Continuous Refusal II

Luke explained how he had amplified his strength with the help of mana.

Obed's eyes were tearful. 'You're not on the path to awakening. You're awakened you bas***d.'

"What's wrong? Your eyes are filled with tears." Luke asked.

"I'm happy for you dude. You'll finally have a chance to be famous." Obed replied. 'You lucky bas***d. You've been going to the association to test if you've been awakened and now that you've finally been awakened, you're not running there for a test. What the hell is wrong with you?' Obed cursed inwardly.

"You better hurry to the association for an awakening test." Obed advised.

"No, thank you. I'm not getting within a hundred-meter radius of that place." Surprisingly, Luke rejected the idea.

"Think about the rewards, fame, glory, and wealth that Chosens get. Just getting into Tier Seven is enough." Obed now wanted Luke to join by all means.

Chosens were those gifted with abilities that surpassed the reasoning of humans. Magic. They surpassed the limits of the human body and went beyond. Even among them, there was a distinction of powers. Not every Chosen was on the same level. For that reason, the higher they were, the stronger they were.

They were ranked from the bottom, Tier Seven all the way to Tier One. The weakest Tier Seven Chosen could take on five average men and come out barely scratched. These Chosens battled against Mana beasts and Dark beasts which continued to exist since the earliest days.

"You seem to know a lot about it even though you're not awakened yourself." Luke couldn't hold his laughter.

"Of course, I know a lot about stuff like this." Obed said proudly.

"You're not even denying it." Luke laughed.

"Why should I? Let me tell you this. I'll awaken soon and then, we'll both go for a test." Obed said, sounding like an imperial verdict.

"I doubt I'll go for the test even then." Luke shrugged.

"Why? You've been going to the association every time for a test and now that you've finally awakened, you don't plan on going for a test?" Obed questioned his friend.

"I've awakened? Pfft… that's a crazy joke." Luke laughed. "Wasn't there a specific threshold one had to pass to be considered awakened even after one could use mana?" Luke asked again.

"You've surpassed that you sick bas***d. How many half-awakened do you think could take on the gang even with Mana usage?" Obed felt like a bomb would go off inside his head.

Luke had taken down a gang of over a hundred people but he was still anxious to pass the test.

"I still won't go for the awakening test. I'll train some more and then train again. I won't go for a test till I'm strong enough." Luke's decision was firm.

"How strong does this chinch wanna get before applying for a simple test?" Obed was gonna run mad if he kept replying to Luke.

"You wanna test out the abilities of this chinch? Let's go outside for a while and I'll show you how dangerous a chinch can be." Luke still sat on the couch with aches all over his body but he still wanted a fight.

"Fine, fine. I won't force you to go for the test. I'll try my best to awaken and then I'll go for the test." Obed finally admitted his loss.

"Sure. Now that I'm done with the food, I'm gonna rest some more and it'll probably end in a long sleep. Just lock the door when leaving for your night shift." Luke spoke as he returned to his previous position.

"Sure. There are still two hours before I leave for work. Get some rest while I clean up." Obed cleared the plates and cleaned them in the kitchen.

'How strong does that bas***d plan to get before going through the test? I'm sure there's no one as strong as him that still needs to train more before taking the awakening test.' Obed talked to himself.

"Sigh. I hope I end up half as lucky as him." Obed took off his clothes and walked into the bathroom to clean up.

Three hours quickly passed and Obed departed for his night job. A factory job.

*****

"Hey, did you guys hear the rumor?" A coworker asked the other workers.

"Yeah. A friend told me that the Forever Gang was attacked and apparently, they were all beaten blue and black. Most of them extended with broken or dislocated bones." Another worker answered and many others gasped at the news.

How strong was The Forever Gang? They had raided fifty percent of all shops in Raug District and not a single soul had been brave enough to go against them. They terrorized those who tried to rebel.

"My source says it was all done by a single person." Someone else added and the murmurs in the group only grew louder.

"They must've pissed off a Chosen and got their butts kicked. Hehe, we'll be free from them for a while I guess." An old man with white short hair and black eyes spoke out.

Obed who had been passing by and heard the rumors sighed. 'Sleepy bas***d, your deed is slowly spreading even while you're sleeping.'

~~~

Luke who was folded on the couch at the apartment suddenly felt shivers all over his body.

~~~

"Young man. Have you perhaps heard any such rumors?" Another old man called out to Obed who had turned to leave.

"Well… there are few things I'm sure about. They were all taken down by a single person." 

"Also, this person is barely twenty years old and apparently isn't a Chosen yet." Gasps escaped from the mouths of the old men who had been busy speaking about rumors. Obed started scratching his head. 'I hope I didn't speak too much.' He turned and left their midst ad and everyone stood there in silence.

"Now, it's almost certain that a single person took care of them and vanished." The old man who has first spoken finally broke the silence.

"Yes, that's true. Whoever it is, the gods of ancient times will do bestow you more strength." Another prayed for whoever had beaten the gang.

Obed returned to his position and started packing items into boxes of different sizes. One could clearly recognize that he belonged to the packaging department from the work he was doing right now.

"When I get home, I'll try to convince him once again to go for the test." He stopped as if waiting for a reply from someone or something that was clearly not there. Then he continued. "It'll be better for everyone if he takes the test and becomes recognized but the shithead has no plans to take the test. I'll catch up soon anyway." Obed spoke to the cold air around him.

"But no matter how many times I hear it, it's unbelievable and awesome at the same time. What's more amazing is that the bas***d is my closest friend. I can be proud about." Obed was feeling ecstatic. He was currently the highest in the room.

"I can probably tell everyone about his identity and my relationship with him right?" He asked no one in sight and then he saw Luke standing in front of him smiling sinisterly. His two hands held a longsword that descended on Obed's head.

A shiver passed through Obed's joints and his thoughts of exposing Luke's identity got lost immediately. "I should probably keep it a secret with me till death or till he gives permission." Obed nodded at his suggestion.