VOL 2 Chapter 87: Martín has talent.

Following Edward's order, a young man with bluish-black hair and dark eyes slowly approached the twins with an uneasy smile, filled with fear, doubt, and unwillingness, genuinely regretting having associated with someone like that. But after receiving a glance full of murderous intent from Edward, the young man had no choice but to play along for now. At that moment, Edward turned to look at Olivia with a disdainful smile and spoke in a mocking tone.

"Tell the disciple they're talking about that EDWARD STONE will take his people out for a drink. If he has anything to say about it, he should come find me."

"I remind Disciple Stone that what you're doing is considered kidnapping and carries prison time. I hope you'll abandon your attempts before involving Direct Disciple Erik, the leader of the young ones, or I'll have to call security."

Angry, Olivia stepped forward and spoke in a dark, firm voice, simultaneously releasing her mana. The air around her vibrated terrifyingly, which greatly increased Edward's contemptuous smile. He then commented arrogantly.

"So you're with that coward. Who would've thought he was still lurking around here without daring to show his face, hahaha. Well, tell him to come find me and drop those stupid threats. And trying to accuse me of kidnapping? I'm just inviting them for a drink, nothing more."

While Edward laughed, full of himself, the bluish-black-haired young man reached Clara, intending to grab her by the arm. But at that moment, Martín stepped forward while accumulating and compressing air created from his mana in the palm of his hand, which he released in a single blow, forcing the young man's arm sharply backward.

"Stay away from my sister..."

With a dark expression, Martín stood in front of his sisters and raised his guard, following the military boxing lessons he had received in school. This greatly surprised Olivia, who was about to teach that arrogant bastard a lesson. She had just been waiting for a legitimate reason to avoid complications, but her surprise quickly turned into a warm smile. After all, they were the first to fall under the wing of Direct Disciple Erik, so it was perfectly normal for them to be outstanding.

Meanwhile, the bluish-black-haired young man looked at his arm in surprise, feeling a slight tingling where the blow had landed, struggling to understand how someone so weak could have made him step back. But he quickly regained his composure, filling with anger at being humiliated by a mere Initiate-level nobody.

"Motherfucker!"

After shouting in rage, the young man launched several punches at Martín, who dodged them calmly and patiently, showing off an exquisite understanding of his opponent's space and rhythm. He made minimal movements, dodging the young man's swift blows by millimeters, moving only the upper part of his body.

Seeing this elegant display of skill, the young man was filled with anger and impatience as he watched Martín dodge all his punches, making him look incompetent. He quickly took a stance similar to Martín's and strengthened his body with mana. Then, he stomped on the ground hard and threw a powerful right hook directly at Martín's face.

Without changing his expression, Martín moved his torso backward, shifting with the young man's fist grazing his chin by mere millimeters, unable to reach him until the punch's momentum ended. This forced the young man to pull back his arm with an angry look, wanting to readjust his posture and give this Initiate trash a good lesson.

But Martín had been waiting for this opportunity. The moment the young man began to draw back his arm, Martín strengthened his own arm and back, while at the same time accumulating a "large amount" of air in his fist and compressing it, his torso following the movement of the young man's retreating arm.

When the young man finished pulling back his arm and was about to raise his guard again, Martín was already right in front of him. Without letting him react, he landed a heavy right hook to the young man's jaw, simultaneously releasing the compressed air in his fist in a display of exquisite coordination.

Martín's hard and incredibly precise blow, combined with the explosive release of air, caused the head of the bluish-black-haired young man to snap around with force, forcibly shutting off his consciousness and making him collapse to the ground, knocked out like a puppet with its strings cut. A deafening silence fell over the hallway.

Everyone present, including Edward, watched the scene in disbelief. After all, it wasn't every day you saw an Initiate-Novice effortlessly knock out an Apprentice-Peak—a scene that could only be described as surreal. But there was one slightly different reaction: Olivia, who nodded in satisfaction at the beautiful display of skill, gaining a bit of understanding of what Direct Disciple Erik must have seen in them.

However, although Martín had knocked out his opponent, it could hardly be said that he had truly defeated him. After all, he hadn't caused any real damage. The jaw of the bluish-black-haired young man, where Martín's blow had landed squarely, looked intact and didn't even show slight redness, so he wouldn't be down for long.

… 

… 

…

After saying goodbye to the siblings, Erik arrived at the artificery section of the library. He spent some time looking for a couple of books on the creation of spaceship-type artifacts, artifacts of the Zazen Discipline, and some information he hadn't read yet about ruin exploration. Something light to pass the time while his masters finished their meeting.

After gathering a satisfying number of books, Erik headed to his private room accompanied by Seraphina, who was carrying the stack of books in her hands with a beautiful smile on her face. Before Erik could even warm up the books, the moment he selected them, she would snatch them from his hands with a professional smile on her face.

When Erik reached the hallway leading to the private rooms, he could hear Sofía in the distance, politely refusing what seemed to be a proposition, using a tone neither servile nor rude—exactly as he had instructed her. This made him nod in satisfaction. Indeed, Sofía not only had great composure but also a way with words, so if she developed well, she would be a great asset to his yet-to-be-born brand.

Wanting to observe the scene more closely, Erik quickly used the trick his masters often employed to conceal their presence. He made a couple of signals to his reliable maid to follow him stealthily, which she did immediately. Her presence disappeared completely, to the point that if Erik couldn't see her, he wouldn't even know she was there.

Moving swiftly and silently down the hallway, Erik soon reached the spot where the siblings were, without drawing anyone's attention, only to find some random idiot wanting to commit a crime, openly and brazenly, without fear of the consequences. It was the first time in almost two decades in the Order that he'd seen something like this—though, well, he rarely went out, so he wasn't the best reference.

But despite the unpleasant moment, Martín was a pleasant surprise. Erik was able to witness firsthand how the boy displayed great talent and exquisite technique, which made him nod approvingly. He then turned to his reliable maid by his side and commented with a pleased smile.

"Martín has talent."

"Certainly, young master. Without a doubt, he will be a great knight in the future."

Seraphina replied with a soft, calm smile, but the sharp look she gave Edward told a very different story, something Erik overlooked while commenting with a cheerful laugh.

"Haha, you're right. I'll have to look for a good teacher to train him..."

"That would be an excellent idea, young master. I'll look for some good options for you to choose from." Seraphina replied professionally, while looking into the happy green eyes of her beloved young master, who nodded in satisfaction before thanking her with a charming smile.

"Thank you, Seraphina. I'll leave it in your hands."

"Trust me, young master."

After nodding again at his professional maid's answer, Erik walked toward the scene, thinking about Martín's future path and how useful his talent would be. After all, even though the security and law enforcement in the Arcane Order were excellent, no serious businessman could do without well-trained, capable private security. Ultimately, you never knew when a nutcase with no fear of consequences might launch a surprise attack—just like that orange-haired idiot.

"What? You feel really important for knocking out that trash? Today I'm going to show you what real power means, and I'll take your sisters right in front of your eyes so you learn to respect those of us who stand above trash like you."

Edward spoke arrogantly and furiously as he walked heavily toward Martín, who wore a serious expression on his face. At the same time, Olivia pulled out a sky-blue crystal card, intending to call security to toss the idiot into a dungeon for a few months to see if that would teach him a lesson.

"Is that idiot seriously trying to commit a crime in broad daylight with so many witnesses around?"

Hearing the idiot's bluster, Erik couldn't help but ask his maid, somewhat surprised. After all, the severity of the Arcane Order's legal system wasn't just a rumor, and if Edward dared to do what he said, he'd end up facing several decades in prison at minimum, plus a hefty fine that could ruin him—courtesy of the Arcane Order Court, a rather terrifying place from what Erik had heard.

"Well, these days it's really rare to see an idiot like that. I suppose he's spent too much time at the borders and got used to doing things in such an 'authoritarian' manner. Though if I had to guess, I'd say he must have something backing him. Which is completely stupid because not even a Master-level could save himself from the Court."

In response to her young master's question, Seraphina answered calmly and professionally, prompting Erik to remark quietly, full of surprise.

"There really are all kinds of people in this world..."

"Actually, while such authoritarian types are rare in the Order, in the other factions it's an everyday thing. So it's not unusual for young people from the Order to get used to that style when they spend a lot of time on the borders—something that is usually solved with a visit to the Court. But the young master must remember to be decisive when dealing with that kind of person; otherwise they'll think you're easy to intimidate." Seraphina explained calmly. Erik could only respond with a hint of distaste in his voice.

"I've just lost what little desire I had to visit the other factions… it would be a damn nuisance."

"Fufu, you'll get used to it, young master."

Seraphina commented with a small amused giggle upon seeing the adorable annoyed expression on her young master's face, which inevitably stirred a certain dark desire within her, making her eyes gleam. She quickly added with professionalism.

"By the way, young master, when you deal with that idiot, remember to do so in a dominant manner to send a message and show that you're not someone who can be toyed with. It'll save you a lot of trouble in the future."

"I understand..."

Erik couldn't help but sigh, but his expression soon changed because he truly trusted his maid. Although she was a bit "playful", she really looked after him and wouldn't give him bad advice. So he quickly became serious and cold, exuding authority and elegance, then took a firm step forward.

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