As soon as he saw the tattoo on the back of Dan's hand, one of the young men exclaimed with wide-eyed enthusiasm, "First captain is truly incredible."
"I still find it hard to believe that we have an item holder as our boss," Another youth muttered, still in disbelief.
The young man who had earlier posed the question said while bowing his head and saying. ''I'm sorry, captain. I am a simple plebe who lacks the education to distinguish between right and wrong. ''
He was experiencing intense exhaustion and impatience, and his mind was cloudy as a result of these conditions, so he felt guilty about having questioned Dan during that time. After all, the person in front of him was an item holder with incredible powers, and he was aware that under normal circumstances, confronting such a person and even speaking face-to-face with them would shorten his lifespan.
Dan looked at them solemnly and said, " The only thing that matters is that you finish your training and become an item holder so that you can get stronger in the future. And all I ask of you is to serve the person with all your being, the one who gave you all these opportunities and saved your lives."
After hearing Dan's words, everyone was stunned into a profound silence. They were well aware of who he was speaking about when he mentioned serving.
Even Dan's status as an item holder was beyond their comprehension. However, according to the tales Sami and others told them, behind them and their true leader was a much more powerful item holder, a godlike figure.
As everyone marveled in admiration of the enigmatic figure whose immense power eluded their grasp and drew boundless inspiration from Dan's rousing speech, a new arrival caught their attention. In unison, they all rose from the ground and respectfully welcomed the newcomer.
''Second Captain. ''
Karan, out of breath from his haste, ignored the people who had just greeted him and said it to Dan. "The Master is calling us. ''
Because Karan had rushed here at full speed as soon as he received the command from Raydon, he was out of breath, which fatigued even his awakened-strengthened body.
''Master? '' Dan said in surprise. Since it was the first time Raydon had called them, he couldn't help but be anxious about what might be the reason.
"There is no time to catch your breath; let's move quickly." Dan told Karan, who was still panting heavily with his hands on his knees; he turned around to run, but Karan interrupted him.
''Wait. The Master commanded me to call everyone. '' Karan said, indicating the people who were intently listening in on their conversation.
The group had been getting excited just talking about Raydon and imagining his incredible power, so this news came as a complete surprise to them. They were all thinking exactly the same thing. 'Is this imposing figure summoning us to his presence? '
Because of Sami's consistent brainwashing, each and every one of them had, unbeknownst to themselves, already become worshipers of this newly established cult and Raydon.
Dan took a brief moment to pause after receiving this new piece of information; then, swiftly seizing control of the situation, he turned to the group and yelled out.
"Hurry up and gather together; the master is calling for us. ''
The group suddenly became aware of their predicament as a result of Dan's ear-splitting scream, and they made haste to get ready to leave as soon as they did so.
''We can't afford to keep the master waiting. Let's start moving. ''
Dan said this, and he took Karan with him as the rest of the group, who had been on the verge of passing out from exhaustion but were now brimming with energy due to their excitement, followed behind and started walking toward Raydon's house.
—
Soon enough, Karan returned with Dan and the others, and after greeting Raydon, they all lined up in front of him.
After spending some time observing the crowd in front of him, Raydon eventually became aware that there were new people who had joined their ranks. In particular, in addition to the ten individuals that Raydon had chosen and instructed in the shadow assassin technique in the past, many more individuals who appeared to be young and had a great deal of potential had joined them.
'They must have taken control of other regions because there was no other gang to compete with them for dominance. ' Raydon was thinking deeply as he watched the eyes that were looking at him with a mixture of reverence, admiration, and fear.
Since Raydon understood the misunderstanding after accidentally destroying Herman's territory, he understood this group's extreme attitude towards him. In addition to that, he did not pay any attention to the new members of his sect because he suspected that there were other communities that were being persecuted in this area. After all, the quantity of them didn't matter to him in the slightest.
It was sufficient for him to have a few useful ones among them because Raydon had always been self-reliant and had never been one to rely on others.
In front of Raydon, there was now a group of ninety young people, with the exception of the elderly people, children, and people with disabilities who were lined up in the back.
Raydon first maintained an awkward silence while he took an in-depth look at everyone else, and then he questioned Dan.
''What title did you receive upon awakening? '' Raydon inquired without showing much concern for the other people around them.
''My title is called The Phantom's Vengeance. It enables me to increase both my movement speed and my attack speed as I challenge myself to perform better under pressure. ''
Dan responded immediately and without hesitation, despite the fact that it was a bad thing for item holders to expose their title abilities in public or in front of other people. In particular for Dan, when his enemy is aware of his title ability, which can put him at an additional disadvantage.