"Plop."
No surprise there. Felt was dragged down.
As she scrambled up from the ground, Felt's delicate, palm-sized face was flushed with pure rage. Without a second thought, she didn't even try to run; she lunged forward and aimed a fierce kick at Satoru Gojo.
"You bastard! You—I'll—"
"Now, now. I can totally understand how you feel," Satoru Gojo said, reaching out to block her leg. With a smirk that Felt found incredibly punchable, he continued in a deadpan tone, "Meeting again in a massive capital like this... you must be so excited."
"You guys are really starting to piss me off!"
Behind him came Rachins' sullen voice, accompanied by Subaru Natsuki's panicked shout.
"Satoru, watch out!"
Even Felt, whose kick had just been blocked, widened her eyes and looked behind Satoru Gojo. "Get out of the way!"
"Hmm? What are you all talking about?"
Faced with their warnings, Satoru Gojo didn't budge an inch. Without even turning his head, he spoke to them with a grin.
Behind him, Rachins stared down at the two daggers in his hands, his face a mask of utter bewilderment. He hadn't stopped his attack; he had tried to stab Satoru Gojo. However, as the daggers drew close to the man, they seemed to be blocked by some invisible force. No matter how much strength he exerted, he couldn't pierce that barrier to harm the man in front of him.
Subaru Natsuki and Felt also witnessed this shocking scene clearly, their hearts filled with equal parts awe and confusion.
"Oh, you were talking about this guy," Satoru Gojo said, appearing as if he had only just realized what was happening. "I thought it was something serious. If it's just someone of this level, they won't even be able to touch the hem of my clothes."
Satoru Gojo turned around, looked at the incredulous Rachins, and mimed a flicking motion with his fingers.
"Robbery and intent to cause harm... that's a serious crime no matter where you go, isn't it?"
"You bastard, what kind of trick is this?!" Rachins glared at the mocking Satoru Gojo, his heart filled with a mix of shock and fear. He swung his daggers again, trying to break through that layer of invisible power. But no matter how hard he tried, it was utterly useless.
"I'll help you!"
Seeing this, Gaston hurriedly stepped forward, swinging a massive fist at Satoru Gojo. Unfortunately, whether it was daggers or fists, none could break through that formless defense. Instead, the two of them looked like jumping clowns—completely ridiculous.
"Me too!" Hanbari rushed in as well.
It had to be said that while these three weren't "good" people, they were certainly loyal to one another.
"How touching. In that case, I can't leave anyone out."
Satoru Gojo's finger, which was held up near Rachins' forehead, gave a gentle flick. A powerful concussive force suddenly acted upon the three of them. Like cannonballs fired from a barrel, they were sent flying out of the alley, slamming into the wall and losing consciousness instantly.
"Alright, now no one will interrupt our reunion as old friends."
Satoru Gojo turned back with a smile to look at Felt. Since he was still holding the girl's ankle, she couldn't run even if she wanted to. Felt finally snapped out of her trance.
"You bastard, let go of me! Right now! Hurry!"
After witnessing the scene just now, she knew she couldn't pose any threat to this guy. But that didn't stop her from kicking and punching at him.
"Eh? Why be like that? I thought we were good friends," Satoru Gojo teased her with a bit of a mischievous streak.
"Who's your friend, you robber!"
"A robber? Doesn't that make us even better suited to be friends? Tell me, Miss Thief."
At some point, an exquisitely crafted badge appeared in Satoru Gojo's hand. It was carved with a Great Dragon emblem, and in its center sat a thumb-sized jewel that looked like a precious orb. With Satoru's status and eye as the head of the Gojo Ninjutsu Clan, he could tell at a glance that this insignia was incredibly valuable. In the modern world, its worth would be staggering.
"You stole my stuff again! Give it back! Give it back!"
Felt felt her empty pocket and immediately panicked. Ignoring the fact that one of her legs was caught, she bent her body with surprising flexibility and tried to bite Satoru Gojo's arm, attempting to force him to drop the item.
But, just like the three thugs earlier, she couldn't actually make contact with him. She could only snap her teeth at the air like a fish out of water.
"Fine, fine, I'll give it back. You really aren't cute at all," Satoru Gojo shrugged. He only intended to tease the little brat. Whose property she stole or what she intended to do with it was none of his business; he felt no need to play the moral mentor and correct her.
"But as a trade-off, shouldn't you tell me your name? This is our second meeting, after all."
"I am Satoru Gojo, a traveler who ended up here by chance. He's Subaru Natsuki; he's in the same boat as me, so we're traveling together."
"Felt! My name is Felt, okay?!"
"Oh? Surprisingly, you didn't lie. That's unexpected. Here you go."
Satoru Gojo tossed the badge toward Felt and released her leg. Felt let out a sigh of relief and caught the insignia in her hand.
The moment Felt touched the badge, Satoru Gojo saw the previously ordinary-looking item emit a faint red glow. It looked quite peculiar.
It glows?
In this age without electricity, Satoru Gojo could only attribute the scene to something like magic. No wonder Felt treated it as such a treasure. Anything possessing supernatural power would be extremely expensive in any world—much like the cursed tools used by sorcerers. It would likely sell for a lot of money.
"Seriously! Don't let me run into you again!" Felt stashed the badge away and threw out a parting threat, preparing to make her escape.
However, just as she started to move, Satoru Gojo looked toward the other end of the alley.
"Don't even think about leaving! Give me back my insignia!"