Chapter 173
Joshua believed that there would be some kind of hidden entrance, but the journey up to the fifth floor was uneventful. He simply followed in Zero’s footsteps.
However, there were two distinct differences between the stairs leading up to the fifth floor from the fourth compared to the other stairs. The staircase up to the fifth floor was a spiral stairway, and the steps were taller than normal.
‘Hm, this is interesting. The entire building is designed to protect someone or something, and the people hiding on the fifth floor are… There are at least thirty people protecting the target…,’ Joshua muttered to himself with bright eyes.
There were a plethora of people at the level of a B-Class Knight here, and the strongest of them was even approaching the A-Class level. People like them could mostly be found among the royal knights of kingdoms, and as far as Joshua could remember, Moon Gate didn’t have this many people with such prowess.
However, it made Joshua feel that it would be safe for him to assume that the master of Moon Gate had truly resolved the internal strife of Moon Gate. After all, there was no way they would be able to have so many people with such prowess under their control.
Naturally, the master of Moon Gate couldn’t be taken lightly.
All of a sudden, Joshua stopped walking.
“Joshua?” Zero noticed that.
“It seems this place does not welcome a guest like me.”
“What?” Zero revealed a perplexed look.
“...!” All of a sudden, tremendous energy bore down on Zero. His eyes bulged, and tears welled up in his eyelids as he stood there with his lungs madly pumping away, yet he still felt like he was choking.
Zero felt like he suddenly found himself on top of an extremely tall summit where oxygen was scarce. However, he was definitely standing here, on the stairwell leading up to the fifth floor of Moon Gate’s headquarters.
Zero felt like he was standing in front of an apex predator.
“P-please… I beg you… no more…!”
Zero shivered the moment he met Joshua’s eyes that seemed as cold as a thousand-year-old icy cavern.
“I’m warning you. I do not forgive people who threaten me, even if it’s the Moon Gate.”
“...!” Zero shivered away as Joshua’s tremendous energy kept on boring down on him. It was strange because Zero was aware of everything, but at the same time, he couldn’t quite express himself—he felt like he had gone mad in front of Joshua.
Zero was familiar with this sensation. There were around thirty individuals who had successfully made him feel like he was standing in front of nature’s apex predators.
The master of Moon Gate and the Guardians, who were their direct subordinates, The Guardians followed the orders of no one other than the Master of Moon Gate.
An order from the Master of the Moon Gate was the reason why Zero had been pursuing the red coin for so many years now.
“H-H-have you forgotten who this person is?!” Zero cried out.
However, his cries were met with an oppressive silence.
“They’re loyal, aren’t they?” Joshua smiled.
“What? What are you talking about?” Zero was confused.
“How could they do something so stupid if they haven’t been ordered to? I think they’re mad, rabid dogs. Otherwise…” Joshua’s smile widened. “I have no choice but to believe that Moon Gate’s Master is an imbecile with no eyes at all, let alone an eye for people.”
“You… what are you—” Zero started. He wanted to refute, but he felt so weak that he couldn’t even speak as the energy boring down on him became even denser as time went on.
Zero felt like his life was being drained as he struggled.
Zero was furious at the fact that he had to go through all this.
‘Is this some kind of a test? Master already knows that it’s meaningless to test him, so why is he doing this?!’’
“You must be wondering if all this is a test or something.”
“...”
Zero revealed a look of disbelief as he stared at Joshua. He looked like he was asking how Joshua knew what he was thinking.
“It’s simple. Martial arts aren’t everything.”
“Huh? What are you talking about?”
Joshua was aware that the others had to have already noticed what was happening, but he continued as if he didn’t care if daggers were to go flying toward him at any moment.
“There are people going around acting like they’re some kind of bigshot while relying on nothing but their sword. Unfortunately, for them, martial arts aren’t everything, and if you want an example, then the incident between Swallow and Thran is a great example.”
“His Grace Duke Altsma…” Zero blankly voiced out the name of a certain individual.
“In that case, isn’t it just correct for me to assume that the people here are keeping tabs on me? More specifically, my reactions, judgment, and how I usually act. What do you think?”
“For an information broker, being able to develop conclusions based on the information you gather is critical, but nothing is more reliable than what you have seen with your own two eyes. Therefore, the Master of Moon Gate definitely wants to confirm and gather more information about me.”
A deafening silence descended the moment Joshua was done speaking. However, it was quickly shattered by a flurry of hushed gasps as the tremendous energy boring down on Zero vanished.
The tremendous energy that made him quiver in fear vanished like a lie.
He looked up at Joshua, seemingly in agreement with the latter’s words.
‘Joshua Sanders is… not an average gambler. On top of his martial talents, he has the ability to see into people’s hearts and an unshakeable steadfast mind. I have met many people before, but I have never met someone as flawless as him.’
Zero shook his head. He didn’t know if Joshua could still surprise him after this.
In addition, Joshua was just about to become sixteen years old. Five years later—no, three years later once Joshua became a full-fledged legal adult, Zero couldn’t even begin to imagine what kind of monster Joshua would have become by then.
Wait, actually. Age was just a number for Joshua.
‘Wait a minute…’ Zero noticed something while he was staring at Joshua. ‘I have definitely seen that earring somewhere.’
Joshua was wearing a lone earring, and it shimmered slightly in the dark while emitting a regal air. At the sight of the beautiful earring that seemed to have been carved from obsidian that could only be found from the deepest of chasms, Zero revealed doubts.
The black obsidian earring definitely suited Joshua. In addition, it received Zero’s acknowledgment.
‘There is no way I haven’t seen that earring when it’s a bonafide artifact.’?Zero seemed anxious. It was understandable because Zero’s photographic memory was famous in Moon Gate. It didn’t matter whether the subject in question was a person or an object, Zero would never forget them.
As such, he became anxious by the fact that he couldn’t recall a familiar-looking earring.
However, Joshua’s words awakened Zero from his trance.
“As I said before, I do not forgive people who threaten me, and if you go too far and escalate this beyond threat, then I will not spare anyone here.”
“...!”
Wooong!
No one had any chance to react as an animalistic howl tore through the air. The combination of True Kill and the fact that it amplified fear was enough to shake both heaven and earth, similar to when Joshua reached Level 5 of the Magic Spear Arts.
The Guardians of Moon Gate froze. Even Zero wasn’t spared as he stiffened at once.
Rumble!
‘This is crazy…!’
He started trembling as cold sweat broke out all over him. Zero looked like he would collapse at any moment, and it was all thanks to Joshua.
“Ugh!”
“Agh!”
Thud! Thud! Thud!
Those who were hiding in the shadows collapsed to the floor with dull thuds. It couldn’t be said that they had been careless. The wave Joshua had unleashed just now couldn’t be avoided, and even trained Knights would falter in front of him.
‘I… I remember it now!’
Zero's eyes flashed with astonishment. He finally recalled where he had seen the earring on Joshua’s ear. The artifact lay hidden in the deepest recesses of Zero’s mind, but it was understandable because Zero’s job involved processing thousands of data every day, and he only saw the earring once.
He saw it from an ancient book hidden in the archives of Moon Gate. He coincidentally saw the artifact on one of the book’s pages, and it was an artifact that had the potential to become a legend throughout the continent, but it apparently disappeared.
Today, most of the continent had long forgotten its name aside from a few people.
.
“O-obsidian Earring!” Zero blurted out the artifact’s name with a gap. Despite its name, it wasn’t just obsidian. In fact, some of the materials that were used to create the artifact were so rare that one couldn’t look for them—they could only be stumbled upon.
In addition, some materials could be considered extremely difficult to gather and most people would never venture to the area where they could be found, even if they knew where they were located.
After all, one of the materials that were used to create the artifact was a treasure that a mage would have to sell their soul to a demon before they could acquire it—a dragon’s heart. Even more astonishing, the hearts that were used to craft the artifact belonged to the greatest dragon type of all—red and black dragons.
Honestly, the earring was more valuable to assassins than to mages. As an example, the earring was like the red coin of Moon Gate to assassins. It was a priceless artifact for assassins, to say the least.
‘Whoever acquires the Obsidian Earring will ascend to the summit…’?Zero gulped a mouthful of his own saliva as he recalled those words from the ancient book. ‘He didn’t have that earring when we last met. He must have been doing something else aside from protecting the Imperial family!’’
Wooosh!
Someone interrupted Zero’s train of thought, but it wasn’t Joshua anymore.
A man in black emerged from the darkness with a terrified look.
Zero blankly called out. “Mr. Won—”
“Let’s stop the prank here, Joshua Sanders,” said the man in black.
“Prank?” Joshua revealed a twisted smile.
“No, wait!” Zero hurriedly exclaimed. He knew that Joshua had never been the type to make empty promises, so if Won kept on provoking Joshua…
“Let’s see if it’s a prank.”
“You will regret this,” said the man clad in black before taking on a stance.
Joshua saw that, and he couldn’t help but chuckle. “Do you really think that you can stop me?”
“I’m just doing my job.”
When Joshua brought out his crimson spear, Zero could only close his eyes.
‘Everything has gone to the dogs now. We should have let him keep on walking. Now that he has gotten started, there is no stopping him now. Master has made a rash decision, yes, but we can’t let everything be ruined with a single mistake…!’
Zero started blaming himself while Lugia was ready to taste blood.
Joshua was about to rush forward when a high-pitched voice assaulted his ears.
“Stop right there, Mister Joshua Sanders!”
“N-No way… there’s no way.” Zero’s eyes widened when he clapped his eyes on the individual standing in front of the door to the fifth floor.
“I can’t believe it.” Zero's muttering was the only thing that could be heard in the silence.
The silver-haired individual with a lovely demeanor stared down at them with sparkling eyes.
Zero had seen the individual’s silhouette before, but it was his first time seeing the individual’s figure and face. The master of the Moon Gate’s true appearance was finally revealed.
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