Displaying Part of His Power

The clones of the man surrounded them. Sebastian and Ainslie looked around carefully. They had trouble dealing with the man alone, if there were several of him on the same caliber, Sebastian and Ainslie could no longer hold back.

After a few seconds of waiting, the clones attacked first. Two of the clones ran at Sebastian while another two ran at Ainslie. They had their swords drawn and swung them in complete synchronization.

Ainslie gathered the lightning around her and struck the clone to her left before intercepting the right with her daggers. They exchanged attacks a few times but she had noticed something different—they were weaker than the man that she and Sebastian had fought.

Sebastian must have noticed the same as he had also become more aggressive in battle. While more of the clones joined the battle, the remaining ones continuously created more and more clones.

The ones who had been killed by Ainslie and Sebastian turned into dust and disappeared.

The stalemate continued until there were finally too many clones for Ainslie to handle alone. Sebastian quickly noticed it and pulled her towards him. He hugged her by the neck and made her crouch.

"Get down!"

Right after he spoke, he swung his arm and created a circular blade of flame. It sliced through all of the clones and made the original person crash into the wall after getting his arms charred.

"Ack…"

"So… are you going to do any other tricks?"

With Ainslie still in his embrace, Sebastian pointed his spear at the man. While he would've let her stand by herself, he could see that her hand was reaching its limit. With a handicap like that, someone might attack her and she might not be able to react in time.

In the first place, Sebastian had gone to this place for reconnaissance and not a battle, that was why he chose to bring Ainslie.

Sebastian put his mouth closer to Ainslie's ear and whispered, "I'll send you back first."

Ainslie bit her lip but knowing that she was only going to become a burden if she stayed, she begrudgingly nodded.

Sebastian raised his hand and made the fire brighter than the man could take so he closed his eyes. Ainslie was also unable to keep her eyes open but she kept her calm. Sebastian opened the portal and carefully let her inside before closing it behind her.

"..."

The man frowned once the fire's light subsided. Even though the fire was loud, it wasn't as if he had become deaf. He would've been able to hear if she had left through the door or the windows, but there was nothing, not even a footstep. Though he had confidence in his ears, wasn't it strange?

He could hear them talk—but that was all he could tell.

The woman with his target had disappeared without a trace, and on top of that, his opponent's abilities were strange. While Inheritors varied when it came to fighting, most of them would focus only close or long-range, rarely did they ever excel in both.

From what he could see, his opponent was using fire, and those who used fire typically fought from afar. But, his close combat skills surpassed even his that was in the upper ranks of his organization.

'Tch… I have to leave and meet up with everyone.'

Perhaps sensing his intention to leave, Sebastian threw his spear at the wall right next to the man. With Sebastian's strength, it could've pierced through the wall and then some, but he held back as to only lodge the spearhead inside the wooden wall.

At some point, Sebastian had a sword in his hands. It didn't look very heavy, and neither did it look like it was made of some sort of special material. However, the man could feel it. Intense pressure emitting from Sebastian as soon as he wielded that sword.

'He's going to kill me!'

The man was certain. As someone in this field, he had plenty of experience with killing intent. He could never be mistaken.

Since he realized that, he no longer had any reserves. He swung his arms forward and released several clones but it looked like they were also damaged like him. Other than a few seconds, they couldn't buy him more time.

After that, he leaped upward and grabbed some wooden supports at the ceiling. Though his arms were charred, he bore with the pain and planned to escape from the open window. If he had tried to run out of the door, then he would've been caught for certain.

However, just as he got up to the next floor, he saw Sebastian's spear pointed at his face.

Having been outmatched at everything, he accepted his defeat. However, at the very least, he wanted to know. Glancing behind him, he could see that his clones were already gone, and judging from the unchanged scenery, they didn't put up even a tiny little bit of resistance.

"Why do you hide your power?"

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"Heh. I don't know how you managed to do it, but you're not an Adept, are you? On top of that, you aren't just a normal Caster, if you give it your all, you may even contend with a Magus. With your abilities, there's no way for the Sages not to take notice of you."

Sebastian narrowed his eyes.

"And pray tell, how did you manage to figure that out?"

"I have quite the discerning eye. I knew about the girl's injury the moment I stepped into the room, and I thought I knew your level too. But, those final exchanges told me what I need to know."

The man chuckled and finished climbing, then he sat down.

"At the very least, cut me down with my honor intact."

Meaning that he wouldn't say anything. Sebastian had met this type of person several times in the past, and none of them gave in to torture or coercion. They had nothing to lose, only living for the thrill of battle, or to do horrors that normal citizens can't imagine.

Having understood that, Sebastian didn't hesitate, he swung his spear and cut the man's throat open, rather than kill him instantly.

"Then, allow me to at least get some revenge for hurting my cute disciple."

While Sebastian didn't look at the man's expression after he cut him down, somehow, he could tell that it was a smile.

…

Sebastian left the warehouse with a bitter taste in his mouth. While he did manage to find one of their weapon caches, it wouldn't do much to impede them.

He had given the guards an anonymous tip and headed straight back home. After picking up Ainslie, he teleported once more.

"Doctor."

"Nurse."

"...Nurse Nightingale, could you take a look at her?"

Currently, Sebastian was in Florence Nightingale's home. He had done this several times before—after receiving permission from Nightingale herself. Although Sebastian had all the money he could need, they were people who lived in secrecy.

Hospitals and clinics took note of the names of their patients and their origins. Because of that, few in their trade visited hospitals open to the public. Instead, they went to small clinics dedicated to assassins and those who did their business during the night.

Nightingale was one of the few people Sebastian trusted with his identity.

"It's just overuse. Her arm won't be a problem if she just rests for a while, if it hurts, have her take this."

Nightingale took a small pouch from a drawer and handed it to Sebastian. While she would have handed it to Ainslie herself, she hated having her patients do anything.

"So, why did you come here in the middle of the night just to have her checked out? Were you that worried about your new girlfriend?"

Sebastian sighed, and Ainslie blinked a few times before becoming flushed.

"She's my disciple, if anything happens to her, then it'd be my fault for neglecting her."

"Have fun explaining that to Lady Luna."

"..."

Sebastian fell silent. Only after a moment's hesitation did he begin to speak again.

"How is she doing these days?"

"Even if we don't count her mental state, it's still very bad. Overwork, fatigue, stress, she's a mess."

—And that's still excluding her mental state.

Nightingale followed up and began to wrap Ainslie's hands with a soft cloth to make a makeshift cast.

"Get her a real cast at the hospital tomorrow, knowing your work, she's going to have to use her arm sometimes."

Meaning that Nightingale didn't want Ainslie to move her arm until it was fully healed.

Then, she took a salve from the drawers and began rubbing it on a few scratches on Ainslie's skin.

"Raise your top."

"..."

Ainslie exchanged glances with Sebastian and once he turned around, she raised it. Other than a few scratches, she seemed fine.

"Seriously… Coming for something this minor, how worried were you?"

Typically, Sebastian only visited Nightingale when he had injuries that would've drawn great suspicion at the hospital. But now, he visited her not for himself, but for a girl he brought, and she only had scratches at that.

"Would you like me to give Lady Luna a hint?"

"About what exactly…?"

Sebastian gave an exasperated sigh.

"You never know. She might become less obsessed with finding you if she were to find out you've gotten yourself another woman."

"...Is her condition that bad?"

While Nightingale did enjoy teasing Sebastian, there was another reason she was saying those things.

"Honestly, her body is like a stuffed animal that's been fixed using patches of different cloth—with bad handiwork at that."

It's only a matter of time until she breaks again, she added.

"All done."

Nightingale put the medicine and other tools she took out inside the drawer then turned away from Ainslie.

"Also, your father wanted to see you."

"...?"

"He's hired me to take periodic checkups of your mother and little brother. And, somehow, he was able to tell that you've also come into contact with me and asked me to tell you to meet him."

His father was also quite the frightening person, to be so astute in the face of uncertainty.