In the parking lot, a handsome man in a black suit was leaning against a car that did not even belong to him. However, despite his handsome face, the cynical gaze and wrinkles forming on his face made people reluctant to approach him.
Being someone who always arrived early apparently was not always a good thing, because now Lyxander had to patiently wait for Quartz.
During the first ten minutes, Lyxander still stood patiently. After twenty minutes, his gaze began turning cynical, and now after thirty minutes, wrinkles had appeared all over his face.
"Damn Quartz, I seriously forgot that she's a woman."
It sounded a little misogynistic, but Lyxander said that because he had a younger sister in his previous life. Back then, he would become extremely annoyed every time he had to wait for his sister who took forever to get ready, though honestly, he now missed her a little.
"Oh, you're already here, Lie?"
A blonde girl wearing a tight racing suit that emphasized the curves of her body came to greet Lyxander. Even though Lyxander had already seen Quartz without her military uniform before, his eyes were still drawn to Quartz's swelling chest.
The combination of a girl with short blonde hair and a black racing suit mixed with red and yellow colors was truly an incredible sight.
However, even though the view before him was very pleasing to look at, Lyxander's face remained gloomy.
"You really look amazing, Quartz. It seems making me wait for thirty minutes is truly worth seeing you wear a racing suit for three seconds."
Lyxander was obviously being sarcastic, but Quartz apparently did not understand and continued smiling casually. In fact, her smile even seemed a little wider.
"Hehe, thank you for the compliment. You look handsome too, Lie. Of course, that's if you get rid of that smile of yours."
'Seriously, how can you comment on my smile when you yourself don't even know how to smile properly?'
Of course, Lyxander would never say that out loud, because even though Quartz might not feel anything, she would clearly feel guilty for the entire day.
"Well then, let's go, Lie."
Quartz walked past Lyxander and stopped in front of a red racing motorcycle. She took the red jacket hanging on the bike and pulled a remote key out of its pocket.
Not only did it look stupid, it genuinely was stupid to leave a motorcycle key on an unattended bike.
Quartz then started her racing bike and put on her helmet and jacket. She climbed onto the motorcycle before pointing at the spot right behind her.
"Get on, Lie."
However, instead of getting on, Lyxander asked instead.
"Where's my helmet?"
"..."
The two of them fell silent for a few moments before Quartz finally spoke in a foolish tone.
"We're law enforcers, what do we need helmets for?"
Without hesitation, Lyxander punched Quartz's helmet to test its durability.
"Aw!"
In the end, Lyxander got on without wearing a helmet.
"Hold on tight, don't let go of my waist."
Quartz had already warned Lyxander, but Lyxander ignored her and merely snorted.
"Hah, come on. I'm not a little kid anymore, why would I hold onto you?"
"Besides, what bad thing could possibly happen—"
"Aaaaagghhhhh! Slow down, Quartzzz!"
Even though Lyxander screamed, Quartz did not lower her speed at all. Instead, she increased it.
Lyxander wanted to complain more, but his tongue would get bitten if he spoke again. Even now, his cheeks were being stretched by the violent wind hitting him.
In the end, Lyxander could only surrender himself and swear to never let Quartz drive again.
—
"Uaggh..."
Now Lyxander regretted not having breakfast. No matter how hard he tried to vomit, all that came out of his throat was emptiness.
Quartz looked concerned behind him. Gently, she rubbed Lyxander's back.
"Are you okay, Lie?"
Lyxander glared sharply at Quartz. It was obvious that he was irritated, though his irritation was carefully hidden behind a sarcastic smile.
"Take a guess, here's a hint: use your eyes."
Quartz's concern instantly disappeared. Without hesitation, she immediately left Lyxander behind.
"Wait, Quartz! I was only joking!"
Lyxander quickly got up and chased after her. Eventually, the two of them walked toward the hall, leaving the university parking lot behind.
For some reason, these two ravens quickly became the center of attention among the students. Although many students had gone to hear Claudius's speech, there were still plenty wandering around or choosing to leave campus instead.
Quartz naturally drew attention because of the racing suit she wore and her beautiful face. The features emphasized by her racing suit were so stunning that the students could not stop glancing at her, especially the male students.
Lyxander was handsome as well, but people looked at him for a completely different reason. Every time someone glanced at Quartz, he would return their gaze with a powerful intimidating stare, as though he were saying:
"What the hell are you looking at, bastard?"
Well, caring about the people around him had always been part of Lyxander's nature, so it was not strange for him to look so irritated when people stared at Quartz lustfully, especially because Quartz probably did not even understand why people were staring at her considering she had lost her emotions.
Thud!
"Ah, sorry."
Because he was too busy glaring at people, Lyxander accidentally bumped into someone.
A man with messy black hair and a black suit. He carried a sword on his back, but unlike Zirkon's longsword, his weapon resembled a katana more.
"Not a problem."
The man simply walked away and joined another man and woman wearing identical black suits. The three of them had identical black hair, making it easy to realize they were siblings.
"What are you doing, Lie? Hurry up."
Lyxander immediately looked away and walked off, though he clearly realized they were hitmen, and not just ordinary hitmen, but powerful ones.
Eventually, Quartz and Lyxander arrived at the hall. At first, they wanted to look for Captain Simon, but Claudius's speech apparently sounded interesting enough that they decided to skip work for a while.
Claudius's speech was so passionate that it seemed as though he was venting his anger.
"Undying Emperor Avici was the richest among the nine immortal emperors. He succeeded in uniting all the Aztec tribes scattered throughout the Great Forest and founded the Avici Empire, which is now known as one of the nine capitals of the Infernal Empire, Samara."
"However, because of that wealth, he was ultimately murdered by three other Emperors who had been manipulated by the Three Heroes in order to seize his riches. They stole his wealth and enslaved the entire Aztec race, turning black-skinned people into one of the main commodities in the slave market."
"Yet even after the war ended, black-skinned people are still enslaved to this very day, and the wealth of the capital Samara continues to be exploited by the Infernal Empire. Officials, nobles, and all of you standing here now enjoy that wealth while the people themselves starve and cannot even enjoy the riches that belong to them."
"And not only the capital Samara, but the people of the capital Babel also suffer because their land is nothing more than barren deserts, while the Empire allows civil wars to continue raging there in order to suppress rebellions."
"Do you know that the reason revolutionary forces appeared in the northern territories is because of this injustice? I speak before the entirety of Aulust's capitals, before every region that now enjoys the wealth and suffering of the other eight capitals."
"Soul Emperor Sheol once said that the upper class are the cause of the lower class's suffering, but the anger of the lower class should instead be directed toward the middle class, the people who ignore the suffering of the weak and allow the cruelty of the upper class to continue."
"That is why I ask all of you to choose me as Emperor. Because I will eliminate the injustice among the nine capitals of the Empire and erase suffering from this world."
Claudius finished his speech. Lyxander had no idea how long he had been speaking. After all, he had arrived very late. However, even from hearing only part of the speech, Lyxander began to understand why Claudius was being targeted so heavily.
Because Claudius was someone who fought for truth and justice. He revealed truths to society that would harm the corrupt rulers who built their wealth by stealing the rights of others.
To be a righteous man among tyrannical rulers who only cared about themselves and a society indifferent to the suffering of others—what a heavy path Claudius walked.
Once Claudius's speech ended, journalists immediately began throwing questions at him. Claudius seemed overwhelmed by all their questions, so he pointed at one reporter and allowed them to ask first.
"Second Prince, why are you doing all of this? Why do you fight so hard for justice and wish to eliminate suffering? Is it because you are a prince?"
It sounded like three questions, but the true meaning behind them was only one: what was the reason behind Claudius's actions?
Claudius smiled and calmly answered the question.
"Why am I doing all of this? First, let me tell you that I have never liked nepotism."
"Why should a child bear the burden of becoming a king simply because he was born a prince? Why are the strong obligated to protect the weak?"
"If the strong must protect the weak, then who will protect the strongest?"
"My reason for doing all of this is not because I am a prince, nor because I feel responsible for my people's lives."
"Then why are you doing it?" the reporter asked curiously.
"Because I am human."
"I empathize with those who suffer to the point that I can never sleep peacefully because I am always thinking about them."
"I do all of this only for myself. I do not care if someone does not wish to be saved or if people will never thank me, because doing good is only about myself and has nothing to do with anyone else."
"I do all of this because I am a human, a selfish human who forces the world to follow his will."
Lyxander silently stared at Claudius from afar. Beside him stood a blonde-haired man clapping enthusiastically.
"Truly magnificent. I'm truly happy that I'll get to kill you, Claudius Inferno."
The man's words caused Lyxander and Quartz to turn around. The braces on his teeth made his wide grin look incredibly terrifying.
BOOM!
The sound of an explosion echoed loudly.
Lyxander turned toward the source of the explosion only to see Claudius swallowed by flames.
Within Lyxander's eyes, the image of sparks engulfing the entire podium was clearly reflected. Chaos immediately erupted throughout the hall.
Claudius Inferno, who had been standing on the podium just moments ago, had now vanished within the flames.
He was dead.