THE ALMIGHTY WAR GOD

Too Late For Apologies

Magnus punched Julius in the chest. Julius was thrown back, his spine slamming against the exterior wall of the bar. Like his three friends, he too coughed up blood.

“Ugh... ugh...”

Julius fell to his knees, hacking and spitting more blood. In front of him, Magnus walked calmly. The fear Julius felt moments ago was still intensely real.

“You think you can buy everything with money? You think money can erase all the disgusting things you’ve done to me and my family? You don’t feel guilty about any of it?” Magnus asked sarcastically.

Julius slowly raised his face. Magnus's eyes were still blazing blue. He wondered what he was actually seeing.

“O-okay, okay. I-I’m sorry... I-I was wrong... I admit I was wrong... P-please forgive me...”

Thwack!

Magnus kicked Julius directly in the head. Julius was sent flying, tumbling several meters.

“It’s too late for apologies,” Magnus stated. “Instead of begging me for forgiveness, you should be praying to God, because I am seriously thinking about killing you right now.”

Julius struggled to sit up, coughing up more blood. He was so terrified that he no longer dared to look at Magnus. But even just hearing the sound of his footsteps made his entire body tremble violently.

‘Why... why is he this strong? What the hell happened three years ago?’ he thought.

Magnus kept approaching until he stopped right next to him, crouched down, yanked his hair, and harshly pulled his head up.

“Ssshh...” Julius hissed in pain.

“You arbitrarily multiplied our debt to your family. You forced my sister to work day and night, taking a leave from college. You have no idea how evil you are, Julius,” Magnus said, his face inches from Julius’s.

“P-please... F-forgive me...”

Slap!

Magnus slapped Julius. Julius coughed up blood again. His two front teeth broke off and flew far away.

“I genuinely want to kill you here, but you don't get to die this easily,” Magnus said, letting go of Julius’s hair and standing up.

He then kicked Julius onto his back and stepped hard onto Julius’s right hand.

CRUNCH!

“AAAARRGHHHH!!”

Julius screamed loudly, his voice hoarse. Tears streamed down his face.

“I just broke the bones in your right hand beyond recovery,” Magnus announced. “From this second on, you’ll live the rest of your life as a cripple. Get used to it.”

With a flat expression, Magnus left Julius, who was still screaming and crying. As he walked around the bar toward the front, he passed the two bar employees Julius had bribed. The two men froze, gasping. Magnus ignored them, continuing to walk.

...

Marco Barbosa was on his way home. His black limousine drove quietly on the empty highway. Suddenly, his phone rang loudly.

It was a call from Julius, his only son.

“Hello, son?”

Marco’s calm expression instantly turned tense when he heard Julius’s crying. His blood immediately boiled.

“What’s wrong, son? What happened?”

[I... I got beaten badly, Dad. My front teeth... they’re gone. M-my hand bones are shattered... Shattered, Dad...]

Marco’s eyes went wide. He couldn’t see Julius right now, but he could imagine his son’s condition.

“Where are you right now?”

[I... I’m at Apple & Poison, Dad...]

Marco ordered the driver to change course to Apple & Poison, asking him how long it would take to get there.

“I’m not far from there. I’ll be there in about ten minutes.”

There was no response from Julius. His son just kept crying and crying. Hearing it made Marco’s chest ache.

“Son, who did this to you? Tell me his full name. I’ll make sure he pays!”

Marco concentrated, preparing to remember the name Julius would give him. But when he heard the name Magnus, his concentration instantly shattered.

“Magnus? What do you mean, son? Didn't he die three years ago?”

Again, no response from Julius. Marco sighed. He realized his son was too shaken to give him any information at that moment.

So he resorted to another method. After ending the call with Julius, he phoned Frank, his brother-in-law, who was the Merseyvale police chief at the time.

“Frank, I want you to access the surveillance cameras at a bar called Apple & Poison. Find out who the bastard who beat up Julius there is. And when you find him, finish him!”

...

Driving a yellow sports car, Magnus arrived at his family's old house. This was the car used by the two friends of Julius who tried to rape Jasmine. Magnus had driven this car when he went to Apple & Poison.

Stepping out of the car, Magnus immediately rushed onto the front porch and entered the house. He went to his mother’s room to check on Jasmine. He let out a sigh of relief, finding his sister still sound asleep on the bed.

“I’m sorry. I really didn’t want to use magic on my own family, but there was no way I could take you to the bar. You’re safer here,” Magnus said, standing by the bed.

Of course, Jasmine didn't reply. Magnus bent down slightly, directing his right palm toward Jasmine’s forehead. He intended to cancel the spell he had used on her, but before he could do it, he heard a commotion outside.

First, the sound of engines revving, followed by the screech of tires, and then the muffled sound of a collision.

Magnus narrowed his eyes. He quickly left the room, walked to the living area, and peeked from behind the window.

Outside, in front of the house gate, black cars appeared, stopping there. Magnus didn't know who these people were, but he could be sure they weren't coming with good intentions.

Magnus counted. There were eight black cars outside the gate. Men got out of the cars, surging into the front yard. All of them looked menacing. There were about twenty of them.

CRASH!

One of them—the bald one—slammed a long iron pipe into the back taillight of the yellow sports car in the yard, shattering it. Two other men joined in, vandalizing the car.

Magnus stepped out, stood on the porch, and said loudly, “Hey! What the hell do you think you’re doing?!”

Instantly, the men turned their eyes to Magnus. They were all carrying long iron pipes. Gangsters?

“Are you the one who drove this yellow sports car from Apple & Poison to here?” the bald one asked.

“Yes,” Magnus replied, defiant.

The bald man gave a scornful smile. He then raised his hand; a signal for the others to move forward with him.

Then he pointed at Magnus, saying, “Get down here! We’re going to break every bone in your body!”

...