Chapter 55 Making Rather... More enemies
Axel didn\'t flinch.
"I understand you\'re angry, Axel. But don\'t go any further with this disrespect," Racheal, the head of the Serpent Guild, urged, her tone almost pleading. "You have no idea what you\'re getting yourself into. If you keep going, not only will you suffer for this, but so will your sister… and your mother."
Axel\'s jaw tightened, and his grip around Hendricks grew firmer. He ignored her, his mind clouded with memories of the past, the injustice his family had suffered at the hands of the very people now begging him for restraint.
Vicky Shaw, the eldest and most respected among them, stood slowly. His white hair shimmered under the boardroom lights, giving him an almost ethereal appearance—a stark contrast to the storm brewing in Axel\'s eyes. He approached with deliberate steps, exuding the authority that came with decades of leadership.
"Axel Teras," Vicky\'s voice was measured, calm, and yet it carried the weight of his wisdom. "You are nothing compared to the men in this room. I strongly suggest you release him, now, before things get worse."
Axel\'s response was instant and venomous. "No."
The word sliced through the room like a blade, causing the board members to freeze in their places. A gasp echoed from one corner of the table, and even Vicky\'s calm facade cracked for a second.
"What did you just say?" Wukong, the feared leader of the Red Fist Alliance, shot to his feet, his body radiating a dangerous energy. His hand hovered near the hilt of the sword strapped to his waist. "Do you have any idea what you\'re doing, boy?"
Axel met his glare without hesitation. "I said no, you idiots!" His voice was raw with anger, each word dripping with defiance. "I\'m done listening to your orders. Done pretending like any of you matter!"
For a brief moment, silence reigned, as though the very air in the room had been sucked out. The other board members shifted uncomfortably in their seats. The tension was suffocating, and the atmosphere crackled with the threat of violence.
Just then, the doors to the boardroom burst open, and in stepped three figures, their presence immediately commanding attention. S-rank hunters. The kind of elite fighters that only a fool would take lightly.
"Axel, this is your last warning," Wukong said, his voice a low growl. "If you don\'t stand down, these hunters will make sure you regret it."
"We\'re trying to help you, Axel," Seo Jihnyuk added, though his voice was filled with worry. "Think about your family. They\'ve already suffered enough."
But Axel\'s eyes never left Hendricks, the man who had been responsible for so much pain in his life. His grip remained unyielding, his fury far from spent.
"No! I won\'t stop. I won\'t let go of him, and in fact…" Axel\'s voice lowered, almost to a whisper, filled with a menace that sent shivers down the spines of everyone in the room. "I\'ll kill him. Right here. Right now."
"Axel!" Trisha, who wasone of the S-rank hunters present, took a step forward, her voice filled with genuine concern. She was the only one among the hunters who had known Axel personally. "Don\'t do this. Please. Killing him won\'t fix anything."
"Do you have any idea who he is?" one of the other S-rank hunters hissed. "He\'s at the top of Kyota, and one of the most powerful leaders in the world. Killing him would doom us all, especially in the middle of this war."
Axel glared at them, his rage undeterred. "Shut up! None of you know what this man has done to my family. What he did to my father!" His voice cracked with raw emotion, and suddenly, the energy around him shifted, a dangerous red aura sizzling to life, enveloping him.
The room grew colder. Everyone could feel the danger pulsing from Axel now. This wasn\'t just anger—this was something darker, something far more terrifying.
"Axel, please…" Trisha\'s voice softened, her hand gently resting on his shoulder. She dropped any hint of hostility, trying to reach the boy she once knew. "He\'s not worth it. We have a common enemy. Remember the promise you made to me? We can end this together, but not like this.
Not this way."
For a moment, her words seemed to reach him. Axel\'s grip on Hendricks faltered, his knuckles no longer white from the strain. Slowly, almost reluctantly, he let go. Hendricks collapsed back into his seat, immediately straightening his suit and brushing off the invisible dust, trying to regain his composure.
"Axel," Hendricks began, his voice still shaky. "I—"
But Axel wasn\'t listening. He shrugged off Trisha\'s hand, turning his back on the room. His eyes were still burning with rage, but for now, the fight seemed to have drained from him.
"I\'m sorry for what happened to your father," Hendricks said, standing up and bowing slightly, a gesture that felt almost insincere. "I\'ll make it up to you. I\'ll take care of your mother\'s treatment, your sister\'s schooling. Everything. You have my word."
Axel stopped in his tracks, his hand hovering over the door handle. He hesitated for a moment, as though considering the offer. But then, with a low growl, he slammed the door open with such force that the hinges shattered, the doors tearing off and clattering to the floor with a deafening crash.
"How rude of him," Wukong scoffed, folding his arms over his chest. "Hendricks forgave him, offered him more than he deserved, and he still acts like a brat. If it were up to me, I\'d have put him in his place a long time ago."
Hendricks smiled weakly. "He\'s young. Let\'s chalk it up to youthful foolishness."
But inside, Hendricks\' thoughts were darker. *I won\'t let this go. No one disrespects me like that.*
As the board continued to debate Axel\'s behavior, Seo Jihnyuk remained silent, his sharp eyes focused on Trisha. Their gazes met briefly, and with a subtle nod, Seo signaled for her to leave the room. She understood immediately, slipping out quietly to attend to other matters.
\'Alright, Axel,\' Seo thought as he watched her go. \'You\'ve made your move. But now, you\'ve brought a storm to your doorstep. Hendricks won\'t let this slide, and neither will the rest of us.\'
Axel Teras had made more enemies today than he realized.
***AuthorEriElegbede note***
Today was another rather miserable day of my life... I feel so much down spirited, and can barely think, I\'m sorry if this chapter felt weird, it had some emotions from depressed author over here.
Honestly, the reason why I put my Author\'s note this was instead is because the only thing I have left to live for, are my books. I\'m an introvert that my life has broken many times. Enjoy the novel ajd keep supporting me even with power stones or reviews, the smallest things can still be an encouragement.