Chapter 188. Unassuming Terror
The man who had mocked the unassuming young man earlier for closing his eyes, thinking that the young man would die very soon, felt extremely fortunate that he did not voice those thoughts out loud.
After all, it had turned out that this man was a really terrifying senior. He didn’t even want to imagine the consequences that would have followed.
This man had killed the raiders without even moving a muscle. No one even saw him move a muscle. He was very mysterious and powerful.
"To think I had plans of teaching his acquaintance a lesson earlier when we arrived at MadCity. How laughable. This man could have squashed me like a bug."
A bead of sweat trickled down his forehead as he stared at his pregnant fiancee and put his hand on her belly to feel the baby.
"It looks like I’ve been too impulsive. I need to learn to control my temper from now on," the man thought.
The other passengers looked at the senior who had closed his eyes.
Wait...
Suddenly, someone pieced things together.
The attack. The way he killed them without moving a muscle... The way they didn’t even see an affinity attack.
His nonchalant demeanor... The fact that he was from Rustwater town.
"Is he the Lodgekeeper from Rustwater town?"
That was when it clicked.
The passengers looked at him again.
They had expected him to be some scary-looking dude. Appearances could really be deceiving.
Fortunately, none of them offended him earlier.
The enforcers did not disturb the senior anymore. They climbed into the vehicle.
"Let’s move."
The heavy vehicle started moving again, engine humming as it churned through the loose sand and kicked up dust along the desert highway.
Inside the car, it was completely quiet. No one dared to speak loudly anymore. The whole atmosphere was totally different from before.
The pregnant woman pulled her fiance’s sleeve and whispered softly, "Is that really him? The Lodgekeeper from Rustwater?"
"Just keep quiet," the man whispered back in a hurry, not even daring to turn his head toward the back seat. "Don’t say anything. Don’t even look back."
"I was just asking," she murmured, shrinking back into her seat.
"I know, but people like that have crazy hearing," the man said, cold sweat running down his neck. "You don’t know how powerhouses think. If we annoy him, one flick of his finger and we are finished. Just pretend to sleep."
He was an advanced rank 2 warrior, but right now he felt like an ant standing next to a mountain. In front of someone who could wipe out fifty expert rank 2 raiders in one second without even moving a finger, his advanced rank 2 strength was nothing more than a joke.
Up at the front, the enforcers were holding the steering wheel tight, checking the side mirrors every few seconds.
"We got lucky today," the driver enforcer said in a low voice to the colleague sitting next to him. "If the senior wasn’t in this car, we would all be corpses in the sand right now."
"Keep your voice down," the lead enforcer warned, leaning closer so his voice wouldn’t carry to the back. "Don’t talk like that. Just focus on driving. We need to reach MadCity safely."
"I’m just saying," the driver whispered. "Those were fifty expert rank 2 desert raiders! The leader was an expert rank 2 warrior with ice affinity! Did you see how easily he was killed? One moment they were shouting at us, and the next moment they all just dropped dead."
"I saw it," the lead enforcer replied, his heart still beating fast. "That’s why you should keep your mouth shut and drive faster. Powerhouses like him don’t like people talking about them behind their backs."
In the middle row, two traders from Ashcreek town and Velber were leaning close to each other, whispering.
"I heard stories about the Lodgekeeper back in Rustwater, but I honestly thought people were exaggerating," the first merchant whispered. "They said he dealt with the other lodge keepers and their gangs like they were nothing."
"Exaggerating? He actually slaughtered thousand expert rank 2 chaotic beasts and one legendary rank 2 chaotic beast," the second trader whispered back, shaking his head. "You saw what just happened outside! Fifty raiders died before they could even finish their sentence! And he didn’t even open his eyes!"
"Do you think he used his mind to kill them like the rumors say?"
"Who cares what he used? The point is he killed them all in a flash. We are sitting in the same car with a living monster."
The first trader swallowed his saliva. "Do you think we should offer him all our money when we get off? You know, to show respect?"
"Are you crazy?" the second trader snapped and whispered. "Someone like him doesn’t care about our trashy money. If you go up to him randomly, he might think you have bad intentions. Just sit still and don’t make any sudden movements."
Sitting next to Aiden, Dickinson looked around at the pale faces of the passengers. He couldn’t help but feel amused. Just thirty minutes ago, these people were complaining about the heat, complaining about the speed, and acting arrogant. But now, no one even dared to breathe loudly.
Dickinson turned his head slightly to look at Aiden.
The senior was sitting comfortably, leaning his head back with his eyes closed, completely ignoring the noise and whispers around him. It was as if killing fifty expert raiders was no different to him than swatting away a few annoying flies.
An hour passed, and the desert heat outside grew even hotter. The vehicle kept driving along the long, empty desert.
The pregnant woman touched her stomach again and looked at her fiance. "I’m thirsty," she whispered quietly.
The man quickly grabbed a water bottle from his bag, opened it carefully without making any loud noise, and handed it to her. "Here. Drink slowly. Don’t spill anything."
"Why are you acting so scared?" she muttered under her breath after taking a small sip. "He saved us. He’s not going to attack us for no reason."
"You don’t understand," the man whispered, looking frustrated. "He didn’t save us because he’s a good person. He saved us because the car stopped. If the enforcers died, his transportation to MadCity would be compromised. To someone at that level, we are just baggage on the same ride. If we become too noisy, who knows if he gets annoyed?"
One of the middle-seat passengers turned around slightly and glared at the couple. "Can you two stop talking? We are all trying to survive this trip. Keep quiet!"
"Mind your own business," the man flared up for a second, but then quickly shut his mouth and looked toward the back row to check if the lodgekeeper was disturbed.
Seeing that the senior hadn’t moved at all, the man let out a silent sigh of relief and sat back down.
Up front, the enforcers spoke.
"We are entering the outer territory of MadCity soon," the lead enforcer said. "The raider activity drops around this sector because of the city patrols, but stay alert anyway."
"Understood," the driver said, stepping on the gas pedal a bit harder. "Man, I can’t wait to get out of this car. Driving with a powerhouse in the back seat feels like carrying a live bomb."
"He didn’t trouble us," the lead enforcer said. "In fact, we owe him our lives. When we reach the gate, make sure we give him the highest priority clearance. Don’t make him wait in line with the regular travelers."
"Of course! I’m not stupid. I’ll personally escort him into the city, and find a residence for him before I go on about my business."
After a few more hours of driving, the sun began to fade. Evening was near.
A large city with thick impregnable walls appeared on the horizon.