Chapter 19

Before he could process the change in Ajax, Kent had his left arm slashed by Ajax and screamed out in pain.

"Hey hey hey, what are you doing?! What the fuck man?! Don't you know that there are security cameras around?!" Kent yelled while holding his arm. He ran back to the factory, arriving at an area that was highly monitored by the cameras. He was scared shitless and could feel that Ajax was hellbent on killing him, he believed that if he was under the eyes of the security cameras it would put a stop to Ajax's moves.

"Oh, I know this factory like the back of my hand. But guess what, I don't really give a fuck about those cameras. They'll watch as I gut you like the fucking pig you are." Ajax said as he moved swiftly and kicked Kent in the crotch.

Kent immediately went limp and dropped to the ground as he felt Ajax's leg crush his family jewels, a pain worse than being stabbed spread around his crotch.

"AGH! Don-don't kill me! You can keep your mech, I don't want it anymore, just don't kill me..." Kent begged for mercy as he lay on the ground.

"Well, well, well, would you look at that? But you know what, it's too late to beg for mercy," Ajax said while smiling. He then stomped on Kent's crotch again before swiftly stabbing his right leg six times. Blood quickly started pooling under his leg as Ajax seemed to have severed a major artery. He then started stabbing him over and over in the stomach before standing up and looking at Kent who was crying in agony.

He decided to finally end this so he stabbed him once again in the stomach deeply before pulling the knife sideways and splitting his stomach open, causing some of Kent's entrails to fall out. Kent knew he was dead and could only scream in pain. Tired of his screaming Ajax stabbed him in the throat and slashed sideways, severing 1/5 of Kent's neck.

"jeufh...blgfh..." Kent tried to say something but he started to drown in his own blood. He clutched his neck helplessly as the blood kept on gushing out through his fingers, quickly soaking his shirt.

Kent somehow managed to stand up and take a step towards the door, before collapsing due to blood loss. His consciousness faded as his body started to convulse, blood pooling under him.

"I told you I was gonna fucking gut you like a pig. Fucking bastard, you and everybody that just won't let me live peacefully. Make sure that you're not such a cunt in your next life..." Ajax said to Kent's corpse and decided that from now on, no one would stand in his way, otherwise, they would die a gruesome and painful death.

He looked up at the monitor directly above him and grinned, without a shred of guilt in his heart; just like Charles Kent got his just deserts. He slowly walked to his Warlock-Level mecha, thankful that he had come in time. If he waited another day or two, Kent would've definitely sold it off.

If he wasn't in a rush to leave the city before, he was now. After killing two men of importance, the whole city would be looking for him once they managed to piece the puzzle. But it would be too conspicuous to leave with a Warlock-Level mecha as some places still prohibited mechas from entering.

Not to mention that the energy needed to pilot the Warlock-Level mecha was very precious, making it too costly to use it for traveling. Ajax's gaze made its way to the magnetic energy truck next to him. If he was running driving around with a mecha hidden inside, no one would heed him any mind.

He then turned his attention to the factory building. Kent was already dead, he wouldn't need all of these materials anymore, so Ajax chose to take them as well.

Consider it reparations for the wages Kent had kept throughout all these years. He might as well make up for his past deeds, even in death.

Getting to it, Ajax transported things one after another until there wasn't any more space in the truck. He also grabbed thousands of Eddies from the counter and Kent's wallet.

Unfortunately, there were no other mechas in the factory today, otherwise, Ajax would have made an effort to take them as well... Ajax took a deep breath to make sure that he wasn't missing anything and hopped into the magnetic energy truck.

He is currently located in the City of Boirdale of the Blauth Empire on planet Bedrichi, the most prosperous city on Bedrichi which also had the largest number of guards.

Not only were mechas prohibited from passing through most areas on the ground, but even the airspace was restricted to maintain a high safety factor.

In his current situation, there was no way he could stay here. This left him with two choices. The first was to go to the City of Buron, more than 800 kilometers east of Boirdale which was part of an 18th-tier city with backward development, relatively lax management, and a frighteningly low safety factor, quite suitable for hiding.

The second was the triangular border near the City of Bradena, which belonged to the three-way zone, an area with no security where frequent fights occurred, and you could even drive a mecha to go grab a bite. It was a lawless zone.

These two cities were the most suitable for him, and at a glance, one which was the better choice. After making a plan, Ajax started the magnetic energy truck and took a minute to get his bearings. He had never driven one, but it couldn't be harder than piloting a mecha. He then drove off into the night.

Charles was found around six o'clock in the morning as the sun was rising by some students who got up early. The whole Apollo Academy was in shock. The academy took swift action and sent Charles to the best hospital in the City and notified the security team.

The security team found many traces of fighting and blood in Charles's room, as well as a lot of fingerprints that did not belong to Charles, determining that this had been an ambush.

The academy announced the situation at 7 o'clock which attracted the attention of the media. Hundreds of reporters rushed over, after all, the reputation of Apollo Academy was excellent. Not only was it the best and most famous academy on the planet, but it was also very famous on other planets.

In addition, Charles was one of the heirs of the Ashlin Group, so his identity was quite sensitive. How could such a powerful person be attacked so viciously in his own dorm room at the Apollo Academy and then thrown off his balcony?

There was panic among the students, someone had dared to harm Charles, so naturally, he would also dare to harm them, putting them all at risk. Some of the more timid trainees even started preparing to go back home...

At nine o'clock, to maintain order and facilitate the investigation, the authorities asked the Apollo Academy to temporarily suspend classes and stop anyone unauthorized from going in or out. All teachers and students who stayed in the dorms were forbidden from exiting.

At ten o'clock, more reporters were waiting downstairs in the hospital. If Charles had died, the news would become even more popular. Miraculously, Charles was still alive, though He was in a coma. The whole hospital tried their best and used all available resources to drag him back from the gates of hell.

But the damage was already done. He was thrown from the fourth floor, had multiple fractures and broken bones throughout his body, and had received severe damage to his brain and spine. Charles would most likely remain paralyzed for the rest of his life, that is, if he is even lucky enough to wake up. It was a fate worse than death.

At the same time, Kent's corpse was discovered by the employees who came to work, and the authorities began another investigation.

At eleven o'clock, in the 120-story Ashlin office building in the central business district of Boirdale, a middle-aged man was walking around in a spacious conference room. He wore glasses, had a round face, a slightly chubby body, mid-length hair, a beige suit, brown leather shoes, and a gold-plated badge on his chest that reads "Ashlin Group, Head of the Bedrichi Branch: Leonard Heyoun" in thin letters.

It had been more than four hours since he first heard of Charles's condition, during which time Leonard's heartbeat never dropped below 120 beats per minute.