BROTHER!

"What do you mean, brother?! Why do I have to pair up with him for the excursion?! I can find my own party!"

'This steak is truly delicious... I wonder what kind of sauce this is...'

Bellatrix wasn't happy when her brother and I were talking with her, explaining the situation at hand. Luckily, Adam appeared to have already thought of this, as he had rented a private room at the restaurant we were currently in.

Her acting like a complete brat almost made me think that it was natural for Adam to have gray hair, I would probably have imploded because of the stress. Pinching his nose, he kept his calm as usual, although I wouldn't be too surprised if his hair suddenly started falling out.

"Bella, please just listen. I have already talked to our parents, and although they don't want to force you to receive help, you know what is going on. If you don't show your worth at Ainu, there is no telling what will happen. Just listen to what James is proposing, please? For my sake?"

The unruly child calmed down a bit, hearing her brother talk with reason and love. Still, she couldn't help crossing her arms and pout a bit, "Fine! Go on then, tell me. What are you thinking, commoner?"

Rubbing my chin with my thumb and index finger, I tried my best to vocalize the inner workings of my mind. "Well... Although the steak and the complementary sauce are truly delicious, I can't help but be a little disappointed by the potatoes... It feels like such a shame that..."

"Brother, please! Don't force me to group up with this idiot! You can't do this to me!"

She threw herself at her brother who was sitting next to her in desperation, her eyes suddenly seeming like they were on the verge of crying. "Please don't tease her so much, James. You also want this to go well, so please be a bit serious."

Shrugging my shoulders, I gave up on having a bit of fun with the brat who was tightly clinging to her brother, as if she wanted him to protect her from the weirdo in front of them.

"Fine. Let's start with this. From what your brother has told me, it seems that you don't actually have any friends, or anyone for that matter, who would want to make a party with you."

"Guh!"

It was a critical hit, as she put pressure on her hurting heart in order to not instantly fall dead, but I didn't care. "So that means you will be going solo no matter what unless you try your best and suck up to someone, which you will probably be too proud to do anyway. Based on that, it shouldn't matter much to you if we just register as a party but go our own ways."

Her head quickly turned to her brother, who quickly looked away in response, not wanting to see her narrowed eyes glaring at him, "Dearest brother..."

"Yes?"

"Why is it that it sounds like James is telling me that you won't be partying with me during the excursion?"

Turning his head back, Adam just casually explained himself, although it was clear from the drops of sweat that had started to run down his neck that he wasn't all too calm anymore. "Well, naturally it's because I won't. A big part of our house is already complaining that I've been helping you too much. If I continue to do so, they won't believe that it is your own achievement."

"But it's fine if a commoner helps me? In what galaxy is that better?!"

"Bellatrix, it's because I'm a commoner that it is fine. Is there any noble that would believe that you paid for help by a commoner?"

Intervening, I tried my best to fix this shit-show of a discussion, not wanting to waste any more time watching their little theatrical display.

Her forehead creased a bit, as she became frustrated that my logic was pretty sound. In this world, there was such a clear difference between nobles and commoners, at least commoners who didn't come from a lineage of hunters, that it would seem inconceivable.

Still, it was quite impressive that the Rue family somehow managed to keep up with what was happening with the siblings, knowing how hard Ainu was at keeping its secrets. It was probably something akin to Adam being forced to report the progress of his sister to the house.

"Fine... Tell me then. How are we supposed to party up? Don't you want to go alone like you always do? Aren't you a huge loner?" 'Ouch!'

Finally, she appeared to have accepted her fate, her beautiful face turned into a sad frown. 'Woah, wouldn't she be much more pleasant to be around if she acted like this more often?'

Putting my elbows on the table, I let my head rest on top of my hands, "It's simple. After we have registered as a party and we go out on the excursion, you will be staying somewhere safe while I go and kill monsters. That's all."

It was a simple plan, but it was a plan where I would get the chance to kill a lot of monsters without having to risk anyone discovering my secrets while at the same time making a lot of money. That was, after all, the biggest reason I accepted the deal.

400,000 USD was the amount I managed to exto... negotiate for Adam to pay me in return for me helping Bellatrix.

*Bam!*

Slamming her hands on the table, the girl got furious when she heard my excellent plan, "So you expect me to just stay away for three days?!"

I waved my hand, quickly dismissing her naïve thoughts. There was no way I was planning on her to do nothing during the entire excursion. After all, there were a lot of upsides to bringing her with me.

"No, not at all. I'll also have to sleep and rest every now and then, so you will have to keep watch during those times. So don't worry, you will be seeing me a lot during those three days. Also, someone will have to prepare food."

"BROTHEEERRRR!"

****

[Arthur's Pov]

"[Arc of Light]!" *BAM!*

The huge arc of energy I sent out created a huge explosion when it got in contact with the dummy I was practicing my Skills on.

*Thud*, "Huff...huff..."

Having poured out all the energy in my body once again, I let my body fall to the floor, trying my best to regain my breath. I had spent all my time training like a madman after the duel tournament, repeatedly tormenting my body in order to catch up to the monsters I idolized.

'It's still not enough...'

Although I was making progress at a truly rapid pace, it felt as if it was never enough. Mostly because the rate of spars that I won against Sophie had stopped increasing. As of right now, I was generally winning 3 out of 10 spars, but because the beautiful dragon also grew stronger, it never increased.

I had no intentions of just keeping up with her, I wanted to become her equal. No, I wanted to become stronger than her. Strong enough to be able to protect her if needed, although she could probably take very good care of herself.

Falling with my back to the floor, I stared up at the ceiling and let my thoughts wander for a while, knowing there was no way for me to continue training before I had recuperated.

"Still, at least I can gauge how much stronger she is..."

There was another person who I desperately wanted to catch up to as well, someone who I had no idea just how much stronger he was. From completely playing with me at the tournament to taking down a dungeon boss all by himself, James appeared to be truly above everyone else by miles.

The worst part was that it was impossible to gauge his mana signature as well, as he didn't seem to emit any mana at all. It was as if he had found a way to completely hide it from the outside world; It was as if he didn't exist.

It felt so bad that I was actually happy to see him injured, to see him unconscious, lying in the infirmary, but it was as if it confirmed that he was also an ordinary person like the rest of us, just another mortal who had his own struggles.

'Who would be happy that their friend is hurt... What a good friend I am...'

Truly pathetic, that's what it was. I was a pathetic person, and I had always been. Always making excuses for myself, like I would be strong if I wasn't born a commoner. I could have saved my family if I was born with talent.

I was tired of it! I didn't want to make excuses for myself anymore!

Standing up, I raised my sword once again, ready to free myself from the pathetic shell of my past, fully prepared to take my real first step forward. 'I can also become strong!'

"[Arc of Light]!"

*BOOM!!!*