Ch 16
NEYMAR
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Chapter 16
Felix’s face twisted in confusion at the sound of the knock.
Who could that be?
It was the first time in a while that all the members had gathered, partly for a bit of camaraderie. If it were Rena, who had stepped out for a moment, she would’ve just opened the door without knocking.
That meant no one should be coming to the request office at this hour, especially through the back door.
Save for one person.
Could it be… that damn wizard?
He glanced at the clock and shook his head.
...Impossible.
The guy had left the office barely two hours ago. A wizard's mobility was low to begin with; returning this fast was out of the question.
Besides.
I might have called him a neighborhood punk earlier, but…
The truth was, Shane was no easy target. He was a despicable bastard who would stop at nothing to escape, shamelessly using artifacts, taking hostages, and utilizing illegal waypoints. There was a reason they called him the ‘Master of Escape’.
“I’ll get it.”
Having concluded that it couldn't be the wizard, Felix strode over and opened the door.
Clank.
But standing there, as nonchalant as could be, was the one man he thought was impossible.
He had another man slung over his shoulder, unconscious and foaming at the mouth.
“We meet again.”
H-How…?
Momentarily stunned, Felix quickly composed himself. He still had no idea what had happened, but… he had already made a plan with the others.
“...Come in.”
That plan would proceed without a hitch.
All to protect his and his members' livelihoods.
THUD!
After dumping the man I was carrying onto a table, I immediately checked the clock.
Two hours.
Thankfully, by sticking to deserted streets, I had avoided running into any patrolmen. The man named Shane hadn't been difficult to subdue, either. I had a bit of trouble knocking him out again every time he came to his senses and tried something stupid on the way back… but all in all, this wasn’t bad.
A record sufficient to make my mark.
The only problem was that the black-haired woman who was supposed to verify this was gone.
“Where’s the woman?”
“...She stepped out for a bit.”
“Is that so?”
I leaned back in the chair I had sat in earlier and glanced around.
“A-Ahem…”
The men who met my gaze quickly looked away.
Anyone could tell their reaction was suspicious.
What’s with this atmosphere?
It seemed like the place had been buzzing with noise right before I walked in.
Just as I was thinking that, a man came and sat next to me. It was the same guy who had picked a fight with me earlier.
His name was… Felix, I think.
“What is it?”
At my wary question, Felix scratched his head as if embarrassed and then extended his hand, as if asking for a handshake.
“Hey, wizard. I’m sorry about before. I shouldn’t have said such nonsense without realizing how skilled you were.”
…A sudden apology?
Something felt off, so I scanned Felix’s face. With his rough beard and the scar on his forehead, his face was still menacing.
“If I had to make an excuse… it’s because a lot of guys have come here fearlessly only to end up dead. You could say it was a kind of concern. Or you could see it as me being nosy.”
But his expression was pure. A bright smile, as if he didn't have a single ulterior motive.
“We’ll be working together from now on… so let’s try to get along.”
And in my experience, anyone who makes a face like this is, without exception, a piece of trash.
See? Even now, my heart is pounding like crazy.
Thump! Thump! Thump…!
Entering an Awakened state.
I looked at the hand he offered—or more precisely, at the blade hidden inside his sleeve.
What a cursed world.
Now they’re trying to ambush me while pretending to apologize.
“Is this also ‘concern’? Or… just you being nosy?”
“What?”
It didn't take him long to understand my words. But it was more than enough time for me to make the first move.
Crackle!
In the blink of an eye, my fingers were charged with electricity. They gently touched the side of his neck.
“Ugh-g-guk!”
The electrocuted man collapsed backward, and as if on cue, the others who had been waiting for an opportunity rushed forward.
“This bastard…!”
“Uwaaah-!”
There were about… twelve of them.
Fire, Water, Earth.
I dealt with the ones in front first, mercilessly throwing spheres of mana imbued with each element. The request office instantly devolved into a chaotic mess.
Fwoosh!
“Aaaargh!”
One man, hit by a sphere of fire, screamed and jumped around wildly.
Thwack-!
Another, hit by a sphere of earth, blacked out without so much as a groan.
The last ones, struck by spheres of water… shook their heads with annoyed expressions.
“What the fu—?”
But they didn't remain standing for long. The electricity I had generated coursed through the puddles of water spreading around them.
“G-g-guk!”
“You son of a… b-b-bit-ch!”
They flopped around like fish out of water.
“Fuck. I knew I didn't want to do this from the start…”
“...What kind of monster bastard uses so many elements on his own?”
A few who had been quick-witted enough to back away were still unharmed, but it was clear their will to fight was gone.
“That bearded fellow said we should get along… I never got to answer.”
I stared straight at them and said.
“I look forward to working with you, too. From now on.”
“...Ugh.”
It was at that exact moment that the door burst open.
Clank!
“Hm…?”
A woman with dark black hair and tan skin stood there. Her eyes darted around, taking in the pandemonium that had become the shop.
And then.
“...What is this.”
The woman’s face turned ice-cold, all traces of her earlier kindness completely gone.
“...I’m going to need an explanation.”
Rena, the current owner of the request office, regained her kind expression only after hearing the full story.
“Sorry, I shouldn’t have left. I didn’t know you’d be back so soon. And I certainly didn’t know these idiots would pull a stunt like this…”
“No need to apologize. I caused some damage, too.”
Of course, her kind face was reserved only for me. Every time she turned her head, the demonic expression I’d seen earlier reappeared.
“Faster! Move it, you bastards!”
The way her expression flipped back and forth, it was like watching a two-faced demon. This woman was terrifying.
“Dammit, why me… I told you I didn’t want to do this…”
“Still, we were lucky. Better than that guy over there with his hair singed off or the ones still lying unconscious.”
“Hey, Teo! If you have time to complain, start sweeping over here. There’s a mountain of broken plates!”
“Damn it! Damn it!”
At Rena’s rebuke, the gang’s cleanup efforts picked up speed. The truly frightening thing was that if this misunderstanding hadn't been cleared up, I might have been over there mopping with them.
“...Still, don’t feel too bad about it. They were probably just trying to scare you, not kill you. They’re immature and reckless, but… they’re not that rotten.”
“I don’t really care.”
“Well, if you say so. Anyway.”
Rena, who had been fiddling with something for a while, stood up as if her work was finished. She placed a hand on the shoulder of the man sitting in front of her.
“Mmph! Mmph…!”
There sat Shane, his entire body bound by various restraints, unable to even speak. I guess he’d be handed over to the client in this state. He probably wouldn’t have a good time. It was highly likely the client was the family of the man Shane had murdered.
Clang!
After locking Shane inside a room with an iron door, Rena continued.
“Phew… Your verification is now complete. From now on, you are an official hunter of our Artis Request Office. You can take any request you want, anytime.”
Despite her words, her eyes held a hint of disbelief. In a way, it was natural. Trust and skill were two different matters.
“When do you want to start working?”
I glanced at the time.
10 PM.
It was late, but my training with Barundel was over, freeing up my schedule. I figured I could handle one more job. Most importantly, I hadn’t yet achieved my purpose for coming here. Since I might be entering the Magic Tower soon, it was best to resolve this as quickly as possible.
“Is it possible to start right now?”
“Now?”
“I’m in need of some quick cash.”
“...Well, that’s not a problem, but won’t you be tired? Especially after all this.”
“…”
Come to think of it, I was in strangely good condition. I had trained in the morning, gone through a verification test in the afternoon, and even fought a battle in an Awakened state at night.
I soon realized why.
—The first stage is now complete. We have corrected all the imbalances in your body. ...You will probably start feeling the effects soon.
It seemed this was what Barundel meant by "feeling the effects." The training period was so short that I hadn't expected much, but the results were more incredible than I imagined. Was the [Hammer of Balance] always this powerful of an artifact?
“...No problem. I’ll start right now.”
“You’re a strange one. Follow me, then.”
Rena led me to a narrow space behind the bar counter. The business seemed to be doing well, as request forms were piled up everywhere.
Thump!
“You can choose from these.”
Rena said, dropping a stack of documents onto a small, round table. There were maybe thirty requests in the pile.
I started sifting through them, looking for the ones that smelled of money, but nothing really caught my eye. It was all assassination requests, illegal drug smuggling, and bounties for low-level wanted criminals.
It was then that I saw it.
“This is…?”
Amidst the ordinary request forms, one written on what was clearly high-quality paper stood out.
Rena replied with a flustered look.
“Ah, I must have misplaced that. Don’t worry about it. It’s an absurd request, so I was planning on throwing it out.”
Thwip.
I grabbed Rena’s wrist as she tried to remove the document.
“Wait a moment.”
“Huh? Why? Don’t tell me… you want to take this?”
Instead of answering, I read through the request form. As I did, Rena added in a disapproving tone.
“It’s an infiltration request, but you have to enter a Magic Tower, so the risk is too high. If you get caught, your life is over right there.”
“Who’s the client?”
“No idea. That single piece of paper just showed up, so I don’t know who sent it. These kinds of requests usually end badly. I know you’re skilled, but… I really don’t recommend it. I can’t afford to lose a rare wizard right after he’s joined, can I?”
Rena was definitely right. An infiltration request for a Magic Tower? Forget the risk; it was practically impossible. How could anyone deceive the eyes of all those wizards? Even assassins who specialized in hiding their presence would likely refuse.
But that was for a normal case.
My situation was a little different.
“If all they want is to gather information… I don’t necessarily have to sneak in, do I?”
The information this request demanded was about the very Magic Tower I was planning to join as a disciple… the Aldeon School of Magic.
“...What? What are you talking about?”
Ignoring Rena, I focused on the last part of the request form. As my eyes scanned down, I saw the section concerning the reward.
It was a direct upgrade to the [Bracelet of Sacred Oil]. A ‘Heroic-grade’ artifact that raised the precious Sacred Power stat by a whole 20 points.
The [Pendant of Sacred Oil]!
The unknown client was offering that as the payment. A smile unknowingly spread across my face at this stroke of luck.
“I’ll take it. This request.”
Even if I had to risk my life to become a spy.
If the reward was a Heroic-grade artifact, it was well worth putting my life on the line.
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