NOVPUBAn ashen-haired young man dashed through the metallic hallways, his face showing mostly happiness, though also tinged with a hint of worry.
He wanted to see Maia'sndition for himself.
It had been a little over eight months since he last saw her, and the thought of herndition soured his mood whenever he remembered it.
Soon, sounds of battle and heavy breathinguld be heard from the walls of a certain vast room.
It seemed that the captains andmmanders of the Black Dawn Unit and the Kirov Unit were going full-throttle in training again today.
As much as he wanted to let them focus, he had no choice but to interrupt them, as he needed to ask Ian where his little sister was.
What he didn't expect was that, upon opening the metallic doors of the training room, the first face that would greet her would be Maia's.
On her face was the battle-crazed smile that he had not seen for years.
"Maia!" He exclaimed, horrified.
He didn't notice who she was sparring with, but for now, heuldn't care less.
It was more important to stop a recently rvered patient from sparring with elites.
Naturally, his loud voice stopped everyone's sparring sessions, prompting them to look in the direction of the door.
"Oh? Big brother!!" Maia exclaimed, equally loud.
She then sheathed her dagger as she sprinted towards her beloved big bro, her arms extending for a hug.
Unfortunately, instead of a hug, what she got was a chop to her forehead.
It was Shye's unscious response, a mix of excitement at seeing his little sister and anger at finding her sparring with others instead of resting.
"Uuu…that was so mean, Big brother…" Maia said, slightly sulking as she rubbed her forehead.
"'Why are you fighting people?! Shouldn't you be resting? Your body is still rvering—why are you pushing yourself so irresponsibly?!' Shye roared, his anger finally overpowering every other emotion in his heart."
Those from the Kirov Unit were, ofurse, taken aback by the scene of Commander Black Dawn losing hisol.
Some of them had once viewed his invincibility with grim expressions back when he was a WAA agent.
None of them had ever seen him fail or lose hisol, even in the toughest situations.
Yet, this time, he was undoubtedly fuming.
'I guess it's true that dragons have reverse scales…' Fino, Kirov's Vice Commander, thought to himself.
Maiauldn't find the words to defend herself, slightly intimidated by her big brother's reprimands.
Shirley, rgnizing that this wasn't the right place for Shye to ld his little sister, was about to intervene.
Fortunately, a certain midget skillfully diffused the situation for her.
"Aihh, boss, you're really underestimating this little sister of yours. If she's a rvering patient, then those guys from the Kirov Unit would be called dying patients." Seira said, daring to stand in front of an angry Shye.
She knew her boss well and had angered him many times in the past with her silliness and clumsiness in battle.
Shye might be intimidating when angry, but he would never hurt someone he loved too much, and he wasn't the type to get angry at those who hadn't wronged him.
Shirley knew this as well, which was why she was about to step in.
It was just that Seira's goofy nature gave her a unique talent for diffusing tense situations, and it turned out she was surprisingly skilled at it—something she had to learn while jumping from one adventurer party to another in the Raven's Blade Balkrow Branch.
Shyeuldn't help but narrow his eyes at the midget's antics and words, finding it hard to deny that the shorty's intervention was rather effective.
With a clearer mind, he also finally noticed that Maia's opponent turned out to be Seira, which made him slightlynfused.
How was his little sister holding her own so well against the midget?
Overwhelmed by worry earlier, Shyeuldn't watch the battle, so he didn't know whether Seira was holding back on Maia or not.
"Dying patients?" He began probing, "Weren't you just holding back on my sister for my sake?"
A satisfied grin spread across the midget's face upon hearing her boss's reply, her excitement bubbling over as she prepared to showcase Maia's truembat prowess in front of her big brother, almost as if she were Maia herself.
"Sigh... This is why I said you've been underestimating your little sister. The same blood runs through your veins—ofurse she's as monstrous as you!" Seira sighed, walking with a mysterious air, her hands clasped behind her back as if she were a wise sage who had long mastered the mysteries of heaven and earth.
The little midget was truly a breath of fresh air, not just for Shye but for everyone else in the room as well, her antics amusing them all.
Soon, Shye calmed down, his eyebrows raising in curiosity.
Had his little sister truly grown so powerful that sheuld spar without Seira holding back?
He wanted to believe it butuldn't help but doubt it.
In the end, it was possible that the midget was just flattering his little sister, speaking up to win her favor.
"Stop acting mysteriously or I'll give you a good old knock on the head." Shye threatened jokingly, knowing she would onlyntinue her explanations after he reacted.
"Aihh, boss, when did you bme so violent?" She sighed again. "She's already joined the Black Dawn Unit and was made captain by lil br— Vice Commander Izanagi. Ofurse, we tested hermbat prowess and mentality, and she passed both with flyinglors. Everyone here rgnizes her strength, and those from the Kirov Unit have been beaten black and blue by her more than once. That's why I said, if she's a rvering patient, then Commander Kirov's men would be called dying patients."
Shye naturally struggled to believe the midget's explanation.
After all, howuld Maia, two years his junior andnfined for eight months after being soul-poisoned, be on par with Seira and the others?
It was then that he remembered what the old man had said:
"The soul poisoning was also an opportunity for her."
Shye's brows furrowed.
'Could it be that these are the effects of refining the soul poison inside her body? Ituldn't be that exaggerated, right?' he thought.
Unfortunately, he had underestimated soul arts.
Those with a deeper understanding knew that far more exaggerated boosts were possible.
The forbidden practiceuld even turn a mere mortal into someone almost on par with the Hawkin Guard Captain, Balkan. n𝚘𝚟𝚙u𝚋.co𝚖
What then of an extremely talented and young emerald-ranked adventurer bming someone on par with the Black Dawn Unit's Squadron Captains?
Nonetheless, Shye wouldn't just believe the midget; he planned to see for himself.
