A group of warriors banded together, looking like a mercenary band, rode toward Carne Village on horse back.
They didn't resemble any formal army of a kingdom. Each man wore his own individual equipment with no matching armor. Some wore chainmail, others leather. They did not looked like what they were: the troops of the kingdom of re estize.
Leading them was a muscular, powerful-looking man with sharp, sword-like eyes, clad in full armor covering his upper body. Though middle-aged, his presence was overwhelming, especially among this band of warriors.
He was Gazef Stronoff, Warrior-Captain of the Re-Estize Kingdom—a title granted only to the strongest person in the kingdom. Despite being a commoner, he had achieved this feat by winning the grand tournament held by the crown.
Because commoners could not become official "knights," Gazef commanded his own warrior troop, which was why they didn't wear the kingdom's standard gear.
Today, he was here on the orders of his king, Ramposa III of the Re-Estize Kingdom, to find the cause of the attacks on villagers near the frontier and stop them.
His fierce expression was fueled by the atrocities he had witnessed on his way here: he had seen villages burned to ash, villagers left gravelly injured. He didn't know exactly why this was happening, though he had some hints, but he didn't yet know who was responsible. What he did know was that he was furious, and he wanted to kill those behind it.
Gazef knew it was likely a trap—an enemy ploy to lure him out. The kingdom was divided into two factions: the nobles and the royalists. The noble faction absolutely hated him and wanted him gone. Pressured by them, the cowardly king had sent him on this mission. Still, Gazef never resented the king. This was his duty, after all.
"Captain!" One of the twenty men rode up beside him. "We're near the village. It looks like there are people standing in front of the entrance."
Gazef focused his gaze ahead. The village was still hundreds of meters away. He activated a martial art—[Clear Sight]—to sharpen his vision. He saw two figures standing before the village. Both looked unnervingly calm; they didn't appear to be survivors of a village's destruction.
"Men, arm yourselves and be ready to strike at a moment's notice!" Gazef roared, his hand tightening around the hilt of his sword—not the legendary blade bestowed by the king, because he had not been permitted to bring it on this expedition, but a greatsword of great quality.
As the horses advanced, it became clear who stood before the village entrance.
Two magic casters, most likely, he judged by their unique clothing. And, by the grace of the gods, both were inhuman and otherworldly.
The soldiers were unsettled just by their appearance and attire. Even Gazef was struck by shock, though he and his men had been hardened by countless battles, surviving life-and-death situations time and again. No amount of beauty or strangeness would make them lower their guard.
Gazef and his men halted as they reached the vicinity of the two magic casters. One was a young-looking man with otherworldly beauty that Gazef couldn't even put words to; the other, a lady of nation-toppling beauty, clad entirely in white, her eyes closed yet somehow feeling as if her gaze was everywhere, watching them all.
Gazef reined in his horse with a sharp neigh. The horse stopped, still snorting, as his subordinates halted their mounts as well.
Still seated atop his horse, Gazef shouted toward the young man clad in golden robes: "State your name and your purpose for standing before the entrance of a village under the jurisdiction of the Re-Estize Kingdom!" He glared menacingly, his sword-like eyes fixed on Lucian with their full bluntness.
From Lucian's perspective, they didn't resemble the previous group clad in identical armor of the empire. These looked more like mercenaries—poorer, rougher. But they were more organized, he had to admit.
"I am a magic caster," Lucian replied calmly. "I saved the lives of these villagers after they were attacked by knights who would have slaughtered the village mercilessly if not for my intervention. I'm standing here for the safety of the villagers. Unfortunately, for their safety, I cannot let you pass."
Lucian had no intention of letting them through unless they were indeed people of the kingdom here to protect the villagers.
"But I don't see any villagers. What guarantee do I have that you're not working with those knights and standing here as a distraction?" Gazef countered.
"You're right…" Lucian looked up thoughtfully. "But I still cannot let you enter the village unless you tell me your name, occupation and why you're here."
Gazef glared at Lucian, his hand tightening around his sword hilt. His companions readied themselves for battle.
Seeing this, Lucian couldn't help but giggle softly.
Shiraori gave a small smile at his giggle. She couldn't help but smile at how good her Master looked when a smile graced his lips.
"You would not want to do that," Lucian said, looking directly into Gazef's eyes. "Believe me." His tone was nonchalant.
For a second, gazing into those blood-red, ruby-like eyes, Gazef felt as if he were standing on a lake of blood, surrounded by monsters capable of destroying worlds.
A cold sweat ran down Gazef's face, a shiver racing down his spine. He glanced at his subordinates and gestured for them to keep their guard up. Then, with a mighty, dignified shout, he replied: "I am the Warrior-Captain of the Re-Estize Kingdom, Gazef Stronoff. By order of King Ramposa III, I have been visiting each of the frontier villages to exterminate the enemy knights causing chaos."
He paused, then asked, "And your introduction?"
Lucian looked at him and gave a subtle, noble bow. "I am Lucian Aeternus. A prince from a faraway land and a Magic Caster. I ran away from my home and accidentally ended up here." He offered his fabricated identity.
Obviously, he wasn't going to tell anyone he was a player from Yggdrasil, a DMMORPG, who had been transmigrated here at the end of the game's service—except perhaps other players who might or might not have been summoned here as well. His story was simple: a genius magic caster, a runaway prince with followers, who had wound up in these lands.
Though calling himself a prince felt oddly unsatisfying beneath his dragon heart—he desired nothing less than to be emperor—he decided to deal with it for now.
Gazef kept staring at him. A runaway prince? He doubted it. But he believed the magic caster part, given the robes Lucian wore—garments so precious he couldn't even conceive their value. Those robes were probably worth more than anything in the kingdom's royal treasury.
"Let me verify whether the villagers agree to let you in, as I'm unaware of anything regarding your kingdom…" Lucian replied. He cast a [Message] spell to Momonga, asking him to check with the village chief about this Warrior-Captain and his name. He received an immediate response.
A few minutes later, Lucian looked at Gazef and said, "It seems the Warrior-Captain is indeed real…"
He scrutinized Gazef and the entire twenty-man party. "For the strongest of a kingdom to be only at this level…" he muttered, having gauged Gazef's level with his innate appraisal skill.
His eyes held no hostility—only simple evaluation, as if he were looking at nothing but ants. Before, he might have thought of them as black ants; now, red ants, due to Gazef's importance in this kingdom. Not much difference.
"It seems you may enter the village. But twenty armed men riding in will scare the traumatized villagers. Why don't you dismount and check on their safety?" Lucian stepped back from the road leading to the village entrance.
"Unfortunately… I cannot do that," Gazef said.
Lucian simply shook his head in a whatever manner. It wasn't his kingdom, after all.
The knights of the kingdom immediately entered the village.
As they rode in, they were greeted by many villagers still returning to their homes or salvaging what was broken and destroyed. He noticed how everyone had shuttered their homes in fear. Even though they no longer needed to fear the kingdom's knights, he understood why they were traumatized.
They made their way to the village square—a large well at the center, surrounded by a simple fence. There, Gazef saw a slightly older, middle-aged man standing. He guessed that was the village chief.
Gazef dismounted and immediately bowed, his head nearly touching the ground. "I am sorry for not arriving in time to save the village." His head was bowed at a full 180 degrees. No one would expect the illustrious Warrior-Captain to do something like this. Someone of his position commanded respect even from nobles albeit reluctantly. Yet here he was, bowing humbly to a lowly villager.
The village chief didn't know what to say except, "It's fine, it's fine, it's fine… It's all thanks to Lucian-sama that we are all alive here. He saved us all from death's jaws today."
At the mention of Lucian's name, Gazef looked up. Lucian had arrived and was conversing with Momonga, who stood near the village square. Gazef hadn't noticed Momonga until now because he had used a spell to slightly mask his presence. Looking at him now, his presence felt very unusual. If Lucian's presence radiated warmth and holy radiance, Momonga's was dark and unsettling.
Ignoring their conversation for now, Gazef walked toward them and bowed deeply to Lucian. "I thank you from the bottom of my heart for saving the village."
"Hmm…" Lucian hummed in reply, smiling. "Do not worry, Warrior-Captain. I have no motive to obligate your kingdom or demand anything from you. I do not need a reward. I am not a poor person."
Gazef didn't quite know how to thank Lucian, who was likely a high-caliber divine magic caster.
As for how did he deduce that? Because of the villagers. The area was stained with blood, yet none of the villagers appeared injured. It was as if someone had already healed them. Only someone of the highest caliber of divine magic caster could hope to achieve that.
"If there is anything this humble captain can do for you, Lucian-dono, do not hesitate to ask," Gazef said, bowing his head again.
"In that case," Lucian replied, "I'd love to gather some information, if you don't mind. And also visit the capital of your kingdom, if you would guide me."
"Of course. I'd do anything to help you in the capital, and I'll let the king know so you receive a generous reward." Though Gazef said that, he doubted there was anything this supreme magic caster would want from their kingdom.
"Hahaha, worry not. I'm not a greedy magic caster saving villages for rewards. I just want to settle in this area, that is all. Maybe make my own place." Lucian said this with a smile.
He didn't honestly know what he wanted to do right now, at least not yet. He had the entire Great Luxuria—his "Kingdom"—floating in the sky far away. Thanks to its functions, it could even move. He hadn't tested those functions in this world yet, but since everything else had worked out, he was sure this would too.
"If I may ask… what happened to the knights? Have you already dealt with all of them?" Gazef asked, not seeing any bodies around. He wondered what had become of them. Had Lucian used some magic that destroyed or burned their bodies?
"Oh." Lucian pointed a finger toward an empty area in the village square and canceled the sixth-tier [Concealment] spell he had cast over the dead bodies. "There they are."
Gazef saw what could only be described as a small mountain of corpses. The bodies of the dead knights were piled one atop another.
But what shocked Gazef the most was that none of the bodies had any injuries. Not even a drop of blood stained the ground where the bodies were piled. He knew the knights were dead, but there was no sign they had been killed by sword or spell. It was as if they had simply died out of nowhere.
Gazef looked at Lucian again, and suddenly he seemed far more monstrous than he had previously thought. A magic caster who could kill so many knights without injuring their bodies in the slightest? Just how fearsome would such a magic caster be? He did not want to find out.
"I truly cannot thank you enough, Lucian-sama," Gazef said, bowing once more, changing his honorific and inherently accepting Lucian's superiority.
"Don't worry. As I said, it was my own selfish wish to save these villagers. Also, you can deal with the bodies as you see fit, Warrior-Captain." Lucian gave him a small wink.
Gazef immediately understood what he meant. Lucian had probably noticed how shabby his team's equipment was and was offering the knights' armor as a gift. The Baharuth Empire indeed had fine armor. Unlike the kingdom, the empire was ruled by a competent emperor. They could sell the armor or melt it down for better gear.
"It would be our pleasure."
As Gazef and Lucian conversed, Shiraori suddenly appeared behind Lucian, shocking Gazef. To think even his subordinate could use such high-tier spells as [Teleportation]—the only other person he knew who could use such a spell was one of the most powerful adventurer from the capital.
She whispered something in Lucian's ear. At the same time, a knight from Gazef's battalion came running, worry marring his face.
"Captain!!" His shout was filled with urgency. "There are people surrounding the village! And they look like magic casters!!"
Gazef's face immediately turned serious as he looked at Lucian, who wore only a weary smile. Ever since he had arrived in this village, one thing after another kept happening. It was as if some story was unfolding, and he was its protagonist.
"Would it somehow be possible to get your help, Lucian-sama? I'm willing to pay any price possible from this humble captain!" Gazef said, looking at Lucian with pleading eyes. The stern face of the captain, however, could not melt Lucian. Maybe if it were a pretty princess asking him to rescue her, he would have…
But Lucian had already saved these villagers. Although he knew these people were after the Warrior-Captain, in the end, these poor villagers he had saved and resurrected would be caught in the crossfire.
"It's fine… I'll deal with them. But I really do expect a reward for this. After all, they're after you, not me." Lucian said this sulkily as he slowly started walking toward the outside of the village, not caring about the magic casters surrounding the village from all sides.
Gazef watched Lucian's figure walking toward the exit of the village with the calm of a god going to take a leak. He couldn't help but feel as small as an ant in front of him. But he had to protect the villagers; it was most likely they would become collateral in the crossfire between Lucian and these magic casters after his life.
However, his worries were soon unfounded.
Lucian held his right hand forward, pointing it toward the sky, and cast the tenth-tier spell: "[Shroud of Aegis]."
A golden magic circle bloomed in his hand, expanding in an instant to cover the village exactly as Lucian intended. A golden light flickered across the entire village, and before anyone knew it, the village was enveloped in what could only be described as golden dust. It felt as if they were looking at a heavenly barrier that surrounded the entire village from every angle—from the sky to the very ground beneath—enclosing the entire village in a warm, spherical shell.
Gazef's eyes had never been wider, and neither had those of the men under him. The villagers didn't react as dramatically, but Gazef saw every villager holding their hands in a prayer position, chanting some very familiar name as they looked at the barrier and Lucian.
Gazef knew of spells that protected people, but he had never seen anyone cast a spell that could protect such a vast area. The more he witnessed the feats of this magic caster, the more fathomless he felt.
Lucian kept casually walking ahead, with Shiraori following him. Every step he took seemed to wash away the common sense of this world's inhabitants.
_______________________________
Read 5 Chapters Ahead on my Patreon/AzazelGrim