Vol 1 Chapter 10

"Stop? Am I crazy? Beating the crap out of guys like you is the joy of my life, you bastards!"

"Ugh! Argh!"

At first, he was going to ignore it and pass by, but when one of the victims seemed to spot him and started desperately running towards him, he ended up being noticed.

"H-help me! This madman is beating..."

However, he was immediately silenced by a lightning-fast low kick to the crown of his head, collapsing with foam at his mouth. The other one also seemed to be half-unconscious, already crumpled in the corner.

'Looks like it's settled, so I should be able to leave now.'

As he was about to turn and walk away, this time the attacker blocked his path.

This one and that one, they were all so annoying. What was it now?

"You're not planning to report what you just saw to the city guards, are you?"

'That would be a bit troublesome for me, you see.' The man raised his head and met his eyes.

At that moment, due to the light that had just entered the dark alley, both of them could clearly see each other's appearances.

A face that gave a rather androgynous impression despite being male, wearing an outer garment similar to a robe that wasn't loose but didn't seem to hinder movement. However, what stood out most of all were the somewhat ill-tempered eyes and the dull blonde hair that matched the back alley atmosphere. Looking at the black hair visible here and there, as if it had been dyed long ago, he came to a conclusion.

Just a thug.

However, even after observing and concluding this much, the man in front of him kept staring at his face. Reluctantly, he spoke first, overcoming his annoyance.

"I won't report it."

Since the other had spoken informally first, he responded in kind. But as soon as he spoke, the man suddenly blinked, startled, and stepped back, speaking in a clearly flustered tone.

"W-what?"

Was this guy a bit mentally off? He seemed perfectly fine when he was beating those people earlier.

"I said I won't report it. So move aside."

While Saturn rarely intervened except for Mist updates to respect users' freedom as much as possible, they had put a lot of effort into allowing the game itself to handle users. For example, if someone used violence without a proper duel request and was caught by or reported to the city guards in Mist, they would be arrested and serve time in prison for a certain period. The man in front of him must have spoken to him because of this, but for some reason, he kept hesitating and wouldn't move aside even though he had said he wouldn't report it.

"Are you not going to move?"

By this point, he was starting to feel a bit annoyed. He didn't want to be the one to use his first real magic in Mist on another user...

'What should I do...'

"Ah... no. Sorry. I was a bit out of it. Here, go ahead."

Just as he was considering whether to resolve this with magic or not, the man hurriedly stepped aside. He glanced once at the man who still couldn't take his eyes off him, then headed towards the main street to go to the shopping district of the city he had been aiming for.

But...

"...How long do you plan to follow me?"

When he couldn't stand it anymore and turned around at the side of the road, the man who had been trailing behind him flinched.

"Why are you following me?"

"No... it's just that, we seem to be going the same way..."

Gone was the fish-in-water appearance from the back alley earlier, and now he was even slurring his words, which was absurd.

"How do you know we're going the same way when you don't know my destination?"

At this, the man stiffened greatly, as if thinking 'Oh no!'

"What's your purpose? If it's about reporting, I already said I wouldn't do that earlier."

He slowly raised his hand and drew a circle in the air. As he did so, he felt a slight drain of energy from his body, and white light followed his fingertips, forming the trajectory of the circle. Seeing this, the man's eyes widened.

"...Could it be you're a mage?"

If he had said that was a joke, he should give up on his dream of being a comedian. Only mages could draw circles like that.

He put his right hand inside the circle, just as he had practiced for a long time. With a swish sound inaudible to others, green lines spread out across all the space visible to his eyes, instantly expanding the formula world.

It's a magnificent sight no matter how many times I see it.

It definitely felt more impressive when spread out in the wide outdoors rather than in a narrow practice room. In a way, it was almost regrettable that only the caster, the mage, could see such a spectacle. With the preparations complete, the magic would manifest once he finished the incantation and range setting.

"Stop! I'll talk!"

Perhaps reading the look in his eyes as he was calculating where to plant the Fireball, the man quickly shouted, waving his hands.

"Sigh... So, you, I mean, you. I was impressed by how you didn't seem surprised at all by that scene. I liked the look in your eyes too. That's why I followed you."

It seemed like an incomplete explanation, but seeing the man raise both hands to show he had no intention of attacking, he quietly withdrew his hand from the circle. The formula world and the circle disappeared, canceled.

The man sighed in relief and scratched the back of his head.

"...Do you have a party or companions, by any chance?"

Not understanding his intention, he answered a beat late.

"No, I don't."

"Ah, that's good. Then, if you're not busy... um... Would you consider hanging out with me?"

What goes on in the mind of someone who suddenly says such things to a person they've just met? Feeling it wasn't even worth answering, he decided to turn back around and go on his way.

"Huh?"

As the guy seemed about to follow him again, this time he spoke, enunciating each word clearly.

"Not interested. Stop talking nonsense and don't follow me. If you follow me one more time, be prepared to face the consequences."

Perhaps sensing the killing intent in his words, the man's footsteps stopped abruptly.

There are two types of killing intent: one to overwhelm the opponent and another that expresses the intention to kill outright. What he had just emitted was killing intent that conveyed the thought of not even leaving bones behind. Anyone who couldn't sense this would be a person lacking in perception.