Kaden looked at the car with hate. Not only has the car foiled his plan to capture the two girls but it has even injured him and his subordinates.
Normally they would be able to dodge a speeding car but this time they were caught off guard. Not only did the car started suddenly, but it also accelerated to a high speed in no time.
"Dammit," Kaden stood up from the road and brought the back of his hand on his mouth to wipe the blood.
VROOM~
Kaden was horrified. He didn’t even get time to fully wipe the mouth on his face as the car struck at him.
CRACK!
A clear and crisp sound of bone breaking ringed throughout the road.
Behind, Jessica and Loren looked at the scenario with disbelief.
"The driver is intentionally giving them time to stand up so that he can strike them again," Loren muttered in surprise.
"The driver is toying with them!" Jessica agreed.
"Argh!" The blood from his forehead flew in Kaden’s eyes resulting in a burning sensation. He suppressed the pain inside him and leaped on the car.
"Die!" His blade-scales hand slashed at the windshield of the car. He was pretty sure the windshield would break and he would get his hand on the neck of the driver.
"What?!" Much to his horror, the windshield didn’t break.
Much less break there was not a single scratch!
Kaden was in mid-air above the hood looking at the windshield in disbelief. Before he could think anything further, he sensed something from below.
"No way!" The hood of the car opened up with great force. The speed of hood was far too high and Kaden could do nothing as the hood collided on his back.
Kaden felt his spine breaking pain from the attack of the car hood. If that wasn’t enough, the force of the collision sent him flying on the windshield.
He was struck on the windshield like an insect in an unflattering pose.
"Boss!" The subordinates have barely stood up. They were hopeful when Kaden attacked the car but now were terrified.
Just what was the car made of for the strike of their boss to fail?
"That driver is shameless!" One of the subordinates cursed, "He should fight one on one instead of using a car!"
SCREECH~
The car dashed towards the subordinate who just spoke. The wipers held down Kaden on the windshield as the car’s bumper struck the legs of his subordinate.
CRACK!
"AHHH!" The sound of bones snapping into two followed by a shriek ringed throughout the road.
"....." The remaining subordinates didn’t say anything. They have learned their lesson of not cursing the car.
"Poor guys," Loren muttered, "Nothing could be more tragic for a gang to be defeated by a car."
"They deserved it!" Jessica said
"Ah yes..." Loren nodded.
Swoosh~
Jessica and Loren were startled. They turned their face around and saw the domain of fire fading.
"Is he alright?" Loren asked,
"He should be," Jessica said in a voice full of awe, "Otherwise he wouldn’t challenge five of them."
"Hmm?" Loren turned her head towards the sky.
"What is that?" Jessica saw five bodies of fire in the sky. They were like small meteorites rapidly approaching the ground.
Whether it was by design or coincidence, the five bodies of fire were falling towards five of the six vehicles brought by the ’eleven idiots and four fools’.
CRASH!
"AAHHHHHH!" Five terrifying shrieks sounded after the bodies landed on the vehicles with a loud explosion. The glasses of the vehicles shattered in fragments while the gang members suffered more grave injuries than before.
Jessica and Loren felt a shiver down her spine hearing the terrible shrieks. The shrieks were even worse than a pig being slaughtered.
"Let us go," Zed’s voice came from behind, "We are getting late."
Jessica and Loren looked back and saw Zed without a slight trace of injury. Except for signs of exhaustion on his face, he was completely fine.
"Felicity wouldn’t like if we are late," Zed reminded them again seeing them still struck on the spot.
"Ah!" Jessica and Loren awakened from their trance.
"What about them?" Loren pointed towards the four crippled fools.
She didn’t like their actions but she was acquainted with them. She wouldn’t feel good to leave them here with their severe injuries and no medical treatment.
"Don’t worry about them," Zed said as he took out his cell phone. He dialed a number on the screen and a moment later the phone connected.
"Hello~ Emergency helpline?
"Yes, there has been an accident on the corner of Delta Highway No. 4. The exact coordinates are...
"No, there have been no deaths but there might be if no help is provided. A total of 15 people need emergency treatment.
"Me? I’m just a passerby who was struck in the situation by the two incident parties.
"No, don’t thank me for doing my duty as a citizen.
"Happy to help."
Zed placed the cell phone back in his pocket.
Jessica, Loren, Kaden, the four fools, and others: "..."
CRACK~
The awkward silence was broken by the sound of Kaden’s bone shattering once again after he fell from the car.
Zed ignored the reactions of everyone and opened the front door of the car. He sat on the driver seat and then signaled Jessica and Loren to get in.
Five minutes later~
The car was dashing at a speed of 190 km/hr trying to make up for the delay.
"The car was being driven by an AI earlier?!" Jessica and Loren asked again.
"Her name is Claudia and I’m sure Jessica is acquainted with her," Zed said with his eyes on the road ahead.
"Well yes but..." Jessica stopped.
How was she supposed to know an AI would take fun in toying with humans?
"Zed, are you not worried?" Loren asked a minute later from the backseat.
"Worried about what?" Zed looked at her from the rear-view mirror.
"Obviously about the incident earlier," Loren was sure there would be consequences once the police investigated.
"Why should I worry?" Zed questioned in a matter of fact tone, "Did I attacked anyone first? Or asked anyone to attack those four on my behalf?"
Loren’s eyes turned wide with realization.
Indeed!
He has never asked the gang to torture or crippled her four acquaintances!
Nor it was him who first attacked the gang members.
"I understand but their parents wouldn’t let it go," Loren said after thinking for a bit. She was sure the parents would come with false evidence to frame him up.
"Actually, they would let it go," Zed said with a smile, "I’m sure of that."
He wanted to avoid trouble for his Zed form given the presence of investigators. But if the trouble came knocking on his door, then he wasn’t the type to take on his face.
----------
The Weisz House was a large villa outside the central district. Located far away from the chaos of the city, it was surrounded by greenery.
The main entrance of the villa opened up after Zed passed his information. He drove some distance ahead after which he and his female companions left the car.
"You are here," Felicity arrived outside to welcome them in.
It was the second time for Loren in the villa after the official welcoming for her father and other investigators. For Jessica, it was the first time arriving at Felicity’s villa.
Zed, on the other hand, has been here more than a hundred times. He stepped in with the others and soon they were in front of the large dining table.
At the host chair, a white-haired middle-aged man was seated. On the opposite chair to him, a black haired woman was seated.
Next, to the host, a black-haired man in mid-twenties was seated. He has a tattoo of Ouroboros on the right wrist.
"Sir Patrick and Lady Kyla, thank for having us here," Zed greeted them both politely.
Patrick nodded his head in acknowledgment. Kyla, on the other hand, stood up from the chair and arrived in front of Zed.
"You look so weak," Kyla put the back of her hand on his forehead and said, "You must take care of yourself."
"I am fine," Zed was slightly embarrassed by her affections.
"Your face is pale," Kyla reminded, "Have you checked with a doctor?"
"Half an hour ago I used my power to its limit so I’m slightly exhausted," Zed explained.
"Oh?" Patrick and the man in mid-twenties were intrigued.
"What happened?" The man in mid-twenties asked.
"Nothing much, Cleo," Zed said as he took a seat next to Felicity while Jessica and Loren sat nearby.
Celo was Felicity’s elder brother. From what Zed knew, he was trying to fight for the mayoral election next year. He has aspirations to become a senator just like his father.
"Surely there must be something serious for you to use your powers to limit," Felicity said with a frown.
"Ah well," Zed was helpless so he explained the story in short.
"Those bastards!" Felicity cursed loudly.
"Young girl! Remember your manners!" Patrick said in a deep voice.
"Dad! They bullied Zed so they obviously deserve more than just cursing!" Felicity protested.
"Sis, it doesn’t sound like he was bullied," Cleo said with a laugh.
"Zed, you should have used my name," Patrick looked at him and said, "You should never be hesitant in asking us for help."
As a senator of the World Senate, his influence in the city was very powerful.
"Thank you, sir," Zed politely expressed his gratitude.
"Don’t be so formal," Kyla said with a smile, "You are a part of our family."
Zed returned her smile but didn’t really think much of her words. As far as he was concerned, her words were spoken out of politeness due to the relationship between him and Felicity.
He then remembered something from the past...
=====
*
A little over three years ago~
Zed was sitting on a bench at the playground of Royal Heart Academy. He was looking at a few papers in his hand.
The papers were the letters of confirmation regarding his admission to the academy.
"My fourth dream has been finally fulfilled," Zed clenched the papers tightly, "But I don’t feel the same joy I felt when I fulfilled my other dreams."
Zed turned his head around to see the playground and other facilities in the academy.
The academy was filled with students. Some were playing while some were just sitting around in group.
"Maybe it is because I truly never wanted this," Zed closed his eyes and thought, "Veronica was right...
"A dream is not a dream if it is founded to satisfy one’s anger and frustration on others."
Zed opened his eyes and looked at the papers again.
"Even after all these years, the hatred I have for those two is still running strong in me," Zed tore the papers into two, "I have fooled myself in believing I’m doing this for myself but the truth is that I am just trying to remove my frustration on them."
Zed threw the papers into the air and left the bench. He has decided to quit the academy today. It was his first day of joining and it would be his last.
"Hey!" A voice came from behind.
He turned back and saw a black haired girl standing on the terrace of a storeroom. She has a fair skin tone with beautiful facial features and from what he could tell, she was probably eighteen years old.
"Me?" Zed asked.
"Yeah, you!" The girl waved her hand and from the ground, multiple vines sprouted. The vines extended to the terrace in the form of a ladder.
"?"
"You are the new student who joined in suspicious condition, right?" The girl asked as she stepped down on the ladder of vines.
"Yes?" Zed looked at her in confusion.
Was she here to bully him? Or to tell him that he doesn’t deserve this academy?
"I plan to leave the academy anyway," Zed thought.
"Are you free now?" The girl asked after she reached the ground.
"I guess so?" Zed was having a hard time understanding her unrelated questions.
"Do you have guts to follow me?" The girl asked another question.
"...." Zed was speechless by the question.
How was he supposed to answer such a strange question?
"Are you deaf?" The girl asked.
"...No," Zed answered.
"Then why haven’t you answered my question?" The girl questioned.
"...I don’t fear anything!" Zed said confidently.
"That’s the spirit!" The girl’s eyes were full of excitement.
Thirty minutes later at Thrill Park.
Hell Coaster~
"AAHHHHHHH!" Zed screamed loudly as tears fell from his eyes.
"Isn’t this enjoyable?" The girl asked.
The coaster rotated them in the sky five times before taking them underwater.
Zed was soaked as the coaster spun in the water to give them the best experience to hell.
"You are crazy!" Zed shouted after the coaster left the water.
"Did you say something?" The girl enquired.
"...Nothing," Zed refused to accept defeat. He was sure the ride couldn’t become worse so there was no way he would accept defeat now.
As the coaster brought them back in the sky, the safety belts opened up. Both of them were in free fall from a height of 200 meters above the ground.
"This is fun, right?" The girl asked unfazed by their falling.
"Fun?" Zed looked at her like she was a psycho.
This is your definition of fun?!
He decided to use his cosmic powers, but then suddenly the girl waved her hand and a sea of flowers bloomed on the ground.
"Ah!" They soft-landed on the flowers without breaking any bones.
"We should do it again!" The girl stretched her hands and said, "You are a chicken but you have some hope if I help you!"
"...." Zed was dumbstruck by her attitude.
"Let us come tomorrow after the academy," the girl suggested without caring about his answer.
"....."
"See ya ~" The girl turned around to leave.
"What is your name?" Zed asked.
"Felicity."
*
====
In the present, Zed remembered their first meeting with a bit of nostalgia. That meeting was the foundation as slowly their relationship developed from acquaintances to friends to siblings.
"Sister," Zed thought with a sincere smile.
True familial relationships weren’t formed by empty words or blood ties. They were formed by the test of time when one is there for another even when there is no advantage...
-----
In the second underground floor of Dream Rise House.
Claudia was analyzing data from two virtual screens. On one screen was the live feed from the dinner at Felicity’s home while the other screen showed Agatha.
[[What one wants is not what one needs.]]
[[Master’s dreams are what he wants.]]
[[Lady Felicity, Lady Agatha, and Hope are what he truly needs.]]