Chapter 21: Number 1 Suspect

Beatrix Highborn was the name of the woman who had struck Raze. Due to her strength, and the fact that she had attacked him before giving him the chance to properly explain himself, Raze decided to remember her name.

He didn't know why she had stated her name before attacking. It must have had something to do with the way martial artists fought against each other. If the chance ever came that Raze could pay her back for what she had done, he wanted to know about her, which was why he had asked the question.

"I wasn't expecting this though," Raze murmured, looking around. He noticed the onlookers not only giving him a certain look but also the scorn in their expressions. "I had no idea she was this well-known."

"It's okay, everyone," Sonny said aloud. "The kid is just curious; there is no need for alarm."

Sonny quickly continued walking with Raze following him. Once they were away from the eyes and ears of those who had recognized the name, he spoke up again.

"That name is probably one you don't want to mention too loudly, not unless you want to cause a panic," Sonny explained. "You remember when I told you about the different factions? For one reason or another, and a long history of back and forth, the light factions and dark factions have been at each other's throats."

"The person you mentioned is one of the Faction's rising stars. Her name has been spread quite a bit, especially after she won the recent Warriors Summit."

Raze had no clue what this Warriors Summit was; from the sounds of it, it seemed like a type of tournament.

"So she's really that strong then?" Raze asked.

"Haha... yes, really strong. You saw how everyone reacted when you mentioned her name, right? That's because she could take out our whole clan if she was here," Sonny replied.

Raze touched his chest again, feeling the beginning of pain. He was certain it was phantom pain from the memories resurfacing. He had only experienced a single strike from her, but judging from what he had just heard, it was only a fraction of her strength.

'The dangers of this world keep increasing. I have to grow stronger faster, especially if I want to return to Alterian. The number of portals I would need to test, going through trial and error, means I could run into more people like her. Let's just hope she doesn't remember me,' Raze thought.

The two finally reached the large Red Brigade clan base, with two large double doors at the entrance. It was the second time he had been there, and unlike before, he could hear heavy grunts and shouting.

Entering the base, Raze soon saw why. Multiple kids, around Raze's age or younger, were training. They had their shirts off and wore only a pair of fitted, flexible cloth trousers.

Sweat ran off their bodies as they practiced formations, repeating them and exerting all their power. Observing for a while, Raze could see that with every punch that hit the air, every single one of them was using the same thing Kron had shown; they were channeling Qi in their attacks.

"Are they from the academy?" Raze asked.

"Them? No," Sonny replied. "Those children are getting ready to enter the academy. All clans are required to send their members to the academy when they turn sixteen, to ensure that all warriors of the clan meet a certain standard and do not fall behind other factions."

There were a large number of people, around thirty, and they were all stage 1 warriors. Off in the distance, Raze saw one of the students hit a measuring pillar, and the number [35] appeared.

'That person looked average, just like all the others. Every single one of these kids is more talented than those at the temple,' Raze thought. 'And yet, Beatrix can still take out an entire clan like this?'

Heading inside the main building, a few of the students made eye contact with Raze. It wasn't a face they recognized, and with his white hair, Raze stood out. However, his frail body showed he clearly wasn't a warrior, and non-warriors weren't worth their attention. n..In

The layout of the Red Brigade building was confusing, with multiple hallways and sliding doors that had thin paper attached to them. Shadows could be seen if someone was on the other side, but there was almost no signage, making navigation challenging. Nevertheless, Raze continued to follow Sonny until they reached two guards outside a pair of sliding doors.

"Sonny Baxt is here with Raze!" Sonny announced.

"Come in!" a deep voice responded from within.

Upon entering the room, the scent of incense greeted Raze, reminiscent of a field of flowers. Candles illuminated the large, sparsely decorated space.

The main thing that stood out was at the back of the room. There were several giant scrolls hanging there. From the looks of things, they seemed to list just a few names, names of those who had started the clan.

The next thing that stood out was the large table with papers stacked up around a meter high, and an old man in red robes sitting down.

"Thank you for making the trip," the elderly man said.

Sonny stepped forward and bowed, placing his fist in the palm of his hand.

"I greet the Clan Master."

Raze decided to do the same.

"I greet the Clan Master."

"Oh, that's very polite of you. I believe this is the first time we have met. I am Elder Yon, the Clan Master of the Red Brigade unit. I believe Sonny has informed you of why I asked you to come here."

"He has indeed, sir," Raze answered.

"Good. Well, you see, I have a few questions of my own." Elder Yon looked Raze dead in the eyes, not staring away for a moment. "Tell me, how does a child, especially a weak one, manage to fend off a Pagna warrior who managed to kill his entire family? You'd say it's impossible, right?"

'Wait, is he suspicious of me?' Raze thought. 'Does he think I have something to do with this body's parents' death? That can't be. I'm certain I had nothing to do with it, at least the real me didn't. If he's trying to pin this on me, what happens if they suspect me? How do I get out of this place alive?'

Raze could feel the palms of his hands starting to sweat. He thought that in this new body, the tense situations where he felt his life was on the line would be over. Yet, he kept experiencing the same feeling again and again.

"Now, tell me, how was the Pagna warrior unable to kill you?"