Alan observed him a little longer, Avel was running towards the mist engulfed road in a straight line but it seemed to have no end.

“It’s useless. Unless you break the fulcrum of this space, you’re trapped here,” Alan’s voice was all-engulfing, giving the impression that the target was only dancing at the palm of his hand.

His power is only so-so, only a bit better than average Pathseekers. Let's hope he’s better at dealing with illusion at least.

After deeming he overestimated Avel, Alan tried to salvage the situation. Avel had proven himself quite good at breaking arrays so Alan let Avel do his thing without attacking.

The attacks ceased and Alan was silent. Avel kept running and calling for help as if his life depended on it. But like a powerless fish in a glass bowl, he was unable to get out from the special space made from the globe magic item.

Come on… what are you doing? Start striking the key pillars already.

Misty Isolation Globe was a magic item capable of meddling with space. The target was taken to a closed space full of mists. Here, Alan could battle without outside interference. Although the item was a masterpiece that he obtained in a lucky encounter, the target on the inside could break out if they possess the means. The key pillars were not easy to find but surely Avel could do it, right?

While Avel was running straight, he was actually only running in circles in this closed space. He had passed by many invisible key pillars already but he didn't seem to notice them.

...Enough of this farce.

Using the Misty Isolation Globe was not free, Alan’s Victa was drained every second it stayed active. He wasn't willing to spend so much of his precious resources on a failure.

After staying his hand for a while, Alan was determined to bring this pointless test to a close.

“You failed. Hmph!”

Alan appeared before Avel and struck him straight in the chest. Avel rolled on the ground a few times from the momentum and groaned in pain.

That strike was no ordinary punch. It was an Arte, Mist Piercing the Mountain. The inner organs of Avel were injured.

“I held back. Killing you is not my objective. You’ll live since you can still be useful.”

Alan didn't care if Avel was still conscious or not and took out the mysterious paper that Avel previously used.

It was only a blank paper.

I see. The paper should be how he was able to see illusions and hidden formations, not his own ability.

After examining the paper was bereft of any magic left, Alan assumed the paper could no longer be used and crumpled it in chagrin.

Worthless.

Alan kept looting Avel but he found no worthwhile item in his persons, except one.

“A magic item for boosting the Victa generation, it is wasted on you.”

Alan yanked the moon-shaped pendant from Avel's neck.

After the Prince of Thieves confiscated Avel’s pendant and money pouch, he only had one more thing left to do.

“Let’s see what’s under the mask.”

Alan took the bindings on Avel’s face. Seeing Avel’s unveiled face with a bleeding mouth and empty eyes that stared at the sky, Alan scoffed then dropped the cloth on Avel’s face once again.

Alan walked deeper into the mist until his form could no longer be seen and the mist gradually cleared.

“Woah?!”

“What the hell? That guy just appeared in the middle of the road?”

“Oi, you’re still alive?”

A few pedestrians were caught off guard by the sudden appearance of a lying, bloody guy.

“First come first serve.”

One of them boldly tried to loot Avel’s remaining possessions but before his hand could touch his skin, Avel grabbed his wrist.

“Grrrrrr…”

He growled like an irritated beast and broke the looter’s wrist without warning. The man screamed and ran away, so did the other people that started to swarm him like crows to carrion.

Avel coughed and spit out the blood in his mouth. He covered his face once again with trembling hands. It was much more difficult tying something when the hands were unsteady but Avel did it in the end. He rose to his feet with difficulty and made his way forward despite his wobbly legs. More than once he had to put his shoulder on a wall to prevent himself from keeling over.

Despite the odd glances he earned along the way, Avel made it back to the inn.

That was when Alan’s observation of Avel was over. In the end, he felt like he was on a useless errand.

A few hours later, Alan reported back to the Blood Exarch.

“Your opinion?”

The Level 4 Blood Exarch had watched the recording from a magic item in Alan’s possession but she still asked.

“His senses are adequate and he’s a decent fighter as well but nothing worth mentioning. His ability to see through illusion also seems to originate from a magic item. It was no longer usable as the charge was spent. There’s no need to specifically recruit him. He’s an adventurer, the bait will be enough to lure him to that place.”

“Disappointing. I had some hopes for that kid but I trust your judgment. Very well, let him go inside the viper’s nest on his own.”

***

Viers’ return to the inn shocked Boram. He asked for Boram’s help to treat his wounds then went to bed early. Boram’s slave seal prevented him from betraying his master so Viers trusted him.

But his mind went to a meeting with the Viers Corporation’s stakeholders.

“Alright, you better have a good explanation about your actions.”

“Lord Viers, how are you holding up? Any hidden injury or danger?”

“It is obvious that Viers didn't want to expose his strength but even if he did, would he have been able to defeat that Level 3? That one wasn't a newly ascended Level 3 you know.”

Paina, Farley, and Clarissa started their inquiry which Viers took in stride.

“Ladies,” Viers summoned a table at which he sat in the head position with three additional chairs. Clarissa had no problem sitting in a normal chair despite her snake's lower body. “Let us examine this debacle from the start,” Viers said in the poise and calmness of a CEO that had it all under control.

“First, what is the assailant’s objective?”

“He wanted to test you,” Farley spoke.

“Yes, and why did he want to test me?”

“How should we know. He might want to recruit you or something,” Paina said.

“Based on the way it goes, the mist guy showed interest in two things, Viers’ fighting power and illusion discernment. Two things which Viers clearly suppressed,” Clarissa added.

“I haven't shown any extraordinary fighting power since I came to Marakkus but there is that one time where I broke through illusions in a smooth manner, at Izabella’s shop. That is a mistake on my part. I didn't consider they would come after me just from that… Considering the mist guy also knew I battled with Freya, it should be safe to assume he was from the faction behind Iz. They -which I can already guess- wanted to use me for their own ends. It required a strong person with the ability to pick up hidden details.”

“That seems logical,” Paina nodded.

“Second, what’s in it for me?” Viers clasped his hand and assumed a pose like a villainous godfather.

“Well…” Paina hesitated.

“Showing your superb capacity on both criteria should make you an important piece in their plan,” Clarissa spoke.

“That is correct Rissa, but Lord Viers doesn't like joining groups.”

Farley already said one reason so Viers added the others.

“Piece, Rissa, a piece in their plan. No matter how important the piece is, so what? I would still be a tool, a subordinate, a cog in the machine…” Viers scowled angrily. “The idea disgusts me.”

“...And getting yourself beat up is the answer?” Paina continued.

“Third, I need an out. The best way is to not be their prime target but there's a catch. If I am too weak then the mist guy might kill me for being too trashy, if I’m too strong... Well, I can only show that by actually fighting him, can't I? Fighting a Level 3? Exposing my hidden cards and spending a massive amount of Victa... for what? For being their bitch? Fuck no! So I toed the line of not being too weak or too strong. Running away to seek help is also a sign of me having no other way, good that he bought the act.”

“You also made it as if the Euryale Sight is an effect from a magic item, to further your ruse… crafty. It was just a piece of useless paper,” Clarissa commented.

“Provided there are no more attacks, I’d say you got out from that confrontation lightly, Lord Viers.”

“Mmm,” Viers nodded. “If he really went all out, my injuries would be much more serious than this, that’s for sure. The Victa Stigma is also minor. I drank a health potion before I went to bed. If I add my healing factor and healing Arte then I should be quite healthy by tomorrow. We can grasp something from this. Whatever these assholes are planning, it will happen in the near future. He could have put me on a bed for weeks but he pulled his punches too much otherwise. The overall losses I actually suffered are minor.”

“You lost your pendant and money though. Putting aside the money, the 10% Victa generation you enjoyed all this time was lost. Considering you are still hard-pressed for Victa, that is quite a blow,” Paina said.

“I expected he would loot me afterward. The only precious piece of equipment on my person was that moon pendant. I weighed it out and considered it an acceptable price for an out. The loss stings but bearable. Should I happen to wear the Dragonweave Gloves though, it would be a different story. Still, I have Boram to minimize my Victa usage now, so it’s not too crucial… more or less.”

The silence that followed left the girls hanging.

“Sooo, what are your plans now?” Paina shot the question they all wanted to know the answer to.

“Tomorrow, we go grave robbing.”