4 Raven's City

Leon stood still without saying a word. 

Dean didn't say anything either as he wanted Leon to clear his thoughts. It wasn't easy believing something like this. If he were still back on earth and his friend woke up one day and said he was from another dimension, and that the real person is dead, his soul only just occupying the body. He would have definitely taken his friend to a psychiatry center. 

Three minutes went by without anyone saying a word. 

Looking at Leon's watery eyes, Dean felt a little sad. 

"I have no idea why this happened, but just like your friend, I died. But I was given a second chance of living, even though this wasn't how I expected it, there's nothing I can do to change it. From now on, I am Dean Dawson!" Dean declared in a clear voice.

"I have no obligation to tell you or anyone that he was dead. I could pretend I lost my memory from the attack you spoke of, but that won't do either of us any good. I don't know anything about this place, nor do I know anywhere. If you weren't here with me, there's no way I'll even know where to go because the only thing your friend's soul told me was not to disappoint his parents, and also you,"

"Seeing how he cherished you, I suppose you were special to him. Now I'm putting my trust in you, telling you this is no different from putting myself in harm's way because there might be a chance you would want to kill me," He added. 

Leon still didn't reply after hearing this. 

"I'll kill them," Leon muttered slowly.

This was the only word he could say after thinking of what happened. 

Hatred, anger, remorse could be seen all over him. It was like he was a different person entirely. 

When Dean heard this statement, he looked at the young face in front of him and couldn't help but shake his head. He had read about something like this in one of those novels. People like this would usually end up turning into a walking corpse. Once they are done with their revenge, they will have nothing else to live for. 

"And then what?", He asked. 

"Huh?" Leon raised his head confused, it was like he didn't hear the question.

"After killing them, then what?" Dean asked again. 

Leon, hearing this question, didn't know the answer to it. 

"Thought as much," Dean said after seeing his reaction. 

"I get it, revenge is a great tonic for pursuing strength, but it's not really the answer. After you've killed them, what would you do? Start wallowing in self-pity because you were unable to save your friend? Maybe you will feel some sort of pleasure when they die, but then what? You'll have nothing else to live for after that," He continued calmly.

He recalled hearing Leon speak of a group of young men who chased them here. So he guessed they were the people he wanted to kill. 

When Leon heard this, he stared at Dean with dull eyes. 

"Your friend wouldn't want you to head in that path, I wouldn't," Dean smiled lightly when he said this. 

Hearing this, Leon was slightly taken aback. 

'I always find joy whenever I'm with him. But why did he have to leave me?' He asked himself, eyes watery.

It didn't take long before tears started pouring down his face once again. 

Seeing this, Dean nodded to himself. Since Leon could still show emotions by crying, it meant he hasn't turned into a mindless person who sets revenge as his only goal, which meant that there was still hope for him. And it looks like his little sermon worked as well! 

Silence once again reigned in the forest with only the light sobs of a youth reverberating around. 

Dean did nothing to stop him from crying since he felt if Leon cried to his heart's content, then he would at least feel a little better. 

....

A group of six youths could be seen standing outside the forest, all panting with tired expressions, all but one of them. 

"None of them has come out even after so long, looks like the magical beast got them," A youth said while looking in the direction of the forest, he was still shaking from the fright he got when he saw the beast. 

"Hmph! As long as they're dead, then I'm fine with it. Besides, there is no way they could successfully flee the forbidden zone before the beast caught up with them," Another youth with an unusually thick eyebrow said with a sneer. 

"We should head back to the city. Spreading the word of their death should dampen the mood of their families. My father should be able to suppress them now that they will be grieving over the death of their sons," A youth with sharp eyes said emotionlessly. The youth looked to be around sixteen years old, his name was Richard Dale. 

Coming from one of the prominent families, he had the air of a young master around him. He was from the Dale family, which was one of the oldest families in the city. 

The O'Brien and Dawson clans weren't heard of till only about twenty years ago. Although they had been in the city, they had always been low-key. They suddenly rose in power and also status. The speed of their growth was terrifying to the extent that before the previous six clans could figure out what was happening, they had already gained a foothold in the city. 

What was worse was that the strength of both families was still on the rise, with no immediate sign of stopping. The other six families were already feeling a sense of threat from them, and there was no way they could form an alliance and attack them since they were wary of each other. 

Recently, both families came up with a new tonic each, of which has completely dominated the entire market. One was an essence restoration tonic which was at least almost thirty percent more effective than the ones which were on the market. The other was a healing tonic which was also almost thirty percent more effective than the previous ones in the market. And both tonics were cheaper compared to the others in the market. 

This gave them a good image in the eyes of the hunters and mercenaries who head into the dangerous mountains to acquire materials or escort merchants. Even the merchants had nothing but praise for them. Making their businesses grow even more rapidly. 

So as it stands, the O'Brien and Dawson family has almost completely dominated the entire tonic market. Why wouldn't the other families try to eliminate them?

….

"You should know what to say right?" Richard asked as he started walking in the direction of the city. 

"Yes! They bragged about entering the danger zone, and they foolishly did because they didn't want to sully their images. They were killed the instant they stepped into it," A youth replied. 

"Good, now go and spread it quickly. I'm going over to my father to tell him the good news," Richard didn't even take a glance at the youth.

They were nothing more than rags in his eyes. Some of them were children of some families which weren't as powerful as his family who started following him so they will have some benefits. 

.....

Raven's City... 

When the news of Leon and Dean's death circulated, the entire city went into an uproar. And the reason for that was because of the manner of their deaths. Heading into the forbidden zones, even their parents wouldn't dare to do this!

"What?!"

A roar came from a majestic and luxurious mansion in the eastern part of the city. The same thing happened in another mansion not too far from this one. 

These mansions were the households of the O'Brien and Dawson families.