally. His indifferent nature that only has the desire to pursue cultivation was one Dean respected.


    Only loyal to the path of cultivation and family was what Dean noticed from Leonard.


    Everything else was nothing and only when it was considered necessary to deem it important would Leonard take interest in anything.


    In this case it was Dean.


    With Leonard''s background, Dean felt that making him into an ally would be a pure gold mine.


    When ferocious beasts gain intelligence they are able to contain Qi and create a core.


    This is known as a Beast Core


    A cultivator may use this as a supplement to increase their cultivation.


    After 4 years, Dean has collected hundreds of Beast Cores when he ventured into the wilderness and stored them into his blue orb.


    If Leonard was trustworthy then Dean could potentially sell them to him in secret.


    This was better than selling it to random merchants or schoolmates.


    His schoolmates may take advantage of his ''weak cultivation'' and could lead to people questioning how he managed to get all these Beast Cores.


    Random merchants would only look for one thing; Profit.


    If there was someone willing to pay the random merchants for Dean''s information then his life would instantly be in danger.


    These people may torture Dean just for the information of where he got those Beast Cores and if they felt he was lying then they would kill without hesitation.


    Compared to Leonard who had a stoic and solemn attitude, Dean could clearly see which was more trustworthy.


    Dean was ready to ask when the battle was going to begin but Leonard already struck.


    A bolt was sent flying towards Dean''s head after he tilted it to the side. Looking back to a tree behind him there was a small metallic blade embedded into the bark.


    Dean looked back to Leonard to know that he was serious.


    Leonard still contained a clam aura but behind that was a cold blood-thirsty hint of maliciousness. In his hand was a longsword that gleamed a sharp Qi that pressured Dean.


    But the one thing that Dean noticed was his cultivation. It was a very weak sense and only Dean could sense it.


    Nascent Soul 2


    The exact same cultivation level as Dean.


    If Dean continued to act gullible and weak then his death would be expected. There were two options.


    Leonard didn''t know that Dean was lying about his cultivation. This could lead to a dead man that the school would immediately dispose of.


    Or Leonard knew that Dean was hiding his cultivation. This would make sense as the quality of that small blade was clearly poor.


    It was made of common metals such as iron, probably to test Dean''s reaction but the longsword in his hand seemed to contain a hint of a precious crimson metal.


    Dean didn''t have time to analyze what the exact material was but instead picked up a nearby stick.


    Knowing that Leonard was hiding tricks up his sleeve, Dean responded by doing the same. Not wanting to show his hand he could only borrow a stick from the ground.


    It was dark during the night so the exact pigment of the stick was unknown but Dean thought for a second that it was red however shook his head.


    This may have been because he was slowly embodying the stick with Battle Intent.


    It would act as a strong metal and instead of poisoning a practitioner.


    Once the Battle Intent was able to settle within a body would it be considered deadly however there is a short time frame that allows a person to get rid of the Battle Intent.


    The young man that Dean had sparred against couldn''t have done that as he was passed out. If he used it against a random beast they would have to sit relax and remove the toxic aura before being killed by Dean


    Although Battle Intent was effective there was an obvious weakness.


    Dean would have to physically touch the opponent.


    Then there were other factors including: Cultivation, age, health, duration of touch, etc


    Dueling each other with their blades there was bound to be injuries.


    Leonard underestimated Dean''s makeshift sword as he saw it as a provocation which in turned was traded for a cut along the shoulder.


    The wound spewed blood and made Leonard question what was happening.


    With his high cultivation level it''s already unusual for him to bleed this long. He should''ve healed this wound in seconds yet why does it bleed?


    Checking his wound he realized that there was a type of aura surrounding the wound stopping him from healing.


    Curing it with his own Qi he realized it wasn''t too fearful.


    The only problem was that during the time Leonard cared for his wound Dean had ran.


    Dean escaped from the boring battle and wanted to see what else Leonard had hidden.


    His swordsmanship was superb and could be said to have developed itself into one of a kind as Dean never read or even saw anything that could resemble that might.


    If that sword fight continued for too long then Dean could have fallen into the tempo of Leonard. Leonard taking control of the battle meant that Dean would have few chances to escape from his grasp and not lose the battle.


    Chuckling at his luck Dean ran into a tree.


    Without a doubt the tree was severed and turned into two separate entities.


    A stump and a log.


    Collecting the branches enabled Dean to have a bundle of swords in his arsenal while the bark could be used like darts that could be sent flying towards Leonard.


    The oddity of this tree was the sap that drenched Dean.


    It had a sticky texture but the metallic accent was very familiar to Dean yet he couldn''t recall what it exactly smelt like that.


    The dim lighting originating from the stars and the moon made tracking Dean difficult but Leonard managed to see Dean after the loud ruckus.


    Seeing Dean covered by a mysterious liquid, led Leonard to the idea that Dean may have been injured by the tree that could have possibly came from very old wounds.


    This was a well thought out prediction by Leonard as it would make sense with Dean covered with scars that there would be some other hidden injuries that could not be seen.


    Charging towards Dean, Leonard sent small marble sized water droplets towards Dean.


    ''He already knows Magic?''


    Dean instinctively blocked the water bullets with a branch and threw his own leaves to block Leonard''s sight.


    Slicing through the obstruction without a sweat Leonard was greeted with a new sight. Dean had jumped through the air and using a long branch he smashed it towards the left cheek of Leonard.


    The body remained still until Dean lunged himself to strike Leonard''s abdomen with his legs. Leonard could only accept his fate as he fell flat onto the ground with a grunt.


    Dean sat down and began to relax.


    Leonard saw this and accepted his defeat


    "You lied about your cultivation!"


    "So did you. How the hell did you learn about Magic so fast?"


    "That I-"


    Their battle had ended and no grudge was formed but rather admiration.


    Both opponents did not have the will to kill the other but rather learn techniques.


    It was unfortunate as shrubs shaking and leaves crackling could be heard in the distance that interrupted their delightful conversation.


    Normally a teacher would warn the students messing around at night however with the damage done a security guard should act more cautious.


    A tree had been destroyed abruptly making the security guards think that there must be a powerful foe.


    Why would they warn an enemy that could just run away.


    Leonard sighed at his missed chance for learning and teaching


    "Take this"


    Throwing a jar filled with pills, Dean caught it with one hand


    "What is it?"


    "It''s some pills I made. Enjoy."


    Swallowing a pill, Leonard waved his hand in a playful manner before escaping out of the forest.


    Hearing the rustling noise coming closer towards Dean he decided to also run away before he gets caught up in a mess.


    "We''ll talk tomorrow."


    Waving his hand out of courtesy, Dean ran without turning back.


    Leonard now wants to battle.

 20 Heavens Authority

    Entering class there was not much of a commotion.


    Many had gathered reputation for their attitude, intelligence, manner or their quirkiness.


    It was not a surprise for Dean to be wrapped in bandages that covered up his scars and hold a bottle full of medications meant to heal him.


    The same could be said for the young man that Dean dueled against. Although there was no bandages that wrapped around him there was instead a pale complexion that showed he didn''t feel too well.


    One surprising factor was Leonard. Most people by now had already learnt of his noble status as well as his unconventional cultivation level.


    With this knowledge in hand they placed him on a league above theirs however what was with the gauze and the long sleeved shirt.


    It seemed he was embarrassed of the wounds


    Others may flaunt their injuries as a sign of courage or bravery. The reason could be the fact that they survived from a dangerous event or maybe they had fought against an opponent they greatly respected.


    Another would be those that didn''t care. An example would be Dean who didn''t cover nor flaunt his scars. They were treated as nothing more than an injury that''ll be there forever unless they eventually disappeared.


    Then there was the last type, those who are embarrassed. This ranged from the backstory to the way the injury was received.


    Most people Dean imagined wouldn''t be proud to have received a bruise after tripping on nothing.


    "Who injured him?"


    "Did he offend someone?"


    Discussions started to buzz around the class.


    To offend a person that had a greater background than Leonard would make a few in the class sneer at his misfortune because they just purely liked gossip.


    For those that wanted to befriend or ally with Leonard were subtly afraid and weren''t as willing to talk to Leonard if he did offend someone.


    Why make friends with a person who can only bring trouble?


    Dean obviously knew the truth as he was the one that caused those injuries.


    Leonard should be thankful to Dean since he enabled him to have a much more quiet life without people crowding all over his business.


    Having a calm and indifferent attitude towards life, Dean leaned towards the logic that it was more of Leonard''s preference of clothing rather than his feelings.


    ....


    Class passed with nothing that Dean had felt was important.


    After going to his other classes there was a sense of boredom in Dean.


    It was a struggle to pay attention to lectures he had no interest in and the fact that no one wanted to talk to him made it even more boring.


    The difficulty of restraining himself from killing Rose and learning more about Christian was making Dean feel frustrated.


    He had to wait until he had enough information and whether he had enough strength. If he did things to early or too late then everything would have been for naught.


    One thing that Dean was interested in was the explanation of Leonard and the library.


    Magic.


    The school had told him this and Leonard further proved that it existed. Some could suggest that Magic is just a branch of Martial Arts but if so then why would it need a different source of energy?


    Taking note of all the questions he wanted to ask Dean ran towards Leonard during the afternoon where all their classes should have been finished.


    "You can get rid of your bandages."


    Hearing Dean, Leonard smiles before slowly unraveling the white cloth that revealed a pale and soft skin that would make any woman captivated.


    "Did you really make them?"


    Dean was dumbfounded at the time he took the pills. They were far too effective as Dean''s blood was instantly replenished with enough room left for cultivating.


    If Dean wasn''t at the Nascent Soul stage then the rumbling of qi would have broken a few walls within the dormitory and the howling scream would reverberate throughout the whole school.


    The more surprising part was the quality of the pill. It was perfect. According to what Dean already knew, the pill had 0% imperfections and the probability of creating a pill such as this is equivalent to a quote.


    "To find 1 out of a 100,000 is considered lucky"


    Used in many scenarios, Dean finally found that this quote worked with this pill.


    A pure miracle in short.


    Leonard coughed at the admiring face of Dean "My pills aren''t for sale."


    "Oh? And why would that be?" If Dean could make an investment into these pills then he could be assured his cultivation would be strong and secured.


    "Because they aren''t for sale..." Leonard''s word lingered until he finished his sentence.


    "...Only for trading."


    Dean understood where he was trying to go and revealed a Beast Core of the Core Refiner state.


    "So my intuition was right. Can you show the others?" Leonard had somewhat predicted Dean owning treasures but never expected it to be on point.


    Dean sighed, there was a sense of respect as he never thought that Leonard could have suddenly learnt all of his motives.


    Turning to the right and then the left, Dean brought out a sapphire orb.


    The color contained a gentle hue between blue and purple yet there was a strong essence that roared within its container, waiting to be released.


    "This... where?"


    Leonard was subtly frightened at what he just saw as he grabbed the orb and concealed it with his undone bandages.


    Inspecting the orb even closer that was no doubt that Leonard had.


    A Nascent Soul Beast Core.


    The essence of a Nascent Soul creature that could wreak havoc on small cities was within Leonard''s hands.


    Fear gripped his heart but with a deep breath his indifference was returned. Afraid of any consequences that could come by, Leonard revealed priceless information to Dean.


    Pointing to his nose he spoke "As an alchemist, smell, taste, feel and sometimes hearing are prioritized to take care of medical ingredients. My nose is astutely sensitive to Qi which was why I could smell the Beast Cores off you."


    This time it was Dean to feel fear.


    Agreeing that alchemists need a special set of skills in order to befit their position like any other job, their was a chance that someone could have noticed Dean''s treasury.


    However Dean had no reason to feel worried rather he felt amazed at Leonard''s accomplishment despite his young age.


    An alchemist that could brew pills without a thought, create medicine that could multiply the original effects and pastes that could heal injuries.


    A physical body that has rare traits, giving them a head start in their occupation.


    And lastly, his personality.


    These were all things Dean respected as he could never have them in this life.


    He was born with a body that can''t be changed.


    Talent that would not fit into any normal occupation


    A personality that is constantly doubting people.


    What more his only talent was fighting. Anyone can throw a fist and kill a person but it takes time and discipline to learn alchemy, blacksmithing, tailoring, etc.


    Leonard kept the Beast Core somewhere hidden before throwing bottles of pills


    "Keep them."


    Along with the pills was a maroon book with no title.


    Dean opened the book and flipped through a few pages only to have a solemn attitude before sending a sincere gift to Leonard


    There was no response between the two of them but they accepted each other''s attitude that will eventually open up to each other the next time they meet.


    Both were left to ponder the unimaginable power of the other as the gifts they received were revered from their point of view.


    Leonard received herbs and a metal bar that Dean had originally retrieved from his master''s cove and proceeded to be gobsmacked at the Qi the materials still retained.


    "Etheral Minerals! Qzuer''s Sap and even Thetrical Bark! Where did Dean gather all these items, did he rob someone?"


    Dean was also astonished at the gifts he received as the least he could comment about was...scheming.


    Although Leonard had a tranquil personality there seemed to be a business savvy guy beneath that mask.


    The reason being is that at the back of the book was a table for the currency of pill bottles.


    The title at the top was


    "Beast Cores for Heaven''s Authority"


    Dean whispered beneath his breath in a chuckle "So they''re called Heaven''s Authority? Such arrogance."


    The currency went along something like this:


    100 Qi Gathering Beast Cores = 1 Heaven''s Authority


    10 Qi Condensation Beast Cores = 1 Heaven''s Authority


    1 Foundation Establishment Beast Core = 1 Heaven''s Authority


    1 Core Refiner = 10 Heaven''s Authorities


    etc


    The list stopped at the Nascent Soul stage as Leonard most likely expected that Dean would not have a Beast Core higher than that level so the current exchange rate looked like that.


    Next to the table was a small drawing of a bottle suggesting that there were 10 pills per bottle.


    Dean was excited for the profit he could make but felt that he was wasting the pills.


    It felt like they weren''t being used to their full limit.


    Shaking his head Dean pushed the problem later as he saw a handful of notes at the front of the book.


    "Magic"

 21 Magic

    Dean had to properly learn more about Magic if he wanted to continue schooling.


    Learning from Leonard''s book would give Dean a head start and allow him to skip some books if the book has the summary of Magic.


    He already had the knowledge that he has an affinity for Dark Magic but that meant nothing to him as there was no similar thing he could compare it to.


    Reading the book, Dean finally got the knowledge he wanted.


    Magic could be entitled to 5 types that are further branched into sub groups with their own special techniques


    Conjuring allows a magician to make things from nothings. The only cost is their Magic Essence and time limit that gives them the opportunity to create weapons and utilities that can help them. A constraint would be the balanced kit they have and that they can''t make perishable items.


    Enchanting was Magic that reinforced a magician''s body, weapon and tools. It is noted that they are similar to rune writers but instead of Qi it''s Magic essence. It strengthens what the user wants, allowing versatility for any situation.


    Summoning Magic consisted of exchanging Magic Essence for the presence of a beast or a spirit.


    In Dean''s mind they were frankly quite weak. The magician would have to hide behind his monster and hope for the best. At best they could borrow enchanted items but that was about it.


    Transmutation Magic followed the laws of changing the state of any substance. Rock could be changed into a sticky rubber like texture given enough Magic Essence and mainly relied on the creativity of its user.


    Last of all was Elemental Magic. It was quite self explanatory as it was just Magic that leaned towards a certain element. Dean''s Dark aptitude would go under this branch of magic.


    Dean inspected through the branch of magics and felt that all of them had opportunities to be great if the person had imagination to bring forth the best of Magic.


    Magic was a study filled with complicated tests that relied on the user to be wise and cautious and well as strong willed.


    Martial Arts focused more on the subject of the physical body that could break past mortal limits however in the end it still needed strong will.


    One path lead to infinite paths yet the risk of unexpected accidents


    The other was one that seemed much more inferior.


    Dean felt that the point of view on Martial Arts was a little questionable but at the end of the day he couldn''t be resolved to quit Martial Arts just because a few words were written to him.


    Enlightenment can be reached by a person''s thoughts.


    But if enlightenment is brought forth through the use of a another''s point of view then it is nothing more than a dead end on your path for success.


    Referring back to an old book. Dean remembered the contents that strictly followed the adherence to the teachings within large sects.


    One of the most powerful reasoning that made him memorize that passage was the strong impression it made.


    "A teacher is a guide for the next generation. Yet they aren''t the creators of the future."


    Below this phrase was an explanation that Dean interpreted on his own.


    Thinking back to his own master, there was just hidden motivation over malicious words and no advice for his cultivation techniques.


    This meant that he could be the only person that decides his journey with other factors as sources to look back on.


    Following this line of thought caused Dean to temporary stop looking down on Summoning Magic with only a single thought.


    ''There are bound to be overlapping features between the realms of magic, so until I fight a magician first hand, can I begin to make a call.''


    Reading further on it started to explain more mediocre topics.


    What caught Dean''s interest was the subject labelled: Cultivation Level.


    Body Refiner, Magic Gathering, Magic Condensation, Foundation Establishment, True Essence, Nascent Soul, Spiritual Transformation, Void Shattering and Ascension


    They were equivalent to the Martial Arts cultivation with a few minor differences.


    Qi would be exchanged for Magic Essence and in order to hold the energy, a person must have a vessel strong enough to store that energy.


    All the stages had the exact name with probably a similar process of breaking through.


    Pressure, Life & Death situations, Enlightenment, etc.


    The only stage changed was Core Refiner.


    Instead it was replaced with True Essence with an explanation below the page to describe the main reason for change.


    [A magician does not create a Core for their Magic Essence like a wild beast but instead refines it into whatever they see fit within their limitations.


    Reflecting their future development and uniqueness, their potential will seem even brighter. This is declared to be the state where a human''s desire can finally be revealed and physically placed inside of a person.


    True Essence]


    The first paragraph indicated that there was some-sort of prejudice against Martial Arts that lit a flame inside Dean.


    If he was still naive then his mind would be fogged by the bias view of books.


    Ignoring the discrimination, there was a list that further defined what it meant to be a magician at the True Essence level.


    When developing True Essence, a magician will begin to create a real purpose and meaning towards their Magic Essence.


    Essentially gaining a type of nature for their Magic.


    Many magicians can control the water element however as soon as they reach True Essence cultivation will there be a large divide in strength.


    Their Magic Essence could be calm, making them suitable for Healing Magic.


    Sharp and sturdy Magic Essence could suggest creating weapons from Water Magic.


    Realizing that some examples can overlap with other branches of magic meant that a person could potentially learn a new dimension of magic.


    An example given was a Enchanting Magician that had a Magic Nature of spirituality making them able to use summoning magic.


    Combining that together created an enhanced monster.


    Dean finally took back anything he held against Summoning Magic but this brought further question to Leonard''s ability


    Did Leonard write this book?


    He did mention that this book contained notes that he had taken down.


    Feeling regret for not asking where Dean could find the original book that contained those questionable passages.


    But this was just the beginning of regret as Dean continued to think up anymore questions that could be asked tomorrow.


    What level is Leonard at?


    Dean clearly saw him use a water base magic technique that shot water drops against him during their fight yet this raised another flag


    Is Leonard dual cultivating?


    If so, then in the future Dean would be at a disadvantage with those that had versatile skills in their arsenal.


    Dean quickly cut this thought out as he realized that a fortune of resources would be needed to cultivate in both areas as well as a natural talent.


    That short moment of imagining numerable deadly forces brought a tinge of fear that disappeared in a heart beat.


    Sighing at the lack of answers, Dean felt frustrated for Leonard making him wait for answers however this could be interpreted as a training for his patience.


    Finding a new ally made it less difficult to know that Rose was in his class and that he had yet to raise a hand against her yet.


    The whereabouts of Pierre, Ayesha, Anne and Christian had yet to be heard of but Dean awaited for the sudden rise of their popularity within the year.


    The basis behind this was that they were originally not weak and with what he guessed, they had stolen a large amount of treasures.


    Although their strength would not be the reason for their fame but it was still a way for the school to find interest within the youth.


    Recalling that he had a Dark aptitude, there was a sense of curiosity to find out how to use Magic.


    It was unfortunate for Dean as he hadn''t found any notes that talked about the process of cultivating Magic Essence but there was more discrimination about Martial Arts as he went further through the book.


    Going to the middle of the book were ripped pieces of paper that had Magic Propaganda, defaming Martial Arts as a whole.


    Leonard either had a weird fascination with discrimination or he just found it interesting.


    To hate Martial Arts would be a stretch as Dean even saw Leonard''s blade-work that could''ve killed him if he wasn''t strong enough and the unusually fast reactions showed his talent in the works.


    Using this information as a head start for Magic, Dean could finally learn more about his unknown aptitude and compatibility with the [Battle Intent Manual].


    Ending his studying period, Dean prepared for his search for information.

 22 Rumors

    Class had just finished and Dean had already met up with Leonard to learn from his experience.


    Although Leonard couldn''t be considered to have the most profound thoughts about Magic, he had the basic info Dean needed.


    Gathering all the info needed, Dean left to contemplate the new found knowledge and prepare for his next plan.


    There was one experiment that he wanted to try using the [Battle Intent Manual]. Arriving into his room for the privacy that hopefully no one would interrupt, Dean entered a concentrated state.


    Taking a deep breath and blocking out the outside world''s disruptions, he began to focus on his cultivation.


    With the use of Heaven''s Authority that Leonard made. Dean''s cultivation improved at a consistent rate compared to the years he wandered around the forest.


    Although the pills were one part of the reason why his cultivation increased but Dean felt there was another factor.


    Meeting Rose.


    The constant hatred within his heart was reinvigorated after their reunion and his cultivation had a huge boost.


    The aid with internal an external support allowed Dean to reach a conclusion that he was close to breaking into the Nascent Soul 3 stage but the time wasn''t exactly ripe.


    There were too many things he had yet to know and if Rose had already told Christian about his existence in the school then he could be sabotaged.


    Christian should be a third year in Red Wood Academy since he was two years older than Dean and have already created his own group due to his ambitions.


    Using his connections that have been built up over the three years at school or maybe the wealth accumulated from hard work.


    He could easily dispose of Dean who barely showed any potential in an instant which meant that every move he made had to be done with the utmost caution.


    Sighing at the unpredictable future, Dean payed more attention to the Magic aspect of this school.


    Leonard had given Dean a simple incantation to help attract Magic Essence however he wanted to try something before using that.


    [Battle Intent Manual]


    The book prided in it''s non-linear method and had not established that it was Qi or Magic.


    Dean just naturally used Qi to create Battle Intent as that was the one energy he knew how to control.


    With the realization that Magic Essence was similar to Qi, Dean tried to sense Magic Essence.


    A couple hours had passed and Dean could feel this ''Magic Essence'' despite the originally faint sense.


    Magic Essence was similar to to Qi as they were both lively energy sources but Dean realized the benefits of Magic Essence.


    It was no wonder that people looked down on Martial Arts!


    Dean originally sourced it to the unoriginal style that most would consider distasteful but there was another reason Magic Essence seemed superior to Martial Arts.


    Speed!


    Magic Essence was the life source from the surroundings that each had their unique attribute. This could be the reason why Elemental Magic had it''s own category when other branches could essentially copy it.


    It was the attribute of Magic Essence.


    Because it was night, Dean could feel a lot of Magic Essence with the majority having a grim and ominous feature to suggest it''s dark nature.


    Waking up from the cultivation session, there was something that Dean could agree with.


    For one, the [Battle Intent Manual] has the capability to use Magic Essence and could possibly use Magic Spells.


    Another was that Magic could improve at a faster rate, Dean didn''t agree with just following one path.


    He was given the fortune of learning both paths without a problem.


    With that fact and the Heaven''s Authority pills that Leonard can supply was the main reason that Dean could be able to learn Martial Arts and Magic.


    Balance was key during this peaceful moment, so Dean desired to start learning Magic Spells so that eventually his skills in Magic Spells would be equal to his Martial Arts.


    Resolved to master both paths, the only place to learn Magic Spells was the public library in the school that allowed the students to learn from the available books.


    Entering into the building, Dean took a gander that the architecture that was suited for this school.


    Just from the entrance, one could see that the center contained chairs and tables for students to study and memorize while the building was colored in two fashions.


    One half had a neutral grey color tone to signal that magic books could be found in that direction while the other half was for Martial Arts that had an old traditional look.


    The combination of the two was eye-catching however Dean rushed towards the second floor in order to find Magic Spells.


    Counting the floors one by one, there were altogether 11 floors.


    This probably originated from the cultivation level of Magic that Martial Arts later followed.


    Ground floor consisted of simple techniques open to all students and had theories that would mainly be discussed over in class.


    Floor 1 was the floor above the ground floor and contained Level 0 Magic spells. On the other hand, Martial Arts had difficulty establishing what specific name could be used to categorize their techniques and didn''t shamelessly copy Magic''s system.


    Leading to the present situation where they were nameless and placed in certain floors from the comments of elders that found it difficult while other manuals with value could be placed on higher floors.


    Very traditional families may use categories such as "Yellow Low Grade" "Heaven Mid Grade", etc but that didn''t catch on with many people.


    Using numbers instead, it turned into "Tier 1 Mid Grade" as numbers were easier to follow.


    The higher the number, the stronger the power,


    The top floor consisted of Forbidden Spells or Forbidden Grade techniques.


    Only high level teachers or anybody in a higher position can access that location to learn those mysterious books.


    Apparently, a legend briefly indicated that if one can master the forbidden technique and use it to the fullest, a person can destroy a country in exchange for his life.


    Some believe it''s a myth but Dean didn''t care as he had Battle Intent which could eventually do the same thing except he didn''t have to sacrifice his life.


    Taking a look around all the possible Dark Magic Spells, Dean was enlightened as he felt the books were easy to comprehend and if he wanted toattempt the spells right now, he would be able to do it confidently.


    A problem stopping that was his location, a library. Using Magic in a place meant for quiet learning was inappropriate and Dean didn''t want to have popularity that would originate from this.


    Some spells had interesting names and descriptions:


    Death Snake - A concentrated sphere that swerves from left to right towards a direction


    Dark Ball - Beginner magic, compiles Magic Essence into an orb that can be thrown.


    These were the very basic spells but Dean was compelled to go to the higher levels


    Darkness - A black hole devours an opponent until they leave the area


    Silent Cage - Envelopes the opponent in darkness until their 5 senses are partially blocked


    Some descriptions were rather vague and gave Dean the option to add his own creativity to the mix.


    Surprisingly no one came to stop Dean from entering the higher levels despite his age but there could be an underlying meaning behind that fact.


    If there were repercussions for using high level spells then the person would be injured. Having to be healed by the school and needing medication, Red Wood Academy would still make a profit out of that situation.


    Dean exited the building without any books in hand as the entrance had a large board full of rules.


    Afraid that students could destroy or lose books, the school forbade anyone from borrowing the books but Dean imagined that there could be a few exceptions given enough money.


    It was already dark and Dean felt like it was time to eat dinner.


    Heading to the canteen there was another reason that Dean wanted to eat in a public place.


    The gossip!


    Many people would eat at the canteen for the cheap and sometimes free food.


    Due to that reason there would be large crowds with people having different origins that gave chance for Dean to learn a few things.


    Taking a few steamed buns Dean sat from place to place after finishing his food and grabbing more to not seem suspicious.


    "Did you hear? Joe is going to fight Bridget at the arena over Jessica."


    "Really? When was Jessica going out with someone?"


    ...


    "Who''s your favorite out of the four beauties?"


    "I think Ayesha''s my type, what about you?"


    ...


    "You going to join the Autarch Society?"


    "Nah, I heard their leader, Christian is quiet a jerk to his subordinates. I don''t want to work under a boss like that."


    "Are you sure? If you reach a high enough rank you could reach a similar level to his underlings. Pierre and Anne are treated with respect and maybe you could reach that level."


    "...Can I also get paid to advertise?"


    ...


    "You going to the engagement?"


    "Who''s?"


    "Christian and I think, her name was... Rose? Offering so much gold to her, why couldn''t it be me?"


    ...


    Dean finished his buns and licked his lips


    "Maybe I should start making my move."

 23 Hundred Thousand Beast Fores

    Half a year had passed without any obstacles.


    Christian, Anne, Pierre, Ayesha and Rose''s name began to become more famous for many different things.


    Ayesha was the cold beauty that mercilessly rejected the love of many young men that confessed in public, only to have their hearts broken by her ruthless words.


    Confessing in public was a common tactic used by some people in which they would pressure a girl into accepting their confession using the public eye however Ayesha didn''t fall for that trick.


    Humiliation and resentment for Ayesha would be the first emotions for those that were rejected however there were other suitors that believed they could get on her good side and so protected her.


    Pierre had an unfortunate event during the beginning of the school.


    A young madam had caught wind of the might and looks of Pierre. Desiring to have him betrothed to her, she asked him to become his fiance.


    Despite his stance and explanation of having a girlfriend the young madam resorted to hiring a second year student to challenge Pierre.


    No one thought at the time that Pierre would accept the challenge let alone win.


    He earned his title as a strong Martial Artist and brought fame to Autarch Society after mentioning that was the club he would be joining.


    Anne earned her reputation for being the girlfriend of Pierre however she became popular for having absurd skills in Transmutation Magic that was considered to be unpopular.


    What she managed to do was what only a few students would dare to do. Using Transmutation Magic, her opponents would have difficulties using agile base skills, giving her a chance to show off her Martial Arts.


    The combination of the two was overall dangerous and made the Autarch Society even more popular with two amazing first year students joining.


    The creator of the Autarch Society, Christian became the center of attention after the commotion of the two first year students.


    Before this he was low key and accumulated praise mainly from his teachersdue to his diligence in after school tutoring.


    He had yet to have any awards or remarkable deeds noted down but the one thing that everyone agreed was that he had a good eye for people.


    This led to a horde of people suddenly joining the Autarch Society.


    Finally Rose.


    Her beauty had equal status to Ayesha but after it was learnt that she was dating Christian, no one dared to make a move on her.


    She''s considered to be one of the best in her classes however some scoff at that achievement as that could be fixed using Christian''s reputation to deter talents.


    Dean had been cultivating peacefully for over half a year yet he was always on guard


    ''Where are the assassins, spies or thieves? Shouldn''t Rose have told Christian about my existence?''


    It surprised him how suspicious this seemed as he was willing to show his might by killing an assassin to warn Christian yet nothing happened.


    Shrugging it off, Dean continued his studies in Dark Magic and had the equivalent of a Qi Condensation cultivator, Magic Essence Condensation.


    Dean called it slow but accepted the fact that having a strong foundation for Magic would at least be a good back up if there are any repercussions with his Qi.


    It would be fine as the learning process for higher level Spells had no problems using his Battle Intent.


    His skills in memorizing the passages of the Spells were average when compared to his peers, leaving him to curse at the school for having a rule that wouldn''t allow students to borrow books.


    Therefore, he spent most of his time trading Beats Cores for Heaven''s Authorities and reading books in the library.


    Learning that most of his ''friends'' had become popular he might as well start make his move.


    After school, Dean applied for a paper and signed it off together with Leonard before giving it to a teacher.


    What they essentially signed up to was a school event that happened annually.


    Hundred Thousand Beast Forest!


    The Hundred Thousand Beast Forest was located to the north of the school, where other local schools would also join.


    This place was used to hone the skills of students by facing off against actual Beasts that can help with their cultivation.


    In order to not attract trouble, the school gave wavers to students that made sure they voluntarily sign their life away, if they get killed with the school not being the reason for that.


    A few teachers would follow to make sure the students arrived at the location safely while informing them of the potential dangers that they should look out for.


    Hundred Thousand Beast Forest didn''t have an exact 100,000 creatures in the hill but rather 100,000 species that are known.


    In reality, the number of animals hidden in that hill could amount to millions however the teachers tended to not mention that last part.


    Because of the large amount of species there would have to be some way to whittle down the number of beasts.


    If this competition was not held then these creatures would have to start raiding human countries to fit their population''s increase


    Leonard joined Dean on the trip however that was only in name.


    There were a few reasons that Dean invited Leonard with one of them being friends.


    A few others was that with another person, the trip would be overall more safe when traversing the area.


    Other humans and creatures would be awake at night for various reasons such as being nocturnal while Dean couldn''t stay awake for the whole trip since he was only human.


    Leonard had some areas that were equal to Dean meaning that he was trustworthy with strength to back up that statement.


    Setting up a routine where one person can sleep while the other guards would be a common tactic when in a group and if Leonard wanted more Beast Cores then he can fight for himself.


    The ideal plan that lured Leonard was that Dean would fight Beasts while he could dismantle their body for any useful items.


    If worse come to worst then they could fight a Beast 2v1 or run away.


    The last reason was that Leonard wanted to collect herbs and plants.


    Hundred Thousand Beast Forest would naturally have a large amount of resources to cover the beasts that were omnivores and herbivores.


    For carnivores, this hill was a goldmine with their only worry being any high level Beasts.


    Leonard knew that Dean had his own space tool that allowed him to store items but out of worry took his [Space Ring] just in case.


    Dreading the life that he was about to return to, Dean made sure to bring a few things that he regretted not bringing last time he went into a forest.


    Seasonings


    The bland meat that he ate was boring once he had to eat it everyday for 4 years.


    This time he would be prepared and brought thyme, paprika, pepper, salt, etc


    He left the vegetables to Leonard as he expected him to be quite well versed with vegetations that were edible and those that were not poisonous.


    Expecting this competition, Dean had already planned to get a new weapon instead of a branch.


    Leonard was well known for coming from a good Clan that allowed him to have special connections with a range of people.


    Knowing this, Dean gave him a few metal bars and asked him to get a blacksmith that would create a weapon for him. The pay was enough metal for a sword since Leonard was quite adept at his swordsmanship.


    Whatever the blacksmith could create, Dean would accept without hesitation.


    The metal bars were of course from his master''s cove and Leonard was surprised that Dean still had such precious metals.


    With preparation in hand there was one last thing Dean wanted to get.


    In the case that human greed over took a person''s sanity that caused them to attack Dean then of course death would be the repercussion.


    Buying a pair of masks, veils and bamboo hats, the preparation was done.


    They would only be worn when killing a person and taken off when hunting.


    If Dean wanted to become well known then he had to become well known under his own name.


    Magic was weird in the fact that it was too amazing.


    Under the Conjuring branch of magic there was a special Spell that could only be learnt by high leveled mages that only few could learn.


    Venture - Cast a mark on an individual that records the last 5 minutes of their time before death.


    Spending all that time in the library ad paid off with this knowledge.


    As long as Dean prolonged a fight for longer than 5 minutes then everything would be fine without offending anybody.


    The chance for revenge was inching closer and closer causing Dean to feel a sense of excitement and nervousness.


    Doubt would rupture his thoughts but would quickly dissipate under Dean''s resolve.

 24 Quiet hunting

    "If you start noticing the Beasts getting stronger, go back! That area is the Inner Circle of the Hundred Thousand Beast Forest."


    "Many geniuses got cocky and died stupid deaths. If you somehow survive don''t even dare try going further. That place is the Core Circle where even the Principal would have trouble traversing."


    "Remember, danger comes with rewards"


    The elder lectured all his students in a strict voice to ward off any intentions of purposely seeking death however Dean paid no attention as it was commons sense.


    To make sure his point went through, the elder brought out a map and pointed at various locations that will be considered potential meet up spots.


    Common areas of dangerous Beasts, possible treasure spots, etc


    Dean scoffed at all the trouble as he could easily survive the outer area and if he wanted to traverse the Inner Circle, the elder wouldn''t tell anything about that as it might incite curiosity.


    After all, there was a quote for that purpose "Curiosity killed the cat."


    Avoiding anything above the outer area, the elder gave the best wishes for the students and kept his silence


    Looking around, other schools were doing the same.


    Warning their students to avoid certain areas and lecturing them on the dangers they may face.


    The only oddity was that they didn''t mention anything about human greed or the chance that you could be robbed during the competition.


    They weren''t full of justice to be ignorant of such cases since they were old foxes but they probably told their students before the event to sabotage certain schools.


    It was not a surprise that the lectures were all finished after a few minutes passed before an old man welcomed everyone.


    "Today, everyone is gather to attend this event."


    "This is the start of the annual Hundred Thousand Beast Forest Hunting"


    With the announcement that the event has formally started, thousands of teenagers rushed into the hill without a worry, looking for chances that could change their lives.


    Dean and Leonard on the other hand, took their time as they waltzed into the forest after taking one last look from the outside.


    The forest was located on a small mountain that would make traversing the terrain much more difficult and the luscious green trees were the most notable part.


    Trees towered every bit of land and the tyrannical weeds grew without caring about its surroundings.


    There were very few open paths that weren''t covered with vegetations and most students would cross the area using the branches of trees.


    No one bothered opening a path as that would allow others to profit without doing anything and for those using branches had to be wary of weak branches that would break.


    Because of this, you would rarely see a human walking on the ground and it was a common sight to see a few cultivators fail by dropping from a height.


    There was no hurry as the whole event lasted for a month.


    Leonard was picking up a few herbs while Dean walked in a slow pace.


    "Why do even bother picking up those herbs? We''re going to the Inner Circle where there are more precious items."


    Leonard took his time to reply as he responded


    "You shouldn''t look down on anything that''s low leveled."


    Dean agreed with that statement however kept his silence as Leonard continued


    "Besides, these are pretty delicious once boiled"


    Once Leonard had finished picking up all the herbs from the outer area, Dean started to run towards the Inner Circle in an insane rate.


    Leonard took a deep before materializing water from the atmosphere and forming a horse.


    The ride wouldn''t drench his clothes as he controlled his Magic to the best of his abilities and there was no discomfort as the water would neutralize it on his demands.


    Some were content with staying in the outer area while those with ambition entered the Inner Circle, in search for treasure that will change their future.


    One such tale was a young woman who was betrothed to a noble family.


    Hating her destiny, she decided that she would take her life by going to the Hundred Thousand Beast Forest.


    She wanted her last moments to be the greens in the distance and appreciative the overall environment.


    Her fate was sealed when she entered the forest with her determination but there was an unexpected twist.


    While taking a walk she accidentally tripped on a vine that made her push aside a few shrubs, leading her to see a fruit growing off a small tree.


    This fruit was commonly known as the [Future Rebelling Fruit].


    The reason for this was that it would change the innate potential of a person depending on what type of energy it was fed.


    In this case it was a Magic Future Rebelling Fruit.


    Hiding under where the tree was, she cultivated in silence for half a year before exiting the Hundred Thousand Beast Forest.


    Most of the world thought she was dead but as soon as she arrived back to her normal life she broke her engagement.


    The story was too simple and far-fetched that it made it out to be that it was fake and probably made up.


    Others still find some value in the story and regardless of whether it''s true or not, Beast Cores would at least give some profit for their journey.


    ...


    Overall their journey took three days to arrive at the Inner Circle with only 18 hours of sleep in total.


    They had yet to run into any animals and could only feast on soup made from the vegetables Leonard found.


    After entering the Inner Circle there was still no beast or human within their peripheral vision.


    Because of this unsettling predicament, they had no idea whether a person had found treasures yet or if there was anyone to be wary of.


    The Inner Circle was different due to the supplementing Energy in the air.


    It came in two forms: Magic Essence and Qi.


    Due to those two energies, the trees had a darker hue and there was much more vegetation.


    So far their adventure had just been sightseeing of trees, plants , trees, flowers, trees and trees.


    "Dean, we''re having roasted meat for tonight."


    Leonard came out of nowhere already setting up a fire.


    It had been awhile since their last meal and Dean wondered what type of Beast did Leonard face since they were in the Inner Circle of the Hundred Thousand Beast Forest.


    The ferocious monsters of the Inner Circle that Leonard had faced was a...hare.


    Dean sighed in disappointment as he expected something more interesting from this forest but had to face the reality.


    The hare was roughly three times the average size of an adult rabbit and had sharp claws around its paws.


    Handing some salt and pepper the meal should soon be cooked.


    "Night"


    Leonard waved his hand to Dean as he laid atop a makeshift bed under a roof made from broken twigs and branches.


    Dean had to stay awake for the whole night but due to his cultivation it wasn''t so bad.


    The last person to stay awake was Leonard meaning Dean had to rotate and take his place to keep guard for the night and be aware of any intruders.


    Savoring the well seasoned meat, Dean scanned the area with a tinge of bitterness.


    He had yet to receive whatever weapon the blacksmith had created and given to Leonard as there wasn''t a situation that needed him to do so.


    *Rustle**Rustle*


    Dean darted a stare to a bush in the distance as its leaves ruffled about. There was no wind around that area meaning that something had to have been the reason for that movement.


    A shadow exited the bushes before landing on top of a nearby branch that was opposite to Dean.


    Lighting up a nearby branch using the bonfire and attaching it to a small black orb summoned with Dark Magic was sent flying towards the unknown entity.


    Using the torch as vision, Dean could see the monster he was facing off.


    Its large eyes were dyed black that stuck out of its small golden face. The golden torso was caved in making the animal look malnourished with brown lines highlighting it''s short limbs.


    The toes owned long and sharp nails that were currently embedded into the tree branch and the arms were actually wings connecting a marvelously colored webbing.


    The webs were equivalent to the night sky, devoid of any stars but instead replaced with dark dreary clouds that lead to a striped tail at the back.


    ''Leonard why did you have to sleep so early? I want to use my weapon already!''

 25 Grimichael Ba

    The overall features allowed Dean to have a rough guess of what beast this was.


    A Grimichael Bat.


    The main features were their alluring colors on their body and large body mass. Averaging around the cultivation level of Foundation Establishment to Core Refiner they were a tough foe that used their supreme agile skill to kill enemies.


    Their sharp talons were meant to penetrate the human body and once dead, slash the corpse in half before proceeding to devour.


    First was the brain, heart and then the liver before detaching the head and limbs to be reserved for their children. If they had no children then they would use it as a gift to any female interests.


    Combined with their agile body and deadly attacks, they were natural born assassins. One con for that profession would be their large body and low cultivation.


    But that was their only flaw!


    Dean sighed at the difficulty he would have to face when trying to kill this beast.


    A flick of his finger would be enough to harm this creature but if he wanted to have better control and make a profit off the animal''s hide then he would have to kill it in an instant.


    Picking up a sharp twig, Dean faced the bat to see what its next move was however it was already in front of him.


    Dodging to the side, the Grimichael Bat was stuck into the tree due to the immense force it held but that fact caused Dean to realize another factor.


    He couldn''t be too loud!


    When he was by himself there was no other person to worry about, so he was considered free but Leonard was currently sleeping and if he woke him up over something this small then it would bite back in the future.


    The battle had to be quick and his kill must be done in one hit.


    Calculating the angle of the attack the Grimichael Bat posed, allowed Dean to predict his next action.


    Positioning himself towards an area with multiple tree branches allowed him to dodge to the side when the Grimichael Bat took his bait.


    Its talons were the first to strike an enemy before its body''s weight would soon follow up.


    Dean took this chance to imbue the branch he held with Battle Intent and strike the navel of the bat.


    The wood traveled through the neck into the skull before exiting the head.


    The glimmering essence of life escaped from the Grimichael Bat before its body slumped onto the ground after falling from the tree.


    Looking around, there was nobody that was attracted by the noise allowing Dean to drag the carcass to the bonfire before carving it.


    "Hmmm... where''s the knife?"


    It was unfortunate for Dean as Leonard kept a small blade inside his [Space Ring] that could''ve allowed him to prepare breakfast but he was left with a stick.


    "I guess it''ll do"


    ....


    A stripe of light shone itself atop Leonard''s eyes causing him to grumble out of his slumber


    "Yaaawn"


    Rubbing his eyes he walked out of his makeshift shack and looked for Dean.


    The crackling fire grabbed his attention as he realized there was a bundle of meat surrounding the fire with a strong fragrance.


    Dean patted to a wooden log next to him


    "Come, let''s eat breakfast."


    Leonard nodded and grabbed his seat before he started his feast.


    The wings of the bat were the first to be roasted as they were the largest meat part from the Grimichael Bat.


    They were marinated in a sweet soy sauce base that wafted around their campsite.


    A soft yet crunchy webbing and a tough meat around the arms. Enjoying the moment of savoring the food, Leonard searched around to see what exactly had happened while he was asleep.


    Two different trees had multiple piercings around the thickest branches and there was a small clearing around one of the trees.


    To the side of the meat that Dean collected was other materials. He had most likely taken them out from his space storing object otherwise the meat would start rotting.


    One pile was full of the precious parts of the beast that were probably reserved for Leonard''s alchemy experiments even though the Grimichael Bat''s Beast Core was a Core Refiner.


    The bottom was the scaly hide of the bat and atop were some of the more precious internal organs such as the heart, liver, eyes and at the very top was the Beast Core.


    In the distance was unusable meat that Dean would prefer not to eat such as the intestines.


    Finishing off the bat wing with a bite, Leonard scanned the area once more and saw a uniformed collection of glass jars off to the side of the intestines.


    Inside the jars was a red liquid that was probably the blood of the Grimichael Bat, the only problem was that the jar seemed all too familiar to Leonard.


    "...Is that?"


    Dean seeing where Leonard was pointing nodded


    "I didn''t have any bottles with me except for water so I had to make due."


    Leonard ran to the bottles as he grabbed them before sulking


    "My pill bottles... as if."


    Leonard threw a crate of glass bottles to Dean as well as a knife after seeing a bloody branch next to the fire.


    ''He probably used that to carve the beast didn''t he.''


    Leonard''s gaze softened at the hard work and care that Dean had done in order to make him have a restful sleep.


    Dean looked back to Leonard after placing the materials inside his blue orb yet \ the awkward staring competition made both of them laughed.


    Leonard took a good look at the bottled filled with blood before asking


    "Are we using the blood as bait?"


    Nodding his head Dean responded


    "We can finally start hunting but..."


    Dean purposely prolonged the conversation that caused Leonard to question


    "But what?"


    Although Dean''s pride got in the way a sense of pleading still escaped


    "Can I get my weapon?"


    Leonard''s eyes widened in surprise that he forgot this and was a little worried if this happened during a fight.


    Going through his [Space Ring] he threw a black rod to Dean.


    "Have a look. Our blacksmith was surprised with the request and tried to come up with a variety of ideas."


    Dean was speechless at the design as he exclaimed


    "Oh?"


    The black rod was actually dark blue when taking a closer inspection and a few green markings were covering the base of the polearm.


    It was approximately 2 meters long and at the end was a sharp crescent blade that looked extremely similar to an axe''s blade.


    Leonard probably notified his blacksmith that they were going to the Hundred Thousand Beast Forest which gave the idea for the color scheme and the unusual design.


    Having a look at the blade there was an option to remove the blade when moving the polearm in a sequence.


    "A blunt and sharp weapon. Send my gratitude to your blacksmith, he did such an amazing job."


    Dean gave his thanks to Leonard''s connections but started to get into hunting as he threw two sachets to Leonard.


    "Soak it in the blood for a few seconds before taking it out"


    Leonard had already known what Dean wanted to do which was to use the blood to attract animals and by soaking the bags in blood some beasts will want to prey on their lives.


    Packing up a beast had already arrived and with nothing holding him back, Dean immediately decapitated the animal.


    Ravenous Hound


    Greedy Mandrake


    Alluring Pixie


    The list went on and on after they used the blood of the Grimichael Bat.


    It seemed their luck was shining in full light as they made a profit from these animals.


    A balanced meal of herbs and meat while Leonard collected dozens of Beast Cores and precious organs.


    The profit they were currently making was unknown but what Leonard could confirm was that if it was so easy in the Inner Circle then what about the Core Circle?


    "Hey"


    Leonard struggled to choose the right words without sounding demanding but continued


    "Should we go to the Core Circle?"


    Dean looked back to Leonard and questioned if he was alright but shook his head.


    "If you really want to then you must follow my one condition."


    Leonard tilted his head as he asked


    "A condition?"


    "If what i''m guessing is probably going to happen in the future, we should take some precautions."


    This grabbed the attention of Leonard as he was handed a mask, veil and bamboo hat


    "Wear this for half a month and we should receive a notification."


    Leonard accepted the gifts and started to wear them.

 26 Masked Demons

    "Have you heard?"


    In the distant cabins of the Hundred Thousand Beast Forest were students bustling around to find information, friends or seek resources.


    Many students who were skilled with business predicted that a situation like this would happened and would build huts, shacks and cabins for tired adventurers.


    Food, water, rope, etc could all be found there.


    These places acted as locations for people to gain fame from doing a famous deed or form groups to hunt tougher monsters.


    Objects that could be used to store objects were meaning corpses and meat of slained monsters would be quick to rot under the blaring ray of the sun however the business students would buy those materials at market price.


    They were able to solve a problem and form connections at the same time. In general they were making a profit.


    A red wine using the blood of a beast as the base was served towards the man who asked the question.


    It was nothing more than a bait as he continued


    "2 Gold for the information."


    The other who was teased, grumbled at the stingy man before him before flinging two shiny coins at him.


    At the other end of the bar was a chuckle


    "You scammed another one already?"


    The man didn''t reply but instead told the news to the requester.


    "This will pay off. After the first few days no one had heard of them but they suddenly appeared."


    "It was a duo that caught multiple Nascent Soul Beasts. The corpses were said to be sold at this very store but the rumors continued to spread like wild fire."


    "Many hunters were blinded by greed and decided to take advantage of the duo."


    The man took a chug of his wine in an inelegant manner before continuing


    "In the end a part of the forest was stained with blood where even the rain couldn''t wash away the dye and the hunter''s peers could sulk at their friend''s foolishness."


    "Their outstanding name created a name for them. They had no uniform from a recognizable school and their face was concealed with a veil and a bamboo mask."


    "The closest one has found of their appearances was a white mask beneath their bamboo hat."


    "Eventually the mass decided to call them; Twin Masked Demons"


    Sighing at the brief dialogue, the man waited for any more inquiries that the person in front of him may ask.


    As if perfectly timed the hooded man asked


    "Where were they last seen?"


    "Hmmm, if I recall it was around.... the ravine of the south area."


    Whatever that meant the hooded man nodded before screaming.


    "Dylan! Wake up, we''re going now."


    Rushing out of the bar in an instant a drowsy man rubbed his eyes before groggily following after the man.


    A man in the back noticed the unique insignia on the drowsy man''s collar as well as the block that hung off his back.


    "That sword and insignia...hmmm. Great-sword Monster Dylan?!"


    The mutter that he repeated to himself left the whole bar in silence until a person chirped in


    "You mean... the one that just joined the Autarch Society."


    Another slapped the head of whoever stated that as it was obvious since there was only one person who could have that name, style and organization.


    ...


    "Can you pass me another bait?"


    The voice contained a tinge of joy and a sense of happiness while the response he got was from a voice that was much deeper


    "Here."


    Throwing a chunk of an animal, the man caught it without a hitch and continued to fish.


    Between the two was a desolate silence that no one dared to interrupt as this tranquility was very rare in their environment.


    "Ah."


    One of them had just caught a fish and struggled to pull it up until the other helped him out.


    Dean was surprised at the difficulty they were facing but when he saw the faint outline of the beast he instantly grabbed his polearm and struck the water.


    The head of the beast was instantly decapitated and Leonard quickly pulled up the head while Dean rushed to catch the rest of the body.


    He estimated that it weighed only 13,000 kg and had the great length of less than 15m.


    It was simply an exaggeration to them but in front of them was such an unusual fish.


    "It seems I was right... something is happening."


    "So we can finally visit the Core circle?"


    Leonard wasted no time as he instantly butchered the fish into pieces and threw out the bones. After doing this more than a 100,000 times, it was a cinch but Dean had much less experience.


    Finding that they still had some vegetables they decided to create stew as they eventually got tired of the taste of roasted meat.


    Dean found that Leonard liked more of the creamy style soup or the nutritious kind usually with carrots.


    It was not mentioned aloud however Dean would always find himself needing to roast a few pieces of meat otherwise he would starve when Leonard chugged the whole pot.


    The ladle swerved around the mixture and the aroma wafted throughout the area however the scent of vegetables was the main dominant force that no carnivore coveted.


    *SNAP*


    A twig in the distance broke and a nervous step was taken aback, noting the incident, Dean threw a glare in that direction before throwing a small branch towards that direction.


    Imbued with Battle Intent, it darted in a straight manner, destroying every tree that was in the way until being reflected by a block of metal.


    Leonard had noticed this when he was disposing the leftoversand asked


    "Who''re the uninvited guests?"


    The two revealed themselves in front of the Masked Demons and jested with each other.


    "If only you were more quiet, we might have seen their faces."


    Although it was a joke, Dean mocked it in his head.


    ''And if you did see my face then there would be a corpse.''


    "Anyway we are here on the behalf of our organization, the Au-"


    "We are not interested."


    Leonard allowed Dean to call the shots as it seemed that he had the tendency to have control of a situation when he journeyed with him for half a month.


    The reassurance that was brought along with Dean''s confidence made Leonard feel a hint of fear if he could scheme that well but then felt proud for being able to make such a great friend.


    "Wait, listen. Our group plans on hunting a Spiritual Transformation beast in the Core Circle. Others are joining as well and in return we can give some Spirit Fruits for your company."


    Dylan added


    "Make sure to meet at... the bar you sell your corpses to tomorrow."


    The man wanted to scold at Dylan''s poor manner in front of these two however leaving it as is they quickly exited from this location.


    "Ummm... is this what you meant?"


    Dean responded to Leonard''s confusion in a blank tone


    "Yeah."


    While cooking their dinner both were left befuddled by their recent encounter.


    Dean noticed the insignia on that man as well as the first half of that man''s group.


    ''He''s probably with Christian... this turned out to be much better.''


    His grand scheme was that if they managed to somehow defeat the Spiritual Transformation beast then he could just sabotage their fight.


    On the other hand, if everything goes wrong then he''ll just run.


    Either way there was nothing restraining him too much as he was also confident in Leonard''s skill so in the end Dean will make a profit.


    Leonard wasn''t expecting that he would already be going to Core Circle like this but the following news made him have a sense of fear.


    Spiritual Transformation.


    A state of being where one has reached enlightenment.


    If beasts simply roam around the core circle with that cultivation then Leonard could only hope that his life would be retained without any harm coming his way.


    The only upbringing thing about this situation was that he could at least receive a Spirit Fruit.


    Given the right materials he could turn that fruit into a pill with at least 4 times the effects.


    It was best to just relax and wait for the ensuing adventure of tomorrow.


    Dean decided that they should just take a nap in the cavern so that both of them could sleep in peace.


    Waving each other good bye, they slipped into a slumber until the morning.


    It was simply unfortunate for the bar that was there wasn''t a name used to advertise it.

 27 Campaign for a Herb

    The morning had already arrived and one of the rooms was bustling with activities over the communication of multiple students.


    Students would look for friends or people from their own school before dispersing into smaller groups that caused this somewhat chaotic scene.


    Dean had already opened the door and wandered around the room, looking for the Autarch Society.


    It was quite a surprise for him as he expected that a more powerful organization would start becoming impatient for power but for the Autarch Society to make the first move was quite daring.


    This could be the beginning of a trend for powerful organizations to start terrorizing the Core Circle and profiting with precious herbs and corpses but there was a risk.


    If the raid failed then larger organizations would stay hidden and any powerful aces would stand by until something bigger happens.


    The power in play was basically a war of attrition but Dean had no group behind him meaning he had no need to babble around with this nonsense.


    ''Christian has truly become more daring; Master did say that his ambition was difficult to restrain.''


    The quick thought dissipated when he witnessed the group in the center.


    Most of the people there had collars and an insignia pinned to it while those without collars stuck their insignia to their chest as if they took pride in their group.


    One person that stuck out like a sore thumb was the bright blonde hair in the clothes that were devoid of color, instead replaced with shades.


    Their brown eyes sent a glance in every direction, analyzing all the people that were currently here.


    Christian had invited some of the most powerful students in this area and hoped this plan would go well.


    They would act as cannon fodder to test the waters that could allow them to make their moves and with their planning, everything seemed ready.


    Those at the front of the group would be those without a strong background, wandering cultivators that only relied on themselves to become powerful.


    The middle tier was those that were enemies of the Autarch Society that usually had a little bit of background.


    Rash teenagers that would like to instantly jump to conclusion were not lacking in this world and the only reason Christian dared to attempt something like thsi is because he received news from the other side of the Inner Circle.


    A group had managed to raid the Core Circle.


    Their profit was a newborn cub from a weakened mother they killed in cold blood. With another group initiating the invasion of the Core Circle, Christian had no problem following them up.


    While those at the veyr back were powerful people who only wanted experience; to place them in a position of harm would mean instant death.


    Pamphlets were sent everywhere with multiple people explaining about what area a person should be taking.


    It was generalized into North, West, South, East and Center.


    There was barely a talk about the southern location while those at the north would be the most in danger.


    Dean and Leonard had also received the talk but mostly ignored the monologue.


    Patiently waiting until the talk was finished, Christian prepared his crowd to charge into a certain route.


    The weather was in favor for their mission as there was no rain that could''ve effected their walking speed or cause beasts to become more active.


    In the end the day of walking would be bored for most leading to gossip in the area.


    Dean had nothing else to do so he eavesdropped their conversation while Leonard stared listlessly into the sky as he followed the group.


    "You see them? Those are from the Harley Squad, I mean look at those blue caps."


    "Nah, nah, nah. You guys got it wrong! The men in the black robes are those we should be looking out for."


    "Un, that young guy is said to be the direct disciple of the inner disciple in his sect. Using his skills in assassination he earned the name: Shadow of the night."


    "But I heard Pierre from Redwood Academy was pretty strong?"


    "The whole thing might have been staged. Maybe if he had a proper reputation would he seem strong."


    One nodded in agreement as he spoke


    "Hmm, maybe if he held the Crest Sword or other sacred weapons would he be memorable or done missions such as the River''s Snake history. It all comes down to what he does next..."


    The conversation was like a rabbit hole and never seemed to end as more people started to join into the conversation while others had many reactions to their debate.


    Taking a closer look, Dean realized that Pierre, Anne and Rose weren''t even here. He scoffed at this fact but consoled himself that there was a better chance next time.


    Some held this in contempt as they felt ants had no rights to decide who was strong or weak while others became more confident with their ego boosted.


    Dean and Leonard were treated as outcasts compared to other people.


    They were nothing more than a duo compared to the glamorous gangs of other groups.


    Isolated, they acted in a calm manner and were like everyone here.


    To go to the Core Circle.


    Whether it was greed, curiosity or just for fun, there had to be a purpose for everything person will do and can do.


    Reaching their destination it was a large yet shallow cave that had a tree in the center of the cave.


    A small dew dropped from the ceiling that fell onto the shiny red skin of a fruit hanging off the tree.


    The beast was clearly not here but when Dean turned to his left he saw the guardian of that precious fruit.


    A giant figure with the height of triple the average human''s and blue flames that extended from it''s skin was glamorously shown off in front of the crowd of hunters.


    The feline features turned out to be similar to a tiger and two large fangs stuck to the mouth of the beast.


    Taking a slight sniff, its yellow eyes scanned the area filled with hunters and echoing a low roar as well as a tyrannical aura that followed its glare.


    Christian took notice of the warning and prepared to catch the tiger off guard


    "CHARGE!!!"


    The command resounded within the mob and as the first few people ran towards the beast, it created a chain effect where the whole squad followed.


    Dean looked to the side and saw that there were other calm minded people.


    Grabbing the shoulder of Leonard, he pressed his index finger tohis mouth to signal silence and made sure he didn''t move.


    Leonard complied with the subtle movements and watched the ensuing chaos before him.


    The tiger had pounced towards one of the groups and instantly crushed them using sheer weight while using his claws to strike a few dozen cultivators.


    It was simply a slaughter fest and those that tried to get close suffered pain that was worse than death.


    The blue flames would instantly disintegrate their hopes into ashes as their clothes would catch fire yet felt warm and soft until it reached the skin.


    The skin would burn until the fire would roast the muscle, nerves and bones one by one.


    Those that managed to bypass the flames were slowly losing their hopes as the thick white hide of the tiger was impossible to penetrate using their weapons


    Feeling a slight tickle, the tiger would turn to those in close range and simply swipe its paw to kill a person.


    This slight disturbance caused great annoyance that made the tiger scream its irritation for being surrounded by ants.


    "ROAR!"


    Along with the ferocious roar was the aura of what cultivation level the beast was at.


    Spiritual Cultivation 5


    With this, it was the last straw for everyone in the presence of this tyrant.


    Formations were scattered and everyone ran for their lives with the majority of them in the center that ran south while the smarter people dispersed into the other directions.


    Seeing the annoyance running away without learning a lesson, the tiger leaped towards them and howled.


    Those calmly watching could instantly see what the tiger was doing.


    It was releasing magic!


    A barrage of flames instantly roasted a group and those lucky enough to survive had to withstand excruciating pain to try and run away.


    Morale was something that couldn''t be raised in this circumstance while Christian smiled in quiet.


    ''I can start making my move.''


    Dean saw the dominant strength of the beast and knew his limits.


    ''Only a fool would want to try and beat a monster with that much strength''


    Sighing, Dean knew he couldn''t make any profits but his starts were in sync with Christian


    ''I should start making my move''

 28 Outcry of Outrage

    The tiger''s attacks had become less vicious and even its bright blue flames had dimmed to a low point that it looked like it was sticking onto his skin


    Eventually, the fire suddenly released a large volume of smoke that caused many cultivators to shudder in fear as they were blinded in which direction to run.


    Unveiling itself from the mist, the tiger took on a humanoid form that used its own fur as a type of clothing.


    The humanoid had short white hair blooming on its head and was approximately 180cm.


    It pointed its skinny index finger to one hunter and a red light ignited itself across the hunter''s neck.


    Beheading the man in an instant, the roused up crowd was now thrown into an even bigger panic that Dean and Leonard calmly watched.


    Dean had managed to piece together the puzzle of why the animal could use magic and why other beasts couldn''t.


    The human form before him explained everything to him.


    Only those with intelligence, logic and reasoning could use magic.


    Reasoning from the innate genetics animals had that allowed them to make the call of whether to kill an animal or avoid them was one that could be connected.


    When reaching Spiritual Transformation, the soul would be cultivated to an almost mature level that brought clear logic to a cultivator.


    Although Dean had processed this in his mind, he backed from the ensuing chaos that could potentially harm him by jumping onto a tree,


    Leonard had done the same but Dean had instead kept his eye on Christian and the tiger.


    The tiger had picked up a sword that was held in the hands of the deceased and looked at the blade with amusement and interest.


    It swung the blade in a flurry that only a few pieces of light could be seen by the human eye.


    Christian on the other hand was running around the panic and had just entered the beast''s cave that inhabited the herb.


    Inching closer and closer the beast had yet to realize his treasure was being stolen after being caught up in the slaughter he had started.


    The flying heads and the screams of anguish were very pleasing to its predatory nature.


    A bloody scent wafted around the area and made the beast feel immense pleasure that allowed it to continue to fighting.


    It was an absolute one sided fight as the hunters didn''t even have the thought of fighting against this terrifying monster and ran, only to be caught and killed.


    Christian had took advantage of the tiger''s enjoyment and was only a few steps from the herb before it suddenly disappeared!


    Right before his eyes his goal had just disappeared!


    There was no sign of anything happening so how could it just vanish into thin air.


    Christian rubbed his eyes to make sure that he wasn''t hallucinating but by the corner of his eyes he saw a sliver of a dark shade.


    It was like black thunder that had completely erased his hopes.


    Looking if there was any seeds or other plants close to the herb, Christian instead found a pile of ash in the ground.


    ''I''ve been had! Who destroyed the herb?!?''


    Scanning the area for a perpetrator there was no one that seemed noticeable.


    People''s curiosity had already been sated by the appearance of the beast and when it started its killing spree, they had just ran.


    Instead of a perpetrator, a pair of red eyes glared at Christian.


    The tiger had sensed an oddity behind its back as something felt missing.


    Turning around there was an ant that had taken his herb. The herb was not insight so the only reason for that was that the ant had taken and hidden the plant somewhere.


    Dropping the sword in his hand, the tiger had dashed towards Christian at full force.


    Christian instantly knew he was in trouble and brought out a talisman and screamed.


    "Whoever betrayed me, I will kill you!"


    The cold voice had disappeared along with Christian with a flashy light leaving Dean to nod in delight.


    "Come on. Let''s go, your curiosity had been satisfied right?"


    Leonard was entranced by the absolute brutality the beast had shown and mildly nodded towards Dean''s comment.


    Seeing its prey disperse, the beast felt like it lost everything and roared its grief.


    "RAWRRRR"


    The tiger had been waiting for that herb to completely mature and suddenly a group of bastards had stolen it away from him.


    The complete disappointment acted as an intimidation for Leonard and Dean as they ran at a quicker pace.


    After escaping from the tiger''s wrath, Dean took a moment to relish his achievement.


    He had sabotaged Christian.


    It was a small step towards completely erasing his existence but it was still progress.


    Using the magic spell Death Snake, Dean had forced the magic orb to travel beneath the ground and slowly make its way into the cave of the beast.


    Once Dean saw that Christian was getting a little too close to the herb, he had used the Death Snake to completely destroy it.


    There was no regret in the ruthless decision Dean had executed as the herb was probably of no use to him and the beast could possibly track him down.


    If there was more info on that beast would Dean make a decision but the risks were too much.


    Returning to the Inner Circle was a much better choice compared to the Core Circle and the look on Leonard''s face clearly gave the comment to Dean.


    It was still the same indifferent face however there was a hint of fear in his eyes that were hidden from sight.


    Obviously traumatized, Dean patted Leonard on the back for reassurance.


    The reason with this behavior might have been due to living in a sheltered family which Dean wondered if that would''ve been him


    Ignorant of the hidden dangers of the world and enjoying every moment.


    "You know we can take off our masks now, right?"

 29 Earth Endowing Tortoise

    What they planned for the first half of the month had been accomplished yet they had no concrete plan for what to do next.


    Dean had something in mind but he had to also make sure his companion''s desire was satisfied.


    In the end there was one thing that Leonard seemed very compassionate about.


    More herbs.


    The only thing he was told was that the herbs grew close to the Core Circle but as long as they don''t offend large animals they should be fine and that it was all for a "big project"


    Dean shrugged off the mysterious guise Leonard tried to pull off and joined in for the fun.


    It didn''t affect his plan and instead helped it in the long run.


    The specifications of the herb was that it had the name River''s Widow.


    River''s Widow would be a single red flower hanging close to the edge of a river and instead of growing in flower beds, they would grow at least a 1 meter away from each other.


    Heading towards a nearby lake there were many green bushes and bright fishes that swam through the water.


    The plain was covered with luminescent grass and clear of trees unless one walked away from the river.


    After using a few branches and some green leaves from the bushes created a great shelter for Leonard and Dean.


    Accepting that their home was covered, a source of water and plenty of food, they began their work.


    It was incredibly tiring for both of them to do such unusual labor as this was a new experience.


    A quick method was to just cut all the bushes in an instance using Dean''s weapon but the barbaric violence would instead destroy the herb as it was very fragile.


    They had to individually remove the surrounding bushes and get Leonard to use his special tools to remove the flower and keep it in his Space Ring.


    It was quite distracting as there were many traps in the surrounding that Dean had to disarm.


    ''Did someone forget their tools.''


    Dean would''ve believed that the traps were for fishing but the problem is that you wouldn''t use a bear trap for fishing, would you?


    Ignoring the nuisance, Dean and Leonard had managed to collects hundreds of these flowers in a single day.


    Night had already arrived, allowing Dean to take a nap while Leonard stayed awake, looking out for any suspicious creatures.


    *Crackle*


    There was a resounding snap of branch that followed with a few thumps. Leonard payed closer attention to the reverberating ground but it became much fainter as time passed.


    The mysterious creature that caused this had already moved away from the area, pacifying the troubled heart of Leonard/


    If worst came to worst he would have to wake up Dean but after all this trouble they both needed a rest.


    One morning had arrived, Leonard was not physically drowsy but spiritually.


    This sensation made him unable to cultivate making him unsatisfied and slightly cold to Dean.


    Dean obviously saw this strange temperament but said nothing and waited for the next night.


    However his plans didn''t always go exactly as planned.


    The thumping noise in the previous night was a prelude for the disaster that was about to happen today.


    Leonard had obviously not told Dean as he suspected that it was just a wandering beast that had accidentally crossed path with them.


    *THUMP*THUMP*


    Echoing its dominant tyranny, the thumping noise had returned to their area.


    Each thump inched closer towards them as the noise became louder.


    Dean and Leonard glanced towards to the location where the shaking of the earth originated from.


    A silhouette of a giant tortoise emerged. With a height less than its surrounding trees, it was still a beast that couldn''t be underestimated as Dean guessed the tortoise''s height to be 15m tall.


    Absolute supremacy was overruling their presence as the tortoise''s true appearance finally appeared.


    The sleek void black color shaded the top half of the tortoise''s heads.


    Correct, there were two heads.


    Dean confirmed this after taking another look at the two necks covered with lustrous golden scales with an undertone of silver.


    Four buff and scaly stumps called legs followed that had three pure white claws for each leg, stabilizing its weight by embedding those claws into the ground to control itself.


    Instead of an astonishing shell pattern on the tortoise''s back, there was a whole environment on it with the center holding an enormous tree.


    Dean wondered what level this creature was and whether he should run if it was too powerful while Leonard took a careful look at the tree and exclaimed


    "Wait, Dean. I''m not sure if I remember this right but... that''s an Earth Endowing Tortoise."


    Dean had never heard of this and repeated


    "Earth Endowing Tortoise?"


    Leonard took a glance back at the tortoise and confirmed his thoughts.


    "A tortoise that takes in the Earth Elements at an early age. It can''t use magic however its attacks are absolutely deadly if taken head on."


    Hearing of the immense danger that Leonard had described, Dean wanted to evacuate from this area immediately but Leonard continued


    "The trees on its back contains very rare ingredients for potions and pills. If we make a deal I can create a few pills that I guarantee will allow you to enter the next few Nascent Soul levels without any problems afterwards"


    Dean was about to tell Leonard that being greedy will only cause their death but hearing the opportunity of skipping a few levels attracted his interest.


    "Fine, we can fight it but if the tortoise is too strong then we immediately run."


    Glancing back at the tortoise Leonard nodded to the agreement.


    Being on guard, they both brought out their weapons.


    A black polearm with an axe''s cleaver attached to the side that had the ability to instantly behead a Nascent Soul cultivator given they let down their guard.


    Leonard held a blue longsword that released a cold killing intent that fought against the dominating aura of the tortoise.

 30 What a Thick Skinned Tortoise

    Both had their weapons ready and faced the gigantic without fear.


    Their first priority was to test out the cultivation of the tortoise.


    Dean dashed towards the tortoise in a serpentine method by moving side to side while Leonard had flanked the tortoise by moving to the left of it.


    Unbeknownst to the danger that was currently attempting to kill it, the tortoise drank from the nearby river and ate a few leaves that showcased the razor sharp teeth it was bestowed.


    Dean had planned to aim for the shell as he thought that it surely couldn''t be too strong, especially with the extra weight it had to carry that should''ve weakened its strength.


    To prove Dean wrong, the shell reflected the strike that Dean had struck.


    The blade had bounced off the shell with no scratch appearing on the pristine side while the blade had left sparks flying across Dean''s eyes.


    Leonard avoided aiming for the shell after seeing what Dean had attempted and aimed for the left neck of the tortoise.


    Still ignorant of the presence of two foes, the tortoise continued to eat leaves while Leonard had sliced a thorough cut causing blood to seep from the wound.


    Finally noticing a tinge of pain the two necks move around like a snake to look for the perpetrators.


    One head stared down at Leonard who was in awe at the toughness of the hide while another surveyed around its body to see Dean attempting to pierce its legs.


    Dean realized at the legs seemed large but were just soft enough that he believed could be severed given enough time.


    Having enough of the pests disturbing its lunch, the tortoise stared deeply at both of them before hissing at them with a violent roar that struck Dean''s and Leonard''s thoughts.


    Nascent Soul 9


    Dean had barely entered the stage of Nascent Soul 4 while Leonard had reached Nascent Soul 3.


    The gap in power was huge when adding the fact that the tortoise could break into Spiritual Transformation at any moment.


    It is already had innate talent with the earth and if it breakthrough then it could take a humanoid form that can use magic.


    The risks were too much that Dean made a call


    "We need to go!"


    Leonard regrouped by running towards Dean


    "It hasn''t broken through just yet. We have a chance to kill it."


    Dean didn''t budge and rushed towards the opposite way the tortoise was facing but Leonard gritted his teeth


    "Fine, I will create a pill that''ll allow you to enter the True Essence realm."


    This was the one bargaining chip that Leonard knew both needed in absolute necessity.


    By reaching True Essence realm could you become more developed and skilled in magic, the phrase was extremely alluring stopped in his tracks.


    Seeing that this trick had worked, Leonard continued


    "Even if we might lose, we can always run away. The Earth Endowing tortoise is slow so there won''t be a problem if we ran away. Just....one attempt."


    Leonard had tried to make Dean stay to fight and in the end his persistence had won.


    To combat this deadly beast they needed to use strategy and tactics in order to find a weakness they can use.


    Dean explained that the shell was too tough and accepted that fact due to the high cultivation of the tortoise. If they managed to kill the Earth Endowing Tortoise then this shell could definitely be a good material for a weapon or potion.


    Leonard added his own side of the story, explaining that the neck was actually quite soft and could be pierced however even if they were to be beheaded the other head would instantly kill the person.


    Their conversation had gone on for too long as the tortoise became impatient and wanted to punish the ants that disturbedits lunch by crushing them.


    Taking a stance, the tortoise had jumped into the sky that left the sight of 4 individual areas that were crushed and pressured into a brown desolate foot imprint.


    The duo had obviously saw what the tortoise was trying to pull off and looked upwards to see that the shadow of the tortoise was incredibly close making Leonard''s eyes squint.


    Dean saw the difficulty of Leonard''s astonishment and dragged him off, running as far as could, away from the attack of the tortoise.


    Arriving at the expected location, the tortoise was slow to realize that its target had already ran away until it saw in the distance two tiny figure runny away from it.


    It was confused as it continued to fall to the ground before a large boom was heard.


    *BOOM*


    The earth had caved in with the focus point being the tortoise that didn''t seem to be whatsoever affected as it walked out of the shifted land.


    Dean saw the catastrophic damage dealt but his resolved had already been hardened.


    "Aim for the hind legs."


    Leonard nodded to that remark as he understood that the front legs were too dangerous because of the two necks and the jumping attack was a prelude for a disaster.


    Using Water Magic, Leonard shot dozens of water bullets towards the tortoise to grab its attention and it worked!


    Dean had set up a Dark Ball that would follow in a straight line until it reached its target while flanking the tortoise from the left.


    Its slow speed was an advantage that Dean had taken which allowed him to set up a black ball that would slowly get closer to the tortoise.


    The tortoise hunched forward towards Leonard while oblivious to the Dark Ball inching closer.


    Dean struck the right hind leg, leaving a deep gnash that could completely sever the leg given another strike.


    Holding back its pain, the tortoise''s necks turned around to witness Dean awkwardly holding his polearm.


    Before it could snap at the ant causing immense pain a ticklish electricity pulsated throughout the tortoise as it suddenly coughed up blood that splattered across the ground


    Seeing that this was his chance, Dean lifted up his polearm once more and forcefully sliced the leg off of the tortoise.

 31 Watch Out!

    The tortoise had enough of this shenanigans and released a cry of pain while the other head scoffed at the other heads reaction and puffed up its cheeks.


    Dean had begun to run away from the tortoise, turning back to see how it was coping, he was instead greeted by a generous laser of rocks.


    One head was slowly accepting the pain while the other coughed up rocks one after another.


    The boulders launched itself towards Dean without a moment of hesitation.


    Leonard saw the struggle and instantly made his own move.


    Stopping the assault of water bullets, Leonard positioned himself behind the tortoise as the head was too busy crying to notice his presence.


    His Longsword wasn''t as effective as Dean''s polearm in severing a leg.


    If Leonard cleaved the tortoise''s leg then it would take minutes, allowing the tortoise to kill Leonard whenever it wanted.


    Understanding that his strike had to be effective to make sure he wasn''t dead weight to Dean, Leonard stabbed the tortoise by penetrating the leg.


    *SNAP*


    This sound originated from two things.


    The bone of the tortoise popped and was instantly fractured causing the beast to be in immense pain that made one wince and stop its barrage of attacks, and another cry in excruciating pain.


    Unfortunately for Leonard he took back his blade only to see that the top half was completely shattered with specks of metals stuck inside the structure of the tortoise


    It was a despairing moment for Leonard as he had used this blade for the whole duration of the Hundred Thousand Beast Forest trip.


    This was the weapon that helped him lead himself all the way to this point. Without it would make everything more troubling.


    But this was the exact respect for blades that allowed Leonard to be skilled as a swordsman.


    Sighing at the unexpected loss, it was still a success.


    "Watch out!"


    To the side Leonard had heard a distant scream and saw Dean running towards him.


    Confused, Leonard looked around to see that a beam of water struck his temple.


    ''How can it shoot water?''


    Accepting his fate, he brought his broken blade in front of him to attempt to block any water he could but the sheer power instantly made him fly into a tree.


    Dean saw this sight before him and the words started to resound within his ear.


    "Just... one attempt"


    The tone vaguely resembled Ivan''s voice and altogether turned into a sound that slowly became inaudible.


    Leonard was still in danger as his body was striking through multiple trees, one after another, collapsing without their foundations.


    Dean challenged the Earth Endowing Tortoise and stared at it with green eyes.


    A burst of Battle Intent followed the trace of Dean as he started his assault on the tortoise''s heads.


    The right head was too distraught by the pain and couldn''t think properly, promptly ignoring Dean''s cleaver that had just beheaded him.


    Blood squirted everywhere as the neck refused to accept its fate and swayed everywhere in a random manor to stain everything.


    The left head had noticed the disturbance to its left and promptly stopped its attack but it was far too late as Dean had already beheaded it.


    ''Why was it so easy?''


    Leonard and Dean had quite a substantial difference in strength despite the fact that both had only a small difference in cultivation realm.


    The main factor in this fight was that the expended blood that the tortoise had lost made it drowsy and with one of the heads basically disabled due to the intense pain allowed Dean to win at the end.


    Their battle had crushed a part of the land and the beautiful plain was now ruined with an overdose of water, littered tree logs and random boulders.


    A beautiful scenery had been reduced to shambles because of the destructive capabilities of the tortoise.


    If the Earth Endowing Tortoise had somehow reached enlightenment during the fight then both would have a high chance of dying.


    Dean had already removed himself from the battlefield as he had brought Leonard to their campsite.


    He was completely soaked in water which could cause a cold so Dean lit up a fire and replaced the clothes with his spares.


    Any blood that was coughed up was already washed away.


    There was no permanent damage dealt to Leonard however the strike to his head will cause him to feel dizzy but with his alchemy pills it should be fine.


    The blade had absorbed most of the damage but it was now whittled down into just a hilt while his back was scattered with bark that impaled his back.


    Removing piece by piece there was yet to be any serious injury that could cause harmful effects to Leonard.


    Most of the wounds were shallow and once simple ointments were applied Leonard would be fine.


    Knowing that the soft food would be best for a sick patient, Dean had been simmering broth with rice and the tortoise meat they had just earned.


    3 hours later, Leonard had yet to wake up but Dean could hear some rustling in the distance.


    A childish voice questioned someone


    "Sis, do you smell anything good?"


    the question was soon followed up by a girl


    "Probably a passerby cooking up his dinner. Joe, have you found any traces of the tortoise. We have been hunting it for 4 days and yet to have any results."


    A boorish tone joked


    "I would have but Lirgo spent too much time setting up fish traps."


    Hearing this, Dean recalled that there were indeed traps in this area that he had already dismantled and came to the conclusion that it was probably this group that had set them up.


    But if they wanted to cause trouble then it would only be their misfortune.


    The girl called "Sis" scanned the area and gasped


    "What happened!?"


    The rest soon followed her reactions as their face was drained of color seeing the wasteland before them.

 32 Greed

    They witnessed a gigantic tortoise corpse defiled.


    Two of the heads were beheaded and a single leg was severed while another was dyed in red.


    The area completely smelt like blood, a disgusting copper scent that stuck to their nose as they attempted to find out what happened to their prey.


    Seeing that a person in the distance was lighting up a fire and releasing that great smell from his stew, they headed over to ask some questions.


    Wanting to make a great impression a man started to introduce themselves.


    "Hello! I''m Lirgo from Five Star College and the people beside me are my friends"


    Giving off a friendly smile, the man noticed that the person still had no reaction and started introducing his friends to see if it could grab his attention.


    "That man over there is Joe."


    Dean sent a glance and saw that the man was well endowed with armor and that there was a large shield on his back.


    The style was very glamorous rousing the attention that it was probably cheap and ineffective however Dean saw that there were quite a few scratches and dents, suggesting it was durable.


    One problem he saw was that the weight of the man was unusual for a cultivator.


    He owned a pot belly that could affect a fast fight but the equipment told Dean that he was a very defensive person.


    Continuing his introduction the man then pointed at two girls


    "The older one is Katrina and the younger one is Kellie."


    Seeing their leader suddenly introduce everyone, they automatically smiled.


    Katrina held a scabbard to her right that had the style of a claymore sword while her sister on the other hand had two small daggers on her sides.


    But due to the sun''s rays, Dean could see a small glimmer under her sleeves meaning that she must have hidden dozens of weapons.


    ''What a balanced team!''


    Lirgo noticed that he had finally gained the man''s attention and asked his question


    "Man, the area got completely destroyed! Who killed that monster over there."


    Trying to open up a conversation and be vague as well, Lirgo did not want this man to steal his prey but instead deal with whoever killed that tortoise.


    Dean felt interested in what they could offer and responded


    "Oh, I killed that."


    The sudden dull yet straightforward answer made Lirgo question himself.


    Taking a careful look at his opponent, he analysed his surroundings and saw that a man was lying on the ground with bandages wrapping him up.


    To the side of that man was a small hilt with a few crests of metal remnants scattered.


    Seeing that Dean held no sharp weapon in sight as he placed his polearm inside his blue orb. Lirgo came to the conclusion that Dean was probably a wanderer who helped that man.


    The bandaged man was probably the actual person who killed the tortoise and Dean could just possibly be his servant or want to earn this strong man''s favor.


    Not whatsoever disappointed, there was an essence of greed in his eyes as he realized he could just upright steal the Earth Endowing Tortoise.


    Although the meat was quite nutritious and the shell was strong, the main precious core were the herbs that were littering on top of the tortoise''s shell.


    An absolute goldmine if they took the time to actually take everything there.


    The giant tree probably held a fruit that could elevate one''s cultivation while the wood would be useful for creating a weapon.


    If their group was very lucky then they could even get seeds to grow their own herbs.


    Imagining the riches that were just in reach, Lirgo became much more daring with his thinking due to greed.


    Hinting at Kellie to make a move by beckoning her with his hand in a discrete manner they began to make their move.


    "So are you willing to hand over the corpse? After all it was our prey first."


    Dean understood that he was trying to imply that they had somehow slowly injured the tortoise but Dean clearly saw that the damage done to the tortoise wasonly done by him and Leonard.


    There was no poisoning done to the tortoise as he had already checked the meat before simmering it into fire.


    ''Outright lying? How shameless.''


    Lirgo wanted to further his prominence in front of Dean to get the Earth Endowing Tortoise corpse by releasing his cultivation level.


    Core Refiner 7


    A sneer escaped from Dean''s face but his head was down making it seem like he was thinking carefully


    ''Is he an Elder''s disciple?''


    The thought was only instant but Dean was ready to take out his equipment


    Lirgo thought that he would accept his fate but instead Dean declared his stance


    "I''m sorry, my friend fought really hard for that corpse. Maybe if you can give something in trade could we make a deal."


    ''Such futile annoyance.''


    Tired enough of the boring conversation, Lirgo moved his hand to signal Kellie to attack Dean.


    Swiftly taking out her daggers they were immediately directed to Dean''s neck while he was holding onto a ladle.


    Seeing that the soup was going well, Dean put a lid on top of the pot before placing the ladle on top.


    Lirgo thought that he was about to surrender but Dean had finally made his move.


    Speaking beneath his breath, Dean had summoned Silent Cage


    Beneath Kellie was a dark void that devoured her by slowly reaching out its fangs and claws, entrapping her in literal darkness.


    She dropped her blade however her other hand suddenly regained conscious as she struck the walls of the cage.


    It had obviously weakened but the numbing sense slowly consumed her thoughts as only a small gap had finally allowed her to escape from her prison.


    Just from that one spell, Kellie felt tired but Dean had stood up from his spot to start his onslaught.


    ''Even if he is a disciple of an elder. I can just interrogate him to see if his master''s strong otherwise...''


    The group was overall weak yet had many areas that would overpower any beast without any intellect.


    But to arrogantly face Dean, he couldn''t help but play around.

 33 A Challenge

    Desiring to play around with his new toys, Dean had some rules in mind.


    He couldn''t use his weapon as the sheer quality would be able to break Joe''s armor given enough time and the other three would die without a doubt.


    They couldn''t go too far away from this area as Leonard could get in trouble so only within a reasonable distance would Dean allow them to fight.


    There were three main goals that Dean had currently thought out.


    One of them was to grab the attention of Christian. Even if it means wreaking havoc to every student and gathering a notorious name, the only thing that would matter was whether Christian understood that he''s back.


    The other goals was to train his Magic and Battle Intent.


    Using Battle Intent like a poison was quite inefficient against hunting beasts but against humans they had an interesting effect.


    The deadly innate power Battle Intent held would cause a lot of trouble but due to not using it a lot, Dean had started to lose the understanding on how to use it.


    A main thing Dean used Battle Intent for was just reinforcing his trikes. He had rarely tried using Battle Intent for anything else so this was a chance for experimentation.


    On the other hand Magic was still foreign to Dean as he had difficulties adjusting to its strange usage. Although surprisingly effective against Kellie, Dean wasn''t sure about the other group members.


    A phrase that Leonard always emphasized was that


    "Creativity is key"


    Whatever you can create will be another tool in your arsenal.


    Katrina had taken Kellie to her side already and gave her a small potion to help her recover some train of thought while throwing a bottle of water on her face.


    Kellie''s eyes gleamed with fear as the Silent Cage slowly corrupted her 5 senses into nothingness. The empty feeling was overwhelmingly uncomfortable and the fact that she immediately felt weak despite the short time frame was terrifying.


    Joe saw the situation turning awry and positioned himself in front of the group however not too close against Dean.


    Although he was covered like a small tank, he was not a punching bag for Dean to abuse.


    Lirgo took himself next to Kellie to protect her and kept an eye on Dean who casually walked forward.


    Katrina was going to flank Dean if he tried attacking anyone when his back would be exposed to her blade.


    Dean took the first move as he shot multiple Dark Balls towards his enemies.


    The barrage was quite weak in general but Joe had a tough time looking for any Dark Balls that would curve around and harm Lirgo.


    Lirgo was facing a pandemic on deciding whether to use a barrier to block these spells but if Dean did nothing then he wasted Mana for no reason.


    Deciding that Kellie''s life was important, Lirgo ultimately used a thin layer of Mana to block any shots and it paid off as he could hear the bouncing and repelling of the Spell against Spell.


    Wanting to smirk at Dean to prove his confidence he realized there was now a barrage of rocks and dirt flying towards him.


    ''Can he use Earth Magic"


    It was quite rare to have two areas of magic mastered within a single branch however it was still possible.


    Weary of the sudden talent that Dean had proved himself to own, Lirgo took a better look at their situation.


    The bombardment of rocks weren''t uniformed and there was an unusual plot of land missing when he moved to the left.


    Realizing Dean''s trickery, Lirgo yelled to Joe in order to warn him


    "Joe! Watch out"


    Unfortunately it was too late as Dean swept his leg causing him to slip and fall from his steady position that defended the majority of Lirgo and Kellie''s troubles.


    Falling from grace, Joe wasn''t able to move due to his durable armor and shield that added to his large stature


    Slowly moving into Dean''s embrace, Joe was entrapped in a snare with Dean''s legs taking control over his body.


    Joe was obviously a hostage as one slight movement would cause his arm to break and remove the usefulness of his steady blocking.


    In order to not fail his team, Joe recklessly broke his arm while gritting the pain and signalling Lirgo to attack Dean.


    "Arrgh-"


    The grunt released from Joe grabbed Dean''s surprise before noticing white blades showing above him.


    Looking towards Lirgo, Dean saw that he was subtly controlling the small daggers like an orchestra in an elegant manner while leaving himself open


    From the barrier before, Lirgo was not adept in any Elemental Magic and from the creation of those blades, Dean guessed that he was a Conjurer.


    A magician who could create something from nothing.


    The blades flew and danced against the wind as they aimed to the sides of Dean.


    The first onslaught aimed to his right but Dean used Joe as a shield to block the strike but Lirgo had predicted that and stopped the blades immediately.


    Joe sighed in relief however Dean''s endeavors had yet to end


    To the left was the other small daggers that aimed towards Dean, using the shield that Joe had dropped allowed Dean to stay safe when he kicked it towards himself.


    Lying on the floor in a defenseless state, Katrina took advantage of the situation and rushed up towards Dean, Striking her longsword down.


    Tired of the pointless tossing and turning, Dean relented from his position and allowed Katrina to stab the empty ground where his head once was.


    Seeing the deadly attack that aimed to take his head, Dean calmly smiled.


    Lirgo saw the menacing smile and saw it as provocation


    "What are you smiling for?!"


    He was slightly aggravated due to their failing onslaught of attacks but he received his answer


    "Because of him"

 34 Roller Coaster of Emotions

    Pointing his finger to Joe, Dean continued to smile without a worry.


    The rest were confused at his reactions while Kellie had just awaken from her dreams to what was the prelude to a nightmare.


    Joe the focus of the attention questioned what Dean was up to and seeing the hidden fear in his teammates'' eyes he reassured them.


    "Guys, he''s playing tricks on us. Don''t believe his nonsen-"


    His sentence ended in a gargling noise as foam began to rise from his mouth and his eyes turned white


    Everyone surrounding him could feel a slight increase in Qi around the man however Joe himself seemed to have lost all his Qi.


    Not a single ounce could be felt inside of him as the Qi slowly dissipated to nature.


    Before the scene could be processed in his teammates'' eyes his body started to bleed from his 5 orifices and flesh wounds opened.


    The body was slowly drowned in blood as the breathing had commenced to stop and the flesh wounds looked like they were in the form of a wild beast biting him.


    A smile once seen as a joke had suddenly turned into an ominous threat that Lirgo became weary of.


    Dean accepted this accomplishment after imbuing a lot of Battle Intent into Joe.


    Katrina had seen enough bloodshed and seeing that Dean busy with his pride, she took this chance to strike him down with her blade.


    Moving to the left, Dean had dodged the blade that swung from above however this action made Katrina seem brash and brain dead.


    The action that made her seem foolish got to her head as she recovered immediately and struck another swing that Dean easily dodged by walking as step back.


    Dean took a breath and started releasing Dark Balls in random directions that caused fear amongst them.


    Katrina attempted to block all of them however certain Dark Balls were in hidden locations that her sword couldn''t reach.


    Due to her eccentric blocking and sidestepping, Dean had shot a few Dark Balls that she couldn''t see and aimed for her knees.


    Lirgo perceived this action from afar and warned Katrina


    "Stop Katrina, you''re following his tempo."


    Being too similar to what happened last time Katrina wanted to respond however a sudden tickle made her drop to her knees.


    A desire to cough blood came up as she started to vomit out a pool of red and shielded herself using her sword


    The short moment of blindness came too late, looking back up the Magic Spells stopped but instead there was a large black ball with a trail left behind the curves.


    Its eccentric movements were shocking as it swam through the air sometimes to the right before making a sharp turn back.


    It was a snake that bided its time that would wear down its opponents mind before striking.


    Katrina had already accepted her death due to her rash movements and played her memories like a film


    Frame by frame the main character would appear in the film like it was shot from a third person perspective.


    From childhood to adolescence and to finally now.


    The scene that had finally arrived was the climax that would soon become an ending.


    A tragic story was supposed to end now but a voice interrupted the movie that Katrina watched intensely


    "SIS"


    Kellie had already woken up to see Joe''s body in a horrible state and seeing that her sister could meet the same fate, she stepped into the fight.


    Screaming at the top of her lungs, Kellie arrived to destroy the Death Snake using her daggers and once striking the Spell into nothing she turned to Katrina.


    "Be careful Sis"


    Dean thought that those words suited her more as looking at Lirgo there was a stark difference in motivation.


    The sisters acted as if they wanted to behead Dean in an instant with their new found incentive while Lirgo was struck with fear due to Dean''s showcase of strength.


    Knowing that Lirgo would probably run away, Dean decided to end the facade quickly.


    Taking advantage of Kellie who was trying to console her sister, A small blade was now embedded into her skull.


    This was something that Dean had always wanted to try as back then he only focused on trying and never versatility.


    Materializing something with Battle Intent


    To him it seemed too inefficient as at that point of time his cultivation level was weak and to attempt such finesse in using Battle Intent like this would cause horrible repercussions.


    Today just seemed like it had many surprises for Dean.


    Katrina delved to despair as death''s grip was so close to her life but it was now rescued by her sister, motivation was now rekindled.


    Believing that they could face against Dean, Katrina stood up from her poor position with her sword and tried to make a statement by glaring as him.


    It was difficult when something heavy was leaning on her shoulder.


    Thinking that Kellie went back to sleep, Katrina tried to shake her up in order to wake her but there was no response.


    "Kellie, not now."


    Rustling her up more she realized that she may have a sustained an injury as their was blood running down her hand.


    Feeling a little guilty she placed Kellie down but when she tried to pat her head she noticed that there was a lot more blood.


    Questioning why she was bleeding from her head, Katrina followed her curiosity and unveiled the reason.


    A large gap that could fit a blade was there and thinking that she may have accidentally slit her finger into that head forced something up her throat.


    Pure disgust for such an immoral that was nearly attempted unknowingly caused this uncomfortable reaction.


    The pure illusion that for a moment they had a chance crept into her mind and taking a further inspection of Dean''s smile drove her insane.


    She may not have the power to kill him but if she was able to curse him for eternity she would do it!

 35 Whos Your Master

    "I, Katrina swear to the heavens that in this life I will kill the stranger before me!"


    Blood boiling, there was the understanding that she was powerless against absolute strength.


    So what?


    Accept defeat without doing anything at the end.


    Refusing to accept such an act, Katrina swore that she would make through this calamity to exact revenge on this man before her.


    Dean saw the resolve inside her eyes and smiled even wider.


    "Go ahead. I dare you."


    It was not due to her determination that allowed her to live this long but the sheer fact that Dean will profit from that anger.


    Her first move will be to rouse social outbreak, painting Dean as a villain who randomly harms the innocent.


    Shading evil with good and reversing the truth was the only thing a personally weak person could do.


    Why rely on yourself when others can do the task for you.


    The simple thought was extremely predictable for those that were desperate as those from an outside perspective will see through you like clear glass.


    Hearing the sudden permission from Dean, Katrina gave another leer at him before immediately running.


    It was heartless to the dead corpses that littered the field but why should Dean care.


    He just basically earned a set of armor, shield and two daggers.


    Seeing that Katrina was able to leave scot free without any difficulties, Lirgo thought that it applied to him as well but Dean laughed


    "Where do you think you''re going?"


    A chilling voice resounded behind his back.


    Logic told him to stay and try to negotiate his life but instead he made a run for it.


    As long as he could run away from this demon then it was very unlikely to ever meet with him ever again.


    It was unfortunate that idea lasted for so long as the sensations of his legs faded causing him to trip on the grass.


    This allowed time to check why his legs weren''t moving.


    For each knee he owned there was a knife that stabbed the dead center and completely pierced through both sides


    Those same knives were the daggers Kellie had owned but was taken by Dean.


    Katrina had already ran away into the distance and didn''t dare to consider what commotion was going on as she had already planned her escape.


    Lirgo was left to now accept his fate that could only be played by Dean.


    "Who''s your master?"


    Dean started his interrogation and this was the one thing that bothered him the whole fight.


    If he had a strong background then Dean had to chill with a mask for 5 minutes otherwise he could just execute Lirgo right now.


    By having a calm and cold tone, Dean''s voice would have a menacing undertone that would certainly make sure Lirgo wouldn''t lie.


    In a situation where he saw all his friends died, Lirgo conceded.


    "I... I have no master. I''m an only childfrom a rich family."


    Thinking that Dean may want him as a hostage for his wealth he decided to say the truth that he came from a rather rich family.


    It was an interesting response that simplified Dean''s problems


    "Oh, is that so?"


    With that their ties were severed with a single slash to the neck.


    Lirgo had no need to be alive and Dean just ended his problems.


    The immense humiliation and mistreatment created anger inside of Lirgo while the slash was still deadly, it was shallow.


    Not enough to kill a life, enough to scar for life.


    Knowing that he had to risk everything, Lirgo decided to use a technique that would burn away your life for a burst of power.


    If he had a stronger background then there might be a more suitable manual to explain and decrease the amount of life force lost but at this time he didn''t care.


    Rushing towards Dean he screamed.


    "Hammer of-"


    Dean felt that at this point the group he faced against were purposely trying to die in the same way.


    "No one yells out their attacks."


    To him, it was essentially a mistake that could cost his life if he did exactly what Lirgo did.


    Running back to his campsite his stew was simmering just fine.


    Dipping the ladle and giving it a quick taste, Dean smiled with happiness.


    "Needs more soy sauce."


    ...


    The same tavern without any advertisement was still lively as usual.


    More people brought corpses and finer wine was now created while hunters were earning a large amount of profit.


    It was an overall win-win situation


    There was now a new edition to the tavern as on the East Wall was now a Board of Monsters.


    Naming many strong students that currently hid in the Hundred Thousand Beast Forest, to be killed or warned against others.


    One poster described an assassin known as the Shadow of the Night.


    The description follows:


    "A strong foe who uses illusions that allure prey before being beheaded using the Ivy Dagger. Once scathed by the tiniest hit, one shall be poisoned and tormented by an unimaginable amount of pain worst than death."


    Bounty: 60,000 gold pieces.


    Although this was a board for people''s heads, many would still not take the risk as first they had to be stronger than their target.


    That''s great, until they realize that this person could have a strong backing.


    In the event you try to hunt a person such as this then their was only one result: Death.


    The tavern would release a new poster after every few days as people would have to compile information on a new target.


    One such poster had just been pinned onto the wall.


    People had begun to crowd around the paper


    "Have you heard of him?"


    "No, I don''t think so?"


    "What did he even do?"


    Reading further they felt that it was an easy target.


    Insane Beast


    "A mad demon that kills the innocent for no reason. Using his Black magic from Satan he compels enemies to allude themselves to death."


    Bounty: 10,000 Gold pieces

 36 Popularity Skyrocketing

    "Ummm...."


    "What is it?"


    "Dean... what did you do while I was sleeping?"


    "Oh, I went here and there"


    Leonard had long awoke from his slumber and collected the precious herbs of the Earth Endowing Tortoise.


    It was indeed a surprise for them as their was this odd tint of blue on the Earth Endowing Tortoise''s Core.


    At the end of the day, both were happy with the profit they created and Leonard still kept his life without any serious repercussions.


    Lately, Leonard had been noticing some strange occurrences around him.


    Footsteps would resound throughout the night and Dean would always warn him to keep his calm.


    To make matters worse, creepy people would send letters that were tied to an arrow!


    Who does that?


    Expecting Dean to laugh it off in an aloof manner before scrapping the paper he instead accepted the challenge.


    He of course won the battle but the main point was that he gave mercy to his opponent by keeping them alive


    Was the sun rising from the west?


    Leonard thought this was probably because Dean was in a good mood but he couldn''t of been in a good mood for two weeks!


    More and more peculiarities happened as time passed but Dean tended to tell Leonard to run far away until he came back.


    After his battle he would come back with a red face and only until today had Leonard saw the truth.


    The time to escape from the Hundred Thousand Beast Forest was soon to come and therefore the taverns became much more popular.


    Rooms would be filled to the brim and others would barter to sleep in a comfy area. Some people would sleep in tents close to the bar or create their own shack.


    More beasts were being hunted and more profit was to be made.


    Leonard had been strolling around for more herbal ingredients with Dean. Hunger had taken over their minds causing them to buy nearby kebabs and a bottled milk tea.


    There was a crowd to the East of the place and catching Leonard''s interest, they slowly inched closer.


    Dean was also interested in the commotion and received glares from the people around him.


    Taking a closer inspection, Leonard strangely saw a poster that had the face of Dean.


    It was strange to call that person an exact replica as the black surroundings created a sinister aura and instead of black eyes were a strange tint of green.


    Beneath Dean''s profile picture was a nickname


    Insane Beast


    Leonard''s first reaction was to spit out the tea in his mouth and luck was by his side as the tea avoided the people around him.


    Dean pushed Leonard away to see what he was laughing about and saw the poster.


    Smacking the head of Leonard, Dean dragged him by the collar away from the Board but this created a commotion.


    People turned around to see who was making a ruckus but seeing that it was Dean, they compared him to the poster.


    Surprised they were ready to launch an attack but someone voiced their opinions.


    "He''s probably a fake"


    Another nodded in agreement


    "Damn imposters everywhere."


    "They''re the reason for why we can never make a profit."


    Running to a shack out of humiliation, Leonard still laughed with the utmost of joy.


    Dean had enough of this and could only frown at the childish of Leonard.


    "Insane Beast...pffh. Hahaha. Mad Demon..."


    "Are they going to call you the Scary Devil....hahha."


    Leonard enjoyed the ridiculous name Dean had been called. He never thought that Dean would be embarrassed in this life but it finally came.


    Dean saw that this farce was never going to end if he did something so he brought out a question


    "When are you creating those new pills?"


    The joyful mood was replaced with Leonard''s solemn attitude who responded


    "I already created a prototype and with a few more tweaks at the academy it would be completed."


    The hidden confidence was something unusual to hear from Leonard but with this month of training his attitude slowly molded into a much more social human.


    It was just a few hours left before all students would leave the Hundred Thousand Beast Forest.


    A siren resounded in the distance that signalled towards everyone.


    You would see thousands of teenagers rushing out of the tree tops with extreme precision and skill while others hiked on the ground with giant corpses on their back.


    The people at the bottom were those that had recently gotten a Beast''s corpse and wanted to have a better deal.


    If they sold the Beasts to a nearby cavern they would be ripped off as the price would be cheaper than the market sale price but there would be good reasons.


    They needed to make sure the carcass wasn''t rotten from being out in the sun and this would call for some different measures.


    Cooking it at that moment, reserving it inside a Space Ring, etc.


    As expected there were tens of merchants waiting outside.


    Teacher''s and elders waited patiently while their disciples and students finished their business.


    They regarded this time as an exciting moment as they would hear in the distance a commotion when students had multiple carcasses.


    This was a discreet way of showing off how strong your school was that allowed the old scoundrels to piss each other off.


    Dena and Leonard kept to themselves as Leonard would be using the corpses as nourishment or pills which had much better potential for profit.


    ...


    Two people were next to an elder of Redwood Academy.


    They hadn''t participated in the competition however their aura was fierce like those that had been living in the wilderness.


    One person notified her partner after grasping her hand around his arm


    "He''s made a name for himself..."


    The other person replied in a disgruntled tone


    "And so?"


    "We need help, Christian keeps on advancing on -"


    Reprimanding the person, the other impatiently added his comment


    "I know! I''m trying my best to negotiate with my elders."


    Having a calmer tone, the girl prompted the truth


    "But it''s not effective"


    "..."


    "Just try once. If he isn''t to par...it''ll just be a repeat of the past"

 37 A Little Spar

    Dean rested atop his bed, dreaming about what the next pills Leonard could create would be.


    Leonard had locked himself into his room and traded a few Beast''s corpses for Contribution Points.


    This allowed Leonard to get away with being "Sick" during classes and was fundamentally underhanded trick.


    It was nothing more than a suspicion but it was still a surprise for Dean that underhanded methods would slide so easily.


    Classes were already finished but a student suddenly died during his trip to the Hundred Thousand Beast Forest.


    No one cried as they were too busy carrying on with their own lives.


    Those that seemed very close to that student held back their tears and instead prayed for success in the next life


    Apparently it was due to an unforeseen poisoning that must have occurred due to family politics.


    His family took advantage to paint themselves as heroes of justice while their competitors were now villains without any morals.


    Dean chuckled at the abstract accusations thrown about because he already knew the poisoning was most likely done by him.


    The reason he could come to that conclusion is because that student was the same student who dueled Dean at the beginning of school.


    Compared to Joe who was stuck with Battle Intent for a couple minutes, this student had it much better off.


    To realize that his death was used as a spark for his family''s profit, how would he feel?


    A the end of the day, it wasn''t Dean''s business


    Dozing off closer and closer to sleep, Dean''s eyes began to close however the door''s knocking refused to allow him to rest.


    *Knock**Knock*


    Regaining the normal temperament he was known for, Dean walked towards the door to see who it was but he was instead greeted by people he thought he would never see.


    Anne and Pierre.


    Together they stood in front of his door while creating a commotion for others to talk about.


    "Why are they here?"


    "You think they''re trying to recruit someone?"


    "...And why would you ask me?"


    Students living close to Dean started to gossip but Pierre was the first to break the ice.


    "Follow us."


    It was a very direct command that left no sense of context for the rest of the people to understand.


    The upright arrogance to command Dean made him feel uncomfortable and have the desire to see what else he was going to do.


    Depending on what he did, there was no limit to what Dean would try to do with both of them.


    Pierre and Anne left without waiting for Dean''s reply, leaving him to follow in their footsteps like a child.


    Still clueless, Dean gathered information from his surroundings.


    The students became less populated and instead of the towering buildings were now bright green trees in a forest.


    It was a boring sight for Dean as he had just came back from a trip.


    Eventually, they arrived at a clearing where the trees surrounded a single plain without any other living beings in sight


    A desolate place


    No witnesses


    Dean couldn''t help but smirk at the thought that Pierre and Anne were actually going to attempt to kill him


    ''You want to play this game, hmmph. We''ll see the results at the end''


    Once entering the center of the plain, Anne and Pierre turned towards Dean


    Facing each other and glaring into each other''s souls, Dean refused to yield at their tyranny but this caused an awkward silence that lasted an unusually long time.


    Anne had obviously noticed this and coughed


    "We''re here to-"


    Dean was paying attention to what Anne was attempting to say however a fist was inching closer to his face that he had to first notice.


    It was not out of expectation that underhanded methods would be used but to start the fight like this left Dean confused.


    Originally he thought that it was Christian calling the scummy methods but to think that Anne and Pierre started to adopt his tactics was interesting.


    Anne held back her words and instead shrugged.


    Pushing the fist away from him, Dean took advantage of the situation to kick towards Pierre at full strength


    Theoretically he should be incapacitated however for an odd reason he was fine without anything too serious and only a few scratches


    The minimum amount of strength to have that capability was at the very least a Nascent Soul Cultivator.


    From the last minute aura Dean had sensed he gave an estimate of what strength Pierre contained.


    According to his estimation it should at least be Nascent Soul 1 Cultivator


    If that was so then it was very likely for Anne to have the same cultivation level.


    Dean thought they were her to kill him however they had yet to pull out any weapons


    ''Either they are naive or they want to toy with me''


    Thinking of those conclusions, Dean''s eyes gleamed like an emerald.


    Infuriated by the belittling, Dean still respected his opponents to not take advantage of them by using a dangerous weapon


    Instead they brawled using their fists.


    Dean was going to Pierre''s legs like Joe''s however his speed was unsuspectingly fast.


    Now left in an open position, Pierre struck down with his elbow which could have caused serious damage however Dean let his leg flow upwards.


    Transforming it into a knee, both clashed and caused a subtle sourness to be felt.


    Pierre was still recovering from the unexpected strike and tried to see what Dean was doing.


    Seeing a punch coming straight towards his abdomen, there was nothing much he could do.


    Dean saw that victory was close and made sure that he wanted Pierre to suffer a little and infused some Battle Intent to the punch.


    Anne had enough of the complications and used her Transmutation magic.


    Pierre''s stomach began to become slippery causing Dean''s punch to slide towards his left.


    The comical scene left Pierre to laugh


    "We just want to talk."


    Anne added more detail for Dean


    "Nothing more and nothing less. We want an alliance to kill Christian."


    "...What?"

 38 Alliance?

    The suggestion to work together was an absolute surprise to Dean.


    To think that one day he would have an offer from the people who took part in a scheme that killed his friend and nearly himself.


    It was not an exaggeration for Dean to feel somewhat speechless.


    Making the offer much better was that the prime person involved is the very mastermind who planned for him to be murdered.


    Having mixed feelings, Dean paused to contemplate in silence.


    Anne and Pierre finally got Dean''s attention and saw that he was already considering their proposition. To further the effect they brought more information for Dean to digest.


    Starting the conversation, Anne tried giving context


    "I''m sure you''ve heard of the engagement between Rose and Christian. Many important people were invited and allowed Christian to start gathering his own connections"


    Dean nodded as he had already heard this from rumors in a canteen and it was not out of expectation for Christian to start developing a wider range of connections.


    It was tough as he now had the connections from his family and with the other connections he got from school, he would be overall be a worry.


    To make matters worse is that he couldn''t underestimate Christian anymore.


    Anne and Pierre were just first years who had reached Nascent Soul 1 at the very minimum!


    Christian was approximately two years older than Dean meaning he has greater experience and cultivation.


    Thinking that the [Battle Intent Manual] was unstoppable, Dean felt surprised at the pure strength Christian must have gathered in his years at Redwood Academy.


    The idea to fight one on one in a battle seemed impossible at this information.


    However his shock couldn''t be shown to Anne, so Dean nodded in response.


    Anne continued


    "Lately, he has been taking advantage of his peers and juniors... he-"


    Pierre suddenly cut in with a shallow killing intent hidden in his voice


    "He is utterly disgusting. Trying to create a harem is fine but without consent is...scummy."


    Pierre pulled Anne even closer to him and Dean finally got the gist of why Pierre had such a strange reaction to Anne''s words.


    The implication was that Christian was a lusting beast who wants to create a harem even if it means the sacrifice of his subordinates'' wives.


    Dean felt it was reasonable for Pierre to draw the conclusion that Christian was disgusting to try and take another person''s wife however still waited for what they exactly wanted.


    Stamping the ground in frustration, Pierre added more information


    "Many of my brothers have suffered this disgrace and their wives have been humiliated to be forcefully claimed."


    Anne softly whimpered before taking a deep breath and reclaiming her calm manner while Dean was left in thought.


    For all that Dean could know was that this whole thing is an orchestrated act to later kill him.


    This seed of doubt was planted and grew at a substantial rate however Anne exposed the reason for betrayal.


    "Long ago, our actions were inexcusable but you should take it in your heart to somehow understand that Christian forced it to that."


    "I had originally thought that he would''ve brought great fortune upon Pierre but if it comes at such a heavy cost...both of us can''t accept it."


    There was a slight sob as water ran down her face before it buried into Pierre''s arm.


    The act was extremely reminiscent of Dean''s childhood but that made him even more guarded against what they could possibly plot.


    Pierre saw that Dean was still contemplating and thought it was better to disperse and talk another day.


    Walking deeper into the forest, Anne and Pierre''s silhouette disappeared leaving Dean to stroll in the opposite direction.


    If Dean was to snitch on Pierre and Anne then it was very unlikely for Christian to believe a random stranger, especially one that was sabotaged by him.


    Dean would essentially be courting death if he desired to warn Christian but he decided until Pierre could give him something promising to go off of, would he consider helping.


    The foundation of an alliance was trust.


    Anne and Pierre had already learned their lesson of visiting without a disguise could cause a commotion.


    Christian would surely have heard of this if they had brought Dean out during a busy day however they were thankful for the fact that most students were resting after an event.


    The offer was overall a great deal but Dean was still stuck with suspicion. Leonard was too busy with alchemy, meaning Dean couldn''t ask for help yet.


    Sighing, Dean headed to the edge of the forest.


    Unexpectedly a shadow had gotten in the way of that as the figure cloaked in black interrupted Dean''s return


    Under the figure''s breath it muttered


    "It is you...isn''t it?"


    The tone was extremely familiar and was not wrong to be accused of being a voice that could be rarely heard.


    Dean had heard this voice only a few times.


    He could never mistake it as she was the one person who watched, doing nothing.


    A person that he considered to be neutral yet someone with enmity against him


    Ayesha


    She removed her black clothes one by one until it revealed casual wear, fit for school.


    Chill temperament that appealed to most teenagers within the school, beauty that is capable of exaggeratedly destroying a country...was not effective against Dean.


    It was not wrong to just simply say she was beautiful for anyone to appreciate but Dean thought her cold looks were similar to a snake.


    Go too close and it''ll hurt you.


    All the trauma from his past was being brought out in front of him and the temptation on going on a rampage was difficult to resist yet Dean kept his hand.


    More news and info was brought down upon Dean as Ayesha told him the reason for her visit.


    "I need your help ... i''m being betrothed."

 39 Evidence of Trus

    Another conversation for help proved that Dean''s suspicion now had more evidence.


    First it was Anne and Pierre, now it''s Ayesha.


    What''s next? Rose and Christian.


    ''Is Christian going to ask help to save himself of his ambition?''


    At this point, Dean felt the whole thing was a scam but he was still weary of the might they held altogether.


    Ayesha''s toned down her monotone voice as it became more gentle


    "My parents have basically sold me to the Autarch Society, specifically Christian."


    "Even Anne is on the brink of being sent off by her family if it weren''t for Pierre''s family..."


    The yearning for help pried into Dean''s ear but this farce had lost its originality


    Dean complained half way through Ayesha''s pleading


    "Enough, I don''t have time for such useless scheming. You''re manner is not legitimate and earnest."


    With this one line, Dean hoped that he could bait some sort of aggravation from Ayesha but her response was unpredictable.


    She was not teary eyed however her gentle voice quavered


    "I swear i''m not working together with Christian. I''ll do anything to prove it, even if it means giving up my chastity."


    ''Bullsh*t''


    Dean swore at the utter shamelessness Ayesha could do without blushing even a little bit.


    If one could just say something to prove their innocence, would finding the truth be so difficult?


    Scholars and some Magicians work hard to research what ''truth'' is but if it could be revealed as simple as that does that mean they are working for nothing?


    However the other part proved to be quite alluring for Dean.


    Even when she was a youth, Ayesha tended to stay away from Christian''s advances which does suggest that she holds herself in some standard.


    If she''s not lying then this would be a good testimony but what if she had planned an ambush?


    ''Wait...''


    Dean realized if that was so, then he could possibly take advantage by learning the average strength of Christian''s core team.


    Smiling, Dean waved his hand.


    "If that''s so, lead the way."


    Ayesha''s face lost a bit of blood as it paled however her legs began walking and Dean followed her lead.


    They soon exited the school which made Dean chuckle on the inside


    ''They must have really planned my death to happen today.''


    The surroundings became large buildings that people were shadowed with and vendors selling their crafts.


    People were being scammed and taken advantage of but everyone kept a blind eye against those incidents and carried on with their lives.


    Ayesha entered one of the alleyways and there was a love hotel.


    They didn''t hold hands to enter the love hotel in order to look like a couple but instead look like a person taking advantage of another.


    Dean was like a person who paid or forced a prostitute to do certain deeds while Ayesha had watery eyes, acting as an innocent maiden.


    Irked by the framing done by Ayesha, Dean wondered if that was going to be there foundation for an accusation.


    Villainous man takes advantage of pure girl.


    The headlines swept past his thoughts however they had already arrived in front of the reception of the love hotel.


    Keeping his cool, Dean knew he was inching closer to what may break into a fight and kept a close eye on every movement of Ayesha''s


    There was no strange hand movement or unnecessary words added when she talked with the receptionist and when looking around there was no person in the lobby.


    What made matters even stranger was the fact that Ayesha had just booked a room.


    Theoretically she would have already booked a room, laid with traps and people ready to ambush Dean when his guard was lowered but why had she just book a room now?


    Befuddled, Dean continued to think along that line of thought.


    A suggestion that popped up was that the surrounding rooms have Christian''s people ready to attack him when the time comes.


    Such a twisted plan would have caused a short instance for a person to be embarrassed, allowing a short time frame of the possibility of killing that person.


    Dean cursed at the scoundrel like plot but still followed Ayesha.


    Her acting was on point as Dean could barely notice a single flaw and she still kept it up even when they entered the room.


    "Take a shower first."


    Ayesha commanded Dean to clean himself before committing acts and he did so without a word of refusal.


    From his guess, this was most likely to remove him of any Space storage items he may have in his pockets or to tell her friends if he has any rings.


    Scoffing at their shameful scheme, Dean entered the bathroom as he already knew that the Blue Core inside of him wouldn''t be visible to Ayesha.


    He had yet to know the strength of Ayesha which furthered his worries but he planned to keep playing innocent.


    ....


    Dean currently felt very confused.


    There was no raiding.


    No attacks.


    No traps.


    There was only intense panting and passionate moaning that exited from the room and nothing had yet to enter this room.


    This was very unlike Christian as from Dean''s experience he is very possessive, since he even announced it at what he suspected to be the last moment of Dean.


    Christian is too ambitious that he would never suffer a loss without fighting back


    Although the experience was extremely joyful and new for Dean, he still couldn''t shake off this anxious feeling.


    Ayesha was fast asleep without any qualms and taking advantage of that, Dean surveyed the walls of the Hotel room.


    Still nothing!


    Thinking that Ayesha may have poisoned him through multiple ''means''


    Dean analysed his body using Battle Intent but still felt nothing strange.


    It was at this point that Dean realized how trustful Ayesha was trying to be.


    A sudden heart ache shocked his body when he looked at Ayesha peacefully sleeping.

 40 Beginning of a Plo

    The realization of his own ignorance hurt for once.


    It was not that he felt hurt for being wrong, but he instead felt bad for wronging Ayesha.


    Understanding how he had misjudged Ayesha, Dean went back to bed as caressed Ayesha''s head softly.


    Guilt overrode and stomped his heart, crushing his consciousness for each time his hand rested upon Ayesha''s head.


    At the age of 16, Dean had finally realized what a terrifying thing, guilt can be.


    But this was another enlightenment that furthered his hatred for Christian.


    Even when he was a child, Christian could ruthlessly kill his friend without wincing and in 6 years he must have become a lot worse.


    Dean took a deep breath to claim his calmness back but it had the reverse effect.


    ...


    Waking out of her slumber, Ayesha saw Dean dozing off mindlessly and felt released of all the pressure she had.


    She consoled herself that this fate was slightly better than a one with Christian.


    When they were children, Christian would tend to visit her house because of family matters.


    Acting as a kind and considerate child, her parents would adore him but Ayesha already saw the wickedness behind that false mask.


    He would show off his fragile masculinity by beating up workers in her family to earn some sort of amazement from Ayesha.


    What made it even worse is that the workers would never tell her parents as they were afraid of offending someone in greater power.


    Only when she had grown up to be a little mature did she learn that Christian was not someone trustworthy.


    Although she knew that, Ayesha couldn''t do anything as her parents were too blinded.


    She was stuck in a jail cell with little to do.


    Telling the truth would cause punishment and hiding will do nothing.


    Recounting that horrible memory, Ayesha sighed hoping things would improve with this investment.


    Dean had saw the way Ayesha had sighed, setting off a wave in his conscious.


    ''Was I not adequate enough?''


    Ayesha had removed herself from the proximity of Dean as she began getting change to exit the hotel.


    Dean wanted to grasp Ayesha''s hand before she left but he instead sat there on the bed.


    Leaving himself time for contemplation


    ...


    Anne, Pierre, Dean and Ayesha had gathered around a small wooden stump in the forest.


    They argued over what tactics they could use to bring down Christian''s tyranny.


    Overall there three main ideas they had come up with in their time.


    The first, was that they would poison Christian. A mysterious substance that could make a person''s health slowly deteriorate when taken in small consumption over a long period of time.


    The second, lure Christian to a hidden location and kill him.


    Both of these two plans were good in of itself however there was one main problem that they would face.


    How strong is Christian?


    No one knew.


    Ayesha did not know what cultivation level he was due to the fact that she had manage to stay away from him during her time at school.


    To make matters even more disappointing was that even Anne and Pierre didn''t know.


    This one unknown information cause immense worry for Dean as he guessed that Christian may have used external items such as pills to propel his cultivation.


    If those materials are paired up with a good cultivation manual then Dean wouldn''t be surprised if Christian was at the Spiritual Transformation level.


    Plan one could work as he had Leonard on his side to probably create a strong poison.


    With the materials from the Earth Endowing Tortoise and the promised pills, Dean thought that he could possibly trade those in for a deadly poison.


    However because he didn''t consult with Leonard beforehand, Dean was not confident in his skills in creating poison.


    He knew that Leonard is highly skilled in alchemy with great benefits for a cultivator but wasn''t sure of the opposite end.


    Therefore, the first plan didn''t seem like it could work.


    Dean has seen Christian attempt to escape twice and had one success.


    Christian seemed to love weird talismans as he used those talismans to escape a battle if he felt the situation was too dire.


    The first time this happened was with the fight against a golem and the second time was against a Spiritual Transformation Beast


    If they wanted to use the second plan then that means they must have an array, similar to what the golem had that is able to restrict the use of talismans.


    Finding a person who was an expert in arrays and was willing to keep a shut mouth would be extremely difficult.


    What made it more difficult besides an Array Master was having the ability to get Christian alone.


    From Anne and Pierre''s experience.


    Christian will usually hang out with Rose and any friends in order to strengthen bonds while keeping his romance alive.


    It was very common to see him reviewing papers of the Autarch Society''s funding in the library.


    With all this information combined, Dean came to the conclusion that it was very unlikely for Christian to go outside of school areas.


    Because of that, they couldn''t bring Christian to a "hidden location"


    Finally it came to the third plan that Dean was most insistent on.


    Anne, Pierre and Ayesha were easily persuaded as this idea was the most flexible yet vague plan that had a lot of room to change.


    The very last idea was:


    Kill with a borrowed knife.


    Why should they put their lives in danger when they can spark conflict between Christian and a third party who would willing do all the work.


    Even if this third party wasn''t willing to kill Christian, Dean could at least learn a bit about Christian if they manage to put him on the edge of trouble.


    Altogether they agreed to this one plan and started investing.


    Dean wanted to talk with Ayesha and held onto her shoulder but she immediately brushed it off.


    Glaring, she told Dean


    "This is just business."

 41 Confess

    "You taking interest in your peers?"


    A girl smiled in a playful manner that the rest of the girls had to take silence.


    There was slight reverence in the way they looked at her before turning to look at the person who had to answer the question.


    Ayesha responded with a slight smirk


    "No, I was wondering what my juniors were doing lately."


    On person tried to prolong the conversation on this topic and added


    "So you like them younger?"


    Ayesha blushed at the answer and the rest laughed in amusement.


    Breaking into smaller groups of conversations, there was a constant gossip about which boy seemed the most appealing.


    Taking advantage of this, Ayesha walked closer to the girl who asked the starting question


    "Jessica, can I borrow some notes? Lately, classes havebecome more difficult."


    The girl named Jessica frowned.


    "Stop with the formalities, there''s no one forcing us to act. Relax and take a deep breath"


    Halfway through the sentence, Jessica''s tone became warmer and gentler but with a tacit agreement she began walking.


    Ayesha followed behind and entered her dorm.


    It seemed way larger than what was perpetuated from the outside as it came equipped with a kitchen, bathroom, living room and two bedrooms.


    Jessica had a certain status besides being a senior at this school that allowed her to have a dorm as big as this.


    Ayesha wanted to applaud in amazement but when entering Jessica''s room, she was in awe at how tidy it was.


    There was a small desktop with a mirror in front that had multiple stick notes attached to it.


    Most of them were motivational quotes


    "You got this!"


    "Tomorrow''s problem is for tomorrow''s you!"


    Jessica saw that Ayesha had taken notice of her notes and quickly hid them away in flurry.


    "Uhmm, you saw nothing."


    Seeing that Jessica was busying herself with tidying her stick notes, Ayesha took her time to take a gander around her room.


    Her eyes pinpointed a drawer that grabbed her immediate attention as Ayesha reached her hand out.


    "So what notes are you looking for?"


    Ayesha retracted her hand in the blink of an eye before greeting Jessica''s eyes.


    "Oh, I think I mainly need help with Magic History."


    Jessica chuckled in response


    "You think?"


    The playful response created a slight sense of anxiousness but Ayesha was too determined to stop.


    ...


    "Yo Christian, let''s get some lunch"


    A young man patted the shoulder of Christian who was studying a book inside the library and stared at him.


    "Okay, I do feel quite hungry."


    Christian followed behind but scoffed


    ''Your peasant hands are interrupting my appetite"


    This thought didn''t show as he continued to maintain a conversation with the young man.


    Walking towards the canteen, there was a slight commotion after Christian had exited.


    In the the distance there was a large mob with muttering, incoherent to Christian''s ears while his curiosity piqued


    "Christian, you unfortunately you can''t go to the canteen yet."


    The teacher was unfamiliar to him but he guessed that his name must have resounded within the school that allowed multiple teachers to hear his great name.


    "Why?"


    "Gather with the crowd, we''re looking for a pervert."


    This time the young man asked the questions.


    "What happened?"


    "In the whole history of what Redwood Academy has lasted for, this incident is one that is unprecedented. Just watch carefully."


    Christian stopped his adventure to the canteen but instead joined the crowd with the young man next to him trying to insert his opinion for every door they visited.


    The young man had overheard a few of the commotions and reported it to Christian.


    "Apparently there has been a thief in recent times. People have Space Rings, so why aren''t they checking those?"


    Christian thought that the young man had asked a good question but was concerned on what was exactly stolen


    If their Autarch Society took advantage of this situation to ''investigate'' what type of treasure was stolen they would earn a good reputation and a mysterious resource.


    It was tempting to take control of the investigation but Christian decided that he would be better off to just wait and see.


    Door by door there was yet to find anything interesting.


    At this point they had entered the dorms of most of the wealthy people


    Christian saw the next person to be interrogated was a very interesting young man.


    He had unusual emerald green eyes that contained a compelling energy that made him feel a chilling aura that had a hint of killing intent.


    The face seemed extremely familiar but Christian couldn''t put his finger on who exactly he was.


    Every way he answered the teacher had a weird coldness and indifference.


    Their interrogation had ended early. Christian desired to know who exactly that guy was however the crowd moved further away from that man''s door.


    Shrugging it off, Christian saw that the teacher was engaging in a conversation with another teacher.


    "We can''t go to the noble area."


    "If we don''t then we''ll have an entire country coming to destroy our school. Weigh your choices and tell the principal for all I care."


    The teacher was pushed away as the other teacher continued his investigation.


    One by one, rooms were entered and people were interrogated but Christian realized an obvious pattern.


    Half of the girls he knew were not questioned at all by the teachers.


    He understood a few reasonable and logical parts for the interrogations.


    Certain institutes already had other teachers sent to monitor students and even the Head of Disciplinary Actions was currently at the noble area.


    It felt weird because the next door had the same number plate as the one he had.


    "Sir, we''ve found it!"


    One of the people had already screamed towards the Head of Disciplinary Actions


    In his hand was a black bag with what seemed to be hundreds of female undergarments ...underwear?


    Christian realized at this point that the room was his.


    ''Are those Rose''s?''


    This was his first thought but before he could justify himself he saw the Head of Disciplinary Actions take out a piece of paper and flip it one by one.


    "CHRISTIAN VIKANDER!"

 42 Framed

    Christian barely had any time to react to that scream as half of his head was now submerged into a wall and his neck was restrained by a hand.


    The Head of Disciplinary Actions had taken the stage with Christian in hand.


    "Under Jurisdiction 5 Article 13 of Justice. I, Head of Disciplinary Actions must take Christian Vikander for breaking such a rule and defiling the reputation of Red Wood Academy."


    In his defense, Christian was about to scream for his justice but the Head of Disciplinary Actions refused to loosen his grip.


    His senses became a lot more numb however last minute, Head of Disciplinary Actions had restrained Christian.


    Two hands were now bounded by a rocky handcuff.


    The Head of Disciplinary Actions now held a bag full of lingeries and in his other hand was a incapacitated student.


    Normal procedures couldn''t be done as the bag of evidence contained a few sensitive clothes from powerful people.


    If he were to hold on to this bag for too long than his life would be at risk, not to mention the population of the school.


    His good reputation would be easily destroyed if the owner''s of these objects were to recklessly accuse him of dirty deeds.


    It was an extremely difficult task but by making such a large commotion he hoped that this could be considered ample evidence.


    In the distance there were many girls who glared at Christian in sheer anger.


    A pervert had just humiliated and robbed them.


    They had to make sure that the school would do justice for their losses and followed the Head of Disciplinary Actions to make sure Christian would be ruined.


    Gossip and rumors were already flying about that made people question if Christian really was a good person.


    An adolescent''s curiosity could never be restrained easily and this made room for many misunderstandings.


    Dean sat on a tree branch, far away from the commotion.


    To his side was Ayesha


    "How does it feel to betray your friends?"


    There was no guilt on her face however she glared at Dean.


    "I didn''t betray them. I aided them in stopping a monster''s greed and lust before it was too late."


    Dean shrugged at the response but compared it to his childhood.


    It was not far from the truth that Ayesha tended to be neutral in most matters however the self justification seemed forced and naive.


    ....


    "What were you doing? He''s a scion to the Vikander Family."


    The voice of an outraged adult rang within the hall that was isolated from the court.


    It was located right outside of where Christian was currently in, a court.


    Dimly illuminated, Christian''s face could be seen while the several judges that sought to punish and defend were left anonymous.


    Two seats were left empty which was due to the current argument.


    "So? Either I let an innocent man down or the whole of our city."


    "Out there are hard working people with children, friends, parents, husbands or wives. They live out their life in a simple manner yet you''re telling me to risk throwing that all away?"


    "How did the school hire you?"


    This was the Head of Disciplinary Actions that responded the interrogation from a colleague however he knew that grudges were scary.


    Unless one was able to reasonably explain himself, will there be logical peace.


    "He''ll only be punished and I promise you that he won''t die. Make sure you send your platoon to handle whatever mess the people have created as well as returning those... stolen objects."


    One was unyielding however the other had already sighed in regret for whatever may happen to Christian''s fate.


    It was already set in stone.


    "Christian Vikander, do you accept the charges brought upon your crimes."


    His hair was disheveled due to the stress and the rough treatment the Head of Disciplinary Actions showed.


    "No! I never committed those crimes in the first place!"


    One judge immediately retorted at the snappy comment


    "Where''s your alibi? Why did you have those items? What were you doing last night?"


    The bombardment of questions left Christian with some difficulties in answering but he tried recounting his experience.


    "Well... I was asleep. N-no one would be with me to vouch that but I think someone else left those items there."


    Taking advantage for Christian''s failure to answer perfectly and his rude attitude to his colleague.


    "So you''re telling me, out of all the students in our school. They were purposely here to study in order to sabotage your life?"


    The distortion of words that jumped into a new conclusion made Christian speechless at such an aggressive interrogation but another judge popped in.


    "Reminder, we have the evidence in our hand."


    As the judge had said that, he had brought out the black bag filled with lingerie.


    Christian saw that this was his chance to protect himself


    "But I have a Space Ring. It would be stupid for me to keep out in the open."


    A few of the judges sighed in pity for the struggling youth but they had no choice.


    "Then you may be stupid otherwise this may have been a ploy for someone else."


    The hypothetical theories were thrown about and no matter how Christian tried to save himself, his claim was shot down one after the other.


    Trouble was brewing and the school knew that they couldn''t mess around anymore


    Filled with silence, the center judge had finally made the decision to end this false courtesy and echoed his decision.


    "Christian Vikander will be sent to Silent Prison for 2 months."


    Christian''s face was drained of all of his blood as soon as he heard the words ''Silent Prison''


    It was a very uncommon punishment as only few would deserve such a redemption for their crime.


    The person would be isolated in a room that pushes them to the brink of insanity. It plays with the mind like a toy and if one wishes to end it...they can''t.


    They can''t harm themselves and have to be tortured by such knowledge.


    A monster they don''t wish to see would appear.

 43 Expedition of Redemption

    "He should be out by now, right?"


    Dean whispered to Pierre and waited for a response.


    "Well, I was heard it was supposed to be today."


    Uncertainty filled his voice but Dean tried to ward off any uncomfortable feelings he had


    Dean had realized a pivotal point that caused a majority of his anxiety.


    What if Anne and Pierre were scheming to back stab him?


    Was what he thought in the past.


    They had already proved that they would be willing to ruin Christian which caused a temporary serene peace in Dean''s heart.


    He had to constantly remind himself of one thing: They aren''t enemies. It was extremely difficult when he thought of Rose but due to Ayesha, every single thought of resentment was soothed and less intense.


    His resentment was not one that would drive him to the brink of insanity, testing his self control but rather one that was just in mind.


    They were currently waiting outside of the Disciplinary Actions building where few people would be brought in for minor acts such as irregular behavior during class.


    The door had finally open, revealing a young youth.


    Dean was very surprised by Christian''s new appearance.


    Pale face that seemed to be isolated from blood, disheveled shaggy hair. Black rings beneath his eyes and red claws marks on his arms.


    The marks probably originated from all the scratching that was done but Dean clearly understood what had actually happened.


    Silent Prison was a place that made sure it would torment anybody that entered its domain. Christian did indeed look like a person experiencing rough times however the evidence was poorly done.


    If Dean had to guess how long Christian was actually inside Silent Prison, he would guess around less than a week.


    It was obvious that this was fake!


    Red scabs had barely turned into a more appropriate color and shows that the incident was probably only recent. No other physical injury was clearly seen besides those small cuts.


    For 2 months, Dean would have expected the body to be covered with many scabs and a freakish look that would be stuck on this person''s face.


    What happened to Christian seemed to barely have any effect.


    Instead of being brought to the brink of insanity, Christian looked like he was scolded horrendously and was now in fear.


    Dean blamed it on Christian''s family background that allowed his sanity to still be kept safe.


    The only profit he had made from what happened to Christian was that his reputation crashed to the ground in the miserable fashion.


    He already had a few sketchy rumors due to his desires on woman but now with this incident, the evidence would slowly unfold as the threat of suppression was thrown out the window.


    Christian''s charisma was on the brink of collapsing while his efforts in creating Autarch Society left a shallow internal support.


    They were indeed a threat to any external force however their internal affairs was the one thing that will limit him.


    Ambition can lead a man to greatness but without a force is nothing.


    Fiddling with the quote in his head, Dean smiled.


    Fate was a mystical thing in Christian''s mind.


    First was the incident at the Hundred thousand Beast Forest where he invited a calamity of devastation.


    The next incident was where he now got framed!


    According to his guess, it must have been done by the same person as Dark magic is renowned to only be slightly different to the accursed Black Magic.


    If this was so, Christian could only ask help from one person that he knew would keep true to his words.


    Shadow of the Night.


    He stayed at the back during the whole battle and should have been able to understand what had happened during their raid against that fearsome Spiritual Transformation beast.


    As long as he wasn''t dead then Christian would discuss problems with him.


    Jessica''s parents and many other victims had issued complaints to their guardians.


    The school faced a barrage of reports and criticism that other schools who weren''t effected,enjoyed the misfortune they currently faced.


    Dread and worry was always on the mind of many elders in the school. Hope seemed to be on their side as Jessica only felt sick at Christian who was the main issue.


    Ideally, the school could have completely expelled him to rid themselves of such a troublesome issue but the bribes they received were plentiful.


    Jessica sighed at the difficulties the school faced and decided that enough was enough.


    She burned any remnants of what Christian had ''stole'' to sever the ties of this problem.


    The way she handled it was very mature despite the anger and humiliation, she held back and kept an open mind.


    Aligning with his main mission of who the perpetrator was for the first incident. Christian thought of multiple methods to redeem his honor.


    He was currently painted as a disgusting villain so he made his first order to his subordinate.


    "Hurry and take the Horned Viper Murderer Slaying Missions."


    The subordinate''s heart skipped a beat as he was about to question such a dangerous decision but he swallowed the words back and ran.


    Sighing with ease, Christian stared in the distance with determination to figure out who had framed him as well as a solemn declaration to go against the heavens.


    ''This small world will never hold me back. I will return to be the king like I once was''


    Dean laughed at his stare that was in the operation of where he was.


    However the issue of this Mission caused suspicion and difficulty for what his next move.


    "Hey Pierre, can you tell Anne about..."


    The whispering became less coherent when Dean leaned in to tell Pierre but with a poker face he nodded.


    "She''s currently in class, I''ll tell her later."


    Pierre moved away from the tree and toward a nearby building as his class was about to begin, leaving Dean by himself.


    Dean gloated in his underhanded victory.


    ''Is this how Christian felt?''


    The tempting sweet nectar of success seemed so much more alluring than what Dean remembered.

 44 Horned Viper Murderer Slaying Mission

    In the school, missions could be done in exchange for contribution points.


    Those contribution points could then be exchanged for weapons, materials or even books for students to study.


    An opportunity for students to learn the sweet taste of profit.


    Missions were then separated and categorized into three main branches:


    Slaying/Hunting


    Gathering/Harvesting


    and Exchanging.


    Slaying missions involved students to hunt monsters, beasts, common pests and any anomalies that may threaten the populace.


    Gathering missions allowed the students to go in search for precious materials that others may desperately need. This allowed for great interaction between students and socializing skills.


    Exchanging is self explanatory.


    Instead of searching for a material, you may conveniently already have that material. You can give it to someone who needs that material and can get something else in exchange.


    Christian''s mission was a Slaying Mission for the Horned Viper Murderer.


    Dean heard very few rumors of this mission as it was incredibly unpopular and very tough to solve.


    The Horned Viper Murderer had the exact cultivation of Nascent Soul 8 after Dean''s estimation for the difference in time and its past cultivation which was at Nascent Soul 7.


    It fed on small towns in the very rural areas of Red Wood Academy''s domain.


    They had yet to solve the problem as they thought students would be able to be responsible and feel a sense of patriotism.


    Because of the strength of the beast, the school had thought of a reasonable reward for the students to incite motivation.


    In their head, many students would partake on the hunting of the beast which meant the reward would have to be a lot of contribution points.


    It was indeed alluring but the outcome was redundant in many senior''s minds.


    If they used their friend group and included travelling fee, food, water, medical aid and the days they missed school. It was overall a major loss for them.


    Dean chuckled at the resolve of what Christian desired but he did not know that he had another goal in mind which was to see the Shadow of the Night.


    He was still weary on the fact of Christian''s unknown strength had yet to be shown.


    What was the reason for his confidence to go against a Spiritual Transformation beast?


    The cannon fodder was not reliable as Dean saw many participants run away in fright while others were easily killed.


    His escape talisman was also not reliable since the beast''s reaction time was faster than what a normal cultivator could imbue the talisman with Qi.


    If Christian continued to not show his strength then Dean could only add a few more precautions to all his plans.


    Slowly pushing him to the edge would have to have some effect, right?


    Dean thought that it would be irresistible for any person to continue faking their personality or strength when they were pushed to borderline of death.


    His true potential and personality would be brought out for the world to see.


    The high expectation was due to the rumors regarding the Horned Viper Murderer.


    Through multiple books, Dean was able to analyse that the Horned Viper Murderer''s most notable trait would be the deadly toxins it exudes.


    Just breathing the air close to the Horned Viper Murderer would leave most normal people sick like the black plague while long term fights could cause problems to cultivators.


    Its poison that drips down its fangs is able to melt through most metals and if done to a cultivator''s body... it would have a dangerous effect


    Green scales, impenetrable to any sharp blades and nulls the force of blunt weapons.


    The beast was one that had a tight defense that only few could get through while having a strong offense that was well paired.


    To make matters worse, it had a known arrogance that was hidden in its own genetics.


    A crown would be stuck on the Horned Viper Murderer''s head as its scales located on the top would begin moving outwards to make strike any animals.


    Anything above the waist of the snake was deadly so surely the bottom half would have some weakness, right?


    Wrong!


    It was still covered in the sturdy green scales that was now entwined by the color of purple but the most deadly part was the tail.


    Acting as a royal fan, It was pretty yet also dangerous. Used as a stabbing weapon, it can impale many Martial Artists and for any pesky Magicians, the scales would be launched.


    Now that the scales are gone, the defense should have been weaken yet there was a small difficulty that went with it.


    Those very scales are able to regenerate at an insane speed meaning Christian would be left with a very small time frame to take advantage of the regeneration.


    Dean chuckled at the difficulties Christian was soon to face but more news came.


    "Christian took the Rat Pack Slaying Mission"


    "Christian took the Spruce Tree Harvesting Mission"


    "Christian..."


    It seemed that Christian was going to attempt to use the whole of his force in order to raid this mission.


    By taking multiple missions, Christian wouldn''t suffer too much of a loss once he shares the rewards in a partial manner.


    The end result would be that Christian would be able to harvest a suitable carcass from the Horned Viper Murderer that could reinforce the Autarch Society.


    Dean instantly saw through what Christian was doing and sighed when he compared it to the Earth Endowing Tortoise.


    He wasn''t able to use the shell as a weapon or armor because of its sheer size but the only reassurance was the herbs that Leonard was currently using.


    "Hmmm, did Anne relay message yet?"


    ....


    "Men, we''ll be heading out to the west for 250Km!"


    Christian scanned his people as there were only around 50 or so people that would help with accomplishing multiple missions.


    He made sure to get a few extra Space Rings from his family to finish the missions.


    Eyes glaring at the world with a fiery blaze, Christian desired to earn his reputation back

 45 Tedious Tasks of Life

    Christian counted all of his soldiers and individually collected the data.


    21 Martial Artists


    5 Elemental Magicians


    7 Summoning Magicians


    8 Transmutation Magicians


    And 10 Enchanting Magicians


    The force was one that could cause a catastrophe since all of them were the strongest and closest members of the Autarch Society


    Their overall average strength was around Nascent Soul 2 but because of the many magicians, the average strength was lower.


    If they were comparing just Martial Artists then Christian was certain that the average strength would be Nascent Soul 5.


    Martial Artists were strong and capable of travelling over 250Km in a day due to their cultivation.


    Magicians on the other hand had to disable whatever Martial Arts cultivation they may have had, causing their physique to not be as great as what they once were.


    Christian worried over the fact that the trip could be delayed due to the Magician''s stamina which was why he brought forth 7 Summoning Magicians.


    They should have the ability to summon several mounts that could be useful for his troops and when he needed to harvest herbs, they were the perfect people for the job.


    Enchanting Magicians could help the Summoning Magicians'' stamina if they got tired for summoning mounts or the collection of herbs.


    Once the Summoning Magicians were not as effective against the Horned Viper Murderer would the Enchanting Magicians choose a different target.


    They would be commanded to help enchant any of the weaker Martial Artists if they found any trouble fighting or their defense would be a risk to their life.


    If the weaker Martial Artists were fine then they should be enchanting the strengths of the stronger Martial artists to do more damage to the scales.


    The Transmutation Magicians were mainly there to make cutting wood much more easier as well as softening the defense of the Horned Viper Murderer''s scales.


    One thing that had yet to be noted about the Horned Viper Murderer.


    What was effective against it?


    All the books he had read, framed the beast as a catastrophic monster without a match.


    Because of how it was described, Christian wasn''t sure whether Magic would be effective against the beast however he still brought forth 5 Elemental Magicians.


    The reason for why there was only 5 was because he had been researching arrays that could allow his group to take a substantial advantage along with less casualties.


    A merchant from long ago, traded an old bamboo transcript from an Eastern country.


    It used 5 elements, Wind, Fire, Water, Earth and Metal.


    Titled as [5 Elemental Movements], it would meddle with the area it held captive and weaken any foes the caster found to be an enemy.


    In the event this is ineffective, Christian would command the Elemental Magicians to just attack the Horned Viper Murderer.


    Its tough scales would cause difficulties for a tough execution but this reminded this of the time he fought against that golem.


    ''What a shameful moment! An ant tried to harm this king and he deserved death! ''


    Hostility enveloped Christian''s body when he recalled that humiliating moment but chuckled at its scummy behavior.


    The manual [Soul Withering Technique] was nothing more than trash in Christian''s eyes.


    Reading through it only once, Christian found many flaws in the circulation of Qi that would cause the user to die of exhaustion once they reached Void Shattering realm.


    A lowly technique was not for a king so Christian decided to use one of his own that he remembered.


    [Imperial Mandate]


    Meant for a king, the user would be slowly molded into a one of a kind ruler with a clear mind and resolute decisions.


    Each founder of a dynasty could have their problems mostly solved if they had this technique and the fuel for this manual is a resolving will.


    Christian had settled on this technique after looking past his memories and came to the conclusion that this was the one cultivation that would go best with this life.


    If he wanted to reclaim his throne then he could only walk on a path he had yet to fully develop.


    ...


    Dean was about to doze off into a dream land but someone smacked him on the back of the head


    "Now, who the -"


    Turning around, Dean faced who had the audacity to start a fight but to his surprise it was Leonard


    In his hand was a small bottle of pills that already had a strong scent containing fragrant herbs.


    "Yo, i''m not late, right?"


    Placing the bottle on the desk, Leonard made sure to leave his greeting while leaving a note on top of the bottle.


    The ripped piece of paper had a short description in a very neat handwriting that Dean could easily read.


    ''Get the rest after school.''


    "No, you''re not late"


    Dean made sure that his act wasn''t out of the norm and made sure the conversation flowed well.


    ''I can now cultivate in peace for a while''


    It was good timing since Christian had left the school and Dean wanted to test out how effective the herbs were.


    ...


    Christian had just arrived at his first milestone.


    This place had a large forest next to the rural town that contained many types of tree species. Taking advantage of that, Christian disguised his other goal with this location.


    He had sent a scout to visit the Shadow of the Night''s school to arrange a meeting that will finally shed some light on some mysteries.


    The scout had already came back with an address in hand.


    "Here''s the list of all the missions we have accepted. Separate into groups to finish the tasks as soon as possible while I gather some rations."


    Christian allowed the Autarch Society to make their own decisions as he passed the paper to the closest Martial Artist that would act as his attendee


    Dispersing the large group that followed him, he beckoned Anne and Pierre to follow him.


    Most tasks picked were gathering wood causing the prideful Martial Artists to be lumberjacks

 46 Lets Talk Business

    The address was located in an inconspicuous part of the rural town.


    Through the gossip of the villagers, Christian learnt that the motel was run by Shadow of the Night.


    There was no family behind the name, just this person alone created a chain of motels within this area to make money.


    This already showed the clear capabilities of what Shadow of the Night could do.


    Entering the building without a worry, an attendant ran up to Christian in order to greet them


    "Welcome to our motel! How long would you like to stay."


    Christian nodded in the exceptional way the attendant had been brought up as he could notice that he was a hidden expert.


    Core Refiner 7


    To him, he was an ant but to others he was a foe that would waste time.


    "We''re here to visit a friend in room 27"


    Preparing to warn the man in front of him that the room was booked by a V.I.P, Christian brought out a piece of paper that had a signature.


    Taking a closer inspection, the attendant was shocked and bowed


    "Please follow me to your room."


    Respectfully keeping his distance from the guests, the attendant brought them to their designated location.


    Knocking on the door in a certain pattern with a rhythmic force, Christian waited for a response while the attendant had already left.


    The door creaked backwards but there was no one to welcome them


    Christian grunted at the oddball called Shadow of the Night but still respected their decisions without a doubt.


    Opening the door even further, Anne, Pierre and Christian entered in a grandiose manner to make their presence noticed but the room was pitch black.


    Sighing, Pierre looked for a switch and turned on the lights.


    The Shadow of the Night sat with two people behind his seat that waited in a patient manner.


    All were covered in a black robe as well as a black mask they donned.


    Their fashion sense was weird but Christian took a seat without a word while Anne and Pierre took the same position as the henchmen behind the Shadow of the Night.


    Taking a deep breath, Christian wanted to finish this as quickly as possible


    "Shadow of the N-"


    The opposition had stopped him from saying anything and introducing the topic.


    "Please, call me N. Go ahead and take a cup of tea."


    Christian accepted the tea and drank a small sip.


    Worrying over poison was pointless as this would cause difficulties over their pleasantries and any business they would do.


    It would be a bad move for N to try and do anything odd but with Pierre behind him, there was no problem.


    Everyone in their group had a few pills of detoxification since they were going to go against the Horned Viper Murderer.


    "N, i''m sure you must have read what I want and I know someone in your group must have that skill."


    N quickly announced the price he was willing to earn.


    "100,000 gold"


    Christian stood up and hit the table, nearly spilling the tea


    "Presumptuous! Anne and Pierre, we''re leaving."


    They had yet to say anything but followed Christian.


    The door was within arms reach but a voice behind them seemed to have a mystical force since Christian stopped.


    "The price of my services are always just, to allow my mind to be vulnerable and weak is extremely troublesome. My men are busy with their own things and you can;t order them willy nilly"


    N was clearly disappointed with the ignorance Christian had but the organization he created seemed to alluring.


    "Sit down and we can discuss the price."


    Christian thought about it and immediately sat down. Taking out a small pouch that jiggled with the sound of metallic, he threw it towards N.


    He caught it with ease and a gold luster erupt from the bag before throwing a picture at Christian.


    The picture contained two sketches that seemed extremely familiar but they were useless to him since he couldn''t even see who the people were.


    The two sketches wore masks that he couldn''t decipher and despite knowing that they were the one to sabotage him, he couldn''t do anything.


    In frustration, Christian threw down the paper and spoke


    "20,000 gold"


    N had already predicted this and spoke


    "I already have the unmasked picture. I had to pay an expensive price to hire one of my men to use his family heritage magic."


    Christian knew where he was trying to go so he gritted his teeth


    "30,00-"


    N chuckled


    "No, no, no. Money alone can''t buy what I have suffered to earn those two images."


    In an organization that N had created, variety was a necessity.


    Although their primary flow of money originated from what they studied, assassination they had to do other things in order to make sure no one recklessly died.


    Research, testing, observing were the fewest of the needs for the assassins.


    This allowed N to have subordinates with special abilities due to the one aspect they followed.


    Compared to Autarch Society where they had a very general lead that had no specifications.


    N pushed the pouch of gold back to Christian


    "I heard in your youth that you managed to gather quite a few special metals"


    Christian refuted as he knew that N would ask for an exorbitant price


    "I ran out of them a long time ag-"


    "Stop lying"


    N interrupted with a serious tone and Christian had already lost.


    In a battle of debating, N had already won since he always interrupted Christian and he could do nothing about it.


    He had an okay connection with N and to find people with a similar skill set to his organization was very difficult


    Even if he did manage to find someone with the exact skill sets he needed, the price would probably be double than what N offered.


    When the supply is in control the demand will increase and have no hope for any control

 47 Strategies

    Christian contemplated his decisions.


    From his previous experiences he knew that an enemy that had yet to be completely uprooted would come back to haunt him.


    If he made one mistake then that could take his life.


    It was a mistake he didn''t wish to do once more which was why he acted with a lot more precautions


    Realizing that the hidden troubles weren''t worth it, Christian threw out a pink rock from his space ring.


    N couldn''t help but exclaim in surprise


    "Aphrodite''s heart!"


    Quickly grabbing and inspecting it, N nodded in joy as he passed it to the subordinate behind him.


    "Take the pictures. My mouth is zipped."


    Two scrolls slid towards Christian as he scrunched up the paper in his hand and placed the pouch of gold inside his Space Ring


    "Our business is done, it was nice working with you."


    Bowing and excusing himself, Christian''s group left with the transaction lasting less than 20 minutes.


    The psychological warfare was dangerous as a careless word or low price could cause the other party to be offended.


    Although N interrupted Christian multiple times, he still gave reasonable prices and had yet to be grossly aggressive against him.


    The subordinate behind N took advantage of their leave to question N''s decisions.


    "Sir, what should we do next?"


    N smiled at the question as he reminded them of their motto


    "We''re just neutral. If we get hired then more money."


    Shrugging it off, N slept on top of the nearby bed while the subordinates left.


    "If I get a day off school, might as well enjoy it."


    ...


    As a sign of goodwill, Christian booked around 25 rooms of the motel they had just been to.


    It was an indirect way of thanking the Shadow of the Night while keeping it reasonable. If Christian shamelessly asked for free rooms and food, the risk of offending N outweighed the short term benefits.


    Christian had made sure to prepare to do his job like a leader should.


    Any rations that appeared to be running out would be bought and he made sure to compose any strategies on a few pieces of paper.


    The equipment that his men held were just slightly sub par to his but it would still be durable enough against the Horned Viper Murderer.


    Since he fulfilled his role as a leader then his group should fulfill their role as subordinates.


    As expected, the list full of missions had been crossed out with only one subject left


    Horned Viper Murderer Slaying mission


    Pests were hunted, herbs were gathered, trees were harvested and now Christian''s underlings were exhausted.


    To have the best hope in defeating the Horned Viper Murderer, his men needed to have a good rest as well as nourishing food that will help.


    A healthy mind and body was a part of warfare.


    Christian received a handful of Space Rings filled with materials and he nodded blissfully


    Renting out the canteen room, Christian began to organize how they would fight against the Horned Viper Murderer.


    Taking out a diagram and stapling it to the wall Christian started to begin his explanation.


    "The beast is approximately 20m long.I will mark the beast as a circle."


    Pointing to multiple areas, Christian planned out where the people would go


    "South, where the tail lies is the place our Summoning Magicians shall be. I will arm them with bottles containing medicine for those that have been injured. Please be assured by their skills in medical first aid."


    Moving his finger and pointing to the very top of the wall, Christian instructed


    "North is where it is most dangerous. The venomous toxins will only be inches from their bodies and scales could be launched to strike a certain death. Medical aid will be the furthest away which is why I will only bring the elites of the elites."


    "7 Martial Artists will be brought there to either distract the Horned Viper Murderer or strike when it''s the weakest. The face is the general weakness of the beast but the eyes are suggested to be the weakest part of the monster."


    Pointing to the left of the beast, Christian continued his lecture


    "4 Transmutation Magicians will be there to weaken the defense of the Horned Viper Murderer''s scales. Any Martial Artists should keep in mind of their fellow companions if they are in danger. 5 Enchanting Magicians will follow"


    "Your job is to make sure to help increase the strength of landing strikes or increase the evasion speeds of those in danger.There will be 7 Martial artists to help attack the beast"


    Pointing to the final side


    "The east will have the same format as the west and have the same number of force. If the Horned Viper Murderer is attacking in your direction, defend well and allow the other sides to attack the beast."


    A woman at the back was confused since her position had yet to be told so she raised her hand


    "Where will the Elemental Magicians go?"


    Christian pointed in her direction before pointing back at the wall.


    "Good question, I was about to explain that. They will come after this meal to received a scroll that has a chant. It will seal the monster''s most powerful attacks and will be of great aid to our teamwork."


    "They will be arranged in this manner."


    Drawing out 5 points that would altogether seem like a pentagram, a person laughed somewhere in the group.


    Christian frowned before throwing a bread slice at the man


    "Have some decency! People''s lives could be lost due to your childish manner."


    Gazes started to land on the person who laughed, causing great humiliation and forced him to lower his head to eat.


    "The discussion is finished. I hope everyone gets a good nights rest for tomorrows battle."


    Christian tried to save the sour atmosphere as this could affect the morale of his team.


    Yawning to himself he thought


    ''What good is life without venture''

 48 Prelude of a Devastating Catastrophe

    Christian quickly analyzed the Horned Viper Murderer and reaffirmed his position, so he could start making calls.


    The stares from his peers created an invisible pressure but he kept his calm.


    Intertwining green and purple scales of the bottom half, crowned and outwards scales;the most notable part was the tail that extended from its body.


    Christian was absolutely sure that the monster was the Horned Viper Murderer but there was a new additional part to the body.


    Two stubby little arms protruded from the torso and held control of the earth.


    His first guess was that the beast experienced a new mutation or ate a precious herb that could''ve caused the new limbs to form but finally contributed it to one thing.


    The name of the beast.


    Horned Viper Murderer implied the meaning that it would be able to kill vipers and snakes yet that did not explicitly state the monster had to be of the same kind.


    Christian had been too caught up in the books and the rumors and guessed that the limbs were considered useless by the writers'' of the books.


    This meant the limbs shouldn''t play too big of a part in the battle.


    ''It''s all the same at the end''


    Calling everyone, they began their plan


    "Get into the formation we planned yesterday. Be aware of your teammates and harm a general spot to attack."


    Christian selected his people that would follow him and rushed towards the battlefield first.


    Beasts began to disappear as the Summoning Magicians began to conserve their Mana. Fighting will slowly take away resources that they had to make sure could be maintained.


    Every ounce of Mana could be used to help those injured.


    People began to follow Christian''s lead, chasing after him after distancing themselves.


    The raid had already begun while the Horned Viper Murderer was still ignorant of the herd that was currently chasing after him.


    Any threat emitted by the group had no effect on the beast as it still casually walked by.


    A town had already fulfilled the hunger it felt which was why Christian''s group didn''t seem attractive for a meal.


    Christian gladly took advantage of the town''s sacrifice and hoped to use it to the fullest.


    Forming a circle around the monster, Christian initiated the battle.


    "Elemental Mages!"


    5 Magicians stood out with their colorful robe that suited the element they were the most adept in. Stepping out of the groups they were once in, they were now the center of attention.


    Chanting an incoherent spell to most people''s ears, a line gradually appeared beneath their feet that connected with the Elemental Mage next to them.


    It began to accelerate as the line soon connected, forming a circle and creating a sphere that trapped the beast.


    Noticing the change of environment, the beast began to hiss at its opponents after realizing the threat they were to it.


    The Qi fluctuation was off putting, causing the Horned Viper Murderer to get hasty in its movement.


    Christian saw the antsy moves and decided that all his preparations were done after he checked everyone was in position.


    "CHARGE!"


    Commanding his men, they ran forward to get a surprise attack off.


    Enchanting Magician began to focus on their allies while the Martial Artists aimed to look for any weaknesses.


    Christian''s group watched the chaos ensuing that reminded him of his childhood.


    The roar of battle that evoked the desire to win and be the one standing amongst dead corpses.


    Enemies that would kill, **** or loot your kingdom are gone in an instance because of your decisions. A threat that was gone meant another night of good night sleep.


    At first, it would be difficult to accept this but time is the testimony of your strength.


    To the west, the group had to defend against a tail that came rushing towards them.


    Most that were close to the Horned Viper Murderer grabbed hold of the body and mounted it to gain a higher ground.


    Others quickly hopped out of the way while keeping an eye against the potential threat of flying scales.


    The head made a move as well as it turned to the east and quickly struck its mouth towards the people.


    Seeing the jaws of death looming closer to their death, they naturally moved away to the side however the toxins from the breath of the Horned Viper Murderer proved to be very effective.


    Some people began to feel nauseated however it only dulled their senses as adrenaline made them overlook that fact.


    Christian saw that the Horned Viper Murderer moved in an exact 90 degrees rotation, avoiding his group.


    He thought that it may have been a coincidence so he continued his attack without worrying his companions.


    Charging and forgetting his previous thought, Christian''s group had already approached the Horned Viper Murderer''s left eye.


    Others continued with the plan from beforehand and didn''t care about what Christian was doing. They focused on the scales before them.


    Stabbing and cutting, the method proved to be inefficient if they used their normal tools for the job. Taking out their strongest weapons, their strikes seemed more powerful however no gigantic progress was done.


    A few people stuck on the lizard searched for any weak scales that may be hidden, similar to a turtle''s belly.


    Instead they were thrown out with ease that allowed the Horned Viper Murderer to move much more freely.


    Christian''s group was currently in mid air, aiming for the eye that was the most visible weakness of the beast.


    Weapons unsheathed, morale at its highest, Christian thought the battle would soon be done as long as the battle went smoothly and everybody kept to the original plan.


    If the beast had intelligence it would have laughed.


    As if knowing what Christian was thinking it moved the scaly tail in front of its face and blocked the attacks of those pests, causing them to take the defensive when receiving the attack.


    A snarky and calm attitude suddenly emerged from the lizard

 49 Familiar Faces

    Everyone had gone to bed and few were still awake in their bedrooms.


    The Elemental Magicians studied their hearts about the [5 Elemental Movements] and made sure to exert the most effort in understanding their proficient area of magic.


    It was not ideal in their circumstances since they were only given a night to study this manuscript.


    In the morning there might be a slot for reading the manuscript once more but with the stress accumulating in the group, it would be difficult.


    However they were still competent enough to understand the very basis of what Christian desired.


    Meanwhile, Christian was in his own room, looking at the paper he received.


    There was a bad premonition about the paper he currently held.


    A truth that he didn''t want to see was the first impression he had but this instead bugged him to pry open what the paper contains.


    Sitting there wouldn''t do anything.


    Opening the scrolls, Christian felt a little speechless. Lying before him were two pictures that he couldn''t understand.


    The faces were clearly normal but Christian couldn''t remember if he had seen any of them before.


    One was an overall handsome person with short white hair and clear pristine blue eyes; nothing below the head was seen as it was replaced with a description.


    But the person who grabbed Christian''s attention was the guy on the other scroll.


    Whispering out loud


    "Didn''t I see him at the dorms?"


    Realizing at this point that there had been a sweeping of every dorm in their school. He should''ve seen the white haired man in the crowd or the dorms but he didn''t


    Christian came to the rash conclusion that the student was most likely from another school despite Leonard attending Redwood Academy.


    It was possibly due to the stress getting to his head that caused this but it was quickly disrupted by his cultivation manual, [Imperial Mandate].


    Calming his mind, Christian began to rationalize his prior knowledge


    "I was at the library yet no one told me the commotion."


    This lead to the possibility that Leonard could have been in a special facility and doesn''t rule that idea out.


    But that meant nothing as Christian couldn''t do any investigations yet.


    The other guy was clearly different the scar on his face created a notable image of his face.


    Pure green eyes shone out of his average looks and the black hair had a glossy undertone which could be done from tonics increasing cultivation.


    Below was a name and a short description


    "Insane Beast? A crazed person that only runs on fighting?..."


    Below the description seemed to be more nonsense as it wouldn''t make sense on how this person could scheme the destruction of the herb he was about to collect.


    Thinking that it was the white hair teenager, Christian looked at his information but the only notable thing was his ability to control water and swordsmanship.


    Doubt clouded his mind when he thought of N but it was very unlikely that he would make such an offensive move.


    Puzzled by the information, Christian set the thought to the back of his mind and when he returned back to the school, would he look for more information.


    His first priority was to lay low and not create any useless enmity. Even if there was any animosity directed at him, he made it his first concern to eliminate or cripple that force.


    With all those reason behind, Christian still couldn''t understand how someone could retaliate with crippled strength or dead corpse.


    A hypothesis he thought was that this could be the use of forbidden magic that allowed the two enemies to somehow resurrect as he remembered that there are indeed methods that allow atrocities to be created.


    Although it was very unlikely since this world shouldn''t contain the possibilities of making or passing on a heritage for revival.


    Revival was a possibility but Christian still couldn''t accept the fact that he couldn''t recognize such faces despite having a high cultivation foundation


    The only valid reason he could accept was that they were like him.


    It was unfortunate that Anne and Pierre had yet to know that Christian accidentally discovered Dean''s existence but for a different reason.


    Thinking more about the two people, Christian wanted to know why they tried to sabotage him but sleep was what he first needed.


    Pondering would do nothing but disrupt his state of mind.


    Christian thought to himself


    ''Happy thoughts...Imperial Court...''


    ...


    Morning had risen and many students who were now prepared to face a monster, emitted a stronger sense of will power.


    They ate their food with a sense of serene peace and chatted with their friends in a delightful tone.


    Everyone had gotten a good night rest as they thought the fight would be a cinch with the strategies that were provided and the positivity boost from friends.


    Greeting were sent to anybody that walked past in the hopes of creating good morale.


    Christian nodded at the sight.


    His soldiers were well rested, healthy, full of nutrients, hydrated and are confident. What more could Christian want?


    Pierre had reported that all 50 students were now awake and fed.


    Once the preparations were done, Christian led his men to gallop across the distance towards a very rural town.


    It was in ruins


    Christian had been desensitized to such scenes when he remembered his dad. His real dad would drag him to wastelands to learn that life was tough and you were nothing to the heavens.


    Compared to him, a few people in the group gasped in surprise as a few teared up when they saw the limbs of humans.


    The sobbing echoed within the silent village that was now in shambles


    Pierre looked around for any evidence of the Horned Viper Murderer and just out of the corner of his eye did he saw a beast.


    It was unfathombly large and Christian had also noticed it when Pierre suddenly stopped.


    Acting as a chain reaction, Anne noticed and now the whole group noticed.

 50 Instinctive Monster

    Christian was thrown back by the scales and watched as one soldier got a scratch on the torso of his body.


    He was profusely bleeding and it came far too close towards his heart as it was only a few centimeters off due to his blade changing the directory of the scale.


    This sight brought forth the realization that something really was off with this monster. Albeit, a little too late, Christian had yet to lose a soul in this battle and as long as he observed the beast properly would his safety be insured.


    The clueless attitude the Lizard had once shown was now turned into curiosity that was piqued by the new toys


    Indifferent to the threatening gazes, it scoffed at Christian and tried to eat one of his soldiers.


    Its upper body lunged forward and twirled mid air to create an illusion that threw off the people holding on its scales.


    Enchanting Magicians looked toward the poor victim and quickly attempted to save him by enhancing his physical capabilities.


    Death was coming closer and memories of the past flew into the insignificant man''s head. The precious meaning of life enlightened him at the sadness of what the end will inventively be however an empowering vitality brought forth his potential to avoid that attack.


    He was planning to jump to the side in order to not die but the lizard moved in an unexpected direction.


    Left!


    There was no more reason to dodge any incoming attack as the Lizard turned its large body towards another direction.


    The problem was that there were no warriors in sight but only mages.


    Mages that had just casted the enchanting magic.


    Focusing too much onto someone else, they were unaware of the potential danger that they had brought upon themselves.


    Magic had to take time before it could be continuously casted meaning they were left vulnerable.


    Christian immediately noticed this and wanted to yell for soldiers to save them but his rationality knew that there was no point.


    3 people were instantly devoured while the rest were pushed aside by the wind.


    Memories of the past flew into Christian that left him in a melancholy mood.


    Countless people dying for wealth and a happy ending for their family. Patriotism driving them forward one by one.


    The screams of a widow and the sulk of a child.


    This was the curse of an emperor.


    Only with violence and endurance will a king slowly unify the land and create peace, order for everyone.


    Christian decisively called half of his people to flank the beast as a distraction while others could run off towards the medics.


    He was proud to see that many Summoning Magicians had brought forth their creatures to recover any allies in danger that may have trouble walking.


    However there was not time to waste as he must stick to the plan.


    The diversion had already ran off and tried to annoy the creature by striking towards the tail.


    A scale was scratched off showing off a pink flesh, vulnerable to sharp weapons the severing of a tail.


    Horned Viper Murderer was instantly thrown into a panic at that moment and didn''t attempt to wave the enemies away with his tail but instead bare its fangs against them.


    Christian had told his group to spread out to prepare for any unexpected moves and was a good call.


    One soldier had moved towards the left of Christian and had a chance to attack an opening.


    Holding two small daggers in his hand, he acted like a hero and charged without a worry. Jumping an abnormal height due to his light armor, A unguarded eye was wide open in front of him.


    Noticing a weird peculiarity, it seemed like a spot of dust was inching closer towards its face.


    The Horned Viper Murderer moved its iris and stared straight into the eyes of the incoming foe.


    A cryptic black void reflected the image of two daggers attacking and the intimidated face of the soldier.


    Fear started to build up when looking at those deadly eyes however it was too late to back away as victory was close with this one attack.


    Two daggers stabbed down as the man avoided the eyes and only felt the sensation of liquid drenching him.


    Weapons stuck and blinding the Horned Viper Murderer, the soldier felt relief and a sense of euphoric happiness.


    He was a hero.


    Someone who contributed a large amount into a battle that will allow his friends, comrades to live.


    Why wouldn''t he be happy?


    For some reason, his body seemed to be heading towards the ground at a faster rate than what gravity would have normally done to him.


    A resounding question that was accidentally spoken aloud was echoed across the battlefield.


    "Huh?"


    *CRASH*


    Dust fogged the area as a huge bang created a small crater from the strong force the lizard had released.


    Christian covered his eyes with his arms and waited fro the dust to dissipate as he tried to see what was happening in the dust.


    There were screams of anguish and the surroundings a strange quietness enveloped the area.


    Common sense prevailed against irrational fear as people hurried to get into groups and get more information of the dangerous foe.


    No one had yet to strike randomly while the quietness turned into an eerie silence, waiting to kill everyone in an instant.


    To Christian''s surprise, the dust had calmed itself and had already fallen down.


    From the previous experience of fighting the Horned Viper Murderer, Christian knew it was not proficient in assassinating any of his men without making a single noise.


    This was derived from the violent, playful style that could not be silenced and the skills his soldiers can use to defend themselves.


    The veil of dust had now revealed a new show for Christian to face against the Horned Viper Murderer as they both stared at each other.


    Next to a lizard was a crushed corpse.

 51 Berserk Mess

    "Remember son, this is what will happen to the losers in life. A game they lose can never be recovered. The thought of giving them a chance will ultimately kill you"


    Holding a head leaking blood from beneath its neck and dripping blood where a body once was, a child nodded in silence watching coolly.


    Horses ran across a headless body without mercy and crushed it to pieces, the food wasn''t worth staining their palate.


    The child didn''t look back as he hurried forward in search of prosperity and greatness


    ....


    A gruesome figure was completely destroyed and intimidated everyone who saw that thing as someone who as once a friend.


    Those who were devoured had been ignored and especially for the people who were close to them sulked in silence for their losses.


    Only when the cold truth of reality slapped the people into wake did they realize how terrifying death could be.


    Bones shattered into dust, blood spilled across the dirty ground and mince like flesh now littered the ground.


    An intact leg could be seen, missing from the torso while the clothing was shredded apart, soaking up the red water it was bathed in.


    Morale was further decreased when the Horned Viper Murderer swooped down to the ground and swallowed the remains without hesitation.


    Everything just felt like it was an illusion. The only evidence that could be seen was the blood splatter that spurted tiny dots around a small pool.


    Few felt like they could continue this battle even though they had only lost 4 people in total.


    Christian scoffed in disdain as he realized that although his soldiers were taught with strict diligence they have yet to become numb in the face of death.


    ''Even if we suffer large losses, they will become steel hearted warriors.''


    He refused to try an input any words to up the motivation of his soldiers as people were already doing that for him.


    Those that were close to the dead souls seeped an intense hatred that was aimed towards the beast while others had started giving speeches to anybody close to them.


    Expressing their resentment as a fuel for revenge, his soldiers began to get mad at their laughable weakness while other lamented their state.


    Some had reached a sort of enlightenment.


    The situation was slowly recovering however Christian didn''t forget to keep a close eye on the lizard.


    An indifferent aura was replaced with a much more serious one as it looked down against the pitiful beings that would soon be its food


    Slithering towards the sky, the lizard rested its tail by coiling around the middle part of its body while two stubby arms poked out in a non threatening manner.


    Once reaching a tall enough height, the head slowly turned down until it was able to stare down at the annoying pests.


    The crown and spike like horns began to glow a yellow hue that lit across the blue sky.


    In utter disdain a majestic aura was released, competing against any foes that wished to court death in front of the royalty being itself.


    Christian felt the desire to recklessly kill it but that would be nothing more than a death sentence.


    Analyzing the reason for the odd stance, Christian had to guess that the lizard was becoming more cautious against the attacks which was why its weakness was now high in the sky.


    A ear rupturing roar exploded from the Horned Viper Murderer that caused everyone within the vicinity to hold onto their ears. Faces distorted from the painful scream.


    The few that managed to recover quickly such as Christian saw the mess the beast had already created.


    It held its stance without any issues and pecked the closest soldiers by moving its head in a direction using a rapid speed that made the incapacitated people die within an instance.


    Everyone began to recover from the vicious voice and became aware of what the monster was trying to do. Without any issues they were now able to dodge the attacks.


    Those that were dodging the attacks served as a good distraction for those fighting. Scales began to wore out from the constant damage as blood began to pour from multiple flesh wounds


    The beast had obviously noticed the irksome damage and understood the current stance it was taking was pointless.


    Instinctively moving away from the damage, it slithered away from the harm and sprayed poisonous gas towards anybody within the vicinity of its reach.


    People avoided breathing the toxic air and placed a cloth over their nose and mouth. Others refused to let down such an important chance an attacked the monster without hesitation.


    Blood dripped down the blades that managed to impale the Horned Viper Murderer while few soldiers were give the chance to strike the eye.


    As if a warning to what might happen if they attack the eye, the vivid memory of a man without an intact corpse would intimidate their movements.


    Limiting themselves on the damage they would do, Christian would have to contribute the battle towards a war of attrition if no one can permanently blind the beast.


    As if giving Christian a chance, the lizard was nowaiming for Christian''s group that was within the proximity of the Summoning Magicians.


    Christian saw the fear in many of his soldiers eyes which forced him to sigh and make the move to finally blind the lizard


    Positioning himself to get the remaining eye, Christian took a deep breath and watched the jaws of the lizard carefully.


    The lizard had just barely moved past him as he jumped towards the lizard and stabbed.


    There was no second thought as the one thing Christian wanted to spit at the lizard in a low voice


    "I''m the real Emperor"


    Hurriedly jumping away, he refused to become a mushed corpse instead of a living human.


    Permanently blind. A frantic outburst crashed against anything that was close to it.

 52 Dirty Tricks

    An empty dark void replaced the vibrant reality.


    Constant pain alarmed the mind yet what could Horned Viper Murderer do?


    Refusing to accept such disgrace from weak ants, the lizard instead relied on scent to hunt Christian but the flesh wounds were too much.


    The lizard writhed across the ground as chunks of land flew above Christian''s men from the destructive tail swinging about.


    Poison sludge were spat everywhere with people dancing like fools in the hopes they could dodge the incoming danger.


    Those two stubby arms that fared no danger instead impaled the ground causing an unusual shake that threw few off their balance. Taking advantage of that, the lizard would then attempt to strike those men


    However the loss of sight instead caused it to throw rocks against them.


    It was a shame for the lizard that no matter what it did, it would always be paranoid by the fact that an enemy could be at every corner.


    Christian thought that if he waited long enough, the lizard would eventually die from blood loss.


    His army declined that thought as the amount of people injured and killed were too much that many may face some sort of obstruction in their cultivation if they couldn''t kill the monster right then and there.


    Voices could be heard exclaiming the effectiveness of the dangerous toxin surrounding a small group.


    This one voice was attempting to lead a small group out of the danger as well as watching out for any soldiers in danger.


    The enveloping chaotic field was slowly being avoided.


    But this was a wrong choice.


    The lizard had lost its sight meaning the next trustworthy ability to know where any enemies were was its hearing.


    Diving into the sound, it guessed the approximate proximity and coiled around the group in a small circle while letting out an intimidating roar.


    Tightening the circle closer and closer the anxiety of the small group could be heard by the frustrating screams and the loud footsteps.


    People had no idea how to save them so they instead resorted to getting the attention of the beast by launching magic spells and chipping away the scales while the Martial Artists struck open flesh wounds.


    Immobilizing the beast for only a few seconds, a few of the people in the group reacted fast as they either crawled atop the scales or looked for a gap within the encirclement.


    Only a few were struck dumb by fear.


    Annoyed by the constant attacks, the Horned Viper Murderer dug a hole and inserted its whole body into the ground and managed to hide itself from the danger.


    The small group saw that glimmer of hope slowly expanding while the circle decreased in size but a loud


    *BOOM*


    Dirt exploded everywhere as the huge land where the small group once was had now been devoured in an instant while the snake resumed its original arrogant stance.


    Those that had just managed to escape gasped in surprise and terror.


    ''That could''ve been me''


    The few poor souls that were still on that patch of dirt had unfortunately passed away however Christian saw this as an opportunity to finally end the fight.


    Any tough defense the snake may have had was now wrecked.


    Blood was trailing and originating from the large flesh wounds and the Horned Viper Murderer was blind.


    All they had to do was just blindly aim for the creature and now kill it.


    People began using whatever magical arts they could remember while the Martial Artists drew restless from the horrifying experience.


    Christian had realized that he should''ve brought cannon fodder if he knew this were to happen but at the very least they had won.


    A lifeless corpse had finally crashed onto the ground breathing its last breath and reminiscing the simple existence it had led.


    The blood would''ve been flowed out in a natural manner but the natural resource could not be put to waste


    Christian immediately gathered the Autarch Society to carve the materials from the lizard.


    Few were to count the casualties as well as the amount of material they could actually claim.


    Some scales were already broken and were completely useless while corpses would not be intact forcing others to recount the traumatizing scene.


    A depressing scene eventually was what the result was that left Christian to hold some of his men in contempt


    ''How can they not move on? If this happens every single time then an army would have no choice but to surrender in the face of danger.''


    It was unusual to come to this type of disappointment but Christian tried to at least hope that this would somehow broaden his horizon


    Standing at the top and watching millions of people releasing a war cry that would envelope the atmosphere with energy and optimism.


    Watching a future that may come to fruit, Christian looked back to reality


    ''Slow steps Christian. Slow steps.''


    Waiting for his aspirations to slowly mold itself into reality, a girl walked up to Christian and told him the casualty rate.


    "9 people have passed away while 22 people have been injured"


    The damage was surprisingly high but the causality rate was within what Christian had already estimated.


    Sacrifices had to be made but as long as it never surpassed 70% then it was still a good victory.


    Most had been poisoned leaving Christian absent of any Purification Pills however only a small minority had passed out from heavy bleeding, lost of limb or any serious injuries


    Once the job had been finished with the corpse finally being dismantled Christian commanded the group for the last time for this battle


    "It''s time to go home!"


    Some cried after the experience but most now wore a blank, emotionless face


    ....


    "We can stop with the element formation, right?"


    "But Christian didn''t say to stop..."


    "They are literally leaving us"


    "Yeah, we might want to just stop."


    "What do you think happened with the battle?"

 53 Picturesque Banque

    The whole journey consisted of weeping and teary faces and the uncontrollable cold glare released by those that were the most hurt.


    Christian empathized with them because at one point everyone will have reached low bar in their life.


    Words were not enough to console the emotional problems they had.


    He was determined to engrave the lost soldiers'' name onto a tombstone in order to commemorate their importance.


    ''They were the first to help propel my new future into success.''


    Eventually reaching town, Christian took advantage of his geographical location to think of ways to create happiness.


    "Let''s throw a banquet!"


    Christian was about to reach such an idea but the most elite people of his group had voiced out their desire.


    The discussion over a majestic feast as well as plentiful alcohol to sate their current emotions, it became the topic of everyone''s conversation.


    ''Drinking alcohol to drown the sorrows''


    Although it was not the right method to handle it, Christian felt it was alright as long as it was only for the short term.


    "Then let''s hurry to the inn."


    ....


    "Are you sure?"


    "You saw yourself how he used us like tools and only watched us wrack up profit. You tell me?"


    Trying to cool the situation, a person pushed the two away from each other


    "Enough is enough! We have already committed to our action and it''s useless to regret it. All of us were the victims of such tyranny."


    Another added their own piece


    "You''re friend wasn''t the only one to be killed, we''re all hurt."


    The one who originally started the conversation waved his hand after this tiring yelling


    "Hmmph, you''re plan better work"


    ....


    Christian was ready to give out a speech of thanks for the bravery and courage of those that fought along with him however held back


    The eyes betrayed the little sanity that was left within them


    Coughing to avoid saying anything, Christian instead just said a simple phrase


    "Let''s eat!"


    It was obviously very awkward as many were not comfortable remembering what had happened and despite being in front of marvelous cuisine they couldn''t resist being reminded of a crushed corpse


    No one had yet to throw up from that thought.


    Christian realized that this would go nowhere so he brought out the alcohol for everyone to enjoy.


    Wine, vodka, rum and a variety of drinks began to be served by the waiters and waitresses.


    A few were to hasty to desire forgetting those horrifying memories and began chugging the first few drinks that arrived until they were satisfied.


    Christian held those few in contempt as this reminded him of spoiled nobles that were unable to do anything because of how spoiled they were.


    Eventually they would become the downfall of their family.


    Just the memories of useless people that he had to allow roam and take part in his kingdom was infuriating as they were a partial reason for his downfall.


    ''This time it won''t happen''


    Christian swore that he would make sure to eliminate those buffoons if they were to cross paths with him.


    Those that were once teary eyed and filled with sorrow became much calmer with the help of alcohol.


    There were strange mixes of emotions that Christian observed


    One was laughing while crying, attempting to hide the pain within her heart


    Another became cold and frigid, keeping a distance from everyone and let out a tear every once in a while.


    The oddities began as Christian also soon became drunk.


    "Sir, shall we send a small team to spread glory of our name"


    Although he couldn''t see who the person was as the alcohol and loud noises messed with his brain, he still understood what the man was trying to get


    "U-uh, yes"


    Once hearing the reply, the man gracefully left and along with him were 3 other people.


    Their faces didn''t seem to important from what Christian could recollect but he shrugged it off


    ''Time to sleep, I guess''


    Accepting that a hangover will be inevitable, Christian decided to sleep early.


    ...


    The sun had already risen high into the sky and the night had long pass from the time Christian was awake.


    Delicious food and divine drinks and the joyful atmosphere was one that will forever be remembered


    ''They may be pretending that the pain doesn''t exist but one day they will face it''


    Each step Christian made was in order to pave a way for success in the future.


    Guiding everyone back to the academy, Christian still felt a hidden sense of pride that was similar to what an adult would feel for their successful child.


    The academy was within their sightas well as a crowd of people


    ''Are they here to welcome us?''


    Christian was stunned for a moment as he didn''t think the hunt would bring forth that much attention however he still waved at them


    Appreciating the time they took out of their free time to watch his return.


    It was odd as their were quite a lot of mature faces that probably belonged to a teacher as well as a familiar face


    The Head of Disciplinary Actions!


    Crossed arm, Christian could hear him yelling when he was only a few metres away from the academy.


    "CHRISTIAN, FOLLOW ME TO THE DEAN''S OFFICE!"


    "..."


    Christian didn''t know what he did this time but he had a bad feeling of the outcome.


    Two teachers immediately arrived before him and grabbed him before he could say anything.


    A cloth was suddenly stuffed into his mouth that forced him to only whimper


    "Hmmh..."


    It was impossible to break out of their grip and the only thing Christian could do was swear in his mind and hope to exact revenge when he reached a higher cultivation stage.


    ''@#$%%#@$%$''


    A sorrowful voice filled with disappointment reached Christian''s ears


    "Christian, I thought the first time was because you got framed. But this time... I can''t help you. If you really did what I was told then you can only help yourself."


    ''What did I even do?''

 54 Unreasonable Murderer

    "How many people agreed?"


    "At least half of them found Christian to be unfit."


    "Oh, so many? Are you sure they won''t usher a word of betrayal?"


    "I could see the hatred in their eyes, there''s no way they could lie with such realistic emotions


    Dean sat on the same tree branch and interrogated Pierre for what had exactly happened on the trip and found it to be similar to his estimations.


    It was certain that at least one person would die when in face of such a dangerous foe, compared to the Earth Endowing Tortoise


    The Earth Endowing Tortoise had a limited variety of skills and had a very obvious weak point.


    Given enough time, anyone would be able to gather an attack pattern from how the beast would act.


    A lizard with a body of a snake had much more versatility in its ability to attack.


    ''Oh how far he has fallen from grace''


    "It seems they have already begun to put up posters"


    Dean saw a few students pasting paper onto the sides of classrooms that was set up by the school.


    Advertising the punishment and wrongs a student committed allowed the academy to earn quite a bit of benefits.


    Acting as a detergent for others that had the same idea of doing some crime, they would instead become notorious, damaging any credibility they have built up.


    Utter Humiliation.


    At the very top of the poster was Christian''s crime as well as punishment in full bold for students to observe


    The previous incident was covered up however the school seemed to have gotten tired of whatever shenanigans Christian has done.


    "Christian - Schemed against other students by placing them in unlawful situations causing them death. Over 20 students reported the incident during his attempt of a hunt."


    "Punishment: 2 weeks of suspension"


    "..."


    Black lines treaded through Dean''s head as he was dumbfounded at the lack of discipline.


    ''What was that punishment, no, it shouldn''t even be called a punishment. It''s a damn holiday!''


    Dean wanted to punch whoever did such a poor job of taking care of Christian as this was too lacking and soft handed.


    An unknown anger arose inside him.


    All Christian would suffer was just a bunch of families with weak backgrounds trying to attack his family.


    Eyes lighting up with a green flare, it died down immediately however Dean lightly jabbed a nearby tree.


    The tree now had a large dent but no one noticed the mood Dean was in as he had already returned to his dorm.


    "So I should start making the final preparation?"


    ...


    "How much money have we lost?"


    An irritated voice sounded out as a hint of anger was mixed in


    A humble voice soon followed


    "Young Master, using the materials you have brought in. Our total budget is still on the positive with a 100,000 gold."


    The young man nodded in expectation


    "Hmmm, so they chose to fight. Is our cavalry still in shape?"


    "We have already given them full remuneration for their services and have less than 3,000 casualties in total."


    The young man wanted to smash the table before him but kept his calm.


    "Make sure to decimate the clans that foolishly had the guts to fight against the Vikander family. Have you gathered the data I told you to search on after receiving those photos."


    Wanting to avoid the chance of offending the young master, the butler answered the question and ignored the first half of the sentence


    "I have received two folders containing their data. They include, age, gender, occupation, alias, name, Affiliation etc. Young master may wish to read these at any time."


    Walking up to the table, the butler left something on top before excusing himself out of the room.


    Christian hesitated to take a look inside however his curiosity got the best of him


    Opening up the first folder he was immediately scared by the backing behind this person.


    It was unknown why he would work with another person to attempt to harm the Vikander family however Christian guessed that he may have been guided by another person.


    Surprisingly, this child is apparently in his school despite never seeing him.


    Finishing his reading on this person, Christian moved onto the next person.


    At first glance everything seemed normal however Christian felt he needed to double check the name as well as the affiliation.


    ''This... how can it be him?''


    Christian made sure to rub his eyes once more as he felt that he was hallucinating for a moment. Scanning through the paper carefully, the paper was being scrunched up.


    After cooling down his surprise, anger began to erupt from him as he soon yelled


    "To have the guts to mess with me. BRING THE ELITE CORPS!"


    The butler was outside of the room and could obviously hear what the young master had desired, sighing at the tough life that may be before him, he rang a bell.


    Soon shadows rushed toward the bell as a strong aura started to pressure the building due to the number of experts that suddenly arrived.


    Christian opened the door and flung his arm forward, grasping onto a sword a random person gave him.


    "An ant has dared to bite us. This humiliation will without a doubt be washed with blood."


    "WE WILL HEED YOUNG MASTER''S WORDS."


    Waving his hand, another raid was about to begin


    "Let''s allow our foes to witness what a step into hell may look like. The stars and moon will reflect the catastrophic fires."


    Saying all that was needed to be said, Christian brought out a map and pointed to a certain location


    "As soon as the sun sets and the moon rises shall we begin."


    This allowed preparation for anyone that would need to finish any small or menial tasks before heading out.


    After the event Christian had experience he became much more resolved


    ''Exterminate the root of problem, no stone should be left unturned. This is only the beginning.''

 55 Aggressive Nature

    The weeks of suspension had already ended however the effects that it had caused has yet to be completely gone.


    "See dude, I knew the Autarch Society was suspicious."


    "Yeah I can already tell. I just sent my resignation letter to let me leave that club."


    Others gossiped and bad mouthed Christian who was currently in a pitiful position.


    "I thought the incident with the underwear was false, but to think Christian would harm his peers."


    "Rose, you should hurry up and break up with him."


    The abrupt manner her name was pulled into the conversation caught Rose''s attention as she stammered in an attempt to answer


    "Uh, um. Christian really isn''t like that."


    Although she said that she knew what Christian has done in order to get his goals.


    It was unusual that he would be so reckless but she followed him since she was a child so it was too late to suddenly stop.


    Having her friends constantly doubt their relationship was painful, equivalent to betrayal.


    She knew they were just trying to look out for her as friends but the harassment was too much.


    Rose learnt how disgusting the human nature was, seniors would ask her to break off her engagement so that she could marry them instead.


    Girls would bully her seeing that the backing behind her was placed in a bad light.


    It was hypocritical as she understood this scene was disgusting however forcing a close friend to die is not.


    Hurrying to her dorm, she felt empty.


    Hiding herself using the blankets and curling up into a ball she couldn''t help think


    ''Christian, what happened?''


    ...


    Christian had finally returned to school but his troubles were never ending.


    The fiery glares, vicious words, despicable pointing truly stung


    To make matters worse he couldn''t allow anymore reckless actions to happen within school grounds.


    People who were extremely close to the dead people that died in the hunt for the Horned Viper Murderer was pinning all the blame on him.


    They would take Christian towards a desolate place in school and attempt to beat Christian into a pulp however they were limited to blunt objects.


    In the end, Christian dodged all their attacks however no matter how much he wanted to retaliate there was a voice that told him to stop.


    ''Such a tiny school holding me back.''


    Christian was tempted to grab the attention of all the students and look for one of the students who was in that folder.


    Thinking of that, a brick soon landed on his head that made him numb but his rationality was lost.


    Drawing out a sword, he pointed it to the person who harmed him and brought forth a fierce some aura


    "I''ve had enough of this game."


    The man dropped his brick in fear and fell onto his knees however Christian still had some injuries.


    Dust and dirt was now mixed into his hair, cuts and bruises populated his visible body while the bright energetic sensation from his eyes were now dull.


    Walking into a more populated area, a typhoon of humiliation was felt.


    Everyone avoided him like a plague and only dared to talk trash when he was far away.


    A few of those sentences caused Christian to speak out


    "Huh, WHAT ARE YOU LOOKING AT."


    The provocation caused a few students to back away from the area as the pure aggression from Christian was too much for them to handle.


    Others looked in disdain at the once gifted child that now turned into a mess.


    His original plan was to look for a certain guy under the name of ''Leonard''. After listing out all the clues he had managed to gather Christian formulated a few understandings.


    ''According to the poster and lecture I was given, there were at least 20 people who betrayed me within the time period of the hunt''


    If it was random person who was told of the event and wanted to slander me due to a motivation of destroying my organization then that would make no sense.


    The reason being that his teammates and people he worked with would''ve said something to defuse the matter.


    considering how the event has escalated, Christian could only guess that at best they would bandwagon with the main culprits.


    From those clues this meant that Christian was able to come to the conclusion that without a doubt it was someone who worked with him during the hunt.


    This was further defined by the ''witness'' word used.


    Christian wracked his head but realized he was getting ahead of himself.


    He should''ve just thought backwards to find where all of this originated from.


    The reason why there was a crowd and the Head of Disciplinary Actions standing in front of the academy was because he sent messengers to spread the message of his fame.


    It meant that it was those scums who betrayed him. For one person to persuade at least 20 people was very difficult making the whole team that was sent was 100% traitors.


    Christian began to doubt his skills in leadership and wondered if an undercover spy from another organization had purposely done this but that was ruled out as it was impossible for a whole group of sellouts to enter his close circle.


    Using the process of elimination, it was impossible for small fries to do this so it had to be somebody close enough with him.


    A person high in power, someone who knows the layout of his group well enough that they dare to choose people to betray me, confident that this matter wouldn''t spread.


    Who?


    As if god was answering his questions, Ayesha stood before him.


    Christian felt like his mind had reached an enlightenment as he laughed in irony.


    ''I knew you hated me, but to try and ruin my reputation hehe... you''re a 100 years too young to be doing that.''


    Ayesha immediately ran away from his sights as he followed in haste in order to find and pursue the truth of this matter.


    "He has taken the bait."

 56 It Was You?

    "He has taken the bait"


    Pierre coldly watched the lunatic of a person Christian was currently turning to and immediately ran towards the distance to inform Dean.


    Dean was quietly watching off the top of a building in entertainment.


    The disgusting nature of the youths in this school was too interesting with their short sighted conclusion brought only on information given to them.


    Standing in the back, they laugh and cheer in cruelty yet refuse to search for their own truth and just join the majority.


    "Are we really of the same species?"


    Dean himself enjoyed Christian''s pains and difficulties as he had a reason however no one else should be joyful for this.


    Living in two different worlds, Dean''s thoughts were disrupted as he saw Pierre and knew what he was going to say.


    "Christian is chasing after Ayesha."


    Smiling to himself, Dean responded in a cynical manner


    "I can finally end all of this farce. Lead me to Anne, we''ll settle this for once."


    Pierre silently nodded and ran towards another direction where Dean soon saw Anne gathering a group of people.


    They were cloaked in baggy black clothes and wore a blank white mask, removed of any features.


    Identically the same as everyone within the group, the one distinction would be the height as no one dared to speak a single word.


    Anne soon lead them in an organized manner where they headed towards the same place however doing it out in the open would be too suspicious.


    Instead Dean had already proposed that they would be brought in at different times to make them seem inconspicuous.


    The group in black nodded without a word and checked the time every once in a while.


    Although Dean was confident in the abilities of Ayesha he had yet to know the strengths of Christian that caused fear within his heart.


    He wanted to tell everyone to hurry up but there was no point in that.


    ''Maybe i''m just too impatient''


    Accepting that part about him, Dean left the job to Anne and Pierre as he soon went in search for Ayesha and Christian


    ...


    "He''s gone..."


    Pierre was speechless for a moment but recovered immediately


    "Are you sure we should betray him?"


    Anne whispered her response


    "He was just a tool to get rid of Christian. Why are you getting emotional? After all, he''s the only person who know''s the humiliation your group felt. What will you do if he accidentally spreads it."


    The harsh tone caused Pierre to shut up as he continued to listen to Anne rant


    "He''s just going to steal all your glory, stay quiet and it''ll all be yours."


    Pierre wanted to ignore the last comment and left Anne to her own pondering as he wanted to finish their plan with pure sincerity.


    Watching as all the people in black arrived they finally started to plan out their plan.


    One by one they entered a small room that Anne had opened with a master key. The room was owned by Christian and the way they earned the key was using money.


    Dean wasn''t surprised how corrupt some of the school teachers as he had already guessed their shady colors with the usage of school facilities.


    After paying a certain amount, Dean was able to get the key while the teacher would keep quiet.


    Anne used a Space Ring that she borrowed from Dean and started to throw out bundles of sturdy rope onto a small bed.


    All the people in black started to take off the cloak only to reveal that they were all females in lingeries that was damaged.


    It barely managed to do the job of covering their hidden parts but their was additional clothing pieces such as a patch of a shirt or ripped up skirts.


    Each one of them quickly took a pill that enabled their strengths to be temporarily weakened, making the scene more legitimate.


    Pierre and Anne quickly applied the ropes onto them and filled their mouths with a small piece of cloth that would act as a gag before taping it in their mouth with more rope.


    A few would have a drenched cloth next to them and a rope with an edge damaged due to some sort of gnawing.


    Some were thrown onto the bed, others were thrown onto the floor while the rest would be hidden in weird places such as a closet, bathroom or kitchen.


    Anne quickly relayed the plan to a person closest to the door and threw out some sort of powder in the air


    "Remember to keep on hitting the door. Try to injure your forehead a little bit and scream for help. Your strength has been reduced so the door shouldn''t break under your strength."


    The girl nodded as lied down before her act was about to begin.


    Pierre exited the room with Anne and made sure to lock the room, leaving no evidence that they were ever there.


    "Did you set up the smell."


    Anne shrugged


    "Dean gave them to me so I have no idea if his alchemist can make the smell seem realistic."


    Having done all they could do they started to hear the screaming and whimpering of a girl inside the room


    "HELP! HELP!"


    It was as loud as a siren and extremely repetitive however the scream was blood curdling allowing all passing people to take notice of it.


    Pierre acted as if he had just arrived at the scene and went pale before running off and getting a teacher.


    ...


    Dean had just been searching for Ayesha and noticed the small imprints on the ground she had been leaving for him.


    It lead to the very same place they had met within the school but for some reason the scene made his blood boil


    Ayesha seemed tired as her movements became sluggish and the rips across her clothing made her look pitiful.


    He wanted to stop the fight and called out to Christian


    "Your fight isn''t with her, it''s with me."


    Christian looked towards a tree top and glared like a snake


    "It was you."

 57 Wesre Settling It Right Now

    Dean stood and watched from above Christian as he literally talked down on him.


    "So? You created the monster before you and evoked its ire. What more did you expect?"


    Christian suddenly laughed for no apparent reason that Dean could decipher besides losing his sanity while Ayesha slowly backed after sending a glance to Dean.


    Ayesha saw that both wished to fight against each other and backed away to report to the teachers of the problems Christian was currently causing.


    The forest was now quiet with only the two boys to stare at each other and decisively end the grudge they have both started.


    Immense regret washed Christian''s heart as he now had to face a nuisance that he thought would have surely not caused any trouble.


    He couldn''t even remember how long ago but he guessed that it was within a 7 year gap. An ant had suddenly arrived to ruin his life because its existence was trying to climb to a position that it did not belong to.


    Christian recalled what had happened. He was sure that Dean should''ve had his cultivation completely crippled meaning three options.


    A mysterious master is behind him which would be reasonable for why his family''s name wasn''t able to protect him from school punishment however why recruit a cripple?


    If the petty revenge Dean required was a reason for why he got a master than everyone would''ve become a god within Martial Arts.


    The second option was similar to the third, Dean received a magical potion or an ancient artifact.


    However this was uncertain as this entailed that this world contains dangerous tools that could even rival with objects from his original world.


    It was once heard that there were potions created to revive the dead while claiming the soul, a poison able to paralyze a village with one vial, a pill that even gods would shudder at the might.


    What was one pill that could help recover cultivation compared to the god-like commodities?


    Although those do exist, they are incredibly rare and may need to have the use of underhanded needs such as a couple billion mortal souls.


    But an Ancient Artifact is too rare and mysterious.


    In war it was able to produce devastating results that would be a major play factor on the battlefield.


    Ancient Artifacts were weapons, armors, accessories or tools that enabled one to control immense power that was slowly refined by time and a past user or crafter.


    Such tales horrified his men when they heard the tales of destruction they could cause


    A ring that gave a user to flick and cause a tyrannical typhoon to sweep foes in a day.


    Staffs once placed into a circular formation, summoning monsters imperceptible to the human eye.


    The list can go on and on however the weapon''s destruction on the use of the user.


    According to Christian''s memory, Dean was one of the few that arrived at the cove early which may give reason for why he might have received such a useful tool or potion.


    ''So he did take something before we all arrived. I''m pretty sure he was with that other person but it seemed we killed him too quickly.''


    Christian finally understood why Dean went through all the trouble of causing problems for him and knew that he now wants to dispose of him once and for all.


    Wasting no time to defend himself and finally end the trouble before him, Christian started to bring out the weapons and skills he had yet to show.


    Bringing out a dull silver scepter, time had obviously worn it out and a majestic aura soon enveloped the forest.


    Dean smiled in an intrigued manner as he questioned


    "Oh, we''re settling it once and for all?"


    He brought out his own weapon which was a dark blue polearm.


    As if challenging Christian''s aura, Dean brought out his own aura. A red Battle Intent slowly oozed out of him and was distributed into his surroundings and conflicted against Christian''s aura.


    Their two auras didn''t mesh well like oil and water as they glared against each other.


    Dean forced out the first move as he broke the branch he was currently standing on and kicked it towards Christian.


    "Hmmph, scum will only use scum tactics."


    Christian broke the branch in half without hesitation and looked behind him to see Dean bending his back mid air and smashing his polearm forward.


    Stepping to the side, Christian swung his scepter, aiming to hit Dean''s ribs however Dean smashed his polearm onto the scepter.


    Sparks sprang forth as Dean backed off immediately.


    Taking a careful look at his polearm, he realized that it was slightly chipped while Christian''s scepter didn''t seem any different.


    Christian slowly walked in a grandiose manner before Dean took advantage of his obvious taunt which was the obnoxious movement.


    Dean tested the waters and threw a random glass bottle at Christian.


    Without any hesitation he shattered the glass into oblivion as the fragments now lied on the ground.


    Seeing how Dean attempted to see what he had up his tricks, Christian responded with his own regards.


    Small circles started to appear in the air as random elements began to be summoned.


    It was not that Christian didn''t know how to use magic however his magic is a peculiar kind that has yet to be noted in this world.


    Christian called it: Tribute Magic.


    Whatever you owned or is in name your property, you sacrifice it in exchange for powerful magic abilities however it causes huge strains on the mental capabilities.


    Anything could come out of those circles but it was more likely for it to be a type of element flung at Dean.


    An example would be the slashes of wind that would be hurled towards Dean.


    Water droplets flooding the area where Dean once stood and bolts of thunder landing.


    The area soon became wrecked with miniature natural catastrophes as at one point a chair had even fallen.

 58 You Donst Know the True Scheme of the World

    Christian continued his barrage of magical attacks without any hesitation as Dean dodged and danced accordingly to avoid getting hurt.


    This couldn''t continue on as Christian taunted


    "Dance, dance like the clown you are."


    Unfortunately the provocation had no effect whatsoever on Dean as he clearly noticed the physical change of Christian that forced him to act rudely.


    Pale!


    His face was slowly turning to like a white sheet of paper and was lacking the natural tone of his skin.


    Dean just smiled and attempted to infuriate Christian by not responding but rather focus on dodging the random attacks.


    Christian expressed his annoyance at his failure to provoke Dean by using his tribute magic at a much faster rate than usual which paid off.


    A small typhoon blew Dean off center allowing Christian to form a combo of attacks such as a hail of ice shards piercing open his skin.


    Blood soon seeped out in a fast rate as it was dripping onto the ground and delving between the crevices of the skin.


    Not allowing Dean to recover, Christian followed up with a another spell that summoned a fire ball.


    Flinging itself onto Dean, it attached onto the clothes and melted it onto his skin while the open wounds flared the pain that Dean was currently feeling.


    Christian tried his luck once more and summoned another spell however he only saw a beam of light that penetrated the area behind Dean.


    Dean refused to end this battle in a lackluster manner and threw his polearm to disrupt Christian and hopefully grab onto one of those ice shards that could act as his weapon.


    The polearm was soon sent flying and was obstructed by Christian''s scepter however he definitely felt the force behind it.


    A blood red aura soon crept inside his organs however Christian didn''t think too much about it.


    ''Did he apply poison to his blade?''


    He believed that the poison probably flew from Dean''s blade onto him after conflicting with his scepter but it should be easily curedonce he returned to his home or visit the infirmary.


    Although throwing the polearm was an effective method of distracting Christian, Dean was far too late.


    That beam of light suddenly exploded into a dome of light that radiated a screeching, metallic scream that propelled Dean into the air.


    His right ear drum that wasn''t covered by the ground had been injured causing a small flow of blood to follow out of his ear.


    Dean felt like his liver was ruptured and a rib kept on poking him as he flew through the air like a physics mannequin


    ''Was my life this anti-dramatic?''


    Questioning his last moments Dean got devoured by the shadows of his mind.


    Christian dodged the hurling body only to see Dean crashing into a tree and lay limp like a corpse.


    "It''s done. I did it."


    Muttering to himself, Christian didn''t feel any sense of glory from this as there was no crowd and fell disappointed at how weak of an opponent he was.


    ''Talk the talk yet can''t walkthe walk.''


    Sighing at the loss of what could''ve been a useful tool Christian wanted to make sure if there was any precious items on Dean''s body.


    After taking a few breaths and realizing that Dean was barely breathing with very feint movements, Christian wanted to end it all.


    Grabbing his scepter, Christian walked up to Dean''s corpse and was contemplating how to destroy the body.


    ''A few small whacks or a a giant swing to completely crush the organs.''


    Unbeknownst to Christian who was currently in depth on how he was going to murder Dean, he had already woken up.


    A familiar sensation roused Dean back to reality as everything had turned grey with all natural colors seemed to be removed of its basic rights.


    Christian was highlighted in a red aura that alarmed his mind as if signaling the danger that was currently after him.


    Instead of green eyes that appeared on his pupil it had been turned into an empty black void with the iris still being green.


    Acting on pure instinct, Dean released an intimidating aura that stemmed from his Battle Intent before leaping onto Christian.


    Holding him in his grasp Dean took a big bite of Christian''s left shoulder as he chewed the flesh before spitting it out.


    The unexpected action and fast speed made Christian unaware that Dean was still alive but when the waves of pain started to dwell into his mind did he start taking note.


    "Pff, this doesn''t taste good. Who wants to taste like trash?"


    Dean chuckled with a gruesome smile as blood flew out of his mouth mixed with saliva.


    Christian tried to wave off this insane demon and swung his scepter only to miss and instead feel something missing from his neck.


    A chunk of flesh from his neck was now held in Dean''s hand with long black nails piercing through it without any problems.


    Saturated with blood, Dean lost the looks of a human as only one word could come up in Christian''s mind


    ''Demon!''


    A tycoon that refuses to follow the common courtesy, rules or laws and does whatever they desire. Most of the time they acted as assassins, wandering through the night to look for special victims if they were given enough of a reward.


    Dean threw the piece of flesh onto the ground and stamped on it like useless garbage before removing the dangerous aura and void pupils.


    The dark pupils seemed like they were in a lighter tone.


    However the weird state Dean was in refused to end this battle this simply and quickly impaled Christian with his claws.


    Christian knew that even if he temporarily lost this battle he had still won against Dean and laughed in pleasure as his sanity seemed to be missing.


    "An ant actually go this far?!... This ignorant garbage that doesn''t even know the true stages of cultivation, the great worlds hidden above, powerful gods that reincarnate."

 59 Mysterious Truths or Lies

    Dean looked in disdain as he listened to the utter nonsense Christian sprouted.


    "This is the most beautiful scene I can ever imagine, you falling from grace."


    Chuckling at the misfortune, Christian further fanned the flames.


    "Pssh, you don''t even know the standard 13 stages of cultivation. I bet you don''t even know about Lost Worlds or Higher Worlds do you?"


    "Of course I know all about the imaginations in your mind. There''s probably pixies and dragons that you fight on the daily."


    Sarcasm filled the sentences but Christian had enough of the satire.


    "Do you honestly think you''ve won?"


    The sudden seriousness in Christian''s voice caused Dean to pause as he slowly uttered a question.


    "What do you mean?"


    "This fight at best will just cause another suspension and that''s it. However for you... it''s too late."


    Trying to intrigue Dean''s curiosity he obviously knew that Christian was trying to get at something by purposely teasing him


    "What?"


    Christian suddenly burst into laughter realizing that Dean had yet to realize what he had already done.


    "I assume the reason I got that two week suspension was caused by you as well as that incident during that campaign for a spirit fruit. You were the reason behind it."


    Dean was taken aback as he never revealed his existence to Christian anytime within the time he had enrolled into school.


    Thinking back, Rose should''ve told Christian at this point.


    But the most bothersome part was how did Christian know he was behind the sabotage of the spirit fruit that he desired?


    Leonard would very unlikely tell a single lie unless...


    "What did you do?"


    Christian chuckled at the sudden seriousness of Dean


    "You''ve just realized? I knew you would''ve attempted to do something reckless while i''m in the most pitiful time of my life. Even if you didn''t this would''ve been a good bait."


    Dean''s guess was not off the mark however Christian had first researched on both of them before making any sudden moves.


    Losing his patience, Dean grabbed a nearby stick and poked it against Christian''s skin. Blood crawled down the wood.


    "Spill it!"


    The act of desperation and the shivering voice of worry couldn''t escape Christian''s ears.


    "Not just him, your entire family as well. Leonard will have... let''s call it an accident while your family. Hmm, I don''t know how to phrase it. All died by immolation for the sake of me."


    Dean paused at the realization and suddenly laughed.


    Leonard was within school grounds and shouldn''t possibly die while his ''family'' had already broken connections with each other.


    They were nothing more than strangers.


    Christian was about to ask what was so funny however Dean abruptly dropped to his knees and fell on his back onto the muddy ground.


    ''Did he die yet?''


    Christian saw an unusual bone sticking out of Dean''s torso and from the location guessed it was a rib bone. As long as he drew the fight long enough he should''ve passed out.


    Everything felt dark as his conscious was coming back and forth bringing him from reality to illusions, Christian tried to stand up but continuously fell.


    Realizing it was no use, he grabbed the stick Dean once held and immediately stabbed him but there was no effect.


    ''Is this how it really ends?''


    Saddened by the failure of his capabilities, Christian reluctantly hoped that he could eventually get his revenge to settle these shenanigans.


    Using whatever strength remained, he crawled desperately for the ice shard and grabbed hold of it. Christian could feel the sharpness as his hand started to bleed just by holding the ice and made sure to embed it into his palm to allow the pain to make him awake.


    Taking a deep breath, Christian had finally calmed himself and make sure that Dean was once and for all dead.


    ''If only Rose didn''t interrupt back then''


    Christian regretted someone''s sympathy to get in his way. Just once, he let kindness give way yet once again it might''ve ended up killing him.


    The fight was like a brawl between dogs, any dignity Christian held was immediately thrown away as he stabbed down with the ice shard into Dean''s body.


    However he was far too late, a subtle fluctuation of Mana grabbed hold of Christian that stopped him from his act any further.


    "Hold it, under...."


    Any words the man had said after those few went into one ear and left the other due to Christian passing out from pain, blood loss and stress.


    ...


    "So? What happened?"


    Dean had just woken up from a deep sleep as he realized he was now in a white clean room, surrounded by Anne, Ayesha and Pierre.


    From what he remembered this was most likely the infirmary.


    Pierre didn''t say anything as Anne had started to take charge.


    "After you passed out, Ayesha brought a group of teachers who started to record what they could see from their peripheral vision. Apparently the battle you fought was messy from when they found you."


    Dean sent a thankful look to Ayesha as he knew that if Christian was given enough time, he would surely be dead.


    Ayesha turned her head away before walking out of the infirmary and slamming the door.


    It was difficult to access what she was currently feeling but Dean hoped he could resolve the problem.


    Anne had a cold glare when she looked at the interaction between the two and kept note.


    "Both of you were then brought to infirmary and given medical aid. Our group was a success when we called for teachers."


    Dean paid attention to how effective his trap was when he listened to Anne. If it was not believable enough then there might be an unknown repercussion that could follow.


    Pierre saw how attentive Dean was and couldn''t help but be riddled with guilt.


    From the minor details Anne was including in the story allowed Dean to feel a sense of security/


    All those little details the teacher finds will make the scene become more realistic.

 60 Room of Trouble

    According to what Anne has explained, Dean was able to formulate what had happened


    After setting up the room, Anne and Pierre had already ran off to get together a small group of teachers.


    Once hearing that a student''s room contained multiple voices full of weird tones as well as one that continued to shout help, they soon followed Anne and Pierre.


    When they arrived in front of the room there was already a crowd full of youths who worried for what was happening inside the room.


    The teachers were immediately horrified when they heard the crashing of the front door continuously thump with headbutts and the scream of help that lacked water.


    "Help. He...lp"


    It was as if the voice was on the brink of fading away to dust and the screeching from the dry throat sounded like the person had suffered torture.


    A few of the teachers'' faces were riddled with disappointment for the students who only watched in curiosity especially those that were glass eyed and walked past without a glance.


    Ignoring the poor morals of the students, the teachers got to work. One tested out the durability of the door as they had rushed and was tempted to break the door however another stepped in and forcefully stopped that teacher.


    Creating discord between the two opposing views of the teachers someone else had to step in and use their master key to open up the door.


    As soon as a click was heard, the teachers resorted to acting as a sort of semi circle hazard tape that blocked off the scene from the youths who tried to peer at the scene with their eyes.


    The constant shoving caused a chain effect making the teachers even more disappointed in the discipline of some of the children here causing them to use multiple barriers.


    One was for blocking off any sound, another for any sudden magic fluctuation while the last onecaused the semi circle to be blocked off by human vision.


    After checking that the student''s vision had been cut off, the teacher nodded and quickly pushed the door open while withdrawing as two teachers ran head first into the room.


    Each held their own weapon of choice as they were uncertain what situation the people crying for help would be but the room gave them a shock.


    One of them uttered without realization


    "What... who...."


    Two more teachers walked in who acted as magicians since they held a magical staff to further signify their capabilities.


    The accidental uttering brought forth their curiosity as they stepped into the room and gasped.


    Realizing the situation within the room, one magician immediately yelled at another teacher


    "GET ME THE ATTENDANCERECORD AND ROOM CORRELATION LIST!"


    If one paid close enough attention, they could hear the staff slowly being crushed under the magician''s anger after he came to realize the awful situation in the room.


    Keeping cool, the other magician checked up on the conditions of the girls within his sight. From what he was able to observe, they were lacking in immediate response and their eyes seem somewhat lazy.


    Concluding that it was a drug, the magician undid the ropes and the gag that restrained any obvious movements.


    Their skin had turned bright red from the blood circulation while some of them had faint red marks on their necks that may have been done due to strangulation.


    Any attempts in moving their limbs seemed to cause weakness and pain. A further diagnostic would be the limp actions as well as the dazed expression.


    The Martial Artists were still weary if the perpetrator was here and cautiously opened up every room. Checking any window, closets or just a general place to hide; they had yet to find anyone.


    Opening the last door they were welcomed to the sight of a listless girl tied to the toilet and yelled to the teachers


    "T-there''s.... there''s more of them."


    All the teacher''s faces were downcast and weren''t sure who to blame.


    Was it the student''s family? The academy''s teaching? Influence by other students?


    Realizing that there many points that could be doubted, some felt that this student should surely be punished.


    The teachers gathered the students into the largest room within the dorm and undid all the ropes.


    It was a pitiful sight as the one with dry lips was probably the person who cried for help had now been reduced to a girl devoid of any emotions.


    After looking for any serious injuries to heal, they found that it was only the tight rope that may cause harm while the calm magician brought out blankets to cover their unsightly clothes.


    The clothes were reduced to dregs and was barely able to cover them.


    The other magician was clearly furious as he exited the room and refused to look at this scene any longer.


    "Why''s he so mad?"


    One of the warriors questioned the extreme reaction and guessed that the magician could be new to the job.


    Having known the magician for a much longer time the calm magician was able to answer it.


    "There was a scandal when a prince from a distant kingdom had visited our school for exchanging knowledge and learning. He committed an act similar to this and it created a huge scandal."


    Taking a deep sigh the magician continued


    "The academy at the time was under management of a different principal which was why he''s still here. Because that principal didn''t want to infuriate a kingdom, he instead blamed it on his disciple who''s now beheaded."


    The warrior who asked that question was left in contemplation while the other one busied himself looking for any clues.


    Looking around a bed there was a scatter of purple dust on the pillow.


    Pointing towards it he called out to the magician.


    "There seems to be some drugs that could have caused the odd actions of the victims."


    Understanding what the warrior was trying to get to, the magician used his Space Ring to get a small bag and used his mana create a small current to lead the powder into the bag.

 61 Repor

    The bag was see through allowing the teachers to have a full view on the purple powder.


    Tucking it away into his Space Ring, the magician would make sure to send it to their alchemist in order to check up on it.


    Waiting for the teacher who was getting the important information before they could release the victims, he had finally arrived.


    Being impatient, the magician standing outside of the room grabbed the two folders and immediately search for the information.


    "Room 183N... Room 183N... hmm."


    After flipping through the room numbers and looking for the ''N'' section, the magician finally found it.


    "... The room belongs to a student under the name: Christian Vikander, 3rd year student."


    One of the warriors who heard that name remembered the time where he dragged a child off a horse into the academy.


    "Isn''t that..."


    The other magician''s curiosity was piqued as he tried to recall any past incidents for this happening


    "His first problem was that he was caught robbing underwear from females. I think the main problem that caused that punishment because one of the panties belonged to a princess from a nearby kingdom."


    Wanting to follow up with the conversation the other warrior continued it


    "His recent problem was around 2 weeks ago, he killed some of his allies to receive more benefits."


    From the first punishment, the magician was further pissed off but after hearing how superficial his bonds with friends were caused him to smash the nearby wall.


    It was lucky that his fist wasn''t imbued with mana as the building could''ve potentially collapsed however the punch only left a small hole.


    "I swear that this time they will receive punishment!"


    Seeing that his partner was currently unfit to continue their investigation he kicked him out of the room and stole the two folders.


    "Let''s see..."


    The two warriors coughed at the shamelessness of the calm magician and brought out the girls into a line so that the magician could find more information.


    To find the face and compare it with a room filled with about 20 girls was extremely difficult as the only thing they could use was a profile picture captured by a spell that could have flaws.


    It was only until 2 hours passed as the crowd had already dispersed from boredom while the teachers who were running out of mana from supplying the barriers had to be swapped out.


    The identity of all these young girls were able to allow the calm magician to come to a clean and obvious consensus from their attendance record.


    "All these girls have three main connections. One is that they are obviously girls but the other two are very odd. All from a club name called ''Autarch Society'' and have been absent for slightly more than two weeks."


    "From what I have heard, Autarch Society is owned and created by Christian Vikander."


    With those little clues added together they could conclude this investigation in a numerous number of ways but they decided that in the end it was best to be patient


    In the end they brought all the victims into the infirmary where they soon met another group of teachers in another infirmary.


    They lent the information they gathered to their group so that they could finally submit a report against Christian.


    As far as they could go for describing the calm magician had to take control as the Martial Artists had other tasks to handle while his partner had an unclear and biased mind.


    Sighing, he had no choice but to do the work himself.


    Christian Vikander''s dorm contained a promiscuous smell most likely originating from the human bodily fluid. Inside was found numerous female students whom were absent from school for more than two weeks.


    Each were tied up and gagged with clothes riddled with cuts and some with blunt threads meaning it was forcefully torn. Alongside the absent girls was a purple powder that was assessed to be a highly hallucinogenic drug.


    The side effects of the drug will cause short term memory loss with only a few students remembering distant memories yet some have sighted to have gone through torture.


    We suspect Christian Vikander to have blackmailed the girls using his status as the club founder in order to persuade the girls to help him right after his suspension began.


    From what we have derived from the muttering of some of the victims, we have found that they have suffered violence, domestic and sexual abuse that is further promoted by the red marks found on their body.


    Another team was dispatched to find Christian by another student. They arrived at a scene that contained trees cut in half, flesh ripped off, muddy terrain and burnt skin as well as a normal chair. Christian and another student identified as Dean Wilkes was found at the scene.


    The scene was most likely caused from dispensary magic scrolls with a one time use that had a variety of uses. Dean suffered from strange cuts that had no originating weapon we could find, a ruptured liver, third degree burns and three broken ribs.


    Christian is under heavy recuperation due to flesh torn from the neck as well as a stab wound located at the abdomen from another unknown weapon that could not be located.


    Please designate an appropriate punishment.


    ...


    This was all Anne could get however Dean felt pleased that the teacher were more righteous then what he suspected.


    Anne excused herself as Pierre gave one last deep gaze towards Dean before turning away and following Anne.


    Ayesha was waiting outside and seeing that they had both exited she went back inside the room.


    Pierre walked forward, away from the infirmary while Anne interrogated him


    "We could''ve killed him."


    The straightforward words left Pierre speechless but he tried to hold his grounds


    "No, Christian''s still alive and not dead yet. His job isn''t finished yet."


    Anne sent him a piercing glare before retracting it and smiling


    "Yeah, you''re right. Once he learns everything he''s lost will he truly suffer pain worst than what the body can handle."

 62 Expelled

    Ayesha had just walked back into the infirmary and grabbed a nearby medical kit.


    Dean feared that she was possibly angry and pretended to fall asleep.


    "Dean?"


    She called out his name but he did not respond and continued his act while Ayesha sighed and started to unpack the medical kit.


    Taking out ointments and bandages she undid the one that was currently on Dean, revealing hideous open wounds that were charred to black.


    Unfortunately for Dean, he had loss too much blood meaning the nurse refused to remove the brunt skin as it would lead to potentially losing his life.


    Instead they had to give him pills to revitalize his blood and create more of it before they could proceed to remove any more dead skins.


    Pulling out tweezers, Ayesha plucked the flaky burnt skin and removed the small patch that remained on his arm before throwing the remnants into a nearby bin.


    Applying a type of oil, it stung like hell for Dean however he kept his calm and acted like he was too sleepy to notice.


    Ayesha smiled in cruelty at the twitching of Dean''s mouth but continued her application.


    Bandaging that area it seemed that his arm was the only problem as the rest of his body had no need for tweezers but just a change of bandages.


    It was extremely awkward for Dean as he noticed that Ayesha was taking a longer time on his chest with the bandaging however he tried to think of different thoughts.


    Until there was utter silence and he felt that there was no one did Dean finally sigh


    But a scream interrupted his peaceful thoughts.


    "Y-you, you were awake..."


    What soon followed was the grievous scream of Dean


    ...


    Dean was full of energy after that experience and was in no mood to suddenly sleep, instead he asked Ayesha if anything else had happened.


    From what she explained, the girls were brought into the infirmary for a quick check up before being moved to a distant room, far away from student activities.


    After being questioned they were given a story of why they were missing for 20 days with the most common one being a registered absence notice for closed cultivation needs.


    They held no suspicions and released the girls without too much of a hassle.


    Christian had yet to wake up and was still lying in a random bed within the infirmary.


    As soon as Dean had heard that Christian was still alive he tried to get up of the bed but along with the the excruciating pain that stimulated his nerves and Ayesha''s push he was still stuck on the bed.


    Ayesha had somewhat expected this reaction but chuckled


    "He''s in a different infirmary. Keep on resting, i''m sure the school will know how to deal with him."


    Dean tried to relax but something kept on nagging him that something wasn''t right with how everything was.


    ''It felt like something was missing''


    When Ayesha saw that Dean was left silent, she guessed that he was probably tired and exited the room to let Dean rest.


    This nagging feeling kept on getting stronger but Dean finally realized what it was


    ''Rose''


    There was no one left that would have a grudge against Dean and have the ability to pose any trouble to him as Christian is too injured to do anything against him.


    It was only Rose that could cause trouble and have a real reason for trying to kill Dean.


    When trying to guess what tactic she could use to kill him, Dean realized that he had no idea what skills Rose had.


    Was she good in Martial Arts?


    Was she good in Magic?


    He had no idea how he would be able to plan a defense for an attack and just left it to spontaneous planning.


    Trying to stand on guard at all times, Dean tried going through a process of light sleeping so that he could be aware of the slightest movements at all times but after several weeks nothing happened.


    Absolutely nothing.


    Ayesha came to visit him a plentiful number of times but that was it.


    Dean came to the conclusion that Rose was most likely planning one of the two things.


    By causing paranoia to Dean, his mentality and decision making will be heavily effected which could lead to poor choices that Rose can take advantage of.


    The other option was that she was not confident in beating him despite his injured state and decided that it was best for her to wait for Christian to recover before fighting him 2v1.


    However he wasn''t too worried about fighting compared to when he was heavily injured.


    After all the medications Dean has taken, he felt he was in a comfortable condition to protect himself but the problem was that he wasted so much time in not cultivating.


    Mentioning ''cultivation'', Dean once more felt like he was trying to recall what Christian said but the fight seemed non existent inside his head.


    From what he can remember, it involved some gibberish that Christian was talking on the spot in order to buy time.


    It was strange that the school had yet to announce Christian''s punishment as Ayesha hadn''t told him anything of it.


    ... is what he thought before Ayesha came crashing through the infirmary door.


    "Christian''s been expelled!"


    Dean was speechless at the great timing as well as the lacking of punishment.


    "Young miss, this is an infirmary! A place to rest..."


    The nurse tried pushing Ayesha out of the room while Dean still remained in shock, contemplating what he would do from now.


    He thought that the academy could''ve done a better job and harden their resolve to actually do something but it was this weak result.


    ''I guess doing the job yourself is the only way.''


    According to his estimation he needed just three more days before his body would return to the best state it was in and what he could plan.

 63 Theres More?

    Because Christian was not under the care or protection of the school anymore, he was sent off back to his home in a stretcher.


    Dean didn''t want to miss this chance of seeing how injured Christian was and asked to be excused from the infirmary.


    Although there was friction between the nurse who was taking care of him, Dean still managed to get his way and was now searching for the main exit of the school that Christian would pass through.


    Bandages still wrapped around him however he was able to walk without a problem but met many interesting people.


    It was like he was the center of attention like Christian as they pointed towards him and whispered words of admiration.


    ''Was this what Christian felt?''


    Being praised as a hero uncovering a villain''s evil misdeeds, he couldn''t help but blush at the outrageous conclusions made about him as well as the compliments.


    Many people patted him on the back and shook hands with him but Dean was slowly discovering that he held disgust to these flowery words that held no meaning.


    They just used him as a way to propel the academy''s reputation after learning there was a bad apple within its grounds.


    He was a gossip for the normal students and a role model for students still developing.


    At best, they only learned of his name because the school needed someone to replace Christian and he just happened to fill that role quite well.


    Dean guessed they didn''t invest much time into learning what may have truly happened and just looked at Christian as a criminal for doing bad deeds yet they don''t seek the reason why.


    Despite those thoughts, Dean had no reason to cause conflict with them and continued to put on a friendly facade.


    He waited patiently close to the exit and sat on a nearby bench.


    Soon a couple of people dressed in black robes arrived in front of the school''s gate while Dean saw a white stretcher coming closer to the destination.


    Next to the stretcher was Rose who was silently sobbing however a mob was behind her, following and watching every actions they took.


    Seeing that they were close to exiting the school, someone suddenly threw a pebble that struck Rose''s head.


    It wasn''t deadly enough to cause her any serious damage since it wasn''t thrown with much strength however it would still hurt.


    Rose should''ve been able to dodge that without a problem but Dean guessed that the emotional impact made her numb to such actions.


    The pebble acted as a chain reaction as other people started to follow that lead and created a momentum for their outrage.


    Apple cores, bananas, rocks, paper balls and more miscellaneous objects were thrown into that direction, hitting and staining the clothes of Rose and Christian.


    They could only ignore the rude behavior of the students and continued to exit the school with a mess that would soon follow them.


    Feeling frustrated at the disgusting etiquette the students showed to Rose and Christian, a person in black robes was about to help them but another person placed their arm in front, obstructing their path.


    "Stop, you''re just..."


    The man was lost for words when he realized to the right of him, a person also dressed in black robes had a black hood.


    He was clearly not with their group due to his concealment of the face but it seemed that he had a similar goal in mind by going out of his way to go into the school.


    To him, the items in the air was in slow motion as he drew out a blade and suddenly began to cut in a flurry that caused all the trash to fall to the ground as he simultaneously placed his blade back into his sheath.


    Giving a light pat on the back of Rose, he placed a small talisman that made them move a couple meters within an instant.


    The crowd realized at this instant that they had suddenly disappeared and the man with a black hood emitted a menacing aura.


    Fearing that this could be a ruthless assassin without any worries, the crowd dispersed and ran away.


    Dean was able to barely see this when he tried using Battle Intent and saw that the whole way Christian was smiling.


    His head was barely lifted up and poked up to let his face be seen by Dean as that grin refused to be shut down by anything.


    It wasn''t a grin of pure joy but one akin to a child that has done a mischievous deed without their parents knowing a single thing.


    Dean started to realize that this nagging feeling was a lot larger than he expected as flashes of memories started to appear.


    Him committing cannibalism


    Ripping a chunk of meat off a human and then stabbing them


    Those thoughts made Dean want to vomit but he couldn''t waste any time as he recalled something much more important.


    "You don''t even know the standard 13 stages of cultivation. I bet you don''t even know about Lost Worlds or Higher Worlds do you?"


    "Leonard will have... let''s call it an accident while your family. Hmm, I don''t know how to phrase it. All died by immolation for the sake of me."


    Connecting the realization of why Leonard hadn''t met him during his stay in the nursery, he might have been injured.


    Even if he was absolutely fine with no injuries and extremely attentive to his studies, he still would have had time to visit him.


    Feeling a sudden heavy sense of dread, Dean ran off to the infirmary and asked the nurse for a list containing all the students in different sectors of the infirmary.


    Because he was a student, the nurse obviously would hesitate giving important information to him but his fame started to be used for a good use as it affected the nurse''s judgement.


    Grabbing the folders of paper, Dean flicked and flicked through and tried to find more names

 64 Wheres Leonard?

    "His...his..."


    Dean couldn''t help stutter out his anxious thoughts in front of the nurse but in the end returned the folder.


    ''His name wasn''t there.''


    If he wasn''t at the infirmary then he may have been making pills.


    ''Yeah, he was probably making more pills.''


    The idea was very unlikely as he had just came out of a concoction session recently so it made no sense why he would return to another one if there was no valid reason.


    A tremor of fear erupted inside his head, proving he was not confident in that idea but he continued to blame it on the chance that Leonard reached a type of enlightenment or discovered a rare material.


    Feeling the sense of uneasiness, Dean started to run even faster to Leonard''s dorm and only arrived to an unexpected situation.


    A black dome sealed the entrance, illegible for any student to trespass.


    Knowing that his intuition was right, Dean couldn''t help but instantly fall for panic as his heart palpitated faster so did his decision making.


    It was not a rational decision but Dean still followed through, smashing the dome there was no response at all.


    Worry soon devoured his heart as he became more reckless and started to use Magic to follow up his attacks.


    A Dark Ball would fly over to the dome and shatter itself against before Dean would punch it.


    Cracks would soon pop up and Dean took advantage of that, allowing the black dome to quickly dissipate with a magician suddenly falling to his knees.


    "... I was just finishing the results. You had one job! ONE JOB!"


    Dean walked pass the magician who was coughing and wanted to find out what happened in the room but he suddenly felt a light feeling. It originated from the surrounding air


    His feet were off the floor and his body slowly rotated itself that it was now parallel to the floor. Dean understood that the teacher was trying to restrain him but he refused.


    Struggling, he tried placing most of his weight onto his abdomen and made it point to the floor before proceeding to push that weight into the air.


    He pushed the weight slightly to the right that allowed his left hand to be free. The teacher wasn''t stupid and wouldn''t standby watching.


    Placing another restraint on Dean''s arm, he was prepared to struggle once more but something odd happened.


    His neck felt extremely heavy and felt like it was a rope tied around his throat. Breathing soon became difficult with any air he tried to breath in was dispersed in an instant.


    Dean had underestimated the magic the teachers could use and now had to pay the price in front of the person who was now on the brink of killing him.


    The lack of air continued where Dean started to have a decreased heart rate, blue skin and constant black screens covered his sight.


    A numb feeling soon took over that caused his limbs to go limp while his pupils started to turn black.


    Worrying that he may have gone too far the teacher released his magic


    "Oh, crap."


    Dean realized that he was now free, crashing onto the ground he stood up while brushing off any dust that may have gotten on him.


    Staring at the teacher, Dean couldn''t act reckless and took a few deep breaths to become calm.


    "I have a connection with the person who lives in this dorm."


    Choosing his words very carefully, Dean made sure to try and keep his words formal and very brief to not arouse any emotions from the teacher that could cause danger.


    The teacher gave him a weird glance before suddenly turning away and writing a note.


    His voice was slightly shaky and any confidence he had was suddenly removed.


    Taking the note, Dean analyzed the paper and found that the top had a number code that he didn''t understand while the bottom was a location name.


    "...If you want to contact me after this matter ask around using that string of numbers. The other one is a building in the south district."


    Dean was still afraid of that man''s strength and ran away without thanking him.


    The teacher on the floor who constructed the black dome was about to call to the boy but the other teacher moved his hand out towards him.


    "He''ll figure it out himself. The only way to grow stronger is experience."


    Leonard''s dorm was now far from where Dean was at however he was lost, the area was very desolate and he had never heard of the building that he was looking for.


    A student soon exited out of a nearby building and Dean decided he had nothing to lose by asking for directions.


    "Hello! Do you know where this is?"


    Abruptly calling out to the student caused him to be surprise but seeing that a fellow peer was in need of help he responded.


    His eyes were extremely bright however this was poorly reflected by his pale, skinny body and the dark circles around his eyes.


    Dean showed the note to the student.


    He was reading the sting of numbers at the top and was momentarily confused but when he looked at the bottom his face turned extremely serious.


    "That place is the building I had just exited."


    Pointing towards the building to clarify it to Dean, his tone contained a hidden low note of sorrow.


    The stress, anxiety, panic were instilled into Dean making him unable to notice the underlying tone of the student that was further ignored with the adrenaline from the frightening power of that teacher.


    Thanking the student immediately, Dean ran off into the building while the student shook his head to knock out any worry he would have for Dean.


    A receptionist that was presumably a teacher was reading a few scrolls until realizing that she suddenly had a visitor.


    "Who is it?"


    Seeing that the visitor was just a student, she was tempted to go back to her research but made sure to declare one thing.


    "Didn''t we excuse all of you guys already?"

 65 Indifference

    Dean was sure that he had never seen the receptionist before in his life but guessed that she thought he was like that other student.


    Wanting to find Leonard he didn''t explain with words but just gave the note to the receptionist.


    She was ready to scold the student if he forgot anything important within the building but he suddenly handed her a note.


    Taking it, her eyes widened when she read the number code while the room number at the bottom allowed her to understand the student''s visit.


    Giving a meaningful glance towards Dean, she walked away after giving back the note.


    "Follow me."


    Dean was confused why the receptionist was coming off as mysterious but shrugged it off.


    Going deeper into the building, there felt a sinister aura that was filled with depressing thoughts, reminding one negative thoughts.


    After a little research, Dean would guess that the building was secretly holding a cultivation array for cultivators that need this type of energy.


    Connecting the dots one by one, he realized that Leonard had never told him what cultivation technique he was cultivating.


    The one thing Dean was sure of was that Leonard was capable of using water magic.


    Since Leonard originated from a powerful family with a long history then one factor that could connect all of this together was the lost arts of Taoism.


    A common representation of Taoism was the usage of the Yin and Yang sign.


    Yang represented sun, positive, man, fire, etc while Yin represented moon, negative, woman, water, etc.


    Another fact that Dean remembered was that Leonard himself had yet to use the new pills he had cultivated.


    He mentioned that the pill would allow one to reach the True Essence realm.


    Sighing, Dean felt that all his worry was pointless after finally concluding that Leonard was probably fine.


    They crossed through a bunch of corridors as well as traveled up flights of stairs.


    Dean was tempted to ask the receptionist how close they were to the location however she suddenly stopped in front of a metal door.


    "Here is the room."


    She took a key out of her pocket and opened the door to reveal a dimly lit room and multiple metallic tables in rows.


    Dean;s eyes constricted when he saw what was on top of the tables but sensing how there was a subtle fluctuation of Mana, he tried to brush it off as a weird meditation technique.


    On most of the tables were white blankets that cloaked the outline of a human body, resting atop the cold.


    Going to the furthest table, the receptionist made sure to check a clipboard hanging off the table and nodded.


    Lifting up the table she said to Dean.


    "Is this who you were looking for?"


    Underneath laid Leonard.


    His hair was in a disorderly mess like a straw broom; hands dyed in black like a beautiful onyx.


    White, pale skin; burnt skin and grim eyes.


    Was this really Leonard?


    Dean''s hopes shattered into disappointment and felt like the whole thing was just a roller coaster.


    The roller coaster would slowly rise up and up, waiting for the final climax with subtle clues that lead Dean to believe that Leonard was fine but this revelation was where the roller coaster suddenly stopped.


    It was stuck at the very peak, just before the drop.


    Staring carefully at the eyes of Leonard, it reflected all the emotions he had experienced.


    Complete confusion and sheer terror was what Dean was able to gather when he added the stiff muscle around his face as another clue.


    Dean remembered that Leonard would most of the time control an indifferent, emotionless face making him reject the notion that this was actually him.


    Grabbing the clipboard off the table, he made sure to read the name.


    "Leonard Delton"


    The words accidentally escaped out of his mouth.


    Dropping the clipboard onto the dirty floor, a metallic vibration rang out while Dean turned his hand into a grip, aiming for Leonard''s chest.


    Absolute frustration.


    The collar where he would grab Leonard for stupid decisions was gone and now his whole life was gone as well.


    Seeing Dean turning slightly violent, the receptionist quickly grabbed hold of his arm and kicked one of his legs.


    This caused him to go off balance allowing the teacher to pull his arm forward, flipping dean forward so that his butt would land on the floor instead of his face.


    Placing the arm she grabbed into a lock, she threatened that she could instantly dislocate it.


    "Student, I recommend you calm down at this instance!"


    Dean''s vision was spazzing out as it was going between the neutral colors of the shades between white and black while it tended to revert back to his normal sight.


    It was the bottled emotions that suddenly came out causing all of this anger but after throwing enough of his angry fit, Dean finally calmed down.


    The receptionist wasn''t joking as Dean could definitely feel the pain that woke him up from the weird state and quickly admitted his mistake.


    Standing up once more and looking down at Leonard''s face he couldn''t take it anymore.


    Running away from the building at once and returning to his dorm, the receptionist stood there is wonder at the weird recommendation that teacher gave.


    Dean brainstormed what he could do as he thought for a moment that once he obtained enough power there would be no one that could contest against him but he was merely ignorant.


    Words started to pop into his head


    Revival Magic?


    It was impossible to create such a beast that went against nature''s law.


    No matter what he thought of there was nothing that he could do.


    ...


    "It''s been 3 days, what the hell has that kid been doing?"


    "Hah, I knew it he wouldn''t arrive, pay up."


    "Ah shut it. It''s not the end of the day yet."


    "Hmmph, you can''t accept your defeat. No kid would actually want to collude with you no matter what circumstance. I bet he was scared off by your face."

 66 Acceptance

    "Oi, treat your senior with some decent respect will you."


    The two teachers bickered at each other while the rain pitter pattered the rooftops in a gentle yet slow beat.


    Continuing to argue while shaming the opponent all at the same time as redeeming their pride were the main topics.


    One made a bet against the teacher Dean had met who was able to restrain them and they gambled on the fact how fast Dean would be able to overcome grief.


    In general they were able to understand one things about the average mortals


    Weak!


    Most of the people they have met were weak willed and easily gave up to their emotions that caused them to be devoured by internal demons.


    Those internal demons were the voices in their head that used negative emotions to deprive the victim of any safe haven.


    Even tough cultivators that have dominated lands, survived spans of wars and eras would suddenly fail to become more powerful when they receive a setback such as a dead spouse.


    One experience both were able to understand were the young ones that could be easily affected. Children as young as 7 suddenly losing a role model now contemplate in sadness that could last for 7 years.


    7 years of grief!


    This unbelievable concept that such a setback can cause a huge revelation drove the two teachers to now have conflicting view points.


    Human emotions will drag on down into the pits of hell and only by abstaining from such immature thoughts will one be able to ascend to the top.


    The teacher Dean encountered had the view that once a human is able to overcome grief with pure understanding and acceptance will they be able to thrive even further into the depths of cultivation.


    Because the two perspectives were practically polar opposites it reflected their emotions and the way they handled things.


    One would use violence and be extremely ruthless in order to find the necessary information for their mission while the other will patiently wait before making a move.


    They both had paperwork to do as they were still teachers and marked their papers while shaming each other creating a comical scene.


    A subtle knock echoed inside the room three times


    *Knock**Knock**Knock*


    Both stared at each other before they simultaneously screamed at the door


    "Come in"


    Glaring each other they scoffed and turned their heads in opposite directions.


    He was drenched by the rain, looking like a drowned rat while his white shirt was now sticking to his body.


    Closing the door he asked


    "Who did it?"


    His voice was quiet and sounded like a mice.


    One of the teachers kept quiet as he had no idea who the child was while the teacher who invited him with his teacher code questioned him as he didn''t hear what Dean said.


    "What?"


    Dean made sure to repeat the question once more


    "Who killed Leonard"


    Unfortunately for the teacher, it seemed the noise of the rain was too loud for him to hear Dean so he asked once more


    "Could you repeat it?"


    He was trying to recall the words Dean was saying but it turned out that it sounded in a patronizing manner.


    Infuriated, Dean crashed the teacher into the wall behind him, sending the papers flying through the air and a crack to develop.


    The teacher was very surprised at the speed of the attack and realized that when he first met Dean, he wasn''t as reckless as this.


    "Stop"


    Although the other teacher wouldn''t not do anything and just watch as he drew out a blade that pointed towards Dean''s neck.


    Sensing a tinge of pain on his neck, Dean immediately let go of the teacher in his hand.


    Coughing and taking deep breaths, the teacher with a weapon mentioned a weird statement


    "You restrained the wrong target."


    Dean thought that the phrasing might have been done wrong but when he looked to his left he found the teacher with a sword having a blurry sight around his wrist.


    It was this point that Dean was able to realize that instead of stopping him with the restraints, the teacher restrained the swordsman so that he wouldn''t die.


    Understanding his mistake he apologized.


    "I''m sorry"


    Bowing his head down the boy accepted that this was a rash move on his side.


    After being released, the teacher waved his hand to accept the apology but pressed his palm onto Dean''s head and tilted it upwards.


    His pupil reflected the calmness Dean was able to hold however his eyes weren''t mistaken when he realized the iris was filled with insanity, anger, fear and sadness.


    The boy had somewhat progressed pass grief but he was still bottling up his emotions.


    Dean was extremely used to staying quiet and trying to be low key as that was how he trained himself to be in order to deal with Christian.


    One red flag that he had encountered was being in the same class with Rose that made his identity known but otherwise he was a perfect actor.


    Now that his main culprit for revenge was now equivalent to being dead, there was no other reason for why he should conceal his emotions.


    His purpose for living originated from killing Christian before being transformed into hanging out with friends and appreciate Ayesha.


    Revenge now clouded his mind making him much more rash as he had no direction for taking out this revenge.


    Kill the killer of Leonard.


    It was as simple as that but who could it be? If there''s no suspect then who to kill?


    Dean trusted that this teacher in front of him knows something about the murderer as he gave that code and if he didn''t he would have to ask Christian.


    The teacher sighed at the chaotic mess in the student''s mind and instead proposed an outrageous request.


    "Hehe, you want to know who planned that murder. I am such a gracious person that I have no choice but to take this pitiful disciple."

 67 Pride Is Useless

    "..."


    Dean was initially shocked at the proposition and wanted to curse the shameless man in front of him.


    The audacity to propose a ridiculous idea with such a blank face was testing the limits of his sanity but logic told him to stay calm.


    A sword to the neck and the realization that he had no control on knowing who the murderer of Leonard was, he had to stay quiet.


    Pulling his head back down, Dean was left tocontemplate the choices he currently had.


    Christian was the only liability he had and Dean was willing to sell out those who betrayed him if that was what it took to get any information.


    However the flaw was that Christian had no reason to divulge the identity of the murderer.


    Knowing how he acted and the schemes he used, Dean would guess that he would purposely wait to give me any info in order to throw off my unstable mentality and to ask for a higher reward to exchange.


    Currently the one thing he could do that pays him with a guaranteed life and who murdered Leonard was in front of him.


    Slowly kneeling to show courtesy and bashing his head onto the floor that caused a small hole to break into the room beneath, Dean proved his sincerity for apprenticeship.


    "I, Dean swear absolute-"


    A hand suddenly patted him on the back as a voice rang next to his ear


    "You''re too hasty, who wants an old man that can''t even use proper Wind Magic. I see you''re a young man with great potential that I must have."


    The sword that was once pointed at him was now in its sheath while the man praised him.


    "Oi, at least i''m not an ignorant youth who will probably never get a lady. You''re still a pitiful child but I know that you''re secretly a genius."


    Dean stayed quiet as he didn''t wish to add any comments that could risk his life but tried to nonchalantly laugh.


    He drew the conclusion that the both may have a grudge against each other which was why they were arguing over such a small matter.


    "Now, young one. Quickly kneel and fully claim that I am your master."


    "This old man is trying to scam you out of the prime of your life. Get up and turn towards my direction."


    This pointless drama eventually made Dean start to test the waters.


    The one with the sword would definitely have material that Dena could learn from however it was incomparable to the information the other teacher had.


    "I''m sorry but he knows the murderer of my friend"


    He was left in surprise for suddenly being rejected and made a subtle move that threw the teacher off guard.


    It was equivalent to a light bulb going *ding* inside his mind.


    Rushing to the paper on the desk, pages were flung into the air as the elder teacher realized what he was doing and quickly restrained him.


    Breaking free from the shackles of the air, he grabbed a piece of paper and immediately shredded it.


    "WAIT, I had been writing up that paper for the past hour. It had all the resources."


    Being left to sulk, the teacher faced the wall with his head down.


    A face scribbled with pride now appeared in front of Dean as he asked


    "What now?"


    Dean knew that both now held the information so now he needed to analyze which teacher was much more useful to him.


    It reminded him of the time he spent with his first Master, the clown that forgot his memories.


    They held something he desperately needed.


    First was power, now it was knowledge.


    Sighing in displeasure for having such a tough choice to decide, Dean ultimately left it to his first analysis that the man with a blade was far more useful if he was sincerely telling the truth.


    The older teacher saw the eyes of Dean that finally made a choice and the slight movement he made towards his partner.


    Knowing that he had finally made a choice he couldn''t interrupt.


    "How about we do this? For a week each, he''ll be under the tutelage of one teacher before being swapped out in the next week. Then he can rightfully make a decision."


    Thinking for a moment, the teacher nodded and found this argument to be extremely reasonable as the one who decided their fate is the person himself.


    Dean wanted to curse in front of the man but darted a glare that reflected all his emotions but made sure to limit himself.


    Noticing the subtle killing intent, the teacher smiled amiably


    The decision was already reinforced and Dean could only leave out of the room without any knowledge of the murderer


    A piece of rock fell onto his head as he took a careful look in the room.


    There was a dent in one of the sides of the walls and a hole on the floor. The roof had dozen of spiderweb like cracks with a few pebbles falling.


    Most of the damage was done by him but the one on the roof was probably done by the teachers.


    "Teachers, thank you for your hospitality."


    Dean made sure to leave that comment before quickly running out of the room, afraid of the repercussion it may make.


    The odd behavior Dean showcased caused the two teachers to become suspicious and also pay attention to their room.


    Realizing the damage they had done they started to point the fingers at each other.


    "I''m pretty damn sure it was all due to your Martial Will. Last time you nearly suffocated the suspect because of your ignorance."


    "Listen here old man, I know you still don''t know how to properly Wind Magic."


    Giving up at the vicious words, the teacher spoke


    "fifty fifty split?"


    The other teacher sighed in regret as he agreed.


    Their paychecks would be receiving a heavy fine.

 68 Enemy Spotted

    "Has he left yet?"


    "No, he''s still inside there."


    Anne yawned while Pierre held an umbrella to protect the both of them from the rainstorm.


    Next to them was a small black bag that wriggled once in a while however because they were on a tree branch, it would only make small movements.


    Pierre grabbed Anne''s attention by grabbing her shoulder as he pointed


    "He''s finally left."


    Seeing the poor state Dean was in, a smile slowly crept onto Anne''s face.


    Blood seeped from his neck which was caused by the blade the swordsman held but it was only a superficial wound that actually wasn''t dangerous or serious.


    Disheveled hair and a bruised forehead caused by the other teacher grabbing his hair when he bowed and the bruise originated from the kowtow


    The clean clothes were a wreck due to the excessive rashness he had when he confronted the teacher while dust stained his arms.


    Having seen the horrible state Dean was in, Anne was able to draw a hypothesis.


    After witnessing the horrible death of his best friend, it drove him into insanity that he started to cause troubles to the teacher which ended with him being disciplined.


    A believable story and a poor reputation with the teachers was the exact situation Anne was looking for.


    "He must be in so~ much pain. Once we add one last painful trauma then he should be done."


    "But-"


    "We''ve already discussed. There''s no room for errors"


    Anne hushed the voice of Pierre with a kiss as she grabbed the bag and forcefully dropped it off the tree branch.


    Once hitting the ground, there was a lack of a bounce but instead a recoil that caused the bag to coil itself into a ball however the restriction of the bag material left it to make slight movements.


    Leaping off and gracefully landing, Pierre and Anne were not stained by a single rain.


    Dragging the bag like a sack of potatoes, Anne commanded


    "We''re going to the meeting area, now."


    ...


    Dean felt tired and extremely stressed with the dangerous situation of a stand off.


    An annoying argument that should be settled between the two parties suddenly dragged him into it with dagger like eyes staring.


    The miserable state he was in continued to get worse.


    An uncertain future was waiting him but he wasn''t sure when everything would just collapse into dust and destruction.


    He was just a small speck in the universe, any problems he faced were not even worthy of being written in a history book.


    Such a groggy sense of fate was confusing his state of mind as he noticed that there was a note just behind his door.


    It was most likely slid in from the outside which managed it to come inside his room.


    The poor security was an opportunity for Dean to hold the academy in disdain but it was this opportunity that allowed him to harm Christian and settle a partial bit of their grudge.


    Opening up the letter his mind fell blank


    ''Dear Dean


    We hope to hold an emergency meeting within the usual spot at the forest. Please hurry''


    He guessed that it was from either Ayesha, Pierre or Anne but felt troubled by the phrasing.


    Such neat handwriting was unusual if this was written in a hurry but the main point that grabbed Dean''s thoughts was more troubles.


    It was similar to a void that just took and took without giving anything back.


    The frustration was beginning to get him when he realized how weak he was compared to the teachers.


    Throwing the letter into the bin, Dean ran out the door and ran all the way to the distant forest.


    No one was walking around this time as it was beginning to get late however Dean was able to see a faint light within the forest.


    Like an insect attracted to the light, Dean slowly passed shrubs and bushes in order to find the source that was emitting that light.


    "Oh, you''re finally here?"


    Anne smiled and waved to Dean as he had just entered the clearing but Pierre showed a cold emotionless face.


    "What''s the emergency?"


    Dean was curious why they specifically had to do the meeting here as the only reason they originally went to the forest was to make sure Christian wouldn''t hear rumors about them.


    "Pierre hold it carefully"


    "I-I-"


    "You''ve gone too far into the rabbit hole! What good is it to waste time?"


    Sighing in a slight emotional distress, Pierre held up the bag Anne had been carrying and took it off to reveal what was inside.


    Inside was Ayesha with bruises scattered along every inch of her body, cuts soaked with water and dirt; unnaturally bent body parts.


    She was overall tortured into a disfigured person that was tied and gagged.


    Dean was further surprised with this as he didn''t understand why they were calling their theatrical play an ''emergency''.


    The blood seemed really realistic as well as the mixtures that was used to create the tone of a bruise and the body parts that were sticking out in weird angles were probably done using a pill.


    Unfortunately for him, Anne made sure to make the clearing in the forest a little larger to create the illusion that Dean was close to where they were despite being farther then normal.


    This effect caused him to not notice they were serious with the injuries and they weren''t fake.


    Pierre held Ayesha by the hair and lifted her up while Anne took out a blade.


    Dean frowned on the act as Anne''s blade seemed too realistic for an act as he walked further to tell them to knock it off.


    Out of pure sympathy, Pierre took out the gag of Ayesha so that she could speak a few words


    "I-I really do-"


    It was struggle to continue talking with the pain as well as the fact that her head was already off her body.

 69 Losing I

    The head was easily flung off the body with a clean cut done by Anne while the body fell to the ground without any restraints.


    Her last words were never heard properly by Dean as he could only listen to the stuttering.


    Like a trance he could only remember the scene of Ayesha being beheaded and like a video, rewound and repeated itself.


    Dean''s emotion were finally released as he suddenly kneeled at a lost and began crying tears of grief.


    During the time he had been staying in his dorm, he was meditating for continuous hours to try and control emotions but it was all for naught.


    The one emotion he was really used to expressing was anger and violence which was why he seemed a lot more reckless while sadness and grief was long forgotten.


    Having continuous shock, stress and anxiety push his mind to the limit, Dean had no choice but to finally stop bottling his emotions.


    Anne looked at the pitiful Dean with disgust as the hopeless tears that did nothing were pouring like a waterfall from his eyes.


    Something felt like it had snapped as the rain became heavier and a lot more painful.


    Having enough of this pressure, Dean collapsed.


    The pillars that once held his life and future together were now crumbling to dust.


    To wreak vengeance upon Christian had already crumbled down to the base of the pillar while the friend know as Leonard had been entirely rebuilt to a structure dedicated for revenge.


    Where would he find happiness?


    Those pillars all emitted auras of negative emotions that showed no proof of a happy ending.


    Finally, the last of the pillars that controlled his sanity was crushed before his very eyes for a motive that he didn''t even know.


    All he had that he could hold onto was pain and anger.


    He relinquished the pillar of family as the kinship was nonexistent meaning friends and family couldn''t help him.


    On his own... all alone... once more.


    The hope of living for a good cause was immediately distinguished as he laid on the muddy floor in a pit of despair.


    Holding what most students in the school considered to be a hero in contempt, Anne shoved her sword into Pierre''s hand


    "I''ve already done my part, now hurry up and do yours."


    Pierre knew that if he tried to refute or even whimper a single word that signified his detest fro murder he would suffer.


    He strolled closer to Dean but each step felt heavier when he got closer.


    It was a guilty conscience.


    Originally when they were all children and ventured through that cave, Anne liked to portray herself as a weakling but he knew her far too well.


    She was like a venomous snake that only showed off her fangs when it was necessary otherwise she would push the problems to someone else.


    However that act stopped as soon as she became older as she was able to use Christian''s authority to obtain a safe title within the school.


    But of course his rude, heinous acts that was driven by lust to take advantage of the girls within the Autarch Organization was too much.


    If Christian never had the thought of also trying to take advantage of herself then she would have turned a blind eye.


    ''What happened?''


    We were all friends that liked to enjoy life to the fullest yet here we are now killing each other.


    Looking down as the sword in his hand, Pierre knew he had the power to take away Dean''s life in an instant but close his eyes.


    He placed the sword above Dean''s body and just stabbed down, hoping to not witness the blood fest he had created.


    Stabbing the sword all the way down, Pierre felt a sense of relief for getting the job done but the blade felt extremely light and the rain felt abnormally painful when it touched his face.


    The slight breeze of the cold wind sent shivers down his back as it felt something was missing until an intense pain erupted into his head as he was forced to open his eyes.


    Touching his face, it was a lot more sensitive than he remembered while blood stained his hand and the texture was unusual.


    Down at the ground there wasn''t a body but the pain became much more excruciating that he started to scream in anguish


    "AHHHH"


    Further creeping Pierre out was the man before him was wearing his flesh on their face with their hand dyed in red.


    He chuckled


    "Hmmm, this personality is so shallow and weak willed. Such as trash identity, not worth my time."


    Immediately tearing it off he stuffed it into his mouth and spat out a chunk


    "Blegh, at first it had such a good taste like a good impression but once I got to know the taste much more it tasted like crap."


    Darting a smile, blood flowed down the left side of his face with pure black pupils but a shiny bright florescent green light shone from his irises.


    He looked like the definition of a demon.


    "*Sigh*, if you didn''t have such a weak taste at the end then I would''ve been willing to spare you butthis isn''t what I desire."


    Without a hint of hesitation, Dean stabbed through Pierre''s chest and took out his heart.


    His hands were now drowning in red blood but it couldn''t hide a defining pitch black color with abnormally large claws.


    Fingers were absent and now replaced with nails equivalent to dangerous blades.


    Pierre didn''t wish to die this simply and tried throwing a punch towards Dean but he felt so weak as his surroundings turned pitch black.


    "Oh, oh no, shouldn''t be wasting this."


    Holding the heart in his hand, blood started to spurt everywhere but Dean made it in time by


    dragging the delicacy upwards, he chugged it.


    Seeing no more blood was showering the grounds, Dean made the decision to straight up eat the heart.


    "Hmm, it has quite a pure flavor but for some reason the pulsation is very weak like his will while it''s covered in layers of fat due to someone externally controlling him"

 70 Why?

    "The body truly does represent their tales."


    Licking the blood off his hand, Dean felt a subtle pain on the back that tempted him to curve his spine slightly backwards.


    Anne looked in horror at the sudden change of the battle.


    She had just created an opportunity where both of them held the upper hand against Dean that was further supported when he emotionally broke down like a helpless child.


    It was confusion at first for why he was suddenly able to stand up but witnessing the scene where Pierre''s heart was ripped out with what seemed like leisure.


    Pure terror infiltrated her heart seeing a demon licking his fingers one by one under the bright moon while being assaulted with rain.


    Especially with the unusual pose he was in, it created an indomitable aura to intimidate everything in its path.


    The suffocating power behind that aura would''ve told Anne to kneel but seeing how close death was, she instead released a yellow fluid that followed the rain''s path and crawled down her leg.


    Tears clouded her eyes but without her weapon she couldn''t do anything.


    She had lost Pierre which helped her with getting rid of dead weight but now that her life was in peril, she couldn''t waste any time.


    Activating a simple transmutation spell, the muddy ground in front of her became much more slippery when she changed the established composition.


    If Dean were to come anywhere close to her, he would sleep giving her a chance to kill him or run away and report to school officials.


    "What are you trying to do?"


    A voice sneaked behind her as a gentle touch on her forehead lifted her off the ground.


    Afraid to even look back, Anne continued to look forward.


    The voice was akin to a demon, a scratchy and tough tone that sounded carefree.


    She had been too slow and couldn''t apply transmutation magic behind her meaning all Dean had to do was go around the area, sneak behind and kill her.


    "Why''d you kill her?"


    He was very informal in his way of asking but Anne tried to keep her calm by coughing a little before answering


    "I had recently received news that she had been selling information to outsiders and providing other groups help, an overall traitor."


    Dean became more interested in her answer


    "Continue"


    Anne took a deep breath to collect all her thoughts and broke the short silence


    "Some of our private statistics that we managed to gather using our group was suddenly revealed by another group. We sent scouts to follow Ayesha and found that she was using her body to elevate her status. Please believe me."


    Invested in the story Dean couldn''t help but add his piece.


    "I see, I see.


    He was lost in thought making Anne excited.


    If he is able to ponder on the newly released information could Anne escape from the clutches of this demon.


    As if answering her thoughts Dean spoke


    "Hmmm, your information does seem to make sense..."


    Anne''s eyes sparkled as she knew this was her moment to escape but Dean continued


    "...Except lying is a big no-no."


    Dean smiled as he grabbed the petite right hand of Anne and appreciated the beauty in it.


    Thinking this was another opportunity to escape Anne was ready to flirt or seduce Dean into losing guard but pain took over her thoughts.


    Her pinky finger''s nail had been torn off and completely bent backwards.


    Screaming in agony, Dean snickered at her misfortune and explained himself.


    "I think the truth is much more pleasant to the ears then lies, isn''t it?"


    Teasing Anne, she questioned where she went wrong. She had yet to reveal any obvious eye movements or make any anxious movements such as moving her hands.


    "Another finger, I guess."


    Anne was about to ask for mercy but now her ring finger was completely torn off from where it was once was.


    "Hmmm, it looks like a lollipop but of course it will taste filthy if it originates from garbage."


    Dean sighed at his bad luck but felt the shivering of Anne and felt that if he didn''t tell her how he found out her lies than she might try again


    "There were many flaws in your acts but i''m willing to tell you two of them. You coughed meaning there might have been a sudden spike of anxiety that caused a dry throat. Another was the silence meaning you were trying to think of a story with a vague outline."


    He shrugged it off as just a waste of time but Anne''s hopes had been shattered when she realized it was practically impossible to lie when he mentioned ''there were many flaws''.


    Accepting the pitiful fate of hers, she hoped that out of pity or waiting for a teacher to come will Dean release her.


    "... Because she was able to betray Christian that means she could defect to another side and betray us. You know too many secrets of our group, especially humiliating one such as the wives or girlfriends in our group being taken advantage of."


    Dean was shocked at such a simple explanation and stuttered.


    "H-huh, you mean all of... was just because of that?"


    Anne was taking the question literally and was prepared to answer ''yes'' but Dean laughed with tears.


    "Haha, life sure is ironic. Christian had unreasonable ambition which was already dumb but that reason is the dumbest I have heard."


    "You betrayed Christian and defected yourself to my side. Should you kill yourself for following your stupid logic?"


    "I can''t wait for your explanation ''I need to strike first instead of being a sitting duck'', I just can''t wait."


    If Anne made any hasty movements then Dean would have no hesitation in killing he, so only by keeping quiet and waiting for the right opportunity to do some sort of action could she be free.


    "Now beg for your life."


    "Huh"


    Anne was stunned at the request.

 71 Torture

    Inside her mind there was a debate between dying with dignity or living with absolute disgrace that will haunt her forever.


    But life has the potential to change for the better and give people a chance to hide any dirty secrets.


    Struggling to get on the ground, her right hand was palpitating from all the blood entering it and exiting out the bleeding from her removed nail.


    Pain overran her mind causing her to accidentally slip into the mud and come up with a face with mud and grass.


    Dean coldly watched and noticed her finger tips.


    "I can''t believe mercy is taken for granted. Either way I was going to kill you since I was bad with jokes but whatever."


    Stamping on her left hand and completely crushing it into paste, Anne screamed in pain but smiled for completing her transmutation magic.


    She was trying to subtly apply it onto herself and on Dean''s shoes.


    Her strength would be equivalent to metal while Dean''s body was slightly weakened.


    Using her legs to jump off the ground and fly towards Dean, she tried using a stance for better aerodynamics.


    Accelerating closer to Dean she landed a blow to his abdomen.


    Nothing happened.


    Her hand was caught within a black hole where Dean''s abdomen should have been but all her sense contained in that fist was gone.


    Pushing Dean away with her legs, Anne barely got her hand out of the hole but despair and regret soon followed.


    "This magic system... is very boring."


    Dean felt the hands were annoying because Anne kept on using them to try and escape so he grabbed onto both arms.


    Making sure he had a strong grip he pulled them off.


    Anne screamed once more but Dean causally threw the arm to Pierre''s corpse.


    "Cultivator''s in this world are less tough than I thought. I might need to change a few things."


    Dean tried to grab Anne but she was like a slippery fish who escaped from his grasp due to the rain but he finally got her.


    He used the most artificial method of hanging her upside down by using his left hand and waited for a few minutes.


    "Unfortunately I don''t have any tools so this will make do."


    A cruel smile formed on Dean''s face as he took delight in ripping off the two legs Anne once had


    All the blood in Anne''s body was rushing into her head forcing an unbearable headache as well as keeping her aware of all the pain ongoing in her body.


    She was a cripple


    Finally realizing that even if she outsmarted him, she would still be powerless. At first it was just her inconsistent thoughts and fear taking over but her rationality told her to stop.


    "Please....just kill me."


    Dean was surprised at her last words but shrugged


    "No can do, currently my soul is being tormented so I can''t let it end so superficially."


    Anne was confused at the vague manner he spoke so she questioned


    "What do you mean?"


    "Hmmm, too many questions it seems."


    Looking at the small red lips he immediately tore them off the body but sighed that he couldn''t make the experience more amazing if he had small sharp tools.


    He was tempted to tear off the tongue but he didn''t want his hand to get dirty with saliva instead of blood.


    Anne kept screaming ''NO'' to protest the pain but to Dean it was made out to be incoherent as it wasn''t as defined without her closing her lips that he tore off.


    Opening her left eye, Dean peered and analyzed the depths of Anne''s consciousness.


    Forcing herself to accept the reality and watch the devil before her completely see through made the pain multiply with humiliation.


    "These eyes are too murky with desire. They aren''t even clear! Clouded with such poor ideals, was this part of the learning experience?"


    Anne wanted to instinctually grasp and comprehend what all these unknown words and vague sentences were but she closed her eyes in fear.


    Unfortunately that was the last time she would be to open her eyes.


    Dean had already punctured, Anne''s chest and obtained her heart, observing every beat and blood flow that was currently happening.


    "Inconsistent heart beats due to a confliction of views. Tainted by stupid thoughts it''s slowly eroded into black, not like i''m one to talk though however this is not worth staining my palate."


    Throwing it away into Pierre''s body, Dean made sure to place all the corpses into one area.


    Seeing Ayesha, his body couldn''t help shedding tears.


    "So this is one of the outcomes, these unbearable emotions are more interesting then I thought."


    Disposing that corpse into his Space Ring, Pierre''s and Anne''s corpse were left to be devoured by animals.


    Taking a set by a nearby tree, Dean began to meditate and recollect his thoughts.


    Before him was a loud rustle and a purple tent appeared before him.


    It was unaffected by the heavy rain or the thunderous wind as it stood proudly in the forest clearing with its plain style.


    Coming out of the tent was a man in a purple suit and a purple fedora with blue hair.


    "The embodiment of the 7 sins? I swear, if you sent me to the wrong place again then I want a pay raise."


    Dean was struck shock at how his identity had already been revealed but was confused at the ending


    "How''d you know?"


    "Woo! I finally found you. Wait... give me a moment. I need to find out what exactly I need to tell you."


    Standing in awkward silence, all Dean could hear from the man was loud muttering


    "Why can''t we tell him this?.... Are you sure that''s a good bargaining point?... No, I''m just saying that''s a weak argument."


    The struggle the man was currently having made Dean question who he was, how did he get here and what was his purpose.

 72 Hermes

    "Oh dear, where are my manners? I''m Hermes and I am basically the embodiment of Heaven''s will."


    Dean was initially confused but the words ''Heaven''s Will'' caught his attention.


    ''Are they going to use underhanded means?''


    He was most worried on the fact that they may destroy a partial bit of his soul in order to make sure the 7 Virtues is able to win their fight in the future.


    Seeing the color drain from Dean''s face as well as his stance, Hermes waved his hand to jest


    "Whoops, sorry how sensitive that word is. Hmm, to put it more appropriately, instead of Heaven''s Will we can call it the Controller of Fate."


    "Destiny, fate, time, space, etc. You could think of it as the thing that strings the universe together to make sure it doesn''t collapse."


    After the clarification, Dean calmed down with a nod and wondered what he wanted.


    "It was unexpected that your soul would release such crucial information and strength. Currently we''re also looking for the 7 virtues as we''re afraid the same thing is going to happen."


    Listening carefully, Dean understood this was a neutral party but they have yet to explain their purpose


    Putting on a serious face and staring down Dean, Hermes spoke


    "Some gods are extremely interested in the fight, so we were told to equal out the playing ground. Seal off the outbreak of your powers and the information you have. You are meant to be ignorant and explore the emotions within your new life."


    Dean sighed at that but shrugged as he was about to do that either way. If he didn''t then his persona would currently face an ordeal.


    Hermes smiled at the confirmation but added a threat just in case.


    "If you don''t... well, hehe, we have our own methods to deal with trash."


    Having enough of these shenanigans, Dean sat back onto his spot beneath a tree and was ready to cultivate but Hermes interrupted.


    "Oh yeah, we did have to tell you that. In trade for restraining your true powers and information we''ll tell you who created you via 7 Virtues before the fight. The mystical unknown being that you should fear."


    Having an incentive to remove his memories that were not meant to be, Dean quickly dispersed himself into his soul.


    Hermes entered his tent once more as it disappeared from the perception of this world and traversed through the river of time.


    "You are one scheming scoundrel, you know that, Heaven''s Will. That''s considered a partial lie but whatever. I''m also excited to see many gods laugh when they see that brat meets them. Disciple of Sylvia... how interesting."


    ...


    Soon, Dean''s form began to look human and was removed of any transformation traces however blood still stained his body.


    The demented, twisted personality that looked at everything without placing any earnest into them was gone and now returned to what it originally was.


    Looking at the scenario he had caused, Dean observed the mutilated corpses.


    Feeling absolute sickness, he bent over to throw up his guts and an unsightly color soon covered the ground.


    Although Dean hated them and wished them death, to witness that scene was far too gruesome for his tastes.


    A nauseous feeling soon took over as Dean passed out.


    "What the hell happened."


    In the distance was a shrubble slightly moving apart to make way for an old teacher with a rustled beard.


    This was the exact teacher who Dean had just met and was forced to accept him as a teacher along with a swordsman.


    He had been chasing and looking for Dean as he had hoped Dean would be able to pay off a little bit of the damage fees for his room.


    Most people in this school tended to be quite rich so his first thought was asking Dean for a little bit of money.


    First trying Dean''s dorm, he noticed that the door wasn''t properly closed but was smashed into position to make it seem locked.


    Opening it, the elder teacher found a piece of paper suggesting that Dean received a letter with some sort of emergency.


    It mentioned a forest allowing him to find a lead enabling him to arrive at this very spot.


    He was just able to find where Dean was but it seemed he had stumbled on something he wasn''t supposed to.


    A random man in purple had arrived and spoke with Dean.


    Most of the time he was able to see how grim and pale Dean was from the conversation but the man in purple seemed to be enjoying his talk with him.


    Dean suddenly sat and woke up only to pass out while the man in purple entered a tent that disappeared.


    Rubbing his eyes twice, the teacher knew it wasn''t an illusion.


    On the opposite side was a grotesque homicide case where two students had been utterly destroyed by an unknown force.


    According to the few clues he could gather, the man in purple murdered the two students however left Dean to be in shock with terror.


    ''Will his cultivation be effected?''


    This was his main thought since he found Dean to be an interesting student that could possibly enlighten him as a teacher once he became his disciple.


    If he made rash movements this could cause a large effect on any following investigation meaning he the corpses had to rot like that.


    If he wanted to bring Dean for medical treatment then that man in purple could return to remove any evidence he had.


    Sighing at his bad luck, the teacher manipulated the atmosphere above him to form a transparent sphere that abruptly popped with a snap.


    A high pitch sound rang throughout the school while the twisted above his head acted like a beacon for any passersby to notice


    "What has he done this time?"


    In the distance the swordsman that worked with the old teacher sighed while holding onto a piece of paper.

 73 Change

    Approximately when dusk had set, I, Alexander Numen found two dead corpses that were identified as students Pierre and Anne.


    The male corpse, Pierre had skin ripped off his face with an unknown ball of flesh next to the body is suspected to be the flesh but toyed with.


    A giant puncture within his chest was found with his heart shredded next to the body. The sword that Pierre used had traces of blood that had a different attribute to the two bodies which we suspect to be from the perpetrator.


    His fist was curled meaning the sword may not have been as effective after another attempt, forcing him to use brute force.


    Meanwhile, the female corpse belonging to Anne was in a horrible state. Her right pinkie was bent all the way backwards that it could touch the back of her palm while the nail had been ripped off.


    Her ring finger had been ripped off and tossed to an area near the forest clearing. Both legs and arms were soon completely torn off the body as the flesh wasn''t clearly removed we can confirm that no sharp tools were used to murder.


    An unusual part to take note is that only her lips were torn off without the other 4 orifices being affected. She died in the same way Pierre has done in which her heart was removed.


    Another oddity to notice was that Anne''s heart was intact without any loss of muscles however compare to Pierre, his heart had a portion of the muscles removed.


    Alexander had just arrived to the scene witnessing another student, identified as Dean Wilkes was conversing with a man in a purple suit with a purple fedora and blue hair.


    I was not able to gather the exact words said as I was not close enough to the scene however I was able to witness the reactions of the student.


    During their conversation, Dean''s face tended to go pale in fear and at the beginning he was originally in a fighting stance, weary of the stranger in front of him.


    The man in purple soon left into a structure that seemed similar to a tent that immediately left. From what I witnessed and the casualties I have a hypothesis.


    That man is a possibly a Black Magic practitioner that specializes in the uses of necromancy which is why he was mutilating the corpses in order to look for suitable materials for his demonic arts.


    From the teleportation spell of that tent, it suggests that he comes from a strong family or originates from a powerful sect.


    He kept Dean alive meaning that the child may be working with the man in purple or he found that the body of Dean could be preserved and grown until it becomes a suitable tool for Black Magic.


    I recommend we gather information with precaution and keep watch on Dean.


    My partner, Ellis was the first responder after me to arrive at the scene. He looked over the scene after I took Dean to a nearby infirmary for rehabilitation.


    We were both interested in this student therefore we both volunteer to take this child under our jurisdiction to watch for any oddities.


    Both took turns in interrogating Dean for any key information in this case however he comments "I don''t remember".


    This was strangely suspicious therefore we invited a Special Magician to look over his memories with Dean''s permission however the Special Magician received a large backlash.


    She described it as a ''Demonic Beast devouring her soul''. It confirms our suspicions that the necromancer may desire Dean''s body for summoning a demon meaning it is best he is hidden from the public eye.


    ....


    Dean had been in bed for a few weeks at this point but no matter how many people entered this room and whatever question they asked, he could only respond with "I don''t remember"


    He didn''t understand why this was such a difficult concept to understand but he was excited as he could finally leave this room.


    Exiting out of the room he found two teachers waiting in front of him


    "Hello!"


    "..."


    Black lines treaded through Dean''s head as he got a headache from all the questions they kept on asking while the guest they invited started to get scared of me.


    I was deemed a menace for no reason.


    "What do you want?"


    "Hehe, we received a formal certificate making you our disciple."


    "What?"


    The older teacher showed a paper in neat handwriting with a prideful manner while Dean immediately snatched it off his hand.


    Scanning through the paper, it was a bunch of obligatory courtesy however the main point was that it insisted that Dean would be taken under the two teachers for ''Special Learning'' and will be exempted from normal school training.


    He still has the rights to use the school facilities but most of his time will be spent following the teacher''s on their trips.


    Dean was tempted to grip onto the paper and rip it into pieces but the person in power could create another one while the two teachers in front of him would be offended.


    "Rather than two weeks you get to be with us for two or three years, haha."


    The silent teacher with the sword finally realized an important thing they had yet to talk about.


    "We haven''t mentioned our names yet. I''m Ellis and the loudmouth is Alexander."


    Alexander was about to argue at what he was labelled as but when he realized the crux of the matter, they had indeed yet to have actually mentioned their names to Dean.


    "Ahem, anyways you''ll be given one week off school to end your ties with whatever people you hang out with. I guess farewell for now?"


    In an instant, both disappeared while Dean was left shocked at the sudden new he had received and sighed at what fate had lead him to.


    His first thought was to say his goodbyes to Ayesha but from what he has heard, she''s been missing for a while but he guessed it was trouble with their family.

 74 Follow

    Sitting on his bed, Dean found that he had nothing to do and just contemplated what he was supposed to do in one week.


    His first thought was to just study and search for any interesting Spells he could learn however that plan was overruled when he realized he still held a bottle of pills.


    They contained the effect to allow him to enter the True Essence realm however his desire to become a master at magic was gone while the sheer sentimental value of these pills seemed much more precious.


    On the first day, he spent his time buying any rations, water or necessary items for survival in the case something unexpected happened during the trips.


    It was at that point he realized how empty his life was.


    Students who study at this academy seemed to be like snakes, ready to take down competitors as long as there is a promised reward.


    Sincerity was nonsense in the minds of nobles while those from a much poorer origin were filled with distrust for other people.


    It felt like the world''s colors were collapsing because of how superficial humans emotions were and how difficult it was to make true friends.


    He was still thinking of where Ayesha went as a family trip shouldn''t take that long but he soon received an answer when he went back to his dorm.


    Sorting out his Space Ring in order to organize the food and water he stumbled upon a corpse.


    The head and body was stale and seemed frozen but the mere sight of it caused Dean to throw up.


    Using it as a stepping stone, it triggered all the memories of what happened at that specific night where Pierre and Anne were found dead.


    It was like a very slow movies that was at half the normal play speed and sometimes froze at the most important moments.


    At one point he committed the act of cannibalism and had forsaken his humanity for a different body while his face seemed to be relishing the taste.


    this was only the beginning of the nauseous feeling and committing since there was much more to come.


    The absolute skill in torturing Anne was like a professional had done it but when a random person entered the battlefield everything was censored.


    Dean saw it as a a black rectangle that just moved in random gestures while from a third person perspective showed his mouth to be censored.


    Soon an excruciating pain located at his head crashed all those thoughts and forced him to pull on his hair while his screams were covered up with a cloth.


    His body shut down all its functions as Dean grovelled on the ground.


    Time soon passed, recovering to his normal senses, Dean ran to the library in order to find answers but most of the textbooks were useless.


    Until one book finally gave a valid reason for what Dean had saw.


    [Under extreme stress, the brain will close off a portion of memories in order to allow the human body to continue functioning normally. This can be done through forceful external pain however this can also be done by....]


    The rest was unnecessary for Dean but he was able to come to the conclusion that if he tried to search for anymore of that incident then he could die because of the pain overloading his mind.


    Sighing at his misfortune, Dean would never be able to remember the mystery of what happened however the memories reminded him of his goals.


    Christian was still alive!


    He was only expelled from the school meaning he''s still living a happy life without a problem.


    Such a poor execution of punishment made Dean entirely give up on the academy''s ability to make harsh situations in difficult times.


    Therefore on the second day, Dean spent it by pursuing Rose.


    There were many rumors of what she was doing as the people she once called friends started to badmouth her for being engaged to Christian.


    A very suspicious point was that she tended to exit the school''s campus during her free time.


    Dean suspected that she was looking for Christian after he was expelled but there was another reason to follow.


    She could be working with Anne and Pierre.


    For the first few months, she had yet to tell Christian of his existence as he didn''t make any moves to harm him suggesting that she may have told someone else instead.


    Rather than him thinking he was playing with Christian, it was instead Rose playing with her social group.


    How thick was this plot?


    Dean was uncertain how scheming they were, now that random anomalies started to pop up.


    It was very difficult to make such a call but as soon as he figured out what exactly Rose was doing could he decide.


    ...


    "Should we send people to follow?"


    A building distant to the academy''s exit stood above all other buildings on campus and allowed onlookers to look down on a beautiful scenery.


    "Currently, all the controversies are making us short on hand. It was a good idea to dispose of the mercenaries."


    The female laughed at her secretary''s statement


    "After all, we need to start doing a cleanse from the inside before the outside. Anyways, how plausible was the suggestion by Alexander?"


    Taking out a clipboard, the secretary gave a few glances and pushed up his glasses.


    "A man in purple... is extremely suspicious. I''m not sure how they would even surpass our defenses but apparently it was instantly overpowered that our formation completely gave up. The duration between he left and when the formation began working was similar."


    "We found no traces of any Black Magic being used however the skill to seal memories that are apart of the soul is what most are adept to. Given the vague clues we were given, I would have to say it''s believable."


    Having heard all the information, the lady waited before giving an answer


    "Alexander should be able to keep watch on that student. A necromancer might wait within a span of 2 or 3 years so be weary. Unless we find any information that correlates Alexander with a Black Magic shall we execute them."

 75 Hidden Housing

    Rose seemed incredibly weary about each step she took as every once in a while she would turn back to look for anybody behind her.


    Dean knew that she would become more suspicious if he made any sudden movements however he was immediately thrown off by a stick.


    *SNAP*


    Having the desire to curse, Dean hid behind a nearby tree while Rose swiftly turned her back to survey her area.


    Seeing a bird fly away into the sky with a worm in its mouth, she sighed at how stressed she was but continued to walk.


    Rose''s first location was an alchemy store that sold a wide range of herbs. Most of them were meant to be used for giving high amounts of nutrition to cultivators.


    Dean followed the locations but what Rose bought was unknown since she hid them in her Space Ring.


    Looking at the locations Rose tended to go to, they mostly involved consumables such as herbs, vegetables, meat and water.


    He had no idea what she was planning but still followed her.


    As if Rose knew that, her paced quickened.


    The realization that he was discovered caused Dean to be anxious however he immediately picked himself and hid in the crowd.


    Hiding became much more difficult as Rose took paths that were narrow and sharp turns that threw Dean off.


    Grinding his teeth at the new found difficulty, Dean gave up following Rose in the normal manner and instead climbed atop a building.


    Jumping from a building to another, he managed to get a bird''s eye view of each district Rose would go through but he realized that there was a pattern.


    Rose would always look back yet run the same path within the same area for around 3 times before switching it to a different route and repeating for 2 times.


    Dean was close to getting tired as he realized Rose could easily be lost if he started to get cocky in predicting her path but eventually it seemed Rose gave in.


    She looked slightly out of breath but she was slowly approaching to a house that seemed close to being run down.


    Trying to take a better look, Dean peered through the window to find that the interior was surprisingly clean with fair looking furniture.


    It was not to the point of luxury however what would seem comfortable for most people.


    In a distant room he could barely see the face of Christian who seemed sick as his face was abnormally pale and each breathe seemed fragile.


    Understanding that all the purchasing Rose has done was just for Christian allowed Dean to take a deep breathe of relief that would allow him to confront her.


    Jumping down from the building and stopping just before Rose, Dean stood up against the dust that flew around him.


    Rose was surprised at the sudden event but noticing that it was Dean, her eyes widened and prepared to scream but Dean stopped that.


    He suddenly bowed


    "I''m sorry."


    The sudden apology threw her off as Dean''s face was covered with a streaks of tears.


    Feeling a slight tinge of sympathy from ages ago coming back, Rose couldn''t resist the urge to get closer to him.


    However the thought that he was enemy still remained making her back off instead.


    Dean frowned in his mind but instantly continued his act and started to explain why he had apologized.


    "I had no idea things would turn out to be the worst. I just want to apologize to Christian but he suddenly disappeared, s-so I could only follow you."


    Rose heard the explanation and paused.


    His acting was surprisingly effective but this gave a clue to Dean.


    Christian had yet to tell her of the betrayal!


    She didn''t seem like the type to easily conceal her emotions compared to everyone else and the way she acted was far too realistic.


    As expected, her sympathy and the excuse eventually made her give in and inviting Dean into their house, equivalent to inviting a wolf into your den.


    Dean had one reassurance which was the fact that he should be able to overpower both of them even if they worked together as Christian should still be recovering from his injuries.


    He remembered the time Ayesha yelled that he was expelled as seeing how injured he was but the fondness of those memories instead caused more tears to run down his eyes.


    Rose gave him a moment to wipe away his tears before they both entered the house.


    It surprisingly had a comfy and cozy feeling due to the warm atmosphere.


    She pointed to the left where Christian was currently staying as she ran to the right to boil some water for tea.


    Entering a new area that was not within your control felt extremely uncomfortable but he still strove towards the room where Christian was and found that he was wrapped with blankets.


    Seeing Dean appear within his home, Christian tried escaping out of the room but he realized that all his strength was gone and he could only barely get off his bed.


    Dean chuckled at the amusing reaction


    "I''m just here to converse."


    He was originally afraid that Dean was just here to kill him and Rose but when he listened carefully, hearing the kettle whistle made his heart calm down.


    Dean was currently absent of any malicious intent, allowing Christian to sit back down.


    After such a huge defeat, he could only learn from it and reflect much more which made him understand why everything had gone wrong


    both were now willing to talk and started to catch up on what had happened between the two.


    Christian had now long lost his arrogance as he realized it was too risky and was one of the reasons why he was killed and now defeated, even if he did have it, he couldn''t portray it in front of Dean.


    "Ayesha, Pierre and Anne died."


    This sudden news broke the tension and caused Christian to slam the table.


    "IT WASN"T THEM!?"

 76 Exchanging Information

    He was absolutely shook at the realization that they were probably not the mastermind as they had been silenced once their uses were gone.


    Coming to the conclusion that it was someone else who had been controlling everything in the dark.


    It was impossible for Dean as he would''ve immediately killed Rose on his way here before eventually attempting to kill him since he was in a weakened state.


    Dean laughed at the excited Christian, he never expected that such information would cause him to jump to hurried conclusions.


    Realizing that his reactions were unrefined, Christian sat back onto his bed and started to talk about what has happened to him in the recent months.


    His family had now renounced any responsibilities he once held meaning he was now exiled from the Vikander clan.


    Any inherent riches he would get or the connections he once held were now all gone.


    Rose''s family completely cut off their engagement however they knew that Rose was no longer useful for political uses because she was considered ''used goods''.


    In order to make sure that any family that held a grudge with the Vikander Clan, Christian''s father completely crippled his cultivation in front of many people.


    The pure humiliation and the understanding that Christian was not worth the time, he had learnt to become much more mature.


    He said those words to test the waters of Dean and he had prepared something just in case.


    To his surprise, Dean only raised his eyebrows at the unexpected news but had no other emotions that expressed any malicious ideas.


    A sigh of relief escaped his mouth at the hopes Dean was willing to commit to a peaceful negotiation.


    "Let''s make a deal. If you''re willing to tell me the mastermind who wants to kill me and the people that betrayed me, I''m willing to tell you everything I know about cultivation as well as who killed Leonard."


    Dean heard the last part and was frustrated that Christian currently held the upper hand. If he wanted to get the information from the two teachers then he would have to pay with time and dedication to their teachings.


    However he noticed the phrasing of Christian''s words.


    ''Tell me the mastermind who wants to kill me...''


    This suggests that he thinks that it''s very unlikely that the mastermind was the man before him and from the way he suddenly screamed at the news of Anne and Pierre dying gave him an idea.


    If he asked Christian to say his information first then it would seem that Dean was uncertain of himself. Instead what he should do knowing that Christian has no cultivation realm is to say his side first, at the very least half of the conditions.


    Referring back to the interrogations done by the teachers, that special guest and the black rectangle, Dean made a plan.


    Acting as if he was pondering on his thoughts, Dean finally broke the silence.


    "Fine. This person tends to be called ''M''. Anybody that is found to be a nuisance would be discarded like Anne and Pierre while those that have yet to be disposed will have erased memories. M''s figure will be blurred at best."


    "M seems to be a master with controlling a person using their desires and thoughts."


    Christian was shook when he heard the motive of his newfound enemy, M.


    ''Have I been discovered?''


    His memories were far too useful and probably made him stand out when he compared himself to others.


    Realizing that he stuck out like a sore thumb, Christian knew that he was probably too self confident which made his real identity exposed.


    The guess that aligned with what he knew was that M was most likely a Soul Magician.


    Very different compared to his Tribute Magic.


    It was an ancient art that would tamper with the soul, effecting the mind, body and cultivation. If one went to the very extreme and abandoned their humanity, they would consume souls of monsters before eventually having a monstrous body.


    M may have been scared off by the swordsman that helped him at the gate but to have such power meant that he probably wanted any memories of the life before him.


    Dean was nothing more than a tool that had taken things too far.


    This news piqued his interest as the fire of revenge lit within his eyes that he could kill this person.


    Once living a life of a king, it should be expected that Christian would haev a wide range of knowledge in many areas in order to become a ruler.


    It was more formal knowledge rather than practical knowledge.


    He would be able to know the 50 ingredients that are necessary for creating 3 different formulas of a pill however to actually brew one would be far more difficult.


    To broaden his horizons about the weaknesses of other cultivators, his father would often pick manuals that were available to public and be told to dissect the failures in them.


    An example would be [Iron Palm]


    It was very limited in where it could take a practitioner to on the laws of cultivation.


    But the main weakness was that it would disable the user''s hand once they are old and it forces to user to numb their nerves in order for it to become more powerful.


    Just a short term boost will cause a person to be a prey for others.


    That''s why he would be able to know manuals besides [Imperial Mandate]


    He wrote other books in the case that he would forget them but at first he didn''t need them because he wanted to reclaim his throne


    Too ignorant!


    Rulers will be dethroned and poisoned by beloved, infighting will become the norm for riches.


    It was stupid to go back to such a struggling life.


    Instead live life carefree of such troubles and rob kingdoms if you want riches.


    [Champion''s Rights]


    However in order to cultivate such a manual... the costs are incredibly high.

 77 Crippled Cultivation Is Nothing

    One must make a simple oath: Never Lose.


    By definition of ''Lose'' it mainly meant that one shall never die during he process of a battle however if you pass out, one shall receive a minor punishment.


    Your cultivation level would be on hold temporarily.


    Meaning to ''win'' was to kill the opponent without mercy


    You were guaranteed to have an easy time cultivating for the first few realms however the only way to advance to a higher realm was pure fighting skill.


    If at anytime you have lost a battle, you''re cultivation will completely shatter and will die a painful death via separation of tendons; all 5 orifices bleeding; trauma to the nerves; pores ripping; bones turning inside out and the genital being mutilated.


    Your soul will be roasted over a flame that will never end until the very essence of yourself will cease to exist in so called ''Glory''.


    Each breakthrough will follow with pain and temporary weakness.


    The one good thing about this was that it was unable to be cultivated with Qi or Mana meaning it was useful for those with poor talent.


    He remembered the days so vividly when he asked his father why this wasn''t available to the public.


    As long as they gave it to a strong willed commoner, would they instantly have a strong warrior.


    What''s more, given that the warriors would grow in a controlled environment with the resources they have at hand, they could essentially create a powerful soldier.


    At the time, his father laughed out loud for a long time until he gave a cold glare.


    "Let me tell you of a story where we got this manual from.."


    "Once there was a young man who grew up in a rural village, during a special night, he found a cultivation manual in the deep woods. Thinking he had won life, he was ready to show it off to his family and friends but instead kept it for himself."


    "One day challengers appeared one after another and just like magic, he won. Years soon passed and he became the strongest person within the village and made sure to be filial child by doing the crops."


    "Soon a messenger from the kingdom came ''Our king would like to see you''. He met the king and was recruited to become a soldier. However disaster struck as their capital was soon filled with famines, plagues, natural disasters and wars"


    "A line soon carved in blood at the end of the book wrote ''Fate is not meant to be played with''."


    The child was without patriotism and was filled with ignorance about the outside world.


    Although that was a point that could''ve been brought up, the story suggested that if he hired a person to fight and purposely won, his life would be gone.


    Ultimately, his goal was to become ''Undefeatable''


    Although very unlikely, Christian would wander around the world and hope that luck would be on his side.


    Compared to being a sitting duck, he would rather still choose this choice even with such a heavy price.


    He did not necessarily have to fight anyone but he wanted to test out whether enlightenment about ''fighting'' itself would present any improvements.


    Dean was starting to get worried at the fact that Christian was muttering and in deep thought for a long while now.


    It was abnormally long for a simpleanalysis of who this person was


    He was starting to be afraid that Christian found out about his lie even though he made sure to try and be as vague as possible yet also blunt with facts.


    Another was that he would skimp out on his part of the information.


    Rose had just arrived and placed a tray with two teacups and a kettle.


    She first poured out the tea for the two of them before taking back the tray and entering into the kitchen once more to make some medications for Christian.


    Dean realized that this sudden invasion with a kettle of tea made him get into a very dangerous situation.


    He definitely saw Rose enter a herbal store meaning that she could''ve simply placed some paralyzing herbs into the tea and made him unable to fight.


    Leonard was able to show him how deadly poison can be just by processing it a little or turning it into a pill.


    Cautious he looked back to Christian but saw that his mind was blank.


    ''I wasn''t cautious enough!''


    Christian could have given a signal to Rose that suggested to put poison into the tea.


    Sweat began dripping down his clothes as he tried to ignore the tea and force Christian into a position of answering


    "Who killed Leonard!?"


    "Huh, oh."


    There was a slight surprise in his voice as he tried coughing to clear his mouth and proceeded to drink a cup of tea.


    Dean was concerned what he was doing but in the end face palmed.


    It was very unlikely that he would take medicine before meeting as it would be unusual for him to do that.


    Soon he also took a drink but it was less bitter than he thought


    "You have more important information so I''ll tell you a different one instead."


    He frowned at that news but was interested in things he spurted during his fight.


    "In this world, there are more dangers than you can expect. Artifacts capable of destroying countries, Conjurers able to take apart time and space, gods watching over mortals, etc. Higher, Lower, Middle and Lost Worlds"


    "Xuan Beasts terrorize the Lower Worlds and create breeding grounds to create little monsters. Middle Worlds just like this one, allow a single race to live on and eventually evolve with enough help or devolve with raids."


    Dean was ready to tell Christian to stop with his nonsense but his hand was telling him to just listen.


    "Higher worlds where geniuses gather where different races are able to reach peace or utter war with each other. Organization built to destroy or create order within these worlds while Lost Worlds... are just forsaken lands."

 78 Laws of Cultivation

    "The main point is that they follow the main laws set by the Higher Worlds. One can have dozens or even hundreds of realms but they are worth the equivalent of trash. There are only 12 realms in total."


    This news broke the conditions that he remembered, especially what was written inside the [Battle Instinct Manual].


    It rambled something about an outsider''s point of view but it was not the time to start reading it with Christian in front of him.


    "In this world we only have 9 realms which skimp out on at least 4 realms. Middle Worlds are only able to hold cultivators up to Spiritual Transformation 1. Whatever realm higher than that is nothing more than small breakthroughs or foundation reinforcement"


    "Any higher than that realm and you will feel the World''s Pressure. If you are to reach the peak of that realm, you must seek asylum in a Higher World, destroy the world and in the process kill yourself or die because of the pressure."


    "Live on to become a legend or die a miserable death with a guilty conscious."


    The sudden allegory Christian told was very difficult to accept as it shattered the knowledge Dean had grown up with.


    Even if it was lies, Dean would find interest about such mystical objects and possibility of infinite resources.


    Monsters call Xuan Beasts sounded interesting however he had never met one which caused him to be skeptical of Christian''s liability.


    Sipping more tea out of his cup, Christian was satisfied in the taste and spoke


    "Okay, now confess who betrayed me."


    Christian stood up like a drunkard and made small movements incing closer to a bookshelf.


    His steps were unsteady with each movement making it seem that he would collapse if a breeze of wind were to circulate in the house.


    Grabbing a piece of paper and a pen, Christian asked


    "Can you write the names of the people who betrayed me?"


    Dean felt troubled by this fact as the person who communicated the most with the Autarch Society was mainly Anne and Pierre.


    He didn''t know the names of the people who betrayed Christian during the time he was fighting against the Horned Viper Murderer but he did now the names of the girls who were framed.


    Taking the paper and pen, Dean soon scribbled down some names.


    {Angela


    Sabrina


    Erika


    ....}


    He wrote down 10 names which Christian felt was low until he recalled that all these girls did have husbands or boyfriends.


    They all had a clear motive for hating them that was further promoted by the shame and humiliation they felt.


    Dean didn''t feel that this wasn''t too big of a deal as Christian wouldn''t be able to take out his revenge but he guessed that Christian was trying to sate his curiosity.


    Christian''s cultivation was absent but the only danger he could serve to them was by hiring an assassin.


    Except the price would probably be high making it very unlikely.


    Accepting that these were all the people who betrayed him. Christian couldn''t help but feel a little sad that he was so easy to replace.


    "Hmmm, to be exact, I didn''t exactly hire a person to kill Leonard."


    "WHAT!"


    It was now Dean''s turn to be surprised as he absolutely remembered the cold dead corpse with skin burnt by chemicals.


    Thinking that it was an excuse by Christian, he was ready to tackle him and grab him by the collar.


    "It was more of a sudden visit."


    Dean was confused at the phrasing but instead calmed himself down to listen.


    "After I was finishing some business, a man soon appeared in front of me. He threw out a small ball that shrouded my team in a yellow fog that knocked everyone out, leaving only me conscious."


    "Smiling he grabbed the folder off my desk and told me ''Sorry, this preys mine'' as he soon left. His clothes weren''t memorable but the poison soon caused the unconscious people to begin convulsing and start torturing themselves."


    "My guess was that he was probably the Wandering Demonic Poison King. He accepts high pay jobs and create poisons that are always incurable."


    Christian took another sip of his tea while Dean sank into contemplation at the name ''Wander Demonic Poison King''.


    It was an unusual name that he had never heard of with four words comprising of the name.


    Considering he was a person skilled in poison, it suggests that his main way of killing people is using poison in the form of smog instead of pills for eating.


    The long name was probably made for foolish people to speak long sentences that could eventually kill them.


    Such crafty skills would be annoying but as long as he continued to grow stronger it should be fine.


    Their conversation had been going for too long as the sky became much more dimmer than he thought while Christian yawned


    "Hraaaaarh, I think it''s about time I should sleep."


    Trying to signal that their business was done, Dean watched Christian turn his back to him but coughed.


    He couldn''t just leave after learning what he had heard today.


    Patting Christian on his shoulder, he turned back to Dean and questioned what he wanted.


    A word couldn''t escape his mouth as a fist had landed in his abdomen, completely knocking him out without any mercy


    Dean couldn''t let his revenge end up done poorly and let Christian live.


    Everything.


    All the pain and happiness he gained that was now sacrificed for sadness was all because of the man before him.


    His friends soon died one by one and the person who started this trend was because of Christian.


    He wouldn''t need to suffer or feel such a fiery desire for power if it weren''t for him.


    Restraining himself, Christian couldn''t die just so fast.


    *CRASH*


    Dean could hear a crisp ringing of utensils suddenly dropping as well as a bowl shattering into pieces.


    Rose watched in horror at Christian who was knocked out and Dean silently watching her.

 79 Revenge

    "W-what are you doing?"


    Her voice was soft like a mouse and quivered at the fearful sight while an idea popped in Dean''s head.


    Dean searched anything that was currently on Christian however Rose couldn''t just watch.


    Searching for any nearby items that can be used as a weapon, she first leaned towards the bookshelf and threw a book towards Dean.


    An object was soon sent flying towards his face. It was just a book and didn''t seem dangerous, nonchalantly pushing it to the side and clarifying his sight, Dean saw a fist heading his way.


    It was much more of a feint as Rose dropped down to the and swept Dean''s legs however it had no effect.


    Looking down to see Rose struck by the realization that she was weaker than Dean by such a large level that even her attacks was nullified like nothing caused her confidence to go down.


    Grabbing onto Rose''s wrist, Dean realized that she was a lot weaker than he thought and was surprised at the conclusion he came to.


    Her cultivation realm was far lower than what he originally thought and remembered at one point she had introduced herself as a Foundation Establishment cultivator.


    His guess was that her family may have also been used as a sacrificial lamb to appease the anger of other families while his other one was also fairly likely.


    Christian decided that it was not worth investing resources to a person that would not help him attain his goal even if they were close to him.


    This would make sense on why Pierre and Anne seemed a lot stronger than Rose.


    "P-please stop.... we just want peace"


    She was already restrained and was unable to break free from his grasp.


    Water started to gather around her eyes as they slowly fell down while her voice became less audible with the stuttering.


    Dean was surprised that the girl had the audacity to ask something from him and felt outraged when he remembered everything that went wrong.


    Seeing that her pleading wasn''t working she started producing more waterworks and begged for mercy.


    "We promise that you''ll never see us again. I-I''m willing to do anything as long as we are both fine."


    Dean was enjoying the moment where he held the upper hand and relished in the moment before making sure he could make sure his revenge was accomplished.


    He wouldn''t allow Christian to get off that easily.


    ...


    In the very distance, one may be able to hear the faint yet loud panting and moaning shared between two intimate people.


    Soon a yell with vicious intent that threatened someone was cut off halfway that was also followed by a high pitch scream.


    It all became quiet as Dean felt his ear ringing at such loud noises.


    He was troubled by the blood that was caught onto him but shrugged it off in search of treasures on Christian''s body.


    A small Space Ring was hidden in an inner pocket that probably held all the riches he had left while Rose''s inventory was just filled with food


    No one would check up on this place meaning he could just leave the corpses here without a problem.


    Looking through the ring, there were many treasures.


    Herbs that could help improve cultivation, dense minerals, tough wood and consumables.


    The main thing that caught his interest were the manuals hidden in them.


    [Imperial Mandate]


    [Champion''s Rights]


    And many other books.


    One suspicion he held was that they seemed fairly new and weren''t worn out by the power of time.


    He wasn''t sure where Christian was able to get these cultivation manuals but they still seemed to be quality goods.


    He had 5 more days before he would be forced to go on a trip monitored by two teachers but suddenly felt like he lost his will.


    There was only so much he desired to do and everything felt shallow and empty.


    Looking into his Space Ring, he was reminded of the corpse with two pieces and couldn''t help but tear up at such a gruesome mess it was.


    It was such a short time they shared but it ended prematurely.


    The only way he felt that Ayesha''s corpse could have a peaceful time was that it should be buried at the cave where it all began.


    From what he once heard from her, the family she grew up in was competitive and treated her like a chip to gamble into the political market.


    She must have kept secret on what had happened between her parents when they received news that Christian did certain deeds.


    To Dean, the pressure must have been unimaginable compared to his position in his family.


    Reminding himself that he actually had a clan behind him, he wondered what happened to them as he was pretty sure Christian may have killed them.


    There was something he looked forward to and started his journey to go back to a place with not the most fondest memories in his childhood.


    Looking out the window, it was far too dark to start his journey, so he decided to stay in this house however he made sure to clean up the mess he had created.


    At one point the stench was unbearable that Dean eventually had to dispose of them outside of the house.


    After getting a good night''s rest, Dean was full of energy and ready to abandon this house with the foul smell


    Stretching out his limbs and beginning his walk, Dean gave up on walking and ran.


    From what he remembered, it was roughly a two day walk but if he ran then he should be able to squeeze it all into one day.


    He didn''t know why but slowly within his heart there was a slight emptiness followed by unreasonable sadness.


    It wasn''t similar to grief but the sorrow of missing something.


    The best word he could currently think of was melancholy


    An unreasonable sadness that you''re not able to locate

 80 Remains of The Wilkes

    Dean was barely able to make it to his location as it was already far into the night however his journey was off by a few kilometers.


    Sleeping another night meaning he used up 3 days with 4 days left including the day it would take to travel back to the academy.


    On the way he met many bandits yet they were surprisingly weak as Dean soon managed to outrun them.


    No fighting was done even if birds chased him or lizards wanted to devour him. It would waste too much time if he did so.


    Once it was morning, Dean left his temporary camp to tread through the last kilometers and found the place that made up his childhood.


    The training area where luscious green grass used to grow had been reduced to black ashes.


    He was quite fond of this place as his blood would like to puddle up in this area but even the grass rejected him.


    They didn''t even put his blood to good use and just allowed it to dry up.


    Honestly a waste.


    Crops that once provided food for the large family and created a large revenue for spending money was now also ash.


    It was a waste of food but what could you do?


    The sight of crumbling buildings was much more amusing.


    Houses once filled with various colors and different styles of architecture as well as history will eventually return to dust.


    Some wood refused to let this end lying down and instead stood up unstably with he lightest breeze making them sway.


    Any cloth used were now glued to the ground due to the high temperature that slowly melted the fabric.


    Kicking the ashes around, it was a pretty sight to see the small particles fall down.


    It was quite disturbing to see the human ashes with charred skin however Dean couldn''t help but ignore their dead bodies.


    Dean was imagining how big the fire Christian had set off within this house as it destroyed everything and even leeched off the crops nearby.


    Would it be bright enough that the moon would reflect off it?


    That was a question that can never be answered as the witnesses were most likely dead or silenced.


    Wandering around what was once a house, Dean kicked up a mess everywhere as a way to relieve himself of the torture he received at young.


    The ability to freely do whatever you wanted without anyone felt incredible. It was the small mild problems in your life that was slowly disappearing.


    Although that was one of his purposes, the other one was to look for anything of interest.


    He once saw an article of clothing that barely caught on fire however it was for a female due to the design.


    Another was a special tableware he remembered his grandfather once had meaning he was currently within his office.


    The table wasn''t too special but it seemed to be on an odd angle.


    Picking it up and throwing it to the side, Dean found a couple of books beneath.


    One was labelled with the history of the Wilkes family however Dean didn''t care about this and instead threw away the thick book.


    What grabbed his attention the most was a sealed envelope with an interesting wax seal.


    If he was able to remember correctly, this specific was specially used by his grandfather when he was sending letters containing secrets the outside world should never know about such as trade routes.


    Lacking the patience to wait and open the letter in a private room, Dean felt more comfortable opening it right now.


    Contained inside was a small note with scribbles written in a messy manner, most likely due to it being rushed as the ink was slightly smudged.


    {Dear Dean


    If you happen to hear about the incident of what has happened to us, please do not take revenge. It seems we have offended a large power that in the end wouldn''t tell us their identity.


    A few of your relatives have escaped into the world and ran away from this incident in the hopes our bloodline still continues.


    Your father has most likely died but you have the rights to know that his destination was the Zikel Clan''s District. There you can ask around the name of ''Lily Zikel''


    Sincerely


    Your beloved grandfather}


    Dean was chuckling at the irony that he shouldn''t pursue revenge but he took it into his own hands because of a personal grudge and not such a poor reason.


    His relatives rarely treated him kindly as all they could think about was making a profit to improve their families lives even if that meant the sacrifice of another.


    It wasn''t a surprise that his father died as grandpa did at one point mention that he was considered ''missing''.


    A person who can''t even take responsibility of an adult didn''t need his approval of a son.


    He spent many days beaten into a pitiful sight yet sometimes he could tell that his father would watch without any emotions.


    This made him think that he may have been a bastard child but his father never mentioned a female partner or even bring a female to the clan.


    Another one was that he was adopted which would also make sense but it seems his grandpa was persistent in acknowledging the factthat he is still his grandchild.


    The Zikel Clan piqued his interest as he had never heard of this clan before and since his father wanted to go there, it meant this was a clan with significant power not in a local area.


    The name ''Lily Zikel'' rang 0 bells in his head and he was very tempted to just tear this paper into scraps.


    However, seeing the tears his grandpa stained the paper and the mysterious Zikel Clan, Dean instead kept the paper within his Blue Orb.


    There was a slight hesitation in doing so but when he tried to stop himself getting sentimental a sharp lack of something made him feel pain.

 81 Burial

    Dean refused to simply think that he was becoming more soft hearted and forced himself to think that he just wanted something to do when he might feel bored.


    He guessed that his relatives probably held some treasures and inheritance from the family but he wasn''t petty enough to kill them and take those resources.


    It was a waste of time to chase after dead people so do something else instead.


    Looking up at the sky, it was still bright without a single cloud covering the rays of the sun.


    Everywhere and everything was charred to black making Dean lack interest in exploring the area any further.


    Thinking what else he could do to pass 3 days, Dean remembered that Ayesha''s corpse was still within his Space Ring but had yet to rot.


    It still looked fresh but the gruesome sight left him unable to chew on his rations as he recalled the scenes after her death.


    He questioned if that was really him who was able to throw out all his morals, common sense and logic into the trash'' just to toy and strike fear into the duo.


    The guts to commit the act of cannibalism would never cross his mind when he could just simply kill his enemy.


    An aftershock of remembering those memories started to take effect as Dean crouched before eventually falling onto the ground while holding his head.


    He wanted to cream with all his might but that wouldn''t do anything but create trouble if anyone were to take advantage of his weakened state.


    Groggily standing up, Dean grabbed a piece of wood and used it to elevate himself until he was comfortable just using his two legs.


    His eyes were losing focus but trying to concentrate thinking about the next location helped him clear his thoughts.


    Once Dean felt comfortable moving once more he began his journey.


    When he was a child, the journey he took to get to the cave was more than 2 days because he had to go in a group and had to go around places.


    It was mainly due to those troublesome parts that their carriage had to take such a long journey but now that Dean was alone, he took a shortcut.


    He avoided any encounters with any bandits or animals and went around tall structures that could be a hassle to go over and instead went around in tight places.


    This alternative path was far quicker and allowed Dean to roughly to make it to the cave in less than 3 hours.


    Reminiscent memories started to remind him of the difficulties he once faced.


    Taking the normal path when he was a weak child by himself would take many days because he didn''t have the guts to use a different path.


    Arriving at the cave once more it was covered in much more moss and even the rocks blocking the entrance also had moss.


    Remembering the method to enter the interior of the cave, Dean brought out the Blue Orb from within his body.


    A bright flash of light blinded him.


    It was odd how he rarely used this precious treasure unless it was necessary for storing important items such as that note he received.


    He guessed that after staying at the school for a long time he had adapted too well in the use of using more normal items.


    An example would be that he didn''t like to use his polearm if there were a number of eyes witnessing a fight.


    The ray of light soon ended and Dean was able to open his eyes.


    It had a rancid scent due to never having fresh air as it was mostly blocked off by rocks while any oxygen that entered the cave was due to the many small cracks leading to the outside.


    Adjusting his sight to a much darker environment, Dean was soon able to find Ivan''s grave.


    Atop of it was a rotten flower but Dean felt it was just fine like that.


    Dean originally wanted to just bury Ayesha''s corpse as is but he felt that burning it and turning it into ashes was a much better option.


    Exiting using the blue orb once more, there was another flash of light that soon ended.


    Taking out the corpse and placing some animal fat he had gotten from the Hundred Thousand Beasts Forest as fuel.


    To create ignition, Dean used a match that he was originally preparing for a torch however he was lucky to buy the matches in bundles at a deal.


    Ayesha''s body was now completely on fire with the help of the fuel but seeing such a sad sight made Dean want to turn away from this scene.


    However that would solve nothing and mean that he still refuses to accept reality, steeling his heart and watching quietly was the way he felt that he could overcome his emotions.


    It was painful seeing something that could''ve blossomed into such an interesting life was now burning in front of him.


    He had no urns on hand however he had a lot of empty pill bottles that he didn''t have the time to give to Leonard.


    Brushing all the remains into a single bottle, Dean sealed it and then brought it inside the cave next to Ivan''s grave.


    Once severing the emotional ties with the dead, Dean felt a sort of completion.


    It was not a healthy thought as it was equivalent to saying ''good riddance''


    Shaking his head to avoid thinking anymore of his dead friends, Dean traveled to the treasure room and took out the manual that helped him.


    [Battle Instinct Manual]


    He had never taken this book out after reading through it and remembering the circulation of energy.


    The main thing he wanted to contemplate with this book was when he heard the laws of cultivation from Christian.


    Some points destroyed what he knew from young and this book hadn''t confirmed anything.


    But the word ''outsider'' seemed difficult to understand

 82 Battle Intent Manual

    {Our path that we follow is called an ''error''. That is nothing more than an outsider''s perspective. What does that concern with you. You are you, so why should it matter?}


    {We are called demons for surviving torture and devils for scheming. In fact we are just strong at enduring and smart for thinking. That is all}


    {Are we gods? Are we mortals? Why should we be labelled by other''s definitions? We can reference them in order to act like everyone else but when in the dark our true fangs appear.}


    {Plot those who dare to sin. Kill those who rebel. Murder those that betray. We are tools. We can only be used by ourselves and by no one}


    {Heed my writings and battle everything that obstructs your path}


    That was the first passage of the book which dictated the way you should look at cultivation followed with a certain way to meditate and absorb energy in the next page.


    Dean analyzed through the passage and found that it was riddled with questionable phrases that made no sense.


    Their path is called an ''error''. By who? ''Outsider''s perspective''


    It made no sense as to why it would be called an error with the only logical reasoning that it is deadly when used properly.


    To gather info on an ''outsider''s perspective'', it means that at one point in this manuals life, it was shown to multiple people and possibly for the public.


    If it was as petty as the reason being that the second person to look at this technique said that it was bad then Dean could only sigh on how unlucky he was to pick this manual.


    He researched a lot when using the Wilkes'' library however he had never heard of the name [Battle Intent Manual] being mentioned anywhere or a different technique with similar effects.


    Dean tried to connect the pieces altogether only to realize that only the first line had already stumped him.


    Recalling back to the information Christian had given about a so called ''Multiverse'' with many worlds at different levels.


    There was not much he could go off but for the first part he placed his hopes that the novel was at one point held in contempt in another world.


    His master at one point mentioned that he was a clown or a jester.


    Such a quirky attribute would surely be noted down however any available resource he found was unable to even find such a weird cultivator.


    The main question in his mind was: How do you convert from an outsider?


    At one point in the creation of this manual, the creator would have to borrow ideas established by the environment he lived in.


    This manual couldn''t just suddenly drop from the sky because it just exists.


    Sinking into deep contemplation on how this was possible, Dean failed to notice that the book was slowly taking in his Battle Intent and was forcing out pages from the spine of the book.


    What was once a thin manual turned into a sturdy hard cover while writing became more fleshed out.


    Dean was currently too focused on that single line but thought this may be similar to some special poems.


    Instead of requiring the reader to look and dissect line by line, it desires for the reader to look at the whole writing as a whole and analyze it.


    It was extremely arduous but Dean still wanted to complete this puzzle.


    Looking down at the book once more, Dean was surprised the excessive change to it.


    Flicking through the book due to his curiosity, there were many diagrams that he had not noticed before including charts, notes and scriptures.


    One diagram looked like it was a torture scene as it was a blank humanoid form being strapped onto a table.


    Reading the text close to it, Dean understood what was happening.


    From a cultivator''s standpoint then it was indeed torture due to the fact that practitioner is completely refining their body with Battle Intent that went from the skin all the way to the nerves.


    Such a deadly skill will allow one to increase in strength and cultivation however the risks involved would be that the closer you get to refining your body, the more likely you are to be impaired


    An example would be the internal organs. Accidents can which is fine however the healing process could be expensive and take a lengthy time.


    If used on nerves then one will have a high chance to become mentally damaged. This will effect the cultivator''s ability to find their path in search of a higher cultivation.


    The scariest example listed was that if one lacked talent then they will be used by the Battle Intent.


    It was not equivalent where it would act as poison but instead control the body as a host that would begin a massacre.


    Some paper was jammed in that acted as sticky notes told horror stories of people killing their own families, lovers or friends while being conscious of their act.


    Dean studied the thick stack of notes but his question regarding the very first passage that allowed him to embark on a path of revenge was never found.


    Only after lingering around the middle of the pages, Dean finally found a somewhat answer to his question.


    A page listed down 12 cultivation stages: Body Refinement, Qi gathering, Foundation Pillars, Revolution Core, Golden Light, Silver Shadow, Nascent Soul, Soul Nourishment, Spirit Thrive, Void Shattering, Whole Unity, Ascendant.


    Dean found that they did align with what Christian said and indeed some of these cultivation realms were familiar to him.


    The only odd part was that the realm, Ascendant was completely crossed off with a child like scribble.


    Looking down the page, Dean found his answer that was a like a prologue.


    {It is impossible for use to be gods. We neither create or destroy as a meaning of our life. We live only for the reason that we can and do what we want}

 83 Answers

    Dean couldn''t agree more with that statement.


    Although they could indeed create people by reproducing or destroy by killing, at the end it is just the outcome for living the way you want.


    Whether it was the path of a bloodthirsty murderer or a loving and tender partner, they stem from the desire of how you want to live.


    His question should be answered soon but most of the pages afterward explained the establishment of each realm as well as the origin of it.


    He was soon getting tired of this useless information as his cultivation had already been established in the way he was taught meaning it would be difficult to now convert to this path without getting rid of his cultivation.


    Another troublesome point Christian told him was that he would eventually reach his limit once he reached Spiritual Transformation due to the ''limits of the world''


    How he could escape such a restraint was unknown to Dean but he was fine with that because it meant that his enemies couldn''t be any stronger.


    After going through the pages of explaining cultivation, Dean found the answer he desired.


    {This originates from our progenitor that established the laws of the entire universe. It was only named as Heaven''s Will. Call it a lie then the world is a lie but call it the truth then the world is true.}


    What this meant for Dean was that this ''Heaven''s Will'' was the beginning thing that created this manual.


    An entity that seems to surpass logic meaning it should not be visible to the plain eye.


    Understanding that it must be some sort of omnipotent life form, Dean could conclude that it would theoretically be impossible for it to be an ''outsider'' because if that was so then everything would be an ''outsider''


    Such a roundabout manner of explanation that defied common sense shook his head around but when he read it once more and stopped on the name, Heaven''s Will his head felt pain once more.


    His body was rolling around on the floor to activate some adrenaline and numb the pain while his head was in a state of panic.


    Dean flew into his consciousness to see a black rectangle that he recalled seeing after committing cannibalism.


    This black rectangle suddenly zoomed in with a very faint white outline of a sparkly circle somewhere above the halfway part of the rectangle.


    It was like the little ball of light was luring him in and constantly wanted him to get closer but Dean didn''t know why he felt like he should avoid it.


    The best equivalent he could find was that the little ball of light was like a wolf in sheep''s clothing that would devour him if he got too close.


    Dean was trapped in darkness with the persisting instinct that he needed to run as fast as possible and get out of this hell.


    That acted as an incentive to escape as Dean shortly woke up back to the dark shades of the cave.


    Any small fragments of light that was scattered within the cave seemed a lot more brighter than usual making Dean suspicious.


    Removing himself out of the treasure area and appearing once more to the outside world, he got slightly worried.


    It was extremely bright due to the day being in the afternoon where the sun made the land warmer.


    Dean swore that the time he read the [Battle Intent Manual] was during the evening meaning at the earliest time, he would have slept through the night and morning.


    But this brings the anxious fact that what seemed like only a few minutes in that nightmare were days or even weeks.


    He wasn''t able to keep track of the time meaning that his time for prep could already be over.


    His heart was currently filled with panic as he chewed on some rations to appease the hunger and growling stomach.


    If he didn''t hurry to go back to the academy then he will miss his chance to follow the two teachers and learn who... murdered Leonard.


    But he already knew that the person who murdered Leonard was called the Wandering Demonic Poison King.


    So why does he need to go to the academy?


    A tide of emotions overtook Dean as he was thrown into confusion at such an irrational idea to still persist and do something even though there was no point.


    The only excuses that Dean thought up of was that he could learn from the two teachers and hopefully, in a very lucky case, meet the Wander Demonic Poison King during a mission.


    If he was as fearful as Christian described then Alexander who was skilled with manipulating the wind should be useful.


    Dean nodded to the sudden idea but cold sweat couldn''t help but be exuded from his head.


    He didn''t know why he felt fear, but it felt like a dagger slowly chipping away his ability to do things.


    Such a reaction was unusual. Dean instead ignored it and placed the blame as the aftereffects of the nightmare he experienced.


    Calculating the time it would take to the academy, it would take the remaining time of today and the time of tomorrow.


    Sighing at his misfortune, Dean still treaded towards the academy.


    The gates were still not handled properly as there was no guard, allowing Dean to discreetly enter the academy without a problem.


    No one threw him a glance despite his dirty clothing making Dean surprised at how lax the security was and only now realized such a flaw


    But the main thing he noticed within the school was a much darker mood than usual.


    There was no time to waste on the other students so Dean instead rushed towards the same office the two teachers owned.


    He passed through the lobby without any questions asked which also made Dean filled with suspicion but he guessed that some sort of accident happened in this school.


    "Oh, boy you''re back at school?"

 84 Zikel Clan

    The room was the same as he had originally left it, crumbling gravel and rocks tending to fall on the floor with dust everywhere.


    Papers were also thrown about making the place a complete mess. Dean tried to kick the rock away from the door but it suddenly crumbled


    Dean immediately wanted to know if he was late and asked


    "How many days of preparation do I have?"


    His words were a little rushed but Alexander was still able to understand it


    "Hmm, I''m pretty sure you still have a day. Did you actually forget the day?"


    The teacher was slightly snickering at Dean for not remembering when the day they would leave began while Ellis stayed quiet as normal and diligently


    Without giving an answer to Alexander''s question, Dean already slammed the door leaving the office immediately.


    The room shook a little due to the force and more cracks opened up and dust began to fly around.


    Ellis and Alexander both coughed at the unexpected surprise of more dust but used their papers to fan it away.


    While they struggled to breath fresh air and work in a healthy environment, Dean headed towards the library to get some of his answers solved.


    He couldn''t continue cultivating his [Battle Intent Manual] as a small glimpse into enlightenment caused immense pain and even though some simple verses could be understood, it might be dangerous.


    Two days had already passed for just the first line of the passage making Dean uncomfortable to continue his research on the manual however he was interested on any other knowledge he could get on.


    An example would be the mysterious clan called the Zikel Clan or the person his grandpa told him to find, Lily Zikel.


    If the library closed then he would look through the manuals Christian had in his Space Ring.


    Cultivation in peace was essentially useless only with effects of harmonizing the mind and body.


    With how things were progressing, Dean didn''t understand why he suddenly felt a lot sadder when there was nothing to do but still entered the library.


    He didn''t need any of the Magic Spells or Martial Arts Techniques. The one thing he needed was just resources.


    They were all listed under the category, Geography which described the locations of the many kingdoms or countries.


    However due to the change in power that can happen at anytime, some of these facts may be untrue.


    Especially for smaller towns that could be vulnerable to the attacks of bandits and turn into a desolate waste.


    Dean tried to look for the most appealing book but books describing geographical locations was not appealing for most especially with bland covers.


    The best he could do was look for the much newer books that seemed well tended and had relevant information that he currently knew.


    It was clearly labelled into sections, allowing Dean to go through the book without a hassle however with a clue being the Zikel Clan, he had no choice but to individually check each label.


    He could skip parts such as the ''Author''s introduction'' or ''Continents'' as it was very unlikely for a clan to own a whole continent.


    At best they will be able to own small countries but are mainly part of a kingdom.


    Time soon passed but Dean was able to find a good hint that the Zikel Clan was located south towards his current location.


    This book filled with geography was now useless to Dean, placing it back into where he had gotten it, Dean looked for the ''History'' section.


    One book filled his needs as it was labelled ''The Great Might of the Zikel Clan'', taking it out and looking at the clean pages, Dean thought that it must have been fairly recent since its release.


    The book described them as a domestic clan with huge capabilities as merchants that are able to monopolize the Beast Core market.


    Holding such power the power they already had now increased into a crucial part of the kingdom''s jurisdiction.


    They hold certain benefits by the king of the country and are able to participate in events that most nobles are unable to take part of.


    An ambitious person in their youth was the person who created such a monster, Edward Zikel.


    Under his talent in his skills to operate under pressure and captivating charisma, he was able to control markets with potential that eventually became monsters in their industries.


    Dean was rather confused that such a a strong clan with connections with his grandfather was never mentioned.


    Theoretically, his grandfather would''ve used this strong backing to start increasing the business in their crops yet he did not even mention a single word of it until his death.


    Such news made Dean realize that he truly did not know the depths of his family but he still didn''t regret throwing that book away with his family information.


    If he was to travel with the teachers and reach this destination then he wouldn''t mind looking through what their relationship was with his family.


    A big clan actually caring about the Wilkes would cause Dean to be suspicious but it would make him entertained.


    Seeing that most of the other resources were outdated and the library was already closing, Dean left to his dorm after heading to the eatery.


    There was a rise in satisfaction after his meal, Dean persisted in his last day of peaceful researching before the trip and thought that he might as well look through the manuals Christian held.


    [Imperial Mandate]


    In his mind it honestly didn''t seem too bad.


    Cultivating an aura that would make people feel trust, loyalty and awe towards a person was definitely interesting.


    Or the fact that it was able to allow your mind to handle the capacity to think of scenarios with multiple outcomes that could number in the thousands was amazing.


    The only flaws was that this was not a physical cultivation technique.


    Even if you manage to predict a pathway to winning a match, if your body can''t keep up with the plan then you''ll lose.


    If one was lucky enough to find a compatible technique that helps with the growth of the body then this would surely be useful.


    However the use of ''trust'' is very powerful if used to disguise yourself, so with enough changes to this manual, it could become a deadly technique given to an assassin.

 85 Dimensional Hop

    Dean guessed that this was the manual Christian had used as he does recall that he did have sort of a weird aura around him.


    [Champion''s Rights]


    To him, it was basically a suicidal cultivation technique that asked the cultivator to pray to fate and hope that destiny will be kind to them.


    An overall book that was trash.


    There were a couple more that interested him, especially one named [Dimensional Hop].


    The general and only use this manual could ever serve was to allow one to... Cross to another world.


    Dean made sure to rub his eyes a few times as he was unsure whether he read that right.


    Cross worlds.


    Such a powerful ability was destined to have many wrongs about it as well as limits.


    Dean didn''t want to jump to hurried conclusions and made sure to first read the low notes of using this powerful technique.


    The user will sacrifice 50% of their energy in order to use this while being at the stage of Grade 6.


    Stage 6 made no sense to Dean but he was able to understand that it must cost a lot for one to use this Spell.


    Once in a hostile situation, the user shall not be able to use this technique however can bring along companions that may number to 10.


    This means that you are able to bring 11 people to an unknown world however this also means that the book must have some sort of way recognizing a ''hostile situation''


    Compiling a list of what may happen in such an event, Dean guessed that the book may be able to use your Qi or Mana to moderate your body by checking your heart rate breathing rate or possibly sense hostile intent.


    It was an extremely odd technique that made no sense but reading further into the book, Dean found the name Heaven''s Will once more and immediately removed his eyes from the book.


    Last time it caused a head splitting headache and made him fall into a sleep that lasted two days.


    It not worth the pain just to sate his curiosity.


    But... to use Space so carelessly was dangerous.


    A given example that Dean knew was the use of Space or Time Magic.


    They are extremely dangerous weapons, once mastered as to rip apart space can cause a person''s existence to completely cease or to accelerate time will cause a man to age to death.


    One could grow to a weak old man or even reverted to just a sperm and an egg.


    Such a terrifying existence would want to be destroyed by everyone and raised as a pride by some factions.


    However that is only if one is able to master such abilities.


    What was mentioned was only the Spells that any magician could theorize for such a path full of potential.


    But the reality was that such magic was too difficult.


    To have powers that approach god is not as simple as reading and suddenly putting to use.


    Space or Time Magicians would have to place the utmost hazard on whatever Spells they were ready to experiment on.


    One horror story that was placed to make students hazard of the danger for carelessly using Spells was related to Time Magicians


    A student was given a task to learn a spell within a single year to produce a tree to produce ripe fruits.


    Being an overconfident student, the student thought that the principles were easy to learn and attempted to use the spell within a week.


    The student aged the tree at a rate the eye could see however he didn''t know how to stop and Mana continued to flow.


    He received a backlash and his hand began aging while the Mana wasn''t able to supply the spell and started to use his body''s life force to supplement it.


    In the end there was just a corpse.


    However Space and Time Magicians were still prized.


    Space Magicians were able to act as a substitute to blacksmiths in creating Space Rings however the expense of Mana was quite a lot.


    Some who decide to use it as a method of battling can teleport to random areas to surprise an enemy.


    Time Magicians are able to execute simple spells such as making themselves faster using the Spell, Haste or slow the reaction speed of an enemy using Slow Spell.


    But they are most prized for the skills in accelerating the speed of an injured area or growing crops.


    Dean still couldn''t help but worry about how this manual would work.


    What if he was sent to a place where people could easily kill him?


    Even if that wasn''t a case, Dean would have to worry over the fact that this technique was not a failure.


    If even the smallest fundamental key of this manual were to fail, Dean could easily end up infused with the earth and instantly die.


    Sweat dripped from his back when he realized how gruesome that could be if the creator of this technique purposely made the user die.


    This was obviously too dangerous but Dean couldn''t help but place it back into a Space Ring.


    He was amazed by all these amazing manuals he had just read and hoped this would bring greater comprehension if he were to read the [Battle Intent Manual] once more.


    Looking out his window, it was deep into the night with a black void covering the sky only with white stars and a moon to lighten up the darkness.


    It was clearly time that he would have to give up the opportunity to read more of these manuals, sighing at such bad luck, Dean went to sleep.


    Struggling to peacefully close his eyes and revert to a more simplistic way of thinking instead of overthinking everything, Dean was able to eventually fall asleep.


    ...


    Rubbing his eyes after making sure he was fully awake and regretting that he had stayed up late, Dean saw the two teachers waiting for him.


    "Hey! You''re finally here."


    "We''re going now."

 86 A Journey

    2 years had soon passed and experienced new cultures.


    Dean was what most of the people in this world would consider a ripe and mature adult.


    He had been stuck with Ellis and Alexander for the same 2 years and had gone about visiting many intricate places.


    To the east was the poisonous smog that tyrannized the swamps and desolate lands. Filled with insects that thrived on the competition while predators strike when necessary.


    The only reason he held interest was that a mission given to him by the school was to investigate the lair of the Wandering Demonic Poison King.


    Revenge was within his grasp but instead it was just a bunch of traps trying to kill him.


    Nothing was found within his lair despite having so many deadly traps, Dean guessed that he was very close to finding him but he unfortunately ran.


    Fate was playing with him as he had to travel around the continent.


    There was barely anytime to study any manuals, so Dean could only sigh at his reluctance to view amazing parts of their continent.


    In the middle of the continent was a small kingdom that was made by an alliance of merchants due to the fact that it was one of the busiest areas.


    To the slight right and down of that kingdom was apparently where our school was located.


    None of our missions allowed us to visit the central kingdom due to the fact that it is apparently managed by their own force that no external faction should take part in.


    It seemed like it was more of a tour around the continent when the times seemed relaxing but of course there were many hurdles in our way.


    Down to the south was an icy land that was forever trapped with snow.


    Such a pretty white sight was new to Dean however he couldn''t help but enjoy the experience of building an igloo.


    While to Ellis and Alexander they seemed pretty nonchalant about it.


    It was only when it was dark and Alexander wanted to become drunk did Dean actually learn anything about them.


    Drinking a couple of spirits allowed the teacher to calm down and begin talking his story.


    Dean saw that Ellis was asleep and thought that this may be an embarrassing story that couldn''t be told in a large audience.


    He first started the story that the continent was much larger than it was now however due to an incident that happened a long time ago, a chunk of that continent floated away.


    After that shocking fact that Dean was just told, he recalled that he had never once glanced at the older books of geographical location.


    If he looked at one of them then it may have been a shock but nonetheless, Dean still trusted the teacher to tell a truth as he had no motive to lie.


    Alexander lived in a happy family consisting of himself, a mum and a father.


    They lived in a very conservative way in which his mother would prepare rations and food for my father however they tended to get cold as soon as he went deep into the mountains.


    His father would go out for hunting and look for sources of food in order to make money for the family while making sure they never starved.


    Sometimes his mother would also feel unhappy just staying at home cooking.


    To get rid of that feeling, she would tend to take requests that would help the village with any small problems.


    She would help gather sticks for a basic fire, tend to the crops to grow food, harvest water to provide the village''s thirst.


    As long as she had spare time, she was indeed willing to help.


    Alexander mentioned that when the times got really tough, both his mother and father would have to leave the house in order to hunt an animal for meat.


    They were very stubborn in the fact that as long as they didn''t starve to death that they would take the kindness of their neighbors into consideration.


    At one point they suddenly brought a child to their house.


    He was not a baby and was already mature enough to make his own decisions.


    The only name he told to Alexander''s parents was Ellis.


    To Alexander, this was a great chance in having a brother but each advancement he made would always be rejected by a cold glare.


    Nobody was able to get close to him until he started to make stupid mistakes.


    Grabbing a sword too heavy for him, Alexander''s father would make sure to take it away from him and give him a wooden one.


    Trying to reach for a wooden bowl, Alexander would gladly give a helping hand to get even a spoon for him.


    They always persisted for the sheer kindness and stubbornness of his father


    Dean sighed at how Alexander''s voice trembled when he tried to recreate a deep voice while crying


    "I-in the d-darkest of nights, w-will one see the brightest stars"


    It was an interesting quote but Dean didn''t really see the point of what Alexander was trying to get at.


    As if striking a chord, Alexander resumed a peaceful composure and took a deep sigh.


    Ellis was indeed opening up to his family but an odd thing he noticed as a child was that his neighbor seemed a lot more introverted.


    He remembered that this uncle would always like to give leftover jerky made by his wife to all the kids that were hungry, especially children who lost their parents.


    Dean thought that was interesting person to give free food to people but although that was a saintly practice, Dean guessed where Alexander was going with this.


    He didn''t mention any stories about himself meaning he''s overlooking himself and looking at the event in a bigger picture.


    Whether it was sentimental value or the frustration of reflection, Dean didn''t know


    "I never how scary human greed could be. Are rumors for unlimited power really that believable and interesting?"

 87 A Journey II

    Apparently what Alexander tried to describe with tears of sorrow was that his neighbor rallied up more than half of the people by first influencing the children.


    They lived in a community that was created to allow everyone to live an easy life but suddenly this person suggested that we shouldn''t just rely on ourselves but trust outsiders.


    His parents felt that the plan was little odd but was more neutral to it compare to people much more conservative.


    There were outrageous claims they stated, suggesting that they''ll kill everyone, **** all the women and sell all the kids.


    Although that was a possibility that most villagers understood, it was impossible for the smartest people in their village to just get that easily tricked.


    His neighbor suggested numerous plans to counter such a situation to ever happen by possibly looking for other villages to ally themselves with, it was always rejected.


    At this point, he was far too frustrated and heard a stupid rumor by one of the nearby clans when a hunter had accidentally gone to another territory.


    The basis of the message that Alexander guessed was that they said something about an ancient artifact that will ensure a person with power that no one could refute.


    The neighbor was too frustrated at the traditional old people in this village and when they finally rejected another of his plan did everything go wrong.


    Like a whisper of insinuation, his neighbor acted like a puppet by another village and was like a test subject for them to test any old books in their heritage.


    One of those books was apparently nameless but from the diagrams, they guessed it was akin to a Summoning Magic.


    Dean wanted to question why Alexander seemed so scared when it was just Summoning Magic but his face clearly showed that if he asked that question then he would receive a beating.


    Alexander phrased that ''it was so familiar that I could remember it as if it was yesterday.''


    The night sky was far brighter than normal and a voice echoed throughout the icy land


    "Which mortal dared to summon my existence in such a weak land without any faith."


    "Sacrifice yourself now and my anger shall be appeased or else, be ready to face the consequences"


    He didn''t know whether the neighbor was just a coward or someone who was curious enough to know what the ''consequences'' was.


    In an instant, the being had no patience.


    The village was lit into flames and everything turned to chaos.


    Dean was skeptical that such a beast could be summoned but he guessed that if there was enough of a sacrifice then you could summon anything.


    From the way it was described, Dean thought the whole village were mortals meaning it would be easy to kill everyone either way.


    But he shouldn''t say such rude words when he saw how pained Alexander currently looked


    Mother and Father both panicked bringing three horses.


    Escaping out of that hell hole, they could hear laughter.


    It was utter amusement and fireworks were sent flying through the sky at every direction.


    They were little fire arrows that followed after the people escaping.


    His father tried to combat this by hitting it, it served ineffective while his mother saw what was happening and made a decisive action.


    Jumping from the horse, she whacked our horse so that the fire arrows barely nipped the the legs of our horse.


    Right before both Ellis and Alexander''s eyes, Father and Mother had been struck.


    To make matters worse, a loud ringing sound echoed.


    The fire arrows bursted into explosions and their bodies soon caught on fire.


    Alexander didn''t have the heart to look back and continued to ran.


    Dean himself could guess the rest of the story


    Once escaping the hell that was caused by a person they trusted, they searched for a food source and shortly lived in the wild.


    The continent was then severed into two by that mysterious beast with audacity.


    Because the academy was very close, they may have attempted to enter the school in order to learn but because they didn''t have the ability to pay the tuition fees, they shortly left.


    They may have done some odd jobs but finally returned to the school as teachers.


    Alexander soon left in a drunken manner, stumbling towards where his igloo was but Dean saw the despair in those eyes.


    Dean shortly returned to his own tent but couldn''t help feeling an odd emotion.


    Jealousy


    This teacher has basically lost everything but still has the will to live without any problems while having at least another person to rely on.


    Compared to him that lacks a pillar to rely on and can only live for revenge.


    During the story, Dean was able to puzzle the reason why Alexander tried to not mention himself.


    He was ashamed for being weak!


    Physically weakness which was why he most likely never mentioned helping his dad with anything but talked more about his mum.


    There was probably a lot of discrimination for that.


    At one point, Ellis mentioned about Alexander not being able to use Wind Magic.


    Dean guessed the ability to manipulate Wind was the outcome of Alexander working hard to perfect some sort of Spell he could use.


    It was something to take pride of but the realization that you are only a failure in that branch of magic makes the pride nullified.


    In a way, he was living in Ellis'' shadow.


    But Ellis had his own problems.


    He had finally opened up to the people that would take him as family however soon after that, disaster would follow and as a child, he would suspect it to originate from himself.


    It was thought that could permanently scar a child if taken wrongly and not adjusted quickly.


    Now, it seems that Ellis is a lot more as he can talk but given the opportunity to say nothing, he''ll keep his silence.


    But this was only half of Dean''s 2 year trip.

 88 A Journey III

    Their task was to search for what was reported to be ''a once in a lifetime treasure''


    Apparently it was some sort herb, 9 Reincarnating Flower


    A flower said to go through an aching process of 9 years for each blooming process.


    The first process will allow the flower to bloom into a single flower before releasing a seed that will grow into a flower with 2 buds, etc, etc.


    They were given a time limit of one week to find such a flower but in the end... they never found it.


    Alexander was always tasked with having to write the report and he couldn''t help but shed tears every time both Dean and Ellis would reject him.


    He was always the one who had to explain their circumstances while writing embarrassing words in order to curry favor with the people higher up the ladder.


    It was very difficult to come up with new phrases or more original words that would allow the higher ups to give mercy on their group.


    In most scenarios, they were supposed to have a high percentage rate in completing their missions however that only applied to killing things.


    Sometimes, Dean would have to give a moment to himself to not cry at how badly his two teachers were struggling, but they were always able to laugh it off.


    An example when they were told to harvest Hazy Leaves from a tree.


    One was supposed to slowly pry open the leaves as they tended to be curled up and then pluck the leaf off of the tree.


    The two geniuses next to Dean usually were impatient at the slow rate and when it was so close for the leaf being all the way open, they would ruthlessly pluck it.


    They looked proud when holding the leaf in their hand before slowly crying at the realization the leaf was slowly crumbling away.


    This was a mechanism built into the Hazy Leaves mechanism so that when their leaves fell, the spores attached to them would be carried by the wind for survival.


    Dean found that the origin for the name, Hazy Leaf was due to the fact that the founder liked to impress people when the leaf would crumble and seem like an illusion.


    Reminded of the time they had spent on just plucking those leaves, Dean had to sigh.


    In the end, they were never given another harvesting job but instead acted as scouts to look for those items and marking it on the map for the next generation.


    Obviously they had failed to find such an object but Alexander still marked the places they were absolutely sure they couldn''t find.


    Once they had rested enough and given information to the school, they immediately received the next mission.


    However Dean was able to learn why the school was going through a pandemic with that gloomy aura he noticed.


    From what he had heard from Ellis, it seemed the school was going through a cleansing and repairing.


    Apparently they had used Christian as a way of finding out what some of the flaws are within the school.


    It was never announced when we received a new principal but Dean accepted it.


    They were implementing new systems to keep students safe and were trying to think of a more economically logical idea.


    Some people within the school were apparently giving away information about the Spells and incidents of the school to the outside making everything messy.


    People were soon expelled for cover up crimes such as murder, thievery, **** in order to not make any of the students suspicious.


    To make sure no one would betray the school, they hope to add a test for trust but it would be difficult as they were teenagers who could change given enough of an exchange.


    Dean felt a little glad that the school was improving despite their only relation being that he enrolled in the very school.


    It was odd when he thought of it that way but he shrugged it off.


    Alexander soon came back from a meeting to greet Dean and Ellis about their next mission.


    "We''re to head to the north to escort a merchant''s group and to slay an animal when we head back."


    He briefed that the animal wasn''t too tough and was only needed not fro the fact that it was strong but due to the school running out of resources from that specific Beast.


    The claws and teeth were apparently the most popular parts of this Beast since it was able to create a new method of Healing Potion released from their Alchemists at the school.


    Such news was interesting as it meant that the resources would slowly hitch up in price and that they might even get a bonus if they get enough of those materials.


    Ellis and Alexander were both interested for such a pay increase while Dean didn''t get payed making him not care about such prizes.


    They had to travel to a tavern somewhere above the center of the continent to meet their clients that would be under danger.


    Dean and Ellis stood at the back as they weren''t good with courtesy while Alexander was much better at holding his ground and being calm.


    But their worry was for naught as the client wa surprisingly a kind old man who was willing to take them on board without a hassle however they were told they must never know what they are transporting.


    It seemed they held privacy as one of the highest priority which was why they all agreed to keep quiet and separate their groups.


    The client had hired mercenary groups along with their group which proved that their was a variety of people and that the item must be important.


    They encountered many bandits due to the fact that they had a long line of merchandise that they had been eyeing.


    Of course they were soon beaten under the greedy eyes of all the mercenaries who wanted to get on the client''s good side.

 89 A Journey IV

    They were slowly coming closer to what Dean was told as their final destination but he noticeably saw the Old Man become much more tense.


    He acted incredibly kind and carefree when he talked to the leaders of mercenary groups however when given time to rest, he seemed full of dread.


    When they were getting closer towards their destination, the Old Man was a lot more anxious and became aggressive when his given orders weren''t carried out perfectly.


    Most just saw him as a grumpy Old Man who woke up from the wrong side of the bed but Ellis and Alexander continued to warn Dean.


    From the aggravated matter when the Old Man saw bandits, they obviously saw that it was a lot of disappointment and anger within those eyes.


    This was further promoted when he yelled at the mercenaries who became showy with their fights or resorted to using wasteful actions.


    Many of the mercenaries allowed their allies to do whatever they wanted as long as it wasn''t against the will of the client.


    However this fell short when it came to the much more popular mercenary groups.


    They think their name must have reached the entire world with how they lifted their heads high and puff their chests out.


    Dean couldn''t help but hold them in contempt for trying to purposely cause a rift between the other groups.


    It was to make sure that no new talents could bloom into successful groups and if there were any interesting youths, they were tempted to pluck them for their own taking.


    Such selfish behavior will be sure to bite them on the back when push comes to shove if their group is built around an unstable base.


    They reached many villages in order to trade for local goods that could be transported to the outside world for a much higher cost.


    If the source was managed just right, the price could reach as high as 10 times the original.


    Dean always enjoyed with the conversation with the client as he would like to brag the success he was able to bring as well as how loving his children were.


    It was odd to hear from an Old Man reaching the end of his life that one could have high optimism for the future of life.


    He appreciated and wanted to believe in a happy future but there was one part of him telling that it was best to give up such a future.


    When the turn came to him on how to respond to the Old Man''s rambling, it was difficult to continue it as he wasn''t able to see eye to eye.


    The method he managed to use in order to not make the conversation sour was to change to a different topic.


    Being the kind Old Man he was, it was obvious that he was able to smoothly transition the subject when there was hesitation in Dean''s eyes.


    There was never an outright moment where Dean would spill his difficulties in believing such optimism while the Old Man didn''t want to ruin a good mood.


    Their conversations always ended on a good note but there was always this reminder in Dean''s head, do not get attached.


    Jealous glares of other mercenary groups would stay on Dean who was getting closer to the client, knocking him back to reality that there is a difference between a personal life and a job.


    The many villages they had visited rarely had any local specialties beside some occasional spices and delicacies but that was it.


    In order to still make profit, the Old Man would usually ask for any weird or special things that the villagers may have found.


    They would bring out old broken things, antiques and some generally odd objects.


    Some were recognizable such as rare metals that contained an unusual density or toughness proving its usefulness.


    But in most cases, even if something was found to be rare, the Old Man refused to give gold to the villagers.


    It was not that he was a cheapskate and wanted to scam them but it was due to bandits.


    If they crossed a major deal and were able to negotiate, leaving the village with a large sum of gold, this would be a reasonable incentive for an attack.


    The most reasonable thing to happen that Dean would predict went along the line of destroying the crops as a warning.


    In the case it was not taken as a warning, their houses would be burnt to warn other villages; people would die or get kidnapped to be make some money; everything would be pillaged until there was nothing and the females would be raped.


    This was the most common things you could do however it provoked the ire of some nearby kingdoms, so unless there was great temptation, it would otherwise be unusual.


    Instead, the Old Man would offer to give any items they desired that they may be short on.


    An example would be hunting bows, swords, daggers, string and things that tended to be broken once used too many times.


    Otherwise his only option was to give meat they received from other villagers or rations that would come in handy for any incidents.


    Dean thought the Old Man was an absolute oddball as he liked to pick up junks of trash that was offered to him before smiling and giving out some rations in exchange.


    The pieces of trash didn''t seem too useful while others were just broken.


    Whatever the Old Man was going to do with them, Dean had no idea.


    Whether he was an appraiser was something he shouldn''t snoop too far into however Dean was more intrigued by the behavior of the mercenaries.


    They sometimes just seemed like horny beasts as they would like to pursue village girls, clueless to the wider world and take advantage of their naivety, with or without force.


    He was not a hero helping everyone with a kindred soul but just turned a blind eye.


    If they want to create trouble then they should resolve trouble themselves.


    Because Dean learnt that in two days, karma sucks.

 90 The Destination

    The first day was not that bad as everyone in the other groups were enjoying and bragging about what they ''learned'' in the village.


    Ellis like to practice drawing his blade as he expressed to Dean


    "It''s one of my weakest points."


    That was all he said before starting to spend all his spare time and continuously striking a wooden tree with a fast draw.


    Dean was thoroughly impressed when the sword was starting to cut through the air and create a ripple while landing a precise attack against the tree.


    He wasn''t going to comment about how that may slowly damage the sword but allowed him to do his own business.


    Alexander was doing the more responsible part out of their group by maintaining a consistent relationship with most of the other mercenary groups.


    However the much more arrogant groups that held a lot of pride tended to be avoided, Alexander found conflict to be useless and striking up hostility with their group will just be meaningless.


    But that does not necessarily mean that they would get away scot free if they attempted to harass our group.


    It was during the beginning of the journey that they argued our group was far too weak to join them.


    To be truthful, it was indeed a reasonable argument.


    A bunch of nobodies that aren''t famous take part in a job where if you get rid of them you receive an extra bonus.


    If the client can pay them, what''s wrong with proving your worth and taking it for yourself?


    Such greed allowed us to make sure we weren''t going to be isolated in this trip.


    The formula was really bland.


    Some dude with a scar from a mercenary group makes a big scary face and provokes us.


    We feel so scared that Alexander had to make an air current slowly tear off the skin located at his neck while Ellis position his blade in front of his chest.


    Before any of his peers could help, Dean would encapsulate them with a black circle that had dark arms protruding out of it.


    It was poor courtesy if they continued to go any further as the Old Man coughed loudly to settle the fight.


    Direct translation: "Stop, otherwise you won''t be receiving your paycheck"


    There were of course many people with different backgrounds that gave Dean a sense of amazement and jealousy.


    One wanted to gather enough money so that he could give his girlfriend a betrothal gift and live a peaceful life after being a mercenary.


    Another wanted to make sure their children would grow up with food on the table and become successful in whatever path they choose.


    They all had a purpose in each action they did and a result they desired.


    Comparing to himself, Dean was saddened at the fact that he had no such purpose.


    He was just told by the school that he should follow two teachers and learn.


    While there was a sort of bond between them, it was nothing that would make Dean contemplate suicide if they died.


    Those thoughts persisted to linger in Dean''s head and even when he fell asleep, he was still reminded of it in his dreams.


    It was supposed to just be another day but he was finally able to realize why the Old Man was a lot more anxious when they were so close to their destination.


    There was an attack.


    But the first thought that crossed Dean''s head was ridiculous.


    ''Did my family''s house look this glamorous when reflected by the moon''


    Carriages were on fire while the horses neighed as a plead to escape the rising heat currently setting their ropes of fire.


    Some of those carriages were the sleeping grounds for mercenary groups meaning that they have already suffered casualties.


    Dean heard some ruffling in two different locations and used a hand made out of Dark Magic that grappled onto whatever they were and completely crush them.


    Bringing the corpses for a closer inspection, they were just scouts after analyzing the composition of the body.


    Tossing it away, Dean grouped up with Ellis and Alexander who were already taking down most of the people that seemed like vanguards.


    "Take care of the client!"


    Alexander first made an order to make sure that what they are prioritizing first is important.


    They trusted his capabilities and if there was an enemy who would be able to overpower Dean, they had assurance that he could at least stall for some time.


    Dean recounted everything and couldn''t help but sighing, remembering how disastrous the night was and how messy everyone was.


    It seemed as if they had never discussed the possibility of attacks during the night that made Dean contemplate whether these people really were mercenaries.


    The annoyance he felt when morning came was that the stench of decay, blood and burnt matter was horrible and that their food was gone.


    We were reassured that we would still be receiving our pay as only consumables were lost in the battle however those with casualties will receive compensation.


    He could faintly hearing Alexander curse with sadness while Ellis had to pat his back.


    "Dammit! I should''ve faked an injury"


    "..."


    It was odd at the very least that Dean didn''t know how to feel about some of the mercenaries'' deaths.


    There was indeed sadness but it felt like it was from a stranger''s point of view.


    They would just feel sad for them but they wouldn''t break down to tears...


    Anyways, they had soon reached their destination but Dean was surprised to discover that it was the capital where the Zikel Clan was located.


    Their transaction was paid upfront before the entrance of the city and made many of the men cry with happiness when they were able to feel a sack of gold was shaking in their hands.


    Ellis and Alexander were shaking with joy when they saw a bunch of gold landed into their hands but cried at the realization they had to give it to the school.

 91 Wandering Demonic Poison King

    Dean was struggling to accept the idea that they weren''t allowed to enter the city due to the line being abnormally long and it was rumored the hotels were far too expensive.


    Alexander was against the idea and just wanted to head back to slay some random beasts.


    Ellis was the first to see Dean''s obvious discontent and voiced out his opinion.


    "There is no point in rushing for something that you can wait for. Haste makes waste."


    It was generally phrased to tell Dean ''Be patient.''


    But that was extremely difficult when there was no significant purpose he held in his life.


    Although he was upset, Dean traveled back to the school and didn''t usher a complaint about not entering that city.


    In total, they made sure to not to place too much stress on the population on this specific beast and only killed around a 100 of its kind.


    They manually removed the tough hide and got to keep the meat.


    ''There was no time to waste when there was profit to be made'' was what Alexander tended to say when he burst into the open once more.


    The building had already been repaired and any cracks that used to curse this room was finally removed.


    Ellis order Dean to at some point buy a rubber object and place it between the door and the hinge so that Alexander wouldn''t break the door.


    It was surprising how effective it was without the hinge of the door stuck into the wall.


    Another task was given to them.


    The mission was to find out the oddities that have happened within the recent villages in the east.


    Apparently there have been many deaths and a plague killing the villagers however outsiders have reported seeing nothing.


    Instead, it was just a ghost village where it seemed as if the villagers had suddenly migrated.


    But the oddest part was that all household items, including food were still there and even after waiting for weeks there was no notice of them coming back or a new village being constructed.


    Dean noticed that it was odd that their group were travelling to place all across the continent when the more idealistic thing to do is set them in one section.


    Ellis was the one who responded to it but it was a half baked answer


    "The school just tell us to do it."


    Alexander chuckled at the answer but was able to explain to Dean the proper answer.


    "There are indeed teachers who have be set at different sections of our continent however they tend to be given much more dangerous missions with some lasting an unknown amount of years."


    Dean nodded at the answer with full comprehension and appreciated in the school not trusting their group with the more dangerous jobs.


    ''If they did... the consequences were unimaginable.''


    .....


    And that was how Dean spent his 2 years traveling with his teachers but it had just ended quite recently.


    Currently he was lying in three pools of blood and was rather frustrated at his thoughts.


    It had just been less than twenty minutes before they entered the village and found another person.


    He had an incredibly carefree smile but he was surprised


    "Oh? I didn''t expect people to come this quick."


    A bottle of liquid was suddenly thrown in front of him and it quickly stuck onto Alexander.


    The consistency was similar to sludge and Alexander was struggling to escape its grasp while the man suddenly lit it onto fire.


    An unusual atmosphere was appearing from the sludge and Dean thought it was best to act rationally and put a cloth over his mouth in case there was something wrong with the gas.


    But it was too late to warn Ellis as the grip onto his sword didn''t seem tight while his standing was unsteady with shaking.


    A pill appeared in the man''s hand that was crushed into powder before dissipating into the wind.


    If Dean was correct in his assumptions, this was the Wandering Demonic Poison King.


    It was a dumb decision to ask that question in a battle and he could just outright lie.


    He had already been stressing on the point of how the Wandering Demonic Poison King was used to using trickery but Dean never expected that his poison was this effective.


    The next 15 minutes was just a general battle of attrition where Dean used the household items in the village to look for any deadly poisons or even as fans.


    Once finding an opportunity to find a gap in the poison smog, Dean was able to get close and surprisingly impale the man with his hands.


    Looking at the color of the Wandering Demonic Poison King''s skin, it was clear he attempted to use poison as a type of tonic but had to use his own body to attempt it.


    Putting the pieces together, his plan was probably to use the villagers as people to experiment on and blame it on a rampaging bandit group but his physical body was too weak to make any false evidence.


    It was far too clean and the village didn''t seem like it had been pillaged making it clear it was an odd case.


    His enmity with this man had ended and he avenged Leonard''s death.


    Alexander and Ellis were dead but it was indeed sad.


    But not a good type of sorrow for a healthy mind.


    Dean felt frustrated and ashamed that he felt sad for them however it was for the wrong cause.


    It was like, he was enjoying it.


    There was an empty area in his heart but this sadness was able to temporarily fill it up but it was a disgusting feeling in of itself.


    He couldn''t cry as it wouldn''t justify himself but he still had the decency to bury the bodies using the shovels of a nearby home.


    The Wandering Demonic Poison King should have some notoriety making Dean know that people should be watching right now.


    "COME OUT!"

 92 Severing

    Given a couple of minutes, a group of people in tight black clothing soon gathered around Dean in a circle.


    Their bodies looked quite nimble and weren''t full of muscles making Dean assume they were most likely assassins or scouts.


    He had only buried the bodies of Ellis and Alexander while the Wandering Demonic Poison King''s body was currently decaying on the land.


    Chopping the head of the Wandering Demonic Poison King, Dean threw it over to the black figures


    "I''m guessing your boss hired you to watch over him. You can tell him he''s dead."


    Given the missing villagers in this area, Dean wouldn''t be surprised by how dedicated this man was to the craft of poison.


    Once his actions had gone to a certain point, there''ll definitely a large amount of people that would wish to kill him.


    The people in front of him lacked any features that made it seem they were there to battle except some small gimmicks hidden in pockets.


    They were first surprised at the sudden gift but their eyes gleamed with suspicion.


    "What''s the deal?"


    He found it hard to suddenly accept something for free and followed the rule, ''There''s no free lunch''


    Dean wondered about what would be good enough of a trade and thought of something


    "Send a message to Redwood Academy that student Dean will dropout while teachers Ellis and Alexander died."


    The man in black was confused that a simple request was all that would be traded for this head that was equivalent to a ton of gold.


    Nodding to his subordinate, she immediately understood the message and ran off into a different direction from where they originated from.


    "Is that all?"


    "Yes."


    Dean left and broke out of the encirclement as they made way for him.


    There was no point in staying anymore and it was best to just move on and cultivate in peace before doing anything else.


    The man in black didn''t attempt to know where he was going or trying to stop him to show some polite courtesy but instead write a message to their boss.


    They would probably get paid a large amount since this dangerous mission caused him to hesitate and make sure his team would be alright risking their life on this.


    It all paid off in the end and they actually got the head of who they were spying on.


    This matter was too important to allow a normal subordinate to write the report meaning he would formally write it himself.


    One point he made sure to stress on was that this murder was presumably done by a person called Dean as he left his name in a trade.


    Along with that point was that he was most likely young since he gained the title ''student Dean''.


    The reason the man in black didn''t attempt to take the glory of killing the Wandering Demonic Poison King is that such reputation could easily be proven fake.


    All a person would have to do is hire them for an extremely dangerous mission where they would all die without a chance of survival and know the truth.


    Glory in exchange of danger was not worth the trade.


    ...


    "Should we send people to trace Dean?"


    The principal was currently sipping some tea but did recall being told a letter where two of the hired subordinates had recently died along with a student leaving.


    "Hmmm, have we found any evidence with the correlation of a necromancer?"


    The secretary looked through his clipboard pretending to find any information even though there was only finances on it and responded


    "Currently there has been no information supporting that claim."


    In her head, there were two options.


    Allow a horrible event to happen like what happened a couple of decades ago or use manpower to hunt after Dean.


    The school was already too deep into the process of cleansing and had no time to waste on such miscellaneous problems that would not provide any true profit.


    Besides intuition and guessing, Dean held no value besides being a student who has experienced a few things on his trips.


    However option two was far too appealing.


    They would be able to weed out the organization of a necromancer or possibly reveal a piece of information on heritage from an ancient master.


    This necromancer should have a lot of precious treasures in its arsenal allowing those with power to slowly pluck away from him.


    Along with that would be reputation and glory making more students come meaning more revenue.


    Even if the necromancer was as strong as the one in the past, a being able to throw the continent into chaos, our continent''s finest talents would be able to hold it off.


    There were much stronger warriors compared to the past and there are surely to be many of them.


    Weighing them both and just realizing that in exchange for a pawn, it was worth it.


    "Add the funds meant for Ellis and Alexander to our finances."


    The secretary immediately understood that she had given up on the student and wrote what she said as a note on the clipboard.


    ...


    Dean was wandering around in the night without a clue of knowing what he wanted to do.


    He had enough and eventually just sprawled his body atop a grassy surface and left his thoughts to himself.


    Nothing


    There was nothing left to do.


    It was slight shattering noise within his heart when he realized that nothing was holding him back.


    But what was he being held back from?


    Revenge, revenge and more revenge.


    What else could he do?


    All that remained in his heart was emptiness once you remove all your friends, lover and hatred for enemies.


    It was too tiresome to create more animosity and would mean nothing without a good reason.


    There was no good reason that Dean learnt to continue anything.


    Cultivation at this point had lost his interest and there was no reason to continue along that path anymore.


    "Oh, Zikel Clan"

 93 Training

    There was a noticeable lack of excitement from Dean but when he indeed realized that there was something interesting at the Zikel Clan he felt a little bit alive.


    Feeling that he was getting a little too rusty with cultivation and having an arrogant or scheming behavior was thrown out the window in those 2 years.


    His progress in researching the manuals was still at a 0 in 2 years but he now had so much more time.


    It was about time he started to revise his knowledge on the [Battle Intent Manual]


    Looking around the mountains, Dean was able too soon find a cave that would be able to fit him in.


    There were no traces of any living beast living here, let alone a human.


    In an attempt to make sure no one would intervene with his cultivation, Dean tied a few strings in weird angles to attack any strangers.


    Taking out the book once more, Dean fell intrigued by two main tactics of training the Battle Intent that was listed out.


    One had already been mentioned which was to imbue the Battle Intent into your body until it eventually becomes trained to become sturdier or much easier to absorb the Battle Intent.


    This was the first one he would train in as the benefits given would resonate with the next training plan for Battle Intent.


    The outcome of the second one was that the user would focus Battle Intent into certain limbs and become adept at the new power with he focused Battle intent.


    It was less of a nurturing method but more of an adapting one.


    If you imbue all of your Battle Intent into your fists, expect your attack to become undoubtedly strong however don''t forget about your arm that could blow off if that part is not covered.


    This would cause hurdles for the user as the blow may be weakened if they don;t reinforce the right places and could even cause self hurt to the user.


    The training focused on slowly tweaking the amount of Battle Intent into a certain body part to allow you to not die but have a good control in mind.


    Dean made sure to set the time limit within 1 year and hoped to see some results within that time


    He would rely on his set of rations to count 365 days and he could gather water by a nearby river if necessary.


    With this, all the preparation was done and Dean now began to study the absolute necessities to begin the first training.


    ....


    Dean frankly found the first training to be quite boring.


    It caused an intense pain at wherever the Battle Intent was nurturing the body part and Dean had to constantly make sure he wasn''t harming himself in the process.


    There was a difference between outright harming yourself compared to strengthening your body by refining it or breaking and healing it.


    He attempted to try it with his finger nails as a good way of testing out the method.


    As expected, it hurt like hell.


    Clenching his teeth, Dean managed to refine his nails and teeth but it was more of a test to understand how painful it could be and how long the nurturing would take.


    They were more superficial compared to other parts of his body and took roughly less than a week to fully strengthen with the Battle Intent.


    The next attempt was on the skin but it unexpectedly took 2 months in order to make sure Dean wouldn''t die.


    If done wrongly, it could completely cover up a pore or destroy it in the process of applying the Battle Intent as a way to nurture it.


    It was much more painful than Dean thought and the first few days were to try and attempt to get used to the intensity while keeping a sane mind in the process.


    There was nothing wrong that happened and was a smooth sailing trip.


    His skin became much more smoother and were able to heal a cut at a much quicker pace.


    He could even feel the skin tighten as if it had a mind of its own to try and close the wound while pushing out blood to cover the cut.


    Grabbing a knife with poor quality, it was unable to cut his skin.


    This proved that it was overall efficient but the pain was too scarring to Dean.


    The next body part that would have to take the fall for Dean was his flesh, the tendons, bones and nerves were a completely separate matter.


    But just that alone had already taken Dean roughly 3 months to make sure there was no internal bleeding and he didn''t actually leak the Battle Intent into a different part.


    An odd note that he found by a senior who used this manual was giving a tip to beginners if they were to attempt to nurture their nerves.


    It was an overall dangerous procedure but if one still had the courage to do so they should first attempt their private parts.


    Dean questioned the sanity of this senior as he had no idea how you would be able to utilize it as a weapon but when reading the reason he understood the suggestion.


    The private part that humans had was basically a bundle of sensitive nerves that can transmit pleasure when doing certain gestures.


    You were able to get a good grasp on understanding how to apply Battle Intent onto the nerves if you first attempted this.


    There was a wordless agreement from Dean who now understood there was no practical battle use in your private part but there was some usefulness in training.


    When applying Battle Intent to the flesh it was like little blades continuously shredding it and then healing it before cutting it up once more.


    But the pain soon became boring and he was not exactly enthusiastic about resting his body so that it could later torture itself meaning he chose the next training.

 94 Zikel City

    His first step to imbue his body with Battle Intent as a type of weapon was extremely difficult but safety was number one priority.


    He roughly dispersed the Battle Intent into equal parts within his body and tested it on the depths of the cave.


    A light struck to the wall caused it to collapse but Dean could feel an intense pain in his shoulder.


    Using this clue, Dean formulated the idea to practice on first perfecting the form of basic techniques.


    Whether it was his form hurting him or not imbuing enough Battle Intent, he would now be confident in his decisions to execute it.


    There was eventually a mining area where Dean would just knock down the cave''s wall in the hopes of practicing the Battle Intent imbument while trying to look for any rare metals.


    This training overall took 5 months and Dean was only able to find some common metals with no injuries sustained.


    The first training made the training to saturate his body with Battle Intent much easier but Dean was now bored knowing that he only had a month left to do some sort of training.


    It couldn''t be the type of training that was meant for long term as he needed to do some sort of improvement within a month.


    Skipping through the pages, Dean found that some of the ideas he had was also noted down but they had much more details.


    An example was using Battle Intent to form a weapon.


    A noticeable factor that deterred most users was the cost to create the weapon was not at all worth it when you could simply use a plain iron weapon to substitute it.


    The explanation for that was that the iron weapon acted as a mediator between the Battle Intent to form rather than expending energy to create a mediator using Battle Intent.


    Such an explanation was confusing to Dean but there was a simplified note from a different senior.


    Using an iron weapon allows the user to coat it with Battle Intent instead of creating a form by scratch, saves much more Battle Intent.


    Dean continued reading to find that another condition to do this technique was that they must have a strong visualization of the specific design they want to create.


    This meant they couldn''t be vague on the idea on how sharp the blade should be or how well curved it was, they must have a clear idea on the design.


    It was very unlikely for Dean to completely master this technique within a month, especially since he already had a weapon of his own that he could use.


    There were many other techniques that really did catch his attention with how powerful and interesting they were framed.


    One was to completely change the energy and essence within the person so that only Battle Intent would act as Qi or Mana.


    The process consisted of creating a seed of Battle Intent and slowly nurturing it until it could start devouring the energy and trading it into Battle Intent.


    Eventually, the user will breathe and exhale Battle Intent fueled by the body itself and can increase cultivating speed by using external energy such as Mana.


    You would eventually turn into an original energy factory meaning you would have no need to absorb Qi if you were stuck on a devastated place without any energy.


    Dean heard that some of the places considered the most dangerous are the places that force the cultivator to have only a limited amount of Qi.


    They wouldn''t be able to create Qi and would have to desperately rely on pills to fuel themselves, but this technique overruled those dangerous places.


    However Dean didn''t feel particularly excited about visiting places that served no purpose to him with no good reason to go there.


    This started to bore Dean when he realized that they weren''t as useful as he thought but discovered one that did pique his interest.


    It had no particular name but it seemed useful in intimidating people if he were to go to the Zikel Clan so Dean decided to learn it.


    The technique aimed at the user to start refining their aura and Battle Intent so that it would become finer and if the user willed, turn into a delicate yet deadly threat.


    Basically turning an aura into something much more terrifying that would strike fear into people''s hearts.


    One story Dean heard was that the simplest method was to slaughter every living being in sight so that your aura would be able to take the violent personality of a person and reflect it.


    However, Dean didn''t have the time to randomly kill people without reason and didn''t want to suddenly start becoming a criminal just for an intimidating aura.


    Now, his 1 year of training was up and looking at the bright sun once more, Dean was amazed at what he missed out.


    Such fresh and ripe greens everywhere was a new scenery that he had never once appreciated before.


    He wanted to ruin it but had no time and instead looked for a person to guide him to the Zikel Clan.


    At first, he had just kind of wandered around and then suddenly had the thought to train and went inside a nearby cave.


    Dean was lost and had no clue where he was which made finding a person much more difficult then he thought.


    ....


    "Ho, i''m finally here."


    It was a struggle finding this place but he had to go to numerous villages to finally get someone who knew which direction the Zikel Clan was.


    He had even just recently learnt that the Zikel Clan owned a city where their clan liked to reside and created.


    The difficulties just to get here was an annoyance to Dean but he worried about his resolve.


    A resolve that only made him interested in what he should do now but since he was so close to it... what should he do after?

 95 Bustling Trade Center

    Dean decided he would ignore that problem in his head and just enter the city.


    Zikel City was just like any city and used guards to trace the entering and exiting people or merchants in the case there may be criminals.


    There was a long line and Dean could faintly hear the complaining from one of the people at the very front of the line.


    "THIS IS OUTRAGEOUS! You''re lying through your teeth about the price."


    The guard seemed to have known that this would happened as he was extremely familiar with this and smugly smiled.


    "And? What are you going to do about it?"


    Dean understood that the reason the guard would like to act pompous was because he knew that the people who would use this line belong to vagrants, wanderers or travelers.


    If this was compared to the line with merchants, it would be the difference between nobles and commoners with the treatment.


    Most wanderers were unlikely to have any power with no backing which was why the guard wanted to make some extra money for the passing fee.


    He originally thought that the guards were there to look out for any suspicious people that could cause trouble but this made Dean think that even the most vile person could get in if they paid the fee.


    It was an overall corrupt decision where a person took advantage of human''s greed but Dean didn''t know how to comment about it.


    Many people started to leave the line when they heard the outrageous claim of price that would not be affordable.


    They could always come back again if they really wanted to get inside the city but they would have to rely on luck if they wanted a less corrupt guard that would charge cheaper fees.


    Dean was soon able to get to the front of the line.


    Seeing the smug face of a guard that acted as if he had the whole world in his hands, Dean realized that the face seemed surprisingly punchable.


    "The fees 3 gold."


    The price was definitely expensive for most commoners but because Dean tended to be surrounded and grew up in a school with many nobles, he wasn''t fazed by the high price.


    He wasn''t able to make any money from the school missions but he was able to make money when he traded with the villagers.


    Talking to the Old Man enabled Dean to learn many tricks to get an object for a cheaper price and sell them for a higher one as well.


    If he really urgently needed money, he always had the option of selling the rare materials he still kept in his Blue Orb.


    Dean used his Space Ring to search for any gold but the guard noticed the treasure dean held on him.


    "Never mind, the price had just changed to 5 gold."


    He was purposely changing the price as Dean was strangely calm when he asked for a high price meaning he wasn''t fazed.


    Along with the treasure, the guard guessed Dean should be fairly rich and took advantage of it.


    Dean also knew that was a tactic in business where you would monitor the opponent''s etiquette, manners and actions to guess their finance to offer a reasonable price.


    But he had never guessed the guard before him would so brazenly ask for a higher price just because of his calmness.


    This guard was asking for it but Dean knew it was too early to start causing trouble.


    Handing the money to the guard, Dean asked for some details.


    "What''s your name?"


    The guard was surprised by the sudden question and felt the hefty weight in his hand


    "Umm, I''m Jon from the noble house of...."


    He was spouting off his origins with pure arrogance that Dean couldn''t help but get annoyed quickly, forcing him to just leave.


    Dean was now searching for some accommodations to live in, some food to eat and then search for some information.


    It was a new experience to suddenly look at the interesting architecture of this city.


    The pathways were roughly large enough for two small lines of humans that could wander the outskirts while the center was large enough for two rows of carriages.


    Branching out of the main pathways were smaller roads for humans to take less populated paths but they seemed frankly dangerous.


    Some were dark gloomy alleys while the rest were bright open paths.


    On the outskirts of the city was most likely the homes of the residents that live in this place while as one moves in closer tot he center, buildings become exponentially taller.


    Most homes were built with wood while the larger buildings were safely secured with thick study bricks to ensure stability.


    Wandering for a little longer, the center was filled to the brim with humans and gave a wonderful view of the local buildings.


    Many stalls were built here to sell food, trash, clothes and much more.


    Dean didn''t understand how people who were selling old antiques were able to make a living but guessed that they must scam some unfortunate people.


    Most large buildings were firms for amateur merchant companies however Dean was not able to spot the Old Man.


    Other companies were hotels and some restaurants that were clearly disturbed for the more wealthy people while in another district there is a different demographic.


    The largest buildings were located at the north where the Zikel Clan apparently lives.


    Mansions upon mansions were there while some of the large buildings close to those mansions are apparently owned by the clan.


    Dean was truly fascinated by the sheer power this clan had compared to his and how the hell his grandpa was even able to get a connection with them.


    But the first thing Dean wanted to enjoy was the culture of this place.


    Some shops had the guts to sell some soup and sold food that was unusually crispy.


    Dean had no idea what type of magic this was but the people working at the stores always liked to say


    "It''s a secret."

 96 Lily Zikel

    Somewhere in the east buildings, Dean managed to book the room he was currently in for a fairly cheap deal.


    The food seemed like an outright scam while the furniture inside the room was clean and quite modern.


    It was not necessarily luxurious but the bed was very comfortable compared to the rock cold ground Dean had once slept on for a year.


    Normal humans would naturally die due to being cold but Dean treated it as using his Battle Intent to constantly force his blood to circulate energy to make his body warm.


    Another effort added was that he would have to reduce his capabilities to something akin to a mortal.


    But Dean first wanted to take the matter into hand and first accomplish this.


    Taking out the letter, Dean made sure to re-read the note.


    {Dear Dean


    If you happen to hear about the incident of what has happened to us, please do not take revenge. It seems we have offended a large power that in the end wouldn''t tell us their identity.


    A few of your relatives have escaped into the world and ran away from this incident in the hopes our bloodline still continues.


    Your father has most likely died but you have the rights to know that his destination was the Zikel Clan''s District. There you can ask around the name of ''Lily Zikel''


    Sincerely


    Your beloved grandfather}


    Dean recounted the other letters and found it odd that it quotes ''Your father has most likely died''


    This gave him some suspicion on what happened to his father as he thought his father died from another letter that his grandfather had given.


    He guessed that it was most likely in a letter but Dean refused to look at any letters sent from his family during the time he was in the academy so that might have been the reason.


    The top two paragraphs were no use to Dean making him focus more on the very last one.


    His only clues were ''Lily Zikel'' and ''Zikel Clan District''.


    Lily Zikel was presumably a female from the first name and should have some connections to the Zikel Clan besides her last name that would enable her to give Dean some information.


    The Zikel Clan District was most likely the area with all the mansions but that means that the security should be high.


    This task was going to be annoying for Dean as he would be forced to ask security guards from that area about this Lily Zikel and hoped that he wouldn''t get kicked out.


    If his task was lost just like that... Dean was afraid to even think of what to do afterwards.


    Socializing was an extremely difficult thing for Dean as he rarely got along with people that liked to talk and usually left the talking to the much more charismatic people.


    Leonard liked to be indifferent to the world and was very quiet, similar to Ellis while Alexander was confident with his words.


    Dean would be allowed to remain quiet like a sheltered child and liked to answer briefly but the Old Man pointed that out to be a poor point in business.


    A common thing that strikes business that was mentioned by the Old Man was to create an illusion and test the waters.


    His first step would be to pay some new clothes that seemed slightly formal yet something comfortable to move in while seeming a little more casual.


    If he suddenly bought an expensive new suit then it would extremely suspicious causing him to just get immediately get kicked out.


    A phrase he thought to come up with when interacting with the guards was


    "Excuse me, is there a Lily Zikel residing here?"


    It was meant to be polite and formal but he could always change it if the guards act extremely aggressive.


    Dean was currently in a new place where the culture could have completely different laws compared to the local areas of the academy.


    Taboo in this place was currently unknown which was why he was cautious.


    If the guards react to Lily Zikel, then Dean can answer


    "Send a message that the Wilkes Clan has sent a visitor."


    With a plan in his head, Dean started to set his plan into motion by going to a few clothing stores and buying a clean white button up shirt and a red coat that would conceal his arms.


    Plain black legs shouldn''t be suspicious and using the phrases, Dean was able to get a mix of responses.


    "Hmmm, wrong place fella. We''re working with the Kuilin Clan."


    "Piss off brat, get out of here otherwise we''ll force you."


    "..."


    One was from a completely different district, another was in a bad mood and Dean was surprised at his temper in not immediately killing him.


    The last was just sleeping...


    He made sure to start from a logical manner and start from side of the area to another while making sure he wouldn''t accidentally go to the same place twice.


    Until he finally reached the other side did he finally get a suitable answer


    "Do you think anyone can just talk to our Miss?"


    Dean was finally relieved that there was someone that had an answer suggesting that Lily Zikel was actually here.


    "Could you please send a message that a visitor from the Wilkes Clan has an important announcement."


    The aggressive nature of the guard was unusual but it was best to start proving that he had some worth and tried to place the imagination that he was important.


    He was slightly surprised that the man had a backing but he had never heard of the name ''Wilkes''


    This brought a lot of trouble as he was unsure whether this was a powerful clan from a distant clan that may have just recently made trades with the Zikel Clan.


    Remembering that the Miss has been having trouble with trading, it wouldn''t hurt to just send one message.


    Grabbing another security guard that seemed much more free compared to him who had to overlook any outsiders breaking in, he asked Dean.


    "Would you like him to just say those words or do you have a note?"

 97 Meeting

    Dean gave it a thought and wanted to test the water and responded


    "Please tell her those exact words."


    The guard threw a disgruntled glance as this seemed mildly inappropriate for a visitor from a clan to not have a formal letter for proof.


    It made no sense that they wouldn''t show at least the minimum for some formality in order for some trust to be formed.


    This made him immediately think that Dean most likely had an ulterior motive and could be working with a random group trying to scam their company.


    It must have been the Boss''s relatives that sprouted her misfortune in a recent deal that caused some pesky people to start appearing.


    But just for assurance, the guard retold the exact phrase of what Dean said to the other guard and sent him off.


    He made sure to keep watch on Dean, so that as soon as news that there is no such thing as a ''Wilkes'' clan would he be able to take action.


    However he should just keep an eye and make sure this person wouldn''t escape if he had connections with ''certain people''


    The recent misfortune with the deal was extremely unusual from what the Boss relayed to him and they both brainstormed to suggest that it may be a group aiming for their capital.


    There was further suspicion that this group could have been hired by Boss'' relatives which was why they waited patiently until there was any more information.


    With this kid before him, he might get a raise if his intuition was right.


    His gaze was much more heated up with the revelation that a pay raise was within reach while Dean contemplated the intelligence of some of these security guards.


    One was sleeping, another had a short temper and this one was obviously having a mental breakdown inside his head.


    It motivated his idea to make a ruckus within the district to find Lily Zikel but he didn''t want any information to suddenly go missing due to his mess.


    ....


    "Young Miss?"


    The guard knocked on a large wooden door that seemed extremely plain but the knocking was surprisingly loud when being echoed.


    "Yes, come in"


    In response was a quick answer that invited the guard into the room.


    On top of the table was only a few pages but this unfortunately had no details on any business. Instead, it was focused more on the financial analytics of last year and some family history.


    He couldn''t help but sigh that this company had already fallen so low even though he was promised that he would eventually hit it rich by a senior.


    "What is it?"


    She was currently in a bad mood due to recent problems and it seemed that even her security was beginning to slack off.


    Her aggression grabbed the attention of the guard who was sweating bullets at the abrupt question while hoping not to mess up his line.


    "Ummm...a visitor from the Wilkes Clan has an important announcement."


    "Could you repeat that!"


    There was slight fire in her eyes as she slammed the folder of papers she was currently holding, onto the table, sending pages flying.


    "A visitor from the Wilkes Clan has an important announcement."


    She was very surprised at the name and couldn''t help but fall into silence for a few minutes.


    The guard was getting a little worried at how long he was waiting for a response until he finally heard an answer.


    "Send the visitor here."


    Exiting the room once he got his answer, the guard wanted to avoid any more confrontations with his boss.


    If that mood swing was going to be taken on him, his pay check might get reduced as fast as her emotions suddenly changed.


    Seeing that she was finally alone in the room with sudden surprise, she whispered to herself.


    "Damn leeches."


    ....


    "Sir, someone has recently been asking for Lily."


    "Oh? That''s odd, they haven''t sent me a message about their next action. Did my brother receive anything?"


    "No Sir, he has also been asked about Lily."


    "This is strange, so someone actually has the guts to start making moves without us. try and investigate this mysterious person."


    "Yes Sir!"


    The man was left alone his room, contemplating who the new competitor was that started to interfere in their game.


    "Did she invite someone for help?"


    Thinking that his sister was now beginning to get more desperate for help, he smiled while writing a letter.


    ....


    Currently, the security guard''s shirt was sticking to his back due to him sweating too much.


    He had been overthinking the situation and nearly destroyed his reputation as a security guard when he nearly misjudged a client.


    If this was a person with a short temper, he was sure that his Boss would be willing to discard him as long as they managed to get a deal with a clan.


    Dean paid no business to it but questioned how these people even got a job with poor etiquette.


    This reminded him that he should rely on himself and not people like this.


    "We''re here."


    Knocking the door and leaving Dean to his own regards, the security guard left to go back to his post.


    "Come in."


    Opening the door, Dean was immediately greeted by a female at the very end of the room holding a stack of paper.


    Papers were everywhere across the floor but that caused Dean to frown at how unprofessional this person''s behavior was.


    Such a mess shows that she is not organized yet he was supposed to meet her.


    "Are you Lily Zikel?"


    It was like a landmine field where he made sure to avoid stepping onto a paper and creating unnecessary conflict.


    On the other hand, the female was surprised that the visitor was unexpectedly younger than she though compared to the people of the past that looked like old men.


    "Yes."


    She still made sure to answer the question but the young boy suddenly gave her a letter.

 98 Senior Elder Asher

    Taking it while staring it into the boy''s eyes, there was something akin to a void however that made no sense.


    It was expected as a person adept in business to understand their customer or client which could open up much more information such as demographic.


    She did not expect that she couldn''t read the person before her and began to question what the hell has the Wilkes Clan been doing.


    Not expecting an answer to that, she began to read the letter.


    {Dear Dean


    If you happen to hear about the incident of what has happened to us, please do not take revenge. It seems we have offended a large power that in the end wouldn''t tell us their identity.


    A few of your relatives have escaped into the world and ran away from this incident in the hopes our bloodline still continues.


    Your father has most likely died but you have the rights to know that his destination was the Zikel Clan''s District. There you can ask around the name of ''Lily Zikel''


    Sincerely


    Your beloved grandfather}


    Shock overwhelmed her heart as she didn''t expect the letter to contain such info regarding the clan and shivered at the sincerity.


    She never expected that the one time she actually rejects them to give any help, they would actually wound up like this.


    Looking at the beginning of the name, Dean, Lily guessed that he was the grandson from the very bottom part of the letter and began to worry.


    Youths these days tend to get taken over by their emotions and if this person suddenly provoked a great force despite him specifically being told ''Do not take revenge.''


    Glaring at him to analyze any available information she asked


    "Did you take revenge"


    Dean was confused by that being the first question and it explained two things.


    She may have not read the whole letter before asking that question which shows her impatience.


    The other one suggests that she was able to read the whole letter but first placed her priority on the revenge part.


    He questioned why his grandpa sent him here and didn''t know why he trusted this girl who is weary like a beast.


    Still trying to probe around the identity of Lily, Dean answered truthfully.


    "I did..."


    It was a plain answer that got straight to the point but he immediately saw the true colors of the girl before him.


    There was a small part of him that held the lady in contempt when she suddenly had a malicious aura around her eyes that were silently hidden.


    "But I already killed him"


    As expected, his answers were just playing around with Lily to see her standpoint but Dean regretted the answer as there was soon greed in the lady''s eyes.


    She was originally pissed that this young man was actually thinking of bringing trouble upon her recent problems.


    ''This damn clan, not knowing when to stop taking.''


    However that soon changed when she realized that the young man was able to take care of the problem immediately and survive.


    If she managed to bring this child under her wing, then her epidemic could be solved in an instant.


    Reading down, she immediately ignored the part regarding some other relatives as she had no business with them but paid a lot of attention to the bottom.


    ''Your father has most likely died but you have the rights to know that his destination was the Zikel Clan''s District. ''


    The part next to it was what she guessed to be the reason why the child was searching for but this statement was odd.


    There were quite a lot of people who died that was with that man when they tried to enter the Zikel Clan''s District.


    If she guessed the corpse count belonging to males, it would wander around the number of 40~50.


    This was a good opportunity for her to get on the good side of this child as long as she was able to help him with this task.


    If all fails, lying also works.


    Sending a glance filled with curiosity, she asked


    "What''s the name of your father?"


    Dean was stumped at the question.


    This made Dean a little eager at what history lies between the Zikel Clan and the Wilkes Clan.


    From the question, it presumes that their has most likely been more than just his father that died here.


    But it strangely doesn''t constitute them having an all out war.


    To make matters even weirder, his grandpa still told him to come here while Lily Zikel didn''t seem like she was ready to kill him.


    Those were his afterthoughts but the main problem was - he didn''t know the name of his father.


    He did go to the trip to the cave but no one specifically said his full name there and he only knows how to call him ''dad'' or ''father''.


    When going back to the clan after the cave incident, he was distant and would rarely try to interact with him.


    At one point, Dean just gave up on trying to approach his father and they went on their separate ways.


    Even the kids who bullied him didn''t know the name of his father, so they couldn''t even use his nameto ridicule him.


    Dean was starting to worry that if he didn''t remember the name soon enough, Lily would kick him out.


    "His name was... people liked to call him Senior Elder Asher."


    That was all he could remember but if that wasn''t enough then Dean was done.


    Lily was spacing out when she heard the full name


    "Senior Elder....Senior Elder.... ASHER WILKES!"


    She was suddenly in a state of rage due to the sudden shatter of the table that turned into splinter while Dean just calmly watched.


    ''This lady may have anger issues''


    Realizing that was how the paper had landed across the floor and taking a detail look at the table, Dean was worried about the intelligence of Lily.


    Her table didn''t just turn into multiple parts due to a strong slam as Dean noticed a few dents and unusual structure of the splinters.

 99 Where Is She?

    ''Even when he''s not alive, the old fool keeps on creating trouble.''


    Lily was surprised that he actually had the audacity to shamelessly bring this child here, especially if he''s the son of Asher.


    Dean wanted to take a seat in order to learn much more however there was no seats, leaving him to just stand and awkwardly wait.


    She was oblivious to the currently uncomfortable client but gave a mix of emotions to him.


    In her eyes was pure anger that Dean didn''t understand but also guilt, shortly followed by sadness.


    Her aggression was slowly dulled down to calmness that allowed Dean to finally take advantage to start asking some questions.


    "How''d he die."


    Lily took a moment and was confused of why Dean asked that question before furrowing her brows.


    "He didn''t tell you?"


    ''Oh, boy.''


    This left her with a lot of trouble as from the letter and Dean''s expressions, it was very unlikely that was even told anything.


    One wrong word and it could be the end of her if she had to face this child who was able to bring down an enemy that destroyed his clan.


    "Hmmm, would you like to hear the full story?"


    Dean was a little excited that he was going to hear a tale to further motivate him and replied


    "Yes!"


    Rattling her fingers across the now broken table, she began the story


    "In the great clan of Zikel, a girl had just recently matured into a lady. She desired to expand their industries instead of just being a clan full of merchants. Given full endorsement by her grandfather, her journey began."


    "Exploring unique viewpoints from jobs such as a janitor to a mercenary, allowed her to broaden her horizon. However a strange thing happened, every time she participated in a new job, there was always a man who would meet her."


    "She placed her hopes that it was ''fate'' and ''destiny'' which caused her to slowly develop feelings for that man to the point where she held his child and visited their clan. Unfortunately, her clan heard news of this and brought her back."


    Dean wanted her to immediately stop the story as many points in the current story raised red flags from a few points.


    Lily strangely chose to talk from a third person perspective which shouldn''t be used unless she found this person to be distant.


    But that would contradict the whole value of this conversation!


    Even if he ignored that part, the first segment contained a happy tone showing that she does show concern to what is presumably his mother.


    When she introduced the new character, man, which Dean guessed was Asher, why did Lily suddenly have some hostility gathering in her eyes.


    It made the matter much more confusing when she mentioned ''fate'' and ''destiny'' with a slight ironic tone while holding contempt and anger within those eyes.


    Dean couldn''t outright interrupt her but just continued to listen


    "The man was unwilling to let this end without a fight and gathered a force to attack the clan and reclaim his wife. In the end, they all passed away."


    Her eyes reflected fear and it was strange how she couldn''t just say ''they died''.


    He gathered enough information to understand the main highlights of the story but it was like some of the parts in the story were censored by being lightly spoken.


    But one thing he noticed was "So the lady''s alive, where is she?"


    Lily was expecting that question and gave a sigh


    "Yes, but i''m not sure if you would like to see the truth."


    She spoke as loud as a mosquito making Dean doubt why he wouldn''t like to see truth.


    Taking a deep breath to contemplate all these clues, Dean couldn''t help but give this lady a sly look.


    It was obvious that at this point she was trying to hide something from the way she fidgeted, showing her pure discomfort.


    "I''m willing to see the truth!"


    Determined to now figure out the truth, Dean spoke with resolve and stared directly into Lily''s eyes.


    She was slightly worried and sighed but couldn''t do anything to stop him, lest she provoked his ire.


    "Follow me."


    Dean wordlessly followed her out of the building to another that was strangely familiar.


    It was one of the largest buildings within the Zikel Clan District but Dean was certain that he had visited this place at one point.


    The guard had already long forgotten who Dean wasbut recognized Lily Zikel without an issue.


    "Welcome to the Kuilin Clan, Miss!"


    He made sure to greet Lily with excitement and a smile while Dean was treated as a no one.


    However the name ''Kuilin Clan'' did ring some bells in his head, Dean felt that he probably visited this place but got rejected.


    Lily was leading him to a different clan which brought Dean to be confused but then he did remember that his mum liked to take odd jobs but why couldn''t she do it in her own clan.


    A lot of thoughts were going through Lily''s mind but she felt relieved that if the young man was to become violent, the main office would have a lot of guards.


    Guards that were of a higher caliber then what her own company could afford.


    They were finally in front of a door but strangely, Lily wanted to stay outside.


    "Once you enter, please do not make a ruckus. NO MATTER WHAT!"


    She purposely emphasized the last sentence which Dean couldn''t help but question why he would even be angry for meeting his mother.


    Was it a sin?


    Preparing his mentality, Dean opened the door to see a sight that twisted the interpretation of his mother.


    He originally thought she would seem slightly rough due to taking many unusual jobs that would require her to change a little but this was unexpected.


    To sum it up - she looked like a normal noble lady.


    Long black hair with each movement focusing on grace and elegance

 100 First Time Meeting

    She was exactly opposite to what a girl who desired adventure and sought to explore the unknown would look like in Dean''s mind.


    Clean white silk cloth was the fabric that she was currently wearing and all the jewels on her body seemed to be of high quality.


    Dean was shocked at the shattered expectation.


    "Who''re you?"


    He was temporarily unable to speak due to the emotions that overwhelmed his heart and attempted to not stutter.


    "Lily Zikel had sent me here, may I know your name?"


    There was a slight desire to test the waters and see how his mother would tend to act but there was one thing that seemed to be a problem for him.


    Names!


    His father''s name was nearly on the brink of being forgotten while Lily had at no point mentioned how to address her.


    It would cause a lot of awkwardness if some teenager called you ''mother'' when he suddenly entered your room.


    Caution was something he had to keep in mind when he remembered Lily''s words.


    "My name''s Jane Zikel, and your''s?"


    Jane felt that it was odd that Lily sent this man without greeting her first and then sending this man.


    She didn''t doubt that he was a trusted person who may be a businessman as he was able to arrive here but she was more amazed at his age.


    "I''m called Dawn, could you please -"


    Dean was unfortunately interrupted, even though he managed to come up with a false name it was all for naught.


    There were two doors in total inside of this room, one was the door that Dean had used to enter however another was nearby to the side.


    It was the reason he paused because what entered was a slightly older man with a scruffy beard and a child.


    "Skipping work again?"


    Jane spoke in a slightly seductive tone while holding the man''s chin up who has still holding the child in his hands.


    Dean was confused at the intimate situation arising before him and wanted to ask what was going on but he was provoked.


    The scuffed man responded to his mum''s advances by trying to free one of his hands and wrapping it around the lady.


    It seemed he had struck a soft spot as Jane began blushing before saying


    "Not in front of our guest."


    She acted in a bashful manner while feeling her cheeks heat up and the man had just finally realized that Dean was in the room.


    "Oh jeez! Another client already, please take a seat."


    Dean didn''t know how to react.


    He was indeed angry that the mother his father so desperately pursued was willing to marry another man and have another child.


    Although he never treated his father as a family member, from a man''s personal point of view, this was just disappointing.


    There was sadness that this was the truth Lily tried to avoid.


    But the strangest emotions that took up the majority of him was boredom that turned him to feeling lethargic.


    It was just the smallest ray of hope that made Dean imagine that he could explore a new reason to try and find a reason to live but it was much more boring than he thought.


    Dean imagined that there could''ve been a lot of potential in searching for an interesting truth but it was just more disappointment.


    The only thing that cheered Dean was twisted entertainment, thinking that his father may now wear a green hat in his grave.


    Where was his body?


    This question popped into Dean''s head and acted as an incentive to just finish this segment.


    "Is force the only way?"


    Whispering to himself, the man thought Dean was embarrassed that he may have entered the wrong room instead of his.


    "Haha, everyone makes mistakes."


    Dean sighed, counting the people in the room but instinctually answered to try and soften the pain


    "I guess my parents would agree with that"


    "...Huh?"


    The man was slightly stunned by that answer but a dash of wind soon silenced him when he suddenly fell back.


    He was close to falling down but a person helped him get back up.


    "4, 5, 6, 7... only 9"


    Dean had already taken control of the situation by grabbing Jane by pulling her left arm backwards to restrain any sudden movements while pointing a dagger at her neck.


    "You, you, what do you want?"


    The man was in a weakened state due to the sudden shock and the recent paperwork that already made him dizzy was all starting to work together.


    "Miss Jane, would you be willing to tell me the experience with your past husband."


    Jane''s face started to pale and Dean could already feel the sweat on her arm.


    There was no way Dean would allow ants to get in the way of his search which was why he soon mentioned a casual sentence


    "Could you 5 also stand in front of me and let Miss Jane talk."


    He had a hostage and looking at the man''s eyes, they could only recall and gather around him in order to make sure he is protected.


    "Also, could the one planning to take the hostage away from me, back off into that group. And the guy planning to stab me, could you please join him."


    A feint *Ding* was heard behind Dean due to the guard dropping his dagger in order to show that he held peace in mind, so that Jane wouldn''t die instantly.


    Dean had roughly sense their killing intent when the man entered the room and he saw the intimate moment.


    From what he guessed, they practiced a cultivation technique that either concealed their being by erasing their presence or reflecting light.


    It was too difficult to know as Dean never researched this area.


    "Thank you for everyone''s co-operation, may we now hear the story, Miss Jane"


    The moment of truth was arriving so close that Dean couldn''t help but feel a little nervous and accidentally stabbed Jane''s neck

 101 Interesting Story

    It was just a small incision that allowed a few drops of blood to bleed out but Jane thought of this as a fear tactic.


    Anxiety and horror gripped her heart, swaying her emotions to go out of order while making her confused at the ordeal.


    Frustration and much more negative emotions soon followed but embarrassment was the main factor.


    She could either live but possibly face the wrath of her husband or die a cruel death by this unknown person.


    Tears began flowing out like a waterfall while Dean started to become impatient at how long she was taking.


    He also began to get anxious as this reminded him of a familiar scene, but he was still able to remember the pain twice when he saw those memories.


    "Hurry up! What was the name of your past lover?"


    Jane gave in, telling her all she knew


    "Asher Wilkes"


    Dean sighed at the answer as there was one part in him that wanted to believe that he had truly gone to the wrong room but it seemed that reality was brutal.


    One part told him to be happy for solving this mystery that no one was willing to tell him but the other side was filled with lethargy.


    What will you do next?


    It was equivalent to a taunt in Dean''s mind but he decided he should first settle this matter.


    "Good. From beginning to end, explain how you met him."


    Panic struck her as she didn''t desire to be humiliated right in front of her husband, especially if he revealed certain details.


    Glancing back and forth between the man behind her and her husband, Jane waited for any signal for help.


    The man obviously saw the predicament his wife was in and smiled to reassure her.


    He covered his ears with both hands while settling down the sleeping baby.


    Dean smiled at the exchange between the partners and made sure his mum wouldn''t make any rash movements


    "How sweet. Now begin the story before time runs out."


    The sentence was full of sarcasm but Jane began to worry that this man would be keeping track of the time and if they didn''t fulfill his requirements, they would die.


    To sum it up, it was basically the same story that Lily Zikel had told but it was a much more personal story except Jane stuttered too many times.


    It was generally a surprise that Dean realized his temper was a lot less rash when it came to brashly killing people but he was disappointed at the pace of the story.


    Only when the story reached the ending did he actually pay full attention.


    "H-he then thought that he could take me back using force. T-that day there w-were so many fighters that raided b-but they all d-died. It was fruitless."


    Dean saw that Jane was trying to be sensitive to him as she was worried he might kill her for a slight offense but this made him feel a sense of exploration by desiring to ask questions.


    "How did Asher Wilkes die?"


    "I-I, grandpa suddenly came out and killed him before throwing his body into..."


    She was sobbing at the painful memories that resurfaced in her mind but Dean could care nothing about how she felt and proceeded to slice small cuts across her body.


    This was a fairly new experience to Dean as he never had the chance to hurt someone of the same bloodline which kind of made him feel guilty yet excited.


    They were all the same but harming one''s own kin was very unusual.


    People were usually taught to respect the older people for they have knowledge yet to just break that rule was an odd feeling, especially one''s own mother.


    "Throwing his body where?"


    "T-they threw it into the pit filled with beasts."


    Jane began crying her heart out with pure sincerity but Dean just looked back at the man in front of him and questioned ''how could you be so shameless in front of your husband?''


    Dean now learnt more information about the Zikel Clan, the ability to rear beasts as pets was unusual but the broad world would of course have weird and strange people.


    "Then what happened after?"


    "The c-clan forced me into a marriage with another clan to create peace and further connections"


    He was slightly confused at how his mum who at this point had nothing to lose was now ''forced'' into something against her will despite having nothing.


    "Anything else?"


    "W-we married and had a child to reinforce the happiness of the higher ups withing the clans."


    Dean sighed at how complex the system for large clans were but contemplated why she had specifically left out small details.


    "What happened to the child?"


    "?...H-he''s right there."


    She didn''t dare to freely move her hands around as this could provoke the man and instead tried to use her head to point.


    Dean did indeed see a child who was in a deep sleep but he wanted to face palm.


    "No, I meant the one with Asher Wilkes."


    "You, you, you. How?"


    Jane was thrown into panic as she thought it was impossible for the secret to have leaked, even Asher promised he would never say a word.


    "You were already TAINTED!"


    A sharp yell from the man covering his ears came out accidentally but Dean held him in contempt.


    His hands were considerably loose meaning he was listening the whole time but to hold ''purity'' at such a high value... it was worth scoffing at.


    He never knew there were such traditional people that only faithfully believed that was the first thing they should look in a girl.


    "I do recommend that you stay quiet, and the guy in the back! Don''t try escaping for help."


    There was a man in skin tight clothes slowly backing away through the door the man had entered through but Dean wasn''t stupid enough to get into a position of danger.


    "Don''t test my patience"

 102 That Was It?

    It was an obvious sign of provocation to even attempt to escape, let alone the fact that they tried to kill him from behind.


    The guards were slightly sweating at such a high stake scenario as the hostage was being mistreated right in front of their eyes while their client was not in the right state of mind.


    He seemed like he was going insane while the baby was posing as a possible hazard if they left him alone.


    There were too many problems that couldn''t be solved with just the 5 of them which was why they wanted to test their luck but it was for naught.


    Dean knew that if he was to bide his time for too long, people will start to find it odd and begin investigating this room.


    What he first needed to prioritize was to quill the rebellious nature of those guards that posed the biggest danger.


    They were an overall hazard as they had the audacity to attempt to assassinate him and escape while the man was beginning to become a nuisance in his interrogation.


    If he were to address him formally it would be ''step dad''.


    Such a title was unbefitting for him and Dean lightly scoffed at the realization that this idealistic man child who complains about purity would be called his ''step dad''


    Dean sighed as he resorted to fear tactics due to words not being as effective as he originally thought.


    He thought that with the ability to tell their hidden location, he would''ve garnered some sort of fear but he was still not understood.


    The training for his aura was about to come in handy as a sluggishly thick red blood lust began to extend from his body while a feint outline appeared on Dean''s body.


    It was refined to the point where they were like tiny little threads that pierced through the pores of the human bodies before him.


    His aura was eventually saturated to the point where instead of small threads around the body, it was now a cloak that shook them.


    They were stunned in fear at the killing intent that forced them to slightly kneel on one knee while the man was on the brink of passing out as a yellow fluid began leaking from his pants.


    This method of intimidation was the simplest as even Jane was sensitive to feeling the blood lust but Dean made sure to keep it within gradual control.


    Looking at the child who was between the kneeling guards and his piss covered father, he was sleeping alright.


    Dean cringed at the thought that this baby was considered his ''step brother'' but that was not the reason for why he didn''t imbue him with Battle Intent.


    The guards were able to handle it without screaming in pain, if done to a child... it wouldn''t be a surprise if death was approaching it.


    Besides, waking up the child would create a ruckus.


    "Now, back to the story. The child with Asher Wilkes?"


    Jane''s mind was in shock but she noticed that Dean was a lot more relaxed after using an intimidation tactic and decided this was the past time to try and negotiate


    "W-we can settle this with a s-simple peace, Dawn. We''ll g-give you whatever you want."


    Dean found it odd that she was trying to prolong this conversation but he guessed that she was hoping for security to notice something wrong.


    "Really? Then hurry, and tell the story."


    Backed into a corner, it was hopeless now that Dean wanted to listen to the story.


    Having given up on trying to negotiate, Jane tried to test another method.


    "We had a child roughly 10 years ago..."


    ''Wait...''


    Dean was in a state of shock as he was absolutely not that young and he was sure that Asher was his father.


    Did he have multiple girls?


    It didn''t make sense as even his grandfather directed him to this place, leaving an option that would solve his problem.


    "Miss Jane, I don''t recommend lying"


    To multiply the fear, Dean leaned closed to Jane''s ear with an emotionless voice while slowly crushing her left foot which would at most cause a minor injury.


    Jane had ran out of tricks and now was finally revealing the truth.


    "W-we did have a child but I don''t even know where he is."


    "Oh?"


    Dean was interested at how Asher liked to be secretive that not even some of his clan mates would know his name


    "Roughly 2 years ago, the Wilkes Clan was demolished."


    Jane''s face was absent of blood and turned pale but Dean didn''t want her to pass out that easily and slapped her face.


    "Tell me what you think about it."


    "But... Lily...she wore to protect..."


    ''So Lily allowed such a big mess to happen?''


    She began to cry more tears which touched Dean''s heartstrings but he was slightly more entertained by the bigger circle.


    It would be simple to just say ''oh, you''re such a great mum and I can''t wait to join a new family''


    But Dean obviously saw this from a much different view point


    "What a heartbreaking story. Let me puzzle it all together."


    "Asher, so compassionate to find his wife harmed his child by neglecting him. He then stupidly died trying to get her back and was even thrown into a pit of beasts, dying a dog death without honor."


    "While the wife had to ''pitifully'' live with another family in galore and riches. Living such a ''sad'' and ''sorrowful'' life because she was a coward that didn''t want to die with her husband. Oh, how I sympathize."


    "NO. NO, NO, YOU''RE WRONG!"


    Dean was beginning to get bored at how much his mother was a drama queen before spitting a last few words.


    "At least your childgrew up to be a great person, I mean your looking at him right now."


    Shock passed through Jane''s eyes before they became dim due to Dean punching her in the abdomen

 103 Time to Wrap It All Up

    Jane spat out any saliva in her mouth due to the sudden impact Dean gave her.


    Dean was disgusted at the mess she made and any saliva that managed to get on him was smothered onto the clothing she wore.


    "Now to deal with the rest."


    There was no more mystery that Dean was curious to explore but now was the time to start wreaking havoc.


    The guards lost all loyalty and immediately ran as soon as they saw Dean approach them while the man was still in shock with a sleeping child.


    If Dean had to live with such a naive mother... the thought horrified him and he wasn''t sure whether he was lucky or not.


    Not exactly sure what to do, Dean pondered for a moment on what to say to his ''step father''


    "You who places purity at a high value, live with the fact that you should forever have a green hat atop your head."


    He wasn''t even sure if this unruly man would even treat the green hat as a type of torture but Dean was too lazy to deal with trash.


    Looking at his ''step brother'', Dean picked him up and held his limbs.


    "Look at these small hands, they have yet to shed blood and destroy people''s lives. This head that has a soft gentle feeling that could be crushed. Was I as weak as this at one point?"


    Dean didn''t exactly plan to kill a child who was born into the world and had to be troubled due to his mother''s trouble.


    He had no choice but to grow up under the care of those two while the father just seemed like a childish brat.


    This company might as well be built on someone else premises and used this guy as a figurehead.


    His one goal to start wreaking havoc was to find Lily Zikel.


    There was a slight childish side inside of him that wanted to see the conflict between the sisters but he just wanted to get rid of such a messy trouble off his chest.


    She was unfortunately absent within the Kuilin Clan building which meant she probably just went back to her own building.


    Any manners that were reserved for modesty was thrown out the window as Dean approached the building belonging to Lily and came from the back.


    He met no security guards and he could barely see the room at the top that Lily was working in.


    Taking a deep breath, Dean made sure to be a little off centered and jumped towards the building.


    Bringing out the black polearm, he was inching closer and closer towards the wall before


    *WHACK*


    The stone crumbled into dust as the glass shattered into fragments, reflecting light everywhere while Dean managed to safely land into the room.


    Half of the building felt the gigantic force behind that hit and shook slightly, similar to an earthquake while anyone trapped under the rubble would have to blame it on their misfortune.


    "Y-you, what are you doing?"


    Lily was reading something before a loud sound and the floor next to her had suddenly collapse.


    Dean was tired with useless chatter and casually beheaded her with the sharp blade of the polearm and sighed


    "Man, it''s been too long."


    The smell of blood was familiar yet unfamiliar after a year but Dean noticed that it wasn''t as rosy red as he always thought.


    Most of the time, it was a slightly brown tint while being abnormally dark.


    He believed that it could be a side effect of the pills that Leonard had not tested but he started to hallucinate about certain images.


    An example was that if he focused long enough on Lily, a ball that would contain a range of colors would appear where her heart was.


    It was too late for regrets and now he was able to grab the attention of everyone within this district.


    "LISTEN UP! TRASH THAT ARE CURRENTLY LISTENING TO THIS, PISS OFF."


    Dean had read a little bit on the papers that were scattered across Lily''s room.


    It was unusual that she was a businesswoman who was able to create a business like this with such a mix of emotions showed that she wasn''t usually like that.


    Something happened within that time frame that caused her to be a lot more sensitive.


    Like most noble clans, Dean guessed that it was someone who wanted to monopolize the profits and even if he was used in the process, it didn''t matter.


    ...


    "Is this a type of provocation?"


    "Sir, your letter has been received and your brother has now sent you a note."


    The man took the letter from his secretary and waved his hand to excuse him


    "Oh? Such a god sent opportunity was actually sent to us? I never knew she would be such a good chess piece, what a surprise."


    He smiled gently and ripped the paper to shreds while the grin continued to stay there.


    "Now, how shall we split the Kuilin Clan''s capital?"


    ...


    "Master, are you well now?"


    "Ho, ho, I didn''t expect you to actually to have gotten a favor from the Divine Doctor."


    "It was nothing, Master"


    "To actually gather those herbs, thank you."


    Dean would''ve been surprised that the Old Man he guarded for the escort mission was actually taking care of the head of the Zikel Clan, Edward Zikel


    The Old Man was dressed in black formal wear while speaking in a very polite manner with his head slightly tilted downwards.


    "Have my kids been causing any trouble? It''s been a long time since I held my grandchildren in my arms."


    "Ummmmm, Master, you may wish to look at that yourself."


    ....


    Two brothers in the end, took over another clan''s whole treasury while a sister died.


    A family was broken apart and the wife was once more treated like a problem by everyone around here


    A wanted poster for a person named "Dawn Wilkes" was going around and the price for the head was increasing as time passed.

 104 Sin of Envy

    1 Year...


    5 Years...


    10 Years...


    A whole 80 years soon passed and the name, ''Dawn Wilkes'' was forever lost in the sea of time that should never be remembered once more.


    The clans of the past will have been taken over and improve in a more rampant manner while the voices of old will be forgotten and replaced by the new.


    One shall eventually return to where they started and that is what Dean was currently looking at.


    Gone was the confused youth who violently destroyed everything and fell into the clutches of melancholy.


    Now an old man with nothing, he was forever to be mute and just watch.


    Wrinkles, long grey hair; he was a fossil that would eventually crack.


    Apathetic, cruel. The basic attributes that contributed to creating a monster but this old man had finally refused to continue on that path and hid himself to cultivating at the very peak of his capabilities.


    Dean was able to sense the ''world''s pressure'', a force that made sure a cultivator wouldn''t corrupt the world but he had no use for such power.


    What good was it?


    At one point, it seemed the [Battle Intent Manual] was a complete failure of a cultivation book.


    It did not focus on the effect of longevity like most cultivation manuals, but instead battle competency, meaning Dean would most likely die of old age.


    The most effective fuel that would boost your cultivation was - emotions, specifically revenge.


    He was too tired and sick of everything that the [Battle Intent Manual] wasn''t as effective as it once was but Dean was satisfied.


    When he first escaped from the Zikel Clan as a youth, he first ran to a nearby village.


    They were originally under attack from bandits but he had already demolished them to dust and earned the praise of the villagers.


    Dean wasn''t interested in any services they were willing to offer and instead watched the labor they did.


    An uncomfortable feeling would always follow him.


    The men who hunted with efficiency with honed techniques that executed animals and gathered food for everyone.


    Women who spun silk, harvested herbs, tended to animals and children.


    It was unfortunate as fate wasn''t kind. Another bandit group attacked the place and Dean could remember their cries


    "Why aren''t you helping!"


    There was an obnoxious feeling within his heart that he was never able to understand, until he looked at the beautiful landscape from above as an old man.


    "All I''ve done is waste my life and done whatever I desire. Life is nothing more than a tiny grain of sand but it can still affect other people''s lives. I think I understand that feeling"


    It was a long time ago but he remembered that strong familiar feeling.


    Jealousy, hatred, envy.


    Christian had strength and power which is what I yearned for with revenge.


    I achieved that and sabotaged him to go all the way and visit hell but then I had nothing else.


    There was nothing....


    But I then heard that I could do something by doing the one thing I was proficient in - revenge.


    I took revenge for Ayesha by killing Pierre and Anne.


    I took revenge for Leonard, Ellis and Alexander by killing the Wandering Demonic Poison King.


    What else could I do?


    Back to square one, I now arrived at nothing and just clutched to whatever I could find which happened to be his mother.


    I wanted something entertaining to fill the void within my life by visiting that place and created drama to fulfill it.


    Blinded by the success of others, Dean had forgotten the path in which they were able to get there.


    If he was able to look much more carefully, a different ending could have happened.


    It was such a simple solution back then but of course the eyes of a brat wouldn''t be able to see through them.


    I was so jealous of the people who were able to hold their child with pride and happiness.


    I envied those with happy lives that used the skills they learnt for making money.


    Compared to an old buffoon that only knows how to take away another''s life for their own.


    This selfishness is not necessarily wrong but it would not last in the long run as far as Dean assured himself.


    In life, one will be able to feel a myriad of emotions, some more than others.


    But the one thing that everyone in some point of their time will have at least 1 regret.


    It is a painful moment where you wished you could just go back in time and avoid creating that 1 regret but that''s not how life works.


    Dean was full of regret for not being able to live such a simple life and decided to do one last thing with his dog crap life.


    There was not much left to do with his life and so he returned to the cave that gave him the power to start everything.


    He had beenwriting only the basic information that he received with the original [Battle Intent Manual] until he had around 30.


    The very original one with the extra notes would be left in this cave with most of the precious resources and the blue orb.


    His life was very limited which made him reckless as he looked at a book, [Dimensional Hop}


    Whichever world it took him to, wherever environment he was brought to, Dena had a mission.


    Hope that was given to him, the ability to carry out the emotions of desperation.


    Dean hoped that whoever picks this up, may they actually put it to good use and be more responsible than him.


    Dying inside of the ground would be a bland way to die but Dean had no idea how painful it could be.


    This was the one last desire he will have and the last regret he may have.


    The people who receive this book could be rampant tyrants, peaceful pacifists, Dean wouldn''t know but he hoped they wouldn''t be full of regret like him


    "If you do receive this book, please think carefully - Dean"

 105 Interlude

    ''Envy is like a teacher. A bad teacher. It teaches us everything yet tells us to sift through everything to find the important stuff even if some methods are inefficient.''


    ...


    The demons went and gone as soon as the story had finished while the devils whistled from the corners at the 7 embodiment of sins'' intelligence.


    A Burning Soul was ordered for the 7 Sins who drank it without a sweat, the old man was pleasedwith the gentle yet mellow flavor and appreciated the intoxicating screams. He observed the crowd carefully.


    "Aha! I finally get it."


    "What?"


    "Don''t you see! Christian was actually Pride, Ayesha was Sloth, Dean was Envy and -"


    "Hold up bud! I know demons ain''t got that much inside their head but you seriously didn''t think that through, did you?"


    "Wait... you mean that wasn''t it."


    The demon sighed at his brash judgement while the devil was currently giving him a lecture on the major sin the story told.


    This was an enjoyable sight for the 7 Sins who lazed around waiting for any signals to continue his next story but contemplated his story for the nth time.


    His story actually skipped out a lot of parts as he couldn''t shamelessly tell them of certain times in his life as well as some of the more humiliating moments.


    It was quite an emotional time when he first appeared here as this was the first time he had ever experienced emotions. Such a shocking revelation made his memories hazy but he was able to at least finally identify that black rectangle.


    Although the 7 Sins was able to recall that memory, there was nothing.


    Asking some of the higher up demons such as Satan would be the equivalent of courting death while Belphegor was obviously too busy tempting humans, leaving the 7 Sins to search for ''Hermes'' himself.


    That man was probably lying or scheming something as there was no scriptures referring to a man in purple named, Hermes.


    Whether the existence of his creator was known, the 7 Sins would unfortunately never know.


    This first life had accidentally scarred the 7 Sins idea of what a family should be, especially larger ones that might be named Clans. Another poor learning experience was that cultivation and magic existed everywhere.


    The reason the 7 Sins was able to learn of that recently was because his second life was quite pitiful.


    Family had a much more alluring charm to it at that point while a thing called ''Science'' was able to instill fear into him.


    Flying metal plates that could completely destroy buildings and big metal horses were able to crush insignificant lives. If cultivation and magic was added to that world... the 7 Sins felt a little scared at such a thought as cultivating there would sound like hell... something worse than hell.


    Every once in a while, there would be the sound of laughter from the younger children


    "Dad! I finally got a contract signed!"


    "Hmm, let me see son. Nice, pieces of paper for a soul"


    The dad would pat the spiky head of the child which was an amusing sight for the 7 Sins but this made him wonder about the experience of the 7 Virtues.


    There was a very general formula on how Demons and Devils acted.


    One supreme rule was that they prioritize themselves first, which is usually seen as selfishness but it was more based on the idea that we regard freedom as the reason for what we live for.


    To live for a joyous day is better than living a lifetime of regret.


    It was always a beautiful sight that most of the times, everyone would be honest with how they expressed their emotions except the sly devils.


    But that comes at a cost...


    In order for you to express yourself honestly, it may intercept with another''s judgement which will lead to conflict.


    The only way to live a happy life was the one who had the strongest fist... or for the devils, the one that utilizes the strongest fist.


    If one were to stem it to the very basics of our ancient ancestors, survival of the fittest.


    The weak fight for scraps while the strong are able to be rampant.


    It was not the perfect method to utilize the mass but it was indeed a type of method that still allows this society to live freely. The alcohol was starting to get to his head as the 7 Sins started throwing random glances everywhere while having a shaky hand.


    Fear should be casted away and one should respond in a suitable manner.


    Placing the current drink down, the 7 Sins turned to face the crowd once more while beginning the next story.


    One full of the best moments within his 7 lives he had currently lived.


    "I will now tell the next story..."


    ...


    "STOP LET ME GO!"


    The boy tried to struggle but his attempts was void of any action, looking like a fish on land who could barely move an inch. On closer inspection, his hands and legs were tied to a soft and comfy bed with a recently cleaned bed sheet.


    "Shhhhh, you wouldn''t want to wake your sister? Now, would you?"


    There was a slightly alluring and gentle voice that reached the boy but he unfortunately couldn''t see as he was blindfolded. An unpleasant sensation ran down his chest that slowly reached his head before another whisper was added.


    "Don''t forget to say cheese"


    His body felt cold but the only warmth he was able to feel was the contact from another human and a wet slimy sensation. Another cold breeze soon followed in a seductive tone "Relax a little, we need to make sure that this commemoration will be memorable"


    "NOOOOO!"


    The blindfold was now taken off but the girl made sure to place a gag inside the boy''s mouth instead


    "I think I like you more when you''re quieter"


    She couldn''t help but blush when saying that line but the boy was much more scared and started thrusting the air to try and create some noise so that someone might notice and help him.


    Looking at the boy on the brink of desperation she lightly laughed with her hand in front of her mouth to cover her teeth in an attempt to show some sort of shyness "Hehe, you''re so excited already?"

 106 Sub-par Bullying

    "Wahh!" I barely gathered the strength from myself to actually escape that nightmare once more however the bed sheets were drenched with sweat and my pillow lacked any softness it once had.


    My blanket was thrown onto the floor while my clothes and hair were thrown into distraught, turning into a complete mess.


    *RING*


    A loud sound to the side of my bed rang out a tune I was far too familiar with that made my head furthermore dizzy. It was the tune that was automatically set on my phone but the sound was too obnoxious when waking up to it, EVERY, MORNING.


    It was uncomfortable to stay in this bed any further and the alarm was just another thing that promoted myself to exit this room.


    I must say, I do like waking up to see a mirror with such a hot, beautiful and gracious man.


    All jokes aside, I would have to flatter my ego as I am indeed considered quite pretty as a male.


    Small nose, smooth white skin that appealed to a major audience; a strong jawline and a tall yet sturdy physique that was neither fat nor muscly.


    An overall feminine look that was perfect to tug on the heartstrings of my clients.


    The uniform for my school was just a bland white long sleeve shirt while the pants were baggy and grey.


    Having disheveled hair was not wrong but the only annoying part for dressing up in the morning was having to wear fake glasses.


    People who have to wear spectacles are living a tough life. Any fingerprints or dust that manage to even get close to the glass part would always irritate my eyes even if they were fake.


    Once making sure I was somewhat appealing, I made sure to pack my second bag. The first one already had all my textbooks for high school but the second one was incredibly important.


    I made sure to replace the set of clothing that was in it for a slightly more formal style and some gel as well as lube joined in. The burner phone, wallet and cards from business partners were safe in a hidden pocket.


    In my line of work, it was best to buy a phone that could be discardable if necessary or just one that wouldn''t affect your personal life.


    The wallet was for storing the customer''s money once the transaction was done while the cards were from some partners that wanted him to advertise when needed.


    My school has a strict rule about part time job and especially with the type of job I''m working, it wouldn''t be wrong if they expelled me.


    Therefore I like to take precautions, being the genius I am.


    Fake glasses since I usually hear phrases like "Wow, you look like another person?"


    They tended to block my natural eye color which used to be called weird as it was black with a slightly illusive pink hue.


    Sometimes my hair grows a little longer than normal which makes it difficult to form it into a new hairstyle that most of my classmates wouldn''t recognize which is why gel is amazing.


    I had already prepared lunch as well as dinner for my sister but for the places i''m going, I need to save some money.


    Rent has been increasing and even with the debt that has finally been paid off, I still need to pay my uncle.


    Therefore¡­ cheap junk food, please treat me well.


    My lunch seemed a little cheaper as it was just some sandwiches but that''s fine as my younger sister is going through that period where she''ll need lots of nutrients.


    The floor tended to creak a lot but it seems like my sister refuses to wake up and continues to sleep in a slumber.


    There was already a note for anything she needed and I made sure to place my insurance


    - If I do not send a text by 6:30pm to 7:00 call the police at **** location.


    By you lovely brother, Arisu^__^


    I had already made plans with my client to stay up a little extra late but if anything were to happen then my little sister should be able to have some common sense.


    My school was actually close by. It was not praised academically well, but it was just a rather normal school. There were no significant areas that it was developed in as it focused more on general academics.


    The education level is surprisingly high due to its rising influence and reputation after some of the graduates from this school started to make a name for themselves.


    This place is the literal place created for me to get dragged down and do nothing with my life. If only I had not promised anything could I actually start doing a full time job but here I am now.


    Grades are¡­ not exactly my best point.


    Because of my job, socializing isn''t exactly a thing I would want to waste in this hellhole while studying takes too much of my precious time.


    As the saying goes - time is money.


    If I can''t make enough then I will just disappear and bring along my sister.


    What this basically says to my classmates is that I''m lazy and will sleep in class to make sure I feel refreshed. I will talk nor interact with you or cause trouble unless you can give me enough money.


    That definition¡­ is surprisingly exact.


    An example of how I wouldn''t cause trouble¡­ more ofthe thought that I just can''t be bothered are the people with me at lunch time.


    The morning went through without a hitch as I was located at the very back and the teachers were very tired of my tardiness which gave me an invitation to dreamland.


    "BITCH! This damn sissy is still poor as fuck."


    I didn''t know basement dwelling, below average looking dudes would be so annoying as one of the grunts suddenly kicked me in the stomach.


    It was a weak blow but at least it didn''t harm my divine beings looks

 107 Poorly Done NTR

    They were sooo weak. I''m surprise they call me a ''sissy'' then what does that make them?


    If I was a bully, I wouldn''t be so dumb to aim for some poor idiot¡­ a poor person and instead extort from the richer people who I know have trash.


    But I think they already found their own source of revenue as the recent transfer student from a foreign country that was rumored to be rich was standing behind them, cruelly watching.


    This was probably his kink but I now understood they were probably getting paid as long as that man would enjoy seeing the sight of me get bullied.


    I was originally bullied by them because of their obvious jealousy to my good looks but because I was dirt poor and never brought money to school, I acted as a punching bag from time to time.


    "So? What should we do Craig? Anything else?"


    These impatient grunts were very aggressive in the way they wanted to get on the good side of Craig but it just made them seem like desperate and pathetic trash.


    "No need, you already asked that question and I''m ready."


    So it seems I was left alone but Craig suddenly smacked me with a paper but he was lucky that it didn''t leave a mark.


    "Make sure to meet at this room."


    This idiot actually thought I would follow- HOLY SHIT THERE''S $50! I''m on my way pal. It was equivalent to half an hour of what most of my clients pay for but it nothing too bad


    ''Meet at *** hotel, room 193. There''ll be more money if you come.''


    Ohoho, that was all you had to say my new best friend good old buddy old pal . I got you


    ¡­.


    This¡­. I think I now see disappointment.


    I swear i''m not drunk but I am currently seeing Craig banging a chick while I have to sit on this chair and kind of¡­ watch?


    Hold on, hold on, let me backtrack a little bit to make sure i''m not intoxicated


    I was at my evening classes - skip, skip, HURRY UP AND SKIP THOSE LESSONS.


    No, no, I had just gone back and made sure my little sister woke up to go to school but it seems her room is forever messy as I will forever remember it but I then quickly swapped my bags out for the other one.


    Looking at what was next to me, yep, I can absolutely confirm I brought the right stuff.


    Okay, okay, everything''s fine so far.


    I then remembered I had a meeting to rob some¡­ to cherish the happy friendship I have just developed which was why I entered this hotel.


    This hotel was surprisingly a love hotel that I was a little too familiar with as the conversation with the receptionist kind of went like this "Oh? Arisu you''re here for another client?"


    "No, no, someone told me to get here yet I didn''t know it was a branch of that company."


    "Haha, I didn''t think being moved to a branch location I would still meet you, bring some customers and I can give you a 5% deal for the customers you bring here.


    I was laughing in my mind ''haha, damn stingy.''


    "Anyways, what room are you going to?"


    Okay, that was the conversation I just recently had.


    Good, I''m up to date and then we can finally arrive at this scene.


    I opened the door and because i''m such a kind gentleman, I made sure to close the door behind me and all I could hear was wet sucking.


    "HAHAHA, Arisu how does it feel to get cucked when your crush is fucking another man."


    This was the very first question I got when I entered the room.


    ''Who the f¡­. When did I have a crush?''


    I didn''t even know that girl and she was my crush. Her third rate looks were pretty degrading and she didn''t even look like my type while her rhythm is so off.


    ''OH FU-''


    An explosion happened within my mind as I remembered the details of yesterday that finally made sense.


    "Fucking say who you like if you want this to end."


    The memories were coming back and I had finished a really late night shift which was whyyesterday''s lunch was poorly seasoned and cooked but I didn''t have enough care in the world for these idiot''s questions.


    I had just given them a random name yet they actually found a girl in our school who actually had that name.


    There were unusual things happening in this world and now another one can be added to the list.


    To be honest¡­. this overall show was so damn lame.


    Let''s properly analyze where these two idiots are fucking up. Take that as you well.


    They midway suddenly went into a position where Craig was sitting on the bed while the girl was on the ground sucking him off.


    She was on the floor meaning her knees are going to hurt by the end of this and that fraud of a gentleman, Craig doesn''t even notice that¡­ don''t even get me started on how poorly the girl''s giving a blowjob.


    Finishing up with the foreplay, they then went into doggy position.


    The genius, Craig puts on a condom.


    Sounds normal, right?


    Except he was using Oil-based Lube


    Let me make sure I spell that out for you


    O-I-L B-A-S-E-D L-U-B-E.


    Those things destroy condoms and from the way Craig was smiling with a smug attitude there were two reasons.


    He''s a goddamn idiot or he wants to impregnate a girl while getting an STD.


    They were at it like animals¡­ literally.


    Craig was like a dog and was quickly thrusting at the girl in very small motions, he looked like he was probably the only one enjoying it and let''s not even mention the little toy between his crotch.


    The girl seemed a little awkward and was really bad at faking a moan with realistic emotions.

 108 It’s Not the Size of the Tool, It’s How You Use the Tool

    This clown show was so boring that it wouldn''t even turn on a horny teenager who hasn''t masturbated for months.


    It was like a poorly thought out show where everyone wants to now ask for refunds because of how lame the outcome actually was.


    The girl still didn''t look like she was enjoying anything, she wasn''t even gripping onto the bed sheets from feeling pleasure or pain.


    I thought I was going to make some money but it turned out it was just a horny rabid dog.


    *Ding*


    I''m pretty sure that was a text from my burner phone.


    These phones were made so that it would be easy and discardable but I heard that it is much more important from one of my seniors.


    If you worked at multiple companies, you could label the phones with the name and sound much more professional


    An example would be "Hi, which company are you calling for?"


    But you can instead say "Hello, this is **** Delivery Health Service, how may I help you"


    I was missing out on that since I only managed to snag two part time jobs.


    The great seniors above me have many mythical legends that I would never believe in this industry.


    A wondrous woman who can deal with 10 men and leave with all of their wallets.


    Men who have enough energy to go at their job for at least 10 times in a single day.


    Being in this industry made me so proud as a few tear drops left my eyes.


    Anyways, the text was already confirmed


    {I have booked for the appointment between 4:00pm and 6:00pm, correct.}


    Oh boy, this client was always the person who seemed a little threatening once she was away and finished with her work, but at least she was a good customer at heart.


    I made sure to text her back


    {Yep, Total of $263. Can you meet at *** Hotel.}


    {K}


    "Haha"


    I couldn''t help but leave out a little unsure laugh as she was always one to get down to the point and be very brief.


    But I guess that was just another charm of her.


    Oh, they''re still going at it?


    To my absolute surprise, Craig was still able to go at it and the girl finally looks like she''s enjoying it due to the stimulation of the clitoris...


    ...Because she was masturbating


    Craig, Craig, dear Craig. I am sincerely sorry at the difficulties you have and wish you the best of luck when finding a wife.


    This was too good to not laugh at but since i''m on my phone, I might as well surf on the internet.


    I was never too good at this stuff because I was too busy with some things in middle school but my job started to require me to understand the internet.


    It''s a really weird place.


    The usual place I like to visit is something like e/Ihavesex.


    One thing I can say for sure is that the world we live in has many interesting people that just defy all odds.


    A post read "Lol, at least I have a 20 inch dick with 50 women."


    The 50 women part seems alright as you can literally buy their services if you''re that desperate but a 20 inch dick.


    Like¡­ this guy should enter for the world record as I''m pretty sure the record holder only has a 17 inch penis.


    But sometimes¡­ I really do pity these types of people.


    I mean, you won''t be able to feel the true pleasure from such a long penis.


    The normal vagina tends to be 3 inches to 7 inches deep, so unless they are able to find an abnormal woman who can fit that inside of her for some heavenly sensations, this man will suffer a sad life.


    Imagine having to buy specially made underwear of trying to fit that in your pants.


    One of the only ways to have some sort of pleasure is a handjob but they would never understand the pleasure of a good deep throat.


    This¡­ those poor souls can only hope to live a happier life in their next reincarnation.


    "Hey sissy! Aren''t you going to get nude and fap to your crush."


    Craig was still going at it but his pace became a lot slower and he seemed kind of out of breath while his cheeks were puffed.


    These were obvious signs that he was edging but what audacity to actually ask me to fap.


    I have other priorities instead of fapping to this- 1, 2, 3, 4! THERE''S $200!


    Well shit man, that''s all you had to give.


    Stripping off my school clothing, this made it much simpler when it reached 4:00 and I would have to change to the other set of clothing in around 10 minutes


    My limp dick was hanging around but I still took my seat.


    It was currently flaccid but after a couple of training sessions with my seniors, they taught me that even if your customer is so ugly that they''re not your type, you''re still going to have to treat them well.


    Sometimes I thought it was a magic trick but it definitely works.


    Time to time, I do wonder how my dad was able to get a wife beside his sincerity but it was probably due to him being naturally endowed.


    The only problem with his wife was that in the end, she was nothing more than trash that should never be a mother.


    I moved my right hand up and down along my penis but I was daydreaming because of the boring stimulation before me.


    It slowly became erect and caught the attention of Craig and the girl.


    The education of sex in this prefecture is lacking but I guess I should be thankful for that being one of the reasons why my business is quite popular.


    As the saying always went ''It''s not the size of the tool, it''s how you use the tool.''

 109 Ism Sorry, I Have an Appointmen

    From the way that Craig was able to easily get the services of that lady, it does show her principles and bottom line as well as her personality.


    I was far too familiar with that face.


    ''Wow, is that really a man''s pole''


    It was how I was able to know that the poorly learnt teenagers of this generation don''t even understand that it wasn''t about the size.


    This giant rod may seem appealing but what good is it compared to a lollipop if you can''t even use it.


    At least a lollipop would taste sweet but if you can''t even get off a dick then it''s useless.


    As long as the man can utilize whatever dick size they may have, and have the best technique in the world, then it was fine.


    These girls, tsk, tsk, too naive in my industry.


    My senior told me that one of the best customers she met was a 20 year old freshmen of a nearby university, who wanted to lose his virginity.


    He didn''t have the most amazing size or girth but after visiting a couple of times.


    She said, and I quote "One of the best times I have ever had."


    I''m not sure if one understands the aging process of a female asian as no one in the industry actually knows how long she has been working for.


    Asian girls'' aging is weird. 18 they look youthful and great, from 20 to 30 they still look fine and youthful.


    When they''re 40-50 they just look like a mature woman but as soon as they hit 60 or greater they suddenly become an old woman.


    There''s no inbetween!


    Then my senior would always smack me on the head as she always like to say "it''s rude to ask a woman''s age."


    Craig''s self esteem looked like it took a hit as he it seemed he suddenly came early.


    The girl didn''t even notice that the condom was probably getting destroyed and she might have been impregnated as she was too busy noticing me.


    If Craig did this all the time then this would probably be the moment where he would take the girl into the bathroom and play with her vagina to take out his cum to make sure she didn''t notice.


    It was approaching 4:00pm and I needed to go, good thing he didn''t ask me to cum as it would cost a lot more than $250 coming from a man.


    "Hey, don''t leave yet!"


    The girl grabbed my arm as I was trying to grab my clothing and pulled it towards her breast.


    I yanked my arm away as that was such a poor move in seduction techniques.


    "At least take my number"


    The girl suddenly wrote on a piece of paper that was on the table and gave me a phone number


    She winked and tried to look cute but it was forced and just looked cringy. Craig had already hooked onto her arm and brought her to the bathroom as she didn''t try to go against him and just went with the flow.


    My guess was that she was paid to pleasure him.


    The room was now empty, I was all alone and I could finally start dressing up appropriately.


    The formal wear I had was requested by my client and she had long given it to me from some time ago due to her special circumstances.


    This was a special service given to me which was why I was able to charge her at a slightly higher rate due to her job.


    She was surprisingly fine with the fees which made me have a favorable impression of her.


    With my earnest efforts for serving her, I was able to get a loyal customer on the occasion she wasn''t busy.


    The clothing she wanted me to wear was a full on suit, giving off a mature aura once I took off my glasses and smoothed up hair to a less messy design.


    It comprised of a blue tie, white undershirt, matching blue pants and lounge jacket.


    This sleek design was very difficult to keep clean but the money in trade was all worth it.


    I was only one step out the door, just ONE STEP and I already hear Craig behind me scream


    "WHO said you can leave!"


    The voice was originally loud but it slowly lowered when he probably remembered how he got shamed and that this was a public area.


    Imagine the neighbors starting to make complaints.


    "I''m sorry I have an appointment"


    I don''t have enough time to care about this trash as I have business to attend to.


    Hopefully he wasn''t able to get a good look at my face without glasses, but either way, who would care about the poor guy in the back of the class that never socializes.


    Slamming the door shut, this branch of love hotel has some surprisingly good sound proofing, since I couldn''t hear Craig anymore.


    I used the elevator to get down to the lobby as the receptionist gave a subtle wink even though I had already told him I wasn''t here for that type of business.


    In the lobby peacefully waiting with a laptop on the table was one of my loyal and adorable customers.


    Meet Fumiko


    She''s apparently a high ranking official within her company that slowly climbed to the top using her pure dedication and sheer domination for a higher pay job.


    At a past appointment, she mentioned she came from a humble background and with the rise of status, soon came the nagging of a mother and a father who complain she has yet to marry.


    ...I hope they don''t discover my existence.


    I only know that she does finance and business in the company but I have never heard her last name.


    Even if I did, it would damage the trust between my customer and would basically cost my reputation in the process.


    My curiosity should not be sated if it has such a heavy drawback.


    "Hello, Boss!"


    Except¡­ she has weird requests¡­.

 110 My Three Rules

    Short black hair, perfectly separated like a spider spun each piece individually; small black eyes that pierced the hearts of whoever looked into the depths of the void.


    Slim, frail fingers that delicately swept over the keyboard with tapping sounds reverberating; She was an overall black pearl that learnt how to tend to herself before others.


    An absolute beauty with no flaws whatsoever¡­


    Finance, she got that.


    Looks, she has that.


    Personality¡­. There are actually a lot of flaws.


    You would assume that a person who was able to climb their way up to a high status would have high social capabilities and unmatching diligence.


    That was probably true...


    I mean, that was my guess on how she was able to attain such a good job with many opportunities, so how does she end up like this.


    A lady who tends to be brutally honest and likes to take direct control over your life.


    She seems aloof, rude but maybe that''s a characteristic that made her my customer in the first place.


    Those things could be glossed aside but the very first time she hired me when I was 17 was quite dramatic.


    If I remember correctly it was.. "Put on this suit. Now, act as my secretary."


    This was the very first phrase she said to the me from a year ago.


    At the time, I had steeled myself to do anything for money even if it means pouring kilograms of salt all over my open wounds but this phrase essentially nullified my worries.


    Usually when she requested me at times when she was drunk, lonely or free, she would start splurging out all her difficulties and sadness.


    I was able to learn that she was in an unrequited love situation.


    Her mostly perfect qualities were given to the attention of one special fellow, her secretary but fate was unfortunately not kind to her as he was unexpectedly married.


    But I guess I would have to thank that secretary as he managed to give me a wonderful customer that I would cherish.


    Fumiko slammed her laptop shut before glaring and speaking in a cold tone"Good, you''re here. We''re going to the cafe."


    As expected, she hasn''t changed the aspect of being a lot friendlier, let alone throwing out short sentences and sounding kind.


    Aii~ at least she wasn''t as rude as other customers.


    Giving a caring and gentle smile to pull on her heart strings, I responded "Of course, Boss"


    There was not even a single blush located on her cheeks but at least there was visible sign of my charm having an effect when she started fidgeting a little.


    She placed her laptop into her purse but took out some cash: "Here''s the payment"


    I smiled with happiness: "Thank you, Boss"


    There were usually 3 main rules that my customers should follow if they desire to buy my services,


    Actually pay for the services.


    The number of times some of the foreign customers actually thought they could run away without paying for their bills.


    A simple method I liked to pull when I was a little younger would be to suddenly whip out my Student ID card as I slowly see their face become a lot more paler.


    They were usually in a place far from home and imagined the shame upon their families'' faces.


    Some would scoff in disgust and still walk away but I always threatened them with a fake phone call to the police.


    The age of consent in this country is pretty disgusting, 13, but many prefectures have changed it to seem a lot more modern and appeal to other countries'' citizens.


    In the end, they might get charged with a misdemeanor for taking part in indecent acts with a teenager as well as the charges from prostitution.


    It''s hilarious to slowly see their faces slowly become twisted and have difficulties taking out bank note by bank note onto my hand.


    When I first began doing this type of business, I had been taken advantage for such stupid and naive mistakes.


    Of course a lady won''t run away when she wakes up early and had TOTALLY FORGOTTEN to pay me.


    I was so unlucky for the first few nights but I was lucky to encounter a senior in the business who taught me that they should first pay upfront.


    That way, I will know they have enough money for my services and won''t run away with my pay.


    As her legendary quote still goes on "Fuck those (son of a) bitches¡­ after you get paid first."


    The second rule of mine was that they take a medical test


    It is of the utmost importance that I am able to confirm that I shouldn''t get an STD as that may cause problems to other customers and could even affect my business.


    However, even if one of my customer does have an STD, they shall not be excluded. They are still under my wing and are foremost my customers but they will just have certain ''plays'' not available to them.


    And finally, the third rule - Have fun!


    That''s the simplest rule.


    If you''re hiring me for no reason, then I might as well take my leave if you can''t even appreciate the services I offer.


    I''m not sure whether it''s a good or bad thing if someone breaks the third rule but at least it''s free money.


    "We''re going" A cold voice reached my ears and I was unexpectedly already at the cafe that Fumiko wanted to go to but my mind was blank for a moment.


    I was currently acting as her secretary which means one of my priorities would be to treat her with some respect.


    Opening the door for her first and then entering myself, the cafe had a modern design with brown linings on the wall with a concurrent white background.


    We both lined up but Fumiko was still silent with a sort of serious expectation when she glared at me.

 111 Her Stressful Pandemic

    I knew that she was expecting me to already know what to order, so I continued to play my role as a loyal secretary and asked the barista: "Can I have a medium cup of Latte and a small cup of Mocha please."


    "Yes Sir, that''ll be $5.50"


    Fumiko''s expectations were met as she smiled with joy but quickly concealed under her serious guise.


    This was the one of the easiest things I had to do which was to memorize any dislikes or specific likes all of my customers have and make sure I am able to put good use of that information.


    The barista was suddenly surprised when Fumiko whipped out her wallet to pay for the coffee but those secretive glances at me were always familiar.


    My role is only to serve my clients and customers but not necessarily pay for their needs.


    Whatever obligations they may feel or wherever they wish to be accompanied, they would be paying for such things but it was very uncommon and would only be done if they were rich.


    I don''t have a thin enough skin where I would blush at every little inconvenient thing otherwise I would be in poverty while my sister would have to join me but I neither have thick skin to be shameless.


    That''s why I ordered a small cup of coffee as I would rather have my client save money for my next visit instead of these small things.


    Just being truthful¡­ I would rather go to the local coffee shop near my house which roasts their own coffee beans, allowing them to sell for a very cheap price of $1.00. But it would be rude and out of my act if I were to say that.


    Fumiko was staring at her phone listlessly with a hollow glow that lacked any enthusiasm while I was waiting to grab the coffee.


    Once I placed her Latte in front of her, I made sure to carefully observe the amount of sugar she was going to take.


    One bag of sugar usually meant that she was in a good mood and would usually begin to act alike lot more energetic once she talks about her hobby.


    Unfortunately¡­ it was two bags of sugar.


    What this usually signalled was that she was lacking a lot of energy due to the stress that may have accumulated during work and meant that she was about to calm herself and go on a rant.


    However I do like listening to the perspective of another person, it just feels like you''re slowly getting closer to a person and understand yet accept them.


    But physical contact was the most direct way of getting a person''s acceptance


    Fumiko took a large sip after she had poured the sugar into the coffee and looked towards my direction with interest while a compelling sadness started to gleam from her eyes: "Hey can you listen for a moment¡­"


    Her stories always began like that whenever she was going to start a story about how difficult her workplace has become.


    Most of my clients love to tell their story which was mainly due to multiple reasons.


    Females tend to be creatures that were heavily emotional compared to males while there may of course be a few unique outliers that break that statement but that is a fairly generalized view of them.


    They usually desire to pour out their emotions like any other human beings when times get rough and hope that the person who''s listening is paying attention and able to sympathize or empathize with them.


    When married women become clients or customers this can be one of the reasons.


    The spark that started their whole relationship was suddenly missing because they couldn''t find the original reason for that spark or anymore fuel for that spark to continue.


    Although it is rude of me to speak of my customers like this¡­ rather than discussing this with a councillor or sitting down for a moment with your partner to talk about that loss, they instead visit people like me.


    I really can''t understand what goes through the minds of these people but I guess everyone''s got their own experiences and circumstance that I hope would never happen to me.


    Fumiko of course started to talk about her problems that varied from subject to subject: "I had to recently promote someone to a new manager. There were so many choices. It was so tough deciding the fresh blood that has been racking up achievements or maybe the elders who have completely been loyal to the company for years."


    "Who needs the money more? The one who just wants to work so that he can raise some money for his grandchild''s surgery or the freshman who has fell into a mountain of debt from the university system"


    "Sometimes those people drop their jobs for circumstances I never know. Was I the one who ruined them? Would I have to live with the fact that each decision I may make will cause the destruction and split of a family"


    ¡­


    "The workplace just seems like an all out war. Some avoid me because they''ll think I''ll frame them for problems or cause trouble for them while others keep getting close because they want to take advantage of me"


    "And then some of my seniors started to see my success as a nuisance, making my workload a lot more difficult but i''m at least thankful for your assistance, Secretary Kei"


    She was certainly stressed with her constant chattering but there''s nothing I would or rather could do.


    I''m just here to listen and help support her.


    But it seems she has begun having a change of heart as she would usually mess up my name with her original secretary but it seems she''s getting better at accepting me.


    My name is Arisu however giving that personal information to your clients is a no go which is why we come up with stage names, mine is Kei.

 112 To the Hotel We Go!

    It was supposed to be K as in the english letter but my first customer thought it was the name ''Kei'' which I guess was how I earned this name.


    I''m not the best at saying the most comforting words but I flashed a smile towards her and consoled her "At least you did the best you could do, and that''s what matters."


    These words sounded like something used on a middle school student who failed their exam but it worked very well against Fumiko.


    She smiled with a gleaming charm and a cheerful aura started to release from her. As expected, she looked much more prettier when she smiles.


    Her head was angled at a weird position, so I lent my shoulder for her to lean on as she grasped her arms around my arm.


    This left me in an awkward position as I used my other hand to start petting her head.


    It was quite a soft sensation and wasn''t glossy compared to my hair but the sweet, peaceful expression on Fumiko''s face was far too cute.


    A sense of pleasure welled up in my heart seeing my partner''s face with such a serene expression that slowly lulled her to sleep but it would be troublesome if she began sleeping now, considering we still have an hour and a half.


    I didn''t want to ruin such a peaceful moment but I knew that it would make her soon feel regret at the waste of time, therefore I asked: "Boss, do you want to get a massage?"


    She had a dazed expression probably to due to remembering the sensation from last time of my specialty but her eyes seemed blank.


    There was a little mess left by her as drool was collecting into a small drop by the side of her mouth.


    Taking the napkin from the cup where I received my coffee, I brushed her red lips gently and Fumiko accepted it quietly.


    A subtle nod showing her stance on my question as she picked herself up and began walking to the next hotel. Honestly, she''s wasting her Latte so I began chugging both cups of coffee since it would be a waste.


    It was a difficult thing not to place your morals, beliefs, principles or other standards that you hold onto other people as they may have been growing up in a different environment with different rules.


    Wasting things is generally something that should be taught but even as the person who provides them services, it''s wrong to force down your opinion on them unless they specifically request it.


    One thing I am able to appreciate about Fumiko his her liking towards many simplistic things in life, an example would be the very hotel we were going to.


    Compared to more modern designs of love hotels, the one she tended to pick was one with barely enough access to the variety of kink materials in this location.


    When I have customers bringing me to hotels with rooms that have so many lights that make no sense as well as wasting a lot of energy, I just can''t help but sigh at the future.


    The only plus thing about modern love hotels is the privacy they give but I sometimes wonder if that was one of the reasons why people in this country have difficulties in socializing.


    Fumiko was currently checking out a room from the hotel but it seemed that the major demographic of my customers were superstitious.


    They usually requested rooms they believed to be lucky if they were given the chance and I could barely hear Fumiko say: "Is room 113 available?"


    If I remembered correctly, that was the amount of days it took in order for her to get her very first promotion.


    It was quite a recognizable feat, but sometimes I worry if she''ll become like other customers and start believing in star signs, making my job a little bit more difficult.


    Just the thought of why she wouldn''t want my services being ''Today''s star sign said I would encounter misfortune¡­''


    Aiii~ business would be tough with that mentality.


    Lucky for her, the room was indeed available and Fumiko began smiling a lot more.


    Her serious demeanor was gone, the absence of emotion was missing and she just seemed like a normal youthful lady having the time of her life.


    We soon arrived to the room and there was another reason why Fumiko specifically enjoyed this hotel.


    They had a special table that was usually fold into a convenient size hidden within the closet, Fumiko commented that it was one of the softest materials she had ever laid her hands on.


    It was indeed soft from the material it was made off but this item had two holes.


    One was the feature that Fumiko used most commonly, the hole for the head, so that she could get the most relaxing massage while the other hole was approximately located beneath the waist for ''milking'' purposes.


    I really liked this hotel as it would offer materials and tools to satisfy the desires of any customers while giving out the compulsory stuff.


    This was the exact thing I was looking for.


    On the nightstand, next to the bed was around 4 condoms and a small packet containing lube which I quickly packed into my bag.


    Some of the funniest things I heard from other seniors and seen myself is that the hotels want to show that they have a ''competitive edge''.


    In the end, one may receive a small gift bag with a blindfold for sleeping and a love egg for the customer''s uses.


    After searching through the cupboards I was able to find one of Fumiko''s favorite oils.


    Vanilla Scent Oil!


    I''ve heard has been on a slight rise and it does feel good using something sort of expensive without having to pay for it since it comes with receiving the room.


    Fumiko seemed to have already set up the message table as it had a layer of bed sheet on top of it and already unfolded.


    I guess it''s show time.

 113 My Massage

    She had already taken off all her clothes when I was searching for the free stuff and even placed a towel on her back in a fully relaxed position.


    It was going to be quite difficult on my body if I still wore this stiff jacket which was why I soon threw it atop the nearby bed and began warming up the oil.


    A scent of Vanilla soon smothered the room but it was delicate and I could already see the way Fumiko was shaking from excitement despite rarely saying a word.


    Once I felt the oil was warmed up enough I started from the back.


    I gently rubbed the oil onto her skin using smooth yet long strokes, Fumiko seemed to be ticklish to this as there was a slight tremble from time to time and an imminent shudder: "Ahn¡­"


    Her voice had already escaped her mouth but this showed she was abnormally stressed compared to the last time she received a massage.


    The oil had already covered all that was necessary and I began using my hands like a spider that would creep onto her spine and pull up the tense muscles to slowly relax.


    One massage technique she specifically requested was one where I would press my thumbs between the lower spine and buttock and I could hear another moan: "Ahhhn¡­"


    It seems that may have been one of her favorites, I should keep that in mind the next time she requests for me.


    But the one thing I noticed was that her deltoid was a lot more stiffer than I remembered and I made sure to use a lot of force to slowly loosen the tensed up muscles.


    Her back wasn''t too bad but her neck was incredibly stiff. The best I could do was gently rub the neck and loosen up the shoulders but that was it.


    She had legs that seemed to be in quite a fine shape as there were no blemishes and were delicate.


    No tense muscles were located but the thighs were the part where she was the most ticklish.


    I paid extra details to them and used my fingers to stoke them in short actions with a soft sensation to make her yearn for something more.


    As expected, there was another moan: "Ahhh...ahnn"


    There was a slight build up when I used a very weak force but once I used a lot more strength with my fingers did she start to loosen up.


    I could faintly hear the long panting from Fumiko which showed that the massage was a lot more effective than last time.


    Even as her temporary partner, I still do have concerns over the welfare of my customers.


    When I moved onto her arms, they were quite stiff but the most worrying thing were her fingers as it seemed there was a lot of stress forced onto these delicate muscles, I spoke: "Try avoiding working long hours on the laptop."


    It was just a comment out of concern for her and whether or not she took it serious or not, she responded: "...Un"


    I guess that was supposed to be an answer?


    My job was already finished with most of the body parts and now the last part to do is: "Can you turnover?"


    Fumiko wordlessly lifted herself up and flipped around but I made sure that she would have the utmost relaxed time by placing a pillow under her head to relax on.


    The towel was already thrown onto the floor a long time ago but Fumiko wouldn''t get a cold due to the AC making the room having a consistently warm temperature.


    I applied a little more oil to make sure I would finish this last round and placed the oil back into the cupboard.


    Her bosom was out in the open and were of average size that was neither too large or nonexistent but what I was more worried about instead of being aroused by her naked state was her torso.


    It was abnormally skinny to the point where the ribs were showing and seemed like a single touch would completely fracture those bones while the waist was unusually skinny.


    She was obviously not eating well or possibly not eating at all.


    I thought I told her to eat a lot more but it seems she didn''t take that advice to heart which caused me to repeat it once more "Boss, you should really start eating."


    Fumiko had a light blush on her face probably from all the pent up excitement and released stress but she turned her head away so I couldn''t see her face as she rebutted "...Call me Fumiko."


    There was a hint of rebellion in her response, meaning she still won''t follow my advice, I hate using cheesy and forceful coaxing but her health might be at risk.


    It was something like a moral obligation I expected from myselfas I complied with her request while kissing her on the cheeks "Fumiko, please take care of yourself much better"


    Her blush was much redder than I thought and I felt that I shouldn''t spend too much time on massaging as it was soon going to reach the 20 minute mark.


    To finish the job much quicker, I delicately tickled her sides before playing with the two small cherries at the top of her breasts.


    Swirling them around with my fingers, I could hear Fumiko''s feint voice "mmmh, oh, oh, ahhh!"


    I think she may have reached climax when I started to play with the sensitive side of her breast that was just above the rib cage.


    My senior told me that was a nice place to play with for nearly all customers.


    Fumiko seemed out of breath as she was breathing harder which meant the time for massaging was up and I needed to prepare for the next act by telling her "I''ll be getting the ''equipment'', you can take a nap if you want"


    I departed to get the items and used the nearby T.V to search for a few things.

 114 Light Play

    At the end of the day, the places my senior told me to work at paid off for privately working by myself.


    I used to work at an all males Soapland. To put it in kind words¡­ it was one hell of a slippery mess.


    There was no significant friction when you would actually do the deed making penetration extremely difficult and to make matters worse, the soap/oil would make it difficult to use your mouth for pleasuring.


    The taste of soap was¡­. not a delicacy.


    That was probably the first time in my life where I could say it felt like my mouth was being violated by flavors I didn''t even know exist.


    But it was an unfortunately short experience for the young worker I was back then as it had immediately shut down in approximately 2 months after I joined. I heard it was because they found out we had a really young minor there.


    As far as how low that person''s age was, I was told it was even younger than me but I was thankful that I wasn''t the person to get arrested at the very least.


    Sometimes I do question about the state of this country.


    They allows loopholes in their gambling and prostitution laws that people like me can get away with making money from this.


    Even though I say that, it would mean i''m a hypocrite and I should actually be thankful that there exists an occupation where my family wouldn''t be thrown into poverty.


    I was tempted to think of darker thoughts but I shouldn''t make my customer wait too long as I finally found her favorite item.


    Pressing a few buttons here and there, I was able to order the ''equipment'' which to me was quite controversial when I was a lot younger due to some messy memories that leave a bad taste in my mouth.


    With the help of my clients and the fact that I never have to meet that demon again, I was able to start getting used to some of the weird requests given to me.


    Fumiko was a person that originally liked to dominate people.


    It was quite a depressing time when I had to force myself to get tied to the bed stand and be at risk of being vulnerable but I don''t know when it started because Fumiko soon started to switch it up.


    Originally, it was because she kept on ordering that I was to be tied and seem weak so that she could dominate me while being in the cowgirl position.


    She would ride on me and attempt to make me edge but it was inevitable that she would get bored of doing that same play and same position for more than 20 times.


    I was never able to express the feelings I felt, so I fooled her into trying the act just once.


    JUST ONCE, and now it just seems like a compulsory ritual because of how addicted she has become to it.


    It actually wasn''t a serious kink compared to what my senior had encountered because I had just grabbed some rope from the encounter and a whip.


    Fumiko would later be charged for borrowing this object but she already knew that if she was doing this for the nth time.


    Although it was called a whip, it was more of a horsetail whisk with an intimidating black color scheme and black strands that would replace the image of a horsetail.


    Compared to actual whips that could create tiny sonic booms, this little guy was much more kinder in the way it could lightly flog someone.


    Surprisingly, I had to learn the hard way on how much control it needed when using something like this where you could probably harm a person with bruises or even fractured bones.


    ...My senior could''ve been a lot gentler¡­


    I had to pay extra care to Fumiko who seemed fragile as glass and make sure not to harm her too badly.


    The stuff I received was inside a brown bag due to privacy that the hotel likes to employ which is very common especially with one of the shops working with me.


    It does get quite embarrassing when someone sees a random person holding some very kinky stuff.


    I walked into the room, and it seems Fumiko had already prepared herself for the ride of pleasure that was about to begin as she started a bath up, and tidied up the mess we had created with the massage table.


    Everything was organized clearly and there was the very soft sound of water dripping from the distance.


    Might as well join in on the fun, throwing the brown bag filled with the kinky stuff and my clothes to the side as well, I ran into the bathroom.


    Fumiko was already relaxing with the bathtub when I had just turned up and it seemed she had already cleaned up the oil I had smothered all over her body.


    A strange thing I noticed in our country was the culture of bathing.


    You would first take a shower to cleanse yourself and then take a bath just for relaxation. I would never do that at home because the water company would be chasing me for a lot more money.


    The luxury to do something like that¡­. was something I could not do yet.


    Ahh~ I think i''m being too serious, probably from Fumiko''s experience, and to get rid of that depressing idea, I took a quick shower and hopped into the bath with her since we don''t have to pay for the water fee.


    The bathtub was barely big enough for the two of us because it would force the two partners to get into a position like this one for intimacy.


    There wasn''t enough space for me to be on the opposite side which was why I asked Fumiko to move forward so that she could sit on my lap.


    I grabbed her head backward so that she could lean onto my chest while I placed my chin to rest on her head.

 115 Embarrassing Fun

    Man, this is how you should relax and enjoy life.


    I suddenly felt a shock to my ''Little Kei'' as it was grabbed without my attention and stimulated to grow to a much older ''Little Kei''


    Fumiko was beginning to get a little touchy after the massage which reflected the reason for getting me aroused while I responded with my own attack by kneading her breasts softly.


    It was a very weak stimulation but it was actually a build up for when I suddenly massaged her pink pearl atop her vast garden.


    Lightly rolling it around my fingertips Fumiko lightly moaned in pleasure.


    Seeing that we were both ready to give it a go and start preparing things I whispered with a seductive tone into her ear: "Are you feeling horny?"


    Red exploded on Fumiko''s cheeks as she brought her head down and lightly nodded while muttering: "Un..."


    I lightly pecked her on the lips for the road of enjoyment we were soon heading to.


    Coaxing, saying sweet words, massaging, those were the least of my worries because when it came to sex, the difficulty suddenly rises at an exponential level.


    ¡­


    Fumiko really seemed like a weak girl with a lot of vulnerabilities once you took off her guise of seriousness, a professional suit and saw the delicate structure of her body, especially since her body was now fully exposed.


    You could tell that she was serious because she made sure that I didn''t place a pillow beneath her knees meaning by the end of this, her legs are going to hurt like a bitch.


    Her hands were currently restrained by the rope I had brought from the receptionist and were raised high into the air due to the built up hook that I threaded the rope through.


    Kneeling on the cold wooden floor and arms in the air without resistance, she looked like a prey who took the bait.


    I used my erection to slap on her bright red cheeks filled with shame and pressed it gently onto her red lips however I took it away before she could do anything.


    My hands began caressing her pink folds, faster and faster until I was able to hear the moan filled with pleasure about to erupt from Fumiko''s mouth did I suddenly stop.


    "W-wait, why''d you stop."


    There was no answer to sate her crazed desire, leaving me to smile a scheming grin before continuing to humiliate her even further.


    Taking a quick sniff of her armpits that were fully exposed, I made sure to deepen her shame by commenting "Oh my, don''t you smell."


    Although we had already taken a bath, Fumiko blushed furiously and shook the rope with futile strength before muttering: "No¡­ they don''t..."


    Her desires were at max and it seemed her lust was starting to get to her as she tried to masturbate using the wooden floor but I quickly grabbed her waist to stop her.


    "You, shouldn''t be doing that. I think you know what this means."


    Fumiko quivered at the words gently whispered into her ears and struggled much more but I brought my pillar in front of her before suddenly shoving it down her throat.


    The tiny mouth was barely able to fit in my pulsating member that could barely take the wait anymore and was welcomed by a warm wetness of saliva.


    It was barely enough to pleasure the whole rod but I grabbed onto her head before thrusting forward to try and reach as far as possible into her throat.


    Violating her tongue that was trying to get in the way, tears began to well up and a gagging noise soon escaped her mouth.


    Thrusting back and forth like a piston, I continued to cover her mouth with my cock while using a line to set the scene: "This is what happens¡­ when you try to get off on your own"


    I felt numbness take over all of my emotions as only the fervent rush to defile her mouth began to set in my mind and motivated me to continue thrusting.


    Fumiko was started to feel it as well, the pain had already long dissipated when she started to get better at taking Kei''s membrane, and became spellbound to the magic of the slobbering sound of drool, and the wet slapping.


    We soon became like wild animals, taken over by our instincts which contributed to the satisfaction we''ll feel.


    Both of our minds soon came blank with emptiness as we soon came to the conclusion that we were reaching our limits.


    "Open your mouth!"


    I began to use my right hand to finish off the job and sprayed my semen all over Fumiko''s face.


    It was a delicate canvas that became much prettier when I added my white paint to the picture.


    My legs felt numb, but looking over at Fumiko, we were both exhausted over the first act as we were both panting and felt a jolt of excitement.


    Her hair was in a state of disaster with some strands stuck in the air while others were overlapping and intertwined with each other in a messy disorder and drool dripping down her body.


    Fumiko grabbed some tissues I had handed to her to clean up the wet mess across her body and face but I never noticed that there was a slight stain on the wooden floor.


    I''m surprised myself how I was able to pull off such shameless words and actions.


    I just never want to remind myself of actually doing that to another person, why''s it so embarrassing?


    There was a slight temptation to dig a hole and hide in it but Fumiko still looked like she was yearning more.


    Her mouth was wide open but still seemed sore from what I had just done to her while her eyes were in a daze to reminiscing my act "I, I... hwant it¡­"


    This - I can only hope no other customer will ask me to act out embarrassing scene anymore otherwise my reputation will go awry.


    Hopping onto bed, I soon joined her.

 116 Fumikos Lovemaking

    She collapsed her body onto the bed, open to my ravaging acts that would soon begin with her body not putting up any defense or resistance. I began ruffling up her breasts by kneading but despite her embarrassment, Fumiko didn''t resist due to the ticklish sensation of her bottom lips.


    Her hands masked any expression on her face and to tease her, I licked her neck to please her before poking her thighs with my stick.


    Fumiko slightly tilted her head that I treated as a nod and immediately inserted my rod into her.


    It seemed that she was satisfied by my services as her insides fully accepted the whole of my pillar while welcoming it with wet lubricants. The delicate feeling completely devoured my dick with a soft yet warm sensation.


    To make moving much easier, I grabbed her legs up and started to thrust once more but paused to hear her pleading.


    I could hear Fumiko gasping for more after having a small taste: "H-hurry up and put it in me faster"


    Acting as an incentive, I shoved my cock as deep as I could to hear her moaning in pleasure by satisfying the aching folds that yearned for something to fulfill their desires.


    I sped up once feeling the mood, pistoning my quivering cock into her that was becoming numb on the bliss it was receiving and continued to milk her vast valley for what it was worth.


    Fumiko suddenly grabbed onto my neck and began crying "More...faster"


    It seemed she was on the brink of climaxing, I was able to soon join her by intensifying my speed to the point where we both screamed in delight as I filled her up with my sperm all the way to the very depths, filling her womb with white liquid.


    We both breathed heavily and I refused to move my dick out of her as I hugged her and Fumiko was able to feel the liquid slowly escaping.


    Her tight hole was blocked but it was futile to attempt stoppingany leakage.


    Tonight was damn tiring now experiencing it once more and it seemed like Fumiko had already fallen into dreamland while in my arms.


    I would just love to continue being with her and suddenly fall asleep to then return to school but I just have too many responsibilities.


    It was a good time with her but it seems time was up as it was already 6:00pm. There was still time which was why I used 10 minutes to make sure Fumiko was still enjoying her time by patting her head.


    She had a smile of an angel but the smell soon defiled that idea, sweat and semen was all over the bed which would be left to the staff to clean this up.


    Such pleasure was too addicting but it will eventually give me a headache when I have to go to my next job¡­.


    *sigh* I just want to enjoy such a simplistic life when I look at Fumiko''s face but there were still things I need to do.


    My time was already up with her and I quickly cleaned myself up with another bath.


    I didn''t reek too badly which was why I didn''t use the soap, especially since it wouldn''t be useful for my next job.


    If I kept the smell, it may be alluring to some customers.


    In the act of sex, you''ll be able to see a new perspective of a person, whether it''s fake or real, it is still a part of that person.


    Fumiko had ordered an overnight stay, so I had nothing to worry about and silently left the building without causing a fuss.


    Most of the time, Fumiko would be stuck at work for long hours over stressful situations which was why she was able to rise to the top.


    Pure dedication and hard work accumulated her to that state but it came at the cost of harming her health and mind.


    She would usually be busy because of that work meaning it was very unlikely she would be able to contact me for my services anytime soon.


    This usually meant that if I knew another client had a lot of free time compared to Fumiko, I would first serve Fumiko and then the other customer because of the clash of free time.


    I made sure to send a text to my little sister that I was fine and that she didn''t need to call the police but as expected, she didn''t reply.


    We both made the decision to save credit if necessary as the price for sending text messages has now turned into 10 cents which used to be 7 cents.


    It''s all about saving the little money.


    If we were in any trouble, we would usually send a phone call which was much faster than sending a text.


    Exiting the hotel, bright neon lights could be seen in the distance, lighting up the night sky and erasing the stars'' sight but this was the place I was soon heading to.


    I spent too much time with Fumiko which made me a little late.


    ...No dinner for me¡­


    Man, I just want to burst into tears but I guess I''m going to have to pray that I can eat dinner at the end of my shift which was at¡­ 12:00am.


    Faaaaa- my stamina is going to be the death of me.


    The distance between here to the bright place was within walking distance of less than 10 minutes which meant I should soon be able to get there.


    I wouldn''t exactly call this place the greatest of all time despite having great facilities and picking out great hosts like me.


    Those were the highest points it had and even my senior respected this place fro the way that it treated the people


    My only problem with it is just a tiny problem.


    Whatever executive thought of this place must''ve been a genius because...


    WHO THE FUCK CALLS A BROTHEL - "LOVELY MEN"

 117 Night Job

    I''m not sure whether to cry or laugh but I can just imagine the heated discussion that must have happened at the head organization that owned this building


    "No, I think Sweet Males is a far better name"


    "Excuse me, this design should obviously be called Heartfelt Flavors"


    "Guys, I have the greatest name ever"


    This is the place I was working at¡­.


    But it was a good thing that most of the jobs for us would be reduced such as advertising, calculating finance, etc.


    All we would have to do was just do as demanded on a catalogue that explained what the customer ordered.


    I tried having a look at the price and -THAT IS TOO EXPENSIVE.


    Just spending time with us is already at the price of $150+ and then you would have to include the funds of any special requests as well as the price of actually using our penis.


    There was a cheaper option where the men would be able to save energy for richer customers by using strap on dildos to pleasure customers or the masturbation option where we help or watch them masturbate.


    This seems like an outright scam but we surprisingly had a lot of customers due to the skills the advertising department had.


    I soon entered the building and bought a few drinks from vending machines to the bodyguards that we were at the front of the hotel: "Thanks for the hard work."


    "Kei, you''re here already? Oh, thanks for the drinks."


    I''ve heard of some customers that were absolute muscle maniacs that would love these guys.


    That was why the company decided to put their security to good use by also allowing them to take part in the business as prostitutes.


    Pretty smart idea I would have to say because as long as they have two capable people who were able to keep check and call for the others then it should be fine.


    It was a good idea to keep a good relationship as in this business, any of us could suddenly drop dead if there were dangerous customers.


    "Damn, you already dyed your hair!"


    "Hehe, I''ve heard that it''s a trend in some foreign countries. Might as well join the bandwagon"


    Those two were seniors of this company that had been working for a considerably long time now.


    There were many legends surrounding them but the most amazing prominent one stated that in a single day containing 24 hours, the two of them managed to commit to over 30 girls in whatever they desired.


    We could just say they got lucky but the mental stability to play with over 30 hearts was definitely painful in the long run.


    Indeed, one of the boy''s hair was now in a shiny white color that seemed flamboyant but it was a spectacle quite unusual in this conservative country.


    The usual hair colors you would probably see are: black, brown, grey and a very small chance of blonde.


    Foreigners or those with half blood would mostly have blonde hair or those that wanted to be ''rebellious''


    I soon heard a voice that interrupted my thoughts "Oh? Kei, how''s the sales been doing to you? Are you also going to dye your hair?"


    It was surprising that they would suddenly ask me about that but I replied nonchalantly "The pays alright. I don''t think I could dye my hair even if I wanted to."


    They didn''t question me even further as they knew in this trade, it was dangerous to search too deep into an answer that wasn''t necessary.


    My answer was very vague, especially the part about dyeing my hair.


    In high school, I might be suspended or expelled because it didn''t ''conform'' to what the smart diligent students'' look should be like.


    This conservative view of everything was very dangerous if they kept on attaching such old views to new modern ideas.


    But I would be graduating soon, so I don''t need to care too much about this.


    Plus, the money to get my hair dyed or any extra fees would probably be too troublesome and could be a burden for some of my customers.


    *Sigh*, my shift was about to begin a whole 5 hours of work was going to kill me.


    This place would probably shut down at 12:00am because of the laws stated by the police that could cause this place to get ruined.


    ¡­.


    I had a total of 3 customers that had a blast when I was ordered.


    Hunger and exhaustion took over my body and my mind was already beginning to feel the tough effects it had.


    One was nothing too special as she was just a pervert who wanted a male companion to watch her masturbate and use a dildo to toy with her without actually having sexual intercourse.


    The other just wanted to have really rough sex in order to forget whatever problems she had in her ordinary life.


    But the last one¡­


    She was one of the weirdest customers I met since she reminded me of another loyal customer.


    There was a specific order to wear on skimpy clothing that looked like plants but were actually green silk used.


    I was supposed to act out a ''fantasy'' of hers and act as an aggressive elf who found an intruder who had to roughen up this invader before eventually taking her as a broken human who would suddenly stay with him.


    My¡­ pride¡­ was thrown out the window.


    What type of things goes on in that girl''s mind? WHY?


    I swear it''s like every embarrassing memory you''ll remember during the night that will make sure you can''t sleep peacefully.


    It was unfortunate that none of them seemed interested in becoming permanent customers of mine as they liked the idea of experiencing everyone in the brothel until they find ''the perfect one''.


    My shift was finally over but it was 12:00am and I can''t take another moment of not having anything to eat.

 118 Payday

    The geographic location I was in, surprisingly one of the best within the country since fast food was a competition amongst the restaurants while food could be sold at cheaper prices because of nearby farms.


    Cheap and healthy food were pretty easy to find but to find one with some fast services took a good eye to find.


    In the end, I settled for a nearby vietnamese restaurant and ordered some rice with pickled vegetables and a porkchop.


    They served some really good chilli sauce but the only problem I had with this food district was the lack of diversity.


    I still remember how annoying some of the patriotism that was done in elementary schools, the scars of war still runs deep.


    Finding anything remotely chinese in this area was very unlikely which was quite a shame but there were many allegations thrown due to grudges.


    There were times when ramen was said to originate from china which now makes its origin a mystery as anyone could just point at the truth and say it''s a lie.


    Our country at the time did a lot of messed up things and in the end, there was a shift of opinions between two countries.


    I wouldn''t be surprised that if there wasn''t a third party to intervene at the time, another war would have happened.


    Maybe if senior taught me about history would I have not suffered my second job in the first place.


    ¡­


    I had no reason to stay any longer in this place but it was already late into the night meaning I should already return home.


    Tonights profit were pretty good with the money added from Craig who threw around money like it was nothing.


    Sounds like a great life~.


    $250+ $263 = $513


    That''s already good enough for tonight but then I had to add the profits from the brothel.


    They usually take a cut of around 40% due to taking most of the jobs but because I had around 3 customers with one that seemed especially rich, I estimate I had¡­.


    Roughly $1,000~ was made in a day.


    It''s surprisingly impressive that I made that much in a day but it won''t always be as consistent as that.


    If I was very unlucky and only managed to get 1 customer, my pay for the day might be as low as $100.


    Although those are impressive numbers at my age, it meant nothing.


    I would have to use this money to pay off the water, electricity, rent, food, tuition and then I would have to save up a large amount if I wanted my little sister to go into a good university.


    It was impossible to be like a super human and just do this everyday as it would cause a number of unhealthy thoughts, especially one that''s only 18 years old.


    My body figure might face some difficulties containing its shape if I don''t keep watch of it regularly.


    Just the thought of paying back the money I owe my uncle was annoying but what can you do in life?


    I was quite lucky with the encounter of Craig but it seems very unlikely that he would invite me again.


    Sighing a sad breath, it would mean saying goodbye to the newfound friendship he had just made.


    Oh?


    I had just arrived to the front door of my apartment and when I entered there was surprisingly a bright sight left.


    Did she forget to turn off the lights?


    That question wandered around my mind and only when I entered the living room was that actually answered "Oi, shouldn''t you be in bed now."


    I lightly smacked my little sister on the head with my bag but it seems I''ve started to become a lot more predictable as she was able to catch it.


    As a retort, she responded "Either way, you''re cooking would wake me up."


    Was it?


    There was a slight doubt in my mind since I usually tried to use less flashy cooking techniques that wouldn''t create a ruckus but it seems that it wasn''t enough causing me to blush out of embarrassment.


    She was able to start going to school and not causing trouble, so I had no problems if she just liked to stay late but I left a comment for her "Don''t sleep in class"


    I think she was probably annoyed since she suddenly growled at me like some sort of cat before slamming the door to her room.


    Was she on - was it that time of the week?


    Maybe it was her rebellious phase that everyone goes through but I thought she had already been through that¡­


    Whatever, there was no point in thinking of something that you can''t solve.


    My mind began to wonder what I should cook but I planned to cook some stirred fried rice that dad used to cook but I was never able to capture the exact taste.


    For tomorrow''s dinner¡­ I might cook some lettuce with carrots and add some sweet soy sauce chicken.


    I paid extra attention to not making any loud noises but i''m absolutely sure I wasn''t.


    Placing the food into containers and making sure it cooled down, they were then placed into the fridge for consumption of tomorrow.


    Aiii~ already 1:00am, I might as well say good morning instead of goodnight to myself.


    Exhausted by the repetitive acts of today, I was able to fall asleep without too much trouble but awoke to another boring day.


    I was able to get some good sleep but the school classes didn''t seem like they were lecturing anything too important which caused me to sleep through most of the classes.


    The ogre faced bullies didn''t seem interested and Craig was nowhere to be seen.


    School seemed quite boring but as long as you did alright in the tests then you were fine.


    My lunch tasted pretty good after heating up but nothing happened in school


    Now, what to do after school?

 119 Closed Down

    Sculpting your body to a certain size with the perfect ratio of muscles to fat was extremely important to appeal to the wide range of tastes that my customers have when they buy my services.


    It was important that it was consistent and would still have the ability to make them ask for more.


    One reason why I''m failing school is obviously due to my dedicated research to techniques that will make a woman feel their in cloud nine or special exercises to help with a teenager''s body.


    ...Definitely not because i''m sleeping in class...


    When I had a pillar to lean on without a worry, two years ago, I surprisingly had a lot of free time in middle school.


    I was able to learn a few exercise regimens from the basketball team and used to play a lot but it was too troublesome now.


    A good way to describe it was that it was more of a sport to pass time instead of something I enjoyed.


    Our group was not allowed to used any weights in the fear that it would harm the young bodies of a growing body which meant it was under a controlled and restricted exercise.


    That''s why the only way I knew how to steadily train this body to some sort of perfect was through sets and reps of running, push ups, squats, etc.


    Those were the exercises I excelled at while the rest with the actual requirement of equipment seemed odd to me.


    I had spent my time from 3:00pm to 6:00pm training.


    The remaining 30 minutes I could use before going to my night job which I decided to use for eating an early dinner which was why I reheated the food that I had cooked in the early morning.


    I placed the two plates with delicious food onto the dinner table but my little sister suddenly took one of the plates to her room "I''m busy"


    That was probably her excuse but it doesn''t seem like school was actually that difficulty, maybe it was just a specialized academic school thing.


    Hmm, now that I think about it, how long has it been since I actually sat down to eat with her?


    From all the jobs I have taken¡­ this was probably the first in maybe around 2 years but she started to avoid me for a while.


    ...She didn''t find out about my jobs, right? I might want to ask her later


    I''ve read those parent blogs that say that kids and teenagers will start to pick up features that their trusted people have.


    Just the thought of my sister acting as my senior¡­ is a frightening future.


    Aiii~ eating alone is so boring, where''s the chatter and communication.


    Although, this does remind me the time when I told my dad I was bullied, the words he told me on how to resolve bullying¡­ I hope it''s not illegal.


    "Now listen son, give''em a good old 1, 2 and you''ll never hear from them again"


    I question whether he would''ve been arrested before dying but who knows?


    Man~ he left a lot of trouble with his goddamn genes.


    With his good looks in his youth, of all the people girls he had to pick, he chose one with a horrible personality that didn''t seem loyal and then there were even consequences for the children.


    Who knew that having the blood with two opposing countries would be bad.


    Either way you put it, your fucked.


    It starts all the way from some Shu Rou, Xu Rou, Zhu Rou or some random guy that brought a lot of girls and formed a country.


    He was basically some Joe Shmoe who started the country as far the legends go¡­ or maybe it was a myth, I wasn''t paying attention in class.


    On one hand, if I say that legend was false, I would seem like some sort of patriotic fool who believes my country is special.


    If I believed on the opposite then the other half of my blood will basically say ''I''m into propaganda and believe in this and that.''


    The only good thing about my blood heritage is that some of the foreign ladies would like to have a taste of a mix but others might turn away my services in disgust.


    My senior should''ve told me that just this small problem from some idiotic history would cause so many difficulties for my second job.


    Maybe if my dad picked a better woman, would he be alive?


    Aiii~ this isn''t a good mood for connecting and talking to customers, I better start going before it''s too late and I need to hire a taxi.


    And if I have the time, I really should sit down and start talking with my sister.


    ¡­.


    You know, thinking back, those thoughts seemed pretty wholesome and great.


    So WHY IS LOVELY MEN CLOSED!?!?


    Let''s think carefully Arisu, think carefully. You returned home by 12:00 and nothing bad happened to you on the way but the bodyguards still seemed active.


    Was there any fire?


    Shouldn''t be, the buildings intact and only has a small sign with some of the architecture being removed.


    Did someone take illegal drugs?


    Absolutely not, it was definitely a policy that the workers here would never fall for such a trashy scheme and the bodyguards would make sure to check that.


    Did someone die?


    That¡­ no way, right?


    *sigh*, today''s apparently not my luckiest even though I hit the jackpot yesterday.


    The one person I can trust and who roams around this industry as one of the finest who would receive first hand news, my senior.


    I really didn''t want to make this phone call but¡­


    *Ding**Ding**Ding*


    *Please leave a message-*


    Faaaaa - my day really isn''t a lucky one.


    She was probably receiving a customer at this point and I''m currently at her mercy, in the hopes that she''ll notice my message and actually respond.


    Just imagining that room again¡­ please tell me she cleaned it for once.

 120 Research

    What the fuck is this.


    I''ve already been waiting for half an hour yet senior''s still going at it with another person.


    I was kind of staring at my phone, specifically a text wall and there was no response.


    Nothing''s going to be solved if I just sit outside of a closed building doing nothing which was why I tried looking for a nearby cafe with free wifi.


    That way, I could browse the internet while waiting as I had no idea what my senior was doing for money.


    It honestly wouldn''t be a surprise if she was paired up with 200 men and told to deal with them within 24 hours but that was only likely from certain studios.


    She once recommended me a studio that made a lot of adult movies but as soon as I started working for them I learned the truth.


    Normally, when there was an object in high demand where the stock is not able to meet those standards, the rarity or price of that object would of course increase.


    Men in the porn industry was apparently in low demand compared to females in the industry.


    That was kind of expected when you start seeing some weird people approach young pretty girls and asking "Hello, would you like to join our modelling company ____"


    They would first interest you with a modelling job before start making drastic demands that could eventually lead to showing nudity.


    Some were able to reject those advances but I''ve heard that some were forced into it due to blackmail.


    ¡­.This industry seems a lot darker than I thought.


    Whether or not this is a good thing, this country is extremely conservative and has a lowkey reputation for being traditional and sometimes suppressing the freedom of the youth.


    That acts as a double edged blade as some will of course act conservatively and will be wary to such sketchy advances but then there are others who want to act opposite of the usual virtuous standards.


    Wait¡­ my little sister''s in a rebellious period¡­.


    ...I might want to have a talk with her.


    My thoughts were soon interrupted by a question: "Hello sir! What would you like to order?"


    The waitress was a lot more enthusiastic than I would usually think of them and there was a slight blush on her cheeks.


    She was fidgeting with the paper in her hand due to shyness which made me finally realize that I had dressed up for the brothel.


    My glasses were left at home and my hair was smoothened out to showcase my face.


    I wasn''t expected that I would be asked for what to order so soon, looking through the pamphlet without actually lookingand guessed "I''ll have a number 8"


    There was a slight pause when she was about to write on her notepad "Ummm, sorry sir, there''s no number 8"


    FUCK, I thought it would always work.


    My attempt in getting some random thing from this cafe failed which made me read the pamphlet properly "Can I have a plain herbal tea?"


    The waitress quickly wrote the order but chuckled at my previously attempt that probably made me blush red.


    I didn''t want to linger on that thought too long but was consoled that I managed to buy one of the cheapest objects on the menu.


    It was unexpected to have so much time yet do nothing which was why I started browsing the web.


    After the experience with Craig, I have found a new interest that some of my customers may discover to like.


    I believe the term used in which some random guy takes a girl who is committed to a relationship which may range from marriage to friendship is called - Netorare or in short, NTR.


    The embarrassment was too much to handle and I first received my cup of tea before even trying to search up NTR porn.


    It was a dumb idea to watch porn in public, especially since I don''t have headphones.


    This meant I would have to use books instead.


    The overall results were¡­ interesting.


    My one question for the authors who created this was, does this actually happen in real life?


    If I placed myself into the shoes of those that got cucked, I would have a far different reaction to what is written.


    Why does the main character just watch his girl have sex in front of him while crying?


    Wouldn''t your first thought be rage instead of getting horny?


    Then the girls in the book¡­ they sometimes make me lose all 3 of my brain cells.


    They are somehow able to talk mid sentence and don''t even seem to put up much of a fight.


    My senior would''ve done a better job than that because I remember the time when she told me how she first entered the story.


    It was quite empathetic and similar to mine but she did the most fearsome thing she could do.


    She bite on a man''s meat which caused severe trauma.


    He was ultimately arrested and also disabled.


    This brings me to another book that makes no sense.


    I don''t think octopi are exactly the cutest of animals that would make them be added to these 18+ books but what do they get out of it?


    The girls they are ''treating'' seem to be having the time of their life while they are just deapan and emotionless.


    I, I¡­ don''t understand customers anymore.


    These heavy tastes¡­ don''t make any sense.


    A thing I notice is that of all people to steal the girl, why is it some weird guy who looks unfit and slobby?


    Is this how people identify themselves in books?


    I mean, that might not be off.


    That scummy director for that studio told me that porn is essentially the visualization that people get off of but more likely the assimilation by identifying themselves and imagining they are actually in the AV.


    Such heavy tastes will probably have to be explained by senior if I really need it but why is there a girl heading in my direction?

 121 Easy Excuses

    This got me thinking, BDSM is also pretty weird¡­ anything my customers request that is a little ''extra'' is weird.


    If you phrased it very simply it would be ''I like inflicting pain'', ''I like pain'',


    The complicated things I don''t think i''ll be able to answer will definitely have to be done by senior.


    It seems my thoughts about this topic would have to abruptly stop as some random suddenly ran to my table and slammed some paper down before eventually running away.


    I, I¡­. what happened?


    This was probably for the best, if she stayed any longer then she may have noticed some pornographic content on my phone.


    It would be too embarrassing.


    I picked up the paper and it had a string of numbers which I assumed was her phone number.


    Did people think I actually sold my body for free?


    Whether she was pretty or not, it takes a lot of effort and strain to actually have sex frequently.


    I thought that I was lucky with this just being a one off deal but it seemed to have created a chain reaction, many people began approaching me.


    It was rude to litter but there wasn''t any recycling bins inside this restaurant to throw these away which made me temporarily pocket them.


    The next person who gave me paper wouldn''t know that I now had a tens of these papers, making the situation much worse.


    One voice told me to be kind which was why I grasped the hand of the lady who placed her letter on my table and kissed it: "I''ll call you"


    That¡­ was a very poor move as a lot more letters soon came barraging my limited space.


    My pockets weren''t deep enough for this conundrum!


    There was no time to waste on thinking that you''ll be full of shame because it''s time to harden your heart.


    Another person approached my table, ready to slam down another piece of paper but I managed to interrupt her action with a phrase: "I have a girlfriend!"


    She hesitated for a short moment but quickly withdrew her hand after she placed the paper down and ran away into the distance.


    How¡­ do people with such thick skins be shameless?


    My heart is in pain¡­


    I don''t even have a girlfriend, let alone a friend that''s a female.


    But they would probably get in the way of my business if I actually attempted to make friends again.


    It seemed my voice was a little louder than I had originally expected since the frequency of girls approaching lessened but there was a moment when everyone stared at me for shouting that phrase.


    Although effective, it wasn''t able to deteriorate some people or the girls who had just recently arrived to see me.


    Just stop thinking and let the excuses flow.


    A girl who was one of the first in the new batch of phone number papers was about to slam their own paper onto my paper but I was able to stop her with my speed talking:


    "I''m actually a weird person, who likes roses. I like rose movies, games and places.I love it more than the three meals in a day and then dress up as a rose to jump up in joy. Did you know penguins are actually bees"


    Hehe, I am too smart for my own good as the girl was absolutely stunned in the moment and couldn''t analyze all the words I had said.


    *Ding*


    It was a good cue to tell me to leave before I have to start making more embarrassing lies.


    I quickly payed for my tea but the girl was still standing awkwardly at the place where I once sat due to still being confused.


    My mind was currently in distraught from all the staring that made me blush but I was able to soon recover my cool and looked through the notification.


    Senior had just sent me a text message that was very brief.


    {Freed up schedule, meet now}


    I forgot that she was also lazy and wanted to save money, she could''ve at least spent a couple more cents to call her junior.


    Aiii~ I hope she didn''t suddenly move to a more troubling area.


    She lived in an apartment that was neither for the poor or the rich which was why she was able to have a wide variety of customers however still tends to the more rich ones for their money.


    If her business was really bad and she had spare time then she would of course lower her prices to some of the slightly poorer people.


    I prayed that she had cleaned up her room but it seemed that she was kind enough to leave the door open for me.


    ¡­ Taking a quick whiff, it was to be expected.


    Cologne, perfume; fluids and sweat from the human body had masked the room in this disgusting smell which was why I yelled to my senior "You should really clean your room."


    It was fairly clean if you looked past the smell as the trash bags that used to be hidden around the house were apparently gone.


    I was able to hear senior''s reply to my comment with the noise of a can being opened "Who cares? They just want to have wild sex and that''s what they''ll get"


    It was fairly reasonable but I opened the windows because the stench was becoming much worse.


    Unexpectedly, she suddenly threw a can of beer to me that I managed to catch. It threw me off as I responded "What are you doing, giving a minor alcohol?"


    She once again replied with a more lazy answer: "And so?"


    That was surprisingly a good point to pass as I always got free stuff from her.


    Senior had the stage name ''Red'' when she entered this industry and managed to pave her way to success through hard work and dedication.


    I was only able to learn of her stage name but when she saw me at the lowest point of my life, she learnt my real name when I spilled everything.

 122 Senior Red

    Opening the can of beer that would be legal for me to drink in other countries, I couldn''t help but give a second look to Red.


    Attractive long black hair thrown into disarray, a messy singlet that was on the verge of falling off and loose shorts.


    This appearance¡­ was what people desired?


    Although that sloppy appearance may be appealing for others, it should not be doubted that she was actually rich despite the shabby home she lived in and the low quality clothes she was wearing.


    If I tried to estimate how long she''s been working, it would arrive at roughly 20 years but it was because of a couple incidents in the past...


    Overall, because of all her customers, I would have to guess that her worth would be around a couple million dollars at the very least but it would be unlikely that she could return to a normal life.


    It was a surprise she has yet to get pregnant but I heard she was using a birth control implant.


    Who would want a lady for himself even though she may have slept with tens of thousands of men.


    ...Would that be another kink?


    I didn''t want to waste time on asking about kinks as I had a more important question that Red managed to clear some time for: "What happened to Lovely Men."


    Red gave a subtle pause but whipped out her phone before sending a text message and tossing it to me: "Ask ''him''"


    I looked at the username at the very top and it was indeed ''him''.


    The literal username was just - HIM.


    This person in the industry created a network that would allow him to know of all information and send it to those in need for a cheap price.


    An example would be asking HIM if there were brothels in safe locations within this prefecture that are hiring people.


    You would then pay the price and he''ll give the information.


    That was his worth within this industry despite not getting dirty but for some reason, he gives special services to those at the top or people he is indebted to, such as Red.


    Red was stuffing some tissues to her crotch, probably due to a customer giving her a creampie that is still leaking.


    She noticed my attention on her and gave a seductive comment "Want a taste?"


    I felt like passing out at her shameless request but responded in a calm tone "That''ll be $130 per hour"


    "Hah! I charge at $200 per hour."


    "I''m sorry customer, my price has increased to $200 per hour."


    Our banter was a good way to waste time as I finally received a notification that HIM sent a pdf containing the information but gave a simplified explanation in another text.


    {Multiple witnesses saw the building being raided by cops. It was approximately 1:00am at the time which was why the building had to close but it shouldn''t affect Kei''s work.}


    I nodded at the explanation and understood why the brothel had to shut down.


    Some idiots actually worked past 12:00am in such a public area.


    It was fine if they were freelancers but there was a law that restrained certain brothels from opening for too long as it may disrupt the public''s ability to perform in daytime and affect the country''s reputation or something.


    Some brothels resorted to going for rebranding but those idiots actually caused me to lose a job.


    The brother had worked past the quota set by the law which was why they were closed down.


    Tossing the phone back to Red, I took a sip of beer but it seems the alcohol content was a lot weaker than I originally thought before sighing "Aii~ what am I going to do now?"


    Red gave me a long stare before also sighing "Since i''m free for tonight, let''s talk"


    I gave a nod and was curious where she was trying to take this conversation.


    She gave a moment to herself before finally speaking "Do you remember your first job?"


    "Yeah,I worked on the streets for two weeks and then finally got you help to stop getting scammed."


    Red sighed at my answer before waving her hands: "No, not that one. Your first job in an actual establishment."


    I remembered those times quite fondly as I was still quite naive and foolish, thinking that I could actually still contain some sort of purity even though I had lost it.


    "You mean the chinese brothel?"


    "Yep, you spent a lot of time showing off your skills to your patrons to earn money but because you didn''t sell your body¡­ it wasn''t enough. Can you tell me how long you worked there?"


    That statement was true, I tried to showcase my elegance with my intelligence in strategy games while developing in other areas such as art and music but it was all for naught.


    It was not popular since it originated from a country that people discriminated against and to make matters worse, it sometimes wouldn''t allow you to sell your body.


    I didn''t know what she was trying to get out of me but I answered truthfully: "Approximately 2 months."


    Red gave a nod and took another sip from her beer "What about the next one? The escort delivery health thing."


    The delivery health call service was quite a fond memory of mine because we were paid at an hourly rate and it was quite trustworthy since Red recommended the company for me.


    Customers would be given a pamphlet in which they can call for services and we''ll be sent to help do cleaning, housework, cooking, ''massaging'' and extra services.


    I was even sent to a different branch where lonely people could go to this hotel and directly order me to get there within 5 minutes.


    "It lasted for around 8 months because the company moved to a different prefecture after offending a certain person."


    Red nodded at the story: "You''re last and recent one, what was it again?"


    There wasn''t much surprise that Red didn''t remember my whole schedule as she had her own life to live but I was surprised that she actually remembered this much.


    I reminded her: "It was at the massage parlor. Including training, I was there for roughly a year but because the owner used illegal immigrants to work at a cheap price, it was forced to close down."


    That was the place that taught me how give pleasure to girls without actually having sex unless it was necessary.


    There was one very kind senior who even gave me a list of oils that worked really well under certain conditions and compiled a list for books that taught beginners some advance techniques to die for.

 123 Job Search

    "You''ve been working in the red light district for roughly 2 years and accumulated this much work experience."


    Hehe, my hard work was finally showing and my senior actually knew how to give praises.


    It seemed my smug look was obvious but Red suddenly reprimanded me "Idiot. That wasn''t a compliment."


    This was probably what she was trying to get which caused me to pay a lot more attention and place the beer can on the table.


    Like a teacher, Red began to give me a lecture: "Just one of those jobs would allow the common prostitute keep that job with a stable pay job for at least 2 years."


    "If we include the Soapland that you quit on your own, you''ve already cycled through 4 jobs. 4! I wouldn''t be surprised if the industry started to hear of your ''legendary merits''."


    Oh¡­ that was a good point.


    Most of those jobs closed down because of some idiot and I was just accidentally part of it.


    But that thought seemed like it was expected and Red read me like a book "Don''t even try. It''s going to be very unlikely of you to actually get a job from those giant businesses"


    Red was playing on her phone but I''m currently in a panic as it seems that I won''t be able to get a job anytime soon.


    If at worst, I would have no choice but to use my little sister''s university funds, but I''ve been saving for so long. Out of worry I spoke: "S-so, what should I do?"


    She didn''t respond but instead threw her phone at me once more, catching I heard her voice: "You''ve already worked for 2 years, surely you now have a group of customers willing to advertise for you. Also, quickly enter your phone number to HIM."


    I wrote my phone number of my burner phone and didn''t question why senior told me to do this because she was able to soon answer it.


    Finishing her can of beer, she spoke "He texted that he''s willing to send you some nearby jobs if they are willing to send a request for you. I''m not sure what you did, but apparently some Porn Directors want to hire you."


    I placed my hand to brush my chin as I went into deep thought.


    As long as they paid me enough money for the shot and made sure to use a commission contract then I should be fine.


    Depending on the company of the porn directors, they might even allow me to save my sperm for customers if they intend to use fake cum that seemed to be the norm in the industry.


    But the plots¡­ why are they so embarrassing?


    I''ve indeed heard that my customers have been advertising me on this thing called a ''forum''. I''m not sure what it exactly is but my customers always whisper to me ''it''s a secret'' when I ask if I could look at it.


    Speaking of the forum, it apparently introduced a new customer who I would be meeting tomorrow however I have no idea what this person would look like.


    That made me think I should start asking that customer if they have any specific request but Red mentioned something I had to think about: "What''re you going to do with your options?"


    It was an interesting question but there was no beer which was why I wandered into the kitchen and looked into the fridge.


    Beer, beer, beer, more beer and beer.


    There was no food which made me want to scold Red''s diet which could cause some problems if she only ate fast food but I restrained myself since she wasn''t a customer.


    But¡­. why are there so many tasers.


    One in the fridge, one in the cupboards, one behind the books¡­


    Looking back her drunk face, she seemed so strong and unaffected by her past to be able to strive in this environment but it still seems that she has some worries.


    Even if it''s a front¡­ I can still eventually let go of the past.


    She kept those weapons as a way to make sure no customers could harm her as these would be able to bridge the gap between physical abilities of any that try to harm her.


    I threw the can of beer to her and quickly changed mine before speaking freely: "I''ll tell all my customers that I''ve freed up, if i''m free then i''ll go take a few part time jobs."


    There were many things wrong with that statement but Red came silent as she realized the naive boy from the past has finally managed to etch his existence into the vast industry.


    We drank more beer together in order to soothe the pain we both hid inside our heart that eventually reflected our rash desires.


    It seems I had overstayed my visit as we both began to ''play'' with each other which would affect my overall mentality if I stayed any longer.


    Once Red climaxed using my hand and she used her hand to pleasure me, I thought that it was a good time to leave.


    "Hey, where do you think you''re going"


    Red still didn''t have enough and called out for me


    "I''m not getting paid, either way I-"


    It seems she didn''t care as she suddenly slammed a couple of bank notes onto the table: "I cleared my schedule for this, accompany me till the end"


    I guess she was desperate for a change of pace compared to the older men that use her services but it was a good thing she was fairly clean.


    Maybe that was one of her marketing strategies, free of STDs and you can attract more customers.


    The money was an effective way for me to stay and with the bank notes in total, I would have to be here all night.


    Sending a text to my little sister that I wasn''t going home for tonight and would be there in the morning, I remembered something.


    "Where''s the recycling bin?"

 124 Cooking

    I really don''t want to wake up¡­


    Hai~, it''s only 4:00am but that should be enough time for me to cook up some food.


    Senior didn''t have any good food inside her fridge, making me look for any supermarkets that were open at such an early hour.


    It was easy to search for a market that was opened because of the lights but pinpointing one with good reputation and cheap prices would be difficult.


    The drowsiness began taking over as Red milked me dry for a couple of continuous hours.


    I think I might want coffee.


    At this point, wandering around the local shops to gather some food, I eventually became lazy and just returned home.


    My body had already been cleansed of some smells and alcohol while my hair was now in a messy state.


    I didn''t want to disturb my little sister with her sleep and when reminded of how she told me my cooking was too noisy, I decided on an alternative.


    It was a roundabout method that was extremely stupid but I shrugged at it.


    My plan was first gather some food for today''s lunch and dinner.


    But I felt like I was in a good mood which was why I also wanted to make some breakfast and a cup of coffee for getting the necessary energy to make it through the day.


    I would then bring the ingredients and containers back to Red''s apartment to cook before heading back and placing the containers in the fridge.


    It was an overall pointless idea but I was a little interested in what I might find in Red''s apartment.


    Closing the door in a quiet manner, my younger sister had yet to wake up and I only brought the minimal required for creating a feast.


    Some simple bread and coffee for breakfast.


    Rice with some side dishes for lunch.


    A meat dish and a vegetable dish with rice would be for dinner.


    I had already organized what to cook in my head as I made my way into Red''s apartment and couldn''t help but get rid of the beer cans littering the ground.


    Looking into the cupboard and pushing the taser out of sight, I was surprised that one of the frying pans actually looked used.


    Senior could cook!


    I never expected a sloppy person who looks like they''re constantly one big slob of a human being to actually know how to cook.


    It seemed she placed money on the line since the industry only has such a limited time¡­.


    I probably would''ve done the same if it was for the sake of money as I measured the amount of water needed for the rice cooker.


    Red was probably a heavy sleeper who didn''t notice the sound cooking but seeing as she didn''t have a toaster, I had to use the frying pan to toast the bread.


    My clothes were a little messy after last night and after my curiosity got piqued, I began searching for tasers all over the apartment.


    There were roughly 20+ scattered in hidden places that were mixed with some kinky objects that may have been requested by her customers.


    They are surprisingly high quality which made me guess the price to probably average out at $30.00.


    These are cheap compared to the stupidly expensive tasers that could cost up to $349.00.


    I could buy so many potatoes with that type of money.


    Since she roughly has 20 of them and each roughly cost $30.00


    20*30.


    Ahem, WHO SPENDS $600.00 ON TASERS.


    This amount of money¡­ I could pay off so much water bills with this.


    My senior was more like a nouveau riche that liked to keep their wealth a secret if she could spend this much money on tasers.


    Is there a secret organization that compares their tasers to others and treat them like wine?


    "Ah yes, I see you have the 50 volt tasers crafted in Germany that originated from the design of a nihilistic philosopher."


    "Indeed so, but it pales to my 46.5 volt taser, tested by the finest and was meant to be gifted to a king"


    Get, this, dialogue, out, of, my, head.


    There was just a tempting idea inside my head to start repeatedly smashing my head onto the table so that I would never have to remember such dialogue.


    Red who was in a sleepy stupor suddenly stumbled on my awkward position that was contemplating whether to commit self harm.


    It wasn''t a good idea to ruin such a perfect face which was why I shamelessly returned to my seat and took a bite of toast and hoped she didn''t notice what I was trying to do.


    My senior was currently rubbing her eyes, meaning she probably thought she was hallucinating for a moment.


    I welcomed her to the wondrous feast: "Hungry?"


    She didn''t attempt to even give an answer as she had already began devouring the bread without a hint of femininity but sipped the coffee in small servings.


    The industry was weird for one, such unusual behavior was actually popular?


    Maybe I should start doing that¡­


    It was already getting a little late for my liking if I wanted to make it back to my apartment with my meals which was why I soon told Red to havea good day before leaving.


    There was one part of my heart that told me to not take the money offered by senior out of respect and kindness but I wasn''t a kindred spirit.


    I would instead be an idiot who would place their family into poverty because of that one mistake.


    Mistakes are like dominoes, knock one down and you''ll continue to make more mistakes.


    They should just be avoided if you don''t want to get hurt.


    ¡­.


    I went out of my way to drop off the meals at my apartment to be refrigerated but there was no point for the container that contained our lunches.


    They were still slightly warm which was why I left them out.

 125 Which One?

    Nothing special happened at school but the excess caffeine forced me to stay awake against my will to listen to these boring lessons.


    It was dull when you have to learn the same thing over and over again.


    Senior had suggested a long time ago that I should pay attention to education which was why I had to learn the general academics to the best I could.


    She said it was a ''marketing strategy''.


    Your customers could use you as a tutor with ''extra services'', if you didn''t want to get arrested for outright prostitution but i''m sure there are many laws that may get in the way of that.


    The only problem was¡­ math and science were easy for me except literacy was my most difficult to understand area.


    It would be troublesome if a customer demanded me to teach them literacy even though I''m not the most competent for teaching that.


    I studied like my life was depending on it and the result?


    Nobody bought the services...


    I should''ve been blinded by my senior''s words as I had only realized that I had mainly two range of customers.


    1 were the elder women that were more mature, such as Fumiko who were either in university or working.


    The other type was the people within my age range but once I turned 18, that completely changed the demographic.


    This was because of how the law worked within this prefecture or the country in general.


    Our age of consent is extremely low which was due to some incident in the past that caused it stay permanent at an age where people may be interacting with puberty.


    If I remember the incident right, it was because of some crime committed by a middle schooler for murder.


    If they lowered the age of consent, then a person could get away with **** which would cause a lot of loopholes.


    Instead of increasing the age of consent, they now segregated it into smaller age groups with a couple years of difference that can have different punishments.


    It overall depended on the prefecture you were living in.


    My prefecture would cause me to get arrested with a misdemeanor if I were to interact with someone below my age.


    That really stung when I lost a lot of customers¡­


    Now I can only work with people equal to my age or older which made the use of ''tutor services'' very unlikely to actually be used.


    I wanted to cry for my losses but it should serve its purpose one day.


    It was strange how it reminded me of another book but I could never but my finger on what it was actually called.


    But right now, I shouldn''t be focusing on these thoughts as I was already existing from my room with a new look because of a new customer.


    Senior taught me, as a freelancer, it was extremely important to understand your demographic and how you can tend to them.


    For older woman, they may be busy tending to their own life and can''t be committed to a relationship which is where I may pop up.


    Or it could even range from being dissatisfied by their partner, it''s an extremely complex problem where you couldn''t point at one thing and say that was the problem that caused this.


    You would instead need to examine the many possibilities and try to label it onto your customer to tend to their needs.


    The problem with younger woman¡­ are the stats.


    One questionnaire had a sample size of 50,000 which could cause problems when we''re talking about a couple of million lives.


    The questions revolved mainly around the loss of virginity and desire to lose virginity and at what age,


    It resulted with my age group (18-20), boys paired with the percentage of 61.3% while females had 50.4%.


    On paper this sounds great, but then you would have to think about variables such as nationality, religion, etc that could have certain traditions affecting the results.


    Even if they were right, with the way this country followed conservatism, it would be like a double edged blade.


    Some would probably save themselves up for their one true love while others may just rebel and want to lose it because they can.


    What makes it worse is that this study was only taken in a foreign country!


    The only thing I hope is that this new customer won''t cause any unexpected problems


    My first problem was that I never received any proper request that the client ordered which meant it was probably some vanilla stuff.


    The other problem was that I had no idea what the customer actually looked like since this would be the first time she would have ordered my service.


    I was currently inside a mall on the first floor and supposed to be looking for a fast food chain that I would be attending.


    This place seemed like a good place for youths to organize study sessions as there was a nearby library for studying or just to hangout in general.


    There were many females inside the store, so I sent a text to the customer in order to clarify the information.


    {I''m at the store. Who am I supposed to be looking for?}


    *Ding*


    A few seconds had only passed yet I already received a text. Till this day, I will never be able to understand how people can text so fast like my sister.


    {Oh you''re here ( ^o^). I''m the one with the blonde hair.}


    I didn''t understand what was with the face or how she was even able to text that as I was too busy searching for people with blonde hair.


    There was another problem to the list¡­ there are two girls with blonde hair.


    Do I either waste 30 cents or so for another text or do I risk the 50% chance of finding her.


    I obviously made the right decision and went with what my common sense was telling me to do.

 126 New Customer

    Which was why I arrived to the blonde girl who was by herself on the phone.


    She did seem like the person to order my services as she looked a little antisocial and acted like an outcast.


    The reason why her phone was out was probably because she was waiting for her food and my text.


    I closed the gap between us and introduced myself "Hello, I''m Kei! What''s your name?"


    There was a sound of discontent and annoyance when she first started her sentence but when she looked at my face, her voice became very meek "Huh, i''m busy¡­"


    One part of me wanted to do something my dad always did and say "Hi Busy, i''m dad" but I wasn''t sure if she would request that.


    Sitting next to her, she made way for me and I asked her "Are there any requests you desire?"


    She blushed at my question and stuttered "D-d-d-desire?!"


    I was a little confused why she sounded so surprised and questioned "Didn''t you read the rules?"


    Like a replay button, she stuttered once more: "R-r-rules?"


    This made me question whether she was...my¡­.customer¡­.


    OH FFFFFFFUCK


    "I''m sorry dear but it seems I have other businesses to tend to. Well, see you."


    I was lucky that this fast food joint was quite popular as I hid within the crowd to search for the other blonde lady and pray that I will never remember this embarrassing moment ever.


    She seemed to be at a lost and was about to reach her hand out but realized that I had already ran away.


    It would''ve been a good time to give my card to her but it was an unfortunate encounter.


    I ran to the other blonde girl but saw that she was with a group of male friends.


    They may have been charmed by her heavy makeup and tanned skin but I wasn''t sure whether I should but in or not.


    She didn''t mention anything, so I made the choice that I would just join in.


    Their uniform was from a nearby school due to the crests and style of uniform which allowed me to take a breather as they would never meet me in my school.


    The blonde girl currently had a frown while the boys were enthusiastically talking to her.


    According to my expert capabilities, she is being troubled and ordered my service for this reason which also made sense why she didn''t type long texts as she didn''t have enough time to explain.


    I won''t comment on her poor organization of thought but I will instead push her along the seat so that I could sit down and wrapped my arm around her: "I missed you sweetie"


    She was momentarily stunned by a sudden person taking her seat and due to my good looks but her blush was covered by too much makeup.


    Makeup seems so expensive when you have to use a combination of them which made me worry about her looks but that meant she was surely rich.


    Finally realizing that I was the person she hired, she responded "I missed you to."


    I sent a glance towards the boys and they seemed obviously upset by a sudden person interrupting their pleasure and were prepared to say, what I assume to be rude things to me which was why I made a daring move.


    In front of the two boys, I closed in on the blonde girl for a deep kiss.


    Our tongues were intertwined but the girl seemed oddly inexperienced despite having looks that signify ''I''m a delinquent and hate school''.


    Her hands were trembling, I grasped and held them to make sure she was comforted and stopped kissing.


    Some drool were left on our lips.


    I grabbed the nearby napkin to wipe my lips before wiping hers but I was surprised that her lips didn''t have any lipstick.


    That meant her lips at least had a natural color but the rest of her face made me uncertain.


    She was breathing heavily while the two boys opposite to us seemed infuriated with bulging veins and a disgruntled face.


    One of the boys couldn''t take it and slammed the table, loud enough that only our small group could hear it: "So what if you have a boyfriend. That doesn''t change the fact you''re a slut."


    Oh, drama?


    I didn''t expect this young girl to already gain a reputation like this but when you have features like this, I guess people would suspect you with derogatory terms.


    The other seemed a little smarter and probed around carefully: "I bet he''s just a friend from another school. He probably doesn''t even know your name"


    That¡­ is scarily accurate as half of it was right.


    My client seemed a little worried from her eyes and seemed ready to refute but I needed to take control of the situation and learn what else she wanted from my services.


    With a bright smile, I brought the girl closer to my chest and responded with a cliche line "Of course I know her name. Afterall, she''s my sweetheart."


    It was a roundabout way of saying I didn''t know her name but calling her a sweetheart had shook the emotions and mentality of the two before him.


    The girl was lightly clutching onto my chest with her hands but I was worrying if her makeup was going to get on my shirt.


    My charming smile seemed to have gotten on the nerve of the guy who had bashed onto the table as he sent a fist to my face.


    I better get a another call for my good services.


    The fist was heading towards the thing that was making money and I wasn''t willing to allow my family to fall into poverty.


    To actually have the guts to threaten me¡­.


    Resorting to violence really did caught me off guard but I felt a little pain from my eyes and felt that if I had a mirror, the pink hue would seem brighte

 127 Modern Love Hotel

    I grabbed the fist as it was slow from the poor position the guy was throwing it.


    Dusting my words with a light threat, I glared at the two "Please go ahead and place that fist just a little closer. I can''t wait for the security cameras to replay this scene when I show it to you in your prison cells."


    Both had pale faces which showed that they would rather keep a prosperous future in mind, maybe that was the one good thing conservatism did for me today.


    They both left despite there being no cameras in this fast food store which showed they were much more rash or scared than I thought.


    This girl was the reason for why all of this trouble happened which made me curious what else she wanted from my services.


    Speaking down to the girl in my arms and hugging my chest, I asked "So? Why did you order my services?"


    The girl seemed surprised at such a question even though she should''ve known she never mentioned any specific requests and looked down.


    Realizing their inappropriate posture in a public space, she pushed me away from her and then began speaking "E-ehem, what do you mean?"


    Please¡­ fate, don''t play with my heart, I just want to meet my customer.


    Unwilling to suffer the same experience, I brought my phone with the text conversations "This is you, right?"


    She looked at the last message and nodded: "Yeah, that''s me"


    Sighing with relief, I wanted to know where she got my information: "How''d you get my number"


    "The people on the forum said you were a good person."


    I''m a ''good person'', that was unexpected.


    "Do you know the rules of my services?"


    "Umm, yeah"


    She replied with uncertainty before taking out a piece of paper that was shaking due to her hands.


    Taking a quick scan on the important parts, it was essentially paper that told me she was free of STDs and that it was safe for her to have sex.


    Was her order just normal services?


    "Besides what happened earlier? Is there anything else you would like to request?"


    There was a small shriek that escaped from her mouth but I guessed that was out of embarrassment as she soon asked: "R-r-r-requests?"


    It was unfortunate that there was too much makeup to see any visual blushing but I answered in a professional manner " Yes, requests. Anything you would like me to specifically do or the nots. It could range from entertainment such as arts all the way to the desires you hide."


    Her head was tilted down from what I presumed was embarrassment: "C-can you take my¡­"


    "Hmm? Can you speak louder."


    "Arrgh, nevermind."


    I didn''t think she would get mad from that but I noticed that she was suddenly typing on her phone at a fast speed.


    *Ding*


    I received a notification of a text but I don''t understand.


    I''M LITERALLY RIGHT HERE.


    WHY?


    She''s wasting 30 cents per text when talking costs nothing.


    It was tempting to say that to her but understanding my position, I remained quiet and read the text message.


    {I don''t have anything in particular I would like£¨¡ä?`£©£â. Can we really do it?}


    Yep, it seems that she was probably just interested into plain and normal stuff.


    At least that saves me from embarrassment if she was instead interested in weird things.


    Checking once more, beneath the paper with an envelope clipped at the very end with the money inside for my services.


    A smile blossomed on my face knowing that I was payed and made me ask a question


    "Where shall we go?"


    ¡­.


    She brought me to a love hotel except it was the despised, modern love hotel.


    The room was built with brightly lit lights in a warm and comfy area with stylish beds and weird designs.


    This girl''s name was apparently Chiyoe, but I wasn''t really sure if she was being truthful or if she just wanted my services as a one time thing.


    I absolutely hated everything that was wasted inside this room.


    Why were there so many lights, who needs that many lights?


    Opening the door that led to the toilet, there were LED lights layered atop the floor and walls while a bright white bulb was showering the room with light.


    ...Why?


    The one thing I agreed with was the free stuff but that''s about it.


    Chiyoe seemed new to such a room and ran around the place to seek the usage of every inch this room had.


    Pointing to a hole in the ground, she asked me: "What''s this for?"


    The hole had cushions surrounding it which showed the comfort it had for those that chose to sit in it.


    Except, it made me want to cover my eyes as if I never saw that and slam my palm onto my face.


    As an expert in the industry, the truth hurts: "That''s a hole for your partner to watch you as you take a bath"


    I didn''t attempt to even smile as that would make me seem creepy while my voice was in a monotone pitch because of my disappointment.


    ...Who would set a trend like this?


    Someone had the bright idea that they liked voyeurism and so, they created this hole to fulfill their desires and it now spawned this atrocity to many modern hotels.


    Chiyoe blushed when I pointed to the north of the hole which was a see through glass that showed the bathroom.


    Her lack of knowledge regarding this place made me suspect something was off about this customer but I shrugged it off: "Shall we go take a bath now?"


    "A b-b-bath, t-together? No, i''m good."


    She was startled by my sudden question and rushed into the bathroom by herself while I was now left to wander around this room.


    I''m guessing I don''t need to take a bath anymore?


    Next to the pack of condoms that were close to the bed, I was worried that there might not be enough, depending on what else the girl may request which was why I brought out my bottle of lube.

 128 Complicated Problems

    I didn''t need any special objects to help with my service, so I was now kind of waiting for something to happen.


    There wasn''t anything I could really do besides strip my clothes and wait which was why I wanted to start a conversation.


    This customer had a weird introduction with how I met those two boys and she was strangely a lot more nervous than I thought.


    The glass to the bath shouldn''t be too thick, I asked her: "So? Why''d you pick my services?"


    "O-oh, I was looking for someone to accompany me."


    That did sound like a valid reason, was she one of those customers who wanted a taste of every ''companion''?


    Wanting to explore the path further, I voiced another question: "Why would you want someone to accompany you? You seemed quite popular with the boys back then."


    Quietness settled in this room and the only sound I could hear to answer that question was the water dripping.


    This was an obvious sign that she may be somewhat mad or be emotionally distressed.


    The easiest way I usually settle problems like this is to have an upfront conversation with her to know what exactly is happening.


    Vague sounds of a barrage of water droplets falling onto tiles echoed and it seemed that Chiyoe was finally out of the bath.


    I was currently half naked with my top off as I wanted to see if there were any requests she now had since we were in the hotel.


    She was easily embarrassed if she was in the public as she sent me a text message instead of saying it out loud which was why I thought of this.


    Her face was absent of makeup as she probably removed it but her tanned skin was still glossy from the water that made it glisten much more.


    The dyed hair was now dripping with water but Chiyoe covered it with a towel to dry it.


    The eyes with embarrassment when in public seemed a lot like a dead fish''s as it contained no emotion and was similar to a void.


    Filled with listlessness, she dropped her body on top of the bed.


    Sirens were going through my head as I definitely noticed something was very wrong with this customer than I originally thought.


    My question had accidentally knocked the wrong nerve and this was the outcome.


    Either, I left the question as is and let her act like a dead fish or I actually do something by asking questions to get down to the problem.


    A little motivation was needed, Placing my hands above her shoulder to make it look like I pushed her down, I probed with the question once more: "Please tell me Chiyoe, tell me why."


    It was a little unoriginal but I whispered my plea into her ear and started to make my eyes water: "I just want you to be fine"


    Teary eyes, a weak puppy voice¡­ it was an awful thing to play and manipulate a person''s heart but when the time gets rough, desperate times call for desperate measures.


    My words pried open her heart as waterworks were being created from both of her eyes.


    Her face were full of tears, quickly covered by her hands and sulking in a silent manner.


    The small sobs could be heard but I waited patiently and lied down next to her, in order to listen to what may eventually be a story.


    Silence was only temporary as Chiyoe eventually spoke.


    This story seemed like it would take a while but Chiyoe wasn''t able to string together a full sentence.


    The whimpers and deep breathing interrupted each word she wanted to say, all I could hear was "All...friends and mum¡­. Said¡­.unladylike¡­.punished¡­.changed¡­.new friends¡­.make fun...rumors¡­"


    Those were the only words I could hear as everything else sounded like soft muttering that barely escaped her mouth.


    If I can piece this story together¡­ Her mum and friends commented that she was ''unladylike'', I would have to agree with them.


    The more favorable type of a ladylike person would be empathetic, kind, restrain and modesty but I think those were good characteristics for any human. Punished probably referred to trying to force you to change your characteristics.


    ''Changed'' probably meant her new look as the heavy makeup was quite unusual along with the tanned skin and dyed hair.


    So she changed her appearance because she had enough with being called unladylike?


    Such a vague story¡­ there were so many places that could allow your imagination to run free.


    She made new friends because she didn''t like her new friends but they made fun of her and caused rumors?


    Were people that vicious, was she really bad at making friends?


    This was much more complicated than I originally thought it would be but I do recall one of the guy calling her a slut.


    I began wiping the tears away from Chiyoe''s face but she instead grabbed onto my arms and impaled her nails into my skin.


    Not a word could be spoken, I just kept quiet until the girl was finally to act composed and actually focus on the matter at hand.


    Time passed and I was surprised that she has yet to mention a single thing and we only have less than an hour left.


    The silence seemed to have finally gotten to her as she just whispered in my ear: "Why is life so tough? Am I a bad person? Everyone I know hates me."


    Those statements brought about a lot of red flags in my mind.


    They sounded like the last words of someone who sees no hopes in the world.


    It was very unlikely she would be doing it in this room as there were no objects that could cause major harm to her under my eye.


    My only choice I have as a person who she hired was to console her and not make any rash statements.


    I needed to choose my words carefully as I wouldn''t be capable of controlling the outcome which was why I could only give her kind lines.


    Taking a deep breath, I tried to neutralize the situation.

 129 Therapis

    One option that seemed to be the most effective was coaxing her with sweet words as that was the start to how she became much more open.


    Taking ahold of her, I grabbed onto her arms and faced her.


    Glaring at her, I spoke: "It doesn''t matter what they said to you. You shouldn''t change your looks because of that."


    I gently swiped her blonde hair away, revealing her face that had a petite nose and large eyes.


    This was the one opportunity I should take, breaking the problem into smaller parts and then solving them.


    She faced two challenges.


    One caused her to have a physical change with the hair, skin and makeup which seemed thee easiest to solve.


    I tried to focus on the good points and seeing how Chiyoe was easily embarrassed, compliments were the most effective method.


    The other problem was the most complex in which she suffered from people spreading rumors that I have no idea about.


    Depending on the details, I only know that it was as vicious as the man who called her a slut.


    This problem¡­. I couldn''t solve.


    All my customers are important to me.


    For that reason, their health is also important to me.


    It was very clear that Chiyoe was very unfit for my services which she originally desired. My best option right now was to take care of her until the hour ends.


    After a couple of lines that complimented her, Chiyoe started to develop reactions to them by rejecting them.


    The time was soon coming to a close.


    I''m not suited for this type of thing which was why I persuaded her to get dressed and leave the room.


    I swept up the free things and place them into the bed while wrapping my arm around Chiyoe to make sure she wouldn''t do anything rash.


    The remaining time that she bought for my service was about to be invested into going to a certain place that should be able to help her.


    I had already sent a text to the person that would be able to help her, lucky for me, she was actually free however their appointment should only last for 20 minutes.


    Whatever the result would be was now none of my business once I give Chiyoe to her.


    Unless she called for my services would I be able to know if she''s doing good.


    One of my guesses for why Chiyoe found my services was that she may have been forced by her friends as a type of prank and couldn''t handle the pressure.


    The person I was meeting was a nice person called, Miss Neomoally or Miss N for short.


    She gave me a card after realizing that I tended to send a lot of people here due to their mental health.


    ...Not sure if that''s a good reputation to keep.


    Anyways, the fees are apparently free for those between the age of 11 to 20, meaning any customers older than that would have to go to a different facility.


    But for those that work in some companies are offered free therapy as a deal.


    I gave my regards as I allowed Chiyoe to start talking with Miss N and the day should hopefully end in a good day.


    The next matter I needed to handle after this lackluster deal was having a little talk with my little sister and actually start communicating with her.


    Taking advantage of dinner, I was ready to ask her if she involved in ''something'': "Hey-"


    "I''m busy"


    Cold and concise words were left before she slammed the door once more.


    It felt like a blizzard had briefly flew into my home before escaping out the window.


    My day¡­ was not exactly one of the best, was it?


    I first encountered the wrong person that I had mistaken as my customer, then I actually met my customer but she was in a lot of drama and was currently unfit to partake in my services.


    And now, my sister refuses to talk to me.


    Life seems great¡­


    The next matter I have to look into was getting a job that would actually benefit me with some good wage.


    I''m selling my body, so I better get a good deal.


    This place was called an Image Club and roughly payed the worker $30 per hour meaning if I work from 7-12.


    An Image Club was basically a brothel with a certain style that each room had, a customer may order a specific scenario and they may be supplied.


    One room could be designed as a school classroom, another is a train, offices, the insides of an airplane, etc.


    If one wanted to go to the extreme, it was basically just role play but if I calculate properly:


    5*30


    I should be able to make a stable $150 due to the popularity of the place meaning that I should be able to keep this job, unless i''m interested in new things.


    From what I have researched about this place, they are located quite near and own a building with more than 10 floors.


    That is how popular it is.


    The only risk that may be a problem is whether it''s able to overcome the problem of sex.


    This business could shut down if that is so and it would limit the customers while placing risk of being closed down by the police.


    But since it has the capabilities to develop into such a large business while retaining a large customer demographic means that it probably does have that skill.


    The job accepted both females and males, however it demands that when requested, one must act their role, and only their role.


    I asked HIM to send an application to their place and I was able to trust him as this person seemed indebted to Red while he also had connections himself.


    All I had to do now was wait for a text of whether I was hired or not.


    Tonight was going to be lonely as I had no specific plans and I couldn''t just waste time like this.

 130 Adult Film

    It would be a waste if I couldn''t put my semen to good use which was why I sent a follow up to HIM by sending him a request.


    My request was that I hoped to work with an amateur porn director who is interested with the whole thing being real and could be done within the time limit of 5 hours.


    There was one tiny feeling inside my gut that told me that if I ever met with a porn director with millions of papers, requiring my signature, I would quit on the spot.


    The requirements I had were also followed up with the hopes that the people involved would be free of STDs and would be extremely quick.


    Compared to larger companies that would take days of planning, organizing, and learning; an amateur porn director would be much easier to deal with.


    *Ding*


    ¡­.


    Aiii~ why is filming a porn movie so long and tiring.


    I don''t what exactly I became known for, but the director seemed willing to fork out quite a large chunk of the budget he had.


    My popularity or notoriety was somehow allowed me to get some big dollars.


    This job was pretty crap for beginners as some of the trashy directors would pay the male actors $6.00 for a couple hours of hard work and won''t even allow them to sign any paper that guarantee their safety.


    Those people were overall trash and it seems that was the reason why I hated this industry.


    I just don''t get it.


    Roughly 4,000 porn films are released a month in this country yet nobody thinks that could be a little too much.


    Just a little¡­.


    Who?... who has the time to watch all of that?


    Maybe it was just their desire to create something but at this point, it has probably been done and would now be unoriginal.


    The conversation with the film director was quite pleasant as most of the contracts were quite considerate of both parties.


    I had to sign that I wasn''t intoxicated, under the effects of drugs, won''t cause health hazards to the cast, etc.


    That was nice and if it was found that I was harmed or broke the contract, there would of course be penalties for the party that ruined the contract.


    When I was in the most desperate of times, I remember the time that I forced myself to work until I collapsed by working between a brothel and porn films.


    I think at the time, it was because the brothel wasn''t bringing enough money and the part time jobs that kept my purity weren''t enough.


    If I wasn''t such a straightforward child, I wonder what might have happened if my uncle didn''t give any help?


    That future obviously spelt misfortune that I would rather not think about.


    Tomorrow seemed like such a great time to live as it was the weekends.


    I get to sleep for an extra 3 hours!


    This was the greatest thing about the weekends¡­ except I was booked for both days¡­


    No, I don''t want to work!


    There was a part of me that wanted to act like a child and stop trying so hard to make money but I know for a fact that my looks are limited by my age, once i''m 40, I can only rely on my little sister.


    If I am able to make as much money like senior, then I can surely live a minimal life and not work, otherwise i''ll have to get a small time job with a high school degree.


    My future path was currently limited from the way i''m currently making money but this was the only hope I had to live a moderate life.


    These thoughts did threaten me to give up on wasting time but I can''t help but fear for the customer who hired me for the two days.


    She¡­. was in a whole nother league


    The scripts she sent and the clothes she gave me¡­ my heart will only be filled with shame.


    I, want, my, pride, back.


    The books she wrote¡­. may god have mercy on my poor soul.


    Some may consider that i''m overreacting but the things I had to do for her¡­ men have dignity.


    I have lost all of that.


    What would usually happen is that when being hired, she''ll hire me for 9 hours with the wage to back it up and only do so when it is the weekends or holidays.


    To phrase her in a good light¡­ she''s very creative.


    She would then give me a set of clothing from the previous hiring and then send a script that would highlight certain dialogues and actions I would have to follow.


    And most of the time¡­ Any honor I have would have to be discarded.


    My only saving grace was the sleep I would be getting


    ¡­.


    "Hey, should we get his number?"


    "I''ll do it if you do it first"


    "No, at the same time. Look! Other girls are already giving him their numbers"


    "I mean, he does look pretty with those clothes."


    Those comments do appreciate my beauty and I find their compliments to be quite nice to the human ear.


    This is nice and dandy and all, but I don''t see any recycling bins within this cafe.


    I am currently sitting with another cup of tea and waiting for my customer who requested me to wear¡­ unbearable clothes.


    The sentences the girls around me threw around were currently fruitless after their hesitation as my client had now appeared.


    Glasses a little too big for her; sharp, bright, black eyes that stared into the very depths of any that make contact with them and long brown hair.


    Her overall look was great and seemed fashionable.


    A blue skirt reached her knees while her red shirt was sticking onto her skin, showing off her curves and bodily details.


    Besides opening an opportunity for a conversation, I complimented her sense of style "You look nice today."


    It was my duty to show some sort of courtesy to my customer but her response made me regret saying anything: "Same to you, I didn''t think it would suit you so well!

 131 Cat Butler

    Any dignity I managed to retain from past incidents or the pride I slowly gathered had now dispersed because of the stares I''m receiving for wearing these weird clothes.


    I was currently wearing a long sleeved white shirt that could still be seen despite being covered with a black blazer with only one button actually being used.


    The button was located between the bottom of my chest and roughly around my abdomen.


    It was also paired with long grey trousers, a black tie and shiny black shoes.


    How?


    How can black shoes be polished to the point that it''s actually reflecting light instead of absorbing it.


    My surprise was short lived when I received this because there were two more objects that made this butler uniform be put to shame.


    Everything was alright and I thought I could live with some pride in my life if it was just the butler uniform but then she added those objects.


    On the top of my head was a band hidden in my hair but above my hair was now a pair of cat ears!


    I already have 2 ears and I don''t need two more, especially if they''re fake!!


    It was a matching blue color to show off the dark palette I currently had across my clothing and hair but the last object made me cringe.


    The last object was a blue tail that was hanging out of my pants!


    The coat was currently concealing it as the back was dropped down to my knees meaning the tail wouldn''t even be seen!


    Everywhere I sit would now become uncomfortable but I am at least thankful that it was the type of tail that was only for putting into your pants and NOT ANYWHERE ELSE.


    "Come on, let''s go."


    My customer, Ruri was the one that tended to like this type of thing and actually had the creative idea to make money off of it by writing about it.


    That sounds nice and dandy but it was quite nice that Ruri was a very open person with a bright personality by being energetic compared to my other customers that may be overwhelmed by stress or shy due to the new experience.


    Most customers could be grouped into two categories.


    One that desired companionship due to some complications in life that does not allow them to commit to a serious relationship such as stress, work, tradition, etc.


    The other is more out of curiosity. These type of people want to know what exactly sex is and how it should feel.


    But Ruri didn''t exactly fit into either of those categories.


    She would then create the third group which was the one with people who just want to experiment.


    ...And this was one of them.


    People would throw glances at this makeshift cat butler costume which made me avoid any contact I could and instead focus my eyes on Ruri.


    The place she requested for both of us to go to was an amusement park, and I don''t have to pay for anything!


    WOOOO, FREE STUFF!


    Is what I would like to say but Ruri had a similar idea to me.


    "You wanna eat there?"


    She was pointing towards a noodle shop that seemed recently new due to the structure and had a plain style compared to larger brands with mascots everywhere.


    Yep,great minds think alike.


    Amusement park food were usually a lot more expensive compared to just buying it from another place due to the location and I''ve heard that the food might not even taste great.


    Even the accessories sold there were strangely expensive and the carnival games had prizes that were abnormally cheap if bought from the wholesaler instead of winning a game which could bring the price of that prize to nearly triple of the origin.


    While we both waited for lunch to begin, I felt that it was necessary to create a mutual bond with this person who buys my services by learning a lot more about her: "How was the sales for your other project?"


    "Oh, it was alright. How''s it feel to dress up as a cat butler?"


    Her disinterest to the question surprised me but it felt like an arrow had just stabbed my heart continuously with that question.


    "I-it''s great, n-nya." Those words flew out of my mouth without a smooth feeling and the smile I had on my face when approaching the people''s stares became wry.


    END, MY, LIFE, NOW.


    As I had already dressed up the part of a cat butler¡­ it would be followed with the dialogue of a cat butler.


    Her specific request about my dialogue was that I would have to end my sentences with nya and use it in any words that made sense.


    My only saving grace from embarrassment was that not everyone would have to hear it.


    Ruri was laughing at my poor predicament, trying to retain my sanity, I asked: "What''s the nyaxt clothing for tomorrow, nya?"


    A sly smile grew on her face as she brought her index finger to her mouth "It''s a secret!"


    ¡­ I don''t know where and I don''t know why but that phrase seems familiar.


    Knowing that she called it a ''secret'', chills were sent down my spine as I prayed that the next act would be less embarrassing than this.


    Our lunch soon arrived and we both enjoyed the meal but I brought up a few points that I was worried from the text messages that described her requests: "Are you sure you want to do that in public, nya?"


    Ruri sent a seductive wink before nudging me with her elbow: "Hehe, I made sure to pick one that is slightly desolate and rarely has any cameras."


    Some of the things she requested¡­ they are alright if they were in a private area but in public? There would be so many problems with it.


    My worry was obvious with how hesitant I was but Ruri made an appeal to my anxiety: "Don''t worry, I brought sunglasses."

 132 Rides

    Any refusal I threw at Ruri was completely nullified by her carefree manner that refused to think and worry about the possible dangers in doing this but I guess this was just how she was able to enjoy my services.


    The last time when we did it in the public¡­. I never knew being chased could be so scary.


    At the time, it was a rash idea but I still followed Ruri''s request but only after realizing how reckless she could get, I wasn''t going to risk the chance that any of us would get arrested.


    I remember she said that she wanted to experience what public sex was like, we did it once inside a bathroom stall room where she even wrote a script to go along with it.


    She was basically a chuuni with an 18+ rating.


    That was the simplest of explanations and she once coerced me to do it in an alleyway.


    ¡­.Haiii~ that was such an embarrassing time to live.


    Many couples passed and blushed when they saw two people being ''very intimate'' with each other while the elderly scolded the unruly youths of this generation before chasing us out by threatening to call the police.


    It was an important thing to hold Ruri''s brakes as I''m afraid she may get arrested at one point.


    We both finished our meals and soon made way to the amusement park to test out the rides.


    I was worried that Ruri was going to do something stupid by going to an extreme ride like a roller coaster even though they had recently ate food.


    She persisted for her right to go to one of those extreme rides but I stood my ground.


    There was no choice if she was going to be like this which caused me to bring out the ace hidden in my sleeve.


    Ruri even requested it, so it made it much better.


    Grabbing her hand and pulling her towards me, I attempted to charm her with unoriginal lines: "Don''t leave me, nya"


    It was supposed to be a moment of intimacy where I was a weak person who only desired for his partner to co-operate but WHY IS IT A COMEDY SKETCH WITH THE NYA?!?!


    My frustration served as entertainment to Ruri as she had laughed at the mixed atmosphere but still held my hand.


    Although a comedic plea, it was still effective in that Ruri seemed to have calmed down a lot more and became interested in much more peaceful rides.


    There was no need to look at a map in awe due to the variety of rides as Ruri had already prepared a least of events she specifically desired.


    One of them was the ride called, teacups.


    I don''t recall going to an amusement park before but I never knew teacups were made that big and could be rotated like that.


    It was an overall fun ride that allowed Ruri to start thinking a little more clearly before she gets both of us arrested.


    After a couple more peaceful rides, Ruri couldn''t contain her excitement and left for the roller coaster.The adrenaline was quite nice and the view was amazing but it was quickly covered in screams.


    Every now and then, there was an opportunity for simple sweet moments that would be captured by Ruri''s phone.


    Most of the sweet moments included: hand holding, pecks on the cheek and roughing up the hair.


    I felt glad that Ruri had stopped her recklessness into going through sudden rough scenarios but I was running out of things that could be considered sweet instead of sexual which drove me into fear.


    Ruri was looking through her text and used it as a checklist to know what else we had to do. Knowing exactly what I was thinking, a sly grin appeared on her face before she lead me to the next attraction, the Ferris wheel.


    We entered a small compartment of the Ferris wheel and slowly rose to witness the vast sight of our city.


    That was how I originally intended to enjoy this ride but according to the request, it was a much more complex thing than I thought.


    Ruri knew that there was a part of me, shy to do things in public which was why she began to tease me by purposely spreading her legs so that I could see her underwear.


    I''m not exactly sure what the signal was.


    What does it mean when it''s white and a cute mascot is on the front?


    She didn''t stop there, she used one of her hands to slowly push her red shirt forward and backwards to reveal the white bra she was currently wearing.


    The signals were too obvious and as the person providing the services, I had already seen enough.


    Bringing her closer to my side, I yanked her arm, forcing her to take my lap that would survey her attitude.


    Ruri was embarrassed for once at the position we were in but I can''t help but hate this script.


    One hand massaged the lowers lips of Ruri and would delicately play with the pink button at the very top while kneading her breasts.


    The bra and panties were moved to the side, allowing her breasts to be exposed while her lower lips were concealed by her skirt but I could still feel it.


    Ruri seemed to also be getting off by the fact they were in public and placed her hand in front of her mouth to not make any noise.


    We managed to reach the peak of the Ferris wheel that allowed a vast view to be seen but it was ruined with Ruri''s constant moaning that was quieted by her hand.


    I moved to a more exciting act to make Ruri feel more pleasurable by inserting my fingers once she was well lubricated.


    Constant moaning and the wet sensation on my hand was also beginning to take a toll on me but I stopped.


    "W-why" Ruri was clearly displeased of my sudden pause and began whacking me lightly with her fists in a playful manner.

 133 Close Call

    I ignored the child like attitude she currently had and tidied her appearance to make it look somewhat presentable by straightening the hair, placing the bra where it once was and putting her panties on.


    The reason I had stopped was because we were already close to the ground and tall people would be able to see Ruri''s excited face.


    Our cabin had already reached the floor and the door opened, Ruri was weak in her knees due to the sexual stimulation that brought me to wrap my arm around her and attempt to make her walk normally.


    Her lust was hidden quite well but Ruri was expecting more from what she had requested.


    I knew what she was going to ask for which was why she presented me my sunglasses and I took her to a quiet park where there were a lot of trees but lacked any people.


    The climax she was hoping for was about to begin.


    Entering into the very depths of the park, hidden by the maze of bushes and trees, I slammed Ruri onto a tree that seemed to have a slightly smooth surface and threw her panties to the side of her leg.


    Responding to my rough actions, Ruri held the tree tightly and spread her legs.


    I didn''t want this to make this last too long and began thrusting like a piston, never stopping and constantly having motion.


    Ruri was already excited making the lubrication part much easier on my part but her moans couldn''t be contained.


    This sounded great and all¡­ except she likes saying some pretty freaky stuff.


    I was beginning to start getting into the movement and made my thrusts much deeper and faster, Ruri moaned loudly "Ahh! Oh fuck, spank me!"


    My rhythm was much more faster but one of my hands was now in front of my face, signalling to quieten down while the other was starting to lightly smack her on her ass.


    They were very light, playful spanks but once Ruri started to moan at a much slower rate did I take that as a message to increase the strength behind the hit and the amount of smacks.


    Only wet slapping sounds due to our act and Ruri''s moaning, echoed within the public park. Her erotic voice would sometimes turn into a high pitched cry of pleasure before resuming back to moans.


    "I-I''m coming"


    Ruri was on the verge of an orgasm which forced me to thrust faster and trying to hold her up by the waist so she didn''t collapse onto the ground from pleasure.


    I wanted to do it simultaneously with her but I couldn''t just suddenly ejaculate.


    Using her breasts to act as another stimulation, my dick began twitching and managed to come at the same time as Ruri released a loud moan.


    "I''m coming!"


    Screaming with all her might to appreciate the pleasure that was dispersing inside her body, my cum slowly leaked out of her as I removed my dick and held onto Ruri by wrapping her around my arms.


    I took her panties into my hand to try and clean up this little mess but I heard a ruffling from the distance.


    "Mommy, what was that?"


    The high pitched voice of a child reached this area and I immediately hid Ruri''s body behind the tree and tried to position my body to not be seen.


    My hands didn''t stop cleaning the mess but Ruri grabbed my hand and rubbed the area in a rough manner, trying to reminisce on the pleasure she had just experienced.


    Ruri seemed prepared to release another moan at a low voice but I didn''t want to risk being exposed which was why I stuffed her panties into her mouth to quieten down.


    A muffled voice soon escaped as Ruri began to suck the liquid that the panties collected while another voice escaped.


    "Come on, it''s getting late"


    "But Honey, I thought I also heard something"


    "It was probably some birds, let''s go"


    I paused for a short moment before letting Ruri wear her now soaked panties¡­ I wonder how it got more wet.


    Ruri was still in her current ecstatic state but eventually dulled down once her adrenaline had gone down but made the last request for their ''public outing'' by taking out her phone and placing it to the side.


    She told me she wanted me to carry her in a princess style, my problem was that there could be a chance her panties would show but I realized we were in a desolate park in the depths of the forest.


    Putting a timer on her phone to take a picture, the night sky addressed my silhouette that elegantly carried Ruri until the shutters went off.


    Taking a look at the new picture, Ruri felt a small delight within herself and kept it towards herself despite my protests of wanting to have a look at it first.


    I trusted her enough to know that she wouldn''t post it on the internet even though it wouldn''t affect my reputation but it was good to know that she only planned to keep it for her, privately.


    The outing went quite well, better than I actually expected it to be. My one fear was that we would accidentally stumble upon another couple that had the same idea but it was great that had yet to happen.


    My time was booked until 10:00pm and the rest of tomorrow due to her ''secrets''.


    We both exited the amusement park and it Ruri was surprisingly rich.


    She owned her own house despite the area mostly having large buildings for renting but she actually had control of where she could live.


    I was a little envious of the outside appeal but once taking the time to enter inside Ruri''s house, I regretted it.


    The point I was trying to make was¡­ it wasn''t impressive: "Didn''t you tell me you would start cleaning?"


    Ruri couldn''t help but chuckle at that statement but ran off into her room: "Don''t forget to do the laundry."

 134 Housework

    Aii~ after a tiring day out, taking care of Ruri''s desires, I come into her home only to do chores.


    Washing the dishes that created a very small mountain with balancing skills of a god, I don''t think I''ve ever seen such cups used in weird ways that hold up this structure but this gave me a good hint.


    Ruri cooked!


    Looking into the fridge, that idea was further supported since she actually had food in the fridge.


    I couldn''t help but imagine how dramatic I could make it out to be "S-she''s growing up¡­ so fast?"


    If only I could suddenly cry could I make the situationmore realistic but I first needed to clean the dishes.


    "¡­"


    Plates, cups, utensils were all fine as it was only a little bit of greases here and there; but the main thing that got on my nerves were the frying pans, wok and spatulas that were used for cooking.


    GREASE!


    There were crusty bits of grease and oil that couldn''t be removed easily which was why I allowed the equipment to soak in dish washing liquid water until it eventually would become easier to clean while I did other chores.


    Crusty bits¡­ they remind me of another thing but that was for later.


    Vacuuming the floor, dusting around fragile items and deep corners; mopping the clean floor, picking up and throwing away rubbish bags.


    The laundry was fairly light since it consisted of only one person''s clothing but I realized that it was very unlikely that Ruri actually went outside besides for the need of buying food.


    Her place wasan overall unsanitary place for a human to live but Ruri''s room was in a surprisingly good condition.


    Clean floors, organized books, even the bookshelves were in good condition.


    Her room smelled of sweat which was why I opened the window to ventilate the room.


    The PC on the table was kept in a very clean environment while Ruri was currently writing some sort of draft on it with dozens of pages on screen.


    There was no need to clean up this place, I left the room in search of other unorganized rooms.


    Toilets and the bathroom was a hassle to clean due to the hair stuck in drains and the messy cabinets.


    Behind the mirror at the bathroom was a cabinet containing a multitude of medicines and ointments but some were very unorganized.


    I made sure that the labels would properly face outwards and that the caps were sealed shut instead of it being slightly opened.


    Cleaning up most of the mess, I was done for the day.


    Ruri had a large house with a second floor but she told me that the people upstairs wouldn''t like the fact that some random person would come to clean up the place.


    Apparently they were on a trip. That made sense for why she actually invited me to her house with any secrecy


    Until then, I shouldn''t clean it.


    I still had a lot of time, leaving me to just cook for her meal as I was booked until 10:00pm which was why I already sent a message that my sister had to cook for her own food.


    Ruri seemed to have a cabinet filled to the brim with unfilled spices, so I decided to use it for making some curry.


    Aiii~ our trashy mother couldn''t make this meal but maybe that''s another reason for why curry tastes so good.


    My mood was pretty great but Ruri was still busy with whatever work she was dealing with, allowing me to set up the table and meal.


    I entered Ruri''s room once more but her typing speed was noticeably slower compared to before and there was a type of raggedness in her breath.


    She was definitely out of any energy to continue typing which was why I patted her on the back: "Come on, it''s dinner"


    Her mind seemed empty when she looked at the blank screen, running out of ideas.


    There was probably too much on her mind which was why I flicked her on the forehead to try and rouse a reaction.


    As expected, she exclaimed in anger "Ouch, what was that for!"


    When she was energized, it made her seem like she was returning back to herself and I couldn''t help but smile at the adorable reaction: "It''s already dinner, let''s eat."


    Ruri sent a glance to the time at her computer before nodding at how late it was becoming.


    We both enjoyed the spicy meal and Ruri decided that it was now the best time to make full use of the cat butler costume.


    One of her last requests was to do some sort of foreplay in the bathroom.


    I...I want my pride back.


    The cheesy lines I was told to say¡­ remember Arisu, for the money.


    That was the one motivation that will eventually allow me not to stumble up my lines and make sure I would be successful.


    Whatever happens, happens.


    Whatever is done in this building, will never be brought outside of this building.


    ¡­.


    I was forced to wear the headband with the cat ears but every clothing I had was to be removed before proceeding to the foreplay.


    Opening the door to the bathroom, the room was covered in a hazy white mist due to the steam while a bottle of shower gel was soon heading towards my head while a shriek was heard: "W-what are you doing here."


    For the money, for the money, for the money, for the money¡­.


    Catching the bottle of shower gel with ease and elegance, I advanced myself to get behind Ruri who was currently showering and spoke in a seductive tone: "Of course I''m here for you, nya"


    Inching closer to where Ruri was, I licked her ear and used my hands to focus on the shape of Ruri''s body.


    Slowly caressing her breasts all the way down to her hips while the hips would curve in between the smooth touches.


    Ruri didn''t refute to any of these actions but only spoke softly: "N-no, not right now"

 135 Bathing Ca

    My main request that was given was to act like a cat: inquisitive to the point of mischief, playful to the point of lewdness and loving to the point of¡­. loving.


    I pressed my head against hers and whispered, each word emphasized: "Are you sure, nya."


    Ruri spoke no more but her face became flushed with red, either from the hot water or my touching.


    Continuing to soften up my touches to the point where Ruri was feeling a ticklish feeling on her lower lips and low moans did I move onto the next phase.


    The bottle of shower gel I caught earlier was about to be put into good use as I squirted a little of it onto my hands.


    My hands fiddled around Ruri''s body, touching and massaging every inch of skin besides her head.


    It created a slippery sensation all over her body, making it easier to fondle all her sensitive parts that caused Ruri to start breathing heavily.


    The lower mouth seemed to be enjoying this silently as the depths of it was a lot more wet than I had anticipated.


    I wasn''t able to put my mouth to good use as Ruri''s body was slippery with all the soap which was why I focused on her head.


    Licking her ears was only a seductive attempt of gathering her attention before I eventually focused on her mouth.


    Brushing her hair with my hands to get her attention on me instead of the pleasure.


    Kissing her forehead, cheeks and finally her mouth, she responded by grabbing my neck and pushing her tongue further.


    I wanted to grab her cheek with my hand but it was covered in shower gel, I instead used it to fondle her breasts while the other was used to slide up and down her back.


    My groin was beginning to get excited but was wedged between Ruri''s buttocks.


    The sudden sensations caused her to stare at me with a playful gaze that I returned.


    It would be too awkward if we were just left like this.


    I lightly bit her lower lip and pulled it, using pain as stimulation, her lips opened slightly wider.


    Rubbing my tongue against hers, we were intertwined by the circling action but soon withdrew causing a string of saliva to escape our mouths.


    A fire seemed to have lit up within Ruri''s eyes as she became more aggressive


    But this was not the time to be doing it within the bathroom.


    Washing ourselves of the slippery shower gel that reminded me of a soapland, we both dried ourselves with towels but moved on to the very last act.


    This one was...interesting.


    I was given a small script to say¡­ certain lines and do certain things.


    Once this is over¡­ I need to find a hole and cry privately.


    ...


    Pressing my body against Ruri''s on the bed, I pressed my head onto her cheeks and rubbed it continuously as Ruri patted my head.


    Pushing my body away, I was still on the bed but I was now facing to the sky while Ruri started to take advantage of my vulnerable body.


    Still patting my head, she played with my third leg that eventually grew into a thick, sturdy iron rod.


    Her shy behavior was now swapped into a more arrogant one due to how she had the upper hand and haughtily laughed: "Fufu, I know all your weak points"


    I was swooned by the pleasure that made my entire body weak but refuted with whatever strength I had left: "N-nyo you don''t!"


    It was a pitiful attempt when the voice sounded meek along with the stuttering, I couldn''t settle being the only one to be humiliated which was why I launched my own type of attack.


    Using my free hands, I fondled and kneaded Ruri''s breasts.


    She released a low moan at the stimulation but it continued to get louder as I kneaded the whole of her breasts and not just the area with nipples.


    I tried to hold off on ejaculating by focusing on playing with her breasts but Ruri had such a refined technique that I couldn''t help but voice out my pleasure: "I''m coming!"


    ...Is what I wanted to happen but Ruri released her hand.


    I was dissatisfied at the sudden pause that caused me to be on edge, protesting with a low voice, I asked her "W-why?"


    Ruri sent a bright smile with an insidious intent in her eyes, this was probably payback for what I did at the Ferris wheel but this was clearly biased unjust.


    My body was too weak from not being able to come which allowed Ruri to easily topple and ride me.


    She bobbed her boy up and down while looking down on me.


    It was extremely arousing for not having to take control of the situation once in a while but it was also due to the fact that I was so close to ejaculating.


    Ruri was having the time of her life but her hips eventually fell short at the task requiring a lot of stamina.


    Lightly taking her off my body, I flipped her over so that she was now on her knees with her buttocks in the air.


    Taken by surprise, she was prepared to protest against my actions but once I started thrusting back and forth could she speak sounds consisting of only moans.


    We continued to stay in this position but I wanted revenge for the way she teased me which was why I was the one who broke the ice.


    Bringing my torso closer to her back, I provoked her: "Hmmm? Are you starting to get into it?"


    "Stupid cat, I-I''m not getting addicted."


    Cliche lines and constant teasing were thrown back and forth between us but Ruri said a very surprising line at the climax: "F-fine, I''ll allow you to be my sex pet,"


    There wasn''t much to say, so I responded with the most neutral answer I knew: "Sure"

 136 Intruding People

    Ruri was noticeably tighter in these last moments and she screamed in pleasure with both her eyes and mouth wide open: "Ahhh, Y-yes¡­ give it to me! Inside of me!"


    Increasing my speed to match her pace, I exclaimed: "I''m coming!"


    Spraying my cum and coating the inside of her lower lips, I stuck to my position and refused to remove my rod that wouldn''t seal the white liquid inside of her.


    Both our breaths were ragged from the intense actions with most of our energy being conserved for panting after the intense work we had just done.


    I was stuck in this position, the same way I had ended the session but it was about time that I left.


    Ruri already paid me via N, I was about to exit quietly from this room that had a lewd smell but Ruri suddenly grabbed my hand


    "No! Stay the night."


    There was a slight hesitation in my head as I wasn''t an easy target for being easily taken advantage of but Ruri''s next words changed my mind


    "Is $5 enough?"


    Ruri clenched her hand causing my arm to slightly tense up but according to my genius arithmetic, I can approximately calculate that $5 is more than $0 which means I make money.


    She was slightly shaking, I was guessing it was from anxiety which was why I leaned forward and gave her a peck on the cheek: "I''m here to stay."


    I first sent a text to my sister but Ruri tightened her grip once more: "Don''t go!"


    A slight sense of panic erupted from her voice that also threw off my concentration. I had never seen or heard Ruri sound so terrified before, it kind of reminded of my younger self.


    There was one line that my father always liked to say when he was busy with work that I would now say to Ruri: "I''m not going anywhere (because i''ll be back)"


    It wasn''t supposed to be romantic due to the second half but it contained a sentimental value that could never be replaced.


    Ruri quieted down but I was still in her clutches, I wouldn''t be able to send a text message like this, guessing she wanted more information, I spoke: "I''m just going to text my sister"


    She loosened her grip so that I could barely reach my phone from the table stand and send a message but when I had just gotten my hand back, she grabbed onto it once more.


    Placing it on her chest, I felt a gentle sensation and her two hands smothering my hand with love.


    I could feel her heart racing at an abnormally fast rate but we both soon fell asleep after a tiring session.


    ¡­.


    Aiii~ those cheesy lines¡­ I don''t want to do this anymore.


    WHO SAYS THINGS LIKE THAT!!!


    "N-nyo you don''t!"


    Or the part where she suddenly proclaimed me as her pet...WAS THAT A PUN!


    The one part that makes sense was announcing to your partner when you''re on the brink of having an orgasm but everything else¡­.


    I don''t want to hear about this anymore¡­


    She better not try and do any funny stuff by saying "Ahh, a pussy''s playing with my pussy."


    .... Please don''t let the ''secret'' of today be as shameful like the last one.


    Ruri was still in a deep sleep and stuck in the same position. Pulling myself away from her, my body was sticky from sweat while my third leg could feel a very slimy feeling once it escaped out of a hole.


    The sensations weren''t exactly unpleasing but it wasn''t nice to the touch.


    Our clothes were in the bathroom which allowed me to not have to do the laundry and pick them off the floor compared to other times but now I basically had nothing to do.


    Ruri wasn''t a morning person, meaning even if I wanted to cook breakfast, it would turn cold.


    Seeing that there was nothing I could do, I figured I could just go back to sleep but while I was busy looking for something to do, Ruri was moving around in her sleep.


    The whole bed was taken up with no space for me.


    ¡­.What do I do now?


    I was currently contemplating on what to do but I suddenly heard footsteps.


    Wait, footsteps?


    For a second there, I thought I actually heard the existence of someone else in this house which was why I slowed down my breath and heartbeat before placing my head next to the door in order to hear any noise.


    There were indeed loud thumping noises and muffled interactions that I presume to be talking.


    It was odd since Ruri told me that the people above were on a trip so they shouldn''t be here while it was the morning, so why would robbers come now?


    Did Ruri close the door properly?


    Even if she didn''t it wouldn''t be wide open for just anyone to come in.


    Dozens of options for who the footsteps belonged to ran through my head but it was fruitless and not worth risking myself by opening the door for just a glimpse.


    The only one who would be able to answer any of my questions was Ruri.


    Slapping her lightly on the cheeks, I whispered: "Wake up, Ruri."


    She had no reaction beside turning over from the sudden disturbance but it seemed that resorting to this method was not effective.


    One technique that I know from my sister was interesting.


    I could have optionally grabbed a cup of water and threw it onto her face but she could make a lot of noise while the bed would turn into a mess.


    The alternative option was to grab some tissues from her bathroom and roll it into something akin to a feather and tickle her nose.


    Ruri started brushing her face with her hand but she eventually had enough and awoke: "S-stop it"


    It was very weak but I had finally gotten her attention, before she could fall asleep I told her our epidemic "Oi! There''s people inside your house."

 137 I Am Actually a Really Good Person and Not a Criminal

    She seemed disinterested in that subject due to her sleepy stupor but hearing the noise outside her room she finally got up.


    I originally thought she was going to grab her phone to check something but she had already opened the door.


    Panic overtook me and was desperate to stop Ruri but she apparently already knew who was coming back: "*Yawn~*Jessica, couldn''t you arrive in a quieter fashion"


    Jessica?


    Who''s that?


    A person''s voice soon reached my ears and sounded like a female but it was soon followed by a shriek: "Ah, I really thought I was being-WTF, Put some clothes on"


    ¡­ Is this what''s trending nowadays


    Saying letter instead of words, is this what my generation is doing now.


    Instead of saying ''What the fuck'', we now say ''WTF''.


    I think I was brought up inthe wron- an interesting era.


    It was tempting to continue mocking the usage of saying letters aloud but the main point Jessica made was that Ruri currently had no clothes. That was true as they were still in the bathroom because I didn''t think she would need it so soon.


    Panicking over the thought she could have been getting robbed, she probably caught that mentality from me along with her sleepy side effect that caused her to open the door naked.


    Ruri slammed the door shut and changed into the clothes from last night and the only question I can currently think about is: "So what do I do?"


    I''m guessing that Jessica was probably one of the tenants that Ruri took care of that was presumably on a trip however there was a condition that they should all be females.


    I couldn''t say: ''Hi, i''m joining the household.''


    It was a poor lie that wouldn''t be effective and Jessica should have the IQ to immediately deduct my bullshit.


    If lying doesn''t work, try the opposite.


    The age old saying: ''Honesty is a virtue'' should be effective.


    I can''t wait to introduce myself to Jessica by saying: "Hi! I''m Kei, a prostitute hired by Ruri to service all her needs"


    Nope, nope, nope, that doesn''t seem to be the effective plan.


    Ruri could tell what I was thinking as she suddenly threw my clothes over to me: "Wear your clothes and escape out the window, you can just come back and say we''re friends."


    With a cheerful smile, I was now pushed into the outside world.


    The cold breeze invaded my naked body, putting on all my clothes, I recovered my warmth but I was now stuck between the house and a wall that acted as a fence.


    Man, I just want my bag with me to seem a little more natural but I guess it''s fine like this.


    Aiii~ I should''ve fixed up my hair and told Ruri to wear her clothes if I knew this was to happen.


    My hair was ruffled in a disorganized manner while my clothing was addressed with wrinkles but that was mainly due to the fact that it''s STILL A BUTLER UNIFORM.


    It''s fine that I don''t have to wear cat ears and a tail but I could''ve been given something more casual.


    You don''t just go to your friend''s house with a BUTLER UNIFORM.


    I wanted to try my chances by getting slightly better styled clothing but Ruri had closed the window but saw my confusion.


    WHAT DO YOU MEAN BY A THUMBS UP AND A SLY SMILE???


    STOP MOUTHING ''GOOD LUCK''!!!


    ...I¡­.I guess I''m stuck like this now.


    Ruri was resolving her own trouble as I could hear her conversation: "How was the trip?"


    It was fruitless to try and knock onto the window for help as Ruri was clearly enjoying my despair and had already moved on.


    I could only make use of what I currently had, Ruri should be currently helping Jessica moving her stuff which means that this was probably my best chance while she would be busy so I could then change clothes.


    Such a brilliant plan seemed like there was no flaw with it as Ruri would obviously get the door while Jessica might be suffering from jet lag.


    Everything should work out fine, just like that plan but it was strange because as soon as I was walking towards the front the door I noticed someone.


    "$18.60 for the whole trip. Keep the change."


    There was a girl tending to a cab who gave 2 $10 notes before proceeding to take her bags away while the taxi drove off into the distance.


    I wanted it to just end like that but she noticed my existence from just the corner of her eyes and analyzed my dresswear.


    My good looks paired with distraught clothing, I wondered what was probably going through her mind.


    We both stared at each other, I was in a panicking state with fidgeting hands and cold sweat dripping down my face while the girl was a sculpture that contained no emotions.


    She held onto her bags tightly but this was going to bring us nowhere if we just stayed like this: "I...ummmm, I swear I can explain-"


    There was no qualm about my attempt to explain my situation but she wanted to first vent her opinion: "RURI!!! THERE''S A CREEPY STALKER THAT''S WATCHING YOUR EVERY MOVE"


    ¡­.I thought I could explain


    My emotions could basically be summed up as: O.o


    So...how do I escape from this¡­


    It was difficult to suddenly think up of a plan on the spot, especially when you could hear some neighborhood ladies criticize me.


    "Oh my, youths resorting to crime at such a young age."


    "See, I told you millennials are no good for the future generation."


    "I remember hearing news of a rampant pervert, you don''t think that''s him?"


    Why?


    Where have I gone wrong?


    How could I be compared to some shameless pervert who goes on a rampage despite being such a good looking person who has no need to resort to that.

 138 I Really Am a Good Person. Why Wonst You Trust This Handsome Philanthropist?

    What do you mean we''re no good for the future generation? Should we just end humanity because of a few people that give us a bad reputation...that isn''t from me.


    But resorting to crime¡­uhhh, it''s not prostitution, I swear, I promise¡­ don''t arrest me?


    I was technically being truthful since there were a bunch of loopholes in the legal system that allowed me to escape prison and earn money, so I''m not lying?


    The damage was already done to my reputation in this area, leaving me with nothing to defend myself.


    It was essentially impossible to save myself with the mess caused by this girl which was why¡­


    ...Ruri, please hurry up and come out.


    "Ummm, why don''t we discuss this over some tea."


    My savior.


    ¡­


    "So you''re telling me, he''s your long lost dad''s uncle''s child''s best friend''s sister''s manager''s twin''s grandaughter''s friend."


    "Yep"


    "And he somehow got lost because he is directionally challenged and managed to wander behind your house."


    "Yep"


    "And he''s definitely not a creepy stalker, who wants our address and blackmail us while not at all a sex fiend."


    "...Yep"


    "WHY DID YOU HESITATE!"


    I couldn''t help inserting my own piece but the girl who paid the taxi driver had tied me up with rope, I presume it was from Ruri since she would probably be the only one in the house to own some kinky items.


    Ruri couldn''t do much but try and lie through her teeth as she realized that just saying we''re ''friends'' wouldn''t be as effective.


    The girl placed some random cloth she found by the counter to shut my mouth while Jessica shot me another disgusted look.


    If I am to be wronged, I better be wronged for a good reason and not because of some random girls that jump to rushed conclusions.


    We were eventually running out of options and it forced Ruri to tell some half truths.


    A piece of evidence that was extremely useful was the time that she used her phone to take a picture of us when we were at the amusement park.


    Showing it off, the girl and Jessica saw that Ruri and the guy next to her was indeed me.


    Some exceptions would be that I didn''t have the cat ears and my dishevelled clothing.


    Jessica flicked through the photo and me and finally sighed at the story Ruri finally made up.


    "He said that he didn''t want anyone to know about his hobby. I''m one of the only people that knows he likes cosplay and he wanted to enjoy it with me."


    Such a sorrowful reaction was stunning for Ruri compared to her normal behavior while Jessica took a deep breath.


    The girl was slightly stunned that I was just a person interested in dressing up but Jessica made a comment I wished she would never have had brought up: "You know, he surprisingly looks feminine. Has he tried crossdressing?"


    A light bulb seemed to have popped up above Ruri''s head and smiled at the comment: "No, not yet."


    ...not yet?


    ...NOT YET!!!


    That smile didn''t seem pleasant as I once thought, I don''t want to even think of the next time she hires me that, my only hopes is that she doesn''t bring this up and miraculously forgets about this incident.


    ¡­


    In the end, we were able to clarify that I am innocent and will always be innocent.


    Jessica apologized while the obstinate girl who tied me up also passed her regrets with hesitation.


    Ruri saw that the mood was going sour from the girl who couldn''t even introduce herself and Jessica who became slightly guilty for accusing me: "Don''t worry about them. You already know Jessica and the other girl is Erica, I''m sure you''ll get to know each other very well."


    ''Know each other very well'' hehe, since they came from a trip, they are most likely rich, meaning I should see if they are-


    "Don''t even think about it."


    Aiii~ it was a good attempt at the very least.


    Ruri wanted to avoid making the situation and brought the two upstairs. They would then spend their time unpacking their luggage.


    That sounded unfortunate since they would feel exhausted from the trip but I wouldn''t stop her.


    Now, what to do?


    Her bedsheet from last night probably reeks from all the fluid that was spewed all over it, I should probably put that in the wash and open the windows, so that the smell doesn''t grab the attention of Jessica and Erica.


    Placing it into a washing machine and adding some detergent powder, I was done.


    My clothes were fine but I''ve heard of some people who place sanitary above anything else. They would wash their clothes once a night and bring bottles of spray in the face of unknown territory.


    That was fine but then I heard outright stupid from one of my customers. She apparently had a highschool friend who owned several uniforms to be worn on different days.


    Just imagine the overall cost and waste of funds on the washing machine¡­


    It was a such a waste but life must continue.


    My best option to appease to the two girls as they may create some problems to Ruri by questioning her.


    They were exhausted after a trip and were forced to immediately unpack their items, not even able to sleep after a trip sounded painful.


    This can at least suggest one thing!


    They''re hungry!


    As the legendary saying always went - to get to a woman''s heart, one must first conquer their stomach!


    Depending on how one translates or interprets that, then one can say I have conquered Ruri''s stomach many times ( ?¡ã ?? ?¡ã).


    It was a pretty awkward time to cook a meal as it wasn''t early enough to cook a lenient meal while it wasn''t late enough to cook a heavy meal.


    I was currently cooking egg benedicts, a meal consisting of english muffin, ham, poached egg and a creamy hollandaise sauce.


    Flavors filled with savory delight that bordered between the two times, brunch.


    Although brunch was supposedly created for giving energy for hunting, it was now being used to side track two girls.

 139 So... This Is What the Literacy World Has to Give

    "Ah, why can''t Ruri cook as good as you." Jessica had just recently finished her second plate and was fully satisfied while Ruri was about to ask for a second serving but couldn''t help but respond to the accusation.


    "Why me? Look at Erica, one day I swear she''ll eventually burn down this kitchen."


    Erica heard the claims about her skills and passed her own insults to the next person: "At least I know how to cook something, compared to a certain someone."


    Jessica was able to sense a glare directed towards her while I finally sat down to eat my own meal.


    Sometimes I question whether age really affects a person''s intelligence, these three ladies were older than me by at least 6 years and could be going to university, studying but they are instead quibbling at each other.


    If there was an extra room for rent, I pray that the next tenant has good luck with these crazy people.


    Besides Ruri of course, the customer is always number one.


    It was unfortunate that the kitchen had no ham, in order to substitute that ingredient, I used pork mince.


    The ingredient wasn''t a good choice as it crumbled once it was cooked so I just made the egg benedict into an egg florentine which replaced the ham with spinach while the mince was now used as a side to the dish.


    Ruri was probably living alone for a few days since the her tenants were on a trip, this explained why the fridge seemed quite empty.


    Her freezer had a lot of frozen food. As soon as I left those three would probably be eating that.


    One of them apparently only knew how to burn food because they forget about it, another doesn''t even know how to use the kitchen.


    Ruri at the very least knows how to cook albeit, not the greatest chef.


    It wouldn''t be ideal to buy and groceries as it would probably go to waste but the condiments and seasoning seem to be running out.


    I should buy some things from the supermarket later.


    Jessica and Erica had already finished their meals and headed back to their rooms to rest after their trip.


    Ruri sighed at the vast development between her friends and I, she was amazed at how much trouble I could create but wanted to make sure she got her money''s worth: "Can you read the notes and then put on the costume"


    I was currently washing the dishes and the freshly cleaned plate I had in my hands gave me a subtle urge to just drop it and shatter into pieces with what Ruri reminded me.


    Acting was¡­ difficult.


    My stormy face and sudden slow pace caught Ruri''s attention and snickered my speechlessness, she was probably reminded of last night''s line.


    Those lines¡­ everytime I see them, I just want to speak the most monotone voice of the century and wear a stone mask to conceal my emotions but Ruri would probably make it worse.


    Aii~ life is tough, but you must always continue.


    Once I finished washing the dishes, I returned to Ruri''s room to grab my phone but I already saw Ruri setting up the scene.


    Bed sheets, pillows, blankets were all cast aside to make room for a white cover while the pillows had changed their pillowcases into a lustrous pink tone and a bunch of toys were brought into the room.


    Vibrators, love eggs, handcuffs, a felshlight, high heels, candles, latex lingerie, lube¡­ hold on, isn''t that from my bag?


    Anyways, that wasn''t the point, the main thing is that Ruri is currently setting up some weird stuff that is starting to make black lines tread through my head in speechlessness and make my back sweat out of worry.


    What exactly did she write?


    I was very concerned on what type of plot Ruri was creating and made sure to pay extra attention to what she wrote.


    Compared to the last draft with the cat butler costume, I didn''t have to worry about handcuffs!


    Reading the title of the draft, I think a small part of my soul suddenly left my body.


    The title was, and I quote [Shotacon Prince Detective Gets Captured by the Mysterious Lustful Thief and Forced into Lewd Acts!]


    I heard that in the literacy world, it is very difficult to create something original.


    ...I didn''t know people would have to stoop to such a low point.


    Ignoring the absurdly long name that made no sense, I''m able to accept being called feminine by Jessica because that was what most of my clients wanted: a pretty boy, yet I never thought I would be called something akin to a child.


    Maybe it was my youthful look? I am barely 18, so for most countries, that would make sense?


    But the most concerning part about my life and what is about to happen to me is when it''s titled ''Captured by the Mysterious Lustful Thief and Forced into Lewd Acts.''


    A lustful thief, is she secretly planning to rob me¡­ I feel like it''s trying to allude to a feeling of loss.


    The next troubling matter was ''Forced into Lewd Acts''


    What was she going to do?


    My head was starting to feel a small ringing noise when I realize she brought high heels, candles, a fleshlight and many more weird items.


    I TOTALLY DON''T FEEL SCARED OR WORRIED ABOUT MY FATE.


    From the branding and tone of the candle, it should be for wax play and shouldn''t be a normal candle that would burn you with hot wax, this model seemed more of a low temperature type used for sensual play.


    Another worrying part was the latex equipment used for BDSM.


    I don''t mind BDSM but it shouldn''t be trusted with an amateur like Ruri who would probably bruise me in an instant, it surprisingly takes a lot of practice to hit someone without permanently hurting them or leaving a mark.


    ...Wait, that didn''t come out right¡­.I swear I''m a good person that doesn''t like to abuse people¡­

 140 Justice Will Always Prevail

    I-I need to read the main highlights before I start jumping to more conclusions that will make me run away from this house.


    My eyes skipped over the lines of words and¡­ it was interesting.


    Just kidding, it seemed like hell...


    The actions described that I would have to recreate¡­ were terrifying.


    A man can be humiliated and ridiculed as long as there is enough money to compensate but doing it again¡­ why is it so embarrassing?


    It was very rare for my clients to have the desire to conquer a man since most just wanted some quick pleasure or they were interested in just generic sex.


    In the rare times that they are interested in dominating a man, it makes me question how far I''ll go for money.


    I don''t mind it because it''s nice to change a few things once in a while but reading this script with numerous possibilities of¡­ weird acts is already embarrassing enough, let alone actually doing it.


    How can Ruri be so shameless when saying these lines?


    One part was telling me to run and make an escape, erasing any contacts I have with this place but a hand grasped my shoulder.


    "Hehe, where do you think you''re going" The laughter was filled with a grim tone and looking behind me, Ruri had a smile that didn''t exactly reflect happiness or joy.


    "W-wait, my heart isn''t ready."


    "Too late."


    My fate was already sealed. Dragged off into the dark room, my pride and dignity was being placed on the line.


    ¡­.


    Hmm, not exactly in the best of situations.


    My sight is currently blinded with a blindfold that obstructed my sight, forcing my senses to become a lot more sensitive to the things that I would usually not notice because of sight.


    Arm restrained by the handcuffs that forced my two limbs to be lifted into the air, embracing the cold. From what I last saw, it was made out of latex and had intimidating yet soft spikes coming out.


    I was forced into clothes like a doll and wore a new wardrobe without any resistance.


    Before the handcuffs, I was forced to wear a puffy brown cap that seemed perfect for the stereotypical dying artist and a formal suit wear, consisting of a tie and white shirt.


    A blindfold soon obscured my sight but I could feel that I was wearing some sort of long pants, whether it was brown, black, rainbow, I don''t know.


    One thing I know is that this is pretty comfy.


    I like this so far.


    "Ah, how the mighty prince detective, Kei has fallen from grace."


    I hate this so far


    Regret instantly bit into my heart as I had to speak the words or else I''ll lose my customer and reputation: "W-who are you."


    My back felt delicate fingers running across it and a soft sensation was smothered onto my spine and the warm breath of someone, lingered on my neck: "Fufufu, I have finally gotten you. Do you still not know who I am, after all this time you haven''t picked up my clues?


    A finger climbed up my back, walking across my shoulder before lifting up my chin: "I-I still have no clue, just unhand me already. You''ll be arrested if you try doing anything funny against me!"


    "I think it''s too late for that."


    Ruri inserted her leg so that her knee was between my legs and gave enough stimulation to make me excited.


    The subtle touches were already giving me a pleasant experience with the extra stimulus of not seeing anything: "Ah, wait a minute¡­ don''t put your leg there."


    I couldn''t see anything but laughter erupted from behind me: "Oh my, such defiance already. It seems I''m going to have to teach you how to act like a good subdued boy."


    END MY EMBARRASSMENT RIGHT NOW!!!


    There was a desire to immediately scream my disapproval but my lips were sealed tight by Ruri''s lips and she continued to further her intimidation tactic by licking my cheek and molesting me.


    This¡­ I didn''t know she was interested in this.


    My pants were being unzipped and immediately discarded.


    ...What a waste.


    Ruri grasped my spear, but it refused to get out of its sheath and was similar to a small snake: "Stop struggling, continue being cheeky and this thing gets it. At least this little thing seems to be honest."


    ''little thing''...I want my dignity back.


    My internal strife didn''t stop Ruri''s progressive touches that fondled my private parts and started to undress my suit. It was a new experience for my nipples to be caressed, is this what girls feel?


    The unusual feeling started to make my dick harden but I heard Ruri''s whisper once more: "This little guy is starting to act unruly like you, looks like I should start training you seriously."


    A soft sensation of lips touched the very tip of my ''head'' and swallowed the whole rod in one whole go while the weight of Ruri suddenly pressed against my legs.


    This was weird.


    There was no foreplay and Ruri had suddenly threw herself onto me.


    Another factor to add to that was that the tight sensation felt a little...different? She had only been caressing me for a few minutes yet she was very wet.


    Was she masturbating and jumping straight into the act so that I would come first?


    A competitive spirit rose from me, deciding that I would reign supreme in this area, my tenacious will refused to suddenly face a lost and be humiliated by Ruri: "Justice will always prevail!"


    ¡­


    I kinda feel betrayed¡­


    For a second there, Ruri became much more rough and increased her rhythm. It was odd as she was never exactly one who was extremely fit and held a lot of stamina and usually liked to be rough only when it was in the outdoors.


    Her breathing became uneven and faster while the tightness of her lower lips became unbearable. I swore that she was on the verge of having an orgasm which I was able to time perfectly, to both be in sync.


    Is what I thought...

 141 Pranked

    My hands wanted to grasp her curves and hold her tight but they were obviously chained and hung above my head that restrained me from making any exaggerated movement, it was extremely useful when Ruri explained something to me.


    "Pranked!" The tone contained a type of contempt, light humor and joy when my blindfold was removed.


    It wasn''t too difficult to adjust to the lighting as it was dark, I was able to see the outline of Ruri''s body.


    She was currently facing my body and flashed a large smile for me to see.


    Her clothes consisted of a tight black suit that covered the whole of her body from shoulders to feet along with a white cloth, similar to a surgeons that covered her mouth and a black beanie.


    If she had a black mask covering her eyes would she seem like the stereotypical robber.


    This was quite alrightuntil I finally saw the reason for why she had that smug smile glued onto her face and a voice akin to a prideful noble.


    Currently, her delicate fingers was in front of her¡­ holding a fleshlight.


    This was the origin for the sudden betrayal I faced and it was far too cruel.


    I thought I was satisfying my partner with my heartfelt, sincere services but she was secretly playing with those feeling by using a sex toy to substitute it.


    All her moans were fake, all the emotions were fake¡­


    Playing with people''s hearts was my living yet I''m being taken advantage of.


    I absolutely hate the feeling of having no control.


    Pushing Ruri off my legs, I tried to run out of the room but the handcuffs were unusually strong despite being plastic that should be easy to tear apart but no matter how much strength I put on them, they wouldn''t break.


    I had enough of this and wanted to just give up on this client: "You''re too cruel, let me go already."


    According to the script, it was supposed to be voiced in an embarrassed tone filled with sadness and riddled with disappointment but I don''t think I had enough effort to care about this script anymore.


    In a deadpan voice, I already spoke out my emotions, avoiding to start lashing out at her.


    Ruri seemed to have already predicted that I would be angry at her decision to act deceitful which was why she did something I never expected.


    She suddenly gave a deep kiss before speaking words that were never in the script: "I''m sorry"


    This prideful yet shameless girl actually apologized?


    Her tone was full of sincerity and honesty while the features on her face showed that she was clearly apologetic and regretted that she took the job too far.


    I was very tempted to just take my leave from meeting this customer but this was a wake up call.


    Rash decisions will lead to my demise and she was one of the sources of the reason for why I''m able to live a consistent life.


    Her patronage and kindness for taking my services was already enough to quell my anger but it was very important as a type of partner to discuss over sex.


    Communication is key.


    Talk with your partner what are some red flags and always ask permission if you decide to try something different.


    This was a wakeup call to remind myself that I wasn''t an immature child from the past that could only wallow in regret and cry at sudden losses.


    I wasn''t that idiot who would get taken advantage of and be blackmailed.


    As someone who will eventually become part of society, take up responsibility and not be blinded by anger.


    Is what I would like to say but there was still one little bit of me that still held a grudge despite fully comprehending this idea.


    In a quiet, hushed voice and my head turned away, I provided my response to her apology: "...Please don''t do that again."


    From my low voice and refusal to make eye contact, Ruri would''ve normally made fun of me by saying ''I''m sorry, I didn''t hear that, could you repeat that?'' multiple times until she was satisfied but it seems she realized her mistake "...Ok."


    Things were slowly becoming awkward and the script was slightly becoming deviated from what Ruri had originally created causing the room to be filled with silence.


    Trying to make everything alright and appease me, Ruri started to insert a conversation "Sooo¡­. How''s the weather?"


    If my hands were still free, I would slam my face into it at the awkwardness of Ruri but just wanted this to end: "Just finish the script."


    Ruri saw that I was less sensitive to what originally happened that caused me to be unhappy and did as I said: "It''s unfortunate that your dick is covered in lube."


    That was a good point, I''ve heard of edible lube but the prices¡­.


    But that wasn''t what she was trying to get at, my handcuffs were apparently tied onto something stuck to the roof of the room as it was able to hold up my arms but Ruri suddenly released that.


    She guided me slowly off the back before setting me on a comfy pillow.


    This was great!


    She stopped saying any cheesy lines, I don''t have to say any cheesy lines, life seems great.


    Except there was one problem...


    Why was she using her feet?


    Using her slender long legs, they were further highlighted with tight black socks that exuded a distinctively sexy charm and closed the gap between us.


    ...As if.


    It was a very odd sensation that I have never felt in two years, the sensation was odd because of the silk texture but the lube made the sensation have less friction.


    One second, her foot will be spinning my dick like a toy, another would be stuck between the soles of her feet and then her toes would do the same except her other foot would be used to poke me.

 142 I Think There Was Some Fishy Stuff Going On

    Is this what people get excited about?


    I mean, I''ve heard of the legendary foot fetish that some people have but this sensation is¡­ odd?


    The different ways she jacked me off was indeed very interesting but to describe the situation most appropriately, I would need to have a good comparison.


    To sum it up - it was basically a weird handjob but with problems.


    New texture, that was quite nice.


    Innovative movement, that''s interesting.


    But the unsteady movement of Ruri''s feet that seemed slow at some times and the poor attempts at teasing me just think of trying to masturbate with your non-dominant hand.


    The previous reason was why I lost interest in this and if I wanted to ejaculate, I would need to grasp her soles and move it myself as they were too slow but Ruri had other plans.


    She wanted to end this with partners enjoying this at the end of the day and finally released my handcuffs.


    Yay, I''m free!


    Although we both deviated from the original script, I think we both learnt a little about each other.


    I''m still trying to avoid my trauma and Ruri is extremely kinky, I feel that last part should''ve been noted a long time ago.


    Either way, to finally end this tiresome session with a bang, we got into the missionary position, and even with the lube, I could tell that Ruri was holding herself back from the wetness of her lower lips.


    Aiii~ this was such a great time, we soon both arrived to nearly the point of climaxing due to the buildup of foreplay on my end and Ruri enduring her lust.


    Her voice started to yearn to have an orgasm and I followed up by increasing my pace.


    Everything sounded like a great time until: "Hey Ruri - WTF."


    The door was temporarily opened before being slammed shut, that slightly frightened me but as a professional, the job must first be done and Ruri had gotten what she desired.


    White liquid soon poured out from her which should be a triumphant thing to see and she moaned a little more loudly than I thought but there was one thing on my mind.


    Fuck, Fuck, Fuck, WHAT THE FUCK AM I GOING TO DO.


    ¡­.


    You see, it doesn''t matter to me about whether someone sees me despite the embarrassment but it matters more about the privacy of my customer.


    Whether she decides to brag about it and hopefully bring more customers or hide it, that is up to them.


    Ruri had intended that I was just a friend with a weird hobby rather than introducing me as a person who provided her ''services'' which already showed her position on the matter by avoiding my identity.


    So, what to do now?


    My partner was too busy immersed in pleasure to notice the problem while I just felt tired from the emotional roller coaster.


    I saw that she still had a bucket load of items she had yet to use such as that candle but I did feel a sense of joy for avoiding that object.


    With the remaining time I had, there wasn''t much I could do about that person who walked in on us which left me to just clean up the area.


    The bed sheets and pillows were fine on their own but these weird kinky objects had to be placed in Ruri''s closet or something.


    Once that was finished, I just joined Ruri by sleeping next to her.


    I couldn''t do much besides wait for what she wants to do.


    ¡­.


    "Arrggghh, how long have we been sleeping for?" The yawn equivalent to a beast reached my ear.


    This Ruri seemed a lot more normal compared to the sincere one.


    Dragging my tired body to the bed stand and going through the butler clothing, I finally found my phone.


    "Roughly 6:30, what do you wanna do?"


    "Hmmm, 6:30? I guess I''ll start working on my project."


    There was a little bit of concern on the fact that she didn''t mention anything about the person who walked in on us but I guess she was probably thinking of something to do.


    I just laze around in bed and played with my phone, texting my sister that I should be home by 9:00 while Ruri was typing up a storm on her laptop and took her phone out once in a while.


    My curiosity was piqued and I dragged myself to stand behind her chair.


    The images on her phones¡­ were interesting.


    One of them was the box full of kinky items and when she swiped to the next image, it was me tied up.


    Hmmm, I still look pretty good in that getup.


    No, I mean, this humiliating photo shouldn''t exist.


    Those were surprisingly the least of my worries and all the questionable lines I had to say were much kinder to me compared to past lines.


    But my main concern was what to do.


    When I asked Ruri, she gave the reply that solved the problem "I don''t know."


    She shrugged it off without any care and further explained that when the time comes to a confrontation, they would make up a lie on the spot.


    Hopefully it would work like that but I''m pretty sure the person who walked in on us was probably Jessica.


    She was the one who would say letters out in the open instead of the saying the phrase.


    *Knock**Knock*


    "We ordered pizza."


    Erica entered the room and saw Ruri typing on her computer while I was resting my arms atop her chair, once she saw that we both heard what she said did she leave.


    What was the point of knocking?


    We were both going to go to the kitchen and realized that Jessica was probably going to ask us what pizza we wanted but she saw something she wasn''t supposed to and left but Erica soon returned with a spray can.


    "The room smelt a little fishy. Here you go."

 143 2 Months And 2 Weeks Passed

    Ruri was laughing her ass off when Erica left while I was sweating bullets at the realization I hadn''t cleaned this place up properly by washing the bed sheets and opening the window.


    This made me sigh in regret and I was glad that she didn''t see me naked like Ruri with Jessica as I was wearing the weird clothes Ruri had dressed me up as. It was weird to think or phrase that thought as something typical but I guess this is what happens when you get too close to Ruri.


    You slowly get influenced and think at the same pace as her. Dinner was a variety of pizzas and I got to eat them for free. Erica random slices of pizzas onto her plate before dashing into her room and holing herself up in whatever she was doing.


    Jessica sent a few hurried glances towards our direction and blushed before rushing to her own room as well. The dinner table became much more quiet and at peace, something I was very used to but I at least had Ruri to accompany me.


    "What are we going to do about the ending?"


    Ruri suddenly asked a question which I wasn''t very sure how to answer. What ending? What are we putting to an end? I tried to think very carefully but when I recalled the script she wrote up, I wanted to cough out my food.


    The ending was very¡­ good? Something, something, the main character went missing¡­ that sounded pretty dark.


    I wanted to joke around on how Ruri avoided the subject and spoke: "Add Jessica to the story and say the cops found out the secret but shortly left, waiting for the detective to finish his business."


    That suggestion was just a joke but Ruri''s eyes began gleaming with gold and I swore for a moment that a light bulb popped out of her head: "Good idea."


    "W-wait, don''t actually-"


    It was a shame, for Ruri had already slammed her door shut and left me with all the pizza boxes. My services seemed to have suddenly come to an end at this point but the last thing I could do was at least take out one of the pizza boxes and place it in their recycling bin while the leftover pizza slices would be distributed into other boxes.


    I had originally taken my bag out because I thought Jessica would''ve kicked me out of the house but it was instead used because Ruri wanted to have her alone time. Writing a note, I soon left the house to continued whatever routine I had to do. My uncle should be arriving in 3 months if both our times should be free.


    This will be the last time I should ever have to associate or call those scumbags of a human being, relatives. Once subtracting the University fees I have saved up and paying off the debt I owe to uncle, it should round up somewhere in the 6 figures that I can keep.


    Aiii~ I should''ve asked for some coupons or any discounts from them before I left.


    ¡­


    [Make sure to keep eating good food and don''t always stay on your computer. Call me whenever]


    ^_^ Kei


    Once reading the message, Ruri pouted in dissatisfaction for his sudden departure "I was going to ask for an extension"


    ¡­.


    Roughly 2 months and 2 weeks had already passed by. Nothing eventful exactly happened but it could easily be summarized. As expected, the Image Club I desired to join was apparently far too popular with it''s customer as they barely made room to organize an interview in the next two weeks after I exited from Ruri''s home


    With this much spare time, I invested it into the porn industry. Amateur directors were keen to just shoot films without too much of a hassle and only a few documents that needed to be signed and read. They were really chill people and once you get ot know them well, they liked to introduce you to seniors or other directors.


    I slowly moved my way up the porn ladder... that doesn''t sound right. Anyways, I was later introduced to real experts and legendary seniors within the industry. It was actually a hassle.


    Piles upon piles of documents had to be signed, daily STI checks. Amazing angles that I''m sure the viewers would enjoy in their private time but tested the limits of what the actor or actress could do. It was sometimes painful to try and hold an erection for a couple of hours while the set had to be changed to fit any requirements.


    They crafted amazing storylines... for a porn movie. They were an overall enthusiastic group that wanted to revolutionize the industry, create groundbreaking titles that could forever change the way we see porn.


    Phrasing it like that kind of makes it sound weird. I was basically exhausted from all those scenes but there shouldn''t be too much room for rest. Any customers I had during those 2months and 2 weeks weren''t interesting but that was a tale for another day.


    The two weeks soon arrived and I could actually go to the Image Club. There was nothing out of place as I could definitely see that my competitors were also looking for a good place to work at as well as a stable wage.


    I''m not exactly gay as that''s one of my bottom lines but I could appreciate the beauty these people had. They had cleaned and well taken care of clothes to show off their appeal while other articles of clothing were supposed to be a sign of difference to make them stand out.


    Everyone here had at least the minimal looks of being average all the way to being above average. Some were slightly chubby while others were skinny. There were a variety of people that desired for a job like me but it was probably going to get competitive.


    Comparing looks, it would be impossible for anyone here to actually lose because everyone has their own tastes in people, there doesn''t exist that one perfect person with all the looks of the world combined.

 144 The Big Scary Interview

    One seemed to act like an irritable delinquent but doesn''t he know¡­ that having that specified loom will only limit his ability to work. If a customer requested a delicate young man to act as a shy cosplayer, this guy would probably never receive that part.


    Another was an edgy emo guy with a long fringe that covered one of his eyes that looked constantly depressed while looking on his phone. The world was full of wonders and I''m currently looking at two of them.


    Everyone else had nothing too significantly noticeable about them however that also served as a problem as they lacked a permanent mark that would stick to customers and create the desire for them to return. This wasn''t too much of a problem as they eventually could be molded intoa business figure that everyone wants to be.


    The real thing that the business wanted was the interview part. Although looks were important, as long as they weren''t outright disgusting or ugly, they would probably be fine.


    A man''s package doesn''t necessarily have to be a stupid length like a meter ruler that will have a difficult time trying to fit inside a customer however it must at least reach the requirement of average.


    Everyone here most likely qualifies that unless they were like Craig. But the one thing wanted to get out of us was who had a better personality. Would they be able to work under such conditions and not complain everyday?


    Are they able to work effectively, not cause drama in the workplace, etc. Those parts were indeed important but another important thing is the person''s circumstance.


    They wouldn''t like to hire a person who could only work for 2 days before having to transfer due to their schooling or have a person leave their child unattended at home, alone.


    Age was another matter when you''re working in an industry that could turn instantly illegal given a couple of arguments for an appeal. When there was a need for more workers, there shall of course be a supply and that''s where I should come in.


    The people went up, one by one, entering the room to show off what they got and earn themself a job but all of them exited the room with rather blank faces. None were extremely happy or sad, I believed that meant they wouldn''t make a decision now and tell you at a later date whether you made it or not.


    Few remained in the waiting area but it was finally my turn. There was a little fear in my heart when just thinking that I could fail this interview but my one reassurance is that I could refer to Him if I wanted more help with looking for a job. I could always try my luck in another place if necessary, I won''t lose anything by just trying.


    The people interviewing me was two men and a female. All of them were in suits and had a tidy appearance to show off their professional behavior. One of the men had a friendly smile and seemed to notice the other two people''s behavior as they were staring daggers at me.


    It felt suffocating to stare at their eyes but leaving a good impression was a must which was why I persisted in looking at them. Taking my seat, the interrogation should begin. The man in the middle seemed to be the one who would be leading the segment as he started: "Arisu Suzuki. Mr. Suzuki has been working in multiple industries such as brothels, Soap Lands, delivery health service as seen on his document."


    After addressing my experience, he spoke once more: "Your ability and experience is not doubted but what about your circumstances?"


    This was one of the annoying questions I had to answer because of the follow ups but I still answered "I have nothing going on in my life besides schooling that should affect my work life."


    "We already see in your report that you are affiliated with a school. Do you have a child at home that may interfere with work?"


    "No, I do not have a child." It was important to not get off on a tangent that avoids the main question and create an awkward atmosphere which was why I got straight to the point.


    The man fiddled with the piece of paper while the lady to his left was writing down the notes: "What about your parents? Do they understand or accept this situation."


    He mainly asked this question so that I wouldn''t suddenly drop out from this job if my parents interfere but it was an annoying question: "I don''t have parents."


    There was a silent pause in between my answer but the professionals seemed to regain their cool, they didn''t lack empathy but everyone has their own story and that is a fact. People go into debt, need money, University is too expensive, etc. Some may just like sex and have gifted looks, there are many people like that and that''s that.


    Nothing more, nothing less.


    "Do you have any hobbies?"


    "I think my one hobby would be cooking." Answering no once more would make me sound bland and boring but saying this mixes it up a bit. The man who seemed carefree and wasn''t paying attention spoke up: "Make me dinner some time then."


    The two other people glared at him which caused him to shut up immediately but the awkwardness in the room was less noticeable.


    They continued to ask more questions that involved my personal qualities and what I was going to do with the money.


    To end the segment, they asked two last questions.


    "Do you understand the clear difference between your professionalism and personal life?"


    "I understand that they are only customers and I shouldn''t pursue a further development than that outside of this job."


    "Good, our last question for the day. What is the main goal you should serve at this company?"

 145 Questionable Customers You Should Never Ge

    "What is the main goal you should serve at this company?"


    That was a very good question but there were too many areas where you could answer this question. Any answer would be good such as "To be a good employee" "Treat our customer with care", etc.


    From the previous question they asked me, there was just one answer that should be able to sate and appropriately define myself: "The most important thing, as my goal, is to make sure my customer enjoys themself."


    What was the point of hiring a trashy person who just seems to be driven by hormones and can''t even care about their partner. Someone like that would probably be the first person to get an STI that wasn''t from birth.


    I was able to exit the room but I could hear their voices behind me.


    "Did you record some notes, I need to review that during my overtime tomorrow."


    "Yep, I''ve already organized some folders for their profiles."


    "Good, and you should stop acting so sleepy, these people will start thinking that our company''s full of slackers."


    "Why? I''m not getting paid overtime, let me get some sleep for the next one, okay."


    For a moment, I thought I heard a chair being thrown across the room but that was most likely only my imagination. They briefly told me that they should be able to send emails to everyone whether they have been accepted or not by next week due to filtering out most people.


    I can imagine that they would first get rid of the people who fail to have good values. An example would be seeing a customer after hours, for other jobs this may seem natural but for a company, this is a loss of revenue.


    Although small compared to the many branches a company could have, it is still a loss and could bring forth problems if the employee is unable to work due to ''satisfying his wife'' or something similar to that. I have finished my interview and the main serious part which was why the rest of the time would be used for talking with my own customers.


    There weren''t too many interesting customers. Most of them were just curious girls that probably heard of my name on a forum which was why they contacted me.


    It wasn''t fun at most times. Some lacked any sexual drive and instead just desired on trying to understand what a loving boyfriend should be and how a relationship should be established. I would''ve pushed my fake glasses up my nose and start giving a lecture but unfortunately, I didn''t have them on me.


    For those types of people, I gave advice on how to establish trust, and locate what they are trying to get out of a relationship, why would they want a relationship, etc. Others had interesting tales that seemed close to straight up abuse which was left with Miss N.


    They were an alright group of people who experienced trouble or confused and lack knowledge on where to start with. I guess it''s similar to the health world? One day you''ll see an article that says eating coconuts is more nutritious and can give a person longevity but the next will suddenly say you''ll get cancer.


    I''m not sure which of the two is a truth but I can understand where my customers are coming from. And not in that way. One of them even showed me an article with hints suggesting that their boyfriend was cheating on them.


    I wanted to slam my palm onto my face as she was literally hiring a prostitute to answer that. If her boyfriend knew, wouldn''t he think you would be cheating? I overall recommended her to just communicate with her boyfriend and confront him and his friends for any information.


    To make things more reassuring she can always just look through his phone for any weird messages or phone calls.Although it was disappointing that I didn''t get to have sex within that one week, on the off chance I actually had a customer interested, I realized she was just a disappointment.


    At first, this customer was very polite and seemed very well mannered but when she entered the bedroom, she was slightly weird. She started it off with a footjob which I guessed she was just interested in?


    I mean customers have their own interests, so I was fine with this except it was odd as her technique seemed much more refined when I compared it to Ruri. This seems all nice and dandy, right? WRONG!


    My precious family jewels were at one point being played delightfully before a sudden exponential pressure started to slowly crush it. I yelled in pain for the lady to stop but she continued further.


    I wasn''t a tool or toy that the lady could just use. Pushing her away, I promptly asked her for why she rashly did that her response was very interesting as I could still remember what she said: "Didn''t I pay for your services? Don''t I get your body for the 1 hour?"


    Theoretically, that was correct. You are paying for my sexual services in which I should be giving you whatever you desire. But even murderers, thieves, the low lifes of the world and I at least have bottom lines that should never be passed.


    Anything that involves my anus is a definite one. You would need to pay a very hefty fine to try and even do anything to it. The main problem I had with what this lady thought was the morals of another person and their low line.


    My job is to guide a person to try and have the most pleasure they can have. If that involves the case where they need to take party pills to sate their desires or make me permanently hurt them, then I would never want to make a deal with that customer ever again.


    I''ve heard of the dumbest fetishes people have, one involved amputating your limbs for pleasure. AMPUTATING YOUR LIMBS. A healthy body basically being thrown away because of someone''s stupid desire. That was definitely a low line for me when the lady didn''t even care about her partner''s health as she answered somewhat pridefully to my anguish.

 146 Guidance by a Guide Who Is Guiding

    Feeling that you own someone, what a sick disgusting human being. These customers were the worst you can have, she suddenly tried to grab my collar but could only yank on my tie: "Listen here, I bought your services with my money and I should naturally get my worth."


    Slapping her hand off my tie, she released her hand but I know it was fruitless to even try and argue with an insane person like this. The time where I stood on the dangerous streets, in the middle of the night to even try to make money in the cold was a long time ago, but that was the place where you could find weird people.


    Not all were like this person, some were extremely kind, some just wanted a quick transaction but on the off chance you get a scammer, it was a sick game. They would run off with your money, rob you in your sleep, and the worst was when they felt like they could abuse you.


    At the time, I wasn''t able to eat much as most of the money was reserved for my little sister. Older women could easily beat me, punch me, thrash me and abuse me because I was simply too weak.


    I''ve heard many tales of fellow prostitutes who were desperate to make money but in the end, we''re later killed. Most people just see us as dregs of society and don''t consider this a real job. We''re not even considered as humans!


    This woman knows how to easily anger people. If she tried to grab a nearby book and whack it on my head, whether I could stay alive or die was all up to her. Not willing to accept such a possibility, I smacked her face to try and leave her in shock and only give external wounds that would only temporarily be there inside of punching her which could leave bruises.


    I took my phone and started to record it. Placing it up on a stand to record the event that was about to begin, I prepared for any attacks that will come my way and the barrage of poor wording.


    Aiii~ I truly do hate the feeling my skin being bitten, my hair being pulled, sharp nails embedding into my stomach and high heel kicks to the abdomen. Was it painful?Of course it was. But the most painful parts were just the cliche lines.


    "Damn greedy whore, something, something."


    I think Ruri could at this point create more original lines that would seem more memorable than the idiot before me. Just thinking about her really boils my blood. Customers sure are number 1 but doesn''t mean they are above the law.


    Jeez, what was my response? "Something, something, I got this on video, go to the police, I dare you."


    I took my stuff, blocked her number and when the time comes where she may actually call the police, I''ve got video evidence as well as pictures of the attack against me. If I took it to the police, so much time making money would be lost because of some idiot woman.


    Aii~ I got off pretty lucky compared to a bad customer from when I was on the streets who gave me cuts from a beer bottle, my hips were out of shape at the time and I had to ask Senior for some money that I was soon able to pay off.


    That was so far the only eventful thing that happened in that 1 week and I soon received some good new. The Image Club accepted my resume! Such good news was to be celebrated but that sounded like a waste of money but the next 1 month and 2 weeks working there was similar to hell at one point.


    A senior at the company summarized the major parts of the company which consisted of our department filled with sex workers but the others were extremely important such as the advertising department and the financial department.


    Those two were extremely important in creating a successful business. Advertising to prove that our company is better than ours and is far superior will bring a variety of customers and the financial department was also very important.


    They were the ones who decided what to spend on what and how much budget it should receive. An example would be that during the most stressful time of a nearby university, they can provide discounts to attract and cater to that group that could even add a new demographic to the business.


    Aii~ the power of discounts are too powerful. Compared to what some people think, the surface level of this business isn''t just ''have sex and call it a real job'' there is a surprising amount of research and behind the scenes that contribute to success.


    I recently heard of a statistic that the birthrate of this country is going down¡­ I hope it isn''t because of us. They tried showing off resting rooms where we could wait until being called out but we are usually scheduled for certain times ahead of time. Other appointments may spontaneous which is why they recommend to just come anyways.


    I quite liked the clean area and they made sure to guide us to the rooms and how to read the numbers such as F5 N3, etc. It would stand for floor 5 and room 3 but below would be what the customer desires.


    The person then showed us compartments within rooms where all the equipment may be. Inside a classroom, at the very back in the cupboards would contain the costumes and the company placed cleanliness once all the objects have been used. They stressed importance in placing used objects into a box at the back.


    Another important thing the guide told us was for amateurs as he mentioned "Do not interact with customers that aren''t yours when heading to your room".


    This was mainly due to privacy and it would be quite embarrassing knowing that you''re about to meet a prostitute and someone suddenly talks to you.

 147 The Big Button You Shouldnst Press

    The introduction was great and everyone understood what their roles was but the work for 2 months and 2 weeks weren''t that great. I didn''t meet any rude customers from my own service but that didn''t mean I had yet to experience any unruly customers.


    There was one incident where my customer was too curious. You know how they say don''t press the red button, the girl saw a big blue button on the wall and decided to press on it despite not listening to my words.


    That button was to signify an incident has happened in the room that may include the danger of either the host, customer or both in which, pressing this button would be the quickest method to do so.


    If a weapon was pointed to your customer''s head, I wouldn''t think it''s a bright idea when you smash glass to try and press the button as you will also gain the attention of danger besides the loud noise.


    An even worse idea would be to place a command code or password on a keypad while you were in danger and all you could hear in the room was just *beep* *beep*, each with a slow pause in the middle so you wouldn''t get the password wrong. Just thinking about such a poor design was infuriating me but it was fine.


    My only fortune was that the guide required us to memorize a key code that could be used to cancel out the message of the button. At the time, I was wiping sweat off my head as I didn''t want to experience the thought of dozens of men, swatting the room and realizing it was just us.


    That was¡­ definitely an experience. That was probably the most annoying thing I have experienced but there were always some good things to this job. The company was planning to make a porn video and they brought in multiple co-workers to act as actors in the background.


    It was supposed to be one of those cheesy ones with catchy starting lines however there wouldn''t be anything too special about the sex scenes.My job was just to mess around with my phone for an hour while dressed in formal clothing and a random suitcase next to my leg.


    I was still getting paid and it didn''t involve any strenuous labor or emotional distress for another person. The only annoyance would be the attempt to sit still while the two people would have sex. Apparently, the script was about a person who has sex but never gets notice.


    I can just imagine the cheesy lines "The one location that will fill all your desires." in an extremely seductive tone to bring in customers. The company had more control in brothels while Image Clubs were not exactly their forte. This building said otherwise but compared to other property, that makes sense.


    Building Complex and Apartments filled with sex workers under different jurisdiction, located in many prefectures, it made me proud to associate with such a powerful company. This time, it wouldn''t close for some ridiculous, unprofessional reason.


    The main control the company has is over the variety of brothels they have. Brothels that tend to the need of women, brothels that tend to the need of men, etc. There are some really weird brothels with special people and people that love to visit those places.


    Not discriminating anything but I''ve heard of trans brothels. I mean, if that''s your thing, go ahead,


    But that wasn''t the worst type of brothel I have heard. The utterly worst one was, and I quote "A Married woman brothel" and "A Pregnant woman brothel". There were so many things wrong with what I saw, to actually think those types of places existed, I''m pretty sure my co-workers would be surprised that the company owned some of those places.


    The pregnant brothel was a weird concept that seemed to be very short live and seemed more suited for woman who were desperate to make that one last bit of money before eventually giving birth to life. It sounded like a nuisance hiring someone who can only work for a couple of months at best before they quit.


    Imagine all the paperwork. But a Married woman brothel, imagine going there and meeting your wife¡­ the lawsuits that would proceed to happen, please don''t influence my customers. It overall seemed weird to just think that your soulmate, partner, your loved one that you devote everything for was making money by selling their body.


    If I was in that situation, I would absolutely never resort to that level of desperation but I should keep in mind that everyone has their own situations and circumstances that could cause this. I got it, the man is probably one of those people who likes NTR¡­ I forgot to ask Senior about fetishes, didn''t I.


    Aiii~ just thinking about all those complicated stuff is giving me a headache but I still need to finish what I did within 2 months and 2 weeks. What else did I do¡­


    I meant a variety of customers and I just realized that the wrinkly feeling of an elderly woman is extremely strange and uncomfortable but you''ll eventually get used to the sensation. It wasn''t exactly pleasant but money is money.


    An Image Club was basically a brothel but allows more immersion for fantasy to summarize it to the most basic thing. They create rooms based solely on a situation or place that allows the customers to feel like they can do something they want to but can''t in real life.


    An example of this was when some customers fell in love with their doctors or therapists due to their dedication for saving their lives and making their life overall better. Morally, it was wrong to take advantage of such customers as we are feeding an unhealthy thought.


    Some professional people do not allow relationships, some sign contracts that forbid them from interacting with patients in a personal relationship which is due to some moral obligation. Such as not committing immoral practices.

 148 Popular Rooms

    It was kinda worrying, seeing the customers immerse themselves into a delusional thought. This was apparently a fruitless worry as one second, I saw my customer enjoying the time of her life and in the very next, she acted like nothing happened and exited the Image Club once she finished what she came here for.


    I think most of the customers that come here are mainly due to the excitement of having sex in a place you wouldn''t usually go to instead of dressing up in weird clothes. I''m not really sure someone can proudly say "I fucked in a classroom."


    If someone says that¡­ sever all relationships with such a person and make sure they don''t make you end up in jail due to their ridiculous shenanigans. It should be especially noted if they just out of nowhere say that in a random conversation.


    The main point I was trying to make was that you could order rooms with an escort and go at it in a room of their choosing. Whether it be a classroom, library, office, airplane, etc. You should just enjoy yourself and ponder the idea that you can do something you wouldn''t normally do.


    It was a little worrying, realizing that one of the most popular rooms ordered was a classroom. I can only hope that they want to feel their youth again¡­ and nothing else, definitely not anything that could be illegal.


    The classroom orders were quite fun and the customers would always ask for different treatments, positions and toys to make their experience much more interesting. Desks and chairs would be layered in a tidy manner within the room to increase the realism while all the toys were located at the back.


    Anytime a customer would order an airplane modeled room, I could always hear some of my coworkers make jokes that make me question the ages of them "Hehe, they''re going to a cockpit."


    ....I wonder when I might resign?


    The airplane modeled rooms weren''t even designed off of the cockpits but the commercialized seats and long hallways. Toys and clothes were hidden in the compartment above the seats that customers could use.


    I tried looking through the books in the fake libraries of the Image Club''s rooms and they were pretty neat. They were most likely recycled books that had a few ripped pages but were all mostly outdated and would''ve been burned or disposed of. This was an interesting way of reusing them.


    Overall, the 2 months and 2 weeks gave plenty of knowledge for me and treated me quite well for being introduced into a new area of this industry. I was quite glad that my seniors also liked me and there was no work enmity.


    The company was really interesting as they opted for more teamwork goals by setting up a milestone for reaching a certain amount of customers within a certain amount of time and once it was reached, everyone could celebrate.


    Being a sex worker has a limited lifespan, once you reach a certain age or lose your appeal, you can be discarded. This company tried to make good use for such workers by giving workshops that can help people learn finance.


    Why hire new people when you can make your own, especially people who understand the industry very well. Not only will they earn the loyalty of workers, it makes good use of their knowledge and give those that were forced into this industry to try and have some sort of saving grace.


    With all these benefits, I can believe that this is a good company but that''s enough about the 2 months and 2 weeks. It should be all about the present! Youth is fleeting and you should live life to the fullest!


    ...Is what I want to say but being inside a porn shop isn''t really convincing. Wait¡­ I don''t think I phrased it right. No, I did, but it just was explained out of nowhere.


    What I''m currently here for is due to my new release of a porn video I took part in and to look for some very old videos that I once starred in. I thought it would be a great idea to make some use and commemorate them as they would eventually be hidden by the thousands of porn movies that will be released every month.


    I bought a few discs but I realized the store was a lot more empty than I once thought it was. I remember the time when CDs and DVDs were the jam, don''t even get me started on VHS tapes that I would always watch when I got bored after school.


    Those were definitely the days, so why did it have to end so soon? Anyways, I soon bought the porn movies for commemoration value and soon left for a bookshop. My next destination was that because I heard Ruri had recently released a new book that I could read.


    I didn''t exactly pay attention to the title of the Cat Butler script but after the incident with the extended title of being a detective, I decided to make it a habit to actually read her titles. Once arriving to the bookshop, it was slightly popular but I finally made my way to find Ruri''s section.


    I would ask for a drumroll to create some hype for the book but once I read the title, I realized that it was much more mild compared to her others. The book was simply titled [An Ancient Cat Butler Spirit Takes a Lady on a Date]. When compared to the detective book, the title was much shorter and more simple.


    I quite liked it and quickly glossed through the first few pages. Words upon words passed my eyes and once in a while, there would be some illustrated images of what the characters would supposingly look. A bland normal girl with black hair and some random hot guy as the Cat Butler.