Gink's Point of View:
"This town is better than the rumors say, especially the food." Ined, beside me, comments as he finishes his breakfast.
"It wasn't a bad idea to come now. Apparently, they're building something big that'll push the territory to the next level." Ocol speaks after stuffing another piece of bread filled with meat into his mouth.
"Let's try to buy a house to use as our base, and starting tomorrow, we'll begin making a name for ourselves. We need to hurry if we want to take advantage of this opportunity; Lady Lully and Sir Grox have been spotted here, so something big is definitely going to happen." I glance around once again. This lively atmosphere reminds me of home.
"What? I thought we were only going to rent a place for a few months... Isn't buying a house a little excessive?" Ocip raises his voice, somewhat surprised by my words.
"I can smell it. In this place, we'll be able to have the peaceful life we've always been looking for. Although I can smell certain dangers as well, we just have to overcome them like we've always done." I have no intention of backing down.
"If the boss has already decided, there's nothing we can do. Let's split up and look for some good options, then at the end of the day we'll make a decision." Ined, my ever-reliable friend with very dark skin and an ever-present smile, quickly understands the situation.
"Let's wait for Eddic. There he comes." Ocip gets up from his chair and points in the direction of another one of our companions approaching us.
"I understand... we'll have to tell the rest of the team to come as soon as possible." Eddic also understands the situation and doesn't complain, he simply looks for solutions.
"But... aren't we overqualified to live in this territory? It's a fantastic place, there's no denying that. We're all Ruby Ranks, and Gink is even close to reaching Diamond Rank. I've never met a Ruby Rank stronger than him." Eddic continues speaking. My curly-haired friend has always tried to find a flaw in everything, even when he's already accepted the plan.
"Well, I don't know if he's the strongest Ruby Rank in this place." We all turn to look at Taifu. "Remember, the anomaly lives in this territory. Maki isn't someone you see every day." Everyone begins thinking about who would be stronger.
"The last time we saw him at the tournament, he surprised us, but let's be honest, the difference between Ruby Rank and Diamond Rank is enormous. We don't know if the anomaly Maki is still a limit breaker after advancing; and our boss has managed to defend himself against Diamond Ranks on a few occasions." Ocol, the tallest in the group and with black hair just like the rest of us, speaks.
"I couldn't do anything to them. I simply endured as best I could for a few minutes. My weapon helped me enormously on every one of those occasions." It's true, I managed to hold out against a few newly advanced Diamond Ranks, but I was always at a disadvantage and could only defend myself.
"That alone puts you in another category, Gink. I've never met another Ruby Rank capable of lasting more than a minute against a Diamond Rank." Eddic wraps his arm around my neck while smiling.
"The important thing is that this territory is going to grow, I can smell it. It's better to settle here before that happens, that way we'll have a huge advantage. Now, go look for a house. You already know more or less what we're looking for; a plot of land where we can build in a good location works too." I push them to get moving, otherwise they'll just keep lazing around.
"Don't cause any trouble. It's our first day, and I don't want us to make the worst possible impression." I warn my companion.
Taifu is always full of energy. He's extremely outgoing and does things before thinking. He's matured a little over the years, but he's still quite impulsive most of the time. I imagine that's partly because he's the youngest.
"Everything's under control, Boss. You don't have to worry." Taifu waves his hand from side to side, dismissing any possibility that he'll do something inappropriate.
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I let out an internal sigh. I know his intentions are never bad, he's one of the purest-hearted people I've ever met. His kindness is sometimes just as great as his stupidity, and that's caused us plenty of misunderstandings and problems over the years.
This time, he'll come with me. I need to keep an eye on him for as long as possible. From my research, I know this territory doesn't have any criminal gangs in any of its towns. They're deeply involved in local security, and the towns aren't large enough for gangs to remain hidden in the shadows.
That's one of the reasons I decided to come here. It's easier to fight evil while it's still growing than to eradicate it once it becomes an enormous tumor. I don't have to worry about that idiot Taifu suddenly rushing into an alley to help some citizen in trouble.
That doesn't mean the theft rate is zero. There are always a couple of idiots who prefer taking the easy path. At least the rate is extremely low because this territory actually takes action against any kind of criminal activity.
The road takes us toward the outskirts of town, where everything is quieter and more peaceful. I've seen several good places for sale. Any of them could work as long as the price isn't outrageous.
Taifu quickens his pace slightly and rests his arms on a fence. I know why he did it. He loves children with all his heart, and for the last few seconds we've been able to hear the voices of several children having fun.
"An orphanage..." The location is quite decent. It isn't tucked away in some corner of town where no one would pay attention to it. It's in a perfect place for the children to have a decent life.
As I approach Taifu, I see his mouth hanging open, his jaw nearly hitting the fence he's leaning against. Before I can scold him for looking stupid, a metallic sound reaches my ears. When I raise my gaze, my mouth opens in surprise as well.
A young man no older than twenty is using wooden swords, while a girl around ten years old is wielding a pair of high-quality twin swords. The little girl's movements look like they're happening in slow motion to us, she's only an Amethyst Rank.
What truly impresses me is the grace behind each of her movements, the complete lack of wasted motion, and her judgment when it comes to attacking and defending.
The young man beside her also seems to know what he's doing. No, he definitely knows what he's doing. Every one of his movements seems precisely calculated to help the little girl. I can't fully understand it, but my years of experience help me comprehend what's happening.
This teenager is also an exceptional talent, and the huge smile on his face tells me he's having fun while practicing with the girl.
"Isn't it a little dangerous for her to use swords of such high quality? The kid could get hurt." Taifu comments.
I stop myself from rolling my eyes. Taifu can't be more than ten years older than the young man, they're both young. "He seems to know what he's doing... and don't get confused, he's a Ruby Rank. He seems to have advanced recently because his presence is quite weak." I hadn't noticed it at first, but after watching him for a couple of minutes, I realized his true rank.
"He's a Ruby Rank too? He managed to reach Ruby Rank that young? He must be a special talent... Do you think we should try recruiting them?" Taifu asks. It's actually a good idea coming from him. Recruiting these two could secure our group's future for many years.
I close my eyes to think. There's something bothering me slightly; he could simply be extremely talented, or his family might have spent a fortune on elixirs to help him advance. He could belong to a powerful family. Before receiving an answer, Taifu jumps over the fence and runs toward them.
I immediately follow him to stop him. "This idiot..." I told him not to cause any trouble on our first day, and now he's trespassing into an orphanage by jumping over the fence.
"Why did you jump over the fence? We could've gone inside and asked." When I finally catch up to him, I smack him on the back of the neck. We've both stopped a few meters away from the two kids training, and everyone in the courtyard has stopped to look at us.
"Hey, brat. Are you interested in becoming stronger? Join our group." Taifu's cheerful voice echoes throughout the entire place. He's always direct and never hides his intentions.
Before I can apologize, I get a slight feeling that something is wrong, and one blink later, I find myself surrounded by incredibly oppressive mana. Along with the mana comes an extremely fierce Imra, several laws, and a formidable Dominion.
How can a Ruby Rank do this? My Imra disappears the moment I try to use it, the young man's Imra is so fierce that it destroys mine instantly. I'm frozen in place, and I can see that my teammate is in a similar situation, or perhaps an even worse one.
I force my body to gather some mana to activate a defensive ability and strengthen it as much as possible with my Dominion. At that moment, I manage to move slightly. It feels like walking underwater with hundreds of kilograms weighing down on my shoulders, my mobility is almost nonexistent. Taifu remains paralyzed like a statue.
When I raise my gaze, I see the young man standing in front of us with an eyebrow raised in surprise, as though my ability to move even slightly was beyond his expectations. I should feel humiliated because someone of the same rank has me completely trapped, but I think I know who he is. After looking at him more closely, I'm almost certain of his identity.
"I'm sorry if my companion caused any trouble, Young Lord Maki. We don't have any bad intentions." I manage to speak with difficulty. The young man looks at us with some curiosity, and the ability disappears in an instant as if it had never existed. The rumors don't do him justice... he's a complete anomaly.