Chapter 14: Who?

Jon had met Alex and Alexa on the same day, and over time, they became inseparable friends.

Alex, fiercely protective of his sister, had always struggled with the thought of who might date her. He wanted only the best for her, and after seeing Jon's character, he wouldn't have objected to him. But would Alex push his friend to date his sister? No.

He just wanted to protect her from heartbreakers like Joe, however he failed. And the sister he sought to protect was already scarred in a way he didn't know, and Alex himself was dead.

By now, the group that watched as Jon entered unhinged had started talking to others to watch the situation unfold.

And by now more of the people in the area Jon were approaching the area he was.

Then an unreasonable rage began building inside him, he was almost losing it but still managed to ask one pivotal question, a single word that carried a world of meaning: "Who?"

Since the beginning, Alexa had been sobbing, but at Jon's question, her grief turned to fury. She screamed as if it meant everything to her.

"IT WAS JOE! HE JOINED KRAD! THEY KILLED ALEX AND—AND—"

She couldn't finish, and Jon didn't need her to. He already knew.

Nearby, Cynthia too had heard the scream and came out to witness the scene.

Then she saw Jon, standing with fury and mana radiating off him, and Alexa crying in front of him. She didn't know why, but she felt getting involved would not be a good idea.

Soon, others who had been having a meeting nearby, including Jenny, Tunde, and several others, came to see what the commotion was, and those people included the Krad members who spotted Jon, an unfamiliar face causing an uproar.

"The fuck..."

"How dare you."

"Fucking..."

The Krab members moved swiftly toward him.

Jenny, noticing Jon had awakened, was surprised, but couldn't fathom why he was so angry. They overheard Alexa's shout, the death of Alex, and the betrayal by Joe, and the pieces of the story began forming, but it still wasn't complete.

Even Joe, standing within the Krad area, emerged at the call of his name.

Seeing Jon made him frown, 'Is this Jon?' he couldn't believe what he was seeing, this wasn't the Jon he knew.

How had he changed so much in just one day?

As for Jon, his feelings were clear. His friend was dead, another friend had betrayed him, and that same friend had violated his sister.

BANG.

The aura emanating from Jon suddenly expanded, and something within him snapped.

"KRAD! I WILL KILL YOU ALL!" he roared, his eyes locking onto Joe. "YOU WILL REGRET IT, JOE!"

Without hesitation, Jon moved. His fists and legs charged with moon energy; he appeared before the closest Krad member and,

BANG.

And the Krad member's head exploded from the impact.

"H-H-H-He killed a person?" Nobody knew who said that but, the cafeteria became rowdy again.

"Kyaa...."

"H-Help..."

The survivors who had taken a full day to calm down from the apocalypse erupting outside began screaming and running away at the death of a person.

Thinking he was going to stop after that, but another head was gone before they knew it.

Two days ago, Jon would never have imagined killing anyone. Even when the world started to collapse, he hadn't seriously considered taking a life. But now, he had done it, he strangely didn't feel wrong about it. His trait numbed any crisis of conscience he was to have.

And he didn't stop.

BANG

[YOU HAVE RECEIVED LEVEL 2 'JOHNSON MARK' REMAINS]

[YOU...]

He ignored it, he didn't even need their remains.

He just wanted them to die and nothing else. If it was before the fall, he didn't know what he would have done if this also happened. But now, he knew he wouldn't back down.

"H-Hey, t-that's enough" A middle-aged man still in tattered suit stretched out his hand to stop Jon from doing any more.

"Are you going to stop that?" Another staff said while dragging him back and they both looked at the situation.

There was no thinking about it, he would die if he stepped forward.

And like shock, in mere minutes, the entire Krad group was wiped out. The strongest of them that had been causing trouble died just like the weakest, no one stood a chance.

Joe's face drained of color, as did everyone else's. The once-feared Krad gang had been massacred down to its last man, and Jon stood among the carnage, covered in blood, his aura continuing to pulse.

Unknowingly, wisps of red began flickering all over the normal light blue energy swirling around him. It continued to flicker in and out. At first, it was almost unnoticeable but as time continued, it became visible and began to grow in number.

He didn't know it yet, but he was planting the seed of what would later be useful.

'It was worth it,' Jon said in his mind. That was the only thought he made as he looked at the corpses and blood pooled area, he was now in.

And without hesitation, he moved toward Joe, who now shook uncontrollably.

Jon, who was usually shorter than Joe, was now standing at the same height. But to Joe, he might as well have been a giant in that moment.

Silence stretched between them as Joe trembled under Jon's gaze.

He knew he had done something unforgivable, something not even thirty years in prison could completely redeem, but he had still done it.

The truth was, Joe hadn't raped Alexa. Before he could, Cynthia and Jenny arrived, so they stopped. As for Alex, Joe had only watched as it unfolded, he had been too focused on gaining favor with the Krad gang to care about the consequences.

But none of that mattered now.

"J-Jon, it's all a misunderstanding. I—" Joe stammered.

"You betrayed us, Joe. What misunderstanding?" Jon cut him off coldly. "Alex is dead. WHAT FUCKING MISUNDERSTANDING?!" His voice grew louder.

His hand, now pulsing with moon energy and flickering red, shot out. In one swift motion, he severed Joe's hands and legs.

"ARGHHHH!" Joe's screams echoed as blood gushed from his limbs, joining the sea of blood that covered the ground.

The crowd, already breathless from the massacre, couldn't believe their eyes. They had never imagined they would witness such bloodshed, and now it flowed like a river.

Jon didn't do anything else and turned his back on Joe's agonized cries and left him to bleed. The Jon before the fall would have asked more questions, and sought more answers, but this new Jon already knew everything he needed to know.

He knew Alexa hadn't been raped, but almost. Well, if she had been, what he would have done would have been much worse. His moon gaze had been active, and he scanned her body. And even if Joe hadn't directly killed Alex, he had watched it happen and did nothing to stop it.

Jon moved closer to Alexa, his blood-soaked form halting just before he touched her. He didn't want to touch her; she was still too fragile for that. So, he could only look at her, with deep sorrow.

Jenny noticing the turn of events then stepped forward and silently stood beside Jon. She knew Alexa needed someone to support her now. Though there was the possibility Jon might have rejected her help, she still wanted help.

Surprisingly, Jon nodded at Jenny in quiet understanding and walked away.

The crowd parted, giving him space as he returned to the spot where he was before he came out.