Chapter 112: Chapter 112
"Hestia, has your child... always been this insane?"
Inside a private room in a roadside inn, Hermes stared blankly at Kiriya showing off his overwhelming power, his eyes almost popping out.
"...Hestia?"
After waiting for a while and receiving no reply, Hermes could not help turning his head.
Then he saw Hestia with her mouth wide open as well, looking as if her entire worldview had just been punched sideways.
"So you didn’t know either."
"Cough, cough. How could that be?"
Hestia snapped back to herself and coughed twice.
"I was just playing along with your reaction. I didn’t want you to think I was bragging too much."
"You already are."
Hermes looked up at the sky in silence.
Where did that pure goddess go?
...
Boom, boom, boom!
The air roared, and the earth trembled violently.
The adventurers and gods watching nearby were shaken so badly that they staggered around in sorry states.
Yet not a single person complained.
Not one person dared curse.
Instead, they all pressed their lips tightly together and stared fixedly at the boy in the sky, watching the magnificent scene that looked like a flaming peacock spreading its tail.
They were shocked beyond words.
How could one person be this powerful?
While only a Level 3, he was directly clashing with a first-tier adventurer who had a Level 6 ability values and winning.
It was not some ultimate move that required a long charge, nor was he taking advantage of an opening.
He was truly overwhelming her through raw stats, smashing out a victory with nothing but his fists.
A scene like this had never appeared even across the thousand-year history of Orario.
The history of Falna and the history of adventurers would be divided into before and after this boy’s appearance.
The legend named Kiriya had finally begun at this moment!
"What... an incredible young man."
Finn voiced the thought in everyone’s hearts.
"Orario’s balance of power is going to be rewritten completely."
Although Kiriya was only Level 3, he had already become someone no Familia could ignore.
This time, Bete did not mock him at all.
He only stared fixedly at Kiriya’s figure in the air, his body half-crouched, the fur on his ears standing on end.
Although it was embarrassing to admit, Bete had no choice but to acknowledge it.
He was no match for that boy.
If they fought, he would lose badly!
In fact, it was not just him. Even veteran Level 6s like Riveria, the Nine Hell, and Finn, the Braver, felt a heavy pressure when facing Kiriya.
How was this still a rookie who needed their care?
This was clearly already a powerhouse capable of standing on equal footing with them, one of Orario’s major figures.
"Ahhh, damn it, Kiriya! It hasn’t even been that long, and you’re already this strong?"
Tiona held her head and wailed.
"Doesn’t this mean my reverse-attack plan is completely dead?"
The moment she said that, all the Loki Familia executives fell silent.
"You should give up already, idiot Tiona."
Tione pressed a hand to her forehead helplessly.
"If you try to force it, you might get flattened by him, just like that toad woman."
"Hmph, no way."
Tiona confidently puffed out her chest.
"I’m not that ugly woman. With this beautiful body and this amazing figure, as long as I fully show off my charm, I definitely still have hope. Right, Ais?"
Ais, whose shoulder Tiona was holding, did not respond.
She simply stared at Kiriya in silence for a long time.
She looked as if she had made some kind of decision.
Her unusual behavior caught the attention of her companions.
Tiona’s eyes rolled around, and then she suddenly cried out again.
"No way! Don’t tell me you’ve fallen for him too, Ais? Oh no, oh no, now I really have no chance. How am I supposed to compete with you?"
"Wait, no. We don’t have to compete."
A flash of inspiration struck Tiona, and she hugged Ais’s shoulder with a mischievous grin.
"We can totally cooperate for mutual benefit! That’s right, we can still be good sisters afterward."
"Hm?"
Ais finally snapped back to herself and looked at Tiona.
"Idiot Tiona, stop saying nonsense."
Tione quickly punched her sister.
"Be careful, Loki will lose her mind."
"That’s right. Stop causing trouble for Ais."
Bete also became anxious.
"Hmph, stingy..."
Tiona grumbled in dissatisfaction, but when Riveria’s stern gaze landed on her, her heart jumped, and she quickly hid behind Ais.
"Waaah, Mama Riveria is scary! Ais, you have to protect me."
"Who are you calling Mama...?"
Riveria retorted, then looked at Ais with concern.
"Ais, are you all right?"
"I’m fine, Riveria."
Ais shook her head, then met Riveria’s gaze seriously.
"I want to ask him how to become stronger."
"..."
Riveria and the others fell silent.
They knew Ais’s knot of the heart, and they knew how obsessively she desired strength, so they were not too surprised by her decision.
But they were not very optimistic about it either.
After all, a method for rapidly growing stronger was an absolute secret to anyone.
They did not think Kiriya would be generous enough to share it with Ais.
Unless...
Thinking of that possibility, Riveria’s heart skipped a beat.
She decided that after they returned, she would immediately have a serious talk with Ais.
Ambition was good, and wanting to become stronger was not wrong.
But she could not take the wrong path because of it.
A young girl still had to cherish herself.
...
Naturally, Kiriya knew nothing about the little incident on the Loki Familia’s side.
He was considering how to deal with Phryne.
Kill her outright?
That would feel satisfying, but it would also bring him a lot of trouble.
After all, the Guild had explicit rules forbidding adventurers—especially high-level adventurers—from killing each other.
Although in the eyes of powerful Familias, that kind of ban was no better than toilet paper, and they would still deal with whoever needed dealing with, those matters had to be kept in the dark.
They could not be put openly on the table.
The authority of Ouranos was not something just anyone had the right to violate.
Kiriya was the same.
When he fought the Ishtar Familia’s Berbera earlier, he had deliberately held back and avoided killing anyone.
Now, there was no need to push himself into opposition against all of Orario just because of one ugly freak.
That would not be worth it at all.
But...
That was exactly why there was a "but."
She could escape death, but she could not escape punishment.
This thing had disgusted him several times. If he did not vent properly, his thoughts would not flow smoothly.
So the adventurers and gods watching in shock discovered something terrifying.
Every time Kiriya beat Phryne for a while, he would pause for two seconds.
Then another Kiriya would step forward to heal Phryne before he continued punching her again.
This went on for more than a full minute before Kiriya finally stopped and wiped the faint sweat from his forehead.
"Whew. You’re pretty tough. You took that many punches from me without making a sound. I respect you as a real one, so let’s call the previous matter settled. If you’re still unhappy, feel free to come at me again. I’ll take you on anytime."
’Gulp.’
Looking at the barely human-shaped, mosaic-worthy lump on the ground, someone swallowed hard.
That immediately triggered a chain reaction, and similar swallowing sounds rose one after another.
It was clearly daytime, with the sun hanging overhead, yet everyone felt a bone-deep chill.
Killing someone only meant one clean end.
But Kiriya had created sustainable suffering!
Even if Phryne was still alive, even if her body was later healed by a powerful healer, she was probably finished.
That one minute would become a nightmare she would never forget for the rest of her life.
It was not that the crowd sympathized with Phryne.
They wished this Man-Eater would disappear as soon as possible so their eyes and souls could suffer less.
What they feared was Kiriya’s methods and mindset.
He was decisive, ruthless, and yet knew how to adapt flexibly.
On top of that, his methods seemed endless.
If anyone provoked him in the future... they would be in deep, deep shit.
Even if their crippled body was healed, the psychological shadow would last a lifetime.
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