Chapter 52

Commotion

Anyway, when surrounded by people like that, even I couldn’t help but calmly assess the situation.

"Don’t try to be a hero! Get down!"

To the point that I could notice something a little off about the men yelling like that.

‘…Their voices sound young?’

That impression tickled the back of my mind for a moment.

It wasn’t just that they sounded thin—it was enough to convince me that these people weren’t even adults yet.

A quick glance confirmed it. Most of them had extremely frail builds. Their limbs, exposed outside their clothes, were scrawny, and overall, they looked like they could barely stand upright.

…No matter how I looked at them, they didn’t seem like people who committed crimes professionally.

‘Huh.’

A chill crept up my spine.

Then my gaze lingered for a moment on the guns they were holding.

Worn-out revolvers. No matter how I looked at them, they weren’t new. It was obvious they hadn’t been used in a long time. I could believe they had been picked up off the street.

I scrutinized them carefully.

…It didn’t take long to find what I was looking for.

“…”

I closed my eyes tightly.

Now that I had seen this, I couldn’t just pretend not to know.

Especially since one of the robbers was, of all people, approaching Katya.

“What are you doing? I said get down!”

“…Hmm.”

Katya spun her fork in her hand and stared steadily at the robber who had spoken.

“What if I don’t want to?”

“…”

“You gonna shoot?”

At her brazen response, the robber let out a scoff.

“If you want to die, I won’t stop you.”

“Hmm.”

“Get down. That’s your last warning.”

“Hm-hmm.”

“…”

Still spinning the fork in her hand, Katya’s relaxed demeanor left the robber speechless.

“…Hey, is something going on over there?”

One of the others, still swinging his gun and keeping the other customers down, called out.

His voice trembled. He was trying to sound tough, but I caught it right away.

They were the ones committing the crime, but they were the ones who were scared.

“No, nothing.”

Then the one clearly acting as the leader—the same one pointing his gun at Katya—cocked the hammer and brought it even closer to her forehead.

It was a hair-trigger moment, yet there was still no sign of the smile fading from Katya’s face.

“Not going to shoot?”

Then her eyes sank deep.

Holy flame gathered in her body. The surrounding air heated up.

“…Your Highness?”

Behind her, Noel spoke in disbelief.

“What exactly are you doing right now?”

“…Is that really the important part here?”

Then, boiling streams of holy flame began to pour out from Katya's body.

"If you're not going to shoot, then I'll go first—"

That was as far as she got.

Aiden immediately took a deep breath and stood up.

His decision was swift, and his actions even swifter.

Katya, who had been about to unleash her holy power, flinched unconsciously and halted.

"…Point that at me."

Aiden stepped right in front of Katya as he said that. The tip of his finger was aimed directly at the robber's gun.

"…?"

Katya glared at him with a face that asked, What the hell are you doing?, but Aiden ignored her and stared straight into the masked robber’s eyes.

While the robber stood frozen, Aiden grabbed the barrel and pressed it against his own forehead.

Seeing that, Noel and Katya both sprang to their feet in shock.

The ease and confidence that had been on their faces just moments before were now completely replaced by unmistakable fear.

"What are you doing…!"

"Aiden, have you lost your mind?!"

With those shouts, supernatural energy erupted simultaneously from both of them.

Compared to before, the density was on an entirely different level. It was so intense that even some of the customers who had barely managed to stay standing collapsed as their legs gave out under the pressure.

“...H-Hhk—!”

One of the robbers, terrified, turned his gun toward Noel and Katya.

And in that moment, Aiden's voice tore through the air.

"Point the gun at me!"

"W-What…!"

"Point it at me, if you want to live!"

"…"

Even Noel and Katya, who had been unleashing their powers, flinched at the sheer intensity of his voice.

And while their momentum faltered, Aiden continued calmly.

"Sir Noel, Your Highness, you see that gun is pointed at me right now, don’t you? If you act recklessly, I’ll die. Please stand down."

"What the hell are you—"

"Please. I’m asking you."

His voice was polite, but low and firm. That made the weight behind his words even more pronounced.

Noel and Katya, looking into his eyes, both flinched. Aiden’s eyes, usually dulled as if crushed by exhaustion, were now sharply focused.

"…"

"…"

While Noel and Katya silently subdued their powers slightly—

Aiden slowly reached into his inner pocket. His movement was deliberately slow, clearly meant to show he wasn’t trying anything threatening, and eventually he pulled out a leather wallet.

It was quite thick. That was thanks to everything he had recently received from Noel.

Aiden slowly held it out toward the robber.

"Take it."

"…"

"Go on. Take it. Don’t touch anything from anyone else."

Still holding the barrel of the robber’s gun against his forehead, Aiden firmly pushed the wallet toward the man as if forcing him to take it.

As the robber hesitantly accepted it, Aiden’s voice fell once more, calm and steady.

“If you go down Fourth Street, you’ll find the Protected Zone for the poor. Over there, you might at least be able to find some work. Live honestly—if you want to keep feeding the ones depending on you.”

“…”

“You’ll die early living like this. If you don’t want to end up regretting it for your family’s sake, listen to me.”

“…”

“Go. Now.”

“…”

“I said go!”

Startled by Aiden’s shout, the robber clutched the wallet and backed away.

He quickly gathered the others, who were still dazed and fumbling, and rushed them out of the restaurant.

…Just like a storm had swept through and vanished, the only thing left behind in the restaurant was an eerie stillness.

Everyone simply stared blankly, glancing between Aiden and the now-departed robbers.

“…Haaah—”

With a deep sigh, Aiden collapsed back into his seat.

‘…I really hate standing out.’

There had been many times when he threw himself into danger for the sake of getting a Skill Copy Ticket, but every time he had to step up like this so aggressively, it drained everything out of him. There’s only so much someone can do when it doesn’t suit their nature…

“What was that just now?”

Katya asked the question while resting her chin on the table.

Her face was smooth and expressionless.

…Knowing her usual personality, this was her angry face.

She was clearly dissatisfied with what Aiden had just done.

“What were you thinking, doing something like that—”

“…That wasn’t even a real robbery to begin with.”

But it wasn’t like Aiden had suddenly gone mad.

He wiped his face with a hand and spoke in a weary voice.

“The cylinder was completely empty.”

“What?”

“It was an empty gun. They probably found some broken piece of junk and tried to patch it up to make it look real.”

They disguised a fake gun as a real one, trying to pull off a quick robbery.

Not even going after a big payday like robbing a bank—just aiming for the cash drawer of a restaurant. They were bottom-tier, not even third-rate.

“…That was a common trick in the slums.”

All of it came from Aiden’s own memories.

“It’s the kind of thing only someone who’s about to starve to death would even attempt, because one wrong move and you end up dead. I doubt they wanted to be doing it.”

If anything, the desperation and fear they showed throughout only made it more certain.

That guy who was called ‘hyung’ earlier was probably the eldest among a bunch of boys and girls with no parents or guardians.

People who live day-to-day, sleep without a roof over their heads, and barely survive the cold by sharing body heat.

“Still, a crime’s a crime. I’m not trying to justify it. But still.”

He scratched his head roughly as he spoke in a blunt tone.

“…If someone’s desperate to feed the ones relying on them, it’s okay to give them one last chance. They’re just trying to feed their family.”

“…”

“They only took mine, so it’s not like they left any grudges with the others.”

As Katya listened silently, she tilted her head and asked,

“How do you even know all that?”

“…”

Aiden stayed quiet for a moment, then narrowed his eyes as he answered.

“Because, if things had gone just a bit differently, I might’ve done something like that too.”

Katya furrowed her brow as if she didn’t understand what he meant.

But beside her, Noel’s eyes quietly widened as she listened.

—That guy and Sisela… they’re both kids we picked up off the streets. No one’s ever asked about their past. Maybe that’s why we’ve all gotten along so well.

—It’s all because of me. They’re both doing it because they had no choice…

…A while back.

She remembered hearing those words from Aiden’s family.

This man, they said, was a war orphan who once begged on the streets.

No one knew where he came from or how he had survived.

‘…Come to think of it.’

She realized now—she knew nothing about this man.

What he had gone through, what he had endured to become the person he was today.

She knew absolutely nothing.

“…”

As she mulled that over, Noel quietly bit her lip.

This man—

…Where had he come from, and what had he been doing?

She was curious about the brilliant abilities he had—how he handled her aura so naturally, how he wielded holy flame, how he could effortlessly use a skill belonging to the Knight of Dawn, one of the greatest heroes. But even more than that—

Noel herself was curious about his true past, the one hidden behind that dazzling power.

What kind of person is Aiden?

As she chewed over that thought—

Aiden, still squinting, glanced around them.

“…By the way, something’s strange.”

“What is?”

“No matter how desperate they were, they wouldn’t come all the way into this kind of flashy high-end district. Normally they’d just hit a small corner shop.”

As he said that, someone approached, dragging a chair.

They pulled it out and sat down. Aiden, looking at the person, spoke as if spitting out the words.

“Unless someone deliberately pushed them into doing it.”

“An interesting interpretation.”

The man was an elderly gentleman.

Broad shoulders, a scar cutting across his face, and a suit adorned with numerous medals.

As soon as they saw who it was, Noel’s posture snapped straight. Katya’s eyes widened slightly.

It was proof enough that this person was someone of considerable fame.

He hadn’t introduced himself yet, but Aiden already knew who he was.

Not because the man was famous—

-System Message

▶ Affection Level with “Duke Aslan” has increased.

▶ Bond Stage has increased!

▶ You may now copy 1 skill!

…It was because the man was outright announcing it himself.

“What exactly are you doing here?” Aiden asked.

“Recruiting,” the man replied with a grin.

The Northern Duke, Randall Dreyfus Aslan.

“And you—congratulations. You’ve just passed. Welcome aboard.”

The Empire’s oldest and greatest noble lifted the corners of his mouth into a subtle smile.