Chapter 89: A Slap
Meanwhile, the group of four kids walked past many road junctions, streets, alleys, shops while showing a unique red symbol badge to soldiers, who blocked their way from time to time, and soon arrived in front of a stone wall that obstructed the path to the Mystics' Borough.
Once they appeared in front of the wall, Jessie stared at the five-meter tall wall and sighed.
'Thankfully, Blood Priest gave a badge before we left the village; otherwise, it would be impossible for us to get here.' She thought to herself.
She knew that if they want to enter the Mystics' Borough, they need permission from a Noble or a Church member. Not only that, but they also need to pay ten gold coins per person even to walk in.
Shaking her head, Jessie let the other kids and soon arrived in front of an iron gate. Unlike the entrance gate, this one appeared smaller and was already opened.
But two muscular blonde-haired guards in silver armor stood at the entrance and blocked the path with their spears as they noticed the kids' arrival.
It was their first warning not to come near towards the Mystics' Borough.
Upon seeing their cold gazes, Titus, Noel, and Rhea stopped their footsteps and hesitated to walk further.
On the other hand, Jessie took out a half-moon symbol badge from her luggage bag and went near the guard on the left side.
"This is not a place for peasants," The blonde-haired man didn't even glance at the badge and responded in a cold tone.
"Blood Priest told us to show it you the mages." Jessie didn't even flinch a bit and replied calmly.
A look of surprise and astonishment appeared on those guards' faces as they glanced at each other and soon nodded.
"Show me the badge." The blonde-haired guard took a step forward as he retracted his spear and showed his palm towards Jessie.
Although Jessie felt uneasy, she didn't put much thought into it and gave it to the guard.
The blonde-haired guard's eyes squinted sharper as he saw the badge and said while waving his head.
"It will take a few hours to check if this badge is real or not. So, come back here tomorrow."
He lied without even flinching. Although their higher-ups ordered them to let those with Moon Church or other Church badges in, he didn't put much thought into it. He knew the value of this badge, so he instantly thought of selling it to the black market and earns some gold coins.
Even if these kids went back to their village and told the Blood Priest about what had happened here, the guard knew that nothing would change. That's because he and his partner were Rank-2 Soldier class Mystics and had equal strength as the Blood Priest.
Even if the Blood Priest personally came here, they would only give him an apology and send him off with some money.
If this badge were given by a Moon Bishop or a higher rank Moon Church member, they wouldn't have dared to block her path. But when they realized that a mere Blood Priest gave this badge, they instantly changed their plan.
As she heard those words, Jessie immediately knew that the guard was lying and stared at him in anger. She clearly remembered that the Blood Priest mentioned that this badge's worth was higher than 50 gold coins and cursed at herself for rashly showing it to the guards.
"Give back our badge." She took a step forward and moved her hand to snatch it. Seeing her bold action, the blonde-haired guard got infuriated and gave a sharp slap on her face.
Although he held back a little, his strength was way about normal mortals.
An instant later, a slapping sound resounded at the entrance, and soon Jessie's body circled a few times before she fell on the ground.
A huge bloody palm imprint appeared on her smooth cheek, and blood oozed out from her broken mouth!
She felt that her head began to spin and tried to open her mouth but couldn't. Saliva dripped down from her mouth and soaked the sand in return!
In seconds, her body started to shake uncontrollably and soon went silent!
"Take her and scram." The blonde-haired man didn't even glance at her motionless body and said with an indifferent look on his face.
Tears started to flow from all three others' eyes as they frozen in shock for a whole three seconds and soon ran towards Jessie while crying loudly.
Even in such a situation, Rhea and Titus somehow regained their senses in few seconds and checked her pulse in a hurry.
"My sister is still breathing," Titus glared hatefully at the blonde-haired guard and picked her upon his shoulder. He knew that these guys wouldn't even hesitate to kill them if they stayed any longer, so he decided to take his sister away from here first.
Meanwhile, Noel and Rhea supported him from the sides and soon moved towards the opposite direction while sobbing. The change was too sudden, which caused them to weep in panic.
Hundreds of citizens watched the scene from afar, but none showed concern or worry. No, they didn't even pity them and acted like nothing abnormal has happened.
Rage and helplessness appeared in three kids' hearts!
"Her breath is fading." Rhea checked Jessie's body and said with watery eyes.
'It's my fault.' A strange sense of guilt appeared in her heart as she unsteadily walked on the road.
They wandered aimlessly on the streets while asking robed mages and priests for help, but no one showed any response. They even gave them the cold shoulder, and some even raised their hands to shoo them away!
While walking, Rhea suddenly noticed that they already arrived at the area where they met a mysterious old man, and soon her eyes wandered on their own.
In a second, she found the mysterious white-haired old man still sitting on the roadside bench and ran towards him with teary eyes. Although they just met him a few minutes ago, he was the only one who showed concern and worries. So, her soft legs moved subconsciously.
Her sudden action also startled Titus, but soon he realized why she was running and cried. Although he acted cold and tough before, he was still a child after all.
He and Noel also followed after her, and soon they arrived in front of the roadside bench.
Meanwhile, Charles was utterly stunned by their return.
He did expect that the guards would send them away with some warning. But he didn't expect that the guards would be this ruthless.
Charles actually planned to save them only when they were taken forcefully by the thugs, but the current situation was completely out of his expectation.
After some thought, he realized that the mortals' lives were not much worth in this world and shook his head.
'Well, this is also a good thing for me.' He muttered inwardly.
On the other hand, Titus and the other two placed the barely breathing Jessie in front of him and knelt on the ground.
"P-Please save her, old man. We will follow you forever and listen to your every word." Rhea cried loudly and lowered her head to the ground.
Meanwhile, Titus and Noel also broke down emotionally and cried for help.
Upon hearing their sudden outburst, the passerby commoners, a few robed mystics, patrol soldiers, and even a group of merchants got stunned and soon showed different kinds of emotions.
Some showed pity, some showed concern, but none took a step forward to help those kids.
A heavy sigh leaked out of Charles's face as he gripped the black cane and stood up with some difficulty. He then took two steps and squatted down near Jessie's body.
"Call me as your teacher from now on." He said in an old voice and placed his callus palm on Jessie's cheek.
An instant later, strange energy came out of his callus palm, completely bather her body in greenish-blue flame, and started reconstructed her body at a cellular level.
Her swollen, torn cheek healed in a blink, broken cheekbones also reattached, and soon her breathing began to stabilize.
Upon seeing such a grand scene, even the robed mystics went stunned for a moment!
In truth, they never heard of a flame that could heal one's injuries and became shocked to the core!
"He is also a Mage." Among the robed Mystics, a blue-haired woman said in a solemn voice.
"Light Mage?" Another mage asked in curious.
"Nope, Light Magic only dispels diseases and burns the curses. But this one is completely different." The blue-haired woman paused in surprise for a second and added in a solemn tone.
"We should inform our Teacher."
Other robed mages also nodded their heads and started observing the old man's movements.
In the meantime, Charles stood up with the support of the black cane and spoke in a calm voice before he started walking.
"Follow me."
The trio instantly nodded their heads as Titus picked up his elder sister and placed her behind his back.
Meanwhile, Rhea and Noel supported him from the sides, and soon they followed the mysterious old man's footsteps. But unlike before, they felt warmth when they walked under the shadow of the white-haired old man.