Varian stared down at the huge extravagant tomb that practically screamed "Notice me!".
It's a pyramid, with the holographic projection of him smiling on its top, heavily inspired by the ancient tombs of the pre-blink earth.
What really pissed Varian off was the scribblings on the bottom of the structure.
"The best genius of humanity, still couldn't get laid."
"The man who never sowed any fields. We have many fertilizers that can help you. Contact our fertilizer company. <3."
"The Konstant Celibate."
To write these on a martyr's tomb warranted a death sentence, much less on someone who received the highest funeral.
But these words were painted on the tomb with something akin to a special nano-paint. They're non-erasable. Even if you break that part of the wall, the paint would sink into the tomb and resurface at another location.
The only way to remove it would be to destroy the tomb. But that's just even more outrageous.
The mayor could only seal the tomb for now. Still, it got leaked and made quite a few rounds in the news before the federation stepped in.
At the bottom of all these lines was another piece of text, handwritten and smelled like…blood.
"If you feel an ounce of anger, come get me. You mongrel, why do you keep dying all the time? Can't you stay alive for fuck's sake?! Come beat me if you dare! Get your dead ass out of the tomb! Come back to life! Death is for losers!"
Varian clenched his fist.
The sturdy tomb folded into itself and exploded. The city security was alarmed and despite the lack of manpower, whoever was in charge rushed over in seconds.
"You bastard! How dare you?!"
"You'll be hanged for this!"
"Disrespecting our martyrs?! The martyr's sacrifice which is the reason you and me are alive today? I'll press for torture before you die! You deserve all the pain, sick bastard!"
The officers, two women, and a man were merely level 3 and all seemed like new recruits. If such an important tomb had only these people rushing over, then there's really no security for it. It's understandable, however.
Every level 4 was participating in the war. Heck, even level 3s were rare.
Crime has been skyrocketing in society as the hiding criminals took advantage of the weak internal security. What's worse, people that were law abiding until now were twisted by the harsh war and became twisted criminals.
Many 'cops' died trying to maintain law and order. Against such a backdrop, whoever could destroy the tomb like that must be at least a level 5 or higher. Yet, these cops still rushed over.
They knew they couldn't win and would be risking their lives. But they didn't want to shrink from this responsibility.
When they arrived at the scene, they were only more dumbfounded. The whole tomb was gone!
They saw the back of the young man standing on the site and swallowed in fear.
'He's strong!' To erase the tomb so easily, he must be!
But then came the anger.
"Get on your knees and put your hands over your head." The youngest cop, a petite young woman, pointed an aura gun—barely lethal against mid awakeners—at him and instructed.
"The backup will be here any minute." The most experienced on the team—appointed last year—a lean man, stepped forward and glared daggers into the back of the young man.
"Don't make it more painful than it should be." The third cop said in a menacing tone.
All of them, however, knew they were just bluffing. They saw fear in each other's eyes. What they were doing was basically seeking death. Whoever this criminal was, he could easily kill them!
But they asked themselves if they could live with letting him escape. Their answer was clear.
Varian was someone wildly idolized and romanticized in the past few months. He became the most inspiring role model for young people.
Now, his one and the only tomb was destroyed! If they let him go like this, they'd never be able to raise their heads again.
Aware of the danger these young officers themselves were in, Varian smiled lightly and turned out. The gunshots rang in the air and a dozen bullets bounced off his chest and face.
The petite cop dropped the gun as she gawked at the man in front of her. Her colleagues were no better as they just froze like statues.
"I really appreciate your bravery in trying to protect a dead man's honor." Varian nodded at them. "But as you can see, the man isn't really dead."
"I, Th-ank, no, are you…"
"Are you f-for real?"
"S-Sir Vari…an? Which psychic is causing this illusion?"
The fresh cops stuttered like a broken radio.
Varian laughed at their antics. The itching anger in his heart dissipated mostly. His mood also calmed down.
Kyle must thank these three or else he'd have to spend a year in bed for the 'treatment' he would've gotten.
"Check the Neptune news. The battle ended a few minutes ago. Because of the war, I guess communication lagged."
As if on cue, the coms of the officers lit up and a critical piece of news notification appeared on their screens.
Gulping their saliva back, they read the news with a dumbfounded gaze. Soon, they turned to Varian with a scorching gaze.
There's no doubt! This man is the man!
The cops stared at him with reverence and the one that shot him covered her mouth in shock. "D-Did I just….I apologize, I'd never—"
Varian waved his hand, indicating it was all right.
The petite cop sighed in relief and then stretched her hand, confusing Varian.
"An autograph please!" She said bashfully.
Even though she was a few years older than him, she behaved like a little girl.
Her words were the trigger for her colleagues.
"Please, me too!" The lean man tore his shirt and showed his shoulder.
The third cop, the most enthusiastic of the lot, almost tore her shirt. Thankfully, Varian's telekinetic force stopped her in time. Realizing her mistake, she stuck out her tongue and showed her nape while she pleaded in a gentle tone. "…Please, just once."
"…" Varian stared at them in exasperation and shook his head. "My autographs aren't worth shit."
"No, Sir! They're worth their weight in diamonds. If I sell my hand with your autograph, even just the skin, it'll be bought at a fortune in the black market." The petite young man stated with conviction as she rubbed the letters on her palm with a smile.
A thought flashed in her mind and she waved her hand. "Of course, only fools would sell your autograph. I won't sell this, Sir! I'll take it to my grave!"
Varian felt weirded out and wanted to argue that people who bought his autographs for so much money were stupid. But he knew better than debating with his fanboys and fangirls.
But he was frustrated at this situation. He didn't want to be martyred, idolized, or romanticized.
The frustration needed an outlet and Varian's eyes lit up as he cracked his knuckles.
A few minutes later, Valos was filled with the screams of a young man.
One outlet reported that they saw a naked man beaten across the street. Another stated that the young man was beaten black and blue, healed, and then beaten again.
It didn't stop there. Words such as "Brother", "Forgive!", "Time out!" "Don't kick my ass anymore!" sounded across the city.
No one could find the source of this madness. But all the criminals in the city surrendered themselves out of fear.
And Varian was now meeting someone…or something special.
