As the 5 thugs began eyeing Justine like a piece of meat, she shuddered in disgust. These men were more than just your average perverts on the street. They seemed to be criminals of some sort.

"Goddess Justine, would you happen to know these bandits? They seem more organized than common thugs," I whispered.

As Justine let out a heavy sigh, she explained the situation. However, it was clear that it annoyed her.

"I didn't want you to poke the bear so soon but they are members of 'Alter Q'. Ran by its leader Quant, 'Alter Q' is a small gang of around 300 members. As far as I know, they have a settlement inside a nearby cave so I can't say I'm surprised. However, this may be a good time to practice your combat abilities since you outrank them. If you need my advice, just ask!" Justine confidently stated.

"What do you mean? You won't fight alongside me?" I asked.

"I'm afraid I wouldn't be much help. I'm more of a support Goddess than an offensive one, hence the cleric attire. Most of what I can do is based around buffs or healing, so you must be my sword. However, this encounter shouldn't be too hard for you, Merchant Hero. According to appraisal, they're only C+ rank," Justine said.

"Is that so? Do you prefer that I kill or incapacitate them?" I asked.

"With humans, the answer is usually to incapacitate. I'm sure you don't need my help with learning your abilities, though. You'll be able to figure out how to use 'Creation' if you have [Fast Learner]! It's the same with your Light Magic!" Justine confidently stated.

"So you're not going to help me fight or help me learn? You're not that far from being useless again, you know," I said.

"Hmph! You're always acting cold towards me, but if I offered you the chance to marry me, I bet you would!" Justine stated confidently.

"Tch! What an Arrogant Goddess! If your personality wasn't so horrible, maybe I would!" I shouted annoyed.

"What?" Justine said confused.

"Go rescue the hostages while I deal with these idiots! I'm about to raise some capital!" I said confidently.

As Owen eagerly walked towards the 5 thugs, Justine was still caught off guard by his statement.

As Justine's face blushed, she briefly felt a foreign emotion. It was warm to the touch.

------------

Since my intelligence and luck attributes were relatively high, it wasn't hard to guess the beginner abilities I was given. Voices inside of my head were giving me hints, most likely a benefit of possessing the [Fast Learner] skill. At least, that's where I hope they're from. As I walked towards the thugs, I messed with their heads before I fought them. After all, I never really cared about the backstory of henchmen.

"Look what we have here, gentlemen. What's your name, boy? My name's Fred. Your girlfriend has to be the most beautiful cleric we have ever seen! How about you let us take her off your hands?" Fred asked.

"If you really want her so badly, it'll cost you a small fortune. I'm a Merchant after all," I said confidently.

As Justine slipped into the woods, she began sneaking past the thugs.

"Is that so? My apologies, but judging by your attire, I can tell you aren't from around here. Let me educate you on your situation! We are Alter Q! One of the most promising-"

"Yeah...I'm afraid I didn't ask for a backstory. I mean, let's be honest here. If you look like shit and you smell like shit, how could you hope to be anything greater?" I said confidently.

"Oh, I see. You think you're funny, right? Got a couple of jokes lined up, huh? Well, if you want to die so badly, then let us help you on your quest! You won't be laughing when we torture you both!" Fred shouted sadistically.

As the 4 other thugs began charging towards me, I used my abilities for the first time. As my right eye glowed a bright yellow, I conjured 'Steps Of Light', which allowed for faster movement or even jumping through the air for long distances. According to the voices in my head, it could help me dodge attacks or give me a drastic boost in speed. It seemed to be effective, as the thugs could not hit me with their weapons, despite the obvious advantage they seemed to have. Luckily, they were slow. In more ways than one.

"How were you able to dodge their attacks!" Fred asked.

"In my surrounding area, time moves at half speed," I said.

"What? That's a lie!" Fred responded.

"Of course it's a lie," I said.

"Dammit! You're mocking me, aren't you! How dare you! You piece of shit!" he said infuriated.

"Since you're interfering with my profits, I'll end this quickly. I don't have to play fair if I'm not a hero, right?" I said.

"What? What are you talking about?" he said confused.

"May The Gods Bless The Hands Of Creation," I confidently stated.

As a large magic circle appeared on the back of my hands, I held out my right palm as I conjured my first creation. It wasn't perfect since it was my first, but it would get the job done for now. As I aimed down the sights of my magical weapon, I smiled. I always wanted a Titanium Gold Desert Eagle.

--------------

"Oi! What the hell is that?" Fred said.

"Your last chance to give me everything you own. Once I start shooting, I won't stop," I said.

"Do you think we're afraid of you? You are nothing but a Merchant! Let's fuck him up, boys!" Fred shouted.

Unsurprisingly, the 4 uneducated thugs tried to rush me since they've never seen this weapon before. Luckily, my brother was in the military, so I had a general idea of how to use it. However, since I didn't know how to make bullets yet, I tried to shoot my magic directly from the gun. This proved to be effective.

As I casually shot each thug at the speed of light, I instantly knocked them out by the sheer amount of force. It wasn't too surprising given the gap in our rank. But after I watched the thugs fall unconscious, I began walking towards Fred. He nervously grabbed a hostage in response to my movements. Since she was the only one wearing diplomatic attire, she had to be the most important hostage. With her eyes blindfolded, her body tied, and her mouth gagged, she could only hear what was happening.

"Do you know who this is? This is the mayor's daughter! If she dies, then Fayhelm will be thrown into anarchy! If you don't want to see her throat slit, then you'll drop the weapon!" Fred said nervously.

"Freddy! What happened to your confidence, buddy? You look like you've seen a ghost," I teased.

"Shut the fuck up! I don't know what type of overpowered bullshit you have, but I won't let the story of Fred end here! Quant is counting on me to bring back Sophia in one piece. Isn't that right, Sophia?" Fred lewdly stated.

As Fred happily groped Sophia, he momentarily let his guard down. Since the other two hostages were on the other side of the overturned carriage, Justine already freed them earlier. This meant that the Goddess Of Justice was directly behind Fred, separated only by a few inches. Her face was growing demonic by the second, as she placed her hand on Fred's shoulder.

"What sound does a broken arm make?" Justine happily asked.

"Wait. Who are you? What do you-," Fred said.

As Justine smiled, a large cracking sound quickly filled the entire area.

The sweet, sweet screams of pain immediately followed it.