Chapter 166 So Naïve
As Xzavier realized what had been lurking behind Quaid's placid smile. It had been nothing but a demonic charade, a mere attempt to assuage him, while he plotted Xzavier's capture or even murder. Xzavier was appalled! A cold chill ran over him when he remembered how only a few moments ago, he had left the conversation with Quaid feeling rather pleased with himself, meanwhile, the whole time he had been smiling with Xzavier, making promises and working on how he would deliver them, he had actually been spinning this web of deceit to catch him the whole time?!
Xzavier was mortified. How could a person be so two-faced? How could a person smile so pleasingly and still be dreaming up ways to end the same person he was jesting with? Xzavier was so stunned, he didn't even know how to respond to such a vile assault.
If Quaid had pulled his weapon on him there and then, and told Xzavier squarely to his face that he would never condescend to his demands, then Xzavier would have at least known that that was it. He wouldn't have been happy, but at least, on a subconscious level, he would have respected Quaid for standing his ground.
But alas, the governor had played him like a violin. Every single time he was smiling, promising Xzavier the castle, talking about how he was going to free up the slaves and focus on the arms deal instead. That had all been a bold faced lie by a bold faced liar! It had all been just a ploy to get him to let his guard down while he prepared for his next move- the mobilization of his army! The cluster outside was large enough to be considered a small army.
Under the cover of darkness, they had surrounded his bedroom, blocking the only exit, cornering him like he was some kind of dangerous criminal that was to be arrested- or killed!
"Babara, don't move, we have been surrounded."
Babara's face went from being shaken, to straight up paleness. She was visibly terrified. Not daring to even breathe, she stayed still as a rock, as her eyes went back and forth like a trapped animal, trying to see just how exactly she could make her way out of this.
But the more she reviewed the situation, the more she realized just how hopeless they both were. She knew Quaid well enough to know that he must have gone overboard with his plans to capture Xzavier. Most definitely, she expected there to be over two hundred powerful mages stationed outside the door, just sitting there, waiting for them to make a move, and praying that Xzavier would give them an excuse to go all out and smash their way through.
Having seen it all, Babara knew in her heart of hearts that it was all over. No matter the stories about Xzavier, no matter how skillful he was, the fact was that he as a person was just one man. And as it stood, he was severely outnumbered. Babara didn't even allow herself to even hope on him. At the moment, her only solace was the fact that he sister had escaped unhurt. That was the only thing she was taking out of all this and she was very content with it.
Xzavier on the other hand was still taking a moment to process his emotions. Quaid had proven to be beyond redemption with this stunt he had just pulled. Even when Xzavier had confronted him with the truth about his nefarious ways, he had still stubbornly clung to his vices, and was now looking to add deceit and murder to his bouquet. Xzavier was astounded! Quaid was playing with the lives and destinies of humans like it was nothing. How could a person take something like this for granted?
This practically went against all things humanity was supposed to stand for. The very ethics of morality weren't established in stone, there were some vices that just couldn't be overlooked. And yet, in this Isekai, it seemed that there were no boundaries at all. It was amazing just how it was considered a normal thing for a noble to own a human being as a property, and yet, it was considered atrocious for a noble to take another noble's slave. This baffled Xzavier greatly! Had the whole world gone mad all of a sudden?!
Xzavier had been actively trying to understand the ways and thoughts of these people in order to assimilate properly. He had actually put in the work. There had been times where he tried to see things from their perspectives. However, it had been a failed attempt. It was like trying to mix up oil and water. He recalled what he had told Tacy earlier on; he just couldn't get used to the way things were here.
It seemed like the tension in the air finally got to Xzavier. Taken over by a surge of spontaneity, Xzavier's whole body began vibrate as an uncontrollable wave of laughter erupted from his gut through his mouth. The strange laughter cackled through the quiet grounds, disturbing the peace and stillness of the night. Anyone who heard the auspicious laughter would be able to instantly tell that it was coming from a disturbed mind. Babara watched with a horrid expression on her face as Xzavier threw his head back and let out peals and peals of laughter.
Now she knew that Xzavier had truly lost it. What sort of mind could dare to laugh in this manner before a situations as precarious as this?
But Xzavier wasn't bothered. In fact he didn't care anymore. He had been terribly ignorant and stupidly naïve, so he laughed it off. He laughed at his own foolishness. He laughed at himself for believing that he could have somehow convinced a man like Quaid to give up on his enterprise. Xzavier imagined just what Quaid must have been truly thinking about him all those moments he was pretending, and smiling. He didn't know per say, but Xzavier knew that it would be something like this;
"What a foolish boy! What a dumb, naïve, senseless boy! Princy Castle? You must be a special kind of stupid to think such a priceless monument will be handed to you just like that! You think you can just come here and dictate how to run my life? All for what? Some lousy weapons? Go to your room, you will not wake up to see the next day!"
Xzavier replayed this over and over again, causing him to roar even louder in deep laughter. Oh what an idiot he had been, what a big fat idiot. Xzavier continued to laugh. As he held his face with one hand. His eyes danced wildly as his shoulders heaved up and down as he continued his own version of a sick, twisted demented laughter. How stupid had he been! Oh how stupid indeed!
Then suddenly, with an unprecedented abruptness, Xzavier stopped laughing. It was a disturbing end to an even more disturbing laughter. No one could have anticipated it. Most people's laughter normally died down in slow steady waves, like the gradual death of a fire. But Xzavier's own had been sudden, brash and unnatural, giving the hint that he was truly unhinged. But it wasn't as much about the disturbing end of the laughter, it was more about what came next.
When his stopped laughing, his body stopped moving. He became as cold as a block of ice. It was as if the laughter had purged him of any atom of emotion he had in him. It was as if he became a living statue, cold on the inside. His eyes reflected this coldness. Xzavier had now assumed the role of the grim reaper. To the unfortunate souls outside, they were about to see just why Xzavier had often been referred to as the A-O-D; The angel of death.
Xzavier's vision turned red, with his mind on auto pilot now, he sprang into action. Xzavier was acutely aware of his points balance in the system. As at that moment, he had over six thousand points left. That was more than enough to do some major damage. So, he took a look at the systems weapons list and his eyes fell on the perfect thing for the situation; the terrible, mean looking Leopard 2 A7 tank! Xzavier envisioned the level of carnage that he could wreak upon his enemies with this tank.
He didn't bother to hide his eagerness. This was something that he was going to enjoy completely. So, without hesitation, he selected the tank and watched as it gulped down a whooping four thousand, three hundred and ninety nine points! This was no small weaponry. A tank of this size and magnitude was something that could be used to take out an entire battalion, and even more. It was a huge armament. And because of its worth, it had brought down Xzavier's point balance to a measly two thousand points.
Now wasn't the time to dwell on hemorrhaging points. The fact was, Xzavier had been saving this for the worst kind of monsters he might face. After his ordeal in the jungle with the goblins and the chief orcs, Xzavier knew that it was only a matter of time before, he came across something even more dangerous. And so, he had prepared this tank for that time, but never had he thought that he would one day use this against his fellow humans.
The gigantic form of the tank appeared out of nowhere and filled about seventy five percent of the entire bedroom. Babara nearly fainted. It was merely the shock and fear and kept her fully conscious. She stared askance at the big black metallic monster. She couldn't move for a full minute.