Conquering The Novel

'Well, I am no longer concerned about Jessica being interested in this news and discovering my identity because she will be fairly busy with her work for at least a few months now,' I reasoned as I saw the news about me being broadcast.

"You've arrived, Sir Marz," The manager, Hong, exclaimed as he rushed towards me as soon as he spotted me.

"What's with all the commotion? I believe you understood how much I despise attention," I muttered, furrowing my brows. "Why am I in the news even before I've gotten my adventurer's license?" In a dissatisfied tone, I inquired.

"Haha, I'll explain everything. Please follow me to the VVIP room, there's someone waiting for you there," the manager said, sweating profusely.

"Hmm? Who is the person that is expecting me?" I inquired, perplexed.

"I-I think you'll understand when you see her," The manager responded by directing me to the VVIP room.

When we got to the VVIP area, the manager slowly opened the door and motioned for me to enter.

And as soon as I entered the room, I was greeted by a serious-looking brown-haired, blue-eyed woman seated on the sofa.

Her hair was styled in a neat bob and her blue eyes were piercing. Her outfit consisted of a navy blue suit jacket, matching slacks, and a white top.

She was carrying a teacup and saucer, which she quickly set down when she noticed me entering the room.

Her expression became distorted as she spoke, "So... he's the so-called youngest S-Rank adventurer?" she said in a displeased voice.

'Who the fuck is this bitch?" I pondered, disregarding her disapproving gaze and tone.

Maybe she's just a minor character with no importance in the plot,' I shrugged.

"Y-Yes, he is the youngest S-Rank adventurer, Marz," the manager said, turning to me and introducing the woman. "And Sir Marz, this is Miss Astrid, the third daughter of the Adventurer Association's president."

"Third daughter of the Adventurer Association's president, huh?" I paused, trying to recall if I had read anything about her.

"Nope, doesn't ring any bells," I responded, shaking my head.

The manager and a woman named Astrid were taken aback by my lack of recognition. The manager began to sweat again, while Astrid stopped sipping her tea and glared at me.

I ignored their reactions and took a seat on the sofa across from her, nonchalantly. Despite her intense gaze, I was unfazed and ready to find out what she wanted from me.

***

"So what do you need from me Miss...Astrid, is it?" I asked, trying to get straight to the point.

Astrid ignored me and turned towards the manager, her eyes narrowed as she spoke in a stern tone, "Are you absolutely certain that this young man is the youngest S-Rank adventurer? Or did he bribe you to receive this rank?"

!?

The manager stammered, clearly taken aback by the accusation, "I-I would never do such a thing, Miss Astrid! His rank has also been acknowledged by the president and higher-ups."

Astrid looked me up and down, a look of skepticism on her face. "I don't see anything special about him. I wonder if he can even lift a sword with those frail-looking arms of his. Even girls have stronger arms than he does."

I rubbed the back of my neck, feeling a bit annoyed about Astrid's remarks. I didn't want to get into any confrontations with her, and I didn't have time to teach her a lesson by beating the crap out of her.

But Astrid was not deterred, a smirk appearing on her face as she challenged me, "I heard that you use a sword proficiently. How about a duel? I am quite skilled with a sword myself, second only to Sir Ares in the younger generation."

"...I appreciate the offer of a duel, but I must refuse," I responded nicely.

"And regarding your previous comment about being the only one next to Ares in swordsmanship among the younger generation, I have to disagree. I've seen Ziona's mastery of the sword and I truly believe she is at least on equal footing with Ares, if not surpassing him," I remarked.

"...."

"H-Huh, this bastard, how dare you question my sword proficiency without even witnessing it firsthand?" Astrid retorted, unsheathing her sword and pointing it toward me.

"I don't need to see you use your sword to judge your abilities," I replied calmly. "One look at your delicate hands and I can tell that you don't put in the same level of training as Ziona does," I added.

Astrid's expression grew even more severe at my words, and it seemed like she was about to attack me at any moment.

"Miss Astrid, please calm down! The president sent you here to recruit him, not make him an enemy," the manager interjected frantically.

"We don't need someone like him in our family, and I doubt my father would want him either. In fact, he'd probably thank me for disposing of him," Astrid said with a sneer.

"B-But he's Miss Silvia's boyfriend! If anything happened to him, it could ignite a war between the Adventurer's Association and the Merchant's Association.

After all, we rely entirely on the Merchant's Association for all of our supplies," The manager reminded her of this.

"Tsk, Silvia was once engaged to Sir Ares. How could she have fallen so low as to date someone like him?" Astrid hissed and looked at me with contempt.

"Pftt, hahaha, this dumb bitch really doesn't know who she is messing with, huh?" I busted out laughing when I heard her remark.

"What? Did you go insane or—" Astrid was about to say something but her words were cut shot.

!?

As I vanished from where I was sitting and materialized beside her, holding her by the face with my hand before slamming it into the ground. Without even giving her any chance to react.

—Thud

"Arghh"

Where I pounded her skull, weblike cracks emerged on the ground.

I then released my grip on Astrid's face and took a step back, noticing she had lost consciousness and her eyes had turned white.

"...."

"Ha! She was speaking so confidently, yet she can't even take a single strike from me," I said, shaking my head in amusement, before turning to face the manager, who was staring at me in disbelief, mouth open.

"I'm not one for violence, especially when there's no need for it," I explained calmly. "Before things escalate, would you mind giving me my adventurer's license? I'd like to be on my way." With an innocent look, I said to the manager.

"...."

The manager was at a loss for words, evidently taken aback by my abrupt change in tone.

"Yeah, H-here take it!" He said after regaining his composure and passing me my adventurer license, which he took from his storage ring.

"Thanks!" As I grabbed the adventurer's license from his grasp, I remarked.

"You'll regret doing that to her!" he spat out and rushed towards Astrid.

"Oh, I highly doubt that," I replied calmly. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a business to attend to elsewhere," I said as I turned around and walked towards the door, leaving Astrid and the manager behind.

***