"Did they do anything to you, Oliver?" Aria asked as she and Oliver ran side by side toward their target location. Among the three points, their destination was the farthest from the city.

"Nah, it’s nothing Lady Aria. I don’t really mind." Oliver answered casually.

"You can just call me Aria. You only need to address me formally like that in public." Aria said.

Aria glanced at Oliver and could not help blushing slightly after noticing how handsome he had become. He looked completely different from the younger boy she had met five years ago.

’He looks much more mature now... both physically and mentally.’ she thought while smiling softly.

"Hmm? Is something wrong?" Oliver asked after noticing Aria staring at him.

"Oh, no no! Nothing at all." Aria quickly avoided eye contact.

"By the way, I heard about what happened in your town. If we had known sooner, we would’ve immediately come to help. I’m sorry for your loss." Aria said sincerely.

Oliver remained silent for a moment.

"There’s no need for that. What happened has already happened. I’ve already accepted it. What I need to do now is simply move forward." Oliver looked ahead.

"That’s a good mentality," Aria replied softly.

An awkward silence fell between them afterward. Both of them tried to think of something else to say while continuing to run side by side.

"Err... is Auron doing well?" Oliver finally asked.

"I’ve heard a lot of stories about the achievements of both of you in this region. You two were even selected into the top academy in the capital. It seems you’ve both become much stronger than before. I think I’d lose if we fought again like before, haha." Oliver then laughed lightly.

"He’s doing well. Still as energetic as always." Aria replied with a small smile.

"By the way, don’t you want to join our academy? They would surely value someone talented like you."

"But doesn’t your academy only accept nobles? Even if I were accepted, I don’t have enough money to enroll there. I think I’ll just enter the academy in this Duchy instead." Oliver scratched his cheek awkwardly.

"But... let’s say you had the chance to enter. Would you accept it?" Aria suddenly asked.

"Of course! Only an idiot would refuse the opportunity to enter the top academy in the kingdom." Oliver answered excitedly.

"I see... That’s good to know." Aria smiled softly.

For some reason, Oliver felt slightly confused by the way Aria smiled after hearing his answer.

"We’ve arrived," Aria suddenly said.

The two of them landed softly on a nearby cliff while observing the large warehouse below. Torchlight was still flickering inside, indicating that someone had been there not long ago.

’What a nice smell,’ Oliver thought unconsciously as Aria stood close beside him. He quickly shook his head and forced himself to focus on the mission ahead.

The two then jumped down from the cliff and slowly entered the warehouse.

Inside, they noticed that every cage was covered with large cloth sheets. Oliver walked toward one of them and pulled the cloth away, only to find the cage completely empty.

He immediately checked another one. And another. All of them were empty.

"Why are they all empty?" Oliver asked with a frown.

"Tsk! Did they already know we were going to attack tonight?" Aria clicked her tongue in frustration.

Suddenly, all the torches inside the warehouse went out at once, plunging the entire building into darkness.

Bang! Bang!

Gunshots suddenly echoed from one of the cages as bullets flew directly toward them. Both Oliver and Aria immediately jumped backward before quickly retreating out of the warehouse.

Slowly, two figures walked out from the entrance. One of them held a revolver in his hand, while the other wore sharp metal claws on both arms. Both of them smirked coldly at Oliver and Aria.

A scorpion tattoo was clearly visible on their bodies.

"It’s a trap!" Oliver said immediately.

His mind quickly raced toward the other four members of the group. If two members of the Five Scorpions were here, then the remaining two were most likely at the other locations.

Knowing how arrogant Waine and the others were, they would definitely attack recklessly without waiting for backup.

"Looks like we’ll have to fight our way out of here," Aria said calmly as she unsheathed the silver sword hanging from her waist.

"Kikiki! Do you really think you brats can get past us? Both of you will be buried here tonight. I’ll personally make sure of it." Clint laughed wickedly.

"Don’t play around too much with them, Clint. Finish them quickly, and don’t forget to bring that girl back with us," Preston reminded coldly.

"Tch! I know that already. Do you always need to remind me about everything?" Clint clicked his tongue before stepping forward and pointing his revolver directly toward Oliver and Aria.

Suddenly, Oliver lowered his body slightly.

"Cover me, Aria. I’m going first!" The next second, Oliver dashed forward at incredible speed.

’So fast!’ Aria and the two members of the Five Scorpions thought simultaneously.

"Where do you think you’re rushing off to?" Clint smirked confidently.

Bang! Bang!

He fired directly toward Oliver.

However, Clint’s expression quickly changed in shock as Oliver moved side to side with swift footwork, effortlessly evading the bullets.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

"Damn it! Who is this kid?!" Clint shouted angrily as every single shot missed. He quickly began reloading his revolver.

’Five shots. That’s the maximum he can fire before reloading,’ Oliver analyzed calmly as he rapidly closed the distance toward Clint.

For Oliver, the bullets fired by Clint were nothing compared to Nyx’s shots.

He could not even count how many times he had been hit by Nyx during training whenever he failed to evade properly. His mind suddenly recalled one particular moment.

"Ahhh! My buttocks! It hurts!" Oliver rolled around on the floor while clutching his backside. A hole had appeared in his pants.

"Come on, kid! Why does your reaction seem slower than before?" Husk said.

"Are you crazy? I’ve never heard of a normal human dodging bullets that fast before! Are you trying to get me killed?" Oliver shouted angrily.

"Huh! You’re already giving up over something like this? I thought you wanted to become stronger and take revenge for both of us. Was all of that just empty talk?" Husk snorted.

Oliver fell silent for a moment.

"Of course I want to become stronger. But this just seems impossible."

"Sigh. Fine, let me give you a tip. Don’t wait until the bullet has already been fired. You need to move before the shot happens."

"Huh?! How am I supposed to do that?"

"Watch the direction of the gun and move away from its target before the trigger is pulled. And one more thing. You’re not a normal human anymore, kid. You have the system. Don’t flood your mind with negativity before you even try."

Oliver thought quietly for a moment before slowly standing back up. He then looked directly at Nyx standing before him before charging forward once again.

Bang!