Not A Pushover

Zephyr's heart hammered against his ribs as he heard Eugene's voice, husky and unfamiliar, coming from the depths of the slums. He had assumed she thrived in the new house he'd provided, a pang of relief growing with each passing day. Now, reality shattered his comforting delusion like a dropped glass.

A white-hot inferno threatened to consume his reason, and fury boiled within him. His body trembled, but years of honed discipline held him back from reckless action. With a deep, shuddering breath, he released Jin-Uk's collar, the man collapsing onto the dusty ground.

Ja-Sung, ever opportunistic, smirked. Though he didn't understand the exchange, he saw an opportunity. 'So, that girl turns out to be that bastard's Achilles heel! Bingo!' He thought, a thrill coursing through him.

But his smugness vanished as quickly as it came. An icy dread crawled down his spine, prickling the hairs on his neck. He turned, his gaze meeting Zephyr's.

The man's eyes, usually sharp and calculating, now held a chilling emptiness. A suffocating silence descended as everyone present felt the weight of Zephyr's unspoken wrath. In the corner of their vision, a phantom image flickered – a silhouette bathed in an unnatural red, its elongated arms reaching out in a silent promise of violence.

Zephyr ignored Ja-Sung and his snob and stepped closer to Eugene. "Do you live here? Why don't you live in the wooden house that uncle gave you with the access card?" He asked in a shaky and hoarse voice.

Eugene, her eyes brimming with unshed tears, was confused about how to answer while occasionally glancing at Ja-Sung and the others.

One man, emboldened by Zephyr's unexpected action, stepped forward, bypassing Ja-Sung's unspoken command. "You bastard! You're just here to mess around!!" The man shouted. He then threw a fist wide.

Eugene fell with her neck scrunched, sitting on the stone floor with his eyes closed in fear, while Zephyr got up and turned around smoothly.

The blow barely grazed him. Zephyr pivoted, closing the distance in a single stride. He placed a casual hand on the man's chest, not expecting much resistance.

But the push sent the man staggering back several paces, stumbling over his own feet despite being nearly the same size as Zephyr.

The man groped his chest with his face taken aback. He couldn't understand how such a gentle push could make him fall so far backward. But instead of thinking about the possibility that his brain couldn't reach, he acted carelessly by getting up again and rushing into a fight with Zephyr.

He was beyond embarrassed. Even though he had the biggest posture in Ja-Sung's group, his image was not good if he lost so easily to someone thinner than him.

But Zephyr always easily avoided the man's forms of retaliation and counterattacked with casual slaps on both of the man's cheeks.

However, every time the sound of a slap on the cheek broke, the atmosphere and conditions in the slum area became even quieter.

Even Ja-Sung and his little bastard could only swallow hard at how cruel Zephyr was, only slapping their colleague's cheek in return for the punches and kicks that flew.

That was as despicable as the treatment that occurs in a fight.

No. It couldn't be said to be a fight but rather one-sided from the start. Even if Ja-Sung and his group attacked simultaneously, they still couldn't match Zephyr, who had veteran fighting skills.

The stinging slaps finally stopped the man's attack. A bead of blood trickled down his lip, a stark reminder of the consequences of his recklessness. Fear, cold and primal, snaked its way through him. What if the casual slaps escalated into a brutal beating? He didn't dare to think about the possibility and slowly walked away from the scene.

Zephyr's gaze never left the scene. He looked back for a moment, checking Eugene's situation. Realizing that the girl was fine, his steps measured as he approached Ja-Sung.

A tremor runs through Ja-Sung's group. Some members melt away into the maze-like alleys. The remaining few, including Ja-Sung and Jin-Uk, stood their ground. Their bravado was just empty talk on the surface while deep in their hearts, horror and fear had been embedded in their respective heads.

"Because I don't do anything and just talk, most people think I'm a pushover. Now, should I implant a new image in each of you?" Zephyr said, a hint of amusement dancing in his eyes. "Perhaps a revised perception is in order."

He paused, letting the weight of his words hang heavy in the air before adding, "Ah, this isn't idle chatter but an edict." His voice dropped to a low murmur, a chilling finality to his pronouncement.

With a predatory grace, Zephyr turned towards Jin-Uk, his casual steps belying the focused intensity in his gaze.

Fear lent despair to Jin-Uk's movements, his punch a clumsy attempt to ward off the inevitable. Zephyr, with a fluidity born of experience, shifted his head just enough. The blow whistled past his ear. His counter, swift and precise, landed squarely on Jin-Uk's nose.

A sickening crack echoed through the tense silence. Jin-Uk crumpled, a crimson stain blooming across his face as he fell backward, the impact of a muted thud against the unforgiving ground. It was a pain that couldn't be described.

Crouched beside the whimpering Jin-Uk, Zephyr tilted his head, his gaze a chilling blank canvas. "Your colleagues are being beaten up. Are you all going to sit around and do nothing? Come here, who knows, you might win if I get ganged up on." He said while turning around, facing Ja-Sung and the others. He provoked them in a calculated display of hubris.

Ja-Sung, his jaw clenched tight, barked orders. Fear gnawed at his resolve, yet a flicker of defiance remained. He, along with his remaining subordinates, surged forward, a desperate gamble against the odds.

Even though fright had settled into his mind, he insisted that Zephyr would no longer be able to act if they attacked at the same time.

But the reality shattered their heavenly dreams.

Zephyr's movements were a blur of controlled chaos. He danced around their attacks, a single, swift kick connecting with one assailant while a stinging slap met Jin-Uk's cheek in a cruel echo of the earlier confrontation with the other.

His stance, a boxer's posture with constant, subtle footwork, became a symbol of his unwavering control. Each incoming blow was met with an effortless dodge, followed by a precise counter – fast, brutal, and efficient.

Even Ja-Sung couldn't escape the punishing arc of Zephyr's fist. A single blow doubled him over, a choked gasp of blood escaping his lips.

Zephyr moved with a chilling efficiency, his attacks a terrifying rhythm targeting Ja-Sung and Jin-Uk. Others who dared to intervene met the same swift, brutal response.

The one-sided battle eventually left the cobblestone streets, once dusty and worn, covered in blood splattered from the people Zephyr had beaten.

"S-Stop. Please, s-stop!" Jin-Uk shouted hoarsely. His voice was barely a whisper.

"Aren't you afraid that the NPC Legions will catch you!? How dare you cause chaos here! I curse you, asshole!!" Ja-Sung's voice, laced with despair and defiance, echoed in the tense silence.

"Hahahaha!~" Zephyr just chillingly laughed while throwing a kick at Ja-Sung and Jin-Uk.

In the Fortress of the Divine Light,

No,

Even in the current Apex World, only Zephyr held a knowledge no one else possessed - the intricate rules governing each shelter city. Here, in the eyes of the Legion Union, inflicting non-lethal beatings, however brutal, didn't constitute "causing trouble." As long as the city's infrastructure remained intact, his actions wouldn't lead to arrest.

Nonetheless, Zephyr's relentless assault continued until Ja-Sung crumpled to the ground, unconscious. With a practiced ease, he brushed himself off, the unsettling crackle of displaced bone sending shivers down the spines of the remaining conscious onlookers.

Zephyr, with a warm smiling face, approached Eugene. "I don't have a problem if you want to live here with Uncle Chow. But isn't considering uncle's gift something you can do?"

He stood and turned around, "Access card of one-story house." He only said simple sentences, but all the people he beat earlier who were still conscious immediately panicked and looked for the object in question in Ja-Sung or in the houses they lived in.

Once they got it, they hesitated and pushed each other over the task of who would give the access card to Zephyr out of fear.

But Zephyr didn't radiate dominance and took the access card without a murmur, then placed it gently in Eugene's hand.

"Just think about it with Uncle Chow first. After that, Uncle will follow your decision."

Zephyr rose to his feet. He got a glimpse inside the dimly lit shack where Eugene lived. He could see a man older than him lying covered in bruises from beatings. He believes it's Uncle Chow and has been abused by Ja-Sung and his lackeys.

"Tomorrow, I'll come here again." Zephyr's words were like lightning that struck the ears and hearts of the Ja-Sung people.