There was no sound of impact.
Because at that exact instant, the man finally moved.
A veteran of six floors was no joke.
His sword had finished charging!
His head dodged the hammer blow by a hair's breadth and his sword swung outward to cut off her head.
Just as his eyes revealed a passionate glee reserved for the victor in the Death Ring, a sudden sense of imminent danger rang warning bells in his mind, causing him great alarm.
Without even thinking about it, the man aborted his attack and jumped backward.
An attack was aiming for his life!
As soon as he moved, the ground of the spot where he left exploded.
He looked at the small crater in front of him.
His eyes revealed fear.
How could he not know what it meant?
'Oh my god, was she a mage!?'
But as he glanced in Julia's direction, her eyes were as confused as his own.
The man looked around him, but didn't see anyone.
He shouted with a fierce tone,
"Who interfered with this fight? Do you wish to become enemies with the Death Ring?"
The eyes of a few spectators looked towards a certain VIP booth.
At the entrance, a man with dark hair looked over at him nonchalantly.
The grip on his sword shook.
He couldn't help it. That spell was too scary, and too fast.
He wouldn't be able to defend against it even if he wanted to.
And looking at the small crater it had made on the floor, it had no lack of strength, either.
Otto sauntered lazily into the arena.
Well, it looked lazy.
In reality, it was because he had finished off four pints of beer.
...He was a little tipsy.
What? Even he hadn't expected he'd appreciate a talent enough to interfere with her fight, okay?
It was more of a spur of the moment decision.
A man's just trying to have some fun!
Despite so, his eyes were calm.
Since he interfered once, he'd help all the way.
Julia was indeed a talent, so if he could take her away, it wasn't a loss for him, either.
Otto didn't reveal his slight inebriation. Well, he'd certainly fought in worse states than this.
"Ah, it's me. I'm interfering. She's with me, she's with me."
He gestured over to Julia and told her to come to his side.
Despite being a little hesitant, Julia knew he had indeed saved her from losing a life, so she decided to obey.
And promptly smelled a hint of alcohol on Otto's breath.
Her nose scrunched up.
'Is this just an audience member who got drunk and wants my body?'
Part of the reason she was here in the first place was because she had adamantly refused to sell her body.
And it really couldn't be helped that this was her first thought.
She was also a person with ears. She heard the kinds of things the audience yelled at her.
Her impression of them honestly couldn't get any worse.
But as a person who knew gratitude, Julia suppressed her discomfort as she waited for Otto to continue speaking.
"Er, mister, you won this battle, okay? I'll compensate for anything else."
The man looked cautiously at Otto but didn't reply.
It didn't take long before Otto figured out what, or rather, who, the man was waiting for.
Otto laid his eyes on an old man who had just walked out into the ring.
The old man wore white robes and carried a purple staff.
There was an indescribable air of authority about him.
His expression was solemn as he addressed Otto. It was obvious.
The Death Ring wouldn't take any sort of interference in their business lightly.
Moreover, they were currently outside of a safe zone.
"My name is Garrote. I am the local head of Death Ring. You, VIP customer, you intend to compensate for this loss?"
Despite his initial cordiality, there was gleam in the man's eye. Otto had a bad feeling.
It proved correct.
Garrote snorted.
"Are you worthy?"
Saying so, a fireball immediately appeared at the top of the man's staff and shot with rapid speed at Otto.
Otto's eyes sharpened and he prepared for a serious battle.
This wasn't the safe zone any longer.
If Death Ring set their minds on becoming his enemies, he might have to fight his way out.
Otto cursed himself a little for his own negligence.
He hadn't bothered to learn any of the new spells he'd received, nor had he allocated the large number of AP he'd gotten after mission completion.
Then, Otto revealed a slight smirk.
He'd have to make do with mana bolt once again, it seemed.
Two mana bolts shot out of Otto's finger. One went straight to the fireball to halt its momentum and explode it ahead of time, while the other shot straight at Garrote.
Since Garrote hadn't revealed any killing intent, Otto assumed he first had the intention to test him.
If Otto wasn't strong enough, Garrote would immediately go for the kill. To teach him a lesson!
So Otto didn't speed up the mana bolt as fast as it could go.
Garrote took half a second to conjure an orange colored shield that deflected the mana bolt upon contact.
It bounced to the left, then dissipated into the air.
Otto's eyes lit up as he saw this.
'This old man knows 'Fiery Deflection!' That's a pretty rare spell.'
Without a doubt, Garrote was very wealthy.
Perhaps he had some unused spell books stored up in his vault…
Despite thinking this, Otto's concentration didn't lag.
Garrote continued to shoot fireballs at him, but Otto deflected each of them perfectly with mana bolts.
He even forced Garrote to cast a few 'Fiery Deflections,' and one other fire shield Otto didn't recognize when his Fiery Deflection was on cooldown.
Because while Garrote took around half a second to conjure a fireball, Otto's mana bolts could be instantly cast.
They also weren't inferior in power.
Garrote didn't use the area attack 'Firestorm,' or any of his other fire spells, though Otto was sure he had them.
It was then that Otto understood he'd passed Garrote's little test.
But the attacks didn't stop.
After a few rounds back and forth, Garrote started charging a spell with a sinister smile.
Garrote was preparing something powerful!
Otto's concentration peaked to the limit.
One, two, three mana bolts appeared on his hand within a few seconds.
Sweat beaded his brow.
What Otto was doing right now was actually the prerequisite for 'dual casting.'
Namely, casting a spell, then holding it in place while casting another one.
It took intense levels of concentration and a surprising amount of mental energy, too.
If it weren't for his innate trait, [Multitask], and how incredibly easy it was to move his mana now that its fluidity was through the roof, he wouldn't have been able to do even this.
In his past life, it took until he was at the 18th floor for him to perform such an action. Even then, he was considered a 'rare talent' in multi casting for performing this feat.
Seeing this, Garrote almost stumbled backwards in sheer surprise.
That was NOT something just anyone could do!
One thought went through his mind.
'Who is this boy? How come I've never heard of him!?'
Yet his actions also weren't slow.
He took four seconds to conjure his most powerful spell, 'Exploding fire arrow.'
In the time it took Otto to shoot off his three supercharged mana bolts, Garrote had even managed to add one additional mana into his spell, a task he couldn't reliably perform.
His arrow quickly shot off at Otto's three mana bolts to meet in the middle and compare damage.
In the next second, an explosion went off in the middle of the ring.
Everyone present was caught in the blast.
A gust of wind from the shockwave blew Otto and Julia six feet backward.
Otto quickly stabilized himself on the ground as he carefully examined the result.
Garrote initially looked rather smug at the power of his arrow, but he couldn't laugh for long.
One mana bolt had escaped from the explosion and continued to fly at him!
Who didn't know what this meant?
When two spells met on the battlefield, the mana within each spell would start to destabilize, and the spells would display their effects.
Exploding spells would explode, freezing spells would freeze, cutting spells would cut, etc.
But when one spell was more powerful than the other, a portion of its might would be maintained after a slight destabilization.
The weaker spell would be exhausted while the stronger spell would continue on its original course.
Garrote was already incredibly surprised that Otto's mana bolts could stop his own level 10 fireball, which boasted the full 150% magic damage in addition to its 'fire element boost.'
But Garrote's strongest spell, the exploding fire arrow, wasn't even powerful enough to exhaust three mana bolts from his enemy!
Garrote had no time to think, and less time to dodge.
He could only get helplessly blasted away as the mana bolt veered down at the last second to aim for his less vital stomach area.
Garrote suddenly felt pain like he hadn't felt in years, back when he climbed the floors!
He checked his health, and was once again astonished to find that it was almost half gone.
From a single mana bolt!
Yes, the spell was evidently much more powerful than its base form, but even that was an accomplishment that required years of practice manipulating mana.
There was no choice except to reevaluate the man in front of him.
Garrote could only stand up from the ground while saying through clenched teeth,
"It seems you're indeed worthy enough to discuss compensation. Please come with me."
Otto raised an eyebrow at the man and used 'Analyze' on him.
[Garrote Imani]
Cleared: 8th floor
Class: Pyroblaster (White)
Profession 1: Beekeeper
Profession 2: Merchant
Profession 3: Cloth Enchanter
Health: 92/160 (0.14/minute)
Stamina: 66/80 (0.6/minute)
Mana: 530/800 (0.90/minute)
[Attributes]
Strength 4
Speed 4
Stamina 6
Sturdiness 14
Mana Pool 40
Intuition 25
Magic Power 21
Regeneration 45
'Not bad.'
So Garrote had cleared up to the 8th floor, and it didn't seem like he had cleared only the 'Basic' difficulty missions, either.
He would definitely have been considered a talent when he was younger.
Otto's tipsy mind briefly contemplated being petty about the attack, but in the end he helplessly rubbed his forehead.
Garrote was too old to be treated like that…
Who told Otto to be so goddamn magnanimous all the time?
Otto cast a 'heal' onto Garrote, who instantly felt the power of life force rage inside of him and mend his injuries.
Perhaps his jaw would have dropped yet again at Otto's mastery of a light-element spell, but it was honestly too tiring for such an old man to continue being surprised.
So Garrote pretended to take it in stride while his innards received another -1 of damage from suppressing it…
Garrote took the two into a back room of the underground arena to discuss details.
As they sat down to some well brewed tea made by a beautiful assistant wearing a bright green cheongsam, Otto got straight to the point.
"How much do I need to pay to take this girl from the death ring?"
Julia was immediately alarmed. She looked at Otto, eyes wide.
She became even more sure of her previous speculation.
He was a pervert!
Didn't he just want her body?
She quickly set her eyes on his face that she hadn't had time to study.
And immediately revealed a small blush. Well, if it's him, then maybe…
But Otto shut her down before she could even start fantasizing.
"Jeez, little girl," he flicked her forehead,
"What the hell are you thinking? I want to train you. Hear me? T-R-A-I-N. And not in sex, either."
Well, he said it a little bluntly, but it got the point across.
Garrote merely raised an eyebrow at their interaction.
He sighed,
"Well, I would have liked to observe some pleasantries before getting to the main point, but I suppose this is just as well."
"Hmm, you want to take her away? I believe she is in here not because of her own debt, though…
Well, there's no contract to break, at least."
Otto tilted his head at Julia. Not her own debt?
Julia shrunk in her seat.
"Yeah, it's…for my dad."
Otto nodded in understanding, then asked.
"But why are you here paying off his debt?"
Her eyes narrowed.
"He didn't pressure me into it, if that's what you're thinking. My dad just made a bad business decision."
Then she scowled,
"But it's also the last time I'm helping him. I promised I'd help him one last time."
Otto pondered for a second. It was one thing if he was paying for her own debt.
But paying for her father's debt…
Julia seemed to see his hesitation. Her expression was a little bitter as she stood up,
"Either way, thank you for your help today. If nothing else, you did save me from losing a life."
Otto shook his head and glared at her speechlessly.
This child seemed to be annoying in her own way...
"I was just considering for a second. Can you not be so quick to make judgments?"
Julia sat back down.
Otto asked,
"How much is the debt in total?"
"4,932 Smekkers."
Otto was dumbfounded.
"How the hell did he rack up so much debt?"
It was nowhere close to beyond Otto's means.
But that was an astronomical sum for an ordinary person!
Julia's reply was succinct. But it carried a lot of weight.
"Bad business practices."
Otto closed his eyes and pondered for a minute.
Both Julia and Garrote drank their tea and waited for him to come to a decision.
Then, Otto sighed.
He would treat it as the price for snatching up a talent.
Yes, Otto was wealthy.
But that didn't mean he wanted to waste money for no reason!
Paying off a stranger's debt, which, by the way, was the stranger's own fault, was absolutely considered a waste of money.
Before he could take out the money, Garrote butted in.
"I don't mind letting her go. I'll even happily pay the money in full to your father's guarantor."
Julia looked up in shock.
Was Garrote so benevolent?
"But I have one condition."
Of course not.
He pointed at Otto.
"Reveal your status."
Otto looked at him silently for a second.
Then, he almost burst into disbelieving laughter.
His eyes grew chilly.
Five coins appeared on the table.
They were Brock coins, the highest Federation denomination.
Worth exactly 5,000 Smekkers.
"That should cover it, no? And should also cover the compensation for interrupting the fight."
It was a clear refusal.
But Garrote didn't grow angry.
Rather, he laughed.
"How arrogant!"
Otto turned to look at him indifferently.
"Do I not have the capital to behave so?"
The hidden meaning: 'If you want another round, I'm happy to beat you up again, old man. But this time it'll hurt a little more.'
"Can your capital match up to the capital of my Death Ring?"
The hidden meaning: 'How long can your mana last against my entire organization?'
Otto's eyelids fluttered to hide the twitch of his eyes.
Normally, Otto would pull out a bus full of mana potions right now to intimidate his enemy- 'see this, my mana is endless!'
Except he actually didn't have any at the moment.
How embarrassing!
Sigh, he came really unprepared this time.
He pulled a poker face.
"No."
This time, it was Garrote's eye that twitched.
Fortunately, it also gave him a way to back down.
His organization was founded for money in the first place, and making an enemy like Otto was anything but profitable.
Otto also didn't want to leave just yet.
'This old man is definitely hiding some good spell models in this organization.'
He revealed something else.
"I'm an alchemist."
The silence lasted for a full minute.
Then Garrote looked at him with glittering eyes.
Alchemists were extremely rare in Area 1. Especially good alchemists.
The bar set for the profession was very high.
Didn't Otto face it as well?
In order to be recognized as an Alchemist by the [Tower], he had to concoct a potion without the [Tower's] help.
Normally, this would require an apprentice to study his master's technique for a long period of time before making many of his own attempts at creating a potion.
Once his potion was recognized by the [Tower], as long as one profession slot was free, the [Tower] would grant the 'Alchemist' profession.
But the trials weren't over yet.
After becoming an alchemist, challengers needed to work tirelessly to raise the levels of their profession skills to 10.
For someone talented, it was a small hurdle that took a few years. Without talent, it was like an unsurpassable barrier.
As this required both practice and enlightenment!
It was the worst for organizations that wanted to raise an alchemist.
Even wealthy factions would cry at the amount of money that fled their coffins to purchase the equipment and innumerable herbs and materials that an alchemist needed to make pills and potions.
Especially since at low levels, an alchemist was generally not successful!
Knowing all of this, it was evident why Otto's declaration would cause Garrote's eyes to sparkle so.
Even the Death Ring in Telmar, with all its accumulated money, didn't have the resources to do this, and could only purchase pills and potions at high prices from others.
Garrote didn't immediately jump at the opportunity, though.
"You're asking for..."
Otto's smile was cunning.
"Spell formulas and tomes. I want everything you've got, regardless of the element, and regardless of rarity. No duplicates, but otherwise I'll buy them all."
Garrote understood. Perhaps Otto was trying to build up a library to create his own faction!
Well, it was understandable he'd want to do so given his talent and profession as an alchemist.
People would definitely come flocking.
Otto clarified,
"You provide the materials and I will make pills and potions for you. I can guarantee a 50% success rate for all potions I am familiar with.
These potions will be provided to you for free, and the amount will depend on the spell models and tomes your organization can provide."
Garrote stroked his chin thoughtfully.
There weren't really downsides to this deal for him. The costs of materials was generally well under 5% of what a finished solution would cost, after an alchemist's labor was taken into account.
And a guarantee of 50% success was incredibly high!
Death Ring often needed these potions and pills for various reasons, especially health potions if one of their subordinates was hurt in a match.
Even if there were too many products, he could send them to their other branches and earn quite a bit of profit.
Quite frankly, the spell models he had accumulated weren't being used at the moment.
Garrote bought them whenever he saw a good deal on a rare spell, usually to re-sell later, or to raise a few more powerful mages for the organization.
This was also how he came to learn 'Fiery Deflection.'
But then he shrugged.
This was as good an opportunity for them to be of use as any.
It didn't hurt that he would be 'making friends' with a powerful and talented mage, which might even be worth more than the spell models already...
Garrote smiled wryly and shook Otto's hand.
"Very well. It's a deal."
Otto also smiled at Garrote and thought he'd made a good decision.
He chose the Death Ring for a few reasons.
One was that they were easily one of the wealthiest, if not the wealthiest faction in Telmar.
Not even the families and clans that managed the city could touch them, as this was merely a branch of an organization spread far and wide over the whole planet.
Two was that its head was both old and a mage, so he likely had quite the collection of spells already built up.
Three was that Death Ring had ties to the black market, meaning that Garrote could get his hands on many spell formulas and tomes that otherwise Otto might not be able to find, as well as many potion materials that were rare and valuable.
After the two spent a few hours hammering out the details, Garrote led them to the door.
"I'll visit you once again in a few days to pick up the materials. You can deliver the spell formulas when I prepare the potions."
"Very good. Your name, mister..."
"Toto. Call me Toto."
Otto smiled brightly as he walked out the door, Julia in tow.
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