I predicted your prediction

In this scripted world, the power level of “Fourth Tier” roughly equates to being able to take on over a hundred small fries head-on — and still have the flair to act cool.

With the force behind that punch from the captain, my head would’ve twisted like a corkscrew if I didn’t dodge.

So…

I took a step back and avoided it.

“What the hell!?”

The punch missed so fast that you could barely see a blur, and the tall guy froze on the spot, looking confused, opening his palms as if staring at a pair of pickled chicken feet instead of hands.

Then, chuckles came from the surrounding knights, and to cover up his blunder, he angrily drew the wide-bladed knight sword at his side.

“Lucky bastard! I’ll give you a swift end!”

As a martial fighter, he was skilled with the blade — and being the captain of the local knight order only added to that.

If that sword hit me, I’d be sliced in half for sure, and even just brushing against the blade’s wind pressure would probably shred me to pieces.

In a flash of lightning and fire, the sword came crashing down right where I was standing!

[BOOM!]

The floor cracked, the lights shook, and me?

I stepped back again, perfectly fine. Another clean dodge. Captain missed again.

This time, not even a chuckle echoed in the room.

Only my voice rang out, still clumsily casting that “contract magic.”

“Hello? Hello? Is the signal bad again? What? You’re on your way back? I’ll try to hold them off!”

After saying that, I plopped down on the sofa and let out a long sigh.

My big-shot is on her way back~ What’s there to be afraid of? I even had the mood to taunt them.

“Captain? Why’d you stop swinging? Out of mana for your Illusion Sword Dance?”

The towering captain jumped up and leaned back in frustration.

Beside him, Longtao’er (Mr. Extra) was fuming.

“What the hell are you doing!? Did he pay you to act this out!?”

“Lord Longtao’er, something’s wrong with this guy!”

“What the hell do you mean? Just slice him up! What, you think he’ll grow another head!?”

“I couldn’t hit him, okay!?”

The captain, sounding a bit nervous, made Longtao’er’s jaw drop.

“I used full power just now! A normal guy would’ve been split in two!”

Longtao’er finally sensed something “dangerous.”

As he stared at me, he instinctively took a few steps back, hiding behind his lackeys.

A gang of villains wanting to kill me — but now too afraid to move after witnessing my “weird” evasion.

They just stared, carefully watching my every move.

Ah~ So this is what being the protagonist feels like?

This is that “OP main character” vibe?

Me?

I’m scared as hell!

“Uh… Mr. O’Lead?”

“Oh, Nilu, it’s okay. Just come over here and let me hug you a bit.”

I symbolically hugged Nilu’s waist as she came closer — enjoying that soft laptop-pillow sensation.

Facing thugs without fear, and still in the mood to flirt — doesn’t that feel super overpowered?

Doesn’t it look cool?

Doesn’t it make all these extras too suspicious to even try attacking?

Good — that’s the plan. Because I was stalling.

All that “dodging the captain” stuff wasn’t acting cool — I was buying time.

After all, dodging is all I can do.

By reading the opponent’s future moves at a high frequency with no blind spots, I could basically “predict” what they’d do next — which steps they’d take, which punches they’d throw — and dodge accordingly.

Those lethal moves from the captain? I only dodged them because I knew his script in advance.

Honestly, for someone normal like me, this was terrifying.

And this trick only works on small fries — if someone casts a continent-splitting, earth-shattering super move, I’m still dead even if I see it coming.

But just now, to protect Nilu and stop her from “going berserk,” I had to take the risk for both our lives.

“Damn it! What are you all panicking for!?”

Longtao’er was getting annoyed, pushing people around and yelling.

“I hired you to fight, not stand there like an audience! If one can’t do it, gang up on him!”

He wasn’t wrong — my dodging trick only works in one-on-one fights.

If they all rush me at once, even if I can read all their moves, I don’t have the physical ability to dodge them all.

“This guy’s just bluffing! He’s fooled me with that act enough times! Don’t be scared — just swarm him! And even if he calls someone, who in this city outranks me? They’d die too!”

His shouting gave his lackeys the push they needed to make a move, but then…

[Kefir arrives in time to save O’Lead and Nilu.]

The script just changed. What am I afraid of?

“Longtao’er, do you really think I was bluffing?”

“I—I’m not buying your act…”

Before he finished his sentence, Longtao’er suddenly shut his mouth in fear.

A sharp whooshing sound came from outside the door.

Then, under everyone’s gaze, a familiar figure walked into the room.

And froze.

Honestly, Kefir didn’t walk into much — just a flipped table, broken chairs, and some holes in the ceiling and floor thanks to the captain’s rampage.

Simply put: the house was trashed.

What probably bothered her more was seeing Nilu clinging to me in panic, on the verge of tears, and the unwanted guests led by Longtao’er.

“Longtao’er, son of this town’s lord. And the local knight captain.”

Kefir’s voice still had that goddess-like tone — but after a few days of knowing her, I could tell she was barely holding back her rage.

“Unauthorized mobilization of the local knight order, and independent action — both violate the Great Ying Empire’s laws…”

“Laws? Hah! I am the law in this town!”

Longtao’er puffed up his chest and confidently strode up to her.

“I thought you called for some bigwig to plead for you — turns out it’s just that clueless imperial investigator chick from before?”

“Got it. So you’re planning to resist with force.”

“Oho? You scared? Good. Otherwise, that pretty face of yours—”

I don’t know what fate he had in mind for Kefir’s face, but—

The moment he reached out to pull a “main character move” and touch the heroine’s chin, his arm was twisted with a loud crack into a shape even Newton would struggle to explain.

“Eeek!”

Before he could even scream, his kneecap was shattered with a single blow.

Then, while his whole body was still airborne, Kefir slammed her foot into his butt and stomped him into the ground.

I shivered.

Sure, the main character is always “justified” no matter what they do, but…

Kefir today seemed especially pissed off.