The first thug collapsed to the ground, clutching his fractured arm and writhing in agony like the worm he was. The remaining thugs, witnessing such brutality, froze hesitantly before turning to their leader for guidance.
"What are you looking at me for? Kill him!" the leader screamed.
With no other choice, the goons rushed Maximilian—some even drawing knives. Seeing the blades flash, Maximilian's eyes narrowed. He charged forward, timing his counter perfectly. As one thug stabbed at him, Maximilian raised his slash-resistant tire arm guard to deflect the blade. The knife clattered aside, throwing the attacker off-balance just as Maximilian drove a knee into his stomach, followed by a precisely calibrated punch to the ribs.
CRACK!
The ribs shattered. Before the thug could scream, Maximilian stomped on his leg, fracturing the bone. Then, hurling the second thug into the third, sending both crashing to the ground.
POW! CRACK! BOOM!
A series of brutal beating sounds echoed through the alley as Maximilian unleashed his wrath. Bones snapped under his relentless assault. Pleas for mercy mixed with agonized wails as, one by one, every thug except the leader was reduced to a broken, moaning heap on the pavement.
The leader, seeing his men dismantled so ruthlessly, frantically drew a concealed handgun from his suit. The weapon's weight brought a surge of false confidence.
"Stop right there, freak!" he barked, leveling the gun.
Maximilian didn't stop. Instead, he ducked and sidestepped, moving his head just outside the barrel's line—
FWIP! SLIKKK!
"ARRRRGHHH!"
A knife—taken from a fallen thug—buried itself deep in the leader's hand. As the man clutched his wound, Maximilian lunged, yanking the gun away. The motion tore the embedded knife through flesh, splitting the leader's hand in two.
"MY HAND!" Blood sprayed as the leader stared in horror at his nearly severed limb. Then the world spun violently—Maximilian had grabbed his arm and hurled him overhead in a brutal shoulder throw.
CRACK!
The leader's other arm dislocated on impact. Before he could scream, Maximilian's boot slammed into his gut, forcing stomach contents back up his throat in a sickening vomit surge.
"Remember my promise?" A hoarse, icy voice echoed from within Maximilian's helmet.
The leader, still dazed from his injuries and sudden throw, struggled to comprehend. What promise? When did this monster ever make one?!
CRACK!
"ARRRRRRGHHHHH!"
Maximilian's boot came down on the leader's right kneecap, shattering it.
CRACKKKKKK!
"AAAAARRRGGHHHRRR!"
Another sickening snap... this time, the left kneecap. Then, fresh agony erupted as another bone in his leg fractured. This freak wasn't just beating him... he wanted to cripple him!
CRACK! CRACK! CRACK! CRACK! CRACK! CRACK! CRACK! CRACK! CRACK! CRACK! CRACK! CRACK! CRACK! CRACK! CRACK! CRACK!
For twenty endless minutes, the alley reverberated with the symphony of breaking bones. Maximilian worked methodically, ensuring the leader felt every single fracture, savoring his suffering.
"K...kill me... P-please... hurts too much..."
The leader was now a broken to a sobbing wreck... tears, snot, and saliva mixing as he begged for death. But Maximilian denied him even that mercy, carefully maintaining the leader's consciousness throughout the entire ordeal.
Seeing the gang leader reduced to this pitiful state made Maximilian lose interest. He turned and walked toward Ricardo, who could only watch in horrified silence.
"Follow me," Maximilian commanded.
Ricardo had no choice but to obey; who wouldn't? This guy in black had turned the mafia from the city center into a sobbing mess.
He stood up, clutching the paper bag of money, and followed warily behind the black-armored figure. As he passed the writhing gang leader, Ricardo couldn't resist delivering one vengeful kick before quickening his pace to follow his terrifying savior.
Once they exited the alley, Maximilian spoke in a commanding tone: "Take me to your hideout."
"What... what do you want at my hideout?" Ricardo asked; this time, he didn't blindly obey. His hideout housed his brothers, four of whom were injured brothers and still recovering. He couldn't risk leading a dangerous stranger there, even under threat of death.
Noticing Ricardo's resistance, Maximilian surprisingly didn't get angry. He stopped altering his voice. "We had an appointment two days ago. Tonight was the agreed time. I refuse to discuss business in the street."
Hearing the familiar voice, Ricardo froze in recognition. It was the same voice as that monster who had beaten him and his brothers after they'd tried to mug him back when he was dressed like a clown.
"Y-you... Er... Boss... It's you?" Ricardo quickly corrected himself, addressing Maximilian with newfound respect.
Maximilian simply nodded.
"O-okay, please follow me," Ricardo stammered, then led the way to his hideout.
At the hideout, Maximilian observed it was just a regular apartment Ricardo and his brothers shared.
The brothers stared at the black-armored figure with confusion and wariness. Who is this stranger in makeshift armor?
Maximilian removed his helmet, revealing his face after ensuring no outsiders were present. Ricardo's brothers gasped; this guy was the same monster who had beaten them days earlier.
Maximilian walked to a nearby chair, sat down, and crossed his legs, making himself comfortable.
"I'll get straight to the point," he said, his voice calm but firm. "Ricardo, I'm going to ask all of you this question once." He paused, letting his words sink in.
The brothers remembered the question Maximilian had posed two days prior after they'd expressed willingness to learn from him:
"Why should I teach you?"
A simple question, yet they had no answer.
Pay him? With what money? They'd even borrowed from a rival gang to cover their medical bills. Offer loyalty? Would someone so powerful even want them? Unlikely. These doubts swirled in every brother's mind.
But Ricardo thought differently.
{This man isn't stupid. If he wanted money, he wouldn't bother with us. Toying with us? Maybe, but it is doubtful; he's not some psycho holding a grudge against them. And he wouldn't waste time keeping an appointment two days later unless...}
Then it hit him.
There was one possibility—one he almost didn't want to believe:
{Is he... trying to build a gang? Looking for followers?}
{If true, a gang led by this monster would be unstoppable in the slums. No one could match him in combat—not even the city-center mafia thugs he'd just demolished.}
{This is our chance!}
Before Maximilian could speak, Ricardo turned to his brothers.
"Everyone who can kneel—kneel now!" He dropped to his knees immediately.
At first, his brothers hesitated. But within seconds, those able to kneel did so. At the same time, the injured bowed their heads toward Maximilian showing respect and submission.
Having lived together as brothers for over ten years, they understood each other's thoughts perfectly - especially when it came to their big brother, Ricardo. If Ricardo was kneeling like this, it could only mean one thing... This powerful man wanted to recruit them!
Seeing all his brothers kneel and those who couldn't, they bowing their heads respectfully, Ricardo began speaking:
"Boss! We have nothing to offer you except our loyalty! We'll follow you and remain faithful only to you! If you say right, we'll never go left! We'll obey your every word! So Boss, please teach us! Teach us how to become strong like you!" Ricardo swore his oath.
"PLEASE! TEACH US!" his brothers echoed.
Maximilian was stunned. He hadn't even finished his prepared speech, and these guys were already volunteering to be his minions!?
[Ding! Congratulations Host! Side Quest Complete! (ﾉ≧∀≦)ﾉ] The System's cheerful voice interrupted him. Maximilian quickly checked the quest details.
— Side Quest: Minion Recruitment [Full Completion] —
Description: Every great villain needs minions to do their bidding! Recruit minions today! Become the Greatest Villain tomorrow!
Time Limit: 26 days
Objective: Recruit Minions 13/10 [Completed]
Bonus Objective: Each minion has loyalty >50 [Completed]
Reward: Unlocks feature - Loyalty Scanning
Bonus Reward: Unlocks feature - Power Sharing
—
As the new features activated, numbers appeared above Ricardo and each of his brothers' heads. The brothers' loyalty scores ranged from 50-55 - those with 50 and 51 points were the ones whose bones Maximilian had fractured. As for Ricardo?
His loyalty stood at 62 points.
{This... this is better than I expected,} Maximilian thought as he observed the numbers floating above their heads. He had anticipated needing more time to achieve full completion, but the group's strong cohesion and mutual trust exceeded his predictions.
This could only mean one thing: these brothers trusted Ricardo so completely that they would even follow his lead in trusting someone who had beaten them. Their loyalty to their leader extended to whomever Ricardo chose to follow.
Maximilian concealed his satisfaction and composed himself. Now wasn't the time to be happy lest the respect he earned might have an effect. But first, he decided to dangle a carrot before them.
{System, explain Power Sharing to me.}
[Power Sharing? Certainly! At System Level 2, this feature costs 25 Villain Points per use and affects the target for 1 hour. You can share any aspect of your abilities. For example:
Your Frenzy Trance (which grants 3x strength, anger issue, and regeneration) can be partially shared. You could choose to transfer only the anger issue to anyone within your touch range.] The System Explained