Chapter 45: Achoo

All the hard work had finally paid off.

Though my ability made it easy for me to rank up, the fights that I had to go through just to get used to my body…

They weren’t easy.

I had won all of them, but not without bleeding several times. I might have regeneration, but that didn’t make it easy to deal with the pain.

The core shined brighter.

It had evolved.

I was now a Bronze Ranker.

The changes were immediate. I felt my mana reserves had increased by five times.

Normally, people get double their previous reserves after evolving their core to the Bronze rank.

This was a massive boost. Large mana reserves meant being able to last longer in battles.

They give you the space to use more mana-draining spells in repeated succession without fainting due to mana exhaustion.

I also felt like my mana control had increased by a small bit.

After ranking up to a new core, people often experienced an increase in mana control. For me, I already had monstrous mana control.

This new addition felt like a drop in the ocean, but still, it was there.

I dusted my clothes…

Or what was left of them. The fire had burned my clothes, including my skin at many places.

My regeneration had repaired the burnt skin, and due to me concentrating on compressing the core, the pain might have subsided into the background.

That was a blessing.

I was sure no one would enjoy the feeling of being burnt.

A sadist maybe.

And I wasn’t one of them!

As I walked out of the room, or what had been left of it, I could see several soldiers surrounding the perimeter.

They had extinguished the fire—

Mostly.

As they saw me coming out unharmed, many of them were surprised but chose not to question it.

I was their superior and… who questions the boss?!

“Sir.”

A soldier thumped his chest with his hand once while saluting me.

He had brought a pair of clothes for me.

Ah. That touched my heart.

As I looked at my body… well, my condition wasn’t the best.

I was almost naked… Almost!!

I took the clothes from him and wore them over my previous ones.

Going to a changing room would have been weird.

I thought so.

And I wasn’t keen on changing before them—

I looked at the soldiers, most of whom had shocked expressions on their faces.

They might have expected me to be half-burnt. I could see that some healers were on standby, but they didn’t approach me, seeing my near-perfect condition.

“We were going to rescue you, but you seemed occupied…”

The soldier who had provided the clothes spoke up, seeing my gaze wandering over them.

They might have seen the vortex of mana around me…

A wise choice.

I didn’t know what would have happened, but approaching a place with such unstable mana wouldn’t have been safe, would it?

As I patted his shoulder in understanding, the soldier visibly relaxed.

Not only him, all the other soldiers let out a breath of relief.

They might have been scared of the consequences, not knowing what caused the fire.

And everyone here knew—I was a high-ranked bigshot in D.X., the organization their master now served.

If the fire had resulted in my death, then…

Their fear was justified.

I moved towards my room. I had to get ready, fully armed.

I wanted to test my new strength. And what would be better than some hunting?

I made my way towards the forest.

Should I take someone with me? Some company would have been better.

Haa.

When would Julien arrive?

I wanted to flex a little before him. That guy had to take his training seriously.

Such a weakling!

***

“Achoo!” Julien rubbed his nose.

“Someone might have missed me,” he said, looking at the man beside him.

Standing at seven feet, David looked more like a giant. He had a bulky build with shoulder-length grey hair tied in a ponytail.

Currently, he was here as Julien’s… bodyguard!

Even Julien was surprised when Kael suggested going with some protection.

Julien had thought of receiving some Gold Rankers…

Never in his life did he think of having a literal Diamond Ranker as his bodyguard.

Julien puffed his chest.

Who wouldn’t be happy being treated like a big shot?

Currently, they were in the city of Natsbergh.

One of the biggest red-light districts on the entire planet.

The City of Desires!

Julien was guarded by around ten people, all of them Gold cores.

The people on the street kept giving them glances from time to time.

Who wouldn’t?

It wasn’t every day that you saw a literal monster walking around you. David certainly had a… magnificent presence.

“Are any of you hungry?”

Julien asked, looking sideways. On both their sides, flashy stalls stood tall selling tempting items—

Mainly food!

Julien felt like having a little snack before their mission began.

“No, sir. That would delay our task. Thank you for the offer.”

David spoke in a polite yet reserved tone.

It had been the same since they had left Tamyr. The other Gold Rankers may have opened up and spoken casually with Julien… but David kept his words short.

He wasn’t being disrespectful. It was his personality.

David Bruth, the second strongest fighter in D.X., just below Arthur himself.

He was someone who strictly followed the military hierarchy. For him, his superiors were akin to gods, whose wishes were his commands.

David would follow every order without a second thought. It didn’t matter whether the task was morally appropriate or not!

If any of the Gold Rankers crossed their boundaries while speaking to Julien…

David’s death stare was enough to freeze their bones.

David wasn’t rude or inherently bad; it’s just that his dedication to the job made him look evil to many.

Right.

He just looked evil, but everyone knew his real self. No one felt offended by his attitude.

On the contrary, all the soldiers respected him a great deal. He was an idol for many of them.

Someone they looked up to… a man they aspired to become.

And now David was tasked with Julien’s protection by Kael Frost.

Their master’s superior.

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