Chapter 826 The Test of Self 4
Hidden in an alleyway that was devoid of light due to the closely packed buildings, Daneel watched as a 20-year-old wearing stylish clothes was walking down a street with a very agitated expression on his face.
Each and every thing on his body screamed of the wealth that he possessed, from the Rolex on his breast to the Gucci shoes that he wore. Yet, for all that money, it did not look like it had given him any happiness, because the more time that passed, the more the agitation increased, until he looked like he would definitely burst if he did not let out his frustration on someone.
It was at this moment that Daneel popped out of the alleyway, right in front of this person who had to skip to a halt as otherwise, he would have collided into the one who had appeared out of nowhere in front of him and careened onto the floor.
"Watch where the f*ck you are going!", He screamed, before he was about to be on his way, but he suddenly stopped as he recognized the one whom he had almost collided into.
"You! You're the one who dropped water on my pants and almost ruined my chances with that doll! Oh, it's your lucky day!"
Saying this, he stepped forward and caught Daneel's collar, before pulling it up painfully and making him stand on his toes. Daneel's thin body had no way of resisting, and the other person was built strongly.
His features started to fill with shock and then fear, and his face was that of one who was seeing their worst nightmare.
"You-you were on the news!", He sputtered out, almost unconsciously, but after that, he bit his tongue, as if having realized that that was something he should not have said.
BAM!
There were people passing on the street, but no one came to the rescue as the man launched a punch into Daneel's stomach, making him fall and bend over on the ground.
He shook his fist as if it hurt after that, but there was a smile on his face as he said, "Yes, that's me. And you're going to be my personal punching bag. Come on."
Daneel was coughing on the ground as pain wracked his body, making tears appear in his eyes. It really wasn't fun to be punched squarely in the stomach by someone who was double his weight, and as he found himself being hauled up by his collar again, he tried to put up a resistance, but failed miserably.
After that, though, he managed to get something out which made the person who had been about to drag him into the university stop.
"But I just saw the one who accused you go into a building over there!"
Jeff, as was his name, instantly stopped, before turning around and fixing an angry gaze on Daneel.
"What? Stop sh*tting me! She's been in hiding ever since she made that bullsh*t up! There's no way you saw her on the street!"
Daneel paused at first, but he answered after a few moments.
"I'm not lying! That's how I recognized you right away! I swear, she went into that building over there! But it has been a few minutes, so I don't know if she's still there !"
His final statement made panic appear on Jeff's face, and he let go of Daneel's collar and said, "Show me. If you're right, I might consider not killing you."
Those last words seemed to horrify Daneel so much that he froze, but as he was shoved and fell onto the ground again, the pain seemed to bring him back to his senses.
He was the perfect picture of a random college student who had found himself in an extremely dangerous situation, but he tried to adapt quickly. He got up and nodded before walking off in a certain direction, and Jeff followed while opening his phone.
"Damn thing! Bugs out when I need it the most!", He screamed, following which he slammed the expensive mobile phone which was the salary of a highly paid lecturer onto the ground.
It broke into pieces, following which he bellowed, "Hey, is your phone working?"
With shaking hands, Daneel took out his, and raised it up behind him to show that there was no signal.
"Argh! Let's just get there fast!"
With a nod, Daneel sped up his pace after putting his phone back in his pocket. The city he was in was practically built around the university, so the way it was laid out was that there was a large central street on which they had been walking before that ran through the middle portion. On both sides, there were certain residential areas, and the alleys were the ones which connected the central path to them. Right now, Daneel was leading both of them to one such residential area, and soon, they came upon a dilapidated building which had shuttered up windows and doors.
With a quivering finger, he pointed at it and said, "That's where she walked into! I only spotted her because it was so weird that anyone would want to go in there!"
Jeff looked between Daneel and the building for a few moments, as he couldn't decide whether he was being taken for a ride. Yet, looking at the scrawny figure and the terrified expression on Daneel's face, he understood right away that this was not someone whose character would be one that would even dream of going up against him. He had broken many people like that before, so he knew them perfectly- they would cry sometimes even with a single punch, and they would often be so fearful that they would even sell out their mother and father if it meant that they could save their lives.
"If you're lying, I'll throw you off the rooftop. Come with me.", He said, before pulling out a gun out of his back pocket.
Daneel almost squealed with fear as he saw it, but Jeff turned around and placed one finger on his lips before whispering, "Not a word, or you'll be the first to die."
In this corrupt city, it wasn't really surprising that someone with so many connections had managed to obtain a firearm, but Jeff assumed that the fear was because the kid must be seeing it for the first time in reality.
He checked the bullets like an expert, before going up to a door and trying it silently. While he was doing so, he heard a whisper from behind him.
"She entered through the back door."
He cursed and wondered whether he should deliver another punch because the kid hadn't said it before, but he decided against it and headed to the back door, while making sure that the kid was following. If this was all bogus, then he would need someone to take out his frustration on.
Surprisingly enough, the door did look like it had been used recently, and as soon as both of them entered, they heard a voice coming from the floor above them.
It belonged to a woman, and she seemed to be talking on the phone. Due to the extremely bad condition of the building, her voice was clearly audible, and she was saying, "I want triple the amount, or I won't drop it! They know we have his balls! Did you look at his face? The media will eat it up!"
It was obvious who she was speaking about, and Jeff felt all of the anger that he had been controlling all this while erupt inside him.
Still, he managed to maintain a semblance of sanity and kept silent while climbing up the stairs, and because the woman was absorbed in her conversation, it did not look like she heard them.
They were soon upon the door of the room in which she was talking, and after taking a deep breath, Jeff directly walked inside with the gun pointed up.
"AAHHH! He-"
As if he had prepared for it, Jeff walked forward and directly managed to knock the phone out of the woman's hand and crush it beneath his feet, before he used that same hand to turn her around and bend it behind her painfully.
"B*tch! You dare to target me! Unfair, huh! Let's see how unfair it is after I really do have my way with you! Oh, you're going to die anyway, so there's no reason not to have some fun!"
His face was already filled with ecstasy, as he saw that he had directly found a way to get out of this entire mess. If she disappeared, it would seem as if she had run away because she had made a false claim and then found no way to back it up, and he would be free. Hell, his father might even appreciate him for once, instead of beating him black and blue like he had done the night before.
With lust and satisfaction feeling his features, he still held her hand behind her and began to rip off her clothes, while she started screaming for help. Sadly, it did not look like her voice reached outside.
Jeff had forgotten completely about Daneel, because people with characters like him would never step up to save others as they would be too afraid to do so.
Yet, right as he was about to finish his task… He felt a prick in his back, followed by a surge of electricity that raced through his body and made him feel pain the likes of which he had never imagined he would have to endure in his life.
The last thing he remembered before blacking out… was the triumphant expression on the scrawny kid's face, and even through the pain, he felt amazed that such a thing could even come on the face of someone like him.
…
Meanwhile, in the hall of the High Council, the discussions that had been raging on seemed to have finally come to a stop.
Many points had been raised, and reasons had been given from both sides regarding which option should be chosen.
There were pros and cons for each, and there was no clear majority.
Yet, it looked like the ones who held the most power were finally ready to make a decision, as they simultaneously sent messages to the Head.
Following this, the Head raised his hand and said, "The honorable Heroes have given me their votes. Now, it is time for us to vote, too. How many wish to storm the Church's headquarters?"
A few people raised their hands, but seeing them, the Head shook his head. Since the beginning, he had known that this was not really a viable plan, as there was very little chance of success. As the headquarters, it would definitely be equipped with many, many defensive methods, and it was possible that they might have to expose many of their trump cards if they wanted to win.
The matter of whether it was worth it or not had been the main thing being discussed, and it looked like the consensus was… That it wasn't.
"Well, that settles it. Even I agree that it is too risky, and we must hold back our cards for the War. Yes, with the second option, our Energy resources will be halved, but with the timeline that we expect the Church to attack in… It doesn't matter. The best case is that we win, and we will be able to supplement our own resources with theirs. One last thing: keep in mind that if any of you think of a better alternative, you can state it at any time before we proceed with carrying out this plan. We still need some time to devise the formations, but we should be able to do so quite quickly. The High Council is dispersed. Gentlemen, let this not be a loss, but a rallying cry that we should start to prepare for the War, as they have clearly begun to. I'll be drafting policies for the combined training and deployment of troops in the Big Four soon. For now, farewell, and may the Heavens shine kindly upon us."