The guild leader refused to look at her!
Oz actually grabbed the chairman's fine suit, demanding him to acknowledge her.
Much to the man's shock, she actually pulled the large man to his feet.
"Those were mercenaries. They weren't taking raw materials, they were taking women and children. CHILDREN. And you are excusing that?" The pain in her head felt like she had stuck her hand in a socket as she spoke. It enraged her more that Orion wasn't looking her in the eye.
She once respected the man...now he was just an oversized coward.
[Righteous Fury of the Saint has been Activated. +5 boost to all passive stats.]
The box flashed in her vision. Raw power surged through her, she felt strong enough to lift the massive geode that was used as the top to the Chairman's desk. But not only that. She felt a sudden enlightenment as she dropped the chairman, a lifetime of misery all fell into neat little pieces.
It was all planned.
Slowly Oz eyed her Aunt, the woman was currently scrambling away into a corner. Oz moved before she realized it, a blur of motion then grabbing her aunt's arm before she could run away. Mrs. Winscot screamed, trying to rip her arm away from the vice-like grip. She slapped and tried to dig in her claws into Oz's face.
"Let me go! Let me go you useless brat!"
Oz knelt down to her aunt's side, the braid now ruined and caused all her hair to fall down into her face. Barely shielding the glow of her new eye.
"You sold me off for this didn't you?" She whispered right in the struggling woman's face. "Not only for Grandfather's property...to get rid of me. But to be in the dungeons as a pack mule."
It all made sense.
"You are the one who referred me to this guild, dear Aunt. Instead of having me slave in the Winscot Branch. I guess it would look bad for your promotions if you lost me in one of YOUR Dungeons huh? Father wouldn't like that and wouldn't trust you with anymore of his investments, would he? So it was easier to knock me off to another." Oz squeezed her aunt's arm tighter, until the woman's screams died down into desperate whimpers.
The bones creaked under the tight squeeze. Her aunt stared at her in complete terror. The proud, villainous woman of her childhood was now a paper tiger, crumbled at her feet. Her Aunt, who did everything in her power to ruin her niece's life. From ruining friendships, to setting up non stop bullying at school, all to make her an isolated angry woman. When she became a hunter, the worst of the abuse happened. Her Aunt was the one who pushed and pushed till all Oz wanted to do was snap and shatter her.
"I could break you." Oz whispered to her aunt, brushing back the loose strands of the woman's hair. Her touch was almost paradoxically gentle.
"I could break you as easily as I killed those mercenaries. It only took me minutes to destroy a man as large as the Chairman there. I put my hand right through his chest and held his heart."
Her aunt let out tiny whimpers of sound, terrified as she stared. Oz didn't think she looked that terrifying in her angry state. She squeezed harder. Something burned in her fake eye, "Tell me the truth!"
[Activated! Righteous Sight. No sentient creature can lie without the gaze of the Dragon's Eye.]
At her touch Her aunt cried, "It's true! It's true! We needed to keep you controlled." She shivered under the weight of Oz's stare, shaking violently. Shocked as she couldn't hold back her words.
"Tell me the truth Aunt or I will rip your arm off.". Oz pushed harder, something snapped under her grip causing the woman to scream in pain.
Mrs Winscot's eyes flew over to where Orion and Mr Smith sat, shocked still. "Help me! Stop her! Stop her! It hurts! It hurts! Hunters can't hurt normal people!" She cried, trying to slap Oz away. Oz grabbed her aunt's other hand.
"I'll break this one too, why did you want me dead?"
"Father hid his hunter gear in that shit heap of a house and he refused to tell us where it was! It's worth millions!" Her aunt sobbed, unable to stop herself from speaking. "Something powerful and important! His damn ring that was supposed to be mine!"
But what caught her attention wasn't her aunt's sobs, instead it was her reflection in the crystal clear glass of the office's windows. Oz dropped her aunt's now broken arm, her fingers flying to the scarred eye. In the reflection, where an eye would be instead sat a glistening golden eye with red iris stared back at her. A monstrous sight better fitted on a dragon than a human woman's. It was too bright, too perfect, like crystals sparkling as she stared into it.
The eye glowed a soft red light that pulsed with her rage. Oz gasped and stumbled back, her hand shaking as she touched the scar.
She had never seen anything like it before. What was happening to her? What did Nahern push into her! She looked again, and it was normal again. A gentle red glow pulsing under her skin, like tendrils digging into her veins.
Her aunt laughed through her pain, a cruel sound that sent shivers down Oz's spine. "You're just a filthy monster like them!"
Oz felt another flash of anger and lifted her fist, her aunt screamed in shock. The woman tried to cover her face with her unbroken arm, cowering at the threat of violence. Suddenly, a large hand came over Oz's eyes, and the scent of wintermint and smoke filled her nose. Selene gently helped her stand slowly.
"Dear Saint, calm yourself," she said softly, smoothing back the fallen strands of Oz's hair. "As your chosen warriors, we will be the ones to soil our hands, not you. Just give us the command, and we will deal with the filth that defies you." The long spear shot out, the sparkling glass-like tip pointed at Mrs. Winscot's heart.
Oz sniffled for a moment before she regained her composure. She shook her head. "I want to adjust my contract, Orion," she said plainly.
Nahern smiled an animalistic grin at hearing that. "Would you like us to deal with her, dear Saint. We are your warriors, and we will obey your commands. But I think you are making a mistake leaving that human alive. This woman is dangerous, and she will not stop until she has destroyed you."
Oz took a deep breath. "I know," she said. "But I can't kill her; she doesn't deserve an easy exit." She gave her aunt a hateful glare that soon became gentle. "Know this as a mercy, Dear Aunt. I let you keep your life only so every waking day you remember my face. Whenever you look at your arm, remember I LET you keep it. "
Mrs Winscot let out a miserable whimper of a sound, shaking in the corner of the room.
Oz walked away, her thoughts swirling. She knew that she had made the right decision, but she couldn't help but feel a sense of unease. She knew that her aunt would not give up easily, and that she would be back. It would be better to kill her but Oz was petty. She wanted the Wainscot family to suffer, one by one until they felt the weight of her pain.
Instead she locked eyes with Orion and Mr. Smith.
The Chairman eyed her, "What are your conditions on keeping this shameful secret between us?"
There were countless hours Oz spent in the dungeons, thinking of what she would want if she could ever blackmail the guilds into giving into her demands. For riches, for power. For Rank ups and glory. Or in her darkest of moments, freedom. Freedom of being a hunter and allowed to just be a normal person. It was possible, rumors of a strange ability of removing the hunter mark and all its powers floated around the lower ranks. The chance to be normal again.
Right now, now that she had the chance for anything...she had only one condition.
"90% of my profits stay with me. Any kill, any material selling, any auction house transfer. I keep my profits. 10% will stay with the guild so I'm not considered a freelancer and up for grabs from other guilds. As well the free right to go into any dungeon owned by the guild I want. As well the Black Lotus will act as my go between with other guilds should I want to use one of their dungeons. Oz spoke plainly, arms across her chest.
Mr. Smith cowered, but the man was a greedy snake. "You aren't...stopping?"
Oz laughed at that, "Far from it. If anyone is going to profit off my blood and sweat, it is going to be me. I will keep the dark business of the guilds to myself until I can put a stop to it. And you Smith. You will join me on my next dungeon crawl."
The siblings smiled behind her, "As our Saint demands, so it be." Selene crossed her spear with Nahern's curved sword, both eyeing Orion.
The large man coughed as if covering up his small moment of fear and nodded, "I will see it done."