Chapter 20
A sweet and pleasant voice whispered the threat into Shouren’s left ear.
The warm voice contrasted with the grisly threat just made. Goosebumps tingled over Shouren’s skin, and the boy’s heart hammered inside his chest. Shouren didn’t even see who it was, but that person was already behind him.
“I only have one kidney, half a lung, and there’s a hole in my heart. My organs won’t sell for much.”
Shouren calmed his thumping heart, and answered without the Tier 1 hearing the trembling in his voice. The boy was afraid. If a Tier 1 was hiding in this desolate shop, it meant they were up to no good and most likely, an organ trafficker that preyed on lone street kids.
No one would come looking for Shouren here besides Rhea, and even then, no one would seriously take the complaint of the penniless elderly lady.
“Do you list all your available organs to everyone you meet?”
The Tier 1’s voice had an amused edge to it.
It’s a woman.
Shouren’s brain finally had time to process the events unfolding. In his terror, the boy didn’t even take the time to discern the voice. He didn’t dare turn around to look at the woman, but based on the whisper, she was a middle-aged woman that was only a foot taller than him.
Considering Shouren’s 4’5 foot stature, that would put the woman at a height of approximately 5’3 feet. Shouren was relatively short for his age, and although the awakening had made him slightly taller, it didn’t remedy the years of malnutrition.
The Tier 1 was a petite by adult standards.
“I have a rare medical condition that makes me pass out every hour. I can’t work manual labor.”
Shouren coughed nervously. If the bloodthirsty woman hadn’t knocked him out to harvest his organs, it might mean she wanted to sell him as a slave.
“Quite untrusting of others, I see. I don’t care about how many kidneys you have, kid. You’re a terrible lier. Now, put that sack down and turn around.”
The woman sighed with exasperation at Shouren’s continued fiasco.
“You won’t kill me?”
Shouren’s hand tightened over the sack. Yet the boy didn’t turn around.
“Pfft— What a scaredy-cat. Hey Isola, why are we messing with this slum kid?”
A new voice from the other side of the shop interrupted with a burst of laughter. It sounded like a teen boy.
“That child is using an [Uncommon] spell card as a Tier 0. Ruben, you need to pay more attention to your surroundings.”
Another fresh voice echoed a yard away from the second voice. This time, it was a deep and rich voice of a man.
“Tch, whatever. He’s a dirty slum rat in the end. I can smell his filth all the way here.”
The teen boy named Ruben snorted with derision.
Shouren’s eyes blazed, his hazel irises seethed with rage. He didn’t mind being killed or maimed. However, the boy would no longer tolerate others looking down on him.
A tsunami of lumen erupted within his body, and not caring whether the Tier 1 killed him or not, Shouren turned around and dashed straight to where the teen boy’s voice came from.
Stolen story; please report.
Once he turned around, Shouren noticed a lot of things at once. The curious and playful look on the auburn-haired woman, the calm and stoic expression on the dark-skinned bald man, and finally the gloating sneer on the blonde 15-year-old teenager.
Waves of lumen rushed into Shouren’s veins as the boy twisted his abdomen and swung the sack at Ruben’s head with full force. The blonde teen’s sapphire eyes stared at Shouren with unwavering confidence.
“He came at me first. I can retaliate, right, Thalen?”
Ruben smirked as he smoothly tilted his head to evade Shouren’s attack. The teen boy didn’t even shift his legs.
“Both of you are Tier 0, retaliation is allowed.”
The bald man stated with his eyes closed while leaned against the back wall. He was tall, and wearing a suit of charcoal-black leather armor. There was no weapon Shouren could see on him.
“No fatal strikes, Ruby.”
The petite, auburn-haired woman said cheerfully as she raised her hands over her head and yawned lazily. Isola was dressed in simple maroon and orange robes. Once again, Shouren saw no weapons on her as well.
“It’s Ruben, you dolt!”
The blonde teenager glared at the petite woman. Noticing the woman’s teasing expression, the teenager clicked his tongue and turned his withering gaze toward Shouren.
“Are you dumb? Attacking with that sack is too slow. How did you even survive the streets? Let me show you how to land a hit on someone.”
Ruben smirked, drawing out a small dagger. Before Shouren could prepare, he felt a dull thud on his left shoulder.
“You gave me too much time to prepare. I knew you were going to attack with that sack, and by the time you lifted it off the ground, the weight of it was already dragging down your speed.”
The blonde teenager brought his face closer to Shouren’s baleful eyes.
Shouren snarled, his wild hair obscuring his vision. The boy felt the cold metal gliding into his flesh. This pain was nothing compared to the lightning beast.
He ignored Ruben’s taunt and raised his leg to kick.
The blonde teen shook his head with disappointment and smoothly dodged the attack as if he had already predicted it.
“Too rash. You want to be arrogant, then at least be good at something like me.”
Ruben switched the hand holding the dagger and nimbly sliced the flesh on Shouren’s thigh to his chest. It was a long, bloody gash, but it didn’t penetrate any of the muscle strands.
Shouren channeled more lumen and lunged after the teen. The boy’s eyes remained focused despite the obvious taunts.
Thalin slowly opened his eyes while Isola hummed with enjoyment.
“You’re too weak and slow. It’s not even fun anymore. I thought you’d have a bite to you, but what a pity.”
Ruben relished with a fake reproachful gaze at Shouren. Just as Shouren’s fist was about to make contact, the blonde teenager’s icy blue eyes flashed with victory. He aimed the dagger straight into Shouren’s fist, severing the skin and into the palm.
Shouren chuckled.
“Got you.”
The boy clasped the dagger’s pommel in a vise with his bleeding hand, preventing Ruben from pulling it out. Meanwhile, Ruben stared at Shouren in surprise.
“You talk too much. I never paid you money to sit here and listen to you babble all day. My ears bled more than what your dagger did.”
Shouren grinned. Ruben was taller than him, and without lumen, the teenager would also be stronger than him. However, Ruben’s attributes were definitely all in the F rank. With lumen, Shouren closed the gap.
The only advantage Ruben had was his combat techniques. Until now, Shouren still didn’t know what class card Ruben had.
Thalin’s eyes were fully open now, and he observed Shouren with fascination. Even Isola whistled at the boy’s guts to intentionally take the dagger head-on without care to injury. Both of them stood motionless and didn’t attempt to stop the fight.
“What’s your class card? You’re cheating by using its ability to numb your pain.”
Ruben looked murderously at Shouren.
“Cardsmith.”
Shouren replied with a bright smile before he grabbed onto Ruben’s blonde hair and smashed his forehead into the teen’s face.
“Wha—“
Ruben sputtered in shock, but Shouren slammed his head into the teen’s face again. Splotches of blood splashed onto the shop’s floor.
“What’s yours?”
Shouren laughed through his bloodied teeth, his molars stained crimson from Ruben’s bleeding nose.
“Hea—“
Ruben groaned, trying to pull away but Shouren’s lumen powered hand locked onto his arm.
How much lumen does this kid have!?
“Didn’t hear you, say it again.”
However, before Ruben could finish his sentence, Shouren bashed his head again, cracking the cartilage completely near the blonde teen’s nose.
Ruben’s body thrummed with unbridled fury. He closed his eyes and touched a card hidden in the back of his pants. The teenager muttered softly.
“Full Heal.”
A explosion of lumen seeped into the room, and when the light died down, Ruben was standing there unscathed with all his injuries recovered. His sapphire eyes bored at Shouren in revenge.
“Enough. The boy wins the bout.”
Thalin stood up and appeared in a flash beside Ruben, his dark hand preventing Ruben from drawing out another card.
“I’m still standing and he’s almost dead.”
Ruben protested vehemently.
Shouren’s sight was starting to get bleary. His ears rang with faint noises. Yet the boy willed himself to stand. The fight wasn’t over. Shouren still didn’t know if Thalin and Isola were enemies as well. He couldn’t pass out now.
“It’s over. You lost by using your class card.”
The dark, bald man slowly shook his head at the indignant blonde teenager.
“What!? That rat used it first!”
Rubin glowered with anger. That boy had lied about his class, lied about using an ability, and even provoked him by using his nose as a pincushion.
“He never activated a card, Ruby. The boy withstood that pain on his own willpower.”
Isola glided over to the floor. Her eyes exchanged something briefly with Thalin, to which the latter nodded.
“I-Is he really a Cardsmith then? How?”
Ruben’s blue eyes widened in bafflement.
“Only our little friend can answer that.”
Isola pivoted her head to glance at Shouren. At that moment, something else happened.
Thud.
Shouren crumpled on the ground, his blood leaking through his clothes while darkness filled his mind.
His illusion spell shattered, revealing his real features to everyone.
We're trying to get into the Rising Stars, so please consider dropping a Rating or a Review!
Bonus Chapter Milestones [Every milestone will unlock a Bonus Chapter each]:
200 Followers [109/200]
100 Favorites [13/200]
50 Ratings [13/50]
10 Reviews [0/10]
