While walking on the crowded streets, five people were noticeably felt in the area. He could feel their gaze making way to the back of his head…as it was so noticeable, it made him think if the people following him were amateurs or not for not being able to hide their bloodlust or if they were intentionally doing this to make him notice.
Trouble was in the air and because of it, he only ever took his time by walking at the same rate of speed. He knew he was secure inside the domain of the black ridge market and he knew that if any of them were to act recklessly in the open road, it wouldn't take a second for the rule to take action.
So as long as Hamil did not do anything to provoke the enemy, then nothing will happen.
And on his way to the exit, he tried to take his time on identifying the people who came to target him. If they were someone who felt like they had a motive for tailing him.
He made sure to stop at some market stalls by the side of the road, to try if he could get a better look at the enemies, and to his surprise, they knew how to blend in well with the crowd. Although now that their presence of bloodlust were gone, he had to be extra careful.
"..."
"...Umm, hello?" and all of a sudden, a female voice calls out to him by the streets, reaching out to touch his shoulder.
"??" when he turned his head to look, he was surprised to find that a certain person who he was once acquainted with, was here by the streets, looking at him with a smile on her face.
Although she may have worn a coat over her head to hide her face, Hamil quickly recognized her silky orange hair, blue eyes and her freckled face. And without a doubt, she was none other than Ranzy Volde Savez.
"..." Hamil was shocked to see her standing by on her own with no guards to look over her.
"Oh, it really is you." Said Ranzy as she felt relieved to see a familiar face in the market.
"..." but Hamil only ever stayed silent as he could not find the words to say to her.
"Hmm, I know this may be a bit sudden, but is this your first time coming to the market?" she asked nervously as she would.
"...Why?" and to his hesitant action, he mustered a whispered question to her direction. As if he was compelled to ask her simply for her safety. His anxiousness for her being here, compelled him to speak.
"...Hmm?" but Ranzy cold not hear him enough, and with that said, Hamil had to follow through with a clear question.
"What are you doing here?" he asked as he looked to her with complex expression.
"...Oh, so you recognize me?" she asked as she was quite surprised to know that Hamil knew her. In all her knowledge, this was the first time they spoke to one another.
"N-no, I mean, I see you with Martha all the time, so yeah…I guess I know you." said Hamil as he nervously tried to think of the right thing to say.
"Well, I'm glad that someone like you does know me. I'm Ranzy by the way." she said as she held out her hand to shake his. Greeting him as a friend.
"..." But Hamil was hesitant to held hers, but compelled by her proper manners, he raised his hands to reach hers…
And although he was a bit hesitant, he went to shake her hand. And with a firm grasp on her hand, his nervousness soon lessened.
"My name is Hamil by the way..." said Hamil as he reintroduces himself to her in a proper way. As he did, a small glimpse of a smile came creeping in his face…and although he promised himself to the Savez family that he would not come near her, to have a conversation with her again in a long time felt nice in a way…
"hehe, I know. Your quite a big shot in the academy. Some students even say that your one of the top five most strongest there is in our year." she said.
As it was clear enough that all that Hamil did during his time in the academy, he has somewhat made a name for himself. From doing quite well in the unofficial event in the Class Rumble, for being known to be a D-ranker despite being in the first year, and for officially being recognized as the first member to join the student counsel this year and contributing on fighting against the terrorist attack, Hamil had gathered quite a reputation in the academy in such a short amount of time…making him a promising hunter and student for the future.
"With how much you've done in the academy in such a small amount of time, its not hard to hear about Mr. Popular himself when your at the academy. People gossip you know." said Ranzy with a smile on her face.
"...Is that so." but Hamil only ever responded quite composed-like. As if he did not care for the attention or the gossip.
"W-well anyway, I'm surprised to find that you actually know about this market." said Ranzy.
"Y-Yeah." said Hamil.
"Is this your first time on the market?" she asked.
"...Yeah." with being nervous of this interaction, he was somewhat hesitant to say anything. Hamil was thinking of some way to avoid Ranzy. With his promise to the family, he shouldn't be here talking to her.
"Really?! This is my first time too!" she said, leaning happily-so to him, grabbing him by his hand, as if she could not control herself in that moment. Finding someone of the same situation as her, she could not help but smile at this convenience.
"!?" and in reaction to this, Hamil was surprised. Ranzy clings to his hand like a typical Rom-com girl who was excited for a festival…
As for some reason, a tinge of red came rising from the tip of his ears…but just as it came, it disappeared. His composure to the situation settled the moment it passed.
"Uhum…"
"Oh, sorry. Anyway, what brings you to the market?" she asked as she lets go of his hand.
"...Items...things I need for a gate exploration." he said the most blatant but believable lie there was to say at that moment.
"Hmm…with how we got a lot of free time on our hands for the whole week, I guess that a few students might also do the same thing. Getting stronger, learning more about the gates…maybe visiting family." said Ranzy.
"..."
"Actually, Martha invited me to go with her and her friends to hunt in a gate. It's a great opportunity seeing as how she plans on going into a D-rank gate."
"...Martha invited you?" Hamil asked.
"Wait…did she also invited you?" she asked.
"No."
"Do you want to join us?" she tried to appeal an invite to him, but looking at his stare, she sort of notice that he doesn't plan to join them at all. He had no interest in it.
"...No, Sorry." he said.
As they talked, making sure that he tries not to form a sense of closeness with her, he also made sure to check the surroundings. Checking if the people who followed him moments ago were still on his vicinity…but from the lack of the tense bloodlust in the area, it seems they were laying low for now.
"...Are you on your own?" he asked as he wanted to make sure that she was secured in her own safety in this place.
He thought that with how he came to meet Henry a moment ago in Willow Fall, it could only be reasonable to assume that Henry was the reason that Ranzy was able to figure out about this place.
"Actually I was with someone, but he told me to stay in this place while he went to meet a friend in the market."
That someone could only ever be Henry.
"...I see."
"...He's my butler."
"...Hmm."
"Well, are you finish with your shopping?" she asked as she noticed that he only ever stayed by her side, not excusing himself even with no conversation in say.
"...yeah but I'll wait for a while. Its dangerous to be on your own in this kind of place." he said,
"Hmm…Is that so? My butler said that nothing dangerous ever happens in this market." she said.
"You can never be to careful. Not with how your status stands as it is, being a noble and all that." he said.
"Hmm, you know about me being a noble?" she asked.
"...with how you dress yourself, I can only ever assume that you are." he said as he stare at her frilly dress under her coat.
"!? its rude to stare you know." she said as she crossed her arms and pouts her mouth.
And looking at her, he chuckles a bit. As to see her act like this, it made him wonder why he was ever caught by her presence. With even in the past, they only ever meet and interacted with one another so much to a point that it shouldn't really change the way they are as a stranger and a noble who wanted a companion to be a part of her group. With him, he considers her a friend…a friend who he left.
And that was it…
"...Neh, do you want to join us on our expedition to a gate?" she asked as she looked to him with her big and round blue eyes.
"..."
"Miss, I see that you were here all along." suddenly, the voice of Henry comes from the crowd, as this butler calls out to her.
"...Oh, you're here." she said as she looks to Henry.
"Oh, and who is..." but before henry could finish his question, he had already figured out Hamil.
"Henry, this is Mr. Popular himself. Hamil, a promising student at the academy." she said as she introduces Hamil to Henry.
".…"
".…"
But both only ever reacted quite the same. With a silent stare and a tense presence between the two, Hamil waved his hands as a greeting and Henry nodded his head in return.
"...I better go since your butler is already here." said Hamil as he bids farewell to Ranzy, knowing that she was in safe hands.
"Ah, yes. Thank you for the nice talk." she said as she smiled her way to him.
"..." Hamil nodded and made his way, away from Ranzy.
And Henry could only ever stare as the boy slowly walks into the crowd and disappears.
"Did you get what I needed for the expedition?" she asked her butler.
"Yes, My lady. I've managed to complete all the necessary materials you need for your trip."
"Good." satisfied with her reason for coming here, it seems she also made her way to the exit.
"Pardon me for asking, but is he also coming to this aforementioned trip?" Henry asked, wondering if Hamil was coming to a certain trip.
"Ah, sadly no."
"I see."
Meanwhile, as Hamil made his way to the exit, he was in deep thought over the fact of what Ranzy had just told him.
The fact that the Protagonist's group was planning on going to a gate meant that it probably relates to a part of the novel where after the terrorist attack, Martha was one her way to train her ability in using her new form, with Liam to accompany her. Arthur however was not a part of this expedition, since after the incident with the original plot being that he had lost President Ethea to the attack, he was put into a depressive state of mind where Licia was there to support him. Only after he had broken himself and made a promise to become stronger did he join himself to the expedition of this gate.
With Ranzy mentioning that it was a D-rank gate, Hamil became a bit nervous seeing as how in the novel, it was originally a much stronger gate, a C-rank gate. But with how it was change, it could only mean that Hamil was a bit scared of seeing how the path changes in this story. He worries if this will ever affect the characters when they choose a much less difficult gate.
But seeing as how his circumstance of being sent back to the Crow clan, he could not do anything at this arc of the novel. In the end, he could only ever pray that with how Arthur wasn't really affected much by the attack, he would still be motivated enough to get stronger in the chance to attack this aforementioned gate.
While walking out, it seems as though no one was following him, so it gave him the chance to exit safely.
And without issues, he made it back out of the market safe and sound.
But as he made his way back to his apartment on foot, jumping on from roof to roof, he suddenly felt the same presence he felt in the market.
"..." but he ignored this. He wasn't sure if he would attack, not until he knew who it was that was following him.
Having made his way to what seems to be the direction of his apartment, he made a turn to where a certain park in fester town.
There, he pretended to get a drink of water from a hose…only to stop at a sandbox…without hesitation, he quickly bended the particles of sand each and every last one it and threw it at the back of his direction.
~Whoosh~
The sand scattered so widely that it caught almost everything in its area. And the pressure of him firing that wave of sand was so powerful, that it felt like a small aray of bullets running like a wave.
*Boom*
The sands destroyed most of what the park had and soon after, Hamil spoke.
"...Come out."
"..." but no response was made back.
"...Five…there are five of you hiding somewhere…show yourselves." as he spoke this statement, soon one by one, a couple of shadows began to emerge from each corners and trees.
And out, five people in black were found standing in front of him.
"...Who are you?…Did the Demons sent you after me?" Hamil only ever questioned this because he thought that
In response, a person came and walked forward with her arms crossed.
"...Hamil."
"!?"
'This voice…' he recognize the voice of this person.
It was now clear to him who these people were…or so he believed they were…
"...Aunt Mary."
"Hmm, I have a lot of question for you, but first things first."
"..."
"Wanna go grab a bite to eat?"