Chapter 54: Pleasure Of Crushing The Head with Hand

Zarek glanced at the broad man lying beneath his foot.

"How many crystals do you have?"

The man’s eyes widened. He hurriedly looked toward the container his subordinates had brought into the hall.

"Only one more! I already consumed one myself, and the one my men brought was the last one they collected. That’s all I have!"

Zarek raised his foot and stepped away from him.

The broad man immediately scrambled to retrieve the crystal he had kept on himself. His hands trembled so badly that he nearly dropped it before managing to hold it out toward Zarek.

"Here! Take it! Take both of them! Please, just don’t kill me!"

He pushed the crystal toward Zarek, then gestured desperately at the container holding the other one.

Zarek accepted both crystals and stored them in his System Space alongside the two he had collected from the human-faced monster.

Four crystals in total.

The broad man watched him, breathing heavily. He had surrendered everything he possessed, apparently believing that doing so might convince Zarek to spare his life.

Zarek gave him a slight smile.

"Good. Now, let me ask you something."

The man’s expression tightened.

"What... what do you want to know?"

Zarek crouched beside him.

"If I kill an enhanced human, will I get a crystal?"

For a moment, the broad man stared at him as if he hadn’t understood the question.

Then his face drained of color.

"No! No, you can’t!"

He tried to crawl backward, but his battered body barely moved. Panic overtook him as he realized what Zarek was considering.

"Please! I gave you the crystals! Take everything else you want, but don’t kill me! I’ll help you."

Zarek watched him with genuine curiosity.

Perhaps he knew something Zarek didn’t. Or perhaps he simply understood what was about to happen.

Either way, Zarek had already decided to find out.

"Hold still."

The broad man’s eyes widened. He barely managed to move a few inches before Zarek reached down and caught him by the head.

For a moment, neither of them moved.

Then the broad man felt Zarek’s fingers tighten against his skull.

His expression changed instantly.

"Wait... wait a fucking minute!"

He seized Zarek’s wrist with both hands and pulled with everything he had.

The veins bulging beneath his skin stood out as he strained, his face reddening with the effort. A moment ago, he had been begging for his life.

Now he was fighting for it, desperately trying to pry away the hand wrapped around his head.

Zarek didn’t budge.

The broad man’s confidence finally shattered.

"NO! LET GO OF ME!"

His voice boomed through the hall. He kicked at the floor, twisted his body, and clawed at Zarek’s arm.

He had watched his subordinates die, surrendered his crystals, and hoped that giving Zarek what he wanted would be enough. Now, with Zarek’s hand tightening around his skull, that hope was collapsing.

Only now did he understand that none of it mattered.

"PLEASE! I’LL TELL YOU EVERYTHING! JUST DON’T—"

Zarek began squeezing.

The man’s scream broke off into a strangled cry. His hands shook against Zarek’s wrist, and his legs thrashed wildly as he tried to escape. He could feel the pressure building around his skull, relentless and impossible to resist.

Zarek watched his face with open interest.

So this was what happened when he pushed his strength against a human body.

The broad man stared back at him, eyes bulging with disbelief. He had consumed a crystal himself. He was stronger than ordinary people, strong enough to command the workers and guards around him.

Yet Zarek was crushing him with one hand, as though all that strength meant absolutely nothing.

"Y-You’re—"

His voice cracked.

Zarek tightened his grip again.

CRACK!

The sound echoed through the hall.

The broad man’s mouth flew open. A final, horrified scream escaped him before another sickening crunch cut it short. Blood trickled down Zarek’s fingers as the man’s hands slipped from his wrist.

His body jerked once.

Then went limp.

For a few seconds, Zarek kept holding his head. The man’s terrified expression had frozen into something almost unrecognizable, and his once-powerful body lay completely helpless beneath him.

Zarek finally released him.

The corpse slumped onto the floor with a heavy thud.

He waited, watching the corpse for any sign of a crystal.

Nothing happened.

He examined the body, then glanced at the surrounding floor. There was no crystal.

He waited a few more seconds before clicking his tongue.

"Tch. Nothing?"

Apparently, killing an enhanced human didn’t automatically produce a crystal.

What a disappointment.

He had hoped to discover another way of obtaining them, especially if the process could be repeated whenever he encountered a strong opponent. Unfortunately, the result suggested otherwise.

Still, the experiment hadn’t been entirely pointless. He now had four crystals and a better understanding of what they could do.

Zarek wiped the blood from his hand against the dead man’s clothes before standing up.

"Well, whatever."

He had other things to do.

Leaving the hall, Zarek made his way through the factory.

He didn’t bother hiding himself this time. The broad man was dead, his subordinates were already lying in the hall, and there was little reason to sneak around after everything that had happened.

Several workers noticed him as he passed.

Some glanced at the blood covering his hand and clothes. Others briefly examined his face before returning to their tasks.

Nobody stopped him or asked what had happened inside the hall. One man even stepped aside to let him pass, treating him like an ordinary guard.

Zarek slowed down.

What the hell?

The broad man had clearly held an important position. His subordinates had brought him crystals and waited for his approval, yet nobody seemed concerned about the commotion coming from his hall.

He glanced at the workers around him. They continued with their tasks without showing any particular interest in him.

Did nobody hear anything from the hall?

Zarek continued toward the exit.

As he passed a group of workers carrying equipment, his attention returned to the black veins spreading beneath their skin.

He looked back toward the hall.

"Shit. I forgot to ask him about this."

Unfortunately, the broad man wasn’t going to answer any more questions.

He clicked his tongue and continued toward the exit, mildly annoyed that he’d missed the opportunity.

He would have to find the answers himself.