17 Pantheon III

2140, Outside General Store, Earth

Uday Thakur, the CEO of a small IT company, was a "half-gunda" boss. He was not a full gunda (Hindi for 'gangsters') but neither was he any normal white collar boss either. He often liked to call his co-workers and banter with them. He would attack the young male co-workers in their twenties by insulting and harassing them. He even secretly sexually harassed female employees of his company.

Now, people would question why there was still sexual harassment going on in the 22nd Century Earth when sexual harassment had already been heavily criminalized since the beginning of the 21st Century. This was because in the year 2140, India suffered from record-high levels of unemployment due to a long-term recession caused by all the major industries being taken over by AIs, drones and smart machines.

From the perspective of the workers in Uday's IT company, they had to endure harassment if they did not want to lose their jobs. Furthermore, Uday Thakur was very cunning and sly with his harassment, making it a bit too vague for any formal accusation. It was fair to say that at this point, he had reached a legendary level in the profession of a harasser.

Uday's target for the day was his own niece who had been unemployed for a while and was in no condition to pay her loan.

"Hello beautiful lady. Looks like you have been quite well off in the last few days!�� A well built but short guy of 172cm height whistled and stood beside her Uncle Uday rascally. He was known as "Munna Bhai" and was a thug under Uday Thakur.

He had been a professional wrestler for ten years. One time, Munna single-handedly dealt with five attackers to save Uday which allowed him to receive special recognition from him. Although he was not a person of importance, he led all of Uday's goons in the city. Rebellious students from the nearby high schools and colleges in Chandigarh also called him "Don Munna". He enjoyed being the center of attention.

He spent the majority of his time as a bodyguard at Uday's company building and occasionally came out with him to collect loans. It was an excellent lifestyle for him. An evil smile emerged on Munna's face. His bunch of goons already surrounded the General Store. The customers who were there, immediately left. The usually busy General Store of the neighborhood was suddenly empty.

The store owner was trembling with a frightened look. He was also afraid to call the cops as he didn't want any more trouble!

"Come out? Do you need us to send you a formal invitation?" Munna once again blew a whistle and looked at her as if she was his prey while Uday looked on silently from the background.

Charu bit her lips. Her flawless but emotionless face was covered with absolute despair. She noticed the plea in the store owner's eyes. She sighed as she put her ration bag down. She walked over to her Uncle and his cronies.

"I heard you lost your job at Myntra. Do you have the money for me?" Uday reached for her face to pat her cheeks. But to his surprise, the resilient girl avoided his hand.

"I'll repay the money as soon as I find another full time job. Please don't bother me anymore." She took in a deep breath and answered with a face devoid of any emotions.

"Work? When will you find a good job? How long would we have to wait? Keke." He didn't seem angry when she avoided his hand, but a cold light filled his eyes.

"What do you want?" With a stern face, Charu glared at her evil Uncle. She was terrified as her legs trembled. But the resiliency deep in her bones made her stand her ground.

'Even though she is scared to death, she is still giving me attitude.' Uday raised his eyebrows, and he pondered with a smile.

"Two options. Flat, or you." He put up two fingers with an evil grin.

"We will never give you the flat even if we have to go to the court!" Charu tried to remain calm and negotiate with her Uncle.

"Then, the solution is simple. We'll take you." Her shameless Uncle reached his hand out to shake as if the deal was already made.

"Me? Dream on!" Charu shouted at the remark, "Aren't you guys afraid that I will report you to the police!?"

"Hahahahaha."

Everyone, including Uday and Munna, laughed hysterically.

That made Charu feel humiliated. She didn't think it was funny at all, but she could not deliver a witty enough comeback. She thought she could live a fulfilled life as an independent woman by working hard. She would support herself, her mother and realize her value.

But the reality was harsh and life was never fair!

"No, no, that's a waste. Especially, for a beauty like you." Finally finished laughing, Uday looked at the thugs behind him, "At least we need to let everyone here get a taste of you for a few years before selling you to someone as a wife. What do you think, Munna?"

"Hahaha, maybe we will even visit you occasionally after you are married!"

"Come on guys. I mean I do love wh*res, but I never said I was gonna marry one."

After hearing all the perverted comments by the goons of her Uncle, Charu almost fainted with anger and fear. She wanted to cry; she wanted someone to save her right now; she could only think of one person who could save her from this situation.

'Why did I not tell him about all of this before!?'

Tears of humiliation filled her eyes, and she even thought of killing herself. If they tried to take her away, then it would be better off to die.

Uday was experienced in debt collection. He knew what his niece was thinking when he saw her expression!

"Charu, I know this is unfortunate for you, but this is the rule of my business. You pay me if you owe me money. Don't worry, on account of you being my niece, if you work hard for a couple of years to please all my boys, you can leave once you pay your debt off. No one would know anyways. Then, in the end, you can just leave the city and marry someone nice. Think of your mom, Charu."

That was a tactical move from Uday. Sticks and carrots were cliché, but they were extremely useful. The perverted rude comments were probably part of the plan to set all of this up. Gundey are the scariest when they are knowledgeable and well managed.

However, before Uday could force Charu to answer, a black Mercedes Benz X-Class hover-car removed itself from the buffer zone and parked right in front of the General Store. A well built black haired man with the height of 180cm got out of the car.

"Uday, you fat pig with a beer belly that sexually harasses for a living. What the hell are you doing here!?"

Uday paused momentarily. With teary eyes, Charu looked at the man with pure relief. She immediately moved to stand behind Ahan. She fully trusted him, he had saved her countless times before! Since they were kids, Ahan had always been her knight in shining amour and had always helped her out of any difficult situation.

Ahan continued. "I heard the conversation. How much does she owe you, fatty?"

Uday was dumbfounded. He was shocked by what just happened. Who would dare to talk with him like this? He examined Ahan with his eyes squinted. In his opinion, this guy was too calm and collected. Uday was definitely going to bring back the girl, if possible.

The education loan was nothing compared to the potential revenue she could generate at his legal brothel. This girl's perfect cold look and her gorgeous figure would sell her as the top prostitute. That was the real cash generating business for him!

��Buddy, are you looking for trouble?" Uday sneered as he reached for Ahan.

"My clothes are expensive, you fatso. Can you buy me a new one if you rip it?" Ahan snickered as he clinched onto Uday's hand. With his Weak Divine Force Rank God power, he could even destroy the whole Asian continent if he felt like it, these thugs of the modern world were nothing more than ants in his eyes.

Uday Thakur felt as if both of his hands were clamped down. He couldn't even move a single inch.

'F*ck, is this guy a professional boxer or something!?'

He realized that he messed with the wrong person. Although he wanted to back out of all of this, but since all of his boys were watching, the ruthless side of him came out and he continued struggling to get out of of his hold! Ahan then pushed Uday away.

"F*ck, you think you are a hero? Boys, beat him up!" Munna saw the tide of the fight turn. He wanted to escalate the fight from one-on-one to a full brawl. Ahan sighed at their stupidity.

"Why don't we go to the ally there? There's monitoring here." Ahan casually pointed to the alley beside the General Store hidden away from the passerby and cameras.

Uday paused again. Ahan's reaction was abnormal to him. He didn't look the slightest bit afraid which made Uday unsure. However, since he already proposed it, it would be a hit to his self respect if he didn't agree in front of his thugs. His reputation must be maintained!

Ahan stepped into the alley before Uday, Munna and their goons. A sneer appeared on Uday's face as he followed Ahan into the alley.

'Regardless of whether you are pro boxer or not, there is no way you could take on ten people together. Do you think you are a South Indian Superhero?' He left his most useless thugs to keep an eye on Charu. While the rest of the thugs followed him into the alley.

Worried about Ahan's safety, Charu anxiously thought about all the possible solutions. She considered calling the police, but the thugs that were left behind to guard her were looking at her fiercely. She glanced over at the friendly store owner that she bought ration from everyday, but he just pretended he didn't see anything.

She had the urge to cry with a mixture of emotions. Not because she was afraid, but because she felt helpless.

***

Ahan, Uday Thakur, Munna, along with an extra eight thugs faced off inside the alley.

'Hmm… I think I should talk to Mr. Aditya about EvG.' Ahan was busy thinking of other things, even in front of all these well-built gangsters. It was understandable. A Dragon would not be afraid or restless because of some ants on him, just bothered, and like so, Ahan didn't have any interest.

'First, I'll rest for a couple of days. Then, I will convince Charu to work for me and oh... a building! I need to buy a building for the EvG Head Quarters in Punjab.' Right then, he decided that he would buy a building like a normal person would think of buying a new phone or watch.

'I need security guards and bodyguards as well. I am about to become a very rich person, afterall!'

It is just too unsafe for a famous person's family in India. Although it would cost some money, but for the safety of his family, friends and future employees, he should hire some. Just as the thought flashed through his mind, it brought his eyes to the gangsters standing in front of him.

"Here are just the perfect ones at the perfect time."Ahan's mouth flashed a very happy grin.

Coincidentally, Uday Thakur met the eyes of Ahan and shivered, as cold chills spread all over his body. He felt uneasy as if he had become prey, which also hurt his ego. He had the premonition that he was about to be beaten to a pulp.

"Hey, you goon leader."Ahan called out to Munna.

"Goon leader?"

"Well, of course you are a goon leader. What else would you be, CEO of goons?"

"You little bitch!"

"I'm not afraid of you, so cut the intimidation short. I want to make an offer."

All the ten gangsters, including Uday and Munna were speechless for a moment, and Ahan continued.

"You."

Kang Chul-In poked Munna's chest.

"Work for me."

Don Munna was speechless and stared at him, baffled at this unimaginable situation. He could think of nothing else than to beat some sense into this rude little super hero bastard. The problem was that the one who said this meant every single word he uttered.

"You crazy bastard!"

Uday, who could not hold his anger any longer at being ignored by everyone, roared, and took a swing at Ahan.

"What is this? Fatty, you fight like a little girl!"

Ahan easily dodged the swing and threw a knee kick with a tinge of faith energy mixed. With a large ripping noise, Uday Thakur crashed into the nearby wall and fell to the ground like a rag doll and fainted.

"B-boss! Let's kill him!" All the gangsters trained by Munna called out to him and lunged at Ahan.

They tried to pin down Ahan by using their superior numbers. However, Ahan was a bona fide God. Even without a single bit of his faith energy, his power would be unmatched by ordinary mortals.

Boom, boom!

A One-Two punch landed on one gangster's face.

Crack!

And a hook landed on another gangster's chin.

Thud!

A large gangster fell on the ground, making a sound so loud that it seemed as if the ground itself had split in half. He was silent. He had been knocked out.

"This bastard… is he truly a professional boxer?" Don Munna who had seen all his subordinates fall in a flash then realized that he had messed with the wrong man.

"Keke, boxer, huh? Anyways, why don't you give an answer to my generous and appealing offer?" Ahan answered, smirking.

"Son of a bitch! I can be beaten but not humiliated, let's fight it out."

"Sure, it looks like you need some mental training!"

"Shut your mouth!"

And with that, Don Munna lunged at Ahan. Ahan noticed that Munna was using a ground-fighting technique commonly used by wrestlers as he lurched at him like a bear. It seemed like he had a professional wrestler background. 'Even better!' Ahan thought as he smirked.

"Only one of us will walk alive out of this alley today!" Munna roared.

You could feel the determination in his voice to pin Ahan to the ground.

But.

Unfortunately, Don Munna's determination was nothing but a delusion. Ahan had been gifted in his strength and leadership at birth, but he was also an extremely hard-working person. In his past life, he was a Supreme God who had created and mastered numerous martial arts.

Don Munna, who was a mortal expert at best, was no match for Ahan. He turned his body and bore into Munna's sides.

"Kek!" There was a brief surprised shout as Ahan grabbed Don Munna's waist and lifted him backwards, flipping him on his back. It was a modified Suplex from the fantasy Mortal World.

Thud!

Munna landed on his back on the hard ground!

"Aaa-aargh!" Munna gripped his back and moaned in pain.

"Stand up. It doesn't even hurt that bad. Don't act like a drama queen, aren't you a pro wrestler!?" Ahan said heartlessly.

To be honest, a suplex is not a skill that inflicts too much damage, but that is in the case when the skill is performed on top of a mat. If it is performed on bare ground, it would not be an exaggeration to say that the damage could be fatal.

"Y-you son of a bitch! I'll kill you!" Don Munna stood up with great difficulty and lunged at Ahan again. It seemed like he had quite a bit of pain tolerance and endurance, being a goon leader and all.

'Not bad, he would indeed be a good bodyguard. But, he needs to know his place first!' Ahan recognized Munna's endurance and decided that he would give him such a mental training that he would never forget for his whole life. If you wanted someone to work under you, you should show power that is insurmountable to always be in control. This is how he did things as a God!

Chapak!

Ahan spun a low-kick, hitting Munna's calf.

"A-AAARGH!" Munna screamed. However, he wasn't fazed and was starting to get used to it, and he came at Ahan again, closing the distance between them. It was a don's pride that would not allow him to lose.

'Oh? How long are you going to hold out?' Ahan thought as he hit Munna's left calf again with a low kick. He hit the same spot!

Chapak!

A tenacious, clear sound filled the alley.

"AAAARGH!" It would not have been a surprise if Munna had broken his tendons.

Plop. Munna fell to his knees. His legs had gone limp.

"Hmm… it probably didn't break?" Ahan looked at Munna as if he was a clay doll that he had molded and mumbled to himself. For Don Munna, who heard everything, Ahan was just adding fuel to fire.

"You evil bastard! Just beat me up! Why do you hit the same place over and over again, you devil!?" Munna exclaimed as if he was complaining of an unfair situation. As he was screaming, tears were streaming down his face, and snot was running from his nose. In the alley beside the General Store in Tilak Nagar, a grownup adult who was also a goon leader by profession was crying with snot running down his face!

"Hmm… he still hasn't learned." Looking at his masterpiece, Ahan's face seemed very unsatisfied.

"Haven't learned yet?" Munna flinched with undisguised terror. Was this not over yet?

"I'll train you just for a little while longer." Ahan flashed an evil smile and stepped towards him again.

"MAAAA! MUMMMY!!" Don Munna recognized that his endurance and pride as a don was breaking down as he called for his mother, who he had left behind in his village.

Soon after, the sound of pig slaughter and blows landing filled the alley and rose to the sky.