Kael’s stalkers had not always been there. He had started to sense them around the time he finished talking to the shopkeeper and picked up Lyra.

He considered their presence a coincidence at first, but they were still following him after a while.

It was clear that their presence was not a coincidence. These people must have wanted something from him.

Kael led them deeper into the forest, where even their voices would not be heard, before deciding to let them know that he was aware of their presence.

"Are you going to keep hiding forever? Or would you like to show yourselves to me now? I promise you that my puppy does not bite."

Kael’s intentions were clear—he was letting the other side know that he was aware of their presence and that there was no point in hiding from him.

But the other side immediately became defensive at his words, and he felt a surge of magic wash over him.

It was easy to analyze the spell at his level.

"A sleeping spell? It’s cute that you cast it. Were you trying to take me out once I fell asleep? That’s not a bad strategy. I am rather impressed with you all."

Kael clapped his hands, but it was clear that the spell had no effect on him.

It made his stalkers panic, and they decided that they needed to take more drastic measures. 𝕗𝐫𝐞𝕖𝕨𝐞𝗯𝚗𝕠𝘃𝐞𝚕.𝐜𝗼𝚖

Kael could sense the magical signatures around him, so it did not take him long to dodge the first attack.

The attacker was skilled and accurate as well. He would have pierced through Kael’s chest if Kael had not dodged in time.

But Kael had dodged and used a spell to hold the attacker in place.

"Hmm, your technique is not bad. Maybe I should take you back and have you teach the kids a thing or two."

Kael commented as he watched the man struggle to break free of his restraints.

Whatever admiration Kael felt for the man’s skills vanished in an instant when he saw the attacker struggling futilely.

"Hmm, looks like I gave you too much credit for nothing. You must be truly low-ranked if you cannot even break out of these bindings yourself."

Kael sighed, and the attacker saw red.

But he truly could not move.

So Kael decided to hold Lyra close to the man, and the dog bit the attacker.

It was not a sharp or painful bite because Lyra’s teeth were small. But it was a blow to the man’s pride, causing him to let out a yelp.

This humiliation made the other attackers hesitate to come after him.

But orders were orders, and they had taken the money for this job. They could not back down at this point.

So they made a plan to attack their target in a way that would leave him unable to dodge or defend himself.

’Sorry, kid, but we mean you no harm. You just picked a fight with the wrong people. So don’t blame us too much.’

The attackers sighed with heavy hearts as they went after Kael.

But little did they know that their target had plans of his own.

"Lyra, don’t you think it is unfair how my guests are not even coming out to greet me? They can follow me all the way here, so the least they could do is show me their faces once. Don’t you agree?"

Kael asked the cursed Demon Queen.

If a beast could give a judgmental glare, then it would have been the one he was currently receiving from the Demon Queen.

Not that it scared Kael.

He decided that he had given the stalkers enough time to show themselves.

If they were not going to follow his request, then he would have to force them out.

Kael raised his hand, and magic sparked across his fingers.

One second, everything was quiet. The next, chains erupted from the ground, wrapping around everyone’s feet and dragging them in front of Kael.

He looked bored even after using such advanced magic, and the leader of the mercenaries felt as if he had walked into a trap.

"So, would you all care to explain what you were doing? Is there a reason you decided to come after me? Or should I just take a look through your memories?"

__________

Kael’s hand reached for his attacker’s head, and the man felt startled.

He had never experienced a forceful memory extraction, but he had heard the horror stories about how much it hurt and how people should avoid it at all costs.

There was no way he was going to allow such magic to be used on him or his cash cows...he meant, his co-workers.

"W-Wait! I will tell you everything. Just don’t be hasty and use magic on us."

The leader spoke quickly, realizing the danger of the situation.

This kid was trying to hide his presence, but the mercenary leader had honed his instincts over the years.

He could sense a hidden tiger anytime, and Kael was one such person.

He did not want to make an enemy of this kid, so he was not going to fulfill this commission.

’What a pity that I will not get paid the triple commission fee. But I would rather stay alive and well than risk dying.’

The leader made a strategic decision based on the information he had.

"S-Sir, what are you saying? We have a confidentiality code that we cannot betray-"

"I would rather live than follow that code at the moment."

These fools might not be able to tell, but the leader could.

Even if he died here, it would not be a clean death for him.

In fact, he might suffer more than he ever had at this kid’s hands.

The others fell silent at his words, and the kid hummed.

"Hmm, it seems like you still have a brain after all. Now, would you care to tell me what is going on? I am sure you can make it brief."

The kid asked in a quiet voice, but the smile on his face looked devilish.

It made the mercenary captain shiver, and for the first time in his life, he decided to betray his employer.

"Our employer this time was Sir Marcus Spencer, and he instructed us to get rid of you at all costs. He even paid us three times our usual rate to get it done."