Absolute Beast Dominion

"Now, Vulcan."

Vulcan jolted when Ashton addressed him.

"Y-yes, Grandfather..." he replied.

"I am still unaware of the reason why you joined Nirvan in this," Ashton said.

"I-I was j-just..."

"Leave that. You didn't even like breathing the same air as Nirvan. How come you joined hands today?"

Because they wanted to go in the same hole? Leo mused inwardly.

"T-to..." Vulcan simply lowered his head in shame, unable to gather enough courage.

"Speak clearly!" Ashton commanded, making Vulcan immediately straighten up despite sitting on the ground with his knees folded.

"I was misled by Hilda! A-And I wanted to take revenge on Student Leo for teaming up with dragons to defeat me..."

"Waah, so respectful..." Leo was so amazed that even he could speak like that.

Ashton briefly glanced towards Leo, as if asking whether Vulcan was telling the truth.

"It was just a coincidence that those dragons happened to arrive the moment I came to avenge my academy mates." Leo looked towards Ashton.

"Or, after seeing my strength, do you really think I would have needed those dragons' help to deal with him and the other young masters of the Ember family?" Leo simply stated the facts, making Ashton nod.

Leo's strength was indeed more than capable of dealing with every single one of them on his own.

"You misinterpreted the situation and caused discomfort to a guest of the city outside the Secret Realm. You must pay a proper price." Ashton gestured towards Leo.

"Give Student Leo your most prized possession and apologise."

Vulcan's eyes widened.

"G-gran—"

"DO IT!"

Vulcan gulped and immediately reached for his spatial ring. His eyes remained wide, as if he could not understand why all of this was happening to him.

The next moment, a spiked mace appeared in his hand. It was in pristine condition, as though it had never been used even once.

It was a little over a meter long, and its spikes were lined with orange-tipped volcanic metal that looked exceptionally sturdy. It also appeared far superior to the one Vulcarion—the flame dragon—had destroyed inside the Secret Realm.

"I-It's my Pseudo-Purple Tier weapon, forged by the Ember family's blacksmith... It is my most prized possession..." Saying that, he walked towards Leo with heavy steps and extended the mace forward with both hands while bowing his head.

"I am deeply sorry for my mistake and misinterpretation that caused trouble to the fellow student Leo, and I will make sure such things are never repeated in the future. Please accept my most prized possession as my apology..." Vulcan's face grew redder and redder with humiliation, but he could do nothing in front of Ashton.

Leo simply gave him a downcast glance before looking at the Pseudo-Purple(4) Tier mace forged from volcanic materials.

He casually waved his hand above the weapon while shifting his gaze towards Ashton, as the mace disappeared into his spatial storage.

His mannerisms made it clear that Vulcan's most prized possession meant nothing to him, and that the main course was still yet to come.

Vulcan gnashed his teeth in humiliation that gradually transformed into rage.

"Vulcan!" Ashton roared, immediately calming Vulcan's surging emotions.

"Now go! And make sure such stupid mistakes are never made again, or you will pay a far heavier price."

Vulcan immediately walked out of the chamber, leaving Leo and Ashton alone.

Leo took a slow breath and looked back at Ashton.

"Count Ember, shall we get to the main topic? About my compensation. You see, it would have been quite troublesome in a what-if scenario where my strength wasn't adequate."

"And also the compensation for dragging the Aurelius Beast Academy's name down due to your negligence."

A voice came from behind Leo, and he immediately recognised it as Gunther's.

Ashton's face hardened at the sight of Gunther. He had never expected someone as high-profile as Gunther to be backing Leo. At best, he had suspected it to be Catherine, the academy's highest-evaluated professor, but not Gunther.

Who—even though he was slightly inferior to Catherine in terms of strength—possessed a superior soul technique through which he was even said to have defeated Vice Principal Tarun in a pure 1v1.

Gunther casually walked in front of Leo and sat on the sofa opposite him.

"Ashton, I never expected Ember City to be so bold as to allow its people—especially the young masters of the city—to defame our academy. And even if I disregard the young brats, I never expected it from you... I know that you knew." Gunther's eyes dipped dangerously as he stared at Ashton.

Even Leo felt chills crawl up his spine at Gunther's new demeanour. He unconsciously straightened his back.

Ashton gulped. How could he forget that Gunther's political title was "The Mind's Mirror"?

Ashton immediately lowered his head towards Gunther.

"I am deeply sorry about that. I just wanted to give my son one last chance..." Ashton had no choice but to come clean. Any attempt to lie in front of Gunther was already doomed to fail, so there was no point in trying.

Gunther adjusted his sitting position.

"So you deemed it appropriate to offend the Aurelius Beast Academy? And one last chance in what sense? Having him snatch away my student's valuable, loyal, and trustworthy servant?"

"I... uh—"

"What connections did you manage to secure with those underhanded tactics that we became insignificant?" Gunther asked before looking towards Leo, who nodded back.

"And speaking of underhanded tactics, what's with the 'conditioning' of underage girls? Sure, you haven't crossed the boundary yet, but you are dangerously teetering on the knife's edge." Gunther leaned forward.

"Want me to file a complaint straight to the Emperor and have your territory turned upside down to expose all its secrets? I am sure the investigators will eventually find those degenerate men influenced by demons who are taking advantage of your methods for their own pleasure."

Ashton's head rattled at Gunther's words just like a massive boulder is dropped into a still well.

"P-Professor, I-I always make sure no such degenerate activities are going on through regular inspections. I—"

Gunther raised his hand.

"Let's talk about this later; we should not fill young minds with unnecessary nonsense." He looked towards Leo.

"I think my student is owed some compensation for the damage you caused to his mental state and social life."

Leo had listened to Gunther's words from start to finish and couldn't help but be astonished.

Ashton was literally cornered like a rat with just words, and he couldn't help but feel the immediate need to learn more from him.