79 Taking Over

"No, no, no...don't do it...Argh!" When the onlookers heard a short-lived yet blood-curdling scream of their boss, all of them winced in their places as they reached to cover their own crotches. They felt like they could feel the pain of their boss who was convulsing on the floor.

'Hasn't he gone too far?' Luther asked himself while covering his own groin. 'I thought he would stop after wounding his eye, but it seems I had underestimated viciousness of the little brother. It wasn't necessary to go to such extents...at least not to that point.' He sighed inwardly.

...

'I think it's more than enough of him. At least, he'll stay put for several days. Other guys should already feel threatened by my performance.' Dave decided after seeing how Richard had stopped convulsing on the floor. He was sure that Richard and others would hardly forget this day.

He had his own reasons to deal with Richard that way. First of all, Dave didn't think he had gone too far since Richard deserved that much. Secondly, he needed to deal with Richard as harshly as he could to threaten other guys in the gang, otherwise they would forget the first impression of him and get too daring.

And he couldn't just kill all of them just because he could. Every fighter was important for their situation and in their ranks, only a few of them could really fight, including Adam and Brian. But their numbers weren't enough to clean all zombies in the university. Dave still wanted to create a self-sustainable community in their university, so they won't disturb his activities too much. At least, that way he may not worry about the safety in their university.

Moreover, he didn't even consider leaving it as an option, at least not for now. Due to the unique geographic location of their university, they hardly could leave their university in one piece, but it can also play as their advantage since zombies from outside could hardly get here.

Their city bordered with the only sea in Federation, making it one of the most important economic centres in it. In turn, Newdale University was structured on a huge island close to the main city, connected to the land by a long metal bridge. It was a small oasis in a city full of zombies and monsters. However, as their geographical location was their advantage, it also meant that they were trapped in it because, to reach the nearest survival camp Dave considered safe, they needed to pass through the whole city. They literally needed to advance from one end of the city to the other. It was impossible for a large group of students like theirs, not to say that they needed to cut through a sea of zombies on the way.

Since most of the students were isolated from the main city, their university was more a small town on their own rather than an institute of learning. Considering the needs of their students, their university tried to provide their students with all facilities that could be found in the city. In return, they also had more staff members than other universities since facilities needed workers to maintain them, even though university officials tried to automate most of the services in it.

If it hadn't been that good, Dave wouldn't have worked his ass off after leaving the hospital to get enrolled here. If it hadn't been for his efforts to build up his profile, financial support from his uncle in his arduous school life and help from Adam's side to sort his documents, he wouldn't have even made it here. He was sure to make his deceased parents proud of him...at least, not until the apocalypse knocked on his front doors. It did mess up with his efforts, making his admission blatantly meaningless.

So they needed more people to get rid off of all the zombies on the island. Dave couldn't be too picky in his choices, could he? Also, only a month had passed after the start of 2nd Cataclysm, so he still believed that he could discipline those thugs into fine subordinates. It would have been a different case for people that survived in an apocalypse setting for several years, but the students in front of him still had a way to heed.

Dave poured his mana to his fingertips, trying to condense sturdier threads. Usually, that process took more time than ordinary threads, since he weaved thicker threads from thinner ones. He needed sturdier mana threads to tie Richard down, otherwise he would free himself.

And why did he need to tie Richard? Of course, to keep him alive for the time being. He didn't want to waste such innate ability upon his death nor he would let Richard fight alongside him. He had two options: either turn him into a zombie and obtain experience points after killing him or keep him for now until he finds other ways to benefit from his tough skin. Dave leaned for the latter since he always could kill Richard if he wanted.

Moreover, Richard was quite talented in being a punching bag. Although Dave participated in sparring sessions every morning, he still held himself so as not to harm others. However, using Richard as a training doll, Dave may not fear killing him. Moreover, if he beat up Richard, he could regulate the power level of his training doll. He couldn't wish for more from an ideal punching bag.

Finishing condensing mana threads sturdy enough to hold Richard, Dave tied Richard up and left him lying on the floor. He searched Richard's body for the presence of any items from the System yet found nothing except for his Rusty Sword and Needle Rapier.

Frowning, he turned to ask onlookers about the belongings of their boss, but he was interrupted by an enthusiastic voice. "Whoa! I never knew you were that fucking strong. That fucker was so confident, but you wiped the floor with his ass. And then, your sword was glowing with blue light..." Oscar babbled on with shining eyes as he leaned closer to him.

Confused, Dave sent a glance at Luther to explain his little brother's reaction to him. Luther heaved a tired sigh as he said, "Oscar admires strong people and gets too enthusiastic when he meets someone stronger than him. Good luck." Luther patted Dave on his shoulders.

"...Even when he fucking tried to sneak attack you, you made a whoosh with your sword and drew a blue arc with it. I didn't even see how you struck! The next moment, that shitbag was without an eye." Oscar continued with his blabber that Dave felt his temples starting to hurt.

'Damn! What's with him? How can he blabber so much without taking a breath?' Not wanting to wait till he finishes, Dave raised his hand to stop Oscar, "Just stop with your blabbering. Better go lock Richard somewhere."

Stopping, Oscar took a deep breath in and nodded excitedly, "Yes, I'll take care of that fucker, Boss."

"Wait! Who are you calling a boss? I'm not!"

"But you have defeated the former one, so you're a boss now!" Oscar said.

"No, I'm not." Dave refused plainly. He didn't have time to play boss with them, so he proposed, "Ehmm...Right! Luther will be a boss. His cool demeanour and strength have caught my eye, so let him be a boss. I believe he will be a better boss unless he wants to end like Richard. Right, Luther?" Dave glared at him. At least, it was true that he considered him as a worthy candidate. Adam is already busy managing people in the dorm after they started transporting people from the supermarket, plus students that were found by chance.

"But..." Luther tried to refute but when he heard about an ending like Richard, he understood that it was an offer he couldn't refuse. "Alright, then. But what about Richard? Will you just leave him like this?" Luther asked submitting to his fate.

"Lock Richard somewhere and disinfect his wound. I still need him alive, so give him the first treatment." Dave said while nodding his head. Then, he turned to other onlookers to give them a piece of mind.

Just as he was about to start, he heard Oscar's response to his orders, "Yes, Big Boss". He had told him not to call him a boss, but here he goes. Frowning, Dave thought, "Whatever..."

Next, he shifted his attention to others, "Listen here, troublemakers. From now on, all the conditions I have stated to Richard are still on. Every item and weapon from the System will be redistributed according to my decisions. You'll listen to my orders without any complaint and when I'll be absent, the leadership will be taken by Luther. Food distribution will be controlled by a definite amount and a built-in time schedule. Also, I hope no one wants to follow after Richard. Any questions? No?" Dave deliberately paused to pressure them, "Then, you, lead me to the place where Richard had stored his belongings." Dave pointed at Abon who had guided him here.