Chapter 238: Outer Barrack Hierarchy

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Due to Geneva's actions, all of the restrictions on the academy lifted at once. While they continued their meeting inside the Administration Hall, the situation outside became filled with disorder. Not only did the Outer Barracks make a move to find the culprit immediately, but even a small part of the Inner Barracks also mobilized.

Since the two were so close in location, it was hard for Fuhrer's actions to not slightly affect them as well. Even if he acted while keeping this in mind, it was something inevitable. The resources required to fuel him were so immense that he couldn't do anything to circumvent it in this weak world. Of course, there was also the fact that he had no intention of avoiding conflict.

The faster Apollo upgraded his Demonic Conduct, the faster he would fulfill the prerequisites required to advance towards the Greater Demon state. As of right now, each of his Demonic Conducts was barely scratching the surface. Furthermore, if he wished to reach the level of Fuhrer's true power, then the parameters needed to attain that were even more out of sight.

Nevertheless, as his door flung open, Apollo took a step outside. The clamor in the streets reflected in his eyes as he watched numerous cultivators argue with each other. Some of them even seemed to have fallen into a depraved state. As mentioned before, there was a chance of suffering from spiritual deviation if the action of cultivating the mind was interrupted.

Needless to say, Fuhrer's actions did just that. In fact, Typhir burst through his door like a raging bull as he looked around with reddened eyes, "Who did it?! Who is responsible for this shit? I am having a splitting headache because of you bastard! When I find you, I will skin you alive and roast it with my scorching winds!"

Meanwhile, while glancing at Typhir, Fuhrer rubbed his chin in thought, 'Interesting, this boy seems like quite the boorish fool. And that greatsword behind his back; I wonder how skilled he is with it.' As he continued to look at Typhir, his senses were still focused on Apollo.

After he took a step outside, some of the Essence that returned seemed to automatically flow towards him. While he continued to exhale and inhale, some people caught wind of the fact he seemed to be the only one who didn't possess any feelings towards the situation that took place. When the majority of the people present realized who he was, his actions stirred some suspicions. 

In the background, Lance inched closer as he caught wind of murmurs centered around Apollo, 'Hoh? Could this situation truly have something to do with that kid? It should be impossible. Just because he managed to obtain a partial fragment of the inheritance doesn't mean he is capable of depleting an entire area of Essence. If he is the cause, then there is a piece missing, what did he use to do?'

On the other hand, Apollo opened a single eye and he felt the numerous gazes fall upon him. 'Interesting, do they suspect me? I wonder where they get this assumption from. Despite it being correct, there shouldn't be any evidence to support this claim.' 

As Apollo thought about this, he glanced around and examined the body language of everyone. Based on what he saw, he could tell they didn't know what happened. What they were looking for is a scapegoat to push their aggression on. Unfortunately, if that was what they were looking for, then they were in for a rude awakening.

While there may be rules in place, if it came to defense, Apollo was never one to pull his punches. The crowd came together while moving towards Apollo's general direction. In response, Apollo crossed his arms and awaited their arrival. 

Sure enough, they came toe-to-toe with Apollo. But, before anything happened, the ocean of students split apart to show three individuals. One possessed a tall frame with rough features and dark orange hair. He stood on the left side, whereas a female possessing a roguish attitude and midnight blue stood on the right.

In the middle, there was a mismatched appearance. While the other two seemed extremely rough, the male in the middle was the personification of the word gentle. His soft features and light yellow hair flowed towards his shoulder. When the others looked at him, there was a tinge of respect in their eyes.

"According to my knowledge, your name is Apollo Kaiser, correct? You're one of the new freshmen who exhibit high ability," the male in the middle spoke. At the same time, he clasped his hands behind his back and walked towards Apollo.

"Correct," Apollo answered in a simplistic manner. From the uniform the male wore, Apollo could tell that he was a second year. Furthermore, the lack of an emblem for the student body program told Apollo that there was something amiss. If he wasn't inside that circle, where did his reputation come from?

"Good, then I would like to know why you haven't paid us a visit? It is proper manners for underclassmen to introduce themselves to the upperclassmen. Could it be that you lack the simplest of manners?" the man questioned. 

In response, Apollo's expression became comical. Once again, he found himself in a situation where the other who was completely unknown, demanded his respect. Not only was this outside of his behavior, based on the fluctuation of this man, but he could also tell that gentle smile hid vile behavior. 

When it came to such behavior, Apollo felt his own temper was enough. Thus, he simply shrugged. "This is simply a pitstop on my journey, I could care less about any of your feelings and this notion of respect you possess."

The orange-haired male widened his eyes. Without a moment's hesitation, he pounced toward Apollo. A metallic ax with numerous, webbed, fire-red veins flowing inside appeared within his hands as he slammed it towards Apollo.

Before he reacted, Apollo recalled the fact that Geneva said something along the lines of no fighting allowed outside of the designated areas. Yet, an upperclassman was attacking without a moment's notice. Not to mention, Apollo could have sworn he sensed an additional fluctuation when that male attacked.

After some thought, Apollo threw caution to the wind. With his bare hands, he executed a perfected Demonic Massacre Wave right at the middle of the incoming ax. When the two strikes met, the orange-haired individual raised an eyebrow in surprise. He didn't expect Apollo's strike to pack such a punch.

But, with a battle cry, the individual increased the strength behind his attack. At first, the blonde man smiled, but then he frowned and exclaimed, "Reiner, retreat for a moment."

Immediately, the orange-haired male, Reiner nodded and retreated back towards the individual's side, "Grayson, why didn't you allow me to press on with my attack?" Reiner questioned.

"This kid specializes in darkness, Selene, go have a few exchanges with him. Show him it isn't nice to play with shadows in the presence of a more skilled upperclassman," Grayson stated towards the dark-haired girl next to him.

"Okay," she answered before moving like a specter. Earlier when Reiner increased the force of his blow, Apollo chuckled and executed his Partial Shade Silhouette to get behind him. For a moment, he thought about piercing his back with an attack but then Grayson almost immediately recalled the individual.

Unbeknownst to Apollo, the girl at Grayson's side possessed special eyes. They were known as the Eyes of the Night Empress. When it came to Dark Elements, she was extremely sensitives towards them. Even if the skill existed completely outside of her level, she could still discern blur. 

Thus, Grayson felt she was the best option to teach Apollo respect. Not to mention, both Selene and Reiner were ranked 1st and 2nd in rankings of the Outer Barracks. In just a few weeks' time, they would be promoted to the 2nd year. However, since they joined Grayson's factions, one's who operated like serpents, they were feared in this ring.

At Apollo's side, he felt a breeze of wind and stared straight in that direction. His Tainted Temple vibrated as he took a step back, a small silver streak passed by his eyes as he stuck his arm out. With precise timing, he grabbed Selene's wrist and attempted the slam her into the ground.

However, before she hit the ground, she performed a reversal. She wrapped around his arm and wink before tightening her arm and legs around Apollo's arm. The more she tightened her grip, the more she tried to snap his arm. But, contrary to her expectations, Apollo's arm didn't snap in the slightest.

If he could tank Lesser Ifrit blows in his Iraym form that didn't bolster his defense by much, there was no chance of a seemingly frail girl like Selene breaking his arm. On the other hand, Apollo gripped his shirt and summoned a blade of Hellfire around his other hand.

"Now tell me, is following someone's orders worth your life?" Apollo asked. Unlike his typical actions of immediate slaughter, for once, he showed a faint sign of compassion. At least, that's what it appeared to be to the others.