Chapter 18: A Quest and Bountiful Reward
"Do you think she used it on him?" Alice asked quietly, arms folded, her narrowed gaze fixed on the fight that was about to happen.
Lilly didn't respond immediately. She studied Scarlett's expression, and as usual, her face was unreadable and indifferent.
"It's hard to tell," she replied softly. "But most likely."
"Who do you think he is?" one adventurer asked. "I've never seen him before."
"Me neither," another responded. "For him to spar with the Vice Guild Leader herself, he must be powerful or have quite the background."
All around the gym, whispers like these echoed. Every adventurer present had gathered around, forming a large circle—eager to watch the fight unfold. After all, it was rather rare to witness a Hero-Rank adventurer in action.
Despite the heavy scrutiny, Gabriel remained unfazed—calm and collected as he stared at Scarlett with a steady gaze.
"What level are you?" Scarlett asked, retrieving a wooden sword to match Gabriel, despite being a mage.
"I'm level 14," he replied.
"Then I won't even use ten percent of my power. At your level, I doubt you'd be able to withstand that either," she said flatly. "So to make it fair, I'll try to match your strength."
"Fine by me," Gabriel shrugged. He felt irritated by how she underestimated him—but unfortunately, it was the truth.