Chapter 12: Winds of Change

"U-um, excuse me, sir…."

The receptionist instantly shot out of her seat, hoping to mediate between the two before the situation deteriorated further. Although occurrences such as these weren't uncommon, she truly didn't want to see Aziel's stunning face all bruised and battered.

However, the large man seemed personally invested, unwilling to back down at this point. He waltzed over, sizing up Aziel from head to toe, showing blatant disrespect.

"Look at you, already scared stiff…? I thought you might be something special—turns out you're just a worthless wretch."

The other adventurers in the building went silent, carefully listening in as they watched on in anticipation. There was no sign of anyone stepping forward, showcasing their lack of intent to intervene.

Turning his gaze toward the ceiling, Aziel tapped his index finger on the receptionist's desk as if deep in thought. Bolstered by his unresponsive demeanor, the large man moved in even closer, arrogance oozing from his every word.

"You're quite tall for a little shit, I guess that's why you still smell of breast milk—GUAK?!"

Eyes bulging out of their sockets, his words were swiftly cut short as the impact of Aziel's knuckles striking his throat forced him to stagger backwards, clutching his neck with a panicked expression. He flailed about, coughing violently while just barely managing to keep himself upright.

The spectating adventurers all let out sharp gasps, witnessing the large man's face turn pale. Afterall, he was a black rank adventurer, this obviously wasn't meant to happen.

"You must've thought you were speaking to some random fuck, huh. It seems you don't like breathing or something."

Aziel suddenly voiced, his subdued tone drawing the attention of those who watched.

Hands tucked into his pockets, he sauntered toward the large man, who was otherwise trying his best to keep him at a distance. Fear crept into the man's gaze upon feeling the overbearing presence drawing near.

"What happened…? You were talking good shit, but I don't hear it now. Keep talking reckless; so I can break your damn neck."

*BAH!*

"KUGH!"

The tip of Aziel's shoe smashed against the man's chin as a sharp vertical kick connected, snapping his head upward. A spray of blood shot out from his nose in conjunction with the subtle sound of bones cracking, undoubtedly originating from his jaw.

"I can't even mind my own goddamn business anymore, can I? Don't look up, look at me, bitch."

Grabbing the man's head, Aziel slammed it against his knee, breaking his nose as he caused him to rebound in the opposite direction. Stumbling to one knee, the man's miserable state was revealed to all, prompting a shiver to run down their spine.

Gasping for air, both of his eyes were nearly swollen shut, not mentioning the mangled nose deeply sunken into his face. His fractured jaw trembled as blood dripped down, staining the guild hall's floors a deep red.

Before anyone could react, Aziel was already in front of the man, looking down on him with clear disdain. Reaching out, he grabbed the large man by the nape of his neck, yanking him up like a misbehaving dog.

"Since you don't know what hell looks like, I'll show you."

Aziel's soothing voice reached the man's ears, sounding nothing like an individual threatening to murder him.

The onlookers could only stare in wide eyed horror as they watched Aziel reel his arm back, no doubt preparing to pulverize the large man's face.

"What exactly is going on here…?"

However, just before he could attack, a rough but authoritative voice rang out, causing everyone, with the exception of Aziel, to momentarily halt their breathing.

Slowly, they all turned, catching a glimpse of the man who exuded such an imposing aura. Balse Laputa, the guild master of the Heiligh Kingdom capital's adventurer's guild. He was an older man with shrewd eyes, a long beard, and bulging muscles. It was said that a mere mention of his name could bring down floating castles.

Balse's gaze then drifted toward Aziel, immediately discerning the gist of the situation.

"And who might this young man be?"

Without taking his eyes off him, Balse asked, directing his question toward the receptionist standing at his side.

"W-well, I haven't had a chance to ask his name…"

"I see."

Contemplating for a moment, he flashed a mirthful smile.

"Why don't you drop that poor lad and come have a chat with me. I think he's got the message."

Despite his initial reaction, his tone was stern as he looked at Aziel, who still hadn't let go off the adventurer's neck.

Although squabbles within the guild weren't rare, it was an unsaid rule to never critically injure another adventurer on city grounds.

Those present all stared at Aziel, waiting for him to comply. After all, it wasn't impossible for him to be blacklisted from the entire adventurer's guild association if he took things too far.

Glancing out of the corners of his eyes, Aziel met Balse's gaze. He had already considered his options, gauging the consequences even before he took action.

"You think so…?"

Tilting his head, he looked at Balse for confirmation, to which the guild master smirked humorously.

Seeing this entire interaction, the guild hall gradually broke out in loud chatter, questioning the appearance of this newcomer who dared to speak so directly with the guild master.

However, Aziel's next actions made everyone fall silent once more.

*CRAAaaaAAAaaSsshh!*

Nearly jumping out of their seats, they watched the large man get tossed through a table, covering him in whatever food or beverage that occupied it previously.

Averting their gazes away from his awful state, they couldn't help but pity him.

Balse's eyes twitched. Sighing, he gave the receptionist a glance, before turning around and walking to the back. Noticing this, she gulped inaudibly, nodding her head as she briskly made her way toward Aziel.

People like him were difficult to deal with. Not only was he strong, but he was also willful. An unknown individual like him who wasn't even a registered adventurer was too dangerous to let walk around.

"Uh-uhm, please come with me…"

Arriving at Aziel's side, she whispered timidly, gesturing to follow her to the back room.

"Lead the way…"

His compliance elicited a sigh of relief from her, bringing forth the realization that he wasn't exactly crazy.

Leaving behind the agitated adventurers, they both walked ahead, neither Balse nor the receptionist perceiving Aziel's intentions.

******

In a medium sized room, two people sat facing each other in complete silence, a rectangular coffee table separating them as they reclined on two different couches.

Sitting with his arms crossed, Balse stared at the young man in front of him, a crafty glint could be seen in his aged eyes. Despite his slightly guileful demeanor, a spirited grin still nonetheless persisted on his face.

Yet, a bead of sweat unknowingly slid down his forehead. Grabbing a handkerchief, he wiped it away with a hint of intrigue.

The cause of this scene was naturally the young man sitting across from him, his pale golden eyes threatening to pierce through him.

Aziel sat with one leg over the other, resting his elbow on the arm of the couch as he kept his head propped up against his fist. Feeling the brunt of his suffocating presence, Balse couldn't help but feel as though he were being eyed by a predator.

It was a sort of foreboding one would expect when faced with something vastly superior to themselves.

Clearing his throat, Balse decided to speak first, implicitly admitting that he lost this round.

"Did you know? That lad you nearly killed back there was a black rank adventurer."

His tone immediately turned solemn, shifting into a serious demeanor. Though what would've normally intimidated most adventurers didn't engender a reaction from Aziel.

"You're saying this like it's supposed to mean something…?"

Hearing his composed response, Balse narrowed his eyes.

"It's good to be bold when you're young, but this isn't a place where you can act without restraint, do you understand me?"

Raising his voice a notch higher, he gazed at the young man in front of him with growing intensity. This was the true mettle of a guild master—no, a warrior.

To this, Aziel squinted his eyes in a mixture of disinterest and exasperation. His deep voice carried an obvious disregard.

"Don't play with me."

"It seems you don't—"

"I didn't come back here to watch a damn show. Cut the theatrics, you're fooling no one."

Having his words interrupted, Balse stared him down, displaying an impassive expression that made the atmosphere thick with tension.

An uncomfortable silence engulfed the room, feeling as though a fight would break out soon.

Until—

"Gahahahaha!"

Balse burst into laughter, his roars echoing throughout as he held his stomach. On the other hand, Aziel turned his head to look out the window, ignoring the older man as best he could.

A good few seconds passed before he finally settled down, eyeing Aziel with a gaze filled with amusement.

"Aziel-kun, was it…?"

"Oh, you know my name aswell…."

"I heard you came here to register as an adventurer, but from what I've seen, it doesn't look like you're all that interested in taking on requests."

"If I'm not mistaken, where my interests lie has nothing to do with you. Now I suggest we get to the point."

Balse chuckled merrily, unconcerned about Aziel's casual attitude. Only the strong deserved such treatment in his eyes.

"I see, we can skip the pleasantries since you're in a hurry. You don't look impulsive or stupid, so I'm guessing you wanted to get my attention. Why is that?"

Thinking about it carefully, he didn't believe Aziel would stir up such a commotion just because of a few disparaging remarks—which Balse was partially incorrect about—but his guess was indeed true.

"A guard request."

"Guard request…? What about it?"

"I want you to recommend me as a guard for someone on their way to Horaud."

Firstly, he wasn't willing to spend a lot of time on finding a merchant on their way to Horaud. Secondly, his newly registered adventurer rank would only be blue, denying him eligibility to take on such requests. Thirdly, Balse Laputa was a named character in the original story, giving a bit of insight to his personality.

"You…you made such a huge ruckus for a guard request…?"

"Something like that, yeah…."

Hearing his slightly satisfied tone, Balse widened his eyes, roaring with laughter a moment later. He had come to a not-so-difficult conclusion; the young man was nuts.

"You know what, I'll do you one better, how about I upgrade your rank to black in one go. You're strong enough to crush a black rank adventurer, so I guess it's okay to bend the rules this time."

"If you say so…"

Shrugging his shoulders, Aziel confirmed the details of the guard request that would take place a few hours later.

This was but another step on his path, for he would continue his unrelenting march toward the unknown future.

The fate of those he would come to meet would forever be changed.