"Dad!! Why can't you trust Liam after everything he did for us? Are you really that unreasonable?!"
Felicia was shouting loudly. She was enraged about her father's attitude. It was just too embarrassing to see her father that ungrateful.
"Don't you think that he is playing with all of you? He exploits you and the others while making it seem as if he's helping you out. Don't be fooled. They're all just greedy for power and want our death. They invaded our peaceful planet to destroy everything, bring disease, and wreak havoc!"
"..."
Felicia didn't really know what to say to her father. It was obvious that he wouldn't listen to her, either way. There was not much she could do but defend Liam.
She didn't know about others, but Felicia knew that Liam was a good person. He might be a little cold on the surface, but that made sense. It was not as if he was too unreasonable either.
"It's okay if you don't like me. I don't really care. Just don't think that everyone actually wants to infiltrate Haltan. Some have been ordered to infiltrate Haltan even though they don't really want to. Disobeying their orders is comparable to a death sentence. Life is not easy in the Nine Realms and you will endanger your entire family, several generations at that if you disobey your superiors. The moment you encounter the worst opponent, you and your entire family will die.
Of course, that doesn't mean you need to like me, or understand me, forget about the other races. They're your enemy, and you should kill them if they attack you. However, sometimes you will have to create an alliance with an enemy to defeat an even worse enemy.
This is just my good-meant ad-..."
"You can shut up now. I don't really want to keep listening to your words. I hope you can leave now. My daughter will stay here!"
"..."
Liam raised an eyebrow but he nodded his head. He had already picked up his stuff and didn't need to stay in the underground shelter any longer.
Felicia's face darkened at the course of events. She began to frown as she realized what kind of dilemma she had to face.
Was she going to stay by her family's side, or would she leave with Liam and Olivia?
Tiana, Felicia's mother, was also not feeling that well. She was still a little weak from vomiting a few times during the last few hours. Her condition was much better now thanks to Liam's antidote but she was a little weak from expelling the poison and some impurities. It was extremely tiresome.
Everyone else felt similar. They were weak and vulnerable right now, but they were not poisoned anymore.
No matter what they thought about Liam before, he actually worked quite hard to help them. Until now, Liam didn't even ask them to pay for the other ingredients he used to brew the Phasma Lavitas Potion. He simply forgot to ask about it, but that clearly showed that he was not actually greedy for money.
Liam didn't even think of extorting their few Arcanium, knowing that they needed it more than anyone else.
He turned around and chose to leave the underground shelter.
"Kev, don't run around. You're still we–.."
However, before Liam could leave, he felt something holding tightly onto his right leg.
Looking down, the little boy, whose leg had been poisoned with the Phasma Decur Poison, was holding onto his leg, staring up to make eye contact with Liam.
The little boy was among the weakest in the whole group. He had been poisoned first and his immune system was also the weakest.
It was already a wonder that the little body could gather enough strength to stay conscious. He should be extremely tired by now.
"Thank you, brotherrr."
"..."
The little boy hugged Liam's leg tightly, preventing him from moving without pushing the kid away.
Liam sighed and bent down to the ground.
He patted the little boy's head.
"If you're thankful to me, make sure that you protect those important to you. Even if you're too weak to fight right now, train your body and try to learn how to control your Arcane Power. If you have a Soultrait, get to know it better and increase your proficiency with it. Don't trust other people, and rely only on yourself and those you can trust with your whole heart."
Liam got up after that. He ignored the little boy's sparkling eyes and that the little boy was nodding his head vigorously. His gaze moved to Felicia, who seemed a little conflicted.
"If you don't know what to do, you can buy communication crystals. The cheapest communication crystals can be bought in pairs for a few hundred Arcanium. You can talk with each other easily as long as you have enough Arcanium. It may not be the best solution but it might help you to make a decision."
If Felicia wanted to stay with her parents, she could buy a communication crystal for Olivia and herself. That way, they could communicate. The same principle applied if she wanted to stay with him and Olivia. She could use communication crystals to stay in contact with her parents.
"Just do what you want to do. As long as you don't regret your decision later, everything will be alright…probably."
Liam added a shrug to his words, gently removed the little boy from his leg, and moved out of the underground shelter. His Soultrait was triggered upon leaving the underground shelter, but that was quite obvious. After all, a bunch of monsters had been attracted from the fume released in the brewing process of the Phasma Lavitas Potions.
He was the only one outside the underground shelter, for now, and he didn't intend to inform the others about the side-effect of the brewed potions. The scent that spread through the surrounding area was not strong and it could only be detected by monsters with a great sense of smell. That was also why a bunch of mutated dogs, the size of horses, found their way to the ruins of the Dojo.
There weren't any other monsters, which was quite fortunate.
Dealing with a few Mutated Dogs was not a problem at all. He was a little tired, but that only added to his excitement. Liam released the Arcane Kunai while simultaneously releasing his claws. Looking at his hands, he was a little sad.
The Blanchal Silk Gloves had been damaged severely. Their Arcane Power storage didn't work properly anymore, which meant that the natural circulation of Arcane Power in his claws had been disrupted. This was a little annoying.
However, Liam didn't think too much about it. He accessed the Storage Rune and retrieved a bunch of Black Tarthear Needles which he threw at the large mutated dogs that had infiltrated the ruined dojo's yard. They growled loudly and barked several times before manifesting icicles and wind blades around them.
The icicles and wind blades were shot in his direction. They destroyed the Black Tarthear needles and prevented a quick end of the battle.
Determining the trajectory of the attacks, Liam evaded the incoming icicles and wind blades easily.
He twisted his body and charged ahead. Circulating Arcane Power through his body, his physical strength was enhanced. This gave him a slight advantage over the mutated dogs, whose Stats were slightly higher than Liam's. Liam evaded the mutated dogs that pounced at him by changing his own trajectory unpredictably.
His Devil's Eyes could see the Arcane Power circulating through his opponents and he could predict their movements, easily moving before them in order to get into a better position.
His black claws dug deep into the side of the closest mutated dog as he evaded the attack. The feeling of piercing through the mutated dog's skin, and flesh caused his eyes to gleam brightly. His movements got sharper and he began to move faster.
The Arcane Power circulating through his body was released through his pores. It covered his body, creating a tight darkish blue layer around his skin. Liam didn't even notice that as his movements accelerated. He could only feel that the toll on his body decreased and that the power of his Soultrait seemed to have increased.
It was much easier for him to determine the trajectory of his opponents, evade their attacks, and initiate counterattacks mere moments later.
Five minutes passed in the blink of an eye and the fight ended. He took a deep breath and retrieved the Livral Orb to devour the monster corpses.
However, before he could start, his attention was drawn to the entrance of the dojo.
"What happened here?"
"Can't you see? Some monsters attacked."
Hellen and Derek were standing on the terrace outside the dojo, staring at Liam.
"Where are the others?"
"Who knows? Maybe, they won't be coming after all?"
**
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