Lyon POV:
“Vices: Sindel, Orga, Lissandra and Ven.”
I watched them step forward. My gaze moved from each member until it stopped on Orga; she was the one responsible for almost killing Len. She was wrapped in bandages all over, and I could only clearly see one of her eyes.
“W-Watchers: Brunau—T-that’s me...”
I glanced at Brunaulf, and he flinched. His reaction was strange as I noticed his eyes briefly look behind me before quickly looking away.
“W-Watchers: Triste, Denise, Gunnar and me...”
The Watchers came forward, and I stood up from my seat as Sindel immediately prostrated himself in front of me.
“It’s true that we may be trash, but if there’s one thing I can guarantee, it’s our loyalty!”
Orga's hand trembled as I walked down the steps, and it was clear to me why Sindel did what he did. While I didn’t doubt his words, he also had someone that he wanted to protect.
Think about it. The person responsible for almost killing someone precious to you was standing right in front of you; what would you do? Sindel knew what action most would take, and so he wanted me to show mercy.
I reached his side and placed my hand on his shoulder while staring at Orga.
“That’s right...”
Her body shook as she struggled to stay still. She looked down at the floor intensely while I saw beads of sweat pouring down the exposed side of her face.
“You were trash, but those days are over now.”
I looked at everyone present in the room as I spoke.
“Many of you have done things that you regret. Many of you have done things that you didn’t want to do. However, all of you have chosen to stay here, accepting me as the new District Leader.”
I walked towards Orga.
“Change comes to those who embrace the difficulties it brings. Words have weight, but actions move that weight.”
Orga's exposed eye wobbled as she cried silently. I moved back in front of the steps and surveyed the room once more.
“Brunaulf.”
“Y-yes, Leader...”
“Gradually stop the distribution of drugs within District 4. Get rid of the prostitution ring, and bring them here to work.”
Brunaulf bowed his head and quickly left the room.
“From this day onwards, we are not a gang. We’re not here to oppress the people; we aren’t here to take from them. We are here to support them. We are a community!”
I raised my voice as I pointed to all of them. They looked at me with varying expressions. Some were taken aback, some looked happy, and some didn’t know how to react.
“A community must be strong. United we stand, but divided we fall. When we work together, we work as one. This is my philosophy.”
I sat down on the chair and faced the members with a determined gaze. Lissandra stepped forward and began to clap slowly.
The sound of clapping gradually spread out from her, quickly covering the whole room. Soon cheers and screaming was added to the mix.
Sindel supported Orga as he looked at me with thankful eyes. Judging from their reaction, this lifestyle was forced onto them, but change had already begun.
***
“For a kid, you're real crazy. Cutting off your drug supplies means your income will drastically drop, same deal with breaking up the prostitution ring. Don’t forget, you’re supposed to be paying the Ruler of the South monthly.”
His jacket fluttered in the wind as we stood on the rooftop of the main base that overlooked District 4 from above. He folded his arms and smirked slightly.
“What did you want to talk about?”
I skipped the small talk and got straight to the heart of the matter. I wanted him to take over District 2 as soon as possible, and I had very little interest in keeping up with the monthly quotas he spoke about.
“How much do you know?”
Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.
His smirk vanished, and he looked ahead with serious eyes.
“Copycat. He ran District 4, didn’t he?”
His eyes shook at my words as he let out a deep sigh. My earlier suspicions proved to be correct. There was something about the method and the tactics used that made me think of this possibility.
Copycat had his hand in many different places; it was inevitable that I’d run into him again in the future.
“All I’ll say is this, Copycat and I were two sides of the same coin.”
He turned around and walked past me. Two sides of the same coin meant Copycat wasn’t always sitting in the Leader's seat, which left me with one final question.
“Then, was it you or Copycat that was responsible for what happened to Mr Cruiser?”
His footsteps came to a stop. He didn’t reply immediately as the early morning wind blew between us.
“All I wanted was to fight the old man fair and square.”
His presence vanished, and I was left alone on the rooftop. I stood over the ledge and watched the sun pierce through the horizon while rays of light spread out like a fan, illuminating the dark streets below.
Change had come to District 4.
***
I headed back inside, and everyone was waiting for me. Brunaulf had yet to return, so I decided to use this time to organize things.
“If you can’t use Ki, raise your hand.”
Around 30 low-ranked members raised their hands. I officially named anyone who could use Ki but were beneath the Watchers, Workers—it made it easier to categorise them this way. Members that couldn’t use Ki were labelled as Trainees.
I told them to stand to one side of the room and began to sort the members out based on their current Ki Stage.
100 members had achieved Irini. 70 members had reached Nagi, but only 20 members were at the Uso stage; 8 of which could be classified as mid to high Uso. Those members were the Watchers and Vices.
I sat down on the tall chair and examined them carefully. It wasn’t enough; the strength difference was too vast. I needed to balance it.
“Trainees head to the 1st floor; you’ll be staying there until you’ve completed your Ki Centers. Those of you who have achieved Irini, head to the 2nd floor. The 3rd floor is for Nagi members, and the 4th floor will be a combat training floor for all levels.
The 5th floor will be for those at the Uso stage. You’ll all be living within this building complex that takes up a third of the street. Living spaces will be arranged and managed once Brunaulf returns.”
They all stared at me with wide eyes. It took them a minute or two to realize the instructions I had given.
“Y-Yes, Leader!!”
The members dispersed according to the instructions I had given. I stopped the Vices and Watchers from leaving.
“Orga, how long until your complete recovery?”
“Around two weeks...”
For a beating that bad, a two-week recovery window was impressive. I doubt most people could heal that fast while being on the brink of death’s door.
“Sindel, check on her regularly. The rest of you...”
I got up from my seat and released my Ki.
“...will be training with me daily.”
“Yes, Leader!”
They bowed their heads and left me alone in the room. I didn’t plan on just training the Watchers and Vices—I was going to train everyone in this building complex. I had a vast amount of knowledge, thanks to learning from one of the best in the world, and I intended to use that to my advantage.
My gaze shifted to the door I heard open as Brunaulf rushed in.
“I-I brought those willing to come... They're on the ground floor...”
“Good.”
My lips curved upwards, and I moved on to the next step of my plan.
***
“Focus. Every normal person has a natural element they have an affinity with. Some have two, very few people have three, and no one has four.”
“Yes, Leader!”
The Irini members stood in front of a plethora of podiums spread out around the room. On top of the podium was a different element. Some had rocks, a bowl of water, and a lit candle, while others had nothing.
Each member stood behind the podium for 5 minutes as they tried to manipulate the element in front of them before rotating to the next podium. This practice lasted for 6 hours. They’d get a one-hour break and then continue again for 6 hours.
I stood in the middle of the podiums and watched them carefully. Pretty women with their hair tied up neatly came in whenever they were on breaks, and handed them towels to wipe away the sweat. Occasionally laughter could be heard as they engaged in conversation with the Irini members.
‘Good.’
Progress was slow, but it had only been a couple of days. I walked out of the room with Brunaulf as we headed upstairs. He gave me a rundown of how things were going. In short, many of the members had begun to settle down and get used to training.
We reached the 4th floor, and I saw Lissandra teaching the Workers. I had learnt more about her from Brunaulf and found out that she had never taken part in any operation within the Organization; yet was still promoted to the Vice position.
She piqued my interest.
She had high solid light grey hair that seamlessly merged with a loose purple bang that hung over her forehead, complimenting her dark grey eyes. Lissandra was a phenomenal beauty, and it was evident by how many men were eager to spar with her.
I watched her parry the Worker’s fist while simultaneously correcting his posture. She demonstrated the various openings he was exposing by having incorrect form. She was good...
Very good.
“Why didn’t your master use her?”
“H-He couldn’t... Tch. Lissandra isn’t normal...”
I saw a rare look of annoyance on Brunaulf's face as he clicked his tongue. He noticed my gaze and instantly backed away.
‘Copycat couldn’t use her? In what sense?’
Did it mean his ability didn’t work on her? Or was she smart enough to not be used as a pawn in his games? I observed her effortlessly control and expose the openings of the Watchers who had joined in to practice.
‘I didn’t tell Lissandra to teach anyone. She had made this decision on her own.’
She saw me standing beside the doorway and smiled brightly. Gunnar thought this was an opening, throwing a full-force punch toward her face, but the back of her hand slapped his cheek away as he crashed into the wall. A pained moan exited his mouth while she walked toward me.
“W-woah...”
The members sitting around the room gasped at her incredible prowess. She stood in front of me with her hand on her chin. Her eyebrows pressed together as if she was trying to solve a difficult problem.
“Hmm. Leader, you’re quite tall for your age.”
“...”
She was a few centimetres taller, but she only looked to be a year or two older than me. She suddenly grinned cutely and stretched out her hand.
“It’s our first time speaking, though you already know, I’m Lissandra.”
I went to shake her hand when it shot past mine and grabbed my hoodie. She lifted me up with ease, and within the same motion, dashed me into the middle of the ring made up of the surrounding members. I rolled to my feet and brushed the dirt off my shoulder.
‘Now I remember. She wasn’t there when I knocked everyone out.’
She held out her hand again and looked at me with intense eyes.
“It’s nice to meet you.”