My Living Shadow System Devours To Make Me Stronger

Chapter 1160: Chapter 1161: Rich Kids

When she reached the top, Ric was waiting for her.

He had never left.

A Thunder Staff rested in one hand, its barrel aimed toward the tunnel below, ready to fire if she needed help.

But that was the problem.

She hadn’t needed his help.

She had been more than powerful enough to bring absolute devastation upon them.

She was only a child...

...yet she possessed enough power to crush a mountain.

Unlike Ric, whose clothes were stained with drying blood, there wasn’t a single drop on Ranar’s body.

Her dress remained spotless.

Her golden hair slowly settled behind her as the light surrounding her faded.

Yet the fear in their eyes was impossible to miss.

Every rescued survivor.

Every child.

Even the two women they had just saved.

They all looked at her with dread.

Only Ric didn’t.

Ranar bit her lip and lowered her head.

Beyond the cliffs, the darkness was slowly retreating as the first rays of dawn stretched across the horizon.

Morning was finally coming after a night that had felt endless.

She hadn’t even had the chance to rest.

She just wanted to go home.

Home to her father.

Home to Eva.

She didn’t want to fight anymore.

For the first time...

...she finally understood what her father meant when he said there was no glory in war.

Only violence.

There was no honor to be found there either.

Only killers.

Ranar couldn’t help wondering if she had become one of the killers he spoke about.

This wasn’t justice.

Then again...

Eva always told her justice was difficult to define.

No one truly knew what justice was.

All they could do was protect the people they loved...

...and try to do right by others.

For a ten year old girl...

...it was too much.

She just wanted to be normal.

Nearby, Ric looked down at the blood covering his sword.

The metallic smell clung to him.

Victory...

...stank.

He wrinkled his nose.

He didn’t like it.

There truly was no honor for the victor.

Even so...

He looked at Ranar.

Without saying anything else, he walked over and gently took her hand.

"Thank you for saving us all."

He wasn’t sure if those words would help.

But he remembered something Damon always did.

Whenever someone helped him...

...he thanked them.

Sometimes, a simple thank you meant more than anything else.

Ranar lowered her head.

Her shoulders trembled slightly.

"...Mm."

She nodded once before quickly wiping away the tears gathering in the corners of her eyes, pretending no one had noticed.

The adventurer watched the two children silently.

Where had they come from?

From the clothes they wore...

From the equipment they carried...

They were clearly not ordinary children.

He cleared his throat before stepping forward.

"I am Gunter."

"I’m an adventurer around these parts."

He gestured toward the two women standing behind him.

"These two are with me."

The women nodded politely.

Both had black hair.

One wore hers cut short just above her shoulders.

The other had hers tied into a neat bun.

Their adventurer gear was torn and scorched, several cuts and bruises still visible across their arms.

Neither of them carried a weapon anymore.

Ric nodded.

"I’m Ric."

He pointed toward Ranar.

"And this is Ranar."

He then gestured toward the other children, each of them still clutching the Thunder Staffs he had handed out earlier.

"The rest are with us."

Gunter’s gaze lingered on the pair for a moment before he smiled.

"I see."

"You two aren’t from around these parts, are you?"

"Where are you from?"

The question sounded harmless.

Ric didn’t answer immediately.

Instead, he crossed his arms.

"We’re from around here."

"But I’d rather not talk about me."

He tilted his head slightly.

"Where are you from?"

"You seem like a strapping young hero."

He deliberately avoided mentioning they were from outside the mountains.

After everything they had learned about the City Lord forbidding people from leaving, it seemed wiser to stay quiet.

"Oh..."

"I see."

Gunter smiled, though he clearly didn’t believe him.

He decided not to press the issue.

Instead, his attention shifted toward Ranar.

"Your friend is incredibly powerful."

"She must have had an excellent teacher."

"And plenty of resources to become this strong."

His eyes drifted to the elegant dress she wore.

"What a beautiful dress."

"I’ve never seen fabric of that quality around here."

Ranar glanced down at herself.

She had never thought much about it.

This wasn’t even one of her nicer dresses.

It was simply something she had chosen to wear.

"I think it’s only worth about nine million zeni," she muttered.

Ric nodded as though it were perfectly ordinary.

"Yeah."

"That’s not expensive."

The three adventurers nearly stopped breathing.

Nine million zeni...

Not expensive?

With that amount of money, Gunter could buy a luxurious house in the capital, complete with servants.

He could purchase a fine carriage.

If he stayed in Anarchy City, he could build his own guild and hire followers.

These children...

...were completely desensitized to money.

’They’re rich.’

The thought crossed all three adventurers’ minds at once.

Even the rescued children stared at Ric and Ranar in disbelief.

Ric crossed his arms again.

"Now then."

"You’ll take us to Anarchy City."

"You know a safe route, don’t you?"

Gunter quickly nodded.

The boy’s tone was rather rude for someone speaking to an adult...

But after everything he had witnessed, that hardly mattered anymore.

"Yes."

"I know the way."

He glanced down at himself with a bitter smile.

"Unfortunately, our weapons and equipment were taken by those monsters."

Before he could finish speaking, Ric casually waved his hand.

Several swords, spears, shields, and complete sets of armor appeared on the ground in neat piles.

Each piece radiated high quality.

The craftsmanship alone made Gunter’s heart skip a beat.

They were worth millions on their own.

Only then did he notice the ring on Ric’s finger.

A spatial artifact.

His breathing caught.

He slowly bent down and picked up one of the swords.

"...A magical artifact."

His voice came out as little more than a whisper.

His eyes drifted across the piles of equipment lying before him.

Ric had plenty of things like these.

Back in the Tomb of the Lesser Gods, countless weapons and artifacts had simply been lying around.

Some had even been mass-produced by Renata and Lilith.

They had always told him he could take whatever he wanted...

...as long as he didn’t cause too much trouble.

Without realizing it, he had developed the habit of hoarding everything.

Damon never seemed to mind.

He was usually too busy trying to figure out how to release the dragon sleeping inside his shadow, Ashergon...

...and then steal all its treasures.

Gunter finally smiled, fastening the sword to his waist before equipping the rest of the armor.

"Well then..."

He looked toward the distant mountains.

"Shall we?"