The damp, oppressive air of the alleyway felt like a physical weight against my shoulders as the confrontation began.
I didn't need a legendary blade for this.
With a sharp, metallic shink, I reached into the shimmering ripple of my system inventory and pulled out a simple, heavy iron pipe.
It was cold, industrial, and brutal—exactly what this situation called for.
"Get ready," I muttered, my fingers tightening around the rusted grip.
Beside me, Ravel let out a long, weary sigh, the kind that spoke of a princess forced to deal with common filth.
Yet, her movements were fluid and practiced.
She raised her slender hand, and with a soft whoosh, violent orange flames erupted from her fingertips.
The flickering glow danced off the damp stone walls, casting long, jagged shadows that made the alley look like the maw of a beast.
The heat hit instantly, searing the stench of garbage from the air.
I glanced over my shoulder at the silent, imposing figure drifting behind us.
"Giratina, don't interfere, okay? This is beneath you."
I paused, my gaze lingering on the dark energy rolling off her form.
"But... if things get dicey, you're in charge of the cleanup."
She didn't nod—she didn't have to.
The air grew heavy for a split second, a silent acknowledgment from the goddess of the Distortion World.
"Let's go!"
I shouted, my boots kicking up grit as I lunged forward.
Ravel's flames flared, turning the alley into a furnace as she prepared to incinerate their path of escape.
I raised the pipe, my muscles coiling for a heavy overhead strike—
"Wait, what?"
The words died in my throat.
I didn't hit anything but air.
The three thugs, who moments ago were leering like kings of the gutter, didn't just stop; they plummeted.
It was a synchronized, desperate kowtow.
Their foreheads slammed into the grimy cobblestones with a sickening thud.
"Please! Have mercy! We're just idiots!" the leader shrieked, his voice cracking like breaking glass.
"We didn't know! We didn't know any better! We sincerely apologize for our unforgivable stupidity!"
"Yeah! What he said!" the fat one blubbered, his entire body shaking like jelly.
"Forgive us! We're just poor, hungry fools!"
I stood there, frozen mid-swing, the iron pipe hovering inches above the leader's greasy hair.
Ravel's flames sputtered and dimmed, her expression shifting from fierce determination to sheer bewilderment.
For a long, agonizingly awkward moment, the only sound was the heavy breathing of the three men.
A flicker of guilt pricked at me.
Did I just jump the gun?
I wondered.
Are these just... desperate locals trying to survive?
Am I the monster here, threatening to bash the skulls of people who were just being rude?
But then, the short one whispered, his voice hushed but carrying perfectly in the narrow space.
"...Damn it... Why is our luck so rotten today? Every target we pick turns out to be some powerhouse. Now we even ran into a mage... this day is cursed."
The guilt didn't just vanish; it turned into a cold, hard lump of coal in my stomach.
Ah. I see.
They weren't "poor, hungry fools."
They were predators who had realized they had accidentally bitten a landmine.
They didn't regret their actions; they regretted their target.
"How boring," I whispered.
My voice was flat, devoid of the excitement I had felt moments ago.
CRACK.
Without a hint of hesitation, I brought the pipe down hard on the leader's shoulder.
He let out a strangled, high-pitched scream as he collapsed into a heap, clutching his arm.
"And here I thought we'd actually get to blow off some steam," I muttered.
Ravel flinched, her eyes wide with shock at my sudden, cold violence.
"Z-Zevion! Why are you hitting them now? They surrendered! We can just take their money and go. There's no need for this!"
I turned my head toward her.
My eyes felt heavy, tired.
"Ravel, are you serious? Look at them."
I stepped forward, delivering another sharp strike to the fat man's leg.
He howled, rolling in the dirt.
"They didn't surrender because they're sorry," I said, my voice rising with a sharp edge of disappointment.
"They surrendered because they're terrified of your fire and how I manifested a metal pipe from my inventory. If we were just a group of average travelers—if we were weaker—do you think they'd be bowing? They'd be doing exactly what they threatened to do to you and Mashiro."
I looked down at the short one, who was trying to crawl away.
I stepped on his hand, not hard enough to crush it, but enough to pin him.
"That guy just admitted it," I continued, gesturing with the pipe.
"They've been hunting people all day. They ran into someone strong earlier, got scared off, and immediately went looking for their next victim. And we were next on the list."
The silence that followed was suffocating.
Ravel looked down at the groveling men, her fire finally going out completely.
She saw the truth in my words—that these weren't people who could be taught a lesson through kindness.
"People like this don't change," I said, reaching into my inventory and pulling out a bundle of heavy hemp rope.
"Change of plans. Ravel, help me tie them up. Properly."
She didn't argue this time.
She moved with a grim efficiency, helping me bind their hands and feet until they were nothing more than a pile of tangled, sobbing limbs.
"Our new plan," I announced, standing up and wiping the grime from my hands, "is to hand them over to the knights. We'll take whatever reward the city offers for capturing common criminals."
I looked at the purse the leader had dropped.
"And I don't want a single cent of their money. It feels... dirty."
Ravel stayed quiet.
She could sense it—the shift in my mood.
The "fun" was gone.
I felt sick.
There was something truly pathetic about this cycle.
You show mercy to a snake, and the first thing it does is find a smaller mouse to bite.
Isn't that just... sickening?
I gripped my fist until my knuckles turned white.
I didn't care about the reward anymore.
I just wanted them out of my sight and behind bars.
I thought this would be a simple brawl, I thought, letting out a jagged sigh.
A way to feel like a hero for five minutes.
But all I learned was that the world is a meat grinder.
If you're strong, you're fine.
But if you aren't?
I thought of Kokabiel.
I thought of how close I had come to losing everything because I wasn't strong enough.
"...This sucks," I whispered to the shadows.
We dragged the three of them through the winding streets, eventually reaching the local knight station.
It was a formidable stone building, lit by the warm, flickering glow of oil lanterns.
I gave the duty officer a brief, sanitized version of the story: they attacked us, they admitted to multiple crimes, here they are.
The knights were efficient.
They recognized the trio as low-level repeat offenders.
After a bit of paperwork and some questioning, they handed me a small leather pouch.
In this world, the economy was built on a hierarchy of metals: bronze, silver, gold, and above tiers.
Inside the pouch were several dull, heavy silver coins.
"How long will this last us?" I asked the knight.
"At a standard inn? About a week," he replied, giving us a polite nod.
"A few days more if you're careful and avoid the noble districts."
"Good enough."
We left the station as the last remnants of the sun vanished, leaving the city in a shroud of twilight.
The streets were quieter now, the air growing crisp.
"Let's find an inn," I said.
My voice was raspy.
We found a place called The Resting Hearth.
It was clean, the wood was polished, and the smell of stew filled the air.
It wasn't a palace, but it was safe.
As I walked toward my room, every step felt like I was lifting lead weights.
How much had I actually done recently?
I had enslaved an entire race to "save" them from myself.
I had watched my loved ones almost die.
I had lost trillions of points to the system.
And now, I was an immigrant in a world that felt just as cruel as the last one.
"...Yeah. That's a lot."
I closed the door to my room and leaned against it, the silence finally washing over me.
"I'm resting tomorrow as well," I whispered to the empty room.
"I'm staying in this bed until the world makes sense again."
I fell asleep as quickly as I lay down.
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