Chapter 39: The Saint Who Starts Beating People After Eating.
Spending the rest of the morning in her rented inn room, Suna maintained her gear and modified parts of her weapons.
Afterward, she strolled through the adventurer district, mulling over future plans while observing the passing adventurers.
[Approaching Skoll directly as a saintess, or deliberately teaming up with him, would easily raise suspicions from the temple.
Contact must be gradual and natural.
Options include meeting him by chance at his combat grounds or first connecting with Ace and Frosti, then approaching Skoll as their friend.]
Lost in thought, hunger struck.
Suna picked a random restaurant, scanned the menu, and ordered a massive portion of sauce-smothered steak rice with two beers.
Her order, mismatched with her saintess appearance, drew sidelong glances, but no loud chatter nearby.
It was daytime, and the restaurant’s patrons, seated apart in small groups, focused on their meals and conversations.
Satisfied with the quiet, Suna began eating her steak rice with a spoon.
Just then, three gang thugs with magical tattoos and black chains on their necks or arms barged in.
They stormed to a corner, surrounding two diners: a man in a gray hooded cloak and a woman in her late twenties in a vibrant red dress.
Facing the aggressive intruders, the two paused their meal, eyeing them.
Other patrons watched with interest, the waiter cautiously retreated, and the manager behind the counter reached for a shotgun.
“You’re relentless. Want to fight here?” the hooded man asked, his tone a warning.
The gang leader, a burly man with spiked gauntlets, clenched his fists.
“Cut the crap. You crippled our guys; we’re here to settle the score.”
“They had it coming,” the red-dressed woman sneered, pulling out a lady’s pipe, taking a drag, and blowing thick smoke at them.
“Take it outside!” the manager shouted.
The conflict erupted instantly.
Tables and chairs shattered under fists and magic, debris flying.
Patrons either moved away or fled.
Suna, activating a one-sided radiant shield, continued eating.
“Mmm, delicious~”
Chewing tender, flavorful steak soaked in savory sauce, she tuned out the sounds of fighting, breaking furniture, and splintering floors and ceilings.
Sipping her beer, a gang thug flew toward her.
Setting down her glass and grabbing her spoon, Suna used a high-speed water stream to cushion his impact, caught his back single-handedly, and tossed him unconscious to the floor.
Ignoring him, she resumed eating rapidly.
The two diners clearly had the upper hand.
The hooded man, using enhanced strength and martial arts, pummeled the gang leader.
The red-dressed woman wielded smoke-based magic, landing unpredictable hits that left the thugs bruised.
The remaining patrons watched eagerly, while the manager covered his eyes in frustration, knowing this was a worst-case scenario.
After five minutes, Suna finished her massive one-kilogram steak rice at an astonishing pace, clasped her hands, and prayed softly.
“Golden Bough Goddess, forgive my minor transgression, but this is to guide people to the right path.”
Standing, she approached the gang leader locked in combat with the hooded man, patted his shoulder amiably, and said, “Hello, and goodnight.”
Before he could react, her hand chop knocked him out.
Another thug roared, charging at her, but Suna’s gauntleted hand delivered a precise slap, giving him a concussion that sent him staggering into unconsciousness.
The hooded man and red-dressed woman frowned, unsure of Suna’s intentions.
Without warning, Suna’s fist, moving too fast to track, bypassed the hooded man’s reflexive guard, striking his chest and forcing him to his knees.
As the red-dressed woman tried to summon gray-white smoke, golden raindrops tore through it.
Suna, showing no mercy, landed a heavy punch to the woman’s stomach, dropping her to the floor, clutching her abdomen.
Standing among the fallen, Suna grumbled unhappily.
“Can’t even eat in peace! You’re all so noisy, ruining my meal! That’s unforgivable!”