Chapter 37: You Are a Talent

"Oh, by the Wolf God, I told you, I mean no harm. Don't treat your friends like this." Wade acted as if nothing were the matter.

"It's fine, let him come over." Seeing Genis also raising her gun, Robin quickly pressed it down. Although this man's allegiances were unclear, his strength was undeniably unfathomable. If he were provoked into attacking, everyone present would likely die.

Soon, Wade pulled up beside Robin and whispered in his ear, "The things in the reports, were they orchestrated by you? I mean the display of heroic fearlessness, followed by having the Grand Duke send people to rescue you."

Robin's pupils contracted. This was his greatest regret recently. Many had died because of him, and it had forced the Roland Studio, previously lurking in the shadows, into the public eye.

"Oh, it seems I guessed right. So, the exposure of the Roland Studio was also led by you?"

"I don't know what you're talking about," Robin replied, also lowering his voice.

"Hey, don't deny it. The later actions must have been carried out by Grand Duke Benito. But the earlier ones... they were too petty. If it were Benito, he would have gone for a one-hit kill, just like what's happening now. Just as I thought, you're quite the talent, kid!" Wade curled his lips into a smile, then raised his hands and stepped back.

In a move so swift no one caught it, he surreptitiously slipped a business card into Robin’s pocket.

"Robin Rommel, don't forget where you truly belong. No matter how well you perform in this incident, you are still an outsider. If you want to accomplish great things, you must go to the place where you belong."

After saying this, Wade turned around, placed his raised hands behind his head, and whistled as he walked into the darkness. "Actually, even if I hadn't come, you wouldn't have died. One of your own came as well, and his strength wasn't bad, but I found him a nuisance, so I knocked him out first."

"Oh, right, it’s quite safe up there. Those soldiers don't have the time to bother with you."

His voice grew fainter as his figure slowly vanished.

"Who is he?" Matthew frowned. "What did he say to you?"

"I don't know him. Likely someone from 'that side,' though not on the same path as the Roland Studio. He asked if I was the one who ignited the Roland Studio affair," Robin shook his head. "Now is not the time for this. Let's get out of here."

...

Robin and his group emerged from a small alley—this was an exit. Robin, Matthew, and Genis were all wounded, and under these circumstances, Robin and Matthew had still managed to carry someone out.

The man was wearing a black trench coat and a hat, sporting a full beard and a jagged scar. He looked like a troublemaker, the kind of person who would have his ID checked just for walking down the street. He was currently a member of Robin's team, a killer from their ten-man squad, and a transcendent.

Wade had knocked him out soundlessly and taken out twelve soldiers—his strength was truly formidable. Along the way out, Robin and the others had already seen the corpses of those soldiers.

"Phew, we're out..." Jennifer looked at the setting sun and let out a sigh of relief.

...

"Shopkeeper, I’ll be heading back now..." the shop assistant said to Genis.

"No, you must come with us for now. Otherwise, they will easily find your home; you are still in great danger," Genis replied.

"Ah?" The assistant looked fearful. To put it bluntly, she was just a civilian, and in her eyes, Grand Duke Benito was a rebel. Even if Genis provided a sense of safety, she was being taken to a strange place.

"I’ll stick with you all for now, too," Jennifer said. "They saw me..." She was different from the shop assistant; the assistant worked at the pet clinic, while Jennifer was just a customer. Everyone who had entered the shop had been silenced by Robin, so theoretically, she was safe. But she had been terrified by Robin's words, fearing she would run into soldiers who would drag her away without rhyme or reason. She wanted to wait until she was certain she could meet Vincent to explain things, lest she end up a wanted fugitive herself.

"This scene—the Grand Duke has truly exerted his influence," Robin said, his gaze fixed on the street. "So many people are protesting..."

"Death to Marquis Sid!"
"Explain the Roland Studio affair clearly and punish the spies!"
"Return the money paid as tribute to Dross!"

The crowd shouted slogans excitedly. Because the streets were filled with protesters, no one paid any attention to Robin and his group. Robin couldn't help but feel worried. Things were getting difficult to manage; what if Marquis Sid ordered his troops to shoot the civilians?

In this country, protests were not exactly gentle affairs; they wouldn't stop even if they saw guns. And Marquis Sid was no saint. Even if massacring civilians would cause chaos and undermine his rule, he had to take action. After all, letting things descend into such disorder would also threaten his reign. In fact, whatever Marquis Sid did now would be the wrong move; it was just a matter of which path he chose.

"Wake him up," Matthew said, clutching his chest and kicking the assassin. The assassin had fallen right at the underground entrance, and they hadn't dared to linger long enough to wake him before bringing him out.

Robin expected Genis to wake the assassin gently, but instead—

*Slap! Slap! Slap!*

Genis crouched on the ground and slapped the assassin several times. "Wake up, wake up..."

Robin’s mouth twitched. She really was a veterinarian!

Genis had considerable strength, and the assassin soon reacted.

"Cough, cough..."

As he groggily opened his eyes and realized there were people around him, he instinctively jumped back, a blade already in his hand. He gripped the knife and placed his other hand on his holster. "Who goes—hm? Robin Rommel?"

Clearly, Robin was a celebrity now; it would be hard for anyone interested in these affairs not to recognize his face.

"Yes, we're out," Robin nodded.

The assassin was dazed. Out? Weren't they blocked down below? The higher-ups had sent many men in specifically to rescue him. This... who saved them? And where were the people who saved them? Wait, how did I get knocked out? What happened? For a moment, the assassin's mind was a complete blur.

"Don't worry about that for now," Matthew said to the assassin while clutching his chest. "Take us to the prepared safe house. We're all injured."

Having walked quite a distance after being shot, while also carrying a man, Matthew looked even worse than Robin now.

...

At a military stronghold in the city...

"Trash, trash, you're all trash!" Vincent kicked two company commanders to the ground. "A wounded Robin, three women, and some guy from who knows where, and they escaped through the underground air-raid shelter?"

"Are you worthy of your pay? Are you worthy of the uniforms you wear? Have you found out who was with Robin!"

"Woof, woof-woof!"

Just then, a dog that had just been brought in suddenly began barking wildly at Vincent.

"Does it want to die, too?" Vincent’s gaze turned icy as he stood up in silence.

"Sir, no, it's not that..." the man holding the dog broke out in a cold sweat. "It... it must have smelled your scent in the basement and thought you were the target..."

Vincent: "???"