Although Arthur was maintaining the barrier with his mana, he was still strong enough to hold the mercenary before he could fall to his demise. His strength stat had come in clutch when he needed it the most.
“Arthur!!” Deka approached him in a hurry as she crouched down, trying to help him pull her companion up. “Help us here!” Her yell snapped the rest of the group out of their daze and made them move quickly as they grabbed the man from his arms and dragged him up.
“Thank you… Hah… Thank you!” Exhaling a long breath of relief, the man thanked them profusely. “I thought I was about to die!”
“Don’t worry about it.” Arthur stood up and looked away. “Dying that way would be really painful.”
“…” The man instinctively shifted his gaze to stare at the fall behind him. Down there, the flood had turned the entire area into a raging ocean of waves. The horrifying scene made his heart sink. ‘If I fell… I would’ve been crushed to pieces.’ He mused.
“Anyway, let’s move. We have to get out of here. Pick yourselves up. We are close to the exit.” He said.
The mercenaries nodded their heads and quickly stood up. The end was in sight and all they had to do was make it. Arthur didn’t seem like he was struggling to hold the barrier on and the barrier itself wasn’t cracking or bending under pressure.
Quickly, the squad started running again, paving their path through the flood. Eventually, the glimpse of light expanded and their eyes could finally see the outside world again in full clarity.
“We are there!!”
Finally, the group emerged out of the darkness of the flood into the snowy world. Their eyes lit up with excitement as they finally stopped and dropped to the ground. They could’ve never thought the feeling of dry snow could be this amazing.
“I’m alive… Hahahaha! I’m alive!!”
“Thank god!!!”
“We made it!!”
The mercenaries laughed and yelled as they felt their hearts pump with sheer adrenaline after surviving that disaster. This was perhaps the most dangerous instance of imminent death they faced in their entire lives.
Deka also dropped to the ground, heaving up and down from sheer exhaustion. Her body ached greatly and her hand felt extremely numb. But, she couldn’t stop a smile from forming on her face.
The only one that didn’t fall to the ground was Arthur who kept staring at the flood going down the mountain. He had already cut off the mana supply to the orb so the barrier immediately vanished and the small orb shattered into small pieces before it got swept away by the strong wind.
“Hmm… I guess it was a one-time use thing as I suspected.” He muttered as he adjusted his hair. The wind had turned it into a mess. ‘Hmm now that I think about it… I really let my hair grow the past few weeks… It hasn’t been this long in a very long time.’
Touching a strand of his hair, Arthur noticed that it covered his forehead and reached his nose. His hair also covered his nape and ear. But, surprisingly, the look fit him perfectly as the hair was silky smooth and glistening, appearing beautiful to anyone who looked at it.
After that, Arthur shook his head, snapping out of his daze. “Is everyone ok?” He asked.
“Yeah… We are fine.”
“Good. You did great by staying alive.” Arthur clapped for them with a smile. ‘They certainly didn’t make it any harder on me which is useful enough.’
Arthur would be lying if he said that he trusted this bunch to do the right thing and not kill themselves. Whether they were experienced warriors or not didn’t matter to him, he only trusted himself.
“You saved our lives, sir.” One of the mercenaries said as he got on his knees. “We would’ve never made it out if you weren’t here. Thank you so much…” Then, he bent forward as a sign of respect.
The other looked at him before they quickly followed suit. All of a sudden, the entire group prostrated for him in gratitude.
“…” The boy didn’t know how to react to the scene. He was never accustomed to people showing him this much gratitude even though this wasn’t the first time he experienced this.
‘Those homeless people from the Red Pearl did the same and it still feels as weird as that time. I don’t think I will ever get familiar with this.’ He exhaled a long breath.
“What am I even supposed to say?”
Meanwhile, the only one who didn’t show any gratitude was naturally Sergi who kept staring at Arthur with a dark expression. ‘This bastard… Who the hell is he? Everything about him is abnormal. Is this what Gifted Players are? Is this the divine punishment awaiting us?’
Even though he didn’t want to admit it, Sergi realized at that moment that the enemy he wanted to get rid of wasn’t just a simple kid. This was perhaps the most dangerous enemy he would ever face.
If he wanted to get rid of him… It had to be in a different way. Something that doesn’t require him to face the kid head-on.
***
Meanwhile, far away from the tower, deep into the Capital Of Glory. The location was a discreet room hidden in one of the largest structures of the city. The old Colosseum had countless of dark rooms where nobody could hear anything happening inside.
However, this particular room was a very special one. It was the office of the Fifth Prince, Vincent.
“It’s quite unexpected to see you in my office so soon, lady Isla,” Vincent said as he rested his back on his chair while sipping a cup of hot tea. He seemed very relaxed as he watched the large arena from his window. “Please, take a seat. Do you like some tea? It’s imported.”
“…” The girl looked at him silently before she exhaled a small breath. “Let’s put the courtesy aside and let’s talk about what I came here for.”
Isla didn’t have the patience or the mood to deal with this man’s antics. She was there for one thing and one thing only.
“Hmm? I wonder what that is. Did you perhaps find any problems with building your headquarters? I have heard things have gone well for you.”
My Virtual Library Empire
“No, that’s not what I’m here for. You know very well what I’m asking. What did you, your highness?” She asked. “Didn’t we already have an agreement?”
Vincent took a long sip from his cup of tea before he finally turned around and stared directly at Isla with his cold eyes. “I suppose we do. Am I not keeping my side of the deal?”
“We didn’t agree on striking deals with clear rivals to us, Your Highness. I do not appreciate that attitude in my business.” She replied.
Her tone was direct and almost threatening. That was because Isla herself was very displeased with this.
“Hmm, and when did we do that exactly, Lady Isla?” He asked. “I believe our agreement was strictly that I will help you establish your presence in my capital and in return, you will ignore all approaches my family would try to do with you. Where in that did we agree that I cannot expand my net of connections with the Gifted Ones?”
The two stared at each other in silence for a few seconds as the palpable tension grew several notches. The bartender wiping the glasses to the side gulped down a mouthful of saliva, feeling the suffocating pressure the two were exuding.
“I think you have gotten one thing wrong about me, Your Highness.” Isla lifted her finger.
“One thing?” The prince asked curiously. “And what’s that?”
“If there is one thing I hate more than lies, it is this precise attitude. If you think I am simply going to accept this…” Then, Isla dropped her finger and added coldly. “Then, I must say that you are very wrong, Your Highness.”
Isla had struck deals with cunning people her entire life and she knew how they behaved. Vincent was one of those people and his methods were very smart and calculated. However, he hadn’t counted for something… As strict as Isla was, she could also play the dirty game. Her rules can bend if the situation calls for it.
“You are standing in front of a choice now. You can either keep us and cut your business with that individual Or…” Isla crossed her arms. “I might visit the Royal Palace in the near future.”
Those last words made Vincent’s fingers grip the cup even tighter, almost threatening to break it. He was clearly displeased with what she said.
“No. That can’t be done. Our agreement won’t end.”
“I am someone who appreciates good consideration from others. Perhaps your family will have a better offer for me.”
“You must understand something, Lady Isla. Letting him take part in my business isn’t something I can stop. The person you’re talking about had put me in a rather tough position.”
A//N: Thank you all for the gifts, golden tickets, and PS. Let’s keep it up!