Chimaera's Conquest: The Legend Of The Devourer-Chapter 241: Maria’s Personal Grim Reaper

<Super Rookie speaks! I have nothing to do with the dungeon collapse.>

<Open challenge issued! Adrian Fenrir: My doors are always open for those who want to throw shade.>

<Fenrir and Fernandez: The bombshell revelation! Sophia Fernandez shocks the world by announcing her relationship with Adrian Fenrir!>

After the press conference, the internet went wild, just like George had said it would happen. Some folks doubted if Adrian had anything to do with the dungeon accident, mainly because Maria had her fair share of supporters. But most folks believed Adrian was innocent.

But that didn’t stop everyone from engaging in an online debate as usual. The discussion was heated, with some defending Adrian’s innocence while others were convinced of his guilt.

However, people seemed more interested in Adrian and Sophia’s private life than anything else.

It came as a shock to everyone, as they had expected Sophia to return to France and then carry on with her previous engagement. Some even called her out, bombarding her inactive social media pages.

Others believed that since her fiance had already married once, the engagement was no longer valid, leaving Sophia free to do as she pleased.

Either way, Adrian was successful in his plan to provoke Maria and her cult, which everyone knew as her guild. Adrian knew it was only a moment before she went berserk and did something regarding the challenge he gave them.

"What’s next?" George asked Adrian once they got back from the excruciatingly long party.

"Now we wait," Adrian replied, fixing drinks for everyone.

"You’re serious?" Sophia asked. "I thought you’d be the one going after them."

"I would have, but we’re playing chess," Adrian smirked, handing her a drink. "I made my move; now it’s time for them to make theirs."

Seraphina gulped her drink before getting up, "You keep playing chess. In the meantime, I have something to do."

"Really? Something to do on a planet you’ve never been on?" Vesper commented, casually sipping on some fruit juice.

"Who said it’s my first time here?"

***

"An open challenge... interesting."

Charles sat in his dimly lit room with the tablet casting a soft light on his weathered face. He adjusted his spectacles with a sigh. After all, anyone would get tired after reading articles for hours.

"Hmm, bold fellow, that one," he muttered, flexing his neck. "It’s strange, but he reminds me of my younger days. A bold and unapologetic man who bowed before no one."

With a flick, he threw the table on the table, removed his glasses, and rubbed his old, tired eyes. A polite smile played at the corners of his lips as he recalled his youth, a time filled with excitement and lots of pain.

It seemed a brat like Adrian had only experienced the fun part of having no-fucks-given attitude. But soon, he would get to know the meaning of pain. freewёbnoνel.com

After all, that was the reason Charles was in Miami. However, before that, he had some loose ends to deal with.

"Let’s see how all of you are holding up," Charles commented, flicking on the lights.

The smile faded from his lips, replaced by a cold expression when he turned around. Before him were several people, both men and women, bloodied and barely conscious.

All of them were trained professionals. Some had been trained by Charles himself, which wasn’t weird, as all of them were members of Maria’s guild.

Most were chained to the ground, while others hung upside down from the ceiling of the cold storage, where no one would miss them.

As the people opened their eyes, they immediately began begging for mercy through their muffled voices. Most of them had heard the tales about the one they called the Reaper.

But some of them knew him as Lady Maria’s butler, an S-rank hunter and Maria’s personal angel of death. For obvious reasons, there were no records of Charles being an S-Rank hunter, or else he couldn’t move freely within a foreign country.

Moreover, since he rarely left Maria’s side, no one really cared about an old man. But it was different for the ones who had been trained by him. They knew the real demon hiding behind Charles’ sweet and polite nature, and it made them tremble in fear.

Thankfully, Charles wasn’t interested in them for the moment. His eyes were fixated on Abigail, who was dangling helplessly before him.

Her condition was the worst out of everyone there, with an eye missing and her fingers swollen and blackened from Charles’ "special attention."

"Your fingers should have healed by now," Charles remarked, staring at Abigail’s bruised figure.

Abigail let out a muffled scream the moment Charles touched her hand. Her remaining eye was wide with terror as she shook her head frantically. Her constant fidgeting irked Charles, who took a deep breath to calm himself.

Tears erupted from Abigail’s eyes as he begged for mercy and a chance to explain. But nothing of that sort happened, and Charles delivered a swift kick to her side, causing blood to seep from her taped mouth.

"If you didn’t want this, then you shouldn’t have escaped the dungeon," Charles admonished the girl, roughly grabbing her by the hair and began punching her right in the face.

Everyone who noticed the scene recoiled in fear as Abigail’s face was shattered beyond recognition. If it hadn’t been for the healing potion constantly being pumped into her body, she would have died a dozen times over.

"There’s nothing I hate more than deserters... and all deserters will pay dearly," Charles roared, delivering a final punch to Abigail’s face. "Even if it happens to be my daughter."

He then broke one of Abigail’s fingers without hesitation as soon as it healed, the healing potion only prolonging her agony. With that, he left her alone to heal... and be broken again.

Meanwhile, the other captives watched in silent horror, their faces pale with fear as they awaited their grim fate at the hands of Lady Maria’s merciless butler. Charles turned away from Abigail, his attention shifting to the other prisoners, and they all began begging for their lives.

"You all have much to answer for," he said, cracking his knuckles. "And rest assured, I will ensure that each of you faces the consequences of your actions while you confess your sins."

As the night wore on, the cries of the captives faded into a haunting silence, their fate sealed by the hand of Lady Maria’s loyal servant.