Chapter 84

It seems that the girl is the shopkeeper's daughter.

"Meria!"

"Oh, Father!"

The shopkeeper hurried over.

Then he confronted the man who was about to whip his daughter.

"What do you think you're doing to my daughter!?"

"So, you're this woman's father, huh?"

The man snorted arrogantly.

His hair was thinning, but he looked to be in his mid-twenties.

He was clearly well-dressed and exuded an air of arrogance.

"Look at this."

The man pointed to his feet.

But there was nothing there.

At most, his expensive shoes were a bit muddy.

"This woman stepped on my newly bought shoes. And she's only a Sixth Class, you know. I, a Second Class, being stepped on by a Sixth Class woman. It's a terrible humiliation, isn't it?"

The man spoke as if it were a tragic matter.

"Wha...?"

On the other hand, the shopkeeper seemed to flinch at the mention of "Second Class."

"That's why I was about to punish her."

"Please... no, please! Be merciful!"

The shopkeeper hurriedly knelt and pleaded with the man.

Seeing this, the man chuckled.

"That won't do. For the future, we need to make an example of this. What happens when a Sixth Class shows disrespect to a Second Class?"

The man smirked.

He was speaking with a sense of righteousness, but it was clear he just enjoyed being cruel.

"No, that's not true! I... I didn't try to step on you! You suddenly put your foot out...!"

"Oh? Are you trying to blame me? A Sixth Class, no less?"

The man kicked the girl.

"..."

Her frail body fell.

Unfortunately, the ground was muddy from the rain, and her body was covered in mud.

It seemed he had deliberately kicked her in that direction.

Then the man raised his whip.

The girl flinched.

A whistling sound cut through the air, and the whip struck her body.

—Smack.

"Huh?"

The sound was unexpectedly small, and the man furrowed his brow.

He then noticed my presence on the opposite side of the girl.

"...Who are you? When did you get there...?"

He realized I was holding the tip of the whip with my fingertips and gasped.

"You... caught the whip...? No, that's impossible."

The man shook his head, denying his own observation, but he was wrong.

I had approached and grabbed it before it hit the girl.

Generally, the tip of a whip moves much faster than a sword due to its flexibility, but this man was weak, and the speed was limited.

It was easy to catch it with just my fingertips.

"You said you would teach me what happens when a Sixth Class shows disrespect to a Second Class, right?"

I lightly pulled the whip from the man's hand and asked.

"So, what about it?"

The man glared at me, clearly scared but trying to act tough.

"My job is 'unemployed.' In other words, I'm also a Sixth Class."

"..."

"Please, teach me. For example, what happens if I punch a Second Class in the face and make his nose bleed?"

I punched the man in the face.

"Ughhhhh!?"

He flew about five or six meters and crashed into a nearby stall, scattering the merchandise.

"Did he pass out?"

The man was unconscious, his eyes rolled back, and blood was gushing from his nose.

Of course, he no longer had any protection to shield him from injury.

It's surprisingly difficult to give just enough damage to make someone bleed from the nose without killing them or having the protection nullify the damage.

"Serious... that guy..."

"A Sixth Class doing that to a Second Class..."

The onlookers were murmuring.

The shopkeeper and his daughter were also stunned.

It seems that in this city, it's almost unheard of for a lower-class person to challenge a higher-class one.

Well, that's not my concern.

"Hey, wake up."

I splashed the man with holy water to restore his protection and slapped him across the face.

"Ugh..."

He slowly opened his eyes, seemingly regaining consciousness.

"Are you awake?"

"Ah!"

Seeing my face, he let out a strangled cry and jumped up, quickly putting a couple of meters between us.

"Y-You! Don't think you can get away with this!"

The man's voice was harsh, but he was clearly intimidated.

"I'm asking you, what happens?"

"D-Don't come any closer!"

As I took a step forward, the man took a couple more steps back.

Just then,

"The law enforcement team is here!?"

"Trouble, we need to get out of here before we get caught in the crossfire!"

Voices were heard.

The man suddenly laughed nervously.

"Hahaha! The law enforcement team is here! You're finished now!"

Immediately, armed groups replaced the fleeing onlookers.

"We're the law enforcement team! Who committed violence against a higher class?"

"It's him! This Sixth Class guy hit me, a Second Class!"

I was quickly surrounded.

"I see, so it comes to this."