Felix had to recall some grappling techniques from his school years when his father made him attend the sports type. He lifted his holder’s arm while spinning his own body in place. Using the man's weight, Felix threw him over his delicate shoulder, without relying on the borrowed force of mana. 

All of the movements were executed within a second. The man didn’t let go though. 

Felix had to twist his holder’s arm to make his opponent suffer and warn about the possibility of a broken arm. Eventually, Felix’s arm was released. And he made a dash instantly.

The market wasn’t overly crowded to cause trouble for running through. But the merchant heirs didn’t intend to let him go easily. They shouted behind Felix, attracting curious eyes of the people on the street. Felix didn’t slow down. Even if he was capable of handling these thugs using mana, this wasn’t worth the risk.

They weren’t supposed to be here in this town. How did they appear in Bening when they should have taken a different path, along the border of the Eternal Desert, which would eventually lead to the Sand Village? Was this world that small?

Felix passed alleys while sprinting; some crowded, some empty of even stray animals. But the pursuers didn’t give up. Shouting at him to stop, threatening, they gave chase unceasingly.

There needs a trick to get away, Felix concluded as his legs began to heat up. His lungs, which were granted a pair of small sized meaty sacks bouncing vaguely over his chest, protested from overwork. If he were to use mana to empower his limbs too much, it was no doubt end in Felix crashing onto someone or to a random wall.

Luckily, there was a path that would probably lead to an impasse. He chose it. Expectedly, there was small square like a backyard of a household.

Eyeing the tiled roofs of the construction, Felix ran straight at its wall and jumped up to a four-meter tall one-floored building, his legs aided by magical energy. He reached to the top part until his midsection touched the edge of the roofs. However, there was nothing to hold, so his hands slipped, his feminine body being pulled by the gravitational force.

Felix fell with a thud of his butt. Although it didn’t hurt much because mana made his physique sturdier, he felt hurt on his back flesh and bones. He was not used to mana-protected body yet.

“Hold her tight! She is a mana user, don’t let her strengthen her body!” the Meri-boy’s voice sounded on the yard’s entrance.

A powerful punch landed on one of Felix’s breasts. The sudden force slammed his body onto a brick wall behind him. Two hands took firm grip of his delicate arms, not leaving a chance to show another technique of his almost forgotten sports lessons.

“What can you do now, huh, little bitch?” the merchant’s son spoke up, slightly panting, and gave a front kick to Felix’s abdomen.

Felix glared at the merchant heir. “Release my arms and I’ll show you,” he taunted while trying to stabilize his heavy breathing.

The two young men holding his arms, a skinny one that first picked him out among the crowd and the other with burly figure, looked at their boss questioningly. The Meri-boy looked back at them, turning from one to the other. He eventually settled his gaze at Felix, more precisely, at his delicate looking feminine body, and smirked.

“Why don’t we continue what we started in the woods? You were almost naked, waiting a man like me to take you…” he took glances at his subordinates, expecting the meaning to sink in and them to corporate with his depraved suggestion.

They didn’t disappoint their leader, as similarly crooked smiles made form on their faces. Adjusting their position, the two lackeys started to unclothe Felix roughly. The thick coat hiding his new outfit was the first to leave his body. A sash around Felix’s waist was unbound forcible, ignoring Felix’s squirms in protest. A money pouch fell on the ground. Its clacking sound pulled everybody’s attention at once.

“You’ve got a nice figure, and an even better purse,” the eldest looking one among the six surrounding Felix, who was standing silent beside the Meri-boy, spoke up for the first time. His voice was bolder and more mature. Unlike the merchant’s son, he had a fighter’s frame. Still, his face was saying he was a profit pursuer as his companions.

“Lin, pass up the pouch,” he ordered one of the lackeys.

Lin, the skinny one youth who spotted Felix first, bend down to snatch the small money bag away.

This was the opportunity Felix had been waiting. He started gathering more magic power into his limbs to strike using the convenient situation.

However, he couldn’t go further as a powerful punch made an excruciatingly painful impact on the center of his chest, forcing out all the air containing within. The hit must have damaged Felix’s fragile ribs, as he felt too heavy on his chest, making breathing a labor. Luckily, the strike hadn’t cracked any bones.

“It won’t be that easy when I’m here,” the most mature man said, a mocking mirth in his voice. He must be a mercenary hired by merchant group by the treatment he was being shown.

It wasn’t good. He could be a mana user considering his boasting confidence. Did Felix have to use one of the battle transformations after all, the gorilla form? But the man in front of him didn’t even let him harden his skin with mana. Unfortunately, the body strengthening would be clear on the skin when used. And a focused mind would be required for performing a shift, after all.

It seemed Felix had no choice but to risk to shapeshift. Being violated by the thugs was the last thing he could ever wish. If luck was to show up, his transformation would distract these bullies and make time for him to complete the changing process.

However, when he was rooting his resolve, a woman from afar pulled his attention. She was walking toward their direction.

From the looks of it, she was in her middle twenties. Her short dark hair was cut slightly below the shoulder, magnifying her stern but pretty face, which reminded Felix those women who dedicated their lives for militaristic jobs. The clothes she was wearing further indicated that her job was related to combat, as her crimson garment was not wooly but thick and convenient for battling. A pair of daggers were hung firm on her hips.

She was approaching the scene as if she was coming to discipline a bunch of naughty kids. Her gait was leisurely. But anyone on her way would feel pressured by her confidently taken steps.

The mercenary turned back, sensing a presence approaching from behind, or by Felix’s gaze. He didn’t say anything when he saw the woman, just stood still, probably evaluating her.

“Can you guys scatter around and let the girl be? If she hasn’t done anything overly harmful, of course,” the woman said, mostly looking at Felix. Her voice was like densely flowing water, but not to the point of losing its femininity, and it sounded somehow familiar. Felix couldn’t figure out where he heard it, though.

“Who are you? And who is she for you?” the supposed mercenary asked, a bit cautiousness in his voice.

“Doesn’t matter who I am,” she replied. “What has she done to you?”

He didn’t answer immediately, looking back and forth at Felix and the woman. But before he could give his respond, the Meri-boy butted in with his own answer.

“She attacked me in a forest and stole all of my belongings and my money pouch,” he said. His tone sounded as if he was demanding a child’s parents a compensation for what he had done wrong.

Felix squinted at the merchant brat with a disbelieving and a little amused expression at his brazenness, not caring at his still arms locked state. He was not even half-naked, just the outer clothes were taken off.

“I see. What were you doing in the forest?” the warrior woman resumed, aiming straight to the point.

“I… I was just…” the merchant heir began stuttering, having difficulty finding an appropriate excuse. But he quickly regained his tone and glared at the woman. “What’s your business here anyway? It’s our own problem to deal, so can you just go away on your own way?”

“No, I can’t. Not before finding out what exactly happened,” she replied patiently, but there was a faint pressure in the way she spoke.

The thugs looked at one another, discussing what to do as they silently talked with their eyes. The final decision must be not backing, since they began surrounding the woman in a half circle.

“You are not here for righteousness, but to start a fight, aren’t you?” Meri-boy’s bodyguard asked as he took steps cautiously toward the woman.

She only smiled, not moving.

The merchant’s son initiated the fight as he ran with a readied fist to punch the woman on the face. She took a step back, catching easily his coming fist and further directing it to the course it was heading. He flew to where he ran first. The military woman turned aside when her opponent flew past her, showing an opening that was taken by the mercenary. He tried a front kick at the woman, but received a spinning kick to the chest instead. He flew back as his fellow attacker.

It was so fluidly executed as if the woman had predicted every move of her opponents.

Felix was still held tight. The two thugs’ grip holding his delicate arms were now firmer from the tension of the battle in their front. Felix chose to watch the show for now.

The remaining two young men approached the woman much more carefully now. Fear was evident in their hesitant steps.

“Attack!” the mercenary barked at them with fury. While commanding, he for a strike himself. He had adjusted his stance as if he was going to begin a sprint competition.

The two youngsters decided to engage into the fight, having no other choice. It was clear they had no training at all in combat. Their attempt at grappling the woman at the same time was in vane as they both received palm strikes from their opponent, which sent them backward in the similar way as the others. The mercenary was ready for this. The moment their two fellows were thrown away, he bolted forward.

It looked as if he jumped straight onward, his first aimed to the woman’s chest. But the speed he executed the move was somehow unreal. Although there weren’t any device to aid him to jump, he was hurled as though a powerful mechanism threw him with full force.

It turned out the woman had predicted this move again. She quickly sidestepped from the line of attack, her one arm making an axe movement from the side at a chest height. The impact the mercenary faced couldn’t be envied, the aftermath of the strike was even more damaging.

He rotated once in the air, legs up and the head down, and crashed at running Meri-boy mid-flight. Stumbling couldn’t describe the blow as the two fell down, the mercenary man rolling once. Felix winced and grimaced at the sound of their collision and the scene, as the others who were imagining such painful experience.

Felix’s holders let loose of their clasp. Clearly, they weren’t rushing to go through the similar fate of their fellow thugs. The woman lifted her eyebrows at them, and the two hurried to take care of the injured men. The other two who took palm strikes rushed to their fellows as well, afraid and hesitant to continue the squabble. Without a word, the whole merchant gang took their leave; the merchant heir and his mercenary friend, who was holding his chest to ease the pain, gave Felix and the woman promising looks of a comeback battle as they leaned on their companions.

The place sank into silence after the sounds of their departing steps died down.

“Was it true? You robbed that guy?” the woman questioned Felix.

“No,” Felix answered and started to pick up his scattered outer clothes. “He tried to… take advantage when I was changing clothes.” He avoided saying a word ‘violate’ as it would indicate he was weak.

“So that was the case,” she said, a smile forming on her thin lips.

Felix looked at her. Her friendly tone was strange. It was as if they were acquaintances for a long while.

“Anyway, good to see you again, Sareen.”

Now it was truly strange. Felix stood still, staring at the woman to see if he could recognize by watching her with his intense gaze.

“It’s me, Kiria,” she resumed. “If you are the real Sareen or the one I saw, we must have met before.”

“…”

Still Felix didn’t utter a word. With a half-opened mouth, he tried to comprehend the situation. Was he played, thinking he was the crafty one?

“Are you-“ he stopped his question midway, and continued with a lower voice. “Are you a shapeshifter as well?”

“No,” she said, now her eyes smiling as well, probably finding her guess was correct regarding Felix’s identity. “There are other ways of changing one’s appearance without shapeshifter magic.”

So the world isn’t as underdeveloped as I thought.

“As a face mask or a magical transformation?” he couldn’t help but ask.

“…Both,” the warrior replied after a bit pondering.

“That’s… amazing. Thanks for rescuing.” He still couldn’t believe what was happening. The appearance of the magic warrior was a little suspicious. Was she just passing by? It was not possible that she had been tracking him since the incident of the Kartan Town. He had made sure it many times that he didn’t have any pursuers or watchers observing him from a far distance.

“You are welcome,” she said, taking steps toward the exit of the yard with Felix after he was done adjusting his outfit. “What happened? How did you come here?”

Yeah, she is definitely used to interrogating others.

“Well… I found a merchant group to get out of the town. But these people liked my body more than accompanying together. So I gave the slip.”

“Figures,” she said, smiling broadly. “Where do you plan to go now?

“To Chindon,” Felix replied, and immediately regretted for having a loose mouth. The magic warrior was obviously heading to the same direction. Although he kept her word of helping him back in the brothel, he still didn’t want to gamble over his fate and trust someone he didn’t fully know.

“I’m going to Chindon too,” the magic warrior said, a surprised growing in her expression. This was bad.

“Ah… when?”

“We came here yesterday evening. After resting for a day, we should be on our way tomorrow morning.”

“Oh, I’m intending to stay in this town for a few weeks, actually,” Felix told her with apologizing tone. “It’s much better place than Kartan Town. I thought it’s useful to know smaller cities before going to a big city.”

Kiria frowned from his rejection and fell silent as they crossed the entrance of the square yard, heading toward the main road.

“Why don’t you come with me? You said you were going to train in martial arts and learn inner mana usage, right?” the warrior still resumed her questions. “There are many martial art schools and lone sword masters in Chindon.”

In fact, this was his idea too, from the beginning. Kiria herself seemed reliable after what Felix went through with the swordswoman. Although she was not in a dire situation at that time, she proved to be a trustworthy ally and not a profit chaser person like Tsilonee. So why not accompanying her on the road?

Felix had planned to get to know the structure of the community before truly starting to interact with other people. Being cautious was always his main priority.

“I will think about it,” Felix finally answered her after pondering over a minute.

Kiria didn’t say anything for a few seconds, probably choosing her words to convince Felix for coming along with her. “I understand you don’t want to face the hardships you went through in the brothel,” she said. “But it won’t be easy on your own.”

Felix could only nod to the explanation of her insistent persuasion attempt. It was actually true. How difficult could it be exploring the world without any help?

They exited the alley while walking in silence, noise of the crowded street embracing them. Kiria came to a halt, her hands clenching and clenching and her gaze was fixed to a single point as if she was contemplating her nest move. Eventually, she turned to Felix as if she had resolved her personal issue.

“We are escorting the prisoners who were found involved in the assassination of Lord Geelim Kartan. I’m staying in the Cloudy Waves hotel with the Empire soldiers. It’s near the military base of the town. Do you know where it is?” Felix gave her a nod. “Good. We’re leaving tomorrow morning after sunrise, from the northern gate. If you decide to come with us, I’m ready to take you as my disciple. It’s not easy to enter the martial arts schools unless you are from a well-known family or have a recommendation from a noble,” she waited for a bit for Felix to digest what she had just said.

“Make up your mind quickly by then.” Not waiting for Felix to accept or reject her offer, she left opposite direction of the market way

Was she searching for a recruit for that escort? Not likely. She was aware Felix was not a warrior like her. Was it possible she was going to hand Felix over to her employer? It was. But having a sword master who was pretty good at inner mana control was a tempting offer.

Whatever. I’ll decide what to do when I’m done shopping.

He hadn’t yet purchased a backpack and a pair of male outfit as he did with the female clothes. There was plenty of time until dusk for Felix to finish his market strolling and think over the swordswoman’s offer.

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

Kiria wandered through the streets of the Bening town, not wanting to head back to the inn where she could only sleep or continue her training at cycling. Fortunately, her stroll to the town wasn’t a waste as she speculated before leaving the hotel from boredom. Seeing Sareen here running through the crowd, and a bunch of men chasing after her, was a pleasant surprise.

She had hoped to meet the young changeling again one day. But she hadn’t expected it would be this soon. There was a possibility the girl was just pretending to be an innocent young woman. Still, Kiria’s instincts were telling her this shapeshifter could be led into a right way.

If it weren’t Kiria herself, someone else would pick up the girl. She had sensed the changeling had the air of being a magnet for trouble. With such powerful shapeshifting ability, laying low wasn’t an easy matter, as the ability itself would entice anyone to be used. Better to secure this power before it was grasped by wrong hands.

Whether Sareen would agree to her offer or not would be clear tomorrow morning. Kiria was still surprised she had actually proposed to be her master. Many had been urging her to start taking up disciples, including Duke Ling. Since she hadn’t advanced in her mana mastery onto the final stage, rejection was her only excuse. There was something she felt form the young shapeshifter, as if they were alike. The girl reminded Kiria the days when she was no different than a beggar in the Chindon streets.