Tower of Paradise

ARCEUS PENDRAGON'S POV

The three men surrounded me, having come to the conclusion that I was the leader. For any normal person, being surrounded by three such burly individuals would have been a life-threatening situation. However, after facing the goblins who had tried to kill me relentlessly, these thugs didn't seem like much.

Despite my apparent calm, I couldn't ignore the terrifying and harsh aura they emanated, similar to that of killers who had ended countless lives. I knew that a single mistake could cost me my life, so I didn't hesitate to use my trait.

[Private attribute has been activated: The man who overcame adversity]

I watched as a blue light illuminated the area while I felt the world slow down and all my senses rapidly sharpened.

We exchanged glances and, with tense expressions, each of them drew their weapons. The reason was simple: the brat they believed to be easy prey had turned out to be an Awakened One. And any Awakened One, no matter how weak, should not be taken lightly.

I didn't want this to turn bloody, but they left me no choice. It was kill or be killed.

One of the men charged at me without hesitation, shouting:

—Bastard... die!

My body reacted instantly, spinning like lightning to deliver a powerful kick to his jaw.

—Guah!

Was all he managed to say before his body rose almost 3 meters into the air.

As expected, he quickly fell to the ground, proving that humans couldn't fly. The sword he was holding also went flying, spinning in the air before landing precisely in my palm.

I maintained my stance, observing them with the same expression. The only difference was that, in a brief moment, a man had fallen and now I was holding a sharp sword.

I saw how the scarred man's expression quickly twisted. He had sent one of his men to test my skills, but the test had ended in an instant, without even giving him time to evaluate.

—This is not an ordinary guy.@@novelbin@@

Muttered one of them.

However, they didn't seem to have any intention of backing down just because their opponent was strong.

—Brother, what should we do?

Asked another nervously.

—Don't be afraid. After all, he's just one guy. No matter how strong he is, how can he block four swords with just one?

Despite his words of encouragement, the scarred man didn't dare approach without caution. All four hesitated to attack, their eyes filled with tension as they watched me.

They all took deep breaths and tightened their grip on their swords. They prepared for my attack with tense expressions, but they couldn't even follow my movements with their eyes.

—What!?

Exclaimed one in surprise when, the moment I took a slight step forward, I had already closed the distance by several steps.

In an instant, I disarmed the sword from the bewildered man and brandished mine toward his defenseless body. However, I briefly halted the trajectory in the air. Realizing that the children were watching from behind, I forcefully changed the direction of my sword, barely grazing the tendons of his wrist.

—Arghh!!

The man screamed.

It was enough to incapacitate him. Seeing their companion grabbing his bleeding wrist and screaming, the expressions of the others turned cruel.

—Now's our chance! Let's finish him!

The sight of flowing blood was enough to enrage them. With furious shouts, the three remaining men attacked me at once.

—Arceus! It's dangerous!

I heard Reinhardt shout with concern.

Contrary to his tense voice, I wielded my sword without hesitation. My movements were quick and precise; each time my sword struck, it inevitably cut the extremities of my opponents.

—Ow! My arm!

—Arrgghhh!!

In the blink of an eye, all the men were bleeding and incapacitated, collapsing on the ground. The scarred man was no exception. His wound prevented him from gripping his sword properly, causing him to drop it weakly.

—Ha, ha, ha... What kind of monster are you...?

He let out a hollow laugh, as if he couldn't believe that his entire group had been defeated by a single person.

The only reason I could win so easily was because none of them was an Awakened One. I understood that not all people were qualified to be selected by the Paradise Tower. Instead, obtaining a stellar core was as difficult as ascending to the heavens.

I remained impassive after subduing all five men, showing no emotion whatsoever. For a moment, I debated internally whether I should let them live or not.

The children were behind me, and they weren't ready to see such a bloody scene. Besides, it might cause them to fear me. I looked at the bodies in front of me with conflicted eyes, but soon bit my lip and sighed.

Unfortunately... the answer was obvious. Things would get complicated if they ever came back for revenge or, worse yet, if they attacked when I wasn't around to protect the children.

—Reinhardt, the children.

That was all I needed to say.

Reinhardt understood immediately and made the children close their eyes.

The Noah from 10 years ago wasn't familiar with killing at all. He was a normal man then, whose only experience with death was limited to spiders, cockroaches, and flies. That was the mental weakness that paralyzed most people.

But I was no longer that man. I had killed dozens of goblins, and this situation was no different. Without hesitation, I pierced the chest of each man, driving the sword between their ribs and directly into their hearts.

As I raised the sword to clean it of blood, I could hear the surprised voices of the children in the background. It was less of a nuisance than facing the consequences of leaving them alive, something I didn't even want to imagine.

I didn't want to regret my decisions again. Even if the children now looked at me with fear and dread, sooner or later they would understand that this was the only way to survive.

After making sure they were all dead, I searched their bodies and found several wallets. It wasn't much, but it would serve us for the moment.