There was no way he would forget this aura…

Although it is not as strong as the one he previously felt before, it definitely came from the same source, the Cursed Mask Arcana…

​​

'Odette said that it requires some blood to regain its strength… Was it attracted here? So, it wasn't just any blood but human blood, huh…'

After realizing this, he thought about warning Rufus but he seemed to be too focused on his fight against this group of hooligans.

Haa!

Rufus just executed a Maki Waza as he successfully disarmed one of his opponents!

The young man is really showing off in front of his master…

His opponents received several cuts and bruises on their bodies as Rufus still uses the back of his sword…

However, the power of his strikes wasn't lessened as each of his sword swings was filled with his Spiritual Energy…

"You! Who are you?!" The leader shouted after the sixth man in his group dropped to the ground…

Kevin backed away as he acknowledged that the young man was too hard to deal with… He heard the commotion made by Yapzor and Ovin but he thought that they were dealing with a lot of people and would return here once they finished them…

However, it appears that they were already defeated by this young man!

Rufus took a deep breath before answering…

"It doesn't matter who I am… I want to destroy all of you here… Come!"

His arrogant words infuriated Kevin… No one dared to disrespect him for quite a while now…

"Hey! Don't you know our group?!"

He then showed the red scythe mark at the back of his hand.

Of course, Rufus has no idea about this mark but he can guess that they are some kind of criminal organization.

"We're from the Crimson Reapers! Even if you defeat us now, you won't get away from the thousand members of our group… If you kneel down now and ask for our mercy, we may consider letting you off with just cutting one of your limbs…"

Kevin arrogantly said as he secretly signaled the members of his gang that was hiding not too far from them to ready their Magic Items…

The kid is really good at close combat…

They were too close to him when he appeared so the others with long-range weapons weren't able to help or they might accidentally hit their allies.

"That's too bad… I don't have plans doing that…"

Rufus smirked as he charged towards the enemy.

He's not aware that some others are readying their Magic Weapons, but he knows that the man talking was just buying some time to do something…

He wouldn't just let them do as they please since he's already outnumbered…

Too much advantage for them might be the cause of his defeat and he doesn't want his master to see that.

"Now!"

Kevin shouted as his five remaining gang members jump away with him…

Bam! Bam! Bam!

Rufus was hit by three Arcane Magic!

"Hahaha! Take that!" Kevin celebrated after seeing the successful strikes of his subordinates…

The Arcane Magic used was similar to the ones they used against the five targets a while ago… They are Wind Hail, Fire Strike, and Arcane Tempest!

Because the skills hit the young man at the same time, it created some smoke in his surroundings…

They are expecting that the man was already heavily injured but to their surprise, they saw a glint of light coming from inside the smoke…

Whoosh! Whoosh!

A couple of sword strike was made as the surroundings cleared up… They can see that the man wasn't harmed in any way!

"You--! No way! Are you an Arcanist?!"

Kevin suddenly had an idea… Although high-ranking Hunters can accomplish similarly to what he did, the young man's aura is very distinct… Aside from that, they are not familiar with the sword made of smoke floating around him…

They can only guess that it is the power of the kid's Arcana.

Fighting an Arcanist is not their job. Kevin wanted to escape the place as soon as possible but they are being blocked…

"Fine! We will leave! Here's our money!"

Kevin threw a bag of silver and copper coins near to Rufus… It was as if the young man is extorting them…

Haha…

Rufus couldn't help but chuckle at his desperate actions… He wanted to finish them off using mainly his kendo skills but their sudden usage of Magic Items to attack him had him no choice and use one of his tricks…

"I don't need your money… Come on! I need you guys to fight me…"

Rufus taunted the remaining members of the Crimson Reaper as they decided to charge at him all at once…

The Shinai realized that his student seems to be enjoying the battle… Anyway, the Cursed Mask seems to be weakened like what Odette said to him.

It would perhaps act once they left the place so he no longer bothered… Since the Mask is an intelligent being, it would certainly realize that Rufus can be a threat to it…

'I wonder if it's not noticing me…'

Since the Mask is weakened, Reiji could somehow feel that his Traceless and Stealth Ability is deceiving the Cursed Mask.

Aside from that, the Mask is also not aware that Rufus is his current wielder since it didn't see them together in the Tower.

Nevertheless, Reiji didn't dare to forget the existence of the Cursed Arcana during Rufus' battle… His Arcane Sensitivity remained active throughout the whole duration of the fight…

Thud!

The last man, the leader of the Crimson Reapers, was finally defeated as he collapsed to the ground filled with injuries…

A few of them would most likely die if they didn't receive any medical attention in a while.

"Haa~ Haa~ Master, How was it?"

'Use your Sense Link, Rufus… Someone's watching us…'

'Ohh… I'm sorry, Master…'

'It's fine. Bring me closer to the five…'

'Yes…'

Although the young man is really tired, he still moved his feet and got closer to Ruthren and the others.

[ Heal and Rejuvenation Lv 1 ]

Reiji used the skill to fully heal the five and only spent a total of 20 SP for it. Since he has a thousand SP, he didn't mind bringing them back to full health as he might help them remove their hidden or perhaps past injuries just like what happened to Diether.

Cough! Cough!

Ruthren coughed out some blood before standing perfectly fine like he wasn't previously stabbed by a blade.

It was similar to the four ladies as they stretched their bodies after receiving Reiji's assistance…

Just like the name of the skill, it wasn't just healing their injuries but has a rejuvenation effect that is why they feel so refreshed at the moment.

'Alright, let's move away from here…'

Reiji is planning to fake their way out and secretly wait for the Cursed Mask to appear so he can capture it…

However, as timing would have it, Odette contacted him…

'Yo~ Reiji~ We already found a place to stay… We will be staying at the finest Mansion near the eastern gate… Yui actually found one of her relatives here… Isn't that amazing?'

Reiji smiled wryly after hearing this Sentient Arcana… Anyway, he still felt that it was unfair that she could just contact him anytime she wants as long as he's within her range…

'I can't even detect the tracker she placed on me…' The shinai grumbled after recalling what she said before.

Nevertheless, he didn't forget to inform her about the Cursed Mask's whereabouts…

He told her about the place and the name of the alley.

'Really! You're really efficient? Did you look for it non-stop after I told you about it? Aren't you so kind? We're already going there… Wait for us!'

'No, it's just a coincidence… Anyway, hurry up. The patrolling guards should be in here in a few minutes… Once they arrived, the Cursed Mask might leave as well…'

'Alright! We're almost there!'

Odette hastily said. It seems that Yui is indeed hurrying…

'The five of you… Go to the nearest restaurant or something… You guys need to eat first, we still have something to do here…'

'We understand, Master…'

They didn't ask any questions as they move immediately…

Rufus and Reiji, on the other hand, waited and secretly observed the collapsed Crimson Reapers… Although Rufus can feel the aura of the Cursed Mask… It seems to be hiding in the sewers and it's very difficult to capture it unless it went out to the surface.

Clak! Clak!

The two suddenly heard the sound of wooden sandals touching the ground beside them…

It is Yui Sakura who appeared out of thin air… She's wearing a luxurious robe meant for a noble and a simple wand on her right hand…

"Where is it?" The beautiful lady asked after descending…

"S-senior Yui?"

Rufus stuttered after seeing the stunning appearance of the lady in front of him. He wasn't expecting her in the first place!

His master didn't tell him anything about her!