The next morning dawned quietly in the Order, which had no concept of day and night because of the ever-present stars in the sky.
Jake had a pretty dejected expression on his face as he made his way down a street in the headquarters, and even though it looked like he was heading somewhere, he had no specific destination in mind.
He had spent all last night in the presence of the top leaders of his family, who had all both congratulated him and berated him at the same time. The congratulations were because of the fact that he was a part of the team that had made history, and of course, all of the berating was because he was not the top performer.
On the Board of Achievements, teams were always written in the order of top performers. This was important as its purpose was to show who had been instrumental in leading the team to victory, and hence, if there were people who had given equal contributions, they would even be written side-by-side instead of one above the other.
In his case… The fact that the scion of such a legendary family was actually seventh on the list had apparently been so embarra.s.sing that all those who had been waiting for a moment just like this had used it to rain down a lot of ridicule on his family members.
The brunt of all that was what Jake was facing, and he had been given the ultimatum that if he wanted to make it right, then he needed to take part in another 5-star mission and become the top performer.
If that didn"t happen, then he could kiss Willstone that was waiting for him as soon as he became a Peak Champion goodbye.
If anyone found out about this hidden ancestral reward that was in place for all those who were lucky enough to be among the scions of long-standing families, they would definitely have been pretty astonished, as it was common knowledge that it was impossible to aim to become a Hero, and that one should only keep trying as hard as possible until they found an opportunity which could grant them with a Willstone.
This was the reason why Willstones were also not listed in the rewards for even 5-star missions, and no knew clearly just how one was supposed to obtain them, unless they reach the Peak Champion level and were chosen to break through. Of course, this did not apply to the true elites who could break through naturally, but even in that case, a Willstone would always help to give direction that would save a lot of time that might have been spent meditating and shortening one"s lifespan instead of breaking through as quickly as possible and enjoying the fruits of youth until everything went to h.e.l.l.
Not everyone had this kind of an att.i.tude, but it was something he shared with the group that he had also just gotten kicked out of.
It was comprised of those who were comparable to his power and background, and they had also laughed at him. He had had no option but to walk out of the room, and that was why he found himself here, at the exact moment where the sun was rising on the outside world.
The stores in the headquarters were open 24/7, as Champions didn"t really need to sleep. If they had to go rest, they would put someone else in their place, as business was often precious and not meant to be missed just because one was tired.
Jake"s thoughts kept going to that guy who had said those infernal words again and again, and even though he kept trying to abolish them from his mind, they lingered, like a warrior who was almost dead but would not die because he still needed to do something in this world.
"The doors were open."
They kept echoing in his mind, and in frustration, he kicked a stone that was lying nearby.
The stone went and hit someone else who was pa.s.sing on the road, and seeing them turn around, Jake prepared to have a random fight, for once, so that he could take out his frustration on someone.
However… What happened the moment after that made him rub his eyes and wonder whether the frustration had gotten to him, and had made him go mad.
Yet… the thick stench the floated to his nose told him that that was probably not the case.
The stench came from a large pile of liquid material that had fallen from above, and the singular odor made it clear that it was the object of mankind that all sought to bury and forget, especially in this moment in the outside world where people would wake up to nature calling them softly.
Before Jake could give it its proper name, he got a horrible premonition that allowed him to take a step back and see as the same pile which had been about to fall on him miss him by barely an inch and fall instead on the barrier that automatically appeared to protect him.
Of course, a barrier was also the one which had taken the impact in the case of the one in front of him. However… Using his Elementary Vision, Jake saw that there was a very ingenious spell which allowed the odor of that pile to enter the barrier and cling to the target.
What… The h.e.l.l was going on?!
It seemed that the one in front of him had also realized what had happened, which led to him instantly scream out loud with disgust.
Similar screams could be heard from all over the headquarters, and that was when Jake finally looked up to see just who the culprit was.
There were three very familiar individuals who had gleeful smiles on their faces as they transported their payload to and fro in the headquarters, dodging the obelisks which came in their way and sometimes even targeting those who had their eyes fixed on the display panels.
This was the Order, where only those with high talent dwelled, and hence, there was not even one case where a barrier didn"t pop up to protect someone. However, it was obvious by now that this had all been thought of, which was why the spell which made the odor pa.s.s through was so effective.
There were always a few hundred people in the Order, and because the bombardment had started so suddenly, more than 100 individuals were affected before the payload of the three individuals in the air finally shrunk to nothing.
"You b.a.s.t.a.r.ds!"
"I don"t care even if I break the rules, but you"re going to die today!"
"Just wait till I tank your head in the same thing!"
All sorts of angry shouts were heard, and the hundred people who had been affected had already begun to fly into the air.
Yet… These three individuals looked completely unperturbed, and they actually smile as all the curses were thrown at them.
Just as their opponents were about to reach them, though, the one in the center opened his mouth and made a loud announcement that rang throughout the headquarters.
"This is what we think of you folk in the Order! All of you are sh*t! You"re useless, worthless pieces of sh*t who couldn"t even finish a 5-star mission fully! We had to do it and get our names on the Board of Achievements, so be prepared, because this will keep happening! If all of you are really the backbone of the continent of Angaria, then we are really doomed! Why don"t you just go throw yourselves in a well, losers!"
The one who spoke had the most arrogant expression on his face, and in fact… Everyone already knew who he was.
Those beside him folded their hands and looked at everyone as if they were gazing at those who were made of the same material that they had just rained down on everyone, and for a moment, it was as if the Order had frozen.
BANG!
A loud sound which was heard from one of the buildings that was directly below where the three stood broke the spell of silence, and from the ruins of a building that had stood there, a humongous man flew out and directly shot in the direction of these three.
Raging Bull was his name, and he was known for his anger issues. Yet… This time, no one said that his anger was unfounded, as similar actions could be seen from many, many individuals who were present in the streets of the headquarters of the Order in this momentous occasion.
Just before a hundred Champions and Warriors were about to pummel the arrogant a**holes that they had fixed their eyes on, though… Something unprecedented happened.
"All fighting is banned in the general area of the Headquarters! Cease your actions, or be punished!"
A voice that was familiar to all those who were present in the area was heard, and at the same moment, the Overseer appeared.
His body was, this time, covered with the fake faces of all those who were present, and as always, his tone was neutral, even though it boomed outwards and was heard all over the place.
The Overseer was the one who had always implemented the rules. However, usually, there were only one or two rule-breakers who would just be escorted to the Overseer by some Hero or the other before they were sentenced to any punishments that they deserved.
This time, though… The Overseer had had to descend by himself, and it was the first time that this ent.i.ty was seen in this place in a long, long time.
It looked like this was the one thing that would have worked, as the Champions and Warriors knew that they were no match against the Heroes who would be dispatched if they did not obey. Already, by showing the intent to kill, they were in trouble, but if they still moved forward and attacked… They would have no one but themselves to blame for what followed.
Hence, shooting looks of murder at the three who were still beaming as if they were having the best time of their lives, everyone was about to depart after declaring within themselves that they would definitely have their revenge.
However… It looked like the three were still not done, as the one in the middle once again shouted something.
"If you want to wipe out the t.i.tle of sh*tlord that we have given to all of you, then come challenge us! Of course, we aren"t so free as to take challenges from anyone… Only come if you have a 5-star mission! At least that will show us that you are worthy of fighting. We won"t even ask for anything in return, we just want to be proven wrong! Of course, just to make it more real, we might want a place in the 5-star mission, but that"s it! So long, sh*tlords! Choose not to fight, and you"re proving that you deserve the name forever!"
With that, the three looked like they were about to teleport, but they stayed where they were.
This time, it was the Overseer who was apparently not done talking.
"The three of you are sentenced to 3 days in the Well of Penitence for disturbing public order and inciting battles. The punishment begins now."
With that, the three disappeared, but still, this punishment did not do anything to satiate the anger present in all those who were on the scene. The reason behind that… Was that even before disappearing, they had made sure to have mocking expressions as they looked at all those below them, and those who had met their gaze really did feel like they were being looked at as if they were the exact same substance that had rained down from the heavens before.
It was standard human nature to not like it when one was insulted. These were the peak of the peak - the elite of the elite - the strongest of the strong. In the Order… Ego was almost a necessary trait for one to go far.
Jake saw all of this, and was suddenly reminded of something - the expression on that guy"s face when it had been revealed that it had all been his plan.
This was definitely another plan, and he had accounted for everything.
Why does he want so many 5-star missions, though?
Usually, people would rest after going through one, because they were always so taxing. However… It looked like this guy was in some sort of urgency, but Jake shrugged and let it go, because there was something more pressing.
He had seen an opportunity to redeem himself, and there was no way that he was going to let it go.
Hence, with a smile, he turned around and headed back, while at the same time, the storm regarding the newbie whose ostentatious name had already become famous started to roar again, even though it had been ready to die down before.
At the same time… Daneel"s laughter echoed in the empty room that he found himself in, as the first step of his plan had been a grand success.