Whether Invictus likes it or not, he had to follow Bethel and his men to their basecamp.
"Have some tea," offered Bethel, sitting down on a sofa.
Invictus and Bethel were facing each other, surrounded by Bethel's men with recurring glances over to Invictus' direction as they whispered silently to each other.
Intimidatingly, Bethel stared at Invictus, watching the man as Invictus silently took a sip of the tea.
"For you to easily drink something an unreliable man offered, you must be really stupid or just trusted your guts."
Invictus casually put the teacup down on the table in front of the two of them and looked Bethel in the eyes. After intentionally making everyone feel his immense thirst for blood, Invictus smiled when Bethel stopped his men from causing a ruckus.
"Shouldn't the tea be paired with some biscuits to munch on? Isn't that common courtesy when inviting a guest in your house."
The basecamp was far from being a house. Inside the building, there was no furniture other than the sofa they were sitting at. The walls have no paint, the ground was dirty, and it reeked of spoiled blood.
"Guest?" Bethel scoffed. "You're no more than a captive. Though, I can give you something else to munch on."
Bethel motioned to his men, snapping his fingers on them to bring his special snack.
On a plate, one of Bethel's men served Invictus a freshly cut human flesh, giving him a knife and a fork to use.
Everybody began to laugh, seeing Invictus being served with human meat, without knowing what he was capable of doing. A man like Invictus is unpredictable and hard to read.
"Hmm..." Invictus picked up the knife and the fork on the table, inspecting the meat using the utensils in his hands, poking on it. "A mouthful of human flesh was served to a guest. It is neither out of common courtesy, or hospitableness, but out of ridiculous mockery."
Unrespectfully, Invictus put his feet on the table, crossing it together as he pulled his sleeve up.
None of Bethel's men took an inch away from where they were standing. With Bethel's instruction not to interfere, they helplessly wait for things to transpire in front of them.
"What is he trying to do now?"
"Shh! Let's just watch!"
Behind Invictus, Bethel's men already receive the go signal once Invictus tries to do something funny, they will jump on him. The worst case scenario on Invictus' part is death.
'Judging based on Bethel's eye movements, he must have signaled his men to attack me if I pull a crazy trick on them.'
Invictus laughed at the thought, ridiculing Bethel's predictable actions.
"Your food is not to my taste. I'd rather," the knife sharply cut through
Invictus' flesh, "eat... my own flesh."
"Is— Is he for real?!"
"I think I'm gonna throw up!"
"Hohoho! Looks like we found ourselves a crazy fucker!"
Fresh from Invictus' arm, his skin with some meat in it was consumed by Invictus, showing everyone how unpredictable and mad he was compared to all of them.
Dumbfounded, Bethel could not help but feel disturbed by the turn of events. He was expecting Invictus not to eat the human meat they served to him but not that.
"Crazy ass bastard! Take a look at his arm!"
Most of his men averted their gaze when they saw Invictus begin chewing on his own flesh. Bethel pointed out the healing ability, which most of them did not notice.
"His flesh... is regenerating?"
"Wow! I bet that bastard was starved until he almost died to the point of no return. So, he was forced to eat his self little by little just to survive!"
Invictus was impressed by the speculation of one of Bethel's men.
His flesh was indeed delectable for him. The tender and nutritious taste his tongue had been seeking after eating himself.
'Did my taste buds get accustomed to the taste of my own flesh and is
seeking for more? If so, will I experience withdrawal symptoms or what?'
Strangely, for Invictus, he can say that his own flesh was the best meat he had tasted before out of all the luxurious S-grade meat around Estaria.
"Nah, man! That fucking masked man is just broken here! Can you imagine it? He deliberately sought our leader all alone and started eating himself! That's beyond normal!"
"Yeah, my guts tell me that guy isn't normal. Something about him makes my skin crawl."
"Tone down," intoned Bethel, calming down after getting caught off-guard by the crazy stunt Invictus pulled. "Talk, bastard. I'll at least hear you out."
"Haa... What a relief," Invictus uttered, leaning back on the sofa to feel relaxed. "First and foremost, let me ask you if you're still holding on to your dream of leaving this hellish dumpster. Because if you're not keen on seeing the outside world, I will leave immediately."
Bethel instantly caught on Invictus' purpose of his visit, smirking widely at the impossible proposition.
"It is something all of us here wish to achieve. Leaving this hellhole sounds farfetched."
Those that desire to be free from chaos and pointless killings have tried escaping countless of times before, but they all failed. Some might have been lucky to slip past through the impenetrable forces waiting outside but that does not mean anyone can walk away scot-free from what awaits them outside. Who knows what happened to people that escaped the city before.
"We won't be escaping this place. What I'm trying to do is to tear down this whole city and the walls enveloping Haven City."
"With just this number? Don't be stupid, bastard. You might have a plan but with just our number, success will be far from our reach."
Cunningly, Invictus smiled, "does that mean you'll consider if everyone is willing to join hands?"
Anyone who tries to get in Invictus' way will be taken care of. No one shall ever dare try to oppose him or else the unthinkable will happen to them.
'Uncooperative individuals will meet their demise.'