Running away

The next morning, Adam woke up from sleep and saw that the residents had still not returned. Adam became more worried that they might all be caught by the police and imprisoned. Adam immediately packed all his things, and he immediately fled to avoid more trouble, carrying two large backpacks. He planned to move under the overpass near the river on the edge of town and build a simple tent there. He knew someone who lived there two weeks ago.

He rested under a big tree for a while because he was exhausted. His stomach was hungry because he hadn't eaten since yesterday. He slowly took out his wallet and intended to use the money to buy food and drinks for breakfast. What a surprise! It turned out that his wallet was empty. The money he earned from his hard work was stolen by someone. He immediately suspected that the old man was the one who stole his money.

"I didn't expect that someone I thought was very kind to me would actually stab me in the back."

Adam looked at a stall. He slowly walked over there and went in to meet the owner.

"Excuse me, Madam, could you give me some food? I'm hungry, but I don't have any money. Someone stole my money. I only have this as a warrant. Later, when I have the money, I will definitely pay it back. This is the only thing my parents left behind." Adam said as he handed over a dark purple crystal stone to her.

"Hmmm, don't worry, son. You just take the stone with you. It's too valuable for a warrant. It would be better if you just helped me wash the dishes in the kitchen and sweep the backyard of the stall. How about that?"

"Thank you very much, ma'am. May God reward you for your kindness."

"You're welcome."

She gave Adam a plate and asked Adam to pick up his breakfast himself. After eating, Adam worked according to the agreement. After completing his duties, Adam said goodbye and continued his journey.

Arriving at his destination, Adam didn't see anyone around there. He thought that maybe they should leave this place because they found a better place to stay. He immediately prepared to build a tent from the used items he found around him. After finishing setting up the tent, a group of thugs came and asked Adam.

"Who allowed you to set up a tent here? This is our territory. Get the hell out of here!"

"Isn't this a public place? This place is not yours."

"Hey kid, how dare you talk to me like that? Don't you know who we are? The Cobra gang rules this area. Do you want to suffer the same fate as the previous residents here?"

"What did you do to them?"

The thug rubbed his index finger across his neck, indicating that they had slaughtered them. Adam felt a little angry but also scared. He didn't want to cause more problems, but he didn't want to sleep out there in the cold night. His body has not fully recovered yet. Then he remembered the dream he had last night about the four guardians. He tried to remember their names but forgot. All he remembered was Inferno, who seemed to dislike him. But he also wasn't sure of the truth of the dream.

"Come on guys, since it's almost evening and the weather out there is very cold, I beg you to let me stay overnight. Tomorrow, I will definitely leave here early in the morning. How about that?"

"How much do you dare to pay us?"

"About that… I don't have the money for that. Coincidentally, someone stole my money yesterday."

"Useless bastard. What if you just die? Guys, beat him up!"

The thugs started to move towards Adam. Adam, who was frightened, spontaneously shouted for help, and what came to mind at that moment was Inferno.

"Inferno, help me!"

Suddenly, a large fireball came out of Adam's left hand and was thrown towards the thugs. Two of the thugs were knocked back by the fireballs, while the others ran away in fear. Seeing this incident, all the thugs ran away in fear and shouted, "Monsters, he is a monster; run for your life."

All the thugs ran away in fear, including the two thugs who were hit by the fireball with burns on their hands and chests. Adam was surprised to see that his hands were emitting fire. He looked at the birthmark on his left hand. Out of curiosity, he tried to repeat it. "Inferno!" Nothing happened. "Fire ball!" Still, nothing happened. "Inferno, help me!" still nothing. Adam felt frustrated and shouted, "Fucking useless! Stupid Inferno!" Whooooozzzz... suddenly flames emitted from the birthmark and slowly began to change shape into a person with a mask and red clothes. "Are you looking for death, kid?" the guardians named Inferno asked the boy with anger.

Adam was shocked and fell backward. There was fear, excitement, and a little worry. But he tried to stay calm because he thought a guardian couldn't possibly kill what he was guarding. "Hah, you damn subordinate, when the boss calls you, you have to come as soon as possible. Don't be lazy."

"Insolent brat, who do you think you are? A weak kid like you should just die. Why don't you just die with your parents?" said Inferno, annoyed.

Adam can't say any words. His face turned gloomy instantly. His tears slowly fell. Inferno also felt guilty. He might have gone too far this time. He shouldn't have said that because it would really hurt Adam's feelings. Even though he didn't intend it that way.

"Emmm... I didn't mean that. I mean, we've watched you grow all this time. I just want you to be stronger than you are now. You know the strong are the ones who are powerful and rule the world. Without strength, you will only be oppressed. We do not want you to be oppressed and suffer continuously. Men didn't cry."

Adam smiled slightly. He wiped away the tears that rolled down his cheeks. Seeing this, Inferno was relieved. Actually, he is a good guardian, but sometimes he gets angry easily and says harsh words. The fire element is always like that. "You can think of us as family. Just consider me your uncle. Never think you are alone again. You have us, who will always look after and protect you forever. You are not alone. Ooops, my time is up."

Pop! Inferno disappeared instantly. After the inferno disappeared, Adam's left hand felt hot, as if it were burning. Adam waved his hot hands. After about a minute, the heat gradually disappeared. It was a side effect of summoning a guardian.

That night, Adam hoped that he could stay there at least until the next day because he guessed that tomorrow the thugs would return with more reinforcements. Adam doesn't know where he will go tomorrow, but he doesn't really care about it. Because he was too tired, Adam fell asleep even though it was only 7 p.m.

Meanwhile, the Cobra gang members reported the incident to their main leader, Viper. Viper felt very challenged because he was also not an ordinary person. He has the special power of being able to spit poisonous liquid from his mouth whenever he wants. This liquid is not only poisonous but also corrosive. When it comes into contact with the skin, the skin will blister, and the poison will spread all over the body through the blood and can cause death in minutes. One of Viper's weaknesses is that his eyes are short-sighted and blurry. However, their sense of smell is very sharp, and they can differentiate people by their smell. Viper knows that there are some people in this world who are given special powers like him, so he is very excited when he meets such people.

"Hahahahaaa… I finally found an interesting opponent. I'll beat him to death. Where is he? Take me there quickly!"

"But boss, it's already too late at night. Shouldn't it be better if we go there tomorrow morning?"

"Idiot! What if he runs away tonight? Quickly take me there!"

"Okay boss!"

The group went to the location of the incident. They drive several cars and motorcycles. When they arrived at the location, they immediately approached Adam, who was sleeping deeply. However, some thugs did not dare to approach because they were still afraid.

"That's him, boss."

"Wake up and beat him up!"

Several thugs were forced to get closer to Adam while preparing to hit the iron pipe they were carrying. Suddenly, one of them hit Adam on the back with all his strength. Bugh!

"Aaaarrggghhh..." Adam shouted in pain. The thugs took several steps back, afraid he would fight back like before.

"Hey kid, show me your powe. Let's fight." Viper shouted, challenging Adam, who was still stretching in pain. "Do not pretend. Fight me!"

Adam, who was still in pain and half-conscious, slowly stood up. He thought it was impossible to win against all of them. There was no other way but to throw himself into the river 50 meters behind him. But he was also not sure that he would survive because the river current was very strong and the depth was around 10 meters, especially since it was quite dark and the water was very cold. Without thinking, he immediately turned back and ran as fast as he could towards the river. Several thugs chased him in the dark while throwing the iron pipes they were carrying. Adam ignored his feet, which were pierced by sharp rocks several times while running, and immediately jumped when he arrived at the river bank. His body immediately sank, and he was swept away by the river's rapid current. The darkness of the night and the cold water swallowed his body and made it difficult for the thugs to track him. They could only gape at Adam's recklessness. Viper became very angry seeing that. He spontaneously grabbed one of his men and bit his neck. In an instant, the man convulsed and died; even his neck blistered and melted. After venting his anger, Viper returned to headquarters, followed by his subordinates.