Chapter 15: Predator
Asher rushed out from his room, his newly forged C-Rank, and Celestial-Tier physique making him incredibly light on his feet, almost running down the stairs, and stopping in the sitting room. Kelly was still eating on the dining table, completely immersed in the culinary bliss he had provided, not even bothered about the gunshot.
Juliana was already on her feet, her Heaven-Tier sword in hand. The gangster queen within her had fully awakened, eager to paint the living room with the intruders’ blood. She turned to him, her eyes gesturing to the door, waiting for his command instead of blindly charging forward, which was a first.
Asher simply gave her a small nod, a silent promise that he was taking control of this, and turned to Sara. She sat calmly on the couch, entirely unfazed by the sudden vibration of the gunshot, reading her book. Like sensing his gaze, she looked up from her book, and turned her gaze towards him.
Asher stared at her black eyes. The serene depth in her gaze was a stark contrast to the violence brewing outside. He couldn’t say anything, as she lived in a world of total silence, so he just pointed at the closed door.
Sara turned her head to the door, and remembering their conversation on the porch where he promised to handle this exact situation, she closed the book, and stood up.
Seeing her action, Asher took a deep breath, feeling the dense, powerful golden energy settling comfortably in his new core, and exhaled, then walked towards the door. Juliana quickly followed behind him, her grip on the white scabbard tightening, her gaze filled with killing intent. Sara slowly followed behind them; she was following out of pure curiosity, wondering how the E-Rank boy she married intended to stop a mob.
Asher placed his hand on the handle, and opened the door without a shred of hesitation. Coming into view, and standing on their lawn were men. Fat Pig and a middle-aged man stood before the thirty armed men, their gazes filled with satisfaction, rage, and disdain. They had come to completely crush the outcasts.
"Hmm...."
He moved his gaze around the neighborhood, his eyes cold and analytical. There was a community rule; no guns are allowed inside. But these people were openly armed with guns and other lethal weapons. Not only that, the community security let them in, proving that in this era, rules only applied to the weak.
"Is that the guy---"
The middle-aged man froze mid-sentence, the arrogant smirk wiped clean off his face, staring at Sara, who calmly walked out from the house, standing on Asher’s right. Her ethereal beauty was unmistakable, even under the dim porch light.
"Isn’t that Sara Stafford?" He asked himself in profound shock.
Sara was a legend in the Awakener’s world, and circle, widely known as the youngest SSS-RANK Awakener, and also the Fire Goddess. She was someone every awakener looked up to with absolute reverence and fear, but after the tragic incident three years ago, everyone simply forgot about her, casting her aside like broken machinery.
And now...
’Wait... The Fire Goddess married a useless guy from the Starfire family. Is this guy Asher?’ He thought in shock. The Starfire family wasn’t people he could mess with, not even if he got a thousand lives. A cold sweat briefly threatened to break out on his back.
No matter what, Asher was still a son of the Starfire Empire, because they haven’t publicly disowned him. But everyone knew the family vehemently hated this son, they will never raise a single finger to help him.
’Yeah, I am not scared. I already asked the security, and he explained everything to me.’ He nodded his head, his fragile ego recovering rapidly, moving his gaze to Sara.
’As for her? She is just a fallen star. I am even stronger, and her family already abandoned her, and left the country... Hehehe, if I can play with her, I will die happily.’ He licked his lips, all fear replaced by a sickening, predatory greed. His lustful gaze fixed on Sara, his eyes brazenly tracing her night coat.
Noticing his vile gaze on Sara, Asher felt a sudden, violent surge of protectiveness. He stepped forward, standing directly in front of Sara, completely blocking her from him. His message was clear: Look elsewhere, or lose your eyes.
Seeing Asher’s defiant action, the Guild Leader narrowed his eyes at him, insulted by the display of spine from a supposed waste, then said with a cruel, mocking smile:
"You must be Asher... I heard you forced my wife to kneel in public, and even stole her money. Now, I want you to return five times the amount you took from her, kneel down and apologize for your actions, and also give me your wives for five nights... If you complete all these, I will turn a blind eye, and only leave you with one broken limb."
SILENCE...
The guild stood completely still, waiting for the young man to break down crying and begging, staring at the three people standing at the porch. Sara was deaf, so she didn’t hear any of the disgusting nonsense the man just said, merely observing the physical posturing of the thugs. As for Juliana, her grip on her sword trembled with rage, but she wanted to see how Asher will handle the situation, so she remained remarkably silent, holding her bloodlust in check.
As for Asher, he simply ignored the man entirely, his mind working at lightning speed, lost in thought: ’I can’t do anything without a guild... And to create a guild requires a lot of procedures, massive funding, and bureaucratic approval.’
If he truly wants to locate his wives’ cures in those impossible SSS-Rank dungeons, he needed a Guild as a coverup, so he could explore dungeons, bypass security cordons, and grow stronger without drawing the Starfire family’s attention.
And a beautiful, fully established Guild just delivered themselves straight to his front door. He wasn’t looking at executioners; he was looking at his new subordinates.
30 seconds later, no word was spoken. The eerie quiet stretched the thugs’ nerves.
"Are you all deaf?!!!!" He screamed at the three, pointing a furious finger at Asher, completely losing his temper.
"How dare you ignore me?!! I am the Guild Leader of Iron Guild!!!!" He yelled, his face turning red.
"He is so arrogant!! Just deal with him, Honey!" Fat Pig added, eager to see Asher beaten to a pulp.
"Oh? You were saying something? I thought it was a dog barking." Asher said flatly, his voice carrying clearly through the night air. He tilted his head to the side, his gaze fixed on the Guild Leader with absolute, chilling apathy.
"You?! Did... Did you just call me a dog?!!"
"Look around you, is there anyone barking?? Nope, so you’re the dog here." Asher shrugged indifferently, tossing the insult out like garbage.
"How dare you!! I am a Warrior type awakener, I can kill you with a single punch!" The man yelled, entirely consumed by fury, as oppressive red energy waves burst out from him, rippling all over the place and cracking the pavement beneath his boots.
’Warrior type? That’s right, Awakeners are divided into two types. Warriors, and Mages. As the names suggest, Warrior awakeners only awaken abilities related to physical fitness, increase in strength, muscles, stamina and speed boost... While Mages awakened abilities like fire, water, wind, earth, lightning, and even healing. Few awakened supporting abilities, but these Awakeners are incredibly rare. In a simpler form, a mage awakener is a lot stronger than a warrior awakener.’ Asher quickly analyzed the threat, feeling the crude, blunt-force nature of the man’s red aura.
’Too bad... My current abilities placed me in the mage category.’ Asher thought with a dark, confident smirk.
He didn’t need to move a muscle. He simply let go of the restraints on his new core, as blinding, majestic golden energy burst out from him. The sheer, suffocating pressure of his Celestial-Tier aura instantly crushed the Leader’s red energy, spreading all over the compound like a tidal wave, stunning everyone present into absolute, horrified silence.
".....?!!!"