Chapter 136: Preparation

Jane tilted her head as she heard Hugh's request. She then squinted her eyes as if she was trying to see through Hugh's request. She just could not understand the reason why Hugh would want to go to a party.

"I never saw you as a party nut," Jane said as she moved closer to Hugh with her hands still behind her back.

"I'm not. I just need to something there." Hugh steered his eyes away from Jane as he did not want her to find out what he was truly planning.

"So? Are you going to get me to the party or not?" Hugh knew that this was the easiest way to get to the party without forcing himself in.

If Jane rejected his request right now, then he would have to plan for something else. He would have to break into the party, which would be hard hearing that most of the prominent families would be there.

Hugh could also ask Serena for a ticket, but with her attitude, Hugh would be rejected.

"I can. However, you would have to pose as my date. Are you okay with that?" Jane asked as she tilted her head and displayed a playful smile at Hugh. It seemed that she guessed that Hugh would be flustered at the question.

"Fine," Hugh replied with an exasperated tone. Contrary to Jane's expectations, Hugh was indifferent to the plan.

With his plan set in motion, Hugh started to run away from Jane. "Thanks," Hugh blurted out as he ran away without stopping.

Jane did not stop him as she stood there looking at his back. She squinted her eyes as she did not know what Hugh was planning.

Hugh immediately went to the gym after classes. This was the first time he had ever gone there, but he needed to be prepared.

With Maverick as their main target, Hugh would have to pull out all the stops. He was not even sure if his transformation would be enough to deal with Maverick.

Hugh confirmed his identity to the door as he entered the facility. He looked around and saw that the room was devoid of anything around him.

It was the perfect place for Hugh to try out his attacking moves and his plans without destroying his house in the process.

In this room, Hugh could truly go all out, which he would surely do when they inevitably face Maverick. He also planned to get away from the fight if things get dangerous.

Hugh stood still as he focused on something in his mind. It did not wait long as he felt a difference in his body. His eyes were still closed so he could not see what was happening.

After a buildup of pressure all around his body, there was a final burst of energy that signaled the end of the change. When he opened his eyes, a smile crept upon his face as he realized that he had succeeded.

In front of Hugh was a humanoid mixture of steel and wood. There was a full person in front of him that had rigid brown wood as its muscles and silver metal as its skin.

This was Hugh's armor materialized as a person. Hugh got the idea from when his transformation turned into a real person.

Hugh's smile got bigger and bigger as the armored man raised his right hand, just as Hugh intended it to. It seemed that he could communicate with the armored man with his mind.

With just a slight thought, the armored man jumped and performed a somersault that displayed his athletic prowess.

Then, four sharp claws appeared in each hand and sliced through the air as if it was butter. The armored man continued to display his skills and power as Hugh commanded it to.

The armored man was stronger than it ever was. With Hugh's imagination as its limit, the armored man could move like water and without any inhibitions.

The time passed as Hugh continued to take advantage of the training facility. By the end of the day, Hugh's clothes were drenched in sweat, and his busy and kind were both exhausted.

As Hugh lied on his sweat, Hugh smiled. He had felt that he had improved by even just a small amount.

He only had a limited amount of time until the party, so he had to make use of it in the most efficient way. He was still anxious about the whole thing, but he was more confident now that he had more skills up his sleeve.

The days passed as Hugh went through his usual routine. By the morning, he would eat an inordinate amount of calories to sustain his energy. Then, he would go to school and learn more things from professor Kain.

After school, he would go to the training facility and sharpen his skills. He would get better and better every hour that he spent practicing his skills.

———————

Aric was sitting alone in the darkness in an undisclosed room. The room was shabby, with leaking water from the ceiling and small rodents crawling in and about.

However, none of them were of Aric's concern. He was solely focused on the board right in front of him.

The board consisted of pictures, walls of text, headlines, and other more stuff that were all connected by a red string.

Right in the middle of Aric's board was a picture of his own father. Maverick, the same person that he held a tremendous amount of hate for.

Right beside Maverick's photo was a headline that stated, 'Maverick to join the exclusive party this Sunday!' Aric stared daggers at Maverick's photo as he tapped his foot on the ground waiting for Sunday to come.

———————

A group of students was walking around the outskirts of the central area while the streets were illuminated by lampposts by the side.

They all seemed to be having fun as they all seemed to be a little bit drunk. Some of them were even tumbling in their feet while holding a bottle in their hand.

As they all walked along, they suddenly saw something black flash their way. They all stopped in their tracks as they got surprised by the sudden ambush.

They all got sobered up immediately as they got alerted of the intruder. However, as they looked at who had surprised them, they all changed their reactions.

"AWWW! How cute!" One girl exclaimed as she watched the creature right in front of her. She seemed to have already warmed up to it as she approached it without caution.

"What's a cat doing around these parts?" A guy right beside the girl was also curious as he approached the black cat.

Once the two students approached the cat, almost everyone also grouped up and looked at the cat. They were all drunk, so they did not question the cat's existence.

"Are you lost, little guy?" A brave helpful guy approached the bald cat and held it with both of his hands. He swayed with it as if it were his own child.

"You both look cute!" One girl seemed to be smitten at the guy who held the cat. Of course, the guy who got complimented immediately smiled and held the cat closer to his face.

"MIAO!"

The cat suddenly shouted and got out of the man's grasp. It was slippery and it got out easily. It ran away from everyone in a flash, and they could not even see where it went.

With the cat gone, they felt a little bit disappointed, but they recovered pretty quickly. They all started to walk again as if nothing had happened.

"You were pretty cool back there," the woman flirted as she touched his arm in a teasing way. It was clear that she liked the guy.

The man did not respond to the clear flirtation from the girl. There was no expression on his face at all, only indifference.

"What's wrong? Don't worry, I'll do more later in the bedroom," she said as she whispered closer to his ears.

As she finished her sentence, she suddenly felt a strong force in her stomach. It immediately made her feel sick as she almost vomited on the spot.

When she looked down, she realized that she had been punched in the gut. Her immediate response was confusion, but it did not last long as she got punched in the face.

The woman fell unconscious right in the street. Nobody from their friend group seemed to have noticed as they were all inebriated.

The man who punched the girl looked at the backs of the students as two swords appeared in his hands. The other students did not even know what hit them as they got caught off guard.

As the carnage continued and blood spilled on the ground, the black cat watched along with an imperceptible smile on its face.

Then, like a flash, it disappeared after Student Council officers responded to the scene and stopped the man who went on a rampage.