ã€ŠI Became a Demon Hunter in the Gameã€‹


 Chapter 1

    Victory

    Just two letters.

    Han Seok-ho, who took off his headset, saw the team members running in from left and right and kicked the desk. As the chair was being pushed back, laughter broke out everywhere when the team members so him fell down.

    =War lord Championship! Korea won the championship trophy with three wins in the long-awaited final. For the hero of the victory! Let me serve the new shrine, Han Seok-ho!

    MC Jeon Do-Hwan rushed as if he had waited for Han Seok-ho, who had been fleeing when his colleagues rushed in.

    Han Seok-ho took a step back from his approach. However, behind the scenes, the same team members were shaking their backs. In particular, the leader Kang Seung-Tae¡¯s pushing force was too strong that he couldn¡¯t avoid it.

    = Mr. Han Seok-Ho! It was a match suitable for No. 1 in the world rankings. No Death 12 kills! Especially in the final hit of the soul, the fantastic Kern was overwhelming. You didn¡¯t get hit by your opponent¡¯s attack. how in the world did you do that?

    Han Seok-ho sighed and replied.

    ¡°That¡¯s because we fought at intervals.¡±

    = A shrine as usual! Do you know that Beryl, the one-deal character chosen by the opponent, and Ed, the one chosen by Mr. Seok-ho have one difference in range?

    ¡°That¡¯s why you shouldn¡¯t get hit at all. Why would you get hit by it?¡±

    Jeon Do-Hwan burst into laughter at Seok-ho¡¯s calm response.

    = Kk! This is what I¡¯m talking about! That¡¯s why we¡¯re interviewing you Mr. Seok-ho. That¡¯s why you shouldn¡¯t get hit at all. Why would you get hit by it?

    Seok-ho snorted as he saw the team members bowing behind him. This is because he knew his personality well and entrusted the interview.

    He can¡¯t say a word of his own. He can¡¯t even lie.

    What do you think I would have done if I was able to see it? The opponent¡¯s attack, the gap.

    I couldn¡¯t understand more about people who couldn¡¯t do it. At first, I was getting all kinds of curse words coming to me after saying that in the interview. But now, fans are also about to do the same.

    Han Seok-ho was emptying champagne alone at a party to commemorate the world championship. No one came near Han Seok-ho, who was looking at the night view of Hong Kong.

    Han Seok-ho didn¡¯t like the crowd, so he enjoyed today¡¯s victory alone and looked at himself reflected in the window.

    He defeated the world. This is the 5th episode and It is a record that will never be broken again.

    For him who¡¯s able to see the gap, the game has been always boring. He jumped into it to earn some money just because he was the best in it. But now, he has made a lot of money and has also set a record that will never be broken again.

    So, it¡¯s time to leave this boring mess.

    ¡°Is it time to retire?¡±

    There was a voice heard behind him while he was mumbling to himself.

    ¡°Because it¡¯s boring?¡±

    When Seok-ho turned his head, a woman was standing there. It was the first time he saw a woman at a party. If it had been a beautiful woman like this, she would have stood out. It was surprising

    But it was her words that attracted more attention than her appearance. She stood next to him holding a glass of champagne and made eye contact with Seok-ho reflected in the window.

    ¡°If it¡¯s about your talent, it¡¯s understandable to be bored¡±

    ¡°Do you know me?¡±

    The woman said with a smile.

    ¡°Do you see the gap?¡±

    Seok-ho took a step back with his eyes fixed. There is also a gap between people and Seok-ho didn¡¯t really like people coming inside it.

    Ordinary people are about one step apart. So, I backed out from the distance and realized I was still in her gap.

    ¡°What?¡±

    He felt it for sure. This woman¡¯s gap is beyond conjecture. The woman came a step closer to Seok-ho, who was embarrassed because it was the first time this had happened to him.

    Chills ran down his spine and his soft hair started to stand.

    ¡°Have you ever played the age of the demons?¡±

    Seok-ho nodded at the question. The age of demons was the first game of his life. it was a 15-year-old game and it was there where he started to realize his talent for the first time.

    ¡°This time, I created the age of demons 2.¡±

    She started talking as she hit her glass slightly into Seok-ho¡¯s glass containing champagne in it.

    ¡°It¡¯s not going to be boring.¡±

    The moment the glass hit; the world collapsed.

 Chapter 2 - One Year

    Seok-ho, who leaped to his feet, pulled out a dagger that he had put under his pillow and aimed at the darkness. He then threw up a long breath of irritation while staring into the darkness.

    ¡°Oh, fuck. A dream.¡±

    Seok-ho sat on the bed and swept his head up. He had a nightmare about that day a year ago. The interval was getting longer, so he decided to let his guard down and dream again.

    Seok-ho walked to the window side and opened the window. The night view of the village was seen outside the window. It was a place where the voices of noisy drunk people were ringing, and fights were taking place everywhere.

    Sitting by the window, he opened his ears, listening to the noise outside. Thanks to the blowing wind, the cold sweat cooled down, and Seok-ho was able to calm down.

    Dreaming of reality only dulls the mind. It¡¯s a memory you don¡¯t need to remember to survive in this damn world.

    Seok-ho was able to pull himself together thanks to the noise under the window.

    He came down from the window, remembering once again that this place is real and that he is living here.

    Seok-ho wore leather armor and tightened the string. He also wore leather wagons on his wrist and wore a belt with a dagger around his waist. He hung the leather coat over it.

    There was a lot of rain inside, so he wore a coat that was effective enough as a protective suit and carried the tradition on his shoulder. Finally, Seok-ho came out of the window and climbed on the horse tied to the back of the inn with the synthetic Palace leaned against the wall in his left hand.

    He cut off the leash and drove the horse to the wooden fence. The Vigilantes guarding the wooden fence saw Seok-ho approaching and blocked the front.

    ¡°Where are you going?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve got work to do.¡±

    ¡°You can¡¯t open the door at night.¡±

    Seok-ho took a silver coin out of his arms without hesitation.

    ¡°It¡¯s urgent.¡±

    The two vigilantes looked at each other and coughed lightly.

    ¡°But then the two of us would have to use strength to open this door¡­¡±

    Seok-ho took out two silver coins without hesitation. Then the vigilantes laughed and opened the door. Seok-ho threw the silver at them and drove the horse.

    Seok-ho, who ran out of the village and rode the horse, reached the riverside after a 10-minute ride. It was a stream of the Ain River across the Kingdom of Trivia; Seok-ho got off the horse and took the bag that had been attached to the saddle.

    Then he fell off the river, hid in a nearby grassland, took out an arrow, and hung it on the bow¡¯s protest.

    After hearing rumors that the demon came and went through the Ain River, He prepared for it. The upper group camping by the upper river was swept away, and it was the survivor that said the devil appeared in the water.

    Only two survived through the demon resembling a snake. Rumor has it that people don¡¯t go anywhere near the river because of the rumors being passed through them about the devil.

    And there¡¯s a bounty on the devil.

    There was also an escort group at the top but seeing all of them dead. It probably wasn¡¯t a normal creature. Seeing the wet horse suddenly raising its head by the river, Seok-ho instinctively pulled the bow¡¯s protest.

    ¡®It¡¯s coming.¡¯

    chwa-a-ak!

    As expected, it was a black snake that jumped out of the water. But the way it ate its food was different from how a snake ate.

    Perhaps because the black snake bit it off as it passed by, the horse¡¯s head disappeared. When the pudgy horse collapsed without being able to scream, Seok-ho could see the demon in a shape of a snake with its head up.

    Devil Hepant, often seen by the river in the age of devils 1. But the one from the age of the devils 1 was about 10 meters tall. But when it showed up out of the water, it looked enough to be that tall.

    wobble, wobble

    Hepant, who was chewing on the horse¡¯s head while looking at the dead body of the falling horse, gulped down and slowly lowered his head to eat the remaining things. The first time was hunting, but now it¡¯s time to eat.

    When Hepant bowed his head, Seok-ho put up a protest.

    Wedge!

    Hepant turned his head, seeing the arrow flying towards him, but it was already too late to avoid it. Hepant closed his eyes.

    Hepant¡¯s leather was famous for its toughness and firmness. Even the eyelid alone bounces off slight attacks.

    Puff!

    But the arrow pierced through Hepant¡¯s eyelid in just one gulp.

    Squeeze!

    Watching Hepant scream, Seok-ho hung his arrows on the protest and fired one after another. It¡¯s rather easy to deal with those big creatures who only believe in defense.

    Puff puff puff!

    Five arrows were embedded so deep that only the arrow could be seen. But being a big creature, he¡¯s not going to die with just a few arrows.

    Hepant found the Seok-ho with one eye left and came upon it.

    Seok-ho lightly kicked the ground and stepped back. Hepant¡¯s head fell where the Seok-ho was. The sharp tooth bit the floor and if he were bitten, he would have been in danger of life.

    But Seok-ho, who was looking at the gap, had no intention of getting beaten up from it.

    Seok-ho¡¯s arrow that widened the distance got stuck in the eye that was only left. Thanks to the fact that it was stuck in the front, it penetrated the eyeballs and went into the brain at once.

    Hepant, who was trying to run wild again, fell to the floor. It was right in front of the Seok-ho¡¯s feet that Hepant, who had been sliding down the floor without overcoming the force of inertia, stopped.

    Seok-ho looked at Hepant and shook his head.

    ¡°There¡¯s no way in just killing the devil like that.¡±

    Seok-ho pulled a dagger from his belt and stuck it right in Hepant¡¯s forehead.

    kkia-a-a-ag!

    Hepant screamed and shook his body, but Seok-ho did not let go of the dagger. Hepant shook his body for a moment and then fell to the floor with a thud.

    Only then did Seok-ho realize Hepant was completely dead when he felt the experience coming into him. Seok-ho pulled out a dagger stuck in Hepant¡¯s head and cut off his neck.

    His thick neck made it difficult to cut with a dagger, but his bounty is five nips of gold coins. An amount of bounty that usually does not attach to demons.

    It was a bounty that would not have been attached if he had not smashed the one on top.

    Seok-ho, who cut off Hepant¡¯s neck, sighed deeply. Hepant¡¯s head weighs a lot, but the horse died.

    ¡°How do I move this?¡±

    Seok-ho agonized over that part and turned around, hanging the arrow reflexively on the protest. Aiming at the grass by the riverside, Seok-ho opened his mouth.

    ¡°Come out.¡±

    A woman appeared out of the grass at Seok-ho¡¯s words. The woman with her hands up said with a grin.

    ¡°It¡¯s nice to meet you, Ed.¡±

    When Seok-ho first revealed his name after falling into this world, he used Ed, his favorite character in the war load game. But not many people knew the name.

    ¡°Who are you?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m familiar with the devil hunter¡¯s reputation, but I didn¡¯t expect it to be this great.¡±

    Ed let go of the bow¡¯s protest.

    Wedge!

    The arrow that passed through the woman¡¯s cheek hit the tree behind her. The woman was stiffened by the blood flowing down her cheeks. She didn¡¯t expect him to shoot an arrow without even having a conversation with him.

    ¡°I¡¯m Sona of Aklan, the special forces of Kingdom Trivia.¡±

    Ed did not take an arrow at her introduction.

    Aklan, the special forces of Kingdom Trivia.

    It is a famous group from the age of the devils 1. It was spread throughout Trivia and throughout the continent as Rosentaro, where any character was involved more than once.

    Their aim is for the Trivia royal family, but they also share the same reason when it comes to killing demons. At least that was the case in the age of the devils 1.

    Although it¡¯s not known what it¡¯s like now.

    So, Ed didn¡¯t pick up the arrow.

    ¡°What¡¯s your reason?¡±

    Sona started talking while pointing at the Hepant¡¯s head behind Ed.

    ¡°Are you going to take the bounty?¡±

    ¡°Yeah.¡±

    ¡°Then we¡¯ll pay for the bounty. We¡¯ll carry the devil¡¯s carcass too.¡±

    Ed stood still and looked into Sona¡¯s eyes. She didn¡¯t care about the devil¡¯s body. What she was is trying to see was the ending of the Age of the devils 2.

    If he had entered as one of the main characters, it would have been easy to follow the main quest and see the ending, but it was hard to think that the owner of this body was the main character.

    It was one of the bodies of the Ranger that was cooling off on the battlefield.

    Out of all the extras.

    And then the fact that she said it wasn¡¯t going to be boring, his head was really heated up. But as if she had some conscience, he was still able to survive until now due to being able to gain his level-up systems and skills.

    But he met Aklan. They¡¯re the ones who are somehow connected to the main quest. This might have been a meeting that was scheduled in the first place.

    Ed turned the arrow to tradition and lowered the bow.

    ¡°10 gold if you want the devil¡¯s carcass.¡±

    There is no way Aklan¡¯s agent will move to pay the bounty since their target could be the devil¡¯s body. However, I couldn¡¯t even guess why.

    Sona smiled awkwardly at Ed¡¯s suggestion. But among the Hepant¡¯s, the devil¡¯s carcass was worth at least 50 gold.

    It was an offer that would remain even if freight charges for transportation and dismantling were excluded.

    Plus, this guy named Ed has been known to have killed over 20 demons. A true demon hunter of this age.

    He is also a carefully watched figure in Aklan. This is the first time I have been in touch with them. They came to deal with it their selves after hearing rumors that Hepant had appeared, but if they fought in person, It would have been so dangerous that many people would have got injured or killed.

    But since I handled Hepant alone, they thought it would be a good idea to make a connection like this.

    Sona took a pocket out of her arms and threw it.

    Ed received the flying pocket and frowned slightly.

    ¡°This 13, though?¡±

    The moment he snatched it, he could easily tell by its weight. This was 13 nips of gold coins.

    Sona answered Ed¡¯s question with a smile.

    ¡°I¡¯m giving you the rest of these tokens as a hope for your kind cooperation in the future as well.¡±

    Ed didn¡¯t refuse it. Because he really needed a lot of money in this world. Especially, the archer himself was spending so much money that he couldn¡¯t help but take it.

    Only the bows and daggers were luxury weapons, while the rest were used as just general weapons. He had to get lots of arrows that would fit in each situation he was in to be stronger.

    So, he didn¡¯t mind the money.

    ¡°Do you happen to have a horse?¡±

    Sona burst into a clear smile at Ed¡¯s question and said.

    ¡°I¡¯ll give you one.¡±

    As Sona beckoned, there was a man coming up from behind with a horse. The mask was made out of leather, and glass was inserted into the eye area, which reminded people of a gas mask.

    Aklan¡¯s own mask.

    Sona must be at least above the team leader level, given the fact that she is not wearing any mask.

    Ed climbed on top of the horse given by the man and looked down at Sona. The girl with purple hair and a smile in her eyes. Although she was smiling like a baby, an Aklan agent is a woman with no blood and no tears.

    He might get eaten if he got close.

    Ed turned the horse¡¯s head around, not even saying a word to her. There was no need to say sorry since having Havon¡¯s point of contact meant they were interested.

    It has been one year since he came into the age of the devils 2. He finally got into the clue of the main quest.

 Chapter 3 - Kelpy

    Click, click.

    The stagnant rainwater splashed on the horseshoe. The rainwater also splashed over the hood on the travel cape over the leather coat. It is an oiled cape made for travel use, but it can¡¯t hold on to the pouring rain for long.

    ¡°Completely die. Just die.¡±

    Does this damn world have a background of England? It rains when I¡¯m bored. It was raining so hard that my clothes couldn¡¯t dry up.

    Ed lifted the hood and looked far ahead. He happened to see a place on the side of the road where he could avoid the rain. A place where some rocks came together and stuck together like dolmens.

    Although it wasn¡¯t that big, It was enough to spend the night.

    Ed, who drove the horse under the rock and escaped the rain, tied the reins of the horse nearby, and looked around together while avoiding the rain. It would have been nice to start a fire, but he didn¡¯t want to go through the trouble of lighting up wet trees.

    He took off his travel cape and shook it off the rainwater with all his force. After blowing off the rainwater, he spread it out on the rock next to him. He then leaned against the rock and watched the rain pour.

    Since when?

    It must have been since people were no longer hit by acid rain, blaming air pollution. The fact of not getting hit by the pouring rain and not being able to see it well.

    In that sense that the place was not polluted yet, I was able to fill my emotions by looking at the rain rather than worrying that it was acid rain.

    Ed¡¯s eyes glistened into the dark as he searched his bag for the beef jerky and squished it in his mouth while watching the rain pour.

    It was a light in the lamp when I saw it not being blown out even in the rain and when I saw the distance of the light, it looked like a light hanging from the left and right side of a wagon.

    He must have been traveling in a wagon to a place where it rained and became muddy. But he noticed the light tilting.

    ¡°Oh, boy.¡±

    I thought he was going to have a hard time. I couldn¡¯t hear well because of the rain making his voice stuffy but hearing all the shouting and stuff, and it felt like he was trying to stop the wagon.

    But how can a wagon wheel come out easily in a mud-like this?

    It would have been upsetting and annoying if it was my wagon that had fallen out, but since it was somebody else¡¯s business, I was able to enjoy the moment without any pressure being felt.

    As I looked at the light while opening the beef jerky, the light shook, and I could feel it approaching closer.

    After a while, I was able to see people coming through the rain. The only place to avoid the rain near here was under this dolmen. So, it was a meeting that was inevitable.

    It was a girl about ten years old and a knight that wore sheet metal armor. There was also a maid holding an umbrella together with a bald horseman. The bald horseman had two reins in his hand.

    In other words, those who ride in double wagons are at least aristocrats.

    I thought she might be the daughter of a well-known family if she had a knight as an escort.

    As they approached, they suddenly changed seats when they saw Ed sitting under the dolmen.

    The Knight blocked the girl¡¯s front.

    I wondered what he was doing, but I didn¡¯t bother to argue. It was just a silent frown at the light from the lamp they were holding.

    The bald horseman stepped forward and spoke.

    ¡°The wagon wheels have come off. So, can we stay out of the rain together with you?¡±

    Ed was rather surprised. He¡¯s never seen a group of aristocrats ask a traveler for permission in this damn world.

    Ed nodded his head.

    The bald horseman came under the dolmen while looking at Ed. There wasn¡¯t much room left as Ed was also keeping the horse out of the rain.

    While the horseman took the horses to a nearby tree and tied them up to at least avoid a little rain, the maid brought a blanket, laid it on the rock, and seated the girl.

    She then covered the girl¡¯s shoulder with another blanket. Meanwhile, the knight was keeping an eye on Ed.

    Ed read the Knight¡¯s interval. It was a distance enough to be reached by a swinging sword inside the dolmen. However, if the interval is this much, he can surely deal with it while his opponent is getting his sword out. So, he decided not to worry about it and continue chewing his beef jerky.

    The horseman rubbed his head and shook off the rainwater after coming back from tying up his horses.

    ¡°I think we should light some fire up since I don¡¯t think the rain is going to stop easily.¡±

    The horseman¡¯s complexion rotted at the knight¡¯s question.

    ¡°The trees are all wet, so it¡¯s hard to light a fire.¡±

    The knight looked at the horseman without further explanation. With that silent look, the horseman let out a short sigh and dived back into the rain.

    While the horseman was looking for firewood, Ed swallowed the beef jerky he was chewing and sucked his fingers. A situation where there is nothing else to do.

    I closed my eyes, leaning against the rock. There was no way I could sleep with another strange party. So, I decided to relieve my fatigue by closing my eyes.

    Although I did not make the next appointment with Aklan, they would appear in front of me again.

    So far, I¡¯ve been chasing demons by relying on rumors. But if I get involved with Aklan, I¡¯ll be able to catch much higher-quality demons.

    Although the first important thing was to have enough skills to hunt them.

    I was sitting with my eyes closed, but I opened my eyes slightly because of the commotion that the horseman returned and was about to start a fire. It is usually not difficult to light up fire on a wet tree.

    It probably would have been possible If there was an occultist, but for just an ordinary person, it¡¯s hard to light it up.

    Still, the horseman tried to light the fire somehow. As I watched the scene, I closed my eyes again and heard a growl. When I opened my eyes and saw the place where the sound came from, the girl turned her head, and her face blushed.

    The knight looked at the girl and looked back at Ed.

    ¡°Are you a traveler?¡±

    Ed opened his eyes and looked at the Knight when he looked as if he was asking why the Knight cleared his throat and spoke.

    ¡°Do you have anything to eat? I¡¯ll give you a reward.¡±

    Ed agonized for a moment over the question and looked at the girl. If she is only a 10-year-old noble child, then her stomach would have never starved before.

    Ed had a smile on his face.

    Even if she¡¯s a noble, a child is a child. I¡¯ll look like a kid if I talk to her, but we haven¡¯t talked yet.

    Ed said while pulling the jerky and dry bread out of his bag.

    ¡°Two silver nips of coins.¡±

    The knight¡¯s eyebrows wriggled. That¡¯s true. If you bought this much in the village, you could have bought it with ten nips of coins.

    ¡°Hey.¡±

    ¡°Not if you don¡¯t have money.¡±

    The girl opened her mouth when she saw Ed put the beef jerky and dry bread back in his bag.

    ¡°Who said I didn¡¯t have money?¡±

    When the girl winked at the maid, she approached. Ed received two pieces of silver from the maid and handed her the beef jerky and bread. While the maid returned with the beef jerky and bread, the horseman managed to light up the fire.

    It was full of smoke, but where did it light up?

    The horseman blew out and saved the embers. At that time, the girl who frowned while chewing on the beef jerky handed by the maid handed it back to her and spoke.

    ¡°Bake it for me.¡±

    When Ed saw the maid baking the beef jerky on the fire that had just been lighted up, he put the bow down next to him on his lap. The traditional arrow was not taken out, but because of that act, the knight kept an eye on him while holding the handle of the sword.

    Either way, without saying a word, Ed looked at the pouring rain with the bow on top of his lap.

    There is a demon that appears on a rainy day. Kelpy, the devil.

    Not everyone meets Kelpy on a rainy day. It just increases the odds.

    But grilling beef jerky on fire?

    There is a high probability of him appearing. That¡¯s why I prepared for it. If nothing really happens, I can just rest like this and break up when the rain stops, but if not, I¡¯ll have to fight Kelpy.

    While I was listening with my eyes closed, I heard a horse screaming in the sound of rain. Then came the gruesome sound of chewing bones.

    Bite!

    While the knight pulled out his sword at once and blocked the girl¡¯s front, Ed took out his arrow without saying a word and hung it on the protest.

    The knight saw the figure and asked.

    ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡±

    Perhaps he was asking because he had prepared the bow in advance, so Ed slowly rose from his seat and answered.

    ¡°They say Kelpy runs wild on rainy days.¡±

    ¡°Kelpy?¡±

    Kelpy¡¯s name is quite famous. To the point where Kelpy says that he¡¯s going to catch all the kid¡¯s that cry on a rainy day.

    The knight held the sword nervously and said while blocking the girl¡¯s front.

    ¡°Lady, close your eyes.¡±

    Ed saw a girl frozen close behind him at the words of the knight. A frightened girl and a maid are holding her. The horseman was also standing at the back of the knight with a whip.

    Ed released the intension on his body, hoping they would help. The sound of munching disappeared as I waited with the bow ready to shoot at any time.

    Judging from the speed of eating two horses, he must be quite a big guy.

    Splash!

    I could see the demon appearing in the dark while the rain was pouring on the light of the campfire that had been struggled with. It looked like a four-legged horse, but no one would call it a horse if they saw the sharp teeth on its mouth opened.

    Besides, I¡¯m standing on my feet, but him being 3 meters tall, he is more than twice the size of a normal horse.

    Kelpy¡¯s black eyes went through the crowds. The eyes looked as if they were smiling.

    Ed looked back at the dolmen with a sudden thought. Well, there can¡¯t just be a good place like this to avoid rain in the forest. No aristocrat would have built a rock this big in the middle of the forest.

    Maybe it was his trap. He would¡¯ve still appeared even if the beef jerky wasn¡¯t roasted.

    The moment kelpy opened his mouth, and a long tongue flew towards the knight. He still swung his sword and cut off the tongue, fitting the name ¡®knight¡¯.

    But the tongue bent the knight¡¯s wrist, avoiding the sword. Kelpy rushed as soon as the knight tried to pull his arm reflexively. It was too fast for the knight to respond due to him rushing in with his tongue pulled.

    Quang!

    The knight¡¯s chest armor was crushed. It bounced back and flew away. The knight must have been stunned by the shock as he couldn¡¯t get up with his head down. As he moved forward with great force, I thought he was going to show something, but I guess I expected too much from a knight living in this kind of countryside.

    ¡°Sir Bardel!¡±

    The girl shouted out his name, but no answers were heard. Still, by listening to his low breath, he didn¡¯t die.

    Then the bald horseman bravely swung his whip. But if he was going to do that, why doesn¡¯t he swing it with his eyes open?

    Kelpy¡¯s tongue hit the bald horseman¡¯s head straight away, avoiding his whip.

    Wood-deuk.

    The bald horseman¡¯s head turned to his back and fell over the campfire. The flames blew everywhere.

    It¡¯s unknown whether the knight is still alive or dead, but the bald horseman is definitely dead for sure. The girl shouted urgently with a frightened look on her face.

    ¡°Save me!¡±

    Ed was not willing to let his opponent live if he was the devil anyway. At the end of the world, demons had to be caught again and again. They were also useless.

    But I didn¡¯t want to miss this opportunity.

    ¡°How much?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll give you as much as you ask for!¡±

    While Kelpy was thinking about who to target next, Ed simply replied.

    ¡°Keep that promise.¡±

    If I go to see her parents get the compensation saving her, It will just be a hassle. The nobles of this world have a sense of goodness that no modern conglomerate can compare to

    After this business, I was only going to take the money she had now. Let¡¯s kill him first.

    When Ed stepped forward and covered the girl¡¯s front, Kelpy rolled his eyes and threw his tongue. Ed simply tilted his head to avoid the tongue poking through just like a spear blade. He then flew the arrow.

    The arrow pierced through Kelpy¡¯s tongue.

    Oh my gosh!

    Ed mumbled while he was hanging a new arrow on the protest.

    ¡°What kind of tongue so long like this? Bring it on!¡±

 Chapter 4 - Assistance

    Ed felt he was in the gap from the first appearance because of Kelpy¡¯s tongue. But he made it impossible for him to use it as he stuck an arrow into his tongue.

    Kelpy¡¯s gap was now noticeably reduced.

    Kelpy rolled his eyes and rushed from a short distance. No, he tried to rush in.

    Until Ed¡¯s arrow had already hit Kelpy¡¯s front leg knee.

    Oh, my gosh!

    As kelpy couldn¡¯t stand the power that was coming towards him, he fell and rolled over the floor. Ed¡¯s arrow got stuck in the middle of kelpy¡¯s forehead when he tried rolling and lifting himself up.

    Ed approached kelpy who was shivering while not being able to scream and pulled out the dagger he was wearing around his belt. He then chopped off his neck. The girl and the maid couldn¡¯t keep their mouths shut as they watched kelpy¡¯s neck fell to the floor and gurgled blood.

    She was so scared from seeing the horseman die in a blow and the knight falling out in front of her eyes.

    But seeing Ed finishing it so easily in front of her eyes, it was like a lie. It was hard to believe even if it had been combined.

    Ed took the dagger out from the dolmen and wiped the blood out in the rain while looking down at kelpy¡¯s head. Ed looked down at Kelpy as he put his dagger back in his belt again.

    It was an easier opponent than he thought.

    Kelpy¡¯s tongue was so fast that the knight couldn¡¯t even respond properly but it didn¡¯t work for Ed.

    That alone determined the outcome.

    Ed approached the girl. No matter how easily he caught Kelpy in front of her eyes, the girl who saw Ed approaching hid behind the maid¡¯s back. Either way, Ed said what he had to say.

    ¡°You said you¡¯d give me the money I asked for, right?¡±

    The girl stepped forward to the maid beside her.

    ¡°I¡¯m Baron Beryl¡¯s second daughter, Elise. I won¡¯t say anything much. If you come to the estate with me, I will fully repay you.¡±

    I forgot for a second. The fact that I will become a little kid if I have a conversation with her.

    ¡°Give me what you have.¡±

    Elise looked at Ed wondering what he meant, but Ed¡¯s eyes remained on the maid.

    ¡°You just need to give that pocket you had earlier.¡±

    The maid took the pocket out of her arms.

    ¡°You mean this?¡±

    ¡°Yes, that.¡±

    Elise smiled in vain.

    ¡°That¡¯s just travel expenses. Is that all you need?¡±

    Ed spoke while nodding his head gently.

    ¡°You agreed to give it to me as much as I asked for and since I asked for that much, I¡¯d like to close our deal with that.¡±

    As Elise nodded, the maid approached and handed over the pocket. Ed wore his cape back on after putting the pocket in his arms without hesitation.

    Elise asked when she saw him preparing with a hood on.

    ¡°What are you doing?¡±

    Ed hung his bag on the saddle of a horse. The horse was safe as he left the horse under the dolmen. So, he was able to get ready to leave immediately.

    It was only then when Elise, who was watching Ed climb the horse shouted urgently.

    ¡°Hold, hold on! Where are you going while it¡¯s raining?¡±

    Ed looked outside the dolmens. Whether it was because Kelpy died or because of the rain passing by, the rain was reduced. Ed pressed down his hood and spoke.

    ¡°I don¡¯t want to spend this night with a corpse.¡±

    Seeing Ed trying to leave with a slight bow, Elise approached quickly. She grabbed the bag hanging from the saddle as she spoke quickly.

    ¡°Are you really going to leave like this?¡±

    Ed lowered his head slightly and tapped the horse on the side. Her hand naturally missed the bag as the horse moved.

    Elise shouted urgently as Ed stepped out of the dolmen and went into the rain.

    ¡°Help, help me!¡±

    Ed paused and looked back at her. Elise quickly said to Ed, who stood on the outside border with the dolmen, and turned around.

    ¡°The wagon is broken and the horseman is dead! The horse was eaten, and Lord Badel was knocked down. Help me!¡±

    Ed looked back at Ellis and the maid behind her after hearing those words.

    Only ten years old. As long as you don¡¯t talk to her, she¡¯s just a girl from the aristocracy. Even though Kelpy, the devil was already caught, there was no chance of surviving if he left them.

    That¡¯s how much of a harsh world it is.

    Ed made a short sigh and looked out at the rainy dolmen.

    It¡¯s the same as killing the two if I just leave here. If lord Badel wakes up, that¡¯s when I can leave.

    Ed got off the horse and looked back at Elise.

    ¡°There¡¯s a condition.¡±

    ¡°What are the conditions?¡±

    ¡°All I can do is help Lord Badel until he wakes up or arrives at the next town. Also, don¡¯t talk to me until then.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t talk to you?¡±

    ¡°Are you going to accept my terms?¡±

    Elise inflated her cheeks but she couldn¡¯t say no.

    ¡°Fi, fine.¡±

    ¡°Then let¡¯s start now.¡±

    Elise seemed full of things to say but she kept her mouth shut. Meanwhile, Ed picked up the horseman¡¯s body and moved it outside. As he went out of the dolmen, the remainings¡¯ of the horse came into his eyes.

    For a short time of period, he steadily ate it up and only had the hooves left.

    As he returned to the dolmen after throwing the horseman¡¯s body away, Ed tried to take a look at Lord Badel¡¯s wounds.

    ¡°Cough!¡±

    Badel suddenly vomited blood and flinched. Then his body drooped.

    ¡°Lord Badel?¡±

    Ed sighed briefly when he saw Alice and her maid running at the knight looking at him. I think he died out of internal bleeding.

    I thought it was understandable since he hit his head so hard on the rock.

    Unless you¡¯re a believer, there was no way to save him in this world anyway.

    ¡°Lord Badel!¡±

    Elis tried wobbling him but there was no way of him answering back as he was already out of breath.

    Ed sat next to Ellis and put his hand on Badel¡¯s nose. He couldn¡¯t feel Badel¡¯s breath. Ed grabbed Elise by the shoulder.

    ¡°Lord Badel is dead. Stop shaking him.¡±

    Alice¡¯s eyes shook. The eyes of a frightened child.

    The size of accepting the death of the horseman and the death of the guard who guarded her must be different.

    Ed laid down Badel¡¯s body and asked.

    ¡°Do you want me to bury him?¡±

    ¡°¡­no, he¡¯s been protecting me since I was born. He needs to be buried in a cemetery. I¡¯d like to do that.¡±

    Alice continued, looking Ed in the eye.

    ¡°Help me.¡±

    Most aristocrats attach a nanny and an escort to a child. They raise the children of the nobles like parents. As a result, Badel could have been more like a father to Ellis than Baron Beryl.

    Even if Badel¡¯s skills were poor as a knight from the countryside, Ellis¡¯s heart was sincere in thinking of him.

    ¡°I¡¯ll help you. So, take some rest.¡±

    The maid who caught Ed¡¯s eye took her to the side of the dolmen. Ed left them and went to where the wagon was. A wagon with its wheels stuck in the hole.

    Seeing the situation where the carriage couldn¡¯t be lifted, Ed let out a grin.

    He didn¡¯t think it would go like this when he tilted while the two lanterns were approaching in the rain. Ed, who briefly recalled Elise¡¯s eyes, took a sturdy tree nearby and lifted the wheel.

    Ed let out a long breath while lifting the wheel out of the pit using the principle of leverage.

    If he hadn¡¯t invested in muscle strength, he wouldn¡¯t be able to have done this kind of ignorant thing. Ed, who pulled the wagon out of the pit, dragged the horse and connected it to the wagon.

    Two horses were needed because it was a double wagon. But not to the point where one horse couldn¡¯t pull it. The wagon was too big to go under the dolmen, so the wagon was parked outside the dolmen and the horse was parked inside the dolmen to avoid the rain.

    Elise could not say a word when she saw Ed bringing their wagon. She wondered how he pulled the wheel out of the pit that Badel and the horseman couldn¡¯t even take out together. But for now, she couldn¡¯t afford to ask such a thing.

    ¡°We¡¯ll leave when the rain stops, so take a rest. I¡¯ll put Lord Badel¡¯s body in the wagon.¡±

    After Badel¡¯s body was placed in a wagon, they had to shiver under the dolmen until the rain stopped. Elise went to the maid¡¯s arms while sitting upright with her back straighten up and looked back at Ed.

    She wanted to ask a lot of questions but she had to bite her lips and swallow them because the terms of the contract were not to talk to him.

    Ed seemed saddened by Alice¡¯s efforts.

    The rain stopped when dawn dew sank. With a fresh smell, Ed began preparing to leave. Now that it had stopped raining, Badel¡¯s body was placed on the wagon and tied with a rope while Elise and the maid hopped in the wagon.

    As he was driving the wagon while sitting on top of the coach box, he wasn¡¯t able to get the right speed as only one horse was driving the double wagon.

    Still, the wagon moved forward little by little avoiding the holes. While driving the wagon, Ed often picked up the bows and fired arrows. Now that he has killed Kelpy from the woods, the evil spirits are starting to run wild.

    When there are demons, they can¡¯t even open their respiratory tracts, but when the demons die, they run wild.

    It wasn¡¯t a threat to Ed but if he had left Elise yesterday, she would have probably ended up as a meal to the evil spirits

    While the wagon was traveling killing all the approaching evil spirits, they were able to escape the forest when the sun rose overhead. Out of the forest, he saw a small city far away.

    Looking at the walls around it, no matter how small it was, it was beyond the level of a village. Come to think of it, Elise was traveling through the forest with only one escort knight.

    Which meant her house wasn¡¯t that far away.

    ¡°Elise.¡±

    Ellis stuck her head out of the wagon at Ed¡¯s call. She spoke as if she was relieved to see the city in a distance.

    ¡°That¡¯s Hampton city, my father¡¯s estate.¡±

    As expected, it was Baron Beryl¡¯s estate. The wagon was slow but eventually reach Hampton City.

    The soldiers rushed as the wagon reached Hampton city. As the wagon slowly stopped, Alice opened the door of the wagon and came out.

    ¡°Lady!¡±

    She spoke with a haughty look on her face as the soldiers greeted her in surprise.

    ¡°Is my father in the mansion?¡±

    ¡°Yes, he¡¯s in the mansion.¡±

    Alice¡¯s eyes turned on Ed.

    ¡°Can I ask you to bring me all the way home?¡±

    He came all the way here but he couldn¡¯t just take the horse off the wagon and leave. The sun has tilted anyway, so he decided to take her all the way home.

    He wanted to avoid the aristocrats as much as possible, but if it didn¡¯t work out, he¡¯d just have to walk away by putting an arrow in their forehead.

    When he passed the gate and entered Hampton City, the maid climbed onto the coach box and showed him the way. he saw the mansion as he went in the direction she pointed to.

    he didn¡¯t care because the estate was not that big, but he didn¡¯t know they would live in a mansion like this. he thought he could at least expect a reward because they were richer than he thought.

    If he had just left with the pocket, he might have felt sick.

    When he approached the mansion, the soldiers opened the door so he could go inside. As he drove the wagon to the front of the mansion, he noticed a middle-aged woman and a knight standing behind her and also a Lord Chamberlain.

    When he stopped the wagon in front of them, Alice opened the door of the wagon and jumped outside. Alice ran straight into the arms of a middle-aged woman.

    ¡°What¡¯s going on? Where¡¯s Lord Badel and who¡¯s this guy?¡±

    At the question of Baron Beryl who¡¯s a middle-aged woman, the maid got off the wagon and quickly explained.

    ¡°We met the devil Kelpy in the woods who killed the horseman and Lord Badel. If he hadn¡¯t helped us, the lady would have lost her life as well. Not only did he save our lives but he also carried Lord Badel¡¯s body.¡±

    Ed also got out of the wagon while the maid was talking. Baron Beryl listened to the maid and patted Alice on the back and smiled.

    ¡°Thank you, I¡¯m Baron Beryl.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m Ed.¡±

    I didn¡¯t expect to be thanked by a noble. When Ed slightly bowed his head, Baron Beryl smiled and asked.

    ¡°You¡¯re a lifesaver to my daughter so I can¡¯t just let you go. I¡¯ll repay you. So, let¡¯s have dinner together tonight.¡±

    He wanted to leave by just getting the compensation but if he refused the invitation for dinner, they might change dramatically at any time so he responded obediently.

    ¡°It¡¯s an honor.¡±

    Baron Beryl took Ellis inside first and the knight who followed them looked at Ed without saying a word. It¡¯s been a long time since he received a unique look down on travelers from the knights

    By looking face-to-face, the knight first avoided his eyes and moved away.

    What the hell is wrong with you?

 Chapter 5 - Priest Aaron

    After having a bath in warm water for the first time in a long time, Ed participated in the dinner he was invited to while dressed in comfortable clothes that were prepared for him.

    Like any aristocrat, the table was long. So, each person could eat what was placed in front of them. Baron Beryl sat on the other side while a woman who resembled Elise sat next to her together with Elise.

    She was grinning as her eyes met Ed. I think she came back to her senses a little bit.

    In the back, there was a knight standing who stared at him earlier, and his eyes were still staring at him as if he was dissatisfied with something.

    Silver candlesticks were placed in front of the table with the candles on top of it. The sun was not completely set yet, so the candles were subtly brightening the surroundings with red light coming into the window.

    While the maid and the servants were preparing the meal, Baron Beryl spoke with a smile.

    ¡°Excuse me about that earlier. I didn¡¯t expect you to be Ed, who¡¯s the famous demon hunter.¡±

    As the devil he was looking for disappeared where he passed, Ed was earning his name little by little even if he didn¡¯t want to.

    Devils are those that can¡¯t be dealt with easily as opponents. So, just by hunting such a thing alone proved himself to be powerless.

    ¡°Are you following the footsteps left by the three heroes 16 years ago?¡±

    Ed smiled softly at the words.

    The Age of the devils 1 is a game that came out 15 years ago. It¡¯s been a year more since I¡¯ve been into this world which makes it a total of 16 years being here. The time of the game was flowing at the same speed as the time of reality.

    Freedom Knight Pendragon

    Helena, the mystic.

    Druid Dread.

    The three were true demon butchers who killed even the greatest devils one by one. Those who hunted demons in pursuit of their prestige appeared, but most of them were false reputations.

    There are sometimes people who have hunted the real devil, but there is no one who¡¯d dare to make a living out of it.

    Only those who have a stand against the devil can see the true strength of the devil.

    So even if a demon killer is sometimes seen, there was no one else who earned the name as a demon hunter after the three heroes.

    ¡°I¡¯m just killing those who do harm.¡±

    It¡¯s a long way from following the three heroes. Although I have leveled up quite a bit for a year, I¡¯m no match for them.

    I was thinking of meeting them and getting help whenever I had the chance. But it wasn¡¯t easy to find their whereabouts.

    It was only heard that freedom knight Pendragon was staying in the royal road. But the whereabouts of the mystic Helena and Druid Dread remained unknown.

    During the conversation, Ed could see the freshly baked warm bread and soup in front of him. Usually, it was hard to get such food even if you had money because you usually stayed at inns and restaurants.

    ¡°Let¡¯s have a chat while we eat.¡±

    Ed tore the bread and dipped it in the soup as if he had waited. When he ate the bread that became moist with the savoriness of the soup, he smiled naturally.

    ¡°It is delicious.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m glad it fits your taste.¡±

    After eating the bread, the salad came out, and after eating all of that, lamb steak came out. I also liked the well-roasted lamb steak that didn¡¯t smell at all.

    I was able to finish a satisfying meal with the aroma of wine I drank with.

    When the cake and tea were served for dessert after all the meals, Baron Beryl spoke while wiping her lips with a handkerchief.

    ¡°I have been able to come to this place because I have repaid my resentment and my grace by tenfold.¡±

    When he beckoned, the servant approached and put a small wooden box on top of the table. Ed looked at the wooden box and gave Baron Beryl a look.

    ¡°That¡¯s all I can prepare right now. If you stay for a few days, I¡¯ll be able to satisfyingly take good care of you.¡±

    Ed opened the wooden box at the end of those words. There were about fifty gold coins in it. Ed had never seen so many gold coins in this world before.

    Ed closed the wooden box and spoke politely.

    ¡°That¡¯s too much. However, I would like to have my weapons maintained for hunting here, so please allow me to stay for a few days.¡±

    Baron Beryl smiled at the words.

    ¡°If it¡¯s the things you need in hunting demons, of course, I¡¯ll help you. Don¡¯t mind that, and it¡¯s fine to stay for days and months. I¡¯ll help you if you tell the server what you want, so don¡¯t hesitate.¡±

    ¡°Thank you so much.¡±

    If I refuse more from here, a problem could occur. Besides, there was no need to refuse to as they are going to give me all the things I needed.

    Ed, who was sitting by the window where the morning sun sank and was looking down at the village, turned his head to the knock.

    ¡°Can I come in?¡±

    ¡°Wait a minute.¡±

    When he opened the door and came out, Elise was standing with the maid. Elise spoke while lifting her brimmed hat as Ed stepped out with his leather coat on.

    ¡°Would you like to have breakfast with me in the garden?¡±

    ¡°Sure.¡±

    As Elise took the lead and walked one step behind her, Ed was able to follow her to the garden behind the mansion. It was a garden full of tulips. The waves of yellow flowers caught his eye.

    And in the middle of the garden were tables and chairs. The maid went ahead and dusted the chair off and also laid the table.

    As Elise sat down, Ed also sat across from her. He opened the basket that the maid had brought, took out the sandwich, and also put the orange juice down.

    When he saw Elise picking up the sandwich and chewing it in her mouth, Ed also picked his sandwich up and put it in his mouth. The crispy lettuce and the salty ham were combined.

    I¡¯ve only stayed for a day, and I felt as if the meals at this house would remain memorable in the future. That¡¯s how good it tasted.

    Elise opened her mouth as he was focusing on his meal, considering it was a break after a year.

    ¡°I heard from my father that there¡¯s a song in honor of you. I heard you were enough to be praised as a hero.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not a hero.¡±

    Killing the devil was only for himself. He was raising his level up by hunting demons because he thought it was the only way to go back by seeing the ending of the Age of devils 2.

    Ed asked while putting the remaining sandwich in his hand into his mouth.

    ¡°But why are you so polite all of a sudden?¡±

    Elise blushed slightly and replied.

    ¡°Because you are a savior but also a hero.¡±

    Ed took a sip of the orange juice and asked.

    ¡°What about Lord Badel?¡±

    Elise¡¯s expressions got quickly stiffened at the question. Suddenly depressed, she put her sandwich down and put her hands on her knees while straightening her back as she replied.

    ¡°We decided to bury him in the cemetery this afternoon.¡±

    Elise¡¯s eyes were fixed on Ed.

    ¡°Will you come with me?¡±

    Ed nodded with a look of anticipation.

    It was only a short meeting I had with Badel, but I said I¡¯d do so because my participation in his funeral would seem to be a great comfort for Elise. Come to think of it; I felt like this breakfast was made for this talk.

    No wonder she was letting me up by saying I was a hero and so on.

    The cemetery was on the north side of the castle.

    The grave keeper had already dug up the ground, and Ed, who was looking at the people carrying the coffin there, was able to come out in advance and see a man talking to Baron Beryl. He was so handsome to the point of getting misunderstood as a woman.

    A man with a white collar on his gray clothes stood out with a T-shaped pattern drawn inside a circle on the chest.

    He is a priest of the Astron Church, the god of the sky. But he was very young for a priest. I¡¯ve seen some priests, but they were at least in their forties. It was hard to believe that the priest I saw now looked only in his early twenties.

    When the coffin was being buried in the place that was already dug up, the priest stepped forward. He lifted the sign of Astron that was around his neck. Ed was amazed to see the sign lifted toward the sky shining blue.

    There are lots of Astron priests, but only a few of them are able to show sacred power.

    I could see why he got into the priesthood even though he was so young.

    ¡°The grace of Astron, who looks down from heaven has descended to guide lord Badel Kreutz, and therefore, his life was honorable and loyal. ¡±

    The priest slowly closed his eyes and nodded as the blue light came down on the coffin.

    As the coffin went down to where the grave keeper had dug, chrysanthemums were laid on top one by one, starting with Baron Beryl. Ed also took a chrysanthemum and put it down on his coffin, and stepped back.

    Soon, the grave keeper covered the soil he had dug. Those who were looking at the burial mound gathered in front of the tomb and emptied their glasses. It was something Ed couldn¡¯t do to remember him by emptying his glass in front of a grave of the dead.

    After seeing Elise also gathered at the place laughing and making noises, he turned around and walked. He then felt someone approaching him quickly from behind.

    Ed slowed down and looked back. There stood the priest of the heavenly god, Astron.

    ¡°I¡¯m Aaron, the priest of Astron.¡±

    ¡°This is Ed.¡±

    ¡°I heard from the baron, and as far as I know, the church is also watching you.¡±

    ¡°Me?¡±

    ¡°Yes, since it¡¯s a noble thing to punish so many demons on the continent.¡±

    Seeing him smile with his eyes, he could have been misunderstood as a woman if it wasn¡¯t for the priest¡¯s uniform.

    ¡°If you have time, I¡¯d like to treat you some tea.¡±

    There was no harm in knowing a priest that¡¯s able to deal with sacred power. He also said that he was not only being watched by the Aklan but also the Astron.

    Either way, they are the places that are related to the main quest.

    ¡°Then I owe you one.¡±

    ¡°Follow me.¡±

    Aaron smiled broadly and took the lead. Not far from the cemetery, he was able to arrive at the church with the Astron¡¯s sign on the roof. He gave the tea to him himself as he followed Aron inside.

    Ed looked around while drinking tea. If he is a true priest dealing with sacred power at this age, he has the talent to become a high-ranking priest in the church.

    But why does he live so frugally in such a place like this?

    ¡°I¡¯ve been told you¡¯ve even caught Kelpy this time.¡±

    Ed nodded silently. Aaron looked at such Ed as he took a sip of tea and smiled.

    ¡°The death of Lord Badel is a pity, but with the death of another demon, the world is a little safer. Thank you so much.¡±

    Ed looked at such Aaron and slowly put down his teacup. Even though he was painting it like this, he seemed hesitant about something. Maybe it¡¯s because he¡¯s never had a conversation like this before.

    Ed laughed and spoke.

    ¡°I guess you have something to say.¡±

    ¡°Yes?¡±

    The confused look on his face was so cute.

    ¡°You can speak comfortably.¡±

    Aron bit his lip and bowed his head.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry. Actually, the city of Hampton has an iron mine, but two miners just died in it a few days ago. Those who came back alive said they saw the devil there.¡±

    Oh, that¡¯s why you painted it like this.

    ¡°If there is a demon in the mine, isn¡¯t it the lord¡¯s job to go there?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve reported it, and Baron Beryl said she¡¯d send knight Tomio and his men over there. If it wasn¡¯t for Lord Badel¡¯s funeral, they would have left.¡±

    Aaron continued hesitantly.

    ¡°But since you¡¯ve experienced facing with the devils, you¡¯ll know well that even if it¡¯s the lord¡¯s knights and soldiers, they won¡¯t be able to catch them without facing damage.¡±

    Ed agonized for a moment over those words. A fight in the narrow space was quite a disadvantage for him as an archer. Still, he couldn¡¯t back down after hearing that there¡¯s a demon.

    Aaron spoke while holding on to Ed¡¯s hand as he wondered what to do.

    ¡°Will you come with me to hunt down the devil?¡± I thought he would just ask me for a favor, but is he asking me to come with him?

    A priest who deals with sacred power is going to join together?

    Ed held Aaron¡¯s hand with a bright smile.

    ¡± If it is Priest Aaron¡¯s noble will, then I will help. even if it¡¯s the slightest bit.¡±

    Let¡¯s get on the priest bus!

 Chapter 6 - Troll

    When he returned to the mansion, Baron Beryl approached with knight Tomio as he took the arrow prepared by the staff and hopped on top of the horse fully armed.

    Baron Beryl asked when she saw him all prepared.

    ¡°Where are you going in such a hurry?¡±

    Ed didn¡¯t bother to hide it. Perhaps it was Baron Beryl who told Aaron about Ed himself.

    This could have been all planned after hearing that he had caught Kelpy. Even if she spoke frankly and asked, he wouldn¡¯t have refused it because it was about catching the devil.

    In that respect, nobles were nobles.

    He answered her obediently as she was looking at him like a snake with a look of not knowing anything.

    ¡°I¡¯ve heard from priest Aaron about the devil in the mine. I¡¯m thinking of going after the devil.¡±

    ¡°Huh! I was thinking of sending Tomio here with the soldiers¡­¡±

    That may have been the original plan. But she must have thought of a new way while she was on her way here.

    He didn¡¯t have any thoughts of blaming her. As nobles have always been this way, he was able to pass this as charms.

    As he slightly bowed his head and tried to leave, knight Tomio interrupted.

    ¡°If the demon hunter goes with me, the soldiers won¡¯t need to go at all, so please grant me permission to let me be the only one to go.¡±

    Baron Beryl nodded at the word.

    ¡°Yes, I think my mind would at least be at ease if doing so. Can I ask you a favor?¡±

    ¡°Thank you for your permission.¡±

    The shallow number of knights who accompanied Tomio and tried to take the results of this demon hunt was visible, but it didn¡¯t matter. All you have to do is get drunk.

    After Tomio had prepared the horse, he went together searching for priest Aaron. Aaron, who had already been waiting on a horse in front of the church, smiled brightly at Tomio.

    ¡°Lord Tomio, are you coming with us?¡±

    ¡°It was something I had to go take care of anyway.¡±

    Aaron nodded and said.

    ¡°As expected, you are a man of honor. ¡°

    Of course, he knows what honor is. He knows it too well that It¡¯s the reason why he is after it.

    Tomio took the lead while Ed and Aaron followed behind.

    After going out of the northern gate, a small stone mountain appeared after riding the horse for half an hour, and the village below it caught his eyes. The soldier guarding the wooden fence surrounding the village quickly opened the door when he saw Tomio.

    Ed didn¡¯t know how he¡¯d be in combat, but he was glad that Tomio was a big help when it came to stuff like this.

    When Tomio drove his horse to the town¡¯s plaza, people gathered. Tomio looked back at the people and started opening his mouth.

    ¡°I was told that the devil appeared in the mine. I need someone to guide me there. Is there anyone?¡±

    The words drew people¡¯s attention to one place in unison. There stood a man with short brown hair. After getting everyone¡¯s attention, he spoke while scratching his head as if he was bothered.

    ¡°I¡¯ll be the one to guide you around.¡±

    Aaron got off the horse and took his hand.

    ¡°Toll, I heard about what happened. Do you mind if you could guide us directly there?¡±

    Toll blushed at Aaron holding his hand while speaking.

    Hey, the priest is a guy!

    ¡°Two of my colleagues were killed by that thing. I¡¯d do anything to see it die.¡±

    You didn¡¯t want to be bothered at first!

    Still, it was fortunate that there was going to be no trouble finding him at all since there was someone to guide us in the mine.

    Ed, who entered the mine under the guidance of Toll, looked back at the mine and nodded. The mine was roughly wide enough for two long-necked men to face each other.

    At this width, there was freedom of movement. He believed that the journey was going to be easy as he didn¡¯t have to go face to face with the devil in a place where there wasn¡¯t any space to move.

    Ed looked at Aaron walking with a torch beside him.

    ¡°Is it possible to bless it here?¡±

    What Ed put out was an arrow. While Aaron looked at the arrow, he silently closed his eyes and mumbled Astron¡¯s name. Then a blue light came out of the arrow softly.

    It was his first time moving with a priest who dealt with sacred power in this world. So, it was also his first time seeing blessings. It was a sacred power with extreme symbolism to the devils.

    This can easily subdue the devil.

    Aaron spoke with a sigh.

    ¡°It¡¯s temporary. Since it¡¯s regular steel, 3 minutes is the time limit.¡±

    ¡°What is the possibility of having the blessing lasted long?¡±

    ¡°It would be possible to maintain the blessing for a long time if a true silver was used, but it is impossible for any priest to do a permanent blessing since It¡¯s only possible for a relic.¡±

    It is impossible for any priest to do permanent blessings unless it¡¯s a holy artifact given by God. Does that mean he should always bring the priest with him?

    Nothing is easy at all.

    ¡°Please let me know when you see the devil.¡±

    ¡°Of course. That¡¯s what I followed you for.¡±

    Ed asked Aaron, who was smiling.

    ¡°Do you have any experience of demon hunting?¡±

    ¡°No. It¡¯s the Knights who do the demon hunting.¡±

    Tomio was elated by the chatter from behind. There was no tension at all that could be found.

    He knew Ed was called a demon hunter. Even if it¡¯s exaggerated that he had been catching demons so far, it was true that Kelpy was caught this time.

    But to that extent, he thought that he could also do the same.

    A man inflated by falsehood. Ed didn¡¯t have thought¡¯s on letting Tomio deal with the devil of the mine. Tomio was confident that he could deal with the devil if he was given the priest¡¯s blessing.

    As Toll was leading the way, he stopped walking and spoke.

    ¡°It appeared Infront of there.¡±

    Tomio stepped forward with his sword drawn at those words.

    ¡°I¡¯ll take the lead from here. Get behind me.¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    When Toll stepped back and lit the torch, Tomio stepped forward. Aaron, who was holding the torch, took another step and prayed.

    ¡°To Astron who looks down from the sky, please grant us your grace, and we¡¯ll be brave. ¡°

    A blue light came down and wrapped Tomio¡¯s whole body. Tomio slightly bowed his head and stepped forward.

    ¡°What¡¯s that?¡±

    ¡°Giving courage lasts longer than blessing the equipment¡¯s, and since you are an Astron believer, the effect will last longer.¡±

    Ed smacked his lips with regret since he had no intention of having any religion yet as he was brought into this world.

    As Ed was following from behind, he hung an arrow on the protest so that he could respond at any time. He then awakened his senses.

    Besides the sound of burning torches, there were sounds of knocking on the ceiling.

    Ed asked Toll.

    ¡°Have you seen what the devil looks like?¡±

    ¡°No, I just heard my colleague screamed and heard terrible sounds.¡±

    ¡°Did he got dragged to the top of the ceiling?¡±

    Toll looked back at Ed in surprise.

    ¡°How did you know?¡±

    Ed looked back at Aaron and spoke.

    ¡°Please bless the arrow.¡±

    Aaron put a blessing on the arrow obediently. Ed pulled the protest with all his force and fired the arrow in the direction where the catch was.

    Blue light is cutting through the darkness.

    At Ed¡¯s sudden attack, Tomio¡¯s eyes followed the light, and he was able to see the monster hit by it.

    The presence approaching from the ceiling hanging upside down reminded him of a bat. There was an arrow stuck on its chest. The light disappeared as the arrow got stuck. But in exchange, the devil¡¯s scream could be heard.

    Arghhh!

    It was Turakan, a bat-like devil. He is one of the lower demons often seen in caves.

    However, no one was as picky as this one when it got faced to face in a cave. There were roughly four kinds of demons seen in the cave, and the trickiest one was caught.

    Tomio ran forward towards Turakan, who was screaming.

    ¡°Damn! Stop!¡±

    He urgently called Tomio¡¯s name, but it was after when Tomio had already jumped ahead. Ed looked back at Aaron.

    ¡°Do you have any protection magic?¡±

    ¡°Wait a minute!¡±

    Before Aaron reached out to Tomio and even memorized the sacred spell, Turakan already had his mouth opened.

    Ed grabbed Toll by the shoulder and pulled him back while a sonar attack from Turakan flew in.

    ¡°Cough!¡±

    Tomio, who was rushing in with no preparation at all, got hit by the sound wave and flew back badly. There was no time to pay attention to Tomio, who was rolling on the floor.

    Although the sonic attack was weakened thanks to Tomio getting hit by the front, he still had to take the attack that flew while bouncing against the wall with his body.

    For Ed, who can see gaps, Turakan was quite a tricky creature. It¡¯s because if the sonic attack was met in a cave, it would have bounced against the wall and came in a difficult direction.

    However, he had invested in physical strength for quite some time, so he was able to endure it with his body.

    There was no time to save Tomio nor time to receive any blessings again.

    With the torch extinguished due to the sound waves, the blue light wrapped around Tomio¡¯s body was all. But Ed could clearly read the opponent¡¯s position.

    When the ability to see gaps came into this world, he was able to read the murderous intentions of his opponent. The murderous intent made it possible to clearly read his opponent¡¯s position.

    Ed shot five arrows in a row in one breath. Turakan got hit by all the arrows that flew to him without losing even one of them.

    Arghhh!

    Tomio rolled over the floor and got himself up as Turakan screamed. If he hadn¡¯t been blessed and didn¡¯t wear a full-plate mail, he might have been killed in a single sonar attack.

    He was lucky to be alive. However, Tomio, who got himself up, gritted his teeth and ran towards Turakan again.

    Oh, that troll.

    ¡°Blessing!¡±

    Ed shouted because he didn¡¯t have time to talk long and Aaron, who understood what he meant, blessed the arrowhead.

    Tomio, who rushed in, was lifted with both shoulders pierced by the Turakan¡¯s claws on the end of both wings. Turakan¡¯s strongest attack is only the sonar attack.

    Turakan is also strong when it comes to close combats, and now that he just went inside it, there are no words to say even if he dies.

    But Ed couldn¡¯t just let him die in front of him.

    The only thing that Tomio did well was when the blessing Aaron hung replaced the torch. Ed twisted his protest when he saw Turakan trying to bite Tomio¡¯s neck off with his mouth open.

    ¡°What an eyesore.¡±

    The arrow flew with a blue light when Ed let go of the protest. The trajectory of an arrow flying like a blue meteor grazed through Tomio¡¯s temple and got stuck in the middle of Turakan¡¯s forehead.

    The blessed arrow got stuck deep in the middle of Turakan¡¯s forehead.

    Turakan collapsed without screaming. A blessed arrow is certainly good.

    Usually, demons used to pretend to be dead just before they died like some passive, but when the blessed arrow hit the forehead, they died immediately, and experience came in.

    ¡°Arghhh!¡±

    While Turakan collapsed, Tomio screamed as he fell to the ground. As expected, there are trolls wherever you go.

 Chapter 7 - Reunited

    The bow flew straight at a close range. He was able to have thoughts of turning the trajectory thanks to a scene he saw in a movie.

    So, Ed practiced it. The chances of success were about 30 percent. In fact, he thought it was even okay if Tomio died out of acting like a troll.

    As he climbed to level 10, he gained penetration skills and was able to penetrate thin human skin with no effort having to be put in at all. Breaking through Tomio¡¯s neck and catching Turakan was an easier and more reliable way.

    However, there was a 30 percent bet on it.

    It was fortunate that the devil died right away after having an arrow stuck on its forehead since it usually would have died by having its head sliced off. If it hadn¡¯t been killed by the blow, Tomio, who was screaming out loud, would have died as well.

    ¡°The devil is dead.¡±

    At Ed¡¯s words, Aaron ran and placed a recovery spell on Tomio, who fell to the floor. Considering Aaron¡¯s sacred power, there was no way he was going to die.

    Meanwhile, Ed approached Toll, who had fallen to the ground.

    ¡°Are you all right?¡±

    ¡°Yes, thanks to you.¡±

    As Ed lifted Toll up, he lit the torch again and looked at Tomio, who got disoriented by getting treated after screaming. Toll laughed in vain and spoke.

    ¡°I guess having excellent swordsmanship doesn¡¯t mean you¡¯re going to be good at catching demons.¡±

    If Tomio¡¯s sword skills were that excellent, he wouldn¡¯t have given him a shoulder.

    Badel and Tomio were just as strong as the shoulders in the countryside. But there was no need to explain since Toll was going to continue living on this estate.

    Aaron looked back at them and spoke.

    ¡°We¡¯ve done everything we can. Let¡¯s get Lord Tomio and get out of here.¡±

    ¡°Before that, we have to retrieve the stuff.¡±

    Ed approached Turakan¡¯s body and pulled out the arrow. He then pulled out a hunting knife and sliced off the neck. Aaron¡¯s complexion faded when he saw its head sliced off with a few cuts and being lifted up.

    ¡°well, what are you going to do with that?¡±

    ¡°There needs to be evidence for them to believe it.¡±

    Honestly, one could say it had ended since he earned his experience, but the reason he dared slicing of the neck was to believe that they could start operating the mine again.

    Toll, who was carrying Tomio on his back, asked as he saw Ed picking up Turakan¡¯s huge head.

    ¡°It is said that the evil¡¯s blood tends to poison people. are you okay?¡±

    ¡°It won¡¯t happen unless I apply the devil¡¯s blood.¡±

    Aaron, who received a torch from Toll, took the lead while being followed by Toll, who had Tomio on his back. Finally, Ed followed on the way back with a relaxed walk.

    Thanks to Tomio being passed out with a full plate mail around his body, Toll sweated as he carried him on his back. He didn¡¯t have any thoughts of wanting to help him since Tomio would have done a little bit better to him if Toll carried him rather than himself going out on his own.

    When they left the cave, soldiers and miners gathered at the entrance of the cave. Their faces showed disappointment as Aaron came out with a torch, and Toll was coming out with Tomio on his back.

    As they thought it was a failure on the suppress, Turakan¡¯s head was caught in Ed¡¯s hand walking from the back of their sight

    ¡°That, that one!¡±

    ¡°There was a real demon!¡±

    At first glance, it was almost the size of an adult¡¯s upper body. So, it was natural for people to be surprised and amazed by it alone.

    Toll put down Tomio as soon as he came out. It must have been an illusion on the feeling that he was slightly tossed.

    Toll spoke while wiping off his sweat.

    ¡°This man here was the one who caught the devil of the mine.¡±

    Everyone¡¯s attention was focused on Ed as Toll pointed at him while saying his words. Aaron then stood by him and sympathized with it.

    ¡°This is Ed, the Devil Hunter. He is the one who caught the devil in the mine.¡±

    Those who didn¡¯t believe in what Toll said applauded and cheered at the words of priest Aaron.

    It¡¯s more likely for people to be afraid if someone caught the devil, but they were very happy because they were man¡¯s working in the mines. It¡¯s been a long time since Ed was cheered like that.

    It gave off a kind of nostalgia.

    Before coming into this damn world, it was natural for people to cheer. No one dared to compare him since he was a popular man who was at the top of the world.

    Ed raised Turakan¡¯s head high in his hand. The miners were even more enthusiastic when they saw it.

    Baron Beryl was struck with admiration when she saw the head of Turakan brought back to the mansion by using a wagon that was found.

    ¡°As expected, you are a devil hunter. Thank you.¡±

    Baron Beryl was happy about the fact that the demon who appeared near the estate was captured. But as soon as she saw him getting Tomio off the wagon who had just passed out, she made a firm impression.

    ¡°What happened?¡±

    Ed looked at Tomio for a moment and decided to understand him Since it could be because of the magic that Aaron tried to instill courage with.

    ¡°It was easy to hunt thanks to the brave Lord Tomio who caught the devil¡¯s eyes. It would have been dangerous if it wasn¡¯t for his courageous charge.¡±

    Ed never uses to say this. He was a person who couldn¡¯t lie and only speak honestly. But in this bloody world, he could have lost his neck by doing so in front of the aristocrats.

    From there, he tried to adjust their mood as much as possible. But whenever he gets strong enough to the point where he doesn¡¯t have to look at the aristocrat¡¯s eyes anymore, there is no soup since then.

    Baron Beryl looked back at Aaron when she saw holes in both sides of the shoulder armor.

    ¡°Priest, will it be possible for Lord Tomio to hold a sword in the future?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s going to take some time to fully regain muscle strength, but he¡¯ll be able to lift a sword again.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s a relief. I¡¯ll privately show some sincerity to the Astron church.¡±

    If a person as rich as Baron Beryl said she¡¯s going to show some sincerity, it meant he was going to receive a lot of donations.

    Ed turned Turakan¡¯s head over to Baron Beryl and headed to Aaron¡¯s church. There was no reason for him to remain here anymore since receiving fifty nips of gold coins from Baron Beryl was enough for his part.

    Just like the Aklan, it was good to make connections with the Astron Church. So, he stopped by Aaron¡¯s church for the last time.

    Aaron gave Ed the tea and smiled. His smile was a smile that even a man would drool at.

    ¡°I¡¯m going to post a report to the church about the demon case being cleared.¡±

    ¡°Is that really necessary?¡±

    He shouldn¡¯t have bounced it since he didn¡¯t want to end up clinging to the Astron Church.

    Aaron shook his head at the words and replied.

    ¡°It¡¯s not a big thing. I¡¯ve seen you catch the devil in person, so I¡¯m going to propose a reward for that.¡±

    He didn¡¯t expect much of a reward from the Astron church since they didn¡¯t have a relic that fitted for an archer.

    If he were to get the relic, he was going to get it from Diana, the god of hunting. But their temple was in such a secret place that it wasn¡¯t easy to find.

    And even if they were to be found, there was no guarantee that they had a relic.

    ¡°I just did what I had to do. I don¡¯t even expect a reward.¡±

    ¡°I promise you. It¡¯s not a big deal. So please, at least accept this one.¡±

    What Aaron gave was the sign of the Astron Church worn around his neck.

    ¡°Isn¡¯t that your sign?¡±

    ¡°It was given to me by Archbishop Benedict when I first learned the sacred power. Even the Archbishop said it was inherited as well. I prayed every day with it so that it will keep the bad spirits away.¡±

    If he had prayed for generations on, even if it wasn¡¯t a relic, it was going to be at least more than a relic. For an archer, the worst thing there could be is a curse and a mystery. If he¡¯s able to break the mystery, it was enough, but not for the curse.

    There was no reason to refuse if the curse could be prevented.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know if I can accept such a precious thing.¡±

    Aaron smiled with his eyes.

    ¡°My acceptance of God is the important one, not these objects. I¡¯m sure Astron would also want you, who¡¯s the demon hunter, to have this.¡±

    At this point, it¡¯s wasn¡¯t polite to say no. Ed received the sign and hung it around his neck.

    Aaron reached out his hands to the sign and closed his eyes. The sign was once again surrounded by blue light as he mumbled and prayed.

    The fact that Benedict handed down a sign inherited from the former Archbishop meant that Aaron could soon become an Archbishop. He¡¯s just grateful to have another relationship like this.

    Ed got up after drinking the tea.

    ¡°Are you leaving right away?¡±

    ¡°There are people suffering from demons at this moment right now.¡±

    ¡°If you show that sign, you will always be able to use the Astron Church at any time. I will always pray that Astron¡¯s glory will always be with you in your future.¡±

    ¡°May the glory of Astron be with you.¡±

    The power of the Astron Church is greater than that of the Aklan. Just being able to use such a church at any time was already a big advantage.

    Ed left the church after receiving a hug from Aaron. As he was planning to leave the village as always, Elise was in front of the church with the maid.

    She looked up at Ed and asked.

    ¡°Are you leaving?¡±

    Ed nodded, and Elise took a pocket out of her arms and held it out.

    ¡°Thank you again for saving my life. It¡¯s small, but I hope you¡¯ll spend it on your journey to hunt the devils.¡±

    Ed didn¡¯t mind about it that much. When he heard the sound of the clinking¡¯s in the pocket he received, it felt like jewelry¡¯s inside, but it could have been more than 50 nips of gold coins.

    I didn¡¯t expect to make such a high profit by just catching lower-level demons like Kelpy and Turakan.

    Ed reached out his hand and petted Elise¡¯s head.

    ¡°Then may the glory of Astron be with you in the future.¡±

    Elise blushed and spoke quickly to Ed.

    ¡°may the glory of Astron be with you too?¡±

    Ed grinned and got on his horse and left. Aaron, standing next to Elise, who was looking at Ed¡¯s back while leaving nothing but dust, smiled and spoke.

    ¡°Sister Elise. If you don¡¯t mind, can we pray together?¡±

    Elise looked back at Aaron, smiling brightly at those words.

    ¡°Yes, I¡¯ll pray!¡±

    Ed was able to choose his destination for the first time since he had unexpected money. So far, he only moved to places where his feet touched while going after the rumors on where the devils were and killing them.

    However, if much money like this was made, it was about time to upgrade the equipment.

    A relic was too much, but at least it was enough to buy an artifact.

    It¡¯s important to level up in order to catch stronger demons, but at the same time, it¡¯s also important to have the equipment¡¯s upgraded on time as well.

    Being the third-largest city in the kingdom of trivia, he arrived in the city of Bern, which grew by trading on the Ain River.

    The city of Bern was a trading city where there¡¯s nothing you can¡¯t get for the money.

    It was a city with all the pleasures that money could buy. A familiar woman appeared in front of Ed, who was driving the horse while enjoying his eyes in the street across the entertainment district where gambling and women were available together with alcohol.

    ¡°We meet again.¡±

    Sona of the Aklan was smiling brightly while waving her hands.

 Chapter 8 - Request

    Sona looked around once and smiled.

    ¡°I hope I¡¯m not disturbing you?¡±

    Ed looked down at her and said.

    ¡°If you know you¡¯re disturbing me, why don¡¯t you come next time?¡±

    Sona was rather embarrassed by Ed¡¯s response. She never really thought he¡¯d have this type of business. But hunting demons is something you never know when you¡¯ll die from. She thought he needed to relax a little. When she thought of that, Sona smiled as she learned. He was already a demon hunter who has hunted 22 demons, although it is still said that only the lower demons have been hunted. It was a business that would remain if Akalan uses his beauty. Besides, Ed is more handsome than she thought.

    ¡°I think I have some time for that kind of business¡­¡±

    But Ed was already passing by her. Sona was dumbfounded and chased after him.

    ¡°Hey.¡±

    Ed didn¡¯t talk, and didn¡¯t even look at her.

    ¡°I told you to come next time.¡± ¡°Are you serious?¡±

    Only then did Ed give her a look. Ed¡¯s eyes looked cold.

    ¡°Come back tomorrow.¡±

    Sona bit her lips, smiled, and turned around.

    ¡°Yes, have a good time. I¡¯ll see you tomorrow.¡±

    Staring away at her with sarcasm, Ed soon turned to the hedonist.

    ¡°Is this just a coincidence?

    At least Akalan would know why she came here, but maybe his pride would get hurt while thinking about the wrong thing? Ed stopped his horse in front of an alley between the buildings where a naked woman stood. The women smiled brightly and spoke to Ed.

    ¡°Come to our store! We¡¯ll take care of everything for you.¡± ¡°How about two for the same price?¡±

    Ed opened his mouth hoping it was no different from Devil¡¯s Age 1.

    ¡°I¡¯m here to buy a black arrow.¡±

    Ed¡¯s words completely changed the faces of the two women. They asked, looking behind Ed.

    ¡°How many?¡± ¡°Three broken arrows.¡±

    The blonde of the two women came forward and grabbed Ed¡¯s horse reins. And entered the alley between the two buildings. When he saw them from outside the alley, he could see a drunken and naked woman, but when he entered the alley, what he saw in front of him was a door. And the men waiting at the door caught his eye. Muscles that look harder than steel on open shoulders. Even the big axes on their back. These are the warriors who used to throw bait even in Devil Age 1. Seamen known to live on the northern island of the continent. Two savage warriors, who came to this world for the first time, were looking down in bear-skinned hats. The woman knocked on the door past two of the savage warriors. Three short knocks, then she opened the door and allowed him to enter the room while riding his horse. He entered the room and the woman smiled with her eyes.

    ¡°Enjoy your shopping.¡±

    There was a long corridor. The woman stood there as if she would no longer follow him, and Ed rode his horse alone through the hallway. Approaching the end of the hallway, there was another door. This door wasn¡¯t big enough for him to ride his horse through, so he had to get off. As he approached the door while getting off the horse, the door was embossed with a black arrow mark on the skull¡¯s head. When Ed pushed the door, there was no sound. It was like someone had greased the door with oil in advance. He went inside and found a smaller room. There was a desk and a woman that sat modestly. The woman wearing glasses was smiling at Ed for business. Ed smiled as he looked at her. This is exactly what it looked like when he came to meet the black dealer in the Devil Age 1. Even the fact that both of the women looked like they were about twenty years old was identical. A place where you can get overpowered items when you give money. Ed¡¯s eyes turned to the woman¡¯s ears. Very pointy ears. She¡¯s a fairy.

    ¡°Did you order three broken arrows?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°My name is Arien. What kind of item do you want?¡±

    Three broken arrows in the black market are items that start with at least a hundred gold coins. Ed collected gold coins tenaciously during his stay here. When he met Baron Beryl, he filled in all the people he needed, so he was able to come to meet the black dealer.

    ¡°I¡¯m looking for a bow that can cast more properties on my arrows. Do you have anything?¡±

    Arien¡¯s eyes looked at him gently.

    ¡°That¡¯s the least of relics.¡± ¡°Do you have it or not?¡± ¡°We have something, but ¡¤¡¤.¡±

    Arien looked like she was about to stop talking, but she put on her eyeglasses and continued.

    ¡°There are two bows. One is a bow made of chloride that can add flame properties and another bow made of ice that can add chill properties. The bow of chloride is 180 gold. The bow of the ice is 200 gold.¡±

    Ed was speechless at the moment. Damn, the money he saved up and brought was about 120 gold. Ed took out the wallet Alice gave him and threw it on the table.

    ¡°How much is this?¡±

    Arien took the gold in her palm and her glasses glistened. Then she replied quickly.

    ¡°It¡¯s about 55 golds.¡±

    Ed took all the gold coins out of his bag. It was 177 gold in total. Arien said with a smile.

    ¡°We have a fixed-price system.¡±

    His stomach is twisted because he couldn¡¯t buy the bow due to a lack of three golds. He knew it would be expensive, but he didn¡¯t know it would be this expensive. Ed sighed and swept gold into his bag. He was going to save more money and come back to buy it. Then Arien reached out her hand and grabbed Ed¡¯s wrist.

    ¡°There¡¯s a lot of other good stuff.¡±

    Ed, who was caught by the wrist, shook his head.

    ¡°All I need is a bow.¡±

    Arien smiled and asked, watching Ed shake off his wrist and pack his gold coins.

    ¡°Devil Hunter Ed. Are you right?¡±

    As with Akalan, these black dealer guys aren¡¯t just ordinary people. He doesn¡¯t know how they know so much even in a world without Internet. Arien said calmly when Ed almost packed all of his gold.

    ¡°Do you accept requests?¡± ¡°Request?¡±

    A black market is just a place to go through to fit in good equipment. He has never received a quest here. Whatever the request, Ed sat back down after taking care of his Gold. He was curious because it was a quest given by a black dealer, so he decided to listen to her. Arien lightened up Ed when he showed interest.

    ¡°There are enemies at the Ain River. They¡¯re the people that rob other boats that run through the river with their speedboat.¡±

    Ed tilted his head at her words. A black dealer must also have considerable power. They are not the type to be troubled with thieves on a speedboat.

    ¡°When the lord launched his ship to defeat them, they ran away and came back to rob other ships. One of them was our ship. All the guards died even though I escorted them thoroughly.¡± ¡°And you just let them go?¡±

    Arien breathed a short sigh and replied.

    ¡°Of course I called in the fighting squad for revenge. I used three ships to raid them, but on a foggy day, they were attacked back and destroyed by the thieves.¡±

    He has never fought with a black dealer directly, but considering their reputation and what they have, he thought their powers would be formidable. And their combatants were destroyed? So around 10 people are on the speedboat? It was hard to believe alliance of the black dealer were swept away. But she won¡¯t be able to step up on her own just because she is powerful. And most of all, she gives merciless death to those who seek her, but she didn¡¯t kill people for money. Arien continued when he tried to refuse.

    ¡°The survivors of the fighting squad is around 10 people. Everyone said their eyes were red.¡±

    Ed stopped trying to say no and stared at Arien.

    ¡°Do you know what that means?¡± ¡°Of course, it¡¯s a symptom of being possessed by the devil or when the devil appears in human form.¡± ¡°If you know that, you must ask the Astron Church, not me.¡±

    Arien said with a wry smile.

    ¡°If we take matters into the hands of the Astron Church, we have a problem with our prestige.¡±

    A knight of the voice is perfect for dealing with the devil. However, it was understandable that the black dealer would look ridiculous if revenge was taken with their help. It¡¯s a different story than paying for yourself. Among demons, those who can change into human form are at least intermediate devils. Men of a different class from the ones that have been hunted. But he can¡¯t catch them with the equipment he has right now. Ed agonized for a moment and opened his mouth.

    ¡°What¡¯s the pay?¡±

    Arien leans slightly forward at Ed¡¯s explanation, discussing conservatism.

    ¡°I¡¯ll sell one of the bows for 100 golds, whether it¡¯s a bow of chloride or ice. And I¡¯ll give you infinite arrow barrel.¡± ¡°Infinite arrow barrel?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not exactly infinite. It¡¯s an arrow barrel that can hold 500 arrows. It¡¯s the same size and weight as a regular arrow barrel. There¡¯s no change in weight even with 500 arrows.¡±

    Since there was no archer in the Devil Age 1, there were no artifacts related to it, so he didn¡¯t know there was such an item.

    ¡°How much is that?¡± ¡°It¡¯s about 30 gold, and few people pay that much for an arrow barrel. But I thought it would be a necessity for a demon hunter .¡±

    If you choose an ice bow, it¡¯ll be 130 gold. Conservatives can only earn money in the mid to late period of the Devil¡¯s Age. Above all, the fact that it is an equipment that cannot be easily obtained with money made him feel good. Ed said, while taking 100 gold out of his bag and putting it down.

    ¡°Instead, I¡¯ll pay in advance. Give me a bow of ice and an infinite arrow barrel and I¡¯ll catch them for you.¡±

    Listening to Ed, Arien was silent for a moment. Ed had no intention of taking charge of the request if it was paid in advance. Although they became dehumanized thanks to their status and skills, the demons are dehumanized anyway. He had to risk his life with his equipment right now, but he thought the equipment she was talking about would be worth a try. Arien tapped the table and said.

    ¡°Those who steal our stuff don¡¯t end well.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not thick-faced enough to steal stuff from a black dealer.¡± ¡°Okay, but my alliance will be with you when you deal with the thieves.¡± ¡°Of course.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve already made a number stand. I¡¯ve listed them as trustworthy people. But I¡¯m putting in a request for you to make sure.¡± ¡°Mercenaries?¡± ¡°I hired four mercenaries who are not as famous as you are. But I believe they can help.¡±

    Given that they can catch them with four mercenaries even though they know their opponents are demons, they must not be ordinary bets. He knew she was just trying to flatter him by saying that they are less reputable than him. Then the door opened and a man came inside. He had a black crotch and an arrow barrel made of luxurious black leather in his hand. It was a black crotch that broke the expectation that the bow of ice would be white. As the man left with two equipment on the desk, Arien took an arrow out of the barrel of arrows and hung it on the demonstration. He could see a white chill forming over the arrow.

    ¡°You can determine the number and intensity of cold air properties depending on the user¡¯s magic powers.¡±

    Arien put down the bow and arrows after demonstrating. Seeing Arien¡¯s recommendation with a wink, Ed picked up a bow and arrow. Now that he has got it, he knows this is not an ordinary thing. Slowly pulling the bow, its tension was no match for the bow he used before. It was still a luxury bow, but it¡¯s incomparable. When he focused his mind for a while, the mana escaped and the arrow was cold. Ed smiled gloatingly as he checked it out.

    ¡°Should I cut off the heads of the thieves?¡±

 Chapter 9 - Party

    Bern was a city that actively traded along the Ain River, so the pier was developed. Dozens of ships were docked, and Ed followed a man to the furthest corner of the dock. Ed stroked his new bow and barrel as he went to the place where only five speedboats were. These were the minimum conditions to receive a 100-gold artifact from a black dealer. However, he was satisfied that he had acquired an item that costed more than 200 golds and a 30 gold barrel. The demon had to be caught anyway, but there was no reason to refuse if there was such a pay. Sona from Akalan was supposed to come tomorrow, but he didn¡¯t care. There may be a reason why she came to see him, but it¡¯s not him who¡¯s sorry. And whatever she wants, there¡¯s no way he can pay her. When he went to the place where the speedboat was, people were already out. The four mercenaries who survived the last attack. There were savage warriors in chain armor, fairies with bows, fairies with canes, and men with six swords. Apart from what Arien told him, no one was on a lower level. They are of a different class from Tomio or Bardell, whom he met on Baron Beryl¡¯s estate. These are the real stuff. At least he could tell that they won¡¯t be disturbing him. Then the man who guided Ed opened his mouth.

    ¡°You can go up from here.¡±

    Today was the day of the squad¡¯s departure. In Arien¡¯s words, Ed¡¯s joining was spontaneous. All those who were waiting at the pier got on the speedboat. The man who guided Ed untied the rope from the pier and finally hopped on the speedboat. The speedboat began to move slowly. The speedboat, which used oars to exit the pier, began to speed up. A savage warrior carrying Battle Axe on his back stared at Ed and opened his mouth.

    ¡°The increase in the number of people does not change the pay.¡± ¡°Of course.¡±

    The savage warrior, who heard the man¡¯s answer from the black dealer, approached Ed and reached out his hand.

    ¡°We already have a archer. I don¡¯t know why she hired another one. By the way, I¡¯m Gerrard.¡±

    Ed took the hand of a savage warrior who introduced himself as Gerrard. If he was a savage warrior enough to be hired to hunt demons, he thought he would¡¯ve been a significant character in the demon Age 2.

    ¡°Ed.¡±

    Gerrard¡¯s eyebrows wriggled at Ed¡¯s short answer and soon burst into laughter.

    ¡°I¡¯m glad you¡¯re quiet.¡±

    Gerrard was too talkative to suit his size. He was introducing the others.

    ¡°That lively fairy is Hamel, and that mystic fairy is Sirke. They told me that the swordsman over there is Ford.¡±

    He wondered if he really needed to introduce them, but Gerrard¡¯s mouth didn¡¯t rest.

    ¡°And you¡¯re Ed? I¡¯ve never heard of you before.

    Yes, this is normal. There were so many people who he recognized even if there was no Internet. He was rather embarrassed by the fact that there was no one in the Church of Astron who didn¡¯t know about Baron Beryl. Ed looked at the others. Their eyes met with only a slight nod and they were sneaking away at Gerrard. Sirke was looking at him with rather grateful eyes. Ed knew what Gerrard was being treated like after seeing their looks. It seems like he talked too much, but savage warriors are basically seamen. Those who specialize in fighting on board. He was probably the most helpful of them in this battle. So Ed decided to take him from time to time.

    ¡°Have you ever fought a demon?¡±

    When asked by Ed, Gerrard¡¯s mouth quickly turned into a motor, perhaps judging that he was willing to talk to him.

    ¡°Demons? Yeah, I¡¯ve seen such tiny things here. I¡¯ve hunted about three so far, but nothing special.¡±

    Hunting demons alone is nothing short of proving one¡¯s worth. He should¡¯ve seen a couple of dumbass knights getting beaten up. Most likely they were lower-level demons. They can¡¯t easily come across an intermediate demon, even if they wanted to. Gerrard kept harping on unasked things.

    ¡°I¡¯ve heard that fairies have a history of demon hunting. Only the swordsman over there has never hunted a demon, but his name is the most famous of them all. He¡¯s a mercenary.¡±

    Ed looked back at Ford, the swordsman. If a mercenary is a gold medalist, he is reliable, and his skills have already been proven. He was the highest grade mercenary that money could buy. Above that, there are two types of mercenaries, but they are almost in the position of leading a mercenary corps. Those who can only be hired for war. Looking at Ford, he could see that the black dealer intended this. Ed looked at the river thinking he didn¡¯t need to worry. The Ain River was wider than he thought. The other side is horizontal and wide. In this place, it would be difficult to wipe out demons on a speedboat. Ed¡¯s eyes turned to the man on the rock who guided him.

    ¡°Have you located the thieves?¡± ¡°We¡¯ve got an approximate location. And if we go near it, there¡¯s a good chance they¡¯ll raid first.¡±

    Gerrard stood next to such Ed, saying.

    ¡°As soon as I get over to their ships, they¡¯ll be over. Hope you don¡¯t disturb me because you shoot the wrong arrow.

    This guy¡¯s confidence was up in the skies. Ed nodded and looked up at the sky. Holding the stars in the sky in his eyes, Gerrard took some ham out of his waist and said, while eating.

    ¡°Do you want some?¡±

    Ed lowered his head and looked at Gerrard. This barbarian warrior has a pretty good personality.

    ¡°I just want to take a break. I was called in all of a sudden today.¡±

    Gerrard felt sorry, but Ed had no intention of playing with his rhythm. Ed sat on the floor and closed his eyes still. Gerrard moved on looking for another conversation partner, but everyone was busy looking elsewhere. Gerrard let out a blast of excitement at the sight and concentrated on eating ham. As Gerrard shut up, all he could hear was a bump into the river over the speedboat. Ed looked at his status window with his eyes closed. Ed, who checked the status window before starting the battle, felt worried that he had not tried the new bow in advance. Since he is an archer, he has low magic power. He hasn¡¯t checked how many arrows he can shoot in advance, but he was going to use them in this battle. He needed to know his limits clearly so that he can fight properly. The reason why he was able to achieve the top spot in the one-deal world rankings was his ability to see the gap, but the accurate distribution of magic power was also very important. If he uses too much magic, he won¡¯t be able to use his skills when he needs them the most.

    ¡°Huh? Why is the fog so thick?¡±

    Ed opened his eyes to Gerrard¡¯s voice. And he heard the nervous voice of the man who was in charge.

    ¡°A sudden fog. It¡¯s very likely they are here.¡±

    Judging from the tension and anger in the voice of the man, the survivor of the combat team must be this man. He thought it was great that he accompanied the group. The fact that he came back to this path after meeting the intermediate demon in person. Ed slowly got up from his seat. It doesn¡¯t matter if visibility is not secured by fog. When the opponent approaches with intent to murder, the gap is read, and the sense of reading like that can pinpoint the opponent¡¯s position more accurately than the eye can see. As they enter the fog, only the contours of those close to it can be seen. The fog was thicker than he thought. Ed approached the player.

    ¡°I¡¯ll go first.¡± ¡°How can you fight if you can¡¯t even see?¡±

    Then Sirke, who was holding a cane, said.

    ¡°When the battle begins, I¡¯ll clear the fog. But can you sense the enemies?¡± ¡°I can.¡±

    Ed said so, stood at the front, pulled out an arrow and bow. Then he listened with his eyes closed, feeling the strong wind.

    Psshh.

    He could hear the boat bumping into the river in the distance. Ed opened his eyes and pulled the bow toward it. Ten thieves. There is no way that an intermediate demon can move around as a group of ten. Maybe nine intermediate demons and possessed humans could move together. Ed sensed the evil in the fog and felt his gap. He felt that the ice bow was able to shoot farther than the bow he had used so far. So when the enemy¡¯s speedboat was detected at the end of the interval, he exhaled and fired an arrow. As the speedboats on both sides rushed toward each other, the gap was rapidly narrowing, and one of the opponents fell into the river by his arrow. It wasn¡¯t even an arrow with cold air, but the arrow that flew out of the fog was stuck between the opponent¡¯s eyes. Ed fired a series of arrows before they could even see the player fall. Five arrows flew in one breath. It is difficult to see an arrow in fog unless it is an intermediate demon. So when he knocked down six possessed men, one from the back came forward. Just in case, he shot an arrow and he simply swung a knife and struck it. It was an intermediate demon. His experience of killing demons wasn¡¯t much, but he was confident that he could kill that demon. Ed took a step back and said.

    ¡°Clear the fog.¡±

    Sirke murmured quickly and raised his cane high. Then a strong wind sprang from her cane and poured towards the front of the speedboat. A strong wind quickly pushed the fog away. And the wind was so strong that the waves rose in the river. The speedboat, which was approaching, slowed significantly as waves rose nearly three meters high. Gerrard looked back at Ed after seeing the speedboat of the thieves.

    ¡°What, did your arrow kill him?¡±

    Instead of answering, Ed replied by looking at the person who was showing his teeth while standing.

    ¡°There¡¯s no point in trying to catch the men. We need to catch that one.¡±

    If the demon comes out alive, they¡¯ll be seduced and outnumbered again. Gerrard grinned at the words and picked up his Battle Axe.

    ¡°Yes, I shall cut the enemy captain¡¯s head.¡±

    Hamel started firing arrows while Gerrard was giving off a ferocious look. Hamel shot seven arrows in a moment. As expected, fairies were different. However, the general arrow attack is meaningless as the intermediate demon is in the front. All the arrows fell on the sword wielded by the intermediate demon. Gerrard burst into laughter at the sight.

    ¡°Hahaha, you archers can watch me now.¡±

    The speedboat of the thieves turned. And as the distance neared, the intermediate demon blew himself up first. Gerrard¡¯s Battle Axe flew in with a big trajectory towards the intermediate demon. But the intermediate demon escaped the attack by turning over in the air, perhaps unwilling to accept the power. And the knife swung past Gerrard¡¯s left shoulder. Behind the intermediate demon, Gerrard turned around screaming while bleeding. Then, in the flying Battle Axe again, the intermediate demon bent over, dodged, and swung his sword in place. Blood spattered from Gerrard¡¯s thigh, and muscles, then he fell to the floor. He must have been a big-mouth fighter. Looking at him collapse in vain. The intermediate demon swung a knife at the neck of the fallen Gerrard. Even though Gerrard had a big mouth, he couldn¡¯t let him die like that. Even though he looks insignificant now, he has a talent that can be related to the black dealer, and he should be saved in order to be used to fight other demons later. When Ed flew the arrow with that mind, Hamel felt the same way, and at the same time, the arrow flew toward the intermediate demon.

    Bang.

    The intermediate demon was struck with two arrows between his teeth and smiled.

    ¡°Yeah, that guy doesn¡¯t matter.¡±

    The red eyes of the intermediate demon turned to Ed.

    ¡°I need to kill you first.¡±

    Realizing that Ed was the one who killed his subordinates, the intermediate demon stormed to the deck.

 Chapter 10 - Water Battle

    The deck of the speedboat is about 10 meters long. Considering the people standing in the back, the range of movement that can be moved should be much smaller. He doesn¡¯t know which of the intermediate demons is in the shape of a human being, but the skill of wielding a sword clearly shows that he is not the one to ignore. With an archer at the front, the gold medalist Ford bounced forward between the two. The broad word which was in Ford¡¯s hands, blocked the sword of the intermediate demon.

    Kkkkuuuu.

    Ford¡¯s knee seemed to be wobbling due to the strength of the intermediate demon, and he tilted the broad sword to take over the intermediate demon¡¯s knife, then rolled out sideways and inserted a dagger into the foot of the intermediate demon. It was different from the formal knights. Even on the ship, his movements were unhesitant, and the intermediate demon paused at Ford¡¯s swordsmanship. Ford didn¡¯t mean to catch the intermediate demon alone. He rolled over to the back of the intermediate demon and headed for the Red-Eyed demon followers on the speedboat. Hamel shot seven arrows at the intermediate demon. The intermediate demon, who couldn¡¯t chase Ford after arrows flying in a row, wielded a knife with an annoyed expression, and tried to lower his hand to pull out the dagger stuck in his foot, but Hamel didn¡¯t give him time to do so. Before they knew it, the blade of the wind from Sirke¡¯s cane hit the intermediate demon.

    ¡°How dare you!¡±

    The intermediate demon struck the sword with all his might and cut off the blade of the wind. It had incredible reflexes and superpowers. There are not many people who are human beings but have that much ability as intermediate demons. There were only about 30 species of intermediate demons, so they could identify who they were at once.

    It was the intermediate demon ¡®Creatine¡¯. When he is in his main body, he is often transformed into a human being because he is half-spirit. And he¡¯s a demon specialized in creating followers. He is a demon who is more picky when he is human. Then he had to give up his human form first. Ed, who had already widen the distance, fired three arrows in a row.

    Babang!

    The third arrow was shot with cold air, so the area around froze with a noise. He put a lot of mana to tie his feet completely. If he had shot the arrow to the side of the demon¡¯s stomach, he would have fallen to the floor. Creatine¡¯s face hardened when he fell down after his legs were stuck, and cold air emitted from the arrow on the floor. Then Gerrard swung his Battle Axe. Creatine frowned and turned the knife back to block Battle Axe, but couldn¡¯t properly stop him because he couldn¡¯t even turn around with his feet stuck to the ground. The knife was broken and Creatine¡¯s leg was cut off. In the meantime, all demon followers died in Ford¡¯s hands. Gerrard then burst into laughter and shouted.

    ¡°Good for you!¡±

    ¡®In the meantime, Ed was shooting an arrow and injecting mana. Creatine¡¯s leg was cut off, so he was abandoning the human form and returning to his main body. Human skin flowed down like skin. Hamel fired arrows one after another, but general physical attacks rarely worked when he was a spirit. So the attacks only worked as long as he was in human form. Creatine thus returned to the form of a spirit. The reason why it was called a spirit body is because it can exercise physical force even in that state, and the attack works at the moment it exercises physical force. So Ed stepped back one more step. Sirke, who stepped back to the end of the speedboat, blew the blade of the wind at Creatine first. Only the magic of Sirke and the cold arrow attack worked on Creatine, who was in his spirit form. Then Creatine soared into the air, dodged the blade flying in the wind, and flew straight for Sirke. Sirke hurriedly opened a shield, but when Creatine raised his fist and hit him, he was crushed by the force and fell into the water. As soon as Creatine dropped Sirke into the water, Ed fired a cold arrow. Until now, the power was incomparable to the first cold arrow. Creatine realized it was inevitable and grabbed the arrow with his left hand.

    Freeez.

    In extreme coldness, Creatine¡¯s left arm froze. Even though he is a spirit, only he is attacked by magic. Ford, who ran from behind, cut off his arm.

    -Argh! My arm! My arm!

    Ed saw Hamel jump into the sea to save Sirke and realized that he and Ford were the only ones left to fight Creatine. As expected, he was an intermediate demon. He knows how to fight. Just by dealing with the most threatening creature, the mystic, and dealing with the remaining people, he could see his experience. As Ed raised his magic power again, Creatine flew straight in. He was not affected by the sinking speedboat as the water filled up because it was not necessary to step on the ground when he was a spirit. Except for the mystic Sirke, Ed was the only one who could attack him right now. Using the magic power he has collected so far, he fired cold arrows at Creatine, which is rapidly narrowing the distance. The power was halved because it could not be gathered as much as before, but it was enough to keep Creatine in check. The problem was that the Creatine, which lost one arm, turned its eyes. He held his decapitated arm forward. It froze over the shoulder of the left arm, but the Creatine, which narrowed the distance at once, hit them head-on. Ed, who was standing on the stern of the speedboat, looked at the Creatine in shock. Creatine had a body, even though it was for a brief moment when it was hit. And in time, Ed shot an arrow into his neck. Ford swung his Broad Sword after seeing the bleeding Creatine. However, Creatine has already become a spirit and the arrow that was stuck to his throat had also fallen. Ford¡¯s Broad Sword just grazed the Creatine and Creatine soared into the air. Now, Creatine is seriously injured due to the injury in his neck and left shoulder. Just by looking at the blurry spirit, they could see that it was a dangerous situation. So, the spirit rose up into the air. The speedboat broke and everyone was falling into the Ain River. If they move to the speedboat of the enemy, they can survive, but if they did that, they¡¯ll miss the demon. Before falling, Ed injected mana into his bow, twisted his waist, and shot a cold arrow into the river.

    Freeeeeez.

    When the river froze and a lump of ice floated on the surface of the water, he barely escaped falling into the river by stepping on it and holding onto the arrow. But Ed¡¯s weight caused a lump of ice to tumble and sink halfway. But he somehow escaped falling into the river. When he put his arrow at the front again, Creatine saw him and turned in the air, and flew right in. Then the blade of the wind flew toward Creatine from the sunken speedboat. He was flying towards Ed, so he twisted his body in a hurry, but he was badly wounded.

    ¡°Huh.¡±

    Ed, who took a deep breath, fired back and forth with a series of shots, injecting mana into all five arrows. The bow was pulled and released without a break, but there was no cold air on the fifth arrow. He was running out of magic power. However, four arrows were inserted into the body of the flying Creatine, freezing his entire body and falling into the river. When a large chunk of ice floated in the river, Ed stepped on the block of ice and gently descended on the frozen body of Creatine. He took a hunting knife and stabbed it between the eyes.

    Booooom.

    The demon¡¯s frozen body broke, leaving Creatine out of breath. Feeling that his level had risen to the incoming experience level, Ed only coughed up a long breath. If they had met on land, he could have caught the demon much simpler than now. That¡¯s how active the cold air was. However, it was difficult to deal with it as they fought on the boat. Ed saw the fragmented body of Creatine floating on the Ain River, then jumped and started running on the wreckage of the speedboat. Thanks to his superior agility, he was able to step on the wreckage of a speedboat floating on the water and reach the speedboat of its numbers. The rowers of the speedboat were not followers of the demon. They¡¯re just slaves. They all raised their hands when Ed got on the ship and pointed an arrow at them.

    ¡°Save the people from drowning.¡±

    As the speedboat of the numbers turned the player and moved near the sunken speedboat, Hamel took Sirke to the speedboat. Ford also took Gerrard, bleeding from his legs to the speedboat. Starting with the guide, Ed rescued the speedboat¡¯s rowers, but two of the rowers died. Two people swept underneath died when Creatine slammed Sirke into the river. When everyone came out of the water, Sirke vomited water, approached Gerrard, and put a recovery spell on his leg. Wizards¡¯ spells for recovery were no match for divine magic, but first aid was possible. When the wound was sealed, Gerrard opened his mouth with a bitter smile.

    ¡°I look terrible. I¡¯m sorry.¡±

    Ed said a word of comfort because Gerrard looked so demoralized.

    ¡°Thanks to cutting off the demon¡¯s legs, I was able to catch him easily.¡±

    Gerrard grinned at the words.

    ¡°Right? I played a part, right?¡±

    Ed nodded at what he was saying while looking at the man dispatched from the black dealer. Gerard, who looks humble right now, believed that if he was already famous enough to catch the eye of a rock statue, he would grow significantly with this battle. So he gave him a compliment that doesn¡¯t cost money.

    ¡°You¡¯ve done enough.¡±

    When he returned to the pier in Bern, Gerrard recovered to the point of walking on two feet. The body itself is as recovering thanks to the wizard¡¯s amazing recovery magic. So he really is a savage warrior. When everyone got off the speedboat, the man who followed from the rock bottom opened his mouth.

    ¡°You guys are coming with me to get paid.¡±

    Gerrard tapped Ed on the shoulder and said.

    ¡°I¡¯m going to stay at the ash tree inn for a few days, so please stop by some time. I¡¯ll buy you a drink.¡±

    Ed answered with a slight bow and turned around. He did not have to visit Arien because he paid in advance, so he was going to visit the inn and rest. Contrary to the idea that it would take quite a while, the payment was cheap for the request that ended in a day. The ice bow will require practice, but it seemed to be able to carry out various tactics. Hamel and Sirke also approached Ed. Hamel¡¯s robe hung over Sirke¡¯s wet clothes.

    ¡°You two were lovers?¡±

    When Hamel nodded, Sirke explained with a smile.

    ¡°Hamel lost his voice. So don¡¯t get him wrong. And we¡¯re married.¡±

    Come to think of it, he hasn¡¯t heard Hamel speak. Sirke said with a smile.

    ¡°If it weren¡¯t for you, everyone would have died at the hands of the demon. He wants me to say thank you.¡±

    Ed shook his head.

    ¡°I could have died if it wasn¡¯t for the blade of the wind you blew underwater at the end. Thank you.¡±

    Sirke looked at Ed with strange eyes.

    ¡°You¡¯re a humble man.¡±

    Ed has lived far from being humble. Instead, he was not able to lie, so he was also sincere in expressing his gratitude.

    ¡°I hope we get to see you again next time.¡±

    As the two moved along with the man, Ford approached me and reached out. What he handed to Ed was an arrow that he shot at Creatine¡¯s neck. He thought it naturally fell into the river, but Ed guessed that he picked it up while rescuing Gerrard. Ed thought he was a great man.

    ¡°There will be a day to pay you back.¡±

    Seeing Ford leave muttering as others say, he seemed to be a gold medalist and shy. Ed was watching the four mercenaries leave the pier with a bow on his shoulder. Ed booked an inn and laid himself on the bed. It was the tiredness that he felt after a long time because he used all of his magic power. He was just going to sleep tight, but he had to open his eyes at the sound of knocking on the door. Sona was smiling in front of the door when Ed opened the door with a hunting knife in his hand.

    ¡°Good morning.¡±

    Ed sighed deeply and slammed the door shut.

    ¡°Excuse me, Ed?¡±

 Chapter 11 - Akalans Request

    Sona sighed heavily in front of the closed door.

    ¡°Oh, I¡¯m really holding it in.¡±

    Yesterday, while using his beauty as one of his weapon, he returned home after being kicked out of nowhere. Breaking the expectation that he had gone to the entertainment district, he went to the black dealer. Not only did he visit the black dealer, but he moved with her. He knew that the black dealer hired mercenaries, but he was told that they moved with them and returned at dawn yesterday. It seems that the number of people appeared in the Ain River and robbed the merchant ships of a black dealer, and he was involved in solving them. So he decided to forgive them. Going down to the restaurant and waiting for food and drinks, she didn¡¯t expect Ed to wait until lunch. It wasn¡¯t until lunch that Ed came up with a grin at Sona, who had emptied three bottles of alcohol. Ed was wearing a leather coat, and sat in front of her and asked.

    ¡°What kind of broad daylight drink is that?¡± ¡°Have you been drinking since morning?¡±

    Sona, whose tongue was slightly twisted, made him laugh. Ed thought he should not shoot the bow so that he would not run out of magic power next time. He had to subdue the enemy to the extent that he didn¡¯t overdo it. He suffered because she was an intermediate demon, but if she was a low-level demon, he could catch her easily. Ed picked up the bottle and asked.

    ¡°But why did you come to see me?¡±

    Sona tilted her head at Ed¡¯s question.

    ¡°Wait? Why did I want to see you?¡±

    She is Akalan¡¯s team leader, so he don¡¯t know why she was so sloppy. Ed drank a bottle of alcohol. When Sona saw him, she tapped her cheek lightly, and she slightly turned the ring on her hand.

    ¡°Hooooo!¡±

    Ed stared at Sona, who suddenly had a strange nasal voice. The drunkenness disappeared from her face. Sona came to her senses like that and stared at Ed.

    ¡°Why do you sleep till daylight?¡± ¡°If I¡¯m tired, I can sleep. I¡¯m not even going to work.¡± ¡°Work?¡± ¡°Nevermind. Why did you come?¡±

    Sona thought about it for a while and sat coyly looking at Ed.

    ¡°Did you settle the black dealer request well?¡±

    He almost forgot because he drank a little. She is the team leader of Akalan.

    ¡°Of course I did.¡± ¡°Why did she need a demon hunter to catch the thieves?¡±

    He guessed that she didn¡¯t know the details. The black dealer never told him to keep the request a secret, so he decided to tell her the reason.

    ¡°The thieves were made up of demons and followers of demons.¡± ¡°What?¡±

    Ed spoke calmly to Sona, who was surprised.

    ¡°I can¡¯t give you all the details, but I got him in the end.¡± ¡°You really are a demon hunter. So, this is your 23rd one?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right.¡±

    Sona looked at Ed all of a sudden. Except for those who are now legends, has anyone hunted demons this much alone? It may be possible for holy knights. But even a holy knight can¡¯t get to this number in this short time. Ed, the demon Hunter, has only been active for a year.

    ¡°But why are you talking down to me?¡± ¡°You don¡¯t like it?¡±

    Ed laughed.

    ¡°When are you going to answer?¡± ¡°If you¡¯re commissioned by a black dealer, that means you¡¯re willing to work if you get paid, right?¡± ¡°I only did it because it was about catching the demon. I don¡¯t kill anyone.¡± ¡°But that means you still want to catch demons.¡±

    Ed tilted his head. From what he heard, it sounds like she was going to ask him to catch the demon, but Akalan is different from a black dealer. Following the cause of catching demons, they also have close relationships with various denominations. If it¡¯s simply catching the demon, there¡¯s no reason to ask Ed. When Ed looked at her suspiciously, Sona continued with a smile.

    ¡°I want you to catch a demon. He¡¯s turned into a human being. Catch him.¡± ¡°Just ask the Holy Knights?¡±

    Sona¡¯s eyes shook for a moment. She was hiding something for sure.

    ¡°Let¡¯s talk about the pay first. You will be paid with artifact-class equipment. Or I can prepare the gold equivalent.¡±

    Ed agonized for a moment when he saw Sona changing the subject. There was no need to flirt with Akalan anymore.

    ¡°All right, I¡¯ll take the artifact-grade equipment. All I need is a dagger. And, I want to pay in advance.¡± ¡°Okay, but you have to move with me.¡±

    They have a black dealer anyway. It was not that difficult for them to give a piece of equipment. When Ed nodded, Sona stood up with a smile.

    ¡°Shall we go right now?¡± ¡°Are you crazy?¡±

    It was too much for them to hunt right now. Ed¡¯s magic power had reached the bottom and had not fully recovered yet. He wanted to take a few days off, but if he couldn¡¯t, he wanted at least to take a day off.

    ¡°You said you¡¯d move in advance. Be ready by tomorrow.¡±

    There are many kinds of artifact-grade daggers. Because he was looking forward to getting one of them, Ed watched Sona leave in a hurry and went back to his room to get the equipment. Ed, who left the inn, decided to take a day off today anyway, so he went to the ash tree inn that Gerrard told him about. Even though it was lunchtime, there were loud noises and songs inside. It was a familiar melody song, so when he opened the door and went inside, he could see Gerrard singing at the table. It was a song that a man who succeeded the blood of a warrior only sang whenever he had time in the Demon Age 1. So it was a familiar song. As Edgar stepped inside, Gerrard sang at the table, waved his hand loudly, and stepped on the tables. There were no people who were angry with him even when he stepped on other people¡¯s tables. Usually, you would¡¯ve got punched if you acted like this. Gerrard grinned as he got down in front of him.

    ¡°You¡¯re really here!¡± ¡°I only have time today.¡± ¡°Hahaha, welcome! Come this way.¡±

    As Gerrard dragged him shoulder-to-shoulder, Ed flicked his hand lightly and asked.

    ¡°But why are people looking at you so passionately?¡± ¡°I said I¡¯d pay for all the drinks here today.¡±

    Ed looked at Gerrard blankly. He¡¯s saying he rang the golden bell? He¡¯s not even equipped? Gerrard had already dragged Ed to his seat when he was wondering if he should give up quickly due to his patheticness. And there were familiar people having a drink. Hamel and Sirke were sitting down drinking. Since Ed had drunk a little earlier, his face was already moderately red. Syrke smiled brightly at Ed.

    ¡°Mr. Ed!¡±

    Ed lightly raised his hand and sat down.

    ¡°What were you all doing here?¡± ¡°Gerard said he¡¯d buy us a drink, so we¡¯ve been drinking since dawn.¡±

    Looking at the bottles rolling around on the table, these fairies must also be drinking. As Hamel recommended holding up a bottle, Ed grabbed a glass, shook it aside, and received a drink. Hamel rarely smiled at the sight and poured alcohol into it. Edgar, who was drunk, emptied his glass at once, and Gerrard, who sat next to him, burst into laughter.

    ¡°Hahaha, that¡¯s hot.¡±

    Ed went down to his stomach as if the alcohol he drank was setting fire to his stomach, and smiled at the energy coming up his nose. If he didn¡¯t raise his physical strength level, he would have had a drink and fallen down. Only then did Ed look back at the bottles on the table. These people have drunk so much. He never thought they¡¯d empty so much on their own. Gerrard poured it back into the glass, so he took it, emptied it again, and asked.

    ¡°How¡¯s your leg?¡±

    Gerrard replied, tapping his leg.

    ¡°He¡¯s fine.¡±

    Surely the resilience of the savage warriors was monstrous. Ed shook his head and handed out the glass again.

    ¡°What about Ford?¡± ¡°He was paid, and he was in a hurry. He didn¡¯t even get to say bye because he rode his horse right away.¡± ¡°Really?¡±

    A mercenary of gold. He has seen him in person. He thought it would be helpful to build up a friendship in many ways, but it was too bad. They talked about this and that while emptying a few drinks. Most of the talk was led by Gerrard. Starting with the story of the northern island where he lived, he talked about how the ship was wrecked last year and flowed into the continent of Rosenta. It seemed that Ed had started his activities since he came over here. He looked at Gerrard again after hearing that. He definitely felt that this guy was a significant character.

    ¡°But what do you mean you¡¯re free only today?¡± ¡°I¡¯ve taken on another job.¡±

    Gerrard looked at Ed as if he had had had enough.

    ¡°You have to take a break from work. How can you work without taking a break?¡±

    Ed smiled instead of answering. Shirke asked Ed, holding the red cheeks with both hands, looking at Ed with sparkling eyes.

    ¡°Is it good pay?¡± ¡°The pay is satisfactory.¡± ¡°If Ed is a satisfactory conservative, it¡¯s tempting for us, too.¡±

    Ed looked at Sirke for a moment and shook his head. Sirke and Hamel were reliable, but they were also commissioned. This time, Sona was moving with him, so he didn¡¯t want to attract others. He was definitely going to put a stamp on Akalan this time.

    ¡°Maybe not this time. But we¡¯ll be able to work together again next time.¡±

    Gerrard may not know, but Hamel and Sirke were both outstanding players. If they continue to work on this floor, their names will rise and they will see each other again. People of that level wouldn¡¯t pass by like extras. Hamel nodded and held out the bottle. These humans weren¡¯t pouring this liquor into the glass, they were throwing out bottles. Ed got a bottle of alcohol and blew a bottle. When he emptied it at once, cheers came from around me. Gerrard got up and laughed out loud.

    ¡°Hahaha, Ed! You must have been thirsty for a drink. Drink as much as you want. I¡¯ll pay for it.¡±

    He knows he¡¯ll regret it. Ed curiously took another bottle and emptied it at once. The cheers around him grew and Gerrard began to empty the bottle as if he were competing. On that day, the ash tree inn made its biggest sales since its foundation.

    Sona came at dawn. He was on his way back from the ash tree inn, leaving Gerrard drunk. Sona shook her head in front of Ed walking in good spirits thanks to her excellent physical strength.

    ¡°Are you all right?¡± ¡°Did you see that?¡± ¡°Of course I did. You knocked down a savage warrior in a drinking bet. That¡¯s great.¡±

    Ed laughed and asked.

    ¡°You must have been in a hurry. Let me take a look at the item first?

    She said he would get paid in advance, so he was going to look at the item first. At Ed¡¯s question, Sona pulled out the dagger she was wearing around her waist and handed it over to him. Ed grabbed the dagger and pulled it out at once and looked at Sona.

    ¡°The Salamander¡¯s Sword, the Spirit Sword. It doesn¡¯t need magic power, but it can only be used when the spirit recovers after it causes a fire that exceeds a certain amount.¡±

    The bow of the ice needs mana, which was good for the two to use because they did not use mana even though it was the same artifact. Moreover, it looked good for night time fires. Ed put the dagger back into the case and fastened it in his waist. Ed looked at Sona wearing two daggers, including a luxury dagger.

    ¡°Now shall we hear the request?¡±

    Sona told him the request with a smile.

    ¡°The demon we must catch is the prince.¡±

 Chapter 12 - Pay

    ¡°Are you crazy?¡±

    Ed¡¯s thoughts came out unconsciously. He thought his straightforward personality had died down a lot, but now his thoughts just popped up. Sona smiled awkwardly and said.

    ¡°This is the king¡¯s will, so there will be no consequences.¡±

    Ed put the Salamander¡¯s sword on the table and stood up.

    ¡°Next time, bring in a request that makes more common sense.¡±

    Sona grabbed him by the wrist. Ed looked down at Sona, unable to hide his bewildered look at the wrist grip he had seen in the drama. She said with a crying look on her face.

    ¡°Think of the demon becoming a king. What¡¯s the world gonna be like?¡±

    It must be an intermediate demon if it¡¯s in human form. It must be a difficult enemy to catch at Ed¡¯s level now. He had a hard time catching Creatine, but it is also a problem for those who stand by him if he is in the prince¡¯s body. There is a sign that Ed is demeaning the knights, but the ability of the Royal Guard to protect the royal family was already confirmed in Demon Age 1. It was not known whether the demon killed the prince and played the role of a prince or whether the demon was possessed by the prince¡¯s body. But he could tell one thing. He woke up asking if she was crazy because he thought it would be dangerous instinctively, but at this level, it is like the main quest. That¡¯s why he thought about it. Will he be good enough to get on the main quest? His equipment has been upgraded, but he doesn¡¯t think his level is enough yet. While thinking about it, Sona quickly came in to see if she had a chance.

    ¡°If the Salamander¡¯s sword succeeds, 100 golds will be paid!¡±

    In fact, no amount of money is enough. Ed sighed for a moment and sat down again to take the salamander¡¯s sword. Then he spoke calmly.

    ¡°On top of that, I want one more piece of artifact-grade equipment.¡±

    There is certainly a reason why Akalan is commissioning. If so, he wanted to get everything he could. Sona agonized for a moment when Ed shouted again. This incident was a major event, but Akalan could not step down. As the king decided, it was already a ground task for them. Money or artifacts were not the problems. No matter how big the will of the king is, it was about killing his own son. So in Akalan, we are putting off each other. Sona, of course, would have refused if she had the choice. But since she was the youngest of the team leaders, she couldn¡¯t say no. Although there is no danger of Akalan¡¯s royal command post, the one who kills the prince does not survive. Knowing that this must be left to outsiders. At the same time, there should be no larger problems for them.

    ¡°All right.¡± ¡°You¡¯re moving with me, aren¡¯t you?¡± ¡°Let¡¯s do this together.¡± ¡°Then give me the gear on the way. I have no choice but to get paid in advance.¡±

    There are no people who would like to be paid in advance. But for Akalan, it is more difficult to flee after eating their things than to escape from the black dealer. Knowing that Sona didn¡¯t say no.

    ¡°And where¡¯s your goal?¡± ¡°The Kingdom of Dalia.¡± ¡°Huh?¡±

    The kingdom of Dalia was the kingdom where Ed used to be. Ed¡¯s body was discovered a year ago on the last front of the kingdom of Dalia, and the kingdom was annexed to the kingdom of Travia. Of course, so far, the nobles of the Kingdom of Dalia were raiding and resisting the forces of the Kingdom of Travia. As such, it was a place to watch out for people rather than demons.

    ¡°Wait, so does that mean we¡¯re after prince Cliff?¡±

    Sona winked and said playfully.

    ¡°Correct!¡±

    ¡®Do I really need to kill him?¡¯ Prince Cliff is the hero of the kingdom that annexed the Kingdom of Dalia a year ago. They say that he was probably sent out to die, but advanced to the capital of the kingdom of Dalia and occupied it. Some commented that it was unbelievable, but he took a step closer to the throne as he made such a great contribution. He knew in an atmosphere that the orthodox aristocrats said they should hand over the throne to the prince and the emerging aristocrats who said they should hand it over to the prince who contributed. But the king wants to kill this prince?

    ¡°Are you even sure he¡¯s really a demon?¡± ¡°I¡¯ve already confirmed that.¡±

    Sona looked back at Ed and nodded. He can see what the situation is all about. The occupation forces of other countries may be on high alert, but when they kill him, they can put a damper on the remaining forces of the kingdom of Dalia. The problem is oneself. What will happen to Akalan after he¡¯s done with this? ¡®Should I betray them?¡¯ He cannot ignore the possibility of that, so he intends to get paid in advance. And even if it¡¯s Akalan, he¡¯ll bleed pretty hard if he tries to catch himself. He didn¡¯t want to die. He didn¡¯t think the demon would lose against humans. And one¡¯s reputation exerts power at times like this. Astron, the God of perforation, values himself, so he can¡¯t kill him recklessly. That¡¯s good enough.

    ¡°He¡¯ll be hard to assassinate.¡± ¡°We¡¯ll make the opportunity for you.¡±

    Prince Cliff is already dead if the king has confirmed his will and Akalan planned the operation. The king just needed the perfect knife to kill him. Indeed, seeing that he has done such a thing, the story of Prince Cliff being the demon was also encouraging.

    ¡°If he¡¯s not the demon, I won¡¯t kill him.¡±

    Finally, he decided to take charge of the request, leaving an excuse to back out.

    It is a considerable distance to the capital of the Kingdom of Dalia. It takes a month if riding a horse. But Akalan was already ready. Ed started practicing using an ice bow on the way by boat because he was able to move comfortably by setting up a speedboat to use the Ain River. Akalan isn¡¯t trying to kill Ed right now. They hired him to be used as a knife to kill the prince. So he could practice as much as he could on the speedboat. With the power of magic, 20 arrows with cold air. However, if the cold air was raised to the limit, only one shot could be fired. One-shot like that created a 20-meter radius of ice in the river. Sona was amazed at the sight.

    ¡°Do you know what the ice bow is made of?¡± ¡°Do I need to know?¡±

    When Ed asked back, Sona was speechless for a while. But he soon regained his pace and explained with a smile.

    ¡°The bow of the ice is made of the horns of the beast Kelpecia.¡± ¡°Ah!¡±

    The beast Kelpecia was also a strong beast on a non-evil subject, almost field boss level even in demon¡¯s Age 1. He was very picky as a cold-air breath, but his heart was needed to make weapons of cold-air properties. He remembers using the weapon that he made to the last minute. No wonder it was expensive. He could shoot an arrow of ice because it was made out of the beast¡¯s horn.

    ¡°But why?¡± ¡°But even among the previous owners of the Freezing Bow, I¡¯ve never seen one use it as strongly as you. I¡¯ll believe it even if it¡¯s almost an occultist¡¯s mystery.¡±

    Ed smiled bitterly at the words. As the character is a Ranger, he focused on agility and stamina, but he changed his mind after getting a bow of ice. Realizing that he could not fight properly without investing in magic power, he invested in magic power for the reward of the level-up that rose this time. Thanks to that, he had more mana than before. He wouldn¡¯t have been able to pull off this much power before, and he couldn¡¯t shoot this much. Status and power allowed him to enter Extra¡¯s body and become nicknamed the Demon Hunter. He didn¡¯t use magic power to the bottom when practicing. Ed shouldn¡¯t show Akalan any of his powers. Under any circumstances, he had to hide his ability so that we can prepare for any contingency.

    The place moved to the lower reaches of the Ain River was the city of Santon in the south of the Kingdom of Travia. It takes a day to get to the kingdom of Dalia from here and a week to get to the capital. The travel time could be cut by more than half.

    ¡°Let¡¯s rest here today and leave tomorrow.¡± ¡°At least you have a conscience.¡±

    They spent a week on the river by boat. When they got off the dock for the first time in a while, he was so sick that he got land sickness.

    ¡°I¡¯ve got a room. Let¡¯s go.¡± ¡°Separate rooms, right?¡±

    Sona smiled with her eyes.

    ¡°Oh, man. How long have we been together? Of course¡­¡­.¡±

    Sona, who received Ed¡¯s cool gaze, inflated her cheeks and replied.

    ¡°¡¤¡¤¡¤I booked 2 rooms separately.¡±

    After spending a week with Sona on a narrow speedboat, they became quite close. That¡¯s why they could exchange jokes like this. The inn in the city was cleaner than he thought. Ed threw himself into bed and closed his eyes. He heard a knock while he was sleeping. When he opened the door, Sona stood. Sona was waving a bottle of liquor in her right hand, hiding her left hand behind her.

    How about a drink? ¡°In the room?¡± ¡°Yes.¡±

    He opened the door because he didn¡¯t think anything would happen in one room. When he let her inside, she held out her left hand that she was hiding.

    ¡°Take this.¡±

    What Sona handed over was an arrow barrel. He didn¡¯t think he needed another barrel house because there was an infinite arrow barrel, but when he looked at it, Sona already sat on the chair and opened the bottle, and said.

    ¡°The artifact that got for you.¡± ¡°An artifact?¡±

    When she looked at Ed¡¯s arrow house, Sona poured alcohol into the tin cup and said casually.

    ¡°It¡¯s a pair with your ice arrows.¡±

    Ed sat across from her and looked at the arrow barrel. There seemed to be nothing special.

    ¡°If you put an arrow in that arrow barrel, it creates a chill in the arrowhead. It doesn¡¯t matter what type of arrow. I heard that if you put it in for a long time, it will strengthen its power. It has nothing to do with the user¡¯s magic, so if you freeze it in the arrow barrel and shoot it with an ice bow, the power doubles.¡± ¡°Oh, my God.¡±

    This was a surprise. A sufficient arrowhead to assist the bow of the ice. In addition, since it means that users charge cold air instead of needing magic, the power seemed to increase for sure.

    ¡°But it only takes ten shots, so I can only use it as a supporting arrow barrel. Is this good enough for your pay?¡± ¡°It¡¯s good enough.¡±

    He can use it in conjunction with the infinite arrow barrel. It was necessary to check how long it took to charge the cold air, but its power was expected when linked to the bow of the ice. Ten arrows were taken out of the infinite arrow barrel, put in the new arrow barrel, and held the glass that Sona poured. She said, bumping into a glass of alcohol.

    ¡°You can¡¯t fail this time.¡±

    Ed stared at Sona at the words. For her, the eyes seemed to be as serious as life depended on it.

    ¡°If he¡¯s evil, I¡¯ll kill him.¡±

    As Ed drew the line to the end, Sona smiled and lightly hit the glass. The hot one was a hard liquor, but the bottle quickly bottomed out as he held on to the glass without any snacks. Ed¡¯s high physical strength level also made him drunk enough. And Sona, who had emptied him to drink with her, was already hitting her head on the table. Ed sighed and picked her up, and moved her to bed. She grabbed Ed by the wrist as she tried to get up. Looking down at Ed, she was smiling with her eyes slightly loosened. The flirting pressed her forehead down with her index finger and fell asleep, floundering. Ed looked down at her like that. There was one thing he was paying attention to after coming to this world. He was careful about giving affection to people because he thought he had to leave this place at any time and return. Leaving her asleep beside him, Ed pulled out his daggers and began cleaning them. The night has gone by like that.

 Chapter 13 - Crow

    Chapter 13 ¨C Crow

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    0

    Entering the kingdom of Dalia, the air changed. There were many hunters because the kingdom of Dalia had a lot of mountainous terrains. Since there are many people, anyone could become a soldier immediately if they knew how to hold a bow or knife.

    But they lost the war, and the lords were replaced. For a year, Prince Cliff helped him hand out his lands to the main players who won the war.

    Therefore, the atmosphere was fierce wherever Ed went, as new aristocrats occupied the castle as lords. In this situation, the noise will still be heard.

    Most of the people in the kingdom of Dalia had brown hair and brown eyes. As a result, it was different at a glance from the people of the Kingdom of Travia, where blonde hair was common.

    As some Travians passed by, people were stealthily avoiding them, but their eyes were on them.

    ¡°Are they blowing up?¡±

    ¡°No, the people of Dalia are making a big deal out of it. Akalan is also paying a lot of attention to this. But there are a lot of problems.¡±

    Akalan¡¯s can secretly operate in Teurabia, but not in the Dalia kingdom. You can dye your hair, but you can¡¯t change the color of your eyes.

    As a result, it seemed that the kingdom of Dalia was not fully occupied.

    ¡°Oh, come to think of it, you were a Dalian?¡±

    Ed stared at Sona.

    ¡°Didn¡¯t you know that?¡±

    He could clearly imagine how much effort Akalan must have put into commissioning this work. If Ed were to kill him, he could further suppress Dalia¡¯s remaining forces for killing the prince.

    ¡°Better than that, did the prince refuse the return order?¡±

    ¡°Yes, he refused the return order, as if he had made a different decision.¡±

    If he returned, he was likely to have been killed even at political risk. He guessed it, so he hasn¡¯t returned to the kingdom of Dalia.

    They claim that he is evil, even though he cannot be dismissed simply as evil.

    When Ed heard about what he had achieved on the way, there were several battles that he could not have achieved unless he was definitely a demon. Three times he has come from behind when he should¡¯ve died. Even if it was a coincidence once or twice, it would be true that he doubted it because it happened three times.

    That is why the kingdom of Dalia collapsed. He lost three battles in a row that he was confident of winning, which made him unable to handle.

    But Ed will find out when he meets him.

    ¡°How good are Prince Cliff¡¯s guards?¡±

    ¡°They¡¯re good. They¡¯re the men who turn the tables.¡±

    ¡°You want me to kill Prince Cliff between them?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m going to keep them apart. I¡¯ll give you a chance to meet him alone, so solve it then.¡±

    ¡°Yes. Solitary treatment and I¡¯ll kill him if he¡¯s confirmed to be a demon.¡±

    He could not move without a break just because the atmosphere changed after entering the kingdom of Dalia. In Sona¡¯s words, while moving like this, she heard that Akalan¡¯s agents are still gathering in the capital of the kingdom of Dalia to prepare for the work.

    Ed took the lead at the inn. The Akalan agents couldn¡¯t hold all the inns. In the kingdom of Dalia, the Akalans were treated hostile.

    While Ed was booking two rooms, Sona had to wear a hood and cover her hair and eyes.

    Ed spent most of his time in the Kingdom of Travia after waking up. He was used to the main stage of the Devil¡¯s Age, and strangely, the kingdom of Travia was overflowing with demons.

    So he didn¡¯t think much if he came to the kingdom of Dalia. But he changed his mind when he sat down and ate at the inn. The food was quite spicy, so it suited his taste.

    He found a taste that he liked for the first time here.

    Then there was a shadow on the table.

    Ed took a spoon and raised his head, and there were two ugly figures standing and looking down.

    ¡°Are you in a ¡®Crow¡¯ outfit?¡±

    ¡°Huh?¡±

    ¡°Aren¡¯t you a Ranger ¡®Crow¡¯ of the Kingdom?¡±

    Ed put down his spoon and chopsticks at the question. When he took over this body, he could only use the function of the body, but he didn¡¯t get any memory. So he didn¡¯t even know what a Crow was.

    He just liked the outfit specialized in combat, so he was using it as it is.

    ¡°But what¡¯s the matter?

    ¡°I guess I¡¯m right. There¡¯s someone who¡¯s looking for people like you. Why don¡¯t you come with me?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m busy right now.¡±

    Then a man pulled out a dagger from his waist and said,

    ¡°Be quiet, will you?¡±

    Ed was stunned for a moment. It was the first time he was treated like this, so he was a little shocked.

    Then Sona, who was sitting in front of him, opened her mouth.

    ¡°Go.¡±

    Ed smiled as he saw Sona¡¯s eyes cool under the hood. Those who seek to rally the remnants of the kingdom of Dalia.

    Akalan is looking for them with their eyes open, and they must want to find out somehow because they reach out first. Looking at his eyes, he seems to be thinking.

    If he is not a demon, he won¡¯t kill first, but those who put their weapons on him are excluded. These guys just crossed the line, pulling out their weapons.

    Still, he could have laughed it off at this point, but the story is different when he goes to their hideout. But when he saw Sona asking him to go there, and he laughed.

    This is a different calculation.

    ¡°Okay, let¡¯s go.¡±

    When Ed stood up, the two smiled gloatingly and asked him to follow. As he followed them, he walked out of the inn and entered one of the regular households.

    Before following them, Ed read those caught in his own cold. He didn¡¯t like to go into other people¡¯s spaces, but he knew he had to go. The fact that even archers were deployed was that the person here might be a bigger man than he thought.

    Sona followed suit without saying anything. Ed looked at two men beckoning to him.

    It seemed to be their role to bring together the people of the kingdom of Dalia who needed this. As Ed approached them, who had been agonizing for a while, the man standing at the entrance of the house reached out his hand.

    ¡°Leave your weapons behind.¡±

    Ed smiled at the words.

    ¡°Why am I supposed to trust you and give up my weapon?¡±

    When Ed asked back, the man¡¯s impression hardened, and put his hand on the weapon. Ed¡¯s eyes hardened as he caught the dagger unnoticed, and a voice was heard from inside.

    ¡°Let him in.¡±

    When he opened the door and went inside, a surprisingly dressed man sat down. The man in the black coat was a man with a heavy beard.

    And the one standing behind him was dressed the same way.

    He really wondered if that was Crow¡¯s outfit.

    Either way, Ed went inside and the man sitting in the chair jumped up.

    ¡°Hahaha, newbie!¡±

    He was a little embarrassed by his welcoming eyes. Do you really know the owner of this body?

    ¡°What¡¯s your name? Do you remember?¡±

    The man standing behind also showed signs of welcome, but he tilted his head.

    ¡°As soon as I got here, I was in combat, so I don¡¯t even remember his name.¡±

    ¡°Well, that¡¯s when there were a dozen new recruits. I thought they were all dead, but there were survivors.¡±

    The man strode up and reached out his hand.

    ¡°I don¡¯t remember you, but you must remember me. I¡¯m the third leader, Bell.¡±

    Ed took a step back and slipped out of his gap. He felt like he shouldn¡¯t go within his interval as to whether this person¡¯s skills were great.

    Someone who can¡¯t even compare to the knights he has met so far.

    Bell smiled at the street where Ed had stepped down.

    ¡°You survived the war and became a real Crow. Well, you should.¡±

    Bell said from a step away, not any closer.

    ¡°But stay with us now. The crow has to fly together.¡±

    Ed shook his head at Bell¡¯s words.

    ¡°I have something to do.¡±

    ¡°What is more important than the cause of regaining the palace? Put off what you have to do for a while.¡±

    It was annoying to see him say only what he wanted to say, but he thought those who knew the originator of this body might have that mind.

    So he stepped down only once.

    ¡°I¡¯m moving for a greater cause. Let¡¯s end the talk here.¡±

    Ed stepped back one more step and turned around with two opponents in his gap. Bell looked at the figure and called him.

    ¡°There is no greater cause than this. And you swore under the flag of Crow. There¡¯s only one way for you to leave, death.¡±

    Ed grinned at the words.

    ¡°Don¡¯t do anything you¡¯ll regret.¡±

    Bell raised his hand at Ed¡¯s warning, and the man standing behind took out his bow and put an arrow on the demonstration. And an arrow hit the back of his hand before such a man¡¯s bow could even point at Ed.

    ¡°Kkkkkkk!

    Ed took an arrow from the ice arrow barrel and pointed it at Bell by walking to the demonstration.

    Bell looked into Ed¡¯s eyes without lifting an eyebrow. Ed¡¯s skills were amazing, just like a real crow. It was quick enough to slow down the response.

    And the look in his eyes meant it.

    He was not sure how much he should trust the author if he let him go like this, and he could see that it was not easy to catch and kill him.

    If he even tries to catch him himself, he¡¯ll have to risk his life.

    The change began in an unexpected place when tightly pulled tensions reached each other.

    The arrow thrown by a woman standing silent behind Ed flew to Bell. Bell pulled out the sword reflexively, cut out the arrow, and immediately flung himself. He ran out reflexively as soon as he hit the site where he was nervous. Then an arrow flew into him. As soon as it was removed with a sword, the cold air that came rushing from the blade froze to the right arm. However, the dagger behind the waist was pulled out with the left hand as it was already within the gap. But even before the dagger was pulled out, three weapons flew in. He turned and avoided the vital point, but one of the three arsenals grazed his cheek and one stuck in his chest. The dagger hanging inside the leather coat prevented it from sticking into the chest, but it was a mistake that it hesitated because of what was stuck in the shoulder. Ed, who jumped back lightly, fired five arrows in a row. The dagger was pulled out and three were removed, but two were stuck in the shoulder and side. Ed¡¯s arrow stuck between his eyes in a freezing situation. The time from the moment Bell struck down Sona¡¯s dagger and ran to Ed, he lost his life instantaneous. Bell was already dead when the man who was hit by an arrow on the back of his hand pulled out a dagger.

    ¡°Leader!¡±

    Ed had no hesitation when he was already turned on. He had to end the war by killing an important figure in the situation where he had to earn money in the kingdom of Dalia. Ed shot five arrows at Agent Crow, who was hit by an arrow on the back of his hand and even took care of those who led him. When the door opened as if it were going to break and someone outside came in, he lost his life by the dagger that Sona wielded. Ed went outside, overpowered everyone next door, and returned to Sona. She approached with a big smile.

    ¡°You¡¯re skills are amazing¡­..¡±

    Slaaap!

    Ed slapped Sona on the cheek and grabbed her neck.

    ¡°If you use me like this one more time, I¡¯ll kill you.¡±

    Sona licked her burst lips and lowered her eyes.

    ¡°..¡­.I¡¯m sorry.¡±

    Ed, who pushed her away, left the house and nervously closed the door. Ed stood at the door for a moment and looked up at the sky. It was a particularly annoying night because the moon was bright.

 Chapter 14 - Prince Cliff

    Chapter 14 ¨C Prince Cliff

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    On her way to the capital, Sona couldn¡¯t even speak to Ed. Ed drew the line exactly as an excuse for this. They became close friends during the boat ride, but he knew how she would treat him when their lives could be put at risk because of the mission. So he decided to treat her like a commissioned mercenary. The first time it happened, he was a little worried, but the rest of Dalia¡¯s forces didn¡¯t go after them. Some of these people who recognized that his outfit was Crow¡¯s official outfit tried to buy him a drink, but no one was looking to recruit him. When they arrived at the capital after traveling without a single conversation, soldiers of the Kingdom of Travia stood at the gate. The soldiers, who blocked Ed, dressed as the Crow of the Kingdom of Dalia, stepped down once they saw Sona¡¯s card. They went inside past them and booked a room at the inn. But as Ed entered the inn, he found it different from other inns. There are people inside, but all of them are from the Kingdom of Travia. They looked at Ed and Sona for a moment and then stepped down. Ed sat down and opened his mouth, waiting for the food to come out.

    ¡°Is this the Akalan¡¯s hideout?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right.¡±

    They didn¡¯t need to talk until now, but they needed to talk now. As Ed looked at her, Sona calmly brought up the subject.

    ¡°The operation is in two days. In the meantime, I¡¯ll bring the interior drawings of the palace. You have to understand everything from the infiltration. I¡¯ll come with you, just in case.¡±

    As Ed nodded, Sona continued.

    ¡°It¡¯s the job of Akalan¡¯s agents to drop the prince¡¯s guard. But one of them will always stand by him. Etrian, the knight called Prince Cliff¡¯s sword.¡± ¡°Is it a female knight?¡± ¡°Right, when I was in the royal palace, she was surrounded by all sorts of gossip with Prince Cliff, but her skills were worthy of recognition. I thought she was going to die during the war, but she played a major role. There¡¯s talk that we should upgrade the assessment of her skills.¡± ¡°But she¡¯s always beside him?¡± ¡°She doesn¡¯t leave him under any circumstances.¡±

    Ed looked at Sona with a cool look.

    ¡°Then will you deal with her?¡± ¡°That¡¯s the plan.¡± ¡°Are you confident?¡±

    Sona replied nonchalantly.

    ¡°I didn¡¯t say I was dealing alone. There are two more people who will be with me that day.¡±

    Akalan¡¯s team leader and two agents. It¡¯s a formidable power. It won¡¯t be hard for them to block them. The problem is the next part.

    ¡°Then get the drawings.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll get it by tomorrow morning, so rest.¡±

    Ed went back to his room and started checking the equipment. Since that day, the arrow has never been removed from the ice bow. He was wondering how cold it would be since he charged it for more than five days. The arrows of the infinite barrel have already been refilled. If he can¡¯t control his opponent with 510 arrows, he should give up. The magic power has increased, and the equipment is better than when dealing with the intermediate demon Creatine. However, if the prince is a demon, he cannot be relieved by what has not been known so far. By killing Bell and those who were gathered there, he gained considerable experience. His level has not risen, but if he kills someone of the same level, his level will rise. This could certainly be a variable, too. If the prince is a demon, he can rise to his level by killing him. But that¡¯s only if he can really catch him. Ed pulled out his dagger and began to clean it. Using a dagger is as good as archery, but in terms of power, it is not as powerful as archery. Still, it is helpful in times of crisis. Ed, who had prepared his dagger, took out his sword. The blade was about 30cm long, and the spirit of fire was burning red. Ed looked lightly at the Spirit Sword because it was his first time. The heat was transmitted along the red trajectory. It was a weapon wielded without using mana, and even if the spirit power was reduced, it was a very hard and sharp weapon. Its performance is also great, but its sharpness and firmness as a weapon itself are not comparable to luxury goods. In addition, he thought he could use this weapon well because he didn¡¯t need to fix it. Ed is strong from a distance, but that doesn¡¯t mean he can¡¯t use daggers. With his excellent agility, he can win as many times within his opponent¡¯s interval. However, it has not yet been shown to others. He is also one of the hidden ones.

    On the interior of the palace, Sona explained the operation.

    ¡°I plan to set fire to the north and east of the palace. They¡¯re also very nervous right now, so I¡¯m sure the guards will move if they detect intruders. Ten agents, including me, will infiltrate the area with such an eye-catching look. Agents to bring out the remaining guards.¡± ¡°How many guards are there?¡± ¡°One mystic, one savage warrior, one assassin, and two knights. One of the knights is Etrian, so the rest will move in response to our attack except her.¡±

    Ed agonized for a moment and asked.

    ¡°What about Prince Cliff¡¯s powers?¡± ¡°Before I went to war, I was told that his swordsmanship was pretty good, but he wasn¡¯t very good in person. And he never wielded a sword himself on the battlefield. He¡¯s never been in danger because of his side-guard.¡±

    Ed¡¯s gaze turned to Sona.

    ¡°What? Are the guards that good?¡±

    Sona smiled bitterly.

    ¡°It is known that the guards¡¯ ability to protect him is roughly the level of a general.¡± ¡°General?¡±

    Even in the Demon Era, if they are general-level, intermediate-level demons can be easily killed. It was shocking that there were as many as five of them together.

    ¡°Are you sure you and two other agents and deal with Etrian? You said she¡¯s a general.¡± ¡°I know she¡¯ll be hard to kill. But we can drag time.¡±

    Hearing these things, he thought they could die at Etrian¡¯s hands. Ed stopped paying attention to that part and turned around to look at the interior drawing. What they showed was an intrusion. But he had to pay attention to the retreat. It has the same level of difficulty as killing a nation¡¯s king. It is amazing to request such a thing with only 100 golds and two artifact-class equipment. The problem is those guards. Some of them would have won the war against the Kingdom of Dalia. Maybe he needs to fight them too.

    ¡°I need the information of the guards.¡± ¡°Information about them?¡± ¡°Not just information. From the equipment, they have to the way they fight.¡±

    Sona tried to say they didn¡¯t need it, but when she saw Ed¡¯s serious look, she nodded.

    ¡°It¡¯ll be ready by this evening.¡±

    Ed returned to his room without further waiting. Sona brought their information in the evening as promised. Ed sat in his bed and looked at their abilities. He thought about what kind of weapon they use and how they fight. He also thought about how he would fight them.

    Sona stood behind Ed, who watched the sunset from the roof.

    ¡°When does it start?¡± ¡°When the sun sets completely.¡±

    When the deep sunset burned the sky red, and the cold navy sky sank completely, flames soared from the palace. Sona approached when she saw the soaring fire at the palace.

    ¡°We need to move.¡±

    Ed moved first instead of answering. Ed¡¯s eyes, running lightly on the roof, caught another blaze. Two fires. It¡¯s an attack to drop the guards. Ed, who was running while watching the disturbance inside the palace, reached where Sona had told him to. The walls of the palace were far from the private houses. No matter how close it was, it was more than 20 meters away, but where Sona spoke, there was a line. When Ed saw it, he ran on the line without hesitation. He ran on the rope connected to the wall, followed by Sona and her agents running on the rope. Looking at the agile movement, he thought e could run away well. Guards were also driven to the place where the fire broke out, but the palace¡¯s security was not completely lost. There was a lot of security. It was all as planned by Akalan. Sona and the other agents hit out at the same time and handled the guards. He was glad to see that the soldiers of the same kingdom of Travia stopped at the point of overpowering them without killing them. What are they guilty of? They are the only ones who were dragged into an impossible war and led the war to victory without dying. He didn¡¯t want to kill those people. What Akalan wants is the death of the prince and the death of the guards. They don¡¯t even want the lives of others. Ed ran without saying a word. Running on a roof made of tiles unique to the kingdom of Dalia, there was a scene of a disturbance in the movements of Sona and others. Screaming along with shouting, it seemed that the fight between the pro-Defense Forces and the Akalan also broke out. There are three places where you can hear such a commotion. It seemed to have successfully drawn out the guards. Then there¡¯s only one person left. It¡¯s Etrian.

    ¡°This way.¡±

    The place Sona pushed forward is the royal palace conference room guarded by soldiers. Seeing that there were quite a few soldiers, Sona took the beads out of her arms and threw them away. Seeing the purple mist spreading at an alarming rate, Ed poured the medicine she had given her into her mouth. Watching the soldiers fall down, Sona opened the door and went into the conference room. There is a wide round table that looks 20 meters in diameter, and all kinds of documents were spread out on it. And beyond the round table stood a pair of men and women. A beautiful woman was wearing a chest glove with a man who looks like a woman. He could tell as soon as he saw them. Prince Cliff and Etrian. Etrian pulled out her sword and stepped forward. He could tell the moment he saw her pull out the sword. She was said to be a general level, but she was no match for Bell, who he met before. He doesn¡¯t know what she had, but her gap covered the entire conference room.

    ¡°Sona.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°I guess she has artifact-class equipment. I think it¡¯s possible for her to attack from a long distance, so be careful.¡±

    He said it because she shouldn¡¯t die first, not because he was worried about Sona. Sona nodded and moved to the side, not listening to Ed. Etrian looked at Ed for a moment, then slowly turned around and looked at Sona and the Akalan agents. Then Prince Cliff looked at Sona and asked.

    ¡°The way Akalan moved, it looks like my father hired you guys.¡±

    Sona bit her lip. Once they were found to be Akalan, they had to kill the prince. Whether he¡¯s a demon or not. Sona looked at Ed with some anticipation, though. Ed has been staring at Cliff ever since he entered the conference room. Deep down in his eyes, he could see the flashing red light. He¡¯s not a demon; it¡¯s a symptom of those who have dedicated their souls to the demon. Ed took out an arrow and hung it on the protest, and answered Sona¡¯s eyes. Cliff¡¯s gaze turned to Ed.

    ¡°Are you the knife they hired to kill me?¡±

    Ed nodded slowly.

    ¡°I¡¯m the knife that¡¯ll kill the stupid bastard who has devoted his soul to the demons.¡±

 Chapter 15 - Success

    Chapter 15 ¨C Success

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    Cliff is a prince. Such a man could not have given his soul to a clumsy demon. This means that whatever demon power the author deals with, the level will be extraordinary. He was a more difficult opponent than intermediate demons.

    ¡°Take Etrian!¡±

    Ed shouted and held his weapon. From the beginning, he didn¡¯t think about deciding the winner at once. He only thought of checking the power of the cold air on the arrow. Ed¡¯s cold arrow stopped right under Cliff¡¯s nose. He doesn¡¯t deal with mysteries, but he could see that his powers were psychokinesis. When he realized that, he knew that this was the worst scenario. An archer has to kill a person that can use psychokinesis?

    ¡°The tip of your weapon seems to be a little dull?¡±

    Cliff grinned and raised his hand, and the silver candlestick on the table soared. Ed looked at it and shouted, shooting an arrow again.

    ¡°I can¡¯t kill him if Etrian interferes. So stop her no matter what. Put your life on the line and block her!¡±

    As soon as he was done speaking, a silver candlestick flew in. How fast it flew was barely avoided with high agility figures. Avoiding the flying silver candlestick, Ed started firing arrows one after another as he walked forward. It was necessary to understand the power of psychokinesis. Seeing that the arrow that was first shot stopped in front of his nose, the closer he gets, the stronger the psychokinesis seems to be, but the closer he gets, the stronger the power of the arrow. Arrows flying as they approached stopped in front of Cliff¡¯s nose but turned their heads and flew toward Ed. Ed avoided those arrows but gradually narrowed his distance. Sona and her agents were already fighting Etrian. But they couldn¡¯t handle Etrian by themselves. She was pulling out the sword and swinging it, and she had to bow down to the chills she felt from the trajectory she was picturing. It was not easy to have Etrian¡¯s sword in mind in a situation where it would be difficult to focus only on Cliff. In addition, the arrow is only shot once, but it was controlled by psychokinesis and flew back. So he had to keep moving. If he stops for a moment, he¡¯ll be hit. Etrian¡¯s sword was mysterious, cutting everything that was hanging in the trajectory. An agent who followed Sona had his arm cut off. Etrian was a strong enough woman, even if she did not have any relic-class equipment. Perhaps it was natural that she was dangerous because she had artifact-like equipment in her hands. Ed jumped onto a large round table in the conference room and shot arrows, but the distance only narrowed slightly. Cliff now took a step back, smiling as he saw the arrow approaching his nose. Then, as he stretched out his hands, the arrows that Ed had shot obscured his face. Cliff, hiding behind the arrow, smiled at Ed.

    ¡°That was fun.¡±

    At the end of the remark, arrows flew in like machine guns. Ed dodged the arrows as he moved sideways quickly on the table. The arrows that flew past him would turn their heads from behind and aim for their backs, but Ed didn¡¯t mean to drag it out that long either. Ed ran forward and took an arrow from the Ice barrel. Since he has been training to concentrate his mana, he was able to concentrate his mana on the arrow in a short time. At this distance, no matter how strong Cliff is, he¡¯d have a hard time trying to stop Ed with just psychokinesis. The arrow, which was fired like that, drastically narrowed the gap between the two and flew in. Cliff tried to get it by psychokinesis again, but it was too close. With his head bent back to its fullest extent, Cliff was able to block the arrow with the space he had created.

    ¡°Hilarious¡­¡­¡±

    At the moment when he was about to make a sarcastic remark, an intense chill exploded from his arrowhead. The chill energy could not be stopped by psychokinesis.

    ¡°¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤Argh!¡±

    Not only the skin on his face but also the eyeball froze. As he ran toward Cliff, who was screaming while holding his face, he fired three arrows at the same time. An arrow hit Cliff¡¯s chest and stomach. In the meantime, one foot turned and hit the floor, perhaps because of the psychokinesis. But the other two feet didn¡¯t move. But it is not deeply embedded. But the distance has already narrowed. A terrible storm hit Cliff¡¯s whole body, screaming as Ed prepared his arrow again. It was a psychological storm that Ed couldn¡¯t do anything about. Ed, who flew back and rolled over the floor of the conference room, grinned. Shooting psychokinesis in all directions when there is no future means that the opponent has already reached the bottom. Then everything came to mind, starting with the table in the conference room. Psychokinesis floats everything except people. All of it flew in like shells.

    Boom! Boom!

    Ed flung himself and rolled all over the floor. Arrows, silver candlesticks, and even a large desk were stuck in the spot where he passed by. When Ed saw it, he made an impression. Ed thought he was firing random attacks because he couldn¡¯t see, but he was trying to locate himself. He lost his eyes, but now he¡¯s waking up to a different sense. Determined not to drag time, Ed rather narrowed the distance and went in. Cliff began to react to the arrows he had shot as he approached. He could see other senses awakening, not his eyes. However, he could see that he only responds to arrows aimed at him among the arrows that were thrown. So he approached Cliff and shot an arrow to the floor, avoiding a flying attack. It was a short time, but he gathered a lot of mana and blew it away. In this way, the cold air, which is so powerful that it is only possible to concentrate mana in the future, froze Cliff¡¯s legs from the floor. Cliff, frozen in the lower body, once again set off a psychokinesis storm. This time, the arrow hit the ground with the psychokinesis pouring out from all directions and held out without flying away. And as soon as the storm ended, he rushed straight at Cliff. Ed, who dug into the spot where psychokinesis swept by, put the Salamander¡¯s sword into Cliff¡¯s chest. There was a strong fire all over Cliff¡¯s body.

    ¡°Argh!¡±

    Ed knew that Cliff¡¯s body was on fire, but he wasn¡¯t dead. He didn¡¯t receive any level-ups or experience yet! Ed pulled out a dagger in his chest and slit his neck. It was not until Cliff¡¯s throat soared into the air that experience came in. Perhaps because he devoted his soul to the demon, he had quite a lot of experience, so Ed¡¯s level went up quite a bit. All the items that had been thrown by the psychokinesis storm disappeared. Ed, who was exhaling for a long time, instinctively laid on the ground. And the trajectory of Etrian¡¯s sword passed where he was. Inspection to cut down to the conference room walls. Ed looked sideways, raising his body. With the exception of Sona, two agents had already lost their necks, and Etrian was shooting him. Blood was flowing out of her eyes, torn apart. Seeing the tears of blood, it seemed that she was not just an escort. Ed glanced at Sona and said,

    ¡°You guys can take care of her.¡± ¡°What?¡±

    Apparently, Ed only took Cliff¡¯s life, and that was the request. He was not a demon, but he killed him without hesitation because he dedicated his soul to the demon and gained a different level of experience than he had. Thanks to him, Ed¡¯s level has gone up. Ed decided not to be greedy here. In fact, he was envious of Etrian¡¯s ability, but he wasn¡¯t confident that he could win in this state. Ed fired arrows one after another. Four of the arrows of Ice were shot at Etrian in a row and pulled back. Etrian was already not paying attention. As she rushed forward, the trajectory of her sword was shortened. It was not a big swing but a shortcut, which increased the speed. Ed had no choice but to raise another agile stat. It wasn¡¯t to the point of avoiding physical movements. Etrian saw Ed manage to avoid all the attacks while watching his own sword and rushed with clenched teeth. The general-level knight¡¯s rush is hard to avoid, even if it is Ed, at least in the previous move. So he shot an arrow in front of her. When the cold-hearted arrow flew in, Etrian swung the sword again and cut the arrow. But this time, it was an arrow full of cold air.

    Freeez!

    When the freezing cold air all around held Etrian, Ed broke the window with his back and fell out of the conference room. For a brief moment, when Etrian froze, Ed kicked the wall down the roof above the hallway while falling. Then he ran towards the retreat without looking back. He didn¡¯t have to stay longer when he completed his mission. Ed, who left the conference room at once, looked back while running on the roof above the hallway. Etrian, whose right hand was frozen, was running with her hair untied like a demon. He realized one thing when he saw her. Sona is obviously not capable of stopping Etrian. But if she jumps off and Etrian follows her right away, it means Sona didn¡¯t think about holding her back. He thought he could follow the main quest with Akalan, but he thought his connection with them should end here. It occurred to him that Akalan might chase him and seek his life. Ed speeded up. Etrian is running on the roof like him, but her frozen arms have yet to recover. He was thinking about fighting for a moment, but this place has a royal palace. As soon as the prince¡¯s death was announced, he did not intend to be arrested because they would order to kill the assassin. So he ran toward her for now. As Ed increased his speed, Etrian eventually began to wield a sword in her left hand. It was not usual to run while looking behind and escape from the body after reading intangible censorship aimed at him. Naturally, he paid a lot of attention, so the speed had to decrease, and the gap began to narrow. Even if she is a general-class knight, her weapons are not infinite. And her er mana will run out if this drags on. Ed jumped into what appeared to be a training ground. And slowly turned around in the middle. Etrian rushed as soon as he got off the ground. When Ed saw her rush, he didn¡¯t feel the need to talk, and he fired an arrow straight. Five arrows flew in, but she didn¡¯t move much. Ed was amazed to see her using her other arm. She seemed to be okay with using a sword with her left hand. She must have trained to swing a sword with both hands. Still, her right arm froze, and her skills were significantly lower than usual. If Cliff hadn¡¯t died before her eyes, she wouldn¡¯t have frozen her arm so easily with an ice arrow. When Ed realized that his bow was not working, he pulled out the Salamander¡¯s sword and ran into her.

    ¡°I¡¯ll kill you!¡±

    She was a General-class knight, but her sword, which was held with her right arm, flew in after Ed. At the moment of the cheerful stabbing toward him, Ed turned over. Indeed, the intangible blade passed by where he was, and her sword began to dance. An intangible blade made with an orbit in which a sword moves with just a flick of the wrist. Etrian tried to take revenge on the prince by carving Ed into pieces. But Ed¡¯s Salamander Sword, who approached her avoiding all the intangible blade trajectories she painted, cut off her left neck. It was an incredible move to see before her eyes. The dagger, which was wielded after escaping flexibly as if his attack were visible, was beyond understanding why he was using a bow instead of a dagger. The dagger first cut off Etrian¡¯s wrist and then cut off her neck. Ed, who was watching Etrian¡¯s neck fall, left the palace filled with flames, recovering the long sword and sword Etrian had held in her hand until she died.

 Chapter 16 - Escape

    Chapter 16 ¨C Escape

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    Sona looked around the conference room. The conference room was almost half broken. Cliff¡¯s psychokinesis and Etrian¡¯s sword shattered the room. The two agents who came with Sona to fight against Etrian¡¯s sword have long been out of breath. It was funny that Sona and the two agents said they would block a general-level knight. Sona walked in front of Prince Cliff¡¯s body. The king wanted Prince Cliff¡¯s death, but he didn¡¯t know what would happen to the body. Ed set fire to the conference room because he didn¡¯t want to cause him any anger. The curtains in the conference room caught on fire, and the desk that was on the floor caught on fire. Seeing the room completely engulfed in flames, Sona flew out of the window. Since Etrian was in the conference room, other guards would not have paid attention to this area, but since the flames have soared here, the chances are high that they will be driven to this site rather than chasing the Akalan agents. So Sona shouted while hiding when she got out the window.

    ¡°Prince Cliff has been murdered! The assassin is on the run towards the west gate!¡±

    Etrian may have gone after him and died, but even if he survived, he would not be able to survive here today. It has to be that way. He had to die in a Crow costume. Sona briefly looked at the retreat path that Ed had informed, then turned around and moved along the retreat path of the Akalan agents.

    There was a hand holding up Prince Cliff¡¯s head as he rolled around in a fiery conference room. His blood-red fingernails carefully picked up Prince Cliff¡¯s head. It was a black-haired woman who looked at Prince Cliff¡¯s head in her hands as if she appreciated the work. She looked at the hair quietly, opened her red lips slightly, and exhaled a long breath.

    ¡°Ha. Cliff.¡±

    She held Prince Cliff¡¯s head in her chest. Her chest was covered with blood, but she didn¡¯t care.

    ¡°I¡¯ll take your revenge.¡±

    The blazing flames in the conference room also failed to penetrate within her radius of five meters. She disappeared with Cliff¡¯s head in her arms. She was mad that she wasn¡¯t able to come to save him, and the flames poured in and ate Prince Cliff¡¯s headless body without hesitation.

    Ed, who was running along the escape route, remembered whose voice he heard behind him. Sona¡¯s voice was heard while running after killing Etrian. There was a sign of rushing to the escape route that had been caught by the west gate. Ed smiled a cool smile at the banner.

    ¡°I made it clear.¡±

    If she uses him one more time, Ed will kill her. But now, it was imperative to get away with her rather than judge her. Ed recalled the interior drawings of the palace. It is impossible to escape through the preface. So he quickly turned around and headed for the south gate. Since the fire was set in the north and east, if the guards came out there and ran to the west gate, there was no place to escape except the south gate. Ed speeded up even more. He said he was running on the roof and hiding in the dark, but there was a risk of being seen. The investment of Status in agility made his movements lighter, but it was hard to get away alone.

    ¡°On the roof!¡±

    As expected, he heard the soldiers shouting at the west gate. No matter how hard he tries to hide and run, there is no way when he stands out. Ed fired an arrow at the torch in the hands of the soldiers.

    Pkkkkk!

    The torches did not extinguish by being shot by arrows. However, the people holding it missed it, and the torch fell over the building of the palace and spread the fire. So he stole the eye and ran straight down the roof. At this rate, it would be difficult to get out of the South Gate. A woman popped into Ed¡¯s eyes, running like that. Ed did not hesitate to take out the arrow. But the woman¡¯s whispers were quick.

    ¡°This way!¡±

    He could only confirm that her eyes were brown, shouting urgently. Prince Cliff took over the palace and was full of soldiers, so he thought there would be no Dalian people inside the palace. But from the woman he saw a while ago, he guessed that some of the ladies were left behind. Ed hesitated for a moment and followed her to the hallway, where she ran. She made sure Ed was following and ran fast. He thought for a moment when he saw her running without looking back. She was running in the direction of the soldiers who he just saw. First, he followed her closely. She was surprised that he caught up really fast, and when the soldiers showed up at the end of the hallway, she opened the door of the next room and went inside. When Ed followed her in, the woman who closed the door looked at Ed quietly and asked.

    ¡°It¡¯s you, isn¡¯t it? The man who killed Prince Cliff.¡±

    The woman smiled brightly as Ed nodded.

    ¡°Thank you. I thought it was you after seeing your Crow costume.¡±

    Ed had to smile bitterly at the words because he didn¡¯t kill Prince Cliff for the Kingdom of Dalia as a Crow member. But that wasn¡¯t the point now. Since Akalan officially betrayed him, he had to find a way out. It doesn¡¯t matter that he¡¯s strong enough to kill a general-level knight. With less than 500 arrows left, he needed another way to survive here, where at least thousands would remain.

    ¡°Is there a way out?¡±

    The woman looked at Ed quietly and smiled.

    ¡°So, you really don¡¯t recognize me.¡±

    He knows that a woman is beautiful, but how would he know who she is? After waking up from the body of the battlefield, Ed immediately came to the Kingdom of Travia and served. So how would he know who the woman is? By the way, it seems that she is one of the Dalian royalty.

    ¡°That¡¯s not the point right now. Follow me.¡±

    She took Ed and turned the bed legs inside the room.

    ¡°I was lucky. Come over here.¡±

    Once to the left and twice to the right, the bed slid off to the side, and the stairs appeared.

    ¡°Follow me.¡±

    The woman went down first, and Ed followed her down. She lit a torch on the wall and started walking with it in her hand. Following in her footsteps, Ed broadened his spirits. The woman who was walking in front of the door opened her mouth.

    ¡°My name is Esther Diaz¨¦ de Dalia.¡± ¡°I¡¯m Ed.¡±

    The woman stopped and looked back at Ed. Ed looked blankly at her as if he didn¡¯t know her name. At sight, the woman sighed briefly and turned away.

    ¡°It was arrogant of me to think that you knew my full name from the Ranger Troop, which was fighting on the front line. I was one of the Three Princesses of the Kingdom of Dalia. My brothers all died at Prince Cliff¡¯s hand, and my sisters were given to the guards as a reward. I was still young, but I survived as a maid.¡±

    He didn¡¯t know she was a princess. However, he did not have the luxury of supporting the princess of the country. When Ed had no answer, Esther smiled lightly.

    ¡°You¡¯ve done your job just by taking Prince Cliff¡¯s life.¡±

    It¡¯s hard for a princess to have such a big heart. Perhaps her years as a maid was quite difficult. Esther paused at the crossroads and asked, turning around.

    ¡°That sword. I think it¡¯s Prince Cliff¡¯s sword. Is that right?¡±

    It¡¯s not normal to have a good eye. Ester smiled as Ed nodded.

    ¡°Thank you. That was the sword that killed my big brother.¡±

    Is it because she¡¯s royalty? She was talking quietly, even if she had a double desire. After a long walk, Esther stopped.

    ¡°If you follow this road, you¡¯ll find a graveyard. You¡¯ll be able to get out safely through there.¡± ¡°Aren¡¯t you coming with me?¡± ¡°Many people will die if they find out I¡¯m missing.¡±

    She was made a maid of honor and placed beside her, but she was a central figure in the kingdom of Dalia. She couldn¡¯t have walked around this alone without breaking into the palace. As she said, she was really lucky. And she was saying she was going back to the palace because she didn¡¯t want the rest to die. Prince Cliff died, and even though it would be difficult for her to survive if it was known that the assassin was a member of the Crow.

    ¡°You could die if you go back.¡±

    Esther smiled at Ed¡¯s words.

    ¡°That won¡¯t happen. The royal people may tolerate making an adult royal maid, but the moment they kill me, there will be wildfires throughout the palace that are incomparable to now.¡±

    She seemed to have given up on something, but she must have thought about it. But the hardships she¡¯s going through will be daunting. Ed thought she was a great person to go back, knowing what would happen to herself. Looking at her smiling, Ed grabbed her shoulder and pushed her to the wall.

    ¡°Ahh!¡±

    She screamed in surprise, but Ed turned his head back and avoided the flying dagger. It was hard to see whether it was painted black or not. If he hadn¡¯t caught it with his senses, she would have been stabbed without knowing what it was. Ed took out an arrow and fired it one after another. Five arrows were fired into a dark hallway, but no sound was heard to be hit by the arrow. This was no ordinary guy. When Ed looked at the barrel with three arrows at the same time, he heard voices from the other side.

    ¡°You must be the one who killed Prince Cliff, seeing that you are with Princess Esther.¡±

    His voice sounded harsh as if he had a scar on his neck. Ed held a protest without saying a word and asked how his voice was heard.

    ¡°Who is it?¡± ¡°Prince Cliff promised the revival of my clan.¡±

    One of the pro-defense forces said there was an assassin, and he must have been waiting here. A man beyond the brightness of the torch. But he has never seen anyone like this before. If he had recognized his spacing, he would have taken the lead. However, this man could not feel the gap until the dagger flew in. He¡¯s not a normal assassin because they didn¡¯t hear footsteps coming up.

    Now they can clearly feel the gap. But Ed didn¡¯t think they¡¯d lose even if they couldn¡¯t see him. Ed breathed in, pulling three arrows.

    If the Travia Kingdom Army knows the secret passage, it will be dangerous.

    ¡°Princess, put out the torch.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°The enemy will only see us.¡±

    Ester wrapped the torch in her skirt and extinguished the fire, causing darkness to fall down the aisle. Now they can fight on equal terms. When Ed fired three arrows at the same time, the assassin also threw three non-aqueous arrows at the same time.

    Kakakan!

    The assassin¡¯s ability was great. He can¡¯t even see, but he could still fire arrows. This time, as Ed¡¯s level went up, the speed and destructive power went up. Ed clearly identified the opponent¡¯s position and shot an arrow at the opponent¡¯s feet by injecting mana into the ice bow. If it was an arrow aimed at him, he would avoid it, but when the arrow aimed at his feet was stuck on the floor with the thought that he would not avoid it, ice formed around him with a bluish light. But the assassin was already running on the wall. Has anyone ever been so brave to rush in? Ed fired a series of arrows at him. All the arrows missed as he ran around the wall. Ed, who was looking at him with two daggers, pulled out Etrian¡¯s sword, which he was carrying on his waist. Then he positioned the sword while adding mana.

    Skkkk.

    The body of the assassin, who was running vigorously, was torn apart. The arrow may be able to hear and punch out the sound, but it can never be avoided if it cannot read the trajectory of this intangible sword, which is spread using mana. Ed asked Esther to extinguish the torch so he could use this technique. Ed, looking down at the body of the assassin who had fallen on the ground, let out a long breath. Etrian¡¯s sword used more mana than he thought. Soon before Ed knew it, he had run out of mana. If this attack had failed, it would have been a disaster.

 Chapter 17 - The Chasers

    Chapter 17 ¨C The Chasers

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    Ed recovered arrows and dagger from the assassin. It would have been nice to have artifact-class equipment, but he could only get a luxury arrow and dagger. After changing all the daggers he had into a luxury dagger, Ed looked back at Esther. She looks calm even though she almost died a while ago.

    ¡°This guy was a guard, too. So, who the hell are you?¡± ¡°I¡¯m Ed.¡±

    To be exact, he is a new Crow Ranger. Now he¡¯s stronger than before because of his status and skills.

    ¡°Are you sure you¡¯re staying?¡± ¡°I think so. Can you go without a torch?¡± ¡°Of course.¡± ¡°Then I¡¯ll go back now.¡±

    Esther really only said that and turned around and left. Watching her, Ed laughed in vain and walked opposite her. If he couldn¡¯t get out of the preface, he was going to get out of the south gate. In fact, he was confident that he would survive any situation. General-level knights and opponents are tricky because ordinary soldiers are no match for each other anyway. However, thanks to Esther, it was easy to solve that problem. Experience values and equipment were also upgraded on the way. He thought the assassin¡¯s arrow was painted black, but the metal itself was black. It¡¯s a luxury arrow with a precious metal called ¡®Hyuncheol¡¯. There were plenty of arrows, so the inside of the barrel was now full of Hyuncheol¡¯. It got heavier, but he felt proud. In addition, the arrow was somehow invisible, and it was also a luxury dagger. He had a good experience and good equipment. Ed walked out to the end of the secret aisle. It was a royal graveyard or a large area, and when he came out, he saw a faraway royal castle. Seeing that the flames were still out of control, the flames seemed to spread bigger than he thought. Ed looked at the fire and left the cemetery. There was still work to be done.

    The main road of Akalan, capital of the Dalian kingdom. Sona let out a long sigh in the safe house, which she hadn¡¯t even told Ed.

    ¡°Missed him?¡± ¡°Yes.¡±

    Sona frowned when she heard the Akalan members answer.

    ¡°Etrian¡¯s dead, and the assassin, Denesh, is gone?¡± ¡°Yes.¡±

    It was unusual for Sona to double-check what she heard. The report was shocking to that extent. Even though he successfully completed his mission to kill the prince who devoted his soul to the demon, Ed did not die, leaving them with reluctance. In fact, it would be best if he died, but there was nothing to be desired if he had escaped alive. The kingdom of Travia had a justification for suppressing the kingdom of Dalia because the assassin was wearing a Crow uniform. He could have sent a replacement for Prince Cliff. His mission as an Akalan has been overachieved.

    ¡°There¡¯s nothing I can do about it. Inform the surviving guard of the information. They¡¯ll wrap it up for you.¡±

    Ed¡¯s strength is known by her own experience. It would be better to deal with him herself for a clean finish, but she had to take too much damage to do so. He caught Etrian, a general-class knight, and killed Prince Cliff, who devoted his soul to the demon. So Akalan had to be prepared. Above all, the number of Akalan agents in the Kingdom of Dalia was too small.

    ¡°And now get ready for withdrawal.¡± ¡°Yes.¡±

    Sona, who was watching the agent go outside, put her hand on her forehead. This tedious mission is finally over. Sona threw the documents she was looking at into the next brazier. As she incinerated the documents, Sona picked up the glass next to her. After the mission, destroying the evidence, shaking off all the hard work with a drink. It was her hobby. By the time the glass was emptied, the door had opened. Sona frowned and threw the dagger she had left on the table. The dagger, which was thrown to scare the Akalan agent, was stuck in the door, but the person who opened the door did not raise an eyebrow. A man who appeared with an arrow hanging from a bow in his left hand in a leather coat. Sona¡¯s eyes widened when she saw him.

    ¡°Ed?¡±

    Ed lifted his bow silently and aimed her in the middle of the forehead.

    ¡°Now, wait a minute!¡±

    Ed spoke down to her.

    ¡°I told you, if you use me one more time, I¡¯ll put an arrow to your head.¡±

    Sona laughed awkwardly and threw a glass. The moment she betrayed him, she knew he wouldn¡¯t let her get away with it. As expected, she is a woman. Ed hit the glass flying with the arrow and another arrow between her eyes. Sona was not good enough to avoid Ed¡¯s arrow at this close range. Sona collapsed on the desk with an arrow between her eyes. Ed walked in front of Sona and looked at the documents. From the beginning, he could see why he was recruited. Ed picked up a piece of firewood from a brazier and lit it everywhere. Ed left when the fire broke out everywhere and wound around the safe house. It wasn¡¯t hard to find her safe house. Perhaps because of the fire at the palace, the people of Dalia were burning their hearts. It was not difficult to find a place where only the Travian kingdom could use, seeing the Crow uniforms. He found this place after visiting just three sites.

    The man who was ripping off the entire front leg like a pig opened his mouth.

    ¡°So the prince and Etrian are dead, and Denesh is missing? That silent friend isn¡¯t a friend who just disappears.

    An old knight replied, fiddling with the burnt chair.

    ¡°I think they¡¯re all dead.¡± ¡°But apparently, the assassin disappeared in the middle, right? Did he find the secret passageway?¡± ¡°That¡¯s possible.¡±

    A man swallowed the chewing front leg asked a woman standing by a window.

    ¡°Silvia, what would you do?¡±

    A woman wearing a blue robe answered, touching the window.

    ¡°Etrian was my friend. I¡¯m going to make him pay the price for her death.¡±

    The man¡¯s gaze turned to the old knight.

    ¡°Have you figured out who it is?¡± Somehow, Akalan contacted me. The opponent was a creature called the Devil Hunter.¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t the prince tell you to be wary of Akalan?¡± ¡°That¡¯s why we¡¯re cross-verifying it, and I think it¡¯s true.¡±

    The man, who ate all the pig¡¯s forelegs in just a few bites, got up after wiping the oil off his pants.

    ¡°Since I¡¯ve received the gold, I¡¯ll have to avenge you, my prince.¡± ¡°Are you going to move?¡± ¡°You should. Silvia, let¡¯s go together.¡±

    The woman who was touching the window turned around. Her gaze turned to the old knight.

    ¡°What are you going to do, Marlot?¡±

    Marlot, an older knight, thought of the two questions. Prince Cliff¡¯s friends have been through adversity together. Greg the savage warrior and Silvia, the mystic warrior. Even though they moved to avenge the prince, they could not move. It doesn¡¯t matter who the assassin is. It¡¯s important who sent the assassin. The prince was suspicious of the king. Therefore, he did not return to the kingdom, and there is only one suspect since such a prince died. We had to see how the Kingdom of Travia would move. That way, the prince won¡¯t give up the kingdom of Dalia, which he risked his life to achieve his dream.

    ¡°I intend to announce his death to the tribe of Denesh.¡±

    Greg opened his eyes wide.

    ¡°You¡¯re gonna let them know?¡± ¡°I should, and I think I¡¯m going to protect this place. Come back when revenge is over. I can¡¯t keep it to myself.¡±

    Greg grinned at the words and wore the Battle Axe on his back.

    ¡°I¡¯ll think about it then.¡±

    Silvia nodded to Marlot.

    ¡°I¡¯ll be back because I have to keep the prince alive.¡±

    Marlot, watching the barbarian warrior and mystic of the guard left, sat across his hips in the burned chair. The prince disappeared, and now he sat on his chair. Marlot stroked the chair with a smile around his mouth.

    He thought the main quest would be held in the kingdom of Travia on his way to return to the kingdom. Ed was on his way there again, but he didn¡¯t mean to go back as recklessly as he did before. Ed also had to wrap himself up in a traveler¡¯s cape because the news of Prince Cliff¡¯s death was reported. If it turns out a Crow killed him, Ed will be a target for the rebels. Whenever he had a chance on his way back, Ed was now practicing archery again. He started practicing archery again in the forest without stopping by the village often because there are people who avoid his bows and approach him these days. He can tell after dealing with intermediate demons or general-level knights. His archery was not working for these men. In the future, faster and stronger archery skills were needed to deal with higher-level demons and even great demons. He could see how much he lacked the idea that he just needed to upgrade the equipment. Due to this request, the weapons were somewhat equipped. There is an ice bow at long distances, and at medium distances, there is a sword of dagger and Ethran. There is even a Salamander¡¯s sword if there is a close match, so the equipment is almost ready regardless of distance. But he had to be stronger. He also learned how to handle Etrian¡¯s sword in archery training. It was harder than he thought because it consumed more mana, but he had to get used to how to handle it, considering that she easily caught an assassin with this. He just needs to realize exactly how much mana he can use. Ed¡¯s agility was so high that the speed of wielding the sword itself was enough to make even the pleasure test cry. When rumors spread on the way back to the Kingdom of Travia, he also hunted demons. He was not officially caught because it¡¯s not known to others. It was all experience, the foundation for growth. As a result, it took a long time to return to the Kingdom of Travia. When he came, he just rested at the place Akalan prepared for him and ran straight to check for demons because it was a mountainous place. A new demon is always welcomed. The first demon he caught had additional experience. On the way back, his level went up. After raising a few levels, he gained some confidence. It was only two weeks, but his level had definitely widened when he came to the Kingdom of Dalia. He felt like a proper archer now that he had two levels up. The Kingdom of Travia is not far away. Ed, who was driving a horse on the boulevard, tugged on the horse¡¯s lead rope. And he listened quietly. He couldn¡¯t hear the sound of bugs or birds. Ed got off the horse and pulled out his bow. Then he prepared an arrow on the bow and flew it toward the left forest. The speed of the arrow flying was different from before due to the effect of the training. When the arrow hit the tree, he thought the tree was bleeding, and a human figure appeared there and fell to the floor. An indistinguishable level of hiding.

    Ed could tell he was there. At first, it is the hiding technique of an assassin who even deceived his eyes by looking at his own space. But is it because he has already experienced it once? Now he could feel them hiding. Even though they were completely deceived by the gap, the unnaturalness enabled him to locate them. When Ed hit another assassin with an arrow on the bow again, assassins appeared everywhere. At a glance, there were over 30 of them hiding. The incoming experience was lower than the assassins he met in the maze, but he could see that they were formidable. Ed looked at them and roughly calculated and grinned.

    ¡°If I do a good job here, I might be able to level up.¡±

 Chapter 18 - The Demon Researcher

    Chapter 18 ¨C The Demon Researcher

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    There was a man at the front. His hood was wrapped tightly, so only his two black eyes were visible. When Ed killed the assassin in the dark, he shattered in an instant, so Ed didn¡¯t know what color his eyes were. To the east of the kingdom of Travia was the Bashan, a tribe of assassins in the desert country of Kurenai. Only the real deals have shown up, too. Those who came out as the descendants of the demon died in the hands of the free knight Pendrigan and hinted at their existence. The assassin clans in the Kurenai kingdom abandoned the kingdom and wanted to revive the clan even when the leader became a subordinate of the demon. Fifteen years ago, their people died in Pendrigan¡¯s hand, but this time, they understood how things worked. A brown-skinned man with black eyes asked Ed with a dagger he pulled out.

    ¡°You¡¯re the demon hunter, Ed, right?¡± ¡®Is my name known to Kurenai?¡¯

    Ed¡¯s murmuring slightly shook the man¡¯s eyes. It was noticeable that they were embarrassed to identify themselves. But he quickly came to his senses and asked.

    ¡°I heard you killed Denesh.¡± ¡°Denesh? He didn¡¯t give me a full name, but he looked the same as you guys. He was wrapped up in heavy clothing like you.¡±

    At the end of Ed¡¯s word, Ed drew an arrow from the Infinite barrel. Ed¡¯s level has risen, and he has grown greatly through training. The arrow flew to the left and went straight for the man who spoke to him. Unlike before, he was able to shoot up to seven shots in one breath. The man tried to hurriedly block them with his dagger, but it was not good enough. At least, he tried to stop the arrows with the protective gear on his arm, but Ed¡¯s arrow was strong. In order to bounce from something as thin as a forearm protector, he had to be able to bounce at the exact speed. Six people fall down with arrows pierced through their arms. The one who blocked with a dagger was lucky, though.

    ¡°Kill him!¡±

    Six were knocked down in one breath, so there were 24 left. Their daggers flew everywhere. Ed read the flying daggers and kicked the floor and back tumbled. When his head faced the ground, Ed turned his back and spread his legs wide. As if they were weaving, non-aqueous daggers passed by Ed. As soon as Ed landed on the ground, he knelt and fired his arrows once again. Those who had pulled their dagger from the back again failed to react properly and were hit by Ed¡¯s arrows. In the meantime, the lucky man blocked the arrow from flying with the dagger he was holding, but six more fell down. Twelve assassins collapsed in just two breaths and their faces hardened. No one gave an order, but they rushed at the same time and fired their daggers. Ed moved to the right and jumped back to use his horse as a shield. As their distance got closer, there were no people who could block him by chance. Again, seven less, and Ed¡¯s horse was hit with a dagger and lifted his foreleg.

    Hrrrrrrrrr!

    As Ed moved away from the horse, he turned and fired arrows again at the enemies seen between the horse¡¯s legs. While four more fell, Ed, rushed from the right and stepped back to the place where the fallen were shot by his arrow. The skill to narrow the distance and maintain his position. Not only did he practice archery, but he also practiced these things in his spare time, so everyone was standing in front of Ed now. Ed snorted and fired the arrow again. Among those who rushed, the only one who did not fall was the one who talked to him earlier. Whether he was lucky or the most talented, he blocked another arrow. Ed fired an arrow while running into him. Joy was in the eyes of the assassin. His dagger spreads deadly poison just by brushing. When he rushed up, he thought there was a match. All the top assassins who came with him died, but he thought his revenge was considered successful. Ed¡¯s body seemed to shake slightly at that time, and his dagger flew past him and to the back. He never thought Ed could avoid all his daggers this close. One arrow stuck between the assassin¡¯s eyes. The assassin, whose head was bent back and his body turned around in the air, fell to the floor. Ed looked down at the fallen assassin and fired a few more arrows. Although they collapsed, arrows were shot into the heads of those who lay face down and saw the opportunity, and they died without moving. It was not difficult to identify survivors because Ed knew all those who did not have experience were alive. Ed sighed as he looked at the dead assassins.

    ¡°I guess I¡¯ll have to walk.¡±

    He was not particularly attached to the horse, but the dagger had already poisoned him and made his mouth foamy. When dealing with assassins, you should be especially careful of poison. His physical strength status is quite high, so he thinks he can withstand a moderate poison, but there was no reason to be hit. As soon as he saw the dagger flying in at the end, he could tell that he can avoid all of it. As expected, he was able to avoid all of them and finish off his embarrassed opponents. In addition, his level rose after killing all the assassins who pretended to be dead. They have given experience as much as the lesser demons. But unlike the lower demons, humans were easier to kill. It¡¯s no wonder that the level goes up since he has dealt with 30 of them at the same time. Ed¡¯s agility raised a level. He became stronger and began to pack. First of all, he recovered the money from the assassins. They didn¡¯t have much. He emptied everything, but there were only about three gold coins.

    ¡°They were poor scums.¡±

    Since he didn¡¯t use poison, he threw the bodies roughly in the forest next to him and took the bag that was hanging on the saddle. He headed back to the Kingdom of Travia.

    It was comfortable riding a horse, but it had stamina that was not easily worn out. And it¡¯s been a long time since he has walked along this road. It was good to hear birds singing because the forest was spread out from side to side of the boulevard, and walking where the scent of grass was refreshing in itself. Ed, who was moving, stepped aside as soon as he heard the sound of horseshoe and wheel of a wagon. He thought about getting a carriage for a moment, but this world was a place where he could never let his guard down. This is a place where you can¡¯t find any good faith in people. So he didn¡¯t expect much. Just stepping aside and walked. The wagon ran past him. He waved his hands to shake off the dust. At that time, the carriage that was running in the lead stopped for a while. A double-headed carriage pulled by two horses stopped, and a man rose from the horse¡¯s saddle. He¡¯s wearing a traveler¡¯s cape-like himself, but Ed can tell by the look of it. The cape is wrapped all over his body, but he was wearing armor inside. He looked at Ed and asked.

    ¡°On your way to the Kingdom of Travia?¡± ¡°That¡¯s true, but ¡¤¡¤.¡± ¡°Then get in the wagon. We¡¯re on our way to Matte City, so I¡¯ll give you a ride.¡±

    In this world, where good faith is not found, this favor was a little shocking. But soon, he replied with a smile.

    ¡°Then I¡¯ll owe you one.¡±

    He would have been careful in the past, but now he¡¯s strong enough to deal with his opponent, so he decided to accept the offer. As he tried to climb up to the horse¡¯s saddle, the man laughed and said.

    ¡°Get into the wagon. Someone inside asked me to stop for you.¡±

    Ed gave a light nod and opened the carriage door. Inside was an old man with a cane next to him. An old man with white hair and one-eyed glasses. An old man with a thick booklet on his lap, he glanced at Ed as he typed.

    ¡°Sit down.¡±

    Ed sat across from the old man and looked at him. Brown eyes and wrinkled face. This old man was also in Ed¡¯s memory. Thane, a demon researcher from the Kingdom of Dalia who helped the main character, Fendrigan, in the Demon Age 1. He was a man of considerable knowledge of the demon, and he had more wrinkles over the course of 16 years. And that book on his lap. It was a book that described every demon that exists. It is a book that contains research on demons over generations.

    ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°I just meet a compatriot, so don¡¯t mind.¡±

    Ed looked quietly at Thane. After studying the demon all his life, he was a favorite of Pendrigan. Having been his advisor, he was probably comfortable in the royal capital by now. Then why did he come to the kingdom of Dalia? At that time, Thane slowly covered the demon¡¯s concubine and looked at Ed over his one-eyed glasses. His brown eyes, seen over his sparkling one-eyed glasses, were very deep. His eyes gazed all over Ed. Above all, Thane is highly knowledgeable, and his advice is great because he is different from ordinary people. But it wasn¡¯t simple to take that look away. The eyes of Thane, who had dug only one thing all his life, had the insight to dig into the bottom of his opponent.

    ¡°As expected, my guess was right.¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡±

    Thane looked carefully at Ed and tilted his head.

    ¡°You¡¯re about 29? 30?¡±

    At what Thane said, Ed wondered what he was saying, and then he hardened his face. The number of demons he killed was 29. But it was not known yet that the men who were captured in the kingdom of Dalia. Moreover, it took more than a year to catch that much. But how did he know that? Thane nodded as if he had realized something.

    ¡°One was a demon subordinate.¡±

    A demon follower that was possessed by a demon. But the demon¡¯s subordinates are those who gave their souls to the demon and gained the power of the demon.

    ¡°If it¡¯s this confusing, I guess you¡¯re not an ordinary demon slayer.¡±

    Thane muttered to himself and smiled warmly around his mouth. It was a smile that bloomed from a strict-looking impression, so Ed quickly remembered his grandfather¡¯s face living in the countryside. It was as if he were looking at his grandfather.

    ¡°That¡¯s a lot of catching. Do you have a grudge against the demons?¡±

    Ed had forgotten how much he hates demons and why he¡¯s trying to kill them.

 Chapter 19 - Arin the Holy Knight

    Chapter 19 ¨C Arin the Holy Knight

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    ¡°I¡¯m just killing the ones I¡¯m supposed to kill.¡±

    When Ed replied calmly, Thane, who was looking at him, nodded. He looked deeply sympathetic.

    ¡°That¡¯s right. They¡¯re supposed to be killed. That¡¯s the logic.¡±

    Thane¡¯s eyes turned to Ed.

    ¡°You must be Ed, the demon hunter.¡± ¡°Do you know me?¡± ¡°The demon has been hiding since its size was greatly reduced 16 years ago. But they are expanding their influence more stealthily. How can I not pay attention to someone who kills demons again in this situation?¡±

    Ed smiled at the words. This person is real. This person was still studying demons and trying to get rid of them once and for all since the Demon Age 1. This person is real.

    ¡°Are you watching all the demon hunters?¡± ¡°Those who hunt demons are always welcome.¡±

    Ed thought this person might know Thane. If the moment when he was called was when the Demon Age 2 began, the main characters of the Demon Age 2 would have started to play at that point. He entered the body of an extra who should have died, but the main characters are different. Even if they didn¡¯t respond as aggressively as they did, they would definitely be catching the demon.

    ¡°Do you know any people who hunt demons who have stood out in a year?¡±

    Thane rested his chin on the question and asked.

    ¡°Is there a reason to limit the time?¡± ¡°There¡¯s no reason. But I¡¯m curious.¡±

    Thane, who heard Ed¡¯s answer, nodded and said.

    ¡°There are a few of them, but they¡¯re not as professional as you are.¡±

    There are. The main characters of ¡°Demon Age 2¡±.

    ¡°Do you happen to know who they are?¡± ¡°A new holy knight from Astron, the god of astronomy, has killed seven demons so far. And I heard that the savage warrior, the survivor of the shipwrecked ship, killed five demons, one mystic monk killed five demons, and finally, three sorcerers from Grove Forest killed three demons. There are many cases where one or two demons are killed, except in those cases, and there are only so many people who are particularly often associated with them and who catch them.¡±

    Holy knight, savage warrior, mystic monk, and sorcerer. Ed had a hunch to hear that there were people who hunted demons in five occupations. They¡¯re the main characters. They¡¯re strong and weak, and they¡¯re moving along the main quest. Ed wanted to get involved with them in some way. Fortunately, he liked that there was no one involved from Akalan.

    ¡°And one more person. There¡¯s a man who tears demons to death. The number he¡¯s killed so far is six. But it¡¯s hard to tell who that person is.¡±

    At least Thane¡¯s research on the demon is surprising, given that it pops out as soon as he says that he has limited the period to one year. Furthermore, if he was an advisor to Pendrigan, a free knight who brought an end to the demon¡¯s era 16 years ago, he could not ignore the intelligence he has now. But he didn¡¯t even know who the other guy was? And that person tears the demons to death? In terms of human power, even if he is a barbarian warrior, there is no chance if he does not invest in strength status. But it would still be difficult even with a high-strength status investment. It is impossible at this level. At this time of year, there are three legendary heroes or people who do what is possible. It occurred to Ed that the person could be another unknown main character. Thane looked at Ed with warm eyes. It¡¯s a look at a comrade walking the same path.

    ¡°You¡¯re the best one out there. Because I¡¯ve got as many of them combined, I can¡¯t believe I met you like this. Looks like Astron took care of you.¡± ¡°But how did you know how many demons I hunted?¡± ¡°I just saw it.¡±

    Ed changed the subject because Thane didn¡¯t seem to have any intention of telling him.

    ¡°I heard you¡¯re going to the city of Matte. Why are you traveling there?¡± ¡°Oh, there¡¯s something there to investigate. Actually, I heard that my granddaughter had a baby, so I¡¯m on my way back from my hometown.¡±

    Come to think of it; Ed heard that his children are studying demons because of some death in the family. Is it that the granddaughter who survived when his children died. And is she already old enough to give birth? Unlike reality, in this world, a person is considered an adult from age 15, and when they are 17, the culture is to send them off to marry someone and give birth to children. It¡¯s already been 16 years since ¡°The Demon Age 1¡± came out, so he thought it was understandable. Thane asked with twinkling eyes.

    ¡°What are you going to do in the future?¡± ¡°I¡¯m going to hunt demons like I do now.¡± ¡°As expected!¡±

    Thane said with a pleased smile.

    ¡°Then come with me.¡±

    It was a free ride anyway. If he could get a lot of information about the demon while accompanying him, there was no reason to refuse because it would benefit future hunting.

    ¡°Sure. Can I see that book, though?¡± ¡°The book of all demons?¡± ¡°Yes, there must be a lot of demons I don¡¯t know, but I thought knowing about their habits and stuff would help me hunt them.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. That¡¯s right. There are friends like Pendrigan, but he¡¯s reckless. You know something!¡±

    Thane said, tapping on his side.

    ¡°Come and sit down. I¡¯ll explain to you myself.

    As Ed sat next to Thane, he opened up the demon¡¯s book and began explaining as if he were reading a fairy tale to his grandson. As soon as he saw how vivid the painting was, as if he had seen it with his eyes, he felt like he was looking at a set-up book. It was safe to say that almost every demon Pendrigan caught in the Demon Age 1 was written down in the book. In addition, the demons were divided into grades, so it was good to check.

    It was comfortable to travel with Thane in many ways. He wondered if there was a problem crossing the border because he was completely stuck with Akalan, but with Thane, he was also able to pass without a problem. On the way, Ed was able to get information about a lot of demons he didn¡¯t even know. It was a great advantage to know the weaknesses of the demons even though he could just catch them with penetration skills. This week¡¯s time for the city of Matte was more fruitful than he thought. And he could see why he was going to Matte City. He also said that he thought intermediate demons appeared and went to find him.

    ¡°But I don¡¯t know if you¡¯d mind me saying this, but your escort doesn¡¯t look that strong.¡±

    Thane burst into laughter at the whispering in the carriage.

    ¡°That¡¯s right. Honestly, he¡¯ll probably be able to catch a demon of the lower class.¡±

    Honestly, he thought it was too much. He didn¡¯t think the escort would be any better than Tomio. Of course, it¡¯s great that someone like him drives a carriage. Still, he seemed far from good enough to deal with a demon.

    ¡°Actually, I¡¯m trying to go to Matte because I think I can see one of the rookies I mentioned.¡± ¡°Rookie?¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t you ask me? Those who hunt demons who have stood out in a year. I was going there because I thought I¡¯d meet one of them. I wanted to meet that person before I went back to the capital.¡± ¡°Who are you going to see?¡± ¡°New holy knight. He¡¯s the one who¡¯s got the most demons except you.¡±

    Ed was honestly looking forward to it. Maybe he was one of the main characters. Ed wanted to meet him.

    ¡°Did you make an appointment?¡± ¡°No, but I think the new holy knight is also investigating the intermediate demon. By the time I arrived, I had thought I¡¯d run into him.¡± ¡°You¡¯re leaning on luck.¡±

    Thane smiled with a deep smile.

    ¡°Don¡¯t you realize that I¡¯m lucky enough to meet you?¡±

    Thane met with Fendrigan, a free knight, in the Demon Age 1 and took revenge by acting as his advisor because he caught the Great demon Lipelas. Ed could tell that he was a lucky man. Well, why don¡¯t we lean on that luck?

    ¡°But if you know the demon, why don¡¯t you let the church know?¡± ¡°That¡¯s one way we could solve it. But they won¡¯t move with just suspicion. And now that they¡¯ve figured it out, they¡¯re sending in a new holy knight.¡± ¡°But an intermediate demon won¡¯t be that easy.¡± ¡°Oh, didn¡¯t you hear about the new holy knight?¡± ¡°Yes, I don¡¯t keep my ears open to that sort of thing.¡±

    Thane tapped Ed on the shoulder as if it was okay.

    ¡°That¡¯s fine. You were chasing rumors about demons at that time, weren¡¯t you?

    Thane misunderstood and was smiling awkwardly.

    ¡°I have a history of catching intermediate demons. One of the seven was Deborah the Intermediate demon.¡±

    He recalled Deborah because it was also in the book. It was an intermediate demon. It was not in human form but a demon of medium size. It would not have been easy for a holy knight to catch him, but he must be better than Ed thought.

    ¡°Alone?¡± ¡°Yes, they said he caught it by himself.¡± ¡°That¡¯s great.¡± ¡°We¡¯ll see once we meet him.¡±

    The horseman driver was not interested in what was going on in the carriage and was in charge of their guidance. Thanks to this, Ed was able to enjoy the most comfortable trip in this world. As soon as the wagon arrived in the city of Matte, it headed straight to the Astron Church.

    ¡°We¡¯ve arrived.¡±

    Ed also packed his things when he saw Thane holding a cane and The Book of All Demons in his bag. When he opened the door and went outside, I saw the Astron Church. It was a church several times the size of the city of Bern. Then there were the priests who came out of there and then two concubines. It certainly seemed to be a church of a superior size to the rest. The priest smiled at Thane.

    ¡°May Astron¡¯s glory be with us. My name is Frank, the head priest of Matte¡¯s district.¡± ¡°May Astron¡¯s glory be with us. I¡¯m Thane.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve heard a lot from Archbishop Martin.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know how he¡¯s doing these days. It¡¯s already been 16 years since we saw each other.¡±

    Archbishop Martin was a legendary priest who fought with Pendrigan. He was a priest at the time, but he must have gone up to the Archbishop.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go inside.¡± ¡°Sure.¡±

    Ed followed Thane through the church gate to the accommodation behind. Frank served them tea there. The driver who drove the wagon moved with the accompanying priests, but Ed could go with Thane and drink tea at his recommendation.

    ¡°This man¡­¡±

    Ed introduced himself with a slight bow.

    ¡°I¡¯m Ed.¡± ¡°Ed, are you the demon hunter?¡±

    Ed nodded when Frank opened his eyes wide and asked.

    ¡°That¡¯s what they say.¡± ¡°Otherwise, I was told that Father Aaron had been very helpful in dealing with the demon this time, so I had an order from the church to make it easier for Ed.¡±

    Ed replied with just a smile. He heard that he could get help at any church because of Aaron. They must have planned it in advance so that he could get help.

    ¡°I just did what I had to do.¡± ¡°As expected! That¡¯s great.¡±

    Then the door burst open, and there was a man coming inside.

    ¡°Hey!¡±

    The person who came in calling her older brother was wearing leather armor and chest armor to enhance his activity. The woman, wearing a traveler¡¯s cape, rushed in with a bright face and stared at Ed. Then he approached and put his hand on Ed¡¯s chest.

    ¡°This is my brother¡¯s property. Why do you have it?¡±

    Only then did Ed know who she was. The beautiful woman looked like Aaron.

    ¡°I received it from Priest Aaron.¡±

    When Ed put his hand into his clothes and took out the Astron sign that Aaron had delivered, the woman who saw it opened her eyes wide.

    ¡°He gave you something he valued more than his life?¡± ¡°God says it¡¯s important to accept things that are given. And it¡¯s not about the item that matters.¡±

    Frank was amazed at what he said.

    ¡°Aaron is a priest indeed! I guess that¡¯s why Astron loves him.¡±

    Frank said so and introduced Ed to the woman who came in.

    ¡°This is Ed. He¡¯s a demon hunter who¡¯s outstanding enough to ask for special convenience in the church.¡±

    The woman looked at Ed again and introduced herself, tapping her right fist over her left heart.

    ¡°I¡¯m Arin, the holy knight who serves Astron. Nice to meet you.¡±

 Chapter 20 - Tracking

    Chapter 20 ¨C Tracking

    When everyone greeted and sat down, Thane finally opened his mouth.

    ¡°Did you find any signs of the demon you¡¯re chasing?¡±

    Arin looked at Thane with her eyes wide open.

    ¡°How did you know about that?¡± ¡°I heard rumors that people were disappearing from here. That¡¯s why I came. Didn¡¯t you hear about that too?¡±

    Priest Frank answered instead.

    ¡°It was two weeks ago that I noticed people disappearing. If the brothers who came to pray hadn¡¯t disappeared, nobody would¡¯ve noticed. So I asked the church for support.¡± ¡°How many people have disappeared in the meantime?¡±

    Arin thought about it for a while and replied.

    ¡°It¡¯s not exactly a tally because it happened in the slum. It¡¯s been about a week since I arrived, and I know that about a hundred people went missing.¡± ¡°Oh! That¡¯s more than I thought.¡±

    Arin let out a short sigh and replied.

    ¡°I haven¡¯t found out much more because the slums are giving me a hard time.¡±

    She was wearing a round shield on her back and a hammer and a sword on both sides of her waist. In addition, it was natural for people to find it difficult considering the Astron¡¯s stamp on the left side of the chest box that appears between the cape. Rarely do people who live in slums not have a bad history. It was natural for such people to stay away from Astron¡¯s holy knight because they can be ripped to their bones if they get caught doing something wrong. Rather, it was great to find out that there were a hundred missing people in the slum. Indeed, if a beautiful woman this size had been in and out of the slum, if not a holy knight, anything would have happened already. Ed¡¯s gaze turned to Thane.

    ¡°What kind of guy do you think he is?¡±

    Thane took out the demon¡¯s book at the question, opened it, and quickly turned the page over.

    ¡°If you look at what¡¯s in the city, there¡¯s a good chance it¡¯ll turn into a human being or be a little demon.¡±

    Thane turned the paper over and asked a question.

    ¡°Are there any followers or subordinates that have shown up?¡± ¡°We haven¡¯t seen yet. It seems to be moving discreetly.¡±

    At Arin¡¯s answer, Thane stopped turning the pages of the demon¡¯s book and looked back at the people.

    ¡°If there are over a hundred disappearances, perhaps we can suspect Gerold, an intermediate demon who can¡¯t resist his appetite.¡± ¡°But can we save people in secret like this? Gerold is more of a humanoid, and he¡¯s over two meters tall.¡± ¡°That¡¯s why I asked you if you saw a demon follower. I thought he was using his followers to gather people. But if you haven¡¯t found a demon follower, it may be of Tencram.¡±

    Ed made an impression on his remark. Gerold is a cannibal demon and is found earlier than expected. However, he is difficult to deal with because he is an intermediate demon. Tencram, on the other hand, is not searching for food but needs humans as nutrients when they have babies. But this demon was known as an incredibly agile one. Even Ed was not sure if he could deal with the demon by himself, even though he invested a lot in agility.

    ¡°What do you think?¡±

    Thane asked Ed¡¯s opinion as he read the demon¡¯s book on his way here. Ed briefly folded his arms and looked down at Tencram¡¯s painting. Two meters tall. If it is carrying a baby, it¡¯s suitable for the present situation. It¡¯s just reasoning, but it¡¯s a strong possibility.

    ¡°How long does it take to have a baby?¡± ¡°A month.¡± ¡°Maybe it¡¯s time for it to give birth.¡±

    Thane nodded at Ed¡¯s words.

    ¡°It¡¯s been more than three weeks since I first heard the news. If it¡¯s Tencram, there¡¯s a good chance it¡¯ll give birth in a few days.¡± ¡°Then we¡¯ll have to find it quickly.¡± ¡°Yes, after Tencram gives birth, there will be a massacre to find the baby some food.¡±

    When Tencram eats people to find food for their young and to recover their wretched body from giving birth, the damage easily exceeds at least one hundred people. The problem is that it kills children for its food. The number of children and adults who would die in just one day would exceed a hundred. Ed stood up and said,

    ¡°I¡¯m going to visit the slums.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sure you¡¯ll take care of yourself, but a Tencram that¡¯s about to give birth is a dangerous demon.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll be careful.¡±

    Ed came out, and Arin followed him. As Ed turned around, she stood next to him and spoke calmly.

    ¡°I¡¯ll show you around.¡±

    Ed took a quick look at her appearance. If he goes with her now, he can¡¯t get the right information about the slums. They said the event might be in a few days, but maybe it¡¯s right now. Ed took a step closer to her. As she approached suddenly, she grabbed her sword without realizing it. Ed slid his hands into each side of her neck. It was too natural for Arin to react. It had to be done before attacking. It was also largely because he was careless because he handed over her brother¡¯s precious token. Ed wondered what was wrong with this woman when Arin closed her eyes tightly. Her traveler¡¯s cape was fortunately hooded, so Ed, who caught it and put it on her head, stepped back and looked at her. Even if wearing a weapon was inevitable, it could not be revealed that she was a holy knight. But it¡¯s different when you open your mouth. You¡¯ll find out the moment the holy knights say something.

    ¡°Don¡¯t be dumb when you¡¯re there. Just guide me to the slum area.

    Arin nodded because she had the wrong idea and started leading the way.

    The slum had a stronger smell of losers than buildings and tents that were all collapsing, from drugged humans to sick people. There were a lot of clever kids walking around the streets to survive in those gaps. After guiding Ed to the slum, he told Arin to follow in his footsteps and walked in the lead. There were three children playing tag, and when Ed grabbed one of the kid¡¯s wrists when he bumped into him. He had Ed¡¯s wallet in his hand. The boy smiled awkwardly when their eyes met.

    ¡°Hehe. I¡¯m sorry.¡±

    The other children had already run away when Ed looked back. The kid caught by Ed looked him in the eye and spat on him.

    ¡°Well, if you¡¯re going to report it to the mortuary, do it. At least I¡¯ll still be fed if I go to jail.¡±

    Looking at the kid, Ed opened his wallet and threw a coin out of it. The kid¡¯s eyes got bigger.

    ¡°Name?¡± ¡°Tom.¡±

    Ed took out another coin and threw it.

    ¡°I heard that people in the slums are disappearing these days. Are there any missing children?¡±

    Tom accepted the coin that flew in, and thought about it,

    ¡°No, not yet.¡±

    Ed was a little relieved at the words. Fortunately, the demon didn¡¯t give birth yet. But he wasn¡¯t so relieved either. Ed took out a silver this time. Seeing Tom¡¯s eyes twinkling, Ed tossed the silver coin in the air. Ed asked, confirming that Tom¡¯s eyes were following.

    ¡°Do you know about the people who disappeared?¡±

    Tom took a step back at the question.

    ¡°You¡¯re like a holy knight asking questions in the slums these days. Are you a member of the Astron congregation?¡±

    Ed felt Arin flinching in the back and replied nonchalantly.

    ¡°No, I¡¯m a mercenary. I¡¯m investigating for the request I received this time.¡±

    Tom agonized for a while and thought it had nothing to do with him anyway. When he saw the silver shining brightly in front of his eyes, the value of everything else faded. Tom reached out his hand. Ed shook his head slowly.

    ¡°Do you know the homes of people who have disappeared in the last week?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t even remember what happened yesterday! How am I going to remember the homes of people who disappeared the past week?¡±

    Ed took out his wallet and tried to put the silver coin back in.

    ¡°Now, wait! I remembered!¡±

    As Ed looked, Tom said quickly.

    ¡°The Vince family disappeared a week ago!¡±

    Ed tossed the silver coin. Tom jumped up as if a well-trained dog were picking up the ball, grabbed the silver coin, and quickly put it in his arms, and looked around.

    ¡°Just lead me to the homes of the people who disappeared yesterday and the Vince family who disappeared a week ago. Then I¡¯ll give you three silver coins.¡± ¡°Follow me.¡±

    Tom took the lead with a grim look, realizing this was a rare opportunity in life. As Ed followed Tom, and Arin came close from behind.

    ¡°What are you doing?¡± ¡°This is the power of money.¡±

    At Ed¡¯s answer, Arin looked dazed. It was shocking to see that the holy knight¡¯s job was to help them, but it was a completely different attitude from when he asked. Ed was following Tom, looking back at the slum. He remembered the way because he didn¡¯t know what might happen here. It was the house where people disappeared yesterday. There was a murmur around the house, but Ed went into it and examined the house. It was made of tents, but the inside was messy. Ed¡¯s hand touched the floor. Arin, who followed Ed inside, frowned slightly.

    ¡°It smells like blood.¡±

    Ed could see how sensitive Arin¡¯s senses were. But what Ed is looking for now is not blood. And he found deep claw marks on the floor. Two in the front and one in the back. It is a trace of Tencram, which resembles a bird¡¯s leg. Ed sighed briefly and rose from his seat.

    ¡°Tencram.¡±

    Tencram baring a baby is not usually sensitive. It becomes dangerous when it¡¯s almost about to give birth.

    ¡°We have to hurry.¡±

    As Arin nodded, Ed came out and told Tom.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go to the house where the family disappeared a week ago.¡± ¡°Follow me.¡±

    As Tom took the lead again, they felt people¡¯s eyes gathering one by one. Ed walked carelessly, but Arin was following from behind, holding the handle of her sword.

    There is no one without a story, but most of them here are losers who gave up their lives. Life for the past year has not been easy to feel threatened by such people. The last house Tom visited was already inhabited by other people. A tough-looking guy came out and stared at Tom.

    ¡°What is it, Tom?¡± ¡°It¡¯s nothing. I was just asked for directions.¡±

    Ed¡¯s eyes turned on the tough guy. He looked at Ed and Arin.

    ¡°Do you have a business in my house? It¡¯s not a place for a girl.¡±

    Ed took three silver coins out of his coin pocket and threw them at Tom. The tough guy grinned at Tom as he rushed away after receiving the coins.

    ¡°You must be full of money. Looking at the way you paid that little thief.¡±

    A dagger was already held in the hands of the tough man. Ed looked at the back of the tough guy. Unlike other tents, it was a shabby home. Ed¡¯s eyes turned cold when he saw women from the back. There were half-naked women. Slum areas are not devoid of glaze. However, it is different if women¡¯s eyes were dilated under the influence of drugs. They sell their bodies not voluntarily but by force. And that means even those who were behind the tough guy are part of it.

    ¡°Then can you give us some goodwill? You can have a woman if you want.¡±

    Ed looked around them, pulled out his bow, and fired an arrow. Arrows were placed between the eyes of those who appeared behind the women and were creeping toward them. The tough guy, who couldn¡¯t see Ed shooting an arrow properly, turned his head to the sound of people falling from behind and opened his eyes wide when he saw all the arrows in the middle of the man¡¯s eyes.

    ¡°What is this ¡¤¡¤?¡±

    The man, who turned his head again, saw that he stabbed him in the shoulder with a dagger.

    ¡°Argh!¡±

    Ed was holding his wrist and said close to the man¡¯s face.

    ¡°I have a question, and I want you to answer it right.¡± ¡°What, what is it ¡¤¡¤?¡±

    Ed wriggled his wrist after confirming that the man was not ready to answer. The man screamed when the dagger was embedded in his body.

    ¡°I have a question.¡±

    Ed¡¯s cool voice awoke the though man named Glenn. It¡¯s not time to scream in pain. If he tried to do something wrong, he¡¯d die.

    ¡°I¡¯ll answer anything!¡±

 Chapter 21 - Tencram

    Chapter 21 ¨C Tencram

    ¡°Tell me about the first disappearance that happened in the poor neighborhood. Or at least tell me where the nearest missing person is.¡±

    Glenn quickly turned his eyes. Why is he asking that question? Seeing him agonizing quickly, Ed twisted his wrist again.

    ¡°Argh!¡± ¡°Don¡¯t think about anything else.¡± ¡°Sorry, I¡¯m sorry!¡± ¡°Answer me.¡± ¡°It started east side of the village.¡±

    Ed let go of his wrist.

    ¡°If you pull your dagger out now, I¡¯ll kill you.¡± ¡°Yes! I know.¡±

    Still, Ed stepped back because he seemed to know that if the dagger was pulled out, he would end up dead.

    ¡°Show me where it is.¡± ¡°Yes! This way.¡±

    Ed, who was trying to follow Glenn¡¯s lead, suddenly burst out of the blue from the back and turned his head. It wasn¡¯t just him that stopped, but Glenn was looking back in surprise. Arin pulled her hand off the head of a woman, and there was a deep anger in her eyes.

    ¡°She¡¯s addicted to Lapla leaves.¡±

    Lapla leaves are a kind of drug. It gives a strong painkiller effect, but its side effect is hallucination. One of the cheapest drugs. As such, it is highly addictive and difficult to be released once addicted. But I could see how great Arin¡¯s divine spell was when she was able to treat it at once. The woman, whose eyes had lost focus, looked around and screamed.

    ¡°Aaaaah!¡±

    Her hallucination was relieved, and the woman was confused. Arin helped her lay down. Arin¡¯s eyes, which laid her down next to her, looked at the women from behind. At first glance, she could see around ten people. She knew she had to treat them all, but she couldn¡¯t right now. If Tencram gives birth to a baby while treating these ten people, a hundred people will die. Lapla leaves are an item banned by Astron Church. And forbidden by kingdom law. Arin couldn¡¯t contain her anger when they were using it to hallucinate women and prostitute them. Ed blocked her as she rose from her seat and approached Glenn. She was in a position to get out of the way, but Arin¡¯s eyes naturally turned towards Ed.

    ¡°The Tencram comes first right now.¡±

    Arin clenched her fist, but she understood. They have to find the Tencram, but she needs Glenn¡¯s guidance. Rather than beating the author to death right now, it was urgent to find clues to the Tencram.

    ¡°I found it.¡±

    Ed looked back at Glenn and said as she calmed down.

    ¡°Guide me.¡±

    Seeing Glenn hurrying along, Ed followed him. Arin looked back at the woman, hallucinated, and gently bit her lips, and walked after Ed. While tracking through a kid in the slum, he meets with a man who knows more and asks him to guide him and tracks Tencram. It¡¯s a way he never imagined. He said he killed so many demons that he was called devil hunter.

    They arrived at the east of the ghetto, guided by Glenn. Arriving there, Ed smiled in vain. He couldn¡¯t feel anything.

    ¡°I don¡¯t think people live here.¡± ¡°After people went missing here, the vagabonds avoided it. We moved west because we couldn¡¯t do business if we were in a deserted place.¡±

    Glenn turned pale as he arrived. He almost fainted from the pain of coming here with a dagger on his shoulder. From here on out there was no need for Glenn.

    ¡°You did a great job.¡± ¡°Thank you very much!

    Ed cut Glenn¡¯s throat with a dagger. Glenn, whose neck was dripping with blood, hurriedly blocked the wound with his hands but collapsed. Arin approached and asked.

    ¡°I thought you¡¯d save him.¡±

    Ed looked back at her as if he were saying something.

    ¡°I never said that.¡±

    He was no good even if Ed had let him live. He had to kill him when he thought of people who would be harmed by him. Arin looked at dead Glenn and looked around the empty slum.

    ¡°Is there a Tencram here?¡±

    Ed prepared an arrow on the bow and said as he moved.

    ¡°Do you feel anything?¡±

    Arin closed her eyes for a moment, held hands together, and prayed. And her eyes slowly opened, shining blue in the sky. Arin looked around the slums and pulled out a round shield and hammer. Then she started walking in the lead. Seeing that Arin has accepted her sacred power from the shield and hammer in her hand, it must be a relic. Although there are not many holy knights from Astron Church, it is too much for a new holy knight to carry around. Aaron was also a priest unbecoming of his age, so she must not be a regular holy knight either. He is a talent that can be the main character. Ed also awakened his senses by following in her footsteps. While walking like that, Arin stopped and put the shield in front of her and said,

    ¡°I think it¡¯s that way, but it¡¯s underground. I can feel the maggie coming from underground.¡±

    Her exploratory ability seemed to be better than her sense of distance.

    ¡°I¡¯ll take the lead.¡± ¡°The Tencram is very agile. Be careful.¡±

    Arin nodded at Ed¡¯s words and headed for a shabby house. Arin pushed the gate lightly with a hammer, and the hinges of the gate screamed and collapsed. There was no response inside even though there was a loud noise. Ed sighed when he saw it. This was going to be a harder fight than he thought. It means that he is so patient to not show up even though he feels sacred, and if there is a fight underground, agility will be a great power. Arin opened the door of the house and went inside, and she stood in front of the stairs that went down to the basement and cleared her breath. Deborah was a medium-sized devil, so it would have been easy to beat it because it was big, but it seemed to be nerve-wracking because he had to go meet the devil in person waiting in a small space. Ed instilled courage behind Arin.

    ¡°Leave the back to me.¡±

    Arin nodded when he said, ¡°You don¡¯t have to worry about your back when you fight in a narrow space with an agile devil.¡±

    ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡±

    Arin went down the stairs to the basement, and Ed also held his bow. He thought it¡¯d surprise them while they were walking down the stairs, but no attack came in. It wasn¡¯t until they came down to the basement that they knew why. It must have been just before giving birth to a baby, seeing a two-meter-tall, reminiscent of a bird¡¯s leg, and bulging belly wriggling with its arms resembling a praying mantis. When Arin saw it, she turned her right hand with a hammer. Seeing the hammer in Arin¡¯s hand shining blue, the Tencram¡¯s eyes turned to her. Arin threw the hammer straight into Tencram¡¯s red eyes.

    Whoosh! Whoosh!

    A hammer flew like a flash hit Tencram¡¯s left arm and bounced off and stuck in a corner. They don¡¯t know about the agility of its body, but they could tell how agile the Tencram was by the speed of his left arm. Ed shot an arrow.

    Whoosh!

    As expected, regular arrows are not difficult to avoid. It can¡¯t move now, but they don¡¯t know how long that will last.

    ¡°Astron¡¯s dog! I¡¯ll kill you. Don¡¯t be impatient and wait.¡±

    Arin did not talk in vain after entering the battle. She just stretched her hand forward, but the far-flung hammer came back and caught her. Arin rushed in with a shield. Seeing her rushing forward with her blue-splitting shield on the front, Ed pulled two arrows out from the arrows barrel of Ice and moved to the side. The basement was 4 meters high and 15 meters long. In such a small space, The Tencram¡¯s movements had to be restricted. Ed¡¯s arrow aimed at Tencram¡¯s tummy and legs as Arin rushed and grabbed his eye.

    Wooooosh!

    The Tencram, who had a powerful blow to the point where Arin, who was rushing with a shield, bounced off, looked down at the arrow stuck in his leg. It failed to stop the arrow that flew to its leg because it was trying to block Arin. At that moment, the Tencram¡¯s eyes turned toward Ed when it saw the surroundings freezing quickly.

    ¡°Aaaah!¡±

    The Tencram, who made an unknown sound whether it was a scream or a shout of anger, raised its body. Its arms resembling a mantis were spaced about three meters apart, but it did not seem to be able to buy time to give birth. The Tencram, who raised its body, was going to kill them and make them into minced meat before giving birth. One leg froze, but it didn¡¯t care. When the Tencram rose up, Arin¡¯s hammer flew in. It was an unexpected attack. But it broke its arm the moment it tried to push it out. Arin threw a circular shield. The power was different from the hammer. Arrows flew in again when its arm, which had been slapping the shield while rotating, was deflected into a deformity. Three arrows this time. The Tencram drove off the ground as it cut out the arrow. The frozen leg was only a burden, but it was going to kill the holy knight who threw all his weapons. Ed fired three regular arrows at the same time, and when he saw the Tencram moving, he started firing fast shots. He aimed for the Tencram¡¯s tummy. The attack was aimed at diverting theTencram¡¯s attention to Arin because it was sensitive to attacks on the tummy. When seven arrows flew in so fast that they thought they were flying in a row, even the Tencram could not go to kill the holy knight. Then, the tummy was about to open, so it had to stop and swing his arms.

    Siiiiiighhhhh

    The Tencram managed to cut off seven arrows, felt Arin rushing from behind, and turned around and waved its arms.

    Whoosh!

    Arin blocked the Tencram¡¯s arm with a sword. Arin held out her left hand, blocking the Tencram¡¯s arm with one hand, perhaps because she was too strong. When the hammer returned with her left hand, Arin grabbed it, tilted the sword against Tencram¡¯s arm, and approached and swung the hammer. At that moment, the Tencram shot up the ground. The Tencram was just trying to jump over Arin and aim for her back but swung nervously at an arrow flying in as if it had waited for the moment.

    Booooooom!

    The intense coldness, which is incomparable to earlier, froze everything from the arms to its left upper body. As soon as Arin rushed in, Ed¡¯s attack, which filled the ice bow with mana, succeeded. Arin swung a hammer at the Tencram, where its body froze and fell.

    Puck!

    The frozen Tencram¡¯s left upper body was smashed. When Arin tried to swing the sword again, an arrow flew into Tencram¡¯s forehead and stuck in it. Then the cold frozen Tencram lost its vitality. Arin sighed with relief when she saw the Tencram falling backward. The Tencram could feel that it would not have been easy if it had faced them one at a time. They wouldn¡¯t have been able to catch the Tencram if they hadn¡¯t attacked its fast legs first. Arin looked back at Ed in admiration. She could see an arrow flying toward her eyes. There was no time for her body to react. The flying arrow spun and brushed her cheek and flew behind her. And a terrible scream was heard from behind. Arin¡¯s eyes, which turned around, saw an arrow embedded in the Tencram¡¯s baby¡¯s shoulder, which was about a meter tall and had unusually long arms that ripped out of the Tencram¡¯s belly. The fight was not over yet.

 Chapter 22 - Team

    Chapter 22 ¨C Team

    Ed¡¯s heart dropped when Arin smashed the frozen Tencram¡¯s left upper body. Because Ed would get experience level only if he killed the intermediate demon himself. So he quickly fired a cold arrow out of Tencram¡¯s forehead. Fortunately, he got an experience because he made the final blow. However, he could still see a gap in the Tencram that should be dead. There was no way that there could be a gap if the demon is dead. But Arin didn¡¯t step away from the fallen Tencram. Ed had a 300 percent chance of success, but was raised to 600 percent during archery training. But Ed couldn¡¯t waste more time on Arin, a holy knight. The arrow passed Arin¡¯s cheek, and cut the Tencram¡¯s belly, and hit the shoulder of the Tencram¡¯s baby. Does an intermediate demon baby give as much experience as an adult intermediate demon? Or will it give the same amount of experience as a lower-grade demon? The agony was not long. There was no need for the help of a holy knight to deal with a baby demon. While Arin was turning around, Ed kicked the floor and stepped on the wall, pulled out an arrow, and injected mana. He used quite a lot of mana to kill the Tencram, but he still had the power to fire an arrow at it. The moment the baby Tencram was coming out of the stomach, it got hit by Ed¡¯s arrow, and ice exploded.

    Zzznnng!

    When the Tencram¡¯s baby, which had never even come out of his stomach, froze, Ed leaped from the wall and fired arrows one after another. Four arrows were placed in the baby Tencram¡¯s forehead and eyeballs.

    ¡°Kyyyyaaaa!¡±

    The baby Tencram died before leaving the mother¡¯s tummy. The experience level it gave was higher than low-grade demons and less than intermediate demons, but Ed was satisfied. As Ed was gathering his breath, Arin approached.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I thought it was dead.¡±

    Ed replied with a bow hanging over his shoulder.

    ¡°You¡¯ve experienced it once, so I don¡¯t want you to make this mistake next time.¡±

    Ed told her this mistake is a life-threatening one. Arin nodded and approached the Tencram¡¯s body and said.

    ¡°Can I examine the body?¡± ¡°Of course.¡±

    Arin approached and put her hand in Tencram¡¯s broken left upper body and pulled out its frozen heart. Then she crushed it with both hands, and a little bead came out of it. Ed has killed plenty of demons so far, but he has never crushed a heart like that, so it was his first time seeing someone do that. The red beads were exuding a very ominous aura. Arin held the red bead in her hand, closed her eyes, and prayed. The red bead screamed in her hands. And the red bead disappeared. When he saw Arin open her eyes, Ed asked.

    ¡°What the hell was that?¡±

    Arin thought about it for a while and soon replied.

    ¡°I saw it in the prophecy that the church made. There is a prophecy that a new great demon will appear and rally the demons. That¡¯s why we are tracking them down. I didn¡¯t get much out of the lower grade demons, but there was a Blood Stone in Deborah¡¯s body too.¡±

    Blood Stone? It¡¯s a concept that wasn¡¯t in demon¡¯s Age 1. And the advent of the new Great demon. He was going to kill the remaining great demons, but now that another great demon has appeared, it feels like the difficulty of the quest was increasing.

    ¡°Does it appear in intermediate demons?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know, but I can vaguely read the location of Blood Stones with sacred force. When I killed Deborah and burned the Blood Stone, I called Father Frank immediately.¡± ¡°So you¡¯re not just dealing with demons.¡±

    Arin smiled bitterly at Ed¡¯s words.

    ¡°This is what all the holy knights, including me, are tracking it down. But he said I was the only person to find a Blood Stone.¡±

    As expected, the main character is different. The fact that she had a clue to chase the Great demon revealed that she was holding a thread of the main quest.

    ¡°Then where is the next location?¡±

    Arin stared at Ed.

    ¡°Why are you asking me that?¡±

    Ed spoke casually.

    ¡°I¡¯m going to hunt the demon anyway, but I thought it would be good to help if it¡¯s related to the church.¡±

    Arin¡¯s expression brightened up.

    ¡°Will you join us?¡± ¡°It would be better if I follow the prophecy rather than searching for demons without a destination.¡± ¡°Thank you. You will be a great help!¡±

    The Great demon had been killed, but it was more helpful for Ed to find a reliable potential. Now, he has found the clue to the main quest.

    The demon¡¯s body can be turned into money depending on how it is processed. But the demon¡¯s body is something that needs to be burned down by a holy knight. Arin asked Ed to excuse her and sprinkled oil to burn the Tencram¡¯s body with a blue torch. The Tencram¡¯s body burned without a single smoke. Arin was still praying at the place where the Tencram¡¯s body disappeared in an instant. Then she came up from the basement and headed to the church with Ed when the prayer was over. On her way back to church, Arin went to visit the women Glenn used to poison and prostitute. Arin carried the woman on her back who was treated with holy spells, and the rest of the drugged women were carried by Ed. When they returned to the church, Father Frank and Thane were angry.

    ¡°What kind of bastard did this?¡±

    Thane shouted angrily, but Father Frank was busy as he took care of them with his entourage. He didn¡¯t speak a word, but everyone could see how angry he was. Well, maybe it¡¯s natural to be angry because Astron Church banned this form of action. Ed had to explain the situation to calm their anger.

    ¡°Those who did this to the women are all dead.¡± ¡°Well done, those people were useless anyway. They¡¯re trash that¡¯s not worth keeping alive.¡±

    Ed agreed with that. It is human duty to pick up and throw away any noticeable trash. Thane was amazed to see Arin waking them up from the drug with divine spells.

    ¡°That¡¯s great, having such a sacred power at such a young age.¡±

    Ed stood next to him and nodded together. Arin¡¯s divine power was great. When he first saw Aaron, he thought that the young priest had great divine powers. But compared to Arin, his powers were like a firefly¡¯s light under a bright moonlight. He doesn¡¯t know if it was because of her sacred artifacts, but he knew that she¡¯s the real deal. Said Thane, looking at Father Frankie.

    ¡°I think there are people who distribute Lapla leaves. You can report them to the lord.¡± ¡°I guess so.¡±

    As it is prohibited not only by the church but also by kingdom law, landlords that grew Lapla leaves had to remove its roots from their land. That would be enough to end the situation. Thane looked back at Ed and asked.

    ¡°So the demon was a Tencram?¡±

    Ed nodded, recalling that Thane can read the number of demons he killed.

    ¡°Yes, it was a Tencram that was just about to give birth.¡± ¡°I see. That¡¯s why you killed the baby too.¡± ¡°Yes.¡±

    Thane approached Father Frank as he smiled. When all the women woke up from the drugs, they screamed. Perhaps they were so confused and shocked. Despite using nearly ten sacred spells, Arin approached them with a straight face.

    ¡°There¡¯s nothing wrong with what brother Aaron said. On behalf of all the brothers in the city, I thank you.¡±

    Arin praised Ed in front of Father Frank.

    ¡°I wouldn¡¯t have caught him without Ed. Ed¡¯s skills were unbelievable. He saved my life, too.¡±

    Thane smiled proudly as if he had heard a compliment, and the way Father Frank looked at Ed changed. He must have thought Ed helped Arin¡¯s demon hunt. Ed was thinking of following Arin for the time being, so he decided to score a few points from them.

    ¡°Honestly, Arin drew all the attention, so the attack worked.¡±

    Ed actually meant what he said. First, the holy knight had divine power and attracted considerable attention to the demon. In addition, the artifacts Arin had were great. Her hammer had a throw-and-return function. The shield didn¡¯t have that function, but the power of the blow was not comparable to that of the hammer. He didn¡¯t see the performance of the sword, but he could tell that it¡¯s not an ordinary item either. The demon couldn¡¯t take his eyes off such artifacts when she rushed with them. She was a holy knight who played her part well. And she was the only one who could get a Blood Stone. So, Ed decided that he had to be with her. Arin looked at Father Frank and said,

    ¡°Please contact the church. Ed has agreed to join me.¡±

    Father Frank was slightly surprised by Arin¡¯s words and soon nodded.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about that. Are you leaving soon?¡± ¡°Yes, We¡¯re thinking of leaving tomorrow.¡±

    Arin¡¯s eyes turned to Ed. It doesn¡¯t take long to follow the traces of the Blood Stone to catch the demon. Ed nodded at her gaze.

    ¡°Let¡¯s get going tomorrow.¡±

    Thane was listening to their conversation and asked them out of curiosity.

    ¡°Did you find any new traces of a demon?¡± ¡°Yes.¡±

    When Ed looked back at Arin, she nodded and talked about the prophecy. Perhaps Thane is well-known as a demon researcher as well as a person that shared a deep relationship with the Astron Church.

    ¡°There was a prophecy. A new great demon will be born. But the Great demon is rallying the demons. And there¡¯s a thing called Blood Stone. The Blood Stone from Deborah pointed me to this place, and I was able to figure out the next approximate location of the Tencram.¡±

    Thane¡¯s complexion hardened.

    ¡°The new great demon?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Why didn¡¯t you let me know about this earlier? The pendrigan would¡¯ve been a big help.¡± ¡°Because the demon is a member of the royal family.¡±

    Thane sighed at her words. Ed recalled the ending of the free knight Pendrigan in the demon¡¯s Age 1. Did he really marry a princess?

    ¡°Even so, he is sincere in dealing with demons.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right, but you can¡¯t just call him because he¡¯s sincere. And this is the work of the Church.¡± ¡°Well, why don¡¯t we put that kind of political story behind us when it comes to dealing with demons?¡± ¡°This is what Master Paladin wants.¡± ¡°Anyway, you really are stubborn.¡±

    Thane sighed and looked at Ed and Arin. Then he stood up and said,

    ¡°Can I come with you?¡±

    Arin stared at him.

    ¡°It would be a great help if you could help us. But don¡¯t you have to go back to the palace?¡±

    Thane smiled while holding on to his cane.

    ¡°The Pendrigan will understand me.¡±

    Thane¡¯s hatred of the demon was the kind that Pendrigan had to understand. Arin looked back at Ed. Ed said with a smile at the look at him.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go together.¡±

    Arin the holy knight, and Thane the demon researcher. A team has been formed.

 Chapter 23 - Raid

    As soon as the next morning dawned, the team was ready to leave. Thane decided to use his wagon, and Ed and Arin decided to use horses. Arin visited the women before she left. Arin held each of the womens¡¯ hands and prayed for them, and asked Father Frank to take care of them. The destination is Antsy. They decided the destination last night, using a map of the church to detect approximate locations and identify the distance. The trace using Blood Stone was greater than they thought. It was great to be able to find a demon in a city that would only take five days to travel. Thane checked Antsy and let out a big exclamation.

    ¡°No movement has been found there yet. I guess there¡¯s a patient demon out there.¡±

    Thane ordered something to his guard and went somewhere in the evening. And they went on a demon hunt. One good thing was that Arin paid for all the expenses for the trip, arrows, and other equipment. The Astron was said to be the most popular denomination on the continent, and it seemed to have plenty of money. So this time, the arrows in the infinite arrow barrel are packed. Ed hasn¡¯t had a chance to fill it up after just using it, but now he could fill it up with high-quality arrows. Later, when he had a chance, he was going to make and use Hyun-chul¡¯s arrowheads. Of course, by using the money that belonged to the Astron Church. A day of hard work after leaving the city of Matte allowed him to arrive at the next village. It was a place where passers-by travelers could stay the night and sleep even with just a few coins because the village was not big. The chief of the village caught a sheep and some chickens to be served with alcohol thanks to the coins that Arin gave. They had a drinking party together for the first time. Doug, the guard/driver took one baked chicken outside and shared it with three other guards. Arin was a big eater unlike what she looked like. The sight of her eating a sheep by herself was almost admirable. Ed, on the other hand, was a small eater. The same goes for Thane, so they cut the lamb steaks and washed their mouths with honey. After such a brief meal, Thane opened his mouth.

    ¡°We¡¯ll be able to report on the situation in Antsy by tomorrow.¡±

    Thane had more skills than they thought. It was amazing to find out how many demons he killed, but Ed wondered how he knew where they could reach in the next few days. It must have been the same for Arin.

    ¡°How do you know that?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a trade secret.¡±

    Thane is a no-brainer in combat, but he had already been with the Pendrigan 16 years ago on the journey of catching the Great demon. It is amazing that a native of the Dalian kingdom can gather this much information about demons within the kingdom of Travia.

    ¡°It¡¯s hard for any demon to hide himself completely. Because they can¡¯t hide their instincts. So tomorrow we¡¯ll have a rough outline.¡± ¡°That¡¯s a relief.¡±

    Thane said as he walked to the bed his guard prepared.

    ¡°I¡¯m tired because I¡¯m old. I¡¯ll go to bed first.¡± ¡°Goodnight.¡±

    Thane was in a carriage all day long. Even if it wasn¡¯t running at a high speed, his body will be tired. Ed was almost worried that he might die early. When Thane laid down first, Ed organized the dishes. Arin help arrange the dishes and put them outside and went back in. Then Ed went outside with his bows and arrow barrel.

    ¡°Where are you going?¡± ¡°I¡¯m going to do some training before I go to bed.¡±

    Arin¡¯s eyes glistened at the words and brought out her weapons.

    ¡°Then I¡¯ll go with you.¡± ¡°Sure.¡±

    Behind the town hall was a large open space. When Arin arrived there, she pulled out a sword and began to strike. Watching her training, Ed pulled out his bow and shot an arrow at the tree behind the village hall. Ed relaxed when he saw the arrow stuck in the goal he wanted. Under no circumstances did tension help. Firing arrows work a lot better when you breathe and relax. Ed fired seven arrows in a row.

    Woossshh Wooosh!

    Ed was not satisfied when he saw where the arrow got stuck. His goal was to split the arrow he shot, but he broke two of the arrows he fired instead. The rest were stuck in the surrounding. Unfortunately, training does not end here. Ed now ran zigzag and fired an arrow. It flew into the spot he aimed. Arin failed to train properly by following the prophecy. She never skipped her training when she was with the other holy knights, but she often skipped now because she was busy resting after traveling with her horse. She would spend days making excuses for herself instead of training to be in the best shape. But Ed was different. She has already seen that his skills are remarkable. Even without the use of an ice bow, a relic-class equipment, the archer¡¯s ability itself has already reached top-class. She hasn¡¯t seen an archer like him yet. She was ashamed of herself when she saw him train like that. He was doing his best in training even after riding a horse all day long. Looking at the art of archery, she realized how hard he had to work. There was no time to be happy and complacent that Master Palladin had acknowledged him. His gladiatorial technique could not easily subdue the Tencram, which was only an intermediate demon. It is a long way from dealing with the Great Demon according to the prophecy. Realizing that, she began to wield her sword again. Master Palladin told her before ¡®Do everything you can with a single sword.¡¯ And her sword began to cut through the night air. After training, Ed had fired all 500 arrows and looked back at Arin as he went to retrieve the arrows stuck in a tree. At first, she seemed to be training basic swordsmanship, but now she was wielding a sword as if she had met a deadly rival. Realizing that she was truly training, Ed quietly retrieved his arrows. He couldn¡¯t pull the arrows that were stuck too deep into the tree. He tried to adjust as much as possible, but he managed to leave behind 15 arrows. Ed, who recovered his arrows, sat on one side of the vacant lot and watched Arin¡¯s swordsmanship. She seemed to be improving her skills when she trained in that way. That mindset alone brought her one step closer to the main character. It was attractive to be able to see the main character growing from the side.

    They left the village in the morning, but they couldn¡¯t avoid camping that night because they didn¡¯t reach the next village. And they could see Doug¡¯s camping skills. Two long poles were pulled from the roof of the wagon, and the cloth covering the roof of the wagon was spread and fixed to the pole. And when the cloth was lowered, a space was created to block the wind. While making room to rest, Ed has been looking for firewood with Arin. Doug made a fire, took out the pot he had into the wagon, put salted meat in it, chopped vegetables, and began to boil it with a few more spices. Thane opened his mouth as his glasses were glistening.

    ¡°One peculiarity of Antsy is that the Grant Elder has not come out of his bedroom since got married to his third wife.¡± ¡°Are there any other peculiarities?¡± ¡°So far, I have not found any other peculiarities.¡±

    Ed agonized for a moment and asked.

    ¡°Is there something special about the Grant Elder?¡± ¡°Oh, you think he has some purpose?¡±

    Ed¡¯s eyes turned on Arin.

    ¡°What was he doing when we caught the Deborah?¡± ¡°The Deborah was holding people alive. It was trying to bury them underground. But I didn¡¯t know what it was for.¡± ¡°One dug a tunnel, one tried giving birth, and the other has a purpose. If an intermediate demon was simply trying to suck a man¡¯s vitality, he would have targeted young people.¡±

    Thane nodded at the words.

    ¡°That makes sense. The thing that the Grant Elder usually carries is perfume. They make perfumes that the nobles love.¡± ¡°Perfume?¡±

    Arin was rather surprised because it was a product that she had never thought of. Then she tilted her head.

    ¡°Maybe the third wife is not an intermediate demon.¡± ¡°We¡¯ll leave the possibility open and investigate.¡±

    Thanks to Thane, who gets information without the Internet, he thought he could specify the demon while they were on their way. Ed knows how important information is, so he could guess why Pendrigan stayed with Thane until the end.

    ¡°The stew is ready.¡±

    Everyone gathered at Doug¡¯s words and took some stew. They wondered why there was so much stew, but soon realized the reason after seeing Arin eat. Ed took a spoonful of the stew and admired it. He didn¡¯t expect the stew to be that good since it was cooked outside, but it tasted better than he thought. This is one of the best foods he has eaten this year.

    ¡°It¡¯s so delicious.¡±

    It was natural for her to admire the taste like Ed. After having a conversation over stew, Thane went into the carriage and lay down, and Arin began swinging her sword by the campsite. Ed, who was looking at her swordsmanship, also grabbed the bow, aimed at a tree, and turned around and fired the arrow. When Ed saw a beast hit by a broken tree branch that was fired by his arrow, he prepared another arrow. And he was still aiming at the fallen beast. At the sight, Arin stopped wielding her sword and approached.

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡±

    Ed didn¡¯t answer, but still aimed at the fallen animal. When Arin felt something strange and looked at the animal, the body of the beast began to wriggle. Its back was wide open and its eyes were popped out. It tried to get back up with its hind legs and looked back at Ed and Arin. And they heard a voice.

    -I found you.

    Ed fired the arrow and hit the beast¡¯s eyeball again. The voice disappeared. Arin looked at it, closed her eyes for a moment, and opened her eyes again. She looked at the body of the dead beast that had blue shining eyes. Arin read the faint traces of the demon, looked at its trail. Then, Arin looked up at the sky and asked Ed.

    ¡°Ed, do you see that?¡±

    Ed looked at the sky at Arin¡¯s words and his face hardened. The moon in the sky was hidden by clouds. No, he thought it was a cloud at first, but it was getting bigger. What looked like clouds were wild animals. No, were not just normal animals, it was all a magic trick. It was hard to figure out.

    ¡°Arin! Protect Thane!¡±

    Arrows flew at a frightening speed from Ed¡¯s hand after he finished speaking. Flying spells began to fall like rain. At that time, there were beasts flying through the magic. They fell above Ed¡¯s head like a meteor. As Ed stepped back zigzag, the demons that had fallen like meteors were raising themselves. The lower-level demon, Benzel. It¡¯s was a flying demon. There were as many as ten lower-level demons and hundreds of beasts on their heads.

    ¡°Are you kidding me?¡±

    Ed fired a series of ice arrows. The Benzel demons strongest attack is the ¡®flying meteor attack¡¯. The most vulnerable moment is when it wraps your body with its wings. It may be scary for strangers to see ten demons with wings at the same time, but it was an opportunity for Ed. Ed¡¯s arrows were shot one after the other in the foreheads of 10 Benzel demons. There was no mana, but it was enough to freeze the heads of the Benzel demons.

    ¡°Thanks for the experience.¡±

 Chapter 24 - Nefthael

    Perhaps because he caught a bunch of low-level demons, his level went up by one level. He invested in his mana because it was lacking. Now he thinks he can handle the ice bow a lot better. The lower demon was easily caught, but the beasts were more troublesome. Hundreds of dangerous beasts, and there is a shortage of arrows. They were like waves, so no matter how fast Ed was, he could not catch them all. Although he could catch up to two or three at a time, but Ed had to avoid the waves of beasts. Ed flew sideways to avoid the waves of beasts. When a single wave swept through, about a hundred beasts fell from the sky like rain. Still, there were plenty of arrows. Then a blue hammer flew in from the carriage.

    Pkkkk Pkkkkk!

    A hammer flew high into the sky, smashing the beasts. The hammer paused for a moment and hit the beasts again on its way back.

    ¡°I want that function.¡±

    It¡¯s a simple function of flying and returning, but it was showing great power in dealing with the beasts. When it flew once and came back, it killed nearly 20 beasts. Numerous beasts were killed in a single attack, and the beasts that emerged in the air gathered like clouds again, this time creating a hole in the middle. When the moon was seen through the hole, it looked like black pupils. And then he heard a voice again.

    -Maybe it wasn¡¯t luck that killed my child. But you won¡¯t be able to sleep at night from now. Until the moment you die.

    Then the beasts scattered everywhere. There are still hundreds left, and Ed¡¯s impression hardened when he saw them. The beasts could be attacking again tomorrow. He may not be able to sleep every night if it continues to show up.

    ¡°What does it mean by ¡®my child¡¯?¡±

    Thane walked out of the wagon door. He saw the beasts on the floor and Benzel¡¯s dead body.

    ¡°Are you all right?¡± ¡°Yes, but I hope they¡¯re not going to attack again tonight.¡± ¡°Not tonight. But I¡¯m afraid they¡¯ll continue to bother us in the future.¡±

    Ed began retrieving arrows one by one from the bodies of the dead beasts. If this type of assault continues throughout Antsy city, he must take good care of his arrows. While Ed recovered the arrow, Arin piled up Benzel¡¯s body and burned him with holy water. While Benzel was turning into ashes, Doug made sure all the beasts on the ground were dead. So after the arrangement, the group gathered again in front of the bonfire, and Thane asked Ed.

    ¡°If a lower demon moved hundreds of beasts, this is the work of the Great demon. What power does the demon subordinate you killed use?¡±

    Ed knew that Thane had already guessed and asked who he had killed.

    ¡°He was a psychokinesis manipulator.¡± ¡°Psychokinesis ¡¤¡¤¡¤.¡±

    Thane looked up the demon book and made a firm impression. He said while showing the demon¡¯s pictures.

    ¡°That¡¯s one of the powers of the great demon Nefthael. You just killed her subordinate demon, so you¡¯d better assume she moved on somewhere else.¡±

    At Thane¡¯s words, Ed laughed in vain. He thought following Akalan would hold one of the main quests, so he really made a connection with the Great demon. He can meet a great demon who he doesn¡¯t know just by following Arin, but he also has a connection with Nefthael, the great demon. He doesn¡¯t know if he should be happy about it or sad. Ed realized it was because of himself and apologized to Arin.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I¡¯m supposed to help you with the prophecy, but I¡¯m giving more problems. I think Nefthael, the Great demon is after me. So I suggest you move separately.¡±

    Arin asked back with a straight face at his words.

    ¡°Are you thinking of hunting Nefthael?¡± ¡°At least I¡¯ll be able to sleep comfortably at night.¡±

    Arin burst into laughter at Ed¡¯s ambitious tone.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry I laughed. But my mission isn¡¯t just about following a prophecy. I had a chance to kill the beasts and demons.¡±

    Arin has returned to her original mission since she began training with Ed. She was given the chance to fight a demon every night. There was no reason for her to refuse. Thane burst into laughter at her words.

    ¡°What a true holy knight. What do you think?¡± ¡°I think it would be a great help if she was with us. I¡¯m just sorry about what happened.¡± ¡°I knew it when I was with Pendrigan. The fact people grow so much stronger when they work together. If that¡¯s what the holy knight Arin means, she should join us. Our journey may kill two great demons.¡±

    Thane¡¯s eyes glistened with some madness. Seeing that hatred toward demons, Ed gave him the answer he wanted.

    ¡°It won¡¯t end with just two.¡±

    When he heard Ed¡¯s answer, Thane burst into laughter.

    ¡°Hahahaha. It¡¯s great luck that I met you. I love it!¡±

    Said Thane, pleased, looking back at Ed and Arin.

    ¡°Rest in the wagon during the day. And at night, we can deal with demons and beasts. It¡¯s going to be hard, but we¡¯ll be able to stand it. No matter how evil they are, they won¡¯t be able to attack in the city, so we can choose a good place to prepare for the attack while camping.¡±

    At Thane¡¯s words, Ed made a grin. A life that changed day and night was like daily life for him as a gamer.

    No matter how much Nefthael is a great demon, it could not send more demons after losing this many tonight. It was not its job to send Ed and Arin beasts to disturb their night¡¯s sleep. Because of the preparation when deciding the next campsite, they were able to kill more than 200 beasts during the next night¡¯s attack. The number of beasts have been reduced to a measurable extent. As Ed recovered the arrow from the dead beast¡¯s body, he thought he could raise his level again. Each experience was not large, but it was plenty enough. Since it was dangerous if a nearby village was attacked, the group chose to camp only.

    Ed and Arin stayed up the first night and got on the wagon the second day. They had to sit side by side opposite Thane. Because Thane¡¯s luggage prevented Ed from sitting next to him. Arin quickly fell asleep. It was the first time that day and night changed, and they couldn¡¯t stand it because they spent the night nervously fighting the beasts. Ed didn¡¯t get tired easily thanks to his stamina. When he chased the demon, he stayed up all night for a few days, but he felt only mental fatigue, but his body was still light. Still, he didn¡¯t mean to waste the opportunity that Thane created for them. It was a carriage without suspension, so the rattle was severe, but he was able to fall asleep despite this inconvenience. Seeing Ed and Arin sleeping head to head, Thane opened the demon¡¯s book. If the Great demon Nefthael was an enemy, he had to know as much as he could about the demon. It¡¯s Ed and Arin¡¯s fight, but it¡¯s his job to help them put a knife into the Great demon¡¯s heart. He¡¯s been playing tricks for two days in a row, but his opponent is the demon. Even if it doesn¡¯t show up in person, there are more than one beasts it can send. If the dead were Prince Cliff, Nefthael wouldn¡¯t have put much effort into his position. It couldn¡¯t end like this. There must be some reason behind it. The sound of the book page turning was heard in the shaky carriage.

    There was no attack on the third day. However, he also could not sleep because he did not know when the attack would take place. Arin lit a bonfire, but she still looked tired. It was because she was not used to the life that changed day and night. Arin stared blankly at the bonfire and gave Ed a look. Ed was sharpening his arrowhead on a whetstone. The arrowheads that killed beasts had to be rebuilt. When she saw Ed sharpening each arrowhead, Arin pulled out her holy sword. Arin put her holy sword on the floor and leaned over to pray. The Holy Sword shone blue. Ed felt envious when he saw it. She was clearly different from him, who had to be groomed one step at a time. Thane opened up the demon¡¯s book while drinking the tea Doug made.

    ¡°I¡¯ve narrowed down the demons in Nefthael¡¯s genealogy. There are two intermediate demons left in the kingdom of Travia. There¡¯s a higher-level demon, but I don¡¯t think he¡¯s going to do anything for now.¡±

    Ed put the arrow he was working on in the arrow barrel and looked at the demon.

    ¡°One human being, and one medium-level demon.¡±

    If you look at a higher-level demon outside the box, it is just one human being and one medium-level demon. After fighting the intermediate demons, he found it not too difficult to deal with them. In addition, if he gains a little more experience, he will be at level 20. The level at which he can obtain new skills. Hunting will be much easier from then.

    ¡°Intermediate demons won¡¯t be difficult unless they both show up at the same time.¡± ¡°I know you two haven¡¯t gone all out. You didn¡¯t have to go all out against the beasts. But keep in mind the possibility of two intermediate demons appearing as a result of a mission.¡±

    Ed said, looking back at Arin.

    ¡°If there are two intermediate demons, would you let me kill them?¡±

    Arin looked at Ed again. He could read the confidence that she could win even if she faced two intermediate demons. As expected, he had a lot to learn.

    ¡°As much as you want.¡±

    Thane took the demon¡¯s back and said,

    ¡°The city of Antsy still says there¡¯s nothing out there except for the Grant Elder. The third wife is most likely a human form of evil.¡±

    Arin didn¡¯t say anything else.

    ¡°We¡¯ll see when we get there.¡±

    Her ability to find demons was amazing, so it wouldn¡¯t be hard to identify once she met her.

    A night before reaching the city of Antsy. In preparation for the attack of the beasts, he settled in an open space in the forest. In order to prepare for the beasts flying from the sky, Ed pulled a ball of thread out of his bag. With leather gloves on, he handled the thread carefully and pulled it tightly to the surrounding trees. Ed was ready to use thread at ankle height and returned. Arakra was one of the lower demons, a spider-type demon known for its tough and sharp web. It could not be used as a bow string, but it could be installed around and used as a trap. Although it is rarely used, one of the intermediate demons shown by Thane was a wolf-type demon capable of transforming into a human being. Esir abducts human women, commits crimes, and makes them give birth to their cubs. It was a demon that leads a pack of wolves. When she returned to the carriage to prepare for the demon¡¯s appearance, Arin was praying in front of her weapon. Today¡¯s the only chance before entering Antsy. Perhaps if there was an attack, it would be today, so she was prepared.

    Oooooh.

    Howling was heard not far away, Ed said while preparing an arrow.

    ¡°Arin, I¡¯ll kill them.¡±

    Arin replied, feeling relaxed at Ed¡¯s words, tapping her shield with the holy sword.

    ¡°Kill as many as you want.¡±

    It was not a joke, but Arin seemed to take his words as a joke. So Ed decided to stay alert.

 Chapter 25 - Taste

    Esir is famous for giving birth to many cubs. If they don¡¯t catch it quickly, it¡¯ll lead a hundred cubs later. Like during the demon¡¯s Age 1, it meets Druid and they fought like hell. How many cubs did this Esir give birth to? Anyway, they shouldn¡¯t think of just one Esir alone. The medium-level demon, Disero, is a chariot with a skin harder than ironclad and two horns. Ed wasn¡¯t sure if he could kill it even if he were to fight it in person. Ed waited with his arrow and bow. With the howling of Esir, the cries of wolves were heard everywhere. Then they heard a low breath and a running sound. They saw Esir¡¯s cubs shaped like a wolf, but its size as already in the realm of beast. The yellow eyes of the cub shone in the dark, and the number seemed to be fifty pairs.

    ¡°That¡¯s a lot.¡±

    Esir impregnated many women. And those woman gave birth to a demon baby. Ed looked around and shouted.

    ¡°Esir!¡±

    At his cry, yellow eyes that were glistening in the dark, slowly receded and a man with a subtle shining body appeared from the dark. It was a beautiful man that would make even the fairies cry. Esir appeared as a human form and smiled at Ed.

    ¡°Nefthael told me to tear your limbs apart and bring them to him. You ruined the world that we¡¯ve been preparing for a long time.¡±

    Ed measured the distance between them. The distance was so far that the arrow wouldn¡¯t work. But he won¡¯t know for sure until he tried, so he shot an arrow. Perhaps because the arrow was coming far away, Esir was able to reach out and grab it. The demon grabbed his arrow without fear, perhaps because he had never seen an ice arrow before.

    ¡°Are you here alone?¡± ¡°I told him that I can handle you on my own. But he wanted me to take this guy along with me.¡±

    Standing on all fours, a three-meter-tall medium-level demon named Disero also appeared next to him. The black skin looked like ironclad, and was not seen properly in the dark. Ed put his arrow back on the bow and said,

    ¡°I think you¡¯re the coward of all the demons, Esir.¡±

    Esir¡¯s face looked pissed. Then he shouted with open arms.

    ¡°I¡¯ll take you back alive!¡±

    The wolves rushed in unison at his cry. As many as 50 wolves rushed in and fell down.

    Awhoooooo!

    The wolves screaming and falling were severed from their ankles. Some of them died when they were caught in the web. They died as fast as they bravely ran, but some survived even though their ankles were cut off. Those wolves took an arrow in their heads one by one. Perhaps because they were an intermediate demons cub, they had more experience than the beasts. Today, he thought his level would rise if he could finish them off by killing those intermediate demons. It took less than three minutes for all of Esir¡¯s baby wolves to die. Esir was stuck when he saw the cubs whose legs were cut off in an instant and their heads being crushed to death. He couldn¡¯t move when he watched the scene unfold. As such, however, he was unable to contain his anger.

    ¡°My, my cubs!¡±

    Ed replied back while preparing an arrow on his bow.

    ¡°I don¡¯t keep anyone alive.¡±

    Esir¡¯s spine popped up, his snouts popped out, and his head shoots up into the sky. Ed saw it and fired an arrow. He fired an ice arrow with mana. Perhaps thanks to the investment of leveling-up his Mana, his power has become stronger. Instead of Esir, who was transforming, Disero ran in front of him and punched the arrow with its horns. At this distance, he was already responding to intermediate demons. However, the cold air poured over Disero¡¯s face and froze its eyeballs.

    Grrrrr!

    Arin¡¯s hammer flew toward Disero as he screamed and ran wild. With the divine power in his mouth.

    Boooom!

    Disero had iron-clad skin, so it instinctively swung its horns toward the hammer. But its horns cracked. In the meantime, Esir had completed his transformation and ran over Disero. Ed laughed in vain as he saw him stepping on the bodies of his cubs. He couldn¡¯t believe what was going on. Arrows flew one after another from Ed¡¯s bow.

    Kakakakan!

    However, Esir¡¯s long-grown nails seemed to sparkle, and all the arrows were thrown to the ground. As he turned into a werewolf, his speed seemed to have increased. Ed thought he couldn¡¯t win against his agility. However, if he sets a goal, he would be able to deal with it simply.

    ¡°Arin, I¡¯ll deal with it.¡±

    Ed jumped into the Arakra¡¯s web. If Ed made the wrong move and accidentally jumped on the string, even he could have cut his ankles. But Ed could read the spacing of the traps. So he was able to step into the dangerous place, and when Esir saw him, he stepped on the tree. If Esir falls by mistake, it¡¯ll break into pieces. Ed smiled when he saw Esir running toward the tree. Esir has avoided a few arrows and become very cocky. He smiles and narrows the distance as if he is going to chase him and chop him into pieces. Ed fired five arrows in a row. Esir lightly cut out the arrows. It was still strong enough to cut out the arrows, but one arrow bent up Esir¡¯s claw and got stuck.

    It¡¯s a big hit.

    The last arrow was not from the infinite arrow barrel, but an arrow from the ic arrow barrel. It was an arrow that could not be prevented. The cold air was weak because it was shot without time to inject mana, but its movement was clearly slowed down. Esir approached faster rather than stepping down because he was hurt. He seemed to be approaching faster because he thought there was nothing more stupid than losing, but he chose the wrong opponent. Ed started shooting arrows without further backing down. Seven shots in one breath. Two of the flying arrows hit his shoulder again, and finally Esir, who narrowed the distance, swung his claws at Ed. In two attacks, Ed tilted his head back and avoided all attacks. He shoots more arrows and one of them stuck in Esir¡¯s chest. Ed fired three more ice arrows and stepped back when he saw Esir wielding his last power. Allowing access was to prevent or avoid Esir, and now he doesn¡¯t need to be close. Ed stepped back and fired an arrow which was lodged in Esir¡¯s forehead. Esir collapsed weakly onto Arakra¡¯s web and it cut off his neck.

    There was no time to enjoy the rush of experience. Even though Arakra¡¯s web killed him, Arin was still blocking Disero with a shield and hammering him down. Perhaps because he had already dealt with a medium-level monster named Deborah, it was a wise choice to swing a hammer against Disero wearing a hard iron glove. She already broke one of Disero¡¯s legs. But she thought it would take a little longer to kill him completely. So it¡¯s Ed¡¯s job to cut off Desero¡¯s breath as promised. Ed pulled out an arrow from the Ice barrel and began to gather mana. A definite blow. Disero happens to be blind and doesn¡¯t know what Ed is doing. As Ed focused his mana, the arrowheads of the arrows that were hanging on the bow began to glow white. Seeing the light, Arin leaned under Disero¡¯s chin, wielding her sword to raise its chin. Ed¡¯s arrow flew into his mouth as Disero¡¯s jaw turned. As the arrow disappeared into his mouth, and Disero¡¯s body hardened. Even if he was surrounded by ironclad, his stomach was not hard enough. An arrow filled with cold air froze Disero¡¯s guts and body. There was a flood of experiences. Ed¡¯s level has risen. Level 20. Ed hummed inside and raised his agility. He was in a happy dilemma about which skill he wanted to raise, but he didn¡¯t choose right now. Arin looked back at Ed as she saw Disero.

    ¡°How was it?¡±

    Ed gave her a thumbs up. Thanks to the opportunity she created, he easily killed Disero.

    ¡°It was the best.¡±

    Arin smiled at Ed¡¯s words. In fact, with her weapon, the game against Disero was getting longer. Leather, such as black ironclad could not be cut properly even with a holy sword. She beat it with a hammer, but it would¡¯ve taken a long time to kill Disero. And he wasn¡¯t sure if her sacred power would be maintained until then. It was a more difficult demon to deal with than Deborah, but Ed caught it at once. It didn¡¯t matter who took the demon¡¯s life. As long as the demon stopped breathing. Seeing Ed recover Arakra¡¯s web wearing gloves, Arin poured holy water on the intermediate demons and prayed. Watching the bodies of intermediate demons burning in the torch disappear, Arin felt her sacred power becoming stronger. The torch is an offering to God. Astron gave her divine power as a reward, and her divine power was getting stronger. All this was thanks to Ed. With him, she was able to burn many demons with the torch. She killed more demons since she met him than ever before. Astron¡¯s glory was with them.

    When Ed returned from recovering Arakra¡¯s web, Thane approached.

    ¡°This is an irreversible relationship with Nefthael.¡±

    They killed both the lower and intermediate demons in Nefthael¡¯s genealogy. Now all that remains is the higher demon itself. No matter who Nefthael was, it won¡¯t be easy for it to move. But Nefthael was determined to kill Ed. And as Thane said, someone has to die.

    ¡°All demons and I are in an irreversible relationship anyway.¡±

    Was that funny? Thane burst into laughter as he choked, and Arin looked at Ed with admiration. Ed thought for a moment and asked.

    ¡°Do you happen to know where Nefthael lives?¡± ¡°The Great demons always hide. The moment their location is discovered, the holy knights of all the churches will go kill it. The demon itself is strong, but it can¡¯t handle a full attack. So there¡¯s a saying that the hardest part of hunting the Great demon is finding it.¡±

    Ed mumbled.

    ¡°It¡¯s not my cup of tea to be beaten like this.¡±

    The number of experiences gained recently is higher than the number of experiences gained in the past year. The higher the level, the more experience he needs, and the faster the level-up seemed to be like the snow bowling effect. But being swayed like this is not his taste. He was going to find the demon and make it pay for making him lose his sleep. And he¡¯ll have to put an arrow on its forehead.

    ¡°Thane.¡± ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± ¡°Please find the Nefthael.¡±

    Thane smiled pleased at his words.

    ¡°I¡¯ll try.¡±

    The woman, who was watching the rain falling outside the window with her hands behind her back, opened her mouth.

    ¡°Sonna is dead.¡±

    The eyes of the man standing silently behind the woman shook. The woman turned slowly toward the man. And said in a dry voice.

    ¡°The man who killed her is a demon hunter. His name is Ed. He appears to be a survivor of the elite Ranger Unit Crowe from the Kingdom of Dalia.¡±

    The woman, who was watching the man repeat his name, and looked out the window again. The sound of heavy rain knocking on the roof sounded particularly gloomy today.

    ¡°Bring his neck to honor her death.¡±

    The man disappeared without a sound or sign. The woman watched the rainfall outside the window for a long time with her hands behind her back.

 Chapter 26 - Scent Party

    Doug¡¯s voice was heard in the rattling wagon.

    ¡°I can see Antsy.¡±

    Ed opened his eyes. Arin, who was sleeping on his shoulder, woke up and turned her head while wiping her mouth.

    ¡°You awake?¡±

    Ed looked out the window of the wagon. The long wall caught his eye, and he could see the sun was going down.

    ¡°It¡¯s been a while.¡± ¡°But I¡¯m glad we arrived before sunset. No matter how much Nefthael wants to disturb your night sleep, it¡¯s hard to send beast or demons beyond the walls, so we can relax today.¡± ¡°So I guess we don¡¯t need to go back to sleep. Let¡¯s go visit the Grant Elder first.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think that¡¯s necessary. The Grant Elder and his third wife entered their castle today.¡±

    He knew they were getting information, but he was wondering how they found out about the carriage heading for Antsy. He thought it would be hard to meet him right now if they were in the Castle. With Ed¡¯s ability now, he can kill the Grant Elder behind everyone¡¯s back. No, if he was determined, he can kill the Grant Elder and all those who try to stop him. But he might be wanted for the rest of his life. If the Grant Elder is killed, the kingdom will pay a bounty and chase him until he dies, but it is possible for Ed to survive if he accepts the hassle. However, he wasn¡¯t that bad to break the laws of this world. Thane said with a smile.

    ¡°So let¡¯s take a rest today. It¡¯s not that we can¡¯t enter Castle for good. But since the nobles will hold a banquet today, shouldn¡¯t we stay low?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right.¡±

    He knew enough about the nobles now. They are people that needed to be avoided.

    ¡°The city of Antsy is so powerful and is run by the Grant Elder. They mainly produce a lot of perfume, but they are good at making alcohol and cigarettes too. Among them, I like a drink called Pretian, which smells like a prean flower.¡±

    Come to think of it, the city of Antsy is a place you don¡¯t stop by during the demon¡¯s Age 1, but there¡¯s a drink called Pretian. Ed had a chance to try Pretian thanks to Thane. In fact, he rarely drank in real life. He only enjoyed champagne, but now that he was here, he doesn¡¯t have many things to enjoy, so he was enjoying drinking. As Ed nodded, Arin said, warming up lightly.

    ¡°Then I¡¯ll stop by the church and report on Nefthael¡¯s work. Where do you think you¡¯re going?¡± ¡°Come to the place where the ¡®sun never goes down¡¯. It¡¯s the tallest building in the city of Antsy, so it won¡¯t be hard to find.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll do that.¡±

    After passing through the gates of Antsy, Arin briefly left her party. They didn¡¯t worry because they knew the ability she had. At least she won¡¯t be in danger in the castle. Ed got off where the carriage and looked at the seven-story tower. He thought they put too much effort into making that tower.

    ¡°It¡¯s a favorite place for aristocrats. Let¡¯s go.¡±

    Thane was right. It was different from normal inns. A woman in a maid¡¯s uniform approached. The maid¡¯s uniforms found in the Castle looked refined. Ed smiled at the maid¡¯s short skirt because it reminded him of a Maid¡¯s Cafe.

    ¡°The higher the floor, the more expensive it is.¡±

    Then Thane walked up the stairs without hesitation. Ed followed him and did not look out the window until he reached the highest point. Over the wall, he saw the sunset leaning far into the field. A woman in a dress approached Thane on the seventh floor. It was a woman with a blue dress and a fan covering her mouth. The woman approached and held out her left hand to Thane. Thane kissed her left hand.

    ¡°Long time no see, Mrs. Grant.¡±

    Green eyes and sharp ears. Is he married to a fairy? He said Grant had three wives. Ed guessed he was not an ordinary man.

    ¡°What brings you here? Did you find any sign of the demon?¡±

    Mrs. Grant¡¯s question only gave Thane a smile.

    ¡°I¡¯m just looking for a trace. Mrs. Grant, you haven¡¯t changed even after 16 years.¡± ¡°I guess it¡¯s because I have peace in my mind since I¡¯m in a solo battle.¡±

    Are you kidding me? Elves basically live a long life in their 20s. The setting is to grow fast and live more than 200 years with a 20-year-old body. It was ridiculous for her to make such a joke, but the woman¡¯s eyes turned to Ed.

    ¡°When are you planning on introducing me to him?¡±

    Thane introduced Ed.

    ¡°This is my friend named Ed. He¡¯s so good that he¡¯s called a demon hunter.¡±

    Ed looked slightly down.

    ¡°I¡¯m Ed.¡± ¡°Nice to meet you. I¡¯m Meryl Grant, the Grant Elder¡¯s first wife.¡±

    Ed stared blankly at Meryl¡¯s greeting, sticking out his left hand. She¡¯s not asking him to kiss her where Thane kissed her, is she?

    ¡°Stop fooling around.¡±

    Meryl burst into a clear smile and offered him a seat.

    ¡°Sit comfortably.¡±

    When Thane and Ed sat down by the window, Meryl sat down and gestured. An employee in a maid¡¯s suit brought alcohol in a purple bottle. Thane was pleased to see it.

    ¡°A 17-year-old Pretian.¡± ¡°We have a nice guest, so I must offer a nice drink.¡±

    Meryl opened the cap of the bottle herself and the fragrant scent of flowers spread through the hall. It¡¯s been a long time since he smelled something so nice. She filled the glass with alcohol and handed it to Ed, who savored the scent. It was a scent that conveys the thrill of a tingle. Meryl put down the glass and said.

    ¡°If you drink this and kiss someone, that person will get drunk on the scent.¡±

    Ed was amazed to see her mouth smell like flowers. His mouth was smelling the same. Was she trying to make him drunk and smell like flowers? Ed held out more cups without saying a word, and Meryl smiled and filled them. He was also satisfied with emptying the glass without any side dishes. It was such a good alcohol that side dishes would interfere with the taste of alcohol. While Ed was sober, Thane touched the glass and asked.

    ¡°I heard the Grant Elder has a third wife now.¡±

    Meryl burst into laughter.

    ¡°Your ears are still bright.¡± ¡°What kind of woman is she?¡± ¡°A woman with red hair and passion. Grant¡¯s wife, who is well versed in perfume manufacturing. She rarely comes out because she is busy developing a new perfume.¡± ¡°A new perfume?¡± ¡°Yes, the new product was successful and Grant invited a local aristocrat to present the product.¡±

    Ed put down his glass and stood up. When Meryl looked back at him, Ed raised his hand as if he was okay and said,

    ¡°I thought of something to do for a while.¡±

    When Ed and Thane made eye contact, he nodded slowly and replied.

    ¡°I¡¯ll be drinking here, so go do your business.¡± ¡°Sure.¡±

    Ed bowed to Meryl and left. Ed came out and looked at the castle. Perfume made by a suspected demon. And today the scent party. Something smelled. Ed headed straight for the Castle. Ed his silently into the shadows of the building on the street as the sunset set. Ed wore a black leather coat and ran without making a sound of footsteps, and leaned against the Castle wall, where people couldn¡¯t see him. Ed was not easily seen hiding in the shadows. Ed looked briefly at the castle wall. Some of the lords live in large mansions, and others live in castles with separate walls. Usually, people living in castles are particularly demanding lords. Those who value pedigree and who don¡¯t want other aristocrats constantly looking down on them.

    Ed waited there for a moment, catching his breath. The sunset was long, but as it went completely westward, and there was a deep darkness. Ed climbed up the ground, put his finger on a stone protruding from the wall, and jumped up to the wall. Ed lowered his posture and looked around. Those who were patrolling with torches along the wall caught his eyes. Considering the distance from the torch, now was a good time to infiltrate. Ed did not hesitate to jump off the wall and pass the training ground. Then he listened with his back against the wall of the castle. The structure of castles are mostly similar. If the nobles were to be invited to an event, they would be in a banquet hall. Ed looked around the castle and began to find a place to look around the banquet hall. When Ed found an open window on the second floor, he jumped in and listened to the wall in the hallway. His senses were naturally rising as his levels rose. He could see farther away and hear smaller sounds. Ed, awakening his senses, found the most tumultuous place. When Ed heard a distant sound, he moved on. A two-story hallway overlooking the banquet hall was found, but a soldier was standing in front of it. Ed agonized for a moment and then rushed at him. All it takes is to jump out of the shadow of the corridor and reach the soldier. Ed reached him. He was already slapping the soldier on the chin as he turned his head. Ed opened the door and went in after hitting the soldier, whose jaw shook and eyes relaxed. Then, he hid him in the corner of the hallway without making a sound.

    He was in the hallway on the second floor overlooking the banquet hall. Ed looked at those who were gathered there. They said they gathered the nobles, and the men were gathering on one side and smoking cigars with alcohol, and on one side, women were gathering and laughing and talking with their mouths covered with fans. The atmosphere was good to see. It looked like the scent party had started yet. Ed examined the state of alert. Standing at the entrance to the banquet hall were knights, and knights in armor stood behind the aristocracy in two. Even if they are a rural knight, 20 of them are gathered. Ed listened attentively to their stories. There must be Grant and his third wife among them. There was a man standing at the center of the story of men smoking cigars. A man named Grant. They said he had three wives, so Ed wondered what was special about him. But he was just a middle-aged man with a smiling face, and there was nothing particularly different. After identifying the Grant Elder, Ed turned to find Mrs. Grant, who was suspected of being a demon. Having remembered that she has red hair, Ed was able to quickly find her while looking at the place where the women gathered. The woman who is leading the story of the ladies with her hair up and her neckline exposed. Every little gesture and eye contact could be seen. A woman who attracts both men and women.

    There is a name that comes to mind. Philia, the demon of fascination. An intermediate demon who fascinates people and extorts their vitality. But Ed wasn¡¯t sure. When he was thinking about what to do, Grant got up from his seat and tapped the champagne glass lightly with a teaspoon. As everyone¡¯s eyes were focused, Grant said with a smiling face.

    ¡°I would like to take this opportunity to thank Lord Amet for lending me the banquet hall for the scenting of our new product, which will be released at the top of our list.¡±

    Grant looked down at the man. An aristocrat called Lord Amet. Ed could tell by his face what an obstinate aristocrat he was. It is certainly a great thing that such a nobleman lent them the banquet hall.

    ¡°I¡¯d like to introduce our guests to the ¡®Preas¡¯, which is made by concentrating the fragrance of the Prean flowers and a total of 36 flowers.¡±

    Grant gestured and his third wife approached and stood next to him. At the entrance to the banquet hall, accompanied by two knights, the chief was carrying a small bottle of crystal on the tray. Inside, Ed looked at the amber liquid and thought for a moment. If she¡¯s really a Philia demon and she¡¯s made that perfume, she must have put something else in there too. If Ed couldn¡¯t stop this scenting party, something bad was going to happen. Ed quietly prepared an arrow on his bow. It would have been nice to bring Arin, but even if he didn¡¯t, he decided to trust his instincts. Ed looked at Mrs. Grant with his bow pulled to the full. Her eyes were on the perfume bottle. But she was also smoking cigars at the place where she was having a scenting party. Does it mean that the perfume is strong enough to overpower the scent of cigars? Or does she have an ulterior motive? Ed read Mrs. Grant¡¯s lust in her eyes and fired an arrow at her just because of his gut feeling.

 Chapter 27 - Philia

    After finishing her report at Astron Church, Arin visited the place where the ¡®sun never goes down¡¯. It wasn¡¯t hard to find. The seven-story tower was the only one in the castle, so it naturally caught her eye. They can sleep and rest at night like a normal person after a long time. Today, she planned on trying the drink ¡®Pretian¡¯ that Thane mentioned and rest. She had been hunting demons every day since the day she met Ed. She enjoyed the growth in every moment, but they never talked about anything personal. She was curious about Ed¡¯s story. She respected him enough to be curious about his upbringing. What kind of man he was, what does he think of during the demon hunt. Alcohol brings out a person¡¯s true feelings. And she was confident that she had higher alcohol tolerance than anyone else. She¡¯s had a history of knocking down all the senior holy knights. So she was going to get him drunk and listen to his true feelings. When she arrived at the place where the ¡®sun never goes down¡¯ with a light step, a woman in a maid suit approached and bowed to her.

    ¡°Are you Arin?¡± ¡°Yes, that¡¯s right.¡± ¡°Thain is waiting for you. Follow me.¡±

    Arin followed her up to the top floor, and she could see a fairy woman drinking with Thane.

    ¡°Oh, you¡¯re here¡±

    Arin approached them and asked.

    ¡°What about Ed?¡± ¡°He went out for a while.¡± ¡°He has something to see?¡± ¡°There is a newly released perfume scent party by my third wife of the Grant Elder today.¡±

    Arin was surprised. But before she had the chance to react, Thane introduced the woman sitting next to him.

    ¡°This is Meryl Grant, the first wife of the Grant Elder. She¡¯s also the owner of where the ¡®sun never goes down¡¯

    Arin thought Ed wasn¡¯t here because he went to a scenting party. But if it¡¯s a scenting party, it¡¯s a place where royals gather. She was surprised that Ed didn¡¯t take her with him to identify the demon. Arin looked slightly down on when he was introducing Grant¡¯s first wife.

    ¡°May Astron¡¯s glory be with you. I just thought of something I need to do. Let¡¯s drink later.¡±

    Just because she goes now doesn¡¯t mean she can enter the residence. But she couldn¡¯t just drink here and feel nervous. Meryl said with a smile in her eyes when she saw Arin.

    ¡°What¡¯s the big deal?¡±

    Thane smiled at the question and lifted the glass.

    ¡°Do you have any more alcohol?¡±

    Meryl beckoned the question, and another bottle of pretian came out.

    Ed didn¡¯t shoot the arrow with all his might. He couldn¡¯t let the demon die without a proper response. So it was an arrow shot with moderate force, but Mrs. Grant looked up as soon as the arrow crossed the second floor and entered the banquet hall. Her eyes, which were full of aspiration, looked at Ed. Her eyes got bigger when she saw the arrow, and she smiled. That short moment. Ed was sure. That woman. She¡¯s a real demon. She turned slightly and let the arrow aim for her left shoulder. She screamed with an arrow stuck in her left shoulder.

    ¡°Aaahh!¡±

    All eyes were on her at her scream. She collapsed in Grant¡¯s arms with an arrow, and people looked around in unison.

    ¡°It¡¯s an ambush!¡±

    These people here are nobles. The knights who were guarding them drew weapons in unison at the sudden arrow and looked around to find the assassin. Ed, who was hiding in the shadow of the door to the hallway on the second floor, saw the Grand Elder and the fallen woman making eye contact with the chamberlain as everyone looked around. He realized when he saw the chamberlain reaching out and trying to open the lid of the perfume bottle. That perfume bottle shouldn¡¯t be opened. They were still wary of their surroundings because they have yet to find the assassin who shot the arrow. Ed fired another arrow, ready to be discovered. The arrow penetrated the neck of the chamberlain, who was about to open the bottle of perfume. This time, it was an arrow that went all out and made no mistakes.

    ¡°It¡¯s from the second floor!¡±

    One of the knights guarding the nobles remained and the other knights jumped up one by one. Ed prepared for a moment as he saw ten knights running. In public, Philia the demon did not show her true self. If her life reached a dangerous point, she would definitely show her true self, but now she was turning over the situation by being hit by an arrow. If she fails to reveal that she is the demon, Ed is likely to be dragged away under the stigma of a man who committed attempted murder by infiltrating a banquet of nobles. Ed saw those running up the stairs to the second floor and those jumping up to the railing on the second floor. He didn¡¯t mean to blame them for protecting the nobles they served. Ed shot an arrow at those who jumped. They were able to cut off the arrow with their swords because Ed didn¡¯t go all out. However, it was inevitable that they had lost the strength to jump and they fell. Ed ran for the railing on the second floor as they fell. He tried to get away behind sight. But when Ed jumped to the chandelier of the banquet hall, he drew attention from all the people gathered in the banquet hall. Ed shot an ice arrow from the ice arrow barrel while floating in the air. When Grant saw it, he hugged his wife reflexively and covered her with his back. Ed didn¡¯t know Grant would voluntarily stop the arrow. It was the other way around. Ed thought that she might use Grant as her shield.

    So this time he didn¡¯t just shoot an arrow. He used the skills he gained at level 20. Mana consumption was quite large, but the effect is certain. Arrow Control. He could not control it indefinitely and could control it for only two seconds with one shot. After two seconds, it took so much mana that it was better to shoot a new arrow. Two seconds. Considering the speed at which the arrow flies, being able to steer the direction of the arrow for two seconds was a great advantage. Not only can he catch the opponent¡¯s guard, but there is no exception if he is the one behind the obstacle. Ed saw Grant covering her body and controlled the arrow as if a snake were riding over his shoulder. Ed was after Mrs. Grant¡¯s neck. Mrs. Grant raised her arm to block the arrow in the meantime, but two seconds are longer than he thought. Sitting lightly on the chandelier, Ed continued to control the arrow. Feeling the arrow digging deeper, Mrs. Grant¡¯s eyes changed. If it goes on like this, it¡¯s going to be a pain in the back for her. Seeing the cold arrowhead, she raised her hand and held it.

    Gggggkk.

    She had the power to crush the arrowheads. Only her hands turned black to exert that power. The penetration force was used while penetrating the arm, so it could not pierce the palm of the demon¡¯s hand. However, the sight of her hand changing was bound to be seen by Grant, who wanted to protect her. Will he be there for her even though he knows she¡¯s the demon? If so, Grant is also a demon follower. Knights shouted at Ed hanging from the chandelier.

    ¡°Who is that?¡± ¡°There¡¯s no place to run! Come down!¡±

    Ed smirked at the voices of the screaming knights. Then he stood on the chandelier. The Grant Elder opened his mouth for the first time when he saw Ed standing balanced on the shaky chandelier.

    ¡°How dare you come to my banquet and make a scene! What are you doing? Bring him down!¡±

    At Grant¡¯s cry, soldiers were seen entering the banquet hall with bows. Ed saw Grant. Will he protect her even though he knows that his wife is the demon? Then Ed will have to get out of here. If not, Ed can kill her. Grant screamed and stepped back as the soldiers prepared their arrows.

    ¡°You, who are you?¡±

    Grant¡¯s cry drew people¡¯s attention. The third wife, whose skin was getting blue because of the cold arrow stuck in her wrist and shoulder, was trying to stand up. She pulled the arrow out from her shoulder and twisted it. The people around her must have felt strange because she was acting so nonchalantly, so she looked at Ed and the Grant Elder. Grant saw the eyes of the nobles, Ed, and his third wife. Punishment should be imposed on those who ruined their banquet, but what is happening in front of them was not something to be underestimated.

    ¡°Grant. What¡¯s going on?¡±

    Grant pointed at his third wife and said,

    ¡°I just saw her hand turn black and block the arrow. Like the hands of the demon.¡±

    The word demon kept everyone¡¯s nerves on edge here. The nobles withdrew to the gate, and the knights slowly began to retreat, escorting them. Mrs. Grant¡¯s gaze turned to Ed, standing on the chandelier, where everyone was focused. She licked her lips with her tongue sticking out as she looked at Ed with a coquettish look.

    ¡°What¡¯s your name?¡±

    Her voice loosened the eyes of those gathered in the banquet hall. Seeing as their tension has gone down, it seemed that the Philia demon was playing tricks. As much as she sucks people¡¯s vitality, she¡¯s a demon who usually fascinates people. She doesn¡¯t have much pure fighting power. Ed looked down and rubbed his ear. Seeing the necklace on his chest shining, it seemed that Aaron¡¯s token endured her fascination. Then there¡¯s nothing to drag on. Not all memories of being enchanted disappear. Even if he kills her here, people will remember that she was the demon. When Ed shot an arrow from the chandelier, Mrs. Grant raised her hand and tried to snatch the arrow.

    Pkkk!

    At first, she might have deliberately put her shoulder to the arrow because the arrow wasn¡¯t too fast, but the arrow Ed shot with all his might has a different speed and strength. She tried to grab it with her hand, but the arrowhead has already hit her in the middle of the forehead. An attack that would have penetrated her head if he were a little late. Black energy began to emerge from her body, where her head had been tilted back. Ed prepared another arrow and focused his mana on it. If she shows her true self, he will win with this one shot. Ed, who pulled the white shining arrow as much as he could, jumped back when he saw the tail flying in the black energy.

    Scoop.

    Her tail snapped the chandelier cord at once. Ed, who was jumping back to the floor, realized that she was not after him. Why did she go after the chandelier? Then he saw the falling chandelier hit a bottle of perfume and fired an arrow. Ed¡¯s arrow got stuck in the perfume bottle and froze the surroundings.

    Boooom!

    The cold air, which was almost strong enough to create ice columns, spread out in all directions and extinguished all the lights in the banquet hall. It seemed like she was trying to break the bottle of perfume, but the bottle itself froze and her plan fell apart. The power of the cold air sweeping the banquet hall, where all the black smoke flew away, stood a demon with purple skin and long torn eyes. There was a demon with a long tail. Intermediate demon Philia laughed in vain at Ed.

    ¡°Hahaha. My 10-year plan failed so vainly?¡±

    Ed doesn¡¯t know what that was, but that perfume in the bottle was not an ordinary thing, considering that the demon had worked on it for 10 years. Philia¡¯s body trembled.

    ¡°I¡¯ll rip your limbs and make you my pet!¡±

    Philia gathered her mana and tried to charm Ed with her red eyes. There is no human being who can resist voices, but Ed can withstand her eyes. She intended on cutting his limbs after enchanting him.

    Pkkk.

    But suddenly, her world turned black. And terrible pain comes in.

    ¡°Ahhhh!¡±

    Two arrows were stuck where Philia¡¯s eyes belong.

 Chapter 28 - Responsibility

    When all the lights in the banquet hall were turned off due to the cold air, he shot two arrows when he saw two red eyes. When the red eyes disappeared, Ed took out an ice arrow and hung it on the bow. He can¡¯t see his opponent because he¡¯s in the dark, but he could clearly tell which one of them was Philia. Her tail could fit half of the banquet hall. Ed was now in her area, and most were in her area except for a few nobles who fled to the door. Before Ed shot the arrow again, Philia¡¯s tail, which was screaming, swept the banquet hall in a circle. Grant and some nobles were not far from her and were about to get hit by her tail. Ed could not help others because they were far away, but he was able to throw Grant into the air. When Grant¡¯s body floated into the air, Philia¡¯s tail swept the spot where Grant was standing. And Ed was able to avoid the flying tail by laying on the floor.

    Crrrkk.

    He heard something being cut, but Ed had no time to care about it. His bow had been set up before he laid on the floor. The arrow that flew in the dark was stuck in Philia¡¯s knee. Her knees were smashed because of the cold arrow that penetrated through her knees and recoiled back. Ed rolled back as soon as his back touched the floor. It was a smooth back roll as planned from the time he threw Grant up in the air, and Philia¡¯s tail fell to where Ed was.

    Bang!

    While the stones on the floor of the banquet hall were smashed and scattered, Ed fired arrows one after another. Philia covered her head with her arms, feeling the seven arrows flying in. When she blocked six arrows with her arms, the last one went over her shoulder and stuck in the cervical spine behind her neck. That was Philia¡¯s weak spot. Ed could¡¯ve caught the demon without aiming for its weak spot, but there was no reason not to aim for its weak spot. The arrow went through the cervical spine and through the neck and popped out of Philia¡¯s mouth. The lights in the hallway turned on when the nobles, who had stepped down to the door while Philia collapsed, opened the door. They looked back at Ed when they saw the demon¡¯s long tail and the arrow stuck behind its neck. Where the light can¡¯t reach. A demon who was shot dead by an arrow was seen. And there was a terrible tragedy that the demon caused. Most of those standing close to the demon, as well as the lord, died. Some ladies were black and some couldn¡¯t resist the nausea.

    Ed approached Grant in the meantime. Grant survived but was enraptured. Ed held Grant¡¯s chin, relying on the dim light. Looking at Grant¡¯s empty eyes, Ed recognized that he was not a demon follower, but simply enchanted, and that he had come to his senses when Philia died. Ed stopped paying attention to him because he couldn¡¯t see any red around him. Now, Ed had to take out Philia¡¯s heart. As he was getting up, Ed turned his head to the noise from the back. Arin was coming in, accompanied by a soldier.

    ¡°Arin?¡±

    One of the nobles who saw Arin¡¯s uniform stepped forward.

    ¡°Are you a holy knight?¡±

    Arin closed her eyes and slowly opened them. Her eyes shone blue and the nobles stepped back. It is hard to find a true holy knight dealing with divine power, even if they are nobles. And such holy knights have a very high position in the Astron Church, which encompasses the continent. Especially in the work related to the demon, they knew that they had special powers, so the nobles tried not to get too close to them. Arin looked at those nobles and opened her mouth.

    ¡°As the demon has appeared, there may be some demon followers here. Look all the doors thoroughly so that not a single person can get out of here.¡±

    When the soldier who brought Arin beckoned, the men who entered the banquet hall to subdue Ed surrounded the nobles this time. He did not raise any weapons, but the knights guarding the nobles confronted them with a firm impression. Arin looked at those nobles and said.

    ¡°Lower your weapon.¡± ¡°How dare you? You¡¯re just a holy knight! You¡¯re extremely impolite.¡±

    Arin looked at the noble with her blue eyes and said.

    ¡°Do you want to end the investigation right now? Or do you want to be searched by the Knights of the Palace?¡±

    Standing behind the knight, the nobleman put his hand on her shoulder and said,

    ¡°May Astron¡¯s glory be with us. We¡¯ll do our best to cooperate during the investigation, so go ahead and do your job.¡±

    Arin nodded slightly and came into the banquet hall with a torch. And despite the terrible horrors, she came to Ed¡¯s side without raising an eyebrow.

    ¡°Are you all right?¡± ¡°I was going to take the demon¡¯s heart out and take it with me. How did you know I was here?¡± ¡°Thane told me.¡±

    Arin pulled out her sword and stepped forward and said,

    ¡°Hold the torch, please.¡±

    When Ed took the torch and stood next to it, Arin cut through Philia¡¯s heart with her holy sword and pulled it out. She held it in her hand and closed her eyes and prayed, and the red light faded and disappeared. Arin slowly opened her eyes after detecting traces of Blood Stone.

    ¡°It¡¯s a little far this time.¡±

    It was a relief that she could feel. It was even farther than the distance they rode their horses for 5 days.

    ¡°We¡¯ve killed three intermediate demons, and there¡¯s still a connection, so I guess there¡¯s going to be a new one.¡± ¡°I know. It might have a stronger power than Nefthael.¡±

    Arin¡¯s eyes turned to an ice pillar and a perfume bottle trapped in it.

    ¡°Was it really trying to do something with the perfume?¡± ¡°It tried to do something suspicious, so I froze it. It said it took 10s years to plan. So there must be something. Can the church take a look at it?¡± ¡°Let¡¯s bring it there.¡±

    Arin swung her sword to cut off the ice column and took out the bottle of perfume. They don¡¯t know what¡¯s in it. But seeing that the demon is Philia, and had worked on it for 10 years, they could tell that it was something dangerous.

    ¡°But why did you ask the nobles to stay?¡± ¡°I have to look into them. I¡¯m just going to make sure that there¡¯s nobody controlled by the demon. And I have to make sure they don¡¯t say anything stupid outside.¡±

    Ed saw nobles, ladies, and knights standing by for the investigation. If any of them were a demon¡¯s follower, it was highly likely that they would have aimed for a gap when Ed attacked Philia. Although the moment of victory was short, no one intervened. Arin first checked Grant with blue eyes and approached the nobles outside the banquet hall and began investigating one by one. Investigations were nothing special. It was done just by making eye contact. Arin could tell if the other person was controlled by a demon. She identified all the nobles and brought them together. Those who faced her blue eyes held their breath.

    ¡°Performing exorcism is the Astron Church¡¯s job. If you speak out about this incident for no reason, the judges of heresy will come to you, not the Knights of the castle.¡±

    As the lord died, the investigation team was sent from the kingdom to dispel rumors of Ed. Now they know Ed was part of the Astron Churchman. That was enough. Otherwise, there was no need to keep them waiting. When she first saw them, she already confirmed that there were no demon followers. Watching the nobles leave with the knights, Ed saw a boy running to the banquet hall. The boy¡¯s face, accompanied by a knight, was blue. He was wondering what was going on, and the boy looked inside the banquet hall and shouted.

    ¡°Father!¡±

    Ed sighed briefly as he saw the boy screaming and hugging the lord¡¯s body. At the time, it was a situation where Ed could not save him, but when Ed saw the families of those who died at the hands of the demon, he was still confused about whether he was in the game or living in reality. Arin looked back at Ed as well.

    ¡°Let¡¯s get out of here. ¡°Okay.¡±

    As they walked out of the Castle, they heard an urgent voice calling them.

    ¡°Now, wait a minute! Please wait.¡±

    Ed turned around and Grant was running. He seemed to have recovered his spirit to a certain extent, and his eyes seemed to have returned. Having made eye contact with Ed, he approached and quickly tried to hold hands. It would have been possible if Ed hadn¡¯t taken a step back. Grant smiled awkwardly when he saw Ed step back. Grant quickly looked down.

    ¡°Thank you. Thanks to you, I was able to survive.¡±

    He was treating his wife as a benefactor, not as a murderer. Fascinated by Philia, she played around with him. But perhaps because she died and her fascination disappeared, he turned back to normal.

    ¡°Is there any way I can repay you?¡± ¡°We¡¯re on our way to the place where the ¡®sun never goes down¡¯, would you like to come with us?¡±

    Grant¡¯s face hardened for a moment. No wonder. It was a place that his first wife owned. And his first wife would be upset that he neglected her and was enchanted by the demon. It was embarrassing to have that memory intact.

    ¡°Go ahead of me. I¡¯ll prepare a reward and meet you there.¡±

    Ed nodded and left with Arin first. He didn¡¯t mean to refuse if Grant came and rewarded him. Ed has enough money, and he travels with rich people. But the more money he had, the better. Arin walked alone with Ed and asked.

    ¡°But why did you save Grant?¡±

    Arin looked inside the banquet hall and had a rough idea of what had happened. Grant was also in the demon¡¯s attack, and Ed simply replied when asked.

    ¡°Because he was within reach.¡±

    Ed saved him because he had the opportunity. Ed answered frankly, and Arin smiled pleased with his answer, as she did not seek his reward. As expected, she has a lot to learn from him. They heard footsteps running from behind as they were leaving the permanent residence. They looked back and saw a boy covered in blood all over his chest running. A knight and soldiers were following him behind him. Ed and Arin stopped and waited, and the boy who arrived in front of them gasped and opened his mouth.

    ¡°Wait. I want to ask you something.¡±

    He spoke informally at first sight. He was noble.

    ¡°I heard you killed the demon in the banquet hall. My father, Lord Amet. Is it true that Mrs. Grant killed him?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right.¡±

    The kid¡¯s father died, so that boy is the new lord. The boy, who heard Ed¡¯s answer, seemed relieved and ordered the knight standing behind him.

    ¡°Go get Grant.¡±

    Oh, what¡¯s about to happen now?

 Chapter 29 - Grant

    Returning to the mansion, Grant headed to his warehouse on the top floor. Since he owes his life to Ed, he was going to repay it properly. Grant opened the warehouse door and saw a flower next to the object he was looking for. It was an ornament flower made of crystal. It was an ornament specially made by the Dwarf Craftsmith when Grant decided to give it to his third wife, Lia, who especially liked flowers. Grant held the ornament in his hand.

    ¡°Sigh.¡±

    He was looking for a perfumer to develop a new perfume. Then he heard about her. He fell in love with her at first sight. So he asked her to marry him even though he already had two wives. It was like a dream when she accepted to be his wife. So the moment she turned evil before his eyes, the world seemed to collapse. As soon as he realized that his feelings had fallen for the charm of the demon, he felt an unbearable sense of betrayal and insult. Anger over the demon who played with his feelings rose to the top of his head. Besides, the demon wanted to kill him too. If Ed hadn¡¯t saved him, his waist would have been cut in half like the lord on the spot.

    Grant clenched his fist, unable to contain his anger, and the crystal ornaments were shattered in his hands. A piece of the ornament dug into Grant¡¯s palm. There was a wriggling hatred in my mind as I looked at the blood dripping down. It is said that demons like to play games, but it is rare to actually meet demons. As the church opened its eyes and captured the demons, they were as careful as possible. But when he was actually played into the hands of the demon, he came to his senses. He realized that the demons who played with human emotions were seeds that should never be kept alive.

    ¡°Oh, this is not the time.¡±

    Grant put aside the boxes piled up in the warehouse and lifted up the leather covering the floor. Then he took out the key that was hanging around his neck, put it in the keyhole on the floor, and turned it around. This is where the precious objects collected by the Grant Elder were collected. If you don¡¯t open it with a key, all kinds of traps pop out and you get killed. There, Grant recalled the man he had met. He wore a leather coat, he showed outstanding performance while dealing with the demon. Grant wanted to give him something that would help him, whether he had a grudge against the demon who fascinated him or if he had a grudge against all the demons. And he had such a thing that might be useful for Ed.

    A shadow cape. It is a black cape that was suitable for travel. And if you wear it, you can hide yourself. Grant used it when he crossed the desert because he could maintain his body temperature. He thought it would suit Ed better than a relic-class equipment. Grant folded the shadow cape well and put it in his arms and came out. He was hesitant to meet his first wife, Meryl, but he had to. He had to give her the full picture and ask for forgiveness. The true hostess of Grant laughed and told him to do so when he married his second wife. He realized that she kept the balance, so he decided to ask for forgiveness from her. After leaving the warehouse, Grant saw the knight standing in front and the soldiers standing behind him.

    ¡°Officer Herold? What¡¯s going on?¡±

    When asked what was going on here, the knight of the lord, Herold beckoned his soldiers.

    ¡°Arrest the sinner.¡±

    Grant shouted in shock when he saw the soldiers coming with the rope and pointing their spear.

    ¡°Why, why are you doing this?¡± ¡°This is an order from the new lord. He asked me to lock you up for the murder of Lord Amet.

    Grant, who usually spent a lot of money on lord Amet, was also acquainted with Herold. But he didn¡¯t even show it now, he was only on a mission. If he resists, he¡¯ll have to be arrested because he¡¯ll cut his throat. Grant was subdued under arrest.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡±

    The plan went awry. After killing the demon Philia, he was thinking of going to the place where the ¡®sun never goes down¡¯ and drinking, but he was held back by the new lord, Jeren. He asked him to stay for testimony, and he could have refused, but Ed felt it was a waste to let Grant die. Ed also saved his life, but it was because Ed had not yet received his compensation. Arin stayed with him for some reason. The banquet hall was being organized. As this was an old place, the atmosphere itself seemed hard and solid. People born and raised in places like this must be so uptight. It was said that the place where the Castle was located, there was a noble with a long history and tradition, so Ed could understand their uptightness. Jeren couldn¡¯t hide his woeful face. No matter how long he grew up following the teachings of the aristocrats, he can¡¯t hide his grief because his parents just died. He looks like a middle school student. At that time, people were seen entering the dungeon. Knights and soldiers. And there was Grant. The knight kneeled down and stood next to Grant. Jeren stood up and looked down at Grant.

    ¡°Grant, I heard you planned the banquet today. Is that right?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± ¡°And you brought your third wife. Is that right?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± ¡°Your third wife killed my father and mother. Do you admit it?¡±

    Grant replied hastily.

    ¡°But she was the demon. I was just being controlled by the demon, too.¡±

    Jeren¡¯s eyebrows wriggled. He looked young, but his eyes were aristocratic.

    ¡°It is no excuse that you were controlled by the demon. Can you actually claim that you are not responsible for my parents being killed because you were controlled by the demon? I just lost my parents today!¡±

    Grant could not open his mouth easily because of the desperation of his last cry. Being controlled by the demon did not mean that he was not responsible for the death of Jeren¡¯s parents. He was the one who brought the demon to permanent residence. When Grant bowed his head, Jeren opened his mouth.

    ¡°The punishment for killing nobles is the death penalty. Did you know that?¡±

    Grant didn¡¯t answer anything. He just lowered his head and hoped for leniency. Ed sighed at the sight. Grant may have a lot to say, but he seemed resigned to realize that no excuse worked in front of the young lord whose parents died all of a sudden. His trusted wife was the demon, and he was about to die at her hands, but now he is about to die for the murder of an aristocrat. Arin looked at Ed quietly, heard his sigh, and got up. Everyone¡¯s eyes were on her as she rose from her seat. Jeren opened his mouth.

    ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡±

    At the request of Jeren, Arin went down the stairs and stood next to Grant in the center of the dungeon. And she looked up at Jeren and said,

    ¡°The demon Philia is a demon who is famous for fascinating and manipulating people. Her fascination is beyond human resistance, as there are also those who are fascinated by her and killed their own parents.¡±

    Jeren¡¯s eyebrows wriggled.

    ¡°What do you want to say?¡± ¡°It was not intentional.¡±

    Jeren gritted his teeth.

    ¡°So there¡¯s no one responsible for the death of my parents?¡± ¡°The one responsible is already dead at the hands of Ed, the demon hunter.¡±

    Jeren¡¯s face turned red at Arin¡¯s warning. Arin¡¯s words didn¡¯t end there.

    ¡°The demon is responsible for the death of Lord Amet, but I think it¡¯s better that you receive some sort of compensation, as Grant is not completely unresponsible for the death of LordAmet.¡±

    Jeren shut his mouth. Arin saw that he had forgotten what to say and continued.

    ¡°As long as you¡¯re the lord, you¡¯d better think of what¡¯s best for the estate.¡±

    Jeren closed his eyes and trembled. He was young, but he could judge the situation. If you slit Grant¡¯s throat here, he might be able to relieve his anger, but there¡¯s nothing left. In particular, more aristocrats came to the memorial service after seeing the name of his father, Amet. Considering those who died, it is better to receive compensation. Jeren slowly opened his eyes and looked at Grant.

    ¡°I think there is a point in what Ms.Arin, a holy knight from the Astron Church, said. I can¡¯t kill you my way for the sake of the congregation¡¯s decency. I will forgive you for your sins with 10,000 gold in compensation.¡±

    Ed looked back at Jeren with surprised eyes. Isn¡¯t this kid crazy? Until now, he has never touched more than 200 golds. But 10,000 gold? Grant replied, slowly lowering his head.

    ¡°Thank you for your great generosity.¡±

    Jeren looked slightly down to Arin as if nothing more needed to happen and then turned around. Jeren, who stopped walking before leaving the dungeon, said with his head turned.

    ¡°If you don¡¯t pay the compensation within three days, Grant will be killed.¡±

    When Jeren stepped down, the guard standing next to him released Grant¡¯s rope himself and said,

    ¡°That¡¯s a relief.¡±

    Grant smiled at Herold¡¯s words. Only when he gets angry at a place like this will he be left with a grudge. He has to laugh it off at times like this to make the other person feel more sorry.

    ¡°No, thank you for not letting me get killed.¡± ¡°Take care of yourself.¡±

    When Herold stepped down, Grant fell to the floor. No matter how many times he¡¯s been going back and forth between life and death today, it¡¯s natural that he fell to the floor. Ed smiled when he saw Arin supporting him. In fact, Ed had no reason to step up. It¡¯s not like Ed could claim that Grant was mentally and physically weak to understand what happened. It was a similar argument, but the meaning contained in the words is different because the person who claims is a holy knight. The fact that Jeren stepped back is because he saw the face of the Astron Church. Thanks to her, the person Ed saved earlier had survived. She didn¡¯t mean to save him, but it was true that she felt good about it. Grant stood up, put his hand in his arms, pulled out his black cape, and came to Ed¡¯s front and held it out. Ed looked down at the black cape and gave Grant a look.

    ¡°I¡¯ve heard your name before. I heard you¡¯re hunting demons, so I hope this helps. A shadow cape can hide the wearer¡¯s appearance and maintain body temperature. I hope you will accept it.¡±

    It hides the wearer¡¯s appearance? With high agility status, Ed thought he could move more stealthily. In addition, while traveling, the convenience of maintaining body temperature was the most coveted. Ed took the cape and swerved it over his shoulder. The cool air felt warm just by wearing it. Any artifact-class equipment would be 100 gold, but he was satisfied to get this with a single kick.

    ¡°I¡¯ll use it well. By the way, what happened to your hand?¡±

    Now that he looked at it, Grant¡¯s hands were bleeding. Arin also checked it and pulled out the piece of glass that was stuck. When she held his hand still, the blue light came out and wrapped around his hand. Then the blood stopped and the skin started to slowly recover. Grant has also helped them by donating tons of money to Astron, but he has never seen anyone with such exceptional divine powers. He could feel their greatness again. These are the kind of people who go around catching demons. He made up his mind the moment he saw their abilities. There is no way to solve the hatred he feels toward the demon itself, but with these two, it was possible. Then he could deal with the demons with his power. With the power of money. And these two will be at the forefront. Grant looked at Ed with determined eyes.

    ¡°Ed, let me help you.¡±

 Chapter 30 - Bet

    The Grant Elder was a very important person. Ed didn¡¯t hide his joy that the top leader in the kingdom of Travia would help them.

    ¡°That would be a big help.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s not do this here, but let¡¯s go to the place where the ¡®sun never goes down¡¯.¡±

    At first, when they said they were going there, his expression hardened, but now it¡¯s rather the opposite. He also nodded because he had to meet Thane.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡±

    Grant took the lead and walked along with them.

    ¡°It¡¯s been three years since I saw Master Paladin. How is he?¡±

    Knowing that Arin was a holy knight, she nodded when he brought up a common interest.

    ¡°He was okay until he came back from the exorcism training a year ago. I didn¡¯t know you had a connection with Master Paladin.¡± ¡°Hahaha. I thought you were coming forward because of that.¡± ¡°That¡¯s just the right thing to do.¡±

    Ed smiled at Arin¡¯s answer. As a former professional gamer, Ed used to play along with his sponsors to extort as much money as possible, but Arin wasn¡¯t like that. Indeed, the Astron Church itself was not a church that the upper class could not dare to compare themselves to, and that attitude was understood by the highest holy knight there. Grant didn¡¯t lose his smile despite Arin¡¯s reply.

    ¡°As expected, you are a holy knight. May Astron¡¯s glory be with you.¡± ¡°May Astron¡¯s glory be with you.¡±

    He has become more comfortable with Asin so far. But he had to remember that she was a holy knight. A holy knight who didn¡¯t even know how to get information from people at first. Together, she became comfortable dealing with the creatures night after night, showing to others that she is still a noble holy knight. Her sword-like appearance seemed new to the aristocracy. Grant also approached Ed because he seemed easier to talk to than Arin.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve heard your reputation as a demon hunter. I heard that you caught more than 20 demons, and your skills are amazing.¡±

    He caught 41 demons, but he didn¡¯t mean to correct the fact.

    ¡°I just try my best.¡± ¡°Just let me know if you need anything. I¡¯ll do everything I can to help you.¡±

    Ed didn¡¯t decline.

    ¡°Get me 500 arrowheads, dwarfs that can strengthen the bow of relics, and materials that can strengthen my bow of ice.¡±

    Grant flinched briefly at Ed¡¯s appearance but never lost his smile.

    ¡°If you¡¯re looking for a dwarf who can strengthen your artifact bow, do you mean a Volcov?¡±

    It was a dwarf who used to make materials for the demon¡¯s Age 1, and must still be alive. He remembered that they were pretty good at strengthening weapons. The material that can strengthen the bow of ice would be the heart of Kelpethia. Considering the difficulty, it is not easy to get it.

    ¡°I think if we can strengthen the coolness, we¡¯ll need the heart of Kelpethia.¡±

    Grant was well-informed in this regard, as the top shareholder of the target group. So Ed nodded his head.

    ¡°You should at least be able to do that for me.¡±

    Grant thought about it for a while and replied.

    ¡°The arrowheads will take a while to make, but it¡¯s possible. The heart of Kelpethia is pretty expensive, but it¡¯s possible. However, you have to go to the Volcov yourself. It is the blacksmith in the royal palace after all.¡± ¡°That¡¯s true. I¡¯ll have to make time for that.¡±

    The bow of ice arrows is an artifact-class equipment and is still being used satisfactorily enough. But does it work for intermediate demons, and does it work for higher demons? In particular, it needs to be strengthened if it is to work for the Great demon. It had to give off a stronger chill compared to Mana. To do so, strengthening is essential. It¡¯s easier to beg a rich person to make this happen. He had to grab this opportunity.

    Look at that! Grant can do everything Ed asked for, but Ed still had to go meet Volcov. The blacksmith in the royal palace never invited, but Grants talking like he did!

    ¡°I¡¯ll see you in the capital in a month. I¡¯ll have everything ready by then.¡±

    A month. He had to wait until he could receive what he asked for. And there was a person he would like to see in the capital. Pendrigan. The free knight Pendrigan. He was the only main character in the demon¡¯s Age 1 who was known for his position. Ed wanted to meet the person who killed the Great demon.

    ¡°See you in a month.¡±

    As Grant smiled and led them along, Arin murmured softly.

    ¡°If there was anything you needed, the church would have everything prepared for you.¡±

    Ed smiled at Arin¡¯s murmur. He knows that Astron has a lot of money, but if he gets too much help from them, he¡¯ll be in debt then. Grant would gladly accept Ed¡¯s request because Ed saved his life. But he didn¡¯t want to say anything disappointing. Arin murmured so quietly that Ed could hear her, and returned to the face of a noble knight.

    The 7th floor of where the ¡®sun never goes down¡¯. Where he met Thane, Ed was sitting with Arin looking at the true scenery.

    ¡°Meryl, forgive me!¡± ¡°Get off of me.¡±

    Grant was kneeling down and begging, holding onto Meryl¡¯s hem, and she was shoving his face verbally with a look of indifference.

    ¡°It¡¯s my fault!¡±

    When Ed laughed in vain at Grant¡¯s clingy appearance, Thane poured out the drink and said.

    ¡°Is that why you¡¯re here?¡± ¡°Yes, some of the lords and nobles died, but if we let them go, something more dangerous would have happened, so we managed to keep them out of harm¡¯s way.¡± ¡°That¡¯s a relief.¡± ¡°I think I¡¯ll have to stop by the capital in a month because Grant is providing equipment.¡± ¡°In the capital?¡± ¡°Yes.¡±

    Thane nodded as if nothing had happened.

    ¡°Come to think of it, I have to see Pendrigan. How¡¯s Arin?¡± ¡°Well, I have to start the exorcism as soon as possible.¡±

    Ed shook his head at her words.

    ¡°Arin, to be honest with you, I don¡¯t think we can deal with a superior demon right now.¡±

    Arin looked at Ed quietly. A man who bet his life on every single training and everything on demon hunting. He may know better about the demon than she does, but once she is prophesied, she only fulfills her duties as a holy knight.

    ¡°But you can¡¯t step down unless you¡¯ve been prophesied.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not telling you to step down. But dealing with the demon when you¡¯re not ready is just barbarism.¡±

    Arin saw Ed and stepped back.

    ¡°I think we can at least get to the next goal, so let¡¯s catch it and think about it.¡± ¡°Well done.¡±

    Ed is gaining experience constantly with her, but it was hard to believe that she had grown to the point where she could deal with a superior demon. Her equipment were three artifacts, so she doesn¡¯t have to upgrade the equipment like Ed. In the future, not only the higher demon but also the greater demon has to be dealt with, so there is a limit to the equipment now. While the group was talking, there was progress between Grant and Meryl.

    ¡°Hand over the liquor business.¡± ¡°Is that enough? I can hand over the perfume business if you want.¡±

    Grant quickly changed the subject when he saw Meryl¡¯s eye and realized his mistake.

    ¡°I was trying to say that I wanted to give you the vacation house in Vern City.¡±

    Meryl smiled at his words.

    ¡°Okay, I¡¯ll forgive you for your sincerity.¡± ¡°Thank you. I¡¯ll try harder l in the future.¡±

    After Grant was forgiven by Meryl, he laughed loudly and shouted so loud that the place where the ¡®sun never goes down¡¯ could hear him.

    ¡°Today¡¯s guests will not have to pay for their drinks, so please help yourself!¡± ¡°Wow!¡±

    They could hear cheers down there, and Grant approached the table. Even though it would cost a lot of money to get 10,000 gold in compensation, He was amazed by Grant¡¯s distribution. It was like they rang the golden bell today. When he asked for forgiveness, he looked desperate and returned to the form of a grand upper-class man. He sat down and greeted Thane.

    ¡°I¡¯ve heard a lot about you. I¡¯m Grant.¡± ¡°Nice to meet you, but are we free to drink?¡± ¡°Of course.¡± ¡°Then can I have the 32-year-old Pretian?¡±

    Grant looked back at Meryl and asked.

    ¡°Do you still have some?¡± ¡°Of course. It¡¯s not a drink that just anyone can buy.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think there¡¯s anything as good as that to treat my benefactor today, so please give it to him.¡±

    Meryl got up from her seat. When Ed saw it, he asked Grant.

    ¡°It must be a precious drink.¡±

    The answer was given by Thane instead.

    ¡°Precious. A bottle costs more than 100 gold.¡±

    Ed momentarily thought these humans were crazy. With 100 gold, you can buy relics-class equipment. It¡¯s over 100 million won in Korean won, but that¡¯s the price of a bottle of alcohol? While Ed was surprised, Meryl brought the bottle. The look of the 17-year-old mountain was different. It was a bottle that seemed to have a halo around it because of its price. Thane smiled at the sight.

    ¡°I tried it at Pendrigan¡¯s wedding and I really wanted to try it again. This is how you make your wishes come true.¡±

    When Meryl opened the cap of the bottle, the scent exploded. It was a more concentrated scent than the Pretian 17-year-old one. Will it taste good if the scent is this strong? He thought it might taste like fabric softener, but he was still a little excited because the price was so high. Thane helped Ed with a mouthful.

    ¡°It¡¯s rare, and there¡¯s no drink as strong as this. And Pendrigan fainted after just three shots.¡±

    Ed looked back at Thane.

    ¡°How much did you drink?¡± ¡°I had two. I thought I¡¯d die if I drank more.¡±

    Thane likes to drink, but this was so strong that he only drank only two shots? It¡¯s tempting. The glass was filled with alcohol, and everyone held it up. Grant bowed his head to me and said.

    ¡°Once again, thank you for saving my life.¡±

    Ed raised his glass instead of answering, and everyone emptied it at once. Ed can tell it¡¯s a tough drink. It went into his stomach and the heat came up and he felt like was going to throw up. When he opened his mouth unknowingly due to the heat that rose up, the scent burst out and vibrated in the intestines. It is not just the degree to which the scent comes out of the mouth, but the scent that comes out after drinking makes the scent vibrate, which is also admired. Thane¡¯s face, which had emptied a glass, was turning red. He was closing his eyes and savoring it. Ed had never had such a strong drink. He¡¯s had quite a hard drink, but it¡¯s different from what he¡¯s had so far. With Ed¡¯s physical strength now, that bottle seemed to knock him out. At that time, Arin said, with her face flushed, sticking out her glass.

    ¡°Ed, have another drink with me.¡±

    Ed didn¡¯t have to say no. It was such a great drink that he felt it was a waste not to drink more.

    ¡°Are you all right?¡±

    Arin replied with a smile.

    ¡°Then do you want to make a bet?¡± ¡°A bet?¡±

    Ed stared blankly at Arin. Arin slipped away and said.

    ¡°The loser will grant the winner¡¯s wish.¡±

    Ed wondered why Arin was making such an ambitious challenge. But Ed, who had never avoided anyone¡¯s challenge, nodded and said.

    ¡°These are the witnesses.¡± ¡°Of course!¡±

    While everyone was looking, the glass filled, and Ed and Arin emptied the glass at once. Perhaps because it was a strong drink, Arin¡¯s eyes were slightly relaxed in the second glass. Ed also felt tipsy but asked Arin.

    ¡°Are you all right?¡±

    Arin stuck out her glass. The third glass was filled and Ed and Arin emptied the glass at the same time. Arin calmly lowered her glass and looked at Ed. Ed tried to fill the next glass with a clear look in his eyes, but he hit his head on the table. If Ed hadn¡¯t reached out and accepted it, he would have fainted to the point of seeing a bump on his forehead tomorrow morning. Ed rubbed his face against his palm and smiled unconsciously when he saw her asleep. He¡¯s never seen anything like her before.

    ¡°She¡¯s so cute.¡±

 Chapter 31 - Visitor

    Arin¡¯s eyes opened wide as a light appeared in the cloudy sky and her mind became clear. Her head was so clear that she couldn¡¯t keep her eyes closed. Arin opened her eyes like that, and was looking at the strange ceiling for a moment. Arin was staring blankly at the ceiling and recalled her last memory while thinking about where she was and why she was here.

    ¡°Aaaaah!¡±

    She clearly remembered emptying the third glass. And as she became unconscious, she could hear Ed¡¯s voice, and feel his hand that was full of callus trying to support her head. He said she was cute. She has never heard that in her life. Master Paladin considered her a faithful Astron holy knight. Under the teachings of her father-like master Paladin, she was treated equal to other Astron knights. That¡¯s why it was the first time she heard such a word. Blushing, she pulled up the blanket to the sound of the door opening. Come to think of it, when did she change into this comfortable outfit? Arin, who covered herself with a blanket, turned her head and there Ed looked at her and said.

    ¡°You look like you¡¯ve been fighting a demon all night. Wash up and come down to eat.¡± ¡°¡¤¡¤¡¤Yes.¡±

    As Ed stepped back, and Arin covered her face with her hands and sighed deeply. While thinking about Ed, her face turned redder when he suddenly appeared. Arin looked around the room. On one side of the room, her equipment was well set and next to it was water to wash. As it was her first time receiving such consideration, Arin still dipped her hands in the water, feeling strange. The water was not cold, it was warm, so she smiled. Simply washing and re-arming, Arin smiled pleased. It was obvious that he put a lot of effort into the equipment. When Arin was feeling better, she opened the door and came out, but there was still a drinking party going on. Thane looked as if he had died with a smile on his face, and Grant was banging his head on the table. The only person that came to his senses was Ed, who was having a drink with the maids while arranging the drinking table. Arin looked out the window. The sun was just rising when she saw the sunshine in the clear sky.

    ¡°Have they been drinking until now?¡± ¡°They¡¯ve been drinking pretian. Unexpectedly, they liked the 8-year-old Pretian. I mean, the price was reasonable.¡±

    When Arin sat in front of Ed, he talked to the woman who was organizing the table.

    ¡°Please prepare breakfast.¡± ¡°Yes, please wait a moment.¡±

    Soon warm soup and freshly baked bread came up. Arin smiled at the mountain of bread.

    ¡°Did Ed make you do it?¡± ¡°Yes, he asked for plenty.¡±

    Ed is a picky eater, but Arin is a big eater, so they needed to prepare this much bread for her. Thane, who was asleep with his head down at the smell of soup, woke up, and Grant, who was banging his head on the table, woke up. Habitually reaching out, they lifted up the soup and drank it as if they were drinking with a glass, but both burned the roof of their mouths and floundered. At the sight, Arin sighed and cast a restoration spell on the two.

    ¡°Thank you.¡±

    Grant and Tane, who smiled, came to their senses and tore the bread and dipped it in the soup. Thane mumbled with the bread in his hand.

    ¡°Anyway, what kind of wish are you going ask Arin?¡±

    Ed tilted his head at the question. He accepted the bet because he had a temperament, and didn¡¯t want to lose in anything. He didn¡¯t win the bet because he wanted a wish granted by Arin.

    ¡°Well, it was just an excuse to drink. I didn¡¯t win because I wanted to make a wish.¡±

    Only then, Arin¡¯s expression hardened when she realized what the two were talking about. She remembers making a bet when she got tipsy. Just curious about Ed¡¯s past. She wanted to hear about his past through wishes and wanted to ask many questions, but she lost. None of the holy knights managed to win a drinking bet with Ed. Seeing that he drank all night after drinking that hard liquor, nobody dared to confront him with alcohol. When Ed looked at her, Arin gulped down the bread in her mouth and answered.

    ¡°Tell me whenever your thinking of it. I¡¯m a man of my word.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry too much.¡± ¡°No, I¡¯m going to keep my word. So make a wish.¡±

    Ed laughed at Arin. She is such a stubborn woman.

    ¡°I¡¯ll let you know when I think of it.¡±

    Only then did Arin eat the bread as if she was relieved. At the same time, his complex expression drew a smile.

    After breakfast, Grant went out to work with the lord, and the party headed to the church. Perhaps because Arin had already gone to the church in Antsy, she visited again and the Father Alec led them to the conference room. There was already a map of the Kingdom of Travia on the table.

    ¡°Check it out.¡±

    While Arin approached and checked the map, Father Alec and Thane greeted each other. He could see how many connections Thane had once again. Indeed, he is also associated with the Archbishop of Astron, so he knows everything. Ed looked at the map in the meantime. And he found something unexpected on the map. He knew the Astron Church had excellent intelligence. He saw the location of Diana¡¯s temple, the goddess of hunting. Ed covets her relics because she was a goddess that blesses hunters. He kept the temple¡¯s location in his mind. Don¡¯t you have to visit them and make friends with their church to get the relics? While Ed had his eyes on the positions, Arin held one hand.

    ¡°It just so happens that the next direction is the capital. The destination is here. Kalim City.¡±

    It was quite a long way to Kalim City. It will take 15 days to run on a horse. Thane looked at the map and said,

    ¡°Three days from here to Bern City and five days to the Ain River. We can cut the time in half.¡±

    Bern Cit. It is the city of Trade. The name reminded Ed of someone. A barbarian warrior who was considered another protagonist. Gerrard came to mind. He met Arin and was now traveling with her. But Ed was wondering if Gerrard was doing well. He thought he might be following another main quest somewhere.

    ¡°If that¡¯s a relief, I¡¯ve decided to rent a carriage from Grant this time. This carriage is faster and safer.¡±

    Arin looked back at the Father Alec at Thanes¡¯ words.

    ¡°Did you prepare what I asked?¡± ¡°It¡¯s ready. Did you bring the carriage?¡± ¡°Yes, we¡¯re going to use the new carriage.¡±

    Thane butt in on the conversation between the two.

    ¡°What are you talking about?¡±

    Arin replied in a humble way.

    ¡°I asked for the carriage to be blessed. The demons won¡¯t be able to stop it, but beasts won¡¯t be able to approach it easily.¡±

    Thane clapped his hands.

    ¡°That¡¯s great. But I heard it costs a lot of money. I think you must be on the Archbishop¡¯s level.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not that high. Fortunately, Priest Alec has a lot of experience in this, so he will engrave the sacred image. I have to inject holy power every day.¡± ¡°Won¡¯t that be tiring for you?¡±

    Arin shook her head as if it were nothing.

    ¡°In fact, even if the carriage is blessed, if the demon and beasts come, Ed and I will still have to go out and fight. This is just for Thane¡¯s safety.¡±

    Thane burst into laughter at the words.

    ¡°Hahaha. I don¡¯t know what to do with this. Even the Pendrigan didn¡¯t do this much for me.¡±

    Ed laughed when he saw Thane liking it. Arin was usually responsible for guarding the carriage when the battle began. He could see that she was trying to take on the role of protecting the carriage.

    Ed smiled in vain at the sight of the newly blessed carriage.

    ¡°Grant, you¡¯re really going to give me this?¡± ¡°How do you like it? Don¡¯t you like it? When I showed up in this carriage, the leading merchants in the capital envied me.¡±

    It¡¯s a carriage that the dwarf built, and it¡¯s big.

    ¡°It¡¯s so comfortable because it¡¯s what I used to ride. It¡¯s specialized in long-distance travel.¡±

    Ed was a little excited about that. Thane¡¯s carriage was so uncomfortable. They couldn¡¯t expect modern comfort, but it was still more comfortable than horseback riding.

    Then, Father Alec was astonished by Arin¡¯s divine power as he carved the sacred image. He heard from Master Paladin that she was his favorite holy knight, but he didn¡¯t know that she would have such excellent divine power. Thanks to this, the powers embedded into the carriage also exceeded his expectations. With this kind of fortress, she was so excellent that demons would run away from her.

    ¡°Arin, I don¡¯t think your divine powers are far behind Master Paladin¡¯s.¡±

    Arin shook her head as she injected divine powers into the carriage.

    ¡°Master Paladin has both divine powers and combat skills. There¡¯s a reason why he¡¯s the first.¡± ¡°That¡¯s true.¡±

    He wondered how she built her divine power comparable to the sacred power of Master Paladin, but he didn¡¯t ask her. He just paid more attention to the carriage to improve its completeness. When the carriage was completed, Father Alec told Arin to inject divine power to her limit. Arin also poured divine power into the carriage with all her might. Until now, she had never poured out all of her divine power, so everyone was curious when she injected her divine power. The light was so bright that everyone had to close their eyes. And the finished carriage was wrapped in color blue. The carriage was just spectacular and stole everyone¡¯s attention as it was surrounded by mysterious blue lights. Ed looked at the carriage. How can they ride such a conspicuous carriage? But Grant¡¯s appreciation of it was different.

    ¡°Even the royal family will envy you at this rate. If I could sell it, it wouldn¡¯t be the best top of the kingdom.¡±

    He wondered why he said that. Ed approached Arin and asked,

    ¡°Can you make it not shine so bright?¡±

    Arin looked back at Father Alec and he shook his head.

    ¡°We can¡¯t do that.¡±

    Ed shook his head and stepped back, and for some reason everyone but him was satisfied. Seeing that Thane likes it so much, he guessed he¡¯s just going to have to ride it. A fancy carriage that¡¯s covered in blue light.

    They decided to stay one more night to make a toast on the carriage, and there was someone who came while they were emptying their glass today.

    ¡°Can I join you?¡±

    Where Ed¡¯s gaze was directed, there was Jeren. The son of the lord who stole 10,000 gold from Grant for his father¡¯s death.

    What¡¯s he up to now?

 Chapter 32 - Back

    Perhaps because of the caste system, it was a world where that young kid could enter the bar. There was no big person to kick out the new lord, so the took a seat without difficulty. Grant was showing with a smile, even though he compensated 10,000 gold.

    ¡°Prince Jeren, why didn¡¯t you just ask me to visit you at your residence?¡±

    Jeren raised his hand to stop Grant and looked back at Ed. Ed was looking at him because he felt some kind of mental conflict. Jeren seemed to hesitate for a moment and lifted the glass. When Grant filled the glass, Jeren emptied the drink at once. Eight year old Pretian. It was the most cost-effective drink Ed¡¯s ever had, but it¡¯s stronger than any other drink. As soon as he emptied his drink, his face turned red and he coughed up.

    ¡°Cough!¡±

    The young man, who appeared with a heavy heart and emptied his glass, coughed and even blushed. It was even cute to see him holding his tears. Jeren blushed and breathed out, then looked at Ed.

    ¡°I was so busy at the time that I couldn¡¯t even thank you. I thank you for avenge my parents.¡±

    At Jeren¡¯s words Ed could understand why he was so self-conscious and troubled. He was a aristocrat with a strong character. It is rare for them to thank others. He never thought he¡¯d thank a mercenary who¡¯s not a royal or a nobleman. Ed looked slightly down.

    ¡°I just did what I had to do.¡±

    Jeren nodded at his words.

    ¡°He¡¯s a man worthy of the name ¡®demon hunter¡¯.¡±

    Jeren crossed his arms with a red face. And he took out a tooth from his coat. Jeren looked down at it and spoke.

    ¡°This is the teeth of the beast Appella, which the sixth lord killed.¡±

    It was a tooth that looked a little short to be used as a dagger. Ed couldn¡¯t remember what beast that was, but Thane, who was listening next to him knew right away.

    ¡°Wasn¡¯t the beast Appella against the demons? I heard the Great demon stepped up and stopped it.¡± ¡°Against the demons?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right, researchers said that it was a demon-eating species. They even argued that it should be called ¡®Divine creature¡¯ rather than a ¡®Beast¡¯. But I didn¡¯t think it was right to argue about an extinct species, so I didn¡¯t have to correct it.¡±

    Jeren looked at the teeth and continued.

    ¡°Our family has been handing this down to every prince. It¡¯s a symbol of courage that my father gave me.¡±

    Ed thought the kid was drunk. Beast or Divine creature, whatever the Apella does, what¡¯s all that fuss about with the tooth?

    ¡°It¡¯s a piece of solidity that they handed down to the princes.¡±

    Ed stopped paying attention to the drunk, muttering to himself, and emptied his glass. Jeren stuck out the tooth to Ed. When Ed stared blankly at his hand, Jeren opened his mouth.

    ¡°I was wondering what I could do to repay my parents for their resentment, but the name Demon Hunter reminded me of this. I have a long way to go to have my own child, and I hope this helps kill demons when I think of my parents who died in the hands of a demon.¡±

    Jeren¡¯s eyes were fixed on Ed. It was not a hazy eye under the influence of alcohol, but a firm determined eye.

    ¡°Kill the demons with this. I think my parents will laugh in the sky.¡±

    Ed wondered what a fuss was about with a tooth, but he didn¡¯t feel any reason to refuse. What they give is what you receive. Ed got the tooth and examined it. It may seem rude to check everything in front of his eyes, but Ed was told to use it as a weapon, so he carefully examined it. It is too short to use as a dagger, so he should use it as an arrowhead, but if he does so, it would be difficult to balance it. It was hard. Thane, who was looking at it with a smile from the side, said.

    ¡°The firmness of its teeth is indescribable to the fact that it is nicknamed the demon predator. The beast Appella was famous for chewing the demon¡¯s bones.¡±

    A beast that has already been extinct by the Great demon and has not appeared in the demon¡¯s Age 1. Maybe it was a divine creature¡¯s tooth. Ed picked up the tooth. If it works particularly well on demons, it can be made into an arrow even if it is a little uncomfortable to use. Especially, it is a suitable item to use the skill he got this time. Ed didn¡¯t care much about the thickness because of his penetration skills, but with this added, he could attack harder. Ed put the tooth in his arms and nodded politely.

    ¡°I¡¯ll use it to catch demons.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡±

    Jeren said so and stumbled as she stood up. When Herold in the back helped him, Jeren raised his hand as if he was okay and said.

    ¡°May the glory of Astron be with you in your path.¡± ¡°I pray that the glory of Astron will be with the lord in the future.¡±

    Jeren smiled and walked down the stairs when Herold helped him. Thane, who was looking at the back of Jeren, smiled.

    ¡°You¡¯ve got something interesting. Are you going to make it an arrow?¡±

    Ed lifted Apella¡¯s teeth. A Sawtooth arrow. It would be very handy.

    ¡°Of course.¡±

    He now had an arrow that was so powerful just by briefly listening to Jeren¡¯s drunken whining. It was worth it for Ed.

    It was a shiny carriage, but when Ed went inside, he felt satisfied because of the soft carpet chair. It¡¯s not like Ed can see the flashing appearance inside of the carriage anyway, he just needs to ride. Ed was making an arrow in the carriage. He got the materials for the arrow before he got on the carriage. Turning Apella¡¯s tooth for use as arrowheads. He attached feathers to the back so that it can ride the wind. He doesn¡¯t know how effective this will be, but this arrowhead was longer than the other arrows because the tooth was so big. He put it in the ice barrel, and it didn¡¯t seem to be a problem. After confirming that it was possible to keep the ice barrel, Ed leaned against the back of the carriage. He had a good night¡¯s rest for about two nights, so he didn¡¯t have to go to sleep because he was clear-minded. Ed took out the equipment and began to work on it one by one. Thane read through the demon¡¯s book with a smile of satisfaction.

    ¡°The demons we¡¯ve caught so far have no genealogy yet. That¡¯s why I¡¯m looking at intermediate demons and higher demons.¡±

    There are 30 kinds of intermediate demons and fewer higher demons, so it is not difficult to pick out those who are not in the genealogy. And hunting becomes easier when you know what your opponent has.

    ¡°Is there anything I can do to help?¡±

    Thane replied, tapping on his head.

    ¡°Take a rest when you can. I¡¯ll use my head.¡±

    Thane said, while reading through the demon¡¯s book.

    ¡°I¡¯m searching for Nefthael¡¯s trail. But it¡¯s as strong as the great demon, so it wasn¡¯t hard to find. So we¡¯re tracking the higher demon in his genealogy. I might be able to pin-point its location soon.¡± ¡°It¡¯ll pop out when its subordinates are killed.¡±

    Suddenly, before Ed could say anything more, his instincts rang a bell. Something came in between himself. Instinctively Ed hugged Arin and Thane. When his two eyes grew bigger, a huge impact was delivered to the carriage and the carriage overturned.

    Greg, who was chewing beef jerky with a big Battle Axe in his hand, opened his mouth.

    ¡°Are they mentally ill? They are riding in such a bright carriage.¡±

    Sylvia, who struck a thunderbolt at Greg¡¯s question, answered with a firm impression.

    ¡°What¡¯s with that carriage?¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°It¡¯s perfectly fine.¡±

    Greg looked at the carriage and the horse. The shiny carriage rolled over without being cut off by Sylvia¡¯s thunderbolt. Greg laughed in vain because he knew how strong her thunderbolt was.

    ¡°What? Is that possible?¡± ¡°The light! It looks like a blessed carriage, but I didn¡¯t expect it to be that strong.¡±

    Greg burst into laughter at her words and said.

    ¡°Looks like they won¡¯t be easy opponents. Then I¡¯ll wrap it up.¡± ¡°Be careful.¡± ¡°Just back me up.¡±

    Greg shouted so loudly and ran out with his horse. She knew Greg¡¯s skills well, but Sylvia didn¡¯t let her guard down. Prince Cliff did not show his ability in public, but his psychokinesis was one of the strongest. And considering Etrian¡¯s skills and her artifact-class equipment, Greg can¡¯t handle them alone. Sylvia also followed the horse and pulled her sword out. It was a gift from Prince Cliff. A mystic sword that uses wind. Sylvia¡¯s eyes shone, holding a more meaningful artifact found by Etrian. A clear spell was forming over the sword of wind that she was holding, and a great force was ministering. It was surprising that the carriage endured the blow, but the mystique was prepared to blow off the necks of those who came out of it.

    The carriage rolled wildly. Ed, who held Arin and Thane in his arms, stopped rolling before he looked at the condition of the group.

    ¡°Are you all right?¡± ¡°I¡¯m fine. What about Ed?¡±

    His head was dizzy, but he was fine thanks to his high stamina.

    ¡°What the hell is going on here?¡±

    When asked by Thane, Ed took out his bow and answered by preparing an arrow.

    ¡°Attacks flew from a distance. It¡¯s like they used magic.¡±

    Arin also stumbled and pulled up her sword and shield.

    ¡°The shaft was triggered by an external impact. That¡¯s at least a four-tier magic user.¡±

    Ed heard the sound of a horse¡¯s hooves approaching quickly. An overturned carriage. The fate of Doug, who was driving the carriage, could not be confirmed. Ed kicked the carriage door and looked at the approaching man. A barbarian warrior riding a horse and carrying a large Battle Axe.

    Ed fired three arrows when he saw the pouting wild-bearded barbarian warrior running cheerfully. Two arrows flew toward the barbarian warrior and one last toward the horse¡¯s knee.

    Kakang!

    The barbarian warrior blocked both of the arrows, but his horse got hit in the knee. He jumped right back on the injured horse and started charging towards the carriage. Ed fired four arrows in a row at the barbarian warrior.

    Kakakakan!

    The barbarian warrior, who blocked the arrow with the face of Battle Axe, was pushed back by the shock. Ed tried to get out of the carriage¡¯s door, but he read the wind coming from the sword of a woman running behind the barbarian warrior, and stopped everyone from trying to get out.

    ¡°You can¡¯t go out. There¡¯s someone out there that uses magic.¡±

    They didn¡¯t know that Ed could sense magic. At that point, Arin said with her shield out front.

    ¡°I can¡¯t continue to protect the carriage with my divine powers anymore because I¡¯ve already used it once. I have to go out anyway.¡±

    Ed hurriedly fired an arrow at the magician so that Arin could go outside. The arrow flew around her and away. Perhaps because she was a wind-handling magician, she was well defended against long-range attacks. The magician wielded a sword of wind. The blade of the terrible wind flew from all directions to the point where it was hard to figure out how many blows were coming. Ed wondered if his stamina and equipment could withstand it. Then Arin put her Holy Sword in front of her chest. Then a large circle of blue light emerged around her. The ability of the Holy Sword was never seen before. They don¡¯t know why the sword has a protective shield, but the protective shield even wrapped the carriage. And all the blades of the flying wind bounced off. Ed looked at Arin¡¯s back. A small but indefinitely strong back. Her back was the most reliable.

 Chapter 33 - Trust

    Ed didn¡¯t know that a magician was such a threat. He had never encountered a magician in person, but her skills were beyond his common sense. He didn¡¯t think it was such a threatening ability when he was playing the game. An arrow doesn¡¯t work? Ed snorted as he read the energy of her sword, which was preparing for another magic technique, with the barbarian warrior at the front. Isn¡¯t this just ridiculous? Ed shot arrows one after another. The barbarian warrior must have had faith in her, so he ignored Ed¡¯s arrows and kept charging. Arin ran toward the barbarian warrior who rushed. At the moment when she and the barbarian warrior clashed, Ed¡¯s arrows were swirled along the wind shield made by the magician. It was a wind shield that rotates and flows arrows around. Ed, who read the wind¡¯s grain, fired the last arrow. Faster and stronger than ever. The arrow, penetrated the protective layer of the wind shield halfway and flowed to the side. And as soon as her wind shield was about to explode, the arrow was deflected. It didn¡¯t give the magician time to respond. As Ed planned from the beginning, an arrow with a turned direction pierced the magician¡¯s neck. The magician¡¯s eyes got bigger and her mouth opened, but she couldn¡¯t say anything and threw up blood and collapsed. This shows that magicians are great, but they are not all-around. Apparently, her ability was superior to the archer by nature. Her wind shield keeps distant attacks out of reach. She believed in it so much that she thought her safety was secured and died in vain while trying to counterattack. Ed don¡¯t know who it was, but he didn¡¯t mean to show mercy to those who rushed to kill him. Ed¡¯s eyes turned to the barbarian warrior who was fighting Arin. Although he wields a Battle Axe and boasts outstanding strength, Arin is throwing the attack away with a shield and swinging her Holy Sword to counterattack. Come to think of it, this really didn¡¯t make any sense. They attacked a carriage that exudes the sacred power of the Astron Church? A carriage this big is usually used by someone of the archbishop¡¯s level? The barbarian warrior stood back and shouted, while preventing Arin from stabbing him.

    ¡°Sylvia! What are you doing?¡±

    The barbarian warrior looked back and opened his eyes. She was laying dead with arrows stuck in her neck.

    ¡°How?¡±

    He¡¯s seen how good Sylvia¡¯s windshield is, going back and forth between numerous battlefields. They had not been hit by a single arrow even in the rain of arrows pouring down from the battlefield. Greg, who knew how big her role was in the Dalian conquest of the Ranger Army, couldn¡¯t believe it. But she died. It wasn¡¯t like she was going to resign with a smile on her face. On the contrary, she died, so his backup was gone. Greg spits out the jerky he was chewing and points the Battle Axe at Ed.

    ¡°Are you Ed?¡±

    Ed fired an arrow instead of answering the question. Greg hurriedly lifted Battle Axe and stopped it. Perhaps because of the wide side of Battle Axe, he blocked the arrow, but his grip was wobbly. Greg tried to have a conversation, but the arrows did not stop flying towards him.

    Kakakan!

    No matter how capable he was to swing Battle Axe to block the arrow, it was just too much to block the seven arrows that flew at once. However, as he got hit by it, it became difficult to hold his Battle Axe because of the cold air. Only then did he realize that his opponent was using artifacts, but it was too late. The arrow hit his left knee.

    ¡°Gasp!¡±

    It¡¯s not just an ordinary arrow, it was cold and his knees became frozen and soon broke off. If he had been determined to attack from the beginning, he wouldn¡¯t have been pushed back like this. But he didn¡¯t mean to just step down. If he had to die, he had to burn to the end. And yet he hasn¡¯t gone all out. Greg pumped mana into Battle Axe and lifted it up as hard as he could. And three arrows were simultaneously lodged in his chest.

    ¡°This bastard is a real ¡¤¡¤¡¤.¡±

    The mana that was being pushed into Battle Axe was cut off. Ed¡¯s voice was heard while Greg broke down helplessly.

    ¡°What are you guys?¡± ¡°Oh, fuck.¡±

    Greg let out a swear, and was out of breath.

    Ed had to deal with the magician first, and when the warrior asked for his name, Ed had already fired an arrow at him. As he spoke, Arin stopped the attack, but Ed didn¡¯t want to wait. He was going to pick up his experience level while he was at a distance from Arin. So he poured out arrows generously. While shooting, he pulled an arrow from the Ice barrel and shot his knee while his Battle Axe was freezing. And at the end, Ed stopped his breathing by firing three arrows at his chest. And he looked back at the party and asked.

    ¡°What are you guys?¡± ¡°Oh, fuck.¡±

    After seeing him spit out swear words, Ed thought he¡¯d shoot more arrows, but he let him go because his experience levels were about to rise. Thane patted his back and came out and said.

    ¡°I think he is looking for you, Ed. Why don¡¯t you see what he has to say?¡± ¡°He blew up the carriage without talking to me. What are we talking about?¡±

    Thane nodded at the words.

    ¡°You¡¯re right about that.¡±

    Thane approached the barbarian warrior and saw the axe he was holding.

    ¡°Huh? This is the Earth Breaker.¡± ¡°What¡¯s that?¡± ¡°It costs about a thousand gold.¡± ¡°What?¡±

    The ice bow cost about 200 gold. A thousand gold? In other words, it is a powerful relic as it is expensive.

    ¡°Why is it so expensive?¡± ¡°It¡¯s an object that can cause an earthquake with a radius of about 10 meters.¡± ¡°Do you know who this is?¡± ¡°Greg is a barbarian warrior under Prince Cliff. Come to think of it, Sylvia must have been the magician who used the wind sword.¡±

    Thane finally came to his senses and ran to the carriage.

    ¡°Doug! Doug!¡±

    At Thane¡¯s cry, Ed also remembered. When the magic flew in while outside the carriage, the carriage performed a protective magic, but it was a dangerous attack and the carriage rolled several times. It would have been dangerous if Ed hadn¡¯t covered them, but what would Doug be like outside the carriage?

    ¡°Doug!¡±

    When Ed and Arin came forward and looked for him, Doug groaned in the bushes and lifted himself up. His waist clasped, and he raised his hand.

    ¡°I¡¯m here.¡±

    Thane finally breathed a sigh of relief. Doug said, coming out of the bushes, shaking off the leaves stuck in his hair.

    ¡°Are you all right?¡± ¡°I thought you were dead. You managed to survive.¡±

    Ed looked at Doug calmly talking to Thane and wondered. The situation was so hectic, he couldn¡¯t tell whether Doug was alive or not. He¡¯s alive though. Ed decided to pay more attention to Doug as Arin treated him. Maybe he hid his skills from them.

    The carriage was pulled back up, and all the horses were dead. With the carriage parked, Doug went back to Antsy to buy a horse. Fortunately, the distance to Antsy is not that far. As the sacred power charged in the construction team ran out, Thane looked and asked Ed while Arin was recharging the carriage with sacred power.

    ¡°Why did you kill Prince Cliff?¡± ¡°He was a demon subordinate.¡± ¡°He must have been Nefthael¡¯s subordinate.¡± ¡°Yes, that¡¯s why I killed him.¡±

    Thane burst into laughter.

    ¡°You remind me of Pendrigan when he was young. He never held back with anything.¡±

    Ed shrugged his shoulders and answered with a blood stone he had recovered.

    ¡°Well, those guys who will avenge Prince Cliff are done, aren¡¯t they?¡± ¡°I see. But there¡¯s still one left.¡±

    Ed looked at today¡¯s catch. He got the ¡°Earth Breaker¡± and the ¡°Wind Sword¡± that the barbarian warrior Greg had. The ¡°Earth Breaker¡± can be lifted, but lacks strength to swing freely. And the ¡°Wind Sword¡± is an object that only magicians can handle. Especially for those who can control wind. It was something Ed couldn¡¯t use. They were special items. Ed was wondering whether to sell it off or give it as a gift. In the past, he would have sold it without thinking about it and changed it into a good equipment, but now that he has money, he thought about making a connection with it. As expected, he felt that way because he had enough money now. Arin came back and sat next to the bonfire. She sat next to Doug and inspected the equipment because she thought it would be around dinner time when he drove back. Ed glanced at her equipment. Even though the 1,000-gold Battle Axe, the ¡°Earth Breaker,¡± was received head-on, there was no scratch on it. As expected, it¡¯s an artifact. It occurred to Ed that he should visit Diana¡¯s denomination. Strengthening the ice bow would be fine for the time being, but eventually, it seemed necessary to get better relics. Something powerful. Arin looked at Ed, grooming her shield.

    ¡°Do you know anything about them?¡±

    Ed looked at Arin quietly. Come to think of it, it wasn¡¯t something to hide from her.

    ¡°Do you know Prince Cliff?¡±

    Arin nodded as if it were natural.

    ¡°The prince of misfortune. Even though he was born with the ability to become a king, he was so good that the king sent him to the kingdom of Dalia to die, and he punished the kingdom of Dalia. I heard he was assassinated by the remnants of the kingdom of Dalia. He could have been the king of the kingdom of Dalia. That is why he is the prince of misfortune.¡±

    Ed admitted frankly that Arin seemed to realize something as she spoke.

    ¡°He was a demon¡¯s subordinate.¡± ¡°What?¡±

    Ed told Arin with a soft voice.

    ¡°He sacrificed his soul to Nefthael.¡±

    Arin understood the situation now. Why Nefthael tried so hard to target Ed, and why those who were as good as her were targeting Ed. When she knew that, she looked at Ed again. It¡¯s not usually a big deal if a prince becomes a demon subordinate. It was not difficult to avoid the eyes of the church. But so much blood would have been shed if they were swayed by the demon. The prince was hard to kill even if the church knew his secret. If the prince was a demon subordinate, the entire church had to press the royal family and put forward numerous political means. He killed a man like that. Just because he was a demon¡¯s subordinate. Without telling anyone. Does this man know what he¡¯s done? And he told her this secret. This big secret. The corners of her mouth rose unknowingly when she found out that this man trusted her.

    ¡°Good job.¡±

    Frankly, Ed agonized as he brought it up. Killing a prince is not something that can be easily passed on to a holy knight. Nevertheless, he liked this woman who accepted it willingly and praised him.

    ¡°Thank you for understanding.¡±

 Chapter 34 - Investment

    Doug got the horse and connected it to the carriage before night came. Ed looked to see if he had hidden his skills, but he didn¡¯t do anything special. As always, he connected the horses, provided simple snacks, and focused on protecting the carriage.

    Still, Ed decided to watch him for a while. Even that night, beasts attacked them. However, perhaps due to the sacred force emitted from the carriage, they could not easily approach and were killed by Ed¡¯s arrow while barking from a distance.

    Now, only micro experiences levels have been introduced to them, but they have caught a mountain of beasts. The number of beasts are not infinite, and Nefthael said it would not sleep let Ed sleep at night. Now the number of beasts that come out now were just to keep Ed awake at night.

    About thirty appeared at intervals of time to disturb his sleep, but Ed was basically more alert at night. And the sacred carriage was good for relieving fatigue. Perhaps that¡¯s why there was no problem dealing with the beasts that appeared less often than before.

    Arin also offered to help, but Ed denied and fought them all by himself. He had to accumulate these micro experiences.

    As a result, the life of day and night changed as they prepared for the attack of the beasts at night. Ed alone was enough to deal with the beasts at night, so just in case, Arin decided to sleep at night and stay awake during the day.

    Instead, Arin was training on the roof of the carriage during the day. Training on a shaky carriage was good for developing a sense of balance, and Ed also rested as comfortably as possible during the day because he knew how strict her training was. It would be dangerous if a magician attacked, but after checking her ability, he believed that she could better respond to outside raids from the roof of the carriage.

    Even if he closes his eyes, Ed is paying attention to his surroundings, so there was nothing dangerous.

    Three nights after the carriage left Antsy. The carriage arrived in Bern City when the sunset fell.

    A trading city along the Ain River. They have arrived again in the city of pleasure, where there is nothing you can¡¯t buy with money. When Ed opened his eyes, Thane asked.

    ¡°I¡¯ll try to find a boat to pick up the carriage, but it¡¯s night, so we won¡¯t be able to leave until tomorrow morning. I¡¯m going for a drink. What are you going to do?¡±

    Ed picked up the ¡°Earth Breaker¡± and said,

    ¡°I¡¯m going to check if I have any acquaintances, and if they¡¯re not here, I¡¯m going to dispose of them in the dark.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll be on Fishermen¡¯s Night, so come when you¡¯re done. The ale there is awesome.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll do that. What are you going to do, Arin?¡±

    Arin, who came down from the roof of the carriage, replied calmly.

    ¡°I¡¯ll stop by the church and go to the Fishermen¡¯s Night.¡± ¡°Then we¡¯ll all see you later.¡±

    The carriage was able to easily pass the gates of Bern City, perhaps because of its divine power. As they entered the city, Ed got out of the carriage.

    He had a big Battle Axe on his back and a wind sword around his waist, but people didn¡¯t recognize him because he was wearing a shadow cape. Ed went straight for the cancer.

    As before, he was guided to buy three black arrows and broken ones. Where he entered, Ed could see a familiar face.

    A fairy sitting with glasses on. Arien smiled at Ed.

    ¡°Customer, I didn¡¯t expect to see you so soon. What are you here to buy?¡± ¡°I¡¯m here to ask you something today. Do you happen to know about Gerard?¡± ¡°Gerard? Why are you looking for news about him?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll give you something if you tell me.¡±

    The 1,000-gold ¡°Earth Breaker¡± is clearly a powerful artifact-level equipment, but Ed decided to consider it an investment for the future.

    ¡°What kind of stuff is it?¡±

    Ed just asked, smiling instead of answering.

    ¡°Where¡¯s Gerard?¡±

    Arien stared at Ed and answered.

    ¡°After the last mission, he seemed to like Bern city and decided to stay. And he¡¯s now working on a new quest. He¡¯s become quite popular around here.¡± ¡°Where is he now?¡± ¡°I understand he¡¯s staying at the Ash Tree Inn.¡±

    Ed nodded and pulled out two daggers. It was a dagger that was obtained after killing the assassin Denesh, but he decided to sell it because e didn¡¯t think it would be necessary.

    ¡°I want to dispose of this.¡±

    Arien accepted the dagger, examined it, and nodded.

    ¡°It¡¯s a dagger made of strong iron. It¡¯s not like an artifact, but it¡¯s like a luxury item. I¡¯ll buy it for 30 gold each.¡±

    He earned 60 golds with the dagger. The commission to kill Prince Cliff was very difficult, but he thought it was worth considering what had happened since then. When Ed had received 60 golds, he stood up and Arien spoke to him on his back.

    ¡°Akalans will do anything to cover up their mistakes. Be careful.¡±

    Ed paused and looked back at her. When killing the Akalan¡¯s, he burned all the evidence. But if they find out, they could be aiming for him. Compared to the time when Sona was killed, his level went up a few times and he became incomparably stronger. Among humans, there is no chance for a general level to fight against Ed. If someone comes to him again, then he will only gain experience.

    ¡°Thank you.¡±

    Arien meant that Akalan was moving. Ed thanked her for her kindness and came out. Ed went to the Ash Tree Inn and was able to read the noisy atmosphere even before entering the hotel. As Ed opened the door and went inside in a crowded place like the day he left, Gerard, who was dancing on the table, caught his eyes. Ed was wondering if he had changed. Then the dancer made eye contact with Ed. He was wearing a shadow cape, but he turned the hood back to show his face, so Gerrard raised his hand.

    ¡°My friend!¡±

    He stepped on the table and tried to hug Ed, so Ed dodged him. Gerard, who had been drinking a lot, rolled on the floor behind Ed and woke up laughing, approached.

    ¡°I never thought I¡¯d see you again.¡± ¡°I heard you¡¯re down here.¡± ¡°It¡¯s a rich city, so it makes a lot of money. I caught two demons while you were gone.¡±

    Gerard said so, guiding Ed to his seat. And there were familiar faces. Hamel, who can¡¯t speak, expressed his joy only with his eyes, and Sirke, the mystic, smiled with her eyes. Ed sat at their table and asked.

    ¡°But why are you two here?¡±

    Sirke looked at Gerard sitting next to her and continued.

    ¡°I¡¯m working on the quests with him.¡± ¡°What about Ford?¡± ¡°He left because he received a quest from a former mercenary general.¡±

    Ed didn¡¯t expect these two to be together. Gerard is the worst player in terms of skills, so how did he get to join them? Looking at the atmosphere, it felt like Gerrard was leading them. Sirke replied with a smile on her face as if she had read Ed¡¯s thoughts.

    ¡°I don¡¯t really like to be in front of Hamel or people, but Gerard is good at negotiating, unlike how he looks.¡± ¡°What do I look like?¡±

    Gerard grumbled while handed Ed a glass and poured it full. Ed emptied his glass and looked at Gerard. Ed thought a second-star in the Demon¡¯s Age would be paving the way for himself. Just like Ed was teaming up with Arin. Still, he didn¡¯t expect Hamel and Sirke to be recruited. Gerard poured the second glass and said.

    ¡°Now that I¡¯ve done it together with them, I can tell. I can do better with them than alone.¡± ¡°Well done. You seem stronger when someone is with you.¡± ¡°Hahaha. He knows how to look through people.¡±

    Ed looked at Gerard and asked.

    ¡°But why is it so noisy here?¡± ¡°The drinks are on me today.¡±

    Sirke said with a slight touch on her forehead.

    ¡°He has no intention of saving money.¡±

    Gerard replied with his chest wide open.

    ¡°What kind of money do I need when I¡¯m alone? I¡¯m just spending as much as I earn.¡±

    Ed could tell he was a person that cared more about his present than his future. Well, how much would Ed know about him? Since they met and killed the Creatine together, they drank all night and laughed and talked about random topics. In the meantime, however, they caught the demon, and a team formed, so they knew that they were destined to get caught up in the main quest in some way. The main quests get entangled during the process, so he thought it would be helpful in the future to make this guy strong. Ed took out the Battle Axe on his back and put it on the table. The Battle Axe took over the entire table. The decoration itself stood out because it was unusual. Gerard opened his eyes wide when he saw it.

    ¡°What¡¯s this?¡± ¡°I picked it up on my way here. You can keep it.¡± ¡°What? Are you really giving it to me?¡±

    Gerard picked it up without knowing what it was. Then he tilted his head and muttered.

    ¡°It needs mana, doesn¡¯t it?¡±

    When he saw Gerard hammering in mana, Ed stood up and punched him. Gerard¡¯s jaw swirled and his eyes relaxed and he collapsed.

    ¡°Phew.¡±

    If a madman caused an earthquake, the inn would collapse. Sirke also stood up with a cane and was relieved to see him on the floor.

    ¡°Is this a relic?¡± ¡°Yes, it¡¯s called the Earth Breaker, and if you hit like this, an earthquake would hit a 10-meter radius.¡±

    He almost got buried alive because he injected mana into the axe without any time to explain.

    ¡°This is the Earth Breaker?¡±

    Asked in surprise, Ed nodded slowly.

    ¡°I want to ask you one thing, Sirke¡¯s magic is the wind, right?¡± ¡°Yes, I use Wind Magic.¡± ¡°Then this would suit you, Sirke.¡±

    When Ed took out the wind sword and held it out, Sirke put her hand up and admired it.

    ¡°This is the Wind Sword?¡± ¡°You recognize it at a glance.¡± ¡°It¡¯s called a dream relic for wind mystics. It¡¯s a relic that allows you to do more than your regular abilities.¡± ¡°This is for you, Sirke.¡±

    Sirke stared at Ed.

    ¡°This is a relic superior to the relics of wind mystics. I can¡¯t just accept this precious thing.¡±

    Ed saw Gerard stretching on the floor and said.

    ¡°It¡¯s going to be a tough journey with him in the future. I hope that helps at least a little.¡±

    Sirke touched the ¡°Wind Sword¡± in her hand and looked up. Although there were a lot of people who cannot use this unless they are a Wind Mystic, they were in line to buy it even if they paid money. She was curious about Ed¡¯s intention of giving such a thing without asking for any reward, but she couldn¡¯t resist it. Sirke nodded and said.

    ¡°I won¡¯t say no. And we¡¯ll take good care of Gerard.¡±

    Ed got up from his seat¡­

    ¡°I have a group now, too. So I¡¯ll head off now.¡±

    Hamel assisted Gerard, who had fallen, and Sirke saw him off in front of the inn. Ed looked over Sirke¡¯s shoulders at Hamel and Gerrard. Ed guessed Gerrard was still doing his job as their leader. They were taking good care of him too, after all.

    ¡°I¡¯ll pay you back whenever I get a chance.¡±

    Ed just looked up and left. Ed, who left the boisterous Ash Tree Inn and visited the Fishermen¡¯s Night by the river. Thane was already there emptying ale with Arin. It wasn¡¯t as noisy as the Ash Tree Inn. It was a place where fishermen who are tired of their work gather and quietly empty their ale. The sight of those waving their hands in such a place made Ed smile. Gerard made his own team, and Ed teamed up with Arin. His own team.

 Chapter 35 - Brothe

    Since they needed to bring the carriage with them, they managed to find a big merchant ship to travel across the sea. It was a ship with a flat floor and a lot of wheat, and its speed was not fast, but they had no choice because their carriage was so large. They couldn¡¯t leave the carriage behind because it had excellent performance. They decided to take the carriage with them because they were thinking of travelling to the capital city after that, not just until Kalim City. They were watching a merchant ship loaded with horses and carriages, and they heard a loud voice from behind.

    ¡°Ed¡±!

    When Ed turned his head, Gerrard was running. Hamel and Sirke were also seen behind him. Gerrard¡¯s shoulders had the Battle Axes on them. Ed knew he had strong muscle strength, but he didn¡¯t know that Gerrard could hold the Battle Axes as a pair.

    ¡°Wahahaha. I woke up early in the morning and used it. It is sure something!¡±

    It is something. For Gerrard now, it was an object that could give him more power. So Ed gave it to him. Gerrard burst into laughter and frowned.

    ¡°Oh, that¡¯s weird. Why does my jaw hurt so much when I remember taking it from you?¡±

    Seeing his black and blue bruised jaw, Ed avoided looking at him for no reason. Gerrard soon smiled and clenched his fist. Looking at a fist the size, Ed stuck out his fist facing him. When the two fists met, Gerrard opened his mouth.

    ¡°Ed. You¡¯re no longer my friend.¡±

    He always said Ed was a friend, but Gerrard smiled and said.

    ¡°Now you¡¯re my brother¡±. ¡°Who¡¯s the older one?¡± ¡°Of course, I¡¯m older than you.¡±

    Ed smiled at him.

    ¡°The person who¡¯s better at fighting should be the older brother¡±. ¡°Wahahaha. Did you want to be a younger brother that much? Then I¡¯ll teach you a lesson for sure this time. Don¡¯t cry after getting hit!¡±

    As Gerrard burst into laughter, and suddenly swung his fist, Ed turned his body and punched him. It was a simple punch, but Ed was going to make him very alert.

    Boom!

    Gerrard¡¯s eyes were closing, Ed lay him on the pier and waited for Hamel and Sirke. Hamel helped Gerrard, and Sirke shook her head.

    ¡°Are you done organizing the ranks?¡±

    Ed looked at Gerrard, who fainted, and said.

    ¡°Call me ¡®Hyung(older brother)¡¯ the next time you see me.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll do that. But I don¡¯t know if I accept it.¡±

    Ed laughed at the words.

    ¡°If you say nonsense when we meet again, you¡¯ll get hit like crazy.¡±

    Gerrard may be ahead in terms of muscle strength, but Ed is far higher in agility. The day will not come when Gerrard can beat him. Sirke smiled quietly and looked back.

    ¡°By the way, who are they?¡±

    Ed introduced the two who had come forward.

    ¡°This is Thane, a renowned demon researcher, and this is Arin, a holy knight of the Astron Church.¡±

    Ed also introduced Gerrard¡¯s party to Arin and Thane.

    ¡°That guy who fainted is my brother Gerrard, this is Hamel, and this is Sirke.¡± Thane looked back at Gerrard¡¯s party with his one-eyed glasses sparkling. ¡°So that¡¯s him. The savage warrior who has been beating demons these days.¡± ¡°You¡¯re probably right. Even after I left, he was still catching demons.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sad that he fainted. I wanted to say hello.¡±

    When Thane was disappointed, Arin was greeting Sirke.

    ¡°May Astron¡¯s glory be with you. I¡¯m Arin.¡± ¡°May Astron¡¯s glory be with you. I¡¯m Sirke. This is my husband Hamel. Hamel lost his voice, so please understand.¡± ¡°May I take a look at him?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know if it¡¯s possible to cure him because he got hurt a long time ago.¡±

    Arin wanted to be of any help to those who were close to Ed, so she approached Hamel and looked at his neck. Certainly, the wound on his neck was from a long time ago, so she wondered if it could be treated only with divine power, but she decided to believe in her divine power, which has become incomparably stronger than before. Arin injected divine power while praying in a small voice, and Sirke¡¯s eyes shinned in the blue light blooming brilliantly from Arin¡¯s body. She allowed treatment because Arin was close with Ed, but she did not think that Arin would be able to treat Hamel. They have already given a long time ago. But the divine power she emits now seemed to reach the sky. This level of divine power has never been seen in Sirke¡¯s long life. Hamel¡¯s impression hardened as the light seemed to permeate his neck. Sirke was surprised by his expression distorted by pain and wondered if she should stop her, but Hamel raised his hand. Hamel stopped Sirke from interfering because he sensed something inside his wound and his broken vocal cords. Hamel gave up on regaining his voice because nothing worked, so he had hope for the changes that are happening now. With Arin¡¯s brilliant divine power heading to Hamel¡¯s neck, and even the light surrounding her disappeared, Hamel sat on the floor holding his neck. Hamel looked back at her as Sirke carefully helped him. Hamel carefully opened her mouth.

    ¡°Yo-, You.¡±

    Hamel himself opened his eyes wide in surprise at the voice coming out. Sirke held Hamel¡¯s cheeks with her hands and asked.

    ¡°Can you speak now?¡±

    Hamel nodded slightly and put his hand over Sirke¡¯s hand. Then he nodded slowly.

    ¡°¡¤¡¤¡¤I can talk now.¡±

    He couldn¡¯t make a loud noise yet, but he thought it was great to be able to talk. Sirke hugged Hamel and shed tears. Considering the long lifespan of the fairies, Hamel¡¯s loss of voice could have been longer than expected. And they don¡¯t know why he was hurt, but it must have been a burden to Sirke. Ed stood next to Arin and smiled when he saw her delighted with tears.

    ¡°You¡¯ve done a great job.¡±

    Arin was also looking down at her hand. She knew that the divine power that had been used only to shoot down demons was so helpful to treat someone. Arin felt proud and clenched her fist. Sirke sobbed for a long time, and Hamel calmed her down by continuing to sweep her hair. They heard that the fairies had low emotions, but seeing them show such intense emotions, Arin thought it must have been so hard for them until now. As Sirke pulled herself together, Hamel stood up encouraging her, and bowed his head toward Arin.

    ¡°I won¡¯t forget this glory.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t mention it. Your wound has recovered, but you haven¡¯t used it for a long time, so you have to recover little by little.¡±

    Hamel turned his head and looked at Sirke.

    ¡°I¡¯ve been thinking about this for a long time because it was a wound I suffered while saving her. Thank you for lessening her burden.¡±

    Seeing Hamel expressing his gratitude for lessening Sirke¡¯s burden rather than because his neck healed, they could see how much Hamel loved her. Sirke bowed her head silently.

    ¡°I won¡¯t forget this glory. If you call us whenever you need our strength, we¡¯ll come running from anywhere.¡±

    Arin blushed slightly at the reaction of the two. It wasn¡¯t the first time she has treated a person, but she was embarrassed because it was the first time someone was so sincerely grateful.

    ¡°It¡¯s the glory of Astron.¡±

    At Arin¡¯s words, Hamel and Sirke bowed at the same time.

    ¡°May Astron¡¯s glory be with you.¡±

    While praising each other, Doug came from behind.

    ¡°I loaded both horses and the carriages. Let¡¯s go now.¡±

    Ed looked back at Hamel and Sirke.

    ¡°We should get going. Let¡¯s meet again with a smile next time.¡±

    Hamel and Sirke also bowed to Ed. If it wasn¡¯t for him he wouldn¡¯t have met Arin, so he also thought he was a savior. Seeing Ed, Thane, and Arin get on the boat and leave, Hamel and Sirke stood there silently and captured them leaving. As they watched the ship moving away, Gerrard, who was lying on the floor, opened his eyes.

    ¡°Huh? What about my younger brother?¡±

    Sirke replied with a smile on her face.

    ¡°Which younger brother?¡± The next time you meet him, he said that you should call him ¡®Hyung¡¯.¡±

    Gerrard touched his chin and stamped his feet. And when he saw the boat moving away, he put his hands together and shouted loudly.

    ¡°Ed! See you again next time!¡±

    Ed, who heard Gerrard¡¯s shout from the distant ship, smiled and raised his hand.

    ¡°I¡¯ll buy you a drink next time!¡±

    Gerrard¡¯s answer came as if he had heard Ed¡¯s shout.

    ¡°That¡¯s a promise!¡±

    Ed just waved his hand because it was hard to hear even if he shouted now.

    The Ain River, which is the continental lifeline and responsible for the waterway of the Kingdom of Travia, was very wide and deep. The river was so wide that they can¡¯t even guess its size. Even while traveling on the merchant ship, the attack of the beasts were carried out every night. In particular, the problem was those who were approaching the surface, but Arin solved the problem. The hammer she threw did not slow down at all in the water and was an all-weather weapon that even returned, so the beasts were no match for Arin. However, Arin had to stay awake at night because she had to attack. Ed stood by her and played a role in telling the location of the approaching beasts. After spending the first night like that, Thane opened his mouth at breakfast the next day.

    ¡°I¡¯m collecting information about Kalim City. It¡¯s hard to find a peculiarity.¡±

    If it was at least an intermediate demon, a peculiarity will appear in some way, but Thane could not find anything. He thought it was because of the deaths of other demons.

    ¡°Now, the situation is so chaotic that it is not easy to find any peculiarities.¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°When everyone heard that Prince Cliff¡¯s death was done by the remnants of the kingdom, the king was very angry and ordered the return of the knight Malot, who had to protect Prince Cliff, but Malot refused. Malot is rather suppressing the remnants of the Dalian kingdom for Prince Cliff¡¯s death. Because of that, the king ordered the aristocrats to attract troops. He seems to be thinking of going to the kingdom of Dalia to catch Malot.¡± ¡°Is there going to be a war?¡± ¡°Maybe that¡¯s what¡¯s going to happen. But it won¡¯t be easy. Those who call it the remnants of the Dalian Kingdom are trying to regain the kingdom.¡± ¡°They¡¯re trying to take back the kingdom?¡± ¡°I heard they¡¯ve found someone that was part of the royal family. I think her name was Princess Ester?¡±

    Ed smiled at the familiar name. She said she would remain in the palace and eventually decided to join the remnants of the kingdom.

    ¡°I see.¡±

    Ed nodded and turned his head while eating grilled fish. He could see a ship approaching in the distance. The distance was getting closer quickly as if it were a speedboat, but a man standing caught his eye. The man with chains wrapped around both arms looked at the merchant ship with indifferent eyes. And those behind the man caught his eye. They were wearing a leather mask reminiscent of a gas mask. It¡¯s Akalan.

 Chapter 36 - Brant

    Ed knew Akalan was planning something. Arien warned him about them too. However, he didn¡¯t think they would attack with confidence. When he saw them approaching on the speedboat, he thought they looked so funny, so he took out his bow and prepared an arrow. At that time, Arin stepped in front of Ed. She stood at the front and shouted at the approaching speedboat.

    ¡°This is Arin, a holy knight of Astron. Who are you?¡±

    Despite Arin¡¯s shout, the speedboat did not slow down. Akalan is an independent group within the kingdom of Travia. However, no matter how strong they were, they could not kill the holy knight of the Astron Church. But they were not slowing down at all. They have entered Ed¡¯s intersection, but the gap narrows over time. Ed wasn¡¯t worried even if they had a battle, but it would be difficult if they come too close. If they make a hole in the boat, it would be a bigger problem, so Ed couldn¡¯t postpone it any longer. Arin made a slight impression when she saw those approaching, ignoring her words. For her, a holy knight, Astron¡¯s name must be kept. Arin warned them when she saw their indifferent faces narrowing the distance.

    ¡°Stop your boat and tell me who you are!¡±

    The speedboat speeded up and an Akalan agent who was wearing a mask shouted.

    ¡°This is Akalan¡¯s job, so it¡¯s not for the Astron Church to intervene. We only have to catch Ed, so step back. So that we don¡¯t hurt each other.¡±

    Arin¡¯s eyebrows wriggled.

    ¡°He is working with the Astron Church. Go away.¡± ¡°He¡¯s a felon who killed all of Akalan¡¯s team. Step back.¡±

    The Akalan agent was seen pulling out a crossbow. When Ed saw him, he told Arin.

    ¡°This is my job. I¡¯ll take care of it.¡±

    Arin looked at Ed as if she was disappointed and turned toward the speedboat.

    ¡°No, this is our job.¡±

    With her answer, Arin threw a hammer out. It was a proof of trust. Proof of trust beyond all political understanding. Ed finally realized that he had met someone who really cared for him. Arin¡¯s hammer flew over the Ain River and toward the man on the speedboat. The man punched the flying hammer. There were chains wrapped around both of the man¡¯s arms. When he blocked the hammer, it fell under the river, and he was looking at Arin with indifferent eyes. Ed did not hesitate to shoot an arrow when he saw that the fight had begun.

    Shhhhhhhhhh!

    Four arrows flew toward the speedboat. There was quite a distance, but the speed at which the arrow flew was different due to his increase in archery skills. However, when the man standing in the front of the speedboat reached out his hand, the chain was released, and all the arrows were blocked. Ed¡¯s eyebrows wriggled. Ed wondered what he was when he saw him blocking the arrows. Thane admired his appearance.

    ¡°I think that¡¯s the chain of Eslan, but I didn¡¯t know it had that function.¡±

    There were numerous runes inscribed in the chain. It could be seen that it was not an ordinary object just by the fact that there was a rune text was in it. Just in case, Ed fired five arrows again, but all the arrows were blocked as if the chain were alive. He tried to block the last arrow, but he couldn¡¯t hit it perfectly and it passed by the man¡¯s cheek. Indeed, no matter how long-distance an attack can be prevented, it cannot be perfect. Akalan has been looking for the best card to face Ed. They must have thought that anyone wearing absurd artifacts that automatically defend against long-distance attacks could be able to catch him. He knows that Ed killed a general-level knight, so the individual¡¯s power seems to be formidable. In addition, seven Akalan agents to assist him are with him, so they were not easy opponents. Since he killed Prince Cliff, Ed was also not an easy opponent. When Arin reached out her hand, a hammer flew under the water and was caught in her hand. She slowly stepped back looking at the man. She measured the distance.

    ¡°Thane. Get inside the carriage!¡±

    There was no way to protect Thane out in the open where Akalan agents were firing their crossbows. If they recognize Thane, they won¡¯t dare to kill him, but he might get hit by a blind arrow. Thane entered the carriage and Doug protected it. They don¡¯t know much about Doug¡¯s ability, but he had to protect Thane until they stopped the Akalan agents. Then an Akalan agent shot a crossbow. Arin saw it and blocked all the arrows with her shield. She showed a novelty in blocking all seven arrows with a shield, but as soon as she blocked them, smoke erupted. But they chose the wrong opponent. Ed just felt a little dizzy for a while because of his high stamina, and Arin thought the shield was shining slightly and stood casually. The speedboat came closer, blocking their view. Ed felt the approaching people and fired arrows at the Akalan agents. The enemies did not expect what was going to happen next. All seven agents collapsed with an arrow in their head. As expected, Eslan¡¯s chain only protects that one man. He couldn¡¯t respond to the arrows Ed fired at the other people. The man was measuring the distance without paying attention to the death of those who followed him behind him. Then he jumped when he thought the distance was close enough. Arin¡¯s hammer flew toward the man. The man swung his fist at the hammer flying through the air, but because of the impact, he bounced off the boat. Six arrows were fired towards the man, who returned to the speedboat and collected his breath. His chain moved to block five arrows. While the man escaped, this time Arin ran off the deck and jumped toward the speedboat. Ed fired five arrows to cover Arin. The chain surrounding the man¡¯s arm couldn¡¯t stop Arin from crossing the ship because she was covering the arrows. The man raised his fist to block Arin¡¯s hammer, which crossed the boat.

    Boom!

    The man took two steps back, and Arin was able to get close to him. She rushed toward him with a shield. In Arin¡¯s rush, the man punched her shield, then flew away. Ed injected mana into the ice bow and fired an arrow into the river in front of the speedboat.

    Crack.

    The river in front of the left side of the speedboat froze. Ed also crossed over to the deck of the speedboat when he saw the speedboat hit a large block of ice and passed by the side of the merchant ship. Arin and the man were already fiercely fighting. The man, who wraps his chains around his fists, did not have a muscular body like a savage warrior. He was a man who seemed to value agility because of his long limbs and slender body. Whenever such a man¡¯s fist hit Arin¡¯s shield or hit her hammer, her sacredness was blurred. She wondered what the hell is the chain of Eslan. He is so versatile. He had a monster-like performance, and he carried an item closest to a holy relic she has ever seen. And she could see that a man with such relics was a man who was really determined and praised by the Akalan. She couldn¡¯t let him get away. Arin thought his individual skills were certainly outstanding. Since Ed committed a felony, a normal holy knight wouldn¡¯t have interfered in this battle. She didn¡¯t have to protect Ed with a political burden. So honestly, Ed was just grateful that Arin stepped up for him. Without Arin, it would have been hard to kill all of them, but thanks to Arin, things became easier. Ed was not the type to wait and see if it was a fair match. Ed moved to Arin¡¯s left and fired an arrow at the man without hesitation. Arin also didn¡¯t miss the opportunity while the chain wrapped around Ed¡¯s right arm was released and bounced it off to prevent the arrow. The man, who raised his fist with a shield and swung a hammer toward the gap, he looked back at the two and slowly opened his mouth after stepping back at Arin¡¯s attack.

    ¡°Holy knight. If you step down now, I won¡¯t kill you.¡±

    At the man¡¯s words, Arin threw a hammer instead of answering. The man swung his fist roughly to hit the hammer and looked at Ed. Ed was already shooting seven arrows in a row the moment he looked at him.

    Kakakakakakakang!

    He blocked five arrows, but the last one was stuck in his left thigh. The last arrow was from the barrel of ice, so his thigh side froze and turned black. Ed was firing an arrow again, and the chain around the man¡¯s arm was released. The man said, pulling out the arrow stuck in his thigh.

    ¡°You brought this upon yourself.¡±

    The man¡¯s voice sounded like a beast growling in a deep cave. And the body of the man began to change. They saw one of his eyes turned red, and his muscles swelled to the point where his clothes were torn off.

    ¡°What¡¯s that?¡±

    A tall man with long arms and legs swelled up as if his muscles were bursting. They wondered what he was, and Ed fired arrows one after another.

    Kakakakang

    The man¡¯s forearm was already wound around the chain, and he blocked Ed¡¯s arrow. The man bounced the arrow and rushed in. Arin covered her front with a shield and rushed into the front.

    Boom!

    A roar rang as if a bomb were exploding, and Arin bounced out of the speedboat and flew away. Ed fired an arrow with mana toward where Arin would fall.

    Booom!

    The ground where Ed was standing was smashed. Ed looked into the eyes of the man while the pieces of wood on the deck scattered. The appearance of only one eye shining red was a situation that was never seen even in the Demon¡¯s Age1. A different situation from a demon¡¯s subordinates or followers. But somehow he is related to a demon. He was even more agile than any other opponent Ed had ever met. Ed opened his mouth as he gathered his breath.

    ¡°What¡¯s your name?¡± ¡°Brant.¡±

    Seeing that he could answer his name, he was still in his right mind. Is he some sort of Hulk that could still think like a normal human? He was going to be one of Ed¡¯s worst opponents.

 Chapter 37 - Bad relationship

    Arin, who was flying in the air, turned around and fell on a block of ice that Ed made. When the chunk of ice sunk into the water and was pushed up by buoyancy, Arin made a jump. Arin climbed on to the merchant ship, and saw the man standing face to face on his speedboat. Arin closed her eyes and opened when she saw Ed facing the man full of muscles. Her eyes shone blue when she looked at her opponent. What he had shown to them was not human power. The appearance of her opponent was strange. His human soul was serving the power of the demon. The moment she saw him, she could tell. What a terrible experiment they¡¯ve done to him.

    ¡°How can there be such a cruel person!¡±

    When Arin was angry at Akalan, the man rushed toward Ed and he began to fire his arrow.

    Ed fired seven arrows at Brant, who was running. Five arrows were fired toward his face and two arrows were fired toward the ground, but now the automatic defense system of the Eslan chain seemed to have been turned off. Brant, who had been running with all five arrows around his arm, staggered when the floor froze. Ed pulled out Etrian¡¯s sword and swung it at Brant while injecting mana. If he was attacked like this for the first time, he won¡¯t even know what was going to happen. However, Brant¡¯s left red eye was shining, and he used both arms to block the attack. Ed¡¯s sword power was wrapped around his chain.

    Boom!

    Sword power is generated by using mana, not muscle strength. Brant, who was beaten by Ed¡¯s sword power, was pushed all the way to the end to the ship, then stuck his left foot on the floor and held out. Brant swung his left arm as Ed tried to swing his sword again. Ed stopped swinging his sword with a frightening hunch and bowed his head.

    Shhhh!

    The chain of Eslan passed by where Ed¡¯s head was. The long chain was swung with the power to rip Ed¡¯s flesh and break his head just by a touch. Ed stepped back and swung his sword. He kept using his Mana and his sword. He was trying to attack using his invisible sword power. Will Brant be able to stop his attack again? Brant avoided the invisible attack. His left eye was shining red when he blocked the trajectory with his chain.

    Booooom!

    Brant bounced off the speedboat. Brant, who was bouncing away, released the chain around his left arm and wrapped it around the sail. He made a mistake when he did that. Ed put down Etrian¡¯s sword and fired an arrow straight away. He can¡¯t block all the arrows with one arm. So this time, Ed poured out all the arrows he could shoot from the frozen arrow barrel. He raised his arm to block a few arrows, but he could not avoid getting shot on his thighs and shoulders. The arrows were shot in a hurry, but they penetrated through his thick muscles and slowed him down enough. Back to the speedboat, Brant kicked the ground with one leg. If he can¡¯t control his leg and one arm, the balance of his body will be broken. So his movements are bound to become rough. Ed wanted to finish him off now. He wanted to see the end to this battle. Ed narrowed his distance and pulled out the Salamander¡¯s sword. As soon as their distance narrowed, Ed had to do his best to avoid flying fists. Brant¡¯s movement was faster than anything Ed has ever encountered. Brant tried to avoid the attack even in his current state, but he wasn¡¯t fast enough. As a result, the pressure hurt his skin as if it was tearing. However, he was focusing on avoiding Ed¡¯s attack. The salamander¡¯s sword cut the Brant¡¯s side and passed by. The side cut by the Salamander¡¯s sword is fiery. He didn¡¯t get a deep cut because he turned, but the flames soared immediately due to the small cut in his muscles. Brant then stood on two feet, and released the chains on both of his arms, and swung them. The chain flying like a whip aimed for Ed, but Ed moved around and avoided it because the arrows stuck in Brant¡¯s shoulders and thighs slowed him down. It might have been dangerous if Brant was in his normal state, but his attacks were avoidable in his current state. Ed, who avoided his attack, threw the Salamander¡¯s sword. Brant chained the Salamander¡¯s sword flying toward his forehead.

    This is how the game ends. Two seconds is longer than you think. The salamander¡¯s sword, which Brant thought would bounce off, was stuck in his back. It didn¡¯t matter if Brant¡¯s muscles were so hard that the sword couldn¡¯t reach the heart. Ed can still control it as he wanted for two seconds, so he tried to dig into Brant¡¯s skin as deep as he could. Brant rushed without slowing down at all, even though the Salamander¡¯s sword was stuck in his back. When Ed avoided him, Brant pulled the Salamander¡¯s sword out of his back and threw it. It flew in like a black bullet thrown with an ignorant force. Ed managed to avoid it. But Brant didn¡¯t stop. He tried to leap as he was running to the river. Ed smiled in vain at Brant¡¯s appearance and pulled out an arrow. Brant turned and blocked the arrow Ed fired with mana. Perhaps because his body was stiff or his back muscles were burning, the arrow was stuck between his chains.

    Crack!

    Brant fell into the river with his entire chain arm frozen. Ed thought he was going to float back up of buoyancy, so he prepared and ran. But Ed ran out of mana because he used Etrian¡¯s sword a lot. He ran, but Brant went into the water with a splash and never came back up. With chains around both of his arms, his weight disappeared into the water. Ed shot the water with an arrow, but Brant did not come out. Ed made a ¡®tsk¡¯ sound as Brant didn¡¯t come out of the water for a long time. Brant was a human weapon raised by Akalan. This man¡¯s ability far exceeded the intermediate demon. He was like a senior demon that wields a relic-class equipment. Ed thought Brant would still be a difficult enemy even without his red left eye. His strong muscle strength and agility were top class. Even when dealing with demons, there are demons that are so fast and strong that even Ed would have a hard time handling. But he was confident of catching them, but not Brant. Brant was the most troublesome opponent Ed has faced until now. Ed saw that Brant did not come up after a long time, so he recovered the equipment and returned to the merchant ship. The distance between the speedboat and the merchant ship has already become quite far, but it was easy to freeze the river and cross it without difficulty. When Ed came over, Arin approached and looked at his condition.

    ¡°Are you okay?¡± ¡°Unfortunately, I missed him.¡± ¡°No. I¡¯m glad you didn¡¯t get hurt.¡±

    Arin couldn¡¯t take her eyes off Ed as they fought. In fact, their fight ended without any time for her to intervene. So she was surprised by Ed¡¯s various attack methods, and she was surprised at the monster-like man¡¯s ability to avoid them. It was only then that Thane opened the carriage and came out, looking at the two and said.

    ¡°Did you lose him?¡± ¡°Yes.¡±

    Thane looked at the speedboat moving away from him. Thane hid inside the carriage during the fight with the Akalan agents, but he opened the window and watched the fight against Brant. It was hard to see them with Thane¡¯s eyes, but he remembered the form. Thane¡¯s gaze turned to Arin.

    ¡°He didn¡¯t look like a human. What do you think?¡±

    Arin bit her lips at Thane¡¯s words. This was because Akalan¡¯s terrible experiment came to mind.

    ¡°He was serving the power of the demon and sacrificing his human soul.¡± ¡°I knew it.¡±

    Thane looked at Ed and said,

    ¡°Didn¡¯t I tell you in the past that there was a person like him? When talking about Rookie who kills demons in the last year.¡±

    Ed¡¯s impression hardened. He asked that question to find out who the main characters of the Demon¡¯s Age 2 were. However, he said that some of them were not identified.

    ¡°Do you think it¡¯s Brant?¡± ¡°It looks like there¡¯s plenty of potential.¡±

    Ed looked at the Ain River at Thane¡¯s words. Ed didn¡¯t know that Brant, who hasn¡¯t come out of the water so far, was one of the main characters. Ed especially didn¡¯t know that he would end up in a bad relationship with one of the main characters. Anyone who works for Akalan would eventually meet Ed again. Should Ed kill Brant then? What if they can¡¯t reach the ending because of Brant¡¯s death? All kinds of miscellaneous thoughts floated in Ed¡¯s head. Then Arin asked.

    ¡°But how did he manage to use the demon¡¯s power?¡±

    Thane replied by touching his glasses.

    ¡°The Eslan¡¯s chain was originally the great demon¡¯s seal. I didn¡¯t know it had such miscellaneous abilities, but I think he used it to minister the power of the demon.¡±

    Arin clenched her fist.

    ¡°It¡¯s nerve-racking to think about how many people would have died during his experiment.¡±

    Thane couldn¡¯t hide his depressed face.

    ¡°I agree with that. On the contrary, I think it was possible to do such a crazy thing because he was part of Akalan. They created a demon so they could kill other demons.¡± ¡°It¡¯s unforgivable.¡±

    Thane nodded at Arin¡¯s words.

    ¡°That¡¯s what happens. Perhaps if this fact becomes known, they will be criticized.¡±

    Ed looked at Thane. If Thane was honest, he would¡¯ve been actively in favor of creating demons to kill other demons. But he was responding to Arin¡¯s words otherwise. Arin said without hiding her stiff expression.

    ¡°I¡¯ll have to report this as soon as I get to Kalim City.¡± ¡°Yes, you must.¡±

    Ed agreed with Arin and looked at the river. Arin and Brant wouldn¡¯t have met if it weren¡¯t for Ed. Now they also have a bad relationship. They don¡¯t know what kind of butterfly effect this would bring, but when they thought about it, their existence itself was creating a butterfly effect. He met Gerrard and gave him a good weapon, and now a bad relationship has begun. But Ed decided to think positively. Even if Arin met Brant another way, she wouldn¡¯t have accepted Brant.

 Chapter 38 - Diego

    Brant appeared from the Ain River, and fell to the ground.

    ¡°Ah.¡±

    His frozen left arm still had not recovered, so it turned blue.

    Brant pulled out the arrows stuck in his shoulders and thighs, and looked at them still.

    He was taught that if he uses the power of the demon, he should exterminate everything around him. Otherwise, a holy knight will go after him.

    Even though there was a holy knight on the other side, he was confident of destroying the evidence by killing everyone.

    He was able to kill everyone with his power so far. But Ed was different. When he heard that Akalan¡¯s team was annihilated by Ed and that he killed Prince

    Cliff and guard Etrian, he was able to guess the opponent¡¯s skills.

    Still, he thought his team would be stronger than him, but he couldn¡¯t overpower Ed even with the power of the demon. No, rather, he had to run away.

    And he used too much of the demon¡¯s power. The muscles of his whole body trembled and blue blood vessels began to swell above his skin. Brant crouched down and endured the pain.

    Brant had been struggling with pain for a long time due to the rebound using the power of the demon, but raised his trembling body to calm down. First, he had to go back to Akalan.

    If he doesn¡¯t go back, his daughter will be in danger.

    Even after Akalan¡¯s attack, Nefthael steadily sent beasts at night. But now, the beasts only appeared almost once in a few hours.

    They had to stay awake at night because they didn¡¯t want the ship to sink, but now Ed had more time to spend with Arin.

    Arin would kneel and pray with her eyes closed.

    When Ed spots another beast and woke Arin up, she threw a hammer and broke the beasts head and knelt down to pray again.

    ¡°Is there a reason why you keep praying?¡±

    Arin smiled at Ed¡¯s question while posing.

    ¡°All sacred power comes from Astron, and I can only use the sacred power that I¡¯m allowed to use.¡±

    Arin said, putting her hands together in a praying posture.

    ¡°But the more I prayed, the more I felt the sacred power was staying with me.¡±

    When the sacred power stays in the body, the holy knight improves all abilities. In other words, Arin is improving little by little just praying.

    As expected, a holt knight was a fraud character.

    Perhaps even if Ed didn¡¯t intervene, she would have met Thane. Thane wanted to meet her.

    Ed was also curious about how she improved while working with Thane.

    ¡°I¡¯ll continue praying.¡±

    Arin closes her eyes and prayed. A subtle blue light emanated from her body. The appearance itself is mysterious, reminding Ed of a saint rather than a holy knight.

    Indeed, Thane once said that she has the sacred power comparable to that of Master Paladine.

    So when it comes to sacred power, she would be comparable to that of a saint.

    Ed thought she looked like a saint because she had such sacred power in her body.

    Ed lay next to her and looked up at the sky. An unimaginable number of stars were pouring from Earth. He¡¯s not interested in constellations, so he doesn¡¯t know if the stars he sees here are the same as the stars on Earth, but it was beautiful to see the stars in the cool river breeze.

    Ed looked at the sky for a while and got up from his seat. Then, he pulled out two arrows in both hands and fired them at the same time.

    It was a practice to see if his ability to control for two seconds were possible while using multiple arrows.

    He shoots two arrows at the same time and adjusts those two arrows at the same time. His mana consumption has doubled, but this allowed him to use a different tactic than before.

    Ed made the arrow come back in two seconds. As the two arrows were arrows flying in different trajectories, his head was pounding.

    It felt like drawing a circle with his right hand and a triangle with your left hand.

    Ed tried to go one step further than yesterday, adjusting so that his mana would not run out. And the merchant ship continued to flow along the Ain River.

    Kalim City.

    It is one of the five castles protecting the capital of the Kingdom of Travia and was the place where the entire floodgate was installed to block the wide Ain River.

    Those guarding the floodgate blocked and inspected passing ships, and soldiers guarding the floodgate also climbed onto the ship on which Ed was on.

    They saw a blue-colored carriage and their jaws dropped. In particular, thanks to the injection of more sacred power, the wagon was emitting a brilliant light.

    In addition, since the person on the boat was a holy knight, they were able to pass through the floodgate without any restraint.

    As Thane passed through the floodgate with a cane, he sighed as he looked at the city of Kalim.

    ¡°I tried to find something unique, but I couldn¡¯t.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll have to go and look for it myself.¡±

    Arin looked back at the party and said.

    ¡°I¡¯ll stop by the church and report about Akalan first.¡±

    ¡°Okay. I¡¯ll find out a little more about Kalim. The ¡°Sleepless Night¡± is the best location to meet back up, so see you there later.¡±

    Thane¡¯s eyes turned to Ed.

    ¡°What are you going to do?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll look around.¡±

    Since he met Thane, he received information and could identify his opponent easily.

    And since he met Arin, he had no worries about money. But when did you rely on them to find a demon?

    Ed was thinking of getting information through the lower-class citizens of Kalim city.

    Thane, who arrived at the dock of Kalim City and got off the wagon, said he wanted to see the castle.

    Thane went to Castle, and after Arin went to church, Ed was left alone.

    He was wearing a shadow cloak, so even if he was between people, people did not recognize him if he stood still.

    Ed began to read the atmosphere as he passed by the market with his hood on.

    It was along the Ain River, so the fish market was big in Kalim.

    As he passed by the noisy fish market, Ed could hear the sighs of people.

    Due to the king¡¯s order to gather soldiers, the king of Kalim seemed to be forcibly recruiting soldiers.

    They were forcing fishermen to hold spears and send them to the battlefield.

    There was a woman crying, saying that her child was about to be dragged, and a woman who heard that her husband was about to be dragged.

    Ed, who was walking on the path of the fish market, stepped toward the disturbance occurring in the alley. Three boys were knocking on one boy.

    When Ed took off his hood and showed up, the boys kicking the one boy looked back at Ed.

    The boys spat on the floor and left, perhaps because they saw him wearing an ice arrow barrel even though he was wearing a shadow cape.

    ¡°Today¡¯s your lucky day!¡±

    ¡°You fucking thief.¡±

    Ed approached the crouching boy. The boy rolled around, leaned his back against the wall, and wiped the blood flowing around his mouth.

    Ed looked down at the boy and saw the bread that the boy was holding tightly.

    Ed asked the boy.

    ¡°Did you get hit because of that?¡±

    The boy looked up at Ed and got up from his seat and shook his body.

    Come to think of it, he had a skin color that was hard to see in the kingdom of Travia.

    When he saw the boy with brown skin walking up, he couldn¡¯t help but laugh. He was beaten like that, but his steps were completely fine.

    Ed guessed that he avoided getting hit in his vital area.

    His ability to use his body seemed better than the three boys because they wouldn¡¯t know how to avoid getting hit in the vital area.

    Ed followed the boy.

    For some reason, walking along with the eye-catching boy, the boy passed through the fish market and entered a slum.

    As Ed continued to walk along with the boy, people¡¯s reactions were cold.

    Some boys, as well as adults, were trying to throw stones but stopped when they saw Ed¡¯s eyes.

    Following the boy like that, the boy shook off the dust on his body in front of the shabby house, cleaned it up as much as possible, and went inside.

    Ed heard a small cough inside.

    ¡°Mom, I¡¯m back¡±.

    ¡°Okay, son. Did you find some work today?¡±

    ¡°I helped move the flour in the bakery, and the owner paid me with bread.¡±

    ¡°You must¡¯ve worked hard.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll boil it in water soon¡±.

    ¡°Will you?¡±

    Ed, who was watching the boy make a fire and pour water into a pot on it and boil the bread, turned around and headed back to the fish market.

    Since the kingdom of Travia is the kingdom with the greatest power on the continent, the royal people do not starve because they are diligent.

    But the reason why that boy is living so difficult is probably because he is mixed-race.

    Ed went to the fish market, bought plenty of meat and bread, and headed back to the boy¡¯s house.

    In the meantime, the boy who was feeding his mother boiled bread was seen through the broken window.

    Ed¡¯s eyes turned to his mother as he looked at the boy who was blowing and feeding his mother bread porridge.

    Although she looked haggard, his mother was definitely Travian. The problem was that her eyes were purple.

    She couldn¡¯t eat anymore and laid back down.

    The boy looked at his mother, came to the kitchen, put what his mother had left in the pot, and went to his mother¡¯s side to massage her arms and legs.

    While coughing, his mother¡¯s expression became a little comfortable and she fell asleep.

    It was only after confirming that his mother was asleep that the boy came out.

    And in front of Ed, he asked.

    ¡°Mister, why are you looking around?¡±

    He looked about 10 years old.

    Unlike when he treated his mother, the boy was looking at Ed with eyes full of hatred.

    Ed looked at the boy and said.

    ¡°I¡¯m going to ask you something.¡±

    ¡°What are you talking about? I¡¯m busy right now.¡±

    As the boy tried to turn around as if there was nothing more to hear, Ed took out the things he was holding inside the cape.

    The boy¡¯s eyes grew bigger when he saw a basket full of bread and meat. However, the boy took a step back and was rather wary of Ed.

    ¡°My mom said there is nobody in this world who is kind without a reason.¡±

    ¡°Your mother taught you well.¡±

    Ed put down the basket, stepped back, and stood against the wall.

    When Ed stepped down, the boy alternated between the basket and Ed, looking embarrassed.

    The boy seemed to be agonizing for a moment, but soon gave in to temptation and looked at Ed.

    ¡°What do you want to ask?¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s your name?¡±

    ¡°Diego.¡±

    ¡°Your father must be from the kingdom of Persan.¡±

    Diego snorted lightly.

    ¡°You can tell just by looking at my skin color.¡±

    Ed asked Diego what he wanted to ask since earlier because Diego seemed to be somewhat relaxed.

    ¡°Since when did your mother get sick?¡±

    ¡°My mother? It¡¯s been about a month.¡±

    ¡°Did you take her to see the priest?¡±

    Diego frowned.

    ¡°How can I take her to church in that condition? And there is no way that the priest will come to this kind of place.¡±

    Ed was not interested in Diego¡¯s reaction.

    ¡°There must be a lot of people around you who are sick besides your mother.¡±

    Diego tilted his head at Ed¡¯s words.

    ¡°No. I haven¡¯t seen anyone who¡¯s sick except my mom.¡±

    ¡°Really?¡±

    Ed thought a demon was involved, but why is she the only one who got sick?

    Ed looked back at Diego and asked.

    ¡°Where is your father?¡±

    Diego looked upset.

    ¡°He disappeared a month ago. He disappeared because my mom got sick. Sigh.¡±

 Chapter 39 - Bullshit

    While trying to get information from the slums, Ed met an eye-catching boy and followed him, because he smelled something related to the demon.

    The boy¡¯s mom¡¯s illness seems to be related to the demon.

    His dad disappeared around the same time.

    I was suspicious in many ways.

    However, Ed does not know how to exactly identify demons. In order to find out, Arin has to come. Just in time, Arin had to come to treat Diego¡¯s mother¡¯s disease.

    ¡°I¡¯ll go and bring someone to cure your mother¡¯s illness, so you should also put some meat in your mother¡¯s porridge. She has to eat meat to recover faster.¡±

    Diego bowed his head.

    ¡°Thank you. Thank you.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s too early to thank me.¡±

    Ed is unable to ignore the possibility that Diego¡¯s dad might be a demon. They don¡¯t know what¡¯s going to happen.

    Maybe he should have resentment, not gratitude.

    Seeing Diego stuffing bread into his mouth and putting meat in a pot, Ed left the slum and walked away. Walking through the slums, he certainly couldn¡¯t see people struggling like Diego¡¯s mother.

    Ed left the slum and kept walking. Passing through the fish market to the place where the nobles lived, there was a magnificent church of a size that had never been seen before.

    As it is one of the defense provinces of the capital, the size of the church was much larger. When Ed was looking at the church, those standing in front of the church blocked the front.

    They were the investigators of the Astron Church. Unlike priests who study and follow doctrines, they don¡¯t. And unlike the holy knights, their weapon was not strong enough to kill a beast.

    When Ed approached the church with weapons, he seemed to have been blocked.

    Ed said, showing the token of Astron around his neck because he had no intention of setting up a blade with them.

    ¡°I¡¯m here to meet Arin, a holy knight.¡±

    When Ed showed the token, it was emitting a subtle blue light. When the investigators saw it, one person even guided it.

    Ed, who was walking along with the investor, thought Diego was right. Slum people cannot come here. The purpose of the Astron Church in this world is not to relieve the poor.

    The denomination itself is no different from the Middle Ages, so it is close to power. Among them, there are adults who want to save the poor, but the higher the rank, the more blinded they are by money.

    Ed came straight from the slums and felt the contrast even more intense. He had a hunch that it would be difficult to get the help of the chief priest here.

    The place where Ed went under the guidance of the investigator into the chief priest¡¯s office, which had not been seen until now.

    ¡°Chief priest. There is a guest who came to see Miss Arin.¡±

    ¡°Come on in.¡±

    When the investor opened the door, Arin, who was sitting facing a wide table, and a fat chief priest, who was sitting holding a cane with a platinum token, caught his eye.

    Arin saw Ed and got up from her seat.

    ¡°Ed. What brings you here? I was going to leave soon.¡±

    Ed simply answered the question.

    ¡°I was wondering if I could get your help because I found a boy whose mother is sick.¡±

    ¡°Really? I¡¯m done with my business here. Let¡¯s go.¡±

    When Arin got up from her seat, the chief priest opened his mouth.

    ¡°Arin, are you leaving before dinner? Both the investigators and the priests want to see you, Arin.¡±

    Arin replied with a smile.

    ¡°Priest Charlie. The priority is to help people in need. Both the investigators and the priests will understand.¡±

    Priest Charlie¡¯s expression slightly hardened. An undesirable light passed by the eyes buried in thick flesh, but she couldn¡¯t pick it up.

    ¡°I¡¯m Priest Charlie, who is in charge of the Astron Church in Kalim City. I haven¡¯t even heard the guest¡¯s name yet.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m Ed.¡±

    Charlie tilted his head for a moment and replied as if he remembered the name.

    ¡°You¡¯re a wild man who is called the demon hunter.¡±

    Ed couldn¡¯t resist the complaint. To be honest, Ed is not a nobleman, and he has been hunting demons and receiving rewards, so it is true that he appears to be a wild man in the eyes of a noble chief priest.

    Still, he didn¡¯t know he would be ignored so openly. He thought Aron would speak well to the church and now be called the church¡¯s savior.

    ¡°Those who live in poor families always ask for help, and there are no people who want to stand under the glory of Astron. But do you really need a holy knight to go there and check?¡±

    He couldn¡¯t tell Arin openly, so he was turning around to Ed. Even before Ed could answer anything, Arin approached with a stiff expression.

    ¡°Ed is a savior recognized by the church. And he is also very helpful in the exorcism according to the prophecy. He is not someone for the chief priest to ignore.¡±

    The priest Charlie flinched at her words. Arin¡¯s charisma in her voice has been unusual, perhaps because she has sacred power through prayer.

    Until now, she may not have heard what she was saying with a straight face because she had only read and heard the contents to be delivered to Master Paladine.

    Arin approached him one more step and said.

    ¡°And the reason why a holy knight is considered noble is that we go wherever someone needs help. It is the work of the holy knight to go to a place where Astron¡¯s glory cannot reach, and this is the path for priests to pursue!¡±

    Arin was almost screaming at the end.

    Before the priest Charlie opened his mouth, Arin looked straight into the eyes and said.

    ¡°This is what Master Paladine always says when the holy knights gathered.¡±

    Priest Charlie looked at her for a while, then stepped back, took off his hat, and bowed his head.

    ¡°Sorry, I never thought about that.¡±

    Arin looked at the top of Charlie¡¯s peeled hair and said.

    ¡°You shouldn¡¯t be apologizing to me.¡±

    The priest Charlie smiled awkwardly and bowed his head to Ed.

    ¡°I didn¡¯t think about that. Will you forgive me?¡±

    Ed nodded slightly to the remark and replied.

    ¡°May Astron¡¯s glory be with you.¡±

    He didn¡¯t speak up on purpose. The priest Charlie¡¯s eyes sank coolly, but he did not dare to make a fuss in front of Arin.

    ¡°May Astron¡¯s glory be with you.¡±

    Leaving the priest Charlie behind, Ed looked back at Arin. She walked next to Ed and apologized.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡±

    ¡°It doesn¡¯t bother me much.¡±

    The world¡¯s nobles and priests are all the same. So he didn¡¯t even care much.

    ¡°But what kind of help does he need?¡±

    Ed lifted his index finger and covered his mouth. If they say anything in this church, it will flow into the ears of Priest Charlie, and if so, they won¡¯t know what will happen to Diego¡¯s mother.

    Arin read Ed¡¯s atmosphere and asked only when she came out of the church.

    ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡±

    ¡°I think she¡¯s exposed to magi. Her eyes were colored purple.¡±

    ¡°She must have been exposed to the demon¡¯s maggie.¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    Arin asked, walking fast.

    ¡°Is it an infectious disease?¡±

    ¡°No. The others were fine.¡±

    ¡°If it was an infectious disease, no matter how much it happened in the slums, the church would have found out. Or Thane would¡¯ve figured it out before we got here.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right.¡±

    Arin tilted her head.

    ¡°Does that mean she met the demon alone? You can¡¯t be exposed to magi except when the demon reveals its real power. And I don¡¯t think the demon will reveal his true power in the city.¡±

    It was a question that Ed had asked. So he told her about what he suspected.

    ¡°When the boy¡¯s father disappeared, his mother began to get sick.¡±

    Arin stopped walking. And she looked back at Ed with her eyes wide open.

    ¡°No way¡­?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m still only suspicious. So first, let¡¯s treat his mother and ask her. And look at the boy¡¯s condition.¡±

    Arin thought she was just called because she had someone to treat, but when she realized that things were much more complicated than she thought, she could not hide her tension.

    Ed sighed briefly at her appearance.

    He guessed this lady can¡¯t lie very well. Even now, she was so nervous that her same arm and feet were shaking. She looks smart and cute like this.

    Ed grabbed her shoulder from behind and said.

    ¡°Arin. You don¡¯t have to be nervous. Diego was a filial son who took care of his mother¡¯s food even if he starved. Everything can just be a misunderstanding.¡±

    Arin looked at Ed¡¯s hand. The warmth conveyed from the touch eased tension little by little.

    ¡°Are you calmed down?¡±

    As Arin nodded, Ed walked ahead of her and said.

    ¡°And don¡¯t take the lead. You don¡¯t even know where he lives.¡±

    As Ed took the lead, Arin was completely relaxed. His back was reliable just by looking at it. However, the problem was that his expectations were never wrong with regard to the demon.

    But that was also a matter of meeting and deciding.

    Arin walked behind Ed and looked back at the slums. The brighter the light, the darker the darkness.

    In contrast to the church¡¯s appearance, which was exceptionally rich compared to other churches, the appearance of the slum was disastrous. A place full of people¡¯s moans with the smell that has been passed down.

    A place where the drugged and the vagrants are prevalent. A boy lived in a place like this with his sick mother, hoping that nothing would happen.

    Ed, who was taking the lead, made a strong impression and walked fast at the disturbance in front of Diego¡¯s house seen in the distance.

    There, the three boys who were beating Diego were kicking without hesitation again, and the two vagrants were standing behind them.

    He didn¡¯t even think about it when Diego was helping his mother. Usually, when you ask for information in the slums, you give coins, but not direct help.

    Troublemakers and boys flocked as flies twisted by the smell of boiling meat spreading in the slums. And Diego kept what he had to give his mother as always.

    Diego¡¯s mother, who ran out of the house, caught Ed¡¯s eyes. She pushed and approached the boys hitting Diego, and blocked them.

    ¡°No! What are you doing? You guys are Diego¡¯s friends!¡±

    The boys stepped back to Diego¡¯s mother, but the other kid behind them were different.

    ¡°Sophia. That¡¯s when your husband Juan was here.¡±

    Then the kid smiled. Diego didn¡¯t care, but he couldn¡¯t stand them saying that to his mom.

    When the kid screamed and pulled out a dagger, an arrow popped out of the kid¡¯s forehead. Diego didn¡¯t see because he was covering his mother.

    ¡°Huh?¡±

    An arrow was also stuck in another boy¡¯s forehead. When another kid collapsed, the boys freaked out and ran away.

    Arrows flew into the calves of the boys.

    ¡°Ahhh!¡±

    Ed appeared while the boys were rolling on the floor unable to run. Ed looked at the boys rolling on the floor, then bowed and looked at Diego.

    ¡°Mister.¡±

    ¡°Call me hyung. And come out. Let me see your mother¡¯s condition.¡±

    ¡°Please be gentle with my mother.¡±

    When Diego stepped out, Ed looked at Sophia. He was surprised because her body was too weak, and maybe because she moved my body suddenly, her muscles were having residual convulsions.

    Arin, who ran late, saw her and asked Ed.

    ¡°Is there a place for her to lie down?¡±

    Diego saw Arin and recognized that she was a holy knight.

    ¡°This is our home.¡±

    When Arin took Sofia home with Diego, Ed finally turned to the boys. Perhaps they were quick-witted, but after Ed appeared, they screamed.

    Well, they must have bothered Diego because they are so quick-witted.

    As Ed approached, the boys shouted urgently.

    ¡°We are just kids!¡±

    ¡°We didn¡¯t know what we were doing. Please spare our lives!¡±

    Ed nodded at their words.

    ¡°Right, you¡¯re just kids¡±.

    Ed took the arrow out of his arms and continued to speak.

    ¡°But you don¡¯t know what you were doing?¡±

    Ed squatted slowly and made eye contact with the boys.

    The boys¡¯ eyes moved from side to side along the arrow in Ed¡¯s hand. Ed spun the arrow in his hand while talking.

    ¡°That¡¯s bullshit. You guys know exactly what you were doing.¡±

 Chapter 40 - Clue

    Diego instinctively retreated as he saw blue light emanating from Arin¡¯s body.

    Can humans have such divine power?

    Is that even possible?

    And when the powerful light touched his mother, she seemed to be shaking and in pain. As Diego tried to approach in surprise, Arin shook her head.

    Purple spots rose sharply on Diego¡¯s mother¡¯s body. When he thought it was getting worse, purple blood poured out of his mother¡¯s mouth.

    The purple blood flowed through her mouth and volatilized in blue light and disappeared. After that, his mother began to look better. Only then was Diego, relieved.

    In the slums, his father disappeared, and the two kids were lying side by side with arrows stuck in their foreheads.

    He wondered why his father disappeared from the slums and the two boys who were acting as kings could die in vain.

    Is it just that?

    Those who bothered Diego and his mother were screaming with arrows in their calves now. Ed was whispering something as he cut the wounds on their calves again with a knife and pulled out an arrow, and in the whisper, the boys were biting their lips and holding back their screams, shedding tears.

    It was a treatment that seemed to leave more aftereffects.

    Looking at the boys struggling in pain, they looked pitiful. It¡¯s amazing that the people who have bothered him so much so far may look pitiful.

    Then Diego looked back at the blue light disappearing from behind, and Arin laid his mother down comfortably and said.

    ¡°Now she¡¯ll get better as long as you feed her well.¡±

    Diego bowed his head to the point where his head touched the ground.

    ¡°Thank you. Thank you so much.¡±

    Arin closed her eyes for a while and opened her eyes. Diego stepped back in surprise when he saw her eyes shining blue. Arin, who was looking at Diego, tilted her head. He wondered if human eyes could shine like that.

    Arin did not feel any magi inside of him. So when she looked a little more carefully, she felt a small piece of the child¡¯s heart. The pieces of the magi were smaller than the magi felt in his mother.

    Arin reached out her hand, grabbed Diego¡¯s shoulder, and began to pour out her sacred power. Then, with strong resistance, it bounced off.

    Diego was holding his chest and bleeding, and the blood was red. And the piece of the magi in his heart was no different from what she had seen before.

    Arin looked down at her palm. This is because the shock was so strong that the palms were numb.

    ¡°Why are you doing this to me?¡±

    Ed came inside and Arin didn¡¯t know what to say. Then he looked at the conditions of the two and asked.

    ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡±

    They took Diego and his mother to meet Thane.

    Thane was drinking alone and was surprised by the additional people. Ed asked Doug to take Diego¡¯s mother and Diego to a separate room.

    Since they caused a scene in the slum, they thought it would be better to bring the two here for now. And there was a lot to ask when the mother woke up.

    After sending her and Diego upstairs, the group gathered again.

    Ed emptied a glass of alcohol recommended by Thane and asked.

    ¡°Can you have a baby between a demon and a human being?¡±

    Thane burst into laughter at Ed¡¯s question.

    ¡°Are you talking about a demon¡¯s illegitimate child? It¡¯s not that there¡¯s no such crazy demon, but the demon¡¯s illegitimate child is different from birth. It is easy to notice because it has horns or red skin. That¡¯s why most of them die when they¡¯re young.¡±

    Ed thought something would solve his curiosity if he asked the Einstein of demon research. However, he seemed to have never experienced such an issue.

    ¡°Why do you ask that?¡±

    Arin replied instead.

    ¡°That kid from a while ago. He had magi in hisbody.¡±

    ¡°Magi? Are you saying he¡¯s an intermediate demon?¡±

    ¡°No. If he¡¯s a demon, I would recognize it right away. But there¡¯s magi planted in his heart. Like a seed.¡±

    Thane made a strong impression at the words.

    ¡°Maybe he¡¯s a demon follower or a demon subordinate?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s not it either.¡±

    Thane¡¯s expression became very serious.

    ¡°This is a case I haven¡¯t seen before. But, it is not the boy¡¯s energy that led us here.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m going to check when Diego¡¯s mother wakes up. I don¡¯t think the kid knows anything, but maybe his mother knows.¡±

    ¡°Can you tell me what her husband¡¯s name is? I¡¯m going to collect some information.¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s a man named Juan.¡±

    Ed recalled what the kid had said and replied. Thane nodded and filled his glass.

    ¡°First, let¡¯s have a drink and rest. Either way, we¡¯ll only know when the mother of the child wakes up.¡±

    Ed waited while emptying the drink. They gathered at the place where there seemed to be a lot of merchants and nobles.

    No matter what city they went to, Thane would choose his accommodation by looking at only one thing. Alcohol. The atmosphere was different everywhere they went because he only went for the alcohol.

    This was a place where fishermen dragged their tired bodies and drank ale.

    Ed took a sip of wine and looked back at Arin as if he remembered something.

    ¡°Didn¡¯t you say there was a dinner you needed to attend?¡±

    Arin smiled in vain and replied.

    ¡°You¡¯re so mischievous.¡±

    ¡°Chief Charlie looked grumpy¡±

    ¡°So what?¡±

    Arin said confidently even though she did not drink much alcohol. Ed and Thane burst into laughter at her appearance.

    ¡°Yes. No one can touch a holy knight.¡±

    They are only a handful of holy knights in the Astron denomination encompassing the continent. They call them Astron¡¯s Sword, and no one dares to touch them.

    Even the Archbishop.

    Only one chief priest is an inevitable opponent.

    Her glass was filled again in the air.

    Everyone gathered in the room when they heard that Diego¡¯s mother, Sophia, waking up. Thane winked at Doug and said.

    ¡°Take Diego and buy him breakfast.¡±

    ¡°I want to be next to my mother.¡±

    At Diego¡¯s words, Ed grabbed his shoulder.

    ¡°It¡¯s okay. I¡¯ll take care of her. The steak here is delicious. Go eat with Doug.¡±

    Diego looked at Ed¡¯s eyes. A person who said there was no unprovoked favor, but has given him unlimited favor. A person who reminds him of his father. He thought Ed was like a real brother.

    ¡°Please take good care of her.¡±

    ¡°Okay.¡±

    Ed plays with Diego¡¯s hair and sends him down with Doug. Sophia smiled at Diego and looked at him as he moved away.

    After Diego went down with Doug, Arin held Sophia¡¯s hand and said.

    ¡°I¡¯m Arin, a holy knight of the Astron Church.¡±

    She could see Sophia was nervous. It was a different atmosphere from other people who met. She looked scared.

    Arin let out a short sigh. When Arin was thinking about what to say, Ed asked instead.

    ¡°What happened a month ago?¡±

    ¡°That day¡­¡±

    Ed asked Sophia, who was hesitant.

    ¡°A month ago, you were exposed to the demon¡¯s magi and got sick. And that day, your husband Juan disappeared.¡±

    ¡°That¡¤¡¤¡±

    Ed waited for her answer. Sophia was contemplating and eventually clenched Arin¡¯s hands with both of her hands.

    ¡°My husband is innocent.¡±

    ¡°We want to know the situation that day.¡±

    When Arin clenched her hand and asked, Sophia carefully spoke.

    ¡°There was someone who visited my husband that day. I couldn¡¯t check his face, but I could tell one thing. His eyes were as red as blood. And he had three eyes.¡±

    Sophia trembled with fear as if she remembered the time. When Arin was holding her hand, she courageously continued to speak.

    ¡°He told my husband to follow him in a scary voice, and my husband refused. Then he and my husband began to fight. But my husband was overpowered too easily. I couldn¡¯t imagine my husband losing to someone, but he was overpowered so easily and dragged away by him. I wanted to stop him, but just looking at his eyes made my hands and feet tremble and I couldn¡¯t move.¡±

    ¡°Do you know where your husband was dragged?¡±

    Sophia nodded heavily at the question.

    ¡°I gathered up my courage and chased after him. I saw him go down to the underground sewer in Kalim City. The last memory is the look in his eyes before he was dragged down there. When I woke up, Diego had already moved me home.¡±

    ¡°Why didn¡¯t you tell the church?¡±

    Sophia hesitated and said.

    ¡°The church doesn¡¯t listen to the people in the slums. And I couldn¡¯t go to church because my physical condition was extremely bad. And I believed in Juan. He is¡¤¡¤.¡±

    Sophia buried her face in her knee and answered with difficulty.

    ¡°He wasn¡¯t a normal man. Juan was the same man as the spiritual pillar of the slums. But he hated the church. At first, I thought it was because he hated the priest

    Charlie, but he hated the church itself.¡±

    Ed looked at Sophia. He is not sure if a man named Juan is a demon, but she, who lives together with him, recognized his strangeness.

    Juan, the hero of the slums. Was he really the demon? Diego is such an unusual case.

    Even Thane has never seen this happen before.

    ¡°Is Diego his son?¡±

    Sophia nodded as if it were natural.

    ¡°That¡¯s right. He¡¯s the fruit of my husband and my love.¡±

    Arin asked just in case.

    ¡°Did you two really love each other?¡±

    ¡°Yes. He cared about me and loved me. Diego grew up receiving a lot of love from him.¡±

    Diego grew up so well that it was hard to believe he was a slum child. It was hard to believe that Juan was the demon because he seemed to have educated Diego well.

    The demon who is the spiritual pillar of the slums, loves someone, and is good at educating children?

    If he really is a demon, he sounded better than a human being.

    Compared to the greedy priest Charlie, he is more human-like.

    He is different from other demons. But they don¡¯t know what plans Juan made. First, they have to find him and check it out. And the demon who dragged Juan away.

    Perhaps he was truly the one Arin was chasing.

    However, this is the place where they arrived after tracking down the blood mana stone. There is a demon here.

    ¡°The underground sewage. Let¡¯s check.¡±

    Arin nodded at Ed¡¯s words. Sophia held Arin¡¯s hand tightly as she stood up. As Arin turned around, Sophia said with a desperate look.

    ¡°Please save my husband.¡±

    Arin couldn¡¯t give any answer.

    ¡°Please.¡±

    Arin thought she was possessed, but she couldn¡¯t see anything strange in her eyes.

    She could only see the eyes of a wife who was worried about her beloved husband. Arin hesitated for a while, but held Sophia¡¯s hand and replied.

    ¡°I will, if he¡¯s not related to the demon.¡±

    It was an honest answer that Arin gave.

    Sophia let go of her hand helplessly and bowed her head. She must have realized herself how absurd it was to ask a holy knight to save her demon husband.

    Ed, who left her outside, looked back at Thane.

    ¡°Please take care of her and Diego.¡±

    ¡°Are you going to go right now?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    Thane spoke again while touching his glasses.

    ¡°Based on the information collected so far, Juan must be the spiritual landlord of the slums and the person representing them. They said he had been in the slum for about 10 years. At the same time, he didn¡¯t reveal himself to the outside world. He took full control of the slums. So he¡¯s not known to the outside world at all. If it weren¡¯t for you finding this kid, we would¡¯ve never known about this.¡±

    ¡°What did he actually do in the slums?¡±

    Thane smiled at Ed¡¯s question.

    ¡°He represented the interests of the poor. Those who were targeting the slums disappeared silently. After a few years, people didn¡¯t dare to target or attack the slums.¡±

    Thane found Diego among those eating on the first floor and continued.

    ¡°There were no drugs, no gambling, and no prostitution in the slums. All of that occurred after the month he disappeared.¡±

    Ed looked at Diego and waved. Ed laughed in vain as he saw Diego chewing a steak enough to fill both of his cheeks.

    ¡°So, Diego used to be the prince of the poor.¡±

    Arin also stood next to Diego and muttered.

    ¡°Or the son of the demon.¡±

 Chapter 41 - Juan

    There was a sewer underground in the city.

    The odor was strong due to the countless waste collected from the city.

    Ed, who entered the sewer with a torch, sighed as he looked at the mossy and spider-webbed sewer. The odor was really bad, but the problem is that he doesn¡¯t know where Juan is yet.

    He didn¡¯t know how long he had to walk through the dirty sewer to find him.

    At that time, Arin stepped forward and said.

    ¡°Wait a minute.¡±

    Arin recited a prayer, and soon a small lump of light appeared over her head.

    Ed thought only magicians could do that, but Arin could make it with sacred prayers.

    A lump of light that illuminates a distance longer than a torch allowed both of their hands to be free. Ed turned off his torch and looked around, relying on the light that Arin had made.

    As his level rose, my senses improved, but there was no such thing as the ability to see through the darkness.

    Still, he could see farther than others. He prepared an arrow and walked after Arin.

    She took the lead not because she could use sacred spells, but because she was a holy knight.

    Walking behind her, Ed opened his mouth.

    ¡°Can you detect any magi here?¡±

    ¡°No. I don¡¯t think we can find him until we get close.¡±

    He thought it would be easy if they found the target point, but they needed to do manual work from here.

    Before that, Ed was thinking about whether his nose would fall off due to the odor. Ed was watching Arin¡¯s back while walking behind her.

    The odor was also bad, but there was dirty water between their ankles.

    In this uncomfortable feeling, Arin was calmly taking a step-in check around.

    She only moves with the upright belief that she needs to find and punish demons and does not care about dirt on her body.

    Ed was following her and awakening his senses. His reaction can be late if you rely only on sight in dark sewers.

    Ed, who was walking with all his senses awakened, heard a snap.

    There are certainly beings living in this dirty sewer.

    At first, when he was interested in the distant sound, the sound began to be heard everywhere.

    From one to ten, from ten to a hundred in an instant.

    ¡°Something is coming up.¡±

    Arin also pulled her shield forward and gave strength to the hand holding her hammer, nervous at his words.

    The sound of dozens to hundreds was now heard in Arin¡¯s ears.

    Ed stood next to her, listening quietly. Fortunately, they only had to be careful of their front and back.

    ¡°I¡¯ll block the back.¡±

    As Arin nodded and took a step forward, she could see the presence of a clashing sound approaching in the dark.

    It was the rats living in the gutter that ran around with their red eyes.

    However, the rats were as large as a small dog, and the number counted tens.

    They were approaching as if they would leave nothing but bones if they caught a human.

    So Ed injected mana into the frozen bow and fired it. Polluted water in the sewer froze around the arrow.

    Sllllll.

    All the legs of the running rats froze and stopped.

    Then the rats bit off their legs and began to crawl over the frozen sewage.

    Ed frowned at their persistence.

    ¡°They¡¯re not rats, they¡¯re beasts.¡±

    It is not difficult to deal with rats crawling after losing they have lost their legs. Ed also fired another arrow forward.

    Even the rats running from the front were unable to run anymore because their legs were frozen.

    Ed approached the rat and swung the Salamander¡¯s sword. No experience came from the rat that died.

    No matter how small a beast is, if it dies, experience would come in, but for some reason, they were useless things that didn¡¯t even give experience.

    Arin asked Ed.

    ¡°Are you going to kill them all by yourself?¡±

    ¡°No. Let¡¯s just kill these together. Because we don¡¯t have enough time.¡±

    Arin nodded, walked with a hammer, and hit the heads of the crawling beasts.

    Ed also killed all the crumbling rats without any hesitation.

    Arin looked down at the body of the rat and said.

    ¡°They¡¯ve been transformed into rats because of magi. But it¡¯s hard to say it¡¯s magic.¡±

    ¡°So the rats transformed into beasts?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    Ed could see why these rats didn¡¯t give him any experience. When ordinary rats are killed, experience values do not come in.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know what it is, but it¡¯s happening right now.¡±

    Ed nodded at her words and took the lead.

    ¡°I¡¯ll take the lead. Can I hold the light?¡±

    ¡°Wait a minute.¡±

    When Arin beckoned, Ed could see a group of lights moving in front of him. Ed took a step.

    After confirming that he was moving along the steps, Ed began to run toward the place where the rat¡¯s footsteps were heard.

    It was obvious that it would take longer to find Juan, so he accelerated. Arin also began to run fast with Ed.

    Ed focused on the place where he could feel the ups and downs while running. It orients a place where the number of things exposed to magi.

    The rat beasts were such a waste of arrows, seeing that they don¡¯t give him any experience.

    Ed saw a half-rotten dog while running. Even before Ed could react, a hammer flew from behind and smashed the rotten dog.

    ¡°I don¡¯t think it¡¯s normal magi. If the dead can still get up and walk, the spirit of a demon seems to be near.¡±

    There is a power of demons that can awaken the dead. The spirit of a demon.

    The spirit of a demon has yet to meet Ed. It is a power that belongs to at least an intermediate demon.

    It was highly likely to be more than an intermediate demon because it followed the traces of the bloodstone.

    But this means this could be a tough task to deal with the spirit of a demon.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go this way.¡±

    Ed took the direction of the rotten dog awakened by the spirit of a demon.

    The dog died on its way there. The dogs¡¯ skeletons also began to emerge. When they saw the half-rotten body, their impression hardened.

    ¡°It¡¯s a ghoul. I¡¯ll take the lead.¡±

    Arin, who was running from behind, threw her shield.

    The boulders caught in the trajectory of the blue shield literally smashed. Perhaps because of its sacred power, it was shattered and could not get up again.

    Arin, who read the spirit of a demon, took the lead again. She picked up the shield as she ran and shouted.

    ¡°This way.¡±

    Arin ran frighteningly against the ghouls, wondering why so many bodies were dumped in this sewer.

    Ed, who was following Arin, saw a spider hanging from the ceiling. The spiders were almost the size of a young child, and the poison was dripping from their mouths, so they shot it with arrows and dropped them.

    Arin focused on the ghoul and Ed took care of the spiders that appeared above her head.

    Arin, who was running like that, stopped. The place where she stopped is where the water from the sewer gathers. It was a large vacant spot.

    And there was a man with his head down, tied to a chain. The ceiling was higher than anywhere else, so the man¡¯s feet did not touch the dirty sewage.

    However, the man was bloody, and his body was engraved with red-lit runes.

    Arin¡¯s eyes trembled when she saw it.

    ¡°He¡¯s extracting the energy of the Magi and the spirit of a demon from that person¡¯s body.¡±

    The rune letters drawn on his whole body and the blood-fluttering light were steadily leaking under the dirty sewage on the floor.

    ¡°And he¡¯s using a magic circle, so now the sewer is rising, and the power of the demon is overflowing.¡±

    Arin continued to talk while looking at him.

    ¡°And this isn¡¯t even his max powers. It¡¯s just the power of the demon and magi overflowing from his body.¡±

    Ed made a strong impression at her words and looked around.

    ¡°There¡¯s no one else here?¡±

    ¡°No.¡±

    Ed shouted at the hanging person and asked.

    ¡°Are you alive?¡±

    The man slowly raised his head at Ed¡¯s question.

    He was a brown-skinned man with a nice mustache. His eyes resembling Diego. He looked at Ed and Arin and smiled.

    ¡°¡­I guess it¡¯s time to die. When I see the holy knight in sight.¡±

    Ed, who was looking at him while talking and vomiting blood, asked.

    ¡°Juan?¡±

    ¡°Forget about the holy knight. Who are you?¡±

    ¡°Ed.¡±

    He seemed to have a hard time talking, so Ed looked back at Arin.

    ¡°Can we go inside the circle?¡±

    Arin, who had been looking, shook her head.

    ¡°If you go in, you¡¯ll be engulfed by the power of the demon.¡±

    Ed took an arrow out. Two arrows flew and cut off the chain that was holding Juan.

    Juan fell on the floor and breathed out roughly.

    Juan asked with his head up.

    ¡°Did you come to kill me?¡±

    Ed couldn¡¯t easily answer the question. It could be seen that Juan was the demon.

    He¡¯s not just an intermediate demon. Considering the amount of magi and power he has. His powers resembled a great demon.

    But he was exhausted now. It was surprising that he was still alive.

    But what should they do with him?

    He¡¯s the demon, so they need to kill him. Until now, they would have done that without hesitation.

    However, Juan was robbed of his power and Magi, and they could tell that he didn¡¯t want to use these powers.

    That is why Arin did not immediately throw her weapon at him.

    ¡°I met Diego and Sophia.¡±

    Juan struggled to get up at Ed¡¯s words. Juan¡¯s eyes were burning red.

    ¡°Are they okay?¡±

    ¡°They¡¯re okay. Sophia asked me to save you.¡±

    Juan burst into laughter at the words.

    ¡°She asked a holy knight to save me?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    Juan¡¯s gaze headed for Arin.

    ¡°So, what did the holy knight say?¡±

    Arin replied, looking down at her hand, which Sophia held tightly.

    ¡°I told her that I¡¯d save you if you weren¡¯t a demon.¡±

    Juan looked at Arin at the words.

    ¡°You¡¯re a real holy knight.¡±

    Juan stood up and said, looking under his feet.

    ¡°But how did you find me? It¡¯s been more than 10 years since I¡¯ve been hiding.¡±

    ¡°Yeah. I¡¯ve heard incredible stories about you. Having been the ruler of the slums for 10 years, you created a clean slum without drugs, gambling, or prostitution. You were hiding well. If we hadn¡¯t chased the traces of the bloodstone, we wouldn¡¯t have found you.¡±

    Juan brought his hand to the magic circle, but his hand behind him flashed with a red spark.

    ¡°Bloodstone. Yeah, that¡¯s why you found me.¡±

    Juan continued helplessly.

    ¡°After giving birth to Diego, I had no choice but to change the slums.¡±

    Juan sat on the floor without touching the magic circle. Then he asked Ed.

    ¡°Are Diego and Sophia safe?¡±

    ¡°Sophia was suffering because she was exposed to magi when you fought. She would have died if Arin hadn¡¯t treated her.¡±

    Juan laughed in vain at his words.

    ¡°I didn¡¯t know I¡¯d get help from a holy knight in my life. But I¡¯m still thankful.¡±

    Juan said so and asked with his arms open.

    ¡°Can you break this magic circle?¡±

    Arin shook her head.

    ¡°The magic circle is full of energy. If I do the wrong thing, I¡¯ll end up activating it.¡±

    Ed asked Juan when he said that. But Arin answered.

    ¡°How powerful is this?¡±

    ¡°The energy will not only blow away the town but also kill more than 30 percent of the city at once.¡±

    Juan continued the afterword.

    ¡°And the dead will be revived by the energy of the demon. A day will be enough for the entire city to become a land of death.¡±

    A technique made by extracting all the energy of the upper demon¡¯s magic and power. The power is said to be so strong that it can blow away a city.

    ¡°How do you prevent this?¡±

    Juan said.

    ¡°You¡¯ll put it back in a bowl.¡±

    Arin shook her head at his words.

    ¡°That can¡¯t be possible. Your body won¡¯t be able to handle it right now.¡±

    Juan burst into laughter at her words. Juan, who was smiling while holding his stomach, looked at Arin with tears in his eyes.

    ¡°Is the holy knight worrying about a demon?¡±

    Arin frowned and replied.

    ¡°If something goes wrong while absorbing the energy, the magic circle will explode. And then the city is wiped out!¡±

    Juan stopped laughing and stood up again.

    His body was so damaged, but his momentum changed. Ed and Arin both got goosebumps when they saw him.

    He was the most powerful demon they¡¯ve met until now. Juan said with a smile.

    ¡°I¡¯m Juan Retrias. One of the most powerful demons. I know I can absorb this.¡±

 Chapter 42 - Sacrifice

    Is it possible to absorb all that power at the state of his body? Wouldn¡¯t his body explode? Wouldn¡¯t the magi dark energy destroy the city? Or won¡¯t there be another problem? Juan smiled and spoke, perhaps reading Ed¡¯s worries.

    ¡°Once I absorb all the power, kill me.¡±

    Arin and Ed couldn¡¯t say anything and looked at him. Juan pointed to his body with both hands and said.

    ¡°I¡¯ve been beaten up badly, I won¡¯t be able to recover once I absorb all the power. And if my body explodes, it won¡¯t take a day for the city to disappear.¡±

    He wasn¡¯t just a higher-level demon, he was holding unimaginable powers.

    The more people die, the stronger he will get.

    Juan was very dangerous.

    But he loved Sophia and even reformed the slums by giving birth to Diego. But what if he acted like other evil demons that lie? He would¡¯ve made this city disappear in less than a day.

    He would be chased for the rest of his life, but it would not have been easy to catch him. The higher-level demon Ed met in person seemed so strong that Ed was not confident of killing him alone.

    He never thought the difference between the intermediate demon and the higher demon would be so great.

    The intermediate demon even started to look easy to catch. He also thought if he met a higher-level demon, he would have to risk his life to kill it.

    If the demon had already built an army using corpses, Ed would have to run away without fighting.

    However, Juan¡¯s condition now seemed to be somehow manageable. In addition, Juan asked Ed to kill him.

    Juan said with his arms open.

    ¡°But I have a favor to ask of you.¡±

    ¡°Tell me.¡±

    A request in return for saving a city. Arin, who seemed to swing the hammer first at the demon¡¯s request, asked first.

    Juan¡¯s gaze alternated between Arin and Ed.

    ¡°Please watch over Diego.¡±

    Arin¡¯s eyebrows wriggled, and Ed asked back because he couldn¡¯t understand what he meant.

    ¡°What are you talking about?¡±

    ¡°This isn¡¯t what I wanted, but that child carries my blood. And if the holy knights or priests know, they will burn him to death.¡±

    Arin couldn¡¯t answer his question. He was worried, but Diego would have died on the spot if he had actually caught the eyes of other holy knights or priests.

    Juan¡¯s gaze was fixed on Arin.

    ¡°I¡¯m not sure when, but once I die, the child will awaken over time. By then, the Astron Church will probably find my child and try to kill him. So please. Watch over Diego.¡±

    Arin made a strong impression at his words. When the demon¡¯s power awakens, it is difficult to protect him, even if she was a holy knight. Maybe she might have to kill him with her own hands.

    ¡°Promise me in the name of Astron.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m a holy knight. That¡¯s too much to ask for.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not necessarily too much.¡±

    Juan continued with a smile.

    ¡°The child is not a full demon. Because he was not born as a demon. He shouldn¡¯t be killed for a sin he did not commit.¡±

    Juan pointed to Arin with his index finger.

    ¡°You found me according to the prophecy, right? Take Diego along the way. Then the child will make a contribution. With that merit, he will be excused of his sin.¡±

    Looking at Juan¡¯s red shining eyes, Arin couldn¡¯t open her mouth. Arin, who was still looking at him, opened her mouth with a suppressed voice.

    ¡°Did you look into the future? That is the power of the demon of the stars, Pestole.¡±

    Juan burst into laughter at her words and tapped his temple.

    ¡°The reason Pestole is called the demon of prophecy by humans is that he reads the stars and sees the future more clearly than others. And what I just said is not that profound. It¡¯s because that¡¯s the only way for my son to live.¡±

    Juan continued with a smile.

    ¡°But this is also a prophecy. Juans¡¯ Last Prophecy!¡±

    What he said sounded like a real prophecy. While shouting, Juan¡¯s red eyes looked at Arin.

    ¡°Will you make a promise under the name of Astron?¡±

    Arin was troubled. She is a holy knight and her duty is heavy, and promising in the name of Astron takes precedence over life.

    Arin opened her eyes and looked at Ed. Ed did nothing. She was looking as if it was his decision.

    But what was contained in that gaze was trust. Realizing that, Arin closed her eyes again and called Astron¡¯s name small.

    And Arin slowly opened her eyes. She couldn¡¯t make a prediction. She asked God in prayer, but God did not answer her back. However, there was no abnormality in her sacred powers.

    This was enough for her to conclude.

    Arin¡¯s eyes turned to Juan.

    ¡°I promise in the name of Astron. However, if Diego becomes a demon, I will have to punish him in the name of Astron.¡±

    Juan nodded as if that was enough. Juan said, tapping lightly on the heart.

    ¡°Did you say you were tracing a blood mana stone?¡±

    Arin looked at Juan. Until now, it was important for her to catch and kill demons so far, but she felt Juan was different.

    She met someone who had the most information about the prophecy.

    ¡°Where is it?¡±

    Juan smiled.

    ¡°Since he has just appeared recently, only a few people know about him. But this guy is real. His powers are stronger than the great demon.¡±

    Ed was awakened by his words.

    ¡°It hasn¡¯t been long since he appeared?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right. I think it¡¯s been a little over a year. It¡¯s not accurate. It¡¯s been more than 10 years since I haven¡¯t spoken to other demons.¡±

    He appeared around the same time as himself. The one who influences the main quest. There¡¯s something.

    ¡°What¡¯s his name?¡±

    ¡°Ragrox. That¡¯s what he calls himself. He was trying to create new demons that are not in the genealogy.¡±

    Juan tapped on his heart and said.

    ¡°He planted a blood stone in my heart. It strengthens my magi, but this is restraining me. It doesn¡¯t suit me as a demon. But thanks to this, I think I¡¯ll still be able to go through with the crazy plan of absorbing all the power back into my body.¡±

    Juan said with his arms open.

    ¡°Aim for my heart because it absorbs everything. With all your might you can.¡±

    After saying that, Juan brought his hand back. There was a red spark, but Juan did not avoid it this time. Blood flowed down his eyes, ears, nose, and mouth, but he continued to absorb energy.

    Ed, who was looking at him, pulled out an arrow. He began to focus his mana on the arrow.

    ¡®I¡¯ll do my best.¡¯

    ¡°Arin. Bless me.¡±

    When Arin heard that, she took her shield and held out both hands with a hammer. And when she cited a prayer quietly, sacred power began to form over the arrowhead.

    A beautiful color reminiscent of sky blue was shinning with a mixture of blue and white light.

    In contrast to Juan, who was absorbing red light, the blue light looked more mysterious. Ed looked at Juan and talked to Arin.

    ¡°When will everything be absorbed?¡±

    ¡°You can tell easily because the magic circle gets smaller.¡±

    Arin nodded and waited.

    Energy began to gather with a terrifying momentum around Juan. The speed became faster and faster, and formidable light began to emit from the rune letters that were shining from Juan¡¯s body.

    ¡°Is there something wrong happening?¡±

    While absorbing the energy, there was an abnormality in Juan¡¯s body. Perhaps Ragrox had this situation in mind?

    However, Juan endured while spewing blood. He didn¡¯t stop even in a situation where he was pouring blood like a waterfall, so no matter how evil and strong he was, he might die of excessive bleeding.

    What in the world made Juan like that?

    The letters of rune shining from his body began to burst out one by one.

    Ed watched how exhausted Juan was getting. Earlier, he saw a high-level demon, but seeing Juan recovering his power, Ed wondered if he will be able to shoot the arrow with added mana and divine power.

    Ed also focused more on mana. Juan¡¯s eyes became redder now.

    Even without light, it was red enough to light up the surroundings.

    Juan¡¯s body rises little by little and the red light pouring from the floor rotates in the air and permeates his body. He absorbed his powers while enduring the pain.

    Ed could see what Juan was doing. Now Juan was sacrificing himself not to save the city, but to protect Sophia and Diego.

    The letters of the rune shining from Juan¡¯s body almost burst out, but the energy of the magic circle was almost absorbed.

    Ed, who was looking at Juan, pulled the arrow to the fullest.

    It felt polite to do the best he could to relieve Juan¡¯s pain.

    Even if Arin didn¡¯t tell him, he could tell instinctively. As soon as all the energy was absorbed by Juan, it became dark everywhere and only Juan¡¯s eyes were shining red.

    ¡°Now!¡±

    Ed shot the arrow toward Juan like a sky-lighted meteor. But Juan¡¯s hand blocked the arrow.

    When Arin saw the arrow bounce off, she immediately took out her shield and threw it with all her might.

    Juan hit the shield flying with sacred power. The shield bounced off, and Juan¡¯s arm exploded.

    Is he really going to explode as he said?

    Juan was running but buried his left foot into the ground.

    The red light had disappeared in his eyes.

    At this short moment, Juan¡¯s will broke.

    ¡°Hurry up!¡±

    Even if Ed didn¡¯t say anything, he had already shot an arrow that headed towards Juan¡¯s heart.

    The place where the strongest force is gathered in his body now. The moment the arrow was hit, his left half-body seemed to freeze, and sacred power exploded inside of him.

    Boooom!

    Juan collapsed to the floor. Ed knew that he was not dead. Because he didn¡¯t gain any experience.

    If it were Ed so far, he would have fired an arrow again. But now, he approached and helped Juan.

    Juan was out of breath and his left upper body flew away.

    Juan looked back and said when Ed helped him. There was no more red light in his eyes. Juan tried to smile somehow, but he didn¡¯t have the power to do so. Hardly shaking his mouth, Juan left a will.

    ¡°Please¡­.please¡­.watch over¡­.Diego.¡±

    Juan dropped his head at the end of his words, and Ed felt the experience rushing in. It was such a huge experience that his level rose at once.

    Ed replied to Juan, who could not hear anymore.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about Diego.¡±

 Chapter 43 - Loss

    With Arin¡¯s prayer, Juan¡¯s body was engulfed by blue light. The blue light took a long time to disappear because he was a very powerful demon. The blue light, which burned his body, flowed along with the sewer and began to purify it. The entire sewer, which had been contaminated with Magi, was being purified. Ed stood next to Arin and looked at Juan, surrounded by the blue light. It sounded crazy if a demon were to go to heaven, but it felt like Juan was qualified to go to heaven for some reason. When Juan became a blue particle and disappeared, only one ring remained. A ring that was made of an unknown material. However, seeing that the torch did not burn it, it must be something with good energy.

    Juan disappeared, and Arin¡¯s body was emitting a halo-like blue glow. Considering Ed¡¯s experience, Arin seemed to have gained tremendous holy powers. Ed invested his status in agility, picked up the ring, and looked at it. There were two snakes, black and gray, and they looked s if they were twisting each other. Ed held up the ring as Arin woke up after her prayer.

    ¡°It¡¯s nothing special, right?¡± ¡°Yeah. It¡¯s not special.¡±

    Ed clenched the ring at her words.

    ¡°May I give this to Diego?¡±

    Arin nodded her head.

    ¡°Sure. But this time, the problem is that we couldn¡¯t get the blood stone.¡±

    They¡¯ve been tracking the blood stone, but they lost it. This is because, in order to kill Juan, they had to attack the blood stone, where all the magi and energy were concentrated. As Arin sighed, Ed soothed her.

    ¡°But we got a lot of information. His name is Lagrox, and he has the strength comparable to that of the great demon.¡± ¡°I need to give that information to the church.¡±

    Right now, the link for tracking was broken, but she knew it would continue again in some way. Whether it¡¯s the power of the church or through Thane.

    ¡°Let¡¯s get out of here.¡±

    The sewage from the entire city was purified and no longer stinky. It would get dirty soon, but while they were going outside, they felt like they were walking in a clear stream.

    When Ed and Arin arrived at the meet-up spot, Ed first visited Sophia. Seeing Ed and Arin, Sophia¡¯s eyes quickly filled with tears that flowed down.

    ¡°Mom.¡±

    When Diego, who was next to her, held her hand in surprise, she swallowed her tears.

    ¡°Did you meet him?¡±

    When Ed nodded, Sophia bit her lips and looked at Arin. Arin couldn¡¯t easily talk. She did not kill Juan herself, but she could not answer easily because she was related to his death. When they were looking for Juan, they knew he was a demon, and Sophia knew that Arin was a holy knight. Ed understood her feelings and spoke instead.

    ¡°We met him.¡±

    Sophia¡¯s eyes turned to Ed. Diego also fixed his eyes on Ed.

    ¡°He sacrificed himself to save this city.¡± ¡°Huhu.¡±

    Sophia couldn¡¯t hold back her tears and started to sob. Diego hugged Sophia and asked, looking at Ed.

    ¡°Dad saved the city?¡±

    Diego only knew that Juan had left home. He looked at Ed, wondering what he was talking about. He left home without a word, and since then, his mother had been sick, he was only resentful. Juan disappeared and people in the slums persistently harassed them. But Juan saved the city? Ed approached Diego and held out the ring.

    ¡°He asked me to take care of you¡±.

    When Sophia saw the ring in Ed¡¯s hand, she fainted. Arin hugged her and laid her on the bed, and Diego accepted the ring.

    ¡°This is my dad¡¯s ring¡±.

    Diego, who did not believe everything when he heard that he sacrificed himself to save the city, realized his father¡¯s death only then. Tears poured down Diego¡¯s eyes from the touch of the cold ring on his hand. Diego couldn¡¯t see the ring well and kept wiping his eyes with his right hand. Then Diego, who grabbed the ring again, looked up at Ed. Juan asked Ed to be a father-like figure. Diego¡¯s face began to be distorted after seeing Ed¡¯s face. Ed approached and hugged Diego when he saw Diego shedding tears without even knowing how to express his feelings. Diego, whose head was buried in Ed¡¯s chest, opened his mouth.

    ¡°Dad, dad¡­¡±

    Ed swept Diego¡¯s back silently. Diego barely burst into words as if he felt comforted by the touch.

    ¡°I blamed my dad every night, when my friends bothered me when my sick mother couldn¡¯t sleep and moaned at night! Everyone blamed my dad!¡±

    Diego¡¯s body trembled. Diego buried his head in Ed¡¯s chest. Ed continued to sweep Diego¡¯s back without saying a word. Diego burst into tears hugging Ed.

    ¡°Oh, Dad! Dad!¡±

    Ed held Diego tightly and listened to the sobbing. Then, Diego collapsed because he was exhausted. Diego collapsed in Ed¡¯s arms and muttered.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry. Dad. I¡¯m sorry.¡±

    Ed hugged Diego, laid him down on the sofa, and sat next to him. Thane approached and looked at the conditions of the two and asked.

    ¡°What happened?¡±

    Ed sat next to Diego and replied.

    ¡°I¡¯ll tell you later.¡±

    Thane nodded when he realized that the atmosphere of Ed and Arin was different from usual.

    ¡°I¡¯ll be drinking downstairs.¡±

    When Thane went outside, Arin approached and looked at Diego.

    ¡°Your mom just fell asleep because she was tired. You don¡¯t have to worry.¡±

    Arin could not heal Diego with her divine power. Because there is magi in his body, and it creates strong repulsion. Ed looked at Arin and said,

    ¡°You said that you needed to report this to the church. Go ahead.¡± ¡°Yes. I¡¯m sorry. I wish I could stay here longer¡­.¡± ¡°See you later¡±.

    As Arin looked at Sophia one more time and went outside, Ed leaned against the sofa and looked out the window. The night has not even passed yet. Ed looked at the moon and stars in the sky and realized that so much had happened in less than a day. Ed¡¯s eyes turned to Diego, sleeping on the sofa and frowning. When he held Diego¡¯s hand, who was struggling with a nightmare, and touched his hair, Diego calmed down a little. Even if Arin hadn¡¯t met Ed, she would have reached this place. Thane would have met Juan somehow, and Diego would have been recruited. Or they would have met a city that was devastated because they were too late. Or Diego could¡¯ve been dead or maybe turned evil? Ed sat on the floor in front of the sofa holding Diego¡¯s hand. Diego held his hand tightly as if he would never let go of it. Ed can¡¯t imagine how great the pain of losing a father will be. Hoping that holding hands like this would help at least a little, Ed held Diego¡¯s hand tighter.

    Diego¡¯s Dad, who had disappeared silently, returned and reached out. Diego ran up and hugged him. Even though he was upset that he left them behind, his father was looking at Diego with a smile as always. Diego looked for his mother with a satisfied smile full of love. But he couldn¡¯t find his mother. When he turned his head, his father¡¯s face became blurred and his body was disappearing like a mirage. He was surprised and reached out, but there was a hand that caught him, so he clenched it with all my might not to miss it. But the hand felt different. His dad had softer hands than his mom. It wasn¡¯t a hand that had a lot of calluses.

    Diego opened his eyes wondering what was going on. Diego saw a familiar face. He looked concerned. He was embarrassed for a moment because he had never seen Ed look so worried. At that time, Diego felt something on his left hand, so he tried to raise his body, but he couldn¡¯t. Ed held Diego¡¯s left hand and gently rubbed his fingers one by one. Then a ring that he had seen a lot was held in them. The moment Diego saw it, it reminded him of what he heard last night. Diego raised his head, wondering if it could be, and Ed was still looking at him.

    ¡°It wasn¡¯t a dream?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°Did my dad really die?¡±

    Ed nodded slowly. Diego bit his lips, breathed deeply through his nose, and asked.

    ¡°Did my dad really save the city?¡± ¡°Yes. Without your dad¡¯s sacrifice, all the people living in this city would not have seen the sun this morning.

    Diego felt like Ed¡¯s words were a joke, but considering the actions he showed after meeting him, he didn¡¯t seem to be joking. In the slums, his dad always smiled and treated people nicely, but strangely, he remembered that people were having a hard time with him. However, Diego still could not believe that he saved the city. He wouldn¡¯t have believed it if it wasn¡¯t for Ed¡¯s words.

    Diego¡¯s eyes turned to the ring. A ring that was always in his father¡¯s hand. Diego, who was looking at the ring, carefully put the ring on his left index finger. He thought it would be big because it was his dad¡¯s ring, but the ring shrank and it fits perfectly on his index finger. When he put on the ring, his heart pounded. Surprised by the sudden echo, Diego put his hand on his chest, but his heart pounded only once and subsided.

    ¡°Hmm.¡±

    At that time, Diego jumped up from his seat because he heard a moan. But he stumbled while taking a step from the sofa. Somehow, his legs were weak. At that time, Ed supported him from the side, so he did not fall.

    ¡°Thank you.¡±

    Diego put strength on his legs and approached Sophia. Sophia opened her eyes lying in bed, and Diego was surprised to see her eyes. Even when she was sick, he couldn¡¯t see those eyes. It was like looking into the eyes of the dead.

    ¡°Mom.¡±

    At Diego¡¯s call, Sophia¡¯s eyes were dim but came back to life. Sophia¡¯s eyes turned to Diego.

    ¡°Diego.¡±

    When Diego approached and held Sophia¡¯s hand, she reached out and hugged Diego. When Sophia heard Juan¡¯s death, she seemed to have lost her entire world. She didn¡¯t even have the will to live anymore, but the moment she saw Diego, she realized something. Her loving partner left, but she still remained as a mother. Diego raised Sophia¡¯s body gracefully to hug her. Sophia smiled in tears when she saw Juan inside of Diego.

    ¡°You¡¯ve matured a lot. My son.¡±

    Diego smiled as brightly as possible and showed Sophia the ring.

    ¡°Mom, I¡¯ll do my best to take over dad¡¯s roll now.¡±

    Sophia touched the ring on Diego¡¯s index finger and bowed her head. She tried to hold it in, but she cried again. Diego hugged Sophia tightly, raised her head, and hid his tears from his mother.

    After they both calmed down to some extent, everyone in the group gathered together. Arin reported to the church yesterday and spoke to Thane after she got back. And Ed took a bath and gathered together. Sophia bowed her head.

    ¡°We thank you in many ways. How can I repay this favor?¡±

    Ed replied with a smile at her words.

    ¡°There is nothing to repay. Juan saved this city.¡±

    Sophia was calmly accepting the fact and smiling quietly. Perhaps Sophia already knew about Juan. Even if Juan tried to hide it, it would have been revealed eventually.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know if you remember, but Juan asked us to take care of Diego.¡±

    Sophia stared at Arin. If Juan is a demon, Diego is the son of a demon. Can she trust Arin? She thought it was impossible to entrust a cat with fish. At Sophia¡¯s gaze, Arin slowly opened her mouth.

    ¡°It¡¯s a promise under the name of Astron. Please leave Diego to us.¡±

    Sophia couldn¡¯t speak for a while. The holy knight made a promise in the name of Astron. That meant, this promise takes precedence over her own life. Juan asked for this promise. When she heard that Juan sacrificed to save the city, she thought they were saying it out of courtesy. But listening to them, she realized that Juan really sacrificed himself for this city, and for his family. She tried to hold back, but she couldn¡¯t stop tears from forming around her eyes. Sophia accepted Juan¡¯s last request without blinking.

    ¡°Please take good care of Diego.¡±

 Chapter 44 - Royal Road

    Diego stepped up from his seat.

    ¡°What are you talking about?¡±

    Diego looked straight at Ed and Arin and shouted.

    ¡°I¡¯m going to live with my mom.¡±

    Everything was over. Ed knew Diego would oppose it. Ed knew that Diego would not follow this path because he was worried about his mother Sophia. Ed decided to tell him everything that happened. Then, Ed spoke.

    ¡°We¡¯re going to the royal road. We will go to a well-protected place and give Sophia a new store. She will live a new life there. And Diego, you have something to do with us.¡±

    Diego looked at Ed. He lived a decent life in the slums, but he remembers how painful it was for them after Juan left. Diego thought for a while and looked out the window. Diego, who was looking far away through the window, opened his mouth.

    ¡°I have something to do?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Then, after that, am I free?¡± ¡°Of course.¡±

    He didn¡¯t know long he needed to be with them, but of course, he¡¯ll be free.

    ¡°I¡¯ll come back here once I¡¯m done. With my mother.¡±

    Maybe it was because this is a place where memories of Juan remain. As Juan said if the magi remaining in Diego¡¯s heart becomes strong enough to wake up, he could become as strong as the great demon, and become the ruler of the slums like Juan. Ed nodded insignificantly. If he makes such an achievement, he can do whatever he wants.

    ¡°Sure.¡±

    Diego smiled when he heard Ed¡¯s definite answer.

    ¡°I see. What do I have to do?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll tell you later. Let¡¯s go to the royal road first¡±. ¡°The royal road?¡± ¡°Yes, the royal road.¡±

    The royal road has a pen-dragon. It¡¯s time to go there.

    Diego got into the carriage that exudes sacred power.

    Then, he got motion sickness all day and decided to sit next to Doug. It was almost impossible for him to stay in the carriage, probably because of the magi in his heart.

    They were on their way out of Kalim City and to the Royal Road Benzelov, not knowing when Diego¡¯s powers will wake up. It took about eight days by carriage from Kalim City.

    That¡¯s how the carriage trip began for him. On the first night out of Kalim City, Ed looked around while on the roof of the carriage.

    Arin and Sophia decided to sleep in the carriage, and Thane decided to sleep with Doug by making a small tent outside the carriage. He was close to the carriage, so it didn¡¯t seem particularly dangerous.

    Then Diego whined and climbed onto the roof of the carriage. Ed, who was cleaning his equipment on the roof of the carriage, looked at Diego approaching.

    Diego approached silently, looked at the arrow Ed was holding from the roof of the carriage, and looked far away at the forest surrounded by darkness. The campsite was a forest a little further away from the city.

    Diego, who was born in the slums of Kalim City and had never left his hometown. Everything was new and exciting to him, but Juan¡¯s absence was hard on him.

    That¡¯s why he went looking for Ed.

    Ed picked up his arrow and looked with his right eye to check if the arrow was bent or deformed. Diego looked at Ed silently.

    Ed returned the arrow to the infinite arrow barrel and looked at Diego.

    ¡°You can¡¯t sleep?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    Ed stared at Diego. Diego¡¯s powers would certainly help if it blossomed, but it was difficult to know what ability Diego actually has. Ed thought for a while and pulled out a luxury dagger on his waist. He thought Diego would need it more than himself.

    Ed took the dagger out and held it out to Diego. Diego received Ed¡¯s dagger and asked.

    ¡°Can I take this?¡±

    ¡°Keep it for self-defense.¡±

    Diego thought the dagger was too valuable to be used simply for self-defense.

    It seemed that it was not an ordinary object.

    ¡°But we¡¯re traveling with a holy knight. Why would I get into danger?¡±

    Ed laughed at his words and stood up.

    ¡°There will be a time when you need it.¡±

    Ed took an arrow out and pulled the bow to the fullest and flew it toward the darkness in the forest. It was as if the arrow was being sucked into the darkness.

    Kyaaaaaaaa!

    When he heard a scream, Ed sat down again and said.

    ¡°It¡¯s the mission of a holy knight to punish demons and beasts all over the world. The path of a holy knight is not that easy.¡±

    They had to deal with the beasts without sleeping at night but Ed didn¡¯t have to tell him about everything. He just had to realize what the future would be like.

    ¡°Demons and beasts?¡±

    He was raised in a slum, but Juan, a senior demon, was the ruler, so he would not have seen a single beast until now. However, he looked nervous as if he were scared to fight against demons and beasts.

    ¡°This is a secret from your mom, okay?¡±

    Even if Sophia knew Juan was a demon, Diego could not have welcomed him if he had to live a life of fighting demons or beasts. Diego couldn¡¯t tell if Ed was joking or telling the truth.

    On the first day, Diego, who seemed to be terrified, was getting used to it little by little because he didn¡¯t see any demons near the carriage on their way to the royal road for eight days.

    So he started to joke around soon. Unlike, in the beginning, Sophia has now definitely recovered her energy and began to smile faintly at Diego¡¯s jokes.

    Perhaps thanks to their escape from Juan¡¯s death, the atmosphere of the group has also brightened up a lot.

    ¡°Hey! Are you up?¡±

    Ed closed his eyes leaning against the back of the carriage and slowly opened his eyes.

    Perhaps because the royal road was getting closer, many carriages were passing by, so Arin did not practice her combat skill, and stayed inside the carriage.

    Ed opened the door of the carriage and climbed up to the roof of the carriage.

    ¡°Why?¡± ¡°Can you see that? That¡¯s the royal road.¡±

    When Ed heard that, he looked at the walls of Benzelov. The height of the wall could not be compared to any city he has visited so far.

    It was much taller than the walls of the Kingdom of Dalia. It looked like it was 50 meters tall.

    Although they were still quite a distance away, they could see the wall clearly. Ed smiled in vain at the tall wall.

    ¡°That¡¯s incredible.¡±

    In the Middle Ages, he didn¡¯t think much about buildings, but the most outstanding buildings in modern times were buildings built in the past.

    Things like pyramids and the Great Wall of China.

    In that respect, that wall itself deserved to be written in history. Thane also stuck his head out of the window of the carriage and smiled.

    ¡°That wall is called the iron wall in the kingdom of Travia because it is so strong.¡±

    Indeed, the kingdom of Travia was powerful and large in terms of territorial size. It boasts twice the size of other kingdoms. Their power is overwhelming as their land is very fertile.

    However, once they take over the kingdom of Dalia, their land may be reborn as the Travian Empire soon.

    As the number of carriages increased, it began to stagnate. Doug picked up the whip because he thought something had already happened. As the speed of the carriage increased, there was a disturbance.

    There are other carriages, but the carriages were glancing and sneaking away. Maybe because the blue glow was coming out of the carriage. The carriage ran along the divided road as if the Red Sea was splitting.

    Diego, who was watching from the driver¡¯s seat, shrugged and said.

    ¡°That¡¯s cool.¡±

    He must have never experienced this in the slums. Ed laughed and looked at the wall that was getting closer. As they got closer, he felt overwhelmed by the height.

    The demon era was a time when demons were rampant, but humans dominated the continent. It was a world where humans are in the front row.

    He met Juan, a higher rank demon, but as expected, humans are strong too. Especially when you see a wall like this which was built by humans.

    The carriage reached the wall without restraint. Then it stopped in front of the soldiers.

    However, when they saw the card Doug took out of his arms, the soldiers pushed the other carriages aside and opened the way. Ed saw that and asked Thane.

    ¡°What did he show them?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s a royal pass. It¡¯s from the Pen-dragon.¡±

    Only then did Ed realize that he was overwhelmed by the appearance of the wall and forgot that he had come to meet Pen-dragon.

    The main character of the Demon¡¯s Age 1 and the only person you can meet now.

    He¡¯s on his way to meet him.

    ¡°Are we going straight to the palace?¡±

    Thane shook his head.

    ¡°You don¡¯t have to go straight to the royal palace. The Pen-dragon is out hunting now and is not home. It might take three days to get back.¡±

    Thane said with a smile.

    ¡°First, let¡¯s go home.¡±

    Ed was looking at the royal road on the roof of the carriage. It is a place with crowds that are incomparable to other cities. There was a sidewalk next to the carriage¡¯s street, and a large crowd passes by.

    It was a spectacular city that was incomparable to the past cities. The boulevard was wide enough to allow four carriages to travel back and forth. The reality came to mind as there were full of carriages.

    It¡¯s been more than a year, but as he felt the traffic jam, the earth came to mind. Ed smiled bitterly at the appearance of the Earth and raised his head. The royal palace seen in the distance was also on the royal road. The royal palace, built on the hill as if looking down at everything, had the dignity of the ruler.

    The carriage ran along the boulevard and turned left at the intersection, and soon, they noticed large mansions. These large mansions on the royal road looked really expensive.

    It was the size of a large mansion of the lords. The carriage, which had been wandering between the mansions, slowed down. Compared to other large mansions he has seen, these were several times larger. First of all, he could see a high fence and fir trees rising above it.

    The soldiers guarding the door checked Doug and opened the door. As a large iron door opened, fir trees lined up from side to side, and a large mansion caught his eye. Ed admired seeing him drive the carriage inside.

    ¡°Thane. I didn¡¯t know you were this rich.¡±

    ¡°I just use this as a vacation home. This is the Pen-dragon¡¯s house.¡±

    Somehow, he thought it was too big. Indeed, when they went inside along the fir tree path, there was a circular intersection.

    It was said to be a separate building, but it was so big that it could be considered the mansion of a lord.

    As the carriage stood in front of it, Diego couldn¡¯t keep his mouth closed.

    ¡°Is this Thane¡¯s house?¡±

    When the carriage stopped, Thane, who opened the door of the carriage, patted his back and replied as if it was no big deal.

    ¡°This is my house.¡±

    Thane got off first and looked back. Seeing Sophia get off while being assisted by Arin, Thane pointed to the mansion with a cane.

    ¡°And now this is Sophia and Diego¡¯s home.¡±

    ¡°What?¡±

    Thane casually continued to speak.

    ¡°This is the safest place on the royal road, so why don¡¯t you guys stay here? I want you to take care of the house while I¡¯m away.¡±

    Sophia couldn¡¯t answer Thane¡¯s words. Diego got of the driver¡¯s seat and held

    Sophia¡¯s hand. Sophia carefully spoke out, holding Diego¡¯s hand.

    ¡°But¡­¡±.

    ¡°If you stay here, wouldn¡¯t Diego be relieved?¡±

    As Sophia turned around, Diego nodded.

    ¡°Mom, stay here. I¡¯ll be right back after finishing my work.¡±

    Sophia reached out and touched Diego¡¯s cheek. Does this little kid know what he¡¯s going to do? She only vaguely guessed, but she could see that it was necessary for him to get true freedom.

    Sophia wrapped herself around Diego¡¯s shoulder and looked around the mansion. A place reminiscent of a lord¡¯s mansion. She wondered if she deserved to stay in a place like this, but Diego decided to stay here so that Diego will not worry about her.

    There were many people in the mansion, including the butler and the maid, and the meals they prepared were satisfying because they were freshly baked bread and warm foods, unlike what they had outdoors for eight days.

    Sophia¡¯s room was several times larger than her house in the old slum, and there were plenty of beds.

    Diego slept in Sophia¡¯s arms. He thought he needed to leave a lot of good memories with his mom because he won¡¯t be able to see her again until his work is complete.

    While Diego was sleeping, the ring in his hand moved, and the seeds in Diego¡¯s heart began to develop.

 Chapter 45 - Merjen

    Ed was sleeping comfortably for a long time. He was in the Pendragon¡¯s mansion located at the Royal road.

    Even a demon couldn¡¯t get into this place easily. Until now, the demon Nafthael had been constantly sending beasts to keep him awake, but seeing the number significantly decreased, they seemed like nothing now.

    Ed was sleeping, but suddenly felt something and ran out of the room with his frozen arrow.

    When he was down the hallway, Arin was also running with a shield and a holy sword in comfortable clothes. They both stopped in front of Sophia¡¯s room and made eye contact.

    Ed kicked the door and went inside. He could see Diego floating in the air.

    What was most surprising was the spirit that hugged Diego. The translucent form of the body had a familiar face. Ed asked the spirit, pointing an arrow at him.

    ¡°Juan?¡±

    At Ed¡¯s call, the eyes of the spirit floating in the air headed for Ed.

    -I didn¡¯t know I¡¯d see you again like this.

    ¡°Do you remember me?¡±

    -I asked you to take care of my son. Diego looks well.

    Arin, who was standing behind Ed, seriously wondered if she should throw her shield.

    Ed put his arrow back and asked Juan.

    ¡°Please put Diego down and we can talk.¡±

    -I¡¯m sorry. I¡¯m just so happy to see him after a long time.

    Juan put Diego down and looked at Sophia lying next to him.

    ¡°What happened?¡±

    Juan¡¯s eyes turned toward Diego¡¯s ring on his index finger.

    -Only those who succeed in my power can wear this ring. It¡¯s a ring that only Diego can wear. And because I wore this ring, the seeds of the magi began to blossom, now the power of the ring awoke. And that power called me out.

    Ed was amazed. Diego¡¯s energy called out Juan, a strong demon.

    Ed looked up and down at Juan and asked.

    ¡°Does it mean Diego can summon you?¡±

    -Yes. But his powers are still weak.

    Ed stayed still and looked at Juan. He does not have the power of a strong demon yet. Since Juan is a spirit, he cannot exert as strong power as before and cannot use physical force.

    ¡°So Diego can summon you¡­¡±

    -That¡¯s right. But Diego¡¯s magi is only about to sprout. He missed me so much that I appeared in such a hurry, but I have only three minutes left with his current magi.

    ¡°Can you catch an intermediate demon in 3 minutes?¡±

    -It¡¯s not easy. If I use my strength, that time will be greatly reduced. But it might be possible.

    Ed knew that Juan was not joking. Diego said he would contribute his own, and he was able to summon Juan, a higher-level demon spirit, even for a short time.

    Juan looked back at Ed and Arin as his body gradually blurred.

    -Please continue to take good care of them.

    Then, Juan¡¯s body completely disappeared. Ed laid Diego down, who fell back on the bed. Ed smiled bitterly when he saw that Sophia had not woken up in this fuss.

    ¡°The trip must have been tiring for her. Seeing that she hasn¡¯t woken up in this noise.¡±

    Ed covered Diego with a blanket and left the room with Arin. After they left, Sophia slowly opened her eyes. She reached out and touched the ring on Diego¡¯s hand.

    Now she can relax her mind. She knew that Juan wanted to protect Diego even after he died. Swallowing tears, Sophia hugged Diego in her arms.

    When he opened his eyes in the morning, Diego could see Sophia getting up first and looking down at him. Diego raised himself in a relaxed appearance.

    ¡°Mom, did you wake up early?¡±

    Sophia reached out her hand and touched Diego¡¯s cheek.

    ¡°Diego. Did you sleep well?¡±

    ¡°Yeah. What about you, mom?¡±

    ¡°I slept well, too. Should we go look around the house together?¡±

    ¡°Okay.¡±

    Diego smiled brightly when his mother had now fully regained her vitality. He doesn¡¯t know what cheered his mom up, but he thought it was a good thing.

    ¡°Let¡¯s have something delicious to eat.¡±

    Diego hugged Sophia and smiled brightly. Sofia also slowly touched Diego¡¯s hair.

    At breakfast time, Diego smiled brightly and said.

    ¡°Can I go check the Royal road with you today?¡±

    Ed nodded at his words.

    ¡°Of course. Is there anything you need to do today?¡±

    ¡°In the royal road, there is a palace, the hall of the Astron Church. Archbishop Benedict is here, so I¡¯m going to meet him. He¡¯s an important person to my siblings.¡±

    Ed recalled that it was Archbishop Benedict who gave Aaron the token. Perhaps he is a benefactor who led both Aaron and Arin to the Astron Church.

    Ed nodded at the words and looked back at Diego.

    ¡°Then let¡¯s go there together. It¡¯s your first time on the royal road.¡±

    When Thane heard that, he spoke.

    ¡°What a shame. I had a lot I wanted to show you.¡±

    ¡°Today, I¡¯ll take Diego and Sophia to check the royal road.¡±

    ¡°Sure. I have a few things to take care of anyway.¡±

    Thane said so and beckoned to the butler. As the butler standing behind Thane approached, Thane whispered something to him, handing Ed the pocket given by the butler who returned before finishing the meal.

    ¡°I put some pocket money in there to wander and get some snacks. Are you going to have lunch outside?¡±

    Judging from the weight, he seemed to have put at least 30 gold. Ed remembered the time when he only earned around 10 golds even if he caught a lower demon.

    ¡°Sure. Do you have any restaurant recommendations?¡±

    ¡°There is a lot of places to walk around, so you should take Doug with you. The royal road is so wide that it would be hard to see without a carriage.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s great. Did you hear from Grant yet?¡±

    ¡°I heard that it would take about three days.¡±

    If he meets Pendragon two days later and Grant three days later, he will be able to finish his work on the royal road roughly.

    ¡°Then I¡¯ll eat breakfast and come back.¡±

    ¡°Okay.¡±

    After breakfast, Arin was on her horse. Arin decided to move separately because she knew the way to the palace.

    ¡°See you in the evening.¡±

    Arin nodded and drove away first. And Ed climbed with Diego and Sophia on Doug¡¯s carriage. The size of the carriage was not large, but it was able to run without being blocked while on the royal road because it had the royal family patterns engraved on it.

    Diego was busy looking outside the window of the carriage and explaining this and that to Sophia while looking at the royal road. Sophia was responding while listening to Diego¡¯s words, but when she made eye contact, she seemed to know that she pretended to be sleeping last night.

    Still, thanks to Juan¡¯s appearance, she seemed to be trying to make memories with Diego for the rest of her time. Ed was relieved to see her cheer up.

    They heard Doug¡¯s voice outside the carriage.

    ¡°Is there any place you want to go?¡±

    Ed looked back at Diego and Sophia. If the two wanted to make memories, Ed thought there would be no such place here.

    ¡°Is there any place for your family to visit?¡±

    ¡°There are puppet shows and operas, but operas are held only in the evening.¡±

    ¡°Then, please go to the puppet show place.¡±

    ¡°Right.¡±

    Diego¡¯s eyes turned round when he heard about the puppet show.

    ¡°He could only watch uppet shows on his birthday.¡±

    ¡°You already seen a puppet show?¡±

    ¡°With my father.¡±

    Diego spoke and looked at Sophia. She smiled and held Diego¡¯s hand and replied instead.

    ¡°His father always used to do it for him on his birthday. There was a theater that used to come to our village, so he could see it every year.¡±

    Doug said outside as he drove a carriage.

    ¡°There are five permanent theaters on the royal road. Do you have a favorite puppet show?¡±

    Diego and Sophia answered at the same time.

    ¡°The Pendragon Chronicles, a free knight.¡±

    Doug smiled brightly.

    ¡°The Pendragon Chronicles, a free knight, is one of the most popular puppet shows in the royal road. There is a permanent theater, so let¡¯s go there.¡±

    Ed looked at Diego and Sophia smiling brightly, making eye contact with each other.

    Don¡¯t they know that the place where they spent last night was the Pendragon¡¯s house?

    Ed never told them in particular, but he didn¡¯t know that their favorite would be Pendragon.

    ¡°You¡¯re coming with me, right?¡±

    ¡°No. While you¡¯re at the theater, I¡¯ll go do something else. I¡¯ll be back before it¡¯s over, so have fun with your mom.¡±

    Sophia said thank you. Ed glanced at the place. Doug¡¯s skills have not been clearly seen, but Ed was sure it was enough to protect the two.

    Ed gave Sophia the pocket that Thane gave him today and said.

    ¡°Eat something delicious while watching the puppet show. You can spend all the money, so have a good time. If you need anything, tell Doug and he¡¯ll listen.¡±

    Sophia received the pocket and put it in her arms. Ed glanced outside and told Doug.

    ¡°Can you stop the carriage for a second?¡±

    When the carriage stopped, Ed opened the door and looked back at Diego.

    ¡°Have fun. See you later.¡±

    ¡°See you later.¡±

    When Ed stepped out of the carriage, Doug looked back and said.

    ¡°The Moon Shadow Theater on the central street of the Royal road. It¡¯s a two-hour puppet show, so we can still make it time.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll see you in front of the theater in two hours.¡±

    Ed smiled as he looked at Diego waving out of the window as the carriage moved away.

    Ed, who was looking at the carriage moving away, turned his head and looked at the royal road.

    On the boulevard in the royal road, people were walking busy, and carriages and horses were going back and forth on the boulevard.

    No one took a leisurely look around. Ed walked on such a street and thought about where to spend his time. Diego needed to spend time with his mother today.

    Ed, who was walking like that, was led by a fragrant smell and walked away. As he walked a little, the food alley appeared. Ed walked there and began to watch.

    The most tempting thing was grilled skewers. Ed picked up the grilled skewers and asked.

    ¡°How much is this?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s 50 coppers each.¡±

    It¡¯s a price that makes your eyes pop out. As expected, it was a royal food alley. Ed threw one silver coin and picked up two skewers. When he took a bite, it suited his taste, perhaps because it was full of charcoal scent.

    There were enough snacks to eat in the food alley, so he took a step with the idea of tasting them one by one for fun. He thought it would be good to cool down for the first time in a while and felt a frightening gaze as he walked.

    Ed stopped walking and looked around as if he were facing a beast. There was no way a beast could walk around the royal food alley, so Ed, who was looking back for someone, was surprised to find a girl squatting down.

    She had purple hair and her cheeks were so hallow because she was starving. Her gaze was all over the skewer in Ed¡¯s hand.

    Ed shook the skewer just in case, and her eyes followed . Ed sighed at the appearance and stuck out a skewer to the girl. The girl looked up at the skewer and looked at Ed.

    ¡°Are you giving it to me?¡±

    When Ed nodded, the girl hesitated and snatched it like lightning. And she inhaled the skewer. Ed didn¡¯t think she¡¯d be able to feel the taste or anything if she ate like that.

    It was cute to see her chewing with her lips closed. Ed wondered what this girl was walking around like this on the royal road. She looked older than Diego, but she did not look older than 14 years old.

    Ed couldn¡¯t believe this kind of girl had such a beast-like look.

    ¡°What¡¯s your name?¡±

    The girl, who was chewing the skewers, looked at Ed with a wary look. Ed threw her a skewer because she looked pitiful, but she had a good reaction. Ed decided to go his way, assuming that one skewer was enough.

    Ed walked in search of other snacks in the alley. But the girl caught Ed¡¯s cape. Ed looked back and the girl swallowed what she was chewing in her mouth and replied.

    ¡°Merjen.¡±

    Ed looked down at Merjen, who spoke. Merjen looked up at Ed and said.

    ¡°Help me.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t want¡­¡±

    Ed shook off this informal little girl¡¯s hand and tried to go away. But, an unusual orb was seen between her cape.

    It looked like she carried several luxury goods.

    This girl is a mysterious magician. A mysterious magician is hungry onpuppet the royal road.

    ¡°What do you want me to help you with?¡±

 Chapter 46 - A new relationship

    She didn¡¯t even eat properly, so Ed decided to feed her first before he heard about the help she needed.

    Ed didn¡¯t know what she liked, so he went to a nearby restaurant and ordered calf tenderloin steak and risotto.

    Since it is a food alley in the Royal road, everyone seemed to guarantee more than the basic taste. Ed came out of breakfast and ordered a cup of tea and watched Merjen eat.

    Ed took a sip of tea as he watched her drink orange juice with a mouth full. Mysterious. Ed doesn¡¯t think she¡¯s a beginner when he sees her equipment. But why was she hungry in the royal road?

    Even if he wanted to ask a question, he couldn¡¯t ask because she was chewing. She looked kind of cute.

    So Ed waited silently. First of all, he wanted her to fill her stomach and wash her up. She was so hungry that she spent almost an hour eating all the food in front of her and drinking all the orange juice.

    Although her appetite was not as big as Arin¡¯s, it was fun to watch her chewing for a long time. After finishing the meal, Merjen smiled.

    The only time Ed met a mysterious magician was Sirke and Sylvia, who he met as enemies. Both were Wind magicians dealing with wind attributes, and he wondered what kind of attributes this girl had.

    ¡°Now that you¡¯re full, shall we talk? How can I help you?¡±

    Merjen finally gave Ed a look. Then, Ed thought she was thinking for a moment, and soon shook her head and opened her mouth.

    ¡°I lost my group. Help me find them.¡±

    Ed thought he picked up a mysterious magician on the street. Did she have a group?

    Ed guessed there¡¯s a group of people who take care of the mysterious magicians because she was clumsy.

    Ed so looked at her still and nodded.

    ¡°Where are you supposed to meet them?¡±

    ¡°Under the Pendragon statue in the central square.¡±

    It¡¯s not far from here.

    ¡°When?¡±

    ¡°Three days ago.¡±

    ¡°But you didn¡¯t meet them?¡±

    ¡°Yeah. I think something happened. They are not the kind of people who breaks promises.¡±

    They were not the type to break promises. Did they leave her behind? Or did something really happen?

    The problem was that it was the first time Ed was on the royal road.

    ¡°How many people are in your group?¡±

    ¡°Two. Kyle and Leaf.¡±

    ¡°Is there anything special about them?¡±

    ¡°Kyle has blonde hair and emerald eyes. He¡¯s human. And Leaf is a brown short-haired dwarf. She¡¯s a girl.¡±

    The combination itself seemed to stand out because it was a human dwarf, but why didn¡¯t they meet up for three days?

    Thinking about it doesn¡¯t solve it. Ed asked just in case.

    ¡°We¡¯ll see what we can do. Why don¡¯t you take a shower first though? Don¡¯t you feel itchy?¡±

    Merjen scratched her head at the words.

    ¡°There are times when I can¡¯t wash up for a month.¡±

    What should Ed do with this dirty girl?

    Ed sighed and stood up from his seat.

    ¡°Follow me.¡±

    Ed asked the staff for directions while paying for Merjen on his way out, and left the alley to find a hotel. On the royal road, there was a five-story hotel, not an inn.

    Ed went in there, booked a room, asked for warm water, and said, putting Merjen inside.

    ¡°Wash up and come out. There¡¯s a place we need to go.¡±

    When Ed was about to leave, Merjen grabbed the hem of his cape. When Ed looked back, Merjen looked up at him.

    Ed smiled when he saw an anxious look.

    ¡°I¡¯ll be waiting, so wash up and come out. But if you don¡¯t wash up, I¡¯ll just go.¡±

    Seeing Merjen nodding and entering the bathroom, Ed walked to the window. The hotel was overlooking the central square.

    The central square of the royal road. The size of the royal road itself is enormous, and since it is a square in the center, the size was surprisingly large.

    Ed¡¯s gaze turned toward the two statues built in the center of the central square. One was a statue of the first king, and the other was a statue of Pendragon, who killed the great demon Rifelas, who was located in the kingdom of Travia.

    His credit was worthy of honor in the kingdom.

    Come to think of it, the upper demon alone is so strong, but how strong would a great demon be? Since Pendragon killed such a great demon, they should have been awarded the princess of the kingdom.

    In honor of him, a statue was built in the central square.

    That¡¯s natural for a person at the level of strategic weapons.

    Ed was looking around the central square when he heard a presence from behind.

    When he turned his head, Merjen, whose cheeks turned red with a towel on her head, came out.

    ¡°I washed clean.¡±

    ¡°Then, since the central square is close, let¡¯s go there and go to a place for help.¡±

    ¡°Okay.¡±

    Ed went to the central square with Merjen. They could have arrived quickly not far from the hotel, but there were so many different people walking around.

    Everywhere else was busy, but there seemed to be a lot of tourists here. Not only the nobles but also those who had time to walk around.

    Ed, who was passing through them, stood under the statue of Pendragon. Ed, who was looking up at a 30-meter-high statue, was able to feel the status of Pendragon in this world.

    Ed looked around for a moment, but there was no combination of a human man and a dwarf woman.

    There was no way that they wouldn¡¯t stand out.

    ¡°There¡¯s none.¡±

    ¡°I know.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t you have any signs?¡±

    ¡°We don¡¯t have any.¡±

    Now that Ed confirmed that they¡¯re not around, he should get help.

    ¡°Follow me. There¡¯s a place we can go.¡±

    Fortunately, there is a place in the central square where carriages are lent, so they can rent a carriage and move. The Royal road costs a lot of money to do anything, but if you have money, you have many conveniences.

    When asked to take the carriage to Pendragon¡¯s house, the coach gladly drove the carriage. Perhaps because there were many people who wanted to see Pendragon¡¯s house from afar, it seemed insignificant.

    However, Merjen in the carriage was different. She looked at Ed with a curious look.

    ¡°Do you happen to know Pendragon?¡±

    ¡°No.¡±

    Merjen¡¯s face showed little disappointment, but Ed didn¡¯t care. When the carriage arrived in front of Pendragon¡¯s house, the coach stopped the carriage.

    ¡°We¡¯re here¡±.

    Ed stuck his head out of the carriage. Soldiers guarding Pendragon¡¯s house opened the door when they saw Ed¡¯s face.

    ¡°Huh?¡±

    When Merjen was surprised, Ed spoke.

    ¡°Go straight in and go to the right at the intersection.¡±

    ¡°Okay.¡±

    The coach¡¯s voice became polite, but Ed didn¡¯t care. Seeing Merjen¡¯s eyes twinkling, Ed asked just in case.

    ¡°Do you want to see the Pendragon?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m curious. How strong the free knight was to hunt the great demon. And I want to ask him something.¡±

    ¡°What are you going to ask?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll ask him when I meet him. Why? Can you let me meet him?¡±

    Ed tilted his head.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know because I haven¡¯t met him yet either.¡±

    ¡°How did you get in here without seeing the Pendragon?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m here to meet Thane¡±.

    ¡°Thane? The demon researcher?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    When he saw Merjen twinkling when she heard that they were going to meet Thane, Ed had something to ask her, but he kept it in. The carriage quickly arrived at the house, and Ed got off the carriage with Merjen.

    While giving money to the coach and sending it back, the butler approached.

    ¡°Didn¡¯t you say you were going to check out the royal road today?¡±

    ¡°I have something else to do.¡±

    Originally, Ed was going to leave Merjen at the hotel and return alone to find more information. However, Merjen was afraid of being alone, so Ed brought her with him.

    ¡°Thane is in the lab right now.¡±

    ¡°Please take me.¡±

    ¡°Follow me.¡±

    As they walked along with the butler, they headed to the basement of the house. There was a large door underground of this large house. Ed wondered why they needed an iron door as big as that.

    When the butler knocked on the iron door and waited for a while, the iron door opened. And there, Thane stood with a cane.

    Thane¡¯s gaze turned to Ed.

    ¡°Huh? You came back early.¡±

    ¡°I came first because I had a favor to ask of you.¡±

    ¡°Really? Who¡¯s that behind you?¡±

    Ed stepped aside from the words. Merjen stepped forward and bowed her head to Thane.

    ¡°Nice to meet you. I¡¯m Merjen Lucilia.¡±

    Look at this! She knows how to speak formally.

    Thane tilted his head at her greeting.

    ¡°Lucilia? What¡¯s your relationship with Helena?¡±

    ¡°She¡¯s my mother.¡±

    Ed was surprised by Merjen¡¯s words. What is she saying right now?

    Helena is the protagonist of demon¡¯s Age 1 and a mysterious artist he enjoyed playing. It¡¯s her daughter?

    Thane¡¯s face caught a bright smile. Thane approached her and held her hand tightly and said,

    ¡°Looking at your hair and eyes, you really look like Helena. It¡¯s been 15 years since I haven¡¯t seen her, but I didn¡¯t know she had a daughter. My my my.¡±

    Seeing Thane happy, a smile was also drawn around Merjen¡¯s mouth.

    ¡°I¡¯ve heard a lot from my mother about you. She received a lot of help from you.¡±

    ¡°Did she say that? I handed over the information Helena requested, but I didn¡¯t think it was very helpful.¡±

    Happy to hear that Thane was Helena¡¯s daughter, he took her to the drawing-room.

    Thane told Merjen to sit on the sofa and asked.

    ¡°Alright. What brought you to the Royal road?¡±

    When Thane held out a glass plate containing candy on the table, Merjen quickly opened it, put it in her mouth, and replied with a mumbling sound.

    ¡°My mother disappeared about a year ago. So I came out to find her mother and met a group while looking for clues, and I was in trouble because I lost them.¡±

    Merjen¡¯s gaze turned to Ed.

    ¡°If I hadn¡¯t met Ed, I would have been in trouble.¡±

    Thane looked back at Ed and smiled.

    ¡°You were lucky. Come to think of it, there¡¯s a rumor about a mysterious magician who kills demons. Is that you?¡±

    Merjen nodded at the words.

    ¡°I encountered demons on my way to find my mother. In addition, I think I¡¯ve caught about ten of them so far while helping my group.¡±

    Last time, she said it was seven, but when did she catch three more?

    Ed never thought Merjen was one of the people expected to be the main characters of the demon¡¯s Age 2. However, her origin was unusual. The daughter of Helena, the main character of demon¡¯s Age 1?

    Is she the real main character?

    A new relationship has been made.

 Chapter 47 - A story

    Helena was a magician that can control flame. If Merjen is her daughter, she would probably be a flame magician.

    The flame magician had overwhelming destructive power, and Helena¡¯s specialty was high-speed casting. In the end, it seemed that she could use magic almost like a dragon.

    Even so, it¡¯s really hard to catch the great demon with her powers.

    And Merjen was said to be her daughter.

    Thane looked serious, and Ed looked at her too.

    ¡°Didn¡¯t Helena tell you why she disappeared?¡±

    ¡°No. She didn¡¯t say anything. She didn¡¯t send me any letter either¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s no way she¡¯ll just disappear.¡±

    Helena was not any ordinary person. As she caught the great demon in the demon¡¯s Age 1, she was a woman standing at the top of other magicians.

    It was hard to believe that she had been taken by someone. Of course, she did not catch the great demon alone, but she was not a weak magician herself.

    Ed is curious because she suddenly disappeared.

    ¡°So I came out to find my mom. There were twists and turns, but in the meantime, I met Kyle and Leaf.¡±

    Ed was a little worried to hear that. From an early age, this magician grew up learning powers from the top magician. Considering that she studied for a month, she hasn¡¯t lived a normal life.

    So Merjen looked somewhat sloppy. She certainly had a foolish side when Ed saw her drooling in the food alley.

    Was her group really trying to help her?

    Maybe they wanted to use her because she is Helena¡¯s daughter?

    If she were an ordinary magician, she would have not gotten this far.

    But soon Ed shook his head. That¡¯s bound to be the case for anyone. Ed thought she wasn¡¯t lying when she said she was Helena¡¯s daughter.

    But Ed has to look for her group first. He wanted to know why they failed to meet up with Merjen.

    ¡°Okay. You said you lost Kyle and Leaf, right? Did something happen?¡±

    ¡°Kyle said he had someone to meet. Leaf followed him, and while I was in the royal road, I had something to get, so I went to buy it and lost my purse.¡±

    Did someone pickpocket her?

    Ed doesn¡¯t know who he is, but if he knew who Merjen was, he wouldn¡¯t have done such a crazy thing. How dare he pickpockets a magician?

    ¡°So I couldn¡¯t buy anything and looked for Kyle and Leaf, but I couldn¡¯t find them. If I hadn¡¯t met Ed, I might have gone through the trash for food.¡±

    Thane looked pitifully at Merjen.

    ¡°Sounds like you have gone through a lot.¡±

    Merjen replied with a smile.

    ¡°It¡¯s okay. I met Ed, and thanks to him, I met Thane.¡±

    Ed laughed when he heard that. She seems to be lacking somewhere in the head, but she is quite positive.

    Thane nodded and said.

    ¡°Who did Kyle and Leaf say they were going to meet?¡±

    Merjen replied, thinking about something.

    ¡°Kyle has been looking for his lost brother until now. He said his younger brother was sold as a slave, and he was looking for him. He said I didn¡¯t have to go with him because he wasn¡¯t dealing with the demon. He was looking for someone that had information.¡±

    Merjen continued, opening another candy and putting it in her mouth.

    ¡°Umm. On the royal road, I also said I had something to get. So we decided to meet again after we were done. Even though we couldn¡¯t meet.¡±

    ¡°Is there any other clue? Where was Kyle going to get information from?¡±

    Merjen shook her head.

    ¡°Kyle doesn¡¯t tell me such details.¡±

    Ed suddenly asked out of curiosity.

    ¡°But why were you tagging along with Kyle?¡±

    When asked, Merjen smiled.

    ¡°I was seriously injured when I first left the house and caught a demon while chasing my mother¡¯s traces. I thought I could die because of lack of experience, but I was counterattacked. Kyle and Leaf helped me then. That¡¯s why I was traveling together with them.¡±

    Did Kyle and Leaf save her?

    Ed knew why she was with them. She was trying to repay their kindness. They helped Merjen. However, Thane decided to leave the rest for the future.

    Thane nodded.

    ¡°Let¡¯s find out more about it first. Is Kyle a noble?

    ¡°He said that his family was a corrupt noble.¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s his last name?¡±

    ¡°Desto. Kyle von Desto is his full name.¡±

    Thane frowned at her words.

    ¡°Is he the son of Prince Desto?¡±

    Ed tilted his head at the words and asked.

    ¡°Who¡¯s Prince Desto?¡±

    Thane hesitated for a moment and replied.

    ¡°It must have been around 3 years ago. He was the head of the Southern aristocratic union and gathered them as if he were possessed by something at the time. And they communicated with the Magelta Kingdom in the south. Soon, all the nobles involved in his work were killed, and their families became slaves.¡±

    ¡°By the way, how did Kyle not become a slave?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know the details. But I guess he avoided it because he wasn¡¯t there at the time, but if he survived, he would have to hide his identity to live. Why did he come to the Royal road though?¡±

    Merjen gulped down the candy left in her mouth and answered, picking up the next candy.

    ¡°According to the information I got, an agent of a nobleman in the royal road bought his slave brother. That¡¯s why he came all the way to the Royal road.¡±

    Merjen continued to talk, opening the candy and putting it in her mouth.

    ¡°Kyle risked his life to look for his brother.¡±

    It doesn¡¯t matter if he risks his own life. But should he risk other people, too? Thane replied after thinking for a while.

    ¡°I¡¯ll ask some people about what happened. If this really happened within the royal road, we will know the results today.¡±

    Merjen bowed her head.

    ¡°Thank you.¡±

    Thane looked at her with a satisfied smile as if he were looking at his granddaughter and said.

    ¡°Anyway, you need to get new glasses. There¡¯s an optician in the royal road, so we can get you a new one there.¡±

    Merjen took off her broken glasses and looked down, and said.

    ¡°Can I just change my glasses lens? My mom gave me this.¡±

    ¡°It must be a precious item. Of course, we can. Don¡¯t worry.¡±

    Thane looked back at Ed and said.

    ¡°What are you going to do with Diego?¡±

    ¡°Please send someone to meet up with them. I wanted him to make some good memories with his mom today. Just let him know that I came back first because I had work to do.¡±

    Originally, he was going to let Diego and Sophia spend time together on their own anyway. Thane looked around the butler¡¯s office, and he nodded.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go to the lab together.¡±

    Thane left Merjen¡¯s glasses to the butler and took them back to the basement. When he opened the underground iron door and went inside, they could smell books.

    In the glass bottles lined up left and right, all kinds of things were displayed, from eyeballs to nails and intestines. This was like a demon¡¯s by-product.

    Looking back at it, Merjen was glistening purple eyes as if it were amazing.

    ¡°What your mother said was right. She said there was no one as good as Thane in terms of demon research.¡±

    ¡°Haha. It¡¯s amazing that the hot-tempered magician gave birth to a daughter, but I can¡¯t believe she even praised me.¡±

    Merjen replied with a light tap on a bottle containing eyeballs.

    ¡°Is this Malai¡¯s eyes?¡±

    It was a strange eyeball that had 8 pupils, and she recognized it as soon as she saw it. Ed didn¡¯t want to pay attention to that, so he turned his head and looked further inward.

    And when he saw an object hanging inside, he laughed in vain.

    ¡°What are you making?¡±

    The glass tubes, which might have been used by medieval alchemists, were intricately intertwined, with a blood-dropping heart hanging above them, and a thick liquid flowing down on the other.

    When Ed looked back, Merjen was admiring it.

    ¡°It is Andalay¡¯s heart, the liquid that boiled Mesto¡¯s wings.¡±

    ¡°You recognize it at once. Looks like Helena didn¡¯t just teach you magic tricks.¡±

    Thane smiled as Merjen looked at the things in front of her.

    ¡°We are developing extreme poison that can kill any demon. If this is completed, demons will have no more place to stand.¡±

    Ed looked back at Thane at the words. Humans who helped kill the great demon are now developing extreme poison that can kill all demons?

    Thane¡¯s hatred of the demon is truly admirable. The demon will regret having this human being as an enemy for the rest of his life.

    Merjen admired when she saw Thane discussing its ingredients. Helena¡¯s influence was large, given that she is so interested in demons.

    Few of those who devote their lives to mastering the magic they gained are seen catching demons.

    Like other games, wizards are only handed down to one person, and if they don¡¯t find anyone who can pass their magic on, they just die.

    A mysterious magician who catches demons.

    Ed was a little jealous when he saw her talking to Thane.

    In the evening, Arin, who went to the church, returned, and Diego and Sophia, who had been enjoying watching the puppet show also returned.

    At the gathering, Thane introduced Merjen.

    ¡°This is Merjen, daughter of Helena, one of the three heroes. Ed met her in the royal road and brought her here.¡±

    Diego glinted at his words. In fact, Juan may not have told Diego about the three heroes, but he doesn¡¯t know why Diego likes them so much.

    ¡°Hi, Merjen! I¡¯m Diego.¡±

    ¡°Nice to meet you.¡±

    Merjen looked at Diego and looked at the ring on his hand.

    ¡°You¡¯re a spirit commander, aren¡¯t you?

    ¡°What?¡±

    When Diego looked at her, he wondered what she was saying, and Merjen looked at him as if she was amazed.

    ¡°The spirit command is actually a kind of mystery. However, in order to deal with the power properly, you have to balance it well. The reason why the spirit commanders disappear often is that they are often eaten by the spirit. Be careful. You need a strong mind to deal with strong power. It¡¯s the basis and core of magic.¡±

    Diego looked back at Ed wondering what she meant. Ed was more surprised that Merjen recognized it.

    ¡°Hey, what do you mean?¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re a spirit commander.¡±

    ¡°Really?¡±

    Thane called attention as Diego looked down at both of his hands.

    ¡°Anyway, I found Kyle and Leaf¡¯s last destination.¡±

    ¡°Where is it?¡±

    When Merjen looked back, Thane hesitated for a while and replied.

    ¡°Someone said they went to Caren¡¯s mansion.¡±

    Thane continued with caution.

    ¡°He is someone that knows about the Prince Desto case.¡±

    Ed and Merjen¡¯s eyes collided in the air. They thought something might¡¯ve happened to Kyle and Leaf.

    When Merjen hesitated to do something, Ed jumped up from his seat and said.

    ¡°What are you doing? We need to find out what happened to your friends.¡±

    Merjen stood up from her seat with a smile as if she were happy with his response.

 Chapter 48 - Witchcraft

    When Ed got up from his seat with Merjen, Arin followed them and got up from her seat too. Diego tried to get up from his seat but Ed pressed his head down.

    ¡°Stay at home. Where do you think you¡¯re going?¡±

    ¡°Oh, well¡­¡±

    Ed patted Diego¡¯s hair and went outside. When Merjen and Arin followed, Thane briefly called Ed separately.

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡±

    Thane hesitated for a moment and opened his mouth.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know if I can say this.¡±

    ¡°What do you mean?¡±

    ¡°Caren, he¡¯s a difficult person to deal with. He is one of the influential figures of the kingdom that empowers the Prince. Now that the second prince¡¯s death and the second prince¡¯s faction has lost power, he is the influential figure in the kingdom. And he is the person keeping Pendragon in check.¡±

    ¡°So what?¡±

    ¡°If you make a mistake, he can give you a hard time.¡±

    ¡°He did that to Pendragon too?¡±

    ¡°Right. It¡¯s likely that he already knows that you¡¯re here.¡±

    ¡°So, he¡¯s already spying on this place, right?¡±

    ¡°Right. In fact, demon killing isn¡¯t difficult until you get caught up in his politics. Pendragon tries not to care as much as possible, but those who are afraid of his existence are trying to pull him down.¡±

    Ed knew why Thane was saying this.

    ¡°So you¡¯re telling me not to stand out because we might be seen by Caren.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry. If you¡¯re a decent nobleman, you can solve problems under Pendragon¡¯s name, but not something like this.¡±

    Ed nodded after thinking for a while. He didn¡¯t mean to make a fuss anyway, but he guessed he had to move much more secretly now.

    Ed walked over to Arin and Merjen. Ed looked back at Merjen because everyone¡¯s attention was focused on her.

    ¡°How far can you go to save your colleagues?¡±

    ¡°I can risk my life.¡±

    It¡¯s not going to be that easy.

    ¡°That¡¯s good enough. First, I¡¯ll go first and collect the information. A man named Caren is said to be a big man in the kingdom of Travia, so we need more evidence.¡±

    Merjen stared at Ed.

    ¡°So, you¡¯re going alone?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    ¡°This is supposed to be my problem though?¡±

    Ed burst into laughter at her words. Merjen was at a loss for his help, perhaps because she had rarely received favors from others.

    ¡°I¡¯ll help you this time, so you help me next time.¡±

    Merjen nodded firmly at his words. Ed looked back at Arin. He smiled because he felt a willingness from Merjen to repay his kindness.

    ¡°I¡¯ll be back.¡±

    Arin was well aware that collecting information was not her forte.

    ¡°Tell me whatever you need. We¡¯ll be able to seek help from Archbishop Benedict.

    If Archbishop Benedict is involved in something that needs to be dealt with secretly, it will now be a battle between the kingdom and the church. That¡¯s a much messier situation.

    ¡°I¡¯ll tell you if I need you.¡±

    Arin nodded and looked back at Merjen.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go inside. We haven¡¯t even talked with each other yet.¡±

    Arin was also interested in Merjen, the daughter of Helena. Ed, who sent the two inside, met Thane, identified the location of Caren¡¯s mansion, left his equipment, and quietly left the house.

    Thanks to the shadow cape, Ed was not noticed by people. He waited for the night to go deeper. In order for his identity to be concealed, he left his ice arrows and his infinite arrows at the house.

    Ed was wearing only simple equipment and ran out of the street without a trace. In fact, Ed could run faster than riding a horse. In addition, his physical strength is comparable to that of a horse.

    Thanks to Ed¡¯s shadow cape, he ran faster than a horse and moved unnoticed, so no one could find him.

    Ed arrived at Caren¡¯s mansion. It was the place where Caren¡¯s family name was engraved in their gate. There was a design in which a thorn tree climbs over the shield.

    Ed checked the design and looked around the mansion. Certainly, the boundaries are tighter than in other places.

    Many people who think of their own safety this much, commit many crimes. Looking at his tight security, it seems that he did not commit just one or two crimes.

    Ed looked up at the sky. Only the moon and stars were floating in the sky. Ed, who was watching a few pieces of cloud flow, warmed up lightly.

    And the moment a cloud covered the moonlight, he ran through the squares of the guards and crossed the wall as if he were a snake. The height of the wall reached five meters, but the moment he stepped on the wall, he passed smoothly and landed on the floor silently.

    Ed hid in the shadow of the wall and looked at the mansion. Pendragon¡¯s mansion was also surprisingly large, but it was also formidable. The landscape is well-equipped in a garden wider than a soccer field.

    In addition, lamps were turned on all over the garden. It was not known whether leaving a lamp on where a single person did not pass was for vigilance or because of vanity.

    Ed looked at it for a moment and began to feel the footsteps around him. Perhaps because the higher the level, the more sensitive his senses became. Ed could hear the guards joking around with each other and even their footsteps.

    Ed agonized while looking at the mansion hiding in the shadow.

    Where can he find Kyle and Leaf?

    Ed had been agonizing for a while and tilted his head sharply. Kyle and Leaf came here with the idea that they would find his younger brother.

    Fearless kids.

    Would Caren have saved Kyle, the son of someone who broke down the Confederate of Southern Nobles?

    Seeing that they weren¡¯t seen for three days, Ed thinks they¡¯re somewhere here, but who knows where they were taken?

    The easiest way was to ask Caren, but the risk is quite high.

    Ed wore a hood attached to the cape and flew toward the mansion. There is an easy way to go in, but if you can¡¯t go that way, there is only one thing to do.

    Search.

    Ed, who approached the mansion with the intention of searching, checked where the windows were opened. After confirming that the window of the kitchen behind the mansion was opened, he went inside.

    Ed entered the mansion and walked silently. Ed, who was moving like a shadow, felt strange. It¡¯s quite late, but how can there be no movement like this?

    A place where a strange silence flows as if there were no people. There was no sign of a person in the mansion. If he had servants and maids, they can¡¯t escape Ed¡¯s senses.

    In a mansion this size, there should be some people awake at night, but Ed couldn¡¯t feel anything.

    There¡¯s no one in this big mansion?

    Ed moved a little more boldly when he realized that he couldn¡¯t feel any signs of people. Ed, who confirmed that there were no real people as a result of searching the room of the mansion, found a place to go down to the basement of this strange mansion.

    The structure itself is similar to the mansion where Thane was staying, so it was not difficult to find the stairs going down to the basement. Ed looked down at the stairs and made a strong impression.

    It looked dangerous.

    Come to think of it, Caren is the next king of the kingdom of Travia. What kind of person lives in a separate house?

    Just as Pendragon gave the mansion to Thane, if he gave it up to someone, the person here could not be an ordinary person. Ed smiled when he realized it.

    If so, he is more likely to be here. Rather than locking someone up in the main building, it was more likely that they would have locked someone up in such a well-underground place.

    Ed took a dagger out of his arms and went down the underground stairs with it in his left hand. But there was nothing on the stairs. There was nothing to the point of overshadowing the nervousness.

    ¡°Look at this.¡±

    Caren would have tried to prevent someone from breaking into his house, but he didn¡¯t. The underground pathway was a representation of the owner¡¯s confidence.

    Ed quietly approached the door and opened it. Ed, who opened the door carefully not to make a sound, listened carefully to the inside. A scream was heard from the inside.

    ¡°Ahhh! Save me!¡±

    ¡°I told you everything I know! Please save me!¡±

    ¡°Ahhh!¡±

    Ed looked at the door he opened. Is this door this soundproof?

    Ed closed the door quietly and walked away. Ed, who was walking inward, was able to find a staircase going back underground.

    A stone staircase that is wide enough for a person to barely pass by. There was a terrible scream below it. Ed went down the stone steps feeling nervous.

    When he went down to the basement, there were prisons blocked by a long line of iron bars from side to side. Ed walked along there.

    And he frowned when he saw people trapped in the prison cells. Some people¡¯s skin was rotting, some were bleeding, while others were injured badly that you could see their bones.

    However, Ed could not see any tools for torturing. They were just tied to a chain.

    The people almost looked like they were high on drugs.

    Ed passed through the terrible prison cells and got inside the basement. It¡¯s only been three days since Kyle went missing. If he were here, Ed hoped that he wasn¡¯t in terrible condition.

    While going inside, Ed could not see a boy tied to a chain until he reached almost the end. The boy biting his molars was sweating like rain.

    Ed stood in front of the prison cell and asked.

    ¡°Kyle?¡±

    At Ed¡¯s question, the boy looked up. His grimly distorted expression seemed to be enduring terrible pain. But his eyes did not face Ed.

    It felt like he was looking at something else.

    ¡°What do you want now? You can¡¯t change anything even if you beat me up.¡±

    Ed could tell that he was Kyle.

    ¡°Merjen sent me here¡±.

    ¡°Merjen? Who is that?¡±

    Kyle was struggling and looked like he was going to die. Ed took a step back and swung Etrian¡¯s sword. Etrian¡¯s sword, injected with mana, split the bars at once, and Ed was able to get the chains off of him.

    Ed knelt down in front of him. And Ed knew he was lying. But his eyes were still out of focus.

    ¡°Are you hallucinating?¡±

    Kyle laughed at his words.

    ¡°What kind of witchcraft is this? You¡¯re going to give me a new curse?¡±

    Ed knew why Kyle was doing this now. Without worrying, Ed took off the necklace he received from Aaron and put it on Kyle.

    When the necklace on his neck gave off blue light, Kyle¡¯s eyes cleared up and the curse was broken.

    ¡°Gasp!¡±

    However, Kyle breathed heavily, perhaps because of the rebound caused by the release of the curse. Ed took the necklace back from Kyle¡¯s neck and put it around his neck.

    ¡°Kyle. Merjen sent me to get you.¡±

    Kyle looked up at Ed. Kyle, who had been hallucinating due to the curse so far and suddenly returned to reality, was doubting whether this was a hallucination.

    Ed slapped Kyle on the cheek. When Kyle turned his head and came back, Ed asked.

    ¡°Wake up. I heard that you were together with Leaf, a dwarf. Why are you alone?¡±

    Kyle spat out blood and looked back at Ed as he was shocked. Perhaps he came to his senses, but his emerald eyes were shining strongly.

    ¡°How about Merjen? Is she okay?¡±

    ¡°She almost died of hunger. But she is fine now.¡±

    Kyle replied, raising himself up.

    ¡°If she had come with us, this place would have been a sea of fire, and we would have been wanted.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re already wanted¡±.

    Kyle smiled bitterly at his words.

    ¡°You know a lot of things.¡±

    ¡°Why are you worried about Merjen right now? Get a hold of yourself. Let¡¯s grab Leaf and get out.¡±

    Kyle struggled to get up and stumbled. When Ed grabbed his arm and left the prison cell, he saw a person coming down the stairs.

    The brown-haired, haggard-looking man smiled when he saw Ed helping Kyle.

    ¡°As expected, I knew there would be someone coming after you.¡±

    Kyle looked at him and shouted urgently.

    ¡°He uses witchcraft! Don¡¯t make eye contact with him.¡±

    Even before Kyle¡¯s cry was over, the witchcraft man collapsed with a dagger stuck in his forehead.

    ¡°Huh?¡±

 Chapter 49 - Distraction

    As soon as the witchcraft man appeared, Ed threw his dagger. He practiced using the dagger on his way here.

    He found that the speed can be accelerated when the direction is adjusted a little.

    The added speed made the biggest difference. In addition, throwing a dagger into someones head was no big deal foe Ed anymore.

    But lions do their best even when they hunt for rabbits. It seems that man thought he could curse Ed as soon as he saw him, but he was too late.

    His experience was a little less than that of an intermediate demon.

    Ed left Kyle behind him, and calmly approached the witchcraft man. Ed pulled out the dagger on his forehead, and searched his body. The witchcraft man also deals with mysterious techniques, so searching his body is essential because he might have some useful armament.

    Ed picked up the two rings worn by the witchcraft man and the orbs, he took them one by one, dragged the witchcraft man¡¯s body, and threw them into the prison call where Kyle was.

    Kyle stared blankly at Ed. It was because of Isperto, the witchcraft man that he and Leaf suffered.

    Caren was related to his father¡¯s death, and the moment he heard Kyle¡¯s last name, he cursed Kyle.

    Even if Kyle knew about his opponent, he could not have won so easily. Ed approached Kyle with a calm face and asked.

    ¡°Can you walk?¡±

    Kyle nodded his head. He had a hard time because he was hallucinated, but he didn¡¯t have much physical problems. Ed looked back at the prison cells while Kyle stood up.

    Perhaps because the witchcraft man died, they only groaned in pain, but their self-harm stopped. But if Ed leaves them, they will soon die. If Ed came with Arin, she would not have let them die.

    If Pendragon was here, Ed could tell him about this place and let him handle this. He is a man who killed the great demon, so there is literally no one who can stop him.

    But he¡¯s not around right now.

    Ed needed to talk to Thane about this.

    ¡°Do you remember Leaf?¡±

    ¡°I heard that dwarf women are popular as slaves.¡±

    Ed saved him, and his skills were extraordinary. In addition, he had a coldness without any hesitation in killing his opponent.

    Kyle naturally spoke up.

    ¡°They might have already sold her to a slave merchant.¡±

    Ed pondered for a moment. Whether to continue the search or take Kyle out first.

    Even if Caren was the owner of this place, why would hide people in his own house?

    It was possible for him until now because he had a man that can use witchcraft. He could just hallucinate the prisoners like Kyle, tie their limbs, and cover their mouths.

    Ed looked at Kyle for a moment. He can¡¯t take Kyle to the main building. The security of the main building will be different from here.

    The witchcraft man did not have any assistants, whether because he believed in his abilities or to keep secrets, but Caren would be different.

    ¡°I need to go to the main building, so take care of people here. Maybe they¡¯ll be important witnesses.¡±

    Ed said so and cut all the doors of the prison and opened them. Kyle was surprised at Ed¡¯s ability to swing a sword and cut down the prison door.

    Kyle also began to take care of them because he knew that those trapped here might not just be used for an experiment, but those who Caren had to kill.

    Ed moved without waiting any longer.

    Ed immediately left the house to locate the boundaries and moved toward the main building.

    Ed approached the main building, and he honestly admired it. At the four corners of the main building, four soldiers gathered to stand on the border.

    No matter where he enters, one security guard needs to be knocked down. In addition, even if the security guards were knocked down, the next guard shift time was unknown.

    Ed wasn¡¯t impatient. The main building is such a large mansion that it will take a long time to search inside. So, he waits for their shift time.

    It took an hour of hiding in the dark. His shadow cape did not get cold because it had a function to maintain body temperature, but now he is determined to move, so he warmed up.

    And he moved toward the guard. The security office was on the second floor, but the walls were not blocked.

    Ed leaped as he was running and quickly dug into the security office. Even before the guard saw Ed and opened his mouth, Ed¡¯s fist slapped his opponent¡¯s chin and passed by.

    When one guard collapsed, the other guards turned around. Ed helped them fall on the floor and laid them down roughly.

    Ed listened around, but there seemed to be no place to detect the disturbance that occurred here. Ed calmly descended the stairs and looked at the mansion.

    It¡¯s quite late at night, so it hasn¡¯t been long since the lights turned on. Ed approached the mansion because he only had to check if there was Leaf.

    Just in time, the place where the security guard was located was near the back door of the mansion, so Ed, who stood in front of it, was able to approach without getting caught by anyone.

    Ed saw the locked door, pulled out his sword, cut off the latch using it, and opened the door. The security guards were still quiet because it was cut silently.

    Ed went inside, closed the back door again, and listened carefully.

    Unlike the house, the sound of words, footsteps, and even breathing of the sleeping came from all over the place. Ed tried moving along with the sound of footsteps.

    He doesn¡¯t have enough time to go through everything, so he needs to get information.

    When Ed moved silently to find the owner of the sound of footsteps, he called joy to himself. The opponent was one of the butlers. Ed, who followed the butler¡¯s back, holding a lantern and walking, whispered close to his neck.

    ¡°Quiet.¡±

    Ed opened the door close to him and went inside, holding him close. It was a place where bowls and teacups were displayed in a display case.

    Ed heard that bowls and teacups set in sets are exchanged every season.

    Ed opened his mouth standing behind the butler there.

    ¡°You can live if you answer my questions. Do you get it?¡±

    Ed calmly continued to talk as the butler nodded.

    ¡°I¡¯m looking for a dwarf woman who was caught three days ago. Her name is Leaf. Do you know where she is?¡±

    ¡°A dwarf? A slave merchant would¡¯ve taken her this afternoon.¡±

    As expected, he knew high-quality information because he was a butler.

    ¡°What¡¯s the name of a slave merchant?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s Walter.¡±

    Ed nodded and said coldly.

    ¡°I¡¯m letting you live because you didn¡¯t see my face.¡±

    At the end of the words, Ed slammed the butler in the back of his head and knocked him down. Now that he has got all the information he can get here, it¡¯s time to go back and get Leaf.

    Ed took off the butler¡¯s clothes, tied his arms behind him, squeezed them in the corner, and came out. Ed came out the way he entered and moved straight to the house.

    The shift time on the border took more than an hour, so he was able to get without any problems.

    Ed returned to the house. Kyle was sitting next to the most seriously injured person there. Kyle jumped up when he saw Ed return alone.

    ¡°What happened?¡±

    ¡°He said Leaf was sold to a slave merchant this afternoon.¡±

    Kyle clenched his lips.

    ¡°We need to hurry. Slave merchants treat them harshly from the first night.¡±

    Ed looked at Kyle¡¯s eyes for a moment. Seeing that he was so sincerely worried about his friend¡¯s safety, he seemed to be a man of proper character.

    Anyway, It¡¯s was a relief for Ed that this kid was Merjen¡¯s friend.

    ¡°But who is that person?¡±

    ¡°Oh, he¡¯s someone that I treat like an uncle. It was said that he headed here to negotiate with the Magelta Kingdom. They said he was betrayed by the Southern aristocratic union, but I didn¡¯t know he would be trapped here.¡±

    The person who was sent here to negotiate with the Magelta Kingdom was caught here and cursed?

    It smelled like corruption.

    Ed looked at the man. He looked like he wouldn¡¯t make it out alive. If he bleeds this much, that alone is dangerous.

    Ed brought the cape of a dead witchcraft man, tore it apart, and wrapped it tightly in his back. And after putting the shadow cape on top of him, Ed looked back at Kyle.

    ¡°You have to get out without getting caught by the security guard. Is your body recovered?¡±

    Kyle couldn¡¯t eat properly for three days, but Kyle¡¯s eyes were as alive.

    ¡°I won¡¯t be a burden.¡±

    Ed nodded.

    ¡°Don¡¯t fall behind.¡±

    Ed went outside first, looked around, and moved quietly, and picked up some stones.

    If he goes in and out alone, he can go out quietly without being caught, but he can¡¯t get out without a trace.

    He was hiding in the shadow avoiding the guards, and the man on his back groaned.

    ¡°Who is that?¡±

    Ed, who hit a stone on the necks of the two guards, looked back at Kyle.

    ¡°We need to get out of here quickly. Follow me.¡±

    When Ed ran first, Kyle ran without falling behind. Ed is carrying a person on his back and running, and Kyle is running as fast as he can. Ed thought Kyle must be quite a skilled person.

    On the way, they met a few more patrol guards, but Ed was able to knock them out with stones. While running like that, other guards must have found those who fell behind.

    ¡°It¡¯s an intruder!¡±

    Ed saw the lights turn on everywhere and accelerated his pace. Ed, who ran to the wall like that, looked back at Kyle.

    ¡°Can you jump over it?¡±

    Kyle shook his head while looking at the wall.

    ¡°It¡¯s too high.¡±

    Ed heard the commotion behind the guards moving with torches and blew four voyages toward the wall. Ed, who threw a dagger into the wall, said quickly.

    ¡°You need to jump over it.¡±

    Kyle quickly jumped over the wall when he saw the daggers in a zigzag position. Ed recovered all four of the dagger, kicked the wall twice, jumped over the wall, and lightly landed on the floor.

    ¡°Ugh!¡±

    Ed sighed when he heard the groan behind him. There was a big commotion behind the scene because of the intrusion.

    Ed hid in the shadow of the wall and handed Kyle the roadway. Ed took off the shadow cape and covered Kyle.

    ¡°Listen carefully. If you follow this road, there is a place where the roaring lion pattern is drawn on the gate. Tell the guard that Ed sent you there and ask to meet Thane. If you go there, there will be a holy knight, she can help with treatment.¡±

    Kyle asked while looking at Ed.

    ¡°What are you going to do?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m just going to attract their attention. You need to run as soon as I distract them.¡±

    Kyle bit his lips.

    ¡°Why are you doing this for me?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m helping Merjen. You can repay me later.¡±

    Ed, who said so, climbed up the wall again. Then he jumped off the wall and rushed toward the main building.

    Even if Caren was looking at Pendragon¡¯s house, Ed moved with a shadow cape and a bow on his way back and forth. It will not be easy to tell the intruder was Ed because he did not use his arrows.

    Ed was quickly discovered because guards were looking at the garden with lights on.

    ¡°There he is!¡±

    Ed ran straight toward the main building even as he watched the guards rush in. The face of a skinny man on the balcony of the main building caught his eye.

    Although far away, Ed¡¯s outstanding eyesight could read the man¡¯s sneaky eyes. And the one standing behind him caught his eye.

    Ed picked up a stone rolling on the floor, turned his waist, and threw the stone. The person from behind pulled out a sword and swung it.

    As it was already expected, the stone went down like a horse in the air. And as it was, it hit Caren¡¯s chest. He won¡¯t die, but he won¡¯t be able to move for a while.

    ¡°Ahh!¡±

    Ed, who confirmed Caren collapsing while screaming, began to run away from the soldiers.

    ¡°Catch him!¡±

    ¡°Our majesty has been attacked! Catch him!¡±

    The man who swung the sword jumped off the balcony and began to chase behind Ed.

 Chapter 50 - Walter

    Ed did not consider the man following to be excellent in swordsmanship.

    In simple comparison, he seemed to be inferior to Etrian, but when he shouted a few times, Ed couldn¡¯t avoid him without fighting.

    Ed thought for a moment. But soon he shook his head.

    If Ed wanted to, he can kill him without a problem. But the man is only doing his job.

    He seems to be a guardian knight, and Ed does not intend to kill such a person just because he is doing his job.

    The reality is that the person who helps Caren seems to have done a lot of bad things, but Ed doesn¡¯t know anything about the author¡¯s crimes yet, so Ed decided to let him live for now.

    Ed decided so and immediately rushed toward those who blocked him. The guards stabbed Ed as he rushed toward them.

    Ed, who jumped slightly and stepped on the spear and made a leap again. He jumped over the guards¡¯ heads. Seeing Ed jumping over them, the guards¡¯ eyes followed to where he landed.

    Ed lightly stepped down behind them and ran toward the wall.

    Even if there were many guards, the garden was so large. So, the road opened after breaking through the siege.

    Then Ed heard the sound of horseshoe behind him. Ed glanced back and made a strong impression. A horse was running toward him, and the guardian knight, who was giving orders, was on the horse.

    ¡°That¡¯s no fun.¡±

    No matter how fast Ed is, it is not easy to outrun someone on a horse.

    If Ed had his arrow and bow, he would have shot the horse, but now he doesn¡¯t have it. Ed was running toward the wall, and the guards running from behind were shooting arrows.

    Ed kept running and avoided the flying arrows. Ed, who avoided the arrow once, jumped toward the wall, kicked the wall once, and ran over the wall with all his might. Ed¡¯s direction was opposite the Pendragon¡¯s mansion.

    Their eyes were certainly drawn, but it was highly likely that Kyle, who was not in good shape, had not yet arrived, and he needed a little more.

    When Ed ran along the wall, the front door opened and cavalry popped out. Looking back at them, Ed climbed the wall of the opposite mansion in front of them and ran along the wall.

    It looked like he was doing acrobatics, but his speed was not slower than the speed at which the horse ran, so the distance was not narrowed.

    ¡°Release all the soldiers and block all the roads!¡±

    Ed realized that he was annoyed by the sound he heard from behind, but after jumping down the running wall, he escaped the residential area to avoid the eyes of those who woke up in the disturbance.

    Outside the residential area where the nobles lived, Ed ran through the shopping district where the lights were turned off. Leaving the fuss behind, Ed disappeared into the darkness.

    Thane heard the disturbance from the outside.

    ¡°So, what happened to Caren?¡±

    ¡°He is still alive.¡±

    ¡°He should have just killed him. Now the royal road will be turned upside down.¡±

    It was Thane talking to Kyle. Thane also recognized the man that came with Kyle. He was Gado, the man that was betrayed by the Southern aristocratic union. Known to have been handed over to the kingdom of Magelta, he was trapped underground instead of Caren?

    If this is known, Caren can be in big trouble. But the royal road will be overturned by the attack that happened tonight.

    When Thane was wrapping his head, Ed popped in through the open window.

    ¡°Oh, my!¡±

    Thane freak out, Ed tapped his clothes and said.

    ¡°How¡¯s Kyle doing?¡±

    ¡°What happened to the attack on Caren?¡±

    Ed replied insignificantly.

    ¡°I threw a stone to turn his attention away. I don¡¯t think he died.¡±

    Thane sighed deeply at the words.

    ¡°Why didn¡¯t you just kill him?¡±

    ¡°Huh? You wanted him dead?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s not what I¡¯m saying.¡±

    Thane patted his chest as if he was suffocating and said.

    ¡°He probably didn¡¯t see my face. Anyway, I need to find someone.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s a relief that he didn¡¯t see your face. Then you¡¯ll have to change your outfit because he could recognize it.¡±

    ¡°Walter, a slave merchant. Where does that piece of shit live?¡±

    Ed doesn¡¯t like the system of slaves itself, perhaps because he has lived in modern times.

    It was surprising that such a thing was legal.

    There were no positive words that could be said to those who bought and sold people.

    Thane frowned a little but recalled what Kyle had said to Merjen and replied.

    ¡°Walter is one of the best slave merchants. He lives in a circular stadium.¡±

    Ed knew that there was a circular stadium on the royal road. And there is also a gladiatorial contest of slave gladiators.

    ¡°Does he collect slaves there?¡±

    ¡°He also collects ordinary slaves and fosters gladiatorial slaves. But he doesn¡¯t save any slaves, he collects special slaves that only nobles can buy in unless they are gladiatorial slaves.¡±

    ¡°Okay.¡±

    ¡°Where are you going?¡±

    ¡°I need to go and get Leaf.¡±

    Thane hesitated.

    ¡°It¡¯s a little dangerous there.¡±

    Ed wondered what this meant, and Thane said with a serious look.

    ¡°It¡¯s a place where there are at least 100 gladiatorial slaves. Among them, there are champions, and these gladiatorial slaves are guarding him.¡±

    Ed smiled bitterly at the words.

    ¡°I¡¯m not going to kill Walter, I¡¯m going to save Leaf. Why do you worry so much?¡±

    Thane shook his head. Ed passed by him and went to Arin. There, Arin was treating Gado. His condition had improved a lot.

    Seeing that new flesh has sprung up to the point where bones were no longer visible.

    Arin has tremendous divine power. She saved the one who was almost dying with a basic recovery spell, so Ed called her saint.

    Kyle was also sitting on a chair next to Gado, and Merjen was next to Kyle.

    When Ed came inside, Kyle and Merjen jumped up. Ed raised his hand to stop them from approaching, and approached Arin and asked.

    ¡°How¡¯s his condition¡±?

    ¡°His wound has recovered, but it will take a long time before he can get up.¡±

    Gado had been cursed for years, and he couldn¡¯t eat properly, so it would take him a long time to get up. Besides, Ed was sure his brain is already ruined.

    Arin finished putting a bandage around Gado¡¯s body and looked back at Ed. Her eyes seemed to be burning blue.

    ¡°Who did this to him?¡±

    Ed replied with a bitter smile at Arin¡¯s appearance.

    ¡°I gave him a little payback for what he did. But now I have other things deal with before him.¡±

    ¡°You said you were going to save Leaf, right? I¡¯ll come with you this time.¡±

    Ed shook his head.

    ¡°You stand out too much.¡±

    If Ed is a shadow, she is like light. If she tried to use her strength, a blue light would come out, so Ed couldn¡¯t take her.

    She has so much potential for an all-out war, but now is not the time for an all-out war.

    Ed took off his coat and asked Thane.

    ¡°Is there a leather belt that I can put my daggers on?¡±

    ¡°Wait a minute.¡±

    Thane spoke to the butler, and after that, he looked at Ed and said.

    ¡°You¡¯d better bring her back before you get in trouble.¡±

    Ed doesn¡¯t know much about Caren, who had a witchcraft man, and a slave merchant, but Ed can guess what he would have done to slaves.

    Since they are a product sold to aristocrats, they would try to make them obedient.

    After a while, the butler brought a leather belt. It was not possible to insert a large number of daggers like a coat, but it was still a leather belt with six pockets to insert his daggers.

    To be honest, daggers were not Ed¡¯s forte, but he thought he was pretty good with them. Ed wore the leather belt diagonally from his left shoulder and wrapped the shadow cape over it.

    When he took off his coat, which had 24 bags of daggers in it, he felt relieved. Ed looked back at the group and said.

    ¡°I¡¯ll get Leaf, so wait for me.¡±

    Merjen hesitated for a while and opened her mouth.

    ¡°Can I come with you?¡±

    ¡°You can¡¯t because I¡¯m going to go secretly.¡±

    If it¡¯s an all-out war, he¡¯ll desperately need the help of a magician, but what he needs now is confidentiality.

    ¡°I will head off now.¡±

    Ed smiled while patting Merjen¡¯s hair.

    ¡°I¡¯ll be back.¡±

    A dwarf woman was tied to a chair. Her brown eyes were seen through her tangled brown short hair and were blazing with anger.

    ¡°Untie this right now!¡±

    A middle-aged handsome man scratched his beard and said.

    ¡°Your appearance is excellent, but your mouth is the problem.¡±

    ¡°Walter, you punk! Don¡¯t you know this is illegal?¡±

    The handsome man, called Walter, smiled with wrinkles around his eyes.

    ¡°You have to try hard to get the prize.¡±

    Walter approached and grabbed the jaw of the dwarf woman Leaf and lifted it, and said, looking down.

    ¡°I don¡¯t want to scratch my precious product. Please do not make me upset.¡±

    ¡°Phwett!¡±

    Leaf spat, and Walter screamed and stepped back. Leaf burst into laughter at the appearance.

    ¡°As the rumor says. You really do have OCD.¡±

    Walter shouted while rubbing his skin with a handkerchief.

    ¡°You! How dare you!¡±

    Walter said, looking down at her from afar.

    ¡°If you want this, I can¡¯t help you.¡±

    When Walter beckoned, a muscular man with dark skin appeared behind him.

    ¡°Make her obedient by tomorrow morning.¡±

    ¡°Do you mind if I treat her harshly?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s okay as long as you don¡¯t make her disabled. We can treat most wounds anyway. Just fix that attitude that she has.¡±

    ¡°Okay. You can go in and rest.¡±

    Walter looked down at Leaf with contempt and said.

    ¡°We¡¯ll see if you still act the same tomorrow morning.¡±

    When Walter stepped down, Leaf looked at the muscular man standing in front.

    ¡°Shaft. Isn¡¯t the former champion ashamed of doing this?¡±

    When asked by Leaf, the man, called the shaft, pulled out a whip from his waist. And he swung the whip without even answering.

    Whiiiip!

    Leaf¡¯s clothes were torn and her white skin burst, causing blood to soar. Leaf started at Shaft without even screaming.

    She opened her mouth as Shaft lifted the whip again.

    ¡°If you swing it, I will surely kill you.¡±

    Shaft swung the whip again without answering.

    Whiiiip!

    He did not hurt her face, but there was another deep wound on Leaf¡¯s body.

    ¡°You punk. I will surely kill you and Walter.¡±

    Shaft lifted the whip again. Leaf has lived with this malice so far. Because the world was not easy for a beautiful dwarf to live in.

    However, if Shaft was whipped a few more times, Leaf might not see another day. Even strong muscular human slaves die in a few whippings.

    Leaf looked at Shaft with a spiteful look. Leaf tried not to even blink, but she lost her strength. Then she saw the ship droop to the floor.

    She was wondering what was going on, and a solid line was drawn on the neck of Shaft, and his head rolled and fell on the floor.

    ¡°Huh?¡±

    She thought she was seeing something, but she realized this was real when the head rolled and hit her foot.

    ¡°Leaf?¡±

    A man approached with a sword and asked.

    ¡°Yeah. Who are you?¡±

    Ed swung his sword, cut off the string that tied her wrist and ankle to the chair, and replied when turning the sword back.

    ¡°I came at the request of Merjen.¡±

    Leaf was relieved at the words. Ed looked down at her and asked.

    ¡°Can you walk?¡±

    Leaf stumbled, frowning as she tried to get up. The aftermath of the whip was too much for her.

    ¡°Ahhh. I don¡¯t think I can at this point.¡±

    Ed sighed and tore the clothes of the fallen body and tied Leaf tightly to his back.

    And he came out wearing a shadow cape, the hallway was lined with gladiators.

    He came in secretly, but gladiators were ready for battle when Ed was about to leave.

    Ed looked firmly at Walter. He appeared behind the gladiators.

    ¡°When I heard that Caren was attacked today, I prepared the kids just in case. That is why I locked her up underground where there aren¡¯t any windows.¡±

    A swear word popped out from behind Walter¡¯s back as he talked.

    ¡°Did that shit use me as bait?¡±

    Ed looked at Walter quietly and opened his mouth.

    ¡°Open the way. Then there will be no bloodshed.¡±

    Walter burst into laughter at the words.

    ¡°Sounds like a man who would really attack Caren. I liked your guts. If you¡¯d be my slave¡­¡±

    As soon as Walter collapsed with a dagger stuck in his forehead, Ed pulled out his sword and jumped into the gladiators blocking the hallway.

 Chapter 51 - Dex

    Walter was hiding among the slave gladiators, but Ed made sure he killed him first.

    His mana consumption was quite large today.

    If Ed uses his mana to kill all of the slave gladiators who are blocking the hallway, he will be exhausted of mana. If he knew this would happen, he would¡¯ve used his sword in moderation.

    The moment Ed killed Walter, the slave gladiators rushed in.

    Ed pulled out the salamander sword from his waist and slit their wrists.

    ¡°Argh!¡±

    It¡¯s not fatal, but they wouldn¡¯t be able to lift their weapons anymore.

    Two swords passed over Ed¡¯s head. Ed jumped on the opponent¡¯s thigh one after another. If he were alone, he would have attacked his opponents, but it was impossible because he was carrying Leaf on his back.

    Ed jumped up and stepped on the wall and cut the shoulder of the opponent who prepared a net.

    ¡°Argh! Fire! Fire!¡±

    Ed kicked the wall and went over to the other wall, pulling out two daggers and throwing them. When the two daggers were embedded in the gladiators¡¯ wrists and shoulders in the back, they groaned and stepped down.

    Ed, who kicked the wall and fell diagonally to avoid the swinging ax, cut his opponent¡¯s armpit while passing by. The gladiators standing in the narrow hallway screamed in an instant and lost their fighting spirit.

    Ed does not stop there and runs again. His amazing sense and agility were able to cut through gladiators while carrying one person on his back.

    He didn¡¯t mean to kill them anyway. Ed, who broke through the twelve gladiators blocking the hallway, ran straight down the stairs.

    ¡°What the fuck. Who are you?¡±

    Ed kept running while trying to think of a joke. Ed, who was going down the stairs like that, realized that he had entered someone¡¯s gap. When he instinctively took a step back, a spear was stuck in the place he was standing.

    Ed turned his head and could see someone standing far away. The man pulled out another spear.

    Ed slowly stepped back when he saw it. When the man saw Ed, he tilted his head while holding the spear.

    Ed took off his cape and cut off the rope that was tying Leaf. As Leaf stepped on the floor, Ed said with his back against her.

    ¡°Stay here.¡±

    Ed wouldn¡¯t be able to fight this man while carrying her.

    Ed approached the man standing far away, spinning the Salamander¡¯s sword in his right hand. Seeing that, the man smiled and pulled out two axes behind his waist.

    The man said, swinging the ax from his hand.

    ¡°My name is Dex¡±.

    Leaf groaned and talked behind Ed.

    ¡°He¡¯s the current champion. The unbeaten champion, Dex.¡±

    Dex said, roughly lifting his tangled hair with an ax.

    ¡°Yeah. I¡¯ve never lost. Since I was born.¡±

    Sometimes there are people like that. People outside the standard.

    As soon as Ed read the gap between Dex, a spear flew fast enough to grab Ed¡¯s attention. Ed didn¡¯t know he¡¯d meet a guy who could fight alone with an intermediate demon.

    Ed pointed at Dex with his sword and said.

    ¡°I¡¯ll have a hard time trying to overpower you without getting you hurt. So, why don¡¯t you just get out of my way?¡±

    Dex smiled at the words.

    ¡°Did you kill Walter?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    Dex smiled and said.

    ¡°Then I won¡¯t move. Thanks to Walter, I was able to fight as much as I wanted.¡±

    Ed could tell what kind of man he was.

    He was a person who has a natural talent for combat. And he realized and enjoyed the talent he had. He¡¯s crazy about fighting.

    These people can¡¯t communicate.

    Ed exhaled for a long time and rushed toward Dex. As the distance narrows at once, the gap between each other intertwines. Ed didn¡¯t like to fight in these intertwined sections, but now he can¡¯t help it.

    He wasn¡¯t a person he could kill with a dagger.

    When Ed rushed in, Dex swung an ax. If he were an ordinary opponent, Ed would have avoided the ax without a problem. But a few pieces of Ed¡¯s hair has been cut off even though he has tried his best to avoid the ax.

    While avoiding it, Ed tried to cut Dex¡¯s side with a dagger, but Dex blocked it with his left hand.

    Bang!

    As soon as they passed by each other, Ed turned back and threw daggers. Two daggers aimed at the man¡¯s head and legs.

    Baaang!

    Dex was swinging an ax and blocking the daggers again. Taking advantage of the gap, Ed dug into his arms, holding a dagger as a reciprocal. Dex hit the gourd as Ed approached.

    As a gladiator, Ed could see at once that he was good at gladiator combat. But once Ed passed by, Ed found out something. That his agility is a little higher than Dex.

    Seeing Dex¡¯s forehead flying in, Ed turned his head and drew a dagger diagonally, avoiding hitting.

    Bang!

    Dex blocked the sword and smiled.

    He has never fought this. This was a thrill that he had never experienced when fighting more than five slave gladiators.

    At that moment, he felt the thrill of his neck almost flying away. And he felt numb to the pleasure of winning this thrilling opponent.

    Ed could see an ax flying from the other side as soon as the dagger was blocked by Dex¡¯s left ax. It was an attack aimed at the temple because there was no angle to swing the ax.

    They were now close enough to touch each other¡¯s shoulders. Ed tilted his head to the left. And he briefly punched under Dex¡¯s right rib.

    Bam!

    A liver shot. Right in his gut.

    Dex¡¯s mouth opened wide at the attack.

    A person with a natural talent. It must have been the first attack that actually went through since he never got hit very much. Ed¡¯s left hand went into his jaw.

    Crack!

    Dex¡¯s chin lifted and his eyes loosened. Looking down at Dex, who collapsed on the floor, Ed breathed heavily.

    He has never seen someone this strong, it was as if he were a demon. A genius of this level is bound to somehow be swept away in the demon¡¯s era.

    Since this happened, Ed decided to pick him up.

    Ed took off Dex¡¯s clothes, turned his arms back, tied them tightly, and then tied his ankles tightly. With Leaf on his back and Dex on his side, Ed immediately took off.

    Thane made a long sigh.

    ¡°So you killed Walter?¡±

    ¡°Because I couldn¡¯t let him catch me. He tapped me.¡±

    ¡°Alright then. Anyway, why did you catch him? The champion of the royal road.¡± ¡°Do you know him?¡±

    ¡°I know him. He¡¯s the champion of the royal road. He is as famous as Pendragon in the royal road. No. Kids these days know this guy better than Pendragon.¡±

    ¡°Really?¡±

    Ed thought it would be understandable because he had that much ability. Thane shook his head and continued to talk.

    ¡°He¡¯s at the peak of the slave gladiators. He¡¯s also the representative of the kingdom of Travia.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s kind of grand.¡±

    ¡°He also participates in the gladiatorial competition against cities and the gladiatorial competition against kingdoms.¡±

    Ed thought he shouldn¡¯t have brought him along. If Ed knew he was that famous, he would¡¯ve left him behind.

    Thane looked back at Leaf, who Arin was treating.

    ¡°But I¡¯m glad that child has been saved.¡±

    ¡°I was a little late. If I came a little faster, she wouldn¡¯t have got beaten.¡±

    Leaf met Kyle and Merjen and fell asleep while being treated.

    Arin treated Leaf¡¯s wound and explained it as she stood up.

    ¡°Her wound has almost recovered. She¡¯ll be able to wake up tomorrow morning.¡±

    ¡°Thank you.¡±

    ¡°Thank you.¡±

    After hearing Kyle and Merjen¡¯s answers, Arin approached Ed.

    ¡°How are you feeling?¡±

    ¡°I used a lot of mana, but other than that, I¡¯m fine.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s a relief.¡±

    Arin looked disappointed that she could not be with him. When Ed smiled awkwardly, Merjen approached Kyle. Merjen approached Ed and hesitated to say.

    ¡°Thank you. I¡¯ll help you whenever you need me.¡±

    Ed couldn¡¯t recruit Merjen as a teammate, but he thought today¡¯s hard work was enough to create this relationship.

    Kyle bowed deeply to greet.

    ¡°I will pay back this favor.¡±

    Kyle¡¯s skills aren¡¯t as great as Merjen¡¯s, but he had a great personality. Even if the world collapsed, Ed had never seen a noble kid bow sincerely until now.

    Dex woke up as Ed nodded.

    ¡°Ugh¡±.

    Dex, who came to his senses with a moan, looked around and tilted his head.

    ¡°Where am I?¡±

    When Ed turned around, Dex confirmed that his hands were tied and rolled his body and pulled his legs out between the tied arms. And Ed pointed at him with a sword as he tried to untie the string tied with his mouth.

    ¡°If you untie it, you¡¯ll die.¡±

    Dex stared at Ed with the string in his mouth. And when he realized that the gaze was no joke, he jumped again, held his back, and collapsed on the floor.

    And he looked at the people who gathered there. There was only one face he knew, but he roughly understood what kind of people gathered there.

    The woman, who had a subtle blue color over her skin, was presumed to be a holy knight based on the energy emitted, and the girl with small purple hair and glasses looked somewhat dangerous.

    Young people with haggard complexions look like they are falling apart, but there are a lot of people with that much ability.

    And the one who knocked him down. It was the first time in my life that he had been hit and collapsed by someone like this. Because he usually almost won every game without getting hit.

    He wondered why these monster-like people could be gathered in one place.

    ¡°What are these big people doing together? Are you trying to catch demons?¡±

    Ed nodded to Dex¡¯s question, which penetrated the core.

    ¡°Right. We catch demons.¡±

    Dex paused to see him seriously responding to what he jokingly said. Actually, he was just wondering. The only face he knew was Thane, the demon researcher.

    The famous Pendragon was sitting next to him last time.

    And, he couldn¡¯t hide his shock when he heard that he was actually hunting demons after seeing a holy knight.

    Isn¡¯t that what the 3 legendary heroes used to do?

    Honestly, even if you live in a large city, you rarely meet the demon. There are churches in large cities, so demons don¡¯t run wild.

    As a champion of the royal road, he had never thought of catching a demon because he was living a luxurious life for a slave.

    Dex stared at Ed.

    ¡°Do you really catch demons?¡±

    When Ed nodded, Dex thought for a while and asked.

    ¡°Are demons strong?¡±

    ¡°They are strong. I have to risk my life every time I fight one.¡±

    Dex stared at Ed at the words.

    ¡°A man as big as you risks his life?¡±

    ¡°Yeah. That¡¯s how strong demons are.¡±

    Dex realized Ed¡¯s sincere words.

    He thought he could die for the first time while fighting Ed. It was a thrill from that urgency that he had never felt before.

    Only after facing death could he feel vividly that he was alive. Now, he can feel that every time?

    Dex said with sparkling eyes.

    ¡°Please. Let me hunt demons too.¡±

    Oh my. Ed just threw the bait, but it looks like he caught a big fish.

 Chapter 52 - Prince

    In one night, the royal road was shaken.

    Caren, the head of the Prince¡¯s sect, who can be said to be the influential figure in the Travian kingdom, was under attack, and Walter, the kingdom¡¯s slave merchant, died.

    Also, the disappearance of champion Dex surprised the citizens of the royal road even more. The royal road was overturned by the disappearance of the greatest champion.

    The incident was so serious that the royal palace set up an investigation team and dispatched people directly.

    Emilia, a navy blue-haired investigator dispatched from the royal palace, placed a chair next to Caren and asked, taking out her notebook.

    ¡°I heard an intruder appeared around 10 p.m. last night. But when I combined the testimonies of the soldiers, they said that he went out and then re-entered to attack Caren. Is there anything missing?¡±

    Carene was lying in bed with a bandage on his chest. Even though he recovered thanks to sacred spells, he was told that he had to take care of himself for the next month.

    Some even said that it was fortunate that he did not die. One of the guards had a broken rib that stabbed his lungs.

    Caren slowly lifted himself up. The investigator in front was part of the royal family. So he couldn¡¯t just ignore her.

    Vandes, the guardian knight of Caren, spoke instead.

    ¡°Investigator Emilia. I¡¯ve already told you, but nothing has disappeared.¡±

    Emilia looked up and smiled at Vandes.

    ¡°Sir Vandes. I asked Mr. Caren. Not you.¡±

    ¡°Uhm¡­¡­¡±

    Vandes frowned, but Caren raised his hand and stopped him.

    ¡°Be polite. Investigator Emilia is a royal family.¡±

    Vandes took a step back. A person who is said to be a royal family, but is completely pushed out of the succession rankings. A person who will never ascend to the throne unless a natural disaster occurs and everyone in the royal palace dies.

    She was just a royal family by name, but Caren¡¯s words were absolute.

    ¡°Excuse me.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s okay. I know I¡¯m just part of the royal family because of my name. Anyway, I couldn¡¯t find the person that Mr.Caren really liked before.¡±

    ¡°Who are you talking about?¡±

    ¡°You know, Isperto. The guy that uses witchcraft¡±

    Caren stared at Emilia, who calmly spoke out. This woman smiles and gets right to the point.

    She was not only part of the royal family, but also a well-known investigator. She is not someone to be seen as easy.

    ¡°Isperto is a magician. He took a vacation for research and left. He¡¯ll be back when he¡¯s done with his research.¡±

    Emilia muttered, taking notes.

    ¡°Isperto ¨C vacation.¡±

    When Caren¡¯s eyebrows wriggled, she raised her head and asked.

    ¡°Yesterday, there was a story that the raider¡¯s outfit resembled a Crow member of the Dalian Kingdom. Is that right?

    ¡°That¡¯s what they said. But I don¡¯t think there¡¯s a reason why the remnants of the Dalian kingdom are targeting me. In addition, he threw a stone, not a bow. He didn¡¯t use any other weapons.¡±

    ¡°It means that someone dressed up as Crow, but fought like Ranger.¡±

    Caren snorted.

    ¡°If you make a quack at that level, you don¡¯t have to fight like a Ranger.¡±

    Emilia took notes of a few more things in her notebook and covered it. She looked straight at Caren and smiled.

    ¡°How are you feeling?¡±

    ¡°The doctor said I have to take care of myself for a month.¡±

    ¡°I see. I see. Then take care please.¡±

    Emilia, who got up from her seat, stopped walking as she went outside and looked back at Caren.

    ¡°Did you hear that Walter, the slave merchant, died yesterday?¡±

    ¡°I heard it.¡±

    ¡°I heard Walter stopped by here yesterday afternoon. Can I ask what you were talking about?¡±

    Caren stared at Emilia and replied.

    ¡°He came to ask who I¡¯m going to bet in the gladiator fight.¡±

    ¡°So, who did you bet on?¡±

    ¡°Of course, I bet on the champion.¡±

    Emilia nodded and turned back and left. Next to Caren, Vandes asked with a firm impression.

    ¡°Are you going to let her act so rude like that? She is not even a real royal.¡±

    Caren got up from his bed and walked to the window. And he said, looking at Emilia and her guardian, who were leaving on a horse.

    ¡°She¡¯s a coward, but she¡¯s under the king¡¯s orders. Maybe she¡¯s trying to do something big this time. I¡¯ll have to watch her carefully.¡±

    Caren¡¯s gaze headed far away to the Colosseum.

    ¡°Do you think he killed Walter?¡±

    ¡°Yes. He had the same wounds as Isperto when he was killed with a dagger.¡±

    Caren laughed in vain.

    ¡°Find him. We need to find out who he is working for.¡±

    Ed looked back at the people gathered at the breakfast.

    Yesterday, at the table was himself, Arin, Thane, Diego, and Sophia, but now the table is almost full.

    Merjen, Kyle, and Leaf each took one seat, and Dex, who was smiling, was also there.

    Arin and Dex were chewing as if they were competing, and Merjen¡¯s cheeks looked like a squirrel.

    Thane delivered the news to Ed, who looked back on them.

    ¡°The royal road was overturned by last night¡¯s attack on Caren, the death of slave merchant Walter, and the disappearance of the gladiator champion.¡±

    Thane¡¯s gaze flew to Ed and stuck like a cold dagger.

    ¡°Since it happened only overnight, opinions are divided as to whether this is related or whether it is a different case.¡±

    Ed was calmly dipping freshly baked bread in the soup. The meal has been eaten anyway, so he was chewing bread slowly, but Thane sighed when he saw Ed.

    ¡°The royal palace dispatched an investigator.¡±

    Ed also showed interest in the words. Because he has never heard of an investigator.

    ¡°Investigator?¡±

    ¡°Yeah. They are people that solve cases.¡±

    Ed thought for a while and asked.

    ¡°What happens if you get caught?¡±

    ¡°Caren is not dead, so if you get caught, there will be a blood wind.¡±

    Ed smiled at the words.

    ¡°I should¡¯ve killed him.¡±

    ¡°Caren dying while he¡¯s on the royal road? The royal road would have been closed if you killed him.¡±

    ¡°You should¡¯ve told me that before I went there. Honestly, I could have killed Caren that time.¡±

    ¡°I told you not to get caught. But you threw a stone at him instead.¡±

    Thane said that, leaned his back against the chair, and sighed.

    ¡°Oh, I can¡¯t wait to catch demons now. I had no time to study because I was so busy ever since we got here.¡±

    At that, Dex, who had been pulling off the lamb chops, spoke.

    ¡°Agreed. Let¡¯s go catch demons.¡±

    Thane glared at Ed to the fullest at Dex¡¯s cry. Ed also had nothing to say about the gaze.

    With his fighting skills, he has proved enough for three years as the champion of the royal road. But how do you control a guy who¡¯s crazy about fighting?

    Ed looked back at Dex and said.

    ¡°There are people I have to meet before that.¡±

    ¡°Really? Then let¡¯s have breakfast and fight with me. I used to train every day at the gladiator training center.¡±

    Arin raised her head when Dex said that. Then she asked Ed.

    ¡°May I compete with him?¡±

    ¡°Sure. I have to go into the palace today.¡±

    Ed¡¯s eyes turned to Dex.

    ¡°And Dex, what kind of weapons do you know how to use?¡±

    Dex smiled at the words.

    ¡°I like to use a hand ax, but I can handle any type of weapon. Why?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll have to change your weapon. You have to cover your face, too. Tell me if there¡¯s a weapon you want. Because I can get it for you when I¡¯m on the royal road.¡±

    Dex replied by sucking the sauce on his finger.

    ¡°I¡¯d like a weapon that¡¯s easy to carry. Two Gladius. And some daggers, too.¡±

    What he said made Ed laugh. Now that his mana has recovered, he was confident that he would overpower Dex without a problem. Even if he throws a stone, it will be different from yesterday.

    ¡°Okay. I¡¯ll try and get it for you.¡±

    Arin stood with a shield and a sword, and Dex, who stood in front of her, held two wooden swords. It was a wooden sword and shield that were not sharp because it was used for training. But if someone were hit incorrectly with that, they would die.

    Everyone was interested in the fight.

    One side is a holy knight with Astron¡¯s Sword.

    One side is an undefeated champion.

    Dex was smiling, but Arin was different. She had a different attitude toward him.

    Dex said, swinging his wrist holding the sword.

    ¡°I¡¯ll go easy on you, so don¡¯t be so nervous.¡±

    Dex was interested in fighting with people.

    He was looking forward to it because it was my first time fighting with a holy knight. As Ed and his party, he stood here with excitement. The reason why he didn¡¯t feel the tension was just because he had a lot of experience.

    At that time, Arin rushed forward with her shield. But seeing the movement, Dex freaked out and hit the shield diagonally with his wooden sword.

    Bang!

    The plan to hit the shield and poke a sword between her to counterattack was ruined from the beginning. Her shield was not pushed back, and Dex flew back in shock and rolled on the floor.

    Gladiator warriors were often champions of a city, but this kind of power was the first time for Dex.

    Dex, who was rolling on the floor and raising himself, saw something flying toward him. Isn¡¯t it cheating to wear boots with steel on them?

    The moment he crossed the wooden sword and blocked the kick, he heard something else. Arin¡¯s sword flew through her arms and stopped in the middle of Dex¡¯s forehead. It was an attack that would have been dangerous.

    Arin looked down at Dex with her sword stretched out, pulled out her sword, and slowly retreated. Dex stood up when Arin, who spread the street and covered her front with a shield, made a pose.

    His hands were still numb.

    If he had known that she had such power, he would have fought differently. Dex changed his expression as he swung his wrist again.

    He made a deep smile.

    ¡°I¡¯m ashamed of myself. Let me fight you again.¡±

    Ed admired Dex and Arin, who fought sincerely. In fact, Ed knew Arin would win the first round. Her physical ability has been improving through prayer so far. She may lack agility compared to Ed, but her muscle strength is superior.

    Ed can¡¯t handle her instant explosive power. So the first round is definitely Arin¡¯s victory.

    But Dex is not an easy person either. Perhaps because he had similar agility to Ed¡¯s, he was fighting neck to neck from the second round. However, he lost once again because he could not break through her shield.

    Ed shook his head when he saw Dex jumping and rushing again.

    Dex is said to have a lot of experience as the strongest fighter in the gladiatorial world, but he was no match for Arin, who was refined by confrontation with many demons. In addition, she was a strong holy knight.

    Even though Dex knows various ways to break through a shield, he cannot break through the shield added to her strength.

    Kyle burst into admiration as he watched them.

    ¡°Arin¡¯s swordsmanship is amazing. He can¡¯t get through her.¡±

    Leaf laughed in vain and said.

    ¡°It¡¯s not that Dex lacks any power. I mean, wow! I have heard of a holy knight¡¯s power, but I didn¡¯t know she would be that strong. It¡¯s even funnier because it looks like she is just playing with Dex.¡±

    Merjen, who was chewing cookies next to him while listening to the reviews of the two, asked.

    ¡°Is it that amazing?¡±

    ¡°Yeah. I can¡¯t even compare myself.¡±

    ¡°Hey, hey! Don¡¯t ever compare ourselves to them. We still have Merjen on our team anyway.¡±

    Ed smiled when Leaf hugged Merjen¡¯s shoulder. That¡¯s true, Merjen will fill in all their shortcomings.

    Merjen escaped Leaf¡¯s arms and asked Ed.

    ¡°Where¡¯s Diego?¡±

    ¡°He said he was going to see the park today. Why?

    ¡°After talking to him, he didn¡¯t even know what his powers were. Who¡¯s his teacher?¡±

    ¡°Diego¡¯s dad.¡±

    ¡°He comes from a family that uses command magic?¡±

    Not exactly, but Juan¡¯s expertise is in command magic. Maybe he¡¯ll realize when the time comes.

    When Ed thought there was nothing more to see, he heard a loud laugh.

    ¡°You¡¯re all here?!¡±

    Ed turned his head and could see someone getting off a carriage. Grant was smiling brightly and waving.

    ¡°Well, hello!¡±

    Grant tilted his head when he saw Dex rolling on the floor after being beaten by Arin.

    ¡°Huh? The royal road is going crazy because the champion is gone. What is Dex doing over there?¡±

    ¡°He wanted to join the demon hunt.¡±

    Grant glinted at the words.

    ¡°I guess the champion¡¯s skills would be a great help.¡±

    ¡°I want him to find a weapon to use. What do you think?¡±

    ¡°Of course. Does he want an ax?¡±

    ¡°No. He said he wanted to use dagger with two Gladius because he needs to hide his identity.¡±

    ¡°I can get that for you. Anyway, do you have time? I made an appointment with the royal blacksmith for you.¡±

    ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡±

    The royal blacksmith, Volkov, was someone who can strengthen the bow of the ice. So Ed has been looking forward to it. When Ed went to the royal palace with Grant with joy, he had to go through three check-ups.

    ¡°Do they normally search like this?¡±

    Grant replied as if it were insignificant.

    ¡°It¡¯s probably because of the raid on Caren and the death of the slave merchant Walter.¡±

    Grant said that and looked back at Ed as if he realized something.

    ¡°Maybe Walter¡­¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s not good.¡±

    Grant looked great in Ed. Walter has more than 10 individual guard gladiators alone. If Ed killed Walter so easily, Grant thought that Ed was the best.

    The place where the carriage stopped was so great that Ed could feel the heat from afar. Ed, who went inside like that, felt new.

    Even in the demon¡¯s Era 1, you could strengthen your equipment here.

    And there was a dwarf named Volkov, who was the main culprit of the property¡¯s loss but had no choice but to trust and entrust the reinforcement. It looked like he was talking to someone.

    A man standing with two guardian knights. Both seemed to have great skills. And Grant approached the person familiarly and looked deep down.

    ¡°Prince Clark. It¡¯s been a while since I last saw you.¡±

    ¡°Oh. Hello, Grant. It¡¯s been a while.¡±

    He was a man that was second place in the kingdom. Prince Clark. He smiled at Ed.

    ¡°Who is this?¡±

    Ed stared at Prince Clark¡¯s eyes. Bloody energy flashed dimly in the black of his eyes. He had the demon¡¯s energy.

    It was an indication that he might be a demon¡¯s subordinate or follower. And Ed was sure he saw it.

    This man is associated with a demon. In any way.

    ¡°He¡¯s Ed. He¡¯s a demon hunter.¡±

 Chapter 53 - Success

    Prince Clark¡¯s eyes trembled slightly. His acting skills are quite good.

    ¡°He must be someone you admire.¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s someone I want to resemble.¡±

    Clark was in his late thirties but looked like he was still in his twenties. His good skin didn¡¯t fit your age. He was no longer the same person he was when he was in his twenties. He was a person who has gained the power of the demon.

    If Ed had met him in a crowded place, he would have killed Clark. People from the church would often come to the royal palace, but he never got caught by them.

    ¡°It¡¯s fate to meet like this, so I¡¯ll give you a present. Volkov. Is the item I ordered ready?¡±

    ¡°Here it is¡±.

    Volkov. He lived the longest among dwarfs. All those who have played during the demon¡¯s Era 1 are grinding their teeth. He has been criticized by all players until now.

    He looked younger than his age, but his unique gaze remained the same over the years.

    The item Volkov took out and handed over was a circular ring. An object with a blade outside the ring.

    Clark picked it up, put it on his index finger, spun it around, and asked.

    ¡°Do you know what this is?¡±

    ¡°Isn¡¯t it a Chakram?¡±

    ¡°Ha! You have excellent knowledge. This is one of the weapons handled by the wandering families of Qurenai, an eastern desert country. My brother-in-law tells me not to rely on these kinds of items, but to train with a sword. Isn¡¯t that possible only for knights like my brother-in-law?¡±

    Clark glistened and looked at Ed. Ed didn¡¯t avoid his eyes. If Ed had met him in a deserted place, he would have already put an arrow in Clark¡¯s head. When Ed didn¡¯t avoid his gaze, Clark put the Chakram back into the box while smiling. The box had three Chakrams inside.

    ¡°Would you like one? It might be useful for hunting demons.¡±

    ¡°Probably.¡±

    It was ordered by the prince and made by Volkov. It¡¯s more than a luxury item, so there¡¯s no reason to decline his offer.

    Upon hearing Ed¡¯s answer, Clark smiled and said.

    ¡°That¡¯s good. This is sharper and moves farther away than the existing chakram. I hope it¡¯ll come in handy.¡±

    Ed accepted Clark¡¯s chakram. The improved version was made of black blades, iron, and the size was only about 10cm in diameter.

    Ed thought it would be an unexpected weapon if he handled it well. Above all, it had the advantage of taking up a smaller space than daggers.

    Ed didn¡¯t have to refuse something that could be useful for killing demons. He can always stab it in the opponent¡¯s head.

    ¡°If you have a chance, let¡¯s have a meal together.¡±

    Clark walked away, waving with his guardians. Ed looked at his distant back and turned his head when he heard Grant and Volkov¡¯s conversation.

    Not today. However, they will meet again sometime, and at that time, he will reveal his bare face.

    ¡°Did you bring it?¡±

    ¡°Here you are.¡±

    The box Grant brought was made of blue jewels. Volkov admired seeing it.

    ¡°Ha. You understood how to take care of it. You even put it inside this precious Shanto box.¡±

    ¡°I got one when I was dealing with Kurenai. I didn¡¯t know there would be a monster¡¯s heart inside of it.¡±

    Volkov stroked the box and turned his head to look at Ed.

    ¡°Is it you? The one who wanted to strengthen the ice bow?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    As Ed approached, Volkov looked up and down at him. He has a habit of emotionally checking things and people. Ed was also curious about how Volkov thought of him.

    Volkov, who was looking closely at Ed, nodded in admiration.

    ¡°It¡¯s been a long time since I¡¯ve seen someone as big as Pendragon. But you¡¯re not completed yet. You should try harder.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m making up for my shortcomings. And I hope you can help me in my journey.¡±

    Volkov burst into laughter.

    ¡°Yes, but if you rely on equipment, your growth will stop, so don¡¯t rely too much on it.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll do my best¡±.

    Volkov believes that humans are completed by effort. However, the end of the completion was someone who had an outstanding weapon.

    Therefore, he hated humans who neglect their efforts, and he hated humans who ignore weapons. He liked humble people, so Ed adjusted the atmosphere.

    ¡°Give me the ice bow.¡±

    When Ed handed over the bow, Volkov, who received it, looked at the condition of the bow. Even though it was a bow with considerable tension, Volkov, who pulled the bow, opened his mouth.

    ¡°It has enough tension, but we need to replace some parts. I¡¯ll upgrade it for you.¡±

    ¡°Thank you.¡±

    When Volkov beckoned, his student jumped inside. Volkov went further inside after passing through the forge. Ed followed Volkov into the blacksmith¡¯s quarters.

    Volkov opened the door with an anvil pattern on it and entered.

    ¡°This is not a place I can let people in, but you guys are an exception.¡±

    It was the upgrading room and a place called the room of despair. It was a room that could only be entered when reinforced materials were entrusted.

    ¡°Thank you.¡±

    Ed and Grant followed inside, and a student ran and handed over the bow to Volkov. After replacing some parts, he lifted the hammer.

    That hammer is actually a relic.

    The holy relic was given by Heito, the God of blacksmiths.

    This is a holy relic, so he can strengthen the equipment, but if he fails, he will have to sacrifice the equipment. Sometimes Ed wondered if he failed on purpose, but this time, he still had high expectations.

    If it¡¯s a holy relic, the probability of reinforcement success is less than 20%, but the relic-level has a 40% chance of success.

    It¡¯s only in the game that it¡¯s shining and the end. There was only failure or success.

    Ed looked at the bow with a hopeful look.

    Volkov opened Shanto¡¯s box that Grant was holding. When the lid opened, white cold air erupted from it.

    Volkov took out a heart the size of an adult¡¯s head. As Volkov placed the heart next to the ice bow, runes popped out of the air and began to shine in the form of a sphere surrounding the heart.

    Volkov is famous for being a blacksmith, but he is actually an apostle of Heito, the God of a blacksmith. He¡¯s chanting a sacred spell.

    So, this dwarf is the only one who can strengthen items or equipment on this continent.

    Volkov focused on the heart that was floating in the air. The heart compressed and turned into particles that were emitting white light.

    In the mysterious sight, Grant was watching with his mouth open. Even if he is one of the most powerful people in the kingdom, this scene would not have been common.

    The reinforcement of equipment is famous for providing only at least a relic level.

    And not many people knew that, so it was a rare scene except for those commissioned by the royal palace.

    Since Ed obtained a piece of relic-class equipment called an ice bow and equipment to strengthen it, it would be good if it works, and even if it doesn¡¯t, it could be offered as a sacrifice, so Ed thought it was good and agreed.

    When the heart¡¯s essence shone white, Volkov lifted the hammer. Then he hit it with his hammer.

    Particles of light falling off the hammer fell on the ice bow.

    And at that moment, there was a huge explosion. The white light wrapped around the black bow and the letters running over it appeared with a lot of light, and it was hard to open his because of the intense glow.

    Ed cheered at the appearance. This is not just an upgrade success, but a great success.

    Ed did not believe in luck. Since the moment he fell here, he has been trying to finish his task and return. And if he could go back alive, he was going to give punch to the person who sent him here.

    When Ed fell into another thought for a while, Volkov lifted the ice bow and admired it. Volkov pulled the bow and smiled. He looked very satisfied.

    ¡°What¡¯s going on right now? I¡¯ve been offering a lot of things lately. This is a blessing.¡±

    Hearing Volkov muttering made Ed get goosebumps. Was this dwarf actually planning to sacrifice the ice bow?

    Volkov threw the ice bow to Ed. The moment he caught the frozen bow that flew in, he could tell.

    This is a huge success. With less mana, it is now possible to spray stronger cold air. At this level, he didn¡¯t envy any other relics.

    The bow has been strengthened, and the performance had improved. At this level, it was worth calling Heito a blessing.

    ¡°Did you donate a lot to Heito?¡±

    ¡°No. If I find Heito¡¯s temple next time, I¡¯ll donate a lot.¡±

    ¡°You should. It¡¯s my first time seeing such a blessing in my life.¡±

    It was natural that item upgrades and reinforcements fail easily. It was almost impossible that this much success came out at once.

    It was the first time Volkov had seen this happen.

    ¡°Thank you.¡±

    Ed had no reason to upgrade other equipment. Since this was a huge success, other equipment will end up as offerings.

    Ed was about to leave, but Volkov opened his mouth.

    ¡°Wait a minute.¡±

    ¡°Yes?¡±

    ¡°You have more relics-class equipment. I¡¯ll go easy on you. Heito has never given me such a blessing. At this time, I think I can strengthen some of them for you.¡±

    ¡°Hahaha. It¡¯s okay, never mind.¡±

    Ed smiled awkwardly and stepped back. Volkov was approaching with a hammer in his left hand with his eyes shiny with madness.

    This was dangerous.

    Ed ran out of the room to avoid Volkov. As Ed disappeared, Volkov smacked his lips and turned his head to look at Grant.

    ¡°Hey. That Shanto box. I can bless it for you.¡±

    Grant was not as fast as Ed. He couldn¡¯t avoid Volkov because he was holding a hammer while blocking the door¡­

    Grant cried and held out the Shanto box.

    ¡°Here you go then¡­¡­¡±

    The Shanto box is an item that cannot be obtained easily.

    ¡°Trust me. Grant.¡±

    Inside the carriage going back home. Grant was looking out the window with a gloomy look, not suitable for his big personality.

    Ed had already heard that the Shanto box he had brought ended up becoming an offering to Heito.

    Grant couldn¡¯t help but feel depressed. He was very quiet.

    It was after lunchtime when the carriage returned to the mansion. The party lined up snacks Diego bought with Sophia.

    When Ed returned to Grant, Thane asked.

    ¡°What happened?¡±

    Thane knew Volkov. Volkov can strengthen equipment, but a lot can end up as offerings.

    Ed took out the ice bow and showed it to Thane. Thane¡¯s eyes twinkled when he saw it.

    ¡°He must have succeeded.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s a huge success.¡±

    Thane burst into laughter at Ed¡¯s words.

    ¡°Hahahaha. You¡¯re so lucky.¡±

    Arin was envious because she carried three holy relics.

    Grant sat down to eat the snacks. It looked like he forgot about his Shanto box already.

    Arin looked at Ed Thane, who had gone a reasonable distance from the party.

    ¡°Did you meet the Prince?¡±

    Thane smiled at the question.

    ¡°Honestly, there are not many situations where I can meet the Prince. It¡¯s been more than a decade since we saw each other. Why? Did you meet the prince?¡±

    Considering Thane¡¯s perspective, if he had met him recently, he would have seen what Ed had seen.

    ¡°Yes. The prince is somehow related to the demon.¡±

    The eyes of Thane and Arin were astonished.

    ¡°Is he a subordinate?¡±

    ¡°No. It wasn¡¯t that clear. But he was definitely related to the demon.¡±

    Ed continued to talk while looking at Thane.

    ¡°We need a way to prove that he is a demon.¡±

    Thane laughed in vain at the words.

    ¡°Are you trying to kill the prince?¡±

    ¡°Yes, if he¡¯s possessed by the demon.¡±

 Chapter 54 - Reorganization

    Arin looked at Ed.

    Ed has always been serious when it was about demons. He never looks back.

    He¡¯s even determined to kill the prince of the kingdom of Travia.

    ¡°I¡¯ll find out when I see him.¡±

    She was a holy knight, so she can meet the king if she wanted. Archbishop Benedict would have to be with her, but meeting him was possible.

    Ed was briefly lost in his own thoughts.

    ¡°If you stimulate him with divine power, he will react. But that¡¯s quite a political burden.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s true.¡±

    Perhaps there could be a holy war between the entire Astron Church and the Kingdom of Travia.

    However, looking at Ed¡¯s determination, this is simply too big a problem for an individual to carry. It¡¯s a different story than when he killed Cliff.

    Killing a person that was no longer relevant and killing a prince of a country are completely different stories.

    Ed looked back at Thane.

    ¡°Rather than taking that risk, I just need certainty.¡±

    ¡°All you need is certainty?¡±

    ¡°If I¡¯m certain, I will have to assassinate him. Or let him reveal the power of the demon himself in front of everyone. But if possible, I think it¡¯s better to assassinate him.¡±

    Ed knew the prince was related to the demon, but his confidence alone is not evidence. If the prince¡¯s disgrace is revealed in front of all people, that alone may give Ed a slap on the wrist.

    It would be difficult to live inside of the kingdom.

    Thane stared at Ed. As expected, Ed had no doubt.

    Ed was prepared to kill the demon. Ed was a person who risked his life against the demon.

    Thane wanted to help Ed.

    ¡°I¡¯ll have to meet him first. But if it¡¯s a problem like this, we don¡¯t have to try to solve it on our own.¡±

    ¡°What are you talking about?¡± ¡°Pendragon is coming back tomorrow, so let¡¯s talk about this with him.¡±

    Ed nodded when he heard Pendragon¡¯s name.

    For now, Pendragon was one of the strongest players in this world. If he helps, things can be simple.

    ¡°But he¡¯s the prince.¡±

    Pendragon is the brother-in-law of the prince. He¡¯s a family member. Can he really kill him?

    Thane replied with a smile at the words.

    ¡°Lions are lions even when they get old.¡±

    ¡°Then let¡¯s get Pendragon¡¯s help on that part.¡±

    ¡°Okay. And I¡¯ll try to figure out how to distinguish the power of the demon.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡±

    Ed smiled with Thane¡¯s answer. Thane and Arin. These two were really reliable people.

    It was still hard to tell Diego or Dex. Diego didn¡¯t have anything to do yet, and it was another matter of whether Dex could be trusted.

    Grant ate snacks and forgot about what happened to his Shanto box. He left and returned in the evening. And he brought what Ed requested.

    ¡°Here¡¯s the arrow you mentioned¡±.

    Ed picked up the arrowhead made of steel and looked at it. This was able to strengthen the bow and arrow.

    Arrows are consumable, so they can be expensive, but they were one of the fastest ways to be strong.

    Ed looked at the arrow and was satisfied. The arrow was black, so the opponent will die without seeing it at night.

    It is an arrow specialized for assassination.

    In addition, Grant brought more than what he requested.

    The amount contained in two infinite arrow houses. Ed was going to put some in the saddle of his horse.

    Grant continued with a smile.

    ¡°First of all, we started mass production. The next time we meet, we¡¯ll be able to supply more.¡±

    Ed looked back at Grant.

    ¡°Is it okay for you to do this?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s nothing compared to what you have done for me. To make this, I hired a blacksmith. It¡¯s my own blacksmith and I¡¯m going to continue to produce weapons to deal with demons.¡±

    Grant, who said so, held out a leather jacket this time.

    ¡°I know you like Crow¡¯s coat, but I brought this because I thought you could use it to store daggers inside.¡±

    Ed picked up his coat and looked inside. Like the Crow¡¯s coat, there was a space inside to accommodate daggers.

    When Ed inserted daggers, a total of 24 daggers were packed in the front.

    The Crow¡¯s coat had actually been worn as both armors. Above all, it was used to make it hard to guess that the opponent had a secret weapon, but now there is an item to replace it.

    Then there is no reason to insist on using the Crow¡¯s coat.

    Ed wore the new coat. There was no comfortableness.

    Ed smiled.

    Ed succeeded in strengthening the bow of the ice and Grant promised to provide unlimited steel arrows in the future.

    Ed looked back at Grant.

    ¡°If I ever kill the great demon, I¡¯ll honor my victory to you.¡±

    Grant shook his head.

    ¡°I don¡¯t even want that.¡±

    ¡°No, I¡¯ll make sure to honor you.¡±

    Even though Grant refused once, when Ed insisted, Grand did not refuse. Ed had to do this for his sponsor.

    If Ed achieves in killing the great demon, it would be thanks to Grant¡¯s help.

    Ed was going to make sure that happened.

    Dex was drooling while looking at the equipment that Ed received, and asked.

    ¡°Mine. Don¡¯t you have mine?¡±

    At Dex¡¯s question, Grant put two boxes on the table. When Dex saw it and tried to open the box with sparkling eyes, Grant put his hand on the lid of the box and blocked it.

    Dex frowned a little. Grant spoke out as he looked into Dex¡¯s eyes.

    ¡°Listen to my explanation first.¡±

    Dex took a step back with his arms folded. It was not because he saw Ed trying out his new arrow. Dex just decided to listen to the sincerity of the person who bought the goods.

    When Dex took a step back, Grant smiled and opened the box.

    There was a bunch of swords. Dex slightly frowned because he thought there was nothing special. Then, Grant pulled out a sword.

    The sword had a subtle green color, and it was clearly emitting green light.

    Ed was able to instinctively realize that it was the same kind of sword as the salamander¡¯s sword he had.

    Dex also recognized at a glance that it was not an ordinary sword.

    Grant smiled when he saw the two¡¯s eyes change.

    ¡°This black sword is called the Sword of Silf. Another name is the Sword of speed.¡±

    ¡°Sword of speed?¡±

    When Dex asked out of curiosity, Grant nodded.

    ¡°Not only does it increase cutting power, but it also makes you feel lighter while using it. It is said that the spirit of the wind helps, but I heard that when that power runs out, it takes time to recharge.¡±

    Grant put the sword back into the box and handed it to Dex. Dex received the box, pulled the sword, and closed his eyes.

    Then he moved his body lightly and stretch the sword. Dex felt that his movement was faster. That was quite dangerous.

    If he tried holding it last time, he thought he might not have been able to overpower it.

    Dex also looked down at the sword and smiled.

    ¡°This is a relic-class equipment.¡±

    ¡°You have to use that kind of equipment to fight a demon.¡±

    Dex returned the sword and hugged Grant.

    ¡°Hahaha. Thank you. It¡¯s my first time receiving something like this.¡±

    Slave gladiators do not receive relics-class equipment. Because they weren¡¯t allowed to use any relics-class equipment in gladiatorial competitions. It was the unwanted people¡¯s choice to be a fight not because of their skills but because of their equipment.

    Therefore, Dex, the champion of the royal road, now has a relic-class equipment for the first time.

    Grant continued to speak in Dex¡¯s arms.

    ¡°There¡¯s still one thing left.¡±

    Dex came to his senses at the words and stepped down. And he looked at Grant as if he were a child looking at a gift box.

    Grant opened the second box. As expected, it was a normal-looking box, but the sword was more cautious than before. It was a black blood-colored blade, and Ed slightly frowned when he saw it.

    There was a rune engraved on the blade of the sword, so it was a rune sword, but Ed have never seen a black with such ominous energy.

    ¡°It¡¯s a sword called the blood sword. There¡¯s a curse on it.¡±

    ¡°A curse?¡±

    ¡°If you get a cut by this, your blood won¡¯t stop until the curse is lifted.¡±

    Ed nodded at the words. Although it is not a fast weapon, it can slowly eat away little by placing a curse of bleeding against strong demons.

    If they face the great demon, this type of sword may not work, but it was great just to turn the demon¡¯s attention.

    Simply looking at its performance, it is much more valuable than Ed¡¯s ice bow. The equipment was meant for someone at the level of a destroyer.

    It was a little heartbreaking, but the ice bow has risen to the level of holy relics thanks to Heito¡¯s blessing, so it is now an irreplaceable weapon. And since he now had an infinite number of steel arrows, Ed will receive more support in the long run.

    But Dex must have been touched enough. When he heard the explanation, he received the sword and cried.

    Grant was rather surprised at the appearance and asked.

    ¡°Are you okay?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m okay.¡±

    Dex put the sword into the box, slowly approached Grant, and hugged him once again.

    Then he continued to talk with a sniffling.

    ¡°Thank you. I¡¯ve never received such a gift before¡±.

    Even if he is the champion of the royal road, slaves are only slaves. It¡¯s his first time receiving something like this.

    Grant could fully understand that Dex shed tears of joy.

    When Grant saw him so grateful for his gift, he smiled and took out a leather jacket in the same form as Ed¡¯s.

    ¡°I heard that you were training with daggers, so I brought you this.¡±

    ¡°Oh! Thank you.¡±

    Ed slightly frowned as he saw Dex wearing it. It¡¯s a design that can also be used as a substitute for armor, so considering its efficiency, it¡¯s a very good outfit, but he didn¡¯t want a matching look with Dex.

    But Dex must have liked it. As Ed did, he took out some daggers and smiled.

    ¡°Will you teach me how to fight using daggers?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll teach you when I have time.¡±

    So far, he has been working hard and adjusting the equipment one by one, but Dex met with his sponsor and received the full setting of the equipment at once.

    Ed smiled. Dex should be much stronger than now considering the demons he will face in the future. Whether through equipment or training.

    Arin will become stronger with her divine power, and Dex will become stronger with his swords.

    Ed thanked Grant once again.

    ¡°Thank you. I didn¡¯t expect you to get such good things.¡±

    ¡°No worries. This is the least I can do for you.¡±

    Ed could see how much Grant was hurt when he realized that his third wife was a demon. Grant was now showing what happens when a man embraces resentment.

    Ed felt determined to stop the demons of this world.

    He is a strong supporter.

    Merjen was touching her glasses while looking at the items Ed brought over. She is a mysterious magician, so she knew exactly what Ed brought over the moment she saw them.

    ¡°Both of them are mana recovery rings. The effect is like a relic.¡±

    Merjen returned the ring and looked at the Orb believed to be made of bones.

    ¡°I think Diego can use this. The curse and command have the same roots, so he can use it.¡±

    Ed brought this for Diego because he was thinking of it as equipment for him.

    Diego only said he would fight the demon in the future, but Ed had never told him the details. However, Ed wanted to give it to Diego.

    Ed thought it was time for Diego to know the truth.

    ¡°Am I going to use this?¡±

    Ed looked at Diego. Ed nodded and handed over the equipment.

    Diego wore two rings and picked up the orb. Then Diego felt his heart pounding. And he felt something appear behind his back.

    Diego turned his head to see what was going on.

    ¡°Dad?¡±

    Juan realized how Diego gained the power to summon him when he saw a ring and an orb on Diego¡¯s finger.

    ¡°Dad!¡±

    Diego jumped up and hugged Juan, but Juan was in spirit form. He can¡¯t touch Juan.

    Diego¡¯s hand passed through Juan¡¯s body in vain. Diego finally raised his hand and looked inside Juan¡¯s body. When Diego raised his head in surprise, Juan smiled lonely, set, and looked at Diego.

    ¡°Dad. What happened?¡±

    Juan reached out and hugged Diego gently. Diego grumbled that he was suffocating every time Juan hugged him, but now it feels like the wind is hugging him, so he shed tears because he was sad.

    Juan also looked at Diego with a thin trembling voice, unlike what he had shown so far.

    -Why are you crying? Men shouldn¡¯t cry.

    Diego cried more sadly at the words. Juan was saying this while wiping away his tears, but he shed more tears because he couldn¡¯t wipe them anymore.

    Juan also hugged Diego silently rather than talking anymore.

    Then, Diego shouted in surprise as Juan disappeared.

    ¡°Dad! Dad!¡±

    Ed hugged Diego from behind.

    ¡°The more you grow, the longer you will have time to spend with Juan.¡±

    Diego looked up and looked at Ed. Diego, whose eyes are red from crying, asked.

    ¡°How can I grow?¡±

    Ed pointed to Merjen and said.

    ¡°Ask Merjen about that.¡±

    Magic is said to vary widely depending on the nature, but there will be teachings that penetrate all of it. There is no teacher like Merjen.

    Ed looked at Diego, who was learning the basics of magic from Merjen.

    Finally, it¡¯s tomorrow. The day when Pendragon arrives.

 Chapter 55

    Emili was writing down testimonies, and stood up covering her notebook.

    ¡°So, he didn¡¯t mean to kill you guys.¡±

    ¡°Yes. He was so strong. If he wanted to kill, none of us would have survived.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s clear that Dex was guarding the bottom, but he couldn¡¯t stop him either.¡±

    Emilia also knew Dex¡¯s skills. However, if you think about it, the opponent does not have to be as strong as Dex.

    If you have good equipment, you can sufficiently overpower Dex even if you are less skilled than him. It seemed that he had a relic-class equipment.

    However, Dex¡¯s ability is too good to be defeated by a single relic-class equipment.

    ¡°I heard that gladiators need to keep their bodies in good condition all the time. Take good care of yourselves.¡±

    Emilia, who left the gladiators¡¯ ward, looked back on the following guardian.

    ¡°Van. What would happen if you were put up against Dex?¡±

    ¡°To be honest, I¡¯m not confident that I can beat him.¡±

    Emilia smiled at Van¡¯s honest answer.

    ¡°As expected, you¡¯re honest. Dex is one of the top 10 royal palace¡¯s guardian. What do you think?¡±

    ¡°Do you think Dex was a part of this?¡±

    ¡°Isn¡¯t it more convincing than Dex being kidnapped?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s true, but¡­¡±

    While Emilia was agonizing for a while, a gladiator who injured her shoulder came out.

    ¡°Investigator, there¡¯s something I haven¡¯t told you.¡±

    Emilia looked at the gladiator for a while and asked.

    ¡°Why didn¡¯t you tell me inside?¡±

    ¡°I just want to be quiet.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll tell you in advance, but there¡¯s nothing I can do for you. I¡¯m just investigating this case.¡±

    Alt, the gladiator, smiled bitterly.

    ¡°That¡¯s too bad. I didn¡¯t want others to know what I was going to tell you.¡±

    Emilia raised her head and moved away from the room. In the hallway where there were no people around, Emilia took out her notebook and asked.

    ¡°So tell me the secret you¡¯ve been keeping.¡±

    ¡°That day, Valt and our supervisor brought someone here.¡±

    Emilia¡¯s eyes sparkled. She knew there was something more to this case.

    ¡°Someone? Who was it?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know that. From a distance, she looked like a dwarf girl.¡±

    ¡°Dwarf girl?¡±

    ¡°Yes. As long as they are beautiful, dwarf women are in demand. Our supervisor is not a person who could be killed so easily. I think he was hit in the back of his head while taming the dwarf girl.¡±

    Emilia asked, tapping her notebook with a pen.

    ¡°So, they brought in a dwarf girl?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    The problem is that she doesn¡¯t know who the dwarf girl is.

    Emilia thought for a moment and asked.

    ¡°They brought her here in the afternoon, right?¡±

    ¡°Yes. I was on my way to the bathroom, and I saw them.¡±

    Emilia covered her notebook. Alt¡¯s face brightened up.

    ¡°That was good information. Let me know if you have anything else you remember.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll do that.¡±

    When Emilia left the hallway, there was someone blocking her. They were brothers Norman and Gileam, sons of Baltic.

    ¡°Investigator, have you made any progress?¡±

    ¡°A little bit.¡±

    ¡°Please find Dex. We have to find the champion.¡±

    Thanks to the champion of the royal road, they earned a lot of money. Even if all other gladiators are added, less than half of the champion¡¯s money will be earned, so the biggest legacy has been stolen.

    This is why they turn on their eyes and try to find the criminal. They would have been happy with their father¡¯s death if the champion hadn¡¯t gone missing.

    ¡°If you find him, we¡¯ll pay you big time.¡±

    Emilia nodded only and passed by them. As Emilia climbed the horse, she looked up at the Colosseum. The owner of this place died, and the champion disappeared.

    Realizing that the era of the reign of the champion of the royal road had disappeared, Emilia drove the horse to the royal palace. A Dwarf girl. The king¡¯s help was needed to find information.

    A Chakram flew toward the far-away target.

    Shrrr.

    Ed was practicing the Chakram but had a hard time because it was a weapon exclusively for cutting and flew in a curve rather than a straight line.

    Dex showed interest.

    ¡°Teach me that, too.¡±

    ¡°Once you learn how to use daggers.¡±

    Daggers flew in a straight line, but the Chakram flies in a curve, so the method was different. Dex nodded and continued to practice throwing daggers. Dex really was a genius in handling weapons.

    Arin was in a two-on-one battle with Kyle and Leaf. Diego was told to spend time with Sophia until today, but after meeting Juan yesterday, he held on to Merjen.

    Grant was sitting with Thane and drinking tea. When Ed walked to the target, pulled out Chakram, and returned, Ed tilted his head at the sound of horseshoe and carriage heard in the distance.

    The sound of horseshoe passed through the gate and turned toward the house at the intersection. Only two horses turned in the direction, but the speed was like a gust of wind.

    Ed approached Thane just in case. Thane also woke up from his seat as if he had just heard the sound of a horseshoe. When Thane, who stood with a cane, walked to the entrance of the house, a horse with a larger head than a general war horse approached.

    A black horse with a lot of muscles. Pendragon called this horse Pentam.

    The horse, which had been running with all its might, stopped in front of Thane. Dust poured out as the horse lowered its front feet.

    As Thane was fanning his face and blowing dust, a giant man who jumped off the horse hugged Thane.

    ¡°Old man! Long time no see!¡±

    He¡¯s almost 2 meters tall. He is a huge man that looked like a barbarian warrior. A man is reminiscent of a lion¡¯s mane because his sideburns and beard are connected.

    It was Pendragon, the free knight, the main character of the demon¡¯s Age 1.

    He is the man which made Ed fall into the world of games. Ed didn¡¯t know he would meet the main character of the game in person like this.

    Even though he got older, his cheerful appearance did not change much.

    ¡°That¡¯s why Thane doesn¡¯t want to come back home.¡±

    ¡°Cecilia. Thane also likes it when I talk to him like this.¡±

    Ed¡¯s gaze turned toward the woman who had not yet gotten off the horse. A woman on a white horse.

    The princess of the kingdom of Travia, Cecilia.

    When Ed found out that Pendragon married her, he was a happy fan of the demon¡¯s Age 1. Ed thought they couldn¡¯t meet in person, but looking at her like this, Ed felt an elegance that was incomparable to what he saw on the screen.

    He remembered her splitting the demon¡¯s head with a Halberd with such an elegant appearance. Perhaps because she came from light hunting, she didn¡¯t bring her Halberd.

    ¡°Let go of me now. You¡¯re going to break my bones.¡±

    At Thane¡¯s calm tone, Pendragon burst into laughter and put him down. Thane tapped his clothes and looked at Pendragon.

    ¡°Did you have a good trip?¡±

    ¡°I caught five beasts.¡±

    It was not just regular hunting, but a beast hunting? Well, you can¡¯t expect something simple from those two.

    Pendragon looked back at the groups standing behind Thane with a smile. Thanks to his loud appearance, everyone gathered and looked at him.

    ¡°Why did you bring all these guests together, old man?¡±

    Pendragon looked around with his hand on Thane¡¯s shoulder. He looked at Dex.

    ¡°Huh? The champion? Why are you here? I was disappointed to hear about your disappearance on my way back.¡±

    Thane answered the question instead.

    ¡°We¡¯re going to hunt demons.¡±

    ¡°Demon hunting?¡±

    Pendragon burst into laughter at the words.

    ¡°Hahahaha. Are these prospective warriors? Then we should treat them! Let¡¯s get inside.¡±

    He carried Thane as if he were kidnapping him.

    Something was different from what Ed expected.

    Cecilia, who was watching Pendragon leave, spoke with a smile.

    ¡°Isn¡¯t he so hectic? I¡¯ll get a carriage for the rest of you, so meet us back at the main house.¡±

    Leaving them behind, Cecilia also disappeared by riding her white horse.

    Arin looked back at Merjen and asked.

    ¡°Did Helena do this, too?¡±

    ¡°No. She¡¯s different from my mom.¡±

    Ed was smiling when everyone made comments on Pendragon.

    Dex asked Ed.

    ¡°What are you laughing about?¡±

    ¡°Nothing. It¡¯s just that Pendragon¡¯s personality really suits him.¡±

    ¡°Did you meet him before?¡±

    Ed has seen Pendragon for a long time, even though it¡¯s beyond the screen. He¡¯s different from Helena, who he loved the most, but Pendragon was a character with a cheerful taste.

    There was a table in a large banquet hall when they arrived at the main house by carriage. Everyone in the group could sit at the long table.

    Pendragon smiled and spoke while sitting in the upper seat.

    ¡°While preparing dinner, I heard a rough story from the old man.¡±

    Pendragon¡¯s gaze turned to Arin.

    ¡°The holy knight who believes in the prophecy.¡±

    Pendragon¡¯s gaze headed for Merjen.

    ¡°The daughter of a friend who followed her mother¡¯s deeds and was involved with demons.¡±

    Pendragon¡¯s eyes were on Dex.

    ¡°The champion who wants to put down his status as a champion and hunt demons.¡±

    Pendragon¡¯s gaze finally headed for Ed.

    ¡°Even Ed, an already skillful demon hunter.¡±

    Kyle, Leaf, and Diego were not called, but they were not in an atmosphere to weigh them.

    With the charisma of his existence itself, Pendragon seemed unlikely to open his mouth to anyone here until he allowed it.

    ¡°Nice to meet you.¡±

    Breaking everyone¡¯s expectations, Ed replied. Everyone¡¯s eyes were on Ed.

    Pendragon also smiled at Ed. Then he turned his eyes and winked at Cecilia.

    ¡°See? I knew he would accept my greeting.¡±

    ¡°He had no choice but to acknowledge you.¡±

    Pendragon poured alcohol into his bronze cup and pushed it along the table. Ed grabbed the cup in front of him. Ed, who received the cup with his agile hands, lifted the cup in a semicircle so that it would not overflow with alcohol and emptied the cup at once. Pendragon burst into laughter when Ed put down the glass with a clear sound.

    ¡°The old man told me that he was closest to you, and I guess he wasn¡¯t lying about that.¡±

    Pendragon got up from his seat and approached Ed. He picked up the glass that Ed had put down and said.

    ¡°I heard an interesting story from the old man.¡±

    Ed faced Pendragon¡¯s gaze quietly. Pendragon smiled and asked.

    ¡°So, the prince seems to be related to the demon?¡±

    This man. Regardless of who is next to him or not, he says everything he wants to say.

 Chapter 56

    Everyone¡¯s turned around and focused on Pendragon, and his gaze did not waver at all from Ed.

    Ed spoke.

    ¡°Isn¡¯t that something you should¡¯ve known by now?¡±

    When Ed answered, Pendragon¡¯s expression disappeared. It feels like the temperature has dropped sharply as if standing in front of the north wind snow.

    Well, after meeting a high-rank demon, Ed still felt he was lacking, but when he stood in front of a man who caught the great demon, he thought it was understandable. Pendragon would kill higher rank demons like a piece of cake.

    But Ed was going to say what he wanted to say.

    Pendragon looked at Ed for a while and soon burst into laughter.

    ¡°Hahahha. I¡¯ve never seen my wife¡¯s family ever since we got married. Everyone¡¯s busy avoiding me.¡±

    Pendragon replied with a smile. Pendragon is too dangerous to keep close.

    He is a hero to the people of the kingdom, and many people admire him. Princess Cecilia¡¯s right to inherit the throne is third. If she has Pendragon behind her back, she could freely jump into the race for the throne.

    However, neither Pendragon nor Cecilia are those who welcome such troublesome things. Of course, they kept away from the royal palace.

    It was a choice to inform the people that they were not interested in royal authority and to inform the aristocrats.

    Pendragon put his hand on Ed¡¯s shoulder.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I shouldn¡¯t have become too close or too distant from them.¡±

    Pendragon made eye contact with Ed and spoke to Cecilia.

    ¡°Cecilia. I should go to the palace to see my brother-in-law¡±.

    ¡°My 2nd eldest brother is dead. Will you kill my eldest brother?¡±

    Pendragon smiled.

    ¡°If I have to kill him, I¡¯ll kill him¡±.

    Cecilia sighed deeply.

    ¡°Do you know that if he dies, I would be the queen?¡±

    ¡°Huh?¡±

    Pendragon looked back in surprise. As Cecilia looked at him with a grumpy face, and Pendragon scratched his beard for a while and replied.

    ¡°Let¡¯s meet him first. Then let¡¯s see what we can do.¡±

    Pendragon said, tapping Ed¡¯s shoulder.

    ¡°If it¡¯s too late, we should kill him. But if it¡¯s not too late, let¡¯s see what we can do. Okay?¡±

    They say that a lion was still a lion even when he got old. If Pendragon knew and pretended not to know, he might fight him, but he is still a lion. If it was too late for the prince, he will not hesitate to slit his neck.

    Pendragon went back to his seat and continued.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go together when we go to meet Prince. Do you have time tomorrow?¡±

    ¡°Yes, that¡¯s sounds good.¡±

    ¡°Great. Let¡¯s take a look at the palace. This situation is such a shame though.¡±

    Pendragon said so and sat down and beckoned, and the butler approached and left the glass and filled it with alcohol. Pendragon held up the glass and said.

    ¡°Please lift your glasses. A toast for those who try to save the world all night long.¡±

    After emptying the drink pleasantly, Pendragon and Cecilia talked to each person. Diego was even happy with Pendragon¡¯s signature, but Dex approached Ed and asked.

    ¡°What were you talking about? Did he say he¡¯s going to kill the prince?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    ¡°Why?¡±

    ¡°We think he¡¯s possessed by the demon. He¡¯s related to the demon in some way.¡±

    Dex finally looked back at Ed. Dex was excited to face a strong demon and fight.

    However, these three were calmly talking in front of other people that they would kill the prince if he was possessed by the demon. Killing the prince does not solve the problem.

    Killing the prince means that they might end up in a war with the kingdom.

    But there is no hesitation.

    Ed cut the steak and asked something.

    ¡°I didn¡¯t tell you because I thought you¡¯d run away. Are you upset?¡±

    ¡°A little. Don¡¯t hide those kinds of things next time.¡±

    ¡°Okay.¡±

    Dex dipped the steak with a fork, put it in his mouth, and bowed his head. Dex couldn¡¯t raise his head. If he did that, he wouldn¡¯t be able to hide his smile.

    This was a new team. It was crazy good. There was Arin, who he has never won against. And there are also full of sponsors that give out relics-class equipment.

    Not only did he want to catch the demon, but he wanted to kill the demon without looking back. It is literally an environment where he can fight until he dies.

    A team that can live like fireworks.

    It¡¯s the life Dex had been hoping for all his life.

    ¡°Hehehe¡±.

    In the end, he couldn¡¯t hold it in and laughed.

    ¡°Hehehehe¡±.

    Pendragon asked as he knocked on the table and burst into laughter.

    ¡°What¡¯s so funny, champion?¡±

    ¡°I think I can fight as much as I want now.¡±

    Pendragon also burst into laughter at the words.

    ¡°Hahaha. You really are a gladiator.¡±

    Pendragon looked at Dex and asked.

    ¡°But now you¡¯ll have to hide your face when you go out.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s true.¡±

    Pendragon¡¯s gaze headed for Cecilia.

    ¡°The white cotton belt you used before. Don¡¯t we still have it?¡±

    ¡°What about it?¡±

    ¡°I just thought it would look good on him.¡±

    Cecilia nodded at the words.

    ¡°If that¡¯s the case, you won¡¯t have to worry people seeing your face. I¡¯ll look for it.¡±

    Ed burst into cheers at the words. The white band, which Pendragon and Cecilia mentioned, is a band worn on the head. The face of the person wearing it looks different from person to person.

    Since Cecilia is a princess, it was a relic-class equipment that she used to hide her face.

    Pendragon¡¯s gaze headed toward Grant, where he was sitting in the corner.

    ¡°Well, aren¡¯t you Grant? I heard that you will sponsor them both physically and mentally.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m just trying.¡±

    ¡°I hope it helps you spend money on good things. Let¡¯s talk later. I think I¡¯ll be able to help you out with some stuff.¡±

    Even if you are not interested in the royal authority, Pendragon¡¯s connections are beyond imagination. In addition, he was filthy rich.

    Grant was worried before because he was generously sponsoring Ed and his team, but he was relieved when Pendragon offered to help.

    Pendragon looked back at Arin and smiled.

    ¡°Martin often wrote your name in letters.¡±

    Martin was the one who joined Pendragon in the demon¡¯s Age 1. The person who is now the archbishop.

    Did he mention Arin¡¯s name? Even before Ed met, she was already a key figure in the prophecy. Because she was the only one who could track bloodstones.

    She has the sacred power comparable to that of Master Paladine.

    ¡°Mr. Pendragon. I often heard about you from Master Paladine.¡±

    Pendragon was fed up with hearing her name.

    ¡°Ah, that oldie. Does he still curse me out?¡±

    Arin smiled faintly. She knew that Pendragon and Master Paladin used to fight with each other.

    When Master Paladine talks about Pendragon, he curses that he¡¯s that jerk.

    Pendragon looked back at Merjen, too.

    ¡°There was a letter from Helena. It was a letter saying that the demon of the stars, Pestoles, was likely to be revived.¡±

    ¡°Really?¡±

    Merjen had been chasing Helena without knowing her tracks, and for the first time, a clue came out. Pendragon nodded.

    ¡°It¡¯s a clue about the resurrection of the Great demon. She wouldn¡¯t have disappeared without telling you, the daughter unless it was something very urgent. I think something must have happened.¡±

    When Merjen¡¯s face was filled with anxiety, Pendragon calmly continued.

    ¡°I¡¯ll give you the letter, and if you need my help while looking for her, just let me know. I and Cecilia would run everywhere for you, Helena¡¯s daughter.¡±

    ¡°Thank you.¡±

    As Merjen bowed her head sincerely, Pendragon smiled like an uncle. A smile that looks a little lonely. It was a smile that wasn¡¯t like him.

    Come to think of it, Pendragon has no children yet even after decades of marriage.

    Helena¡¯s daughter is like a nephew to him. She must have evoked a strange impression.

    Pendragon called Ed¡¯s party separately after finishing his meal.

    In a meeting with Arin and Dex, Pendragon stood on the floor with his wooden bastard sword.

    ¡°Let¡¯s see how good you guys are¡±.

    Cecilia was just watching with a Halberd on her shoulder in the distance. It means that the Pendragon was going to fight alone.

    Pendragon shook his head at Arin, who picked up the shield and sword in the corner.

    ¡°I really want to see your skills, so bring your usual equipment.¡±

    When Pendragon held a wooden sword and said that, everyone was speechless, but Ed was different. He said, preparing an arrow and his newly strengthened ice bow.

    ¡°Out opponent is one of the three heroes. Let¡¯s do our best.¡±

    Diego was still far short of using it as power, but it was the first time the three of them worked together. In fact, Ed was also looking forward to it.

    How good is Pendragon?

    Ed thought this could be a good experience because he had to get close to him to fight the great demon.

    While Ed was looking nervous, Arin also prepared her shield and hammer, and Dex giggled with his sword of speed and blood sword.

    Pendragon still spoke in a relaxed manner.

    ¡°Let¡¯s start.¡±

    Dex bounced out as if he had been waiting. Arin didn¡¯t respond to Dex¡¯s speed, perhaps she was looking for a gap in Pendragon.

    It was Dex, whose agility was comparable to Ed by picking up a quick sword, so the moment he made a mistake, he reached the front of Pendragon.

    Ed also set up his bow before it was too late.

    This confrontation does nothing if he doesn¡¯t fight. So Ed was doing his best from the beginning.

    He fired seven arrows in a row, and even though the consumption of mana was very small, arrows flew with cold air.

    Seven arrows were fired to assist Dex. Ed hoped this would work.

    Then Pendragon¡¯s sword moved.

    Bang!

    Dex¡¯s body, which was speeding up with his sword of speed, folded in half and flew away, and Pendragon¡¯s body looked blurred, and all the arrows passed by him.

    An afterimage?

    Even before thinking about it, Ed fired two arrows diagonally above.

    If he hadn¡¯t read the interval, he wouldn¡¯t have known where Pendragon was. He was so big but he didn¡¯t leave a mark.

    Seeing two arrows flying in, Pendragon¡¯s eyes looked playful. Ed stepped back as Pendragon lightly hit the arrows.

    And Ed fired another arrow.

    It is an arrow that will freeze Pendragons body even if he pushes it away. And as soon as his body hardens, Ed fired another arrow that will penetrate him.

    When Pendragon¡¯s Bastard Sword pushed the arrow away, Ed got his next arrow and fired it to the side.

    The flying arrow was cut in half by Pendragon¡¯s sword, and the place where Ed was standing was also cut off. That¡¯s the true power of his sword.

    Unlike Etrian¡¯s sword, his sword did not inherit any powers. He created power within his sword on his own. The returning arrow was also cut helplessly by Pendragon¡¯s sword.

    It was only after the Pendragon fell that Arin, who had identified his location, pushed her shield forward and rushed.

    Even when rolling on the floor, Ed fired an arrow to help her.

    However, Pendragon ran into Arin, who was rushing, and then turned and passed to her left. He touched the back of her neck.

    While Arin fainted, Pendragon rushed toward Ed.

    Seven arrows were fired in one breath, but Pendragon pushed all of them away. And Ed clenched his teeth and jumped forward with the Salamander¡¯s sword.

    Pendragon caught the sword before Ed had the chance to swing it.

    And Ed¡¯s world turned upside down.

    Boom!

    Ed didn¡¯t even have time to land properly. His high physical strength level was also meaningless when fighting with a man as huge as Pendragon.

    ¡°Ah!¡±

    While Ed¡¯s consciousness was flying away, he smiled.

    Yeah. He really is the main character.

    When Ed smiled and fainted, Pendragon looked back at Cecilia.

    ¡°He¡¯s pretty good.¡±

    ¡°I know. He¡¯s stronger than I thought.¡±

 Chapter 57

    Merjen checked Helena¡¯s letter.

    The group decided to treat Mr.Gado in a separate house. Kyle decided to bury what was involved with King Carne and help Merjen first.

    When their team, including Kyle and Leaf, first left Pendragon¡¯s house, Pendragon gave them the royal family certificate. Merjen bowed her head because she knew

    Pendragon and Cecilia would come running to her whenever she needed help.

    After they had breakfast left, Pendragon opened his mouth.

    ¡°I¡¯m thinking of going to the royal palace, but I can¡¯t take everyone with me. Holy knight, you, and the old man can go with me.¡±

    Dex received a white belt and transformed his face, but he didn¡¯t have to go to the palace.

    Pendragon looked back at the group and said.

    ¡°The place we are going to go is the inner palace, especially the sun palace where the prince stays, so only me and Cecilia can carry weapons, so you guys have to leave all your weapons behind. Is that okay?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    Either way, neither Ed nor Arin actually needs weapons. Even without it, they can take away the opponents weapon and kill them if necessary.

    Ed took off all the equipment and got into the carriage that Doug drove.

    Thane asked, looking at Ed in the carriage.

    ¡°Are you feeling okay?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m okay.¡±

    ¡°Pendragon praised you very much. He said that you were impressive.¡±

    Ed smiled bitterly at the words. Even though Ed sincerely attacked him, he couldn¡¯t even touch Pendragon¡¯s collar. For Ed, it was literally an overwhelming defeat.

    However, he is still growing. He hunted more demons, became stronger, and had the chance to beat Pendragon. Because his goal is to kill the Great demon.

    ¡°That was my limit.¡±

    Thane smiled at the words.

    ¡°As expected, you think differently.¡±

    Thane, who had already shared the journey of hunting the Great demon with Pendragon, knew that he had met the right person to burn the last flame before his death.

    ¡°What about you?¡±

    Arin replied while holding the back of her neck.

    ¡°I¡¯m okay. I didn¡¯t get seriously hurt because he went easy on me.¡±

    Arin has looked somewhat sullen since yesterday. In the meantime, She couldn¡¯t keep up with Pendragon¡¯s movement even though her physical ability has grown significantly thanks to her thirst for sacredness through prayer.

    She was caught in the back and even fainted at a single hit.

    She knew that the three heroes were great, but she didn¡¯t know he would be this strong. There was nothing to be afraid of when the sacred power became strong enough to compare to Master Paladine. She thought she could deal with the demons as much as she wanted with Ed.

    It was a day when she realized how foolish she had thought.

    She was traumatized so much.

    Ed looked at her and opened his mouth.

    ¡°Pendragon is one of the strongest in the world. But we can grow stronger. More than a Pendragon.¡±

    Arin looked at Ed. Edo left an impression on Pendragon. And his gaze was telling the truth.

    ¡°Thank you.¡±

    Arin knew that Ed said that to comfort her. But she knew that his words would definitely come true.

    ¡°Let¡¯s make an unforgettable impression next time.¡±

    At Arin¡¯s words, Ed smiled. She seemed to have come to her senses to some extent.

    That¡¯s enough for now.

    She will have a lot of fights in the future, and she will naturally become stronger.

    Ed looked out the window of the carriage. When he went to meet Volkov with Grant, there were three inspections, but now there were no inspections even though they were on their way to the inner palace.

    However, Ed felt a disturbance outside.

    Well, Pendragon, who had never stopped by the royal palace after his marriage, came in with Cecilia, so he thought it was understandable.

    As Ed was looking outside the window, he heard the sound of horseshoes. When he put my head out to see what was going on, a group of knights in flashing armor rushed in front of Pendragon.

    Pendragon looked back at those who blocked him and smiled.

    ¡°Long time no see, Oliver.¡±

    ¡°What brings you to the palace, Sir. Pendragon and Princess Cecilia?¡±

    Pendragon smiled and replied.

    ¡°Why are you questioning that? Is there a reason why we shouldn¡¯t visit?¡±

    Oliver spoke with a look of tension.

    ¡°Your arrival is a surprise and there is an emergency in the palace.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not here to see your Highness, so don¡¯t worry. We are on our way to the Sun Palace. Are you going to stop me?¡±

    ¡°If you¡¯re on your way to the sun palace, we¡¯ll guide you.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯d appreciate it if you did.¡±

    Ed closed the window of the carriage as they moved under the escort of a row of knights from side to side.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know if they are escorting us or if they are trying to surveillance us.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s my first time coming here after marriage, so I guess it¡¯s natural.¡±

    Ed recalled what kind of person the king of Travia was. The indecisive and timid king. The royal palace¡¯s guards seemed to have been quite useful because they were scared, but Pendragon once overturned the royal palace.

    In a way, it is natural to be scared of him.

    Thus, the group was able to go to the Sun Palace under the escort of the guards. So when they arrived at the Sun Palace, Prince Clark came to meet him with two guardian knights.

    ¡°Brother-in-law! Long time no see?¡±

    Pendragon jumped off the horse and approached Clark. Then, as he approached, the guardians standing behind held their swords, but they did not dare to stop him.

    Pendragon looked at Clark quietly and smiled and said.

    ¡°I¡¯m here to have a meal with you, brother-in-law. Let¡¯s go inside.¡±

    Pendragon took the lead, stopped, and looked back at Clark.

    ¡°They¡¯re my party. Mind if they join us?¡±

    Clark frowned slightly when he saw Ed getting off the carriage, but soon nodded.

    ¡°Sure. It is still too early for lunch, so I can offer you some refreshments. Let¡¯s go to the sunflower garden, the pride of the Sun Palace.¡±

    Clark took the lead pretending like nothing was wrong, and the guards retreated soon after. Seeing that the guards were stepping down at the main gate of the Sun Palace, the group will probably be escorted by the guards when they leave the Sun Palace.

    Thus, the group arrived at the sunflower garden behind the Sun Palace.

    This was a royal palace. The garden alone was not comparable to what Ed saw in Caren¡¯s mansion. The place was full of sunflowers.

    It was a garden suitable for the sun palace.

    Inside the garden were a stone table and an arched pavilion. It was a place where vines were growing, so it was quite elegant.

    The butler has already prepared refreshments. Looking at this, Ed wondered if they had some kind of superpowers. Seeing that Pendragon¡¯s quick steps had been completed.

    Clark recommended a seat, so everyone sat down. When the maids poured tea into the glass and stepped back from Clark, Pendragon opened his mouth.

    ¡°Please tell the butler and maid to go back inside.¡±

    Pince Clark knew they were of no help anyway, so he silently raised his hand and motioned then to go inside. Clark, who had picked up a cup of tea and had a sip, looked at the group and opened his mouth.

    ¡°So. What made you come to the palace? You haven¡¯t visited since you got married.¡±

    Pendragon smiled as he sat across from Clark.

    ¡°I wanted to tell my brother-in-law about something interesting.¡±

    ¡°Let¡¯s hear what kind of interesting story you have to tell.¡±

    Pendragon slowly got up from his seat and walked around the table. The guardian knights stepped forward as he walked to Clark, but Clark raised his hand and stopped them.

    It was an act that Pendragon knew well that if he decided, the guardian knights could not stop him.

    Pendragon walked and leaned against the table in front of Clark. Then he looked down at Clark still. Clark¡¯s eyes shook slightly as he looked up at Pendragon.

    Pendragon looked at Clark still, then turned to look at the guardian knights.

    ¡°I thought you looked familiar. You were the prince¡¯s guardian knight in the past, right?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right.¡±

    Pendragon smiled and approached the guards.

    In front of Pendragon, the guardian knights looked at Pendragon quietly because they couldn¡¯t pull out their swords.

    Pendragon smiled while looking into the eyes of the guardian knights.

    ¡°Yeah. I knew it.¡±

    ¡°What do you mean?¡±

    Pendragon smiled as he put his hand on the shoulder of the guardian knight.

    ¡°Why would you put your hands on such power?¡±

    At Pendragon¡¯s whisper, the guardian knight tried to pull out his sword like lightning, but Pendragon¡¯s hands were faster. He twisted the guardian knight¡¯s neck even before his sword was pulled out.

    While one guardian knight collapsed, the guardian knight on the other side pulled out a sword and rushed in, but Pendragon ran toward him and punched him.

    Pshshhh!

    Even before wielding the sword, his head burst out and sprayed blood on the floor.

    Clark¡¯s body suddenly flinched.

    The two guardian drivers died behind Clark¡¯s back even before he tried something.

    Clark figured out why Pendragon was doing that and felt a cold sweat.

    Pendragon said, wiping the blood on Clark¡¯s shoulder.

    ¡°How did you come up with that power while I was on the royal road?¡±

    Clark looked up and looked at Pendragon. Then his eyes turned red and shouted as if he were supporting evil.

    ¡°I got the secret to immortality. Why shouldn¡¯t I use it?¡±

    When Pendragon looked indifferent, Clark, who gained momentum, shouted quickly.

    ¡°This power! If I have this power¡­¡±

    Slaaaap!

    At one slap by Pendragon, Clark lost five teeth, hit his head on the table, and fainted.

    ¡°You¡¯re still good at making up bullshit.¡±

    Pendragon looked back at Thane.

    ¡°Old man. Do you recognize this situation?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve seen something similar before.¡±

    ¡°Really?¡±

    ¡°Do you know what this is?¡±

    Pendragon lifted Clark¡¯s eyelids and said.

    ¡°I guess a lot of research has been conducted on demons. This is a change that occurs when humans accept the power of the demon.¡±

    ¡°I met a person last time that used the demon¡¯s power.¡±

    ¡°You met someone who uses the demon¡¯s power?¡±

    Thane nodded and replied.

    ¡°He was from Akalan.¡±

    Pendragon laughed in vain.

    ¡°I knew Akalan was studying demons, but I didn¡¯t know they were doing such crazy things¡±.

    Pendragon¡¯s gaze headed for Cecilia.

    ¡°You should be the queen¡±.

    ¡°Are you crazy?¡±

    ¡°The kingdom is rotting down. You¡¯re really not going to do it?¡±

    Cecilia said after a moment of contemplation.

    ¡°I can fix the rotten affected kingdom. But I don¡¯t inherit the throne.¡±

    Pendragon nodded and looked back at Arin.

    ¡°Can you extract the power of the demon?¡±

    Arin tilted her head.

    ¡°I haven¡¯t tried this before yet.¡±

    ¡°Will you give it a try?¡±

    Arin got up and approached Clark. Pendragon lifted a teapot into Clark¡¯s head and poured it.

    It¡¯s still hot.

    Clark woke up screaming before Ed could say anything.

    ¡°Argh!¡±

    Clark, who woke up screaming, grabbed his swollen face and stuttered. Pendragon whispered in Clark¡¯s ear.

    ¡°Be quiet. If you don¡¯t want to die.¡±

    Ed honestly admired Clark when he saw him stop screaming and shut his mouth. Ed has no hesitation in dealing with the demon because he has no connection here, but Pendragon did not hesitate a little while dealing with his brother-in-law.

    Even now, he gave Arin a chance, but if that didn¡¯t work, he would break the prince¡¯s neck right away.

    That is how he caught the great demon.

    Arin put her hand on Clark¡¯s head and began to pray. First of all, it seemed to burn the demon¡¯s power with sacred power, but he recovered again. But a terrible scream erupted from his mouth.

    ¡°Argh!¡±

    It was an incredibly terrible scream.

    Soldiers rushed from the sun palace.

    When Pendragon saw them, he walked toward them and said.

    ¡°Keep going.¡±

    Pendragon could prevent 10,000 soldiers if he needed to. Ed, who was looking at his back, looked at Clark again.

    Seeing that he was bleeding from his nose, mouth, and ears, Ed thought he was going to die.

    Arin also felt it, so she couldn¡¯t pray anymore and had to stop.

    Over there, soldiers running stopped in front of Pendragon and were unable to do anything.

    Cecilia approached and grabbed Clark¡¯s chin, and looked up, and sighed. Cecilia shook her head when she saw that his eyes were still red.

    ¡°We were told to be warier of the demon as we got stronger.¡±

    Cecilia looked at Clark in the eye and asked.

    ¡°Tell me who it is. Who convinced you to use the demon¡¯s power? If you tell me, I¡¯ll end your pain.¡±

    Clark replied as if he was possessed.

    ¡°David.¡±

    Cecilia nodded and picked up the sword of the guardian knight who was next to her. Ed grabbed her wrist when she tried to swing it.

    As Cecilia turned around, Ed took the sword silently and cut Clark¡¯s neck.

    ¡°Why did you do that for me?¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s your brother.¡±

    Cecilia held Ed¡¯s shoulder silently.

    ¡°Thank you¡±.

    While Cecilia picked up her Halberd and walked to Pendragon, he also turned his head and smiled at Ed. It was a smile of gratitude.

    Thanks to this, Ed earned some points. And he received more experience as a bonus.

 Chapter 58

    Even if it was Pendragon or Cecilia who killed the prince.

    One of them had to take responsibility for killing the prince. Without holding Ed accountable, they were heading to the royal palace with the prince¡¯s body in a carriage.

    The Royal Guard did not dare to touch them.

    They couldn¡¯t touch Pendragon or Cecilia even though they killed the prince.

    Ed wanted to be like them. If he killed someone who did something wrong, he had to hide from his actions, and there was nothing is as annoying as that.

    Ed thought of killing again this time. This was easy thanks to Pendragon.

    For the first time, he entered the royal palace of Travia. He saw it while playing the demon¡¯s Age 1, but it was the first time he actually came in. Ed¡¯s reputation was still far from enough to meet the king.

    While going to the royal palace, he felt the movements of the soldiers in the back.

    Ed looked back at Thane.

    ¡°Aren¡¯t you scared?¡±

    ¡°Scared?¡±

    ¡°All the soldiers in the palace are surrounding us¡±.

    Thane looked at Ed.

    ¡°So, are you scared?¡±

    ¡°No.¡±

    Why would they be scared when Pendragon and Cecilia are with them? They are those who can kill the kings even in such a guarded castle.

    Thane laughed without knowing how Ed felt.

    ¡°You have a very strong heart.¡±

    Arin was staring at Ed silently. How can they be so calm even without their weapons?

    In addition, Ed got goosebumps when he cut the prince¡¯s head for Cecilia.

    During the conversation, their carriage arrived at the Sky Palace.

    The Sky Palace was where the king resides.

    Guards guarding the Sky Palace passed through. When the horse stopped and they got off the carriage, four guards approached the prince¡¯s body behind the carriage and moved it to a glass coffin.

    The prince just died, but they have already prepared a glass coffin.

    Maybe they prepared a coffin in advance?

    When the prince was moved to the glass coffin and the guards carried him on their shoulders, Pendragon and Cecilia took the lead in walking.

    Soldiers lined up on the left and right. They were lowering their crossbows, but they were ready to use them if something happened.

    The king looks scared.

    The elderly man in his 60s sitting on the central throne. Looking at the wrinkles around the eyes, the king must not have been deceived by eternal life. King Raiden, who was wearing a crown, slowly stood up from his seat.

    There were about ten stairs in front of him, and guardians stood in a row on the stairs.

    Raiden looked down at the prince¡¯s body and opened his mouth.

    ¡°Can you explain what happened?¡±

    Pendragon looked still at King Raiden and said.

    ¡°You already knew.¡±

    When Raiden looked up, Pendragon raised his hand to the glass tube that the guards had put down.

    ¡°Clark was using evil power.¡±

    ¡°He had no bad intentions.¡±

    Pendragon shook his head.

    ¡°Evil power always comes with a price. When he uses the power of the demon, he gradually becomes a demon.¡±

    ¡°Is that why you killed him?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    Pendragon replied without any hesitation. Looking at such a Pendragon, Raiden sighed.

    ¡°You hunted the great demon and I granted immunity for all sins you commit in the kingdom. I even allowed you the possession of weapons in the royal palace.¡±

    ¡°I know. You trusted me.¡±

    ¡°I think we have different memories about that time. I still remember when you came into the palace because of Cecilia and pointed a sword at my neck.¡±

    Raiden said so and slowly rose from the throne. As he walked down the stairs, the guardians stepped aside. However, only one young guardian knight blocked the king.

    Pendragon smiled.

    ¡°Looks like there is still someone I can trust in.¡±

    The other guardians saw Pendragon¡¯s skills in person. So, they did not block the king, but the young guardian knight he saw for the first time blocked Pendragon to protect the king.

    Raiden also smiled, patted the guardian knight on the shoulder, and walked past him and down the stairs. When he saw the young guardian knight following, Pendragon asked.

    ¡°What¡¯s your name?¡±

    ¡°Logan.¡±

    ¡°I remember that name.¡±

    Raiden stood in front of a glass coffin next to Pendragon. Then he stroked the glass coffin and sighed.

    ¡°Did you know?¡±

    ¡°What do you mean?¡±

    ¡°The aristocrats of the Prince¡¯s sect, led by the Minister of Caren, were putting pressure on them to unite and hand over the throne?¡±

    Pendragon¡¯s thick eyebrows wriggled.

    ¡°They¡¯re crazy.¡±

    Raiden sighed as he stroked the glass coffin.

    ¡°I was going to pass it on anyway, but it¡¯s so heartbreaking, right? Under pressure, I didn¡¯t want to put down my crown. That¡¯s why I¡¯ve been delaying it day by day by day.¡±

    ¡°Why didn¡¯t you tell us?¡±

    ¡°What difference will it make if Cecilia tells you when she¡¯s not interested in taking over the throne? I couldn¡¯t give an excuse to those who were already wary of you and only looking at the opportunity to somehow undermine you.¡±

    Raiden kept stroking the glass coffin. It was like as if he was petting his son¡¯s face.

    Pendragon looked at the figure quietly and asked.

    ¡°Do you know David?¡±

    Raiden let out a long sigh.

    ¡°Akalan is divided into two groups. I know that David is on the side of the prince.¡±

    Pendragon sighed while trying to say anything. No matter how much he tried to usurp the throne, his son died. The son who has been with him for the longest time.

    It is natural that tears are formed in Raiden¡¯s eyes.

    Pendragon turned around and said.

    ¡°There will be only one Akalan left.¡±

    When Pendragon turned around, Raiden called Cecilia with his.

    ¡°Cecilia. Now you are the first heir to the throne.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not going to succeed to the throne.¡±

    ¡°Your stubbornness remains the same.¡±

    Raiden looked at Pendragon¡¯s back and asked.

    ¡°Although he was using evil power, he was the prince. Can we have a funeral for him?¡±

    ¡°Sure. I¡¯m not interested in the dead anyway.¡±

    Raiden knew that Pendragon was considerate. In other words, he protected the honor of the royal family without spreading rumors about the prince who was using demonic powers.

    The prince used the demon¡¯s power?

    Not only will the Astron Church go crazy, but neighboring countries will not shut up.

    In particular, it has been just over a year since the Dalian Kingdom was merged.

    With the death of Prince Cliff already infested with the public sentiment of the kingdom of Dalia, the Crown Prince tried to gather the troops of the nobles and regain the kingdom of Dalia.

    If they had killed Malot, who remained in the kingdom of Dalia, they would have been able to bring the merit of merging the kingdoms.

    While using the power of the demon, the prince wanted to be the greatest king in the history of the kingdom of Travia. Perhaps if he wasn¡¯t stopped this time, he might have done something bigger.

    No matter how powerful the kingdom of Travia is, it will collapse.

    Although the prince¡¯s death was sad, it was better for the kingdom. And while this is happening, it¡¯s time to bring the nobles in the kingdom together.

    ¡°I will not let his death go to waste.¡±

    Raiden stopped touching the glass coffin and opened his mouth.

    ¡°Prepare the crown prince¡¯s funeral. His cause of death is a heart attack.¡±

    There were a lot of guards watching, but as long as Clark died, the palace still belonged to the king. Everything will go his way.

    The aftermath of the prince¡¯s sudden death on the royal road overturned rumors of events that have occurred so far.

    As the death of the prince was held by the director, everyone in the royal road had to wear black, and a black flag was hung in front of the doors of all stores.

    Everyone held their breath and had to remain solemn for three days. Caren ground his teeth.

    ¡°This, stupid guy!¡±

    Caren had eyes and ears in the royal family. They said that the prince died of a heart attack, but it certainly happened after Pendragon and Cecilia entered the palace.

    There was no way that the post-war relationship could not be grasped.

    However, there was something incomprehensible. Why did Pendragon, who had been so quiet, start to move?

    He usually does not get involved in politics, so why did this happen? They usually dispatched Pendragon when beasts appeared.

    Perhaps because Pendragon knew the dangers of beasts, he did not refuse the requests.

    Didn¡¯t he come back from a beast hunt only yesterday?

    ¡°Vandes. We should take a closer look at the nobles of the Prince¡¯s group. I¡¯ll write a letter, so send someone to them.¡±

    ¡°Okay.¡±

    Caren sat at his desk and quickly wrote letters, grinding his teeth. His dream collapsed one step ahead. As long as the prince and the second prince died, Cecilia became the first successor to the throne.

    However, she has publicly stated her position so far that she is not interested in the throne.

    He can¡¯t change her mind like a coin flip. If so, there had to be another successor to the throne.

    Then, a name came to mind. A person who had no power.

    ¡°Emilia.¡±

    ¡°Are you talking about the investigator?¡±

    ¡°Yes. Her.¡±

    She is far behind in the throne¡¯s succession and has no power, but she is an attractive person. If the nobles of the Prince¡¯s group take her side, she can approach the throne.

    And as she had no power, the position of the Prince¡¯s group can rise significantly.

    She is also a woman who is influenced by the king as she was appointed as an investigator. Maybe the king will like her too.

    ¡°Send this letter and research everything about Emilia.¡±

    A crisis is an opportunity.

    Those who gathered at the restaurant were emptying their glasses. Pendragon spoke at the gathering.

    ¡°I decided to join Cecilia in cutting down the rotten affected parts of the kingdom. First of all, it is urgent to find out how far Akalan¡¯s David has reached. There won¡¯t be many people who can withstand the temptation of eternal life through the power of the demon.¡±

    Ed thought for a moment and asked.

    ¡°Are you going to get rid of all the Akalan?¡±

    ¡°No. I won¡¯t touch the king¡¯s group. Because their net function cannot be ignored. I¡¯m going to cooperate with them and catch David.¡±

    Ed suddenly remembered Brant. Dealing with the power of the demon, Ed thinks it must be one of the main characters of demon¡¯s Age 2. Is he with David?

    Then he dies at the hands of Pendragon.

    The butterfly effect of meeting the prince and revealing that he was using the power of the demon became a terrifying typhoon and was blowing.

    Pendragon looked at Ed.

    ¡°I apologize in advance for the hardships you¡¯ve experienced so far because of Akalan.¡±

    Ed smiled bitterly at the words. It was not accurate whether those who aimed for him were the king or prince. David is said to have provided the Prince with the power of the demon, but the entire Akalan may have been supporting this experiment.

    But Ed didn¡¯t want to rely on Pendragon for everything. Ed can do his own job and Pendragon can do his job.

    ¡°It¡¯s okay. The hardships are making me stronger.¡±

    At Ed¡¯s answer, Pendragon burst into laughter. As he emptied the drink, Ed thought that.

    Ed saw this time what happens when someone touches the sleeping lion¡¯s nose hair.

    While Ed was away, the butler shouted outside the door.

    ¡°Investigator Emilia is here.¡±

    Cecilia stood up tilting her head.

    ¡°Emilia?¡±

    The door opened and a woman with navy short hair and a black cape came in. Cecilia approached her and held her hand and asked.

    ¡°Emilia, when did you grow so big?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m here to carry out my official duties.¡±

    ¡°Official duties?¡±

    Emilia walked past Cecilia to Ed¡¯s front. And she looked down at Ed, who was sitting in the chair, and said.

    ¡°Ed, I¡¯m arresting you as a suspect in the attack on Caren and murder of Walter, the slave merchant.¡±

 Chapter 59

    Ed thought it was fortunate that Dex had the white band. If Dex had been seen by the investigator, Ed would have been the suspect in the kidnapping of Dex.

    But Ed thought this lady was amazing.

    Given that she is trying to arrest a person after breaking into Pendragon¡¯s house.

    Looking at the way she talked to Cecilia, it sounded she was from the royal family.

    That¡¯s why she was so bold.

    Ed rose from his seat without hesitation.

    ¡°Sister-in-law.¡±

    As Pendragon intervened in the middle, Emilia looked back at him.

    ¡°I want to call you brother-in-law, but Cecilia and I are not real sisters, so I will call you Sir. You should not intervene in this situation. I¡¯m in charge of this investigation under the order of the kingdom.¡±

    Pendragon smiled and looked back at Cecilia. Cecilia replied with her arm around Emilia¡¯s shoulder.

    ¡°Emilia, I knew you were smart since you were young. Looks like I can¡¯t do anything about this.¡±

    Pendragon shook his head and looked back at Ed.

    ¡°What should I do?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll go with her.¡±

    Then Arin stood up.

    ¡°I¡¯ll go together with you.¡±

    Arin calmly said as everyone¡¯s attention was focused.

    ¡°I¡¯d like to make sure you do not investigate unfairly. Although I don¡¯t think you¡¯ll do that while Pendragon is in town.¡±

    Pendragon burst into laughter.

    ¡°Hahaha. I guarantee that. They¡¯re my guests, and they won¡¯t suffer anything unfair.¡±

    Pendragon¡¯s gaze turned to Emilia.

    ¡°Sister-in-law. Are you going to arrest him at the palace? Then I have to go as a witness.¡±

    Emilia looked at Pendragon with a sick and tired look. As part of the royal family, she knows the truth of the prince incident that happened. She doesn¡¯t know if Pendragon used his own hands or not, but he entered the sun palace and the prince died.

    That was not all.

    She heard that he went to the main Palace and proudly explained to the king about his immunity.

    When he entered the palace, all the royal guardians followed him. They followed in case he would harm the king, but he wants to enter the royal palace again?

    Emilia shook her head.

    ¡°Please give me a room for interrogation.¡±

    ¡°Sure, if that¡¯s the case.¡±

    When Pendragon beckoned, the butler approached and guided her. Ed walked with Emilia after the butler. He guided them to the guest room.

    Sitting on a sofa on one side of a quiet house-sized guest room, Ed looked at Emilia sitting opposite to him. When she took off her black cape and put it on a chair, her black uniform appeared.

    Ed measured the skills of the guardian knight standing behind her, then looked at her again.

    In the meantime, she took out a notebook and was looking at Ed.

    ¡°I¡¯ll ask you about the attack of Caren and the murder of Walter, the slave merchant. Do you admit to the charges?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    When Ed answered, Emilia¡¯s eyes shook slightly. She didn¡¯t know Ed would answer so honestly.

    ¡°Well, that was easy. May I know why?¡±

    ¡°Caren kidnapped and detained my friend and put a curse on him. Not only that, but he also locked others up using curses.¡±

    ¡°Is that why you attacked him?¡±

    ¡°I was caught killing the abuser, and it was an inevitable choice to save my colleague. So I didn¡¯t kill Caren.¡±

    Emilia thought as she wrote it down in her notebook. If Caren knew this, he wouldn¡¯t forgive Ed, but even if he knew, he knew he couldn¡¯t do much.

    After all, Ed was Pendragon¡¯s guest.

    ¡°Then why did you kill Walter?¡±

    ¡°Caren sold one of my friends to Walter, the slave merchant. It was an illegal sale. Caren thought she would sell at a high price because she was a dwarf and beautiful, but Walter tried to kill me on the way to save her, so I had no choice but to kill him.¡±

    ¡°So, it was self-defense¡±.

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    Emilia asked Ed while looking at what she wrote in her notebook.

    ¡°Where are the friends you saved?¡±

    ¡°They left the royal road because they had work to do.¡±

    ¡°So, you don¡¯t have any witnesses?¡±

    ¡°I can¡¯t say he¡¯s a witness, but there¡¯s someone else I rescued from there.¡±

    ¡°Is it someone you rescued from Caren¡¯s house?¡±

    ¡°Yes. Mr. Gadoin once called the main character of the Southern aristocratic Union¡¯s rebellion. He was trapped underground in a separate building.¡±

    ¡°Why isn¡¯t he a witness?¡±

    ¡°Because he is suffering from many aftereffects from the curse he was put on.¡±

    ¡°Then, he can¡¯t be a witness from Caren¡¯s house.¡±

    ¡°Yes, that¡¯s true.¡±

    ¡°So now you have no evidence or any witness.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s what I¡¯m saying.¡±

    Emilia looked up at Ed. As long as Pendragon was involved, she could not catch Ed, but she had to report.

    ¡°Is this related to the disappearance of the champion?¡±

    ¡°No.¡±

    Ed lied about that part because he had to keep it a secret until the end.

    Emilia looked at Ed quietly and sighed.

    She wondered what this man was.

    If Caren was illegally imprisoning people and illegally selling slaves, the direction of the investigation will change. Especially if Gado was involved.

    The kingdom was overturned by the rebellion of the Confederate nobility. Although the kingdom of Magelta also actively denied it, there were traces of communication in the house of Gado, and quite a few nobles died at that time.

    In the end, the fact that Gado was alive will reveal Caren¡¯s lie.

    Caren might be in big trouble.

    In addition, Walter¡¯s death could be interpreted as self-defense. Ed¡¯s words were consistent with the testimony of the gladiators.

    If all of his claims were true, Walter, the slave merchant, was also suspended for illegal trading, and he would have to pay considerable compensation.

    ¡°Can I meet your friends?¡±

    ¡°I think that¡¯s going to be a little difficult. Because they¡¯re busy.¡±

    Emilia covered her notebook and said.

    ¡°Then I¡¯d like to check on Mr.Gado before I go.¡±

    Ed nodded and stood up from his seat. When they left the guest room and talked to Pendragon, he gladly guided them to where Mr. Gado was.

    The curse condition of Mr. Gado recovered thanks to Arin, but his body had not yet recovered.

    She looked at Gado quietly and opened her mouth.

    ¡°I¡¯ll report this to our Highness. Don¡¯t leave the royal road until the results come out.¡±

    At Emilia¡¯s words, Ed nodded.

    ¡°How did you find me?¡±

    ¡°I got help.¡±

    ¡°From Akalan¡±?

    Emilia stared at Ed. She wondered what the hell this man was. He¡¯s really a man who knows everything.

    ¡°That¡¯s right.¡±

    Ed can¡¯t escape Akalan¡¯s eyes within the royal road.

    ¡°I¡¯ll stay here until the results come out.¡±

    ¡°Yes, please.¡±

    Emilia bowed her head slightly, greeted Cecilia and Pendragon, and left. Ed, who was watching her leave, realized something.

    What would have happened to him without Pendragon?

    He would have been released eventually, but it would have been very troublesome.

    Under the dark basement.

    A rat was seen by the lit candle. The rat raises its head and sniffs.

    Squeak!

    The rat that ran up came up onto Diego¡¯s palm. Diego stared at the rat in his hand.

    The translucent rat squeaked and wagged its tail. Diego smiled at the sight of it expressing affection.

    ¡°Dad, did I really do this?¡±

    Juan sat next to Diego and nodded.

    -Yeah. It¡¯s the first spirit command you did with your own powers. Will you name it?

    Diego looked at the rat and opened his mouth.

    ¡°Jerry. I want to name it Jerry!¡±

    -Jerry? That sounds like a nice name. The more you communicate with it, the more your abilities bloom. So try to stay with it longer.

    Juan smiled and said as Diego turned around.

    -I want to be with you longer, but I think it¡¯s better you practice working with Jerry. It¡¯ll help you someday.

    ¡°Are you leaving?¡±

    -I¡¯ll be back again.

    ¡°Okay, see you tomorrow.¡±

    Juan stroked Diego¡¯s head.

    Diego¡¯s powers were growing at an alarming rate. To the extent that he can summon a new spirit while being with Juan, a high-rank demon.

    He could control his spirit command for a longer period of time now. It was the first time that mixed blood with humans controlled the demon¡¯s energy, and it was the first time that he could control his spirit command power.

    When Juan disappeared, Diego put Jerry on the floor. And he tried to communicate, which is the most basic of command techniques. Diego, who had a mysterious experience of sharing senses with each other, sent Jerry out.

    Jerry¡¯s gaze through the rat hole in the basement of Pendragon¡¯s mansion was low, so it was not used to sharing it, but passing quickly through the dark place conveyed a strange sense of speed.

    Jerry, who passed the dark basement while Diego was watching, climbed out of the house. Jerry, who was looking up at the sky, rubbed himself with his front feet and moved.

    Diego tried to move Jerry around. Jerry went to the gymnasium.

    Ed and Dex were seen training at the gymnasium. Dex was training with daggers and Ed was training to throw a round object that he had never seen before.

    Diego was looking at the training of the two from Jerry¡¯s point of view, and a dagger flew from Dex¡¯s hand. Jerry couldn¡¯t even avoid it, but since he was under spirit command, the dagger passed through his translucent body.

    Jerry left because Dex seemed to notice something was strange and was approaching.

    Jerry, who was running through the garden and through the grass for a long time, found a small hole on the wall of Pendragon¡¯s house and escaped.

    During the night, Jerry was wandering around again.

    Perhaps because Jerry was under spirit command, it had the advantage of being faster and less tired than other rats. When Diego summoned Juan, it was difficult to maintain, but now he thinks he can maintain Jerry all night because he recovers faster.

    Jerry was running. Diego felt something weird.

    ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡±

    Something looked familiar. At the same time, he felt reluctant.

    Unable to resist curiosity, Diego sent Jerry there. What Jerry saw as he approached there was a large gate.

    A gate with a pattern of a thorn tree climbing up on a shield. After confirming the soldiers standing on the left and right, Diego sent Jerry straight to the place where he felt the weird energy.

    Jerry ran through the wall.

    ¡°Hmm. Jerry can run through walls too.¡±

    Jerry was moving according to Diego¡¯s will, so it could run through the wall.

    And Jerry got faster and faster. The speed made Diego feel dizzy even though, Jerry was just sharing his sight.

    The place where he felt the energy was a separate house. Jerry, who passed through the wall, raised his head and tried to locate the spot once again.

    When Jerry approached, he saw a staircase going down to the basement. As Jerry went down the stairs, he saw a door and this weird energy coming from inside.

    So he went through the door without hesitation. Jerry went down the stairs connected deeper underground. It is a place where there is a line of prisons on the left and right.

    At the deepest point, Diego felt familiar and reluctant.

    Then, he realized instinctively. That he shouldn¡¯t approach this reluctance.

    Jerry was trying to run away, but he heard a voice from inside.

    ¡°Hmm. What¡¯s that?¡±

    Jerry couldn¡¯t move as if he had seen a cat. And a woman who quietly approached grabbed Jerry¡¯s tail and lifted him up. This can¡¯t be? Jerry was under a spirit command spell. Jerry saw the red light shining inside the black eyes of the woman who grabbed his tail and lifted him.

    She looked Jerry in the eye and said.

    ¡°I was really sad because one of my students died, but looks like a cute friend came to visit me. Who are you?¡±

    As soon as Diego tried to stop sharing his senses with Jerry, he heard the woman¡¯s voice.

    ¡°There you are¡±.

    Before he could stop sharing his senses with Jerry, Jerry¡¯s body was smashed and Diego felt a terrible pain.

    ¡°Argh!¡±

 Chapter 60

    Everyone gathered at Diego¡¯s scream. Diego was struggling unconscious, and Sophia held his hand tightly and wiped his forehead with a towel.

    Arin couldn¡¯t do anything right now because he had the power of the demon.

    ¡°What happened to Diego? Was he practicing on his spirit command?¡±

    At Ed¡¯s question, Thane thought for a while and opened his mouth.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know much about spirit command, but I think this might be an aftereffect of it.¡±

    ¡°This can¡¯t be because of Juan.¡±

    In order to summon Juan back, it means that Diego had to meet at least an intermediate demon, but if he did, others would have known.

    Thane looked at Diego¡¯s condition and continued.

    ¡°But his condition doesn¡¯t seem very serious. He¡¯ll be able to get up tomorrow.¡±

    ¡°I hope so.¡±

    Ed looked back at others and said.

    ¡°I¡¯ll watch him, so you guys can go rest.¡±

    Sophia shook her head.

    ¡°No, I¡¯ll watch him.¡±

    Looking at Sophia¡¯s expression, Ed nodded and brought a chair, placed it next to the bed, and sat on it.

    When others left the room, Sophia swept Diego¡¯s hair and asked carefully.

    ¡°Diego will continue to get hurt like this in the future, right?¡±

    Ed couldn¡¯t easily answer her question. Others have Arin when they are hurt, so they can recover without difficulty, but Diego was different.

    As a spirit commander, there was little risk of injury, but Ed couldn¡¯t make excuses because of this incident.

    Sophia clenched Diego¡¯s hand as she tried to say something more. Sophia looked down and Diego was staring at her.

    ¡°Mom.¡±

    ¡°Yes, Diego. How are you feeling?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m okay.¡±

    Ed thought Diego matured too quickly to respond bravely to his mother¡¯s concern even though he was sweating. He¡¯s still very young.

    Diego looked at Sophia and asked.

    ¡°Mom, I want to drink apple juice.¡±

    Sophia smiled at Diego¡¯s words.

    ¡°I¡¯ll bring it to you soon.¡±

    As Sophia went outside, Diego looked at the ceiling for a while and sighed for a long time before turning to Ed.

    ¡°Brother. I made a new friend while using my spirit command powers.¡±

    ¡°A new friend?¡±

    ¡°Yes, he¡¯s a rat. I think I collapsed while sharing my senses with him.¡±

    Ed put his hand on Diego¡¯s shoulder.

    ¡°You don¡¯t have to be in a hurry. It¡¯s okay to take your time.¡±

    Diego laughed. He knew it after he met Pendragon. Even Ed still needed to grow. The junior who joined the team later than him is Dex, the champion of the royal road.

    From the beginning, Dex had excellent skills enough to face Arin.

    So he had to grow faster.

    As Ed said, it was not time to relax.

    ¡°I met a woman while I was sharing my senses with the rat. I felt something familiar and strange. She could touch the rat that was under spirit command and torn him to death.¡±

    ¡°A woman?¡±

    ¡°Now that I think about it, she had similar to the energy I have.¡±

    ¡°She¡¯s dealing with spirit command?¡±

    ¡°No, she was using a different power.¡±

    Ed made a strong impression on the words. Another power is the power of the demon.

    Does this mean that the woman was a demon?

    ¡°Do you remember where she is?¡±

    ¡°The gate was surrounded by a thorn tree on a shield. I found it underground in the house.¡±

    It¡¯s the house of Caren. The place where the witchcraft man was killed.

    ¡°Have you seen or heard anything else?¡±

    Diego frowned for a moment and exclaimed.

    ¡°Oh! She said that her student recently died.¡±

    Ed killed the witchcraft man and his teacher came to visit? Does the witchcraft man hold the power of the demon?

    When Ed killed a strange witchcraft man, something began to come out.

    Ed reached out his hand and stroked Diego¡¯s head. Thanks to his first spirit command and following the familiar power, he found a woman with the power of the demon.

    This is a lot more power than Ed thought.

    Under Diego¡¯s spirit command, Ed can find those who have the power of the demon. It is a force that can only be used at night.

    ¡°That¡¯s amazing. Good job.¡±

    Diego¡¯s face brightened up at Ed¡¯s words.

    ¡°Really?¡±

    ¡°Yes. So rest for now.¡±

    Diego smiled as if he felt like he had done something good only then. Just in time, Sophia brought in apple juice.

    Ed stood up from his seat and said.

    ¡°Sophia. I¡¯ll let you take care of Diego.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about Diego anymore. I¡¯ll take care of him.¡±

    ¡°He won¡¯t get hurt or anything for now.¡±

    Ed came out and went to the drawing-room. Even though he told everyone to go and rest, everyone was gathered and drank when Ed went inside the room.

    Arin, Dex, and Thane.

    Pendragon and Cecilia were away tonight for work.

    When Ed came in, Thane asked.

    ¡°Did Diego wake up?¡±

    ¡°Yes. As you said, he fainted when he was summoned back into his body.¡±

    ¡°Did he summon a new spirit?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s what he said.¡±

    When Dex handed Ed a drink, Ed, who received the drink, opened his mouth.

    ¡°Diego said he was chasing a familiar energy while sharing his senses with a rat using the spirit command.¡±

    ¡°Familiar energy?¡±

    ¡°He said it was the demon¡¯s energy.¡±

    Thane glinted at the words.

    ¡°He has a new sensing ability?¡±

    ¡°It looks like that.¡±

    Thane also pointed out what Ed thought right away. Ed continued to talk after quenching his throat.

    ¡°I saved Kyle and killed the witchcraft man.¡±

    ¡°Yes, you told me that.¡±

    ¡°The person Diego met today is the teacher of the witchcraft man.¡±

    Everyone¡¯s faces hardened. Arin opened her mouth with a nervous look.

    ¡°The witchcraft man had the power of the demon?¡±

    ¡°It looks like that.¡±

    ¡°What are you going to do?¡±

    Ed replied while looking at the pumpkin liquor from the glass.

    ¡°I have to catch her.¡±

    Ed thought there would be a lot of things that would come out one after another if they were related to demons.

    Caren was looking at the documents handed over by Vandes. Documents with everything written about Emilia.

    Caren looking at the documents, frowned when he saw the wind blowing and the documents flapping. He thought the window was clearly closed.

    ¡°Vandes. Close the window.¡±

    When he saw Vandes standing in front of him with no answer, Caren frowned and raised his head. However, Vandes stood with blank eyes, and a woman he saw for the first time stood next to him.

    The woman dressed as a simple traveler was caressing Vandes¡¯ cheeks.

    Was he attacked?

    Caren stretched his back with a slight frown. Caren¡¯s eyes turned to the woman.

    ¡°Why didn¡¯t you close the window? The night air is cold.¡±

    The woman smiled at the words and flicked her finger. Seeing the window closed silently, Caren guessed she was a magician.

    A magician that Vandes could not even touch.

    ¡°Why have you come to see me?¡±

    When the woman bounced her finger, Vandes put his knee on the floor and fell down. Sitting on Vandes¡¯ back, she sat with her legs crossed and said with her feet tilted.

    ¡°My student died.¡±

    The woman talked about the story of her student.

    Caren guessed the situation.

    ¡°Isperto died in the hands of the man who attacked me.¡±

    ¡°Did you find out who it was?¡±

    Caren shook his head at the words.

    ¡°Not yet.¡±

    The woman got up from her seat and approached Caren. Caren tried not to make eye contact with her.

    When she saw Caren avoiding her gaze, the woman touched his shoulder and said.

    ¡°Find out by tomorrow.¡±

    ¡°Will you kill me if I can¡¯t?¡±

    The woman bowed her head and whispered into Caren¡¯s ear.

    ¡°No. I¡¯m not going to kill you. You¡¯ll beg me to kill you, but I won¡¯t kill you. Forever.¡±

    The woman walked through the window. Caren spoke to her as she was about to leave.

    ¡°Let Vandes go.¡±

    The woman turned around and smiled at the words.

    ¡°If you can¡¯t find out by tomorrow, you won¡¯t be able to laugh and talk.¡±

    The window opened and she disappeared, and Vandes came to his senses. He jumped up and shook his hand and looked at Caren.

    Caren sighed and pointed out the window.

    ¡°Close the window.¡±

    ¡°Okay.¡±

    Vandes tilted his head, approached the window, closed the window, and returned. He didn¡¯t remember why he was lying on the floor, and he couldn¡¯t understand why the window was open.

    Caren sighed and opened his mouth.

    ¡°Have you found the attacker yet?¡±

    ¡°The Norman and Gilliam brothers are looking for him too, but it must not be easy.¡±

    Caren got up from his seat and put his coat on.

    ¡°Where are you going?¡±

    ¡°Get ready. We have to go somewhere.¡±

    Caren took the lead, and Vandes tilted his head as he suddenly wondered why Caren was rushing out while looking at the documents.

    King Raiden smiled in vain.

    ¡°I can¡¯t believe it.¡±

    Pendragon asked again.

    ¡°You really didn¡¯t know?¡±

    ¡°I didn¡¯t know.¡±

    ¡°If you really didn¡¯t know, there are two things. Either the Akalan group was incompetent. Or he tricked the king.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s very serious either way.¡±

    Raiden took a step and held the hand of Gado. Gado sat blankly even though Raiden held his hand.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry about what happened. I¡¯ve made you this way.¡±

    Raiden slowly got up from his seat and looked at Pendragon.

    ¡°Are you going to help him?¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s nothing much I can do. No matter who the next throne is handed over to.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s true.¡±

    If Pendragon helps, it will be over simply, but only then can this person who will inherit the next throne also get out of the shadow. If possible, it is better if there is a distance between Pendragon and the royal family.

    Raiden¡¯s gaze turned to the woman sitting with Cecilia in the back.

    ¡°Emilia, can you take over the throne?¡±

    At Raiden¡¯s words, Emilia could see that this was a rare opportunity in her life.

    The successors to the throne died one after another. There are still people who are in high rank above her, but no one has taken this opportunity.

    This is because her mother is the younger cousin of the current king, and although she is far from the throne, she went to the Kingdom Academy and graduated there.

    In contrast to the fact that other royal families were far from the hierarchy, new changes were unfolding before their eyes.

    Emilia was trying to get a good government job, not just as a vain royal family. But this was opening her way to becoming a queen.

    ¡°If you leave this to me, I¡¯ll take care of everything with all my heart.¡±

    At Emilia¡¯s answer, Cecilia burst into laughter.

    ¡°Emilia, you¡¯re so stern.¡±

    Pendragon nodded and spoke as if he agreed with Raiden.

    ¡°Sister-in-law. Don¡¯t forget why this is all possible.¡±

    This accident shook the royal road, but the man who was behind this accident created an opportunity for her. If all this worked out well and Emilia became the queen, she thought it was all thanks to Ed. She appreciated everything that was happening.

    The man who seems to know everything.

    A rare smile was seen on Emilia¡¯s face when she recalled Ed¡¯s face for a moment.

    ¡°I won¡¯t forget.¡±

 Chapter 61

    A man, who was standing behind the window of the hotel¡¯s room overlooking the central square of the royal road, slowly turned back. The handsome man with short blond hair was tall and stood smiling.

    ¡°Why did you come to see me in person? I understand that we shouldn¡¯t be meeting like this.¡±

    ¡°There was something urgent, so I couldn¡¯t help it.¡±

    The handsome man who was looking at Caren¡¯s complexion asked to sit.

    ¡°Let¡¯s sit down and talk.¡±

    When Caren sat down, Vandes stood behind him. Vandes was in a place he had never been to before, and his opponent was also a person he had never seen before. He was honestly disappointed that he did not know this man, but he was faithful to his work.

    ¡°Miller. I need help.¡±

    The handsome man, named Miller, smiled and looked at Caren quietly. Caren sighed at the gaze and said.

    ¡°I¡¯m sure you heard that I was attacked¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s a lot of rumors on the royal road, and of course I heard it.¡±

    ¡°Did you figure out who that person is?¡±

    Miller said, pouring the wine.

    ¡°There are people who can predict it. But why are you looking for him?¡±

    ¡°Do you think I¡¯ll be able to find him? I need revenge on him.¡±

    Miller poured alcohol into his glass and said.

    ¡°You don¡¯t have time for that¡±.

    Caren¡¯s frowned.

    ¡°What are you talking about?¡±

    ¡°The troops moved in the royal palace. Someone said they are headed to your mansion.¡±

    ¡°What?¡±

    ¡°Seeing that you managed to meet me, you¡¯re not out of luck yet.¡±

    Caren was speechless. Troops were heading from the royal palace? He was the head of the Prince¡¯s group.

    There was something that suddenly came to mind.

    He found Isperto¡¯s body in the underground laboratory and disposed of all the remaining people. He gave up the imprisoned people to be killed or to be used in research.

    He thought he just had to clean up the remaining evidence.

    Is that problem holding him back?

    Why is the king dispatching troops? It was still the period of mourning for the prince.

    Caren spoke quickly to Miller.

    ¡°Help me.¡±

    Miller held up the wine glass and shook it. Miller, who was still looking at wine in a color resembling an amethyst, looked back at Caren.

    The money, time, and information entered to embrace him as the head of the Prince¡¯s group are beyond imagination.

    Caren must have thought that they could help each other.

    He was confident that this was a successful investment because he was keeping Pendragon in check and led the prince to the brink of the throne.

    However, when Pendragon began to move, the prince became a kite that fell.

    The prince was dead, and royal forces were trying to catch Caren.

    Miller had to decide if it was worth investing in Caren. That was Miller¡¯s own decision, one of the three captains of Kelberos, the special forces of the Magelta Kingdom.

    Is there a need to risk his life for Caren¡¯s escape?

    Miller knew that Caren planted a person in the royal palace, so it was still worth saving him.

    ¡°Okay, but from now on, you have to follow our orders thoroughly.¡±

    ¡°Yes, indeed. And I want my guardian knight to escape with me.¡±

    ¡°Of course. We¡¯re thankful if Vandes comes with us.¡±

    When Miller bounced his finger, the door opened and two women came in.

    They looked like hotel employees. They handed Caren and Vandes a black cape with hoods.

    It was a traveler¡¯s cape that was common.

    ¡°Change into that first.¡±

    Miller emptied the wine while Carene and Vandes were changing their capes.

    ¡°The agents behind us will guide you. All the doors of the royal road are closed now, so wait until the door opens tomorrow. I¡¯ll let you get out of the royal road as soon as the sun rises tomorrow.¡±

    ¡°Thank you.¡±

    When Caren and Vandes stepped down, a woman quietly appeared behind Miller.

    ¡°Miller. Not only will our hideout spot, but also the lives of our agents will be in danger.¡±

    ¡°I know.¡±

    Miller poured the wine back into the glass and spoke in a calm voice.

    ¡°It¡¯s because he¡¯s still worth it. In addition, we¡¯ve been working hard for him the last 16 years, so it¡¯s a waste to just let him die.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re going too far with this.¡±

    Miller lifted a wine glass and shook it, then smiled.

    ¡°It¡¯s okay. Tell me that next time. So that I can think about it one more time.¡±

    Miller looked out the window, emptying the wine.

    ¡°Fortunately, the royal road is disorganized by the death of the prince, so if they have luck, they can get out of it.¡±

    Caren¡¯s Room.

    Emilia sat in a chair in front of the bed and briefly investigated, but now the room was turned over by the soldiers.

    Emilia walked to the window and looked down at the garden of the mansion.

    It was after soldiers from the royal palace overpowered all the soldiers in the mansion and tied them up.

    Starting with the main house, she was searching carefully, but she couldn¡¯t find Caren.

    Then, she heard a voice behind her.

    ¡°I brought the butler.¡±

    When Emilia turned around, the butler of Caren was dragged into the room.

    When he kneeled down, Emilia brought back the chair she had placed next to the bed, sat there, and asked.

    ¡°I can¡¯t find Caren.¡±

    They even looked inside his secret room. Even though it was such a surprise, Caren was not there.

    He hadn¡¯t even recovered from his injury yet.

    ¡°He had dinner and hurried out somewhere on a horse with Lord Vandes.¡±

    It is already known that someone in the royal palace has been tipping Caren. But Emilia never thought this surprise would fail. He moved very fast.

    Emilia stood up and said.

    ¡°Ban. Contact the royal garrison to block all royal gates and search. We can¡¯t miss him.¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    Emilia, who was looking halfway out of the butler¡¯s office, looked out of the window again. Caren is now unable to escape within the royal road.

    However, if she misses him, he will join forces with the nobles in the south.

    Something that could lead to rebellion in the kingdom. Caren was already the head of the Prince¡¯s group, so it would not be difficult to lead them.

    She had to prevent such a thing.

    Emilia¡¯s eyes turned to the woman standing behind her.

    ¡°Look for him.¡±

    ¡°I released the agents. We¡¯ll find him soon.¡±

    In response to Akalan team leader Berry¡¯s answer, Emilia habitually took out her notebook and looked inside. Then she folded her notebook and walked out.

    ¡°Did you deliver the order?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    ¡°Follow me.¡±

    As Emilia climbed on the horse in front of the mansion, she looked at Berry, who followed her.

    ¡°Let¡¯s find him before the night is over. It¡¯s mourning period, so we can¡¯t make a fuss, so we have to catch him secretly. If it¡¯s too hard to arrest him alive, I give permission to slit his throat.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll do that. May I ask where you¡¯re going now?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m on my way to ask for help.¡±

    Emilia ran straight ahead. Ban, who was following Emilia, asked.

    ¡°Where are you going in such a hurry?¡±

    ¡°I told you. I¡¯m going to ask for help.¡±

    He wanted to ask who the hell she was going to ask for help at this night, but he put up with it for now. He believed that he would find out soon.

    It was in front of Pendragon¡¯s mansion that Emilia stopped her horse. The soldiers saw Emilia and blocked her.

    ¡°Stop.¡±

    Emilia stopped and took the golden plaque out of her arms and held it out to them.

    ¡°I¡¯m Emilia, the Law Enforcement Officer.¡±

    The soldier who confirmed the golden plaque asked.

    ¡°Why are you here at this late hour?¡±

    ¡°I came because I had something to do. Is Pendragon and the Princess back?¡±

    ¡°They haven¡¯t returned yet.¡±

    Emilia nodded and said.

    ¡°I have business with the guests. Can I go in?¡±

    The guards couldn¡¯t stop her because she had a golden plaque given by the royal family. If they really wanted to block her, it¡¯s not impossible because they could use Pendragon as an excuse, but they decided to let her in.

    When the door opened, Emilia ran with Ban. Emilia ran to the main building.

    While running like that, Emilia suddenly turned her head. She felt a gaze in the dark.

    When she turned her head and checked, she could see that it was an owl with large eyes. Seeing owls in the royal road was not common, but Emilia shook her head and headed straight to Pendragon¡¯s main house.

    Without knowing that the owl kept looking at her.

    When Emilia arrived at the main house, the butler was waiting at the door as she got off the horse.

    ¡°Emilia, what brings you here late at night?¡±

    Emilia approached the butler and asked.

    ¡°I want to meet Ed. Where is he?¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s inside, but may I ask what¡¯s going on?¡±

    ¡°I have a favor to ask of him.¡±

    The butler turned around and guided her. While walking behind the butler, Emilia was not sure whether her decision was the right one or not.

    They arrived in the drawing-room, some people were inside as if they were waiting. They, who were talking with all their weapons packed, could not hide their curiosity when they saw Emilia.

    ¡°Investigator Emilia?¡±

    When Ed stood up and asked, Emilia, realized why she came to him.

    It¡¯s because of this person¡¯s eyes.

    His eyes look like he can do anything. He was a person who she can trust anything.

    ¡°Now I¡¯m a Law Enforcement Officer.¡±

    ¡°Law Enforcement Officer?¡±

    Ed enjoyed the demon¡¯s era 1, but he does not know in detail the position she receive from the royal family. Ed did not understand what job Law Enforcement Officer had to do.

    Seeing Ed¡¯s eyes, Emilia felt a small pleasure that she couldn¡¯t understand.

    ¡°Your Highness confirmed that Gado was alive, and ordered the arrest of Caren. I¡¯m in charge of this arrest.¡±

    ¡°Congratulations.¡±

    Ed was honestly surprised by Emilia¡¯s visit.

    He was preparing for the witchcraft man¡¯s teacher. Ed decided to prepare after hearing that Diego figured out the location of the demon.

    It is unimaginable that someone will invade Pendragon¡¯s house, but this was so unpredictable that they decided to protect this place today.

    Ed thought it was certain that the witchcraft man was receiving the power of the demon.

    So he was waiting armed, and Emilia came to me.

    ¡°Thank you. I took the liberty to come here because I had a favor to ask.¡±

    Ed never thought Emilia would ask a favor. After all, she came to arrest him earlier this morning.

    If it weren¡¯t for Cecilia and Pendragon, she wouldn¡¯t have listened to Ed.

    ¡°What favor?¡±

    Emilia seemed to catch her breath for a moment and opened her mouth.

    ¡°Help me arrest or assassinate Caren.¡±

    This was an unexpected request. Ed heard she¡¯s running the job now, so why does he need to help her?

    ¡°I raided his house immediately after receiving the order, but he was already gone. I ordered to block the door of the royal road and track him down, but if I miss him, the southern nobles could gather and rebel, so I came to ask for help.¡±

    Ed was lost in thought for a moment when he heard that. How can he find a person on the royal road?

    ¡°Isn¡¯t Akalan helping you? Do you need my help?¡±

    With Akalan¡¯s eyes and ears, it will not be difficult to find his whereabouts within the royal road.

    ¡°It¡¯s just a feeling. I really need your help to find Caren.¡±

    A feeling?

    However, she cannot be ignored since she is part of the royal family. It is said that the order of succession to the throne is quite delayed, but

    Cecilia clearly said she would not take over the throne.

    If so, Emilia will approach the throne if she contributes to arresting or killing Minister Caren.

    Ed couldn¡¯t refuse Emilia¡¯s request.

    ¡°If I can kill him, I¡¯ll help you.¡±

    Emilia smiled. Come to think of it, He has never seen this woman smile yet.

    ¡°Thank you.¡±

    Then, Ed felt Arin¡¯s strange gaze behind his back.

 Chapter 62

    At first, Arin wondered what was going on with Emilia. She didn¡¯t think she would come back after investigating Ed.

    And she could see Emilia¡¯s eyes shaking the moment she faced Ed. She realized something intuitively.

    Something happened to Emilia¡¯s heart.

    And she has made a ridiculous request. Why does she need Ed¡¯s help to catch Caren?

    Caren was using the power of the demon. He was just a sinner among humans. Why does Ed have to help her catch or kill someone like that?

    This is an abuse of authority.

    Even before Arin could say anything, Ed accepted her request. Arin looked at Ed.

    Then Ed turned around and approached Arin.

    ¡°Arin. I have a favor to ask of you.¡±

    ¡°Yes?¡±

    ¡°Can I borrow the eyes of Astron church?¡±

    The number of members of the Astron Church in the Kingdom of Travia is approximately over 80%. Compared to other denominations, it has so many members that it is overwhelming. The church gathers all kinds of information.

    The eyes of the Astron church are used to identify those who are possessed by the demon and show unusual behavior.

    It is mainly used by heresy interrogators, but she didn¡¯t know Ed would ask her to use it.

    Holy knights can use the eyes of Astron church, but why at night? Moreover, this is a political matter.

    ¡°The eyes of Astron church can only be used to catch demons.¡±

    Ed smiled. He thought she was so innocent.

    There is no place as sensitive to politics as the denomination.

    ¡°Can we go to the temple and meet Archbishop Benedict.¡±

    Arin knew that this request was to do Emilia¡¯s favor.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go then.¡±

    Ed looked back at Emilia.

    ¡°You can come with us.¡±

    When Ed spoke, Emilia must have been thinking about something else.

    ¡°Ah! Yes.¡±

    Arin was unhappy with her, but she just took the lead because she was a holy knight.

    ¡°Dex. Keep this place safe.¡±

    Dex put down his drink and began to shine. He seemed to need some tension.

    Thane waved and said.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry too much. This is Pendragon¡¯s house. Nobody will come unless they¡¯re crazy.¡±

    ¡°Then we¡¯ll be back soon.¡±

    Ed moved after Arin. The butler had already prepared two horses, so they were able to get on and move straight.

    Ed, who was confirming that Emilia and Ban were running behind, suddenly felt a gaze. An owl was sitting on a branch where he could watch the mansion.

    As soon as Ed saw it, he instinctively felt reluctant. If it were a regular owl, it would not stare at a person.

    Ed pulled out an arrow. If it¡¯s a regular owl, he can grill it later anyway.

    As the arrow fired by Ed flew like a thunderbolt, the owl flapped its wings and flew away. Ordinary owls cannot be agile enough to avoid arrows.

    Even if it was looking at it with its eyes.

    Ed turned in the direction of the arrow. The moment the arrow hit the flying owl¡¯s chest, it froze and fell to pieces.

    When Arin saw it, she slowed down the horse and asked.

    ¡°Why did you kill that owl?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not an ordinary owl. Magicians that use witchcraft have a lot of talents. They can be fearless.¡±

    Since Ed recognized it, Pendragon would have noticed it right away too. And if it had offended Pendragon, it might have been torn apart.

    Especially if you are a magician with the power of the demon.

    Arin was shattered by the words for a while and looked at the dead owl and turned away. She also looked at the owl as if it were passing by. She had a question for a moment, but she didn¡¯t even think about asking it.

    Ed was moving at Emilia¡¯s request, but he was always tense. Arin pulled herself together and drove the horse.

    While following Arin, passing through the place where the great mansion was concentrated and crossing to the central square, the people of the royal road were seen moving busily.

    The reason why so many people move and search does not cause much disturbance is probably because it is the period of mourning for the prince.

    They were quietly searching without making a fuss, perhaps because the rules of the royal road is stricter than expected.

    It is the knights of the Royal Guard who lead them. They checked Emilia, Arin, and Ed, then quickly opened the way.

    They ran loudly on the night of the royal road. They arrived at the church of Astron.

    The tall pillars and roofs reminiscent of Greek temples were impressive. The height of the pillar alone reached 20 meters, so Ed wondered how the heavy rocks were moved and made.

    The investigators who were guarding the front of the church saw Arin and stepped aside.

    The party got off their horse, and a priest from the inside quickly approached.

    ¡°Arin. What brought you here at this late hour?¡±

    ¡°Is the Bishop sleeping?¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s still awake.¡±

    ¡°If so, please take us to him.¡±

    ¡°Follow me.¡±

    Although the priest does not have sacred power, he seemed to be a person who would have a lot of power.

    They went inside, passed through the wide hall.

    Investigators guarding everywhere stood out, and their skills seemed unusual.

    They were comparable to the guards¡¯ Ed saw when he went to the royal palace.

    Passing through them and going inside, there was a staircase. It was a staircase built inside the pillar behind the church Hall. When they went up the stairs, the office located at the highest point appeared.

    It seemed like a workplace, but it was so neat. An old man, sitting at his desk and quietly reading the Bible, quietly covered the Bible and raised his head when Ed and his party arrived.

    ¡°Miss Arin. Why did you come at this late hour?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I came here because I have an urgent request.¡±

    The old man¡¯s gaze passed through Ed, who stood behind Arin, looked through Emilia and Ban, and fixed his gaze on Ed.

    ¡°I know that you are not the type to rudely request something at night, no matter how urgent you are. Are you here because of one of them?¡±

    The old man slowly got up from his seat. The old man with a straight back recommended to sit down.

    While everyone was sitting down, the old man brought a teapot from the side and poured the tea, and Ed admired the steam rising from the teacup. The old man smiled as if he had noticed it.

    ¡°Don¡¯t look at me like that. I¡¯m not spending that much on excessive luxury items.¡±

    Nobody looked at him weirdly. They were just surprised that the teapot looked like a relic class artifact.

    ¡°I¡¯m just surprised by the relics-class artifact that I¡¯ve never seen before.¡±

    The old man smiled and raised the cup. Ed picked up the tea without saying anything and savored the scent first. He was a little surprised that it gave off a very colorful scent.

    Ed quietly took a sip of tea. Contrary to the colorful scent, there was a subtle sweetness. It was a tea that satisfied him.

    The old man opened his mouth while watching Ed savoring the tea.

    ¡°Are you the demon hunter Ed?¡±

    Ed put down the teacup and looked straight at the old man.

    ¡°Yes, I¡¯m Ed.¡±

    The old man eased his stiff-looking eyes and smiled.

    ¡°Miss Arin keeps complimenting you. I treat Arin just like my granddaughter, so that made me feel jealous. I wanted to see what kind of person you really are. I¡¯m Benedict, who was in charge of the royal palace.¡±

    Arin¡¯s face turned red like a persimmon, but Ed couldn¡¯t see her because he was focusing on Benedict.

    ¡°Nice to meet you. Archbishop Benedict. Aron told me about you.¡±

    When Ed took out the artifact he was wearing around his neck and showed it, Archbishop Benedict reached out and touched it, closed his eyes, and prayed quietly. Soon the necklace began to shine.

    ¡°This is just an apology for being mean toward you at first.¡±

    Seeing that the sacred power of the necklace has deepened, Ed also feels strengthened. Ed politely bowed his head.

    ¡°Thank you.¡±

    Benedict turned to Emilia.

    ¡°Nice to see you, sister Emilia. I think you¡¯re on a serious mission. Is that why you came here?¡±

    Emilia is also a person of the Astron Church, so she sometimes came to pray before. But Benedict only saw her from afar and had never had the chance to say hello.

    It was just amazing that Benedict knew her.

    Ed answered instead.

    ¡°I¡¯m looking for Caren. I¡¯m looking for Caren because he¡¯s a sinner.¡±

    ¡°Caren¡¤¡¤¡¤¡±

    Benedict took a sip of tea, looked at Ed, and turned to Emilia.

    Archbishop Benedict is a celebrity within the royal road after King Raiden and Pendragon. He is very famous, but meeting in real life is more difficult than picking stars in the sky.

    Emilia felt nervous at his gaze. The gaze was as if trying to find something from her.

    Benedict put down the teacup and opened his mouth.

    ¡°But this is very political, so it¡¯ll be noisy when people find out that the church is involved.¡±

    Ed could tell from Benedict¡¯s words how strict he was. He was not like Charlie, the Head Priest of Kalim City, but Ed can see that he knows how to mess with politics.

    If you look past his deep sacredness, he was part of the faithful Astron Church and a person with political eyes.

    These people communicate rather well.

    ¡°We won¡¯t forget your gratitude if you help us.¡±

    ¡°You? Or sister Emilia?¡±

    ¡°Both of us.¡±

    It is not pleasant to be in debt, but it is not bad to have a relationship with someone like Archbishop Benedict. Moreover, Ed has no intention of staying on the royal road anyway.

    Since Pendragon is guarding the royal road, Ed can continue to catch demons.

    This debt is ultimately a debt that Emilia has to pay off.

    It¡¯s not bad for Emilia either. She seems to be in the king¡¯s eyes now.

    She would now have a connection with Archbishop Benedict. Archbishop Benedict has no choice but to support her even to properly receive her debt.

    It¡¯s a win-win situation for both of them.

    Ed also looked at Emilia as Archbishop Benedict¡¯s eyes turned to Emilia.

    Emilia, who received the attention of the two, came to her senses.

    Ed vaguely came to her mind while looking at her notebook. And she asked him for help believing that he would definitely solve this problem.

    She was relieved when he said he would help. She saw him only twice, but she wondered if she could trust him like this. It was her first time doing something like this, so she was embarrassed and confused.

    Ed brought her all the way here.

    ¡°I will never forget your help.¡±

    It was only then that Benedict smiled and walked to his desk and spoke.

    ¡°Someone saw Caren at the hotel tonight.¡±

    Benedict continued, leaving a note on the paper.

    ¡°Two went in, four came out, and they said they headed somewhere.¡±

    Benedict looked at Ed as he folded the note.

    ¡°I believe you will understand that this should not be related to the church.¡±

    Ed got up from his seat and approached Benedict. Arin can¡¯t be with them to search for Caren.

    They were just happy that she brought them to see Benedict.

    As Ed approached, Benedict handed over the note and said.

    ¡°I understand.¡±

    Ed smiled as he received the note.

    ¡°Are we friends now?¡±

    Benedict burst into laughter at Ed¡¯s words. After laughing for a while, Benedict smiled and spoke seriously.

    ¡°Were friends. I would like to give you a heads up about those who are with Caren. We haven¡¯t figured out who they are yet.¡±

    When Ed heard that they avoided the Astron church, he thought they were not easy opponents. Ed opened the note and spoke casually.

    ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter. Whoever they are.¡±

    Caren will die before the night is over.

 Chapter 63

    Benedict looked at Arin while drinking tea.

    After Ed left with Ban and Emilia, he continued to be so restless. He kept smiling.

    It was a long time ago that Benedict met both Aron and Arin. They were children who were sacrificed to the group Crosel created by the demon followers who were popular at the time.

    Druid Dread, one of the three heroes, rescued them.

    Seeing the children who seemed to be broken somewhere, Benedict felt fate. And he could see why Crosel was aiming for these children.

    Both of them had great power.

    They could have been the next leader of Crosel if they hadn¡¯t been rescued.

    Aron may have become their ring leader and Arin may have been in charge of their army.

    Both Aron and Arin were almost broken at the time, but Benedict brought took them in, washed, and cared for them every day. So they are really like his grandchildren.

    As they grew older, he knew that the two had different tendencies.

    Aron, who liked to read the Bible and study doctrines, became the youngest principal priest and went to Berne. He gained experience there and returned to the headquarters.

    On the contrary to Aron, Arin was very active and liked to fight. When she was broken, she used to bite Benedict¡¯s arm all the time.

    After Arin came to her senses, she left to meet Master Paladin, who raised her. There, she built up her mentality and became an outstanding holy knight.

    Benedict was slightly worried when e heard that she was the only one who could come out of the altar and chase for blood stones according to the prophecy. He was worried that this might have been because she almost became a sacrifice for Crosel when she was young. But she exceeded his expectations.

    To Benedict, whom she hadn¡¯t met in a long time, she talked nonstop. It was fun at first because he felt like e was watching his granddaughter.

    But all she talked about was Ed! Ed! Ed!

    It made him feel like he had lost his granddaughter. Benedict, who has access to the eyes of Astron church, has heard countless information about Ed.

    After he joined Arin, he was more interested, but he didn¡¯t know she would only talk about him.

    When she learned how to use swords and doctrines under Master Paladine, she was called an example of a holy knight, but he was worried about how this happened.

    He was worried that she was just falling for a crazy man that hunts demons. but Ed, who he met in person, was more useful than he thought.

    He knows how to be sensible. And he was a person who believes in himself.

    He was a good guy.

    Benedict said something to Arin.

    ¡°Don¡¯t you trust him?¡±

    ¡°What? Of course, I trust him.¡±

    ¡°But what are you so worried about?¡±

    Arin bowed her head and grumbled at the words. It was also his first time seeing that, so Benedict said with a happy smile.

    ¡°He¡¯ll come back smiling. Just trust him.¡±

    ¡°Whoo. Okay.¡±

    Arin blew the tea, took a sip, and looked at Benedict.

    ¡°Why do I feel like you know Ed better than me?¡±

    Benedict burst into laughter.

    ¡°My my. I¡¯ve lived long, you know? And he¡¯s also my friend now.¡±

    Arin shook her head at Benedict¡¯s joke and looked out the window. Thinking of Ed somewhere under the night sky of the royal road, Arin drank tea.

    Those who couldn¡¯t be identified. They don¡¯t know who they are and why they are helping Caren. But their location has been identified.

    Ed, who was running on a horse, slowed down the horse¡¯s speed. Emilia and Ban slowed down together while following.

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not far from here. But if we ride the horses, our enemies are more likely to notice, so we¡¯ll have to walk from here.¡±

    When Emilia tried to get off the horse, Ed shook his head.

    ¡°If the Astron Church were not been able to figure out who they are, they will be very dangerous. It¡¯s dangerous to go to their base, so if you wait here with the guardian, I¡¯ll get Caren¡¯s neck.¡±

    Emilia stared at Ed and asked.

    ¡°Are you going to go in alone?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    ¡°Will you be okay?¡±

    Ed smiled at the words.

    ¡°You think it will as dangerous as Caren¡¯s house?¡±

    Only then did Emilia recall the history of this man. He went into the house of Caren, killed the witchcraft man, and rescued his colleague. In the midst of that, he attacked Caren.

    He even infiltrated the Colosseum that belonged to Walter, the slave merchant, to rescue another colleague.

    She visited him because of vague expectations that he would surely be able to catch or kill Caren.

    Emilia bowed.

    ¡°Please take care.¡±

    Ed smiled and jumped onto the wall next to him. As soon as he got off the wall, Emilia muttered when she saw Ed flying away with a cape.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know if I can ask him to do this.¡±

    She was born into a royal family, but she never got the chance to enjoy her royalty. Then, when she graduated from the academy, she had solved everything by herself.

    She didn¡¯t trust anyone easily and didn¡¯t expect anything from anyone else.

    But she was leaning on it as if she were possessed by something now. And she believed in the man who disappeared from sight in an instant.

    Ed prepared an ice arrow. The ice arrow was so strengthened that it was incomparably stronger than before.

    Ed expanded his senses while running on the wall.

    Those who took Caren were not normal people.

    They were are good at hiding themselves among ordinary people.

    Now, Ed found their house. It was a mansion with a small garden. Looking at the mansion with all the lights off, Ed raised his senses to the limit.

    Usually, there was no need to awaken this sense. However, when all senses were awakened, he could feel someone hiding on the roof of the mansion.

    They are well-trained people.

    Unlike Akalan, they were secretive.

    Ed organized his thoughts while preparing an arrow on his bow. He can¡¯t feel the others until he gets inside of the mansion, so he¡¯ll deal with the three people outside first.

    The first arrow was fired to the roof of the mansion, a visible location. The other two were caught by their senses, but they couldn¡¯t confirm with their eyes, so they couldn¡¯t avoid it.

    As soon as the first arrow flew toward the person hiding on the roof of the mansion, Ed got two more arrows and fired them.

    Controlling two arrows consumed a lot of mana, but it was inevitable to catch those who were out of sight.

    As soon as an arrow hit the head of a person hiding on the roof, the other arrows also hit the other two that were hiding in the dark.

    Those who were hiding in the branches were fixed to the tree, so they did not fall, and those who hid in the shadow of the wall also had their heads stuck in the wall.

    Ed, who overpowered all three, ran silently into the mansion. All those who guarded the exterior of the mansion were overpowered.

    Ed hid in the shadow of the wall and looked at the mansion. Ed, who quickly looked at the windows of the mansion, opened the window on the second floor and found that a person was looking outside.

    He didn¡¯t seem to have noticed any unexpected events outside yet.

    It could have been because the arrows flew so quickly, so there was no other noise.

    Ed also fired an arrow at him.

    The arrow that flew through the open wooden window was directly embedded in the opponent¡¯s head. Ed shot an arrow and ran straight into the window.

    He heard a voice downstairs. Perhaps they heard the man collapse.

    ¡°Malton. What¡¯s going on?¡±

    Ed pulled out a sword and a dagger. While Ed, who had the dagger in his left hand, approached the stairs silently, he felt someone approaching the stairs.

    There are at least six people in the mansion.

    When Ed arrived at the stairs first and waited, he saw someone¡¯s feet. Ed threw a dagger and kicked the ground before his face was revealed.

    The person approaching the stairs reacted to the dagger, but he turned his body and avoided fatal injuries. Ed¡¯s sword was embedded in the other man¡¯s shoulder, and cut his neck.

    Ed, who passed by before the neck hit the floor, ran straight toward the place where he could feel the other person.

    The living room of the mansion is where he can feel the presence. Ed, who ran on the stairs, saw people who responded to the sounds of men collapsing.

    Ed swung his sword three short times. The necks of those running after discovering Ed were all cut off.

    Caren, who was sitting on the sofa, finally saw Ed while turning his head.

    Vandes was running toward Ed like a shadow, but Vandes¡¯ sword cut through the air in vain, and his head fell to the floor.

    And Caren watched Ed empty the glass of alcohol on the table.

    Even after seeing Ed empty his glass, Caren couldn¡¯t move. Above all, he couldn¡¯t believe this was happening.

    Everyone died without screaming in the safe house guarded by the special forces of the Magelta Kingdom by an assassin.

    Caren swallowed his dry saliva and opened his mouth.

    ¡°I¡¯ll give you ten times more than what you were offered.¡±

    Ed looked down at Caren when he said that. This man would somehow die at Kyle¡¯s hands even if Ed didn¡¯t kill him. For Kyle, Caren was an enemy to his family.

    If Ed hadn¡¯t rescued Kyle, wouldn¡¯t Merjen eventually save Kyle in some way and later kill Caren?

    When Ed said nothing, Caren pulled out the ring he had in his hand and held it out.

    ¡°This ring is meant to be a ring of regeneration. It¡¯s good at recovering stamina and mana. You¡¯ll be able to get 300 gold.¡±

    The minister of the kingdom of Travia. If he hadn¡¯t left in a hurry, he would have brought a lot of things with him. But that¡¯s all he had right now.

    Ed picked up the ring and asked.

    ¡°Who are these people?¡±

    At Ed¡¯s question, Caren hesitated for a moment. If he reveals their identity, everything will fall.

    However, when he saw Ed¡¯s indifferent eyes, he eventually confessed.

    ¡°They are the Kelberos, the special forces of the Magelta Kingdom.¡±

    In order to plant his people in the southern nobility, he had sinned against Kyle¡¯s family and the southern aristocrats. He was the main culprit of corruption.

    ¡°This is all I have now, but if you take me to the southern land, I¡¯ll repay you dozens of times.¡±

    Ed found out that the southern land had a deep bond with Caren. Ed swung his sword. But he was a little surprised when Caren¡¯s head rolled on the floor.

    Caren¡¯s was not strong, but he gained the most experienced he ever received.

    But isn¡¯t experience accumulated by individual strength?

 Chapter 64

    ¡°Well. Won¡¯t you look at this?¡±

    A cruel smile was seen on a woman lying in bed and looking at the ceiling.

    Her eyes were shining red and bright.

    When the woman raised her body and came out to the living room, the tragedy that happened caught her eyes.

    A man and a woman died with their tongues sticking. They were strangling each other in the middle of the room, and their hearts were opened. Their blood was all over the living room floor.

    The woman stood with her naked body. And when she began to recite a spell in a low voice, blood from the floor gathered to her feet, and as the blood gradually climbed up on her feet, red letters began to shine from her body.

    As the blood climbed up to her lower abdomen, the shining rune letters seemed to be circling, and then it emitted a strong light and disappeared. The woman groaned and trembled.

    She enjoyed the afterglow for a while and put on the clothes she took off.

    ¡°Looks like I lost my favorite pet while trying to find a useful student.¡±

    The woman who opened the window looked at the dark royal road. It looked quiet, but something was going on.

    ¡°There are a lot of fun things coming down from the mountains.¡±

    She flew through the open window and quickly disappeared into the darkness.

    Emilia looked at Ed walking from the dark. Emilia got off her horse when she saw Ed walking with a black bundle in his hand.

    Ed held out a bundle to her and said.

    ¡°It¡¯s the remains of Caren.¡±

    Emilia carefully accepted the bundle. Ed calmly continued to talk to her.

    ¡°I killed all those who were inside. Caren said they were part of the Kelberos, the special forces of the Magelta Kingdom. And they seemed to have a deep bond with Caren and Pelman. You¡¯d better look into them.¡±

    Emilia kept everything Ed said in her memory. Ed walked past her, climbed on his horse, and said.

    ¡°May Astron¡¯s glory be with you.¡±

    Emilia, who was looking away from Ed, looked down at the bundle in her hand. When she looked again, Ed had already turned around the alley and disappeared.

    He disappeared without saying anything else.

    With a short sigh, Emilia put the bundle on the floor and opened it. There was the head of Caren.

    The prime minister of the Kingdom of Travia, the head of the princes¡¯ group, and the actual representative of the Southern nobility.

    His head was in her hands.

    Emilia put his head back in the bundle and hung it on the saddle of the horse.

    ¡°We¡¯re going back to the palace.¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    Emilia felt herself close to the throne with this. And she also knew that most of this was thanks to Ed.

    She wanted to go to the royal palace with him, but she had to do more important things.

    Emilia, who was running toward the royal palace, gave an order when she met a Royal Guard. She ordered to stop searching for Caren.

    The Royal Guard sent soldiers in all directions to deliver the news and followed Emilia. They will escort Emilia directly to the palace.

    On the way back to the royal palace, the royal guards returned one by one and joined. Under the escort of the royal guards, Emilia proudly entered the royal palace.

    Miller was holding his back and looked at the people lying in front of him. They were Kelberos agents.

    Those who were guarding Caren in the house.

    He didn¡¯t know things would get so big. He did not realize how determined the king was.

    The house was secured, but it was not set up for this level of wartime. So he sent Sasha, his henchman, to find a way to escape the royal road even if it was difficult.

    But Sasha returned alone a moment later and reported to him. The secret base in the royal road had been discovered.

    The secret base was in the basement of the store they bought.

    Upon arriving there, Miller could see the dead agents.

    ¡°Caren is dead?¡±

    ¡°Yes. Caren and Vandes, both of whom were decapitated and dead. The head of Caren was not seen.¡±

    Miller examined the conditions of the dead agents. These are not just special agents. As they were dispatched to the royal road of the kingdom of Travia, they are people with the skills that are considered one of the best in Kelberos.

    They shouldn¡¯t die this easily.

    ¡°Akalan didn¡¯t do this.¡±

    Some of Akalan¡¯s agents would have died after fighting these agents. Among the bodies of dead agents, only one has a trace of resistance.

    The rest were shot by arrows based on the size of the wound¡­

    Excellent arrow skills. And it¡¯s not just a regular arrow. There was a person whose neck was cut off after being stabbed, and the three were cut off too smoothly.

    ¡°This is¡­¡±

    ¡°I think they¡¯ve been attacked with a black sword.¡±

    ¡°Does that mean Pendragon is here?¡±

    ¡°No. He was in the palace tonight.¡±

    Miller said after thinking for a while.

    ¡°Tell me more about the situation.¡±

    Sasha explained the situation as it was.

    ¡°Those who were monitoring the outside of the mansion died on the spot where they were monitoring, and Malton, who was monitoring the outside through the window, also died on the spot. Another died under the stairs, and three died in the living room.¡±

    ¡°Those who were monitoring the outside and Malton were killed by arrows, one was hit by a dagger, and all three were later cut by a sword?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    Miller nodded.

    ¡°Pendragon doesn¡¯t use a bow. And there¡¯s no way we wouldn¡¯t know who can handle a black sword. The killer must¡¯ve had really strong equipment.¡±

    There are not many people who can deal with black swords.

    ¡°Burry the people m and specify who they were killed by. The killer haves to pay for their lives.¡±

    The damage caused by Caren¡¯s death is not little. These high-level agents were not easy to train.

    But most importantly, they are like hands and feet for Miller. All of those people died.

    ¡°And report this to our home country for support. We need a special team to handle this.¡±

    He needed those who are engaged in intelligence activities but are responsible.

    It was dangerous to operate within the enemy¡¯s royal road, but this time it could not be helped.

    Ed, who ran to the front of the horse, was able to meet a priest waiting for him. Because he was a priest who had been ordered by Benedict, Ed was able to follow him back to Benedict¡¯s office.

    Arin looked somewhat restless, and Benedict was pouring tea into a teacup.

    ¡°You have done great. Come here and sit down.¡±

    When Ed sat down, Benedict stared at Ed.

    ¡°Did someone follow you?¡±

    If he killed Caren and came straight to Benedict, wouldn¡¯t someone notice that Benedict might be related to this incident?

    ¡°There were no people who followed.¡±

    Ed has recovered both arrows and daggers from the dead on his way back.

    He thought someone could find him if they saw the arrows in the scene. But Ed was careful.

    There were no people caught in Ed¡¯s senses. Ed knew well that a person could not hide their sense even if they tried.

    Benedict pushed the teacup.

    Ed received the teacup, blew it, cooled it, and took a sip. The subtle sweetness relieved the tension of his body.

    Benedict opened his mouth while looking at him.

    ¡°Arin was worried a lot.¡±

    ¡°Grandpa!¡±

    She was so surprised that she didn¡¯t even call him Archbishop and called him grandpa instead.

    ¡°You did not have to worry about me. The hardest part was finding them.¡±

    ¡°I know. I know. I know.

    Arin is well aware of how strong Ed is. He was so strong that she wonders if she can fight with him even if she does her best.

    However, no matter how strong he is, he can still die with a blind knife. She was nervous that Ed would suffer such a thing in a place she couldn¡¯t see.

    However, Ed didn¡¯t know how she felt that way.

    Ed took a sip of tea and looked around Benedict.

    ¡°The people in the house were the agents of Kelberos, the special forces of the Magelta Kingdom.¡±

    Benedict stared at Ed¡¯s words. He knew they wouldn¡¯t be ordinary characters, but he didn¡¯t know Ed would find out their identity.

    Knowing their identity solves many questions.

    Benedict said with a smile.

    ¡°I didn¡¯t know you¡¯d pay me back so soon.¡±

    For organizations like this, information is more valuable than money. There will be endless ways for them to use one of these.

    ¡°I can¡¯t live with debt.¡±

    ¡°Are we still friends?¡±

    ¡°Of course.¡±

    Ed was not willing to let go of this relationship easily even if he paid off his debts. Upon hearing Ed¡¯s answer, Benedict smiled and took a sip of the tea.

    ¡°I guess it is time for bed now. Come and see me in the morning.¡±

    Ed drank the remaining tea and got up from his seat.

    ¡°Thank you for the tea.¡±

    Benedict, who was watching Ed and Arin leave, returned to his desk and picked up a pen.

    The fact that Caren was protected by the special forces of the Magelta Kingdom suggests many things. A report on that part had to be posted to the headquarters.

    On the way back to Pendragon¡¯s house, Ed looked back on Arin, who was strangely speechless.

    Seeing her emotions, Ed thought Arin looked more human.

    A holy knight who was written in the prophecy.

    She, who was doing her best for the given responsibilities, always looked tense. It seemed more so while following her.

    However, seeing her expressions, Ed remembered her appearance while drinking in the past. Sometimes she looked cute.

    ¡°Arin. Did you ask Benedict about the witchcraft man while waiting?¡±

    ¡°What?¡±

    Arin had a look on her face, and then she woke up to what Ed said. She was worried about him, so she couldn¡¯t remember what was important.

    ¡°¡¤¡¤¡¤ I¡¯m sorry. Should I go back and ask now?¡±

    ¡°He told us to see him in the morning, so we¡¯ll go back tomorrow. I think I¡¯ll get cursed at if we visit again right now. He will tell me that I seduced you again, Arin.¡±

    At Ed¡¯s joke, Arin smiled. Their horse walked side by side. Ed¡¯s joke seemed to have eased her mood.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go back together in the morning.¡±

    ¡°Sure.

    Arin smiled more.

 Chapter 65

    As the soldiers of the royal road scattered, the small disturbance gradually grew farther away. Ed and Arin entered the mansion while driving the horse leisurely.

    There was nothing urgent, and the horseshoes on the boulevard of the royal road sounded calm. And most of all, Arin didn¡¯t say anything, but it was okay since she wasn¡¯t upset anymore.

    While riding the horses, Ed¡¯s senses caught a fuss first.

    ¡°Huh?¡±

    The place where the disturbance was heard was the direction they were headed for. It was at Pendragon¡¯s mansion.

    ¡°I think there¡¯s a problem at the mansion.¡±

    When Ed kicked the horse in the side first, Arin also hardened her face and followed. Ed, who ran first, could see a body hanging at the door and an injured soldier.

    In Pendragon¡¯s house, even the ordinary soldiers are elite soldiers. Ed thought it was probably due to the influence of Pendragon, but the elite soldier was seriously injured and collapsed.

    Arin was surprised and got off the horse and started a recovery spell on the soldier.

    ¡°What happened?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know. The king¡¯s soldiers rushed in all of a sudden. I stabbed them with a spear, but it was like they didn¡¯t feel any pain.¡±

    Ed spoke quickly at the words.

    ¡°Just do first aid and follow me.¡±

    ¡°Okay.¡±

    He is not the problem right now. Ed¡¯s horse ran into the mansion.

    He let his guard down. He never knew someone would attack Pendragon¡¯s mansion.

    However, it was 16 years ago that Pendragon was an active demon hunter, and since then, he usually goes on beast hunts. So, there are people who do not know how scary and dangerous he is.

    There are still people that second guess Pendragon¡¯s reputation.

    If there were Pendragon or Cecilia here, intruders would not be able to enter the property, but they weren¡¯t here today.

    The attack took place while they were not at the mansion.

    An owl was watching this place earlier. Ed thought this could be related to the dead witchcraft woman. He accelerated his speech. Diego was in danger if this was really related to the witchcraft woman.

    Bodies were also scattered around Pendragon¡¯s mansion.

    Ed, who had seen what would happen to those who were cursed, passed through the bodies on the ground and went inside.

    There were a lot of elite soldiers who died.

    Even if they survived, they won¡¯t go back to normal.

    Ed got off the horse and went inside. The bodies of elite soldiers were piled up like mountains in front of the living room. Their limbs are cut off or their head is cut off and piled up.

    Behind it, Dex was breathing heavily.

    ¡°Haaaa. Are there more?¡±

    Ed shouted and asked as Dex stood up with a sword.

    ¡°What happened to Diego?¡±

    Dex finally looked up at Ed.

    ¡°Ed? I couldn¡¯t check on him because I was trying to protect the old man.¡±

    ¡°Shit.¡±

    Ed saw Thane bleeding on his head behind Dex. Maybe he got hit on the head by something. Dex also has quite a few wounds here and there, perhaps because he tried to protect the wounded Thane.

    Once Ed confirmed neither of them was in an emergency situation, he headed straight to the room where Diego was resting. And when he arrived there, he could see a wall on one side of the half-collapsed corridor and a door shattered. When e entered the door, Sophia was lying down.

    ¡°Sophia!¡±

    Ed helped her and looked at the condition. He was worried that she was already weak, but Sophia came to her senses little by little.

    She shouted as soon as she came to her senses.

    ¡°Diego! Diego!¡±

    Sophia shouted frantically, found Ed, and asked quickly.

    ¡°What about Diego? What happened to Diego?¡±

    Sophia couldn¡¯t pull herself together and was just screaming. Ed clenched her shoulder and looked straight into her eyes.

    ¡°Snap out of it and tell me in detail about what happened. How did Diego get kidnapped?¡±

    Sophia came to her senses from the pain delivered to her shoulder. And when Ed¡¯s eyes met, she took a deep breath and spoke quickly.

    ¡°There was a commotion outside and I looked out the window, and the soldiers were fighting. Then I heard a fight from downstairs, so I locked the door and stood in front of Diego, and the door exploded.¡±

    Even in Ed¡¯s view, the door was blown in.

    ¡°Then what?¡±

    ¡°A woman with red eyes came inside. And Juan appeared and fought her. I thought the situation was solved, but Juan disappeared in that one attack and the woman came back. I swung the chair next to me, but it went flying to the wall at one glance.¡±

    Ed sighed at her words and looked around. Diego was not in a state to summon Juan. Perhaps Juan forced himself out because there was a crisis, but that alone could not stop the witchcraft woman.

    Why did the witchcraft woman who uses the demon¡¯s power take Diego?

    Diego has a talent for dealing with both demons¡¯ power and spirit command.

    Whether it was to use Diego as a disciple or as a sacrifice, Diego had to be saved first.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go down first.¡±

    There are more than a hundred cursed people.

    This kidnapper was on a completely different level from the witchcraft woman Ed met before.

    Above all, she was bold. She came here alone. Although Pendragon was not in the mansion.

    Ed, who took Sophia down, saw the mountains of bodies scattered in the living room and guided her.

    No matter how much relic-class equipment Dex had, you could tell how great he was by the fight he had.

    So Ed took Sophia to Dex¡¯s side. Sophia was surprised to see Thane. She approached him, tore her skirt, and wrapped his wound.

    At that time, Arin jumped inside. There were many people with injuries on the way, but she came right away after seeing that it was such an emergency.

    Arin placed a recovery spell on Thane¡¯s forehead and looked at Dex.

    ¡°What about you, Dex?¡±

    Dex said, struggling with the words.

    ¡°I¡¯m okay. I was supposed to protect Diego, but I¡¯m sorry I couldn¡¯t.¡±

    ¡°No. This is my fault. I didn¡¯t know the kidnapper would come here this fearlessly.¡±

    Dex turned his shoulders around and said.

    ¡°You¡¯re going to go save him, right?¡±

    As Ed nodded, Dex pulled himself together and said.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go. It¡¯s better to have Arin here than me.¡±

    Of course, having Arin is good in many ways. First of all, she can recover the injured people here.

    However, a holy knight is a hundred times better than a champion when dealing with a witchcraft woman that has the power of a demon. Even if Dex and Arin¡¯s skills were on the same level, it was a matter of character.

    Ed put his hand on Dex¡¯s shoulder and said.

    ¡°Dex. The opponent is a witchcraft woman. A holy knight is better. I need Arin to some with me.

    Dex lightly made a tsk- sound at the words. Ed said, looking directly into Dex¡¯s eyes.

    ¡°There are many chances to fight in the future. Don¡¯t risk yourself this enemy. We need someone to protect this place.¡±

    Dex raised his hand and grabbed Ed¡¯s shoulder and growled.

    ¡°Ahhh, but I want to beat the shit out of the bastard. I won¡¯t go this time, but I won¡¯t give in next time.¡±

    ¡°Thank you for understanding.¡±

    Ed patted Dex on his shoulder and looked at Arin. She first aids Thane¡¯s wounds and Sophia¡¯s wounds with recovery spells and approached Dex.

    Dex grabbed her wrist and said.

    ¡°Don¡¯t waste your sacred power for nothing, go and catch the witchcraft woman.¡±

    Arin looked at him quietly and nodded. Dex was exhausted and wounded, but there were no dangerous wounds.

    Ed first came out of the house with Arin. If Diego had been kidnapped and on the move, he would not have gone very far. If they rode a horse out, Ed and Arin would have met the kidnapper on their way to the mansion.

    The kidnapper would have run away in a different route.

    Ed saw the fallen soldier and asked.

    ¡°Did you call the royal palace?¡±

    ¡°Yes, I did.¡±

    Pendragon will move soon. However, now that Diego has been kidnapped, the situation is urgent.

    There was a being that approached quickly when Ed was expanding his senses. He confirmed that someone was approaching, and lowered his arrow.

    It was a green translucent rat.

    When Arin saw it, Ed hurriedly stopped her because she lifted her hammer.

    ¡°It¡¯s a spirit rat that Diego summoned.¡±

    Arin looked at the rat quietly and said.

    ¡°Then Diego must be safe.¡±

    ¡°Not yet. I don¡¯t know if he¡¯s sharing his senses with it, but he managed to send a spirit rat without getting caught by the witchcraft woman.¡±

    The spirit of the rat, who was rubbing his beard with his front feet, immediately turned and ran when his eyes met. Ed had to follow the fast-moving rat¡¯s spirit without time to ride his horse.

    It was hard to chase because it was running in the opposite direction.

    Ed had nothing to worry about because he had high agility. And Arin was following without any problems. Considering that her weapons and armor themselves are heavier than Ed¡¯s, the fact that this speed is okay means that Arin¡¯s skills have grown more.

    As they chased the rat, the rat rushed to the wall. Then it went through the wall.

    Ed ran and clasped his hands together.

    ¡°Arin!¡±

    Arin realized what Ed was trying to do and accelerated her running speed.

    Then she stepped on Ed¡¯s hands and took a leap using the force he raised.

    She jumped over the wall at once. Ed sent her up and ran straight behind, jumped on the wall, and soared up. When he crossed the wall, Arin was already running after the rat.

    Ed caught up with her at once.

    Arin spoke to Ed when he caught up.

    ¡°Did the witchcraft woman cross this wall with Diego?¡±

    For Ed, this wall was not difficult to cross. But this height was difficult for anyone else except Ed. Did the witchcraft woman really take Diego over this wall?

    In other words, her physical ability itself is not normal.

    She¡¯s the kind of opponent that Ed has never met before.

    ¡°She won¡¯t be easy.¡±

    Arin nodded heavily at the words. Witches have all kinds of mysteries.

    However, Ed has never heard of such a mysterious witch with such excellent physical ability.

    Ed knew she would not be an easy opponent.

    Ed strengthened his impression while expanding his senses.

    ¡°She found out.¡±

    ¡°About us?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    When they crossed the next wall after chasing the rat, Ed could see the soldiers running. They looked like soldiers of a noble family.

    ¡°Can you lift the curse?¡±

    ¡°I can, but it takes time.¡±

    ¡°Then we¡¯ll tie them up and go.¡±

    Ed said so and fired an arrow. Even though he didn¡¯t inject much mana, all the feet of those who were running turned frozen.

    ¡°Argh!¡±

    The short time was enough to pass by them.

    Ed, who was running past them, smiled.

    ¡°We caught up with them¡±.

    Ed could see the back of a woman climbing the wall with Diego on her side. When Ed¡¯s arrow flew in, the woman¡¯s cape flapped and it missed her.

    It was not an ordinary cape, but this attack was to tie her feet and save Diego.

    The arrow twisted because it was thrown with an angle, and was stuck in the arm she was holding Diego.

    Arin¡¯s hammer was already flying right in front of her nose when the woman was trying to hold Diego with her other arm.

    When the woman turned over and avoided Arin¡¯s hammer, Ed ran with all his might and caught Diego falling. Diego looked at Ed with a pale complexion and smiled.

    ¡°Brother, did I do a good job?¡±

    Ed swiped Diego¡¯s hair and said,

    ¡°You did a great job.¡±

    Ed stepped back hugging Diego. Arin came up and grabbed the hammer that returned and took the lead with her shield out. Ed said, putting Diego behind him.

    ¡°We¡¯ll get this over with. Just wait for me here.¡±

 Chapter 66

    The woman pulled the arrow stuck in her left arm from above the wall and looked at those standing under the wall. There was a holy knight with a shield and Ranger with a bow. And the boy was behind them looking up.

    The holy knight is certainly a nuisance, but she could deal with her. Because her curses work even with holy knights. But she didn¡¯t want to kill her because she felt lazy.

    But the boy behind was different.

    A spirit commander who has the power of the demon and served as a superior demon. She couldn¡¯t give up the child.

    The mere control of the spirit command was enough to make him a disciple, so he has been forcibly kidnapped.

    Even though Pendragon was old, he was still a healthy lion.

    It was a kidnapping that she proceeded, knowing that he and Cecilia were not at the mansion. She realized that the boy was more special than she thought when she was attacked by a high-level demon who was summoned.

    She knew that the boy could not only learn how to curse but also deal with the power of the demon.

    He was a boy gifted by God.

    So she took the boy.

    She did not want to deal with Pendragon and Cecilia. But right now, there was only a holy knight and a Ranger who followed her.

    Realizing that they were chasing after the boy, she cursed the soldiers, but the ranger tied their feet and continued chasing her.

    They prioritized the rescue of the boy.

    The woman opened her mouth while throwing an arrow in her hand under the wall.

    ¡°It¡¯s amazing that you¡¯ve followed me so far. I¡¯m¡¤¡¤¡¤.¡±

    The woman, who tried to reveal her name and give them fear, saw an arrow flying toward her head and hurriedly turned her head to avoid it, so she could not even reveal her name.

    She believed in the cape¡¯s ability but was instinctively taken because she was hit by an arrow in her arm. However, this arrow bounced off thanks to the cape¡¯s ability.

    She was made fun of. As soon as she realized it, she couldn¡¯t stand the rising anger.

    ¡°How dare you!¡±

    The woman fired his arrow back and tried to reveal her name. But Ed couldn¡¯t break through her cape¡¯s ability with his status now.

    Judging from the trajectory, Ed thought he could easily hit her if his status went up further, but it was too difficult right now.

    He shot an arrow one more time because she was screaming and angry. The woman¡¯s face was red.

    The woman jumped down the wall and burst into anger. She could hear the voice of the ranger who shot an arrow at her.

    ¡°We don¡¯t need a pathetic self-introduction.¡±

    Diego, who was behind him, smirked as Ed snapped at her.

    ¡°Since she came down, let¡¯s take her.¡±

    As if waiting for Ed¡¯s words, Arin rushed toward the woman with her shield upfront. As the divine power resembling the blue sky rising from her whole body moved behind her, she looked like a blue dragon.

    When the woman was surprised and hurriedly reached out, a bloody circle appeared in front of her.

    Boom!

    At first glance, it seemed to be a false force, but it was a scene that clearly showed how foolish it was to block Arin¡¯s attack. The bloody circle she unfolded quickly broke, and she was hit by a shield and flew to the wall.

    The wall collapsed and a woman was laid there. Arin thought she might die.

    This time, Ed could see the divine power forming over her hammer to see if she was properly heated.

    BOOM!

    Ed had no time to do anything. Arin had a new skill that made the hammer sacred and explodes.

    This was a horribly threatening skill for a witchcraft woman using the power of the demon.

    Ed was accumulating mana with anticipation. Ed was also preparing two arrows and the best skills he had.

    With a sharp laugh, debris from the collapsed wall flew in all directions.

    And the woman covered with dust appeared, and she didn¡¯t look normal at first glance.

    If she hadn¡¯t used the power of the demon, there would have been nothing strange if she died with Arin¡¯s attack.

    Ed thought the woman was amazing for surviving the shock of being hit by a truck of large rocks falling over her head. However, using the power of the demon, she survived in the midst of it.

    When Arin¡¯s hammer flew back at her, the woman avoided the hammer by flying away. And blood was rising up her neck.

    Ed looked at her, wondering what she was, and he could see the blood energy passing through her face gathering on her forehead and drawing a circle.

    Ed did not hesitate to take his arrow out as she showed such power. Ed doesn¡¯t know what she is, but taking too much time is like a lethal move.

    Waiting for the opponent¡¯s lethal move is only possible in cartoons and movies.

    Two arrows shot by Ed flew toward the witchcraft woman. She, who was busy avoiding Arin¡¯s attack, opened both hands when she saw the two arrows spray white cold air.

    The bloody circle appeared, and the center looked like it was splitting, and it turned into a big eye. She must have believed that it would faithfully serve as a shield.

    Ed felt bad for her. His arrow still penetrated her shield.

    The arrow passed through her bloody eyes and flew toward the eye on her forehead. She tried to orbit with the power of the cape, but this is like a lethal move for Ed.

    This was the best skill that was available to him now.

    The witchcraft woman hurriedly raises her hand to block the arrow, but one arrow froze her body. And the arrow, which was moving as if it had been delayed, was stuck in the eye that was newly created in the middle of the witchcraft woman¡¯s forehead.

    Freeeez.

    Her entire head froze with the arrow stuck in her forehead.

    Ed slowly lowered his bow when he saw her. Seeing the experience rush into his body, he was certain that she died. And the experience that came from her was much higher than an intermediate demon.

    Ed felt the level rise after a long time in the experience rushing in.

    Ed, who felt that he lacked attack power while dealing with an unknown woman, invested more in agility. He only raised one status, but he feel different.

    He felt his growth was enough to beat Arin and Dex at once.

    Ed approached Diego. Diego was smiling at Ed, holding the spirit of the rat in his arms. Seeing the boy who had been kidnapped a while ago smiling gracefully, Ed knew he was something special.

    Ed gave a higher score to his bold personality than his talent.

    ¡°It didn¡¯t take that long, did it?¡±

    ¡°Brother, sister. You¡¯re both amazing.¡±

    Ed, who stroked Diego¡¯s head, could see Arin, who hit the frozen woman¡¯s head and shattered it.

    Ed knew that the woman was dead because experience flowed into him, but Arin couldn¡¯t take a chance, she is a vigilant knight.

    Ed approached and asked as Arin split the frozen woman¡¯s head again.

    ¡°Are you okay?¡±

    Ed asked with various implications, but Arin was breathing heavily and out her hammer down. Arin approached the dead woman¡¯s head and picked something up.

    ¡°This woman. She has a bloodstone in her head.¡±

    Seeing the bloodstone in Arin¡¯s hand, Ed looked down at the dead woman¡¯s body. Eventually, he didn¡¯t hear her name, but she had great ability.

    Ed thinks she was an outstanding woman as a witch, but she even had a bloodstone inside of her.

    Wouldn¡¯t they have been able to get more information about Lagrox if they had captured her alive?

    While focusing on Juan, they missed the traces of the bloodstone and thought about how to catch Lagrox again, but the bloodstone rolled in on its own.

    ¡°Check it out. I¡¯ll watch Diego.¡±

    When the woman died, the soldiers whose legs were frozen were screaming as the curse was lifted, and those who were not cursed were gathering to protect the soldiers.

    Perhaps it is natural for a disturbance to occur.

    After hearing the disturbance, those who came out of the mansion were approaching on horses. They looked very disturbed.

    They were not happy to see those who suddenly crossed the wall.

    In addition, their soldiers were frozen on their legs, so they had a justification.

    Perhaps that¡¯s why the expression of the person running on the horse gained momentum.

    Despite the mean impression of the man and the guardians approaching, Ed calmly hid Diego behind him and beckoned Arin.

    Arin also closed her eyes and prayed because she knew how important it was to track the blood stones.

    When Arin prayed, her heavenly divine power began to shine throughout her body.

    The face of a young nobleman who had been running over the wall to argue was surprised. When he saw the dazzling sacred power in the middle of the night, no matter how powerful they were, they are bound to be surprised.

    At least he instinctively knew that this situation was related to the church.

    Perhaps that¡¯s why the expression of the young man became a little serious, unlike in the beginning.

    He approached Ed and got off the horse.

    ¡°I¡¯m Duke Azelt. You look like a group of Holy Knights. Can I ask what¡¯s going on?¡±

    Ed turned his head even before he could answer. Something was approaching at a terrifying pace.

    Ed saw a pair of men and women falling in front of them.

    And duke Azelt, who saw them, greeted them in vain.

    ¡°Hello to Sir. Pendragon and Princess.¡±

    Pendragon was not interested in him, but Cecilia greeted him.

    ¡°Duke Azelt. It¡¯s been a while.¡±

    ¡°Thank you for remembering my name.¡±

    ¡°Of course, I remember you. After all, you are my neighbor. How¡¯s your father doing?¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s staying at his vacation home, so I¡¯m temporarily in charge of his mansion.¡±

    While Cecilia was talking to Azelt, Pendragon approached Ed and looked over the situation with his eyes.

    ¡°Is that the person who broke into my house?¡±

    ¡°Yes. She¡¯s a witchcraft woman, who deals with the power of the demon.¡±

    ¡°A witch that uses the power of the demon? Did she sign a contract with the demon?¡±

    ¡°A contract?¡±

    Pendragon answered Ed¡¯s question with a glance at Arin.

    ¡°Demons usually have subordinates or followers, but those who are on par with the demon or who can help each other sign contracts. Usually, witches don¡¯t sign contracts with demons, but it looks like she managed to.¡±

    ¡°If she uses the power of the demon, we have an advantage over her because of Arin¡¯s divine power.¡±

    The bloody circle created by the witchcraft woman at first would have been a kind of protective shield, but it was meaningless in front of Arin¡¯s divine power.

    Pendragon continued.

    ¡°I heard she went crazy at my house, so I came to split her head. But looks like it¡¯s already split.¡±

    Ed breathed a sigh of relief. If Ed was a little too late, he would have lost the last hit and experience.

 Chapter 67

    After Arin finished praying, she opened her eyes and looked far away. Then she turned her head and looked slightly down when she saw people.

    ¡°You¡¯ve arrived.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry we¡¯re late. We¡¯ve caused some trouble to you and our guests.¡±

    ¡°No, I think we¡¯ve caused the trouble.¡±

    Pendragon burst into laughter at the words.

    ¡°If you really want to save your colleagues, you will do whatever it takes. Even if you need to break into the royal palace. That¡¯s what colleagues do for each other.¡±

    Ed smiled at Pendragon¡¯s words. Pendragon was such a character. If it¡¯s for his own colleagues, Pendragon would¡¯ve smashed the royal palace.

    It was something he would fully understand.

    But they still felt sorry because there was an attack at Pendragon¡¯s mansion and his elite soldiers died.

    Pendragon lifted Diego with one arm and approached duke Azelt, who was talking to Cecilia.

    ¡°My colleagues have punished a demon follower. We caused you property damage, so I¡¯ll compensate you.¡±

    ¡°No, if I knew this was related to the demon, I would have told the soldiers to help. Only one wall collapsed anyway.¡±

    This person is talking about something big. No matter how many soldiers there are, they would have been just a puppet if they were caught by the witchcraft woman.

    ¡°Please prepare a carriage. We¡¯ll take the body with us.¡±

    When duke Azelta beckoned, a carriage was quickly prepared. After loading the headless body in the carriage, Pendragon smiled at duke Azelta and spoke.

    ¡°We¡¯ll head back now. Call me if you wake up and change your mind about the compensation. I¡¯m not joking.¡±

    Pendragon said so and took a step first, hugging Diego. Diego quickly fell asleep, perhaps because he was relaxed or really tired.

    Looking at Diego sleeping in Pendragon¡¯s arms, they looked like a son and father.

    It was a pity that there was no child between Pendragon and Cecilia, but if they had a child, he/she would have been Diego¡¯s age. That was why they treated Diego specially.

    Pendragon held Diego in his arms and carried him even though nobody asked him to.

    Pendragon left the mansion of duke Azelta with Diego in his arms.

    Pendragon made a strong impression when he saw the tragedy in front of the mansion. He approached the soldiers who had completed emergency treatment with Diego in his arms.

    ¡°Are you okay?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m okay, sir.¡±

    ¡°I informed the church, so people will come soon. Hang in there.¡±

    ¡°Thank you.¡±

    Pendragon heard the soldiers¡¯ answers and was extremely angry. He was angry because his men have been hurt.

    If an unknown person had met the current Pendragon, he/she would not have died peacefully.

    On the way back to the mansion, Pendragon¡¯s cloak, which met with soldiers recovering corpses, began to flap in the wind.

    ¡°Take care of the bodies. Their funeral will be held in the church.¡±

    It was a luxury that only nobles could hold a funeral in the church, but Pendragon was relentless. If the church doesn¡¯t listen to him, he¡¯ll make it hard for them.

    Pendragon went into the living room, and when Sophia, who was taking care of Thane, found Diego and ran over, he returned Diego to her.

    ¡°Diego.¡±

    When Diego failed to wake up, Sophia¡¯s eyes were watering. Pendragon calmly replied to the appearance.

    ¡°He¡¯s just tired, so there¡¯s nothing to worry about. Ed and Arin rescued him before it was too late, so put aside your worries.¡±

    Sophia got up from her seat and bowed her head to Ed and Arin.

    ¡°Thank you. Thank you so much.¡±

    Ed shook his head at the words and replied.

    ¡°It would have been difficult to save him if it weren¡¯t for Diego¡¯s powers.¡±

    Sophia replied, hugging Diego and looking down.

    ¡°Diego has been smart since he was young.¡±

    Pendragon looked around, found an approaching butler, and said.

    ¡°Take Diego and Sophia to a place where they can rest.¡±

    ¡°Yes, sir.¡±

    Pendragon took off his cape and began to recover the bodies himself. Ed and Arin also helped, and Dex, who recovered to some extent, also helped.

    A group of people approached while all the bodies of the royal guardians were taken out of the mansion. A person at the forefront of those dressed as the guardian of the royal family got off a horse and bowed to Pendragon.

    ¡°Sir. I¡¯m sorry.¡±

    ¡°You shouldn¡¯t be sorry. Their deaths were caused by a demon follower.¡±

    It is possible that she was a demon contractor, but it is not clear, and it is easier for people to understand that she was a demon follower.

    ¡°Can we recover the bodies?¡±

    ¡°Go ahead, please. I¡¯m going to hold a funeral for them at the church, so please contact their families. I¡¯ll compensate the families myself, so please take care of their bodies.¡±

    ¡°Okay, thank you.¡±

    When the guardian commander beckoned, the guardians who followed him began to recover the bodies. Some were in vain in the terrible condition, but they somehow recovered all the bodies and left.

    Only after the guardians left did Pendragon show interest in the dead woman¡¯s body. Pendragon, who got on the carriage, undressed the woman with indifferent eyes.

    And when he saw the circle of bloody rune letters in the woman¡¯s abdomen, he called Cecilia.

    ¡°Cecilia. Come and look at this.¡±

    Cecilia also nodded when she saw the bloody rune text remaining in the woman¡¯s abdomen.

    ¡°She¡¯s a contractor. I guess her skills were amazing.¡±

    ¡°Yeah. She¡¯s more powerful than a high-level demon. I¡¯m sure she was someone important, seeing that she signed a contract with a great demon.¡±

    Pendragon looked back at Ed and asked.

    ¡°Did she tell you what her name was?¡±

    ¡°We didn¡¯t hear it.¡±

    Pendragon tilted his head at Ed¡¯s answer.

    ¡°Hmm. Usually, these types of people like to talk about themselves..¡±

    ¡°I shot an arrow when she started introducing herself.¡±

    Pendragon stared at Ed at the words and laughed.

    ¡°That¡¯s funny.¡±

    Pendragon said so and rummaged through the woman¡¯s luggage.

    ¡°Was there anything else special?¡±

    ¡°She was a witch.¡±

    ¡°A witch¡­¡±

    Then Thane, who was bandaged on his head, walked out from the inside and said.

    ¡°I think she might be the teacher of Isperto, who was working for Caren.¡±

    ¡°Old man. I¡¯m not smart enough to remember such miscellaneous details.¡±

    Thane shook his head at the words and replied.

    ¡°Honestly, I don¡¯t know much about Isperto. But not many witches will be able to sign a contract with the demon.¡±

    Thane said so and checked the woman¡¯s luggage.

    ¡°Hmm. The Protection of Felmes?¡±

    Felmes is the god of wind. That¡¯s how she got Ed¡¯s arrow to orbit around her cape. This must be an important object.

    ¡°Aspian was still alive?¡±

    ¡°Did you know her?¡±

    At the question of Pendragon, Thane nodded.

    ¡°She was a witch who was active about 30 years ago. At that time, I thought she died because she was a wanted person after killing a holy knight. But I guess she managed to survive.¡±

    ¡°She survived after killing a holy knight?¡±

    Pendragon also looked a little surprised.

    ¡°That¡¯s why she was famous. I thought she was already dead, too.¡±

    Thane stumbled as if he was dizzy. When Ed was next to him and helped, Thane, smiled and said.

    ¡°The Protection of Felmes. This is a holy relic, so I would appreciate it if you returned it to the Felmes Church.¡±

    Ed stared at Thane. What is he talking about?

    If it¡¯s a relic, Ed wanted to take it.

    The problem is that Ed doesn¡¯t need it. It¡¯s a good function to bounce off a blind arrow, but Ed¡¯s senses were good enough. And, Ed was confident of avoiding an arrow that he couldn¡¯t see.

    She had a brown cape and holy relics.

    Ed thought it would be better to give it to someone who needs it, rather than to return it to the church.

    ¡°We can take your time returning it. I mean, it¡¯s been lost for more than thirty years anyway.¡±

    Thane nodded at the words.

    ¡°That¡¯s true. Who are you going to give it to?

    ¡°Diego.¡±

    It looks a little big, but it was important even if it was folded and worn. Thane also nodded at the words.

    ¡°That¡¯s a good idea. If the Felmes Church knows that you¡¯re using it to catch demons, they won¡¯t complain.¡±

    Ed did not care if the church had other thoughts. How would they know that Ed has this anyway?

    When Pendragon heard that, he asked.

    ¡°Does Aspian have a group?¡±

    ¡°No. I think she moves alone. I just found out for the first time that she had a student.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s too bad.¡±

    Seeing Pendragon, it seemed as if he wanted to punish whoever Aspian worked with.

    ¡°I¡¯ll have to mourn the dead. Let¡¯s go get a drink.¡±

    The butlers and maids moved busily, and the broken furniture was all organized even though bloodstains remained. When all the group gathered in the drawing-room, the butler served alcohol bottles and glasses.

    Others were given crystal glasses, but Pendragon and Cecilia were holding slightly distorted tin glasses. In the demon¡¯s Age 1, Pendragon used to carry it wherever he went.

    Ed didn¡¯t know he still had that tin glass. Pendragon, who had strong whiskey, lightly lifted the glass and said.

    ¡°Revenge is over. Let¡¯s honor the people who sacrificed their lives for us.¡±

    Pendragon said so and emptied the glass at once. As everyone emptied their glasses, Pendragon looked at Ed.

    ¡°Will you be leaving soon?¡±

    He was fast to notice.

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    Pendragon¡¯s gaze turned to Thane.

    ¡°Old man, you¡¯re going with him, right?¡±

    ¡°Honestly, life in the royal road doesn¡¯t suit me. I want to make the most out of my life before I die.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s definitely like you.¡±

    Pendragon had another drink and said.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I wasn¡¯t able to protect my visitors.¡±

    ¡°This all happened because of us.¡±

    Pendragon smiled bitterly at Ed¡¯s answer.

    ¡°When are you leaving?¡±

    Ed looked back at Arin and opened his mouth.

    ¡°I¡¯m going to stop by the church tomorrow and leave after.¡±

    As long as the traces of Lagrox were found through bloodstone, it was not necessary to stay at Pendragon¡¯s house.

    ¡°Yeah. We can¡¯t delay our time to catch the demon. Everyone worked hard, so let¡¯s empty our glasses and rest.¡±

    Everyone emptied their glasses at once, and the long day ended.

    A deep mountain out of reach of people.

    A small temple was burning. Unlike ordinary fire, a bloody flame was burning the sky, and a man with his back against it stood.

    The man in bloody armor sat on a large rabbit. The rabbit was the size of a bull and had horns on its forehead. But now it was smashed by a man with only half of its horns left and broken.

    The man raised his head while drawing a magic circle on the rabbit¡¯s back.

    ¡°Another one died again.¡±

    The owners of the bloodstones continued to die one by one. The man looked up and looked up at the night sky, slightly turning his eyes and looking far north.

    ¡°I¡¯m starting to get annoyed.¡±

    As the owners of the bloodstones died, their plans were gradually going wrong. If Astron continues to disturb like this, the man might slowly get involved.

    ¡°I¡¯ll do what you have to do first.¡±

    The man hummed while drawing a magic circle again on the rabbit¡¯s back with the broken horn in his hand.

 Chapter 68

    Diego slowly opened his eyes and blinked for a moment. And he jumped to his feet. Looking around, Diego was able to see Sophia, who fell asleep holding his hand.

    Only then was Diego able to breathe out relief.

    His memory of being kidnapped by a woman last night was clear. If Juan had not appeared, he would have been kidnapped without resistance.

    But the resistance was meaningless. The mana he used was so big that his head was spinning.

    So, when Sophia would get hurt by the woman, Diego felt as if his heart was falling. He was so worried that Sophia might have been seriously injured.

    Juan used to tell Deigo that he could still live if even if he was caught by a troll as long as he kept thinking. That¡¯s why Diego summoned Jerry and sent him to the mansion while being dragged away.

    The moment Diego saw Ed through Jerry¡¯s spirit, he couldn¡¯t hold out any longer and blindly guided them to his location. Diego was out of his mind even while Jerry was returning.

    The woman jumped over a high wall casually, and the sight of people running with their eyes turned at once was enough to give fear.

    That was a woman who could overpower a troll with a glance.

    When his body hardened due to fear of the woman, a single arrow flew. And a hammer wrapped in blue.

    Diego was relieved the moment he saw it.

    When the arrow bounced back and was stuck in the woman¡¯s arm, he thought he could survive this.

    And Ed and Arin easily overpowered the woman. Ed said he¡¯d finish her off quickly, and he really did.

    After seeing the woman die, Diego fainted. And when he woke up, he was at home, and his mother was with him.

    Diego was worried, but seeing Sophia¡¯s appearance, he thought it was fortunate that she didn¡¯t seem to have been seriously injured.

    ¡°Hmm.¡±

    Then Sophia, who slowly opened her eyes, checked Diego and jumped up.

    ¡°Diego. Are you okay?¡±

    As soon as Diego woke up, he smiled gently at Sophia, who asked with a worried look. Honestly, he was scared yesterday, but he didn¡¯t want to worry Sophia.

    ¡°I¡¯m okay.¡±

    Sophia stood up silently and hugged Diego tightly. Diego smiled in Sophia¡¯s arms.

    ¡°I¡¯m all grown up now. You don¡¯t have to do this.¡±

    Sophia hit Diego¡¯s back with her palm.

    ¡°Ouch!¡±

    ¡°How can you act like everything is okay after going through that? I know you better than anyone else! You don¡¯t have to pretend to be okay. You can always lean on me when you¡¯re scared or going through a hard time.¡±

    Diego hugged Sophia. He felt his mother¡¯s warm arms. He couldn¡¯t even remember when he had been in my mother¡¯s warm arms after his father left.

    Diego, still in her arms, felt tears as he relaxed.

    Sophia swept Diego¡¯s back.

    Benedict smiled in vain when he saw Ed and Arin, who came as soon as the sky brightened.

    ¡°I told you guys to come back when the morning comes, but shouldn¡¯t you at least wait until the sun comes up?¡±

    It¡¯s only been less than five hours since they met. Benedict heard roughly what happened in that short time, but he didn¡¯t know they¡¯d come back so soon.

    It¡¯s still before breakfast.

    At Benedict¡¯s words, Arin stepped forward.

    ¡°A bloodstone came out of Aspian¡¯s body, a witch who attacked Pendragon¡¯s mansion yesterday.¡±

    Benedict made a strong impression on the words. He knew there was an incident at Pendragon¡¯s mansion. He also knew that the Guardians of the Royal Road attacked Pendragon¡¯s mansion.

    The priests who had been cleaning up Pendragon¡¯s mansion told him that the king¡¯s guardians have been attacking under the curse of a demon follower.

    He even heard the news that Arin and Ed killed the witch, but he didn¡¯t know that they found a bloodstone.

    Bloodstones are the most important part of Astron¡¯s prophecy, and Arin was the only one who could track them.

    Arin thought she couldn¡¯t track any more bloodstones in the area, but when she saw the bloodstone appearing in front of her, she wondered if it was fate.

    When Benedict went to the office and pulled a string on the wall, a map unfolded. Arin stood in front of the map and was determining her location.

    Ed looked at her back and opened his mouth.

    ¡°Do you have any information about Nafthael?¡±

    ¡°Nafthael?¡±

    ¡°Yes. Lagrox is also a problem, but Nafthael always sends beasts every night to us.¡±

    The prophecy says that Lagrox must be hunted down. However, all demons are enemies of the church. And Benedict had a special place in his heart for

    Ed, who hunts such demons.

    Since Ed said he would deal with the great demon Nafthael, Benedict wanted to help him.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry. The church has been looking hard for him, but we haven¡¯t found any traces of him.¡±

    Indeed, it has been hundreds of years since Nafthael made his name on the continent, but they are yet to catch him. As such, the great demon is strong in his body, but he is also good at hiding.

    Ed asked just in case. Thane was watching but didn¡¯t expect much.

    Arin pointed to a place on the map.

    ¡°I think this is it.¡±

    Arin pointed out a location that would take 15 days even if they traveled from the royal road to the east by carriage. It was Andel City. It was a trading city with the Kingdom of Qurenai in the east.

    Arin looked back at Benedict and said.

    ¡°Please do some research in advance.¡±

    ¡°Sure. You¡¯ll be able to get information from Lesen city. That¡¯s on your way to Andel.¡±

    When Arin nodded, Benedict asked.

    ¡°Are you going to go right away?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s been a while since I saw you, but you¡¯re leaving so quickly.¡±

    Arin smiled.

    ¡°I¡¯ll come back again.¡±

    Benedict smiled at Arin¡¯s words and nodded. In fact, it is life-threatening for her to follow the prophecy.

    No matter when and where she died, Benedict could not do anything. Knowing that it is her fate as a holy knight, Benedict felt bitter.

    It¡¯s because Benedict brought and raised Arin like a granddaughter. She then became a holy knight and risks her life to follow the prophecy.

    ¡°I must come to visit me again¡±.

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    Benedict looked back at Ed and said.

    ¡°Please take good care of Arin.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll do my best.¡±

    Benedict walked to his desk, opened a drawer, and took out a small object.

    And he handed it over to Ed and said.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know if this will help you.¡±

    Ed accepted what was handed over. An object in the form of an arrowhead.

    But it felt sacred.

    ¡°Is this¡­?¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re going to kill a lot of demons, but you don¡¯t have proper relics. It¡¯s not a great item compared to Arin¡¯s, but I thought it would suit you, so I custom-made it last night.¡±

    Ed looked at Benedict. The relic on his neck disappeared.

    ¡°Did you melt the holy relic?¡±

    ¡°Astron will forgive me.¡±

    It was only one arrowhead, but it was enough. It is the best weapon in dealing with demons. He also had the Apella¡¯s teeth, but this is better as a weapon when dealing with the great demon.

    ¡°Thank you.¡±

    Ed meant it. It was only one arrow, but he can feel Astron¡¯s divine power. In addition, as he is with Arin, she can bless the item.

    Benedict put his hand over Ed¡¯s arrowhead and prayed. Once again, sacred power was injected and blue light was formed on the arrowhead.

    ¡°Please take good care of Arin.¡±

    The weight on Ed¡¯s shoulders was different when Benedict asked to take care of Arin after giving a gift like this.

    Naturally, Ed¡¯s sincerity in the answer also changed.

    ¡°There¡¯s no way that Miss Arin will die before me.¡±

    Benedict smiled as if he was satisfied. Arin watched the two and shook her head.

    If either she or Ed had to die, it had to be Ed first. Ed thought there will be nothing more shameful than a holy knight dying before him.

    Benedict said, handing Arin a small box.

    ¡°It¡¯s the tea I enjoy.¡±

    ¡°¡¤¡¤¡¤Thank you.¡±

    Benedict said he enjoyed it, but Arin also enjoyed it. It was a tea she learned how to drink from Benedict. Perhaps she will think of him while drinking it.

    ¡°Thank you for the tea.¡±

    ¡°Okay. I won¡¯t talk too much. May Astron¡¯s glory always be with you.¡±

    As expected, he is an archbishop, so when he prays, people feel comfortable.

    It will disappear over time anyway, but Ed was just grateful for the prayer.

    ¡°May Astron¡¯s glory be with you.¡±

    The black cloth was covered over a carriage. It is covered with black cloth because it is impossible to ride a blue light-emitting carriage during the mourning period of the prince¡¯s death.

    Sophia and Diego were greeting each other in front of the carriage. After meeting Benedict, Ed and Arin finished preparing for departure. It was before lunch, but if they dragged on, they might not be able to leave today, so it was an inevitable choice.

    Pendragon and Cecilia were watching them.

    Pendragon smiled at Thane and said.

    ¡°Old man. Don¡¯t die secretly anywhere. And if you die, make sure to pass the message of who killed you. I¡¯ll revenge for you.¡±

    ¡°Sounds like you¡¯re praying for me to die. Tsk.¡±

    Thane grumbled, but he both knew Pendragon¡¯s sincerity, so they both smiled. Cecilia approached and clenched Thane¡¯s hand and said.

    ¡°Be careful not to catch a cold, and contact me whenever you need anything.¡±

    ¡°Of course, Princess. You should take care of your health too. See you again.¡±

    Pendragon approached Ed and Arin. Then he looked back at the two and spoke with a smile.

    ¡°Looking at you two reminds me of the old days of Cecilia and I. Hunting demons is good, but make sure to enjoy your life.¡±

    Ed took his words lightly, but Arin somehow turned red.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry for causing all this trouble.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not something you should be sorry about. The bad guy is always the person to blame. Don¡¯t forget that.¡±

    Ed thought Pendragon¡¯s consolation was awesome. Pendragon patted Ed on the shoulder and approached Diego.

    Diego, troubled by Sophia¡¯s tears, was wearing a brown cape. Pendragon, who approached Diego who was wearing The protection of Felmes, reached out his hand and patted Diego on the head. It felt like Diego¡¯s head was buried in his palm because he had such a big hand.

    ¡°You¡¯re bold and smart, so you¡¯ll do well. I¡¯ll protect your mother, so don¡¯t worry and come back safely.¡±

    Diego looked up at Pendragon with envy. Diego, who grew up listening to Pendragon¡¯s story, remembered every word he said.

    ¡°Please take good care of my mother.¡±

    ¡°Okay. Take care of yourself and see you again.¡±

    ¡°Yep!¡±

    Diego, who had no idea what to do with Sophia¡¯s tears, looked back on Sophia and bravely spoke. This was perhaps because he felt brave after hearing Pendragon¡¯s words.

    ¡°I¡¯ll be back safely. Mother.¡±

    When Diego spoke bravely, Sophia no longer shed tears and greeted him.

    ¡°Okay. Be careful.¡±

    After all the greetings, they got on the carriage. Doug was in charge of driving the carriage again, and Dex sat comfortably in the coach seat.

    Dex said he would stay outside rather than in a tight carriage, perhaps because he could transform his face, thanks to Cecilia¡¯s gift. So he didn¡¯t have to pay attention to people¡¯s stares.

    Perhaps because he had lived as a slave gladiator all his life, he didn¡¯t like being trapped anywhere.

    Diego sat next to Thane and looked at the demon book he showed. He seemed to focus on this so much that he forgot about his mother.

    Arin was quietly sitting and praying, and Ed was admiring his new arrowhead. Then he looked out the window.

    A lot of things happened when they came to the royal road.

    Ed succeeded in strengthening his ice bow and obtained a sacred arrow. He got a sacred ring, and his level went up.

    It was such a royal journey that he had gained a lot.

    Then, a loud sound of horse hooves from outside of the carriage. This was during the mourning period, so it was strange. Then Ed saw a familiar face.

    Two horses passed by the carriage and blocked the front. Ed caught Than who was about to fall because the carriage stopped in a hurry. Then he opened the door and came out.

    Where the carriage was parked, Emilia was in a black uniform and a cloak with her guardian knight.

    Emilia¡¯s face was red because of how fast she had driven her horse.

    Emilia got off the horse when she saw Ed coming out from the carriage. She approached Ed and stared at him for a moment.

    She hesitated and opened her mouth.

    ¡°Are you leaving?¡±

    ¡°Yes. Is there a problem?¡±

    Emilia looked at Ed as if she was dumbfounded for a moment. With his help, they managed to find and kill Caren. And, he also created a connection with Archbishop Benedict.

    In recognition of her contribution, her order of succession to the throne rose vertically, and she decided to be appointed as a princess.

    How could she let him leave without saying anything?

    This man was a person outside of common sense.

    This man was leaping away as if it were all nothing.

    ¡°Will you come back?¡±

    ¡°Of course.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s all that matters.¡±

    What does she mean?

    ¡°May Astron¡¯s glory be with you.¡±

    Emilia nodded and got back up to her horse and disappeared like the wind. From appearance to exit, she was like the wind. She was chaotic.

    Ed saw Emilia¡¯s cheeks turning red earlier. Ed got back on the carriage and felt the cold wind blowing around Arin.

 Chapter 69

    The man with a firm expression looked at Brant tied under the pit.

    ¡°Brant. A decision has been made on what we will do with you.¡±

    Brant had chains wound around both arms were fixed on the left and right sides of the wall. As Brant raised his head, a man who looked down at him from a height of 10 meters spoke.

    ¡°Your power should not have been caught by anyone. If someone had found out, you should have killed the person.¡±

    The man continued and made a tsk- sound.

    ¡°But you¡¯ve revealed your powers to Astron¡¯s holy knight.¡±

    Brant just bowed his head without saying anything. He knew he did something wrong. He believed he could overpower the opponent, but he was too strong.

    In fact, Brant thought he could¡¯ve killed the holy knight if she came alone. But he had another goal. The demon hunter Ed was too strong.

    To the point where he couldn¡¯t do anything.

    He was a strong man who Brant could not handle even with the power of the demon.

    ¡°So you¡¯ll be disposed of. And all the evidence against you will be incinerated.¡±

    Brant hurriedly looked up.

    ¡°Wait! What happens to my daughter?¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re talking about something obvious. She¡¯ll be incinerated too.¡±

    ¡°No!¡±

    As Brant hurriedly shouted and struggled, the chain that was tying him up made a loud noise. When the man, who was looking down at Brant, beckoned, Akalan agents standing behind him began to pour oil into the pit where Brant was in.

    ¡°I don¡¯t care if I die. But spare my daughter¡¯s life. Just don¡¯t hurt Emma.¡±

    The man replied with a smile around his mouth.

    ¡°The child has already entered the incineration process.¡±

    The man turned around and beckoned as if there was nothing more to see.

    ¡°Make sure you don¡¯t make any mistakes.¡±

    When the man left, those who were pouring oil threw torches into the pit.

    When the torch that was flying fell and the fire broke out in the pit, Brant fiercely shouted out the man¡¯s name.

    ¡°David!¡±

    However, the man had already left. Brant looked around quickly.

    He was left to die. But he couldn¡¯t let his daughter Emma die. He didn¡¯t mind leaving Akalan as an enemy to save his daughter.

    Brant pulled the chain connected to the wall. Of course, it was designed not to be pulled out.

    Brant breathed deeply, enduring the pain of burning flesh. There could not breathe easily because of the smoke, but he could handle it. Now was his only opportunity.

    Brant, who closed his eyes while the smoke was getting worse, awakened his powers. He doesn¡¯t know if his powers are strong enough, but now this was all he could believe.

    His whole body¡¯s muscles swelled up like they were about to burst, and his one eye was stained with blood.

    Crack.

    When the chain of Eslan in the wall broke the ring and popped out, Brant swung it up. The moment the chain wrapped around the Akalan¡¯s agent neck, he jumped up pulled him into the pit.

    Brant, who escaped the pit, already grabbed the agent¡¯s neck and twisted it while another Akalan agent pulled out their dagger and threw it toward Brant.

    Brant vomited a rough breath on the pit. Fortunately, his existence itself is treated as top secret in Akalan, so few people know him.

    Brant took a steady step, covering himself with a cloak. There was no time to rest because he needed to save Emma.

    Akalan agents rode their horses toward the safe house where Emma was locked up. Brant saw the flames rising in the distance.

    ¡°No!¡±

    Brant jumped off the horse and awakened the power of the demon again, and jumped. He was able to run dozens of meters a step, but when Brant arrived, the safe house was already completely covered in flames.

    Brant clenched his teeth and rushed straight to the safe house.

    Brant, who broke through the wall, shouted urgently.

    ¡°Emma! Emma!¡±

    The answer to Brant¡¯s desperate cry was not heard. Then he heard a small voice. A voice that he could barely hear because of the noise of the building burning down.

    ¡°Emma!¡±

    When Brant broke through the wall, his daughter Emma collapsed while bleeding on her chest.

    ¡°Emma!¡±

    Brant hurriedly hugged her. He couldn¡¯t believe they used a knife against a 10-year-old girl.

    Brant took off his cape in a hurry and stopped the bleeding wound on Emma¡¯s chest. Emma slowly opened her eyes, perhaps because she felt Brant¡¯s touch.

    Emma opened her eyes and raised her hand to touch Brant¡¯s cheek. Emma smiled while touching his rough beard.

    Knowing that it was a forced smile, Brant quickly said.

    ¡°Dad is here, you¡¯re okay now. You¡¯ll be okay.¡±

    ¡°Dad, this isn¡¯t a dream, is it? You¡¯re really here, right?

    ¡°That¡¯s right. I¡¯m your dad. Your dad will save you. You have to endure the pain a little bit. Don¡¯t fall asleep, okay?¡±

    Emma tried to reply, but she couldn¡¯t speak anymore because her mouth was bleeding. Brant, who saw her, soared without further delay.

    Brant, who broke the roof of the safe house and soared, could see the running horses far away. They were Akalan agents.

    They can be chased and killed, but now Emma was his priority.

    Brant¡¯s left eye had a fierce red light, and he began to run in a different direction from the Akalan agents. Leaping dozens of meters each step, Brant only hoped that Emma would be safe.

    He ran in the direction of strong forces.

    Where the demon¡¯s power exists. There will be someone there who can save Emma.

    It¡¯s been three days since the group left the royal road.

    The beasts still showed up every night.

    Ed and Dex will stay up tonight.

    Dex took out his weapon and put it on his lap and sat on a rock next to the campsite.

    ¡°I wonder what beast will come today?¡±

    Ed smiled at Dex. Dex looked like he had some expectations. Dex saw the beast that came on the first night and even whistled and killed it first.

    Even though he had been fighting only with people, he was rather excited when he first faced the beasts, and he was like a crazy person in a fight.

    Thanks to this, Ed just had to tell Dex what to watch out for when he meets the beast. Dex quickly adapted to sleeping during the day and fighting at night.

    Ed took out his bow and looked up at the sky. It¡¯s getting dark, but it¡¯s not yet night, so it¡¯s not difficult to check the surrounding.

    Ed lowered his head and looked back at the group.

    Diego was helping Doug with dinner preparation, and Thane was chatting with Arin. Arin, who was chatting with Thane, felt Ed¡¯s gaze, turned her head, and smiled when their eyes met.

    Ed thought that Arin smiled a lot these days. Then, Ed jumped up from his seat with an arrow on the bow and pulled it tightly.

    Dex also pulled out his weapon and asked.

    ¡°Where is it? I¡¯ll do it!¡±

    ¡°Wait a minute.¡±

    Ed could hear it clearly from a distance. However, the interval between the sounds was strange. The sound of narrowing and ringing at intervals of tens of meters.

    Something is approaching at a terrifying pace.

    And soon Ed could see why such a sound was being made. Seeing the presence protruding above the tall tree, Ed solidified his impression and pulled his bow to the fullest.

    A person whose muscles are swollen and stained with blood. A red glow that flashes from the left eye.

    It¡¯s Brant.

    Ed shot an arrow at him. Perhaps because of the rise of his agility, the speed of the arrow flying has also become incomparably faster than before. While the arrow was flying toward Brant, Ed turned in the direction of the arrow when he saw Brant turning to protect someone he was holding in his arms.

    Ed, who turned in the direction of the arrow, stopped Arin when he saw her trying to throw her hammer.

    ¡°Wait. He¡¯s carrying a person.¡±

    ¡°He has a hostage?¡±

    As soon as the arrow flew in, Brant tried protecting the person. So the person was most likely not a hostage. And Brant quickly fell where the group was camping.

    Whoosh!

    After landing, Brant¡¯s condition was disastrous. His skin seemed to have melted.

    Ed saw a girl in his arms. She was bleeding with a cape but seeing that she had a bad complexion, she looked like she was going to die.

    Ed prepared two arrows and asked Brant.

    ¡°Are you here for us?¡±

    Brant looked back at Ed and Arin for a moment and began to collapse. Ed knew Brant didn¡¯t want to fight. Then, Brant knelt on the floor.

    ¡°My daughter. Please save Emma. If you save her, I¡¯ll do anything.¡±

    Everyone¡¯s eyes were on Ed. This was a person they met as an enemy. But now he was asking to help his daughter.

    How far should Ed trust him?

    It didn¡¯t seem that the girl who was bleeding out was acting. And Brant¡¯s eyes seemed to be telling the truth.

    Even though his left eye was shining red, his right eye was telling the truth.

    ¡°Put your child down and step back.¡±

    Brant put the girl down and stepped back.

    ¡°Dex. Be careful and bring the child.¡±

    Dex carefully approached Brant, who looked unusual since his first appearance, and picked up the child.

    ¡°Arin, please take a look at her wounds. And Dex.¡±

    ¡°Huh?¡±

    ¡°Pull out a sword and point it at the child¡¯s neck.¡±

    ¡°Huh?¡±

    Dex¡¯s thought Ed was going crazy. But then Ed answered softly.

    ¡°Brant was Akalan¡¯s hound, and Akalan is hostile to us. The girl could be an agent for Akalan.¡±

    When Dex heard that she might be an enemy, he pulled out a sword and pointed it at the girl¡¯s neck. With Dex¡¯s skills, even if that girl is a real Akalan agent, he can kill her before she tries anything.

    Arin confirmed that Dex was pointing a sword at the girl¡¯s neck and opened the cape covering the girl¡¯s chest. Then, her expression hardened and she raised her sacred power by putting both hands on the girl¡¯s wound. This wound was deep enough to prove that the girl was not acting.

    The brilliant blue light began to permeate the girl¡¯s wounds.

    At first glance, it¡¯s not a normal wound. With this wound, the girl could die soon. It was a wound made to kill.

    Arin can still save her though. Her divine power is one of the best in the Astron Church.

    Ed was lost in thought, pointing an arrow at Brant while Arin was treating the girl. Brant¡¯s restless gaze made that girl look like his real daughter.

    Looking at the situation alone, Brant seemed to be defeated.

    Is it that Akalan tried to kill their hound even though the hunt was not over?

    How did Brant, who seems to be one of the main characters of the demon¡¯s Age 2, come to be like this?

    His life was twisted because he met Ed. If Brant, who should have been hunting for demons with Akalan, is now being chased by Akalan, does that mean he demoted from the main character to the supporting role?

    This was a good catch for Ed.

 Chapter 70

    Ed was keeping Brant in check while Arin healed the girl. Ed roughly guessed the situation, but he¡¯s not sure.

    But is Brant¡¯s look a lie?

    If so, it can be said that Brant is a rare swindler or a rare performer.

    But Ed isn¡¯t letting his guard down. Now that his level has risen, he could have overpowered Brant, but there were some people here who would be in danger by the aftermath.

    As he watched like that, Diego approached Ed and asked.

    ¡°Is that man okay?¡±

    At first glance, Brant¡¯s condition looked bad. However, they cannot place a recovery spell on him as he uses the power of the demon.

    But since he has the power of the demon, so he will recover himself.

    ¡°He¡¯s going to be okay.¡±

    Diego looked at Brant at Ed¡¯s answer. He looked terrible because his whole body was burnt. Then, Diego approached the girl Arin was treating without asking.

    The girl¡¯s face, who seemed to be his age, was pale, but she looked even pale because of the light emitted by Arin¡¯s divine power.

    As Diego was looking at the girl¡¯s face as if he was possessed, Thane, who appeared next to him, smiled and spoke out.

    ¡°When she gets older, she¡¯ll become a beauty that will make the country shake.¡±

    ¡°Right? Don¡¯t you think she¡¯s really pretty?¡±

    ¡°Hehe. Indeed. Looks like Abby has new competition.¡±

    Diego replied without much thought to Thane¡¯s words, but came to his senses and blushed. But his brown skin made it less obvious.

    Thane glinted over.

    ¡°Looks like you got a crush on her.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not like that.¡±

    Thane no longer brought it up because Diego was embarrassed. However, Ed gave attention to Brant.

    Brant was Akalan¡¯s secret weapon.

    Brant came to them and asked to save his daughter. It is not known whether they knew their location or felt Arin¡¯s divine power.

    Thane¡¯s eyes turned to Arin.

    Arin is flexible considering she is a holy knight. But will she be able to accept Brant?

    He would be of great use if she could accept him, but it was something to watch.

    It wasn¡¯t until about 30 minutes later that Arin gained sacred power, and she swept the girl¡¯s hair away with a tired look.

    Arin, who put her hair over the girl¡¯s tangled blood, bowed her head, brought her ears to her nose, stayed still for a while, and raised herself.

    Seeing everyone¡¯s attention focused, Arin calmly spoke.

    ¡°She overcame the crisis.¡±

    Everyone breathed out relief at Arin¡¯s words. Arin gave Diego a look and said.

    ¡°Diego, can you bring me some water and towels?¡±

    When Diego brought her a water bag, Arin wetted the towel and wiped the blood on the girl¡¯s face and the blood on her wound. There was a long scar on her chest, but she survived.

    Arin felt proud as she cleaned the girl¡¯s body. It was rewarding to kill demons, but the feeling of saving people by her own power was a different feeling of reward.

    Arin, who gave the girl her cape, looked back at Diego.

    ¡°Please protect the kid.¡±

    When Diego hugged the girl, Dex looked back at Ed. When Ed nodded, Dex still stood next to Diego, pointing a sword at the girl¡¯s neck.

    Ed checked her and looked at Brant. Brant was shedding tears.

    ¡°Can Emma live?¡±

    Arin was briefly shaken by his gaze.

    ¡°She overcame the crisis. Though her scars will last forever.¡±

    Brant knelt down at her words and put his forehead on the floor.

    ¡°Thank you. Thank you so much.¡±

    Arin looked back at Ed. The person they met as an enemy showed his gratitude, and he seemed to be at a loss.

    Ed returned his arrows and put the bow on his back.

    Brant¡¯s sincerity was conveyed. If everything Brant did was a trick, Ed would blame himself.

    ¡°Raise your head. Tell me what¡¯s going on.¡±

    Brant looked up at Ed. Emma¡¯s neck was pointed with a sword, but he felt the atmosphere was relaxed.

    ¡°My name is Brant, a member of the Eastern Trojan Army. I came to Akalan when I was seriously injured and taken away during a local war. They asked if I would rather die or if I would participate in their experiment.¡±

    Ed threw the water bag when he saw Brant swallowing dry saliva. Brant received a water bag, sent a look of gratitude, and continued his story after drinking the water.

    ¡°Emma was caught in their radar and made her participate in the experiments too. But I never thought the experiment would have a survival rate of less than 0.02 percent.¡±

    Flames seemed to soar from Arin¡¯s eyes. According to Brant, more than 5,000 people have already been sacrificed.

    Brant said, turning his eyes to the sky.

    ¡°They injected demon¡¯s blood and were looking for a person who adapted. Everyone who came there had a story, and more than 3,000 people never succeeded. I didn¡¯t pass the experiment either, but I survived, so they locked me up and continued the experiments. By the time all 5,000 people died, my adaptation was over and the experiment was over.¡±

    Brant trembled and said.

    ¡°It hurt so much that I wanted to die every moment until the adaptation was over, but I endured and endured thinking of Emma. As I was giving up little by little, they brought Emma in to change my mind. They tried to give me hope. I endured the pain when I heard that they would give Emma a higher education and send her to the academy to raise her as a talent for the kingdom. Thanks to her, I overcame the pain, but they were afraid when they saw my strength.¡±

    This was understandable because it was difficult to recognize him after all the experiments. Above all, Brant¡¯s eyes are the problem.

    He had the ability to predict attacks and read the future. Even Ed had a hard time fighting with him.

    Agents of Akalan must have feared Brant.

    ¡°They didn¡¯t keep their promise, and they only showed Emma once in a while when I succeeded in my mission. But I failed the last mission.¡±

    Ed smiled bitterly at his words.

    ¡°You mean the mission to kill me.¡±

    ¡°It was my first order to kill someone who was not a demon, but I couldn¡¯t help it.¡±

    ¡°Because you had a hostage in Akalan?¡±

    ¡°¡¤¡¤¡¤Yes.¡±

    Thane, who was listening to Brant¡¯s story, suddenly intervened in the conversation.

    ¡°I understand that Akalan dealt with the power of the demon. I heard David is related to something. Do you know anything about him?¡±

    The word David seemed to spark something in Brant¡¯s eyes. Seeing the sad life take place, everyone except Ed picked up their weapons.

    Ed cautioned the angry Brant.

    ¡°Calm down.¡±

    Brant exhaled a long breath and continued.

    ¡°He was in charge of this experiment. David. I don¡¯t know what it means to deal with the power of the demon, but he periodically drew blood from me.¡±

    Ed looked back at Brant. If his blood, which has endured and adapted by injecting demon¡¯s blood, is purified in a special way, the general public can soon have access to the demon¡¯s powers.

    It is said they can have eternal life, but those in power will have no more ability to covet.

    David must have gained a lot of things by giving that power to the prince.

    However, he became a kite that fell, and Caren, the head of the Prince¡¯s group, also died. In addition, Pendragon said he would use his hands to take down Akalan himself.

    But why did David want to dispose of Brant?

    He¡¯s a good use of power, and he can use Brant¡¯s blood to sell the demon¡¯s power.

    Thane muttered, sweeping down his beard.

    ¡°Did he try to get rid of Brant so that other people couldn¡¯t get to him?¡±

    ¡°Other people?¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t you know that? As the prince died, the king¡¯s group gained strength. Akalan is the most information-sensitive group, so David must have noticed. He had no place to stand.¡±

    David¡¯s position has definitely narrowed. If David ran away with Brant and Emma, he would have been too easy to catch.

    ¡°Did he want to drag time?¡±

    Thane nodded at Ed¡¯s murmur.

    ¡°I thought it was strange that Akalan¡¯s agents kept her breathing, so they probably wanted for her to survive. So that she¡¯ll get people¡¯s attention.¡±

    David seemed to be more meticulous than Ed thought. He was a person who thinks about the future.

    ¡°And if Brant had visited the church for treatment with his demon power, they would have killed Brant there.¡±

    ¡°I guess so¡±.

    Brant¡¯s movement and appearance were so vicious that Ed shot an arrow the moment Brant appeared. It was not Ed¡¯s first time meeting him, and Ed confirmed that he had a child, so he wanted to save the child first.

    If he visited a temple or church, they were more likely to attack him than save him. Then, if he had destroyed temples or churches, it would have been a merit of the Astron Church. And everyone¡¯s eyes would have been on Brant.

    Akalan must have intended to use Brant as bait.

    Ed looked at Brant and asked.

    ¡°How did you find us?¡±

    Brant raised his hand and covered his left eye.

    ¡°Waking up the power of the demon can make short-term future predictions. But I can only predict a short period of time. I predicted many situations trying to save Emma¡¯s life, and I followed this path.¡±

    Thane made a strong impression when he heard that.

    ¡°The demon¡¯s blood that you have is the great demon Pestoles. The demon of stars can read the future. Thanks to that power, you can read the future.¡±

    Ed looked at Brant once again. Did Brant, who had been reading only the short-term future in battle so far, enlighten his ability in the face of his daughter¡¯s death?

    So that he can see a longer future?

    This guy. Ed wanted to see more.

    Originally, he would have moved as Akalan wanted and handled the demon. However, if he was one of the main characters, he would have somehow escaped Akalan.

    His life was likely twisted because of what Ed had done.

    Ed decided to take this man in for morality.

    ¡°What¡¯s your future plan?¡±

    There was a conflict on Brant¡¯s face. Seeing him hesitate, Ed followed his gaze to Emma, then looked at him again and asked.

    ¡°Revenge or your daughter? Is that your concern?

    Brant bowed his head as if he was awakened by the words.

    ¡°No. For me, my daughter comes first.¡±

    When Ed heard that, he looked back at the group. Ed wanted Brant to join the group badly, but he couldn¡¯t make the final decision because he wasn¡¯t the only person in the group.

    ¡°What should we do?¡±

    At Ed¡¯s question, Thane swept down his beard and asked.

    ¡°Are you thinking about whether to accept him into our group or not?¡±

    Ed didn¡¯t answer, but Thane looked at Brant and replied.

    ¡°If I can trust you, you could be a considerable help.¡±

    Brant was a person who would be selected as a special recruit if he was simply selected based on his ability, but they met him as an enemy.

    How far can they trust him?

    As Ed was agonizing, Emma, who Diego was guarding, opened her eyes. When she first found Brant kneeling far away with her eyes open, she flew right away.

    Dex would have been seriously injured if he hadn¡¯t removed the sword that aimed at her neck in surprise.

    ¡°Dad!¡±

    Emma ran past the people and hugged Brant.

    ¡°Emma! Are you okay?¡±

    ¡°Yes! I¡¯m fine. I guess everything was just a dream.¡±

    Emma said so and grabbed Brant¡¯s cheeks and smiled.

    ¡°Is this a dream? I can¡¯t believe I¡¯m seeing my dad like this.¡±

    Emma reached out her hand and wiped away Brant¡¯s tears.

    ¡°But why are you crying? You can stop now.¡±

    Emma held Brant¡¯s head with her small arms and patted him on the back.

    Arin was looking at the two sobbing and approached them and said.

    ¡°We¡¯ll have to wait and monitor her condition.¡±

    Ed could see that Arin allowed him to accompany the group. Now Ed had Arin¡¯s permission, which he was most worried about.

    This was a success for Ed!

 Chapter 71

    As expected, Brant recovered on his own. It was even mysterious to see his skin distorted by the burns regenerating back to his original skin.

    Brant, Emma, Thane, and Arin rode the carriage because Brant was in bad condition. Dex and Ed stayed on the roof of the carriage, and Diego was riding with Doug at the front.

    Thane and Arin seemed to open up little by little to Emma¡¯s appearance of taking care of Brant. Brant kept looking around, perhaps because he had sinned something.

    Ed wanted to talk to Brant separately after saving him and having dinner at the inn in a nearby village.

    Brant was a little nervous about Ed, who he couldn¡¯t win even after trying his best. In addition, Ed seemed to be the leader of this group, so he had to put up his best attitude.

    Ed poured alcohol into Brant¡¯s cup because he seemed to be nervous. And Ed poured alcohol into his own cup.

    Ed was looking at the foam of the beer and opened his mouth.

    ¡°Mr. Brant.¡±

    When Ed first met him, he continued to speak informally, but after accepting him as a group member, he was being polite. It was natural for Ed to speak formally because Brant had a daughter and looked ten years older than him.

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    And Brant also looked at Ed. Because he was the leader of the group and showed his power.

    ¡°What are you going to do in the future?¡±

    ¡°What?¡±

    Brant raised his head and looked at Ed in surprise. Ed silently received his gaze and continued to speak.

    ¡°Emma¡¯s wound is almost healed. It means that Arin doesn¡¯t have to take care of her.¡±

    ¡°What do you mean?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s okay for you to leave anytime.¡±

    Brant was shocked by the words. He met them as enemies and his daughter was saved by them. But Ed was telling him that he can leave.

    To be honest, Brant thought his power would be helpful enough for Ed¡¯s group. He thought he was one of the stronger members after Ed.

    Brant don¡¯t know what they were doing, but he thought he could be helpful enough. So he wanted to be accepted into the group.

    Brant also wanted to feel less burdened.

    Brant thought he could pay them back whenever they needed them.

    But Ed said it was okay to leave.

    Was Ed thinking that Brant would really leave the group with dept? Together with Emma?

    However, Brant¡¯s selfish mind also raised its head. How about hiding alone with Emma? Even if he has the power of the demon, there is no reason to run away thanks to Eslan¡¯s chain.

    Living happily with Emma was something Brant had only dreamed of. Ed was saying now that it was possible.

    ¡°Can I really do that?¡±

    ¡°Of course.¡±

    Ed said so and took a sip of beer. One thing Brant didn¡¯t like was that he could only drink cold beer in the winter.

    Brant, who was still looking at Ed, asked.

    ¡°Why are you so nice to me?¡±

    Ed put his cup down at the words and stared at him.

    ¡°I was trying to kill you guys.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right.¡±

    ¡°But I don¡¯t understand why you saved my daughter and now letting us leave without asking for anything.¡±

    Ed smiled and replied.

    ¡°Some I respect told me something. The bad guy is always the person to blame. You were just their sword. The real bad guys are Akalan.¡±

    Brant looked at Ed without saying anything. Ed calmly continued to speak, receiving his gaze.

    ¡°According to the prophecy of the Astron Church, our group is working with the Holy Knight Arin to fight demons. To be honest, we can¡¯t guarantee your safety.¡±

    Brant tried to say that he could do it. But Emma was in his way.

    ¡°There is a boy named Diego.¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s a spirit commander. He¡¯s not much different from you because he can kill intermediate demons like you.¡±

    ¡°What?¡±

    Ed looked at the surprised Brant.

    If Diego uses the power of the demon, he can beat the intermediate demon. But honestly, Ed still had to admit that Brant was stronger than Diego for now.

    And now that Diego¡¯s powers are blooming, he may become stronger than expected.

    Ed knows that Brant is sorry and grateful, but he has no clear motive.

    Arin is following her prophecy, and Thane wants to kill the demon¡¯s seeds. Diego is Juan¡¯s son and wants to pay back his original sin, and Dex just wants to fight. A fiercer fight than now.

    But Brant was different.

    He had a daughter to protect, and so far he had not wanted to kill anything. So he had a weak motivation.

    If Brant had not been involved with Ed, he would have gradually strengthened his powers with Akalan. But something would have gone wrong with them in some way.

    Rather than giving him a chance to leave, Ed did not want to recruit someone who was not determined to become part of the group and kill demons, regardless of his ability.

    It was always the same in games. You can tell how strong the characters are by their grade, but the difficulty level increases several times depending on their determination.

    Realizing that Ed had sincerity, Brant emptied the beer in the cup.

    ¡°Can you give me some time to think?¡±

    Ed nodded his head gently.

    ¡°Please do that.¡±

    Ed stood up. Brant, who was looking at his back as he went up to the room, also got up and went up to the room. And Brant could see Emma leaning against the window and looking outside.

    Emma turned her head and smiled at Brant.

    ¡°Dad!¡±

    Emma ran and hugged Brant, and he hugged her tightly. How long has it been since he has been with my daughter like this without someone¡¯s surveillance?

    Brant, who was still feeling her presence, wanted to be a little selfish. So he sat Emma in the bed and looked at her while kneeling down.

    Emma stared at Brant¡¯s eyes as he looked at her silently. Brant, who smiled and sat down, asked.

    ¡°Emma, what do you think about living with me? Just the two of us.¡±

    ¡°Just the two of us?¡±

    ¡°Yes, just the two of us.¡±

    Emma tilted her head and asked.

    ¡°Then do we have to leave Arin and Thane?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right.¡±

    In fact, it hasn¡¯t even been a few days since they met Ed¡¯s group.

    Emma looked at Brant with a straight face. Her expression resembled her mother, so Brant instinctively looked down.

    ¡°Dad.¡±

    ¡°Huh?¡±

    ¡°There was something mom often said to me while you were on the battlefield. Mom said she married you because of what you told her.¡±

    Brant blushed when he realized what Emma was going to say.

    ¡°Those who don¡¯t know grace are worse than Goblins. So if you receive grace, you should pay it back twice more. That¡¯s how you became a human!¡±

    Emma grabbed her clothes. The scar on her chest caught Brant¡¯s eye.

    ¡°I owe them my life. Then I have to pay back something twice more valuable than my life. Are you saying we should leave without repaying their grace?¡±

    When Brant saw the wound on Emma¡¯s chest, he reached out his hand and held her hand. Then he reached out and grabbed Emma¡¯s shoulders and said.

    ¡°They¡¯re doing something very dangerous. Your life could be in danger.¡±

    Emma continued with a straight face.

    ¡°I would have already been dead if it weren¡¯t for them. I¡¯m not afraid of death. I¡¯m going to pay them back even if I only do chores.¡±

    Brant smiled at his daughter¡¯s words. For a moment, his selfish mind raised its head, but when he heard Emma¡¯s words, he woke up to his senses.

    He was embarrassed to have felt selfish. They rescued his daughter, who was an enemy without asking for anything.

    And only then did Brant realize why Ed said that to him.

    According to the prophecy of the Astron Church, the work of a holy knight is to catch the great demon. Holy knights risked their lives doing this.

    For Brant, it was a matter of proving his trust before his skills.

    He couldn¡¯t decide easily because of Emma¡¯s worries, but after hearing Emma¡¯s words, he came to his senses.

    ¡°Stay right here. I have somewhere to go.¡±

    Emma raised both hands and grabbed Brant¡¯s cheek when she saw his gaze change. And said with a gentle smile.

    ¡°Dad. Mom said she fell in love with you because you were a proud man. I was proud of that kind of dad. So please continue to be a proud dad.¡±

    Brant got up from his seat after touching Emma¡¯s hair.

    ¡°Thank you for bringing me to my senses.¡±

    Emma waved her hand as if to go quickly. Brant came out and went straight to Ed¡¯s room and knocked on the door.

    It was Dex who opened the door. He yawned and asked.

    ¡°What happened?¡±

    ¡°Is Ed here?¡±

    Dex pointed up with his finger and said.

    ¡°I heard he¡¯s getting some fresh air¡±.

    ¡°Thank you.¡±

    Brant slightly bowed his head and climbed onto the roof through the window of the hallway. Ed was drinking beer while sitting on the roof looking up at the sky.

    Ed¡¯s eyes turned to Brant, who had been looking at him for a while, and approached him. Ed looked into Brant¡¯s eyes and opened his mouth.

    ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡±

    ¡°I have something to say.¡±

    Ed tapped the seat next to him and turned his eyes back to the sky. Brant sat next to him and looked up at the sky together.

    ¡°What are you looking at?¡±

    ¡°I was looking at the stars because someone said you could see the future if you read them.¡±

    The power of the demon of stars, Pestoles.

    Brant also looked up at the stars in the sky, but he didn¡¯t see the future or anything. He never looked up at the night sky in the state of awakening the power of the demon, so he doesn¡¯t know if it¡¯s possible.

    Ed¡¯s gaze headed for Brant. Brant also looked down at Ed.

    ¡°Did you decide?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    Brant bowed his head first as Ed waited.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I couldn¡¯t make up my mind earlier.¡±

    Ed didn¡¯t say anything and waited. Brant looked up and looked straight at Ed and continued to talk.

    ¡°Let me join you.¡±

    Ed, who was looking at the determined Brant, held out a beer.

    ¡°You look determined.¡±

    It is different from when he lived as Akalan¡¯s hound. Ed decided to accept him as a group member because he was now trying to do something with his will.

    When Brant received the cup of beer and emptied it at once, Ed, who was looking at him, smiled and said.

    ¡°Can I call you bro from now on?¡±

    ¡°What?¡±

    Ed calmly told Brant, who was surprised.

    ¡°You look ten years older than me, so I want to call you bro. But I can call you uncle if you want.¡±

    Brant burst into laughter. He never laughed like this since he was seriously injured in his previous battles.

    ¡°Jut call me bro.¡±

    Ed reached out to Brant. When Brant held his hand, Ed smiled and said.

    ¡°I¡¯m looking forward to working together with you. Bro.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m looking forward, too.¡±

 Chapter 72

    Ed was at the forefront of the group, riding his horse, and looked sideways. Next to him, Arin was riding her horse, and she looked like a scene from a painting.

    She was so beautiful and had a subtle halo. Ed suddenly spoke to her.

    ¡°Thank you.¡±

    Arin looked back as if she was wondering what Ed was talking about. Ed calmly continued to talk to the gaze.

    ¡°You accepted Brant as our group member.¡±

    Arin smiled.

    ¡°It¡¯s because of Emma. I thought I could trust Brant after seeing how well he raised his child.¡±

    Ed smiled back at her. As for himself, Arin¡¯s senses are incomparable to that of other people. Everyone could hear the conversation about Emma and Brant even though they weren¡¯t paying attention.

    This was because Arin felt a little more relaxed after accepting Diego as a formal member of their group.

    ¡°Plus, you wanted him to be part of our group.¡±

    The words tickled Ed¡¯s heart strangely.

    ¡°Thank you for trusting me.¡±

    Arin smiled and asked.

    ¡°Will you be okay?¡±

    ¡°What?¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re supposed to rest during the day.¡±

    Ed was actually so strong that he wouldn¡¯t get tired even if he slept an hour a day. His physical strength would allow him to stay up for a few days if he needed to.

    This is due to his improved physical strength compared to before.

    ¡°I¡¯m going to switch with Dex later.¡±

    A simple film was built on the roof of the carriage, and Dex was sleeping under it. He couldn¡¯t help it because day and night changed.

    As they left the village, they had two horses. Dex and Ed took turns riding one and Arin decided to continue riding the other one. It was natural for Arin to continue riding one horse because she was responsible for the safety of the group during the day.

    After accepting Brant as a member, Arin did not mind getting off the carriage. She couldn¡¯t leave Thane alone inside until she fully trusted in Brant. But now that she had accepted him as a member, she trusts him.

    Brant, Emma, Thane, and Diego are riding in the carriage together.

    ¡°He¡¯ll be helpful.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s true.¡±

    Arin turned her head and looked at the carriage. She was well aware of Brant¡¯s ability.

    Thane likes the thought of demons killing other demons, but Arin is still not sure if it is the right thing.

    However, because she believes in Ed, she accepted Brant. Ed asked when Arin turned her head forward again.

    ¡°Until now, the bloodstone has guided us. Will that continue?¡±

    Arin tilted her head.

    ¡°We¡¯ve started encountering intermediate demons and higher-level demons, but I can¡¯t tell the intensity of the force. But considering the number of higher-level demons, wouldn¡¯t it be less likely to it¡¯ll continue guiding us to higher-level demons?¡±

    ¡°I guess so¡±.

    In particular, it is more difficult to find a higher-level demon that is not common. These demons are used to hiding themselves among people.

    They are similar to Juan¡¯s determination to hide among humans and not be found.

    Arin said with a smile.

    ¡°But wouldn¡¯t we be able to catch a higher-level demon now?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s true.¡±

    Their power has changed again from when they first met Juan. Their level has risen, and their equipment has been greatly strengthened. And above all, the number of people in the group has increased.

    Those who have strong power.

    ¡°I hope it¡¯s a demon that can test our groups strength.¡±

    Since the lower-level demon can be killed easily, it was good to have a chance to fight a higher-level demon and work together as a group, so they can study the members¡¯ strong points and weak points.

    Arin looked at Ed.

    As Ed spoke, he had no concern about meeting an intermediate demon.

    Perhaps that¡¯s why Arin felt reassured when she was with him.

    ¡°I hope so.¡±

    The group was finding a place to camp before night and prepare dinner. Doug cooks dinner, but now he has two hands to help him.

    Diego and Emma rolled up their sleeves and helped him, but Emma, who fell in love with Doug¡¯s cooking skills, was learning more about cooking these days.

    There is always a limit to the food that can be made in the campsite, but after passing through Doug¡¯s hand, the taste magically improved, so Emma was trying to learn it.

    And Dex was standing and unable to sit because he rode a horse today. Since it was his first time riding a horse, his butt was sore.

    Arin taught him how to ride a horse, but Dex, who has a natural talent for battle, didn¡¯t know why he struggled to ride horses.

    Looking at that, Ed thought God is fair.

    Arin entered the carriage and was praying quietly, and Thane was talking with Brant. Whatever it may be, Brant thought it would be of great help if he could learn from the demon researcher.

    Ed looked around the group and suddenly looked up at the moment he felt something. The sun is still setting, so it¡¯s too early for a beast to appear, but Ed winked at Dex at the sight of something.

    When Dex asked, ¡°Why?¡± Ed quietly lifted his bow. And he focused on the place where he could feel something.

    Something was approaching. But it¡¯s very secretive. It seems like an animal approaching, but if left alone, Diego or Emma would be in danger, so Ed decided to catch it.

    Ed set up his arrow, and it flew fast. The animal was turning its body like it felt something, but the arrow had already turned around and hit its head.

    From his small but incoming experience, Ed went over and saw whatever fell from the tree.

    It was a jaguar with a body length of approximately two meters. It had unusual in size. If this kind of animal had attacked them, they would¡¯ve been hurt instantly.

    When Ed returned with the jaguar over his shoulder, Doug pulled out a kitchen knife and asked.

    ¡°Shall we grill some meat today?¡±

    Ed shrugged and put down the jaguar because it was an unexpected hunt. Then Diego approached and asked.

    ¡°Before you do that, can I command its spirit first?¡±

    Ed looked at Diego. You got a rat spirit not too long ago, and he can already add one more?

    Why is his growth rate so abnormally fast?

    ¡°Can you do that?¡±

    ¡°Yes. My dad also asked me to think about the next spirit command.¡±

    Ed nodded at his words.

    ¡°Then try it.¡±

    The summoning of the spirit was something that Ed did not know well yet, so he was curious.

    Diego blushed slightly as everyone¡¯s eyes were focused. In particular, Diego, who even coughed from Emma¡¯s gaze, took the Orb out of his arms.

    The orb belonged to the witchcraft man Isperto.

    Diego held it and closed his eyes, and a mysterious green light emanated.

    Diego put it on the forehead of the dead jaguar in that state and muttered low, but Ed didn¡¯t understand what he was saying.

    Seeing that he¡¯s already learned the spirit command like that, he must be a really natural spirit commander.

    When Diego cast a spell, a soul resembling a jaguar escaped the body and floated into the air. Diego reached out his left hand and put his hand on the head of the jaguar.

    When Diego touched, the Jaguar opened its eyes and made eye contact. The two made eye contact for a while, and soon, the Jaguar lowered his eyes and put his forehead on Diego¡¯s hand.

    Then, letters on the head of the Jaguar appeared. The jaguar, which disappeared with light, reappeared next to Diego.

    Diego sighed with relief when the two-meter-long jaguar appeared next to him. Until now, Jerry was the spirit he could command, and he wasn¡¯t sure if it would be possible to spirit command an animal this big.

    In particular, he tried not to make a mistake while Emma was watching. And Emma glinted.

    ¡°Diego! That was amazing!¡±

    Diego smiled with a slight chin up at Emma¡¯s compliment.

    ¡°I told you I was a spirit commander.¡±

    ¡°I heard it, but I didn¡¯t know that spirit commanding was this great.¡±

    Until now, Jerry was the only spirit Diego could command. And Jerry was so small that he could fit inside of Diego¡¯s hand. So Diego didn¡¯t expect much but felt great when he was able to spirit command a two-meter-long animal.

    Diego asked as if he was being generous.

    ¡°Is there a name you want to give him?¡±

    Emma strode up to Diego at the words.

    ¡°Really? Can I name it?¡±

    ¡°Of course.¡±

    Emma looked pleased. Emma smiled and asked.

    ¡°Can we name him Tom?¡±

    Diego¡¯s eyebrows wriggled. It¡¯s a manly name for a Jaguar spirit. Diego was jealous of whoever Emma was reminded of.

    ¡°Tom? How did you come up with that name?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s my maternal grandfather¡¯s name. He really loved me. What¡¯s the matter?¡±

    ¡°¡¤¡¤Somehow, the name is familiar, easy to call, and it fits well. Tom! Good! Tom! He¡¯s Tom from now on.¡±

    Ed had to watch the funny situation in which the name of the two-meter jaguar became Tom.

    ¡°Tom and Jerry?¡±

    Diego quickly summoned Jerry and put him on Tom¡¯s head while Emma glared at him with doubt and smiled awkwardly.

    ¡°What do you think?¡±

    Emma smiled at Diego¡¯s efforts. It was even cute to see him restless.

    ¡°Cute.¡±

    Emma didn¡¯t even say who was cute.

    And the group was smiling at the two.

    The bloody man, who appeared in the wide underground cave, was riding a large rabbit with broken horns.

    It may be ridiculous to see that, but there were no people who dare to say that when they see the bodies scattered around him. The bloody man looked down from the rabbit.

    The man was looking at six other men and women sitting at a round table with a hexagram on it. He came down from the rabbit and opened his mouth.

    ¡°I think we¡¯ve come to the right place.¡±

    Among those who were wearing the robe, the old man stood up and opened his mouth.

    ¡°Are you Lagrox?¡±

    The bloody man strode up to the round table and smiled quietly as he looked back at the people who gathered.

    ¡°That¡¯s right, I¡¯m Lagrox.¡±

    All six people who gathered acknowledging that he was Lagrox were nervous. Lagrox looked back at them and smiled.

    ¡°I gathered you all here because I need the strength of the crossel.¡±

    The moment the old man took out the orb from the inside of his robe, his head was cut in half. The other five swallowed their dry saliva when the old man¡¯s head fell off.

    They couldn¡¯t even guess what the old man¡¯s head was blown away with.

    Lagrox said, throwing red jewels at a round table.

    ¡°I¡¯m not saying I want to borrow it for free. I will give you the strength you¡¯ve craved so much.¡±

 Chapter 73

    It has been three days since Tom and Jerry became part of the group.

    The group decided on where to camp the night. There was a small village nearby, but since it was not as big as a city, there may be a surprise attack by magicians, so if possible, they wanted to search for other campsites.

    After looking for the campsite again today, everyone was preparing for dinner, and Diego released Tom and Jerry. This is because Ed advised him to focus on improving his skills as a spirit commander rather than helping with dinner preparation.

    Emma also liked helping Doug, so Diego decided to focus on his spirit command to improve his performance.

    And his understanding of spirit command has deepened, it has become possible to communicate with Juan for a longer time without summoning him.

    Diego, who was so focused on learning about spirit command techniques, decided to try a new training today.

    He wanted to summon two dogs and share senses at the same time.

    He was dizzy at first, but he got used to it.

    What was interesting was that each spirit command had different abilities.

    Sensing type Jerry and Tom was capable of hiding and darkening.

    Jerry easily followed Diego¡¯s directions, but Tom was a little different. Because of his strong memory during his lifetime, Tom climbed up trees and was moving along the branches while exploring his surroundings.

    It was frustrating to see him do that even though he could run through walls, but Diego believed that he would get better gradually. Diego sent both Tom and Jerry together just in case a reverse recall would happen like the last time.

    Jerry would be on top of Tom¡¯s head. Diego was getting used to this new sense just by feeling the two moving on the branches of the forest while sharing their views.

    Jerry touched his beard.

    Then, there was something that caught his senses. Diego agonized for a moment.

    In the past, he remembered Jerry being summoned back and fainting.

    He thought it would be okay now because he had Tom, but he let Tom and Jerry wait there and cut off sharing their senses.

    When Diego woke up from his seat, he stumbled because he was dizzy, perhaps because the two spirits cut off their senses. Someone helped Diego get up.

    ¡°Thank you.¡±

    ¡°Pfft. What¡¯s up with you?¡±

    Diego only then confirmed that Emma was the one who helped him.

    ¡°When did you get here?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m here to tell you to eat dinner is almost ready. Did you fall asleep because you were hungry?¡±

    ¡°No. Wait a minute. I have something to tell Ed.¡±

    Diego stood still for a while, calmed down his dizziness, and walked away. As Emma spoke, everyone was gathered to have dinner.

    Everyone was holding a bowl of stew, but Ed asked when Diego approached.

    ¡°Do you have something to say?¡±

    The carriage was far away, but Ed wanted to hear about what Diego had to say.

    ¡°Brother. Jerry noticed something. I was thinking of sending Tom this time, but I wanted to tell you just in case.¡±

    Ed put down his bowl and stood up.

    ¡°Do you know which direction it is?¡±

    ¡°Wait a minute.¡±

    Diego, who closed his eyes and communicated with Jerry, opened his eyes and said.

    ¡°It¡¯s that direction.¡±

    Doug spoke after seeing where Diego was pointing.

    ¡°It¡¯s the direction of the village.¡±

    Was Diego saying that he can feel the demon¡¯s power in the village?

    Ed shook his head as all of the group stood up.

    ¡°I¡¯ll just go and see what¡¯s going on.¡±

    ¡°Let¡¯s go together.¡±

    Ed nodded at Arin¡¯s words. Ed thought Brant and Dex could protect the campsite. And Diego doesn¡¯t have to go with them.

    ¡°Diego. I¡¯m going to ride a horse, so just guide me.¡±

    ¡°Wait a minute.¡±

    Diego closed his eyes for a while, and Tom and Jerry quickly returned. Jerry ran up and came up onto Ed¡¯s shoulder. Ed looked at Diego with Jerry on his shoulder.

    ¡°Please guide us.¡±

    ¡°Just leave it to me.¡±

    Diego had a smile on his face, perhaps because he was happy with Ed¡¯s words.

    As a spirit, Jerry, who came up to Ed¡¯s shoulder, swept down his beard with his front feet and squeaked because he couldn¡¯t get near Arin. Ed knew the way to the village, but he needed Jerry to guide him inside the village.

    Ed made eye contact with Arin and took off. It¡¯s time for the sun to set and the night to come.

    It wasn¡¯t difficult to find the village. There was a line of wood, but there was no one guarding at night.

    Above all, not only was there no light, but they couldn¡¯t feel any movement.

    When Ed looked back at Arin, she closed her eyes and opened them. Arin shook her head as she looked around the village with her blue eyes.

    ¡°We need to go in.¡±

    When Ed looked at Jerry, he squeaked and pointed toward the village with his front feet.

    ¡°I guess it¡¯s inside. Let¡¯s leave the horses here.¡±

    Since they had to cross the wooden fence, the horse was tied to a tree at the entrance to the village. The height of the wooden fence was as high as the wall height of the royal mansions, so Ed reached out his hand, but Arin shook her head and jumped over it n her own.

    Her physical ability must have improved than before. As expected for a holy knight.

    Ed also jumped from the ground and soared, and he quickly reached the end of the wooden fence without having to kick the wall. Ed gently climbed onto the wooden fence and looked around the village.

    There is no smoke coming up, and there is no light.

    It¡¯s a ghost village.

    As Ed looked around Arin shook her head.

    ¡°I can¡¯t see or feel anything.¡±

    Ed looked at Jerry on his shoulder at her words. Perhaps because of the characteristics of the spirit command, he proved to be superior to Arin in sensing power.

    Jerry raised his head, shook his beard, and squeaked.

    Seeing Jerry jump off his shoulder and run, Ed and Arin followed after him.

    Since Jerry could run through the wall, Ed and Arin ran on the roofs and chased after him.

    In a village of this size, there should be people coming and going. Ed¡¯s group would have stayed here if they weren¡¯t being attacked by beasts every night.

    Was there a demon who attacked the village?

    It was highly likely that the demon was a fool or something problematic happened. Otherwise, did the demon have the ability to overwhelm everything?

    To be at that level, the demon must at least be high-level or intermediate.

    Even Juan could make a while city disappear in a day.

    It would be possible to destroy this village even as an intermediate demon, but the aftermath would have been too much to handle. An intermediate demon would know the consequences, so what happened here?

    It was a village that raised doubts in many ways.

    While Ed was agonizing over it, Jerry quickly began to run toward the village hall. Arin, who was chasing after him, pulled out her shield and a hammer as if she sensed something.

    Ed also held his bow in his left hand and asked.

    ¡°Is this the town hall?¡±

    ¡°No, it¡¯s the church.¡±

    Ed¡¯s expression hardened at the words.

    Demons will not go near churches unless they are insane. When they go near a church, a holy knight is immediately dispatched to chase the demon until death.

    But they can feel the demon¡¯s energy at a church?

    Ed thought it could be a demon who wanted to die. Arin jumped off the roof and started running toward the church at a terrifying speed.

    Her muscle strength is higher than Ed¡¯s, so whenever her feet kicked the ground, she pushed herself forward. Ed also found the destination, so rather than running on the roof to make it easier to follow Jerry, he jumped to the ground and started running comfortably.

    Ed, who quickly caught up with Arin, made a strong impression.

    Blood was being passed down from the church outside the village. Arin, as well as Ed, smelled the blood scent, and her eyes changed.

    Seeing her speed go up, Ed also ran along with her and pulled out an arrow.

    Jerry stopped where the church could be seen and stood with his front feet up. Ed, who ran to the church with Arin, made a strong impression when he saw the tragedy inside the church.

    A priest was nailed on the token of the Astron Church, and corpses were piled up like mountains in the center of the church. All the people in the village were dead and piled up here.

    But it was amazing. It means that none of them died at their homes.

    If they had bled at home, Arin and Ed would¡¯ve smelled the blood on their way.

    Arin looked at the mountains of the corpses and spoke.

    ¡°Come out.¡±

    Arin¡¯s words shook the mountains of the corpses. Were they still alive?

    As the mountains of the bodies shook, Ed realized that there was something underneath them, and he prepared an arrow. After a while, a head popped out of the mountains of the corpses.

    ¡°Did you guys already arrive? I¡¯m not ready yet.¡±

    Ed didn¡¯t fire an arrow because he saw letters engraved on the man¡¯s forehead. A cross-shaped tattoo in a circle. Ed thought it was familiar and muttered without realizing it.

    ¡°A crossel?¡±

    These are the things you meet when you play Demon¡¯s Age 1. He remembered the Druid Dread killed all of them, but there were survivors?

    The eyes of the man who had only poked his head out of the mountains of the corpses turned to Ed.

    ¡°Huh. Do you know us?¡±

    A crossel is a group of demon dependents and followers. In short, it means a group of crazy people.

    When Ed tried to shoot an arrow instead of answering, there was something that flew before the crossel. A hammer full of Arin¡¯s sacred power flew toward him.

    At that time, several bodies gathered and blocked the hammer.

    Boom!

    The bodies that blocked the hammer full of sacred power were shattered, but in the meantime, the crossel hid under the other bodies. Arin suddenly threw a shield this time after catching her hammer.

    As soon as the shield flew in, the corpses built a wall. But the wall was smashed at once.

    Only then did Ed know what the crossel was trying to do.

    It was trying to make a ragged golem. A ragged golem was created by raising all the bodies of the villagers.

    But Arin¡¯s condition was strange. She lost her composure.

    After throwing her shield, she was rushing toward the ragged Golem with her sword.

    There was no room for Ed to intervene. But he didn¡¯t mean to leave her alone in danger.

    Ed looked at the ragged Golem¡¯s leg being cut off by Arin¡¯s sword while raising his body, and Ed injected mana into his frozen bow.

    The crossel was hiding in the ragged Golem. If Ed hadn¡¯t finished it, the ragged Golem would continue to play with the dead bodies of the villagers.

    Arin¡¯s sacred power is so enormous and the performance of holy relics is excellent, but it was a dangerous fight. She was not targeting its weakness, but rather just trying to break it down without considering its regenerative power.

    All she needed to do is catch the crossel hiding inside there, but she was making the wrong moves.

    The Ragged Golem has not even properly raised his body yet. It was made of the bodies of more than 200 people, so when the shape began to rise, it seemed to be over 10 meters tall.

    If so, there is no need to wait until completion. And it was necessary to cool off Arin¡¯s incomprehensible heat and madness.

    Ed¡¯s arrow went to the ragged golem where he was raising himself and was stuck.

    Freeeeeeeeeez!

    The body of the ragged Golem, who was about to get up and break to the ceiling of the church, was trapped in a large block of ice. However, it was not dead since there wasn¡¯t any experience coming in.

    ¡°Arin! Calm down!¡±

    However, Arin did not stop swinging her sword and hammer at the ragged Golem trapped in the chunk of ice.

    Ed doesn¡¯t know what happened to her, but it¡¯s dangerous to leave Arin like this. They shouldn¡¯t act this ignorant without knowing what the crossel was planning.

    Ed went behind Arin and shouted once again, hugging her with one arm.

    ¡°Arin! Calm down!¡±

    At Ed¡¯s cry, Arin¡¯s holy sword and hammer slowly stopped.

    ¡°Whew. Whew.¡±

    Ed saw for the first time that Arin was so upset that she couldn¡¯t even control her breathing. Ed said, hugging Arin¡¯s shoulder from behind.

    ¡°Arin, don¡¯t worry. I¡¯ll let you kill that thing.¡±

 Chapter 74

    As soon as Arin saw the letters on the forehead of the crossel hiding inside the mountain of dead bodies, she remembered something. It was a fragmentary memory.

    The appearance of herself and her brother surrounded by those letters.

    And the terrible rituals they had to go through.

    A pond created by blood. And something wriggling in it.

    Then a bear appeared.

    A 4-meter-long bear appeared and swept them away and saved her and her brother. And the bear turned into a person and hugged them tightly. Arin felt a fit of indescribable anger boiling deep in her heart when she remembered her past.

    Arin threw her hammer as if she was proving that she was no longer that same girl, but the corpses blocked her attack.

    Those crossel¡¯s regard people¡¯s lives as insignificant as those of flies.

    The anger against them woke up her memories a little more, and she remembered that not only her parents but also all the villagers dying in her hands. Her dad tried to protect her and her brother, and her mom tried to hide them.

    The monsters strangely wove the two siblings together. And blood was pouring from the two.

    Something was rising from the pool of blood.

    Remembering all that, Arin swung her weapon frantically. The memories became clearer as the bodies were broken. They were terrible memories. Her brother held her hand tightly.

    And the man who changed from a bear to a person.

    His warm arms hugged them.

    The anger that was infested while the memories came to mind grew stronger. She attacked the corpses, but all of them suddenly froze.

    As the cold air was delivered, her mind returned a little, but she couldn¡¯t stop breaking what was in front of her. At that time, there was a hug from behind.

    Only then did she hear someone¡¯s voice.

    ¡°Arin! Calm down!¡±

    The voice was getting clearer. She didn¡¯t know whose voice that belonged to, but it lifted her from the terrible memory that was encroaching on her like a swamp.

    ¡°Whew. Whew.¡±

    Only then did her mind come back. And she felt the warm body temperature surrounding her shoulders.

    ¡°Arin, don¡¯t worry. I¡¯ll let you kill that thing.¡±

    Arin came to her senses. Arin¡¯s breathing subsided quickly, and Ed loosened her arm and said, stepping back.

    ¡°It¡¯s just hiding inside. It¡¯s going to come out soon.¡±

    The power of the frozen arrow was raised to the limit, and the entire ragged golem was frozen. That alone will damage a large number of bodies, but there were still more than 200 bodies.

    Ed asked as he saw a crack in the ice cube.

    ¡°Can you feel where it is?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s in the middle.¡±

    ¡°Then I¡¯ll open the way.¡±

    Arin looked back at Ed. He has always been in charge of fatal attacks, but Ed was already preparing his arrow.

    ¡°You¡¯ll get a chance.¡±

    Arin¡¯s gaze headed back to the crossel. The crack in the ice cube grew and exploded in all directions.

    Ed, who was looking at it, prepared another arrow. As the ice bow was strengthened, an interesting function was created. Being able to determine the direction of cold air.

    Rather than freezing it as a whole, freezing it in one direction is easier to reach the center.

    Ed¡¯s arrow was stuck in the heart of a crossel who was breaking out of a chunk of ice.

    Freeeeeez!

    The arrow, which erupted cold air in one direction toward the center, froze only about a meter in radius.

    Arin already threw her hammer. As the sacred hammer flew, Ed smashed exactly the frozen parts. Ed fired two additional arrows.

    No matter how many bodies were piled up, if they dig into the center from one direction, they didn¡¯t have to damage a lot of the bodies.

    As the frozen bodies were broken, the center came into their eyes at once. When Ed¡¯s arrow flew in again, he noticed the bodies moving to prevent it.

    When the crossel saw an arrow flying, it urgently used the bodies to block it, but as soon as the two arrows were inserted, all the bodies tried to block the open hole.

    At that time, Arin was already running. She picked up her shield that fell on the ground and rushed in.

    The bodies froze and Arin rushed into the open hole. The crossel hurriedly turned the corpses into spears and blew them towards Arin.

    However, the flying bone spears crashed into her sacred shield and shattered. Arin¡¯s sword rushed in and went straight for the crossel¡¯s heart.

    ¡°Gasp!¡±

    The crossel was stabbed by a holy sword full of sacred power. The bodies poured down. Arin and the crossel stood facing each other on the mountains of the bodies with a sword between them.

    Arin stared at the crossel and asked.

    ¡°Weren¡¯t all the crossel¡¯s extinct?¡±

    The crossel was smiling even though a sword was stuck in its heart.

    ¡°Khhhh. We survived, and we¡¯ve become stronger.¡±

    The crossel was acting as if it didn¡¯t feel pain. The crossel said with a smile.

    ¡°That¡¯s too bad. If I had prepared properly and fought, I could have killed you.¡±

    ¡°Did you know we were coming?¡±

    ¡°Of course. I was around here, so I tried to kill you both, but you guys are stronger than I thought.¡±

    The crossel giggled and looked at Arin and spoke as if it were cursing them.

    ¡°Arin, the holy knight. You¡¯ll never be able to get away from us.¡±

    Arin said, pulling out the sword that she had stuck in the crossel¡¯s heart.

    ¡°I¡¯ll be waiting with joy. Crossel.¡±

    Arin cut off the crossel¡¯s neck after saying that. While its neck rolled on the ground, the crossel burst into laughter.

    ¡°In the end, you will lead us!¡±

    Arin put a holy sword in the head of the crossel and created divine power. When its head burned in the sacred power, Arin could only hear the screams she wanted.

    ¡°Aaaaargh!¡±

    Arin burned the crossel¡¯s head with divine power, knelt down, and began to pray. A wave of blue light began to appear around her and the mountains of corpses.

    Ed slowly lowered his bow. Arin, who had been praying for a long time, walked down the mountain of the corpse and stood in front of Ed.

    ¡°I think it¡¯ll be hard to bury all of them, so I¡¯d like to cremate them at least. Could you help me?¡±

    ¡°Of course.¡±

    Ed and Arin took out all the bodies in the church and piled them in front of the church. They cremated the bodies. While they could smell the disgusting odor of human flesh burning, Arin looked at the fire silently.

    Next to her, Ed looked at the crossel that died. It had nothing on its body. Not even a common ring. All that came out was a hand mirror.

    Ed was grumbling inside, but Arin opened her mouth.

    ¡°Do you know anything about crossel¡¯s?¡±

    ¡°I heard that one of Druid Dread¡¯s achievements was destroying the crossel. I know they are a coalition of demon subordinates and followers.¡±

    Arin nodded heavily.

    ¡°Yes. I used to think I had nothing to do with them.¡±

    It looked like she had a long story to tell. When Ed looked back with the mirror in his arms, Arin continued without making eye contact with Ed.

    ¡°My brother and I forgot about our childhood. Because our first memory belongs to Archbishop Benedict. So I didn¡¯t even remember my parents¡¯ faces.¡±

    Arin raised her hand and covered her face.

    ¡°But the moment I saw the letters on the crossel¡¯s forehead, my memory came back. The crossel¡¯s killed all the villagers and made ponds using their blood. At that time, my father and mother, who were trying to protect me and my brother, were caught by them, and offered as sacrifices.¡±

    Arin¡¯s voice was shaking. When Ed approached her and put his hand on her shoulder, her trembling subsided little by little.

    ¡°Whoo. A bear that saved us then. I remember the bear tearing up the crossel with its solid arms and saving us.¡±

    Huh?¡±Ed knows this story. While playing as Druid Dread, there was a quest that prevented a crossel from offering the entire village as a sacrifice.

    Ed also remembered saving a pair of siblings at that time.

    ¡°He was one of the three heroes, Druid Dread.¡±

    One of the crossel¡¯s that was dying at the hands of Druid Dread at the time, said the siblings would be their leaders. But Ed didn¡¯t know that the siblings would be Aron and Arin.

    Arin put down her hand and looked back at Ed.

    ¡°The crossel¡¯s have resurrected, and they¡¯re after me.¡±

    ¡°If they want both of you siblings, isn¡¯t Aron in danger?¡±

    Arin seemed to have come to her senses at the words.

    ¡°Let¡¯s get in touch with the church as soon as we arrive at the next village. You don¡¯t have to worry too much. It¡¯s unusual that the crossel¡¯s planned all of this, but the church would have noticed by now.¡±

    ¡°Come to think of it, I¡¯ve never heard of crossel¡¯s planning things. Why did they start moving all of a sudden?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s important to find out why they¡¯re aiming us.¡±

    Arin¡¯s expression hardened at the words.

    ¡°They might be aiming for me.¡±

    Considering what the crossel said before it died, it is possible enough.

    However, it was difficult to say that it was aiming for only Arin.

    What is most surprising is its ability. It was too strong to be an ancient crossel.

    Even if the ragged Golem needed numerous offerings, its power was considerable. No matter how angry Arin was, it would have been dangerous if she had been alone.

    It was stronger than an intermediate demon. Arin would have had trouble if she was fighting it on her own.

    Arin muttered as if she were lost in thought for a moment.

    ¡°I¡¯ll have to get the support of the other holy knights.¡±

    Ed gently grabbed her. When Arin raised her head, Ed calmly said.

    ¡°The holy knight won¡¯t like our group. Arin, you accepted us. But would want to kill us.¡±

    Arin came to her senses at the words.

    ¡°Then I¡¯ll take care of this¡­¡±

    ¡°Arin, I don¡¯t want you to take care of this on your own.¡±

    Even before Arin could finish her sentence, Ed looked into her eyes and said.

    ¡°Arin, you remained with me even though you knew that I had become an enemy with the great demon Nafthael. I don¡¯t want to let you go just because of a crossel.¡±

    Arin looked at Ed¡¯s words quietly. When she fell into the swamp of memory, he rescued her. Ed was a man who saved her.

    This man stayed by her side until now.

    And this man was talking.

    ¡°So don¡¯t leave me, Arin.¡±

    Arin remembered all her terrible memories while burning the bodies. She was reliving every memory and burning her revenge. But the moment she heard Ed¡¯s voice, she felt as if she was saved from the darkness.

    Arin replied with a smile.

    ¡°I¡¯m not leaving.¡±

    Arin approached Ed and hugged his waist. When Ed¡¯s body was stiff with tension, Arin said with her head leaning against his chest.

    ¡°Let¡¯s fight together.¡±

    Ed hugged her because he knew how hard this was for her. Arin whispered quietly.

    ¡°Thank you.¡±

 Chapter 75

    Ed and Arin left the village and returned to the group. Everyone heard Diego¡¯s story, who shared his senses with Jerry. The group flocked to ask questions when the two returned on horseback.

    ¡°Where did all the villagers go?¡±

    Following Thane¡¯s question.

    ¡°Who did it?¡±

    Following Dex¡¯s question.

    ¡°Is everyone okay?¡±

    Brant was worried,

    ¡°Wipe yourselves with this.¡±

    Even Emma brought a wet towel.

    Diego was asleep leaning on the carriage because he was tired but was woken up after hearing a commotion. Ed got off his horse and took Emma¡¯s wet towel to Arin.

    ¡°All the villagers were sacrificed by a crossel. It was a corpse controller that created a ragged Golem, and it was tricky.¡±

    Ed answered two people¡¯s questions, and Arin replied with a smile to Emma, wiping the blood on her body.

    ¡°Thank you.¡±

    Thane looked at Arin wiping the blood and gave Ed a look.

    ¡°A crossel? Since Dread killed the great demon Neviroz, his subordinates and followers, the crossels, would have been extinct.¡±

    ¡°We don¡¯t know if it¡¯s a real crossel.¡±

    ¡°Hmm. A crossel¡­¡±

    Thane said as he swept down his beard.

    ¡°Even if there were remnants left, why did it suddenly appear?¡±

    As Ed tried to change the subject, Arin opened her mouth first.

    ¡°I have something to tell you.¡±

    Ed looked back at Arin. For her, the crossel is such a painful memory that became a trauma. Ed thought she was brave to speak about it.

    But was that necessary?

    Arin smiled at Ed¡¯s gaze and looked back at the group. And she calmly brought up the story.

    ¡°The entire village where my brother and I once lived was sacrificed in the crossel¡¯s hands. I forgot about this until now, but when I met the crossel, my memory came back. At that time, Druid Dread saved my brother and I.¡±

    Everyone held their breath when they heard that all the villagers died and were sacrificed. Emma approached carefully and held Arin¡¯s hand.

    Arin smiled at Emma and continued.

    ¡°They said that my brother and I were talented and wanted us to be their leaders. Perhaps I forgot about his because of the guilt that the villagers and my parents died due to me and my brother.¡±

    Arin looked back at the group while holding Emma¡¯s hand and said.

    ¡°Completing the prophecy is the most important thing as a holy knight, but I won¡¯t avoid even if a crossel comes after me. This is not for the completion of the prophecy, but for my personal revenge.¡±

    Everyone waited breathlessly at Arin¡¯s words. Arin made eye contact with each of them and said.

    ¡°It¡¯s okay to say I¡¯m being selfish. But please help me.¡±

    Thane replied first with a smile on his face.

    ¡°Wow. This group was the best thing that happened to me! Two great demons, Akalan, and even the crossels now? I¡¯m so blessed.¡±

    Dex also whistled.

    ¡°I just want to beat them up as much as I can.¡±

    Brant approached and said, putting his hand on Emma¡¯s head.

    ¡°I hope I can help you. I think that¡¯s how I can pay my debt.¡±

    Diego patted his chest with his fist. Arin smiled at them.

    ¡°Thank you, everyone.¡±

    When Ed saw Arin smiling brightly when she heard everyone¡¯s answers, he was relieved. He intended to accept Arin¡¯s choice, but he didn¡¯t know that everyone in the group would agree to help.

    Then Thane opened his mouth.

    ¡°If the crossel moved, your brother could be in danger. Did you contact him?¡±

    ¡°No. I think we should go to the next village first.¡±

    ¡°If that¡¯s the case, I need to contact the Astron Church.¡±

    Come to think of it, Thane¡¯s information power was extraordinary. Perhaps he had some means they didn¡¯t know about yet.

    ¡°Did you find anything from the crossel?¡±

    Ed took a hand mirror out of his arms.

    ¡°This was all it had.¡±

    Thane received the hand mirror, turned it upside down, and nodded.

    ¡°It was one of the ten fingers of the crossels.¡±

    ¡°Ten fingers¡±?¡±

    ¡°The crossels have six apostles and ten fingers. It is known that all of the things underneath are small brimmers and that they are the only ones who have quite excellent abilities. I thought the 5 apostles and 7 fingers were torn apart by Dread. Did they return?

    ¡°It wouldn¡¯t have been difficult to return if they are following the Great demon. A lot of time has passed since Dread killed them.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s highly likely.¡±

    Thane nodded and said.

    ¡°Let¡¯s gather information about the crossels first. Everyone worked hard, so go ahead and rest. Dex and Brant can take charge of the night watch.¡±

    ¡°Sounds good.¡±

    Ed honestly wasn¡¯t that tired. It was Arin who fought.

    Dex approached and said with his arm around Ed¡¯s shoulder.

    ¡°Give us a chance to play with the beasts too.¡±

    Ed smiled bitterly as Brant nodded.

    ¡°Okay. Then please take over my shift tonight.¡±

    Doug handed Ed and Arin the heated stew and bread. Arin dipped the bread in the stew with a light expression. Ed looked at the group members while dipping his bread.

    Until now, Ed thought that if he was not confident, this group would not return, but even if he was not confident, they were moving on their own. He didn¡¯t have to worry about night attacks because Dex and Brant were strong enough to deal with them.

    ¡°Don¡¯t they know scary crossels actually are?¡±

    As Arin said as if she was worried, Ed gave her a look. She was traumatized as a child.

    The crossel¡¯s notoriety was terrible, and their movements were secretive and could not be easily punished. If Druid Dread hadn¡¯t stepped up and faced them, the world wouldn¡¯t have been able to root out the crossels.

    ¡°Our group wants to find the great demon. So they¡¯re not afraid of the crossel.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s a relief.¡±

    ¡°Arin.¡±

    Arin looked back and said Ed with a smile.

    ¡°Arin, you don¡¯t have to be afraid either. You have me.¡±

    Arin is strong. However, her trauma as a child made the crossel feel scarier to her.

    While Arin was dealing with one of the crossel¡¯s ten fingers, it must have been a backlash from her fear and fought like a warrior, not a voice knight.

    However, if you look at it coldly, Arin can deal with it by herself. She became very strong.

    So Ed had to let her overcome her fear.

    Arin smiled at Ed¡¯s words.

    ¡°Okay. I won¡¯t be afraid.¡±

    Ed doesn¡¯t know what will happen if they meet the crossel again, but Ed was satisfied when Arin smiled even after hearing the crossel¡¯s name.

    Alice, who was praying together next to Aron at the church in Hampton City, stopped praying and stood up when she saw someone entering.

    Someone was approaching with a squeaky sound. It was Astron¡¯s holy knight.

    The tall and sullen-looking holy knight approached Aron and asked.

    ¡°May Astron¡¯s glory be with you. Are you Aron?¡±

    ¡°May Astron¡¯s glory be with you. I¡¯m Aron, but why have you come all the way here?¡±

    Aron was honestly trying to hide his surprise because holy knight never came all the way to this wallpaper like this.

    The holy knight handed over a sealed letter. When Aron accepted it, the holy knight explained.

    ¡°I¡¯m John, a holy knight. And this is an order to return to the headquarters.¡±

    Aron opened the seal and read the contents inside. It was a return order stamped with the Pope¡¯s seal.

    ¡°Can you tell me why?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I was only ordered escort.¡±

    Aron stood still and looked at the knight in front of him. The number of holy knights in the Astron Church is small compared to the number of people in the church. That meant that John was one of the best.

    I couldn¡¯t believe that such a precious voice knight was only used for his return escort.

    ¡°Okay. Do I have time to get ready?¡±

    ¡°We can¡¯t stay for too long.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯ll only take a moment.¡±

    Aron looked back at Alice when he saw the holy knight nodding and going out of the church. After being saved by Ed, Alice¡¯s sincerity was stronger.

    Whether it was because she wanted Ed to be safe or because her faith in Astron grew, she visited the church every day.

    Aron wanted to say goodbye to her first. This is because he had a hunch that it would probably be a long time before they meet again.

    ¡°Sister Alice. A new priest will come soon. Please maintain your faith at that time.¡±

    ¡°Priest Aron. If you go back, are you going to become a high priest?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know, but if you ever have a chance to pass by the headquarters, come and visit me. For you, I¡¯ll make time somehow.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t forget that promise.¡±

    Aron left a prayer for Alice.

    ¡°May Astron¡¯s glory always be with you.¡±

    ¡°May Astron¡¯s glory be with you.¡±

    When Aron, who greeted Alice, came out, a carriage was prepared. In addition, there were four knights escorting the carriage.

    John, the holy knight, approached and said.

    ¡°Let¡¯s get on the carriage.¡±

    When Aron got into the carriage, John followed him into the carriage. Then, the carriage began to move.

    Aron looked at John and asked.

    ¡°Don¡¯t you know why I¡¯m being called in?¡±

    John looked at Aron for a while and decided to answer only as much as he knew.

    ¡°Do you know about the Crossels?¡±

    Aron became contemplated by the name. Since Arin forgot about them, he pretended to forget about them too.

    ¡°Druid Dread wiped them all out, didn¡¯t he?¡±

    ¡°There have been reports of the remains appearing. And they¡¯ve especially asked for the protection of you, priest Aron.¡±

    ¡°Who asked for my personal protection?¡±

    ¡°Holy knight Arin requested it.¡±

    Aron asked with a slight frown.

    ¡°Does holy knight Arin get protection too?¡±

    ¡°She¡¯s a holy knight. She can protect herself.¡±

    Aron was well aware of the pride of a holy knight, but the crossels, Aron remembers, was fear itself. Those were horrible things.

    They wore human masks, but they were not human.

    Perhaps that¡¯s why fear began to rise deep in his heart. And the fear reached its peak while the carriage left Hampton City and was running down the boulevard.

    John, who held Aron¡¯s body upright, opened his mouth as the carriage suddenly stopped.

    ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡±

    ¡°The road is blocked.¡±

    When John came out, a tree collapsed on their way and was blocked. John, who recognized that someone intentionally knocked down a tree, said, pulling out a weapon.

    ¡°It¡¯s an enemy.¡±

    At John¡¯s words, when knights pulled out swords and were wary of everything, those wearing lobes appeared behind the boulevard. There were ten of them.

    John smiled. John, the holy knight looked confident in capturing all the people.

    ¡°Are you blocking an Astron¡¯s holy knight with just ten people?¡±

    John¡¯s question was answered by the woman who appeared on the tree that blocked the boulevard. The woman with the crossel pattern engraved on her forehead said, turning her eyes red and licking her lips.

    ¡°What are you talking about? Do you think I¡¯ll let you win so easily?¡±

    John¡¯s expression, who turned his eyes to the woman¡¯s appearance, hardened. The energy emitted from the red-eyed woman was unusual.

    Aron knew that those who appeared were enemies. He wondered if the fight would begin soon, but the fuss soon calmed down.

    Aron looked at the door of the carriage with nervousness. He desperately hoped that the door of the carriage would open and the person entering would be John, but Aron could not hide his misery as soon as he saw the crossel¡¯s pattern on the forehead of the woman.

    The woman sat opposite Aron and winked at him. Then, she sewed the cut on her right hand with a bloody thread.

    ¡°The holy knight was quite good earlier. I don¡¯t know how long it¡¯s been since I got hurt like this.¡±

    The woman moved her right hand and smiled.

    ¡°I¡¯m here to take you. But you know what? You¡¯re totally my ideal type. Nice to meet you. I¡¯m the sixth finger, Maya.¡±

 Chapter 76

    Lesen city.

    The group traveled to the next city, which was halfway near Andel City now.

    It was a city that Benedict planned to stop by after hearing that he would be able to get information from here. The group also stopped by because it was on the way to Andel City.

    While the group booked a room for an inn, Arin headed to the church. It was not as great as the church at the royal road, but it was larger than other churches in Lesen city.

    Arin was able to meet the bishop in charge of the church. The middle-aged bishop Teferson offered Arin a seat and tea.

    Looking at the teacup reminded Arin of Benedict¡¯s face. Arin sipped tea and asked Teferson.

    ¡°Archbishop Benedict said we would be able to get some information here. How far have you been investigating on Andel city?¡±

    Teferson said, handing over a document.

    ¡°There was a massive investigation on Andel city, and there was no abnormality found. But there have been numerous reports about house cats disappearing.¡±

    ¡°Cats disappearing?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s what it says.¡±

    Arin drank tea and looked at the documents. One cat disappearing is not a problem, but if the number exceeded a hundred, it could have been regarded as an abnormal phenomenon.

    However, the issue is regarded to be somewhat less serious. It wasn¡¯t as important for the city.

    Teferson brought up the story with a heavy look on his face as he looked at the documents.

    ¡°There¡¯s bad news.¡±

    ¡°Bad news?¡±

    When Arin took her eyes off the paper and looked at Teferson, he hesitated for a while and brought up the story.

    ¡°It¡¯s about Priest Aron.¡±

    ¡°What happened to him?¡±

    ¡°The headquarters sent John, a Holy Knight after hearing from you. Four other knights and investigations were also sent, but they were found dead near Hampton City. And Priest Aron disappeared.¡±

    ¡°John is dead?¡±

    When Teferson nodded, Arin made a strong impression. She was well aware of John¡¯s skills as a holy knight. He was Arin¡¯s senior and was an excellent knight. Arin has never won a fight against him.

    She couldn¡¯t believe he was dead.

    ¡°So they haven¡¯t found my brother¡¯s whereabouts yet?¡±

    ¡°The eyes of Aston¡¯s are focused near Hampton City. Holy knights have been dispatched to chase his traces and resolve this.¡±

    Even if the holy knights were dispatched, Arin was not relieved.

    ¡°I have to go there.¡±

    ¡°There was a message from Master Paladine about that. Saving the priest Aron can be done by someone else, but completing prophecy can only be done by you.¡±

    ¡°But¡­¡±

    ¡°And the Pope said he felt the same way.¡±

    Arin bit her lips at the words. If her brother was kidnapped, it was highly likely that it was done by a crossel. How could she fulfill her prophecy when her brother is kidnapped by the crossels?

    ¡°The church wants you to trust the holy knights.¡±

    Arin took a breath for a while and got up from her seat.

    ¡°May Astron¡¯s glory be with you.¡±

    ¡°Are you going to continue your trip?¡±

    Arin left the office without answering. Teferson, who was looking at her back, sighed. He only conveyed the words of his superiors, but he was well aware of how ridiculous it was.

    Arin returned to the group and had a quick meal at the inn. Seeing that her expression hardened, Ed put down the glass he was holding.

    When Arin sat down, Thane first asked a question.

    ¡°Is there a problem?¡±

    Arin replied to Thane¡¯s question with a stiff look.

    ¡°He was kidnapped.¡±

    ¡°Priest Aron was kidnapped?¡±

    When Ed was surprised and asked back, Arin nodded.

    ¡°The holy knight that was with him died, and my brother disappeared.¡±

    Ed got up straight from his seat and said,

    ¡°Let¡¯s go to Hampton City.¡±

    Arin stared at Ed. She was grateful for his words to go to Hampton City without any hesitation, but she was at a loss for what to do.

    Not only Master Paladine but also the Pope told her to prioritize the prophecy. And since the church said they would send holy knights, it means that they would send at least two holy knights to save Aron.

    When Arin did not get up from her seat, Ed sat back across from her and looked at her.

    ¡°What is wrong?¡±

    Arin sighed briefly and opened her mouth.

    ¡°The church wants me to continue my prophecy.¡±

    Ed laughed in vain at the words. He thought it was a ridiculous order.

    Her family was kidnapped, but they want her to continue going through the prophecy?

    ¡°The Pope and Master Paladine requested so.¡±

    Ed made a strong impression on the words. For Arin, the decision could have been difficult because there was the will of the Pope, who could be said to be a representative of God, and her teacher, Master Paladine.

    Ed pondered for a moment.

    She said that there are people who will save Aron, but can they really rescue him?

    Ed¡¯s gaze looked over the group. And it was fixed to Arin again.

    ¡°Arin.¡±

    Arin turned her head and looked at Ed. Ed stared at the gaze and continued.

    ¡°Do you trust me?¡±

    ¡°Yes. I trust you.¡±

    Ed smiled and said as he answered without worrying.

    ¡°I¡¯ll get Aron.¡±

    ¡°What?¡±

    Ed put his hand on Diego¡¯s head and said.

    ¡°Diego and I will get Aron. So you can continue your journey. I¡¯ll save Aron and join you.¡±

    Arin¡¯s eyes got bigger, and everyone in the group looked at him. Ed calmly continued to speak, receiving their gaze.

    ¡°If we take Thane¡¯s advice, there will be no big risk.¡±

    Thane sighed at the words and said.

    ¡°I can trust you, but Nefthael is after you. How are you trying to stay up all night? Take Dex with you.¡±

    Ed shook his head.

    ¡°There is no need. I¡¯ll take care of that. Please lead the group, Thane.¡±

    Arin was an experienced holy knight, and Dex was a slave champion in the royal road, but he never went outside. Brant was a hunting dog for Akalan, so he is also strong, but not trustworthy.

    After contemplating for a while, Arin reached out and held Ed¡¯s hand.

    ¡°Please. Save my brother.¡±

    Ed held Arin¡¯s hand and smiled. It was a pity that he had to leave now that he is close to Arin, but if she loses Aron, she may collapse from the inside.

    So Ed had to save Aron for her.

    ¡°Trust me and wait.¡±

    Ed stood up from his seat and looked back at Diego.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go Diego.¡±

    Diego got up from his seat without panicking. Diego glanced at Emma and coughed briefly.

    ¡°I¡¯ll be back.¡±

    Emma reached out and held Diego¡¯s hand.

    ¡°Have a safe trip.¡±

    Seeing Diego¡¯s brown skin turn dark red, Ed shook his head and walked out. Since Arin followed, Ed smiled at her and climbed up to his horse. Ed, who sat Diego in front of him, looked down at Arin and said.

    ¡°Don¡¯t get hurt.¡±

    ¡°Please take care.¡±

    Ed left Arin behind and ran straight away. Diego asked Ed.

    ¡°Do you think I can really help you?¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re the only one I can trust right now, that is why I chose you.¡±

    Diego looked far away with a determined look. There is no one like Diego who can track crossels and use the power of the demon.

    However, Ed ran with Diego, hoping it wouldn¡¯t be too late.

    They kept running even in the night to Hampton City. Diego was not used to horseback riding yet, so the two had to share the horse, but Ed bought another horse as an extra and took turns riding them.

    Ed wanted to run the horse throughout the whole night, but even they rode two horses alternately, the horse could not withstand the fatigue.

    Ed and Diego slept in the cities along the way, so he was able to relieve his worries about beasts at night.

    Ed was able to arrive at Hampton City in five days. As Diego couldn¡¯t eat properly, his complexion turned pale.

    Ed had good stamina, so he could endure this hard travel, but Diego couldn¡¯t.

    On the first day, Diego kept vomiting and fell asleep at night. Strangely, however, he adapted little by little, and now he doesn¡¯t fall asleep or faint at night and even trains his command skills.

    While Diego was asleep, Juan came out and said that Diego was experiencing accelerated growth. Juan was rather grateful, but Ed was just sorry.

    Upon arriving at Hampton city, Ed could already see the holy knights and investigators. It looked like they were trying to reassure Arin.

    Ed decided to book an inn during the day and move at night, unlike the holy knights. There was someone who came when Diego went to rest first after a simple meal.

    ¡°I didn¡¯t know we¡¯d meet again like this.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s been a while. Miss Alice.¡±

    Alice sat in front of Ed and opened her mouth.

    ¡°Did you come here because of Priest Aron?¡±

    ¡°Yes. Did you hear anything?¡±

    ¡°No. The holy knights aren¡¯t talking to the investigators.¡±

    In Hampton city, Alice would have gotten everything she wanted, but this place could be said to be a rural area in terms of the entire kingdom of Travia. Holy knights are those who stand at the center of not only the Kingdom of Travia but also the entire continent.

    It is inevitable to be ignored implicitly.

    Just by looking at the level of holy knights here, Ed could tell clearly.

    ¡°They said a holy knight escorted him. So what happened? What kind of reckless person harmed the holy knight and captured the priest Aron?¡±

    ¡°Reckless people. I¡¯ll get to it, so don¡¯t worry too much.¡±

    ¡°Please do. For me, he¡¯s not just a priest, but a teacher.¡±

    Ed, who reassured Alice, sent her back and returned to the room where Diego was resting. Diego smiled at Ed.

    ¡°I¡¯m ready.¡±

    ¡°You can¡¯t use command skills here. If you use command skills, you can be stabbed by the holy knights.¡±

    ¡°I know.¡±

    ¡°We¡¯ll move at night, so rest. If we find a trace, you won¡¯t have time to rest from then on.¡±

    Diego nodded and lay in bed, and Ed also glanced for a moment.

    When night fell, Ed went with Diego to check where Aron was kidnapped.

    Thanks to the bright torchlight, it was not difficult to find the place. However, the problem was that people were guarding the place.

    Investigators in groups of two were waiting everywhere. Standing with a cane, they stood under the torch and were wary of the surroundings, perhaps they were well-trained.

    Diego looked at them and asked.

    ¡°What should I do?¡±

    Ed picked up a stone from the floor. Ed, who picked up two stones, threw the stones one after another. Ed managed to knock down eight investigators in just two seconds.

    Ed looked back at Diego and said.

    ¡°This is how you do it. Let¡¯s go.¡±

    Diego followed Ed to the scene of the incident. When Diego looked around the scene, Ed calmly said.

    ¡°The holy knights would have started by tracking the wheel marks of the carriage. But there is a high chance of mistakes. So we will chase the demon¡¯s power from here.¡±

    Ed put his hand on Diego¡¯s shoulder and said.

    ¡°I trust you, Diego.¡±

 Chapter 77

    Rescue

    Jerry, summoned by Diego, did not look the same. Ed smirked at Jerry who had appeared with monocle glasses.

    ¡°What happened to you?¡±

    ¡°Father said it would be hard to find the demons with Jerry¡¯s current power. He said Jerry would need something else to strengthen his power. He said Jerry needs to especially strengthen his powers to sense the faint demons¡¯ power after several days had passed.¡±

    ¡°Hence the glasses?¡±

    ¡°They look like glasses but they are something my father made.¡±

    Juan was a senior demon and a powerful skill-commander. If he had made the glasses, then they were worth looking forward to.

    When Diego let Jerry go, Jerry dropped to the ground and started sniffing around. It raised its head and scrutinized something beyond with its glasses.

    Then it started to run.

    ¡°He must have found it.¡±

    Before his sentence was even finished, Ed tucked Diego under his arm and started running after Jerry. Jerry was running faster than a mouse might move, so Ed, with Diego under his arm, had to run with all his might.

    Jerry was clearly aware that he was a skill-commander and lightly skipped over obstacles while running at top speed. Ed had a harder time following Jerry because of the obstacles.

    At first, Jerry followed the traces of the carriage wheels, but after a while, he changed his direction. Ed, following Jerry behind, kept quiet.

    It was already over one week since the time when he had heard the news, and yet Jerry was following the trail. Ed realized how important Diego was to him.

    Ed followed Jerry with full concentration. He only hoped that this pursuit would end before this night was over.

    And so, the pursuit in the dead of the night began.

    Aron was praying continuously with his eyes closed. Maya, standing naked in front of Aron, touched his chest with her finger and smiled.

    ¡°Hmm¡­ This is certainly better than what I had expected.¡±

    When Aron didn¡¯t react to Maya¡¯s seduction, she whispered in Aron¡¯s ear.

    ¡°Do you prefer men? I have quite a lot of handsome men. Shall I call for them and have fun?¡±

    Only then, did Aron open his eyes and look at Maya. Aron¡¯s eyes, staring at Maya¡¯s eyes, were peaceful. He looked at Maya in the eyes and said,

    ¡°The brotherhood will come to save me.¡±

    ¡°Do you think they will find you so easily?¡±

    Maya let out a clear laugh, and putting on her clothes, stroked his cheek. Her eyes smiling, Maya said,

    ¡°Even if they come here, they will die. We are not who we used to be.¡±

    Maya came close enough to feel Aron¡¯s breath and looked into his eyes.

    ¡°If there is someone who is lucky enough to come here, I will pick his throat and take out his guts right in front of you. Only then, will you despair. Your mind needs to be broken once.¡±

    Maya stepped back.

    ¡°Tomorrow night. We will move again. Rest for now.¡±

    After Maya had left, Aron let out a sigh and lifted his head.

    ¡°Dear Astron. Please save me.¡±

    Ed felt short of breath. It had been a long time since he had felt shortness of breath. He had started running before sunrise and had run without stopping, so he must have run for at least six hours. He had run faster than a horse on a road without a path.

    They had found a trace of the demon¡¯s power in the carriage and had followed the trace into the forest. They had crossed rivers and a mountain and had reached a small fire field village.

    It was a small village with only about ten houses. Barriers surrounded the village. What was noticeable was the people who were guarding the barriers.

    Their eyes looked different. They were well-trained people.

    They didn¡¯t seem like people who would guard a fire field village deep in a mountain. Ed stopped at a place where he could look at the village and put Diego down.

    Diego had become stronger after a long period of riding horses, but coming this far tucked under Ed¡¯s arm was something else. Diego, whose face had turned blue, retched for a long time after Ed had put him down.

    ¡°Whew. It must be here.¡±

    ¡°You are right. And there are men who look dangerous.¡±

    ¡°Shall we summon Tom?¡±

    ¡°Yes. But you will hide here. Only Jerry and I will go. I will go and save Aron.¡±

    ¡°Will you be alright alone?¡±

    Ed reached out and petted Diego¡¯s head.

    ¡°You have done better than I had expected. I didn¡¯t think we would reach here before morning.¡±

    Diego knew this was the only way to help. And this made his resolution stronger. He would wait until the day his help was needed and called for. He will make sure that day would come.

    Diego summoned Tom and put Jerry on Ed¡¯s shoulder.

    ¡°I will wait for you. Make sure you come back.¡±

    ¡°Of course,¡±

    said Ed, stroking Diego¡¯s head.

    ¡°See you soon.¡±

    Ed started walking, leaving Diego behind. It was his moment now that he had found where his enemies were.

    After shooting arrows into the foreheads of the men who were guarding the barriers, Ed ran and jumped on the barrier. Standing on the barrier, Ed looked at the fallen men and found other men coming towards him, and shot the arrows.

    He had added just one agility after moving one level up but the power of the arrows was so much stronger. Without even looking back at the fallen men, Ed looked at Jerry who was perched on his shoulder.

    Squeak, squeak.

    Jerry pointed with his front leg at a house that was at the farthest north among the identically-looking village houses. Ed looked at the dead men.

    Ten dead.

    Ed jumped down from the barrier and broadened his senses. He could sense two people inside the house. One of them was a monk.

    Ed fixed an arrow on the bow and pulled the string and walked toward the house. At that moment, the door opened and a woman appeared.

    Once he had seen that it was a woman, he let go of the string without a moment¡¯s hesitation.

    Thwok!

    Ed frowned slightly when he saw the smiling woman¡¯s head tilting backward. The situation should have ended but the woman, with the arrow stuck in her forehead, was bending her head.

    ¡°Well, well, well¡­¡±

    The arrows that followed suit hit the woman¡¯s forehead. The woman was thrown back. Ed grabbed the arrows in the freezing quiver and walked toward the house.

    At that moment, the woman, lying on the ground, began to move and took out the arrows stuck on her forehead. Ed clicked his tongue.

    ¡°Is it an undead?¡±

    Ed reached for the arrow in the freezing quiver. The woman stood up but her face was destroyed beyond recognition.

    She glared at Ed with one remaining eye in a blood-coated face. Blood-colored threads stretched from the tips of her fingers. Just as Ed looked at the blood-colored threads that had grown longer and dragged along the floor, the woman struck the ground with her feet and bolted toward Ed.

    Ed took out an arrow from the freezing quiver.

    The arrow was made with the arrowhead that Benedict had made by melting the sacred water.

    The moment Ed placed the arrow on the bowstring, the woman, who had already reached Ed, swung her hands, and ten blood-colored strings flew towards Ed. Ed jumped backward

    Ed, who had retreated to where the thread could not touch him, shot an arrow.

    The woman, who knew where Ed was targeting, twisted her neck quickly but not fast enough to avoid the arrow. The arrow pierced her head.

    The woman screamed.

    This arrow was different. The woman had not even let out a scream at the previous arrows but this arrow was an arrow with divine power, and the head exploded with a scream of agony.

    Ed lightly captured the arrow that had come back after piercing the exploding head and shook the arrow to get rid of the blood. Ed frowned with the arrow in his hand.

    The experience points had not come back.

    ¡°You¡¯re not dead yet?¡±

    The headless woman¡¯s body began to wriggle and the blood flowing from her neck grew long like spider legs and started lifting her body.

    At this sight, Ed drew his sword.

    ¡°She is definitely not a human being.¡±

    Two of the eight legs that were holding the woman¡¯s body came swinging towards Ed. The legs were like knife blades and Ed dodged the legs by bending his waist.

    Because he could measure the distance, Ed dodged the blood-colored blades and climbed the woman¡¯s body. The woman¡¯s waist bent grotesquely and the two legs climbed up the body like feelers.

    With the arms bent backwards and flapping, the woman no longer looked like a human being.

    Squeak!

    At that moment, Jerry, who was perched on Ed¡¯s shoulder, lifted his hand and pointed at the woman¡¯s body. Ed could see where he had to strike. It looked like a human but it was not a human being.

    With that thought, his target changed.

    When Ed swung his sword, an invisible power shot out from the sword and cut the woman¡¯s body into pieces. However, although the body was in pieces, the body was still not cut off.

    Perhaps it was because it was linked by the blood but the woman did not die even though the body was in pieces. Ed smirked. The woman let out a soundless cry.

    Without resisting the power, Ed put away the sword and shot the arrow once again. Ed, who had shot the arrow with divine power, focused all his concentration on controlling it.

    Thwack. Thwack. Thwack!

    The arrow with the embedded penetration pierced the woman-thing, came back, and pierced it again and again. If the parts that had been cut off with the sword had nuclei, the body would have crumbled; but the arrows pierced mainly the parts that had not been cut off.

    When the arrow pierced the pit of the stomach, another explosion occurred. The blood threads turned into rain and poured down.

    Ed grabbed the arrow that had returned and looked at the crumbled pieces of the woman¡¯s body.

    She was definitely dead this time. The experience points were in. Experience points that were more than those of middle-grade demons. His sufferings until now had not been in vain.

    He knew that the power of the demon had disappeared since the enemy was dead, but he had to make sure. Even though they were one of the strongest of the crossels, it was hard to believe that they were this strong.

    Ed approached the corpse and looked to see what had exploded last.

    He could see a shining piece of something among the pieces of the body. It was something familiar.

    ¡°The magical blood stone?¡±

    A magical blood stone from one of the crossels? Ed realized what it meant and picked up the stones. He approached the house and opened the door.

    He could sense only one person inside the house. Just in case, he took out a knife and opened the door, and saw Aron sitting and praying.

    Has something happened to him?

    Had he been tortured?

    One week had passed since Aron had been kidnapped but he seemed fine.

    Ed stood in front of Aron. Looking at the divine power that was swirling around Aron, it was hard to believe that something might have happened to him.

    ¡°Aron.¡±

    Aron opened his eyes at Ed¡¯s voice. He looked at Ed and blinked his eyes. Then he pinched his cheek. Ed kindly finger flicked on Aron¡¯s forehead.

    Thwack!

    ¡°Argg!¡±

    Ed looked at Aron who was covering his forehead and rolling on the ground and said calmly,

    ¡°Stand up. You are not dreaming.¡±

    Aron, with his hands covering his forehead, looked at Ed and said quickly,

    ¡°Don¡¯t you think you should prove to me that you are Ed first?¡±

    Ed took out the token of Astron that hung on his neck. At the sight of the token, Aron, eyes glistening with tears, rushed to Ed and hugged him.

    ¡°Ed! Astron sent you!¡±

    Had he been this scared?

    Ed pushed away Aron who was crying.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go. It will be bothersome if we stay here longer and something else comes along.¡±

    Ed took Aron outside. Aron retched at the bloodshed outside the house. Ed thumped Aron on the back. Aron looked at the corpse that had been cut into pieces.

    The woman who had threatened that she would pick the neck and take out the guts of the person who came was lying dead in the way that she had threatened.

 Chapter 78

    Ed ran out of town, holding Aron and Diego by his sides.  Aron heard that Maya was the sixth when she introduced herself. So he presumed her to be the sixth finger.

    Now, with only two fingers removed, they didn¡¯t know who was coming, but they couldn¡¯t walk back.  Ed, who moved while stepping on the branches so as not to leave a trace as much as possible, dropped them off and caught his breath when he reached the valley they had crossed.

    It wasn¡¯t easy for Ed to go alone with the two of them, but it was terrible for the two of them who came by his sides.

    Seeing the two of them lying on their backs side by side vomiting, Ed scooped up water from the valley and drank it, holding his breath.

    Aron vomited for a while, and after that, he lay down on the floor and asked Ed.

    ¡°Where are you going?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯d like to ask, where do you want me to take you?¡±

    Aron pondered for a moment before answering Ed¡¯s words.

    ¡°The safest place would be Bondan, but it¡¯s a long way from here to there.¡±

    Aron turned his head to look at Ed. Ed accepted the gaze as he stood, and he smiled and spoke.

    ¡°You say you¡¯re with my sister?¡±

    ¡°How did it happen?¡±

    ¡°Then take me to my sister. She must have worried a lot, so I want to see her face.¡±

    Ed nodded meekly at his words.

    ¡°Yeah. Let¡¯s meet her first and then plan our next move.¡±

    ¡°How far do we have to go?¡± said Ed, sitting next to Aron, looking up at the sky.

    ¡°You will have to ride a horse and run for five days without a break before you can fly,¡± Ed said, then hung the arrow on the string and fired it without turning his head.

    A monster that came out to the waterside of the valley was shot by an arrow in his head and he collapsed.

    ¡°Is it a monster?¡±

    ¡°If you don¡¯t stop by the village, you¡¯ll get tired of seeing it.¡±

    At Ed¡¯s words, Aron looked at Ed¡¯s back. What kind of life does this man lead?

    A man whose daily routine is not only to hunt demons but to get tired of seeing them and to kill them.

    Aron, wanting to know more about him as he is with his younger sister, decided to take a closer look at him in the future.

    Two men and women stared at it in front of Maya¡¯s corpse.

    ¡°It¡¯s smashed properly.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve known her ever since she was flirting,¡± the woman replied as she searched through Maya¡¯s body.

    ¡°The Blood stone is gone.¡±

    As she said that the man raised his head and looked at the dead.

    All the weapons must have been retrieved, but seeing the wounds on the foreheads of the corpses, it was as if it had been hit by an arrow.

    ¡°None of the Paladines use a bow.¡±

    The woman pulled out a dagger in front of Maya¡¯s corpse and cut her palm. Then, as she squeezed out the blood, the blood dripped down on Maya¡¯s corpse. Then she wondered as the blood mixed with Maya¡¯s blood, and she immediately got up.

    It was reminiscent of a single fox, the blood-red fox sniffling and waving its tail before revealing itself.

    The woman smiled and said, ¡°I found it. But, the distance is considerable. I¡¯ll miss them if I¡¯m wrong. ¡°

    The man nodded his head and said, ¡°Let¡¯s burn this place down and chase them right away.¡±

    The two of them quickly set fire to the entire village and started running out of the village.  Seeing the bloody fox running on the branches, the men and women began to follow it.

    ¡°Does it only go up trees?¡±

    ¡°I think so,¡± she answered as she smiled.

    ¡°But since Maya is dead, am I the sixth?¡±

    ¡°It will be possible only after finding and killing the person who killed Maya and recovering Aron.¡±

    ¡°Leave it to me,¡± she said, smiling broadly, accelerating her speed further.

    The man solidified her impression by matching her stride.

    As she obtained the Blood stone, her power grew significantly. Even though she had become stronger than before, Maya died horribly. It means that the opponent is strong. However, she thought that there was no way that she would be defeated because she and Sharin, the seventh, were together.

    Paladine Malcolm and Paladine Alon sighed as they looked at the burned town.

    ¡°Looks late.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t think these were sacrificed either?¡±

    They were all set on fire, but seeing that the bodies were still in good condition, it didn¡¯t seem like they had been sacrificed.

    ¡°Still, I think it was sacrificed? It¡¯s horribly dead.¡±

    At Alon¡¯s words, as he looked at the shattered corpse, Malcolm shook his head.

    ¡°The cut is too clean to be considered a sacrifice. It looks like it was cut by a very talented person?¡±

    Alon looked at the cut section and nodded.

    ¡°Those who can use swordsmanship are monitored with the eyes of Astron, so this must have been borrowed from the power of the equipment.¡±

    ¡°There is a possibility that.¡±

    Malcolm got up and turned his head.

    And as he got up from his seat he said:  ¡°It seems that the distance has gone by about a day.¡±

    A mercenary specially hired for this job was a man named Falcon who was good at tracking.

    ¡°Is it possible to miss?¡± said Falcon, pulling a map out of his arms and unfolding it.

    ¡°We¡¯re going to have to block this place. We¡¯ll block this place and we¡¯ll chase after them,¡± Malcolm frowned slightly at those words.

    ¡°If you see John, you can¡¯t stop him with any force. It can only increase damage, so just watch it. Trying to stop him with force can cause more damage.¡±

    Alon nodded his head and beckoned. The monk who was there took out a rolled-up letter, wrote down Malcolm¡¯s words, opened the cage, took the hawk outside, put the letter in a barrel tied to his ankle, and sent it away.

    Turning to the Falcon Malcolm said,

    ¡°Then let¡¯s go.¡±

    Crossel seemed to have great intelligence despite not being active in bright light.

    As a result, when he came to rescue Aron, he moved without meeting any possible people, rather than stopping by every village.

    As a result, in three days, the party became like beggars.

    However, Aron was feeling a bit light-hearted. He was still smiling while helping Diego groom the bird Ed had caught.

    Ed looked at him like that and asked.

    ¡°Why do you look so happy?¡±

    Replied Aaron, looking up at the sky.

    ¡°I would say that I have attained enlightenment? It¡¯s because I realized that everything flows according to Astron¡¯s will and his order.¡±

    Diego frowned at those words.  ¡°If we moved on horseback, we could have joined by now. Besides, it seems like my back is going to break because of running around his side.¡±

    ¡°Brother Diego. Even if I had a recovery spell¡­.¡±

    ¡°Are you crazy?¡±

    Aron bit his lips when Diego yelled at him. Diego took one shot of Aaron like that, and then pulled out the feather of the bird that Ed had caught. Aron quickly smiled again and spoke to Diego. Diego was not happy, but the two got along well, so Ed decided not to care anymore.

    It is said that Nefsael¡¯s ability is great, but is it because there are too many dead monsters in Ed¡¯s hands?  These days, the number of monsters that come to visit has been decreasing.

    At this point, he was worried that the seeds of the monsters in the kingdom of Travia would dry out.

    Ed roughly calculated the distance while the two of them prepared their meal.  He didn¡¯t ride a horse, but Ed was traveling with the two of them, so even though the speed itself was not much different from running on a horse, he didn¡¯t follow the road, so he was worried.

    Still, at this rate, it seemed that he would be able to meet Arin within three days at the latest.

    ¡°Let¡¯s stay strong. It seems like we can meet Arin in three days or so.¡±

    At that, Diego stopped murmuring, and Aron was smiling as if everything was okay.

    Then, Jerry, whom Diego had summoned, sniffed his nose and looked up.

    Jerry was summoned by him for detection, so he reacted if he sensed something.

    When Ed turned around, Diego nodded his head.

    ¡°Something with demonic powers is approaching,¡± Ed sighed briefly.

    They were preparing a meal and making a fire in a small empty lot with their back to the cave. But now, they decided to prepare for the battle when they heard that the enemy was close.

    ¡°Once we¡¯re inside. How far do you think they¡¯ll be?¡± said Diego, closing his eyes for a moment and then opening them.

    ¡°Judging by the speed with which they¡¯re approaching, I think they¡¯ll get here in three minutes.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s enough. Let¡¯s go in. We¡¯ll have dinner after the battle.¡± Aron approached Ed like that and gave him a blessing.

    ¡°May the glory of Astron be with you always.¡±

    When he first met Aron, he thought that he¡¯s not any different from him. Indeed, Arin continued to enhance her divine power by killing demons, but Aron did not have a chance to do so.

    However, seeing that he is using his blessings now, he seemed different from when he was rescued. He said he realized something, so maybe that¡¯s why?  Upon receiving his blessing, Ed smiled as he felt his body lighten up.  ¡°This is enough. Go inside.¡±

    ¡°Thank you, then.¡±

    After confirming that Aron had gone inside, Ed realized that he did not have time to prepare a trap and quietly prepared only arrows.

    As he was still about to wait, a bloody fox appeared. And after that, a man and a woman appeared. When they saw Ed standing still, they got down on the vacant lot.  Normally, he would have put an arrow in their head first, but now he thought he¡¯d talk a little bit.

    ¡°Which fingers are you?¡±

    The man opened his mouth to Ed¡¯s question.

    ¡°The fourth and seventh. But are you a demon hunter by any chance?¡±

    Ed nodded meekly.

    Seeing that, the woman smiled.

    ¡°You killed Maya?¡±

    Ed nodded his head again, and he smiled brightly at the woman.

    Since she is a woman in a dog costume, he thought that her smile suits her well.

    ¡°Thanks to you now I¡¯ll be the sixth.¡±

    ¡°The fifth died too. You can¡¯t go up to the fifth?  ¡°

    The woman shook her head at that.

    ¡°It doesn¡¯t mean that you can go up whenever there¡¯s an empty seat. You have to set up a ball. But if you set up a ball that kills you, it¡¯s probably possible.¡±

    It was noticeable when the fifth was killed, but Crossel isn¡¯t just targeting Arin and Aron.

    ¡°Then how could the great demon you worshiped have survived?¡±

    ¡°Who is it? The devil we served is dead?¡±

    As Ed concentrated on the woman¡¯s words, the man raised his hand to interrupt her.

    Realizing that the conversation was over, Ed fired two arrows.

    Kak!

    A blood curtain appeared in front of them, blocking the arrow.

    Both the man and the woman smiled and turned around in horror at the arrow that had pierced the bloody membrane. The woman had an arrow stuck in her forehead. The man had turned his head to avoid that, but his ear fell off.

    ¡°You¡¯re not someone to die easily.¡±

    Noticing that the woman was alive, Ed¡¯s arrows flew towards the enemies in a line.

 Chapter 79

    The fourth, Dean, was shocked that their shields were not working as his ears were cut off.  Also, an arrow was stabbed in Sharin¡¯s forehead from the attack.

    If it had been before she got the Blood Stone, she would have died in that one shot. It would be a joke to say that Crossel¡¯s finger died so easily.

    ¡°Come on!¡±

    Realizing that it was an unstoppable arrow, Dean hurriedly hurled himself, drew his dagger, and ripped his forearm apart. Arrows pierced his side and thighs before the blood gushing from his forearms could even form a shield. He couldn¡¯t even see as the arrow was so fast.

    Dean raised a shield to defend the front and hurriedly put his hands on the floor.  Blood dripping from his hands seeped to the floor, and sharp thorns protruded from Ed¡¯s feet.

    Sharin also pulled out an arrow stuck in her forehead and was moving.

    ¡°You¡¯re crazy.¡±

    When Maya was beaten, she wondered if a bowman could be this strong. In particular, arrows that penetrate the shield and pierce deeply into the shield are terrifying. He is so strong, strong enough to wonder where such a person came from.

    But she couldn¡¯t just walk away.

    Sharin, who was struck by two arrows in her eyes while pulling out an arrow that had been lodged in her forehead, also gave up on getting up and laid down and opened her mouth.

    She took the form of a gigantic snake with blood spurting from her mouth.

    If there was a sacrifice, it would have been able to generate more power, but since there was no sacrifice, she had no choice but to borrow the power of the Blood Stone.

    Meanwhile, Dean¡¯s blood was all around him, turning into thorns. Now is the time for counterattack.

    If it had been one person, Ed would have made out on his own, but since there are two guys, it was difficult to seize any opportunities.

    Moreover, they were not affected at all when an arrow was struck in the head or in the body. That¡¯s why he couldn¡¯t see him as a human. Just a monster.

    If it was a loss of human blood, they would have already collapsed from anemia, but they showed no signs of that.

    Sharp thorns protruded out of nowhere, and a gigantic snake protruding from the woman¡¯s mouth aimed at Ed.

    All the opponents were using the power of the devil.

    While fighting with Maya, Ed realized that it would be okay to smash them with holy arrows, but it would be meaningless if he couldn¡¯t hit the opponent¡¯s blood energy using this.

    So he couldn¡¯t even shoot holy arrows carelessly. Because if he doesn¡¯t kill both within 2 seconds, he can¡¯t retrieve the arrow.

    Fortunately, it was enough to be able to read their attacks.

    So, he had been dodging without difficulty until now, but the places to dodge were gradually decreasing.

    And realizing that, the two of them were smiling deeply as if they were sure of victory.

    Ed tapped his tongue lightly, slung the bow over his shoulder, and flew.

    Even if the final blow was shot with holy arrows, it seemed that those troublesome things had to be dealt with first.

    The unfortunate thing was that even if he received a blessing, he did not cast a fortification on the weapon, spatula.

    Fortunately, this intangible sword was able to cut all blood snakes, and thorns.  Because it was a sword technique that was spread with magical power, it was able to cut materials made with magical power.

    So, along the open road, Ed hit out. As the distance got closer, the number of thorns made of blood increased, and Ed¡¯s movements became faster and faster.

    The snake, whose body had been cut in half, now became two and rushed in. To finish all of this, he had to cut the Blood Stone in the end.

    Using swordsmanship, the body could be shredded from a distance, but the magic power was insufficient to cut the two bodies into smaller units than the blood stone.

    Realizing what Ed was trying to do, the two started to counterattack. The thorns made of blood were soaring more wildly, and the snakes also had hundreds of heads split and attacked.

    Ed realized that the whole world had turned to blood and that he had no place to escape.

    Ed concentrated his mind.

    It seemed as if time was slowing down, and in that time the sword began to move.

    Magical power cuts through at least the bloody waves approaching with only the sword on the road. The waves rushed in, dyeing the front red, and Ed arrived in front of Sharin.

    Ed¡¯s sword cut her body into thirty-six pieces. Sharin¡¯s body, which had been cut with only magical power of the blade, fell apart, but the experience points did not come in.

    Even while slicing her like that, it seems that the blood stone was not caught.

    As he was about to shred it again, blood-colored cigars came out from all sides.

    It may be possible to finish Sharin, but he couldn¡¯t do it while protecting himself.  So Ed swung his sword and opened the way and got out.

    It was also difficult to subdue them because they were two and he couldn¡¯t figure out the location of the Blood Stone.

    Dean looked up at Sharin¡¯s pieces as Ed staggered back down in front of the cavern again.

    A strong echo was felt in the blood that flowed from the inside of the pieces. It began to resonate with the blood stone that had settled in its own Meiji. This wasn¡¯t something he had heard from Ragrox. The resonance of the Blood stone is a thing that he can¡¯t stop, and it¡¯s all like that.

    As the two blood stones resonated, Dean¡¯s consciousness disappeared.  And a monster created by the resonating blood stones appeared.

    A huge snake created by the blood flowing from Sharin¡¯s body and Dean¡¯s upper body stood up above the snake¡¯s head, covered with blood-colored thorns like armor.  And those eyes.!!  Ed met those evil eyes and knew they weren¡¯t the same a while ago.

    ¡°Look at this?¡±

    Diego, who was standing in front of Aron with Tom summoned, could see a little bit of the battle taking place outside.

    The blood-colored thorns soared terribly and Ed¡¯s movement to avoid them could not be seen properly.  However, the sprouting thorns did not disappear and remained, it was like looking at a forest of thorns.

    In the meantime, the battle between Ed and the two appeared fiercely.

    Aron, who was watching it from Diego¡¯s side, was looking at it from a completely different perspective.

    He was wearing a human shell, but a completely new power lurked in the bodies of the two that had appeared.

    And the process of the manifestation of that power caught his eye. It was the first time he had actually seen this, a movement force other than human.

    At first, it seemed that the power was moved by the will of a human being, but soon it even ate the human soul and revealed its true nature.

    But watching Ed fight, he didn¡¯t seem to notice it. Because he didn¡¯t aim at the important places and kept attacking the wrong places.

    The snake that has now appeared and the body that sits above its head, two nuclei exist there. It all started there.

    And looking at the core, he could feel the existence beyond it. A non-human existence. Its very existence will be a harm to the world.

    Aron walked towards the outside of the cave. Diego grabbed his wrist.

    ¡°What are you doing? Ouch!¡±

    Diego grabbed Aaron¡¯s wrist and then quickly released it. It felt as if his palm was on fire. Then he could see the divine power flowing through Aron¡¯s whole body. It flowed over his skin. His palms were hot because of the divine power. Besides, Aron¡¯s eyes were emitting a divine power that was so intense that it was difficult to even look at them. It was a divine power that had a depth that was different from Arin when she was pursuing the power of the devil.

    Then he unknowingly took a step back. Aron walked towards the outside of the cave with a kind smile.

    The re-appearance, with a human hanging above the snake¡¯s head, could be recognized as Crossel¡¯s two fingers joined together, but they were completely different beings. Beings who handle blood magic stones.

    ¡°Is that Ragrox?¡±

    Ed was talking, but he was all on his nerves to figure out where the Blood stone was.

    It was hard to believe that an existence that was only a shadow could show such a strong presence. This is similar to the great devil.

    It seemed more absurd that there were three people whom he was fighting.

    [Do you know me?]

    ¡°So. I¡¯m chasing you so hard to put an arrow in your head,¡±

    Ragrox burst into laughter.

    [Do you believe Astron¡¯s prophecy?]

    ¡°You know that I¡¯ve been following you closely?¡±

    Seeing her tearing up as if she was watching the Joker, she asked as if she had already given up being a human.

    ¡°What happened to those two?¡±

    [Their souls? I used it for a while to make a manifestation.]

    ¡°Anyway, demon cubs are the same as low-level and great-evil energy.¡±

    He said he would give power to Crossel, but in fact, he considered it as a material for his manifestation.

    Ragrox burst out laughing as if Ed¡¯s words were funny.

    [Kah ha ha ha¡­okay¡­All the seeds of the devil are like that.  So I¡¯m going to make a suggestion to you, will you listen?]

    ¡°What¡¯s so difficult about listening?¡±

    In response to Ed¡¯s reply, Ragrox said with his arms wide open.

    [Be my servant. If you do, I will give you infinite strength and glory.]

    Ed smirked.

    ¡°Are you talking like that while I have watched how you manifested just now?¡±

    Ragrox looked down at himself and nodded his head.

    [Actually, I was a little lacking in persuasiveness. I didn¡¯t mean to convince you with words. It¡¯s the same story if you plant only a blood stone in your body.]

    As Ed smiled and hung an arrow at the protest, he felt a smirk approaching from behind.

    He was startled by Ragrox¡¯s level and missed the mark while concentrating on him.

    And he didn¡¯t know that he would suddenly pop out during a battle like this. But when he turned his head, he knew that Ragrox would attack him, so he couldn¡¯t turn his head.

    ¡°Astron¡¯s two eyes pierce all lies.¡±

    Aron¡¯s voice could be heard, and Ed didn¡¯t look back, despite the divine power pounding behind his back. And Ragrox looked visibly embarrassed.

    ¡°The truth shall be seen,¡± said Aron, as waves of divine power swept over Ragrox.

    The bloody thorns disappeared into dust, and Ragrox was also crumbling in front of the waves of that divine power.  And surprisingly, two blood stones were seen.

    Ed did not hesitate to shoot the arrow.  As the arrow¡¯s trajectory pierced through the two blood stones, Ragrox¡¯s voice echoed.

    Ed responded by holding the returned arrow in his hand.

    ¡°Yeah. Let¡¯s meet again. Don¡¯t be salty.¡±

    Maybe it was Ragrox¡¯s appearance that the experience was surprisingly good. Enough to raise the level at once by filling in all the experience points that were lacking.

 Chapter 80

    Ed turned to Aron. He closed his eyes and prayed in front of the dead. The blood energy that arose from the broken blood stone pieces was oxidized by his blue divine power and disappeared.

    As Aron opened his eyes again and looked back at Ed, he had a gentle smile on his face as if he had awakened.  Ed tilted his head with a liberated look and asked.

    ¡°Aron.¡±

    ¡°Yes?¡±

    ¡°Aron, right?¡±

    Aron answered with a smile.

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    ¡°I wondered if Astron borrowed Aron¡¯s body in response to Ragrox¡¯s rise, but I¡¯m glad it wasn¡¯t. I was surprised.  Anyway, thank you.  But how did you do it?¡±

    Aron¡¯s eye color itself has changed to blue. The divine power has faded, so it¡¯s not just blue, it¡¯s even mysterious. He looked like a being that transcends humans. So, Ed doubted that it was something else.

    Aron answered the question with a smile.

    ¡°I could just ¡®see¡¯.¡±

    It certainly changed his eyes.

    ¡°Thanks to you, I was able to catch it easily.¡±

    Ed thanked Aron.

    The great demon did not come directly, but it was a manifestation. It seemed that the intermediate demon was far beyond that. It may have been lacking compared to Juan, who was a high-level demon. He wasn¡¯t good, as he couldn¡¯t do anything by being swept away by the waves of divine power that Aron had.  Arin also uses divine power in battle, but the nature of the divine power is obviously different for different people. This ability was something that Archbishop Martin, who was with Pendragon in Age of the Devil 1, could not even unleash.

    ¡°Is this talent?¡±

    Aron replied with a smile.

    ¡°I¡¯m glad it helped.¡±

    The problem is that Ragrox would have clearly recognized Aron. It was more likely that he would aim for him at a different level than before. Either trying to convince him, or trying to kill him.

    ¡°I think I¡¯m wrong tonight. Shall we move on?¡±

    ¡°Brother! I¡¯m really sleepy. I think I¡¯ll fall asleep if I just put my head on the pillow. Today I want to rest here as planned. I also cut off the tail.¡±

    Ed laughed at that.

    ¡°Are you tired?¡± said Diego, patting him on the back.

    ¡°Well, I have nothing to say when you ask if I¡¯m as tired as the person who ran with me and Aron, but it¡¯s still really hard.¡±

    I wondered if Ed thought too much of his own standards. He¡¯s himself. He doesn¡¯t mind running around like that, but Aron and Diego are different.

    ¡°Then let¡¯s rest here today.¡±

    Two people died, and they were burned after praying, leaving no trace. So, there was nothing that could be done besides resting.

    ¡°Let¡¯s make the fire again, then.¡±

    While Aron quickly prepared to light the fire, Diego took the bird he had brought into the cave and finished grooming it.  Ed, who looked at the two of them, closed his eyes and went inside. He thought he wouldn¡¯t be able to raise the level for a while because the experience required to level up has increased overwhelmingly, but he was lucky that the level went up, so he had to invest in stats.

    He invested in agility without thinking. The effect of each stat invested when the level rose was different. Even now, the agility was only raised by one, but the effect was transmitted as it is. That¡¯s why the level is said to be a thug.

    It seemed now that the shadow of Ragrox that popped out last time could also be a split. Although the problem is that he needs to see the nucleus. Then the scent of Diego¡¯s broiling bird disturbed his thoughts.

    No matter how strong Ed was, he had to eat and live.  It was a pity that the three of them shared only two birds, but neither Ed nor Aron ate too much. So the two of them ate one, and Diego alone ate one.

    Ed simply stuffed his stomach and looked at Aron.

    ¡°Is that ¡®see¡¯ thing, perhaps a divine spell?¡±

    Aron shrugged his shoulders at that.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know. Because it was only visible.¡±

    After hearing Aron¡¯s answer, Ed was satisfied. If it¡¯s a divine spell, he wanted to tell Arin to learn it. Is it just talent and ability? Should he hire Aron?

    Malcolm and Alon, who were chasing after the trail, lifted their heads at the sudden sense of divine power.

    The two of them, moving in pursuit of the Falcon, were afraid of the divine power and wanted to run away.

    They are still moving after the traces, but the fact that such a powerful divine power has erupted is something that they must find, even if it is not the person they are looking for.

    It was the first time they felt this divine power, and even if there was someone with this kind of divine power, releasing it was another story.

    If someone with such divine power is in danger, he must be saved.

    ¡°Keep chasing the traces. For now, there is a place to go.¡±

    Malcolm and Alon talked as they ran towards the place where the divine power was felt.

    ¡°Senior, with a divine power like mine, isn¡¯t it almost the level of a Master Paladine?¡±

    ¡°Master Paladine would not waste his divine power that much.¡±

    ¡°Isn¡¯t that what you mean? With this kind of divine power, it¡¯s almost like it¡¯s on the top of five fingers.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right.¡±

    Malcolm had heard of a priest named Aron.

    He heard that he is the older brother of Arin, who is a junior, and that he will be an important figure for the troupe later on, but considering his age, he could not believe this divine power even though he felt it.

    Malcolm and Alon, running with all their might, soon saw smoke rising in the distance.

    ¡°Have you seen what they are doing?¡±

    He did not understand the situation.  There has been an event that would have caused such a divine power to erupt. Are they eating something there?

    ¡°Let¡¯s speed it up.¡±

    Both Malcolm and Alon started kicking the tree with all their might.

    After filling his stomach briefly, Ed, who was sitting on the rock in front of the cave, looked up at the approaching presence.

    Seeing him running at a fairly high speed, Ed slowly hung his arrow on the string.

    He wondered if there were any remnants of Crossel left, but Jerry showed no reaction. If it had been the master of demonic powers, he would have figured it out already.

    Ed hung the arrow on the string and after a while, he stared at the two who appeared in the vacant lot. They were humans.

    They were not like someone who was on a mission and moved like Arin. They were wearing a light blue cloak and armor engraved with Astron¡¯s mark. Paladines who revealed themselves as paladines.

    They got off the cluttered vacant lot, one guarding Ed and the other looking around.

    ¡°Senior, you were right about here. But did the flames happen here?¡±

    ¡°Sacred fire?¡±

    Is it not that the divine power was simply released here, but also an evil power was burned in this place?

    ¡°I¡¯m called Paladine Malcolm. There seems to be a great deal of divine power here, can you tell me what happened?¡±

    Ed didn¡¯t have to answer.  Aron, who came out of the cave after hearing the commotion, found them and spoke with a calm smile.

    ¡°May the glory of Astron be with you. My name is Aron,¡±

    The man next to Malcolm replied by smiling brightly.

    ¡°Oh! May the glory of Astron be with you. This is Alon, the Holy Knight. We are the paladines sent to rescue after hearing the news that Priest Aron has been kidnapped. But what happened?¡±

    Aron was yawning while trying to explain. And the moment they saw Diego like that, Alon drew his sword, and Malcolm also solidified his impression.

    Ed stepped in front of Diego while they were stunned. Aron stopped in front of Diego too and said.

    ¡°Put down your sword, Sir Alon.¡±

    ¡°He has the power of the devil. Priest Aron. Come this way.¡±

    Aron shook his head slowly.

    ¡°This is the one who saved me. Put away your swords.¡±

    Alon hardened his impression at those words. Those who possess demonic powers are either summarily executed or captured and left to the heretical inquisitors.

    But Aron was standing in the way, so he wondered if he should take Aron as well.

    Then Malcolm raised his hand to stop Alon.  When Alon turned around, Malcolm shook his head lightly.

    Aron drew his sword, and then he saw Ed, who was aiming the bow from behind Aron, lowering the bow.

    Alon¡¯s expression hardened.

    ¡°Are you aiming the bow at the paladine now? Just being with someone with demonic powers, you have to meet a heretic inquisitor and explain it.¡±

    Ed let out a short sigh.  As Diego¡¯s seed germinated and its power grew, it was troublesome in many ways, as it was possible to recognize that Diego had the power of the devil even when he became a holy knight.

    Still, it¡¯s fortunate that Aron stopped him and he didn¡¯t have to kill the two paladines. Even if it was an unreasonable paladine, he couldn¡¯t let him harm Diego.

    Malcolm spoke without further ado.

    ¡°So, I haven¡¯t heard your name yet.¡±

    ¡°Ed.¡±

    Hearing Ed¡¯s brief reply, Malcolm¡¯s expression hardened.  And Alon behind him tilted his head.

    ¡°Edward, the Demon Hunter?¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s called that.¡±

    ¡°I heard that you and Arin are on exorcism.¡± Ed smirked at that.

    ¡°I was on exorcism, and I heard the news that Aron had been kidnapped, and I came to the rescue.¡±

    Malcolm¡¯s eyes turned to Aron, and Aron nodded his head.

    ¡°If Ed hadn¡¯t saved me, I¡¯d probably have been taken by Crossel. The 6th was chasing me, and the 4th and 7th were planning to join.¡±

    Malcolm and Alon¡¯s expressions hardened as they heard Aron¡¯s explanation.

    It was hard to believe that John the paladine had been killed by only one of Crossel¡¯s fingers, but it was true.

    If there were three such people, there was no chance of survival.

    And to see Aron saved and protected from such people is just amazing.

    ¡°But I felt a powerful divine power, can you tell me what happened?¡±

    Aron said with a smile at that.

    ¡°I had awakened my divine power to be of any help.¡±

    ¡°You mean that priest Aron had caused it?¡±

    ¡°Yeah,¡±

    Looking back at Ed and Diego once, Malcolm said that he didn¡¯t think Aron was going to lie.

    ¡°The movement of the enemies exceeded our expectations.¡± Aron added.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry. Now that we¡¯re here, we¡¯ll take you to the headquarters safely.¡±

    Malcolm¡¯s gaze turned to Ed.

    ¡°I will repay you at the church for this.¡± Ed looked at them for a moment and then asked Aron.

    ¡°What are you going to do?¡± Aron looked at Malcolm and Alon for a moment, then turned to Ed.

    ¡°It¡¯s a precious step from the troupe, but I can¡¯t just send them back. I miss my sister, but I think it¡¯s time to go now.¡±

    ¡°Huh?  You can¡¯t flee like that!¡±

    Ed covered Aron¡¯s mouth as he was about to say something more and looked at Malcolm.

    ¡°Are the two paladins all escorts?¡±

    Alon replied, snoring behind Malcolm.  ¡°The two of us are full.¡±

    Ed stared at him as if he was seriously thinking that way.  Malcolm stopped Alon, who frowned at Ed¡¯s gaze, and looked at Ed with firm eyes.

    ¡°What do you want to say, eh?¡±

    ¡°Before you go to the main corps, replenish your forces. Among those behind Crossel, Ragrox met Aron in the incarnate state. They will come out more aggressively, but they can¡¯t even start with only these people.¡± Said Ed.

    Ed can¡¯t take Aron forever with him. If he went to Arin, she would take him to a nearby temple. No matter how large a crossel is, they will attack the temple. But if he leaves Aron to them, he won¡¯t know what will happen.

    Ed said, staring directly at Malcolm.

    ¡°Me and Diego will be together until we reach the next temple.¡±

    Malcolm looked at Diego at those words and said with a frown.

    ¡°We are paladines. With help, we can close our eyes even if we see someone with demonic powers right in front of us, but we can¡¯t be together.¡±

    Aron came up to Ed and took his hands and said,  ¡°I¡¯m not going to be caught so easily anymore. So don¡¯t worry.¡±

    It¡¯s more dangerous to say things like that in the first place.

    ¡°Okay.¡± Ed¡¯s gaze turned to Malcolm again.

    ¡°Ask for help,¡± said Malcolm, nodding his head without further ado.

    Even though he felt it, Aron¡¯s divine power was at a level he had to protect.  Even if he gets more support from the Paladine.

    ¡°I will.¡±

    The two paladines went back to the way they had brought Aron.

    Diego asked while looking at those who were moving away.

    ¡°Are you just going to send him like that?¡±

    ¡°No. We¡¯ll have to sneak up on them. At least, until he gets to the temple.¡±

    The fact that Aaron¡¯s words have set the flag means that the experiences will come rushing towards him. This opportunity cannot be missed.

 Chapter 81

    Malcolm was moving towards a nearby village after meeting Falcon.

    ¡°Someone¡¯s following us,¡± Alon frowned, but Malcolm stopped him.

    ¡°It¡¯s not a good thing to accompany us, but trying to help us is a good thing.¡±

    Aron seemed to be dissatisfied with something, but he didn¡¯t take it too seriously. Malcolm certainly felt strange looking at Aron with an unconcerned face.

    Crossel¡¯s fingers were aiming for him, he was a being of great ability. But now, doesn¡¯t he look relaxed as if he had come on a picnic? His unconventional appearance is a sense of detachment that can be felt only in the elders, among the archbishops, who cut off their interest in politics and take care of trees and flowers.

    Malcolm shook his head and walked away. He had no reason to complain if the one who killed the sixth of Crossel, the sixth finger who was strong enough to kill the paladine John, was following him.  So far, as a paladine, he has had nothing to fear, but since he found out that John is dead, he had developed a bit of fear.

    Blood smoke rose from the inside of Ragrox¡¯s armor, which was sitting on a rock. Ragrox raised his head and looked up at the night sky.

    ¡°Ha. That¡¯s pretty good.¡±

    The cost of being hit head-on with Astron¡¯s divine power while incarnated was great. He was feeling the pain as if he had been burned all over his body, but he knew something important. That there are people who can pour out Astron¡¯s divine power like this. That person¡¯s risk is quite high. He felt like he wanted to go and kill him himself, but he was too far away. And he must not be revealed yet.

    ¡°No. You shouldn¡¯t kill him. Rather than killing him, catch him and try this and that. It would be fun to corrupt a guy who displayed divine power as much as that.¡±

    Ragrox rose from his seat, thickening the fur of the horned rabbit rubbing his cheek.

    Then he opened his mouth.

    ¡°Catch him by any means you can.¡±

    Ragrox¡¯s command was passed on to the members of Crossel with the Blood Stone.

    Ragrox left the command and remembered the face of a man. A man who proudly said he would put an arrow in his forehead.

    ¡°Let¡¯s see if you can stand in front of me and talk like that.¡±

    Somehow, the meeting was more anticipated. Looking at the demon who had fallen to the floor, Dex let out a rough breath.

    ¡°Ugghh!! Were you fighting these things? Exhilarating!¡±

    It was different from when he was fighting monsters. His thighs were wide open and there was a scar large enough to show the bones. It was such a sharp attack that his leg would have been cut off.

    If he hadn¡¯t used the sword¡¯s power of swiftness, he would have been cut off.  It was an exhilarating opponent to the point where his hair stood up.

    Arin placed her hand on Dex¡¯s thigh and chanted her healing spell, and the wound was healing quickly.

    Dex smirked when he saw it.

    ¡°Aren¡¯t you supposed to look over there rather than me?¡±

    As Dex said, Brant¡¯s wounds seemed deeper. His side was torn long and the intestines were leaking out. But Brant was wiping the intestines with his side.  He said,

    ¡°You cannot cast healing spells on Brant.¡±

    ¡°Oh, was it?¡±

    Seeing Brant¡¯s wounds on his side heal, it seemed that he didn¡¯t need a healing spell.

    As Dex¡¯s thigh wound healed, Arin stood in front of the dead demon¡¯s corpse.  The devil was strong.  He was something of a bad guy to be called a high-level demon, but he was more than an intermediate-level demon.

    Arin cut the demon¡¯s heart and extracted a blood stone from it.

    And then he solidified his impression.  Her blood stone was different from before. It feels like the strength of the crystal itself has changed.

    It wasn¡¯t that the demon itself became stronger, but was it because of the performance of the Blood Stone that the intermediate demon became this strong?

    As the three of them dealt with each other, he was okay, but the wounds of the other two were quite serious.

    Arin concentrated while holding her blood stone. She made it with a stronger blood stone, so she could better pinpoint its location.

    After reading the direction and distance, Arin suddenly thought that if she chases after the Blood Stone like this, will she be able to meet Ragrox?

    Dex¡¯s murmur was heard in Arin¡¯s ear while she was thinking like that.

    ¡°Would it have been easier to deal with if Ed was there?¡±

    Arin sighed briefly at Dex¡¯s words. It¡¯s been a while since he left to save Aron, but she hasn¡¯t heard from him yet. She had no idea what was going to happen to Ed.

    However, he was concerned about Aron¡¯s safety. And hoping that both of them will be able to see each other smiling.

    Arin burned the dead demon with a torch. She raised her head and looked into the night sky. As she looked at the twinkling stars in the black sky, she thought of Ed.

    I don¡¯t know if they made a request for replenishment, but a nearby city had a church instead of a temple. The church could not be reassured. So when they entered the temple, Ed took a nearby inn with Diego.

    However, since they had entered the city, there were no danger of monsters, so they¡¯ll be able to sleep.

    Diego asked while Edgar was unpacking in the same room as Diego.

    ¡°Brother. I went to church, so Arin will also hear this, right?¡±

    ¡°She can hear that Aron is safe.¡±

    ¡°It would be nice if we could also share our news.  ¡°

    Ed asked, stroking Diego¡¯s head.

    ¡°Is it because of Emma?¡±

    ¡°What are you talking about?¡±

    Diego, blushing, Ed sure had fun teasing him.

    Ed pulled out his gear, cleaned it, and spoke up.

    ¡±They are not stupid enough to raid the city, but with a Ragrox vibe, who knows! They may overkill, so summon Jerry and rest.¡±

    ¡°okay.  ¡°

    As the Paladines took Aron, their movement speed decreased significantly.

    It must have been that, like Ed, he had no choice but to slow down as he moved on foot rather than running around on his side. So even Diego could walk without running. For this reason, the movement speed decreased, but he was not very tired.

    Diego, who summoned Tom and Jerry, laid down comfortably on the bed. Now Diego has grown enough to have Tom and Jerry summoned while he sleeps. Next to Diego, who was sleeping with the spirits summoned, Ed trimmed his weapon and climbed up the roof through the window. Ed, lying comfortably on the roof of the inn, looked up at the night sky quietly.

    Looking at the stars in the sky, Ed imagined Arin¡¯s eyes. And after a while, Aron¡¯s eyes also came to mind. Those eyes were different from Arin as if they were not human eyes.

    If you looked at them with your own eyes, you could even believe it was God¡¯s eye.

    Ed thought about Aron for a moment, then looked at an arrow in his hand. The only arrow that contains divine power.  There¡¯s another arrow in Demon Hunt that¡¯s as good as this one, but the way you use it is different.

    It is used when the opponent¡¯s skin is difficult to penetrate. An arrow that can be used whenever there is a thick layer or something.

    For now, one arrow of this castle relic grade can definitely take them out of breath. But only when it can be seen, it is possible. It is something that should be seriously considered.

    They should have arrived by now. It¡¯s been a while, so the search for the Blood Stone must have ended. These people the party met without them. Arin has definitely gotten stronger. She¡¯s incomparable to what she was before. He couldn¡¯t help but worry. Then Jerry climbed up onto the roof, and Diego, who poked his head out the window, beckoned.

    ¡°Brother, they are coming.¡±

    Ed looked at the city walls at those words.

    ¡°Are you saying these big bastards are attacking now? How many?¡±

    ¡°There are three, but one is weird. Is this just a demon?¡±

    ¡°Can¡¯t you understand the level?¡±

    ¡°Yes, no,¡± Ed said after thinking for a moment.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go to church,¡± said Diego hurriedly reaching out his hand as Ed came through the window and tried to hold him.

    ¡°Wait!¡±

    ¡°Why?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve been practicing this for a while.¡±

    He looked at what Diego was practicing and saw him riding on Tom¡¯s back. The spirit itself on a spirit body. It is difficult for people to touch it with their hands. But Diego calmly sat on his back.

    ¡°Is that sitting down?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s possible.¡±

    Ed was just as startled as when Diego had used Jerry to detect it.  It¡¯s good to be with this guy and other talented people!

    ¡°Let¡¯s go!¡±

    While Ed first flew out the window and ran over the roof to the church, Diego followed him, riding on the back of the commander, Tom.

    He was holding tight as it was the first time riding Tom, but he followed without a sound.

    Ed laughed at the sight and gently got down in front of the church.

    As Edgar approached the church, the monks blocked him.

    ¡°Tell Sir Malcolm. The remnants of Crossel are coming here.¡±

    ¡°Really?¡±

    These friars came out of the main house with the Paladines Malcolm and Alon.  Hearing the story, one of the investigators hurriedly ran inside.

    After a while, the church was getting louder, and Malcolm and Alon came out with Aron.

    Aron smiled as he looked at Ed with blue eyes, still with a stray expression on his face.

    ¡°You have followed. It¡¯s nice to see you again like this.¡±

    Ed nodded to Aron and looked back at Malcolm and Alon.

    ¡°The three are approaching, but one is a bit special. I came here because I thought it would be difficult to deal with alone.¡±

    ¡°Perhaps you¡¯re right!¡±

    In fact, all you need is Aron¡¯s eyes. If there were only three opponents, he was confident that he would kill them all in 2 seconds.

    He continued, but he couldn¡¯t tell the Paladines that much, so he became quiet.

    Malcolm and Alon exchanged glances. Then Malcolm stepped forward and nodded his head.

    ¡°Thank you. I requested to fill the corps, but I¡¯ve decided to join at the Shrine of Meltsi. Please take care.¡±

    Ed said after looking around for a while at those words.

    ¡°Diego and I will wait on the roof of the church.¡±

    ¡°I see.¡±

    Ed¡¯s fame is well known, and since he cut three fingers of Crossel himself, there¡¯s no way that he¡¯d be defeated.

    He also believed in his support and thought it would be okay to fight.

    Ed came up to Aron and said,

    ¡°Priest Aron takes refuge on the roof with me,¡±

    Malcolm heard and nodded.  He thought it would be better for Aron to stay away from his enemies.

    Ed asked the permission of the paladines and climbed up onto the roof of the church with Priest Aron on his side. And Diego, who rode Tom, also climbed onto the roof.

    Ed leaned his back against Astron¡¯s token standing on the roof and made Aron and Diego kneel down.

    And as he waited, the beings running on the roof came into his sight.

    Ed saw them and asked Aron.

    ¡°Can you see them?¡±

    Aaron replied as he looked at those approaching, and his eyes lit up.

    ¡°The one coming from the left over there is in the navel area.¡±

    Ed heard those words and hung a holy arrow on the protest. His agility was increased by one more, so neither power nor speed could be compared to before.

    However, it was difficult to find the goal, but thanks to Aron, it was solved.

    When Edgar fired his arrow, it was so fast that it was hard to tell with the naked eye.

    Seeing the arrow fly like that, the incoming person pulled out a dagger and swung it. The arrow pierced the ship.

    ¡°Wow¡±

    As the ship got pierced, the arrow of divine power coming from the roof broke the opponent¡¯s blood stone.  Feeling the experience points coming in, Ed took the returned arrow and put it back on the string of the bow.

    ¡°Yeah. This is it.¡±

    This is real honey sucking.

 Chapter 82

    Seeing one of them die, Alon smirked.  ¡°Is that Crossel¡¯s finger?¡±

    Looking at the speed at which they were running, he thought they wouldn¡¯t be normal guys, but when he saw them go down with one shot of an arrow, he wondered why were they so nervous about such trivial opponents!

    The two paladines standing at the front door of the church and the monks lined up behind them were twenty men capable of fighting. Besides, eight apprentice paladines. It¡¯s rare to see such a huge number gather together.

    Priest Aron¡¯s divine power was obviously great, but Alon felt it from afar. So he thought he must have felt it wrong.

    However, when the other two came, Alon knew he had been fooled. The power of the devil possessed by those who appeared after the first one was beyond expectations.

    Especially, the woman standing in the back. The moment his and her eyes met, he felt his body stiffen.

    ¡°Calm down!¡± Malcolm¡¯s exclamation woke him up.

    Ed could feel that he had a strong opponent. He glanced down from the roof of the church and opened his mouth.

    ¡°Are you the tenth?¡±

    ¡°I think so,¡± the woman smirked.

    They obtained a blood stone, and they gained the power to process.

    Basically, the protective shield the Blood stone has was always in operation. But was the first one was killed by a single arrow?

    ¡°You look like a demon hunter,¡± the woman murmured and beckoned.

    ¡°Can you two face each other alone?¡±

    ¡°I think it would be a little tough by myself, right?¡±

    ¡°Then you¡¯re wasting time. I¡¯ll help you after you catch only the demon hunter.¡±

    At the end of those words, when Malcolm saw the woman leaping, a large man moved to stop her.

    When he blocks the woman, she cannot stop the man from rushing like a chariot.  So Malcolm trusted Ed and rushed forward with his shield out toward the man who was rushing like a chariot.

    Aww!

    Malcolm, pushed back by his shock, hardened his expression.

    He bumped into an opponent who had been rushing with his bare body, and he was pushed back, even when he is wearing a body suit that strengthens his body with divine power. As he was startled by him, the woman had jumped up and landed on the floor.  An arrow was held in her hand.

    Awesome!

    There was a hole in the woman¡¯s chest and her blood was pouring out, but she didn¡¯t care.

    She broke the arrow in her hand, threw it on the floor, and looked up at the roof.  A smile was drawn on the woman¡¯s lips as she looked at Ed, who had already hung the next arrow.

    He knew who the devil Diego was talking about the moment he looked at the woman. She was obviously human in appearance. But the power she possessed was incomparable to that of the other demon.

    And the moment Ed saw the woman appear in front of the church, he knew.

    She was showing a level that made Juan, who was covered in scars, come to mind.

    Have humans entered the realm of higher demons?

    The possibility of that is a matter to be questioned!

    She had a blood stone, and Aron showed its location to Ed. The locations of her blood stones were different, but they were in the heart area.

    So she fired an arrow as she winced into the heart area. But her reaction was unexpected. After the arrow got lodged in her chest, she grabbed her shaft and pulled it out. Her supernatural power was so great that she broke the arrow and threw it on the floor.

    Ed¡¯s strongest weapon was blocked.  After all, she is a high-level demon. Aron opened his mouth as Ed frowned.

    ¡°May the glory of Astron be passed on to you. Let it shine.¡±

    Aron whispered from behind, and a blue light began to shine over the bow that Ed was holding in his hand.

    Ed smiled as he looked at the blue-glowing bow. It was difficult to receive blessings for each arrow, but seeing them hung on the bow, Aron had been very thoughtful. He lost an arrowhead made from a castle relic, but even this is enough to give him a good hit.

    While Ed put two arrows on the string, the woman raised the dagger, looked at Ed, wrapped her hand around the blade, and slowly pulled out the dagger.

    It seemed that the humans of Crossel could produce strong power only by using blood.

    As soon as a drop of blood fell under her feet, Ed fired two arrows towards the woman¡¯s feet. And she swung her dagger at Astron¡¯s mark.

    Ed sneaked behind her and hung his arrows at the protest. It was ridiculous that she made a leap as the token of Astron was hanging in the church hit by the power of the devil.

    She threw her palms at Ed, and blood dripped all over the roof of the church.  Instead of firing his arrows in succession, Ed fired two arrows again.  And the woman disappeared again.

    But where?

    Before he could grasp it, a dagger flew by his side.

    Ed kicked the woman in the side with his left foot as the dagger rotated in the direction it was flying.

    Whoops!

    With the woman¡¯s body half crumpled, she bounced off and appeared behind Ed.

    He felt her dagger down the crown of his head and ran backwards to catch her.

    Bang!

    The woman who collided with Astron¡¯s token smiled with her body embedded in half.

    ¡°Would it be hard to catch him alive?¡±

    Ed pointed an arrow at the woman and relaxed as she exhaled.

    He found a perfect moment to shoot her. So, he responded with an arrow to her words. Again, she disappeared through space leap, and Ed turned around her and fired arrows in a row.

    The woman who appeared through a space jump was shot in the shoulder and pushed back.

    She glanced at the arrow lodged in her shoulder and then looked at Ed.

    ¡°How did you know?¡±

    ¡°You shouldn¡¯t be so blatantly sprinkling blood and wishing I didn¡¯t know.¡±

    The members of Crossel already knew that blood was a medium. The reason that she was able to jump in space at first was because the blood that came out when she was hit by an arrow while jumping was splattered on Astron¡¯s mark.

    As she climbed up on the roof and sprinkled her blood first, he wondered what she was doing at first. But his experience, honed by long hours of gaming, allowed him to guess the way as she made her space leap.

    So, he figured out the places where she could space leap, and as soon as she space leaped, she was hit by the arrow.

    When the woman saw that the place where she had been shot freezes, she smirks, and then she grabs the arrow and pulls it out.

    And slowly her gaze turned to Ed. After obtaining the Blood stone, his movements and everything excelled. But the demon was such a person who showed movement beyond him.

    ¡°Are you also Crossel¡¯s finger?¡±

    Ed restored his magical power little by little as he spoke to her.

    ¡°No. I¡¯m Emily the apostle.¡±

    Also, when he heard that the levels of the fingers were different, it must have been about the apostles. Now, he is looking forward to it.

    At least it will give him more experience points than the fingers.

    If he doesn¡¯t do it sooner, the fingers fighting underneath could be killed by the paladine¡¯s hands.

    Now is the time to make a deal.

    ¡°You bastard!¡±

    Malcolm and Alon pinpointed the tall man, but they couldn¡¯t easily subdue it.

    Despite his huge size, he was agile and they could not catch him when he started running away, but now he started to attack the monks.

    Even if they were called combat investigators, their level was comparable to that of an apprentice paladine.

    And that¡¯s not enough to handle the blows of a large man. Seven have already died.

    For Aron, it was a surprise.

    ¡°Concentrate!¡±

    Malcolm shouted, chasing after his man, Alon stopped to think.

    He has a different opinion and he could die in this investigation. So, he had to do his best to subdue this man. At that time, an arrow flew from somewhere and pierced the man¡¯s thigh.

    Ed saw them struggling down below in the situation and fired one arrow to bound the man¡¯s feet.

    And by freezing his thighs, he restricted the man¡¯s movements.

    Alon knew whose arrow it was, but he didn¡¯t turn his head.  When the opportunity came he had to seize it.

    As Alon rushed in, he caught his eye on the man¡¯s smirk. And he came swinging his fist, several times larger.

    The size of the fist covered in blood was larger than Alon¡¯s upper body. So, there was nowhere to escape, so he blocked it with a shield.

    Aww!

    Alon, whose shield was smashed and bounced off, vomited blood.

    ¡°Did the bastard hide this ability until now?¡±

    The man did not use this skill, despite being in crisis several times during the fight so far. So they just believed that he had the same ability. While being vigilant like that, the blow he smashed shattered the relic-class shield and broke Alon¡¯s left arm.

    His bones shattered and his muscles tore apart, making it difficult to use his left arm right now.

    While Alon retreated, Malcolm approached the man and was fighting.  Not knowing what kind of ability he had, Malcolm was injuring his body little by little as he let out the attack.

    The man with his feet tied seemed to be able to be subdued soon.

    Emily drew an arrow from her body and glanced underneath her.

    Seven arrows were already in her body. She was tenaciously blocking her heart so that her breathing doesn¡¯t stop.

    And she looked back at Ed. This is the first time space leap doesn¡¯t work anymore.

    Ed pointed his bow at Emily and she said,

    ¡°Then why don¡¯t you reincarnate?¡±

    Ed chuckled at Emily¡¯s question.

    ¡°I don¡¯t think I need your consent.¡±

    Emily understood the meaning of Ed¡¯s words, and her expression hardened.

    Ed looked at Emily like that and started shooting arrows as if there was nothing to hear.

    Emily frantically deflected the flying arrows, but two arrows hit her calves and her shoulders again. She didn¡¯t want it to be this way, so she sprinkled her blood again.

    Ed shot the protest again as if it didn¡¯t matter anyway.

    Emily said to Ed with a smile on her face.

    See you next time!

    Emily said that and immediately disappeared.

    Aron¡¯s side was among the places where her blood was spilled. And this time he pointed his bow, scanning for her new direction as she appeared.

    Emily hugged Aron and smiled at Ed, then tried to make her leap through space.

    But it was quicker for the arrow to hit her forehead.

    With her head tilted back, her arm was cut off by Tom.

    Emily swung her dagger and aimed at Aron. She had her arm cut off by Tom¡¯s surprise attack.

    Diego ran, hugged Aron, and went under the roof.

    Then Aron reached out to Emily as well.  The divine power emanating from his hand was nothing other than a special ability. It¡¯s just the ability to seal off the power of the enemy possessed by the devil.

    Emily tried to space leap again, but found that it didn¡¯t work.

    And as soon as Ed realized that, he swung his sword instead of an arrow.

    Emily saw her own body torn in half. She had tried to stop it, knowing that the attack would cut the air instead, but it was in vain.

    After being cut in half, Emily wondered if she would die in vain like this. But the ceremony did not last long.

    As Emily fell to the floor, Ed rushed to her.

    Even while her blood stone was cut in half, Ragrox did not appear.

    It would be difficult if Ragrox appeared, but he would have been able to gain a fair amount of experience. Still, as an apostle, the experience points came in more than the intermediate demons.

    ¡°Is it not possible to make another manifestation right away?¡±

    But it¡¯s not possible to make manifestations in succession.

    Ed went to the edge of the church roof and looked down to see Diego with Aron. After making sure they were both safe, Ed fired an arrow down the roof.

    When the arms of the man whom the Paladines Malcolm and Alon were fighting with, were tied, an arrow shot by Ed pierced the head containing a blood stone.

    His whole head froze and then shattered, bringing in the experience.

    Thank God!

 Chapter 83

    Alon¡¯s torn arm was being healed by Aron. Aron looked at him as he was treating him.

    It was thought that it would be difficult to heal because the fragmented bone tore the muscle, but Aron¡¯s treatment restored the bone fragment to its original place.

    It was an extraordinary treatment in which the bone fragments were pushed out as the muscles recovered first, and the fragments were gathered together and hardened with divine power.

    And all that was done by this amazing divine power which didn¡¯t make any sense. Both the quantity and the purity were the best as if it was done by one of the top three ranking people. That means the Pope, Master Paladin, and Saint level.

    It is an honor to be treated by someone with this level of divine power.

    Besides that, he was escorting him.  While Aron was treating Alon, Ed was standing opposite Malcolm.

    ¡°Thank you.¡±

    ¡°No. The apostle is more difficult to deal with than I thought. If we had been able to help a little sooner, there would have been no casualties.¡±

    Malcolm said, looking back at his hall.

    Even knowing that Crossel¡¯s fingers had killed the paladine John, he didn¡¯t believe them. But Crossel¡¯s fingers were much stronger than he thought.

    He wondered what he could have done if he had dealt with him alone. Even though two paladines attacks could not subdue him.

    However, Ed caught one of them from a distance, and he also dealt with the apostle alone. And he was just horrified to think of how much more damage they would have suffered had it not been for Ed¡¯s support.

    Without Ed, everyone in the church would have died, and Aron would have been lost.

    ¡°So, can I ask you to escort me up to Meltsi¡¯s temple?¡±

    Ed glanced back at Diego who was standing behind him.

    ¡°That kid can be with you. I¡¯m not going to argue about your party. So, it¡¯s alright.¡±

    Ed replied, nodding his head.

    ¡°Please contact Arin and the others. They said that they will go to Melt City and we¡¯ll join them. And please tell them that Diego is doing well too.¡±

    ¡°Of course. I¡¯ll get back to you soon.¡±

    ¡°Then I¡¯ll see you tomorrow.¡±

    Ed said goodbye and returned to the inn with Diego.

    Ed said, stroking Diego¡¯s head as he sat on the bed.

    ¡°You did well.¡±

    ¡°Is that right?¡±

    ¡°Yes. But the moment you jumped off the roof,  there would have been nothing more vain than that if you had broken your neck and died.¡±

    Diego burst out laughing at that.

    ¡°I saw a tree underneath and jumped off. It was risky, but these days, my body has gotten stronger, so I¡¯m fine.  ¡°

    Ed said, taking a chair, putting it next to the bed, and sitting down.

    ¡°I told Sir Malcolm, so Arin will hear from us.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not worried now.¡±

    ¡°Yeah. So don¡¯t worry and sleep.¡±

    ¡°Yeah.¡±

    As Diego lay down on the bed, Ed pulled out the gear he got today and looked at it.

    There were daggers, rings, and mirrors used by Crossel.

    He had heard that a hand mirror is a token that represents them and is for communication, but he doesn¡¯t know how to use it yet. If he can figure out how to use this, he will have four guns.

    The fingers seem to carry only a hand mirror.

    What is the reason that an organization like them is giving such items so thinly?

    While grumbling like that, Ed took out Emily¡¯s ring and looked at it. He was told that it wasn¡¯t a cursed item.

    Both Malcolm and Aron, the Holy Knights, had said so, so Ed looked at the ring. A ring in black that is not flashy or anything fancy.

    Ed pondered for a moment, then put the ring on the index finger of his left hand. It¡¯s up to the future to see what kind of ability it has.

    So, wearing the ring, Ed closed his eyes for a moment and went inside to check his stats window.

    And the moment he put on the ring, he saw his magical powers rise greatly.

    When he took off the ring again, the magic power was drastically reduced.

    And he knew that this ring is a ring that increases the total amount of magical power.

    It¡¯s about raising it as a percentage, not about raising the daily amount. For those with a lot of magical power, the percentage increase is good.

    So for Ed, this ring was just what he needed. At least it was the magic that could be obtained by raising a few magic stats.

    Ed raised his hand and looked at the ring.

    If you have enough magical power, you can shoot more, and you can increase the power of the freezing bow.

    The experience was not much, but the real thing was there.

    When Ed was satisfied, Diego looked at him and said.

    ¡°Brother, you look like a villain.¡±

    ¡°Yes?¡±

    ¡°I think that smile resembles the smile the villains used to make in the puppet show.¡±

    Ed burst into laughter at that.

    ¡°Is it too much to get some good stuff!¡±

    ¡°I think it¡¯s a great thing for you to say things like that.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s a relic-class piece of equipment, but it¡¯s exactly what I needed.¡±

    ¡°Good for you. Congratulations! ¡°

    Diego¡¯s magic power, the spirit of the spirit, and the power of the devil was also increasing day by day. So this ring was more needed by him.

    ¡°If I get something good later, I¡¯ll give it to you too.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve already received a lot.¡±

    The workmanship that the guy possesses is quite good. Next time something good comes out, he¡¯ll have to give it to Diego.

    The things he gave to Diego were Sperto¡¯s things, so they weren¡¯t that great.

    ¡°Hurry up. I will be busy again from tomorrow.¡±

    Over the flickering candle on the table, the old man leaned his chin on it with his hands clasped, his eyes were infinitely sharp. Eyes that make you feel dignified enough to make you feel fear just by looking at them.

    If he stands up and raises his sword, he will become a general who commands the battlefield.

    ¡°So the royal family is keeping us in check?¡±

    Prince Pellman, the head of the Southern Noble Association, asked the man in front of him directly.

    The man answered with a smile.

    ¡°Karen¡¯s affair with the Mazelta Kingdom was discovered, and the property was confiscated, and the territory was reclaimed.¡±

    ¡°Therefore?¡±

    ¡°What do you think will happen after that? If we were to re-examine the events of the past, would any of the Southern nobles hold their place?¡±

    ¡°Therefore?¡±

    ¡°So you have to move first,¡± said Pellman, leaning his back against the chair.

    As the chair leaned back, he leisurely looked at the man in front of him.

    A person who was in charge of the main was called Callan. He was in a boat with Karen, the head of the Crown Prince.

    ¡°I heard you say Callan is chasing you?¡±

    The man answered with a smile.

    ¡°Have the rumors been spread so far?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s because they¡¯re listening to them as they are far from the royal capital.¡±

    Prince Pellman said, staring at the man,

    ¡°The risk is too great to follow your words. In fact, the Royal Capital will not be able to let us go easily. But, if you¡¯re serious enough and lower your stance, it won¡¯t hurt us.¡±

    The man¡¯s expression hardened at those words. After all, this presbytery nobleman clearly understood the situation.

    Southern nobles have been here for a long time. It is not easy to wipe out such aristocrats again as before, but it would be a good feat for the new heir to the throne after the prince dies. Even so, it would be a significant burden.

    ¡°You must have something for me,¡± said Prince Pellman, staring intently at the man.

    ¡°Why do you think so?¡±

    ¡°If it weren¡¯t for that, I wouldn¡¯t have given my precious time to listen to you.¡±

    Prince Pellman burst out laughing at that.

    ¡°I thought we could get along. David!¡±

    The man, David, looked at Pelman without a word.

    Prince Pellman said with his back from his chair and leaning forward.

    ¡°I heard from Karen that you have some good stuff.¡±

    David smiled at that. He pulled out a bottle of dark blue liquid from his arms.  Prince Pellman, who was looking at David putting the bottle on the table, took the bottle.

    ¡°Is it what I think it is?¡±

    ¡°Yes. It is.¡±

    ¡°Can I just drink?¡±

    ¡°If you take it the wrong way, you will die,¡±

    Pellman said, putting the bottle back on the desk.

    ¡°Okay. Now I¡¯m ready to trade. What do you want?¡±

    David smiled and presented his business.

    ¡°Please be a king.¡±

    Prince Pelman looked at David as if he were talking.

    ¡°I thought it would be nice to have another kingdom between the kingdoms of Mazelta and Travia.¡±

    Prince Pellman looked back at David at those words. A man who had only been regarded as an agent of Akalan was now making an offer that he could not have imagined.

    ¡°You can paint the bigger picture than you think.¡±

    Prince Pellman thought David was just trying to entrust himself with his followers. He sought the blood of demons from them and used them as a shadow to survive. But now, he was showing him the way to become a king.

    ¡°Hey hahaha. Good! What should I do?¡±

    David was able to see through the ambitions of Prince Pellman, so he easily won his heart. It was a satisfactory transaction for each.

    Diego was driving the horse calmly. He thought that the road to the city of Melt would be slow with a wagon, so he prepared a horse to increase the speed. But he was proficient on the first horse he rode.

    ¡°It¡¯s nothing compared to Tom, right?¡±

    The commander, Tom, was born a leopard, so his posture was low and unstable.

    Ed chuckled and turned his head away.  Aron was also riding a horse quite skillfully, probably it was his first time riding a horse.

    The two paladines were walking in front of Aron, and Ed and Diego were riding their horses behind Aron.

    Four people walk around Aron¡¯s horse.  And in the front were the horses mounted by the combat monks and the horses mounted by the apprentice paladines were escorted behind them.

    After realizing what kind of people were targeting Aron and how important Aron was, they changed their attitude towards escorting Aron.

    Nothing has changed from before, but the atmosphere has changed just by realizing that this is a job that requires risking your life.

    As they were riding on their horses, a woman and a knight started running past Ed.

    Ed, who found it first, frowned slightly. The woman was fine, but three bolts were lodged in the back of the knight running after her. Because they were running along the highway, the Paladines also found them, and it was the same with those who were running from the opposite side.

    ¡°Help me!¡±

    Ed saw a group of people running behind them. A crowd that looked like knights and light cavalry. Combat investigators rode horses to help them.

    Ed saw the scene, raised his bow, and fired an arrow.

    Puck!

    The arrow was struck in front of the woman who was running.

    The woman fell screaming in surprise, and the knight supporting such a woman looked at Ed. Her running combat friars looked back in amazement.

    When everyone¡¯s eyes turned to Ed, Ed said calmly.

    ¡°It¡¯s the first time I¡¯ve seen it. So what do you believe in making me come to you?¡±

 Chapter 84

    Ed¡¯s response had made the fighting investigators come to their senses. They had forgotten who they were dealing with.

    If it had been night, Ed wouldn¡¯t have reacted like this. He just needed to check if they had demon powers. Because now, without Jerry, he can¡¯t recognize their powers.  So, he blocked them to check.

    The knights who were running from the opposite side also slowed down their horses. The battle investigators were drawing their weapons nervously after hearing Ed¡¯s words.

    After confirming that they had stopped completely, Ed went up to Aron and asked.

    ¡°Can you see it?¡±

    Aron nodded and looked at the woman and the knight. And looking at those standing behind him, he shook his head.

    ¡°No one has the power associated with the devil.¡±

    ¡°Even if they don¡¯t have the powers associated with the devil, I don¡¯t believe them. So let¡¯s just turn around,¡±

    Malcolm and Alon nodded at Ed¡¯s words.

    Now, the priority is to take Aron safely to the temple. There is nothing good about being entangled in other¡¯s businesses for nothing.

    The woman who was startled by the arrow had stepped back and proceeded to speak.

    ¡°May the glory of Astron be with you. My name is Sarah, the daughter of Prince Melt.  As a faithful servant of Astron, I ask for your help.¡±

    Malcolm was slightly impressed with those words. The place he had to go now was the Shrine of Meltsi, and it was impossible not to help the daughter of Prince Melt, the lord of that place, in trouble.

    Then Aron got off his horse, walked over to her, and said with a smile.

    ¡°How can I be called a priest if Astron¡¯s servant asks for help and I refuse?¡±

    Ed didn¡¯t ask for that, but the knight seemed to be thinking of healing.

    ¡°Can you heal without hands?¡±

    Aron paused for a moment to think about it, then nodded his head. In the past, it would have been impossible, but now it seemed possible enough.

    ¡°I think I can.¡±

    ¡°Then do it.¡±

    Saying so Ed looked at the woman who identified herself as Sarah. Then he said,

    ¡°Just unplug the bolt from the back and you¡¯ll be healed. So take off the Guardian Knight¡¯s armor and remove the bolt.¡±

    ¡°Yeah?¡±

    She hadn¡¯t done anything like that before. Ed threw his dagger at the terrified woman. Then he said, pointing to the dagger at her feet.

    ¡°If you don¡¯t cut the wound where the bolt is, the flesh will come out. So you just have to cut the wound and pull it out,¡±

    ¡°Ha, but¡­.¡±

    ¡°Are you asking for help without even putting an effort?¡±

    Sarah bit her lips and picked up the dagger. And looking back at the article, the knight shook his head.

    ¡°It¡¯s fine. If only the young lady is safe, that¡¯s enough.¡±

    ¡°No way. Take off the armor.¡±

    The guardian knight looked into Sarah¡¯s eyes and finally took off the armor.  And when she turned her back, she shed some tears. She slashed the arrow from his back and pulled out the bolt. That moment blood spattered on her face and she fainted.

    Watching that, Ed cast his doubts.

    If she had wielded her dagger properly, there wouldn¡¯t be any doubt. So, it was easy to guess that the fainting was an act.

    While Ed was watching Sarah fainting by her guardian knight, Ed approached him behind his back and swung his dagger.

    ¡°Ugh!¡±

    Before the Guardian Knight could respond, Ed pulled out all the bolts from his back and looked back at Aron.

    Aron nodded his head at Ed¡¯s gaze, then stood from a distance and held out his hand.

    As the blue wave from his hand touched the guardian knight, the wound on his back healed. If a healer can only heal by touching with his hand in battle, that¡¯s of no use to any mate.

    However, if you can cast a recovery spell from this distance, its value will rise even more.

    Even if it¡¯s not right now, Ed was thinking to hire Aron sometime later.  Having made up his mind, Ed saw the Guardian Knight¡¯s wounds heal quickly.

    Now Ed¡¯s gaze looked at the knights and light cavalry standing at the distance.  They were impressed to see Sarah getting help. Since there are paladines and battle friars together, they can¡¯t dare to be reckless.

    Ed retrieved the dagger and looked at them.

    ¡°Is there more to say?¡±

    The knight finally opened his mouth, knowing that he couldn¡¯t just walk away.

    ¡°My name is Bronn, the knight of Korun. She married Lord Soyoung but fled without spending a night together. This is about Lord Soyoung¡¯s honor, so even the Astron Church cannot interfere.¡±

    Ed looked at the guardian knight and the woman named Sarah. Her gaze toward the guardian knight was unusual.

    Did she just run away without spending a night there?

    They don¡¯t care about other people¡¯s love stories, but they shouldn¡¯t hold their ankles with such a problem.

    When Ed was thinking about such things, Aron intervened without noticing.

    ¡°Under any circumstances, I will not ignore helping Astron¡¯s faithful servants. But we are on our way to the city of Melt. So if you want to dispute the matter, please speak directly to Prince Melt.¡±

    Bronn¡¯s impression hardened.

    It should not be known to the outside that the lord¡¯s bride ran away without spending the first night. They have to kill the guardian knight who caused this incident and take away Sarah. But if they go to Prince Melt, they cannot do as they wish.  It¡¯s really a face-lift.

    ¡°As long as you are married, you are a member of the Korun family, so the Astron Church cannot intervene in the affairs of the family.¡±

    Ed sighed and stood in front of Aron, knowing that the story would not end soon.

    ¡°Don¡¯t say the same thing twice, step back.¡±

    If Prince Melt finds out, he might rather listen to a man named Bronn. A marriage between nobles would have been allowed by both families. A daughter returning from such a marriage would not be something that even Prince Melt, a nobleman, would welcome.

    Seeing Bronn frowning, Ed said with a smirk.

    ¡°Or are you going to attack us?¡±

    Bronn looked at Ed at those words, but the moment he saw him, he swallowed dry saliva. It was as if he wanted to pull out a weapon and attack. After all, the party with the paladine of the Astron Church cannot fight with force, no matter how good the cause. If that happens, the city of Korun could be shattered.

    ¡°I¡¯m going to ask the denomination about this!¡±

    The nobility and the denomination do not interfere with each other, so this could definitely be a problem.

    When he turned his head to check, Aron wasn¡¯t concerned about that at all.  Seeing Bronn backing away with his men, Ed looked at the Guardian Knight.

    Seeing him holding Sarah, who was fainting, and carefully wiping the blood from his face, he said.

    ¡°I¡¯ll give you a word, so take the young lady and lead the way. I haven¡¯t completely dispelled my doubts about you yet, so if I¡¯m foolish, I¡¯ll have to hope that my arrow will go astray.¡±

    The guardian knight nodded at Ed¡¯s words. He spared his life in a situation he thought was unavoidable, so that was it. He had done all that he had to do for surviving Korun¡¯s servants.

    The guardian knight took the horse delivered by Ed and drove Sarah, who had passed away in front of him.

    Ed said, riding after Diego on horseback.

    ¡°Aron. Don¡¯t trust people recklessly. It was a very dangerous act.¡±

    ¡°It didn¡¯t look like a lie,¡±

    Ed sneered at that.

    ¡°Aron. They say that those eyes can see the power of the devil and let them know the truth, but they can¡¯t see the heart of a person. So, just trust those eyes and don¡¯t help people believing they tell the truth.¡±

    Malcolm and Alon said. He nodded his head as he rode the horse.

    When he heard a woman running with her wounded guardian knight asking for help, he did not doubt himself and tried to help.

    It was a deep thought that no one dared to defraud the Paladine of the Astron Church, but he knew that he should not believe only that. Thanks to Ed¡¯s awakening, they decided to be more vigilant.

    Diego, who was riding in front of Ed, asked.

    ¡°How can you not raise an eyebrow even when a woman asks for help?¡±

    ¡°Because Aron is here. Guys with demonic powers wouldn¡¯t have approached us with such carefree deception, but don¡¯t just think about that. They may have bought and sent assassins from Crossel.¡±

    Diego, overconfident in his abilities, took out the commander Jerry and increased the detection range. But even if that wasn¡¯t the case, the demon¡¯s power could be sensed to some extent.

    ¡°Ever since ancient times, women and children have been told to be especially careful. They are perfect figures to arouse people¡¯s vigilance. That¡¯s why assassins often do that too. So be careful.¡±

    Diego heard that and nodded.

    ¡°I¡¯ll be careful,¡±

    Ed said, stroking Diego¡¯s head.

    ¡°Just looking at you. Who would see you as a necromancer who can defeat even intermediate demons?¡±

    Diego smiled at that. Ed touched Diego¡¯s head and looked at the back of the guardian knight walking in front of him.  He just wanted this to end here.

    The city of Melt could not be reached in one day.  By nightfall, they tied up their horses and everyone got ready to camp.  After waking up, Sarah approached the party and greeted them.

    ¡°Thank you for your help.¡±

    Aron smiled and offered her a seat.

    ¡°You don¡¯t have to say that. Helping those in need is Astron¡¯s teaching.¡±

    ¡°I heard from Bronn that now we¡¯re on our way to the city of Melt.¡±

    ¡°Yes. This is the way to the Shrine of Meltsi.¡±

    ¡°I see.¡±

    Sarah hesitated for a moment before opening her mouth.

    ¡°So, can I make a request if it¡¯s not too difficult?¡±

    ¡°Tell me.¡±

    ¡°We can¡¯t go to the city of Melt, can¡¯t you just let us leave like this?¡±

    Ed covered his mouth as Aron was about to open his. Malcolm and Alon also sent a thank-you look to Ed as if he knew Aron by now.

    Bringing Sarah to Prince Melt is a problem they can solve on their own, but if they don¡¯t take her to him, the Astron Church will have to bear all the responsibility.

    Ed covered Aron¡¯s mouth and looked at Sarah. He didn¡¯t want to say bad things about an aristocratic woman, but the truth is that he doesn¡¯t care about this woman.

    ¡°Hey there,¡±

    Ed said, staring at her.

    ¡°Where did you sell your conscience?¡±

 Chapter 85

    Sarah¡¯s face turned red as if it¡¯s about to explode. She knows that she¡¯s been asking for undeserving favors, but it wasn¡¯t a nobleman¡¯s way to say those words out loud in her face.

    Ed¡¯s straightforward words made her bewildered. Guardian Knight Pan stood up from behind her, hardening his impression.

    ¡°Look at this,¡± said Ed, turning his gaze to him.

    ¡°Sit down while speaking.¡±

    He knew that the guy wanted to help the woman he was in love with, but Ed was in a bad mood right now.

    Pan¡¯s eyes met Ed¡¯s eye, and his body stiffened for a moment. It was instinctive. He instinctively felt that crossing the line could kill him.

    Ed said looking at Sarah, as Pan sat down again.

    ¡°Younger sister from the noble family knows better than anyone else how things are going on right now. If you¡¯re aware, you know that you shouldn¡¯t put more pressure on the denomination here, right?¡±

    Seeing Sarah say nothing and blush even more as Ed was speaking.

    ¡°If you are a faithful servant of Astron¡­.¡±

    At Ed¡¯s words, Malcolm and Alon, who were sitting next to each other, both nodded their heads.

    Sarah was also keen.

    Aron seems to be in an important position here. So she tried to get her out of trouble by asking him to do it, but Ed suddenly intervened and made her speechless.

    And now the atmosphere is that even the Paladines agree with Ed¡¯s words. If she says anything wrong here, then things will be worse than they are now.  It would have been better to sneak out secretly.

    Then Ed said with a smile.

    ¡°The demons will be out at night. So rest here so that you don¡¯t die at the hands of the demons after leaving the party.¡±

    To Ed¡¯s words, Sarah did not dare to answer.

    Even if he were to put such a scare, it would be safer to get out of here at any cost than going back to her family.

    When she returns to the family, she will return to the lord of Korunga, and Pan, the guardian knight who caused this situation, dies. It just has to be avoided.

    ¡°Okay.¡±

    Edgar looked back at the people who watched Sarah retreating with Pan.  Paladins and battle monks.

    If they are capable, there is no need to use his own hands for any monster.  Still, just in case, he thought he¡¯d have to stay up all night.

    Pan, who was sitting next to Sarah watching her bed, turned his head to the hand that grabbed his hand.

    Sarah was lying down and holding his hand.

    ¡°Pan. When the night gets dark, you have to get out.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s a big sin. Why don¡¯t you go back to Prince Melt?¡±

    ¡°If I go back to my family, you die.¡±

    ¡± I know. ¡°

    ¡°How are you telling me to live without you?¡±

    Pan sighed as Sarah looked up at him. Closing his eyes tight, he knew he couldn¡¯t refuse her.

    ¡°Close your eyes. I¡¯ll wake you up when the time is right.¡±

    ¡°I only have time tonight.¡±

    ¡°I know.¡±

    At Pan¡¯s words, Sarah fell asleep while holding his hand.

    As the escape from Korunga was intense, she was so tired that she quickly fell asleep.

    Pan looked at her face like that and let out a sigh of relief. Since he knew that his wish was to respect and love her more than his own life. He did not want to show himself dying in front of her. He had to survive, not because of his own life, but because his death would hurt her heart.

    Pan watched the paladines as they fell asleep. However, only Ed was awake to check his equipment. So he thought he¡¯d just wait for him to fall asleep.

    But even after a long time passed, he didn¡¯t sleep.

    Where the hell did the arrow come from! He took out a whetstone and sharpened the blade of the arrow.

    Pan, who looked at him, took out his weapon and looked. When he saw that the blade had teeth, he took out a whetstone from his bosom and sharpened the blade.

    Pan, who was quietly sharpening the blade, saw Ed suddenly get up.  And without hesitation, Ed fired his arrow into the darkness.

    Pan was wondering what he was doing, but he heard a scream in the dark. Starting with that scream, something came from all directions.

    Pan was blown away by the commotion.  And Pan, who raised his body, saw a monster running towards him.

    Reflexively, he lifted his sword and smashed the sword the moment he caught the sharp teeth of the rushing monster.

    The monster that rushed in was surprised.

    The monster with the head of a hyena cut his sword away with its amazing jaw force.

    When Pan was startled, an arrow flew over his shoulder and hit the monster¡¯s head. The monster¡¯s eyes flipped over and fell to the floor. When he turned his head, the arrows from behind were sucked into the darkness, and he heard the death of the monster.

    It was so fast that he couldn¡¯t even see the arrow properly.

    After a few arrows, the presence of a monster was no longer felt. Seeing that, the Paladines and the party had also completely woken up.

    Ed said calmly.

    ¡°I¡¯ll bring back some arrows in a moment.¡±

    ¡°Are all demons dead?¡±

    ¡°Yes. So now you can rest in peace.¡±

    Are there people who can fall asleep just because they grow up being attacked by monsters?

    Seeing that the Paladine and the party had all woken up, Pan knew that it was impossible to get out of there today. Ed passed him like that and muttered as he pulled out the arrow stuck in the head of the monster.

    ¡°It¡¯s a sweet thing that demons are swarming at night.¡±

    When Pan turned his head, Sarah¡¯s face, who had woken up from the commotion, turned pale. Pan went to sit next to her and said,

    ¡°Since there are so many monsters, it seems unreasonable to go out of here tonight.¡±

    Sarah sighed while holding Pan¡¯s hand at those words.

    Sarah looked back at Pan while looking at the walls of Meltsi. Seeing the two exchanged glances, Ed slowly shook his head.

    ¡°The two of them from yesterday, were they trying to run away?¡±

    ¡°Yes¡±

    ¡°There are so many monsters, so it would be unreasonable to go out.¡±

    ¡°I had summoned Jerry at night, rats can hear night-talk!¡±

    Ed rubbed his hair.

    ¡°What?¡±

    ¡°The reason why the demons gathered.¡±

    ¡°Teach me how to do it.¡± said Ed, resting his chin on Diego¡¯s head.

    ¡°It was because I was thinking of them. If they run away, you were going to put an arrow in their leg.¡±

    Ed said so, but would he have put an arrow in their leg if they had actually run away? He doesn¡¯t know.

    Sarah and the soldiers put a call inside, and a group of horses ran out. Seeing that their atmosphere was horrid, it must have been that they had sent someone from Korunga.

    It¡¯s something that can be called a shame. They must have decided to inform Prince Melt instead of shivering.

    Indeed, the middle-aged man at the forefront of them caught sight of whether Sarah and Pan were dismounted from their horses.

    Pan bent on one knee, and Sarah stepped out in front of him.

    Prince Melt looked at her and his eyebrows trembled.

    ¡°Sarah, what the hell have you been doing?¡±

    Sarah read the end of a young life in the eyes of Prince Melt who was riding on a horse. Knowing that those eyes were on Pan, Sarah spread her arms out to block the front of Pan.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, but I couldn¡¯t be with the Lord of Korunga without love.¡±

    ¡°How can a nobleman love Taryeong? A nobleman has something to protect!¡±

    ¡°Pan! What did I do when I entrusted the guardian knight to protect my daughter!¡±

    Prince Melt got off his horse. He drew his sword and approached in stride. Seeing that, Sarah spread her arms and blocked the front.

    ¡°No!¡±

    ¡°Get out of the way! The knight does not keep his responsibilities and crosses the line! How can I keep my head up if I don¡¯t punish the knight!¡±

    Sarah tried to see if somehow there was any gap. The funniest thing in the world is to watch the fight, so Ed was looking forward to it after a long time, but suddenly he heard a voice next to him.

    ¡°Please stop.¡±

    Ed turned around and saw Aron rushing forward.

    Before everyone¡¯s attention could be shifted, Ed hurriedly jumped off the horse and hit Aron in the back of the neck. Aron fainted while he was about to say something, and Ed, who went behind him, supported him as he fell.

    He spoke calmly when people¡¯s eyes were focused.

    ¡°Do what you were doing. We only have business to do at the temple.¡±

    Melt¡¯s eyebrows twitched. He probably wanted to release his anger elsewhere, but as the Paladines Malcolm and Alon followed behind Ed, he could not release his anger.

    He couldn¡¯t ignore it either, so he asked after retreating his sword.

    ¡°Why did the Paladines of Astron come to the Melt City for?¡±

    Malcolm answered.

    ¡°I¡¯m here because of the church¡¯s business, so you don¡¯t have to worry about it. You just do what you were doing,¡±

    Then Prince Melt said as he stared at Sarah and Pan.

    ¡°What are you doing? Put Pan in a ceremonial prison, and detain Sarah in a room.¡±

    Ed looked at the back of the head of Aron, the culprit of all that. Seeing that the back of his neck got all swelled up, he felt a little bit guilty. But he did the right thing.

    What if Malcolm and Alon, the paladines who were escorting him, had nothing to say?

    Then came the noise of horseshoes from behind. He glanced back and saw a familiar face. It was a knight named Bronn.

    Considering the distance from here to the city of Korun, it is unlikely that he would have gone there and returned.  Perhaps he was on his way from Korun as well. So they met in the middle.

    They came to the front of the Melt group and started talking, and the wind of dust they had created swept through the crowd. And the stopped horses turned left and right, and a man stepped forward.  A man who is fat enough to talk.  His face also had a seriously ugly chubby snorting nose.

    Looking at him, Ed could see why Sarah ran away without spending a night.

    ¡°Prince Melt, I have come to retrieve the bride,¡± the man whose face was blushing exclaimed.

    Prince Melt sighed. He would have said something if he had done everything he wanted to do and met them, but meeting the people of the Korun family here was a problem.

    ¡°Sarah, I¡¯ll send you back to Korun, so you can go back and wait.¡±

    Froll, the little lord of Korun, snorted and pulled out the sword on his back. And he said, pointing to the group.

    ¡°Okay. But as for the knight, I will have to split his head with my own hands so that my mind will be relieved. Give me that child.¡±

    No matter how much of a nobleman you are, you can¡¯t be bothered to hear such a word from someone who has become your son-in-law.

    ¡°I¡¯ll play everything according to the family rules, so stop backing away.¡±

    ¡°Ha! If it had been properly done, would the guardian knight covet the one served? So I¡¯ll take care of it.¡±

    A red light flashed from deep in the excited Froll¡¯s eyes.

    Prince Melt¡¯s eyebrows trembled as he watched Froll threatening to drive the horse forward. He was annoyed with his daughter¡¯s work, but what is he saying now?

    ¡°How dare you!¡±

    Prince Melt pointed his finger and was about to say a word, but an arrow shot out towards Froll¡¯s forehead. He wondered if he had misunderstood. But Froll slipped back and fell from his horse.

    Seeing this, Prince Melt looked down in surprise.

    Then a familiar voice came from behind.

    ¡°Ttt. Why is the piglet with the devil?¡±

    Duke Melt looked back and saw a bow in Ed¡¯s hand, who was riding with the priest.

 Chapter 86

    Ed was just watching the fight until the Korun pig appeared and spoke. Then Diego pulled his horse aside and whispered.

    ¡°Brother, I can feel the demonic power in that pig over there.¡±

    Ed looked at the Korun pig at those words. At that time, the Korun pig swung his sword and shouted, and his eyes were dyed red. The moment Ed saw that, he did not hesitate and fired an arrow. Ed sighed as he watched the Korun pig fall backward.

    ¡°Ttt. Why is the piglet with the devil?¡±

    They had no intention of intervening in their love story. Malcolm and Alon looked back at Ed in surprise. No wonder an arrow would flow to the forehead of a nobleman.

    He was even more embarrassed because he didn¡¯t know that Ed, who stopped Aron well in the middle, would cause trouble with the nobles.

    ¡°Lord Little Lord!¡±

    Bronn jumped off his horse and grabbed Froll, put his hand on his nose, and his impression hardened in an instant. Froll stopped breathing.

    Bronn jumped up and drew his weapon. However, he was afraid to draw his sword.

    Ed put Aron against his horse and looked at Bronn.

    ¡°Your little lord has the power of the devil. He doesn¡¯t seem to be a subordinate, and he¡¯s roughly a follower, but you go back and tell the lord. I¡¯m going to find him soon.¡±

    ¡°You killed the Lord, and what kind of recklessness is that!¡±

    Ed leaned his bow on Aron¡¯s back and looked at Bronn.

    ¡°The thing holding the power of the devil can be found right away. If you have that power, you can meet them.¡±

    Bronn looked at the paladines standing behind Ed and bit his teeth.

    Had it been a different situation, he would have definitely had something to say. Even if he wanted to tell him not to interfere, but it was about the demons. The Church of Astron would turn on the lights and rush in.

    If a heretic inquisitor is dispatched, then no matter how raw and creeping aristocrats are, they can be destroyed in a single day. And seeing him stand out so proudly, he wondered if Froll was really with the power of the devil.

    Ed got off his horse and walked calmly.  Bronn clenched his fist when he saw him approaching with a bow on his shoulder. But Ed approached him calmly and pulled an arrow from Froll¡¯s forehead and lightly brushed it off.

    Bronn shivered as he watched the blood dripping from the arrow on the floor. As a knight, he couldn¡¯t prevent his master¡¯s death even after seeing him die in front of his eyes, so it¡¯s hard to see him in good shape even if he goes back to Korunga.

    Ed turned around and said.

    ¡°The body of this person will be recovered by the Church.¡±

    If it is a subordinate or a follower of the devil, the Astron Church will investigate it as it is related to the devil. And if it turns out to be true, an extensive investigation into the family will begin.

    Melt shouted as the fighting investigators approached and retrieved the body.

    ¡°All besiege!¡±

    At the words of Prince Melt, those who followed him besieged Bronn and the light cavalry that followed him. Bronn screamed at the sight.

    ¡°What is this?¡±

    ¡°If the Korunga are associated with demons and are subject to that investigation, I cannot send you back for fear of destroying the evidence. If the Korunga have no affiliation with the demons, I will reward you. Please wait.¡±

    At Prince Melt¡¯s words, Bronn clenched his teeth, but there were far more people besieging them. The number of people who came to this place with Froll was not small, but they did not come to fight for the territory, but to pursue a cause, so there could not be many.

    ¡°The Prince Melt!¡± shouted the Melt group, lightly ignoring Bronn¡¯s cry.

    ¡°Even if Korunga has no ties with the devil, the man who dared to sell his soul to the devil coveted my daughter, so the crime will be held by Korunga!¡±

    Ed stared at the Prince Melt like that. .  In fact, even considering their face, they would rather make this event bigger, and if the Korun family were associated with the devil, in the future they could use this as an excuse to rip it apart.

    Maybe they will grab hold of the manor. If Sarah is married and all the people in her family die, she can inherit the land.  So now, it would be them to take the side of the Astron Church.

    Malcolm and Alon also guessed what Ed had guessed, but the devil-related thing is a situation they should report to the main office too.

    They really knew what Prince Melt was trying to do, but they didn¡¯t blame him.

    ¡°It¡¯s the right decision. If you report to the main body, a heretical interrogator will be dispatched, so it¡¯s a wise idea not to destroy the evidence in the meantime. I¡¯ll report for the church¡¯s help as well.¡±

    When a smile was drawn on Prince Melt¡¯s lips, Sarah carefully opened her mouth.

    ¡°Father.¡±

    Prince Melt looked back at Sarah.

    He only blamed her, but it was his own fault that he had sent her to the one who sold his soul to the devil.

    Korun is a wealthy place compared to Melt, so he thought it was a good thing to have in-laws with them.

    If it was revealed later, perhaps even Sarah would have been subjected to the interrogation. Knowing how cruel the heretical interrogation was, he thought this was a good thing.

    ¡°Yeah. This father did something wrong and almost did something big.¡±

    ¡°Forgive Pan,¡± said Prince Melt, wriggling an eyebrow at the words, but not in a fiery rage at this place now.  Prince Melt ordered his men.

    ¡°Pan, stay safe at the mansion. Be grateful and be sober because you are not imprisoned in a thunderbolt in recognition of your work in saving Sarah from the demon-possessed Korunga.¡±

    Sarah¡¯s face brightened at those words.  It was fortunate that she was not immediately beheaded by her father¡¯s sword-like personality.

    Aron woke up from the sleep, grabbed the back of his neck, and shook it left and right, wondering.

    ¡°Ed. My back hurts strangely.¡±

    ¡°Can¡¯t it be healed by holy spells?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m sure I¡¯ll get better soon, but strangely, the pain continues.¡±

    Ed stared at him and opened his mouth.

    ¡°But what did you mean by that?¡±

    ¡°Okay?

    ¡°Didn¡¯t that prevent Prince Melt from punishing Miss Sarah and the knight?¡±

    ¡°Ah! I thought there was a solution to that, so I tried to stop it.¡±

    ¡°A solution?¡±

    ¡°I thought that if Sarah becomes a nun, I would be able to protect her as she becomes a member of the Astron Church. So I was thinking of asking her if she would like to do so.¡±

    Ed put his hand on Aron¡¯s shoulder and let out a long sigh.

    ¡°Aron, saying that in that situation makes the Astron Church seem like it is deeply involved in the work of the nobles. So saying that itself will deepen the rift between the Church and the nobles.¡±

    ¡°Ah! Is that so?¡±

    ¡°Even if you have been living in the Astron Church, the person who served as the chief priest should not do this.¡±

    Aron¡¯s expression hardened at those words.

    Ed looked at Aron quietly. Arin was also a paladine who didn¡¯t know anything at first, so he taught her in full swing, but her brother was no different from a human being.

    He acknowledges his desire to save people, but he has to choose a time and place. Still, if he¡¯s going to save people, there shouldn¡¯t be any problem related to that.

    That way, the Astron Church will also use Aron heavily. But he also found this new side to be cute. It is good that this story goes well with the archbishop of the presbytery like Benedict, but there is no such innocence. It¡¯s the same with him.

    ¡°So what happened?¡±

    ¡°The little lord of the Korun family came to retrieve Miss Sarah, and he turned out to be a follower of the devil. So it seemed that this marriage would never have happened in the first place.¡±

    ¡°You mean there were demon followers in Korunga?¡±

    ¡°Maybe. So, I thought I¡¯d go see Aron when he wakes up.¡±

    ¡°Where?¡±

    ¡°I hate Korun.¡±

    ¡°What are you going to do?¡±

    Ed didn¡¯t bother answering. Aron looked into those eyes and seemed to understand roughly.

    ¡°Why don¡¯t you leave it to the Heretic Inquisitor?¡±

    It¡¯s not a bad choice to leave it to the Heretic Inquisitor. However, if they move, not only those who have obtained demonic power from Korunga, but also their cousins¡¯ cousins ??will be captured and tortured, and more blood will flow if they do so.

    And above all else, you don¡¯t know how much experience there will be. Froll gave him little experience.

    ¡°More than that, Aron. This is a temple, and Meltsi is also large, so Crossel will not be able to target it like before.¡±

    ¡°Perhaps it is.¡±

    The temple itself has excellent security, and a city with a temple also has a different security.

    In particular, Crossel lost five fingers and one of the apostles died. Speaking of six apostles and ten fingers, they almost lost the power of thirty percent. So it won¡¯t be easy to target.

    ¡°I just heard the news from Arin and delivering it.¡±

    ¡°Did Arin deliver any news?¡±

    ¡°Yes. I think we¡¯ll see her at our next destination.¡±

    ¡°When is Ed going to leave?¡±

    Ed said looking out the window.

    ¡°I¡¯m leaving tomorrow morning.¡±

    Aron was about to say something at those words, but he soon smiled and swallowed.

    ¡°It¡¯s a pity that we are saying goodbye like this.¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s nothing to regret. We¡¯ll probably see each other again.¡±

    ¡°Yes?¡±

    You can¡¯t give up a priest with those precious ¡®eyes¡¯. However, when he goes back to the main school, wouldn¡¯t it be a little more useful if he met the archbishops and received realistic teachings?

    When that time comes, he¡¯s thinking of accepting him as a group.

    Ed, who spent the night at the temple, got a horse from the temple, rode it, and set off early in the morning with Diego.

    They must leave when the sun has not yet risen so that they can reach the city of Korun before dark.

    When Ed and Diego hurried to the gates, a horse stood in front of the gates, and Sarah stood next to them.

    Still have something to say?

    As Ed approached her puzzled, she took off her hat and bowed her head politely.

    ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡±

    Sarah raised her head and looked at Ed.

    ¡°I was going to thank you for your help yesterday, but I was told that you were leaving early today, so I waited like this.¡±

    Ed responded calmly to those words.

    ¡°I wasn¡¯t specifically trying to help.¡±

    In fact, if it weren¡¯t for Aron, they weren¡¯t interested enough to send them back.

    ¡°I thought you would say that. But I got help, and I was told that if I get help, I have to repay it.¡±

    ¡°The most useful thing I have right now is the horse Boma. It is a horse from the Kingdom of Magelta, known for its excellent pedigree and capable of running for three days and three nights without a break.¡±

    Ed, keenly aware of the importance of mobility this time, saw the horse she was pointing to. It didn¡¯t seem like a normal horse to have black hair that was shiny.

    ¡°Please take this boy horse.¡±

    Ed got off his horse from the temple and walked over to the black horse standing next to her.

    A large size and strong muscles suitable for a warhorse. Besides, he met her big eyes and fell in love with her.

    He said that until now he had only used his many horses as a means of transportation, but this horse was something different.

    Ed asked, stroking the horse¡¯s neck.

    ¡°What is its name?¡±

    ¡°It has to be given by the new owner.¡±

    Ed said, stroking the back of the horse¡¯s nose.

    ¡°Your name is ¡®Dark¡¯ now.¡±

 Chapter 87

    They say that this horse named Dark runs like the wind. It also doesn¡¯t get tired easily. It was so good that Ed had to control his speed because of Diego¡¯s words that followed him.

    What he likes more than anything else is the strange sense of unity. Ed had so far used horses as a means of transportation or bait.

    However, Dark seemed to be a horse that he¡¯d continue to cherish in the future. It was such a great horse that he even thought that moving along with Diego would get him there sooner.

    While running like that, Dark suddenly jumped up. Ed turned his head to look back at the sight, as the horse suddenly leaped off the road. He was wondering what was going on.

    And Diego¡¯s horse ran towards the spot where Dark had jumped and saw the floor go off.

    Before he could figure out what was going on, Ed lightly kicked Dark¡¯s back and jumped up and ran towards Diego.  Then, by stepping on the head of Diego¡¯s horse, he was able to catch Diego and leap.

    Diego¡¯s horse fell into a pit and broke his neck and died, but Diego was saved.

    Ed laid Diego down, took out his bow, held it in his left hand, and looked around him quickly.

    Dark circled his pit and returned to Ed with a light footstep.  Feeling alive was possible with Ed¡¯s agile sense, but Ed knew that even he could not feel this pre-made trap.

    However, he was able to avoid it thanks to Dark.

    Ed patted Dark¡¯s neck lightly and stood up. Then he began to awaken all his senses. And he could feel the strangeness.

    He was concentrating on running through the wind, unaware that the sound around him had disappeared.

    It is a place where even the noise of insects cannot be heard. It¡¯s an ambush.

    Ed pulled out an arrow and hung it on a protest, then asked Diego.

    ¡°Can you feel the power of the devil?¡±

    Diego calmed his startled heart and closed his eyes. After a while, Diego opened his eyes and stirred his dog.

    ¡°No. I don¡¯t feel it.¡±

    ¡°Then I guess it¡¯s not Crossel.¡±

    Are there people who are after them even though they¡¯re not Crossel?

    ¡°Come out!¡±

    There was no response to Ed¡¯s exclamation.

    Ed snorted.

    Just because they don¡¯t come out doesn¡¯t mean that you can¡¯t find them. It just gets annoying.

    But he already had enough to take the trouble.

    ¡°Diego. Can you summon Tom?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not night, so even if I summon it, I won¡¯t be able to use my power.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s okay. Go to the shadows and see. Take Dark with you.¡±

    ¡°I see.¡±

    Diego took Dark back and summoned Tom.

    While Diego, who had summoned Tom from the shadows, was waiting with Dark, Ed moved calmly.

    Those who are hiding now, who can¡¯t even hear the bugs, seem to be in an ambush to attack whenever the opportunity arises, but they didn¡¯t know Ed.

    A breath could be heard in Ed¡¯s ears, raising his senses to the limit. No matter how great a person he is, he would get caught.  And with that brief breath, Ed fired an arrow there.

    It doesn¡¯t matter if you¡¯re hiding behind a tree, if it¡¯s that much angle of rotation, you can hit it even if it¡¯s not visible.

    Even though one person died, they did not show any signs of movement.

    It seems that they are not shaken enough by the death of one of them. At this level, it reminds me of Agents of Acalan. But in Acalan, the King¡¯s troop is now holding the Crown Prince¡¯s hand.

    Pendragon said that he would also go to work, so he wouldn¡¯t have the strength to attack him.  Ed pondered for a moment, then looked for the next breath.

    This time it is on the tree.

    It¡¯s a little tricky, but not to the point where he can¡¯t get it right. Another fell from the tree when the arrow flew again.

    Did they realize that their trap didn¡¯t work?

    At the same time, there were commendations flying from all directions.

    Ed jumped up from his spot and fired an arrow while avoiding the flying shuriken just by twisting his body in mid-air.  No matter how good Ed was, he had only two feet to shoot arrows in such an acrobatic position.

    Afraid of getting down on the floor, Ed fired an arrow in the direction the shuriken flew, but he couldn¡¯t hear a scream because it had already escaped.

    About twelve people are moving. Their moving skills were great, but once they started moving, there was no reason to miss it.

    The arrow that Ed fired was sucked into the forest.

    They seem to be moving in search of cover, but Ed¡¯s arrow, which was bent and flying, did not miss the target.

    As long as the presence was discovered, even the most trained people could not immediately hide the presence again, so Ed was able to kill them all.  Suddenly, the blade protruded from the floor.

    It was the point where most of the arrows were shot, so breathing was cut off at the point where he took care of all the signs he felt. And hit the guys hiding behind the obstacles.

    Ed was also surprised by the blade that rose as if he had waited for that moment.

    However, Ed¡¯s body and senses that had been trained were already soaring upward as soon as he recognized that the blade had pierced the floor.

    It appears to have risen lightly, but it reached three meters in height. In an instant, he took out the raindoes and threw it.  Three raindoes flew towards the one soaring from the floor.

    ¡°Wow!¡±

    Ed gently lowered to the floor, awakening the sensations again. There was no one that he could catch by the senses, but even the one who jumped up from the floor with the blade a while ago was not caught.

    Ed searched the body of the dead at last, sharpening his senses to be able to respond to any situation.

    He wondered if something could be a clue, but like the trained ones, there was no such thing.  After confirming that there was nothing special, Ed pulled out the ring he was wearing on his finger.

    Diego asked, ¡°Brother, are you okay now?¡±

    Ed nodded and beckoned.

    ¡°Perhaps.¡±

    Ed threw the ring as Diego came along with Dark.  Diego asked, taking the ring.

    ¡°What¡¯s this?¡±

    ¡°Put it on,¡± said Ed.

    Without hesitation, Diego put the ring on his finger. Ed watched Diego put the ring on his thumb, and then the sun went down.

    But he can¡¯t even hear his breathing. For assassins, it is a relic-grade equipment that will not change even if it is a castle relic.

    Ed wondered if Diego really needed it, but a necromancer, who was close to an assassin, didn¡¯t seem too bad.

    Diego came over to Ed¡¯s side and asked.

    ¡°But, what about these people?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡±

    What was surprising was that they were reading their tracks correctly. They knew in advance that they were going to leave this morning, so they dug a trap and prepared for it in advance.

    It was yesterday that they decided to go to the city of Korun. So it is a matter of curiosity as to when they discovered their whereabouts.

    Ed searched extensively upon realizing that there were no more people. The others obviously didn¡¯t have any useful equipment.

    He only got a little experience. So he was annoyed, but the person who died at the end was at the level of a low-level demon and adding up all the rest it was not so much.

    Ed drew all the arrows he shot at them, retrieved them, and told Diego.

    ¡°Your horse is dead, so let¡¯s ride Dark together.¡±

    ¡°Is that okay?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s no big deal. I¡¯m planning to get to Korun city before sunset today.¡±

    ¡°Aww!¡±

    Ed rode his horse, putting Diego in front.  Even with two people riding on it, Dark¡¯s speed did not decrease at all.

    Miller chuckled as he lowered the telescope he was holding over his right eye.

    ¡°The task force was beaten without leaving a single wound,¡±

    Miller said, and Sasha, who was standing behind him, couldn¡¯t hide her surprise.

    This is the first time that Cerberus¡¯s task force had failed an assassination attempt. It also looked bad as the trap had been made in advance.

    But she couldn¡¯t believe it because he said that they didn¡¯t leave a single wound on the other person.

    Miller looked at the telescope again and asked Sasha.

    ¡°Did you say Ed?¡±

    ¡°Yes. He¡¯s called the Demon Hunter.¡±

    ¡°Is he going to be the rank of a General?¡±

    Sasha¡¯s expression hardened at those words.

    There are only one or two powerful generals in the kingdom.

    A strong enough person can come out by training in a mountain somewhere, but if not, there are at most two strong people.

    Even if there are only three strong generals in the ranks of generals, it is enough to wage a war of.

    Miller looked at Ed¡¯s back as he moved away, raising a small distant globe in the distance through the telescope.

    Then suddenly Ed, who was running far away, seemed to turn his head.

    Miller, feeling that his eyes met through the telescope, saw him disappear from the telescope, folded the telescope, grabbed Sasha¡¯s wrist, and flew away.

    It was not clear how their eyes met from a distance that could not be imagined to detect a presence, but if the opponent was a general, he could not be vigilant.

    ¡°Why?¡±

    Miller¡¯s instincts were telling.

    It¡¯s not that their eyes met by chance.  Ed grinned as he stood on a branch on a small hillside.

    He immediately flew away at the gaze he felt from afar.

    Even though Ed had made up his mind to run, there was already no trace left there.

    Did Miller also feel the moment their eyes met?

    At first glance, looking at the reflection of the light, it seems that he was looking through a telescope, but it was a pity that he missed it.

    Ed gave up and went back to Diego.

    ¡°Did you catch it?¡±

    ¡°I missed it. I heard you were quick?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry.  Even if it¡¯s only the night, I use Jerry to find it.¡±

    ¡°Yeah.¡±

    Ed, who lost his appetite for searching, immediately gave up.

    It¡¯s annoying to lose trackers, but you can¡¯t just stick with it.

    Fortunately, Dark was very fast.

    So he was able to reach the city of Korun before the sun went down. If he had run in a normal horse, it¡¯d take even a greater time.

    So he should just be grateful to Dark, who at least came to the place without getting tired even with the two of them on board.

    And thanks to Prince Melt¡¯s capture of the Knights of Korun, the place was still poorly guarded.

    They were able to enter the castle just by lightly stabbing the gate guard with a silver coin.

    Ed went up to the room after having dinner at the inn and looked at Diego.  Diego summoned Jerry and shared his senses for a moment, then his expression hardened.

    ¡°Huh?¡±

    ¡°Why?¡±

    ¡°Too many?¡± said Diego, looking at Ed with his eyes open.

    ¡°Even if not, there are more than ten.¡±

 Chapter 88

    The chair screamed at the bloated body, but the person sitting on it was casually biting the pig¡¯s hind legs.

    ¡°Isn¡¯t it time to come up with an answer by now?¡±

    ¡°It must be tomorrow for Froll to come back,¡±

    Korun Gong, the owner of the city of Korun, scooped up the last bit of flesh from the pig¡¯s hind legs and tossed it onto the plate.

    And leaning back on the chair, Korun Gong turned his head and looked at the man who was drinking. Korun Gong, who gave his gaze to the man who was only drinking without snacks, opened his mouth.

    ¡°Ver, do you need anything more?¡±

    ¡°No.¡±

    It¡¯s been half a year since the person named Ver came to this place. He was the one who raised his son from a disease and saved him from dying.

    The son, who had been dying, is said to have borrowed the power of the devil, as he came to life. However, all he wanted was a space for alcohol and research.

    ¡°If you need anything, tell me.¡±

    Without answering, Korun Gong stood up, nodding his head and looking at him tilting the bottle again.

    ¡°Then go and have fun inside. Korun looked at the woman standing behind Ver, then swallowed his saliva and went back to his room. After Korun left, Ver opened his mouth.

    ¡°How is it going?¡±

    The woman standing behind Ver politely answered.

    ¡°Now it¡¯s about 80.¡±

    ¡°Isn¡¯t it too slow?¡±

    ¡°It was a new attempt, so I had no choice but to do it,¡± said Ver with a smirk at those words.

    ¡°I heard that you have lost several fingers, but I have to take this opportunity to attend.¡±

    ¡°If it is complete, it is possible enough.¡±

    ¡°Yes.  hurry up.¡±

    The woman bowed her head and stepped back, and Ver emptied his glass and walked to the window.

    While looking down at the city with a happy smile, Ver saw something flying. He went back to feel the last thing he saw.

    In addition to allowing Diego to ride Tom, Ed also got a ring that could completely kill his presence. He knew that the cloak would block even a ranged attack, so this time they decided to move together.

    To be safe, it¡¯s best to go alone with Jerry on his shoulder, but if you do that, it¡¯s difficult to properly search for those with demonic powers.  Jerry opened its mouth and couldn¡¯t speak.

    There are more than ten people with demon powers, but there was a problem communicating with Jerry.

    Besides, Diego¡¯s skills aren¡¯t the same as before, and he trusted Juan and decided to go with him.

    He crossed the walls of the inner city of Korun and went inside. It is said that they are a family with a reputation and they are resistant, but how did they get drunk with the power of the devil?

    As he was moving, hiding in the shadows, Diego raised his hand and pointed.

    ¡°There¡¯s a man with demonic powers over there.¡±

    As Ed looked where Diego was pointing, he saw a man approaching through the window.

    ¡°That guy?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    Ed fired the arrow without thinking.

    The person who came out of the window bowed his head to see if he sensed the arrow flying, but as soon as the arrow hit his forehead, he fell backward.

    Judging by the experience points coming in, it didn¡¯t seem like he had a blood manastone.

    ¡°And the rest of it?¡±

    ¡°One is up there, and most are in the basement.¡±

    Ed thought for a moment.

    He could not be undetected if he wanted to enter the castle¡¯s basement.  It¡¯s better to start from the top rather than to miss others.

    ¡°From the top,¡± said Diego, nodding his head.

    ¡°Follow me.¡±

    Diego ran first, then realized that Tom was now a ghost and ran vertically up the wall.

    Ed ran after Tom, kicked the wall, put his finger in the gap, and climbed up like a spider climbing the wall.

    So, at once, he climbed up to the window at the top of the castle, and Tom was standing with his body fixed to the wall, Ed opened the window and ran inside.

    He knew it the moment he saw it. A huge pig, incomparable to the previous one, was taking off his clothes on the bed and was turning his head, and a bead was stuck in his forehead. He approached the woman and slapped her on the chin.

    It was said that there was only one person with the power of the devil, so the woman could only subdue it before making a fuss.

    Ed pulled the vials from the brow of the fallen pig and came out through the window, where Diego was waiting, his impression now fixed.

    ¡°Things that had been gathering in the basement started to move,¡± he said.

    ¡°You¡¯re smart. Go ahead.¡±

    Tom ran down the wall. Following Tom, Ed just jumped off. When Ed got up, Tom started running down the hall.

    Tom and Jerry, with just the two of them, Diego was proving his worth.

    It was the tower on the east side of the inner city where Diego ran first and guided him.

    It was a separate tower with strict boundaries, but it seemed to be able to meet without having to stand because it was said that it was moving from the inside.

    However, it is difficult to see a good figure when the demonic powers are released. Indeed, as a scream was heard inside, the people guarding the front door were also bewildered.

    Ed watched with Diego for a moment, hiding in the shadows of the castle buildings.

    Soon the door broke and someone came out. It had the shape of a human, but the moment he saw it, he knew that it was not a human being.

    ¡°It¡¯s a ghoul, but it looks like it¡¯s not just a ghoul.¡±

    Ed fired an arrow as it was. When the arrow hit the head of the ghoul who was chasing the fleeing guards screaming,

    ¡°Help!¡±, their heads tilted back, their bodies overturned, and they fell to the floor.

    There were ten ghouls that came out like that.  Seven arrows were fired with one breath, and the ghouls were rising with arrows lodged in their heads.

    ¡°You can¡¯t just use arrows.¡±

    Ed calmly injected magical energy into the freezing bow.

    The total amount of magic has also increased, and there is no need to conserve energy in the field where the regeneration power of magic has also increased.

    However, in order to inject magic power and to use it properly, the rate of fire has to be reduced.

    Only three feet in one breath.

    Still, the arrows that were shot like that certainly overpowered the opponent. The running ghoul got an arrow in the head and was pushed back to the tower and started to freeze along with the wall.

    So, when those three ghouls were dealt with, they left the others behind and ran towards Ed, but it was quite a distance.  Ed didn¡¯t let the distance narrow but shot the ghouls with an arrow.

    It was not difficult to deal with those who lost their reason and remained only wild.

    Thanks to his superhuman strength, the last ghoul collapsed with its head frozen in front of Ed¡¯s feet. The rest didn¡¯t even come close.

    ¡°Are there any more left?¡±

    ¡°Yeah, something¡¯s running away over there,¡±

    Ed said, turning his head.

    There was someone running away. Seeing the back of his cloak flapping and hammering, Edgar pulled the string of arrows.

    ¡°Is it okay?¡±

    The distance is quite good, but Ed put a bow of arrows without hesitation.

    It was a woman who deviated from Ed¡¯s crossroads from time to time, but there was no way he could miss it.

    Again, the arrow that flew into the back of the woman¡¯s head pierced the experience points.

    But what are they doing, were they making reinforced ghouls instead of ordinary ghouls in the Korun family estate?

    For reinforced ghouls, there were instructions on how to make them in Thein¡¯s Demon Catalogue.

    It is said that it would be difficult to actually make them. At first, someone had to create a ghoul, soak the ghoul in human blood, and use dozens of medicinal herbs to strengthen it.

    It is said that as much as it is difficult to create, the ghouls created in that way have a power that overwhelms ordinary ghouls.

    The ghoul died even before approaching Ed.

    Ed sighed and looked down at all the ghouls.

    Ed, who was looking at the already frozen dead ghouls, recovered the arrow and moved his steps.

    The frightened guards stared at Ed. When the ghouls broke the door and popped out, the guards, who were terrified and their legs relaxed, could not even speak to Ed.

    Because he was the one who subdued all those fearsome ghouls all by himself on the spot.  Ed went past them, recovered all the arrows, and looked inside the tower¡¯s broken door.

    People were torn to pieces by the ghouls, and blood was everywhere.  Anyway, it¡¯s hard to see a clean scene when you¡¯re associated with the devil.

    ¡°Is it Crossel?¡±

    Ed murmured and left the guards and returned to Diego.

    ¡°Let¡¯s check the guys we killed earlier.¡±

    Ed was about to go with Diego, but when he heard a scream, he quickly became annoyed.

    It was only then that it became difficult to enter the castle.

    Ed clicked his tongue lightly and went with Diego to the last woman who had died. Diego looked through the woman¡¯s arms but found only two of her vials, but nothing else to recover from her.

    They were the ones with less than half the experience points of the fingers.  The enhanced ghouls had good experience, but still had a long way to go to level up.

    Ed saw the castle stagger and went back to the inn with Diego.

    Korun Gong died, and the guards found him, and after a while, he couldn¡¯t get out of the castle.

    In the past, he didn¡¯t care because it was all over if he just removed his body, but now there is Dark, so he had to get out before the castle door closes.

    After reclaiming Dark from the inn, Ed went to the castle gate with Diego.

    The guards at the gates stared at Ed as he approached him.

    ¡°The gates must be closed soon. What¡¯s going on?¡±

    Ed threw a silver coin. The guard took it and frowned.

    ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡±

    This time, a pouch flew at them. The gatekeeper, who had received it, glanced at the pouch, looked at the flashing silver coins, and coughed in vain.

    ¡°Hmm, let¡¯s go before the door closes.¡±

    Ed ran without saying anything.

    The happy gatekeeper immediately sent his soldiers to close the door. And the cavalry who ran out of the city after a while to guard the gate shouted.

    ¡°Has anyone come to this place?¡±

    The gatekeeper answered, hiding the money bag he had received.

    ¡°No. No one has come and the gates were closed.¡±

    ¡°The lord has been assassinated. So, keep the gates strictly shut and make sure no one escapes!¡±

    The guard, who had spoken so far and looked at the cavalry who turned around, felt that he should never open his mouth.

    If the people who escaped a while ago were the assassins of Gong, they would have to pay the price for missing them.  As his cavalry moved away, the guard gave the gathered soldiers the silver coins and exchanged glances.

    A commotion ensued after the Korun city was attacked, and it could be heard from afar. Ed left the commotion behind and rode Dark.

    It is very dangerous to ride a horse on a dark road, but Dark moved marvelously in the dark.

    In an instant, the city of Korun faded away, leaving even the commotion behind.

 Chapter 89

    They were supposed to meet Arin in the city of Colin. It would take three days to enter the city, even if he left early in the morning and rode horses until the evening.

    They stopped by on their first evening so they ordered their meal at a small town inn.

    Maybe it was because he was growing up, but Diego¡¯s food intake had also increased considerably. Ed didn¡¯t fill his stomach that much anyway, so he ordered only light snacks and drank alcohol.

    Ed, quietly sipping a drink amid the hustle and bustle of the crowd, saw a man and a woman entering the inn. He is a tall man with short blonde hair and a woman was quietly following him.

    Seeing them, Ed silently pulled out a dagger from his arms and placed it on the table. Even after seeing that, the man came forward with his luggage behind and stood in front of the table.

    ¡°Is it okay if I join you?¡±

    ¡°There are still a couple of vacant seats in the inn, but you want to join us?¡±

    Ed said as he put down his drink and put his dagger on the table.

    ¡°Sit down.¡±

    No one comes without a reason, and the probability that there will be an anonymous good guy who comes to visit is extremely rare.

    It was Ed, who had already experienced that in this world, so he gently touched the dagger handle and looked at them. The man sat down and called the clerk. He ordered a drink, and after pouring it into a glass, he opened his mouth.

    ¡°Nice to meet you. My name is Miller.¡±

    ¡°Ed.¡± Ed said briefly, and looked at Miller silently.

    Just by looking at him, you can tell it¡¯s not a normal thing. If he wanted to kill, he was confident that he would kill Miller before he even got up from his chair.

    Ed looked at him, and Miller was the first to bow his head.

    ¡°I¡¯ve come here to apologize,¡±

    Ed replied, ¡°Do you apologize with your bare mouth?¡±

    Miller smiled at Ed¡¯s reply and took an arrow from his bosom. Seeing that, Ed smirked. He knows him well.  And he would have already revealed who he was related to if he was close to him.

    That means the person he met came to apologize.

    ¡°What is it?¡± Ed asked, and Miller placed the arrow on the table and pushed it forward.

    Edgar glanced at the arrow and saw something inscribed on it. Looking at that, he could see that it was not an ordinary arrow.

    Ed turned his gaze to look at him, and he replied with a smile.

    ¡°This is Citra¡¯s arrow, one of the relics of the castle of Citra, the god of death and destruction.¡±

    Ed¡¯s eyes trembled slightly.

    Relics?

    How many sins did you commit and offering up relics to atone for your sins?

    Edgar picked up Citra¡¯s arrow and looked at it. He looked closely, and Miller said with a smile.

    ¡°An arrow that causes necrosis in the area hit by the arrow. If the arrow hits someone, it cannot be regenerated.¡±

    Non-playable option?

    Edgar put the arrow down in front of him and looked into Miller¡¯s eyes.

    Is it simply an apology? An apology like this could be accepted even a hundred times.

    ¡°And you¡¯re apologizing for what?¡±

    Miller said cautiously.

    ¡°My name is Miller, the head of the Travian kingdom of Cerberus.¡±

    Cerberus, those who were killed in the royal capital.

    ¡°I summoned a task force to avenge the brothers who died in the royal capital. I commanded them to attack you.¡±

    Ed burst into laughter at those words. Diego¡¯s complexion changed during that brief laugh, and the expression of the woman behind Miller¡¯s face hardened.

    Ed stopped laughing and looked at Miller. Suddenly Ed picked up Citra¡¯s arrow and pointed it at Miller¡¯s throat.  Miller, however, did not raise an eyebrow.

    If he was a human, it was good to say that he would die the moment he was stabbed by it. Still, his eyes did not falter.  Ed turned the arrow that was still aiming at his throat and inserted it into the arrowhead.

    ¡°I accept the apologies, but this is just once. If the next time they target me or those around me again, I won¡¯t miss it like the last time.¡±

    Miller heard Edgar say that and knew that Ed was sure he was the one who ran away.

    Miller bowed his head politely.

    ¡°It¡¯s never going to happen. Can I ask you one thing instead?¡±

    Miller asked, realizing that it was an unspoken permission, as Ed looked silently.

    ¡°You¡¯re from the Kingdom of Dahlia. It hasn¡¯t been long since you hunted demons in the Kingdom of Travia,¡± said Miller as Ed listened quietly to the story.

    ¡°There are many demons in the Mazelta Kingdom. Although the Paladines of Citra are catching and killing them, there are still many demons. If the purpose is simply to hunt demons, we will be able to hunt demons with much more diverse support than now.¡±

    Ed smiled at that.

    Miller asked with a bit of anticipation.

    ¡°Won¡¯t you come to the kingdom of Mazelta?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not going.¡±

    Ed, in brief, waved his hand.

    The apology was accepted, and it meant that there was nothing more to say, so shut it down.

    ¡°Can you explain why?¡±

    ¡°Because I don¡¯t want to leave my friends behind.¡±

    Miller bit his mouth at those words. Instead, he got up slowly and looked at Ed and said,

    ¡°Anytime is fine. If you come to the Kingdom of Mazelta, I will honor you.¡±

    ¡°Remember,¡± said Diego, as Miller stepped back with the woman.

    ¡°Whoah. Are you going to let them live, the ones who attacked you last time?¡±

    Ed said, taking out Citra¡¯s arrow from the arrow house to that question.

    ¡°Because I got a castle relic.¡±

    In fact, Ed had nothing to lose. He was a little annoyed, but because he got experience and a ring from Cerberus¡¯ attack.

    If he had brought something useless as an apology, he would have put a dagger in his forehead, but since he brought a holy one, he forgave him.

    Citra, in the realm of Mazelta, is a more trusted god than Astron. He is the god of death and destruction. An arrow with divinity worthy of its name. It is a weapon as precious as the castle relics that Benedict received.

    ¡°I knew I couldn¡¯t get it even with money, so I accepted it and forgave him.¡±

    Ed said so and put Citra¡¯s arrow back into the freezing arrow house. It is an arrow, which is a consumable equipment, but it is different when Edgar uses it.

    There are now three such special arrows, and he has to train himself to handle three at the same time.

    Sasha, who was following Miller, asked.

    ¡°Did you even have to give out Citra¡¯s arrow?¡±

    ¡°Thanks to the high-ranking archer who listened to me.¡±

    Even if they killed Cerberus¡¯ Special Forces, it¡¯s difficult to guess Cerberus from them. However, when you find out about them at any time, it¡¯s more beneficial to build friendships by offering castle relics than to face a general-class archer as an enemy.

    ¡°And he¡¯s still young. If he reached the level of a general at that age, he might be able to stand shoulder to shoulder with the 3 Heroes in the future, so we should build relationships like this.¡±

    ¡°Will he ever grow to that level?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know that.¡±

    There is a limit to growth for everyone, but even if he had only a slight possibility, the castle relic was not at all wasted.

    ¡°Let¡¯s keep some distance in the future and gather information about him.¡±

    ¡°I will.¡±

    The loss of even the task force puts his position in Cerberus in jeopardy, but it may be a disaster.

    Colins is a city located in the southern part of the Kingdom of Travia. So the weather is warmer.

    Ed¡¯s heart pounded as he looked at Colin¡¯s gates.

    ¡°Brother. Let¡¯s go quickly.¡±

    On the way home, they tried to avoid overnight stays as much as possible, but one day they had to stay overnight.  During that night, the number of monsters increased.

    The number of monsters near the central part of the kingdom of Travia, where the royal capital is located, had almost dried up. So the number of visits dropped sharply, but when they came to the south, the monsters continued to come.

    Yesterday alone, Ed had to deal with nearly 100 monsters. In the past, that was normal.  Sleeping alone, meeting a monster, or wandering through the night in search of a demon.

    It was natural for him to leave the bonfire on by himself and stay up all night with his eyes open without being able to sleep properly, but now there was Diego guarding the bonfire.

    And it was the first time he had traveled without a break like this to meet someone.

    Diego said that he wanted to meet Emma and made fun of him as he was in a hurry to go to sleep. But Ed too actually wanted to go even a little faster, so he had to urge Dark, so he was able to get to Colins before the sun went down.

    ¡°Yeah, let¡¯s go.¡±

    Entering through the gates, Ed tilted his head at the atmosphere of the city.

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡±

    ¡°There are too many people.¡±

    Then they saw a group of soldiers approaching from the other side. They knocked on a closed door, and the door opened and people came out.

    They started shouting.

    ¡°Pel, there is a son of over 14 years old. The son is conscripted. So pack up right away and follow the soldiers¡¯ lead.¡±

    ¡°Oh no! The officials. My son has been weak since he was young, so he has only stayed in bed. Recruitment is not possible.  ¡°

    The man called the conscripted man brushed his beard once and answered.

    ¡°If you look after one person, they will ask you to look after the others. What kind of situation are you talking about now? Do you feel better when pulled out by force?¡±

    ¡°No, officers.¡±

    Ed hardened his impression at the sight of a sincere appeal that didn¡¯t even move a soul.

    This is the South. The subordinates of the lord were forcibly conscripting the people. But that was only their job. It wasn¡¯t Ed¡¯s business. But when the conscripts saw Ed and Diego, they stopped them.

    ¡°Stop.¡±

    Edgar pulled Dark¡¯s reins to stop, then looked at the conscriptor.

    The conscripted officer¡¯s eyes were scrutinizing Dark, but he seemed to know what he was saying at a glance.  His eyes quickly scanned Ed and Diego¡¯s condition as well.

    Fighting monsters at night and running away covered in dust during the day, it was like a complete beggar. Perhaps that¡¯s why the conscripted officer said in a high-pitched voice.

    ¡°You¡¯re riding an inappropriately nice horse.¡±

    The Lord is not only collecting the Youngji army but also conscripting war supplies.

    ¡°I am not a person of Colins,¡±

    ¡°The moment you cross the gate, everything becomes Colins.¡±

    Ed laughed at that.

    ¡°I understand that under the laws of the Kingdom of Travia, private property is safe.¡±

    The conscripted officer snorted.

    He can see where they picked it up. But in the case of war, it is possible to exercise the conscription power to the lord.

    In the past, even if it was bothersome to get involved with the lord, he would have just left the conversation. But Dark was so inseparable. And now it¡¯s not the same Ed it used to be.

    As Ed picked up the dagger in his arms, a horse running from the back caught his eye. The soldiers rushed back at the momentum of the approaching person running on a pure white horse.  And the horse the conscript was riding on was startled by the momentum, and as it raised its forelegs, the person came down from the horse.

    ¡°Hey!¡± said Arin, who was riding on her horse, looking down at him in a blue glare as the conscript was freaking out.

    ¡°What are you doing to the VIP of the Astron Church?¡±

 Chapter 90

    Arin¡¯s charisma was unparalleled as she spoke with a radiant brilliance. If only she had divine power, she would be comparable to a Master Paladine.

    She had been catching demons.  Now, she must have an outstanding divine power that is ranked among the three fingers even within the denomination.

    In front of her charisma like that, even a conscripted officer had no choice but to die. Even if they said they weren¡¯t scared, there was nothing they could do. Arin was already letting the people there know that she was a paladine by her very existence.

    Arin turned her head to look at Ed. She had a cold expression on her face that the conscripts felt, but when she saw Ed and Diego, she smiled brightly.

    That smile was reserved only for him. So, Ed looked at her and smiled.

    ¡°I¡¯m here.¡±

    At Ed¡¯s calm words, Arin¡¯s smile deepened.

    ¡°I¡¯ve settled down at the inn. Come with me.¡±

    She must have stayed at the inn, because she was thoughtful of Diego. The soldiers who followed Arin followed the conscripts and made their way to the left and right, but no one dared to block them.

    As they rode along the road, Diego couldn¡¯t contain his curiosity and asked.

    ¡°Is this going to happen even before the territory?¡±

    ¡°No. There¡¯s a little bigger problem than that.¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s the problem?¡±

    Arin pondered the question for a moment, and then she answered.

    ¡°You¡¯d better ask Thane than me. It¡¯s hard to explain.¡±

    Ed was also curious about it, but he agreed to obey her.

    ¡°Did you have to deal with it?¡±

    ¡°It wasn¡¯t easy. It seems that he was born as an intermediate demon, but his level is almost closer to that of an advanced demon. The Blood Manastone wasn¡¯t what it used to be either.¡±

    ¡°Blood Manastones aren¡¯t what they used to be?¡±

    ¡°As if it were stronger, it was stronger and more powerful. This made it easier to pinpoint the location.¡±

    ¡°Even if it¡¯s hard to catch, it¡¯s easier to find the next target, right?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    Ed savored those words. A mid-level demon that is close to a higher-level demon. How much experience did it give her? He also accumulated quite a bit of experience this time, but it was always a pity that he missed the opportunity to gain experience.

    It was necessary to check how much experience the Ragrox gave by strengthening the Blood Manastone.

    ¡°Is it all right Ed? I heard you dealt with Crossel¡¯s finger and the apostle. How were they?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s hard to die because I¡¯ve been taking the Blood Manastone.¡±

    ¡°So what did you do?¡±

    ¡°I got it thanks to Aron.¡±

    It was Arin who asked to save her brother but did not think that he would be of any help. Ed said, pointing to his eyes.

    ¡°He could ¡®see¡¯.¡±

    ¡°What?¡±

    ¡°The location of the Blood Manastone, so it was easy to deal with.¡±

    ¡°Did he have that kind of ability?¡±

    Ed nodded.

    ¡°Perhaps he had some realization. Aron is not what he used to be. It will be of great help on our journey.¡±

    Arin seemed to have thought a lot about those words. She drove her horse, immersed in her thoughts, and stopped in front of a fairly large inn.

    ¡°Here it is.¡±

    As the cashier approached, Ed got off Dark with Diego, turned over the reins, took a coin from his pocket, and handed it to the cashier.

    ¡°We¡¯ve been struggling for a few days, so please make it clean and give it good food.¡±

    ¡°Oh, are you talking about this? I¡¯ll take good care of it.¡±

    After hearing the clerk¡¯s reply, Edgar was about to enter the inn, Arin followed and asked.

    ¡°It looks very nice.¡±

    ¡°I got it as a gift.¡±

    She heard about dealing with the apostles and fingers of Crossel, but in that short time, he grabbed only one demon. So what did Ed do?

    Arin wanted to hear all the stories. Then Diego ran into the inn first.

    ¡°Grandpa!¡±

    Diego was the first to find Thane and put him in his arms.

    ¡°Ok. Be careful.¡±

    Thane patted Diego on the back and said.

    ¡°Thank you for taking care of him. Emma is resting on the second floor, so let¡¯s go.¡±

    ¡°Hey, I¡¯ll come and say hi.¡±

    Ed sat down in front of Thane as Diego ran up to the second floor.

    Seeing Ed, the dusty man, Dex gave him a pin.

    ¡°Wash up. Why are you in a hurry? You¡¯re sitting there blowing dust?¡±

    Ed heard that, thinking it was the right thing to say, and got up from his seat.  Thane looked at Ed like that and said.

    ¡°They tell us to bring out new food and prepare drinks. There are a lot of stories I want to hear.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll wash up soon.¡±

    ¡°Your room is set aside on the second floor. It¡¯s at the end of the hallway, so you should go there.¡±

    Thane raised his hand and a female clerk approached. He handed her three of his coins and said,

    ¡°Please send me some hot water at the end of the hallway.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll upload it soon.¡±

    ¡°And bring me some new food and some drinks.¡±

    ¡°Yes!¡±

    After giving a lively reply, Ed looked up at the clerk who was walking away and pointed his finger upward as Arin came in and sat down.

    ¡°I¡¯ll wash up.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll be waiting for you, so let¡¯s go.¡±

    Ed walked towards the second floor and looked back at Arin.

    ¡°But how did you know I was here?¡±

    ¡°I know because Thane taught me.¡±

    Ed looked at Thane, but he was waving his hands. Ed just nodded and went upstairs to the second floor. He still couldn¡¯t figure out how he handled the information.

    As he was walking towards the end of the hallway, Brandt opened the door and came out.

    ¡°Brother,¡±

    Brandt said, turning his head to look at Ed, then hurried over and hugged him tightly.

    Ed was afraid to avoid it, but he did not avoid it because he had read the truth in Brandt¡¯s eyes. Brandt hugged Ed like that and patted him on the back.

    ¡°It was hard.¡±

    ¡°No. Brother, I¡¯ll wash up first.¡±

    Brandt smiled as he freed Ed.

    ¡°So. I¡¯ll be down.¡±

    Ed was released by Brandt and arrived at the end of the hallway.

    While he took off his cloak and hung it on the wall, a woman with a hot water bottle poured water into the bathtub. In the meantime, Ed dusted off his clothes first, thinking he¡¯ll have to use it a few more times in the future.

    As he opened the window and looked at the dust, he could feel the atmosphere of the castle anew. The conscripts who had been enrolling had returned, but the soldiers were no longer circling.

    The atmosphere was still heavy.  Looking at the buildings inside the tightly closed castle, Ed wondered what was going on.

    He handed the clerk two more coins as the hot water filled the tub. She left his room smiling broadly when he gave her a coin because she had been struggling to fetch her water by herself.

    After locking the door, Ed took off his clothes and went into the bathroom.  As he entered the warm water, it felt as if his fatigue had melted away. In fact, there was no physical fatigue thanks to the high stamina, but it felt like mental fatigue had melted away.

    ¡°Ah, I want to go to a sauna.¡±

    After washing in warm water after a long time, Ed came down feeling refreshed. He smiled faintly as he saw Diego chattering, sitting next to her Emma.

    Seeing their gaze on Ed made him feel like he was back in his family.

    Thane asked as Ed took a seat.

    ¡°I heard from Diego that you killed Crossel¡¯s finger and an apostle?¡±

    Ed took a piece of blood manastone from his chest and put it down.

    ¡°These are the blood manastones they had. Having this, they didn¡¯t even die until I took out the blood manastone. If it wasn¡¯t for Aron, I couldn¡¯t have done that.¡±

    Even without Aron, they would have died in the end, but it was true that they were caught comfortably because Aron was there.

    Thane looked at the pieces of blood manastone and flashed one-eyed glasses.

    ¡°I couldn¡¯t research it because the blood manastone evaporates every time, but I think it can be researched. Arin. May I research this?¡±

    ¡°Are you okay?¡±

    Thane smiled as Arin asked anxiously, knowing what a blood manastone was.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about this old man. There is no one better than me on the continent when it comes to research on demons.¡±

    Thane turned to Ed and said.

    ¡°If research is done properly, it probably won¡¯t be difficult to determine the location of the Blood Manastone.¡±

    ¡°Then I¡¯ll ask.¡±

    Ed¡¯s gaze turned to Thane.

    ¡°Since Diego¡¯s been talking about you guys, let me tell you what¡¯s going on here,¡± said Thane, brushing his beard.

    ¡°The Southern Prince Pelman has been crowned.¡±

    ¡°Does that mean that he called himself a king? The kingdom of Travia was strengthening its royal authority, and it is likely that Emilia will inherit her throne now. Does she say that she is crowned and established a kingdom?¡±

    ¡°Yes, yes.¡±

    ¡°Isn¡¯t it hard to look good?¡±

    ¡°Of course it is. Hearing the news of his crowning in the kingdom, it is said that they turned the blade of the army that was going to be sent to the kingdom of Dahlia straight to the south.¡±

    At the same time, there was an army that was sent to conquer the kingdom of Dahlia. The place where the blade of the army will be directed is bound to be the southern part of the place rather than the kingdom of Dahlia. Being crowned is a bigger issue in itself.

    ¡°That¡¯s why they¡¯re conscripting troops like this.¡±

    ¡°Yes, yes. If we hadn¡¯t carried the name of the Astron Church on our backs, it would have been difficult to see the good looks.¡±

    War! That¡¯s an unimaginable amount of blood flowing. When he himself entered this body, he woke up in the middle of the battlefield and was amazed to see the countless corpses spread out there.

    He also saw that so many corpses piled up and the blood they made became a river. To say that such a war will happen, he does not know how it will be related to their work.

    ¡°But how are you going to build a kingdom with only southern nobles?¡± said Thane, moving the plate to the center of the table.

    ¡°If this is the kingdom of Travia.¡± Thane placed the bottle on the other side.

    ¡°This is the kingdom of Magelta.¡±

    Finally, Thane looked at Ed as he took the glass and placed it between them.

    ¡°And this is the first kingdom of the southern nobles to build.¡±

    Ed could guess the situation from those words.

    ¡°Karen has joined hands with the Mazelta Kingdom, and it seems that all of their factions are trying to join the Mazelta Kingdom.¡±

    Thane replied with a nod of his head.

    ¡°They say that the troops are gathering even at the border of the Mazelta Kingdom. Perhaps this will become a great Legion.¡±

    Hearing that, Ed smirked.

    A small country sandwiched between great powers. Korea came to mind.

    ¡°If the South is engulfed in war, there may be problems with the exorcism.¡±

    Ed¡¯s gaze turned to Arin. She answered Ed¡¯s gaze, nodding her head.

    ¡°That¡¯s right. And if there¡¯s a war like this, the demons will fight.¡±

    It has already been proven that the devil is more prevalent in the age of war.

    A demon will appear in the chaotic world and cause chaos. Hidden demons will crawl out. Soon, a world will come where you will roll around with experience points to your feet.

    Ed is not interested in war, but it¡¯s a different story with demons.

    ¡°So, did you find out where the blood manastone was pointing?¡±

    Arin shook her head.

    ¡°I guess it¡¯s difficult to get cooperation in the investigation because of this kind of atmosphere. So I was waiting for Diego to come back.¡±

    Now Arin admitted it too. He knew that Diego was superior to himself in detecting the power of the devil.

    Diego, who had been telling a saga to his Emma, ??opened his breasts wide as the gaze of her gathered on him and flaunted as he looked into Emma¡¯s eyes.

    ¡°Only trust me.¡±

 Chapter 91

    There were only two of the party that could move secretly, so they couldn¡¯t rest properly and had to come up on the roof again at night. Others have decided to move together once they know where they are.

    The direction the blood manastone was pointing in was clear, but it was difficult to feel it. So Ed believed that whatever demon he would meet there would give him ample experience. So, he went out and looked for them.

    Diego, riding on Tom, took the lead, summoning Jerry, and Ed was eagerly following behind him.

    He had been envious of Diego ever since he was somehow able to ride Tom.

    ¡°Do you feel something?¡±

    ¡°Yeah, but this is weird. It doesn¡¯t feel as clear¡­. as if there¡¯s fog.¡±

    ¡°Do you know the direction?¡±

    ¡°I feel it¡¯s that way. So I¡¯m on my way there. Let¡¯s go.¡±

    ¡°Yeah.¡±

    They were running over the roof with the barracks on the west side of the castle. There were many tents hanging down there, probably because they had newly recruited and gathered soldiers.

    The number of tents was about over five hundred. And since it was the barracks, the boundaries were very strict.

    ¡°Can you feel anything from this distance?¡±

    Jerry, who was sitting on Diego¡¯s head, shook his beard. Diego quietly shared his feelings with Jerry, and then he turned to Ed.

    ¡°The sensory disturbance is severe. You can only understand when you are there.¡±

    Ed hardened his impression at those words. The barracks are the most heavily guarded in the state of war.  Even a paladine could not enter such a place.

    Ed stared at it still and said to Diego.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go back for now. If we get any closer, we¡¯re going to get caught.¡±

    A guy who can cause sensory disturbance in such a wide range must be well-defended. He couldn¡¯t just go into a place like that.

    First of all, since it was the barracks, it seemed that they had to find a separate way to enter.

    When Edgar and Diego returned to the inn, the party waiting for them looked at them with great anticipation.

    Ed sat down in their gaze, had a drink, and opened his mouth.

    ¡°The location was identified, but we couldn¡¯t get any closer,¡± he said.

    ¡°Why?¡±

    ¡°It is the barracks where sensory disturbances occur.¡±

    ¡°Barracks?¡±

    Ed nodded, and Thane sighed.

    When Prince Pelman was crowned and proclaimed the kingdom, the southern nobles had to risk their lives.

    If he succeeds, he will become an official of the nation. And, if he fails, he will be driven as a traitor.

    As a result, he became frantic about conscripting soldiers. Therefore, the boundaries of the barracks must be strict.

    There was no way he could just let him in, even if he was a paladine from the Church of Astron who did exorcism.

    ¡°You¡¯re smart.¡±

    ¡°When was the last time you acted stupid?¡± said Thane after thinking for a moment.

    ¡°If you can figure out who it is, there¡¯s something to say, but it¡¯s not that difficult,¡±

    Ed said after pondering for a moment.

    ¡°If you force yourself to infiltrate, I will be able to do it alone.¡±

    Arin shook her head at those words.

    ¡°The last time we fought, he wasn¡¯t someone who could be handled alone,¡± Dex said, patting his leg.

    ¡°I almost got my leg cut off.¡±

    Seeing his eyes twinkle as he said those words, Dex must have been insane. Brandt agreed.

    ¡°He was strong. He was on a different level from the demons I had fought before.¡±

    He could tell by looking at the atmosphere that everyone had a hard time.

    ¡°Then let¡¯s think about it a little more.¡±

    Inside the largest tent in Colins¡¯s barracks, the man who was signing the documents looked up at the conscripted officer entering the tent.

    ¡°I heard there was a commotion,¡± he said.

    ¡°My Lord, that dignified Astron paladine appeared and frightened us.¡±

    Farrell, the young lord, put down his pen at those words. Then he clenched his chin and looked at the conscripted officer.  His own cousin, the conscript, bowed his head as their eyes met.

    Farrell sighed and opened his mouth.

    ¡°Didn¡¯t I tell you not to get involved with them? In the current situation, if you get involved with the Astron Church for nothing, you have to deal with not only the Travia Kingdom Army but also the Astron Church.¡±

    ¡°Sir, I¡¯m sorry.¡±

    ¡°There will be a dispatch soon, so speed up the conscription, but be careful about being entangled with the Astron Church.¡±

    ¡°Yeah.¡±

    As the conscripts went outside, Farrell got up and walked inside.

    A bed was placed inside the tent, and a middle-aged man was lying there.

    Farrell approached the middle-aged man, put a chair next to him, and said:

    ¡°Father, are you out of your mind?¡±

    At that, the middle-aged man opened his eyes and looked at Farrell. He then clenched his teeth and said.

    ¡°You, you are not my son.¡±

    ¡°What are you talking about?¡±

    Farrell replied leisurely. The middle-aged man tried to get up, but he couldn¡¯t lift a finger.

    Farrell smiled at the sight and said.

    ¡°Where is the family seal?¡±

    ¡°If I say that, will you keep me alive?¡±

    Farrell¡¯s eyes turned red, and he reached out and placed his hand on the middle-aged man¡¯s chest.

    Farrell looked at the middle-aged man struggling in pain, and when he released his hand, the middle-aged man¡¯s body was spread out on the bed.

    ¡°I don¡¯t have much time, father. Even if you don¡¯t have a seal, there is no problem in dispatching troops, so don¡¯t put your mind to a loose place. And if you keep resisting like this, I can¡¯t be responsible for the well-being of mother and sister.¡±

    He groaned but didn¡¯t respond.

    Farrell looked down at the middle-aged man, then got up from his seat and went back to his desk. He should have obtained the seal, but since he couldn¡¯t get it, the progress of work was slowed down in many ways. Farrell took the pen and put it in his mouth.

    Astron¡¯s paladine is looking for people with blood manastones. He¡¯s heard that many people have suffered so far. He has not been able to find them yet because we have put the magic of disturbance all over the barracks. But, he must have noticed something strange now.

    ¡°But, why isn¡¯t the person who is to deal with the Paladine not coming?¡±

    Ragrox said that the paladine would come after him and that he would send an ally to fight him. But there was no news yet, so he was annoyed.

    There were various opinions about how to enter the barracks, but he couldn¡¯t come up with a particularly good way.

    Would he have even thought of entering the barracks as a mercenary with Edgar and Diego?

    If it was like before, there was nothing to worry about. Once you enter, if you are a demon, it will be revealed once an arrow is put on your forehead.

    While they were giving their opinions to each other, someone came into the inn, a woman and a man.

    The woman pressed her robes so deeply that it was difficult to recognize her face. But it could be understood at a glance that she was a disciplined woman, even though the man following her was in comfy clothes.

    The woman, as she entered the inn, turned her head, and when she noticed Ed¡¯s party, she hesitated for a moment before approaching.

    Her appearance was known by most of her party, so it was only natural that all eyes would be on her as she stood by her table.

    Ed asked the woman standing next to him.

    ¡°Are you here to find us?¡±

    The woman looked around for a moment. It was quite late, and the people occupied the tables were only Ed and his party.

    ¡°Can I join you for a moment?¡±

    Edgar shook his head as he glanced at Diego. It is said that she does not possess the power of the devil.

    Ed nodded happily.

    ¡°Sit down.¡±

    The man pulled out the chair, and as he watched the woman sit there, he knew that she was no ordinary person.

    As she sat down at her seat, the man went to another table behind her. Then she handed him a bag, and thanked him, and went upstairs.

    So, when the first floor was cleared, the man went to the owner and the clerk, and they also received a packet and entered.

    Only then the woman slipped the hood and her blonde hair and pure white skin got revealed. She turned to Arin, her head slightly bowed, and introduced herself.

    She said,

    ¡°My name is Henna. Duke Colin is my father.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m Arin.¡±

    It seems that Arin has something on her mind, so she responded.

    ¡°Are you a paladine?¡±

    ¡°Yes,¡± she asked, after Henna was silent for a moment.

    ¡°Are you here to catch the devil?¡± she didn¡¯t know she could ask so directly.

    When Arin pondered for a moment, Edgar answered instead.

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    Henna¡¯s gaze turned from Arin to Ed.

    At the party with the paladine, it seems that she did not know that someone else would lead the conversation instead of the paladine. She could tell just by looking at his frantic gaze.

    Henna turned her gaze to Ed as Arin nodded her head slightly and looked at Ed.

    Edgar lowered his head slightly in response to those eyes.

    ¡°I¡¯m Ed,¡± whispered Ed by bowing his head.

    As Henna was lost in thought somewhere she remembered that he could probably be the demon hunter.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m a demon hunter.¡±

    ¡°Ah! Demon Hunter!¡±

    Ed now knew that his name was quite well known within the kingdom of Travia.

    Is there no one in the nobility who does not know?

    ¡°Then it must have been that you really came to catch the devil.¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    Henna pondered for a moment, then looked at Arin and Ed in turn, then opened her mouth.

    ¡°I have a favor for you.¡±

    Henna hesitated for a moment as everyone looked at him silently and then spoke.

    ¡°Save my father,¡± she said, a word she hadn¡¯t even thought of.

    Edgar opened his mouth first as her troupe stiffened.

    ¡°Is Lord Colins in danger?¡±

    Henna looked around her at those words. Ed said calmly at the sight.  ¡°No one is eavesdropping.¡±

    At least, unless they approached enough to deceive Ed¡¯s sense, no one was nearby to overhear their stories.  Hannah let out a long breath at those words and said.

    ¡°About a month ago, my brother changed. After returning from hunting, things seemed different, but when Prince Pelman was crowned a while ago, my father objected. .¡±

    ¡°You mean Lord Colins is gone?¡±

    ¡°.. Yes, and I started conscripting the soldiers, and when I asked my brother, he said he was in the barracks, but did not show my father.¡±

    Ed pondered for a moment, then asked.

    ¡°Have you ever seen a red light in your brother¡¯s eyes?¡±

    Henna replied after hesitating for a moment.

    ¡°If my father hadn¡¯t disappeared, I probably would have thought that I was wrong. But seeing my father disappearing, I took the first step in preparing for war. I don¡¯t think I was wrong. When I made eye contact with my brother who had gone hunting, the eyes I saw were obviously red.¡°

    Until now, Ed couldn¡¯t enter the barracks because he couldn¡¯t identify who they were. But now, he has found out who they are and even has an excuse to join the barracks.

    ¡°You must be worried,¡± Henna bowed at Ed¡¯s words.

    Seeing how her shoulders trembled thinly, Edgar glanced at Arin, and Arin gently hugged her like that.

    Ed saw the figure and spoke out to her.

    ¡°We¡¯ll catch the devil and save your father,¡±

    Only if he was alive! But he didn¡¯t get to that point.

    ¡°We just need help.¡±

    Henna raised her head at those words and looked straight at Ed.

    ¡°I can help with anything.¡±

 Chapter 92

    Hannah definitely helped. Entering the barracks was the biggest challenge, but with her help, it was solved in one shot.

    In order to avoid the soldiers gathering at the barracks, she helped the party to ride in a wagon loaded with alcohol and food prepared in the inner city.

    Ed, disguised as the driver of the carriage, and Diego was hiding inside the carriage. Dex was in charge of the carriage with food in the back, and Brandt was hiding inside.

    Ed¡¯s gaze fell on the carriage going forward.

    Arin was riding in the carriage on which Hannah was riding. She rode as her escort, so she won¡¯t be caught at the checkpoint.

    As they approached the barracks, they could hear the sound of cheers coming from inside as if they were receiving training.

    Ed thought that the young people would gather up with their shabby armor and the constrictors would give them weapons and send them out to the battlefield, but seeing that they even train them, now it seems like they don¡¯t have any intention of using them as an arrowhead.

    The gatekeeper who was guarding the barracks door approached, but the guard knight who had followed Hannah came forward and checked the inside of the carriage, and opened the door.

    The packet that she secretly poked at the gatekeeper must have played a part in making a rough inspection of the wagon in the back.

    When the door of the barracks opened, they drove a carriage and went inside.

    ¡°For food and alcohol, go to the east side of the barracks and go to the supply hall.¡±

    The light cavalry, who had heard the news that Hannah had arrived, guided them, and they led Henna¡¯s wagon to the center of the main base.

    Ed was slightly impressed by the sight. However, Farrell sees Henna as a demon. Arin may have to deal with the devil alone.

    Ed stopped worrying about her for a moment and drove his wagon after the light cavalry ahead.

    In the dance hall seen through the barracks, soldiers gathered and swung their spears. Even at a glance, the number could be counted as hundreds, and the standard was being created little by itself.

    Ed followed the light cavalry and drove the wagon, but his mind was focused on Arin¡¯s wagon.

    Ed, who was always paying attention to the shouts of his soldiers, followed the light cavalry and arrived at the barracks of the supply tube.

    When the wagon arrived at the place where the soldiers¡¯ weapons and food were gathered, the light cavalry spoke to the supply officer.

    He said, ¡°It is the alcohol and food that Young prepared to boost the motivation of the soldiers. Make sure to keep it well in the barracks.¡±

    ¡°I will.¡±

    As the light cavalry retreated and the supply officer approached, Diego got off the wagon and hid under it.

    Ed also took out the bow and arrow he had hidden under the driver¡¯s seat, took it, and sneaked out with Diego.

    It was the same for those behind them. Dex and Brandt secretly exchanged glances and moved accordingly.

    The supply officer checked the inside of the carriage and went to find the driver, then tilted his head and called the supply troops.

    ¡°Move the alcohol and food.¡±

    Ed and his party gathered between the barracks while the supplies moved alcohol and food.

    Arin, who traveled together in Henna¡¯s carriage, heard that he and his party had broken up, but she did not worry because he had already told them about that. Hannah had said that she saw the red eyes. So, she knew it was a real demon she had to meet herself.

    As the carriage went to meet Farrell, the distortion in her sense of detecting the devil was getting stronger. So, she was able to clearly recognize that the devil was there.

    Soon the carriage stopped, and the guard knight opened the carriage door directly.

    Hannah met Arin¡¯s eyes and got out of the carriage first. Arin followed her and got off, and the soldiers only glanced at Arin.

    ¡°Who are you?¡±

    ¡°She¡¯s the one who serves me. I¡¯m going to introduce her to my brother.¡±

    Seeing Hannah saying so much, the guardian knight cautiously spoke out of her.

    ¡°Identification required.¡±

    Arin read Farrell¡¯s aura she felt inside, so she rolled up her cloak a little and showed him the armor that she was wearing. When he saw her armor engraved with Astron¡¯s mark, she said calmly-

    ¡°This is Arin, the paladine of Astron.¡±

    He already knew that a paladine had entered the territory. He had already heard rumors of problems with the conscripts. He did not know that a paladine would be such a beautiful woman, so the guardian knights were slightly surprised and retreated to the side.

    As the guardian knight retreated, Arin followed Hannah into the tent. The curtain was hanging down behind the tent, and the man who had put a desk in front of it and rummaged through the documents on it got up from his seat after checking Hannah.

    And when his eyes met Arin, he smiled and spoke to her.

    ¡°You¡¯re the paladine of Astron?¡±

    Arin stared intently at the man standing in front of her, then stepped forward from Hannah and looked straight into his eyes. Farrell smiled and greeted Arin who met her eyes.

    ¡°My name is Farrell from the Colin family. Nice to meet you.¡±

    He didn¡¯t have red eyes, but she could definitely feel it. He is right in front of her, so the distortion of the senses is clearly felt, and he is the devil.

    Instead of answering, Arin turned her hand behind her back, took out her shield, and threw it at the same time as she pulled out the hammer that she was wearing on her waist.

    Farrell raised his hand to block the blown hammer before those around him reacted in astonishment.

    Farrell¡¯s eyes were shining red, blocking the hammer imbued with divine power.  And the skin peeled from his hand holding his hammer, revealing dark red skin underneath.

    Then Henna screamed,

    ¡°Hey, evil!¡±

    A terrifying divine power exploded from Arin¡¯s whole body. Divine power soared into the sky through the roof of the tent.  Seeing that, Farrell snorted.

    ¡°You¡¯re bothering me.¡±

    Farrell isn¡¯t a battle-loving demon. He is a person who enjoys fighting with each other by stimulating human desires rather than fighting.

    Even if the opponent was a paladine, he just didn¡¯t want to deal with it because it was annoying.

    After he obtained the Blood Manastone, he became stronger than before. He didn¡¯t think he¡¯d be beaten.

    Farrell knew that now that the paladine had come to him alone, he had to kill her first.

    Farrell¡¯s skin shattered into ashes, and fire erupted from his body. The demon who gave him the blood manastone was a middle-class demon. The same strength as a higher-level demon was beating like crazy in his body.

    He held out his fist with the magical energy that swung his whole body through the blood manastone.

    Farrell bounced off, collided with the pole of the tent, and the pole collapsed.  He swung his hand as he watched the tent over his head, and the tent ripped along the path of his hand.

    He had torn the tent to reveal himself, felt the gaze drawn upon him.  He was not the only one involved in the civil war in the Kingdom of Travia.

    Perhaps this war was meant to kill as many as the demons could touch, but that went awry.

    However, now that the magical energy spewing out of the Blood Manastone flows all over his body, he wondered if he would need to borrow the hands of others.

    If he kills everyone in this place and uses his blood, he will be able to rise to the level of a perfect higher demon. If a city were to be sacrificed, it would be possible.

    Hannah, who had been pushed out of the tent, shouted with her hands on her chest.

    ¡°This devil! What did you do to my father!¡±

    ¡°A stubborn inspiration?¡±

    Farrell put his hand behind his back and ripped the mini-teepee cover, and a middle-aged man flew in and grabbed his hand.

    Farrell was planning to tear Colin, who had been troubled until now, to shreds in front of his daughter.

    It was the fear and the anger he felt, the plan to swallow up all his emotions.

    ¡°Look! The end of this old man who tormented me! And in the end, you will suffer!¡±

    He grabbed Colin¡¯s neck and lifted his hand to grab his arm and something flew away. It flew so fast that he couldn¡¯t even figure out the shape and had to block it with his arm.

    But the arrow flew over the raised arm and pierced the wrist that was holding lord Colin.

    ¡°Ugh!¡±

    He felt the excruciating pain transmitted as soon as his wrist was pierced, it was an arrow filled with divine power.

    Then something flew away again, so Farrell jumped back and avoided it. The one that flew in moved like a snake, wrapped around Colin¡¯s waist, and turned back.

    Grasping the wound on his wrist, Farrell opened his mouth to let out fire.

    When he opened his mouth like that, there were arrows flying again. The arrows flying one after another looked so dangerous like hedgehogs.

    So he built a wall by spewing fire in front of him.

    The arrows that had penetrated the wall of fire hit the body, but none of them pierced the body with all their might.

    So when the fire barrier was gone, Farrell could see those standing before him. It was a paladine who stood in front of the party and those standing to his left and right.  A man with a double sword and a long chain wrapped around his arms.

    Alone, he is definitely a dangerous opponent. But the blood manastone was telling him that there is someone coming here to help him.

    When Ed, who had rescued Colin safely, put an arrow on the top again, Diego closed his eyes and opened them and said.

    ¡°A person with a stronger power than Farrell is coming here.¡±

    Ed said that the devil in front of him was somehow relaxing, so there must have been a reason for that.

    ¡°Long time no see. Time to attack!¡±

    Edgar hung three arrows in his bow. He now has the anti-demon dragon arrows.

 Chapter 93

    The moment she heard Diego¡¯s words, Arin rushed forward without thinking about it, holding out her shield.

    Dex and Brandt moved to the left and right of Arin, who rushed with a shield with blue divine power.

    Squeezing the enemy from three sides is something she¡¯s already done, but this time with Ed behind her. So, Arin was able to charge without thinking about her back.

    Seeing Arin rushing like that, Farrell snorted. Hearing the cry of the kid standing behind them, they must have sensed the devil approaching here too.  If that¡¯s the case, they can just kill them all by taking the time.

    When Farrell spread his hands, a wheel of fire appeared and rotated around him.  The wheel of flames created by Farrell was strong by itself, but the magic of the Blood Manastone added to it and made it several times stronger.

    Then Arin¡¯s shield hit the wheel of flame. Originally, it had to hit the wheel of flame and bounce off it, but the blue divine power built up on Arin¡¯s shield did not push it at all, even as it received the flame.

    While Arin blocked the wheel of flame, Dex, who was running from the left, stepped on the air and jumped. He didn¡¯t just pass by, he swung his body in mid-air and swung the other side of the sword.

    He raised his hand to strike Farell, but his palms were long forked. And blood began to flow from there.

    Then the chain flew from the other side.  He was blocking the paladine with the wheel of fire, so he opened his mouth to create an arrow of flame and flew it. But the chain he threw away moved like a snake¡¯s head and deflected every arrow of flame.

    And he eventually had to raise his hand to the chain that flew away and strike it.  The chain that could be easily beaten spun around his wrist, and at that moment, the blood magic stone¡¯s magical energy stopped flowing.

    This is something he could not have imagined. The power of the Blood Manastone was short-lived, but as soon as it stopped, the wheel of fire lost its power, and Arin approached and smashed his chest with her shield.

    Without the Blood Manastone, it was a divine power that was difficult to bear.  His chest cracked in an instant, and the blood spurted from his chest following the trace of the sword that she wielded.  A holy sword that cuts through the devil¡¯s skin like a piece of paper.

    At that time, a man with double swords approached behind his back and cut his back. He swung his tail, but his opponent already swung back.

    ¡°How dare you!¡±

    Even though the power of the Blood Manastone is tied, he is also a full-fledged intermediate demon. A spark of fire erupted from Farrell¡¯s whole body as if it had exploded in an instant.  It was like a storm, a terrifying flame that engulfed everyone nearby.

    The moment the terrifying flame exploded, Arin put her holy sword upside down on the floor. The blue divine power emanating from her holy sword drew a circle centered around Farrell, appearing as if she had turned her rice bowl upside down. Farrell is rather trapped in the hemisphere of divine power.

    So the terrifying explosion he detonated was blocked by the holy shield. It was a power that would have destroyed it at once if the power of the Blood Manastone was together, but now it could not penetrate the Holy Shield.

    There was an arrow that broke through the divine shield when all the power was poured out explosively and a sense of weakness was transmitted.

    Because the inside and outside were turned upside down, the flying arrow broke through the protective membrane at once and pierced the body.

    There were three arrows. One arrow lightly pierced the skin of the heart, one arrow pierced the stomach, and the other pierced the forehead.

    ¡°Aaaaaaaaah!¡±

    The arrow piercing the heart ignited the heart with divine power, and the arrow piercing the stomach hit the blood manastone. That mighty blood manastone was dying.

    Thoughts were fragmented as an arrow pierced through the skull gnawing through the brain. But one thing was clear, his heart was burned with divine power, and his blood manastone was destroyed.

    This makes playback impossible.

    Finally, Farrell¡¯s consciousness completely disappeared. Looking at the fallen Farrell, Arin did not remove the Holy Shield.

    Ed said as he passed Arin, who was wearing her divine shield just in case.

    ¡°It¡¯s dead.¡±

    After Arin removed the divine shield, Ed approached Farrell¡¯s dead body and drew arrows one after the other.

    The arrows, which were said to destroy demons, were hard enough to easily pierce even the hard skulls of demons.

    Ed already knew the power of the Holy Arrow, but the arrow he got this time from Citra was different.

    The arrow embedded in the devil¡¯s belly completely destroyed the area. A piece of blood magic stone caught his eye on the inside of the belly that had been turned into powder.

    Edgar turned around with all his arrows recovered. He said that the three had a hard time dealing with one intermediate demon. However, seeing them fighting, they cooperated well, and it seemed like it would be easy to catch an intermediate demon. They alone are enough.

    Perhaps in the last fight, to some extent, when an intermediate-level demon was strengthened with a blood manastone, he seemed to have realized how to deal with it.

    Thanks to him, they were able to subdue him easily.

    ¡°Brother!¡±

    Arin turned her head at Diego¡¯s exclamation.

    Now that the one who disturbed the senses had died, it seemed to be clearly felt.

    Ed also turned his gaze in the direction she was looking. What appeared to be a dot in the distance was growing rapidly.

    What surprised Ed more than the speed of his movement was that Diego sensed it from such a distance. Ed fired an arrow to greet those approaching quickly.

    First, you need to find out how strong your opponent is.

    Ed¡¯s arrow flew like before towards the running person, but the arrow was caught so easily.

    The one who died right now seemed to be a magician who deals with the power of flames, but the one coming now was different.

    ¡°Diego! Come here!¡±

    Ed¡¯s exclamation made Diego run fast.

    And the one who jumped on the wall of the barracks soared high into the sky and then fell to the floor.

    The soldiers were startled by the vibration, and many people fell, and the horses raised their front paws in fright.

    Arin reached out her hand with a shield and a holy sword in front of the party, and a flying hammer was caught in his hand.

    Arin looked at the demon and tilted her head and grinned.

    ¡°Something is strange,¡± said Diego, nodding his head.

    ¡°Have you seen two blood mana stones?¡±

    Was it possible to plant two blood mana stones in one body?

    Maybe that¡¯s why, the body felt by the opponent was not so high, but it was strong enough to tingle the skin.

    Besides, that Hulk has a muscular body that will slap him on the cheek. The guy who did the cocky hero landing slowly got up.

    ¡°Location?¡±

    ¡°No. It¡¯s just that the power is swirling all over his body.¡±

    A person with two blood manastones.

    Seeing the dead Farrell, the guy lightly clicked his tongue.

    ¡°Am I late?¡±

    Even if they have two blood manastones, you can beat them as long as you can suppress their power.

    He looked around and lifted his foot. He couldn¡¯t lift his feet that high, so Ed fired an arrow. But he grabbed the arrow in his hand and rolled his foot as it was.

    Again, it¡¯s not just a simple kick. The ground ripped apart around the foot he struck, and soldiers fell through the gap, causing a riot.

    He caught Ed¡¯s arrow with his hand, but the cold chill froze up to his forearm. It was shot as a restraint, so he couldn¡¯t freeze it to the inside of the devil¡¯s forearm.

    When the soldiers clamored to save those who fell to the cracked ground and those who were hung, Arin moved first. The devil rather ran towards her and twisted her body.

    Although he is 3 meters tall and has a lump of muscle, but his movements are extremely agile. Although the agility was not as good as Ed¡¯s, it was comparable to Dex, who uses a sword of speed.

    The explosive power exploding from those muscles looked menacing enough to remind him of a dump truck.

    No matter how strong Arin is, she cannot defeat the power of that size.

    Demonic fists flew over Arin¡¯s shield as Dex and Brandt moved behind her. Arin looked at her flying fists and rather lowered her posture even further and dug into it.

    A few strands of her hair broke and flew as a demonic fist slid past her head, and Arin placed her shield over her shoulder and slammed it straight into the demon¡¯s thigh.

    In terms of overall strength, even Arin would not be able to withstand that demon, but if she was dealing with one leg, it would be different.

    After smashing the leg up like that, Arin slammed the foot hard and threw the opponent straight up. After hitting the leg of the demon who was running in a straight line, she lifted it up and threw it over her shoulder, and the gigantic demon floated high.

    Brandt¡¯s chains flew towards the man who had lost his balance and had risen. Two chains thrown by Brandt bound the devil.

    The demon, who couldn¡¯t put his feet on the ground, couldn¡¯t use his strength no matter how muscular he was.

    Brandt used his chains to weave his opponents without drawing upon the demonic powers. Perhaps the power of the chain actually worked, the steel-like muscles surrounding the demon¡¯s body shrank like a balloon blowing in the wind.

    And as soon as he got out of the chain, Ed¡¯s arrow flew at the guy whose muscles swelled up again. He grabbed the arrow which was flying in mid-air with his bare hands. He was definitely excellent in reflexes.

    But this time, Ed was also determined.

    Dex, who was approaching him without knowing it, cut his leg and passed by as the guy with his whole arms crossed over his head and got down on the floor.

    As he slashed with a bleeding sword, blood gushed from his leg like a fountain. Ed fires another arrow as blood pours from the deep cut.

    When the arrows flew, the demon who escaped landed in the gap between the soldiers. Then he picked up the soldiers and started throwing them.

    Soldiers in armor flew like stones.

    Ed avoided it, and the body of the soldier who fell to the floor was smashed and scattered like eggs on the floor.

    Arin saw it and grated her teeth and ran towards the bastard, but when she saw the flying soldiers, she couldn¡¯t get any closer and used her shield to bounce them up and blow them away.

    Brandt¡¯s chains wrapped around him and lowered him to the ground as they fell, which was thrown upwards by deflecting the demon¡¯s force.

    All that was left was Dex, Ed, and Diego, but it was broad daylight, so we couldn¡¯t expect Diego¡¯s help.

    Ed exchanged glances with Dex, and Dex nodded his head and then turned first to the side and began to stalk the demon, and Ed decided to make sure he got the demon¡¯s attention.

    Ed was running towards the demon who threw the soldiers as soon as he could get his hands on it. He saw a soldier flying towards him and jumped up, stepped on him, and leaped again.

    The devil caught and dragged the light cavalry into a block in front of him at the arrow of Citra fired by Ed, who jumped on the two soldiers as if they were stepping on them.

    Citra¡¯s arrow bent over the soldier and pierced the devil¡¯s eye.

    ¡°Aaaaah!¡±

    Half of the devil¡¯s face was frozen, and inside the ice, the devil¡¯s face shattered and scattered.

    Ed¡¯s arrows flew one after another towards the demon writhing in pain, and when Dex¡¯s sword left a scar on his body, he fell backwards.

    Seeing the guy collapsed on the floor, Ed again drew out holy arrows and hung them on the protest.

 Chapter 94

    The demon was pretty weak for an intermediate demon. He was confident when it came to using his body, but he couldn¡¯t handle his magic properly.

    Ragrox was happy to find such a demon, he was bewildered. He has been treated as a low-level demon even though he is a middle-class demon. But Ragrox said he used him heavily. And he implanted two blood manastones, saying that it was the first time a body could handle two blood manastones, which other demons could only bear one.

    Ragrox valued himself, and when he felt he couldn¡¯t handle it, he stepped forward. He set out to punish those who ruined his lineage with one of Ragrox¡¯s swords.

    As punishment for Ragrox, he did not consider this difficult task. He thought it was because he had never met him. Then, hearing the news that he had discovered their tracks, he ran to them with joy.

    He came to punish those who ruined the lineage of Ragrox. He came to save the man in charge of the great line and punish his enemies, but he rather puts himself in danger. He threw the soldiers and tried to get a chance to recover, but the paladine and the chain-man kept them alive with acrobatic skills.

    But at that moment, his body was recovering rapidly. As the magical energy emanating from the Blood Manastone circulated throughout the body, the man fell to the side while the wound was healed and his strength was restored.

    Still, the most tricky thing was throwing the soldiers and the archers. Ed just experienced how poisonous the arrow was. However, he was amazed to see the soldiers he threw soaring up like a stepping stone.

    While shooting arrows in the air, he felt ominous and tried to stop the light cavalry who was riding next to him. The armor is stronger than that of a normal soldier, so even if an arrow pierced through his body, he thought he would be able to stop it.

    However, the moment the arrow wanted to hit the soldier¡¯s body, it rode over the soldier¡¯s body like a snake and caught his eye. He didn¡¯t even have time to use his hand. And when he wondered if his eyeballs were frozen, half of his face froze, and a more terrifying pain arose from the inside. Terrible pain that shriveled up his face.

    And all those who had turned to the side came and swung their swords. The blood did not stop at the place where the sword was cut.

    No matter how excellent the magical powers were, the situation was not easy. He thought that he should start by reducing at least one by leading.

    So he screamed and fell backwards. As he fell to the floor, he pulled out an arrow that was stuck in his eye and threw it to try to recover, but another arrow flew.

    The moment the arrow pierced the stomach, he knew something was wrong.

    As soon as the arrow with divine power got into the stomach, it ran through the inside. There was no time to pretend to be dead and help him recover. So Ed tore his flesh and hurriedly grabbed an arrow and pulled it out.

    Ed flew a holy arrow to win and straight away drew out Etrian¡¯s sword. In the past, it would not have been too early, but now the total amount of magic power has increased, and thanks to the Ring of Regeneration, it has enough magic power.

    Above all, it is different from the time when he was not alone and had to handle everything alone. He only had to hit the last shot, so he had plenty of magic.

    A situation in which a blood manastone was crushed while stirring the demon¡¯s stomach. Now he wields the sword of Etrian with magical power.

    The sword was so fast that even Dex, who was approaching thinking the devil was dead, was surprised by the momentum and backed away.

    After Dex got the sword of swiftness, he thought it was worth a try now. But when he saw Ed wielding his sword, he didn¡¯t even see a sword.

    As much as that, seeing the blow, he thought that he should not think about it for a while. As Dex trembled at the sight of the shattered demon, Ed lowered his sword and let out a long breath.

    He had two blood manastones, and his strength was above average. He did not die while he froze half of his head and crumbled within it, but survived being stirred in his stomach with holy arrows.

    He was tougher than a zombie if he could survive even if he pulled an arrow out of his stomach with his own hands.  The experience points came in, but the experience of these people was not compared to the intermediate demons.  The experience that came in that way was probably enough to raise the level if you catch a demon of this level next time.

    Ed looked around, satisfied with the experience he had. The ability to create cracks in the floor using magic power was amazing.

    Arin approached Ed¡¯s side and found a blood manastone in the devil¡¯s shard.  Luckily she wasn¡¯t cut by the sword.

    Humans cannot die when they have a blood manastone, but the fact that demons can only be killed by receiving magic power from the blood manastone was also unique.

    Ed looked around him while Arin was holding a blood manastone and praying for her next destination. The radius of the crack created by the demon was 30 meters, and the depth was over 10 meters. Ed looked back at the party and said.

    ¡°Let¡¯s do the rescue first,¡±

    Ed said, and Brandt went out in earnest.

    Those who had fallen 10 meters deep were chained and pulled out, and Dex also helped in moving the wounded.

    The wounded were laid one after another in a training room in one of the barracks. The light cavalry also ran to the temple.

    In the midst of such a commotion, Arin slowly opened her eyes. After she found the location of the next blood manastone, she felt that the distance was not too far away.

    As long as you set a specific goal, you won¡¯t miss it. And it was fortunate that the demons could not easily leave their seats because they were working on what they were doing. This time, he was trying to do something related to the war.

    Diego standing next to Arin opened his mouth.

    ¡°He said he had gathered all the wounded.¡±

    ¡°Protect the demon¡¯s corpse here. We have to burn it with a torch.¡±

    Arin, who thought that healing the wounded had priority, asked Diego and walked to the place where the wounded were gathered.

    There were over thirty wounded lying groaning.

    Ed, who had saved the survivors while praying for Arin, gathered them up, saw the demonic corpses strewn behind her, and looked at her again. Saving people first before burning the demon with a torch, that was Arin¡¯s decision.

    As she approached the wounded, she began to generate divine powers. With every step she took, her divine powers radiated strongly, reacting to those who had laid her on the floor.

    Seeing Brandt retreat quickly, Ed stood still and watched what she was doing.  She spread her divine power around her, drawing people¡¯s attention.

    No matter how much she struggled with pain, the blue divine power wrapped around her, and she couldn¡¯t help but look away.

    Appearing in the public eye like that, she placed her hands on the injured area and started treatment. Perhaps thanks to her high divine power, her healing spells showed a noticeable improvement in any injuries.

    Arin healed the wounded of the soldiers one by one, got up from her seat when all the soldiers were healed.

    After fighting a breathless battle, she was able to understand why she was a paladine.

    Arin exhaled slightly and turned to look at Ed.

    ¡°Can I ask you here?¡±

    ¡°Pursing the demon¡¯s blood is also important, so let¡¯s go.¡±

    When Arin approached the demon¡¯s corpse, Diego has already gathered it in one place. He couldn¡¯t move the fragmented body, so he brought Farrel¡¯s body.

    As Arin approached the place and offered a prayer, the torch began to burn.

    Diego and Brandt were far away from her so that no one could disturb her, and Dex defended her.

    As they watched the torch rise brilliantly, the soldiers knelt down one by one and prayed. There were a few deaths, but they were repeating Astron¡¯s name without knowing it in front of the miracle that was unfolding before their eyes.

    Perhaps they will not forget today¡¯s event for the rest of their lives and bring an offering to the Astron Church. After all the corpses of demons were burned with the torch, the divine power surrounding Arin¡¯s body grew stronger.

    As Arin recited her silent prayers, the divine powers that enveloped her gradually seeped into her body.

    And a blue light flashed from Arin¡¯s eyes when she opened the eyes and then disappeared. She may not be able to ¡®see¡¯ like Aaron, but she was definitely stronger than she was before. Ed looked at her like that, and then suddenly turned to Brandt.

    How can she become stronger as another main candidate?

    Arin gets stronger every time she makes a sacrifice like that, but there seems to be a way for him to become stronger too, but he hasn¡¯t found it yet.

    She has not yet brought out the power of the devil and has only provided support by using the chain of sealing, but being able to fight like that will surely hit the limit.

    As a result, Ed was naturally interested in it, but he will have to find a way to make Brandt stronger.

    If he grew up with the support of Akalan, there might be an answer in Akalan, but they don¡¯t know yet.

    In the midst of such anguish, a carriage approached. The carriage¡¯s door opened and Henna nodded to the leader Ed.

    ¡°Thank you.¡±

    She saw everyone fighting together, but seeing that it was Ed who slaughtered the devil so horribly, she naturally bowed her head, knowing that Edgar was not just any nobleman.

    Because he kept the promise to rescue her father, no matter what. Ed remembered the Lord Colin only after Henna approached.

    ¡°How about the details of Colin?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s why she wants to ask Sir Arin for help, is that ok?¡±

    She turned to Arin, knowing that she would not have been able to enter the barracks so easily without her help.

    ¡°I¡¯ll take a look.¡±

    ¡°Why don¡¯t we all go to the inner city together?¡±

    At Henna¡¯s words, Ed looked around. It is said that she healed the soldiers, but the battlefield was not finished yet.

    Probably because there were people who died of blood clots. Ed nodded his head, and the Guardian Knight stood up and rescued his chariot.

    Everyone in the party got on the supply wagon. Edgar sat down in the driver¡¯s seat and Diego quickly sat down next to him.

    ¡°Do you feel anything else?¡±

    ¡°No,¡± said Diego, shaking his head, stomping his feet, and stretching him as hard as he could.

    ¡°Aww. If it had been night, I would have helped too.¡±

    Ed raised his hand and stroked Diego¡¯s head.

    ¡°It was helpful enough.¡±

    If he hadn¡¯t noticed that one more was approaching, they wouldn¡¯t have been able to do a time attack. It would have been quite difficult if both of them got together for nothing. However, the problem was that the enemies were also getting stronger quickly.

    He just thought it would be nice if Thane found out about this blood manastone.  This time too, they had a hard time figuring out the location of the Blood Manastone.

    When humans in Crossel had blood manastones, it was more difficult than dealing with demons, so the location of blood manastones had to be prioritized.

    Ed, who followed the carriage leading the way to the inner city, told the guardian knight to invite Thane and the others as well.

    Somehow, it was more comfortable to live in a ryokan, but the most important thing was that the party had to be together.

    While the Guardian Knight sent people to the inn, they were able to get to Prince Colin¡¯s bedroom.

    Arin laid Lord Colin in the bedroom, cast a recovery spell on him, and turned around to see him sleeping peacefully.

    ¡°I can¡¯t get rid of it all at once. There¡¯s a lot of magic left inside, so it¡¯s going to take some time to get rid of it,¡±

    Henna said carefully.

    ¡°How long will it take?¡±

    Arin answered after pondering for a moment.

    ¡°If I do it, it will take about two days.¡±

    Considering Arin¡¯s divine power, it seems that she could almost resurrect a lion.

    Henna knelt in front of Arin. Henna grabbed her arm and said as Arin supported her in surprise.

    ¡°I know it¡¯s rude, but I beg you. Please save my father,¡±

    Arin replied with a smile.

    ¡°I meant to do it anyway. So get up.¡±

    Henna thanked Arin, even tears in her eyes. Arin¡¯s divine power was at an unbelievable level, as Henna knew. She showed such a strong divine power that she wondered if she was truly a messenger from the gods, so she thought that her status was special among the paladines.

    She was only grateful to say that she would grant her request as a daughter of a nobleman. As an aristocrat, she was well aware of how high-spirited and difficult to call once upon a time by high-ranking clergy of the Astron Church.

    Henna grabbed Arin¡¯s hand once more.

    Ragrox felt that Dipelo, who had been sent as the Punisher, was dead. And with that, another three blood manastones disappeared. Ragrox smiled as he stroked the rabbit¡¯s fur.

    ¡°As planned.¡±

    Ragrox¡¯s initial plan went awry.

    However, as much as the plan was messed up, he made a different plan, and the plan was being implemented step by step.

    After finding out that Arin could find the location of the next blood manastone through her blood manastone, she fell into the trap she created.

    You may not feel it at first, but when you realize later, even if you want to escape, you will not be able to escape. It¡¯s like falling into a swamp. Because the enhanced blood manastone was not simply to make the demons stronger.