《Fantasy Assassin in a modern world》


 Chapter 1 - The Legendary Assassin

    In a world were people could destroy gigantic boulders with a single punch, unleash balls of mes to burn an opponent, and slice hills with a single sword sh, there was a legendary figure that made all shiver upon hearing his name.


    Fade, a nameced with fear. A legendary assassin that could kill anyone as long as the price is right and the reason is just. Even if you''re the king of a country, a powerful warrior, a knowledgable mage, or a sneaky thief. None could escape his grasp, the moment you were targeted you were already dead.


    If one wanted this legendary assassin to kill someone, one needed to do a lot of things. You need to write a detailed letter of who you are and why you would want that person to die. After this, you needed to head to the foot of Mount Katar and ce the letter in a specific tree with the carving of a panther. If the contents of the letter seem to be agreeable, Fade will meet with you in your own bedroom to talk about the kill. Once you twoe to an agreement the person you want dead would be a corpse in just a few days.


    Many have used this method of contact to lure Fade into a trap. In doing so they met their ends in a very gruesome manner, to serve a warning for others to not be so foolish as to trick him.


    ...


    Inside a hidden cave on top of a mountain, a young man about twenty-five years old was cursing out loud as he was stitching the open wound he had.


    "That f*cking tyrant! Who knew he had a hidden de there?! Sh*t I let my guard down." This young man was the legendary assassin Fade. Even though he was treated as a legend outside and was rumored to be some old monster, the truth was he was just a young man who just started his assassin jobs a decade ago.


    Once he was done stitching up his wound, Fadeid on the floor and sighed as he looked at the empty cave he calls his home.


    ''How long should I continue being an assassin?... Haven''t I already fulfilled my promise to you, little sis?''


    ...


    Fade started to reminisce about the past. He was a part of a famous n of assassins, which trained their children at a very young age. He and his little sister were no different as they started their training at the age of four.


    His little sister was a kind soul and didn''t like killing, but since she was born in a n of assassins she had no choice in the matter. So she decided that if she was going to kill she wanted to kill only the ones who were bad. She wanted to be a good assassin, well as good as one can be as an assassin.


    Due to her being like that and not epting the jobs that the n wanted her to take, she was given the ultimate punishment. Fade who was out on a mission that time came back home toote, as he saw his little sister being killed.


    In a rage, Fade killed his little sister''s attackers and held onto her dying body. Fade''s kind little sister looked at him with a gentle smile on her face as she spoke.


    "Big Bro is that you?... Heh, I''m sorry that I was a failure of an assassin, and more than that I''m sorry that I was a failure of a sister."


    "What are you saying, when were you ever a failure? You were and always will be the best little sister."


    "Hehe, big bro praised me... Today might''ve been a good day after all..." The little sister''s weak gentle smile was heartbreaking to look at. It was obvious that she was having trouble talking, but still, she continued on.


    "Hey... Big bro, can you promise me something."


    "Anything."


    "Big bro, unlike me you have the talent to be the best... So please... be, my very own... Ideal assassin..."


    "... I promise."


    "Thanks... Big bro, thanks for everything..."


    Those were thest words his little sister said to him, and on that same day, the n Fade belonged to ceased to exist.


    ...


    ''It''s been a decade now. Did I somehow became the ideal assassin you wished for?'' Those thoughts filled Fade''s mind as he fell asleep.

 Chapter 2 - Where Am I?

    As Fade was sleeping he suddenly felt a throbbing pain in his head. He could smell a different scent in the air. This feeling he had, he was sure that he was no longer inside his cave. He felt something was piercing his skin on his right hand. There seems to be a needle piercing through and he could feel that some sort of drug was flowing through his veins. Not only that his body felt heavy and as he tried to circte mana but he couldn''t.


    ''Was I captured?''


    Fade didn''t open his eyes and continued to pretend to be asleep as he tried to listen to the sounds of the surrounding area. He could hear people talking just outside the room. They were talking in an unfamiliarnguage, but oddly enough he could understand them.


    "How is the patient in room 303?"


    "Still asleep."


    "Wasn''t he the one who was in that car ident a few days ago? The one everyone''s calling the miracle man?"


    "Yeah, despite getting hit by a bus the injuries he sustained were quite light. It was truly a miracle. The moment he arrived at the hospital the doctors were baffled by what happened. The injuries he received didn''t match the description of the ident that happened to him. After doing extensive checks on his condition they found nothing wrong."


    They continued to talk in a conversation Fade couldn''t understand. They were using terms Fade was unfamiliar with like hospital and bus. After listening a bit more Fade learned of what kind of ce he was in.


    ''So this ce is some kind of temple, a ce of healing. Am I being experimented with new drugs or am I being used as a guinea pig for healing spells? Still, the main question is how did I get here? Thest thing I remember was going to sleep in my hidden cave. Even though I was injured there''s no way someone could have snuck into my ce without me noticing... Tsk, I have too little information.''


    Fade hated this feeling of being in the dark, still, he was not one to panic even in such a situation. So he decided to look around once there was no one near his room.


    ...


    Fade waited for a few hours and when he no longer heard voices near his room he slowly opened his eyes. The first thing he saw was a floatingmp at the ceiling. He then turned his head and saw that he was in a rather clean room and he was being injected with something. There were some kind of nk painting made out of ss hanging on the wall in front of him.


    Fade then saw the thing that was injected into him. There were also blinking lights inside a square object at his side.


    ''What is all of these things?'' Fade grew even more confused as he saw so many new things. He was nning to move around and check the surrounding area. Yet he stopped himself as he saw these things surrounding him. Fade started to think that maybe the blinking box that was making sounds would suddenly sound some sort of rm if he removed the things that were on him.


    ''I can''t get any information like this. Also for some reason, my body feels really heavy, but I''m sure that I''m not poisoned. Well, it''s not like poison will work on me anyway. What''s the best course of action at this point? My body is slightly heavy but I can still move it. I do sense a bit of mana still flowing through me, but the mana in the surrounding area is so little, they might be suppressing it. So I''m guessing the people in this ce can''t use spells as well. Hmmm, fine I''ll act like I''m still extremely weak and unable to move while I ask the people in this ce some questions.''


    After deciding his next course of action Fade rested. No matter the situation he was in, one should rest as long as it was possible.


    ...


    The following day Fade heard some people entering his room. He opened his eyes and saw two people present it was a man and a woman. The woman was the first to notice that Fade had his eyes open and was looking at her.


    "Doctor, the patient is awake!" The woman was so surprised that her voice actually raised a bit. The man then looked at Fade in surprise. Fade then tried to speak in a way that made him seem like he was still groggy.


    "Who are you? Where am I?"

 Chapter 3 - I Transmigrated

    "Who are you? Where am I?"


    "Mr. Matsuda I''m Dr. Harold and you''re in Helping Hands Hospital. Don''t you remember what happened?" The man spoke, but nothing he said made sense to Fade.


    "Mr. Matsuda, Helping Hands Hospital? What are you talking about?" Fade was no longer acting and was genuinely confused.


    "The patient seems to be exhibiting some memory loss. Nurse, can you contact the patient''s family." Once the nurse left the room, the man looked at fade with a look of pity on his face.


    "Loki Matsuda, that''s your name, do you remember?"


    "Huh?"


    "You''ve been in a terrible ident, you got hit by a bus."


    When Fade heard what the man said a memory shed in his mind. It was him running away from some people and getting hit by a huge moving metal carriage.


    ''That must be the bus they keep on talking about... What is this memory, it''s obviously not mine. Also, this guy keeps on calling me Matsuda, seriously what''s going on?''


    Seeing the confused and silent Fade the man wearing a white coat who called himself Doctor Harold sighed. Loki who had memories that he didn''t know where they came from was feeling uneasy.


    "You called me Loki Matsuda right?"


    "Yes, that is your name."


    "Do you know of someone called Fade?"


    "Fade? Who is that, is that someone famous, an actor?" When Fade heard the doctor''s response to his question the uneasy feeling he had grew.


    "Then what kingdom are we in?"


    "Kingdom?... Are you talking about the Soira Empire? This isn''t the empire Mr. Matsuda this is the democratic country of Zothril."


    ''Zothril and the Soira Empire? I don''t know either of these ces. Damnt it were the f*ck am I?'' The more Fade heard the less he understood. Still, he continued to remain calm and ask his questions.


    "Can you tell me more about who I am? I''m still having difficulty remembering."


    "That''s alright, you are like I said, Loki Matsuda. Age, twenty-five years old, you have two siblings, and you work as a librarian at the nearby private school. Is that helping you recall some of your memories?"


    ''Same age, but a librarian?''


    "Sorry, I can''t really remember. Can you please leave, for now? I just need some time for myself."


    "Yes, of course, I understand, you can just continue to rest and try to recover your strength." After saying that the doctor left the room. Once the doctor was gone Fade started to frown.


    ''That guy wasn''t lying, well he thinks he was telling the truth. The way he talked the tone of his voice, his eyes, and subtle body movement does tell me that he truly believed every word he said. I could be wrong, and he just might be very good at lying. Still, if he was telling the truth, then what does this all mean? Not to mention these memories that I have that aren''t mine.''


    ''Were these memories imnted into me, but by whom? I have too little information to go by and so many questions that need answering. So what are my options here?'' Fade once again tried to circte mana into his body, but it was too little for him to be able to do anything.


    ''With my body feeling too weak and my mana not circting properly escaping seems to be out of the picture for now. Taking a hostage could be an option, but with an unknown enemy like this it might prove ineffective.''


    As Fade was thinking about how he could get through this situation he noticed something. He raised his hands and saw that these hands of his didn''t look like his own. The various wounds he acquired during his training were no longer there. He didn''t notice this at first since there was too much happening. Yet now that he saw it, Fade removed the nket that was covering him and looked at his body. What he saw surprised him more than any of the other things that were happening.


    Fade''s trained body that he got from training and being in countless life and death situations was gone. What he had now was a rtively thin, rather weak-looking body. As he was trying toprehend the new information he had received someone came into the room.


    "Big brother!"


    Fade looked at the neer and his mind froze. The person in front of him was someone that should no longer exist. Beautiful long ck hair that cascade down her shoulders, deep dark eyes with a face shaped like a diamond.


    "Shera! Is that you Shera!" For the first time in a decade, Fade had finally lost hisposure as the little sister that died in his very hands suddenly appeared before him. Fade no longer bothered about other things as he tried to stand up.


    "Big Brother, please calm down." The supposed little sister rushed towards Fade''s side trying to stop him. Being hugged by his little sister, feeling her warmth once again made Fade unable to hold it in and started to cry.


    "Shera, I''m so sorry that I wasn''t able to protect you."


    "Big brother please calm down, and who''s this Shera?" When Fade heard that he looked at the person who was hugging him.


    "Are... Are you not Shera?"


    "Seriously what''s happening to you big brother? My name''s not Shera, it''s Alisa." When Fade heard Alisa''s name a torrent of memories started to flood his brain. It was memories of him and this person who was called Alisa. When Fade saw these pieces of memory, even as his head was hurting he came to a conclusion that even he couldn''t believe.


    ''I transmigrated.''

 Chapter 4 - A New Beginning

    There were some mages that imed that they could live forever if they learned the spell of transmigration, yet despite numerous attempts, none seeded.


    Fade was now in a situation that countless mages dreamt of achieving but he still couldn''t believe it was happening to him. Why did he transmigrate into this body? If transmigrating wasn''t enough he was now thrown into a different world.


    When Fade left the hospital the sight he was greeted to was amazing. Towers reaching the very heavens, metal carriages with no horses that sped through the nice-looking streets. Also even though it was night time the whole ce was illuminated.


    Every time he saw something new some parts of the past owner''s memories would return to him. It wasn''t much but it did help him understand the things he was seeing. It would seem that unlike the world he was in before which revolved around magic, this new world revolved around science and technology. He was grateful for the bits of information he receives through the past owner''s memory, but Fade wished that all of the memories woulde to him so that he can blend into this new world properly.


    ...


    Fade who was now Loki Matsuda had arrived at his house with his new sister Alisa. The ce was two stories tall and was pretty nice looking. When they entered Loki noticed that someone else was inside the house, and he quickly looked at the surrounding area trying to spot things he could use as a weapon.


    "Hey Liam, big brother is back." When Loki heard Alisa called out to the unknown person in the living room, he curiously looked at the personying on the couch ying with some kind of rectangr-shaped object. The person called Liam looked at the new arrivals with an irritated look on his face.


    Same as Loki and Alisa, Liam had ck hair and eyes. Liam also had a couple of earings in his right ear. When Loki saw Liam''s face same as the time he met Alisa, memories about Liam were flooding into his mind. Even though it wasn''t too much since only little bits of memories of that person return, it still hurts when they suddenly flood Loki''s mind.


    This was Loki''s younger brother Liam who was a middle schooler. This younger brother used to be meeker before and loved clinging onto him, but all of this changed when their parents died. Nowadays this younger brother of his always treated him rudely. Even the past owner of the body didn''t know why Liam seems to hate him so much. While Loki was trying to absorb the new memories, seeing the pained expression on Loki''s face made Liam smirk.


    "Oh, it''s the loser. I heard that you have amnesia."


    "Liam! Big brother is already having a difficult time right now, so why are you still acting like that?" Alisa tried to scold Liam, but it didn''t have the effect she wanted, as he simply shrugged his shoulders.


    "Lame." Liam stood up from the couch and passed by the two and headed to the entrance of the house.


    "Where are you going?" Alisa asked but Liam didn''t bother to answer and simply left. Alisa sighed as she watched Liam leave without a word.


    "I''m sorry about that big brother."


    "No, it''s alright."


    "Oh, I forgot to say, that was our youngest sibling, Liam. He''s fourteen years old right now and he''s in middle school. Do you remember him?"


    "A bit..."


    Alisa looked at Loki''s reaction orck of one and sighed again. It would seem that the road ahead was going to be a long one.


    ...


    Alisa took Loki around the house, and after their little house tour, she showed him to his room. Loki''s room was located on the second floor of the house right next to the staircase. Upon entering Loki''s room the first thing one would notice was the enormous amount of books.


    "This is your room big brother."


    "There''s a lot of books."


    "Yeah, you like to read. You even kept all of your textbooks from grade school up to college. I''ll be going down to make dinner. If you need anything just call."


    Once Alisa left the room Loki started looking around the room. There were really a lot of books, half of the room was filled with books. There was a small bed at the side and on another side was a machine that seems to emit cold air. There was also the rectangr object that Liam was ying with on a nearby desk. Loki picked it up and started looking at it.


    ''I guess this is something most people have.'' Loki looked at it for a few more seconds before he ced the object down. He then noticed arger object that looked like a thin book, but it had no pages but it had letters on it. There was also a bigger version of the rectangr object that was also ced on his desk. After looking around the room some more, Loki then sat on a chair and sighed.


    ''These damn memories don''te when I need them. It''s a good thing I can understand theirnguage and I can read, so the first thing I need to do is acquire more knowledge about this world. Well, I was fortunate enough to gain the body of someone who owns so many books I can start researching by reading these things. I also need to train my new body, this one is too weak. There''s also the problem with my mana.''


    Loki tried to once again circte mana into his body. Even though it was pathetically weak it was still there. At the moment the only spell he could use was the [Enhancement] spell. A spell that could enhance the power of one''s body. It can also be used to strengthen an object. At the moment he could only enhance one part of his body for a short period of time. As for enhancing objects, he could only do it with small objects.


    ''I guess I need to add some mana training as well, now that I have so little I need to have better control... Alisa did tell me that I have something called a sick leave, and I have three months before I need to return to work. I''ll use that time to gain more knowledge and train this body. For now, what should I read first?''


    Loki looked at the numerous stacks of books, he then picked up a book called World History I.

 Chapter 5 - Trouble

    Loki or Fade was trained to be able to read as quickly as possible and get key information on what he was reading as fast as possible. So with that skill, he was able to quickly go through the book''s content it also helped that, every now and then memories from the past owner of the body flooded his mind. This helped him understand the history book way quicker.


    Basically the world he was in had one continent and many smaller inds. During this world''s so called middle ages, there used to be many kingdoms and from within those kingdoms was the Soira Kingdom.


    Compared to the other kingdoms of that period, the Soira Kingdom had a superior armed force. Being so strong they started conquering the nearby kingdoms. They had achieved victory after victory and were nigh unstoppable. After a few decades, they had conquered most of the Western kingdoms.


    Due to the overwhelming strength of the now Soira Empire, the remaining kingdoms quickly formed an alliance which was called the Eastern Alliance. By gathering all of the kingdoms of the East under one g, coupled with the continued riots in the Soira Empire, the unstoppable Empire had finally met its match.


    Over countless centuries the Soira Empire continued to assault the Eastern Alliance which changed into the Democratic Country of Zothril. Yet after numerous minor and major skirmishes, the two sides had buried the hatchet and agreed to have peaceful rtions.


    Nowadays instead of skirmishes, the two sides host a tournament every decade where both sides send their young prodigies into battle. This tournament had existed for a few centuries now and was divided into team matches and individual matches. Between the two, the team matches were the most popr, those that are crowned champions in the team matches were usually treated as heroes.


    ...


    While Loki was getting engrossed in reading the various books in his room, he heard the footsteps of someoneing up the stairs. Based on the sound and how light it was he could tell it was Alisa. Well seeing as she was the only other person in the house of course that was the case. It has been too long since he stayed with other people that hearing these other sounds felt too new for him. Alisa then knocked on his door.


    "Big brother dinner is ready."


    ...


    When Loki arrived downstairs he saw Alisa was dressed and heading out. Noticing that her big brother was looking at her she spoke.


    "Big brother the food is on the table, I''ll be heading out for a bit."


    "Where are you going?"


    "... Liam hasn''t returned and he isn''t answering my calls. So I was going to go out and look for him." Hearing what Alisa said Loki looked at the windows and saw that it was already dark outside.


    "There''s no need for you to go. I''ll bring him back. It''s also a good thing for me to walk around and see if I can remember some things by looking at familiar scenery. So where do you think he is?"


    "But Big Brother-"


    "No need to worry. It''s just a little walk, so tell me where do you think he is?"


    "How about we both go and look for him?"


    "Even though I can''t remember much, but I''m sure it''s not a good idea for a youngdy such as yourself to be going out in this time."


    "But you''ll be there with me, Big Brother."


    The two continued to talk back and forth for quite some time until Loki finally convinced Alisa to stay behind.


    "Fine, if you say so Big Brother... Usually, Liam would head to the nearby arcade."


    "How do you get there?"


    "Big brother, should I just go with you?"


    "As I said, I will do it myself just tell me where it is?"


    "You can find it using the app on your smartphone."


    "Smartphone?"


    "Big brother, can''t you remember what a smartphone is?" After Alisa asked him, Loki waited for a bit to see if a memory of the item called a smartphone would fill his mind, but unfortunately, after waiting for a few seconds, nothing happened.


    "Truth be told I can''t." Hearing her big brother''s response Alisa took out her own smartphone and showed it to him.


    "This is a smartphone, do you remember now?" Loki saw the rectangr object and knew that it was the one he saw in his room. Even with the visual aid, the memory from the past owner wasn''t transferring.


    "I do kinda remember what that is, but I don''t remember how to use it."


    "Are you really sure that you don''t need me?"


    "I need to relearn all this somehow."


    Alisa sighed as she asked Loki if he knew where his smartphone was. Loki went back upstairs got his smartphone and Alisa started to teach him how to use what he needed.


    ...


    While Alisa was teaching Loki, Liam was in his favorite arcade ying some shooting games. He tried calling his friends to y with him, but they couldn''te. So he was out here alone, still ying this game was able to calm him down.


    As he checked his phone and saw that Alisa was once again trying to call him he ignored it and continued ying.


    "Look at that isn''t that the uniform of that fancy-ass school."


    "Oh, you''re right!"


    When Liam heard those sidements he clicked his tongue and didn''t finish his game and was about to leave. Yet the moment he turned four young men had surrounded him.


    "Hey friend, can we have a little talk."

 Chapter 6 - A Fight

    After some time Alisa was finally able to teach Loki the basics of how to use his smartphone. So now Loki was walking through the streets while looking at his phone. He was rather impressed by how advanced this civilization without mana was.


    ''Though in that world no one would really need this thing. Most of its functions can be replicated with spells. Hmmm, I guess having mana did hinder the progress of that world''s technology. Still, mana was extremely convenient you could practically do anything with it.''


    While Loki was reminiscing about his old world, he looked around in this new one. This world was filled to the brim with lights. It was like the very stars themselves were illuminating the streets. Even though there was still fighting in this world, it was overall, mostly peaceful.


    ''If only Shera was born in this world, she wouldn''t have needed to do those things. She would''ve been a student in this world, ying with friends, and living her life to the fullest...'' As he started to think about such a possibility, Loki shook his head to cast away the feelings that were once again starting to build up within him.


    Loki tried to distract himself by thinking about something else as he continued towards his destination. He found that though his new body looked weak it wasn''t actually that bad. At least it felt like the previous owner used to do some minor exercises to stay healthy.


    ''Well, it doesn''t really matter, if I''m weak now I just need to train. Also, there''s the problem with mana. The mana in this world is too weak, it''s there but barely. I won''t be able to regain my former strength without mana, still, I need to have at least the minimum amount of strength to be able to use some of my old techniques.''


    ...


    Loki was nearing the arcade when he noticed something going on in an alleyway near the arcade. He looked at it and saw someone being beaten up, and upon closer inspection that someone was none other than his new younger brother.


    When Loki saw Liam being beaten up he was reminded of that time with Shera. Even though he wasn''t his true brother but the brother of the previous body''s owner, Loki still felt angered.


    ...


    The four young men who were beating up Liam stopped as they felt a spine-tingling chill. As they were wondering what that was, someone suddenly spoke to them.


    "What do you think you''re doing?" The four of them quickly turn around to look at the neer, when they saw that it was just one weak looking guy they felt relieved. For a moment there they thought that a police officer had shown up.


    Liam who was barely conscious thought he heard his brother''s voice but immediately dismissed the idea. In his mind, there was no way his cowardly brother would be there.


    "Hey man, just walk away."


    "Yeah, don''t try to be a hero." The four young men tried to intimidate Loki, but of course, Loki wasn''t someone that could be intimidated by some thugs. He approached the four without saying a word.


    "We gave you a chance but you just had to y the hero." One of the four suddenly charged at Loki and punched forward. Loki evaded the punch and used the [Enhancement] spell on his right arm and delivered a perfect counter to the young man''s chin.


    Getting hit at the chin the young man fell on his butt, his sight bing a bit blurry as he was getting dizzy. When Loki saw that even with using [Enhancement] and attacking at the right angle with a perfect counter he wasn''t able to knock out a person he felt a bit frustrated. Still, before the young man got his bearings back, Loki immediately kicked him, and this time the young man fainted.


    ''So this is the level this body is at.'' Loki sighed as he felt his right hand aching a bit. On the other hand, the remaining three young men looked at Loki in surprise. They didn''t expect that someone so meek-looking was actually a good fighter.


    This time when they saw Loki approaching them, the three started to panic. Two of three young men suddenly rushed towards Loki. One of them did a kick while the other punched while charging forward. Loki evaded the punch and used the momentum of the guy kicking and pushed him towards the other guy. Loki then quickly followed up by using [Enhancement] on his left arm and initiated a punch to the gut to the one who was imbnced by the kick.


    The two fell to the ground clutching their abdomens in pain. Loki felt both of his hands were now hurting. Still, he continued to show a stoic expression as he slowly approached thest of the four.


    "Stay the f*ck away from me!" Thest of the four young men took out a small knife. When Loki saw him take out a weapon, something changed.


    The young man who took out the knife saw Loki''s gaze and felt something frightening, His body started to tremble as he fell to his knees. The young man couldn''t understand what was happening but he felt like something was suffocating him. It was getting harder and harder for him to breathe it was as if someone was choking him. Loki used this opportunity to kick the young man until he finally passed out.


    ''He couldn''t even handle that little bit of killing intent?'' Loki shrugged his shoulders as he then shifted his attention to his little brother. When Loki saw the bruises on Liam''s body he once again looked at the four who had fainted.


    ''Should I kill them?'' While Loki was deliberating what he should do next, he heard someone''s voice.


    "It was here officer. Some thugs were beating up a kid over here!"


    ''Officer? A guard?'' Loki was quick to act as he carried Liam on his back and left the scene. He didn''t run and simply blended into the crowd of people at the other end of the alleyway. Even though he was carrying someone on his back and was supposed to be someone that you would notice immediately no one seemed to care. This was because Loki was able to weave through the crowd while passing through their blindspots. It''s a trick he learned back in his old world. To pass through crowded ces like a ghost. Even in this body he could perform a bit of those movements.

 Chapter 7 - Learning

    Liam whose consciousness was flickering from being awake and being asleep felt like he was moving. He could feel something warm, it was at that moment he saw the back of someone familiar. He wasn''t sure who the person carrying him was but it felt warm and safe, so Liam who was still feeling a bit dizzy closed his eyes and slept.


    The next time he woke up, he was already in his room. He looked around, still confused as to what happened.


    ''Was that all a dream?'' He then looked at his body and saw that he was still wearing his school uniform, it even had the same stains he had in his supposed dream. He touched his face and felt that there were bandages on it, as he finally felt his whole body aching.


    ''It wasn''t a dream... So who was the one that saved me?'' Liam tried to remember every detail of what happened before he cked out. He could vaguely remember a voice, it was a very familiar voice. As he was trying to figure out who''s voice was that the silhouette of a certain person started appearing in his mind.


    "It can''t be?... It couldn''t possibly be?..."


    While he was thinking of the person who saved him, somebody knocked on his door. A person then entered his room, it was none other than his older brother Loki.


    "I see that you are awake. Are you feeling better?"


    "What happened? Thest thing I remember was getting beaten up by some random thugs, and then for some reason, I heard your voice." Loki took a nearby chair and sat beside Liam''s bed.


    "Would you believe me if I said I talked to them?" Hearing Loki''s answer, Liam looked at him dumbfounded.


    "Do you think I''m stupid? Those guys wouldn''t have listened to you. They would have beaten you up too before talking to you. So tell me the truth, what truly happened?" Loki looked at Liam''s eyes for a second and sighed.


    "Okay, here''s the truth. I came to the arcade, saw the thugs were beating you up. So I came closer, warned them to back off, but instead, they became hostile and tried to attack me, so I retaliated. The first guy tried to punch me and I hit him with a counter to the chin. He didn''t faint after the first hit so I followed up with a kick to his face, and that''s what knocked him out. That was when two other guys came rushing towards me. One of them tried to kick me so I evaded, used the momentum of his kick, and redirected it towards his otherpanion who proceeded to fall. I then punched the one who tried to kick me and upon receiving the punch to the gut, he fainted as well. Thest one took out a knife, but before he could do anything, I kicked him multiple times until he too fainted. Once I was done dealing with them, I took you home. That''s what happened."


    Liam looked at his brother with a dumbfounded expression on his face. It took him a moment to digest what Loki just said, and then he replied with a tinge of anger in his voice.


    "Do you think I''m a fool?! You think a person like you, who I haven''t seen thrown a punch, was able to take down a group of thugs? All you do is read in your room and surf the and you want me to believe that your scrawny ass knows how to fight?! Are you f*cking kidding me?! Do you think I was born yesterday?!"


    Loki was surprised by Liam''s outburst but his facial expression remained stoic. Loki continued to remain silent for a few seconds before shrugging his shoulders and replied.


    "Yeah, you''re right, what I said was pretty unbelievable... I just called the cops and I told the thugs what I did. When they heard that the cops wereing, they immediately fled the scene. That was when I carried you back home."


    Liam found that this new answer was much more believable but he still felt that there were some holes in this story. Yet he couldn''t quite grasp what they were. As Liam was thinking, Loki stood up and spoke.


    "I''ll tell Alisa to bring up some food for you. I''ll leave you now so that you can rest. I hope you get better soon." Loki didn''t wait for Liam to respond and simply left the room.


    ...


    After that incident, Liam no longer bothered Loki about it and actually treated him a bit better, which made Alisa happy. The following day Alisa and Liam were off to school, while Loki stayed behind because of his sick leave. Alisa didn''t want to leave her sick big brother alone, but Loki insisted that he was alright and that she needed to go to school. The moment he was alone he once again started reading the books in his room.


    Every now and then some bits of memories from the previous owner of the body would sneak into Loki''s mind. This helped him understand the content of the books faster and also helped in understanding some of the new terms he heard recently.


    After a few hours of reading books, Loki took some time to digest the things he read. Once he was done with that, he started to try and circte mana into his body. The mana that he could circte was minuscule, but now that he had calmed down a bit he found it strange that there was mana in this world. Based on the history books he has read there was no mention of mana or the like. In fact, he couldn''t feel any traces of mana within any of the nearby humans and animals. Everyone except for him was manaless.


    ''At first, I thought this world was manaless, but now that I think about it, for even this little amount to exist means that there is mana here. It is possible that this area I''m in just has little mana, and there are ces with more mana. Hmmm, I wonder if there are holy grounds in this world that have more mana?... I need to gather more information before I cane to some kind of conclusion.''


    Loki then looked at theputer on his desk, he had some understanding of how to use the thing as yesterday when Alisa was exining how to use it Loki had recovered a few of his memories regarding the item. Still, he wasn''t that sure about it, so he just used his phone to search through the inte.


    After checking for the keyword mages, there were many things that came out. It was mostly literature, it would seem that mages were a thing of fantasy in this world. There were also things called movies that had people acting out like mages.


    After skimming through various content, Loki found some of the stories to actually have the proper way on how to train one''s mana. There were even some stories that used actual spell words that he knew existed in his old world. There were also mention of mages, witches, and sorcerers in the age of myth in this world.


    ''Where there''s smoke there''s fire. It''s possible that this world used to have mages, but as the mana of this world slowly depleted the age of mages ended and they became myth.''

 Chapter 8 - I Get What I Want

    After trying to look more into it, Loki came to a natural stopping point as he could no longer find any significant information on the. Loki then noticed that he felt hungry, which surprised him a bit. Back in his old body, he couldst a whole month without feeling any hunger, so getting hungry after a few hours of reading took him by surprise.


    Loki looked at the time and saw that it was already past one in the afternoon. He went downstairs to make himself some food, but then he saw something on the dining table. There was a letter and beside it was food under a cover. Loki picked up the letter and read it.


    "Dear big brother, I have prepared your lunch for you. I hope you like it, from your lovely little sister Alisa."


    When Loki read the contents of the letter he felt a warm fuzzy feeling from deep within him. He gnashed his teeth as he tried to hold himself back from tearing up. From the way she looks to the way she acts, it was like Alisa was Shera herself. It was entirely possible that Shera was able to reincarnate into this world as a normal girl.


    ''Even though the possibility is slim, that is a nice notion... This time for sure, I will protect my new family.''


    As some tears were falling down his face, Loki started eating the meal prepared by Alisa. Even though it wasn''t spectacr and was normal fried chicken, Loki felt like what he was eating was the tastiest thing he has ever eaten.


    ...


    Once he finished eating his meal Loki started calming down. The next thing Loki wanted to do was start training his new body. It was clear after yesterday''s fight that his current body wascking a lot. He just did a few punches and moved a little bit, and now his body was aching all over. It was a good thing he was used to this kind of pain, so it didn''t really bother him. Also, once he started to circte his mana even though it was just a minuscule amount, the pain would disappear faster.


    Still, the current problem was in training his current body, he didn''t know where to start. Back in his old world, the training he received was meant to be done with the aid of healing mages, but in this world, there weren''t any healing mages, but there were doctors. Still, he would need a doctor present at all times, but that kind of healing would take weeks while a healing mage could instantly heal a deep wound. So in the end his old training method was impractical.


    ''I guess, using my training regime won''t cut it in this world. I wonder how do people in this world train their bodies?''


    Loki quickly tried to search for the answer to his question through the inte. He found that the use of the inte was extremely convenient. After searching for a while he found that there were a lot of workout videos and such that you could do in the convenience of your own home. Unfortunately, he didn''t have the necessary equipment to do most of it, and he did not want to do simple exercises like push-ups and squats as he wanted to quickly gain a bit of muscle. Not to mention he was unsure as to at what capacity his current body could handle. It was highly probable that he would exceed the limit of what his current body is capable of without realizing thus breaking his new body in the process. He was numbed to such things as his past training always forced him to go beyond the limit. Yet that kind of mentality could only work in his old body, in his old world that had abundant amounts of mana. Loki sighed before continuing to search for what he needed through the inte.


    ''A gym a ce where people gather to train their bodies with equipment and trainers. Now, this is what I need, and luckily there is a gym nearby.''


    Loki was about to head out but then he nearly forgot that he needed money. He then went into his room and got his wallet. He remembered Alisa exining the usage of the cards in his wallet, and he does have the memory of his own pin number. He then checked how much physical money he had. There were about two hundred dors in the wallet. This was an equivalent amount to fifty gold coins back in his old world, which was an okay amount to have.


    Loki then changed into a lighter attire one where it was alright to sweat in. After double-checking if he had everything ready Loki headed out.


    Even though he had already seen it a couple of times now, this new world was amazing to look at. There were many buildings and people, the poption of this one city alone was already twice more than the entire poption of one kingdom back in his old world.


    ''I guess that''s to be expected from a world without war.''


    ...


    While Loki was heading towards the nearby gym, in Alisa''s school it was lunchtime. Alisa was walking in the hallway with her friends when a handsome young man approached them with a smile on his face.


    "Hey Alisa, I heard your brother finally woke up. Here is a gift for him getting discharged from the hospital. I hope he gets better soon." The young man continued smiling as he presented a get-well basket filled with numerous things and a letter on top. Alisa frowned as she saw the gift and spoke in an ice-cold tone.


    "Kira, you''ve got some nerve to say something like that after what you''ve done."


    "Huh, what do you mean, what did I do? I''m just worried about your big brother. When he''s not here the library feels empty, he is a pretty good librarian. I like him a lot since he''s the silent type, perfect for a librarian."


    Alisa gnashed her teeth in frustration as she heard Kira''sment. Alisa''s friends didn''t speak out as they didn''t want to get involved with Kira. They wanted to side with their friend Alisa, but they were powerless in the face of Kira one of the most influential and powerful students in the school. If you get on his bad side, then your school life was over. The only person in the entire school who could talk rudely to him was Alisa, seeing as Kira liked her.


    "I know you were behind what happened to my big brother."


    "Alisa, you better think before you spout such usations. I''ve been treating you so kindly, and you''re the only girl in this school I even bother to talk to. Now you''re using me of harming your brother?! Do you have any proof?"


    "I know it was you, and I know you had someone delete the footage on the security cameras."


    "Basically you have no proof. Since I''m such a kind man I''ll forgive you for ndering me. Oh, here''s a thought how about you agree to be my girlfriend and I''ll help you find the true perpetrator that pushed your big brother into that ident."


    "I will never agree to be your girlfriend." After saying her piece Alisa left with her friends fuming with anger. Seeing her fading silhouette Kira smiled a very sadistic smile.


    ''Resist all you want, my dear little Alisa, that just makes things more interesting for me. But know this, no matter how hard you resist, in the end, I will always win.''

 Chapter 9 - The Gym

    Loki arrived at the gym near his house, upon entering there was a front desk where twodies sat. This setup reminded Loki of the adventurers guild back in his old world.


    "How can I help you today sir?"


    "I want someone to help me build up muscle as quickly as possible."


    "Of course sir, we can help you with that. Our trainers are among the best in the business. If you join our gym as a member, you can ask help from any of our trainers."


    "Is that so..." Seeing that Loki was thinking hard and seems like he was on the verge of joining the gym, the receptionist signaled one of the nearby trainers.


    "How about you take a look around with one of our trainers. This here is Rick he''ll be your guide through our gym."


    A man with a rather good physique appeared before Loki. The man wasn''t overly muscr and had this energetic feel to him. Loki took one look at the trainer and could guess that the trainer wasn''t just someone with a good physique. The calluses on Rick''s knuckles tell Loki a part of this man''s history.


    "Heya man, the name''s Rick, I''m a trainer in this gym. I heard you''re interested in joining, so how about you take a look around and try out some of our equipment."


    Rick was quick on the update and knew what to do when he saw Loki, he then guided Loki into the gym. When Loki saw all the shiny-looking equipment and the people using them he was astonished. He already knew that the way people in this world trained using this equipment and it was vastly different from the way people trained back in his old world.


    ''Well, this world is far more technologically advanced. Now that I think about it, if they could make horseless carriages like those so called cars, then it should be easy for them to make something that could make you run in ce without moving forward.''


    "So tell me, bro, what''s your goal ining to the gym?" While Loki was looking around, Rick suddenly spoke to him.


    "I want to gain muscle as fast as possible."


    "Gaining muscle mass as fast as possible? What''s the hurry are you joining some kind ofpetition?"


    "Something like that."


    "I see, hmm, yeah if you want to get results quickly, joining our gym is the right choice."


    "How long would it take to gain results?"


    "Well, that will depend, based solely on your appearance you do seem around average a little bit on the skinny side. How about we try to do some sets and once you join I can whip out a personal workout regimen for you."


    "That sounds good."


    "Alright then, how about you try lifting one of these dumbbells. Just pick whichever weight seemsfortable with you."


    Loki started lifting each weight one by one starting from the one-kilogram dumbbell upward. Once he got to fifteen kilos, Loki''s body found it difficult to lift. At that moment Loki used his [Enhancement] spell on his body. He tried to circte his mana more efficiently as he used the spell to lessen the output so that he uses less mana. This precise control wasn''t something he needed to worry about in his past life as there was an abundance of mana, but here he needed to have better control.


    ''This is a great way to not only train my physical body but my spiritual energy as well.''


    Loki continued to try to carry the heavier weights as he continued to used Enhancement. Rick who was watching at the side almost dropped his jaw. He was expecting Loki to only be able to lift up to ten kilos, but now he was carrying the thirty kilos one.


    "Don''t force yourself, just lift the one that feelsfortable."


    "No this much is alright, actually I need a slightly heavier one." Loki then casually held onto a thirty-five kg dumbbell. Rick could also easily lift one of those, but Loki who''s frame was much smaller than Rick didn''t look like he should be able to lift something that heavy with one hand.


    "Excuse me for asking, how much do you weigh?"


    "I''m not sure."


    "Is that really not too heavy for you?"


    "Yeah, this is about right."


    "Can you do some basic curls?"


    "Curls?"


    "You just need to do this." Rick took hold of a simr dumbbell and showed Loki how to do a dumbbell curl. Loki nodded his head and copied what Rick did. After ten reps, Loki continued to do more, and even after twenty reps, it didn''t seem like he was straining himself. Rick didn''t say anything as he watched Loki easily do around fifty dumbbell curls.


    Once he got past fifty, Loki could feel his muscles aching and his mana was already at half of what he currently had. So he felt like this was a good time to stop.


    ''Hmm, that was pretty good. If I continue to do that alongside training my mana control this might be a good way to strengthen myself. I guess it was the right decision toe here.''


    Rick had no words to say as he watched the rather thin Loki do fifty-five reps using a thirty-five kg dumbbell. He couldn''t understand where such a thin body frame gets all that power.


    The two then continued to use the other equipment in the gym from the treadmill to the rowing machine. Each time Loki tried to use the equipment Rick would be surprised by Loki''s results. Loki went beyond what Rick expected his performance to be. After they were done with all that Loki was now visibly sweating, while Rick had a dumbfounded expression on his face.


    "This ce is a pretty nice ce to train. So can you help me gain as much muscle as quickly as possible?"


    Rick who was still in a stunned state was jolted awake by Loki''s voice. "Oh, I''m sorry, about that... Can you please remove your shirt so I can see what your body looks like?"


    "Sure." Loki removed his shirt revealing his skinny frame. At first, Rick was expecting Loki to be hiding his muscr frame with his shirt, and he was only thin-looking because of the shirt. Yet when Rick saw how skinny Loki was he became more surprised than ever, as he couldn''t understand how someone with this kind of body was able to perform so well. Still, he was a professional so he just needed to adjust his normal regimen to what Loki could handle. He didn''t need to be fooled by his outer appearance, what mattered was his performance so he will create a workout regimen with that in mind.


    "I can help you with your goal. As long as you join our gym, I''ll make a personal regimen for you to follow. I guarantee as long as you stick with my workout regimen you will get results." Loki looked at Rick who changed his expression from one who kept on smiling into a serious-looking one.


    "Alright, I''ll join your gym," Loki answered no longer hesitating.

 Chapter 10 - Gang Leader

    Liam who came to school with bandages got the attention of others. Liam had always looked like a delinquent, but everyone knew that was just his fashion sense and he wasn''t a real delinquent. In fact, Liam was a rather bright student, had good grades, and would never really hurt anyone. Yet now that he came to school looking like that some of the students started to have second thoughts.


    Liam''s two buddies were rather surprised seeing what happened to their friend as they approached him the moment he entered the ssroom.


    "Liam, what the heck happened to you?" One of Liam''s friends wearing sses spoke looking really concerned. This was his childhood friend Niel.


    "Hahaha, what the f*ck happened to your face?! Did you actually get into a fight? How many were there, two, three, four?" His other friend startedughing as he saw Liam''s face that had some bruises here and there. This was his other childhood friend Kenji, the three of them had been hanging out since grade school. Kenji couldn''t stop himself fromughing as it was quite funny as the bandages and Liam''s delinquent style made him look quite cute for some reason.


    "I''m alright, some thugs got me yesterday when I went to the arcade. Can you stop looking at me like that, Kenji, it''s starting to get irritating."


    "Seriously you got into a fight? Well, it''s a good thing I decided not to go to the arcade yesterday." Kenji replied while shrugging his shoulders.


    "What did the thugs want?" Niel asked while pushing Kenji away.


    "They wanted me to give my wallet."


    "Then why didn''t you?"


    "... I did..." Liam mumbled to himself.


    "Huh, what did you say?"


    "Nothing, anyway it doesn''t matter it''s over and done with."


    "Wait, so how did you get away, or did they leave you alone after getting bored hitting you?" Kenji and Niel looked at Liam with their eyes shining in interest, even those that were listening in their conversation started to move closer. Seeing the reaction of his two friends Liam sighed as he answered.


    "It''s nothing that interesting, my brother came to pick me up saw me getting beaten up by the thugs, so he called the cops."


    When the others heard Liam''s answer they looked a bit disappointed for a moment, but then everyone''s faces turned into shock.


    "Wait, your brother is still alive?!" Niel suddenly spoke in a loud voice, which attracted the attention of the other students.


    "Shh, don''t shout."


    "Wait I thought that your brother was hit by a car and has been in aa? Last time you said that he might not wake up for months, it has only been a week or so, right?" Niel spoke truly shocked by the new information he got.


    "What can I say, that guy has a lot of luck on his side."


    "How can you call him lucky? Rumor is that the one who did that to him was Watanabe Kira, the heir of the Watanabe group. People who mess with the Watanabe group tend to not have pleasant ends." Kenji whispered at the two.


    "What the heck are you saying no way that meek guy would offend anybody much less, Kira. whatever, let''s just stop talking about this."


    After that Liam no longer bothered to answer the questions of the two as he went on with his day. Still every now and then he would remember the incident with his brother, and the rumors surrounding his big sis Alisa and Kira.


    ''Is it possible that he really did all that?.. No that can''t be, this isn''t some movie that you would kill someone because they wouldn''t allow you to date their sister.''


    Liam could not concentrate at all in his sses, as his mind wandered off towards the recent events. Not only because of the thing with Kira but because for some reason ever since his brother woke up he felt different. There was this eerie calmnessing from him that he didn''t use to have.


    ''It feels like the change didn''t happen simply because of the amnesia...''


    ...


    Thest ss finally ended so it was time to go home.


    "Hey, how about we go to the arcade today?" Liam asked his two friends.


    "You got bigger balls than I thought. After you got beaten up yesterday and you still want to go back? Well despite wanting to see if you get beaten up again, I can''t go with you. My uncle is visiting and the family is going out for dinner."


    "How about you Niel?"


    "Sorry, I can''t as well, I promised my little sis that I''ll help her with her project today."


    "Tsk, fine I guess I''ll just head home."


    The three continued talking while walking. When they went out of the front gate of the school, they saw a group of unknown people standing at the side. The most eye-catching of the group was the tall muscr man. As Liam was looking at the muscr man he noticed two of the guys with him, they were part of the group that attacked him yesterday.


    "Hey boss that''s him. That''s the kid from yesterday." One of the men pointed at Liam. The big guy then approached Liam and his group. Niel took out his phone and was about ready to call the police, while Kenji got into a fighting stance ready for a fight.


    "Hey guys, no need to be so tense I just came here to ask something from this boy." The big guy pointed at Liam. "Little buddy, I heard a friend of yours had a little fun with my boys. Can you tell me where I can meet him?"


    "Why do you want to meet him?"


    "Nothing much, I just want to have a little chat with him."


    "You can just tell me what you want to say to him." Even though Liam was intimidated by the giant in front of him, he stood firm. He might hate his brother, but in the end, he was still his brother. Therge man then smiled at Liam.


    "Oh you''ve got balls kid, I like that. Well, I guess you can pass this message to that friend of yours. He should meet with me in the abandoned building near the shopping center on Greenfield Avenue. I just want to have a little talk with him, but if he doesn''t show up. Well, who knows something bad might happen to his little friend." The big guy looked at Liam with a menacing re, after a few seconds, a smile returned to his face.


    "Pass the message for me, will ya. I''ll be waiting for him toe. If he doesn''t I guess I''ll be bothering you again." After saying what he wanted to say, the big man and his group left the scene. Seeing their fading backs Liam and his friends sighed in relief.


    "What the heck those were the guys that f*cked you up?" Kenji spoke his body still shaking a bit.


    "What are you going to do Liam? Are you going to tell Loki?" Niel asked while typing something on his smartphone.


    "Why should I tell him about this? If I told that fool, he might actually go there."


    "But isn''t it better to tell him?"


    "There''s no need." Liam no longer bothered to continue the conversation as he started walking away. Seeing his reaction Niel sighed as he sent a text.

 Chapter 11 - Fool

    Loki was heading home after an intense workout in the gym. He had fully drained his mana pool and had to wait for it to regenerate. Due to the mana in the world being so small the speed of regenerating was slower than what he was used to. Still, because he was the only one who was essing the mana pool within the city, and seeing everyone else was manaless, the regeneration was still faster than he expected.


    ''Hmm, I see, after using up all of my mana I actually feel my inner mana pool steadily growing. I guess the same mana training can be applied in this world as well. The only problem is that like everything mana-rted in this world, the increase is too little. At the rate this is going, even if I continue to repeat this process non-stop, it would take me around fifty years before I reach the amount of mana I had in the old world... I wonder if there''s a faster way. I guess I can check the myths of this world, and see if any of them hold some truth.''


    While Loki was thinking about how to get back to his peak state his phone started ringing. He looked at it and saw that he had received a message from someone called Niel.


    ''It''s marked here that he''s Liam''s friend. I wonder what he wants.''


    "Hey Big bro Loki, I heard you''re feeling better now. It''s good that you survived, if you died back then, Liam and especially big sis Alisa would''ve been broken. Well anyway, let''s celebrate your recovery next time, for now, I have something to report. The leader of the thugs that messed with Liam yesterday confronted him outside the school gates. The guy was huge and he told Liam to tell you toe to the abandoned building near the shopping center on Greenfield Avenue. He pretty much threatened Liam that if you don''te he would do something to Liam."


    When Loki read the text message Niel sent him his expression became ice-cold. He felt irritated at himself for forgetting that those kinds of thugs were usually part of a bigger group.


    ''Should I have just killed those guys back then?'' The moment Loki thought of that, Shera''s sad expression shed in his mind, as he remembered that promise he made with her. After a short pause, Loki was able to calm down. He then replied to Niel and thanked him. The next thing he did was send a text message to Alisa telling her that he would beteing home as he wanted to stroll around for a bit.


    After he was done with sending his messages, Loki headed to a nearby store to buy some yarn.


    ...


    In the abandoned warehouse at Greenfield Avenue, a group of several dozen young men were gathered. Each one of them was holding a weapon, from bats to steel pipes. In the center of this group was a ratherrge man who seems to be older than the others.


    This was Luke Gardner, the boss of a certain high school delinquent group. His group had thergest and most fearsome gathering of delinquents, some of them were even being scouted by some famous gangs from the nearby cities.


    "Hey boss, do you think that guy woulde?"


    "I bet he will, based on what Bull and the others said about the guy, he seems pretty loyal. So now that he knows that I threatened his little friend he should be worried. Well, if he doesn''te then we just need to f*ck up his friend until he shows himself."


    "Boss, I really don''t think we should be messing with this guy, he feels different. He might be one of those martial artists that had joined in thatpetition." Luke suddenly smacked the guy in the head before responding.


    "Tsk, he just beat you up once and you''re already acting like a wuss. Also, if he really is a martial artist that took part in thatpletion then you guys would already be dead. So shut up and stop whining."


    After that, no one bothered to say anything and the group simply waited for their guest to arrive. It was already past eight when the person they were waiting for finally showed up. The person that showed up was a rathernky-looking man, which was not what Luke was expecting.


    "Boss it''s that guy, that''s the guy who beat us up yesterday." One of the men pointed at Loki.


    "Are you serious, thatnky-looking guy beat up the four of you?"


    "Don''t judge him by his looks, that guy''s dangerous."


    Hearing his subordinates warning Luke shrugged his shoulders. Even if this guy was more powerful than he looks, he was still a fool foring here. There were thirty of them and one of him, and even if something goes wrong, Luke had an ace up his sleeves. He touched the item that was hidden in his back before he smiled and spoke to the neer.


    "You must be the guest that I''ve been waiting for. I heard that you got a little bit rough on my boys yesterday. So how about you let us beat you up and we can call it even."


    Loki didn''t respond as he simply stood there in front of the group of delinquents. Seeing him act like that made Luke sigh.


    ''So he''s scared stiff, what a letdown.'' The moment he thought of that Luke suddenly felt something heavy descend upon him. It was getting harder and harder to breathe, as his heart was beating ever so loudly. He then noticed that his subordinates seem to be experiencing the same thing as him. As Luke was getting confused as to what was happening, he suddenly heard a voice with an ice-cold tone that sent chills down his spine.


    "Were you the one who threatened my brother?"


    Loki was looking at Luke with such emotionless eyes, which made Luke gulped dryly as the fear was encroaching his very being. Thest time he felt something simr to this dread was when some gang boss pointed a gun at him. No, this feeling was even worse than back then.

 Chapter 12 - Im A Professional

    Seeing Loki waiting for his reply, Luke touched the item hidden at his back and felt himself calming down. As soon as he calmed down a bit, the suffocating feeling disappeared. He then looked at Loki with a smile on his face.


    "Hey man, why so serious? So it turns out that little friend was your brother, I didn''t know that. Still, who was threatening him? I didn''t threaten him at all, I just talked to him a bit and told him to pass a message to you."


    "Hmph, so now that I''m here you want to beat me up, is that it?"


    "Well, you did beat up my boys and got them into some trouble with the cops, so I say that''s fair, don''t you think so?"


    "Fair? It was your guys that beat up my little brother first."


    "That''s because your brother wouldn''t share his wealth."


    "You have an answer for everything, don''t you. If you want to beat me up go ahead and try."


    "Oh, you truly have balls of steel. Don''t you see there are thirty of us in here and only one of you, not only that, but you actually came here unarmed? Not to mention I have called for reinforcement just in case you call some people for help. They''re waiting somewhere near just in case you try and escape."


    Luke wasn''t sure how many people Loki would bring since this was an obvious trap, so just in case Luke asked for reinforcements from a neighboring gang. Unlike them, those were true blue gang members with guns. He knew that those guys wouldn''t care even if Loki had somehow involved the cops. Seeing the smug look on Luke''s face made Loki sigh as he shrugged his shoulders.


    "I see, so that''s everything you had. I was worried for nothing."


    "Huh?"


    Luke couldn''t understand why Loki was acting calmer than before he entered. ''Did he go crazy from the fear?''


    "Come on boys show our guest some hospitality," Luke gave out an order, but only Bull who was standing beside him charged forward everyone else was sitting still.


    "What the f*ck are you guys doing?! Didn''t you hear what I just said, I told you guys to go and f*ck that guy up!" Luke who was shouting at hispanions saw that the charging Bull stopped in front of Loki and then suddenly copsed.


    "Did you not notice? No one from your group aside from you is still conscious." When Luke heard what Loki said he approached one of his subordinates and finally saw that he was indeed unconscious. He then looked at the others and saw that all of them were unconscious.


    ''Since when?!'' Luke then stared at Loki the fear he was feeling a while ago came back with a vengeance.


    "What did you do?"


    "I snuck into this building an hour ago. One by one I incapacitated your subordinates. I only spared the one beside you since you were talking with him." Hearing what Loki said Luke slowly backed away.


    "If you were already here since the beginning, why didn''t you take me out then and there? Why have that whole conversation with me?" Luke tried to distract Loki by talking, while he was secretly sending a signal for the guys outside toe back.


    "I didn''t attack you back then for three reasons. The first was because I wanted to see what kind of person you are by having a little conversation. Beforeing here I asked the people around about rumors of you guys. You do extort money from students and do get into fights a lot, but you haven''t killed anyone, kidnapped anyone, or have dealt with drugs. I think you and your pals still have some leeway to turn back from what you''re doing."


    "Huh, are you some kind of hero of justice? Wanting to save us, to go and be good citizens."


    "Hmph, you have no idea kid, I''m the farthest thing from a hero. I''m not here to save you, I''m here to give you a warning. That''s my second reason for not attacking you a while ago. Like I said I came here to give you guys a warning, and since I''m giving out a warning someone needs to hear it, right?"


    "What is it that you want to say?"


    "We''ll get to thatter. As for the final reason, I needed to know how many men you had, just to be sure I got everyone. I know that you called those guys from the outside toe back, all this talk is just a distraction."


    Luke started sweating profusely as he ced his hand on the gun he was hiding behind his back.


    "If you know what I did, why didn''t you stop me?"


    "That''s because there''s no need to. The supposed gang members outside, I''ve already dealt with them."


    When Luke heard what Loki said he immediately got his gun out, but as he was about to aim it at Loki he saw something sh by. Loki had thrown some yarn at Luke and entangled his hand. Luke''s right hand then swung upward, and it was at that moment multiple strings of yarn entangled his limbs. Luke tried to free himself from the yarn, yet the more he struggled the tighter the yarn became.


    Luke couldn''t believe that he who could easily rip a book in half with his bare hands, wasn''t able to free himself from some yarn. He waspletely immobilized.


    "Now do you see? If I wanted to I could easily kill you and your friends. It''s a good thing no one has hired me to kill you guys, because if so, you and your friends would already be dead. Killing without getting paid isn''t really my style since I''m a professional."


    When Luke heard what Loki said he couldn''t help it as his face became as pale as a white paper. Luke had goosebumps all over. His heart raced as he looked at Loki''s expression. Only now did the question popped up in his mind, what kind of person did they mess with?

 Chapter 13 - Do You Want To Change?

    Loki was relieved that the opponents this time were pretty much amateurs. He currently had limited amounts of mana, and his physical ability was not up to standard. He also came without sufficient preparations, which was unlike him. If they were slightly better and could react to him throwing the yarn, it would''ve been game over for him. Loki once again reaffirmed that he needed to get stronger quicker. He then approached the entangled Luke who was shivering in fear.


    "Hey, kid, as I said before, you and your friends should probably stop while you haven''t done too much. If you step into this kind of world, you''ll just die quicker. This is not a world where kids like you guys should y around in. Right now, your fortunate it was I who taught you this lesson. But if you continue down this path and mess around with someone you shouldn''t then the best scenario is you just die, but at worst not only you but your family, and your friends'' families will disappear as well."


    Luke listened to every word Loki said and felt that his person''s tone sounded flippant but they also held great conviction. It was possible that this person was in a deeper part of that world. Still, based on his looks, Loki didn''t seem much older than Luke. What kind of experiences would someone need to go through to have such skills. Aside from that, he was also the only person that believed he could change, that he could go back.


    His family, his teachers, everyone had already given up on him. Yet this person that he just met, who he had nned to attack, was actually saying that he could go back. Luke started grinding his teeth before answering.


    "What do you know, what do you even understand about me?! I can do nothing else but this. Ever since I was small, my body wasrger than my peers and my looks scared a lot of people, not to mention I''m not really that smart. So no matter what I do, no matter how hard I try to be good, no one would ept me. I was always treated as the bad guy when I was not even doing anything! So in the end, if no matter what I did I was going to be the bad guy, then I might as well be a true bad guy!"


    Loki was surprised by Luke''s sudden outburst but with this, he finally understood a bit about this person.


    ''I see, he''s a bit simr to her... A person that had to be what others perceived of him.'' Loki couldn''t help but once again remember her lonely smile at the end.


    "Who cares, it doesn''t matter what others think about you. What matters more is what you think about yourself. If they can''t see past your looks, then that''s their problem. But if you really care about what they think, then you should show them more. Show them that you can do good, prove to them that they are wrong, prove to them that you''re not just a scary face. Why bend your knee and be what they think of you? Instead, you should have stood your ground and show them a different face. For a guy sorge, you sureck willpower."


    When Luke heard what Loki said he blinked a few times as he couldn''t believe what he heard. He once told his guidance counselor the same thing, but even he didn''t believe him. Even his parents, who at first believed in him had changed. After numerous peopleining about things Luke never did, even his parents slowly believed that their son had be someone who did bad things. It has been a very long time since he met someone that actually believed in him. As he was holding back his tears, Luke felt the yarn that was entangling him loosened. He was now able to move again.


    "So do you wish to change?"


    "Even if I wanted to, me and my friends are in too deep. The people outside that you took care of, are part of a gang from the neighboring city. Once they learned what happened today they wille back for vengeance. Not to mention the other gangs that are in this city, once they learn that we''re trying to change, they might do something."


    "Oh, is that so... Hey, are those gangs considered evil?"


    "Huh?" Luke was surprised by Loki''s question. He wasn''t expecting Loki to ask such a thing. It took him a few seconds to digest what Loki said, he scratched his head before answering.


    "I don''t know what you''re standards are and what you consider evil, but those gangs do things from human trafficking to murder. I''m pretty sure that''s evil no matter how you look at it."


    "How much do you know about these gangs?"


    "Not too much, since we aren''t really part of their gang and just some students they want to recruit."


    "Do you know someone that has more information on these gangs?"


    "... Yeah, there''s this one person that knows a lot about the local gangs and has some information on some of the neighboring gangs. Why are you asking all these questions?"


    "Before I answer that, how about you answer my question first. Do you wish to change? Do you wish to go back and walk a more proper path?"


    "I already told you, it''s already toote for me and these guys..."


    "Stop saying that and just answer my f*cking question, do you want to change?!" Loki looked at Luke with an extremely serious expression on his face. Seeing that look on Loki''s face, Luke felt something within him stir. Luke then gnashed his teeth as he answered.


    "Of course I want to change!"


    When Loki heard Luke''s answer for the first time since their meeting, Loki smiled. He then spoke the words that Luke would never forget in his entire life.


    "Then I will help you achieve that wish of yours. For as long as the price is right and the reason is just, I will y any and all evil. I told you before right, I''m a professional. So hire me and I will make those problems of yours, disappear."

 Chapter 14 - Interrogation

    "You will make my problems disappear, how will you do that?" Luke could already guess the answer to his question, but he wanted to hear it from the person himself.


    "Don''t worry about it."


    "Then how much do I need to pay for the job?"


    "Hmm, let''s see... How about every single cent you have that you took from others through extortion."


    "What?!"


    "You want to change your life right? Then you don''t need that kind of money. So give it all to me instead. I''m already stained to the point that no matter what I do, I can never be redeemed, so I''ll be taking all the sins you have umted as part of the payment. So will you hire me?"


    ''The things he''s saying would''ve sounded cringy if someone else was saying them, but I guess it''s because he''s the one saying them they kinda sound a bit cool now.'' Luke no longer hesitated and answered.


    "I will hire you!"


    "Then the deal has been made. Now onto the next step, I want you to get me a mask, some dark clothes, and some gloves? After that call that friend of yours that knows about the local gangs, and tell him to meet you here tomorrow. Also, tell me everything you know about the guys who you called to help you. Tell me every single little thing you know, tell every trivial information you heard from them."


    Hearing Loki''s requests, Luke nodded his head. He wasn''t sure why he was believing someone he just met, but this was better than dying.


    While Luke was running outside to get the things Loki asked for, Loki took out his phone and sent Alisa a text message. He told her that he had some business to attend to so he''ll being homete. Once he sent the message, Loki sighed.


    ''I guess it''s time to get to work.''


    ...


    In a dimly lit room, a man was forcibly tied to a chair, this was one of the gang members Loki beat up. Both of his hands and legs were tightly bound.


    ''What the f*ck just happened. I was with the guys smoking while waiting for the guy that kid wanted to beat up. I went to the side to take a pee and then the next thing I remember was someone getting behind me and got me in a sleeper hold. Who attacked, was it someone from a rival gang?''


    While the man started specting, a person entered the room. The person who entered was wearing a white mask, was wearing a ck jacket, ck boots, and even had ck gloves. Except for the white mask, everything he wore was pure ck, the man in the mask looked extremely eerie. Not only that but for some reason even though the gang member was looking at the man with a mask, even though he was standing there right in front of him, it felt like he wasn''t there at all. This person wearing a white mask was none other than Loki.


    "So you''re finally awake."


    "Who the f*ck are you?! Where the f*ck am I?!"


    "You''re not the one who will be asking the questions here, I''m the one who''s going to be doing that. So Mr. Gang Member let''s y a little game. It''s a very simple game, it''s called tell me everything about your gang and you get to leave this ce."


    "Huh? Are you bat sh*t insane?! Why would I tell you anything?! Who are you, which gang do you belong to? If you- AAAAAAAAAHHHHH!!!" The gang member suddenly screamed as something had stabbed into his fingertips.


    "I told you already, you don''t get to ask questions. Also, I haven''t finished exining the rules of the game so be quiet. Now, where was I?... Oh right, at this moment aside from you I captured all yourpanions and they''re also in this building in different rooms. Each one of them will be ying the same game as you, the first one to speak will be given the chance to leave this ce. As for the others that are too slow, well their fates, I will leave that to your imagination."


    "The f*ck are you saying, you crazy bastard! No one would dare betray the group!? Are you some kind of wannabe vignte?! Do you think these sh*t ass intimidation tactics are going to work on me, or any of us?!"


    "I already told you the rules, I''lle backter." Loki left the room leaving the screaming gang member alone.


    ...


    After half an hour, Loki returned to the room.


    "So are you willing to talk now?" Seeing Loki ask this question made the man smirk.


    "Hmph, since you''re asking me such a stupid thing, that would mean no one was willing to talk. See that you crazy piece of sh*t, none of them is going to betray the group, including me."


    Loki shrugged his shoulders as he spoke.


    "Yeah, none of you are willing to talk, which is why I decided to add one more rule into the game. Every time Ie back and you don''t talk I will cut off one of your fingers." Loki then pulled out a knife and showed it to the gang member.


    "What the heck you sick f*ck! How can you change the rules like that?!"


    "I''m the one in charge, so I can change the rules to whatever I want them to be. So I hope the next time Ie back you have something useful to say." After saying his piece Loki left the room.


    ...


    Being left behind the gang member started sweating a lot, and he tried his hardest to keep calm. ''It''s alright, he won''t kill us, as long as we don''t say anything. It''s just a finger, I just need to endure it.''


    After thinking things through the gang member was able to calm down a bit. An hour had passed, but Loki hasn''t returned.


    ''Did something happen to him?'' The gang member then started to get worried. After another half hour passed, Loki returned to the room and he had his knife out which had blood on it.


    "You actually took their fingers?! Fine, it''s just a finger I won''t talk as well."


    "Huh? Oh, sorry, you seem to be misunderstanding something here, Noel. Somebody already talked and told me everything he knew. By the way, your buddy Nestor was pretty talkative."


    "Sh*t! You f*cking traitor, NESTOR!"


    "The game has ended so, it''s time for us to say goodbye." Loki slowly approached Noel with a knife at hand, as Loki was getting near Noel suddenly shouted.


    "WAIT! I have information that even Nestor doesn''t know of. If you promise to let me leave this ce, I''ll tell you."


    "Oh, if what you''re saying is true, then I sure I''ll promise to let you leave this ce if you tell it to me."


    "Alright, it''s a deal."


    Noel started telling Loki every single thing he knew about the gang from its members to their boss''s secret hiding spot.


    "There I told you everything I know."


    "Alright, a promise is a promise." Loki untied Noel, who immediately started running towards the door. The moment he got out of the room, he saw the dead bodies of hispanions including Nestor. It was at that moment he heard a gunshot from behind. He felt an intense paining from his back. As his consciousness was fading he heard Loki''s voice.


    "I didn''t lie, you were able to leave the room, right? Still these things called guns sure are easy to use but are too loud, not really my kind of weapon."


    ...


    A few hours before Loki started to interrogate the gang members, he already asked Luke everything he knew about the gang members. Luke really didn''t know much, all he knew were the names of the gang members. He was expecting Loki to be disappointed, but instead, Loki said.


    "That''s all I need."


    Loki then proceeded to scare each of the gang members which he ced in separate rooms. He created a game that only allowed one winner, and then he gave them time to think before returning to add a punishment system. Once the gang members were rattled, Loki used his knowledge of their names to trick them into telling them what they knew. It was a simple trick, but all of them fell for it, due to the atmosphere of the location and Loki himself.


    The blood from the knife at first was Loki''s own blood. He then tricked the first gang member into telling him all that he knew afterward Loki killed the gang member using one of the weapons he confiscated from them.


    Loki repeated this process to all the gang members and killed them using the different weapons of the other members. He did this to make it look like they all died due to infighting.


    He understood a tiny bit about this world''s police, based on some of the mystery novels he read in his room. The way they investigated in this world was different from his old world, they use things like looking at one''s fingerprints and DNA to trace someone.


    Which was why he made sure that nothing in here could be traced back to him. Every weapon he used was from the gang members, and he made sure that no one had witnessed him carrying their bodies. He even used gloves as he moved their bodies.


    ''Well even if they somehow trace something back to me, I have an alibi.'' Beforeing to this abandoned building, Loki rented a room in something called a manga cafe which was a kilometer away. He escaped that room without anyone seeing him, the people nor the surveince cameras had caught sight of him leaving. So technically to everyone else, Loki had never left his room.


    ''Now that I have information on this gang, it''s time to eliminate them... That''s what I would want to say, but I used too much mana today, and my body is already aching all over, so I need to rest for a bit. I better get back to the manga cafe, leave and then head home.''


    Loki yawned as he left the room where the dead bodies of the gang membersy.

 Chapter 15 - Intruder

    In a certain room, two individuals were having a serious conversation. One was a man wearing a suit and had some scars on his face. Behind him stood two burly men who were hiding weapons underneath their suits. The person the man with scars was talking to was sitting across his desk, it was a gorgeous-looking woman who was holding a sword. She had long blue hair tied in a ponytail, and her eyes were twinked with the color of azure. Despite her gentle smile, she had an intimidating aura about her.


    "The leader said that your business was blossoming, and as one of the first people who offered you a helping hand, he said that he wants more. So the leader wants forty percent of what you''re making for protection fees." The woman spoke while tapping the hilt of her sword.


    "Are you serious? You''re telling us to give you forty percent of our profit as protection fees? We already pay you people, thirty percent! If you take more than that then there''s nothing left for us!" One of the men standing behind the boss spoke in anger. He was about ready to pull out his gun. Yet despite that action, the woman simply shrugged her shoulders before answering.


    "Huh, what are you talking about there''s still sixty percent, right?"


    "Why do we even need protection from a b*tch li-" The man wasn''t able to finish what he was going to say as the woman''s de was now by his neck, ready to cut him. Not only that but thedy was emitting a deadly aura that suffocated the man. The man''s hand that was holding his gun couldn''t even move as he was being suppressed by the aura thedy was emitting.


    "Well in my eyes, you weaklings really do need someone to protect you. Also if you call me that one more time then I''ll just cut off your head." The boss sighed as he lowered his head.


    "Ms. Le allow me to apologize on behalf of my subordinate, he''s just a little bit too passionate. About raising the protection fee to forty percent, of course our group is willing to pay it. We do owe a lot to your organization... Also about our members who went missing two days ago, I hope you can help with that as well. I heard they went out to help some potential recruits, but after that, they never returned. We have no idea who these supposed recruits are. If we try to hit all our suspected spots will catch the attention of the police. So I wish to borrow your organization''s strength."


    "Well, since you''re paying of course we''ll help. Now that we''re done with that part, onto the next thing, the-" Thedy called Le didn''t finish what she was going to say as she suddenly drew her sword, a man then entered the room but before he could speak he was stopped by the sword pointed at his forehead.


    "Who are you?" Le asked about ready to pierce the person''s forehead.


    "Stop Ms. Le that''s one of my subordinates. Hey you, what are you doing? You do know that we have an important meeting ongoing." The boss red at the subordinate that suddenly entered the room.


    "Sorry boss, but it''s an emergency, we''re under attack!"


    "Under attack is it the cops, another gang?"


    "It''s neither, the attacker is one person. We didn''t get a good look at him, but he already took out four of our men. We currently have him pinned down in the pantry."


    "Oh what nice timing. Now I''ll show you why you should pay those protection fees." Le smiled seductively as she licked her lips. She then proceeded to go outside without waiting for anyone to guide her.


    The moment Le left the room, the man who came to report about the attack, spoke.


    "Are we going to trust that crazy b*tch?"


    "Stop calling her that, if she heard you she would remove your head. That woman is a martial artist that took part in thatpetition. Even though she was one of the losers, she''s still a martial artist that reached that stage. You''re lucky that she didn''t follow through and you still have your life."


    When the subordinate heard that Le was part of thatpetition he couldn''t help but shiver in fear. He touched his forehead and finally noticed that there was a small cut on it.


    ...


    Le was walking towards the pantry and as she got closer she could hear the sound of gunfire. Yet the more she got closer to the sound, it was getting quiet until finally there was no longer any sound of gunfire.


    ''Did they catch the attacker already? What a letdown.'' Le sighed as she continued walking towards the pantry. Yet when she got there, she was surprised to see that there were dozens of fallen gang members. Some of them were holding sub-machine guns, while most were using pistols.


    The pistols weren''t a problem but even martial artists would find it difficult to fight someone with a sub-machine gun in such a narrow area with no ce to hide except behind the pantry door. Le looked at the gang members and was surprised to see that none of them were dead. Still, they had these weird marks on their necks.


    As she was looking at the fallen bodies of the gang members, Le drew her sword and shed at one of the fallen bodies. The fallen body then moved to avoid the strike and stood up. This person was wearing the same suit as the fallen gang members but he was also wearing a white mask.


    "Oh, you''re able to dodge my strike, how interesting." Le licked her lips and smiled seductively at the intruder.

 Chapter 16 - Until Next Time

    It has been two days since Loki took the job Luke gave him. He had already gained some information from the gang members he killed, like theyout of the building he was going to raid. Also after meeting the informant that Luke knew off, Loki had also gained some knowledge of the members of this gang. Basically, he now knew what they look like.


    So the next phase was for his preparation and to make a n for his attack and escape. The yarn he used before won''t cut it with these guys who were better equipped. So he needed something sturdier, so Ren using the money he got from Luke tried to make an improvised weapon.


    He created gloves that had hidden wires, which were thin threads of steel. These steel wires weren''t thick enough to be a threat to anyone in normal circumstances, the most they could do was make some small cuts, but coupled with his [Enhancement] spell they be devastating weapons. Aside from that, Loki had a lot of steel needles hidden within his jacket and boots. He didn''t want to use anything too bulky as with his current strength it would be too hard to do precise movements with. He needed weapons he could still use after he losses the effects of [Enhancement].


    He also studied more about this current world''s weapons. The most interesting weapon he found were bombs that detonated with a switch. Unfortunately for him, he nor Luke didn''t know anyone that could possibly get their hands on such merchandise.


    Still, explosives intrigued him as they were quite deadly, they were equivalent to mid-tier spells back in his old word. So he studied how to make homemade bombs. The past owner of his body was pretty smart, and he had the basic knowledge of such things. Yet, the memory of that knowledge, parts of it were locked and Loki could not recall them at the moment. Still, what he remembered was enough for his current predicament.


    After two days of nning on what to do, Loki felt confident that he could finish the mission. He only needed to kill the head of the gang, and it will fall or be absorbed by another gang. Loki currently didn''t care about the other gangs, all he cared about were the gangs rted to Luke that could mess up his return to the normal path. Since those were the only people he was paid to make disappear.


    ...


    The first part of the n was going smoothly, and Loki had already drawn out most of the gangs fighting force into where he was and incapacitated them. As the n was about to head into thest phase something unexpected happened.


    Loki had just finished another gang member when he suddenly noticed someone approaching. The person who was approaching was not like the other people in here. He could sense an intense unwavering killing intent from this person. Not only that but Loki could actually feel that she had some sort of energy within her. It was something simr to mana, but a bit more impure.


    Compared to Loki''s mana her impure spiritual energy wasrger, well, this was just in the form of quantity, as Loki was sure his mana was of better quality. Still, he couldn''t let his guard down on this iing threat, so he pretended to be one of the unconscious gang members and when he spotted an opening he would quickly incapacitate the neer as well.


    The person in question came, as he waited for an opening to show the person suddenly unsheathed a sword and shed in his direction. Loki quickly evaded the strike and saw that the person he was facing was a gorgeous-looking woman. He was sure that from the information he received, there was no such person within this gang.


    "Oh, you''re able to dodge my strike, how interesting."


    Loki saw her sheath her sword again and when she touched the hilt of her sword she unsheathed it with extreme speed and precision. Loki quickly evaded the strike by bending his body backward, he then quickly kicked the back of the sword wanting to push it upward, yet the woman''s grip was so strong that he wasn''t able to do what he wanted.


    The woman swung down the sword at Loki who was in an awkward position, Loki used the steel wires to block the sword, he then entangled the sword and tried to take it away from the woman, but her strength was greater than his.


    "Oh, what kind of wires are you using? I wasn''t able to cut them, how interesting. This is getting more fun!" The woman pulled back her sword, as her strength was superior to Loki''s she was able to pull Loki towards her, yet before she could fully pull, Loki quickly retracted the steel wires entangling the sword. The woman then showed Loki a crazed smile as she licked her lips.


    "You''re awesome! This might be sudden but allow me to introduce myself, I''m Le, from the school of sword light." The woman called Le did a proper bow in front of Loki, in the middle of battle. Loki could''ve used this chance to attack Le, but her sincerity got to him. He couldn''t understand who this woman was, and why he was in here. Still, this was a good chance to waste some time as he waited for thest phase to finish. Also, he wanted to reply to this woman''s sincerity. He couldn''t tell her his real name, but he could at least tell her his old name.


    "I''m Fade."


    "FADE! That''s an awesome name I will be sure to remember it. Now that we have greeted each other, let''s continue the fun!"


    Le once again sheathed her sword, and this time she got into a lower stance as her spiritual energy started to circte within her entire body the energy then started to flow and gather into her arms. She then unsheathed her de at a speed that was no longer visible to the naked eye. The walls of the hallway were cut, Loki once again evaded the strike by stepping back an inch. He had evaded the insanely fast sword strike with minimal movement, this was only possible as he didn''t use his eyes, he predicted the move by sensing Le''s spiritual energy.


    Le whose strike was evaded showed a look of surprise at first, but then that look changed into one of intoxication. That was the signature move of her school which was of course named sword light, a sh that was so fast it could not be seen nor evaded. Many people much stronger than her, had blocked the strike, but this was the first time she saw someone evade it.


    "That was incredible! You were incredible! How were you able to evade sword light?!... Oh, I see! You actually reacted before I even pulled my sword! I think I''m falling in love! How about this, can you evade this?! [Multiple Sword Light]!"


    Le once again sheathed her sword and did almost the exact same move as before, but this time it was much faster and it didn''t end with one strike. Loki with his current mana and his weapon being thin wires couldn''t fully block such strikes, nor could he evade all the strikes in such a narrow hallway, so he used the wires to instead slightly change the direction of each strike.


    The two of them were simply standing in the middle of the hallway as only shing lights could be seen, and the sound of metal shing against metal could be heard. To a bystander, it didn''t look like they were moving at all, but they were actually simply moving their hands at a speed that the naked eye could not follow.


    Loki was using less energy than Le who looked to be going all out, he did this to tire Le out, but instead of tiring out, he felt like Le''s strikes were getting faster. It was at that moment Le finally stopped attacking and that was when Loki saw that Le was breathing heavily and was sweating profusely but the smile on her face was still there, in fact, it looked like she was in ecstasy.


    "I really am falling in love with you, FADE! How about you be mine!"


    ''This woman is one of those battle freaks. I don''t really want someone like that as my wife, they have too much energy and are too tiring to be with.''


    "Sorry, but you''re not my type."


    "Don''t say that Fade! I''ll be sure to change your mind as long as youe with me." Le showed Loki a seductive smile as she posed in a way to emphasize her voluptuous figure.


    "Hmm, maybe next time."


    "If you''re not going toe willingly, then I need to use force!" As Le was about to attack again, the floor shook as a huge explosion happened. Loki sighed as he heard the explosion he then started running towards the ss windows. When Le saw Loki running away she was about to strike, but she couldn''t draw her sword. She then saw that her scabbard and the hilt of her sword were entangled by numerous wires.


    ''When did he?!'' As she was surprised by what she saw, she heard ss breaking. She looked forward and saw Loki jumping out of the building. They were on the sixth floor, even she with her body as a martial artist wouldn''t survive such a fall. She quickly ran towards the window and she saw Loki swinging towards the building on the other side of the street.


    "FADE!" Le shouted but by then Loki''s silhouette disappeared in the darkness of the night.


    ''Why did he suddenly leave after hearing that explosion.'' When Le thought of that question she suddenly had an epiphany and headed towards the boss''s room. The boss was no longer there.


    ''The explosion came from below.'' She headed downstairs and as she reached the first floor she saw an underground passage filled with smoke and fire. One of the men that guarded the boss was on the ground shaking in fear.


    "What happened?" Le asked as she grabbed the man. The man was still in a state of shock, but as he heard Le''s voice he answered, his voice trembling.


    "You were taking too long... The boss thought that something was wrong and was going to hide in the hidden room... Yet, a few seconds after he entered, the room suddenly exploded."


    ''So that was your aim!'' Le remembered every action Loki took and realized that like his fighting style, he did every move for a reason, which was obviously to kill the boss. He didn''t kill anyone else, except the boss. Still, for some reason, this felt like a practice run, She wasn''t sure but she felt like Fade could have killed the boss in a much simpler way. So why do all this? Was this a warning, or was there some other goal in mind? Le couldn''t help but feel extremely excited as she looked in the direction Loki fled to.


    ''Until we meet again. I will be sure to make you mine then, if not then I''ll just turn you into sliced meat.''

 Chapter 17 - One Down

    Loki who had just escaped from Le stopped running on a roof of a random building. He had seeded in his mission, even after many uncertain factors came to disrupt him. Still, he wasn''t expecting a person that could use something simr to mana to appear.


    Loki looked at his arms and sighed. If he had stuck with that crazy woman for a few more seconds he might''ve actually died. Loki currently could no longer move his arms which were numbed, as his mana had depleted to a near zero. He took this time when his arms could not move and his body was aching all over to rest up.


    ''What was that, her technique wasn''t as strong as the warriors back in my old world, but her speed alone could match up to those at the master swordsman level.'' That was an extremely greatplimenting from Loki as master swordsmen back in his old world were people that had stepped foot in the realm of the strong. Even though there were many master-level swordsmen in his old world, that was a world filled with mana. In this world that was nearly devoid of mana to train to that level at such a young age was incredible.


    ''No, she did use something different from mana. Maybe the people of this world had discarded mana for something else. It might be a weaker version of mana, but what itcks in purity, it makes up for in quantity. I wonder if I could train the same energy as well... The school of Sword Light, maybe there are other schools in this world that could teach me how to use that energy... No, that might draw too much attention, based on how she was the only one I saw using that impure form of energy amongst thousands of people within the city, that would mean only a few know how to use it. So learning it from a school might make me stand out too much.''


    Loki raised his arm as he could finally feel it again. He clenched his hands into a fist trying to see if there were any problems.


    ''Still, if I can somehow activate that same energy on my own that would be for the best. Yeah, if it is better to train in that impure form of mana than the pure mana I''m using then I would train in that. An assassin must quickly adapt to his surroundings. There is so much that I still don''t know about this world, I hope the memories of the past owner would quicklye back to me. Having ack of knowledge such as the basic information of this world is proving to be quite troublesome.''


    ...


    Loki could finally feel his arms functioning again and sighed. His body was aching all over and he even after resting for half an hour his mana wasn''t restored properly, still, it was enough for him to use [Enhancement] so that he couldnd safely on the ground. As hended at an empty alleyway, Loki looked at his watch and sighed.


    ''I need to get home quickly or else Alisa would get mad at me again.''


    ...


    A few days ago when he dealt with Luke''s group and went home at around two in the morning, what awaited him was an angry Alisa.


    "Big brother where have you been?!"


    "I had some business to attend to, didn''t I send you a text message? Also, why are you still awake Alisa, don''t you have schoolter?"


    "Don''t change the subject big brother! I kept on calling your phone but you turned it off! What business would you need to do in this hour? Also, you''re still on sick leave, not to mention the problem with your memories. So what kind of business do you need to attend to in your current state?!"


    Alisa was really angry but at the same time, she was crying. Loki was shocked to see that reaction of hers and didn''t know what to do.


    "Big brother, please take better care of yourself. Mom and Dad are no longer here, and we only have each other left. I can''t, I just can''t big brother!"


    Seeing the pained expression that Alisa was showing, Loki felt a pang in his heart. Doing something like this with that face of hers that looks so simr to Shera''s was a devastating attack on Loki. He approached the crying Alisa and hugged her.


    "I''m sorry Alisa, I''m sorry to have worried you. I just wanted to look around the city wanting to see if some of my memories would return, but if me staying out thiste makes you feel worried then I promise that I won''t stay out toote."


    Alisa wiped away her tears and nodded her head. "It''s a promise then."


    ...


    Loki needed to change his clothes first before heading back to the house. It was already nine p.m if he hurried he might get home at around quarter to ten. It was a tight schedule but he needed to do it, he no longer wanted to see Alisa looked that hurt.


    ''I guess I''ll deal with the other gangs next time. Since I already dealt with the biggest gang, the others shouldn''t be that much of a problem for as long as no uncertain factors like Leia appear.''


    ...


    "Achoo!"


    Le who was returning to report to the leader suddenly sneezed.


    ''Is that guy perhaps thinking about me?''


    As she was heading back she couldn''t help but remember the fight she recently had. That was an exciting fight, it was even more exciting than when she fought in that tournament nine years ago. She was just thirteen years old back then and was considered one of the youngest that joined.


    There were many in that tournament who were stronger than her, many of which were an absolute beast on the battlefield, yetpared to them she felt the most excited while fighting Fade. When she fought him, it was like fighting a cloud in the sky. No matter what she did, it felt like he could evade any and all strikesing at him. Not to mention she could feel the thick scent of death on him, it was like he could''ve killed her any time he wanted.


    ''I can''t wait for our next meeting.'' She gripped her sword while rubbing it on her crotch as she got excited just thinking about her next battle with Fade.

 Chapter 18 - The Demise Of The Gang Leaders

    In the following days, Loki dealt with the other gangs that could threaten Luke and his friends. He took down the leaders of each gang with extreme speed and efficiency. The first gang leader he killed was just a test run, just so that he could gauge the strength of the gang members. Now that he knew what the level of his opponents were at, for as long as no one simr to Le appeared he could deal with these gangs using a more direct approach.


    He used the spell [Enhancement] on some hair he took from a random cat. Using [Enhancement] on the hair made it into something that was as hard and sharp as a steel needle. He didn''t use his hair since it was possible that someone might notice it.


    Loki found it quite funny that the bosses of these so called gangs, would usually position their office in a room that had lots of windows. It was like they were asking for them to be attacked through the windows. Well to be fair to them, with the distance of the nearby buildings being quite far if you used normal guns like pistols and such you won''t have an urate shot. Though Loki knew that there were guns that were made for long-distance shooting, but those were hard to acquire and required a special license to own not to mention they were expensive. To deal with such a small-time gang leader with something like that, wouldn''t be worth it, would it?


    ''Well, it doesn''t matter for whatever reason they decided to make their office with suchrge windows. It just makes things a bit easier for me.''


    After Loki took a position on the roof of the opposite building, he double-checked and looked at the picture of the boss. He then looked at the person sitting on the desk in the opposite building. Once he was sure that person was the boss in question, Loki used [Enhancement] on his body and on the piece of hair he got from a random cat, he then threw the cat hair towards the boss''s throat. The cat''s hair flew straight at a simr speed to a bullet. The hair prated the window and went through the boss''s throat.


    The boss stood up from his seat shocked by the sudden act, the moment he did so, Loki got a clear shot at the boss''s heart. Loki threw another hair this time aimed towards the heart. The hair prated through the chest and went through the heart. Blood started pouring out of the boss as his subordinates were confused as to what was happening.


    The boss got to live a few more seconds before he slowly died unsure as to what happened. Once the job was done, Loki disappeared into the darkness of the night.


    ...


    A couple of days had passed and Loki finally killed thest remaining boss on his hit list. Thest few were quite troublesome to deal with, as they were already expecting an attack of sorts. The bosses stayed hidden in remote locations and it took some effort to track them down. Unfortunately for them, their subordinates weren''t as loyal as they thought, just a little bit of torture and they spilled all the info they could spout.


    During these days as Loki was rampaging around, the local news started talking about him, or to be more specific the vignte that was killing the local gang leaders. There were also some who spected that Loki was a hired hand that was sent by a bigger gang to kill all the bosses of the smaller gangs.


    After he killed off the bosses of the gangs that were rted to Luke and his friends, some of those gangs were absorbed byrger gangs, but most of them disbanded permanently as most of the members either changed their lifestyle, were forced into hiding, or were simply killed.


    ...


    "Ma''am another one of those incidents just happened. This time it''s the boss of the Hyenas." An officer driving a police car spoke to the woman sitting beside him who was his superior. The woman was an energetic-looking person, who had an athletically slim body. She was wearing a leather jacket, a tie, and a red tank top, she had her badge at the side of her hip. The woman was eating a burger she finished eating it before answering.


    "Well, what are you waiting for let''s head to the crime scene."


    ...


    The two arrived at the scene of the crime were there were already several officers on the scene. The woman shed her badge at the officer guarding the blockade.


    "Detective Watanabe, I''m the lead detective of this case. I heard that the boss of Hyena has been under surveince for the past few days. How was he assassinated under such conditions?"


    "I''ll be the one to answer that." A person wearing cks and a polo shirt with a tie appeared. He was a rather tall individual as he looked down on Watanabe who was five foot six, he spoke as he adjusted his sses.


    "Who could''ve guessed that it was the great Detective Morgan that was stationed here. So tell me how you guys failed to stop the assant." Watanabe Matsuri smiled as she questioned Harold Morgan. Harold frowned but he still answered in a professional manner.


    "We had the cottage were Spencer Baker aka Koda the boss of Hyena was staying at under twenty-four-hour surveince. At around 16:45 the window was broken and a few secondster Jiro, Koda''s lieutenant and right-hand man started running away. We immediately stormed the cottage but it was toote. We also apprehended Jiro but he has no clue how his boss was killed. Koda''s cause of death is simr to the other gang leaders, which was a prating blow to the heart and throat."


    "Hmph, so the exact M.O. I''ll take a look myself."


    Matsuri entered the cottage and saw Koda''s dead body. All the windows in the cottage were shut tight and the curtains had covered them all except one. There was one broken window with a rock on the ground. As she continued to look around, Matsuri noticed a single piece of hair.


    ''Another one, same as all the others. I can already pretty much guess this is just some random cat''s hair. It seems impossible, but could this be rted to the weapon used to kill the gang leaders? Based on the holes in their chest and throat, they said it was something simr to a needle that was used for the kill. It''s highly probable that a martial artist had killed these guys, but why? Martial artists are considered to be the elite, especially those stuck up old families they would never allow their members to do something like this.''


    While Matsuri was deep in thought her partner detective John Realle spoke.


    "Well whoever is doing this, might be bad, but at least he''s just killing the scum and that''s fine in my book. If he''s just killing the scum, why won''t we just let him do it?" The moment those words came out of John''s mouth, Matsuri red at John.


    "No matter how scummy a person is, no one has the right to take their lives. No one can be above thew and no one should be allowed to have the power to be one''s judge, jury, and executioner. Never ever say those words in front of me again. If you do I better have a new partner." Matsuri who usually had a smile on her face had this frightening scowl which made John shiver in fear, not because of the look, Matsuri was showing him, but because of the pressure, she was emitting. It was a suffocating feeling that made John take a step back.


    "I''m sorry Ma''am, I will never speak of such things ever again." Hearing John''s response Matsuri''s expression returned to normal and she smiled.


    "Sorry about that, I just get a bit emotional regarding vigntism. Well anyway, let''s get back to work." As if the events that happened a while ago never happened, Matsuri went back to looking around the crime scene.

 Chapter 19 - Watanabe Matsuri

    Watanabe Matsuri, family name Watanabe first name Matsuri. She was the eldest child among three siblings. Her father was the boss of a small manufacturingpany, and her mother was a cook. Their family was pretty well offpared to others, but all of this changed once it was found out that her father was doing a lot of illegal things, from ckmailing employees, asking female employees for sexual favors, to even doing some shady dealings with the drug-dealing gangs.


    Matsuri''s father was scum and because of him, their family took a hard hit, which ruined their reputation. It became difficult for Matsuri''s mother and siblings to remain in the ce that they lived in. Matsuri''s mother immediately divorced her father and took her and her siblings away.


    Even though he was scum he was still her father, so she and her siblings would meet their father every now and then during his trial. Eventually, he was sentenced to twenty years in prison. There were many families of those affected by what he has done, that didn''t like the ruling of the judge and made an appeal. Yet before he could atone for his sins, someone took justice into their own hands and killed him.


    It was an act of vigntism, the person who killed her father wasn''t even part of the families affected but someone who simply felt that her father did not deserve a second chance. The person was arrested eventually but that did not bring her father back. In Matsuri''s mind, it wasn''t just that vignte''s fault that her father had died but it was also the failure of the police that led to her father''s death. That vignte had been atrge for quite some time and had killed four others he had deemed as criminals. The police''s failure to catch the vignte which allowed the deaths of four others her father included, had dug into her heart.


    So she took it upon herself to be someone that wouldn''t allow any criminal to escape. She eventually joined the police force and rose to be a detective at the age of twenty-two. She was the youngest female detective in the entire city.


    She had already calmed down from her past hatred and understood that life was too short to be bound by the past. She also now understood that she couldn''t be some superwoman that could catch every and all criminals, but she made sure that those that she could catch, she would catch no matter how long it took. Her casepletion rate up to now has been one hundred percent.


    ...


    When Matsuri was assigned to the vignte murder case, four gang leaders had already been killed. The next one to die was the leader of the Hyenas. Matsuri had studied the case and checked the crime scenes multiple times, but no matter how hard she looked there were few to no clues at all.


    The suspect would destroy all surveince cameras near the crime scene on the day of the attack. The suspect left no evidence, the weapon used was unknown, there were no fingerprints or any traceable thing that the suspect could''ve left. She had checked the nearby buildings were it was possible to have sniped the victims, but that was a dead end as well. It was like the suspect was a ghost, he came and went without a trace.


    The only people capable of being so thorough were martial artists, but unfortunately due tock of evidence, she wasn''t even allowed to talk to any of the martial artist families.


    The only thing she had going for her, was the numerous cat hair that was spotted at every crime scene. She knew little about how martial artists do things, but she was sure that even they couldn''t use some random cat hair as a weapon.


    ''Still, even though my mind is saying it''s impossible my instincts are telling me that these pieces of cat hair really are rted to the incidents. Yet no matter how I ask, the people in theb keep on saying that there''s nothing special about them... So how did the suspect use this in his assassinations? Damn, there must be something that I can use, the suspect isn''t some ghost, he should''ve left a trace of him somewhere.''


    Matsuri kept on looking at the files on the case but no matter how hard she looked there was nothing to see. The killings also felt so random, there was no link between the five gangs and their leaders.


    ''Were these attacks truly just some random justice enacted by a crazed vignte? No, that can''t be it, if he was really some crazed vignte and was this skilled, he would''ve killed more gang members but he only killed the leaders of each gang... It is possible like those conspiracy theorists on the inte said, that this guy was some hired gun, but who would pay such a professional to kill some low-level gang leaders?''


    Matsuri sighed as she couldn''t get anywhere at this point. She then took her break and went to the cafe that was near one of the crime scenes. As she ordered her coffee and sat near the window she noticed that in this position she could clearly see the entrance to the building on the other side of the street.


    This cafe was one of the ces that had their surveince cameras destroyed. When Matsuri thought of that she suddenly had an epiphany.


    ''For someone so thorough as this guy, he would''ve done some groundwork before the kill. He must''ve observed that building beforehand. The footage lost was just on that day of the incident. Maybe I can spot him checking the building out, the day before.'' Matsuri got up from her chair and talked to the manager of the cafe. She wanted to review the footage of the previous days before the incident happened.


    She studied every single customer that came to the cafe the day before the incident. There were about twenty people that sat near the window. She looked at the footage of two days before the incident and there were some repeat customers, but none of those that sat near the window was sitting there the day before.


    The only other thing of note was that there were three customers that sat near the window that wasn''t there two days before the incident. Matsuri left the cafe with copies of the tapes. She was a bit disappointed that she didn''t have the breakthrough she expected.


    ''Still, those three customers might turn out to be something. I better check them out, it''s better than nothing.''


    Even though she didn''t know it at the time, but one of those customers she was suspecting was actually Loki.

 Chapter 20 - Were Sorry

    Loki woke up at around four in the morning this was now his usual routine. He started his day with some morning stretches and then proceeded to do some jumping jacks. Once he was done warming up a bit he got dressed and headed out for his morning jog.


    It was pretty cold outside during this time of day, but Loki was using this time to train his body and mind to get used to such temperatures. Not to mention the morning jog was also quite calming. As he was jogging he remembered yesterday''s events.


    ...


    Once Loki killed the final gang leader rted to Luke and his friends he returned to tell Luke that the job has beenpleted. When Luke and his friends heard what Loki said they could not say anything at all. They already heard from the local news that many of the small gang leaders in the city had perished one by one.


    When Luke''s friends first heard what Luke said about Loki dealing with their problem, they couldn''t believe it, yet now seeing it happening right in front of their eyes they still couldn''t believe it. Some random man they had just met, assassinated the local gang leaders, even though they were only leaders of small gangs, they were still part of that side of the world and were extremely dangerous. They weren''t people that could be dealt with by ordinary means.


    So when they heard from Loki''s own mouth that he had finished dealing with the gang leaders, Luke and his friends could no longer hold it in and prostrated in front of Loki pounding their heads onto the ground.


    "Thank you!" All of them spoke in unison with loud resounding voices.


    "Hey, there''s no need to do that, I just did the job you paid me to do. So raise your heads."


    The group didn''t listen to Loki and continued to have their heads bow down. Loki could see that most of them were crying at this moment.


    "No please, allow us to thank you, for everything. It might have been just a job for you, but to us, it was much more than that. You might bebeled as a criminal now, but in our hearts, you are our savior."


    "Yeah, the boss... No, I mean, Luke is right. We''ve already lost hope in going back to that kind of world since no one on that side believed in us, not even ourselves. We all thought that this was the only path we could go on. Yet you not only told us that we could go back, but you actually helped us. If someone like you can believe that we can do it, then how can we not believe it."


    One of Luke''s friends spoke out as tears and some snot fell down his face. Every word he said resonated with those present.


    "He''s right. We''re not particrly smart, in fact, most of us arebeled as dumb, and all we''re really good at is fighting, well against you, we might not have been much, but that was what we were best at. Everyone had treated us as outcasts, as people who could not be redeemed, yet you chose to help us despite what we had nned to do to you. So this time, I won''t run away and I''ll do my best to live a proper life."


    Most of Luke''s friends showed their undying gratitude to Loki. They all had been living rather harsh lives were no one believed in them, not even their own families. It was like all of them were forced into this way of living simply because they couldn''t fit in. Some of them did it because of how they looked, some of them did it because they were forced by their peers, some of them did it because they had nothing else going for them, and some did it because they could not have the courage to walk forward and took the coward''s path. They might have varying reasons, but most of them did it because no one believed in them because no one was there to set them straight, no one cared enough to help them change.


    Some tried, but they were all talk and no action, not only did they fail to truly help them, but instead those people pushed Luke and his friends deeper into that part of the world. Also, Loki was someone that could easily kill them, this was one of the deciding factors as to why most of them wanted to change. Some of Luke''s friends didn''t really want to change their ways but had no other choice since if they don''t change and continue doing bad things, the end result would be death. Most of them were definitely grateful, but the major contributing factor for their change was no only because of Loki''s belief in them, but because of Loki''s strength.


    They were not only grateful but also absolutely scared of Loki. Even now as they talk to him, they couldn''t believe such a weak-looking person was able to kill gang leaders without being seen.


    When Loki saw how grateful they were something inside him stirred. Even back in his old world, he did simr things like this, but he was never thanked before. No matter the job no one had shown him their gratitude, this was the first time. Loki grabbed hold of his chest as he once again remembered his little sister''s Shera''s face.


    ''Is this what you wanted Shera, am I finally bing that ideal assassin you wished for?...'' Loki looked at the group who had different expressions on their faces, and he couldn''t help but sigh.


    ''I was going to erase their memories about me once I had enough mana, but I guess I can trust these kids a bit. Also even if they somehow decide to betray me, they have no proof that I did what I did, I made sure to leave no trace behind. So it will just be their words against mine. This might turn out to be a mistaketer, but I feel that this is what Shera would''ve wanted me to do.''


    After that, the group had a little party to celebrate and they ate with smiles on their faces.


    ...


    Just remembering that scene where they all thanked him sincerely made Loki smile a bit. He continued his morning jog with a happy smile on his face.


    ...


    Later that afternoon as Liam was going home with his friends, he saw Luke''s group. Unlikest time where it was only Luke and one other, this time Luke brought a lot of people with him. The other studentsing out of the school gate passed by in fear, some of them couldn''t even walk by as they waited for the scary-looking group to leave.


    Even Liam was overwhelmed by the sight and wanted to stealthily leave, but he and his friends were already spotted by Luke. Seeing Luke approach him, Liam clenched his fist and so did Kenji, ready for a fight. On the other hand, Niel got his phone out and was about ready to call the cops. When Liam looked at his two friends he felt that this happened before. As Luke''s group was now in front of Liam''s group, Liam gathered up his courage and spoke.


    "What do you want?"


    "We''re sorry!" Luke''s group bowed in unison and apologized, shocking everyone present, especially Liam and his friends.


    "Huh?"


    "We''re sorry for causing you trouble. What my friends did to you was wrong, so if you want you can punch us as much as you want. You can punch and kick until you''re satisfied."


    Liam couldn''t understand what was happening at first, but slowly he was able to digest what was just said. Even his friends looked at the delinquents with surprise and confusion.


    "Why are you doing this?" When Liam asked this question, Luke lifted his head and looked at Liam with a smile on his face.


    "You might not believe this, but someone came to us and pointed out our mistakes, so we came here to change. I know it doesn''t make what we''ve done in the past disappear, but from here on out we''ll be trying our best."


    Liam looked at Luke''s expression for a few seconds, he could feel Luke''s sincerity. Liam closed his eyes and sighed.


    "It''s alright, we all make mistakes. I can''t really say that I fully believe that you guys changed just like that, but I guess I''ll trust that you truly want to do something. So whatever happened between us, is over."


    "THANK YOU!" Luke and his friends responded with gusto. "If you guys want, do you want toe to the open field and y ser with us? You see as a sign that we''re trying our best, we created a ser club in our school. We might not be that good, but it''s fun to y. So do you want to join us?"


    "Not today, maybe next time."


    "I see... Any time you guys want to y, you can meet us in the open ser field near park avenue. That''s where we''re currently practicing since our school doesn''t have the proper facilities." Luke and his group once again bowed their heads before leaving a bewildered Liam and friends. The students watching at the side did not expect such a sequence of events, most of them were expecting Liam to get beaten up.

 Chapter 21 - Martial Artists

    It has been a few days since Loki finished his job for Luke and his friends. Nowadays that once delinquent group of kids were seen ying ser at an open field. The change was so sudden that the people found it strange at first, but at this time they slowly epted the situation as some of them liked watching the passionate disy of the former delinquents. Some of them even found it extremely inspirational.


    It was such a positive change, that many didn''t really mind finding out the reason of the change. Couple with the fact that a lot of the gangs had disappeared from the city made the citizens feel even better.


    ...


    A few weeks have now passed since he came to this world, and Loki had learned more and more about his current world, as well as the existence of martial artists. The martial artist of this world were the same as the warriors of his old world. They empower their bodies with spiritual energy and were extremely proficient in close-quartersbat. They were existences above the normal popce.


    In the past, martial artists were treated as beings akin to deities. They could destroy boulders with their fists, and the stronger ones could cut a hundred men with a single sh. The old martial arts families were pretty much the lords of thend.


    Back then there was a rule in war, that only weaker martial artists could join the fight. If a stronger one goes out then the others at the same level will crush him and his family. Each martial art family kept each other in check since their ideologies were different.


    Some martial arts families wanted to rule over the general popce, some wanted to reach the peak of the martial arts and didn''t bother with what was happening in the world, some wanted to help the general popce by bing their savior, others wanted to guide themon folk into the world of martial arts, there were many more but those four examples were the general trend of that time.


    Yet as human civilization grew and their knowledge widened, they understood that the martial artists weren''t deities they were humans like them. The martial artists simply monopolized the knowledge on how to use the thing they called inner power. So since they could not beat the martial artist with what they currently had the regr humans tried making weapons that could aid them in battle. As the weapons evolved, over time themon folk had finally created weapons that could make even a normal human be able to somehow fight a martial artist.


    When the age of firearms came the martial artists'' prestige lessened. They were no longer the unbeatable Gods that they used to be. They could now be beaten even by those that don''t have this so called inner power that they use.


    Still, even with these new weapons, it was quite difficult to match even a single martial artist. However, themon folk were numerous and outnumber the martial artists a thousand to one. If one couldn''t beat the martial artist then they would send ten, if ten won''t do then they would send a hundred, if a hundred won''t do then they would send a thousand.


    Themon folk used their overwhelming numbers to their advantage. It was then that the martial art families had fallen from their golden age.


    In the current age, martial artists were still treated with great respect and fear, but they were no longer the lords of thend. Still, it wasn''t just one-sided advancement, as the weapons used by themon folk were getting stronger day by day, the martial artists were also starting to grow.


    Unlike when they first came out, guns weren''t as effective against a martial artist as they used to be. Nowadays you need to at least have something like a fully automatic rifle if you want to even try and face martial artists.


    ...


    ''That woman called Le that I fought the other day, surely she was one of those so called martial artists of this world. I wonder what this inner power they keep mentioning is. Since mana is an outer force that your try to manipte, that couldn''t be what they use. Something that the human body can create on its own that isparable to mana. I wonder does this body also have the potential in using that same power, or do you need to be born with it?... Well at this point it doesn''t really matter. If they are using something from a different pool of energy that would mean I''m the only one who is able to store and manipte this world''s mana. Even though it can''t bepared to the mana pool of my old world, if I''m the only one using it then that''s a different matter altogether. Maybe I can surpass even my old self in this new world.''


    Even though his goal back in his old world was to be the ideal assassin his little sister wanted him to be, even though his goal in this current world was to protect the family he had now, deep down Loki, no Fade''s own personal goal was to be stronger.

 Chapter 22 - The Cop And The Assassin

    It has been a couple of weeks now since Loki arrived in this new world. His oncenky body was now showing a bit of change and was bing a little more muscr. Though the outer appearance hasn''t changed that much, his overall performance had greatly improved.


    His base strength, speed, and stamina had increased to a point that even his trainer Rick was dumbfounded. Not only did his physical body get stronger, but even his mana supply grew a bitrger. He was still unable to use other spells aside from [Enhancement] but now he could use that one spell at a much longer time frame.


    Aside from the improvement in his fitness, there was also the improvement in his rtionship with his new siblings. The more of the memories of the past owner returned, the better his rtionship with Alisa went. Every now and then when he mentions things that he suddenly remembered to Alisa that was enough to make her happy, in fact, she was so happy she would cry most of the time and hug him.


    On the other hand, Loki''s rtionship with Liam was also getting slightly better. Liam stopped calling Loki a loser,me, and other such colorful nicknames. He returned to just calling him bro. It was a great step up. Not to mention the two of them started ying video games together every now and then.


    Loki got really interested in these things called video games. There were a lot of fighting games that emte the movements of the martial artists, well which was to be expected in a world filled with them, but there were also genres that had magic in them. Some of the games had the same spells as Loki''s old world. There were even assassin games that he watched Liam y. Unfortunately, Loki wasn''t really that good at video games so he wasn''t able to y the single-yer games that well.


    Overall Loki''s new life in this new world, was turning out better than he anticipated. There might be some problems here and there, but that was a normal thing for any life.


    ...


    It was just another day as Loki was doing his usual routine. As Loki was jogging back home he noticed a woman leaning at a wall on the side. Loki was quick to notice the badge on her hip. Despite knowing she was a cop Loki''s facial expression didn''t change as he continued jogging, but as he got close the cop stepped forward blocking his path.


    "It''s nice to meet you Mr. Loki Matsuda, or should I say, Mr. Assassin." The cop was none other than Matsuri. In the past days, she had spoken to the two people that she suspected but both of them had pretty good alibis, and many witnesses confirming that they had been where they say they had been during the time of the incident. Loki was thest one she needed to meet.


    Matsuri showed her badge and made a gesture of pulling out her gun. Yet Loki did not react at all, she was expecting him to flinch a bit. On the other hand, Loki felt relieved by his reaction. He obviously had noticed Matsuri''s gesture, but his body did not react at all. If he was in his old body that was trained to the very limits, the moment Matsuri made such a gesture his body would''ve reacted before he even thought about moving. That would''ve blown his cover if he did that, and he would be forced to kill Matsuri since he doesn''t have ess to the memory wiping spell. He didn''t want to kill someone like Matsuri since that went against the ''ideal assassin'' he was trying to be.


    "What are you talking about, are you perhaps calling me an assassin?"


    "Oh no, sorry that was just a joke I do every now and then. I actually came here to ask you a few questions about the case I''m handling." Matsuri quickly changed her tone, when she saw Loki''s reaction.


    "I see, if I can do anything to help, I will dly answer your questions."


    "Thank you for your cooperation. So how about we change locations."


    The two went to a nearby coffee shop where Matsuri bought Loki and herself some coffee, once they were seated Matsuri began her questioning.


    "These are just some simple questions, so no need to be nervous. During 8:32 p.m on August 14, where were you, and what were you doing?"


    "I was at home reading."


    "Was there anyone with you that could confirm that you were there?"


    "My siblings were in the house as well."


    "I see, I see... So Mr. Matsuda can you tell me why on August 13 you were at a coffee shop that was located on the other side of the city? If you wanted coffee there were a lot of other options near you, like this one. So why go so far away just to get some coffee?"


    "Are you stalking me, Ms. Officer?"


    "It''s Detective Watanabe, also no I wasn''t stalking you or anything like that. The case I''m handling at the moment is rted to that coffee shop. I just found it weird that you were all the way over there. It just made me a little suspicious."


    "That''s a very private question, but since it might help your investigation, as well as making it clear that I''m not suspicious, I''ll answer. I''m not sure if you know this but I was recently in an ident."


    "Oh, the traffic ident a month ago. I was not part of that case but I am aware of that happening."


    "Then were you aware that I''m suffering from memory loss?"


    "Huh?"


    "The reason I was in that coffee shop was because I was looking around the city. I wanted to jolt my memory by going to different ces that I think I''ve been to. I hope that answers your questions, also thank you for the coffee. So if you would excuse me I''m heading home."


    Loki stood up and was about to leave. When Matsuri saw Loki leaving her gut was telling her not to let him go. Based on everything she heard and the alibi he gave, Loki was supposed to be clearly innocent, but something within her was telling her that he had something to do with all this. She wasn''t sure what Loki''s rtion to the case was, but he was someone her instincts were telling her not to let go. Matsuri stood up, run towards Loki, and grabbed his hand.


    "Do you need something else, Detective Watanabe?"


    "I just wanted to apologize for the insensitive question I made. Even if It was for an investigation asking about such things in such a way is not something any cop should do. Allow me to make it up to you by treating you to dinner."


    "It''s alright, you were just doing your job, there''s no need for that."


    "No please, I insist!"


    "Due to my condition, my sister wouldn''t want me to go out toote with someone I barely know."


    "Then please bring your siblings as well."


    "But I am busy theseing nights?"


    "It doesn''t need to be dinner, it could be lunch or breakfast. We can go anytime you are free. Just please allow me to treat you. I know this is selfish of me but this is something I must do."


    Loki was in a rather tight spot as he saw Matsuri''s sincerity. It was obvious this woman won''t stop offering to treat him. If he kept on denying her without a more proper reason, she might get more suspicious of him.


    ''She was already suspicious of me from the get-go. Well it doesn''t really matter if she treats us to a meal. She doeasn''t have anything to pin on me, and for as long as I don''t say anything weird, she would never know.'' Loki sighed before he answered.


    "Fine, how about lunch tomorrow. I''ll bring my siblings, since it''s a Sunday."


    Once Loki came to an agreement he and Matsuri exchanged numbers. Seeing Loki off, Matsuri frowned as what she did was truly inappropriate.


    ''What the f*ck am I doing? He already told me his alibi, and I was already expecting this to be a dead end, so why did I force myself on him?'' Matsuri sighed as she headed back to the station.

 Chapter 23 - Stalking

    When Loki got away from the woman called Matsuri he immediately went back to tail her. Loki spotted Matsuri in front of the coffee shop sighing before walking away. Loki followed ten meters behind Matsuri. As he was tailing her, Loki took out his smartphone and made a phone call.


    ...


    In a certain dark room, there were multiple monitors each ying a different thing. On one monitor was a chart of the stock market, on another, was a streaming Vtuber, and on another was a cryptic message, another had various camera footages. There were many things disyed on these various monitors and the one watching each one was eating a lollipop as he typed onto his keyboard with a speed that made his hands look like he had more than two.


    The man in question looked no older than thirteen years old and had messy ck hair and a sleepy look about him. This was Harold Wagner, a young prodigy whose intelligence has no rival amongst his peers. Due to various reasons, he now never goes to school and refuses to leave his room unless absolutely necessary.


    He had met Luke in an online game he recently got hooked in. After learning more about Luke he found that the man was a rather cool guy. Harold had helped Luke on numerous asions by gathering intel, this was one of the reasons that even though Luke''s group were just a group of high school delinquents they were still able to deal with the local gangs.


    ...


    As Harold was watching the numerous things on the different monitors, while he was ying and single-yer fps game, his phone started ringing. He was surprised that someone was calling him at his hour, as the only people that have his phone number were few. There were his parents, Luke, and that dangerous individual. When Harold checked who was calling him his eyes widened in shock.


    ''What does this guy want? Do I need to answer this or can I ignore it?'' Harold was hesitating but then he remembered what that guy did and the skills he employed. This person could kill him without anyone knowing it was him.


    Harold even tried finding whatever he can about Loki and was only able to get some basic information. There was nothing there that could exin how Loki was so powerful, at first he thought Loki was part of a martial arts family, but upon investigation, it turns out Loki came from a very normal family background.


    Despite all of his efforts, all the information Harold got was that Loki was a college grad that was now working as a librarian in a rtively famous school. No matter how hard he searched Harold could find no trace of how Loki gained his skills. That was the first time in his whole life that had failed to gain the information that he needed. To Harold what scared him more wasn''t what Loki could do to him, but theck of information he had on Loki.


    Harold looked at his ringing phone nervously, he didn''t want to answer but he had no choice. Well, it''s not like Loki was a bad person per se, he was a dangerous individual for sure, but not necessarily a bad one. Loki even paid him for the information he wanted. Harold sighed before answering his phone.


    "Hello, Sir, to what do I owe the pleasure?"


    "I need you to find out everything you can about a cop. She''s called Detective Watanabe I need whatever you can find on her. I''ll send you the payment for the jobter."


    "Alright, just give me a few minutes." While he was talking Harold was already hacking into the police force''s database. It didn''t take him too long to pull up the information he needed since he already established a connection before.


    "Sir, I have the info."


    "Tell me." Loki continued to stalk Matsuri who was walking at a rather leisurely pace.


    "Watanabe Matsuri, age twenty-three years old. Joined the force after graduating high school, has been in the force for nearly six years. Took night sses while doing police work, and has a bachelor''s degree in criminology. She is the youngest female detective in the city of Berkton. Has handled thirty cases since bing a detective and has solved each case. As for her-"


    Harold''s report was rather long, but it was very detailed, he did leave out some parts to try and shorten the conversation.


    "I see, thank you for the information. I will send you the moneyter." After saying their goodbyes, Loki ended the call.


    ''I wonder is he going to kill the detective? No, if he wanted to kill her, he could easily do so without trying to get such info.'' Harold shook his head as he no longer bothered to think about it since it didn''t really matter to him whatever Loki was going to do with the information he gave him.


    ...


    After following Matsuri for a while, she suddenly sprinted forward. Loki was sure that she didn''t spot him, but just to be safe Loki increased the distance between them before following. The running Matsuri suddenly tackled the man in front of her.


    "What the f*ck are you doing?!" The man shouted drawing the attention of the people nearby. Matsuri then showed the man her badge and replied.


    "You''re under arrest for stealing this wallet." Matsuri took out a wallet from the man''s jacket.


    "That''s mine!"


    "Oh really so you''re Michelle Langrid, you''re the one in this picture?" Matsuri took out an ID from the wallet and showed it to the man who became silent. It was at that moment a female from the crowd shouted.


    "Wait, that''s my wallet!"


    After that Matsuri returned the wallet to its rightful owner, she called a squad car to bring the man back to the police station. Matsuri didn''t go back to the police station in the squad car instead she continued her walk towards the police station.


    On her way, Matsuri did various things. She helped an old couple across the street, she helped a child look for her dog, she helped some foreigners who were lost. Matsuri continued to help everyone she saw on the way to the police station.


    The more Loki learned about Matsuri, the more he felt that this person was someone he shouldn''t kill.

 Chapter 24 - Reservation

    Loki alongside his pouting little sister and his surprisingly excited little brother were heading towards a restaurant to meet Matsuri. Last night when Loki told the two about the detective who was going to treat them to lunch the two had very different reactions.


    ...


    "Wha, you met a woman detective and she offered to treat you to lunch?!" Alisa shouted as she was cing the tes on the table.


    "Huh? Someone actually took notice of you bro?" Liam who was ying some video games in the living room chimed in.


    "She didn''t just invite me, she invited you two as well," Loki answered while waiting for the food to be served.


    "So is she hot?" Liam suddenly asked getting a bit more interested in the subject.


    "I can''t really tell," Loki answered while shrugging his shoulders.


    "What kind of questions is that?! Don''t be fooled big brother, this woman might have some ulterior motives. How about we not go and you tell her you''re busy."


    "That would be rude, it''s just lunch and it''s free so why should we hesitate?"


    "Isn''t my food good enough for you big brother?"


    "Of course it''s enough, but it''s okay to rest every now and then. Since we''re going to get a free meal why not take it, so that you can rest from cooking. Also, it has been a while since the three of us went out together."


    "Muuu, if you say it like that, how can I refuse." Alisa pouted then sighed.


    ...


    The restaurant where Matsuri invited them was a well-known restaurant, so the three got dressed up. As they arrived near the restaurant Loki was able to quickly spot Matsuri who was wearing rather casual clothing. A Tank top, a jacket, jeans, and military boots. Loki noticed that she had two handguns hidden within her jacket, and based on the way she walked were her left leg seems slightlygging there might be a weapon hidden in her left boot.


    "Whoah, don''t you guys look nice. Hello everyone, I''m Watanabe Matsuri, you can just call me Matsuri. It''s nice to meet you two." Matsuri smiled at Alisa and Liam while waving her hands energetically.


    When Alisa saw Matsuri she looked at her from head to toe. Alisa couldn''t help but think that this person was a rather cool-lookingdy. Still, that doesn''t mean she approves of her.


    On the other hand, Liam couldn''t believe that such a hotdy asked his brother to lunch. Also, he couldn''t get his eyes off her outfit. As he continued to stare, Alisa pinched his sides.


    "It''s nice to meet you as well, Detective Matsuri, I''m Alisa Matsuda, big brother Loki''s little sister. Thank you for treating us today." Alisa made a formal bow, making Matsuri feel a bit embarrassed as she waved her hands frantically.


    "No need to be so formal with me. Like I said you can just call me Matsuri."


    "I''m sorry but I can''t do that to someone who''s older than me and whom I just met today," Alisa responded still talking in a rather formal manner. This made for a rather awkward atmosphere.


    "Well, anyway don''t mind my stick in the mud sister, Matsuri. I''m the youngest among the three of us. Since I can call you Matsuri you can just call me Liam, or if you want just Li is fine." As the three were done with their greetings, Loki finally interjected.


    "I''m rather surprised that you can afford to treat us in such a ce."


    "The owner of this ce owes me one, so I have a permanent reservation in this restaurant. I haven''t really tried to eat at this restaurant before this, but since he offered and I did want to treat you guys to a good meal I told him that I woulde today. Well, anyway let''s continue talking inside."


    Matsuri led the three into the restaurant. Upon entering the restaurant the pleasant smell of the food tickled their nose. There was also the sound of a piano and violin ying in the background. The inside of the restaurant was of top quality, the lighting, the decor, everything in it made you feel like you were in some kind of pce. Even the people inside the restaurant were wearing rather expensive-looking clothing.


    When the surrounding people who were waiting in the lobby noticed Matsuri and her group they sneered. In their minds, they all thought the same thing, what was a low-ss-looking people doing in here.


    "Do they think this is some kind of family restaurant?"


    "Are they perhaps lost?"


    "Did you see what that woman is wearing?"


    "How can they be even allowed in here?"


    The surrounding people started whispering at each other. Matsuri, Alisa, and Liam might not have heard what they were saying, but Loki was able to understand every single thing they were whispering as he could read their lips. Still, he didn''t really care since no matter the world there were always these kinds of people.


    The moment he entered the restaurant Loki unconsciously looked at each individual and memorized their faces. He also noted several ces were they could flee in case of an attack. It was at that moment, he heard someone screaming.


    "What do you mean I need to make a reservation?! Do you not know who I am? I''m the only son of the CEO of Harada Corporation." A young man apanied by two other young men was screaming at the waiter.


    "I''m sorry sir, but no matter who you are, if you don''t have a reservation then you aren''t allowed inside." As the waiter was talking, four men who looked to be part of security stepped forward. Intimidated by the aura the four were emitting the young man backed away and clicked his tongue.


    "Tsk, whatever, you better remember this, I''ll have you fired and this restaurant closed down. Come on guys let''s leave, this ce is a dump anyway." As the young man was about to leave he spotted Loki''s group and stared at Alisa and Matsuri. He then approached them with a sleazy smile on his face.


    "Hey you two, how about you guys join me and my friends instead. I''m sure those guys with you don''t have a reservation as well. Not to mention I''m obviously better than them, since I''m the sole heir of the Harada Corporation, surely you have heard of us."


    Alisa and Matsuri didn''t bother answering the guy and went past him. Seeing the two girls ignoring him the young man got angry and was about to grab hold of Alisa''s hand, but before he could reach he suddenly felt immense pressure. He started sweating as he noticed that the man who was with the twodies was looking at him with a deadly re. Seeing the young man''s hand stopped, Loki also stopped ring at him.


    Watching them leave without even acknowledging his existence made the young man even angrier, especially after being red at like that. This was the first time in his entire life that he was humiliated like this. He took note of the faces of Loki''s group, especially Loki who had red at him.


    ''Hmph, I''ll teach you a lessonter. For now, let''s see you embarrass yourselves for not having a reservation.''


    ...


    "Do you have a reservation?"


    "Yes, it''s under the name Watanabe Matsuri." When the waiter checked his list his eyes almost popped out in surprise. Still, he was a professional so he kept his cool. He didn''t know who the woman was, but it was stated in the list that if a person named Watanabe Matsuri arrived in the restaurant they were supposed to treat her like the owner himself.


    "If you may please present an ID card to verify your identity." Matsuri handed her driver''s license and once the waiter was sure that this person was Watanabe Matsuri he immediately bowed.


    "This waydy Matsuri. I will guide you to the V.I.P room."


    When the young man with thest name Harada saw the way the waiter treated Loki''s group he had his mouth opened wide. He then saw Matsuri look at him and gave him a mocking smile. Seeing that made the young man gnashed his teeth in frustration, he stormed out of the restaurant with his twopanions. Once outside he took out his phone and made a call.

 Chapter 25 - Accidental Meeting

    The waiter guided Loki''s group towards the second floor of the restaurant were the V.I.Ps of the restaurant were treated. As they were walking Loki continued to memorize theyout of the building, once they got to the second floor, he was surprised to see an unexpected person among the few people on the second floor.


    At the other end of the hallway, Loki spotted Le who was about to enter one of the private rooms. Unfortunately, it wasn''t just him that took notice, Le was able to spot them as well. The moment she saw Loki she felt that he was somewhat familiar. It was at that moment she noticed that Loki had casually nced at her.


    She was rather surprised by his reaction. Usually, when men take notice of her they would continue to stare in a rather rude manner. There were exceptions and she was about to dismiss it, but then she noticed something else, the way the person carried himself felt rather familiar.


    "Lady Le?" The waitress guiding Le looked at her confused.


    "Can you tell me who the guests over there are?"


    "I''m sorrydy Le such information is private."


    "I see... Then I''ll find out for myself." Le walked towards Loki''s group. The waitress that was assigned to Le was startled by the sudden deration, she wasn''t able to react as Le strutted towards Loki''s group.


    Loki sighed internally as he saw Le heading towards them. As expected he shouldn''t underestimate martial artists too much. It wasn''t just Loki, Matsuri also noticed the approaching Le.


    The first thing Matsuri noticed about Le was the sword on her hip. The only people who tantly show their weapons in public were martial artists. Le grabbed hold of her gun hidden within her jacket. When Le appeared before Loki''s group she stared at Loki for several seconds.


    "Um, Can I help you?" Loki asked looking visibly confused. As he spoke he slowly moved forward subtly blocking Le from his siblings.


    "Ms. Le is something wrong?" The waiter who was guiding Loki''s group asked. It was at that moment Le suddenly started touching Loki''s body.


    "What are you doing?!" Alisa suddenly shouted. As Alisa was about to pull Le off Loki, Matsuri stopped her. It was rather dangerous to get near a martial artist, especially one whose purpose was uncertain.


    "Miss, touching someone you don''t even know is a bit rude don''t you think so?" Matsuri spoke while trying to assess the situation. At first nce, it doesn''t look like Le was hostile but who knows if that will suddenly change. That was also the reason why Loki wasn''t doing anything and allowed Le to touch him all over. He simply continued to act like he was confused and weirded out by the action.


    "The feeling you give off is simr to him, but your physiques are too different. To change one''s physique so much in such a short amount of time, even my n head isn''t able to do that. Yet I can''t help but think you and he are rted."


    "Huh, what are you talking about? Are you alright miss, you keep on mumbling to yourself."


    "Hey, you, how are you rted to Fade?"


    "Fade, is that a person''s name?" Loki didn''t miss a beat and responded in the appropriate timing and tone. Still, he was rather surprised at how sharp Le was.


    ''It doesn''t seem like she''s using some technique to spot me nor does it seem like she can sense my mana. That would mean she''s guessing who I am by instinct alone.''


    Le looked at Loki''s expression and he did seem genuinely confused. Yet for some reason there was this feeling she got that something wasn''t right, his reactions were too perfect, no it was more like he was too calm.


    If it was some other man that Le approached they would be blushing nonstop. Even if they weren''t affected by her beauty they would look ufortable, especially since she was carrying a sword and touching him all over. Yet this man in front of her had this simple look of surprise on his face, and he answered all the questions a bit too easily.


    Le suddenly grabbed the hilt of her sword. Out of nowhere, she drew her sword shing it towards Loki aiming at his neck. Loki could follow the sword''s movement with his eyes, but his body that wasn''t using [Enhancement] could not keep up. Still, he wasn''t that worried as there was no killing intent in the strike, and as he expected the de stopped before touching his neck. It was at that moment Matsuri and the others finally reacted. Loki also did not miss this timing and acted surprise as he fell on the floor.


    "What are you doing?!" Matsuri drew her gun and pointed it at Le.


    "Lady Le!" The waiter started sweating buckets as he called for security.


    "Big brother?!" "BRO!" Alisa and Liam went beside Loki while looking at Le with fear in their eyes.


    Even as everyone was panicking, and the gun was pointed at her face, Le didn''t even bother looking at them as she continued to stare at Loki.


    ''His reaction is the same as a normal person, yet for an instant, I think I saw his eyes following my de? Still, he wasn''t able to react to the sword sh at all. That wasn''t even half my usual speed. If it was Fade, he would''ve evaded and countered with ease. He might just be someone who has talent in martial arts but hasn''t trained in it. I guess he really isn''t Fade.''


    "I see... So you really aren''t him. Sorry to have bothered you. Aspensation allow me to pay for your meal."


    "Do you think that''s enough? You attacked my friend out of nowhere, and you think paying for our meal is enough for an apology." Matsuri spoke while continuing to point her gun at Le. Le finally took notice of Matsuri and looked at her.


    "If I wanted to truly harm your friend, he would already be dead. Also, I hope you stop pointing that piece of metal at me." Le once again grabbed hold of the hilt of her sword.


    "What if I don''t want to?"


    "Don''t say I didn''t warn you." The tension between the two was growing, and Le was about to make her move, but before she could draw her sword, Loki spoke first.


    "Detective Matsuri! Please lower your gun." When Matsuri heard Loki''s voice she looked at him who was now standing up after being in a state of shock.


    "There''s no need to escte this any further. It was just a misunderstanding, and no one was hurt so please lower your gun." Matsuri looked at Loki''s eyes and after a while, she sighed and lowered her gun.


    "Thank you."


    It was at that moment, security finally arrived. The security personnel of the restaurant were all low leveled martial artists, and so they knew who Le was. Still, this was their job so they surrounded Le.


    "Lady Le, please stop harassing the other guests." Seeing the security finally here the waiter felt a little bit more confident.


    "I already apologized, and it was just a misunderstanding. I even offered to pay for the meal."


    "There''s no need for that, these guests'' meals have personally been paid for by the owner."


    When Le heard what the waiter said she looked at Loki''s group in surprise. The owner of this restaurant was not a martial artist but was famous in the martial artists'' circle. He was one of the few non-martial artists that were respected by martial arts families.


    "I see, I guess I really have been rude. I don''t have enough money with me, but here, you can have this." Le tossed her sword at Loki, who caught it. This time Loki was truly surprised, Le''s sword was heavy you wouldn''t guess it if you just looked at its size.


    "That''s one of my better swords, you can keep it or sell it. I hope that''s enough forpensation."


    "I-"


    "Don''t say you won''t take it, since I won''t be taking it back." After saying her piece Le finally left the group and headed back to her own private room. Seeing Le leaving Loki sighed internally.


    "Seriously what''s with that woman?" Matsuri looked annoyed, she really didn''t like interacting with martial artists.


    "Big brother are you alright?" Alisa looked at him extremely worried.


    "Yeah, I was just a little shocked. Don''t worry, I wasn''t hurt one bit. Look we even got a cool-looking sword aspensation." Seeing the rxed expression on Loki''s face made Alisa feel relieved.


    "Bro, can I hold that sword?"


    "Seriously Liam, Big brother has just been through something terrible and that''s the first thing you say."


    The mood finally lightened a bit, which made Loki smile.


    ''Still, that person was pretty sharp, if we talked a bit more she might''ve discerned my true nature. I hope she was convinced by my acting.''

 Chapter 26 - Follow Me

    After the incident with Le the lunch Loki and his group had, became a lunch were they kept on bashing martial artists. Well, except for Liam who really liked martial artists and thinks they''re cool. After a while, Alisa found that Matsuri was actually a really cooldy. As long as she doesn''t trick her big brother, Alisa felt like she could be friends with Matsuri. The two of them continued to talk about Le and martial artists in general.


    ...


    While Loki''s group were having their lunch the young man with thest name of Harada was inside his car talking to a rough-looking man. The man had numerous scars on his face which made him look extremely intimidating.


    "So why have you called for me young master?"


    "I want you to teach some people a lesson."


    "Oh, who is it that''s foolish enough to mess around with the young master?"


    "Once they get out of the restaurant I''ll point them to you."


    "So what do you want me to do, specifically?"


    "I want you to teach the men a lesson, break a few of their bones and such. I also want to taste the women who are with them."


    "Hoh, I see, I understand what happened. To actually refuse the young master they must have been crazy."


    "Hmph, so are you able to do it?"


    "It''s as simple as having my morning breakfast." Hearing the man''s answer made Harada smile.


    "As expected of a former mercenary, such confidence."


    "Please young master, that was a lifetime ago, now I''m just a normal citizen that helps young master from time to time."


    "Of course, of course, if you do this right I might give you around sixty grand." Harada was finally in a good mood as heughed.


    ...


    After the meal, Loki''s group that was in a bad mood due to Le''s shenanigans was now in a better mood thanks to the terrific food. The moment they headed out of the restaurant Loki sensed someone was looking at them, he then quickly scanned the area and noticed a car that was a park in front of the restaurant.


    "Thank you for the meal, Ms. Matsuri." Alisa and Liam spoke.


    "No problem, it was fun talking to you Alisa, and to you as well Liam. Oh sh*t, I better get back to the police station my lunch break is almost over."


    "Wait you were on shift?" Liam asked.


    "Yeah, but since this was the only time your big brother was free, so..."


    "You should''ve told me that. We could''ve rescheduled," Loki spoke while keeping an eye on the weirdly parked car.


    "No need, everything''s alright. Oh sh*t, let''s talk again some other time, I need to get going." Matsuri looked at her watch and started sprinting back to the police station.


    ...


    Harada frowned as he saw the woman who ridiculed him running away. He wanted to let the man with scars on his face to chase after her but decided to leave it be, as he was more irritated by the man who dared to re at him. Sensing the growing irritation of the young master, the man spoke.


    "We''ll get thatdyter, I''ll deal with those three for now. You want me to break the guys while taking the girl, right, young master."


    "Yeah, you need to hurt the taller man more, I want you to break every bone in his body. As long as you don''t kill him, I''ll deal with the aftermath." The man with scars on his face nodded his head as he wore his gloves.


    "I will do as you wish young master." The man exited the car and started walking towards Loki''s group.


    ...


    Loki was able to quickly spot the man with scars on his face leaving the car. He and his siblings started walking a bit faster, and once Loki was sure that the man was following them, Loki put on a bright smile.


    "Hey can you two go home ahead of me, I think I spotted one of the guys from my gym, I want to have a little talk with him about something."


    "Huh?"


    "He''s that guy over there, here Liam can you bring this home for me." Loki handed Le''s sword to Liam.


    "Can''t we just wait for you here, and go home together after you''re done talking," Alisa asked while looking a bit worried.


    "No need to wait, just be good kids, and go home." Loki no longer said anything as he waved his hands towards the man with scars on his face. When the man saw Lokiing towards him, waving his arms while smiling the man with scars on his face got confused. Still, that was a good thing as it saved him the trouble of chasing Loki down. As Loki got nearer the man with scars on his face suddenly felt something hit his right shoulder, he then noticed that there was a small needle-like object sticking into his shoulder de.


    The man with scars on his face suddenly felt that he could no longer move his right arm, it was at that moment he saw Loki was already right in front of him with a huge grin on his face. Loki quickly grabbed the man''s right hand that could no longer move and ced it over his shoulder. As the man with scars on his face was about to say something, he felt immense pressure as he saw Loki''s eyes looking straight at him. Loki was still smiling, but the pressure he was emitting was anything but jolly.


    "If you want to live, smile and wave your left hand at the two over there." Loki gestured at Alisa and Liam who were still standing at the same ce looking a bit worried. The man with scars on his face whose instincts were honed in life and death battles knew that Loki was not joking around. It took him everything he had to smile at Alisa and Liam while waving his left hand. Loki then looked at Alisa and Liam as if he was surprised and shouted at them.


    "I told you two to go home, my buddy over here seems to be a little drunk. I''ll just help him get back home." Loki lowered his head and whispered something to the man with scars on his face.


    "Yeah, you kids better listen to your big brother."


    "You heard that, even my buddy here is telling you to go. I''ll see you twoter." Loki then turned around and guided the man with scars on his face to walk further away. The people who looked at the two would simply think that the man might be a little drunk and Loki was helping him up.


    Alisa seeing the leaving Loki felt a bit d that even after he had that ident and has some memory loss Loki was still the kind big brother he always was.

 Chapter 27 - Ill Only Warn You Once

    The man with scars on his face was being dragged away by Loki as they were slowly heading back to the car were the young master of the Harada Corporation was. As the two of them were walking rather slowly, the man with the scars on his face tried multiple times to escape, yet no matter how he struggled he could not free himself from Loki''s grasp.


    "It''s no use, I have total control of your joints and I can disable them when I please, it doesn''t matter how hard you struggle. So instead of doing something as foolish as that, let''s have a little conversation instead. Why don''t we start by you telling me your name."


    "..." The man with scars on his face did not speak, as he started to assess the pros and cons of his situation.


    "Hmph, fine it doesn''t really matter if I learn the name of a dead man." When the man with scars on his face heard what Loki said, he gnashed his teeth and clicked his tongue.


    "It''s Lobar, my name''s Lobar."


    "Oh, finally willing to talk. I see, so your name is Lobar. So what did you want to do with me and my siblings? Tell me honestly, let me warn you in advance, if I figure out that you were lying to me, then you''ll be a cripple forever."


    "... Fine, you win." Lobar started to tell Loki about the young master, Harada Itsuki. When Loki heard the details of what Lobar was nning to do his facial expression changed into a demonic one for a brief second. The only one who noticed that change was Lobar who was looking at him.


    ''What kind of guy did that bratty rich kid go against?!'' Lobar was screaming in his mind, as his fear of Loki doubled.


    "Hmph, I understand now, let''s go and meet that young master of yours, I need to have a little talk with him as well."


    ...


    Itsuki who was watching things unfold in his car was confused as to why Lobar allowed the girl and the other guy to getaway. He then saw Lobaring back to the car while clinging onto the man that red at him.


    ''What the f*ck is Lobar doing?!'' Lobar and the man then entered the car. Itsuki was about to shout in anger, but at that moment he once again felt that overwhelming pressure that he felt before when the man red at him.


    "You brat, I already allowed you to get away uninjured before, but you just had to push it," Loki spoke to Itsuki the moment he entered the vehicle, sitting beside Itsuki.


    "Lobar why did you bring back this rude bastard?! Just finish him off already and bring the girl here!.. On second thought, just beat him up until he''s half-dead, and allow him to watch as I vite that girl in front of him." The moment those words came out of Itsuki''s mouth, he suddenly felt an intense paining from his legs. Something was stabbed onto his thighs, it was a thin needle-like object.


    "AAAAAAHHH!!!" Itsuki could not help but scream in pain. Itsuki''s driver sh bodyguard took out his gun and was about to point it at Loki, but before he could do so, something stabbed onto his wrist forcing him to let go of his gun. Loki caught the falling gun and pointed it at the driver. Loki sighed as red at Itsuki. He then spoke with an ice-cold tone that made one''s blood freeze in fear.


    "You sh*tty brat, I will warn you only once, so you better listen carefully." Loki pulled another hair from his head and used [Enhancement] on it as he stabbed Itsuki''s other thigh. The pain it produced made Itsuki want to scream even louder, but no sound came out of his mouth. It was at that moment Itsuki then felt another needle-like object had pierced his throat. The needle-like object didn''t pierce too deep into his throat, and no blood came out, but for some reason, it made Itsuki unable to speak.


    Loki then proceeded to take Itsuki''s hand and started to bend each of his fingers until they were twisted. Itsuki was in so much pain that he almost fainted a few times, but Loki forced him awake. Lobar and the driver who were watching at the side felt pain just from watching what Loki was doing to Itsuki. Once Loki was done breaking all of Itsuki''s fingers, he spoke.


    "Today, I''m giving you a simple warning, but If you even think of messing with my family again, then I will show you a fate worse than death. You better think properly before you make your next move, since base on what you do that might be thest thing you ever do." Loki then looked at the Lobar and driver as he gave them some advice.


    "If I were you two, I''ll quit and pick a better person to serve under." After he was done saying his piece Loki was about to get out of the car, but then said something more.


    "Oh right, don''t bother calling the police, if you do then I''ll let them listen to this." Loki took out his phone and showed the three that he had recorded the entire conversation. "Not to mention I can say that you tried to kidnap me, and the wounds you got were from the mercenary over here. It would be your word against mine since even if they do look around they won''t find any trace of me." Loki removed the needle-like hair that was stabbing Itsuki and the driver. Once Loki did that Itsuki screamed in pain and after a while fainted. Once he was done Loki got out of the car.


    ...


    Loki who was walking on the sidewalk took out his smartphone, stopped the voice recording function, and called Harold. After two rings, Harold picked up the phone, Loki didn''t bother with formalities and got straight to the point.


    "Tell me everything you know about the Harada Corporation and the Harada family and how do I destroy them."

 Chapter 28 - The Harada Family

    Harold who was snacking while enjoying watching a vtuber ying a retro video game was suddenly interrupted by a call. Harold saw that the person calling him was none other than Loki so he quickly picked it up.


    "Tell me everything you know about the Harada Corporation and the Harada family and how do I destroy them."


    Loki went straight to the point his tone made Harold feel a chill down his spine. Harold might be considered a genius, but he was still a kid. He didn''t really want to deal with such a dangerous person, those were his initial thoughts, but.


    ''I wonder why I''m feeling a bit excited...''


    "What do you mean to destroy? Do you mean that you''re going to kill all of the family members of the Harada family?"


    When Loki heard Harold''s question, he snapped out of his rage. That was right, he was angry at the heir of the Harada Family Itsuki for what he has done, but that doesn''t mean his family was the same scum like him. If he killed those that are just and he does it without pay wouldn''t he divert from the ideal assassin he was aiming for. Still, now that he had already threatened the heir to the Harada Family, he needed to make sure that he can defend himself and his own family from any retaliation. Loki finally calmed down and spoke.


    "No, never mind that, I misspoke. Just tell me what kind of Corporation is the Harada Corporation, and what kind of people are the members of the Harada family... Also, let''s not talk on the phone, how about we meet up somewhere?"


    When Harold heard what Loki said he grew stiff. He didn''t want to meet this rather dangerous individual alone. Still, he was also scared of saying no to Loki. After some thought, Harold had reached apromise in his mind.


    "Umm, if it''s alright with you can you bring Luke along?"


    Loki could pretty much guess why Harold had asked for Luke, which made him sigh. ''As expected, using a kid for such jobs isn''t really a good idea, but I have no other informants in this world...''


    "Alright you can bring Luke, but where would you like to meet up?"


    Harold became silent for a few seconds, and after much deliberation on his part, he finally responded.


    "You cane to my house, my parents aren''t here. You can meet up with Luke he knows where I live."


    ...


    After getting Luke who was practicing on how own, the two-headed towards Harold''s house. It took them an hour to arrive in a nice-looking neighborhood where Harold''s family was living. When they arrived at Harold''s house, Loki was surprised. The Kid was living in a mansion, which was four timesrger than his own house. Luke pressed on the doorbell, and out came Harold who led them inside the house.


    The three of them headed towards Harold''s room, and upon entering the room, the first thing Loki thought was it was too dark. The room was dimly lit, and what illuminated it were the multiple monitors. Harold then flipped on the light switch.


    "Here are the files on the Harada Corporation."


    Harold handed Loki piles of paper, while Loki was reading them, Harold spoke.


    "Some of the information was rather easy to get. On the surface, the Harada Corporation is by the books. Harada Corporation deals with manufacturing and real estate. It were established forty years ago by its founder Harada Kenji. Supposedly he is a self-made man that came from nothing. Now, this is where it gets interesting. Harada Kenji was once a man that was part of a former gang that was relevant a few decades ago. That gang supposedly dealt with moneyundering. It''s extremely hard to find any information about this, as Harada Kenji has erased almost traces of his involvement with that gang."


    "So he was part of a gang, but that''s in the past, maybe he has changed?" Luke chimed in.


    "Well, that could be true, but there have been many rumors going around that he''s still involved with some gangs. He has been used of bribery, selling drugs, human trafficking, and many more. Of course, there is no evidence to prove that he''s guilty."


    "So he''s scum as well, no wonder his son is like that. How about his other family members?"


    "Supposedly Harada Kenji was an orphan and had no family, but after a bit of digging around, I found an old article of a couple with the samest names dying in an ident. This happened when Harada Kenji was just starting his new business. Supposedly those were his parents and he used the life insurance he got from his parents'' deaths as startup money. Now he only has his wife and child as his family."


    "What about his wife?"


    "Kenji''s wife doesn''t have any good rumors surrounding her either there are many that im that she''s going around kidnapping and using young men for sexual relief and once done she would kill them. The police had investigated her numerous times, but found no evidence to support the usations."


    When Loki heard that each member of the Harada family were more than scum he grew angrier by the second. Such vicious people would never leave him and his family alone, but killing them wasn''t an option for Loki as he had his own set of rules, regarding that. Even if the reason is just he still needs to be paid to do the job.


    "Is there a way to destroy that family without killing them?"


    "You can destroy their reputation and business. If you can find the ledger that Harada Kenji has that proves his involvement with the local gangs, it would be easy to gain more material to destroy everything he had built up. I would have been able to get that info if he had put it in a digital device somewhere, but after looking around I believe that he uses a more analog way to safeguard that information. I''m guessing he hides that ledger in a safe or is keeping it in his person at all times. Well, if finding the ledger is difficult, you can also try to catch the wife in the act of kidnapping. There''s also the son who likes to unt his power, he could have r*ped, multiple women. The Harada family most likely paid off the victims or the more likely scenario killed them. Obvious all of this information I gather on the fly most of them are just rumors, but you know what they say where there''s smoke there''s fire. I can try to find more information on that, still, I doubt I''ll find anything relevant. So what are you going to do?"


    "I''ll bring them down one by one, I''ll start with the son. I already have some evidence of him trying to kidnap my sister. I just need to gain some more proof, and I know the guy I need to talk to." Loki spoke his eyes shining with killing intent.

 Chapter 29 - The Fall Of The Son

    In a certain hospital, Harada Itsuki was sleeping in a bed in the executive suite. There were bodyguards just outside the room, and sitting beside his bed was a man and woman who wore grave expressions.


    The man was Harada Kenji, and the woman was his wife Harada Sara. The two quickly headed to the hospital the moment they found out. Sara was holding onto Itsuki''s hand as she asked for her son to wake up.


    Kenji left the room with an extreme look of anger on his face. As he was seething with rage one of his men then whispered something in his ear. Hearing what was said Kenji grabbed the man''s neck and red at him.


    "What did you say? Care to repeat those words?"


    "... Boss, I..." The man tried to remove Kenji''s hand from his throat but to no avail. Seeing the man was choking to death Kenji finally loosened his grip and spoke.


    "Tell me what you said once more." Theckey hesitated as he didn''t want to get strangled again, but when he saw the look Kenji was giving him, he had no choice and told the same thing.


    "We can''t find Lobar, we''ve searched his ce and all of the usual ces but there are no signs of him. We ask everyone who knew him, and thest known time anyone saw him was when he was bringing the young master to the hospital. As for Jeff the young master''s driver he has fled the city and we''re still trying to locate him."


    "So you''re telling me the two people who know the reason for why my son became like this are nowhere to be found?! How is that even possible, only a few hours have passed and we have men all over the city. This would mean one of two things, either they''ve be ghosts and are no longer with us, or you bunch of f*cking idiots are ipetent! Now you should-" As Kenji was about to shout some more somebody spoke behind him.


    "Um, boss, there''s something you should see." One of Kenji''s men showed him a video on his smartphone. The video was from a local news channel.


    "Dozens of videos have been popping around the inte of numerous assaults and r*pe that weremitted by the same person, the son of the CEO of the Harada Corporation, Harada Itsuki. We have some of those victims with us today, they im to have been bribed or threatened into not speaking out against Harada Itsuki. This has-"


    When Kenji heard what was being said in the news, he quickly made a few calls to have the videos removed and the news be stopped. As he was trying his hardest to contain the situation he gritted his teeth in anger.


    ''On the same day that my son gets beaten up, and Lobar disappears. This is obviously connected to each other. Someone is trying to mess with me? Whoever you are, I''ll make sure to pay you back in kind.''


    ...


    A few hours before the news was spread, after Lobar sent the young master to the hospital and contacted the people under the Harada Family, he decided to go into hiding. Even if he didn''t do it, he was a part of the group that allowed the young master to be hurt, and knowing Harada Kenji''s temper, wouldn''t staying be the same as death? Still, he did owe the kid so he sent him to the hospital before trying to make a run for it.


    Yet the moment Lobar exited the hospital, he felt something hitting him from behind, and before he could do anything he was already unconscious. When Lobar woke up he felt his hand hands had been tied, as he hazily looked at his surroundings the first thing he saw was a man in a fully ck get-up from his coat to his boots everything was ck all except for the white mask he was wearing.


    "Who are you?"


    "It doesn''t matter who I am Mr. Lobar. All you need to know is that you need to tell me what I want to know."


    "... What is it?... Were you hired by my old squad? Are you going to kill me?" Lobar went straight to the point as he was trying to get the knife hidden in his sleeves, yet as he tried to move his fingers into his sleeves, he was surprised to know that the hidden knife wasn''t there.


    "Don''t bother looking for your knife. I already took every hidden weapon you had on you. I''m not some amateur that would just tie you up, I''m a professional. As a professional I''m going to give you two choices, we can either do this the hard way or you can just tell me what I want. Don''t worry I won''t kill you, as long as you cooperate. But if you don''t we get to use these cool new toys I got."


    Loki showed Lobar the table that had hammers, nails, saws, a car battery, and many more. When Lobar saw that he gulped before speaking.


    "What do you want to know?"

 Chapter 30 - Crushing The Harada Family

    Kenji had tried his hardest to suppress the news about his son, but that proved too difficult as it had already spread too deep. Even after he stopped the local news from talking about it, the information on the inte remained and continuously spread like some kind of disease. He had tried to remove every mention of it, but he could not find where the information starteding from. Not only that it was just generally hard to remove information on the inte, it would seem that there was some truth in the saying once posted on the inte it will remain there.


    "Kenji what are we going to do?" Sara asked looking a bit worried about the situation at hand.


    "Tsk, we have no choice, we need to evacuate Itsuki to the Soira Empire. He just needs to stay there until this whole thing dies down. I need to make immediate preparations, but first, before I can do all that we need to bring him back home." As Kenji stood up and was about to give an order, one of his men entered the room.


    "Boss, a bunch of media people are now downstairs, the local news, some random bloggers, and random bystanders are down there wanting to get your statement. Also, one of our moles in the police station is saying that two police officers areing with a warrant of arrest."


    "What the f*ck are we paying that policemissioner for! Get some of the boys to create a distraction downstairs. Once you get the media people away, we will bring back my son to the vi."


    "Alright boss."


    After ordering his goons, Kenji called the policemissioner. Once the policemissioner picked up the phone, he spoke in a rather respectful tone.


    "Sir Kenji, to what do I owe the pleasure."


    "You should know why I''m calling! Why is one of your peopleing to arrest my son?!"


    "Wait, Sir Kenji, I think there''s some kind of misunderstanding here."


    "What kind of misunderstanding can there be?! Some of your f*cking men areing here, and they even have a warrant of arrest!"


    "Just wait a moment Sir Kenji, I''ll find out what''s happening." The Police Commissioner then called for a lieutenant and asked about anyone who was dealing with the Harada Itsuki case.


    "The moment Detective Watanabe saw the news she bolted out of the room saying that she was going to talk to the Harada family."


    "Did she get a warrant?"


    "Of course not."


    Once the Police Commissioner got his answer he ryed the information to Kenji.


    "What the f*ck you can''t even control one of your people?! Make her stop and get her out of my way!"


    "I will try my best."


    "I don''t want your f*cking best I want results!" Kenji hanged up the phone.


    ...


    Matsuri was driving like crazy when her partner John''s phone started ringing. John picked up the phone and even though it was not on loudspeaker Matsuri could hear the voice of the shouting Police Commissioner.


    "You two shoulde back to the station at once, this is an order!" Before John could answer Matsuri took the phone from him.


    "What did you say Comish? I can''t hear you, don''t worry I''m doing my JOB and we''re about to apprehend a perp. Sorry, Comish the line seems to be dicey, I''ll call you backter. Oh right, John and I forgot to bring our radios so you might not be able to contact us for a while." Matsuri then hanged up the phone, but immediately after the Police Commissioner started calling again, but this time before John could pick up Matsuri spoke.


    "Just silence your phone. The Comish is just going to keep onining." Hearing what Matsuri said made John sigh in resignation.


    "The Chief isn''t going to like this."


    "Don''t worry I''ll take the heat for you. What matters now is to catch that brat from the Harada Family. This could be our only chance to take down even a single member of the Harada family. An evil that is operating in in sight. Even though it''s just right there, even though I feel like I can just stretch my arms to reach it, but I cannot touch it, is so very irritating. Now that I have a chance to catch them of course I''m going!" Matsuri said with a passion as she drove even faster.

 Chapter 31 - The Assassin Named Fade

    Loki was observing the movement of the Harada family in the shadows. With his current mana supply, he couldn''t use his usual spell [light refraction] to stay invisible, instead, he needed to rely on the minor spell [Shadow Threading]. The spell would allow him to be invisible to the naked eye for as long as he did not move and remained within the shadows. The spell was not perfect as you literally should not move a single inch, for even a slight twitch of one''s muscle would dispel it. Even though it wasn''t much he was still able to use a new spell, this showed that he was improving.


    Of course, it was just not possible to bepletely still, but Loki could do it for a few minutes. Once he moves he would shift positions and reapply the spell. Using this new spell of his, Loki was able to hide near the room where Itsuki was staying at.


    When Kenji went out of the room, Loki heard him talk about making Itsuki leave the country. He was also talking about Matsuriing here.


    ''What is that woman going to do? Even if she''s a cop she won''t be able to handle this.'' Loki frowned as he continued to listen in Kenji''s conversation. Once Kenji was done with his phone call he spoke to one of his men.


    "Change of ns, that idiotic Police Commissioner isn''t going to be able to do anything. Get some of your men and when the Detectivees I want you guys to deal with her."


    "Should we give her to some human traffickers?"


    "Hmph, that''s too troublesome, just finish her off use the guys that can''t be traced back to me. If they''re somehow caught. just make up a story like they held a grudge on the Detective for imprisoning one of their friends. It doesn''t matter if they get caught just promise them that I would give some money to their families, anonymously of course."


    "Alright boss."


    When Loki heard what Kenji said he almost reacted and moved. Yet before he could do so he was able to restrain himself. He started to think calmly, nning what to do next.


    ''I wanted to follow them to their base of operation to get some more evidence to crush them, but knowing the detective ising changes things. If I leave her alone I don''t think she''ll be able to survive thising ordeal. Yet if I don''t follow the Harada Kenji I might not be able to find their hidden base ever again. Even someone like Harold isn''t able to figure out where this supposed hidden base was... Should I have just killed Itsuki when I had the chance?... Tsk, if I don''t even follow my own rules then how can I say that I became the ideal assassin my sister wished for.''


    While Loki was thinking of what to do next, he suddenly heard one of Kenji''s men speak. "The Detective is here."


    "Follow the n and deal with her. While the others keep the media distracted, my family and I will escape to the vi."


    Kenji''s men were now radioing someone and taking out their guns. Kenji himself alongside his wife, unconscious son, and some of his men headed to the fire exit. Loki hesitated for a few minutes before he gritted his teeth and followed Kenji''s men who took out their weapons.


    ...


    Matsuri and John had parked their car in the underground parking area of the hospital, and once they got out some unknown men approached them.


    "How can we help you, gentlemen?" Instead of answering Matsuri with words, the men took out their guns and started shooting. Matsuri and John quickly used the cars as cover and took out their own guns. Yet the two of them could not find the right timing to shoot back as the bullets continuously rained down upon them.


    The unknown assants were getting closer and closer making it even more difficult to counterattack. As the sounds of gunfire were getting closer, Matsuri tried her best to think of a way to get out of this situation. It was at that moment the sound of gunfire suddenly stopped, and what reced it were loud grunts. Matsuri took a peek and was surprised as to what she saw.


    A man wearing a white mask, a ck trench coat, boots, and gloves was subduing the men who were firing at Matsuri and John. The man''s movements were swift and decisive as each strike he made, another would fall. What was even more amazing was that the men had no time to point their guns at the mysterious man with a mask and shoot, it was as if something invisible was hitting their hands making them let go of their weapons.


    The man wearing the mask then finished off thest of Kenji''s men that surrounded Matsuri and John. It would seem that he did not kill a single one of them which showed his skill was leagues above them, as it was harder to beat someone with weapons without killing them. This was not something a normal person could do, so Matsuri and John quickly concluded that this person must be a martial artist. The man with the white mask then took one of the unconscious men and looked like he was going to leave, but before he could get away Matsuri stood up and confronted him. Matsuri boldly stood in his way stopping him on his tracks. Matsuri gulped as the sheer presence of the man wearing the mask was suffocating her, but she gathered her resolve and asked.


    "Who are you?"


    Loki looked at the determination in Matsuri''s eyes and then he looked at the man hiding at the corner, that man was most likely another one of Kenji''s men who was sent here to see if these people were able to deal with Matsuri.


    ''Hmph, I guess I can use this chance to leave my calling card. It''s time to spread my infamy and to start my legend here in this world, to make those that seek to do evil know fear.'' Loki then answered with a voice that was different from his normal tone.


    "I am Fade, an assassin. Remember this, for as long as the reason is just and the price is right, I shall bring death to any and all evil."

 Chapter 32 - Spreading His Name (1)

    "Fade..." Matsuri mumbled the name. She then looked at Loki with a serious expression on her face as she asked a question.


    "Are you the one who killed the gang leaders in thest few days?" Matsuri had no evidence to support her theory, but her gut was telling her this guy was the person she was looking for. Loki could not help but look at Matsuri''s eyes that were full of resolve. He was rather impressed at her seeing as she knows the gap in their abilities but she remained determined and unyielding. To answer her resolve, Loki gave an answer.


    "I will kill any evil, for as long as the price is right and the reason is just."


    "I''m taking that as an admittance to your guilt." Matsuri then pointed her gun at Loki. "I have a few more questions for you, Mr. assassin." John also came out of his hiding spot pointing his gun at Loki. Seeing the two of them pointing their guns at him, Loki sighed. A battle seems unavoidable, but he didn''t want to get rough on them.


    "I would advise you not to do anything that you would regret." As Loki spoke to them, he was watching the guy hiding at the back.


    "That''s something I should be saying to you. I know that you''re a martial artist and a highly skilled one at that, but we police officers aren''t as helpless as you think we are." At this moment, both Matsuri and John took out a weird-looking object and attached it to their guns.


    "There are many martial artists that could dodge gunfire. They could especially easily dodge those from handguns that have a slow rate of fire, so of course, we made a way to make it more difficult for the martial artist to dodge it. This is what our enhancers are for. So if I were you, I woulde quietly." Hearing what Matsuri said made Loki sigh.


    "I respect you, officers, for doing your job and I really do not want to hurt you two, so you better stop this."


    "An assassin with a conscience, or are you not killing us simply because you aren''t paid to do so? Culling evil if the reason is just and the price is right? Are you trying to justify your selfish desires and wrap them around something good? Who are you to decide what is right or wrong, what is evil, and what is just? I hate your kind, the ones that are doing bad things, but think that they are in the right! I''m going to arrest you now and teach you the ways of society." Loki once again sighed as his fingers twitched a bit. It was at that moment Matsuri''s gun flew out of her hands.


    ''The same move as he did with the thugs. How did he do it?'' Matsuri looked at her gun and saw a thing string-like thing attached to it. As she was focused on that, Loki used that moment''s distraction to get behind her. In the corner of her eye, she could see Loki and tried to raise her arm to block whatever wasing, but that prove useless.


    "I didn''t want to do this, but you forced me." Those were thest words Matsuri heard as she lost consciousness. John who was watching at the side could not react fast enough as Loki got behind Matsuri. Now that Loki was holding Matsuri up, John had no clear shot of him. It was at that moment the person hiding behind a wall who was part of Harada Kenji''s group left. Loki tossed Matsuri''s body towards John who reflexively caught her. After catching Matsuri, John noticed that Loki had disappeared.


    ...


    Outside of the hospital, the person who was hiding while watching Loki and Matsuri''s confrontation was calling someone as he walked away from the hospital.


    "Boss, the men failed to kill the Detective and her partner."


    "How did that happen, I sent at least a dozen of men, and you guys can''t even deal with two little police officers."


    "Someone intervened, a martial artist who ims to be an assassin called Fade."


    "An assassin? Why is an assassin getting in the way of our business?... Tell me everything you''ve seen and heard."


    Kenji''s subordinate ryed everything he saw and heard. After listening to every detail of the confrontation Kenji frowned. He was most concerned when he heard that this assassin had a peculiar quirk of wanting to get rid of evil for a price.


    ''That assassin is after us... Tsk, who the f*ck would hire an assassin to attack us? Damn, I have too many enemies that it could be any one of them. Still, to attack at this specific moment just a few hours after my son got hurt. It''s as if he knows... Wait a minute, so that''s it. The one who hired this guy must be the one that attacked my son. That b*stard, I''ll be sure to pay him back no matter what.''


    As Kenji was getting even more irritated, he suddenly felt something was wrong. After thinking about it for a few seconds, Kenji suddenly noticed something weird.


    "Wait you said that this guy has the same capabilities as a higher-level martial artist right?"


    "I don''t know his exact skill level, but he should be at least better than most of the young martial artists."


    "Tsk, where are you now?"


    "I''m walking on the sidewalk heading towards the base."


    "Don''t go there, you stupid idiot! If he really is as good as you say he is, that would mean that he had already noticed you since the beginning. So then why would he allow you to escape, instead of knocking you out like the rest of them? That guy is using you as a guide to get to where we''re hiding."


    When the subordinate heard what Kenji said he was really surprised, but what his boss said made sense.


    "Boss, what should I do now?"


    "Don''te back to the base, no matter the cost. Go and hide somewhere else until everything cools down, or until I find a way to kill this Fade character, as well as the person behind him. If you do anything the leads him to us, then consider you and your family dead." Kenji didn''t wait for a reply as he hanged up the phone.


    Kenji then looked at his unconscious son and gripped his phone so hard that the screen cracked a little bit.


    ''Fade... An assassin I have never heard of, an assassin that has some kind of sense of justice...''

 Chapter 33 - Spreading His Name (2)

    After making his phone call, the man who was Kenji Harada''s subordinate sighed. It was pretty obvious what his boss meant when he threatened him using his family. It was obvious that someone like him wouldn''t be able to shake off a martial artist, and if he were captured there was a possibility that he would slip something out. He could not take that chance.


    This man who was a subordinate of Kenji Harada was Nestor Samonte, he was not part of Kenji Harada''s normal forces that were paid properly and were actual employees. This man was one of the people that had been ckmailed into submission.


    Nestor was someone who used to be a private investigator and was hired to investigate the Harada Family. Unfortunately for him, his family was kidnapped during his investigation. Kenji Harada used Nestor''s family to ckmail him into doing whatever he wanted.


    ''I guess this is it for me... I just hope that they can somehow continue to live on.'' Nestor grabbed hold of his hidden gun. He gnashed his teeth as he remembered the faces of his wife and child. ''I wanted to meet you guys for onest time.''


    As Nestor was about to pull out his gun somebody grabbed hold of his hands. He wanted to move his head to have a look at the person who grabbed him, but for some reason, it felt like something was grabbing his neck making him unable to look. He then heard a voice whisper in his ear, it was the same voice of the guy who called himself Fade.


    "Do not make a sound and follow me to the back alley. Nod your head if you understand." Nestor unconsciously nodded his head and did what Loki told him to do. When the two of them reached the back alley, Loki carried Nestor and started wall jumping heading for the roof of the building. Once they got to the roof, Loki tossed Nestor to the floor as he wore his mask.


    ...


    Nestor looked up and as he expected it was indeed the assassin called Fade that brought him here. Nestor tried to grab hold of his gun, but he saw it was already in the assassin''s hands. Nestor then tried to run away and wanted to jump down, but before he could do so thin wires wrapped around him making him unable to move. Seeing as he had no other way Nestor started to beg.


    "Please, just kill me! Aren''t you an assassin that moves for some kind of justice?! Then if so please just kill me. If you don''t my family will die, so please, please just end me!"


    When Loki heard Nestor say that his family might die, Loki was rather surprised. He was nning to torture this guy to gain information, but it would seem that maybe there was no need for that.


    "Tell me what do you mean that your family will die."


    Hearing Loki''s question, Nestor hesitated for a while but in the end, he started to tell his story, of how he failed to protect his family and was forced to do many crimes under Harada Kenji''s orders. After learning of the hardships Nestor had been through, Loki could not help but hate the Harada Family even more.


    "Do you know where your family is being held?"


    "If I knew where they were, I would''ve tried to rescue them long ago. I wanted to find their location, but I could not risk it as Harada Kenji might get agitated and simply kill my wife and child once he notices my snooping around... I was helpless, I could not do anything. I''m not even sure if they''re still alive and well."


    "I see... If what you''re telling me is true, then, do you want to hire me?"


    "...Hire you?..."


    "I''m sure you heard what I said back in the parking area. For as long the price is right and the reason is just I will kill any evil. If you hire me, I will kill Harada Kenji and his family. I''m sure once they''re gone it would be easier to rescue your family."


    "Wait I thought that somebody already hired you to kill them?"


    "No, I''m not here to kill them. So what do you want to do?"


    "I''m sure someone of your level would need an exorbitant amount of money... Truth be told I currently don''t have that much, but please if you wait a while I can definitely pay whatever fee you want."


    "Hmph, that''s not the kind of payment I want from you." Nestor could see Loki''s eyes through the mask and he felt heavy pressure from that re of his.


    "Then what do you want as payment?"


    "I will fulfill this mission, but in exchange, once we confirm that your family is safe I want you to surrender yourself to the police." Nestor had a dumbfounded look on his face as he stared at Loki. It took him a while to regain his bearings and ask.


    "Is that all?"


    "That''s all I need from you."


    Nestor had been a P.I for a long time now and he had met a lot of people so he was very good at reading them. Even though Loki was wearing a mask and it was hard to see his facial expressions, Nestor could hear the sincerity in his tone. Nestor then bowed his head and answered.


    "Then I will hire you, I will pay that price."


    "The price has been agreed upon, now it''s time for me to get to work. So tell me the location of this hidden base of yours, and everything you know about the Harada Family and their forces Oh right, show me a picture of your family as well, so I know what they look like." Nestor didn''t hesitate to tell Loki everything he knew. If it was this assassin, maybe there was a chance, so Nestor made his bet. If Loki fails his mission and Nestor''s family was killed, then Nestor would join them in death.


    "So that''s how it is... Now that I have the information I needed. I''ll be heading to the secret base and investigate the location of your family and the families of the others that have been ckmailed. Once I''m done I''ll be sure to kill every single member of the Harada Family."


    "Thank you." Loki looked at Nestor who continued to bow his head while thanking him.


    "I haven''t done anything yet, so there''s no need to thank me. Also, I''m not exactly doing this for free." Loki no longer waited for Nestor to reply and jumped down from the roof. Nestor quickly looked at the area where Loki fell, but he was nowhere to be seen.

 Chapter 34 - Spreading His Name (3)

    After telling Nestor where they should meet once he was done with the job, Loki left. Loki wanted to immediately head to the enemy''s secret base of operations to finish things, but he needed to prepare for a bit. Also, it was already gettingte.


    ''This is getting moreplicated than I initially expected. Damn, what a rookie mistake to let my emotions get the better of me... Well, whatever since this has be a job, then I willplete it without fail.'' Loki looked at his watch and saw that it was already eight in the evening.


    ''I guess I still have a bit of time left before Alisa gets worried.''


    ...


    Harold could not concentrate on what he was doing as he kept on remembering the things he saw when he got ess to the security cameras of the hospital that Itsuki Harada was staying at. What he witnessed was rather amazing. He saw finally able to see just how good Loki was. Loki was able to easily dispatch the armed men he was facing with a single strike each, and he did it without even allowing the enemy to fire a single shot.


    Even though Harold had watched a few martial artists fight, the way Loki fought gave a different feeling from those fights. The way Loki fought was less shy and more precise and efficient, he made it look so easy to deal with the enemies'' guns. Even some of the more experienced martial artists would find it troublesome to deal with people that were equipped with rifles and SMGs. Yet Loki dealt with those people as if the weapons they''re using were nothing more than toys. It was an exciting thing to watch.


    As Harold was deep in thought he suddenly heard a tapping sounding from his windows. He looked at it and almost screamed out in surprise as he saw Loki was just outside tapping on the ss. It was truly shocking to see Loki get this close to him without any of the security cameras catching a glimpse of him. Seeing as Harold finally noticed him Loki spoke.


    "How about letting me in?"


    ...


    "How were you able to get past the detection of all my security cameras?" After letting Loki into his room, Harold could not help but immediately asked that question.


    "Well, even though you had a lot of cameras covering almost all angles, there were still some blind spots here and there that I could exploit. Not to mention if I really wanted to, security cameras won''t be able to catch even a glimpse of me."


    "Oh, is that so, then what do you think of this?" Harold then showed Loki the footage of what happened in the hospital''s basement parking. Yet Loki''s reaction waspletely different from what Harold imagined.


    "That''s good, this saves a lot of time."


    "Huh?"


    "Harold can you do something for me, of course, I''m willing to pay for the work."


    "... What do you want?"


    "First I want to know, can you post a video online without anyone tracing the video back to you? Can you make it as if the video suddenly appeared out of nowhere?"


    "It won''t be easy, but I believe I can do that."


    "I see, then I want you to release that video to the public but I want you to edit a few things."


    ...


    Back in Loki''s house, Alisa and Liam were waiting for the older brother toe back home. Alisa was waiting in the living room while doing her homework. On the other hand, Liam was watching random videos on his phone. While he was going through one video after another, Liam received a link from his friend Kenji, saying you got to watch this.


    Liam immediately clicked on the link and a video popped out. It was a video of some basement parking. The videock any audio but the content was something worth watching.


    A man wearing all ck except for a white mask attacked a group of men that were holding guns trying to kill someone. The way the man wearing the mask moved was so fluid that it made him look like he was dancing with his opponents.


    It wasn''t just the way he moved that was mesmerizing, but the ability he disyed of making the muzzles of the different guns point in different directions without even touching them. To the untrained eye, it looked like magic. Despite the men with guns trying to kill him, the man wearing the white mask simply immobilized his enemies without killing them. After the man wearing the mask subdued thest of his enemies the video shifted, into a closer look at the man wearing the mask.


    At the start of the video due to the low quality of the footage taken by the security cameras, the people watching the video could not fully appreciate the look of the man wearing the white mask. So it was good for them that the next scene had the quality of the video change for the better. They could now get a good look at the man wearing the white mask, with a ck trenchcoat, ck gloves, and ck boots. The man wearing the white mask then looked directly at the camera and spoke in a voice that felt both reassuring and threatening.


    "I am Fade, an assassin. Remember this, for as long as the reason is just and the price is right, I shall bring death to any and all evil."


    ...


    Once he was done editing Harold had released the video of Loki fighting with some added scenes, and of course, he didn''t add the Detective into the video. Harold posted the video on every possible online video tform.


    In a few hours, the name Fade had spread throughout the inte, thus started the urban legend of the assassin named Fade.

 Chapter 35 - The Start Of An Urban Legend

    The following day after the video of Fade beating up Kenji''s henchmen was posted, it turned into a hot topic. It was trending in almost all online tforms, it was even mentioned in national news. The official statement was that the video was a fake posted by some inte troll that wanted to be famous, and the events that happened in the basement parking never transpired. Most of the normal citizens believed this news report, but there were some that were skeptical.


    As for the people in the know, even they could not confirm the authenticity of the video. As the main copy that should havee from the hospital''s security cameras disappeared. The footage of any event during that day had disappeared from the database.


    It was not only that, even the bodies that were supposed to be there had gone missing. John the only remaining officer that was awake at that called asked for backup, but unfortunately, the policemissioner did not send any, as the entire thing was off the books. Matsuri did all of it without permission and of course without a warrant. So John was forced to leave without being able to do anything else as he was worried about Matsuri who was unconscious.


    Yet once the video of what happened went online, many people questioned the police as to what was happening. Due to the pressure from the media and the higher-ups, the policemissioner was then forced into action, but when the people he sent got there, the bodies were already gone. They were also unable to trace the person who kept on posting the video on different tforms. Not to mention there were no signs of a firefight, as they could not recover any bullets. The only thing worth mentioning was that some cars were missing, but that was a different case altogether.


    So now the official statement was everything never happened. Due to this, Matsuri and John who were supposed to get suspended were not punished. After all, you cannot be punished for something that never happened.


    Now except for Matsuri and John''s statements, nothing could prove the authenticity of the video that was going around the inte.


    ...


    In a room of a five-star hotel, Le who was wearing a bathrobe was watching the video of Fade beating up the henchmen and saying his now, famous line over and over again. She was getting excited just watching that video.


    At first nce, Loki''s movements weren''t that impressive, since in most people''s thoughts Loki''s enemies were not really that strong. Yet if you looked more closely the sequence in which he subdued the enemies were the most optimal for that situation. It wasn''t that his enemies were too weak, it was because Loki''s movements were so precise that he made them look weak.


    Not to mention there was no shy skill used, all of the moves he used were simple and anyone could have done it. Which made the illusion that anyone with a little bit of skill could''ve done the same thing. The only thing that went beyond normal human movements was how he used those thin wires to redirect the guns. But to the eyes of a young inexperienced martial artist, he would not have noticed the wires or the fact that the guns were not pointing at Loki.


    ''As expected, you really are amazing Fade. This just makes me want you more and more now.'' As Le was getting even more excited that she was about to do something about it, at that moment she heard Loki''s introduction in the video.


    "I am Fade, an assassin. Remember this, for as long as the reason is just and the price is right, I shall bring death to any and all evil."


    ''I wonder did you understand what you''ve just done when you announced that? You just made a lot of enemies... But, I think you did know what you were doing. This is your deration of war, isn''t it? You really are making me feel hot and bothered.'' Le could not wait for her next meeting with Loki.


    ...


    Inside a dark room where only the light of one monitor shone brightly, a boy with numerous cuts and bruises was watching Loki''s video.


    "If only I was that strong. If only I can be that courageous... Then I could... Then this would..." The boy remembered something and started shivering. The boy then hugged himself and started crying.


    ...


    At an abandoned factory a guy who looked to be the same age as Alisa was sitting on top of the bodies of numerous unconscious young martial artists while watching Loki''s video.


    "Oh, this guy seems to be quite good. The way he moves doesn''t seem to be from any martial arts family that I know of... Heh, I think I know who my next ymate is going to be."


    ...


    "I am Fade, an assassin. Remember this, for as long as the reason is just and the price is right, I shall bring death to any and all evil."


    A man holding a missing poster of a little girl heard Loki''s voice from one of the phones of the people passing by him. When he heard that statement he clenched his fist.


    ''Could I find this assassin and ask him to kill that person who took away everything from me.''


    ...


    More and more people are learning about Loki as the video continues to spread. Since there was no proof of his existence except for that one video that no one could trace the source of, Loki or Fade was bing an urban legend. There were many that wish to seek him out, some purely out of curiosity, some because they wish to hire him, others because they wish to kill him.


    There were many unknowns about the whole thing, but one thing was certain, the name of Fade was now stuck in people''s minds.

 Chapter 36 - Beginning The Mission

    Deep in the forest just outside Hebi Cityy a factory secretly owned by the Harada Family. The building in question was supposedly a toy factory, but the truth was that was just camouge and the factory was a weapons factory. This particr factory had an underground base, where Kenji Harada makes most of his underworld deals.


    Currently, the Harada family wasying low in the underground base. Harada Itsuki was still unconscious moaning while being treated by the family''s personal doctor. Harada Sara was sitting beside her son, taking care of him.


    "What do you think?" Harada Kenji asked the doctor once the doctor was done with taking a look at Itsuki''s condition.


    "I''ve checked the young master several times now. His external injuries have already healed, the broken fingers have been fixed and there doesn''t seem to be any problem internally. He is perfectly healthy and should have already woken up."


    "Then what are you saying?! Are you telling me my son will never wake up again!" Harada Kenji red at the doctor. Unfazed by Kenji''s reaction the doctor responded.


    "Truth be told, I have no idea. This case is perplexing... There was no damage done to the head, nor were there any internal injuries. The only thing out of the ordinary were those external injuries that were caused by small needle-like objects. The way they punctured into the skin shouldn''t cause too many injuries, not to mention they were pierced in non-vital areas, but those things would have brought the young master significant pain. Aside from that, there''s nothing else that could exin what happened to the young master."


    "So what are we supposed to do?"


    "There''s nothing to do. At this point, we can only wait and see."


    When Kenji heard the doctor''s answer he wanted to immediately shoot him dead, but he stopped himself. This doctor was one of the best in the business, and it would be rather hard to find someone as skilled, that would want to work for him. So before he fully exploded Kenji left the room.


    It wasn''t the doctor''s fault as his skill was indeed impressive, but no matter how hard he tries to find the cause of what happened to Itsuki he would never find it. The world they were in had no instrument to detect what truly ailed Itsuki, which was Loki''s mana that invaded Itsuki''s body.


    Mana that wasn''t your own was toxic. Even back in Loki''s old world if you injected mana into someone else, the effect was simr to poison. The outside mana would slowly invade deeper into your body killing you from the inside, but if you had arger or stronger mana then your own mana would fight back and destroy the intruding force. Itsuki who had no mana or even that so called inner energy that martial artists use was defenseless from this unknown attack to his body.


    Still, at the beginning Loki had no intention of killing Itsuki Harada, so he only injected a tiny bit of his mana. So though not lethal to Itsuki, the mana injected would cause Itsuki to stay unconscious for a month or two.


    ...


    Once Kenji was out of the room he wanted to kick or punch something but he held it in, and instead, he took out his phone and called one of his subordinates.


    "So have you found anything new?"


    "Sorry boss, but even the Eye of Truth doesn''t have any information on Fade. If we want to start an investigation the fee they gave us is ridiculous."


    "How much?"


    "They say to start an investigation on someone of Fade''s caliber they would need at least two hundred million."


    "The f*ck! Why is investigating someone like that cost so much? Even if he is a martial artist it shouldn''t be that expensive."


    "Well, they said that due to many unknown factors, such as Fade''s true strength and abilities, they need to send some of their elite to investigate him. Since it is also possible that Fade was from some organization the risk grows exponentially. Supposedly the minimum amount they wanted was three hundred million, but since the boss is a repeat customer they lowered the price by a lot."


    "Damn, even if they did lower the price to that level, I can''t afford it right now. Fine then, how about changing the target of the investigation to the person that posted that video of Fade."


    "I''ll go ahead and ask them, I will contact you once I get the price."


    "Alright, if the price is lower than ten million, then agree to it. If not report back immediately."


    "Yes boss."


    After the call ended, Kenji''s mood grew worse. Nothing seems to be going his way ever since his son was attacked. He didn''t like this feeling at all, since it felt like some hidden hand was guiding his actions, and it was guiding him to his destruction.


    ...


    A hundred meters away from the Harada Family''s secret base, Loki wearing his white mask covered in his all-ck outfit was standing on therge branch of a tall tree. He took out the binocrs he borrowed from Harold and started to observe the base from a distance.


    Loki spotted a few guards at the front, he then circled around to look at all the angles. After he was sure of the position of each of the guards stationed outside as well as the security cameras, Loki double-checked the equipment he had on him. Once he confirmed that everything was in order he sighed and looked at the clouds above. This was his way to calm his heart, it was something he does before starting a big mission.


    "Alright then, time to begin the mission." Loki who was standing on a branch jumped down and headed to the base while blending into the shadows.

 Chapter 37 - Infiltrating The Base

    Loki approached the base on the east side as the security there was the weakest. The only guard there was the one guard who was circling the entire base. Not to mention on the east side, there were only a couple of security cameras, that was where Loki noticed a blindspot. The security cameras had simple movements as they moved from left to right, also they weren''t synchronized with each other, so Loki was able to spot the blindspot from those movements.


    Loki tossed one of the thin wires in his gloves and manipted it to wrap around one of the pirs on the wall. He then infused the wire with his mana using the [Enhancement] spell, once Loki was sure that the wire was secured, Loki looked at the security cameras and started counting.


    ''One, two, three, four, five!'' It was at that moment Loki used [Ehnancement] on himself and started running towards the wall. As he got near he jumped, and with the help of the wire, he pulled himself upward so that he was able to jump over the wall quite easily.


    Once he was on the other side of the wall, Loki quickly concealed himself using the [Shadow treading] spell. He waited for a bit so that he could observe those that pass this area, once he was sure that everything was clear Loki started moving.


    Loki entered the factory through a window that led to the restroom. He could hear some people talking just outside the restroom, so he was forced to wait for them to leave. Loki could''ve easily knocked those guys out, but doing that would have alerted the others. Even though the current Loki was confident he could somehow deal with normal men with guns, he wasn''t sure if there were any martial artists present in the base.


    Even now as his physique has gotten better and he could use a bit more mana, he was still wary of the so called martial artists. They use different techniques from the warriors of his old world, and the videos he has seen about them were focused solely on the children that joined the tournament they held every decade. The only adult martial artist he has seen was thedy named Le, and he wasn''t sure how shepared to the other adult martial artists.


    Knowing so little about martial artists and their abilities, Loki didn''t want to blindly do anything reckless, especially since he needed to rescue the kidnapped people.


    There was also the rule that he imposed on himself that he would not kill people that weren''t specified in the mission. The people he is supposed to kill in this mission were the Harada Family, and the Harada Family only. The subordinates were not part of the deal.


    ...


    Loki used the venttion to get by unseen. As he was going around the factory area of the base, he spotted Niel''s wife working in a production line. She lookedpletely haggard and based on the way she was moving her hands which were shaking, she had most likely been hit by a blunt object multiple times.


    Loki then observed the other workers in the production line and noticed that most of them share a simr disposition to the P.I''s wife.


    ''Those people must be other kidnapped family members, of other people being ckmailed... Hmm, If the adults are here I wonder where they''re keeping the kids... Well, first I''ll look around, and once I locate the kids I''ll help them escape then I''ll kill the Harada Family.''


    Loki took some pictures of the family members using his phone and sent them to Harold. Loki then instructed Harold to send those pictures along with the location of the factory to the media telling them that these people were kidnapped, once he gave him the signal. Before he could give that signal, first he needed to locate the children before they do anything.


    After he was done sending the message Loki continued to look around the factory and found an elevator that needed a key to work. Loki snuck onto the top of the elevator and waited for one of the henchmen to use it.


    It didn''t really take that long before someone came to use it and headed down to the secret base below. As the henchman was about to leave the elevator, Loki silently got behind him and stole his elevator key.


    It was a good thing that this person was alone which made it easier for Loki to steal the key without him noticing anything. Once he acquired the key to the elevator Loki started to search around the secret base to try and locate the kidnapped children.


    This time it was harder to move around as there were more henchmen walking in the hallways and guarding some doors, not to mention there were security cameras everywhere. The only silver lining was that the venttion made sneaking around and getting past those obstacles a bit easier.


    ...


    The secret base hidden under the factory above wasn''t as big as Loki expected it to be. Still, it was hard to look around as there were henchmen in every corner.


    ''I guess this is a good way to help me practice infiltrating these kinds of ces, as I have a feeling more of my future missions will force me to infiltrate more secured ces than this.'' Loki sighed at that thought while continuing to look around the base for the kidnapped children.


    As Loki was moving around he spotted Harada Kenji heading somewhere with an urgent look on his face.

 Chapter 38 - Its Time For You To Die

    Loki decided to follow Harada Kenji first to know the location of his office, but he didn''t n to kill him for now. The priority at the moment was to free those that have been kidnapped.


    Once Harada Kenji entered a room, Loki no longer followed and started to search the rooms that were near this area. After looking around for a while, Loki clicked his tongue.


    ''This ce is bigger than I initially thought, and theyout is rather confusing. If I continue just going around blindly I might be moving around for hours... Tsk, I guess I have no choice I better capture one of those henchmen. If only I had enough mana to use the [soul search] spell. That would make things so much easier. This feels like I''ve gone back to the day of my very first mission. I was such a novice back then... Wait what''s with me, this is no time for nostalgia.''


    Loki shook his head and started looking around the base waiting for one of the henchmen to separate from their group. It didn''t take too long as one of them needed to pee and headed to the nearest restroom. The moment that person entered the restroom, Loki quickly knocked him out.


    ...


    The person that Loki captured was waking up, and the first thing he noticed upon waking was that he could not move his body. It was as if there were something invisible restraining him. He could feel that there was something wrapped around his fingers, arms, neck, and his legs. Not only that but he was also gagged and could not speak.


    He then noticed someone approach him from within the darkened part of the room. Once the person approached the light, the henchman immediately knew who it was. This person was the one who was getting famous online, the assassin Fade.


    "I''ll get straight to the point. I''m going to ask you a question and all you need to do is nod your head if the answer is yes, and shake your head if the answer is no. So do you know where the kidnapped children are?"


    The henchmen didn''t answer, as he neither shook nor nodded his head. Seeing that reaction made Loki sigh. Loki then wiggled his finger and in the next second one of the henchman''s fingers was cut off.


    The henchman felt intense pain as he saw his finger flying off and his blood spilling out. He could not help but scream in pain.


    "So are you willing to tell me what I want now?"


    The henchman quickly nodded his head as tears fell from his face. Loki then removed the gag on the henchman''s mouth.


    "The moment you start screaming for help is the moment your head flies off. If you tell me what I want properly, I promise you will survive this." This was simply a bluff, as the truth was Loki would never kill this person, as he was not one of the targets of this mission. Still, Loki could hurt him without killing him.


    "I''ll tell you everything you want to know, please just don''t kill me."


    ...


    Harada Kenji was in his office rewatching the video about Fade and how he easily dealt with his men.


    ''To fight a martial artist I would need bigger guns, or I could hire a martial artist to deal with him. The first option would take some time, while the second will cost me a lot.''


    Kenji started tapping his desk with his fingers as he continued to think of what his next step was going to be. Even now the opponent he was facing was an unknown. On the other hand, his opponent seemingly knows everything about him. As he was focusing his phone suddenly rang. Kenji saw that it was the Police Commissioner.


    "What do you want?"


    "You b*stard! How dare you sell me out! If I fall I''m bringing you with me!"


    "What the F*ck are you talking about?"


    "Just you wait, we''ll both go down and your fall will be worse than mine!" The Police Commissioner hanged up not waiting for Kenji to reply.


    "What was that about? Hey Mike,e in I need you for something." After a few seconds of waiting, no one answered.


    "Hey Mike, do you hear me, I saide in here!" This time someone entered the room but it wasn''t Mike.


    "I''m sorry to say Mike won''t being."


    Kenji was able to react rather quickly and pulled out his gun and pointed it at Loki, but in the next instant, his gun flew out of his hands. It was the same thing that happened in the video that was posted on the inte.


    "Who are you?"


    "Surely you already know who I am."


    "... What do you want from me?"


    "Why do you keep on asking the obvious questions? I''m an assassin you''re the target. What do you think I want from you?"


    "How about I pay double the amount your employer paid you? Will you let me go then?"


    "I''m sorry to say, but the payment I asked for isn''t something you can give."


    Kenji gnashed his teeth as he continued to think of a way out of this. Yet no matter how hard he thought there didn''t seem to be a way out. After a few seconds of silence Kenji startedughing, while Loki silently watched him.


    "Hahaha, so this is how it ends. All my struggles, everything I built will end today. Then since I''m going to die anyway, tell me Fade who was it that hired you?"


    "I guess I could tell you that. The one who hired me is someone you know well, it was Niel the private investigator."


    "Niel?... That doesn''t make sense, does that mean you''re not connected to what happened to my son?"


    "No, I was the one who did that to your son... To tell you the truth, I didn''t even know about you and your family before a few days ago. Let me tell you the real reason as to why you''re going to die today. It''s because your son was about to touch someone he shouldn''t have."


    "Can you tell me who that is?"


    "Fine, but this is thest question I will answer. After you hear it, those words will be thest thing you ever hear."


    "So be it."


    "That person was my sister."


    Harada Kenji couldn''t even express his shock as his head was cleanly cut off from his body. As his head was falling to the ground, he still retained a bit of his consciousness as he saw his body hitting the ground, headless. Thest thoughts he had as he was about to die were.


    ''Why did I have such a worthless son.''

 Chapter 39 - The End Of The Harada Family

    Outside the factory owned by the Harada Family, a news team had arrived on the scene. As they were setting up, another news team arrived, and after a while, more and more people came to the factory. Even the bloggers havee in droves and unlike the news teams had simply charged forward.


    As they got closer to the factory a wave of people starteding out from within. The people who came out of the factory were men and women holding children. The people from the news teams knew some of these people as they had a segment about missing persons and many faces from that segment were here today. Some of the bloggers on the scene had already called for ambnces and the police.


    ...


    As it was getting chaotic above ground, Loki was about to finish off the Harada Sara and the Harada Itsuki next. Now that he had released the children alongside their parents, and with the media above ground to help, he needed to catch the attention of all the men in the base so that those above could escape properly. Loki sighed as he used the [Enhancement] spell on his whole body.


    "Beating the henchmen without killing them, this is going to be such a hassle... Well, to be her ideal assassin, I guess I can suck it up and just do my best." Loki smiled as he saw the henchmen at the other end of the hallway getting into position and started shooting at him.


    Loki swung his hands and the wires from his gloves sprung forth. The wires that were strengthened using the [Enhancement] spell were able to deflect and block the bulletsing Loki''s way. Yet even though he was able to deflect and block most of the bullets from the automatic fire, some of them got past his defenses. It was also hard to evade the bullets in this small hallway. So Loki had some nicks here and there, but once he got near enough, Loki was able to incapacitate his opponents with ease.


    ...


    Harada Sara could hear the gunfire from outside the room where she and her unconscious son were staying at. The guards had already warned her that someone had infiltrated their base and that she should stay here.


    When the sounds of gunfire suddenly stopped, Sara pointed the gun she was holding at the door. She was trembling and wanted to run away but she could not leave her son. Despite this world being so sh*tty this son of hers was her only ray of sunshine. She could remember the time he was just born as she held him in her arms. It was like her world had be a little bit brighter.


    ''Don''t worry son, I will protect you.''


    As the door opened Sara saw a person in all ck wearing a white mask enter the room. She was about to shoot when the gun she was holding was pulled away. The moment the gun left her hands she quickly covered her son''s body with her own.


    "Hmm, I see, even though you''re trash you''re a good mother." Seeing as Loki didn''t kill them in that instant, Sara felt there was hope and pleaded.


    "Please, I know that I and my family have done so many wrongs, and we can never repay them. But this child is still young and can change. You can vite me, kill me, you can do anything to me, just please spare my son."


    "... You want me to spare your son? But what of those your son never spared? Did your son even think twice before viting and killing all those women? Did he hesitate, did hement his decisions? No, he did not! He kept on doing the same thing, and you allowed it to continue. Even you, yourself have done the same thing many times. You and your son are no different, both of you are scum. Still, I apud you, even though you''re scum you did not flee on your own and stayed here to protect your son. For that, I will grant you a gift. I will allow you to speak to your son for onest time."


    Loki approached Itsuki''s unconscious body. Seeing himing closer Sara once again covered Itsuki''s body with her own. As she was waiting for death toe, she heard her son''s voice.


    "Mom... What''s going on here?" Sara lifted her head and saw that Itsuki had woken up. She could not help herself as tears fell from her face.


    "Why are you crying? Also, who''s that man?" As Itsuki was still in a state of utter confusion, Sara suddenly hugged him.


    "We don''t have much time left, I just want to tell you that you were like the sun to me so bright and warm. I''m sorry that I wasn''t a good mother, I hope that if there''s a next life we''ll both do better. I love you, Itsuki, my little ray of sunshine."


    "Now that you have said your goodbyes, die." Hearing Loki''s voice Sara hugged her son tightly. Itsuki who was still confused as to what was happening saw Loki move his fingers. In the next moment, both Itsuki and Sara''s heads were detached from their bodies.


    ...


    As death wasing to take her, Sara''s life shed before her eyes. She had a sh*tty life from the start, as her mother hated her, and she was beaten by her father frequently. It was Kenji who saved her from this life of abuse and poverty, but as his empire grew so did their love grow apart. Due to this she felt lonely and found sce in other men, some of which she forced herself on them.


    Even though her world was dark and had almost no hope of redemption, there was still that little ray of sunshine that made her feel better. It was her only son Itsuki, to her he was her guiding light. She knew the things that her son was doing, but she never stopped him as those acts seem to make him happy. She knew that they were wrong, but she didn''t know any other way.


    ''I only hope that in your next life you have a better mother than me.'' Those were Sara''sst thoughts as her consciousness faded into darkness.

 Chapter 40 - Promises To Be Fulfilled

    Niel had heard the news about the people that were saved from the Harada Family''s supposed toy factory. When he saw in one of the shots the silhouette of his wife and child, Niel''s eyes widened as he started running.


    ...


    It took him half an hour to get to the factory and there were already a bunch of ambnces as well as police officers in the area. He started looking around trying to find his wife.


    "Madoka! Where are you Madoka! Lily, papa''s here!" Niel shouted from within the sea of people. Many rtives of the kidnapped individuals hade running to the ce as well, so there were a ton of people and the police were doing their best to control the situation.


    As he continued to scream at the top of his lungs, Niel heard something. It was the voice of the one he has been missing for all this time.


    "NIEL!"


    "PAPA!"


    It was the voices of his beloved wife and daughter. Niel started to shout even louder in his excitement.


    "Madoka! Lily! Where are you two?!" Niel started running towards the sounds of their voices and then as he sprinted away he saw them. The clothes they were wearing were tattered and their bodies were full of bruises but they were alive and right in front of him. When Niel saw his wife and child, alive, his legs failed him and he knelt. He could no longer hold it in as tears fell down his face.


    Madoka and Lily who were running towards him stopped for a brief moment as they saw Niel crying. This was the first time Lily has ever seen her tough and strong dad actually cry. Even Madoka hasn''t seen Niel cry for such a long time and was stunned.


    Yet after the initial shock, Lily started running towards Niel and hugged him. "Papa!" Lily started crying as well as she hugged her dad. Madoka also ran towards her husband and hugged him, the family of three were now crying amidst the chaos.


    Niel stretched his arms and hugged his family. "Thank you, thank you, thank you for being alive. I''m so d." As Niel continued to hug his wife and child, he noticed someone standing on the branch of a tree. He was just standing there, but it felt like no one had noticed him except for Niel. That person was none other than, Fade. Upon seeing the assassin Niel immediately closed his eyes.


    ''Please not now, just give me a bit more time and I will fulfill my end of the bargain.'' Niel then slowly opened his eyes and Fade was no longer there.


    ...


    After the incident with the Harada Family the deaths of Harada Kenji his wife and child made waves on the city, as many of their past misdeeds were revealed. The former Police Commissioner had admitted to doing many things for the Harada Kenji and showed proof of many of their misdeeds.


    Though it wasn''t publicly announced who had killed the members of the Harada Family, many people had an idea of who it was.


    Many of the victims of the incident that were saved, had reported a man wearing a white mask and an all-ck attire came to rescue them. Even the captured henchmen of the Harada''s gave a simr description. When the people heard this description they could only think of the assassin named Fade.


    Still, no one could prove if it was truly him since, despite the eyewitness reports, only a few actually saw him, and due to the situation at hand, they weren''t even sure if that was what they saw, making their statements unreliable.


    Not to mention that despite there being a lot of security cameras inside the factory, not one was able to capture Fade''s silhouette, as most of them had erased footage. Because of all these factors, many conspiracy theorists imed that the police destroyed the evidence of Fade''s existence from this incident so that they could take all the credit for bringing down the Harada Family.


    Still, though there wasn''t any definite proof of his existence, Fade''s fame was growing more and more each day. Despite his name no longer being mentioned in mainstream media, his fame on the continued to spread.


    ...


    It has been a few days since that event, and Niel''s life with his family has finally returned to its normal routine. Niel felt how lucky he was to be able to return to the time before everything becameplicated.


    He kissed his wife good morning as she made him breakfast, his daughter rushes towards him with a smile on her face. "Papa!" He lifts her up and she kisses him on the cheeks.


    Despite being happy, there was something deep inside that weighed upon him. Each passing day the fear that these happy days woulde to an end, grew more and more.


    ''Just one more day, just one more day of being with them. I just need one more day, I promise tomorrow I will fulfill my end of the bargain.''


    As he continued to think about that each day, a week had already passed. It was at the time, as he was in his study the person he didn''t want to meet came before him.


    "I have fulfilled my end of the bargain. I have killed the Harada Family and have saved your own. I even allowed you to be with them, for a few days. So it''s time for you to pay up..."


    "I see... I hoped that you would somehow forget about me and leave me be. I guess I can''t go on like this. I''m truly grateful for what you have done, but-" Niel was about to reach for his gun hidden in his drawer, but before he could open the drawer Fade spoke to him.


    "Do not bother to do that. I''m sure by now you should know pistols don''t really work on me... Niel, I know that you want to forget your sins, and the bad things that happened to you and your family, but... No matter how you try to forget, the sins you havemitted will be there until you atone for them. I had done my part of the deal, now it is time for you to honor yours. If you do not pay up then, I will be forced to get another form of payment."


    When Niel heard Fade''s statement he turned his back on him and gnashed his teeth as a tear fell from his face.


    "I guess this was all just a dream. Of course, you need to wake up at some point, right?" Niel turned around and saw that Fade had disappeared. As he was stunned by the disappearing act, he suddenly heard Fade''s voice whisper in his ear.


    "I''ll give you one more day." The window behind him which was closed had opened as a cool breeze entered his room.


    "For an assassin, you''re too kindhearted." Niel smiled as he mumbled to himself.


    ...


    The following day Niel and his family had an outing and did various activities. From going to an amusement park to eating in the park while Lily yed. As the day was ending, Niel told his wife about the price he needed to pay.


    At first, Madoka wanted to find another way to pay Fade, but after talking to her a bit more Niel was able to somehow convince her. They then both told their daughter Lily, that her dad needed to leave for a working trip for a long time.


    "Alright, don''t worry papa. Lily will be a good girl and wait for papa. While papa''s gone Lily will be the one to protect mama."


    When Niel and Madoka heard what their five-year-old daughter said, they could not help but cry.

 Chapter 41 - The Eye Of Truth

    Loki was there watching the family of three spending theirst day together before Niel goes to prison. As Loki watched the three having fun he felt something weird. He couldn''t understand what it was, but he did feel a little bit envious of Niel and his family.


    ''Maybe, Alisa and Liam would want to have a family outing as well...''


    When it was time for Niel to go to the police he walked there from his home. Madoka wanted to apany him, but Niel refused. He wanted Madoka to stay with Lily and think of this like his going in one of his investigations, it was just another ordinary day.


    "Bye-bye papa, see youter." Lily''s happy smile as she waved her hand almost made Niel cry but he stopped himself. Niel mustered everything he had to put on a smile, and so did Madoka. He then waved hands at his wife and daughter.


    ...


    Niel who was walking towards the Police Station suddenly turned a corner and stopped in an empty alleyway. He then started looking around and once he was sure there was no one there, Niel spoke.


    "Hey, I''m sure that you''re here somewhere, right Fade?" There was no response, but Niel continued talking.


    "I''m about to go and pay up... I know it''s shameful of me to ask this, but can you check up on my family every now and then. I don''t know how long I will be imprisoned so please." Niel waited for a bit and then he heard someone speaking from behind him.


    "I''m an assassin, not a babysitter. Your wife and child will learn how to live without you." Niel felt a bit disappointed when he heard Loki''s response. Still, he couldn''t really make Loki do as he asked, he didn''t even understand why he asked in the first ce. It was at that moment as he was about to walk away, Loki spoke.


    "But if I have the time, I don''t mind taking a look." When Niel heard that he turned around in surprise, but Loki was no longer there.


    "Thank you." Niel smiled as he continued onward to face his sins. Loki continued to watch as Niel surrendered himself to the police.


    ''We all will face our sins sooner orter...''


    ...


    While Loki was watching over Niel fulfill his end of the deal, Harold was having problems back in his ce. It happened a few days after the incident with the Harada Family ended. Someone was actually trying to find his location. This was the first time that someone had actually gotten far enough to be so close to hacking into his system.


    Harold was typing on his multiple keyboards like a madman. Yet despite the danger of his identity and location being found out, Harold could not help himself as he smiled in excitement. The battle he was having as typed on his keyboard was the most stimting thing that has ever happened to him. It was even more stimting than the time he met the powerful assassin Fade.


    At this very moment in Harold''s world, there was nothing but him, his keyboards, and his monitors. The sound of him typing was the only sound he could hear. As time passed he was no longer on the defensive and was now the one trying to locate them, but once that happened all traces of those tracking him disappeared.


    Still, Harold had some clue as to who was trying to find him. "The Eye of Truth..."


    "The Eye of Truth, is that a name of a group?"


    "Wha-!" Harold jumped from his chair and saw Loki was standing right behind him. "Huh, when did youe in?"


    "I was here for quite some time, I tried talking to me but you were so engrossed in what you were doing youpletely ignored me. So what''s happening, what are you doing?"


    Harold easily epted that Loki arrived without him noticing, not mentioning he was in the zone a while ago, but Loki''s ability to sneak in undetected was second to none. Harold sighed before he exined to Loki what happened.


    "Hmm, so this Eye of truth is looking for you? I guess that would be because of me... Even though it was indirectly I apologize for what''s happening." Loki bowed his head.


    "Wait, wait, wait, there''s no need for that. It was my decision to do those things as well. It wasn''t like you were forcing me to do it. Heck, you even paid me, so it''s a job... Also, to tell you the truth, I did have a ton of fun in doing that."


    "I see... If you''re okay with it, then I guess it''s fine. Still, just call me if anything happens."


    "I''ll do that."


    "Alright then, I''m rather curious what is this Eye of truth?"


    "The Eye of Truth is a very old organization that is said to have existed since the birth of the Empire, this organization deals with information. As long as you pay the appropriate amount of money, they would give you whatever information you need. If they don''t have the information you want at hand they send out their agents to find the information you need. Right now I''m guessing someone paid them for any information about the person who posted the videos about the assassin Fade. Now that they failed the next attempt would be a much harsher one for me to deal with."


    "Do you need my help in dealing with this?"


    "No need. I''m guessing now that they know a bit more about my skills, the price of my information will go up. So since they haven''t continued trying to hack into my system, think they either don''t have someone capable enough to y with me, or the person who is asking for my info can''t pay the new price. Either way, it''s not a problem for me."


    "I see..."


    "So why did youe here in the first ce?"


    "I just wanted to thank you for your help. Also to give you this payment." Ren handed Harold a stack of money.


    "Thanks," Harold replied as he picked up the money and ced it in the safe hidden under his monitors. Loki nodded his head and was about to leave, but before he did he asked Harold a question.


    "Hey, do you think the Eye of truth would be able to get information about me?" When Harold heard Loki''s question there was a moment of silence. The atmosphere became a bit tense before Harold gave his answer.


    "Truth be told I don''t know. Rumor has it, that there is no information in this country or the Empire that can evade the sight of the Eye of Truth. It just depends on how much money you are willing to spend to get that information. Right now they don''t have anything on both of us, and I think that after this event, the prices on any info about us will be on the high-end. So people on the same level as the Harada Family''s won''t be able to afford to pay. Also, I''m not sure about you, but I''m confident in my skills that I''m sure that even if they try they won''t be able to trace anything back to me. How about you, aren''t you confident in your skills?"


    Loki smiled at what Harold said. That was right, even back in his old world, there were many organizations like this Eye of Truth. Yet no matter what they did they weren''t able to get any solid information about him. He was confident he could do the same in this world, that didn''t have those irritating spells that could do unbelievable things.


    "Thank you again, Harold?" After saying that Loki jumped out of the window.

 Chapter 42 - Drunk

    It has been a week since Matsuri has been admitted to the hospital due to a supposed injury and was now supposedly fully healed which was why she was going to be discharged today. That was the official statement of the officer that handles the PR of the police force, but the truth was she was ced there to hide her from the media. She was ordered toy low and not cause a stir after what happened in the hospital. Her partner John was also under house arrest.


    While she was in the hospital she saw on the news about the death of the Harada Family. Even though most of the people seem to believe that it was a rival of the Harada Family, that killed them, Matsuri knew the truth. It was Fade who has imed their lives. It was also him that rescued the kidnapped families of those the Harada Family ckmailed.


    ''He saved those people but he killed the Harada''s... I really can''t...''


    ...


    It was during the afternoon, back at his house, Loki who was the topic of everyone''s conversation was ying a video game with his younger brother Liam. The two were ying a popr fighting game.


    "Howe this character won''t do as I want?" Loki was perplexed that he could not beat his younger brother no matter how hard he tried. He could see every movement made by both characters on the screen, he was sure that he inputted the rightmands on the controller but he still could not win.


    "Damn, you suck at this." Liam sighed as he finished Loki with ten hitbo. "Do you want to go another round?" Liam spoke in a rather mocking tone, as Loki was about to respond his phone started ringing.


    ''The detective, I wonder what she wants?'' Loki answered the call.


    "What can I help you with Detective?"


    "Hi Loki, it''s been a while. I just want to ask if you''re free right now?"


    "Why?"


    "How about apanying a prettydy for a little drink. So are you free?"


    "... Yeah sure, so where will we meet?" After getting the details on which bar they were meeting at, Loki stood up from the coach.


    "Sorry Liam, I have another appointment. Alisa, I''m going out for a bit, no need to wait for me." Loki was about to go out of the door when Alisa spoke.


    "Where are you going big brother? Tomorrow is your first day back to work, shouldn''t you be getting ready for that?"


    "You remember Detective Matsuri, I think she''s having some problems so I need to apany her for a bit. As for tomorrow, don''t worry I got it all figured out."


    "Are you going out drinking?"


    "Yes, but it''s more like Matsuri will be drinking, I''ll just be there listening. Don''t worry, a lot of my memories havee back and I already know my way around the city. Not to mention I''ll be with Detective Matsuri."


    "... Alright, say hi to Matsuri for me." After Alisa reluctantly agreed, Loki left the house.


    ...


    In front of the bar, Matsuri was waiting for Loki to arrive. She was rather surprised at herself that she actually invited Loki for a drink.


    ''Well, I couldn''t invite John since he''s still under surveince... Wait now that I think about it, I have no one else to invite.'' Matsuri came to a sudden realization that she had no friends and that her co-workers don''t really socialize with her. As she was feeling a bit more depressed, she heard someone calling her.


    "Detective, I hope you haven''t been waiting long."


    "No, I haven''t, but enough with the greetings, I really need a drink right now." Matsuri pulled Loki into the bar.


    ...


    It has only been a few minutes since they entered, but Matsuri was already drunk. She was even crying as she drunk some more.


    "Am I such an unlikable character Loki? Am I such a horrid person that no one wants to talk to me?"


    "I don''t think that at all Detective."


    "You liar! See, what you did there, you keep on calling me, detective. You don''t want to have anything to do with me either."


    "No that''s not it... Matsuri... I really do think that you''re a good person. I think the reason your co-workers don''t approach you, is because they''re intimidated by your beauty."


    "Really?"


    "Yes, really."


    Matsuri huped as she continued to drink and got closer to Loki. "You''re a good guy, Loki. I can''t believe that I once thought that you were that b*stard Fade." Matsuri gnashed her teeth as she started ranting.


    "That b*stard has everyone fooled. I saw on the inte that the people who believe in his existence think he''s some kind of hero of justice. Sure, I''m not saying that the b*stards he kills don''t deserve it, but they also deserved a second chance, a chance for redemption. Also let''s not forget he said it himself, that he''s an assassin, a hired hand. What kind of hero of justice gets paid to kill others? There''s also that sh*tty slogan of his, as long as the reason is just and the price is right? Who is he to decide what''s just? He''s just another one of the bad guys..."


    "So are you saying that those guys that thew cannot touch be left alone? He might be a bad guy in your book, but he''s a bad guy that deals with other bad guys." Matsuri was rather surprised that Loki spoke in defense of Fade.


    "There''s no such thing as a person that thew cannot touch. Also fighting fire with fire, only makes things worse."


    "Then what about the Harada Family? I heard that they''ve been doing a lot of crime for a long time now. They even had the former Police Commissioner under their pockets. If not for that assassin, wouldn''t they have continued doing whatever they wanted without consequences?"


    Matsuri who was dead drunk suddenly spoke in a more sober tone, as she emitted a faint amount of bloodlust.


    "So you''re telling me, that we should allow this one person whose identity is unknown to have the power to be judge, jury, and executioner? I admit that I and my fellow officers have failed to uphold what is right, but that doesn''t mean what he''s doing is alright. Thew is there for a reason, it is there to protect us from ourselves, from chaos. If we continue to allow him to set such a precedent then won''t the others think that as long as it is just in their eyes, they should be able to kill those people that they hate."


    "..."


    Seeing the expression on Loki''s face, Matsuri smiled.


    "Let''s stop talking about that b*stard and talk about other things. Oh right, why am I the only one who''s drinking?" Matsuri then tried to force Loki to drink.


    ...


    A few hours have passed, Matsuri had already paid for the drinks. Now she and Loki were outside of the bar, and Matsuri could no longer take it and was now sleeping. Loki sighed as he looked at the happy smiling face of the detective.


    "Hey Matsuri, wake up, I''m going to call you a cab, so how about you tell me your adress?" Matsuri opened her eyes for a while and looked at Loki before replying.


    "That''s a secret." Once she said that she went back to sleep. Loki tried to wake her up again, but no matter what he did she wouldn''t wake up, Loki sighed.


    ''I guess have no choice now.'' Loki took out his phone and called Alisa.


    "Hey Alisa, can you prepare the bed in the guest room."

 Chapter 43 - Going Back To Work

    Loki who was carrying Matsuri could feel the injuries he got from the incident before were slightly opening up. He couldn''t go to the hospital since people would ask questions, so he was using his mana to speed up the healing of his wounds. Unfortunately, even with his enhanced healing due to the mana circting through his body, the wounds he received from those gunshots weren''t healing as fast as he wanted them to. It was taking a lot of his mana just to close them up.


    ''Tsk, if I knew this would happen, I would''ve tried to learn some healing spells.'' Even back in his old world, he kept on saying that, but he never really did learn any spells for healing. While grumbling in his heart, Loki continued to wait for a taxi.


    ...


    The following day, Loki woke up early as he was going to check on Matsuri. As he went downstairs to the guest room, he saw that Alisa was sleeping on a chair in front of the guest room. Looking at her guarding that door, Loki chuckled. He then carried Alisa back to her room. Loki then checked on Matsuri and saw that the detective was sleeping like a log.


    Once he was done checking up on everyone, Loki looked at the email he received the other day. It was about his paid leave ending. The school informed him that they will be weing him back during the morning assembly.


    Loki wondered about what was happening in that school, and why the old Loki had that ident. Even now as many memories of the old Loki hade back to him, there were only a few that were rted to that school and none rted to that ident.


    ''Was it really an ident? Though I don''t have any memories of it, my gut is telling me something deeper is going on... I wonder, what kind of things will happen today.''


    Loki then went back to his room to see what tools he could bring into school without getting caught. The wired gloves should be fine and one dagger hidden in his boots. He was going for a semi-casual look and had bought new clothes a few days ago since the old ones no longer fit him.


    Now that he was fully dressed, Loki looked at the mirror and was quite pleased with himself. It has been two months since he came to this world. When he just transmigrated into Loki''s body it was a weak thin body that had neither muscles nor fat. Yet now after two months of painstaking exercise, training, and with the use of mana, his body looked much better.


    It wasn''t too visible but he had a four-pack, and his biceps and triceps were bulging a bit. He didn''t have excessive muscles and he wasn''t still in the best shape he wanted, but he was getting there, now that the foundation was better than before.


    Loki was feeling better the more he looked at his body that had improved greatly, and when he circted his mana, he could feel the slight increase it had from back then. He could only use two spells at the moment, and the duration of usage wasn''t all that great, but it was way better than when he first got here.


    The first time he tried using mana he could only use [Enhancement] for a few minutes and he wasn''t even strong enough to knock out a street thug with a punch. Yet now the duration was a few hours, and he could easily take down the thugs he met before without even using [Enhancemnt].


    Loki then started moving around in his new suit to see if he could move well enough. As he was moving around someone knocked on his door.


    "Big brother, where you the one who-" Alisa who entered the room was momentarily stunned by her older brother who looked like a different person. "Big... Brother?"


    "Does it look good on me?" Loki smugly smiled.


    "I actually thought you were a different person for a second. It does look good on you big brother. So when did you buy something like this? Who knew that you actually know how to pick your clothes. Seeing your old clothes, I always thought you pick whatever you see first."


    "Well, you know I got to look good for myeback." When Loki said those words, Alisa started frowning.


    "Big brother, do you still not remember anything about the ident?"


    "I can''t, why?"


    "Nothing... So are you going to wear a tie?" Alisa approached Loki and looked at him from all angles while teasing him. Due to themotion the two were making, Liam woke up and entered the room. When he saw his big brother in the suit he was confused at first. Then when Alisa pointed out that the person standing in the suit was Loki, Liam was shocked.


    "Whoah, what happened to you? Who knew that the lousy andme as* big bro could look kinda cool. You did say you were going to the gym. I thought that you were lying, but who knew it was actually true."


    The three siblings startedughing and both Liam and Alisa continued to tease Loki. After a while, the two went out of the room as they needed to prepare for school as well. Loki then checked on Matsuri. The drunk detective was still sleeping with no signs of waking up. Seeing that the three of them were about to eat breakfast and leave, Loki decided to write a note and ced it on the table of the guest room. He wrote everything Matsuri needed to know, like where she was and why she was here.


    ...


    After the siblings were done eating their breakfast, they all headed out. The three of them were heading to the same ce. Well, Liam was going to the middle school building that was located across the street, while Loki and Alisa were going to the high school building.


    "See you guyster, better not mess up like you always do big bro." After saying that Liam crossed the street. Loki then looked at the school where he was supposed to be a librarian. Even though he was already standing in front of the school, there weren''t any new memoriesing back. Seeing Loki was in a dazed state, Alisa spoke.


    "Big brother, are you alright?" Hearing Alisa''s voice Loki woke up from his thoughts.


    "Yeah, I''m good, just a little nervous... Well then, let''s go in."

 Chapter 44 - Warning

    Loki and Alisa passed through the school gates and upon entering Loki immediately noticed that many students were looking at him curiously. Many of those staring at him were the girls. As he was walking, he could hear some of their conversations.


    "Isn''t that Alisa, the first year''s princess, who''s that with her? Is it her boyfriend?"


    "So she did have a boyfriend, so that''s why she rejects everyone."


    "Her boyfriend''s really good-looking wearing that suit. But isn''t she afraid that ''he'' would do something?"


    "An older gentleman is it."


    "Wait doesn''t that person look rather familiar?"


    As everyone was having their separate discussions, Loki suddenly felt several people with those so called inner energiesing near him. Loki didn''t want to expose his skills especially with so many students watching him, so he hoped that whoever was approaching wasn''t hostile or if they were he hoped that they weren''t as strong as Le.


    It was then Loki saw where the several inner energies wereing from, it was from the students who were now approaching him. They were wearing the same uniform as the others, the only difference was that they had a golden pin on their cors.


    There were five of them, four men and one woman. Among the five the handsome man standing at the forefront was emitting a very hostile intent that couldn''t be felt by normal people. He was smiling at Loki but Loki knew that this person wanted to attack him. The boy then shifted his attention from Loki to Alisa and the smile on his face grew even wider.


    "Good morning Alisa."


    "What do you want, Kira?"Alisa was practically growling as she spoke. Seeing how hostile Alisa was made the four following Kira frown. If it weren''t for the fact that Kira liked Alisa, the four of them would''ve already attacked the rude Alisa.


    "Why are you always so hostile? I''m just here to say hello and I also want to ask who this fine gentleman is." Kira once again shifted his attention to Loki. It was at that moment, Loki could feel the hidden killing intent that Kira was emitting. Kira was like a sheathed de, wanting to sh at Loki.


    "Can''t you even recognize the person you tried to kill?"


    "Oh, there you go again with the nder, I haven''t tried to kill anyone, since I"m aw-abiding citizen. Hmm, now that I got a good look at him... It''s been a while, Sir Loki, I''m d that you''re looking better now. In fact, look at you, it''s like you''re an entirely different person. Still, I hope you''re not pushing yourselfing back to school."


    The killing intent Kira was emitting suddenly vanished. When the other people heard what he said, they were all surprised. This person that was wearing the suit and emitting an aura of calm confidence was that introvert librarian Loki?! As everyone was still in a state of shock, Loki spoke.


    "Thank you for your concern, but who are you again?"


    When everyone heard Loki''s question the surrounding students gasped. The four who were standing behind Kira red at Loki, their killing intent not being masked. As the tension was growing, Kira suddenly responded.


    "Oh right, I''m sorry, Ipletely forgot about your circumstances. I heard that you have some sort of amnesia. Of course, you don''t recognize me, sorry about that Sir Loki, allow me to introduce myself." Kira then made a grand gesture and bowed in a noble-like way.


    "I''m Mikado Kira, a first-year student in the martial arts course. You and I have a good rtionship as I used to frequent the library to borrow books. Not to mention I''m one of the people trying to woo your dear sister."


    "Is that so... Then I''m d to meet you again, Kira. I hope that you and I can continue to be on good terms." When Alisa heard what Loki said, she wanted to say something but decided to not speak for now. On the other hand, Kira was rather surprised upon seeing Loki''s reaction. It was just for a brief moment, but then he went back to wearing that fake smile of his.


    "Of course, of course. I''ll once again be disturbing you from time to time. You do rmend a lot of good books." It was at that moment the morning bell rang, and the students who were listening in Kira and Loki''s conversation started running to get inside the school building.


    "Big brother, I''ll see youter." Alisa also started running towards the school building, as she passed by the smiling Kira she red at him. Once Alisa was gone, the smile on Kira''s face suddenly changed. He was still smiling but the feeling it brought was different from before.


    "I need to go as well, Sir Loki. I hope that this time you won''t get into any more idents." Kira went closer to Loki and ced his hand on Loki''s shoulder. Kira was gripping onto Loki''s shoulder with some force as he whispered something in Loki''s ears.


    "I really hope that Sir Loki will stop being so reckless and doing things he shouldn''t do so that he wouldn''t get into any more idents."


    "I''ll take note of that, thank you for your concern, student Kira," Loki responded to Kira''s obvious threat, sounding oblivious to that fact.


    After Loki responded the tense atmosphere disappeared, and Kira''s smile once again changed back to that fake one he uses andughed. Kira then took a step back.


    "Of course, If you need any help, Sir Loki, you can just look for me. I''ll do my best to help you, in any way I can. After all, you are the librarian I like the most. See youter, Sir Loki." Kira left with his group while waving his hands at Loki. Seeing the fading silhouettes of the group, Loki sighed.


    ''Hmm, those five are pretty dangerous, especially that Kira character. I can''t remember any of them, but I''m sure that they have something to do with the ident that killed the old Loki. I guess being a librarian isn''t going to be as easy as I thought it was.''

 Chapter 45 - The Library

    The morning ceremony passed by quickly, and as expected many students were shocked by the change of Loki''s demeanor. The gloomy,nky, librarian a confident well-built good looking man. Well, he was already good-looking before, but because of his demeanor, no one noticed.


    Seeing the reactions of the girls, made some of the male students frown. After the morning ceremony, the students headed back to their ssrooms, as for Loki he headed to the library.


    The library of the school was a separate building and was located in between the Martial arts course building, and the regr course building. The library was a three-story tall building, and it was thergest library in the city. This library supposedly houses books from more than a millenia ago.


    ''As expected of the supposed best school. This is the first time I''ve seen such arge library.'' Loki entered the building and upon entering he was startled by what he sensed. There was an abundant amount of mana within these walls.


    It was still a far cry from the mana in his old world, but this was three times better than the mana he was receiving from the outside. Loki closed his eyes and started to sense the surrounding area. After a moment of silence, Loki opened his eyes.


    ''This ce is the same as a holy ground from my old world. The concentration of mana does not leave the building and continues to gather into this ce. Not only that but I could sense that some of the books here were actual grimoires.''


    Loki immediately headed to the nearby shelf were he sensed one of the grimoires. Upon picking it up, he looked at it intently. The book was old but not as old as he expected it to be. Based on the overall look it felt like a copy of a much older book. It was an ult book about monsters. Loki did a quick scan of the book''s content.


    The book was basically ways on how to spot, catch, tame, and or kill monsters. To the people of this world, this book might look like a fantasy created from a superstitious age, but to Loki, it was a treasure. This book was a good read for those interested in such things but aside from that, it was worthless to the current people of this world. Since the ideas and methods used in this book require one to have knowledge of mana and know how to use said mana. So to Loki, who actually knew how to use mana, this book was a great find.


    There were many techniques in this book that he could use with the limited amount of mana he had. Not to mention they were techniques that were good to use in assassinations. For example, there was this one technique that allows you to ce a certain scent on any object and you would be able to follow it for miles. The scent will never go away for as long as the target lives. It can only be dispelled by the caster of the technique.


    Yet the best thing in this book was the knowledge of the various monsters that should be living in this world and how to tame them. Even in his old world, there were no techniques that could tame those savage beasts. Yet here they had the knowledge to do so.


    ''This has proven my theory, this world did have people that could use mana. Yet for some reason, there are none left, and the mana has diminished greatly... So what''s happening in this library? Is it really by chance that I was transmigrated as the librarian of this library?...'' Loki shook his head and sighed.


    ''Let''s stop thinking about that for now, I still want to check on the other books that are emitting mana.''


    Loki then started going around the library getting all the books that had traces of mana on them. After searching for an hour, he got hold of at least six grimoires in this one library. He was rather excited to see things that he was familiar with within this new world of his. Not to mention these six grimoires were more than any mage of his old world owned.


    Back in his old world mages valued their knowledge and were afraid of people stealing them, so most never put their knowledge into writing. Only the truly exceptional ones ever did so, as they believed that none would dare steal from them. Yet even then only a few of those writings be known as grimoires.


    A grimoire in his old world was a powerful artifact filled with the knowledge of a craft. Once the craft has reached a certain level, the knowledge bes a grimoire. A book that emits mana like a living person, and it is said that the more powerful grimoires have their own will.


    ''These ones aren''t those kinds of powerful grimoires. I have seen some grimoires, and these things aren''t all that great, but the knowledge they have is different from what I know. A magic system that is different from my old world. There should be many more grimoires in this world... This is rather interesting. Well, for now, how about I read some of these things.''


    Loki looked at the six grimoires he had. The book of monsters, the book of demons, The unknown history of sorcery, the witch-hunt, and the book of basic charms. Loki was the most interested in the book called the unknown history of sorcery so he started from there.

 Chapter 46 - The One Who Could Not Protect Himself

    While Loki was enjoying reading in the library, in the first year ss C of the martial arts course there was a student who sat in a seat at the end of the room near the window and he too was enjoying reading a book.


    The student had numerous bruises on his body, and some cuts on his hands. This student was Michael Rosales, he was the only one in ss C that took sses seriously. Among the students of the martial arts course, he was the person considered to have the weakest body.


    ...


    Once ss ended, some students took out their lunches and ate in the ssroom, others headed out to eat in the cafeteria. Michael was also about to leave so that he could continue reading his book in the library.


    As he was about to leave the ssroom, two students blocked his path. These two were part of a delinquent group within the school that has members from both the regr course and the martial arts course.


    When the other students saw their actions, they knew what wasing next. One of the two students sneered at Michael as he spoke.


    "What''s this leaving already? Did little Michael forget that he has to do something first? Aren''t you suppose to pay us today since it''s the start of the month."


    Michael meekly backed away as he shuddered before he answered.


    "I don''t have any more money. I already gave you everything I had." One of the two delinquents hanged his arm over Michael and pulled him close.


    "You''re not getting this Michael, we''re doing this to help you. The reason you''re paying us is so that the others won''t go on and bully you. Seeing as you are the weakest student in the Martial Arts Course, if it weren''t for us you would''ve been beaten up a couple of times already."


    ''You two are the only ones who keep on doing this to me.'' Michael wanted to say this, but of course, no words came out of his mouth and he just lowered his head. The other students were watching and there were some that wanted to help but couldn''t.


    The two delinquents might not be a big deal individually but the group they were in was a problem. If they get involved with them, not only will they be unable to help Michael, but they might be part of the ones being bullied.


    "I really don''t have any more money," Michael responded, making one of the delinquents sighed.


    "This is what happens when someone that isn''t from a martial arts family gets to somehow invoke inner energy." After sighing again, one of the delinquents noticed the book Michael was holding and took it from him.


    "Oh, this book looks nice... Wait! A martial arts book for advanced level techniques. What the f*ck where did you get this?! This is a hard-to-find copy it''s said that only the upper-ss martial arts families can get a hold-off this. Did you steal it?"


    "No, that was given to my father by a friend of his that''s from a martial arts family."


    "A normal guy like your dad being friends with a member of the upper ss, I doubt it. How about you give this book to us instead? If it''s with you, it''s pretty worthless since you can''t even use your inner energy properly. If you give this to us we won''t ask for protection fees anymore. So how about it, do we have a deal?"


    Michael looked at the two smiling delinquents and clenched his fist as he remembered the expression his parents had when they first heard that their son had inner energy. They were so happy that his mother was crying.


    "That''s incredible! I knew it, our son is a genius!"


    "If you do well, we can finally be able to live better lives."


    The two of them were so excited to hear that he had the talent to be a martial artist, that they gave everything they had to support their son. Even though all martial arts courses from any school were extremely expensive, this one was even more so. This school was considered the best in the city and was not something his parents ie could afford. Even with that knowledge they still told him to try and enter.


    Michael was able to pass the written test of the school with a perfect score, and he barely passed the practical exam for the martial arts course. When his father found out he passed, he was ecstatic. Since they could not afford to pay for the tuition Michael knew that his parents have sold a lot of things, one of which was their car, it was easy to guess since now his father needed tomute to work. Even his mother would now take all the night shifts she could and was barely home.


    Yet he had failed them, he had failed their expectations of him. Once he entered the school, he found it difficult to use his inner energy. He also learned that he could not increase his inner energy like the others. Even with these setbacks, he tried his hardest but he found it difficult to keep up.


    Then there was that book, his father excitedly told him that his old friend who was a martial artist gave it to him after learning that his son was able to manifest inner energy.


    "Son, me and your mother will try our best to support you. So don''t worry about the money and just keep on doing your best."


    ...


    When Michael remembered those words, he could no longer hold it in and shouted.


    "No, give that back to me!" Michael tried to attack the delinquent holding his book, but his punch was easily evaded and the delinquent countered with a kick. Michael knelt on the ground trying to suppress the pain he was feeling.


    "Oi, oi, did you see that? This guy actually attacked me."


    "It would seem that a lesson needs to be taught." One of the delinquents lifted his hand and was about to punch down, but then someone grabbed hold of his hand.


    "Can I join in the fun?"

 Chapter 47 - The Delinquent That Only Wanted To Battle

    In first-year ss B, the students were holding their breaths as they were in constant fear of making a wrong move. Even the teacher present was visibly trembling as he taught the ss. The reason for everyone''s anxious state was because of the person sitting at the seat at the end of the ssroom near the window.


    A boy with a towering height of 190 cm, who had an athletic body type that had muscles you wouldn''t notice underneath his uniform had a bored look on his face. This boy was Mugami Shin, the strongest delinquent in the school, he was also arguably the strongest freshman in the school, maybe the entire city. It wasn''t only his strength but the influence of his family that was frightening.


    In this school, there were only a few students that had the same prestige as Shin''s family. One of those above the Mugami family was Kira''s family which was stronger and more influential than any of the students'' families within the school.


    ...


    Shin was looking out the window watching the clouds passing by uninterested in the ongoing lesson. He then yawned and at the moment many of the students especially those near him shuddered in fear. It was like a lion yawning right beside you, no it was even scarier since even rank 2 martial artists could defeat a lion with a sword. Shin was rumored to be a rank 3 martial artist, which makes him one of the few below twenty to reach that rank.


    Hearing that yawn, even the teacher stopped his lecture unsure if he had somehow offended the young lion of the Mugami family. As the ssroom suddenly became eerily silent, the bell rang. Shin stood up from his chair and stretched a bit. After he was done stretching he left the ssroom while yawning and rubbing his eyes.


    None of the students in the ssroom could move and waited for Shin to leave. Those sitting at the back were sweating profusely, hoping that the cmity would quickly pass them. When Shin left the room the students and even the teacher sighed in relief. It was at that moment the silent students suddenly became noisy.


    "Every freaking time, this is f*cking stressful. Just sitting in this ssroom is like a life and death situation."


    "Don''t talk like you''re in the worst position. I''m the one sitting right next to him."


    "Well, still this is good training for our mental fortitude."


    "Enough about that, why does he even go to school? I heard that he has just recently beaten up the delinquents of another school."


    "Yeah I heard of that too, there were even some rank two martial artists in that group, and I heard that they even brought third-year students that were rank four martial artists. But even then he still won."


    "Wait so does that mean he''s already a rank four martial artist?"


    "A sixteen-year-old rank four martial artist, isn''t he aplete genius?"


    ...


    While his whole ss was talking behind his back, Shin was walking in the hallway heading for the cafeteria. As he was walking Shin looked around him and same as usual everyone was actively avoiding him. Shin sighed as he watched the weaklings scatter about, it was at that moment he remembered the fight he had the other night.


    ''I heard those guys were at the fourth rank, but they were just slightly stronger rank three martial artists. They didn''t even know how to use their techniques properly, what a letdown. This is the problem with those guys whoe from big-name martial art families. It''s obvious they weren''t able to get to that level with their own training, they have been enhancing their strength using those so called elixirs. When will I get to fight a worthy opponent which will make my blood boil in excitement.''


    As he thought about that, Shin remembered the video he watched the other day. It was a short video that was getting a lot of fame recently.


    ''Now that guy named Fade, he''s the real deal. He didn''t use strength to defeat his opponents, it was his technique alone that subdued them. Each move looked simple, not like the shy moves that most martial artists of the lower levels liked to use. That guy had the same skill level as those old men in my family, but he doesn''t seem like an old fogey if I have to guess he should be someone near my age. I want to fight that guy and see more of his techniques. Maybe he could make my blood boil in the thrill of a true battle.''


    As Shin was getting excited just by thinking about the would-be battle he would have with the assassin, he noticed some people gathering in front of a ssroom. Shin was going to simply pass by but then he saw two guys harassing a weak-looking guy.


    Shin hated these kinds of things, he hated people that bully those weaker than them. If they want to fight then they should only fight those of the same strength as them or those even stronger than them. As Shin was about to intervene he saw the eyes of the weak-looking guy. When he saw those eyes he was surprised, those were the eyes of a person filled with pure resolve.


    Even those so called strong martial artists had never shown him such eyes, as the moment they faced a stronger opponent their eyes would look down in fear.


    The weak-looking guy suddenly rushed at the delinquent. Based on how the weak one moved, he was barely a rank one martial artist. There was no technique, and his stance was easily broken. Yet the punch he threw with all of his resolve, was a sight to behold for Shin. Unfortunately, it missed, and as expected the delinquent had countered with a kick. Yet even then the weak-looking guy had that look of not wanting to give up, despite the obvious difference in power.


    Shin could feel a bit of excitement rushing through his veins as he saw those eyes of the weak-looking student. Shin could not help it as his lips curved upwards. Shin approached the two delinquents and as the other one raised his hand to strike the weak-looking student, Shin grabbed hold of the delinquent''s hand and spoke.


    "Can I join in the fun?"

 Chapter 48 - Hardwork

    The delinquent who had his hand grabbed was about to yell at the person who grabbed him but when he saw who it was he felt his knees weakening. The surrounding students that were watching were also surprised, but it was only for a moment since they remembered who that person was. This was the infamous young lion of the Mugami n. This person was someone who sought battle the most, so it wasn''t too surprising to see him here when someone was about to start a fight.


    "Why aren''t you saying anything? If you really want to have a fun fight how about fighting someone like me."


    When the two delinquents heard Shin''s deration they almost pissed their pants in fear. The seniors in their delinquent group had warned everyone if it was possible to never cross Shin. Even though their Asura group wasn''t afraid of Shin, they didn''t want to actively aggravate the person.


    "We don''t want to fight you. Please let us off." The one being held by Shin spoke out.


    "Hmmm, let you off? Then let me ask you, did you ever let this little guy off?"


    "Of course we did. This was just a little misunderstanding between us, the three of us are pals." The other delinquent who was at the side interjected.


    "Oh, is that true?" Shin asked the weakling on the floor. Michael looked at the two delinquents and then at the towering Shin.


    "No that isn''t true. These two have always been harassing me."


    "You hear that." Before the delinquent being held could respond, Shin had already lifted him up with one hand and then used his free hand to flick the delinquent''s forehead. The delinquent''s head shook violently and he then fainted.


    Seeing the fate of hispanion the other delinquent was about to run away, but how could a rank one martial artist flee from someone like Shin. Before the delinquent could even take one step Shin had already caught him.


    ''Is this what caused all thismotion?'' Shin took the book the delinquent was holding.


    ''A book about advanced martial art techniques. So that''s how it is. I guess these low-level fools would want something like this.'' Shin sighed as he knocked out the other delinquent with the same move as before. When the students of ss C saw how easily Shin dealt with the two they gulped.


    These two delinquents were rather decent fighters in their ss, but in front of Shin, they were like little children. On the other hand, Michael stood in front of Shin and bowed his head.


    "Thank you for your help." Shin looked at Michael for a second before he shook his head and responded.


    "There seems to be a misunderstanding. I didn''te here to help you, like I said I came to join in the fun. You see I just wanted to get this book from the two."


    When Michael heard Shin''s response his whole body twitched and he looked at Shin who had this weird smile on his face.


    "Please can you give that back to me? If you want anything else from me I shall dly give it, but I can''t give you that book, that''s something important to me."


    "Is that so, that just makes me want it even more now. If you want to take it back, then you should take it back from me using force." Michael clenched his fist and red at Shin. How shameful of this guy, he was from a powerful n and should have a copy of this book, so why did he need to do this?


    ''Is he also messing with me because I''m weak?'' Michael once again gathered his resolve and responded with a clear voice which everyone was able to hear.


    "Even though you helped me if you don''t return that book I will retaliate."


    "Then stop barking and do it! Don''t worry I won''t dodge nor strike back and if you''re able to make me take a step back then I will dly return this book to you."


    "You better not go back on your word." Everyone was shocked to hear Michael''s response. Did this kid suddenly be stupid? Challenging Shin when he couldn''t even take on those two delinquents. The students present could not believe what they heard, on the other hand, Michael continued to re at Shin and took a stance.


    Unlike the other students, Michael was not able to increase his inner energy nor could he use it properly. So he worked harder than everyone else, he practiced each of the basic stances, basic strikes, and holds numerous times. His hands that had numerous cuts, his body that was full of bruises, wasn''t all from being bullied. In fact most of it he got from training continuously without rest.


    If it was a fight without inner energy, Michael was confident that he could hold his own. When Shin saw the stance Michael took, his eyes almost sparkled in excitement. Unlike the lousy stance and punch he did before, Michael had now taken a proper stance. His stance was a perfect form that could only be reproduced after hours of practicing.


    ''I see, so that''s how it is. He might not have the talent to cultivate inner energy properly, but he is the hardworking type. The reason his stance was sloppy a while ago might be because he was overwhelmed with anger. Now that his calm his training is shining through.'' The smile on Shin''s face grew wider and wider as his excitement was reaching a new level.


    "Hahaha, thene show me what you''ve got." Shin made a taunting gesture telling Michael toe at him. Seeing that gesture didn''t enrage Michael instead it made him feel even calmer as he stabilized his breathing.


    Michael then tried to circte the tiny inner energy he had into his hands. He gritted his teeth as he felt that the inner energy wasn''t flowing the way he wanted.


    ''Please just this one time, let me be able to do it!'' Michael then charged at Shin and punched forward.


    Shin who had received the punch from the front looked at Michael feeling a little disappointed. The stance, the strike, the timing, everything was near perfection, unfortunately, the way Michael''s inner energy flowed was all over the ce and the strike was made purely using his physical strength.


    Even though this strike would have easily subdued a normal person, someone like Shin wasn''t even fazed.


    ''I thought that maybe he could be a fun ymate.'' As Shin sighed he suddenly felt something strange happening to Michael''s strike. Shin actually felt some danger in the strike that had hit him and was forced to circte his own inner energy, but it was already toote, Shin was actually able to push him one step backward.


    As everyone looked at the scene with shocked faces, Michael suddenly copsed.


    ...


    Loki who was still reading in the library stopped for a second and looked around. ''What was that, was that a mana fluctuation? Is there actually someone else that could use mana in this school?''


    Loki tried to sense it but he could no longer feel that mana fluctuation. It was a sudden burst but it disappeared quickly. ''Was that just my imagination?'' After thinking about it for a while, Loki once again tried to sense if there was any other mana fluctuation but he still felt nothing, Loki sighed as he shook his head.


    ''I guess it really was my imagination.'' Loki then went back to reading his book.

 Chapter 49 - A System?

    Seeing Michael losing consciousness and was about to fall onto the floor Shin who was momentarily stunned moved and caught him. Shin looked at the now sleeping Michael and an excited smile arose from his face.


    ''I wasn''t wrong, it looks like this guy is going to be a fun ymate. Right now he''s just a little rough around the edges but after he''s able to properly control and manifest his inner energy he would be someone worth fighting.''


    Shin ced Michael at the side and gave back the book as promised. He then looked at Michae''s ssmates and spoke to them.


    "Hey what''s this guy''s name?" Shin pointed at the unconscious Michael. The group of students could not answer immediately as they were afraid to even breathe the same air as Shin.


    "Are you people deaf? I asked you, people, a question, so how about answering it?" Shin was getting a bit impatient as some of his inner energy started leaking out of him. The students immediately panicked and one of them finally answered him.


    "He''s Michael." When he got the answer he wanted, Shin stopped emitting that menacing aura of his and smiled.


    "I see, so his name is Michael, I will remember that name. You people once he wakes up tell him this for me. That punch of his was pretty good. I''ll wait for the day he and I can actually have a proper fight."


    After saying what he wanted to say Shin didn''t even bother to hear if Michael''s ssmates understood what he said and simply left the ssroom.


    ...


    It was already after lunch and Loki didn''t bother eating as he was engrossed in his reading. Since no one wasing to the library his reading was unhindered. In fact for the entirety of the day, only his sister came to visit the library and it was only to check up on him.


    Loki who was simply reading a book could feel mana surging from the book into him. Just reading the grimoire was boosting his mana. What should have been days of training was down within seconds.


    Loki was nearing the end of reading the Unknown history of Sorcery and he found it truly intriguing. The book tells a tale of the same history as what is written in other books, but this time there were mages behind the scenes.


    The book itself was barely a grimoire as though there was only some mention of spells and how to use them, like the create water spell, but overall it was just a book that recounts a different history than what was written in other history books. The only other thing that makes it a passable grimoire was the boost Loki was getting just from reading it. Aside from that, it was actually a pretty interesting read.


    The mages described in the book were amazing people that used magic for just about everything. Unlike in Loki''s old world, the mages in this world had no specializations and were all over the ce.


    On the other hand, those that could not use magic were looked down upon. Yet near the end of the book, those without magic created a country based on science, making what most mages do obsolete.


    There was also mention that nearing the end of the 12th century, mages were bing harder and harder toe by. No one knows why but for some reason the majority of the mages started weakening during this period. Still even at the end before they disappeared from the annals of history, the mages were a force to be reckoned with.


    Thest written record of any mage being sighted was in the battle of twin peaks, where a single mage annihted the armies of two fighting nations. The two armiesbined consisted of five hundred thousand men. At the end of the book, the writer wrote a question.


    ''If mages truly walked among us, where are they now and what will they do next?'' The moment Loki finished reading, he heard a ringing sound in his head.


    ''Confirmation of host, downloadplete. Do you wish to activate the system, Y/N?''


    A window with words appeared before Loki which surprised him. After calming down a bit he noticed that the window with words on it was being powered by the mana within the library. As Loki continued to look at the floating words and the question that was in front of him, he remembered the books his younger brother liked to read.


    Those books were filled with people that transmigrated into another world, just like him. Most of them acquire cheats upon transfer, ranging from a wise old man hidden within a ring, having a talent or weapon bestowed by God, and the greatest cheat of them all was the system.


    ''I see so this is supposed to be my cheat...'' Loki then raised his hands and pressed on the floating window in front of him. What he pressed was the N button. The moment he pressed on it, another window appeared.


    ''Are you sure, you don''t want to activate the system? Y/N?'' Loki pressed Y without any hesitation. Another window appeared.


    ''Are you truly sure? Y/N?'''' Loki was starting to get irritated but he continued to press on the Y button. After that different windows kept on popping out asking him if he really didn''t want to activate the system. Despite it being persistent Loki kept on denying it.


    Loki didn''t really want to rely on external factors such as a system bestowed by an unknown entity to get stronger, since it was possible that he might lose ess to the systemter on making him vulnerable. Unlike the protagonists in the stories Liam likes, he didn''t really need a system to get stronger. The only true way for him was to get stronger under his own efforts. Not to mention the way the system bonds with its host sound like a contract with a devil.


    After continuously denying the system to activate, a voice that sounded very simr to his sister from his old world spoke to him.


    "What are you doing?! Why do you keep on pressing the wrong button?! Don''t you understand what a system is? Aren''t you excited to have a system like the ones you read in novels, a system that would help you grow into a powerful existence?"

 Chapter 50 - The Akashic Records

    When Loki heard the system''s voice he was stunned for a few seconds before he was able to respond.


    "Shera, are you Shera?" Loki could not help but tremble as he heard that familiar voice of hers. He knew it was a long shot but what if.


    "I''m not this Shera person. What you''re hearing right now is the voice of the person that you trust the most in the world."


    When Loki heard that answer his killing intent started seeping out of him. His mana started to surge outward making the nearby bookshelves tremble. Even though the voice in his mind had no shape or form Loki looked like he was ready to kill it.


    "How about you don''t do that?" Loki''s tone was lowered which made him sound like he was growling.


    "Hmm, If you agree to activate the system then I would think about changing my voice."


    "Then disappear from my mind. I do not need a system, and I don''t need some system that taunts me using my dead sister''s voice."


    "Then I''ll continue to bother you with your sister''s voice for as long as you don''t activate the system."


    "Are you actually threatening me?"


    "No, I''m not threatening you, I just want you to activate the system."


    Loki clicked his tongue as even though he was frustrated and wanted to attack, there was nothing to attack. The system with the voice of his dead sister had no physical body to attack. It was at that moment Loki finally calmed down.


    "What kind of system are you?"


    "Are you finally willing to activate the system? Also, I''m not the system, I''m the creator of the system."


    "The creator of the system? Alright, then howe you''re harassing me to activate the system, even though I clearly do not want to."


    "I have been in this world for a couple of millennia and not once have I seen a worthy host. None who have entered this library, have figured out its secrets nor were they able to read the books needed to activate the system. I have almost given up until you showed up. The mana circting within you is the purest I have ever seen. Not to mention the books you just picked out could only be seen by those with a certain degree of mana. A few millennia before there were people who had manae into this library yet none were worthy. I continued to wait, but nowadays in this era, the people of this are using a different form of energy that was not rted to mana. Only those with mana could support the system I created, and based on the trend it''s easy to tell that I won''t be seeing someone like you anytime soon. So I want you to be the host of the system I have created."


    "Wait if I remember correctly this library is just a few hundred years old, it hasn''t existed for thousands of years like you im."


    "That''s because the library I speak of isn''t this outer shell that you see before you. The library I speak of is myself. I am a fragment of the greatest library to have ever existed. I was a part of the Akashic Records, its soul, its spirit."


    When Loki heard the term Akashic Records he was stunned into silence. The Akashic Records was well known both in this world and in his old world, many stories of it exist in both worlds. It is said that the Akashic Records holds the knowledge of all events, spells, even emotions, and everything in existence from past, present, and future. The library were all knowledge is found, is said to go on for eternity. The Akashic Records have existed since the beginning of time, from the birth of knowledge.


    "So are you interested now in activating the system?"


    "Before I even think about that, what''s the purpose of the system how shall it benefit me? Also, you say you''re a fragment of the Akashic Records, does that mean there are other fragments out there?"


    "I am the only existing part of the Akashic Records that has a spirit and knowledge, all the other fragments are simply objects that were once part of me... As for how I became a fragmented spirit of the Akashic Records, well In a ce that was neither past, present nor future, the library that stored all knowledge was destroyed by an unknown entity." Before the fragment of the Akashic Records could continue talking, Loki interjected.


    "Unknown entity? I thought that the Akashic Records houses all knowledge, so how could there be an unknown entity?"


    "The knowledge stored in the Akashic Records is of all the knowledge in this universe from past, present, and future. The entity that attacked wasn''t part of this universe which made it an unknown."


    "An entity from a different universe?..." Loki was being overwhelmed by the information he was getting. He was just a transmigrated assassin, this event that affects the universe was something beyond him.


    "The purpose of the system is to recreate the library that holds the Akashic Records, to once again make me whole. The system will help the host in gathering my missing fragments, a lot of which are hidden within this. Once I regain a bit of my power, the host will no longer be bound to the system and I will go my own way."


    "All I heard are things that would benefit you. Why would I want to activate the system, if there''s nothing in it for me?"


    "There''s of course a benefit to being bound to the system I created. Every time you find a fragment of the Akashic Records, you will be able to choose from a set of skills that are found within the part of that fragment''s library of the Akashic Records. In fact, if you activate the system now, you''ll be able to get one free skill that is within the current books I have in store. So what do you say?"


    "How many fragments are there in this world?"


    "Based on thest pieces of knowledge I have retained, there should be around twenty-eight fragments in this world. Once you acquire those twenty-eight fragments, I would have enough power to move around on my own, and I will search for the other missing fragments scattered around the universe. Also, just to sweeten the deal, even after your bond with the system is annulled you would still be able to keep the skills you have acquired from it. So what do you say, are you now interested?"


    "Before I answer, can you tell me, is there knowledge within those fragments that could help revive the dead?"


    "The Akashic Records houses all knowledge within this universe, but as for the revival of the dead such knowledge is forbidden and upon essing it, a cmity that would affect the entire universe will happen."


    When Loki heard the spirit''s answer in the voice of his dead sister no less, Loki sighed. Such a risk even to revive his dead sister was not something he would take, as that would go against the ideals his sister stood by. Even if she were revived by such a method she would only me herself, for the cmity that would ensue, for his sister that fate would be worse than death.


    "Alright, just one final question, what will happen if I don''t activate the system?"


    "If you don''t activate the system, then I will be stuck here until another worthy host appears. Since in my current state I cannot leave this ce. So my only option is to wait, and that could take an eternity, as it might never happen at all. You might be dooming me to an eternity of waiting."

 Chapter 51 - Ill Decide Some Other Time

    Loki sighed as he sat back down and started to think about the pros and cons of having the supposed system. One of the biggest pros in gaining the system was ess to the Akashic Records and gaining skills from its infinite library. He would be able to go beyond his past self''s level of power. On the other hand, the biggest con will be being a part of such arge-scale event. As an assassin being in such an eye-catching role was not something he wanted.


    If the spirit of the Akashic Records was saying the truth and that it was attacked by an entity from another universe then something big was going to happen. He might be epting a job that was way beyond his level of expertise.


    ''Still, this person has given a request for aid, though it''s not an assassination job. I wonder what would you have me do, Shera...'' While he was thinking so deeply he suddenly heard a voice whisper in his ear.


    Loki''s reflexes kicked in and he was about to subdue the person who whispered, but when he saw in the corner of his eyes that it was Alisa, he quickly stopped himself. So instead of attacking, Loki''s body jolted as he looked at Alisa in surprise.


    "Why did you sneak up on me like that?"


    "I didn''t sneak up on you. I just came in normally, but when I called out to you, you didn''t respond at all."


    "Oh, I see... So what are you doing here?"


    "I came here to pick you up."


    "Pick me up?" When Loki heard what Alisa said he looked at the clock and saw that it was already four p.m. He was in a dazed state as he didn''t notice the time passing by. He was sure that when he started speaking to the Spirit of the Akashic Records it was one p.m. It didn''t feel like they had spoken for that long.


    "Are you feeling alright big brother?"


    "Yeah, I''m alright just a little tired. Can you hold these books for me and wait outside the front gate. I need to do something first before leaving." Loki tried to hand over the six grimoires to Alisa, but she didn''t take them and instead looked at Loki with a weird expression on her face.


    "What are you talking about big brother? Are you really feeling alright?"


    "Huh, why what''s wrong? I''m just asking you to bring these books and wait outside." Loki looked at the six grimoires and then at Alisa.


    "You keep on saying to bring some books, but what books are you talking about."


    "Huh, of course, I''m talking about the one in my hands. As well as those five over there." Loki pointed at the five grimoires on his desk. Alisa looked at the desk and looked at Loki with a worried expression on her face.


    "Big brother, I don''t see any books in your hand and on your desk. I knew it, I knew it was too early for you to go back to work. How about you talk to HR and ask for an extended leave." When Loki heard Alisa''s response he finally understood what was happening.


    ''The grimoires are invisible to her.''


    ''Of course, they are, these books can only be seen by those who are worthy. The bare minimum requirement is the person needs to have mana, that girl over there doesn''t have an inkling of mana she doesn''t even have that so called inner energy the people are using nowadays. Also, don''t bother bringing the books out of the library. They are bound here just like me and cannot leave. The moment you try to bring them out, they''ll just return back to the shelves were you took them.'' The Spirit of the Akashic Records responded in his mind.


    Seeing that her brother grew silent and was staring at empty space, Alisa was getting even more worried about his condition.


    "Big brother, are you sure that you''re alright? If you want we can go to the hospital." Loki snapped out of his bewildered state when he heard Alisa''s voice. He looked at his little sister that was worried for him. He smiled at his little sister to ease her worries and shook his head.


    "I''m fine, I guess I might have misced the ones I wanted to bring with me. So you go on ahead first, I need to do something before I leave."


    "Are you sure?" Loki sighed as he patted his little sister''s head. "Yeah."


    "Big brother, I''m not a little girl anymore so can you stop patting my head?" Alisa lowered her head and looked a bit embarrassed. Seeing her reaction made Loki remember Shera.


    ''The two of them really do look alike. Even the way they act was somehow simr.'' Seeing that made Loki feel a pang in his heart. He then chuckled and ruffled Alisa''s hair even more.


    "I''ll never stop doing this, it''s my right as an older brother. Also, patting your head makes me feelfortable." When Alisa heard what Loki said she lifted her head and saw a weird expression on her big brother''s face. It was an expression filled with loneliness and nostalgia.


    "Big brother?..."


    "Well, anyway just go on ahead, and contact Liam as well. How about the three of us, eat out today. Let''s celebrate my return to work."


    "Alright then... I''ll be going on ahead." Alisa was still a bit worried about Loki''s current state as she left the library. The moment Alisa left, the spirit of the Akashic Records started speaking again.


    "That''s rather interesting, you can use mana but your sister cannot. You really are something special. If I was in myplete form, I would have easily figure out who you truly are, but I guess a mystery like this is fun every now and then. So what do you say will you activate the system?"


    "I don''t really know if I should or not, but since you''re not going anywhere, that gives me a lot of time to think about it before giving my answer."


    "Hey, my time might be eternal, but yours is finite. So how about giving me an answer now." The Spirit of the Akashic Records urged. Loki simply shrugged his shoulders and started walking towards the exit.


    "Well, that''s all I wanted to say, see you tomorrow." Loki waved his hands, as he exited the library. Up until the moment, he opened the door to the exit, Loki heard the Spirit screaming at him, but the moment he was out of the library he could no longer hear the voice of the Spirit.

 Chapter 52 - Trouble Is Brewing

    Loki alongside his siblings went to a family restaurant to eat. Seeing as it was a celebration of Loki getting back to work, the siblings had ordered a ton of food. It was obvious that the three of them could not finish such arge meal, but that really didn''t matter to any of them as they were in a merry mood and started eating. As they were eating Alisa noticed something happening outside.


    "Is that Michael Rosales?" Alisa asked while trying to remember Michael''s face. Loki and Liam who heard what Alisa said turned their heads and saw a boy wearing their school''s uniform being held by two other boys wearing the same uniform. The boy that was being held looked like he was struggling to break free but was unable to. It was obvious that the three of them weren''t friends.


    Seeing what was happening Alisa no longer bothered to remember if that person was Michael or not. What was important now was to help the poor student. Alisa stood up from her chair and was about to leave, but before she could move Loki held her hand and pushed her back into her seat.


    "What do you think you''re going to do?"


    "What else, I''m going to help that student," Alisa responded while trying to stand up from her chair, but was unable to budge due to Loki''s hand that was on her shoulder. It felt like there was a heavy rock ced on her shoulder.


    "So what do you think you''re going to do, go out there and talk to them, do you think that will work?" Loki''s voice grew louder as he was trying to control himself.


    "Then are you telling me to just let this go? Someone needs help, and is probably frightened now and wants someone to be on his side. I want to help that person, just as big brother always helps me."


    Loki looked at Alisa''s eyes and saw a simr conviction as Shera''s. The two already looked simr but seeing those eyes filled with conviction, Loki could practically see Shera''s shadow standing beside Alisa. Loki sighed before he gave out his response.


    "Fine, I will do it. I''ll go and help that kid." When Liam and Alisa heard what Loki said they looked at him in surprise. Their older brother was never one to step forward like this and initiate a conflict.


    "I''ll go with you."


    "Me too, I''lle with." Alisa and Liam immediately responded.


    "No need I''ll do it myself. Don''t worry I''m not the same as I was before. This is one of the reasons I go to the gym, if ites to it I can somehow defend myself or just run away with the kid." Loki smiled as he ruffled the heads of his siblings.


    "But-" Alisa was about to say something, but before she could do so Loki interrupted her.


    "No buts, there''s no time to argue, see the three of them are about to turn a corner. If I don''t leave now, I''ll lose them. You two eat as much as you can and once you''re done you two better head home. Oh right, here''s my card so if you want to order more just do so." Loki handed his credit card to Alisa, and before either of his siblings could say anything he left.


    After leaving the restaurant, Loki sprinted to an alleyway where he used [Enhancement] to jump on the walls and get to the roof. On top of the roof, he looked around and spotted the three students. Loki followed the three by jumping from roof to roof.


    ...


    Michael who was heading home was stopped by the two delinquents from the same group as the two who Shin beat up during lunch.


    "Hey Mike, how about you hang out with us for a while?" One of the delinquents spoke with a smile on his face. Before Michael could respond someone was already beside him who wrapped his arms around Michael''s neck. It was the other delinquent, and based on the uniform they were wearing these two were third-year students of the martial arts course.


    Third-year students of the martial arts course in the school were mostly rank 2 martial artists at that level they could slice through boulders using swords. On the other hand, Michael wasn''t even a ranked martial artist and wasn''t strong enough to break a piece of wood. The strength difference between them meant Michael wasn''t even able to struggle properly. The three of them started walking away while one of the delinquents took out his phone and made a call.


    "Boss we got him."


    "Great, the two of you bring him to me."


    ...


    Under a certain bridge, a group of students from the martial arts course were gathered. There were many students from the first year up to the sixth year students. They were many students in this group that were rank 2 martial artists. Yet among them, there was one individual that was more powerful than all of thembined.


    Sitting in the center of the group was Mutou Hayate, a sixth-year student that was a peak rank 3 martial artist. He was just a few steps away from bing a rank 4 martial artist, which was said to be the true beginning of any martial artist.


    Hayate was once the most famous student in his school, that was until the appearance of Mikado Kira and Mugami Shin. These two freshmen were more talented than Hayate ande from equal or greater ns.


    The strength of Mikado Kira came from his family which was the top martial arts family in the region. Not to mention Kira''s talent was also nothing to sneeze at, he was already at the peak of rank 2.


    On the other hand, Mugami Shin came from a good n as well, but it was weaker than the Mikado n. What was frightening about Shin was not just his n but his overwhelming talent. At the age of sixteen, he was already a rank 3 martial artist.


    Hayate did not want to provoke either of them, especially Kira, since fighting them was not worth the trouble. As long as their paths don''t cross he wouldn''t care about the two of them. Yet today Shin had beaten up two of his subordinates and even gave out a warning.


    Hayate could not remain passive after that. It didn''t matter what reason Shin had for beating his two subordinates, what mattered was that Shin was looking down on him. So Hayate needed to make sure that Shin knows his ce. Which was why he had some of his men bring Michael to him so that Shin would not run away.

 Chapter 53 - Loki Enters The Scene

    Loki continued shadowing behind the three students watching the student named Michael''s every movement, from the expressions on his face to his bodynguage. Loki could have already saved Michael at any point but he wanted to see what was kind of scenario was ying out before he made a move.


    Even though at first nce it looked like Michael was the one in need of saving, Loki didn''t want to assume anything. There were multiple reasons that could exin why he was being dragged against his will. Michael could have done something bad to those two dragging him, or he could have owed them something, there were many possible reasons. As he was following the three students, Loki sighed.


    ''This day is bing such a hassle.''


    ...


    Michael was brought to a ce under a bridge near a river. There were many students from the martial arts course present and most of them were famous students that had reached the second rank as a martial artist.


    Michael was still trying to figure out why he was dragged here. Was he brought her for a group beating or something? Even though the situation looked grim, Michael had gathered his resolve, and no matter what happens he would stand his ground. Yet the moment his eyes met Hayate''s he was about to unconsciously step back, but Michael held it in and stood his ground.


    Seeing Michael''s reaction Hayate was quite surprised since based on what was told to him Michael was the weakest freshman to enroll in the martial arts course and was cowardly. Yet the Michael standing before him now was nothing like what was described to him. The look Michael was giving him was not the look of a coward. Hayate couldn''t help but frown at the sight.


    ''This kid has a bit of a backbone. Another one that doesn''t know his ce.''


    "What do you guys want from me?"


    "Don''t speak if you''ve not been spoken to." One of the delinquents beside Michael was about to hit him, but Hayate stood up and signaled the person to stop. The delinquent who had raised his hand stepped back. Now there was no one holding Michael down.


    Hayate slowly approached Michael as he came closer and closer, Michael could finally feel the intense pressure radiating from Hayate. Still, even though he was being assaulted by such an intense aura Michael continued to stand his ground. Hayate then stood face to face with Michael only an arm''s distance away.


    "What''s your question again? I didn''t hear it the first time so care to repeat it." When Michael heard Hayate''s question he knew that no matter what he did now it was obvious what Hayate would do next. Michael wanted to remain silent, his instincts were telling him to justy low for now. Yet his heart was telling him something different.


    ''Am I just going to once again bend a knee to the strong?! Didn''t I just told myself that I would never do that again?'' Michael gritted his teeth and responded.


    "I asked you what you guys wanted from me." The moment Michael spoke those words he quickly raised his arm in defense but it was no use. Hayate''s right hand was faster and it hit Michael in the face. Michael was blown a few feet away.


    "Oh sorry about that, I reacted unconsciously it''s because you''ve been ring at me I forgot that you weren''t an enemy." Hayate approached the fallen Michael and grabbed hold of Michael''s hair lifting him up. With just one punch Michael was on the verge of fainting and the pain he felt was immense. This was the difference between a rank 3 and a no-ranker like himself. Yet despite knowing that, despite being very afraid at this moment, Michael''s resolve was firm and he looked at Hayate with his hazy eyes.


    Hayate could not understand what he was feeling at the moment, all he knew was that the way Michael was looking at him was very irritating. Hayate lifted Michael''s head higher and was about to smash it onto the ground, but then something stopped him. Someone was holding Hayate''s arm, the surrounding students who saw the neer were all shocked, but the one most surprised was Hayate himself.


    As a rank 3 martial artist, Hayate''s senses were sharper than most, but he could not sense this neer getting behind him. After the initial shock, the students surrounded the neer while brandishing their weapons.


    Hayate then turned his head around and was shocked at what he saw. The person who had stopped him was someone no one expected to see. This person was the most famous topic nowadays and his existence has been highly debated amongst the people, but today he was standing before Hayate.


    "How unexpected so you weren''t just an urban legend... Fade." When the other students heard what Hayate said they were all equally surprised. Since it was a little dark the students tried very hard to focus their sights on the person holding Hayate''s hand and were shocked to see that it was truly Fade from the urban legends.


    "So why are you here, did someone pay you to kill me?... What was it you said as long as the price is right and the reason is just you would kill anyone." While Hayate was talking he was trying to free his arm from Fade''s grip but was unable to do so.


    "If I wanted you dead, you wouldn''t be able to even see me before you die." The moment Fade spoke those words an immense amount of killing intent flowed out of him. When the students who had never been in a life and death situation before felt Fade''s killing intent they could not help but tremble in fear. Though some of the higher year students were able to keep a calm facade outside deep down they were also afraid.


    Hayate who was the nearest to Fade felt that immense killing intent and was astonished. Unlike one''s aura and inner energy that can be trained, killing intent and bloodlust could only be strengthened in battle. This kind of killing intent meant that Fade had killed more than Hayate could imagine.

 Chapter 54 - Sudden Intrusion

    Michael was barely conscious as he looked at the person who just saved him. The moment Michael looked at Fade he was surprised, not only because he knew that Fade was the famous assassin from urban legends but because he felt something peculiar. Michael wasn''t sure but the moment he looked at Fade he felt some kind of kinshiping from him.


    While Michael was trying to figure out what that weird feeling was, the others were all trembling in fear. This was their first taste of real killing intent and it was Fade''s killing intent of all things. Even those experienced martial artists who had been in a lot of battles and had killed hundreds of people were not even close to producing the same pure and heavy killing intent Fade was emitting. As everyone was still in a dazed state Fade spoke to them.


    "I only came here for the kid, just give him to me and I''ll leave." The moment Hayate heard what Fade said his expression changed.


    "... Were you hired by Shin?"


    When the others heard that they came to a sudden realization. Yet as their thoughts were about to stray Fade sighed as his killing intent suddenly disappeared. The moment the killing intent dispersed the surrounding students felt like they could finally breathe normally. Some of the students were sweating profusely, some had even peed in their pants. As they were trying to get their bearings back, Fade spoke to them with his indifferent tone.


    "You kids are too self-conscious and full of yourself. First off, if I was truly hired by somebody which I''m not, do you think as a professional I would tell you the name of my client? Second, I deal with bigger evils than you kids that haven''t even tasted blood on their mouths. Finally just to be doubly sure you understand, nobody hired me all I want from you kids is to hand over that boy to me." Fade used his free hand to point at the fallen Michael.


    "So you''re telling me, you just want to save this weakling, and all of this has nothing to do with me or my n?" Hayate once again asked as he still couldn''t believe what Fade was saying.


    "You really have a big ego, how many times do I need to tell you I don''t really care about you, I just want the kid."


    Hearing Fade''s indifferent tone and seeing the way he was looking down on him made Hayate feel a tiny bit of rage umting within him. He was the only son of the n Head of the Mutou n, he was next in line to be the n head of such a powerful family, there were many that would show respect upon meeting him. This was the first time he had been treated this way, even Kira would at least fake some form of respect.


    "You do understand that has nothing to do with you. If you mess in the affairs of the Mutou n, you might find that all of this was not worth it."


    The moment Hayate finished what he said he suddenly felt a spine-tingling sensation. Unlike before Fade''s killing intent wasn''t spreading around instead it was now entirely focused on one person. At his very moment Hayate felt like there were hundreds of des pointed at him, and the second he made a single move he would be pierced by the des.


    Hayate was truly afraid this time and had one single thought filling his mind, death. As the fear was slowly consuming him Hayate heard Fade''s voice.


    "Are you threatening me?" Hayate could not respond to the question as the fear had stolen his voice. There was a moment of silence before the group once again heard Fade sighing.


    "You''re very lucky you know that. If it was the past me, I would''ve annihted your entire n because of the threat of yours. Lucky for you I no longer do such things. Like I said before I''m a professional and I don''t kill people outside the job."


    After saying what he wanted to say, Fade no longer waited for Hayate to answer and pushed the boy aside. As he was about to pick up Michael, Fade shifted his head and leaned to the side. A huge stone then zipped past him. Fade then raised his left hand to the side of his face, and at that moment someone from behind him had unleashed a powerful kick aimed at his head.


    Fade who had blocked the kick was able to grab the unknown assant''s leg. Fade then swung the assant to the ground. When the assant was about to hit the ground he used his hands to cushion himself and bounced back up and took some distance from Fade. The assant looked at Fade with a hungry stare and a smile on his face. Seeing that expression made Fade click his tongue.


    ''Damn it, a battle junkie.'' Fade had met many people like this one in his old world and they were by far the hardest to deal with. The assant who was a few feet away from Fade spoke to him.


    "That was amazing, as I expected you are a worthy opponent!"


    "I don''t know who you are, but I don''t have time to deal with you right now. I need to bring this kid to a hospital." Fade picked up the now unconscious Michael. As Fade was about to leave, the assant suddenly threw a stone at him, which Fade easily caught.


    "Come on, don''t be like that. Allow me to introduce myself, I''m Mugami Shin a martial artist looking for a worthy opponent. As for Michael, we can just make one of these guys bring him to the hospital, while you and I have some fun."


    Hearing what the other party suggested, Fade started to assess the situation. If he fled while carrying the injured Michael it was obvious that Shin would be able to catch up to him. It would be hard with his current abilities to fight Shin while carrying the injured Michael.


    Fade also didn''t want to leave Michael to one of the people who had brought him here, since he wasn''t sure if they would truly bring him to the hospital or do something else. As he was thinking about the best way to deal with this situation, Fade could not help himself but sigh again.


    ''How troublesome.''

 Chapter 55 - Excitement

    Shin was walking around the city looking for some entertainment when he received a call. It was an unknown number, at first, he wasn''t going to bother with the phone call since it was most probably some random person trying to threaten him and his n. Still, since he had nothing better to do at the moment he picked it up.


    "Finally picking up." The person on the other end of the call wasn''t concealing the tone of his voice as well as the background sound as Shin could hear the breathing of numerous people in the background. Usually, those that call him to threaten his n would do it sneakily.


    "Who''s this?"


    "It''s your senior from school. Shin, I called because I heard you''ve beaten up some friends of mine."


    "Senior, which senior? Also, friends that I have beaten up, I beat up many people, so I don''t know who you''re talking about. Well, whatever what is it you want? Do you want to get revenge or something, is that it? If you want to fight just say so, no need for all this cloak and dagger nonsense juste at me."


    "You really are a cocky little sh*t aren''t you. Well, I already knew that you were that kind of guy, but just to make sure that you stay for a quick bout I caught one of your friends."


    "Friends? I don''t remember having any, and like I said you don''t need to do any of these things, just tell me where you are and I''ll dly fight you."


    "Meet me under the bridge at 2nd ave. "


    "You should''ve just said that fro-" The person on the other end of the line. Shin shrugged his shoulders as he headed towards the meeting ce.


    ...


    Once Shin arrived at the scene he saw a rather interesting scene. The people gathered were all wearing the school uniform and from what he could see they were mostly third-year students upward, but what was interesting to see was what was happening in the middle of the group.


    Shin saw two familiar figures, one was the person he met earlier, Michael, and the other was a rather famous individual in school. The supposed strongest student in the entire martial arts course Hayate. The moment Shin had enrolled in that school one of his targets to fight was Hayate, but no matter how hard he tried to challenge the other party he would notply.


    Now that Shin saw the scene before him, he knew that he could finally fight one of the people on his list. Seeing Michael was about to get beaten up badly, Shin was about to intervene when somebody else suddenly appeared.


    Shin was truly surprised to see someone had appeared without him sensing it. Shin then looked at the person who suddenly appeared and he could not help but tremble in excitement. The person that appeared was gaining poprity as ofte and was the newest addition on the list of people Shin wanted to fight. The person that appeared was none other than the urban legend Fade. Shin smiled in excitement as he started circting his inner energy.


    ''This must be my lucky day.'' Shin then charged forward and attacked Fade. After a few exchanges, Shin knew that Fade was above him in terms of technique. Still, that did not discourage him instead that got him even more excited. The only problem with this current fight was that Fade wasn''t taking it seriously because of Michael.


    "I''m sure you understand that Michael''s injury isn''t that big of a deal, he just fainted from the pain. The internal energy attack released by Hayate was only meant to hurt a bit. So let him sleep for a while and let''s have some fun."


    Hayate was about to attack, and it was at that moment he felt something entangling his body. Hayate could not move and it was at that moment Fade carried Michael and left the scene. Shin wanted to chase after them but the mysterious force entangling him made him unable to move. Shin then used his internal energy to strengthen his body to the utmost and pushed forward.


    As Shin forcefully tried to move he noticed something digging into his skin, it was at that moment he finally knew what was restraining him.


    ''Wires, when did he have time to entangle me in wires?'' Shin looked around and carefully and finally noticed that it wasn''t just him that had wires near him, everyone present had wires near them. The moment any of them moved they would be trapped by wires. There were already some that had been entangled as well.


    "Heh, now that''s the kind of opponent I''m looking for!" Shin whose battle intent was rising used all of his strength and tore off the wires that surround him. Shin whose body had numerous flesh wounds due to the wires, was smiling. It was an eerie sight to look at as he was smiling as blood continued to flow out.


    Seeing as he could no longer catch up to Fade, Shin looked at Hayate and the surrounding students. Shin then started cutting the surrounding wires freeing Hayate and his subordinates. Once they were free to move Shin looked at each of them and spoke.


    "Since I can''t y with Fade, you all can rece him. Soe at me and fight using everything you got!" Shin''s battle intent coupled with his bloody looked had made some of the students present had unconsciously step back. Even Hayate who was the strongest in the group was a little bit intimidated by Shin but was able to hold it in as he had already felt something more horrible than Shin''s battle intent.


    Seeing that no one was moving Shin was getting a bit impatient, he then gestured at the surrounding students toe at him.


    "Didn''t you guys call me here to get some payback, for you friends? Why are you guys hesitating now? Fine, if you''re not going to attack first, then allow me!" Shin was unable to hold his overflowing excitement and started attacking the surrounding students.


    ...


    Under the bridge, the sounds of screaming andughter could be heard. Shin who was bloodied and bruised was panting as he was exhausted but the smile on his face never disappeared.


    Among all of his opponents, only Hayate was left standing. Hayate was heavily wounded and had used most of his inner energy. He was now looking at Shin like he was a monster. He was shivering from fear as he tried his hardest to stand before Shin.


    "Hahaha! That was an exciting fight. As expected from the supposed strongest of the Sekiko Academy. It was fun but now it''s time to end this."


    When Hayate heard what Shin said, the fear he was feeling was reced by shame and anger. He had been standing at the top for too long, and he was not ready to let go, especially for some freshman. Hayate gritted his teeth and started gathering his remaining inner energy into his fist. When Shin noticed that he licked his lips in joy.


    "I see, of course, you wouldn''t just go down like that, that''s the way it should be. Come then, let''s see who between us is the stronger one!"

 Chapter 56 - Mana

    Loki was able to flee the scene much easier than he expected. When he saw that no one was following, Lokinded on top of some random building. He then double-checked to see if no one was really chasing them and when he was sure that there was truly no one there, Loki sighed.


    ''When I saw that battle maniac I thought he would be more difficult to handle. Usually, those kinds of people would do anything for the thrill of the battle. Also based on what I saw he should''ve easily seen the wires and powered through... I guess I overestimated his abilities.''??


    While Loki was deep in thought he suddenly heard someone moaning in pain. Loki looked at Michael surprised at what he saw. Michael''s face was growing paler and for some reason, he was sweating profusely.


    Loki grew confused as he didn''t expect such symptoms to appear. He had watched the entirety of how Michael was beaten up and it was just one hit and based on what Loki saw it wasn''t even all that powerful. Even if Hayate used inner energy to strengthen his punch and caused a little bit of internal damage, the area that was hit wouldn''t produce this kind of effect.


    Loki lowered Michael and unbuttoned his uniform to see if he had any injuries. After looking at the spot that was hit Loki saw that there was nothing, not even a bruise. It was at that moment Michael''s body started emitting extreme heat.


    Seeing all the weird things that were happening to Michael, Loki decided to check his condition using his mana. Loki ced his hands on Michael''s chest and made his mana flow through Michael''s body.


    Loki''s mana flowed into Michael''s body searching for what was wrong with him. None of Michael''s organs were damaged and there were no signs of poisoning. As Loki was getting a bit curious about what was happening to Michael he found something odd.


    The inner energy that Hayate supposedly sent into Michael was having a violent reaction within Michael''s body. Michael''s body was rejecting the inner energy in a very abnormal way.


    ''If inner energy is somehow simr to mana, then Michael''s own inner energy should be forcing Hayate''s inner energy out... But it doesn''t seem to be doing that, not to mention it would seem that Michael''s body is responding weirdly to Hayate''s inner energy. Does Michael not have any inner energy, if so then how did he survive an attack that had inner energy infused with it?... Wait a minute, what is this familiar feeling?''


    Loki who was scanning Michael found a different form of energy within him that was obviously different from inner energy. It took Loki a few seconds to understand what kind of energy it was and when he found out he was shocked by what he learned.


    ''This is mana, this kid has mana flowing in him! How is this possible? I thought all of the people in this era don''t have any inkling of mana in them... Still, his mana is quite different from my own, though minuscule it actually feels purer than mine.''


    Michael''s body started to heat up, even more, and his whole body started trembling. When Loki saw this he clicked his tongue.


    ''Damn it I need to force out the inner energy quickly. It doesn''t matter if I don''t get the entire thing out, if only little remains I''m sure that this kid''s own mana would force out the remaining foreign invaders in his body which will, in turn, strengthen his own mana.''


    Loki started the operation and forcefully pushed out Hayate''s intruding inner energy out of Michael''s body. As Loki expected, he couldn''t get it all out, but the mana flowing through Michael did the remaining work and slowly expelled the foreign inner energy.


    ...


    Michael who was feeling lethargic as his entire body felt hot and heavy, suddenly felt aforting breeze flow through him. Once theforting breeze disappeared the heaviness of his body had mostly gone away. He then felt something within him bursting out making him feel a sense of calmness. The moment the heaviness and heat dispersed from his body Michael was able to open his eyes, and the first thing he saw was a white mask.


    Michael was surprised and quickly backed a few feet away. He could not understand what was happening, since thest thing he remembered was being punched by Hayate.


    ''Wait a minute, I think there was something else.'' It was at that moment he recalled who the person standing before him was. Michael who had backed away quickly change his position and bowed to the person before him.


    "Thank you for saving me."


    Seeing Michael''s changing expressions amused Loki as he could not help but smile underneath the mask. Loki then responded to the bowing Michael.


    "There''s no need to thank me, I was just passing by... Since you''re already awake, I''ll take my leave." Loki was about to jump down from the building when Michael suddenly shouted.


    "WAIT!"


    Loki turned around looked at Michael whose eyes were clear and full of determination. When Loki saw those eyes he clicked his tongue and thought. ''Why are there so many things that remind me of you?''


    Seeing that Loki had stopped from leaving and was now looking at him, Michael felt extremely nervous. The person before him was the most famous person in the city, the urban legend the assassin named Fade. Michael had watched Fade''s videos numerous times and was deeply entranced by his skills and power. He knew that this might be his only chance to turn his life around.


    Loki didn''t immediately leave and he and watched the nervous Michael waiting for him to speak. He was quite interested in the kid that had mana in a world that had little of it. Still, Loki grew a little impatient as Michael did not look like he was going to speak anytime soon. Loki still needed to head back home early or his siblings might get worried about him.


    ''If this kid doesn''t talk within the next ten seconds I''m leaving.''


    Michael unaware of Loki''s growing impatience was still gathering his courage to speak to the assassin. Michael then clenched his fist as he spoke with all the resolve he has.


    "Please Sir Fade, please teach me how to fight!"

 Chapter 57 - Advice

    When Loki heard Michael''s plea he frowned. Seeing that Michael had the ability to use mana Loki felt a bit of a connection with the boy but Loki did not want to teach anyone the ways of his n.


    Loki''s n had no name to call itself, but it was the most feared n of assassins in his old world. They had killed numerous people all for the sake of money. They would kill the young, the elderly, Saints, Demons, benevolent rulers, tyrannical ones, it doesn''t matter who it was for as long as they were paid they would kill anyone. ??


    Loki''s skills were meant to take lives and even though he had recreated them in a way that could be used in nonlethalbat it would still be quite difficult to master, not to mention he had no idea how to teach, but most of all he found the entire thing quite troublesome.


    "I don''t have time to teach you anything." After giving out his answer, Loki was about to leave, but Michael grabbed hold of his leg to his surprise.


    "Please, you''re my only hope." Seeing the look of desperation on Michael''s face, Loki sighed as he sat down on the floor of the rooftop.


    ''I guess I''ll bete again today.'' Thinking about how Alisa was going to scold him abouting homete made him sigh again. Loki then looked at the confused Michael and spoke.


    "Fine then tell me your story. Why do you want to learn how to fight?"


    Michael was momentarily stunned by Loki''s question and could not speak for a while as if he was still trying toprehend what was just said.


    "Are you going to answer me, or are you going to remain mute?"


    Hearing Loki who seem to be bing impatient Michael finally spoke and told his tale. He told Loki about his parents'' hopes and dreams for him, as well as the bullying he received in school. He exined that no matter how hard he tried his inner energy would not expand using the methods taught in school.


    Even after training for months on every form and stance, even after he had practically perfected the movements he could not grow any stronger. Though he could fight against normal people without inner energy, but as a martial artist without inner energy, he was nothing more than a joke.


    If it was only him that would be affected he could endure all the ridicule and pain, but he was not doing this for himself he was trying to be a great martial artist for his parents'' hopes for him. He didn''t want to disappoint his father and mother who had always cared for him and gave him everything he needed using their best efforts.


    Simply making him go to such a prestigious school and enrolling in the martial arts course had already cost them a fortune, his parents won''t admit it but Michael knew the truth. How could he not notice as his father had started working overtime more frequently? Even in a barely credible school, the martial arts course would cost his father an entire month''s sry, so it might have cost his father an entire year''s sry to pay for his tuition.


    Michael could not allow his parents'' efforts to go to waste, nor did he want to remain a loser. Though he kept telling Loki that he was doing this for his parents'' sake, that was not the only reason. The truth was, deep inside of him Michael wanted to be a powerful martial artist like the ones he admired watching when he was younger. Those supernatural beings that once looked like superheroes in his eyes.


    He wanted to stand among those people as equals. He wanted to be someone his parents could be proud of. As he was telling his tale, Michael could not help himself as tears fell down his face.


    Hearing the entire story Loki finally understood why the kid was so desperate. Still, though he understood Michael''s plight he couldn''t truly empathize with him. Loki was someone who was born strong and he was technically a genius of battle. He was never on the side of the weak so he could not truly understand how Michael felt. He then looked at the crying Michael whose eyes continued to shine with determination.


    Michael who was done telling his story wiped away his tears and looked at Loki waiting for him to say something. Due to Loki wearing a mask it was difficult for Michael to get a sense of what Loki might be thinking about. There was a moment of silence between the two, as Michael waited. A few minutes had passed and Loki sighed as he spoke.


    "I see... I wish to ascertain something, soe at me then." Loki stood up and signaled Michael to attack him. Michael looked at Loki dumbfounded by what was happening.


    "It''s just a little spar, I will not attack nor use any form of energy so don''t be afraid ande at me with all you got."


    Michael was still in a daze when he nodded his head and took a stance. He wasn''t sure what Loki wanted to see, but this was his chance to prove his worth.


    Loki stood still waiting for Michael to attack. The two looked at each other not moving an inch. Michael was looking at Loki''s eyes and the moment Loki blinked he attacked with a straight punch to the head.


    Loki easily evaded by shifting his head, Michael then quickly did a sweeping kick. Loki''s left leg backed away and he lifted his right leg to evade the strike. Michael transitioned from his sweeping kick into a roundhouse kick in which Loki swayed his body backward evading the attack by a few inches.


    Michael then unleashed a continuous barrage of attacks but no matter how and where he attacked Loki could evade all of it with ease. It was as if Loki could see the future as he would evade so precisely even without looking. Michael who had continued to attack was now panting heavily as he distanced himself from Loki. He wanted to once again charge forward but his legs could no longer move.


    ''Seeing the way he attacks it''s obvious that his dedication to the martial arts is formidable. I wonder How many hours a day did he practice those moves of his, to get to that level. Unfortunately, he doesn''t have enough stamina... Also even though his moves are so precise hecks the strength for them to be any use, not to mention his opponents would be those that use inner energy making him who doesn''t know how to use his mana be ineffective.''


    Loki cleared his thoughts for a while and looked at the panting Michael. Even though he could no longer move and it would seem that he would faint at any second, Michael''s eyes still looked at Loki as if he was finding the right time to attack. Loki shook his head as he spoke to Michael.


    "... I understand why you want to learn how to fight, but even so I cannot teach you my ways. Also based on what you have shown me you already know how to fight. There''s no need for me to teach you more than what you already know."


    When Michael heard Loki''s response he felt despair creeping in.


    "That''s not enough, and you know it! Please, you''re my final hope."


    "I''m sorry, but no matter what you say I won''t be teaching you... Still, I guess I could give you a hint. If you want to grow stronger how about going to your school''s library and start reading about the ult."


    After he gave his advice Loki left. Seeing Loki''s disappearing silhouette Michael felt disappointed, but he also felt a little hope.


    "The ult..."

 Chapter 58 - Elite Dragon Brigade

    Shin had finally defeated Hayate after a rather grueling battle. Thest spurt of strength Hayate showed at the end was quite something. Yet even after such a battle that filled his very soul with a thrill like no other, Shin felt like he needed more as his blood was boiling with utter excitement.


    Shin''s blood was pumping and even though he was rather tired he still wanted to have another fight. As he was trying to calm himself down, Shin who was used to battle had a sort of sixth sense to spot enemies. At this very moment, he suddenly felt the presence of numerous men but he could not hear their footsteps.??


    While he was trying to sense were the group was, in the next second Shin was surrounded by men wearing red uniforms. These men carried one sword at the waist, a knife hidden in their boots, a pistol at their side, and they were holding rifles that were aimed at him.


    Obviously, Shin knew who these people were. A special battalion that was created to deal with any martial artist that causes trouble within the country. The members of this elite brigade were at least rank five martial artists and above. There were also some non martial artists within the group, for as long as they have the skill to keep up then they were eligible to join.


    Those non martial artists were mostly enhanced humans that had various mechanical upgrades done to them. Though they looked the same as any other human, most of their body parts have been reced to enhance their strength, so that they would be able to keep up with martial artists.


    Each city has a designated squadron from the Elite Dragon Brigade that protected them. They are also tasked to help the police force whenever necessary.


    It was obvious to Shin that he was no match for this group, but even so, he wanted to fight. Now that he had proper opponents to face, he wanted to continue and see the limits of what he could do. So without hesitation, Shin charged at the group.


    One of them presumably the leader of the group signaled one of his men to step forward. One of the uniformed men nodded his head and stood up intercepting Shin. Seeing the soldier confronting him, Shin could not help it as his smile grew even wider.


    Shin used a palm strike to attack, the soldier evaded by shifting his body to the side. Shin was going to follow up his attack but then he suddenly fell over. He could not understand what happened nor how it happened but now he wasying on the ground. The soldier then grabbed hold of Shin''s right hand and twisted it, he then proceeded to ce his knee on Shin''s back pushing him down.


    Shin tried to move but no matter how much he struggled he could not even move an inch. Shin was then handcuffed using energy blocker handcuffs. These things disrupt the flow of inner energy, making anyone who uses inner energy unable to use it and feel incredibly lethargic.


    "Target is secured." The soldier reported. The leader of the group responded by nodding his head, he then started looking around and gave an order to his subordinates.


    "Take pictures of the crime scene, and once that''s done check the status of these children. Administer first aid and If they''re alive bring them to the back of the truck. As for those gravely wounded inject them with the serum."


    Hearing themand of their Captain the soldiers went to work. The Captain looked around and noticed an abundance of threadid on the ground. He then looked at the children that had fainted, most of them seem to have been hurt by being punched or kicked at, but some of them had been injured by a sharp weapon. They had multiple wounds but most were only flesh wounds.


    The Captain would have thought that Shin did all of these, but based on Shin''s own injuries which were simr to the others making him looked less suspicious. It was possible that he was cut by someone else maybe a third party. The Captain then knelt on the ground and picked up the thread that was on the floor.


    ''This is just a simple thread made of cotton. The injuries these kids received shouldn''t be from something like this. Even if a master of inner energy release were to infuse their inner energy into this thread it would be unable to hold and immediately break.''


    After looking at the scene a few more times, the Captain was sure that there was supposed to be one more kid but he wasn''t here.


    ''Was it the missing kid that injured the heir of the Mugami n and the other children?...''


    The Captain couldn''t see a clear picture of what had transpired here, he was missing too many pieces. He then looked at the only kid that was still conscious, the heir of the Mugami n, Shin.


    "Hey, so why don''t you tell me what happened here?"


    "Sure, but only if you promise me one thing."


    When one of the soldiers heard the way Shin spoke to his Captain he immediately got angry and clenched Shin''s neck lifting him up.


    "You f*cking brat! Who the hell do you think you''re talking to?! Even your elders in the Mugami n would never have spoken like that to the captain!"


    The soldier then started to squeeze Shin''s neck. Even though he was in a dire situation Shin was still smiling as his eyes continued to look at the Captain without even blinking as if he were waiting for his answer.


    "That''s enough Sergeant, let him go."


    "But Sir-"


    "That''s an order!"


    The sergeant finally released Shin who started coughing a bit, before standing up. The Captain waited for Shin to regain his bnce before he spoke.


    "So what is it you want."


    "It''s nothing much, I just want to gain the right to have a fair duel with you, one of the Captains of the most notorious Elite Dragon Brigade."


    Hearing the request the Sergeant wanted to once again choke Shin, but his Captain signaled him to stop.


    "Very well, once you have recovered you cane to our base anytime and I will have that duel with you. So how about telling me what happened here."

 Chapter 59 - Gathering His Thoughts

    When Loki got home what awaited him was an angry Alisa and a smiling Liam. He was once again being lectured by Alisa while Liam looked on with glee, as he found it funny to watch his older brother being scolded. Alisa kept on emphasizing that Loki hasn''t fully recovered as even now some of his memories still haven''t returned.


    Well, aside from that there was nothing else wrong with Loki, in fact, his physical state was better than before the ident. He was now much healthier, doing exercises every day, and even his rtionship with his younger brother had improved. ??


    After being lectured by his little sister for leaving suddenly, not responding to their calls, anding homete making them worried, Loki told them that the kid they saw was okay. After he was done telling them the made-up story he prepared, the two younger siblings went to sleep and Loki went to his room.


    Once in his room, Loki who sat on his bed felt his left hand throbbing. He was confused as to what it was but as he lifted his sleeves he was surprised, his entire forearm was covered by a bruise. It was then Loki remembered the strike he received from Shin.


    ''Didn''t I block that strike while using enhancement on my body?... Just how powerful was that strike?''


    Loki remembered the face of the battle maniac Shin and shook his head. After thinking about it for a while he felt that people like that, people who loved battle were really beyond his understanding.


    ''Why fight if there is no benefit to oneself? An assassin kills for money, a soldier dies for his country, but what of such people who fight simply because they want to?... What is it they seek and what is it they wish to gain? Is it power they seek, overwhelming power but even if they gained that what can they do, keep on fighting without purpose?... I better stop thinking about that...''


    Loki sighed as he tried thinking about something else, he then remembered the person he saved. That was the only person he has seen in this world that had an inkling of mana within him. Even though that person was weak as a normal person, but the moment he learns how to utilize his mana that would certainly change things.


    Loki looked at his own body and frowned. This body that he currently possesses also has mana within, it''s not the mana of Fade the assassin but Loki the former owner of this body. At first, he thought the reason why Loki had mana was because of him transmigrating into this body, but now he thought differently.


    Now that he saw another person with mana he started having some doubts. If Michael had mana, it was possible that Loki had mana even before Fade transmigrated into Loki''s body.


    ''Then does that mean there could be others as well?... I haven''t thoroughly inspected Alisa and Liam if they had mana. Simply trying to sense their mana normally won''t work if they''re like that kid. It''s possible that their mana is so minuscule that it would be hard to notice if I don''t check them properly. I better look into that once I get the chance...''


    Loki sighed again as heid down on his bed. So many different things had happened today that it became more tiring than when he was doing an assassination. Loki looked at the ceiling and stared at it. The ceiling was clean and was made of wood and stone, it had no monsters hidden within nor did it have any insects that would fall on his face.


    It was so different from what he was used to seeing back in his old world. Back then he would have difficulty sleeping as it was possible for some sort of monster to arrive in the cave he was hiding in. Every day was a challenge for him as he continued to sleep in that cave that was filled with numerous insects some of which were poisonous. Every day was a struggle, from morning to night. He might''ve been the most formidable assassin but in the end, he was still human.


    On the other hand, in this world, not only was he not on guard that some random monster woulde, he even gets to sleep in such afortable bed. The bed here could not even bepared to the beds of the Emperors he has killed, as his current bed was morefortable than any of those beds.


    There were also wonderful devices that help him feel morefortable when he feels cold or when he feels hot. Even the fights in this world paled inparison to his old one. In this world, there was a sense of order and stability. Even with the unknown factors such as the martial artists he still felt like this world was less bloody than his old one.


    Thinking about the time heid in that lonely and cold cave, and now where he was surrounded withpany and warmth, Loki smiled. He did not want to admit it as he could not believe in ghosts, the heavens nor the Gods, but deep down he thought that this must be a blessing given to him by his sister Shera who was looking after him.


    ''I guess tomorrow will once again be another hectic day. I wonder if that noisy library spirit that ims to be the spirit of the Akashic Records will recognize that kid as a good host for its so-called system. Well, it''s not like it has a choice, since I won''t be its host. So I hope that kid and that spirit could get along. It might also be interesting to see how far that kid could go.''


    As those thoughts filled his mind Loki closed his eyes and slowly fell asleep. Unlike the first time he transmigrated into this world, Loki could now sleep without putting up his guard as he felt safe within this structure of wood and stone. Also unlike before where he continued to exist simply because of the promise he made with his sister, now Loki actually felt a tinge of excitement for tomorrow toe.

 Chapter 60 - Linking The Pieces Together

    Tang Ao the Captain of the Squadron that detained Shin and the other students was inside his office frowning. After listening to Shin''s testimony as well as those that were there with him, Tang Ao really could not help but frown. Who could have thought that the rumored assassin would meddle in some random kid''s business?


    As a Squadron Captain of the Elite Dragon Brigade, he knew the truth about the urban legend, Fade. The assassin was someone that came out of nowhere and despite their best efforts, they couldn''t find a single clue about him. ??


    That person who calls himself Fade was an incredible assassin. Each target he killed were people who surround themselves with goons and were hidden in secret locations, but despite that, he has never failed to kill his targets and it was usually done with one fatal strike.


    What was more interesting was despite his targets hiring plenty of guards not one of those guards has died, the worst they received were some cuts and bruises. It was even said that he got past the genius martial artist Le who was as skilled as a Sergeant in the Elite Dragon Brigade.


    Tang Ao had watched the video where Fade was first sighted. The official statement given to the public was that the video was fake, but those in the loop like Tang Ao knew the truth. Tang Ao had watched that video numerous times and still found it amazing.


    The assassin Fade defeated the armed men with extreme efficiency, there was no wasted movement from attacking to evading and he only needed one strike each to incapacitate his opponents.


    In the eyes of Tang Ao and the majority of the Elite Dragon Brigade, Fade was the perfect assassin. Everything about him was an enigma, no one knows where he''s from, no one knows his real name, or if he was even a martial artist or not. Even though his movements were beyond anything a normal human could do, but there were no reports of any inner energy being detected in those areas Fade had done his assassinations, well except the one where he fought Le.


    Still, even then Le who had been interrogated after had said that she had not felt even an inkling of manaing from Fade. There were also the techniques he used in the video which were something even the general popce could do. Even now no one even knows how he was able to kill his targets as he leaves no evidence.


    ''Still, why would someone like that save a random child?... What''s the point?...''


    Tang Ao looked at the file that was on his desk that had a picture of Michael. The boy was nothing remarkable. The parents were normal, and his aptitude as a martial artist was the bare minimum.


    Even though the student called Michael had scored nicely for his form and technique as both were rated as near perfection, unfortunately, he had little inner energy which was the very foundation to grow as a martial artist. Even if someone were to train their body to the very limit of what was possible, they still would not be able to defeat a person using inner energy.


    If Michael had even just the average amount of inner energy he would''ve been considered a genius because of his skills, but unfortunately, his inner energy was practically non-existent.


    Though martial artists train their bodies to be able to control their inner energy, training one''s body was only second to enhancing one''s inner energy.


    ''Hmm, there must be something I''m missing... I guess the only way to figure out more is if I talk to this student named Michael. I was already informed that he had arrived at his house. Should I go now?... Never mind, I''ll just do it tomorrow.''


    ...


    At the same time as Tang Ao was reading Michael''s file, Matsuri was at home looking at the screen of herptop. She heard some interesting news that the local squadron of the Elite Dragon Brigade had detained some kids from Sekiko Academy who were fighting, but that was not the interesting part. The interesting part was that these kids met with the infamous Fade, and one of them was taken or supposedly saved by him as reported by the students.


    Matsuri who had been chasing after Fade''s shadow for a few months now was frowning as she tapped her finger on the desk. It had been weeks since any sighting of Fade, and now he once again appeared but not to kill but instead save a bullied student?


    ''Why would Fade rescue a bullied student from Sekiko Academy?...''


    On the wall of her apartment Matsuri had a lot of pictures from different crime scenes pinned to the wall, and in the middle was the picture of the mask-wearing Fade. Each picture was connected to Fade as they were all the targets he had killed. She sighed as she continued to stare at the pictures on the wall.


    ''No matter how many times I look at it, there''s nothing there that could help. All the victims of his assassination had only two things inmon, for one they''re all criminals, second, they are all near Leim City where Fade first appeared.''


    Matsuri gritted her teeth as she couldn''t even catch a glimpse of Fade if he didn''t want to show himself. She then ced Michael''s picture on the wall with a pin.


    ''There must be some kind of connection to all of this, and this kid is the key to gaining some sort of clue. I better talk to him tomorrow...''


    For a brief moment, the face of the new Police Commissioner shed through Matsuri''s mind. She suddenly thought that the new Commish might bite her head off if she spoke to the student without any authorization, but after thinking about it for a second she shook her head.


    ''Well, if it gets me even a tiny bit closer to catching Fade, then getting scolded for a bit isn''t really such a big deal.''

 Chapter 61 - Changing Ones Fate

    When Michael arrived at school many people were looking at him strangely. He was confused as to why he who was usually invisible in the eyes of others suddenly be someone they found interesting. As he continued to walk towards his ssroom some of the students finally decided to approach him.


    "Hey, you''re Michael from ss 1-C right?" ??


    "... Yes..."


    "So it really is you!"


    When the other students heard Michael''s confirmation they started swarming the confused Michael and bombarded him with questions.


    "Is it true that you''re friends with Shin?"


    "Did you and Shin beat up Hayate''s group?"


    "Why were you the only one who wasn''t detained?"


    "Did you get to see the soldiers of the Elite Dragon Brigade?"


    "Is Hayate really as powerful as they say?"


    Michael was overwhelmed by the questions and couldn''t respond, but now he understood why everyone suddenly took interest in him. It was regarding the incidentst night, even though there was no news about it, nor did anyone leak it, but the kids in this school especially those of the martial arts course were from powerful and wealthy ns, so gaining such information was easy for them.


    As Michael was continuously being surrounded by the students and asked numerous questions which he could answer the bell rang. Even though the bell rang the students ignored it and continued asking questions. It was then that the students noticed an approaching teachering by. Seeing the teacher the students reluctantly went to ss. As for Michael, he was called by the teacher telling him to head to the Principal''s office.


    ...


    The conversation Michael had with the Principal was a quick one. The Principal basically told him not to tell anyone of what happenedst night, and that Hayate''s n wouldeter after school topensate him.


    Michael left the Principal''s office still in a state of shock, there were too many things happening. He was still trying to calm himself down from what happened yesterday, and now all of these happened.


    Yet among all of the weird things he experienced, what surprised him the most was that a powerful n like the Mutou n was actually willing topensate him. As for not telling anyone of what happenedst night, well he didn''t even tell his parents so why would he tell anyone else.


    ...


    While Michael was heading to his ssroom, Loki was meditating inside the library gathering as much mana as he could. In this entire city, the library had the densest gathering of mana, it was the best ce to increase his strength. He could already feel his mana supply increasing.


    ''This ce truly is the best ce for me to grow, the only problem was the noisy spirit in it.''


    "Hey, I know you can hear me why are you ignoring me?! HEY, HEY, HEY, HEY! Why are you still trying to increase your mana supply this way? If you be the host of the system I created, you would quickly improve and won''t need to do such tedious things like this."


    The Spirit''s voice resounded in Loki''s ears and continued to talk despite Loki ignoring it. If it were anyone else, they might have given up and left the library, but Loki''s mental fortitude was high due to his training when he was younger.


    Yet even though he can ignore the spirit and continue to train, he still found the spirit quite irritating, but he could not do anything about it. The only way to make the Spirit shut up is if he bes the host of the system or if he left the library, neither of which he wanted to do.


    Time passed as the Spirit continued to annoy Loki by shouting, but Loki didn''t even flinch as he continued to absorb as much mana of the world that he could. It was then someone came into the library and it wasn''t his sister. Loki knew exactly who the boy was as he had just saved him yesterday.


    ...


    The moment lunchtime was about to begin, Michael noticed that his ssmates were about to surround him. Yet Michael who was sitting at the back of the ss was close to the door, so the moment the bell rang he quickly moved and was about to escape.


    The other students who noticed what Michael was nning used their inner energy to intercept him, but to everyone''s surprise and even to Michael''s surprise he was moved faster than any of them and escaped.


    Ever since he was rescued by Loki for some reason Michael''s body felt lighter and he was able to move better than before. Still, he had no time to be surprised by his increase in speed and started running towards the library.


    ...


    Michael who had shaken off his pursuers was now standing in front of the school''s library. He had been in Sekiko Academy for several months now but this was the first time he ever came to the library. He never thought of going to this ce since there were no martial arts techniques to be found here, the most they had were basic skills for people without any inner energy.


    When Michael entered the library he felt something flowing into him, it was a rather pleasant sensation. He looked around and noticed that there was no other student in the library and the only other person here was the librarian. He approached the librarian who was smiling at him.


    "How can I help you?"


    "Ummm... Do we have any books regarding the ult?"


    "Of course we do, we have dozens of them what do you like to read?"


    "I''m not really looking for anything in particr, can you rmend me some?"


    "Of course, just wait a second."


    Loki then went under his desk and took out the books he already prepared just in case Michael dide to the library. There were books that could help him start his journey in discovering mana, as well as the hidden books that could activate the system.


    Michael was surprised at how fast the librarian found the books, it was as if he had prepared them beforehand. The thought passed through Michael''s mind for a second but quickly went away as he wanted to start reading the books given to him, so he went to a corner of the library and started reading.


    ....


    Loki was smiling as he watched Michael reading the books he gave with great interest, as for the Spirit it became quiet.


    "So what do you think, is he worthy?" Loki spoke softly.


    "... He does have the potential, but he is nothingpared to you."


    "Who cares, unlike me, he might be willing to do what you want."


    "Hmph, so this was your n all along... Well, it doesn''t really matter if he has the potential to activate the system if he can''t read the books that could prove him worthy."


    "We shall see, you better pray that he could activate it, cause there''s no way I''m going to activate that system."


    ...


    While Loki and the Spirit were talking Michael was engrossed in his reading. Just reading a few pages of the first book, he understood that there was a different form of energy that was called mana. It was simr to inner energy but aside from using one''s own energy mana also uses the environment''s energy.


    ''If I can somehow harness this mana for myself, then I can finally be able to keep up with the others and make my parents happy... But how to start, how do I gather mana?'' With his renewed vigor Michael started reading the book faster than before.

 Chapter 62 - Gathering

    Outside the school gates of Sekiko Academy Matsuri was waiting for sses to end. Even though she wanted to talk to Michael but she did not want to disturb him during ss as education was important.


    While she was waiting she wondered if she should call Loki seeing as he was working in this school. The moment that thought crossed her mind she immediately shook her head.


    ''What the heck am I thinking, I''m doing an investigation. Why did Lokie to mind?...''


    Matsuri was confused as this was the first time she lost focus on a case. She was trying to get her focus back when she saw a military vehicle approaching. The insignia on the vehicle was that of a red dragon circling the world. Matsuri clicked her tongue when she saw this insignia.


    ''Damn it, so the Dragon Brigade is going for the kid as well.''


    The military vehicle parked beside Matsuri''s police car, two soldiers disembarked from the vehicle and red at Matsuri. Tang Ao then disembarked as well and smiled as he approached Matsuri.


    "I see that you''re here as well Detective."


    "It''s nice to see you again Captain Tang Ao."


    "So Detective I wonder what are you doing here? Of course, it shouldn''t be about the incidentst night since that is under our jurisdiction, and has nothing to do with the local police."


    "Of course not Captain, I''m actually here to meet a friend of mine."


    "Oh, that''s surprising so even the Ice Queen could have friends."


    "Captain you know I hate that nickname."


    "I apologize, so who is this friend of yours?"


    "A librarian from this school."


    "Oh, a librarian... That''s interesting how about you call that person over now, I want to meet this so-call friend of yours."


    "That would be rather inappropriate, seeing as it''s still working hours."


    "Aren''t you here now skipping work, so that you can see your friend? Does that mean you''re lying to me and you''re actually here for business?"


    The two were smiling at each other, but Matsuri was really irritated.


    "Fine, I''ll call." Matsuri sighed internally as she took out her phone and called Loki.


    ...


    Loki who was meditating felt his phone vibrating so he took it out. When he saw it was Matsuri calling he hesitated to pick it up.


    ''This woman is trouble, every time I deal with her something always happens... Still, she is one of the few people I think is rather trustworthy... Fine, I''ll just ask what she wants.'' Loki sighed as he answered the call.


    "What do you want?"


    "Oh hey, yeah I''m here now."


    "What the heck are you saying? I''m asking you what you want?"


    "Yeah at the front gates of the school."


    "Hello, do you hear me?"


    "No, it''s alright the Captain of the Elite Dragon Brigade will speak to the Principal on your behalf, so you shouldn''t worry and juste here."


    "What are you saying, are we having the same conversation here?"


    "Yup, sure, we''ll wait for you here, soe quickly."


    After saying what she wanted to say Matsuri ended the call. Seeing Matsuring had hanged up, Loki was dumbfounded. Loki then closed his eyes and tried sensing the presence outside of the school. Usually, the current Loki wouldn''t be able to scan such a wide area using only his mana, but since he was in the library which was like a holy ground his abilities were currently tripled.


    When he did this he noticed that Matsuri was indeed at the school gate with three others. Loki was rather surprised as he scanned the three, as two of them had the same level of inner energy as Le, as for the other one he was leagues above anyone he has met in this world. He was even stronger than the girl called Le.


    If you wouldpare him to the knights in his previous world, the two were newly initiated knights, while the other one was a senior knight. Loki once again sighed as he headed towards the school gates.


    ''What kind of trouble have you gotten yourself into now?''


    ...


    Matsuri and Tang Ao continued to talk using superficial words, knowing that the other didn''t really care, or so Matsuri thought. The truth was Tang Ao did have a favorable impression of Matsuri as her dedication to justice was something he admired, but the way she goes about conducting her justice was in Tang Ao''s eyes rather improper. After talking for quite some time, Loki finally arrived at the scene.


    "Captain this is my friend Loki. Loki, this is Captain Tang Ao of the Elite Dragon Brigade."


    "It''s nice to meet you, Captain."


    "It''s nice to meet you too, Mr. Loki." After greeting Loki, Tang Ao had a surprised face as he looked at Matsuri.


    "Is this your friend? I wasn''t expecting it to be a guy... Tell me the truth detective, is he truly just a friend, or perhaps he is something more than that?"


    "... No, we''re just friends, right?"


    "Yes, we are just friends nothing more nothing less," Loki responded with a nod.


    The moment Tang Ao asked his question he was expecting Matsuri to simply say no with a straight face, but to his surprise, Matsuri hesitated for a bit before answering. The Matsuri he knew was someone decisive and had no time for any sort of romance. Yet aside from hesitating to answer, Tang Ao noticed for a brief moment when Loki answered yes, Matsuri actually looked a bit disappointed.


    Tang Ao once again looked at Loki assessing him. How could someone like Matsuri who was obsessed with her justice be interested in a librarian? When Tang Ao reassessed Loki he felt something weird. He wasn''t sure what it was, but his instincts were telling him something. As he was trying to figure out what the weird feeling was, a group of cars arrived and parked near them.


    An old man wearing traditional Zothril garments got out of one of the cars. This man was emitting a powerful aura that was above Captain Tang Ao''s aura, he was no other than the current Patriarch of the Mutou n. The old Patriarch who had a few men standing behind him approached Tang Ao.


    "Captain Tang it has been some time since west met." The old Patriarch greeted with a smile on his face.


    Tang Ao faced the old man and bowed his head in respect, as this was one of the more powerful individuals in the country that was at the level of a Lieutenant Colonel in the military, two ranks higher than Tang Ao.


    "It''s good to see you in good health, Sir Mutou."


    After greeting Tang Ao, the Patriarch of the Mutou n looked at Matsuri and Loki. He simply took a quick glimpse at Matsuri but stared at Loki for a bit. Even though Loki was looking calm on the outside he was actually panicking on the inside.


    The moment he saw the Patriarch of the Mutou n he knew this old man was at the level of a Knight Commander in his old world. If it was his old self as the legendary assassin Fade he could easily deal with any number of the Knight Commander level, but in his current state, he would notst ten moves from the old man in a head-on fight.


    He wasn''t sure if his cover was blown as he was already suppressing the tiny amount of mana that he had. Loki started thinking as fast as he can as to what to do if the old Patriarch suspects something.

 Chapter 63 - Gift

    Mutou Ryuuji the current Patriarch of the Mutou n continued to look at Loki. Seeing the old man staring at him made Loki panic a bit. Ryuuji then pointed at Loki''s left forearm that was hidden underneath his long sleeves.


    "Young man, can I see your arm?"


    Loki knew that if he refused someone like Ryuuji, it might get even more troublesometer, so he quietly extended his arm to the old man. Loki decided to risk it since his bruise was already mostly healed due to his regenerative abilities. Making it hard to tell that he got it yesterday.


    When Ryuuji took hold of Loki''s hand he raised Loki''s sleeves which revealed the bruise on his arm. Matsuri was shocked to see this, but this was not what Ryuuji was interested in. Ryuuji then inserted a bit of his internal energy into Loki''s arm.


    The moment Loki felt Ryuuji''s inner energy invade his body he quickly stopped his mana from automatically defending.


    "I see... So that''s what it was. Young man this bruise of yours has been infected by someone else''s inner energy. I wonder why a normal person would have a bruise with inner energy? Who was it that attacked you?"


    "Loki did a martial artist attack you? What happened, who was it? Tell me so that I can catch whoever it was and lock him up for assault and since he was a martial artist we could also add attempted murder in that person''s case."


    "Detective, I think you have some misunderstanding here. Any crime caused by a martial artist falls under our jurisdiction, not yours. So tell me Mr. Loki where and how did you get that bruise?"


    Loki looked at the three people that were eagerly staring at him. He felt relieved as he already had an answer ready for that.


    "I saw some kids the other day getting heated up and were about to brawl, so as a respectable adult I tried to stop them. Unfortunately, I didn''t know they were martial artists so when I tried to block one of their punches this was the result."


    "Damn those sh*tty punks! This is what happens when little kids have too much power. Why didn''t you report it?" Matsuri spoke holding back her anger.


    "It''s like you said, they''re just kids so of course, I didn''t report them. You know even adults make mistakes so kids even more so."


    Loki answered with a bright smile on his face. When Matsuri heard Loki''s reply she was impressed by his answer, it was not only her even Tang Ao was quite impressed and Ryuuji was moved a tiny bit.


    They were truly impressed since it was Loki an ordinary person that said it. If those words were said by another martial artist the effect wouldn''t be the same. Tang Ao then approached Loki and without saying a word he grabbed Loki''s left hand.


    "Hey what are you doing?!" Matsuri shouted about to reach out for her gun when she noticed that the bruise on Loki''s arm was starting to disappear.


    "This is my gift in honor of your bravery. Even though you most likely faced a rank one martial artist that has little control of his inner energy, that was still a rather brave thing to do."


    Loki looked at his wound and immediately bowed his head. His timing, his actions, and the expression on his face gave nothing away as he truly looked extremely grateful.


    "Thank you very much."


    "It''s nothing much, just a simple thing."


    "Even so I truly appreciate it." Loki shook his head as he answered. At this moment his acting was perfect.


    "That''s rather surprising, the high and mighty Captain Tang Ao helping someone out." Matsuri released her on her gun and smiled.


    "Well, it is my job to help the citizens of this country."


    "Young man, I am of the same mind as the Captain. I''m truly impressed by the bravery and kindness you showed to those younger than you. So seeing you as an example I better show my benevolence to the younger generation as well. Here you can have this."


    While Matsuri and Tang Ao were going back and forth, Ryuuji once again stood before Loki. He then took out something from his pocket and handed it to Loki. When the man standing behind Ryuuji saw what he gave to Loki, he reacted rather aggressively.


    "Father isn''t that gift a bit too much to give someone you just met?! He isn''t even a martial artist why would you give him a spiritual herb?" The moment the man''s words came out of his mouth it attracted everyone''s attention. They then looked at the herb in Loki''s hands. The man then looked at Loki while ring at him, not only that he was even emitting a faint scent of killing intent.


    Loki had already noticed the other person''s hostility, and so did the others. Tang Ao and Matsuri frowned at the man, but before either of them could say anything Ryuuji spoke.


    "That''s enough Kazuki, do not embarrass me!" Being scolded by his father, Kazuki could only grit his teeth and take a step back.


    "Everyone I''m sorry for my son''s outburst."


    "No, it''s alright Sir Ryuuji. I might not know what this thing is, but it must be truly precious. I''m sorry but I cannot ept such a grand gift." Loki quickly responded as he bowed his head.


    "Please just ept the gift as an apology for my son''s rudeness. Also, that spiritual herb can no longer aid me, but it seems like it could aid you."


    "What do you mean?"


    "When I touched your hand, not only did I sense the inner energy of someone else, but I also sense a faint hint of your own inner energy."


    When Loki heard what Ryuuji said, this time he was truly surprised not only him but everyone else that was present to hear that. Loki was sure that he had hidden his mana from the old man, and he was also sure that the old owner of this body had no inner energy based on the memory he received before. Every child was tested at a young age to see if they had the potential to be martial artists, and unfortunately, Loki and his siblings didn''t have that potential. Yet now this old man was telling him something different, of course, he was rather shocked by the revtion.

 Chapter 64 - Bowing Ones Head

    "Sir, do you mean I have inner energy? How is that possible, my siblings and I have been tested like everyone else and back then we were told that we had no talent to be martial artists."


    Loki was now genuinely shocked and curious. He was someone who frequently checks the state of his body, and he had never found this so called inner energy inside his body.


    ''Did it suddenly manifest itself, or did being injected by that kid''s inner energy awakened this body''s inner energy, or is it possible that because it was so minuscule that I could no detect it and the previous Loki already had inner energy... Then why did the resulte back as negative, did someone mess with the test?''


    Many questions swirled in Loki''s head, he wasn''t the only one confused even Matsuri and the men behind Ryuuji were rather surprised by what was said.


    "Inner energy, Ki, spiritual energy, no matter what it''s called it''s something that even with our current knowledge and technology we can notpletely understand. There are still many mysteries regarding how it is first formed in the human body. Some people think that only people whoe from martial arts families could gain inner energy. Some think that with the right amount of training anyone could form inner energy. I''m not sure what the truth is, but right now all I know is that you have a minuscule amount of inner energy within your body. It is entirely possible that when you got hit by someone else''s inner energy that caused some kind of reaction within you, resulting in your current situation."


    Hearing the old man Ryuuji''s exnation everyone was somehow convinced, except for Loki. Loki had a lot of doubts but he wasn''t that bothered for too long. He was an assassin, not some kind of schr that could understand such topics. The most he knew about science was about human anatomy since he needed that knowledge to do his job.


    "Thank you for your guidance."


    Loki bowed his head, this time it wasn''t an act as he was truly grateful to the old man. Ryuuji''s lips curled upward a bit, while his son Kazuki continued to frown at the back.


    "There''s no need to bow your head, this is simply fate."


    After saying a few more words Ryuuji and those with him entered the school premises. Tang Ao and his men followed behind Ryuuji and his entourage. Only Matsuri and Loki were left behind the school gates.


    "So how about telling me the real reason why you called me."


    "To tell you the truth one of the students here had an encounter with that assassin in the urban legend."


    "You mean Fade?"


    "Yeah, so I was going to ask him some questions, but seeing the situation now I might not get the chance... Oh, wait, how about you go and ask him?"


    "You want me to interrogate a student?"


    "No need to look at me like that, and don''t say you''re going to interrogate him you''re just a curious librarian. You just need to ask him some questions about his encounter with that assassin, when you see him in the library."


    "You''re overestimating the attraction the library has with the students. Do you know how many students visit the library? There''s only one and that''s my sister, she''s the only student that ever visits the library."


    "Then how about talking to him in the cafeteria? Can you please do this for me?"


    Matsuri bowed at a ny-degree angle. Loki looked at Matsuri and scratched his head. He didn''t want this very tenaciousdy asking questions.


    ''I''ll just give her false informationter. Hmm, but what if she asks the kid questions herselfter on. I don''t need such loose ends, maybe I should really talk to the kid and make it seem like I truly tried.''


    "Fine, I''ll do it. Who''s the student I''m supposed to ask?" Matsuri stood upright and smiled brightly at Loki. She then took a picture from her pocket and handed it to Loki.


    "The student''s name is Michael Rosales, a student from the martial arts course."


    "Alright, I''ll try asking him about Fade. I don''t really know if he''s going to talk to me, but I''ll try my best." Hearing Loki''s answer, Matsuri suddenly kissed Loki on the cheeks.


    "Thank you, you''re the best." Loki touched his cheek and looked at Matsuri weirdly.


    "That''s sexual harassment you know."


    "What you''re actuallyining that such a pretty girl kissed you. Do you know how many people would line up to get a kiss from me?"


    "Really? Those people must''ve been blind or crazy... Whatever I need to get back."


    "Why don''t you juste with me and let''s get something to eat instead."


    "Maybe next time, I really do need to get back."


    "I thought you said that no one ever goes to the library, so why are you so eager to return?"


    "Unlike you, I do my job properly."


    "Huh, I do my job properly more so than the other officers that just sit on their chairs doing nothing!"


    "Yeah, yeah. See you next time, Detective." Loki didn''t bother to listen to Matsuri''s reply and left while waving his hands.


    ...


    While Loki and Matsuri were talking, Ryuuji was in the Principal''s office sitting on the Principal''s chair facing Michael. Ryuuji was about to bow his head but before he could do so his son Kazuki stopped him.


    "Father, what do you think you''re doing? You''re the head of the Mutou n, you cannot bow your head to anybody."


    "Why shouldn''t I bow my head, huh? My grandson had done something wrong, so I need to apologize, and so do you. I had failed to educate my own son to teach my grandson how to act like a respectable human being, and you had failed to teach your own son how to behave. So the two of us need to bow. So shut up and bow your head!"


    Ryuuji used a bit of his inner energy to release a sound wave targeting his son. Kazuki stepped back a bit and started bleeding from the mouth. He wiped away the blood on his lips, gritted his teeth looked at the confused Michael and bowed his head reluctantly. Seeing his son finally doing as he said Ryuuji bowed his head as well.


    "I''m sorry for what my grandson did, and I''m sorry for the actions of my son as well."

 Chapter 65 - Compensation

    Michael who had been called to the Principal''s office was looking at the old man who called himself the Patriarch of the Mutou n. This was the grandfather of Hayate the one who had beaten him up. He wasn''t expecting such a powerful n such as the Mutou n toe to him and apologize. While Michael was still in a daze Ryuuji lifted his head and spoke.


    "I know that no matter how much I apologize it won''t change the fact that my unworthy grandson has troubled you. So I came here not only to apologize but to give you something aspensation."


    Ryuuji ced his hand inside his traditional clothing and pulled out a book. When Kazuki saw the book he was surprised.


    "This is one of the secret techniques of the Mutou n. It is something that even those that don''t have any inner energy could use. Of course, by giving this to you, you will be bound to an oath that will force you to be unable to share the technique with other people."


    When Kazuki heard what his father had said he was about to shout in outrage, but then as if reading his mind Ryuuji grab hold of his son''s hand and pressed it using his inner energy. Kazuki felt that if he said anything now his father would break his arm. Kazuki could only gnash his teeth as he watched his father hand over the book.


    "Thank you for the kind offer, but I cannot ept."


    Michael bowed his head. When Ryuuji and Kazuki heard Michael''s reply they were both shocked and confused. They did not expect that someone like Michael who had no backing whatsoever would refuse a martial art technique. This technique was even one of the secret techniques of an old n like the Mutou n. If it were anybody else they would''ve taken the book without any hesitation.


    "Why can''t you ept it, is it because of my rude son, or is it because you think I''m not sincere enough?" Michael shook his head as he replied.


    "No, it''s none of those reasons. It''s just that this kind of technique isn''t really suitable for someone like me. If you have given this to me a few days ago, I would''ve taken it, but now I have seen the path that I should take. So I appreciate the offer but all I needed was an apology..."


    "... Alright, once my grandson is released I will make him apologize to you as well. As for thepensation, here is my direct number you can call me anytime and I will help you with one thing. It could be anything at all, and I will help you once no matter the costs."


    Ryuuji handed a silver card to Michael, which made Kazuki re at him even more. If ring could kill a person, Kazuki would''ve killed Michael a dozen times now.


    "Thank you." Michael had no reason to reject the offer so he took the card. Seeing Michael taking the card Ryuuji felt relieved The two of them then had a little conversation and bid farewell.


    ...


    Outside of the Principal''s office, Loki was using [Shadow Threading] to hide his presence and [Enhancement] to strengthen his hearing. He listened to the conversation between Ryuuji and Michael and found Ryuuji rather honorable.


    ''Well, that''s if he truly means what he says. I could never tell with that type of person. Even back then when I thought they were decent, it turns out they were more sinister than the rest... The skillful hawk hides his talons... As for his son well that guy is basically a rather honest person despite his high pride. Hmmm, well, it doesn''t really matter, what''s more, interesting is that martial art technique that anyone could use. Now that it''s pretty much confirmed that I have inner energy it would be good to start learning a bit of those kinds of techniques. I wonder how should I get my hands on one of those?...''


    While Loki was deep in thought Ryuuji and his men left the Principal''s room and Tang Ao and his men entered. Not a single one of them noticed Loki who was just hiding at the corner of the hallway.


    Seeing Ryuuji and his entourage leaving Loki eased up a bit, but the moment he did this Ryuuji suddenly looked in his direction. Loki stopped his breathing and did not move a single inch. Ryuuji continued to stare in his direction for a few more seconds before looking away and leaving.


    Loki looked at the leaving Ryuuji and wanted to follow but decided not to. In his current condition, there was an above fifty percent chance that Ryuuji would actually spot him, better not push his luck too much.


    ''I wanted to ask the old man more about martial arts techniques, but I guess I can identally bump into the Captain and ask him instead.''


    ...


    Ryuuji and Kazuki entered their car and were now heading home. There was a tense atmosphere between the two which made their designated driver feel a bit ufortable. Unable to hold it in any longer Kazuki suddenly spoke.


    "Father, why did you do all that?! Instead of punishing that boy for having my son locked up and beaten up, you instead gave him a gift! Not only that but you actually bowed down your head to such a lowly person, and even made me do it as well!"


    "Are you done saying what you want to say? If so, then allow me to tell you my piece. Why should I punish the victim? In my eyes, you should be the one punished instead. It''s because of your way of thinking that my grandson has turned out like that. Also, who gave you the balls to look down on others? Before our n had risen to our current status, our forefathers were but simple farmers. Not to mention you have contributed little to nothing for our n, all you do is cling to your invisible position as my son. This is the reason why I still haven''t handed to you the position of head of our n, since even after all of these years you have not matured."


    "But Father!"


    "Enough! Do not continue to disappoint me Kazuki. If you continue down this path, I will be forced to disinherit you." Hearing what his father said Kazuki gritted his teeth and shut up. He was furious but he could not say nor do anything to his father.

 Chapter 66 - Planning

    Once they got home Kazuki left his father and went to his side of the Mutou n''s estate. The Mutou n owns arge piece ofnd that epasses eleven hectares. The main house was located in the middle and the surrounding houses near it are people from the main family line, and the outer perimeter is for the branch families.


    The entire estate was based on the foot of a mountain making it look truly mystical. People who had arrived here for the first time would think that they had been transported into another world.


    Kazuki''s residence was located in front of the main house were his father the patriarch of the n lives. Unlike the main house, Kazuki''s residence had a grand look to it and was thergest among all the residences of the Mutou n. It was double the size of the main house. The reason for this was because the main house needed to be of a precise size for a magical barrier that their ancestors created to work. This barrier was rumored to be able to withstand numerous missile attacks. It was one of the reasons the Mutou n was able to remain mighty despite the growing power of modern weapons.


    The other reason for Kazuki''s residence beingrger was because of his vanity. The second mansion had always been used by the appointed heir of the Patriarch and it was indeed smaller than the main house before. Yet after staying as the honorary heir for so long Kazuki did not like the look of the house and requested to remodel it.


    ...


    Mutou Kazuki was someone with high pride but his talent as a martial artist was inferior to his father and his son, as even after all these years he had been stuck in the level of a Captain. He was also someone who was extremely sinister and vengeful. He was theplete opposite of his father who was an honorable and forgiving man.


    The reason for this personality of his was because he was born with a silver spoon in his mouth, and didn''t have any setbacks growing up. Yet the biggest contributor to Kazuki''s arrogance was his deceased mother, who taught him at a young age that their n was a noble one and those that don''t practice martial arts were an inferior race of humanity.


    ...


    Kazuki entered his abode where numerous servants waited for him at the front door and bowed, his wife Kotori approached him looking worried.


    "Dear, so what happened were you able to punish the brat that hurt our son? Are we going to fight with the Mugami n?"


    When Kazuki heard what his wife said he wanted to punch her, but held it in. He could not just beat up his wife, since his father would probably disown him if he did that. Holding back his anger, Kazuki tried to speak in a neutral tone.


    "If you want to know what happened, go and ask one of the men that came with us. I''m going to the training room, do not disturb me."


    When Kotori heard what Kazuki said she knew that something unexpected had urred. She no longer bothered her husband since she understood his temperament. She knew that her husband should be fuming and wanted to attack her since she brought up the topic he wanted to avoid discussing.


    Kotori nodded her head and left to ask the guards about what happened. Kazuki sighed as he watched Kotori leave without saying a word. Kazuki felt that this wife of his truly understood him. Even though their marriage was an arranged marriage, it would seem that his Kotori truly loved him. The moment Kazuki had these thoughts he shook his head and headed to the training room.


    ...


    Mikado Kira was in his room smiling, he had heard from his subordinates about the events that transpired the night prior. Kira tapped on his desk looking amused.


    ''It would seem that something quite interesting has happened. To think that Mutou Hayate had finally made a move, but he didn''t target me and instead targeted that meathead Shin. The Mutou n is a n that even my Mikado n needs to pay attention to, and the meathead''s n is also of the same level, so they shouldn''t be too afraid of my n... Is that senior perhaps afraid of me?''


    The moment that thought came to mind Kira could not help but smile. He was a person who treated everything as a game to be won, and he was happy knowing the game he was ying was finally moving forward. He had already nned to assert his dominance by beating Hayate, then going for Shin, but now he only needed to deal with Shin.


    ''Should I thank Hayate for making the first move?... It doesn''t matter, since this is all but a game that I have already won. It was just a matter of time... Still, what''s even more interesting is that guy called Fade. Even using the entirety of the Mikado n''s resources I could not find a single trace of him. An assassin of this level could prove a worthy ymate for me.''


    Kira wasn''t really that bothered by Fade and was only slightly interested in him. As long as Fade didn''t bother him he would not bother Fade.


    ''Hmm, now that things are going my way, should I focus on pursuing Alisa? She is one of the few challenges that I find truly amusing. She isn''t affected by my looks, my status nor my money, her family circumstances, as well as their hidden enemies, are also quite enticing. She''s the only one aside from the meathead that has always been true to her words. It is quite a treat to see that cold expression of hers. Still, I wonder what she would think once she finds out I''m not her true enemy.''


    Kira then looked at the files on his table. There was a picture of Hayate, Ryuuji, and Kazuki from the Mutou n, there was also a picture of Shin and his father, Detective Matsuri and Captain Tang Ao. Then finally there was a thick file for Alisa and her family.


    "There are so many yers and pieces now, the game is bing even more interesting."

 Chapter 67 - Untraceable

    Loki was in his room looking at the scroll he got from Tang Ao. Loki chuckled as he remembered how he got the scroll. Once Tang Ao finished his talk with Michael he ''identally'' bumped into Loki. After they bumped into each other Loki started a conversation which he led into Tang Ao giving him a basic martial art technique.


    Loki already confirmed that there was indeed a new form of energy within him. It was the same impure energy that the people of this world called inner energy. It was weaker than mana but it was more abundant than it.


    ''Is it possible to make this inner energy purer?... I guess I should review thatter once I get a better feel on how to control it.''


    Loki then studied the martial art technique that Tang Ao gave him. It was a simple technique in which the user gathers his inner energy into his fist or legs to unleash beyond human strength for a few seconds. It was basically the same as his [Enhancement] spell but less versatile.


    Loki stood up and did what the scroll instructed and with his skills and experience with mana, it was easier for him to learn the technique than those newbie martial artists. The consumption of inner energy was minimal and this could be something he can use during emergencies when he was out of mana.


    After testing the technique a bit Loki felt his body be extremely heavy andy on his bed. It was then he realized that his inner energy was nearly depleted.


    ''I see, so this is the bacsh of using too much inner energy... It''s rather simr to the bacsh from consuming mana, but instead of mental exhaustion, it''s physical exhaustion. I need to keep that in mind when I use it next time.''


    ...


    A couple of days had passed and nothing major had happened. Loki continued to meditate in the library, but unlike before he was now not only trying to increase his mana but also a bit of his inner energy.


    Another thing different from before was that Michael was now a frequent visitor of the library as he continued to read the books on the ult. Unfortunately, his mana supply wasn''t enough for him to see the necessary books to activate the system. Still, Loki wasn''t worried for as long as he continued to stay in this library Michael would someday grow strong enough to be able to read the true grimoires.


    As the days passed by Loki finally realized that it has been a while since he did a job from his true upation. It was then he remembered that he hasn''t established a way to contact him in this world.


    ''Damn, I forgot about that. This world has a different way of finding people, if I do the same thing as I did in the previous world I''ll get caught for sure. On the other hand, if I just wait for jobs toe my way it might take forever... I wonder how can I get clients without anyone finding out who I am?...''


    Loki started thinking of ways to deal with his problem, but after a while, he gave up as he knew too little of how this world works. It was at that moment he had an idea, if he couldn''t think of a way, didn''t he know someone that could.


    ...


    Harold was unconsciously smiling as he put down his phone. He had just received a request from Loki. Ever since he met the assassin the boring days have long gone. Though it was dangerous every now and then, but the danger was part of the thrill.


    ''So he wants me to send a message to the people that he''s now taking assassination jobs. Since he''s very hot right now the moment I post anything regarding him many of those hidden forces will flood the site and try to locate me. So I need to hide it well enough that they won''t catch me, but it must be visible enough for people to see it. Heh, this is going to be quite fun to do, first I should make the website.''


    Harold started typing on his keyboards with extreme concentration. While he was typing Loki had sent him a message. The message was about the rules for the clients.


    1. I will only kill those that cannot be handled by thew.


    2. The reason for wanting to kill must be just.


    3. Depending on the reason the payment will be different.


    4. To those thinking of capturing me or attacking me, I advise you to think twice. I will retaliate and the consequences for tricking me will be intense pain.


    Those were the rules Loki set up for an assassination job. Harold became his middleman as he was going to control the website. One mistake and both he and Loki would be found out, and worst-case scenario Loki''s enemies would kill Harold.


    ''That just means I shouldn''t make a mistake Wait... Maybe I shouldn''t make a website and instead, find those people that fit Loki''s requirements myself.'' Harold smiled as he started to move his hands. He was still afraid, but at the same time, he was excited.


    "First, I should try a test run." Harold hacked into the police station''s server, once he was in he started looking for people that fit Loki''s preferred client.


    ...


    A father sat in the corner of a dark room, he was holding the picture of his lost child, and at the ceiling, there was a noose. The father looked at the picture of his daughter and started crying.


    "I''m sorry, Emily, papa can''t find you. I tried my best but no one would believe me. No one would even listen when I said that they took you from me... I''m sorry that papa was so weak and useless... But do not worry, you and papa will meet again."


    The father who could not find his daughter stood on a chair and was going to put the noose on his neck when he suddenly received a message. It was from an unknown source, he was going to ignore it but then he saw a familiar name, Fade.

 Chapter 68 - John Yui

    John Yui was once a so-called wandering martial artist. Wandering Martial artist is the term used for any martial artist that doesn''te from any of the established ns. His original name was John Dunphy, he had married into a very influential martial arts family and took his wife''sst name.


    Even though Martial Artists weren''t as influential as they once were, they were still a ss above the normal citizens. Even in the military, most high-ranking personnel were high leveled martial artists. Though there were some non martial artists that have ranks, the most they can achieve was bing a first lieutenant, since the requirement for going above that rank was that you need to be at least a rank seven martial artist or have the strength of one. At that point, non martial artists would need to enhance their bodies by recing their biological body parts with mechanical ones.


    Martial Arts Rank go from lowest to highest one to ten. After that were the Grand Master ranks which were also ranked from one to ten. There used to be ranks beyond that level, but thest time any record of anyone that had surpassed the Grand Master rank was a few millennia ago. It was said that back then martial artists that were beyond the Grand Master rank could lift mountains and split the seas with a single punch.


    John was a rank four martial artist and had entered the Yui family whose Patriarch was at the Grand Master level. In the beginning, her family opposed their union since John was practically a nobody, while she was the genius of the n. Yet after much convincing the head of the n finally acknowledged John.


    After a few years in the family, John''s ability rose into a rank five martial artist, and his wife gave birth to a girl. It was at this time John was at his happiest and felt like every day was a wonderful dream. Yet like all dreams, one would eventually wake up.


    His wife who was the most talented of all the people in the Yui n had died. She and her siblings all went to do a secret mission for the n but upon their return, all of them were wounded and John''s wife had died supposedly while protecting her siblings.


    At first, John believed every single word that his wife''s siblings said as they recounted the events that transpired.


    After his wife''s death not much has changed in his position within the n. He was still treated quite fairly, that was before the Head of n died. The moment the Patriarch died, he was reced with the eldest of his children and that was when things started to change.


    John who had a rtivelyfortable life within the n was now being harassed. He was now treated coldly by those he once called brothers and sisters. At first, the form of harassment was small, but then it slowly grew. He was now pushed out of his house and was relocated to the worst part of the n''snd. Not only that but he was no longer invited to any of the n''s missions. He was then considered an outsider by everyone within the n.


    Even though things were getting hard for him, John could still continue onward because of his dear daughter. Yet even that was taken from him. At the age of eight, his daughter had shown incredible talent one that far surpassed the talent of even her own mother the recognized supreme genius of the n.


    After showing her talent to the n so that her father would be treated better, a few dayster his daughter suddenly disappeared. The entire n and John tried everything they could to find his daughter yet no matter what they did they could not find a single trace of her. It was then the Yui n formally kicked him out of the n. Now that his wife and daughter were no longer present, he had no right to be in the n.


    Still, since he had a special rtionship with the n, he was allowed to keep on using thest name, Yui.


    Once he was kicked out of the n, John continued the search for his daughter. After searching for a long time John finally found a clue. That clue led him to believe that it was none other than the Yui n that took his daughter away.


    When he found out the truth, John quickly understood what happened. The n wanted his daughter''s incredible talent for them to mend and mold. On the other hand, John was an eyesore to them. So they must''ve faked his daughter''s disappearance and forced him out of the n.


    John wanted to report the incident to the police, but then he remembered the incident with thestmissioner so he was reluctant to rely on the police. He could ask for help from the Elite Dragon Brigade, but without enough evidence, they might not move against the Yui n.


    John then started to ask help from other people, he even asked help from the enemies of the Yui n, but no matter who he told his story to no one would believe him since he did not have any evidence to back up his im. So in the end he finally asked the police for help, yet same as before the police could not make a move because of theck of evidence.


    After doing everything he can, he found out that he could not do anything at all. He was unable to save his own daughter, and now that he thought about it, he was certain that the death of his wife wasn''t as clear as it seemed. Even though he knew all this he still could not do a thing, not a single f*cking thing.


    Falling into despair and seeing no way out, John finally decided to join his wife. At least he knew that the n would treat his daughter well since they currently needed someone as talented as her. After the death of their Grand Master, their n''s position became rather shaky, so they needed someone with the potential to be a Grand Master.


    John was sure that his daughter would be someone strong in the future, and hopefully, when she learns the truth she would gain the strength needed to do something about it.


    As John was ready to end his life, it was at that moment he had received a message that once again gave him hope. He looked at it and mumbled a name.


    "Fade."

 Chapter 69 - A Conversation

    After John received the message he stared at it for a few seconds. The only thing written in the message was if you wish for someone to be killed state your reason and the details of the target. At the end of the message was the name of the recently famous urban legend, Fade.


    John wasn''t sure if this was really from Fade or some sort of prank. Still, it didn''t matter even if it was a prank, John was desperate for any help he could get. If this was truly Fade, then maybe he might be able to meet his daughter again, or if not avenge her.


    John started to type his experiences and details on the Yui n. John sent the message and waited for a reply. After waiting for some time a reply finally arrived. It was a file that had a map with a pinned location and a message, meet me at ten.


    When John read this message he felt a little nervous and excited at the same time. He finally had a chance to save his daughter. He looked at the clock and saw that it was only seven, he needed to wait three more hours before it was time.


    Even though he had waited for four months now, he felt that waiting for these three hours was much longer.


    ...


    While John was waiting impatiently, Loki was now inside Harold''s room. He wanted to gain more information on the Yui n. He was still unsure, if what John said was the truth and if his reasons for wanting to eliminate the head of the n and his siblings was the correct choice.


    "So can you get more information on the Yui n before I head to the meeting ce?" Hearing Loki''s question Harold started scratching his head.


    "Hmm... It would be rather difficult. Unlike the Harada Family, the Yui n is a genuine martial arts n, and a rather old one at that. They might not be able to match the top ns, but they''re not some low-tier n that''s easy to gain information on. I''m not even sure if they actually use modern technology to record anything. If it ain''t plugged into the inte I can''t get ess to it and would need to directly go to the Yui n''s abode to get information directly from whatever they''re using. The only other way is to hack into the Elite Dragon Brigade''s servers, as they hold onto all the information of every n within the country and even in the Empire. Even with my skills, it would take a few hours to get any better information than the ones John gave us."


    "I see... Then get whatever information you can for the next hour and a half. It doesn''t matter if it''s trivial or not."


    "So demanding... Hey, do you really not believe any of the information given by John?" Loki removed the mask he was wearing and looked at Harold directly in the eyes before responding.


    "It''s not that I don''t trust any of the information he gave, but... It''s better to be sure than make a mistaketer. Killing a person or in this case a lot of people, isn''t such a light thing that I could just do it because someone told me to. I might be an assassin, but I want to be an assassin that only kills the wicked to save those that are in despair."


    "Based on what John said, you don''t really need to kill anybody, just saving his daughter would make him happy."


    "Do you think that after I save his daughter, they would stop there? No, they won''t, a n like that would retaliate. If John''s theory is true and his wife was killed by her siblings, the current rulers of the n if not dealt with would continue to do heinous things to get what they want. Even if I simply scare them and kill one as a warning, the moment they find a chance to strike back they will. People have the capacity to change, which is true, but how long would I need to wait for them to change, how many people will die before they change, should I wait until John and his daughter die? Since I have already decided to take this job, as a professional for as long as John follows the rules I will do my job properly and thoroughly."


    After he was done saying his piece Loki once again wore the white mask. Harold had nothing else to say as well and started tapping on his keyboard. It was rather quiet and the only sound you could hear in the room was the sound of Harold typing.


    ...


    "... Can I ask why you decided to do this and be an assassin?" Harold suddenly asked without looking at Loki. Hearing the question, Loki looked at Harold for a while and sighed. The kid has helped him numerous times now, and he wasn''t really against answering.


    "I do this because of a promise I made long ago, to someone very special to me."


    "Oh, a girl?"


    "Yes."


    "Was she your girlfriend? Where is she now, is it possible to meet her?" Harold had be a little bit excited, as this was the first time Loki actually talked about something so personal. Behind the mask, Loki lightly smiled as he shook his head.


    "She wasn''t my lover, she was something more than that... As for meeting her... She doesn''t exist in this world, and is no longer a part of any world."


    When Harold heard Loki''s voice that sounded mncholic and the way he said no longer part of any world he could guess what was the fate of this woman that was so precious to the assassin. Harold stopped typing and looked at Loki while bowing his head.


    "I''m sorry."


    "There''s no need to be sorry." After Loki responded the room became silent again. After a while, Harold had finished digging up what he could within the short time frame given and printed it out. Loki read the new information and nodded his head and was about ready to head to the meeting spot.


    "Thank you, Harold... Hey, if you''re alright with it, can I talk to you about her?" Harold was shocked to hear Loki''s question, but he quickly regained his senses and nodded his head.


    "Of course, I can listen to you any time."


    "You really are a nice kid," After saying those words Loki disappeared from Harold''s sight.

 Chapter 70 - My Life As Payment

    John was rather excited to meet Fade and headed to the meeting ce ahead of time. The meeting spot specified by the map was in a forgotten shrine in the mountain outside of the city. It took John half an hour to reach the meeting spot. He wasn''t expecting it to be in such a ce which is why he didn''t bring a shlight, so he used the light on his phone instead.


    When he arrived and saw the old forgotten shrine he found it a little creepy. John looked at what kind of shrine it was and saw that it was a shrine of one of the old forgotten Gods.


    ...


    In the olden days, non-martial artists would pray to the Gods who were usually martial artists beyond the Grand Master rank. Some historians imed that the old forgotten Gods were made-up beings that came to be due to the fear the non-martial artists had at the time. While the majority of the historians imed that the old forgotten Gods were the beyond Grand Master martial artists that once ruled as Gods helping people or destroying them. They had control over the weather and could live for a very long time, making them seem like Gods.


    Nowadays there are no longer beyond Grand Master martial artists, some say that most of them had left the in search of greater power. Others say that there are still some of those beyond Grand Master martial artists hiding, controlling the world from the shadows. Still, most people no longer pray to such beings as the people''s understanding of the world around them grew, they no longer needed the help of any deity and believed that they could now control their own fates.


    ...


    Even though John doesn''t believe in any religion, he still wanted to show respect as a martial artist to the one who had reached the pinnacle of this path. While he waited for Loki to arrive he cleaned the shrine a bit and bowed. After he was done he suddenly heard a voiceing from behind him.


    "Are you perhaps a religious person?"


    "Not really, but as a martial artist I do have some respect for the strong."


    John turned around and saw no one there. To his surprise, even his senses as rank five martial artist could not sense any presence.


    "...Are you Fade?"


    Even though John was pretty sure that the person speaking was the assassin, he needed to be sure. In the darkness like a shadow, Fade suddenly appeared in front of John. In the darkness of the night, the only thing John could clearly see of Fade was his white mask.


    "I am Fade, so tell me who do you want to kill?"


    "I do not want to kill anybody. I just want my daughter back. Is it possible for you to not kill anyone and just save my daughter?"


    "... I''m an assassin... Though I have strict rules that I adhere to and I might be a bit different from other assassins, but in the end, I am an assassin. Any job I take means somebody''s life shall be taken, if you just want to save your child, I am not the one you need to hire. There are others more capable than I for that kind of job."


    After saying those words, Fade was slowly backing away when John tried to grab him. John stretched out his hand towards Fade, but all he was able to grab was empty air. John was getting desperate as he prostrated hitting his head on the ground.


    "Please you''re my only hope! No one would believe me, and no one would help me! You''re myst chance, my only hope in saving my daughter!"


    "As I said, I''m an assassin, not someone that does random jobs like that... It is true that I do save people, but my way of saving them is through the deaths of their enemies. If all you want is to save your daughter without killing anyone, I can tell you of a pretty good detective that I''m sure will help you... But if you decided that you want to eliminate the people who took your daughter from you, the people who stole your wife''s life, then I''m the person for the job."


    "..." John did not respond as he continued prostrating. Seeing him act like that made Fade sigh. He was going to ept the job if John simply said that Fade needed to eliminate the siblings that are suspected to have killed his wife and had kidnapped his daughter.


    ...


    In truth after the quick search Harold did, Loki had learned much about the side of the Yui n that John never knew. The Yui n was one of the mid-tier ns that wanted to rise above their current position. There were rumors that the former head of the n wanted to pass the position of n Head to John''s wife. It was during that time when the rumors started spreading did she and her siblings went out to do some unknown mission for the country. The results of that mission were unclear but the siblings were gravely injured and John''s wife had died.


    Even if the siblings didn''t really kill John''s wife, they weren''t any good people among them. Each one of the siblings except for John''s wife had done various crimes they imed were for the sake of the n. Due to the Yui n being somewhat influential and their crimes being wiped away due to their umtion of credit that they had gained for doing odd jobs for the country, they have never been truly punished.


    ...


    "You aren''t even a real member of the Yui n, and I''m sure that they had never treated you kindly after the death of your wife. Why do you protect those that have already shunned you? " Hearing Fade''s question


    "...No matter what they have done, I cannot bring myself to sentence them to death. After all, they are my wife''s beloved siblings. Even back when she was alive, no matter what they did she would always forgive them with that smile on her face. I''m sure that if she were still here with me, she would ask me to forgive them as well... I really do not wish for revenge, I just want my daughter back. I will give you anything that I have, if you truly need to take a life so that you can save my daughter, then why don''t you take mine. I will dly give you my life, but not for now. Can you please wait for my daughter to grow up a bit? Once she''s old enough then you can take my life as payment."

 Chapter 71 - Make A Choice

    Fade looked at the man once more and sighed. This wasn''t the first time he had received such a request. Even back in his old world that was more chaotic than this one, there were some that didn''t want to kill their enemies. Fade could see the same kindness in them that his sister once had. This was also the reason why his kind sister was killed.


    If he had acted back then and killed his n members when he felt their killing intent he would''ve prevented his sister''s death, but of course, his sister stopped him from doing that. Still, even though he could''ve overpowered his sister back then he did not. Back then he didn''t want to taint his sister''s kindness.


    "I understand... I understand your hesitation but think about your daughter. If I save her and bring her back to you, what do you think will be the reaction of the Yui n? They would definitely hunt you down to get your daughter back. Is that what you want to do, to be forever running?"


    When John heard what Fade had to say he once again became silent. He knew deep down that was what was going to happen if he took back his daughter. The two of them would be unable to live normally and would have to move from ce to ce frequently. The only option they would have left would move to the neighboring Empire. Once they do that the country would consider them as traitors and they would never be able to return, that was assuming the Empire would take them in the first ce.


    Still, even though he knew all that he just couldn''t find the heart to tell Fade to kill his wife''s siblings.


    "... No... I can''t, I just can''t..."


    "I see... Do not worry I would not allow your heart nor your soul to be tainted by these things. I will give you two choices." Fade tossed a card that had Matsuri''s name and badge number.


    "Choice number one ask for help from Detective Matsuri, just don''t tell her that it was I who sent you. If you don''t do anything after two days, choice number two will take effect. Choice number two is me doing my job the way I see fit. No matter what choice you make, it will not taint you for I will take all the sins onto myself. Do not worry, I''m already stained ck from all I have done. Surely there''s no longer any saving for my soul, so it doesn''t matter how many more stains my heart and soul take in, for as long as I can save the next person, then I''m sure she''ll be happy."


    John lifted his head to look at Fade, but he was no longer there. In a daze, John suddenly heard Fade''s voice echo throughout the shrine.


    "John, just do what you think is right and I will honor it no matter what." After saying those words the shrine once again became silent. John picked up the card and once again looked around.


    ...


    John returned to his empty apartment fiddling with the card he just received. He went out filled with so much hope but came back with nothing.


    ''Should I have asked Fade to kill them?... No, I''m sure that even they wouldn''t stoop so low that they would kill their sister that loved them so much. Even if they did, she would never want me to take revenge for her.''


    John gnashed his teeth as he looked at the card in his hand. He had two days to decide what to do or else Fade would most likely kill all of his wife''s siblings.


    ...


    The night after John and Loki spoke with each other, Loki was now currently looking at the Yui n''s estate from a distance. Like most of the martial artist ns, the Yui n was hidden in a secret area.


    After Harold did some more research he was able to find this secret location. It took Loki several hours to get to this ce. He had quickly left the library once the school was over. Loki was rather surprised to see this ce that was hidden within the mountains and trees.


    ''The mana here isn''t as much as the mana in the library but it''s still rather abundantpared to other ces. Does that mean martial artists strengthen their so called inner energy from the mana of the world? No that can''t be it, since I already tested my own inner energy a bit, and the way to strengthen it is different from mana. Then why did this martial arts n set up in this ce, it can''t be a coincidence.''


    While Loki was thinking about things, he noticed some movement at the front gates of the n. There were several carsing out of the n, and despite using [Enhancement] with the aid of binocrs Loki could not see through the windows of the car. He clicked his tongue as he shook his head.


    ''I better stop thinking about other things, and focus on the mission at hand.''


    Loki continued to observe the outside of the n Estate and was rather surprised. Unlike the time with the gangs, this Estate was a true fortress that had no weak point that he could see.


    If he had more mana supply he could have used [sensing] to see how many people were within the estate. Yet despite there being more mana in this ce than other ces he could not do it. It would seem that only the library had enough mana to spare for him to be able to use the spell to scan such a big ce.


    ''I guess I have no choice but to infiltrate the ce. Now with my current limited abilities, this might actually pose a challenge. Not to mention I have no idea how strong the master of this ce is...''


    Loki sighed as he started walking towards the walls of the Estate. He didn''t get too close as he tried to observe the guards roaming around. It would seem that unlike that time with the Harada family, there were no security cameras anywhere.


    ''I guess they''re confident in the strength of their guards and now that I look at this ce closer, it actually feels like the fortresses back in the old world. They''re not using too much technology and the ce seems to be stuck in the past. I guess they might feel a bit of disdain in using such things that non martial artists use. Well, that''s better for me.''


    Loki silently closed in on one of the guards roaming the outer perimeter. Before the guard noticed Loki''s existence Loki had already slipped past him and climbed the outer wall without anyone noticing.

 Chapter 72 - Making A Plan

    Loki entered the Yui n''s estate but found it incredibly hard to move around without being seen, as there were some with enough ability that would be able to detect him if he makes a single mistake. This made Loki focus even more than usual.


    Now that he was inside the estate he could sense the presence of at least two people at a rather higher level than the others. Loki had underestimated the ability of this so called n. It was then he realized that even though he tried to assess the situation without trying to underestimate his opponents, he was still looking at things in the eyes of the old Fade.


    He was no longer the powerful legendary assassin Fade, that could assassinate all even the Gods themselves. Now he was just Loki a rather weak being. Even after he continued to train both physically and spiritually it had only been a few months and he had finally reached a bottleneck.


    Unlike when he first got here, his growth had slowed down quite a bit. Loki sighed as he could no longer go deeper in the Estate, but now he had a better understanding of the ce. He would return tomorrow and the day after to see what decision John would make.


    ...


    The day after John met with Loki, he unconsciously headed to the police station where Matsuri was stationed. He stood in front of the station still hesitating, when someone came to him.


    "Sir, is there anything we can help you with?"


    "...Oh, sorry I was lost in thought."


    "I see, is there something you want to say to the police? Oh, right I haven''t introduced myself I''m Detective Watanabe Matsuri."


    Matsuri extended her hand for a handshake. When John heard Matsuri''s name he was shocked. It was like fate itself was telling him something. It was at that very moment John clenched his fist, gritted his teeth, and expelled all of his hesitations. John nodded his head and grabbed hold of Matsuri''s hand and shook it.


    "It''s nice to meet you, I''m John."


    "Oh John, the same name as my former partner."


    "Former?"


    "Yeah, it''s a whole story. Now I''m flying solo for a bit. So how can I help, are you here to ask for something?"


    "Actually... Can we talk somewhere else?"


    "Is my desk not good enough?"


    "Please... Can we go somewhere else?"


    Matsuri was going to ask why, but then she saw the expression on John''s face. It was an expression of worry. Now that she got a good look at John she noticed his eyebags, red eyes, red nose, and hisplexion was rather pale. She had seen this look a lot of times when she became a detective.


    "Fine, so where do you want to talk?"


    "How about in that cafe over there. We can have a drink as we talk."


    ...


    After the two ordered their coffee and sat down. John was silent while Matsuri waited for him to tell her, his story. John looked at Matsuri and felt she was indeed different from the other police officers he has talked to before. Still, he was expecting Matsuri to at least be a martial artist, but no matter how he looked at it the Detective was just a normal person, she wasn''t even a mechanical human.


    John started wondering why Fade who was such a powerful assassin would believe that this person was capable of helping him. Still, he had to believe in the assassin''s judgment as he had no other choices at the moment. John then started telling Matsuri everything about his time with the Yui n, the death of his wife, and the disappearance of his daughter. After listening to everything John had to say Matsuri was silent for a moment.


    "... I''m sorry John, it must''ve been hard on you, but don''t worry unlike the others I believe in you and I promise to help you get your daughter back as well as gain the justice that you deserve."


    When John heard Matsuri''s reply he was about to cry, but he held it in and simply nodded his head as he responded.


    "... Thank you, detective. So how are we going to do this?"


    "Normally, these kinds of cases are for the Elite Dragon Brigade to handle, but seeing as you have no evidence to support your ims the Brigade would not be able to make a move, the same goes for the Police. So the first thing we need to do is find some evidence to prove your story, and once we get that evidence we can ask the Brigade to help."


    "But that''s the problem, even after all this time I cannot find any evidence."


    "Well, that''s because you''re not a detective like me. I know some guys that could help us find out some of the Yui n''s secrets, they''re the best. The only time they failed in finding someone and learning their secrets is when I hired them to look for the assassin Fade."


    Upon the mention of Fade''s name John''s eyebrows twitch, it was but a brief moment but Matsuri was able to see it.


    "So after they find something what will we do next?"


    "After that, we''ll be able to somehow convince the brigade to do an investigation on them. When they do that, they will of course-"


    Matsuri then started exining the n she had thought of. After listening to Matsuri''s n, John finally saw the detective in a new light. He was skeptical of the reason why Fade would trust the detective to do this job, but after listening to the n he could somehow see why the famed assassin would trust her. He had just met the detective and had just told her about his situation, but within that limited time, she actually created a n that could save her daughter without killing anyone.


    ...


    Loki was in the library when he received a message from Harold. The father and the detective are talking, aside from the message, there was also a picture of Matsuri and John drinking coffee. Reading the message Loki smiled.


    ''As I thought, you really are as I expected you to be, detective.''

 Chapter 73 - Asking For Help

    It took Matsuri''s ''friends'' a few hours to gain the information they needed to start an investigation on the Yui n. Unlike Harold''s information, the group Matsuri hired wasn''t able to go as deep, but they didn''t need too much information as they only needed enough evidence to start an investigation on the Yui n.


    Once she gained the evidence that the Yui n had a hand in passing around contraband in the city, she and John headed to the Regional Base of the Elite Dragon Brigade.


    ...


    The base was located in an open area away from the city. Upon arriving at the base, a soldier approached Matsuri''s car.


    "Ma''am this is a restricted area."


    "I''m here to meet with your Captain. Tell him Detective Watanabe is here to see him." Matsuri showed her badge and ID to the soldier. When the soldier saw her name he quickly saluted her and took out his radio and made a report, after a short while he went back to Matsuri.


    "I''m sorry for the dy Detective, the Captain is waiting for you in the main office." The soldier opened the gates and allowed Matsuri to enter.


    ...


    Inside the main office of the base Captain Tang Ao, Detective Matsuri, and John were sitting facing each other. Tang Ao was reading at the documents Matsuri handed to him.


    "Where did you get this information?"


    "I can''t divulge anything about my sources. All I can say is that all the information in there is 100% true."


    "Hmph, still doing your own thing and taking justice in your hands."


    "Well, if I don''t do things this way then nothing is ever going to get done."


    "Heh, if everyone does it your way then it''s no longer justice that will rule but chaos."


    "Enough about that, I didn''te here to have a debate in regards to my way of doing things."


    "Of course, you came here to ask for a favor, and I''m sure it has something to do with the person you came with. If I remember correctly you''re the husband of Yui Hanaka, the genius martial artist of the Yui n."


    John was about to respond but Matsuri cut him off and spoke first.


    "Seeing as you already know who he is, this will be easy to exin." Matsuri gestured to John to exin the situation to the Captain. After listening to the whole story the captain sighed. The mighty Captain stood up from his seat faced John then bowed his head, causing both John and Matsuri to look at him in surprise.


    "I apologize it seems that my unit has failed you in your time of need."


    "... It''s alright, as long as you can help me now. Please help me save my daughter."


    Tang Ao didn''t raise his head and responded with a solemn tone.


    "Unfortunately, we cannot apprehend the members of the Yui n."


    "Huh?" John looked at Tang Ao in confusion, on the other hand, Matsuri had stood up from her seat and grabbed Tang Ao''s cor.


    "What the f*ck do you mean you can''t do it?! I already handed you enough evidence to at least take some of them for questioning! So what the f*ck are you saying that you can''t apprehend them?!"


    Tang Ao lifted his head and looked directly at Matsuri''s eyes as he responded with the same solemn tone as before, but with a tinge of anger within.


    "Did you really think that we of the Elite Dragon Brigade don''t know about the dealings of the Yui n when some random nobodies like your ''friends'' could get the information? Of course, we knew about it, we knew about it for a long time now."


    Matsuri already had a hunch, but hearing it from Tang Ao''s mouth still hit differently. It took a while for her to calm her mind before she continued to speak.


    "... Then why, why haven''t you done anything? Since you already knew about John before we came here, that must mean you must have had some clue about what happened to him."


    "I knew about his wife, but what happened to his daughter is new information. I''m truly sorry about that."


    "Don''t just be sorry, you sh*t! Do something about it!"


    "I cannot, the Brigade cannot do anything about the Yui n at this time."


    "Why the f*ck not!"


    Tang Ao looked at Matsuri then at the disheartened John. Seeing them Tang Ao made a decision and sighed.


    "Fine, I will tell you why we can''t do anything to them. The Yui n is just a minor n that we could annihte whenever we want, but even after all they''ve done we did nothing to them. The reason for that is because they''re the bait. They''re connected to one of the most powerful ns in the country, a n which I cannot name. We''ve been trying to find a reason to bring down that n filled with... I guess you call them ''terrorists''... Unfortunately, we can never find enough evidence to make a move on them. Their secrets were tightly guarded and they had no weaknesses, that was until they started dealing with the weaker ns, and even the gangs. Now they finally showed a weakness we can exploit. I''m sorry about your daughter, but this is too important for us to mess up right now for a single girl... This is a sacrifice that we need to make for the greater good of the country."


    "Huh, a single girl, a sacrifice?" Matsuri suddenly punched Tang Ao''s face. As a powerful martial artist, Tang Ao wasn''t truly affected by Matsuri''s punch in fact Matsuri was the one who was hurting. Still, he showed a somewhat pained expression as he said nothing nor reacted and continued to look at Matsuri.


    "This is a life of an innocent little girl, we''re talking about! What sacrifice! If the country can''t even save itself without sacrificing a little girl, then this country isn''t worth sh*t! Come on John, let''s get out of here, we don''t need this b*stard''s help."


    As Matsuri was about to take the dazed John away, Tang Ao stopped her. He then mumbled something for Matsuri and John to hear. Hearing what he said Matsuri and John looked at him rather shocked.


    "That''s all I can do for you, I''m truly sorry... I hope that you can save her."


    "... I guess you aren''t aplete b*stard after all," Matsuri responded her lips curved slightly upward. John approached Tang Ao was already tearing up as he grabbed thetter''s hands.


    "Thank you, thank you, thank you."


    "There''s no need to thank me, this is something I should''ve done in the first ce. You can bring two of my men with you. They can only give you a few minutes to do what you have to do."


    "That will do... I owe you one."


    Tang Ao shook his head as he responded.


    "Just help this man and we''ll be even."

 Chapter 74 - The Start

    Yui Minato the current head of the Yui n was reading reports on his desk with a frown on his face. Ever since his father died it has been one thing after another. Without a Grand Master martial artist in the n, the Yui n was doomed to be a lower-tier n. Right now the n was being bombarded by its former enemies wanting to eat it up.


    There were also many n members that left after his father died. Just remembering what the elder of the n said to him as he left the n made Minato feel anger in his very bones.


    "Hmph, it would''ve been better if Sakura was still alive, at least with her strength the n wouldn''t be as affected by the Patriarch''s death as it is now. Unfortunately, you and your other siblings don''t have the talent."


    When Minato heard the elder say those words in such a condescending way he wanted to attack but could do nothing since that elder was a rank nine martial artist while he was just at the seventh rank. The difference of two ranks wasrge and the elder could easily crush him.


    That elder was a loyal follower of his father, and now he alongside his group has separated from the n. The current Yui n was now just a shadow of its former self.


    Not only was the n declining at a very fast pace, but Minato''s siblings also haven''t done a single thing to help. Most of them continue to do whatever they wanted. Even though he wanted to scold his siblings he knew that this was what he promised them if they followed his ns and allowed him to be the Head of the n.


    ''Damn it, is this really all I can do?... I guess my only hope to get the strength of the n back is if we get a Grand Master martial artist. Who knew even after death you would piss me off like this, Sakura... Well, I guess it''s alright since she did give me her daughter as a gift. Unlike her mother, I can control this little one. I just need to wait for her to mature a bit more, and she might turn out to be the youngest Grand Master in history. Once she gains that honor the Yui n''s prestige will shoot upward.''


    When Minato remembered that talented niece of his and the future influence he could obtain using her, he couldn''t help but smile. Still, that was a rather distant future, as right now he needed to somehow stabilize the situation within the n.


    Yet the most troubling matter for him was the attitude of that person. The moment his sister died that person''s attitude to the Yui n drastically changed.


    ''Was he perhaps in love with my sister?... No, if that was true then he would''ve reacted more violently...''


    While Minato was thinking about how to have a better rtionship with that person, someone entered his study. Seeing the person suddenly enter without knocking made Minato frown. Seeing Minato''s reaction the person who came in immediately understood what he did wrong and bowed his head.


    "I apologize n head for bursting in without warning. I have urgent news to tell you."


    Minato looked at the frightened n member and sighed.


    "Speak."


    "Members of the Elite Dragon Brigade areing here to do an inspection."


    When Minato heard what was said he stood up from his chair with a shocked expression on his face. He didn''t respond to the person bowing before him and quickly left the room. The n member followed behind Minato.


    ''Damn it, it''s just one thing after another. Why are those people from the Brigadeing now?'' Minato then looked at the n member who was following behind him.


    "Take our best men and bring Wi to the outer base."


    Wi was the daughter of John and Sakura that was taken. When the n member heard Minato''s order he gave a bow and left. Afterward, Minato tried to contact his siblings but none of them picked up their phones. Minato was infuriated but could not do anything about the situation. He clicked his tongue and gritted his teeth.


    ...


    Matsuri and John alongside the two soldiers of the Elite Dragon Brigade were near the Yui n''s estate. Before they entered both Matsuri and John wore a cloak and a mask. Once they had reached the main house of the Yui n, they were greeted by the smiling Minato.


    "My dear friends of the Elite Dragon Brigade, how can I help you today?"


    The moment John saw the smiling Minato he felt something within him wanting to burst out. Even though he once said that he had forgiven the siblings of his wife and that he didn''t want revenge, he was still human in the end. While John was trying to calm himself, Minato finally noticed the two who were wearing a mask and a cloak. As he was about to ask about them, the two soldiers spoke before he could say anything.


    "Yui Minato, the Elite Dragon Brigade has received numerous evidence of your n dealing with contraband items. Here is a search warrant issued by the suprememander of the Elite Dragon Brigade."


    Minato was shocked by what was said but he still showed a smile on his face. He then nodded his head as he responded.


    "I see... It would seem that some of my nsmen have gone astray due to the death of my father. Very well, please help me cleanse my n of these filths. So the four-" It was at that moment Minato noticed that the two wearing masks were no longer in sight.


    "What happened to your twopanions?"


    "They have a different mission."


    "Oh, alright then... Please search all you want, I will help with this investigation however I can." The way Minato spoke was truly convincing.. Even the two soldiers who were already aware of the truth were in awe of Minato''s acting skills.

 Chapter 75 - Meeting

    Matsuri and John quickly left the scene when the attention wasn''t on them. Seeing as they were thought to be a part of the Elite Dragon Brigade conducting an investigation the members of the Yui n didn''t block their paths.


    The Yui n weren''t worried about the inspection, since the contraband items that they have weren''t even in the estate. So no matter how much the soldiers of the Elite Dragon Brigade searched they would never find anything here.


    Some of the Yui n members even thought that the Elite Dragon Brigade was full of idiots for not realizing that they wouldn''t ce such things inside their estate. They were blissfully unaware that the true target of this sudden inspection was John''s daughter Milly.


    ...


    Even though John didn''t know much about the deeper situation of the Yui n, John still had some understanding of it. John''s wife Sakura once told him about the hidden base that was located underground at the edge of the Yui n''s estate.


    It was as Matsuri said before once the Yui n learned of the impending inspection, they would most likely hide the kidnapped Milly. The only ce that these people could hide Milly without the soldiers finding out was the secret base.


    As John and Matsuri were heading to the outside base''s direction, John saw at the corner of his eye a little girl sitting in a wheelchair. This little girl was surrounded by the most powerful experts of the Yui n. It didn''t take him long to see that this little girl was actually his daughter Milly.


    No longer able to hold back John was about to burst into action. Seeing John''s reaction Matsuri knew that the girl John was looking at was his little girl. She wanted to stop him from making any rash actions but before she could say anything John had already started running.


    Matsuri clicked her tongue as she pulled out the enhancer and connected it to her gun. She then took out a syringe and injected herself. This was the booster police officers use when unexpected situations with martial artists happen. These boosters were able to increase a normal person''s strength into one that could match the strength of at least a rank two martial artist and depending on the condition of the user they could even contend with a rank four martial artist for a limited time.


    After the incident with Loki, she knew that in her current condition even with the enhancers on her guns she wouldn''t be able to capture the assassin. So using the previous incident of the formermissioner as leverage, she was able to convince the higher-ups to give her several syringes of the booster.


    After injecting the booster into her body, Matsuri felt her heart beating faster than before it felt like it was going to explode, this was a side effect of the booster. Once she was done stabilizing herself she quickly ran after John.


    ...


    There were ten rank six martial artists were escorting Milly to the outside base. They were once simple n members with good potential, but when the third elder left with almost all of their top fighters, these ten suddenly became the strongest force in the Yui n.


    As the ten of them were escorting Milly, they noticed something approaching them at high speed. John then punched one of the escorts. Yet despite catching them by surprise, and releasing every bit of strength he could muster John''s punch was easily caught. The difference of power between a rank five and a rank six was on full disy.


    The ten wanted to retaliate but then they remembered that soldiers of the Elite Dragon Brigade hade to do an inspection. This person wearing a weird mask and cloak could be part of the Elite Dragon Brigade.


    "Are you one of the soldiers sent here by the Brigade to do an inspection?"


    "..." John did not reply and tried to escape from the person''s grip.


    "If you don''t reply, I will treat you as an intruder and by thews set by the country for the martial ns, I will execute you."


    John continued to remain silent, it seems like John had no intention to respond to his question. Knowing this the ten of them decided to finish John off. Even if the Elite Dragon Brigadeinster, they can answer that the other party did not respond to their inquiries and simply attacked.


    As the ten rank six martial artists were about to kill John, they suddenly heard gunshots. Normally people of their level could easily dodge bullets, but to their surprise, before they could even move the bullets had already pierced some parts of their hands and legs.


    The one who was holding John had several gunshot wounds in his right hand. The other rank six martial artists of the Yui n had also received some damage. Most of them got hit on the shoulder or legs. The only firearm that could move so fast were guns that had enhancers installed.


    The ten of them were startled for a few seconds after getting injured. It was at that moment somebody suddenly shouted.


    "TAKE HER AND RUN!"


    John who was released from his opponent''s grip heard Matsuri''s voice and sprinted towards his daughter. He quickly carried his daughter and sprinted away. The ten finally realized what was happening and were about to follow John but then Matsuri started firing at them, stopping them in their tracks. Even with their physical prowess as rank six martial artists, the advantage of a gun with enhancers was evident. Coupled with the fact that the one wielding the gun had the speed and dexterity of at least a rank three martial artist made it even more difficult to dodge.


    Matsuri took out a grenade and tossed it towards the ten, then using the speed and dexterity she gained from the booster, she quickly took out a second gun. The first gun kept on firing at the ten, while the second fired at the grenade making it explode mid-air.


    The ten were distracted for a moment as they all looked at the exploding grenade. It was in that interval Matsuri had sneakily tossed a stun grenade. Before the ten realized what had happened, the stun grenade exploded blinding them.. As martial artists of a higher rank the effects of the stun grenade did notst long, but the moment they had regained their senses the woman firing at them had already disappeared.

 Chapter 76 - Please Help!

    John who was running as fast as he could possibly go was now deep in the forest beside the Yui n''s estate. Once he was sure that he was quite a distance away from the estate he decided to check his daughter''s condition.


    He was worried since the entire time he was carrying her she didn''t respond to him talking. It was also weird that she was in a wheelchair. Fearing for the worst, John momentarily stopped running. When he saw his daughter''s countenance John could no longer hold it in and cried.


    His once lively daughter now had a nk expression on her face, as she kept mumbling something under her breath. She was so pale that one could mistake her as a ghost. She had be a rank two martial artist at the tender age of eight, which made her the youngest to ever reach this stage. Yet it was obvious that she didn''t reach this level naturally.


    "Milly, I''m here! It''s me, it''s your dad. I finally came to save you.... I''m sorry that I wasn''t able to get to you faster, but I''m here now, so please talk to me. Please, Milly, tell daddy that you''re okay."


    John''s hands trembled as he spoke and tears continued to flow down his face. He was now truly afraid, just imagining his once cheerful daughter would stay like this forever has already broken his heart. It was at that moment he finally heard the words that his daughter was mumbling.


    "I am a tool of the Yui n, I am but a weapon of the n. All I need to do is grow stronger. I am a tool of the Yui n-" She kept on repeating those words over and over again.


    When John heard those words he clutched his chest feeling extremely hurt. It wasn''t just the feeling of sadness that John felt at that moment, but he felt extreme hatred as well.


    "Sakura do you see this?! Do you see what your filthy siblings have done to our precious daughter?! Are you telling me that even now I should forgive them?!... Sakura I know how much you loved them, and I know that no matter what they did you would always forgive them, but it seems that I can''t be a saint like you. Even after they took Milly I was willing to forgive them, to believe in them, yet look at what happened, our daughter is now like this."


    John was in so much emotional pain at the moment he wanted to charge into the Yui n and kill Sakura''s siblings. As his rage was about to overtake him, the image of his wife shed in his mind. She was showing him a knowing smile that she would usually show when Johnins to her about her siblings, once he was done speaking she would then say.


    "I understand how you feel, but even after all they have done, they will forever be my beloved brothers and sisters. They may have strayed from the path, but I''m sure someday they would turn back into the kind siblings I used to have."


    It was as if she was truly standing before him, telling him those words. This just made John cry harder than before. He held his daughter in his arms and hugged her tightly.


    ''I don''t know what to do anymore.''


    As John was wallowing in his despair, he suddenly felt some killing intent. He quickly dodged to the side but it was already toote, one of his arms was cleanly cut off. As a rank-five martial artist, he hadplete control of his body and was able to lessen the blood gushing out.


    He held tightly onto his daughter and was about to flee, but as he moved away another person blocked his path. John was nowpletely surrounded. Seeing the ten rank six martial artists, one of which was carrying an unconscious Matsuri, John knew that he had no way to escape this predicament. Still, he would never give up without a fight. He ced his daughter down to the side and faced the ten.


    "Have you finished saying your goodbyes, John?" One of the ten martial artists spoke. As they were chasing John in the forest they heard him talking and they immediately understood what happened. John must''ve asked the help of the Elite Dragon Brigade to save his daughter.


    Still, even with the help of the Elite Dragon Brigade, John could not escape his current predicament. As a mid-tier n, somews do not apply to them, and it was easy to kill people that were within theirnds without getting punished. There were various means they could employ to make John''s death look like nothing.


    Even though they could have killed John after surrounding him, they allowed him to at least say goodbye to his daughter.


    "Hmph, how nice of you to actually allow that." John took out a knife and got into a fighting stance.


    "I see... So you''re ready to die." The leader of the group who had some shoulder wounds pointed his sword at John. Though both were wounded, John''s injury was worse, not to mention their strength were one rank apart.


    After a few exchanges, it was evident that John would notst any longer. As the final blow wasing time seem to slow down for John. Knowing that this was the end, he wanted to at least gaze upon his daughter. John looked in the direction where he ced his daughter, but to his surprise, his daughter was no longer there. He then saw someone zip past him and stood in front of him receiving the iing strike.


    To everyone''s surprise, Milly had actually moved in front of her father and took the sword strike. She was stabbed and fell to the ground. The martial artist who had stabbed her was stunned, he knew the importance Milly had to the n so if she died he knew that he and his group would die with her.


    John grabbed the falling Milly and tried to stop the blood from flowing out of her wound. He started panicking and did not know what to do. John noticed that at the corner of Milly''s emotionless eyes were tears.


    "... D... A... D..." John heard his daughter calling for him while crying. Seeing this scene John started shouting.


    "Please help! Someone, please help!"


    As John was screaming for help the ten martial artists hade to a decision. Now that it hase to this, they decided to kill John, Matsuri, and Milly. They would bury their dead bodies and report back to the head of the n that Milly was kidnapped by John. At least by telling that lie, they could somehow survive, but if the head finds out that Milly had died then they wouldn''t have any chance at all.

 Chapter 77 - Savior

    John was panicking while pressing onto his daughter''s stab wound unaware of the danger that was approaching him and his daughter. The ten rank six martial artists were about to kill the father and daughter when out of nowhere the person who was holding Matsuri suddenly fell down.


    The remaining nine were shocked as they didn''t understand what had happened. One of them went closer to theirpanion and tried checking him. Theirpanion was unconscious and after checking his body a bit, they found some sort of needle sticking out of his neck, it was coated in some kind of liquid.


    As the nine were distracted by what happened they suddenly noticed that Matsuri who their unconsciouspanion was holding was no longer there. They then turned around and saw that John and Milly were also gone. When they saw this the nine of them got enraged as this was the second time they had their prey slip.


    Still, even though they were angry they understood that there was a hidden threat somewhere. Unlike a while ago when they were caught by surprise, this time they were ready for any possible interference. Yet despite having their guard up, they were still ambushed. Not to mention that they could not sense the presence of the attacker, nor did they notice the moment the others fled, two of which were unconscious and another who had an arm missing..


    This would mean that unlike John and Matsuri this neer who saved them was highly skilled and was at least at the same level as them or it was possible that the attacker was a rank above them. The nine of them became even more cautious as they tried to find John and the others.


    ...


    John who witnessed everything that happened was in a state of confusion. Just moments ago they were surrounded by ten rank six martial artists and were about to die, but now they were being dragged somewhere else without anyone noticing.


    The one who saved him and the others was none other than the assassin Fade, who was now carrying Detective Matsuri and Milly. After finding a good hiding spot, Fade stopped and put down Matsuri and Milly.


    Fade then checked on Milly''s condition, the first thing he did was check if the sword had pierced through her body fully. He checked Milly''s back and saw that the sword didn''t go through. He then proceeded to look into the opening of the stab wound. It wasn''t as deep as he had thought, it was clear that the attacker didn''t really want to kill Milly. Still, even though the wound wasn''t as deep as expected it was still an open stab wound.


    ''It''s a good thing it didn''t hit any vital organ... Tsk, this would''ve been easier if I learned some healing spells.''


    Fade sighed as he felt a tinge of regret not learning any healing spells in his old world. He never really needed it as most of the wounds he received could be healed using his own self-regeneration using his mana control, and for those that he couldn''t heal using his mana control, he would use some basic methods like stitching his wound.


    Fade knew that if he injected some of his mana into Milly, her inner energy would act against it. Once that happens it might aggravate the wound more, so he needed to make the wound a little bit smaller to lessen the chance of that happening, which made things a bit more difficult.


    ...


    John watched Fade from the sidelines as thetter was checking on his daughter''s condition. He then saw Fade taking out needle-like objects and started inserting them near Milly''s wound. The moment Fade did so, the flow of blood that wasing out of the wound stopped. John held his breath and prayed that Fade could save his daughter, he might not believe in any kind of Gods, but at this moment he could not help but pray since there''s nothing else he could do.


    Fade ced his hand on the little girl and after a while, the little girl started coughing out a small amount of blood. Once that was done, Fade sprayed something on the wound. He then proceeded to insert a little bit of mana Fade controlled it so wlessly that the inner energy within Milly could not respond on time. The wound then started to visibly close up a bit.


    Fade needed to close the wound fully by stitching it, but he didn''t want to do so, well even if he wanted to he could not since he didn''t have the proper materials for that. Still, what he did was enough to prolong Milly''s life, giving them more than enough time to head to a hospital.


    Seeing that he was done, John quickly checked on his daughter. The wound on her abdomen was smaller than before but still visible. John then bowed to Fade with tears in his eyes.


    "Thank you for saving my daughter!"


    "Your daughter isn''t saved yet, you still need to bring her to a hospital. Not to mention you guys are still being chased by those martial artists."


    When John heard what Fade said his face turned pale. He looked at Fade with desperation in his eyes as he was the only chance they had to survive this ordeal.


    "Fade, please save us."


    "So are you going to hire me now?"


    John became silent for a bit since he understood what Fade meant when he said the words hire. That would mean Fade would start killing. John hesitated for a bit but when he look at what happened to his daughter he gritted his teeth and made a decision.


    "... I will hire you, but please just deal with the martial artists that are chasing us."


    "Alright, I ept the job. Can you carry your daughter and the detective out of here?"


    "I might have lost an arm but I''m still a rank five martial artist."


    John picked up the detective over his shoulder and used his head to grab hold of her so that she won''t fall, he then took his daughter and carried her in his arm.


    "Thank you for everything"


    "There''s no need for that, I''m a professional and this is but a job. I wille to find youter for my payment."


    John nodded his head in response and sprinted away. Once John was no longer in sight, Fade fixed his gloves and started walking towards the direction of where the nine martial artists were at.


    "Time to get to work."

 Chapter 78 - One By One

    The nine martial artists finally found the trail left by John and the others. At first, they were confused as to why they couldn''t find any, but as they continued searching they finally found some traces of them. They quickly followed the trail, but as they got deeper into the forest they reached a dead end and lost the trail.


    "They must be somewhere close by hiding. Let''s split into three groups to search." One of them suggested and the others agreed. After forming their three groups they split up to search.


    ...


    Yui Hirohito was part of the nine martial artists who were ordered to escort Milly to the outside base. He thought that such a simple task would be easily handled, but one thing after another happened which led them to their current situation..


    Hirohito alongside his twopanions dashed through the forest. As they have gotten deeper into the forest, Hirohito decided to stop.


    "Hey, this is pointless. So how about we just stop chasing them. Even if we do find them, if the girl is dead then there''s no point retrieving her... Why aren''t you guys responding?"


    Hirohito turned his head and finally noticed that his twopanions were no longer there. He quickly took out his two knives and got into a defensive posture. Hirohito was feeling a tinge of fear creeping into him. He and hispanions were close in skill and power, with only slight differences. So knowing that the opponent could take them down like this without making a sound, frightened him.


    Seeing that no attack wasing, Hirohito took this chance and started running, he decided to converge with the other groups. As he retraced his steps he finally found one of his twopanions, but thispanion of his was on the ground unmoving


    He was already expecting this to some extent but seeing it in person was different. Hirohito approached the body and checked it. He looked around and saw no visible wounds, and based on the surrounding area that seem undisturbed hispanion was killed without being able to fight back.


    Hirohito felt a chill down his spine, he quickly moved back and raised his weapons near his head. He gathered his inner energy waiting for the invisible opponent to strike. The moment the opponent strikes was the only chance he had to counter. Even though he could not see the enemy, his instincts were telling him that the enemy was there looking at him.


    He closed his eyes, and listened to his surroundings, after a while, he heard a whistling sounding towards him. He quickly shed towards the sound and he felt something hitting his des. He had thought that he had sessfully blocked the attack, but then he felt something piercing through his chest. He desperately tried to use his inner energy to strengthen that area, but it was toote, the object had pierced fully into his ribs and hit his heart. He then felt something bursting out of the unknown object destroying him from the inside. He opened his eyes and he saw nothing in his chest. He could not understand what weapon had killed him.


    As he was dying, he finally caught a glimpse of his killer, there was someone wearing a ck trench coat and a white mask standing on a tree branch.


    ''Fade...'' Those were his final thoughts as everything turned dark.


    ...


    Yui Ling was running through the forest with a look of fear on his face. Just moments ago he had witnessed the deaths of hispanions. After they had split up, he noticed that one of the two he was with had suddenly disappeared.


    They then spotted theirrade lying on the ground a few meters away. They approached the body and saw that he was already dead. The most mysterious thing was there were no wounds on his body. They couldn''t understand how he died. At first, they thought it might have been a biological weapon, but then why weren''t they affected? Also based on theplexion of theirpanion it doesn''t seem like he was poisoned.


    Feeling a little bit fearful the two of them headed back to the ce they had been before they split up. Upon returning they saw that the others had alsoe back. Yet unlike before they were missing quite a few people. Among the three groups that separated only two returned, and between two groups two members were gone. There were now only four of them left. Seeing this sight Yui Ling could no longer hold it in.


    "What the f*ck is happening?!"


    The others did not respond and simply frowned. The four of them then turned quiet for a moment as they tried to calm themselves down. This wasn''t the first time they had seenrades die, but the way they died was too bizarre. They checked their bodies and they could not understand how they died, not to mention they still haven''t seen any traces of the enemy.


    "Let''s just go back, I-" He wasn''t able to finish his sentence as he fell to the ground. Yui Ling and the remaining two quickly stood back to back with each other covering their blind spots. Theirpanion died just like that, there was no blood, no sound, no struggle, just instantaneous death.


    The enemy was killing them so easily, and not once were they able to spot him. They couldn''t even detect the iing attack, it felt like they were fighting in the darkness.


    ...


    Yui Fang felt extremely nervous as he stood back to back with hispanions. His breathing was getting rough as the fear grip his heart tightly. It was at that moment he felt something wrap around his neck. He wanted to scream at hispanions for help, but before he could do so the thing around his neck got tighter. He wanted to pull whatever it was that was tightening around his neck, but then even his hands were unable to move as they were wrapped by the same thing. He moaned which finally alerted hispanions, they looked at him unable to understand what was happening.


    After they strengthened their sight by using inner energy they finally saw the thin wire that was wrapped around Yui Fang''s body. Yui Ling was going to cut the wire away but then he too was wrapped in the same thing and was now being strangled as well.


    Seeing what was happening to hispanions Yui Shin knew that if he stayed he too would suffer the same fate. So without any hesitation, he started running away, yet the moment he did so he felt something wrapped around his entire body. He knew that he was also caught, and death was the only fate left for him and hispanions.


    The three of them who were losing oxygen as they were slowly dying, tried their hardest to escape. It was at that moment they decided to burn their potential for a burst of inner energy. Even though it would weaken them greatly afterward making them forever stuck as rank one martial artists, they didn''t want to die. At least if they stay alive there was still hope, but in death there was none.


    As if they had nned it all along, the three burned their potential at the exact same time. Their inner energy exploded, and they felt great strength flow through them. The three were then able to forcefully tear through the wires that were strangling them.


    The three started coughing, but they had no time to be relieved that they escape the wires, since they knew the enemy was still there. The three were decisive and started running in different directions.


    Yui Ling and Yui Shin suddenly heard Yui Fang''s scream, but they did not turn around and continued running away. After a few moments, Yui Ling suddenly heard Yui Shin''s scream as well.


    When Yui Ling heard the screams of his dyingpanions he started running faster than he ever did. He didn''t care if his legs would start breaking, as he used all of his inner energy and gathered them into his feet giving him a huge speed boost.


    The power he released that was beyond what his body could handle, made his legs scream in agony, yet Yui Ling didn''t dare slow down. As he could finally see the walls of the Yui n''s estate, he felt relieved, he thought that he was safe, yet fate was cruel.


    Yui Ling suddenly felt a wave of killing intent that was like no other. It felt like he was prey being eyed by the most dangerous predator. It was like a primordial being was staring down at him. As the killing intent was suffocating him, his legs finally gave in and he dropped to the ground unable to move.


    Yui Ling tried to crawl his way towards the Yui n, but then someone blocked his path. Yui Ling finally saw the person who hunted him and hispanions down. A ck trench coat and a white mask, seeing this Yui Ling knew that this was the end.


    "Why?" He knew that death wasing, so Yui Ling just wanted to know why the assassin was here.


    "Isn''t it obvious?" Those were thest words Yui Ling heard as he saw Fade''s hand descend towards him.

 Chapter 79 - Minato Enraged

    Fade sighed as he finished off thest of the pursuers. He didn''t expect to have used all of his needles. Though he could use his hair as a medium for [Enhancement], that would''ve been effective against normal people, but not against martial artists of this level, it wouldn''t even be able to prate their skin.


    After Fade gained inner energy and practiced with it he learned quite a few things. Those with inner energy have naturally stronger bodies. Unlike with mana were you would need to actively circte it throughout your body and use a spell to strengthen yourself, inner energy could do that passively.


    When Fade didn''t have inner energy, he needed to use his [Enhancement] spell to strengthen himself so that he would be able to do things like jump higher and move faster. Yet now even without using [Enhancement] the inner energy within him has transformed his body. He might look the same on the outside, but his strength had increased drastically.


    Now he could do superhuman feats without even using [Enhancement] and his body had be harder. It was like a barrier was formed on his skin. .


    Knowing the defensive qualities of the bodies of martial artists, Fade knew that he couldn''t use the same trick he did with the gang bosses. He needed to use his [Enhancement] spell on actual tools now. He had asked Harold to buy him the materials he needed. He now had several needles in his person, and the wires on his gloves were made of Graphene. Aside from those he was carrying various weapons hidden within his trench coat.


    After he had epted that he was no longer the same legendary assassin as he was before, Fade went back to his roots. He was now treating himself as if he was still that young weak assassin he was at the beginning. So he did things as he did back then and had numerous weapons in his person.


    ...


    After Fade was done killing those that he needed to kill he was about to leave when he suddenly felt intense killing intent from behind him. Fade quickly did a sidestep and easily evaded the attack and saw who the neer was. It was none other than the current head of the Yui n, Yui Minato.


    "What is a filthy assassin doing in my territory? You''ve even killed my n members, how dare you!"


    Minato was enraged as he took out his sword. Fade was already preparing his escape, as he was notmissioned to kill any other people except for the ten pursuers. Minato who was three meters away shed at Fade who grew confused as to why Minato would attack using his sword with such a distance between them. Fade did not know why but his body moved quickly to the side. He then saw that the tree that was behind him was sliced in half.


    Fade was surprised by that move as this was the first time he saw someone use an external application for inner energy. That was pretty much simr to a sword wave the knights from his previous world would use.


    Minato was also surprised by how Fade evaded the blow after seeing it for the first time. Not many people who have seen the Yui n''s secret technique for the first time could dodge it. Though most ns had a simr technique called a sword wave, the Yui n''s secret technique was a more refined version of that.


    Using the sword as a medium the inner energy flows out as a precise invisible beam of energy. Compared to a normal sword wave this attack was faster and thinner not to mention its range was longer. Though the range of this attack depends on the user of the technique, the secret technique of the Yui n could go farther than any sword wave from other ns. The farthest recorded strike was performed by the legendary founder of the Yui n, and it reached more than two miles. Not to mention the strength of the technique, it could easily slice through reinforced steel.


    ...


    Even though he was surprised, Minato quickly changed tactics and charged at Fade. He could not use the secret technique too much since his inner energy reserves weren''t much. If the opponent was able to evade it even after a surprise attack, that would mean it won''t work. So He decided to fight Fade in close quartersbat.


    Seeing Minato charging at him, Fade waved his hands and the wires on his gloves started spreading around them. Fade then quickly used [Enhancement] on the wires to strengthen them. Minato shed at the wires but to his surprise, he was not able to cut them, he then made his inner energy flow into his sword. This time he was able to cut the wires with some difficulty, then when he looked forward Fade had disappeared from his sight.


    ''He couldn''t have gone too far.''


    Minato closed his eyes and did not move an inch. On the other hand, Fade was hiding on a tree branch while using, [Shadow Threading]. He didn''t escape since he needed to distract Minato long enough so that John and the others could flee.


    ''I guess I should just subdue him and render him unconscious.''


    As Fade decided on his next course of action he saw Minato open his eyes. Minato looked directly at Fade. Minato used the secret technique one more time slicing the tree Fade was standing on.


    Fade had easily predicted this move of Minato''s and evaded the strike with ease. As he was about tond on the ground, Minato came charging at him. Fade evaded the piercing strike by shifting his head to the side, he then used his legs to grab hold of Minato''s arm. Fade then twisted Minato''s arm that was holding the sword dislocating his shoulder. Fade then took some distance away from Minato.


    "You better stop now, if you don''t want to get hurt more. You are no match for me."


    "Are you looking down on me assassin?! If you''re so capable why won''t you kill me?!"


    Minato was enraged by how much Fade was looking down on him. Even though he could not see Fade''s face due to the mask, Minato was imagining him looking at him like how the third elder looked at him when he left. Just thinking about that just made Minato even more enraged.


    "I really did want to kill you, but my employer doesn''t want that. As a professional, I do not just kill whoever I want."


    "... Is your employer John?"


    "I have no obligation to answer you."


    "How about you work for me instead and I will pay double of whatever that employer of yours is giving you."


    "Hmph, you''re not qualified to hire me."


    When Minato heard what Fade said he could no longer hold his anger in. He picked up his sword using his left hand and charged at his opponent. Fade sighed as he saw the approaching Minato, he easily dodged the iing strike. Fade then used [Enhancement] on his hand and did a chop on the side of Minato''s neck. Using the right amount of force and his knowledge of the human anatomy, Fade was able to precisely hit the vagus nerve rendering Minato unconscious.


    He looked at the fallen Minato and shook his head. Once he was sure that Minato was unconscious, Fade disappeared from where he stood.

 Chapter 80 - Johns Payment

    John was able to bring his daughter and Matsuri into the nearest hospital. It has been a few hours now since they had arrived, but no pursuers of the Yui n came after them. It was obvious that Fade had done his job.


    Milly was now in surgery and her status was still unknown. On the other hand, Matsuri was awake and trying to call Tang Ao.


    John did not know what was happening to Fade right now and had no time to worry about the assassin and the people from the Yui n. The only thing that filled his mind at the moment, was the safety of his daughter.


    Matsuri had ended her call with Tang Ao and he agreed to help hide the father and daughter from the Yui n. She wanted to tell John the good news but then she saw the expression on his face and no longer bothered him.


    ....


    John who only had one hand left was sitting on one of the hospital''s waiting room benches. He wanted to pray but stopped himself. Ever since he lost his daughter he had prayed to the Gods numerous times. From the old Gods to the new ones he prayed to any that would listen to him.


    Yet no matter how hard he prayed no one ever responded, only Fade had taken notice of him and helped him. Of course, the Detective and Captain had helped him as well, but Fade was the one he owed the most. Without Fade, John would''ve died in his apartment, unable to save his own daughter. So he did not pray instead he clenched his fist and hoped that his daughter would live through this.


    ...


    A few hours have passed and John could not help but worry more and more. He had cried a few times as he waited for the results of his daughter''s surgery. He was so worried that he didn''t notice that the doctor was already standing right in front of him.


    "Mr. Yui?"


    John who was deep in thought finally heard the doctor''s voice. He quickly stood up from the chair and looked at the doctor his expression filled with worry.


    "Doc what happened to my little girl is she alright?!"


    John grabbed hold of the doctor who showed visible pain from John''s touch. Even though he wasn''t putting much strength into it, John was still a rank five martial artist while the doctor was a normal person, so the strength of John''s grip was hurting the doctor. Seeing the doctor''s reaction John realized what he was doing and let go of the doctor.


    "I''m so sorry."


    "It''s alright, Mr. Yui I understand what you''re feeling, but do not worry, the surgery was a sess."


    When John heard the news he hugged the doctor while sobbing but this time he was able to control his strength.


    "Thank you, thank you, thank you," John kept on repeating the same words to the doctor.


    "You''re really lucky Mr. Yui, if not for the first aid given and if you were a few minuteste ining to the hospital, then no matter what we did it would''ve been toote."


    Hearing what the doctor said John felt even more grateful for what Fade has done for him, he could not thank him enough.


    "Can I go and see my daughter?"


    "... She''s still unconscious... I guess you could stay by her side."


    The doctor was going to tell John that he should let his daughter rest first before meeting her, but when he saw the look on John''s face as well as John''s missing arm, the doctor knew that this man has been through a lot. The doctor didn''t have the heart to deny him.


    John once again thanked the doctor before heading to his daughter''s room. John sprinted towards the room passing by the Detective and those soldiers of the Elite Dragon Brigade. He arrived at the door to his daughter''s room. He stood there for a couple of seconds now hesitating to go inside. He calmed his heart and finally opened the door.


    He saw that his daughter wasying on the bed breathing, still living. He went closer and as he saw her there asleep he felt a wave of relief. The tension in his body disappeared and he fell on the floor. He started sobbing but this time it was not out of despair but because of joy. As John was ovee by various emotions someone spoke from behind him.


    "I see that you were able to save your daughter."


    The person who spoke was none other than Fade. He was standing in a corner of the room. John wasn''t surprised by Fade''s sudden appearance as he stood up faced Fade, and bowed.


    "It''s all thanks to you."


    "Like I said before there is no need for thanks since this is just part of the job."


    "Even so, I must thank you, because of you my fate has changed."


    "Hmph, I did not change your fate, you did that yourself."


    John showed an awkward smile as he listened to Fade''s response.


    "So I guess since you''re here the job is over?"


    "Yes, I have eliminated all your pursuers. I even encountered your eldest brother-inw, that look at me like that I did not kill him, I simply rendered him unconscious. So now that I have finished the job, it is time for you to give me my pay."


    John was rather shocked to hear that Fade had encountered Minato and had bested him. Based on Fade''s unblemished trench coat it would seem that the assassin had won quite easily. This was truly surprising to John since he knew that Minato was a rank seven martial artist. He thought that Minato would at least put up a decent fight but it turns out that he could not even put a scratch on Fade. Does this mean Fade was at Grandmaster level? John shook his head as his mind started to wander.


    "So what is it you want as payment? Are you going to take my life?"


    "Yes, the payment I asked of you will be the life of John Yui the martial artist."

 Chapter 81 - Just This Once

    John stared at Fade''s mask as if he was trying to see through it. The two remained silent and simply stood there staring at each other. The only sound that could be heard was the sound of John and Milly''s breathing. Fade''s breathing was so silent that no matter how hard one tried to listen they would normally be unable to hear it.


    "... I see..."


    After that long silence, John finally spoke those two simple words. He then nodded his head and looked at his daughter for a bit, before continuing to speak. .


    "I promise I shall pay the price, but can you please wait a bit. I just need to guide my daughter until she grows up and can be independent. Please just give me a few years, I promise I won''t run nor hide."


    Once John was done speaking Fade lifted his hand, and approached John. When John saw Fade''s raised hand he knew what was toe. Time seemed to slow down as he watched Fade slowly approaching him.


    He looked at his little girl sleeping behind him and started thinking about all the things he would never get to do with her and the things he would no longer be able to do with her.


    He would no longer be there tofort her when she has a nightmare. He would no longer be there to y with when she''s lonely. He would no longer be there to protect her from the world around her.


    He wouldn''t be there when she graduates from school. He wouldn''t be there to see her first boyfriend and scare the soul out of the poor boy. He wouldn''t be able there when she finally marries and have children of her own.


    John was full of regrets, and he didn''t really want to die before being able to witness how his daughter''s life will turn out to be. Still, he knew that even he resisted at this point nothing woulde from it as he was no match for Fade, it would only be a useless struggle. Also, he wasn''t such a person that would go back on his word.


    He had already promised Fade that he would pay any price if hepleted the job. Fade had done the job perfectly, so John had no reason to object even if Fade wanted to take his life aspensation.


    John closed his eyes as he waited for his death toe, but then he felt someone touch his shoulder.


    "I think you''re misunderstanding something."


    John opened his eyes and looked at Fade who was patting his shoulder.


    "Huh?"


    "The one I want to kill is the martial artist called John Yui, not the father called John Dunphy."


    "... You want me to stop being a martial artist?"


    "Yeah, that''s basically it. Someone as naive and sentimental as yourself isn''t cut out for the world of martial artists. You better just be a father to your daughter than continue on the path of a martial artist. I''m sure you can do a lot of other things for your living expenses."


    John looked at the masked figure standing before him in a daze. It took him a couple of seconds before he was able to digest what was said. After fully understanding Fade''s meaning John started to tear up.


    "Thank you, thank you, thank you." John kept on repeating those words as he tried to wipe the tears away.


    "As I said many times before there is no need to thank me."


    John shook his head as he responded.


    "No, I really do need to thank you... I''m willing to give my payment now."


    John started circting his inner energy and then started burning his reserves. The inner energy within him was starting to be chaotic as he eventually destroyed the flow of his inner energy. The Dantian were the inner energy of a martial artist was produced was damaged. John''s strength had decreased from a rank five martial artist to a rank one martial artist.


    The damage that he inflicted on himself was irreversible and his Dantian will never be restored to what it once was. He would never be able to continue his path as a martial artist.


    Fade was rather surprised at how decisive John was. He was expecting more resistance since people who had a taste of power would find it difficult to let go. Fade respected John more than he did before. Fade then nodded his head in approval.


    "I have received your payment. I hope that you live a life that you won''t regret."


    John nodded his head as he caressed his daughter''s face.


    "I will do just that. Hey, Fade are you sure this is all you want?"


    John turned his head to look at Fade, but the assassin was no longer there. John then felt a cold wind enter the room, he saw that one of the windows was opened. Seeing that open window John smiled and before he closed it he bowed his head again.


    "Thank you."


    ...


    Fade was now on the hospital''s rooftop and was about to leave when he felt another person''s presence on the roof. It was a presence he knew very well, Fade sighed as he turned around.


    "It''s been a while, Detective." Matsuri was there by the door of the rooftop pointing her gun at Fade.


    "Yeah, it''s been a while Assassin."


    "So what do you want, Detective, are you going to try and capture me again?"


    Matsuri who was pointing her gun at Fade shook her head as she ced her gun back in her holster and shrugged her shoulders.


    "No, I won''t... Though I really do want to bring you in, but not today."


    "I see, well then Detective if there''s nothing else I will take my leave."


    "Why?"


    "Why would I leave?"


    "Why are you doing all of this? I know that you''re the one who rmended John to meet me. All of my investigations on you seem to point that not only are you killing people but you''re saving them as well. Now it seems I''m one of those that were saved."


    "DIdn''t I tell you already as long as the reason is just and the price is right I will kill anyone."


    "... The justice you represent is different from the justice I represent... A friend of mine said that you''re someone who deals with the people that my justice cannot touch, but I don''t believe that. Thew is there to protect all, there is no such thing as a person that my justice cannot touch."


    "Why are you telling me all of this Detective?"


    "I might not understand your justice, but I do understand that you wish to help others albeit in your own twisted way. I want you to give yourself up, and I promise that I will help you get a lighter sentence. Once you serve your time, you cane and join me in the force and I can show you how to do things the right way."


    Fade was momentarily stunned by the Detective''s invite but after a while, he chuckled.


    "You are a rather amusing individual Detective. Your offer is pretty enticing."


    "Then-"


    "Unfortunately, I cannot ept. I do not believe that there is such a thing as a wrong way to save a person. In my eyes everything is simple, for every debt, there is a debtor... I give strength to those people that don''t have the strength to get make their debtors pay. Well, Detective, it was nice talking to you, but I need to go. Of course, you can try to catch me now."


    Hearing Fade''s response Matsuri sighed.


    "I won''t do it now, since I owe you, but the nice time we meet I will make sure to bring you to justice... Also, just this once, I will say this to you, so you better listen."


    Fade stood there quietly waiting to hear what Matsuri had to say. The Detective looked at him clearly hesitating to say whatever it is that she wanted to say. After several seconds Matsuri lowered her head and finally spoke.


    "... Thank you..."


    Matsuri practically whispered the words, but Fade heard it and was really surprised at this point. If he wasn''t wearing a mask Matsuri would''ve seen the shocked expression on his face. Yet seeing the detective act this way, Fade had the urge to tease her.


    "What did you just say, I didn''t hear you."


    "I already told you, that I will only say it once!" Matsuri shouted as she lifted her head. To her surprise Fade was no longer there. She looked around the entire rooftop but saw no one. She checked and looked at the ground and found not even a shadow of Fade could be seen. As she was just about to give up looking, she heard Fade''s voice whisper in her ears.


    "You''re wee, Detective." Hearing that voice Matsuri instinctively looked behind her but Fade wasn''t there.

 Chapter 82 - The Call

    Minato woke up a few hours after he fainted. He was brought back to his room by the n members who found him unconscious. When he woke up he was confused as to what was happening but then he remembered how he was defeated by Fade.


    The moment he remembered Fade, Minato''s rage, filled his entire being. He was now the leader of the Yui n, what a humiliation it was to be defeated by some random assassin that came out of nowhere and had just rose to fame. Not to mention that the assassin actually spared him. As Minato''s rage was growing to an unprecedented height someone entered his room. Seeing the Head was finally awake the member of the n quickly knelt.


    "n head, I''m d that you have awoken."


    Minato noticed the panic in the n member''s eyes. Even though he had just woken up, Minato felt something was wrong so he tried to calm himself down before speaking. .


    "Tell me what happened."


    "n head, we found the dead bodies of Yui Ling and the others in the nearby forest."


    Minato already had a feeling that would be the case but hearing it being verified was a different matter altogether. He couldn''t help but gnashed his teeth after hearing the news. Those ten were the few remaining rank six martial artists their n had, not counting his siblings.


    ''Damn you Fade!''


    That was too big a loss for their n that was already on the decline. Now not only did they lose the majority of their strong fighters when the third elder left, but now they also lost most of their high-ranking martial artists. They were now left with martial artists that were mostly at rank three and four.


    As Minato was getting a tiny bit worried he suddenly got a call. He looked at his smartphone and it wasn''t the one ringing, that would mean that it was the other phone. Minato took the special phone given to him by that man and looked at it. Minato gulped as he nervously answered the call.


    "It''s been a while Minato."


    "Yes sir, it has been a while. I hope that you''re doing well."


    "Wellpared to you I guess I am doing very well."


    "Of course sir, how can a lowly ant like me bepared to you."


    "So how is it Minato, how is the feeling of bing the head of the n? Is it everything you imagine it to be?"


    Minato could practically hear the sarcasm from the man''s tone leaking out from the phone. He felt so much anger welling up inside him but he had no choice but to push it back down.


    "..."


    "Oh, what''s this is the head of the Yui n displeased? Even after I have helped you take over the Yui n you still aren''t satisfied?"


    "How can I be displeased? Sir has given me everything he promised so of course, I feel extremely grateful to you."


    "No need to lie, Minato, I know everything."


    Minato felt a chill run up his spine when he heard what the man said. He was about to respond but the man spoke first.


    "The third elder of yours has left your Yui n and he brought with him the most talented disciples of the n, making your n now barely middle-tier. When your father and sister were alive your n had a chance to be a top-tier n, in fact at that time your n was already at the top of all the middle-tier sized ns. Yet now that ten of you rank six martial artists are dead, making you and your worthless siblings are the only remaining high-rank martial artists in your n. That means the Yui n is done for, you can longer stay as a middle-tier n, and you''ll be lucky to even get to the lower tier without being annihted."


    Minato gulped as he started sweating a bit while his heart started beating faster. He knew that everything that man said was going to happen.


    "B-but with your protection sir my n can survive this ordeal. Surely as one of your subordinates, you wille and help us."


    "Oh, there seems to be a misunderstanding here. The Yui n was never my subordinate, at most you guys were just little helpers. I only helped you be the head of your n because it made my ns run a tiny bit smoother. Unfortunately, you performed badly and couldn''t evenst a few months as the head of the n. It was as I expected you were just mediocre. In short, losing your n doesn''t really affect me. Well, I guess that''s to be expected since you really aren''tparable to your sister. If she were alive, and it was you instead that died then this would never have happened."


    Minato listened to every word the man said, in the beginning, he felt despair, but when the manpared him to his sister he felt his anger once again welling up but this time he no longer held it in. Since he and the man no longer had hope of beingrades Minato shouted at him.


    "How dare youpare me to her! How is she better than me?! Even after her death, it''s still Sakura this, Sakura that, why aren''t you as good as Sakura?! Tell me how is she better than me, I''m the one who''s alive while she''s the one dead!"


    "Hoh, finally showing your true colors... If you need to ask why Yui Sakura was better than you, then you really are a worthless loser."


    "Damn you b*stard! I did everything you said and I the honorable head of the Yui n even bowed his head to you and this is how you treat me?!"


    "You better look up what honorable means in the dictionary. Well, in the end, you''re nothing more than a barking dog."


    "Don''t act sofortable! Even if we are destined to fall, I will make sure to at least bite back at you. I''ll make sure to bring you down with me."


    "HAHAHAHA! That''s the most hrious thing I heard today. You and your little Yui n think you have the capability to do that. Well, fine, let''s see if you aren''t aplete loser. Come then little doggy,e try and bite me."

 Chapter 83 - The Fall

    The day after Milly was rescued from the Yui n, the n was struck with different attacks from numerous ces. The Elite Dragon Brigade learned that the sect they were after had stopped assisting the Yui n. Upon learning of this several high-ranking officers of the Brigade were enraged. The bait they had set and waited for months now was unable to entice the prey, in fact, the prey did not even like the taste of the bait and quickly let it go. Now that elusive hidden sect was once again far from their grasp, they were furious.


    ...


    The Elite Dragon Brigade was one of the strongest forces within Zothril, and even they could not catch a glimpse of this sect. The goals of the sect, its members, and everything about it were shrouded in mystery.


    The government of Zothril has zero-tolerance for any sect or n that does not submit to theirws. Unfortunately, there were some sects and ns that could not let go of their glorious past as rulers, so the government had to deal with them.


    Some of the sects and ns that had rebelled against Zothril were now working for the government as soldiers with tight leashes, and those were the lucky ones. The unlucky ones, those who did not want to follow thew of Zothril were annihted, not a single sect or n member would survive, they would not even spare the children. The public doesn''t know about this mass execution and were blissfully unaware of the sacrifices, the hardships, and horrors the government had done for them to enjoy what they currently have.


    From the start until the present the only thing that the Zothril government could not control was this secret sect, that seemed to have existed since the beginning. There were many theories as to what this sect was. There was even an entire special department created just for the sake of learning more about this mysterious sect.


    The more they learned about the mysterious sect the more confused they became. It would seem that this sect was part of the initial allied sects and kingdoms that resisted the Empire in the early days. Yet all the documents regarding that era didn''t have any sect that match the description of the mysterious sect.


    It didn''t just end there, it seems this secret sect had a hand in every major event within Zothril since its infancy. There was also a theory that all of the government''s actions to catch this sect was an act and they didn''t really want to capture them. There were also some who theorized that the true ruler of Zothril was this sect. Others think that this sect was the necessary evil that the government allowed to control the underworld.


    Yet no matter the theory, the stance of the current leader of the Elite Dragon Brigade, the genius who is said to be the strongest Grandmaster rank martial artist in Zothril was that this sect was not wee in Zothril. So ever since the current leader assumed the role of General of the Elite Dragon Brigade his main mission was to annihte this mysterious sect.


    So he was the most enraged when he learned that the bait they patiently watched didn''t attract the prey they wanted to capture.


    Now that the Yui n was useless to Elite Dragon Brigade and they had lost the protection of the mysterious sect they were like little rabbits that hade out of the hole and were greeted by the hungry wolves.


    With the many crimes, the Yui n hadmitted over the few months Minato became the head they had gained a lot of enemies. They were fine at first since the mysterious sect protected them, but now that everyone knew that they were not protected all the hungry wolves circling them were going to strike.


    The first ones to strike were the enemies of the Yui n that had waited for this exact moment to happen. These ns and sects were low-tier ones and had been bullied by the Yui n for a long time, even before the time Minato started his reign. So now that they had the chance they started targeting thends and businesses the Yui n own.


    The next to strike were the former allies of the Yui n the allies they had since the older generations. These ns and sects took the stronger people of the Yui n as servants or concubines. They were not too bad as they had offered many benefits for defecting to their side.


    The final one to strike was the Elite Dragon Brigade, they had captured the remaining members of the Yui n who were mostly from the main family. Those that resisted were killed on the spot. Minato''s siblings tried their best to escape and survive, they tried hiding by finding their so called friends. Unfortunately for them, those friends of theirs weren''t true friends, and the moment they contacted them they were ratted out.


    The siblings who knew the taste of power didn''t want to be captured nor did they want to be servants of another sect or n. Many of their siblings had fought against the Elite Dragon Brigade to escape, unfortunately, they weren''t strong enough to resist and were killed. The entire country was now treating them as extremely dangerous terrorists.


    The remaining siblings were now gathered in their final secret base. There were only three siblings left including Minato.


    "This is all your fault Minato! I didn''t really want to kill big sis Sakura, but you blinded me with treasures, and poisoned my mind with your words! If big sis Sakura was still alive none of these things would''ve happened. Now the Yui n is only us, and there''s nothing left!"


    "Hiroto is right, you promised us you could deal with this and that we don''t have to worry. You said helping that sect would bring us endless benefits but instead they condemned us to this state."


    "Shut up, you f*cking brats! Don''t act all innocent, you two decided to join me under your own volition. It was not only my hands that took Sakura''s life the two of you were there as well!... Fine, if you guys think I''ve done so many wrongs you twoe up with a n to solve this problem! I''m leaving, and from here on out we are no longer siblings."


    Minato turned his back and was about to leave, but then he sensed something was wrong. He was going to dodge but he was toote as two swords had impaled him. He looked at his two brothers with a shocked expression on his face.


    "... You... Two..."


    "You''re right, big brother, we will solve this problem ourselves, but first we need to eliminate the main cause of the problem."


    "Hmph, it should''ve been you we''ve killed in the first ce, instead of big sis Sakura."


    As he was dying Minato was filled with resentment, unwillingness, and deep hatred. Even as he was dying thest thing he was hearing was how much better his little sister of his was than him.


    ''Even in the end, you haunt me..'' Those were Minato''sst thoughts as death took him.

 Chapter 84 - Conversation During Dinner

    Loki was eating dinner with his siblings while watching the news. The news was all about the rise and fall of the Yui n. When Loki saw that the only members left of the Yui n were two siblings from the main family, he unconsciously sighed. It would seem that even without him killing them they still had a tragic fate.


    ''I hope that John finds a bit offort in the knowledge that not all of his wife''s siblings had perished...''


    At the thought of the Yui n''s main family, Loki could not help but remember the head of the n that was now reported to be dead.


    ''That guy Minato was a rather surprising opponent. Even though he didn''t get a hit in, it''s obvious that Minato''s attack was something my current self cannot block. If he was a little bit faster and his state of mind was calmer he would''ve been a harder opponent to handle. Even now it''s hard to believe that guy was on the weaker side of the rank seven martial artists. It might''ve been difficult if he was one of those supposed geniuses that Harold told me about.''


    At the mention of geniuses, Loki remembered Shin and the woman called Le. If they were at the same level of strength as Minato then it was possible that he would''ve been severely injured.


    Loki who was in deep thought as he was watching the news finally noticed that Alisa was looking at him weirdly and so was Liam.


    "What are you two looking at, is there something on my face?" As he asked Loki made a gesture of wiping his face.


    "Big brother why didn''t you tell me that you''ve gained inner energy!" Alisa spoke while pouting.


    "Yeah, how could you keep such big news from us," Liam spoke looking a bit excited.


    "... Huh, how do you guys know about that?"


    "You''re not even going to deny it..."


    "Can you answer the question, first?"


    "... We heard from everyone in school. Some people from school were talking about it."


    When Loki heard this answer he was quite confused. He was sure that no one else was there when he was talking to the Captain and the Patriarch of the Mutou n. Then how did the news spread?


    "How did those students find out about it?"


    "I think they said that they heard it from the teachers who were talking to each other."


    The teachers? It was at that moment Loki figured out who was the culprit of spreading this information. The Principal was the only other person from the school that knew of the Captain and the Patriarch''s arrival. So either the Patriarch or the Captain told the Principal about his situation who in turn told some of the teachers.


    ''It''s already been a few days since then, so should I be happy that he was able to hold on for so long without telling anyone, or should I be angry that he told other people my personal information?'' Loki sighed.


    "Fine, since you guys already know it''s no use to hide it. Yeah, I did awaken my inner energy."


    "Damn bro, do you think that I could also awaken my inner energy?"


    Liam spoke excitedly. When Loki saw Liam''s expression he can''t believe that this little brother of his was so cold when he just transmigrated. Loki patted his little brother''s head and answered.


    "Yeah, since I could awaken it now it''s possible that your inner energy could awaken as well. We can go and check in the government''s martial arts department."


    "Seriously!" Liam grew even more excited as he heard Loki''s answer, in fact, he was so excited that he wasn''t bothered by Loki patting his head.


    "Big brother, what about you, are you going to take the Martial Arts Rank Assessment?"


    When Loki heard that new term, a flood of information came into Loki''s mind, this hasn''t happened in a while. He had recovered some memories of the Martial Arts Rank Assessment. As the name implied it was a test to see what your martial arts rank was. The test could be performed in any of the government''s Martial Arts Department Buildings. It was the same ce were one could check if an individual had any inner energy.


    Based on Loki''s memories the siblings only went there once when they were younger to test to see if they had inner energy. At that time they had tested negative, usually, there was no chance of gaining inner energyter on in life, but there were some very rare urrences were a select few gain inner energyter on in life. Seeing as Loki was like that maybe his siblings were as well.


    "I guess I could take the assessment at the same time you two retake that test to see if you have any inner energy."


    "Wait I''m doing that as well?"


    Alisa had a confused expression on her face. She knew that the chances of gaining any inner energyter on in life were even more minuscule than the chance to gain it when one was younger, not to mention the money needed to take the second reassessment.


    "Of course, you should, seeing as Liam and I are going you should also take the chance to see if there are any changes."


    "But-" Alisa was going to reason that they shouldn''t waste their money, but as if reading her mind Loki spoke first.


    "I know you''re thinking about the payment for the second reassessment, but you don''t have to worry about that. Let me worry about the money." Loki patted Alisa''s head as he spoke.


    "But-"


    "No buts, I already said we''re going so we''re going."


    Seeing that her big brother doesn''t seem like he would budge from his decision Alisa could only sigh as she nodded her head. They then started discussing when they would go to the Martial Arts Department. After a rather long discussion, they decided to go during thising weekend.


    Once they were done talking, Alisa went to clean the dishes, Liam started his homework and Loki headed back to his room. Once inside his room, Lokiy on his bed.


    ''As I expected those two also have inner energy but for some reason, it was also hidden and suppressed. This must mean someone deliberately suppressed our inner energy, but who could''ve done it? It should''ve been someone close to the family, but when did that person suppress our inner energy and why?... Tsk, if only I had the former Loki''s full memory then finding the culprit would''ve been easier.''


    Loki looked at his ceiling and sighed.. It would seem that the situation of the Matsuda family was moreplicated than he initially thought.

 Chapter 85 - Martial Arts Department

    When the weekend came the siblings headed to the Martial Arts Department Building of Leim City. The ce was bigger than the Sekiko Academy, and Loki could sense the presence of two powerful martial artists within the building. Without the help of the library''s concentrated mana, he could not urately gauge the two martial artists'' strength, but based on the feeling alone they should be near the same level as the Patriarch of the Mutou n.


    Loki could also vaguely smell the scent of blood in the air. This made Loki feel a bit nostalgic as this ce had a simr vibe to his old world''s adventurers guild.


    Upon entering the building, Loki could sense numerous people at the same level as the dead head of the Yui n, Minato.


    ''Hmm, does this mean the average level of most martial artists in this country is at rank seven?''


    ...


    After asking for directions and filling up a few forms, Loki decided to watch his siblings'' test first. The fee for the reassessment was five hundred Zori, which was quite expensive. Still, once his siblings get registered as martial artists they will be given an allowance by the government.


    The Zothril government gave allowances to young martial artists below the age of twenty. The higher their rank the more money they would receive. Even those young unranked martial artists like Michael are given some allowance to encourage them to do better and raise their rank quickly. Once they grow older than twenty the government stops giving them allowances.


    Aside from the young martial artists below the age of twenty those who have reached Grandmaster rank are also people the government gives some kind of allowance with matching benefits. The Grandmaster rank martial artists are given very special treatment by the government as they are the protectors of the country.


    ...


    Loki waited outside the room where Alisa and Liam''s reassessment test was to be taken. Loki was not worried that they would test negative, since he used his mana to aggravate the inner energy within the two to force their inner energy out. He did this a few times and now he was sure that their inner energy has burst out of the suppression ced on them.


    After waiting for a few minutes Alisa and Liam finally came out and alongside them was a rather surprised staff member of the Martial Arts Department. Loki could already guess what happened based on the expressions on the faces of the three.


    "We''ve passed! We''re going to be martial artists!" Liam excitedly announced.


    "Big brother, is this real, are we not dreaming?"


    Alisa spoke still in a daze. Seeing her like that Loki couldn''t help but smile a bit. This little sister of his usually has so much confidence, but at the same time, she seems to doubt herself quite a bit. She was a paradox, but Loki found that part of her charm.


    "Do you want me to pinch you or punch you, what do you want? Maybe I should tickle you so that you know that you''re awake?"


    Loki jested making Alisa wake up from her dazed state to look at Loki and pout. While the siblings were having their fun conversation the person who had tested Alisa and Liam approached Loki.


    "Are you Mr. Matsuda their guardian?"


    "I am, why, is there something wrong?"


    "Please follow me inside the room, there is something I wish to discuss with you in private." Seeing the serious expression on the staff member''s face, Loki nodded his head.


    "You two wait here."


    After saying that Loki went inside the room where Alisa and Liam were tested for inner energy. Inside the room, there was a crackedrge ball-like object in the middle of the room. Based on the previous Loki''s memories thatrge ball-like object was the device used to determine if one had inner energy or not.


    "What is it you want to talk about?"


    "Mr. Matsuda, as you know this energy detector that we use to determine if a person has inner energy or not."


    "Yes, and?"


    "Usually, those who recently gain inner energy would emit only a tiny bit of inner energy that won''t exceed a certain amount. Then that person like everyone else would need to cultivate their inner energy using the meditation techniques avable to them... Your siblings have broken the inner energy device."


    "So you want me to pay for it? It''s not like me or my siblings wanted to break that thing."


    "You''ve misunderstood Mr. Matsuda, I don''t want you to pay for the device. I want you to know that your siblings seem to be special. Based on your profiles none of you have awakened inner energy when you were young. You yourself have just recently awakened your inner energy as confirmed by the Grandmaster level Martial Artist, Mutou Ryuuji. As for your siblings they didn''t know they had inner energy before today. So is it safe for me to assume that the three of you have never cultivated your inner energy before, correct?"


    "I was given a basic fist technique by Captain Tang Ao of the Elite Dragon Brigade, but aside from that my siblings and I haven''t cultivated inner energy before."


    Loki answered with a half-truth, all of what he said was true except for the part that he hasn''t cultivated inner energy. The truth was he modified his mana meditation technique to suit his inner energy. It was alright to tell them about the fist technique that Tang Ao gave him, but as for his own meditation technique, he couldn''t tell them that. Well, even if he did tell them about his self-created meditation technique they wouldn''t believe him and it would be hard to exin how he created it withouting from a martial arts family.


    "As I thought, your siblings really are special. Their initial inner energy readings are as strong as a rank two martial artist. They might not have the skills yet to reach that level but with their inner energy being this strong it wouldn''t take too long for them to get to that level." The staff member mumbled to herself.


    "If it''s alright with you, can you and your siblings please wait here as I make a report to my superior?"


    "I still need to head to my own rank assessment."


    "I understand Mr. Matsuda, but this won''t take too long."


    "Fine, I''ll wait."

 Chapter 86 - Special Treatment

    The employee who assessed the Matsuda siblings rushed out of the room. She hurried towards where the Head of the Martial Arts Department of Leim City was resting. The head was a rank two Grandmaster martial artist who was currently having a drink of tea with apatriot of his.


    ...


    Two old men were sitting down drinking tea in the top room of the Martial Arts Department Building while staring at the clouds.


    "What do you think of the fall of the Yui n?" The Grandmaster of the Leim City Martial Arts Department, Bernard asked his fellow Grandmaster Niko. Hearing the question Niko took a sip of his tea and looked at Bernard.


    "There were too many forces involved in that incident toment on, but all in all I think that the Yui n was just unlucky."


    "Unlucky huh... Indeed they were pretty unlucky, the moment the former head of the n died and their genius was killed they already sealed their fate."


    "... The genius of the Yui n, Yui Sakura was it... She was indeed one of the best I''ve seen in her generation. She would''ve had the chance to be a Grandmaster before reaching thirty years old if she were alive."


    "Yes, it was a shame that her foolish siblings had killed their genius of a sister. I''m sure that if she didn''t die, the Elite Dragon Brigade wouldn''t have used the Yui n as bait. In fact, if she was still alive and had be the head of the n, I''m sure that they wouldn''t even have involved themselves with that fearful sect."


    "... Enough about that, what happened to the Yui n has already passed and there''s nothing we can do about it. What I want to talk about is that urban legend that was growing poprtely."


    "Urban legend, which one?"


    "The assassin called Fade."


    "That guy huh... The assassin that has never failed to kill his target, not to mention he never kills anyone else but his intended target, he pretty much has a hundred percent sess rate ever since he appeared. Then there''s that famous line that made many people secretly admire him... As long as the reason is just and the price is right I would bring death to any and all evil."


    "I won''tment too much about his moral principles, but the skill he disyed on that one video was quite something."


    "Indeed, I don''t really know how strong he truly is and what rank he''s at, but based on how he fought in that video I can tell his technique is first ss. The moves he did without using any kind of battle skill were truly precise. I dare say, that he could match up with the assassins in the top twenty of the dark rankings."


    "The top twenty... Hmm, I, on the other hand, think that if given enough time he has got the talent to be the best assassin there is."


    While the two of them were continuing their conversation on Fade, they sensed someoneing closer to the door.


    "Don''t bother knocking and juste in." Before the employee was able to do anything she heard Bernard speaking to her. She quickly stopped herself from knocking and entered the room.


    "What is it?" Bernard asked while taking another sip from his tea.


    "Sir, I have something to report." The employee then recounted what happened in the inner energy examination room. The two Grandmasters were rather surprised to hear the report.


    "Oh,te bloomers that directly gain inner energy at the level of a rank two martial artist. Hmm, that''s interesting." Niko spoke while touching his beard and rubbing it.


    "There''s also that big brother of theirs that hasn''t registered as a martial artist yet. We won''t know his exact inner energy level without testing him too. He''s here to take the rank assessment test right?" The employee nodded her head in response to Bernard''s question. "Alright then, guide me to them I want to see what that big brother has to offer. Do you want toe and watch as well Niko?"


    "Of course, this should be rather interesting to watch."


    "Very well,e on then lead the way." Bernard urged the employee to guide them to where Loki and his siblings were.


    ...


    "What do you think will happen to us?" Alisa spoke while looking worried.


    "Of course, they''re going to praise us as geniuses and we''ll both get better treatment than most. It''s like a fantasy story, we didn''t even have an inkling of inner energy, and the moment it awakens it''s at the level of a rank two martial artist." Unlike the worried Alisa, Liam was very excited.


    On the other hand, while his siblings were having their own conversation, Loki was deep in thought. Now that his siblings have shown such talents, he would stand out if he showed too little of his true skills. If he showed too much he would still stand out more than necessary.


    ''I wonder what level of strength I should show these people. If it''s only my inner energy I should be at the same level as a rank four martial artist. Still, it''s only been a few days since my inner energy awakened. If I show them my rank four level of inner energy, then it might be quite troublesome. On the other hand, simply showing the same level as Alisa and Liam will lower my standing as their reliable older brother. I guess showing a rank-three level of inner energy should suffice. Then there''s also the problem with my fighting technique. If a librarian like me shows refined techniques then it would raise suspicion as to how I learned those techniques. Hmm, I guess I can use the same shy moves that I''ve seen on T.V. If I show them that I can say that I just copied those moves because I don''t really know how to fight properly... This might actually be harder than I thought.''


    Loki sighed as he realized the problems he was going to face during and after this martial artist rank assessment. While he was deep in thought Loki realized that the two powerful presences he sensed before entering the building were heading towards them.


    ''Damn, this is just getting more troublesome by the minute.''

 Chapter 87 - [Bonus ]Special Halloween

    It was another day in this new world for Loki and today seems to be some sort of special day. He had noticed while walking that the neighboring houses were decorated with different kinds of spooky and creepy objects, from spider webs to fake skeletons. Based on the memories of the previous owner of his body, today was a day called Halloween.


    Even though many had forgotten the original purpose of the day and it had been reduced to a day for kids and adults to have fun, the previous Loki who was a bookworm knew the original intent of the day. Today was supposed to be a day when ghosts would roam the world, and the wearing of scary costumes was to ward them off.


    Even someone like Loki who came from a world that was considered to be a fantasy didn''t really believe in such things as ghosts.


    ''If ghosts were real then why hasn''t my sister haunted me... After failing her so much, I''m sure that she would''ve haunted me all the time...'' Loki shook his head as the thought passed by his mind.


    He returned to his house and when he opened the door he saw both Alisa and Liam were wearing costumes. Alisa was wearing a pirate costume while Liam was wearing a vampire costume.


    "Big brother, what are you doing, why haven''t you changed into your costume?"


    "Huh?"


    "I think this fool actually forgot that we''re supposed to go to the neighbor''s costume party."


    When Loki heard what Liam said he now vaguely remembered that Alisa did tell him about that party, he just couldn''t remember when. He was going to give some random reason like he needed to do some work and he couldn''t attend. As he was thinking about a way to avoid the party, Alisa looked at him with a little bit of disappointment on her face.


    "Big brother, did you really forget?" When Loki saw the expression on Alisa''s face he immediately erased any thoughts of evading this party.


    "Of course, I didn''t forget."


    "Oh really, then where is your costume?" Liam asked with a sneer.


    "It''s upstairs just give me a second to change into my outfit."


    ...


    After waiting for a few minutes Loki came down wearing what he usually wears as Fade. When the two saw him there was a look of surprise on their faces.


    "Oh man, that''s the best costume I have ever seen, you actually look like the real thing." Liam praised as he looked at Loki.


    "Where did you get this?"


    "I had it prepared a few weeks ago. See I told you I didn''t forget." Loki smiled underneath the white mask. It was a good thing he saw a few kids outside wearing the same thing, so he figured that he could just wear it today and no one would ever suspect him of being the real thing.


    ...


    The siblings headed to the party next door and as expected almost everyone had praised Loki''s look as it felt very authentic. If they didn''t know that it was Loki underneath the mask they might have truly believed that he was the assassin from the urban legend.


    After greeting the host of the party, Loki retreated to the second floor of the house wanting to separate himself from the crowd of people. He arrived at an empty hallway nning to escape, since he had alreadye to the party he had fulfilled his promise. As Loki was about to sneak away, he suddenly heard someone speak from behind him.


    "You''re the real Fade, right?"


    Loki turned around and was surprised to see a woman wearing a white dress standing there. He didn''t even notice hering close to him, which frightened Loki a little bit.


    "I don''t know why you think that, but this is just a costume."


    "I know that isn''t true. Please I won''t tell anyone, so please you''re my only hope, help me." The woman spoke with a desperate and pained expression on her face.


    "Okay, alright calm down, first thing who are you?"


    "I''m Natasha Rolin."


    "Alright, Natasha let''s just say that I''m really Fade, then what is it you want me to do?"


    "I want you to kill someone to save my friend."


    "... Alright, tell me your story first."


    Natasha then started to exin that her friend was with a dangerous person who was supposedly that friend''s boyfriend. Natasha exined that the boyfriend was a bad person who was rted to a recently disbanded gang. The boyfriend had supposedlymitted tons of crimes which were mostly r*pe and homicide. After listening to her story, Loki knew that if what she was saying was true then this person was indeed worthy to be his target.


    "Please you got to go quick, I''m afraid that he might do something terrible to my friend today."


    "Alright, first we need to leave." Loki tried to grab hold of the woman''s hand but she quickly backed away with a bit of fear on her face. Seeing her expression Loki sighed as he spoke to her.


    "Just follow behind me." She responded by nodding her head.


    Loki and Natasha went downstairs were they immediately bumped into Alisa.


    "Big brother where do you think you''re going?"


    "Sorry Alisa, I need to leave early I forgot that I needed to do something important today." Alisa looked at her brother and sighed before she responded.


    "Fine, I already know that you didn''t really want toe. It''s already a good thing that you tried for me. Liam and I will stay, so you can go."


    "Thanks," Loki quickly left the house. While walking outside Loki took out his phone and tried calling Harold. No one was answering the phone, it was then that Loki remembered that Harold messaged him that he and his family were going on a trip today and he would be unlivable for the next two days.


    ''Tsk, I wanted to confirm her story and background, but I guess I can ask Haroldter. I''ll check for myself what kind of b*stard this boyfriend is.''


    "Alright, so tell me where does this boyfriend live?"


    ...


    Loki and Natasha arrived in a rundown apartmentplex, and as they were going to knock on the door of Natasha''s friend''s apartment, Loki suddenly heard a gunshot.


    "Tsk, you stay here." Loki quickly kicked down the door, and he saw a woman on the floor crying and a man pointing a gun at her while beating her up. The man noticed Loki and so did the woman.


    "HELP!"


    The woman screamed and the man was going to point his gun at Loki, but before he could do so he felt something wrapped around his hands making him unable to move. The man then felt the same invisible thing that had wrapped around his hands now one his neck squeezing the life out of him. The woman unaware of what was happening saw that the man was no longer hitting her quickly ran towards Loki.


    "Please help me, he''s trying to kill me!"


    Loki nodded his head and came closer to the man and with one hit knocked him out. Loki was going to kill the manter when the woman wasn''t looking. Seeing that Loki knocked out the man with a punch the woman cautiously approached him.


    "Thank you for saving me."


    "Don''t thank me, it was your friend that called me here to help."


    "My friend?"


    "Yeah, your friend Natasha." The moment that name came out of Loki''s mouth the woman''s expression changed.


    "Wait, are you talking about Natasha Rolin?"


    "Yeah, why?"


    "Natasha has been dead for two years now. She was killed after being-" The woman couldn''t even her sentence before she started crying, on the other hand, Loki was stunned into silence. He looked outside the room and saw that Natasha was no longer there.


    Loki then remembered how he met Natasha, he couldn''t sense her approaching. She was quick to react and didn''t want Loki touching her. When they passed by his sister, Alisa didn''t even ask who thedy following him was. Then when Natasha heard the gunshot she wasn''t surprised nor did she show any fear.. There were so many signs and as the pieces of the puzzle were fitting in, Loki couldn''t believe that there was the possibility that he had met an actual ghost.

 Chapter 88 - Detector

    Bernard and Niko alongside the female employee entered the room where Loki and his siblings were waiting. The two Grandmasters stared at the three siblings assessing them. At first nce, there doesn''t seem to be anything special about them, but when the two looked at Loki they noticed something.


    Even though it wasn''t obvious at a nce, but Bernard and Niko could see that Loki has a body that looks to be forged for battle.


    ''Oh, this kid is pretty good, even though he didn''t have any inner energy before he still trained his body to this extent.''


    ''Even those non-martial artists that train their body have exaggerated muscle mass which would only hinder you in a real battle. On the other hand, this boy seems to have a body that''s nearly perfect for battle. He isn''t too muscr nor too skinny, the muscles he trained are all in the right areas. I wonder did he train his body like this on purpose, or was it just a coincidence?''


    "Mr. Matsuda these over here is the esteemed Grandmaster of the Leim City Martial Arts Department, Sir Bernard."


    "It''s nice to meet you, child." Bernard extended his hand for a handshake.


    "It''s nice to meet you as well, Sir Bernard." Loki took Bernard''s hand and shook it. The moment their hands touched Loki could already feel Bernard was probing him.


    "Oh right, over here is my good friend Niko, the Sect Master of the Raging Spear Sect."


    "Heyd, I see that you have worked hard."


    The two Grandmasters were also introduced to Liam and Alisa, and after a round of greetings, the people from the Martial Arts Department finally got to the main topic.


    "I heard that your two siblings over there have the inner energy of rank two martial artists. Even though they started verytepared to the others, but if they work hard enough they would be able to catch up rather quickly. So as a gift they can take any meditation technique they want from the second floor of the hall of skills. The lovelydy over here will guide them."


    Bernard gestured at the young female employee who was shocked to hear what was said. The first floor of the hall of skills could be essed by nearly every martial artist from rank one and above, the techniques there could be borrowed after trading with a certain amount of points handed out by the Martial Arts Department.


    The second floor that could only be essed by martial artists ranks seven and above. The third floor is for Grandmaster Martial Artists.


    Then there was the special skill hall located in the Capital City that ce could only be essed after all the Grandmasters of every branch of the Martial Arts Department agree to open it.


    Knowing that the Head of the Department had allowed two non-ranked martial artists to ess the second floor was a true shock. Not to mention it was given to them for free. Each skill had a certain price to them, the ones on the first floor were pretty affordable, but those from the second floor upwards would take arge sum to purchase.


    ''Was their potential that great?''


    "Ahem, miss please guide the children." The female employee finally realized what was happening and bowed her head.


    "I''m sorry, I will dly guide them. Come one please follow me."


    The female employee gestured to Liam and Alisa. Liam continued to be excited as things were unfolding the way he had dreamt it to be. It was like he had be the main character of a novel. On the other hand, Alisa was still hesitant as she looked at Loki. Seeing her expression Loki smiled at her and nodded his head. Alisa felt a little more assured after seeing her brother nodding his head. She and Liam then followed the female employee out.


    Now alone with the two Grandmasters made Loki feel a little bit of pressure. With his current strength and abilities, these two only needed to use one finger to finish him off. The difference of strength between them and the highest rank martial artist he has fought was like heaven and earth.


    "So child I wonder if you don''t mind that I will be your examiner for this Rank Assessment?"


    "Of course, I don''t mind. It is my honor that someone of your prestige will personally guide me through my Rank Assessment." Loki wanted to say the opposite of what he just said but of course, couldn''t. At this point, he could only sigh at his bad luck.


    "Alright then, I have read your file. It says here that the person who confirmed your inner energy was the Patriarch of the Mutou n, and a Captain of the Elite Dragon Brigade gave you a scroll for a fist technique. Still, before we can start the Rank Assessment we need a more urate gauge of your inner energy. Follow me we need to head to a different room."


    ...


    The room they arrived at was simr to thest one, the only difference was therge ball-like object in the middle. It wasrger than the one in the other room.


    "This is the detector we use for those that have inner energy above a rank two martial artist. Child, please touch it to start the assessment."


    Loki approached the ball-like object and unlike the broken one in the other room, this one had a weird glow to it. Seeing the curious look Loki had, Bernard chuckled before he spoke.


    "I can see that you''re curious about the detector."


    "... Yes, I''ve seen one before when I was a child, at the time I didn''t really think much about it, but now that I''m an adult I find it rather curious. What is this thing made of, and how can it gauge the inner energy of a martial artist?"


    "The outer shell of the detector isn''t anything special it''s just metal and ss. As for the inside, I can''t tell you much about it since even I''m not that good with machinery, but there is a particr item inside that is the core of the detector. It''s a mineral that is found near the forbiddennds, this mineral reacts to inner energy. It can detect the true inner energy of a person even if one tries to suppress it. Even Grandmasters like us cannot fool the device."


    Loki knew a little about the forbiddennds as it is mentioned in numerous books but never in detail. All he knew was it was one of the reasons as to why the Empire stopped their advance. Even though he was curious and wanted to know more, Loki couldn''t ask about it since he was feeling even more pressure now and was panicking on the inside.


    ''The device can measure the true strength of my inner energy?! Can this thing also detect my mana?''

 Chapter 89 - Start Of The Rank Assessment

    ''No this should be alright, Michael also had mana but that wasn''t detected... It could also be that his mana was too weak.''


    "Is everything alright? Just touch the detector so that we can head to the next test."


    "Sorry, I was just thinking about something."


    ''Tsk, I guess I should just do it and adapt to whatever happens next.'' Loki touched the orb and it started glowing. As he waited for the verdict Loki looked at the reaction of the two Grandmasters.


    On the outside, the two Grandmaster martial artists didn''t have any kind of reaction but it was different on the inside.


    On the inside, They were both shocked as the color of the light indicated the level of one''s inner energy and the intensity of the light was the strength and stability of the inner energy.


    They had expected Loki to have a rank two or at most a rank three level of inner energy. Yet Loki''s inner energy level was that of a rank four. He had just awakened his inner energy a few weeks ago and was only given one fist technique it wasn''t even a meditation technique or a breathing technique that helps increase inner energy.


    The only possible way that the Grandmasters could think of for Loki to have such powerful inner energy so quickly is if that was at that level since the beginning.


    ''It was said that in the ancient times, that the children of martial artists beyond the Grandmaster rank would be born with inner energy as dense and powerful as a modern Grandmaster level martial artist. Were Loki and his siblings'' descendants of some powerful martial artists? I better check on thatter.'' Bernard started to make ns to better understand why Loki and his siblings were so peculiar.


    "Sir, Bernard is the test over?"


    "Oh... Yes, the test is over you can let go now."


    "So how was it?"


    "You did very well, based on the color and density of the light, you should have the inner energy necessary for a rank four martial artist."


    "... Is that good or is that bad?... Sorry, I''m not really sure about this martial arts thing. I do know some basic knowledge but since I was tested before as someone without inner energy, I have no clue about the ranks and such."


    Loki looked genuinely confused and worried, and that''s what the Grandmasters thought as well before they answered his question with a smile on their faces.


    "Having a rank-four level inner energy before reaching the age of twenty-five is already above average, but you just awakened your inner energy a few weeks ago and already had that as the starting phase. Well, that is something only a select few had in this generation. It''s rare, but not entirely impossible."


    ...


    When Loki heard Bernard''s reply he felt relieved. It would''ve been very bad if he was the only one, he was d that there were other people that had a simr experience as him. Well, it could''ve been worse if they found out the truth that he did awaken his inner energy at the same level as a rank two martial artist. He only improved fast because of thebination of his meditation technique as well as his mana trying to merge with his inner energy. If they learned of that particr truth then who knows what would happen to him.


    "So what should I do next?"


    "The next part of the assessment is to test one''s physical strength. As you know martial artists are different from normal people because of their inner energy. That same inner energy isn''t just used to make those fancy techniques you have seen on Television. That inner energy is also what makes a martial artist have a stronger body than any normal human. Even without training a seven-year-old young martial artist''s body that has inner energy will grow stronger than even that of a fully trained adult male without inner energy. So the next test will be a test on how much your body has improved from what it was when you were still a non martial artist."


    ...


    The three of them then headed towards another room. This time it was a room with arge machine that almost filled the entire room and two other smaller machines. Loki could only recognize the treadmill at the side but the other two machines were something he saw for the first time.


    "First thing you need to do is punch this punching machine. Oh right, since you learned a fist technique I should tell you that you''re not allowed to use it when you punch. This is to measure your pure physical strength, so you can''t use any technique and just punch it normally."


    Loki nodded his head as he approached the punching machine. He touched the machine for a second. ''I guess after that thing with my inner energy, them learning how strong my physical body is, isn''t really that bad. Well, I am also rather curious as to how strong my current strength is without the use of ''Enhancement'', I guess I can really try my best for this test.''


    Loki without getting to any kind of stance simply punched the machine with all his might. The score of his punch appeared on the machine''s screen that was located on top. It said that his punching power was 1500 pounds.


    Even though he tried his best to make it look like he didn''t know anything about fighting, the Grandmasters noticed something with that single punch of his.


    ''Though it was crude and the strength of the punch itself isn''t that impressive for a martial artist with rank-four level inner energy, the way he threw it while unconsciously bncing his body to amodate the increase of his strength was pretty good. It''s also worth noting that it has only been a few weeks since he awakened his inner energy, meaning that his body is still in a state of improvement. It would take a few months for his body to fully amodate the entirety of his inner energy.'' Bernard made a mental note to himself as he nodded his head in satisfaction.


    ''Thisd has potential, even though he''s a bit old and he''ste in starting his journey as a martial artist, I''m sure if he works hard enough he would be able to catch up with the others. I wonder should I invite him to my sect....'' Niko seriously thought as he looked at Loki in appreciation.

 Chapter 90 - Rank Assessment Tests

    After recording the power of Loki''s punch, they continued on with his other tests. Next was the endurance test, in this test Loki''s body excluding his head was being put inside a weird-looking machine. The machine would put pressure onto his entire body, making a sensation as if something was squeezing him.


    The pressure was getting harder and harder, Loki was told that if he felt that he could no longer endure the pain he should tell Bernard to stop the test, it would also be stopped if he were to faint. The same as the other machine this too had a monitor that told him how heavy the pressure was being pressed on him.


    At the moment Loki was being pressured by two hundred pounds of weight, and from there on it gradually increased. As time went by the pressure grew and was now at eight hundred pounds. This was the normal endurance level that a rank-one martial artist could withstand.


    When it got to one thousand six hundred pounds, the Grandmasters were surprised. This pressure was something at minimum an above-average rank three martial artists could endure. Even though Loki had an inner energy level that could bepared to a rank four martial artist, it takes time for it to fully stabilize into one''s body after awakening. So at most the Grandmasters thought that the maximum pressure Loki could handle would be around one thousand four hundred pounds.


    Loki could already feel the pressure around the time it was at one thousand five hundred, and now it was at one thousand eight hundred pounds. Loki was already nearing his limit but he continued onward. The pain he felt was immense and if it was any other person they would''ve already fainted from the pain or at least screamed. Yet Loki''s mental strength was anything but normal as he has been trained to not speak even in face of the cruelest of tortures.


    Once the machine reached two thousand pounds of pressure, the Grandmasters finally showed worried faces.


    "Child, are you alright?"


    Loki who was focusing heard Bernard''s voice and looked at the old man with an almost indifferent expression. That was when he remembered that he wasn''t being tortured and this was just a test, he almost forgot that he was not in his old world. Loki''s facial expression changed and he smiled as he answered.


    "I can still keep going."


    "Are you sure, child?" Bernard was reluctant to have Loki continue. This boy has a lot of potential and he didn''t want to lose such an outstanding seedling before he could fully bloom.


    "I''m sure, do not worry I know my own limitations."


    Bernard really wanted to stop the test but he saw the determination in Loki''s eyes. Seeing those determined eyes Bernard knew nothing he said would dissuade Loki. He himself didn''t want to dissuade such youthful passion.


    After a thought, Bernard sighed and allowed Loki to continue the test. When Loki reached the pressure of two thousand four hundred pounds he finally spoke and said he could no longer take it, the moment he said that Bernard quickly stopped the machine.


    He took Loki out of the machine and ced him on the nearby chair. As this was just a test and the machine in question couldn''t really kill Loki or even injure him, usually they would continue to the next test without rest but for this instance, they gave Loki a little bit of special treatment.


    They were really shocked at Loki''s mental fortitude in the face of such pain. The level of pressure he endured was not something even rank four martial artists could withstand. In fact, that level of endurance was something that not even normal rank five martial artists could handle. Loki who only has the inner energy of a rank four should at most have the physique of that rank. Even if he could somehow endure the pain there was also a limit to that.


    "Do you wish to continue to the next test?"


    "Of course, what should I do next?"


    "... The next test is a test of speed and stamina. That over there isn''t a normal treadmill, the more you run on that the faster it would go it would only stop if you stop. The moment you stop running would be the end of the test. So all you need to do is run and continue running until you can run no more."


    Loki simply nodded his head as he headed to the treadmill, he did not say anything more as he started running. The test ended quite fastpared to thest one and Loki''s top speed was recorded at forty miles per hour. It would seem that Loki''s speed and stamina were normalpared to his other scores.


    "Child the final test will be held tomorrow, so you can rest for now."


    "Is that so, well thank you for your assistance today Grandmaster Bernard. Thank you as well, Grandmaster Niko for your presence today."


    After bowing his head Loki was about to leave the room when Niko suddenly stopped him.


    "Wait." Loki turned around and looked at Niko.


    "Before you go I have something to gift you."Niko rummaged through his suit looking for something. He then pulled out a scroll with a smile on his face.


    "It''s a good thing I always bring this with me, in case I find someone I like. Here kid you can have this." Niko tossed the scroll at Loki. When Loki caught the scroll he looked at it a little bit confused.


    "That''s a gift, it''s a movement technique of my sect called phoenix''s charge. If you''re able to master that movement technique then you should be able to surprise anyone at the same level as you."


    "I cannot ept something like this, it''s too much." Loki tried to give the scroll back even though he really wanted it. Niko shook his head and responded.


    "Nah, that''s nothing special, I give that to any of the kids I find interesting. You should take it since I won''t take it back."


    "... Alright, thank you for the gift then."


    "Since Niko is giving you such a gift, I guess I can give you one as well. You can pick any one book for free from the second floor of the hall of skills. Here, you just need to show this to the person in charge over there. Just return the emblem to me tomorrow when youe back for the continuation of the test."


    Loki got a badge from Bernard and thanked him as well. Once he left the room, the two Grandmasters looked at each other.


    "Are you sure it''s alright giving one of your sects secret techniques?"


    "The raging spear sect isn''t just some random sect that giving away one secret technique will affect our foundation."


    "You know that''s not what I meant."


    "I know... Truth is, I just felt like giving him that technique. Even I haven''t been able to master that technique nor have any of my own disciples. If he''s able to do something with it, then at least that technique won''t just gather dust in our archives.." Niko shrugged his shoulders as he answered Bernard.

 Chapter 91 - The Second Floor

    After Loki left the room, he spotted his siblingsing towards him. They had a look of satisfaction and excitement on their faces. Even Alisa who has been reluctant since the start was showing such excitement which made Loki smile as well.


    "Hey, look at what they gave us. I''m going to use this meditation technique to improve quickly." Liam excitedly showed him a thin book.


    "That''s cool, so how about you Alisa, did you pick something nice as well?"


    "Yes," Alisa nodded her head as she hugged the book she was holding. Loki found that so adorable so he patted her head. The two then excitedly exined what they saw within the hall of skills. Loki listened to the two of them while nodding his head.


    "Alright then, I guess now that you two are done you can go back home."


    "How about you big bro?"


    "Oh right, I was so excited I nearly forgot. How was the test, what rank did you get?"


    Loki started to tell about what he experienced during the test he went through and the gifts he received.


    "Damn, I wonder if I get to have something like that if I do better in the ranking assessment test."


    "Congttions big bro."


    "Thank you, oh right, we better talk about what to do with your school when we get home."


    "... Wait does this mean we need to change schools?" Liam asked looking a bit worried.


    "No, don''t you remember that our school is the best one with a martial arts course," Alisa answered.


    "Oh right... Wait do we need to take the exams for transferees?"


    "If I remember correctly changing courses from the normal course to the martial course or vice versa does indeed require you to take the exam for transferees."


    "Damn, I thought it would just be a simple transfer and that''s it. Can I just stay in the normal course and practice martial arts on the side?"


    "I thought you wanted to be some famous martial artist?" Alisa smiled as she teased her brother. As Liam was about to respond Loki cut him off.


    "Alright, alright, both of you stop talking, we can discuss this back home. So you two go first, and I''ll be staying here for now. I still got some things to do."


    "Huh, why don''t we wait for you here?"


    "I have other things to do after this."


    "Like what?"


    "Grown-up stuff, so the two of you better head back now." Loki''s two siblings look at him weirdly as Alisa suddenly asked.


    "Big bro, are you going to meet Ms. Matsuri? If you are, you shouldn''t go meet her looking like that." Alisa pointed at Loki''s sweatshirt and sweatpants.


    "What''s wrong with..." Loki stopped himself from finishing his sentence and he shook his head. "It doesn''t matter what I''m going to do next, you two just need to go."


    Loki then pushed his siblings away after which he asked thedy employee how to get to the hall of skills.


    ...


    Loki was surprised at the sight of the hall of skills, he was expecting it to look simr to the library where he worked, but it was very different. It was simr to a mages tower he infiltrated in his old world. Towering bookshelves being lit by candlelight and a few lightbulbs, he could even sense more mana here than in other ces. It wasn''t at the same level as the concentration of mana in the library at school, but it was still a higher level than any other ce he has been in this world.


    Loki unconsciously did a quick scan of the first floor looking for any escape points. He could not find any, the venttion shafts were too small for a human to fit into, and there were no windows, the only way in and out was the door he came in.


    ...


    There were several people present looking at the books and scrolls. Loki didn''t stay too long on the first floor and headed to the stairs. There was someone standing guard at the stairs holding a digital tablet. Loki could sense a powerful aura being emitted by him. The person guarding the stairs wasn''t as powerful as the two Grandmasters but he was near that level. When Loki approached, the guard looked at him with an indifferent expression.


    "Where are you headed?"


    "To the second floor."


    "State your name."


    "Loki Matsuda."


    The guard tapped on his tablet and after a short pause looked at Loki. The expression on the guard''s face didn''t change much but Loki noticed that his eyebrows twitched a bit.


    "Please show me your badge." Loki handed the badge Bernard gave him. The guard pressed the badge onto his tablet and after several secondster he gave it back to Loki. "Now hand over all electronic devices on you." Loki handed his phone to the guard.


    "You may head to the second floor now. The director already told me that you are allowed to take one book for free. Once you have chosen your book do not take it and juste back to me, and I will give you a copy of that book. Also, I should inform you that the hall of skills will close at exactly five p.m. So you better be finished before then, I will call out three times when the time is near. Those who are in the hall of skills after the allotted time will be considered trespassers."


    "I will remember that." Loki then headed to the second floor. Once he reached the second floor he noticed that there was no stairway to the supposed third floor.


    ''Is it hidden?'' The thought briefly shed through Loki''s mind when he looked at the second floor. Unlike the first floor, the second floor was nearly empty, with only two other people present. Also unlike the first floor, there seem to be several people watching from the darkness most likely the guards of the second floor.


    Loki looked at the huge clock hanging on the wall, it was already three o''clock he only had two hours to check the books on the second floor.


    ''It''s been some time since Ist needed to do quick scans of important documents. I wonder how much I can learn within the two hours..'' Loki smiled as he approached the nearby bookshelf.

 Chapter 92 - Twin Stars

    The two who were looking around the second floor of the hall of skills were rather famous individuals of the current martial arts world and were called the twin stars of Zothril. These two were geniuses of two different sects. The two of them were in theirte twenties and were rank-seven martial artists.


    One of these geniuses was the master of the heavy sword, Ye Rong of the Heavenly Dragon Sect. He was a sturdy and rigid young man who seem fit to be part of the military. He was part of the Twin Stars of Zothril that had previously joined that tournament. During that tournament when Zothril was losing he and the other Twin Star joined forces to fight off the Empire''s geniuses. Even though at the end of the tournament Zothril lost, he and the other Twin Star were able to take down several dozen geniuses of the Empire showing their ferocious might. Even the arrogant geniuses of the Empire acknowledge their strength.


    At the moment Ye Rong was at the Martial Arts Department of Leim City because he recently heard a rumor that there was a secret skill hidden on the second floor of the hall of skills, in this certain Martial Arts Department. The rumor started shortly after the introduction of the assassin Fade. Many have theorized that Fade was a rank nine martial artist nearing the level of a Grandmaster, some even said that he was already a Grandmaster ranked martial artist. It was rumored that the assassin has a skill recorded in the Martial Arts Department of Leim City, the city where he was first spotted.


    Usually, Ye Rong wouldn''t believe such rumors, but after reading a bit online, and hearing the various theories of theizens, he was a little bit convinced that it was possible. Even though most of the skills in the Martial Arts Department were rather normal skills that couldn''t bepared to the skills of top-grade sects, there were still some hidden gems in it.


    So thinking that it wouldn''t hurt to look around, Ye Rong headed to Leim City. Who knew that his rival and the most irritating enemy would have the same idea as him.


    The second genius of Zothril''s Twin Stars, the master of the heavy fist, Liu Yue of the Dazzling Phoenix Sect. She was a cute, petite woman, most people who see her for the first time would want to hug her or pat her head, but those tricked by her cute demeanor would regret it. She might look cute on the outside but on the inside, she was zing and passionate a person who uses her fist more than her words.


    She too came to Leim City to look for that rumored technique that Fade uses. When she saw that Ye Rong was at the same ce, it made her feel extremely upset.


    ...


    To the general popce, the Twin Stars were the perfect duo that got along very well. In fact, there were many that had the idea that the two of them were lovers. Of course, the truth was entirely different from what everyone expected.


    "Heh, to think that someone as stubborn as you will be willing to believe in some random ass rumor." Liu Yue snickered.


    "Hmph, I''m more surprised that a muscle-brained person like you actually knew how to use the inte. I was convinced that you would''ve punched any electronic device to make them work." Ye Rong spoke with a look of indifference.


    "Huh?! Who the f*ck are you calling a muscle-brain, you f*cking sh*thead." Liu Yue responded with thick killing intent.


    "See what I mean, the moment you can''t win an argument you get violent, you little barbarian."


    Even though Ye Rong responded rather calmly he too was oozing with killing intent. As the two were teetering towards battle and were just about to attack each other, several guards of the second floor had suddenly surrounded them. These guards were mostly rank seven martial artists like the two of them. Even the head guard who was stationed to the guard the stairs to the second floor appeared.


    "What are you two doing?"


    The head guard spoke while unleashing a powerful aura that weighed down on the two geniuses. Even though they could take the weight of the aura their legs started shaking. They might be geniuses and could defeat people of a higher level, but the head guard was a rank ten martial artist. A martial artist that was at the peak just a step before the Grandmaster rank. Not to mention this guard was also once a famous genius of the younger generation and was considered as one of the most powerful martial artists below the Grandmaster rank.


    "I''m sorry Sir Mark, it''s because this barbarian wanted to attack me." Ye Rong pointed at Liu Yue who was ring at him.


    "I''m the barbarian!? You''re the f*cking barbarian here, calling a cute girl like me a muscle-brain!" Liu Yue responded with a fury. She really wanted to attack Ye Rong at this moment, but she knew that she couldn''t do that. Even if she did manage to bypass the several guards that had a simr rank to her, she would never be able to get past the head guard, Sir Mark. In fact, she was sure that the moment she made a move she would be struck down.


    "Enough! The two of you better behave, or I''ll throw you both out!"


    Mark shouted at the two of them and he did so while using inner energy making it feel like the very ground trembled at his voice.


    "Yes, Sir!"


    The two responded in sync. Hearing their acknowledgment Mark nodded his head and told the several guards to go back to their positions. He then red at the two before leaving. Once Mark was gone the pressure that weighed down on the Twin Stars disappeared. The two then looked at each other and as if they had read each other''s thoughts, they headed to one side of the room and started looking for the hidden skill.


    The two continued searching for a couple of hours, but couldn''t find any hint of the supposed hidden skill. Still, they knew that the second floor of the hall of skills was toorge, and they understood that they wouldn''t be able tob the entirety in just one day. As the two continued their search someone else entered the room.


    When Loki entered the second floor the Twin Stars who were focused on searching for the hidden skill stopped and looked at him.. They were rather surprised to see another young martial artist on the second floor, yet what surprised them, even more, was that they had no idea who the person was.

 Chapter 93 - Attack

    Loki obviously noticed that the two people were staring at him, but he wasn''t bothered. If he were in the same position as them he would also doubt the unknown neer.


    ''Well they can specte whatever they want, I''ll just start scanning these books get a little bit of info then pick the best one.''


    Loki went to one of the bookshelves and started to scan the first book he saw. He did a quick scan of the book and flipped through the pages what he saw made him frown.


    ''The contents of this book are iplete, it''s only an introduction to what the skill was about. Are all the books like this?''


    Loki started flipping through the other books one by one and all of them were the same only the introduction of the skill was there.


    ''These aren''t the original books... I should''ve guessed that it would be like this, how could they openly disy the books and not fear people with an eidetic memory. Tsk, I was excited for nothing. Never mind, I better stop thinking about else I feel worse about it.''


    Loki continued his search as he wanted to find a suitable offensive skill. At the moment his strongest attack was using the ''Enhancement'' spell on his weapons. Currently, that was enough to kill rank seven martial artists and at most he could probably kill a rank eight martial artist, but beyond that, he wasn''t sure. Loki didn''t like the feeling that there were things out there that he couldn''t kill.


    Even though his sister really didn''t like the job of an assassin, and Loki himself wasn''t that fond of it as well, but he was also a little prideful of being the best at it. Back in his old world, many had imed that he as the legendary assassin Fade could kill anything and anyone. Even Loki believed that for as long as something was alive that would mean he could kill it.


    ...


    While Loki was concentrating on quickly scanning through the skill books, the Twin Stars were still staring at him. The two of them were trying their best to figure out who this person was. Since he was here on the second floor that would mean that this person was at least a rank seven martial artist like them. So someone who was so young and powerful shouldn''t be an unknown person.


    As the two of them were the most famous geniuses of Zothril they had met most of the other geniuses during the tournament, and even those geniuses that didn''t join the tournament. Yet they couldn''t recall who Loki was.


    ''Is it possible that he''s a new rising genius of some sect?... Hmm, still to be able to get this stage he should have some kind of achievements but I really can''t remember there being such a genius.''


    While Ye Rong was deep in thought he saw that Liu Yue had already approached Loki. Unlike, Ye Rong who liked toplicate things, Liu Yue had a simple thought process, since the young man was not only handsome but strong it shouldn''t be wrong to be friends with him.


    "Hey junior brother, you seem pretty strong. I''m sure that you already know me, I''m Liu Yue of the Dazzling Phoenix Sect. I''m rather interested in you so how about we be friends."


    Liu Yue was always a straightforward person so she mostly said what''s on her mind without caring what other people think.


    Loki who was scanning through the books stopped and looked at Liu Yue. Now that he got a closer look at the woman, she was two heads shorter than him and looked incredibly cute. He could also sense a strong auraing from her.


    ''Seeing how young she is and how boastful she was of announcing her name, she must be some kind of martial genius.'' Loki then showed a bright smile, that even made Liu Yue blush a little.


    "Nice to meet youdy Liu Yue, I''m Loki Matsuda."


    "Loki Matsuda? What sect are you from, howe I never heard of you?" Before Loki could answer the question, Ye Rong suddenly appeared between the two.


    "Hello junior brother, I''m sorry that I wasn''t able to greet you earlier, I''m Ye Rong of the Heavenly Dragon Sect. It''s a pleasure to meet another young genius." Ye Rong extended his hand for a handshake.


    "It''s nice to meet you as well, I''m Matsuda Loki." As the two were shaking hands Liu Yue was pouting.


    "What''s the meaning of this Ye Rong, I was the one who was talking to Junior Brother Loki first."


    "Oh sorry you were too small I didn''t notice you."


    "Huh?" When the two were getting heated up again, a sudden explosion was heard from the distance and the ground shook.


    "What the f*ck is happening?!" Liu Yue shouted as the light on the second floor suddenly disappeared. Still, as they were all rather high-level martial artists the darkness didn''t bother them much. After that, another round of explosions sounded and even the sound of gunfire could be heard from a distance.


    As the three of them were confused, the head guard came to the second floor with a grim look on his face. He snapped his fingers and all of the shadow guards on the second floor appeared before him. Mark gave some orders and the shadow guards dispersed. He then shifted his attention to the three geniuses present on the second floor.


    "Sir Mark, what happened?" Ye Rong was the first to speak.


    "We''re currently under attack," Mark responded with a solemn tone.


    "Under attack?! Who would dare attack one of the Martial Arts Department branches?" Liu Yue had a look of surprise on her face as the floor once again trembled from the aftershock of the battle happening.


    "It''s the Star of Dawn."


    When the Twin Stars heard Mark''s reply they felt a little bit of fear. Even though they weren''t scared of fighting nor were they really that scared of death, but facing the crazies from the Star of Dawn was another matter altogether.


    While the three of them had an awful look on their faces, Loki was standing there with no clue as to what they were talking about.

 Chapter 94 - The Star Of Dawn

    "You three better get out of here, before things get even more out of hand."


    "Sir Mark, why don''t we help? Allow me to crush all those Star of Dawn scum."


    Liu Yue spoke with her pride and resolve at full disy. The aura she emitted made her look like a valiant warrior from the distant past. Ye Rong was a little irritated since Liu Yue had spoken before him, but he agreed with her statement as he nodded his head in approval.


    On the other hand, Loki wanted to blend into the shadows and leave so that he can do some recon. He didn''t want to join in the conflict since he had no idea what kind of organization the Star of Dawn was. Yet as he was surrounded by three rather powerful martial artists, he wouldn''t be able to disappear without arousing their suspicion. Heck if he disappeared now he might be considered to be part of the terrorist group Star of Dawn. So Loki had no choice but to stick close to the two for now.


    "We can''t allow any of you three to join this battle. The two of you might have great strength and have gone through that tournament but this is something else entirely. If anything were to happen to you two your ns, and your sects would go crazy and fight the Star of Dawn to the death. If that were to happen many more would die, and your two ns and sects would be annihted. It''s entirely possible the reason they attacked today is because of you two..."


    Hearing Mark''s exnation the famed Twin Stars frowned as they clenched their fists.


    "You might not understand it now, but there is a reason that the Star of Dawn still persists to exist until now, even though it''s the most wanted terrorist group in the world. Their strength runs deeper than you can imagine."


    While Mark was talking another explosion shook the building.


    "Tsk, those b*stards are really going at it today. The three of you follow me." Mark walked towards one side of the hallway and pulled on three books in a sequence. After he did that the bookshelf disappeared and a hidden passageway was seen.


    "You guys go through here, at the end of the hallway you''ll arrive at the garrison of the Elite Dragon Brigade."


    The three of them nodded their heads, but the Twin Stars were still reluctant to leave the fight. Seeing the expression on the faces of the Twin Stars Mark who always had an indifferent look smiled a tiny bit.


    "There''s no need to worry, even though the Star of Dawn is strong, we''re no pushovers either," Mark spoke with confidence as he closed the door to the hidden passageway.


    ...


    The trio had now been walking for a few minutes now, and seeing that no one was following them Loki asked a question.


    "So what is the Star of Dawn?"


    Even though Loki had read almost all the books in his room, and many memories of the original Loki had returned, Loki had little to no knowledge regarding the Star of Dawn. All he knew was that the Star of Dawn was the most dangerous terrorist group in the world.


    "Huh, you don''t know the Star of Dawn? Have you''ve been cultivating in some kind of cave?" Of course, it was once again Lie Yue that responded first.


    "Of course, I know what the Star of Dawn is, but at most all I know is that they''re a terrorist group, but based on the conversation a while ago it would seem that they are more than that."


    "Didn''t your sect tell you anything?"


    "... I don''t have a sect." The moment he said those words even the silent Ye Rong reacted.


    "What?! Are you really a sectless martial artist, if you don''t have a sect are you from some huge martial arts n?"


    Loki shook his head making the two look at him with even more shocked faces. How could some random person be a rank seven martial artist at such a young age? As if able to read their minds Loki then started to exin that he hasn''t even been ranked yet and had just taken the assessment test today.


    ''Ate bloomer with the inner energy of a rank four martial artist. I see, this person isn''t strong yet but has great potential.'' Ye Rong had now reassessed his thoughts on Loki.


    "I understand now Junior brother, after your rank assessment, if you want to join a sect why not think about joining the Heavenly Dragon Sect."


    "Don''t get ahead of yourself Ye Rong, if junior brother wants to join a sect he should join the Dazzling Phoenix Sect."


    The two then red at each other and once again started arguing. After a while, Ye Rong made a rough cough before shifting his attention back to Loki.


    "Sorry about that, so regarding the Star of Dawn, this is all I know about them."


    ...


    As they were walking Loki listened to Ye Rong''s exnation regarding the Star of Dawn and Lui Yue chimed in whenever she can.


    Basically, the Star of Dawn was a terrorist group that was made entirely by non martial artists. Their goal so to speak was the destruction of all Martial Artists. They believe that the Martial Artists are alien to this world and do not belong to it. They hate Martial Artists for all they had done in the past. Even now in an era where everyone believes in fake equality the Martial Artists were still part of the upper ss and were treated differently.


    This was of course, false, as not all Martial Artists were some rich a**hole that was part of the upper ss. There were many that could be dirt poor as well. In fact, a lot of the one percentile were made out of the Non Martial Artists.


    It was also basic knowledge that the only people that could hold any political position from bing Senators to being the President were the Non Martial Artists. On the other hand, in the Military only Martial Artists could get higher military ranks.


    "Those sickos think that all Martial Artists are monsters that aren''t human. They believe that now that science has risen there is no need for false gods like Martial Artists, and it is now the time for the so called mortals to kill the false gods. Basically, they''re just a bunch of crazy people that believe what they want to believe. They me all the tragedies that happen in their lives on the Martial Artists. They me all the wars on the Martial Artists, even though it was the Non Martial Artists that created the greatest weapons of mass destruction. They med the Martial Artists for poverty, even though all the politicians who are supposed to help them are Non Martial Artists.. These guys foolishly believe that some sort of paradise will arise once all Martial Artists were dead."

 Chapter 95 - Pursuers

    Loki and the other two had already walked for an hour and the end of the passageway was still nowhere to be found. Liu Yue who was getting impatient suggested that they start running towards the Elite Dragon Brigade''s Garrison. On the other hand, Ye Rong wanted to conserve their energy just in case something happens.


    "It''s just running for a few miles."


    "If we were to run without knowing how far the Garrison is from our current location we might be wasting stamina. So when an emergency happens it might be a little bit problematic."


    "Hmph, I can''t believe that someone like you is alwayspared to me."


    "Yeah I know, how can an idiot like you be spoken in the same breath as me?"


    "Huh?"


    "Are you unable toprehend what I just said? Then allow me to speak in anguage that you would understand. Running, tired, weak," as Ye Rong spoke he made some exaggerated gestures. It took Liu Yue a few seconds to figure out that she was being insulted.


    "You really want to die don''t you?!"


    The two started arguing again which made Loki sigh internally. He knew that these two were what people called rivals, a rival someone that helps each other push themselves to their very limit, one who would be there to stand with you at the end of your path. Back in his old world he was pretty much unmatched and had no rivals to speak of. He had killed almost all other assassins in that world and had be the sole elite assassin. So when Loki watched the two argue while trying to get ahead of the other he couldn''t help but smile and chuckle.


    When the Twin Stars heard Loki chuckle their attention shifted towards him. The two then felt a bit embarrassed for acting like children while in their current situation. Ye Rong gave an awkward smile as he spoke.


    "Sorry Junior Brother Loki for showing you such a shameful disy. In the end, we couldn''t agree to anything, so how about you decide for us?"


    Before Loki could give an answer, the three of them suddenly heard a whistling sounding from behind them. The three of them quickly dodged as an RPG shell came flying past them hitting the ground in front of them. The explosion caused the ceiling to copse as rubble blocked their path ahead.


    The Star of Dawn hade and started to bombard them with gunfire. The Twin Stars were quick to react, as their rings started to shine and weapons came out of them. Loki who had seen what they did was surprised as that was a familiar scene to him.


    ''That was a spatial spell, but there was no mana fluctuation instead it was inner energy that I sensed.''


    Loki was confused, he had tested his own inner energy numerous times, andpared to his mana the impurities of inner energy and its consumption rate was greater than mana. So to use such an advanced spell like a spatial spell would require an absurd amount of inner energy, which Loki was sure the Twin Stars didn''t possess.


    As Loki wasying on the ground thinking, he saw the weapon Ye Rong had summoned was arge sword and Lui Yue had summoned a pair of gloves. Ye Rong then used hisrge sword that wasrger than his own body as a shield to block the bullets.


    "Junior Brother Loki, stay behind, we''ll deal with this." Ye Rong used his sword as a shield while charging forward and running behind him was Liu Yue.


    Despite having a body that could withstand normal bullets without flinching, Ye Rong found it hard to move onward. The power of the new weapons that were using enhancers was something else, and in such a narrow passageway with no room to dodge the gunfire, it was extremely hard to get close to the gunners.


    Ye Rong then roared as his inner energy burst out and his charging speed increased. Once he was closed enough he gathered inner energy into his lungs.


    "HEAVENLY DRAGON ROAR!" Ye Rong unleashed a roar that shook the very ground they stood on it even pushed some of the men in front of him a few feet backward.


    The gunners who were a few meters away from the Twin Stars had lost their bnce and stopped shooting for a second, that was enough time for Liu Yue to pounce on the enemies.


    "Devouring mes!" Liu Yue''s whole arm was covered in mes as she punched forward. The me from hands devoured any that was hit by it. Despite a dozen of them dying by the seconds the people from the Star of Dawn didn''t look to be affected as they mechanically adjusted their formation.


    "Let''s capture these beasts. Initiate capture n fallen stars." Someone from behind the groupmanded. Ye Rong and Liu Yue who heard the name of the n gritted their teeth as this just confirmed that the attack today was really because of them.


    It was at that moment the group from the Star of Dawn wore gas masks and threw some kind of biological weapons. The two of them scoffed as high-ranking martial artists there was no poison or virus that could harm them. Even if there was they could simply expel whatever it was from their bodies. As Ye Rong and Liu Yue tried to circte their inner energy to expel whatever was invading their bodies it was then they noticed that they could not circte their inner energy.


    Loki who was at a distance also noticed that the chemicals from the gas were disrupting his cirction of inner energy, but unlike Ye Rong and Liu Yue, he had his mana that he used to cleanse his body.


    Even though they could not use inner energy the body of a martial artist was strong. The Twin Stars with ferocity and skill had killed a few more men of the Star of Dawn, but unfortunately, they were outnumbered. Not to mention the people from the Star of Dawn had injected boosters on themselves and were using equipment specifically meant to be used against martial artists. It was just a matter of time before they would fall.


    The two had fought valiantly but in the end, they fell unconscious and were captured. The people from the Star of Dawn cuffed them with power suppressors so even if they woke up they would still be unable to do anything. One of them even wanted to kill Ye Rong and Liu Yue but was stopped by themander of the unit.


    "I know that these two beasts deserve death after killing so many of ourrades, but we still need them alive. Once they have fulfilled their purpose, I promise to make them go through the most agonizing death." The men nodded their heads in response.


    As the group from the Star of Dawn was about to leave, themander suddenly remembered something.


    "Hold," themander gave a signal for the unit to stop, he then looked at the passageway behind them. "Wasn''t there one more person with them?"


    As if that was a signal the lights suddenly exploded and the entire passageway became dark.

 Chapter 96 - A Shadow

    The soldiers from the Star of Dawn panicked a little bit as the passageway turned dark. Even though they were trained soldiers and had been in numerous life and death situations the sudden darkness still had some effect on them. Even with all their training and equipment, they could notpletely erase their primal fear of darkness.


    "Switch to night vision."


    Themander ordered his men and though still a little unnerved the soldiers responded to the order. Once they had activated their night vision the soldiers got into a tighter formation their guns pointed at the two ends of the passageway.


    The passageway then became eerily quiet, as the soldiers steadily held their positions. Even after switching to night vision, they were not able to spot the enemy.


    The sound of explosions from outside could faintly be heard and the ground was shaking as they waited. Yet even after waiting for a couple of minutes, there was no movement from the enemy. Seeing as the enemy was noting out and they could not find him with their current equipment themander made a decision and gave the signal to retreat.


    The group of soldiers from the Star of Dawn started to slowly back away while dragging the unconscious Ye Rong and Liu Yue. It was at that very moment as they were retreating something finally happened, a sh of light blinded them, as they were using their night vision goggles the effect was even more so than normal. A few of the men were panicking and started to shoot randomly.


    "You fools stop shooting!"


    Themander shouted as his vision cleared. Yet despite shouting out his orders no one listened to him. When the panicking men didn''t listen to his order he shot one of his men on the knee. Seeing what happened to one of theirrades the panicking men finally stopped shooting and looked at theirmander.


    "That will be thest warning shot I''ll give, those that do not follow mymands and continue to endanger hisrades will be killed by me. Now calm down the lot of you, the enemy should just be a single martial artist. Do not panic, just believe in your training and yourrades so-"


    While themander was giving his rousing speech, he felt something hit him from behind. The group of soldiers saw a shadowy figure appear behind theirmander and then pass by them. Before they could do anything another one of them fell unconscious.


    "Unleash the remaining disruptors!"


    The second inmand finally gave an order. The soldiers released the gas that disrupts one''s inner energy. The second inmand was expecting the shadowy figure to slow down, but instead, the shadowy figure disappeared from everyone''s sight.


    They then heard a brief scream and saw that one of theirpanions had disappeared. The Second in Command was shocked by the sudden disappearance of the shadow and could no longer keep his cool.


    "OPEN FIRE!"


    Hearing hismand the soldiers started shooting at thest ce they saw the shadow. The strength of their bullets was meant to destroy a martial artist''s body so it was able to easily prate through steel much less the walls of the passageway. It was a good thing that the passageway was much sturdier than expected since even after creating so many holes on the walls a cave-in didn''t happen.


    After they had unleashed such a torrent of bullets in almost every direction they felt that they had finally killed the unknown martial artist. They turned around to look at their second inmand only to see that he was no longer there.


    The group no longer had a leader present as almost all of them were of the same rank. The group of soldiers didn''t speak to each other but they all came to the same conclusion they needed to leave quickly.


    Seeing that they had an unknown enemy who moves so fast they could not spot it, they decided to kill the Twin Stars since they would only slow them down. The moment they decided what to do they looked at the people who were carrying the weapons and bodies of the Twin Stars and saw that they too were no longer there.


    The heavy weapons, the unconscious bodies, and even the ones that were carrying them, everything disappeared. Not to mention they disappeared without making a single sound. Not only was the darkness already making them feel unnerved but the way theirpanions disappeared without making a sound was the final straw.


    Everything that was happening to them was too unusual, they had used the disruptors that should make any martial artist even a rank one Grandmaster have difficulty using their inner energy. They also shot at all possible spots that the mysterious shadow could have hidden. Yet they still were unable to kill this mysterious enemy.


    They wanted to run away, they wanted to run as fast as possible, yet some of them could not move their legs. Those that were able to move suddenly had their night vision goggles broken by an unknown object hitting them.


    Unable to see anything they still continued to run towards the direction of the exit, while bumping into each other falling to the ground. They were no longer an organized unit but a bunch of cowering fools. It was every man for himself as they pushed aside theirrades and continued to run towards the exit.


    ...


    Random Soldier POV:


    This was supposed to be a normal mission to capture the geniuses of Zothril. Everything was going as nned, the number of casualties was within the expected margin and we were able to capture the Twin Stars, yet that''s when everything started to go awry. A shadowy figure suddenly destroyed the lights in the underground passageway. It then took out themander and the second inmand without making a single sound.


    We had used everything we had but it was as if we were fighting a ghost. We were being taken down one by one without being able to retaliate in this total darkness. I didn''t know what came over me nor do I know when I started to move but before I knew it I was already running as fast as I could towards the exit.


    My night vision goggles were broken and I could barely see anything in this darkness but my feet continued to run. I shoved myrades to the side as I run and run towards the exit. I could hear a whooshing sounding from behind me, but I dare not turn around as I sprinted as fast as I could, it was then I finally saw the light of the exit.


    I was so close and I could finally escape whatever was chasing me. Yet as I got close to the light, I finally saw the bodies of myrades littered on the ground. I was shocked by the sight and stopped running, that was a fatal mistake. I couldn''t hear nor feel it approach but I knew the shadow was already behind me.. I desperately wanted to run but before I could even lift my feet, I felt something heavy hit the back of my head.

 Chapter 97 - Homunculi

    Loki had just knocked out the final soldier from the Star of Dawn and sighed. He looked at his body that was full of holes and his shirt which was torn apart. In the soldiers'' perspective, the Shadow aka Loki was able to dodge all the bullets with ease, but the truth was with his current strength and being in such a narrow passageway made it near-impossible to dodge all of those bullets.


    Due to Loki''s speed and his skills, the soldiers were unaware that they were actually able to hurt him. Loki had stopped the bleeding, he breathed slowly as he circted his mana through his entire body.


    Loki then spotted where the bullets were located and used his needles to pull them out. Once that was done, Loki circted his inner energy that worked in tandem with his mana. The two different spiritual energies helped Loki heal his wounds a bit, but he didn''t want to heal them fully yet.


    ''That was more dangerous than I expected. These guys without any spiritual energy are pretty good. The weapons of this world are f*cking frightening. I better learn about all of the current weapons that could harm martial artists.''


    ...


    Mark and several guards of the Martial Arts Department were at the entrance battling against the soldiers of the Star of Dawn. Even though he and the other guards were powerful warriors that could destroy a normal gun wielder, but against the bombardment of the anti-martial artist weapons, it was a difficult battle.


    The two Grandmasters that were in the Martial Arts Department, were also facing their own powerful opponents. They were currently in a life and death battle with two homunculi from the Star of Dawn.


    These Homunculi are artificial humans that have powers that far surpass regr martial artists. They are considered to be the masterpiece that the Star of Dawn created to deal with the mighty Grandmasters. Unlike the martial artists who umte their power over time and enhance said power with techniques, the Homunculi were already strong from the very start.


    Each Homunculi had the physical strength to easily lift a blue whale, they were fast enough to move faster than even the fastest cars, they were sturdy enough to be unaffected by bullets. Yet that wasn''t what made them able to contend with the terrifyingly powerful Grandmasters who were just as strong and were able to use inner energy. The thing that made the Homunculi able to fight evenly with Grandmasters was their unique abilities.


    The unique abilities of the Homunculi were different from each other, some could control the elements like fire, water, and air, others had great regenerative properties and could heal almost instantly, then there were some that could make their bodies harder than any alloy known to man, and many more variety of abilities.


    It was a good thing that creating a Homunculus required a lot of rare materials. The incubation time for them to grow into their adult bodies was also a problem. Even though they could be forcibly made to grow faster than normal, it still requires at least a few years for a Homunculus to grow into a battle-ready specimen.


    ...


    Bernard who was a fist fighter was having a rather difficult time fighting the Homunculus in front of him. The Homunculus Bernard was facing had a special ability which was to change its body''sposition from solid to liquid, making most attacks Bernard made almost ineffective.


    On the other hand, Niko''s opponent was a Homunculus that could harden its body making it near imprable. The spear Niko was using was unable to so much as scratch his opponent.


    Though both Bernard and Niko couldn''t damage their opponents the same was happening for the Homunculi. The two Homunculi were defensive types and didn''t have strong attacking power and had only the basic strength of a normal Homunculi that would''ve been enough to face a rank ten martial artist, but against a Grandmaster, it wasn''t enough.


    The two sides were at a stalemate, the only thing the Martial Arts Department of Leim City could do was wait for the reinforcement the Elite Dragon Brigade would send. As they were still locked in a ferocious battle, Bernard noticed something weird. It was true that the current forces that the Star of Dawn sent would be an even match against the Martial Arts Department of Leim City, but if they wanted to take it down before the Elite Dragon Brigade arrive they should have needed a muchrger force.


    ''Tsk, I see, so all of this is just a distraction. That means that they were really here for the Twin Stars!''


    "Mark! Head back and look for the Twin Stars!"


    Bernard shouted hismand but then he saw that Mark and the guards were being encircled and could not escape. Bernard gritted his teeth as he wanted to save his men but the Homunculus blocked him.


    "Get out of my way you f*cking puppet!"


    The old man who exuded the temperament of an old sage suddenly got angry. It was such a weird sight to behold, as the old man Bernard who was usually calm emitted a violent aura.


    "Niko! Let''s do this!"


    Hearing Bernard''s shout Niko nodded his head as he too burst out with his powerful inner energy. The Homunculi went into defensive postures ready to receive any attack the two had in store.


    "Demon God''s Fist!"


    "Raging Hell Fire!"


    A giant red fist appeared above the sky and descended on the Homunculus that could harden its body. The moment the fist descended the Homunculus used every bit of his strength to stop therge fist. The power of the fist was so great that the very ground on where the Homunculus stood cracked. The Homunculus continued to resist but under the pressure of the giant red fist, the Homunculus''s body began to crack until it was squashed by the giant red fist.


    On the other hand, the Homunculus that could turn its body into a liquid form did not fare better. The spear that Niko threw at it was burning violently and everywhere it passed by was scorched. The moment it pass through the liquid form of the Homunculus it burned every cell in its body until there was nothing left.


    The two Grandmasters had expended a lot of their inner energy to perform those moves and were breathing heavily, but they didn''t have time to rest.. Niko quickly came to the aid of the surrounded guards, and Bernard sprinted to the passageway where Loki and Twin Stars were supposed to be escaping.

 Chapter 98 - Shock

    Bernard quickly moved through the building and headed to the secret passageway on the second floor of the Hall of Skills. As he sprinted towards the ce he was feeling immense anxiety at the thought of the Twin Stars being captured or worse killed.


    Those two were so young and were already close to the Grandmaster rank, with their talent they had a chance to reach the peak of the Grandmaster rank. In both the Empire and Zothril, there hasn''t been a rank ten Grandmaster for centuries. If they were to fall today it would be a loss to Zothril and humanity.


    Even though both the Empire and Zothril were at peace in this era, it was just a shallow peace. Even now in the darkness, there had been numerous exchanges between the two sides. Also on both sides, there were those that want to continue the war and end the other side once and for all. Aside from the threat of the Empire, there were also the weaker nations that surround them that have been trying to infiltrate their ranks.


    If it was before during the warring times, Zothril would have annihted these smaller nations for provoking them, but now in the current era if the reason is not good enough and with theck of evidence they could not make a move. If they did something without going through the proper procedures, public opinion on the government would fall. In Zothril once the public was enraged it could lead to numerous disasters and a reshuffling of the current governing body, thus weakening Zothril for a period of time.


    On the other hand, the Empire didn''t have that kind of problem as the Emperor was not affected by public opinion, those that oppose his decision would usually be executed. As for those weaker nations, the moment one nation that''s weaker than it provokes the Empire, that nation would surely be destroyed. So at this time, Zothril''s peace was hanging by a thread, and they needed the next generation that would shoulder such a burden to be strong, which was why the Twin Stars were important. Zothril wouldn''t necessarily fall immediately without the Twin Stars, but Zothril could be weakened enough that it would be hard to defend from all the other enemies Zothril has.


    ...


    When Bernard arrived at the passageway he was surprised at what he saw. Numerous unconscious bodies wereid on the floor. Based on their uniforms they were part of the Star of Dawn. He was expecting it, but seeing that they were truly able to infiltrate the building and even know where the passageway was, meant that there was a spy within their ranks.


    Bernard had no time to think about that for now, and he didn''t care that these people were still alive, what was important was if the Twin Stars were here. Bernard looked around trying to find the Twin Stars.


    He then spotted the two in the middle of several dead bodies, unlike the others the soldiers that were near the Twin Stars were all dead. Bernard approached the two and quickly checked if the Twin Stars were still breathing.


    Bernard sighed in relief as he saw the two were still alive. He also found something weird as he checked their bodies, for some reason he could not sense their inner energies. Bernard could not understand what had happened here, as there were too many questions that had no answers. While he was in a state of confusion, Bernard finally noticed that just a few feet away there was another unconscious person and it was someone he knew.


    He just met this young man a few hours ago and was surprised to see him here in the secret passageway. Bernard approached Loki''s body and was relieved to see that aside from his tattered clothes and a few wounds on his body he was alright.


    ''So he was still in the library when this all happened. Based on his position just slightly ahead of the Twin Stars, did this kid protect them?''


    Bernard looked at the unconscious soldiers in front of Loki''s body and seeing the bruises they sustained he felt that Loki did try to protect the Twin Stars.


    ''Still, even if he did all that he couldn''t possibly fight all of these soldiers that were equipped with anti-martial artist weapons and survive. Even a rank ten martial artist would have found it difficult to survive in this situation much less an unranked martial artist.''


    While Bernard was deep in thought, he suddenly heard a loud explosioning from the outside. Bernard no longer dyed and carried the three young martial artists out of the passageway. He wasn''t sure what was happening outside but he needed to hide the three unconscious young ones in a safe ce.


    ''What''s happening, how could they still have so much firepower? With Niko supporting the guards the battle should''ve ended already, did they have reinforcement? Also, why is the Elite Dragon Brigade not here yet?!''


    Bernard was about to put the three in the panic room near his office when something crashed into the room. The person that came crashing into the room was none other than Grandmaster Niko who had fainted and was missing an arm.


    Bernard could not even express his shock when he suddenly sensed dangering his way, so he quickly tossed Loki and Twin Stars to the side. Bernard then quickly raised his arms to defend himself from whatever wasing. He saw something sh before his eyes and at that moment something heavy had hit his arms. Bernard gathered every bit of inner energy he had left into his arms, but even then that heavy hit had broken past his guard and he was blown away into the wall. He saw another sh but could not move his arms to defend, so this time he was hit on the face.


    Bernard gritted his teeth as he tried to remain conscious, but he could no longer keep it together when his consciousness became fuzzy. As his consciousness was fading he saw that person that attacked him was a young man that look no older than thirteen years old.


    "Who are you?"


    Bernard asked before fainting.. The young man approached the now unconscious Bernard and raised his arm about to finish him off, but as his heavy fist was about to descend on Bernard''s face it stopped as something had wrapped around his arm.

 Chapter 99 - Annoyance

    Loki had covered his face with what remained of his clothes and was now using his wires to hold back the mysterious young man that was going to kill Bernard. The moment Loki did so he felt the power the young man held, it took almost everything he had to stop the young man''s right arm.


    The young man turned around and was unable to locate the source of the wires that were holding his arm. Loki had already hidden his aura from the enemy as this was the very basics of being an assassin.


    Seeing as he could not find the source of the wires, the young man broke free from it by the sheer force of his physical body. The moment he broke free from the wires, another wave of wires wrapped around not only his arms but his whole body, and this time they were more durable than thest.


    The young man was expressionless as he looked around the room, yet despite his superior senses, he found no trace of the attacker. Since he could not find the assant, he decided to simply finish his mission. The young man broke free from the numerous enhanced wires and approached the Twin Stars, but before he could do so another wave of wires entangled him. This time he no longer bothered to stop or look around as he moved forward, the wires were unable to hold him down.


    When Loki saw that the young man approaching the Twin Stars, it was obvious that he was here for a simr reason as the Star of Dawn. It was even possible that this overly powerful individual was part of that organization.


    Based on everything he saw, Loki knew that he couldn''t face the man in a direct confrontation, the moment he did so things would turn difficult for him. Still, if he wanted to he could escape without being noticed, but seeing the two who were about to be abducted he couldn''t just leave.


    Even though they had failed to do so, those two had tried to protect him. If he left them to their fates, he would''ve let his deceased sister down. Strengthening his resolve Loki took out some of his needles and used [Enhancement] on them, he then threw the needles at the young man.


    The needles that could easily pierce through concrete could not dig deep into the young man''s skin. The young man got distracted for a second and in that single second the bodies of the Twin Stars disappeared.


    Even though his target had disappeared the young man wasn''t perturbed and quickly made a move to attack the unconscious Bernard. He heightened his senses to the extreme, and as he was about to kill Bernard, he caught a glimpse of a shadow behind him. The moment he saw that shadow the young man was decisive and attacked.


    Loki who was concealing his aura saw a shing light appear before him and was surprised but unlike Bernard, he was able to dodge the strike. This was the first time someone in this world had seen through Loki''s concealment and it shocked him greatly. Even though he was currently weak his concealment ability was still top ss.


    Despite his shock, Loki had no time to stay grounded as he evaded the white light. This time it was the young man''s turn to be shocked. The look of indifference on the young man''s face disappeared as he stared at Loki. He then noticed the Twin Starsying behind Loki. Noticing the young man''s gaze, Loki frowned.


    The young man was about to make a move, but before he could take a step forward he saw an approaching needle. He did not dodge the needles and continued to move forward. As the needles got stuck into his skin they suddenly grew hot and then exploded.


    The power of each explosion was equivalent to a pound of TNT. Loki had infused elements of fire into the needles, forcing them to explode after a period of time. Unlike his enhancement spell, this spell actually consumed smaller mana. The reason he never used the spell before this was because it was too loud and showy for an assassin like him. Yet in his current predicament, Loki decided to not care about such trivialities as he use anything at his disposal, seeing as this wasn''t really an assassination it didn''t matter if he was loud or not.


    As the smoke cleared Loki was surprised to see that the young man only had minor burn marks on his arms and that was it. He wasn''t expecting to beat the young man using such a surprise attack, but he at least wanted to damage him more than this.


    ''Tsk, this guy is pretty sturdy.''


    When that thought sh by Loki''s mind, he suddenly saw the young man appear in front of him. Loki quickly evaded an iing kick and countered with a kick of his own, but the moment his leg made contact with the young man''s body Loki was only able to make the young man take a step backward.


    That kick of Loki''s was enough to put a dent in a steel wall, but it had little to no effect on the young man. Loki prepared to defend himself from whatever attack the young man was going to do next, but to his surprise, the young man went past him and was trying to get to the Twin Stars.


    The young man regarded Loki as nothing more than an annoyance and was focused on his real objective which was capturing the Twin Stars before the soldiers of the Elite Dragon Brigade arrive. Loki praised the young man''s action in his mind.


    As the young man was about to grab the unconscious Twin Stars, he felt something wrap around his legs tripping him. The young man stopped his fall with his arms and saw Loki move the Twin Stars away from him. He then saw Loki throw another round of needles.


    The young man tore away from the wires that wrapped around his legs and evaded the needles. Yet even after evading them, the needles exploded once they got near him.


    The young man wasn''t that bothered by the explosion and dashed towards the Twin Stars, but Loki intercepted him again as he kept his distance while throwing needles. The exploding needles did little damage to him, but the young man was starting to get annoyed. No matter what he did Loki was able to evade and counter, and he could not get past him to capture the Twin Stars.


    After a few more exchanges the young man now understood that if he doesn''t deal with Loki first, he wouldn''t be able to finish his mission before the time is up.

 Chapter 100 - An Arm For An Arm

    The moment the young man changed his priorities his countenance changed. Loki felt that the pressure the young man was exuding became heavier. At this point, Loki could already guess what the young man was thinking at the moment.


    ''So he decided to get serious now, and deal with me first.''


    Loki knew that at this moment he needed to go all out. He really didn''t want to kill this young man as it goes against his set of rules, but if he doesn''t fight properly, it was possible that he would kill him or worst the Twin Stars.


    Loki circted his mana and used Enhancement on his entire body. Loki got into a fighting stance as he was ready to fight. On the other hand, the young man looked at Loki with a little confusion in his eyes. He knew that Loki was a tricky opponent to handle but for some reason, he could not feel any killing intent from him. In fact, the young man could not sense anything from Loki, it was as if he didn''t exist. If not for the fact that Loki had attacked him and he was actually hurt a bit, the young man would''ve thought Loki was just a hallucination.


    Still, since Loki was in the way of his mission and he was real, then he needed to be eliminated. The young man dashed towards Loki, he was like a bullet as he approached. Loki shifted his position and waited for the young man to strike.


    Once the young man was in front of Loki he did a forward kick. The kick was so fast and sharp it created a shockwave, yet Loki was able to evade it by stepping backward avoiding it by an inch, he then used that moment to counterattack. Loki struck the young man''s chest with his own kick, but the moment he did so it wasn''t the young man who got hurt but Loki.


    The young man then attacked Loki by swinging the foot that was already above his head downward. Loki evaded the attack by sidestepping then he once again struck the young man on the chest, but this time he used his needles for the attack. Yet even after using the needles, they could not prate through the young man''s muscles.


    The two then exchanged a flurry of strikes, Loki being able to dodge all of the young man''s strikes while counterattacking. Loki had hit different parts of the young man''s body who had now many needles sticking out of him. Yet despite all those attacks he had made Loki was unable to damage the young man''s body.


    They had been going at it for a few minutes now and the young man was getting impatient as he was showing more and more openings. Of course, Loki abused these openings to attack the young man.


    The young man was not just getting impatient now but was also getting irritated. He was no longer holding back and was attacking at full power with the greatest speed yet he could not hit Loki, on the other hand, Loki was able to hit him but all of his strikes were nothing more than a little tickle to the young man.


    ''If I could get one hit, this will all be over.''


    While the young man was getting even more agitated, Loki was focusing even more. It was true that his opponent was faster and stronger than any person he has seen in this new world, but that was it. The young man was too overconfident in his superior body and relied solely on his overpowering strength and speed to win. The young man had no technique and was just swinging wildly. In Loki''s eyes, the young man was like a little kid that was swinging a powerful sword.


    Still, Loki knew that just one hit from this young man could spell his doom. In fact, despite his calm facade, Loki was feeling immense pressure. He was able to dodge all of the young man''s attacks due to his fighting experience, as he could easily predict were thoserge swings were going to hit. In fact, since the beginning with Loki''s current strength, he was unable to follow the young man''s strikes with his eyes. The only thing Loki could see was the initial movement, yet with his battle instincts and his experience that was enough to dodge those powerful attacks.


    ...


    The young man was about to swing his right arm, but for some reason, he could no longer feel his right arm. The young man looked at his right arm and saw it was still attached to his body but was limp and unresponsive. He then red at Loki and as if growling, finally spoke.


    "I don''t know who you are, and since you were not someone spoken in the mission briefing I was going to let you leave but now you can forget about that. If you just left and minded your own business I wasn''t going to chase you, but now you have forfeited your life. Do not me me for what''s toe next."


    The moment the young man spoke those words Loki noticed some visible changes in the young man''s physique as it looked like the young man''s body was getting slightly bigger. Then there were some tattoo-like things starting to appear and glow on the young man''s body. Yet what surprised Loki the most was the faint hint of mana now oozing out of the young man''s body.


    ''Are those runes in his body?''


    The moment Loki got distracted by that realization, the young man had disappeared from his sight. Loki unconsciously dodged to the side, the moment he did so he felt something pass by him.


    "Oh, even with my full speed you were able to dodge, but it seems that it''s not as perfect as before."


    When Loki heard what the young man said he looked at his right arm. The flesh on his shoulder looked like it was torn off. The pain Loki felt at that moment was intense, but he did not scream and instead tried moving his arm.


    ''It hurts to move it but it was still functional.''


    Seeing Loki''s almost nonchnt expression, the young man frowned.


    "I will give you onest chance, either leave or die."


    Loki looked at the young man then at his arm and sighed. He knew that he would no longer be able to keep up in his current state, and would eventually lose.


    ''I haven''t tested this out yet, but I guess it''s now or never.''


    The young man who was waiting for Loki''s reply was stunned by the sudden pressure he felt from Loki.

 Chapter 101 - Retreat

    When Loki gained the ability to use inner energy, the first thing that came to his mind at that time was if it was possible to merge his mana with his inner energy. The two powers came frompletely different sources and even though they had some simrities they worked differently.


    Inner energy was produced by one''s body and like any body part, it could be strengthened with proper training. The stronger one''s body bes the greater the inner energy it could store.


    On the other hand, mana was the spiritual inner energy produced by the world. To strengthen one''s mana supply one needs to be more attuned to it. The greater one''s understanding of mana the faster one''s mana supply increases. It also helps if you were at a spot that has concentrated mana.


    When the two inner energies meet one would try and suppress the other. In Loki''s case, his mana was stronger than his inner energy thus making his inner energy fall behind. After a bit of practice, Loki was able to use the two different powers in tandem, and his mana no longer rejects the inner energy as strongly as before, the same can be said with his inner energy.


    Loki was unsure of what would happen if he forcefullybines the two different forms of energy. It would either destroy him or it would increase his strength greatly. There was also the possibility that nothing would happen.


    Under normal circumstances, Loki would never use something that he wasn''t sure of, but the current circumstances were anything but normal.


    ''Am I really going to make such a drastic bet for people I barely know?'' Loki looked at the unconscious bodies of the Twin Stars and the Grandmasters, at that moment he was once again reminded of the death of his sister.


    ''Damn it, even now I can barely forget that day. Even now you''re making me do things the hard way.''


    Loki sighed as he strengthened his resolve. Loki gathered his mana and circted it through his entire body, once it was moving smoothly Loki released his inner energy.


    ...


    The young man was about to attack when he suddenly felt an intense pressure emitting from Loki. He could not understand it but warning bells were sounding in his head. The young man then noticed that Loki seemed to be sweating profusely and his body was trembling.


    ''What is happening to him? It looks like he was trying to do something. Well, now that he looks so weak this could be my chance to finish him off.''


    The moment the young man had that thought, Loki casually walked towards him. The young man was then surprised to see that Loki had arrived before him without making a sound. He then saw Loki casually throwing a punch at him.


    The punch was so slow that under normal circumstances the young man would''ve evaded the strike while yawning but for some reason when he thought of evading, Loki''s fist was already inches before him. The young man could only raise his left arm to defend.


    The young man was going to counterattack after defending against Loki''s strike that was his initiation but the moment the punch connected the young man was blown away.


    The young man felt his left arm throbbing and he heard the boned on his left arm slightly cracking. The young man couldn''t understand what had happened, his body that was harder than steel was actually damaged to such an extent. It was not a trick or technique like before, Loki had used brute force and almost broke the young man''s arm.


    The young man was still startled when he noticed that Loki was once again in front of him. He quickly evaded and then he saw the wall that was behind him crumble. The young man backed away and distanced himself from Loki. Yet Loki stuck to him like glue, the young man then saw in the corner of his eye a needle on the ground.


    The needle exploded at the young man''s feet causing him to stumble. Loki took this chance to attack. the young man unconsciously raised his broken left arm, but Loki''s fist bypassed his defense and hit him squarely at his chest.


    Loki had already hit the young man many times before, at that time Loki''s attacks were nothing more than an annoyance, but this time the young man could hear his ribs cracking. The young man even felt his lungs getting damaged and it was getting harder to breathe.


    For the first time in his entire life, the young man was feeling something he never thought he would ever feel. The young man was feeling intense fear. As the fear was encroaching on his very soul, the young man saw that Loki was no longer moving.


    He then noticed that Loki was sweating bullets and was panting heavily. Loki was already on his knees his entire body trembling. Loki had reached his limit, whatever it was he has done to drastically increase his strength had finally taken its toll on him.


    Yet despite Loki''s current state, the young man did not dare approach. The young man was so frightened that he even forgot his mission and was unable to move.


    On the other hand, Loki who was barely conscious was confused as to why the young man was not finishing him off. As the two stared at each other, the young man received a message.


    "The Elite Dragon Brigade has broken through the Star of Dawn''s blockade and is heading your way. ETA is ten minutes, have youpleted your mission?"


    The young man finally woke up from his fear when he heard the voice of hismanding officer. Hearing hismander''s voice the fear he felt had diminished a bit.


    "Negative, an unknown factor has intercepted me."


    "... Fine, retreat for now and give me a full report when you get back."


    "Roger."


    When the young man heard that he could finally retreat he could not help but sigh in relief. The young man did not even think twice as he quickly escaped the premises, he did not even dare look at Loki afraid that Loki would suddenly appear before him.


    When Loki saw the young man retreating he was confused, but at the same time relieved. If the fight continued he did not know what would''ve happened. He still had a few cards to y, but he was unsure if that was enough. When he was sure that the young man was gone Loki tore off the make-shift mask he was wearing and crawled closer to the unconscious Twin Stars.. Once he was near the Twin Stars heid on the ground closing his eyes.

 Chapter 102 - A Dream

    The young man fled with all his might as he jumped from building to building. Once he was a few kilometers away from the Martial arts Department building the young man checked if he was being followed, when he confirmed no one had followed him heid on the ground.


    He then started checking his current condition, his right hand was not responding, though his left hand was nearly broken and the pain was a little bit difficult to bear it was still moveable. He also had four broken ribs and was internally bleeding. There was no damage to his legs and he had a slight concussion. Overall he was still in a rtively okay state considering how powerful that unknown person he fought was.


    Even now he was feeling the lingering fear of facing that unknown martial artist. He could not understand what had happened but he knew that he was so close to death. In fact, the young man felt that for some unknown reason the martial artist covering his face was going easy on him. Now that he started thinking about it, during the unknown martial artist''s sudden boost of strength there were many times he could''ve precisely hit a vital area using his needles and killed him but didn''t.


    The young man shook his head and stopped thinking about it, what he needed to do now was escape this ce and meet with hismander. The young man looked around and once he was sure no one else was present he headed to a specific condominium building and entered from the roof. He then went into a room took off his clothes and changed. After he was done changing the young man headed out of the building through the front door and called for a taxi.


    He got off in another part of the city and entered a restaurant, even though he was still injured most of which was internal except for his limp right hand. Still despite people looking at him curiously the young man was not bothered and ate a meal. After he was done the young man took another taxi and then walked towards a train station, entered the underground station looked around but did not ride a train, he then finally walked towards a crowded area and disappeared. Even the CCTVs in the train station were unable to tell if he left the station or not.


    ...


    Loki''s POV:


    When I opened my eyes I was in a familiar ce that I haven''t seen in years. It was the flower field that my little sister took care of that was hidden in the back of my old n. Back then when the b*stards had killed my sister they had burned this ce to the ground. As I was confused as to what was happening I heard her voice.


    I''ve been hearing her voice in my head for years now, but this was the first time I felt like I truly heard her speaking in my ears. I looked behind me and there she was, my beloved sister Shera. I slowly approached her and touched her, when I felt her in my hands I knew that she was real, no I wanted her to be real. It was at that moment a single thought came to me and I chuckled as I cried in front of her.


    "Hehehe, I guess I finally did it, I finally died. Still, I wasn''t expecting to be able to get to the same ce as you. My hands that have been stained by the blood of many, I was sure that I would never be able to go to the ce you went... But, it seems I got lucky. So Shera, was I able to fulfill my promise, did I be your ideal assassin?"


    Shera smiled ever so sweetly as she held my hand and looked at me.


    "You''ve done so well big brother. I know how many you have saved while staining your hands with blood. I know how many times you were hurt both physically and emotionally. I know how hard you worked to fulfill your promise."


    As Shera was talking the smile on her face slowly disappeared and was reced with a crying one. She looked at me with tears in her eyes. I stepped forward and gently wiped away her tears.


    "If I did so well, then why are you crying?"


    "I''m so sorry big brother!"


    "Huh, why are you apologizing? There''s nothing to be sorry about." Shera then started to shake her head.


    "No, big brother. That promise that you made with me upon my death was a curse I ced on you. It was a selfish desire that had bound you to a life filled with pain and bloodshed. If not for that stupid selfish promise that you made with me, you would''ve found happiness long ago. I''m so sorry, I''m so sorry."


    "Hey no need to talk like that, that wasn''t a curse, no, to me on that day what you have given me was a gift. If not for that promise on that day, I would''ve be a killing demon. I would''ve just killed and killed to let out all of my anger. If not for that promise I wouldn''t be the person I am today, and I love the person that I have be because of you. So there''s no need to say you''re sorry, but instead, I need to thank you for the gift that you have given me."


    I hugged my little sister and amidst her crying, a smile returned to her face.


    "You truly are the best big brother. I was truly lucky to have been your little sister."


    "Enough about that, it doesn''t really matter now since it''s all over. Now that we''re finally together I can finally rest."


    The moment I said those words, Shera pushed me to the side. I was confused as she shook her head and smiled at me.


    "Sorry big brother, it''s not your time yet."


    "What do you mean it''s not yet my time?!"


    "I''m d that you still think about me big brother, and that you still wish to fulfill your promise, but now that you''re in that new world, were you can live a different life, why don''t you try living for yourself this time... I hope that you find the happiness you deserve big brother."


    I was about to answer but for some reason, my voice wouldn''te out. I then saw Shera slowly backing away, I tried my best to follow but no matter how hard I run, no matter how I stretched my hands I couldn''t reach her. I then started falling into an abyss.


    ...


    Loki slowly opened his eyes, he looked around and saw a worried Ashley and Liam sitting beside his bed.


    "Big brother!" The two of them shouted.


    "Huh, where am I?"


    "We''re in the hospital."


    "The hospital?... What happened?"


    "That''s what we want to ask you, howe you always make us worried like this you idiot!" Liam spoke as he tried his hardest to hold back his tears.


    "Don''t you remember anything big brother?" Alisa asked, in which Loki shook his head.


    "I''m not sure, but I think something important happened... I think I spoke with someone dear to me... I can''t really remember..."


    Loki tried remembering what happened before he passed out, and he did remember that he was fighting someone, and he was forced to use an untested technique. The young man he was fighting retreated... After that, he couldn''t remember, but he was sure that there was something more important that happened after that. Yet no matter how hard he tried he just couldn''t recall it.


    "Big brother why are you crying? Liam go and call a doctor. Are you feeling ufortable, where does it hurt?" Alisa started to panic while Liam headed out to call a doctor.


    Loki who heard what Alisa said touched his eyes and noticed that he was indeed crying.. He tried wiping his tears away but they just kept on flowing.

 Chapter 103 - Change In Status

    After the incident that happened in the Martial Arts Department, Loki was forced to stay in the hospital for a week. The following morning after he woke up, he was visited by Detective Matsuri.


    "So how are you?"


    "As you can see in another hospital bed." Loki joking said as he shrugged his shoulders.


    "I don''t know if you''re really lucky or unlucky, you''ve actually met the terrorist group Star of Dawn."


    While Matsuri was talking she sat down at the side and started peeling the apples she brought. As she fed Loki the two of them started talking about random things. Except for the start of the conversation, Matsuri never asked Loki what he experienced nor did she talk about the Star of Dawn even though she mentioned it at the beginning. After she was done checking up on him Matsuri left. The exact moment she left the room Harold called Loki and asked if he was doing alright.


    After they exchanged some pleasantries Loki asked Harold if he could erase all the footage of him during the incident.


    "Oh that, I already did that yesterday. You really got your a*s handed to you. I''m not a fighter so I can''t really tell if what I saw was right, but for some reason, it felt like you were holding back as if you didn''t want to kill your opponent."


    "I have my own rules that I follow, and I do not kill people without getting paid, you know that."


    "Alright, I get that you''re a professional and all that, but this person was trying to kill you, and nearly seeded. Surely that should be an exception to your rules."


    "It doesn''t matter if he was trying to kill me... I might be an assassin but I still have my own code my own rules, If I do not follow them then that would make me feel like I''m no longer human... That I''m nothing more than a killing machine. I can never take that step, despite already being so deep in the darkness... I know it might seem like I''m a hypocrite and a coward for doing these things but this is something I will never go against."


    "..." Harold no longer responded and the two changed topics. After a few more back and forth the mood finally lighted and they ended the conversation on a positive note.


    ...


    There were also many from the Martial Arts Department that went and asked some questions about what Loki remembered from the incident. Loki answered by saying that he was saved by a man wearing a white mask and that''s all he remembered.


    ...


    A weekter Loki was discharged from the hospital and when he got home he was greeted by a lot of paperwork that needed to be done. Now that he and his siblings were officially considered martial artists there were many things that they needed to do and there were many things that were about to change.


    The first thing was a change in their public registry, and then they needed to have a talk with the Principal of the school to change Liam''s course from the regr one to the martial arts course. As for Alisa, at first, she didn''t want to change course, but after a talk with her guidance counselor, she changed her mind.


    On the other hand, Loki needed to wait for a few more days before he was able to finish his rank assessment. During the rank assessment, Loki found it very difficult to stop his body from reacting to every attack that was made against him. If it was once or twice it would''ve been okay, but he needed to do it multiple times during the test.


    He also needed to hold back the right amount so that he wouldn''t look too weak or too impressive. Still given that he was already considered a rare talent due to having the same amount of inner energy as a rank four martial artist after awakening his inner energy, he wouldn''t be able to escape the genius tag. So instead of trying to be mediocre which would look suspicious, Loki decided to be ranked as one of the weakest genius martial artists.


    He would try hard enough to be better than the known weakest of thosebeled as geniuses but not too much so that others won''t take notice of him. In the end, Loki had received the title of a rank three martial artist. Grandmaster Bernard had also given him a special exemption and once Loki was able to fully utilize his inner energy, he would automatically raise in rank into a rank four martial artist.


    ...


    There was also a need to change his status in school, now that he was a martial artist and a rank three one at that, the school felt that him being a librarian was no longer enough. Seeing as the teachers of the Martial Arts Department were within rank three to five, the school decided that Loki be named an honorary teacher. He now had the same status and sry as the teachers but he wasn''t required to teach.


    Loki''s status suddenly rose in the school, as now not only did he look incredibly handsome but even his sry and ability had be quite good.


    Unlike his siblings who needed to wait for a month before they''re able to go back to school, Loki still went to work, and in the few days since the change in his status the library that was once a quiet ce were he could meditate and strengthen his mana supply suddenly became rather noisy.


    Before there were only one to two people in the library but now the library was almost always at full capacity. There were also the many irritating students that keep on giving him love letters. For the first time in his two lives, Loki had received not one but several love confessions from differentdies in the span of a few days. Some of those that confess their interest were teachers and most of them were students.


    Due to the change, it became rather difficult for Loki to train. Even though the concentration of mana in the library was so much that even without meditating he could absorb the mana into his body, but it wasn''t as effective if he actively meditated. Not to mention since many of the students follow him while in school, he was unable to test out some spells that he could now use after his mana supply had once again expanded.


    Loki now needed to find a ce were he could test his techniques without anyone watching. The only thing that didn''t change was Michael who came to the library as usual and would read different books about the ult.


    ...


    After a few more days the hype was finally dying down, and there were fewer and fewer studentsing to the library. Also after rejecting girl after girl, the public confessions of love finally stopped, though Loki still received numerous love letters.


    There was even one time after Loki told her about the love letters that Detective Matsuri came and was seemingly trying to intimidate the other women that came to confess to Loki. Unfortunately for her, the women weren''t intimidated by her and kept on giving Loki love letters.


    "Thanks for trying Detective, but it''s alright. At this point, they aren''t really disturbing me as much as before."


    "... That''s not why I did that...."


    "Huh?"


    "It''s nothing, so wanna go out for a drink?"


    "Sure."


    Loki with Matsuri beside him left the school Matsuri then turned her head and smiled at the female students, which made numerous female students infuriated as they followed behind them.

 Chapter 104 - Christmas Special

    Loki had just been discharged from the hospital and when he was in the taxi going home he noticed that there were many weird decorations all around. It was simr to Halloween but somehow different. It was at that moment he got a memory rushing through his mind.


    Loki learned that today was something called Christmas and it was formerly a religious event but nowadays it turned into amercial event where people buy gifts to give each other. When this memory came back to Loki, he immediately told the cab driver to head to any ce where he could buy some gifts.


    Loki didn''t know that there was such a tradition in this world and went to the nearest mall, unfortunately, they were closed. Loki tried to find any ce where he could get gifts but most of them either had too long a line or had nothing left.


    As he was looking around and trying to find anything that he could buy in the sea of people he saw someone trying to steal another person''s wallet. Loki grabbed hold of the thief''s hand which caught the attention of the person that was about to get his wallet taken.


    "What the f*ck?!" The man got angry at the person that almost took his wallet. As for the surrounding people they only took a few seconds to look at what happened and went back to doing their own business.


    The man then called the police and as they were waiting for the police to arrive the man thanked Loki for catching the thief. He tried to give Loki some money but of course, Loki declined to receive the money, no matter how much the man insisted.


    So as they waited for the cops to arrive, Loki and the man started talking about why they were out here suffering the endless waves of people. The man was looking for a toy that his daughter wanted. He thought that he had already bought it a few weeks ago, but then he learned that it was nothing more than a knockoff, so now he needed to go out and look for the toy or his daughter might think that she was on Santa''s naughty list.


    Loki told the man about how he was in the hospital and that he had forgotten about Christmas. The two of them talked for a while before the cops arrived. After that Loki had gone around the city but still found nothing that he could give as a gift.


    Still, there were many trinkets and such that he could buy but he didn''t want to buy some random crap for his siblings, so Loki continued searching. Along the way, Loki had seen many people in trouble so he decided to help.


    Loki spotted an olddy wanting to cross the street so Loki helped her for a bit. He then saw a missing child crying, so Loki help him find his parents. Then there was the young woman being harassed.


    Many other incidents happened one after another which made looking for gifts pretty much impossible. As Loki saw the sun was setting he knew that he had no other choice but to ask for help. He was reluctant to do so at first since he didn''t want to bother anyone during this kind of event as he knew that the people he knew should be with their families right now celebrating.


    Loki called almost every person that was on his phone but none of them picked up, as they went into voicemail. Loki was in a dilemma as he saw the sun finally set and he got another message from his siblings who kept on asking where he was. Loki sighed as he replied that he wasing home now.


    Since the ce he was at was near his house, Loki decided to walk there. While walking through the streets he saw many houses decorated in a colorful fashion and he could even smell the scent of good food all around. Loki then looked at his empty hands and sighed.


    ''I could''ve at least bought some food and drinks...'' Loki shook his head and sighed again. As he was getting near his house he could see that even his house was colorfully decorated with lights and an assortment of things. When he was at the door he could smell a delicious scenting from the inside.


    "Where have you''ve been big brother?" Loki was greeted by a frowning Alisa and a hungry-looking Liam.


    "Sorry I forgot that it was Christmas today and didn''t get anyone gifts. I tried to look for something to buy, but all the good stuff has already been taken."


    "What you just got out of the hospital and you tried to do all that?... Big brother, we''re already old enough not to need presents, just us eating together is enough. Also, you already provide us with everything we need, and you took care of us when mom and dad..."


    Alisa was having a hard time finishing her sentence as she started to tear up a bit. Liam patted her back calming her down. She then smiled as she wiped away her tears.


    "Point is you''ve done everything for us, and we don''t need some silly gifts to make us feel like a happy family. Just staying together and eating together is already a great gift."


    As Loki was about to respond somebody suddenly rang their doorbell. Loki opened the door and saw that it was Matsuri that arrived.


    "Hey I got your message, so I came here to save Christmas." Matsuri entered the house bringing gifts.


    "Hey guys sorry for barging in, your brother forgot that he left the presents he bought with me."


    Loki wanted to say something but then he heard the doorbell again and this time it was Harold and the former delinquent Luke.


    "My parents were away and I was sleeping in, so I got your messagete, but here we are, we came to save your Christmas." Luke proudly dered, but then he saw Matsuri who was handing out presents to Alisa and Liam.


    "I thought that you didn''t have any gifts to give? So what''s your girlfriend giving out over there?" When Matsuri heard what Harold said she couldn''t help but blush, but then Loki responded.


    "I didn''t know that she or any of you wereing, also she''s not my girlfriend, she''s just a friend." The moment Loki said those words Matsuri frowned and pinched his shoulders.


    "Huh, what was that for?"


    "Nothing, I just wanted to do it," Matsuri answered with a smile on her face. Loki was about to say something else but then the doorbell rang again.


    ''What''s going on today?'' As Loki opened the door, he was surprised to see that the people he helped today hade and were in a huge group as well.


    "MERRY CHRISTMAS!" The group spoke in unison.


    "What''s happening, how did you guys find my house?"


    "Oh, I really wanted to thank you for what you did for me so I tried asking around if anyone knew you. It turns out you helped a lot of people today and all of them wanted to repay you. As for how we found your house, well it seems like you''re pretty famous in this neighborhood, seeing as you and your siblings became martial artists. So just asking around a little and they pointed us in the right direction." The man who was almost pickpocketed answered.


    "We also came here bringing gifts."


    The huge group was invited into Loki''s house and what started with Loki and his siblings having no presents whatsoever gained a ton in the end.. This just goes to show you that doing a good deed will always be reciprocated.

 Chapter 105 - Come And Get Me

    After a few weeks, the hype of Loki''s family suddenly bing a martial arts family finally died down. Loki was then able to help his siblings apply to change courses from the regr one to the martial arts course. During those days Loki was also trying to get better from the beating he got from his previous battle.


    While he was busying himself he learned that the young man who attacked them at the end wasn''t part of the Star of Dawn, in fact, there was no data on him whatsoever. It was as if he just appeared out of nowhere.


    ''So there''s a third party involved... Could it be that hidden n that the Elite Dragon Brigade wanted to destroy?... No, if it was that n surely they would have some information on someone that powerful... If it''s not the hidden n, then this might be even moreplicated than I thought...''


    Loki shook his head as he stopped thinking about it. In his current state, he wouldn''t be able to do anything even if he did find out who the perpetrators were. The priority now was to get better and strengthen himself.


    ...


    The days passed by quickly and the day finally came when Liam and Alisa could finally return to school. In the month after the incident, the two of them had been training, and now they were officially rank one martial artists.


    During that time Liam got a little bit arrogant and truly felt like he was some sort of protagonist. Seeing that Liam''s ego was getting dangerously inted Loki needed to teach him a lesson before he did something stupid. So Loki showed a bit of his skill and defeated Liam in a sparring match. After that thorough beat down Liam was no longer as cocky as he was at first.


    On the other hand, despite gaining power beyond the normal person Alisa remained the same neither proud nor humble about her current situation. Still, she was delighted that she finally had the means to get show Kira''s true face and prove that he was the one that instigated everything bad that happened to her older brother.


    ...


    Liam who was walking to school was being looked at by some students. He already expected that he would gain a lot of attention and he thought he wanted it at first, but when it was truly happening he felt a little nervous.


    As he was getting near the middle school he noticed two familiar people running towards him. Niel and Kenji approached him with looks of excitement on their faces.


    "Man, it''s been so long. We couldn''t contact you and we weren''t allowed to go near your house. So what happened, is it true that you became a martial artist?" Kenji spoke at a fast pace. Niel suddenly elbowed Kenji making thetter back away in pain.


    "Is your brother doing alright?"


    "Yeah, that guy is doing more than alright. He''s actually a rank three martial artist now, and I''m a rank one martial artist." Liam proudly dered which made his two childhood friends feel even more excited.


    "Sh*t man, I f*cking envy you. Damn, I also want to have inner energy. Damn it, why is it only you!" Kenji spoke while lightly punching Liam''s shoulder.


    "So I''m guessing it''s also true that you''ll be transferring to the martial arts course."


    "That''s true, so by next year once we''re first-year high school students I''ll be in the martial arts course."


    "Then this will be ourst year as ssmates," Niel spoke a little disheartened.


    "Don''t say it like we will never be meeting again. We''ll still be in the same school, and we''ll still be friends so we can always hang out after sses." Liam responded while cing his hands over the shoulders of his two friends.


    "Damn it," Kenji mumbled while rubbing his eyes. Seeing this scene shocked both Liam and Niel.


    "What the f*ck, are you actually crying Kenji?"


    "No, this is just sweating out of my eyes. I was working out a while ago, so yeah, this is just sweat." Kenji responded while wiping away the tears in his eyes.


    "Yeah, yeah, sweat... Who knew that you were such an emotional guy."


    "Who''s an emotional guy?! Like I said this is just sweat!"


    "Sure, whatever you say, so how about the three of us head to the arcade after school." The three childhood friends happily headed to the school gates.


    ...


    When Alisa got near the school gates many people were looking at her but no one got close to her. Despite the strange looks she was getting, Alisa wasn''t bothered by it. Even when she was just a normal student she was already quite popr and this amount of attention was normal to her. Also for the male students, it was already hard to get close to her before, but now, after bing a martial artist it became near impossible for most of them to even think about approaching her.


    When Alisa''s school friends spotted her they were going to greet her but then they stopped as they saw the person who was now standing in front of Alisa.


    Kira alongside his subordinates appeared before Alisa. He then showed a shining smile at Alisa who was frowning.


    "I heard the wonderful news, Alisa. Congrattions on bing a rank one martial artist. To celebrate this amazing news, please ept this gift of mine." Kira took out a scroll and tried to give it to Alisa but she simply red at him.


    "How dare you!" One of Kira''s subordinates got infuriated and was about t do something but Kira raised his hand stopping the subordinate. Unable to do anything after being given that order Kira''s subordinates started gnashing their teeth in frustration.


    "I guess this isn''t enough to satisfy you, tell me what you want as a gift and I will give it to you."


    "Hmph, as if I want to receive anythinging from you..." Alisa looked at Kira eye to eye before she continued to speak. "So now that I became a martial artist, are you frightened?" Alisa who had never fought in her entire life started to emit something simr to killing intent as she spoke.


    When Kira heard what Alisa said and felt the aura she was emitting he looked at her dumbfounded. After a brief moment of stunned silence, the smile on his face grew wider and heughed. The people watching him were surprised by his suddenughter and wondered what he and Alisa were talking about.


    Kira then emitted actual killing intent that made even his subordinates shiver in fear. Yet Alisa did not even shift her gaze away from Kira as she withstood his killing intent. This just made Kiraugh even louder as if he had heard the best joke ever.


    "You really are different from the rest of them. You''re bing more and more desirable by the second." Kira then stepped forward and was a few inches away from Alisa. He then whispered in Alisa''s ear.


    "I can''t wait to see what you can do."


    "I promise I will bring you to justice," Alisa responded as he pushed Kira away.


    "Well not like I did anything, but sure,e show me how you''ll bring me to justice." Kira shrugged his shoulders and shook his head, he then looked at Alisa''s determined eyes.


    "Hmph, don''t worry I will." Alisa no longer stayed as she walked past Kira and his subordinates. One of Kira''s subordinates was about to stop Alisa from leaving but halted as he saw Kira ring at him. Kira then looked at the leaving Alisa and licked his lips.


    ''She truly is the one I have chosen to be worthy of me.''

 Chapter 106 - Observing

    It was supposed to be another usual day for Loki but as he entered the library he immediately noticed something was off. The Spirit that would usually start talking to him the moment he entered the library was silent. Loki was rather surprised by the silence and wondered if the mana of the library disappeared alongside the Spirit. After a quick scan, Loki felt that not only was the mana in the library still there it was actually growing stronger. ''''


    ''Well as long as I can meditate and absorb the mana in this ce then it''s actually better now that the noisy spirit is gone.''


    ...


    Loki went on with his work as per usual, and unlike the weeks prior there were fewer students in the library. As he was putting books on a bookshelf he noticed someone staring at him. The person in question was hiding behind the bookshelves but Loki already noticed him the moment he came into the library. In fact, Loki was honing his senses by keeping track of all the people in the library without using any spiritual energy.


    Loki turned around and looked at the wannabe stalker who immediately backed away and started looking at the books. Loki sighed as he started to wonder what Michael wanted from him. Despite following Loki all throughout the morning and lunch break, Michael never spoke to him.


    ...


    When it was time to go home, Alisa arrived in the library like usual to pick Loki up.


    "Um, sorry Alisa I have some work I need to finish today, so you better go home first."


    "I can wait."


    "There''s no need to do that. Also, Liam should be waiting for us at home and not that I don''t trust him alone but it would be better if you''re there. Also, this might take a long time, and you still need to cook, right?"


    "... Alright, I''ll be heading home first."


    "Just save some food for me."


    "Of course," Alisa answered with a smile on her face. After she had left, the library had be rather quiet and was nearly empty, but Loki knew that there was someone else in the library aside from him.


    "So do you need something from me?" After asking that question no one responded and the library remained silent. After waiting for a few minutes with no response Loki looked directly at the ce where Michael was hiding before he spoke.


    "If no one is going toe out I''ll be leaving." Loki took his things and was about to leave when somebody came out from behind the bookshelves. The person that came out was as Loki expected Michael.


    "Good afternoon Sir Loki." Michael awkwardly bowed his head.


    "So it was you, Student Michael."


    "You remember me?"


    "I remember the names of every student thates to the library, especially the ones that borrow books. You have borrowed quite a few books, and youe to the library almost every day, of course, I remember you. So tell me what is it that you want from me? Don''t bother saying you don''t need anything, seeing as you''ve been following and observing me the entire day, you must have something you need from me, right?"


    Hearing what Loki said Michael felt even more awkward, he thought that Loki just noticed him now, but it turns out he noticed since the very beginning. Not only did it feel awkward to tell Loki what he wanted to ask at this point, but he also didn''t know how to ask Loki about the question he wanted to ask, since what he was about to ask was quite a weird question. Worst case scenario Loki might think he was crazy. Still, he had no other choice since based on what he heard from the noisy Spirit, Loki was the only one that could help with his current predicament.


    ...


    A few days ago Michael had suddenly heard the voice of the Spirit. Even now Michael was still unsure if the voice he suddenly heard in his head was real or just his imagination. At first, he started to think he was going crazy, but after a few days of talking with the so called spirit of the Akashic Records, he found that it might actually be real.


    The Spirit seems to know so much but at the same time knows so little. It then exined its predicament to Michael as well as the benefits of helping him.


    Michael learned about the existence of mana, and of the powerful people that could manipte it to their will. The Mages were humans that existed before the Martial Artists and based on what the Spirit said, the Mages had higher potential to bing something akin to a God. Though it also exined that Martial Artists have their own advantages and that at the start, Martial Artists would have the advantage in a battle against a mage. It then told him that as the two grow stronger the Mages'' power and versatility would increase making it rather easy to defeat a Martial Artist of equal strength and experience.


    Mages could control the elements of the world around them, on the other hand, only martial artists beyond the Grandmaster level could perform simr feats. The more Michael learned about the Mages the more he wanted to try and be one. Yet after talking to the so called Spirit and after gaining the System, he found out that he couldn''t start his journey as a Mage. The reason was simple it was because of his insufficient mana supply. At the current level of his mana supply, Michael couldn''t use any of the spells the Spirit knew. He was also unsure as to how to increase his mana supply.


    The Spirit was of no help in this regard. Even though the Spirit imed to be the Akashic Records that knew everything, it was a severely iplete version. Michael tried to increase his mana supply with the same methods of increasing one''s inner energy but that didn''t help. As he was losing hope on bing a mage the Spirit told him that someone in the school could teach him how to increase his mana supply.


    When Michael learned of who could help him he was surprised to hear that it was the librarian. It turns out that not only was the librarian a powerful rank four martial artists, but he was also someone who could teach him on how to increase one''s mana supply. That would mean that the librarian was a Mage. This information stunned Michael when he learned of it.


    So for the rest of day, Michael observed Loki. He wanted to see if he could figure something out. Yet even after looking at Loki for the whole day, Michael found nothing.


    ''What are you waiting for ask him to teach you how to increase your mana supply.'' The Spirit suddenly spoke in Michael''s mind.


    ''Why don''t you ask him instead?''


    ''Haven''t you''ve been listening to what I''ve said? I already told you that when you activated the system I became bound to you and only you can hear my voice and feel my presence. I can no longer talk to this arrogant punk, so you need to ask him.''


    Michael hesitated for a bit as he gathered his resolve. If he doesn''t ask Loki now then he would never be able to do it. He decided that if the other party doesn''t know anything about mana, Michael would just pass it off as a joke. Michael no longer hesitated as he looked at Loki eye to eye before asking.


    "Are you a Mage?"

 Chapter 107 - Please Teach Me

    The moment Loki heard Michael''s question he immediately understood what had happened. The Spirit of the Akashic Records must have tricked this poor naive little student and told him about Loki''s skill. All these thoughts came to Loki in an instant and he was able to respond without missing a beat.


    "Huh, what are you talking about, a mage? Are you asking me if I''m like a street magician or something?"


    When Michael heard Loki''s question he sighed. He had already expected this oue but hearing it was still disappointing. As he was about to apologize for the weird question the Spirit of the Akashic Records spoke to him.


    ''Don''t believe what this jerk has to say, he''s lying to you. Not only is he a mage that knows about mana, but he''s also of a rather high caliber.''


    ''Are you sure? The look on his face doesn''t seem like he''s lying.''


    ''Who are you going to believe me the omniscient Spirit of the Akashic Records, or that lying b*stard?''


    ''... Well, even I''m not really sure if you''re real or not.''


    ''What?! Fine, I''ll prove it to you, just say what I''m going to say verbatim and I''ll show you the true colors of this guy.''


    Loki stared at Michael who stopped talking, as he was about to say something, Michael suddenly spoke.


    "I''m sorry Sir Loki, what I meant to ask is if you have any more books regarding Mages."


    "Oh if that''s all you wanted to ask, you should''ve spoken to me sooner I am after all the librarian, and helping you find the books you need is part of my job."


    "Sorry about that, I''m not really good at striking up a conversation."


    "That''s alright, I just hope that next time you just be upfront about it. So then what kind of books about Mages are you looking for?"


    "Anything really, since I already read most of the ult books in the library, I''m not sure what else you have."


    "Is that so, tell me what books you have already read, and I''ll see if we have more."


    Michael nodded his head and proceeded to list all the books he remembered reading. As Michael was talking Loki felt that something was off, but he wasn''t sure what was wrong. The two of them were having a simple conversation, nothing more. Once Michael was done listing the books he waited for Loki''s response. When Loki looked at Michael he couldn''t find anything strange, as a precaution he used his mana sensing but that too revealed nothing. After a short pause, Loki finally answered Michael.


    "I see, so the books you have read are those."


    When Loki answered he noticed Michael was giving him a strange look.


    "Is there something wrong?"


    "Sir Loki, did you understand what I just said a while ago?"


    "Huh, of course, I understood it, is there a problem?"


    "Sir Loki what I spoke wasn''t any knownnguage in this world. It''s only something a person that can use spell words could understand."


    When Loki heard what Michael said he finally realized why he was feeling so apprehensive before. He was tricked, the moment he thought of that Loki started thinking of a way out. It should be that irritating Spirit that was guiding Michael''s words.


    "Sir Loki no matter what you say now, I won''t believe that you don''t know anything about mages and mana."


    "..."


    "Sir Loki please teach me how to gather mana." Michael looked at Loki with a firm gaze. Seeing the resolve and determination in Michael''s eyes Loki hesitated. After a long pause, Loki sighed as his entire demeanor changed.


    ...


    Michael who was waiting for Loki''s answer suddenly felt a tinge of fear as the surrounding atmosphere became heavy. Michael then noticed Loki emitting an oppressive force that made him instinctively want to flee. Even the Spirit of the Akashic Records was telling him to run away. Yet despite all these warnings, Michael stood his ground.


    "So that''s how it is..."


    Loki mumbled to himself. He had tested Michael''s will by emitting his killing intent, the same killing intent that could even make an experienced warrior kneel in fear. Yet this boy that hasn''t been in a true life and death battle has stood his ground. This meant that except for death nothing will stop the boy before him.


    "Before I answer your question, I just need to know a few things. Did you activate the system the Spirit offered?"


    "Yes," Michael nodded his head.


    "I see... I''m guessing with the iplete knowledge of that Spirit he''s unable to teach you how to increase your mana supply and since all the spells it knows require more mana than what you can produce you went to me for help, isn''t that right?"


    Michael looked at Loki in awe, it was like the librarian was able to see through his thoughts. It would seem that the librarian was more mysterious than he thought.


    "... That''s right."


    Loki sighed before responding.


    "Fine, I will teach you how to gather mana and increase your mana supply, but I have one rule you need to follow. It''s a simple rule, do not tell a single soul about my capabilities. If you fail to follow this one rule, then I will make sure you''ll be unable to talk to anyone else for eternity." When Loki said hisst sentence he emitted killing intent that was three times stronger than thest. "Do you understand?"


    Michael gulped as he nodded his head. Loki then approached Michael and tapped on his forehead, he felt something suddenly enter his body.


    "Just to make sure that you keep your word I ced a spell on you. If you even think about telling my secret the spell will activate and you will go into your final sleep."


    ''Is there really such a spell.'' Michael asked the Spirit.


    ''I don''t know, my knowledge is iplete, but it is possible that there really is such a thing.''


    "Of course, you can still change your mind now, If you tell that Spirit to never suggest something like this ever again, I''ll wipe away the memory of this conversation and remove the spell I ced on you. So do you agree under all these conditions?"


    "I agree to everything, please teach me," Michael answered without any hesitation.

 Chapter 108 - Fan Site

    Loki was surprised to see that Michael did not hesitate to agree to his conditions, despite Loki saying that he had ced a spell that could kill Michael if he betrayed him. It was a fake spell Loki thought of to intimidate Michael since Loki did not want to teach. Yet Michael did something Loki never expected as he actually epted.


    Loki had nned to keep on rejecting him but seeing the determination in Michael''s eyes made it very clear that he would never give up, not to mention that look of determination always reminded him of her. Loki knew he was going to regret doing this, but.


    "Fine, as long as you hold on to your end of the deal, I will fulfill mine."


    When Michael heard Loki''s answer he looked pleasantly surprised. Michael quickly did a martial artist gesture of recognizing a master, but before he could say the words Loki stopped him.


    "There''s no need for that kind of thing. I''m just here to teach you a few things as a senior of the path, not as your master. I don''t need to be your master to teach so don''t do that."


    After that Loki exined the basics of meditation to increase one''s mana. Once he was done exining the basics Michael thanked Loki and couldn''t wait to start.


    ...


    It took Loki a few hours before Michael was done with his initial meditation. It was now five in the afternoon when he left the school. Loki took out his phone and saw that he received numerous messages. He had turned his phone silent when he was lecturing Michael so he wasn''t aware of the messages.


    Loki checked to see that his sister and Matsuri had texted him a few times. The other messages were from the random girls that he met in recent days, most of which had tricked him into giving his number. After he was done looking at the messages he saw that Harold had called him. Knowing that Harold was one of the two only people who knew he was Fade, Loki immediately contacted him.


    ...


    "Harold, why did you call, is there a problem?"


    "Oh no, no, no problem, I just got some news. Have you seen what''s happening on the inte?"


    "I don''t know, so what''s happening?"


    "Search for Fade on the and you''ll see what I''m talking about."


    Loki typed Fade on his search engine and many articles came out but the ones trending now were about numerous fan sites. On these fan sites, there was every bit of news regarding Fade, and any video sighting of him or what looks to be him. There were stories of people''s encounters with him. Depending on what fan site you look at you can find different things, but there is one thing that all the fan sites had inmon and that was an entire section dedicated to killing requests.


    In those people would anonymously post a request for an assassination. They would not name the person they wish to assassinate instead they simply told their stories as to why they wanted Fade to assassinate these people. Most of which seem to be politicians or some rich second generation a*shole.


    Of course, many of these were just jokes to relieve their stress as they fantasized about killing these people, no one truly believed that Fade would read their post and respond.


    "So did you see it?"


    "Are you talking about the fan sites?"


    "Yeah that''s it, those are the ones. Loki this is our chance. Now that many people have created these sites and the so called request board, we can use this to pick your next clients. Since their posting the reason they want someone dead you can just read those posts and you decide which one you want to take. Of course, I''ll verify their identities to see if they''re legit. So what do you think?"


    ''Hmm, this is basically no different from the way I did things back in my old world, in fact, this might be even more efficient. Also with Harold''s help, he could figure out which ones were fake.''


    "Alright, let''s do it your way."


    ...


    While Loki and Harold were discussing how to use the fan sites to their advantage, in the police station Matsuri was also looking at those fan sites but her reaction was different.


    "What the f*ck is wrong with these people?! Why can''t we just catch them all!" Matsuri screamed in the middle of the station.


    "Calm down detective Watanabe." Matsuri''s new partner Detective Janice passed her a bottle of water. After Matsuri drank the entire bottle she looked at Janice.


    "How can I calm down, these people are f*cking idiots! How can they do this sh*t, requesting someone to take another person''s life? Even if they think it''s nothing more than a joke, this just isn''t right."


    "Wee to the twenty-first century. It''s not like this is the first time theizens treated something serious as a joke."


    "Are you sure we can''t just arrest these people?"


    "No, we can''t."


    "This is so f*cking frustrating. It''s been months now since Fade first appeared, and not only are we not getting close to capturing him, many people actually made him into some kind of hero."


    Janice noticed that Matsuri was about to re up again, so she started to change the subject.


    "Let''s just stop talking about that. The case I''m really interested in is what''s happening to your rtionship with that hot guy I saw you eating with the other day."


    "H-huh, who are you talking about?" Matsuri diverted her gaze as her ears were burning red. Seeing such a cute reactioning from someone like Matsuri made Janice smile.


    "You know who I''m talking about. I still can''t believe the hard-a*s Detective Watanabe Matsuri was on a date."


    Matsuri became flustered upon mentioning the date and made a gesture for Janice to keep quiet.


    "I told you to forget about that!"


    "How can I forget about it? The Justice Freak went on an actual date with a hottie. I and everyone in the precinct thought you were married to your job and romance was thest thing on your agenda. Who knew that you were interested in the intellectual type. So are you two going out or what?"


    "Can we please stop talking about this?"


    "I won''t stop talking if you don''t start answering. In fact, if I don''t get an answer soon, I might want to speak a little louder regarding Detective MATSURI''S LOVE-" Matsuri stood up and quickly blocked Janice''s mouth.


    "Fine, I''ll tell you all about it but not here."


    Janice nodded her head as Matsuri removed her hands.


    "Fine let''s have a nice long girls talk after work.." Janice smiled mischievously.

 Chapter 109 - Shin

    Loki had just arrived and was about to open the library when he sensed someone''s presence hiding in the corner. It would seem that this person has been waiting for him there. Still, hiding didn''t seem like his strong suit as the person hiding wasn''t even suppressing his presence. Either it''s someone like Michael who doesn''t know how to do that or it''s someone who wants to be found.


    ''Should I turn around or should I y coy?''


    In the end, Loki decided to y dumb as he didn''t want to get involved with the unknown person. Loki took out the key to the library, but when he was about to put the key into the keyhole, he suddenly felt killing intent. Loki''s sharp senses had picked up a projectile from behind himing his way, Loki dropped his key and bent forward to pick it up avoiding the projectile and at the same time making it look like he avoided the attack by coincidence.


    A rock had hit the door to the library, if Loki did not avoid the rock it would''ve hit his shoulder. Loki then turned around with a look of surprise on his face. As usual Loki''s acting was perfect, as his body movment his facial expression and even his aura had potrayed shock.


    "Who threw that rock?!"


    Instead of answering Loki''s question, the person threw another rock at him. This time Loki who saw the iing rock decided not to dodge it. The rock hit him at his right shoulder hurting him a bit.


    "How disappointing, after I got discharged from the hospital I heard that a genius who directly got promoted to rank four martial artists was here, I got a little bit excited. This is really disappointing I thought you would be better. I can''t believe you''re a rank four with that level of skill."


    The one who threw the rocks came out of his hiding spot, and Loki immediately recognize who it was. The person in question was the battle-hungry Mugami Shin.


    "You just attacked me and that''s what you have to say? Shouldn''t you at least apologize?"


    "... Fine, I''m sorry about throwing a rock at you. Though normally people above rank two martial artists would be able to easily dodge those things, but I guess you''re a fake rank four."


    "A fake... Maybe I am, even so, you shouldn''t just throw rocks at people just to test them out."


    "I apologized already, what else do you want from me? It''s not like I tried to kill you, and I didn''t even throw it that hard."


    "You have a very odd way of apologizing..." Loki sighed as he looked at the weird expression on Shin''s face. "You''re lucky that I''m such a cool guy. If it were anyone else they would''ve reported you to the Principal to have you suspended or worse expelled. Alright, you can go, but I hope you don''t do this again."


    "Sure, sure," Shin waved his hands and turned around to leave.


    ''I thought it was impossible to pass the ranking test with luck... Well, maybe he has some kind of talent that I don''t know off. Still, what a letdown, I thought another opponent near my age hade.... Still, there is something weird about him. The first time he dodged that rock, the timing of his key falling... Also for some reason, it felt like he deliberately stopped his body from moving when I threw the second rock.''


    Shin was convinced that Loki was an amateur in battle, but for some reason, his sixth sense was telling him there was something wrong. There was an irritating feeling that he could not shake off. Shin who mostly relied on his instincts had turned around took a coin from his pocket and threw it with all his strength.


    He then saw Loki not only dodging the coin but actually catching it. The strength he put into throwing that coin was greater than when he threw the two rocks, making the speed of the throw iparable to the other. Also, the coin was way tinier than the rock he threw, it was even hard to spot as it flew through the air but Loki caught it.


    ...


    Loki was surprised by the thrown coin and his body move instinctively, he wasn''t able to stop it since he wasn''t expecting that surprise throw. He then saw Shin looking at him in shock, then Shin''s facial expression slowly changed into that of glee. He was smiling from ear to ear as he approached Loki.


    "Why are you smiling like that? You''re actually smiling after throwning something else at me. I already told you to stop throwing things at other people."


    Even though Loki was trying to act his way out of his current situation he knew that this battle-crazed student would no longer let him go. Loki found it a little irritating that he had made such a mistake twice now. The first time was with Michael, and now it was with this student. Still, unlike Michael who had that annoying Spirit this guy is just making his own guesses.


    ''I need to retrain myself. To be fooled twice now, I''ve been slipping too much.''


    "Now that''s what I''m talking about. So why pray tell why are you feigning weakness?"


    "Feigning weakness, what are you talking about? Enough about that, why did you throw this coin at me? Is it because I said you shouldn''t throw rocks so threw a coin instead?"


    "I''ll apologize for that as well, that was just a slip of my hand."


    "A slip of the hand?"


    "Yeah, so how about let''s start over. I''m Mugami Shin, a first-year student and rank three martial artist. May I know your name, Sir?"


    "Since you came looking for me, I thought you already knew my name, but fine... I''m Loki Matsuda, the librarian, I''m also an honorary teacher, and a rank four martial artist."


    After Loki was done making his introductions Shin showed a very menacing looking smile as he made a martial artist salute.


    "I Mugami Shin formally request a sparring bout against the honorary teacher of Sekiko Academy Loki Matsuda."

 Chapter 110 - Bothering

    "Sorry I decline, if that''s all then goodbye."


    Loki did not bother to wait for Shin''s reply as he entered the library. Shin was stunned into silence as this was the very first time someone with the status of a teacher didn''t ept his challenge for a spar. Usually, the teachers in the martial course of this school would ept any request for a spar from the students.


    Of course not only do the teachers do this to help the students improve, but they also do this because of their pride as martial artists. Unfortunately for Shin, Loki doesn''t care for either of those. Shin snaps out of his stunned state quickly burst into the library with a bang.


    "Shh, quiet down you do know this is a library."


    "Sir Loki, why won''t you ept my challenge?"


    "Why should I ept it?"


    "Aren''t you afraid that this might make you look like you''re afraid of a student? This might lower your reputation."


    "Huh, why should I care what others think of me?"


    "Then as a martial artist don''t you want to test out your strength?"


    "No, not really. So anyway, I need to get started with my work, and the bell is about to ring so you better go." After Loki spoke the school bell truly rang. Distracted for that single moment when Shin''s attention returned to Loki thattter was no longer there.


    Shin looked around and could not find a single trace of Loki it was as if he had vanished into thin air. Seeing this Shin could not help but smile.


    ''This guy is better than I thought. Now I really want to fight him.''


    ...


    When Loki saw Shin leave the library he sighed. He already knew that doing something like that would most probably excite a battle-hungry person like Shin, but waiting for him to leave would be more troublesome. Also, now that Shin has the impression that he was faking weakness, it didn''t matter what he did.


    ''This is going to be really irritating. If only I had enough mana to use a mind wipe spell... No, that won''t work either. Even if I do wipe away his memories of me being a decent martial artist, based on his personality once he relearns about me he would try to pester me again.''


    Loki sighed as he could not think of a good solution on how to avoid Shin.


    ...


    When Lunch break came Michael came as per usual but this time he brought someone unexpected with him he brought Shin with him.


    "So Sir Loki have you thought about my earlier request?"


    "That''s still a no." Loki firmly rejected Shin''s request for a spar. There was no advantage to be gained if he fought Shin. In fact, no matter if he won or lost nothing good will happen to him.


    "What can I do to change your mind."


    "You better look for someone else to challenge, since no matter what you do I won''t change my mind. Why do you want to spar with me anyway? I''m just a librarian who luckily awakened my inner energy. I''m different from you who has been training your entire life. Fighting me won''t be beneficial for either of us."


    "Well, that''s what you think. To me the mere fact that we fought is beneficial."


    "I see, I understand."


    "Then-"


    "But I still refuse."


    Loki turned around and went back to work. Since Shin was here Michael couldn''t ask Loki for help and could only find a corner were he could meditate. On the other hand, Shin was momentarily stunned but quickly recovered. He was not going to give up just because of some setbacks. As he was about to continue pestering Loki he found that he was no longer there.


    ''Even now I cannot detect the moment he leaves. Still, I''m sure he''s in the library since there are students here and he needs to attend to them.''


    It was as Shin said, Loki still needed to do his job and he found him helping students find the books they were looking for. This time Shin did not allow Loki to leave his sight as he continued to bother him all throughout lunch. He even wanted to stay in the library after the lunch break was over. When Loki heard that he alongside Shin went to the principal''s office.


    ...


    "So student Mugami wants to stay in the library."


    "Yes sir, I believe that I can improve my mental state if I stay in the library."


    The Principal was surprised by what Shin had to say. Ever since this genius of the Mugami n entered the school all he did was fight. The first thing he did was to challenge all the teachers in the martial arts course.


    Shin had actually defeated two rank four martial artists despite being a rank three. The teachers whose prides were broken by Shin had resigned. Even though the remaining teachers had won against Shin, they felt a lot of pressure.


    After he was done fighting all the teachers in school, Shin had reportedly challenged the students of other schools, to unofficial duels. As the Principal of the school, he had received numerousints. Normally if another student did this he would either be suspended or expelled, but he could not do that with Shin. All the Principal could do was give a verbal warning. This was because Shin was the heir of the Mugami n a top n. He could not afford to offend such a student.


    The Principal had no idea how to stop Shin''s rampage. In fact, he was already at wit''s end when he heard that Shin had a challenge a Caption of the Elite Dragon Brigade. So now that Shin said that he wanted to improve his mental state the Principal was so happy he almost jumped in joy.


    "Oh, that sounds wonderful! Of course, you can stay in the library. In fact, you don''t need to attend your sses. If you want you can stay in the library for as long as you want."


    When Loki heard what the Principal said his face contorted.. Seeing this Shin couldn''t help but smile at Loki.

 Chapter 111 - A Conversation

    Lunch break was ending and Kira was speaking to some of the students that were from powerful ns. As he was expanding his connections, one of his subordinates came near him and whispered something in his ear. Kira was surprised by what he heard, but it never showed on his face as he continued smiling.


    "Oh... I''m sorry everyone there is something in need of my urgent attention."


    After saying goodbye to the future influential figures of various ns he left with his subordinates. When no one else was looking the smile on Kira''s face disappeared.


    "So what was it you were saying?"


    "Shin has made contact with Loki."


    "Hmmm, what does that battle freak want with my future brother-inw?... Hmmm... Oh, of course, what else would that guy want with someone that became a rank four martial artist. So did he and my future brother-inw fight?"


    "No, Loki rejected his challenge."


    "As expected of my brother-inw, despite gaining so much power so suddenly he didn''t get drunk on it. So then what else did that battle freak do?"


    "Apparently he went to meet with the Principal."


    "Oh, that''s unusual... What does he want to do?"


    While he was talking Kira headed towards the Principal''s office.


    ...


    Back in the library, Shin was observing Loki''s movements. Now that he had more time, he started to think of ways on how he was going to change Loki''s mind. On the other hand, Loki continued to do what he usually does. The two remained silent for a few minutes before Shin broke that silence.


    "So is that all you do all day, sorting out books?"


    "Well, that is part of my job?"


    "You do nothing else?"


    "Well, that depends, sometimes, when I''m done and have nothing else to do I meditate."


    "That''s it? You don''t practice your martial arts or even try inner energy breathing techniques?"


    "Why should I do that? I might have gained inner energy, but I''m just a librarian."


    "Hmm, fine don''t tell me the truth, I''m just going to stick by you until you ept my challenge."


    "Then you''ll be staying here until you graduate."


    After that Shin stopped talking again. As the day was nearing its end, Loki was not able to properly meditate because of Shin. He could not risk gathering mana in front of Shin as this battle freak was very sharp and might notice something unusual. Loki did not want too many people to know that he knows how to use mana. Michael was already too many for him.


    "That''s alright with me, it was getting boring sitting through ss anyway." When Loki heard what Shin said he couldn''t help but sigh. He might not be able to get rid of this kid for the time being.


    "Why do you want to fight so much?" Loki suddenly asked which surprised Shin.


    "Hmm, what kind of martial artist doesn''t want to fight? What''s the point of training all the time, practicing all those forms, all those techniques, and increasing one''s strength if you don''t fight?"


    "Isn''t the point of training is to surpass one''s self, and not to surpass another person?"


    "Of course, there''s that, but to me, it''s not only that. I won''t lie to you, I love fighting, I love the thrill of battle. I like seeing how much I improved by testing my might against others. I want to see what kinds of techniques other people use. In this way, I can also improve my own techniques while I fight. In battle, I can figure out what works and what doesn''t."


    "You do know that if you keep on fighting the way you do, you would most probably meet your end in battle."


    "Then so be it, in fact, that would be the best end for me. I would rather die in the heat of battle than to die weak and old."


    "... I can''t really understand your way of thinking, what''s so fun about fighting? Getting hurt and hurting others doesn''t sound like fun to me."


    "But that''s not all there is to a fight. In a fight between equals, you would gain a deeper understanding of each other more so than if you just talk. In a battle, you can feel your opponent''s true selves. You can sense their passions, their convictions, their anger, their joy, their madness, and many other things."


    "Why do I need to fight to do that? Why can''t you just say what you''re feeling?"


    "Because words can lie, but your fists cannot."


    "Huh?" Loki could not help but show a weird expression when Shin said those words.


    "You see, if I say I don''t want to fight you, that would be a lie, but if I don''t say anything then how would you know that I was lying? In fact, I can say anything I want and you''ll never know if what I''m telling you is the truth or a lie. On the other hand, your fist can never lie like that, it might not be able to speak words, but it can send your true emotions to your opponent. If you fight as much as I do, then even you canmunicate with your fists."


    "..." Loki became silent as he remembered all of his past battles. When he fought in his old world and in this new one, he saw the true faces of his targets but that was when they were about to die, as for what they were feeling during their fights...


    The moment Loki thought of that, he suddenly came to a realization. What Shin said has some truth in it, the emotions his opponents had when they exchanged attacks were pure and he could vaguely feel what they wanted to convey. Though most of them only had anger and fear against him, there were some that actually felt pity, excitement, and relief as they fought him.


    Loki could not help but look at the battle freak in front of him in surprise. What he was saying wasn''t just pure nonsense.


    ''Where the battle freaks back in my old world the same as him? Is that why they would always feel pity for me when I end them? Were they truly able to see my inner self, through battle?''


    "I see... I apologize, I thought you were only some rowdy delinquent. It does seem that you have a reason as to why you like fighting." Loki bowed his head as he spoke.


    "So then, are you finally willing to fight me?" Shin was getting excited as his goal was in sight.


    "No."


    "But I thought you understand why I want to fight."


    Loki shrugged his shoulders as he responded. "I do understand, but that doesn''t change the fact that I don''t want to fight you." As Shin was about to say something in response the school bell rang.


    "Oh school''s over, you can go now, or are you going to stay with me until my shift is over?"


    "Of course, I''m staying. I''m not giving up until you agree to fight me."


    "You can do whatever you want, my answer will always be the same."


    ...


    While Loki and Shin were talking just outside the library sitting on a tree branch watching them was one of Kira''s subordinates.

 Chapter 112 - Meeting

    Michael arrived in the library and saw that Shin was still there and felt rather disappointed. He wanted to ask Loki more about mana and spells, but now that Shin was here he could not do that. Noticing his disappointed expression Shin started to wonder what kind of rtionship Michael and Loki had.


    "Hey, buddy what brings you here?" Shin smiled as he approached Michael.


    "Oh, I just wanted to ask Sir Loki about some books I read."


    "That''s cool, so what kind of books are you reading now?"


    "... I''m actually trying to learn more about the ult."


    "The ult so spirits, magic, and those kinds of things, right?"


    "Yeah, I thought since I couldn''t get stronger in martial arts the normal way I''ll find other ways to improve."


    Michael got excited talking about it when he suddenly realized his mistake. No one his age would even talk to him in this school, so having a conversation with Shin was refreshing. Michael lowered his head embarrassed.


    "I bet you think I''m crazy for doing this..."


    "Not at all, I respect you for looking for other ways to get stronger. Who''s to say you might actually be some sort of wizard. If you do get powerful using your method I hope to have a fair match against you someday."


    Shin smiled as he patted Michael on the shoulder. When Michael heard what Shin said he looked at him dumbfounded and then after a short pause he almost teared up but held it in, he then nodded his head and responded.


    "Sure." The two then started to have their own conversation while Loki was watching on the sidelines.


    ''I guess the guy isn''t all that bad.''


    ...


    Alisa arrived in the library and was surprised to see that his brother was apanied by two other students both of which were famous first years. One was the strongest first-year Mugami Shin and the other was the weakest first-year Michael Rosales. It was rumored that the two were friends but it was still surprising to see them together, not to mention with her brother.


    "Alisa you''re here, just wait minute, I''ll be done in a moment."


    "Alright."


    Alisa nodded her head in response as she sat in the nearby chair. While she was waiting she noticed the two freshmen were staring at her. It wasn''t unusual for her to be stared at due to her looks, but this felt different. As she was wondering why they were looking at her Shin suddenly approached her.


    "Hey, are you Sir Loki''s sister?"


    "Yes, I am."


    "Hi, I''m Mugami Shin a freshman."


    Shin extended his hand forward with the best smile he could muster. When Alisa saw this she was quite surprised. She had heard the rumors about the delinquent Shin who loved fighting more than anything, but now that she was face to face with the person it would seem that rumors were as usual an exaggeration. This kid wasn''t didn''t look like some kind of mad dog, that would bite anyone who spoke to him. Alisa happily took Shin''s hand and shook it.


    "It''s nice to meet you, I''m Alisa Matsuda, the librarian Loki Matsuda''s little sister."


    "Oh right, this guy is my friend Michael Rosales." Shin pushed Michael forward.


    "Hello," Alisa smiled as she saw the rather shy Michael.


    "... Ummm... Hello, I''m Michael... Sir Loki has helped me a lot... Umm... It''s nice to meet you." Michael could not help but lower his head as he spoke to Alisa. He felt nervous as this was the first time he spoke to a girl as beautiful as Alisa. Seeing how nervous he was made Alisa giggle.


    "It''s nice to meet you as well, Michael."


    As the three students were getting along another person entered the library. When Alisa saw the neer her smile turned into a frown.


    "Hello everyone, hmmm, why isn''t this an unusual group of people to have gathered." The neer was the ever-smiling Kira who was apanied by two subordinates.


    "What are you doing here, Kira?" Alisa''s voice sounded like a grow as she spoke.


    "Why I was going to look at some books, of course, this is a library, correct?" Kira answered while shrugging his shoulders. "Oh, if it isn''t the heir of the Mugami n, little Shin-kun how long has it been since west saw each other, a year or two?"


    "It''s been five years, Kira-nii-san," Shin answered almost indifferently which was surprisinging from him.


    "Has it been that long? That''s rather surprising seeing as we are going to the same school? Well, anyway, I heard that you have been challenging all the powerful martial artists in the area, I wonder why haven''t youe to challenge me?"


    "... It''s pointless to have a battle with you. That spar we had five years ago has made it clear that I gain nothing fighting you."


    "Is that so... That''s rather disappointing, well if you ever change your mind, you can find me anytime." After saying that Kira shifted his attention and looked at Michael who was standing behind Shin.


    "This should be the first time meeting, I''m Watanabe Kira, it''s a pleasure to meet you."


    "... Michael Rosales, it''s pleasure as well."


    While the group of students was talking to each other the school bell rang again, this was the final bell signaling that everyone in the school should leave the premises.


    "Oh look at the time, it''s already sote. Hey, I know that this might sound a bit forward, but I feelfortable with you guys. So since we''re all together how about we go out for dinner my treat of course. What do you guys say?"


    "Huh, why would I have dinner with you?" Alisa asked while frowning. Kira didn''t respond to Alisa and instead looked at Loki.


    "What do you think Sir Loki?"


    Loki who was silent this entire time stared at Kira. After a moment of silence, Loki finally responded.


    "Sorry, but I can''t have a student treating me to a meal." When Alisa heard what Loki said she smiled and was about to taunt Kira, but then she stopped when she heard what her brother said next.


    "So instead of you treating me, allow me to treat you guys to a meal."


    "Oh, if that''s what you want, thank you in advance," Kira responded while looking at Loki with curiosity.


    "How about you two are youing as well."


    "How can I refuse an invitation from Sir Loki," Shin responded.


    "... I''lle as well," Michael responded.


    "Okay then, I''ll just call my little brother over to the gate, and we''ll be off."

 Chapter 113 - Coincidental

    "Big brother, are you really going to invite that guy, to have dinner with us? You do know that he once tried to kill you."


    "I''m not really sure about that."


    Ever since Alisa told Loki of her theory that Kira was the one who pushed him into the road and thus hitting a bus, Loki, of course, tried to investigate the truth of the matter. It would''ve been easier if the memory of that night would return to him, but unlike all the other memories, everything rted to that night could not be essed at the moment, so he needed to do things in a different way.


    After looking at the clues he found, the testimonies he heard, and other sources, Loki had a vague suspicion that Kira wasn''t the real culprit. It was true that the kid was cunning and brutally decisive, and most of the evidence did point to him being the culprit. Yet if Kira truly wanted to kill Loki, after knowing that his ident attempt failed he would most likely try to kill Loki while in the hospital. Since that didn''t happen, Loki started to doubt that Kira was the one who wanted him dead. In fact, he wasn''t sure if the other person who pushed him was indeed trying to kill him.


    "What are you saying, big brother? Of course, he was the one who did it."


    "And where did you get that information?"


    "... Ah... But... He was the only one that had the motive, and the day you got hit, he was actually smiling as he spoke to me. Not only that many people said that you were thest person who spoke to him before you got hit. Many even said that you were having an argument with him."


    "Those are nothing but hearsay, we cannot judge people so quickly."


    "But-"


    "We''ll talk about this at ater date, I won''t force you to get along with him, but for now I just want you to at least try not to be so angry at him."


    Loki patted Alisa''s head as he said those words. Alisa looked at her big brother while pouting, she didn''t want to eat with Kira but after hearing what her big brother said she felt like she at least needed to try.


    "Fine, I''ll do my best."


    "Now that''s the little sister I''m so proud of."


    ...


    The group waited for Liam to arrive, once Liam was there the group was ready to set off, but before they left Kira''s twopanions had something to say.


    "Sorry about that, it seems that these two have something else to do today and won''t be able to join us."


    "Are you sure, can''t they just do whatever that is some other time?"


    When Loki said those words, the two subordinates look like they wanted to say something when they looked at Kira and stopped.


    "You heard what Sir Loki said, what do you guys think?" Kira asked with a smiling face.


    "Sorry but I really can''t, I have a ton of things I need to finish back home." The guy spoke while bowing his head.


    "I can''t go as well, I already agreed to meet someer and can''t reschedule."


    "Is that so..."


    After giving their reasons and saying their goodbyes the two left the group at the school gate. As the group was walking to the restaurant they caught the attention of the surrounding people. Seeing as their group was a group which had four of the most famous students in the school, the others couldn''t help themselves as they stared at the unusual group.


    Even though every one of them wanted to get close and join the group, they couldn''t as two of the most intimidating students were also present in the group. The two being Kira and Shin. These two were not only from powerful ns but they were also among the most powerful students in the school, making them ten times more intimidating together...


    As the group was nearing the restaurant, Loki felt a familiar presence nearby and as he turned around it was as he expected Matsuri was running towards him.


    "It really is you and you''re with-" Matsuri stopped when she noticed someone she didn''t expect to see within the group of people. The smile and excitement on her face disappeared and were quickly reced with a frown.


    "Oh, if it isn''t Matsuri-nee-chan. It''s been such a long time, how are you?"


    "So it really is you, Kira... What are you doing here?" Matsuri''s voice suddenly turned into an indifferent one which surprised Alisa and Liam.


    "Well, Sir Loki here invited me and the others for a meal. So Matsuri-nee-chan knows Sir Loki as well, now that''s a surprise."


    "I told you many times before Kira, I don''t like it when you lie like that."


    "What do you mean?"


    "... I hate it when you do that, making a face as if you don''t understand a thing despite understanding everything. I already told you before that you better stop lying in front of me, or else."


    As the atmosphere between the two was getting even more intense as they stared at each other. After a while, Kira sighed as he shrugged his shoulders.


    "Fine, I''ll stop."


    "Hmph, you should''ve done that from the start."


    "Umm... How do you two know each other?" Alisa who was finally able to enter their conversation asked the question most of them had. Matsuri finally remembered that the others were present and as she looked at their curious expressions she sighed before answering.


    "This sly kid that''s full of lies and knows nothing but deceit is my cousin, the son of my father''s older brother."


    Alisa, Liam, and even Loki were shocked by this revtion while Michael and Shin were a bit confused as they didn''t even know who Matsuri was.


    "You could say I''m her little brother."


    "You''re no brother of mine, you stinking brat."


    "Why must you always be so aggressive Nee-chan, this is why the guys keep on distancing from you, and you can never get a boyfriend."


    "W-w-what are you saying?!" Matsuri shouted and casually nced at Loki, it was just for a brief moment but Kira was able to catch that detail.


    ''Oh now, this is interesting.'' Kira smiled mischievously, the other people might not have noticed the difference between his usual smile and the current one, but Matsuri knew.


    "I don''t know what you''re thinking about, but you better stop."


    "Hmm, I wonder... So Sir Loki, what''s your rtionship with my dear big sis, it seems like you two know each other."


    Matsuri red at Kira as if saying ''What the f*ck are you asking?! You already know the answer but you still dare ask!'', while Kira simply ignore the ring cousin of his.


    "Well, she''s a friend."


    "That''s it?"


    "That''s all, what else should it be?"


    When Matsuri heard Loki''s reply she looked a bit defeated but it was only for a moment before she quickly regained herposure. On the other hand, Kira snickered as he observed Loki, Matsuri, Alisa, and Liam''s reactions.


    ''I see, so that''s how it is, this might be a more fun dinner than I initially thought.''


    While they were having their conversation, Michael and Shin were watching at the side still confused about what was happening.

 Chapter 114 - Ambushed

    "So you guys are going out to eat, how about I-" Matsuri wasn''t able to finish what she was going to say as somebody grabbed hold of her shoulders. It was a woman with red hair that was in a ponytail, wearing a white blouse and leather jacket, she had a pretty face shaped like a diamond, and her body looked tight and athletic.


    "Detective Matsuri what do you think you''re doing? We still have work to do. Sorry, everyone, I would like to properly meet you guys, but we''re on the clock. So have a nice evening." Before Matsuri could even get a word in Janice pulled her away.


    The group was bewildered by how Matsuri came and departed like a storm, on the other hand, Kira was amused at the sequence of events. He was also quite curious about Matsuri''s new partner as he wasn''t given any information about her.


    ''Hmm, the mole I ced in the Police Station did stop sending me new information just a few days ago. I guess he was caught, I wonder could it be rted to that woman?''


    ...


    The group was finally able to arrive at the restaurant and started eating their fill. While eating, Kira tried many times to initiate a conversation with Alisa but couldn''t. After a while, Kira switched targets and started speaking with Liam, but that proved to be useless as well.


    On the other hand, Shin tried to ask Loki for a duel one time and when he got rejected again he started speaking to Michael.


    "So Michael did you find anything to help you improve your strength in those ult books of yours?"


    "Actually, I found several ways that could help with strengthening one''s body."


    "Oh, that''s interesting."


    Loki who was silently watching everyone eat noticed that there were a few people looking at them. There were the obvious ones who weren''t really good at hiding their presence, but there were also formidable ones who were quite adept in this field. There were also others that were among the normal group of people eating in the restaurant that seem to be monitoring them.


    Based on their line of sight it would seem that their targets were Shin and Kira. Many of the easy-to-spot ones were looking at Shin, while the harder-to-spot ones seem to be targeting Kira. Using his mana sense Loki knew that several battles had already urred just outside the restaurant.


    ''Hmm, of course, Shin and Kira should have several bodyguards present. This must be a daily thing for them then. Still, two of those bodyguards are actually quite strong, as strong as the head guard in the Martial Arts Department Building, that must mean they''re ranked nine to ten martial artists. As expected of heirs of powerful ns their bodyguards are no joke.''


    Unaware of what was happening outside the others continued to eat. After they were done with their meal, the group exited the restaurant and what greeted them was a car with several men emitting powerful auras standing before them.


    "Young Master, we havee to escort you home." The men bowed before Kira.


    ''These were the guys outside the restaurant. So all of them were Kira''s bodyguards, then does that mean Shin doesn''t have any?''


    "My ride''s here, if you guys want I can call for more cars to bring you home," Kira spoke while gesturing for one of the men toe near him.


    "No need for that, we''ll just walk home." Loki quickly declined before Alisa could say anything.


    "I won''t be going with you as well." Shin also declined while shrugging his shoulders.


    "Alright then, how about you, do you need a ride?" Kira looked at Michael who was hiding at the back of the group.


    "... Thank you for your kind offer... Senpai... But I think I''ll walk as well."


    "Well, alright then see you guys tomorrow, and good night my lovelydy." Kira smiled at Alisa who look like she wanted to bite off his head. Despite wanting to say something snarky Alisa held back and kept quiet. Seeing her react in such a way actually surprised Kira, who then chuckled as he entered the car and left. The bodyguards bowed at Loki and the others before leaving as well.


    Once Kira was gone, Michael also went home after thanking Loki for the meal. Loki and his siblings also headed home, but they had one extra person with them.


    "Shin, why are you following us?"


    "Hm, oh, I''m not following you this is also my way home."


    "Really?" Loki asked while looking at Shin suspiciously.


    "Of course, why else would I follow you?"


    Even if Shin was telling the truth he didn''t really want Shin following him and his siblings. Loki had noticed that ever since they had left the restaurant several people have been following them. It would seem that Shin was not really good at these kinds of things and was not able to sense them, or it could be that he already sensed them but doesn''t really care, either way, things were about to get a little rowdy.


    When they reached an empty street the people that were following them finally appeared. They were wearing uniforms from another school that was close to Sekiko Academy. After a few seconds, they had already surrounded Shin, Loki, and his siblings.


    "Mugami Shin, I heard that you''re the one who beat up my little brother. I''vee to return the favor" The leader of the group of students stepped forward while ring at Shin.


    ''Based on the aura he''s emitting he should be a rank three martial artist same as Shin.'' Loki looked at the student curiously. On the other hand, Shin sighed as he scratched his head looking at the students that surround them.


    "Sorry guys, but I don''t want to do this today. So how about you step aside and we can do this some other time?"


    "Sure, we would dly let you go after we''re done beating you up.. As for you three, I don''t have any grudge against you, but count yourself unlucky for being friends with this crazy fool."

 Chapter 115 - Who Are You?

    The moment the leader of the students from another school threatened to hurt his siblings, Loki could not stop himself as he started to emit a bone-chilling killing intent directed at that person. No one else was able to sense it but the leader of the group of students. The moment he sensed Loki''s killing intent the student knelt on the ground trembling in fear. He could not understand what was happening to him, but after a second the intense fear he felt suddenly disappeared.


    Loki was able to calm himself before he did anything, in fact, he almost killed the student standing before him. Loki truly wanted to tear him apart, for daring to threaten his siblings, but, he knew that doing so wasn''t something his siblings would want.


    ...


    Since no one else felt the killing intent Loki emitted, everyone was confused as to what happened to the student. Even Shin wasn''t able to perceive what just happened, but his instincts were telling him that it was Loki that had done something. This, of course, made Shin even more excited to reach the day that Loki finally epts his challenge. Once the effect of the Killing intent disappeared the student was able to stand up.


    "Are you okay?" One of the student''spanions asked, but the leader of the group was still in a daze and did not respond.


    "So is that it, are we done here?"


    "..."


    When the group heard Shin''s question they looked at each other unsure what to do. The only reason they came here was because of their boss who wanted to get revenge for his little brother. They didn''t really have any grudge against Shin, not to mention without their boss they wouldn''t be a match for Shin as most of them were just rank two martial artists.


    Seeing that the group of students didn''t know how to respond Shin couldn''t help but sigh. He didn''t know what happened to their leader but it was obvious that the person was unfit to face him now.


    "As I said before, you guys bettere back some other time. Don''t worry I won''t run away from any battle so here tell that guy he can contact me on this number. He can tell me when and where he wants to fight and I''ll be there."


    Shin took out a pen and paper from his bag and wrote a special phone number he uses for those who wish to challenge him. After he was done giving the number to one of them he, Loki, Alisa, and Liam left.


    ...


    "What was that all about?" Liam whispered.


    "How should I know?... Still, Shin is famous for having fights with anyone that''s willing. It''s obvious that those guys came for revenge." Alisa answered while ncing at Shin who was walking behind them.


    Alisa and Liam then continued their conversations on rumors about Shin. After a while, Alisa suddenly pulled Loki into the conversation.


    "What do you think about that big brother, is that rumor true?"


    "Why are you asking me? How about instead of asking me, you just ask the person in question directly. Hey, Shin, I''m sure you heard that conversation of theirs, so is it true? Is a beautiful woman chasing after you and you actually promised to marry her?"


    "You guys are talking about Haruhi, I guess that rumor is sorta true."


    "Huh, what do you mean sorta true?"


    "You see when we were little our parents came to an agreement that we would be betrothed. For some reason the first time we met she said that she didn''t want to marry me, and I felt the same way. So we told our parents about it and the engagement was easily canceled. I thought that would be the end of that, but for some reason, after some time Haruhi actually confessed her love for me and wanted to be my girlfriend. So I told her I wasn''t interested, as I was more interested in fighting and getting stronger than ying lovers. She then challenged me to a fight and said that if she won I should be her boyfriend. I of course, as per usual epted the challenge. We fought and she lost. After that, she promised that one day she would surpass me, and then I would be hers. So every several months she woulde to challenge me to a fight."


    Loki, Alisa, and Liam were amazed by what Shin said. They were already expecting him to say that rumor was a joke, but it turns out that it wasn''t. Some girl out there actually likes this battle-hungry person. The siblings then looked at Shin with dumbfounded expressions.


    ''Well, I guess he is sorta handsome, and some girls do like powerful men.'' Alisa thought as she looked at Shin''s muscr body.


    ...


    After that shocking revtion, the trip to the house became oddly quiet. When they finally reached their house, Loki looked at Shin.


    "This is our house, so this is where we part."


    "I see, thanks for the meal Sir Loki, see you tomorrow." Shin waved his hands as he walked away. Liam and Alisa waved their hands in response. Once Shin took a turn in the street corner Liam and Alisa entered the house while Loki remained outside. Loki looked in the direction where Shin went and sighed.


    ''I guess, I am technically responsible for his safety since I invited him to a dinner outside.'' Loki went to his room got changed into his Fade look, and headed out to follow Shin.


    ...


    After parting ways with Loki and his siblings, Shin took out his phone and sent a message.


    ''Hey, I want you to buy me a house, near this location.'' After sending the message he got a quick reply.


    ''When do you need it?''


    ''The sooner the better.''


    ''As you wish, young master.''


    Shin ced his phone back in his pocket and when he looked at the road ahead he saw someone wearing a white mask and ck trench coat blocking the path forward.


    "That''s a nice costume, among the Fade cosyers yours looks high quality. So anyway, seeing as your blocking my path, I''m guessing you need something from me, right?"


    "Mugami Shin, you have done numerous evil deeds and I''ve been hired to eliminate you." The person spoke in a low tone as he took out a dagger from his coat.


    "Oh, is that so? Then that must mean you''re not a cosyer but the real deal, is that correct?"


    The person who looked like Fade did not answer as he took another dagger out while emitting killing intent.


    "The silent treatment? Come on now, since you''re going to kill me and all that, why not answer the question?... Fine, since you don''t want to answer I will answer for you. You are not Fade, I''ve seen the real deal and you''re not remotely close. True that your costume looks the same, but your aura is different. The real one doesn''t emit any kind of aura, even though he''s standing right in front of you, it''s as if he isn''t really there. Not to mention he has that overpowering killing intent of his that could suffocate you.. On the other hand, your killing intent isn''t even lukewarmpared to the real thing. So let me ask you a different question if you''re not Fade, who are you?"

 Chapter 116 - Protected

    "Since you''re going to die I will tell you, I am Fade." Hearing the Fade look-alike''s answer made Shin frown.


    "Huh, I already told you that you can''t be the real deal, so why do you keep on lying?"


    "It seems that you have misunderstood something here, there isn''t just one Fade."


    "What? Are you saying that Fade is not a name of a person but an organization?"


    "No that''s not what I meant. Fade is a symbol of those that want to do what is right. To fight for the little people who could not fight for themselves."


    Shin might not be able to see what was under the mask, but he could certainly hear the reverence, obsession, the madness in the Fake Fade''s voice.


    "Fade has shown as the way, he is our guiding light."


    "... Is that so... But you said a while ago that you''ve been hired, that would mean that you''ve been given payment, right? Doesn''t that mean, that you aren''t really doing this for the good of others, but for yourself?"


    "I was hired to kill you but no one paid me anything. I simply do this to get the justice that they could not achieve on their own."


    "Then tell me what is the sin that I havemitted that requires my death for it to be absolved?"


    "You have harmed others in your pursuit of strength. That in itself is not worthy of death, but not only did you harm them, but you even killed and humiliated your opponents. Using your n''s power you''ve been able to continue living a rather carefree life, but that ends today."


    "Huh? What the f*ck are you saying, who the heck killed people?"


    "Hmph, there''s no use denying it now. I was already informed of all of your misdeeds."


    "What misdeeds?! What proof do you have, that I''ve killed people?!"


    "Of course, there isn''t any proof since your family erased all evidence. Enough talk, time for you to die!"


    The Fake Fade threw one of his daggers, and Shin easily dodged it. The Fake Fade then rushed forward while throwing dagger after dagger. Shin was able to easily dodge all of the Fake''s daggers. The Fake then tried to stab Shin, but Shin was able to easily grab the Fake''s arm.


    "What the f*ck is this, you''re so weak?! I thought with all that big talk you made, you would at least be a decent assassin, but you''re a weakling. Now that I got a good look at you, you''re also rather short..."


    Shin grabbed the mask of the struggling Fake, despite the Fake''s struggle Shin was able to remove the mask. Shin was surprised to see who was underneath the mask.


    "A girl?" It was a young girl who seem to be around fourteen years old. She struggled to break free from Shin''s grip even biting Shin''s hand but it was useless.


    "Let go of me you monster!" Unlike before when she was speaking through the mask, the young girl''s voice was rather cute.


    "You look familiar, where have I seen you before?... Oh, wait... I remember you''re the sister of Takahashi Ren, your name was... Fubuki, right?"


    Fubuki did not answer as she continued to struggle and get away from Shin.


    "So did you do all of this to avenge your brother?"


    "Damn it! It''s all your fault! It''s because of you my perfect, strong, handsome, confident, big brother became a mess! Now he won''t even step out of his room, and he keeps on muttering, some weird things like that he''s not the protagonist. All because he lost to a b*stard like you, who only knows how to fight!"


    When Shin heard what Fubuki said he sighed.


    "I''m sorry about what happened to your brother, but you do know he was the one who challenged me. So anyway all those things about you idolizing Fade and you having proof of me killing someone were just lies?"


    "Hmph, it wasn''t lies, I truly do believe in what Fade represents. Also, I heard that many people have been going around doing vignte work while wearing Fade''s attire. So I kinda wanted to use Fade''s fame to scare you... As for you killing someone, who''s to say if that''s true or not. Since you like fighting so much, who knows if you really killed someone already."


    "You shouldn''t do this kind of stuff, I could''ve badly hurt you!" Shin angrily scolded Fubuki, who then started to tear up a bit.


    "Whoah, wait, don''t-" Shin wasn''t able to finish what he was going to say as Fubuki started to cry. Shin did not know what to do as he panicked trying his best to calm Fubuki down.


    ...


    While Shin and Fubuki were doing their thing, Fade was on the roof of a house a kilometer away facing off against assassins. These were the assassins following Shin since he and the others left the restaurant. The assassins were about to strike while Fubuki and Shin were fighting. One of the assassins had a rifle and was about to shoot, but Fade was able to knock him out before he pulled the trigger.


    The remaining two assassins did not expect someone to spot them and were surprised which dyed their reaction, using this opportunity Fade was able to knock out another assassin, so now only one was left. The final assassin took out a handgun with a silencer and red at Fade.


    "So you''re the rumored assassin, Fade. Why are you getting in the way of our work?... Do you also have a contract to kill that boy?"


    "No, I do not."


    "Then why are you doing this?"


    "It doesn''t matter why, just take yourrades and leave."


    "Sorry, but I can''t do that. Our employer isn''t someone who likes failure."


    The assassin started shooting at Fade who was able to evade by jumping upward, when the assassin raised his gun Fade quickly threw a needle into the gun''s barrel. Unable to shoot anymore the assassin discarded the gun and took out his knives, as he was about to charge at Fade he was surprised to see that Fade was no longer in front of him. The assassin quickly took out a smoke bomb and was about to toss it when he suddenly felt a powerful strike hit him at the back of the neck and he lost consciousness.


    Once Fade was sure that all the assassins following Shin were neutralized he used his wires to tie them up.


    ''These guys were around the level of a rank three martial artist same as Shin, they were also using heavy equipment. Even a martial artist above Shin''s level could be killed by this rifle. If this is the level of the people trying to assassinate Shin, and with that kid''s weak detection ability then how was he able to survive until now?''


    It was at that moment Shin looked in Fade''s direction. Fade was rather surprised to see Shin look in this direction as if he could spot him. After a few seconds of staring in his direction, Shin shrugged his shoulders and went back toforting Fubuki.


    ''I guess that answers my question, this kid has animal-like instincts. If that''s true then howe he didn''t sense the presence of these assassins? Does he not care, or does his instincts only work once someone tries to attack him? No then howe he noticed me, I wasn''t even trying to harm him?... Did he already know that he was being followed and was just waiting?... I better stop thinking about it, since I won''t get any answers.''


    Fade shook his head as he carried the three unconscious assassins, brought them to an empty alleyway, and called the police to pick them up.

 Chapter 117 - Final Struggle

    In a soda factory just outside of Leim City, a group of people was having a meeting inside, and with them were their heavily armed guards.


    "This sh*t is just getting worse by the day! What the f*ck are we going to do?!"


    A man with several scars on his face pounded on the table as he shouted at the others. This was Reo Manolo the man who controls thergest drug Cartel in the city.


    "Calm down Reo, getting angry and pounding on the table won''t solve anything."


    This time the one who spoke was a middle-ageddy with a voluptuous body wearing heavy make-up. This was Catherine Walker, the person who owns most of the brothels in Leim City as well as the underworld boss that deals with human trafficking.


    "Why the f*ck are we having this little meeting anyway? Shouldn''t we just go and shoot that guy to death. It doesn''t matter if he''s an urban legend, an assassin, or even a martial artist, a lead bullet to the head can kill anything."


    The person who spoke was a rather fat nicely dressed man who was wearing sunsses despite it being nighttime, he also had numerous guns on him. This was Lucas Jones an illegal and at the same time legal arms dealer.


    "Sure that''s a great idea why haven''t I thought of that, oh right! Because it''s not f*cking possible! If we knew where this guy was hiding, we would''ve smoked him already! Can you shoot what you can''t see, you f*cking moron!"


    The one who shouted at Lucas was a muscr man with a lot of tattoos on his body. This was Booker Williams thest remaining loan shark in Leim City, he had absorbed all the other gangs who were in the same business into his. As Lucas and Booker were having a heated argument the final person sighed as he massaged his forehead.


    "This is getting us nowhere so everyone shut up!"


    A man with an intimidating aura spoke, this man looked rather weak but among the people present he was considered the strongest when it came to actual fighting. This was Takahashi Hiro a lone martial artist. He was what you would call a jack of all trades in the underworld.


    "How low have we fallen, cowering in fear from a single man. We used to rule this city, the police used to be under our pockets and no one would dare cross us, and even the Elite Dragon Brigade had given up trying to bring us down. We used the veryws that protect the ones we harm to our advantage, there was nothing anyone could do. Yet now one by one we''re being killed and none of us could retaliate."


    When the others heard what Booker had to say the group became quiet. They looked at each other, and they saw the fear and anxiety they had hidden deep within.


    "This guy is good at what he does, he''s very efficient. He doesn''t kill anyone else except for the boss of the group. Even now no one has even confirmed that he truly exists, except for that one video when he made his announcement we couldn''t find any trace of him. Even the Eye of Truth can''t figure out that assassin''s true identity. This guy is like a ghost, how do you fight a ghost?" Catherine asked while taking out a cigarette. The group once again became quiet.


    "So what, are we just going to sit here and wait for our deaths?!" Reo once again pounded on the table while gnashing his teeth.


    "We''re not waiting for our deaths, that''s why we''re here," Catherine answered.


    "Didn''t I already give an answer? Since the motherf*cker is going toe after us sooner orter, we should prepare an ambush. So once hees to get us we rain down the f*cking bullets into his sh*tty face!" Lucas once again suggested.


    "How many times do we have to tell you that ain''t going to work! Some of the others already tried to do that, and you know what happened to them? They''re f*cking dead!"


    Booker answered looking at Lucas as if he was an idiot. The two then started bickering while the others chimed in here and there. As the group''s discussion was heating up, Hiro started tapping on the table. For some reason once Hiro started doing that the others stopped talking and all of them looked at Hiro.


    "How about we hire a ghost to kill a ghost?" Hiro suddenly suggested.


    "A ghost, so another assassin?"


    "Yeah, why didn''t we think of that before. An assassin to deal with an assassin."


    "Still, there is no assassin in the city that could match up with Fade."


    "Then we look elsewhere... We should hire an assassin that''s in the Dark Rankings."


    Hearing Booker''s suggestion the group nodded their heads in agreement. The Dark Rankings was a ranking board with the top five hundred assassins in the world. It was rumored that those that were in the top ten of the rankings were people that were able to assassinate peak Grandmaster-level martial artists without being seen. Those at the top ten were all legendary figures that had rarely failed to kill their targets, especially the one forever in the number one spot who has a hundred percent jobpletion rate.


    "Aren''t those guys in the Dark Rankings expensive?" Reo asked while looking hesitant.


    "Does it matter? It''s either money or our lives, I choose our lives, so what do you want to pick?" Booker responded while ring at Reo.


    "If we all chip in, we should be able to get an assassin in the top three hundred."


    "So does everyone agree to this n?" Hiro asked and the group responded with a nod. "Then we should prepare the cash and contact our killer."


    "... What should we do if this fails?" Reo who still wasn''t fully sold to the idea asked.


    "If this fails, then we better prepare our coffins.." Hearing Hiro''s answer made everyone else frown as they red at him.

 Chapter 118 - A Normal Day

    4:00 a.m


    Loki wakes up and starts his breathing exercises, once he warms up he starts practicing the stances he created to fully utilize his inner energy. Each stance he does makes his inner energy flow smoothly through his body. While he does this he also uses a little bit of his mana and interacts it with his inner energy.


    In the beginning, his inner energy and mana were like oil and water unable to blend together, but now little by little he could feel that he could merge them without too much of a bacsh.


    ...


    After he was done with his morning exercises the next thing Loki would do was check the list Harold sends him for his next assassination job. It has already been several months since he had arrived in this world and the crime rate in Leim City has drastically reduced.


    The minor gangs have either been dealt with by him or have disbanded in fear of him. As for the bigger fishes, Loki had already dealt with most of them and only a few were left, and those few were thergest of the bunch.


    ''I guess since they''re nearing extinction the next thing they would do is gather into a group and help each other. So sometime soon they should be setting up some kind of trap for me. I wonder what kind of trap they hadid forth...''


    Loki then started to visualize numerous scenarios of what could happen once those remaining big bosses fight back.


    He already had a good feel of the city and knew most of the paths. There were also his spells that most martial artists would have trouble dealing with. As long as he doesn''t face someone at the Grandmaster rank he should be able to do something.


    ...


    6:00 a.m


    Loki started to prepare for work as he took a quick bath and after he got dressed he double-checked the equipment he was hiding. Once he was done doing that he heads downstairs where he could already smell his little sister''s cooking.


    The three siblings then start eating while having some random conversations. Nowadays Liam would usually talk about his progress in learning the fist techniques he recently acquired. Alisa would also tell Loki of her progress in learning the movement technique she borrowed from a ssmate.


    ...


    As Loki and his siblings were about to head to school, they suddenly heard a familiar voice calling them.


    "Hey, good morning you three."


    Loki sighed as he saw the approaching Shin. It''s already been two weeks since he started joining them on their walk to school. During the first time he came, Loki, Alisa, and Liam were shocked to see hime by so early. Shin then showed them his house which was surprisingly one block away from the Matsuda siblings.


    "Good morning, Shin-aniki."


    Over the past two weeks, Liam and Shin''s rtionship had improved greatly. Liam was fascinated by Shin''s way of life. To Liam, the way Shin challenged fighter after fighter to improve his strength was what Liam considered how a true martial artist should act.


    "So how is your progress in those fist techniques I lent you?"


    "I''ve been doing great, I can finally do the first three forms."


    "Wow, you got great talent kid. If you improve some more you and I could probably start sparring."


    "Really?!"


    "Of course," Shin was about to ruffle Liam''s hair but before he could touch it, Loki had unconsciously grabbed Shin''s hand. Everyone including Loki was surprised by what he did, especially Shin. He didn''t even notice Loki''s movement. As soon as he came back to his senses Loki quickly let go of Shin''s hand.


    "Sorry, about that I don''t know why I did that."


    "No worries, so are you finally ready to fight me?" Shin got excited as his battle intent rose.


    "No thank you," Loki quickly rejected him which made Shin feel devastated. He was already so excited he thought that today was the day he gets to fight Loki. Still, he was quick to recover and Shin simply shrugged his shoulders and responded.


    "Another time then."


    ...


    6:40 a.m


    Loki arrives in the library alongside Shin who was now considered his assistant. Loki had tried to tell the Principal that a student should attend sses and not just stay in the library all day, but to his surprise, the Principal said that Shin doesn''t need to attend any sses. It turns out, Shin and Kira had special exemptions and only need to take the mid-term tests and the finals, aside from that they don''t really need to go to school.


    The only reason Kira even bothers going to school was to create connections. He was also mostly here for Alisa. Shin, on the other hand, used toe to school and head to ss to see how much his peers were improving. Once they reached a certain level he would then proceed to challenge them to a fight.


    Yet nowadays he no longer does that instead, he keeps on bothering Loki, for the entire day. Every hour of the day he would challenge Loki to a fight, and of course, Loki would reject him.


    Loki could not understand what Shin''s n was or if he even had a n. He was theplete opposite of the scheming Kira and was too straightforward.


    Well, overall Shin wasn''t too much of a bother, and after some time Loki was able to ignore him while he meditates.


    ...


    12:30 p.m:


    During the lunch break, Michael would arrive in the library and ask for some pointers from Loki regarding mana. Of course, he doesn''t directly say it since Shin was present, instead, the two had learned a mental link spell from the Spirit. Using this spell once they were a meter away from each other they couldmunicate telepathically.


    Michael had improved greatly in the few weeks since Loki taught him the basics of how to increase one''s mana supply. It would seem that even though the Spirit''s knowledge was iplete it was still rather smart and could help Michael improve greatly with just the basics.


    Shin also started gaining a bit of interest in the ult because of Michael. After he was done getting advice from Loki, Michael and Shin would start having rather intense conversations about the ult.


    Every now and then, Shin would offer Michael to stay in the library, saying that he could pull some strings for Michael to have the same exemption as him. Michael was rather tempted by the offer, and even the Spirit of the Akashic Records kept on nagging him to ept, but in the end, he did not. Seeing, as unlike Shin who was surprisingly smart and could easily pass the written exams, Michael had no such talent, so he still needed to attend sses.


    ...


    5:00 p.m


    Loki would finish cleaning up in the library and would go home alongside his siblings and Shin. There were also times that Matsuri would arrive and apany them, but today was not one of those times.


    What surprised Loki was after the dinner they had as a group, Kira did not force himself to walk with them like what Shin did. He was also expecting Kira to do the same thing as Shin and buy a house close to them, but to his amazement, Kira did not end up doing that.


    ...


    5:20 p.m


    Loki and his siblings arrive at their house and part ways with Shin. Alisa then starts to prepare for dinner.


    6:00 p.m


    The siblings have their dinner, and while they eat they start talking about their day. Nowadays Liam''s stories would usually revolve around his rising poprity in school. Alisa''s stories were more of how well she was doing in school. On the other hand, Loki would tell his two siblings about what kind of books some of the students like reading.


    It was a rather mundane everyday kind of dinner, nothing really happens, but for some reason, this was Loki''s favorite part of the day.


    8:00 p.m


    Once everyone was in their room, Loki changes into his Fade persona. Loki would then inform Harold of the client he was going to help for the day. Once they make a confirmation, Loki would head to the location Harold choices for him.


    ...


    11:00 p.m


    Loki woulde back home clean his wounds if he has any and then take a bath.. After he''s done with his bath Loki wouldy down on his bed contemting on the day he had, and after a while, he would go to sleep.

 Chapter 119 - The Dark Rankings

    It was a Saturday night when Loki suddenly received a call from Harold. The very moment Loki answered the call he heard a shout.


    "Loki they hired an assassin to kill you!" Harold spoke in a panic. Loki''s ears hurt a bit as he ced the phone in his ear when Harold suddenly shouted.


    "Slow down Harold, once you calm yourself tell me what you want to tell me properly."


    Loki waited patiently for Harold to calm down, he even started to think if he should just go to Harold''s ce. It took a bit of time, but Harold was finally able to calm himself down.


    "Alright, have you calmed down?"


    "Yes," Harold answered still sounding a bit rattled but overall better than before.


    "So what was it that you wanted to tell me."


    "While I was looking at the ounts of the remaining big bosses in the city, I noticed that all of them lost quite a sum of money and it happened at the same time. I was curious to see what happened so I checked to see what happened to the money. It took a bit of effort, but these bosses or those they hired weren''t really able to avoid my detection, once I sessfully took a look where all the money went I was shocked. These bosses actually hired an assassin that is named in the dark rankings to kill you."


    "Oh, is that so... Wait for me I''ll head to your ce right now, so you can tell me more about this."


    ...


    Harold waited for Loki to arrive in his room and as he waited he got a little bit worried. He was sure that there was no way that someone was able to notice his rtionship with the assassin Fade, even the Eye of Truth wasn''t able to figure that out.


    ''It''s alright, as long as no one guesses who Fade truly is, then I''m safe...''


    Harold then pulled out the gun hidden under his table. He bought this gun on the dark web a few weeks ago. It was a modified gun that could harm martial artists, holding the handle was able to calm Harold down.


    "Hey," Harold was startled as he pointed the gun from where he heard the voice. As he was about to pull the trigger, he no longer felt the gun in his hand. He then saw Loki holding it and looking at him with a stern expression.


    "You do know this isn''t a toy?" Loki took out the gun''s magazine and tossed it back to Harold.


    "I know, I bought it to protect myself." Harold caught the gun and ced it back in the hiddenpartment under his table.


    "Well, I guess if it''s for self-defense... We''ll talk about that at ater date, for now, tell me more about that assassin from the Dark Rankings, actually before that tell me what is the Dark Rankings?"


    "The Dark Rankings is a ranking system for assassins. It was created years ago by the government of various countries, it was originally a list of the best assassins that these countries could not catch. Nowadays people use it to see which assassin is the best to hire. The ranking starts at the lowest which is ranked five hundred and the highest is technically ranked one, but there is an urban legend that there is a number zero."


    "Hmm, how good are the assassins in these Dark Rankings?"


    "The people in the rankings are the best of the best, the weakest one could easily kill many rank five martial artists without being seen. The ones at the very top could kill peak Grandmasters."


    "They''re that good... Wait, since there''s a ranking like this, is Fade in the rankings?"


    When Harold heard Loki''s question he awkwardly smiled as he scratched his head. After a short pause, he finally answered.


    "Umm... Truth be told, Fade isn''t in the rankings."


    "Huh?" Seeing the weird expression on Loki''s face, Harold quickly shook his hands.


    "It''s not because you''re not a good assassin or anything. The only way to get into the rankings is if you have targetted Martial Artists Rank five and above, and not just once you must''ve done it numerous times. Since the only ones you''ve killed were mostly non-martial artists your skills aren''t really being appreciated and you won''t get into the rankings. The only other way to enter the rankings is if you kill an assassin in the Dark Rankings."


    "Hoh is that so... Do you know who they hired and what rank that person is in the Dark Rankings?"


    "Don''t underestimate me, while waiting for you to arrive, I did some digging around. The Government has detailed files for every assassin in the Dark Rankings, and those assassins that were ranked three hundred and lower had their information practically out in the open. As for the higher-ranking assassins, it would take me quite some time before I can retrieve them."


    "Won''t the Government notice you essing those files?"


    "They won''t... Now if it were the files from the assassins ranked above three hundred then I might''ve made a mistake and it could have been possible to trace me, but the file I took was easy enough to ess that I didn''t make any mistakes."


    "So I guess the ones those bosses hired was a low-ranked assassin in the Dark Rankings?" Loki frowned as he felt that he was being underestimated.


    "Not really, and don''t sound so disappointed. Hiring an assassin from the Dark Ranking requires an astronomical amount of money. I heard that those rank one hundred and higher require you to pay more than what a small country earns in a year. Then there are those in the top ten, you can''t hire them with money, they are said to need something else as payment. As for the one hired to kill you, it''s this guy."


    Harold pointed at one of his monitors. The picture on the monitor was that of a nicely dressed man wearing a tuxedo. The man was rather handsome with grey hair and blue eyes, he looked like a mature gentleman in the picture.


    "This man is John Ray, also known as ''The Elegant Scorpion''. He''s ranked three hundred and two in the Dark Rankings. His total known kill count is one hundred ny-nine. Surprisingly his weapon of choice isn''t poison-rted, but his customized sniper rifle that he named the Scorpion.. His most famous kill was of a martial arts genius that was supposed to participate in the famous decade tournament."

 Chapter 120 - Making Preparations

    "Okay so is this guy a martial artist or not?"


    "There is no information regarding that in his file, so I''m unsure, but if I have to guess, usually people in the assassin business would destroy all information about their pasts. So even if he is a martial artist he wouldn''t be a registered one. Still, since he''s someone that could kill a genius rank five martial artist, that could have entered the decade tournament, then I think he should be a martial artist. I can''t imagine a normal person even with a booster could keep up with a martial artist of that level."


    "Ok then do you have any information on what kind of gun is this Scorpion of his?"


    "Oh, that one was easier to find info on. The Scorpion is a customized Barrett M82, the customizations made were of course to deal with Martial Artists. The Barrett M82 by itself could already kill lower-ranked Martial Artists but after its modification, it was reported that it could even harm someone on the Grandmaster rank."


    When Loki heard that this weapon could harm Grandmasters he remembered the two Grandmasters he recently met. The power of the Grandmaster rank in this world was simr to a knightmander from his previous world or a three-star mage. In his current state, the only way he could win against someone of the Grandmaster rank was if hebines his mana and inner energy. Even then he would need a lot of luck to win.


    He then remembered the young man he fought during the attack on the Martial Arts Department. If not for his vastly superior battle experience, using tricks and his bloodlust as feints he would''ve already died on that day.


    "As for the specifics of the modification, there is no information regarding that. Still, we could assume the basic anti-martial-artist modifications have been applied. That would mean the distance the bullet could travel and its velocity should''ve been doubled. There should also be something simr to a silencer added to it that even the ears of well-trained martial artists wouldn''t hear."


    "Hmm... Hey, do you know any way for me to experience using such a weapon?"


    "Of course, I do. As long as you have the cash almost anything is possible. So you want to buy a modified Barrett M82?"


    "Yeah, how much would it be?"


    "I guess twenty thousand should suffice."


    "Alright, I''ll hand you the money tomorrow."


    Currently, Loki wasn''t short of cash, since some of the clients he dealt with had given him quite the sum of money. Of course, he didn''t ask for the money but some of the people he helped insisted on giving him some. So now Loki had a small fortune on his hands.


    "Sure, I''m going to order the modified Barrett M82 right now, do you want to customize it yourself?" Loki shook his head before answering.


    "No need, I don''t have any idea about things like that... Hmm, now that I think about it, can you also find someone that could teach me how to use that rifle as well as other assortments of guns."


    "Sure, but that''s going to cost you more, is that alright?"


    "You already know that I don''t have any problem with money, just tell me the price."


    "Alright, I''ll contact you once I find a teacher for you."


    "Thanks," the two then started talking more about the assassin and after some other small talk, Loki left Harold''s house.


    ...


    A day after Loki and Harold had their conversation regarding buying the rifle, Loki received the Barrett M82 in a package there was even a gun license attached to it.


    ''That kid really is thorough. I owe him so much now... I wonder what I should give him to show my appreciation?... I''ll just think about thatter, for now, let me check out this sniper rifle.''


    Loki brought the package to his room, and when he got the entire rifle out he noticed that it wasn''t assembled. He started rummaging through the box looking for some sort of instruction manual. He was already expecting that there wasn''t going to be such a thing but to his surprise there really was one. Loki did a quick scan of the supposed manual and at the end of the manual, he saw a handwritten message.


    ''I figured that you wouldn''t have any idea on how to assemble this, so I took the time to make this manual for you. I, of course, got the information from various sources I found on the inte. Do not worry everything in the manual is reliable. Harold :)''


    After Loki was done reading that part he couldn''t help but sigh as he shook his head.


    "That kid really is thorough."


    Since it was Sunday today both Alisa and Liam were out hanging with their friends so he was the only one at home. Loki then decided to dedicate this entire day to studying his new modified Barrett M82.


    The first thing Loki did was read the manual Harold made for him. The manual was quite easy to understand even for ayman such as himself. After reading the entire thing, Loki checked each part of the modified Barrett M82 to see if there was something missing.


    Once he was done double-checking everything Loki started to assemble the modified Barrett M82. Since it was his first time with such a weapon, Loki was very curious. He has already seen numerous guns when he goes out as Fade and knew that each gun was different from one another.


    The variety of weapons in this new world was more so than his previous one, which focuses more on weapons with mana, which was just usually a sword or a staff, there were also the lesser-known mana weapons such as Loki''s favorite wires, and needles, there was also the whip which was the least used weapon. As he was assembling the modified Barrett M82 Loki had a sudden thought.


    ''Is it possible to make this modified Barrett M82 into a mana weapon?... Of course, with my limited knowledge, I won''t be able to do it, but I''m sure that the so-called Spirit of the Akashic Records should know more about it. I hope that it still retains its memories regarding Enchantment and smithing.'' Loki decided to ask the so-called Spirit when he meets Michael tomorrow


    ...


    After Loki was done assembling the modified Barrett M82 he disassembled it and reassembled it, he did this numerous times until he felt satisfied with the speed of his disassembling and reassembling.


    Loki then held his new rifle and felt that the modified Barrett M82 was rather light, if possible he wanted it to be a little heavier. Then he ced his finger at the trigger itching to pull it. He wanted to test out his new weapon but was, in the end, able to hold himself back. He knew that firing the modified Barrett M82 in his room was a bad idea but he really wanted to pull the trigger. Loki then quickly disassembled the modified Barrett M82 so that he would no longer be tempted to pull the trigger.


    ''I better test this out with someone that actually knows how to use it. I''ll just wait for Harold''s news on that instructor.. For now, I''ll just prepare some other things for that assassin that wants my head.''

 Chapter 121 - Time For Shooting Practice

    Evan Williams was a forty-year-old man. He was someone who loved guns and had a collection of them. He had knowledge on how to use all kinds of guns. He was also a martial artist but a very low leveled one. He seldomly tries to strengthen his inner energy as he was more focused on his guns.


    The cost of collecting and maintaining his guns has beenrge, and he had been doing many odd jobs to pay for his hobby. So when he received a job teaching someone to use different kinds of guns and was even given arge sum of money to buy the guns that would be used for practice he was ecstatic. This was the kind of job he wanted to do. Not only was he getting paid handsomely for doing what he likes, but he even gets to pick out the guns they were going to use.


    After he was done preparing the guns and the ce where he and the student could practice shooting, he called the person who gave him the job. He was then told of the time and location, to pick up the person he was going to teach.


    ...


    The following day, Evan went to the specified location while driving a van filled with weapons. There he saw a rather handsome man, it was the same man that he was supposed to pick up. He lowered the window of the van as he called out to the young man.


    "Hey, are you Loki?"


    "Yes, so are you Evan my instructor?"


    "Yeah that''s me, hop in we''ll head to the ce right away, or do you have something else to do first?"


    "There''s nothing, let''s get straight to it." Once Loki was inside the Van they drove off.


    ...


    While Evan was driving, he was quite curious about what kind of person he was going to teach. At first nce there didn''t look to be anything special about Loki, he just looked like a slightly more handsome young man.


    Evan was expecting Loki to be some kind of nouveau riche person or a snobby second-generation heir of some powerful family, but after seeing him in person that doesn''t seem to be the case. Just looking at the things he was wearing which was basically a tracksuit one could guess he was neither of the two things Evan thought Loki was.


    "So, um, what kind of gun is your favorite?"


    "I don''t really have a favorite one since I don''t know much about guns."


    "Oh is that so..." Evan looked a little downhearted as he thought that he met a kindred spirit. When Loki saw the awkward smile on Evan''s face, he had a good guess of what the other person was thinking.


    "Still, I''m interested in finding out more about guns. Maybe after today, I can give you an answer to that question of yours." When Evan heard what Loki said his facial expression changed quickly a small smile appeared on his face.


    "That''s right, soter when we get to the site which gun would you like to use first?"


    "This one," Loki took out arge suitcase and opened it showing the parts of the modified Barrett M82. When Evan saw the modified Barrett M82 he almost hit the brakes as he wanted to carefully examine the gun. He had seen quite a few versions of the Barrett M82 and with just a nce he knew that this Barrett M82 was heavily modified.


    "That''s a nice looking Barrett M82 where you the one who modified it?"


    Loki shook his head as he answered.


    "This was made by a friend of mine, who knows me quite well."


    "Oh, I wonder what kinds of modifications were made to this Barrett M82 rifle."


    "That''s what I want to know as well."


    "Damn it, I''m getting excited and my trigger finger is itching! Loki hold on to something I''m going to punch it!" Before Loki could respond, Evan already stomped his foot onto the gas pedal making the van speed off. Loki didn''t need to hold onto anything as his body didn''t even sway from the eleration.


    ...


    After a few minutes, Loki and Evan arrived at their destination. It was a private open area with several dozen shooting targets scattered around. Once Evan parked the car he quickly set up a table and ced an assortment of guns on top of the table, after that he looked at Loki''s suitcase.


    "Can I please take a look at your modified Barrett M82?"


    "Sure," Loki smiled as he passed therge suitcase to Evan who carefully opened it.


    "This is the smell of a mostly newly manufactured gun." Evan then quickly assembled the modified Barrett M82, the speed at which he did so was quite fast. It didn''t even take him several seconds before assembling the thing. Compared to Evan''s assembling speed, Loki''s was indeed very slow.


    Loki quietly observed the way Evan assembled the modified Barrett M82 and found that there was a technique to it that made the assembly faster. After seeing Evan do it, Loki did some image training and felt like he could do something simr, but with a slightly slower speed.


    "Oh, this thing is incredible! This thing only has the shape of a Barrett M82 but it''s practically a different gun altogether."


    Evan could no longer hold it in as he quickly got into a prone position, his body was perfectly aligned with the modified Barrett M82, his feety perfectly t on the ground. He then made a v shape with his left hand and gently ced the stock of the rifle in between the v shape made by his thumb and index finger.


    The moment he got into this position, Evan''s breathing and even the pounding of his heart became in sync. Evan picked the target that was ced around nine hundred meters away from him, as he breathed in and breathed out, Evan made his shot. The sound the modified Barrett M82 made was silent but the recoil of the shot almost made Evan''s body move back.


    The shot clearly hit the target right in the middle, and the metal target was pierced through.. After making the shot Evan felt intoxicated.

 Chapter 122 - The Perfect Shot

    Loki watched as Evan took another shot and this time he shot a target a bit further away. While he was watching Loki was observing every little thing Evan did. He observed Evan''s posture, his breathing and even used a spell to sense his heart rate.


    ''I see, there are simrities to the skill I use in my archery. I''m guessing the position he''s in is for better control over the recoil, it''s pretty stable all in all. Still, movement is restricted in this position... I guess I can try using it for a while to get a better feel of my new rifle. Later I can try shooting with the same stance I use in archery. The recoil shouldn''t be a problem with how powerful my body is.''


    Loki then started thinking of different ways on how to improve the way he would shoot using the modified Barrett M82. While he was thinking Evan was done with shooting, he then approached Loki with a satisfied expression on his face.


    "This is a good rifle, I don''t know who the maker is but every part was made with care and dedication. I could feel the maker''s spirit, his very passion as I shoot." Evan gave back the modified Barrett M82 a little bit reluctant. "...So anyway, how about we start. I''ll teach you how to do the proper shooting posture, first you-"


    Evan wasn''t able to finish what he was going to say as Loki had already gotten into a prone position. Loki''s prone position was very proper which surprised Evan. This was the first time he saw a beginner get into the prone position so quickly and was able to align his body properly.


    Loki was now in a state were he was trying to feel the entirety of the area before him. He could feel the caress of the wind and could even sense the subtle changes within it. Once he was in this state Loki used a minor spell [Eagle''s eye].


    The [Eagle''s eye] spell was a minor one used by most archers in his old world. It was a spell that allowed the user to see an area of five kilometers with a bird''s eye view, with Loki''s current mana supply this was one of the few archery-rted spells he could use at the moment.


    Once Loki got a good view of the area he picked the target farthest from him, it was ced more than a kilometer away from him, not only was it far but there were many obstructions in between them. Evan noticed where Loki was aiming the rifle at and was at first going to stop him since even with his modified Barrett M82 that shot was difficult and nearly impossible for a beginner to make. Heck even Evan himself would find it hard to get that shot, as he would need to make the bullet go in a thin straight line in between the different obstructions. Still, after seeing how good Loki''s form was, Evan wanted to see what Loki could do.


    Loki stabilized his breathing and unlike Evan who even after doing his best was still moving the rifle up and down though only slightly, Loki, on the other hand, made the rifle barely sway from his breathing. Loki could already see the head of the target because of the spell [Eagle''s Eye] but he still decided to use the scope of the rifle.


    ''Hmm, this is better than I anticipated, using the scope does give me a good view of the target, but using the [Eagle''s eye] spell is still better. Well, I guess if there are some cases when I need to preserve my mana this scope would be a great help. Now then, let''s test this out with a normal shot.''


    After he was done getting a feel on his weapon and the environment Loki pulled the trigger. The recoil from firing the modified Barrett M82 was surprisingly more powerful than he initially thought, still, it wasn''t too bad as he didn''t move backward like Evan. Loki then looked at the distance and saw that he had hit the target but was slightly off from where he wanted the bullet to go through.


    ''Hmm, even after using the [Eagle''s eye] as well as stabilizing my breathing using my mana, alongside using the archery technique [Precision] I wasn''t able to hit what I wanted to hit. Heh, I guess even for someone like me using a new weapon still requires a bit of practice. Now how should I do the next shot?...''


    While Loki was trying to think on how to improve the archery techniques he knows when using the rifle, Evan had his binocrs and was looking at the hole on the target that was one kilometer and four hundred meters away.


    Not only was Loki able to make such a difficult shot on his first try, but his shot was even more incredible than it seems. Along the way, to the target, the bullet would pass through various obstacles that were between Loki and the target. These obstacles had a very small hole that the bullet could theoretically go through, but shooting through such tiny holes was much easier said than done. Not only did one need to have an amazing rifle, but you would also need the skills to match.


    ''Is this guy really a beginner, am I being pranked or something? What am I supposed to teach this guy, he''s way better than me!''


    While Evan was getting confused by the situation he was in, Loki had made another shot. The same as the first shot, Loki fired at the target the farthest from him. This time when the bullet hit the target Loki was satisfied, he was able to hit where he wanted the bullet to hit.


    ''This weapon is pretty good, just a little bit of adjustments and it already performed the way I want it to. Now I did want to test out if I could apply spells into the bullets, but I guess I''ll do that when I''m alone.'' Loki nced at his dumbfounded instructor. ''For now, I better check out the other guns.''


    ...


    Evan couldn''t believe his eyes as he stared at the target through his binocrs. Loki had hit the same spot he shot a while ago, in fact, it was only off by a few millimeters. The bullet almost went through the hole made by the first bullet Loki shot.


    "Hey, Evan, let''s test out another gun."


    Hearing Loki''s voice Evan put down his binocrs and looked at Loki with a bewildered expression as he nodded his head.

 Chapter 123 - Testing

    Evan was amazed at how quickly Loki learned how to use each gun, he was even doubting if Loki was truly a beginner. If not for the fact, that Loki had a ton of questions as well as therge pay Evan was receiving for this job, Evan might''ve suspected that someone was trying to y a trick on him.


    "Alright, I think I have a good grasp on how all these weapons work." Loki nodded his head in satisfaction.


    ''A good grasp?! You''re already better at using them than me!'' Evan could only scream in his mind as he showed an awkward smile. Loki then passed Evan a stack of cash.


    "Here something extra since you did a good job." Evan pushed the money away as he shook his head.


    "Thanks, but no, I don''t deserve that. I wasn''t even able to teach you much, I practically did nothing."


    "That''s not true, you did answer all my questions, and without you, I wouldn''t be able to see the proper form up close."


    "Truth be told, with your talent you could''ve just gone to a gun range and learned just as much."


    "Don''t be so modest, you really were such a great help to me. So here please take it," Loki once again handed the money to Evan. This time Evan started to hesitate as he really needed the money. After a short pause, Evan finally took the cash. Evan then gave Loki his personal number.


    "Thanks for this, here if you need anything at all don''t hesitate to call me."


    "Yeah, I''ll take you up on that offer. Oh right, I have an answer for your question earlier, my favorite gun at this point is the De Lisle carbine, even though it''s just an antique you brought, I like the feel and the almost nonexistent sound it makes when you make a shot."


    "Oh so your into that kind of thing, then I have some suggestions."


    Evan started happily telling Loki what kinds of guns he should try next if he likes the De Lisle carbine. After talking for a bit, Evan needed to leave since he had another appointment. Once he was gone Loki started drawing some runes in the surrounding area of his private shooting range. After he was done with his preparations, Loki activated the formation he set up. It was a simple istion spell, it could ward off normal people from noticing what''s happening within the area where he ced the runes.


    If someone were to pass by they would only see an empty area, and no matter what noise is made inside the effective range of the spell no one outside would hear a sound. Even though Harold already bought this area for him to use, Loki didn''t want to risk people seeing what he was going to do next.


    Still, if a Grandmaster rank martial artist passes by the istion spell wouldn''t work on them. Grandmaster rank martial artists could already sense the fluctuations of the spiritual energy within the world. They might not understand mana but the moment they feel the fluctuations of spiritual energy they might take look out of interest.


    ''Well, it''s not like some random Grandmaster rank martial artist would pop up in such a remote area.''


    Once Loki was done making sure that no one else was around, he started infusing mana into the bullets.


    ''Now let''s see, if this is going to work. Let''s start with this bullet infused with my mana.''


    Loki ced the bullet into his modified Barrett M82. This time he picked a nearby target and shot it. The bullet went through the target and it even dug into the ground, aside from that there was no other difference from a normal bullet.


    ''Hmm so adding my mana just makes the bullet a bit stronger or should I say sturdier. Now let''s see what happens when I infuse the bullet with a fire elemental spell.''


    Loki then shot another target and this time the bullet exploded upon contact with the target. The explosion sted the target into smithereens.


    ''Whoah, I just added a small number of fire elementals into the bullet, the mana I used should just be enough for something like a simple fireball spell. That was three times the strength of what I was expecting. Are these bullets good mana conductors? Now, this is getting interesting.''


    After that Loki started testing what would happen if he used other types of elemental spells as well as using some spells that would usually work with a bow and arrow.


    ...


    After testing different things for a full day, Loki was rather pleased with the results. This is what he figured out.


    - Bullets could be infused with different spells.


    - The power of fire elemental spells is tripled while using the bullets.


    - Spells using other elements aside from fire worked but without any multipliers to its strength.


    - Non-elemental spells were also suitable.


    - Infusing inner energy into the bullet or the gun does not work.


    - Some bow techniques could be used with guns.


    - Infusing any gun with mana doesn''t do anything.


    - Putting runes on guns works but the mana used doesn''te from the area but from the user.


    - Using runes on guns drains a significant amount of mana, depending on what type of rune it could possibly drain Loki''s entire mana supply, but the power released is greater than any spell Loki could use at the moment.


    Loki wrote the results of his experiment in a notebook and nodded his head in satisfaction as he read them.


    ''Heh, so guns are pretty good weapons. I guess the only reason martial artists don''t really like using them too much is that they can''t infuse their inner energy into the gun or even the bullets. Still, bringing around big guns like rifles isn''t really my style. Now, which of these things should I use, when I go out doing my job as Fade. Even though I do like the De Lisle carbine it''s too chunky, hmm, I better just bring some pistols. I guess, the M1911 had good results in today''s test, and this desert eagle is rather powerful for a pistol.. Alright, now that I have a rather good grasp on what the different guns can do, let''s see if this so called Scorpion can take my head.''

 Chapter 124 - For My Mom

    After testing out a few more things Loki felt satisfied and when he looked at the messy runes he wrote he sighed. He had learned a bit on how to write runes from the Spirit of the Akashic Records, the information was all over the ce as the Spirit only had a few remaining memories regarding runes. It was a good thing, that the Spirit still remembered the most basic runes which helped Loki a lot.


    ''Still, the more important Enchantment techniques were forgotten. Without the knowledge of enchantment, I won''t be able to turn these weapons into mana weapons. Well, I guess adding runes into the bullets is already good enough. By this world''s standards with my skill and equipment, I should be able to match a rank eight martial artist with ease. If I put my all into it and risk everything I should theoretically be able to match a lower-tier Grandmaster. Okay now that my preparations are done, I just need to wait for this assassin to make a move. I wonder what will he do to lure me out...''


    ...


    In the police station, Matsuri was sighing as he looked at herputer monitor. The city was bing safer than it was before, this was supposed to be a good thing, but it still made her feel depressed since the change in the city wasn''t because of the police. The change happening in the city was because of the assassin Fade.


    The big bosses of the underworld were dying one by one, and their underlings who were leaderless did their own thing. Those that continued on the path of being gangsters. and became bosses themselves were almost immediately killed by Fade. Then there were those that changed their ways and started living honest lifestyles. Even though it was a very difficult transition they had no choice since they either change their ways or they die.


    Even the lowly thugs were scared sh*tless by Fade''s reputation, and no longer did money extortions. There were also those fakes that pose as Fade and do some self-righteous deeds. Most of them were just random citizens trying to do the right thing, but there were a few that also kill like Fade. Those fake Fade''s would kill those they have deemed evil, the police had already captured most of them. Overall the city''s crime rate had drastically fallen because of everything that was going on.


    While Matsuri was deep in thought Janice arrived at her desk with a troubled look on her face. Janice looked at the frowning Matsuri and hesitated to say what she was going to say, but in the end, it had to be said.


    "Matsuri, hey Matsuri, Matsuri do you hear me?"


    "Huh, oh Janice when did youe back?"


    "I''ve been here for a while now... *sigh* I know you like daydreaming about Loki, but there is a time and ce for that."


    "W-what?! Who the f*ck is daydreaming?! I wasn''t thinking about Loki at all, I was thinking about the future of this city you know."


    "Yeah, alright I believe you." Seeing Janice''s reaction made Matsuri pout.


    "Whatever, so what did the Captain say?"


    "*Sigh* I guess there''s no avoiding it. The Captain said that were are no longer in charge of the Fetcher case."


    "What?!" Matsuri stood up from her desk as she shouted. Still, this was something she normally does so no one was surprised.


    "Not only that but we aren''t allowed to go near Catherine Walker. We also need to hand over all our files regarding the Fetcher case to the Major Crimes Unit."


    "Now wait a second. Why the hell should I give all our hard work to those jagoffs?! I need to talk to the Captain." Matsuri was about to head to the Captain''s office when Janice stopped her.


    "You know that won''t help, it would just make things worse for us."


    When Matsuri heard what Janice said she knew that her partner was right. Still, she couldn''t help but bite her lip as she felt ashamed and angry.


    "You know I promised that kid that I would bring his mother''s kidnapper to justice. What am I going to tell him when heester? Should I tell him, sorry I''m no longer part of that case and I failed to do anything at all!"


    "I know... Do you think this is easy for me? It''s hard for me as well, but face the facts it has been weeks since we started, and were not even close to getting any evidence against Catherine Walker. Who knows maybe the Major Crimes Unit would do a better job. As for that kid, don''t worry I''ll tell him what happened."


    "No, he shouldn''t hear iting from you... I was the one who made that promise, and I''m also the one who broke it so I should be the one to tell him the news."


    ...


    Larry Fetcher was a fifteen-year-old kid that had lost his father at a young age. He and his mother had supported each other after his father''s death. One day his mother went out to buy some groceries but she never returned.


    After looking around for an entire day, Larry eventually filed a missing person''s report. The Detective in charge of the case was a nicedy named Matsuri.


    As Larry was waiting for news about his mother he was currently living with his paternal grandparents. He also continued looking around the city for his mother, and then one day he saw his mother entering a brothel. Larry quickly called Detective Matsuri and told him what he saw. The Detective told him to wait for her, but in the end, he couldn''t, as his mother was there right in front of him.


    Larry entered the establishment and confronted his mother, but when he saw her she was smiling at him while touching his body, she acted as if she didn''t know him.


    "Sir, do you want to have fun with me?"


    "Mom? What are you talking about, it''s me, Larry, what happened to you? Why are you here, why did they do to you?" As Larry was shaking his mother''s body somerge men stopped him.


    "Hey, you shouldn''t be in here brat."


    "What are you doing that''s my mom over there, I''m bringing her out."


    "That''s not your mom kid, and you''re the only one who''s going out."


    The security of the brothel tossed him out. Larry tried his best to get back in, but he couldn''t get past the thugs blocking his way. After a while, Detective Matsuri came and they were able to somehow enter the establishment through the backdoor, but after looking around they could no longer find his mother.


    Later Detective Matsuri was able to find out that the owner of the brothel was a person called Catherine Walker. Even though they already know all that and confronted the owner, Catherine Walker denied any knowledge regarding Larry''s missing mother.


    Detective Matsuri then promised Larry that she would bring his mother back to him. Larry believed in the Detective, but today she broke her promise.


    "I''m sorry Larry, I was unable to do what I promised, but don''t worry the Major Crimes Unit has more resources and should be able to find your mother. I''m sure that they would be able to do it, so don''t lose hope."


    ...


    After hearing Detective Matsuri''s exnation, Larry headed back to his grandparents'' ce dejected. Heid on his bed sobbing, as he felt betrayed. He understood that Matsuri had done her best given what she had, he knew that it wasn''t her fault, but he still felt bitter about it. Even after hearing what Matsuri said, Larry knew that the police had practically given up on his mother.


    As the hopelessness of his situation was eating at him, he turned on hisptop to look around the inte to distract himself. It was at that moment he saw one of those sites that talk about the assassin Fade.


    ''If the police can''t do it, maybe he could.''

 Chapter 125 - Catherine Walker

    Harold had created an algorithm that would help him spot the right clients for Loki''s job. After the falsities and the absurd requests were removed Harold would start reading the remaining requests. These requests came from all the different websites that were talking about Loki. Harold noticed a newly written request that caught his interest.


    ''A mother that disappeared and was found by his son in a brothel. After meeting the mother did not recognize his son... The son''s request is to kill, Catherine Walker one of the few remaining big bosses in the city.''


    This was a big job as it was about one of the five remaining big bosses in the city. There were many people requesting the deaths of these people in the forums but none of them had any good reason or even a personal reason to have them killed which goes against Loki''s rules. Yet now there was an actual request that might convince Loki to act.


    ''Still, even though this mission does satisfy all of Loki''s conditions, this might be a trap made by the Scorpion... Whatever, I''ll just let Loki decide what to do.''


    Harold then sent all the relevant information to Loki, and after only a few seconds he got a reply.


    "I want to meet up with the client, also can you give me more information on Catherine Walker." Seeing the reply, Harold couldn''t help but call Loki as he was a little worried. After Loki picked up the call Harold went straight to the point.


    "This might be a trap by the Scorpion, are you sure that you want to take it?"


    "...There really is a boy in trouble right now making this request, right?"


    "Yeah, I''ve checked it, there really was a missing person''s case thatter turned into a kidnapping case."


    "Then it doesn''t matter if there is a trap, I was nning on killing the Scorpion anyway."


    "Alright then, as long as you''re sure."


    ...


    Larry Fetcher couldn''t believe his eyes as he received an email from an unknown sender. The message was regarding the request he wrote on one of the Fade forums. There was a message as well as a location pinned to the email.


    "Meet me at the old abandoned warehouse at 8:00 p.m." At the bottom of the message was the name of the urban legend Fade.


    Larry looked at the time and saw that there were about two hours before the appointed time. The location pointed on the map was a thirty-minute walk from his house.


    ''Should I trust this message?...'' Larry reread the message over and over again. He wasn''t sure if this was real, a scam, or some sort of trap. Yet after hesitating for a bit more, Larry gathered his resolve.


    ''It doesn''t matter if it''s a trap or not, I need to try everything I can.''


    Larry then remembered his mother''s nk reaction as she tried to seduce him. It was obvious that those b*stards did something to his mother. Just thinking about it made his blood boil in rage.


    ...


    Loki was waiting on the roof of the abandoned warehouse. He was looking through the information Harold got regarding Catherine Walker. There was nothing much known about her childhood except that she was an orphan.


    The next bit of information was from when she was a teenager. She used to be the most famous prostitute in the city, as her beauty and charisma were like no other, and no man could resist her charms. She had many admirers and a lot of them had wanted her for themselves. In the end, it was one of the big bosses of the underworld at the time that took her hand in marriage.


    The big boss owned all the brothels in the city and was also dealing with human trafficking. Not only was he an underworld boss but he was also a powerful martial artist. Yet for some reason a year after their marriage the underworld boss that controlled such a powerful group died because of a sudden heart attack. Many had spected that his wife had killed him somehow but even now there was no evidence to support this im.


    Still, Catherine Walker who inherited his husband''s empire was able to bring it to new heights. The moment she came into power those loyal to her husband that believe she killed him were quickly dealt with. She then found new officers that were loyal only to her. The other underworld bosses thought that since her husband died it would be easy to steal her weakened group but that was a mistake. All the enemies that appeared before her would disappear. It didn''t take long for her influence in the underworld to take root and quickly grow, expanding her empire. She was one of the few underworld bosses that was a woman, and she was one of the more sessful ones.


    Now everyone in the underworld knew of the deadly subus that would use any means necessary to gain more power.


    Even after Fade''s continuous killing of underworld bosses, she was one of the few that didn''t back down in fear. As he continued reading her information Loki couldn''t help but sigh.


    ''This type who yearns for power more than anything would never let it go even under the threat of death. Still, at the beginning of her reign based on the things Harold found, she was trying to stop the human trafficking in the city. Yet for some reason after a while not only was she not able to stop human trafficking in the city but she contributed to it even more. I wonder what kinds of things had she gone through that she gave up on her ideals... Well, it doesn''t matter she had made her choice.''


    Loki heard footsteps and saw the young man he was supposed to meet approach the abandoned warehouse. Loki gathered mana and used a tiny bit of the fire elementals to burn the pieces of paper that had written information about Catherine Walker. As the ashes scattered into the wind Loki sighed.


    ''It''s time to get work.''

 Chapter 126 - Will You Help Me?

    Larry arrived at the abandoned warehouse during the appointed time. When he arrived at the abandoned warehouse he felt a slight chill in his spine as it was a rather creepy ce. There weren''t many people passing through the ce as there were rumors that there were ghosts seen in this ce. It didn''t help that it has been a decade since the warehouse was used, and it was far away from the main street making it eerily quiet. The only people that woulde here were those thrill-seekers or the self-proimed ghost hunters.


    Larry felt more nervous because of the atmosphere. He then tighten his grip onto the baseball bat he brought just in case this was some sort of trick. Larry looked around the warehouse and saw no one, he then checked his phone and saw that he was a few minutes early. Larry waited in the corner of the warehouse looking around warily while holding his baseball bat.


    "So you''ve arrived."


    The moment Larry heard a voiceing from behind him, the tension he built up was released and he swung his baseball bat with all his might. The metal baseball bat was stopped as someone had caught it. When Larry saw the other person he started sweating bullets.


    A white mask, wearing a ck trench coat, boots, and gloves, this was the urban legend, the assassin known as Fade.


    Larry did not know what to say at the moment as he trembled before the famous assassin. This was the person who was rumored to have killed most of the big bosses in the underworld, the one who scared all the gang members into acting like model citizens and he just attacked him.


    "There''s no need to be so tense young man. So are you the client Larry Fetcher?"


    Larry was still a bit rattled by his earlier stunt and wasn''t able to answer Fade. He continued to look at Fade with a dumbfounded expression.


    "Are you or are you not Larry Fetcher?" Hearing Fade''s question again Larry was shaken and quickly answered.


    "Yes, that is me."


    "I have read your plea, and I want to hear your story directly from you."


    Larry nodded his head in response and recounted everything he knew about the incident. Loki was rather surprised to hear that Matsuri was also rted to this case since Harold''s report didn''t include the name of the detective that was in charge of the case. After listening to Larry''s entire story Fade nodded his head.


    "So, you wish for me to kill Catherine Walker, is that correct?"


    "Yes... For as long as she''s alive many more would experience the same thing I did, and I do not want that."


    "You do understand that even if I kill Catherine Walker, someone else will rece her. Killing her will only solve the problem temporarily. Knowing all this, do you still want her to die?"


    When Larry heard what Fade said he lowered his head and clenched his fist. He knew what Fade said was true, killing Catherine Walker wouldn''t stop the prostitution nor would it stop the human trafficking. Larry was quiet for a few seconds before he lifted his head and looked at Fade''s eyes that could be seen through the mask.


    "I understand that killing her wouldn''t really change this city, but she has done a lot of horrible things and deserves to die. Yet even though she''s doing evil things, the police can''t do anything to her. So if they can''t do it, I can only rely on you Mr. Fade."


    "Very well, I acknowledge your request."


    "I... Then what should I pay?" Larry wanted to say that he didn''t have much money, but he didn''t say it as no matter how much it would cost he would find a way to pay it. As if able to read his mind, Fade answered.


    "Do not worry young man, I won''t ask for money as I don''t really have a need for it. The price to be paid is different."


    "Then what do you want?"


    "I want a promise."


    "A promise?"


    "Yeah, if the job is fulfilled, I want you to promise me something."


    "What is it?"


    "For now, I will not tell you, only at the end once the job is done, will I require you to make a promise. Under these conditions are you still willing to pay the price?"


    "Alright, I agree. No matter what promise is to be made in the end I will do my best to fulfill it."


    "Alright, the deal has been made. I shall fulfill your request."


    After saying those lines Fade was about to leave, when Larry saw this he raised his hand to stop him. "Hmmm, is there anything else?"


    Larry hesitated for a moment before speaking.


    "... Um... Can you also save my mother?"


    "Killing and saving are two different things, and my job only revolves around killing." Hearing Fade''s answer Larry felt disheartened. "If you want to save someone, you need to do it yourself. If you want someone to help you, isn''t that detective someone you can trust?"


    "... I can''t ask for Detective Matsuri''s help in this. I don''t fully understand what happened, but I think if she helps me she''ll get into a lot of trouble... You''re right, I can''t allow you to do all the work. If I want to save my mom, I need to do it myself."


    Fade looked at Larry who was filled with resolve and internally sighed. Fade knew that Larry''s chances of saving his mom by himself were extremely slim. There was a higher chance that he would either get captured or killed. Fade then started to think of the people he knew that could help Larry.


    ''I guess in this situation those two are the best candidates to help this boy.''


    "If you go by yourself, not only will you not be able to save the one you wish to save, but you yourself will be in danger."


    "Then what should I do, I don''t know anybody else that could help me."


    "I have some people in mind that could help you."


    "Really, who are they?" Larry suddenly became excited as he asked.


    "Do you have a pen and paper?"


    "I don''t have any with me, I do have some back home." After Larry said those words Fade suddenly disappeared into the darkness. Larry was surprised and was about to call out Fade''s name when he suddenly heard Fade''s voice like he was whispering in his ear.


    "Lead the way." Larry nodded his head still perplexed.


    ...


    Once Larry arrived in his room, Fade suddenly appeared behind him which shocked him. All throughout the walk back home he tried locating Fade but no matter where he looked he could not spot the assassin. Yet for some reason, it felt like Fade was simply walking behind him.


    "Here''s the pen and paper." After getting the pen and paper, Fade started writing. He then gave two letters to Larry.


    "Thising Friday, you head to Sekiko Academy and look for the students Michael Rosales and Mugami Shin, hand these letters to them and ask for their help. I will make a move on Monday evening, at around 8:00 p.m.. It would be best that you make a move during that time."

 Chapter 127 - That Was It?

    It was a Monday afternoon, sses were over and the students were heading home. Michael was going to head home to practice the new spells he learned. When he reached the gate he saw Mugami Shin talking to a student from a different school. As he got closer Shin looked at him, he said something to the student and then pointed at Michael. The unknown student quickly approached Michael.


    "Are you Michael Rosales?"


    "Umm, yes..."


    "I''m Larry Fletcher, I have something to give to you." Larry then gave Michael a letter. A little bit confused Michael took the letter and looked at it when he saw who wrote it he was surprised.


    "Please can you help me?" Larry bowed his head.


    ...


    After receiving the letter, Michael, Shin, and Larry changed locations and were now at a family restaurant.


    "So it says here that Fade wants us to help you. I do kinda owe the guy for what happened back then, but even then I won''t just help you because of this. So tell me what exactly do you need our help for?"


    Shin spoke while eating the steak he ordered, Michael who was sitting beside Shin nodded his head in agreement. Larry looked at the seats near them warily before he spoke about his circumstances. Hearing a bit of Larry''s tale Shin frowned as he lifted his hand to stop him from talking. Shin then called one of the servers of the restaurant.


    "Call your manager."


    "Why sir, is there something not to your liking?"


    "Just call your manager, right now." Shin red at the server who was frightened by Shin''s aura as he bowed his head and called for the manager. After a few seconds, the manager arrived.


    "I want to reserve the entire restaurant, right this instant." Shin then took out a wad of cash from his bag. "This is a hundred thousand zoris."


    When the server and the manager saw the amount of money they couldn''t help but gulp. The manager hesitated, he could technically get all the people in the restaurant to leave, but that would probably get him fired, still, that amount of money was truly tempting. Shin noticed the hesitation in the manager''s expression and knew what he was thinking. Shin then took another wad of cash from his bag.


    "Here give each of the customers a thousand zoris aspensation."


    Hearing what Shin said the manager no longer hesitated as he bowed his head and quickly called the other staff members to help him. At first, some of the customers were angry but then after giving them the money they quickly left with smiles on their faces. The amount given to them was a hundred times more than the money they used to buy food. A few minutester only Shin, Michael, Larry, and the staff of the restaurant remained.


    "Sir do you have any more requests?" The manager spoke with a pleasing smile on his face.


    "Not at the moment, you guys just stay a bit farther away and I''ll call you when I need you."


    "Alright, just call if you need anything."


    Once the manager and the servers were farther away from them, Shin took another bite of his steak and looked at Larry.


    "So you''re telling me that you were able to hire Fade to assassinate the enchantress of the underworld Catherine Walker."


    "Yes," Larry nodded his head.


    "Alright then, what is it you want the two of us to do?"


    "Fade told me that the two of you can help me save my mother."


    "If that''s all you want, there was no need to call Michael to help. Do you have a picture of your mother?"


    Larry nodded his head and took out his phone, he then showed Shin the picture of his mother.


    "Send me that picture."


    When Shin received the picture he then sent the picture and a message to one of his subordinates. After a few seconds Shin got a reply.


    "As youmand young master." Seeing the message Shin nodded his head.


    "Alright, now we just have to wait for my subordinates to bring your mother here. Do you have any other requests?"


    "Huh?" Larry was dumbfounded by what Shin just said and looked at him confused.


    "Why are you looking so confused? Did you think that we were going to go around the brothels in the city looking for your mother? There''s no need for that, such jobs I can just have my subordinates do it for me."


    It took Larry a bit of time for him to understand what just happened. It would seem that Mugami Shin was some sort of bigshot, he then looked at Michael who was casually drinking his smoothie, and thought that he was also another bigshot.


    "Thank you very much, Sir Shin, Sir Michael." Larry bowed his head almost hitting the table.


    "There''s no need to thank me, I haven''t done anything." Michael lowered his head as he was a little embarrassed. He too owed Fade a favor for saving him back then, but it doesn''t seem like he would be able to pay it back just yet.


    "Alright, so do you need something else?"


    "Um... Actually, there''s something wrong with my mother, and thest time I saw her she wasn''t able to recognize me. The look in her eyes was hallow as if she wasn''t even able to see me. Is it possible to cure her?"


    "Huh? How should I know, I''m not a doctor... Still, I guess I could call a doctor to see her condition, but for now, we''ll wait for her to arrive."


    "Thank you."


    While Shin and Larry were having their conversation, Michael was frowning as he was talking to the Spirit.


    "Those symptoms, it''s the same as the people we helpedst time. Do you think, this has something to do with the person who has the book of alchemy?" Michael asked the Spirit in his mind.


    "The probability is high, which means a normal doctor would not be able to cure his mother. Hmph, it''s a good thing he knows you, the person chosen by I the great Spirit of the Akashic Records.." The Spirit smugly replied.

 Chapter 128

    Chapter 128: Who¡¯s better?


    Fade was currently at Harold¡¯s house as he was waiting for Harold to locate Catherine Walker. While Harold was going through the various footages of the city he noticed something weird.


    ¡°Hey take a look at this,¡± Harold pointed at different screens. There were people in different groups moving in a coordinated way while entering all the brothels owned by Catherine Walker. Based on the way they moved they were all martial artists.


    ¡®A n or some sect, but why are they going against Walker?¡¯


    ¡°Do you know who these people are, and what they want?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t really know who they are, but I think I know what they want. I took a quick scan of their phones, and each group has some designated leader and each of these leaders has one simr picture on their phones. It¡¯s the picture of Larry¡¯s mother Mollie Fletcher.¡±


    ¡°If she¡¯s the one they¡¯re looking for I have a good guess as to who¡¯s looking for her. So how about Catherine Walker have you found her yet?¡±


    ¡°Ever since you¡¯re killing spree of mob bosses, the big dogs have done various things to keep themselves safe from you. Catherine Walker has several dozen safe houses, and she switches from one safe house to another every day. Finding which safe house she was in now might take a while more.¡±


    .....


    Fade nodded his head and went to the side as to not disturb Harold, he then started double-checking his equipment. The Equipment he chose today was the usual wires and needles, then there was the modified Barrett M82 with the bullets he imbued with different spells. He was also carrying the M1911. This was the first time in this world that Fade had been so heavily armed, but since he was not sure how strong the opponent was it was best to be prudent. Fade then started to gather his mana.


    ¡°[Minor Protection], [Deflect].¡± After invoking the spell words the two spells enveloped Fade.


    [Minor Protection] was a low-tier spell that¡¯s able to strengthen one¡¯s defense by a little bit. It has the same effect as if you were wearing a suit of leather armor.


    [Deflect] was a one-time-use spell. It can only be applied once per day. The mana consumption of this spell wasn¡¯t all that great but the effect was life-saving. The spell could change the trajectory of one physical range attack. It doesn¡¯t work on spells or anything supernatural but against a bullet, it would work.


    After he was done casting the spells he checked how much mana he had left after activating the spells. The mana that was depleted wasrger than he anticipated. Fade sighed as he meditated trying to refill as much mana as possible.


    ...


    ¡°I found her! She¡¯s at her so called safehouse #3. It¡¯s a high-rise building with fifteen floors, it¡¯s located in the business district. Based on the information I got, it seems like the other big bosses are also close by. I¡¯m guessing that since Scorpion can¡¯t find you he¡¯s using his clients as bait. The distance between each of them isn¡¯t even a kilometer.¡± Harold showed Fade a map of the area as he pointed out where the other big bosses were located.


    ¡°Can you show me what the surrounding area of the ce looks like?¡±


    Harold started typing something and then various camera angles appeared on his screens. It was a live feed from the CCTVs in the area. Fade looked at each screen and once he got a good grasp of what the area looked like he nodded his head.


    ¡°So what do you-¡± Harold turned around but Fade was no longer there. ¡°I can never get used to that, it¡¯s cool though.¡±


    ...


    In a certain building, a middle-aged man wearing a suit was checking his bullets looking for imperfections. He would open a box of bullets pick the best one and throw the others. This man was John Ray also known as the Elegant Scorpion.


    It has been a few days now since he was hired to kill the so called urban legend of Leim city. Unfortunately, no matter how hard he tried to track the guy he could not find a trace of him. Still, this was rather normal for people in their profession. So if he could not find Fade, then all he needed to do was wait for him to appear.


    He could not predict who Fade¡¯s next target would be, but he knew that based on how Fade did things he would most likely try to assassinate one of his current clients at some point. Knowing this he had asked his current clients to always stay close to each other, so no matter who Fade decides to target he could react fast enough.


    Right now, John was staying at a building exactly eight hundred meters away from each of the buildings his clients were staying at. He had ced motion detectors in the best shooting spots to kill his clients. There were also numerous guards always with his clients. Now all he needed to do was wait.


    ¡®I wonder just how good this newbie assassin is... I¡¯ve only seen that one video of his so I can¡¯t even tell if he¡¯s a martial artist or not. Still, based on his various exploits his weapon of choice should be wires and some sort of hidden weapon, maybe throwing stars or something simr. Normally when using hidden weapons you need to be close to the target to be able to kill, but from what I heard this guy could kill his target a few hundred meters away. Well, no matter how good he is while using those kinds of things, his range is still a far cry from what my beloved Scorpion can achieve.¡¯


    Ray couldn¡¯t help but get a little bit excited. It has been quite some time since he had a challenging target. Being in the middle of the Dark Rankings meant mostly mediocre jobs with good payment or near impossible jobs with sh*tty pay.


    As he was thinking about his previous jobs one of the motion detectors caught something and based on how big it was, it wasn¡¯t a bird.


    ¡®So his target is Ms. Catherine Walker. Hmph, now Mr. Urban Legend either you kill my client or I kill you first, let¡¯s see who¡¯s better.¡¯

 Chapter 129

    Chapter 129: Battle between assassins


    The moment Fade stepped foot on the best position he found to use his rifle he heard a very faint sound of something simr to an rm.


    ¡®Oh, a trap,¡¯ Fade smiled under his mask as he changed his position.


    ...


    Catherine Walker was on the top floor of her recently acquired high-rise building when she suddenly received a message from the assassin that she and the others hired.


    ¡°Hide in your panic room, Fade¡¯s target is you.¡±


    The moment she saw this message she quickly called her guards to escort her to the panic room.


    ...


    .....


    After he was done sending his message John got into position as he held his beloved rifle the Scorpion and looked through the scope of his rifle. The area where the rm rang was now empty but John knew that even if Fade was a martial artist he shouldn¡¯t have gone too far. It was also hard to find any other area to kill Catherine Walker.


    The only other ces that have good sight over Catherine¡¯s building were too far. While John was scanning the area theptop that was beside him rang. John took a quick peek and saw that one of his decoys was shot.


    ¡®Oh, so he¡¯s already spotted one of my decoys.¡¯ John quickly shifted his rifle towards the area where the shot came from and saw something move. Of course, John did not shoot the first thing he saw like some amateur and instead quickly used hisptop to check the hidden cameras he had installed in the area, but to his surprise, almost all the hidden cameras have already been destroyed.


    ¡®Hoh, Mr. Urban Legend is quite good.¡¯


    ...


    Fade was moving around from one position to the next as he destroyed the nearby hidden cameras. When he spotted someone hidden in the distance holding something like a gun, he used the spell [Eagle¡¯s Eye] once he confirmed that there really was someone there he used his modified rifle to shoot at that person. Yet the moment he shot the person he immediately saw that it was nothing more than a fake.


    Fade saw it through the use of [Eagle¡¯s Eye], the assassin Elegant Scorpion had used a decoy that was something simr to a mannequin. Back in his old world when Fade still had enough mana supply he would use multiple spells to see through tricks, illusions, and fakes but now that he had but a limited amount of mana he could not do so.


    ¡®Hmmm, this guy is pretty good, and he also showed me a mistake I made. it would also seem that I relied too much on my vast amount of mana and spells to do my job. I guess I should retrain myself just in case I find myself unable to use any spiritual energy.¡¯


    While he was thinking Fade was already changing spots as he then spotted three more decoys. He was amazed that no matter how he looked at those decoys he could not tell which one was real and which one was supposed to be fake. He tried observing them a bit more but he still couldn¡¯t discern which one was true or false. The decoys were actually simting breathing as if they were normal human beings as their chests rose up and fell down with a rhythm. All the rifles they were holding also seem to be real, and they were all wearing a simr suit.


    ¡®Heh, this assassin is rather prepared and despite showing him an opening a few times now he still hasn¡¯t taken a shot. Well, since I can¡¯t discern which ones are fakes, I¡¯ll just shoot them all.¡¯


    ...


    John heard multiple rms from hisptop telling him that many of his decoys have been shot down. Not only were they being spotted so easily, but Fade was also actually shooting them all in the right and left shoulder.


    Fade had already spotted nearly all of his decoys while he still hadn¡¯t even made a shot. The pressure was finally getting to him. John¡¯s hands that were holding his beloved rifle Scorpion were actually sweating, his heartbeat was also bing a bit erratic. John then saw some movement near thest known spot Fade was in. He no longer thought things through as he pulled the trigger.


    The moment his shot flew through the air, he felt something was wrong and was about to move away. The shot he made looked like it hit the target, but before he could confirm it John¡¯sptop was shot.


    John¡¯s reaction was calm as he backed away and hid behind the walls. He sighed as he thought about hisptop. Now that he lost theptop it would be much more difficult to locate Fade. He thought that the urban legend of Leim City would be nothing more than a little challenging prey, but now it turns out Fade might not be prey but the predator instead.


    ¡®Since myptop is gone, half of the traps I set up are no longer usable. I guess it¡¯s time to move onto n B.¡¯


    John took out a detonator that had several buttons. John pressed a few of the buttons on his detonator and several rooftop explosions happened. As the explosions were happening John clearly saw someone jump from one of the exploding roofs to a nearby non-exploding one. John quickly aimed at that person and shot him.


    John was sure that the shot would hit, but then he saw the person he shotpletely fine which surprised him. What happened to the bullet he fired? He was positive that the shot he made was dead center but then why did nothing happen? Fade didn¡¯t even show any signs of evading.


    ¡®What the bloody hell just happened?!¡¯


    ...


    Fade who had sessfully survived the explosions sensed that his spell [Deflect] had activated. He was already expecting this to happen, but it still surprised him a bit.


    ¡®It would seem that I have grossly underestimated this assassin nicknamed Elegant Scorpion... Quite some time has already passed since he and I started this dance, so that means Catherine Walker should have changed her location... That won¡¯t do, I still have a job to finish so I better finish off this distraction. Well, then now that I have a better understanding of his ways of assassination, I guess it¡¯s time to take the lead on this dance.¡¯

 Chapter 130

    Chapter 130: The Shadow and the Scorpion


    After blowing up a few more things John no longer had any traps avable to use in their current positions, and more than that he could no longer spot Fade. He only got a look at Fade¡¯s silhouette once and that was it, he had shot Fade but for some reason his shot actually missed. On the other hand, Fade was able to destroy all of his decoys and most of his hidden cameras. It was then for a brief moment John had but one thought, Fade was better than him. The second that thought of his came to mind he shook his head vigorously.


    ¡®No, I¡¯m already thinking as if I already lost. I can¡¯t think like that, to a true assassin a loss means death. Today will not be my end.¡¯ John calmed his mind as he took his weapon and was about to change his location.


    Yet the moment he was going to move he sensed something was wrong and quickly tried to jump to the side. Unfortunately, John was toote as a bullet grazed his right chest. If he didn¡¯t move at all, the bullet would¡¯ve hit him straight in his liver. It wouldn¡¯t be fatal but the injury would¡¯ve been severe enough that he would no longer be able to fight Fade.


    John pointed his Scorpion in the direction the bullet came from, yet he could not find a single trace of Fade. It was at that moment his instincts once again kicked in and he moved backward and after a second something whooshed before him hitting the nearby pipe prating it.


    John needed to get out of this area fast as Fade could somehow see him as clear as day. Since his position has beenpromised John took out two stun grenades pulled the pins and threw the two of them into the sky. Under the cover of the blinding lights, John made his escape.


    ...


    Fade who was using the spell [Eagle¡¯s Eye] was rather surprised by how John was able to miraculously evade his attack not once but twice as he was about to shoot once more, John suddenly used a stun grenade. The blinding effect got to Fade and he had lost track of The Elegant Scorpion.


    .....


    ¡®Tsk, this guy is more trouble than I thought. I already wasted two shots that weren¡¯t able to disable him. I guess using a new weapon for the assassination wasn¡¯t as good as I thought it would be. Well then, I¡¯ll just do it the good old fashion way.¡¯


    Fade disassembled the Rifle and ced it into his bag, he hid the bag in a ce he could get after he was done with his assassination.


    ...


    John had changed his location and waited for any signal from Fade. The moment he spots Fade he would sting him with his Scorpion, one shot one kill.


    As he waited he started thinking about the shots Fade made. Based on what he saw that one time he spotted Fade, the rifle he was using should be simr to his own, but it was obviously modified in a different way from his.


    ¡®The way he made those shots, and from so many different positions in quick session. Could it be possible that he shot from the same spot?... That means his marksmanship is better than mine. There was also that weird thing that happened a while ago. I shot him dead center but my bullet swerved and I missed, how could that have happened?... Now that almost all of my traps have either been blown away, used, or been disabled, what can I use to win?¡¯


    While John was thinking of what to do next he was checking his equipment. He had only shot once so he still had a ton of bullets, as for his traps and hidden cameras there was nothing left. Even hisptop and phone have been destroyed. The pay he had received for the job could no longer cover the damages he got during the job.


    Normally after losing so much, John would simply say that he has done as much as what was paid to him, but he could not do it now. Fade was one of the rising new assassins that could very much take his spot in the Dark Rankings. If he leaves now despite having a legitimate reason, many would not interpret it that way. They would simply think that he was afraid of Fade and fled.


    So John was now staying not because it was his job, but because it affects his reputation. He needed to finish off this Urban Legend of Leim City.


    ¡°This is a rather nice hiding spot you found.¡±


    John turned a hundred eighty degrees while holding his knife trying to cut whoever was behind him. Yet he wasn¡¯t able to cut anything but air.


    ¡°Nice knife.¡±


    John saw that in the corner of his eye was a man wearing a white mask. John didn¡¯t even turn his head as he threw the knife in his hand towards the man. Fade easily caught the knife as John backed away and was going to point his beloved Scorpion at Fade but was unable to, something was stopping him from lifting his rifle.


    ¡°Thanks for the knife. So you¡¯re the assassin they call the Elegant Scorpion. You do look like you¡¯re going to some kind of high-ss party instead of an assassination mission. Still, you were better than I expected and that deserves some praise.¡±


    ¡°Heh, you were also better than most. I can¡¯t believe an assassin of your caliber remained unknown until now. How unfortunate that you won¡¯t be able to reach your target or live another day.¡±


    John was finally able to notice the wires that were entangling his rifle, so he got the dagger hidden within his sleeves and cut the wires. John then lifted his beloved Scorpion and pointed it at Fade, who was now also pointing a simr modified Barrett m82 rifle at him.


    ¡°I think you have misunderstood something. The target has already been dealt with and I just came back here because I wanted to see the assassin they hired to take me down.¡±


    John could not see Fade¡¯s face due to the mask but he felt like he could see his smug smile. Aside from feeling irritated, John was also surprised.


    ¡°You already dealt with Catherine Walker, how, when?¡±

 Chapter 131

    Chapter 131: Why?


    Half an hour before Fade and John were pointing their rifles at each other, Catherine Walker was safely tucked in her panic room. Inside the panic room were numerous monitors that show every corner of the building she was in. There was also aputer that controlled the various things inside the building.


    Catherine was feeling extremely agitated as she was thinking of the reason Fade choose to kill her first among the other big bosses. Among the remaining big bosses she was the lesser evil, so then why was she chosen to die?


    To distract herself from her thoughts Catherine looked at the monitors. When she saw her numerous guards patrolling the building she felt a bit better. Then when she thought of the Elegant Scorpion who was in the Dark Rankings that they hired to deal with Fade, she was finally able to calm down. It was at that moment when she felt calmer, there was a ckout. It took a few seconds before the backup power turned on. The guards on the monitor started to be vignt.


    ¡®He¡¯s here?! Did the Elegant Scorpion lose?! What should I do, what should I do?!¡¯ As her thoughts were all over the ce and her heart racing, Catherine noticed that one by one the monitors were cking out. She stumbled backward as the fear she was suppressing suddenly burst out. She crawled towards the side of the room took out a hidden gun and scurried into the corner shakily pointing the gun towards the only door into the panic room.


    ...


    Catherine¡¯s guard POV:


    I thought that today would be like any other uneventful day, but out of nowhere the boss suddenly went into the panic room, that could only mean one thing, Fade was after her. I and the other guards were now patrolling the area in groups of five, and I was warily looking at every corner.


    .....


    ¡°Hey, why are you being so fidgety?¡±


    When I heard the team leader¡¯s voice I almost jumped backward, the others were looking at me with smiles on their faces.


    ¡°Calm down man.¡±


    ¡°How can I calm down, you guys do know that Fade is after our boss, right?¡±


    ¡°We know that, but like you said he¡¯s after our boss, not us. Everyone knows that Fade doesn¡¯t kill people that aren¡¯t his targets. The worse he could do is send us all to the hospital.¡±


    As I was about to respond the lights suddenly turned off, the five of us went into formation covering each other¡¯s blindspots after activating our night vision goggles. I then heard a sounding from behind me, but even though I was curious I could not break formation and look back. I needed to trust myrades with their spots while I deal with my assigned spot.


    ¡°I have no visual of the enemy.¡± The team leader spoke in which we responded in the same way except for Hnd who was silent.


    ¡°Hnd, why aren¡¯t you responding?¡± The team leader asked but then I heard another sound. It then became silent again. No longer able to stop my curiosity I turned around, it seems like the others had the same idea as we were now looking at each other.


    ¡°Where¡¯s Hnd and the team leader?¡± Raymond asked but then out of nowhere, I saw something appearing behind him. I quickly lifted my gun and was going to warn him but before I could do anything, Raymond suddenly copsed.


    I looked at myst remainingpanion and before I could even get a word out he too had disappeared. I knew I was next, but instead of trying to fight, I fled. I tossed my equipment away to lighten myself so I could run faster.


    I kept on running and no matter what noise I heard or what I saw I did not bother with it and continued running. I used the stairs and headed down. After a few minutes, I was on the first floor and darted towards the exit, once out of the building I did not dare feel relief as I continued to run while looking for a taxi.


    Once I got into a taxi, I headed home. The journey back to my apartment was uneventful but I remained vignt as I looked around. Once I was inside my apartment I checked every nook and cranny, and when I was done I finally felt relief as I sat on my sofa copsing from exhaustion.


    ...


    Catherine could not hear what was happening outside, but now that all the monitors were showing nothing she had a pretty good guess as to what was happening.


    ¡®It¡¯s alright, even if he does manage to defeat all my guards he can¡¯t get into this panic room.¡¯


    The panic room Catherine was in was located on a floor that doesn¡¯t exist in the blueprint of the building. Even if Fade does find the room, only Catherine can open it. If Fade forces his way in, he would find it difficult as the room could withstand an attack of several rocketunchers.


    Catherine waited as she was expecting Fade to try and force himself in that is if he ever finds the panic room. Yet that wasn¡¯t what happened, the door to the panic room opened without being forced. A man d in pure ck entered the room, a white mask covering his face. Catherine who had a gun pointed at Fade didn¡¯t even fire as she started crying.


    ¡°Why?! I thought that you only kill those that deserve it! I¡¯m not evil, I do not deserve to die like this! I just wanted the underworld to change, I wanted to change it for the better. You do not know how much I struggled, how much I endured! So why are you going to kill me?! Who gave you the right to judge me, when you yourself are the same as me!¡±


    Fade who was slowly approaching Catherine stopped. He then removed his mask showing his face. Catherine was surprised to see that such a young man was the legendary assassin that shook Leim city¡¯s underworld. Fade stared at Catherine in silence for a few seconds before speaking.


    ¡°You say that you tried to change the underworld, that you have endured and struggled. Yet in the end, the underworld did not change, it was you who had changed. If you have remained true to your ideals, I would not have tried to kill you, even if somebody hired me to do so. I know of your struggles, and what you have endured. I know that you understood that you could not eliminate prostitution or human trafficking, even if you tried, so you did the next best thing. You tried to control it, to limit it, you tried to help but in the end, you could not share your ideals with those that follow you and they wanted to dethrone you. So to keep your position you went against the very ideals that you fought for, the very ideals that you endured and suffered for, and now you tell me that have done nothing wrong? You and I are not the same, even if others don¡¯t believe in my way, even if the whole world opposes me I will never go against my own ideals.¡±


    Catherine could not understand it but Fade¡¯s voice sounded tranquil, hypnotic even, it was as if the sound of his voice soothed her very soul. Listening to him, Catherine was shaken to her core, she then recalled a time when she was truly trying to change the underworld. The people she helped back then where were they now? Most of them were now six feet under, rotting in their graves. She kept saying that she would help them once her position stabilized, but that never happened. She just kept on fooling herself, she wanted to free the others but in the end, it was she who got trapped in her position.


    When that dawned on her Catherine started crying again but this time for a different reason. She looked at the young man called Fade and spoke in a hoarse and defeated tone.


    ¡°Thank you, for making me realize the truth in the end... I wish that I was able to remain true to my ideals, but unlike you I was weak. Hey... I know that this might be too much to ask, but can you promise me that you would always be true to your ideals...¡±


    ¡°There¡¯s no need to promise you that, I already made that promise to someone important to me and I will keep true to that promise until the end.¡±


    ¡°I see... Then I hope that your heart remains true to the very end.¡±


    Catherine smiled with a look of serenity on her face. Fade then wore his mask as he took out a needle and threw it piercing Catherine¡¯s head killing her in one swift blow.


    ¡°I hope that in the next life you no longer need to struggle or endure, that you may find... Happiness.¡±

 Chapter 132

    Chapter 132: You have a few more tries


    ¡°I have already killed the target and I just came here to see the assassin they hired to take care of me.¡±


    John was stunned for a second as he heard what Fade said. It hadn¡¯t even been half an hour, and Fade had already killed the target with John trying to track him. This was the greatest embarrassment in his entire career as an assassin. He had nned for days now and had set up numerous traps, yet none of those helped. Fade easily dealt with everything he could throw at him.


    Not only was Fade the better marksman it was obvious that Fade was better than him in almost all aspects. John gritted his teeth as he continued to point his beloved Scorpion at Fade who was also calmly pointing his own rifle at John.


    ¡°I won this round, Elegant Scorpion.¡±


    ¡°Hmph, how can you be so sure? Though I hate to admit it, the truth is you are the better marksman, but at this distance, it doesn¡¯t really matter who the better marksman is. At this distance, the one who has the better gun will win, and I can tell you now your gun is no match for my Scorpion. You might have finished your mission, but you got too arrogant. If you just left after killing your target withouting here you might¡¯ve truly won, but now you¡¯ll never get the chance to leave.¡±


    ¡°It seems like you misunderstood something here. Didn¡¯t you hear what I just said?... If you didn¡¯t, then allow me to repeat it, I already won.¡±


    Fade lowered his weapon and started disassembling his rifle right in front of John who was still pointing his own rifle at Fade. Seeing what Fade was doing, John was at first confused, then after a few seconds he got embarrassed, then he got angry.


    .....


    ¡°Are you mocking me?!¡±


    John got nearer to Fade his eyes bloodshot and the muzzle of his rifle was practically touching Fade¡¯s mask. Even then Fade wasn¡¯t even a bit perturbed as he nced at John for a brief moment, he then continued to pack away his rifle as he spoke without looking at John.


    ¡°I heard that you were some kind of gentleman killer, that no matter the situation you remain calm, cool, and collected. There was also a rumor that even in the face of death you would still act like a gentleman, but seeing you now this was quite the letdown. Still, you have a few more chances to prove that you¡¯re better than this. I already know that Catherine Walker isn¡¯t your only client, and you have quite a few more. If you continue to work under those guys, we will surely meet again. So by then, I hope to meet the real Elegant Scorpion who is supposed to be some sort of gentleman.¡±


    ¡°You really think there will be a next time? If I pull the trigger now your head will blow up. You should be happy that even after your death, your identity, your legend will never fade.¡±


    Fade stood up as he was finished putting his rifle into a backpack. He then turned his back on John who grew even more infuriated.


    ¡°Why don¡¯t you try and shoot to see what happens.¡±


    ¡°Do you truly understand what¡¯s going to happen to you? You are about to die, you¡¯re about to get your head blown into bits and you still continue to act like it¡¯s nothing.¡±


    ¡°I act like it¡¯s nothing, cause it is nothing. The threat of your gun in my head is nothing, so shut up and just pull the f*ckning trigger already.¡±


    As Fade said those words John felt a sense of dread. It has been a long time since he felt something like this. John tightened his grip on his beloved rifle, as he unconsciously gulped and stepped back a bit.


    ¡°Even when my back is already facing you, and I¡¯m not even armed you still don¡¯t have the guts to shoot. You know I was a little bit excited to meet an assassin from this so called Dark Rankings, and at the beginning, you really were a bit of a challenge, but now you¡¯re nothing but a disappointment. If someone like you can be in the middle of the Dark Rankings, then this so called ranking of the greatest assassins in the world is nothing special. So are you going to pull the trigger or not?¡±


    Fade simply stood there waiting for John to shoot, but nothing happened. Fade then sighed as he shrugged his shoulders. When Fade was about to leave, John finally tried to pull the trigger, yet something had stopped his finger from doing so. The wires that were too hard to see were stopping him. John then saw Fade still casually walking away as if he wasn¡¯t a threat at all, making him feel even more rage. This was the first time that an opponent had treated him with such disregard. Usually, he was the one who acted this way with his targets.


    John used his rage as fuel to strengthen himself as he forcefully pulled the trigger with wires and all. John¡¯s index finger started bleeding as the wires dug into his skin, he was feeling the pain but the adrenaline pushed that aside as he pulled the trigger with all his might. The sound of gunfire echoed through the rooftop.


    He had finally pulled the trigger, yet the scene he was expecting to see didn¡¯t happen. Fade¡¯s head was undamaged and instead, the Scorpion¡¯s barrel was damaged as it was twisted to the side. The bullet dide out, but it flew nowhere near the target. John was still in a state of shock when he heard Fade¡¯s voice in his ear.


    ¡°You weren¡¯t as disappointing as I thought, maybe you¡¯ll be a better challenge next time. You do have a few more tries.¡±


    John looked ahead to where the voice wasing from but Fade was no longer there, not even his shadow could be spotted.

 Chapter 133

    Chapter 133: Michael makes a move


    During the time Fade was dealing with Catherine and the so called assassin Elegant Scorpion, Michael, Shin, and Larry were also dealing with their own problem.


    It had been a few hours now since Shin had sent his men out to find Larry¡¯s mother. As they were waiting, Shin continued to eat without a care in the world. Michael was having a mental conversation with the Spirit of the Akashic Records while pretending to read a book. Larry, on the other hand, was getting more anxious by the second.


    It was then the door to the restaurant opened and a group of men in suits arrived. The group of men approached Shin¡¯s table and bowed their heads.


    ¡°So have you found her?¡± Shin asked the leader of the group while stuffing a piece of steak in his mouth.


    ¡°Yes young master, we did find her-¡± When Larry heard what the man said he got excited but then the next thing he heard made him feel worried. ¡± But her mental state isn¡¯t normal.¡± The leader then signaled the others to bring Mollie Fletcher forward.


    Mollie who was being escorted into the restaurant was wearing a very revealing dress. She also had a dazed look as she smiled seductively at everyone around her. When she saw Shin she made some very suggestive movements.


    ¡°Are you the one who bought me, do you want me to serve everyone here?¡± Mollie closed in on Shin, but before she could do anything inappropriate Shin knocked her out.


    .....


    ¡°She really is not in the right mind, she didn¡¯t even look at her son. Alright, contact a doctor and tell them to get here as fast as possible.¡± While Shin was giving his orders to his men, Larry held onto his unconscious mother.


    ¡®What are you waiting for? let¡¯s check her situation and heal her.¡¯ The Spirit of the Akashic Records spoke.


    ¡®I want to wait and see what the doctor Shin calls have to say about the situation. We might find figure out something new.¡¯


    ¡®There¡¯s no time for that, based on what I sawst time the longer one has been introduced to this new drug the harder it is to cure. With my current fragmented knowledge of alchemy, we might not be able to save her if we wait any longer. She is already pretty far gone.¡¯


    ¡®Why didn¡¯t you say that a few hours ago?!¡¯ While Michael was scolding the Spirit in his mind, he approached Larry who was holding onto his mother.


    ¡°Larry, can I have look at your mother, I think I have a way to cure her.¡±


    ¡°Really?! Please if you can do something!¡± Larry who was already panicking while holding back his tears grabbed hold of Michael with a look of desperation in his eyes. Shin who also heard what Michael had said, looked at his schoolmate with curiosity.


    ¡°Yes, I can help her, Shin can I ask your men to help me gather some ingredients that I need.¡±


    ¡°Sure, tell them whatever you need.¡±


    Michael nodded his head in appreciation of Shin¡¯s trust as he started checking out Mollie¡¯s current condition. The first thing Michael did was open Mollie¡¯s mouth and smelled her breath. Using his mana to enhance his smell and with the help of the Spirit, Michael had a clear understanding of the contents of the drug used on Mollie and how long she has been using it, even how much she already had.


    The amount of the drugs used on her was smallerpared to the previous person Michael helped, but the quality of the drug that was used on Mollie was better. Also based on the smell, it has been a few weeks since Mollie started taking the drug. Now the problem was, due to the increase in quality Michael and even the Spirit needed to change some of the things needed to make the potion that could cure Mollie.


    While Michael was doing his thing, the leader of Shin¡¯s men whispered to Shin.


    ¡°Young Master, do we still need to call that doctor?¡±


    ¡°Hmm, since this thing isn¡¯t really life-threatening let¡¯s put a hold on that. For now, I just want you to bring whatever Michael needs.¡±


    ...


    ¡°Bring me a ss of water and a knife or anything sharp.¡± One of Shin¡¯s men handed Michael a ss filled with water and a knife that he took from his pocket. Upon receiving the things he needed, Michael made a small cut on Mollie¡¯s finger.


    ¡°What are you doing?!¡± Larry was about to lunge at Michael but Shin stopped him. Larry struggled to escape from Shin¡¯s tight grip but despite giving everything Larry had no hope of even making Shin flinch. On the other hand, Michael was so concentrated on what he was doing he couldn¡¯t hear Larry¡¯s voice.


    ¡°Just shut up, and watch,¡± Shin spoke without even looking at Larry as he was intensely staring at what Michael was doing.


    After making a tiny cut on Mollie¡¯s finger Michael made her drop a little bit of blood into the ss of water. The water then started turning green and then ck, it wasn¡¯t fast but it wasn¡¯t slow either. When Michael saw this he frowned.


    ¡®Tsk, it¡¯s already seeped into her blood. We need to move fast.¡¯


    Michael then consulted with the Spirit and he started writing the materials he needed. He then passed the list to Shin¡¯s men. Once that was done, Michael looked at Shin.


    ¡°Shin, can you make everyone else aside from the three of us step outside.¡±


    ¡°You heard the man, everyone out, and do not enter without permission.¡± Shin¡¯s men bowed their heads and they exited the restaurant alongside the staff in an orderly manner.


    ¡°Shin, Larry can you promise me to keep what you¡¯re about to see a secret.¡±


    ¡°Of course,¡± Shin answered without hesitation.


    After hesitating for a few seconds Larry also responded. ¡°If this can save my mother I¡¯ll promise you anything.¡±


    Michael nodded his head as he ced his hand on Mollie¡¯s abdomen, Michael then started reciting spell words. Michael¡¯s hand was now visibly glowing as some unknown force entered Mollie¡¯s body. Larry was confused as to what Michael was doing but he wasn¡¯t that surprised as he had little to no understanding of what Martial Artists can do and thought this was normal for them.


    On the other hand, Shin was shocked by the sight. What Michael was doing was simr to when Grandmasters used Qi and make it flow outwards. Shin was sure that Michael wasn¡¯t a Grandmaster, but then how was he able to make his Qi flow out of his body? Shin was really curious and had many questions he wanted to ask Michael but he held back as this was not the right time to do so.


    ...


    Michael was using an advanced healing spell to cleanse a bit of Mollie¡¯s blood, but he was only able to cleanse it a little bit. Michael¡¯s current mana supply was too small for him to be able to use the advanced healing spell properly, but it was enough for him to slow down the corruption of the drug.


    This was the only thing he could do as he waited for Shin¡¯s men to bring the materials he needed. Even then he wasn¡¯t a hundred percent sure that he could cure Mollie.

 Chapter 134

    Chapter 134: Oath to the heavens


    At first, Michael was able to control the thing contaminating Mollie Fletcher but as time went by he found out that his mana was being drained too fast. Michael couldn¡¯t allow himself to lose any more mana as he needed a bit of it to make the potion that could cure Mollie Fletcher. Still, if he stopped inserting his mana into Mollie, things might turn from bad to worse real fast.


    ¡®Any ideas?¡¯ Unable to think of any solutions to his problem Michael turned to the only being that he knew could help. The voice of the Spirit of the Akashic Records responded in his mind.


    ¡®Hmm, this will be a gamble. Normally I would suggest simply drinking mana potions to restore whatever mana you lost, but that¡¯s not an option at the moment. If that guy was here he could have shared his mana with you, but seeing as he isn¡¯t here that¡¯s also out.¡¯


    ¡®How about you stop listing the things that I can¡¯t do and tell me what I can do!¡¯


    ¡®Fine, there¡¯s only one thing you could do right now, and like I said at the beginning it¡¯s to take a gamble.¡¯


    ¡®What kind of gamble?¡¯


    ¡®You need to stop using your mana and concentrate on restoring a bit of it. So that when the people you sent out bring the things you need, you can properly make the potion.¡¯


    .....


    ¡®Then what about Larry¡¯s mother?¡¯


    ¡®That¡¯s what the gamble is, you need to hope that she canst long enough for you to make that potion of hers.¡¯


    ¡®Is there no other way?¡¯


    ¡®None that my current self knows of. So you either use up your mana now and hope that you have enough to make that potion, or you save it and hope that she canst long enough for you to make that potion.¡¯


    ¡®... This isn¡¯t my decision to make...¡¯


    Michael stopped using his mana on Mollie, he then looked at the worried Larry. Seeing the expression on Michael¡¯s face Larry became even more anxious.


    ¡°Is there something wrong?¡±


    ¡°Larry I¡¯ll be honest with you. Currently, whatever drug was injected into your mother is spreading faster and faster. Based on what I sensed it¡¯s only a matter of time before the virus inside her will be incurable with the means I have. The mother you know and love will be nothing more than an empty husk at that point.¡±


    Larry stumbled towards Michael and grabbed hold of the other¡¯s hands. Larry¡¯s look of desperation was heartbreaking to see.


    ¡°Are you saying that you can¡¯t help?! That there¡¯s no way to save my mother?! Please, I¡¯ll give anything, please just save her.¡± Larry¡¯s eyes were getting redder as tears came down his face.


    ¡°I¡¯m not going to lie tofort you. Right now your mother is in a very precarious position. So I¡¯m giving you a choice. The thing I was doing a while ago was stopping the spread of the virus inside your mother.¡±


    ¡°Then you should continue doing that!¡±


    ¡°Calm down and listen. If I continue doing that, I may stop the virus from spreading momentarily but once the materials to create the medicine arrive I might not have enough energy to make it. On the other hand, if I preserve my energy your mother might not be able to hold on until I make the medicine. So I want you to think this through, do you want me to gamble to see if my energy willst until I make the medicine, or will you gamble to see if your mother can endure by herself until I make the medicine?¡±


    Hearing what Michael had to say, Larry looked at his mother who was sleeping soundly on the sofa sits. She didn¡¯t look like she was hurting, but Larry knew the truth. Larry approached his unconscious mother and held her hand. After a while, he whispered something in her ear and stood up and looked at Michael.


    ¡°Alright, I decided. Please preserve your energy and quickly make the medicine. My mother is a fighter, I know she can hold on until you can make that medicine.¡±


    ¡°Okay then, Shin can you contact your people and tell them to find those ingredients faster.¡±


    Shin took out his phone and sent a message to all his men. Michael then went into the kitchen to make preparations. He looked around and got the biggest pot he could find and started cleaning it. He got out all the items he would need and started cleaning those as well.


    While Michael was busying himself, Shin went out of the restaurant as for some reason watching Larry and his mother made him feel something weird. On the other hand, Larry was holding his mother¡¯s hand trying to stay strong.


    ¡°Mom, please don¡¯t you dare give up on me. You never gave up, even when your parents turn their back on you, even when dad died, even when you lost your job, even when you struggled to raise me, you never gave up. So you don¡¯t you give up now, you¡¯ve got to fight this, I still need you. I need you to be there when I graduate, I need you to be there when I find my first job, I need you to be there when I get married and have children. I need you to be there so I can repay everything you have done for me, so please don¡¯t give up.¡±


    Larry¡¯s hands trembled as he spoke his heart out. The more he spoke, the more he felt his bravery increasing. He needed to be strong not just for his mother, but for himself as well. As he continued to encourage himself and his unconscious mother, Shin¡¯s men finally arrived.


    ¡°Bring everything to the kitchen,¡± Michael shouted within the kitchen. Shin¡¯s men moved in an orderly manner as they ced every ingredient in the list on the table. Shin also entered the kitchen curious as to how Michael was going to create this so called medicine.


    ¡°Alright, you can all leave now, this next step is the most crucial and I don¡¯t want any of you to stay here and ruin my concentration.¡±


    Shin¡¯s men did not say a word as they left the kitchen, Shin on the other hand remained.


    ¡°That includes you, Shin.¡±


    ¡°I was the one who paid for all the materials in this kitchen so I should at least see what you do with the things I bought.¡±


    Seeing Shin¡¯s expression Michael sighed as he nodded his head.


    ¡°... Fine, but I need you to promise me that you wouldn¡¯t tell another soul what you see here... No, I want you to vow on your pride that you would never speak of what you see here to anyone else.¡±


    Shin stared at Michael¡¯s face and saw a very firm expression. This was the first time he has ever seen Michael show such an expression.


    ¡°It¡¯s that serious... Alright, I vow on my pride, honor, and to the very heavens that I will not speak a word of what I will witness today, and if I break my vow may my body and my soul shatter.¡±


    Shin spoke while using his inner energy and thunder could be heard in the distance. This was the oath to the heavens that no martial artist would say lightly as it truly ced a sort of restriction on the person who made the oath. Even the government wouldn¡¯t force a person to take this oath lightly, as the moment you break your vow, you will die body and soul. During the war against the Empire, this was used against enemy martial artists, but at the end of the war, this method was deemed inhumane and was considered a crime to force anyone in using it. Michael who knew what this represented was stunned.


    ¡°... Shin, I just wanted you to make a promise you did not need to say the oath to the heavens.¡± Hearing what Michael said Shin simply shrugged his shoulders as he responded.


    ¡°It doesn¡¯t really matter as I will never break my promise anyway. So how about you do what you need to do. You did say that Larry¡¯s mother doesn¡¯t have that much time.¡±


    Michael nodded his head and no longer said anything as he started making the potion.

 Chapter 135

    Chapter 135: Alchemy


    Michael started to ce the ingredients into therge pot and started the fire with medium heat. He then stirred the ingredients while adding more every rotation. After a while, Michael turned up the heat, unfortunately, the heat that the stove produced wasn¡¯t enough.


    Michael already expected this and created a fireball with his left hand while his right hand continued stirring. Shin who was watching at the side was surprised by the sight. This was the second time he has seen Michael use external qi, and the effect was more obvious than before.


    Michael unaware of what Shin was thinking used the fireball in his hand to heat up the pot. Unfortunately, the heat emitted by the fireball was greater than what the pot and metal stirring stick could handle. Michael also expected this as this was what happenedst time as well.


    As the pot and stick were melting due to the heat, Michael with the guidance of the Spirit of the Akashic Records strengthened the ordinary pot and metal stick with his mana. The amount of mana he was using was just enough for him to hold on until he was finished making the potion.


    While Michael was fully concentrated on making the potion Shin suddenly heard someone shouting from the outside. Shin didn¡¯t want Michael to lose concentration so he immediately went out to see what was happening.


    Larry was stillforting his mother unaware of themotion going on outside. When Shin opened the door of the restaurant Larry and Shin heard the voice of a very familiar person.


    ¡°I know that you took her, let me in, or else I¡¯ll arrest the lot of you!¡± Just outside being blocked by Shin¡¯s men was Detective Matsuri.


    .....


    ¡°Dete-¡± Shin was about to call out to the detective but before he could do so, Larry burst out of the restaurant.


    ¡°Detective, what are you doing here?¡± Larry looked bewildered as he stared at Matsuri.


    ¡°Larry where you captured as well?¡±


    ¡°Huh?¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry I¡¯m here now. I know these thugs took your mother away and now they took you as well.¡±


    Matsuri pulled out a syringe, this was an advanced version of the Booster that could increase her overall strength into a rank-four Martial Artist. The drawback was that after the effects wear off the user would be bedridden for a week and would have some minor heartplications. Still, Matsuri was willing to risk that.


    As Matsuri was about to inject herself with the Booster someone stopped her. She didn¡¯t even notice the person approach her as he suddenly appeared out of nowhere. Matsuri already knew that this could happen as her opponents were martial artists so she already had another Booster in her left hand ready and was about to inject it, but then she saw who had stopped her.


    ¡°Mugami Shin?... Why are you here, are you the one behind all of this?¡±


    ¡°How about you calm yourself first and listen to our exnation? Larry here hasn¡¯t been kidnapped in fact, Michael and I have been helping him.¡±


    When Matsuri heard what Shin said she unconsciously looked at Larry who nodded his head as he approached her.


    ¡°Everything, Sir Shin has said is true... But what are you doing here Detective?¡±


    ¡°After I was removed from the Fletcher Case, I had some of my friends from the patrol unit have a look at the brothels owned by Catherine Walker every now and then. A few hours ago each one of them saw a couple of people entering the brothels at almost the exact same time. One of them even saw these men in suits take Mollie Fletcher. It took me some time to track the guys down and now here we are.¡±


    Larry felt a pang in his heart, learning that even after she was warned not to touch anything rted to this case, Detective Matsuri continued on without worry about her career. Larry hated himself for getting angry at Matsuri despite knowing she was doing her best.


    ¡°Why are you doing this Detective, even though you know you¡¯ll get into trouble?¡±


    Larry who has been on a roller coaster of emotions the entire day could not help himself as he spoke the question he wanted to ask a few days ago. He could not shed any more tears as he already shed them all, but his red eyes looked deeply at Matsuri. Seeing him act like that surprised Matsuri for a bit, she then smiled at the flustered Larry.


    ¡°I am a Detective, and I always move in the name of justice. If the rules do not allow me to fulfill this one thing, then what¡¯s the point of everything else? Not to mention didn¡¯t I promise you that everything would be alright. How could I just do nothing after promising you that?¡±


    ¡°... But...¡±


    ¡°There¡¯s no need to worry about me, I still have my own connections. So even if they find out about I can still do something about it. Anyway, that¡¯s not important... So, what¡¯s happening here? How did you even think of involving Michael and the kid from Mugami n to help you?¡±


    As Larry was about to respond to Matsuri¡¯s question, Shin signaled him to stop.


    ¡°How about we continue this conversation inside?¡± Shin then pointed at the restaurant. Matsuri shrugged her shoulders as she entered the restaurant followed by Larry and Shin.


    ...


    While Larry was telling his story to Matsuri, Michael was already at thest steps of making the potion. The pot he was using was nearly melted but it held on until this final step. As he continued to do his thing, he and the Spirit of the Akashic Records still haven¡¯t noticed the person hidden in the shadows watching them.


    Michael¡¯s experience, skills, and strength weren¡¯t enough for him to notice the person hidden within the shadows, as for the Spirit of the Akashic Records he was in an iplete state and needed to focus on Michael¡¯s alchemy which was why he wasn¡¯t aware of the intruder as well.


    ¡®Hmm, I guess he really is pretty talented, and maybe that Spirit really is a piece of the Akashic Records. Still, it is rather surprising that the Detective is also rted to this case. She really is such a busybody.¡¯


    The person hidden in the shadows was none other than Fade. After he was done with his mission he immediately headed to the restaurant Michael and the others were. When he arrived he saw Michael already making a potion. He came to make sure that his mission was truly a sess.

 Chapter 136

    Chapter 136: The Alchemist


    Once he was done making the potion, Michael took a cup and poured a bit of the potion into it. Michael then got out of the kitchen and was rather surprised to see Detective Matsuri in there talking to Shin and Larry, still, Michael had no time to question what was happening as he approached the unconscious Mollie. As Michael was about to wake the unconscious Mollie and make her drink the potion, Matsuri grabbed hold of his hand.


    ¡°Are you sure this will work? Shouldn¡¯t we just bring her to a hospital?¡±


    ¡°This should work, as I already tried it with a few other patients with simr symptoms. I know that this drug could do, and if we wait too long then we might not be able to save her.¡±


    When Matsuri heard Michael¡¯s answer she started to hesitate as she was faltering Michael continued to speak.


    ¡°Still, there is a higher chance that this will fail, since the drug given to her seems to be stronger than the others...¡±


    ¡°Then the more reason we need to bring her to a professional.¡±


    ¡°I think that even if we do bring her to a doctor, they might not be able to cure her with our modern medicine.¡±


    .....


    ¡°Huh, what are you saying?¡±


    ¡°I have no time to exin, but if Larry wants to bring her mother to a hospital, then I will not do anything... But if he wants me to use the medicine that I made then he could do so, the choice is his to make.¡±


    Michael¡¯s clear blue eyes looked directly at Larry. Even Matsuri unconsciously looked at Larry waiting for him to give his answer. Seeing them looking at him Larry bit his lips as he nced at his mother.


    As he was growing confused about what he should do Larry then remembered the face of the person who helped him get to this point. The man who covered his face with a white mask, the urban legend, the assassin, Fade. He was the one who led him to meet these two people, telling him that they would help.


    Fade basically said that Shin and Michael would be able to help him. Shin had already done his part and had freed his mother from the brothel. Michael wasn¡¯t needed for that, then why did Fade tell him to not only meet Shin but also Michael, was it because he knew that Michael had a cure?...


    ¡°I will believe in Michael¡¯s medicine.¡±


    Michael nodded his head while Matsuri sighed as she let go of Michael¡¯s hand. Michael then stopped for a couple of seconds. Seeing that he wasn¡¯t moving Shin, Matsuri, and Larry looked at him confused.


    ¡°Is there a problem?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know how to wake her up.¡±


    When the three heard what Michael had to say they were stunned for a while. Shin shook his head while sighing, he then tapped Mollie on the back and after a few seconds Mollie woke up. She looked around groggily and had a seductive smile on her face. While she was still in that state Michael handed her the cup.


    ¡°Drink this.¡±


    Mollie didn¡¯t even hesitate as she drank whatever was given to her. After drinking everything inside the cup, Mollie felt something burning from within her. She then started screaming in pain as she kept on shouting that she was burning.


    ¡°What¡¯s happening to her, what did you do to her?!¡± Larry shouted as he tried to calm his mother down.


    ¡°I... T-t-t-this didn¡¯t happen thest time.¡±


    Michael was panicking as he saw how much pain Mollie was in. Thest time he used that potion the people who drank it were quickly cured, this was the first time he has seen such a reaction. He thought that even if it failed nothing bad would happen.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, I didn¡¯t mean for this to happen. I... I...¡±


    Michael didn¡¯t know what to say as he grew more confused by the second. As Mollie was screaming in pain, Larry panicking, and Michael spiraling, Matsuri pped her hands.


    ¡°Everyone calm down! Larry restrain your mother for a while, and Michael I know this looks really bad, but you need to calm down and think, you¡¯re the only one who knows anything about the thing you gave her.¡±


    Michael looked at Matsuri still confused. Seeing him act like that Matsuri knew she had no choice and pped him. Matsuri¡¯s strength was below Michael¡¯s but even then that p hurt him a bit.


    ¡°Get it together!¡±


    After being pped by Matsuri, Michael was finally able to calm down a bit, and then he nodded his head.


    ¡®So what do you think?¡¯ Michael asked the Spirit.


    ¡®I¡¯ve been telling you since a while ago, that this reaction of hers must be because of how long she was contaminated, but don¡¯t worry this is a good sign and not a bad one since it means the potion is indeed working. Once the feeling of heat subsides you should check how much of the contamination was cleansed so we can n what to do next.¡¯


    Hearing the Spirit of the Akashic Record¡¯s exnation made Michael sigh. As Michael was about to tell everyone what he figured out, Shin suddenly stood up.


    ¡°Hey didn¡¯t it suddenly be quiet?¡±


    ¡°Huh, what do you mean?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s too quiet for a while now... Toumae in here. Touma did you hear me I saide in here, now!¡± Despite being shouted at the leader of Shin¡¯s men did not respond.


    ¡®HOLD YOUR BREATH!¡¯


    The Spirit suddenly shouted. Michael was going to warn the others but then something smashed into the window. Matsuri reacted fast and pounced on Larry and Mollie making them duck under a table. Shin did not even bother moving as he curiously looked at the object that smashed into the restaurant.


    He wasn¡¯t that afraid as even if the object were a grenade with his body forged with the techniques of the Mugami n something of that level wouldn¡¯t harm him too much. Unfortunately, the object didn¡¯t explode, and instead, a sort of gas came out of it. When Shin saw this he tried to circte his inner energy to block whatever toxin wasing out of the object but it was toote. Something had already entered his system as he could no longer feel his inner energy, he couldn¡¯t even feel his fingers as he suddenly knelt on the ground unable to move.


    Even Larry, Mollie, and Matsuri who hid under the table could not move, Larry and Mollie even fainted after inhaling the gas. Matsuri was still trying to hold onto her consciousness, screaming at her body ordering it to move.


    The only one among them that wasn¡¯t fully affected by the gas was Michael as the Spirit had warned him in advance as well as taught him how to stop whatever toxin that gas was emitting from entering his body.


    ¡°Oh well, that¡¯s interesting. I¡¯m guessing you¡¯re the one who¡¯s been snooping around looking for the book I own.¡±


    A man wearing a red shirt, white pants, boots, and a brown robe entered the restaurant. As he was walking you could hear the nking of ss, which seem to being from within his robe. The man also had a distinct smell of herbs.

 Chapter 137

    Chapter 137: Surprising


    ¡°Well then, normally I would¡¯ve wanted to have more time to chat with you little alchemist but I¡¯m on a really tight schedule. So just if you just give back experiment#438 and I¡¯ll be on my way.¡±


    The man spoke with a smile on his face he looked like a kind middle-aged man, but the words he said were anything but kind, and the glint of his eyes seem to show his true self. Michael could pretty much feel the intensity of the man¡¯s killing intent as he walked forward. Yet Michael did not back down as for the first time in his life he felt truly angry. When he heard that Mollie Fletcher was experiment number four hundred thirty-eight, gave him a concrete number on how many people were suffering because of this person. Michael clenched his fist and stepped forward blocking the man¡¯s path.


    ¡°Do you really think that I¡¯ll just let you do what you want?! You¡¯re a monster that needs to be taken down!¡± Despite his body feeling slightly lethargic Michael stood in front of the man with no fear only anger.


    ¡°Oh how disappointing, I thought you were an intellectual like myself. I was even nning to invite you to join me.¡±


    ¡®Calm down Michael, you need to stay calm, this guy is way more powerful than you. The mana in his body is better than a mage apprentice-level like you. Use your head and trick him, tell him that you¡¯ll join him, then we can follow him, and once we get the chance we can save the people he¡¯s experimenting on.¡¯


    Michael knew that the n that the Spirit spoke of was the best course of action at this time, but despite knowing that Michael could not do it. He could not even say that he could join someone like this even if it was a lie.


    ¡°Hah, you an intellectual? You¡¯re nothing but a monster in human skin.¡±


    .....


    ¡°Come on now, don¡¯t disappoint me too much, you don¡¯t need to talk like all the other monkeys who don¡¯t understand anything. The pursuit of the truth always has some sacrifices, people like experiment#438 are important as they sacrifice their lives for the truth. I know someone like you who has knowledge of alchemy would be able to understand. You do understand me right?¡±


    The expression on the man¡¯s face changed as he waited for Michael¡¯s answer.


    ¡°You say that they¡¯re important but you don¡¯t even use their name, and call them by number! I can¡¯t and don¡¯t want to join someone like you!¡±


    The rage and hatred in Michael¡¯s voice echoed in the entire restaurant. For the first time since he has shown himself, the man who ims to be a seeker of the truth frowned.


    ¡°I will give you onest chance to change your mind. You have the potential to be someone great as unlike all the other fools, you have the energy of the world within you. That is the mark of greatness, soe join me, and I will show you the truth of this world.¡±


    The man extended his hand towards Michael, but then he moved to the right as something passed by him. Shin who was kneeling on the ground had attacked but missed. He then turned around and faced the surprised man.


    ¡°Didn¡¯t you hear what my friend over here said, he doesn¡¯t want to join you in whatever crazy thing you want to do. So how about you just give up and surrender yourself, or better yet how about we have a little battle so that I can beat you up for all the crap you¡¯ve done!¡±


    Shin¡¯s tone was serious but the expression he showed betrayed his true thoughts, as he was smiling from ear to ear. This was the third person in the recent months that made him feel threatened, the first one was assassin Fade, and the second was the Captain of the Elite Dragon Brigade Tang Ao. The man sighed as he took out a vial from his pocket.


    ¡°This is rather surprising, the gas I used could¡¯ve knocked out even a rank ten Martial Artist for a few hours, and clearly you¡¯re not a Grandmaster. It seems like the quality of your inner energy is purer than most, and your control over it is extremely good. Based on your age and actions you must be some kind of genius from a big n. I don¡¯t really want to mess with the big ns, for now, so you¡¯re lucky that I won¡¯t kill you. As for you little alchemist, I¡¯m going to ask you again some other time since your mind is clouded at the moment.¡± The man then looked at his watch and shrugged his shoulders.


    ¡°It looks like the time for talking is done and over with, I need you two to step aside or I would need to do it the hard way.¡± The man then tossed the vial at Michael and Shin, Michael quickly backed away and so did Shin.


    ¡®What was that?¡¯


    As Michael used the same trick he did to expel the first gas that the man used, the Spirit suddenly shouted to evade. Michael quickly ducked as Shin attacked him.


    ¡°Shin what are you doing?!¡± Michael shouted as he blocked another attack from Shin.


    ¡°Oh, as expected it didn¡¯t work on you since the energy of the world flows in you. Don¡¯t worry your friend is just hallucinating and thinks you¡¯re an enemy, the effect will wear off eventually. Still, I guess that friends of yours will keep youpany while I do my business.¡±


    Michael could not shift his focus as Shin¡¯s attacks were bing even more aggressive. Despite Shin being weakened by whatever gas the man used on them, he was still moving quite nicely. Michael who had less experience in fighting was having a hard time just defending.


    While Shin and Michael were fighting, the man approached the unconscious Mollie, who was being covered by an unconscious Matsuri. As he was one foot nearer to the body, somebody suddenly appeared before him. A white mask that covers his face, a ck trench coat with the smell of blood. The man quickly backed away when he saw this person.


    ¡°Oh if it isn¡¯t the rising star of Leim City, the urban legend himself, Fade.¡±


    ¡°Leave now Alchemist, these people are under my protection.¡±

 Chapter 138

    Chapter 138: Tricks and Poisons


    ¡°Now that¡¯s something I cannot do. Still, you are quite an interesting specimen. You radiate the energy of the world more so than anyone I know... Truly interesting, what kind of being are you, are you truly a human? Are you perhaps part of the Sorcerors circle, or are you part of the Magus Tower or are you some rogue? Well, no matter what you are or who you¡¯re associated with, I really want to have a very long talk with you, but-¡± The man looked at his watch again. ¡°I don¡¯t have time now, so how about we reschedule this chat of ours and you back away so I can get experiment#438.¡±


    ¡°I already told you, alchemist, I won¡¯t hand her over so you better leave.¡± Fade then emitted killing intent which was directed at the Alchemist.


    The Alchemist felt an intense pressure as every single fiber of his being screamed at him to run away, his very instincts told him to flee. The pressure emitted by Fade was so intense the Alchemist started to hallucinate. He saw a mountain of dead bodies and the souls of the dead screaming in pain. The Alchemist unconsciously shivered in fear, but that was just the reaction of his body, and his mind was still crystal clear. The Alchemist smiled as he spoke to Fade.


    ¡°As expected of an assassin like you, how many have you killed for you to have such a killing intent? It¡¯s quite funny that the little alchemist called me a monster, butpared to the number of people you killed aren¡¯t you the true monster?¡±


    ¡°I will not deny it, I am a monster but a different kind from you. So are you going to leave Alchemist, or are you going to force me to make you leave?¡±


    The Alchemist didn¡¯t respond as he licked his lips. Fade noticed that the Alchemist¡¯s eyes were looking around the ce, but Fade did not move his head as all his focus was on the Alchemist. What the Alchemist did was amon way to distract an opponent for a second, but such tricks do not work on Fade.


    Seeing his move didn¡¯t work the Alchemist sighed as he lifted his arms as if to surrender, but Fade wasn¡¯t fooled as he swung his arms and the thin wires in his gloves caught whatever the Alchemist threw.


    .....


    ¡°Oh, so that¡¯s the kind of weapon you use.¡± The Alchemist¡¯s eyes practically sparkled with interest as he looked at the vials he threw being suspended in the air.


    ¡°You¡¯re really going to make me waste my time.¡± As the Alchemist was talking he once again looked at his watch. ¡°Alright then, we can y for a little bit.¡±


    The Alchemist plucked one of the wires and it suddenly caught on fire, in a second the fire rapidly spread to the other wires. Fade quickly swung his arm tossing the vials he caught to the opposite side of the restaurant, he then cut off the wires that he had used. With that one technique Fade got an answer to a question he had since he saw the Alchemist, that the alchemist was really using mana. Not only was the alchemist using mana but his control over it was far better than Michael. Fade was expecting the people of this world to not be this good, that even if they had mana he imagined they wouldn¡¯t be as skilled as this.


    The Alchemist was quite surprised as well, at how quickly Fade reacted but that didn¡¯t matter as he was already making his next move. The Alchemist took out another vial and was about to spill it, but Fade was able to break the vial with a needle. The Alchemist then staggered a little bit backward.


    Fade then used this opportunity to get near the Alchemist, but that was a mistake. The moment Fade got close enough he got a whiff of something and quickly backed away. Still, whatever it was he smelled despite only making contact with it for a brief moment it still affected him. Fade felt that his fingers were slightly numbed, he was still able to move them but there was a dy.


    Fade clicked his tongue as he needed to remind himself again that the body he was using wasn¡¯t his original body which was already immune to most poisons. He now needed to change how he usually fought alchemists.


    ...


    The Alchemist was also quite surprised at how fast Fade was reacting to every single action that he made. The moment he took out a vial, Fade would destroy it by throwing a needle. Fade also no longer used his hidden wires which limited the Alchemist¡¯s way of attacking as he could only set something on fire by touching it. He wasn¡¯t skilled enough in using the world¡¯s energy for long-distance attacks.


    The Alchemist sighed before he suddenly dashed forward. Fade was not expecting that, but he could not back away since if he did the Alchemist would be able to nab Mollie Fletcher. Fade had no choice as he used his precise control over his mana to push out whatever toxin the Alchemist¡¯s body was emitting. This technique would drain his mana faster but at the moment had no other option.


    The Alchemist who got close to Fade was rather surprised that his concoction that was all over his body was not working on Fade, despite him seeing Fade being affected just moments ago. Still, now that he was this close, all the Alchemist needed to do was slightly touch any part of Fade¡¯s body and thetter would start burning.


    The Alchemist¡¯s physical abilities were above average and normally he would be able to fight a normal rank sixth martial artist even without using any tricks, unfortunately for him, he was facing Fade.


    The moment the Alchemist tried to touch him, Fade evaded to the side and pierced the Alchemist¡¯s arm that was stretched out. Fade didn¡¯t just stab randomly as he stabbed three pressure points of the Alchemist¡¯s arm. The Alchemist could no longer move his right hand, but that did not stop him to extend his left hand, unfortunately, the same thing happened again.


    Fade thought that he had neutralized the Alchemist, but to his surprise, the Alchemist¡¯s toe touched his trench coat and it started to burn. Fade didn¡¯t even notice the Alchemist removing his boots, but that didn¡¯t matter as he tossed his trench coat at the Alchemist blinding the opponent.


    Fade moved behind the Alchemist and was going to knock him out, but before Fade could make his move the Alchemist¡¯s watch started ringing. The Alchemist dodged Fade¡¯s attack on his blindspot and backed away towards the entrance of the restaurant. Fade did not pursue the Alchemist and stuck close to the unconscious Mollie, Larry, and Matsuri.


    Despite his arms being pierced by numerous needles and aren¡¯t able to move, despite being unable to defeat Fade and capture Mollie Fletcher, despite all of these setbacks the Alchemist still had a grin on his face.


    ¡°This was a fun game we yed, but unfortunately my time is up. Well, I guess I can allow you to keep experiment#438, for now. I will take what¡¯s mine eventually. So I guess this is goodbye, Fade... Oh right, my name is Johann, I hope you don¡¯t forget me. Until the next time, then.¡±


    ¡°Fade, don¡¯t let him get away!¡±


    Michael shouted, but at that moment, Johann opened his mouth and bit something inside releasing a blinding light. Once the light faded Johann was no longer there.

 Chapter 139

    Chapter 139: The End of the Matter


    After Johann left, Fade restrained the rampaging Shin and knocked him out. Now the only people left conscious were him and a beaten-up Michael. Fade saw that Michael suddenly knelt on the ground unmoving.


    ¡°It seems that every time we meet you¡¯re always beaten up.¡± Fade looked at the kneeling Michael who had his head looking down.


    ¡°Why?¡± Michael¡¯s voice was soft, but there was so much emotion in that one word that it felt so powerful even when spoken softly it echoed in Fade¡¯s ears.


    ¡°Huh?¡±


    ¡°Why did you let that monster go?! If it was you, surely you could¡¯ve done something!¡± Michael looked up and red at Fade, this was the first time Fade had seen Michael with so much rage. The rage Michael was feeling was so strong, that it felt simr to killing intent.


    ¡°I had no obligation to do so.¡±


    ¡°No obligation?! So you let that monster go because of such an absurd reason!?¡± Michael charged at Fade trying to tackle him, but Fade evaded by sidestepping making Michael fall forward. ¡°Why?... I thought that you were on the side of justice? If you truly are someone that ims to fight for what is right then why won¡¯t you go and punish him?¡±


    .....


    Michael then started crying, seeing him like that made Fade sigh in his mind. Fade then sat beside Michael and patted his head.


    ¡°It seems that you are misunderstanding something here. Punishing someone with little knowledge of a person is not the way I do things. There is also the fact, that I never said I was on the side of justice. Also even if I did truly want to capture him, it would¡¯ve been pretty difficult. Didn¡¯t you notice? Even with both of his hands being disabled that Alchemist seems to be quite confident. In my experience, those types of people have many trump cards hidden. I cannot afford to take that gamble as my top priority at the moment isn¡¯t to catch the Alchemist but to protect the Fletchers. Based on what I have seen there is a good chance the moment I give chase and leave the Fletchers¡¯ side that Alchemist might have someone waiting somewhere near and would use that opportunity to kidnap Mollie Fletcher.¡±


    When Michael heard what Fade said he was finally able to calm down. It felt like he was drenched by a bucket of cold water as he realized that his rage had gotten the better of him. There were so many factors in Fade¡¯s decision that he hadn¡¯t considered. He now felt ashamed that he got so mad at Fade.


    ¡°... I¡¯m sorry, I almost forgot that we were here to protect the Fletchers... I just wanted that guy to be punished.¡± Michael was wiping away his tears as he spoke.


    ¡°If you really want to do something about it, then you must get stronger than you are now.¡±


    ¡°But, that would take too long.¡±


    ¡°If you¡¯re in such a hurry and your individual strength is not enough, don¡¯t you have allies that can help you?¡±


    Michael was about to say something more but as he lifted his head but Fade was no longer there. Then out of nowhere a group of uniformed men entered the restaurant. Michael had seen that uniform before, it was the uniform of the Elite Dragon Brigade.


    ¡°There¡¯s a conscious civilian inside.¡±


    ...


    Johann who had escaped from Fade was now quite a distance away from the restaurant. Once he was sure that Fade wasn¡¯t following him he hid in an alleyway and sat down. He then started to assess the current state of his body.


    ¡®Both of my arms are unusable they aren¡¯t responding at all, these needles that are stuck on my arms seem to be imbued with the world¡¯s energy. Wait, what is this?¡¯


    Johann was looking at his chest when he finally noticed that the armor he was wearing hidden under his shirt had been destroyed.


    ¡®But when?¡¯


    Johann thought about the battle he had with Fade, but no matter how he tried he could not remember when he was hit in the chest. Johann then startedughing out loud making the people walking look at him weirdly.


    ¡®Fade... You really are something else.¡¯


    He could not help it as he felt extremely excited. There were many things he was curious about when it came to Fade. One thing was the way Fade fought which was unlike the others who used the world¡¯s energy.


    ¡®In fact, the way he fought was simr to those barbarians that call themselves martial artists. Though there are those in the Magus Tower that also fight that way, that is only if they have no other option. There¡¯s also the way he imbues the world¡¯s energy into objects as if they were part of his body, that something I haven¡¯t seen before. I wonder where in the world he learned how to do that? There is so much mystery hidden in that mask of his, I want to rip it off and find the truth!¡¯


    As Johann was getting excited he started coughing out blood.


    ¡®Damn, there¡¯s internal damage that I haven¡¯t noticed. I need to get back to myb and recuperate.¡¯


    ...


    While Johann was limping towards hisb, Fade was now inside his room, and as he was removing his gear he felt dizzy. Fade felt like he was going to fall down, as his body was aching all over. It was taking everything he had just to stay awake. After he hid his work clothes in the usual spot, Fade staggered towards his bed.


    Once he was near the bed he fell onto the mattress. As hey on his bed, Loki felt extremely exhausted. His mana waspletely drained, even his inner energy was nearly depleted, and his body was aching all over.


    The fight with The Elegant Scorpion, then the Alchemist was more exhausting than he initially thought. Loki¡¯s thoughts started to be hazy and his breathing was weak. Loki wanted to assess the state of his body but his consciousness was fading, and before he knew it he was already fast asleep.

 Chapter 140

    Chapter 140: Panicking


    ¡°What the sh*t just happened, Catherine that Catherine just died?! I even lost contact with the guy who gives out the best-selling drug? That f*cking assassin we hired wasn¡¯t able to do jack sh*t! So what are we going to do now?! Do we have any other moves to make? Damn it, everything is just going to sh*ttely, and it¡¯s all because of that f*cking assassin, Fade!¡±


    Reo shouted and screamed at everyone gathered in the room, yet no one spoke in response. Every single gang leader present had very serious expressions on their faces as they listened to Reo b*tching about the events that transpired. Usually, it was Catherine who would calm Reo down as the two of them had the best rtionship among the gang leaders, but now that she was gone, Reo was livid.


    ¡°Sh*t sh*t sh*t, damn him, I can¡¯t believe he really killed Catherine out of all the people here. Among all of us dirtbags, she was the least tainted. Why did that f*cker have to kill her?¡±


    Reo who was shouting and screaming suddenly had tears flowing down his face. It was a weird sight to see the tough-looking man with a scar on his face was actually crying. Normally someone in the group would¡¯ve mocked him but this time no one did so. The room was deadly quiet with only the sound of Reo muttering curses under his breath.


    After a few minutes of silence, the sound of someone smacking the table echoed throughout the room. Lucas Jones stood up from his seat sighed heavily and then red at the other gang leaders.


    ¡°This alliance is just bullsh*t what are we f*ckign doing here? Are we just here to lick each other¡¯s wounds and cry like babies? Well, I¡¯m done with that crap, you guys do whatever you want, and I¡¯ll do what the f*ck I want.¡±


    After saying his piece, Lucas left with his men. Once Lucas and his group were gone, the room was once again quiet for a while then another gang leader spoke.


    .....


    ¡°That guy might be an idiot, but he has a point. This alliance has run its course, we have used a lot of our money to hire an assassin that wasn¡¯t able to do anything. Then we only learned of Catherine¡¯s death the day after. In the end, this just proves to me that we can only rely on ourselves to survive this ordeal. I¡¯ll see you guys when they bury Catherine, before then all of you do your best to survive. Well then, I¡¯m out.¡±


    The one who spoke was Booker Williams. Once Booker and his gang were gone, only Reo and Hiro were left in the room.


    ¡°It would seem that only the two of us are left in this alliance... So what are you nning to do next Reo?¡±


    Hearing Hiro¡¯s cold tone shook Reo a bit as he looked at the only gang leader that was a martial artist. Even in this situation, Hiro¡¯s expression remained indifferent as he waited for Reo to respond.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know... Unlike Lucas, I don¡¯t have as much money or firepower to fight Fade, I¡¯m also not as smart nor do I have as many connections as Booker, nor am I as powerful as you. In the end, by myself I am nothing... I guess, after Catherine, the next one to die should be me.¡±


    Reo who was crying and cursing moments ago spoke with such lethargy that it felt like he would die any second now. It was such a weird shift of tone from his earlier outburst.


    ¡°So then are you just going to hide in a corner and wait for your death?¡±


    ¡°What else can I do? It¡¯s like you said before we hired that assassin. If the Elegant Scorpion fails then we need to get our coffins ready, right?¡±


    ¡°That is true, but even then are you truly willing to just die?¡±


    Reo shrugged his shoulders and sighed.


    ¡°Like I said, what else can I do?¡±


    ¡°If you¡¯re not willing to fight, then how about you flee? It seems that Fade¡¯s actions only revolve around Leim City and sometimes other cities near it. If you flee far enough you might be able to survive without needing to fight. There is also the option of simply quitting being part of the underworld.¡±


    ¡°Heh, you know I¡¯m already too deep in the underworld that quitting isn¡¯t an option anymore. If I do that, Fade won¡¯t be the one to kill me but someone else will. As for fleeing, it¡¯s the same thing. Leim City is were my territory is, if I move to another gang¡¯s territory it would be troublesome, and in my business that¡¯s going to start a war and I would still die. So no matter what I do death wille, but if I stay here at least I could die in a better way. Oh right, I also kind of want to talk to Fade. I want to see the face of the one who took Catherine¡¯s life.¡±


    Reo then stood up from his chair and was about to leave the room, but as he opened the door, Hiro spoke to him.


    ¡°Reo, I know what you felt for Catherine, and I¡¯m sorry.¡± Reo didn¡¯t look back as he spoke to Hiro.


    ¡°Heh, you don¡¯t know the half of it.¡± After saying that Reo finally left. Now it was only Hiro left in the room. Hiro looked at the empty chairs and sighed.


    ¡®I guess the mission was a failure. I wonder if he would get mad or if he would get excited by this development. Either way, I¡¯m not going to get that promotion now. So, I wonder when should I call him?... I guess I can wait a bit more since that assassin we hired doesn¡¯t seem to be giving up just yet. Still, even after that battle, I can¡¯t get a clear picture of how strong Fade is... Well, it¡¯s not really my job to analyze that, I just need to send my report and see what happens next.¡¯

 Chapter 141

    Chapter 141: Fatigue


    Loki was feeling incredibly lethargic as he tried to move his body but was unable to do so. He tried to open his eyes but it just made him feel dizzy and what he saw was just a blurry mess. Not only was his eyesight messy even his very thoughts were all over the ce, and his memories were in total disarray. He could not remember a lot of things, nor could he focus on anything, he wasn¡¯t even sure what he did yesterday, even remembering his name was a little off.


    He was also feeling incredibly cold as if his entire body was being assailed by ice and snow, it was as if his very veins were a nightmarish tundra freezing him from the inside.


    Thest time he ever felt this way was when he was younger and just started training to be an assassin. It was when he had exhausted everything he had when his physical strength was drained, his mental power exhausted, and his mana empty.


    As his hazy consciousness flickered in and out he could hear different voicesing and going. He wanted to move or even simply open his eyes just to make sure if he was captured by some enemy or not. Being unable to confirm his current situation was more torturous than anything for Loki.


    He could not even discern how much time has passed since the first time he fainted, but for some reason, it felt like an eternity. As Loki waited for his senses to return to normal, every now and then he would feel a touch of warmth on his head and hands.


    The voices that he heard every now and then were different but there were two or three voices that he heard the most.


    As he was trying his best to recover, Loki was reminded of the time he was in a simr situation. The memory flowed into his head. At that time his parents were no longer there, and he was training so intensely so that he could protect and support his little sister.


    .....


    He remembered that one time during training he had overexerted himself and had used all of his mana. His little sister who was barely eight years old took care of him as hey on his bed sick. During that time, he recalled his sister kept on crying at the beginning while wiping his sweat.


    ¡°Big brother, please don¡¯t leave me, please I¡¯m scared. I promise that I won¡¯t run away from practice anymore. Just be well, please...¡±


    At the time Loki wanted tofort his sister but no matter how hard he tried he could not move nor talk. As a few days went by, his sobbing sister stopped sobbing and cared for him with a determined expression. The face she made at the end when Loki got better was a sight to remember.


    While Loki was being entranced by his memories, he was finally able to open his eyes a tiny bit. The image he was seeing was still rather blurry but he could somehow see a silhouette before him. It was a person that he was very familiar with, this should be his little sister Shera. At the moment Shera seems to be diligently caring for him, he then got a glimpse of her reddened eyes.


    Loki who still could not lift his arms tofort his sister tried speaking to her. He opened his mouth and with much difficulty, he was able to speak.


    ¡°Hey, little sis, did you cry again? There¡¯s no need to cry, I¡¯m here.¡± Even though his voice was so weak that it was barely audible his little sister was still able to hear his voice.


    ¡°Big brother, you¡¯re finally awake!¡± Those excited words were thest thing he heard before he fell unconscious again.


    ...


    Loki felt like his body was finally responding to him, and the pain he felt before had lessened greatly. As he opened his eyes he saw a woman that looked unfamiliar but familiar at the same time. She was a rather valiant-looking woman and any man who saw her on the street would turn their head to look at her but for some reason, Loki was having difficulty remembering who she was. As he looked around he noticed that his little sister was with the woman.


    The woman seating beside Loki¡¯s bed was looking at him worriedly when she noticed his eyes were open and staring at her she spoke.


    ¡°Loki, are you awake?¡± Loki nodded his head at the person who spoke. She then sighed in relief and so did his sister, who seem to be holding back her tears.


    ¡°Are you feeling alright, your sister told me to help bring you to the hospital.¡± Loki shook his head in response.


    ¡°You don¡¯t want to go to the hospital?¡± Loki nodded his head.


    ¡°But big brother, you were absolutely heating up since this morning. I¡¯m worried that this might be some after-effects from your head injury.¡± Loki shook his head in response, he then tried talking.


    ¡°I¡¯m alright, I just need a little rest.¡± Despite saying that the unknown woman and his sister were still looking worried.


    ¡°Alright then, but before you go back to sleep, how about eating a bit.¡± Loki nodded his head in response. Loki¡¯s sister then quickly went out of the room to prepare to heat up some soup for Loki. Now alone with the unknown woman, Loki was trying his hardest to recall who she was, that was when the woman spoke.


    ¡°You know when your sister called me she was crying. It¡¯s a good thing you woke up or your sister might have had some sort of heart attack. Your brother on the other hand, well he went out to buy some ibuprofen for your fever.¡±


    ¡°Brother?¡±


    ¡°Yes, your brother Liam, he went to the drugstore.¡±


    ¡°Huh?¡± Loki grew confused as he was unsure who the brother Liam was speaking about. Seeing his reaction the woman shook her head.


    ¡°Alright, it seems like you¡¯re really not in good shape. Are you sure you don¡¯t want to go to a hospital?¡± Loki whose palm was on his forehead shook his head.


    ¡°... Loki where you perhaps near a family restaurant in Melody street, yesterday?¡±


    ¡°Huh?... Melody street?...¡±


    As the woman was going to continue her questioning, she was interrupted by Loki¡¯s sister who arrived with the soup.


    ¡°Big brother, here¡¯s your soup.¡± Loki¡¯s sister proceeded to feed Loki with the soup with the assistance of the unknown woman. After he was done eating, Loki quickly doze off.

 Chapter 142

    Chapter 142: Retraining


    After a whole day of sleep, Loki was feeling slightly better, his body was no longer heavy and numb the mana that he had drained yesterday was refilling. The inner energy he unconsciously used in the battle was now supporting him as he recovered.


    Loki did a quick check on his body, to see if there was something else wrong with him. After scanning his body, he was relieved that there were no otherplications. Loki then opened his eyes stood up and stretched his arms.


    When Loki looked at his side there was his little sister sleeping, on a futon. Seeing Alisa sleeping there, Loki tried to recall what happened after he fainted. Thest clear memory he had was when he got home and hid his work clothes, the memories after that point were blurry.


    ¡®Tsk, I made so many mistakes yesterday... Damn, I already said that I wouldn¡¯t think of myself as my old self, but every time I head into battle I can¡¯t stop but think of myself as that guy. I might still have the same memories, with all that experience and skills, but this body can¡¯t handle my hundred percent. Sure in the past nine months since I¡¯ve arrived here, I have never forgotten to train my body, but it¡¯s still a long way to go before I can get to the strength of my former body... Well, the inner energy of this body does bring me some advantages... I just need to train this body the same way as my old one to resist poisoning.¡¯


    Loki started nning his new training regimen. He was still holding back on his training as he wasn¡¯t ustomed to his new body at the time, but now that it has been nearly a year since he started training he should be well ustomed to his new body. Also after all the basic training that he did, and the inner energy he had gained, he should be able to finally push his body even further.


    ¡°Big brother?¡± While Loki was deep in thought, Alisa woke up. Alisa rubbed her eyes when she saw Loki awake and looking at her.


    ¡°Big brother you¡¯re finally awake! Are you feeling better?¡± Alisa quickly stood up and hugged Loki after which she touched Loki¡¯s forehead.


    .....


    ¡°Sorry for worrying you, but I¡¯m fine now... Also, what day is it?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s a Sunday,¡± Alisa responded as she sighed in relief. It seems this time Loki was truly in a better state than before as he was now able to talk more coherently. Since Alisa¡¯s voice was rather loud Liam who was in another room heard her and burst into Loki¡¯s room.


    ¡°What happened?!¡±


    Liam entered the room while in a fighting stance. Due to his continuous training, his stance was rather good. When he saw Loki was awake he sighed and eased up.


    ¡°... Huh, so you finally woke up. Hmph, always getting sick and making everyone worried, some big brother you are.¡±


    ¡°Liam!-¡± Alisa was about to scold Liam, but before she could do so Loki stopped her. Loki then smiled awkwardly at Liam and bowed his head.


    ¡°You¡¯re right I apologize.¡±


    Liam was stunned as he looked at Loki astonished he then awkwardly nodded his head and left the room. After Liam left, Loki asked about what happened during his sleep. Alisa started telling Loki what happened yesterday from his high fever to the time he was visited by Matsuri. Hearing that Loki could vaguely remember Matsuriing in.


    Once Alisa was sure that Loki was better, she left the room to make breakfast. Loki then texted Matsuri thanking her foring over yesterday. It didn¡¯t even take a second after he texted before Matsuri called.


    ¡°You really should take better care of yourself. You might be a martial artist now with inner energy, but you¡¯re still human.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I know. Thank you again for helping me and my siblings. Hm, how about as a thank you, I treat you to a meal sometime.¡±


    Loki could hear the sound of something crashing on the other side. Matsuri was silent for a while, as Loki was about to ask if she was alright, Matsuri finally responded.


    ¡°Ahem, I¡¯m going to take you up on that offer. I¡¯m free next Sunday.¡± Matsuri tried to act like she was cool and all, but then her tone was higher than normal, and the way she spoke seemed to be faster.


    ¡°Alright then, next Sunday, I¡¯ll take you out for lunch. My siblings should also be free then.¡±


    ¡°Oh, so it won¡¯t just be the two of us.¡± Matsuri¡¯s tone then became a bit softer which confused Loki a bit.


    ¡°Yeah, why, is that not alright?¡±


    ¡°No, of course, it¡¯s alright.¡±


    Loki and Matsuri then talked a bit more before ending the call. After talking with Matsuri, Loki saw that Harold had texted him numerous times when he was asleep, he then texted the young man back.


    ¡°No need to worry, I¡¯m alright, I was just a little bit exhausted. Can you contact Larry and tell him that I would ask for my payment two weeks from now, in the meantime, he should take care of his mother properly. Also, if possible can you send me different kinds of poisons, just the nonlethal ones would do.¡±


    After sending the text Harold quickly texted back with a thumbs up.


    ...


    The following day, Loki told his siblings that he was going to rest at home and wouldn¡¯t be able to go to work.


    ¡°If you¡¯re not feeling all that well, I could stay and help you.¡±


    ¡°Hmph, you¡¯re really weak you know that. You¡¯re supposed to be our big brother and a higher-level martial artist. Heh, if you really can¡¯t move around, I guess I can stay behind to look after you.¡±


    ¡°No, there¡¯s no need to do that you two. You can¡¯t be absent when the school year is about to end. Especially you, Liam, you need to prepare for your exams. There¡¯s also your graduation from middle school to high school, that you need to get ready for.¡±


    ¡°... Alright, if we can¡¯t stay, then how about I call Matsuri?¡±


    ¡°You know she has her own work and can¡¯t babysit me. Don¡¯t worry, like I said I¡¯m fine, I¡¯ll just rest for a bit.¡±


    Alisa who offered to stay behind looked quite worried, in fact, it was surprising that even Liam had the same idea, but unlike Alisa who spoke in a direct manner, he said it in a way like he was doing Loki a favor. It took Loki quite a while to convince his siblings and in the end, they reluctantly left for school.


    Now all alone the first thing that Loki did was some light exercise. While he was exercising he didn¡¯t use any mana or inner energy. An hour after he started exercising somebody rang the doorbell. The one who came was a delivery man, who had a package that came from Harold.


    The package was filled with different kinds of poisons with numbers indicating how strong they were the weakest wasbeled with the number one, the higher the number the stronger the poison. Alongside those poisons were the antidotes. Loki took those poisons and antidotes and headed to his room. He had his phone by his side and it was already set to call a hospital just in case something goes wrong.


    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s start with the weakest one.¡± Loki then drank the poison.

 Chapter 143

    Chapter 143: Poisons


    Loki looked at the different poisons on the table most of them appeared to be poisons made from different mushrooms and nts. There were also the poisons that appeared to be made from the venom of animals. Loki then noticed that among the bottles of poisons and antidotes was a letter.


    ¡°Here I got all the non-lethal poisons I could find on such short notice. Even though these things won¡¯t be able to kill a normal person normally, it just makes them feel numb or extremely ufortable the worse would make them puke and faint, they are especially ineffective against a martial artist like you. Still, arge amount could potentially kill even someone nearing the Grandmaster level. I don¡¯t know what you were nning to use the various poisons for, but just in case I also gave you the antidotes for each one.¡±


    Loki sighed as he shrugged his shoulders. ¡°As thorough as usual.¡±


    Loki understood that with the flow of mana and inner energy in his body most toxins would be ineffective against him, but after fighting with that alchemist Loki knew that there was something that could bypass that passive ability that any person with spiritual energy uses.


    Loki remembered that battle against the Alchemist, he needed to actively push out whatever toxin the Alchemist was using. Due to him doing that, his mana supply, as well as his inner energy, were being drained constantly, not to mention his focus was split into multiple things making it hard to focus on the fight itself.


    At this point, he had fought many people that liked using poisons, but the Alchemist used poisons that were nearly undetectable and could bypass a martial artist¡¯s strong resistance to poisons. That means Loki couldn¡¯t fully rely on spiritual energy to fight against the toxins used by the alchemist. This is why he decided to strengthen his base which was his physical body. He nned to momentarily stop the flow of his mana and inner energy and drink the poisonous bottles.


    Loki closed his eyes as he took one of the poisons with the number onebel. Loki only drank a few drops and after that, he waited for a bit. After some time had passed Loki could finally feel the effects of the poison.


    .....


    The poison had a simr effect to food poisoning. It wasn¡¯t too strong and was something that the current Loki could endure. Before the effects of the poison could subside, Loki took another one this time it was a more potent poison.


    The same as the first one Loki waited for the poison to take effect. Loki¡¯s body was bing a bit numb, and his breathing started to be a little unstable.


    ¡®So this is the current limit of my body.¡¯ Loki sighed as he started to circte his mana to expel the poison in his body. It took him a few seconds before his body was cleansed of the poison.


    ¡®So that¡¯s it... I can increase my resistance a little bit more, but I¡¯m already too old to start the poison immunity training that my n created. I guess I need to create my own form of immunity training, for now, I guess I can experiment with my inner energy to help with the immunity training. Alright then, before I finish creating my personal training regimen I need to hide these poison bottles.¡¯


    ...


    After Loki was done with his morning training he sat down on the sofa and checked on some popr videos online. The most popr one at the moment was something regarding a famous inte celebrity talking about Fade. Loki was quite curious as to what someone like that had to say. The original video has already been taken down, but like everything on the inte it doesn¡¯t stay down for long. He saw that the video has been taken down and re-uploaded multiple times now. Loki decided to take a look at the video before it was taken down again.


    ¡°Hey, guys, I have seen many of you in thement section asking me about the recent urban legend in Leim City. That¡¯s right, I¡¯m talking about the mysterious assassin called Fade. I have seen that one clip of his many times now. That line of his, for as long as the reason is just and the price is right, I shall bring death to any and all evil. Even now it gives me the chills just remembering it.¡±


    The man in the video made an exaggerated gesture as he hugged himself with a weird smile on his face.


    ¡°Still, unlike the first time he showed up, there are now many rumors about Fade. In many of those rumors he truly does uphold some sort of justice in his actions. Every single person who has supposedly been killed by Fade were very notorious people, from gangsters, to druglords that couldn¡¯t be touched by normal citizens and even the police had difficulty dealing with them. Based on those rumors, that guy is really like some sort of antihero. I guess he needs some kind of excuse to do what he does.¡±


    The man in the video then shook his head as he shrugged his shoulders. Seeing him act like this made Loki feel a bit weird. He knew that there were many of those so-called inte celebrities that act in this kind of exaggerated manner, but even then he still found it a little bit too much.


    ¡°Now many of you have asked me if I think Fade is helping or not. The answer to that question is a resounding yes. Even if this urban legend turns out to be nothing more than a fantasy, just looking at the numbers, in the past several months since the urban legend of Fade started crime in Leim City has dropped significantly. Not to mention just his name alone is supposedly making the criminals and would-be criminals hide in fear. Compared to the Police, this urban legend is making people feel safe. He might bebeled as a criminal by the police, a boogeyman by the criminals, and a murderer by the haters, but in my eyes, Fade is a hero.¡±


    The video ended there and when Loki tried to look at thement section it was not loading. Loki refreshed the page and the video was no longer there, it had already been taken down. Loki sighed as he shrugged his shoulders and went back to training.

 Chapter 144

    Chapter 144: Tang Ao reminiscing


    Tang Ao was in his office dealing with a ton of paperwork, seeing the mountain of paperwork made Tang Ao feel lethargic. When he first joined the military he never imagined being in such a situation. He then remembered the flier that brought him to the military.


    ¡°Do you wish for honor? Do you wish for glory? Then join the military and protect your country.¡±


    When Tang Ao saw that flier, he felt some excitement as he thought about showing his strength to everyone. He wanted to use his strength to gain that so called honor and glory.


    Back then he thought that the military was a martial artist¡¯s wondend, that it was a ce filled with crouching tigers and hidden dragons. In that ce, he would meet manypanions who would fight together with him, a rival who would challenge him so that they could grow together but still remain friends, and a girl that he would eventually fall in love with and they would share the rest of their lives together.


    The dream he had of having an exciting adventure in the military was like a light novel he once read when he was a teen. He thought by joining the military he would be able to fulfill that childhood dream of his, yet when he joined the military it was nothing like he imagined.


    Companions that would fight together with him? That was somehow true but in the beginning, all they did was fight against each other. Once the hierarchy was established only then did they bepanions that would fight together, but that was under themand of the strongest among them.


    A rival who would challenge him so that they could grow stronger together but will remain friends? He did have one of those. Among the numerous new recruits at the time he joined there was one person that rivaled his talent. The first time they fought he had won, and after that, they did be friends.


    .....


    One might think that Tang Ao actually got something he wanted, but it was different from what he expected. Instead of a good rival and friend that wants to grow stronger together, he got a friend that wanted to kill him.


    ¡°Tang Ao remember that I¡¯m the one destined to beat you. So you need to remain ahead of me, since the moment you lose, I would have no choice but to kill you.¡±


    Of course, the moment Tang Ao heard him say that he asked why Kaizer needed to kill him which he answered.


    ¡°Hmm, once I¡¯m able to defeat you, that means you would never surpass me ever again, which means you have served your purpose as fuel for me to grow stronger. As my friend since you have sessfully finished your purpose in this world, of course, I need to send you off with respect towards Valha. Still, I don¡¯t really want to kill you, so you better remain stronger than me.¡±


    Hearing Kaizer¡¯s crazy response, Tang Ao, couldn¡¯t understand if he was being serious or not. Even now he wasn¡¯t sure, so Tang Ao made sure to keep tabs on Kaizer¡¯s progress and continue to train so that he would be able to remain ahead of his future killer.


    Then there was the girl that he would eventually fall in love with... Well, there were indeed many beautiful females in the military, but Tang Ao doesn¡¯t think he would be able to fall in love with most of them.


    The reason for this was because like food, water, sleep, and shelter, in the military s*xual needs were also considered the same. Every now and then you would see random people doing it here and there. It doesn¡¯t matter if you liked each other as they do it as a form of relief. Even now Tang Ao was already in histe twenties and he was still a single dog and his only normal female interaction was with Detective Matsuri.


    Then finally about finding glory and honor while protecting the country. At first, Tang Ao thought that this was about outside forces like the Empire, but it turns out what they were protecting the citizens from was mostly themselves.


    It was true that there was a division in the military that handles things regarding the Empire, but Tang Ao was ced in the Elite Dragon Brigade which dealt with martial artist criminals, and terrorist groups that threaten the country.


    At first, it was a little bit exciting as he got to fight terrorists and criminals, but as his rank grew his chances of doing that became less and less. Nowadays his worst enemy was paperwork and there was a ton of them.


    Remembering the good old days when he was on the field most of the time and had little to no paperwork made him sigh.


    ¡®I guess the dreams of my life bing like those novels I use to read ain¡¯t happening. Was it wrong to join the military, should I have just joined a sect or something?... No use thinking about it now... Still, I need to at least find a girl to marry before I be one of those old grumpy militarymanders with no wife or kids. Alright, on my next break I¡¯ll find someone.¡¯


    Remotivating himself as he continued dealing with his paperwork, Tang Ao looked at his schedule and decided to go around town next Sunday. It was at that moment, that Tang Ao realized something.


    ¡®Wait how do I pick up girls? How do I ask one out on a date?... Sh*t I have zero experience in this kind of thing! I need some help, do I know anyone my age that could help me with this?¡¯


    While thinking about it Kaizer¡¯s face shed in his mind but he quickly dismissed him. That guy was someone who focused on bing stronger more than anything else, how can he know how to pick up girls. As Tang Ao was deep in thought, somebody knocked on the door.


    ¡°Sir, I have a report.¡±


    Hearing his subordinate¡¯s voice Tang Ao stopped thinking about those distracting thoughts of his and got his focus back.


    ¡°Enter.¡±


    Tang Ao¡¯s subordinate entered the room and saluted.


    ¡°At ease, Sergeant. What is it that you wanted to report?¡±


    ¡°Sir, Catherine Walker has been killed.¡± Hearing the news Tang Ao frowned.


    ¡°Was it Fade?¡±


    ¡°Catherine Walker¡¯s subordinates imed that she died from an attack by one of their rival gangs, but based on other sources it should be Fade.¡±


    ¡°Hmm, so he¡¯s finally going after the big ones.¡±


    ¡°Sir, what should we do, should we intervene?¡±


    ¡°Hmm... Assign a few scouts to monitor the other big bosses, aside from that no need to intervene for now.¡±


    ¡°Affirmative.¡±


    ¡°Alright, so is that all you wanted to report?¡±


    ¡°Sir, there is one more thing. The criminal Johann was seen somewhere in Leim City.¡±


    ¡°Johann? Tsk, now that¡¯s a bigger yer, what to do...¡± Tang Ao tapped his finger on his desk as he was thinking. After a short pause, he sighed. ¡°For now, let¡¯s do nothing about that guy. I¡¯ll report it to the higher-ups first. Okay, thank you for your report you may leave, Sergeant.¡±


    The Sergeant saluted and was about to leave as he opened the door, Tang Ao called him back.


    ¡°Wait a minute Sergeant.¡±


    ¡°Sir, is there something else, Sir?


    ¡°Do you know how to pick up girls?¡±

 Chapter 145

    Chapter 145: PANAKEIA


    In a room filled with machines, beakers, chemicals, numerous small animals, and various nts, Johann was trying to move his arms but to no avail. After facing Fade in battle he immediately retreated to his secretb. He had tried many different things to figure out what happened to his arms and why he could not move them.


    After using various tests on his biological state he could not find any problem. Based on the results of all the tests his arms should be functioning normally. In the beginning, it was true that certain nerve points were struck which resulted in him being unable to move his hands, but that was already fixed, so then why was he still unable to move his hands? Knowing that his nerves, bones, and muscles weren¡¯t the problem he needed to look at it differently.


    ¡®Did he inject me with something that I cannot detect? Hoh, how interesting, I would really want to experiment on my own arms to see if I can detect this unknown thing, but I can¡¯t do much without them. I didn¡¯t really want to use this as I only have a few bottles, but I guess I have no choice.¡¯


    Johann went to the side of the room and faced a wall, he ced his face one foot away from the wall. A small orb-like object with what seemed to be a camera lens for an eye came out of the wall and scanned Johann from head to toe.


    ¡°Greetings Master, how can I help you today?¡± A synthetic female voice spoke.


    ¡°Isis, I need to take out potion#23¡±


    ¡°Potion#23, item name PANAKEIA, is this the item you wish to withdraw?¡±


    .....


    ¡°Affirmative.¡±


    ¡°Item is in the special safe, to withdraw the item please give the password.¡±


    ¡°Pass column number four three two five two zero zero three two seven four four eight nine eight five six zero zero zero.¡±


    ¡°God¡¯s number confirmed, password epted.¡±


    Once Isis gave her acknowledgment, the sound of gears turning could be heard beyond the wall. The room then started to tremble a bit and it felt like the floor was moving. After a five-minute wait, a small part of the wall parted, and in it was a wooden bottlebeled number 23.


    Johann picked up the bottle using his mouth and ced it on a nearby table. Johann looked at the wooden bottle and sighed. This was the masterpiece that he created after the long years of studying the book of alchemy. He only had four bottles, and the reason he could only make so much is because of the limited materials. The main ingredient of this medicine could only be found in the secret area guarded by the Empire, the nation of Zothril, and other smaller countries. It was not somece anybody could enter.


    Johann needed to pay top-grade martial artists to retrieve these items which almost emptied his treasury. There were many more potions of greater value written in the book of Alchemy, but with his current abilities and the limited materials avable this was already the best thing he could make. To create the better things Johann needed more money to hire the more powerful martial artists to search deeper into the forbidden area. He also wanted to gain greater personal strength so that he could go into the forbidden area himself to search for the materials he wanted.


    Johann knew that the money needed to gain what he wanted would be astronomical, so he decided to set up a business in creating and selling drugs.


    ...


    ¡®The PANAKEIA originally created by a foreign Goddess with a simr name as recorded in the book of Alchemy. This thing is supposed to be something like a cure-all. Every time I think that I was able to create something a deity made just gives me the chills.¡¯


    Johann looked at his masterpiece with a sense of pride and intoxication. Still, he had not tested it on anything and was not sure of its true effects, he only knew as much as what was written in the book of Alchemy. He truly did not want to use this precious thing, but his current circumstances would not allow him to do so.


    ¡®Alright now let¡¯s see if this is truly as good as the book of Alchemy ims it to be.¡¯


    Johann bit the cork of the wooden bottle and pulled it out. After the cork was removed the first thing he noticed was that the room was slowly being filled with purplish mist. Johann then smelled a powerful stimting smell. The smell was so weird, for some reason it smelled like all of Johann¡¯s favorite food, it even smelled like the air of his hometown, there was also the scent of his mother, and even the scent of that person that was long been forgotten.


    The scent was so strong that he was starting to hallucinate that everything he smelled appeared before him. Johann concentrated and pushed all the random thoughts away. Immediately after he did that the hallucination before him disappeared.


    ¡®This thing is amazing! I haven¡¯t even drank it yet, but it¡¯s already disying numerous effects that were not written in the book of Alchemy.¡¯


    While he was having those thoughts Johann finally noticed something weirder was happening around him. At first, he thought that it was part of his hallucination but after observing for a while, he found that it wasn¡¯t. The nts in the room started growing rapidly and they were even changing shape, the animals were also reacting weirdly to the smell. It seem to make them more energetic as they started mating.


    ¡®Oh this is truly interesting, if possible I want to observe some more before drinking it, but the book of Alchemy did say that once you open the bottle and not drink it, the PANAKEIA would take around five minutes before it would lose its effect and be nothing more than some tasty liquid.¡¯


    Johann no longer hesitated and drank the PANAKEIA until thest drop. Once he was done drinking it his entire body felt warm as if he was being hugged. He then noticed his eyesight was bing clearer, no, clearer was an understatement, he could see farther than before. Even his sense of smell became better as if all the things clogging his nose disappeared.


    His entire body was feeling lighter than before. Then there were his hands he could finally move them, it was then he noticed that the wounds on his arms were no longer there. Even the old scars could not be found.


    Johann then undressed and faced a mirror to his surprise, not only did the PANAKEIA heal his arms but everything else was also healed. It wasn¡¯t just his wounds even his belly button disappeared. Upon seeing the results of drinking the PANAKEIA Johann became even more excited.


    ¡®The PANAKEIA truly is a cure-all type of medicine. It¡¯s pretty much a miracle drug, as expected from the medicine created by a Goddess. That means all the other deity level potions in the Book of Alchemy should have such effects. Then that means the potion of OSIRIS can truly revive the dead. Then, is it possible to see them again...¡¯


    The excitement in Johann¡¯s heart diminished as he remembered their faces, but now he was even more motivated to continue his ns.

 Chapter 146

    Chapter 146: It really was him


    Two days after the incident in the restaurant, Michael, and Shin, were brought to the base of the regional Elite Dragon Brigade. The person who met with them was the man who had the highest rank inside the base, Capt. Tang Ao.


    ¡°Good Day, to you two. It¡¯s been some time since ourst meeting Mr. Rosales, as for you Shin, since you¡¯re always here why don¡¯t you just join the military after you graduate.¡±


    ¡°Well, if you could convince the elders in my n I don¡¯t mind joining the military. Fighting in the frontlines seems plenty exciting. Just imagining it is already giving me the chills.¡±


    As he spoke the smile on Shin¡¯s face was rather frightening. Seeing that smile of his made Tang Ao frown as he shook his head.


    ¡°I take back what I said, we already have too many bloodthirsty fools like you in the military.¡±


    ¡®I was also one of those bloodthirsty fools,¡¯ Tang Ao sighed as he was once again reminded of the past.


    ¡°Heh, saying things like that just makes me want to join even more.¡±


    .....


    Tang Ao looked at the excited Shin and shook his head, knowing that no matter what he said at this point won¡¯t dissuade the young man. So Tang Ao ignored Shin and shifted his attention to Michael who was standing beside Shin.


    ¡°Anyway, how about you two take sit first.¡±


    Shin who was being ignored shrugged his shoulders as he sat on the chair in front of Tang Ao¡¯s, Michael did the same and sat in the chair beside Shin.


    ¡°The reason why I called the both of you today, is because of the incident two days ago. I know you already told one of my subordinates what happened that day, and I already heard his report, but I want to hear it directly from you guys. So can you please tell me everything that happened that day?¡±


    Shin and Michael told most of what they remembered happened that day, of course, they left out the part where Fade asked them to help, the Fletchers. Tang Ao listened carefully to their story without interrupting, and he carefully examined the two as they spoke. Once they were done he went straight to the first question that popped into his mind.


    ¡°So you met Larry Fletcher for the first time and he asked you for help and you did it?¡±


    ¡°Well, I decided to listen to his story first, after hearing his request I thought that I might get to fight some underworld thugs and I was pretty curious so I helped,¡± Shin answered without missing a beat.


    ¡°When he asked me for help while looking so desperate, that¡¯s all I needed to hear, I didn¡¯t need any other reason,¡± Michael answered without hesitation as that was what he truly felt.


    Tang Ao looked at the two for a while, by the expression on their faces as well as the slight actions they made it doesn¡¯t seem like they were lying. Yesterday Tang Ao had already spoken with Larry before meeting Michael and Shin.


    In Larry¡¯s story, he had contacted Fade and asked for help. Fade met with him and told him to ask for both Shin and Michael¡¯s assistance.


    Tang Ao was rather curious as to why Fade trusted the two students for this job. The only time they had interacted was when he had rescued Michael and defeated Shin. That was the only instance Tang Ao knew that three had interacted with each other.


    Tang Ao looked at Shin and Michael again but no matter how hard he looked the two of them seem to be telling the truth, but for some reason, despite what he has seen he felt that there seems to be something wrong.


    ¡°Are you two sure that those were your only reasons for helping?¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡± The two responded at the same time. Seeing that Tang Ao knew that he wouldn¡¯t be able to make them speak without forcing them.


    ¡®Whatever, it¡¯s not like it matters if they have ties with Fade.¡¯


    ¡°Okay then, so is that everything you can remember that happened that day?¡± Michael nodded his head in response as for Shin he shrugged his shoulders.


    ¡°I was barely conscious throughout that fight, so I can¡¯t really say if my recollection of the events is urate. I don¡¯t know what he used but it was extremely effective. Anyway, now that we have answered your questions, how about you answer one of mine, that should be fair right?¡±


    ¡°... Fine, I will answer one question for each of you.¡±


    Shin nodded his head and looked at Michael. ¡°So who¡¯ll go first, do you have anything to ask, Michael?¡±


    ¡°You can go and ask your question first.¡±


    ¡°Then I¡¯ll go right ahead. There¡¯s only one thing I want to know from you, who the heck was that guy who attacked us? Based on the importance you have given to this incident, he can¡¯t just be a nobody.¡±


    ¡°Why do you think, it wasn¡¯t Fade that I was interested in and not that guy?¡±


    ¡°Ohe on, who are you trying to fool? If Fade was truly under the radar of the Elite Dragon Brigade, you would¡¯ve set up a few soldiers to observe the remaining gang leaders as those are his primary targets. Yet despite how long Fade has been operating, you guys haven¡¯t done anything at all.¡±


    ¡°Oh, how can you be so sure that we haven¡¯t done anything?¡±


    ¡°Well, let¡¯s just say the wind told me.¡±


    ¡°The wind, huh... Alright then, since you did cooperate and I did promise to answer any one question, I¡¯ll answer. That man you¡¯ve encountered is one of the highest-rank criminals in the entirety of Zothril. The Alchemist Johann, age unknown, origins unknown. There¡¯s not much information regarding that person¡¯s past, it¡¯s like he just popped out of nowhere which is simr to Fade. Still, unlike Fade we do have a bit more information about him. He was once part of the Eye of Truth andter moved to the secret society named the Sorcerors Circle which he also left due to unknown reasons. Well, that¡¯s about as much as I can tell you.¡±


    ¡°That guy sounds even more formidable than I expected how powerful is hisbat strength?¡±


    ¡°I already said I¡¯ll only answer one question each.¡±


    ¡°Come on, don¡¯t be so stingy Captain.¡±


    ¡°A deal is a deal, so what is your question, Mr. Rosales?¡± Tang Ao once again ignored the protesting Shin and looked at Michael.


    ¡°I want to know if there are any reports of a weird book in the Alchemist¡¯s hands.¡±


    ¡°Hmm, that¡¯s a rather interesting question you have there. Do you mind telling me why you want to know something like that?¡±


    Michael looked at Tang Ao and hesitated and after a few seconds, he shook his head in response.


    ¡°Well, if you don¡¯t want to tell me, you don¡¯t need to. As for the answer to your question, yes there is a rather special book that the Alchemist took from the Sorcerers Circle, that book was the reason he got the nickname the Alchemist. The book was called the Book of Alchemy.¡±


    The moment Tang Ao spoke the name of the book, he noticed the change in Michael¡¯s expression, it was brief but Tang Ao who was observing Michael from start to finish was able to see a glitter of excitement.


    ¡°Is that what you wanted to hear?¡±


    ¡°Yes, thank you for answering my question.¡±


    ¡°No need to thank me, it is what you deserve. So anyway, thank you for taking your time toe here. I would¡¯ve wanted to chat a bit more, but I am pretty busy today. Please allow one of my subordinates to escort you out.¡±


    Tang Ao signaled one of his men toe forward. The soldier stepped forward and saluted Tang Ao.


    ¡°Please escort, Shin and Mr. Rosales out of the base.¡±


    ¡°Hey Captain, I noticed that you keep on calling me with my first name, while Michael is Mr. Rosales. This is discrimination right?¡±


    ¡°Goodbye you two, if you have any problems in the future you cane and visit me.¡±


    Tang Ao once again ignored Shin as he smiled and waved his hand goodbye. Michael nodded his head in response, while Shin kept on shouting at Tang Ao as he was being led out by the soldier. Once Shin and Michael were gone, Tang Ao contacted his deputy officer.


    A few minutester a man with an impressive height and build entered the room. Upon entering the room the man saluted Tang Ao. This man was First Lieutenant Vreni Braun, Tang Ao¡¯s second inmand.


    ¡°Sir, you called?¡±


    ¡°Yes, First Lieutenant, I had a very curious conversation recently and I feel like there is something there. So I want you to assign a few soldiers to monitor Michael Rosales¡¯s movement.¡±

 Chapter 147

    Chapter 147: What to do?


    The days went by quite fast as Loki trained his body to withstand poisons. Knowing that he wouldn¡¯t be able to build up the immunity he wanted using his normal training method, Loki changed the way he trained. Instead of waiting for his body to be able to gain immunity, he was training himself to unconsciously purge any poison that was inflicted on him.


    The idea was to repeatedly purge whatever toxins he had in the body using abination of inner energy and mana without even thinking about it. Loki was hoping that this would be the same as muscle memory where when you do it enough times he would reach a point where he would do so without even thinking about it, like a reflex. So far the only thing that he achieved was to lessen the amount of spiritual energy needed to perform the detoxification. Still, it was progress nheless.


    ...


    When Loki woke up on Sunday he was about to get ready for another day of training when he suddenly remembered something.


    ¡®Wait... Sunday... Oh, sh*t, isn¡¯t today the day I was supposed to go out with Matsuri, Alisa, and Liam. Whew, good thing I remembered it early. I guess no training for today... Still, I haven¡¯t nned for anything today... Tsk, better see what kind of activities we could do.¡¯


    Loki looked at the clock, it was around four in the morning. He still had ample time to prepare for the outing. Loki turned on hisptop and started looking for things to do in Leim City on a Sunday.


    As he was searching through the inte Loki couldn¡¯t help but sigh. When he first arrived in this world he was continuously surprised by so many things. It took quite some time to understand how to use most of the stuff. If not for the old Loki¡¯s memories being passed down to him, he didn¡¯t know how long it would¡¯ve taken him to understand how to use the most basic things in this world.


    .....


    ¡®I already gained a lot of the memories of the former Loki, but even now there are still some locked memories. I still have no idea about Loki¡¯s family aside from his siblings, but I do somehow remember the faces of his parents... Unfortunately, even now I can¡¯t remember anything about Loki¡¯s grandparents on either side. Then there¡¯s the cause of the ident, I still can¡¯t get a clear picture of the events of that day. There are also some minor memories like who was Loki¡¯s first crush and such that I can¡¯t remember... Damn, I better stop thinking about that for now, I gotta focus.¡¯


    ...


    After surfing the web, Loki had narrowed his options down to three choices, going to the movies, to an amusement park, and going to a zoo. Loki was very interested in these three things. He wanted to go to the zoo since he hasn¡¯t been to any and had only seen the animals of this world through a screen.


    The animals in this world had some simrities to the animals in his old world, but of course, what he was interested in were the differences. In this world, there were no supreme beasts like the ones in his old world. Instead, in this world, there were the so-called Gigantes.


    The Gigantes were powerful beasts of incredible size, and like the martial artists of old, the Gigantes were once hailed as Gods. Yet nowadays they were treated as subjects for study or entertainment. You would almost always see them as some monster in video games.


    The most troublesome of the Gigantes were the ones that could fly. The military was always on high alert for the movement of any flying Gigantes and would either kill it or if that is not possible repel the flying monstrosities before they could reach any human settlement.


    Loki was truly interested in seeing one of these Gigantes and as luck would have it, the zoo in Leim City has one in captivity as their main attraction. This is why going to the zoo was one of his choices.


    ...


    There was also the amusement park which he also has only seen on screen. The ce was supposedly a ce for fun and games, where people could go on thrilling rides. It said on their official website that the amusement park offers rides for normal citizens as well as for martial artists.


    Seeing as martial artists wouldn¡¯t be thrilled by any ordinary rides, it seems that they had created even more dangerous rides specifically for martial artists. Of course, Loki could not ride those rides as a martial artist if he went to the amusement park since he would be with Matsuri a non-martial artist. Still, even riding the normal rides would be quite the experience since he has never tried it. He had the memories of the former Loki going to an amusement park, but those were just memories that weren¡¯t even his.


    ...


    Then finally there was going to watch a movie. Even though Loki had already streamed various movies on hisptop and watched a bit on the T.V but he has never been to the theatre before. Not to mention there was a movie that was showing today which he was rather interested in.


    The movie was about ancient martial artists. Seeing as it was a movie, obviously, there will be discrepancies and exaggerationspared to the truth, but Loki was still interested in seeing what these so-called ancient martial artists could do.


    Based solely on what he read in various books, he could only imagine what an ancient martial artist was capable of. If hepared it to someone from his old world, ancient martial artists should be slightly weaker than the legendary mages of old. It was said the mages in the era of the Gods could control mana to such a high degree that they could tamper with fate itself. As for the ancient martial artist, the most they could do was control the elements of the world.


    ¡®Well, it¡¯s no useparing them, since I haven¡¯t seen an ancient martial artist much less a legendary mage... Gotta stay focused, which one should we do today? Go to the zoo, have fun in the amusement park or watch a movie?¡¯

 Chapter 148

    Chapter 148: The Start of Chaotic Sunday


    After checking the schedule for the three ces, Loki started to make a n. It took Loki a bit of time, but in the end, he was able to squeeze going to the movies and going to the zoo, unfortunately, they had no time to go to the amusement park. Still, this was enough and they could just go to the amusement park next time.


    Now that he was done with all of that, Loki looked at the time and saw that it was still a little early and he could probably train for a bit before his siblings woke up.


    ...


    While Loki was training and no longer thinking about the uing outing, the person who wasing with him was in an opposite situation. Matsuri could not sleep properly as she was too excited about this outing. Though she would¡¯ve preferred it to be just her and Loki, but hanging out with Loki¡¯s siblings was fine as well.


    Knowing how much Loki dotes on his siblings, Matsuri knew that to win Loki¡¯s heart she first needed to win Alisa and Liam¡¯s approval. On the surface, it would seem the two young siblings were prettyfortable with her, and Alisa also somehow hinted that it would be alright for her to be Loki¡¯s girlfriend, but Matsuri knew the hidden truth.


    As a Detective she had a sort of sixth sense about these things. She felt that even though the two imed to be alright with it they truly weren¡¯t. In their brief encounters with each other as well as the talks they had on the phone, Matsuri had a certain understanding of Loki¡¯s siblings.


    Alisa was still not truly thatfortable with her and was just acting, she was trying her hardest for her big brother. Based on Matsuri¡¯s understanding of Loki, she knew that the guy had no interest in dating and would not actively seek a partner at this time. Alisa who also knew of this fact thought that maybe Matsuri was Loki¡¯sst chance in having a rtionship. She didn¡¯t want her beloved big brother to only focus on her and Liam, she wanted her big brother to find some normal happiness. That¡¯s of course, just Matsuri¡¯s hypothesis. She wasn¡¯t a hundred percent sure about it, but the truth should be quite close.


    .....


    As for the young brother Liam. Every time she met the guy, he was always badmouthing Loki. To a random passerby, they might think that Loki and Liam¡¯s rtionship was quite bad but in truth, it was the opposite.


    Matsuri did not know what the siblings had been through, but she was sure that despite spouting abusive words at Loki, Liam actually respected his big brother. In fact, Matsuri felt that Liam¡¯s dependence on Loki as well as his protectiveness surpassed that of Alisa.


    Even though at first nce it would seem that Liam doesn¡¯t care who Loki dated, Matsuri felt like Liam might give whoever bes Loki¡¯s girlfriend a hard time if he thought she was not worthy of his big brother.


    ¡®Okay, I need to improve their impression of me. I wonder what I should wear?... Normally I would¡¯ve worn something pretty sexy for a date, but since I want to win over his siblings I need to look like a kind big sister... But if I do that, they might see through me, especially Alisa as she seems to be quite perceptive. Should I just dress up like I usually do, and wear whatever, there are some downsides in doing that, but that might be my best move at this point.¡¯


    Matsuri was formting her strategy as she was looking at different clothes in her closet. It was still rather early so she still had time to continue to look at differentbinations.


    ...


    A loud sigh echoed in a luxurious room filled with expensive items. The sigh was followed by the sound of a finger tapping on wood. Kira was reading the reports of his various subordinates and felt a little ufortable.


    ¡®So many things are happening and the flow of events is getting harder to predict. Not only did the Matsuda siblings awaken their inner energy but they were shown to be quite talented. This will attract the attention of that n... They might note to meet them for now, but they wille faster than I anticipated.¡¯ Just thinking about what was toe made Kira sigh again.


    ¡®If that wasn¡¯t already giving me quite the headache, the Alchemist Johann is actually hiding somewhere near this city. That would exin the new drug that has been going around. He¡¯s a rather deadly variable so I need to watch out. Still, to make contact with Shin and Fade was something I could imagine, but who knew even that guy Michael would also be involved. These past few weeks that guy does seem to be doing something strange... I guess I could keep him in mind, but I have no need to monitor him for the time being. Not like I have any spare manpower to do that anyway.¡¯


    Kira frowned as he looked at the scattered pieces of information that were on his desk. He then stared at a certain profile. A picture of a man wearing a white mask and an all-ck attire was attached to the file.


    ¡®Everything became quite chaotic after he arrived. Ever since his appearance, it¡¯s getting harder and harder to stay on top of things. I¡¯m not even directly involved with him and he¡¯s already giving me so much trouble. This feeling of not knowing what¡¯s toe, unable to control even my own fate is really f*cking irritating.¡¯


    Mikado Kira unconsciously gnashed his teeth as he scratched his head. It has been so long since he felt this frustrated that he actually cursed in his mind without even noticing.


    ¡°Damn it! Things are bing so difficult that I can¡¯t think straight.¡± Kira looked at the time on his phone. It was already seven in the morning.


    ¡®Hmm, oh it¡¯s a Sunday today. I guess I could go and visit little Alisa and tease her for a bit. That always calms my heart. I can¡¯t wait to see the expression she would make when Ie for a surprise visit.¡¯


    After he made that decision, Kira got dressed and headed out.

 Chapter 149

    Chapter 149: In the hospital


    It was a Sunday morning and Michael was heading to the hospital where Mollie Fletcher was staying. It has been a week since the incident and even now Larry¡¯s mother hasn¡¯t woken up. The doctors found nothing wrong with her physical state, but the drug that was injected into her still lingered. As of now, the doctors had no way to cleanse her body of the unknown drug and were also unsure as to when she would wake up.


    Michael felt extremely guilty every time he visited Mollie Fletcher. Seeing her still unconscious made him think that it was all his fault she became like this. Even though Larry already told Michael that it wasn¡¯t his fault, and even thanked him for doing his best, this just made Michael feel even more awful as he felt an aching pain in his heart.


    He had examined Mollie¡¯s body numerous times now but still could not find a solution. At first, he would feed her the potion he used to cure the others who had drank a simr drug, it worked a little bit but after a few more drinks it stopped having any effect.


    Even the Spirit of the Akashic Records was also unable to give an answer to the problem at hand as the knowledge needed was in one of the missing books from its massive library. The way to fully heal Mollie was written in the Book of Alchemy, which was with Johann the infamous Alchemist.


    When Michael heard this he once again felt varied emotions. He felt irritated that Fade did not apprehend or just killed the Alchemist. He also hated the fact that he himself wasn¡¯t strong enough to defeat the Alchemist and retrieve the Book of Alchemy. He felt hurt that despite having a cheat like the Spirit of the Akashic Records he was still unable to do anything to help.


    He had tried to find a cure with his limited amount of knowledge in Alchemy, unfortunately, his ability as stated by the Spirit was only at the apprentice level. To create a potion that could cure Mollie¡¯s current state, Michael needed to have the ability of a level two Alchemist.


    That level was something that could not be achieved by doing self-study, Michael needed either a teacher who was at that level or the Book of Alchemy which held the knowledge of all alchemy in this universe.


    .....


    Despite knowing that hecked the knowledge and skill, Michael did not stop trying different things to create a potion that could help.


    While trying to figure out what to do he visited Mollie and Larry every single day. After school, he would head to the hospital to check on Mollie¡¯s condition. Today was no exception as he headed to the hospital while bringing food for Larry.


    When Michael arrived at the hospital he saw one of Mollie¡¯s doctors walk out of Mollie Fletcher¡¯s room. The doctor¡¯s expression was ugly as he looked quite angry while he spoke to the nurse beside him.


    ¡°What¡¯s the point of having an incurable patient stay in one of the private rooms? They can¡¯t even afford to pay for the room... Well, I guess that¡¯s to be expected since I heard that his mother is a wh*re.¡±


    The moment Michael heard those wordse out of the doctor¡¯s mouth something in him snapped as he charged at the doctor. Michael lifted the doctor off the ground, making the doctor panic.


    ¡°Who are you?!... Wait a minute, you¡¯re the friend of that guy. What do you think you¡¯re doing, put me down now!¡±


    Michael did not respond and simply tightened his grip on the Doctor¡¯s shirt and pushed him into the nearby wall.


    ¡°Hey you, what are you doing just staring at me?! Call Security already!¡± The Doctor shouted at the nearby nurse who still did not move. As the Doctor was about to shout again somebody spoke first.


    ¡°Hey Michael, how about you calm down and put down the Doctor.¡±


    Michael looked at the neer and as he expected it was Shin and beside him was an unfamiliar sharply dressed old man. Seeing Shin, Michael was finally calming down, loosening the grip on the Doctor¡¯s shirt.


    ¡°Hmph, that¡¯s right, you better let me down now. Kids these days have no brains and no respect. Well, as expected from someone who is friends with the son of a loose woman. Hmph, because of this I¡¯ll make sure that your friend¡¯s mother will be tossed out of this hospital.¡±


    Michael who was finally calming down was once again enraged by what the Doctor said. As Michael was going to toss the Doctor to the side, someone spoke interrupting his action.


    ¡°Doctor Reginald, I wonder on whose authority will you toss out a patient?¡±


    When Reginald heard that familiar voice he finally noticed who the person beside Shin was. That was the owner of the Hospital, Sir Daniel. Reginald started sweating while thinking of an excuse to say, on the other hand, Michael was able to calm down and finally let go of Reginald.


    ¡°So Doctor Reginald, tell me what were you going to do to a patient of this hospital?¡±


    ¡°Y-you¡¯ve misunderstood Sir Daniel, I wasn¡¯t going to toss out the patient because I wanted to. The truth is the patient is incapable of paying the hospital fees, and it would be better if she were transferred to a public hospital. If she were to continue staying here, the bills will simply pile up. Even if she does wake up, she would be in a ton of depth. You see, I was just thinking about the patient which was why I said all of those things.¡±


    After he was done speaking Reginald nervously looked at Daniel waiting for his response. Daniel smiled at him, seeing that smiling face Reginald felt relieved.


    ¡°Oh, I see. So you were just speaking for the good of the patient.¡± Daniel¡¯s expression changed from a smiling one into a frown.


    ¡°Who are you trying to lie to? Do you think I¡¯m unaware of your behavior? Sexually harassing nurses, abusivenguage to the poorer patients, and unprofessional conduct to the younger Doctors. I have given you numerous chances since you¡¯re one of the oldest Doctors in this hospital, but this time there will be no more chances. Doctor Reginald, you¡¯re fired, go to HR and get your severance pay. Don¡¯t worry since you¡¯ve been with us for such a long time, I¡¯ll give you twice the amount of what you¡¯re supposed to receive.¡±


    Reginald stood in ce stunned by the sudden chain of events. He was still trying to process what was just said. After a few seconds, he finally digested what just happened and became frantic.


    ¡°Sir Daniel! I¡¯ve worked for this hospital for fifteen years. Are you really going to fire me, over someone like a patient that can¡¯t even pay?¡±


    ¡°Did you not understand what I just said? I¡¯m not just firing you because of what happened today, but because of your numerous misdeeds. Also, the patient you keep on saying can¡¯t pay has already paid to be transferred into the VIP room.¡±


    ¡°Huh?¡± Reginald looked at Daniel dumbfounded.


    ¡°If that¡¯s all you wanted to say Dr. Reginald then you can leave.¡±


    It was at that moment Reginald suddenly charged toward Daniel, but before he could reach Daniel, Michael had already intercepted him. Michael had easily pinned down Dr. Reginald on the floor.


    ¡°Sir Daniel, you can¡¯t fire me! You can¡¯t!¡±


    Daniel looked at the crazed Reginald on the floor and sighed. He then told the nearby nurse to call Security.

 Chapter 150

    Chapter 150: Bad Start


    Matsuri arrived at the agreed-upon meeting spot and was at least half an hour early. She was wearing a ck tank top covered with a nk trench coat, a knee-length ck skirt, and ck boots. At this point, she looked like a girl version of Fade, without the mask. She hasn¡¯t noticed that she had unconsciously dressed as such.


    Matsuri with her outfit plus her natural cold demeanor made her look like an extremely cooldy, which of course, attracted the attention of many male passersby. She came an hour early just to be sure, and as expected during the time she waited for Loki and the others to arrive many of those male gawkers could not hold it in and approached her. Of course, she rejected them all, there were even some that got a bit handsy so she too needed to get physical and beat them up.


    It was a good thing that no Martial Artists joined in or it would be even more chaotic. The surrounding people weren¡¯t that bothered by her beating down people since in this world of Martial Artists seeing a fight or two in the street was quite a normal urrence. In fact, as long as the fight does not lead to death or affects non-rted people, you can fight anytime you want.


    ¡°Big Sis Matsuri.¡±


    Matsuri turned her head and saw t Alisa alongside Liam and Loki. The siblings had arrived on time without even a second more or a second less. It was quite impressive how on point they were.


    ¡°Sorry, have you been waiting long?¡± Loki asked despite already knowing the answer.


    ¡°No, I just got her as well.¡±


    .....


    When Loki heard Matsuri¡¯s answer he looked at where he sat moments ago, there was an empty bottle of water, he also saw the dirt on Matsuri¡¯s pants. It was hard to make out due to it blending into the dark pants, but Loki was able to tell that it was blood. Loki had seen a couple of tv shows and could guess what had happened to a pretty girl staying in one ce. While he was sighing in his mind he felt something strange and looked behind him.


    Loki could not see anything unusual but years of experience were telling him that something was wrong. He used his mana sensing to get a feel of what was happening in the surrounding area, before he could get a lock on anything specific he heard Matsuri¡¯s voice.


    ¡°So where are we going today?... Is everything okay Loki?¡±


    Matsuri, Alisa, and Liam looked at Loki who did not respond. The trio then looked in the direction Loki was looking, but no matter how hard they looked they saw nothing unusual, this was also true for Loki. Even after using the full extent of his mana sensing, he could not find anyone that could make him have this weird feeling he was having.


    ¡®Was it just my imagination?...¡¯


    ¡°Hey Big bro, are you alright?¡±


    Alisa worriedly touched Loki¡¯s arm and then her big brother suddenly disappeared from her sight. She then felt a hand touch her neck, it was so fast that she couldn¡¯t even react. This was after the fact that she was a martial artist with superior senses, and even with that, she wasn¡¯t even able to see how it happened.


    ¡®Who is attacking me?¡¯ That was the first thought that came into Alisa¡¯s mind.


    ¡°Loki what are you doing?!¡±


    Matsuri¡¯s woke Loki up from his thoughts and he finally noticed that he was holding Alisa¡¯s neck. Loki quickly let go of Alisa and backed away.


    ¡°Alisa are you alright?¡± Liam and Matsuri approached Alisa checking up on her.


    ¡°I¡¯m alright.¡±


    ¡°What the f*ck were you trying to do?!¡±


    Liam shouted at Loki who was still startled by what happened. He was concentrating so hard on looking for whatever it was that was making him feel ufortable that he didn¡¯t even notice his body had moved to attack his own sister.


    ¡°... I... I¡¯m sorry, Alisa I wasn¡¯t.¡±


    Seeing the look on Loki¡¯s face, Alisa quickly stood up.


    ¡°No, it¡¯s alright. I know you were just surprised by me touching you. So Let¡¯s just move on and go.¡±


    ¡°Yes, Alisa¡¯s right, nobody really got hurt so let¡¯s just forget this little incident, alright?¡± Matsuri chimed in supporting Alisa.


    ¡°Forget it?... So we aren¡¯t going to talk about why he¡¯s acting weirdly, and that he attacked Alisa?¡± Liam spoke looking at Alisa and Matsuri weirdly.


    ¡°...¡± Loki hated himself for actually trying to hurt his sister the person he swore to protect with everything he had. Alisa suddenly hugged his arm and tried to pull Loki away.


    ¡°Let¡¯s just go before we attract even more attention.¡±


    ...


    After changing locations Loki was able to get his calm back. In his mind, there was no point in continuing to be affected by what happened.


    ¡°I¡¯m really sorry about what I did. I made things rather awkward haven¡¯t I? If you guys wanna cancel this outing I would understand.¡±


    ¡°No it¡¯s alright, but why did you react like that big brother, what did you see?¡± Alisa couldn¡¯t help but asked, the two other people were also quite curious to hear the answer.


    Loki wondered if he should tell the truth or not. After a brief moment of hesitation, he gave an answer.


    ¡°I thought I saw a familiar-looking face so I was distracted.¡±


    ¡°Okay, then how were you able to move like that. I have seen many rank-four martial artists in school have sparring matches, but your movements were different from theirs. When did you get so good?¡±


    ¡°Oh, I do train hard as well. I wanted to be at least stronger than you guys.¡±


    ¡°Is that so?¡± Liam stared at Loki as if he wanted to see if what he was saying was true.


    ¡°Yeah, so if everyone is really alright now, how about we get back on schedule?¡± Before Liam could say anything more Alisa interrupted him.


    ¡°Alright then, if everyone agrees to that let¡¯s see.¡± Loki checked the time. ¡°If we run for a bit we will make it in time for the movie.¡±

 Chapter 151 - 151 The start of the movie

    151 The start of the movie


    After buying tickets for the four of them Loki was about to head back to the group when he noticed Michael and Shin walking by. Loki was going to greet them when he spotted another familiar face in the crowd, it was Tang Ao walking with an unknown person.


    Seeing so many familiar faces made Loki feel a tiny bit ufortable as it seems like something big was going to happen. Loki no longer bothered with them and headed back to his group. He wasn¡¯t sure why he was feeling so uneasy but his instincts had never failed him before.


    As he was thinking about what to do next, he saw his siblings talking happily with Matsuri. Seeing their smiling faces made Loki hesitate. Loki sighed as he came to a decision. As long as nothing happened specifically to them he would try his hardest to keep this outing going, but once it got dangerous he would stop it. Matsuri who spotted Loki waved her hands and she asked.


    ¡°You got the tickets?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I have them here.¡±


    ...


    The group bought some popcorn and headed into the movie theatre. There were a lot of people present as the movie seemed to be really popr. It was still, an hour before the movie starts but there were already many people inside. It was a good thing Loki arrived when he did since if he arrived even a little bitter he might not have been able to buy four tickets.


    Most of the good seats were already taken by other people and it was also quite hard to find four seats that were next to each other. Still, after looking around they finally found four avable seats next to each other.


    Matsuri sat at the edge and beside her was Loki and then next to him was Alisa then finally Liam who sat in the inner area. The seats they found were quite close to the screen and were at the right side edge of the movie theatre, it wasn¡¯t really the best seats but at least they get to sit next to each other.


    .....


    ¡°So what¡¯s this movie about?¡± Matsuri suddenly asked.


    ¡°You haven¡¯t heard about it? This movie has been all over social media.¡± Alisa replied quite surprised by Matsuri¡¯s question.


    ¡°Sorry, I¡¯m always busy with work so I don¡¯t know a lot of the current trends. Also thest time I watched a movie was when I was a child with my father, my mother, and my younger siblings.¡±


    Noticing that Matsuri¡¯s mood was turning sour Alisa poked the side of her big brother. Loki looked at Alisa who was showing a pleading expression as she gestured towards Matsuri. Loki couldn¡¯t help but sigh in his mind.


    ¡°Well, it¡¯s a good thing I invited you. This movie is quite good, I heard many of the actors in this movie were high-ranking martial artists.¡±


    When Matsuri heard Loki sounding a bit excited as he spoke she was surprised. This guy didn¡¯t seem like the type of guy to be so easily excited.


    ¡°Is it really that good?¡±


    After she unconsciously asked that question Loki started to speak in an exaggerated excited tone. He spoke as if he really was that invested in the movie, but all he was doing was repeating what he read on the inte. No one noticed that Loki was just repeating the exact words he read on the inte, and was impressed by his knowledge of the movie. Even the people who were eavesdropping were quite surprised by some of the things Loki said which made them even more excited to watch the movie.


    Seeing how thrilled Loki was about the movie made Matsuri forget her earlier thoughts and started to giggle. She couldn¡¯t help but smile as Loki continued to talk about how the movie was made.


    Seeing the smile on Matsruri¡¯s face Alisa was quite impressed by her big brother. She always thought that her big brother was someone who had troublemunicating with other people but seeing him talk like this she started to think differently.


    On the other hand, Loki who saw the smiling face of Matsuri knew that his n had worked. Now that Matsuri was back on track his sister should have no problem watching the movie without bothering him.


    While the three of them were talking Liam was also listening in. He was a fan of the novel this movie was based on and was excited to watch it as well, who could¡¯ve guessed that hisme big brother liked the same thing as him.


    ¡®Maybe next time I¡¯ll show him my collection, and if he turns out to be a real fan we could cosy as some of the characters.¡¯


    ...


    As most of the people in the movie theatre were getting hyped up the movie finally started. Loki stopped talking and was now focused on watching. Seeing as the movie was about the older era of this world Loki was very interested.


    He had already seen the power of the weaker Grandmasters of this world and based on the videos he has seen on the inte he had a decent guess on how powerful the top Grandmasters were. So now he wanted to see how powerful the Ancient Martial Artists were, well since this wasn¡¯t a documentary it was good enough to see what the modern people imagined the Ancient Martial Artists to be like.


    The opening showed a flock of flying Gigantes called Cdrius, it was bird-type Gigantes, their body was twenty feet long and ten feet wide, and their wingspan was at least fifteen meters long. The giant bird-like creature was pure white and looked a little simr to one of the supreme beasts in Loki¡¯s old world, the Phoenix.


    Yet unlike the Phoenix, these birds were smaller by arge margin. The Divine Phoenix in his old world wasrger than a mountain and the heat it produced could burn everything in its way. Inparison, the pure white Cdrius were puny and looked less majestic. Still, Loki had to admit even though the quality of these birds couldn¡¯tpare to the Divine Phoenix their quantity was fearful.


    The Cdrius filled the sky making it look pure white, and they were about to attack the frightened humans within their stone walls. Even though the humans retaliated with arrows and had killed a lot of the Cdrius but if you look at the sky it didn¡¯t seem like they were able to do anything at all.


    When all hope was gone, a single man stood in front of the flock of Cdrius, and with a point of his finger lightning rained down from the heavens striking hundred of the gigantic birds. The man then made a few hand gestures and a downburst was created killing even more Cdrius. As the man was preparing his third attack the Cdrius fled.


    Loki who watched the entire opening scene was amazed by the level of the special effects, but more than that he was amazed by the power of the Ancient Martial Artist. If this was truly how strong the Ancient Martial Artists were, then that would mean they were equal to the Archmages of his old world.


    The Archmages were people who could manipte the elements of a world to such a great degree that many of themoners in Loki¡¯s old world treated them as Gods. Still, even though they were powerful in a group battle, and were often used by Empires to wipe out arge portion of the enemy army, the Archmages were not really good in actualbat and were easy to kill once you got close enough. Loki had killed a number of evil Archmages so he was familiar with their ways.


    ¡®Still, I wonder if this Ancient Martial Artist has the same weakness as the Archmages... I also wonder if the current Grandmasters could perform simr techniques.¡¯ Loki continued to watch the movie with greater interest.

 Chapter 152 - 152 The Movie鈥檚 ending

    152 The Movie¡¯s ending


    The movie continued onward, a little boy approached the powerful Ancient Martial Artist his eyes red from all the crying, but the little boy stood in front of the Ancient Martial Artist with determination. The little boy then bowed his head and spoke in a loud voice, he was not shouting but his voice echoed through the vige.


    ¡°Old man please teach me martial arts!¡±


    This little boy was the protagonist of the movie, during the attack some of the Cdrius were able to reach the vige and kill some people, among those that were killed were the parents of the protagonist. To protect him his parents made the ultimate sacrifice.


    The protagonist never wants to feel so powerless ever again and didn¡¯t want anyone to feel the same way as he did which is why he wanted to learn martial arts from the old man.


    Seeing this scene reminded Loki of his own past, but unlike the child in the movie, Loki already had enough power but even then he was still unable to save the person most important to him.


    The old man shook his head and rejected the protagonist. Even though he was rejected, the protagonist never gave up and followed the old man throughout his travels. In the beginning, the old man did not bother with the child, but over time when he saw the child learning by simply watching him, he was amazed at the talent the child had in martial arts.


    Even with that knowledge he never officially taught the child instead he would show him a few moves every now and then. The protagonist was able to learn all of the moves the old man showed, and in time he was even able to create his own set of moves.


    The movie fast-forwarded to a few years into the future, the old man who was so powerful at the beginning of the movie was now on his deathbed. The protagonist was no longer a child but a young adult.


    ¡°Young one, do you still wish for power?¡±


    .....


    ¡°...¡±


    ¡°Hmm, you already have enough power but you still want more... Young one, you have inherited everything I have and more, to me you were like a grandson... This is why I hope that you could let go of the past that shackles you and be free.¡±


    ¡°Old man... I cannot let go of the past, I do not have the right to be free.¡±


    Those words that were spoken by the protagonist resonated within Loki¡¯s very soul. He already knew a brief summary of the story by reading it on the inte, but he did not know the finer details. Almost everything about this protagonist was simr to him, the way he lived his life was something Loki could understand.


    Unlike before when he was only slightly interested, this time Loki was truly invested and it was no longer an act. He wanted to see how the protagonist¡¯s story ends.


    ¡°... I see, then I hope that you won¡¯t regret your decision, my... little... disciple... ¡±


    The old man died, but the protagonist did not shed a tear as he watched his master take his final breath. Yet, despite not showing any kind of emotion he stayed by his master¡¯s side for a whole month, unmoving. After that, the protagonist burned his master¡¯s body and took his ashes, and scattered them on top of the mountain were his master used to live.


    It was at this point the protagonist started his lone journey saving those that could not save themselves. He dedicated his entire life to saving others without worrying about his own safety, it was as if his own life was worth less than all the others.


    The protagonist continued on his lonely path and was hailed as a hero by other martial artists, and as a benevolent God by themoners. There was even this one woman, a powerful martial artist that showed great affection for the protagonist but he remained oblivious to her feelings, and even when the woman directly confessed to him the protagonist did not respond in kind.


    ¡°I¡¯m not worthy of your affection, I do not deserve it. I¡¯m just a ghost of the past, while you¡¯re a person of the present.¡±


    In the end, the protagonist continued his lonely life for the sake of others. It then came to the point that he no longer felt joy in saving others, he no longer felt hatred for the enemies he killed, and he felt nothing as he became a sword for justice.


    The climax of the movie was when the people he protected turned against him. The ancient martial artists who started feeling threatened by his power and aplishment used honeyed words to convince the people that the protagonist was a fake hero. The public opinion quickly changed and the protagonist did nothing.


    This was the part where everyone watching was surprised. Even Loki was stunned by the protagonist¡¯s reaction to his situation. He simply epted his fate, he did nothing to change it.


    ¡®Why?¡¯


    Even the people who read the novel were surprised, this was a different ending from what was written in the novel. In the novel¡¯s version, the hero fought bravely against his fate and showed the masses the true enemy. Yet in this version the protagonist allowed the people to capture him. The day before the trial the woman who loved the protagonist secretly entered his jail. She asked the question everyone had.


    ¡°Why don¡¯t you escape? if you wanted to no one in here could stop you. Why are you epting your fate so easily?¡±


    The protagonist looked into the woman¡¯s eyes and smiled before he gave his answer.


    ¡°Why should I fight it? If I fought how many would die before people start to believe me? I cannot be the cause of so many innocent people¡¯s deaths. So if my death calms them down, if my death makes them feel secure then it would be a worthy death.¡±


    ¡°Why do keep thinking about them, even though they don¡¯t care about you?¡±


    ¡°Because they have a future and I¡¯m just a ghost of the past.¡±


    Hearing his answer and seeing the calm look on his face, the woman knew she could not convince the protagonist and could only reluctantly leave. The next day, the protagonist had a trial was found guilty, and was executed on the same day. As his life was about to end, he once again heard his master¡¯s voice asking him a question.


    ¡°Do you regret it?¡± The protagonist smiled as he answered.


    ¡°No.¡±


    After giving the answer the screen turned dark, and the credits started rolling. The people in the movie theatre had mixed reactions to the ending of the movie. Many were outraged that the ending of the movie was so different from the novel, others were deep in thought about the message the movie was trying to convey, and then there were those that actually found the ending of the movie better than the cliche good ending of the novel. On the other hand, Loki was deep in thought as he resonated so well with the protagonist, and he was sure that he would make almost the exact same choice, all but the ending.


    ¡®Is that really what I want my ending to be?¡¯


    The protagonist had fulfilled his mission to the very end, but was it worth it? Was that truly the correct path to take, to be so bound to the past that you could not see what was in the present? Seeing it from a third-party perspective, Loki was realizing something but he could not fully grasp it as of now.

 Chapter 153 - 153 Chaos

    153 Chaos


    After the movie was over Loki was still contemting some things. It has been a while since he questioned himself. That movie he watched made him remember a lot of things. Even though he had matured since then, he still felt like he could be just the same as the protagonist of that movie.


    ¡®Heh after telling Catherine off about her resolve being too weak I was actually shaken a bit about what I saw. I already knew my ending wouldn¡¯t be good the moment I made my first kill... If not for my promise with Shera, I might¡¯ve continued on as nothing more than an avenger... Still, I wonder should I always be so rigid?¡¯


    While Loki was deep in his own thoughts the group was nearing the zoo that had a Gigantes which was its main selling point. It was then that out of nowhere Loki¡¯s group spotted people who were running and screaming. Loki looked ahead and saw a giant monster destroying the nearby buildings. Loki who had seen pictures of it on the inte quickly recognized that this thing was the Gigantes that his group was going to see in the zoo.


    The Gigantes that was causing all this chaos was a four-legged creature that was five stories tall, it was also wider than the street which was making its body scrape the nearby building, the Gigantes looked like a giant bear.


    It was simply walking through the streets but the destruction it caused was immense. It looked around and started roaring which frightened the normal people even more. Even though he couldn¡¯t see it Loki had already caught the scent of blood in the air. It would seem that there were casualties already.


    Some of the martial artists were trying their hardest to save the normal people who were in the Gigantes¡¯s way about to be trampled. Loki started looking around the area finding a route to escape. The moment Matsuri saw the giant monster she quickly called for backup.


    ¡°Big brother, a boy and a woman!¡±


    Alisa pointed at a young boy who was crying in the distance. The young boy was near the Gigantes, Loki was also able to spot a woman screaming at the young boy telling him to run away, he guessed that the woman might be his mother. The woman was being pinned down by fallen debris. She and the boy were not in a good position, if the Gigantes were to turn a little bit he would crush the two of them under its feet.


    Loki quickly moved his body as he used [Enhancement] on his entire body, unlike before his mana supply had greatly increased and it was already at twenty percent of what it was back in his old world. It might not sound like much, but it was a great improvement.


    .....


    Loki darted like a bullet toward the crying child and his mother, but before he could reach them the Gigantes was about ready to stomp on the two. Loki pushed his body to the very limit as he strengthened the [Enhacment] spell while dashing with all his might. He quickly got a hold of the boy and kicked the debris pinning down the mother.


    Loki kicked the debris towards the Gigantes¡¯s foot but it didn¡¯t even feel it as its foot continued to fall towards them.


    ¡°CATCH!¡±


    Loki shouted to a nearby martial artist who looked in his direction. Loki then quickly tossed both mother and son towards the martial artist. Seeing the iing foot about to reach him, Loki used a spell.


    The spell he used was called [Shadow Bind] it was a spell that uses the caster¡¯s shadow and turns it into chains. This was a spell used to restrain opponents, and its strength depended on how much mana was used upon activation. Back in his old world, he was able to restrain a Dragon using this spell. At the beginning of his career, he would use this spell frequently, well until he was able to create a better version which he called [Mana Strings].


    Unfortunately, due to his current mana supply, he could not perform the spell [Mana Strings] and even the [Shadow Bind] he released was minuscule and could barely stop the Gigantes¡¯s foot. Still, the few seconds it bought were enough for him to escape from being crushed by the Gigantes¡¯s foot.


    ¡°Big Brother.¡± Alisa and Liam rushed towards his side, behind them there was also Matsuri who looked at him with worry.


    ¡°It¡¯s fine, I¡¯m alright. Matsuri have you called for reinforcements?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I tried calling Captain Tang Ao but he wasn¡¯t answering so I called the police chief instead, and he said that reinforcements are already on their way.¡±


    ¡°How long before they arrive?¡±


    ¡°He said they should arrive in seven minutes.¡±


    When Loki heard Matsuri¡¯s answer he clicked his tongue. Normally seven minutes wasn¡¯t that long but in this situation, it might be.


    ¡°Alright, the first thing we need to do is escape and find shelter,¡± Loki spoke in a rather serious tone, and his demeanor suddenly changed. Matsuri was rather surprised by the sudden change as she nodded her head in agreement.


    Alisa and Liam were equally stunned by the sudden change in their older brother¡¯s demeanor. The seriousness of the situation even made Liam who did not like listening to Loki agree with him. Alisa was as equally shocked as Liam but unlike the others, she had a different opinion.


    ¡°Big brother, are we really going to leave just like that, are we not going to help?¡±


    Alisa pointed at the other martial artist who were trying to save as many civilians as possible while the others distract the bear-like Gigantes.


    As Loki was about to answer her, the sound of multiple roars echoed through the city. Out of nowhere, three more Gigantes appeared each of which was of different species. Seeing the appearance of these three Gigantes some of the more weak-willed martial artists fled.


    It was at this moment that casualties started appearing right before their very eyes. Alisa and Liam who saw the people being eaten or trampled on were in a state of shock and horror. Loki quickly picked up the two and started running, while Matsuri was running just right behind him.

 Chapter 154 - 154 Nowhere to run

    154 Nowhere to run


    Even though it was an emergency Loki was running at a pace that Matsuri could follow and as he was doing that he was also scanning the surrounding area with his mana sensing. After a quick scan, he spotted a few familiar people in the vicinity, he also noticed that there were some people moving in a suspicious way.


    Michael and Shin were with the other martial artist trying to help the normal citizen, and surprisingly enough even Kira was somewhere in the sea of people. On the other hand, he could not sense Tang Ao¡¯s presence who he had spotted before entering the theatre. It would¡¯ve been ideal if he could sense him.


    Loki¡¯s mind was multitasking at the moment, as he was nning what to do next. It was obvious to him that the Gigantes were merely used as a distraction. Still, despite knowing this and locating some of the suspicious people¡¯s movements he did not bother with them as his main priority was always the safety of his siblings. If he had some leeway he would dly help and deal with the problem, unfortunately, he had no time to deal with those people.


    ...


    Once they were far enough from the four rampaging Gigantes Loki ced his siblings down. After witnessing the deaths of so many people, Alisa and Liam were still in a dazed state. The two of them had seen a dead body before, but this was different, the cruelty, the savageness of what they saw was frightening.


    ¡°We better find somewhere to hide until those things are taken down. Matsuri, do you know any ce we could hide until things calm down?¡±


    ¡°There should be a shelter of sorts near here, but at this point, I guess a lot of people would already be there and we won¡¯t be able to enter... Give me a moment, I¡¯ll think of something.¡±


    The words Loki spoke awakened the dazed Alisa as she was still frightened by what she saw but she needed to say something. Alisa spoke interrupting Loki and Matsuri¡¯s conversation.


    ¡°Big brother, are you saying that we should do nothing when the powerless are in danger? Big sis Matsuri as a police officer are you okay with us running away?¡±


    .....


    ¡°Alisa...¡± Matsuri sighed as she looked at Alisa, she was going to say something more but then Loki spoke before her.


    ¡°Trust me I know how you feel, but this is the right decision.¡±


    ¡°If you do understand how I feel, then why are we running away? How can leaving people to die be the right decision?¡± Alisa responded while clenching his fist tightly. Seeing the anger and determination in Alisa¡¯s eyes, Loki could not help but sigh before he gave his response.


    ¡°So what do you want to do, go back there and do what exactly? You couldn¡¯t even move a muscle when things got bad and you just stood there doing nothing. If it weren¡¯t for me, you and Liam would¡¯ve been squashed by now.¡±


    ¡°I...¡± Alisa could not refute what Loki said, it was harsh but there was no lie in his words. Alisa¡¯s mind was in chaos as she had her head down gritting her teeth.


    Was that it, was that all she amounted to? She finally gained power, but even then she was as powerless as she was before. She still couldn¡¯t find any evidence of Kira¡¯s involvement in her big brother¡¯s ident, and now she has no choice but to run as people were dying before her.


    ¡°Now do you understand, I know that you want to help others, but what¡¯s the point of it if you¡¯re not even able to help yourself? So for now how about we-¡±


    Loki did not finish what he was going to say as he quickly picked up Alisa and Liam and shouted at the nearby Matsuri.


    ¡°Hold onto my neck!¡±


    ¡°Huh, why?¡±


    ¡°Quickly!!!¡±


    Matsuri no longer hesitated as he clung tightly to Loki¡¯s neck and then in the next second Loki jumped from wall to wall climbing onto the roof of a building. Loki did not stop there as he jumped from rooftop to rooftop going farther and farther away.


    Matsuri and the other two were quite surprised at how strong and fast Loki was, as well as how good he was in parkour. They were also confused as to why Loki started panicking, it was at that moment the building near where they were standing before suddenly copsed and another Gigantes came out from the ground. It was a gigantic worm-like creature.


    If they had stayed there they would¡¯ve already been eaten. Liam gulped as his body trembled slightly just thinking about it. On the other hand, Matsuri and Alisa were quite surprised by Loki¡¯s reaction. Not only was he able to move this way, but he was actually able to sense the Gigantes that was hiding underground and was able to react quickly enough for them to escape from it.


    ¡®Didn¡¯t he and his siblings just recently be martial artists, how is he this good? Not only are his skills decent, but even his state of mind is already battle ready. Is he some kind of martial arts genius?¡¯


    ¡®How is big brother so strong? The three of us became martial artists almost at the same time. Big brother might have more inner energy than Liam and I, but I¡¯m sure I had the advantage in training. Most of the time big brother is in the library while I¡¯m in ss being taught by rank eight martial artists. So how is he so far ahead?¡¯


    While Matsuri, Alisa, and Liam were quite shocked by Loki¡¯s abilities, Loki had no time to bother thinking about how he used some of his abilities in front of them, as he was busy trying to find a safe area. He could not let his guard down now, as the worm-like Gigantes was able to get so close to him before he noticed it.


    If he was alone that would have never happened as he could easily hide his presence making him hard to target, but since there were four of them in a group it made them easier to be spotted.


    The situation was bing even more dangerous as the four Gigantes were rampaging in the distance, while the worm-like Gigantes had burrowed underground.


    It wasn¡¯t just those things that were making the area dangerous, there was also the suspicious group that was moving to an unknown ce. Not only that but there were also some people using the chaos to rob some shops.


    ¡®This entire area is a danger zone, is there no safe ce?¡¯ Loki was feeling a little anxious now.

 Chapter 155 - 155 Separated

    155 Separated


    Loki decided that the best course of action was to meet up with Captain Tang Ao and decide what to do from there. Loki used his enhanced senses to locate Tang Ao, as long as he was within a hundred meters from him, Loki would be able to sense Tang Ao¡¯s general location. After a quick scan of the surroundings, he was able to spot Tang Ao close by. Loki then started to move towards Tang Ao¡¯s location.


    ...


    Captain Tang Ao came to the city to look for a date since he didn¡¯t want to be single anymore, he even brought one of the Sergeants in his unit to help him. It was supposed to be a normal day and things were even going nicely.


    Yet as he was speaking to a beautifuldy, everything turned into chaos. A Gigantes appeared in the city, and it wasn¡¯t alone there were four more that appeared. Thedy he was talking to fled the scene while screaming. Tang Ao looked at the Gigantes with irritation and clicked his tongue.


    ...


    Sgt. Howard Morian was one of the new Sergeants transferred to Tang Ao¡¯s branch of the Elite Dragon Brigade. When he first met his new Captain, his first impression of Tang Ao was that this man was going to be a strict leader. So he never expected that very Captain to suddenly ask him to help him pick up some chicks, he also never expected to be in a situation where five Gigantes were attacking the city. He could not help but sigh in his heart at how unlucky he was.


    ¡°Sergeant, what¡¯s the ETA on our reinforcements?!¡± Tang Ao shouted as he was helping the civilians evacuate.


    ¡°Sir, reinforcements are being dyed there seems to be a problem back in the base.¡±


    ¡°A problem?¡±


    .....


    ¡°Sir, an unknown force attacked the base.¡±


    ¡°An unknown force, in this timing?! Damn, that must mean this f*cking ident is nothing more than a distraction! To sacrifice so many lives just for a distraction!¡±


    Tang Ao gnashed his teeth as his anger rose. Too many things have been happening in Leim Citytely. The assassin Fade showed up killing almost all the people rted to the underworld in the city, which wasn¡¯t too bad, but then other powerful individuals started appearing. The demonic genius Le appeared in the city, then there was the Elegant Scorpion, and worst of all the Alchemist Johann was lurking in the city as well.


    ¡®At least with those other things I was aware of them, but this came out of nowhere. I wasn¡¯t even prepared for such an attack to happen. It was already bad enough that I have allowed the Star of Dawn toe into the city, then this happens.¡¯


    Tang Ao clenched his fist his anger not only for the enemy but also at himself grew.


    ¡°Sir, what are we going to do now?¡±


    ¡°Since reinforcements will not being anytime soon we need to do what we can with what we have now. First, Sergeant, I want you to contact the local police force and coordinate with them, and I will gather the martial artists near here to help in subduing those Gigantes.¡±


    ¡°Sir, yes, sir!¡±


    Howard saluted Tang Ao and left. When Tang Ao was about to leave as well, he noticed someone dashing towards him from a distance. The person was carrying two people and another one hanging on his neck. As the person got closer Tang Ao finally got to see who was running toward him.


    ¡®Isn¡¯t that Loki and his siblings, that woman hanging for dear life should be the Detective.¡¯


    Despite the dire situation Tang Ao almostughed when he saw the sight before him. The always serious, always cold Matsuri was actually clinging onto someone¡¯s neck while holding back tears. Tang Ao was also rather surprised at how much Loki had improved.


    It was just a few months ago when Loki was nothing more than a normal citizen, but now he was a rank-four martial artist. When Loki arrived in front of Tang Ao he ced Alisa and Liam down.


    ¡°Sir Tang Ao, I¡¯m d that I spotted you. Do you have any idea what the heck is going on?¡± Loki showed a very worried look on his face as he spoke. Tang Ao shook his head in response.


    ¡°It¡¯s still unknown if this was all an ident or something intentional. For now, we need to do our best to save the non-martial artist civilians. So can I ask for the help of you and your siblings?¡±


    Alisa was about to say something but before she could open her mouth something heavy hit her, the same thing happened to Liam. Alisa and Liam had fallen unconscious.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know about the other martial artist but I¡¯m pretty sure that even though we are indeed martial artists, we are civilians first before we are martial artists. Shouldn¡¯t you as a military officer protect us instead of trying to ask for our help?¡±


    ¡°I understand what you¡¯re saying but this is an emergency and unlike martial artists, the normal civilians stand little chance of escaping. Still, if you don¡¯t want to help I won¡¯t force you.¡±


    Loki looked at the unconscious Alisa and Liam before he responded.


    ¡°I did not say I won¡¯t help.¡±


    ¡°So then.¡±


    ¡°I will help you evacuate the civilians. I just want you to bring my siblings to a safe ce.¡± Before Tang Ao could respond Matsuri pulled Loki.


    ¡°Are you sure about this Loki? It¡¯s just like you said, you have no obligation to help them. This is a problem for the military and the police. You might be a martial artist, but you¡¯re just a librarian.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m sure.¡±


    ¡°Alright then, if that¡¯s your choice.¡± Matsuri nodded her head.


    ¡°Thanks... Hey, I have a favor to ask.¡±


    ¡°What is it?¡±


    ¡°Can you please look after my siblings while I¡¯m away?¡±


    ¡°I promise to protect them.¡±


    ¡°Thank you.¡±


    Loki and Matsuri then started staring at each other with smiles on their faces. As they were having their moment somebody suddenly coughed.


    ¡°Sorry to interrupt, but now that you decided to help we need to move quickly. I promise to bring your siblings to a safe ce. So please guide the citizens to this area.¡±


    Tang Ao showed a map on his phone that had a certain location marked, he then sent a picture of the map to Loki¡¯s phone. After receiving the picture Loki nodded his head.


    ¡°I¡¯ll do my best. Oh right, Captain, I¡¯m not sure if this is relevant but a while ago, I spotted a group of suspicious individuals heading into a building.¡± Tang Ao frowned as he heard the new information.


    ¡°Where did you see them, and what did they look like?¡±


    ¡°At first, I thought that they were soldiers from your unit as they were fully armed. I wasn¡¯t able to see them clearly but I think they weren¡¯t wearing any kind of uniform.¡±


    Loki checked his phone and sent Tang Ao a picture of the building. Seeing the building that the suspicious individual headed into made Tang Ao feel confused. That was just a museum, if those guys were truly the group that caused this big mess surely they did this with something big in mind.


    ¡°That¡¯s where I spotted them. Alright then,¡± while Tang Ao was deep in thought Loki was about to leave Matsuri grabbed his hand.


    ¡°Be careful.¡±


    ¡°I will,¡± Loki then left running towards the area where the Gigantes were rampaging.

 Chapter 156 - 156 Improvement

    156 Improvement


    After separating from Matsuri and his siblings, Loki¡¯s movement changed, for with every step he made his presence seemed to be fading from the world. Loki was finally feelingfortable with this new body of his, it took him nearly a year before he could adapt to it this well.


    The people who noticed Loki jumping from building to building suddenly saw him disappear from their sight, most of the people who saw him were martial artists with powerful senses, but despite that, they were still unable to see how Loki disappeared. Some started to think that they might¡¯ve seen a ghost.


    ...


    Loki didn¡¯t disappear from their sights as he simply became one with the surroundings he was there but at the same time not there. This was the breathing technique of his n which he improved upon with the help of the annoying Spirit. Back in his old world, he would need to waste mana to use this technique, but now after modifying the technique there was no longer a need to use mana.


    Loki could now use the modified breathing technique with minimal inner energy. Because of his mana interacting with his inner energy on a daily basis the inner energy his body produced was purer than any other person in this world. It meant that despite being a rank four martial artist, the quality of his inner energy wasparable to a Grandmaster¡¯s but not the quantity.


    ...


    Loki took out his gloves changed his shirt and wore a white mask. At this moment Loki had turned into Fade, he jumped on top of the tallest building and looked around at the destruction that the Giganteses had brought. It was a sight that Loki was used to seeing in his old world but he never expected to see it here in this world.


    On the ground, Fade noticed a few martial artists trying to guide several dozen civilians toward a safe zone. Of course, he also noticed the Bear Gigantes that was killing those martial artists.


    ¡®Ok then let¡¯s see how much I have improved.¡¯


    .....


    Fade locked onto the Bear Gigantes and jumped down from the tall building, onto a building near the rampaging Gigantes.


    Fade made his mana burst into the surrounding area so that he could sense if there were any people inside the nearby buildings. It would seem that there were no longer people inside the buildings, once he was sure of this Fade manipted his steel wires and spread them to find and bind the pirs of the nearby buildings.


    After he was done binding key pirs he pulled the wires back to him destroying specific pirs of the foundation of the building making it copse while sliding down towards the Gigantes.


    The weight of a high-rise building fell onto the Gigantes burying it in the rubble. Fade was not yet finished with it, as he could still sense its breath. Fade then made the opposite building fall on top of the Gigantes.


    The people who were fleeing for their lives stopped to look at what was happening. As the dust cleared the group of people stared at Fade. Seeing them stop running Fade shouted at them.


    ¡°What are you people doing?! Quickly leave while I hold this thing back!¡±


    The people were still quite stunned by what they saw, but when they heard what Fade said they were confused, even with that the Gigantes was still alive. Now despite hearing Fade say that the Gigantes was alive most of the people stayed to see if it was true. Some of the people even took out their phones to take pictures and videos.


    ¡°Did you people not hear me?! I said leave!¡±


    Fade could not help but sigh as he looked at the foolish people. As his anger was rising Fade felt something strange, he suddenly felt the breath of mana. The pile of rubble that the Gigantes was under started shaking, no the entire area started to shake as of there was an earthquake. The pile of rubble then burst out hitting everything near it, a little bit of the rubble was about to hit some people, so Fade quickly used his steel wires to intercept them.


    As Fade was busing catching the flying rubble, the Bear like Gigantes started changing forms, its brown fur turned red and was now covered with cement which formed into armor covering its entire body. The armor was only a physical representation of its defense but beyond that Fade actually saw that the Gigantes was being surrounded by earth spirits. The only ones who could see these earth spirits and ask for help were people that used mana.


    This Gigantes was finally looking like one of the great monsters in his old world. Based on the mana it was emitting, it wasn¡¯t at the level of those supreme beasts but in its current state, it was just a little weaker than the named monsters in Fade¡¯s old world.


    ¡°You guys run away already, I¡¯ll stall it for as long as I can!¡± The people continued to look dumbfounded which made Fade shout even louder. ¡°What the f*ck are you guys doing! I¡¯m already saving you for free, and you still won¡¯t go! You people f*cking go already or I¡¯ll be the one leaving!¡±


    This time the people watching finally started fleeing again, before the martial artists fled with the others they faced Fade and gave him a martial artist¡¯s salute.


    Seeing the fleeing humans the Gigantes was about to give chase, but then something hit its face. Fade had flung one of the huge rubble that he caught a while ago. Fade then kept on flinging rock after rock at the Gigantes¡¯s face, catching its attention.


    ¡°Come at me big guy!¡±


    The Gigantes growled as it raised its paw and swiped it toward Fade who was able to evade by jumping backward. Unfortunately, even after evading the gust of wind created by the swiping motion of the Gigantes¡¯s paw Fade who had jumped backward to evade was still blown away.


    Fade was about to smash into a building, but before he reached it Fade twisted his body and pointed his arm forward.


    ¡°[Air Shot]¡± Fade had used a spell, a strong wind burst out of Fade¡¯s hand hitting the nearby wall and slowing him down. Once he had slowed down a bit Fade did a mid-air somersault andnded on the ground.


    Fade then quickly used his wires to fling himself upward evading the charging Gigantes that hit the building instead, destroying it. After evading the strike, Fade looked around and saw that the people were still close by.


    ¡°This is going to be one long day.¡±

 Chapter 157 - 157 One Shot

    157 One Shot


    The Bear Gigantes changed its target from Fade to the running civilians. Fade noticed this and quickly wrapped his steel wires enhanced with spells onto the Bear Gigantes¡¯s feet. The steel wires that were supposed to cut the Bear Gigantes¡¯s feet did nothing, it wasn¡¯t even able to make a little cut on Bear Gigantes¡¯s feet, instead, it started to drag Fade along with it.


    Fade then switched tactics, he took out a few needles imbued them with fire elements, and threw them at the Bear Gigantes. Upon contact with the Bear Gigantes¡¯s earth armor, the needles exploded making a part of its armor crack.


    Finally, the Bear Gigantes turned around and was back to targeting Fade. This time the pressure the Bear Gigantes was emitting doubled as it was angered by the exploding needles. The Bear Gigantes charged at Fade who dodged the attack by using his wires to suspend himself in the air. Fade then swung himself forward using his steel wires fleeing from the scene, this made the Bear Gigantes chase after him.


    The angry Bear Gigantes tried to attack Fade but was unable to hit him. Every now and then the Bear Gigantes felt frustrated and was about to change targets but the moment it thinks about doing so Fade would throw another explosive needle rekindling its anger.


    ¡®Even after attacking its elemental weakness, I wasn¡¯t able to do much with my needles. I need to use a stronger spell, but using the needles as the medium for arge scale spell isn¡¯t possible. Also with my current mana, I have a limited amount of spells that I can choose from, not to mention I only know a few powerful fire spells. As an assassin fire spells were really too shy for me. If only I had enough mana to use [mana strings] then I would be able to restrain this monster. No use thinking about what I can¡¯t do, better do what I can...¡¯


    As he was thinking about what to do next Fade noticed a gun held by one of the corpses and took it. After obtaining the gun Fade couldn¡¯t help but sigh as he made a decision.


    ¡®In my current state, it would take about five minutes to finish chanting the spell that¡¯s if I¡¯m able to chant it without being interrupted. To be able to concentrate on chanting the spell while dodging this bear¡¯s attacks will be quite difficult. I got to weaken it first to ensure that my spell would work.¡¯


    Fade had finally arrived in the park that had been evacuated. There was no human being within a few kilometers, so he could finally focus on fighting the Gigantes. Fade checked the gun he just picked up. It was a small beretta handgunmonly used by civilians with a gun license. This kind of small gun wouldn¡¯t normally be able to do anything against a Gigantes, still, this was better than his needles. Now having a suitable medium Fade started chanting.


    Seeing Fade finally stop running the Bear Gigantes felt excited as it roared. It then smashed its paw on the ground, and the earth beneath them started changing shape spikes made of earth came out aiming at Fade.


    .....


    Fade jumped up to avoid the attack as he was still mumbling the spell words. The Bear Gigantes used this opportunity to swipe its paw at Fade who was in mid-air, but before its paw was able to hit its target, Fade was able to use his wires to pull himself backward evading the paw.


    Fade then manipted his steel wires and made them bundle up wrapping around each other forming a steel whip. This steel whip of Fade was heavier and sharper than any sword. At the moment Fade was controlling both his mana and inner energy to do multiple tasks at the same time.


    He was using his mana to strengthen the steel wires and for the spell he was chanting. He was using his inner energy to strengthen his body and evade the attacks. Still, he won¡¯t be able to win against this opponent if he kept on evading, so once his steel whip was formed Fade got ready to counter-attack.


    Even though he was an assassin and his specialty was silent kills but against monsters such as this, and with his current power he could not use his usual style, and instead, he needed to use the style of those so called knights. He could also try using the martial arts he learned in this world, butpared to the techniques of the knights in his old world, thetter had more experience in dealing withrge monsters, while the former is meant on dealing with other humanoid beings.


    Fade swung the thirty-meter-long steel whip at the charging Bear Gigantes¡¯s head, but the other party simply lowered its head and was ready to hit it head-on. As the steel whip collided with the armored head of the Bear Gigantes cracks appeared on the helmet made of earth.


    Fade kept on hitting the same spot as the Bear Gigantes struggled to attack. Fade continued using hit and run tactics, despite the Bear Gigantes¡¯s power and defense being incredible its speed wascking.


    The Bear Gigantes started getting even more aggressive as its anger rose by being continuously hit by the annoying fly that circled around it. The Bear Gigantes who could control the element of earth stomped its feet making the ground shake.


    Fade looked at the Bear Gigantes confused as to what it was doing, it was at that moment pirs of earth surrounded Fade and the Bear Gigantes. A dome made of thick earth had encircled Fade. The Bear Gigantes wasn¡¯t just a mindless beast after all. Now with limited room to move, Fade had no choice but to fight the wild beast head-on.


    ¡®Hmph, well that¡¯s what I wanted.¡¯


    Fade used his steel whip to break the armor of earth on the head of the Bear Gigantes, once that was out of the way, Fade started running towards the Bear Gigantes. Spikes of earth blocked Fade¡¯s path but he nimbly evaded those, as he got closer the Bear Gigantes opened its mouth and a beam of pure earth element burst out. Fade barely evaded the beam and was now on top of the Bear Gigantes¡¯s head. Fade ced the gun on the Bear Gigantes¡¯s forehead. For the first time after it was released the Bear Gigantes felt a tinge of fear as its instincts told it that the gun pointed at his forehead was dangerous.


    ¡°It¡¯s time for an early hibernation,¡± Fade pulled the trigger.

 Chapter 158 - 158 Silently exits the stage

    158 Silently exits the stage


    The Elegant Scorpion John Ray had been staying in Leim City for a few weeks after his contract was terminated. Since he failed his mission to kill Fade, John remained in the city as he wanted to find an opportunity to finish the job. Even now he could not ept his defeat. He had wasted a lot of materials just to fight Fadest time, but even then he hadpletely underestimated the opponent.


    Now that he has lost against a neer his status in the underworld was shaken. Fade¡¯s skill was indeed incredible and his name could shoot up to the top of the dark rankings but only a few know this truth, everyone else won¡¯t be convinced without any proof except John¡¯s words. So now not only did John¡¯s ranking fall greatly but the other assassins were mocking him, and all the jobs that he was supposed to do once he was done killing Fade were now gone. If he doesn¡¯t restore even a little bit of his reputation it will be hard for himter on to continue his lifestyle.


    At this point, the people willing to hire him were low-level thugs and such. The money he could get from such assassinations was not even enough to buy him a couple of bullets for his beloved gun the Scorpion.


    ...


    While John was in the city waiting for Fade to make a move something unexpected happened to him. A group of Gigantes started attacking the city. It was quite a surprise since Leim city was deep inside Zothril, normally all the Gigantes that got too close would be eliminated by the military, which would mean the Gigantes that were attacking now were not wild ones but Gigantes that were brought into the city by someone.


    The moment he saw the destruction happening in the city, John immediately headed to one of his safe houses. As he was hurrying to escape in the corner of his eye he saw a familiar face, it was the person he was waiting for, the person he hated the most at the moment, it was the assassin he failed to kill. Fade was fighting one of the Gigantes and was running around.


    John knew that this was a great chance to kill Fade and restore his reputation. Still, he didn¡¯t have the proper equipment at the moment and was afraid of the Gigantes, he was a good assassin that dealt with humans but when ites to monsters even he needed to run away.


    ¡®First I need to get proper equipment in the safe house then, I¡¯ll ambush Fade.¡¯


    After he decided on his next course of action John continued to head to his nearest safe house. The sound of the rampaging Gigantes echoed in John¡¯s ears as well as the screams of the people that were being eaten and trampled upon.


    .....


    As he turned around to take a peak John saw a dramatic scene, Fade had actually subdued one of the Gigantes. For a brief moment, he was frightened. The only people he knew that could take on a Gigantes head-on were those of the Grandmaster level. John might be a good assassin and he was able to kill Grandmasters before but that was because he was prepared and doing things in the darkness. Seeing how Fade defeated the Gigantes head-on made him see Fade as even more of a monster than the Gigantes.


    The fear he felt was just for a few seconds until he saw Fade falling to the ground limping away. When John saw this scene he felt that this was his chance, he could finally beat Fade and restore his reputation. Still, John didn¡¯t simply charge at Fade as every hunter knows the wounded and cornered beast was more dangerous than any other.


    ¡®Okay, first I need to properly equip myself and go after him, in his current state he shouldn¡¯t be able to go too far.¡¯


    John hurriedly sprinted into his safehouse as he arrived he noticed something was off, the traps he has set seemed to have been disabled in advance. John took out a handgun and cautiously entered the safe house.


    The lights in the safe house were turned on, but after a quick look, it doesn¡¯t look like anything was taken. John then saw someone sitting on his chair, it was a beautiful woman that looked very familiar to him. It was then a sense of dread came before him as he remembered who the woman was.


    ¡°The shing de, Le.¡±


    ¡°Oh, it¡¯s nice to meet you as well Elegant Scorpion John Ray.¡±


    Upon hearing her voice John took a few steps back as he pointed his gun at Le who wasn¡¯t really that bothered by his reaction. John gulped dryly as he forced out a smile.


    ¡°... So to what do I owe the honor of this meeting?¡±


    While he was speaking John¡¯s mind was going at full throttle trying to think of a way on how to escape his current predicament. Le who saw through John¡¯s ns was not bothered seeing as no matter what ns an ant has it could never hurt a single hair of a mighty lion.


    ¡°Nothing much, my superior told me to not do anything with whatever ns the people outside are doing. So I decided while I¡¯m waiting for them to finish why don¡¯t I visit you to pass the time.¡±


    The smile on Le¡¯s face grew even more beautiful than before it was like a flower blooming in spring. Still, instead of being drawn in by the beauty that Le showed, John felt an indescribable fear assaulting his very being.


    ¡°John I heard that you failed yourst job and your reputation is at an all-time low.¡±


    When John heard Le talking about this he had a horrible premonition, still, he gave Le an answer.


    ¡°Yes, I¡¯m really embarrassed about that. Doesdy Le have any tips on how I can kill Fade?¡±


    Le ced her finger on her chin as she made a cute gesture while thinking. She then lowered her hands and a burst of killing intent erupted from Le. John could not understand why this girl was suddenly doing this but he needed to escape quickly.


    ¡°Oh little John, you dare touch the person I¡¯m interested in and you even ask me how to kill him. Well, here¡¯s my answer.¡±


    John quickly shot at Le while backing away unfortunately all the bullets were deflected and John could not even see how she did it. John was about to pick up a nearby gun but before he could do so Le was already in front of him.


    ¡°Lady Le, WAIT!¡±


    ¡°Sorry but it¡¯s already done.¡±


    After saying those words Le walked past John without doing anything which confused him, but then he saw his arms sliding downward he then noticed his sight was falling that was when he realized what had happened, the horror he felt at that time was for a second but it was the longest second ever.


    John¡¯s body had been sliced apart, the cuts were so clean that he didn¡¯t even feel them not even a drop of blood was sprayed which was a magical sight. After his death, his body which felt like it was suspended in time finally moved and blood sprayed all over the ce.

 Chapter 159 - 159 The end of the attack

    159 The end of the attack


    Fade had used a ton of mana to finish off thatrge Ape type of Gigantes, it was a good thing that he now had inner energy as a reserve after he killed the ape Fade rescued the civilians in the surrounding area and brought them to a safe location. The other Gigantes were still on a rampage but the civilian martial artists and the police were able to hold them back for now.


    While Fade was rescuing civilians he once again spotted the weird people he saw at the start of the incident in the corner of his eye. Unlike everyone else, they were not panicking and moving in a militaristic manner. Fade saw that these people were now each carrying arge wrapped object. Once the group arrived at a corner of a building they quickly separated and headed in different directions, and surprisingly they all now had the samerge wrapped object.


    Currently, Fade had no time to worry about who those people were, he already had his hands full with rescuing civilians.


    ¡®Still just in case.¡¯ Fade took a picture of the object and some of the people using his phone and sent it to Harold. He then messaged Harold and told him to inform the military, of course, anonymously. While he was doing this Fade saw that he had a ton of missed calls from his siblings, but for now, he did not bother to look at them. There was even one missed call from Matsuri.


    ...


    While Fade continued to save as many civilians as he could, the unit of the Elite Dragon Brigade finally arrived. Once they were on the scene the Gigantes were quickly subdued and the turmoil eased up.


    Fade was looking at the progress of the Elite Dragon Brigade from a distance, he was about to head back to meet up with hispanions when he then felt a familiar presence had appeared behind him. The steps of the person were as light as a feather and barely made a sound, but her aura was not hidden and it didn¡¯t seem like she was hiding in the first ce. Fade quickly raised his hand and wires came flying out. A sword had shed by and almost reached Fade¡¯s neck but was stopped by the wires.


    ¡°It¡¯s you again.¡±


    Fade looked behind him and as he expected it was the beautiful and deadly Le who had appeared, she was smiling so brightly as she was about to strike Fade.


    .....


    ¡°As expected of you Fade, you were able to block my surprise attack.¡±


    ¡°Hmph, you call that a surprise attack?... Anyway, even if I didn¡¯t block that strike it wouldn¡¯t hit me, right?¡±


    Le showed a very bright smile as she pulled her sword out from the wires and backed away. She then giggled which sounded like a melodious bell.


    ¡°You really are the best! You know me so well!¡± Le spoke with utter excitement her eyes seem to sparkle as she looked at Fade. ¡°I really want to y with you, but I can¡¯t at the moment.¡± Le licked her lips seductively as she looked at Fade as if she was eyeing a piece of diamond.


    ¡°What is it that you want?¡±


    ¡°Nothing much, I just wanted to have a little talk with you. I heard that you met the Alchemist.¡±


    When Fade heard Le speak about the Alchemist, Fade who was about ready to go was now interested to hear what Le had to say.


    ¡°So what?¡± Hearing Fade¡¯s response Le¡¯s excitement had reached a new height.


    ¡°You really faced the Alchemist and lived to tell the tale! I knew it, I just knew it! To think an unknown assassin like you who isn¡¯t even in the Dark rankings was able to hold your own against the Alchemist.¡±


    ¡°Is that such a big deal?¡±


    ¡°You might now know it, but the Alchemist is part of a group that calls themselves the End of Twilight. Every member of the group is a powerful individual, and most of them aren¡¯t even martial artists, they use something different from a martial artist¡¯s inner energy, they call it the spirit of the world or something.¡±


    ¡®So there are more people out there that can use mana.¡¯


    ¡°Alright then, since you said all that you wanted to say.¡± As Fade turned around and was about ready to leave he suddenly felt somethinging at him. Fade bent his head to the side as something flew past him.


    ¡°It¡¯s very rude to leave ady while she¡¯s not done talking.¡±


    ¡°What else do you want to say?¡±


    ¡°My leader wanted me to ask you if you¡¯re interested in joining our group.¡±


    ¡°Oh, your group, and what kind of group is it?¡±


    ¡°Our group operates simrly to you, we hide in the shadows and protect the people by preventing disasters. Sometimes we do some bad things for the greater good just like you. Of course, our ultimate goal is to save as many as we can from the final outbreak.¡±


    ¡°The Final outbreak, what is that?¡±


    Le opened her mouth and seemed to be about to say something but then she raised her finger and ced it on her lips with a cunning smile.


    ¡°About that, if you want to learn more then you need to join. Of course, there are many benefits in joining our group.¡± Le raised a little bit of her skirt showing a bit more of her lovely legs. She couldn¡¯t see if Fade was looking at her legs because of his mask but she felt that no man could resist looking at her beautiful long legs.


    ¡°I see, but sorry I won¡¯t be joining... I¡¯ll be leaving first.¡±


    ¡°Wait! Here just in case you change your mind.¡± Le tossed a ck nk card. Fade caught the card and looked at it curiously.


    ¡°Just insert a little bit of inner energy into the card and you¡¯ll find a way to contact us. Just in case you change your mind.¡±


    Fade was rather surprised that Le was not as forceful in recruiting him as he imagined, after nodding his head Fade jumped off the building and used the wires to pull himself to the building in the neighboring street. Seeing him leave just like that Le smiled joyfully and also left the scene.

 Chapter 160 - 160 I know who you are

    160 I know who you are


    After the incident with the Gigantes was done, Loki met up with Matsuri and his siblings. Upon arriving at their meeting spot the first thing he saw was a crying Alisa and a distressed Liam. The moment the trio noticed Loki¡¯s presence they lunged toward him.


    The trio practically jumped at the same time knocking Loki down, Loki almost evaded but stopped himself and allowed the three to jump on him. Normally, this kind of thing wouldn¡¯t be able to push Loki but because of his injuries he almost coughed out blood, but he held it in.


    ¡°Big brother!!! I¡¯m so d that you¡¯re safe!¡±


    Alisa was crying so badly that a little bit of snot wasing out of her nose. If any ssmate saw Alisa¡¯s current look they would be shocked to see their perfect Goddess be a sniveling child. Even Liam who was usually hard on his big brother was red-eyed when he looked at Loki.


    ¡°Stupid! Why did you go out alone?! If you wanted to be a hero you should¡¯ve brought me! A loser like you can¡¯t do it.¡±


    Even though he was truly worried for his big brother, Liam continued to speak in a rather haughty tone while holding back his tears.


    ¡°It¡¯s alright you guys. I¡¯ve just got a few bruises here and there but overall I¡¯m alive and kicking aren¡¯t I?¡±


    When they heard what Loki said Alisa once again burst into tears even the hard-headed Liam was leaking a tear or two.


    ¡°We need to go to a hospital!¡± Matsuri grabbed Loki¡¯s hand and wanted to pull him.


    .....


    ¡°Yes, that¡¯s right! We need to get big brother into a hospital! Where are the wounds? Show me!¡± Alisa didn¡¯t even bother to hear Loki¡¯s reply and pulled up his clothes. What she saw made her feel like something was gripping her heart wanting to crush it.


    Underneath Loki¡¯s shirt was a body full of wounds, there were many bruises and open wounds of varying sizes she even noticed some stitches here and there.


    Even though Loki as Fade has a sess rate of a hundred percent, and the techniques and experiences of his former self were clear in his mind, the body he was in was not his former body. The body of Loki was stronger than most but it was nothingpared to Fade¡¯s old body, and even back then as powerful as he was Loki was still vulnerable. So every now and then during his jobs he would get hurt, but he couldn¡¯t go to a hospital so using some herbs the mana in his body, and stitching, he was able to somehow heal himself.


    Normally Loki would try his best to stop Alisa and the others from seeing what was under his shirt, but with his current state, it was almost impossible. So now his siblings and Matsuri have seen one of his secrets.


    ¡°Big Brother!!! What the h*ll are these things?! How did you get them?!¡±


    Alisa nearly fainted when she saw how many wounds her big brother had. Even Liam frowned when he saw those wounds on his big brother and then he remembered a vague memory of his big brother saving him from some thugs. Now coupled with the memories of the ident before and the way he challenged Kira, something in Liam¡¯s mind started to click together.


    ¡®Don¡¯t tell me he has been secretly protecting us from the shadows?¡¯


    As someone who likes reading some webnovels, Liam was already imagining a whole lot of weird scenarios. He was starting to think that maybe his older brother had be a martial artist long before they did and he was hiding it. Liam then remembered a rumor he heard before.


    It was about a man going around from ce to ce beating up famous delinquent groups near their area. This person has been doing this way before Fade came.


    ¡®Maybe big bro was the one...¡¯ As Liam¡¯s imagination was going wild, Loki shook his head and responded.


    ¡°There¡¯s no need to go to the hospital. Right now there are many more people in a worse situation than I, and I¡¯m sure every hospital will be filled to the brim.¡±


    When the trio heard what Loki said they knew what he said was right, so they had no choice but to rely on themselves for now. The three then helped Loki walk to somewhere they can rest.


    ...


    While Loki was being pampered, Tang Ao was frowning as looked at the message he received. The message was about a group of people suspected to be the culprits behind this Gigantes attack, there were even pictures of each individual. Yet for Tang Ao at the moment, the content of the message was not the most shocking but receiving the message itself was.


    The phone that received the message was his own private phone number which only three people in the entire world know about, and the person who sent him the message was none of those three people.


    Tang Ao was also amazed by the fact that the person who sent the message with pictures was actually able to spot the perpetrators and take pictures without being noticed.


    The level of the group of people that infiltrated the city was not low. Even with the power of the Elite Dragon Brigade, it was difficult to find these people. Before receiving the message the only thing Tang Ao knew was that the release of the Gigantes was no ident, but he had no clue who did it. At first, he thought that the Alchemist was behind the incident but quickly dismissed the idea. The Alchemist was not one to indulge himself in such open destruction.


    ...


    The cameras in the city have been disabled, and everyone was too busy running away or trying to save lives to even bother noticing this strange group of people. Now when he looked at the pictures of the people involved dTang Ao noticed two figures that seem vaguely familiar.


    The people in the picture were obviously moving in a way that avoids detection, even though they already disabled the CCTVs they looked to be actively avoiding the CCTVs. Still, the picture Tang Ao received was able to capture their faces and after thinking for a while Tang Ao came to a realization.


    ¡°I know these two!¡± Tang Ao in a panic called someone.

 Chapter 161 - 161 Things are moving

    161 Things are moving


    The day after the incident with the Gigantes the news was all about the rampage. There were many pictures and videos that the survivors posted on social media. It was then for the first time since the urban legend started a supposed real video of Fade appeared. Someone was able to record the time Fade killed a Gigantes single-handedly. It wasn¡¯t a clear picture but a man in ck had sted a Gigantes¡¯s head.


    The video was shaky and the quality was terrible, the only reason you could call the other person Fade is that he was wearing all ck.


    Due to the quality of the video being so bad, of course, many said that the person who defeated the Gigantes was a member of the Elite Dragon Brigade, and not Fade.


    The people were also moring about how the police and the military had reacted too slowly which caused a lot of destruction. The more verbose ones were, of course, the ordinary citizens who had no ability to defend themselves in the face of such disasters.


    Finally, the worse part was the news regarding the casualties of the attack. There were many injured it was reported that about two hundred thirteen people were injured, and there were hundreds more still missing. The worst was the deaths, despite doing their best many died on that day.


    It has been reported that over forty people have died, and they are still finding bodies here and there. Due to these deaths, many people began criticizing the government, but most of the criticism goes to the military, especially the Elite Dragon Brigade.


    Despite this incident being technically outside the Elite Dragon Brigade¡¯s responsibilities, they received extremely harsh criticism due to their fame. Hunting Gigantes is usually dealt with by a specialized hunting squad from the military but in emergencies, the responsibility goes to the nearest military base which in this case wasn¡¯t the Elite Dragon Brigade.


    The Elite Dragon Brigade technically only deals with martial artists but at the time the people in the nearest military base were busy due to a sudden attack and the same thing happened to the regional base of the Elite Dragon Brigade. Of course, the general poption didn¡¯t care for their reasons, all they know was that many people have died and the military had failed to protect them.


    The only one receiving the least criticism was the police force. On the one hand, it was a good thing not to be criticized, but on the other hand, that means the people don¡¯t really believe in the police force to be able to help them in times of crisis, which is why they didn¡¯t really care as they had no expectations from the police.


    .....


    In the midst of the public outrage, many hidden hands began to move. The chaos began to stir those that were hidden before. The people were unaware that the Gigantes attack was the least of their worries.


    The only thing the government could do at the moment was to apologize to the citizens and promise topensate the families who were affected by the disaster. There were also many government officials that have been fired as a show. The officials that were fired weren¡¯t too low ranked nor were they of a high rank, they were middle-level people, all of this was just to show the citizens that the government was kind of serious but not really.


    During this time many backdoor deals have been going around. Changing ranks, disappearing people, mysterious deaths, so many things happening but only a few people noticed due to everyone being stuck on the Gigantes incident.


    ...


    Five days after the Gigantes incident Captain Tang Ao and several high-ranking officers of the Elite Dragon Brigade had gathered in a secret location.


    ¡°Heh, I heard that you failed so badly Mr. Genius.¡± A man wearing the same military uniform as Tang Ao, covered by a jacket while smoking spoke with a smile on his face.


    ¡°That is correct, Captain Raymond.¡± Tang Ao answered without any fluctuation in his emotions. Seeing Tang Ao¡¯s reaction Raymond clicked his tongue annoyed.


    ¡°Tsk, how boring.¡±


    ¡°Hahaha, it¡¯s always fun to see you two together.¡± The youngest among the captains spoke with azy look on his face, this was Captain Mizuno Tatsuya.


    ¡°Tatsuya how about I show you what¡¯s really fun.¡± Raymond cracked his knuckles ring at Tatsuya.


    ¡°Oh, so scary, protect me Captain Hildr.¡± Tatsuya hid behind the only female officer around. A fierce gaze, with her zing crimson hair and golden eyes, coupled with her intense aura made her feel like a wild beast. Still, despite that her beauty was undisputed in the military, this was Captain Hildr Evensen.


    Hildr looked at Tatsuya and Raymond without saying a word, but it felt like she was going to attack. As the atmosphere was bing intense somebody suddenly pped his hands. The person who pped was an elderly man standing among the powerful captains with a straight back and a proud demeanor. This man was Colonel Edmund Morgan, the highest-ranking officer in this secret meeting.


    ¡°Unfortunately, the General will not be able toe to this meeting. So for now, I will be the Commanding Officer for this meeting. Now tell me Captain Tang Ao why did you call for this secret meeting?¡±


    ¡°I have acquired intel about the traitor.¡±


    The very moment those words came out of Tang Ao¡¯s mouth the entire room became quiet as a silent powerful killing intent surged out from the Elite Dragon Brigade¡¯s officers.


    ¡°You found the trail of that bastard.¡± Raymond grind his teeth as he spoke in a growl-like voice. Tang Ao responded by showing a picture to the group, it was the picture taken by Fade.


    ¡°Even though you can¡¯t see his face clearly, his physique as well as the tattoo on his arm alongside that ne, this can¡¯t be anyone but that former colleague of ours, Carlo Lopez. Thedy beside him is also a famous person, Yoshida Rin, a.k.a the Necromancer.¡±


    ¡°What the heck is going on in your ce? First, there¡¯s that guy Fade that just appeared out of nowhere, then there¡¯s the attack on the twin stars, the appearance of an assassin from the dark rankings, then the Alchemist shows up, and now the traitor and the Necromancer appear all in the same city. I don¡¯t know if you¡¯re lucky or unlucky that all these bastards seem to be flocking towards you, Mr. Genius.¡± Raymond shrugged his shoulders and smiled.


    ¡°It would seem that the situation isn¡¯t going well Leim City. There must be something bringing all these forces together. What did those people steal anyway?¡± Tatsuya chimed in while raising his hand.


    ¡°ording to the report given to me, the item stolen was a stone tablet from the religious age. It was something no one was able to decipher, so we know nothing of their purpose.¡±


    Listening to Tang Ao¡¯s report old Edmund felt a headache.


    ¡°Alright, since the situation in Leim City is bing more chaotic, I¡¯ll send a few more soldiers as reinforcements. Also, the thirdpany will be relocated to Leim City for the time being.¡± When Raymond heard Edmund¡¯smand he stood up straight wanting to say something, but when he looked at Edmund he could not say a word.


    ¡°Is there something you want to say to me, Captain Raymond?¡±


    ¡°... No, Sir.¡±


    ¡°Then prepare yourself since you and your unit will be needed in Leim City.¡±


    ¡°Sir, who will be the Commanding Officer in Leim City?¡±


    ¡°Hmm... Seeing as it¡¯s in Tang Ao¡¯s jurisdiction in case of emergencies he will in charge.¡± Hearing Edmund¡¯s answer, it took everything in Raymond¡¯s power not to get angry, on the other hand, it was taking everything Tang Ao¡¯s power not to snicker.

 Chapter 162 - 162 I want to be stronger

    162 I want to be stronger


    Michael was on his bed the image of the tragedy a few days ago clear in his mind. The screams of horror, the pleading looks, and the despair, it was like a scene from hell itself. Even though he had gained new abilities he could not save those that were within his reach. He had gained power and was able to protect himself, but he was not like those protagonists in novels who are able to save all they wanted to save.


    Michael could still see the face of the boy who begged him for help. Michael told him that everything would be alright, he told him that he would save him, that he would be able to go home but in the end, he watched that little boy die in front of his very eyes. That was the first time in Michael¡¯s life that he felt truly helpless.


    ¡®Damn it! Why, why did this have to happen?!¡¯


    Michael hasn¡¯t slept for the past three days, but with a body of a martial artist, it was still alright. Still, no matter how hard he tries he could not sleep, for every time he closes his eyes all he could see is the face of the dying boy. Even in the end, the little boy believed that he could live and that he could go back home to his parents. As Michael was wallowing in his despair somebody knocked on the door of his room.


    ¡°Michael, it¡¯s your dad, are you awake?¡±


    Michael did not respond as he lifted up his nket covering his face. Even though he did not respond Michael¡¯s dad entered his room. When Michael¡¯s dad saw his son pretending to sleep he sighed and sat in the nearby chair.


    ¡°Your friend Shin was here again, he gave me this and told me it will help you recover.¡± Michael¡¯s dad ced a box on the table and looked at his son with a worried expression.


    ¡°It has been three days since you came back, but it seems like my son hasn¡¯t truly returned yet. I won¡¯t say I understand what you¡¯re going through since I don¡¯t. I¡¯m not a martial artist nor was I there when you had to face that tragedy, but I am your dad and I worry for you, even your mom keeps on crying for you. I know it might not seem like much but she and I are here for you and I can listen to your worries.¡±


    Michael remained hidden under his nket not responding at all, seeing him like this Michael¡¯s dad sighed. He then stood up and was about to leave the room.


    .....


    ¡°Michael any time you feel like you want to talk, you know where to find me. Also, your school called and said sses will resume next week, but you can go whenever you¡¯re ready.¡±


    After saying he wanted to say Michael¡¯s dad once again looked at Michael and left. Once he heard the door close Michael looked at the box on the table. As he was thinking about what his dad said, a voice suddenly spoke in his mind.


    ¡®You see everyone is worried about you. Moping around here won¡¯t change anything. So how about preparing for the next time? Surely you understand if you were stronger, you would¡¯ve been able to do more.¡¯


    When Michael heard what the Spirit said he clenched his fist until it bled.


    ¡®You don¡¯t think I don¡¯t know that?! I¡¯m already doing everything I can to be stronger, yet even now I¡¯m still too weak. Is there any way for me to get stronger faster?¡¯


    ¡®You don¡¯t know that kid, you don¡¯t owe him anything, his death is not your fault and you already did your best. So why is this bothering you so much, are you trying to be some sort of hero?¡¯


    ¡®A hero?... I see... I think I might have thought of myself as something like that since I got you and was able to use mana. I thought I was some sort of chosen one. Now I know I¡¯m not a protagonist from a novel, I can¡¯t be a hero that can save everyone... But... I want to at least be someone who is strong enough to save those that are within my reach. I just want my life to continue without someone dying before me. I already failed twice within a week, I don¡¯t want to keep on failing. Please, I know that you must have a way to make me stronger.¡¯


    ¡®...¡¯


    ¡®Please...¡¯


    There was an awkward silence between the two, and after a while, the Spirit sighed in Michael¡¯s mind.


    ¡®There are a ton of ways to be stronger immediately but almost all of those ways have a high price. Usually, it would be your eternal soul, your loved ones, or basically, anything precious to you will be taken away. Sometimes those ways give you what you want but in a way that messes with you, like giving you ultimate power but you¡¯re unable to use it in battle. The only surefire way to get stronger without paying such a price is training.¡¯


    ¡®I-¡® Michael was about to say something but was interrupted by the Spirit.


    ¡®I know what you want to say. You were going to say that you would give anything just to be stronger, that you can take it no matter the price, but I assure you, you cannot handle such deals. What you want is to protect people with your power, gaining power with those kinds of shortcuts, will only lead to failure... It will not be able to fulfill your wish.¡¯


    ¡®Then how, what can I do?¡¯


    ¡®Only that guy can help you now.¡¯


    ¡®That guy?¡¯


    ¡®The irritating guy who¡¯s teaching you how to expand your mana supply.¡¯


    ¡®Sir Loki?¡¯


    ¡®Yeah him, I already told you before that guy has been hiding his power and skill. I don¡¯t know how he does it, but every time we meet him his aura keeps on changing. The pace at which he grows is different from everyone else. So surely he must know a better way to get stronger. So if you want to get stronger faster, you better find a way for that guy to train you.¡¯

 Chapter 163 - 163 Interrogation

    163 Interrogation


    Loki could not handle seeing his siblings looking so worried, and Alisa actually cried a couple of times, and even Liam looked like he was holding back his tears. Loki had no choice at the time but to sigh and go to the hospital, and now he was in a hospital bed.


    ...


    As he expected after going through a thorough inspection, the doctors found numerous scars, broken bones, and other injuries outside and inside his body. Even with the body of a martial artist, these types of injuries could be fatal if not treated properly. When his siblings heard what the doctor said, Alisa almost fainted, and Liam tightened his grip on his forearms.


    Loki wanted to tell them that with the power of mana, even though the injuries won¡¯t fully heal but they would not worsen and be fatal. Loki sighed as he knew that he could never tell anyone in this world about mana since it was a different power than the ones the people in this world use and because of that he might be a subject of experimentation. On the other hand, he also remembered that there were some people like the Alchemist that could use mana but based on what he knew of the other party, if other people don¡¯t do experiments on him he would be treated as some kind of terrorist that was in league with people like the Alchemist.


    ...


    It has been a few days since he was admitted to the hospital. Loki could not use mana to quicken the healing of his body since that would make him look suspicious, so he was limited to using inner energy. It was good that the school alerted him that the students and staff were given several days of free time because of the Gigantes incident.


    Due to the excess people flooding into the hospital, visitation was strict his siblings could only visit for a few hours. Matsuri also came but only once since the police were extremely busy during this time, still, among the visitors that came the one standing before Loki was shocking.


    ¡°What are you doing here Kira?¡±


    ¡°My Favorite librarian gets admitted into a hospital of course I¡¯ll worry. Not to mention you could be my future brother-inw.¡± Kira spoke with a smile on his face.


    .....


    ¡°Brother-inw? Let me tell you Kira I might not know who was truly behind my supposed ident, but I know you know something about it.¡±


    ¡°Oh, it breaks my heart that you think that way. There is no proof of my involvement in that incident, and if I were truly somehow part of that ident then you wouldn¡¯t be here talking to me right now.¡±


    The tension in the room was rising and the two looked at each other without blinking. After that very intense stare-off, the first to break the silence was Loki.


    ¡°Well, I¡¯ll believe you for now.¡±


    ¡°You really are speaking differently now aren¡¯t you Mr. Librarian... How interesting, did your personality change because you became a martial artist and gained power, or was your personality always like this, and that foolish passive attitude before was just a mask you wear?¡±


    ¡°Everyone wears a mask, butpared to others I see that you have more masks than most people.¡±


    ¡°Is that so?... But I believe that I have always been showing my true face in front of you.¡±


    ¡°... Enough, just tell me why are you here?¡±


    ¡°Didn¡¯t I already answer that question? I already said I came to see how you¡¯re doing.¡±


    ¡°Alright then, you¡¯ve seen me can you go now?¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s the rush, I¡¯ve heard that you sustained a lot of injuries so I brought you some food that could help you recover faster. Hmm, now that I think about it I was wondering how can a librarian such as yourself who only became a martial artist a few months ago suddenly has so many injuries. Some of those injuries are fatal for even higher-ranked martial artists.¡±


    ¡°I got them while I was helping in the Gigantes incident.¡±


    ¡°Oh, is that so?¡±


    ¡°What, do you think I¡¯m lying?¡±


    ¡°Actually yes, either you¡¯ve always been a really good liar, or that¡¯s just how you are. You really are getting more and more interesting. Anyway, I know for a fact that you¡¯re lying. I¡¯m not sure if all of this is just an act of yours or if you really think my abilities are so lowly.¡± Kira tossed a medical report at Loki who caught it.


    ¡°That¡¯s your medical records, it was easy for me to get. It says there that most of your wounds were things you got weeks ago, some were injuries you got a few months ago. It means that most of the wounds you got happened way before the Gigantes incident.¡±


    ¡°...¡±


    ¡°I wonder how does a librarian like you could get such injuries?¡±


    ¡°... Just ask what you want to ask Kira.¡± Loki knew that Kira already had some suspicions about how strong he was, but as long as he didn¡¯t know he was Fade then it was alright.


    When Kira felt the change in Loki¡¯s aura he was surprised, even though he already had some suspicions seeing it for himself was still quite a shock. Kira continued to smile confidently as he asked his next question.


    ¡°Tell me what do you know of the kamizaki n?¡±


    ¡°Kamizaki? You mean my mother¡¯s family, why are you asking such a question?¡±


    Seeing Loki¡¯s reaction Kira wasn¡¯t sure if Loki was trying to trick him or if he was genuinely confused by the question. In Kira¡¯s mind, Loki was a great actor, so it was getting harder to read him, but based on all the subtle movements Loki was making it seems like he really didn¡¯t know anything.


    ¡°Do you know nothing about your mother¡¯s n, Mr. Libririan?¡±


    ¡°... If I said that I know absolutely nothing about either my father or my mother¡¯s family would you believe me?¡±


    Kira stared at Loki watching the changes in his expression.


    ¡°Hmm, is that so... Well, then that¡¯s all I need to know. I hope you get well Mr. Librarian.¡± Kira turned around waved his hand and left. Seeing Kira suddenly leave, Loki had a weird expression on his face.


    ¡°What was that all about?¡±

 Chapter 164 - 164 Please teach me

    164 Please teach me


    After Kira left Loki who was acting all confused suddenly turned serious as he started to analyze the entire conversation between him and Kira.


    ¡®That Kira trying to fish for information but gave me more instead. Was he really trying to probe me or was he giving the information for free?...¡¯ Loki shook his head as he ced his suspicions of Kira at the back of his mind.


    ¡®That guy has obviously been monitoring my movements in secret, those guys are pretty good to be able to get past my detection.¡¯ Thinking about it again Loki shrugged his shoulders. ¡®Well, it¡¯s not like I¡¯m actively trying to spot people when I¡¯m still Loki... Still, I guess I¡¯ll increase my vignce a bit, or if I did that they might notice something... Hmm, well I guess just a little increase in vignce and if I spot one of those monitoring me I¡¯ll just ignore it. Now it¡¯s also most likely that he¡¯s monitoring Alisa and Liam.¡¯


    When Loki thought of people monitoring his siblings he quickly changed his mind.


    ¡®I better find a way to stop that pervert with the monitoring, it really doesn¡¯t matter if he monitors Liam and me, but no matter what he should never monitor Alisa, that f*cking pervert.¡¯


    Loki gritted his teeth in irritation, but immediately calm down. As an assassin Loki¡¯s control of his emotions was abnormal. The only times it was rtively hard for him to control his emotions is when it was matters rted to his siblings.


    ¡®That guy came here with a clear goal he wants to know my current rtionship with the Kamizaki n. Even with many memories of the former Loki having returned, there is no information about father and mother¡¯s families. I always wondered why I have never seen other rtives before, there is none either from my father¡¯s or mother¡¯s sides.¡¯


    Loki once again scanned the memories he recovered of the former Loki to see if there was any information regarding other rtives. After a brief pause, Loki frowned, no matter how hard tried there was no memory of any other rtive. Even during his parents¡¯ funeral, there was no one only friends of his parents came to the funeral not a single rtive arrived.


    ¡®If I recall correctly dad never really had any living rtives as he was an orphan, as for mom she never talked about it. Obviously based on what Kira said and his reactions the Kamizaki n is a powerful n more powerful than Kira¡¯s Watanabe n. Unlike the opponents before who are simply within the city, based on my intuition the Kamizaki n should be a powerful n that¡¯s like one of those hidden forces back in the old world.¡¯


    .....


    When Loki¡¯s thoughts got to that point he started to worry. Aftering to this world to gather information Loki has read and watched a lot of things, that includes reading light novels, in those stories, this kind of plot was a normal thing.


    Now in Loki¡¯s mind, he had a few theories as to what happened to his mother and the Kamizaki n. Seeing as his father was an orphan with no backing and ability, while his mother was from the Kamizaki n, most likely his father eloped with his mother. it was possible after that incident, Loki¡¯s mother was disowned or his mother directly cut off all her family ties with the Kamizaki n.


    ¡®Still, even if that is the case, why didn¡¯t the Kamizaki n do anything?¡¯


    It was weird with the suspected power of the Kamizaki n, how was it possible for Loki¡¯s father to elope with his mother without the former being killed by thetter¡¯s family?


    ¡®Did they make some kind of deal?¡¯


    It was entirely possible that the elopement was a lie that his parents told other people. There must be something deeper hidden within the rtionship between the two parties.


    ¡®If that¡¯s true then howe no one appeared when both of them died?...¡¯


    Once again Loki felt that he knew too little of the world he was in, despite alreadybing through all of the books and looking through the inte, the real truth of the world remained unclear to him.


    ¡®Should I ask Harold to help me gather information?... Still, this one feels more dangerous than the other times maybe I shouldn¡¯t ask him, despite his skills he... Damn, why am I hesitating now? Is it because I got close to him?...¡¯


    Loki sighed as he noticed that his outlook was changing due to his siblings being alive in this world. He was once again grateful for waking up in such a world.


    ¡®I guess it¡¯s time for me to see the Eye of Truth and buy information. I am also curious about this group, I wonder if they¡¯re really good as advertised. If I remember right, Harold avoided their detection multiple times...¡¯


    Loki started debating with himself whether to continue involving Harold in his assassinations. The kid was indeed a great help but things were getting more dangerous. As he was thinking about various things another person came to visit him.


    ¡°Sir Loki, I hope you¡¯re feeling better now.¡± Michael entered the room with a bunch of drinks. ¡°I don¡¯t know what Sir Loki liked so I just bought a bunch of them.¡± Michael ced the drinks on a nearby table.


    ¡°Thanks, Michael.¡±


    ¡°So, how are you?¡±


    ¡°Well, as you can see I¡¯m just here sitting around watching TV can¡¯t reallyin,¡± Loki answered with a cheerful smile on his face.


    ¡°That¡¯s good to hear. Oh right, school¡¯s starting again next week.¡±


    ¡°Is that so? I guess I¡¯ll be out by then.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s good to hear.¡±


    The conversation suddenly stopped and there was then an awkward silence between the two. It was quiet on the outside but in Michael¡¯s mind, it was quite chaotic.


    ¡®What the hell are you doing?! We didn¡¯te all the way here to have such an awkward conversation with this b*stard, so go and ask him to train you already!¡¯ The Spirit shouted within Michael¡¯s mind. Even with all that yelling in his mind Michael was still struggling to ask when Loki suddenly spoke.


    ¡°I can see it in your face Michael, I know you didn¡¯te here just to talk about such minor things. So what is it that you want to truly say?¡±


    ¡®Nows your chance!¡¯ The Spirit became excited as he shouted even louder in Michael¡¯s mind. Michael stood up from his chair and bowed deeply as he shouted.


    ¡°PLEASE TEACH ME!¡±


    ¡°Huh?¡± Loki looked at Michael dumbfounded.

 Chapter 165 - 165 Their own stories (Alisa)

    165 Their own stories (Alisa)


    After the Gigantes incident, Alisa and Liam became extremely aware of how truly powerless they were. Every time they visited their big brother in the hospital when they remembered how many injuries he has it was hard for them to smile in front of him. It took everything in Alisa¡¯s power not to cry on the spot.


    Alisa and Liam wanted to desperately be stronger, but they did not know how. They might have the talent but without anyone guiding it was difficult for their talent to bloom.


    While the school was closed, Alisa tried asking some martial artists to teach her a few moves, but even after learning some basic moves the increase in her strength was very little, far from the strength she wanted. She knew that if she continued to work hard using normal training she would eventually be strong, but that would take too long. Alisa wanted to gain power faster, and the only way she knew how to do that was to ask one of the strong martial artist ns.


    Unfortunately, the only people she knew who were part of such powerful ns were Watanabe Kira and Mugami Shin. Alisa already tried asking Shun the other day if he could teach her, but he told her that he could not teach outsiders, at most he could teach the basics which were practically the same as what you can learn in the Martial Arts Department building.


    Then there was Kira, Alisa wanted to say that she would never ever ask for his help, but with what was happening around her she was actually hesitating now.


    ¡®Big brother did say that Kira couldn¡¯t possibly be behind his supposed ident... Maybe... No even with that I-¡®


    Alisa continued to hesitate when someone suddenly tapped on her shoulder, Alisa quickly got into a defensive stance. Upon turning around she saw an old man his hand extended forward with her wallet in his hand. It took a few seconds before Alisa realized what was happening. She was about to apologize when the old man suddenly disappeared before her very eyes.


    ¡°Hmm, mediocre stance but there is potential.¡± Alisa heard the old man speaking beside her, she then felt someone touch her arm. ¡°The muscles are satisfactory.¡± Alisa was surprised that the old man had appeared beside her touching and squeezing her arm. Alisa who was startled unconsciously attacked with a backhand strike, but the old man used one finger to block the strike as he continued to observe Alisa¡¯s body.


    ¡°It would¡¯ve been better if it was man, but I guess she would do.¡± After mumbling those words to himself the old man reappeared right in front of Alisa as he tossed her wallet back to her.


    .....


    ¡°Littledy I understand that you¡¯re looking to strengthen yourself faster.¡±


    Hearing what the old man said Alisa was once again surprised as she had her mouth open a tiny bit. The first thought that came to her mind in this situation was, maybe this old man was one of those hidden legendary masters like in those novels his two brothers like to read.


    ¡°How do you know that, can you read my mind?¡±


    ¡°No, I can¡¯t read minds.¡±


    ¡°Then how were able to tell what I wanted?¡±


    ¡°Your muscles told me everything. It told me that in a short period of time, you have gone through excessive amounts of training. There¡¯s also your stance, it has a mix of different styles it¡¯s not bad but the purity is gone, this tells me you have been learning all the different styles you can learn in the Martial Arts Department and cramming them into your current stance. Only one desperate for strength would stupidly push their bodies like this without even knowing that they¡¯re already breaking.¡±


    ¡°...¡± Everything the old man said was right, and Alisa could not say anything at the moment.


    ¡°It would¡¯ve really been better if you were a man.¡± When Alisa heard what the old man said she got a little angry.


    ¡°What do you mean, can¡¯t a woman be strong?!¡± A little bit of killing intent leaked out of Alisa due to her anger. The old man shook his head a bit before responding.


    ¡°That¡¯s not what I mean, it¡¯s just that my techniques work better for males. It has been a very long time since I saw a good seedling so I felt some regret. My disciples have either died or have betrayed me. I wanted to at least pass on my secret technique before I head onto my next journey.¡± The old man sighed with regret.


    ¡°Can¡¯t you teach women your martial art?¡±


    Alisa couldn¡¯t help but feel excited when she heard what the old man said. Based on what he said the old man was a hidden dragon, and he actually wanted to pass on his martial arts to her. If she didn¡¯t hold on to this chance she might not have another one.


    ¡°It¡¯s not like my martial art can¡¯t be learned by women, but since I created this martial art for myself it has some things better suited for men.¡±


    Alisa felt like she was losing the old man so she quickly got on the ground and did a dogeza.


    ¡°Can you please help me be stronger?!¡±


    ¡°There really is no need for this, I was going to ask you if you wanted to be my disciple.¡±


    Alisa lifted her head, looked at the old man, and was momentarily speechless. It took her a few seconds before she understood what just happened.


    ¡°Thank you, Master!¡±


    ...


    After thanking the old man a few more times, the old man introduced himself as Lyner, he did not say hisst name but he ims to be a descendant of an Ancient n that died out decades ago. Right now he and Alisa were walking at the base of a mountain, and finally, when they reached their destination the first thing Alisa saw was a broken-down dojo that looks like it would be blown away by a slight breeze.


    ¡°This is where I will teach you the secrets of my martial arts.¡±

 Chapter 166 - 166 Their own stories (Liam)

    166 Their own stories (Liam)


    Liam was in the backyard of his house practicing a few basic stances, usually, he would be able to continue practicing for a few hours but today he couldn¡¯t concentrate. Liam¡¯s thoughts were all over the ce as he remembered his brother in the hospital, the more he thought about it the more irritated he got. Liam then gritted his teeth and punched the ground.


    ¡°Damn it! Why the f*ck am I so weak?! Even if do this a thousand times I won¡¯t get stronger.¡±


    Seeing what happened to Loki, Liam felt more and more distressed. He was irritated by his own weakness. Liam tried to calm himself down, but it was to no avail.


    ¡®How the f*ck am I supposed to get stronger?¡¯


    Liam had no idea what to do, even if he continued to diligently practice these stances and moves he wasn¡¯t sure if he was getting stronger.


    ¡®Maybe I can go out and have a sparring match against other martial artists. Fighting opponents should make me learn faster than just repeatedly doing the same moves over and over again... I heard there is a sparring ring in the Martial Arts Department Building, should I try going there?¡¯


    Liam was quick to take action, the moment he had the thought he went out and headed to the Martial Arts Department Building. Now Liam has been going around challenging a few rank two martial artists to gain some practical experience. He had at least three matches per day.


    After a couple of bouts, Liam came to the conclusion that his talent in close-quartersbat was mediocre, meaning no matter how hard he tried he knew that he wouldn¡¯t be as strong as he wanted to be. Liam saw that his strength, endurance, and durability,pared to those of the same rank were below average, but his agility and dexterity were above average.


    Liam understood that his fist won¡¯t be enough for him to get stronger, so he went back to the Martial Arts Department Building to try using the weapons they can provide. The weapons there were cold weapons, swords, spears, and the like. Liam tried each one, but most of them didn¡¯t feel right. No matter what close-range weapon he chose his strength and endurance were a major problem. Liam then used a bow and found out that he was extremely good at using it.


    .....


    Liam noticed that his eyesight was excellent, it was better than most even among martial artists. Even though he was good with the bow, the weapon itself wasn¡¯t what he desired. The bow was used by a few martial artists because the only advantage it had was its silent long-range attack, it was alright to use for surprise attacks, but in a normal battle between martial artists, the bow was hard to use.


    If the martial artist was able to close the distance quickly the advantages of the bow will disappear. What Liam wanted was a weapon that could cover his disadvantages and increase his advantages. The only weapon he could think of that matched what he wanted was the weapon that most martial artists abhor to use, the modern-day weapon a gun.


    Martial Artists don¡¯t like using guns as they were one of the weapons non martial artists created to defeat them. Another reason martial artists don¡¯t use guns or most hot weapons is that they cannot imbue such weapons with their inner energy, on the other hand, cold weapons like swords, spears, and whatnot were things that they could enhance with inner energy. There were other reasons for martial artists not wanting to use guns but those two are the most popr ones.


    Still, Liam did not really care about such things as he simply wanted to get stronger so he asked the only person he knew that could help him in regard to guns, Detective Matsuri.


    ...


    Matsuri who listened to Liam¡¯s request agreed to teach him how to use a gun. She knew how much the Gigantes attack had affected him and Alisa, she also understood how irritating it was being weak and unable to do anything. So she had no reason to refuse his request.


    The two of them headed to Matsuri¡¯s favorite shooting range, where she taught him the basics. It was quite easy teaching Liam how to use a gun not only was he a martial artist but he was really good with his hands. At first, Liam was unable to hit the target due to having first experience the recoil of a gun, even though it wasn¡¯t much, especially for a martial artist but it still made Liam¡¯s hands move a little causing a change to the trajectory of the bullet.


    After a few more shots, Liam started to get a hang of things, and unlike his uracy with a bow and arrow which were like his limbs his uracy with a gun was a little worse. Still, the speed at which he fires each shot is iparable to when he was using a bow and arrow. This was the direction he was looking for.


    ¡°This is the first time I¡¯ve seen a martial artist use a gun, but it¡¯s as I expected. You really are good at this.¡±


    ¡°Thanks, I hope to get a bit better before implementing the next step.¡±


    ¡°The next step?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I want to create a brand new martial art with guns as the main weapon.¡±


    ¡°Oh, that sounds interesting. If you need my help in creating this martial art I¡¯m all for it.¡±


    ¡°Thank you Matsuri-san, I really do need someone to help me with this. I n to create a gun-based martial art so that I can use a gun not only in long-rangebat but in close range as well.¡±


    ¡°I wonder what that would look like?¡± Matsuri tried to imagine close-quarters gunbat but all she got was just somebody smashing the butt of the gun on someone¡¯s head.


    ¡°I already have an idea about a few moves, I hope that when I try to create them you¡¯ll be able to help me, Matsuri-san.¡±


    ¡°Of course, so what are you going to call this new martial art of yours?¡±


    ¡°I have no name yet, that¡¯s forter, for now, I just hope to create it first before thinking of a name.¡±


    Liam didn¡¯t know it yet but this was going to be the birth of a brand new martial art branch that wouldter shock the world.

 Chapter 167 - 167 Assessment

    167 Assessment


    Loki and Michael were at a deserted shrine just outside the city. This was one of the many forgotten shrines in the world. Loki had been using this ce to practice some of his bigger moves, unfortunately even now when he has been in this world for quite some time he still had insufficient mana. On the bright side, because of the lesser mana, Loki learned to control the output of his spells better than before and even created new spells and techniques. Today he invited Michael here to train the other party.


    Loki couldn¡¯t help but sigh as he remembered the talk he had a few days ago. At first, he didn¡¯t want to teach Michael any fighting techniques, as most of his skills were designed to kill a person as efficiently as possible. Still, in the end, because of Michael and the Spirit¡¯s annoying persistence, Loki agreed to teach Michael a nonlethal form of his techniques.


    It took Loki a few days for him to make a few adjustments to his way of figthing. The school had already reopened, and Michael kept oning to the library to ask when he would teach him. Loki knew that Michael wasn¡¯t so straightforward, and was most likely the Spirit that kept on pushing Michael to bother him. There was also the fact, that Loki saw the expression on Michael¡¯s face the first time he asked Loki to teach him. Seeing that expression on his face, Loki had unconsciously decided to teach him at that point.


    ...


    ¡°So how are we going to start?¡± Michael spoke eagerly wanting to learn.


    ¡°First I need to assess your current abilities. The fastest way to do that is throughbat. Use any means necessary to try and hit me, you can use spells if you wish. Soe and show me what you¡¯ve got.¡±


    ¡°Huh?¡± Michael did not move as he was in a state of confusion. ¡®DODGE YOU FOOL!¡¯ The spirit suddenly shouted in his mind, Michael was surprised that Loki who was a few meters away from him suddenly appeared before him. Michael saw Loki¡¯s fist wasing at him so he instinctively blocked it.


    Loki¡¯s punch was rather heavy pushing Michael back. Loki did not do a follow-up attack and looked at Michael waiting for him to make a move.


    ¡®This b*stard is underestimating you so much, telegraphing his attack like that!¡¯


    .....


    ¡®Huh, telegraphing his attack?¡¯ Michael who was still a little startled by the sudden attack was confused as to what the Spirit meant.


    ¡®I have no time to exin things to you, just focus on the fight and attack already!¡¯ Hearing what the Spirit said, Michael, put all the questions he had at the back of his mind and finally focused on the battle at hand. Michael got into his mostfortable stance and made a fist.


    Seeing the sudden change in Michael¡¯s demeanor Loki nodded his head in approval as he made a hand gesture telling Michael toe at him. This time Michael was fully awake and was concentrating as hard as he could.


    After bing the host of the Spirit of the Akashic Records Michael has gained a ton of experience, especially in regard to battle. When he was looking for the missing parts of the Akashic Records he had to battle other people who had gained knowledge beyond their understanding.


    ...


    Even someone like Michael knew that the gap between him and Loki was like heaven and earth, but since this was just a test he just needed to focus on dealing damage to Loki.


    ¡°Fireball!¡±


    Michael used a basic spell and a burst of fire came out of his palms heading toward Loki. Seeing the iing spell Loki simply swiped his arm with abination of his enhancement spell and his own control of mana, it was easy to negate such a weak spell. After Loki negated the spell, Michael had already gotten so close to him that he could strike him.


    Michael did a simple forward punch, Loki redirected the strike by pushing Michael¡¯s forearm making him lose his bnce a bit, but that didn¡¯t stop Michael as he used his falling stance and did a backward kick which Loki easily evaded. Michael fell down and used that momentum to do a forward flip creating some space between him and Loki.


    ¡°Quicksand!¡±


    Michael who had limited mana used another low-level spell, but now he only had enough mana to use one more spell before being depleted of mana, Loki was also able to perceive this.


    Loki did not evade the spell and was slowly sinking into the quicksand but due to Michael¡¯s weak mana supply, the quicksand was not able to sink Loki too deep, so before Loki can escape the quicksand Michael quickly used another spell.


    ¡°Freeze touch!¡±


    Michael reacted fast and quickly dashed toward Loki and slid on the ground tapping the area of Loki¡¯s feet which froze them, Michael then initiated his next move and did a roundhouse kick, Loki blocked the strike and caught Michael¡¯s leg but then to Loki¡¯s surprise Michael¡¯s strength was better than he expected and his arm that was under the enhancement spell was pushed a little.


    Michael who had his right leg held by Loki used that to make another move by swinging his entire body to kick with his left leg. Loki released Michael¡¯s leg and swayed his upper body backward easily evading the attack.


    Michael who was on the ground was already panting a bit as he had used almost all of his mana and his inner energy which was not thatrge was difficult to use. He knew that he wouldn¡¯t win against Loki so he went ahead and used his strongestbination, but it failed to hit Loki. As Michael was thinking about what to do next, he heard Loki¡¯s voice.


    ¡°That¡¯s enough, I already have an understanding of your current level. So the first thing we need to do is-¡±


    Michael who was looking at Loki¡¯s serious face gulped, he felt a little overwhelmed by the pressure Loki was emitting, but, at the same time, he also felt excited.


    ¡®Alright, no matter what kind of hellish training wille I¡¯ll do my best to ovee it.¡¯


    ¡°Run.¡±


    ¡°Huh?¡±


    ¡°What you need to do now is run.¡±

 Chapter 168 - 168 Training

    168 Training


    Michael was running up and down the shrine¡¯s stairs with some difficulty as he wasn¡¯t allowed to use inner energy or mana, Loki used a technique to block the flow of spiritual energy so that Michael can truly practice without them.


    ¡°Before I can teach you any techniques we need to improve your basic physical abilities. As you are now, your reliance on mana and inner energy limits you. I need to train you from the ground up.¡±


    Even though Michael has trained his body every day with a normal exercise routine he hasn¡¯t done so without unconsciously using his inner energy. Now that his spiritual energy was blocked running up and down the shrine stairs was harder than he expected. After running up and down a few more times his legs felt like they were metal weights that were dragging him down. Still, Michael needed to continue since Loki told him that the only time he can stop running was when he was told to stop.


    Loki was even running up and down with him, but his pace was greater in addition he was wearing weights. Seeing Loki doing the same thing as him but with even harder restrictions, not only was Loki training him Loki was training alongside him, knowing this Michael felt his blood pumping. The two kept running for three hours straight, and Loki¡¯s pace did not change nor did he sweat as much. On the other hand, Michael¡¯s pace at the end was him barely walking, after he was done he panted heavily on the grounds of the shrine. Loki tossed a towel at Michael who could not move.


    ¡°That was a good warm-up, after a ten-minute break will do striking training.¡±


    Michael who was panting heavily on the ground had his eyebrows scrunched up, but after a while, a firm gaze reappeared on his face.


    ...


    After the ten-minute break was up Loki brought Michael to the back of the shrine were a massive tree stood tall. It was a majestic sight to behold as the sun shone brilliantly on the area while the leaves of the tree fell dancing with the wind, the same wind that gently brushes Michael¡¯s face as he looked at the massive tree with awe in his eyes.


    ¡°Alright now I want you to copy my movements and strike the tree.¡±


    .....


    Loki got into a basic fighting stance, his left leg slightly bent forward his right leg as support was at the back, his right hand in a fist at his waist, and his left hand open palmed was stretched forward. Loki then twisted his waist and with that momentum, his right hand with a twist of the wrist and forearm punched forward. The open-palmed left hand was then ced by the waist and was also punched forward with a simr motion.


    ¡°I want you to strike the tree with the same striking motion repeatedly. Did you get that or do you want me to repeat it?¡±


    ¡°No need, I understood how to do it.¡± Michael got into a simr stance and started punching the tree.


    ¡°I want you to focus on your form every time you punch, no need to hurry, no need for excessive power or speed, just focus on your form as you strike.¡±


    ¡°Okay.¡±


    While Michael was punching the tree Loki started doing handstand push-ups to strengthen his shoulders,ts, traps, pecs, and triceps. Loki who was doing this had no top on showing off his well-trained body. Loki¡¯s current body could no longer bepared to the time when he first arrived and upied former Loki¡¯s body.


    The current Loki had a body that look to be molded from iron, it was a lean well trained body that wasn¡¯t bulky like bodybuilders, but the amount of muscle mass was simr. Loki had trained his original weak body into something that was able to handle the vicious battles he expects to face.


    Since Loki didn¡¯t know how strong the ceiling of power in this new world was, he continued to train with the expectation that the top of this world was as powerful or even more so than those in his old world.


    ...


    Michael who was concentrating on his form as he punched the giant tree was in a state of deep immersion and didn¡¯t even notice that his knuckles were already bleeding. Michael who was so focused on punching the tree hasn¡¯t noticed that each strike he made was bing stronger and sharper, he simply continued punching. Michael who was so engrossed in what he was doing woke up because of Loki who suddenly stopped him from punching.


    ¡°Didn¡¯t you hear me? I said stop already.¡±


    Michael who was forcefully stopped by Loki looked around in a daze it was then he noticed that his fist was bleeding.


    ¡°Huh, what happened?¡±


    ¡°You were so engrossed in your task that you didn¡¯t even notice the damage you were umting. Well, I guess training in such a way can be a good thing, but if I wasn¡¯t here you might have continued until you could no longer feel your hands.¡±


    Loki cleaned the blood off Michael¡¯s hands then he got a bottle of water from his bag and poured it on Michael¡¯s hands.


    ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll give you time to rest afterward I will teach you how to improve your mana cirction.¡±


    ...


    It was already evening when Loki and Michael finished training. The two trained side by side and Loki whose training was even harsher than Michael looked rxed, on the other hand, it was Michael who was sweating profusely as well as having a lot of bruises even his hands tightly wrapped with some bandages.


    ¡°Your determination to be stronger ismendable. I hope you continue your training like this, when I think you are ready for the next phase of the training I will tell you.¡±


    ¡°Wait, aren¡¯t you going to continue to supervise me?¡±


    ¡°Michael, I can¡¯t possibly supervise you every day I do have a job and also I have other things I need to do.¡±


    When Michael heard what Loki said he became silent and was deep in thought. Seeing him like this Loki sighed as he was about to say something Michael interrupted him and spoke first.


    ¡°Sir Loki, I decided I want to create a club. So can you please be its advisor?¡±


    ¡°Huh?¡±

 Chapter 169 - 169 The growing urban legend

    169 The growing urban legend


    Michael¡¯s words once again dumbfounded Loki, but after calming down he sighed as he looked at the serious expression on Michael¡¯s face.


    ¡°I can already guess what you have nned. An after-school club is just a facade for your true goal which is to make me teach you after school. It¡¯s quite a n you¡¯ve thought up on the spot, but it¡¯s obviously full of ws, which is expected of something you haven¡¯t thought about deeply enough, there are too many things that could go wrong... Well, if you really are able to start such a club somehow, then I might consider being its adviser. So what kind of club will it be?¡±


    ¡°Huh, umm... How about we make an ult club?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s pretty good actually, so if we use mana and practice some spells we can make an excuse of it being part of club activities. Still, you do know that to create a club you need at least five members, and the approval of the student council president, meaning the first hurdle is you need four more people to join... Even if you do find some people to join, and miraculously convince the student council president, how are we going to practice spells, are you going to tell the other members of the club about the existence of mana?¡±


    ¡°...¡±


    .....


    Michael did not know how to respond to Loki¡¯s questions and became silent as he realized that making such a club would be harder than he initially thought. On the other hand, seeing Michael¡¯s reaction Loki couldn¡¯t help but smile.


    ¡°I¡¯m heading back first.¡± Michael broke free from his thoughts when he heard Loki¡¯s voice. Michael stood in front of Loki and bowed his head.


    ¡°Thank you for the training. I¡¯ll do my best not only in continuing my training but in creating the club as well.¡±


    ¡°Do your best.¡± Loki waved his hand as he headed down.


    ...


    After leaving the shrine Loki went home, but when he arrived neither one of his siblings was there. As a very concerned big brother, Loki already knew that they were also out there training hard.


    Liam was creating a new style of martial art using guns and Matsuri was helping him, on the other hand, Alisa found a real expert to teach her a supposed ancient martial art.


    When Loki was investigating the old man called Lyner he couldn¡¯t even get close to the other person without being detected. With one encounter Loki knew that the old man was the real thing, he could also sense that the other party wasn¡¯t just using inner energy but he also had a technique to ess mana, but unlike Loki, the old man could only ess the mana of the world for a few minutes.


    Loki had asked Harold to check if he could find anything about the old man Lyner, but even with Harold¡¯s skills he could not find much, all he could dig up was what Loki already knew.


    At this time Loki decided that since this was his little sister¡¯s choice he would not prevent her from learning the old man¡¯s martial art, but if the old man does anything out of line he would destroy the other party.


    ...


    ¡®Hmm, I wonder what I should do now? The underworld groups have been slowly moving out of the city ever since I killed Catherine Walker. Right now there are only a few of those underworld bosses left in the city. Even that assassin the Elegant Scorpion hasn¡¯t shown himself after I defeated him. I wonder should I go out and patrol the streets like some of those heroes in the shows Liam likes?...¡¯


    Loki mused to himself as his lips arced upward and shook his head. No matter what he does it¡¯s impossible for someone like him to be something like a hero.


    ¡®Still, I guess I can do some minor jobs just to make some of those low-level hoodlums know that I don¡¯t just target the big guys.¡¯


    ...


    In a dark alley, two guys were smoking at the side of the wall, one of them was admiring the night sky and puffed out some smoke, while the other was shaking a bit.


    ¡°Hey, are you nervous?¡±


    ¡°I think we should stop.¡± The other guy who was shaking quickly responded.


    ¡°What, we haven¡¯t even done anything yet. Why are you so nervous?¡±


    ¡°Haven¡¯t you heard of that assassin that kills guys like us? I heard that even people like Catherine Walker couldn¡¯t do anything to him.¡±


    ¡°Oh that guy, you mean the urban legend Fade?¡±


    ¡°Yeah... I heard that his not just an assassin but a monster that hides in the shadows.¡± Seeing hispanion nervously exining the other guy couldn¡¯t help but chuckle.


    ¡°What the f*ck are you saying? You¡¯re making him out to be some kind of boogeyman.¡±


    ¡°Isn¡¯t he?... Aren¡¯t you afraid?¡±


    ¡°Why should I be afraid? We don¡¯t even know if Fade is real or not. The only time we ever saw him was through a video and a blurry one at that. There only rumors of rumors about him.¡±


    ¡°Then who was it that killed Catherine Walker, and the other gang bosses?¡±


    ¡°Anyone could¡¯ve killed those guys, Catherine Walker was indeed a big shot that people in the city feared, but she had a lot of enemies, the same as those other underworld bosses. Many people had the motive to kill those guys, and there were a few that had the ability to do so. There¡¯s also the fact that no one has actually seen Fade, and most of those so-called sightings came from rumors, we¡¯re not even sure if Catherine Walker is truly dead, for all we know she could¡¯ve just left the city because of all the sh*t that¡¯s been happening.¡±


    ¡°... Yeah, you do make some sense.¡±


    ¡°Of course, I do make sense. Not to mention even if Fade is real he doesn¡¯t really target petty thieves like us. Also, we¡¯ve been stealing from this area for a few days now, and no shadowy assassin came to attack us, so chill alright? Stop thinking about stupid things like a fictional boogeymaning out to attack us.¡±


    When the cowardly robber heard his partner¡¯s exnation the shivering guy nodded his head as he was finally calming down.


    ¡°Alright, now let¡¯s, oh wait somebody¡¯sing are you ready?¡±


    The cowardly robber nodded his head as he took out a knife while the other guy took out a loaded gun. The alley was rather dark and the two could barely make out who the person walking towards them was, but it didn¡¯t really matter to them as they just wanted to rob the other person.


    ¡°Hey friend, how about you hand over your wallet and nobody gets hurt.¡±


    The person with the gun pointed it at the neer, it was at this moment the two robbers felt like something was wrong. Usually, the moment they take out a gun, the victim would either scream in fear or threaten them, some even beg and cry, but the other party did none of those.


    ¡°Hey buddy, just hand over your wallet and we can all leave.¡± The shadowy figure in front of him didn¡¯tply and instead started walking forward.


    ¡°Wait, who told you to move? Stop right there, I said stop!¡±


    The armed robber started to panic as he shot a bullet in the air, yet the shadowy figure did not stop and continued to move forward. The robber got angry and this time he was about to shoot closer to the shadowy figure but then the gun in his hand flew out, it was also at this moment the two robbers saw who the shadowy figure was.


    .....


    A man in a ck trench coat, a white mask, wearing ckbat boots. This person was the very man they were talking about, Fade. Seeing the urban legend was true, the man with the knife quickly started running away leaving hispanion behind, but before he could get far something wrapped around his leg which made him trip.


    The confident robber who said Fade was just the boogeyman a fictional character, was now trembling in fear as he fell to the ground looking at Fade. The robber felt his very soul trembling as Fade approached him. The robber saw the man with the white mask looked down at him and spoke.


    ¡°For as long as the reason is just and the price is right, I shall bring death to any and all evil. Hmph, how fortunate for you two that you aren¡¯t unredeemable just yet.¡±


    The robber was going to ask what Fade meant when he suddenly felt something hit the back of his neck, it was then his consciousness started to fade. Thest thing the robber saw before fainting was Fade¡¯s white mask inches away from his face.


    ...


    A few minutes after that encounter, when the police arrived all that was left at the scene were the two unconscious robbers.


    It wasn¡¯t just those two robbers, dozen of would-be criminals, or low-leveled thugs that lost their masters have been beaten unconscious and tied up. Many of those who woke upter imed that they have met the legendary Fade.


    The news of those criminals being caught by the police got a lot of attention the following days, as many specte that it was a Fade wannabe that beat them up as the Modus Operandi was different from the original Fade¡¯s MO. For one thing, this time the criminals were alive, whereas most of the rumors before imed that Fade took the lives of all his targets.


    Still, no matter what the truth was, Leim City was slowly bing a ce where the people fear of even thinking about doing a crime.

 Chapter 170 - 170 Recruiting

    170 Recruiting


    Michael was in the library unable to concentrate on the book he was reading as his thoughts were still on how to create a club. Michael was sure that his friend Shin would join him in creating the ult club, but the guy had not been to school for a few days now, Michael tried calling him but all the other party had to say was he had some family business that he needed to handle.


    So Michael was now stuck with the very first problem in creating his new club which was finding members for the club he wanted to create. It was not helping that the subject of the ult was a very niche thing in a world filled with martial artists.


    ¡®Even finding one person to join my club is turning out to be a problem. What should I do... Who to ask for help... That guy is useless for this kind of thing.¡¯


    ¡®Michael! You do know that I can read your thoughts? Also, I know that guy you¡¯re talking about is me. Even if I don¡¯t have myplete knowledge as of now, but, you need to know that I still understand what you¡¯re going through. The best thing you can do now is to inform everyone that your making an ult club, as long as you advertise it in the entire school surely someone would like to join. Seeing as you have little to no friends this is the best course of action you can take.¡¯


    When Michael heard what the Spirit said he frowned and felt like his heart was stabbed, but following a short pause Michael sighed. After thinking for so long he wasn¡¯t even able toe up with such a simple solution.


    ¡°Alright then let¡¯s make a poster.¡±


    ...


    The following day Michael finished making a poster and ced it on all of the bulletin boards both on the martial arts side and the general studies side. It was a huge poster that took up most of the space on the bulletin board, now all Michael can do was wait in the designated area in the library to see if some people woulde.


    During lunchtime, Michael waited for a bit and the first person finally arrived. A rather thin young man with his hair dyed silver his right arm wrapped with bandages, and wearing red contact lenses suddenly came in front of Michael.


    .....


    ¡°I havee fellow seeker of the truth.¡± The young man announced with a look of excitement on his face.


    ¡°Umm so are you interested in joining the ult club?¡±


    ¡°Of course I am! I Richard Dracul Ryanburn Von Hartmann am willing to be thy confr¨¨re.¡± Richard spoke while doing a knightly salute.


    ¡°Umm, so is Richard Dracul Ryanburn Von Hartmann your real name, ¡¯cause I need to write it on your club application form.¡±


    ¡°O mine confr¨¨re, Richard Dracul Ryanburn Von Hartmann is my true name from mine very own past life memories, but if you wish to hear my name in this world then it¡¯s Oliver Williams.¡±


    ¡°Oh okay then, so are you from the Martial Arts course or the General Studies course?¡± Michael wanted to hand over the application form to Oliver but he wasn¡¯t sure if the other party would write properly, he might identally write the so called past life¡¯s memories.


    ¡°first year of General Studies.¡±


    ¡°Thank you for joining the ult club. Well, it hasn¡¯t been established yet but I hope we get enough members to join us.¡±


    ¡°Of course, we shall seed mine confr¨¨re. Destiny is on our side.¡±


    ...


    Now Michael has someone else to wait with him and the other party was quite talkative which made the waiting less boring.


    ¡°So mine confr¨¨re why did you suddenly want to create such a club, did the call of destiny echo into thy very soul?¡±


    ¡°Nothing like that, I just really wanted to learn more about the ult. How about you Oliver-san, why did you want to join?¡±


    ¡°O¡¯ mine confr¨¨re that heeded the call of destiny, there¡¯s no need for you to call me by that name or even address with san, you should call me Richard. When I saw your poster I heard the call of destiny same as you. In this world filled with martial arts, people have forgotten the blessing of the world and the power that it gives. This power is the very thing I need to regain my power from my previous life, the power that I had as a hero.¡±


    When Michael heard Oliver¡¯s impassioned speech hemunicated with the Spirit to ask a question.


    ¡®Is this guy telling the truth or is he just delusional?¡¯


    ¡®I don¡¯t know if he has memories of a previous life or not or if he¡¯s delusional but I do sense mana in him... I can¡¯t believe it... After staying in this ce for hundreds of years, not seeing any person with mana for all those years but now there are more than three in the same ce.¡¯


    Michael showed a shocked expression when he learned that Oliver truly had mana, and now he was even more confused if whether Oliver was truly telling the truth or not.


    ¡°O¡¯ mine confr¨¨re where you so shocked to hear of my former glory? Yes, it is true in my previous life I was a hero.¡± As he spoke Oliver made a dramatic pose. ¡°Back then I saved the world by finding the holy sword and ying the demon lord. Even now after I reincarnated I remember those days and even without my former power I still retain the cursed mes of my right arm. It is a good thing that I was able to acquire this holy cloth that was once owned by a Saint to suppress the curse on my right arm. If the cursed mes were somehow released without my power at its peak to suppress it, this world would¡¯ve burned.¡±


    Michael looked at the bandaged right arm and asked the Spirit if there was anything special about it. The Spirit replied that there was nothing, it was just a normal bandage and there was no such thing as a cursed me being sealed.


    ¡®This guy might just be a lucky person who got the ability to absorb the mana of the world.¡¯


    ...


    While waiting Oliver continued to tell his epic tale of how he once saved the world. After waiting for a while another person came. The neer was a rather muscr individual even those that focused on the physique in the martial arts course couldn¡¯tpare to the person standing in front of Michael and Oliver.


    ¡°Is this the ce where the ult club is gathering?¡±


    ¡°Yes, this is the ce, do you want to join?¡±


    The muscr guy looked at Michael and Oliver for a few seconds and sighed.


    ¡°I was expecting to see some experts but you two don¡¯t look the part. How are you going to fight ghosts with those weak muscles.¡±


    ¡°Fight ghosts?¡± Michael couldn¡¯t help but ask.


    ¡°Of course, fighting ghosts what else would the ult club do? Still, now I can see that you guys aren¡¯t that serious. Everyone knows if you really want to fight ghosts you need more muscle mass, so it¡¯s better if you two start working out more, especially you skinny guy.¡± The muscr man pointed at Oliver.


    ¡°Hoh, you think that I can¡¯t defeat some measly ghosts withoutrge muscles like yours? Heh, you underestimate me, demons and ghosts are all the same to me I know dozens of ways to defeat them even without your so called muscles.¡±


    Oliver suddenly made a pose as he pointed at the muscr man, in response the muscr man also did a body-building pose. It was like the two sides were burning as they confronted each other.


    ¡°It seems I underestimated you guys, you really are serious. Alright, I am Hasegawa Tsukasa first year in General Studies and I would like to join your club.¡±


    ¡°It would seem that we have gained another confr¨¨re.¡±


    Oliver and Tsukasa grabbed each other hands in a manly handshake. While the two were doing that Michael was looking at the muscr Tsukasa with his eyes wide open. Michael did not expect that this intimidating-looking guy was not only a freshman but he was also a General Studies student, not someone from the Martial Arts Course.


    ...


    ¡°I apologize for my rude behavior before.¡± Tsukusa bowed his head.


    ¡°It¡¯s alright... Um, can I ask why you want to join the ult club?¡± Oliver waved his hands and then Michael asked Tsukasa a question to get rid of the awkward atmosphere.


    ¡°Didn¡¯t I already answer that? I wanted to join the ult club to fight ghosts.¡±


    ¡°Oh yeah you did mention that, and you also said to fight ghosts you needrge muscles. Why do you think you need muscles to fight ghosts.¡± Michael was finally able to ask the question he wanted to ask since a while ago.


    ¡°Huh, because having strong muscles is the first step to fighting ghosts, didn¡¯t you know that Michael-san? My uncle is a professional ghost hunter and he told me that if I wanted to join him one day, I first need to build up muscles like him. My Uncle told me that ghosts, monsters, or anything supernatural have a natural fear of physical bodies so therger the physical body the scarier it is for them. Once afraid it¡¯s easier to finish them off.¡±


    Hearing what Tatsuya said Michael did not know how to retort, so he could only nod his head and smile.


    ...


    After Tsukasa, lunchtime ended and the trio met again after school but the day ended with no one elseing to join, but at least Michael had two new members he only needed two more to start the club. Even though the two he recruited were a bit on the weird side, they were good and interesting people. So after exchanging contact information the group went to a nearby family restaurant to discuss how to recruit more members.

 Chapter 171 - 171 Student Council

    171 Student Council


    The following day Michael came to school and waiting in front of the school gate were the two new members of his yet-to-be-established ult club. The two saw Michael in the distance and approached him with smiles on their faces.


    ¡°Another day to find new confr¨¨re,¡± Oliver spoke with excitement.


    ¡°Yes, let¡¯s do our best today.¡± Tsukasa nodded his head as he responded to Oliver¡¯s excitement.


    ...


    When lunchtime came Michael headed to the same spot in the library to see if anyone woulde to join their little club, while Oliver and Tsukasa went around the campus trying to convince people to join their club.


    Loki who had a lot of free time as ofte due to the decrease in criminal activity was watching Michael trying his best to establish the ult club. Loki found Michael who was an introvert trying his hardest to find new members to be very amusing.


    Lunchtime was about to end and no one came, not even Oliver and Tsukasa came back to report. As Michael was about to head back to ss was when the school¡¯s inte sounded.


    ¡°Student Michael Rosales please report to the Student Council Room. Once again student Michael Rosales please report to the Student Council Room.¡±


    Michael was a little confused as to why the student council was looking for him, since in this school most of the power was not among the faculty but with the Student Council, which were usually excellent students from very powerful families. He could not figure out what those people would want with him, still, now that he has been summoned he had no choice but to go.


    .....


    ...


    It was called the Student Council Room, but the truth was it was more like the Student Council building. It was a separate building from the school and was located behind the martial arts course building.


    The Student Council Building was heavily protected even more than the school itself, as there were several dozen of rank seven and eight martial artists roaming around as guards, and there was even two Grand Masters present as security.


    The Studen Council building was a gothic-style building with long pointed arches, flying exterior buttresses, stained-ss windows that depict the history of the school, ribbed vaults, and spires. Being in front of such a building made Michael feel like he was transported back in time.


    Not only was the Student Council Building a sight to behold but even the surrounding area was something else. Before being able to enter the Studen Council building Michael passed by a wondrous garden.


    The garden was like an oasis filled with a variety of flowers, trees, and bushes. The bushes were even cut in a way to make them look like knights standing in line as you walk through the cobblestone road toward the Student Council building.


    As Michael was walking down the path while being escorted by two guards, the sun shone warmly on the beautiful garden which just made the feeling that he was transported into another world increase.


    Near the entrance of the building was a fountain in the center of the courtyard. This gray stone fountain has a wide round base and a ten-foot-tall peak at the apex of the fountain. The water of the fountain runs sparklingly clear as it cascades downward.


    At the north, south, east, and west of the circr fountain were beautiful stone statues of water nymphs holding jugs that sprayed water toward the fountain.


    Michael was mesmerized by the sight but he could not stop to appreciate it as the guards continued guiding him into the Student Council building. Upon entering the building Michael was even more in awe.


    The inside of the Student Council Building was filled with many stone statues that were ced in a way that they seem to be telling a story an epic tale of battle and death. The way the sun shone through the stained ss windows onto the statues just added solemnity to the atmosphere of the ce.


    The guards guided Michael into a hallway filled with paintings that seem to be created by various famous painters, even Michael who was ayman could see the quality of each painting at a nce. He did not know how much each painting would cost, all Michael understood was that each painting should be something that the entire fortune of his family could not afford to even look at.


    The hallway was rather long and it took Michael and the guards a few minutes before arriving at the end of the hallway were there was a giant doorway that was being blocked with what looks to be royal doors.


    The royal doors had a sculpture of a knight and an ancient martial artist about to do battle. When Michael saw this picture and he was a little confused were knights back in the middle ages who were supposedly ordinary humans able to fight against martial artists? Michael had no time to dwell on his own thoughts when one of the guards knocked on the royal door.


    The simple knocking on the royal door echoed throughout the hallway. After he was done knocking the royal door slowly opened with a creaking sound. What was behind the door was something simr to a throne room and like everything else in this ce, it was beautiful.


    Arch pirs on both sides, arge chandelier above the room, and four stained ss windows that were blocked by curtains. A red carpet on the floor that leads toward the desks of four people that represent the highest authority in the school aside from the Principal.


    It was quite the sight to behold except that in this room there were many things out of ce. First, there were theputers each member of the student council was using, and there was also the centralized air conditioning in the room, as well as the giant television on the side. The room was simr to a throne room in terms of structure, but overall it was more like some sort of headquarters you would see in a movie.


    Michael who felt like he was transported into another world returned to reality, as he noticed Oliver and Tsukasa sitting in front of the student council members.


    Michael then looked at each student council member the four most powerful students in the school. There was the treasurer Edward Williams the only male member of the Student Council as well as the only one in the General Studies. A second-year student of the General Studies course.


    Edward Williams was a part of the William family which was a family that owns a rather famous bank in the country. From the perspective of normal citizens, Edward¡¯s family was the tenth richest family in the country.


    Not only was he rich, but he was also one of the top students in the school, was also athletically gifted, and was very handsome. With ck hair and eyes, and a cold look on his face, he was basically the temte of those cold boss characters in romance novels.


    The secretary of the Student Council was Cho Ha-Eun, a second-year student and a rank three martial artist from the Cho n, a powerful martial arts n that was famous for using hidden weapons.


    Ha-Eun had long glossy ck hair and deep dark eyes, ruby-red lips, she was quite short for her age but had curves in all the right ces.


    After the secretary, there was, of course, the vice-president of the Student Council Erika Capell the only child of the Capell n which was an ancient martial arts n. The Capell n was a famous n among martial artists but their style and way of fighting were aplete mystery. It was said that if you met a member of the Capell in battle you¡¯re next journey would be to the realm of the dead.


    Erika Capell was considered to be a once in hundred years genius of the n and was a rank-five martial artist. She excelled in everything she did and was only second to Kurumi Ichika the Student Council President. Like all the other members of the student council, Erika was a beauty that surpasses even professional models.


    Shoulder-length red hair, beautiful dark blue eyes, a voluptuous bosom, and a round nice bottom. She even had long legs and was taller than most boys her age.


    Then finally the most powerful member of the Student Cound, the Student Council President, the ruler of the school. The only other person in the school that was at the same level as her was the Principal.


    Kurumi Ichika was a second-year student the same as the other members of the student council, and like Erika, she was also a rank-five martial artist. Ichika was the eldest daughter of the current patriarch of the ancient martial artist n the Kurumi n which was the master of the Capell n.


    Erika was not only considered to be Ichika¡¯s vice president, ssmate, and best friend, but she was also Ichika¡¯s personal bodyguard/assistant assigned to her since they were a few years old. All members of the main family of the Kurumi n have a Capell as their closest assistant.


    Like the other members, Ichika was also a beauty but one that was above all the others. Long raven ck hair tied in a twin tail, silky smooth skin, and piercing ruby red eyes. She did not have a bountiful chest like Erika but she had a slim body that would shame even famous actresses and models. Not only that but even her prowess in battle was said to be second to none among the students at the famous Sekiko Academy. This was Kurumi Ichika the ruler of Sekiko Academy, the one who stands above all students.

 Chapter 172 - 172 The process of creating the Occult Club

    172 The process of creating the ult Club


    The four members of the Student Council were now looking at the new arrival Michael with different expressions on their faces.


    Edward was looking at Michael with a cold aloof expression, even though the other party was a martial artist and he was a normal person but that didn¡¯t really matter to him as he had the power of money on his side.


    The world was no longer like the ancient times were one powerful martial artist could rule, now that ordinary humans have created weapons that could kill martial artists the two sides have be somewhat equal, and Edward strongly believes that as long as one has more money than anyone he could win all battles.


    Ha-Eun looked at Michael with a yful expression as she twirled a pen between her fingers. She felt a bit amused as three interesting guys came to the Student Council room today.


    Erika who was standing behind Ichika looked at Michael with cold eyes that seem to be able to freeze one¡¯s soul. Erika was also emitting a kind of aura that made Michael¡¯s heart beat faster.


    Ichika who was sitting behind a desk in the middle of the room showed a kind smile that could melt anyone¡¯s heart, she then spoke with an equally kind tone.


    ¡°Michael Rosales, I¡¯m d that you came, please take a seat.¡±


    Ichika gestured at the free seat beside Oliver and Tsukasa. Michael nodded his head and walked toward the seat before sitting down Michael look at Oliver and Tsukasa.


    ¡°Now then, student Michael do you know why I called you here?¡± Ichika spoke with a very kind sort of tone.


    .....


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry I really don¡¯t know why you called me here,¡± Michael answered as honestly as possible.


    ¡°I called you because these two friends of yours caused a ruckus while trying to recruit people into an unknown club.¡±


    When Michael heard what the Student Council President said he unconsciously looked at his twopanions who seem to be a little offended at what Ichika just said.


    ¡°Your excellency, I protest we were not the ones who started the ruckus it is those foolish people who started shouting and screaming even though we were just inviting them to join our cause.¡±


    Oliver stood up from his seat and spoke while looking directly into Ichika¡¯s eyes without backing down one bit.


    ¡°If you really were just trying to invite them to join then that wouldn¡¯t be a problem, but they already rejected you two yet you still continued to harass them.¡± Ichika continued to smile kindly as she spoke with a soft tone, but the look in her eyes became dangerous.


    ¡°It¡¯s not our fault that the fools were so blind to deny their destinies,¡± Oliver spoke with confidence as if every word he said was correct.


    ¡°Hmm, do you think that harassing people is the right way, Oliver Williams?¡±


    Ichika who still had that kind smile on her face was now emitting some kind of pressure while looking directly at Oliver¡¯s eyes and unlike before the confident Oliver actually bowed his head and sighed.


    ¡°Fine, I admit that I was wrong this time, and when I see those guys again I will apologize. Is that good enough for you, your excellency?¡±


    Ichika giggled a bit and nodded her head as she responded.


    ¡°See you can be a good boy if you tried Oliver.¡±


    ¡°Your excellency, please don¡¯t speak like I¡¯m some kind of rambunctious child. I can recognize my own mistakes.¡±


    ¡°Is that so, as for you Hasegawa Tsukasa you should¡¯ve stopped yourpanion here when he got a little bit rowdy.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry,¡± Tsukasa did not even bother to argue as he lowered his head and responded.


    ¡°No need to look so downhearted, I¡¯m not trying to scold you or anything just giving out some advice. Now then Michael why haven¡¯t I heard about this new club you are trying to make?¡±


    ¡°Um, I was going to send out an application to create a club, but I wanted to gather the required five members first before doing any other paperwork.¡±


    ¡°Well, it has been a long time since someone tried creating a new club since most clubs that could be thought of already exist in the school. Even things like the anime appreciation club and the idol group study club already exist. It has been so long now, that the proper procedure of creating a club has been forgotten by most students. I guess I can¡¯t fault you for not reporting your intent of creating a club before gathering members. So I¡¯ll forgive you guys once, still, I¡¯m really curious as to what kind of club you want to create.¡±


    ¡°We want to create an ult club.¡±


    ¡°Hoh, an ult club, that¡¯s rather surprising. I guess in a world such as ours the interest in the ult would be quite little, even more so for martial artists. I¡¯m rather curious even among yourpanions you¡¯re the only martial artist and you¡¯re also the one who had the idea to create this club. Now here¡¯s what I want to know, why do you want to create an ult club all of a sudden?¡±


    Ichika and the other members of the student council all stared at Michael curiously. Even Oliver and Tsukasa were looking at Michael with the same look of curiosity as the student council members.


    ¡°I just want to know more about the ult. There are many books about our history that mention people with an ability different from the abilities a martial artist has. Though it is true that these books are more like myths and fairy tales, but they¡¯re mentioned in a lot of books from different cultures, ces, and eras it shouldn¡¯t just be a simple coincidence. Which is why I want to learn more about it, about the truth.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s a fascinating idea you have there. How about you two why did you want to join the ult club?¡±


    ¡°This is the choice of destiny and I simply answered its call, nothing more nothing less,¡± Oliver answered while doing some random posses.


    ¡°I wanted to fight ghosts,¡± Tsukasa answered his head still lowered.


    When the student council members heard the answer of the two people they had strange looks on their faces, except for Ichika who remained smiling that eerily kind smile of hers and pped her hands.


    ¡°How wonderful, the call of destiny sounds very romantic.¡±


    ¡°As expected of your excellency you understand.¡±


    ¡°Also fighting ghosts sounds like that would be a very enjoyable experience.¡±


    When Tsukasa heard what Ichika said he lifted his head in surprise but when he saw the beautiful faces of the student council members looking at him, Tsukasas once again lowered his head.


    ¡°Such a fun-sounding club you want to create Michael. I hope that you¡¯ll be able to sessfully create it.¡±


    ¡°Thank you for your support.¡±


    ¡°Hmm, so aside from the other two members you need, do you already have someone in mind to be your ss adviser?¡±


    ¡°Yes, it¡¯s the librarian Sir Loki.¡±


    The very moment Loki¡¯s name came out of Michael¡¯s mouth both Erika and Ichika had very strange reactions. Erika who was standing behind Ichika frowned as her eyebrow twitched. On the other hand, Ichika who had a kind smile throughout the entire conversation and did not change her expression no matter what was said suddenly had a surprised look on her face. It was just a moment of surprise and then her expression returned to that perpetual smiling face she had.


    ¡°Oh, the librarian that¡¯s a very famous individual in our school right now. Have you told him about this?¡±


    ¡°Yes.¡±


    ¡°Did he agree?¡±


    ¡°Yes.¡±


    When Ichika heard Michael¡¯s affirmation Ichika found it a little difficult to remain smiling.


    ¡°Even though I asked him before, and he rejected me why did this person get his approval,¡± Ichika murmured to herself.


    ...


    Actually, Ichika and Loki had already met a few weeks ago. Some kidnappers were able to trick her security team and even dy Erika. At that time Ichika was alone and the kidnappers were at least rank five martial artists and they even had some energy blocker handcuffs on them. They knew so much about Ichika¡¯s battle style that they were able to subdue her rather easily.


    Ichika was not that worried at first since kidnappings have always happened since she was just a few years old, but for some reason, her instincts were telling her that if she was captured now it would be difficult to escapeter.


    It was at this moment that Loki who was passing by the area saw Ichika being taken away. There was just a brief eye contact between the two, but then Loki sighed for a bit and suddenly attacked.


    Each move Loki made was precise and sharp, but the speed and power he showed could not possibly go beyond that of a rank four martial artist. It was a surprising sight but with his technique alone, Loki was able to ovee three martial artists who were one rank higher than himself.


    In the end, Loki was able to save the damsel, after confirming that Ichika was alright, Loki did not bother to stick around and left. Ichika who was still in a state of shock reacted when she saw Loki leaving, she followed him to the street corner but he suddenly disappeared.


    Still, with the power of the Kurumi family, it wasn¡¯t that hard for her to track down Loki. She was quite surprised to learn that the other party was the librarian in her own school. She knew that there was a librarian who suddenly became a martial artist, but she didn¡¯t dwell too much on that subject as she was busy with other things.


    Now that she knew more about Loki, she found it even more surprising that such a newbie martial artist was so skilled. There were tons of examples of people oveing opponents of higher ranks than themselves, but those people were geniuses of powerful ns. This just made Ichika even more curious about Loki. The next day she came to meet him in person and thanked him.


    ¡°No need for thanks, I¡¯m just d you¡¯re alright.¡±


    ¡°No, I insist if there¡¯s anything I can do for you please tell me.¡±


    ¡°Actually I do have one request.¡±


    ¡°I promise that with the power of the Kurumi n, I¡¯ll do my best to fulfill your request.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s nothing big, it¡¯s just that I don¡¯t want others to know of my skills. I want to remain low key you see, I just want to stay here in the library and read some books.¡±


    ¡°Oh is that all, alright I promise I will keep a tight lid on your secret, and I¡¯ll make sure that all my subordinates will keep your secret to the grave.¡±


    ¡°Thank you,¡± Loki smiled which made Ichika blush a bit.


    ¡°Um, if you want you can work in my family¡¯s personal library. Our library is three times bigger than this one and your sry will be ten times more.¡±


    ¡°Thank you for the offer but I¡¯m happy with my current job.¡±


    After that no matter what Ichika said to convince the other party, Loki continued to refuse her offer.


    ...


    Remembering that day and learning that Loki easily agreed to be the adviser to Michael¡¯s club made her feel a little bit itchy.

 Chapter 173 - 173 Conditions

    173 Conditions


    ¡°Um, President are you alright?¡± Michael asked since the ever-smiling Ichika actually had a severe expression on her face and she hadn¡¯t spoken in a while now.


    ¡°Huh?¡± Ichika looked around a bit confused, but after a short pause, she showed her kind smile again. ¡°Sorry about that, I was thinking of something. What were you saying again?¡±


    ¡°Nothing, I was just a little worried since the President was silent for so long.¡±


    ¡°How kind of you, but I¡¯m alright just a little lost in thought. So you were saying that Mr. Matsuda Loki has agreed to be the adviser of your club?¡±


    ¡°Um, yes, is there a problem?¡±


    ¡°No, of course, there¡¯s no problem. I was just wondering why you asked Mr. Loki to be your adviser, is there any specific reason?¡¯


    ¡°It¡¯s because Sir Loki is very knowledgeable and knows a lot about the ult.¡±


    ¡°Hoh, is that so? I also heard that Mr. Loki is very picky about doing other jobs besides his main job as a librarian. I wonder how you were able to convince him to be your adviser?¡±


    ¡°I just asked if he could be the adviser of my club and he said that as long as I can create it he would be willing to be the adviser.¡±


    .....


    When Ichika heard Michael¡¯s answer she was still smiling but under the table, she was clenching her fist very tightly.


    ¡®I offered you the best conditions, and you rejected me! This guy just asked you and you epted so quickly!¡¯ Ichika shouted angrily in her mind but on the outside, she remained ever-smiling.


    ¡°Heh, it seems like you and Mr. Loki are very close.¡±


    ¡°Um, just a little bit. Sir Loki has been helping me with some problems.¡±


    ¡°Hmm, what sort of problems, maybe I could help?¡±


    ¡°... I¡¯m sorry I can¡¯t tell you it¡¯s a personal matter.¡±


    ¡°Oh, that¡¯s alright no need to apologize. I shouldn¡¯t have asked in the first ce. So anyway, how about you give me that club application of yours.¡±


    Michael quickly took out the club application that he had already filled out in advance and passed it to Ichika.


    Ichika did a quick scan of the application and sure enough, Loki¡¯s name was written as an adviser there was his signature and everything.


    ¡°Michael I have a question and you must answer honestly.¡±


    ¡°Umm, is it a personal question?¡±


    ¡°Of course not, do not worry the question I want to ask is about your club.¡±


    ¡°Alright, what¡¯s your question Student Council President?¡±


    ¡°Do you really think that you¡¯ll be able to get two more members to join your club?¡±


    ¡°... I think so, if we try harder and look around surely someone will be interested in joining us,¡± Michael spoke full of confidence at first but the more he spoke the less confidence he became.


    ¡°Do not worry my confr¨¨re, with destiny by our side we will meet our future partners and create this club.¡± Oliver suddenly spoke encouraging Michael, Tsukasa on the side nodded his head in approval.


    ¡°I see... Alright then, let¡¯s call Mr. Loki here as well.¡± Ichika signaled one of the guards who bowed his head and left the room.


    ¡°Huh, why?¡±


    ¡°Well, we are talking about the future of your club so the adviser should be present, right?¡± Michael, Oliver, and Tsukasa felt a weird pressure being emitted by the president, and the trio unconsciously nodded their heads.


    ...


    ¡°So while we wait for Mr. Loki to arrive do you guys want tea or coffee?¡±


    ¡°Of course, someone such as I can only drink tea. Who in their right mind would want the ck liquid put into their mouths?¡± Oliver spoke in his usual over-the-top way. ¡°I would also want some scones with that.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll just have water, thank you,¡± Tsukasa requested.


    ¡°I¡¯m good with water as well.¡±


    ...


    As the snacks and beverages came, Tsukasa who was drinking his water was surprised when someone suddenly appeared below him.


    ¡°Hey, why have you been keeping your head down this entire time?¡± Ha-Eun asked while Tsukusa avoided her gaze.


    ¡°It¡¯s nothing I just like keeping my head down is that a problem?¡± Seeing Tsukasa¡¯s reaction Ha-Eun¡¯s lips arced upward as a mischievous smile appeared on her face.


    ¡°Is that so.¡± Ha-Eun stood up and then started poking at Tsukasa¡¯s arm. ¡°You¡¯re the most muscr general studies student I have ever seen, I wonder what kind of training you have been doing? It¡¯s hard for me to even wrap my little arms around your biceps.¡±


    Tsukasa whose arm was being hugged by Ha-Eun felt the other party¡¯s soft chest squeezing against his arm. Tsukasa was feeling a bit dizzy at this point.


    ¡°Ha-Eun control yourself.¡± Erika suddenly spoke, seeing her angry re Ha-Eun stuck her tongue out and returned to her seat. Seeing Ha-Eun finally leave Tsukasa sighed in relief.


    ...


    The group in the Student Council room continued to enjoy their snacks when somebody knocked on the door.


    ¡°He¡¯s finally here,¡± Ichika whispered to herself. It was at this very moment that Ichicka¡¯s smile changed a bit and this time she showed a genuine smile that caught the attention of three other Student Council Members.


    ¡°Tsk,¡± Erika couldn¡¯t help but click her tongue.


    ¡®Hoh, that¡¯s quite the interesting expression you have there Ms. President.¡¯ Ha-Eun licked her lips.


    ¡°...¡± Edward frowned as he looked at the person who entered the room.


    ...


    ¡°Good Afternoon, Mr. Loki.¡±


    Loki who was asked toe to the Student Council room saw that everyone was looking at him with different expressions on their faces. When Loki noticed Michael and the two boys he saw yesterday, Loki already had a guess as to why he was called.


    ¡°Good afternoon, so is this about the ult club?¡±


    Before Ichika could respond, Oliver suddenly approached Loki, looked at the other party up and down, nodded his head, and smiled.


    ¡°Nice to meet you, our future club adviser. Hm, the look in your eyes as well as those subtle actions you just did upon entering. You¡¯re a hidden expert aren¡¯t you.¡±


    When Oliver said those words, Loki and Ichika were quite surprised but of course, they didn¡¯t show it on their faces.


    ¡°I¡¯m not sure what you¡¯re talking about. I¡¯m just a librarian with a little bit more knowledge at most.¡± Loki showed an awkward smile as he spoke, and at the same time making his presence smaller.


    ¡°No need for such humility. My eyes can see past your facade, in truth you are a master of the way of the sword. As the greatest swordsman in my past life, I can sense that you and I are the same.¡±


    Loki looked a bit confused since he wasn¡¯t what one may call a master of the sword, as Oliver said. Loki then remembered yesterday when Michael and Oliver just met.


    ¡®I see... It really is hard to tell if what he says is true or not. This guy speaks so outrageously and some of what he says might sound real, but it might just be a coincidence. Loki then tried to change the subject before Oliver says more weird things.


    ¡°Okay, so who are you again?¡±


    ¡°How rude of me, I forgot to introduce myself. I am the reincarnation of a hero, and my glorious name is Richard Dracul Ryanburn Von Hartmann.¡±


    Oliver did a knight salute as he announced his supposed real name. Loki already knew Oliver¡¯s real name as he heard it yesterday but he yed along.


    ¡°Nice to meet you, Richard, I¡¯m the librarian Matsuda Loki.¡±


    ¡°It truly is a pleasure.¡± Oliver was about to say something more when someone suddenly faked a cough.


    ¡°Ahem, Student Oliver we need to discuss the creation of your club first.¡±


    ¡°Oliver, I thought your name was Richard?¡± Loki acted like he was truly confused, and Oliver sighed before answering.


    ¡± Richard Dracul Ryanburn Von Hartmann is my true name, the name engraved into my very soul. Oliver is just the name people of this world call me.¡±


    ¡°I see...¡±


    ¡°Alright-¡± Ichika saw that Oliver was about to start another tirade and was about to intercept when someone suddenly spoke before her.


    ¡°How about we all introduce ourselves to Mr. Librarian, seeing as this is our first meeting.¡± Ha-Eun looked at Ichika before continuing to speak. ¡°I¡¯ll go first, my name is Cho Ha-Eun, if you wish Mr. Librarian can call me Euny that¡¯s my nickname.¡±


    Only a few people in the room saw Ha-Eun move as she was now in front of Loki, to others it was like she teleported. Loki was quite impressed by Ha-Eun¡¯s movement which was simr to his very own silent steps.


    ¡°Nice to meet you Mr. Librarian.¡± Ha-Eun grab hold of Loki¡¯s hands and swung them.


    ¡°It¡¯s nice to meet you too.¡±


    For a very brief moment, Loki felt killing intent but then it quickly disappeared.


    ¡°Alright, Euny, you¡¯re done with your greeting let other people do it,¡± Ichika spoke but her voice seem to be a little off.


    ¡°Okay, let¡¯s talkter Mr. Librarian.¡± Ha-Eun winked at Loki before going back to her seat.


    ¡°I and Mr. Loki already know each other so there¡¯s no need for an introduction, right?¡± Ichika spoke and briefly looked at Ha-Eun.


    ¡°Yes, I¡¯m already acquainted with Ichika-san and Erika-san, I also know Tsukasa-kun as hees to the library every now and then.¡± After speaking everyone then looked at Edward who was frowning at Loki.


    ¡°I¡¯m Edward Williams.¡± That was all he said and scoffed.


    ...


    After exining the situation to Loki, Ichika gave a suggestion.


    ¡°If you guys want I can make an exception for your group and allow you to create a club even with just three members. All I need is for Mr. Loki to agree to be the librarian of my family¡¯s library every Saturday. So what do you say?¡±


    ¡°I refuse, it doesn¡¯t really matter to me if the club is made or not. I already told Michael I would be the adviser of his club if and only if he¡¯s able to establish it.¡±


    .....


    ¡°Yes, of course, if there is already such an agreement we cannot take shortcuts,¡± Oliver spoke excitedly as he felt that such challenges are part of the fun.


    Ichika gritted her teeth, a little frustrated that Loki once again refused her but epted Michael¡¯s request. Still, she already expected Loki to refuse her, but still, she simply tried because what if Loki changed his mind?


    ¡°Alright, a different condition then. Erika and I will also join your club.¡± Everyone even Loki was caught by surprise hearing what Ichika said.

 Chapter 174 - 174 The Occult Club

    174 The ult Club


    ¡°Huh, you two want to be members of the ult club? Aren¡¯t you two the most important members of the Student Council, are you really going to quit being the student council president?¡± Loki asked the ever-smiling president.


    ¡°Hmm, I guess you¡¯re right. Fine, I decided as of today I¡¯m quitting as the student council president.¡±


    The moment those words came out of Ichika¡¯s mouth the reaction of the surrounding people was even more colorful than when she said she wanted to join the ult club.


    ¡°Hahaha, as expected of Your Excellency to answer the call of destiny with such gusto. I wee you warmly as part of our party!¡±


    ¡°Shut up fool!¡± Edward could no longer hold it in and suddenly shouted, he then looked at the president worriedly. ¡°President are you really going to quit?!¡±


    ¡°Boo, if you and Erika are going to quit and join the ult club I want to do so as well,¡± Ha-Eun pouted.


    ¡°Cho Ha-Eun!¡± Edward could not believe his ears if the three girls disappear wouldn¡¯t he be the only one left in the student council?


    ¡®What¡¯s happening here?¡¯ Michael found it difficult to keep up with the changes.


    While everyone was in an uproar a cute giggle was heard, everyone stopped talking and looked at the person who suddenly started giggling.


    .....


    ¡°You guys, that was just a joke, I wasn¡¯t really going to quit being the Student Council President. In the first ce, quitting being the Student Council President of Sekiko Academy is harder than winning the position.¡±


    When the members of the Student Council heard what Ichika had to say only Edward showed visual relief.


    ¡°But I¡¯m still going to join the ult club, of course, the other members of the Student Council can join as well, if they want to.¡±


    ¡°Huh?¡± The others were once again dumbfounded by what Ichika said.


    ¡°There¡¯s no rule saying that the Student Council members can¡¯t join clubs. In fact, I once heard that the members of the Student Council a few years ago were all from different clubs. Not only were they members of those clubs but they were also the captains and their aces.¡±


    ¡°S-so you¡¯re really going to join the ult club?¡± Once again Edward began to panic, seeing him like this Michael¡¯s evaluation of him changed. In the beginning, Edward kept on showing this cold cool guy vibe, now he¡¯s more like an abandoned puppy.


    ¡°Of course, I will. Even if I join the ult club it won¡¯t really affect my work as the Student Council President. So are you guys going to join as well?¡±


    ¡°Me, me, me, I want to join!¡± Ha-Eun pointed at herself as she raised her hand.


    ¡°How about you Erika?¡±


    ¡°I will follow wherever you go.¡± Erika who was silent the entire time answered.


    ¡°You know it¡¯s alright if you don¡¯t want to join.¡±


    ¡°No, I¡¯m joining.¡±


    ¡°... Fine... So how about you Edward?¡±


    All eyes were now on Edward who was hesitating. He didn¡¯t really want to join such a weird club like the ult club, but now all the other members of the Student Council were joining. Edward gritted his teeth and sighed.


    ¡°I¡¯ll join as well.¡±


    ¡°Incredible! Not only did Her Excellency join us even her ownpatriots have joined as well. Hahaha, from now on we are all partners!¡±


    Tsukasa could only sigh when he heard that the entire student council was joining them.


    ¡®I guess I should get used to their faces now that they¡¯ll be allies.¡¯


    Tsukasa who had his head down lifted it up and looked at the student council members. He still felt embarrassed but now that they weren¡¯t looking at him, it wasn¡¯t as bad as before.


    Michael was also quite surprised by the sudden turn of events. He came here to be punished for what his twopanions did, but in the end, it felt like he was rewarded instead. Now not only did he gain more than enough members, but the members that joined were one of the best and the brightest in the entire school.


    ¡°Now that¡¯s decided, we just need to finish a few pieces of paperwork and we¡¯ll be all set. Oh right, the next step should be to find a suitable clubroom. Let¡¯s see what¡¯s avable.¡±


    Ichika started typing on herputer and after a quick scan, she printed out a list if you could call it a list, of the only avable rooms that they can use.


    ¡°Here¡¯s the only two rooms avable for the clubroom. One is an outside storage room, and the other is a room in the old school building, that hasn¡¯t been used for a couple of decades. So which one do you want to use?¡±


    ¡°Two rooms and one is worse than the other. Why can¡¯t we just use this room as our clubroom if we¡¯re joining?¡±


    Edward couldn¡¯t help but ask, as the two options were truly unappealing to him. Hearing Edward¡¯s question Ichika looked at the other party for a bit and responded.


    ¡°This is the Student Council Room, it cannot be used as a clubroom. As the representatives of students in this school, we need to at least follow the basic rules. We can¡¯t use this room as a clubroom, so don¡¯t even think about it. How about you guys which room do you like to use?¡±


    ¡°There is but one choice, right? As the ult Club, doesn¡¯t the old school building appeal to you, it was as if destiny¡¯s hand is guiding us to it. An old building that hasn¡¯t been used for a few decades due to unknown reasons, don¡¯t you think that it is a truly perfect ce for our ult club?¡± Oliver spoke in such a grandiose way while moving his hands around.


    ¡®Unknown reason?...¡¯ Now that Oliver said it, Loki also found it weird why have an empty building and not do anything with it.


    ¡°Can we go and look at the two options first, before making a decision?¡± Michael spoke after thinking about which to choose.


    ¡°Of course, we can, club president,¡± Ichika answered.


    ...


    The first ce the group headed to was the outside supply room, which was basically a shed. The Shed was ced at the back of the General Studies Building, near the outermost perimeter of the school. It was actually deep inside a forest-like area within the school.


    Michael, and Tsukasa who haven¡¯t explored most of the school were quite surprised to see such a ce. Was this area still a part of their school?


    It was a broken shed that need to be fixed, the roof of the shed had holes in it. There were some items inside the shed like a few rusted hoes and rakes. The shed was quite beaten up, the only good thing about it was its size. The size of the shed was bigger than a normal ssroom which means it had more space than other clubs.


    ¡°Now that we¡¯re done looking at the outside supply room, let¡¯s head onto the old school building.¡±


    ...


    Following Ichika¡¯s lead the group arrived at the abandoned old school building. Unlike the other school buildings which were of a modern style, the abandoned old school building was of the same style as the Student Council Building which was Gothic.


    If you saw this building before going to the Student Council Building you would be even more surprised. Still, it had a different feel from the majestic Student Council Building, it had a more somber spiritual feeling, it was like a small old castle from the middle ages.


    There were some parts of the stone wall of the building which had been covered in moss, there was also this earthy smell on it.


    When Loki firstid eyes on the building the first thing that came to his mind, was that the design of the building was extremely simr to that of the magician schools in his old world. Seeing this old school building made Loki feel like he was transported back to his old world.


    While Loki felt nostalgic he suddenly sensed something inside the building. It was a weak presence and it quickly disappeared, Loki was not sure if what he sensed was real so he approached Michael and whispered.


    ¡°Did you feel that too?¡±


    ¡°Yes, the Spirit said that there is something in that building, something rted to mana, but he¡¯s not sure what it is.¡±


    ¡°Hoh, well this is getting interesting.¡± Loki¡¯s lips arched up a tiny bit.


    ¡°Hey you two,e on we¡¯re going to look inside.¡± Ichika gestured at Loki and Michael toe and follow quickly.


    ...


    The inside of the abandoned building was more well-maintained than everyone initially expected. There were some cracks here and there, and some broken tables and chairs, but overall it wasn¡¯t looking that bad, wellpared to the broken down shed.


    ¡°There is only one ssroom inside the old school building that we can use, and it¡¯s on the second floor.¡±


    The group went up an actual spiral staircase to the second floor. Upon arriving at the room, the group was surprised to see that it was more normal than they expected. The room was just as big as the ssrooms in the newer buildings, it had a ckboard and a few chairs. The windows had a few cracks, some of them didn¡¯t even have ss.


    The afternoon light that entered through the windows made the abandoned ssroom feel somewhat otherworldly.


    ¡°So what do you guys think, should we use this as our clubroom?¡±


    ¡°Is there a need for such a question? Of course, this should be the ce for us. It is worthy to be the base of our operations!¡± Oliver excitedly spoke.


    ¡°This does look and feel way better than the old shed, despite being a smaller space.¡± Tsukasa nodded in agreement with Oliver.


    ¡°How about you, Club President, what do you think?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s perfect.¡±

 Chapter 175 - 175 The First club meeting

    175 The First club meeting


    After picking out the new clubroom, the President finished all the paperwork rather quickly. Now the ult Club became an official club.


    Rumors of what happened quickly spread as many students saw the two students who were recruiting for the ult club walking side by side with the Student Council members. The Student Council members who seldomly left their building were actually seen today which caused an uproar in school.


    The student council was actually with the abnormal Oliver and Tsukasa. The former was a person who keeps on babbling that he was once the chosen hero and the other person was a muscle pervert. They also saw that Michael the former weakest student of the martial arts course was with them. There was also the famous librarian who suddenly awakened his inner energy at ater age.


    Many students tried to figure out why the prestigious members of the Student Council would be with such a group.


    Some students who were close to the talkative Oliver quickly learned the truth and spread it among the other students.


    ¡°The Student Council actually joined the ult Club!¡±


    ¡°Oh My God! You¡¯re telling me the cute Cho Ha-Eun, the Icy Beauty Erika Capell, and the perfect President Kurumi Ichika are all in the same club! Three Goddesses in one ce, is there still a spot in the club can I join too?!¡±


    ¡°I need to join to protect my beloved President from those foul men!¡±


    ¡°Edward-sama is in a club that I can join!¡±


    .....


    ¡°I can be with my idol!¡±


    ¡°F*ck they already invited me before, but I rejected what was I thinking! Sh*t, Sh*t, Sh*t, if I could I want to punch my past self. I f*cking miss the opportunity of a lifetime.¡±


    The students were in a frenzy, and many students started looking for any member of the ult Club to ask if they could join as well. It was easy to find Oliver and Tsukasa, but Loki and Michael seemingly disappeared. Unfortunately, for them, the only person in the group that could actually help them join was the Club President Michael, yet no matter where they looked they could not find him.


    Already aware that this could happen, the Student Council President Ichika hid Michael in the Student Council Building. Even the most courageous student wouldn¡¯t dare enter the building without permission, and it¡¯s not like they can even if they tried.


    ¡°So what are we going to do? Even if I hide here for now, what about tomorrow or the next day, how are we going to conduct our club activities?¡± Michael asked a little worried about the situation, the Spirit in his mind was alsoining about it.


    ¡°Should we just tell them that they can¡¯t join the club?¡± Edward gave a suggestion. Ichika looked at Edward for a few seconds and shook her head before replying.


    ¡°We can¡¯t tell students what club they can or cannot join just because we don¡¯t want them in ours. I already told you before that we are the representatives of the student body if we don¡¯t follow rules then what¡¯s the point of them?¡±


    When Edward heard Ichika¡¯s reply he felt ashamed, this was the second time today the President rejected his idea and replied in such a way that made him feel like an ipetent child.


    ¡°Then what should we do?¡± Ha-Eun who did not like the growing awkward atmosphere broke the silence.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I read the entirety of the rules regarding clubs, and as long as we are not apetitive club like the sports clubs or a club that is in need of a lot of manpower like the theatre club we are allowed to limit our members to eight people.¡±


    Michael sighed in relief as he heard the President¡¯s solution but then a question emerged in his mind.


    ¡°Eight people, we only have seven, Me, Oliver, Tsukasa, Edward-san, Ha-Eun-san-¡± Michael was suddenly interrupted by Ha-Eun.


    ¡°Chan! Ha-Eun-chan or just Euny-chan!¡±


    ¡°Ok, Ha-Eun-chan, Erika-san, and the Ichika-san, that¡¯s seven. Who¡¯s going to be thest member?¡±


    ¡°Thest member could be your friend Mugami Shin-kun.¡±


    ¡°Huh, but Shin isn¡¯t around how can he sign the club application form.¡±


    ¡°I already know that he took a leave of absence, but no need to worry. As long as he gives his verbal consent it is epted.¡±


    ¡°But, he¡¯s busy right now and I can¡¯t contact him. It might take a while before he can give his consent.¡±


    ¡°I already dealt with that, before hiding you here I already called him and got his consent.¡±


    ¡°Huh, so Ms. President has already thought of all this since the beginning then why didn¡¯t you just say so from the start?¡±


    When the other members heard Michael¡¯s question they sighed, as they already know the true character of their nearly perfect president.


    ¡°Why did I do it? I just wanted to see what the other people would do when they learned of the situation, but now it¡¯s getting boring and the fun¡¯s over.¡±


    The president held the mic that was on her table, pressed the button on it, and spoke.


    ¡°Dear students of our proud Sekiko Academy this is your Student Council President speaking, as of now, the ult Club will no longer be epting any new members, as they are at full capacity for the time being. So please my fellow students I hope you can keep your dignity and do not harass the club members of the ult Club.¡±


    When this announcement was made the whole school which was in a frenzy quickly calmed down. Some of the students who were trying to get information from Oliver and Tsukasa felt ashamed and apologized to the two.


    When Oliver saw this scene he couldn¡¯t help but murmur to himself.


    ¡°So this is the powerful influence of her excellency. It¡¯s like she brainwashed them. Heh, as expected of her excellency my fellow confr¨¨re of destiny.¡±


    ...


    Loki who was hiding on the roof of the Old School Building saw the scene of the wild students stopping and was deeply impressed.


    ¡°Born to be a ruler... She¡¯s better than I thought.¡±


    ...


    The following day, the news about the ult club has been spread to the entire student body. Alisa felt a little worried that her brother was the adviser of the ult club, but after talking to him about it she felt a little better. She was also thinking if one of the three beauties would be his brother¡¯s girlfriend.


    Even now her big brother doesn¡¯t seem to be that interested in rtionships, and even Detective Matsuri who was trying her best couldn¡¯t be his special someone. Alisa was slightly worried that his big brother might grow old without finding a significant other. Not to mention her big brother doesn¡¯t seem to show any interest in the opposite sex, well it¡¯s not like he shows any interest in the same sex, all he seems to care about is her and Liam.


    Alisa was really touched by her big brother¡¯s love but she also wanted her big brother to focus on himself. So in the back of Alisa¡¯s mind, she had the slight hope that Loki would somehow be attracted to one of the three beauties.


    ...


    In the afternoon, the group of seven arrived at their new clubroom in the old school building. Unlike yesterday the clubroom changed significantly. The broken windows have been fixed, the cracks on the walls disappeared, the ckboard turned into a whiteboard, and the empty clubroom was now surrounded by bookshelves filled with books.


    There were also three QLED TVs and a long table in the middle of the room, several seats, and in front of each seat was aputer.


    ¡°What happened here, what happened to the solemn otherworldly atmosphere from yesterday?! This is not the clubroom I wish for!¡± Oliver suddenly screamed as he saw the new changes.


    ¡°Well, this is a necessary upgrade for the ult Club. The books on the shelves are all rted to the ult. The TVs are for when we need to watch those so called ghost sighting videos. Theputers are for more intensive research, now we look like a serious ult Club.¡± Ichika spoke while pping her hands.


    Michael sighed when he saw the changes, this was also not what he had in mind when he thought of creating this club. Now that the Student Council President seems to be serious about doing this ult club it might be hard for him to ask Loki for some pointers.


    ¡°Club President, I have a proposal for what we can do for our first club meeting.¡± Ha-Eun who had picked a chair she could sit on and raised her hand.


    ¡°What is it Ha-Eun-C-chan?¡±


    ¡°How about we investigate the so called seven school mysteries.¡±


    ¡°That sounds interesting! Why haven¡¯t I heard of any of these so called mysteries?¡± Oliver who sat right beside Tsukasa interjected.


    ¡°The seven school mysteries that have been talked about, have always been part of the school rumors for a long time now, no one knows when they started,¡± Tsukasa whispered to himself.


    Seeing the almost sparking eyes of, Oliver, Tsukasa, and Ha-Eun, Michael could only nod his head in approval. Even Loki was a bit interested in these so called seven mysteries.


    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s investigate the seven school mysteries!¡±

 Chapter 176 - 176 Seven School Mysteries part 1

    176 Seven School Mysteries part ¡°The Seven School Mysteries, for some reason many schools have these so-called seven mysteries, no matter which school in our country even those in the rural areas have a supposed seven mysteries,¡± Ichika exined to the others.


    ¡°That¡¯s interesting, so are the seven mysteries of each school the same?¡± Ha-Eun nibbled on some chips as she asked her question.


    ¡°Some schools have simr mysteries as most of them allegedly originated from the same source, but nowadays other schools have only one mystery that¡¯s simr and all the other mysteries are different.¡±


    ¡°The same source? Do you know where all of this originated?¡± Michael curiously asked Ichika who as usual was showing a kind smile as she answered.


    ¡°Truth be told I only did a quick study about the ult yesterday, and the information I currently have is rather limited. I only know that these seven mysteries started as early as the 1860s but I don¡¯t know which school all of this originated from.¡±


    ¡°The seven mysteries an urban legend rted to schools, this feels like some kind of long-term ritual one of those sorcerers would concoct.¡± Loki who was listening at the side whispered to himself.


    When Loki thought of this he suddenly remembered the Alchemist he fought before, that person was able to not only use mana but actually understand how to create potions using mana. In this world that was technologically more advanced and with little mana going around this was already impressive enough.


    ¡®Is this world hiding even more secrets? How deep does the hole in this world go?¡¯


    ...


    .....


    While Loki was deep in thought the conversation regarding the seven school mysteries continued.


    ¡°So, in the end, what are the seven school mysteries in this school?¡± Oliver who was already very excited couldn¡¯t wait to hear about the seven school mysteries. When Ichika saw the excited Oliver who was like a little child made Ichicka giggle.


    ¡°The most famous school mystery that almost all schools have is the thirteen step.¡±


    ¡°The thirteen step?¡± Michael who wasn¡¯t particrly in the know of such things asked.


    ¡°Yes, supposedly the stairs going to the roof of the school building are only twelve steps, but if you walk up the stairs at night, there will be thirteen steps. Once you reach the thirteen step you would be transported into another world.¡±


    When the others heard this there wasn¡¯t much reaction as this was indeed a normal story in most schools, even Oliver knew of this as when he was a child he always tried to find the thirteen steps trying to see if he could really go to another world. In fact, he would always check on the thirteen steps every time he changes schools.


    On the other hand, Loki¡¯s reaction was different from the others. Was it really possible to go to another world using this method?


    ¡®If this is true would I risk doing it, to go back to a world where my sister is no more?¡¯


    ¡°I know some of you have already tried this, and obviously you have failed since you¡¯re still here with us, but what if the result changes if we do it together? So let¡¯s investigate this mystery as a group.¡±


    ¡°Her Excellency is right, the results really might change if we do it as a group instead of individually.¡±


    ...


    ¡°The next mystery is the one where you could hear someone crying in the 2nd-floor washroom of the general studies building during lunchtime or sometimes in the afternoon during club time.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s interesting, has someone checked this out before?¡±


    ¡°There was a rumor that someone did try to look inside the cubicle but what he saw was supposedly a crying monster. Some rumors say if you look at the stall where you hear the crying you would only see your worst fears. Because of these rumors, no one uses the washroom on the second floor anymore.¡±


    ¡°A monster, your worst fear? Has there been no one else that dared to look into it?¡±


    ¡°We did send some students from the martial arts course to see the truth about the rumors since the problem with not using the washroom came about, but they found nothing even after waiting in the washroom for an entire day. Even after confirming this, no one wanted to use the washroom on the second floor.¡± Erika who was usually quietly standing behind Ichika spoke.


    ...


    ¡°The next mystery is the Dancing Shadow. A lot of custodians have reported seeing a shadowy figure dancing around the school grounds at around ten p.m in the evening. At first, the custodians were frightened by the figure thinking it was some sort of intruder, and reported it. So the higher-ups in the school at that time investigated the event and found nothing. In the end, the investigation ended without anything being figured out. Seeing as the Shadowy figure does not do anything except dance the school board is no longer bothered by it. Even the custodians treat the Dancing Shadow as a form of entrainment.¡±


    ¡°Really such a weird thing is happening in this school, and the school board just tosses it to the side, that¡¯s strange.¡± Tsukasa gave out his opinion on the matter.


    ¡°Strange indeed, but that¡¯s why we¡¯re going to investigate it as the ult club,¡± Ha-Eun answered happily.


    ¡°This was not how I imagine this club to be.¡± Michael sighed at the side.


    ¡®Don¡¯t worry Michael, maybe these supernatural events might unexpectedly help enlighten you.¡¯ The Spirit spoke encouragingly in Michael¡¯s mind.


    ...


    ¡°The next mystery is the bloody cherry blossom. Supposedly on random days, you would see blood on the cherry blossom tree located at the back of the Martial Arts Course Building.¡±


    ...


    ¡°The next mystery the students dub as the lonely piano. Every night after most students have already left the school and only a few remain to clean their clubrooms or do some extra work before leaving, they would hear the sound of the piano ying. The music yed is not of any known music and it changes every week, the students that heard the music of the lonely piano say that it made them feel sad, ethereal, and lonely. Some students tried looking for the source of the music, but the piano in the music room and the auditorium which are the only two pianos in the school were unmanned and the music kept on ying.¡±


    ...


    ¡°The next mystery is the floating orb in the hallway. This mystery urs here in the old school building. An unknown student long ago imed to have seen a white orb floating around the school hallway at night. The student tried to follow it but then he reached an area of the school building that was entirely dark, he could not see a single thing, not even the orb. Scared the student tried to go back the way he came, but no matter how long he walked he could not find the exit. It was at that moment when his fear was at its peak he heard a voice whispering in his ears. Can you y with me? The voice asked, after hearing that voice the student was so frightened he fainted. When the student woke up it was already the next day.¡±


    Ichika told the story in a way that made it feel even more disturbing. Even the jolly Ha-Eun was frowning now.


    ¡°Whoah, that¡¯s the creepiest of all the mysteries so far.¡±


    ...


    ¡°Actually four of the seven mysteries have changed over the years, the original seven mysteries were not like this. I already asked some of the teachers that have been working here for a long time and know about this stuff, every three years or so the mysteries change, except for three of the seven mysteries that have never changed since the beginning.¡±


    Ichika suddenly spoke in a rather serious tone which made the atmosphere in the room change.


    ¡°Three mysteries that have never changed even with all the others have... So which ones are those?¡± Michael who was starting to be curious about the seven mysteries asked.


    ¡°Obviously the thirteen steps have never changed as it is the most famous mystery that almost all schools have. The other one is the floating orb in the hallway. The name of the student that reported it can no longer be traced as it has been so long, all I can say is that the rumor of the floating orb started a decade after the school was built which was in the early neen hundreds.¡±


    As he was listening to Ichika¡¯s exnation Michael noticed something and suddenly asked a question.


    ¡°Wait I almost forgot Ichika-san you haven¡¯t told us about the seventh mystery?¡±


    ¡°The seventh mystery is the most mysterious of them all and no matter the school all of them have the same seventh mystery. The seventh mystery is the idea of the seventh mystery itself.¡±


    ¡°Huh?¡± Everyone looked at Ichika confused.


    ¡°Actually since the beginning, there has never been a seventh mystery all the rumors even back then counted up to six, but the students back then and even now believe that it has always been seven. There are some rumors that the seventh mystery can only be understood if you find the truth of the first six mysteries.¡±

 Chapter 177 - 177 Seven School Mysteries part 2

    177 Seven School Mysteries part The group from the ult club decided to make preparations for their investigation for the next day. As the group left the clubroom Loki once again felt that mysterious presence as if it was looking right at him, but before he could do anything the presence disappeared.


    Loki closed his eyes and expanded the range of his mana sensing but he could not find a single trace of the other party.


    ¡®Is there someone in this world who can erase their presence better than me?¡¯


    Being hailed as the greatest assassin in his old world as well as an assassin that can supposedly kill Gods and Demons this was the first time he has seen someone he was actively trying to find avoid his detection. Not to mention the way the other party avoided his detection was simr to his strongest stealth skill. Even though he didn¡¯t really care about the praises he got in his old world, deep down he was still proud to be called the strongest assassin and now he found out that there was someone who could hide their presence simr to him, Loki felt something within him heating up. Loki did not notice that at this very moment, he was smiling.


    ¡°Mr. Loki aren¡¯t you going to leave yet?¡± Ichika and Erika looked behind and saw the unmoving Loki.


    ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m going.¡± Loki stared in the direction where he felt the presence and shook his head. The two girls also looked in the direction Loki was staring but they saw nothing suspicious.


    ¡°What were you looking at over there?¡± Ichika asked Loki who in turn looked at her thinking of what to tell her. Many thoughts came to Loki¡¯s mind but only a second passed in the real world before he gave an answer.


    ¡°Nothing, I thought someone was looking at me but it¡¯s just my imagination.¡±


    The two girls stared at the leaving Loki with a look of doubt on their faces. Ichika already caught a glimpse of how strong Loki was, even with just recently gaining the inner energy of the fourth rank his skills in battle were better than most martial artists of higher ranks. Erika who also heard of how Loki defeated those kidnappers who were rank five martial artists with one hit each can vaguely guess how strong Loki was.


    .....


    They didn¡¯t know how strong Loki truly was, but someone as skilled as him sensed something even if it was just a hint of it shouldn¡¯t just be nothing. Loki who was about to leave stopped walking and suddenly asked a question.


    ¡°Ichika-san, do you know anything about the Kamizaki n?¡±


    When Ichika heard Loki¡¯s question her ever-smiling face turned into a frown, and even Erika became extremely alert when she heard the name of the Kamizaki n.


    ¡°The Kamizaki n?... Why are you asking about that n?¡±


    Seeing Ichika and Erika¡¯s reaction Loki knew that asking the two was a mistake, but it wasn¡¯t that bad. Loki already had a better understanding of the Kamizaki n simply by seeing the reactions on the two girls¡¯ faces.


    ¡°It¡¯s nothing I was just a little curious about them.¡± Loki no longer borated any further and simply left the dumbfounded girls behind.


    ...


    ¡°There¡¯s no way that was just a random question.¡±


    Erika spoke her face and tone equally serious. The Kamizaki n was not something an ordinary martial artist could possibly know about. Loki and his siblings have just recently been promoted from ordinary people to martial artists, it was indeed weird that their inner energy only formed now but it wasn¡¯t the first time these kinds of dys happened as there have been precedents, butpared to that knowing about the Kamizaki n was even weirder.


    ¡°Mydy, are you sure that we shouldn¡¯t investigate his origins?¡±


    Ichika was also frowning deeply now, the only time Erika would call her Mdy is if she felt that there was some kind of threat near her.


    ¡°For now, there¡¯s no need for that. What kind of person am I to investigate my own savior without his consent? Also if he really has some connection to the Kamizaki n, then sooner orter the truth wille out on its own. I¡¯m not like that kid from the Watanabe n always trying to gain more information. Not to mention isn¡¯t it more exciting not knowing about these things and dealing with them as theye.¡±


    When Erika heard Ichika¡¯s reply she could not help but sigh, this was one of Ichika¡¯s less desirable qualities.


    ¡°The Kamizaki n, things are bing even more interesting than I initially imagined,¡± Ichika murmured to herself as she and Erika left the school grounds.


    ...


    At home, Kira suddenly sneezed.


    ¡°Huh, am I getting a cold?¡± Kira was only distracted for a second before he continued reading the reports his subordinates sent him.


    ¡°Hoh, lots of interesting things are happening. Alisa actually met that old monster in the forest. I guess I can no longer monitor her as closely as before. If that old man finds out that he¡¯s being watched he mighte to the n and start ughtering people.¡±


    Kira quickly acted and sent an order to all his subordinates to stop surveince of Alisa, after doing that he continued reading the reports.


    ¡°Bing the adviser of the ult Club... Not only was Michael able to get Loki to be his adviser, but he was also capable enough to make the entire Student Council join his club. This Michael is bing even more interesting than before. The ult Club, hmm, if I knew earlier I would¡¯ve joined them as well. Not only will I be able to get close to Loki, but I can also associate myself with the princess of the Kurumi n.¡±


    Kira sighed as he thought about the missed opportunity.


    ¡°So many things started happening after Loki had his ident. It¡¯s like the wheels of destiny started turning from then on. Is this because he¡¯s rted to the Kamizaki n?...¡± Kira leaned on his chair as he once again sighed.


    ...


    The following day, the ult Club gathered in the clubroom during lunchtime. Each member had brought something for this uing investigation.


    Tsukusa was wearing gloves that were supposedly blessed by a priest of some unknown religion.


    Oliver brought a real short sword, it had a silver de and the handle was a simple wooden design. Normally students from the general studies course would not be allowed to carry weapons unlike those of the martial arts course, but yesterday Oliver already got permission from the Student Council President.


    Cho Ha-Eun brought small bottles filled with salt. She brought a lot since she read that salt had some purifying effects on supernatural beings. Of course, she had other weapons hidden in various ces.


    Edward also brought bottles of salt and not only that he also had some holy water which was made by a bishop of a very famous religion. He even brought some wooden stakes as this was the weapon used against the famous dark creature known as a vampire.


    Erika as the guard/best friend of Ichika even if she doesn¡¯t fully believe in these supernatural things still came prepared just in case. She brought several silver daggers hidden in her clothes, a few bottles of salt, and holy water, she even memorized exorcising spells she read from some books.


    Ichika also brought the exact same equipment as Erika.


    Every member of the ult Club those who believed in the supernatural and those who didn¡¯t all brought their own equipment, on the other hand, the President of the ult Club Michael didn¡¯t bring anything, seeing as the only equipment he needed was the knowledge given to him by the Spirit of the Akashic Records.


    Loki who was watching the students checking each other¡¯s equipment couldn¡¯t help but smile as a memory of the past came to him. He remembered back in his old world when he was disguising himself as a senior adventurer, a group of young adventurers who were just about to start their very first adventure. The scene before him was the same as back then, but hopefully, the ending of this group would be much better than the adventure group from back then.


    ...


    ¡°Alright everyone, now that we¡¯re done checking our equipment let¡¯s head to the first mystery that happens during lunchtime. The mystery of the crying in the general studies building second-floor washroom.¡±


    Ichika spoke like she was the club president and the actual club president Michael did not say anything as it was really better if Ichika took the lead on this one.


    ...


    The group from the ult club headed to the second-floor washroom in the general studies building, but on the way, a group of students followed them respectfully from a distance. Yet once the group from the ult Club got near the washroom the students simply stood back and didn¡¯t even dare to get near.


    Michael was the first to enter the washroom and to his and every other member of the ult club¡¯s surprise they really heard someone crying.


    Before Michael could approach the cubicle where the crying wasing from, Oliver grab hold of his shoulder.


    ¡°My friend, allow me to go ahead and scout the area.¡± Oliver took out his sword and slowly approached the cubicle.

 Chapter 178 - 178 Seven School Mysteries Part 3

    178 Seven School Mysteries Part Oliver with his silver short sword slowly approached the cubicle where the crying wasing from, and without saying a word he kicked the cubicle door open.


    ¡°AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!!!¡±


    Somebody suddenly screamed which in turn surprised Oliver and the others. Oliver quickly got into a defensive stance as he shifted his silver short sword into a nt covering a part of his body. When Loki saw this scene he was rather surprised, he already knew before that Oliver had a tiny amount of mana and he also had this weird thought process, now seeing his fluent movement Loki felt like not everything Oliver was saying was pure nonsense.


    Even the three martial artists from the Student Council were surprised, not by the screaming but by Oliver¡¯s defensive action. The way Oliver moved was as if the weapon in his hand was part of his body, which was not something ordinary swordsmen can do, not to mention ordinary people even some high-ranking martial artists aren¡¯t as good with using a sword.


    ...


    Unaware of everyone¡¯s thoughts Tsukasa came rushing to Oliver¡¯s side to protect his new friend with hisrge muscr body. When he saw the person screaming inside the cubicle he was dumbfounded.


    ¡°Huh, who are you guys?¡±


    The person inside the cubicle wasn¡¯t some ghost or monster it was just an ordinary boy, and it seems like he was eating his lunch while seating on a toilet. Seeing this scene Tsukasa already has some guesses as to what was happening.


    The other members of the ult Club approached the cubicle and when they saw the boy who was eating his lunch crying most of them had the same thought.


    .....


    ¡°Um, who are you guys?¡±


    ¡°Hello fellow student, surely you must know who I am.¡± Ichika stepped forward showing her ever-kind smile.


    ¡°Student Council President!¡± The student who was on the toilet instinctively stood up and the food on hisp scattered on the floor.


    ¡°Yes, so my fellow student can you please tell me why you¡¯re eating here on the toilet crying?¡±


    ¡°Umm...¡± The student was embarrassed and could not answer.


    ¡°It¡¯s alright, there¡¯s no need to feel embarrassed.¡± Seeing the kind smile on Ichika¡¯s pretty face was able to calm the student down and he actually felt like answering.


    ¡°Umm, my name is Daniel Mendoza and I¡¯m a second year of the general studies course. I... I eat here because my ssmates and other second-years talk behind my back and think I¡¯m a depressing character and they find me ufortable to be with. I didn¡¯t like them to feel ufortable that they can¡¯t eat properly so I hide here every time I have lunch or sometimes when I want to avoid...¡± Daniel no longer continued what he wanted to say.


    ¡°I see... Alright, I have something to say privately to student Daniel Mendoza, so can the other please leave for now.¡±


    Hearing what Ichika said the other members except for Erika left the washroom. While waiting outside, Erika suddenly came out of the washroom went somewhere and brought back a few students into the washroom. After several minutes the students including Daniel came out of the washroom bowed their heads and thanked Ichika. Seeing this scene Michael could not help but ask.


    ¡°Um, Ichika-san what did you tell them to turn things around?¡±


    ¡°Hmm, that¡¯s a secret.¡± Ichika winked and ced her finger in between her closed lips.


    ...


    After easily solving the crying washroom mystery, the group from the ult Club headed to the next mystery that doesn¡¯t really have a time frame as to when it happens, the cherry blossom tree that bleeds which was located at the back of the Martial Arts Course Building.


    This Cherry Blossom tree was the only one in the entire school grounds, and it was also thergest tree within the school grounds. There were no longer any students following them this time as some of the teachers came to stop them.


    The ult Club members looked at the Cherry Blossom that bleeds and there were indeed some blood stains on the tree trunk. When Loki saw the position of the blood stains on the tree trunk as well as howrge they were Loki already had a guess as to what these blood stains were, but he did not voice out his opinion and allowed the group of students to figure it out by themselves.


    ...


    ¡°Hmm, it¡¯s not like the entire tree is bleeding like I imagined,¡± Oliver spoke sounding a little disappointed.


    ¡°Also the blood on this tree alles from one ce.¡± Michael also chimed in this time as he touched the cherry blossom tree.


    ¡°The tree itself is not bleeding, so the blood muste from an outside source.¡± Cho Ha-Eun spoke after she stabbed one of her daggers into the tree and pulled it out.


    ¡°I see, I already have some idea as to what¡¯s happening here.¡± Michael then started to exin his own theory.


    ¡°These blood stains shoulde from someone else, not the tree itself, and every time this persones to the tree he or she is bleeding. The position of the blood stain is only in this part of the tree, so maybe the person doing this is using the tree as a punching bag and hitting the tree continuously until he or she started bleeding and he or she does not stop even when they start bleeding. I can say from experience that sometimes when you¡¯re too focused on your training you won¡¯t be able to notice such things.¡±


    ...


    After hearing Michael¡¯s exnation the others all agreed with his theory.


    ¡°So now all we need is proof and the only way to get it is for one of us to stay behind to see if anybody elsees to the treeter. We aren¡¯t sure if this mystery person wille after sses or during.¡±


    ¡°Are you suggesting one of us skip sses, and you¡¯re even suggesting this in front of me the Student Council President?¡± Ichika spoke which made Michael finally realize what he just said and looked at the smiling Ichika feeling guilty.


    ¡°Hmm, no worries, I didn¡¯t hear anything. So if one of you skips afternoon sses just today, I wouldn¡¯t really know.¡±


    Ichika suddenly said such a thing which surprised the other members. After the initial surprise and a little bit of discussion, Tsukasa was the one left behind.


    ...


    After leaving behind Tsukasa seeing that the other mysteries all happen at night the other members went back to their respective sses.


    When afternoon sses were over the members of the ult club received a group message from Tsukasa asking everyone to gather near the cherry blossom tree.


    ...


    Once all the members arrived near the Cherry Blossom tree, they saw that someone aside from Tsukasa was near the tree. The person in question was punching the tree repeatedly and you could see his hands were bandaged.


    Seeing that Michael¡¯s guess was right, the group did not bother the young man with his training. It wasn¡¯t really their obligation to tell other martial artists how to train, even if they see him bleeding.


    ...


    The remaining five mysteries the group was going to investigate were all happening during the night time when most students have already gone home, but since it was still a few hours before night to arrive the group headed back to their clubroom.


    ...


    ¡°We already investigated two of the seven mysteries, and they weren¡¯t supernatural after all, and it wasn¡¯t as mysterious as I initially thought they would be.¡±


    Upon arriving in the clubroom the group started a discussion about the two mysteries they saw today, and Oliver was the first to speak.


    ¡°I guess, most of the time supernatural events do have a logical exnation behind them.¡± Edward shrugged his shoulder and gave his own opinion on the matter at hand.


    ¡°Yeah, those two mysteries came to have boring conclusions, I hope the other mysteries are more exciting, especially since they¡¯re all happening at night.¡± Cho Ha-Eun also spoke a little disappointed as well.


    Seeing the disappointment on the faces of some of the club members, Michael thought that as the nominal president of the club he needed to say something.


    ¡°Well, don¡¯t be too discouraged guys we do have five more mysteries to investigate. Maybe one of them might turn out to be truly supernatural.¡±


    While the group of students was talking about the two mysteries, Loki who was sitting in the corner of the room was deep in thought.


    ¡®The next mystery the group would most likely investigate is the one about going to another world, the thirteen steps.¡¯


    Loki was feeling nervous about this one mystery, he started to wonder if he should do it or not. Even though the probability of such a thing working was minuscule, the chance was still there.


    ¡®It¡¯s also possible that this thirteen-step thing doesn¡¯t work on these students because it needs something specific, maybe someone like me whoes from another world is a trigger, or it¡¯s possible that mana is involved. Anyway no matter what it is I better not try it out, I already have people I care about here and back there... There is no longer anyone.¡¯

 Chapter 179 - 179 Seven School Mysteries Part 4

    179 Seven School Mysteries Part Night time came quickly and most of the students have already left the school grounds. The ult Club members went to the staircase that was heading to the rooftop. The staircase they have chosen was the one in the general studies building, as it was wider and could amodate arge group of people walking up at the same time.


    ¡°Okay, first let¡¯s try it one by one and then all together,¡± Michael instructed the others.


    The first one to go up was Cho Ha-Eun and unlike at the beginning, she wasn¡¯t as excited since she learned the first two mysteries had a rather normal exnation. Still, Ha-Eun continued to have a certain degree of anticipation as she started walking up the stairs.


    ¡°1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12, huh? It¡¯s just twelve steps there are not thirteen steps at all.¡±


    Ha-Eun spoke feeling greatly disappointed. Even if she wasn¡¯t going to be transported into another world, she at least hoped to see a shing light or at least to have the staircase have up to thirteen steps.


    Seeing what happened to Ha-Eun Loki felt a little relieved, still, he wasn¡¯t nning on checking on the thirteen steps himself.


    After Ha-Eun, the other members also tried to walk up the stairs but the same as Ha-Eun they could only count up to twelve steps. Then it was finally Oliver¡¯s turn to go up. Even though he tried walking up these stairs before he still tried it out this time as maybe something different will happen now that a lot of people are watching.


    ¡°Okay, now it¡¯s my turn. One, two, three-¡±


    While Oliver was counting Loki felt something weird, it wasn¡¯t much but Oliver¡¯s tiny bit of mana started to circte throughout his body a little faster than before. Why didn¡¯t this phenomenon happen when Michael who had more abundant mana did this?


    .....


    When Oliver arrived at the twelfth step he and the others were surprised that there was still anotherst step remaining. Oliver did not take thatst remaining step as he was a little dazed, before when he did this there really weren¡¯t any thirteen steps.


    ¡°Huh, did he make a mistake somewhere and count wrong?¡± Edward blurted out the question everyone else was thinking.


    ¡®Spirit is there something going on with Oliver, why did a thirteen-step suddenly appear?¡¯ Michael asked the former Omniscient Spirit.


    ¡®I can¡¯t say but there might be some kind of ritual at work, or he just made a mistake. There are too few clues at the moment.¡¯


    The Spirit answered also wondering what was going on as he felt Oliver¡¯s mana cirction flowing more smoothly than before.


    ¡°Oliver how about you-¡± Michael was about to stop Oliver but then the other party smiled widely and went onward.


    ¡°Here Ie O¡¯ otherworld!¡± Oliver stepped on thest step, everyone present did not even blink when suddenly a sh of light enveloped all those that were near.


    ...


    ¡°Huh, did something happen?¡± Oliver who was having a slight headache asked as he looked around his surroundings, he saw the other members of the ult Club looking at him weirdly.


    ¡°Are you alright Oliver? You suddenly fainted.¡± Michael asked sounding very worried.


    ¡°I fainted? How long was I out, why aren¡¯t we at the roof?¡± Oliver asked as thest memory he had was when he was going up the stairs.


    ¡°Are you talking about the thirteen steps? All of us already checked and we even went up together and no matter how many times we counted it, it was just twelve steps. As for how long you¡¯ve been unconscious it happened right after we made ourst attempt on the thirteen steps. It has only been a few minutes since you passed out we were going to the infirmary but then you woke up.¡± Tsukasa answered Oliver¡¯s question.


    ¡°Huh, I can¡¯t remember any of that... Thest thing I remember was I got to the twelfth step and there really was a thirteen step.¡±


    ¡°You must¡¯ve been dreaming about that part, we were all there nothing of that sort happened. Maybe you really aren¡¯t feeling well, so how about let¡¯s end things for now and continue our investigation tomorrow.¡±


    Ichika gave out a suggestion and the other members quickly agreed as they were worried about Oliver¡¯s condition. Oliver wanted to refute and tell them that everything was alright but his head was really aching.


    ¡°Fine since we all agree on ending things for today. I officially announce that this is the end of our first day of investigations on the seven mysteries, we¡¯ll continue tomorrow.¡± Michael pped his hands and announced, the others also started pping and one by one said their goodbyes and got ready to leave the school.


    ...


    ¡°Michael has the Spirit said anything to you, do you feel weird?¡±


    Loki suddenly appeared beside Michael who was walking back home. Michael was quite surprised by Loki¡¯s sudden appearance that he got into a defensive stance but then he calmed down when he saw Loki¡¯s face.


    ¡°Weird feeling? What do you mean Sir Loki, did you sense something different when we were investigating the seven mysteries?¡±


    ¡°... So you didn¡¯t sense anything... How about the Spirit, did he sense anything strange?¡±


    ¡®What is this guy saying, did he sense something that even I the Spirit of the Akashic Records didn¡¯t sense?¡¯


    The Spirit spoke rather aggressively in Michael¡¯s mind. The current Spirit might not be as strong as he once was, nor did the Spirit have his former Omniscience but the Spirit was confident that there was nothing Loki could sense that the Spirit couldn¡¯t.


    ¡°It doesn¡¯t seem like the Spirit sensed anything, Sir Loki. Did you actually sense something strange, Sir Loki?¡±


    ¡°Nothing, it was just a weird feeling... I guess I¡¯m feeling a bit overworked, I¡¯ll just head back home and sleep. See you tomorrow Michael.¡±


    ¡°Good night Sir Loki, see you tomorrow.¡±


    ...


    After leaving Michael, Loki did not head home instead went back to the school and onto the roof.


    ¡®Even the Spirit of the Akashic Records was affected. The Spirit might be in an iplete state but its knowledge is unquestionable. It would seem that I was the only one unaffected by that burst of light... No... Even Oliver had some doubts at first and was notpletely affected. Still, what was that, it was able to alter everyone¡¯s memory and even teleported us to a different space.¡¯


    Loki who arrived at the staircase leading to the roof used his mana sensing but found nothing weird. Still, Loki was worried there was something in the school that was near his siblings that he could not understand. This thing whatever it is might be harmful to his siblings.


    Loki tried everything that he could with his current abilities to detect abnormalities in the space near the staircase but he found nothing.


    ¡®In the first ce, why was I the only one unaffected? What is the difference between me and them?... The only thing different between me and others is that my soul came from a different world... The thirteen steps that could send you to a different world. Is that the reason why I wasn¡¯t affected or is it something else like the blood that flows in this body, the blood of the Kamizaki n?¡¯


    Loki then started debating with himself if he should test the thirteen steps. If it really was because his soul was from another world that he wasn¡¯t affected by whatever spell or ability this ce has then that¡¯s good, but what if it¡¯s rted to his blood that would mean it could do something to his siblings. Not only that deep down Loki was truly curious about the thirteen steps. In the end, Loki gritted his teeth and took the plunge as he started walking up the stairs.


    ¡®1,2,3,4-¡®


    As Loki walked slowly while counting he was feeling nervous it was as if his legs were bing heavier and heavier with every step he made. Loki finally reached the end and to his surprise, nothing happened.


    ¡°Twelve steps... What does this mean, is the only one who could activate whatever spell that¡¯s here Oliver? If so, what¡¯s the point of all this? Was that spell truly just a spell to alter one¡¯s memories and teleport them away or did something else happened? Still, if I remember correctly he told us that he had checked these steps before and nothing happened, but now it was different. So was the difference because someone else was watching him go up the stairs or is it because Michael and I were watching him that whatever spell it was activated?¡±


    Loki knew that no matter how many questions he had nothing would be answered for now, so he decided to simply observe Oliver for now.


    ¡®It would seem that there are many secrets hidden within that boy.¡¯


    As Loki was about to turn around and leave, he suddenly saw something that frightened him the thirteen step that wasn¡¯t there before suddenly appeared. Loki who had his right leg up was startled as his right leg touched thest step. The moment Loki did so, the white sh once again appeared.


    ...


    Loki looked around and saw that he was in the school hallway. Why was he just standing in the hallway in a daze? Loki checked his body and it doesn¡¯t seem like there was anything wrong.


    ¡®What was I doing here again?...¡¯ Loki had a slight headache as he tried recalling what he was doing before.


    ¡®Oh right, I checked on the thirteen steps again and there really was nothing. I guess that weird feeling I had was just me being anxious about the idea of returning back to my old world. I guess I could ask Harold if there are any jobs for me tonight so I can relieve some of my stress.¡¯ With those thoughts in Loki¡¯s mind, he left the school grounds.

 Chapter 180 - 180 A story about mages

    180 A story about mages


    The next day the members of the ult Club once again gathered after sses when all other students have left the school grounds.


    ¡°The next mystery we should check should be either the Dancing Shadow or the Lonely Piano, both of these mysteries have known time frames and ces where they appear. So which one should we tackle first?¡± Michael asked the other members in the clubroom.


    ¡°The Lonely piano could be heard throughout the school grounds, and we can¡¯t hear it right now. As for the Dancing Shadow, it reportedly appears at Ten p.m., and right now it¡¯s just seven, there are at least three more hours to go before it¡¯s time so what are we going to do in the meantime?¡± Ha-Eun asked the other members.


    When Michael heard what Ha-Eun said he became a little excited, maybe this is the opportunity he needed.


    ¡°Um, everyone as the ult Club how about we share our knowledge of the ult?¡±


    ¡°The leader is right! Let us share our stories, and our knowledge and deepen our bond with one another.¡± Oliver fully supported this idea.


    ¡°Hmm, that sounds interesting.¡± Tsukasa also supported the idea.


    ¡°Alright, so who is going to share first?¡± Ichika also chimed in.


    ¡°How about we let our adviser share his knowledge? As the librarian of the school, surely Sir Loki has some insights on the ult that he can share.¡±


    .....


    Michael was finally able to ask Loki for advice albeit indirectly. Also, he didn¡¯t tell anyone of Loki¡¯s true abilities and just ask him in line with his identity as an adviser.


    ¡°I want to hear that too. If Mr. Loki doesn¡¯t want to share any knowledge about the ult he can also share his life experience with us.¡±


    Ichika was greatly interested in what Loki had to say. In the past few days since the creation of the club, Ichika tried to get close to Loki, but every time she approached Loki seems to disappear and start conversations with other people, especially Michael. She thought that by now Loki would¡¯ve at least been attracted to her beauty but it doesn¡¯t seem like he was affected at all. This was the first time Ichika experienced such a thing since she was able to use her beauty on both males and females.


    Seeing the excited expression on everyone¡¯s faces Loki could only sigh. Well, he did agree to be the adviser of the club, as long as he doesn¡¯t expose his true strength and only shows a little bit, sharing a few things should be alright.


    So what to share with them, he couldn¡¯t exin mana to the group since for now, Michael and Oliver have the ability to absorb mana.


    ¡®Hmm, what to share?... Oh right, how about I share my theory about the mages in this world.¡¯


    ...


    ¡°Alright then, what do you guys know about mages?¡±


    ¡°Mages, are you talking about those characters written in some fantasy novels that can use the natural elements of the world without using inner energy?¡± Edward shared what he knew about Mages.


    ¡°The only thing I know about the term mages is from the video games I y,¡± Ha-Eun spoke while tilting her head a bit.


    ¡°Oh, mages a term I haven¡¯t heard in a while. Back then one of mypanions was the greatest archmage of the kingdom, his strongest spell could summon lightning from the heavens to strike the enemy. Still, in this world which is ruled by martial arts the mages of my old world who have weak bodies would be at a disadvantage.¡±


    ¡°I see, in your minds, mages do not exist in the real and all are just fabrications, simply fantasy characters, but what if I told you I can prove the existence of mages in the real world.¡±


    The moment those words came out of Loki¡¯s mouth, all of the members were shocked and then that shock became a look of excitement.


    ¡°Oh our lord adviser do you know of the existence of mages? I knew that you weren¡¯t a simple librarian.¡±


    ¡°Mages, did they really exist?¡± Ichika and Erika the two who were more knowledgeable than most students frowned.


    ¡°There is no definite proof of their existence, but there are many clues in various historical texts. The most famous example was the battle of knights and martial artists. Do you guys know of this battle?¡±


    When Loki asked that question Michael remembered the image of the royal door, but he doesn¡¯t know the significance of that picture.


    ¡°The battle on holy ground, a legendary battle that is famously known as a myth,¡± Edward answered.


    ¡°It could be a myth or it could be a real ount no one knows as all traces of that era were hard toe by. Still, in that story, it was described that the group of knights that faced the martial artists that tried to invade their holynd were people with no inner energy. In that story that was recovered from the diary of an old martial artist who fought in that war, the knights were using powers very different from inner energy. It is said that what they used was the energy of the world itself.¡±


    ¡°So are you saying that those knights were mages?¡±


    ¡°Yes, the energy of the world that was described seems to be able to manipte the elements around them which have the same description as those mages in popr fantasy novels and games. Don¡¯t you think that¡¯s too much of a coincidence?¡±


    ¡°Well, if that were true then it would be quite intriguing but it¡¯s just a myth.¡±


    ¡°A myth that could be based on real events. The story of the knights that use the energy of the world does note from just that one battle. There are different ces in the world that uncovered various old texts that describe an unknown power simr to what the knights used. Not only were they found in different ces but the eras they came from are also different. If it just happened in one ce, in a certain era this unknown power that was different from inner energy could be just a hoax a myth, but to be described in different ces in different eras separated a thousand miles and thousand years, this shouldn¡¯t simply be a coincidence, right?¡±


    While Loki was speaking he showed various pictures, that he found on the inte regarding his theory. Indeed there were numerous murals, statues, and other ancient texts, that depict another form of power aside from martial arts.


    When the students heard Loki¡¯s theory they had varying reactions. It was indeed an interesting theory, but in the end, it was just that a theory.


    ¡°That truly is interesting Sir Loki, I wonder if somebody else is researching a simr thing?¡± Michael spoke while deep in thought.


    ¡°As expected of our lord adviser, such a thing if true could change this boring world of martial artists,¡± Oliver spoke with his usual excited tone.


    ¡°That was quite interesting Mr. Loki, I hope to learn more about it. If possible maybe you could give me some private lessons.¡±


    Ichika spoke with a different smile on her face, it wasn¡¯t the usual kind smile but a mischievous one. When the others heard what Ichika said, Edward and Ha-Eun¡¯s expressions changed as well.


    ¡°I want to learn more about those people who used a different power from inner energy. I hope Mr. Librarian could tell us more about it.¡± Ha-Eun raised her hand waving it.


    ¡°Yes, there¡¯s no need for private one on ones, since we are all part of the ult Club and we are all interested in such theories why don¡¯t we just hear it together.¡±


    Edward spoke while urging the other members to agree with him. Seeing what the two did, Ichika was frowning on the inside, it was obvious to her that the two were stopping her from getting close to Loki, she then looked at Erika wanting her to help. Erika nodded her head as if she heard Ichika¡¯s thoughts and spoke.


    ¡°Okay then, so how about every club time we allot thirty minutes of our time to listen to more of Mr. Loki¡¯s theories, is that alright with everyone?¡±


    Ichika who was looking at Erika had her mouth open slightly, it was getting harder to keep her smile on as she heard what Erika said.


    ¡®I thought you were on my side.¡¯ Ichika shouted in her mind while continuing to look at Erika.


    ¡®Of course, I am on your side. This is good for you.¡¯ As if the two had telepathy they spoke simply by looking into each other¡¯s eyes.


    Unaware of the thoughts of the two the other members agreed with Erika¡¯s proposition. After showing a few more pictures Loki was done telling his theory regarding Mages. At first, he was going to use the Alchemist as an example of a modern mage, but he remembered that most people didn¡¯t know about the Alchemist, so he stopped himself.


    Once Loki was done sharing his theory the other members also shared their ideas about the ult.

 Chapter 181 - 181 Seven School Mysteries part 5

    181 Seven School Mysteries part While the group was sharing their own knowledge of the ult with each other they suddenly heard the sound of a piano ying echoing throughout the now nearly empty school. The melody that was being yed was unlike anything they have heard before.


    It was a beautiful solemn piece that matched the atmosphere of the night. It was as if the music being yed made the moon and stars shine brighter. It gave the school grounds with no students feel like an ancient holy ce.


    The custodians and guards who were working the night shift weren¡¯t bothered by the sound as they were used to it. Not to mention it was a sound that made them feelfortable and it could only be heard here in this school at this time. This was the only thing that they considered to be a good thing during the night shift.


    ...


    ¡°That¡¯s the sound of the lonely piano? I was already expecting it to be good based on the rumors but it¡¯s better than I ever expected.¡± Edward murmured as he was entranced by the beautiful music.


    ¡°What time is it?¡± Michael asked the other members.


    ¡°It¡¯s 8:45.¡±


    ¡°So we got an hour and fifteen minutes to find the pianist ying the music before the Dancing Shadow appears... Still, I wonder how the sound of the piano echoes throughout the entire school, is the person ying using the school¡¯s inte?¡±


    ¡°No, the sound is noting from the inte system. I¡¯m not sure how he¡¯s able to do it, but this sound doesn¡¯t seem to being from any kind of speaker.¡±


    .....


    Erika who had her eyes closed exined to the others. The very moment she heard the sound of the piano she concentrated her inner energy onto her ears to hear better, but despite doing so she could not find the location of the piano that was ying the music as the sound seems to being from different directions. It really was like the inte system, but she was sure that the sound wasn¡¯ting from that.


    ¡°Have you guys noticed there is something weird mixed in with the sound?¡± Ha-Eun asked as she too was focusing on the sound of the ying piano.


    ¡°Yes, it¡¯s not just the sound of a piano ying I can vaguely hear the sound of someone humming as well,¡± Ichika answered.


    ¡°Alright, how about we pair up and search where the sound ising from?¡±


    Michael suggested and the others nodded in approval, Ichika was about to ask Loki to partner up with her but when she looked she saw Ha-Eun was already there sticking to him. Ichika who was smiling like always had her lips twitching.


    ¡°I want to partner up with Mr. Loki, in case something happens he can protect me.¡±


    Ha-Eun happily hugged Loki¡¯s arm which made Ichika clench her fist. Noticing Ichika¡¯s reaction Erika sighed before speaking.


    ¡°I think what Ha-Eun said is quite reasonable. In this club we have three members in General Studies, so they need to pair up with someone from the martial arts course. Seeing as Michael is the one with the lowest rank among us here, he should partner up with another martial artist.¡±


    When Ha-Eun heard what Erika said she pouted, she wanted to mess around with Loki but now she can¡¯t. Ichika was also a little disappointed when she heard Erika¡¯s suggestion as she wanted to pair up with Loki, still, this is better than Loki pairing up with the other girls.


    ...


    While the members of the ult club were deciding who pairs up with who, the momentum of the piece being yed increased. From the solemn sound a while ago it became exciting and vibrant, it made one¡¯s blood boil.


    Some people who had a more active imagination could even see a battlefield before them where hundreds fought and died.


    ...


    The ult Club now had their pairings. Loki was with Michael, Ha-Eun was paired up with Edward, Erika was paired up with Tsukasa, and Ichika was paired with Oliver. Each pair went in different directions to search.


    ...


    Once they were separated from the other members Michael spoke to Loki.


    ¡°Sir Loki, the Spirit wanted to say that whoever is ying the piano is resonating with the spirits within the school grounds. The spirits are making the sound be heard throughout the school.¡±


    ¡°Spirits... Aside from that noisy Spirit of the Akashic Records, there are other spirits in this school?¡±


    ¡°Sir Loki doesn¡¯t mean what he just said, it¡¯s a joke, please calm down.¡±


    The Spirit of the Akashic Records started shouting in Michael¡¯s mind and Michael tried his best to pacify the Spirit. After Michael was able to make the Spirit Calm down, he was finally able to answer Loki¡¯s question.


    ¡°There are varying Spirits in this school, there aren¡¯t many but they are there.¡±


    ¡°Why haven¡¯t I seen any of them?¡±


    Loki asked a little confused, even though he didn¡¯t really care that much if he could see the spirits or not, but he just found it rather weird that he has patrolled the school many times but not once has he seen another spirit except for the annoying Spirit of the Akashic Records.


    Hearing Loki¡¯s question Michael hesitated for a bit, but the Spirit of the Akashic Records kept on pushing him to say it as the Spirit wanted to see what kind of reaction Loki would show once he knew the truth.


    ¡°Um... The Spirits are afraid of you, they said that you reek of death. So they actively avoid you, Sir Loki.¡±


    ¡°Heh, that makes sense. That could also be the reason why even back then I could never see those guys.¡±


    ¡°Back then?¡± Michael asked with his eyes staring at Loki who had a lonely look on his face.


    ¡°Oh, it¡¯s nothing... Anyway since you know that the spirits are helping this person who¡¯s ying the piano, they should also know where to find the said person.¡±


    ¡°Yes, actually I was going to ask if you could wait for me here so that I can speak with the spirits.¡±


    ¡°Sure go ahead, I¡¯ll wait for you.¡±


    ...


    A few minutes after talking to the other spirits, Michael and Loki were able to find the location of the piano yer so they contacted the others to gather at the Principal¡¯s office.


    ¡°So the sound of the piano ising from the Principal¡¯s office, but there shouldn¡¯t be any piano inside?¡±


    ¡°We¡¯ll learn the truth if we go inside, but how do we go in?¡± Tsukasa spoke while turning the doorknob of the Principal¡¯s office but as expected it was locked.


    ¡°No problem, I already have the keys to all the rooms. I borrowed it from one of the custodians.¡± Ichika happily took out the keys she had and entered the Principal¡¯s room without hesitation.


    Upon entering they didn¡¯t see anything unusual, there was no piano and no Principal in sight.


    ¡°See, there¡¯s nothing here.¡± Tuskasa shrugged his shoulders.


    ¡°But the sound of the piano inside the room is indeed louder than any other ce,¡± Erika said as she concentrated on listening to the music. The other members also noticed that the sounding from this room was indeed different from all the other ces as it felt closer.


    ¡°Maybe the Principal has some kind of hidden room like in those TV shows. Maybe if we pull on the books on the bookshelf a hidden mechanism will be activated.¡±


    Michael suggested already knowing that there really is a hidden room in the Principal¡¯s office.


    ¡°Now that you mention it, the space in this room is a lot smaller than on the blueprints,¡± Ichika mused as she started pulling on the books. The other members also searched the room, and after a while, a sudden clicking noise could be heard.


    The bookshelf started moving to the side revealing arger room. The room in question was filled with a lot of decorative paintings, and the light in it was from the candles on the walls. In the middle of the rather spacious room they could see a Grand Piano and the one ying it was none other than the Principal.


    Even after the sound of the secret door being opened the Principal didn¡¯t notice the neers as he was fully concentrated on his ying. Now that the members could hear the music up close it was even more mesmerizing than before. The piece being yed had some kind of magic that made those who listen feel the urge to go to battle.


    The Principal continued to y in a trance, his very soul was being transmitted through the sound of the piano. The Principal lifted his head a bit and in the corner of his eyes he saw a group standing before him, the Principal was so shocked he leaned backward and almost fell off his seat, but the Principal was a powerful martial artist and he was able to quickly bnce himself.


    The Principal then took a better look at the people who suddenly barged into his special ce. The first person he noticed was, of course, Ichika.


    ¡°Student Council President, there better be a good exnation as to why you¡¯re here.¡±

 Chapter 182 - 182 Sudden Attack

    182 Sudden Attack


    The Student Council President Ichika exined what they were doing to the Principal. After listening to her exnation the Principal was quite surprised, he too was someone who graduated from this school and knew about the seven mysteries, but back then they were different. The Principal never expected that he would be one of the Seven Mysteries.


    ¡°I see, I understand what you were trying to do but that doesn¡¯t excuse you foring into my office unannounced.¡±


    After some scolding from the Principal the members of the ult Club apologized and left the Principal¡¯s office.


    ...


    When they got out of the office the group noticed that it was already eleven O¡¯ clock and the time for the Dancing Shadow had long passed.


    ¡°That scolding took longer than I expected, it¡¯s alreadyte. I guess that¡¯s it for today¡¯s investigation. Let¡¯s continue tomorrow, just four more mysteries left.¡± Michael announced the end of the day¡¯s investigation the group said their goodbyes and separated.


    ....


    Ichika and Erika didn¡¯t go home like the others as they needed to finish some paperwork. When they finished the paperwork it was already one in the morning. Seeing howte it was Ichika and Erika left the school grounds but for some reason, the car wasn¡¯t there to pick them up.


    Erika tried contacting the driver but to no avail, she then used her walkie-talkie to inform Ichika¡¯s security detail but none of them were responding as well. It was at this moment Erika quickly made a decision and started running while pulling Ichika. Erika tried to call someone from the n but her cell phone wasn¡¯t working as if the signal was being jammed.


    .....


    ¡°Mydy, something¡¯s wrong we need to head to the safe room in the Student Council building and contact the n.¡±


    Ichika nodded her head and the two started running faster. While they were running Ichika looked around and noticed something weird, no one was in the school, the guards of the school who were all skilled martial artists disappeared and not a single custodian could be seen.


    Either they have all been dealt with or there was a traitor in the school¡¯s security detail. Ichika started to worry about the other members of the ult Club who also went home before, were they able to get home properly or... Ichika didn¡¯t even want to finish that thought of hers.


    ...


    Ichika and Erika were nearing the Student Council Building when suddenly a group of people appeared before them. There were at least ten people that could be seen blocking Ichika and Erika¡¯s path. The men were wearing all ck and covering their faces. Each one of these people was exuding a powerful aura, there were at least rank six martial artists.


    Erika stood in front of Ichika and took out two hidden knives under her skirt. Erika already knew that she was no match for even one person on the other side but she was willing to fight until the end for Ichika, not only because Ichika was her boss, but because Ichika was her best friend.


    ¡°Oh look at what we have here, the princess of the Kurumi n and her faithful dog.¡±


    One of the men stepped forward, this person who was exuding a more terrible aura than the others should be their boss.


    ¡°Who are you people and what do you want from me?¡± Ichika who was used to being kidnapped spoke calmly.


    ¡°I can¡¯t tell you who we are at the moment that¡¯s a secret as for what we want, well we just want to invite the Princess for a little tea party.¡±


    ¡°A tea party is it?... So tell me to invite me to this tea party what have you done with my guards and the people in this school?¡±


    ¡°The people in this school? Oh you mean those non-martial artists, we made them sleep for a while. As for your guards and the security guards in this school, well they were uncooperative and didn¡¯t want to have a little nap so we were forced to make them sleep forever.¡±


    When Ichika and Erika heard the other party¡¯s answer they felt anger and fear. Being able to deal with the guards without making a sound means that these people aren¡¯t just rank six martial artists, they should be rank seven martial artists with powerful equipment. Ichika knew that the security at night in the school was weaker than during the morning when the students are present. The strongest on the night shift was just a rank seven martial artist.


    ¡°You b*stards, I will kill you all!¡± Erika clenched first and growled at the enemies before them.


    ¡°Yeah keep barking you dog, that¡¯s all your good for anyway. So princess what do you say will youe to our little party like an elegantdy or will youe kicking and screaming like a child?¡±


    Erika looked at Ichika and spoke to her with a voice that only she could hear.


    ¡°Mydy, I will create a distraction so you start running the moment I make a move.¡±


    ¡°What?! I can¡¯t leave you here by yourself!¡±


    ¡°Mydy my life isn¡¯t as important as yours, so you above all need to survive.¡±


    ¡°Huh? How can you say that of course your life is as important as mine? I¡¯ll just let myself be kidnapped it¡¯s not like it hasn¡¯t happened before. If we surrender now, you and I can survive.¡±


    ¡°No Mydy... This isn¡¯t like those other times, I¡¯m sure the moment you are caught by these guys something horrible might happen, my intuition is telling me so. I¡¯m sure you feel that as well, these guys are bad news.¡±


    ¡°Even so, I can¡¯t just leave you here!¡±


    ¡°Mydy, please, please, allow me to fulfill my duty as a Capell and as your best friend.¡±


    Ichika saw the resolve in Erika¡¯s eyes and could no longer respond as she bit her lips until they bled.


    ¡°Are you done discussing with each other, so what will you do?¡± The man asked Ichika as he slowly approached the two girls. It was at this moment Erika¡¯s aura burst out and she took a fighting stance.


    ¡°I will never allow your filthy hands to even touch a single hair on mydy¡¯s body!¡±


    ¡°Hoh, the puppy thinks it¡¯s a wolf and is trying to bite me, how cute.¡± The man was smiling under his mask.


    Erika looked at Ichika onest time signaling her to go. As Erika was ready to burn her life to give Ichika more time to escape, she and every other person felt something an overwhelming killing intent that made Erika and Ichika fall to their knees in fear. Even the more powerful martial artists present couldn¡¯t help but tremble in the face of this terrible killing intent.


    ¡°What do we have here, a group of men trying to bully two little girls.¡±


    The group of people unconsciously looked in the direction where the voice originated from. When they lifted their heads they saw on the roof of the building under moonlight stood a man with a ck trench coat and a white mask. This person that appeared was someone everybody in Leim City knew, even the group of kidnappers who weren¡¯t from the city know who he was. The person who made all the criminals despair, the urban legend, the assassin, Fade.


    When the group of men who were about to kidnap Ichika saw Fade some of them felt that their n was about to fail. The leader of the group looked at Fade and gulped. The one in front of him was someone he heard a lot about, but he never expected to see him in person and in this kind of situation.


    Even though they didn¡¯t know how strong Fade was, the killing intent alone made them aware that this person has killed more people than they can imagine.


    ¡°Is it Mr. Fade, to what do we owe the pleasure?¡± The leader asked his body still slightly trembling.


    ¡°I was just strolling when I saw the scene of grown men bullying two little girls, so I came to see what kind of cowards you are.¡±


    ¡°... Is there any way that I can convince you to look the other way?¡± While the leader was talking he was already signaling his subordinates to quickly kidnap Ichika when they see a chance.


    Hearing the leader¡¯s question Ichika and Erika who were still in a state of shock sobered up and looked at Fade with pleading eyes. Surely a man like Fade who kills the wicked would help them.


    ¡°I refuse, I do not make deals with sinners.¡± Fade then looked at Ichika and spoke to her. ¡°How about you littledy would you wish to employ me?¡±


    When the people that were trying to kidnap Ichika heard this question they knew that they no longer had time to hesitate as they quickly charged at the two girls.


    ¡°Yes, I will hire you, please kill them all!¡±


    The moment Ichika shouted those words one of the men was about to reach Ichika and grab her, but before he could touch Ichika his hand suddenly disappeared, it was actually cut clean off. Fade then appeared before the two girls and spoke.


    ¡°The Contract has been formed.¡±

 Chapter 183 - 183 Killing one after another

    183 Killing one after another


    The leader saw how easily and cleanly Fade cut off his subordinate¡¯s hand and frowned. Even though that one subordinate wasn¡¯t particrly strong and was caught by a surprise attack he was still a rank six martial artist. Those higher than rank four are called true martial artists and rank six is already pretty strong.


    ¡®Damn, he¡¯s better than I could ever imagine.¡¯ The leader gritted his teeth and gave out a secret signal only his subordinates could understand.


    ¡®Everyone take out your weapons, Beta, Delta, and Trois you three distract Fade, and the others take the chance to kidnap Ichika. Once we have her we can escape and converge in the agreed location.¡¯


    Seeing the secret hand signs the others nodded their head and went into position. The trio Beta, Delta, and Trois rushed at Fade while the remaining people dashed toward Ichika.


    Fade lifted his hands in the air and like a conductor waved them around while his fingers were doing someplex movements. Wires as thin as a strand of hair spread throughout the battlefield. Even as martial artists, it was hard to detect such a thin wire and worse still it was dark.


    The opposing martial artist who have their weapons out tried cutting the wires but to their surprise, such thin wires were actually quite sturdy and they found it difficult to cut, all they could do was evade.


    Erika held Ichika¡¯s hand and slowly pulled her away farther and farther from the battlefield, she didn¡¯t want to go too far since she didn¡¯t how many more enemies were hiding in the dark.


    ...


    At the beginning of the battle, Fade and the kidnappers were at a stalemate as Fade was trying to capture the enemies using his wires, but the kidnappers coordinated well enough to avoid capture.


    .....


    ¡®It seems this mode of attack isn¡¯t going to work, let¡¯s change it up a little.¡¯


    Fade who was simply standing while using his wires suddenly rushed forward to the nearest enemy. The kidnappers were surprised by the sudden action, Fade pierced through the other party¡¯s chest.


    The leader and all the other kidnappers were shocked to see what happened to theirpanion. Each one of them was wearing bulletproof vests under their cloaks, and not only that but as rank six martial artists they also had bodies that were protected by their inner energy, and there was also a thickyer of muscles, yet despite all of that Fade was able to pierce through everything as if he was piercing through butter.


    ¡°No longer hesitate everyone go all out! You know what will happen if we do notplete this mission!¡±


    When the kidnappers heard their leader¡¯s words all of them were reminded of the person who gave the order to capture the princess of the Kurumi n. That person was not someone that would take failure lightly, it would be better to die under Fade¡¯s hands than to return to that person without the princess.


    Just imagining the scene of them returning without the princess of the Kurumi n made the kidnappers sweat, a fate worse than death waiting for them after failure. When those thoughts filled their minds the kidnappers¡¯ eyes suddenly looked crazed as they rushed forward no longer caring about the wires.


    Seeing them like this Fade knew that he could no longer act leisurely as before. Fade took out a few round balls out of his pocket and threw them on the floor. The things Fade threw were smoke bombs. The entire area was slowly being filled with smoke making it even harder for the kidnappers to see. Some of them had identally attacked one another.


    When the leader who was watching from outside of the smoke noticed his subordinates attacking each other he couldn¡¯t help but click his tongue. The speech he made to strengthen their morale and attack like crazy had backfired.


    ¡®This Fade is powerful and cunning, as expected of an urban legend that makes even the most hardened criminals shiver in fear.¡¯


    The leader who wanted to act knew that at this very moment, he needed to move now Fade was busy or he would lose his chance. The leader silently moved towards Ichika¡¯s side, but the moment he took a few steps he sensed something and dodged, a small object passed by him almost hitting his head.


    ¡®Damn, he really doesn¡¯t let his guard down.¡¯ The leader then checked his watch. ¡®Sh*t only a few more minutes before the Kurumi n notices something weird is going on. I need to call back the others to support.¡¯


    The leader got out a walkie-talkie and asked for all the other people who were on different duties toe to converge in their area. He really didn¡¯t want to call those guys back since those four were bloodthirsty and might identally kill the Princess, so he wanted to finish the mission without using those four, but now with Fade here he had no choice.


    ...


    While the leader of the group of kidnappers was contacting the others, Fade inside the smoke was killing the other kidnappers with ease. Unlike the kidnappers who were in the smoke confused, Fade was not affected by the smoke at all since as an assassin one of his skills was detecting the presence of others without using his five senses but using his mana to scout outwards, he could even use some tracking spells to do that.


    Fade killed each kidnapper with one strike to the chest. The way he moved from one enemy so efficiently was a scary sight to behold. As the smoke started to fade only two enemies were left standing.


    Fade quickly moved to the one closest to him, the other party who saw the hole in the chests of hispanions unconsciously guarded his chest and head. Fade who was midway through the action of piercing his opponent¡¯s chest changed what he was about to do into a leg sweep, forcing the kidnapper to lose bnce and fall.


    As the kidnapper lost his bnce and was about to fall backward, Fade appeared at his side and kicked upward hitting the kidnapers back. The sound of the kidnapper¡¯s spine cracking was heard by those present, the kidnapper wasn¡¯t even able to scream in pain as Fade¡¯s hand came falling down onto him piercing through his chest.


    Thest remaining subordinate looked at Fade as if he was looking at the most horrible monster. Seeing Fade about to make a move, the kidnapper screamed in horror as he threw his weapon at Fade and was about to escape. If it was before the kidnapper would never think of escaping even if death was in front, since the fear he had of the boss behind the scenes was rooted deep into his very bones, but now that fear shifted from the boss behind the scenes to Fade.


    The kidnapper started running but Fade who was given the job of killing all the enemies here was not about to let the other party go. Now that the other party was no longer on guard it was easy for Fade to wrap his wires around the other party¡¯s neck killing him.


    ...


    ¡°Hoh, that guy is pretty good. I really want to kill him.¡± After killing thest subordinate, Fade saw that beside the leader four other guys appeared and unlike the ones he killed these four were emitting heavy killing intent.


    ¡°What are you saying, I¡¯m the one who¡¯s going to kill him, right leader?¡± One of the four asked the leader.


    ¡°I don¡¯t care who does it, you can kill him and the dog of the Kurumi n but do not touch the princess do you understand?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, yeah, yeah,e on let¡¯s have a party, and the drinks going to be your blood.¡± A man with messy hair spoke while licking his knife.


    ¡°So who¡¯s going to go first?¡± The only woman of the four asked the others.


    ¡°Let¡¯s do-¡± A man wearing a formal suit was about to take out dice from his pocket and suddenly felt dangering his way he ducked, a small object passed by him, and he and the others then saw Fade charging at them.


    ¡°This guy is so eager to die!¡±


    The craziest-looking one of the four came charging at Fade empty-handed, based on his movements Fade knew that the other party was good with throws and locks. The very moment the crazy-looking man got within Fade¡¯s range, Fade used [enhancement] on his upper body, and with a twist of his waist a punch that was faster than all the other punches he threw before came into contact with the crazy-looking man¡¯s face.


    The sound of Fade¡¯s fist hitting the crazy-looking man¡¯s face echoed throughout the school, and the crazy-looking man flew backward hitting the nearby building. When the dust settled, they saw the crazy-looking man¡¯s face had been ttened by that single punch, you could even see some of his brains were leaking out of his ears.


    Seeing this scene even those three bloodthirsty criminals felt something they thought they never had, they actually felt fear.

 Chapter 184 - 184 Bloody yet beautiful sight

    184 Bloody yet beautiful sight


    The three remaining bloodthirsty people looked at Fade and were no longer smiling like before, even the man who kept talking about drinking blood was quiet. The woman took out some throwing knives, the elegant-looking man had taken out a rapier, and the man with messy hair took out another long knife. The three of them got into a fighting stance no longer taking it easy as their bodies exuded heavier killing intent.


    ¡°Hmph, you guys think you¡¯re killers with such lukewarm killing intent?¡±


    After Fade spoke his killing intent became even more intense. The killing intent he exuded was different from the three bloodthirsty killers. Fade¡¯s killing intent was so intense that the four people opposing him had hallucinated had they would die at the hands of Fade.


    Yet despite seeing such a scene and knowing Fade¡¯s power the trio who felt fear moments ago no longer felt it but instead the fear became excitement. All their thoughts revolved around killing Fade or being killed by Fade.


    ...


    In the distance Ichika and Erika who was watching the battle were amazed. Each attack Fade made was so decisive and he only needed one or two hits to kill his opponent.


    ¡°So this is the famous urban legend, Fade,¡± Ichika whispered to herself.


    ¡°There are no wasted movements at all, every subtle movement he makes seems to have a meaning. Just watching from afar I can tell, he seems to be using the environment, the psychology of his opponents, the opponent¡¯s own strength, his own equipment, everything is used as a weapon to kill the enemy as efficiently as possible.¡± Erika spoke in awe.


    The two geniuses of such famous ns have seen people more powerful than Fade, but this was the first time they have seen such precision. The battlefield has always been chaotic but Fade¡¯s battle was so clean, it was like he created order in the chaos.


    .....


    The two of them thought that after Fade had defeated the goons the only one left would be the leader of these kidnappers, but then four people with powerful auras suddenly came as reinforcements. Each one of those four seems to be at least as powerful as the leader of the group, in fact, they felt even more powerful.


    As they started to worry about what was going to happen next, to their surprise Fade suddenly rushed forward. They couldn¡¯t understand what Fade wanted to do, surely against opponents of that level he needed to at least be cautious, their thoughts quickly changed when they saw what happened next.


    They have seen Fade¡¯s precision in battle, and his skill and technique were at the top, but the twodies thought that Fade¡¯s hard power was a little worse than others, yet the thing they saw next changed their opinions.


    Fade punched out with a strength he hasn¡¯t shown while killing the other opponents, that single punch ttened the face of a rank seven martial artist. Even though the other party had let his guard down due to overconfidence he was still a rank seven martial artist which waspletely different from those rank six ones killed before. After rank five each rank up is a qualitative leap.


    ¡®Just how powerful is Fade?¡¯ Erika thought to herself and continued to watch Fade¡¯s fight, she didn¡¯t even want to blink.


    ...


    The woman started throwing her knives at Fade who simply bent his finger and caught the flying knives with his wires, but then once he caught them they exploded. The power of the explosion wasn¡¯t that strong but it created a smoke screen of sorts.


    Fade didn¡¯t need to use his sense of sight to see knew that the man with the rapier used the smoke screen to lunge at him. The man came out of the smoke his rapier about to pierce Fade¡¯s heart but Fade who already knew that he wasing easily evaded by sidestepping.


    The moment Fade evaded the messy-haired man had silently appeared behind him, and the woman had once again thrown knives but for some reason, she threw them upwards. Fade did not bother with the flying knives as his focus was on the man who used the moment he was distracted to get behind him.


    Fade shifted his head slightly to the left evading the stab of the messy-haired man, Fade then quickly jerked his right shoulder upward precisely hitting the man¡¯s wrist, the power of that shoulder tap was able to change the trajectory of the enemy¡¯s hand a bit. Fade then lifted his elbow upwards and using the momentum of the messy-haired man hitting him right in his jaw.


    The messy-haired man was stunned for a moment but that single moment was fatal. Fade grabbed the messy-haired man¡¯s extended arm and did a shoulder throw, as the messy-haired man was about to hit the ground Fade kicked his head like a football.


    That single kick was like a sharp sword actually making the messy-haired man¡¯s head separate from his own body. Killing the messy-haired man only took two seconds, and once he was done with him, Fade continued to throw the body directly at the man with the rapier.


    Fade then noticed that the flying daggers thrown by the woman were actually falling in his direction. Fade plucked a few stands of hair used the [Enhancement] spell on the strands of hair and threw them at each flying knife. The flying knives that were hit exploded in mid-air, as that was happening the man with the rapier started to attack Fade more fiercely than before.


    As the elegant man was in mid-motion of his stab, Fade kicked the hand holding the rapier upward. The man was unable to react on time as Fade¡¯s hand pierced through his chest. Now the only remaining enemies were the leader of the group and the woman.


    Fade took the rapier off the dead man¡¯s hands and threw it at the woman. Fade used multiple spells as he threw the rapier, he used the [Enhancement] spell to strengthen his body, he used the [Soaring Wind] spell to make the rapier that was thrown fly faster, and finally, he used [Reduced Weight] which was a practical spell used by construction workers in his old world to carry heavy objects, Fade this time used it to make the rapier lighter.


    The speed of the rapier¡¯s flight actually caused a sonic boom, which broke the windows of the nearby building. The speed was too fast that the woman was unable to do anything to defend herself as she was pierced through the heart and her body flew and was stuck on the wall of the nearby building.


    ...


    The two girls who watched the entire scene had no words to say. It was raining blood and the corpses on the ground were numerous, in the midst of it all Fade who was standing among the corpses was drenched with the enemy¡¯s blood. It was such a gory sight but for some reason, there was a beauty in it.


    Now the only remaining enemy was the leader of the group. He simply watched as his strongest subordinates died one after another and sighed. There was no fear in his eyes only disappointment. The leader raised his hands and spoke to Fade.


    ¡°How about I surrender? If you let me live and I will give you all the information I have about my boss. So what do you say?¡±


    Fade did not respond and looked at the two girls who were behind him. Seeing that everything was over the two girls came closer.


    ¡°What do you think?¡± Fade asked Ichika. The princess of the Kurumi n stared at the surrendering leader and thought for a second, after a while her eyes became sharper as she responded.


    ¡°I will allow you to live but you will be a prisoner of the Kurumi n, what do you say?¡±


    ¡°Are you going to torture me?¡±


    ¡°As long as you cooperate and tell the truth, I promise in the name of Kurumi Ichika the eldest daughter of the head of the Kurumi n that I will not treat you badly.¡±


    ¡°So will I be a prisoner for life?¡±


    ¡°... I won¡¯t lie to you, the moment you step foot on the grounds of the Kurumi n you will never be able to leave... But, as long as you don¡¯t do anything reckless and continue to cooperate you will at the least be able to live as a human being.¡±


    ¡°Live as a human being is it?...¡± The leader became silent after that. The leader stared straight into Ichika¡¯s eyes and his lips arced upward as he responded.


    ¡°Fine, I want to try this living as a human being. I agree to your terms and will tell you all that I know. Here¡¯s to our happy cooperation.¡± The leader extended his hand, and as Ichika approached and was about to shake his hand Fade¡¯s intuition kicked in and he quickly grabbed Ichika and pulled her back.


    The moment Fade pulled Ichika away the leader¡¯s body suddenly exploded, there was a look of confusion in his eyes as he died.

 Chapter 185 - 185 Not good killers

    185 Not good killers


    In a distance on the roof of a random building, a man was watching the battle happening at Sekiko Academy. He was watching the battle through some sort of small telescope. When he saw the leader of the group of kidnappers talking calmly with the one he was supposed to kidnap, the man on the roof contacted someone.


    ¡°They failed, what should we do next?¡±


    ¡°Eliminate all the evidence.¡±


    ¡°Roger that.¡±


    The man opened therge suitcase on his side, inside therge suitcase contained a disassembled sniper rifle, two short swords, and a switch. Among the things inside therge suitcase, the man took out the switch, he then pointed it in the direction of Sekikiko Academy and pressed the switch.


    ¡®Click¡¯ with a clicking sound what came after was the loud sound of explosions. In the direction of Sekiko Academy dust and smoke erupted as the bodies of the dead kidnappers started exploding one by one. The man did not leave immediately after as he needed to confirm that all the bodies have blown up properly.


    ...


    Fade quickly used his body to cover Ichika and Erika, he used a [Protection] spell to dispel some of the damageing from the exploding corpses. It was a good thing that the explosions weren¡¯t that strong, but they were strong enough to deal with one body and not leave a trace.


    Ichika and Erika were a little stunned by the sudden explosions but they were not afraid. Even without Fade¡¯s protection they had their ways and could survive these explosions albeit with some minor injuries, so it was great for them that they had Fade¡¯s protection.


    .....


    After the explosions seemed to stop Fade looked around and saw the corpses on the ground had turned into dust from the mes of the explosions, and that the fire was also spreading.


    ¡°You two go and call for some help, I already checked there are no more enemies within the campus.¡± After saying that Fade was about to leave but was stopped by Ichika.


    ¡°Mr. Fade were are you going? I haven¡¯t given you your payment yet.¡±


    ¡°The contract has not beenpleted you said to kill all the enemies here, there are no more on the campus but there is still one hidden a bit further away.¡± Once he said those words Fade no longer stayed and quickly used his wires to swing to the nearby building.


    ...


    The man on the roof looked at the corpses on the ground and saw that all of them have exploded properly.


    ¡°The losers have been eliminated all shreds of evidence are gone. What should I do next, should Iplete the original mission and capture the girl myself?¡±


    The person on the other end of the call was silent for a while seemingly deep in thought, after a few seconds the other person responded.


    ¡°I do trust your skills, but the other party is that unknown assassin who defeated the Elegant Scorpion who had been ranked in the dark rankings. Since he¡¯s an unknown variable how about you retreat for now and-¡± The person wasn¡¯t able to finish what he was going to say when he was interrupted.


    ¡°Sorry boss, it seems I no longer have a choice that assassin ising right here and he¡¯s quite fast.¡±


    ¡°Your location has beenpromised, how did he know?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know but based on his speed he¡¯ll be here in twenty seconds. I¡¯m going to be silent for a while boss.¡± The man ended the call and took out the two swords in hisrge suitcase.


    ...


    Fade reached the rooftop where he sensed the person watching from a distance. Upon arriving he saw a man wearing a grey sweatshirt, brown pants, ck gloves, and holding two short swords. The man smiled at Fade.


    ¡°You must be the famous, Fade. Your rise to fame is truly fast and I can see why. The way you fight is so efficient, you do not even hesitate in any move you make. Truly you are an inspiration to all the assassins who want to make it big.¡±


    ¡°It seems that you know me, but I don¡¯t have any information about you. So do you mind telling me your name?¡± Unlike the others he just fought Fade didn¡¯t quickly attack the man in front of him since he felt danger.


    ¡°Well, that¡¯s surprising I thought that you would immediately attack as you did with the others.¡±


    ¡°Unlike those weaklings, you are worth talking to.¡±


    ¡°Hoh, well, I¡¯m ttered the urban legend that made the entire underworld of Leim City has such a high opinion of me. As for telling you my name, unfortunately, I no longer have such a thing, it has been wiped out long ago. Nowadays people just call me Ace.¡±


    ¡°Ace is it... So are you a part of that group who wants to kidnap Kurumi Ichika or are you just a spectator from a different group?¡±


    ¡°You have so many questions, does it matter to you if I was one of them or not? I can already tell from that lingering killing intent you¡¯re emitting that no matter what I answer you will kill me.¡± Ace smiled helplessly as he shrugged his shoulders.


    ¡°That¡¯s not true depending on what your stance is on Kurumi Ichika you might not be a true enemy. If that¡¯s the case I¡¯ll just lightly beat you up enough for you to faint and then bring you to Ichika so that she could decide what to do with you.¡±


    ¡°Heh, it seems that the legendary Fade is also a dog of the Kurumi n.¡±


    ¡°I am no one¡¯s dog, but it is indeed true that Kurumi Ichika hired me.¡±


    ¡°Well, well, what to do? Hmm, before I give you an answer, I want to know something, and since you asked so many questions I should at least get to question you once, right?¡±


    ¡°... Fine, as long as it is something that I can answer I will. What do you want to know.¡±


    ¡°How civilized of you... I just want to know, Fade why did you be an assassin and such a peculiar assassin at that? Picking your clients and only epting jobs that punish the wicked, why do you do it, is it for money, power, or fame? Also who judges who is wicked or who is not you?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s more than one question, but since I think it¡¯s a pretty good question I guess I can answer it for you. About how I judge who is wicked or who is not, that¡¯s of course, based on my own opinion. Everyone has their own judgment on what¡¯s good or evil, it may sound biased but I just need to follow what I think is right.¡±


    Fade spread his hands as if saying that¡¯s how it goes.


    ¡°Now for your first question why did I be an assassin... At first, I had no choice, I was trained to be like this, but now it¡¯s different. The money is good, but I do not do it for a such thing, the truth is I continue to be an assassin because of a promise I made with someone dear to me.¡±


    When Fade said those words, Ace could hear the sadness in his voice, the loneliness. Ace might not be able to see the face underneath Fade¡¯s mask but he felt like the other party should be smiling a lonely smile at this moment.


    ¡°I see... I shouldn¡¯t have asked that question, now it¡¯s making me a little reluctant to kill you... Truth be told I just wanted to have a little conversation with you since you are quite a mystery. For some reason, I had that urge you know, and for the first time in a long time, I wanted to know more about the person I¡¯m about to kill. Now that I have spoken with you it seems like we are kindred spirits. I¡¯m very simr to you, but unlike you who already escaped, I¡¯m still bound with chains and like the Capell Family I too am a dog with a leash and a master. I envy you a little Fade, but I¡¯m also quite annoyed. I don¡¯t know how you did it but you¡¯re able to gain freedom, and then just as you were about to fly away you once again chained yourself to a promise this time.¡±


    ¡°That was my own decision...¡±


    ¡°That just makes it worse! You actively got yourself caught and now you¡¯re under a tighter leash, called emotions. It makes me feel a little frustrated, if I had a chance to break free I would never get caught again.¡± Ace looked at the night sky his eyes full of longing.


    ¡°Is that so... It seems like you too aren¡¯t that a good killer. Someone with the same profession once told me that emotions only get in the way, and you can¡¯t be a good killer if you had any. So you and me, who can¡¯t fully separate emotions from work, aren¡¯t really good killers.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I guess we aren¡¯t...¡±


    The two then stared at each other for a while, and speaking another word the two charged at each other.

 Chapter 186 - 186 Matty

    186 Matty


    When Ace was a child he had a twin brother named Matthew who had a very rare disease that made his bones brittle and his muscles weak. His twin brother couldn¡¯t even get out of bed and needed care for almost 24/7, there was never a time Ace saw his twin brother in any ce except on a bed.


    Of course, Ace as a twin brother woulde and y with his twin all the time, they couldn¡¯t y like normal children so they used imagination instead, in their minds they would imagine a life full of adventure. When Ace learned to read he would read to his twin brother exciting stories of battle, friendship, and love.


    Ace loved his twin brother and had a wonderful time with him, unfortunately, life doesn¡¯t only have happiness but also tragedy.


    The condition of Ace¡¯s twin brother worsen as he grew, and his parents were having a lot of difficulties paying his medical fees. They worked tirelessly to support their children until the very end. Ace¡¯s parents died in a car ident while going around trying to find a way to save their son.


    Ace was eight years old at the time and it was on the same day he was tested and found out that he had inner energy, he came running home wanting to share the good news with his family. Now that he had inner energy if he can be a martial artist with a high rank their lives will change.


    Yet those happy thoughts onlysted for but a moment as when he came home and learned of his mom and dad¡¯s deaths. Things started moving fast from then on, due to the condition of Ace¡¯s twin brother the twins were separated. The Government would pay for the twin brother¡¯s medical expenses but there was a limit and due to the severity of his condition most people thought he wouldn¡¯tst long.


    ¡°Brother, please don¡¯t let them take me away, I don¡¯t want to go,¡± Matthew begged his brother not to leave him as he was scared.


    ¡°It¡¯s going to be okay Matty, these people are here to help you. So don¡¯t be scared, I promise everything will be alright. Once you¡¯re better will go out on that adventure we always imagined.¡± Ace patted his brother¡¯s head with a smile on his face.


    ¡°You promise,¡± Matthew lifted his pinky finger with great difficulty.


    .....


    ¡°Of course, when have I ever lied to you.¡± Ace linked his pinky with Matthew. The two were then ced in different homes, Matthew was in a hospital one train ride away from Ace.


    During this time Ace did everything and anything to earn even a single Zori and every Sunday he would visit his twin brother and continue to tell him stories.


    Ace worked hard every day, practicing his martial arts, studying in school, going to multiple ces to earn money, and visiting his twin brother to tell him stories. He thought that he would one day be able to save his twin brother and that the two of them can start their own adventure like the heroes in those stories, but things dreams remain as dreams.


    Ace¡¯s twin brother¡¯s situation worsened, and not only that the Government will stop paying for his medical fees once he turns eighteen. As the only living rtive of Matthew, Ace is the only one who can save his twin brother. Matthew¡¯s medical fees were high, and the money Ace saved up over the years would onlyst him a single month, so Ace needed to find a way to make more money.


    ...


    One day when Ace visited Matthew, his brother who was always excited to see him was looking out the window.


    ¡°Brother, do you think it was right for me to live, to have a dream?¡±


    ¡°Huh, what the f*ck are you saying, did someone tell you that you shouldn¡¯t live! Tell me who the f*ck they are and I¡¯ll beat them up for you.¡±


    ¡°No brother nobody said anything bad to me, it¡¯s just that... Mom and Dad died because of me because they needed money to keep me alive, and now my dear brother is looking like this... I... Was it really alright for me to live?¡±


    Ace wanted to hug his twin brother but knew due to his condition he couldn¡¯t do it, so instead he sat down beside him and spoke his heart out.


    ¡°You fool! Of course, you have every right to live! Dad, Mom, and I did all of these because we want you to live. How can you even think about those things?! Do you remember what I told you before? I promised you that everything will get better, and once you are cured will head out onto that adventure beyond the horizon.¡±


    ¡°Is it really alright for me to dream about those things?¡± Matthew was already crying his eyes out, and even Ace had tears falling down his face.


    ¡°Dream? It won¡¯t just be a dream I promise to make it happen. When you¡¯re cured, we¡¯ll buy a boat and go on adventures in the sea, meeting new people every day, finding new things, having some difficulties to ovee, and having fun all the way.¡±


    Ace described what kinds of adventures they would have when he gets better, hearing all of these things made Matthew imagine such a wonderful future.


    ¡°So promise me, Matty, no matter what happens you should never give up on yourself, you should never question your right to live, your right to dream. Trust in me, I will fulfill my promise.¡± Ace lifted his pinky finger.


    ¡°Alright, I promise I won¡¯t give up.¡± Matthew gathered his strength to wrap his pinky finger with Ace¡¯s pinky.


    ...


    After that day Matthew no longerined about how difficult things were, he no longer questioned his right to live and dream, and he continued to fight, but despite all of his efforts his condition only got worse over time, and he was nearing his end.


    Ace was then given a choice to make the best of the time remaining and make things asfortable as possible for his brother or to take a risk and do an experimental surgery that would reinforce Matthew¡¯s brittle bones. This experimental surgery was the only thing the doctors could think of, after all of the years of observing Matthew, and the cost of doing it was astronomical.


    ...


    ¡°But the money.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about the money, all you need to do is fight, and once you¡¯re cured we¡¯ll set off to the new horizon.¡±


    In the end, Matthew decided to fight with everything he had. Ace needed to find money quickly he asked all of his employers if he could get an advance, and even with that he was short. He wanted to take out a loan but it wasn¡¯t enough. So he was forced to seek help from shady figures. It didn¡¯t matter to him where the money came from as long as he could save his brother, that was the only thing on his mind, he wasn¡¯t thinking properly as he signed a contract with loan sharks who lent him enough money to save his brother.


    ...


    After getting the money the surgery was scheduled for the next day, but unfortunately, the dawn will nevere for Matthew as his condition took a turn for the worse.


    ¡°Mattye on and fight it. Just a little bit more and we can go on that adventure over the horizon!¡±


    Matthew prayed to every God he knew for anything that could save his brother but no one heard him. The doctors did everything they could but in the end, he could not survive the night.


    ...


    From that day on, Ace was truly alone in this world. As he was packing his deceased brother¡¯s things a nurse who looked like she had a good cry gave a letter that was addressed to him. The nurse told him that this was something his brother asked to give him if he didn¡¯t make it. Ace shakingly opened the letter and started to read.


    ¡°Dear brother, I asked the nurse to help me write this, so if you are reading this it means that I¡¯m no longer with you. I¡¯m sorry to have left you alone, but I¡¯m sure until the very end I did try my best. I hope that you won¡¯t mourn for long and continue onwards with your own life since I already took arge part of it. That adventure that we talked about doing, I wish you could go and do it even without me. You need to have as much fun in that adventure as we imagined it when we were kids so that when we meet again you can tell me all the stories about your adventure.¡±


    Ace was already crying as he continued to read.


    ¡°Brother I¡¯m sorry for all the hardships I have given you, I¡¯m sorry I was a worthless brother who couldn¡¯t do anything. So I truly hope with all my heart that you¡¯ll be able to live a life worthy of your own story. I never did tell you my true dream, did I? My true dream is to see my beloved brother find happiness. So I hope you go over that horizon and when you¡¯re done with your fantastic adventure I¡¯ll be waiting to hear your stories again.¡±


    Once he was done reading the letter Ace continued to cry as hard as he could.


    ...


    After his brother¡¯s funeral Ace wasn¡¯t able to go on that adventure as the money he borrowed could not be returned. So from that moment on he became an underling of that person doing whatever is asked of him.

 Chapter 187 - 187 Beyond that horizon

    187 Beyond that horizon


    Ace¡¯s sword shed through some of Fade¡¯s wires as he infused his swords with his inner energy this was an ability only people at rank eight and above could do. Fade quickly switched from mid-rangebat to close-rangebat surprising Ace.


    The transition from mid-range to sudden close-range was so fluid that Ace waste to react when he saw Fade¡¯s fist about to hit his abdomen. It was the same technique Fade used to tten a man¡¯s face, but unlike the oue of that time, the person he hit this time was able to negate the damage by flowing with the attack, moving at the exact same time he was hit.


    Ace who jumped backward actually flew quite a distance before he was able to stop. Even though he negated a lot of the damage it still hurt and he could feel a few of his ribs were in a bad state, still, it won¡¯t hinder his fighting. As he was assessing his injuries Ace saw Fade rushing towards him ready to make him eat another punch, but this time he was ready.


    Ace skillfully used the back of his sword to redirect Fade¡¯s punch he then used this moment to counterattack with his other sword. Fade quickly used the [eleration] spell which enhances the speed of his body and his mind for three seconds. This was one of his favorite spells back in the old world, but due to his current mana supply he couldn¡¯t use it as much, but now that he had a bit more mana he could afford to use it once or twice in battle.


    The very second [eleration] was used the entire world began to slow down in front of Fade and his heartbeat was getting faster. Fade got out of the way of the iing de and positioned himself at Ace¡¯s side and was about kick Ace¡¯s body.


    When [eleration] wore off Ace was stunned by what he saw, Fade suddenly changed positions it was like he teleported, and now he was about to kick him. Seeing as he could not defend himself Ace once again used the trick of following the flow of force to negate some of the damage.


    Ace was able to negate arge portion of the damage but even so, he still coughed out a bit of blood. This time Fade did not continue to attack and instead spoke.


    ¡°You¡¯re really talented and strong. I tried to finish this battle three times and all those times you were able to survive my killing blow.¡±


    ¡°Heh, I haven¡¯t been able to touch a single hair on your body but you already got a few hits in and you call me talented?... Hey Fade, why did you stop attacking? It¡¯s not like I want toin or anything, but if you continued to attack and didn¡¯t give me time to rest I might have already slept the final sleep.¡±


    .....


    ¡°It¡¯s because I find you quite interesting, which is why I am interested to talk a bit more with you. Unlike the other people that I have killed you don¡¯t exude any malice, in fact, for someone in your profession, you seem a bit purer than the others. I wonder why that is? You said before that unlike me you aren¡¯t free, does that mean you¡¯re simply forced to do these things even though you don¡¯t want to?¡±


    When Ace heard what Fade said he looked at the other party dumbfounded and then he startedughing.


    ¡°Hahahaha! You called me purer than most, but I¡¯m surprised to see that the legendary assassin who seems to have killed an incredible amount of people seems to have some naivete. Let me tell you something Fade, in the entire world, I¡¯m sure that there are only a few weirdos who would love killing and destruction. If you had a choice normal people would never want to do such a troublesome thing. Do you think the criminals you killed would choose to be criminals and be forever hunted by thew because they want to? No, if they have any choice they would¡¯ve done something different but they don¡¯t do they. The idea of having a choice is but an illusion. Like right now I have no choice but to be a dog on a leash because of my own mistakes.¡±


    Fade shook his head before responding to Ace.


    ¡°You¡¯re wrong Ace, I do understand what you mean, but having a choice is not an illusion it is real. You say that you¡¯re a dog on a leash, but you have the choice to break free from the leash but you didn¡¯t because that¡¯s the easier route for you. You have convinced yourself that you¡¯re doing all of these things because you had no choice, but the truth is you¡¯re just escaping from whatever it is you¡¯re trying so hard to flee from.¡±


    Ace gritted his teeth as he knew that they imnted a tiny bomb in some random part of his body set to explode just in case he betrays them or if his heart stops beating.


    ¡°What do you know? How can a bird that¡¯s able to freely soar in the sky, know anything about a dog on a leash that could only ever dream to fly!¡±


    Ace no longer bothered talking to Fade and started attacking even more aggressively. The flow of Ace¡¯s attacks made it seem hard to counter as there were no openings to exploit, that¡¯s what it would seem like to others, but to Fade all he saw were openings.


    The calm Ace who had such beautiful swordsmanship before was being engulfed by his own agitation. The ferocity of his attacks to Fade seems like he was trying to push out the anger and loneliness he feels inside. As Fade was about to use one of the openings he saw to counter, Ace suddenly let go of one of his swords and took out a gun that was hidden in his back.


    The gun Ace took out was a small handgun with an enhancer attached. Fade was truly surprised this time as he thought Ace was in a state of rage, but it turns out that was just a cover to lower Fade¡¯s guard.


    Fade wanted to use [eleration] again but his mana was insufficient at the moment. With his current mana, the only thing Fade could use was his trusty [Enhancement] spell, so with that, he used it on his upper body again and tried to redirect the arm holding the gun.


    Fade was not able to reach in time to redirect the arm, instead, he was able to hold onto the barrel of the gun, but Ace was still able to fire one shot before Fade disarmed him and break his right hand. The bullet went through Fade¡¯s lower left abdomen now there was a small hole in it. The shot was a rather clean shot and fortunately for Fade the damage was negligible.


    Fade had stopped the bleeding from the hole as he backed away, on the other hand, Ace could no longer use his right hand.


    ¡°As expected of you even with that surprise attack you were still able to counter... Hey Fade, I just want to tell you like those guys that exploded I too have a bomb within my body, that¡¯s the leash that binds me to them.¡±


    ¡°I already guessed that you would have one the moment I saw those exploding bodies, but that¡¯s not the leash that¡¯s keeping you with them... The true leash that¡¯s keeping you with them should be fear, right?¡±


    ¡°Heh, it¡¯s like you can really see through everything, but what does it matter?¡±


    Ace once again charged at Fade swinging his sword with the hand that was still working. In each attack, Ace made, Fade could hear his soul crying wanting freedom, and the only way to give him that was through death. In a brief moment, their eyes met and Fade already knew that Ace wanted to be killed.


    ¡®I guess this is your own choice... Very well...¡¯


    Now that Ace¡¯s movements have be sluggish Fade easily hit him with a palm strike filled with his own inner energy. This palm strike did not cause a lot of external damage but it did do a lot of internal damage. Ace fell to his knees and leaned on the nearby wall with a smile on his face.


    ¡°Heh, so this is it... Fade before it¡¯s over... I just wanted to tell you that you were right. I was scared of breaking free as that would mean death and failure to live up to his dream... I didn¡¯t want to meet my brother without going on that adventure. I was scared of disappointing him, but after talking to you I realized, that if I continued like this... Would truly be disappointing him. Thank you Fade for freeing me and giving me a warrior¡¯s death...¡±


    As Ace¡¯s eyes were slowly closing he saw the sun rising from behind Fade. He didn¡¯t know if he was hallucinating before death but Ace saw his twin brother standing in front of him his hand extended towards him. Ace lifted his left arm and tried to reach his brother¡¯s hand.


    ¡°Beyond that horizon...¡± Those were thest words Ace said as his hands fell to the ground and his eyes closed.


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