After being chosen by the employer, Argenti immediately stepped forward, placed his right hand over his chest, and gave a slight bow.
"Beautiful lady, Silvermane Argenti of the Knights of Pure Beauty, at your service."
He then spread his arms wide.
"May pure beauty endure forever!"
"Change him."
The woman rolled her eyes.
Good grief—she thought he looked handsome at first, but it turned out he was a full-blown chūnibyō.
"Uh… this…"
Now it was Argenti's turn to feel awkward.
He really couldn't understand it. His etiquette was flawless—so why was he being rejected?
The woman couldn't be bothered to explain. Her gaze shifted and landed on Diluc.
"Him."
"Diluc of Mondstadt. I look forward to working with you."
This time, things sounded much more normal.
The woman nodded in satisfaction.
"My name is Liu Ruyan. I'll be relying on you from now on~"
Pff—!
The moment Valerius heard that name, he sprayed.
Wasn't this Emperor Ruyan?!
You're back to undergo tribulation again?!
He cast a mournful glance at Diluc.
Brother, walk well. This one is extraordinary.
After Liu Ruyan left, another girl walked in, wearing a school uniform.
She looked young—probably still in high school.
"Um… is this a bodyguard company?"
"Yes. These are all professional bodyguards. For just 100 yuan, you can choose one."
The girl was clearly timid. When her eyes landed on Blade, her whole body trembled.
This guy didn't look like a good person at all.
She then looked at Yunli, and her eyes lit up.
This one seemed okay—but she was a bit young. Probably couldn't solve her problem.
Just as her gaze was about to move to Ningguang, Yunli suddenly moved.
Bang!
She slammed her fist onto the desk.
The solid wooden desk instantly caved in, leaving a deep crater.
"Wow—so strong!"
"I… can I hire her?"
"Yes."
Valerius shot Yunli a glare.
That's public property damage!
But Yunli didn't care at all. She liked this girl.
Grinning happily, she followed her out.
After that, two more clients came in one after another, choosing Ningguang and Blade respectively.
In the end, only Argenti was left.
"That's impossible…"
Argenti couldn't understand it.
Where exactly did I fall short? Why is no one choosing me?
At that moment, the final client walked in.
This woman wore a single eyepatch, and her outfit was a chaotic mix of colors.
"Is this the place where those who walk the path of protection gather? Fate has guided me here… to meet the destined knight bound to my soul."
"Beautiful lady, Silvermane Argenti of the Knights of Pure Beauty greets you."
This was his last chance.
Argenti felt he had to seize it.
If no one picked him, what then?
"Knight of pure beauty?"
The woman's uncovered eye glanced at Argenti.
She sighed helplessly.
"So be it. I had hoped for a dark knight suited to my identity as a chuun—ahhem—a wielder of black magic. Still, at least you're a knight."
"Remain by the side of this Dark Mage, and I shall guide you toward corruption."
Argenti froze.
He turned his head and looked at Valerius, his eyes clearly saying one thing:
Wasn't this supposed to be a modern city world?
What is she talking about?!
Leading me toward corruption?!
That sounds terrifying!
"Cough—"
Valerius nearly lost it.
This—this was the real chūnibyō.
"Uh… Argenti is fine. He can definitely be your… um… that… dark knight."
"Look, he's wearing a black suit."
The girl nodded in agreement.
She reached out and shook Argenti's hand.
Thus, the contract was formed.
The two spoke in unison.
"May darkness endure."
"May pure beauty endure."
[Asta: What kind of nonsense is this?]
[Yanqing: Is the outside world always this scary?]
[Jing Yuan: Yanqing, watch carefully and learn well. This is a Dark Mage—very powerful.]
[Yanqing: But… but this just looks like chūnibyō…]
[Stelle: No need to doubt it. It is.]
[March 7th: No need to doubt it. It is.]
[Fischl: Hmph! A mere Dark Mage shall still kneel beneath this Prinzessin der Verurteilung!]
Fischl was enjoying herself immensely.
Too bad she hadn't been selected this time—otherwise she could've competed properly with this Dark Mage.
[Keqing: Wait… what did that dialogue even mean? I didn't understand it.]
[March 7th: I'm a chūnibyō, here to hire a bodyguard.]
[Bronya: Then… what about "leading someone toward corruption"?]
[Stelle: This kind of chūnibyō is contagious.]
[Bronya: Is that so…? I still don't really get it.]
Bronya sighed.
She felt more and more out of touch with the world—even modern speech was becoming difficult to understand.
Looks like she really needed to go out more with Valerius to broaden her horizons.
Maybe start with nicknames.
Others had "Dark Mage," "Prinzessin der Verurteilung"…
As for her—
Ice Snow—
Ice Snow—
…Never mind. Too embarrassing.
She gave up.
Meanwhile, on a bustling street.
Blade walked alongside a woman.
"You're called Blade, right? Not a bad name."
"My dad's the head of a local gang. We've got plenty of enemies. You really confident?"
"Mm."
Blade nodded.
Small-time enemies didn't concern him.
"Alright."
The woman nodded in satisfaction.
She had a feeling she'd struck gold this time. This guy looked dangerous—in a good way.
"There she is! Get her!"
Suddenly, a large group of thugs wielding machetes rushed out of a nearby alley and charged at them.
"Get behind me. I'll handle this."
Blade hadn't even officially started working yet and already had business.
Without hesitation, he grabbed the woman and flung her backward, stepping forward himself.
These thugs looked numerous, but they weren't worth his attention.
However—
They were on a busy street.
The thugs had rushed out from a narrow alley.
That sudden shove caused the woman to lose her balance.
She stumbled backward—
straight into the road.
Bang!
Blade turned his head.
All he saw was a crumpled car hood—
and the woman flying through the air.
Thud.
She hit the ground, rolled over ten meters, and stopped moving.
"…Huh?"
The charging thugs were stunned.
Was this guy… on their side?
[Player Blade's protection target has died. Mission failed.]
[You are now a free agent and will be hunted by the local gangs.]
Blade stared blankly at the woman in the distance.
The corner of his eye twitched.
The mission… failed just like that?
And now he was going to be hunted?
[Dan Heng: For some reason… I feel oddly relieved.]
[Silver Wolf: ...…]
[Kafka: ...…]
[Firefly: ...…]
[Fu Xuan: As expected of a Stellaron Hunter—killing without lifting a finger.]
[Sparkle: Amazing!]
[Sampo: 666. Just amazing.]
[Valerius: Damn it, I still wanted to play around in this world for a bit.]
Not just the others—Valerius himself was dumbfounded.
He'd planned to enjoy this world for a while.
With Blade pulling this stunt, wouldn't he get hunted too?
[Serval: Blade was recommended by Valerius. This one's on him.]
[Seele: I remember Valerius saying this woman was probably a "female lead." Now the male lead's definitely coming for Blade.]
[Topaz: Male lead plus gang—this is a straight-up wanted poster combo.]
[Lisa: Truly worthy of the Stellaron Hunter name.]
[Qingque: If you've never been wanted, can you really call yourself a Stellaron Hunter?]
[Herta: No issues there. None at all.]
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