Chapter 127: Retribution

"You know you have a payment to make, right? From what you did to my mother, and to me. I deserve to take this before I kill you right now."

Terrence forced his hand directly inside the hostile laser cage, wincing from the sudden, sharp pain caused by the security device aimed at protecting the rare item inside.

He endured the searing heat as a loud, harsh toasting sound hissed through the air and his skin was penetrated by the burning energy. Within just two seconds, he grabbed the massive crystal of the Peak A-Rank Beast Core. Its raw power radiated against his palm as he stared at it in awe for a split second.

"Don’t you dare!" Irad roared, attempting to snatch it back, but Terrence pulled his arm away despite the severe pain pressing on his charred hand.

Suddenly, the massive beast core vanished into thin air, leaving Irad standing there in complete confusion.

’How...? Where the hell did he put it? That beast core alone is way too large to hide that easily! How did he do that?!’

Utterly baffled, Irad frantically looked around for any possible way Terrence could have hidden the artifact, completely unaware of the unique system inventory methods only Terrence knew.

In a fit of desperation, Irad grabbed Terrence’s blue robe and tried to peek behind it, but Terrence instantly slapped his hand away, his eyes glaring with pure venom.

"What do you think you’re doing?" Terrence growled.

Seeing a broad-day robbery unfold right before their eyes, the surrounding security guards rushed forward in a panic. The high-class spectators murmured loudly among themselves, watching the wild scene play out as if it were an intense stage play.

Within moments, a heavy squad of guards had completely surrounded Terrence.

’Why are you doing this, Terrence?’ Klein thought from the sidelines, his brow furrowed as he watched the confrontation. He had always regarded Terrence as a cool-headed, reasonable person who would strictly stick to a calculated plan instead of acting blindly fueled by raw emotion.

Without even realizing it, Klein was slowly stepping down from his elevated vantage point, moving closer toward the auction platform below.

He didn’t feel the need to rush his physical movements, but he was deeply agitated by what was unfolding before him. His carefully laid plans were suddenly at risk of being jeopardized, and the high probability he had arranged for capturing Terrence without any unwanted complications was shrinking by the second.

Soon, Irad also raised his guard while scanning the chaotic room. He noticed that the wealthy crowd still hadn’t left, which posed a major public relations disaster.

"Hey! Escort all clients out of the establishment immediately!" a junior managing personnel barked out directives to the staff. "At all costs, make sure they are safe! We cannot afford to receive a massive backlash from our loyal customers!"

The staff quickly moved into action, and the crowd around the platform rapidly diminished as people were guided toward the exit doors.

A heavy silence settled over the grand hall. Between the two of them—or more accurately, between Terrence and the entire administration of the auction house—a tense stalemate had formed.

No one moved an inch. Their hearts beat like crazy in their chests, everyone unsure of what explosive move would happen next.

Irad’s facial expression had completely shifted. He no longer viewed Terrence as an equal or someone who needed to be spoken to with practiced respect, realizing full well that he wouldn’t be able to settle this through talks anymore.

He raised his right hand into the air to give a clear signal, and then forcefully pressed it forward, commanding his men to strike.

"Take him down."

With that silent command executed, three lead guards instantly activated their Skill Share. A surge of dense mana radiated around them, heavily amplifying their physical bodies.

One guard possessed vastly enhanced movement speed, while the other two radiated raw, overwhelming strength. Terrence was immediately grabbed from both sides, calmly assessing the total number of enemies surrounding him as his arms were pinned.

’Two... five... twenty... and Irad.’

To the guards, it looked as if he had completely surrendered without taking any counter-action while being forcefully pinned down toward the floor. His knees buckled, and his right knee soon hit the cold wooden floorboards. The guard standing directly in front of him had his right hand completely covered in the sharp, holographic glow of an offensive beast Skill, while the two holding his arms exerted massive physical force derived from their contracted beasts.

"What should we do with him, sir?" asked the guard holding Terrence’s left arm, pressing his weight down to keep him immobilized.

Irad replied immediately, his eyes cold. "Prepare to break his limbs."

Before the guards could act, Terrence violently yanked his arms inward, snatching his wrist back and pulling himself out of the pin through sheer explosive force. He stood up immediately, his eyes flashing in the dark as he unleashed three razor-sharp dark slashes into the air.

His Skill Share with Noir was activated instantly. Within that short fraction of a second, the dark energy slashes tore forward, putting down two of the twenty guards before they could even react. The guard standing directly in front of him with the materialized holographic blade lunged forward to strike, but he met the exact same swift demise as the first two, taking a heavy dark slash to the chest.

Gasping in pain as they clutched their injured shoulders, the three guards fell to the floor, entirely unable to continue fighting.

"You are really going to do this, Terrence?!" Irad shouted, his face contorting with rage.

Terrence didn’t bother to reply. With a cold, silent flick of his wrist, he released another wave of dark slashes that instantly took down two more approaching guards.

Seeing their comrades fall, the remaining guards charged in from every direction at once. An amplified, heavy fist came rushing straight toward Terrence’s face, but he executed a smooth side-step to dodge the blow effortlessly. The massive, stray fist slammed straight into the chest of another guard behind him. Taking immediate advantage of the exposed back, Terrence slammed his palm forward, executing the Smash Skill to brutally put them both down onto the hard floor.

He easily dodged, woven through incoming attacks, and maneuvered around the chaotic battlefield with incredible grace, fully utilizing the passive Light Body Skill that Noir shared directly with him.

In a matter of moments, the force of twenty guards Irad had deployed was completely wiped out, reduced to zero.

The only people left standing on the platform were Terrence, Irad, and Klein, who had finally reached the edge of the display stage after observing the brief slaughter.

Terrence’s eyes briefly fell onto Klein, widening slightly in surprise. He didn’t make a loud reaction, but his silent glare questioned why the handsome young man was present at this exact location.

However, he had no time to ponder it. His focus snapped back to Irad, who was already lunging directly in front of him, swinging a devastating punch coated in the blinding light of a golden gauntlet.

Without enough time to side-step or dodge, Terrence raised both of his arms in front of his face, crossing his forearms to brace against the heavy impact.

BANG!

The explosive force of the golden gauntlet detonated against his guard. Terrence felt his body flying backward through the air before crashing heavily onto the stage. He rolled several times across the floor, a sharp pang of intense pain trickling through his entire body. The violent aching didn’t disappear for even a second after the initial kinetic attack stopped.

He coughed violently from the raw pain, his face pressed against the damaged, splintered floorboards as his breathing became ragged and battered.

Struggling to move, Terrence forced his head up—only to see Irad already soaring mid-air above him, his golden gauntlet glowing brightly as he prepped a second, merciless dive-punch aimed straight for his head.