Chapter 9

Munchkin Skill Thief - Chapter 9 (9/223)

"That, that kind of taste."

In the meantime, murmurs spread.

People who had seen Kraush's kick were beginning to gather, curious about the current situation.

The boy wore a flustered expression.

He had acted out of sudden anger, but he knew that what he had done was not right.

"I, I was just following Princess Clodia's orders!"

At that, feeling the pressure of the situation due to his young age, he blurted out the name of the person who had given him the task.

At that moment, the murmurs ceased.

The noble children began to back away, whispering.

Kraush mulled over the name and soon recalled one person.

'Clodia Staron.'

The name of the second princess of the Staron Kingdom.

Why would the princess call Bianca?

"Princess Clodia ordered me to bring Bianca to her seat, but she kept refusing, so I had no choice but to take her! It's a royal command!"

Royal command, my ass.

A mere princess doesn't have the power of a royal command.

However, refusing a princess's order as a noble is not a good position to be in.

Especially among female nobles, it's even worse.

'But why Bianca specifically?'

Bianca is also the youngest daughter of Hadenharts, the northern conqueror.

However, due to the curse, she is not highly regarded among the nobles.

Indeed, there were many who looked down on Bianca.

The princess, who likes to mingle with her loyalists, called her?

Honestly, it didn't make sense.

Then, a past memory flashed through Kraush's mind.

'Anix.'

The eldest son of the Graiza family, known as the Archer.

Kraush's frown deepened as he thought of him.

Because Anix was the one Clodia, the second princess, was infatuated with.

In fact, over time, due to Clodia's passionate pursuit, they even got married.

However, Anix had one significant flaw.

'Remembered. That guy was incredibly obsessed with my sister.'

At the Celestial Sanctuary, Anix faced Charlotte and was utterly defeated.

The one who had been called a genius and had always been successful in the Graiza family was completely shattered by Charlotte.

His pride was utterly destroyed.

The problem was that his shattered pride took a wrong turn.

Anix hated and despised Charlotte.

Naturally, as she was the one who destroyed his genius.

But he also admired her strength.

As a genius himself, he wanted to be like her.

As a result, over time, this admiration turned into a mix of love and hate.

It seemed that this fire had also spread to himself and Bianca.

'He thought that if he brought Bianca, he could also bring me.'

Since he couldn't do anything to Charlotte.

He must have tried to touch her younger brother.

"Huh."

Kraush let out a sigh and slowly brushed his bangs.

This was a gesture he made when he was angry.

'Even so, why mess with Bianca?'

Kraush's eyes openly showed his anger, making the noble boy flinch.

He seemed to be embarrassed that he had shown fear in Kraush's eyes and frowned deeply.

Even if he was a direct descendant of the Balheim family, Kraush was younger than him.

Moreover, he was known as a half-penny of Balheim.

The rumor that Balheim had expelled him was now common knowledge.

Though he didn't want to cause trouble for the sake of Balheim.

Kraush himself was just a powerless kid.

"You, you!"

"What?"

"Ah, no."

The boy, about to shout, changed his words when Kraush glared at him.

Kraush's fierce gaze made him lose his nerve.

"Let's go."

At that moment, the boy looked up, hearing Kraush say he would go.

If he failed to follow the princess's order, he would surely be expelled from her loyalists.

So, when Kraush spoke, the boy's face lit up.

"Instead of going to Princess Clodia, I'll go to Anix."

"Anix, why?"

Kraush clicked his tongue at the self-proclaimed loyalist.

"Do you not know who asked the princess to give this order? You really have no discerning eye."

Well, with no discerning eye, he would be charmed by someone like Anix.

Realizing that Kraush was belittling him, the boy's face turned red, but Kraush grabbed Bianca's hand.

He started walking with Bianca, thinking that leaving this kid alone would just cause more trouble.

Then, something occurred to Kraush.

"Bianca."

"Yes?"

"Even though it was the princess's order, why didn't you go?"

No matter how clever Bianca was for her age, she was only 12.

He, as a regressive, knew all the circumstances and understood the situation.

Bianca didn't know how Kraush and Anix's relationship was intertwined.

So why did she refuse the princess's order?

"Because Kraush-sama told me to wait here."

Kraush blinked.

Did she prioritize his words over the princess's order?

Kraush stared at the expressionless Bianca for a moment, then raised his other hand to pat her head.

"Well done."

He needed to praise her for listening well.

Due to her small head, Bianca's head swayed with Kraush's pat.

Kraush smiled and took his hand away.

The unpleasant feeling from earlier seemed to have subsided a bit.

His mood had improved.

Let's settle things with Anix.

＊ ＊ ＊

Anix was not far from the main party hall.

Given the time that had passed, the noble children were likely enjoying their own time.

Thus, the place where Anix was was none other than a terrace with a view of the outside.

As Kraush arrived at the entrance to the terrace, he met a familiar face.

A boy with a tiger-like pattern on his skin.

Barak Hogma.

Anix's subordinate, he stood at the entrance to the terrace.

He blinked his cat-like eyes at the sight of Kraush.

"Hey, hey! Nice to see you!"

At his sudden greeting, Kraush gave him a cold stare.

Barak is a swordsman who can wield two swords with ease.

While he is skilled, he has a few personality issues.

To describe him:

An unpredictable explosive.

He is a very difficult person to handle.

Barak, who is unpredictable and a bit of a wild card.

He is, in a word, a unique individual.

"I came to see Anix."

Kraush wanted to pass by without any conflict.

Dealing with Barak was a headache.

"Yeah! Anix said to let you in if you came!"

Fortunately, it seemed Anix had given prior instructions.

"Alright, then."

"But I don't like it!"

Just as Kraush was about to touch the terrace door handle, Barak blocked his way.

Being only a year younger, Barak was at eye level with Kraush.

Barak's face, visible to Kraush, was grinning.

"I'm also interested in Kraush!"

"I'm not interested in men."

"Huh? You only like women?"

Barak tilted his head, not understanding.

Kraush felt a headache coming on.

"So?"

"Let's fight!"

Kraush had a feeling it would come to this.

Barak was a battle maniac who, when Charlotte came to the Celestial Sanctuary, fearlessly challenged her.

Of course, he was utterly defeated, but unlike Anix, he didn't dwell on the loss.

He enjoyed the fight itself.

So, it was natural for him to want to fight Kraush, a member of Balheim like Charlotte.

"This is the Celestial Sanctuary. Fighting is forbidden."

"But I fought with Charlotte! I want to fight you too! You seem weaker than her, though."

Comparing himself to a star standing at the peak of Staron.

Kraush thought for a moment.

He considered ignoring Barak and opening the terrace door.

But given Barak's personality, he wouldn't easily move aside.

And Barak wasn't weak.

'On the same Expert level as me.'

Barak is slightly higher in rank.

But Barak's real problem is his innate battle sense.

His unpredictable nature is reflected in his fighting style, and he was the one who lasted the longest against Charlotte.

Though only 3 seconds longer than Anix.

'I don't want to fight this guy when I need to meet Anix.'

Barak's eyes showed he wouldn't let Kraush pass.

"Alright."

So, Kraush accepted.

"Thanks!"

Whoosh!

Kraush immediately threw a punch at Barak, who was thanking him.

The punch, filled with aura, reached Barak's nose, but he dodged with incredible reflexes, tilting his head back.

Barak's flexibility, bending his back to the point where his head almost touched the ground, was impressive.

But before he could spring back, Kraush kicked his legs.

Thud!

Barak floated in the air from the kick.

Kraush's elbow followed, striking Barak's abdomen.

Bang!

Barak was knocked to the ground by Kraush's attack.

As Kraush silently watched Barak, he suddenly did a backflip and got up.

Barak, who had wrapped his arms around his abdomen for protection, began to sparkle.

"Merciless, huh?"

"You challenged me to a fight."

Kraush stretched his neck.

Kraush is a half-penny.

His skills were so poor that he could only do cursed shuttles in the Sky Generation.

However, he survived until the end.

One reason was that he didn't stand on the front lines.

Another was that he struggled to survive and eventually gained a weak martial skill.

At least enough not to be beaten by kids.

Of course, in reality, he would be outmatched by their talents when they grew up.

But that means he wouldn't lose now.

"Great! Great! Let's keep going! I want to bring my weapons too!"

"Sure? But I don't think we need to keep going."

As Barak excitedly shouted, Kraush coldly replied.

Suddenly, blood gushed from Barak's nose.

"Huh?"

At Barak's confused expression, he rolled his eyes back and collapsed.

Seeing this, Kraush shook his hand, and Bianca tilted her head.

"How did you do that?"

"It's a secret technique."

The name of the technique is:

Cun Jing (寸勁).

A secret technique devised by the former half-pennies of Balheim, capable of delivering the strongest destructive power from the shortest distance.

It was also a technique Kraush had learned from a single book in the secret library of the Qing Song Hall, which had burned down.

Kraush had overcome countless life-threatening situations thanks to this technique.

So, it was the technique he used best.

"It's a technique with many conditions to use."

If those conditions are met, it can penetrate armor and strike the inside.

When Kraush's elbow hit Barak, he had already used Cun Jing.

The impact, despite being blocked by Barak's arm, was transmitted internally, shaking Barak's insides.

"Ugh, ugh."

Barak twitched a few times but couldn't get up.

If he had defended with aura, it might have been different, but being hit by Cun Jing with his bare body was a natural result.

Kraush opened the terrace door and walked in.

There, a man and a tall woman stood by the terrace railing.

The man was Anix Graiza of the Archer.

The woman was Elfin Emiliana, another of Anix's subordinates.

Elfin glanced at Kraush and walked past him.

She seemed to be heading to the fallen Barak.

Kraush stepped aside, and Anix smiled with drooping eyes.

"Surprised to see you knock Barak down like that."

This guy had known Barak would challenge Kraush but still placed him at the entrance.

Kraush glared at him, thinking he was a despicable person.

"I thought you were trying to call me by having Princess Clodia invite Bianca to her seat. So, I came here myself."

"You figured that out?"

Anix showed a genuinely surprised reaction.

He stroked his chin, puzzled.

"Seems different from what I heard. Interesting. Maybe the rumors were wrong?"

"If the rumor is about me being a half-penny, then it's true."

Kraush didn't deny the past rumors.

He didn't care about them.

The world's destruction was approaching, and the Sky Generation couldn't be protected.

He needed to get stronger, not worry about rumors.

"However, if you hit me today, the rumor will change a bit."

Kraush knew better than anyone that if he got stronger, the rumor would naturally change.

And Anix was a promising kid who could help change that rumor.

'I plan to steal his skills.'

He was also part of the Sky Generation and one of Kraush's targets.