Chapter 43 Conviction
Chapter 43 Conviction
?Liam was eyed with apprehension when he left the gymnasium. He returned to the outside where the heavy downpour made everything around look hazy and bleak.
Turning around knowing damn well which idiots had chosen to follow him like the ducklings they were, Liam sighed deeply.
"We told you already before that we will be following you!" Rex mumbled while trying to make it seem as if he was overflowing with conviction and determination.
Liam lifted his eyebrow while looking at Rex's comment and he shook his head.
"And I said that you guys are idiots. So leave!" He said in a dismissive tone, waving his hand to push them away, just for nobody to move.
Rex, Kian, Olivia, Felicia, Ludwig, and the woman who had nearly been raped, Jennie, were looking at him with determination in their eyes.
Liam had expected some of them to follow him but he was a little surprised about Ludwig and Jennie's decision to join the rest of his followers as well.
Jennie shouldn't trust him just because he rescued her from the rapists, while Ludwig was a smartass, who never wasted an opportunity to show off that he was intelligent. Ludwig was supposed to understand their current situation and that it was a lot more dangerous to be outside the gymnasium, and even more so to be around him.
Any human would think of him as an invader of Haltan and an enemy of the human race. That was the truth since he came from another realm.
"Following me means that you will have to kill other humans, which in turn will mean that the races of all realms will become your enemies. I was not accepted anywhere and treated like an outcast, even in the place I hail from. So leave before it's too late!" Liam could just kill one of them to show that he was scary and not someone they could trust.
However, he also recalled their first reaction when he had removed his mask. They weren't scared and even complimented him for his looks shortly after they found out what he actually was. This was actually something that had never happened before, and it was enough reason for him to be a bit wary about them. He didn't care about the other natives but he didn't want to needlessly kill the few natives who had followed him for the last 24 hours.
But it was almost as if he was talking to a bunch of walls. He didn't receive a response from the few ducklings who had chosen to follow him even if that meant that they had to leave the safety of the gymnasium.
"You guys understand what it means to follow me?" Liam asked seriously, understanding that only killing them would prevent them from following him. Unfortunately, that was the only thing he couldn't do to the natives, who had reacted as no sane human would upon finding out about his identity.
"Our survivability will increase the longer we stay by your side," Kian said, pointing out the obvious. At least, it was obvious to him since they learned a lot about survival and strength from Liam during the last 24 hours.
Maybe it would be a little dangerous in the next few weeks but their strength would increase rapidly. That would inevitably increase their chances of survival.
"We will be constantly in danger no matter how strong we get. Only when we reach the peak will we be able to escape the strongest existences of the Nine Realms." Felicia said calmly with a gentle smile on her face as she looked at Liam. Her gaze made it seem as if she knew much more than the native human girl was supposed to know.
Liam agreed to Felicia's statement but the reason he had in mind was probably a lot different from Felicia's expectations. He knew that his mother would hunt him down the moment he would start killing his siblings rather than the other way around.
His siblings would start searching for him sooner or later because that was the task their mother had given them. It was a means to make sure that Liam would never slack off, a means to pressure him into always giving his best and reaching the limits of his potential as quickly as possible.
Liam would never be able to understand his mother's actions, let alone her reasoning, but that was not actually necessary to comprehend her next moves as they were always about strengthening or removing the weakest link in her family.
"You will probably die, all of you," Liam replied matter of factly, indicating he didn't doubt his words in the slightest. He was certain that everyone was bound to die. And the confidence in his voice caused shivers to run down Rex's spine, but he didn't feel like backing off anymore. Rex didn't like it when someone said something with a lot of conviction, just like Liam's words, as if their fate had already been determined.
"I don't care. If I'm too weak to survive this shit, either way, let me give my best to overcome it the way I want. If I die, so be it!" Rex said, pushing out his chest proudly.
The others nodded their heads, more or less similarly determined to make use of Liam's company in order to become stronger.
Liam could tell that the kids had their own reasoning for wanting to become stronger. Some may want to become stronger until they reached a certain point where they could fend for themselves before they would leave his side because they had other things to take care of, but none of that was Liam's business.
The few ducklings couldn't be pushed away and he was unable to kill them due to personal reasons.
Liam shook his head while looking at the few natives whose expressions began to change slowly. They looked at something behind him and their faces were slowly drained of their color.
He turned around with his Soultrait triggered, prepared to deflect a surprise attack.
However, what he saw was a big picture unfolding in front of him which caused Liam to stiffen for a moment as well.
A horde of figures was slowly pacing through the streets of the university campus, their ragged and tattered clothing hanging off their emaciated bodies. There were human-like figures and various other beings that were clearly monsters.
However, they all had two things in common; they were dead and they were advancing in the same direction!
As for their destination, it was either the gymnasium or something behind it.
"Oh…fuck off…"