CEO in a Fantasy World 2

by Tristan Brown

  "My body still needs tempering, although my physical strength is astonishing, and I can clearly see the most efficient path… I have never actually been trained in the way of the sword," Caesar replied humbly.

  "Haha, that doesn't matter… Humans crafted sword techniques because they needed to make up for the strength other races had, I don't think any strong races ever practiced in sword techniques" Joe laughed loudly and patted Caesar on the back.

  "That is because they were complacent, who is the superpower of the world currently?" Caesar rebutted and asked a simple question.

  Joe looked down towards the ground and spoke bitterly… "the humans…"

  Caesar walked past Joe and went towards the bandit leader he had killed first. He grabbed the eyepatch that covered his right eye and stashed it in his pocket.

  "What are you going to do with that?" Joe asked, curiously.

  Caesar's right eye stung from merely 2-3 minutes of fighting, he needed to practice his eye and control his power much more effectively, the eyepatch would help him do so.

  "No reason just figured I would keep it, just in case" Caesar didn't tell Joe the real reason, however.

  Caesar entered the carriage and left Joe alone standing there, he went to calm the spooked horses, and they continued their journey once again.

  "Joe does not seem to be deterred at the sight of blood or battle. He is hiding something," Caesar contemplated to himself as he stepped inside the carriage.

  "Are you okay?" Renee asked Caesar once he appeared in her line of sight.

  "I'm fine, just a few bandits… that's all," Caesar replied softly and sat down next to her.

  Caesar's clothes miraculously didn't have even a drop of blood, but, with Renee's superior senses, how could she not smell it.

  "You reek of blood," Renee said as she scrunched up her nose.

  "Haha, I apologize… I will wash in the next river or lake we pass by, perhaps there will be one in the mountains" Caesar laughed softly and responded back swiftly.

  "You better, Mr. Clean," Renee also chuckled and leaned her head on his shoulders, they should reach the tall mountains in an hour or so.

  Renee lived in the dark continent. She was no stranger to the smell of blood and killing.

  Passing the mountains would mean they made it to the half-way mark.

  CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE

  Joe gently pulled the reigns and edged the horses into a complete stop, he put his big head through the carriage window and roared at Caesar, Edward, and Renee, all of which were currently sleeping.

  "We've arrived at the mountains, get your lazy bottoms up," Joe spoke in an angry tone. However, the eagerness in his voice was reasonably discernible.

  Edward, who had been sleeping through the bandit's attack, awoke first, he yawned loudly and stepped out of the carriage to stretch his limbs.

  Caesar and Renee woke up a few seconds after, Renee, who was resting her body on top of Caesar, got up and followed after Edward.

  Caesar raised his upper body and put his hand over his right eye, 'the pain is practically gone. In fact, my eye feels stronger than before?' Caesar mused to himself as he leaped off the carriage.

  Caesar was currently wearing a standard military outfit, black boots, cloth gloves, long black trench coat, and a slim shirt.

  He widened his eyes at the sight in front of him. Two giant mountains appeared as though they pierced through the heavens. Snow was forming near the tops of the hill; furthermore, there was a small road that passed through the tall peaks.

  Caesar took a few steps forward and examined the mountains more thoroughly, "where are the mana gems normally located, Joe?" Caesar asked while observing the mountains.

  "They're either towards the top or inside of the mountain," Joe answered back while his eyes were still glued on the two large masses.

  Caesar nodded his head in understanding, "since I assume you have done this before, how do you suppose we enter the mountains?" Caesar stroked his chin and asked another question.

  "Hehe, just follow me" Joe spoke with confidence and started walking towards the mountain.

  "Let's drive the carriage closer. We also need someone to stay behind… Bandits could attack once more," Caesar suggested from behind Joe.

  Joe halted his footsteps and nodded his head quickly, "yes, yes, you're right," Joe said with an apologetic smile and went back to the carriage.

  Caesar smiled wryly and squinted his eyes, "he's awfully excited about exploring these mountains. However, I can sense a large amount of ominous mana inside," Caesar contemplated to himself and entered the carriage.

  They moved into the small road in between the two mountains. Once they made it a decent distance forward, they finally decided to stop once more.

  After entering the cavern, the winds were noticeably much stronger, and the sun's rays couldn't reach the depths.

  Joe brought the carriage to a full-stop once again. Once Caesar felt the carriage stop, he and Renee jumped out.

  The strong winds kicked up their hair and fluttered their clothes, "it's similar to a vacuum" Caesar murmured.

  Joe rushed towards the right side of the mountain and put his hand out, he trailed the sides of the mountain with his hand and slowly walked forward. The excitement was visible on his face.

  Caesar turned around and looked at Edward with an apologetic smile, "would you mind taking care of the carriage?" he asked.

  Edward had already prepared for Caesar to ask him this question, so he just smiled unbothered, "I don't mind, but make sure to be careful," Edward warned and sat down next to the carriage.

  Caesar nodded his head solemnly and quickly caught up with Joe. Renee followed behind him. They continued walking like this for around 10 minutes.

  Suddenly Joe's expression lit up, and he pushed on the wall harder, the place where his hand was suddenly indented.

  The spot in the mountain slowly started to split in half and create a small passageway.

  Caesar went wide-eyed and looked at Joe, confused, "have you been here before?"

  "I haven't just been here before. I lived here for years! The dwarves in this mountain are especially kind, and they took care of me when I had nowhere to go," Joe said with a happy smile and strode forward.

  Caesar squinted his eyes dangerously and followed after him; he glanced at the contraption the dwarves had created with interest.

  "It would appear your dwarven technology is far ahead of the humans," Caesar said casually while following behind Joe.

  "Hehe, we aren't advanced in many things besides our buildings and our swords… the humans and elves have much better bows than us," Joe replied humbly.

  "I have yet to see the weapons you created back in Rahvin kingdom. Magicians power some similar weapons, however" Joe paused for a second and continued his ramblings.

  Caesar observed his surroundings, "how many dwarves live here?" he asked curiously.

  "There should be thousands. This is stone peaks, after all. But, it's weird. By now, the guards should have already shown themselves," Joe said in an anxious tone and started walking faster.

  Caesar could sense a large amount of mana inside the mountain. However, it was certainly not similar to Joe's mana.

  Suddenly his eyes went wide, Caesar put his hand on Joe's shoulder and pulled him back, "I don't think dwarves inhabit this place anymore Joe." he explained calmly and looked through the dark passageway vigilantly.

  "W-what do you mean? There were so many dwarves here before," Joe asked anxiously, but he already knew the answer.

  Renee from behind both of them suddenly ignited a flame on her palm and illuminated the passage, a massive creature with slightly furry legs and eight eyes appeared in front of them.

  It was a few meters ahead of them. It was currently staring at them while hanging upside down on the roof of the cave.

  "An oversized spider?" Caesar tilted his head and uttered without thinking.

  "That's an eight-eyed demon. They only appe
ar in dark places where a lot of death has occurred" Renee's tone was severe, and she raised both of her hands.

  "Thankfully, their weakness happens to be fire!" She practically shouted out, and a stream of darkish blue flames streaked across the passageway, lighting up everything in its path.

  A strange sound exited the spider's mouth as it attempted to flee. The fires traveled quicker than the spider, however, and the spider soon became a raging inferno.

  The spider made one more sound as it slowly turned to ashes, Caesar turned towards Renee and gave her a thumbs up… to which Renee just smiled.

  "E-eight-eyed demon… t-that means, this place is...." Joe grumbled incoherently, and his expression was filled with anguish.

  "How did this happen; everything was fine around 20 years ago" Joe punched the ground angrily.

  Caesar just stood behind the crying Joe in silence. He didn't know how to comfort him… perhaps that was one of Caesar's most significant flaws.

  After a few seconds of silence, Caesar put his hand on Joe's shoulder, "let's investigate. I know you are hurting. But there is no way thousands of dwarves just disappeared overnight."

  Joe sniffled loudly and wiped the streams tears off his face, "you're right, maybe they moved somewhere else" Joe comforted himself, and they continued down the path.

  Caesar opened his eyes wide and concentrated; the markings on the wall suggested a battle took place here.

  "This is the secret passage of stone peaks. Once we reach the end of the hallway, we should enter into the main hall, where most of the dwarves lived," Joe explained, a hint of hope was still in his voice.

  Another spider appeared in their line of sight. Renee raised her hands once again and quickly disintegrated it.

  "They don't seem very strong, why do you two fear them" Caesar couldn't help but ask as they moved forward.

  "They aren't strong or scary, but what they represent is," Renee explained calmly.

  Judging by Renee's dark undertone, Caesar already had an assumption of what laid in the main halls. They soon approached a thick steel door. Joe moved his hands around the door in a strange pattern.

  The door lifted, and all three of them took a step forward.

  Renee took a breath of cold air and covered her mouth with her hand and then turned her head away in disgust.

  Dwarven bodies and skeletons were layered on the floor; men, women, and even children were all present. Their remains were being feasted upon by insects or eight-eyed demons. Thousands of corpses were strewn across the ground.

  The hall was dark and cold, the previous brilliance this mountain had shown was nowhere to be seen.

  Joe fell to his knees, and he looked as though his soul was taken out of his body.

  "WHY? DWARVES ARE A PEACEFUL RACE. WE STAY IN OUR MOUNTAINS WITH OUR FAMILIES… WHY DO WE DESERVE TO BE KILLED LIKE THIS?" Joe roared out in anger.

  He kneeled on the ground and cried his eyes out. His sobs resounded throughout the hall. This continued for a few seconds before Joe's crying suddenly stopped.

  His sorrow slowly turned into rage. Veins appeared on his forehead, and his skin turned red.

  Steam started to rise from his forehead, and his breath became hot and heavy… his bones creaked loudly, and his fists popped.

  "AHHHHH, I WILL KILL YOU ALL" Joe roared angrily, his eyes were clouded with rage as he leaped down and charged at the many eight-eyed demons that were currently feasting upon the remains of his brethren.

  "A berserker?" Renee said, astonished.

  Caesar squinted his eyes, "this was no war. This was a massacre," Caesar said sharply.

  "There are no other bodies besides dwarves," Caesar continued in a cold tone.

  Although Caesar was cold and, by no means, could be considered a good person, he still detested pointless killing, especially when the ones being killed happen to be the family of his friend.

  "Are you not going to stop him?" Renee implored Caesar and broke him out of thoughts.

  Caesar shook his head, "he needs to vent his rage, revenge is the best medicine" Caesar explained calmly.

  Renee bit her lip and looked at Joe worriedly.

  "You referred to him as a berserker earlier, what is that?" Caesar asked Renee while still keeping his attention on Joe.

  "A berserker is a rare trait that only dwarves possess. Only one in every thousand or so dwarves have it. When they feel immense rage, their skin turns red, and their strength skyrockets," Renee explained.

  "How strong?" Caesar asked

  "They should be equal to an A rank monster. However, there have been some ancient dwarves that have been said to be equal to an S- rank monster."

  Caesar nodded his head in understanding and continued looking down towards Joe. He was currently punching dozens of spiders to bits with his sheer physical strength.

  "M-most berserkers are banished from the dwarven kingdom, though…" Renee spoke up after a few seconds of hesitation.

  "Why is that?" Caesar had a premonition.

  "Their rage cannot be contained until they are defeated, the angrier they get, the stronger they become," Renee revealed in a slightly fearful tone as she exchanged glances between Caesar and the currently rampaging Joe.

  "I see, so if I wanted Joe to go back to normal, I would need to defeat him in this form?" Caesar asked curiously with a hint of decisiveness in his voice.

  "I'm not entirely sure. I just heard this from my grandfather telling me stories... my grandfather also said that if the dwarves rampage is not stopped, the body will destroy itself" Renee shook her head in hesitation.

  While both Renee and Caesar were conversing, Joe made quick work of nearly all of the eight-eyed demons, the raging Joe slowly turned around and looked at Caesar with killing intent.

  Caesar unbuttoned his trench coat and threw it on the ground; he cracked his neck and unsheathed both of his swords.

  Caesar jumped down towards the ground and slowly approached Joe; his footsteps were steady and carried an immense amount of resolve.

  "W-what are you doing?" Renee shouted from behind Caesar.

  Caesar turned around and flashed a smile at her, "I'm going to bring Joe back, of course."

  CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR

  Caesar looked into the eyes of Joe; all he could see was rage and anguish inside of them.

  "Joe, getting angry isn't going to solve anything… calm down," Caesar attempted to soothe him. However, even he himself knew that it wasn't likely to work.

  Joe exhaled a long breath and started to run towards Caesar at extraordinary speeds. He was wholly lost in his rage.

  Caesar raised both of his swords, and his eyes started to radiate a dark crimson, he took a step forward and slashed down right as Joe walked into his slashing radius.

  Joe did not evade nor block, and he kept running at Caesar with only one thought in his mind… 'kill.'

  Caesar's sword barely penetrated Joe's skin and left a shallow cut mark, Joe's fist soon came flying towards Caesar, to which he quickly raised his other sword and blocked.

  Joe's fist collided with Caesar's sword, and Caesar was blasted away, he elegantly flipped in mid-air and landed with relative ease.

  Caesar looked down at his shaking left hand, astonished, "is even stronger than me?" Caesar murmured in a baffled tone.

  Caesar didn't have any time to rest before Joe was already in front of him once again. Caesar's eyes hastily moved as he continuously dodged Joe's onslaught of punches.

  Every single one of Joe's fists traveled through the air at a startling speed, Caesar tilted his head and maneuvered his body to dodge them continuously… Caesar's eyes started to move faster and faster, and his eyes radiated an even brighter crimson.

  Joe's skin became even redder, and his strikes grew faster and stronger, Caesar started to fight back and swiftly flail his swords around meticulously.

  They collided dozens of times with every second that passed. Joe slowly gained the advantage as he became angrier and angrier…
hundreds of slash marks appeared on Joe's body, and his blood flowed out profusely.

  Joe pulled back his right fist and struck with all he had towards Caesar's gut. Caesar blocked with both swords in a cross formation. However, it wasn't enough.

  Caesar went flying towards the ceiling and quickly shifted his body so that his feet hit the roof and not his head. Right when he touched the roof with his feet, he blasted back down towards Joe like a torpedo.