Chapter 102: Not Pleasant
[Third consecutive victory!]
[Continue the victory streak to multiply your gains at the end]
Priam took a deep breath. Unfortunately, with every fight, he had to show a little of his strength and burn energy. The System would give him a greater reward for each victory, but he had a limited number of fights he could win.
Of course, the weaker ones would lose while making him spend very little. Maybe, if he had not provoked the strongest ones and pretended to be weak to defeat as many enemies as possible, the numbers would make up for it.
But after wasting a lot of energy against ants, would he really defeat the powerful ones?
If Priam were an 18-year-old youth, maybe he would think yes. But he was not a stupid and emotional young man.
He was not arrogant and crazy enough to think himself invincible and take risks for no reason. It was better to guarantee he would defeat the most powerful ones while saving as much energy as possible.
Besides... the System had told him before that one of the ways to get points was by increasing his "morale." Crushing the most powerful ones would definitely bring him extra points.
In the end, his current methods seemed like the safest and most solid choice.
"Young Master!"
The people from the Iron Fang Clan examined Barak and found that he was perfectly fine. His external wounds were very superficial. He would not even need pills; in a short time, he would recover naturally.
Everyone sighed in understanding. Priam was not malicious enough to truly hurt someone without reason. He had only done that to Gadcu before out of revenge.
No one in his place would have acted differently against her. That young woman was far too sinister and deserved a lesson.
The leader of a smaller clan murmured, "Where did this brat come from? How have I never heard of him before?!"
"It doesn’t matter. The simple fact that he consecutively defeated Gadcu and Barak makes his future unpredictable," another added.
To everyone present, Priam’s two, or rather, three consecutive victories were more than enough to shake all the clans of the alliance. After all, he had not defeated some random side character; he had defeated the one who represented the peak of strength among the young generation of the alliance’s second greatest clan.
Their gazes fixed on Orlaith.
When she noticed this, she puffed out her chest slightly, trying not to show any emotion.
Another smaller leader spoke repeatedly, shocked. "He not only defeated two people consecutively in three fights, but did it practically without suffering any injury. Besides, it seems he didn’t even use all his strength. A genius so blessed by the heavens... this child is definitely, absolutely extraordinary."
"For someone so strong to appear in such a... simple clan, it is truly the first time I’ve seen something like this in my entire life," Grand Elder Ladomi also said lightly. "But his personality is simply far too wild and uncontrolled. A genius like him, but with such a great lack of restraint... in the Divine Plane, after blatantly and publicly offending the wrong people, he will certainly meet an early end."
Orlaith swallowed hard when she heard those words.
Indeed, Priam seemed to have a very impetuous personality. She herself had told him to take it easy... but when she remembered that he had acted because Flaris had been ruthlessly injured, she could not think badly of him.
Even so, she felt that Priam feared nothing, and that was very worrying.
"Who’s next?"
After putting away the glorious, immeasurable, and terrifying branch, Priam spoke slowly, waking everyone from their stupor.
He stood at the center of everything, staring directly at the people from the Sun of the Underworld Clan. Every word was filled with deep arrogance.
No one in the entire great hall was still mocking him or looking down on him like they had when he was first introduced. From today onward, they would never again have the courage to despise the Ylisse clan so openly.
At the moment, only respect remained in the eyes of the weaker youths. As for his arrogant words, they made the blood of those from the Sun of the Underworld Clan boil, stirring in them the desire to defeat him overwhelmingly.
"Why is this idiot so arrogant?! Does he think that just because he defeated number two, he’s unmatched under the heavens?!"
"Humph! His arrogance is about to end! Now it’s sister Fyovu’s turn to humiliate him so badly that not even his mother will recognize him!"
The shouts of the people from the Sun of the Underworld Clan were loud and filled with fury. At that moment, a Demoness slowly stood up.
This was Fyovu. She was the same height as Priam, but possessed large feminine curves, well highlighted by the red clothes clinging to her body like a second skin. She had a pair of membranous wings, large enough to let her fly through the skies. As for her eyes, they looked like two crimson suns.
She calmly moved to the center of everything, looking coldly into Priam’s eyes.
"My name is Fyovu, nice to meet you. You did very well. Honestly, even I underestimated your strength a lot. I really didn’t imagine you would be capable of making this Lady come knock you down personally. I think you’re competent enough to deserve the privilege of making me take you seriously."
She had an indifferent smile on her face as she said that, but Priam could perceive an incomparably clear killing intent in her eyes.
This kind of explicit killing intent indicated to Priam that, in the battle about to come, she did not only want to win; she would definitely try to deliver a fatal blow to him.
Priam could already feel the fluctuations of Mages and accurately discern their emotions and intentions. Flaris had given him some tips in the past, and Priam had realized he had talent for it... or rather, the Nexus Seed seemed to help him have an almost magical perception in that regard.
Back to the fight. If this Demoness really killed him, no one there would do anything. But if Priam had accidentally killed one of the other two from before, he could not even dream of leaving that hall alive.
That was the reality of the world he lived in. Rules only worked for the weak.
Priam smiled. "You’d better brag less. Before, I won and treated everyone with respect, only calling the next one without saying anything disrespectful. Of course I’m arrogant, but I believe no one here would say I don’t have enough to back it up. Even so, I don’t want to offend anyone, and I didn’t act disproportionately. So I’ll only say this once: fight properly, because slapping your own face hurts a lot, you know?"
He said that as a clear warning.
Priam was only fighting to gain points and make all the clans of the alliance stop looking down on his clan. It was a kind of compensation Priam wanted to give Orlaith for having accepted his mother into the main clan and always treated them well.
Priam was not a young man who liked to show off. But... he was rethinking that, because he actually felt that it was not bad.
His heart was racing, and he was feeling very alive!
After hearing Priam’s words, that Demoness let out an indifferent laugh. "This Lady has always considered herself an arrogant young woman, but this is the first time in my life I’ve seen someone more arrogant than me. To think that this person would dare show such arrogance before me... hehehe..."
Priam snorted when he saw her gaze becoming even more filled with killing intent.
"I understand, I understand perfectly. Lady Fyovu has probably never left her planet and clan in her entire life, so it’s natural that your knowledge and experience are limited and shallow," Priam nodded and said with the most sincere voice.
"It seems there are some sayings perfect for your case... something like living in a bubble, or thinking the world revolves around your own belly button. Those expressions describe you perfectly. You should learn to look at yourself in the mirror, do some self-criticism, and after that, leave your little world to see how real life works. Otherwise, even if you don’t care about embarrassing yourself, the feeling of falling flat on your face and swallowing your own pride won’t be pleasant at all."
The disdainful smile on Fyovu’s face vanished, replaced by an expression of pure disgust.
"If you had continued being the insignificant joke you’ve always been, I wouldn’t even bother breathing the same air as you. With that mediocre talent of yours, maybe you could have begged for a little fame in the future. But no... you insist on digging your own grave. Continuing to listen to your delusions isn’t just a waste of time; it’s an offense to my patience. Enough. This Lady will make sure your name is forgotten before your blood even cools on the floor!"