Chapter 12 – Beatdown

The silence was absolute. Not one person had the nerve to interfere, or object to what they were witnessing. Even though death was something far too common across the multiverse, such an open display was not. Aenon sensed various degrees of terror pass over the crowd like waves pummeling the seashore. His main objective was to instill the idea that his words were not to be taken lightly. And it looked like he succeeded. Almost…

“Is this your idea of justice? Where you execute a man without due process. You think that is going to scare into submission?” Eryndor’s voice boomed across the courtyard.

Aenon turned to face the man, quietly glaring at him without a word. He had been far too patient with him, but this was the last straw. He took a deep breath and approached the man who towered over him significantly at a casual pace.

“Due process? His guilt has been confirmed by both me and your assistant guild head. Not to mention his open admittance just now. What more do you need?” Aenon asked in an eerily cold voice.

“We had decided the punishment for the crime was to be imprisoned. You can’t just unilaterally overthrow our collective decision like that,” the belligerent man said with heat in his voice.

“And what gives you the right to make such decisions? Last I checked you were the leader of the guild, not the city. I believe that decision was up to me,” Aenon responded.

The man’s face turned red with fury as veins started popping out on his forehead. Aenon could feel the man’s anger, but what was fascinating were the undertones of fear beneath it all. And the fear was not directed at Aenon. There was a deeper reason that Aenon wanted to get down to before knocking some sense into the man.

“You are an arrogant and self-centered man that we know nothing about. You have no idea what you are doing,” Eryndor fumed.

“You are right about the first thing. I am arrogant and self-centered. But you are way off base if you think I do not know what I am doing,” Aenon replied while turning around and pretending to walk away. He just needed the man to let slip the true reason for this outburst. And the best way to do that when it came to proud boisterous fools such as him was to ignore them. And it worked like a charm.

“Do you know who you just killed? His family will rain down hell on us when the tutorial period ends,” the man screamed.

And there it was, the true reason why he had so vehemently argued in favor of incarceration instead of execution. This was despite the fact that it was the multiversal norm to eliminate those who practiced soul devouring arts on sight. Aenon paused for dramatic effect as he slowly turned around.

“So let me get this straight. The reason why you so zealously argued to imprison him and not execute him was because you are afraid of his family? And you dare accuse me of being unjust?” Aenon asked in a mocking tone.

Aenon felt the shame and humiliation radiating off the guild leader, as there were murmurs amongst the crowd. No doubt discussing what he had let slip in his anger. Not a moment ago, the proud man was touting righteousness and trying to paint Aenon as the bad guy for going against a fair trial. But now that the mask was taken down in an instant, he was desperately trying to find the right words to defend himself. Fortunately for him, his assistant guild head stepped forward.

“This is getting way out of hand. This is neither the time nor place to discuss…,” Agatha began explaining to try to control the situation.

“Silence,” Aenon commanded with the full weight of his presence. “I am patient, but also a man of my word. I just warned everyone to treat others the way you want me to treat you. So let this be an example of it. Since our first encounter, your guild leader has been nothing but hostile and confrontational. If his motives were motivated by righteousness, maybe I would have tolerated it. But it is clear now that his actions were nothing but a mask to hide his fear and insecurities. As such, it is time he faced the consequences.”

“Oh yeah? What consequences would that be?” Eryndor challenged him openly while resting his hand on his sword. Aenon walked off stage and stood in the clearing in front of it.

“The consequences of crossing me,” Aenon declared in a dismissive tone. He held his hand up towards the man and beckoned him forward with two fingers. He couldn’t see the man’s level, which meant his stats were far above Aenon’s, most likely due to the stat multiplier of his first evolution. But Aenon didn’t care. It was time to knock the moron off his high horse.

Eryndor stepped off the stage with a massive leap and landed across from Aenon. He was dressed in a dazzling armor of pure white. Aenon was sure it was of very high quality, and probably had some status effects of its own. This would be the first time that Aenon would be engaging in a fight without studying his quarry first. But such was life. You can never be too prepared for every encounter. As Eryndor reached for his sword, Aenon warned him one final time.

“Remember my warning about drawing your sword. You aim that at me, and you will not live to see tomorrow,” Aenon said calmly. He had warned the man, but this was for the benefit of the crowd.

The man’s hand faltered as he hovered over his sword’s hilt. Aenon’s words unnerved him, for he too was going into a fight blind. He couldn’t be sure if he was stronger, as Aenon’s status was completely obscured. But he couldn’t afford to appear weak before the entire city and especially his guild members.

“I don’t need my sword to take down an upstart like you,” he said as he removed the sword with its scabbard and threw it behind him. Having said that, he charged at Aenon like a jacked-up linebacker.

Aenon carefully observed the man’s movements, from his foot placement to his body posture. His unarmed weapons skill faintly hinted where the man’s center of gravity was. It would have been too easy to just redirect the charge and use his own momentum against him. But Aenon wanted to test his opponent first. So, he leaned forward and braced for impact.

The two contenders clashed with the force of two trucks in a head on collision. The resultant shockwave pushed dust and debris for several feet, alarming many in the crowd. When the dirt settled, the crowd saw that Aenon had been pushed back significantly. But he held his own regardless. Aenon saw bewilderment in the man’s eyes as he broke off the engagement and retreated hurriedly.

“You… you are a soul mage. How is your strength rivaling mine?” he asked in confusion.

Aenon didn’t bother replying as he flexed his wrist due to the dull pain he was experiencing. As expected, the man had higher strength owing to his tank class. But the difference was less than expected. Aenon’s STR was at 3820, if he included his times two stat multiplier. And since his pack was present here, it got boosted to 4966. Which meant the man’s STR must be around 6000 or so. Which meant the guy either had low rarity classes, or a low ranked evolution. He was about to try taunting him into revealing which was the case, but didn’t need to.

“I have a B rank evolution. There is no way a mage can match me in STR,” he screamed as he charged again. He tried various approaches, punching, tackling, and even some complicated martial arts forms to try to pin Aenon down. But nothing worked. While the baffled man continued his fruitless strategy of trying to pummel his opponent into submission, Aenon further analyzed the man’s build.

If his calculations were right, for a B grade evolution the net stats including multipliers should be in the range 54500 to 131200, depending on class rarity. From the charges it was obvious that Aenon was slightly more agile than the tank. Which meant Eryndor’s DEX must be around 4500, bringing the total to about 10500. The last thing that Aenon needed to test was his CON stat. He was a tank after all.

Aenon showed a vicious smile on his mask as the man charged again, making him flinch. Aenon used the momentary distraction to grab hold of the man’s wrists and expertly fling him headfirst into the ground.

CRASH

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The impact left a crater in the ground, as Aenon casually stepped out of reach in case he got up. And get up he did. Eryndor shook his head to dispel the minor concussion he no doubt was feeling from having his head driven into the ground that hard. But to his credit, the man shrugged it off like it was a minor head slap. The experienced adventurer did get more cautious in his approach though, no longer trying to use just raw strength. But he was out of luck, since now Aenon decided to go on the offensive.

Eryndor was taken aback when Aenon stepped closer instead of retreating as expected. The man must have wrongly assumed that Aenon would be at a disadvantage in close quarters, since Aenon kept retreating after every engagement. He must have been thinking Aenon needed some distance and time to cast his spells, not even expecting in his wildest dreams that the reason Aenon stepped back was to study his prey’s movements. Since, contrary to what everyone assumed, Aenon wasn’t just a mage. He was a close combat specialist, relying on his high proficiency weapon skills.

And that is where the true beat down began. Aenon needed to see how much punishment the man could take, and so he deftly targeted the man’s joints and weak points. Every hit was targeted to cripple or kill, the throat, side of the head, and even the groin area. Any other opponent would have fallen to the relentless assault. But the guild leader recovered at an alarming rate. More than once, Aenon had torn off the man’s throat, only to have him stand back up within minutes. It was like trying to fight an undead zombie that felt no pain and shrugged off lethal blows.

But the brutal display continued, making many of the audience cringe in horror as pools of blood now covered the impromptu fighting arena. But not a drop belonged to Aenon, as his opponent was yet to even lay a scratch on him. Aenon realized that the only way to take down the tank was to outpace his regeneration.

“What is the matter? Getting tired?” the defiant man mocked with a bloody grin as he stood up yet again. “I am called the Undying Shield for a reason. I do not know what class you have, but there is no way you can take me down solo. I have never lost a one-on-one duel.”

“Impressive indeed. It is a truly bad match up for a mage or a rogue to go up against you by themselves. It will probably take a full party to take you down,” Aenon said in acknowledgement. “If my calculations are right, you have at least one, if not two, Ancient ranked tank classes. Which means your total CON stat is at least 40000, giving you a net HP regen of 8000 per minute. And if your health pool is 60000, you will be back to full health in under 8 minutes. So, to kill you I either need to do more than 8000 damage per minute or land a critical blow that will deal damage upwards of 40000.”

The man’s smirk vanished instantly. Aenon’s calculations weren’t exact, as they were based off conjecture and guess work, but he must have been in the ballpark since the color visibly drained from Eryndor’s formerly smug face. The man’s muscles tensed up as he took a step back in fear.

“But wait. Ther is one other way, isn’t there?” Aenon said while his predatory smile broadened. “I somehow nullify your health regeneration.”

Aenon coated his hands in mana using his void stalker ability. His hands looked like claws with inch long nails, but before anyone could get a look he had blended into a shadow and disappeared. The alarmed guild leader looked around in horror to find where Aenon had gone, only to detect his presence behind him a little too late. Aenon left a vicious gash on Eryndor’s back with his improvised claws before stepping away yet again.

And to everyone’s horror, the wound didn’t heal like before. Aenon had noticed how his wolves seemingly devoured mana aspects and even reduced the healing ability of anyone who suffered from their bite. So, he just replicated that, assuming his void element would behave the same.

Eryndor eyes went out of focus, no doubt pulling up his stat sheet to see his health pool. As realization dawned on him, he tried retreating in fear. But Aenon charged yet in. Within minutes the once proud guild leader was battered and bruised all over, with fresh wounds that refused to heal. As Aenon was charging in for another slashing attack, the man screamed in terror.

“I surrender. Please have mercy,” the man was down on his knees, trembling uncontrollably, with Aenon’s claws an inch away from his throat. Aenon looked down on the man with disgust but backed away quietly. He had made his point, as was evident from the utter dread pouring out of every individual who was watching the scene.

Aenon left the mess on the ground and walked onto the stage, his fingers still dripping blood. Everyone, including his personal bodyguards, recoiled in fear and retreated as he walked to his earlier spot.

“So, now you have seen my ruthlessness, and my mercy. And if anyone has any more doubts whether I mean what I say, try speaking up now,” Aenon said in his usual cold and detached tone. But this time no one dared to raise a voice or question him, so he continued. “As I was saying before I was rudely interrupted, the city admin will be running the place in my name. I will not be involved in the day-to-day operations, and neither do I care how he does it, as long as it is fair to everyone. But should he use my name for nefarious means, he too will meet an untimely end. As will any individual who dares cheat, swindle, or oppress the weak. Is that clear?”

No one said a word, but Aenon saw various vigorous nods from all over the crowd. He then turned his attention to the nobles who were hunched together, as though wishing to shrink away out of existence. His gaze made them freeze like rats cornered by a cat.

“Are you aware of the term, noblesse oblige?” Aenon asked the group. When no one replied, he continued, “Find out about it. That will be expression that you will be living based on. Your entitlement, your life of excess ends now. If you have problems with that, you are free to leave my city. I will not fault you for living in luxury, or any creature comforts that you have earned. But should you fail to deliver on your responsibilities, or look down on the commoners, then I will have a problem.”

The nobles started bowing down and praising him in earnest, but Aenon ignored them immediately. He didn’t need their hollow words, or their vile words laced with future betrayal, but he couldn’t kick them out just yet. They were necessary for the city’s operations. He would weed out the problem candidates eventually, just not immediately. He then turned to the native commoners. They too tensed up, but more out of confusion than fear.

“As for you lot, I know your distrust for the nobility and the ruling class. And to be honest, I don’t care. All I need from you is to do your damn jobs. You were placed here by the System to assist the people from a now destroyed world. Unlike you, who came here by choice, they were uprooted from their former lives without a say in the matter. This life is as foreign to them as land is for a fish. So, show some empathy. In return I give you my word that I will protect you to the best of my abilities. But if that is something you are incapable of, then you too are free to leave at any point,” Aenon said without a hint of emotion.

Finally, he turned to the most battered down group of them all, the former citizens of Jadefall. Their looks were as lost and confused as the first day when they were unceremoniously dumped into this world. Many had started to piece together some semblance of normalcy, but all that was yet again snatched from them due to Allie’s meddling. For the first time since he walked on stage he spoke in a soft tone.

“Last but not the least, the former citizens of Jadefall. I will not claim to understand what you all have gone through, for you are a people who have lost everything twice. Even so, I will not offer you some grand promise of unconditional support. Instead, all I will offer you is just one thing, a chance. A chance to recover, to prosper, and maybe even thrive. What you will do with it is up to you,” Aenon succinctly said before turning to Henry. “How many total refugees are accounted for?”

“After the latest tally that we concluded an hour ago, about 127,” Henry replied with a bow.

“Good. The mansion can house that many. Convert the mansion into a temporary shelter for the former citizens of Jadefall. All the staff that are currently employed there will be serving them,” Aenon said to various shocked murmurs spreading across the crowd. He had tactfully avoided using the term refugees, calling them former citizens of a now destroyed village instead. And the reason he had decided to use the mansion was to lead by example. As the city leader, he was in charge after all. Not to mention, he wasn’t going to be using the place anyway once he left for his hunt of the other alphas. He just needed to bring his house in order before leaving.

“But sire, the expenses…,” Henry said hesitantly.

“If I am not wrong, the former mayor was spending a sizable amount of money for his lavish lifestyle. I do not need all that. Divert all of it into the program. If it falls short, melt down the monstrosity that is plaguing the mansion entrance. Along with this throne. I am sure that should give you enough budget to support the people for a month at least,” Aenon said dismissively. He could hit two birds with one stone with this one. “Also, what type and level is the dungeon that is close by?”

“Umm, level 25 sire. And it is kobold type one,” Henry responded, not sure where Aenon was going with this.

“Hmm. Starting tomorrow, prepare escorts to lead a party of low-level players into the dungeon to boost their level. Run the dungeon regularly till everyone’s levels are about 18.”

Henry looked between Aenon and the noble group with hesitation. When Aenon asked what the issue was, he explained, “The nobles oversee running the dungeon. They charge a fee to enter, and we will not have enough funds to cover everyone’s entry.”

“I am sure they will have no issue temporarily suspending the entry for a week or two,” Aenon stated while turning to the nobles. To the shock of no one, there were no complaints. Aenon then turned back to the refugee group. “These measures are not permanent. I will give you one month in which to get back up on your feet. Use it well or continue to live your miserable lives after you are thrown out of the city. And this time, I will drop you in the middle of the highest-level dungeon in the area. The treant dungeon.”

He wanted to extend both a carrot and a stick since he needed to impress upon them that this was not an indefinite charity. It was being extended to let them recover, and nothing more. Should they try to misuse it, there would be dire consequences. He asked Henry to attend to the injured guild leader, before deciding to go back to his room in the manor. But before he left, he had one advice for those present.

“Use the next few days to think about what kind of life you want for yourself. And how you want to treat each other. For I will amplify those efforts several fold. Both positive and negative. This city can be the start of a new life. Or your grave.”