The morning sunlight began to peek from the eastern horizon, bringing a warmth that swept across the meadow and chased away the remnants of the night's cold, welcoming the arrival of a new day for the large group from the Astoria Kingdom who were ready to continue their journey to the Victoriaz Kingdom.
Everyone had come out of the house feeling refreshed and energized. The horse-drawn carriages had also been prepared and lined up neatly in the meadow in front of the house's porch, ready to embark on the long route once again.
Arvin faced the house he had built the night before and then focused his mana to release his control over the magical structure.
Rumble! Crack!
In the blink of an eye, the chunks of blue ice that served as the roof and wall coating shattered into crystalline dust that sparkled under the sunlight, then evaporated without a trace. The earth that previously towered high to become walls and pillars slowly shrank, slumped down, and merged back into nature as if nothing had ever happened there. The meadow returned to being flat and green as it was before.
After the built house was demolished in such a smooth manner, Dean Saires gave the instruction to depart.
....
The long journey, which took days, went very smoothly. The shifting natural sceneries from meadows, dense forests, to rocky valleys continuously accompanied them.
Arvin's four spouses seemed to thoroughly enjoy their days inside the carriage, spending time chatting, joking, and occasionally acting affectionately with their husband.
However, that peace did not last forever. Right on the eighth day of the journey, when the group had just entered a path flanked by a dense forest, the atmosphere suddenly turned incredibly tense.
The academy's carriage procession came to a complete halt. From the front, a deafening ferocious roar was heard, followed by the clashing sounds of swords.
At the end of the road, there was a noble's carriage that looked extremely luxurious, but its condition was currently critical. The carriage was tightly surrounded by dozens of giant bear monsters known as Grizzly Forest.
Several escort soldiers dressed in full armor were fighting desperately to maintain their formation to protect the carriage, but the sheer number and strength of those monsters were too overwhelming. A few soldiers had already fallen with severe lacerations.
From inside the carriage, Alrain narrowed his eyes, clearly seeing the desperate situation unfolding ahead.
"My Love, should we help them?" He asked, turning to his husband to confirm what course of action they should take.
"I will head over there!" Arvin answered without hesitation. He got up from his seat and walked out of the carriage that had come to a perfect stop. Before closing the door, he looked at the four charming youths inside. "Wait for me here."
"Please be careful, My Husband." Allen said, which was answered with a brief nod by Arvin.
The moment his feet touched the ground, Arvin immediately bolted forward toward the noble's carriage that was being attacked by dozens of monsters at full speed.
As he ran, Arvin extended his right hand to the side. Dense black mist instantly gathered and solidified in his palm, forming a magic sword of the darkness element that emitted a deadly aura.
Slash!
One swift and highly precise slash tore through the air. In a flash, the head of a giant-sized Grizzly Forest monster that was just about to pounce on a soldier was instantly decapitated and fell rolling onto the ground. Blood spurted profusely from its neck.
The soldiers, who were overwhelmed, full of wounds, and practically surrendering to death, were beyond shocked. They stared in disbelief at the arrival of an unknown blue-haired youth who suddenly appeared and helped them with terrifying power.
However, the surprises from the youth did not end there.
While continuing to move to dodge the grasps of other monsters, Arvin's left hand emitted a warm white light. He directed the light of recovery magic toward the severely injured soldiers on the ground. In a matter of seconds, the gaping lacerations on their bodies closed perfectly.
After ensuring the soldiers were no longer in a dangerous state, Arvin refocused his attention on the dozens of Grizzly Forest that were now turning to attack him. With the darkness sword in his right hand and incredibly fast, precise bodily movements, Arvin danced amidst the horde of monsters like an angel of death.
Slash! Slash! Slash! Slash!
The sounds of a sword slashing through flesh and bone were heard in rapid succession. Not a single one of his movements missed. One by one, the dozens of Grizzly Forest that dared to roar before him died instantly with their heads cleanly decapitated.
It took less than two minutes for the battle to end, leaving a pile of monster corpses strewn across the ground.
Seeing the mountain of Grizzly Forest corpses which possessed good quality, Arvin raised his hand. And in an instant, all the monster carcasses vanished, entering his dimensional storage space to be used as materials at a later date.
The escort soldiers were still standing frozen, their breaths panting between shock and relief. The captain of the guard, who had just been healed from his fatal wound, gathered his courage to step forward.
"Who are you, Young Man?" asked the guard soldier in a tone full of respect and awe.
"Who am I?" Arvin repeated casually as he continued to walk, picking up the carcasses of the monsters he had defeated. "I am just an academy student who is on my way to participate in a tournament. If you don't believe me, please look behind you!"
The six guard soldiers reflexively turned their heads, following Arvin's line of sight. They were greatly surprised to see dozens of horse-drawn carriages lined up very neatly, stretching to the bend in the road not far from where they stood. And there were also many people standing outside the carriages.
"Well, since my task here is done, I will take my leave." Arvin said casually as he slowly stepped away, leaving the six soldiers behind. "We must continue our journey to the Victoriaz Kingdom. Goodbye."
Hearing the youth's destination, the captain of the guard immediately came to his senses.
"Wait!" the soldier called out loudly, making Arvin halt his steps and look back. "It turns out our destinations are the same. If you don't mind... may we join your group for the safety of our master?"
"It's not a problem for me." Arvin answered casually, pointing toward the line of carriages. "But you just need to speak to the Dean of our academy who is already standing by the frontmost carriage to officially request permission."
The soldier looked toward the frontmost carriage that Arvin pointed out. Over there, a middle-aged man wearing the typical attire of a dean was standing next to the carriage.
"I understand. Once again, thank you very much for helping and saving all our lives." the soldier said, bowing politely and full of gratitude.
Arvin merely nodded slowly, then walked casually toward his carriage while waving his right hand.
However, at the exact same time, from inside the noble's carriage that had been tightly shut all along, someone was looking outside through the gap in the glass window.
From the very beginning, the figure inside the carriage never averted their gaze for a single second. They continued to watch the blue-haired youth who had just fought so valiantly all by himself, defeating the dozens of savage monsters that nearly wiped out all their soldiers.
However, the pair of eyes behind the glass suddenly widened completely. Their breath hitched. As the youth who saved their life walked away while raising and waving his hand, their gaze caught a very clear detail.
A white contract symbol was permanently engraved on the back of the blue-haired youth's right hand.
Meanwhile, outside the carriage, the army captain immediately jogged over to approach the Dean leading the group. After explaining the situation and expressing his intention to seek shelter and join the academy's procession toward the Victoriaz Kingdom.
The Dean granted them permission and the noble's carriage finally joined the procession.
The long journey that was briefly delayed was resumed again.