System, Give Me Some Points! (Seeking Follow-ups!)

Renji Abarai and Rukia were stunned.

But once they snapped out of it, they spoke in unison, their voices laced with anxiety as they addressed Gilgamesh.

"This is no time to show off, run!"

"You just got here, so you don't know—this place isn't like the world of the living. Death is an everyday occurrence here. If you don't run, you really might die!"

Gilgamesh's expression remained unchanged. He looked at the five men who had surrounded them, their faces twisted with greed, and said, "Do you know what the subjects I once ruled called this King?"

As he spoke, an indescribable aura erupted from Gilgamesh's body.

This aura was neither spiritual pressure nor magic, but a will and conviction forged through countless trials and solidified into reality.

Confidence, aloofness, the belief that he was peerless...

This was the will and conviction that Renji Abarai and Rukia could feel radiating from that aura.

Their minds were shaken to the core in that instant.

The words of warning they had been about to utter died in their throats, unable to be spoken.

For a fleeting moment, they saw a glorious kingdom; they saw a King seated upon a throne, basking in the reverence of all his people.

As for the five men intent on seizing the gemstone ring, their reason had long since been devoured by greed.

Their only thought now was to kill and plunder.

The gemstone ring on Rukia's finger was far too precious in a place like Inuzuri, and they had no intention of letting the three of them leave alive.

Otherwise, if Gilgamesh and his companions spread the word, endless disaster would descend upon them.

By then, even if the five of them banded together, they would not escape the fate of being wiped out.

Therefore, even though they felt Gilgamesh's aura and vaguely sensed that he was no simple child, they did not wake from their greed.

In their eyes, no matter how extraordinary Gilgamesh might be, he could not be a match for the five of them.

Unless Gilgamesh was a Soul Reaper.

But why would a Soul Reaper come to a remote, backward, and chaotic district like Inuzuri?

Furthermore, Gilgamesh was far too young; they had never seen a Soul Reaper of such a tender age.

Gilgamesh had originally intended to summon his Gate of Babylon.

The Gate of Babylon was his Noble Phantasm, containing the prototypes of all treasures, the blueprints of human invention, and the riches and rarities of all ages.

The Gate of Babylon was not so much a treasury of wealth as it was the [Original of Human Wisdom] itself.

But after a moment of thought, Gilgamesh abandoned the idea.

He felt that using the Gate of Babylon to slaughter these men would stain his treasures with the foul, greedy blood of such wretches—a prospect he could not accept.

Gilgamesh stretched his body slightly, and under the gaze of Renji Abarai and Rukia, he declared, "King of Heroes—that is what they call me."

"Although this body's strength and martial arts have yet to reach their zenith, they are already enough to rival the heroes of human epics."

"Renji, Rukia, watch closely..."

Before Gilgamesh could finish, one of the five men raised his sickle, laughing maniacally as he slashed toward Gilgamesh, mocking, "King of Heroes? You brat, are you still dreaming?"

Another man beside him swung a long staff at Gilgamesh, adding, "Perfect. Just die in your dream; consider that our final act of mercy."

The rest of the group burst into laughter.

"So, does that make us kind?"

"Mercy? That's right, we are very merciful!"

"Hey, Goro, how are you so funny today? I haven't heard such a hilarious joke in a long time."

Swish!

Thud!

Before anyone could react, Gilgamesh's figure had already appeared beside the man with the sickle, his small fist slamming heavily into the man's stomach.

Under the force of that single blow, the man was sent flying backward.

The scene left everyone stunned. They looked on instinctively to see the man's features contorted, his eyes bulging and bloodshot, his face twisted in agony as an unrecognizable fluid mixed with blood spewed uncontrollably from his mouth.

Not only that, but his breathing became shallow and ragged; it was clear he would not live much longer.

But how could this be? He had only been struck by a child's punch.

The pupils of the remaining four men began to tremble violently, and their movements ground to a halt.

The man named Goro stammered, "Hey, Meiji, stop joking around, get up..."

As he spoke, Goro seemed unable to accept reality, becoming agitated. As if trying to mask his inner anxiety and unease, he continued, "Meiji, if you don't get up, I'm going to get angry."

But Meiji was clearly beyond responding.

Goro wanted to say more, but Gilgamesh gave him no further chance.

Gilgamesh flashed before him, and without a word, dealt him the same treatment he had given Meiji.

The next moment, Goro, much like Meiji, lay on the ground with his breath coming in shallow, ragged gasps; it was clear he did not have long to live.

Goro finally understood that Meiji had not been joking with them.

That punch from Gilgamesh had been far too heavy... far too heavy, and the pain it inflicted upon his body was truly agonizing... truly agonizing...

This was only natural, after all; Gilgamesh's Strength attribute was C-rank, which translated to roughly four tons of force.

Such power was more than enough to be fatal to an ordinary person.

Goro's consciousness began to blur.

Vaguely, Goro seemed to see a few more figures collapse beside him.

Goro understood that these were his other companions.

At this moment, Goro could not help but recall the words Gilgamesh had spoken just a moment ago.

Perhaps he had not been dreaming...

Perhaps he truly was the King of Heroes...

Carrying endless regret and unwillingness, Goro's consciousness sank into eternal darkness.

In the center of the field, Gilgamesh's not-so-tall frame stood firm, stretching out, while at his feet, Goro and the others had already ceased to breathe.

This was the first time Gilgamesh had killed someone, but perhaps due to the fusion with the Young Gil template, he felt no discomfort whatsoever; his heart was incomparably calm.

As for Renji Abarai and Rukia, they were already dumbstruck.

They felt their minds go blank, not even knowing what they were thinking anymore.

Only Gilgamesh knew that they had acknowledged his status as King from the bottom of their hearts.

Because before his eyes, a system notification had already popped up.

[Detected important plot character - Rukia has become a subject of the host. Obtained 10,000 King's Path Points.]

[Detected important plot character - Renji Abarai has become a subject of the host. Obtained 10,000 King's Path Points.]

Not long ago, when Renji Abarai and Rukia agreed to become Gilgamesh's subjects, he had noticed that the King's Path Points did not increase.

Through the King's Path System, he knew that a mere verbal agreement to become his subjects was useless; it had to be a heartfelt acknowledgment to be effective.

It was just that Gilgamesh had not expected Renji Abarai and Rukia to grant him 10,000 King's Path Points each.

An ordinary subject would only provide 1 King's Path Point.

Yet Renji Abarai and Rukia were worth 10,000 times that.

One could only say that they were worthy of being important plot characters.

Without hesitation, Gilgamesh directly purchased [Reiatsu (Initial)].

Immediately, a new attribute appeared on Gilgamesh's status panel.

[Reiatsu: 0.]

Seeing this, Gilgamesh spoke directly in his mind, "System, add points for me!"