Chapter 229 – Small Confrontation.

Varkas wore a faint smile as he stepped into the light. His frame was leaner than that of the other guards, yet he carried himself with unmistakable authority. In this world, size was not indicative of strength or power. Even a massive orc could fall to a small ant if she possessed a higher level.

“Adventurer Edmund, you never showed up at our headquarters. It is very disappointing when my direct invitation is ignored so blatantly. And now you go so far as to attack my men. I am not sure I can let this slide as easily as before.”

The man said, his tone somewhat menacing.

“Edmund did nothing wrong. You are the bad guys here!”

Natia jumped out from behind Rusty, pointing at Captain Varkas and the two men regrouping behind him. The moment she did, the mercenary leader’s eyebrows twitched, and he reached for his weapon.

“Children who do not behave need to be punished.”

“Rusty!”

Alexander shouted from within his chestplate as he felt the killing intent radiating from the man.

“I know.”

Rusty raised the shield he had been carrying on his back just in time as Varkas drew his blade. He had faced the man many times in the illusory training chamber within the Soul Forge, but he had never seen him unleash an attack like this.

The weapon was similar to the reproduction Rusty had crafted, a single-edged saber. However, it was different. This one was enchanted and attuned to wind. The moment Varkas pulled it from its scabbard, a green blade of compressed air shot forward toward Natia. She fell backward onto the ground as Rusty leapt in front of her, shield raised. It glowed blue, empowered by its own enchantment, a simple mana barrier.

His shield began to glow blue, and when the green blade of wind energy struck it, the force of the air sent vibrations through his metallic arm. The mana barrier rippled violently, and for a split second, the green gale threatened to break through. Sparks of magical friction showered the pavement before the wind finally dissipated, leaving shallow marks on the ground as if a beast had clawed at the stone.

“Not bad, Mr. Edmund.”

Varkas chuckled, though his amber eyes remained cold.

“If you hadn’t blocked that attack, that child would be dead. This man is truly deplorable.”

Alexander commented on the strike, recognizing that it had been powerful enough to kill. Rusty could not tell whether the mercenary leader had been testing him or truly intended to harm Natia. Either way, it was unforgivable. This child was under his protection now, and at his current level, he could fight back.

“You tried to kill her…”

Rusty straightened after taking the blow and pointed his sword at Varkas. He had spent time living among these humanoids, and bonds had slowly begun to form. For this transgression, he was willing to fight. Yet one of his guides felt otherwise.

“Rusty, calm down. They outnumber us, and you are not in your best form. If you attack this man in broad daylight, there will be consequences. Even if you win, they will use it as an excuse to kill you or imprison you. Just calm down, or all of us will be done for!”

“But…”

Aburdon’s words cut through the rage clouding his metallic mind. He was right. Rusty was wearing armor that was not fully suited for combat, and it was not his true form. The head within his helmet was secured, but if he fought someone close to his own power, he could not account for accidents. Aburdon was right. Fighting Varkas here, with additional D-rank mercenaries assisting him, was not wise, at least not without access to his loadouts.

“( •̀⤙•́ )”

“I know, Gleam, but Aburdon is probably right.”

The mercenaries could not hear the discussion between them, but once Rusty made his decision, he finally lowered his sword.

“What do you want?”

“I see that you are wise as well, Mr. Edmund.”

Varkas smiled, as if gloating that Rusty could not oppose him in this situation. If they fought, Rusty could not guarantee the safety of the two children standing behind him. There was little he could do here that would not endanger the girls or risk his identity being revealed.

“Just a routine inspection. Ever since you appeared, strange things have been happening, Mr. Edmund. People going missing in the dungeon, strange explosions in the city, gold going missing.”

“People go missing in the dungeon all the time, and if gold is going missing, it is probably the thieves guild.”

Rusty replied instantly. It seemed Varkas was trying to tie his appearance to the recent incidents. While Rusty was responsible, there was nothing in his lair that could connect him to them, aside from Rolo and the children. They had been involved in the mercenary building going up in flames, but Varkas did not seem to be bringing that up.

“Sir, we did not find anything suspicious.”

“Is that so…”

As Rusty and Varkas continued to stare at each other, a third and fourth man emerged from the shop. One of them was holding a tool that resembled something called a compass. Rusty could feel mana fluctuations coming from it and assumed it was some kind of treasure-finding device. With everything hidden within his system storage, there was nothing for it to detect inside his home.

“It seems my men were mistaken. My apologies, Mr. Edmund, and do take care.”

Once the guards were outside, Varkas changed his tone. Rusty had expected them to eventually come to his home to check for the missing gold, but he had not expected them to do it like this.

“Just leave.”

At his words, the mercenaries began to move. Rusty stepped aside, making sure both girls remained behind his metallic frame. The two guards he had thrown earlier did not look pleased, but with Varkas present, they did not seem eager to speak.

“Oh, Mr. Edmund, if you hear anything about stolen goods, please let us know. Any information about thieves will be rewarded.”

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“…”

Rusty did not reply. He remained focused, still treating the group as enemies. His Identification skill had leveled up recently, giving him more information about the man before him. As he suspected, Varkas would rank around D-plus if he were a monster.

The text hovered before him in a system window. Varkas’ level was forty-two, and the limit of a third humanoid class was supposed to be fifty. While monsters had clear divisions between ranks, humans were measured by class levels and the special skills unlocked at each stage.