NOVEL NEXT Chapter 21
Chapter
Chiiik-!
The woman’s body who blocked Enok’s punch was pushed back, stretching out.
“Oh?”
It was just a light strike, but I was disappointed after seeing the level of the mercenaries just a moment ago.
Does she have some skill?
Enok’s senses swept over the woman.
From the aura she emanated, she seemed to be around the mid-level of an Expert.
Regardless of her strength, her mastery was impressive.
“Hey, wait! I’m not here to fight!”
The woman rubbed her arm, which seemed numb from blocking the strike, and tried to persuade Enok.
You’re pulling back that much?
The moment was deflated.
Enok glared at the woman with a pouty expression.
“Then I’m leaving.”
No need to keep Rionne waiting if it’s not a fight.
“No, wait! Let’s talk for a bit!”
As the woman raised her hand, mercenaries hiding nearby revealed themselves.
What’s this? You said you didn’t want to fight.
Enok’s eyes momentarily sparkled.
“What do you want to talk about?”
“Well, something beneficial for both of us.”
The woman gestured around her.
“Can you see? That’s quite a substantial force. Especially in this remote territory.”
“Yeah, surprising.”
Does the Lord really allow this kind of armed group to just be?
I don’t get it.
Common sense would suggest they should have nipped it in the bud or taken measures to prevent such a gathering.
Not that the woman knew Enok’s thoughts, she smiled and introduced herself.
“I’m Capri, a B-ranked mercenary and the leader of the Giant Clan.”
“Uh-huh.”
“No, you should introduce yourself too.”
“No thanks.”
Do I really have to?
As Enok began to lose interest, Capri clicked her tongue and asked.
“Anyway, this isn’t something to discuss out in the open. Come with me for a moment.”
“What if I don’t want to?”
“Well, then…”
At Capri’s gesture, the mercenaries displayed their weapons.
Even if it’s in front of the Mercenary Guild, it’s right in the heart of the city.
The frightened citizens stopped in their tracks.
“Fine, I’ll go.”
“Good decision.”
Crackling-!
Lightning crackled in Enok’s hand.
Capri widened her distance in surprise.
“What the hell! You said it was okay!”
“Yup.”
A fight is always welcome.
*
Capri gritted her teeth.
This wasn’t what she expected.
I didn’t think this guy would be so completely insane.
On the street, unconscious mercenaries rolled on the ground.
Out of the approximately twenty mercenaries, only six, including Capri, were still standing.
These guys were some of the better ones even within the Giant Clan.
“What’s the point of going this far?”
She asked while shaking out her stinging arm.
The brat still wore a vacant expression and tilted his head.
“What do you mean?”
“Why make a huge spectacle out of this?”
Is he hired by the lord?
Capri’s mind started to race.
Under the Emperor’s orders, a lord cannot suppress armed groups within their territory.
But since that’s not explicitly established in law, it wasn’t impossible to sidestep it like this.
It wasn’t strange at all that Capri found herself stumbling on her own thoughts.
“Huh?”
Of course, Enok had no obligation to care enough to think that far.
“Damn it.”
Seeing Capri’s clueless face, she chewed her lips.
At this point, the lord would probably send troops.
They now had an opportunity to get rid of the thorn in their side.
She had thought that if she played her cards right by feeding the knight the right info, she could secure the lordship.
But turns out, he was a mercenary hired by the lord!
Thinking he was some notable noble brat from somewhere was a mistake.
Normally, wouldn’t one listen to what had to be said?
She never imagined things would escalate to outright brawling like this.
“Since it’s come to this, there’s no other choice! From! Contact the Clan! Gather whatever you can and get out of Dendalo!”
“Yes!”
The man named From hurriedly left the scene.
Enok wasn’t particularly inclined to stop him.
What intrigued him was just one thing.
“How interesting.”
Pat-! As Enok quickly moved closer, Capri swung her fist.
Whoosh-!
The punch sliced through the air, making Enok’s hair flutter.
Enok stared intently at the distorted face of Capri.
“How are you doing this?”
Whump-! Capri was sent staggering back from Enok’s punch.
But that was all.
She didn’t seem to have taken much damage.
“You little punk!”
Instead, she counterattacked.
A punch descended from above her right.
As she hooked it with her fingers and slightly tugged, it missed as expected.
Whoosh-!
Enok had plenty of options.
In fact, if he genuinely attacked, he could tear Capri apart.
However, he refrained because he found her solid physique intriguing.
“Commander!”
“Get away!”
Enok fended off the remaining clan members and pondered.
At that moment,
“Fire, gather, strike!”
One of the clan members who had been hanging back cast a spell.
Enok’s gaze swept over the spell.
It was sloppy.
It seemed like they substituted the Circle for the Central Dantian, but substitutes are substitutes for a reason.
“Scatter.”
With just a single incantation, the spell was dispersed.
He ripped the sloppy flow apart with mana.
While the mage was flustered, Enok knocked out the remaining clan members.
Now there was only Capri and one mage left.
“Yikes…!”
No wait, the mage just fled, leaving Capri alone now.
“I-Ick…!!”
Capri’s face flushed red with rage.
In that moment, she pulled out a pill from her pocket, popped it in her mouth, and chewed.
Instinctively-!
Simultaneously, her aura began to explode forth.
Veins bulged grotesquely on her face as Capri glared at Enok.
“You bastard…!”
And at that moment, Enok completed his understanding.
Her solid physique was probably due to her training with mana like one would with iron, and there should be a simple way to counter it.
“Yahhh-!”
Capri infused her mana into both fists.
Fire-! Excessively overflowing mana flickered like flames.
Commonly referred to as flame.
Given the case, it was likely a Flame Fist technique.
Though it was a rather half-baked skill pushed through by mana output, its power shouldn’t be underestimated.
Knowing that, Capri swung her fist with serious intent to kill Enok.
Boom-!
The air tore apart.
Enok, casually, affixed claws of his glove.
And then,
Thud-
He forcefully pushed her fist to the side.
“Huh…?”
Capri’s eyes widened in disbelief at how effortlessly her punch was deflected.
But she was a seasoned mercenary.
She soon regained her composure and prepared to endure.
‘With the pill’s effect, my durability has surged dramatically.’
One punch might be bearable…
Thud-
Enok’s palm landed on Capri’s abdomen.
‘What the?!’
Capri smiled at the unexpected luck.
I’ll crush him like this.
Bang-!
And when she came to her senses,
“…Huh?”
The blue sky was visible in her eyes.
She tried to rise but found her entire body unresponsive.
“What the…?”
She rushed to gather her mana, but it was impossible.
Her insides were a complete mess.
At that moment, Capri realized she had encountered something.
“I’m using the Inner Strength technique…”
Also known as the Internal Strike, a technique that directly targets the opponent’s internal body.
That this kid could use such a technique?
“My Inner Strength technique? Is that the name of it?”
She casually scribbled down its name in her mind; was it already a known technique?
Enok smacked his lips.
Seeing Enok’s reaction, Capri let out a helpless chuckle.
This was simply absurd.
Just then, as if waiting for the fight to end, the sound of footsteps approached.
Clank-, clank-, the sounds of metal followed closely.
Capri closed her eyes.
This is it.
She thought.
They’d probably drag her in front of the lord and deal with her under some pretense.
“Oh.”
But she had forgotten for a moment.
Crazy people usually don’t discriminate against opponents.
Crackle-!
Enok radiated energy as the knights approached.
Seeing that sight, Capri chuckled bitterly.
“Crazy bastard.”
And soon after, her consciousness faded away.
*
“Wait a moment, please! We aren’t here to fight!”
Seeing Enok, who looked ready to dive in headfirst, one of the knights rushed out to clarify.
Now that I saw his face, he looked familiar.
He was that knight… Hemington? Something like that.
“I’m Wilbert.”
“Ah.”
“Anyway, we just came to capture the main instigators of the commotion.”
“Ah, I see.”
Who did he mean by the main instigators?
It was none other than Enok himself.
Crackle-!
Enok smiled brightly and enveloped his hand in lightning.
“Wait a moment…! We’re here to catch those mercenaries over there, not you, Enok!”
“Name?”
“Pardon?”
“How do you know the name?”
“Well, I mean, obviously….”
If you touch them, the king will personally come down and behead you, so it was common knowledge to keep things in order.
Wilbert skillfully avoided the subject as he politely bowed to Enok.
“So, can I… take them?”
“No?”
“Yes?”
“I captured them, so why should you?”
The rights to hunted prey naturally belonged to the one who caught them.
“Uh, then….”
“Just leave them be.”
“Ah, yes.”
Nodding, Wilbert relayed the message to his fellow knights.
He said no, that’s it.
*
After exchanging a few more words with Enok, Wilbert departed.
He had asked if Enok had any intention of attending the lord’s invitation, or if he’d settle in Dendalo and other inquiries.
But Enok mostly responded with “no” or “I don’t know.”
He did ask him again if he truly had no intention of attending the invitation.
Naturally, Enok confirmed that he really had no plans to go.
He had no desire to see the face of a human lord.
“Rionne.”
Enok whispered softly, infusing mana into his voice.
At that moment, Rionne popped up from somewhere.
“Enok!”
Rionne, who had been smiling brightly, quickly scanned the area, her face displaying about seventeen question marks.
“…Enok?”
“I handled everything.”
With the mercenaries lying helplessly around, Enok proudly puffed out his chest.
“Oh….”
Rionne smacked her forehead.