"Wait! Kaien, you're a newcomer — you don't even know what an S-Class mission is! You don't understand how dangerous it can be. We're not S-Class Mages, we don't have the qualifications to accept one! Only S-Class Mages are allowed to take that kind of job."
Elfman quickly pulled Kaien aside, lowering his voice so only the two of them could hear. He didn't want to lose another companion to an S-Class mission ever again.
"But we've already accepted the request, and today's the third day. Are we supposed to just sit here and watch the client get killed?"
"This…"
He couldn't say that in front of the client. But Kaien wasn't wrong — an S-Class mission by nature meant extreme danger. A single wrong judgment could cost your life, and even an S-Class Mage wouldn't take such a mission lightly.
And now there was simply no time left. Even if an S-Class Mage accepted the request now, by the time they arrived, it might already be over.
Kaien continued to psych Elfman up. "Elfman, this is an S-Class mission! Don't you want to challenge yourself and give it a try?"
Elfman hesitated. It was true — by the time he was qualified to take S-Class missions, it could be years later. He'd have to pass the S-Class Mage exam first.
"This is a rare chance. If we miss it now, who knows when we'll get another."
"Don't you want to see the view from the second floor? If we complete this mission, the Master might recognize our strength. Maybe he'll even let us up there early."
"And besides, aren't you a man, Elfman? Are you really going to stand by while the client gets killed by some villain?"
Elfman's face turned red and his neck thickened as he shouted, "A man!!"
Hearing that, Kaien knew he had him.
"Mr. Mayor, we'll take this request."
"Thank you! Thank you so much!"
The mayor looked visibly relieved. Ever since receiving that threat letter, he'd been living in fear day and night. Even with the Rune Knights from the Magic Council protecting him, he still felt unsafe. That's why he had issued another request to the Mages' Guild.
Unfortunately, no S-Class Mage had come.
Kaien looked at the mayor and said, "Since the other party plans to attack, there's no need for us to seek them out. We'll just stay here and wait for them to come."
Elfman frowned. "But… will they really come?"
The entire area was surrounded by Rune Knights — heavily guarded, traps set in every direction. Surely the enemy wouldn't be dumb enough to walk into that?
"They should. After all, they've already made their threat public. If they don't show up, they'll be laughed at for life. Since they dared to threaten instead of attacking right away, that means they have absolute confidence in their own strength."
"Mr. Mayor, during this time, don't leave our sight. If you do, I can't guarantee your safety. I'd hate to kill all the enemies only to find no one left to pay the reward."
Kaien's tone was calm, yet the pressure behind his words was palpable — even the mayor, their client, felt it.
"O-Okay!"
"Good. Elfman, you stay close and protect the mayor."
"And you, Kaien?"
"Me? Of course, I'll be the one taking down every last enemy."
Kaien grinned.
"Wait! Kaien, that's the King of Assassins we're talking about!"
Elfman was shocked — Kaien actually intended to face that infamous killer.
"So what."
Those two words left Elfman speechless.
"Mr. Mayor, please have some food prepared. There might be a big fight soon. If we don't eat our fill, we might not have the strength when it counts."
"Alright, alright!"
Seeing Kaien so composed, the mayor couldn't help but feel a little reassured. He immediately ordered the kitchen to prepare a meal.
Soon, steaming dishes were served. Kaien dug in heartily, while Elfman barely touched his food.
"Hmm? Elfman, how can a big guy like you eat so little?"
"Kaien, that's an S-Class—"
"I know," Kaien said with a grin. "That's exactly what makes it exciting, isn't it?"
"…"
At that moment, Elfman finally understood — Kaien might look normal on the outside, but deep down, he was a complete lunatic.
After eating his fill, Kaien sat on the sofa and looked at the panel before him.
[S-Class Mission: Eliminate the Phantom Thief Guild. Reward: Ten Draws.]
The system panel had already updated. That was the main reason Kaien had wanted to take this mission in the first place.
Kaien tapped his finger, selecting everyone except Ulquiorra, then chose to recycle them.
[Confirm recycling all selected characters?]
"Confirm!"
[Ding! Recycling successful! Host's Magic Power increased ☆!]
It was a built-in system feature — unwanted characters could be recycled in exchange for Magic Power. In other words, useless characters from draws could be converted into Magic Power to strengthen himself.
"Half a star? System, you're so stingy! I even had a blue elite in there! That was the first character I ever pulled — it's got sentimental value!"
[All calculations are based on the system's parameters. If the host wishes to gain more Magic Power, recycle higher-quality characters.]
"Fine, fine. I'm a generous guy, after all."
Recycle higher-quality characters? What a joke. He only had one little Ulquiorra — if he recycled him, who would he even fight with?
A gold character had a 1-in-100 chance — a guaranteed drop only after a hundred draws.
A simple calculation: each S-Class mission rewarded ten draws. That meant ten S-Class missions for one guaranteed gold character.
That was how rare they were.
Of course, such rarity was fitting for their power.
[Host: Kaien Blaze]
[Age: 18]
[Race: Human]
[Magic Power: ★☆]
[Magic: Take Over Magic]
[Character Card: Ulquiorra Cifer]
"One and a half stars of Magic Power… I should be able to unleash about one-tenth of Ulquiorra's strength for three minutes now."