Death Threat

Suye took another deep breath and turned to look west, toward the center of Athens.

In the center of Athens lay a small mountain over a hundred meters high. At its summit stood a famous complex of temples. The entire mountain was known as the Acropolis of Athens.

As usual, a faint mist shrouded the Acropolis of Athens, leaving only the enormous statue of Athena, Goddess of Wisdom, visible.

Beneath the magnificent white statue of Athena, the entire Acropolis seemed like the statue's pedestal, while even the mist failed to rise above its knees.

Suye slowly turned his head and looked east toward Lion Harbor.

There stood a gigantic bronze statue twice as tall as Athena's, the tallest structure in Athens City: the statue of Zeus, towering like a mountain.

It seemed to stand amid the Clouds.

The Greece of this world was dozens of times larger than the Ancient Greece of Blue Star, and Athens City was likewise dozens of times larger than that Athens.

Suye withdrew his gaze and looked calmly at Lawrence. "I will settle my Parents' debt."

Lawrence keenly noticed the difference between "settle" and "repay." For some reason, unease rose within him. But when he glanced over Suye's young face and recalled how Suye had nearly been scared to death just moments ago, a cold smile appeared on his lips.

"Old Koro, how is this brat going to pay?" Lawrence asked.

Koro, who had an honest-looking face, stepped forward and said respectfully, "Reporting to Master Lawrence, he will probably run to the homes of people he knows well, kneel and beg to borrow money, like a Wild Dog."

Suye gritted his teeth as he stared at Old Koro, unable to suppress the hatred surging in his heart.

"I'll give you the chance to borrow money," Lawrence said.

Suye said firmly, "I will gather enough money before tomorrow."

"Is that so?" The Centipede on Lawrence's face suddenly twisted.

Lawrence abruptly stepped forward. The surface of his skin changed color in an instant, his entire body radiating the metallic sheen of bronze. He looked as though he had been cast from bronze.

Before Suye could react, Lawrence shot out his Right Side hand like a hunting eagle, seized Suye by the throat, and lifted his entire body into Mid-air.

"Ugh..."

Suspended in Mid-air, Suye struggled to breathe. His mind was a mess as he instinctively twisted his body, kicked wildly with both legs, and used all his strength to pry open Lawrence's hand.

But Laurence's hand clamped around his throat like iron pincers. He could not even leave a scratch on Lawrence's bronze skin.

Suye's eyes slowly bulged outward, his face turning increasingly bluish-purple as his struggles grew weaker and weaker.

The world gradually darkened. Fear spread through him, and he felt despair unlike anything he had ever known. Death had arrived.

I don't want to die! Suye roared inwardly, but all that answered him was deeper darkness and distant silence.

Suye slowly closed his eyes...

"Master Lawrence, don't kill him yet..." Koro said nervously from the side.

"Mm."

Lawrence released his grip, and Suye fell from Mid-air.

Bang...

Suye hit the ground, coughing violently and gulping down air, his ragged breaths sounding like a broken bellows.

"Sounds like a donkey braying." Lawrence smiled after speaking and turned to leave.

The Centipede on his face seemed to be slowly crawling.

The four Strong Men hurriedly moved aside, clearing a path.

"I'll be back before dawn," Lawrence said as he strode out.

Koro bent over, narrowed his eyes, and smiled with an honest expression. "Give up the house. Otherwise, tomorrow, the Poor District will have one more mutilated corpse picked clean by Wild Dogs." With that, he left with a smile.

Suye sat weakly with his arms braced against the ground, gritting his teeth so hard that nearly all ten fingers dug into the dirt.

After a long while, the voices of neighbors came from the doorway.

Suye took a deep breath, forcefully suppressing the grief and anger in his heart. He rose and walked toward the door, dusting off his clothes as he went.

Looking at the sympathetic faces of his neighbors, Suye knew that many wanted to help him but were powerless to do so. He forced out a smile. "My mind is a mess. I want to calm down and think things through. Don't worry, everyone. I'll settle this. Go back and take care of your own affairs."

Suye nodded once, ignored the neighbors' reactions, and shut the door.

The neighbors stared at Suye's front door for quite a while, then shook their heads.

"What a pity. Such a good child..." they said as they slowly dispersed.

Suye leaned against the door, countless memories flashing through his mind. He could not even tell which were dreams and which were real.

More than ten minutes later, he frowned, realizing that his thoughts had descended into chaos. His right thumb and Index Finger instinctively tapped twice. Then he straightened his back, raised his head, took a deep breath, and asked himself inwardly.

"At this moment, what should I do most?"

After asking this famous Lakin's Question, Suye immediately suppressed his chaotic thoughts and began to analyze things carefully in his mind rather than relying on vague feelings.

"My family has no grudge against Lawrence. Even that IOU was bought from someone else after he learned that my Parents had died. The person who lent money to my Parents even sent someone to apologize to me. So his target is our house. Behind the house lies the matter of Athens residency status."

"Then why does he want to take it from me?"

"If I disregard his reasons and consider only mine, then... it is because my family are foreigners, not Greek citizens. Because I have yet to master magic and am weak, while my Parents' connections were ordinary. Those who were close to my Parents are all less powerful than him. This Lawrence is not merely the head of an ordinary Mercenary Group. There are rumors that he secretly runs a Bandit Group, and nobles support him from behind the scenes."

"That's not entirely right..."

"Old Koro went out with my Parents that day too. Why didn't he die?"

"Why would he betray my family and sell me out? Could my Parents' deaths have something to do with him?"

"Uncle Figo said Lawrence would not normally do anything excessive within Athens City, but something was different this time, and even his pleas were useless. I did not understand what he said before, but thinking back on it today, I realized he was hinting that Lawrence had another purpose, one for which he might even kill me."

"The person who transferred the debt to Lawrence sent someone to apologize the day before yesterday and gave me some food. One thing he said was strange: 'He never expected things to turn out this way.' At first, it sounded like he meant the transfer of the debt, but upon closer thought, it was more like an apology after discovering even graver consequences."

"Besides, when Lawrence came the first time, he appeared to be looking for valuables, but he was clearly rummaging through everything in search of something else. Today, he searched again."

"Could my Parents' deaths be connected to some object?"

Suye reached a conclusion.

"Even if he takes the house, he will still harm me. I only have two paths now: flee, or find the power to resist Lawrence!"

Suye quickly made another judgment.

"Lawrence will definitely have people watch me closely and will not allow me to leave Athens City. So right now, I should seek the power to fight Lawrence and save my own life first! If I cannot save myself, then I will consider how to evade Lawrence's surveillance and escape Athens."

With that thought, Suye slowly walked into the house.

Suye's home was a typical Ancient Greece residence, built from mud bricks and rubble, then painted grayish white. Aside from nobles, Ancient Greeks did not care much about their homes. The walls were covered in irregular pits and damage, exposing plaster and mottled stones.

The front door faced a small courtyard. At its center stood an empty Black and White marble pedestal meant for a statue.

On the Right Side of the courtyard was a wall, beyond which lay a narrow alley. On the Left Side were the storage room, front hall, and bedroom.

Straight ahead stood Ionic Style Veranda Pillars. The pale white round pillars were crudely made, with bare rock exposed. Within the pillars were the Living Room, kitchen, and bathroom.

This was a typical residence in Athens City.

Only, everything was toppled over and in complete disarray.