Julia's gaze shifted again.
It settled on the dark-haired boy standing a short distance away.
For a brief moment, she simply observed him.
Despite the fatigue clinging to his posture, he stood naturally straight, shoulders relaxed, weight evenly balanced. His red eyes were calm, almost indifferent, yet there was a sharpness beneath them that didn't escape her notice.
…And he was quite handsome.
Not in a polished noble way.
But in the rough, dangerous way that made people look twice without realizing why.
Julia narrowed her eyes slightly.
"Who are you?" she asked.
Arthur let out a tired breath, rubbing the side of his neck.
"Someone who didn't want to come," he replied flatly, "but got dragged here anyway."
As he spoke, he glanced toward Aaron.
Aaron scratched the back of his head, laughing awkwardly.
"Haha… yeah," he said. "That's him."
He pointed at Arthur.
"This is the person who helped me, Julia. His name is Arthur."
Julia's expression changed immediately.
She stepped forward and bowed slightly toward Arthur, a respectful inclination of her upper body. It wasn't exaggerated, but it was sincere.
Behind her, every Valemont guard mirrored the gesture in perfect unison.
"My family and I are deeply grateful for your help," Julia said. "We will never forget what you did for my brother."
Arthur blinked once.
Then shrugged.
"Yeah," he said. "Remember those words. I might need them someday."
Julia smiled faintly.
"You may come to us for help anytime," she said without hesitation. "If you need money, a place to stay, protection—artifacts, skills, anything at all—House Valemont will provide it immediately."
"You can tell us about your family we can also support them if you want."
As arthur said " I don't have a family , I live alone"
As julia said "sorry about that."
As arthur said "don't worry about it"
Arthur waved a hand dismissively.
"I don't need anything else, Just take him away."
He looked at Aaron.
"Goodbye."
And immediately started walking backward, clearly trying to escape.
Aaron's eyes widened.
"That's it?! Not even a hug?!"
Arthur spun around mid-step.
"I already told you to keep ten meters of distance from me," he yelled. "Now go away before I call for a restraining order!"
A vein popped on Aaron's forehead.
Julia burst out laughing.
"He's quite arrogant for an F-ranker," she said, amusement dancing in her eyes.
Aaron crossed his arms.
"Yeah," he admitted. "But he's a good guy."
Julia nodded.
"I'm sure he is."
They turned, preparing to leave.
Then—
A figure stepped into Arthur's path.
Pink hair.
Cold gray eyes.
A presence sharp enough to make the air feel heavier.
"You," a woman said loudly. "Become my disciple."
Julia froze.
Her mouth fell open.
"…What?"
—
As Arthur walked away, shoulders sagging.
'Finally,' he thought. 'I can eat in peace.'
Then—
His path was blocked.
A shadow loomed in front of him.
"You," the voice repeated, louder. "Become my disciple."
Arthur stopped dead.
'God,' he thought tiredly. 'Whatever I did wrong in my past life, why won't you let me eat in peace?'
He slowly turned his head toward the voice.
His eyes widened.
'…What the hell is she doing here?'
The system's voice echoed in his mind.
[ Why? What's wrong with her? That woman looks strong. ]
Arthur swallowed.
'Strong?' he thought. 'That's an understatement.'
'That's Yuna Akatsuki.'
'A battle maniac with an unquenchable hunger for martial arts.'
'She searched the entire world for someone who could defeat her using pure technique.'
'In the future, she went toe-to-toe with the strongest existences alive… and even defeated some of them.'
'In the game, she taught the main character for a while.'
'But once she became so powerful that no one could match her in martial arts—'
'She challenged one of the Dark Lords.'
'She lost.'
'And instead of dying, she submitted herself to him.'
'Not out of fear.'
'But just to keep fighting stronger opponents.'
'Whether it was destruction or slaughter… even using women as tools—she did his dirty work without hesitation.'
Arthur's stomach tightened.
'This woman is bad news.'
'We need to get away from her as far as possible.'
Then her voice came again—low, calm, and menacing.
Yuna's gray eyes narrowed slightly.
"You know who I am, don't you?" she asked. "You should be honored that I'm offering to teach you myself."
Arthur met her gaze.
He forced himself to stay calm.
'Breathe… don't get dragged in just because she's strong.'
"No," Arthur said calmly. "I don't know you. And sorry, but I cannot become your disciple."
A faint murmur ran through the onlookers.
Yuna tilted her head.
"And why is that," she asked, "if I may?"
Arthur took a slow breath.
"Well, for starters," he said, "I'm someone with F-rank potential."
"Oh? Is that right…" Yuna replied.
Her eyes glinted.
"And how do I know you're not lying?"
"You can check for yourself," Arthur said.
Yuna clapped her hands once.
A hotel staff member—a young woman in uniform—hurried over.
"How can I help you, Miss Yuna?" she asked.
"Bring a device that can measure someone's potential," Yuna said.
"Right away."
The girl ran off and soon returned with a mana-measuring orb—a smooth, translucent sphere mounted on a metal base. Faint runes pulsed along its surface.
"Put your hand on it," Yuna ordered.
Arthur stepped forward and placed his palm on the orb.
Mana flowed.
The orb flickered.
Then a clear reading appeared above it in glowing text.
[ Potential: F ]
Yuna clicked her tongue softly.
"Too bad," she said.
Arthur let out a small, humorless laugh.
'Yes,For the first time, I'm actually glad my potential is F-rank.'
A beat of silence.
Then—
"Pfft—"
Two maroon-haired twins and the auburn-haired boy beside them suddenly burst into laughter.
"Hahaha! F-rank? Seriously?"
"And here we thought you were something special because Miss Yuna asked you herself."
"Turns out you're just another weakling putting on a show."
Arthur's ignored them.
Before he could react, a sharp voice cut in.
"Watch your mouths."
Julia stepped forward, eyes cold as ice.
"That's our benefactor you're talking about," she said. "Didn't your mother teach you any manners?"
The twins went silent for a moment, faces stiffening.
Arthur lifted a hand slightly.
"Leave it," he said. "Their teacher is obviously inconsiderate as well."
His eyes slid to Yuna.
"So why would they be any different."
The crowd sucked in a breath.
Yuna's eyes widened.
Then a smirk tugged at her lips.
'Did this twerp just insult me…?'
The auburn-haired boy stepped forward, face dark.
"Did you just insult Miss Yuna and us?" he demanded.
Arthur smiled faintly.
"Did it look that way to you?" he asked.
His gaze swept over the boy.
'D-rank, probably,' Arthur judged.
"Enough, Moris," Yuna said suddenly. "Leave it."
She exhaled.
"He's right," she added. "I was inconsiderate."
She looked at Arthur.
"Forgive me."
Arthur blinked.
"Apology accepted," he said simply.
He turned and began to walk away.
For a moment, everything seemed like it would end there.
Then Moris opened his mouth again saying loudly.
"Tch. Figures," Moris sneered loudly. "What else can you expect from an F-rank orphan without even a sirname?"
Snickers followed.
"He probably doesn't even know who his parents are."
"Trash like that should be grateful anyone even talks to him."
Arthur's steps stopped.
The air around him chilled.
His eyes slowly flared with a deeper, more dangerous red.
He turned around.
And began walking back toward Moris.
[ Host, stop, ] the system said quickly. [ Don't do that. You said it yourself—that woman is crazy. Control yourself. ]
Arthur didn't answer.
His footsteps echoed against the floor.
A notification flickered at the edge of his vision.
[ Skill Activation: Berserk (A-Rank) ]
A pulse of power surged through his body.
Heat flooded his veins.
His heart pounded like a war drum.
His muscles tightened—denser, heavier, overflowing with strength.
His vision sharpened.
The world slowed.
[ Berserk (A-Rank) - Activated.
Effect:
• All physical and mental stats increased by 500%
• Pain greatly reduced
• Reactions, focus, and aggression sharply enhanced.
Duration: 30 minutes
Cooldown: 3 hours ]
Arthur's expression did not change.
But inside—
Something snapped into focus.
He stopped an arm's length away from Moris.
Moris scoffed.
"Now what do you want, pretty boy?" he said. "Go back, or I'll kick your ass, you orph—"
He never finished the word.
Arthur's fist moved.
No warning.
No wind-up.
Just a straight, clean punch.
Too fast for moris to even react.
BAM!
For Moris, the world blinked.
One moment, he was smirking.
The next—
White.
Then black.
Arthur's knuckles crashed into his jaw with bone-cracking force.
Moris's head snapped to the side.
His body left the ground, spun, and hit the floor like a dropped doll.
Out cold.
Pin-drop silence filled the place.
Every mouth hung open.
Even the twins froze, eyes wide.
Only Yuna's lips curled upward, smirk widening.
'Fast,' she thought. 'That punch… was faster and stronger than his rank should allow.'
Arthur lowered his hand.
He looked down at Moris's unconscious body.
Then he spoke in a low, flat voice.
"You talk too much."
No one dared to argue.
As the system voice came [ One punch man huh ]