In a corner of the deserted Slum District, a man pointed a Blade at me.
He looked to be in his mid-thirties, of medium build, with brown hair and brown eyes. He was the kind of man you could easily lose in a crowd. The moment I sensed the Killing Intent from him, along with his crude smile, I activated Body Enhancement to the fullest and made a run for it.
The man’s Stealth Skill was several levels above mine. In terms of combat, there was probably no comparison. So, I gave up on fighting or hiding and decided to flee with all my might.
The hole leading outside the town was too small for an adult man to enter. Thinking I could escape if I got inside, I ran without looking back. I heard the sound of something cutting through the air, and a sharp Blade passed by me, grazing my skin.
“Hey, hey, don’t run away.”
“…………”
The man’s Killing Intent slowly leaked out, and a cold sweat ran down my back.
I was being played with… There was that much of a difference in skill between the man and me.
This man wasn’t just a Thief. I didn’t have a chance to use the Appraisal Orb, but he was a different type, and although not as much as Feld, I felt a similar “pressure.”
Could I escape from this man? Still, that was far better than choosing to “fight.” The moment I decided that, the man immediately chased after me.
But that was because the man was underestimating me, thinking of me as a child and letting his guard down. Otherwise, he would have ended it by throwing a Blade at my back.
Shhh!
“Oh!?”
The man exclaimed as I threw an iron skewer behind me.
I had been practicing, but since I hadn’t acquired the [Throwing Skill] yet, I couldn’t pierce living things deeply. However, I thought that the man, who was still in a “playful mood,” wouldn’t pursue me to the point of getting injured.
Clang! The iron skewer was easily deflected by the man’s Blade. But because of that, he was momentarily distracted from me. In that instant, I gathered the Light Mana Particles around me and forcibly dyed my Mana with a Light color.
“[Light]!”
I burned the Mana Particles all at once, emitting a strong light for a moment.
“Whoa!?”
The man’s astonished voice echoed. I couldn’t miss this opportunity I had created. The moment I darted out, turning sharply, the man muttered something.
“…[Noise]”
“!”
Magic? At that moment, I heard the sound of the man stomping on the ground from the direction I was heading, and I jumped to the side on the spur of the moment.
My vision wasn’t perfect because it had been burned by the light, but I should have been able to steal the man’s vision.
I didn’t know what that Magic from earlier was, but as I tried to escape from that place, relying only on the color and sensation of the Mana Particles, I was suddenly grabbed by the head from behind.
“Got you.”
“What!?”
The man who was supposed to be in front of me was behind me. Moreover, he had accurately grasped my position even though I had stolen his vision.
Why? I’ll think about that later. Almost as a conditioned reflex, I pulled out the Knife from my waist, but there was a hard clang, and the Knife in my hand was deflected and flew away.
“Hmph!”
I suppressed the urge to panic, sinking my heart as deeply as when I killed that woman. Enduring the pain in my scalp, I forcibly changed my posture and struck the man’s wrist with an elbow.
Forcibly breaking free from the man’s slightly loosened hand, I rolled on the ground to create distance and looked up at the man, crouching on all fours.
“…………”
This was real combat… The man narrowed his eyes, still not fully recovered from the loss of vision, but wore a ferocious smile that bared his fangs, while frowning at the ash on his hand.
If I hadn’t used the ash to hide the luster of my hair, I wouldn’t have been able to escape from that situation. The opponent wasn’t serious, so I was still holding on, but my body trembled at the overwhelming difference in skill and the “Intimidation” emanating from the man.
Even if I escaped from his grasp, the situation wouldn’t improve. I probably couldn’t escape from the man. He wasn’t an opponent I could win against even if I fought. But…
“Hoo-ooh!”
As if to dispel the fear that had arisen in my heart, I inhaled the surrounding Mana Particles and dyed the Mana within me with Light again, exhaling like a cat while praying for my stamina to recover.
There was no chance to use [Heal]. But since I had acquired [Light Magic Lv.1], I felt that I could get some effect just by praying. And, whether it was my imagination or not, a little vitality really did return.
I won’t run anymore. As I switched my focus from escape to combat, I felt “something” click into place in my head, like gears meshing together.
I probably won’t be able to win even if I fight this man. But I haven’t given up on living.
Find life in death. I’ll cling on desperately and show him what I’m made of.
I pulled the iron skewer from my waist and held it in my teeth. I didn’t have enough strength. I didn’t have enough speed either. Understanding that I couldn’t gain speed with just leg strength, I used Body Enhancement to the fullest and dug my claws into the ground with my strengthened arms, drawing my whole body like a bow to launch myself as a single “arrow.”
Regret attacking me for fun.
Even if I can’t win, I’ll definitely inflict a wound that you’ll regret.
If that wound causes the man to lose to someone else, that will be my victory.
Now… die!
“Whoa!? Wait, wait, give me a break!”
The man shouted in a flustered manner, dropping the dagger he was holding and raising both hands. What was he plotting? As I was about to attack the man as he was, the man raised his voice even louder.
“Wait, wait, I was wrong, I apologize! I was just looking for Slum kids who could be useful for work!”
…Huh? What did he say?
＊
“No, really, I’m sorry! It was the first time a kid had seen through my Stealth, and your escape was so amazing that I ended up chasing you!”
“…………”
I glared at the man with half-closed eyes as he sat on the ground with his hands together, showing that he had no intention of fighting, while I used [Heal] on myself.
Not this again! Another adult of this type again! Feld and this man, am I emitting some kind of “scent” that makes these men chase after me!?
If I were to take this man’s words at face value, he seemed to be looking for children to do work. I wondered if children could even do work, but apparently there were various reasons, such as working in narrow places or to make adults lower their guard.
The reason why a skilled man like this was doing such a thing was that if he found someone who could be used, he wanted to secure someone who could be entrusted with work on a continuous basis, with an eye to the future.
“Oh, you can use [Heal] even though you’re a kid. Where did you learn that?”
“That doesn’t matter. So… what do you want a ‘Thief’ to do with a child?”
“I’m not a Thief! I’m a proper ‘Scout’ with the Adventurer’s Guild. Don’t lump me in with those guys. Here, here, look, look.”
“…I understand.”
The man showed me the Guild’s identification tag, which could be said to be proof of an Adventurer’s status, as if he were forcing it on me. [Rank 4]… As I thought, he was quite skilled.
I thought that there were some Thieves who were members of the Adventurer’s Guild, but there shouldn’t be many Thieves who possessed this much skill, including combat ability.
Thief and Scout were similar but different.
Thieves focused on not being found rather than combat, honing their Stealth, Detection, and Lockpicking skills. They were “criminals” who couldn’t overcome their own desires in the end, so the skills of the lower-ranking members weren’t that high, but they were surprisingly clever.
Scouts, on the other hand, also mastered Stealth and Detection, but they emphasized finding things rather than not being found.
They uncovered and disarmed traps in ruins and Dungeons. They gathered information and passed on useful information to their employers. Originally, “Adventurers” were specialized mercenaries who explored ruins and brought back information, so even now, many Scouts with high combat abilities were enrolled in the Guild.
The man, who was proudly talking about such things, gave off the same “slightly disappointing adult” smell as Feld. Was that why I remembered Feld when I saw this man?
“So, mister.”
“Not ‘mister.’ My name is Viro. And I’m only thirty-five.”
“…………”
Isn’t that old enough to be a “mister”? At least he’s older than my father.
“…Viro. So, what do you want ‘me’ to do? A job for the Adventurer’s Guild?”
I hadn’t completely trusted him, but even with Viro’s skill, he would make much more money exploring ruins than deceiving and selling children. So, I hadn’t trusted him, but I lowered my guard by one level.
Either way, I knew I couldn’t escape even if I ran.
“It’s not a Guild job. Originally, I was a client who received a job from the Guild, but now I’m personally contracting and taking on jobs.”
“I won’t do anything bad. But… can I even do it?”
“It’s not a bad deed. It’s more like helping with security. And you wouldn’t have any problems. …Kuku.”
Viro laughed and slapped his knee, wondering what he had remembered in response to my question.
“Around here, I was disappointed to only find ordinary kids, and even the slum kids would take time to be useful, but you’re a good find. You have a good sense, and you can use magic, albeit clumsily. And what was that ‘killing intent’ at the end?! That’s not the kind of killing intent a kid can produce. I thought I was facing a cornered demon wolf.”
That’s how Viro described my desperate spirit.
Killing intent… I guess I do have it since I’ve killed three people, but I don’t really understand it myself. Maybe it’s because I was training to put my will into the spells, and the killing intent seeped out along with the mana?
“What happens if I refuse?”
“Huh? Nothing in particular. It’s useless to make someone do something they’re not motivated to do.”
I was tense, thinking I’d have to fight again if I refused, but Viro said it so casually.
“…What’s the job? What do you mean by helping with security?”
“Oh. There’s something I really want you to do, but at first, I was going to have you run errands as a test to see if you’re useful. Can you understand what you’re told, will you do something stupid, and most importantly, do you have the ‘guts’ to be entrusted with dangerous tasks?”
“Hmm…”
“You’re a bit reckless, but I commend you for prioritizing escape when you knew you couldn’t win. You have plenty of guts. In that case, I might as well move up the schedule a bit and see what I think.”
Viro’s eyes sharpened as he looked at me.
…Ah, that’s the same look Feld had when he declared he would train me. It seems I’ve caught his eye…
“Okay… I understand.”
“Oh, that’s great! No, you’re a lifesaver. I’d be getting glared at by the client if I didn’t bring someone soon.”
Viro patted his shoulder like an old man, looking relieved.
I don’t completely trust him, but I felt that being by Viro’s side would benefit me.
Viro is an Adventurer, a scout… a complete upgrade of me. I can learn stealth and combat skills by watching him and make them my own. That’s the quickest way for me to get stronger right now.
“Alright, let’s go to the Guild right away.”
Once it was decided, Viro stood up from his cross-legged position on the ground without making a sound.
“The Guild… you mean the Adventurer’s Guild? Why?”
I wondered if he had something to look up. If so, I wondered what I should do, but Viro tilted his head slightly.
“What… well, it’s for your Adventurer registration, of course.”
“…Huh? I don’t have any Combat Skills, you know?”
I did learn Light Magic, but registering as an Adventurer just for that seems like more trouble than it’s worth. When I argued that, Viro looked at me with an astonished face.
“What are you talking about? There’s no way someone around 10 years old who can use Body Enhancement and has that much combat power wouldn’t have a Combat Skill, right?”
“…………Eh?”
I understood the meaning of those words, which I couldn’t comprehend for a moment, and hurriedly took out the Appraisal Orb to examine myself. Then… the [Dagger Arts] Skill, which I had never been able to acquire, was listed in my Status along with an unknown Skill.
[Aria (Alicia)] [Race: Human Female] [Rank 1]
[Mana Capacity: 33/70] 5 Up [HP: 29/52] 15 Up
[Strength: 4 (4.4)] 1 Up [Durability: 5 (5.5)] 1 Up [Agility: 7 (7.7)] 2 Up [Dexterity: 6]
[Dagger Arts Lv.1] New [Martial Arts Lv.1] New
[Light Magic Lv.1] [Non-Attribute Magic Lv.1]
[Utility Magic x6] [Mana Control Lv.1] [Intimidation Lv.1] New
[Stealth Lv.1] [Night Vision Lv.1] [Detection Lv.1]
[Overall Combat Strength: 36 (During Body Enhancement: 38)] 10 Up
Aria refers to herself as “I,” but Viro somehow realizes Aria’s gender.
Next time, to the Adventurer’s Guild.