Rin was frozen with fear and curiosity.
Maria's eyes were fixed on the burly man who'd walked in, unblinking as her apprentice made her way to her seat.
Her hands were balled up into fists resting on the table. Her posture was straight and alert like she was ready to get out of her seat at a moment's notice.
Brine, the man who'd just walked in flanked by two much, much less impressive-looking individuals, smirked a little as he stood where Maria had stopped him, putting his hands on his waist.
"Well... Maria!" He suddenly said, spreading his arms. "What a coincidence meeting you here!"
"Cut the crap," Maria replied quietly. "Or, do you expect me to truly believe it is a coincidence that you find yourself in Alera, in the same place Rin was told to come to in that letter, with Ms. Dahlia missing?"
Brine smiled, lowering his arms.
"Ah... It was worth a shot."
"Um... Maria, who is this?" Rin asked, wanting some sort of explanation as to why things had suddenly gotten so tense.
Maria replied without looking at her, keeping her eyes on Brine.
"This man is called Brine Yolan. Known as the Beggar King, he... He is a Rank S adventurer."
That statement sent a cold tempest blazing through Rin's chest.
[Oh.]
"And," Maria continued, all while staring back at the man, "he is someone I have fought many times and have never lost to. So, it would be rather foolish if he decided to start something here."
"Indeed!" He replied, laughing heartily. Looking over at Rin, he pointed at Maria. "I was one of the many, many poor fools responsible for helping her become known as 'the greatest duelist alive', you know? Man, once upon a time just mentioning the name Maria Camille was enough to leave people in a daze. Now... I'm not so sure."
Maria inhaled slowly. Her eyes followed Brine as he paced from side to side.
"I've heard a few things that make me wonder if you're still worthy of being called that. I've heard that these days, you spend all your time in a school, trying to teach people how not to die to random orcs. How long has it been since you last fought someone on your level? I'm sure you know that all swords, no matter how great, need to be sharpened every now and then. Else they become, uh, dull and all that."
"Why are you here?" Maria asked all of a sudden.
"Oh, come on. You just told me you knew."
"Right. I guess I mean to ask why are you working with a group of murderous psychopaths."
"Hm. Well, that's pretty simple. I disagree," he shrugged. "A psychopath is someone without any logic backing up their actions. I don't think The Scorned can be categorized like that," he said with a shrug, walking over to the counter where the innkeeper was and picking up some coffee.
With a look, he signaled for her to leave and, after bowing to him, the innkeeper did just that, walking out of the inn in a hurry.
With the cup of coffee in his hands, he continued speaking up, still just as casually.
"They're right about a lot of the stuff they say, you know? I've seen it. The whole 'Beggar King' thing isn't just a title I was given because it sounds cool, it's because I've spent decades walking Cradle's streets. Seeing the state of society up close and personal. And, all those years taught me is that there is a grave, terrible poison affecting humanity. And it needs to be cured. One way or another."
Maria stood up.
Her footsteps echoed in the room as she completely ignored the two grunts Brine had come in with and walked closer to the man.
The other Rank S adventurer.
It was still hard for Rin to process what was happening, but one thing was made clear by the way Maria's hands remained by her sides, ready to strike.
A fight was probably about to happen.
"I'll be honest," Brine said. "I didn't expect you or Cara to be here. I was kind of hoping that girl would come alone, but... At the same time, I'm grateful for the opportunity to test myself."
"This isn't a sparring session, Brine." Maria's voice was intensely cold. At the same time, though, there was anxiety in her words. "You are courting death by challenging me here."
"We're adventurers," he replied. "Aren't we both used to that? Well, you less than I, certainly. After all that time you've spent rotting in Libera. All that matters is that we court death for a reason. Because we believe in something. And, it's because I do that I am afraid I can't let any of you leave this place alive."
There was a pause. Maria nodded and took a step back. She walked back a few paces, taking her shirt off, and a necklace she'd been wearing, and throwing them aside.
"Rin, go get Cara, your *stuff*, and leave the inn. Now."
"You think I'm going to let that happen?" Brine asked smiling.
"You don't have a choice."
Maria took up the same fighting stance that she often used in her training sessions with Rin, with one fist aimed at Brine and the other by her side.
"Rin, go."
She was scared. Incredibly so, to the point where she found it hard to move at all from where she was. However, as per Maria's instruction, she got up and moved toward the stairs.
The instant that she did, Brine disappeared.
The speed at which he moved was indistinguishable from a teleport. He reappeared next to her, one fist raised in the air.
His hand was caught, however, by Maria, who moved just as quickly.
"Go!" She told her student before trying to kick the man away, but Brine simply stepped back on his own, avoiding the move.
"Ah, so you haven't lost your touch too much, have you? This might just be fun, then."
"Enough talk," Maria told him as Rin reached the stairs. "You have made your position clear. You have a death wish, and I will grant it."