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"Because she already has someone she's looking toward. And that person isn't you."
A man's voice came from nearby.
It sounded warm and calm, like rain falling on a bright summer day. There was a comforting gentleness in it that made people instinctively focus on the voice itself before even processing the meaning of the words.
"Not… me?"
Ais tilted her head slightly, clearly not understanding what he meant.
Still, she turned toward the direction the voice had come from.
There she saw a boy who looked about sixteen years old.
He was like sunlight itself.
Not someone merely bathed in light, but someone who seemed to radiate it naturally. Warm, restrained, and quietly brilliant.
"You've really got some nerve saying something like that."
Bete's eyes hardened.
Ais might not have understood the meaning, but most of the Loki Familia members certainly had.
What Anos meant was simple.
Bell didn't need to feel inferior or avoid meeting Ais's gaze just because the gap between them was enormous right now. Bell's true goal was far beyond Ais and the others, and her future achievements would surpass theirs.
Of course, while Anos was telling the truth, to Loki Familia it sounded like blatant provocation.
Which, in reality, it was.
"I don't particularly enjoy seeing canine animals glare at me like that. Would you mind lowering your gaze?"
Anos stepped forward and stopped in front of Bell, looking down at the slightly battered girl.
His words were clearly directed at Bete.
Yet he didn't even bother looking at him.
That only irritated Bete more.
Canine animal? I'm the only one here that fits that description. And you're talking to me without even looking at me?
That's asking for trouble.
In fact, Anos was deliberately asking for it.
Right after he spoke to Ais, he had heard the notification from the Treasure Chest System.
[Ding!]
[Congratulations: Treasure chest triggered. Chest rank: Green.]
[Unlock condition: Defeat the werewolf Bete in direct combat.]
If a fight was going to happen, and if he was going to tame this wolf, then there was no reason to be polite.
"You are…?"
Ais didn't care that Anos had ignored Bete.
Instead, she was focused on something else.
There was a strange aura about him that caught her attention.
"Anos Kanzaki, Captain of the Hestia Familia, It's a pleasure to meet all of you."
"It seems my Bell received a little help from you earlier, so I'd like to express my thanks."
"As for how I'll thank you, you'll probably see it tomorrow."
Anos spoke with an easy smile.
His gratitude would come in the form of reducing Loki Familia's map commission by five percentage points on their next purchase.
Even a small percentage meant millions of valis when dealing with a Familia of Loki Familia's scale.
After all, Ais had saved Bell earlier, That was a genuine favor.
Anos certainly didn't want to come back one day and find Bell's corpse lying somewhere. At that point, even using a Devil's reincarnation piece might not bring her back.
"A thank-you?"
Ais tilted her head again.
A few seconds later, she finally realized he was referring to Bell.
"Yes, Thank you for saving her, Bell still has a lot of growing to do. She has incredible potential, but that also means she could easily fall before reaching it."
"Today… I failed to supervise her properly and allowed her to enter the Dungeon alone."
Anos raised his hand and cast a cleansing spell.
The magic circle passed over Bell's body, instantly washing away the mud and grime covering her.
He preferred his rabbit white.
Hearing Anos's words, Bell lowered her head again.
It was true that she wanted to help him.
Her feelings were sincere and admirable. That sense of admiration was part of what drove her forward.
But the truth was simple.
If she just followed the path Anos had laid out for her and continued chasing him as her goal, she would inevitably become a powerful adventurer.
"That's… magic."
Finn the Brave stared at Anos intently.
Anyone capable of using magic was far from an ordinary adventurer.
Then again, if he was someone chosen by the goddess Hestia, how could he possibly be ordinary?
"Oh…"
Ais's eyes widened slightly as she watched him.
From Anos's magic, she could sense the power of wind.
Wind was an element that resonated deeply with her.
Anos, however, didn't care that he had used magic openly in the middle of the Guild hall.
His Familia needed to grow.
He couldn't let others think Hestia Familia was easy to bully.
"Bell, strong adventurers don't prove their strength by mocking the weak. Do you understand? So there's no need to take words like that to heart."
Anos gently placed his hand on Bell's head.
The moment his hand touched her, Bell visibly trembled for a split second before forcing herself to calm down.
"Strong adventurers… don't prove themselves by belittling the weak…"
Ais repeated the sentence quietly.
A few seconds later, everyone's gaze shifted toward Bete.
Even someone as airheaded as Ais understood who Anos was referring to.
"Hey, You… were talking about me, weren't you?"
Bete's eyes flashed with a savage light, like a real wolf ready to attack.
"Whoever thinks it applies to them first is probably the one I meant."
Anos answered with a relaxed smile.
"You—!"
Bete nearly lunged forward.
Tione grabbed him quickly and held him back before he could move.
"It seems this gentleman believes I was referring to him," Anos said with a calm smile.
"If that's what you think, I won't argue. And if you feel offended by my words, that's fine too."
"Either way, I have no intention of apologizing."
"After all, you haven't apologized to my Bell yet."
As Anos spoke, Bete's fur slowly began to stand on end.
"You've really got a big mouth, bastard!"
At this point he was no longer just Bete the werewolf.
He was the Savage Wolf.
Just like Ais was known as the Sword Princess, his title was the Savage Wolf.
"Want me to take my words back? Then make me submit."
"That applies to you as well, Mr. Bete."
Up to this point, everything Bete had done matched Anos's predictions perfectly.
"I don't know how someone might make Mr. Bete submit," Anos continued casually. "But the way to make me submit is very simple."
"Just defeat me."
He bent down and pulled a dagger from Bell's waist.
A beginner's dagger.
It was practically the cheapest blade available in any shop.
It seemed Bell had been supporting him in every way she could.
Unfortunately, if she tried to repay their debts like this, it would take forever.
Anos casually spun the dagger between his fingers and looked at Bete with a faintly mocking smile.
That was exactly what he wanted.
To push him past the edge.
A green chest was still a chest. It was worth claiming.
Besides, he wanted to establish a proper relationship with Loki Familia.
The best place to hide something was often in plain sight. If he interacted with Loki Familia frequently, they would never suspect that he was the one secretly supplying their maps.
And more importantly, someone from his side had been insulted.
Doing nothing about it wasn't his style.
After hearing Anos's challenge, Tione finally released Bete.
The captain of Hestia Familia had already taken things this far. There was nothing more she could say.
If she kept holding Bete back, she would only be damaging her own relationship with her Familia.
She had no reason to go that far for someone she had only met today.
It was the correct decision.
Freed from her grip, Bete ignored Tione completely and strode straight toward Anos.
"You realize what you just said, right? I can treat that as a challenge, can't I?"
Every hair on Bete's body stood on end.
From his perspective, he had only spoken a simple truth.
Why was this guy acting like he was some kind of villain?
Ever since Anos showed up, every single word seemed aimed directly at him.
And while that was absolutely the case, the result was clear.
Anos remained perfectly calm.
Meanwhile, Bete had reached the point where he wouldn't feel satisfied unless he beat the man senseless.
"That's fine," Anos replied with a smile. "Consider it my challenge."
The calmer he looked, the more furious Bete became.
"Then I won't hold back!"
Bete drew his greatsword and pointed it straight at Anos.
If they weren't standing inside the Adventurers Guild, he would have already attacked.
Fortunately, he still had just enough sense left to know this wasn't the place.
"Mr. Anos… are you really planning to fight with that?"
Eina asked nervously.
She was curious to see what this so-called "prophet" could really do.
But fighting Bete with that tiny dagger seemed a bit… excessive.
"I have some standard Guild weapons available if you'd prefer," she offered sincerely.
"No."
Anos smiled faintly.
"This will be more than enough."
Against an opponent like this, someone who didn't even qualify to make him fight seriously, what more did he need?
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