Chapter 16: Conspiracy
Sigil tried to control his expression as he almost rolled his eyes in front of everyone.
The opponent just said dogs and you were offended?
Are you so easy to offend?
Don't you have any standards?
Sigil sighed as he shook his head. He couldn't let this brainless fool fight for the whole group. After all, Sigil instinctively knew that his own teammate would lose the battle.
"If you hadn't stuffed your brain with steroids and spent your free time in humping your boyfriend's anus, you would understand that you aren't the ambassador of your group."
Sigil smiled lightly. He patted Ronald's shoulder and made him step backwards.
"And you, since when do you have the balls to speak for our team?"
His cold eyes gazed in Ronald's nervous eyes.
"I- I'm … sorry!"
Ronald looked a little embarrassed and stammered. Sigil simply waved his hands and let him retreat.
Meanwhile, the bulky man had a red face as he looked extremely angry.
When was the last time someone spoke to him like that?
Never!
Just before he could think of a comeback, Sigil's vicious words struck his self-esteem once again.
"And what's with your hair? How could you fuck up something so simple? Take a comb and groom them properly."
Martha and Alicia immediately recalled the times when Sigil took a long time as he carefully combed his hair.
"You… yo–" The guy from the BlackBee looked extremely embarrassed as he wanted to speak, but alas, Sigil had graduated from the course named 'pushing the right buttons' in his previous life and didn't let him finish his sentence.
"What 'you'? Do you think you are so special if you have a boyfriend that can take up your entire arm in his own anus? Let me tell you, if he took your large stuff, this means that your boyfriend took someone else's large stuff for practice."
Sigil made the action of putting his hand inside an imaginary hole and pointed towards the bulky guy's large hands.
"Aaahhh, I will kill y–"
"ENOUGH!"
It seems like the muscular guy did not have any luck to finish his sentences.
Another youth emerged out of the crowd, his aura intimidating, his hair well groomed. He was lean and looked healthy.
"I am Brad BlackBee, son of the family's Supreme Elder. It's an honour to meet the genius Sigil of the Grey Family."
The youth introduced himself.
If it is an honour, then where were you till now?
Sigil thought speechlessly. If you want to look elegant, then at least choose the right words. He looked towards the smug Brad and smiled arrogantly.
"What the hell are you acting elegant for? I know that you are the one that takes that dude's steroid-driven penis in the night."
Puchi
"Hahahahahaha!"
"Fierce…. too fierce!"
"Damn… hahahahaha!"
Sigil's words caused every single member of the Grey Family to laugh without control. Even Martha and Alicia laughed hard as Aria looked around clueless.
Brad couldn't maintain his demeanor and looked extremely embarrassed. He gnashed his teeth in anger.
"Don't be too arrogant! You haven't even opened your Seventh Gate of Wonder!"
He shouted.
Arrogant?
Sigil shook his head secretly. He wasn't being arrogant. He was just fulfilling his role of the young master of the family.
After he arrived at this world, he showed an immediate change in behaviour. He stopped going to brothels, the number of girls and maids visiting his rooms turned to zero and he also stopped bullying people.
Instead, he became a kind, affectionate man that every father wants as a son and every girl dreams as a husband.
But Sigil felt bad. He made a mistake!
He changed too quickly!
It would've been alright if he slowly transitioned to such a kind soul, but now, he could only salvage the situation by fulfilling his role of an arrogant young master.
Sigil's cold eyes looked towards the member of the BlackBee Family.
"Enough chit chat! Which type of battle would you fight in? Spell battle or a combat battle?"
What chit chat?
Isn't it only you insulting us?
The members of BlackBee Family felt suffocated.
"A combat battle. The one who surrenders loses."
Brad gritted his teeth.
If he didn't beat him with his own hands, he will have nightmares about this encounter.
On the other hand, Sigil felt a little disappointed. He truly wanted to take part in a spell battle. Even though it wouldn't be as efficient and smooth as the spell battle Chakra Stage Witches, the spell battle is still more competitive because of more variations.
"I will be the one participating from our side. What about you guys?"
"I will battle you."
Sigil's proud voice rang as he immediately shot towards an unprepared Brad.
"Hmph!"
Even though Brad saw Sigil playing dirty, he simply snorted. After all, he was an expert with all eight of his energy gates opened.
Even though Brad did not know about Sigil's recent breakthrough, he was still confident in beating the opponent.
The distance between both of them quickly closed in as Brad took his stance to prepare for the battle.
Two fists flew out at the same time, but only one landed.
It was Brad's!
After all, he was stronger and faster than Sigil. When both of them threw their punch, Brad's punch reached Sigil's face and he had to defend his face with the remaining hand.
Thud
A dull thud rang out and Sigil was forced backwards. His left hand protected his facial region and became a little numb from the impact.
Huff
'Strong!'
Sigil assessed his opponent once again. This simple exchange was enough for him to gain some insights into the opponent.
First, Brad did not continue his attack. This meant that he was confident in beating Sigil.
Second, Brad never let down his guard even, making him prepared for Sigil's every move.
Even though Brad was bad with words, he wasn't stupid.
'Man, fighting that bulky douchebag would've been easier.'
Sigil took his combat stance. This body was proficient in boxing Techniques. Even Sigil took a whole week to make himself familiar with these Techniques.
Meanwhile, Sigil's teammate themselves felt that their leader was being too arrogant.
It had to be known that there were many fighters in their group that had already opened all the eight gates. Even Martha felt that Sigil still had a long way to go, after all, he simply decided to fight a stronger opponent without any thoughts.
Out of the group, only Aria felt a little worried for Sigil, while his Fiancée– Alicia also looked a little neutral. Even though she knew that he was trying to change himself, he still needed some more time. She felt that this defeat will be a true wake up call for Sigil and he will truly turn over to a new leaf.
On the other hand, the members of BlackBee Family were feeling happy. Their members were insulted viciously by Sigil and they felt a little comfortable when Sigil was pushed back with a numb hand.
Meanwhile, Sigil adjusted his posture. His left hand needed some time before it could be used. So Sigil immediately changed his posture with his right fist in the attacking position and his left hand maintained the balance of the body.
He ran towards Brad once again and punched towards the lower left of his abdomen, which was once again blocked by Brad. The defence was followed by a vicious counterattack, hitting Sigil's chest.
Thud
Puu
Sigil's whole body felt a tingling sensation followed by a lot of pain. The upper-right part of his ribs was almost cracked in the previous attack.
A stream of blood flowed from the side of his mouth and he breathed heavily.
"Seeing that you are the adopted kid of the Grey Family's Head, I will leave you some face and let you surrender without breaking any of your bones."
Brad chuckled and cracked his knuckles viciously.
Sigil, on the other hand, did not pay any attention to Brad. He finally found a weakness of his opponent.
His combat foundations were weak. His attacks and defence were simple, without any tricks.
Before any attack, there is a reaction in eyes and the lower body of the opponent.
Sigil recalled his Combat Master's words.
Before someone attacks, he aims towards the target and prepares his body to launch the strike.
Sigil wiped the blood off his mouth and stood straight. He lowered his defenses and started running towards Brad. Meanwhile, his eyes were scanning the opponent's eyes and lower body in shifts.
Brad smirked at the incoming enemy.
'Now!'
When there was only an arm's length apart, Sigil saw slight movements in Brad's legs and immediately shifted his body to the right and punched straight.
Whoosh
Thud
His punch landed in Brad's right arm, without waiting for his opponent, Sigil relied on the experience of his past life and took Brad's hand and threw him on the ground.
The spectators were stunned!
Brad was stunned!
Before anyone could form different thoughts, Sigil's voice rang out.
"You lose."
A barrage of punches followed his voice, striking the fallen opponent on the face.
One...
Two…
Three…
Sigil kept on punching as Brad's nose broke and blood flowed like a river. His eyes were swollen and his cheeks were red. His mouth was filled with blood and broken teeth.
Meanwhile, Sigil's condition was also bad. His left arm had already turned blue, his chest was in pain and his right fist had become bloodied.
Sigil stopped after punching for a minute, leaving an unconscious Brad on the cold hard ground.
"What the hell was that?"
"Vicious!"
"Too fierce!"
"Save young master Brad!"
"Quickly bring out the medications!"
The two groups had different reactions.
Sigil's teammates also brought some medications and started to treat his injuries.
"I did not think that you could defeat him. Good work." Alicia spoke truthfully and also praised Sigil. After all, he beat a stronger opponent. Even though it wasn't a straightforward method, it still counted.
"Hehehe, thanks!"
Sigil grinned and inwardly raised his points for Alicia. Not many girls were straightforward like Alicia. Meanwhile, Martha simply shook her head.
What else could she say other than the words of congratulations?
"Awesome work, Master."
She said as she wrapped Sigil's fist with bandages.
"Ho? You didn't think that I will lose?"
Sigil smirked. Even though he felt uncomfortable by the gentle side of Martha, he did not show it on his face. After all, he wasn't used to such affectionate acts.
"No, no. I thought you would lose and terribly at that."
Her voice was still soft, but her words caused Sigil to chuckle.
Would it kill anyone to just lie and make him feel better?
First Alicia and now Martha.
After all of his wounds were taken care of, he stood up alongside Martha. Aria had already calmed down and was collecting the Green Jack Pines alongside Alicia and others.
Brad was still unconscious and all of the BlackBee Family remained on the sidelines. They had lost the battle and couldn't continue to press forward. If they did violate the rules set by their Family Head, they will be punished severely.
After collecting the loot, the group comprising of Grey Family's younger generation walked away to explore other regions.
"Hey, what do you think about the inner regions?"
One of the members asked his partner.
"Well, the outer regions is filled with forest and mountainous terrain. I think that the inner regions will be filled with swamps and rainforest." His partner guessed.
Even though they were prohibited from entering the inner regions, they still guessed the ecosystem held in the inner area. After all, the resources found inside the inner regions will surely be more rare and precious.
Aria also heard the conversation as she asked Sigil.
"Big brother Sigil, what do you think about the inner area?"
"Hmm?"
Sigil was lost in his thoughts and was surprised by the sudden question.
"Well… hmm… I think that the inner region is a Desert."
Of course, he knew the correct answer.
"Ohh, then should we enter the inner regions?"
"Nope, Elder Linda will kill me."
Sigil smiled and shook his head.
"Besides, finding the entrance of the inner region is already hard. Without appropriate Familiars, it will take us days before we actually find a valuable clue."
Sigil explained to Aria.
His condition was getting a little better. His healing factor alongside precious medicine quickened the healing process of his body.
"Shh!"
Alicia suddenly put a finger on her lips and motioned everyone to quieten down. Her actions were quickly complied and the group could finally hear some noise.
It was the sound of leaves rustling.
The sound kept on getting closer as someone finally noticed a movement in the nearby grassy area.
"Vines!"
The person shouted and immediately slice towards the vine with his machete. His voice alerted everyone and they took out their blades too.
"Prepare for fire spell and also a water spell."
Sigil's words were quickly heeded and two members of the team- Blake and Martha prepared the materials for a fire spell and water spell.
Meanwhile, Sigil gripped his Machete with his left hand and sliced towards the incoming vines.
Strangely, they were slowly getting surrounded by the vines.
"Hmm? They don't look natural."
Sigil noticed something strange after cutting the vine. There was no liquid coming out of the sliced region. It actually looked like a plastic vine.
His expression turned dark and his thoughts unreadable. It was a Spell Ambush!
He didn't alert his group and let them prepare for the spell. Meanwhile, he started thinking of the possible solutions.
If he had to guess, then he would suspect the previous group of BlackBee Family. But he still felt that something was missing.
Since this was a trap, he thought of something. He immediately shot towards Aria.
"Aria, give me your phone. My mobile phone was destroyed."
She complied to the request and took out her phone.
Sigil opened the video recorder of the mobile and screamed at the top of his lungs.
"We are from Grey Family. You are breaking the rule by the ambush. If anyone of us gets hurt, you will pay a harsh price."
His scream stunned everyone. The quick-witted members suddenly understood the scenario and their expressions turned gloomy too.
After his scream, the vines started to move even more quickly and viciously.
Seeing this, Sigil smiled secretly. This meant that the opponent could hear his voice, which implied that the enemies are nearby.
"Don't lose focus and defend the spellcasters. I will return in a few minutes."
He handed the mobile to Aria and asked her to stay near the spellcasters and record the whole thing. Meanwhile, he let out a loud whistle and ran inside the deeper regions of the forest.
He did not know the location of the enemy and he couldn't risk calling out for Inverse Witch. He kept on whistling until a dark shadow pounced on him.
'Found you!'
Sigil stopped and retreated as the Green-eyed black panther growled at Sigil.
He could only make use of this reluctant familiar.
He took out a patch of a vine from his pocket and threw it towards the panther.
Grawooh
The panther rolled its eyes.
I am a panther, not a dog!
Sigil frowned at this.
"Look, you understand what I am trying to say, right? If you do, then growl once and I will give you your treat!"
Sigil spoke with uncertainty. He still did not know about the intellectual level of the familiar in front of him.
Grawooh
Unexpectedly, the Panther growled once again and looked towards Sigil with expectations in its eyes.
"Ok, help me find another group of people near this place."
The panther looked a little hesitant before jumping on a branch and running towards the western region.
Sigil followed the panther and paid close attention to the surroundings. He still needed to be careful of the monsters in the forest.
After two minutes, the panther stopped before an open patch of land. The panther had already melded with the shadow of the trees and Sigil took a sneak peek.
On the open patch of land, he could see a group of girls in yellow tights huddling together. The sound of muffled chantings kept on coming out from the group and he could see almost twenty members guarding the girls that were chanting the spell. In the centre laid a pitch black seed and countless vines kept on emerging from the big seed and crawled towards the direction of Sigil's group.
Since Sigil was on a branch, he easily escaped the Vine's attacks.
Yellow Spider Family!
The Yellow Spider Family was a Matriarchal Family. This could be seen by the treatment of the male members of the family that could only stand as a guardian. Their conditions also looked a little worse. Their eyes were sunken and their faces were pale.
Sigil took out a canned food from his small pouch and opened it for panther before throwing it far away.
The Panther silently chased his food…. like a dog.
With all the distractions taken care of, Sigil prepared his gun.
He will only get one shot!
After that one shot, he had to run away. Since the family dared to strike with fatal mean, this meant that they didn't want any survivors.
Before Sigil attacked, he noticed another thing. There was a diversion of vines as a part of these vines were going towards the other direction.
Seeing this, Sigil felt a little heavy. Since the Yellow Spider Family had the confidence to move against two groups, this meant that they were given such instructions by their family head. At least, this was the only conclusion he could arrive after considering the clues in front of him.
It was a conspiracy!
Sigil was almost sure that all the members of Yellow Spider Family were attacking other families, if not their family.
He aimed his gun at the girl that was in the centre-most position and fired.
Bam
He did not wait to see the result and shot towards his group. As he neared his group, he saw the surroundings covered in fire and Martha reciting the Water spell, to placate the fire.
In her hands was a hex bag as she kept chanting the spell.
Fwoosh
The small hex bag opened and a huge amount of water emerged from the bag like a waterfall. It only flowed towards one direction, creating an escape path for their group.
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