Chapter 99

"Nice to meet you, Quon. I am Marvel, the Submaster of 'Clifoto Gate'."

"Quon. If you're here to recruit me, I've already declined."

Raising his voice, Marvel stepped back, significantly. Despite his small stature, he was accompanied by three rather large and menacing-looking men. Was he trying to intimidate me? To me, it only made the height difference more noticeable, making this guy look even shorter.

Unaware of my thoughts, Marvel continued with a thin smile on his face.

"Well, don't say that. You can accomplish more as a group than alone. In that regard, we are—"

"Enough. I have things to do and no time for sales pitches."

"You are mistaken. What one can achieve alone is never great. With us, you can expect greater results."

"If that's the case, 'Camelot' would be a much better choice. Though, I have no intention of joining either."

Sighing, I informed him, and Marvel's cheek twitched. He didn't seem to be very patient. Well, if he were more persistent, he wouldn't have tried such a coercive negotiation.

Shrugging, I turned to leave—when Marvel's voice, slightly trembling, echoed.

"…Is it fine to make us your enemies? Do you understand what it means to make 'Clifoto Gate' your enemy—"

"Of course, I don't care."

So, that's his move. A low tactic, but one I find fitting.

My lips curled, and I felt a surge of excitement as I glared at Marvel and the 'Clifoto Gate' members behind him.

Marvel, who seemed to be gasping for breath, still had some resolve and continued.

"H, ha, ha… You don't care? 'Clifoto Gate' is one of the top clans. Underestimating our strength—"

"I've already said, I don't care. If you want to fight, come on. Whether it's a hundred, a thousand, or ten thousand—won't it be a fun slaughter?"

Even if they have a bad reputation, they are still a top clan. Their strength is not to be compared with ordinary clans.

If they come as a group, it might be a somewhat enjoyable battle.

"Or are you going to attack now? I don't mind, I'd like to test my blade… If that's your purpose, it's worth my time. So, what will you do?"

"…It's impossible! Do you know the difference in numbers!"

"It's possible. How many demons do you think I've slain? I have a weapon that won't break, so I can cut down as many as I want."

During that event, even if we continued fighting, we wouldn't have reached 2,000 kills. The weapon would have reached its limit before then.

But now, I have the Gara-maru, which has no durability limit.

With this, I can keep cutting down as many as I want. It would be interesting to test that.

Marvel took a step back, seemingly intimidated by my laughter.

"F, f, f, you're kidding! It's cheating, it must be cheating! Stopping such a large group of demons… 'Camelot' must have cheated too!"

"Cheating… Don't make excuses for your own incompetence."

"Incompetent…! We defeated the爵位悪魔 (ranked demon) faster than 'Sword Saint Union'! Yet, our ranking was lower—"

"Because you caused damage to the city without thinking. You didn't understand the purpose of the battle."

The event's objective was to protect people from the demon army. Defense was the main goal, not attacking.

In my case, it was more efficient to attack, so I went for it.

But Marvel, who still seemed unconvinced, continued without his usual courteous demeanor.

"NPCs don't matter! It should have been fine as long as we defeated the demons quickly!"

"…You couldn't even defeat two demons as quickly as I did?"

"That's because you used cheating…!"

"Hmm… You say that every second. Then, let's test it, shall we… GM. Can you check again if there's any cheating?"

"Wha!?"

Caught off guard, GM Fauzelle straightened up with a strange sound.

Ignoring her flustered state, the two GM avatars standing beside her spoke in their usual calm tone.

"We have accepted the request."

"Checking and measuring the data of the foreigner: Quon."

"Wait, Gardner, is this okay…!?"

…Hmm, Gardner. The word Fauzelle blurted out in her flustered state caught my attention, but it wasn't the right time to question it.

Sighing, I turned back to the 'Clifoto Gate' members and focused my killing intent on them.

At that moment, Marvel, who had been shouting, and the men behind him, who had been glaring, all opened their eyes wide and fell silent.

"What's wrong, brats? This intensity is only about 10% of what I directed at the demons back then."

The killing intent I'm emitting now is only about 10% as strong as the one I used against the demons.

In a battle between experts, this level of killing intent is barely noticeable.

However, they are just a group of amateurs. They probably have little experience with being exposed to killing intent—

"Killing intent… Anyone can do that. It's the same as you lining up those big, bulky dummies behind you. It's intimidation, a threat. Without words, through will and attitude—'I will kill you,' that's all it is."

Smiling, I told them and slowly approached the 'Clifoto Gate' members.

They flinched but couldn't move from their spot.

Deepening my smile, I continued.

"Do you understand why intimidation works?"

"…!"

"The answer is simple. Because you are alive."

They seemed to not understand my words or didn't have the time to listen—

But I continued, not caring.

I was just stating the facts.

"Because you are alive, as a living being, you have the feeling of 'not wanting to die.' And because I am a threat to your survival, you feel fear. This applies to foreigners, locals, and even demons."

It's a survival instinct, a natural feeling.

If there is a presence that can harm your life in front of you—fearing it is a natural emotional response.

I slowly approached Marvel, looking down at his fear-twisted face with a mocking smile.

He finally seemed to understand that the person in front of him could kill him.

"Well… How about it, GM?"

"Measurement complete. There was no cheating or tool usage."

"The result is good, but… Is this okay…?"

Smiling at the confused GM Fauzelle, I released my killing intent.

It seemed she was a messenger. Her superior might have some plan… or the two GM avatars might have some secret.

It was a bit concerning, but I couldn't ask in this public setting.

Sighing, I turned back to the 'Clifoto Gate' members.

"Well, you guys."

"Ah!?"

Released from the killing intent, I looked down at Marvel, who had collapsed on the spot, and laughed.

I didn't intend to torment them further, but it would be boring to just leave it at that.

I wanted to have a little fun.

"Enough of the pointless talk. If you want a fight, I'd be happy to oblige."

"N, no, that's not what I meant!"

"Come on, you were the one who started it. I'm offering to take you up on it. Or are you retracting your words?"

"I retract! I'm sorry, I won't ask you to join us again!"

"…Alright. Then, I have no use for you. You're just that level."

Sighing, I signaled to Hishin and started walking.

As I passed by Raison, who had been pushed quite far back, he looked at me as if he wanted to say something but didn't.

We left the square and headed towards the north gate of the city.

There, Hishin, who had fallen in step beside me, spoke with a surprised expression.

"Mr. Quon, that was a bit tame for you. I thought you'd provoke them into a fight."

"I would have, but it would have played into the GM's plans."

"GM… Fauzelle's?"

"No, rather… those two GM avatars."

They quickly responded to my request, as if they had anticipated it from the start.

They seemed to have some hidden agenda, but as a player, I can't investigate the inner workings of the game.

I also have the Gara-maru—Tensho-maru Shigetoki, which raises various questions.

"…But it was a good opportunity to prove I'm not cheating in front of everyone. So, I cooperated with them."

"I see. Still, I thought you'd do something more flashy."

"Considering the brat, I could have, but I didn't want to break the others' spirits completely."

I could have broken them, but I wanted to leave room for a comeback.

If they challenge me again, it would be interesting.

Marvel, who was exposed to my killing intent, might not be able to stand up again, but the others still have a chance.

If they challenge me, it would be good, and if they reform, that's fine too.

"If you still have the courage to challenge me, I'll welcome you with a grand fight."

"…Alright. So, where are we going now, Mr. Quon?"

"To the Tower of the Sacred Flame, as the GM explained."

The Tower of the Sacred Flame, which I had heard about from a local before.

I thought it wasn't necessary, but now I'm heading there.

If it's related to the grand quest, there might be some preparation.

There's a possibility that a ranked demon might appear.

If so, I'll hunt it down first.

"Do you know where the Tower of the Sacred Flame is?"

"Yes, I checked the map when I heard about it from a local. We won't get lost."

"Hopefully, we won't run into 'Camelot'."

"No, that's unlikely."

Altairus must have confirmed that we were heading north from the square.

I felt his gaze, so it's certain.

If he knows I'm heading to the north tower, it's efficient for us to target different areas.

He will likely head to another Tower of the Sacred Flame.

"Still, we can't be sure others aren't heading there. Let's hurry."

"Right… Let's clear it today."

Hishin, who seemed unusually excited, was eager for a fight.

She probably acquired a new skill from a skill orb.

I also want to try out new skills.

Lumina watched us with a cheerful smile.

All three of us were ready.

"Alright, let's head there. Get ready, you two."

"Yes!"

Smiling at their enthusiastic response, I stepped out of the north gate into the field.

The demon army is retreating, and the world is changing.

My curiosity about what's happening is also growing.