Chaos for the War Game(corrected)

He had to travel several streets because he could not remember exactly where the stall was. As he kept walking, he noticed how the quality of the buildings diminished, but it meant he was getting closer.

'sniff'

Smelling a pleasant odor, he decided to trust his nose and reached the stall run by the man he had met in the past.

"Mister! We have completed all the assigned work."

"Well done, here is your prize and remember to share, ok?"

The man handed a bag full of food to the two children, who as soon as took it, smiled brightly.

"Thank you very much."

The two children ran cheerfully down a narrow street, while the man at the stall waved at them, smiling.

Seeing that there was no one left, Mark approached.

Hearing that a new customer was coming, the man looked up but was surprised to see who it was.

"If it's not the famous Lost Prince, would you like to order something?" -The man asked, smiling.

"Could I have 10 of these skewers?"

"Right away, give me a second I'll finish cooking them so they'll be nice and hot."

He laid the skewers on the fire, which began to generate an aroma that was making his mouth water, but he was curious about one thing.

"Who were the children from before?"

"Orphans." -He replied as he continued cooking.

"You know, Orario might be a dream place for many, but for others, it might just be hell. Those who do not have good connections or are not connected to a good Familia live miserably, but do you know who are the truly unfortunate ones?" -He asked him looking into his eyes.

"The children." -Mark replied with a sigh.

No matter what world, in the end, those who had to face the consequences of adults were none other than the children.

"That's right. Many parents try to make money by becoming supporters, but without a blessing, it's practically suicide. Most die, leaving their children alone to face the cruel world. I make sure to assign them small jobs so they can become independent and they understand that by working they can improve their situation."

"Unfortunately, I cannot pay them with money, the risk of them being robbed is high, so I give them food so they can stay healthy. As an adult I am ashamed of my incapacity to do anything." -He said, shaking his head.

"Knowing that there is a problem but refusing to do anything is shameful. No matter how small or big the things you do to help, giving up something to do good for others is worthy of respect."

Smiling at him, he took the skewers and tossed him the bag containing the money, and began to quietly walk away.

"W-Wait you gave me too much money, the total is 500, not 5000 Valis!" -Shouted the shopkeeper.

Without even turning around, Mark simply waved his hand making the sign for him to keep it. There was no need to do so, but he felt that person deserved it. If with that small good deed the children could continue to receive abundant food while working, then he was more than happy to have given that money away.

"Delicious."

Taking a big bite out of a skewer, the meat seemed to melt as the various juices filled his mouth, making his taste buds giddy.

Having given away all the money, he no longer had a specific goal so he decided to explore this area of the city, which looked like the site of old ruins. From what he knew, the reason it was in this state was that it was the area where the Evilus resided and after the constant fighting between the city's forces, it ended up looking like this.

'Booom!

An explosion snapped him out of his thoughts as he saw smoke rising from an area that was some distance away from him.

"Who is the fool who is casting such magic in the city?"

Although he was curious about the situation, he had decided that he would rest today, so he restrained himself from going. Moreover, he believed that if the situation was serious, more people would be heading there, so he decided to walk away.

But contrary to his expectations, the sound of explosions was only increasing, and what made his eyes narrow dangerously was the fact that the 'explosions were near the area where the children had moved to.

'Better check it out.'

Jumping over a building, he began to leap from one building to another leaving a shadow because of his speed. The more he moved the greater the effects he felt from leveling up, his whole body felt lighter, but he could waste no time in seeing his new strength.

Landing on top of another rooftop, he saw that a few residents were running away as the sound of the various clashes grew closer and closer.

His gaze shifted to a duo that looked like brother and sister who were not moving. Concentrating, he noticed that the little girl seemed to be injured on her knee and unable to walk. Her brother was trying to carry her on his back, but he was struggling.

'Boom!

Another explosion occurred above the roof, causing a piece of the building to collapse right toward the children. Unable to use magic because of the damage it might do, Mark immediately moved in front of the children and jumped away with them, preventing the rubble from hitting them.

'Ah, my skewers.'

Because of all the chaos, he didn't notice that the bag had broken and the skewers had fallen, in the end, he could only eat one of the ten.

"Give this to your sister and get away quickly."

Handing a potion to the child, he turned his attention toward the newly exploded building trying to figure out what was happening, when a figure fell toward his direction that he unconsciously took in his arms.

'Zoe?

Raising his eyebrows in surprise, he did not expect to see her, let alone with various wounds on her, and looking up, he could see the various figures who were responsible for all this.

"Now little fuckers, who do I have to blame for dropping my skewers?"

Anger began to rise inside Mark. He wanted to have a peaceful day, but these guys were going around messing around the city endangering even people that didn't have any fault. Also, maybe because he had saved her in the past or maybe because having talked to her, she didn't seem like an evil person, he found it strangely annoying to see Zoe hurt.

"Can you stand?" -He asked, ignoring the various individuals.

Although he was the one who took her this way, he was beginning to feel strange holding a woman like a princess.

"O-OH sure, thank you."

She also seemed to find the position uncomfortable, so she did not hesitate to confirm, but she seemed to struggle to stand because of her injuries.

"I assume you are Lost Prince of the Loki Familia." -The boy in charge asked.

'They are all between level 2 and 1.' -He thought as he analyzed their aura.

"That's what they call me. From your emblem you are supposed to be the Apollo Familia, can anyone tell what you are up to?"

"We have nothing against the Loki Familia, this is between us and the Hestia Familia. It would be appreciated if you would not intervene."

From his tone, he did not seem to respect Mark all that much. It was true that the Loki Familia was a colossus, but that didn't mean every member were feared, much less one who was newly level 2, that was probably what they were thinking. But what they didn't know was that Mark was an extremely abnormal level 3.

"Hmm, this is a problem... because now you have ruined my enthusiasm and I have every right to intervene."

One moment, he was on the road massaging his chin as if he was thinking about something while the next moment he was facing the group leader who tried to jump back but was stopped by Mark's hand that hold his face.

"Intent."

Before the others could do anything, Mark used his ability that unleashed a bloodlust that paralyzed the adventurers, and with the fact that the ability varied depending on Mark's mental state, now that he was under the effects of corruption the pressure he was giving off was no joke. The ability would be much more useful if it wasn't that against stronger opponents the effects were almost zero and it consumed too much mental energy.

"Now listen carefully."

Bringing his mouth close to the ear of the person he was restraining, he whispered gently, but to the restrained boy, his voice seemed to send a chill through his veins and looking in those desolate gray eyes that seemed apathetic, panic began to rise within him, causing him to turn pale.

"If I find out that you have done such idiocy like endangering innocent children, I will make sure that your body becomes fertilizer for the dungeon, and trust me when I tell you that I spend a lot of time in that place. Now if you understand nod."

The boy nodded with all his might with his body dripping with cold sweat.

"Then get out of my sight and take those idiots with you."

Releasing his grip, the boy jumped away as fast as he could by increasing the distance between them. The others seeing their leader retreating could only follow him, causing peace to fall again in the area.

He had no problem releasing him, from his strength it would be no problem for Mark to handle him, plus he did not think they were so crazy as to antagonize the Loki Familia.

'Tap.'

Landing back on the road, he walked over to where he had left Zoe, who did not look good.

"Do you need a hand?"

"...Help me get the arrow out, it shouldn't have gone in too far since it hit my shoulder." -She said weakly.

Nodding, he moved to her back where he saw the arrow lodged in her shoulder. Tightening his grip on the stick well, he saw Zoe clenching a tissue with her teeth since she knew it would hurt, and very carefully he began to pull it away, making it come out of her shoulder.

'HURM!

A lament of pain came from Zoe, But even so, she continued to endure and cast a spell on herself.

"H-Heal."

Green light enveloped her as the various wounds began to heal and her expression improved, although she still remained pale from the continued use of magic.

'Instant healing magic, that's some good stuff.' -Thought Mark surprised.

Meanwhile, Zoe shifted her gaze to Mark and like the first time, she couldn't feel anything from him. She had to admit that not being able to read the minds of people she did not know well made her uncomfortable, but it was also true that he had helped her. As she continued to be confused about what she was feeling, she saw two children approaching him.

"Thank you, mister."

The pair of siblings from earlier approached him. The sister looked shy as she hid behind her brother, while the latter tried to keep his chest puffed out as he faced Mark.

"I'm glad you are well and you are a real little man, you kept protecting your sister until the end."

Reaching out, Mark gently stroked the child's head while smiling at him, he was really glad that nothing had happened to both of them. Perhaps because they were embarrassed, the two bowed quickly before running away, making Mark smile again.

'An unexpected side.'

Zoe did not know him well. They had spoken little, and from his behavior, she believed he wasn't much interested in what was going on around, but watching how he interacted with the children, he seemed to possess an oddly kind side.

"Now that you're feeling better, can you explain what's going on?"

Turning his gaze toward Zoe, he focused on her aura but gave up quickly when he saw that it was still unreadable, so he decided to get some information.

"At yesterday's ball, my goddess refused to participate in the War Game requested by Apollo, and now he seems willing to do anything to force her to participate."

Hearing her words, Mark's expression frowned. A War Game was not something simple, two Familia would fight each other and the winner could force the loser to do whatever he/she wanted, from this, it was clear how the balance of power could be destroyed. Fortunately, both gods had to accept the challenge, otherwise, it would be invalid, but there seemed to be loopholes.

'If they are willing to pay the price, they can harass the Hestia Familia until they agree.'

Considering how one was a Familia consisting of only two members and the other of more than a hundred, the outcome of a War Game was all but decided.

"I would accompany you to the guild, but in this situation, if they see me, a member of the Loki Familia helping you, a member the Hestia Familia, rumors might form that my Familia is trying to meddle in the affairs of other Families."

"No need, I've recovered enough and with the fact that you've chased away the Apollo Familia members, there will be no problem in reaching the guild."

She told him seriously, but then Zoe's face softened.

"And thank you for saving me again, it seems my debt to you has increased." -She smiled kindly at him before heading toward the guild.

Watching Zoe's figure slowly recede, a strange feeling ran through Mark, though it disappeared quickly as soon as he couldn't see her.

'Never mind, I probably won't meet her for quite a while.'

Putting his hands behind his head he walked home, not knowing that their next meeting would be closer than he thought.