UNLIMITED SPEED

"Why did you come all the way over to the other side when you knew you'd be beaten?" Noah asked the group of four teenagers sitting before him.

There were three boys and Erolia. They had led him to that house in the slums and he couldn't help but think of how bad their living condition was.

Erolia chose to speak, but her voice had still been shaky since memories of what Noah had done filled her mind.

"It was my idea and my fault," she tried to take the blame, but one of the boys spoke up.

"We all knew what we were stepping into, but we followed anyway," the young man stared at Noah with fierceness in his eyes, before switching his focus to Erolia.

"You can't take the blame, we followed of our own accord," he stated exchanging glances with the two boys and they nodded.

"But I'm the one who-" Noah wouldn't let Erolia continue, since he knew where it would end. The young man whose name was Aald had said all he needed to know.

Aald was a tall young man who looked about the same age as Erolia, the same could be said for the other two boys.

He was skinny and tall, but Noah could tell that he had far more than the eyes could see.

He also had a peak tier-1 prowess, which was incredible for someone at his age. He had deep brown hair and was tanned due to extensive periods under the sun.

The young man had big dark eyes that spoke of intelligence and also pain. He was calculative and could be considered the brain of the group, and probably also its power since he was the strongest.

In terms of looks, he was certainly above average. His deep voice further emphasized his masculinity, and he seemed to have a thing for Erolia.

The other two boys weren't far behind too. Both were skinny, with one being less taller than all three of them.

The short one went by the name Jor, he had short black hair and was mostly silent.

The other boy had a height close to Aald's. Featured long black hair and also held a prowess at the middle stage of tier 1. Same with Jor and Erolia, his name was Roy.

They all looked like close friends and for that Noah couldn't begin to chastise them. They clearly had each other's backs.

"Is it about yesterday?" Noah asked. "Is that why you came?" He spoke even if he knew the answer too.

Erolia nodded slowly, and Noah heaved a deep sigh.

"You could have gotten yourself more beaten than you were. Or even worse, killed," he gasped at the mere thought of it. Had that happened, he would have done things he would later regret.

"I know. That's why I asked them not to come... I'm willing to bear any type of punishment as long as you end up helping us," she bowed before him, and the other did the same thing. "We even have a plan already."

Noah furrowed his brows deeply. Her words had reached him. He even began to feel bad. Surely he had the type of power to raid and destroy the bandits, not even a tier 4 could properly threaten him.

He was about to give a response when the door into that place flew open and an old man burst into the room, eyes teary and worry-filled.

"Kids!" He had yelled when he laid eyes on all four of them, but seeing that they were bowed he glanced in Noah's direction and froze.

The man pulled out a knife and Noah almost laughed, but Erolia and the rest rushed forward yelling how he wasn't the bad guy.

They had seen how cold-blooded he could be. They wouldn't let the man fall into the same circumstance.

"Are you the guardian of these children?" Noah asked standing up and seeing fear flicker across the man's bearded face. All his hair had gone gray and Noah couldn't help but wonder how old he was since he held power at the top of the lower stage of tier 2.

"Yes," the man responded, his knife still out. Noah on the other hand wasn't offended by it, he would do the same if he were in the man's position.

"You should watch their movements. They almost got themselves killed," he spoke in a hiss-like tone. He was that annoyed about the situation.

"Where are you going!" Erolia cried out seeing as Noah wanted to approach the exit. Her eyes were frantic and teary, and her voice shaky.

"Don't worry," Noah waved her worry off. He wasn't going to allow their efforts result to nothing. He wasn't that bad They were probably more courageous than he had been at similar levels of strength.

"I'll be back here tomorrow, for now, rest," He explained. "Also get that plan of yours in good shape since we'll be needing it," Noah added looming over here before sweeping his gaze on the others.

"Make sure they don't do anything that would get them killed," Noah spoke to the old man, but his eyes also darted to Aald and both individuals nodded.

"Does that mean you've agreed to help us?" Erolia pointed out, her voice shaky from the tears she tried to keep from spilling.

Noah heaved a deep sigh, feeling the urge to place his hand on her head, and he did. "Yes," he stated in a tone that managed to reassure everyone present.

"There are a few matters I have to take care of first," He announced exiting the building and vanishing from their sight.

The children slept well that night, knowing that an extraordinary expert had promised to help them carry out their plans. There was even excitement.

Noah on the other hand had once again been visited by the town's head, and the although the man had kept his anger in wraps, Noah could still feel it during their conversation.

Their exchange of words had mostly been Noah expressing his displeasure about the event, while Kius spoke about how many issues Noah's actions had caused.

He did so in a very polite manner, however. Noah was still incredibly stronger than him, His instincts told him that only death awaited him if they ever fought.

"Your town is under the rule of bandits, basically. Some person dying shouldn't be your main concern," Noah had commented at some point, but he had done so in an honest tone. Kius couldn't pick any offense at that point and left.

Noah sensed the man's anger was great, but he had not apologized since his next actions would benefit him too. Or so he had thought.