Chapter 523 - 525 Inciting

Their journey continued. Travel was not exactly safe, especially after the encounter with the orcs.

But there was no more danger.

The monsters in the region seemed to be moving farther away from the Golden Roads and that area in general. Whatever it was that they sensed... must’ve been terrifying.

Damon didn’t turn around. He simply continued down the path with the caravan, his eyes fixed ahead.

He was almost at his destination.

His village — Little Town. The caravan would part ways with him here, heading in a different direction toward the Ravenscroft family’s domain.

"Come to think of it... Xander returned home to his family."

Damon sighed, slumping slightly in his saddle.

It must be a good feeling — to have a home and parents to return to.

A place that was safe... and his own.

He gently pulled the reins of his stag, whose hooves pounded against the earth with a steady rhythm. The sound was accompanied by a rough dragging noise behind them.

"Ahhh... careful, this road is rocky..."

The words were casual, but Damon didn’t even glance down at what his stag was dragging.

A dusty figure bounced along the uneven ground, wings bound tightly behind his back, arms and legs tied with thick rope — Dred, of course.

If it were a normal human, they would’ve died long ago.

But Dred wasn’t exactly normal.

He was already in the second-class advancement. His body could take a lot of abuse, and his speed and strength were both firmly in the realm of superhuman.

One of his fingers twitched. Then his hand lifted lazily.

"Day two of asking for Dred x Luna..."

Damon tugged the reins sharply, and the stag jerked forward — dragging Dred’s head into a bump against a jagged rock.

Thud.

That’s how he ended up in this situation, naturally.

He had gotten on everyone’s nerves.

Beating him up didn’t do much. Then he started a new campaign of nonsense: bothering Damon daily with reminders for Dred x Luna.

After much deliberation, the entire caravan — yes, all of them — came to a unanimous decision.

Tie him to Damon’s stag and let him collect some dust.

"Argg..." Damon groaned, rubbing his temple.

"He really could anger people to death..."

But... something about this piqued his curiosity.

He glanced down, tugging Dred’s rope closer.

"Ouch, ouch — be gentle..." Dred complained, bouncing helplessly.

Damon stared blankly at him.

"Tell me about this rage baiting. Is it like aura farming?"

Dred chuckled. Despite the bruises and dirt on his face, he smirked with the confidence of someone who believed himself a sage.

"Ahh... I see you’ve seen the light..."

The urge to beat him unconscious bloomed in Damon’s chest.

Dred cleared his throat, lifting his chin as if to assume the role of a wise master.

His smug tone reminded Damon of when he’d met Iris — showing off limited knowledge and shallow wisdom just to get closer to her.

’I should’ve brought her with me,’ Damon thought.

Then immediately shook his head.

No. That was a terrible idea. Instead of gaining experience, she’d probably end up dead.

He was a walking trouble magnet.

"Rage baiting is a simple technique," Dred began slowly.

Damon tugged the rope again, yanking him to a stop.

"Get to the point."

Dred clicked his tongue in mild offense.

"Fine. It’s the art of intentionally provoking someone into taking actions fueled by anger. The purpose of rage baiting is to provoke a reaction — deliberately."

Damon nodded thoughtfully. "Sounds like a practical skill."

"So it’s like the taunt skill? Provokes aggression on its target?"

Dred sneered, appalled.

"How dare you compare the art of rage baiting to something as lowly as the taunt skill—"

Thunk. Damon tugged again. Dred’s head hit another rock.

"Ouch, my head..."

Damon leaned slightly to the side, eyeing him.

"Will this work on someone in the seventh class advancement?"

Those words made everyone pause.

Dred, who had been mostly ignored during the dragging, twitched.

Singularity, who was riding in silence nearby, blinked.

The others sitting on the wagon perked up.

Dred’s hand lifted slightly. "Erm... you’re not planning to piss off someone in the Seventh Class, are you?"

All eyes turned to Damon.

He scoffed, visibly insulted.

"Of course not. I’m not crazy."

Everyone exhaled in relief—

Until he added, nonchalantly:

"I’ve already pissed one off."

Wimpy stared at him, his face pale. "How are you even still alive..."

"I’m more interested in what he did," Twilight said with his usual arrogant smirk.

Damon rode alongside the wagon now, reins slack in his hands.

"Nothing much, really. I didn’t even do anything. But he might be under the impression that I... impregnated his only daughter and refused to take responsibility or admit it was me."

Silence.

Only the wind howled as the caravan moved forward.

"Do... do you even fear God?" Saint asked, completely stunned.

Damon didn’t even hesitate.

"No, not really."

"Then you must be the devil. No wonder you worked me like a dog," Aleph groaned, holding his back with a dramatic wince — a gesture so elegant, even women might envy his beauty.

"Actually, it’s not my fault. He started it.

I mean... sure, I may have stabbed his daughter that one time and caused her to be possessed by a dark spirit, which I intentionally let the Summoner call using my blood because I wanted a fragment of its soul. But honestly..."

Damon placed a hand over his chest with mock sincerity.

"I’m the victim here. Did I not save his daughter? Did I not turn her small crush on me into a full-blown romance by promising her the world? Clearly, any unbiased eye would see I am the victim."

He was trying. Really.

"Did I do anything wrong when I was the reason she got trapped in a death zone for months with me...?"

So what if he played the victim and turned their only daughter against them?

The silence was loud.

He could already feel their judgmental stares.

Saint whispered to Ilukras, "I knew he was a piece of shit... just not this much."

Dred stared at him like he was seeing a demon.

"If you die... you aren’t going to make heaven."

Ilukras narrowed his eyes.

"As a monk, I’m already feeling rage baited by this guy. I feel so pissed off."

"Yeah, me too."

"He’s trash..."

"If I had a daughter, I’d feel bad letting her out with people like him around," Dred muttered.

"Too bad you’ll die single," Damon shot back, calm and unbothered.

Dred’s eyes flared. "Son of a—wait... you rage baited me."

Damon smiled, innocent as ever.

"I don’t care. Does it work on someone that high-ranked?"

Dred shrugged, defeated.

"Yeah, it does. It’s not really a skill — just psychological manipulation."

A soft ding rang in Damon’s mind.

[Mastery: Rage Baiting Lv2]

He smirked, eyes turning toward the distant road.

He couldn’t wait to see Kadelas Moonveil at the war games...

But first — he needed to level this mastery up.

Damon took in a deep breath. The air was thick with the smell of dust, grass, and home.

It was close now.

Just in time too... Spreading his shadow perception ahead, he sensed a... small... no...

A large village.

This place had changed.

He only hoped its people had not.