Chapter 55 Ares’ Will
When Thomas and the chief of the army, Jim, saw the man, they stood straight because the man was none other than the general of Solaris Military District—Lev.
As soon as Randy heard how Lev called Kingsley, he was blown away by those words, followed by a buzzing that filled his head. Ares?! Was he the legend who had been fighting battles to protect Qustia and winning all of them? At the thought of that, Randy was held back by his skepticism that kept him from accepting the truth that Kingsley was the fierce warrior who had been honored with that title, Ares. However, he couldn’t deny Kingsley’s power and influence, considering the fact that he and his people had been surrounded by thousands of military units. Thus, he had no choice but to accept the unpleasant truth begrudgingly.
“A-Ares…” Everyone felt as shocked as Randy did. “Please, Ares! Show us mercy! Ares!” In that instant, no one else had the guts to push their luck ever again as they all kneeled down and surrendered, imploring Kingsley to spare them.
Suddenly, a few loud bangs shook the ground and took everyone’s breath away just when guns were fired at the sky. At the sight of that, Randy felt as if he almost had a heart attack, his lips turning pale, as if he was suffocating. In that instant, Connor held onto his father and asked in horror, “What’s the meaning of this? Are they trying to crush us and reduce us to ashes?”
“No!” Kingsley set his eyes coldly upon those people. “Consider this your new ‘housewarming’ gift.” The man then took a step forward and looked at Randy kneeling on the ground, bending over and adding, “After all, you’re all going to be moving into your new home soon—hell. So, don’t you think that should call for a celebration?” As soon as he finished his words, he stood straight in front of the tearful crowd and looked up at the sky. “Father! Mother! Can you both see this? I’m back! I will be sure to send everyone who has ever harmed you all to hell and rebuild the Nicholson Family!”
After Kingsley finished his words, the dark clouds and the strong wind somehow just went away before they were replaced by the clear sky that was accompanied by the bright sunshine. As soon as the rain let up, Lancer and Hades took off their black raincoats, revealing the two golden star badges on their shoulders. Standing behind Kingsley along with Lev, they gave off an intimidating and oppressive aura. At that moment, Jim humbly presented the gown that had been long prepared and was meant for Ares to Kingsley, who flipped it onto his back and put it on. Seconds after he put on the cloak, the seven golden star badges glittered and shone glaringly on Kingsley’s shoulder in the bright sun, making the man seem as if he was Ares, the God of War, himself.
In that instant, everyone in the military felt a boost in their morale as they expressed their admiration for Kingsley by shouting, “Ares, the God of War! Ares, the God of War! Ares, the God of War! Ares, the God of War!”
While the soldiers’ cheer reverberated through the air and took over the atmosphere with their might, everyone else in the Summers Family felt as if their souls had left them, finding themselves on the verge of losing their consciousness due to their overwhelming fear.
“Randy Summers! Connor Summers! Caleb Summers! Kayla Reed! Ashton Birch!” Kingsley called out those names one by one, as if those whose names were mentioned were fated to meet their end soon while the color was drained from their faces. Is that the voice from hell? Does it mean that our end is near?
“Caleb, do you admit your sin for forcing yourself upon my sister, Yulia?! Connor, you instigated your people to plot against me. Do you admit your sin?! Kayla, do you regret bullying your colleagues arrogantly?! Ashton, have you learned from your mistake of oppressing the weak now that you’re staring death in the face?!”
Soon, Kingsley turned his attention to Randy and added, “Randy, you were behind the fire that killed my parents 17 years ago as you forcefully claimed the Nicholson Family’s land as yours! For that, are you and your family ready to confess your sins to my parents in the afterlife?!”
When those people heard Kingsley’s words, they were all overwhelmed by a buzzing in their heads and the regret for what they had done in the past. Soon, Caleb groveled to Kingsley, weakly begging him for forgiveness. “It’s all my fault! It’s all my fault!”
Randy, on the other hand, explained with a sad voice, “Kingsley… Ares, please hear me out. I didn’t kill your parents. It wasn’t me who did that.”
“What do you mean?”
“I was just a little pawn for someone much bigger back then. All I was told was just to clear the mess after it was done, so I was actually nothing more than an underling who merely followed his orders.”
Kingsley squinted. “That makes you an accomplice anyway. Tell me who else is involved, and I’ll make your death less painful!”
“I-I really have no idea…” Randy went on to grovel at Kingsley’s feet. “They told me to just take care of the bodies and make sure no trails were left behind. After that, they paid me one million and gave me this piece of land. That’s all I know.” Suddenly, Randy seemingly thought of something that could save his life and added, “The bodies… I know where your parents were buried back then! It’s Mount Rochwick!”
“Where is that place?!”
“There is a church at the foot of the hill, and their remains were buried just right behind the church called St. Savior!”
Randy then pitifully looked at Kingsley and said, “I told you everything I knew, so please spare the Summers Family.”
Kingsley glacially looked back at Randy and barked, “Spare you all? Did you all spare me and my family back then? I was only just five years old when I had to witness my parents’ decapitation in the fire! It is only now that I’ve lost my parents and my home that you want me to show you mercy?!”
Hearing every single word of Kingsley’s lecture and reprimand, Randy felt his heart filled with despair and hopelessness. Deep down, he knew Kingsley would never give the Summers Family a second chance and that he was bracing himself to accept his family’s doom.
On the other hand, Kingsley took a deep breath and calmed himself down from his overwhelming anger, turning his attention to Lev. “Alright, that’s enough. Tell your men to have these 500 minions locked up at the police station in Cleapolis for investigation. Make sure no one goes unpunished!”
Knowing that his people’s criminal records would be discovered and used against them, Ashton was sure that they would be jailed for at least ten years if they were taken to the police station. “Boss!” Ashton started wailing. “I’m just a guy who happened to be caught in the collateral damage! I understand you’re after the Summers Family, but I’ve been set up!” Having rallied up all his men for the occasion, he was worried that he would be a mob leader without anyone to command if all of his underlings were sent to prison. By then, Kingsley wouldn’t even have to make a move against him because he would be a wanted man among his enemies in the underworld. Therefore, Ashton cried and pathetically crawled toward Morten. “Morty, please do something! I don’t want to die!”
On the other hand, Morten hesitated for a while with an ambiguous look on his face and shifted his gaze to Kingsley. “Ares, for our old times’ sake, please…”
Before Morten could finish his words, Kingsley demanded the former in a harsh manner, questioning, “What do you think you’re doing here? Begging me to show them mercy? Do you really think you can get away with all this?!” His words implied that Morten would not go unpunished for colluding with the Summers Family.
“You…” Morten angrily refuted Kingsley. “I’m one of the most respected and revered figures in the underworld. You may be the God of War, but you cannot abuse your power. Aren’t you afraid of getting on the wrong side of everybody else in the underworld?!”
“Who says I’m going to punish you as the God of War?” Kingsley responded with a glacial smile and took out the Tanners’ Northern Draken Tag, shouting, “Here is the Northern Draken Tag! Now, you shall kneel before me!”
