"The knights are on us."

"What should we do now?! This place…!" One of the underlings stopped while talking with the dealer. Though they were all criminals, it wasn't like they hadn't devoted themselves to build this place.

Even if it was a business that robbed citizens…

"Tell everyone to pack up."

"But-" The thug was interrupted by the dealer slapping his hand onto his shoulder intimidatingly.

"Take what you can. It's best to cut the tail if it holds you back." The moustache-twirler spoke.

"Who said any of you is going ANYWHERE?" The loud voice of the frontline warrior hit their ears.

While the rest protected Vhalen, Knight Arthur rocketed forward and clashed swords with them.

He held his shield forward while surrounded by Pirates. Most of them having really good abilities.

Their job specialised in combat, after all.

All of them twirled their curved blades while taking advantage of the fact that he'd charged in alone.

Their coordination was impeccable.

However, the was a reason why the Head Knight was entrusted with the protection of Prince Vhalen.

Because they all seemed to have at least one Spell Slot each, Arthur chose to conserve his powers.

If he used up all his Spells, then his Skills would be restricted too. Thus, he attacked using his tactics.

He called it his personal brand of a 'Paladin Style'.

His enchanted shield held forward, while his Rainwing Backsword was held behind his back.

He converted his energy into Light Mana, then used Radiant Swordsmanship to draw with a blade.

The cutting edge left blade marks on the air, which kept on detonating at second strokes of the sword.

Air slashes kept them on their toes.

It was a careful style that depended on his instincts. Not giving them room to gang up.

Those who came from the front blocked by his shield, those at back unable to grasp his swordsmanship, and those trying to encircle him weren't able to catch up with his crazy footwork.

'What am I watching…?' The dealer wasn't able to understand how this fighting style was working.

Usually, to figure against multiple opponents, it was common sense to drag them into a narrow space.

That way, one could attempt to fight one at a time.

But Arthur did the exact opposite!

He ran straight into them with his shield and constantly ruined their coordination with force.

The knight had the physical prowess and durability to keep on going head to head with his underlings.

Pushing them off their balance with his shield and hitting them with a strange slash here and there.

The dealer was in awe…

Unable to speak as Arthur froze some of their feet with a Water Draw and pushed with a Wind Draw.

It was the most ridiculous style he'd ever seen…!

But the moustache-twirler couldn't allow the knights to round up the Pirates he was protecting.

He summoned his own Spirit Essence to fight!

A clanging sound could be heard as Arthur was blocked by a shield made of solid spiritual energy.

He immediately knew what Class his opponent was. The realisation made him cuss at himself.

'Sentinel…' Arthur thought. This was a Rare Class like Vhalen's that used a shield to protect others.

But now, this Spirit Essence was used to protect criminals and thugs. Giving them time to escape.

"Get out of the way!" The knight with a mission roared violently, but he was being kept in check.

Unlike him, his opponent had the comprehensive knowledge of Shieldmanship and Protective Skills.

Allowing him to both attack and defend with it.

The dealer wasn't suitable for winning one-on-one fights against, but they didn't need to 'win' anyway.

Their goal was to run away with a lot of money.

While Arthur was being held up by the Sentinel, the thugs were putting money into sacks around him.

They were getting ready to bolt out of there.

'Damn it!' The knight hit the shield with all kinds of Elemental Draws, but was unable to break through.

It was at that moment another person stepped in.

"I'll handle him for you. Get those other guys." Alex spoke while holding his metal bat on his shoulder.

NAC NAC was already ready to swing!

Like a baseball batter about to hit a home-run, he swung his NAC NAC Metal Bat with great form.

Pulling it into the air before dropping it into a curved angle. Throwing his entire body weight.

The moustache-twirler found this to be useless.

There was no such thing as an attack that could break through his defences. He was really strong.

Thus, the Sentinel got ready to intercept Arthur…

…but he underestimated Alex.

The Arcanist breathed in the powers of external magical force, then awakened his 'Divine Weapon'.

His bat made of Absolute Resistant Damascus Steel responded to him. Awakening a certain Mana.

One that was able to easy cause him to reel.

A crashing sound was heard.

The Sentinel found his arms in pain. He found that the damage was piercing through his defences.

'Metal Attribute!' As an experienced veteran, he was able to perceive what power was being used.

This was truly a rare sight for him.

But he didn't have time to think about that.

The Attribute of steel arms was an incredibly useful weapon in close-combat. It was made for battle.

Unlike the five elements, 'Metal' was able to pierce through defences and was resistant to all natures.

Thus, his defensiveness became a great weakness.

Alex was specialised in breaking through the most solid defences. He swung his bat again and again.

Kept on whittling away at his physical health…

The moustache-twirler knew his arms wouldn't be able to hold out, but he had his own counter tactic.

His shield slightly tilted with each hit…

This was most commonly known as a 'Shield Parry'.

Using the tactics he'd seen used by Arthur, he wove through the crowd and blocked the knight.

Stopping him from interfering with his underlings.

Alex was unable to keep up with him.

As someone who hadn't yet fully awakened his Class, catching up wasn't his greatest strength.

The criminals were about to get away…!

All hopes of rounding them up was lost, all until one person made his way right through the crowd.

"Let me support you." Prince Vhalen caught up with Alex and grabbed him by the shoulder.

Using reinforced speed distract the Sentinel.

"Hey, you better surrender quietly." He spoke to the moustache-twirler, who widened his eyes at the sight of Alex having been brought close. A bat had made its way behind him slammed into his spine.

"Agh!" The dealer groaned in pain.

Arthur immediately took this opportunity to double-team the Sentinel, ganging up on him.

"Sir!" The underlings were furious when they saw the moustache-twirler being pushed back by him.

But the other knights wouldn't let them barge in.

Things were looking dire for the Sentinel, until a dark figure had crept in without them knowing.

Like a ninja under the cover of the shadows…

She descended down from the ceiling and attacked Prince Vhalen with her blades, which narrowly missed him. Cold sweat ran down the short figure's face, and he continued to dodge the dagger cuts.

"Your Highness…!" Arthur was immediately distracted, which was when it became a free for all.

The entire casino became a downright mess.

Pirates were flying everywhere, and knights got injured trying to rejoin their liege in dire combat.

"Don't worry! Just focus on that guy!" Vhalen knew his presence could bring everyone else down.

But he wasn't so easily turned into a burden.

Fear was having a hard time using her black daggers to touch him. He was way too fast for her!

Her two hands were consistently following each other to simultaneously attack the Prince to knock him out, but he was untouchable. Able to dodge a hair distance away from where she was swinging.

The Sentinel decided to bring her into the fray.

He used her to make it so Adam had to pick between two targets, which made things difficult.

After all, Alex wasn't an experienced fighter.

He was still a magic user at heart, which made his fighting style a lot more clumsily put together.

The Arcanist swung his bat chaotically.

'There!' The Sentinel immediately spotted an opportunity and parried the attack in a certain way.

Driving it to hit Arthur.

A loud bang momentarily threw him off his feet for a moment, which signalled the tables being turned.

If only Arthur respected the rules more…

"Sorry!"

"No prob!" The stubborn Head Knight responded while continuing to pressure the moustache-twirler.

There seemed to be a balance between the two.

Although Alex was clumsy, he was hard hitting, and Arthur drove to make their synergy flow like water.

It was thanks to single-mindedness and focus.

Every time he was accidentally hit by his best friend, he sucked it up and continued the fight.

This made an unpredictable duo.

One acted as the heavy hitter, while the other tanked blows and made cooperation possible.

'Damn!' In the moment he thought was an opportunity to retaliate, the man was countered.

The Sentinel found himself in great pain from having been hit from both sides of his body.

Arthur's sword was switched to non-lethal uses.

His blade cut away at his opponent's stamina bit by bit. This made each solid slash shake his pathways.

And Alex did the exact opposite of that.

His sword tenderised the meat of the opponent with each hit. This caused for a final takedown.

And Arthur delivered the finishing blow.

He switched to the Water Draw and activated his Spell Slot, which brought force a true Sword Spell:

'Sword Spell- Nature Imbue: Frostbite Splash!'

His sapphire glowing sword created an frosty sculpture after encasing the Sentinel with ice.

Only the head wasn't covered in his Water Mana.

The Sentinel was knocked out, which allowed them to turn and focus on the person who was left.

Unfortunately, Fear cut her losses.

She immediately escaped the moment it seemed like things wouldn't go her way, and left in a hurry.

The incident finally ended…

It was a difficult scuffle, but Arthur and Alex managed to capture the criminals personally.

They would be judged fairly by the law…

"Now that was a bother." The Arcanist wiped his sweat while holding back from laying on the floor.

The fatigue was overcoming him.

"That's how it always is." Arthur pointed this out.

"I don't know how you do this."

"You get used to it."

"Anyway…" Alex shifted his gaze to Prince Vhalen at the side, who was resting after the crime resolved.

The enchanter continued firmly: "She went after him. I'm sure that ambush wasn't a coincidence."

"Then what should I do?"

"Don't you know that yourself?" Alex stopped him from talking further. Resting himself after the fight.

It was his first time doing a raid with them…

Knight Arthur considered his friend's words and decided to spread his troops to look for the girl.

Her mask and outfit were definitely eye-catching.

From afar, Fear watched the troops capture those who had been entrusted to her by a certain man.

…She clicked her tongue.

'Not good…' The masked girl wouldn't be able to explain how she lost this place to her employer.

Although she was capable of dealing with the aftermath, there was something she thought of.

'That guy needs to go.' Fear regretted selling a ticket to Alex. His presence was too annoying.

Too observant. Too good at filling in the weakness of the Head Knight. She needed to separate them.

Then kidnapping Prince Vhalen would be easier.

As for her true target in question, the handsome shorty was too fast for her to catch on her own.

Thus, it was better if she got Lily to help her.

The masked girl returned to the Tartarus airship and decided that it was the best time to get help.

There was only one person who could steal the ticket away from Alex without getting caught.

Fear entered their personal room of the ship…