“Aaargh—”
The burly man let out a howl of pain, his entire face instantly flushing red as he desperately tried to pull his hand back.
Rosie let go. The man stumbled back several steps, clutching his wrist, cold sweat already breaking out on his forehead.
“Quick, what are you screaming for?” The scarred man frowned in displeasure.
The burly man clutched his wrist, the flesh on his face still twitching. “I'm sorry, Boss Hawk... this chick... she's got a crazy grip.”
“Embarrassing. Go wait outside. Don't come in unless I order you to,” Hawk said, waving his hand impatiently.
Quick shut his mouth and obediently walked out of the house.
The other two thugs also wore disgusted expressions.
“May I ask what business you have breaking into my home?” Rosie stood up directly, taking a step forward to stare straight at the three of them.
Hawk's eyes narrowed.
Normally, he wouldn't deign to personally show up for a minor matter like debt collection.
But he had heard that the gambler Theodore had a rather good-looking daughter, which was why he came himself.
If they couldn't get the money, they would take the person.
The girl before him indeed looked quite good, though she seemed a bit wild.
Suppressing the slight doubts in his mind, he pulled out a piece of parchment.
“You're Theodore's daughter? Your old man owes me quite a bit of money. With principal and interest up to today, it's exactly five hundred silver coins. It's written in black and white, and signed with his thumbprint.”
The Kingdom of Norman also used the standard global exchange rate: 1 gold coin equaled 100 silver coins, and 1 silver coin equaled 100 copper coins.
Five hundred silver coins might seem like just five gold coins, but a commoner at the bottom would have to work for several years to save up that much.
“Either you pay back the money for him right now,” Hawk stuffed the debt note back into his coat, revealing a twisted smile, “or you obediently come with me...”
As he spoke, his gaze swept from Rosie's rare black hair to her beautiful face, slid down her jawline to her neck, and finally lingered on the curves hidden beneath her linen dress.
If this chick was properly trained...
Then put in a shiny silk dress and placed on the second floor of the casino...
Those noble lords and wealthy merchants would definitely be willing to spend a fortune on her.
“The casino is short on... well, a good headliner. If you perform well, maybe you can pay off your old man's debt in no time.”
Hawk was lying. Once a woman entered the casino, she would have to work until she died, unless she could no longer be squeezed of a single drop of profit.
“It's not my debt. What does it have to do with me? Go find whoever signed it,” Rosie refused flatly.
“Sell my body? Go sell your own mother's chickens instead!”
“Chick, you trying to stiff me?” Hawk bared a mouth full of yellow teeth. “No one stiffs Hawk!”
He reached out and waved his hand forward.
“Teach her a lesson.”
The bald, broad-shouldered thug to Hawk's left cracked his knuckles, making a popping sound.
“Chick, stand right there and don't move, or I won't be able to guarantee where my punches land.”
With a sneer, he walked toward Rosie.
The thinner thug on the right crossed his arms and mocked, “Chick, I advise you to cooperate. He's known as the 'Ghoul'.”
Rosie's eyes narrowed slightly. As the bald man approached, she suddenly retreated half a step with her right leg, lowered her center of gravity, and twisted her hips.
“Hah!”
Her right fist shot out from her waist.
This punch was incredibly fast and sudden.
The bald man didn't even have time to react. The sneer was still frozen on his face when his chest took the solid hit.
With a dull thud, he groaned and stumbled backward, crashing heavily into the shattered door frame. He curled up on the ground, clutching his chest, unable to get up for the moment.
The thin man watching the show widened his eyes, his face filled with disbelief.
Having landed the hit, Rosie didn't stop for a second.
She took a fierce step forward, her left hand pointing two fingers straight like a double dragon to gouge the thin man's eyes.
In a panic, the thin man raised his hands to block.
Then, a sharp, agonizing pain shot up from his crotch.
Taking advantage of the moment the thin man raised his hands to block his own vision, Rosie had already delivered a vicious kick to his vitals.
The ultimate secret of the Mad Dog Style: when you fight, you must not only be ruthless, but also dirty.
“Ohhh—”
Clutching his crotch, the thin man let out a strange whimper and collapsed limply to the floor.
Having succeeded in her sneak attacks, Rosie immediately retreated. She wiped her lip with her thumb and mocked, “Some 'Ghoul'. Just a bunch of paper tigers.”
Secretly, however, she was thrilled. The self-defense techniques she had learned from videos in her past life actually worked beautifully.
“Clap, clap, clap!”
Watching his two men fall to the ground, Hawk didn't attack. Instead, he began to applaud.
“Impressive! Who would have thought that gambler Theodore actually had a daughter like you.”
“Sorry, I'm not close to him,” Rosie said, wanting absolutely nothing to do with that scumbag.
“It doesn't matter if you're close or not.” Hawk gripped the hand axe at his waist. “But today, I am collecting this debt.”
“It's not my debt. Why should I pay?” Rosie grabbed a broken clay pot from the corner.
Paying back the debt was out of the question. It would never happen in this lifetime.
But before the two of them could make their next move, a booming voice rang out from outside.
“What is going on here?”
“Ah, Sir Knight, inside is...” Quick's hesitant voice sounded.
“Out of the way!”
The doorway brightened as a knight in silver armor, with a chin sharp enough to stab someone to death, appeared at the entrance.
Rosie's mouth twitched uncontrollably.
The cliché hero-saves-the-beauty plot was fashionably late, but it had arrived.
Except right now, she was no fragile "beauty."
Hawk also frowned slightly when he saw the newcomer.
Most noble knights disdained visiting the outer city, but the man before him was an exception.
He let go of his hand axe and forced a fake smile. “Sir Lucius, what brings you to this dump in the outer city?”
“I am a Norman Knight. Patrolling the Royal City is within my duties. Why shouldn't I be here? Are you afraid I might ruin your fun?”
The knight stepped over the threshold, his silver greaves crunching loudly against the broken door panel.
His gaze swept over the bald man and the thin man on the floor, lingered on Hawk's face for a moment, and finally landed on Rosie.
“Miss,” the knight took a step forward, standing between Hawk and Rosie, “is he attacking you?”
Rosie was about to answer.
“How could that be?” Hawk's voice cut in first. “Sir Lucius, you wrong me. I merely came to collect a debt, but she directly attacked and injured my men!”
He gestured toward the two unlucky bastards still groaning on the floor, playing the victim first.
The knight glanced at Hawk, then turned to Rosie, his tone carrying a hint of doubt. “Miss, is that true?”
The two thugs on the floor looked far stronger than Rosie in every way.
“Of course not!” Rosie answered immediately. “They not only broke into my home, but they also wanted to take advantage of me. I was only acting in self-defense.”
She spoke with righteous confidence, pointing at the shattered door panel.
The knight nodded and turned back to Hawk.
“Mr. Hawk, the residents of the Royal City are under His Majesty's protection. Even if you are here to collect a debt, breaking into a citizen's home like this makes things very difficult for me.”
“Sir Lucius, it's because her father ran away with the debt. My men were just anxious,” Hawk immediately argued.
“I already told them he wasn't here, but they forced their way in and even tried to force me into slavery,” Rosie added instantly.
“Don't talk nonsense, girl! When did I say I'd make you a slave?” Hawk said angrily.
“Whether I'm talking nonsense is for Sir Knight to judge.” Rosie looked at the knight with a completely candid expression.
“You...” Hawk wanted to argue, but he couldn't find the right words for a moment.
Knights always prided themselves on being the representatives of justice. If you told one he was wrong, it was a slap to his face, and he would challenge you to a duel.
Although Hawk had backing in the inner city, if he died in a duel, he could only blame his own bad luck.
The knight's gaze swept back and forth between Rosie and Hawk.
“So, Mr. Hawk, did you find the debtor?”
The room was only so big and completely barren; there was nowhere to hide.
“No, he's not here,” Hawk could only answer honestly.
“Since the debtor is not here, Mr. Hawk, you should leave,” the knight said.
Hawk glared at Rosie. “Tell your old man, even if he hides at the ends of the earth, I will find him.”
“Quick! Come in and carry these two useless wastes out.”
Hawk shouted to the outside.
Quick, who had been peeking through the door, quickly ran inside.
He glanced at Rosie, grabbed the thin man who was still whimpering, dragged the bald man on the floor, and headed outside.
“Sir Lucius, I shall take my leave then.”
With that, Hawk prepared to walk out.
“Wait!” Rosie suddenly called out.
Hearing her call, Hawk turned his head.
Rosie pointed at the broken doorway, which now only had a frame left.
“My door...”
Hawk stared at her.
The air froze for two seconds.
Then, he smiled slightly. “I will remember to deduct the compensation for the door from Theodore's interest.”
“Goodbye, you two.”
Hawk gave a gentlemanly nod, then turned and left without any hesitation.
Quick followed, dragging the bald man and supporting the thin man.
Once Hawk's gang was far away, the knight turned to face Rosie directly.
“What is your name?”
“Rosie, Sir Knight.”
“Miss Rosie, did you really defeat Hawk's men?”
“I want to become an adventurer, so I've been training since I was young.” Rosie lied without batting an eye.
The knight nodded. “A jackal does not easily let go of its prey. Since he cannot find your father, he will definitely return.”
Lucius had known Hawk for more than a day or two. The man nicknamed "Jackal" was by no means a generous person.
“Thank you for the warning, Sir,” Rosie said.
Lucius nodded, turned around cleanly, his silver armored cape whipping a sharp arc, and vanished like a gust of wind.
Even Rosie had to admit that this sharp-chinned guy really knew how to show off.
If she were any other young girl, she might have actually been charmed by him.
【Quest Complete: Debt? What Debt?】
At that moment, a line of semi-transparent text floated before Rosie's eyes.
【Please select a reward: Combat Skill: Level 1 Heroic Strike - Consumes a small amount of stamina to launch a fierce attack at the target】
【Please select a reward: Trait: Sewer Rat - Stealth +15% in dark environments】
“Oho, rewards...”
Rosie put down the clay pot and walked back to the wooden bed with a grin, beginning to analyze.
A combat skill was an active fighting ability; the description made it sound like a powerful attack, only useful in battle.
A trait, on the other hand, would always be active as long as the environment matched, each having its own advantages.
After careful consideration, Rosie chose the combat skill.
Given her current situation, being able to fight was what mattered most.
As the saying went, you might not use it, but you had to have it.
Besides, she had already allocated points to Strength and Constitution, so a combat skill was naturally more suitable.
Sewer Rat was better suited for thieves and the like...
With her choice confirmed, a rush of knowledge suddenly flooded Rosie's mind.
It was the technique of how to use a weapon to deliver a swift and violent blow.
The cold wind blew in from the doorway, feeling a bit chilly.
The neighbors in the surrounding area were peeking from a distance.
But no one came over to ask. Rosie's gambler father had offended practically everyone in the neighborhood.
“Right, time for work...”
Rosie recalled that her original body worked part-time at a tavern.
Though customers would occasionally try to get touchy-feely, earning 1 silver coin a day was a decent income.
For a girl with no special abilities, it was a good job.
But of course, that clearly didn't suit the current Rosie.
Because the strong have no need to sell their looks!
She reached under the wooden bed and dug out the original body's savings—3 silver and 15 copper coins.
Then, she stepped out of her ruined home, walking out of the alley amidst the faint whispers of the neighbors, beginning her path to becoming a powerhouse.
Rate on N.U.
