Max played with his phone, joining random chat groups to see if anything unusual is happening.
It was currently night time, and Max was out again, leaving Yu'er with Xue at home. Initially, Yu'er wanted to join him, but when she heard what he was going to do, she backed out.
Max didn't plan on doing something exciting. He only intended to explore around the city this late at night, like usual.
Ever since the incident with the puppet and the unknown glowing cube, Max had been exploring the city when it becomes dark.
From the more significant number of crimes being committed at night, he hoped to see another Awakened out in public.
Every crime done by an Awakened should have a reason why they were doing it, and Max has this feeling that he would find answers if he were to find and follow every Awakened he sees.
Though there was one bad news that will hold him back considerably, when Max was scrolling through his phone, he saw Awakeneds selling these accessories that were said to block Identifying Skills.
After reading positive reviews with a lot of people buying, Max bought one to test it out. When it arrived, Max asked Yu'er to try it, and just like what he feared, it worked.
He couldn't see her Status at all. If Yu'er were a stranger Awakened, Max would have missed her being this close to him.
This hugely concerned Max since his Status Checker will now be nullified by the item, making it ineffective in finding new Awakeneds.
His Status Checker was quite cheap, only costing him 5000 Points. Max initially thought it was a good one since it said that he would be able to identify anyone regardless of their ranks.
However, he didn't consider items that could block it, especially now that some people were selling it.
This would considerably make it hard for him to find new Awakeneds that might just be walking right beside him.
Fortunately, it was quite expensive, costing him a little bit more than ten million for one. There should be a lot of Awakeneds like those ones with weaker skills, that won't have enough money to buy one for themselves.
But since Max has a lot of money now, he bought a few more, giving it to Yu'er, Xue and the others. He also stored some in his Inventory.
The accessories were disguised enough for people not to recognize them, but it's still an accessory, easily noticeable by others. Max got an anklet for himself as he didn't want anyone to see it.
There were also necklaces, bracelets, earrings, and rings available for them to choose from. Though in the future there should be more concealed ones, those that others won't notice.
When Max asked Little Dou about it, she only said that if he upgraded his Status Checker, he would be able to beat most accessories available out there except for actual skill users blocking themselves with their own skills.
Max was currently in a rooftop of a small district, perfectly hidden within the shadows. Usually, Max would only stay outside for a few hours, moving to different places every few minutes.
From how he was acting, he was like a hero, trying to safeguard the people, fighting against the crimes happening at night.
But his intentions couldn't have been more different. Max planned to wait for something bad to happen then he would see if it was an Awakened using his Status Checker and also keeping an eye out for any skills being used.
If Max were to find anyone out there, he would silently follow them to their lair or wherever they will go to in hopes that he could find a clue about the glowing cube or any opportunities that will benefit him.
Though one of his problems was, he had been roaming the city a few times now, and he still hasn't seen anyone.
Even his sharp senses couldn't hear a single shout or small skirmish in any area of the street.
Seeing that there was still no one, Max typed on his phone,
"Are you sure about this location? I've been here for quite some time now, and there's still nothing."
"Yes. The last consecutive days there had been reports about kidnappings in that area."
Max was messaging an information broker from his phone. He had no way of confirming whether this person is telling the truth; he could only trust in the people supporting his claims.
Information was one of the most popular things being sold online. From the information of a person to their business to their family and hobbies, if there is enough money, some people would not hesitate to do it.
Max paid a high price to find an Awakened near his area, and this was the location that was given to him by the information broker.
Reading the report sent to him, he found out about the continuous kidnappings that had been happening around this area and from how fast it was happening with no police could solve it, there's only one explanation for it.
"Wait and see. Something will surely happen. My reputation is on the line here so I will never give you the wrong information."
Choosing to believe the informant, Max attentively waited for any signs of them. While waiting, he scrolled through other groups.
"Did you see what happened yesterday?"
"The arrogant guy?"
"Yeah him!"
"Did you see his face from the pictures? He looks like he was so proud of his achievement. For some reason, I want to punch him."
"Same!"
"Me too!"
"That self-proclaimed hero should just die."
"Wait, what happened yesterday? I didn't see it!"
"Oh, you're finally here. Where have you been?"
"The self-proclaimed hero showed up with his golden sword again, catching another criminal. His hypocritical face was so annoying from the pictures."
"It's him again? If he shows up in front of me, I will beat him till he cries like a baby!"
"Check your skill first! Are you even strong?"
"I'm alright. I have fought many Awakeneds in the past already, and this fake hero is a new guy, right?"
"Yeah. Forget about it. Someone will show him his place someday."
Max read a particular group's chat to find other useful information. Reading further back, from what he understood, there seemed to be a new Awakened, one of those who randomly got a skill, that always acts like a hero.
He doesn't save any victims, only catching criminals in their acts. He uses a sword, a golden sword that emits a golden aura that strengthens him whenever he is against a person with evil intent.
When Max read it, he felt disdain for the guy, something about his image piss him off. He looks like the typical hero that does everything for justice but bullies other people he doesn't like.
Thankfully from what he read, their city was quite far from his so they probably won't cross paths because if they did, he better fix his attitude as Max won't give him a warm welcome.
While Max was busy on his phone, on the corner of his eye, he saw shadows running on a roof.
Immediately reacting, Max closed his phone and stayed in the dark, watching them move closer towards his direction.
They're here!