First Mission

"Armor Change: Heavenly Wheel Armor!"

"Heavenly Wheel: Chaotic Sword!"

Dozens of Energy Swords appeared around Erza, speeding toward Ye Yang like a rain of blades.

The sword rain instantly engulfed the area where Ye Yang stood.

Erza slowly landed, staring solemnly in the direction of the smoke.

The surrounding companions fell silent again. They knew Erza's move. Though it was not her strongest, anyone struck by it would not come out unscathed.

Right before their eyes, Ye Yang had never left the range of that sword rain.

As the smoke gradually dispersed, everyone finally saw a vague human silhouette.

Erza's solemn expression turned to shock.

Ye Yang had not suffered the slightest injury. Even his feet had not moved a fraction.

(Damn it, how did this guy do that?!)

While Erza was distracted, Ye Yang instantly transformed into a streak of golden light and appeared at her side, stroking his beardless chin.

"Kusaka-nai~"

"Spacing out during a fight isn't a good habit."

Erza instantly snapped back to her senses, only to see golden light gathering at Ye Yang's feet as he swept a kick at her.

With no time to dodge, Erza took the blow head-on.

"Bang!"

Erza was instantly sent flying backward. Fortunately, Ye Yang had not struck to kill. She drove the longsword in her hand into the ground and slid dozens of meters before coming to a stop.

As soon as Erza steadied herself, a finger was already pressed against her forehead.

"You lost~"

After saying that, Ye Yang went straight to Macao, holding out his hand.

"Pay up!"

Macao hurriedly counted out 600,000J and handed it to Ye Yang. After receiving the money, Ye Yang spat on his fingertips and began counting the bills one by one.

Only after counting them several times did he finally put the money into the system with satisfaction and head toward the guild.

Watching Ye Yang swipe more than half his money, Macao instantly lost all enthusiasm.

"Gildarts, where did you find this monster? Great, now I'll have to live frugally for months."

The others nodded as well upon hearing Macao's words. Ye Yang was not just ordinarily strong. Erza had been defeated so easily; his strength was undeniable.

"Hahaha, don't worry about that. I bet 50,000J on the kid. Pay up!"

Hearing that, Macao helplessly took another 150,000J from his already meager savings.

"It's over, it's over. I'm back to square one now."

Erza stood up and watched Ye Yang's departing back. It was the first time she had ever been defeated so easily by someone her own age.

"Next time, I'll definitely win."

Before long, everyone returned to the guild to boast and drink, continuing to discuss the match from earlier.

Meanwhile, Ye Yang stood before the guild's quest board, picking out a job.

"Emmmm... this one. Bandit extermination? That'll be easy."

"I really hope there are more jobs like this. I love them."

The Quest Slip had the number 2,000,000J written at the bottom.

"Old Man, I'm taking this job!"

Makarov looked up at Ye Yang and the quest in his hand.

"You brat, are you that desperate to make money?"

"Of course. I'm poor."

"And I have my dream."

After saying that, Ye Yang proudly raised his head.

The moment Makarov heard that, veins bulged on his forehead.

"Fine, fine. If you're going, then hurry up."

"Got it. I'll be back as soon as I can. And I'll leave San Mao and Er Gou to you, Old Man!"

"You don't need to remind me, brat. I know what I'm doing."

Watching Ye Yang slowly leave, Makarov could not help but curse under his breath.

"Brat."

The next day

Ye Yang arrived at the foot of Ox-Head Mountain in the neighboring town.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk. So this is that bandit hideout? They really have no sense of danger at all."

"There isn't even a lookout at the foot of the mountain."

"This money is practically begging me to take it!"

"Since it's my first mission, I should walk up."

With that, Ye Yang slowly made his way up the mountain path.

What Ye Yang did not know was that from the moment he entered the foot of the mountain, a hamster in a tree had been watching him.

As Ye Yang continued along the mountain road, he increasingly felt that something was strange.

"Why do I keep feeling like something is watching me? But I can't sense anyone nearby."

"Could it be some kind of magic?"

"There doesn't seem to be anything around except a few animals."

"Wait, animals?"

As he spoke, Ye Yang looked at the animals nearby. Sure enough, none of them possessed the liveliness animals should have. They all stared at him without blinking.

Just then, the sound of an arrow tearing through the air came from the distance, and it instantly pierced through Ye Yang's body.

Inside the main hall of the bandit stronghold, a burly, heavily built man sat in the chief's seat, continuously rolling two beads in his hand.

Beside the burly man stood a sinister-looking Thin Man, with a magic circle floating in his eyes.

"Brother, that mage who came to exterminate us has already been killed by the crossbow."

The Bandit Chief let out a disdainful sneer.

"Hmph, any stray cat or dog dares to come after me now."

"Those official guilds are getting worse and worse."

"Send some men over to collect everything on him. Give the corpse to That Lord as an offering."

"Hehehe, understood, Brother."

When the Thin Man used the animals' eyes to look at Ye Yang on the ground again,

he suddenly discovered that the corpse that should have been lying there had vanished, without leaving even a trace of blood.

"How is that possible?! I clearly saw the arrow pierce straight through that kid's body!"

"How is that possible?! How is that possible?!"

The Bandit Chief noticed his younger brother's expression and asked,

"What's wrong, little brother?"

The Thin Man turned to his elder brother. "Th-the mage's corpse just now... is gone."

The Bandit Chief stared solemnly at his younger brother.

"What exactly happened?!"

"I..."

Before the Thin Man could finish speaking, the doors to the hall came flying in, along with the two underlings guarding the entrance.

The Bandit Chief immediately rose to his feet, his eyes fixed on the doorway.

"Who dares to break into my stronghold?!"

As soon as he finished speaking, a voice came from outside the door.

"Being a bandit really is a high-risk profession. Good thing I had the sense to quit back then."

Before long, a figure appeared before the First Chief and Second Chief.

The instant the Second Chief saw Ye Yang's face, his eyes flew wide open.

"Y-you... you..."

"Alright, alright, enough with the stammering."

"I'm the one whose body you shot through with a crossbow."

"I'm someone who likes to convince people with reason. I came up here to collect my medical expenses."