Renji Abarai and Rukia froze.
But once they came to their senses, they both turned to Gilgamesh and cried out anxiously.
"Now's not the time to show off. Run!"
"You just got here, so you don't know—this place is nothing like the World of the Living. People die here all the time. If we can't get away, we could really die!"
Gilgamesh's expression didn't change. He looked at the five greedy men closing in around them and said, "Do you know what the people I once ruled called me?"
As he spoke, an indescribable aura burst forth from Gilgamesh.
It wasn't spiritual pressure or magic, but a will and conviction tempered through countless trials and made unshakable.
Confidence, pride, invincibility...
That was the will and conviction Renji Abarai and Rukia felt in his aura.
They were shaken to their cores.
The words they'd been about to use to urge Gilgamesh to run died on their lips.
For a moment, they seemed to see a glorious kingdom—and a king seated on his throne, revered by all his people.
As for the five men who wanted to steal the gemstone ring, greed had long since devoured their reason.
All they could think about was killing the three of them and taking the treasure.
The gemstone ring Rukia wore was far too valuable in a place like Inuzuri. They had no intention of letting Gilgamesh and the others leave.
If the three of them spread the word, endless trouble would come looking for them.
Even if the five stuck together, they'd still meet their end.
So even though they could feel Gilgamesh's aura and sense that there was something unusual about him, they didn't come to their senses.
As far as they were concerned, no matter how unusual Gilgamesh was, he couldn't take on all five of them.
Unless he was a Soul Reaper.
But why would a Soul Reaper come to a remote, backward, chaotic place like Inuzuri?
Besides, Gilgamesh looked far too young. They'd never seen a Soul Reaper that young.
Gilgamesh had originally intended to open the Gate of Babylon.
The Gate of Babylon was Gilgamesh's Noble Phantasm. It contained the prototypes of all Noble Phantasms, the earliest forms of human inventions, and treasures and precious objects from every era.
Rather than a treasury of riches Gilgamesh had collected, the Gate of Babylon was the Original of Human Wisdom itself.
But after a moment's thought, Gilgamesh changed his mind.
He felt that killing these men with the Gate of Babylon would stain it with the foul, greed-soaked blood of these wretches. He couldn't accept that.
Gilgamesh stretched his body slightly. As Renji Abarai and Rukia watched, he said, "King of Heroes. That's what they called me."
"Though this body's strength and martial skill have yet to reach their peak, they're already enough to rival the heroes of the World of the Living's epics."
"Renji, Rukia, just watch..."
Before Gilgamesh could finish speaking, one of the five men raised his sickle and charged at him with a mad laugh, swinging it down as he sneered, "King of Heroes? Kid, are you still dreaming?"
Another man beside him raised a staff and swung it at Gilgamesh. "Good. Then you can die in your dream. Consider it our final act of mercy."
The rest burst into laughter.
"So that makes us kind, then?"
"Merciful? That's right. We're very merciful!"
"Hey, Goro, what's gotten into you today? You're hilarious. I haven't heard a joke that funny in ages."
Whoosh!
Thud!
Before anyone could react, Gilgamesh was already beside the man with the sickle. His small fist slammed into the man's stomach.
The man flew backward from the force of the punch.
Everyone froze and instinctively looked over. The man's features were twisted, his eyes bulging and bloodshot, his face contorted in pain. A strange liquid mixed with blood spilled uncontrollably from his mouth.
Worse, he was barely drawing breath and clearly wouldn't last much longer.
But how was that possible? The kid had only punched him once.
The other four men's pupils began to tremble violently. Their bodies stopped moving without them even realizing it.
The man named Goro stammered, "Hey, Meiji, quit joking around. Get up..."
As he spoke, Goro seemed unable to accept what he was seeing. He grew agitated, as if trying to hide the fear and unease churning inside him. "Meiji, if you don't get up right now, I'm going to get angry."
But Meiji was clearly in no condition to answer.
Goro tried to speak again, but Gilgamesh gave him no chance.
Gilgamesh flashed in front of him and, without a word, gave him the same treatment Meiji had received.
A moment later, Goro lay on the ground just like Meiji, barely breathing and clearly not long for this world.
At last, Goro understood that Meiji hadn't been joking.
Gilgamesh's punch had been so heavy... so heavy. It hurt so much... so much...
That was only natural. Gilgamesh's Strength parameter was C-rank, equivalent to roughly four tons of force.
For an ordinary person, that kind of force was fatal.
Goro's consciousness began to blur.
He vaguely saw several more figures collapse beside him.
Goro knew they were his other companions.
Then he couldn't help recalling what Gilgamesh had just said.
Maybe he hadn't been dreaming...
Maybe he really was the King of Heroes...
Overwhelmed by regret and resentment, Goro's consciousness sank into eternal darkness.
In the middle of the scene, Gilgamesh's small but upright figure stood tall and relaxed. At his feet, Goro and the others lay silent.
It was Gilgamesh's first time killing someone, but perhaps because he had fused with the Young Gil template, he felt no discomfort. His heart was perfectly calm.
Renji Abarai and Rukia, meanwhile, stood dumbstruck.
Their minds felt utterly muddled. They didn't even know what they were thinking.
Only Gilgamesh knew that they had acknowledged him as their king from the bottom of their hearts.
A system notification had appeared before his eyes.
[Important story character Rukia has become the host's subject. Obtained 10,000 King's Way Points.] [Important story character Renji Abarai has become the host's subject. Obtained 10,000 King's Way Points.]
Earlier, when Renji Abarai and Rukia had agreed to become Gilgamesh's subjects, he'd noticed that his King's Way Points hadn't increased.
Through the King's Path System, he'd learned that merely agreeing aloud to become his subjects wasn't enough. They had to accept him sincerely for it to count.
Gilgamesh hadn't expected Renji Abarai and Rukia to give him 10,000 King's Way Points each.
An ordinary subject only added one King's Way Point.
Renji Abarai and Rukia were worth ten thousand times as much.
They truly were important story characters.
Without hesitation, Gilgamesh directly purchased [Spiritual Pressure (Initial)].
A new attribute appeared on Gilgamesh's status screen.
[Spiritual Pressure: 0.]
Seeing this, Gilgamesh said inwardly, System, give me more points!
Before you continue