118 A Threat? At the Phantom Palace

The crowd was admittedly surprised to have looked away for a moment, only to turn back and see that the duel that they were so intent on seeing had already come to an end. While many were angry at the person that caused the noise that distracted them, the rest were dejected over the fact that they missed such an amazing fight. As for the teams behind both parties involved in the duel, one set had ugly expressions while the other was all smiles.

With the duel now over after the forceful intervention from the system, both parties stood up straight as they stared at each. On one hand, there was Kirou with his signature expression and on the other, there was Davy Jones looking quite dejected. He honestly never expected for the duel to have ended in such a manner, with him losing to a single attack that proc'd a very high critical figure, even under the limitations of the duel mode. Davy Jones could tell that if they were in a deathmatch as opposed to the sparring mode, that one attack would have definitely finished him off.

Taking a moment to gather his thoughts, along with taking a deep breath, Davy Jones spoke in a voice that was heard by all those present, "I have lost. In accordance with our deal, my men and I will back off for today." Following his words, Davy Jones turned to his men and ordered them to leave. They had already spent too much time here and with this defeat, staying any long to cause trouble would only make them lose more face.

Just as Davy Jones was about to leave the confines of the safe zone, he received a trade request, along with hearing a voice behind him that said, "Before you go, take this with you."

Davy Jones turned around, only to see that it was Kirou that was speaking to him. He had unconsciously accepted the trade request and confirmed the trade, all while staring at the strange Lycan. Seeing that the item has already been transferred, Kirou turned around and started walking back to his friends. It was only after this happened that Davy Jones took a look at the item he just obtained.

To say that he was surprised would have been an understatement. The reason for this; in his hands now appeared a Warhammer that gave off a blue glow, different from the one that he had equipped during the fight. Naturally, this was the \u003cBerserker's Fury Warhammer\u003e that Kirou was using in the fight earlier. This prompted him to look at Kirou with a complicated expression, unsure of what to make of it.

It was at this time that he noticed that he had received a private message. When he opened it, he noticed that it was from Kirou. The message reads as follows:

'You've got skill but you lack a decent weapon to go along with it and a good amount of practice. Had you been using a proper Warhammer and you actually practiced diligently, the match wouldn't have ended so quickly. For now, take that Warhammer and practice your skills. The next time we meet, if you aren't stronger than you are now, I'll beat you and your entire squad down by five levels, so don't disappoint me.'

'PS: I don't know what beef you have with the Sanming Sect but I suggest you either get over it or get strong enough to deal with the people responsible instead of just targeting low-level players and players you outnumber. Otherwise, you'll never get your revenge against them, no matter how much players you kill.'

With the end of the message done, Davy Jones looked up, only to find that Kirou and his team have already left the area. Right now, the crowd had long since dispersed when the duel came to an end, and those that were left were just looking for party members to quest with.

Davy Jones eventually took a deep breath before turning around and joining his men in leaving the area. For now, he had a goal to accomplish, otherwise, his squad might suffer for it. While he didn't want to believe it, he got the feeling that his fight with Kirou earlier didn't force him to use his true strength or any of his trump cards. And if that feeling is correct, that means Kirou could and would make good on his word the next time they met if he didn't take the advice seriously. For now, it's best that he gets to work. Besides, Kirou wasn't wrong in saying that he needs to get stronger if he hopes to get revenge on the members of the Sanming Sect that he was after.

*******

Roughly an hour or so later, Kirou and his team were now entering the cave system that led to his secret base, the \u003cPhantom Palace\u003e. As they traveled, the trio behind him was constantly talking.

Mistaken Fox was the one currently speaking as they entered, "I still can't believe that the person you two were waiting on just so happened to be Brother Kirou. The world truly is a small place."

Both women giggled as Reya spoke, "If you think you are the only one that is surprised by that information, Brother Fox, then you have another thing coming. To think, someone as strong as you are an acquaintance of Mr. Wolf, it's completely unreal."

Navi chose this point in time to chime in, "Then again, when you think about it, it's not really all that surprising that Mr. Wolf would be friends with someone as strong as Brother Fox here."

Mistaken Fox was scratching the back of his head with a sheepish grin on his face as he spoke, "Even if I appear strong, that doesn't change the fact that it was due to Brother Kirou's help that I was able to display such strength. If it wasn't for him giving me proper advice, along with these weapons, I think the most I could probably do in the face of such a squad is to escape."

It was here that Kirou himself joined the conversation, "That in and of itself is quite good, Brother Fox. Understanding when to fight and when to escape is one of the fundamental rules of playing the role of an assassin. If all you did was jump into a fight without understanding whether or not you can defeat the opponent, more often than not, you'll find yourself neck-deep in trouble." At those words, both Reya and Navi nodded their heads, causing Mistaken Fox to blush slightly.

After a few more minutes of walking, along with all three informing Kirou of what transpired while he was late, the quartet was now standing in the underground cavern where the base of the \u003cPhantom Palace\u003e was located. While the girls were busy being amazed by the beautiful view of the place, Kirou went ahead and summoned out all three of his pets to go play, along with three clones to be their playmates. With his constant usage of the Shadow Clone skill over the last few weeks, the skill had already upgraded to level three.

Skill: Shadow Clone

Skill Level: 3/5

Rank: A (S at max)

Cost: 25 MP

Description: This is a downgraded version Weapon Master Bladesmith's signature skill, 'Shadow Body.' This skill allows its user to create a second body (or more) from his shadow. The shadow clone is capped at 80(75)% for all stats from the user. When the shadow is destroyed the user regains 10% HP and is slowed by 50% for 3 seconds. The user can create 3(2) shadows at most at the moment.

This had happened long before the fight with Bladesmith's clone but out of habit, Kirou never bothered to use more than two clones in a fight. Seeing Kirou summoning out his three pets, Mistaken Fox decided to summon out his Stone Axe Minotaur as well, allowing it to join in on the fun. It was a curious thing to see the five-meter tall minotaur interacting with its three-meter tall counterpart and the two smaller pets.

This eventually attracted the attention of the two elf girls who looked on at the four pets in awe. This continued for a few moments before Kirou attracted Navi's attention and signaled for her to follow him with his eyes. She got the signal and left Reya and Mistaken Fox watching the four pets interact in the underground cavern while both she and Kirou re-entered the cavern where the boss jellyfish originally inhabited.

Like he usually does, Kirou took out a pair of chairs and a small table from his inventory and set it up next to the underground lake. He also retrieved a pot from his inventory with some strange herbs and started brewing some tea for the duo. A few minutes later, the tea was properly brewed and Kirou poured a cup for both himself and Navi, both of which kept quiet during the entire ordeal.

With the tea brewed and placed before both, Kirou allowed Navi to take a sip before speaking up, "From the info I've given Reya to pass onto you, I'm sure you've realized by now that I've got someone on the inside of the Assassin's Branch. As for who it is and how I got them on inside in the first place, that's not information you need to be privy to." Following those words, Kirou took a sip of the tea in his cup.

Navi listened to his words from the beginning and took a sip of her tea once more before speaking up in an even tone, "Although it is a bit redundant at this point, I'll ask it all the same. How much do you trust this informant of your, Brother Kirou?"

Kirou took another sip of his tea while staring at the underground lake before speaking up in an even tone, "About as much as you can trust any informant. So far he's managed to keep himself under the radar and is doing his job properly so that's enough for me."

After saying this, Kirou placed his cup down on the table and turned to fully face the underground lake, looking as if he was more interested in it than his conversation with Navi. Navi too placed her cup down and turned to face the beautiful view of the lake.

This went on for a few minutes before Navi broke the silence between the two, "Just how bad is it, Mr. Wolf?" Although her voice lacked any emotion in it, Kirou could detect an underline tone of worry laced within it.

Kirou took a moment to compose his thoughts before speaking up, still staring at the beautiful lake view, "Personally, I don't think it's much of a problem."

Although Kirou said it like this, Navi knew that there was more to it. Besides, it wasn't really logical to compare herself and Reya to Kirou in terms of handling their problems.

As if to prove that thought true, Kirou's next words continued, "As for you and Reya, their plan is made to circumvent anything you and Reya can do by yourselves. You guys only have two choices available to you at the moment. Either you two give up on the guild and allow someone else to take control of it or emancipate your branch from the Sanming Sect. Regardless of the choice you make, you both will be losing out in the end."

After saying this, Kirou grabbed his cup without looking behind and took a sip of the brew without even glancing in Navi's direction. Navi, for her part, just sat there with a solemn expression on her face. Kirou's suggestions were exactly what she had come up with on her own. In fact, his wording of it was brutal and cold to the point, leaving little room for doubt.

While Navi was stewing over her thoughts, Kirou finished the tea in his cup before speaking up once more, "I believe it's time we get Reya over here. I'd like for both of you to watch the video I received for yourself, just so that you truly understand what you two have to face."

"I understand, Mr. Wolf. I'll go get Reya and return in a minute." Following her words, Navi finished her cup of tea in one go before returning to the Phantom Palace's base.

As for Kirou, he just continued looking out at the underground lake before releasing a sigh as he spoke up underneath his breath, "I wonder what choice these two will ultimately make in the end." After saying this, Kirou refilled his cup before going back to focusing on the view before him.