Chapter 33: Never Get Complacent!
Bruce and Sophie stepped out of the house and started down the clean stone street, morning sunlight spilling over Velmora like golden silk. Merchants were opening stalls, awakened patrols were already moving, and beast-drawn carriages rolled past alongside sleek cars humming gently as they drove past.
"So," Sophie said, walking beside him with her hands lightly clasped behind her back, "what rank do you think you will reach in the trial?"
Bruce glanced at her. "Rank?"
"The Adventurer ranking," she clarified. "The higher your combat evaluation during the trial, the higher the starting rank they give you. Average Awakened of E and D get Bronze Rank. Talented ones of C rank get Silver. And the elites like me who are newbie awakened with high ranks of B and C start at Gold. While strength matters, IQ and performance in the trial are another deciding factor."
"And what do you think I will get?" Bruce asked casually.
Sophie looked at him slowly and a faint, proud smile curved on her lips. "There has never been a newbie like you, having S-Rank only twenty-four hours after awakening, so it is hard to say. If they do not give you Platinum, I will personally burn their evaluation center to the ground."
Bruce blinked, then chuckled. "You are insane."
"I am honest." She looked unreasonably proud of that.
They turned down a busier road. People stopped and stared, whispering. It was not Bruce they were staring at. It was Sophie. Or more specifically, the way she walked beside him like he belonged by her side.
Sophie did not pay the attention any mind. Instead, she asked, "So why do you want to test your strength before the trial? You already know you are strong. You are S-Ranked."
"I want to measure it," Bruce replied. "If I know my limits, I will know how to break them."
Sophie glanced at him, longer this time. There was a flicker in her eyes, something like admiration mixed with something softer. "You are really obsessed with getting stronger, are you not?"
Bruce did not answer immediately. Instead, he looked up at the sky where a giant floating magic dome shimmered over the city.
"I have people to protect," he said simply.
Sophie slowed just a little, not enough to be obvious, but enough for her steps to fall in line with his more deliberately. Her voice softened.
"Then I am glad," she said quietly. "Because I will be right beside you. No matter how far you go or how strong you get, I will try my best to keep up."
Bruce glanced at her. Her red eyes reflected the morning sun. Beautiful, fierce, and unwavering. He did not know how to feel or what to say.
He did not say anything, but something in his gaze shifted. A silent acknowledgment.
Then Sophie clapped her hands once. "Alright. Enough intense talk. Training hall first, world domination later."
A taxi was driving in the direction they were headed. She flagged it down and the driver unlocked the door from inside.
The two of them got in and the door slid shut behind them with a soft hiss.
"Where are you headed?" the driver asked lazily, not even glancing back.
"Supremacy Training Hall," Sophie replied.
The man stiffened. His eyes flicked to the rearview mirror, scanning them again. The change in his expression was subtle, but obvious.
Anyone headed to the Supremacy Training Hall was not ordinary.
"That will be two gold coins," he said more politely this time. "Mana taxis drain fast on long-distance runs."
"Go," Bruce said calmly, already pulling out the coins.
Sophie glanced at him. He did not even hesitate to pay. Part of her wanted to protest, not because she minded, but because she was not used to letting anyone do things for her. But she did not say anything.
For some reason, it did not feel wrong when it was Bruce. Well, it did not matter who paid. With his heal ability she knew he could easily replenish lost money.
Mana flared faintly as the driver infused the steering wheel and engine core with mana energy. The taxi hummed and then shot forward.
This mana car used for taxi is one of the cheapest versions in this world, utilizing mana as fuel.
There are other versions that utilize mana crystal, even beast cores. Those ones hover like hover cars and are even faster than this slower version of mana cars used for taxi.
While this taxi version is slower, it is still very fast, capable of achieving one thousand meters per hour at its highest speed.
Meanwhile, they moved quickly, streets blurring past in a streak of stone, steel, and magic light. Towering mana furnaces powered entire districts. Enforcers in enchanted armor patrolled sky rails. Billboards made of floating runes shimmered with advertisements: academy tournaments, dungeon expeditions, guild recruitments.
Bruce watched the city pass by with quiet curiosity.
Sophie watched him with a smile. "This Empire is beautiful, is it not?" she said. "If you ignore the dungeon outbreaks, cultists, monster threats, political assassinations, and corrupt nobles trying to kill you."
Bruce smiled. "So just another day in paradise."
"Exactly."
For a few moments, they sat in silence, but it was not awkward. It was strangely comfortable.
Eventually, Sophie spoke again. "You really meant it, did you not..."
"What?"
"When you said you wanted to test your strength. Most with your level of strength get complacent."
Bruce shrugged slightly. "Only fools move blindly and think achieved strength is enough. It is never enough. I do not intend to die young."
After Vaelith had opened his eyes, Bruce knew that there are beings that could erase the entire Velmora with just a will. He had sworn never to get complacent.
"That makes two of us," Sophie said. She leaned her head back, crimson eyes half-lidded. "If you die, I will just drag you back and beat you for leaving me behind."
Bruce raised a brow. "Who said anything about leaving you behind?"
Sophie looked out the window too quickly, to hide the smile tugging at her lips.
The taxi cut through streets, slipping into a high lane reserved for registered awakened. It sped past the outer commercial ring and crossed into higher ground, toward the noble district, where ancient architecture fused with mana technology.
The driver stole another glance at Bruce and Sophie and swallowed.
’Who the hell is this kid, walking casually with Sophie Reign like it is normal?’
***
A/N:
100 powerstones and 20 Golden Tickets before Sunday and I promise to mass release 5 chaps this sunday...