Scarlet Fist, however, showed no intention of letting the matter end there.
She immediately raised a finger and pointed straight at Ferris.
"He’s the one who told us this place could withstand the full force of an S-Rank battle. How were we supposed to know he was lying?"
Ferris stood there with his mouth hanging open.
His eyes widened in utter disbelief as he stared at her, almost wondering if he had misheard.
"Lying?" he blurted. "When did I lie?!"
"You did!" Scarlet Fist shot back without the slightest hint of guilt. "You literally told us this training facility was built to withstand S-Rank Hunters going all out."
"I said it could withstand an S-Rank reassessment!" Ferris almost shouted, pointing wildly at the devastated surroundings. "A reassessment! Not... whatever the hell this turned into! Who would’ve thought the two of you would actually fight like your lives depended on it?"
Scarlet Fist folded her arms and snorted.
"Sounds like excuses to me."
Ferris nearly coughed up blood.
’This menace...’
He had honestly believed today’s battle would simply be a routine evaluation.
A few exchanges.
Some displays of strength.
A confirmation that Kael possessed the qualifications of an S-Rank Hunter.
That should have been the end of it.
Who could have predicted that these two monsters would become so engrossed in fighting that they would practically demolish an entire underground facility?
And now...
She was shamelessly trying to drag him down with her.
Ferris immediately turned toward Jonas.
The Vice President’s next sentence would decide whether he lived peacefully for the next few months or spent them crying every time he looked at his bank account.
Jonas swept a glance over the two before speaking in an indifferent tone.
"I don’t care."
"You can split the repair bill, flip a coin, or arm wrestle for it. Figure it out yourselves."
His gaze narrowed slightly.
"But one thing is certain."
"Not a single credit is coming out of the Association’s pocket."
The words landed like a judge delivering a final verdict.
Ferris felt the strength leave his legs.
His knees buckled slightly before he hurriedly caught himself against a broken slab of concrete, his face turning deathly pale.
’I’m cooked...’
Just looking around was enough to give him a headache.
Collapsed walls.
A ceiling that looked moments away from caving in.
Not to mention the countless pieces of specialized equipment that was hidden in this underground facility.
The repair costs alone would be astronomical.
As an A-Rank Hunter, Ferris was undoubtedly wealthy by ordinary standards.
But his wealth had been accumulated little by little through years of risking his life inside Rifts.
He wasn’t the kind of Branch Director who secretly siphoned Association funds into his own pocket.
Every credit he owned had been earned honestly.
Which was precisely why it hurt.
The amount needed to restore this place would likely wipe out months upon months of hard-earned savings.
Just as despair was about to consume him completely, another voice suddenly rang out.
"I’ll pay for it."
The simple sentence instantly drew everyone’s attention.
Kael stepped forward with a calm expression, as though he had merely offered to pay for lunch rather than hundreds of millions worth of repairs.
"You don’t have to worry about the expenses."
"I’ll handle them."
For a brief moment, the underground chamber fell silent.
Even Jonas looked at him with slightly furrowed brows.
"Are you certain?"
His eyes swept across the ruined facility once more before returning to Kael.
"This isn’t a small amount."
"You’ve only just been promoted to S-Rank. The repairs here will cost far more than you can imagine."
His concern wasn’t born from disrespect.
It was simply common sense.
Kael had only awakened a short time ago.
His background had already been investigated by the Association earlier.
An ordinary family.
No wealthy backers.
No influential conglomerate.
No ancient clan standing behind him.
Even if he had become an S-Rank today, accumulating that level of wealth wasn’t something that happened overnight.
Unless...
Jonas narrowed his eyes slightly.
The young man before him possessed resources the Association didn’t know about.
Kael simply smiled.
"You don’t have to worry."
"I’m fully capable of paying it."
Of course, he understood why Jonas found it difficult to believe.
Under normal circumstances...
The Vice President would have been absolutely right.
If not for his Infinite Reward Multiplier Talent, he wouldn’t even have dreamed of possessing such wealth.
Forget paying for the repairs.
Without the talent, he likely wouldn’t even have been standing here as an S-Rank Hunter.
Jonas studied him quietly.
His years of experience had taught him how to judge people.
Kael’s expression remained composed from beginning to end.
There wasn’t the slightest trace of hesitation.
"...You’re sure?"
Kael nodded.
"I am."
The instant he nodded, two pairs of eyes lit up simultaneously.
Ferris felt as though the crushing mountain pressing against his shoulders had suddenly vanished.
Relief flooded through his body so quickly that he almost became emotional.
As he stared at Kael, an absurd image unconsciously formed in his mind.
Radiant wings seemed to unfold behind the young man.
Golden light descended from above.
Like a divine messenger answering the desperate prayers of two pitiful sinners.
’An angel...’
’No.’
’A savior!’
Before Ferris could continue his ridiculous train of thought, Scarlet Fist had already made her move.
She rushed over in a single step before wrapping an arm tightly around Kael’s shoulders as though the two had known each other for years.
A brilliant smile spread across her face.
"Big Brother!"
"If anyone dares bully you in the future, just call this little sister."
She clenched her free fist.
"I’ll smash their heads in for you."
Ferris immediately hurried over as well, unwilling to be left behind.
"Me too, Big Brother!"
"I might not be able to deal with monsters like her..."
He pointed at Scarlet Fist before quickly correcting himself.
"...I mean, monsters as strong as her."
"But if there are weaker enemies, just leave them to me."
"I’ll make sure you don’t have to dirty your hands."
Kael felt the corner of his mouth twitch.
Looking at the pair standing on either side of him, he couldn’t help but feel a strange chill run down his spine.
’...Why does this feel like I’ve suddenly become the boss of some underground organization?’
’All that’s missing is the black suits.’
Jonas watched the utterly shameless display before him.
The veins on his bald forehead bulged one after another, throbbing so violently that it looked as though they might burst at any second.
His fist clenched.
"You two..."
His voice trembled with suppressed anger.
"Have you no shame whatsoever?"
"He’s obviously younger than both of you."
"And you’re calling him Big Brother?"
Scarlet Fist merely stuck out her tongue.
"What?"
She grinned mischievously.
"Are you jealous?"
Jonas’ face twitched violently.
"You..."
He took a deep breath.
Then another.
After several seconds, he finally managed to suppress the urge to punch someone.
"Since you clearly have so much free time to fool around..."
A dangerous smile slowly appeared on his face.
"You can handle all the official procedures related to today’s incident."
Scarlet Fist’s smile instantly froze.
"...Official procedures?"
"That’s right."
Jonas nodded pleasantly.
"Every report."
"Every statement."
"Every damage assessment."
"And every page of paperwork explaining exactly why half the city thought an S-Rank invasion had suddenly begun."
The color drained from Scarlet Fist’s face.
The physical exhaustion from the battle hadn’t scared her.
The repair bill had certainly hurt.
But paperwork...
That was true horror.
Rumors about today’s battle had already spread throughout the city.
Countless people had witnessed the tremors.
Footage of today’s events was probably already spreading online, accompanied by all kinds of exaggerated captions.
As a result, the Hunters Association would need to issue an official statement, reassure the public, assess the damages, and submit detailed reports to headquarters.
Scarlet Fist lowered her head.
For the first time that day...
She genuinely wanted to cry.