Free Web NovelChapter 49: First Victim
"What’s with these bastards?" Moon exclaimed now that he had thrown his second punch, landing it perfectly in the center of the assailant’s face. freewebnσvel.cøm
He was just walking, lost in thought when two figures lunged at him.
He was just thinking about things. He had a lot of things to think about, walking around slowly, but for the second time... some random bastard interrupted him.
First was Roran, and now these two.
’A hierarchy must be established.’ He nodded to himself; he just needed to wait for a few more days before beating everyone up good.
They needed to learn about how this world works, or so he thought, as someone who had yet to learn how this world works.
’Where was I?’ he thought...
After a few more times, he failed to remember... he was just thinking about something important, but without a warning he felt a sudden but extremely faint sting on his back, similar to that time he sensed Echo for the first time.
He moved on a reflex, but now his eyes fell on the two he had just beaten to the ground.
’What were they trying to do, get their Echo sealed?’ Moon tried to make sense of the situation.
He walked toward the nearest of them, the one with daggers.
Moon squatted near his face. "Hey bitch, you can’t sleep here," but there wasn’t a reaction.
For a moment, he looked at his fists, admiring them, admiring himself, but for now, he decided he’d take some time to admire these fists of his more later... for now.
He looked at the face, peacefully sleeping on the ground with a trail of blood leaking from the mask.
The face was too appealing, and he couldn’t hold himself back any longer.
He opened his hand wide, deciding that he would no longer hold back; his palm whipped the air.
SLAP. freeweɓnovēl.coɱ
Before a slap rang, stamping the face with a complete 5-finger palm of red on the light-toned face...
"Haah, haaa." Startled, he forced his body up with his arms and started to drag away from Moon.
Moon leaned forward, stopping him in his tracks. "Where do you think you’re going?"
Basil wasn’t sure what happened, nor what was going on at this very moment; his mind failed to comprehend the situation halfway through.
Moon’s eyes fell on the poor assailant, studying him for a moment. "Your weapon is there, and your Echo doesn’t seem to be sealed either..." he wondered.
Did the system fail... no no, that was impossible... maybe they just failed to pose real danger for the system to activate the penalty.
He shook his head. Now he understood more about the unaffiliated bastards who come here.
But that wasn’t important now; what mattered was that this happened amidst the crowd, and now everyone was watching even though they were keeping their distance.
’It’s my time to shine.’ With that thought taking over, he smiled to Basil, who was still nameless to him.
His smile betrayed his naturally gentle features, coming out too hideously, especially to the still startled Basil.
He pointed at Barrett a little further away. "Wake this bitch up for me, will you?"
While Basil was busy waking up his poor brother, across from the crowd, Colten was standing with his group.
He was stunned, for a moment at least... He thought he was a pushover; not a slight sense of Echo was felt from him.
He usually assessed people based on their Echo, how much he feels from them and the sense it gives off, but this was completely new to him.
He couldn’t help laughing, "This is unexpected," even if his comment was brief.
The others surrounding him were not as puzzled, except for the older man among them.
His eyes were fixed on Moon since his first reflex; it was not the reflexes of someone who never received training or went through a battlefield.
They were sure he was affiliated, but unless he named his affiliation, they could still do whatever they wanted.
On Moon’s side, Barrett was finally awake, but Basil was gentler than Moon; that much was evident on his face that lacked the palm stamp.
But he wasn’t the least bit less startled than Basil. He looked at Moon, his unwavering smile, and knew his time was nearing an end.
"Alright kids, how about we start with the first question?" Moon stood.
He approached them slowly, placing his thumb over his index.
Creak.
"Can I know who sent you, poor bastards, after me?" he asked politely.
But the answer didn’t come from them; behind him, under the gaze and murmur of the masses, a voice rang.
"Hey there, I did," Colten spoke while walking leisurely, approaching Moon.
Murmurs erupted amongst the masses.
"Colten?"
"Colten of the azure flame."
"This is a well reputable clan."
"Indeed."
"Though their influence has yet to expand."
"Look this way."
"Their combat arts are praised everywhere though."
While the crowd was talking, they also didn’t forget to mention the man by his side.
"Is that the personal knight of Lord Colten?"
"Sir Abshi."
A few girls even praised his looks. "Sir Abshi is looking at me." Way too overwhelmingly.
Praising his looks didn’t stop; his very short black hair and angular face seemed to attract some attention, add to that the fact that he was in his mid-20s.
Abshi’s hands were rested on his sword hilt, giving his knight’s elegance look.
Though the fact that the two of them came at the same time remained a mystery. A few spoke of how luck could carry a few beyond the skies, or slam them across the dirty floors, like Basil and Barrett.
Moon wasn’t bothered by bystanders in the slightest; he turned around, looking Colten in the eye. "Oh, so it was you. How about we start negotiating then?" he offered.
Colten looked amused. "Is there something you want from me?" He pointed his finger at his own chest in question.
"You don’t mind if I take these two idiots, right?" Moon pointed at Basil and Barrett.
Colten looked puzzled; he didn’t expect such a weird demand. What were these two useful for anyway? But he had yet to confirm the affiliation issue.
Moon didn’t wait for him; he had been eager for a first victim to fall into his hands willingly, and now he got two and potentially six more.
He turned to the two assailants on the floor, completely ignoring Colten’s consent. "You two are no longer working for this bastard." He pointed at Colten. "Starting today, you work for me."
Under his intense gaze, the duo found themselves trapped between bad and worse; their eyes darted between Moon and Colten.
"How dare you?" One of the followers of Colten, a blond guy, shouted at Moon. "Do you dare insult Lord Colten?" He unsheathed his sword, ready to attack.
At this moment, a palm slammed onto his face.
Slap.
A slapping sound rang; it was Colten’s hand. "When did I allow you to speak?"
"I-I-I apol-"
"Silence," Colten warned him, his voice low and threatening.
The follower broke in a cold sweat, not daring to raise his eyes again. Moon watched the scene.
"Impressive." He clapped a couple times. "You do know how to assert hierarchy."
Moon was speaking truthfully; though he didn’t agree with Colten’s methods or his way of doing things... His authority over his followers was absolute.
"So, where were we? I heard your name is Moon." Colten tried to win him over first, now that he was sure he was useful.
"My name is Col-" Trying to introduce himself, Colten was cut off.
ACHOOOOO~
