I froze as I returned the gaze of the masked man staring at me. His already creepy mask now smeared in blood which made him seem like something out of a children's nightmare, but that was not what shook me. What truly affected me were the ashen eyes that radiated from behind the mask, even through the tiny slits through which they peeked through, sent shivers down my spine. They seemed so deep like their very essence wanted to consume my soul.
Perhaps it was because of those eyes, that I was unable to realize the deep shadow that had been cast over me from behind.
As I turned around to witness the familiar towering figure, the veins bulging ever so prominently on his smooth head, my mouth opened unconsciously as I said the first thing that came to mind.
"....Oh fuck"
His hands gripped my arms before I could react and held me in place, his fingers pressing against my very bones causing me to wince in pain.
"ukhh"
I grit my teeth to stop myself from groaning from the pain. I'd normally call this child abuse, but I was not exactly sure if I counted as a child right now.
I shot a glare at him as I looked his way, only to notice that he wasn't paying attention to me as he stared back at the masked man through the doorway which had been swung open completely at some point. He was clearly showing an apologetic look, not daring to even meet his eyes, or more accurately the tiny slits in the mask.
That's when I noticed the hands that were gripping my arm.
They were trembling.
He was scared.
I kept my thoughts from reaching my expression as I wondered why he was so fearful of him. Although the masked man certainly wasn't someone to be underestimated, I wasn't exactly aware how powerful he was.
In the first place, not much was ever known about him, Only rumors of his exploits in the illegal transactions of the city had spread, of his involvement in every single act of organized crime committed to the point he'd even been dubbed by most as the King of Crime, the trickster and many more colorful names. But the main name that all had known him by, was the Ashen King, which now judging by his appearance truly is fitting. By the time I'd graduated from the academy, he'd already died so I never did get to interact with him. In fact till his death, most weren't even sure if he really existed or not till the city's council of Elders released a statement of his death but refused to comment any further.
Despite that, I didn't believe it was possible that he was that powerful, after all just being a Ranked 5 human means that you would have plenty of opportunities for money and resources given to you by the government or any figures of power that wanted to recruit you which means that there's little to no extra benefit from engaging in illegal activities to those truly strong. Yet, he was still strong enough to evade most detection from the police force and the special task force unit which possessed even a rank 3 human.
Now such a figure was standing before me, his gaze still fixed on me, ignoring the Egghead restraining me.
I couldn't let this opportunity go to waste. In the first place, I'd come here because it was soon revealed after his death that this was one of his main bases of operations so I knew I could approach him.
As to why I needed to find him. It was simple, I needed to fast track my progress this time, I couldn't afford to waste time, till an unknown scout from a low level academy found me here and enrolled me. While other academies were still effective in training those blessed with mana, they still all paled in comparison to Moros academy which is why this time around I needed to enroll there first. But of course that would not prove simple, one couldn't just walk in off the street and ask to be enrolled, they'd first need to pass the entrance exams and practical exams to see if they are indeed worthy of attending the academy. And even after all that, they'd still need an exorbitant amount of money to be paid per student. While they did offer scholarships, with the monsters that are attending this school, I was not confident that I would be able to secure it for long.
Which is why most commoners, with the exception of Reinhardt, would ever be able to attend such a prestigious institute, let alone some street rat from the slums.
With that I could only come to one conclusion, I needed a sponsorship. Someone who'd support me till I got strong enough to do things by myself, which would also help me build my strength so that I can indeed pass the practical exams, but again easier said than done. Most figures powerful enough to provide support wouldn't waste it on some street trash like me, neither would I even get a chance to approach such people of status, since rarely does a Duke or even a lowly Baron come around the outskirts which most pretend don't exist. Which is why I needed his help.
Surely, the King of Crime would have plenty means to support me as I get stronger and enough connections to help me get a chance at the academy which is why I needed him. But ah of course, nothing in life ever comes in easy.
To get him to sponsor me, He needs to see my worth, my value to him, so I needed to show him that I could prove useful to him, I could be a tool that he can wield. I don't mind being used as long as I can use him too.
Which was exactly why I cannot stop now.
Despite my thoughts, I still observed the situations before me, waiting for the right moment.
The masked man's gaze still remained on me, as a solemn silence settled around us, the only sound I could make out was the blood still dripping down his mask.
Unexpectedly, the one to break the silence was the Egghead holding me down, seems as though he'd managed to mostly do away with his fear before he lowered his eye level to the ground before speaking.
"M-my Lord, I-I deeply apologize for this interruption, it was due to my own incompetence that I let a brat inside, I'll discipline her and ensure she does not speak a word of what she's seen"
I gave a quick glance to the Egghead.
That was surprising. After what I'd just seen, the logical course of action would be to kill me and dispose of my body. Yet he was protecting me by trying to have me spared despite what I'd done to him by stabbing his foot.
In response to his words, the masked man finally lifted his gaze away from me and to the Egghead, his thoughts inscrutable as he remained silent. The silence only seemed to exacerbate Egghead's anxiety as he was now sweating profusely in anticipation.
Finally he spoke, making everyone in the room tense with his words.
"Can you take responsibility for what you just said?"
The Egghead widened his eyes before quickly nodding his head with a renewed vigor.
"Y-Yes my Lord, I will make sure of it"
The Ashen King stared at him for a moment again before turning away from him, which seemed to be a form of consent as the Egghead quickly stood up, his hand still gripping me as he turned to leave.
Too bad, I was still not finished here.
"You are the Ashen King, right?"
I spoke, loud enough to make everyone in the room freeze as the Egghead looked back at me with a shocked expression, which gave me the opportunity to shake his hand off my arm as I stood confidently, ignoring the subtle ache of the bruises from his tight grip.
Slowly, the Ashen King turned around, his oppressive gaze landing on me once more, this time much harder to resist its overwhelming pressure.
"...So what if I am?"
I bit down on my lip to resist the pressure of his words, that mere question seemed to have changed the entire atmosphere of the room ice cold, his tone sharp to the point I could feel it cutting me. But I resisted, I didn't let fear rule me, back when I actually was a child and I wouldn't let it rule me now as I stepped forward.
"...Sponsor me."
For a moment, time seemed to stop as nobody seemed to be able to understand the situation before them.
"..M-my lord, please spare the child, she's clearly delusional, I will teach her a lesson so le-"
The Egghead was quickly silenced by the masked man's hand as he kept his gaze on me. I couldn't make out his expression yet I could have sworn, he seemed amused.
He quietly knelt down in front of me as he got down to my eye level, the blood from earlier seems to have dried from his overwhelming pressure alone which still left a horrific image in front of me.
"...You want me to sponsor you?"
I slowly nodded my head.
"Now what makes you think I'd do that then?"
I remained silent for a moment before speaking.
"Because, I can be of use to you, I am valuable."
As I spoke, I started to channel mana through my eyes, just enough that everyone would be able to sense it.
"That's!-"
One of the lackeys in the room said before quickly shutting his mouth. The whole room seemingly in shock. Of course, it was already rare for kids to be born with abilities but not that much so, what was truly incredible was my ability to draw mana. One's mind and soul needed to develop to a certain extent to be able to do so, so doing it this early at my age would make me seem like a genius. Of course that was far from the truth but they don't need to know.
The Ashen King remained silent, as he continued to stare at me, unsure of what his thoughts were. Finally he spoke, his voice less oppressive as he did so.
"That is something... but still not enough if you want to be a tool of mine. But I'll give you a chance... that guy over there."
He pointed at the Egghead.
"Fight him and win. Maybe then I'll give you a chance."
I glanced at the Egghead before moving my gaze back to him. Allowing a rare smile to come across my face, I responded to his challenge.
"No problem."