Expansion

The two sides faced of against each other. Almost two dozen lizardmen stood behind Michael while two adventurers held their weapons opposite him.

"Would you rather act civilized, or do you want to fight it out? I'm pretty sure we can overwhelm the both of you with just numbers." Michael continued.

Brutus was about to launch another attack before Eudora raised her staff to obstruct his path. "We want to talk it out. Is there anywhere we can handle this?" Her eyes ran over the crowd of hostile lizards.

Michael kept quiet, not responding to her question. His eyes locked with hers, holding hers in a deep stare. Several seconds passed in the quiet exchange, long enough for a cold chill to run down Eudora's spine.

[Action detected. New Ability derived - Intimidation.]

Michael's eyes flashed crimson for a split second before he looked away from Eudora, walking back into the cave behind them.

"Keep up." He spoke from within the crowd of lizardmen. Eudora and Brutus visibly wilted at the intense stares that were directed at them from all around them. They walked cautiously with their backs against each other, ready to protect themselves at the slightest ill movement from any lizardman.

Before long, they arrived at the interior of the cave. Michael was already seated on a pile of rocks that were set up for him. There were no other makeshift seats to accommodate the adventurers. Eudora looked around before speaking up.

"If you don't mind, I would like to cast a spell." She gestured toward her staff.

"Go ahead." Michael waved her on. She closed her eyes as a complex pattern of magical circuits bloomed before her. She then tapped the butt of her staff against the wet ground twice. Water swirled around, gathering into two raised platforms. These platforms then transformed into neat looking frozen seats before solidifying. The seats didn't freeze, but instead took on a duller look in its solidified state.

Eudora and Brutus claimed the seats opposite Michael as the five lizardmen that Michael had assigned to be his guards hovered behind him. The remaining lizardmen hung around, not straying too far, but also not staying too close.

"What are you doing here? Normal adventurers don't bother with these mountain ranges." Michael cut straight to the chase. These caves only hosted F ranked creatures, and maybe a few Early E ranked beasts. he major creatures one could possibly be interested in were situated in the forests around the mountains, so it didn't make sense that two D rank adventurers would come all the way into the deeper recesses of the cave for some measly F rank creatures.

"We came here looking for some rare herbs that grow inside the caves. They are incredibly hard to find. We've already spent several days searching and still haven't found any deposits." Eudora took the lead in the conversation.

"Don't try to lie to me. Do I look stupid? I know these mountains better than the both of you, and I know there aren't any particularly rarer herbs growing in these areas." Michael's tone took on a sharp edge. " If you insist on playing games, then I can't guarantee your lives."

With that sentence, the lizards around him began to hiss lowly. Their thoughts aligned with his, though they mostly just saw the pair of adventurers as trespassers.

Eudora visibly gulped. Although she was a respected Mage, she would surely loose her life if she tried to take on this many lizards without prior preparation.

"Watch your tongue, Lizard. Just because you managed to gain sentience doesn't mean you can talk to us like you own us." Brutus suddenly spoke up, leaning forward in a domineering manner.

Swish!

A serrated tongue slashed across his cheek in a flash. It was so fast that no one present could even react to it on time.

Michael turned back with raised eyebrows to check who had attacked. Aiden stood in a rigid posture, the scales on his back were all raised from the skin, giving him a savage look.

"Don't speak to our Leader that way..." His entire being oozed malice as he spoke each word and an aura of bloodlust pervaded the air around him.

"Ugh-" Brutus gripped his head as his whole world spun. The poison that coated the serrated tongues of the lizardmen had grown considerably more potent with their evolution. Michael guessed that the stronger they grew, the more powerful it would get. Just a few seconds of exposure to the poison was already affecting a D ranked martial artist.

Brutus dropped to his knees with Eudora holding onto him. Water flowed around her hand as she placed it against his cheek. The crimson stain of blood soon colored the water, with a slightly darker shade following right after the initial flow of blood. His innate regeneration kicked in as soon as the poison was drawn out from his blood stream and his face regained some color.

"Aiden." Michael spoke lowly, "Do not lash out blindly. These are our guests and we can not treat them badly."

"Forgive me, Leader!" Aiden went down on a knee and lowered his head. As the first Lizardman who had been named by Michael, he felt ashamed that he was being reprimanded, but he couldn't help but feel dissatisfied at the fact that Michael wasn't reacting to the insult that was thrown his way.

Michael turned back to face the duo before him. "Please forgive him, he acted rashly."

Eudora said nothing, just focusing on making sure Brutus was okay.

Michael sighed before turning back to the five lizardmen behind him and ushering them away. "Go take a walk, I'll be fine."

With some reluctance, the lizardmen finally left Michael alone with the adventurer duo. Michael just watched on as Brutus regained clarity. The poison was no doubt effective, rendering him defenseless in just a few scant moment. Although much of that was attributed to the special state Aiden had entered.

When he looked at Aiden earlier, he had scanned him using the game system.

[Yellow Scaled Lizardman.]

-Rank - D - Pseudo (Temporary)

-Growth Stage - 3/3

-Overall Energy Level - 501

-Rank Elevation possible.

-Special State - Overload (Temporary).

-----

What he saw shocked him. It seemed the lizardmen had managed to gain the same Overload ability as him!

Michael managed to keep composed, maintaining his excellent poker face before Eudora's burning stare.

"Are you just going to bully us this way?! If that's what you plan on doing, then we would rather go down fighting!" As she spoke, water swirled around her form, spreading a cool breeze around them.

"You're being too quick to act. You should have expected my men to react negatively when you tried to insult me. No subordinate would willingly stand to the side as their leader is being harassed by guests." Michael calmly wove off the drops of water swirling around his face. "I would compose myself if I were you. Not all of my people are as benevolent as I am."

With the silent warning Michael passed to Eudora, she managed to calm herself somewhat, taking a look around their surroundings. The Lizardmen that were hanging around idly were all paying close attention to the actions of the pair of adventurers. Any wrong move an many more poison laced tongues would be darting around.

"What do you want?" Eudora asked through gritted teeth.

"We want to expand." Michael smiled slyly in response.