Chapter 57 - 55: The Unreconciled Miria

Chapter 57: Chapter 55: The Unreconciled Miria

After Miria spoke, Allen fell silent.

He had to admit, Miria had a point.

But he still didn’t believe that Roy and Tony would work together to orchestrate such a hoax.

More importantly, he didn’t believe Tony would deceive Erin just to build his reputation.

If Tony had really done something like that, it would only make him feel that Erin had fallen for the wrong man.

Seeing Allen’s silence, Miria continued, "If you think I have a point, why not follow him with me? We might find the evidence we need soon enough."

After some serious thought, Allen nodded.

Without any hesitation, they left the inn at once.

After leaving the inn, it didn’t take them long to spot Roy strolling leisurely down the street.

To avoid being spotted, they not only kept a distance of sixty to seventy meters from Roy but also used the pedestrians on the street to hide their movements.

As far as they were concerned, they were being careful enough.

But Roy quickly discovered them tailing him.

He didn’t even need a warning from his mysterious Spiritual sense; the keen intuition granted by his powerful Spiritual Power alone allowed him to easily spot the furtive Allen and Miria tailing him.

’What are they up to?’

Upon realizing Allen and Miria were following him, Roy immediately frowned.

Although he didn’t know what they were planning, he didn’t dwell on it. He made a decision at once and headed toward a nearby alley.

Soon, his figure vanished from Allen and Miria’s sight.

Just as he’d guessed, Allen and Miria immediately picked up their pace to avoid losing his trail and hurried to the mouth of the alley.

They didn’t enter the alley right away. Instead, they stopped a few pedestrians to ask where the exit led.

After questioning the pedestrians, Miria entered the small alley alone.

As for Allen, he activated his Fighting Qi and hurried down the main street toward the alley’s other exit.

Mere seconds after they split up, Roy walked out of a shop next to the alley entrance, now holding an apple.

After entering the alley, he hadn’t rushed toward the exit. Instead, he had leaped onto a rooftop, then climbed through a window into the shop’s second floor.

Unsurprisingly, climbing through the window into the second floor like a thief caught the attention of the shop’s employees.

But he paid it no mind, heading downstairs to the shop’s main floor.

Discovering it was a fruit shop, he casually picked up an apple and tossed a Silver Coin to the owner.

Although the shop owner was a bit curious as to why he’d come down from the second floor, one look at his attire told the man it was best not to ask questions.

Besides, Roy had used a Silver Coin to buy a single apple.

The shop owner didn’t recognize Roy, but he understood his meaning.

An apple cost two or three Copper Coins at most.

Yet Roy had given him a Silver Coin.

Clearly, the extra was hush money.

After leaving the fruit shop, Roy had no intention of tailing Allen and Miria in return. He simply took a different route to the potion shop.

「Noon.」

Laden with his haul, a satisfied Roy returned to the inn.

Initially, he had only intended to purchase materials for crafting Basic Potions from the shops in the Royal Capital.

But to his surprise, the procurement process was much easier than he had anticipated.

Although he was buying "obscure" materials that ordinary people had no use for, plenty of shops still had them in stock.

After purchasing the Alchemy Materials, he also visited a blacksmith, a tailor, and other shops to buy some other supplies.

Over the past few months, he hadn’t wasted much time on Life Skills like Forging, tailoring, brewing, and Beast Taming. He had only dabbled enough in each to get them to appear on his Skill Proficiency Panel.

To put it simply, these Life Skills were all at Tier One, and a low Tier One at that, with only ten to twenty points of Skill Level.

Considering the upcoming war would last for a very long time, he planned to practice these Life Skills as a recreational activity during the conflict.

The moment he returned to the inn, Roy saw Allen and Miria sitting in the main hall, drinking.

At the same time, having been watching the inn’s entrance, they saw him too.

Without any hesitation, Roy walked straight over and sat down beside them.

The moment he sat down, Miria spoke up.

"Allen told me you defeated Baron Ice Wolf in a duel to earn the right to represent the Wesley Clan in the war."

"We’re all High Tier Knights, and comrades from the same organization. How about a little spar?"

After Roy had given them the slip, Miria became even more convinced that he was hiding an incredible secret.

After returning to the inn and discussing it with Allen, she decided to try a different method to test Roy.

’A spar!’

She planned to use a spar to confirm her suspicions!

If Roy had truly only practiced his Breathing Technique for half a year, she was absolutely confident she could expose it!

"A spar is fine."

"However, before we spar, I’d like to know why you two were following me this morning."

"As you just said, we’re now comrades in the same organization. You owe me a reasonable explanation."

Roy said slowly, his gaze fixed on Miria.

He wasn’t going to waste brain cells guessing why Allen and Miria were tailing him. He planned to get an explanation directly from them.

Hearing his question, Allen and Miria’s expressions grew awkward.

After about ten seconds, Miria spoke up. "Following you was my decision."

"As for why, it’s simple. I believe you’re hiding a secret, and I want to find out what it is."

"Furthermore, I suspect you started practicing the Breathing Technique three years ago, and I want to find proof."

’That’s it?’

Roy had assumed Allen and Miria were following him because they’d guessed he was the Dark Night Knight.

He never imagined it was for these two reasons.

Roy sighed helplessly and said slowly, "Believe it or not, it really only took me less than half a year to go from starting the Breathing Technique to becoming a High Tier Knight."

He was telling the truth.

It was just that the half-year he mentioned referred to the six months after he crossed over into this world, not the six months surrounding his coming-of-age ceremony.

"Where’s your proof?"

"Do you have any proof that what you’re saying is true?"

Miria pressed on.

’Proof?’

Roy paused for a moment, then looked at Miria seriously. "Whether you believe me or not is your problem, not mine. I have no obligation to provide so-called proof just to convince you."

"Besides, when it comes down to it, you’re suspicious of everything simply because you can’t accept it."

"You started practicing the Breathing Technique after the Snow Fox Tragedy, and it’s been six years now."

"Yet to this day, you’re not even a Peak Knight. You’re still stuck at the High Tier Knight realm."

"You can’t accept that your years of hard work were so easily surpassed by me. Or, to put it another way, you can’t accept that you’re so far beneath me."

"So, based on the information you have, you’ve concocted a theory that makes you feel better—that I secretly practiced for three years to become a High Tier Knight, and that my talent isn’t much greater than yours."

"It’s normal to have that kind of mindset at your age. After all, you’re only in your early twenties."

"But as Baron Snow Fox, burdened with the responsibility of reviving the Elvin Clan, you shouldn’t harbor such feelings."

"Because your bitterness and jealousy could easily cause you to act impulsively and make decisions that bring eternal ruin to the Elvin Clan..."

Roy paused, then continued, "Don’t look at me with such a defiant expression. You know perfectly well if that’s what you’re thinking."

"Finally, a little piece of advice, or perhaps a warning: my strength is actually far greater than you imagine."

"If you’re not afraid of being utterly crushed, I don’t mind a match. I’ll let you see for yourself the enormous gap between us."

...