The rogue who stood beside him murmured. During a solid minute of trading blows, in a fight where Climb would’ve been killed immediately, neither took a single scratch. Zero showed signs of earnest respect on his face.

“Unglaus... You’re better than I thought. You’re the first one who blocked my attacks like this.”

Brain had equal signs of respect on his face.

“You, too... This is my second time seeing a monk of this calibre.”

“Oh-ho?”

Zero made a curious face.

“To think there was another monk on the same level as me. Never heard of him. What’s his name? Since I can’t hear it when you’re dead.”

“He’s probably coming here as we speak. After defeating your Six Arms.”

Zero frowned before smiling.

“Heh, you mean that old man? Unfortunately, my four trusty subordinates will be welcoming him. They might not be as strong as me, but they’re much stronger than Succulent. There’s no way he can come here.”

“Is that so? I can see him coming around the corner any minute now.”

“Oooh, I’m so scared. I guess in that case I should fight more seriously.”

Climbs eyes opened wide on that word. If Zero was holding back during an exchange with these kinds of blows, what would his true strength be like? He was also amazed that Brain showed no signs of surprise.

Both of them weren’t fighting with their full strength? This really is a battle between men who could rival humanity’s finest, the adamantium ranked adventurers!

“That would be best, Zero. Those two over there are done, so I don’t need to drag this out. You’re going to lose here, Zero.”

Brain sheathed his Katana and slowly lowered his stance. It was the same stance as yesterday, where he took down Succulent with a single strike. Before Climb could even wonder if Brain could take down Zero with a single strike, Zero jumped back. He had easily jumped a distance that was well beyond the limit of ordinary human strength.

“Edstrom can make a barrier with her swords, but you seem to have a different kind of a barrier. If I stepped in carelessly, I would be cut in half.”

He couldn’t completely figure out Brain’s original martial arts, but to be able to guess what kind of skill it was showed that Zero’s ability as a warrior was truly superior.

“But... It’s a skill you can’t use without taking a stance first.”

Zero thrust his fist in midair. It might have seemed like a meaningless move, but Brain’s body shook from shockwave made by the fist.

“I can win by just attacking you from a distance like this. Or do you have a way to cut someone who is far away?”

“No, I don’t.”

Brain answered honestly.

“If you fight like that, then all I need to do is not take that stance.”

Zero asked Brain quietly in an atmosphere almost not befitting him, in deep and calm state.

“Brain Unglaus, is that your trump card?”

“Of course. It’s my trump card that has only been defeated... once.”

“How boring. If it’s already been defeated, then this will be the second time.”

Zero slowly pulled his fist back and took a stance.

“I will break you head on. I’ll destroy that little skill of yours and win. First I’ll win against you, Brain Unglaus and one day I’ll make Gazef Stronoff kneel before me. Then I will be the Kingdom’s strongest.”

“If you think you can try using me as the first stepping stone for your ambition, you’re going to slip. You really must have nothing to do, Zero.”

“Talking really is the only thing you’re good at... No, since you got this far, that’s not strictly true. However, realize the fact that I am better than you in your grave. That it was foolish to challenge Zero-sama! Here I come!”

Zero’s upper body had tattoos of various animals, which were emitting a faint light. Comparatively, Brain did not move. He simply waited like a statue. Climb could feel he was about to feel massive amount of released power from both people.

A place where nobody could interrupt and raw power collided with raw power.

And suddenly a voice that was out of place could be heard:

“So this is the place where everybody gathered.”

Everyone was surprised and turned around to look at the intruder. Even Zero and Brain, who could not afford to take their eyes off each other, did so. An old man was standing there, it was Sebas. Someone Zero would’ve never expected to be here had appeared.

“What? What happened? The Six Arms should be taking care of you... Did you sneak past them?”

Sebas shook his head.

“No. All your comrades has been defeated.”

“...Don’t speak nonsense. They might be weaker than me, but they’re still the Six Arms. There’s no way you can come here unscathed after facing them.”

“Surprise often accompanies the truth.”

“Sebas-sama! The Tsuare here was a fake! It was Succulent disguising himself with an illusion. We need to rescue her now!”

“Ah, thank you for worrying about her, Climb, but there is no need to be concerned. I already rescued her. She was in a different part of the building.”

Sebas looked over his shoulder and Climb followed his gaze to find a woman covered in a blanket near the entrance.

“Ah!”

Climb quickly looked down at Succulent. His maid clothing was ripped in places and soaked in blood. There was no way to hand that over, nor would the receiving party want it.

“There’s no need to worry about it, Climb. It’s just regular maid dress, so it’s disposable.”

Climb felt relief and Sebas who was smiling bitterly.

“Oi, oi, oi. To just chatter on while ignoring me... You sure are gutsy.”

Zero, who couldn’t move carelessly due to Brain in front of him barely moved from his spot to look at Sebas with a hate filled expression.

“Old man, I’ll ask again. What happened to my subordinates?”

“—I killed them all.”

It was a casual tone, as if one was picking a flower, but it was also filled with coldness.

“N, no way! You think I’ll believe you?”

Sebas smiled at Zero’s scream. Sebas’ laugh without a single hint of hostility felt only truthful.