Chapter 132: Strike True.
He had indeed heard her cursing when he arrived, so he didn't doubt that she was capable of such a thing.
Meanwhile, Kelvin had gotten closer to him. He didn't approach the speedster in a straight line, as that would set him off. He walked as if he were leaving the street, not approaching Dustin.
This meant that there would still be space between them even if they were side by side. It was this space, his speed, and the fact that Paul doesn't kill that made Dustin not run for his life yet.
Kelvin continued to explain, "I warned her to leave or I would kill her. She didn't listen to me. You saw what became of her."
Dustin nodded. He was just a goofy teenager, and the explanation made sense, so he felt that what Paul did wasn't so bad. Meanwhile, his fans groaned and covered their faces in phantom pain.
They screamed, "Run, Dustin, run."
But he couldn't hear them, so he didn't run for his life. He was even excited to work together with Paul when the monk asked if they could work together. They walked together and chatted together in harmony.
Dustin Donuts didn't see the attack coming. He had his head turned away to peer around a corner when Kelvin attacked. So he didn't see how he died.
Kelvin pumped his fist in excitement and said, "Yes. One hit. I am beginning to enjoy this more than fighting them outright."
The moderator was also excited. He said, "Augustus strikes again. He strikes once, and he strikes true. Give it up for a spectacular performance, everyone. He is worthy of being an actor. He has the talent and more."
But only a few spectators cheered. At this point, they have to admit that they are impressed with his performance. But peer pressure and societal norms are preventing them from cheering publicly for a murderer.
No matter how impressed with how he is killing them, they have to pretend to hate him and boo him. But secretly, some of them had become fans of this villain and would like to see what more he could achieve.
Of course, there are those whose hatred has only become stronger by the sight of his performance.
The fact that he is this strong is also a defiance of their hatred of him. He should be weak, not strong since so many people hate him. They wished they could go down to the forest and end him themselves.
Unfortunately, they can't. They can only hope that the people that Augustus has just encountered will do the job for them.
Dustin had heard a sound. He had turned to look for the source of the sound. These people were the ones who made the sound. So in a way, they had caused Dustin's death.
Kelvin would like to believe that. He would like to thank them, sarcastically, of course. He won't mean it because he believes he deserves most of the credit for the clean cut of Dustin's neck.
But he decided to hide the body before he meets them, and they have to argue about who is to take credit for Dustin's death. He is sure that they would be adamant about who killed the boy, and he doesn't want to make them feel bad for the pitiful assistance they rendered for the deed.
He picked up the still-bleeding body and dropped it into one of the houses by the side of the road. Then he returned to the street just in time to encounter them.
They saw him come out of the building, and all took a step back from him. His face remained impassive as he continued walking. He walked confidently, as only a guilty person who doesn't belong or who has done something wrong would fidget and act suspicious.
But these people were not going to let him go. Someone stepped forward and said, "Stop there."
He turned to look at them with a calm face and said, "If you want a fight, just say so. I assure you that I won't beg you or go down easily." Your journey continues on empire
He put his hands together in the posture of prayer and bowed as he said, "I welcome challenges. What doesn't break me will make me stronger."
The moderator pointed at the screen as he laughed. He said, "That's Paul's catchphrase right there. He even said it better than that boring monk. I expect that he would be fuming right now."
Paul was indeed fuming. He died and lost half of his kill count. His strength fell by half because of it. The only fortunate thing is that he didn't lose any fans.
That should have made him happy, but he is furious about it because his fans don't think his performance was disappointing. They felt that his swift defeat was reasonable. That fact is eating at him.
Now, he has to watch Augustus use his face to commit crimes. He is all about ready to blow his top. He too wishes he could go down there for another round and kill Augustus.
Unfortunately, he can't. He could only hope these people would do the job for him. However, these people don't want to fight Friar Paul.
The person who stopped him earlier made sure to express that at the earliest chance. He raised his hands and said, "We don't want to fight. We are only looking for Augustus."
His head remained bowed as he said, "Tell me, do I look like Augustus?"
He beckoned calmly with his arm to them. "Come. Let me show you just how different I am to Augustus."
The people didn't step forward like he asked them to do. They actually stepped back collectively. Twenty eight people, and yet they were afraid of Frial Paul.
Their number didn't give them confidence because the more people are fighting him, the stronger he will become. His ability truly shines under pressure. It needs insurmountable difficulty for it to show its full potential.