Chapter 8 Power Testing: Alpha Presence
This was a small carriage with only one horse to pull it in front.
However, in this parts, it was considered to be an item of luxury to even have horses. Having a Carriage showed status.
Eros and Dan sat inside together, while Jimmy the ever loyal butler, acted as the driver.
The Baron's manor was a short distance away from the town.
Through out the trip, Dan looked at Eros like he was looking at a mad cat that was about to bounce on him.
Meanwhile, Eros had his eyes out the window.
First came the farms. He could see it clearly, as the farmers gathered the crops.
The yield was not only too low in number, but also small in size.
Apparently the farming system was very terrible, and a lack of nutrient in the soil made for the harvest to be small.
The people had frowns on their faces. Some of them looked like they had never even smiled since birth, and the rags they wore as clothes further certified this point.
They were malnourished, and seeing their baron in his carriage brought anger to their faces.
"Hmmm! they don't like me." he muttered.
Dan sighed, "It's not that they don't like you. They are just frustrated. The last war was harsh on them, and it has now led into this famine."
Eros nodded in understanding.
He was the Baron of a fiefdom that was next to the sea. Naturally, a lot was expected from such a place. But it was also far away from the Nearest garrison of the Kingdoms soldiers.
The soldiers he had were not only few, but were nearly as much in the same state as the people he governed. Also, they were poorly trained, and this resulted in high cowdice amongst them.
They was always the issue of pirates attacking or members of the enemy country coming to cause chaos from time to time from sea.
War always left devastating effects on the land, and this was it.
The Carriage went into the town area. It was worse here. Eros could practically smell the lifelessness in the air.
This was a kingdom that had the setting of old medieval Europe.
At least that was what Eros thought from the housing structures.
The houses were bad. Some of them had their roofs out, and the ones that had good roofs had walls with holes in them.
Eros sighed.
He really did not understand how the former Eros was able to govern people in such terrible states.
There was some commotion in front. Jimmy directed the Carriage to the source of it.
"Gather every metal you can put your hands on. I want spoons, cups, pots, anything that remotely looks shining," a particular pirate woman barely dressed in a big red bra to carry her load, and a bum short to cover her moderately equipped back side spat out orders in a deep tone.
She was tall, dark-skinned and had a fine muscular tone, which showed she was a hard worker.
She was directing a group of pirate women.
They entered homes and brought out anything remotely metal and gathered them in a centre.
"Please don't take that! it is my great grandmother's pot. It's a family heirloom," one malnourished woman cried as the pot was pulled from her embrace.
"Don't worry, with how terrible this dump is, you'll not be needing it. Take it as us just creating more space for you in your kitchen," the dark-skinned lady chuckled.
The pot was pulled from her embrace, and she cried bitterly, but there was nothing she could do about it.
"STOP!"
A loud deep voice that effectively drowned her own was heard.
She paused and turned to see where it had come from.
The Carriage stopped right before the pile of metal.
Jimmy came down and opened the carriage door.
First appeared a walking stick, and then a pair of legs, as Eros took his time and came down the carriage. 𝒻𝑟𝑒𝑒𝑤𝑒𝘣𝑛ℴ𝘷𝑒𝑙.𝒸ℴ𝑚
Dan followed behind him.
"Huh!?" The dark skinned woman frowned, "Hey, old man! get out of here. Go wait your turn. When we are finished here, we will come for your manor next." She laughed, and then she noticed that the wheels of his carriage was metal.
"In fact, hold that thought. Leave your carriage and walk back to your manor."
However, as she was talking, she did not notice that he was steadily approaching since her eyes were still on his carriage.
He paused in front of her, "I don't think you heard me, I said you should STOP!!!"
Maybe it was because he was far away before, but it was different now.
He was an old man that looked like he had one leg in the coffin but the presence he commanded, was something else.
She subconsciously swallowed as she tried stare into his eyes.
Her eyelids fluttered. she intentionally tried to escape his eyes.
Only after she had averted her gaze that she had noticed what she had just done.
Remembering that her subordinates were around, she raised her head to look him in the eyes, but her confidence betrayed her every time.
"How dare you come to my land, and take my property!" Eros took another step closer, and she subconsciously moved a foot back.
By now, the only thing separating them was pushing back breasts.
She was a cultivator at the Fourth Rank of the Soul disciple realm, an Eros had nothing, but the presence he commanded made her forget the power she commanded.
Eros suddenly took a step back, "I want to meet your commander!" he turned and immediately headed back to the carriage. Just before entering he paused, "Where is she?" he asked without turning back.
"Commander Half bra is at the port!"
It was only after she had answered that she noticed what she had just done.
"Hmmm!" Eros nodded, got into the carriage, "to the sea port," he commanded.
The carriage had gone a distance before she realized what had just happened. Shame welled up inside her and she really wanted to follow the carriage and have payback, but her knees felt FEAR!?
Meanwhile, Eros coughed out some blood inside the carriage.
"Grand Dad! are you okay?" Dan passed him an Handkerchief.
"Yes! don't worry about it. I am fine."
Eros rose his head. He could see a worshipping look in Dan's eyes.
Dan could not hold back his curiosity, "How did you do that? She... she," he looked inside his head to describe what he had just seen, but he had none.
Eros laughed a bit, "that is a soul technique. It bypasses the mind's defenses, and rests on the primitive part of the soul. It is more common in animals. It is called Presence of the Alpha."
Eros wiped the blood off his mouth. He frowned a bit. All he had done was use an old technique in its most basic form, and it was already too much for this body to take.
This was the reason why he did not push further. The effects of the technique he was using would have been affected if she had seen him display weakness.
This was not good. He had to get cultivation as soon as possible.
It was a good thing he was going to meet the Commander. He was going to start with her.
He had really wanted to start with the one he just saw, but his love for the best made him a picker eater sometimes. He licked his lips in anticipation.
Hopefully, this meal was going to be worth the wait.