Since they were in a conspicuous corner, it was easy to spot Zold and Chongji, especially from a short distance.
Zold didn't even acknowledge Stelle's existence, completely ignoring her.
When he failed to respond, the man beside Stelle frowned and asked if she knew him.
Stelle whispered something, and the man's expression changed.
Then, under the eyes of everyone, the couple approached Zold on the side.
Immediately after when they got close, the man frowned and called him out with a disdainful tone:
"Hey, you—"
Seeing the man's hand reach out to him, Zold's eyes hardened. But just before he could act, Chongji immediately intercepted the man's arm, looking at the man with a pissed-off expression.
With a playful grin, he held the man's wrist.
"Hey, buddy. What do you think you're doing?"
"Hmph," The man disdainfully looked at the two of them. He attempted to pull back his hand, but unexpectedly, Chongji's grip was too tight.
The two gazed at each other quietly.
Using more strength, the man attempted to pull his hand again, but to his surprise, Chongji matched his strength.
"You…"
"What, you? Are you dumb? Didn't I ask you what you were doing?" Chongji smiled, clearly mocking him.
"Nolan! What are you doing?! I just want to talk with a friend!"
At that moment, sensing the tension, Stelle intervened and pulled the man away.
She looked at Chongji, apologizing: "Sorry about that, my boyfriend awakened a C-rank talent, so he's a bit excited about it…"
"C-rank? What's the big deal? I also awakened a C-rank talent." Chongji scoffed, looking at the two of them with disdain, "If you want to talk, talk! But if you want a fight, pull up outside and let's give the world the first ever f*cking battle between C-ranks!"
Hearing his words, Stelle and Nolan's expressions changed. Just as Nolan was about to respond, Stelle immediately spoke:
"No, no. It's just a misunderstanding…!"
Then, she shifted her gaze to the center of it all, who remained quiet as if he wasn't part of the mess at all. She couldn't help but sneer at his attempt to appear detached when all she knew of him was his lovestruck personality.
"Hey, Zold. It's been a while! I didn't see you around, or in the group chats, that's why I thought…"
"Stelle."
Suddenly, Zold spoke coldly, making all of them straighten up.
Chongji and Nolan looked at him, feeling their hair suddenly stand on end.
'H-huh…'
Hearing his cold tone, Stelle fell into a daze, but she quickly snapped out of it.
She glanced at Zold, suddenly feeling nervous.
"Y-yes? Why?"
"So you're not deaf yet."
Zold nodded slightly, then his eyes turned cold.
"Didn't I say I prefer to be strangers instead? What are you doing?"
"H-huh? Did I do something wrong…?"
Feeling wronged, Stelle took a step back and hid behind Nolan.
Not caring in the slightest, Zold glanced at the two of them and sighed quietly.
"This will be my last warning to both of you. Leave before you ruin my mood."
Hearing that, everyone fell silent, including those who were eavesdropping.
Even Chonji stared at Zold with surprise, unable to recognize him.
"Huh… are you threatening us?"
Nolan clenched his hand, shaking off the nervousness he was feeling. Him? Nervous? What a joke!
He smiled ruthlessly.
"Then let me ruin your mood!"
He shoved away Chongji's hand while he was distracted and quickly reached out to Zold!
His hands glowed, a yellow sheen appearing on his entire arm.
At that moment, Zold let out a small sigh.
"Stupid people always exist, no matter what era. I wasn't acting because I was scared. It was because I didn't care."
As Zold's cold voice rang in his ear, Nolan's heart shook, feeling as if he had made a grave mistake.
But it was too late.
Nobody saw it happen—
But in a split second, Nolan's wrist was already held high.
Zold held it casually, as if it weighed nothing.
Seeing Zold's cold expression, Nolan's smile fell as he immediately tried to pull away his hand, but Zold's grip was far stronger than Chongji's.
No, "far stronger" was an underestimation.
It was as if he was a mere child being held by an adult.
Nolan tried to move away, but he discovered something even more terrifying. He couldn't move his entire body!
Crack!
At that moment, his hand turned upward as the sound of his bones breaking echoed!
"A.. ahh!"
Nolan couldn't help but scream in pain, his legs giving out.
"Nolan, was it?"
Zold continued, lowering his eyes to meet Nolan's.
"It's been a while since anyone tried to lay their hands on me. You used your talent too. Don't you know that's a crime? And criminals…"
Suddenly, Nolan felt one of his fingers break.
"AAahhh…!"
He howled in pain as tears formed in his eyes, causing everyone in the hall to go pale.
"Criminals deserve punishment equal to their crime, don't you think?" Zold mused, then he clicked his tongue. "That's just one finger. What are you crying about? Where did your arrogance and pride go? I thought you awakened a C-rank ability. Why don't you use it?"
Then, another finger was broken.
"Haa! Ah! Pl-pl…" Nolan begged, but the words were stuck in his throat as he felt a sharp pain again. "Aaarghhh!"
"Can you only scream?"
Zold tilted his head, breaking another finger.
"Please stop!"
Nolan pleaded desperately, his body pathetically trembling on the ground.
"Why stop?"
Zold shook his head as he tightened his grip further, causing Nolan's entire arm to turn purple.
"In the past, someone like you could be arrogant without consequences. If you have the money and status, everything could be easily solved," His voice echoed in the silent hall. "But with the awakening of talents, things have changed. Money and status could still get you far, but power now decides whether you can live or not."
Zold let go of Nolan's hand and reached for the man's hair.
Forcefully raising Nolan's head so their eyes could meet, he spoke expressionlessly:
"Make the wrong person angry, then they could very well be the person that sends you to your grave."
"Which kind of person do you think I am right now?"
At that moment, true fear erupted in Nolan's eyes!
Zold's gaze was cold and detached, as if Nolan's life was of little value.
"Sa… save me…!"
Nolan screamed in terror.
Everyone suddenly snapped out of their daze, looking at Zold with fear.
"The… the mayor…"
"Someone is about to kill a person…!"
"Mayor!"
But the person they were looking for, the mayor, had already come down with a hesitant expression.
Behind him, a B-rank Awakener and a pair of twins followed.
"Mayor, should I act?" The B-rank Awakener asked cautiously, glancing at Zold.
"If you want to die," The mayor glanced at him, shaking his head. "Then go ahead. Just don't implicate me with you, fool."
The B-rank Awakener frowned, but before he could complain, the mayor already moved ahead of him.
When everyone was expecting the mayor to get angry and immediately apprehend Zold, the opposite happened instead.
"Mr. Starks, you should've told me that you were coming. I could've prepared a better welcome for you!"
The mayor completely ignored the man on the ground, simply looking at Zold with a wide smile.
Ignoring the mayor, Zold looked at the two kids following the man from behind. "Leo, Lia. You're done."
Leo and Lia nodded in sync, looking at him curiously.
Being ignored, the mayor's smile twitched. He quickly regained his composure and coughed awkwardly:
"... Mr. Starks, do you want to move to a quieter place?"
Seeing the mayor's insistence, everyone was in disbelief.
'Is… is he really Zold?'
Stelle trembled in shock.
Zold let go of Nolan's head and stood up. He glanced at the mayor before nodding slowly, "Lead the way."
The mayor sighed in relief. His eyes shone as he spoke outloud, letting everyone in the hall hear his words.
"It's an honor to finally meet you, Mr. Starks. Your bravery and heroic deeds made me admire you the first time I heard of them. Without you, those who were at the Zoo at that time might've died, and the monsters could've been released outside, potentially causing havoc in the city! You're the savior of this city!"
It took a few seconds before anyone could react to his words.
If one bombshell wasn't enough, then another one had thoroughly made everyone's mind explode!
Heroic deeds, zoo!
In Letran City, those words only pertained to one event!
The Zoo outbreak that occurred during the descent of the calamity!
In that report, it was said that one young man had singlehandedly saved all the children and their parents while killing all the monsters present!
"He… he's that college student?!"
"Holy shit!"
"He really is a college student!! How strong is he right now?!"
Hearing that, Chongji's mouth fell agape, instantly remembering Zold's strange behavior earlier.
"You…"
"What?"
Zold smiled slightly, shrugging.
"Surprised? Looks like I'm the one who has to protect you after all."
Chongji's hand shook in excitement and shock, "You damn bastard…"
His words didn't even last an hour before they were thrown back at him!
"Well, I'll go on ahead. Let's talk another time, Chongji."
Zold turned around and waved his hand, bidding farewell.
But before he left, he glanced back at him and smiled.
"... Thanks for helping me."
After saying that, he left with the mayor, disappearing into the hall.
"... How could he have changed so much?"
Stelle muttered under her breath, unable to believe it. She fell to the ground as her legs gave out, looking at where Zold had disappeared.
Even until the end, he didn't give a glance at her at all.
"The young man who saved Letran City has been revealed!"
"That same person is the president of the association?!"
"This is crazy! They weren't exaggerating at all…!"
Chongji looked at Stelle and Nolan, who were on the ground, pathetically receiving everyone's glares and disdain. If Zold wasn't the savior of Letran City, maybe they'd receive sympathy and concern.
But even if he wasn't, would it matter?
The weak could only lie on the ground helplessly, screaming in indignation.
But the strong would move forward and receive the world's admiration.
Power alone could change this world's perception of a person.
Chongji remembered a post he read on the internet, and now he finally realized the true meaning of it.
"A new era has arrived."