“I couldn’t, he was too scary. Even after he left, it took me hours to recover.” Vylna said.
At those words, Fallmug slapped her so hard that she was sent slamming against the nearest wall. Her head started to spin due to the slap and the impact.
“Enough of your excuses! With all the money I waste on you, is it too much to ask for a bit of loyalty?” He lifted her by the collar of her shirt and slapped her again. Vylna’s cheek turned purple and her lips started to bleed.
“Was he scarier than me?” Another slap followed, making her cry.
“What about now? Are you still scared of him?” Fallmug threw her on the ground before kicking her over and over, until her whining stopped.
“I work my ass off just to give to all you parasites a good life, and that’s how you repay me? With lies and betrayal? Do you have any idea how difficult it is to be a successful businessman with all those foreigners using the Gate to sell their merchandise even during winter?”
Fallmug Sarta hadn’t always been the man he was now. Back before the Warp Gate had been opened, he was the young master of a powerful and rich household of merchants.
He had inherited the family business and made it thrive thanks to his charismatic personality and the network of connections that his predecessors had established. With time, his pride turned into arrogance and his self-confidence into conceit.
After the Gate, though, his life had become a daily battle to the death with his competition.
He had never been a very kind man, so being forced to be nice and patient during work always caused a great deal of stress on him. He had managed to hold his rage in until the money flowed into his pockets and the community respected him for it.
Now, though, each victory came at a price. Also, every single time he was defeated despite putting so much effort into the negotiations, despite the many personal sacrifices he endured, his pride was wounded and something inside him became more twisted.
He had started by beating his servants, but only with an occasional slap and only after a really bad day. Then, he had started to do it just to relieve his stress. Seeing them suffer made Fallmug feel better about himself. It made him feel powerful.
He wasn’t proud of it, but the business was better for it and he cleared his conscience by giving them gifts every time he closed a good deal.
Yet the more he gave into his darkest impulses, the more things got worse. Soon he started to beat his wife whenever she pestered him with her whining about him being too hard with the house staff or the kids’ schooling.
Then it was the turn of those little runts, who disrespected his hard work and never let him have a single moment of peace.
No matter how much he scolded them, they seemed to remain oblivious of the sacrifices he made for them every day. They would always drive him crazy with their squeaky voices and stupid laughs whenever they played.
He couldn’t stand them being so happy at his expense. To make matters even worse, now every time they would see him, their faces would cramp in terror. He was their father, yet they treated him like he was a monster.
Now Kamila, that stupid woman, had dared to violate the sanctity of his house twice, defying his orders and will.
“Someone has to pay.” Fallmug said while walking towards the tea room.
He slammed the door open, his voice a low rumble like a thunder announcing a storm.
“Didn’t I tell you not to see your sister without my permission again? Have you gone deaf as well or are you just too stupid to understand a simple order?”
Zinya gulped in fear. She was waiting for Fallmug to continue his ranting, but the prolonged silence meant his questions weren’t rhetorical for once.
“I didn’t invite Kami. She came here on her own and Vylna let her in.” She clenched a small, red stick in her hands, trying not to stutter. It would only make Fallmug angrier.
“Did you tell her that whatever happens now it’s on her?” He asked.
“I did, but she stayed.”
“Good. Your sister should have followed your example. A married woman learns about obedience and discipline, whereas a spinster doesn’t realize that each action has consequences.
“I’m sorry, dear, but you’ll have to pay the price for your sister’s defiance.” Fallmug took out the horsewhip from his jacket’s pocket, making it snap against his palm.
“Please, don’t. She did nothing wrong, she was just worried for me.” Zinya now clenched the stick with both hands.
“She had no reason to. Didn’t I always take good care of you?” He stepped forward as the whip cracked on his palm again.
“Stay away! There’s a reason I never stepped out of this room!”
“What might it be?” His tone went from cold to angry. He hated it when people ordered him around.
Zinya broke the red stick, which was actually a red mana crystal. Six more were hidden from sight under a couch and arranged to form a small array that became visible to the naked eye.
“He’s coming. Lith promised me.” Zinya said.
“Really?” Fallmug laughed as he grabbed Zinya by the collar of her dress, forcing her to stand up.
“Even if he lived in Xylita, it would take him minutes to get here and he doesn’t. He lives in Distar. By the time he gets here, there will be nothing to find. A healer friend of mine will make sure of it. He may be a mage, but in this house I’m your god!”
Zinya sobbed as two strong hands grabbed Fallmug’s arms with enough strength to shatter them, forcing him to let her go. Yet she heard nothing because of the Hush zone enveloping her husband.
“Get over here!” Lith dragged him inside the dimensional fissure leading to the Mirrors Hall on the tower’s first floor.
The moment the array had been activated, Solus had Warped the tower to the nearest mana geyser while Lith focused on Zinya’s room coordinates through the Warping Mirror which amplified his Warp Step’s range.
“Hello, Ezio. Long time no see.” Lith said while giving him a backhand slap. It broke Fallmug’s jaw and spread his nose all over his face, sending him crashing against the nearest wall.
“Please, stop. My name is not Ezio.” Fallmug whined. Tears of pain were streaming down his eyes.
“I know, and that’s the only reason you’ll get out of here alive.” Lith’s fist struck Fallmug’s chest, making his ribcage and lungs collapse.
Fallmug fell to the floor, coughing out blood. For a few terrible moments, he thought he was about to die, but the pain slowly faded and he could breathe again.
“What the…?” Fallmug could lift his arms, now perfectly healed. His nose and jaw were back to their original state, and so was his chest.
“Magic.” Lith explained with a laugh as the mirrors disappeared and an array became visible to the naked eye.
“I gifted you an immortal body. The dream of countless kings and emperors, all for you.” Lith’s grabbed Fallmug by the neck, slamming him against the stone pavement. His skull shattered, his spine was severed, leaving him limp like a stringless marionette.
“Immortal doesn’t mean invulnerable, though. You can still feel pain. You just cannot die while we are having fun!”
