That Man

Inside Wagang Village, a handsome young man lounged in a high-backed chair, busy with some handiwork—trimming his nails.

"Snip."

"Snip."

"Hm?"

Just then, the doors to the village hall were violently pushed open, followed by a hurried, panicked voice.

"Boss! Boss! This is bad! Huff..."

The young man in the chair paused his work and lazily raised his head to look at his panicked underling below.

"Er Gou, how many times have I told you? Knock before coming in."

"Our village is poor enough as it is. We just replaced that door, and I want it to last a few more years."

"Got it?"

"The repair costs are coming out of this month's pay."

Er Gou gasped for breath before hurriedly shouting, "Come on, Boss, is this really the time to worry about that? How can I care about all that now?"

"We've hit an iron plate this time. They've already fought their way up the mountain!"

"We can't stop him at all!"

The young man slowly rose to his feet and brushed the nail clippings from his clothes.

"Alright, alright. I sensed it just now."

"After doing this for so long, a big fish has finally come along."

"Come on. Follow me out and get to work!"

Outside the mountain stronghold.

A middle-aged man stood there with an orange pompadour, light stubble on his chin, and a broad, muscular build. He wore a dark green cloak with shoulder armor, a dark vest, a wide belt around his waist, dark blue pants, and brown boots.

With a smile on his face, he looked at the bandit before him. After sweeping his gaze around the area, he said, "Little brother, if you don't want to get hurt, you'd better step aside."

"You aren't my target this time. Send out your leader instead. That'll save me some effort."

Hearing how arrogant this wizard was, the bandit immediately spoke up.

"You? You're not worthy of fighting our boss. Haven't I taken down plenty of wizards lately?"

"You won't be an exception."

"Hand over all the money you have, and I might let you keep some dignity."

"The last guy who talked that arrogantly got stripped naked by our boss and hung from a tree for days."

"Hahaha!!"

As soon as San Mao finished speaking, the middle-aged man began laughing along with the bandits.

"Hahaha, you people really are excessive."

"But if you want to hang me up, I wonder whether your so-called boss has the strength to do it."

"And is this bandit nest of yours really that short on people? I only ran into you on the way up?"

"No, counting the one who ran back to report, that makes two?!"

"Are you really bandits?"

San Mao looked at Gildarts with utter disdain.

"Tch, what do you know?"

"Our boss says soldiers aren't valued for their numbers, but their quality. With Sleeping Dragon and Phoenix—that is, Er Gou and me—we're worth a hundred thousand soldiers!"

After saying that, San Mao proudly raised his chin, his eyes brimming with pride.

"Uh..."

Gildarts was momentarily speechless. Though he had no idea what Sleeping Dragon and Phoenix meant, he somehow felt it was not a compliment.

Gildarts then rubbed his head.

"Though I don't know what that means, since you've become a bandit, you should be prepared for the consequences."

At once, a tremendous wave of Magic Power erupted from the middle-aged man.

San Mao felt an unprecedented pressure bear down on his body. With his current physical and mental strength, he simply could not endure it. Within moments, he collapsed onto the ground.

Just as Gildarts was about to make his move—

A flash of light streaked across the distant mountainside.

"Whoosh!"

"Crash."

Just as the streak of light was about to reach the middle-aged man, it was directly broken apart in midair.

Gildarts stared ahead. At some point, a young man had appeared before him.

When San Mao saw that familiar figure, he immediately felt reassured. He leaped to his feet and ran behind the young man.

"Boss, you finally came! This wizard is so arrogant. Let's strip him naked and hang him from a tree too!"

The young man watched his subordinate San Mao chatter on endlessly.

He then placed a hand over San Mao's face. San Mao, who had been talking with great enthusiasm, instantly shut up.

"G-Gently, okay?"

The young man shoved hard, sending San Mao flying sideways and crashing into the grass.

"You're too noisy, San Mao. Aren't I here now?"

San Mao sprang back up, returned behind the young man, and closed his mouth.

The young man then looked at the familiar middle-aged man before him.

"Red... Red Hair?"

"No, no, you should be Gildarts!"

Gildarts was slightly surprised. He had never expected this bandit leader to be so young—and to recognize him.

"Hahaha, am I already this famous? Are you a fan of mine?"

"When I beat you up later, I might consider going a little easier on you."

Ye Yang looked at the utterly unreliable Gildarts and said, "Kusaka-nai~ Uncle's Magic Power pressure just now was as strong as a monster. How scary~."

Listening to the young man's words, Gildarts felt that something was off no matter how he thought about it.

"You little brat, why do you sound so punchable when you talk?"

"Sorry, I take back what I just said. I have to teach you a proper lesson."

As soon as he finished speaking, Gildarts raised his right hand, and a magic circle unfolded in his palm.

"Crash."

White lines appeared beneath Ye Yang's feet, and the ground was instantly broken down into countless small stones.

"Waaah! What is this?!"

The ground beneath San Mao's feet gave way, and he fell straight into the pit created by the Crash magic, buried beneath rubble.

Er Gou, who had rushed over in a hurry, did not see the collapsed ground ahead. His feet stepped into empty air, and he fell in as well.

"Ow, damn it! Who has such poor manners that they dig a hole in the road?!"

But the moment Gildarts made his move, Ye Yang had already transformed into a streak of golden light and vanished. In the blink of an eye, he appeared beside Gildarts.

"Speed is power. Have you ever been kicked at the speed of light?"

"Light Speed Kick!"

"Crash!"

"Boom—!!"

In an instant, Gildarts was engulfed in smoke.

Suddenly, Gildarts, standing amid the smoke, saw a glimmer of light appear ahead. His instincts immediately warned him of danger. With a forceful push of his feet, he shot straight out of the smoke.

"Boom—!"

As the smoke slowly dispersed, a crater roughly five meters in radius could be seen in the ground.

"That was close, that was close. I nearly got hit."

As he spoke, Gildarts's smile faded. His gaze turned somewhat serious as he looked at the young man before him.

"Kid, what's your name? It's quite surprising for someone so young to possess this kind of power."

"I originally thought this was just an ordinary Subjugation Quest. Old Man insisted that I come."

"But from your conversation just now, I picked up on something unusual."

"After all, this mountain near Magnolia Town has a legitimate guild right at its foot, yet you openly act as bandits here."

"Either this person has absolute confidence in his own strength, or there's some unspeakable secret."

"You weren't the ones who posted the request yourselves, were you?"