“Amazing, meow?” Kiki crouched on Caius’s shoulder, watching him fiddle with the nearly two-meter-long Magitech Cannon with clear fascination.

  “Of course it’s amazing. This thing can fire different Magic Shells based on the strength and type of magic you infuse into it. Like this.”

  Caius lifted the Magitech Cannon, aimed at a distant grassy slope, then channeled magic into it and pulled the trigger.

  In the next moment, the shoulder-mounted cannon burst into a brilliant blue light. A basketball-sized, pure blue Magic Shell shot out instantly, flying several hundred meters before slamming into the slope.

  Boom! A massive crater exploded on the slope, flinging grass and soil over a hundred meters into the air!

  “Haha! A direct hit from this beast, anything below Gold rank is dead for sure!”

  “Even Gold rank would be crippled if not killed outright!”

  “Platinum rank would be stunned for sure if they took a hit!”

  “And the best part is—it can fire in rapid succession! As long as you have enough magic, you can unload dozens, even hundreds of shots!”

  As he spoke, Caius fired off a few more rounds, clearly having the time of his life.

  Kiki reached out her tiny paw. “I wanna try it, meow!”

  Then Caius watched as Kiki fired a shot—and the recoil sent her stumbling several steps back, landing flat on her butt, looking up at Caius pitifully.

  She had seen Caius fire it with only a light shake and thought the recoil wasn’t that bad. In reality, the force of the blast had left her shoulder aching.

  “Hahaha! The recoil’s no joke, but the handling is solid!” Caius laughed heartily.

  Magitech weapons in this world were the equivalent of modern firearms.

  And no man could ever say no to firearms!

  Sure, close combat with cold steel had its own appeal—but after over a decade without pulling a trigger, Caius had sorely missed the explosive thrill of modern weaponry.

  Still, after playing around for a while, he let out a sigh and placed the Magitech Cannon back into the crate.

  It didn’t belong to him, after all—it was property of the Wargs Gang, the client who commissioned this job.

  Of course, he could easily keep the goods for himself.

  But Caius wasn’t the type to kill the goose that lays golden eggs.

  Besides, he knew full well that Raymond was using this delivery to test him.

  Once all the crates were stored into his Spatial Ring, Caius took Kiki and began the return journey.

  But instead of heading back into the inner city, he made his way to Hailan No. 11.

  Hailan No. 11 was open around the clock.

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  When Yvlan saw Caius appear at the door, she was both surprised and delighted.

  “Didn’t you say you were off to take on a big job? How come you’re back so soon?” she asked, leaning closer.

  Though the long day had clearly tired her out, the fatigue only added to her charm.

  Her slightly tousled hair made Caius’s heart itch.

  He grinned. “Well, I remembered there’s a beautiful girl waiting for me here at Hailan No. 11. I had to finish the job quickly and hurry back. Otherwise, she’d miss me all day and be heartbroken.”

  The flirty line rolled off his tongue effortlessly. Yvlan blushed instantly and gave him a playful punch, though she replied sassily, “What beautiful girl? I don’t see anyone like that.”

  “Right in front of me.” Caius chuckled, then naturally reached out and gently smoothed the messy strands of Yvlan’s hair.

  In that moment, Yvlan’s heart skipped a beat.

  This time, she didn’t slap his hand away, nor did she reach under the counter for a frying pan. She just stared at him, stunned.

  It wasn’t until the mercenaries nearby began to chuckle and tease that she snapped out of it, hurriedly stepping back.

  Her beautiful eyes darted away shyly, unable to meet Caius’s gaze. She grabbed a plate from the counter and mumbled, “You, um, you must be hungry since you’re back so late. I’ll—I’ll go get you something to eat…”

  With that, she fled into the kitchen.

  Caius burst into hearty laughter, clearly pleased.

  Just then, the smell of alcohol wafted over. Turning around, he saw Bob standing beside him, eyes bloodshot.

  “What’s wrong with you?” Caius asked, puzzled by the almost-crying look on Bob’s face.

  “Nothing…” Bob shook his head, then patted Caius’s shoulder. “You better treat her right.”

  Caius: “…”

  So the guy had a crush on the Boss Lady, huh?

  Caius grinned, then patted Bob on the shoulder in return, his expression dead serious. “Don’t worry, brother—she’s out of your league anyway.”

  Bob: “…”

  That did it. Bob couldn’t hold back anymore. He burst into tears with a wail.

  But the mercenaries around them just laughed.

  Everyone knew Bob liked the Boss Lady. The problem was, well… she didn’t like him back.

  Not because Yvlan was shallow, but because, honestly, Bob wasn’t a match for her.

  To be fair, which merc here didn’t have thoughts about the gorgeous Boss Lady? But everyone also knew their limits.

  Bob knew it too, which is why he’d always kept his feelings to himself.

  Now that Yvlan was showing her softer side in front of Caius, it was obvious to any man what that meant.

  So while there was a bit of sorrow in their hearts, there was also a strange sense of closure.

  A short while later, Yvlan came out with a steaming hot meal, clearly prepared with care—even the plating was delicate and well-arranged.

  As for Kiki’s portion… well, that looked a lot more casual. Or rather, normal—a pile of food dumped in the center of a plate, done.

  In a fast-paced mercenary Tavern like this, a plate that well-prepared could only mean one thing.

  But Caius acted like he didn’t notice, happily devouring the meal in a few bites.

  “Tastes way better than anything in the inner city!” he said with a satisfied burp.

  Yvlan beamed and nodded. “Are you staying the night? Your usual room?”

  There was a hopeful glimmer in her eyes—like she just wanted to see him in the morning.

  “Yeah.” Caius snapped his fingers and gave her a look like, “You get me,” making Yvlan smile again.

  The mercenaries sighed even more heavily now.

  Bob, still slumped over the table, cried even harder.

  What else could they say? Some win, some lose.

  That night, Caius slept like a baby. Kiki too. Bob, however, couldn’t sleep at all.

  But eventually, he came to terms with it. Maybe this was just the gap between people. Or maybe… it was time for him to chase a girl too—not someone like the Boss Lady, but someone within reach.

  …

  The next morning, Caius woke up and the first thing he did was move the cat tail off his face.

  Then he stretched out his hand, and blue magic glowed briefly in his palm—only to fade and be replaced by a faint golden light.

  There wasn’t much golden light, just a trickle compared to the earlier wave of magic, but Caius nodded in satisfaction.

  After a night of breathing technique cultivation, his trump card had grown a bit stronger.

  Now, the Magic Core within him had begun to condense magic again.

  Thanks to yesterday’s battle, he’d advanced his magical accumulation by about two percent.

  As long as he kept fighting, the rate of accumulation would accelerate.

  Without battles, relying solely on breathing technique and physical training, it would probably take two or three years.

  So next on the agenda: take more missions, stir things up, and push hard toward advancement.

  Today’s plan: head to the Iron Tavern to report the mission, then swing by the Wargs Gang for a little “business.”

  Maybe, just maybe… he could get his hands on one of those Magitech Cannons.