Morning unfolded in Orario, yet the adventurers from the Heracles familia still hadn't gotten a wink of sleep. Anger consumed them, rendering the thought of rest impossible.
They sat in silence within the living quarters; the expressions on their faces revealed the turmoil within. The room remained dim, with the rising sun's light only piercing through the curtains' slits.
"Damn it!" Jogu's curse echoed, his fist slamming on the table. "What are we doing!? We should march to Apollo right this instance and—"
"And do what?" Helga's tired eyes glared at Jogu, bags forming under her matured face. "I want nothing more than to gut those bastards, but we need to be smart about this."
"SMART ABOUT IT?!! THEY LEFT BELL FOR DEAD!!!" Jogu, veins popping, stood up, his face red with anger.
"Helga's right," August sighed. Truth be told, he wasn't as affected by what happened to Bell. Having met the guy just two days ago, he could think logically, unlike the others who treated the young adventurer like a sibling. "As much as I hate Apollo, I have to admit he still has a brain. He's baiting us. This was a message. And knowing his temperament, this won't be the last."
"So what now? We do nothing?" Ozwald asked, his face wearing a frown.
August shook his head. "I didn't say that. This was a message, so we send one as well..." He smiled sinisterly, making the others gulp. "Something big, something that will make him think twice before pulling a stunt like this again." He looked at Heracles, his eyes communicating with the god.
Heracles understood that August wanted to do something drastic, something that would mark the start of the war between the two familia. The god nodded at August, giving his approval.
August smirked as he walked towards the door. Before he reached the handle, he looked back, specifically towards Kiez. "Let me have your spear; I'll buy you one better later."
Kiez was a bit confused. He took his spear from his back and walked slowly towards August, wondering why his captain wanted to use his spear when he had a more superior one.
Denki and the others watched, curious about what was going on inside their captain's mind. They stood up from their seats, eager to see what he would do.
"You're not marching there alone, are you? Captain or not, don't expect that we won't be coming with you. You can't order us to stay here while you fig—" Lysander stood up, grabbing his swords. He spoke with determination, but August cut him off with a chuckle.
"Nah, I'm just gonna go outside. Y'all can come if you like; I'll just be at the front." August shrugged. He then received Kiez's spear, the cold metal feeling light in his hand—too light, but it would do for what he was planning. He walked out while stretching his back, the morning light hitting his face, providing warmth.
The others followed suit, curious about what August would be doing. He walked to the middle of the front yard, continuing to stretch his body, making himself loose.
Suddenly, everyone felt the air shifting around August, his mana humming alive as he willed it to move inside his body.
Denki walked forward, stopping a few steps away from August. "What are you doing?" he asked the question the others were dying to ask as well.
"Like I said," August looked back at Denki. He then smiled sinisterly as his mana boomed and expanded, covering the entirety of Orario with his mana dome. He looked forward, straight towards the direction of Apollo's mansion. "I'll be sending a message back."
He gripped the spear, cracking the metal with his strength. He raised it at the side of his head using his right hand, and with his left, he pointed upward, aiming straight towards Apollo's mansion.
Red lightning started to coil around Kiez's spear, the mana melting some parts of it as it couldn't handle the amount August was releasing inside it.
The others widened their eyes, now understanding what August meant by sending a message.
Heracles folded his hand. "August!" he called, the young adventurer turning his head towards him. He then smiled, mirroring that of August. "Don't miss."
"Oh, I won't." August chuckled, understanding what his god implied. He wouldn't be hitting someone with his spear, but it would be enough to send a message.
August loaded his mana into the spear, lightning crackling as he set his sight on Apollo's mansion. He smiled as he took a running start, and with a sudden stop, the ground beneath his feet cracked as he took to the air, jumping high.
With a grunt, August threw the spear straight up in the air. It flew, a trail of red lightning following its trajectory, heading straight to Apollo's mansion.
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-Apollo Mansion
Apollo was having a good day. He had woken up on the right side of the bed, had a wonderful breakfast in front of him, and last night, his plan for revenge had gone off without a hitch. Sufficed to say, the god was feeling good.
He sat at the head of the table, licking his lips at the luxurious food placed before him. Hyakinthos stood beside him, standing smugly. He felt unstoppable, especially after taking the orb-like medicine Apollo gave him.
His strength now felt immaculate, like that of a hundred people. Bell, the little rookie, was like a fly when he destroyed him last night, and now his sight was set on August. He couldn't wait for Apollo to make the next move.
Apollo looked at Hyakinthos and smirked. "Good job last night, though you should have done a bit more damage to really send the message in." The god sipped on his morning coffee as he smugly talked to his captain.
"I don't want to kill the boy... You did mention that you desire to have him be a member of our familia as well after all." Hyankinthos smiled deeper. "And I don't want you to have damaged goods, lord."
"Hahaha, oh Hyakinthos... Expect a good reward when everything is over." Apollo laughed heartily as he continued with his breakfast. "How are you accumulating with your new strength? Any side effects?"
Hyakinthos clenched his fist, feeling the power coursing through his veins. The power of a demi-spirit, which made his level skyrocket to that of a level 6. That, of course, is a secret for everyone, even the other members of the familia. Apollo didn't want the gods of Orario to know of Hyankinthos right now; the less they knew, the less they became suspicious of how he got such power. Especially since his power came from the amalgamation of Erebus' experiment and Evilus' tampering with the natural order.
"My lord, I feel great!" Hyakinthos beamed; his smile looked crazed. They do say power corrupts, and right now, the captain of Apollo familia was drunk with his newfound power. Black flames, like miasma, flowed through his fingers as he played with his mana. "I can't wait to—" He paused as he sensed something coming.
Something fast, extremely so. He moved quickly, almost teleporting in front of Apollo, and with a burst, a violent mana erupted out of his body. He raised his hands up, just in time when the walls of the mansion burst open, and a spear enveloped in red lightning traveled forth towards Apollo.
The crackling of lightning echoed as debris from the broken wall crashed everywhere. Hyankinthos stood his ground; his goal was to protect Apollo. He raised his hand forward, black flames enveloping his wrist.
He caught the spear mid-air with a grunt, the flames and the lightning trying to consume one another. With a visceral scream, he pushed the spear to the side, changing the trajectory, holding it with all his might.
Hyankinthos, holding the spear, was lifted off the ground along with the weapon. He flew towards the wall as the spear embedded deep within it, with Hyankinthos snarling as he never let his grip loosen.
Apollo widened his eyes; he didn't even see what happened; it was all too fast. One moment, Hyakinthos was talking to him, the next, he moved in front and was sent flying back. His eyes watered as dust got into them. The luxurious room was filled with debris and broken marble walls, the food charred from both the flames and lightning. In front of him was a large hole created by the spear, the morning sun shining inside the now-open space.
"Wh-what the hell?" Apollo stuttered in shock. He then looked back, seeing Hyankinthos bleeding on his forehead; his hand was burned and blackened, but it was starting to heal, no doubt from the orb he received from Evilus.
Hyankinthos snarled; he couldn't believe that he was thrown like that. His eyes moved to the spear, seeing it almost crumbling, cracks littering the metal. He pulled it out of the wall, his wound slowly closing.
"What the hell was that? Is that a spear?" Apollo wiped the dirt clinging to his face. He looked at the now-open wall, and anger started to form on his face as he put two and two together. 'Red lightning... Spear...' "Gaé bulg!" his voice filled with venom. His face morphing into an ugly scowl.
Hyakinthos stared at the spear in his hand, slowly crumbling to dust. He too realized just who threw the spear. A smile slowly rising on his face, he couldn't wait to tear August limb from limb. "Lord... It seems that the Gaé bulg have sent a message of their own."
The ugly scowl on Apollo's face slowly relaxed. 'So they got my message huh.' "Good... Now we wait... With the way things are going, a war game will be inevitable between our two familias." A crazed smile then formed on his face. "And then we will crush them once and for all. We will kill that fucking mortal and get rid of the butcher with one fell swoop."
The two looked at each other; by now, all the wounds Hyakinthos received when he caught the spear had healed. They laughed with crazed eyes.
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August tilted his head to the side; his mana dome had picked up what happened when he threw his spear. He did not expect for Hyakinthos to change the trajectory, much less catch it.
Aside from anger, another emotion filled August's heart. "Interesting." he smiled viciously. He never planned to hit Apollo to start with; that throw was meant to only graze the god. But now, with Hyankinthos' action, August's battle maniac tendency was starting to surface.
August turned only to see the others from Heracles familia all looking at him with jaws dropped on the ground. They didn't expect their captain to just send a powerful projectile to Apollo familia. That was essentially a declaration of war, and sure they want to challenge them in a war game, but that was just way too aggressive.
"What?" August asked confused. "I did say I'll send them a message. And there it was... Message sent."
The others just nodded, while Heracles had a huge smirk on his face. "You didn't miss, did you?"
August's smile deepened. "No... As a matter of fact, I think I hit a bullseye." He then walked towards the house, the others making a way for him to pass. He stopped in front of Kiez and ruffled his hair. "Come on, let's get you a new spear. I did promise to get you one much better than that." He said while his thumb pointed at his back, to the direction of Apollo familia.
"O-ok..." Kiez just nodded, as he followed August, now more in awe. His admiration for his captain had grown even more, especially after that display.
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***
Chapter 122 is now complete. How are you all enjoying the story so far?
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