Osian narrowed his eyes.
Balud and his men were supposed to be scouring the city right now.
And yet, they'd been waiting, as if they realized he was going to take the vehicle.
'No. Not surprising, given the cloaking, and they're not stupid, they know I can't take the train.’
In other words, Balud expected Osian to sneak and steal his car.
Balud raised one hand.
"Like a gentleman. I have a business proposition for you. Hand her over, and I'll let you go."
At that, Osian glanced at Ena Grundt.
"That's a gentlemanly offer."
"If you think I'm lying, don't worry. I'm a man of my word in these matters.""And if I refuse?"
"Then we'll have to resort to some violent means."
At the same instant, the mobsters flanking Balud pointed their guns at Osian.
All of them were armed with guns.
The one Osian had to be most wary of was a Thompson submachine gun, known as Tommy gun.
No matter how well Osian could parry incoming bullets, he was no match for three Tommy guns firing simultaneously.
Most important of all was Ena Grundt's opinion.
It was not out of the realm of possibility that she would turn her back on Osian here and go to Balud.
No, it was a virtual certainty, based on the odds alone.
Osian turned his head back to Ena.
She looked up at him with an uneasy expression.
"Why, why?"
"You can go."
"What?"
"You're safer with them over there than you are with me, anyway. Isn't that what you're thinking?"
Ena's face fell at that.
"You're giving up so easily?"
"I'm asking for your opinion."
"......I mean, what if?"
Ena asked in a cautious tone.
"What if I turned down their offer and said I'd stay with you?"
"You don't like them?"
"You can't possibly like......people with such nasty looks in the first place, and they kill people for money."
"I get paid to kill people, too."
"You're, you're......something different."
It was the kind of intuition a witch who survived alone, in a world with no one to protect her, had.
"If I refuse, what will you do?"
Ena asked seriously, her eyes shining.
Meeting those clear eyes, Osian spoke the truth.
"Then I would fight."
"With those people?"
"With them, and anyone else who stands in my way."
That was a pretty arrogant statement.
Ena narrowed her eyes.
"Why would you go to such lengths? I know it's funny for me to say this, but we just met for the first time today. And we just met a few minutes ago."
"Because this is my job now."
There was no falsehood or deceit in Osian’s voice.
Ena asked, her voice trembling.
"A duty like that, it's so easy to just throw it away, isn't it? Everyone else in the world does."
Osian smirked at that.
"That's not honorable."
"......."
Dishonorable.
It was an unthinkable answer in this world but Ena couldn't think of a more believable answer.
She didn't know why, but she found herself relieved and convinced by the words coming out of Osian's mouth.
"So it is."
Osian smirked at Balud.
In response, Balud's already cold eyes sank even more heavily, and he ordered his men.
"Take care of him."
With that, the Tommy-gun wielding men stepped forward.
Loaded muzzles pointed at Osian, one at each arm and leg.
As if this were not the first time this had happened, they pulled the triggers without hesitation.
"Huh? What the hell."
No bullets were fired.
"Didn't you even check your guns properly?"
"Oh, no, it was clear before I got out of the vehicle!"
That meant there was something else.
That's when Balud turned to his men and said quietly.
"What do you think you're doing? If you have eyes, look straight at that."
With that, the men looked over Osian's back and saw Ena.
She was holding a match in one hand. The fire burning with a tiny spark was inappropriate for the situation.
"Witchcraft......!"
The gang members weren't stupid, and they immediately realized why the guns weren't firing.
Osian was inwardly impressed.
‘She can do this.’
The old gamer's instincts told him that it was impossible to operate a firearm while the match was still burning.
I had no idea she could create illusions through the flames of a match.
At the same time, it's easy to see why people coveted witches' abilities.
"She won't last long!"
"I know."
Osian pushed himself up and walked forward.
Balud watched him go, then opened his mouth.
"What are you doing? You don't think we can’t do anything without a gun, do you?"
"......."
All of the North Blinders dropped their guns and pulled out other weapons.
Clubs, daggers, hammers, and more.
They all had weapons in case they couldn't use their guns.
Of course, these weren't ordinary weapons: the clubs alone had a strong blue current running through the tip.
Not to mention the other weapons.
However, Osian didn't feel the need to draw his sword after seeing it.
"At least I can warm up."
With those words, the mafia member in the lead shouted and charged at Osian.
An electrified club aimed for the crown of his head.
Osian slightly twisted his upper body to avoid it, then stretched out his hand and placed it on the mobster's chest.
He pushed back with a little force.
Boom, the six-foot-two-inch behemoth bounced backward as if hit by a siege weight.
The mobsters running after him were swept up in the blast and dropped like bowling pins.
"Mutant! A body enhancer!"
"Surround him!"
The mobsters tried to surround Osian and attack him, but he had already burrowed into their gap.
Before they could react, Osian's hands moved.
He punched them with his fist and kicked them with his foot.
Simple movements, but with the knight's transcendent physical strength, they became transcendent violence.
A single blow from Osian sent a gang member ricocheting off into the distance, and he fell at Balud's feet.
Balud glared down at the henchman.
"Director.......I apologize."
"Get up."
Balud said, his voice dripping with coldness.
The subordinate grunted and sat up.
‘He got him up?’
Osian starred in Balud's direction in surprise.
Even with the force of the blow, it should have been enough to keep him down for a while.
In fact, his face was covered in a cold sweat from the pain.
Still, he got up because the man in the white suit in front of him had given him an order.
Balud didn't offer words of praise to the man who stood up on wobbly legs.
Instead, he handed him the white coat draped over his shoulders and the hat on his head.
The man took it gingerly.
"There are always people who bother you when you're doing something."
Balud pulled a pair of black leather gloves from his pocket and slipped them on his hands.
"That's why I have to take matters into my own hands."
"You must be pretty good at it."
"Do you know why they call me Mr. Director?"
"Because you're smart?"
"Besides that."
Balud wore a holster belt around his waist.
He grabbed the weapons holstered at his waist, one in each hand.
It was a hatchet.
"Because I'm the strongest."
"Ho-ho. An axe."
The axe Balud pulled out was unmodified to say the least.
In other words, he was using a pure-blooded weapon.
"The director took out an axe."
"That bastard is done."
The faces of the mafia members who had been beaten down by Osian turned red.
That man is really that strong. Just as Osian was thinking that, Balud lunged at him.
When he was within striking distance, Balud swung his axe sideways at Osian's head.
Osian snapped his head back. The sharp blade cut off a few strands of his hair.
‘Quick.’
Balud swung the axe in his other hand as the first blow missed.
Osian judged from the look on his face. If he backed off, he'd be taken out of the flow.
He immediately drew the sword at his belt. A silver blade emerged from its scabbard and engaged Balud's axe.
-Kaang!
Sparks flew from the air. Osian blocked the attack and tried to push Balud away with all his might.
Balud steadied himself with his legs.
"What?"
It was the first time he met an opponent he couldn’t overcome instantly with his physical strength.
At the same time, Balud's men stared in amazement.
"He and the director are having a joust?"
"That's it?"
Osian stared at Balud in surprise.
"Judging by the weapon you use, you're quite a violent man, despite your appearance."
Balud did not reply to the comment.
He merely stared at Osian, his cold eyes filled with serene life.
Osian smirked and immediately shifted his stance.
[Bending]
A basic skill of a knight. It was a technique to deflect or block an opponent's attack.
The sword tilted slightly to the side, and the axe blade slid down the smooth hilt.
The next moment, the tip of the sword bounced and swung out, knocking the axe blade away.
One of the two axes flew far away.
As Balud, bereft of one of his weapons, clicked his tongue, Osian swung his sword.
The longsword and one-handed axe clashed in the air.
Balud somehow managed to parry Osian's blade with one hand, but it was all he could do.
Osian took advantage of the opening, hoping to overpower Balud at once.
But when he saw the look on Balud's face, he abandoned his attack and immediately crouched down.
Immediately afterwards, an axe flew to the spot where the back of Osian's head was just moments ago.
Balud caught the flying axe with one hand and switched back to dual wielding.
"You dodged this?"
For the first time, Balud's emotions showed.
He couldn't believe how Osian had dodged the returning axe as if it had eyes in the back of his head.
Instead, Osian raised his crouching upper body and swung his sword wildly with the force of the blow.
Balud crossed his axe and parried the blow.
-Kwang!
An unbelievable sound erupted, it was the sound of cold weapons colliding.
"Ouch."
Balud gritted his teeth and strained his arms.
His forearm muscles expanded, and the biceps section of his shirt popped open.
Balud's legs dug deep furrows and he was thrust forward.
The distance between them had increased by five meters.
Balud stared down at his tingling arms in disbelief.
"You. Who are you?"
The struggle that had been so evenly matched had ended in Balud's defeat.
Balud realized then that Osian had been controlling his power even as he fought.
When Balud questioned him, Osian didn't answer, but instead sheathed his sword and glared at his arms.
The axe that had been deflected returned to his hand.
It was like the throwing axe he'd seen in Eldin's workshop but Balud's axe hadn't been modified.
On his forearm, hidden beneath his shirt, a black tattoo covered his entire forearm.
"I see. You were a barbarian warrior."