I Am Really The Best Anti Hero In Another World!-System Of Anti Hero!
Chapter 35 - Special Ability

Chapter 35 - 35 - Special Ability

After the elders left, the old man stamped his foot and dragged himself away – a tongue click could be heard as he went – and the guards soon followed, taking Guang Ai away so that her wound could be treated.

In the room, only Noah and the Radiance family remained.

"Don't be mad at Ai... I don't think she meant any harm," said Sophia—a request that made little sense to Noah, since he knew that girl would never have touched him, not even in his sleep.

He had developed this ability since childhood, from the times he woke up beaten or passed out for similar reasons—a heightened sense of every danger near his body, extremely useful in battle to keep him from being caught off guard.

"Don't worry, I don't mind," he replied.

"Huh? I don't think that's true," Alice remarked with a smile. "You even crushed her wrist without any hesitation..."

"That... that wasn't intentional... And it wouldn't have happened if she hadn't tried to touch me when I wasn't looking."

"...It seems you do have exceptionally sharp senses," Arthur noted.

"...Yes... Ever since I was a child, actually," Noah smiled—a smile heavier than usual—and everyone noticed.

The weight of his words carried great significance, yet for the Radiance family it didn't seem to matter as much as it should. They assumed it was simply because Noah had lived in the Demon Beast Forest—according to him—so the existence of such an ability only made the story he had invented seem more credible—even if that wasn't his intention—since such a trait could only be acquired in extreme environments. Nonetheless, the real story would have been even more shocking.

"Now... I believe she mentioned something about the oven I asked them to buy, didn't she?" he asked while ignoring the pain of moving one of his hands behind his back.

"Y-Yes, about that..."

"We don't have the money for something like that at the moment," Alice declared, cutting off Arthur.

"Darling!"

"Mom, that's not it...!"

"Huh...? But I said I would pay."

The golden crystal in his hands, shining as though it contained sunlight itself, caught the attention of the Radiance family—it was beautiful yet unfamiliar—and Alice couldn't help but ask what it was.

"What...? But I was told that you use that as a currency."

"Well, it's similar, but... I've never heard of anything like that. The crystals we use are white, and there are also blue ones, I think, but I've only read about them in books," she explained.

[Golden crystals are not common in the lower realms—and if someone did happen to find one by chance in this realm, they certainly wouldn't know how to use it properly, thereby wasting its potential.]

"Alright, then... white, huh..."

Everyone sees the crystals and knows they're genuine—they can feel the energy each one emits—but a doubt prevents them from simply accepting this fact. After all, without a spatial pouch, there was no way Noah could have hidden those objects from them all this time.

"How...?" murmured Sophia, perplexed—the only one among the three who ended up letting her thoughts slip.

"Pardon?"

"...How did you make these things appear? You don't have any spatial pouch on you, I'm sure—after all, I—" she paused, embarrassed, but the furious glare from Arthur beside her seemed to force her to continue.

"What did you just say, Sophia...?" he asked in a serious tone. "Continue."

"...N-No, Dad, it's nothing... I just didn't notice while we were bringing him..."

"Hey, focus on the current situation!" said Alice, while pinching Arthur's waist, causing him to react—even if he didn't feel anything.

Noah cleared his throat:

— It's just a skill...

He said that, and after diverting his gaze, he added another lie:

— ...It was my uncle who taught it to me.

[Unfortunately, you rejected the permanence of the rewards function...]

[Otherwise, you'd be earning another one right now for keeping a lie standing in such a consistent way.]

"Does the Stellar Demon Wolf even have a skill like that...?" murmured Arthur in disbelief.

Unable to verify the truth of the matter, they had no choice but to accept and live with the uncertainty. People in that city aren't capable of approaching the Demon Beast Forest—let alone facing one of its most powerful creatures. The information they have comes from vague legends and poorly detailed books—a jumble of names and descriptions that convinces them that venturing near that place is unwise.

"How many crystals do you think will be needed to buy the oven?"

Upon hearing Noah's question, Arthur replied:

— It's hard to say... I believe I know where one might be obtained, but... I'm not sure we'd even be able to start discussing a potential purchase unless, at the very least, forty thousand white crystals were involved.

He said this with a serious expression, his mind deep in doubts and thoughts.

"Huh? Is it really that expensive?!"

[Your dedication is admirable!]

[Even when it's unnecessary, you always emphasize that you have no real social interaction.]

[That makes me want to reward you even more.]

'What the hell are you talking about?! I'm not doing this shit on purpose!'

Everyone thought so, but it was Alice who let that thought slip and ended up asking,

— How many other blue crystals do you have besides this one...?

"...I'm not sure..." Noah hesitated, searching for a number he felt was safe to say. In the pile there might be thousands or even millions, but he believed he shouldn't reveal that. "Only a few dozen, I guess..."

He laughed, thinking he had given a modest number. But he soon realized it was quite the opposite—the look on the three of their faces made it obvious.

"...You really have no idea how much money you have on hand, do you?" Alice questioned in disbelief.

"N–No, it's not that much..." he replied, pausing as he tried to decide how to continue. "In the forest, these things are normal—that's why..."

"...I see... Of course, coming from such a special place, you could never help but surprise us even for a minute, right?" Alice smiled, and her smile made Noah feel a bit relieved, thinking she had believed his words.

"So..." he continued, "maybe ten blue crystals would be enough...?"

"What?! No!" Sophia exclaimed. "That's too much!"

"Yes, I agree... I believe maybe five might be enough," said Arthur.

Even as they saw it with their own eyes—the glow and energy of the crystals—it was almost unbelievable that five blue crystals could simply appear in mid-air without any gesture at all.

"But... how much is each crystal worth exactly? I think it would be better to know, otherwise I might end up being deceived in the future."

Alice smiled in agreement:

— Yes, I believe you're right.

She paused for a moment before continuing,

— Well, I suppose you must have reached a similar conclusion, given the number of blue crystals we said are needed to buy the oven.

"Each blue crystal is worth twelve thousand white crystals, isn't it?"

"Almost. According to the books, each blue crystal is worth ten thousand white crystals."

"I see..." he observed the state of the room for a moment. "Well... if there are any extra crystals, you can keep them for yourselves."

Arthur retrieved the small pouch fastened to his waist and pointed its opening at the objects – all of them vanished, floating into the tiny bag where not even one crystal seemed like it would fit – and then he smiled as he said,

— As if we could... We're already in your debt.

On the other hand, Noah hadn't even heard a single word he'd said – he was too intrigued by that pouch to pay attention:

— What is that...?

He asked – but he didn't grab it because he wasn't able to stand up; his legs had locked in a meditative stance.

"A spatial pouch...? It's a family heirloom, passed from one leader to the next – there are a few others in the city that belong to the other major families. Some have even been sold at auction, but these were brought in from outside the city."

"...Is it possible to get one of those too?"

"I'm afraid not – the last one was sold more than ten years ago. Now, only when the folks in the Moonlit Night Hall decide to leave the city in search of more goods will there be a chance to acquire another."

"...But don't you have that technique?" asked Alice.

"Well, yes... but I believe it's better not to use it in front of other people. Judging by your reactions, depending on who sees it, that could lead to a very awkward situation."

"I understand... yes, I think you're right... But you're not leaving now, are you?"

Another pointed question – one that Arthur was extremely eager to know, and although Sophia wouldn't show it openly, she was too – yet neither of them had the courage to ask.

"No... I'll probably stay in this city for a while longer," Noah replied thoughtfully – his next steps were uncertain, as he had nowhere to go back to or even somewhere he wanted to go. Now, despite being free, he was completely alone, and contrary to his expectations, perhaps that wasn't so fun.

"Ah, yes, is it possible that you could arrange some martial arts for me to practice as well? That guy I fought used some techniques that seemed interesting, and it made me realize that I should learn something too."

"...You don't... you don't know martial arts, do you?" Arthur questioned skeptically – if the answer were affirmative, then his assumption would be correct – and Noah turned out to be much stronger than he had initially thought.

"N–No..." Noah diverted his gaze. "My uncle wasn't capable of teaching me that, so he only taught me how to meditate and gather Qi in my dantian..."

[....]

[Are you sure you don't want a reward?]

'Shut up, please...'

Search the lightnovelworld.cc website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.