The young man ignored the screams as he threw his opponent toward the second man, charging at him. All the intense movement had made his glasses fall to the ground, but he seemed unbothered as he continued fighting.
The second man had been thrown off-balance, and as he was regaining his footing, the third man launched a fist at the stranger, which was easily deflected. Now that he had an opening for an attack, the young man swiftly and fiercely thrust his hand at the third man’s throat. The move crushed the man’s throat, and he toppled to the ground in agony.
During that time, the second man had regained his footing and was now charging at the young man. He threw a punch, which the young man easily caught. This shocked him, but he immediately launched a second punch with his other hand. Once again, the young man easily caught his fist, glaring at his opponent as he slowly squeezed and crushed the second man’s fists. Unable to bear the pain, the second man began screaming before finally collapsing to his knees.
Still gripping his fists, the young man slammed his opponent onto his back so he was lying face up on the ground, then stomped on his stomach. The blow to the abdomen appeared to be too much to counter, and the second man remained on the ground, writhing in agony.
The young man had dealt with the three men in a matter of seconds. Anyone watching wouldn’t have even processed what was happening before he’d taken them all down. His opponents were now all on the ground, visibly and audibly in pain.
The leader’s eyes widened in shock at what had just happened. He was frozen as if he’d seen something unbelievable. On the other hand, the young man seemed composed as he picked up the glasses he’d dropped, wiped the lenses clean, and put them back on. He then gave the remaining man a sharp glare.
“I wouldn’t further sully myself by speaking to you again. Leave.”
The last member of his group standing, the leader shook with anger as he pulled out a dagger and charged at the young man.
“Who the hell do you think you are?! I’m a member of the nobility! I’m the son of Count Galliano! You’re not going to get away with this!!!”
The young man was completely undaunted by the man’s scream, and he dodged the attack with the dagger. As he did, he kicked the dagger out of his opponent’s hand. The man screamed in pain as his dagger flew through the air.
The young man’s movements were smooth as he quickly closed the distance between himself and his cowering opponent, and he grabbed the nobleman’s face with one hand. He then used the momentum he’d built up to throw him to the ground. With his adversary on his back, the young man crouched down beside him.
The impact of being slammed onto the ground had made the man scream in pain, and he was now drifting in and out of consciousness. The young man showed not even the slightest bit of concern toward his clearly outdone opponent and looked up at the dagger in the air. In an instant, he calculated where it would fall and grabbed it out of the air. He held the dagger in a reverse grip and swung it down at the man’s face.
Though the man’s consciousness was fading, he hadn’t passed out. The moment he woke up a bit, the first thing he saw was the young man swinging his own dagger at him. The man immediately understood that this was the closest he’d ever been to dying, and the fear of death made him pathetically cry out in a manner that belied his behavior until that moment.
“Aaaaagh! Don’t kill me!!! I’m the son of Count Galliano! I’m Rogus Gallianooooo!!!”
“Like I said earlier, I won’t sully myself by speaking to you!”
With the dagger in a reverse grip, the young man mercilessly swung down at Rogus, aiming for his face. The next moment, the metallic sound of a blade striking the ground resonated. The impact shattered the blade, and only the handle was left in the young man’s hand.
Rogus had broken down into a sobbing mess when faced with the fear of death, and he was now unconscious with a pathetic expression on his face. The young man had swung the dagger at the ground, just barely avoiding his face. Once he confirmed that Rogus had passed out, he stood up. With an exasperated expression, he tossed the handle of the dagger onto the man.
The young man tidied his appearance, which was in disarray from the intense action that had taken place. As he put himself back together, he glared at the three lackeys who were slowly getting back to their feet.
“Take this man and leave this place at once,” the young man ordered. “I won’t repeat myself.”
The brawny men had all lost the will to fight, and they were cowering in fear of the young man. One of them picked up the unconscious Rogus and swung him over his shoulder, then they left the young man and young woman, visibly terrified as they fled.
Once the men were completely out of view, the young man took a deep breath, turned to the young woman, and smiled.
“Phew... You no longer have anything to worry about, my lady. Were you hurt at all?”
“Oh, um, I...”
The young woman was having trouble responding. She was still trembling and looking down. It was only moments ago that she had been surrounded by brutish men attempting to assault her. She was surely still terrified of what had happened, so the young man remained gentle and kind in tone as he spoke to her once more.
“You’re all right now, my lady. I will continue protecting you until you are home safe. May I ask where your home is so I may prepare a carriage to take you there?”
The noblewoman still wouldn’t respond. Concerned, the young man attempted to get a look at her face. But before he could, she looked up, her eyes filled with tears, and she leaped into his arms.
“I was so scared,” she admitted between sobs. “It was so terrifying! I desperately tried to call for help, but no one was coming! I truly believed I wouldn’t be saved.”
“I see. You were incredibly brave, my lady. I was only able to come to your aid because you so gallantly faced your foes. You should most definitely praise your own efforts.”
She was listening to the young man’s words, but she didn’t respond and continued sobbing into his chest. Understanding that she must have been terrified out of her mind, he gently placed his hand on her shoulder and silently waited until she calmed down.
The woman sobbing in his arms had red hair that was tied up in a bun at the back of her head, and her bangs seemed to be purposefully long to hide her face. Her clothes also seemed quite simple for a young noblewoman.
Judging from her appearance, she might be the daughter of a baron, the young man thought. That Rogus guy probably used his higher status as the son of a count to force himself on her.
He was well aware that nobles were still humans, and that meant that some members of the nobility were scum. Though such occurrences were unavoidable, when he looked at the young woman crying in his arms, he found it completely unforgivable.
The young man felt rage swelling within him, but he kept his emotions inside and continued smiling softly at the young woman until she stopped crying.