Chapter 69: The Servant

Chapter 69: Chapter 69: The Servant

The man raised his arm.

Dark energy swirled around his fingers. It crackled and hummed. It pulsed with a sickly purple light. He pointed it at the people. At the families huddled around the fountain. At the children clinging to their mothers. At the old men and women trembling with fear.

"If he doesn’t leave," the man said, "I will kill as many people as possible."

The crowd screamed. They pushed and shoved. They tried to run. But there was nowhere to go. The barrier was closing. The streets were blocked. They were trapped.

Brutus looked at the man. At his dark energy. At his cold smile. At his hidden face.

Then Brutus flexed.

His muscles bulged. His veins popped. His skin gleamed. He smiled. A wide, confident smile.

"You can try," he said. "But you will die."

The man tilted his head. "Oh? You think so?"

"I know so."

The man laughed. A thin, cold laugh. "You’re confident. I like that. But confidence won’t save you."

He raised his hand higher. The dark energy grew. It swirled faster. It pulsed brighter.

"Last chance," the man said. "Leave. Or they die."

Brutus didn’t move. He didn’t flinch. He just stood there. His arms crossed. His muscles flexed.

"No," he said.

The man’s smile faded. His eyes narrowed.

"Fine," he said. "Have it your way."

He channeled his dark energy. It shot forward. A beam of purple light. Aimed at the crowd.

Brutus moved.

He was fast. Faster than Daniel had ever seen. He crossed the distance in an instant. His fist was raised. His muscles were tense.

The punch was going to connect. It was going to hit the man. It was going to end this.

The man smiled.

"Fooled you," he said.

The moment Brutus’s fist touched him, both of them disappeared.

A flash of light. A pop of air. And then they were gone.

The crowd stared. At the empty space. At where Brutus had been standing. At where the man had been standing.

Then they screamed.

They screamed louder than before. They pushed and shoved. They cried and prayed. They were terrified.

Daniel watched. His face was calm. His mind was racing.

He went through what he knew. Which was barely anything.

The barrier. The attack. The man in the cloak. Brutus disappearing. The dark energy. The threat to the people.

He didn’t know who the man was. He didn’t know what he wanted. He didn’t know where Brutus had gone.

But he knew one thing.

He was the only one left.

Lyra grabbed his arm. Her face was pale. Her hands were shaking.

"What do we do?" she asked.

Daniel looked at her. At her scared eyes. At her trembling lips.

He didn’t have an answer. He didn’t know what to do.

But he couldn’t show that. He couldn’t let her see his fear.

"We protect the people," he said. "That’s all we can do."

Lyra nodded. She let go of his arm. She straightened up. She took a breath.

"Okay," she said. "Okay."

Fluffy tugged on Daniel’s sleeve. He looked down at her.

"Master," she said. "Fluffy can sense something."

Daniel frowned. "What?"

"Fluffy can sense... people. Many people. Coming this way."

Daniel’s eyes widened. He looked around. He activated Keen Sense.

The world exploded with information. Sounds. Smells. Movements.

He heard them. Footsteps. Dozens of them. Running toward the plaza.

He smelled them. Sweat. Leather. Steel.

He saw them. Dark shapes moving through the streets. Heading straight for them.

"Ambush," Daniel said.

Lyra summoned her guns. Fluffy drew her daggers.

"How many?" Lyra asked.

Daniel counted. "Twenty. Maybe thirty. All armed."

Lyra’s face went pale. "We can’t fight that many."

Daniel nodded. "We don’t have to. We just have to protect the people."

He looked at the crowd. At their scared faces. At their trembling bodies.

"Get behind me," he said.

The crowd stared at him. They didn’t move.

"Get behind me!" Daniel shouted.

They moved. They scrambled behind him. They huddled together. They waited.

Daniel stood in front of them. Lyra beside him. Fluffy beside her.

The first attacker appeared.

He was dressed in black. His face was covered. He carried a sword. He charged at Daniel.

Daniel switched classes.

[Class Change: Shadow Scout]

He activated Shadow Step. He disappeared. He reappeared behind the attacker. His daggers flashed. The attacker fell.

Daniel switched back.

[Class Change: Harem Overlord]

He punched the next attacker. The man flew backward. He crashed into a wall.

Lyra fired. Her bullets hit two attackers. They fell.

Fluffy disappeared. She reappeared behind an attacker. Her daggers flashed. He fell.

The fight was chaos.

Attackers came from every direction. They swung swords. They threw knives. They tried to break through.

Daniel fought. He punched. He kicked. He dodged. He switched classes when he needed to. He used every skill he had.

Lyra fought. She fired. She reloaded. She fired again. Her aim was true. Her hands were steady.

Fluffy fought. She disappeared. She reappeared. She slashed. She vanished. She was a shadow. A ghost. A nightmare.

The attackers fell. One by one. Two by two.

But more came.

Daniel was breathing hard. His body was bruised. His knuckles were bloody.

"There’s too many," he said.

Lyra nodded. She was bleeding from a cut on her arm. "We can’t hold them off forever."

Daniel looked at the crowd. At their scared faces. At their trembling bodies.

He had to protect them. He had to.

Then a voice echoed through the plaza.

A voice from above.

"Alright then. Let’s get this show on the road."

---

Somewhere in a forest.

Brutus stood in a clearing.

The forest was quiet. The trees were tall. The sun was setting. Orange light filtered through the leaves.

He looked around. He was confused. He had been in the city. Fighting. Protecting. And now he was here.

"Teleportation," he muttered. "Should have seen that coming."

He flexed. His muscles bulged. He was ready.

Then a man appeared.

No. Not a man. An elf.

The elf was tall. Taller than Brutus. His ears were long and pointed. His hair was silver. His eyes were green. And he was muscular.

Very muscular.

His arms were like tree trunks. His chest was like a barrel. His abs were like a washboard. He wore simple clothes. Leather pants. A sleeveless shirt. His muscles rippled with every movement.

He stepped closer to Brutus. His eyes moved over Brutus’s body. His muscles. His chest. His arms.

"You," the elf said.

Brutus didn’t answer.

"I have done my research," the elf continued. "You are supposed to be the most muscular man in that guild. The strongest. The biggest."

Brutus still didn’t answer.

The elf smiled. A cold, confident smile.

"So it was the elf race," Brutus said. "Why would you want to attack our small guild?"

The elf didn’t answer. He just kept talking.

"I have traveled the world," he said. "I have challenged every muscular man I could find. I have beaten them all. Crushed them all. Proved that I am the strongest."

He pointed at Brutus.

"You’re next."

Brutus looked at him. At his muscles. At his confidence. At his arrogance.

Then Brutus smiled.

A wide, bright smile.

"You," he said, "aren’t even going to count as a warm-up for my boys."

The elf’s smile faltered. "What?"

Brutus flexed. His muscles bulged. His veins popped. His skin gleamed.

"Let’s go," he said.

---

Back at the guild.

A figure floated above the guild.

It was inside the barrier. Hovering in the air. Watching.

It was a man. Tall. Thin. Dressed in black robes. His face was hidden by a hood. His eyes glowed with purple light.

He looked down at the guild. At the buildings. At the training grounds. At the people running in panic.

He looked at Elara. She was standing in front of the main building. Her aura was blazing. She was ready to fight.

He looked at the city. At the plaza. At Daniel and Lyra and Fluffy fighting off the attackers.

He looked at the forest. At Brutus and the elf facing each other.

He smiled. A cold, thin smile.

"Alright then," he said. "Let’s get this show on the road."