Chapter 202: Strongest Mage.

This is the first chapter of the 5th volume. Please always follow the numbering of the chapter done by me eg.C202,C203.

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The Capital city of the sentro region was the crystallization of the Zorak family's authority, and it contained many sights which would make a person gasp in awe. One of them made just about every visitor to the Capital exclaim in wonder. That was — the fact that most of the carriages seen on the paved streets were not horse-drawn carriages but Mechanically enhanced magic carriages that did not require a mount to pull it. 

That was a sight which one could not see in the surrounding cities — other than the various other capital cities of the other Great Fives. Some of which were even more advanced than Blackwing. Of course, not every capital city in the Demon continent was this way. Even then, this  was only a subtle yet potent testament to the Great Five's strength and power, one which continuously impressed and intimidate the Lord of the other 65 regions in the continent.

However, even in the Great Five regions, there was always a few exceptional cities that almost rival the capital thus making more of a statement to the other Lords. 

In the case of the Sentro region, such an example was the border city— Winged City. While there were little to no Mech carriages to be seen in the streets of this city. The place was a major trade hub in the region and thus held spectacular locations and amenities that rival the capital.

Of particular note was the Central Plaza where the Merchant Guild and Hunter Guild were located. Leading to this plaza was Central Avenue, a major thoroughfare of the City, and much like other public streets, the center was for horses and carriages, while the sides were for pedestrian traffic.

The difference was that there were safety fences set up along the dividing lines between the parts for people and the parts for horses, mounts and carriages, in order to ensure the safety of pedestrians. Street lights sprouted on either side of the road, and they glowed with magical light after nightfall. Speaking of which, many knights that serve as the city's guards were on patrol, mindful of the safety of their surroundings.

For some unknown reason, it would seem the level of security in the city had increased drastically over the last few days and even the level of traffic the city faced had reduced a bit.

However, that wasn't something an ordinary individual should worry about as a  smiling man strolled casually along this road, the safest in the City, humming as he went.

The young man's height was roughly 5'9 feet, and then if he was human, he would appear to be around the age of 17.

His hair was dark green with two curved white horns protruding from with side of his head and his eyes were shining silvery white that made him appear strange. His skin had a healthy tan and he had a fairly handsome face. Apart from his eyes, his looks were hardly uncommon in this part of the region.

Although one could not say he was overly handsome, his smooth skin and baby face gave him a childish feel his demeanor and one could consider him adorable. However, he radiated a subtle charisma that did not match his looks. The source of that charisma seemed to come from the faint, yet lively smile on his face, as well as his confident and open gestures.

With every step he took, the sound of chain links clinking rang forth from beneath his spotless, high-grade clothing. He also had a black luxurious cloak draped over his shoulders but a sharp individual would still be able to tell that he wore a high-quality chain shirt underneath his magic clothing that should have more defensive capabilities than even an adamantine chain mail.

He also had a blade on either hip. Each was around the length of a short sword, well maybe shorter. They had round, fully enclosed knuckle guards, and while their sheaths were hardly exquisite in make, they were clearly not cheap stuff. However, any skilled swordsman or warrior would be able to easily tell that those weapons had not been used for a while and were merely meant as a distraction for his opponent.

An individual carrying several weapons on them was not an uncommon sight in the demon continent but even so, this young man attracted a fair amount of attention as he's walked in a carefree manner.

The reason why he was attracting so much attention was not because of the abnormally high level of his equipment. Nor was it because of his looks. It was simply because of the bracelet he wore on his left wrist. 

That bracelet had a metallic white plate on it that had the number 8 engraved on it. Indeed, it was a Tritanium Hunter bracelet that was given to the second highest ranking Hunters in the world. A rank 8 Hunter.

Moreover, this was not any ordinary Tritanium ranking Hunter even though such a thing could not be said to exist as there were only a few of them in the world. He was a lesser demon that was the most famous Hunter in Winged city as a member of a Hunting Party called Dominion.

Known as the strongest mage in the Sentro region. This man — Berot Dimzo — was a Tritanium ranked Hunter, and he was smiling.

"What to buy? What to buy?"

There were countless magic items that he wanted, but in the end, his top priority was a new defensive gear. It was hard to find high level magic items in the open market but even one of the highest ranking hunters, he had other ways of getting what he wanted and was only here for to restock on his supplies.

There was also one more thing. It was an unrelated matter, but there was something else that he wanted.

"I'll set aside the money for that… the rest can go to magic supplies for our next mission. Hm? Isn't that the wrong way around? I ought to buy the magic items first and save whatever's leftover for that. At least that's what a proper Hunter would do."

Berot scratched his head.

In that case—

"Since I made quite a bit on this mission, I should still have enough for those right? It would be a shame if I show up without them. I didn't think I'd be so busy that I'd forget to get them in the capital. Still, aren't things a lot costly these days? I still need to change my backup weapon. They've gotten so rusty I can't even pull them out of their sheaths, it would be bad if I were forced into a cover and can't rely on them. Umm... A low level magic sword might be best as they're not affected by rust even if I don't use them for years."

However, Magical equipment and weapons were very expensive and hard to find. High level items could be so expensive that Berot could not afford them even though he made a lot more than the lowest ranking nobles as a high ranking Hunter.

In any case, the defensive gear and weapon he needed were not that expensive for someone like him, but they still cost as much as years of an average person's wages. Although he could afford it, his different upbringing than most allowed him to carefully consider everything when making such a costly purchase.

As he looked forward to his shopping, his eyes met those of the City's guards standing by the roadside for an instant, and his smile suddenly froze. While most city's discriminated against Hunters, Winged city was not like that but as a well traveled Hunter, Berot still felt nervous whenever he locks eyes with a guard.

Moreover, the guards' current demeanor didn't seem friendly at all and he felt like he might've done something wrong.

A tag team of a heavily-armored knight and a lightly-armored knight stood at the street corner, surveying the surrounding conditions as though keeping their eyes out for something or someone.

Everyone knew that the Hunter guild was in the vicinity, and so security was especially strict here due to the unruly nature of most Hunters. While he doubted that they would arrest people off the streets especially some as renowned as him, Berot could sense their gazes resting on the weapons at his waist.

As their eyes moved along and landed on the bracelet on his left wrist, he had thought that would be all and they would move on but it continued to scan him until their gaze rested on his face and Berot's heart skipped a beat as though he was a criminal.

The gods seemed to have smiled on him because the guards just compared his face to a certain list he assumed was a wanted list, and continued on with their work as they did not stop him neither did they look at him the same way the citizens did.

. This was because even though he was stronger than them, he was still a lesser demon and thus was looked down upon by the guards who were pure demons.

Still, his reaction had been strange for a popular mage and that was because he held a guilty Conscience at the moment.

'Pheww... That was close. Why did I let those girls talk me into hiding that job from the guild? I may be a demon now but I'm not that shrewd you know.'

He grumbled internally as he continued on his way. After walking down the street full of shops for a while, he had achieved most of his goals and restored on supplies. There was a well renowned shop that sold magic items but their prices were overblown and he didn't get anything there aside for scrolls and low grade potions.

He would get his items from his usual sources and he had a fairly accurate idea of how much they would cost. The only unpredictable items were the supplies and scrolls that changed prizes almost daily. 

With a little mental calculation, he would have enough left to buy his comrades some very convincing souvenirs. He had spent a way longer time with his friends than he had anticipated so he had no choice if he wanted to appease them.

Today seems to be a good day for him as he found suitable items that had just arrived from the Far East so it was perfect. He quickly wrapped them up as he proceeded to the inn his party members should be staying.

Hunters always stayed closed to the guild for the sake of convenience and establishing connections with other Hunters. While there were a few inns around the Hunter guild, the best was the Duval inn so that's were high ranking Hunters like himself would usually stay.

Walking at a steady pace, he arrived at the massive inn pretty quickly and entered. The doors easily swung open as he rushed in hoping to surprise his friends who he had sensed were at the dinner.

However, as he hid his presence while rushing in through the doors before his friends could sense him. His legs suddenly tripped on a loose board as he stumbled into the hall and crashed into a young waitress who held a tray of drinks as she was busy with a order. His body pushed her down and the items she was holding crashed into him and spilled all over.

The heavy wooden and glass cups didn't hurt but the liquid had gotten into his eyes taking away his sight so he had to feel his way around. He attempted to get up without his vision when his hands suddenly grabbed something and he felt a certain soft and sinking sensation under his palms and instinctively squeezed what felt like a pair of large marshmallows.

His fingertips sank into the giant marshmallows and a light moan was heard. In an attempt to understand what was happening he continued his assault and the moan was followed by a high pitched shriek which told him that he may have just made a grave mistake and his face went pale.

"Kyaaaaah—!!!!! Pervert!"

"You dumb jerk!"

*BAMM!!!