Chapter 9 (1): Fighting in the Slums
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Although Are couldn’t see Riain yet, with his aura he could tell that each of the man’s steps were disgustingly flamboyant. Arc could literally feel the way it reverberated through the ground and it made his face hot and his skin crawl. 

The gait was overly confident and exaggerated, which caused the man’s gaudy jewelry — necklaces, bracelets, and multiple sets of earrings — to rattle about excessively. His arms were swung back behind his back, relaxed as they held onto a sword that was basically an oversized lump of metal. 

Arc didn’t necessarily care about the man’s mannerism or appearance until the man’s identity was considered. The man was the Master of the Thieves Guild, and he was openly strutting through the slums, Arc’s territory. 

The more Arc thought about it, the more the feeling of spitting on the ground welled up inside him. He wanted to slap his showy style right out of him. His speaking, appearance, and swordsmanship, which were all like that, had to go. 

‘Don’t you know that a person who walks in the shadows should be silent and unseen.’ 

A frown deepened on Arc’s lip. No matter how much he racked his brain, he just couldn’t understand such behavior. It went against Arc’s standards and sensibilities on a fundamental level.

‘If I was him I wouldn’t act like a common thug. No, everyone would be robbed blind without even being aware that anything had happened.’ 

With how Arc handled affairs, he would have truly robbed the entire capital blind. Vaults, pockets, and wallets would all be empty. Treasures, cultural artifacts, magical tools would vanish into his hands. Luckily for everyone, Arc’s didn’t have such desires for luxuries. 

Arc intentions were elsewhere, and so he did his best to push down his urge to try to understand Riain’s foolish antics.   

Nonetheless, it would still take time for Riain and his men to be visible, so Arc sat down at the counter next to his classmates. He swiped a bowl of noodles and began slurping in an attempt to alleviate his frustration.

Arc was, of course, undetected no matter how much noise his actions made. Truthfully, Arc wanted to reveal himself. He would love to see the expressions on everyone's faces. This notion made him nod his head. 

‘This was the difference between me and that pervert! I can hold back my desires and think of the bigger picture!’ Arc slammed an empty bowl down, holding back a burp in the process. 

Because of how large Arc’s detection radius was, it took another three bowls of noodles for the Master of the Thieves Guild to finally become visible. His irritating face with his spiky red hair and scarred eye could be seen. He approached without a care in the world. It was as if the man had a problem with his memory.

‘Did I perhaps throttle him too hard? Did I smash his face too many times? Seriously, why the fuck are here? Did your perversions turn into severe masochism?’ 

Arc sighed. He couldn’t count how many times he had beaten this man up over the years. 

The granny was the first one to notice Riain besides Arc. Her wrinkled eyes became sharp and energy began to build in her scrunched up body. 

‘Granny it is fine. You can keep making noodles.’ Arc’s voice echoed inside the old lady’s mind.

‘Ah. You were here?’ The old lady placed her hand above her mouth and laughed as if she had been caught red handed before doing something naughty. 

‘Just leave it to the youngsters.’ Arc continued to slurp up noodles. ‘Tasty as always.’

‘I’m not that old.’ 

‘Old bat, don’t lie. You're probably the oldest person in the kingdom.’

‘Tsk. Didn’t I teach you respect?’ She placed another bowl in front of Arc, who happily ate it. 

‘Even if I’m supposed to respect my elders, I don’t think I should respect liars.’ 

The granny clicked her tongue, while grabbing some popcorn that she got from somewhere. She shared Arc’s gourmet habit of wanting to consume snacks during an interesting show. After Arc’s appearance, there was simply no tension, only excitement, on her wizened face.

Elizabeth was the next person to react. She stood up from her chair and looked at the approaching man. He not only had a strong presence but had brought a dozen guests.

Arc’s eye flickered with a red light for a brief moment, signaling that he had activated his appraisal magic. It had both an active and passive feature. Using data previously gathered it could roughly translate an opponent's power level even if he never scanned that person before. At the same time, it would pull up relevant information that Arc previously documented if he desired so.

Basic Analysis of Random Mob 1

Overall Power: F

Agility: F- Dexterity: F- Endurance: F Strength: D+ Vitality: D Magic:  X

Personality: Ambitious, greedy trash

Basic Analysis of Random Mob 2

Overall Power: F+

Agility: D- Dexterity: D Endurance: D- Strength: F+ Vitality: F- Magic: F-

Personality: Unintelligent trash

Riain, Master of the Thieves Guild (Remnants), Overview

Overall Power: B-

Agility: C- Dexterity: C- Endurance: A- Strength: A+ Vitality: B+ Magic:  X

Ability: Authority of Strength, Berserk, …

Equipment: N/A

Personality: Annoying pervert, potentially a masochist?

Relevance: Master of Thieves Guild 

Important Notes: He is annoying. 

All the men were trash except for Riain because anyone powerful in the Thieves Guild had long since abandoned it. 

Nonetheless, Riain himself was an entire level above Sera. Arc cupped his chin and looked at the expressionless beauty. Realistically it would take her a couple of years at best to fill such a gap, but memories of her intense training filled Arc’s mind. 

‘Maybe a year and a half… a year if I help…’ 

“What…?” Sera was about to ask why Elizabeth stood up, but noticing the commotion, she placed herself in front of her.

Riain whistled and opened up his squinted eyes. He shifted the oversized blade he was carrying.

“Boys, look at that; two pretty ladies just like they said.”

‘Three.’ The prideful granny scoffed, including herself as one of the pretty ladies. ‘Can I punch him at least once?’ She continued to munch on the popcorn despite such thoughts. 

Ignoring the old lady, Arc thought about Riain’s behavior more, especially the words he just uttered. 

‘They… who is he referring to…’

Riain had sealed his fate; Arc was now resolved to interrogate the man after everything was said and done. It would be like the good old times. 

Arc didn’t get directly involved right away, but he relayed messages to his subordinates that were still present. They nodded after he directed them to work with his classmates.

One of his men was large like a bear, while the other one was short and skinny.

The large one stepped forward. “This is our territory, so you can step back if you want.” 

Arc thought his subordinate was really cool. He debated buffing him with his magic but refrained from doing so. He recalled a memory of the past when he overdid such things before, but that was a story for another day.

Sera looked at Elizabeth. “Are these the men you spoke about?”

“Yes.” Elizabeth moved a loose strand of her silky black hair out of her eyes. They were filled with golden sparkles.

“Can you leave the red haired one to us?” Sera asked.

“I’ll make sure to take good care of you,” Riain laughed, “But if I’m gonna treat you, the least you can do is smile with that face of yours.”

The short subordinate ignored Riain and picked up his mask. He chuckled lightly as he stepped forward.

“Leave the trash to us.” 

‘Cool.’ Arc once again couldn’t help but be impressed with his men.

“...”

“You will hurt my feelings if you ignore me.” Riain snickered, while looking at his men. They joined him and laughed.

“There is nothing to say to a man that no longer has a future. I can offer you pity if you desire that.” Sera’s deadpan eyes went right through the man, “After all, my father won’t let you remain in the capital after today.”

The air grew awkward as the thugs looked at each other, but before they could even think about regretting their choices, Arc’s subordinates' bloodlust filled the air.

When Arc was the leader of the Children of Sin, he personally trained all the members. Deflectional parries, interrupting cuts, and hard blocking were all techniques that another instructor might have demonstrated or taught, but Arc thought such things were inefficient.

For that matter, Arc didn’t teach or demonstrate any practical abilities. He didn’t go over the basics or imprint any general knowledge into them. He simply made sure they improved their stats and then forced them to focus on a singular identity—their own unique style.

If one’s blade was too fast then it invalidated another’s ability to evade it. If one created an impenetrable defense then it invalidated another’s ability to break it. If one created a strike that was too elusive then it invalidated another’s ability to block it. This was the principle that Arc used. 

And so the bearlike man made the first move. He struck his fists together; this was the trigger. An almost spherical wave of power radiated out of him, and within that wave his authority was activated. 

It was a supernatural phenomenon similar to magic. It compelled the enemy forward. A stronger enemy could resist, but for these trashy mobs their fate was set in stone. They rushed forward haphazardly, swinging their weapons randomly in the man’s direction.

This was when the Arc’s short subordinate made his move. His trigger took the form of a single deep breath. Within that moment, a similar phenomenon took place; however, the ability was different. The man seemed to disappear only to reappear behind the men. 

The man released his breath and sheathed his blade. Dozens of red streaks could be seen as all the thugs collapsed.

Riain snorted with an unimpressed expression. His large blade was already heading towards Arc’s subordinate who had sheathed his weapon.

Arc snapped twice. The short subordinate reappeared at Arc side, while the large one appeared in the short one’s place. The bearlike man clapped with his hands together and caught Riain’s sword. The force created a small shockwave. It was enough to push the man into the ground, cracking the pavement.  

“Interesting.” Riain disengaged and jumped backwards.

During this time, Sera, Cassius, and Sera’s maid had taken position around Riain. Both Sera and Cassius used swords, while Sera’s maid cast supportive magic. Elizabeth simply watched, but her mouth moved slightly as if she was speaking. Most likely she was using a form of telepathy. 

“Thank you,” Sera nodded at Arc’s subordinates and then turned her attention to Riain. 

The two bowed slightly and then followed Arc’s orders and gathered up the members of the Thieves Guild. The two tied them up and began dragging them back to Children of Sin’s headquarters. 

They would make a show out of the thugs. 

Arc turned his attention back to the fight that was heating up. Riain roared and entered a berserk state. 

Cassius blocked several heavy blows, but the force made his limbs weak. It was clear he was trained well because despite the difference in strength, Cassius still managed to hold onto his blade tightly. However, his technique couldn’t make up the difference in power. He was forced several steps back as he was kicked in the stomach.

Cassius had a loose grip on his sword, but he succeeded in managing to prevent it from clattering to the floor. He braced himself for another blow when he was pulled backwards by a golden hand. It was a spell cast by the maid. Riain’s blade ended up being short because of it. 

It left a massive intent into the pavement. Although it was basically a blunt weapon, the aura that coated the blade made it sharp. If Cassius’ weapon was of worst quality it would have been broken from the exchange of blows.

While Cassius was tense, the maid had a carefree expression. She even gave him a thumbs up to the man. Cassius ignored it and wiped the sweat from his brow, rotated his arms a bit, and took a step forward to resume the battle.

Sera, in the meantime, came in from the side. Her nimble blade merely bounced off the large flat surface of Riain’s weapon. In other circumstances, Sera could bypass her opponent's defense. It would look like her blade melted into some liquid form, only to reform unimpeded on the other side. The momentum of her swing wouldn’t even decrease. 

However, she was unable to do that against the thick aura that Riain placed on his sword. Still, her strikes were  able to alleviate the pressure on Cassius, allowing him to recover and re-enter the fight without a problem. 

Arc could tell that the group were aiming for a battle of attrition. As long as they could hold out against Riain’s berserk state, and as long as they protected their support, Sera’s maid, then they could go for the lethal blow when their opponent was tired out. 

The other win condition was holding out until Sera’s father arrived, but it seemed like they wanted to win on their own, so they weren’t completely on the defensive and took aggressive trades.

Arc let his classmates have fun, but he had other plans. There was a time crunch, so even though he felt bad about it, he interfered in the middle of the battle. He snapped his fingers and Riain, who was mid swing, reappeared in a faraway alleyway with Arc.

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