Chapter 19: Liam and his Ducklings
He was quite surprised by the structure of the gymnasium since it felt uncannily similar to the Colosseums he had been to in the past.
The inner layer of the gymnasium had to be replaced with the arena and the outer layer would have to be altered a little bit…but other than that it looked like a near-identical replica.
It could be turned into a hideout until the rain stopped and it shouldn't be too hard to turn the gym into an actual fortress as long as nobody allowed monsters to raid it first.
Liam entered the sports hall on the first floor, where he was greeted by several rugby fields, some basketball rings, and various other fields. However, all of that turned insignificant since his gaze focused on the desperate humans, who were lying on the fields. Some were covered with blankets, unmoving, while others were trying to tend to their wounds with trembling hands.
The majority of survivors were in a state of shock. Their brains seemed to have lost the ability to function as they were unable to get over the fact that their lives had been turned upside down. Even if some of them had yet to face monsters than the dog and sheep-sized rats, it was quite obvious that life wouldn't be the same as before.
A few people were walking around the inner hall, wielding ordinary steel weapons and it didn't take long for Liam and his group to be noticed.
They were drenched in water that had intermixed with the blood of the monsters they had killed as it trickled down their clothes, splattering on the floor. It was rather difficult not to take note of them.
Liam and the unwanted followers who walked behind him like ducklings attracted more than enough attention, especially since they were one of the few groups who were soaked wet. Soon enough, a young man who was clearly an athlete approached them with a faint smile on his lips. He wielded a longsword whose blade rested against his shoulders as he approached them calmly.
The young man was just about to say something when Liam lifted his hand.
"If you guys have weapons, why didn't you help the people outside? Are you guys even thinking of blocking the gym's entrances with monster corpses or other means, or are you guys too afraid to leave?" Liam asked coldly, without an ounce of mercy in his voice.
He knew that nobody was obliged to help others and he wouldn't do it either if not for his customized mission…but that didn't mean he couldn't provoke others by indirectly calling them immoral and cowardly.
After all, a brutal confrontation was probably one of the easiest ways for him to find out more about their personality and attitude!
Liam took note of the changes in the young man's expression, not missing on noticing the noise of the footsteps of close to a hundred people who entered the inner hall of the gymnasium from behind them.
"He is over there!" A young woman shouted out loudly, attracting lots of attention as hundreds of pairs of eyes darted over to the newcomer that rushed over to Liam and his ducklings.
Close to a hundred emerged from Liam's left and right. They looked at him with various emotions gleaming in their eyes and nobody uttered a word for a few seconds.
The people just stared at him without saying a word. Their eyes sized him up from head to toe which took in a flawless sculptured figure of a human being with steel-like muscles that were visible through the transparency of his white shirt, which was drenched in rainwater and blood.
His mask was a huge contrast to the pale white body, but the same could be said about his black hair and the large purple eyes that could be seen through the hollow eyesockets of the devil mask.
The mask's horn almost looked like it was alive but that was not something the people thought much about.
"H-How…How can we thank you for rescuing us?..." A woman asked hesitantly after she realized that a mere thank you wouldn't be enough to appease the cold-looking, mysterious savior.
Liam looked at the short woman who was two heads shorter than him. She had short brown hair and looked rather plain. However, she had found the courage to speak up to him, which was not even something most of the ducklings behind him dared.
At that moment, Olivia Jellin from behind stepped forward as well. Liam turned around when he noticed her movements, just to see her pointing at the spear.
"I want to repay my debt as well…what do you need?" She asked straightforwardly with a slightly uncomfortable expression on her face. This discomfort didn't stem from the fact that she was subjected to weird stares by her classmates but more from the fact that someone had to rescue her, hand her a spear and force her to adjust to the new and unexpected situation.
Without Liam, she would be dead for sure. That debt was not something Olivia wanted to carry on forever.
'I am already getting paid for saving you idiots…but you can always get more, don't you think?' Liam wondered as he realized that many had identical looks of reverence and gratitude, similar to the woman who had spoken up first and Olivia.
Only now did the people Liam had indirectly saved by killing the dozen Blazing Tooth Rats and some more ordinary huge rats realized that their savior had rescued the students as well.
He even provided them with weapons to make sure that they could fend for themselves. That was the work of a true Hero, not just a good person!
His actions made all of them feel certain that Liam was a good person.
Little did they know that their misconception would be crushed the moment Liam opened his mouth.
"Pay me with Arcanium then!"
Gifts
-- Gift
received Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone