Vol 4 Chapter 11

'There are too many people carrying weapons.'

That was the first thing Kapros noticed as he looked at the people walking around. There were too many armed individuals. While it was true that combat-type users outnumbered non-combat users overall, in normal villages or cities, such weapon-carrying combat users weren't usually seen as much as one might expect.

This was because combat-type users who were always exploring dungeons or enjoying travel typically only stayed in towns briefly. In contrast, lifestyle non-combat users tended to settle in one town or city, running businesses or doing their own work, which made it seem like there were more unarmed people in towns.

However, the situation here was the opposite, with almost everyone walking around carrying various weapons. Even a person far away running a street stall had a large trident fiercely planted beside them, making it impossible not to feel a sense of unease. This was probably proof that this seemingly ordinary place was indeed dangerous.

"Kap."

As Kapros was thinking, his name was suddenly called. When he turned his head, Kran pulled the hood Kapros had been wearing and pressed it down tightly.

"It seems we need to be very careful here, so keep your hat on tight."

"What?"

Kapros understood that it seemed dangerous, but what did that have to do with his hood?

'Is he still worried about my face being easily recognized because of that FM thing?'

"Then shouldn't you cover up too?"

Kapros said this to the guy whose face was even more well-known than his, but Kran was already moving ahead. As always in serious situations, the bright smile had disappeared from his face, and his brow was slightly furrowed. Seeing this, Kapros thought he probably wouldn't hear even if spoken to, so he decided to tell Kran later to buy a suitable hood if they saw a place selling them.

Un-o also didn't say anything, but he was walking with his hand position subtly raised to be able to draw the bow on his back at any moment. The entire city flowed with a subtle tension despite seeming peaceful.

It was while they were cautiously passing through the main street.

"You bastard! Die! Upper Slash!"

"You're the one who should die! Booster Attack!"

As the sound of flashing collisions rang out, Kapros saw people around them instantly moving away from the center of the incident. Their movements were familiar and quick.

"Let's take cover this way."

Kran also looked around and led them towards an alley. The surrounding air was distorted due to the collision and explosion of the two energies, making it hard to see clearly, but when Kapros narrowed his eyes, he could see two men with swords fighting fiercely. It seemed a fight had broken out for some reason, but the problem was that no duel zone had been formed.

"To engage in such blatant PK that harms people..."

Kran muttered with an unusually grim face.

"Everyone seems used to it. I think it's better if we pass by without paying attention."

As Un-o coolly looked around and made his judgment, Kran hesitated for a moment, gripping his sword hilt tightly before finally letting go.

"...Alright. Let's find a safe inn or something and finish saving our location first."

Given that Kran had unhesitatingly stepped forward for things that went against his sense of justice even in Torelit, it wasn't hard for Kapros to guess what he most wanted to do now, but this wasn't the time for that. It was fortunate that Kran understood it wasn't the right time and turned away.

Bistale wasn't a city one would normally stay in during travel, but the reason they had to pass through here was that the distance to the next cities from this place was too far.

If not here, there was no suitable place where they could finish getting the supplies and weapon repairs they wanted in time, so they agreed to stay here briefly, mixing in about half their interest in the colosseum. However, even though they already knew about this city, witnessing a bloody PK scene as soon as they entered was very unpleasant.

'We need to be careful too.'

Kapros tensed his shoulders again and glared at the bustling street.

After getting a room at an inn in a quiet area near the city gate, they moved towards the center of the city. As they approached the center, a round building that seemed to be the core of the city came into view, and its identity was immediately apparent.

"That must be the colosseum. It's quite large."

Kapros nodded as he looked up at where Un-o was pointing. Many people were swarming around the brick-built colosseum. The atmosphere was much brighter than the murderous one on the main street when they entered the city, but it was still impossible to let their guard down.

As they were walking to take a closer look out of curiosity, suddenly someone ran quickly past Kapros from that direction. Although they hadn't collided or even brushed past, and there were many people running around in the crowded area, Kapros didn't pay attention. But the moment he thought Un-o's body beside him suddenly spun around, a terrible scream burst out.

"Argh!"

Surprised, Kapros turned around to see Un-o with his bow already drawn and a man crouched on his knees with an arrow in his shoulder.

Quite a few people's attention was focused on them.

"What's going on? Why did you shoot?"

As Kran, who had been walking in front, asked in surprise, Un-o opened his mouth with a cold gaze.

"Hand it over."

"Ugh... ugh..."

"I know everything, so stop pretending and hand it over while I'm asking nicely. Unless you want to become a porcupine."

"Ugh..."

When the man couldn't get up despite Un-o's icy voice, Un-o approached without hesitation and kicked him.

"Gah!"

In the hand of the man who had been kicked and fallen to the side was...

"Huh?"

Kapros was surprised for a moment and reached for his back. He had three slots on his belt for auto-equipping potions, which he usually filled with expensive small potions for efficient use, though he rarely used them. But he hadn't been paying much attention to them as he didn't use them often, and now all three potions at his waist were gone. Those potions were rolling out of the bleeding man's hand.