Rufus seems to be panicking so Reiji did not hesitate anymore and immediately went outside...

'My student seems to be in trouble outside. I'm going to see what's happening...'

​​

Reiji informed Felix while dashing away.

His fellow sentient Arcana were quite worried so they decided to follow behind.

The stealth-mode shinai flew rapidly and arrived near his student almost instantly...

They were not too far from the old mansion and were brought to an alley where there's barely a passer-by.

In front of Rufus was a bloodied Ruthren being stomped by a lady...

The lady was accompanied by another man and both of them exudes a powerful Spiritual Energy. They are perhaps some Arcanists or powerful Hunters...

After all, Ruthren isn't someone who can be defeated by a normal person.

Considering the previous events, Reiji can guess that they are Renzo and Karen... The two noble Arcanists connected with this slave through their business deals.

Reiji silently appeared on Rufus's back...

'Master... You're here... These two Arcanists just attacked out of nowhere and made Ruthren like this...'

'I understand. How about their strength?'

'They should be at the level of 3rd-Class Arcanists... and both of their Arcana must be an equipment-type since I can't see any weapons on their bodies...'

Renzo and Karen are both wearing fancy clothes even though they are known as people who travel around the kingdom to hunt beasts and challenging people in duels.

At first, Reiji thought that they would be wearing thick cloaks and carrying broadswords or blades in their bodies...

'Are you still alive?' Reiji connected to Ruthren. Of course, he can tell that he's still alive since the guide didn't notify him of his death yet. He only wanted to confirm if he's still conscious and can communicate.

'Yes, Master. These two are those Arcanists I've mentioned to you---'

'I thought as much... What do they want now?'

'T-they want me to return to my previous work and steal valuable Arcana or Magic Items for them.'

Reiji wasn't surprised after hearing this...

"Hey... What are you standing there for?"

"Are you one of his lackeys? No... You're too young, perhaps an informant?"

Because Rufus did not wear his Arcanist Robe, the two didn't think too much of him as they dealt with Ruthren.

However, instead of running away, Rufus stayed behind as if he was waiting for something.

The couple seemed unforgiving as they beat his master's servant without any hesitation... This made him a bit angry as it feels like they are disrespecting his master.

Before the young man could answer, Reiji guided him on what to ask and to learn more about the two.

"Tell me your names… I'm Rufus Magnolia from the Arcanist Tower and the person you are mistreating is my servant…"

There was no point hiding his identity since they can easily know this if they spared even just a little of their time to search for him.

"Ho~ So we're on the same side. We are your seniors… I'm Renzo and she's my partner, Karen…" The man said as he walked closer to the young man.

"I see… Your father must be Baron Nicodemus Magnolia…" The beautiful lady seemed to know his family.

They just hinted that they're also Arcanists that had perhaps graduated from the Tower and know his background…

They are definitely not simple people… After staying silent, the two continued.

"It seems that you're deceived by this man to be your servant. He's a bandit with a bounty on his head. I suggest that you just move away from here and forgot what has happened. We will take care of him for you. If you also want to find a servant, we can suggest to you some outstanding people that we know…"

Renzo said amicably as if he's a kind and gentle Arcanist.

However, the fact that they have just brutally beaten up Ruthren in front of him, means that they should have a different personality from what he showing now.

"What will you do to him?"

Rufus asked as instructed by Reiji.

"Well… You don't have to know that… You just need to know that we'll take care of him. Don't ask any more questions."

Renzo's aura suddenly changed to a threatening one after Rufus remained standing instead of moving away as he told him so.

With this sudden change, Reiji decided to act…

'Alright, kid… It seems that we may be able to complete one of my requests today…'

Reiji said referring to the deal that they've made. The final mission that would make him qualify to take his Rank Up Quest is not something easy but this is a perfect opportunity.

[ Tenacity ]

[ Together with your wielder, defeat any hostile Arcanists and decrease your durability by 50% or more during the process.

The number of hostile Arcanists could not exceed three.

Current Durability: 98/200

Reward: 620 SP ]

If he started the mission now, it means that he should have less than 49 Durability once the battle ended so he can claim his rewards…

On the other hand, the reason why he didn't ask to be repaired before this, was due to his discovery that the lower his durability is, the easier it could decrease.

If he started this mission with full durability, it might take two weeks of continuous battle before he could decrease it by half.

There was no way a hostile Arcanist could last that long…

"I don't want to move away… He's my servant. I'll correct him if he did something wrong… Get out of my sight now…"

Rufus replied coldly. He wasn't intimated by Renzo presence as his master is beside him… His master was capable of injuring a second-class Arcanist! There was no way that these two can defeat them together.

"Ha! It seems that you're thinking that we'll go easy with you since we are both from the Tower… Karen, what do you think we should do with this kid?"

"He's still a noble… Just give him some lesson… He should at least realize who's in front of him…"

"Did you hear that? She doesn't like nobles like you who think that they can do anything just because of their background… So stay there and let me beat you up…" Renzo said as he pulled up his sleeves.

It showed some tattoos that Reiji found familiar…

'Try him out for now… He will go easy on you so just try to defend… If can no longer hold on, I'll Take Over.'

Seeing how Renzo was taking his time to deal with his student, he can guarantee that this man wanted to slowly torture the kid…

'I'll do my best, Master…'

Rufus took a deep breath and used a kendo stance, Chudan no Kamae…

His opponent is a third-class Arcanist and using Jodan wouldn't do well since he expected to be on the defending side…

He can finally see the man's Arcana… It was a couple of golden armbands that seemed to produce a gauntlet made out of his Spiritual Energy or Arcane Magic.

Renzo waved his hands and an energy blade came rushing to slice his body…

Bang!

He managed to defend using his shinai but the impact was stronger than he expected. He immediately stepped back to cushion the remaining force…

'He's strong… But even if he increased the strength of that strike, I can still take it… I can do this!'

Rufus encouraged himself as he decided to try attacking…

He already learned a few sword techniques from Reiji and he decided to try it. In any case, Renzo is not a weapon wielder… He should be able to defend or dodge if he's careful enough…

Bang! Bang!

They exchanged blows and Rufus realized that his opponent was not as quick as the Nightmare Lynx or possess an Arcane Magic faster than Nika's bullet…

However, as he felt some confidence, he suddenly felt pain in his stomach…

"Urgh!"

Karen actually decided to join the fight… The lady hid behind Renzo's body and sneaked an attack after getting closer!

'Tsk… I fell on such a tactic…'

His Shell Protection was activated so although he felt some pain, it wasn't enough to disable him.

The lady was using a small club… or perhaps a baton to hit Rufus… Aside from this, she also has several accessories that are emitting some magic… They are either Magic Items or another set of Arcana…

'They are going easy on you as expected… I can sense that they have stronger weapons but it seems that they don't want to use it against you…' Reiji silently informed Rufus.

He's already sensitive to the presence of Arcana perhaps due to the Mystical Energy Manipulation skill that he acquired.

As for the weapons they are hiding, it's probably too strong or perhaps some kind of illegal weapons and they can't expose it yet…

It wouldn't be that surprising considering how they are related to some local bandits.

Nevertheless, Rufus was quite lucky as he lasted for about five minutes before he was smashed on the alley wall...

As he was about to pass out, he felt his body being healed and heard his master's voice...

'Alright... That's enough...'