FAKE

Leonel's voice echoed with hues of disappointment. The number of eyes and senses that landed on him all at once felt endless, but he seemed unmoved by it all.

He stared down at the Overlords below and then the nobles above.

"I was told that the Rapax were a Race of warriors. When did they become so pathetic?"

Seas of eyes widened.

However, not all reacted in this way. The Rapax weren't a Race that liked to talk things out. Someone who was infuriated by Leonel's side immediately attacked.

Their tail snapped over in a fury, piercing through the air so fast that it left a whistle in its wake.

Without even looking at it, Leonel caught the tail by its shimmering blade as though he wasn't scared of it piercing his skin. Content © 2024.

And he truly wasn't afraid.

The blade couldn't even leave a mark on his skin.

With a tug, the tail was ripped from its body.

In one swift motion, Leonel's wrist flicked out, and the blade soared.

Unlike the original attack, it didn't make a single sound, and yet it appeared before the Rapax in a single blink. In another, it tore its pill-shaped head in two.

The air seemed to freeze and solidify. Those that had been about to attack before hesitated.

The Rapax that Leonel had just killed wasn't particularly powerful, only in the Sixth Dimension. Even so, it felt like Leonel's methods were suffocating them. There was a deterrence in the air that they couldn't quite describe, like a solidified killing intent that formed a barrier they didn't dare to cross.

"I didn't expect the Rapax of all Races to set up this kind of farce."

The fact Leonel was speaking in their language made the words all the more clear, and that was despite the fact they didn't understand what he was trying to get at.

Even so, his show of strength was enough for them to listen. That was all the Rapax needed.

The Rapax were the one Race that likely wouldn't even care if they were ruled by another so long as their fist was large enough. They respected strength and nothing more.

But because of that, they were also quite simple-minded. In their opinions, no esteemed genius of the Rapax like the ones below would participate in a farce. So, it could only be that it was all real.

What they didn't know was that the farce here weren't the Rapax at all. It was the Sea Gods who were purposely holding back their strength to keep it even.

Ironically, the only "real" battle was the last one where the two Overlords only sparred.

But targeting the Sea Gods here wouldn't work. Plus, he didn't give a damn how the Sea Gods felt. He was already enemies with them.

Leonel shook his head and turned. He looked like he was about to directly leave.

The Rapax around him didn't dare to try to stop him.

At that moment, one of the noble Rapax stood.

"Stop."

Leonel looked back, his gaze flickering with disdain, before he turned back and continued to walk away.

BANG!

A Rapax landed before Leonel. This time, it was the Overlord.

It loomed menacingly, standing at over four meters tall. When it curled its body, looming over Leonel with all its mass and strength, the difference in their size was grating on the soul.

A smirk curled Leonel's lip.

"What? You want to pat hands a bit? Want to ask me to dance? Which one of us is going to lead and which is going to be along for the ride?"

Leonel's words were clearly a dig at the earlier "spar", and the old Rapax was instantly furious.

Its tail lashed out, but Leonel had already moved, taking a step back.

The tail slammed into the ground, shattering the entire bleacher area. Half the coliseum fell by a foot and would have collapsed if not for a peculiar coincidence.

"You can't even attack like you mean it," Leonel continued to sneer.

"Uncle, please stop for a moment." The noble above spoke again before turning his attention to the back of Leonel's head once more. "You've impugned on the dignity of the Rapax Race. Shouldn't you explain yourself?

"Although it is not the Rapax way to gang up on a single person, it is also not the Rapax way to allow our honor to be smeared. We take are always willing to take on the full consequences of our actions. You're powerful, so I'm sure you're smart enough to understand what I mean."

The noble was surprisingly eloquent, and, of course, Leonel understood.

Essentially, he was saying that ganging up wasn't what they wanted to do, but they also had a culture of taking responsibility for both their actions and words. This latter culture was the reason why no one harmed Leonel after he killed the gate guard, or why no one seemed angry. He had just killed another Rapax.

The two that Leonel had killed were taking on the responsibility for their actions.

In this case, Leonel had insulted an entire Race. So, it was his responsibility to take on. It wasn't their fault that he had insulted so many of them at once. Since he wanted to talk so much, he would have to face all of their wrath. It was that simple.

"Show me your wrath, then. Do you think I'm afraid of a hoard of cowards?"

This time, even the noble frowned. It was hard to distinguish the expressions of a Rapax, but an excellent sign was the swaying of their tale and the subtle lengthening of their metal claws-both on their feet and hands.

The noble took a breath and exhaled slowly.

"I only want to ask you one thing. Why?"

The atmosphere seemed primed, so Leonel finally looked back toward the noble's box. When he saw the tight frown on the Sea God's face, his lip curled.

"Wasn't it clear to you? You're all warriors with thousands of battles under your belt. You wouldn't have entered the Fourth Dimension otherwise. You've been bathed in blood since birth.

"And none of you can recognize a faked battle when you see one?"