Lyon POV:

“Hahaha, really?”

“Yeah, I honestly didn’t expect him to react that well, but it’s too bad. The fortune teller told me today was my lucky day.”

“You still go to see that old granny on Die Die street? Kuhaha~”

My eyes flickered open, and I was greeted by the sound of different voices chattering away with each other. A thick hood wrapped around my hanging head; my arms bound securely behind the chair I was forced to sit on.

I barely made out the dim light dangling from the ceiling as I narrowed my eyes. I shifted my gaze to the floor, observing fragments of broken glass scattered along it. The wooden floorboards were indented and snapped in several places while I caught a glimpse of a pool of blood near the stairs.

‘An abandoned house...’

“Oh, he’s awake.”

“Tch. Kid was such a hassle to carry. He even started fighting back in his sleep.”

A large hand filled my obscured view. It gripped the hood and ripped it off my head as the owner of the hand sat down on a chair he pulled out.

His black hair was tied back into a ponytail, and he had a long scar that ran all the way down from his cheek to his exposed collarbone. The man folded his arms on top of the chair’s backrest while leaning forward.

“Old Mikey brought you to us. We didn’t want to be too rough since you have value.”

His voice was calm as if he’d done this many times before and his narrow eyes never left mine. It was as I expected, Mike wasn’t who he appeared to be.

I examined the faces of the men visible, momentarily stopping on a beautiful woman who had her feet up on the large table in the middle of the room. Her hands were behind her head, but her sharp eyes locked onto me firmly.

My gaze moved away from her till it rested on Mike who refused to make eye contact with me. I smirked as I looked back at the man chewing on a thin bundle of wheat in front of me.

“So? What do you want?”

“Oho? Such bravado! Ain’t that right, guys?!”

He slapped his knee and the group behind him laughed in response. It was an uneasy atmosphere to be in, but my mind had already been hardened long ago. Something on this level wouldn’t shake me.

“Let’s see now. We can cut you up and sell your body parts...”

He pulled out a short knife and spun it around his fingers expertly before poking my limbs with it.

“Or perhaps we could make a deal with the Pantheons. We might even get a small foothold into the Royal Treasury if we go down that route, eh?”

He flipped the knife to the side and lightly tapped on the Mark of a Pantheon.

‘...’

I stabilized my ever-increasing heartbeat as the thought of me being used as some sort of ransom against the Pantheons, did more to agitate me than hearing the possibility of them selling my organs.

“Boss, there’s always Enigma too!”

“Naw, those twats will probably end up stealing such a valuable specimen from us.”

“Uhh, that’s true.”

I glared at him as he leaned back in his chair chuckling away.

“Fierce eyes for a kid, that’s for sure.”

“Boss, let’s leave him be. He’s just a child...”

Mike stepped forward; his eyes occasionally darting in my direction. Beads of sweat formed on his brow as he bit his lip slightly. He was the one responsible for bringing me here, yet I could see the guilt eating him up from the inside.

“Leave him be?”

He chewed down on the wheat straw for a while.

‘!’

My eyes widened as I twisted my neck to the side, barely making out the silhouette of a knife dashing past me. It grazed past my cheek and lodged itself into the decaying wooden wall behind.

“That is money. A lot of money. And you want me to let him go? Don’t let your emotions cloud your judgement, Mikey.”

The tension in the air gradually climbed as they glared at each other. Mike eventually broke eye contact, backing away while his eyebrows quivered.

“Sorry about tha—”

Mike dashed forward and kicked the chair the boss was sitting on. The boss crashed through the wall on the other side of the room, removing the biggest threat to my safety in the process.

“M-Mike, have you gone mad??”

The others looked at him in shock as he pulled out a knife and cut off my restraints. I felt strength returning to my body as I looked for the most optimal method of escape.

“I’m sorry. You go. I’ll hold them off.”

I nodded my head and waited for Mike to grab their attention. The thought of leaving him behind did leave a slightly bad taste in my mouth, but he was the one responsible for kidnapping me in the first place.

He swung the knife down as a gust of wind erupted forward, hurling the remaining members back.

‘Nagi?’

That’s not right. Considering how he easily overpowered me, he’s probably much higher than that.

I watched him charge in as the woman who had remained seated the whole time finally stood up. Her black hair contained chestnut highlights as it swayed beside her waist. She flickered forward, and the two of them exchanged blows too fast for me to see in my current state.

The whole house shook and cold sweat ran down my back as I tried to observe their high-level fight.

‘Master, isn’t it a bit too early for me to be here?’

I let out a wry smile while quickly heading for the exit. I was confident I could keep up once I activated the Mark, but there was still a time limit that needed to be accounted for.

“!”

I ducked as a large ball of fire flew past my head. I saw the boss stepping back into the room unscathed by Mike's surprise attack.

“Mikey, you’ve really done it now.”

Mike panicked as his dark messy hair clung to his forehead. His pupils dilated while he yelled at me.

“Run!”

My legs froze temporarily and my eyes widened as I watched a knife plunge itself deep into his chest. Flames wrapped around the Boss’s hand that instantly covered Mike’s face half a second later.

He set him ablaze while his bloodcurdling scream penetrated the air, causing the others to back off.

“R..u...n...”

Mike stretched out his burning hand, pleading for me to go. I bit down on my lip, peeled my eyes away from the scene I had just witnessed and activated the Mark of a Pantheon.

I bolted towards the door, running with all my might.

“Oh no you don’t!”

A knife shot forward like a bullet, piercing deeply into my leg before I even had time to react. It robbed me of my movement, sending me crashing to the floor as I rolled forward.

‘Keuk...’

I got back to my feet, ignoring the bolts of pain assaulting my mind. I clenched my teeth as my eyebrows dropped to the top of my eyes and I glared at the boss.

His lips curved into a smirk while blood poured down my leg. Mike grabbed hold of his ankle with the last ounce of his strength, giving me one final opportunity to flee the abandoned house.

Barriers of wind separated me from the others, keeping them locked in place as I ran. I ran without looking back and disappeared into the maze of alleyways.

This was the slums of Astril.

***

??? POV:

I watched the broken glass and scattered debris slowly fade away like dust being dispersed by a gentle wind. A soft, green light followed closely behind, sweeping over the scene as the burnt corpse vanished into thin air.

The broken wall—replaced with a brand new one, while the dim light hanging from the ceiling was transformed into a bright chandelier. It shone down on a large table in the middle of the room and highlighted a group of people around it.

I listened to the sound of steady footsteps descending the stairs to the second floor, while my lips curved into a short smile.

“Boss, how did I do?”

My gaze shifted to the middle-aged man who scratched the back of his head. He looked down while eagerly awaiting a response.

“Not bad. Your illusions have become much more realistic than before, but there is still room for improvement. Keep practicing, Mike.”

“T-thanks, Boss!”

He let out a sigh of relief as he joined the others. I stepped out of the shadows and took a seat at the head of the table. The others immediately got to their feet, bowing their heads in unison.

“We greet the Boss!!”

I smiled softly at each of them while they returned to their seats at the table.

“I’m sorry for bringing you all back. I know many of you have experienced a lot of misfortune here.”

“Naw, don’t sweat it, Boss. You call, we answer.”

“You’ve done so much for us. This is the least we can do, Boss.”

“I’m... always here for you, Boss.”

The corners of my mouth rose slightly as I looked at each of their faces. Zara blushed deeply and quickly avoided my gaze. I knew it would have been difficult for them to leave their families, but they still agreed in a heartbeat to support me once I asked.

“Kuhaha~, I still remember when Boss took over the whole area at the age of 8!”

“Oh yeah! That was a sight to behold!”

They spoke about the past; about when I first came to Outer Astril. I suppose came isn’t the right word to use, ‘dropped off’ would be more accurate, but that was a story for another time.

“Boss.”

I glanced at Sab who called out to me. The scar that connected his collarbone to his cheek reminded me of that incident.

It was the reason why I chose not to ask him to come along, but once he heard I was gathering the others; he begged me to let him join too. It was a difficult decision to make, but I agreed in the end.

“Thanks to you back then, many of us gained the opportunity to live better lives and even leave Outer Astril behind for good.”

His eyebrows quivered slightly as they curved in. The others fell silent while pain flickered through their eyes momentarily.

“Even though my wife died in my arms, I gained comrades that made me cling to life. You gave not just me, but all of us here hope.”

The others nodded their heads as Sab’s finger ran down his long scar. He bit his lip lightly before staring at me with serious eyes.

“So don’t worry about a thing, and leave it to us!”

Sab grinned as the others chimed in again—they were still as enthusiastic as ever. I folded my arms while my lips formed a content smile.

“You guys haven’t changed at all.”

They all laughed and I watched them chat away amongst themselves in silence. Some of them hadn’t seen each other in years, so they used this time to catch up.

My gaze shifted to Mike who got to his feet and approached me. His eyes darted around the room while he scratched the back of his head.

“Boss, will it really be okay?”

He was unable to hide the ever-growing distress forming on his face. I understood his concern, but this was necessary. Regardless of whether he went after dungeons or became a Monster Hunter, he wouldn’t have the luxury of freezing just because someone died in front of him.

His time had come and his mind had already been sharpened. All he needed now was experience. Through experience, he would grow and that death he ran from today, would turn into a life he can save tomorrow.

I got up from my seat while the chatter quickly subsided. They turned their heads to face me as they awaited my instructions.

“Keep an eye on Lyon, but don’t help him in any way. Today was his first and last chance. If he makes a mistake in the future, he’ll pay his dues.”

“Yes, Boss!!”

They bowed their heads and answered vigorously. I wouldn’t need to worry about anything since they would be watching over him.

I tapped Mike’s shoulder to reassure him. He had a habit of worrying too much, but that just showed how much he cared about others.

“My disciple is far stronger than you think. Watch him and you’ll see.”

“Understood, Boss.”

I walked towards the door as I recalled the image of Lyon’s intense glare just before he ran out of the house. My lips curved upwards and I felt satisfied.

‘That’s right, Lyon. There’s more to life than the power that lies in your two fists. I know you can do it.’

I felt the night breeze brush past my face as I disappeared along with it.