Kakin at night was quieter on the surface, but it was all an illusion.
Conrad walked without much of a thought.
He wanted to eat something before deciding on a plan for how he should take the Staff of Germanis from the Blood Fang Gang.
But his mind was alert.
He turned into a narrower street, one of those side roads that existed between main avenues, barely wide enough for a car to pass.
His instincts reacted before his thoughts did.
Something was wrong.
A sharp bang shattered the silence.
Conrad's body moved on reflex.
He twisted to the right, aura flaring instinctively around his core as the projectile tore through the space where his head had been a fraction of a second earlier.
The bullet struck the wall behind him, sending fragments of stone scattering.
A sniper.
Conrad's eyes narrowed, his heart steady instead of racing.
"So it starts."
Before he could pinpoint the shooter, a shadow dropped from above.
From the rooftop, a man launched himself downward, legs extended in a descending kick.
The attacker moved fast, faster than a normal human, but not fast enough.
Conrad stepped back once, grounding himself, and countered with a short, precise kick of his own.
The clash lasted less than a second.
The attacker managed to raise his right arm in defense.
But it was not much of use; the man was, at the most, super athletic and powerful but not a Nen user at all.
Conrad's kick connected cleanly.
There was a sickening crack.
Conrad heard clearly the unmistakable sound of bone breaking.
The man's arm went limp instantly, muscles failing as pain flooded his system.
The attacker cried out.
Conrad didn't stop.
He pivoted and delivered a second kick, striking the man's side mid-air.
The force sent the attacker flying backward, his body slamming into the wall before dropping heavily to the ground.
The entire exchange took less than three seconds.
Conrad exhaled slowly.
"My senses are sharp enough to dodge most bullets."
"And that attacker wasn't strong."
His eyes flicked upward, scanning rooftops, windows, and corners.
"At least two attackers. Possibly more."
He moved closer to the fallen man, keeping his weight light and his stance flexible.
He knew that Sniper was watching him and waiting for a time to shoot him down.
The attacker lay slumped against the wall, his breathing ragged, sweat already soaking through his clothes.
Then
Bang.
Another gunshot rang out, this one aimed cleanly at Conrad's head.
He dodged again, leaning just enough for the bullet to pass by his cheek, close enough that he felt the air displacement brush his skin.
He clicked his tongue softly.
This would be much easier if I had worked on En.
The realization irritated him more than the attack itself.
An early warning net would have given him spatial awareness that could have prevented this ambush entirely.
Another mental note added to the growing list.
Conrad stepped forward, closing the distance to the injured man in two strides.
Before the attacker could react,
Conrad grabbed him by the collar and lifted him off the ground effortlessly, slamming his back against the wall.
The man gasped, his feet dangling uselessly above the pavement.
"You!" the man croaked, pain and fear twisting his face.
Conrad's grip tightened just enough to make breathing difficult.
"If your friend doesn't show himself, your life ends here."
The injured man's eyes darted frantically, panic overtaking pain.
"W-wait!" he stammered. "Don't, don't kill me!"
Conrad didn't respond.
Seconds passed.
Then a voice echoed from above.
"Easy there."
A second man stepped into view on a nearby rooftop, rifle lowered slightly but still in his hands.
He wore dark clothing, and his face was partially obscured by a hood.
"Let him go," the man said. "We can talk."
Conrad tilted his head slightly, still holding the first attacker aloft.
"You fired twice with intent to kill," Conrad replied evenly. "That makes conversation optional."
The man on the rooftop swallowed, clearly reassessing.
"You're… stronger than we expected," he admitted. "This wasn't supposed to turn into a mess."
"That tends to happen when you ambush people with firearms," Conrad said.
The sniper smiled secretly and thought within.
"No, it does not; you are just a fucking monster."
The injured man whimpered as Conrad's fingers tightened momentarily.
"Who sent you?" Conrad asked.
The rooftop man hesitated.
Conrad's aura spiked just slightly, not enough to flare openly, but enough pressure to make the man's instincts scream.
"Kakin Secret Teams..." the man said quickly.
"Word spread fast. You asked about Germans. That is a death wish in this area to be asked, especially right now, in these times."
Conrad's eyes hardened.
So it already leaked.
"And?" Conrad pressed.
"And some people don't like outsiders digging into royal artifacts," the man continued. "Especially ones tied to the old bloodlines."
Conrad absorbed the information silently.
"Were you ordered to kill me?" he asked.
The man grimaced.
"Capture if possible. Kill if necessary."
That was enough.