Chapter 240: Bullied Bully
"Yes, Sir Candor, while that may be the standard protocol, I am merely following orders," Aya replied calmly.
"Under orders? Whose orders? Your heart\'s?" Candor retorted disrespectfully.
He saw Aya\'s sweet smile towards Shye, hence, he believed that Aya was merely following the orders of her little heart.
In his mind, he would never believe that the guild master would favor this newcomer over him, a veteran platinum-ranked guild member who had been serving the guild for five years.
Just when Aya was about to respond, Shye\'s mocking voice echoed from behind Candor.
"Hahahaha, stop making trouble for Miss Aya. The development of talented people would naturally be prioritized over those of mediocre talents. There really isn\'t much to comprehend here." Shye said, luring the bastard\'s attention away from Aya.
He knows the truth and Aya was indeed just acting on orders, hence, he felt obligated to at least help her escape the ire of this bastard named Candor.
Hearing the arrogant rookie\'s words, veins popped at the sides of Candor\'s head.
This little shithead of a newcomer actually dared to call him untalented?!
"Yo…isn\'t this newcomer too fiery?"
"Hahahaha, out of all the rookies, this one is indeed the most vicious-mouthed"
"BAHAHAHA! Candor finally met his match. That\'s what you get for not respecting beginners!"
The guildsmen, who were spectating, commented, intensifying the anger and humiliation welling in Candor\'s heart.
"YOU ARROGANT LITTLE PRICK! DO YOU DARE FIGHT ME IN A DUEL?!" Candor raged, drawing his shortsword and pointing it at Shye—a customary pose to officially challenge someone.
Hearing Candor\'s words, Shye merely sneered in disdain.
He knew that it would come to this sooner or later.
\'Heh, alright then, since you\'re begging to be physically and mentally crushed in front of your guildmates, I\'ll grant your wish.\' Shye thought as he looked at Candor with a condescending smile.
Candor was strong, however, he wasn\'t someone Shye couldn\'t handle.
"Heh, Do you think I\'m scared of untalented bullies like you? You\'re as common as pebbles on random roads! Fine then, since you want a duel, how about we take it up a notch? Bet your adventurer license. The one who loses gets their adventurer license revoked. What do you say?"
Upon hearing the arrogant rookie\'s words, the onlookers, who intended to confront Shye after Candor, broke out in a cold sweat.
The rookie was just too confident.
Moreover, the way he issued his counter-challenge suggested that the guy wasn\'t a simple overconfident idiot.
Would they be willing to accept the rookie\'s challenge if they dared mess with him? Most of them wouldn\'t.
An adventurer license was equal to an adventurer\'s livelihood. Losing it would mean losing their only means of income.
Sure, they could apply to mundane positions in the guild, but they would be bidding farewell to their aspirations of leading dream lives if they choose to do so.
Betting one\'s adventurer license was simply not worth it, especially for a stupid reason such as bullying a rookie.
Thanking their lucky stars that they weren\'t in Candor\'s position, most of the guildsmen with wicked thoughts to suppress Shye immediately decided to drop their plans lest they end up in the same situation as Candor—stuck between a rock and a hard place.
If Candor decides to fight, there is a fair chance of losing considering how confident the rookie was. On the other hand, if he backs down, his reputation would sink to the darkest depths of the ocean.
All eyes on him, Candor perspired nervously.
Throughout his five years in the guild, Candor had never encountered such a confident and reckless rookie, not caring about the repercussions of offending him, a guild veteran.
Pressured by the spectator\'s gazes, Candor made an unexpected decision.
"H-Hmpph! C-Consider yourself lucky, brat. While I do want to test the mettle of arrogant rookies like you, I\'m not fond of destroying someone\'s future." Candor said, his voice slightly quivering as he walked away.
Unfortunately for him, Shye was keen on showing everyone his fangs today. Candor started this shit and he was merely retaliating.
If he allowed Candor to walk away without making him look like a clown, then others might start bullshitting with him every other day.
"Hahahaha! What a comedian. Issuing a challenge then backing away when a wager is involved? Can one get any wussier than that? Yeah, go. Continue walking, You\'re all talk anyway. Just don\'t show up in front of me too often or I might die of laughter." Shye ruthlessly said, each word stabbing deep into Candor\'s heart, gnawing at both his sanity and self-respect.
Candor wanted to turn around and throw caution to the wind, however, ultimately, he didn\'t dare, further deepening his shock and burgeoning seeds of depression in his heart.
He regretted going after the newcomer.
How could he have expected that an inexperienced rookie would be so vicious and ruthless? Not leaving him even a single ounce of reputation.
\'Sure he tried to bully the newcomer…but…did he deserve such heartless humiliation? Aren\'t they guildmates?\' was a thought that continuously infested Candor\'s heart and mind as he dejectedly walked out of the branch headquarters.
His reputation just went down the drain and he was not in the mood to look for suitable quests.
In fact, if given a choice, he would…leave the guild and apply for another one.
Only, it wasn\'t advisable to do so as his credibility would diminish should he leave his guild for such a stupid reason.
What would he say? That he was bullied by a rookie in his previous guild?
He would be a laughingstock!
Watching the troublemaker, Candor, leave the guild establishment in a depressed state, Shye felt immense satisfaction.
\'Ahh…crap, I shouldn\'t get addicted to this feeling…\'
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