It was midnight.
The streets had fallen strangely quiet, the kind of silence that made even the faintest sound feel dangerous. Very few people could be seen outside at such an hour. Yet, somewhere in the back alleys, Rome was running.
His footsteps echoed against the cold, empty walls as he hurried through the darkness. He kept looking behind him, making sure no one was following. His breath came heavily by the time he finally reached the place where Rick and the others were waiting.
The moment Rome appeared, Rick stepped toward him.
"How is it?" he asked.
Rome bent forward for a moment, catching his breath. Then he looked at Rick with a troubled expression.
"It's no use, Rick. Almost twelve to thirteen people are outside the station."
He lowered himself to the ground, exhausted.
Rick's expression hardened.
"Then what about our city guard? Surely they would have noticed them."
Krai, who had been listening quietly, added, "There is no guard in sight. It looks like they were ordered away—or perhaps they were ordered not to interfere."
Rome nodded.
"Exactly."
For a moment, nobody spoke.
The silence around them seemed heavier than before.
"So… what do we do now?" Kai finally asked, his voice filled with worry.
Rick remained still, thinking.
"Let's wait for the morning."
Krai stared at him.
"Wait until morning? What if they catch us?"
Rick's eyes remained calm, though the seriousness in his face showed that he understood the danger.
"What if they do?" he asked quietly.
Krai fell silent.
Rick continued, "We don't know what they are planning yet. Moving now could be exactly what they want."
"Rick is right," Leze said from beside them. "Let's wait."
Rick looked toward Lee.
"Even you, Leze…"
Leze gave him a faint smile, but Rick's expression remained serious.
"Listen," Rick said. "If you count every student from the third and fourth years, the number would be close to one hundred and fifty."
He paused, letting the thought settle among them.
"So why would they send only twelve students after us?"
Nobody answered.
Rick continued in a quieter voice.
"That's the part that doesn't make sense."
Rome looked at him.
"And?"
Rick glanced toward the dark road leading away from the station.
"In other words, they aren't really trying to catch all of us. They're only trying to stop us from reaching the teachers' dormitory."
Krai frowned.
"Why?"
"Because if we reach it," Rick replied, "we might find something they don't want us to see."
His voice became colder.
"They need to keep us away long enough to cover up any sign of a fight—anything that could later be used as evidence."
The others exchanged uneasy glances.
For the first time, the silence no longer felt empty.
It felt like a warning.
Rick finally leaned back against the wall and exhaled slowly.
"So we stay here. We sleep, but we take turns keeping watch."
No one argued.
One by one, they nodded.
The night was far from over, and somewhere beyond the darkness, thirteen people were waiting for them.
But for now, Rick and the others remained hidden, silently waiting for morning.
An hour passed.
One by one, everyone had fallen asleep, except Rome.
He remained awake, keeping watch. His back rested against the wall, while his sword lay beside him, within easy reach. Normally, a Aura Master could go without sleep for nearly three days by circulating his mana, but tonight was different. Rome had been completely silent, sitting beside some rocks and insects, listening to every sound around him.
Then he heard it.
Footsteps.
Faint at first, almost lost beneath the silence of the night—but unmistakably there.
Rome immediately sensed the presence of two people.
The moment he realized they were approaching, he tightened his grip and began waking the others.
"Hey. Wake up. Two people are approaching."
Everyone stirred.
"What's wrong?" Krai asked, still half-asleep.
"Rome?" someone muttered.
"Kai, for fuck's sake, there are two people in front of us."
As Rome drew his sword, his eyes widened.
"Oh my God! We were just going back, but I didn't think they would come across a treasure."
One of the figures suddenly stopped and looked around.
"Stop fooling around and catch them, Carl."
Another voice followed.
"Hey, don't be so stiff, Brian. Can't you really think they can get past us?"
Carl remained tense.
"What can be the reason for our estimated senior to come to this filthy place?"
Rick slowly got to his feet, his hand tightening around his sword.
Krai and Leze also stood, taking their positions.
"Don't worry," Carl said calmly, putting his hand into his pocket. "You'll know soon."
As he spoke, Carl took out a magic flare.
But before he could use it, a brick came flying toward him.
Unaware of the attack brick collided with Carl's hand making the flare fall on ground.
"Now, I don't think you will be popular with girls with a clumsy hand like this, Senior Carl," Leze said sarcastically.
Despite the danger surrounding them, the situation suddenly became completely silent.
Then Carl spoke again.
"You bastard."
Then, without warning, Brian attacked.
His blade flashed through the darkness as he swung sideways, aiming directly for Rome. Rome barely managed to parry the strike before immediately counterattacking. But Brian was fast. He twisted away from the blow, avoiding it by inches.
"I will handle him. You three take care of him!" Rome shouted.
As Rome continued to clash with Brian, Carl moved forward to attack Leze, but his advance was interrupted by Rick.
Rick blocked Carl's attack.
"Krai, get behind him and try to attack!" Rick ordered.
Krai moved quickly, circling behind Carl. He saw an opening and lunged.
But Carl dodged and kicked him in lungs.
But after the attack before Carl could recover, another brick came flying toward him.
Carl barely noticed it in time.
The brick struck him in the nose.
"Ah!"
Carl stumbled backward, clutching his face. Seeing the opportunity, Rick rushed forward and struck Carl with the handle of his sword.
At the same moment, Krai recovered and kicked Carl directly in the face.
The combined attack finally overwhelmed him.
Carl's eyes rolled back, and he collapsed unconscious onto the ground.
Rick lowered his sword and looked at the fallen student.
"And here I thought they were someone special sent by the academy to deal with us."
Krai slowly sheathed his weapon.
"They're third-year students from Class C. If it has only been someone from B or A class, it would have been different."
Leze, who was standing nearby, looked around the dark path.
"By the way, where is Rome?"
Rick glanced around.
"I am here."
Rome emerged from the darkness, dragging Brian's unconscious body behind him. He dropped him beside Carl.
"you're really monsters."
Kai stared at him.
"Was that supposed to be a compliment?"
Rome gave him an amused look.
"Maybe."
For a moment, the tension that had filled the night disappeared.
But it didn't last long.
Krai looked toward the path leading back to the academy.
"So, what now? Should we head back? Since they are also heading back, I don't think there is any point in going to the teachers' dormitory."
"I agree," Krai added. "He's right. Even if we wanted to use these guy, it would backfire on us. There's no point in going there."
Rome looked at the three of them, then at the unconscious students lying on the ground.
A faint smile appeared on his face.
"Fine."
He picked up his sword.
"Take the flare with us."
"And what exactly are you planning to do with them?"
Rome's with concerned face.
"You'll find out soon."
"Where are we going?" Rome asked.
"Slum," Rick replied.
The single word was enough to make everyone stop.
They stared at Rick in disbelief.
"The slum?" Krai asked. "Rick, I hope you have a plan."
"Don't worry," Rick said in a serious voice. "I've got a plan."
Krai glanced at Rome, a faint smile appearing on his face. Whatever Rick had planned, it was clear that he had already made up his mind.
A short while later, they boarded the mini-train and headed toward the southeastern part of the city—the place where the slum was located.
The slum was a neglected part of the city where the poorest people lived. The streets were filthy, the buildings were poorly maintained, and the smell of garbage seemed to linger everywhere.
The city guards rarely came there, partly because of the terrible conditions and partly because the place provided the perfect hiding ground for criminals.
Many gangs had made the slum their territory.
Three of them were especially powerful: the White Tiger Gang, the Blue Scorpion Gang, and the Red Lotus Gang.
Together, these three gangs controlled most of the slum in Leon City.
A slum could develop when a large number of poor people gathered in a small city or town, but in smaller settlements with populations of only twenty to thirty thousand, there often weren't enough people to form one.
After getting off the mini-train, the group walked for a while.
The farther they went, the worse the surroundings became.
Garbage was scattered across the streets. People slept on the ground, some with nothing more than scraps of cloth to protect them from the cold. Children cried in the streets while, nearby, drunk men argued and fought among themselves.
Yet despite the chaos, no one paid much attention to the newcomers.
Rick and the others simply kept walking.
Rick's expression gradually became more serious.
"The situation is worse than last time."
Rome looked around carefully.
"Do you think they really started?"
Leze turned toward him, confused.
"Started what?"
Rome's eyes remained fixed on the streets ahead.
"Apparently, there are three rival gangs operating here. The last time we came, they were already on the verge of fighting each other."
He paused.
"And judging by what we're seeing now…"
His gaze moved across the filthy streets, the hostile faces, and the uneasy silence beneath the noise.
"…it looks like things have finally reached that point."
Rome with a serious face.
"Hey, isn't that bad if it's true?" Krai added.
"Don't worry," Rick replied calmly. "No one in this slum is strong enough to fight us."
Leze looked at him for a moment before asking, "But where exactly are we going?"
Rick's expression remained unchanged.
"To meet the leader of the Red Lotus Gang."
The answer made everyone fall silent for a brief moment.
Rome looked at Rick with disbelief.
"I know they won't lay a hand on us because we're academy students but that doesn't mean we can simply walk in and out of a gang's base."
"That's right," Krai added. "We don't even know what kind of people they are."
Rick didn't seem concerned.
"Don't worry about it. Muldak, the leader of the Red Lotus Gang, has tried to meet me countless times. I refused every single time."
He paused, his voice remaining calm.
"But this time, we're simply following an invitation."
Krai frowned.
"But still—"
"I understand," Rick interrupted. "You don't know what kind of crazy idea I have in mind."
He glanced toward the dark streets ahead.
"But for now, just follow me."
Krai opened his mouth as if he wanted to argue, but stopped himself.
The group continued walking.
No one spoke for a while.
Their footsteps echoed through the narrow streets as they moved deeper into the slum. The buildings became darker and more crowded, while the number of people on the streets gradually decreased.
Eventually, they reached the territory controlled by the Red Lotus Gang.
A large, worn-down building stood at the end of the street. Several men were stationed outside, watching everyone who approached.
The moment Rick and the others came close, one of the guards stepped forward and blocked their path.
"Who are you bastards?" he demanded. "And what are you doing here?"
Rick didn't flinch.
He looked directly at the man.
"Tell Muldak that BLACK ANGEL had came to meet him regarding his invitation."
The confidence in Rick's voice immediately changed the atmosphere.
The two guards exchanged a shocked glance.
They clearly hadn't expected someone to come here in the middle of the night claiming to have been invited by their leader.
For a moment, neither of them said anything.
Then, without asking another question, they stepped aside.
"Follow us."
Rick nodded and began walking.
Rome, Krai, and Leze followed close behind.
As they entered the Red Lotus Gang's headquarters, the heavy door closed behind them.
None of them knew what awaited them inside.
And perhaps the strangest part of it all was that Rick had willingly walked into the heart of a criminal gang in the middle of the night.
Whatever he was planning, it was definitely something crazy.