The girl behind the counter whispered fast.
"Little brother, please leave. This isn’t a place for you."
"Don’t pay attention to them. Adventurers are hot-blooded people. They’re often rude. But they won’t hurt you. We’re inside the guild, after all."
Then the girl noticed something. The boy’s eyes were perfectly clear and unshakable.
"You shouldn’t have insulted my mother."
Leo took something from his pocket, pressed it into her hand, and stepped back.
Ten-year-old Leo didn’t even reach the big man’s belly.
But his steps were steady.
"Ha, ha, ha! Everybody look! The little chick is still angry! Look at those cheeks! That sweet, crying face!"
"He’s a tiny chick now, but sell him off and he’ll fetch a good price!"
Bram Colt held a pair of heavy Battle Axes. He slammed them on the floor and leaned on one, teasing Leo.
Leo stepped forward.
He stopped a little more than three meters from Bram. His face was calm. His back was perfectly straight.
He made a fist with his left hand, placed it on the right side of his chest, and gave a knight’s salute.
Then he pulled out a white glove and threw it at his enemy.
At the same time, he drew both swords from his back, tips pointing down.
"If you dare insult my mother, then I, Leo Ashford, under the rules of the Temple Alliance, challenge you by throwing this glove."
His voice was quiet.
"This is a duel to the death."
Leo’s voice was clear. Everyone around heard it.
The guild members who had been laughing out loud suddenly went silent.
Even Bram froze for a moment.
But he quickly snapped out of it.
"Ha ha! You’ll make me die laughing! Everyone, look! This little brat can talk, and he even learned how to challenge someone like a knight! And he’s a Standard Knight, no less!"
"Hey, do you even have hair on your chest yet? I accept your challenge! Come on! Come and cut me! Ha ha ha!"
Leo lifted his right sword. In a cold voice, he pointed toward the exit.
"Outside. Please."
It was his first day at the Adventurers Guild. Even so, he knew fighting wasn’t allowed inside. Even an official knight’s challenge.
He walked out first.
Bram followed without hesitation, axes on his shoulders. The crowd, fired up, poured out after them.
At the counter, the girl was left alone.
She stared at the badge in her hand.
"A first-rank Standard Knight..."
*Is he really a Standard Knight?*
Out in the warm sunlight, the burning in Leo’s heart didn’t fade.
At that moment, Corvin’s lesson echoed in his mind.
Bram came out too, carrying his pair of Battle Axes. He pointed at Leo and yelled.
"Come on, you little brat! Today your uncle will teach you a lesson!"
"After I beat you, I won’t kill you. I’ll sell you off to someone. A few gold coins at least..."
Laughter rang out.
And in that moment, Leo charged.
His fast footsteps echoed as he charged. In the blink of an eye, his speed hit its peak.
People on both sides saw it clearly. White light burst from the Refined Iron Swords in his hands.
*Pure-White Edge!*
Low-level knights of the Temple Alliance used that skill every day.
The laughter stopped suddenly.
Leo reached his enemy in a flash.
Bram was a little shaken by the charge. He recognized the Pure-White Edge. His face changed color.
*Is this kid really from the Knight Temple?*
Among the six Temples, the Knight Temple stood at the top. How could an ordinary adventurer dare offend it?
But no matter what, he had to deal with this boy first. After that, if things went bad, he’d just run.
The thought filled Bram with deep hatred.
His axes spun in his hands. As Leo rushed in, he unleashed his Heavy Chop.
Bram was a third-rank, second-stage Warrior. His Spiritual Energy was 120.
His full-power strike used every advantage of a heavy weapon’s crushing force.
But fighting was nothing new to Leo.
Every time he went home, he almost always ran into Magical Beasts along the way. So even now, he stayed as patient as ever.
He stamped his right foot on the ground, the same move he had used against Mira to stop his own charge.
But this time, he combined it with another skill.
With both swords in hand, just a moment before the axes landed, he finished his Divine Obstruction.
It took incredible accuracy!
Without a mind far beyond ordinary people, Leo could never have linked these skills together.
*Clang!*
A thunderous crash echoed out. The pair of axes, striking without mercy, smashed into the Refined Iron Swords.
Many people shut their eyes in fear.
The difference between Leo’s body and Bram’s was like heaven and earth. Everyone thought Leo had no choice but to take the hit.
How much Spiritual Energy could such a small boy have?
On top of that, Bram’s Heavy Chop was just like the Pure-White Edge. It also boosted the power of the strike. It was simply a skill for heavy weapons.
But Leo’s swords didn’t break.
*Crack!*
Bram’s eyes went wide. His axes bounced out of his hands and fell. His chest was left completely open.
Not even Mira, a third-stage knight, had broken Leo’s Divine Obstruction.
So how could a second-stage Warrior break it? This chapter was copied from g.com without permission.
A faint light glowed on Leo’s body. His crossed swords took advantage of the moment.
*Instant Blast Cross Cut!*
*Thud! Thud!*
Two sounds. The pair of swords tore through the top of Bram’s leather armor.
Behind the armor, the sound of bones breaking rang out clearly.
Bram’s eyes bulged. Blood burst from his body.
Leo’s Divine Obstruction wasn’t deep yet.
The proof was that he hadn’t been able to use Mira’s Spiritual Energy against her.
But Bram’s strength was only a little above Leo’s. Right at the limit where Leo’s Divine Obstruction could borrow 20 Spiritual Energy.
With the support of the Pure-White Edge, Leo’s attack power rose to 100 above his real Spiritual Energy.
That was far beyond Bram’s strength.
How could a thin leather armor survive a strike like that?
"Third Brother!"
Two panicked voices screamed. Two big men burst out of the crowd. They were clearly Bram’s teammates.
Being an adventurer was dangerous work. People usually traveled in teams.
But by the time they arrived, it was too late.
*Whoosh!*
After wounding his enemy with the Instant Blast Cross Cut, Leo didn’t hesitate at all.
He followed it with a thrust. The Refined Iron Sword shot through Bram’s throat like lightning.
"You little monster!"
The two big men rushed straight at Leo.
"Stop."
A cold voice rang out.
Golden light rose from behind Leo and blocked the two adventurers from moving forward.
Mira stood there.
Both swords hung at her sides. Her face was cold.
Thin golden threads of Spiritual Energy streamed out on both sides of her. The strength of a third-stage knight was clear.
Panic broke out in the crowd.
"Wait... that’s the Hell Rose...!"
Leo slowly lowered his swords. His hands were steady. But his face had gone pale.
Behind him, Mira didn’t look at him. Her eyes were locked on the two men.
"The challenge was fair," she said. "The glove was thrown. Anyone who touches him answers to the Knight Temple of Moonhaven City. And to me."
The two men froze. Their eyes moved from Bram’s body, to Leo, to the golden light.
Nobody moved.
Then someone in the crowd whispered, loud enough for Leo to hear.
"He’s just a kid... and he killed a man without blinking."
Leo’s hands began to shake.