16 Chapter16-Fall of the Lion and the Fox Brothers
As they observed Howard's actions, the faces of the three brothers were painted with an expression of disdain.
After all, the Jeffers brothers, big and small, were awakened who had been renowned for many years.
The former at level 33 and the latter at level 29, both were well-established powerhouses, even forging the notorious name of 'The Lion and the Fox Brothers'.
Any one of them, acting alone, could effortlessly crush Howard, especially given the close proximity between them.
At such a distance, melee professionals could easily defeat those of the magic class.
This meant that even Menard could overpower Howard.
"Haha! Howard, come, let us conclude the duel that remained unfinished before!" one of them bellowed with a laugh dripping with contempt.
However, at that moment, a bright flare surged, and a fire dragon ascended, circling over the heads of the three brothers.
The formidable force of the fire dragon pressured the weakest among them, Menard, who found it hard to breathe.
"Ho...how is this possible? Howard, how can you control such a powerful fire dragon?" Menard stuttered, his face a canvas of shock and disbelief.
"I see now; that staff in your hands must be at least a gold tier equipment. It's summoning this fire dragon, isn't it?" Big Jeffers, with eyes revealing a flash of greed, speculated as he focused on the staff in Howard's hand.
To him, gold tier equipment was nothing extraordinary, but a piece that allowed a novice to unleash such potent magic was sky-high in value.
Freshly awakened students from various Soulspark Academies were engaged in the critical phase of farming monsters to level up, following the completion of their Awakening Ritual.
A good piece of equipment like this was something they would be willing to empty their coffers for.
"If brought to the auction, it could fetch at least a million gold coins!" he thought, resolving deep within his heart to kill the fortunate Howard and snatch the piece of equipment.
But while he was lost in his thoughts, the fire dragon spat out a fireball that descended directly onto Menard.
"Menard, watch out..."
"Boom!"
Little Jeffers shouted out in a desperate attempt to warn his brother.
But before he could finish his words, the fireball had already landed, blasting Menard off his feet and sending him flying through the air, a trajectory of flame tracing his path as everyone's heart missed a beat in the deadly dance of fire and fate.
Menard's body soared into the sky, and before it could hit the ground, it had turned into a pile of charred flesh.
It crashed heavily onto the ground, shattering and disintegrating instantly into burnt debris.
"Menard, my dear brother..."
"Ah! You brat, I'll kill you!"
Both Jeffers brothers let out heart-wrenching roars of grief and rage, charging towards Howard in unison.
One was a thunder boxer, and the other a brute force warrior, both masters in the melee class.
Yet their weakness was obvious — a short attack range that necessitated proximity to their enemy for an effective assault.
However, Howard wouldn't grant them this opportunity.
While controlling the fire dragon, he retreated backward, releasing a barrage of exploding fireballs that descended upon the brothers, leaving them ash-covered and with extensive burns; their bodies blackened to the point of resembling charcoal.
But the brothers were veteran awakened with substantial strength, managing to endure over a dozen attacks without falling.
They pursued Howard relentlessly, their fierce attacks seemingly unabating until they could cast him into hell.
Howard let out a cold laugh, manipulating his intentions to conjure several Fiery Rings that spiraled out, entrapping the brothers.
Subsequently, a pillar of fire erupted beneath little Jeffers, the scorching heat instantly reducing him to a charred corpse.
Witnessing this, big Jeffers' eyes became bloodshot, filled with a seething hatred as he stared at Howard, as if wishing to tear him limb from limb.
Regrettably, the Fiery Ring was still firmly wrapped around him, searing his flesh while restricting his movements, preventing him from taking even half a step.
"Ah! Damn you, Howard, you're so despicable, ambushing us like this! Let me go, I challenge you to a one-on-one duel, I will let you taste the agony of a hundred punches from a thunder boxer. You killed my two brothers; I will surely avenge them, releasing my wrath upon you. Let me go, bastard Howard..."
Big Jeffers hurled insults at Howard, frantic and desperate, trying to provoke Howard into releasing him for a fair duel, his voice a turbulent sea of rage and vengeance, his words a sharpened blade seeking justice for the loss that bore heavily on his soul
But he didn't even consider that had they not provoked Howard in the first place, followed by luring a herd of wild boars with the intent to annihilate the leveling team, Howard wouldn't have raised a hand against them.
However, this is how people are, eager to take advantage but unwilling to suffer losses.
Once faced with retaliation, they would erupt in anger, painting others as devils, perceiving themselves as victims.
The truth is, they brought this upon themselves, a perfect example of creating one's own trap.
As for a one-on-one duel, unless Howard was a fool, there was no way he would engage in a solo battle with a melee awakened!
At this moment, a distant red glow appeared on the horizon, gradually enlarging as time passed.
It transformed from the size of a grain of rice to that of a ping-pong ball, then a volleyball, a football... eventually, a meteorite with a diameter of over ten meters emerged in big Jeffers' field of vision.
"What, what is that? Oh, God, a meteorite, it's a meteorite! Damn it Howard, let me go now, the meteorite is falling..."
Big Jeffers, restrained by the Fiery Ring, could see the meteorite about to crash down.
He hastily pleaded, "Howard, spare me! I won't dare to do it again, I swear... rest assured, I absolutely won't seek revenge, I will tell them we encountered a monster tide, they were too slow and died in the monsters' jaws, really."
"Ah! Save me, Howard, I was wrong, it was all orchestrated by Headmaster Jay, and the young master of the Kletz family. He took a fancy to Abby, that's why they ordered us to kill you."
"If you let me go, I will testify against them, bring them to the awakened tribunal... yes, I have accumulated evidence of Headmaster Jay's crimes over the years, stored in a safety deposit box at Rand Bank. There's also the wealth and treasures accumulated by our brothers and the Jeffers family hidden there."
"Let me go, and all the treasures and wealth will be yours..."
Jeffers sobbed uncontrollably, his face a canvas of regret as he pleaded desperately, hopeful that Howard would deactivate the Fiery Ring, allowing him to escape the meteorite's devastating path.
Regrettably, the meteorite was summoned by Howard himself, intended to obliterate him, so why would he abandon his mission now?
"Boom!"
The meteorite grew from small to large, from far to near, resembling a mountain descending from the heavens, it landed directly on Jeffers.
In an instant, the earth trembled; fragments of rock and clods of soil were sent flying. As for Jeffers, he was instantly pulverized, a tragic demise beyond redemption.
At this moment, a silvery sheen caught Howard's attention.
He approached and discovered it to be a shining silver key, adorned with the Rand Bank logo and a sequence of numbers, '3987'.
"This is the safe deposit box key and the number for Rand Bank?" Howard's eyes flashed as he quickly recalled details about Rand Bank, "It is said that Rand Bank is the favorite bank for adventurers. The clients there are all non-real-name registered. Anyone possessing the key can take away the items in the safe deposit box. The bank doesn't care about the original owner, hence adventurers greatly favor Rand Bank."
There were two main reasons adventurers preferred Rand Bank.
Firstly, adventurers were generally lawless rogues indulging in illegal activities such as robbery, theft, and grave robbing. Should authorities uncover their illicit dealings, their bank accounts would be frozen, and they'd find themselves wanted by law enforcement.
The non-real-name policy of Rand Bank became their haven, safeguarding their assets even if they were pursued by the law, with a change of identity allowing them to reclaim their assets, explaining their first reason for favoring Rand Bank.
Secondly, while adventurers were prone to burglaries, few found substantial profits except when they targeted the foolishly wealthy who hoarded riches at home.
The vast majority entrusted their assets to safe banks which operated on real-name systems, necessitating familial consent to retrieve assets post the owner's demise, making theft futile even with stolen certificates.
However, obtaining a Rand Bank safe key removed these hurdles, allowing them to freely access the stolen assets without interrogations, accounting for their second reason to favor Rand Bank.
Grasping the key, an involuntary smile graced Howard's face as he murmured to himself, "The wealth accumulated over the years by the Jeffers family now belongs to me."
"Furthermore, the Jeffers family, having engaged in numerous misdeeds for Headmaster Jay over the years, has amassed substantial evidence of Jay's crimes. Once I have this evidence, that old bastard Jay is finished..."
