13: Chapter 13 Arnor's Awakening (Part 1)

After leaving the Wanderer's Inn, Arnold walked with light steps toward the 19th District. The inn was near the city center, while the Orphanage was in the slums; he still had about an hour of walking to do before he would arrive.

However, filled with inner excitement, his steps were light, and his speed was exceptionally fast.

Today's experiences were like a dream. He had originally intended to follow an adventurer squad outside the city to hunt magical beasts, but an important member of the squad had something come up at the last minute and couldn't make it, so he had no choice but to return.

But despite all his calculations, he never expected to meet Loren on the way back.

Following that, he experienced a series of dreamlike events.

He had now changed his class to a Rare Class. Although he was still only a Bronze Low-rank, he was confident that his combat power was at least 50% stronger than before!

That was a Rare Class, and the great Lord Loren had bestowed it upon him just like that. That kind of trust made him incredibly resolute; in the future, even if he had to sacrifice his life for Lord Loren, he would not hesitate!

"Following Lord Loren in the future will surely allow me to earn more money, and this way, the Orphanage will be able to take in more children. It will definitely work."

Grinning foolishly, Arnold was filled with longing for tomorrow. He knew that man had changed his destiny.

He had even changed the destinies of the dozens of orphans in the Orphanage.

"Tomorrow will definitely be better. Come on, Arnold!"

In his excited state, Arnold's pace was much faster than usual.

One o'clock in the morning.

When Arnold returned to the 19th District, he suddenly sensed that something was wrong.

Because in front of the Orphanage, where few people passed by, there were now over a dozen thugs shouting loudly about something.

The dilapidated wall of the Orphanage was about two people tall, and the plaster had fallen off in large chunks, making it seem like it could collapse at any moment.

The gate was made of iron bars, allowing one to see the situation inside the Orphanage at a glance.

After Arnold approached, he saw several strangers wantonly capturing children inside the Orphanage; the entire courtyard was filled with the sound of children crying.

One of them was laughing as he kicked a five or six-year-old girl to the ground, causing the little girl's palms to be scraped and bleeding from the floor.

Seeing this scene, Arnold's eyes were filled with rage!!

Damn bastards!!

He lunged forward and roared angrily.

"What are you doing?!"

Hearing this sudden roar, the scene went quiet. The dozen or so thugs at the gate turned their heads sharply, and upon seeing that the small Arnold was alone, they not only didn't feel afraid but burst into laughter.

Just then, a burly man covered in tattoos, with two conspicuous scars on his face, walked out from the Orphanage.

He was holding a little girl whose hands and feet were bound and whose mouth was stuffed with a rag. The girl's aggrieved tears were falling like raindrops, leaving trails on her face.

Upon seeing Arnold, the little girl began to cry even harder, but because her mouth was stuffed, she could only make whimpering sounds, which was heartbreaking.

The burly tattooed man casually threw the little girl onto the ground, then stepped forward and looked down at Arnold with a condescending attitude, his face full of mockery.

"Look, look who this is? Isn't this the famous Lord Arnold? Tsk, tsk, tsk, what's the matter, didn't you go dig through the trash cans for food today?"

The other thugs laughed loudly.

"Lord Kerr, is this the Thief you wanted to recruit back then? This body—can he take one of my punches?"

"Hahaha, I bet he can maybe take two!"

"Get lost, kid, this isn't a place for you to meddle!!"

Looking at the little girl on the ground, crying in grievance without being able to make a sound, the anger in Arnold's heart surged to the point of almost losing control.

But the dozen or so people in front of him seemed to form an insurmountable chasm, making it difficult for him to protect the Orphanage where he had placed everything.

He forcibly suppressed his rage, recalling the memory inheritance he had obtained when he changed his class today.

Then, Arnold's body bent slightly, like a drawn bow. The dagger on his thigh had already been unsheathed, its cold, deep blade gleaming with a chilling light.

Staring fixedly at the burly tattooed man in front of him, his tone was icy cold.

"Kerr, the Orphanage is not a place for your Wild Dog Gang to run wild! Do you think Decker City has no City Guard?!"

Such blatant kidnapping of children from an Orphanage was something the Decker City City Hall absolutely would not allow; he did not believe the military would turn a blind eye to this.

But when the dozen or so thugs heard this, they laughed even more wantonly.

The tattooed Kerr sneered, glaring at Arnold. One sentence made his expression change drastically.

"Do you think I would dare come if I hadn't received permission from the military lords?"

"They are just children!! What on earth do you want by capturing them?!"

Arnold couldn't help but roar loudly. Seeing the little ones who were usually well-behaved being tied up, looking at him in despair with tears in their eyes, he felt as if his heart was being cut by a knife.

"What do I want? You talk too much!"

The tattooed Kerr gave a sinister laugh and waved his hand. The dozen or so people behind him immediately laughed and raised their wooden clubs, charging toward Arnold.

A child is worth 10,000 currency, tsk, tsk, tsk. There are 32 orphans in the Orphanage, that's 320,000!!

With this money, he could completely move to the commoner streets to develop and never come back to this godforsaken slum again. Here, there was nothing but stench and trash everywhere; it was worthless.

This lowly Thief also wanted to ruin his future? Seeking death!!

"Kill him, cut off his head and hang it on the gate!!"

Looking at the dozen or so murderous thugs in front of him, Arnold's heart trembled; his survival instinct made him want to run away.

He was only Bronze Low-rank, while Kerr, the leader of the Wild Dog Gang, was Bronze High-rank and had touched the threshold of Silver, not to mention that he also had a dozen or so Black Iron-rank and three or four Bronze Low-rank henchmen.

If he tried to force it, he would definitely die today.

But when he saw the little girl tied up on the ground looking at him with teary, blurry eyes, his heart tightened.

He clenched his hands tightly, as if he were about to squeeze out blood, and the veins on his face were bulging.

His wide eyes were full of pain, and his body was trembling uncontrollably.

The flames of anger completely ignited him.

"Lord Loren, I'm sorry, I won't be able to follow your orders in the future... Today, Arnold will fight for those bullied children."

Pair after pair of teary eyes made him stop his retreat. With a resolute posture, he cast aside his inner cowardice, gritted his teeth hard, and charged straight into the crowd.

After taking two steps, his body rapidly turned illusory, disappearing without a trace under the gaze of those thugs.

Shadow Thief B-rank skill, Stealth.

Huh?

The thugs who had rushed over in a rage were instantly stunned. Since when could a Bronze Rank Thief completely conceal his figure? Was this not a joke?

Puchi~

Just as they were stunned, a scream suddenly rang out. The thug who had rushed to the very front had blood gushing from his neck, spraying several meters high.

He fell to the ground and died.

Having killed an enemy, Arnold inexplicably felt a surge of energy rush into his body, and his strength seemed to have increased quite a bit.

This is?? Arnold was surprised and uncertain, but clearly, no one would answer his question at this moment.

After the first thug died, everyone saw a faint, blurry shadow retreating.

A limitation of Stealth: once a major action occurs, it will reveal one's figure.

Seeing their companion's death, the thugs were instantly enraged.

How dare this damn Thief?!

"Attack!! He can't stay invisible for long!!"

"I'm going to crush his skull!!"