After causing a commotion in the market square. Kyle was stopped by Commander Landon and more than a dozen men on his way to his own compound.
He couldn't blame them for not recognizing their young master. The second heir to the Patriarch. Although he was now abandoned. He did look quite different. With fewer bandages a paler skin and changed clothes.
His demeanor also changed, as he seemed more confident and bold. This was not how the old Kyle behaved.
He wore no badge of status that usually made these guards bow to him. What made him angry was that after exchanging a few words, Landon and his men attacked, planning to kill him for an event they didn't understand or just didn't want to.
The system had sensed hostility and was back again with another revenge mission. It was during the night, and only the stars shone on the paved ground, along with the dozens of colors from the many different magic hearts that were unleashed. But, when one strikes back at cruelty, does it count as revenge, justice, or self-defense?
[The host has triggered a mission.
Commander Landon and his men intend to kill you, even though they don't know the entire incident that occurred in the market, nor do they care to. This malicious intent without relevant justification toward the host is already considered an unjust attack. You must exact your revenge. And pay back cruelty with cruelty.
The more creative, satisfying, and just your revenge, the greater the reward the host will receive.
Penalty: failure to complete this mission will not result in any penalty.
Attribute points based on score:
Initial reward: ten thousand revenge progress will increase by nineteen, as there are nineteen men plotting to kill you. ]
After the signal, the guards were instantly on the move; the sound of swords scraping from their sheaths filled the air. Since they had released their magic hearts, their power amplified, and every soldier was in peak form.
Three figures among the group of attackers were ahead, their magic hearts shining with color.
A grizzly bear, a snake, and a mongoose. Their transparent figures hovered over the guards who had them. Each of them unleashing a different technique. "Crashh!!" All of their attacks combined and slammed where Kyle had been standing.
The ground caved in, and a huge crater appeared. Still, Kyle was not hit. The three attackers looked around frantically. Where was their target? Kyle appeared some distance away. Having successfully dodged the combined attack thrown at him. But more guards soon moved again to attack. Causing him to dodge one more time.
At this time, Julie was lost in thought as she stepped out of the yard. She pushed the gate open with a dazed expression on her face. Kyle had gone out earlier in the day. And now it was late at night. Almost eight hours, and he still couldn't be seen. Now that she thought about it, she would have never let him leave. She screamed in her head, thinking
"Where is he? With his condition, anything could happen, and he wouldn't be able to defend himself." She stomped her tiny adorable feet in frustration. Then she lifted her gaze and couldn't help but change her expression from annoyance to shock after she spotted an unbelievable scene right in front of the gate. With Commander Landon, whom she recognized easily, watching with his hands behind his back. There were eighteen of his armored guards attacking a figure not too far from her. However, it wasn't this particular scene that shocked her.
It was the back of the man being attacked. He looked just like Kyle. She strained her eyes, confused about how she was supposed to feel. Was she supposed to feel happy that she might have found Kyle? Confused, because the whole thing just didn't make sense. Or scared, because he was about to be killed for sure.
Well, she chose confused. Wasn't this the person that had a terrible wound and couldn't even walk straight? She mumbled, still taking in the scene. "Is that...the young master?"
Meanwhile, Kyle was dodging the many attacks from the different magic hearts with ease.
He had just dodged an attack from a purple-colored crab magic heart. Huge pincers snapped at him and missed. He had already landed some distance away and was muttering to himself. "These guys are just too slow. They'll never be able to land an attack on me." But he spoke too soon. The guards might have been slow, but their commander Landon wasn't.
He appeared behind Kyle, his blue wolf heart glowing brightly. His hands swung down with a blade infused with chi. Caught off guard, Kyle could only raise his hands in a pitiful defense. But he had underestimated his new tier of strength, an ascended rank. The sword crashed down, stopping as soon as it met his palms. Everyone froze, even Kyle. The commander, his men, Claudius, who had been standing to the side, and Julie. They all looked at Kyle's palm where the blade had rested, their eyeballs as big as chicken eggs.
The naive guards finally understood why their opponent's aura felt different. He must be at the next rank, but still, he shouldn't have been that strong or that fast. If this guy could stop blades with his mere palms, what hope did their fists have against him? Besides being an Ascended, Kyle's attributes were also boosted by the system. He was far from ordinary. At this moment, he couldn't help but smile. The sight caused Landon to freeze. Kyle exclaimed in his mind.
"Ha...I am much stronger than these guys. Why was I even running?" He closed his hand where the blade was still resting. And squeezed, only feeling a little bit of resistance before the blade broke into two halves with a snapping sound. The two halves tumbled to the ground, tearing through the quiet environment caused by shocked guards.
Enough running; it was time to attack. Kyle didn't know any techniques, so he could only use raw chi. He never really had a use of power that could end life. He was sure if he had been given a choice, he wouldn't even have chosen to be born with such a powerful magic heart.
Energy flowed in his hands, and Kyle struck out. His palm slammed into the Commander's armor. Causing deep cracks to appear on it, spreading like a spider's web. Commander Landon coughed out blood and flew backward. His ribs were compressing like his spine when he lay down. Kyle moved this time, placing the chi in his legs.
A figure that had been in the back this whole time realized things were going south and tried to slip away. But Kyle wouldn't let him go this time around. He went straight for Claudius, who was trying to maneuver around the corner; this time, he didn't break the man's fingers—his neck seemed to be the more reasonable option. Then, he flashed again past the guards; sickening cracks filled the air as all the guards' fingers were broken.
Just like Claudius and his two guards before, everyone now had matching finger sets. Kyle had promised, and he delivered. The only person who still had five good working fingers was Landon himself.
Claudius, on the other hand, was dead. No one had seen exactly what Kyle had done. Just a blur, then a crack. He turned towards Landon, who was crawling on the ground with drops of blood at the corner of his lips.
The commander backed up in fear; he scrambled on the ground. Who was this incredibly powerful troublemaker? He couldn't be young master Kyle, right? The fear finally knocked some sense into him. Although the Kyle in front of him now had a different temperament. The broad shoulders, jet-black hair, and piercing blue eyes were still there. Then he finally noticed Julie nearby; she was rushing over. Her face was red with fury. She passed Kyle and went right up to the Commander. She swung her little hands and slapped the man.
The sound was loud; she clearly put all her effort into that slap. It sounded like it hurt, but it didn't. How could she injure an initial-tier level nine warrior? Landon held his jaw, but his gaze was focused on Kyle. Julie was ignored like a fly on the wall. She screamed, her voice cute and adorable.
Could such a person cause fear or express anger? Obviously not.
"Commander Landon, how dare you? This is a terrible crime. Do you even know what you just did? You attacked the second heir of the patriarch. You could be hanged for this." All the nearby guards gasped while holding their broken fingers. Their heads and eyes, protected and covered by helmets, turned toward Kyle.
A light flashed in Landon's eyes, but he didn't react as much as his subordinates. He had already figured it out, but it was too late. Would Kyle spare him? Only the fear of death filled his heart. His eyes never leaving Kyle's. He was afraid that if he looked away, his head might suddenly fall off. Kyle looked at Commander Landon.
The man was not as reckless as Claudius. Coming here and attacking him was only because he listened to his lieutenant's lies. This guy wasn't like the others. Besides, if he killed Landon, it would cause a ruckus, and his father would soon hear about it and probably figure out he had powers. Explaining how would have been difficult, and some other scheme would have been on his head again. It was best to keep a low profile until the tournament. As soon as he decided to spare Landon's life, the system sounded in his ears.
Host, mission failed.
Punishment: None.]
He had ten thousand acts of revenge to complete, and here he was sparing someone who tried to kill him. Well, at least he had a good reason.
He called the man's name.
"Landon." The commander jumped like he had been spooked.
"I'll let you and your men go under one condition." Kyle lifted his index finger up. Landon nodded like a farm chicken picking rice. "What is it, young master? What do you need?" His voice was quiet and submissive.
"I don't want anyone finding out what happened here today. Make sure your men also keep quiet. If anyone asks, I'm still a cripple. If I hear of this..." Kyle left his words hanging, leaving Landon to fill in the blanks. He turned and walked away with Julie following behind him.
She had so many questions she wanted to ask him. But this Kyle felt unapproachable. His gaze was colder. And what, she just saw him doing, breaking fingers and armors? The old Kyle would have never done that. Was this the same young master she knew?
Kyle stopped walking and turned to her with his natural playful grin that made him even more handsome. "Julie, why are you so quiet? You were talkative just a moment ago. What's wrong?" Julie looked at Kyle and pouted; she didn't know what to say.
"Hmm... I don't know. Why don't we start with the fact that you pretended to be a cripple who was so depressed?" She made a dramatic expression, causing Kyle to not just chuckle but burst into laughter. But Julie wasn't done.
"Or...the fact that you left and returned so late at night. Then, when I finally saw you, someone was trying to cut off your face."
Kyle calmed his laughter and pinched her jaw. Making her laugh in turn. Yep. Julie was pretty simple. That was all he had to do to get her smiling again. She couldn't be mad at him for long. His face then turned serious. The fun and games were over; it was time to talk serious business. Julie saw his expression change, and she became serious too. "Julie, I have a mission for you."