《Tales of New World: The Magus》


 1 Prologue

    A young man is running as fast as he could inside the dark forest. He continues to run regardless the wounds on his leg and hand. Even he doesn''t care with his body that cried to stop from all wound around him. What inside his mind is to find someone to help him and free everyone behind him.


    But because he isn''t used to the dark forest there, he tripped by one of the tree roots. But, he immediately stands up and continues to run even when his leg is a little limp. The moment he takes a glance behind him he could see a lot of fire from torch chasing him like a spirit that will take him to hell. And with that fire, he could hear, "Find that little brat! We can''t let that brat slipped away before he meets with his buyer!"


    He continues to run until his leg refuses to run anymore. He feels the pain all over his body and falls to the ground. He then looks at his leg and punches his leg while saying, "Come on... Please... Move... Move... Move... I need... I need to..."


    But his effort is meaningless. He could hear someone is near him and walking towards him. He feels like every animal and plants there are mocking his inability to find any help with every voice that he heard. He then started to cry, hold his necklace, and says, "I''m sorry... Sis... I failed... I failed... to find any help... I''m really sorry."


    He looked again at the sky above him and prays to the star that shines there, just like what his sister teach him when they are in pinch. He hopes for a miracle to help him and fulfill his wish.


    Not long after that, raindrop starts to pour at the forest and he feels all of them as if the sky is weeping to his fate. And the moment he opens his eyes, he sees two unfamiliar people. One of them is a man around his 40s and the other one is a young man that around his age but a little bit older. He could hear the old man ask him,


    "Poor child, why are you in this forest alone in the night? You should know that the forest has a lot of predators that could eat you here."


    "Ah... Ahhh..." answer the young man as he started to cry again at him as he can''t hide his feeling to anyone there anymore.


    "Hey... Are you alright?" asked the old man once more.


    Not long after that, he felt someone tugs his cloth and looked at the young man that comes with him. The young man then says to him,


    "Father, could you help him? I believe we could do something to help him? I feel sorry for him."


    The old man nods after hearing his child kindness for the poor young man that they found. Not long after that, they could hear someone shouts about hearing someone crying at his location. So he stands up, prepares his staff, and says,


    "Hmmm... It seems they are the predators that hunt you... They look really ferocious."


    "Please... Save... Everyone..." says the young man.


    "Don''t worry... I will do that. Dimitri, could you look after him? I will do a little work here."


    "I will, Father," answer Dimitri.


    After hearing that, the old man vanished into the forest. Morning comes and the old man comes back with a smile. He says,


    "The predators are gone, you don''t need to worry about it anymore... I could say that you are safe now."


    "What... about my... Sister?" asked the young man.


    "Your sister? I don''t know as there is a lot of people there." answer the old man with an apologetic face as he understands the situation.


    The young man looked at his necklace and looked really sad with that. The old man then pats his head, smiles at him, and says,


    "You don''t need to worry about that. I believe if the wheel of fate permits it, you will meet your sister in the future. I believe that will happen to you."


    "Is... Is that so? Will I meet her in the future?"


    "Yes."


    The young man still unsure of that and nods to the stranger in front of him. The old man then says,


    "How about you live with both of us from now? I believe it will be livelier with someone of the same age as Dimitri, am I right? I believe you could cope to live together with the two of us and with someone of the same age as you, Young Man."


    "Eh?"


    "What do you think about it, Dimitri?" ask the man.


    "I gladly accept it. To have someone that I could call as a brother and play it. I gladly accept that, Father."


    The old man smiles at his son and then looked at the young man. He then reaches out his hand and says,


    "What do you think about it, young man?"


    "I..."


    "If you don''t want it, that''s alright..."


    "I will accept it... Thank you... Thank you very much."


    The old man really surprised to hear and smiles once more at him. He then asks him,


    "So, could you tell us your name?"


    "My sister always calls me Volya, as I don''t remember my name before I that after being sent to slavery barrack with my sister."


    "Then Volya..." ask the old man at him.


    Volya feels the old man pats his head and hear one word that he will remember for the rest of his life,


    "What it feels like to be free from every shackle that holding you?"

 2 The Hermi

    One man opened his eye and saw one deer that licked his face. He knew that the deer was trying to wake him up. Not only the deer, there is one bird that pecked his cheek weakly.


    He then patted the deer and touched his face for a while. The deer and the bird understand that he already awake and started to look at him.


    The man loosened up a bit and looked at the clear blue sky above him. That scenery is his roof for several years when he lived in the forest as a hermit.


    His name is Volya Portar, a magus that stayed at the Wildespring forest that located at the center of Therious island.


    He yawned for a moment and then says, "I can''t believe that I meet with father again in my dream."


    He then stands up and felt someone push him to the wellspring. He looked behind and saw the deer is the one who pushes him. He smiles a bit and says, "All right... All right... I will go there. You don''t need to push me."


    He patted the deer once more and started to walk towards the water spring. As soon as he walks, he feels someone bit his trouser and tugs it. He peeked below him and could see a small fox tugging his trouser.


    He laughs a little bit and lifts the little fox. He put it on his shoulder and says, "You shouldn''t bite someone when they are walking. That''s could be dangerous for you and the other."


    The little fox looked at Volya with a puzzled face and then licked Volya''s cheek. He smiles a little bit and patted it. He lets the little fox stay on his shoulder as he walks to the water spring.


    When he arrived at the water spring, he could see another fox that bigger than the fox on his shoulder and he understand that the fox is worried about it. Volya smiles, puts the small fox on the ground, and says "Look, your mother is worried about you. Just go there and tell her what you did this morning."


    The little fox nodded and run towards its mother. Volya smiles at them and walks again towards the water. He washes his face and notices a small wound on his cheek.


    He touches the wound and remembers what happened the day before. When he was working on a new magic, one of them became out of control and the debris from the explosion scratched his cheek.


    He sighs and then puts his hand on his cheek. He takes a deep breath and says, "The flow of ether, lend me the miracle given by God. As I pronounce thy name, protect and heal us from any harm. Healing Light!"


    Little by little, the wound closes itself until nothing there. Not even a scar. He looked at his reflection again and really satisfied with the result. He says, "I must agree with father about this. This type of magic is really handy and a lot of people will need this for healing the sick in their village."


    Volya stands up and notices the two foxes already back with the mother showing a dead rabbit in her mouth. He really surprised and smiled at them. Later he says, "So, this rabbit for me?"


    The two foxes nodded at him and Volya shows his gratitude to them. He takes the rabbit from them, puts it on the ground, and takes a stone. He focuses his mind on it and says, "The string of fate ends at this hand. As the hammer of creation changes it, let it reborn as a new one in this world. Weapon Craft, Stone Knife."


    The stone little bit little eroded and becomes a stone knife. Volya plays with the knife a little bit and slice one leaf with it. After he affirms that the stone knife is sharp enough, he started to skin the rabbit and let the blood flow from it.


    While he skin the rabbit, the two foxes sit beside him and looked after the process. Volya then stands up and gathers some branch for him to light the fire. He then stabs the rabbit with the branch and put it on the bonfire. Before he does that, he slices up some part of it and points it to the two foxes. He smiles and says, "This portion for both of you. It''s to show my gratitude to both of you."


    The bigger foxes looked really happy, while the smaller one moves towards Volya. Volya laughs a little bit and pets its fur slowly while waiting for their meal ready.


    After it done, he took his portion and the foxes portions and eat them together. After that, he drinks from the spring water and looked at the reflection in front of him. He could see the two foxes and several birds are looking on the spring water with him. He smiles a little bit and starts to walk again.


    He walked together with the small bird towards one of the hills there. From there he could observe his surrounding, especially the forest where he lived since his liberation. He let the wind blows through him as he observes the sea of the tree in front of him under the clear blue sky.


    Why has he lived alone in the forest? Where is his family? That''s a normal question given to him when they meet him. And most of the time he will answer, ''At first I lived with my foster father and brother until my brother gone and my foster father died on that fateful evening.''


    And now, he talked with the critters with his ''Animal Interaction'' magic. From there, he could understand what inside their mind and talk with them. One magic that really useful for those who lived alone in the forest.


    Volya closes his eyes for a while and then says, "For some reason, I feel really lonely here..."


    He looked near him and could see the bird really concerned about what he just said. He then smiles and says, "You don''t need to worry, I know all of you already done your best to make me feel at home. But,..."


    He paused for a while and then continues, "It''s been a long time since I talk with another human. Is it one month ago or one year ago. I forgot about that. And I really missed that feeling."


    It''s been several months since he goes to the nearby village to open his small stall to tell their fortunes. And that''s the last time he has a conversation with a human being.


    Volya sighed for a little bit and then took out his necklace. He could see the necklace created from a small wood with a small inscription there, ''We will always together.''. And there is one name that really dear to him even after he adopted by Portar Family.


    He grasps the necklace and says,


    "I remember Father says to me that you are safe from that camp. But, I never hear or meet you until now... I''m lonely, you know... But, I believe you are still alive and live well, Big Sis. And I bet you get a good husband with you."


    He chuckles a little bit until one of the hawks comes to him and surprise him. The hawk lands on his shoulder and tells him something.


    Volya really surprised to hear that and looked at the direction where the hawk comes. He also focuses his hearing to hear any sound from there. It needs several minutes for him to hear something,


    "Give us your belongings!" shouted one man.


    "You are really a fool. We will punish all of you because of this." answer another man with a calm tone.


    Volya sighs and mumbles,


    "Isn''t this area a forbidden area for any fight like that? And I think their location around 50 KM from my place. What the hell are they doing? Robbery in the middle of the forest?"


    He looked at the small bird and order it to tell the forest critters to evacuate soon. He afraid that the problem will come and create more problem with the animals. He then puts his hood and together with the hawk, they started to walk.


    He smiles and says, "Let''s greet them. I don''t want them to disturb my friend here. Right?"


    The hawk nods and together with that Volya create a small magic crest in front of him. A navy color crest suddenly vanished and a small hole created there. From there, he could see a very packed tree there. He smiles and jumps to the hole. And from there, he will do everything to protect the forest there.

 3 The Bandi

    Around 50KM from Volya''s location, a group of bandits is being chased by a group of knights. But, when Volya arrived near them he didn''t find any bandit activity near the knight and all of them are talking with each other. Volya assumes that the bandit is running away from the knights in order to ambush them deep inside the forest in order to trap them.


    Volya follows the Knight group from the dark and jumps from one branch to another. And from there, he could see one of the knights has a really magnificent armor. That knight using a helmet with a dragon ornament and a dragon head ornament on the left shoulder of the armor. The knight mounting a stallion and bring a trident and one sword with it


    Around that knight, there are four other knights that bring a different weapon with them. From the equipment that they bring in this chase, Volya assumes that the bandit is really dangerous mobs that already attacked several villages around there and they need everything they got to catch them dead or alive.


    Volya takes a glance at them and says, "From their movement, I could say that they are really clueless about this area. I am afraid that blood will be spilled inside this forest if they continue to chase them. If that really happens, father definitely will haunt my sleep."


    Volya then jumps again to another branch to follow the knight movement and get a good view of them. From there, he could see clearly the insignia of the Knight''s kingdom. He stops and mumbles, "That insignia... Isn''t that from the kingdom at the north? Why the hell they are chasing the bandit until this forest?!"


    Volya really concerned with those knight action, especially when they are chasing the bandit until the neutral area called Azalea, where Wildespring Forest located. That area is prohibited for any military-related activity after the five big kingdoms at Therious Island already agree with that. The kings from those five Kingdoms already signed the decree about Azalea since five years ago.


    But, that doesn''t mean anyone prohibited to pass through the forest. Merchant, Adventurer, and Villager could use the forest to pass through from one kingdom to another. And those from that affiliated with any kingdom could pass through the area if the reason only for political meeting with another kingdom.


    There is a reason for all of those kingdoms prohibited such action. For years, there is a rumor about one library that could read every human future and every knowledge of the world that no one knows. Most of the people called it Library of Knowledge and some says that the location of the library is in the middle of Wildespring Forest according to several scriptures that they found around the world.


    But, even after several expeditions from many kingdoms on the forest and none of them find it. Even, there are several small fights between each Kingdom at the forest and it slowly destroying the forest. After several negotiations and with The Church urging them to protect the forest, all of the big Kingdom agree to reconcile and make that decree. And after the decree signed, The Church declare Azalea as a holy site to give Wildespring more protection.


    Volya then sighs for a while and continue to stalk all of them from the shadow. The five knights continue to march their steed until one of them stopped and says with a firm voice,


    "Your Highness, I believe we shouldn''t chase them more than this. I just realize that we already inside Azalea."


    "I must agree with you, Sir Albert. Our location is really far from our main unit. If we move further into the depth, they will definitely attack us without hesitation." answer the knight with a very gentle woman voice.


    Volya who overheard them really surprised to hear that. He mumbles, "Huh? That a woman voice, right? Then, don''t say that Knight is the Queen?! Wait... Maybe there is a possibility that they have a lady knight on their ranks... But, Your Highness? Then she should have a very high stature, right?"


    Volya then looks around to make sure no one sees him and continues to observe them for a while as he thinking what the best course of action now to make sure it will not make a bigger mess. The first Knight who called as Albert continues,


    "Yes. And with all of us inside the Wildespring Forest, I believe if there are another people from another kingdom see us, they will ask our action regarding this incident at Azalea and our Kingdom will in perils."


    "I believe the Wraitus Kingdom will not make any hasty action regarding that as their Knights the one who ask us to help them." answer the one that Volya suspected as the Queen.


    Albert nods for a while and observes around him. While the knights looking around their surrounding, Volya cast an illusion spell so none of them could see him and continues to observe them. Albert looks around with worried face after he understands the situation where they are in.


    Albert reassesses their situation as they are far inside the forest without knowing the area really well. He couldn''t see that far and with a lot tree that really packed, he understands that the bandit could hide under the protection of the tree. He looked at his ''Queen'' and says,


    "I believe we must retreat now for your safety, Your Highness. I don''t want to make our King worried about your condition here."


    "I believe that is the best course of action right now. If we made a mess here, it only makes the condition worse for our Kingdom," answer her.


    Albert nods and looked at the knights around him. He then orders the other knights that come with him,


    "Sir Clement, Sir Romain. Protect our back as we retreat from this area. Please stay cautious as they will attack your back while we moving back."


    "Sir, yes Sir!" answer the two knights.


    "Then Sir Aubert, could help me protect the front? We will the one who responsible to find the enemy," ask Albert to the last knight.


    "Of course I will help you, Sir Albert. Every order given by the High Knight of Haegia is something that I will follow on the battlefield."


    All of them start to move towards the exit with cautious. The formation is Albert and Aubert lead the formation, the ''Queen'' at the middle, and Clement and Romain at the back. They move will observing their surrounding for the possibility of an attack.


    Volya smiles at them as they start to retreat from the area. He says, "I will score that old man judgment almost 100. He is right to not pursue their target anymore inside the area that they are not familiar with. And I believe he also think the consequence if they break a fight here and other kingdoms hear this commotion. What do you think about it you pesky hawk?"


    The hawk looks at Volya and tells him some of its thought. Volya nods and says, "I think I must agree with you to keep an eye on them. But with all of them retreating now, I could say that we don''t need to worry about any incident here."


    The hawk shakes its head and that makes Volya surprised. He then looks around him and could feel a presence near him. He then jumps at the other branch until he sees several people gathering near one tree.


    He looked below him and could see around five men waiting at the bottom of the tree. Volya focused his mind and start to think of his next action depending on their next action. One of the men looked at the knight and says,


    "We could lure them there where we put the trap. Is that alright, Big Bro?"


    "Yes... Yes... I believe they will not break a fight here. And I believe that the knight on the middle is their queen, right? If we killed her, of course, we could get a lot of treasure."


    "Hehehehehe... I agree."


    "Then, what about the other? Are they ready to start our attack?"


    "Of course. Ten of our men with an ax will stop them soon, ten of our men with a spear will stop their back. Meanwhile, the last ten men with a bow will attack them without any mercy."


    "Good... Good..."


    Volya looked at them with blank eyes and says, "So, they are the one who will spill blood on this land. Really... They smell like those people when I am young. Then I will do this to them."


    Volya then moves his finger a little bit and cast a small magic on one of them. After that, he moves to another place to ambush one of them. Meanwhile, one of the bandits suddenly pats the other and says,


    "But... All of you could go there first."


    "Heh? What are you going to do?"


    "I have several matters to do. Just go."


    "Alright. Just don''t miss anything because this attack will be really interesting."


    The man smiles and starts to move to another place for a while to wash his face. When he arrives at the spring, he washes his face and then says, "Hehehehehe... I will be rich now... Huh?"


    Suddenly, he feels something just fall from the tree and hit his head. When he checked on the ground near him, he finds an apple there. He looked really puzzled as the tree near him isn''t an apple tree.


    So, he looked above and really surprised. There he sees a man that stands upside down at the branch and smile at him. He could feel the menacing aura from him as he continues to smile at him. That man who stands on the tree is Volya.


    The moment Volya opens his eyes, the man knows that Volya will not leave him no matter what, especially with that blank stare. The moment before the man could say anything, Volya says with a creepy smile,


    "I have a lot of question... So, follow me... And I will spare your life."

 4 The Knigh

    Volya finished interrogating one of the bandits and leave him scared inside one of the caves there. He then mumbles, "I can''t believe they really use this forest to lure their victims on daily basis. Why the hell none of my forest critters tell me about it?!"


    When he asked that, one of the squirrels at the tree near him jumps at him and tell him something. Volya really surprised and says, "Eh?! I always say that it''s not my problem and let them go... Is that so?"


    The squirrel nods and Volya only laugh a little. He then says, "I thought they are a different group, so I let it slide. But, if I know that they do it on daily basis like that, I should have punished them from a long time ago..."


    The squirrel and hawk that follow him looked at Volya with a blank stare and Volya only laughs. He then says, "We should move now. I believe they shouldn''t be that far from here with their speed."


    Volya opens his arm and then says, "Let the Ether flow under my command and crack open the space of the distorted world, Dimensional Gate."


    One fracture created in front of him and changed the surrounding in front of him into a tree branch. He jumps through space together with the hawk. The moment he arrives at the branch, he stopped for a while and mumbles, "Ugh... Even if I already did it so many time, my body still not cope with the sudden change of the space."


    He then looked at the Knights and says, "Then, let''s continue the actual plan."


    He then jumps to the ground and one of the knights hear that noise. One of the knights stops and makes the other ask him,


    "What is it, Sir Romain?"


    "I believe I heard someone jumping to the ground there," answer him.


    "Is it? I didn''t hear anything."


    "I think... It''s just my imagination, Sir Clement."


    Both of them then continue to move with their group. Until one arrow struck one of the horse and that really surprised everyone.


    Everyone looked at the fallen horse and they understand the situation they are in. Another arrow struck another horse and killed it. Seeing one of his comrades falls to the ground, the other jump from the horse to help him up.


    The knight who falls from the horse is Clement Marvin, a 39-year old knight from Marvin household from the city of Onryx. He takes his morning star and started to shouts full of anger, "Just come out you goddamn lowly life!"


    The other knight who helps him up is Romain Ambros, a 25-year old knight from Ambros household from the city of Ironforge. He looked at his friend and then prepares his trusty shield and sword. He then calmly says, "Sir Clement, I believe none of them will hear you."


    "I don''t care! I will definitely murder those lowly annoying leech!"


    "Sir Clement, please remain calm. The enemy will take your rageful emotion to their advantage."


    "I don''t care! They should fight fair with us like a knight!"


    "But..."


    "Both of you! Stop fighting and focus on the enemy that will approach us without hesitation!" shout Albert


    Albert jump from his horse together with the other knight and the ''Queen''. The ''Queen'' takes out her sword and observe her surrounding, while the other knight takes out his great sword.


    The knight with the greatsword is Aubert Martinez, a 40-year old knight from Martinez household that leads the fifth division from Haegia kingdom. He observes his surroundings and gives a sign that they are safe right now.


    The last knight is Albert Martin, a 48-year old knight from Martin household and one of the five Great Knight of Haegia. The King of Haegia always appoints Albert as the one who looked after the Queen because of his good decision making on the field, and that applies to the current situation.


    Albert prepares his weapon and says, "Prepare yourself, the enemy will show their nose soon."


    "Sir, Yes Sir!" shouts the other knight.


    The ''Queen'' looked at Albert and then asks him, "Sir Albert, could you predict their location? I believe from the way they could land the arrow to the horse, they should be quite near us."


    "Unfortunately, I can''t predict that as this area really new for me. Besides, they could attack our house from anywhere around here," answered Albert.


    "If that so, then could you tell me how many of them that we are chasing right now. Do any of you know about this?" ask the ''Queen'' once more.


    "The first time I see them, they are consist of five Archer, one ax-wielding man, and two sword-wielding men," answer Romain.


    "Huh? I didn''t see anyone who wields ax that time," says Clement to Romain.


    "What do you mean by that?"


    "What I see is someone who wields a spear. And there are two people that bring the spear."


    "No way!"


    Both of them start to fight with each other once more and Aubert walks up to them in order to stop their quarrel. Albert tried to remember something before they start to chase their target and realize something. When he looked at his ''Queen'', he understands that she already knows the situation they are in. Albert then takes a deep breath and says,


    "Your Highness, I believe both of them are talking the truth about them. They split up and prepared to ambush us on our way back."


    "By looking at our situation, I could say that you are right about this. They beat us in number and the location of the battle. If they fight us here, the other kingdom will not happy with it if we didn''t provide a good reason for any of their question later," answer the ''Queen''.


    Romain and Clement looked at each other and understand how hard their situation is. Meanwhile, Volya smiled at them and mumbles, "I believe they don''t want to make any problem here because of their status. I like how they think about the consequences of their action. But, how will they react when the bandit really show up?"


    Volya thinks for a while until the hawk flies near him and lands on his shoulder. Volya looked at the hawk and nodded. He then says, "Let''s commence our plan now."


    Volya makes a noise at the bush and all the knight there hears that. They point their weapon towards the bush near them with the ''Queen'' shouts,


    "Just come out from there! We already know your location and will react if you do something weird!"


    "You don''t need to shout like that. Because my intention is to meet all of you right now," answer Volya as he walks through the bushes.


    He waves at the knight as if he greeted all of them and smiles at them. Romain and Clement looked at Volya with Romain saying,


    "I don''t remember that they have a mage at their ranks..."


    "Same with me..." answer Clement


    Volya smiles at them and then looked at the ''Queen''. He bows to her and then asks them,


    "I know it''s really rude for asking this to all of you. But, why are you here at Azalea? Isn''t knight that tied to any kingdom are not permitted to enter this area except for diplomatic mission?"


    "Before that, who are you? Are you one of the bandits that we chase today?" ask Romain as he points his sword to Volya.


    "Bandit? Ah... Those pesky annoying people, huh." answer Volya.


    "Yes... Are you one of them or just some passerby?" asked Albert.


    Volya smiles at them and then says,


    "I believe none of you will believe everything that will comes out from my mouth. But, I will assure you that I''m not connected to them."


    "How could we believe that? You suddenly pop-up from nowhere and want to meet with all of us. Your action really suspicious," ask Aubert as he tried to calm himself.


    "Well... If I said that I am just a wanderer, will you believe me? And judging by all of your reaction, I could say that none of you believe me." answer Volya.


    "Then, who are you?" asked Albert.


    "Just a wanderer."


    "Could you give me a good reason that you are not on their side?"


    "I don''t have any good reason to answer your question besides what I am. But, If you ask their location, I could spill some of it. the Archer is around you at each tree here, the one who bring spear at your back, and the one who bring sword in the front. The one who brings ax is sleeping at one of the caves here."


    Albert and the ''Queen'' looked at Volya with disbelief and then hears Volya says,


    "I know that you couldn''t believe anything that comes out from my mouth. I already tell you that, no? Because it''s natural for a human to see it with their own eyes to believe anything."


    Albert looked at Aubert and both of them understand that the person in front of them is honest with his answer, but they still suspicious of his action. Clement and Romain move towards their ''Queen'' and gazes at Volya.


    Volya then bows once more and ask the ''Queen'',


    "If possible, why the Queen follow their follower to this area? I believe it is really dangerous for you to come here."


    "Your Highness, you don''t need to answer his question!" shout Aubert.


    "Sir Aubert Martinez, it is really rude for you to say that to me. Right now, I am talking with your Queen... But, I can''t blame you for angry at me because I also act quite rude right now." says Volya.


    "Wait a minute... How in this world you know..."


    "You know... Sometimes the wind will tell me everything. They are the most knowledgeable folks in this world, you know."


    All the Knights and the ''Queen'' looked at Volya with awe and can''t say anything. Inside their mind is who is this man and what is his purpose by talking with them.


    Volya closes his eyes for a while and then glance at one direction. He smiles and says,


    "Unfortunately, we need to postpone our chat now. Those people will start to attack all of you soon."


    The moment he says that all of them looked around them and saw four guys with sword and spear. All of their body really big with a burned skin. All of them using a dirty cloth and smiles at each other. Albert focused his attention for a while and hear someone is preparing their bow to attack them. Albert then orders everyone,


    "Prepare your weapon now! We must protect..."


    "Sir Albert... Just focused to stay alive now. You don''t need to think about me right now." says the ''Queen''.


    "But..."


    Volya looked at the ''Queen'' with a surprised face and then smiled a little bit. He then looked at the bandit around him and says,


    "But, I don''t know if all of you are really an idiot or what. Did all of you really think could play around with those knight by attacking them face-to-face rather than attacking them from the shadow? I believe all of you already out of your mind by doing this."


    "Just I thought! You are one of them!" shout Clement.


    Volya didn''t care with Clement remarks and observed around them once more. He could see some of his forest friends are waiting for his order. He then smiles and sees one of them bandit talking to each other,


    "The number of our victim is increasing..."


    "But, where is our Big Bro? He says that he only wants to take something fast."


    "I don''t know... And don''t care. And judging by that guy cape, I could say that its price around 100 Bronze Coin."


    "That''s not many... But, enough to buy some bread."


    Volya then peeks at the knight that prepares themselves for any of their enemy attacks. Volya sighs and thinks that he need to make sure they didn''t fight there if possible. But judging from both party situation, that isn''t an easy task. And if the fight really happens at the forest, he needs to make sure no one finds it out about it. After he is really sure that no one around them except the knight group and the bandit, he nods a little bit. Albert notices that and he prepares for the worse depending on the suspicious man action right now.


    He then raised his hand and shouts,


    "I just a random passerby that meet with them. If possible, could you let me go because I don''t have anything to offer to you right now."


    "Like hell, we will let you go. Just give us your cape and staff and we will leave you alone."


    "I can''t give you this as this is the only thing that connected with my brother and father."


    "We don''t give a damn!"


    Volya continues to negotiate with the bandit and the ''Queen'' observes his movement a little bit. She then hears Aubert says,


    "He is really suspicious... Is he one of them or he really is just a random passerby..."


    "Sir Aubert, judging from his action right now, I believe he is just a random passerby." says the ''Queen''.


    "Eh? Why did you think that?" ask Romain


    "From the bandit movement and how they treat him, I could conclude that too... And also he nods as if someone is waiting around here..." answer Albert as he continues to check around him.


    Romain and Clement only could sigh and notice one of the archers change their target towards Volya. Clement gives a sign towards Aubert that nods so they could start to attack the other side of the Bandit.


    Meanwhile, the bandit becomes more restless and at the end ignore every Volya plea and says,


    "I think I will just murder you here and takes everything that you have!"


    Volya looked at the bandit and the knight behind him for a while. He then sighs and mumbles, "It seems it is inevitable... I''m really sorry for tainted this dirt with their blood."


    Volya then gazes at the bandit and that really surprised all of them. Together with that, they feel the wind become fiercer together with the aura surrounding Volya. He then says,


    "I think I can''t act like a nice guy anymore... I hope you prepared for anything, scum."


    "What do you mean, beggar? Do you really want to die?" asked the bandit


    "Before that, did all of you know that all of you are inside Azalea, the Holy Ground of this island?"


    "Azalea? Of course, we know about that! The Holy Ground? You must be joking! This place is really empty and this place is the graveyard for many people that fight against us!" answer another bandit.


    "Graveyard? You make this place become a graveyard? You really disappoint me..."


    "So what?"


    "Your action really disturb the other who stay at the Wildespring forest. You should feel ashamed for your action."


    "Huh? The other who stay here? Did you mean those annoying deer, bird, and everything? Bah... We don''t care about them and we will kill all of them so we could live here without anyone disturb us!"


    Volya clenched his teeth and then looked at them with a cold gaze. He then asks them,


    "So... That''s your intention at this forest..."


    "Yes... Then why?"


    All of the knights can''t move at all because of the pressure from Volya that want to exterminate every people in front of him. Even the ''Queen'' stand still and didn''t look away.


    Volya then moves his staff a little bit and says,


    "Then, as the representative chosen by the forest... I will punish all of you in the name of this forest."


    He snaps his finger and they could hear something moving near the bush. Everyone prepares for anything that will come from there. Not long after that, all of the bandit laughing because they see a small fox jumped from there.


    One of the bandits looked at the Volya to mock him and really surprised to see a bright red magic circle at Volya''s hand. Volya looked at them and says,


    "O flame of judgment, let''s the anger of thee comes to this world! Let''s those who dare oppose you fall under your might flame! Pillar of Flame!"


    In split second the magic circle vanished from Volya''s hand and reappear below one of the bandits. From there a pillar flame suddenly summoned and burned it without hesitation. All of the bandits are really surprised and start panicking with their current situation. Volya closes his eyes and says,


    "Even though I say that I will punish all of you, I will let you alive if you never come... Huh?"


    Suddenly Volya could feel a sharp pain in his chest and look below him. He could see one arrow struck near his chest, almost hitting his heart and fresh blood gushing from there. He falls on his knee and looked at the bandit with full of hatred. Then he points his hand to them, create another red magic circle and says,


    "Trickery is the art created by the fool. Let this flame deceive their eyes and meet their eternal demise! Trickster''s Flame!"


    A small flame created on his hand and he throws it at one of the trees. Not long after that an arrow struck his head and chest again and killed him immediately.


    Both the bandits and the knights are really panicked after seeing Volya''s action as it could make a forest fire there. But the moment the fire hit the tree, it didn''t burn it. Rather, it starts to bounce to another tree near it and hit one of the bandits and burn it immediately. Together with that, they could hear a loud scream from the forest.


    Albert snaps back to reality and then shouts,


    "This is our chance! Charge!!!!"


    All of the Knights prepare their weapon and start to attack the bandit that scared with what they just saw. One of the bandits stabs by Romain''s sword, while the other head is crushed by Clement''s Morning Star. The blood of the bandit paints the earth as the knights continue to march until the last of them slain.


    Everyone stops and takes a deep breath and with that, they achieve their victory for that small war.

 5 The Mage

    The Knights gather all of the Bandit body into one place in order to burn and give them a proper burial. While they gather them, Romain stops in front of Volya''s body and closes his eyes. He then says,


    "This battle is really small compared to our other battle... But, the cost is higher because of someone unrelated from us become the victim."


    "I know about that..." answer Aubert as he prepares the wood to burn all of the body.


    "Even though it''s only one... the burden is much heavier because of a small fact that he is some unknown people that dragged into this conflict," says Albert as he pats Romain back.


    "If only I''m more prepared... He will not die in this battle..." says Romain


    "Don''t blame yourself or it will really make your performance drops, Romain," says Clement.


    Romain nods and takes Volya''s body with the bandit''s corpse. After that, Albert lit the fire and all of them prays for Volya soul. Not long after that, all of them hears something coming from the bushes behind them. All of them prepares their weapon immediately and waiting for anyone or anything that comes to them.


    The moment they see the one who comes out from the bushes, all of them are really surprised to see Volya stands there. And what more surprising is he is unscathed. Romain looked at the fire behind him and then at Volya in front of him. Volya then laughs and says, "It is a good thing that I follow my guts to create a copy of my body to meet all of you before this, if not I will meet my father in heaven."


    All of them can''t hide their surprise to Volya that laughing at them. After that, Volya starts to walk again and says, "Then, let''s continue our chat that postponed before while I lead all of you to the outskirts of Azalea."


    Volya starts to walk with the knights still stand still there. The ''Queen'' looks at Albert and hears him says,


    "I could say that we could follow him as his intention is really pure."


    "I agree with you, Sir Albert. But, we need to stay vigilant around him," orders the ''Queen''.


    "I will."


    He then orders the other knights to protects the ''Queen'' while following Volya, the man that help them in that small fight.


    Thirty minutes later, all of them continues to walk in silence and all of the knights are focusing their attention towards Volya, the mage that suddenly helped them. Volya understands that they are really suspicious of him, but he doesn''t care about that. But because he is bored with the situation, he asks them,


    "I believe all of you should be understand about that treaty, right?"


    "Did you mean the treaty about Azalea?" asked Albert.


    "That''s right. If you understand that treaty, why did you chase them until this area?"


    "That''s fully our fault to follow them without thinking about our location." answer the ''Queen''.


    "Then, why did you chase them?"


    "That''s because they already killed a lot of our villager and raid a lot of village near here." answer the ''Queen'' once more.


    "Hooo... And then all you chase them until here and the rest becomes history. Then, my next question is why don''t you let them go?" asked Volya.


    "If we let them go, they will continue to raid other village and more people will be killed by them," answer Albert.


    "Hooo... And the end is all of you almost fall to their ambush if I didn''t intervene. And together with that, you let your kingdom in pinch with you almost break the treaty."


    "About that..."


    "This is a small suggestion from me, it''s better not to chase them to deep as they could suddenly bite back like small creature that already cornered."


    All of the knights are really surprised to hear that from Volya. Meanwhile, Volya continues talking,


    "And I believe all of you break a lot of basic principle in chasing something. Like how many is your target? Where are they going? Do we know the location? Etc. From there should be safe from a bigger problem."


    Albert looked at Volya with awe and want to ask something. But, Volya already finished it by saying,


    "But, that''s just a theory that I heard from several veterans that I meet when I am reading their fortune in the past. They even stated that it''s hard to do it in practice."


    "Still... It''s an embarrassment for us to forget that basic principle as a knight," says Aubert.


    "Well... I can''t blame any of you as it is a dire situation, no?"


    Volya then continues to walk and lets the knight thinking about their action for a while. He then continues to lead them towards the edge of the forest in silence until he asks them again,


    "Then, what will you do to them if all of you arrest them?"


    "We will bring them to the capital and hanged them!" answered Clement.


    "Hmmm... execution without a trial? Isn''t that quite brutal?" ask Volya.


    "It''s not a problem as they ask for it," answer Aubert.


    "Is that so..."


    "But, isn''t what you have done to them almost the same with us? Killing them without any hesitation?" ask the ''Queen''.


    Volya looked behind him and then says,


    "At first, I think I could avert any conflict from this forest. But, everything change from bad to worse in split second and I need to take such action."


    "But, you still kill them without any trial," said Albert.


    "That''s the forest and the fate will."


    "Huh?"


    "Hahahahahaha... Just ignore this hermit rambling alright. And you are right, I am a hypocrite for doing that."


    Albert and the ''Queen'' looked at each other and they understand that the person in front of them is someone unique in his mind. They continue to follows the person that help them until they arrived in front of a vast field.


    Volya stopped there and asks them,


    "By looking at your insignia, I could say that all of you comes from the kingdom at north. Am I right?"


    "Yes, you are right." answer the ''Queen''.


    "The kingdom that located at Snowmarsh mountains, the Haegia Kingdom. Isn''t that quite far from here?" ask Volya once more.


    "Yes, we know that it is quite far from here. But it is our job as a knight to protect everyone near our border," answer Albert.


    "Then, is it something ordinary for that?" ask Volya ask he takes a glance at the ''Queen''.


    "Of course." answer the ''Queen'' after seeing Volya looking at him.


    "Ah... I''m sorry, my question isn''t that clear. What I mean is this... Is it something ordinary for the Queen of the kingdom to follow their knight and hunt down the bandit?"


    The ''Queen'' really surprised to hear that and seems hesitant to answer that question. Volya then smiles at her, then bows, and asks her,


    "If possible, could I ask your name, Your Highness? It''s something rare to meet a Queen that also act like a knight."


    All of the knights are really surprised and looked at the ''Queen''. The ''Queen'' looked at Albert and see a nod. She then laughs a little bit and then says, "If you insist."


    The ''Queen'' takes off her helmet and let her saddle brown hair shown to the world. She let her hair tied in order to not disturb him under the helmet, but that didn''t reduce her beauty at all.


    Her blue eyes as clear as the sky looked at Volya with full of determination, and Volya could see that the ''Queen'' is smiling as if she is teasing him a bit. She then says,


    "My name is Helena Estrudiantes, The Queen from the Haegia Kingdom that rule the north side of Therious Island at Snowmarsh Mountains. It''s an honor to meet you."


    Volya really surprised that Helena really introduces herself and revealing herself as the queen in front of him. And because of that, he laughs really hard and that really triggered the knight. Albert then says,


    "You are really impolite, Sir."


    "Ahahahahaha... I''m sorry... I''m really sorry... It''s just... This is an unusual sight in my eyes..."


    "Unique? Why did you say that?"asked Clement


    "Isn''t it simple? You Queen really answer a question from a stranger like me. If I have a bad intention, I could just kill her after her confirmation, right?"


    Everyone prepares their weapon, but Helena gives a sign to stop. Helena then says,


    "But, at least I believe you."


    "Why did you believe me?" ask Volya.


    "Someone who really cares about this place isn''t someone who will have a bad intention to anyone around them, except for those who dare disturb this place," answer Helena


    "Heee... Is that so..."


    "And if you are a bad guy, I believe that squirrel will not come to you, right?"


    Volya really surprised and see one squirrel at his leg and smiles. He then bows at Helena and says,


    "I''m really sorry for making such a ruckus in front of a wise Queen like you."


    "That''s alright," answer Helena.


    "You know it''s been a long time since I have a long chat with anyone. So, I''m sorry if my action really impolite in your eyes."


    "And it''s been a long time since all of us find a unique person like you. So, it''s even for us, "answered Helena


    Volya can''t hide his embarrassment and then hears Helena asks him,


    "Then, could you introduce yourself? I want to know the name of the person that saves all of us."


    Volya looked at all of them and then takes off his cape. He let his saddle brown hair to the open air. He then smiles at them and says,


    "My name is Volya Portar. A Magus. It''s nice to meet all of you."

 6 Gif

    Volya continues to lead them until they arrived at the edge of Azalea. There a lot of knights already gathers and waiting for their leader to come back with some of them really restless.


    The moment they see the five of them come back safely, all of them runs to them and greet them. Meanwhile, Volya stays at the back and smiles at them. He then turns back and starts to walk back to Wildespring. But, Albert stops him and asks him,


    "Sir Volya, where are you going?"


    "Ah... I want to go back to my place. I''m quite tired after using several medium-level magic this day." answer Volya.


    "Is that so..."


    "What is it, Sir Albert?" ask Volya with a puzzled face.


    Albert then looked at Aubert, Clement, and Romain. The three of them already understand what inside Albert mind and says one by one,


    "Even if he has a foul mouth, he already save us. Of course, we could give him some gift," says Aubert.


    "Isn''t a good deed must be rewarded? Of course, he must get it. Even if I hate his attitude a little bit." says Clement.


    "He already helped us, even if he lies a little bit in the process. So, I agree with giving him a gift," says Romain.


    Albert nods a little bit and then looked at Helena. He bows and says,


    "Your Highness, what do you think about giving him some gift as our gratitude?"


    "I agree with that."


    "And I remember that he says that he could tell fortunes, I believe we could let him do that there for a while."


    "I agree with that again. And I believe a lot of women will happy with that."


    "I''m sorry, but could you elaborate more with me about the gift for him, Sir Albert?" ask Romain


    "You will know it shortly, Sir Romain. If you allow me to tell him, I will tell him now," says Albert as he looked at Helena.


    "Of course you could, Sir Albert."


    "Thank you."


    Albert smiles at all of them and then walks towards Volya. Volya seems quite restless with his surrounding and sees Albert walking towards him. Albert then stops in front of him and says, "Sir Volya, let''s join us to the Haegia Kingdom."


    There is a brief silence there before Volya shouts, "Eh?!"


    And with that, Volya get what he wishes for. A place where he could chat with everyone to his heart content.

 7 Ironforge

    Volya opens his eyes and looked above him. For the first time, he didn''t see the clear sky that he saw for many years. This time, he saw a cold ceiling that could protect him from the rain.


    And this is the first time he could sleep on something that really soft, not a log that quite hard where he lives before. And the most important part is, no one disturbs his sleep at all. No bird that pecking on his head, nor deer that lick his face.


    He then stands up, stretches his body, and then says, "Good morning, World! Today everything will be great as usual!"


    Usually, the other animal will answer his daily routine. But this time, no one answers him. He looked around him and only see an empty room with a little furniture inside it. He then laughs a little bit and starts to open the window at the room.


    From there, he could see that the city already start their activity. A lot of people walking in the street talking to each other. The merchants are promoting their goods at the street. Some traveler seems taking a little stroll around the city. Meanwhile, some of the knights are patrolling around the city in order to maintain the order the city.


    When Volya looks closely at the street, it is dominated by some man that brings a fire lamp, helmet, and pickaxes on their shoulder. All of them laughs at each other and help to lift their spirit for today work at the mine.


    Volya then takes a deep breath and looked in front of him. A building that created from brick, that''s something rare for Volya that usually visit the village around Azalea, where they use wood for creating their house.


    He then smiles a little bit and says, "So, this is the life in the city. Really noisy, but also really lively. Not like in the forest that quiet most of the time."


    After saying that, he going to the bathroom to take a bath. Right now, Volya staying in a city called Ironforge. That city one of three biggest cities in the Haegia Kingdom that located in the Snowmarsh Mountains.


    The Haegia Kingdom is a unique kingdom as they create their two major cities inside the mountain. They dig the mountain and create the city inside it. Meanwhile, the capital cities are built at the top of the highest peak of Snowmarsh Mountains. They build it at the cliff where it has several levels there.


    Ironforge is the first city that most traveler will pass in order to go to the capital. It is located in the mountains and gives a different experience for most of them as they are greeted with a beautiful ceiling created by natural rocks.


    And because of the location of the city, most of the people working as a miner, just like the one that Volya just saw before. But, there also people who work as a merchant, chef, and many other.


    The main commodity for that kingdom is ore that could sell highly outside of the kingdom. And most of the time, they trade it with other goods such as food and water that quite scarce around the mountain. Because of their good demeanor in trading, they usually get a supply of food and water from the village at the base of the mountain.


    Volya already finished take a bath and looking at the item on his desk. A knife that he just bought from one of the blacksmiths at the city at the district called as Strongbourne where most of the blacksmith gathers there to sell their goods.


    He takes out the knife and observes it a little it. He then plays it a little bit and says, "If I have this, of course, I don''t need to make that stone knife anymore. Fufufufufu... I''m quite lucky to get this knife cheaply."


    Right now he already stays for four days at Ironforge as he gets the gift from Paulo Estrudiantes, the King of Haegia after he helped his wife from the bandit at the forest back then. And he accepts that gift after Albert press him a little bit.


    Volya then puts his knife back and looks at the mirror at the other side of the room. He walks there and looks at his face that reflected from there. He then says, "Thanks to this item, I could see my reflection clearly. Not like the ice that I usually use at the forest. Hmmm... Should I buy one of these things? Naaaahhh... I believe this thing will be broken really fast thanks to those goddamn squirrels."


    Volya then takes his cape and leave the room to continue strolling around the town. He remembers that Albert asks him to the Capital after staying for one week at Ironforge. And while he is at Ironforge, he could see everyone looks really happy even when they didn''t see the clear blue sky as much as the other see.


    And today, he will go to one place where the most merchant, traveler, and adventurer gather at Ironforge. The tavern called as Belcrest. Belcrest is the biggest building at the Ironforge as it is used by many people to share information, takes some mission, and drinking with their mates. And most of the people could see it from afar because of the building have a sharp roof and differentiate it with other building.


    The reason why he going to Belcrest, it is because he will open his fortune-telling stall there. He already promised Aubert, Clement, and Albert for that.


    He walking towards Belcrest together with the people of Ironforge. Some of them greet him and he greets them back. He could see some children that interested in him and some woman that seems tease him a little bit. He only smiles at them as he continues to walks towards the building. While he walking there, he could hear how lively the town is.


    "Come in! You could see our newest addition of armor! We promise you that you will not find it in another kingdom!"


    "Our sword is really sturdy! Go try it at our shop, you will not regret it when monster come!"


    "O dear sweet lady, care to see some fabric? I believe this fabric is suitable for you."


    Volya smiles at them and could see most of the people that gather there are a traveler, knight in training, and adventurer that want to start their journey. He then whistles and says, "Maybe I could stay here forever... Eh... Wait... If I stay here, who will protect the forest?"


    He continues to think what he should do next until he reaches the intersection. From there he could see one knight with an armor that really familiar to him. That knight is the one who walks with him for the past four days in silence.


    Volya stops for a while and tried to blend with the people around him. He hopes that the knight will not notice him because he isn''t comfortable with him. But, his effort is futile as the knight notice him immediately. He started to walk to him and says,


    "Sir Volya, where are you going without my supervision?"


    Volya doesn''t care about that and start to walk faster. But, the knight could walk faster than him even with his armor and called him several times. That accident makes everyone looking at him that already stopped because he feels really uncomfortable with the situation. He then looks at the knight and asks him,


    "Do you really need to follow me everywhere in this town?"


    "Of course I do. That''s the order given by My King and Queen to me." answer the knight.


    "And do you need to always stay silent when with me?"


    "That''s the protocol that given to me by Sir Villias. If you didn''t ask me, then I will stay silent about it."


    Volya really hates that kind of answer, but he can''t do anything about it. Volya then takes a glance around him and could hear a lot of people talking about him. In the end, he says,


    "Alright, follow me now. I am going to Belcrest today to fulfill my promise to Sir Albert."


    "Sir, Yes Sir!" answered the knight.


    "And please do something about this crowd. I don''t want to make misunderstanding with the people around me."


    The knight nods at Volya and then walks at the crowds. He then explained to them about Volya as the one who helped their queen on her quest fighting against the bandit. From there, Volya could hear a lot of compliment from the knight and also the crowd. He feels really uncomfortable with that and thinks, "I want to go now... Please finish it quickly."


    Not long after that, the crowd already disperse and continue with their activity. Volya only could sigh and then says,


    "Alright... Let''s go now. I believe Sir Albert and Sir Clement are waiting for me there."


    "Sir, Yes Sir!"


    Both of them then starts to walk towards Belcrest where Volya will do some work there.

 8 Romain Ambros

    Both Volya and the Knight already arrived at Belcrest. The moment Volya steps inside the building, he really fascinated with the atmosphere there. A lot of people walking around inside the three-storied building and they didn''t make any ruckus inside it.


    The first level of the building is the restaurant area where people gather with each other to talk. A group of traveler is gathering at one table and give every news that they heard on their journey around the world, especially with politics at each kingdom. Another group of a merchant is sharing their trade secret with each other and making an agreement about something. There also one woman with blonde hair that singing with the crowds around her while telling her journey.


    At the second level is the place where people want to find any job. It''s open for townsfolk and adventurer that searching for a killing mission or escort mission there. Right now it is packed with adventurers that come back from their mission in order to register their result. And some of them are townsfolk that searching for a part-time job there.


    And the third level is the administrative area where Albert Martin resides and lead the Ironforge for the last four years. And there is a line of people that want to make a complaint or suggestion for the city that will be gathered by Albert later.


    Volya nods and then says to the knight,


    "I will meet with Sir Albert now. Are you going with me or stay here?"


    "I follow you as that''s the order bestowed to me." answer the knight.


    "Alright, if you say so."


    Volya then takes the stair to the third level and waiting for his turn to be called. After that, he enters the room and finds Albert already waiting for him. He smiles at Volya and says,


    "So, are you ready to open your stall here?"


    "Just for this day, right?" ask Volya.


    "Yes. That''s our agreement."


    "Then I will open it until around 3 pm. Is that alright?" ask Volya again


    "Yeah, that''s alright as around that time those miners will come to this tavern and have a very big party," answer Albert as he smiles at him.


    "Thank you."


    "I already prepare your place. It is on the second floor around the corner. I believe some woman already waiting for you there."


    "Ahahahahaha... As if... But, thank you for everything, Sir Albert."


    Volya bows at Albert and leaves the room. Before the knight leave with Volya, Albert stops him,


    "Keep your eyes on him as he is our Queen guest."


    "Sir, Yes Sir!"


    The knight then leaves the room to meet with Volya. They take the stair to the second floor, walks around to find the place that Albert mentions, and then Volya sits there. He then asks the knight,


    "What are you going to do now? Just standing there?"


    "Probably... Yes." answer the knight.


    Volya only smiles and says, "If you really wanted that, then I will let you do that."


    After saying that, he opens the business for everyone there. One by one the woman that already waiting for him are making a line and Volya looks on their fortune, especially about their love and life. Not long after that, some adventurer, traveler, and merchant are joining the bandwagon and waiting for their turn.


    Volya looking at their fortune and everything until the time is up. He closes his place and meets with at Albert upstairs about that. After several minutes, he then comes down and meets with the knight. He then says,


    "Let''s go back now."


    "Sir, yes sir." answer the knight.


    They walk together and this time Volya takes another way to his lodge. While walking, Volya ask the knight,


    "I remember that you are allowed to answer me when I ask you right?"


    "Huh?"


    "The protocol tells you to stay silent when I didn''t ask you, right?"


    "Ye... Yes."


    "Then, I can ask you something right?"


    The knight thinks for a while and then answer him,


    "Yes, you could."


    Volya grins at the knight and then walks again. After some time passed, he asked the knight,


    "When I look at every people fortune back then, you are talking with one woman there. A woman with dark brown twin-tail hair in a maid outfit. Is that your lover?"


    "Ah, that girl... No, she isn''t." answer the knight.


    "Is that so? I believe both of you are really close," says Volya.


    "Thank you if you think so."


    "You really make me think about your relationship with that girl. But if you keep denying it, sooner or later I will find it out. The fate that will enforce that."


    The knight only laughs a little bit, while Volya still thinks about it. After that, he changes his tone a little bit and then says as he changes his topic to more serious one,


    "You know... This town is really lively from my eyes."


    "It is." answer the knight.


    "I will credit the leader of this town for making this place."


    "Why is that?"


    "Hmmm... Do you want me frankly tell everything or not? Rather, are you going to arrest me if I say something bad about this Kingdom?"


    The knight looks at Volya for a while and then says,


    "There is a knight decree that asks us to capture any people who dare to oppose this kingdom."


    "Then, if I say this... Will I involved in any trouble?" ask Volya


    The knight can''t say anything as he didn''t know what Volya tried to say right now. But he quite intrigued with the sudden change of tone from Volya. He then smiles a little bit and says,


    "Sir Volya, for this time I will let it slide. Just say that I didn''t hear anything."


    "Ahahahahaha... Good to know that," says Volya.


    "Then, what are you going to say, Sir Volya?" asked the knight.


    Volya smiles at the knight and then looked above him. After that he says,


    "You know, in every kingdom, they always keep the dark secret behind everything. And I believe this kingdom is the same."


    "The same? Dark secret?" asked the knight that quite surprised with what Volya just said.


    "Yes. And I believe, Sir Albert tried to hide it into the plain sight of them so..."


    The knight seems in deep thought and then he understands what Volya tried to pull. It is something that every kingdom have and later become a big problem. The human that robbed from their freedom and called as the slave. The knight then smiles and says,


    "If you are talking about the slave, our king just abolished that so every slave in this kingdom is a free man."


    "Huh? Is that so? Wait... Why suddenly are you implying that I am talking about the slave? Rather, how did you know about that?" asked Volya with a puzzled face.


    "Isn''t it simple? A dark secret that could taint the kingdom name as they use those human slaves for making the kingdom and later throw it away after we don''t need them again. And later they become the leech that could destroy their kingdom one day." explain the knight.


    "Errr... I''m not quite sure about that... But, yes... I am talking about those slaves."


    The knight laughs a little bit and Volya then says,


    "If you say that, then I could say this is the first kingdom that abolished that."


    "Eh? Wait, how did you know about the situation in another kingdom when you say that you never go to a big kingdom?" asked the knight.


    "Even the wind has an eye and ear. From there I know about everything," answer Volya.


    "Is that so..."


    "After all... I am..."


    "Huh?"


    "Nothing. Then let''s continue talking about something else. And unexpectedly, you are easy to chat. I thought you are not a type of people who love to chat a lot judging by your action in the last few days."


    "Ahahahahaha... My family says that too... Especially if I didn''t think about the knight decree or protocol."


    Volya and the knight laugh together and they arrived at Volya''s inn. Volya looked at the knight and asks him,


    "How about have a little chat here? You still have some time before giving a report to your superior, no?"


    The knight a little bit hesitant at first, but after Volya reassure him that he will not tell his superior about this, he agrees with Volya''s idea. They enter the building and Volya ask him,


    "Do you want a cup of tea?"


    "Yes, please," answered the knight.


    Volya then snaps his finger and several utensils are flying from the cupboard near them. Volya humming a little bit and then order them to the kitchen to make some tea. The knight really surprised and excited to see what happened there. Volya observes him a little bit and smiles a little. After that, Volya asks the knight,


    "Why don''t you take off your armor? I believe it''s really hot in here."


    "I''m sorry... But, I must refuse that." answer the knight.


    "Why? There must a reason for that."


    The knight stays silent for a while and then takes a deep breath. He then explained the reason to Volya,


    "That''s because I still need to protect you while you are here. If I didn''t have my armor when something happens to you, it will taint Haegia name in front of many people."


    "Hooo... Interesting."


    He thinks for a while and the knights seem to really focus on Volya. He wanted to know what will Volya do when he told him that. After several minutes, Volya nods and says,


    "Let the eye of harmful people deceived by the illusion of the space! As they enter the space, let them suffer in the eternal maze. Illusion barrier!"


    After saying that, a white magic crest created below them and not long after that, it vanished into the thin air. The knight really surprised with that, but later he smiles knowing that the man in front of him have a lot under his sleeves.


    Volya then laughs and says,


    "With this, you don''t need to worry about anything."


    "What have you done at this place? I believe it''s something amazing for me." asks the knight.


    "You could say that it created a big barrier that will make anyone with ill intent will be disorientated for a while."


    "Impressive... If we have a magus, I believe they could help us protect our King and Queen."


    "If?"


    "Yes. Our kingdom doesn''t have a magus as we focused more on our strength as a knight. That''s the reason I really impressed with everything."


    Volya observes the knight once more and then says,


    "I heard your voice when we are at Wildespring. And I believe you are not Sir Aubert or Sir Clement as both of them have a deeper tone than you."


    "Wow... I''m impressed that you know just from that." said the knight.


    "Are you impressed? Ahahahahahaha."


    Both of them laughs together until Volya says,


    "And at the end, I never know your name. As they always called Sir Clement and Sir Aubert name while I am around all of you at Wildespring."


    "Ahahahahaha... I just remember that too..."


    "And I never see you without your armor. At least I already saw untidy mustache of Sir Clement. But, I never see your face at all."


    The knight knows that Volya will not let him away from that. So, he takes out his helmet and put it on the table. Volya could see a man around 20-30 years old that still full of hope and determination. He has dark brown short hair and has a black colored eye. From there, he thinks for a while and says,


    "I believe I see someone else who has the same characteristic as you... But, where..."


    "Sir Volya?"


    "Ah... Sorry... Sorry... I just thinking about something else."


    "Is that so."


    "Then, could you introduce yourself to me?" ask Volya


    The knight nod and then says,


    "My name is Romain Ambros, the first son of Ambros family that already helped Estrudiantes family since King Estrudiantes the second."


    Volya nods and then stands up. He later says,


    "I believe you already know my name, right? My name is Volya Portar, a magus, and a hermit that live at Wildespring."


    Romain nods and then hears that Volya ask him to sit down. He sits down and not long after that, their tea already is done. Both of them enjoying their drink, until Volya asks,


    "I remember that you said about your family already around since King Estrudiantes the Second. That''s mean this king is the third or maybe younger than that?"


    "Our King, Paulo Estrudiantes, is the third king for Haegia. It''s an honor for me to work under him," answer Romain.


    "Is that so..."


    Volya thinks for a while and remembers how their queen always acts recklessly from the story told by Aubert and Albert before. And judging by her attitude on the field, he knows that she isn''t thinking about having a child. He then looks at Romain, and asks,


    "Could you tell me how old is your King and Queen?"


    "..."


    "Ah... That''s a sensitive matter... I''m sorry..." says Volya quite panic


    "No... I think I know why you ask that" answer Romain with a sigh.


    "Huh?"


    "It''s because how our Queen act, right? And you are thinking about how this kingdom''s future, right?"


    "Bulls eye" answer Volya


    Romain chuckles and then he sighs again. Volya looked at Romain for a while and then says,


    "You know, someone as young as you shouldn''t sighs a lot."


    "I know... But, when I tried to remember what happened in the past... It can''t be helped." said Romain with a smile.


    "Well... I must agree after hearing those story in the past," answer Volya with a laugh.


    Both of them start to laugh together and then they talk about another thing, especially about the town where Volya stays right now. After a while, he then says,


    "So, Romain... I must say that I''m really impressed with this kingdom... Really tidy... And... Huh?"


    Volya could see Romain that surprised with something. Volya thinks for a while and then understand about it. He grins as he looks at Romain and says,


    "Don''t say that this is the first time that you are called without ''Sir'' before your name, Romain?"


    "Ye... Yes..."


    "And to be more precise, a commoner called you that."


    "Ugh... Yes, you are right, Sir Volya."


    The moment Romain looked at Volya again, he could see that Volya looked at him with an annoyed face and then says,


    "I remember that I emphasize that I am a commoner, right?"


    "Urgh..."


    "Haaa... And you don''t need to act polite like that with me, Romain."


    Romain looked at Volya and then nodded. After that he says,


    "Well... Sir Villias the one that orders me to do that... So... Huh?!"


    "I am talking with Romain Ambros the people of Haegia, not Romain Ambros the knight," says Volya with a serious face.


    "Eh?!"


    "Before we are talking about this ''Sir'' thing... You are an easy people to talk. As if you forget that you are a knight that assigned to look after me. Even I forget about that too." continues Volya


    "..."


    "When you are talking like that, you are more lively than when you are called as a knight. I could see that from our conversation until now. If only you... Huh?"


    Suddenly Romain laughs quite loud and that really surprised Volya. After a while, he then smiles at Volya and says,


    "You and my sister are really alike, Volya. Ahahahahaha... I can''t believe I meet someone who will comment that and that person is someone that I just meet in the middle of the forest!"


    "Good to hear that I am right."


    Both of them laugh together and then Romain asked Volya to tell him more about himself. Volya told him about his year when he is with his father and brother and his reason why he is living inside Wildespring Forest. Romain nodded for a while and then he remembers something. He then asked Volya,


    "Volya, why did you help us back then?"


    "Back then? Oh, in the forest..."


    "Yes."


    "It''s because I know the consequence if I didn''t help you back then. If I help the bandit, the Haegia Kingdom will start a search at the forest and that will make the other kingdom restless. And you know the domino effect if that happens right?"


    "You are right..."


    "And if I let it slide and all of you wandering around the forest for too long, either your Kingdom will start to search at this forest or another kingdom will start to find out about it. And the rest will be a history."


    "..."


    "That''s why I choose to help all of you in order to protect that forest. My father entrusted that forest to me in order to protect what inside it."


    "Huh? What inside it?"


    "Yes... Something that none of you... Could see..."


    "What do you mean, Volya?"


    "I will not tell you more about it. Because..."


    "You don''t believe me, huh?"


    Volya looked at Romain with a surprised face and not long after that, his face changed it a grin. He says,


    "Hah... I forget that you are the Knight that believe me out of nowhere."


    "Yes, I am. And now I want you to believe me that I will not tell anyone," says Romain with a big smile.


    Volya smiles at him and then says,


    "Do you know the rumor about that Library?"


    "Library? Did you mean Library of Knowledge?" asked Romain


    "Yes."


    "Wait... So that library is really there?!"


    "Well, you could say that the library is there and also not there."


    "What do you mean by that?"


    "My father only told me... vaguely... Yes..."


    "Do you know something else?"


    "Only the one that my Father told me... Ahahahahaha"


    Romain observes Volya for a while and he understands that Volya isn''t messing around with him. He then jokingly says,


    "If you are the one who protects that forest and the secret inside it, I believe you are around 30-40 years old... And with that appearance..."


    "Unfortunately, no."


    "Huh?"


    "I am still 23 years old," says Volya with full of confidence.


    Romain keeps silent for a while and then he shouts,


    "Wait, you are still 23?!"


    "Yes, I am."


    "Then... You are younger than me?! You must be kidding me?!"


    "I''m not."


    Romain fall to his knee after knowing the person in front of him is younger than him and that make Volya laughs a little bit. After that, Volya says,


    "Then... How about this... Let me look at your fortune, probably something will happen later. Of course, it will free of charge."


    "Heh..."


    "Or are you really surprised to know that I am younger than you? Did you think I am older than you with this face?" ask Volya as he points to his own face.


    "Well... I heard a rumor that Magician could change their appearance to look younger... So..."


    "Oh... That''s one... Unfortunately, I couldn''t use that magic right now. So rest assure."


    "For some reason, I don''t believe that one."


    "Oh come on... And you still not answer me... Do you want me to read your fortune or not?"


    Romain sighs and then stands up. He then sits down and then thinks for a while. Ten minutes later he nods, takes off his gauntlet, and then says,


    "Alright, I want you to look at my fortune."


    "Alright... Let me see your hand," says Volya.


    "But before that, I have one question."


    "What is that?"


    "Is the one that you will tell me right now... Is that something that will happen or not? And could I use it as a goal or something?"


    "About the second question, yes you could."


    "Then what about the first one?"


    "For the first one, it definitely will happen to you... Even if you take different paths, you will reach that end. Just remember that once you take one path, you only could take that path forever."


    "Alright..."


    "But, please remember. Even if that could happen, there is a possibility that it will not happen. If the wheel of fortune is not on your favor and you taking one dangerous road, there is a possibility that you will not get that."


    "..."


    "So... That''s why we called the technique to look at the future as fortune telling. And that technique is something that you couldn''t believe fully as the future could change depends on everyone around you."


    "Alright, I understand."


    "So, after hearing that explanation will you still let me see your future? Especially with that face that you just show to me."


    "Yes. You could."


    "Huh?"


    "I wonder what the possible future that I will get with the current condition."


    Volya smiles and then looked at Romain''s hand. After closes his eyes for a while, he mumbles something and Romain could see Volya''s eyes change into a golden. Something that he saw back at Belcrest. After a while, Volya then looked at Romain and says,


    "In the future, you will find a branch. Each branch has different consequence, and that''s your choice to take which route that you will take."


    "What the significant different fore..."


    "Do you want to change... As there is a big change for yourself in one of the branch. And that''s your choice for that."


    "Is that something bad or good?"


    "I don''t know as I only see two roads... But, I can''t see past there."


    "..."


    "But, don''t worry... I know the breeze that I feel right now. You will find someone that will with you forever on both road, but with a different person."


    "Huh?"


    "And... Huh?"


    "Volya?"


    Volya stay silent and then he says,


    "You must ask yourself... Will you freed yourself from the chain that holding you or not."


    "Chain?"


    "I don''t know... That chain... Seems really hard to break and..."


    Romain understands only by looking at Volya and then smiles. He then says,


    "Alright, that''s enough."


    "Eh?"


    "I will see it by myself about that road. And sooner or later I will move by myself to reach that."


    "..."


    "And what the point to spoil all of the future to me? Where is the thrill in that?"


    "I think you are right," says Volya as his eyes back to normal.


    "Thank you very much, Volya. I will take everything you say as my cornerstone in the future. And let me see my future with my own eyes and I will tell you if I really meet with my other half!"


    "Ahahahaha... You are really an interesting person by telling that to a commoner like me."


    "A commoner? I don''t see you as that."


    "Huh? What do you mean?"


    "I see you as someone with the same status as me."


    "Is that so."


    "Yes. Maybe I will tell Lucia about this and ask her about her fortune as I know that she asks her future to be red by you at Belcrest."


    "Huh? Lucia?"


    "My Sister."


    Volya smiles at Romain and then looks at the clock there. He then says,


    "I believe you must meet your superior, right?"


    "Huh? Is this already that late?!" says Romain as he looked at the clock.


    "Yes."


    "Urgh... Sir Villias will kill me..."


    "Ahahahaha... Just say that I take a detour for today."


    "Alright, hopefully, that will enough to convince him."


    Romain takes his helmet, put it on, and then looked at Volya. He asked him,


    "For tomorrow, what will you do Volya?"


    "I will meet your King and Queen with Sir Albert. I believe you will be assigned to look after me again."


    "Probably yes. Knowing that I assigned to look after your for the past day."


    "Then... See you tomorrow."


    "Yeah... See you tomorrow, Volya."


    Romain leaves the house and leaving Volya around. After a while, he then says, "Haaa... That guy really strained with the chain where he needs to act like a knight. And that something that will make him fall."


    Volya walks towards the bedroom on the second floor and opens the window there. He then continues, "But, I don''t know if that chain is something good or not... Because the feeling is the same as the one with father..."


    After a while, he looked at the necklace and then says, "I wonder if you still strained with the chain or you already freed from the same chain that holds us, Big Sis..."


    Volya then sighs and then looks at the cold rock that becomes the ceiling for the city itself. He closes his eyes for a while and then smiles. After that, he walks towards his bed and takes his deserved rest for that day.

 9 Onryx

    Volya opens his eyes and takes a deep breath. He then stands up and looks at the mirror across the room. He closes his eyes for a while and then looks at his staff. After that, he sighs and says, "How many time I tried to calm myself, it''s useless... I can''t have a very good sleep last night!"


    The reason is today he will meet the King and Queen of Haegia, Paulo Estrudiantes the Third and Helena Estrudiantes. And even if he looked really confident about it when he had a little chat with Romain Ambros yesterday, when the time has come he can''t calm at all.


    Volya then takes a deep breath and then mumbles, "Just think that they are normal people, like the other... Just... Think like that!"


    He then nods and takes a bath to calm him a little bit and after that, he will take some breakfast. After he grabs something for breakfast, he hears someone knocks on the door. He stands up from his seat and walks toward the door. The moment he opens the door, he could see several knights stands there making a way for someone.


    In the middle of the way, stand three knights. Volya knows the two knights who stand there as he already sees their armor back at Wildespring. Those two are Albert Martin and Clement Marvin. But, the last knight''s armor is different from Romain''s or Aubert''s armor because the knight''s armor has a greyish color with an insignia of Haegia with unknown family crest. The unknown knight walking towards Volya and then bow at him. Volya instinctively bow at the knight and then he hears,


    "My name is Villias Pavlov, one of the Five Great Knights of Haegia. I will become your protector while you are meeting with our King."


    "It''s an honor for me to be guarded by one of the Five Great Knights of Haegia. And my name is..." says Volya that interrupted by Villias.


    "Volya Portar, the magus, and the hermit that lived at Wildespring. The one who helped Sir Albert and Our Queen on their mission back then at Wildespring."


    Volya gulps a little bit and then Villias stands up. From there, Volya could predict his height around 190 cm as the difference quite far for him and Villias. Villias then looked at Albert and Albert nods at him. Albert then walks towards Volya and says,


    "We already prepared your horse to escort you to our Capital City, Onryx. Hopefully, you could cope with the journey, Sir Volya."


    "Don''t worry, I am used to riding some horse back then," answer Volya.


    "Good to hear that."


    Albert then looked at Villias and nods at him. Villias then looks around him and shouts,


    "Sir Romain! Sir Petros! Both of you will be the one who rides behind Sir Volya! Make sure both of you protect him with your heart content!"


    "Sir, Yes Sir!" shouts Romain and Petros from each side of the knight''s wall.


    Volya looked really surprised, and his surprise changed to happiness. At least he knows that Romain will protect him and probably he will have a little chat at Onryx in order to know more about the city. Villias and Albert walk towards their horse, while Clement walks towards Volya. Clement then looked at Volya and says,


    "You should be really honored because of two of Five Great Knights of Haegia protecting you!"


    "Oh... Two... Wait... Two of Five Great Knights?!" said Volya surprised as he looked at Clement.


    "Yes... Two of it."


    "So... Sir Albert is..."


    "Ahahahahahaha... I can''t believe you still didn''t know that!" said Clement.


    Even though Clement using his helmet, Volya knows that he is smiling with his untidy mustache hiding his lips. Both of them laugh together until Clement says,


    "You should hurry up! I believe Sir Villias and Sir Albert are waiting for you now."


    "Yes..."


    Volya walks one step and from there he remembers something. He looked at Clement and says,


    "So... Which one is my horse?"


    Clement couldn''t hide his laugh after hearing that question and then lead him towards his horse. After that, they start to move towards Onryx with Volya located at the back of the group with Clement and Aubert in front of him together with other four knights and Petros and Romain behind him.


    Volya could feel different of aura from all of them and for the first time, he understands that he is INDEED someone important right now. He thinks, "So... This how every noble feel when a lot of knights escort them..."


    Volya sighs for a while and from there he knows that Romain looks at him and chuckles a little bit. He then takes a glance at Romain that still focused on their surroundings and that really make Volya smile a little. Meanwhile, Clement and Aubert looked at Volya and then Clement says,


    "I believe... This man could make Romain grow even more..."


    "And looking on his appearance, he is around Romain''s age, right?" says Aubert.


    "Yes. You know since Romain become the youngest High Knight of Haegia, it feels like he is really lonely as the boy around his age is still a recruit or lower rank than him," says Clement.


    "Yes..."


    "Even though Romain has a lot of potentials and will become stronger if we leave him with Volya¡­ We still need a good cause to make sure that this man will look after Romain and vice versa."


    Aubert suddenly keeps silent and looked at Volya that really impressed with the wildlife and his surrounding there. He feels that Volya could help them with something, especially about their Kingdom. And at the same time, he feels like he looked like someone he knows. But, after a while, he let it slide.


    Meanwhile, Clement slow down his horse to match Volya''s speed. He then asked Volya,


    "What do you think about this mountains formation? Really cool, right?"


    "I could say I am really impressed. As someone who lived in the forest, this is something new," answer Volya with a smile.


    "Right? I really happy when outsider really likes our place."


    "Is that so?"


    "Yes. You know it really makes you feel really happy when some outsider praises it. It makes all of us want to preserve this for our future generation so many people still want to talk about it."


    Volya quite surprised to hear that from Clement as his impression from their first meeting quite bad. And his surprised gradually change into awe as he knows that the more he knows the other, then he will find out more about their personality.


    He looks at the sky and remembers what his father tell him and his brother in the past,


    "Everyone will hide their true personality to a stranger. So, in order to find out their personality, become their friend and later they will show it to you how wonderful or dreadful they are."


    Volya smiles as he knows that everyone there sooner or later will show their other personality if he always comes to Haegia. And from there he determines to regularly open his booth at Haegia in order to learn more about the other knight, just like Romain and Clement.


    Not long after that, Clement looked at the other side of the road and then points in one direction. Volya looked at the where Clement pointing and hear he says,


    "There is the one and only way to enter this mountain. Our greatest fortress, Arkmunster."


    "Arkmunster..." mumbles Volya


    "Yes, you passed through there when entering our glorious Kingdom."


    "..."


    "Many young men dreaming that they will become a knight and become the part of Arkmunster knighthood..."


    Volya looked at Clement for a while and then looked again at the place that Clement point. He could see the small wall from where his place now. He then smiles and then says,


    "Everyone has a dream..."


    "Yes, it is,"answered Clement joyfully.


    Volya nods at him and then continue to follow everyone towards Onryx. It needs around half the day to arrive at Onryx from Ironforge, and the moment Volya enters the city, he keeps silent because of the impressive city in front of him.


    Different from Ironforge that created inside a very beautiful cave, Onryx created right beside a very big cliff and it has a lot of levels there. Clement then says to Volya,


    "Welcome to Onryx, our greatest capital city!"


    Clement then start to chase Aubert, Albert, and Villias that gather there. Meanwhile, Volya still stops there as he tried to remember everything that he sees now. Suddenly, someone pats his shoulder. He looked behind him and see Romain.


    Romain then takes off his helmet and says,


    "This is our capital city, Onryx. Really impressive, right?


    "Indeed..." answer Volya without looking back from the city.


    "This city consists of four main level with four different gates. The first level is where every citizen and outsider gather at Onryx. You will find the guild building here, together with market and most importantly blacksmith. And not only there, but you could also find a very cool park there. And we Haegian always calls the first level as ''The Plaza of Mountain''."


    Volya nods after hearing Romain explanation as he sees a cloud from blacksmith there. Romain then continues,


    "The second level is where scholar from Haegia gather, you could see a lot of libraries there and maybe you could find someone who could give you a recommendation on any book here."


    "Let me guess, your people will call the second level as ''The Scholar of Haegia.''"


    "Ahahahaha... You got it right."


    Both of them interrupted by Albert that gives them a sign to enter Onryx. Romain nods and puts his helmet back. He then continues,


    "I will continue it while we start entering the city."


    "Alright."


    Volya passed through the gate that created from wood. The gate height is around 2 - 3 m and that makes him really tiny compared to it. And the moment he enters the city, he could see that they use brick as the road in order to help people to move around easily there.


    He looked around him and could see the difference between Onryx and Ironforge in term of the building, as Ironforge is limited with the ceiling, Onryx didn''t. The building at Onryx is higher than at Ironforge and have more ornament there. He also could see that most of them have a very big window where people could see each other.


    While they moving slowly towards the second gate, Romain then says,


    "Alright, let''s continue it..."


    "Ah... Yes."


    "The third level is where the administration for the national problem will be processed. If there is a problem inside the Haegia territory, then it will enter there first. A lot of higher rank knight reside there and they also work there."


    "Only for administration?"


    "I am still not finished it, you know... There also where the barrack for Knight-in-arms train themselves for Haegia. And there also where academy for a knight building is. You will find a lot of knight at that place. Oh, you also could see the Five Great Knights of Haegia live."


    "Except Sir Albert, right?"


    "Yes."


    Both of them then passed the second gate. The difference between the first and second gate is there is two statue of a person that using a robe and have book and staff at each hand and mirroring each other.


    As they passed through the gate, Volya could see a lot of people using the same robe as the statue there. Not only that, but he also sees a lot of building that quite tall at each side. He can''t hide his awe at all and that really make Romain laughs. Romain then says,


    "Sir Volya..."


    "Huh?"


    "Well, I can''t call you like before if we are still inside this formation."


    "Ah... Yes..."


    "Then let me continue it."


    "Yes, please."


    "Alright... The last level is where the palace it. You should know about it, right?"


    "Yes, the place where your King and Queen lived and where every rule created or abolished depends on the situation or ruler''s mood."


    "Your tongue really sharp..."


    "Well..."


    "Not like I mind it, though."


    Both of them laughs together until arrived at the third gate. There they could see two statues of knights that looked like guarded the gate. They passed through it, and Volya could feel the different feeling from the first two levels.


    He could feel that everyone really focused and they are full determination to protect Haegia. Suddenly their convoy stopped and that really surprised Volya. The moment he looked in front of him, he could see that Albert and Villias looked at him.


    He then steered his horse towards them and then asks them,


    "Is there something wrong with me, Sir Albert, Sir Villias?"


    "No, it''s not," answered Albert


    "Then, why are the convoy stopped?" ask Volya.


    "We are waiting for the other three Great Knights of Haegia. We will escort you when you are at the palace later," answer Villias


    Volya looked really surprised and then he thinks, ''Wait, why must I be escorted by the Great Knight? Did they think I am really important or they think I am a threat? The more I looked at it, it''s more on the later."


    While Volya thinking about it, Villias could see three knights that moving towards him. He then salutes them and then shouts,


    "It''s an honor for all of you answering my call and swiftly come here."


    "If you the one who calls us, of course, we will come as fast as possible, Sir Villias."answer the first knight.


    "The moment I get that message, I immediately leave my post at Arkmunster to here... I really eager to meet with the person who helps our Queen." says the second knight.


    "A man from the forest... I have a lot of question about him... But, I believe Sir Mikhail will have more question than mine." says the last one with a very soft voice.


    "Then, how about the three of you introduce yourself to him? He is near Sir Albert right now," says Villias.


    The three knights look beside Albert and see Volya there. Volya quits shocked to see that the three of them suddenly walks towards him with an uneasy aura.


    Until one of them, the knight with grey armor that has an ornament of a dragon on the crest and Haegia crest on the shoulder takes off its helmet. Volya could see a man around age 40 with a very strong chin and strong gaze. He also has a very unique hairstyle, as he let his hair untidy. He looks at Volya and then bows at him, and then he says,


    "Let me introduce myself, my name is Vitaly Kalinic. I am one of the Five Great Knights of Haegia and the one who responsible for assembling the knight in case of emergency or war."


    Before Volya could say anything, the second knight move beside him. His armor also has a dragon ornament, but it''s more modest on the chest and the helmet. The second knight takes off its helmet and lets his black hair shown to the world. Volya guess that the man is around his 30s. He then says,


    "My name is Phillipus Cortes, also one of the Five Great Knights of Haegia and the one who responsible in leading the knight at Arkmunster. And you could call me Phillip when we meet again."


    And then the last one move near Volya. The last knight has a silver armor with dragon ornament on the gauntlet and chest armor. The helmet also resembles a dragon that gazing at the enemy and will not hesitate if someone attacks it. The knight then takes off its helmet. Volya could see a woman at her 30s with a light brown hair until shoulder. She looked at Volya and then says,


    "My name is Ludmila Karychenko. I am also one of the Five Great Knights of Haegia together with Sir Albert, Sir Villias, Sir Phillip, and Sir Vitaly. I am the one who assigns the woman knights for protecting the palace and Ironforge in emergency and peaceful situation."


    Volya then got off from his horse and then bows at them. He then says,


    "My name is Volya Portar, the hermit that lived at Wildespring for several years. It''s nice to meet you."


    "It''s nice to meet you too, Sir Volya," answer Phillip.


    Volya really surprised that one of them quite friendly at him, but his surprise changed to awe for everyone at Haegia. Not long after that, Villias suddenly says,


    "I can''t believe all of you takes off his helmet when introducing yourself."


    "It''s ethical for us to show our face when we introducing ourself, right?" says Phillip as he put on his helmet again.


    "I think you are right."


    "Don''t say that you didn''t show your face at him, Sir Villias." says Ludmila as she put on his helmet.


    "I will later when we meet our King and Queen."


    "That''s our knight leader... Ahahahahahaha," says Vitaly as he walks towards Villias.


    Volya could see that the knight are a close-knit bunch and looks more like a small family. He smiles at them until Albert pats him. Albert then looks at the other knights and says,


    "Let''s go! I believe our King and Queen already waiting for him."


    "Sir, Yes Sir!" shouts the other.


    "Then, let''s continue our journey, Sir Volya," says Albert to Volya.


    "Sir, Yes Sir."


    He then takes on his horse again and they start to walk towards the last gate. The gate where the wheel of fortune will unite several strings of fate into one line that could reshape the world.

 10 Estrudiantes

    Volya is waiting for his turn to meet with the King and Queen of Haegia at one large room inside the Haegia Palace. There he could see a lot of painting of several noble that already lived for many years at Haegia, even the first noble at the kingdom. But the biggest painting there is the painting of the Haegia first King.


    He looks at the painting and then looked outside. If someone sees him, they know that Volya is anxious and restless. He always repeats one word for himself, ''You can do it, you can do it.''


    Even though he already reading a lot of people future, even a noble, but this time is different as he will reading the future from the Five Great Knights of Haegia and also the King and Queen of Haegia itself.


    He moves around the room in order to calm himself. But rather than becomes calmer, it makes him more restless and anxious. Until someone says,


    "Volya, you are going to make a big hole if you continue walking around like that ahahahahaha. Just calm down."


    "I can''t calm myself, Romain! It''s because I am reading your King AND Queen future!" says Volya as he looked at the knight that stands at the door.


    That knight is Romain Ambros, the knight that become his protector at Ironforge and also at this palace while the Five Great Knights are preparing something.


    Romain then laughs quite hard and says,


    "I know that feel! The first time when I get an honor as a knight, I also feel anxious and restless. But, the moment that time comes, suddenly that''s feeling gone into the thin air."


    "It''s easy to say rather than do it, you know. And I believe that only you!" says Volya as he gives Romain a cold gaze


    "Come on... Just take a deep breath and..."


    "Urgh... What if I see a bad future when I looking at your future? Will they execute me? Will they imprison me? Aarrrrgghhhh..." says Volya that still not convinced with that.


    "Come on... I believe you could do it," says Romain as he encourages Volya.


    Volya only sighs after hearing that and then looks at the window once more.Romain then says,


    "I still remember something that you said before regarding the future..."


    "Huh? What is that?" ask Volya


    "The future that you see will happen in our life depends on the path we take. And from that path, there also a chance that we will change that future."


    "Well... Yes, I am saying that..."


    "Then, you could tell that as a disclaimer to them."


    "But, what if the one that I see is something bad first? Arrrggghhh..."


    Romain only sighs after hearing Volya make the pressure become heavier by himself. He then looks at the door, thinks for a while, and says,


    "For some reason, they take a lot of time for preparing something. Did someone have a meeting with our King?"


    "Maybe this has a connection with the coach that I see before entering the Palace," says Volya that overhear what Romain just said


    Romain remembers about the coach that Volya just mentions. The insignia at the coach is from Ostonorid Empire, the empire that takes control the west side of Therious Island. He then mumbles, "Did they find out that we enter Wildespring without any permit and make some mess there?"


    While Romain thinking about that, Volya then sits down and then looks at the ceiling. He closes his eyes for a while and tried to hear something. He tried to hear and see the string of fate of the people at that Palace. After a while, he finds all of them and mumbles, "At least I find their string... Then I could see their future faster than when I am reading the townsfolk fortune at Ironforge. Hopefully, I could get out of that room fast."


    "Volya..."


    "..."


    "Volya!"


    "Huh?!" says Volya as he quite surprised with someone called him.


    He could see Romain that thinking about something. Volya then looked at Romain and asks,


    "What is it, Romain?"


    "Do you have a magic that could see around the building?" asked Romain


    "Huh? No, I don''t have it."


    "Or maybe the magic that you used at that house back then... Could the trap triggered when someone already inside it?"


    "Unfortunately, no."


    "Is that so..."


    "But, you don''t need to worry..."


    "Why did you say that?"


    "Someone already put a barrier here and it is better than mine. If I intervene here, there is a possibility that it will do harm on us."


    "Huh? Someone already put a barrier?"


    "I could assume that one of the people that come from that coach is a mage just like me, but better."


    "Is that so..."


    Volya observes Romain for a while and then asks him,


    "Then, why did you ask that to me?"


    "Well when someone from another kingdom come, I''m afraid that they have some plot for our King and Queen. Especially after the last incident," answer Romain.


    Volya looked at Romain and then sighs. He knows about the last incident that Romain says as that where he met with all knight and the queen of Haegia, Helena Estrudiantes, at Wildespring. Not long after that, Volya says,


    "But, judging by the number of guards that come with the coach, I could say that it''s just a mere meeting."


    "There is no such a thing called as a mere meeting if a representative from another kingdom come. Especially if they meet with Our King and Queen," says Romain.


    "Is that so..."


    Romain then observes the coach and could see a knight with a silver armor and have a lion insignia on the crest. Not only that, but the knight also has a shield with a lion and sun ornament on it. Romain then says,


    "That knight is one of the higher ranks from the neighboring kingdom. From there, I know that it is someone important from there."


    "Hooo... Then, where is the mage? I want to see them" ask Volya.


    "The neighboring kingdom, or empire to be more precise, have several Royal Mage and most of them hold a high position in the country. So, there is a possibility that it''s one of them that come," answer Romain.


    "A Royal Mage, huh..."


    Not long after that, two men walking towards the coach and enter it. And the convoy started to leave the palace yard. Volya looked at the coach and together with that, he feels that the magic surrounding the palace is gone. He sighs and then looked at Romain and says,


    "Then, at least Sir Albert should come here soon, right?"


    "Should be," answer Romain


    "Good. The faster the better."


    "So, you already calm yourself, huh?"


    "Calm... Yes, I am calm... As calm as a rock!" says Volya smiles.


    Romain knows that Volya actually still anxious about it, but he let it slide. And at the same time, they hear someone knock on the door. Romain then walks towards the door and opens it. There stands the woman knight, Ludmila. She salutes Romain and then says,


    "Sir Volya, please follow me to the throne chamber. The other already waiting for you there."


    "Sir, Yes Sir!" says Volya as he walks towards Ludmila.


    "And Sir Romain, you could wait at the door of the throne chamber with Sir Petros. Sir Villias appoint both of you for that."


    "Sir, Yes Sir!" shouts Romain


    "You need to find Sir Petros first, meanwhile you will walk with me towards the throne chamber, Sir Volya."


    Volya nods and walks with Ludmila to the throne chamber. While Romain looked at Volya and Ludmila, and then smile at them. He mumbles, "Hopefully everything will be alright."


    After that, he starts to search for Sir Petros. Meanwhile, Volya walks behind Ludmila in silence until she asks him,


    "Sir Volya, could I address without ''Sir'' in front of you?"


    "That''s alright. I am just a mere commoner after all," answer Volya.


    "Then, Volya..."


    Suddenly Ludmila stops and that surprise Volya. She gazes at him and then says,


    "What did you do back then? Are you using our Queen for something?"


    "Huh?"


    "And who are you? A commoner suddenly comes out of nowhere and help our Queen like that..."


    Volya observes every expression from Ludmila and he knows that she distrusts him. So, he closes his eyes and says,


    "I don''t have any plan at all with your Queen."


    "Huh?"


    "What I do is protecting Wildespring from any chaos that will come in the future."


    "Are you implying that our Queen is a threat?"


    "No, your Queen isn''t the threat for the forest... The incident that happens back then in the Wildespring is the threat and it will cause a wildfire in this world."


    Ludmila really surprised to hear that comes from Volya''s mouth. A mere peasant that lived at the forest calmly says that.Volya then sighs and says,


    "Wildespring is a neutral area, and every Kingdom in this world knows about that. The moment they know about that incident, everything will turn from bad to worse."


    "Are you trying to blackmail us with that after knowing that accident?"


    "No. What will I gain by blackmailing all of you? Nothing."


    Ludmila observes Volya for a while and then nods. She knows that Volya answer everything with full of honesty and he didn''t falter even after she asks those question. She then smiles at him and says,


    "At least, I could believe you."


    "Huh?"


    "Sir Albert, Sir Clement, and Sir Aubert held high regard about you and it seems the incident back then is the one that shapes their opinion towards you."


    "Then, why are you asking that Lady Ludmila?" asks Volya with a puzzled face.


    "Sir Villias and Sir Vitaly are asking me to look after you. They seem not completely convinced that you are not planning anything with Haegia."


    "And is that including you?"


    "At first yes, I distrust you. But after I see your honest answer and your expression, that assures me that you are trustworthy."


    "Eh?"


    "And if suddenly you become the people of Haegia, I will not be surprised because of your honesty. After all, we really appreciate honest people like you."


    Volya smiles after hearing that and then he hears Ludmila says,


    "And I heard from Romain that you praise our Kingdom because we already abolished slavery, right?"


    "Huh? Did Sir Romain tell you about that?" ask Volya surprised


    "Ahahahaha... You don''t need to be surprised like that. Everyone could talk to me as I am not as scary as everyone think, especially Romain"


    "A... Alright..."


    "And I believe there is a connection between that comment and your past, right?"


    "Eh?"


    "That mark on your arm... That''s a chain bracelet mark, right?"


    Volya looked at his left arm and could see the mark of chain bracelet there. He then looked at Ludmila that continues,


    "That''s the sign that you are formerly a slave. Did someone buy you or did someone save you?"


    "..."


    "It seems you..."


    "My foster father save me when I am running away from the barrack. You could say that I''m grateful for my fate back then," answer Volya.


    "Did your foster father that lived with you in Wildespring? And did he the one who teaches you about magic?"


    "Yes, that''s correct."


    "Ahahahahahaha... And I believe you are really glad that happen or did you curse yourself because you are the only one saved by your foster father?"


    Volya really surprised to hear that from a stranger such as Ludmila. Meanwhile, Ludmila stops and looks at Volya for a while. Volya knows that Ludmila is smiling at him and hears she says,


    "I think that hit a target, huh."


    "..."


    "Ahahahaha... I''m sorry if I open a closed wound, it''s just I really want to know every crook and cranny of the people that I just meet. I''m really sorry about that."


    "Ah... That''s... Alright..."


    Volya then sighs and from there he will remember that if he meets with Ludmila again, he must prepare himself with a lot of question like that. After that, they walk in silence until they arrived at the throne chamber. Ludmila knocks on the door, asks for permission, and then open the door. After that, she bows at the man at the throne and says,


    "Captain of the Lady Knight, Ludmila Karychenko, come as you order My King."


    "Thank you Lady Ludmila, did you bring the hermit here?" asked one man with a red tunic with gold silk and wearing a dark brown trouser together with dark brown shoes. He also wears a crown on his dark hair.


    The man looked at Volya and gently smile at him. Volya then bows at him and then hears him,


    "Thank you for saving my beautiful wife, young hermit."


    "It''s nothing special as it''s our job as a human to help each other no matter the stature of each people in this world," answer Volya as he still bows in front of the man.


    "Stands up and look at me. I want to know your name, young hermit."


    "Yes."


    Volya then looks at the man in front of him and says,


    "My name is Volya Portar, a mage that lived at Wildespring Forest."


    "Volya Portar... What a nice name..." answer the man.


    Suddenly, the man looked beside him and he only smiles. Besides him, a woman with brown long hair until shoulder gazes at him and seem to scold him. The woman using a red dress until leg and wearing a crown. And both of their attire have the insignia of Haegia.


    Volya peek at the woman for a second and he knows that she is Helena Estrudiantes, the Queen of Haegia. He then looks at the man and hears,


    "Then, let me introduce myself. My name is Paulo Estrudiantes, the King of Haegia. Hopefully, you are quite content with my Kingdom, Sir Volya."


    "I am really content with it, O Great King of Haegia." answer Volya.


    "Good to hear that. And I believe you already know my wife name, right?"


    Volya didn''t answer his question as he didn''t know anything about the King. Suddenly, two knights rush towards Volya with their spear pointing on Volya''s neck. Volya really surprised with that and looks at the Great Knight of Haegia that standing around him. The five of them looks really calm and at the same time are preparing their respective weapon.


    Volya then looks at Paulo and then hears him says,


    "You know, what you do is an insult when you ask someone else wife name. Especially if she is the Queen of another Kingdom."


    "Isn''t it something natural for someone to ask that when something unusual happen?" ask Volya as he tried to think a way to run away from this situation.


    "Still that''s an insult. And did you know what happens when someone insults a King?"


    "Death penalty," answer Volya with unfazed expression.


    Volya takes a deep breath and tried to find a way to run from this situation once more. He calmly looked around his surrounding and then look for an exit. Either it passes through the door or through the window as he can''t teleport himself to Wildespring because of his location really far from Wildespring.


    He clenches his grip and prepares himself for the worst. Meanwhile, Paulo really surprised to hear Volya''s answer. At first, he gazes coldly at Volya. But then, he smiles and laughs at him.


    Volya really surprised and see Paulo orders the knight to stand back and hears him says,


    "Ahahahaha... I can''t believe you will answer that with a stern face like that. It seems like you already prepared yourself for the worst."


    "..."


    "And I am sorry about it, I''m just joking. It''s just a play, you know."


    "My Dear, I believe you should apologize to him for that. Look at him, his face quite pale," says Helena suddenly.


    "Ahahahahaha... I know... I know."


    Helena then scolds Paulo about that, while Volya looks at the Five Great Knights of Haegia. He could see that the five of them looked really enjoying that, especially Ludmila that tried to hold her laugh with help of Phillip shoulder.


    After a while, Paulo then stands up together with Helena and walk together to Volya. Paulo then says,


    "I''m sorry about that. I know that you are really worried about that, right?"


    "That''s alright..." answer Volya as he smiles at Paulo


    "Then, I will say it again. Thank you very much. I don''t know what will happen if my wife died back then."


    "You''re welcome, Milord."


    Paulo then looks at Helena and then asks her,


    "Then, besides I tell my gratitude to him, why is he here?"


    "Did you didn''t hear what Sir Albert just said before?" asked Helena with a little smile on her face


    "Ahahahahaha... It just my mind still occupied with the sudden intrusion from Brigandy family before."


    "It just like you, my dear."


    "Then, could you tell me why is he here? Is it about giving him some gift or something?"


    "He will look at both of your fortunes, milord," says Albert as he walks to the throne.


    "Is that so? This hermit also a fortune-teller... That''s impressive."


    Volya bows after hearing that from Paulo. Paulo then smiles at him and then says,


    "Then, could you see our future?"


    "Yes, I am." answer Volya


    "Then, I have a question for you," says Helena


    "What is it, Your Highness?" says Volya.


    "Could we believe everything that you will be said? And will that happen to us in the future?"


    Volya looks at Helena, Paulo, and then to the knights behind him. He could see that Romain is peeking at them and he smiles. He then says,


    "The future is something that you couldn''t predict. But, I will assure you this, even if you take the different path you eventually will reach that, too."


    "So, this future that you will say is something that we could set as a goal," says Paulo.


    "Yes. But, do note one thing. Just like I said before, the future is unpredictable. There also a slim chance that it will not happen." continues Volya.


    "Is that so..."


    "Even after knowing this fact... Will both of you let me read your fortune, Milord?" asks Volya


    Paulo and Helena look at each other and then both of them the nod. Paulo then says,


    "Tell our future, Young Man. And we will treasure it as our gratitude for you."


    "As you will..."


    Volya walks towards Paulo and Helena, and he read their future together with the other five knights. Before he knows it, he finished looks at all of their fortune and then he escorted back to Ironforge where he will spent his last day at Haegia.

 11 Memory

    Six hours already passed since he looked at the King and Queen of Haegia future and the five knights. He then sighs and says,


    "That one really thrilling, but at the same time, I feel really relieved. I must agree with Romain."


    He walks around the street of Ironforge in order to look around it for the last time before he left Ironforge tomorrow. He then mumbles,


    "I can''t believe everything that I see about their future is really good... Like King Paulo will help this Kingdom to its Golden Age and Queen Helena will get something unexpected in the future, something that will change her mind. I can''t hold my laugh after seeing the face that they have when I say something like that."


    Volya then laughs a little bit and then walks around once more. But, he remembers something about Villias'' future. He mumbles,


    "But, what about the severed limb there... That future that I saw... is the one that really different from the other. What the meaning of that?"


    After he stays silent for a while, he shakes his head and tried to let that thing out of his mind. He then continues to walk towards the market area of Ironforge, until he arrived at one fruit stall. He stopped there and then buy some apple from there. The owner looked at Volya and really surprised to see him there, and then he says,


    "Sir Volya, I can''t believe I meet you face to face like this!"


    "Huh... Err... Yes... Do I know you?" ask Volya with a puzzled face


    "Ahahaha... I''m sorry if I confused you... My daughter met you yesterday to let you read her future. And her future hit it''s marked as she meets with her other part."


    "I... am happy to hear that?" answer Volya again quite unsure about it


    "Ahahahahaha... I''m sorry about it... I just show you some gratitude for everything that you said for her."


    "Ahahahaha... Then, the wheel of fortune is really on her side. That good to hear that."


    "So, for my gratitude, I will give you this apple for you."


    "Wait... I don''t need five of it."


    "No... It''s my gratitude for you. Just accept it, Sir Volya."


    "Thank you."


    "Then... Sir Volya, when will you leave Haegia?"


    "Tomorrow I will leave on the dusk."


    "That''s really bad because we will have a festival in a week."


    "Is that so? Probably I will return before the festival."


    "Then, I will gladly prepare a lodging for you."


    "Thank you very much... I can''t express my gratitude for anything."


    The seller smiles at Volya and Volya leaves the shop with a lot of apples in his hand. He walks towards his lodging and thinking, "Living in a city... It feels really refreshing and if I stay here, I''m sure that I will feel really happy."


    Suddenly he takes a glance at the alley near him. He then mumbles, "But, it only reminds me of my past as a street urchin with Big Sis and that girl. Before my devilish parent sells me as a slave."


    He sighs and then looks at the apple in his hand. He says,


    "But, I could say that I am lucky that someone helps me. I don''t know what will happen if Father didn''t help me back then."


    Volya then glances again at the alleyway and walks there. He then says,


    "I have a lot of apples here. Do you want some? I believe I can''t eat all of them by myself."


    No one answers him, but Volya continues to walk and offers the apple. Not long after that, two people show up from near one of the barrels there. A young girl and her little brother. Volya stops right in front of them and then says,


    "Do you want this?"


    The younger brother looks at Volya and seems like to take the apple. But, her sister looks mad at Volya and slaps his hand. Volya smile a little and says,


    "I know that feels... when someone offers food to my friend and I at the alleyway like this... And my sister will shove that away like you."


    "..."


    "I know how it feels to be really weak like both of you. In order to survive, we must do anything... Stealing, killing, beating... But, when someone does something like this we always on alert."


    Volya then looks at the apple that falls and then using his magic to clean it. The kids in front of him really surprised to see him that cleans the apple. They are really intrigued by what they just saw. He then says,


    "But, after someone saved me after I am being sold as a slave... I want to do the same thing as what he did to me."


    Volya then offers the apple to them once more and then says,


    "Hopefully, you will... huh?"


    The two kids suddenly walk towards Volya and the little girl says,


    "Mister, could you show me another trick?"


    "Tricks? Ah... Alright." answer Volya knowing what she means.


    He then makes a little flame that resembles every animal that he knows. He then tells a little tale to them while giving them the apples that he has. The two kids accept it and eat them while seeing Volya''s play. After ten minutes, he sits down with them and says,


    "What do you think about it?"


    "It''s really cool, Mister." answer the little boy


    "Good to hear that," says Volya as he smiling at them.


    He then gives them his two last apples and then says,


    "You could have those. I get those apples from that seller over there."


    "Are you sure about that, Mister?" asked the young girl.


    "Yes."


    "Thank you, Mister."


    "Then, I will take my leave."


    Before Volya could move, the two kids hold his cloth and the young girl says,


    "Where are you going, Mister?"


    "Ah... I will be going home to meet my animal friend," answer Volya


    "Then, are you going back here again?" asked the young boy.


    Volya thinks for a while, pats their head, and then says,


    "I will... And while I am away, I will tell one of the knights that I know to look after both of you."


    "Eh?"


    "And when we meet again, I will play something else to entertain you."


    Both of them look at each other and then see Volya that show his pinky finger. He then says,


    "It''s my promise to both of you."


    "Eh? Are you sure?" asked the young girl


    "Yes, I am."


    Both of them smiles at Volya and makes a pinky finger with him. After that, Volya waves to them and walks towards his lodging. When he arrived at the lodging he sees two knights stand there. Both of them are Ludmila and Vasily.


    Ludmila smiles at Volya, while Vasily looks at Volya with a nod. Volya really surprised to see them and then bow at them. Suddenly, Ludmila says,


    "Those two little kids, let us look after them."


    "Eh? Did you..." says Volya that interrupted by Vasily,


    "Yes. We saw you when you tell them a tale. You are really someone that will entertain the other only to see them smile. Not someone with a bad intention."


    Volya smiles at them and then he asks them why they are here. Ludmila then says,


    "We come here to give our parting gift for you. It''s our well-known leather gauntlet created by the man from armory area."


    "Hopefully this could help you protect your hand a little, especially when the little fox that Sir Albert saw at Wildespring bite your arm and your hawk land on your hand." continues Vasily


    "Thank you very much, I really appreciate them," answer Volya as he bows at them.


    "And your action quite sensible when we judging by the politic situation here. Helping the knight so we will not send our army to attack that forest," says Vasily.


    "And Sir Villias really commends your bravery back then... Ahahahahahaha... You do not flinch even an inch." praise Ludmila


    "The truth is I am frozen by fear because of that." jokes Volya


    The three of them laugh together, and Vasily says,


    "I can''t believe a mere commoner like you really surprise me. And you indeed have a very kind and free heart."


    "Is that so? Thank you for your compliment," says Volya


    "Then, we will take our leave. Hopefully, you enjoy your stay here," says Vasiliy as he walks past Volya


    "I really enjoyed it if looking on your Ruler''s fate doesn''t include."


    "Good to hear that... See you later then!"


    Vasiliy leaves Volya and Ludmila alone as he needs to report something to Villias. Ludmila then looks at Volya and says,


    "I have a sneaky feeling that you are going to meet us soon."


    "Is it?"


    "I don''t know if that something good or not, but judging by how you could adapt with all us here, I could say that''s something good for us."


    Volya smiles at Ludmila and then Ludmila bow at him as she remembers that she has something else to do. Volya then sighs and says,


    "Easy to adapt, huh?"


    He then looks at the ceiling of the city and mumbles,


    "Live in the city... It only reminds me with a painful memory, when I am still little like a street urchin with my big Sister, especially after seeing the little kids that I met in the alley before."


    There is a brief pause before he continues,


    "And it''s really tiring for me to pretend like this... Am I really easy to adapt like that? Or my act is a top-notch that everyone thinks like that? I don''t know."


    He then sighs once more, enters his lodging, and takes some rest as he will leave tomorrow.


    The next day, Volya brings everything that necessary for him. All the Five-Knights and The Queen and King are with him at Arkmunster. He then looks behind and says,


    "Thank you for everything. It''s really an honor for me to live in a great Kingdom like this."


    "You''re welcome, Young Hermit. The next time you come back here, we will greet you with open arms," says Paulo


    "Thank you, very much."


    He then starts to walk away passing through the rocky road to Wildespring Forrest once more. Villias looks at Volya''s figure that leaves Haegia and then says,


    "You says that he is the right person for Romain to become stronger... Am I right, Sir Albert?"


    "Yes. It is," says Albert


    "But it feels like..."


    "He doesn''t feel comfortable in the city... I assume its something with his past." says one old man behind the Five Knights as he interrupted Villias.


    Villias and Albert look behind them and nods. Albert then looks at Volya once more and says,


    "But, you know what... I believe Romain also could change him a bit."


    "Ahahahaha... I believe that will happen Sir Albert," says Ludmila after she hears what they are talking about.


    "And... I have a sneaky feeling that... We will meet him soon."


    After they say that, they move back to their respective post with Villias and Ludmila escorts their King and Queen to their throne.


    Several kilometers from Wildespring, a band of bandits attack one small village. One of the bandits shouts,


    "Give everything that you have now!"


    The villager can''t say anything as they frozen from fear. The bandits continue to threaten them until one of them see one woman with staff walking towards them. He then says,


    "What are you doing here, young girl? Do you want to give something to us? Maybe your body?"


    The woman mumbles something and then smiles at them. She then slices one of the bandit''s throats and says,


    "Ah... I need your body... For something..."


    "You..."


    Before they could do anything, they see the one that died in front of her suddenly stands up. He looks at them and then the woman says,


    "Could you murder all of them? I need them after all..."


    And with a snap of a finger, that single zombie kills entire village alone. After that, the woman observes around her and says,


    "Ehehehehehe... I wonder if this time could lure him out... Ahahahahahahaha."

 12 Fallen Village

    It''s been two days since Volya leaves Haegia. He walks through the road that he thinks it will bring him to Wildespring, as he remembers that his father once says that ''All roads lead to Wildespring''. But, one thing that he didn''t calculate. It''s the distance from there to Wildespring. He then mumbles,


    "Should have asked Romain or Sir Aubert back then about the fastest road to Wildespring."


    He then sighs and then looks around him. The scenery already changes a lot from the rocky road around Arkmunster into a green field that full of flower and small animals. He takes a deep breath and smiles for a while.


    But, suddenly a loud sound from his stomach reminds him that he is really hungry since last night. He really didn''t think it thoroughly about his way to Wildespring, and he doesn''t have any food right now. The good thing is he found a small water source for him to drink, but that didn''t enough. He then looks at the sky and mumbles,


    "It seems that pesky hawk isn''t here... If only he is here, maybe I could ask him to find some food for me."


    He then sighs and then sits for a while. He looks around him and then just realized that there are not many people around there. It looks like an abandoned area, but this kind of situation isn''t rare near the Wraitus Kingdom. The Wraitus Kingdom is another Kingdom at Therious in which reside near Wildespring and the one that makes an outpost around Wildespring. He remembers the bad rumors about Wraitus and remembers the mission back then was a deal between Haegia and Wraitus in order to annihilate the bandits that Volya kills.


    After sitting for a while, Volya then remembers that there should be a small village near him. He then looks around him and starts to cast a spell. He made a light blue crest under him and says,


    "Let the breeze of the wind lift those who not fear with anything! Lift!"


    The crest has gone and Volya starts to fly to the sky. He looks around there and looks around him. At first, he only sees an ocean of tree around him and some bird that really surprised to see him. He continues to observe around until he finds a black smoke from distance. He then mumbles,


    "That indeed the village, but looking from the smoke there... It seems that one band of bandit was raiding that village."


    He wants to look around again, but his stomach growl becomes louder. So, he chooses to land and says,


    "I will go there! I will perform fantastic magic in order to soothe the villager''s heart and if possible will look at their fortune in exchange for anything! If I didn''t get any food now... I will definitely die this night!"


    Volya then dashed towards the village. It needs around thirty minutes to arrive there and he immediately disappointed. The village already burned and the blood spilled on the ground. The building already becomes rubble and everything is gone. He looks around the village and didn''t find anything there. Not even a pet or vegetable around. He then falls on his knee, sobbing, and shouts,


    "Argh... Is my luck really low?! Really?"


    He then starts to stand up and looking around once more. When he looking around, he found something that really odd. He didn''t find any corpse around him. When he checks on the horse track, it didn''t show a sign that the bandit is leaving the area after they finished raiding the enemy. It''s more on the bandit that run away with fear, but they failed to do so. He follows the trails and sees it suddenly disappears. Volya then checks the surrounding and mumbles,


    "How in this world the horse suddenly stops and disappears like this? Huh? This residual mana..."


    Volya knows that someone used large-scale magic there. He then gathers the residual mana and from there he knows the type of magic that used at that village. He says,


    "No way... Someone really used the reanimation magic and curse magic at the same time?! Did they really disregard the other life like this?"


    He then starts to walk around the village once more and he feels the residual mana gathers in the middle of the village. He then looks at the sky and then at the ground. He mumbles,


    "So... It seems the scenario is the villager are gathered here by the bandit and suddenly someone ambushed them and murder all of them here... Who in this world could... Huh? Don''t say..."


    Volya remembers one mission that posted at the mission board at Belcrest. About one magus that roaming around near Wildespring and using reanimation magic as their magic. He knows that all of the Kingdom is searching for that magus, but none of them knows the face of that magus. He then mumbles,


    "Then, it''s not strange if they keep an eye on me. As a magus that live at Wildespring, of course, they will think that I am that criminals."


    He starts to find any clue about the village attacker, but because of the severe condition of the village it really hard for him to find it. He then makes a small familiar to find around the area. That''s when he sees a man in a white robe and white hair. He stops for a while as the familiar sees the man smile at it and suddenly vanish into thin air. Volya that sees him says,


    "Don''t say that he... No... No... He always values other human life... Of course, he shouldn''t be the culprit in doing this... No way... Then, why is he around here?"


    Volya changes the familiar objectives to find the man, but he chooses to stop as his stomach already growls again. He thinks that he needs to find any food as soon as possible if he didn''t want to pass out. So, he starts to search around the village again and he could find one loaf of bread. He takes the bread, cleans it with magic, and then says,


    "Whoever that have this bread before, I''m really sorry... At the same time thank you for saving me from this hunger."


    Volya eats the bread and when he finished he continue to find any clue for the magus that destroy the village and the man that he found. When he walks towards the entrance of the village, he could see a group of knight gathers there. The banner of the group is two dragons that holding a crest. Volya knows that banner and he also sees three knights with a familiar armor gathers there as they talk about something. They are a group of knights from Haegia and from the armor of the leader, he knows that they are Albert Martin, Villias Pavlov, and Ludmila Karychenko.


    Volya''s instinct says that he needs to move slowly from that area so none of them find him and questioned him. But, it''s futile as one of the knights saw him and his instinct says that he needs to run. Unfortunately, Villias see him and he smiles at him. He then shouts,


    "Volya Portar! Is that you that I see right here and right now?!"


    His shouts really loud and that really surprised Volya. He peeks around and he only could sigh knowing that if he really runs away will make him a primary suspect there. He then walks towards the band of knights and hears Albert asks him,


    "What are you doing here, Sir Volya?"


    "Well... At first, I want to buy some food here. You know I miscalculate when I am planning my way home to Wildespring. And the moment I reach here, it''s already like this... So... This isn''t my fault!" answer Volya


    Villias looks at Ludmila and then nods at her. Ludmila immediately points her sword at Volya and Volya raise his head. Volya then says,


    "I''m telling the truth!"


    "Is that so..." ask Villias


    "Yes, I am! For what I destroyed this village only for a mere food?!"


    "You should know that we searching for a magus that making a ruckus around here... And you know you are really fitting that details," says Ludmila


    "No... No... No... I''m innocent! I didn''t do anything like that! I''m really serious here!" shouts Volya that started panicking.


    Suddenly, he hears Ludmila and Villias that laughs a little. Volya opens his eye and sees Ludmila already put away her sword. Villias then says,


    "I''m really sorry about that... We must keep cautious with any situation here."


    "Eh?"


    "But, you don''t need to worry as we know that you are harmless... At least in our eye," says Ludmila as she sheathed her sword.


    "A... Alright... And please don''t joke like that! Everyone definitely will be scared to death because of it!" protest Volya.


    "Ahahahaha... We know... We know... But, because it is you..." says Ludmila.


    Volya only could sighs and fall to the ground. He then looks at the sky and sees Villias walks towards him. He takes off his helmet and says,


    "Then, Sir Volya... Do you know something about this place?"


    "Besides this village known as the best village to produce several pickles, I don''t know anything," answer Volya.


    "I didn''t mean that..."


    "I know... I don''t anything about what really happens in this place."


    "Perhaps, you could use your power to see something that happens here? Probably you have that kind of magic in your disposal," ask Albert as he takes off his helmet.


    "Hmmm... Makes a projection of something that happens in the past? That one quite hard..." answer Volya


    Albert and Villias looked at each other and then they hear Volya''s stomach rumbling. Both of them looks at Volya that looks down with embarrassment and then says,


    "Err... Do you have some spare food for me?"


    Albert laughs at him and then orders Ludmila to call someone from the flank. Ludmila nods and starts to search for the person to bring some food. Ten minutes later, Ludmila back with another knight. The moment the knight see Volya he shouts,


    "Sir Volya?!"


    "Huh? For some reason this voice sounds really familiar," says Volya


    Volya looks at the knight and sees it''s take off its helmet. From there Volya sees Romain Ambros, the knight that with him while he is at Haegia. Volya looks at all of them and then says,


    "Hahahahaha... I can''t believe this, I meet all of you quite fast after I leave Arkmunster. Is the fate really want me to meet all of you?"


    "Probably that what really happens," answer Albert


    "Then, your Queen must be following all of you."


    "Unfortunately, no," answer Ludmila


    "It''s not unfortunate, Lady Ludmila. Our King needs her right now," says Villias


    "In an exchange of a puffy mouth. Our Queen really an interesting person," says Ludmila


    "Lady Ludmila..."


    "Uuuu... You are really cold, Sir Villias." protest Ludmila


    Volya smiles at them and then he sees Romain offers him some food. Volya shows some gratitude, and while he eats the food, Albert asks him,


    "I know that you say that you know nothing about what happened here. But, did you find any clue around here?"


    "Sort of," answer Volya as he eats the food offered by Romain.


    "What did you find?"


    "A residual of magic... Forbidden magic to be more precise."


    "Forbidden magic? Is this kind of magic really scary just like the name?" ask Romain


    "It depends on how powerful the mage that cast this type of magic. And judging from the flow around here..." says Volya as he looks above them.


    Albert and Romain look at Volya and could see a concerned face there. From there, they know the mage that they fight definitely really strong. Albert then asks him,


    "Then, do you know if this mage is the same as ''Smiling Angel of Death''?"


    "I don''t know... Even though I lived at Wildespring for many years, I never meet that person," answer Volya.


    "Hmmm, then this person is someone that really hard to catch and easily sneak around the area."


    "Sir Volya, do you have another clue about what happens in this place?" ask Romain


    "How to put it..."


    "Huh?" says Romain and Albert


    "What is it, Sir Volya?" ask Villias that overhear their conversation.


    "Well... It''s about any clue that I found in this place."


    "And, what is that?" asks Ludmila


    "Everyone in this place is gone... Even the cattle and horse. But there is no sign of them leaving this village. As if someone teleports them away from here to confuse anyone who comes to this village later."


    Villias, Ludmila, Albert, and Romain look at each other and seems in deep thought. Albert then nods and wants to ask him another question, but they hear one of the knight shouts,


    "We find several people walking to us."


    "Huh? There is some survivor?" asks Villias


    "Survivor... But, this smell..." says Volya that quite suspicious.


    Volya then runs towards the knights and that really surprised the four of them. They immediately put on their helmet and prepares their weapon. The moment they see Volya again, they feel a hostile presence from him.


    Albert walks towards Volya and sees in front of them. He could see around ten people are walking towards them. He then asks Volya,


    "Sir Volya, what happens? Did you feel that those villagers a threat?"


    Volya didn''t answer him immediately, rather he prepares his staff as if he will attacks all of them. Ludmila immediately jumps in front of him and says,


    "Are you out of your mind, Sir Volya?! They are only a mere villager?! Why are you attacking them?"


    "I must do it... For their sake," answer Volya.


    Villias looks at Volya for a while and then looks at the villager that coming towards them. From there he could see something odd from all of them. All of them walks really slow and most of them almost tripping. The moment one of them falls down, he sees that it''s lost his limb. He then shouts,


    "Everyone prepares your weapon now!"


    "Eh? Sir Villias?" says Ludmila with a surprised face


    "Sir Volya, do you know something about that? Perhaps you know something to thwart them off?" asked Villias.


    "Yes... The mana that flows around there, it''s a pitch black... I definitely sure it is one of the forbidden magic, reanimation magic..."


    "Then... What will you do?"


    "I will cast a spell to purify their soul... But while I cast that, I''m vulnerable," says Volya with a stern face


    "So... Our task is to protect you."


    "Sir Villias... Why did you..." asks Ludmila with a concerned face.


    "Just like Sir Volya just said... They aren''t normal people."


    "Huh?!"


    Ludmila looks in front of her and now she could easily see the people there. They are indeed really pale and most of them look really hungry. She immediately takes out his sword together with Albert. Villias then shouts,


    "Listen up! The enemy is approaching all of us... Prepare yourself and annihilate them!"


    "Sir, yes Sir!" shouts the knights.


    Romain stands near Volya and then asks him,


    "Perhaps... You know what we should do against them..."


    "Just attack their limbs so they can''t move," says Volya


    "Is that so..."


    Volya peeks behind him and could feel the discontent from all of the knights there. He understands that they didn''t want to harm the villager, but they also know if those villagers past through them it will cause a bigger problem.


    Villias understand about that and immediately shouts,


    "Listen up! I know that all of you are feeling it is wrong to attack them. But, think thoroughly. If we let them slip, it will cause more problem. Do you want that to happen?"


    All of the knights look down after hearing that question from Villias. That includes Ludmila and Romain. Albert then continues,


    "I know that it''s wrong. But at the same time, I know that they didn''t want to attack us. I know that they also feel in pain to attack the other while they can''t move on their own will. Because of that, I think it is the best for them."


    "By killing them, that means we freed them from their curse. That also means we free them from their guilt from killing the other. Do you want them to kill the other because of something that they can''t control?" continues Villias.


    All of the knights look at each other and some of them understand their duty. Villias then shouts,


    "Those who want to protect and free them from their pain, raise your weapon now and protect Sir Volya!"


    "Sir, Yes Sir!" shouts the knights.


    Some of the knights prepare their weapon, while the other still not sure about it. Ludmila looks at the knights and says,


    "Aaaaa... Whatever! We will free them and fight for the other. Listen up, if you think that it is wrong, yes it is wrong. But it''s also wrong if we let them go. Which one that will you choose now? Protecting them or protecting those who are really important to you at home?"


    "Lady Ludmila..." says one of the knight.


    "If our Queen here, she will choose to protect that important for us! Then, let''s kills them and think about the sin that we commit later when we really are died! Who with me now?"


    The rest of the knights look at Ludmila and nods at her. She immediately smiles and then asks Villias,


    "What should we do now, Sir Villias?"


    "We only need to protect Sir Volya... But, I don''t know..." answer Villias that interrupted by Volya,


    "What you only need to do is severe their lower limbs and if possible gather them in one place."


    Albert and Villias nod at Volya and then orders the knights to gather. They make two rows, in which the first row that consists of fifteen knights using their shield to hold them and later will encircle them. The second row is the rest that will be responsible to cut the ''villager'' lower limbs. If the ''villager'' still struggles, then the second row needs to cut the ''villager'' upper limbs in order to minimize the force for the first row. And they need to hold it for at least ten minutes for Volya to ready his magic.


    Villias orders all of them and their mission starts now. Volya observes all of them from distance together with Ludmila and Romain. He quite surprised to see how all of them work together. He then looks at the sky and then smiles a bit. He mumbles,


    "Father... Is this your way in order to make me love the world once more. Or the fate that wants me for that?"


    Ludmila and Romain look at Volya and then Ludmila says,


    "Sir Volya... Is your life as a slave made you think the world is really cruel?"


    "Huh? Ah... Did you hear what I say?" asked Volya quite surprised


    "I''m sorry if you don''t want to answer it..."


    "That''s alright... And for that question, yes... When you are a child and only see a bad thing in this world, they will think that the world indeed cruel." answer Volya


    Ludmila only stay silent for a while, and Romain says,


    "If you think that, how about you live with us at Haegia? I believe it will change your mind."


    "Well... After living in your Kingdom for several days, it is indeed a nice place. But, I must ask permission first." says Volya as he prepares his staff.


    "Hooo... Permission from who? Your deceased father?" ask Ludmila


    "I thought you are a refined lady type, Lady Ludmila. But, my impression changed little by little about you the more I hear every word you said," says Volya with a disappointed face.


    "Well, that''s our Lady Ludmila," says Romain


    "Ahahahahaha... You could say Our Highness is the one that defines who I am now," answer Ludmila.


    "Then... Probably I could change myself there, the same as your Queen define you like now, Lady Ludmila... If the fate really wants me with all of you." says Volya.


    Romain and Ludmila only smiles at Volya and then they hear Volya shouts,


    "Could both of you looks after me for a while... I''m quite vulnerable when casting this magic."


    "Don''t worry... Sir Villias appoints me for that. Romain, you protect his other side!" says Ludmila


    Romain nods and prepares his lance, while Ludmila already takes out her sword. Volya smiles and sees that the knights under Albert and Villias are struggling to hold the ''Villager''. He then closes his eyes and then a white magic crest appears below him. Not only one, but two of it. He then opens his eyes and points his staff to the ''Villager''.


    Romain looks behind him and sees that Volya''s eye change into a dark blue color. Volya then says,


    "O thy maiden who hold on the fate, hear my prayer."


    Another white magic crest appears above Volya and with that, a faint hand appears behind him. Volya then continues,


    "Let those hand freed the bind that holds those soul. Let those hand takes them to their eternal sleep."


    All of the magic crests disappears from Volya and reappear below the ''Villager''. Volya then continues,


    "Let their soul free and make a new string for a new life. Hand of Fate!"


    All of the knight that struggling to hold the ''Villager'' could see a lot of chain at them. Suddenly, they could see a hand that pulls them to the sky and a light pillar that surrounds the ''Villager''. Little by little the chain begins to disintegrate and with that, they could see their pure soul.All of them smiling at them and shows their gratitude for what they did. After that, all of the soul vanished at the hand that pulls the chain from their body.


    All of the knights, including Albert and Villias, amazed with that and all of them have something to tell to everyone when they back home. Suddenly, they could hear Ludmila and Romain that calling Volya''s name several times.


    Albert and Villias immediately look behind and see that Volya falls to the ground with Ludmila put him on her lap, while Romain tried to check his pulse. All of them could see that he is sweating too much and that really concerns Albert. He immediately says,


    "Sir Volya!"


    "Ahahahahaha... You don''t need to worry..." says Volya as he opens his eye a little.


    "But... You..." says Ludmila with a concerned face.


    "You don''t need to worry... That magic really... consumes a lot of my power, so it''s something... normal. Thankfully... there are people around me after I use that... kind of magic... Ahahahahaha." says Volya.


    "But, are you sure that you alright?"


    "..."


    "Sir Volya?" says Albert with a panicked face


    "You don''t need to worry, Sir Albert. He just asleep." says Ludmila


    Albert shows a relieved face, while Villias walks towards Volya and then says to the rest of the knights,


    "We will make our camp here. The first and second squad will be resting at the camp, while the third squad will start to gather any information around here."


    "Sir, yes Sir." shouts the knight


    "We will wait until Sir Volya recovers a little bit from this encounter. I believe he could tell us what happens to those villagers."


    All of the knights nods and starts to make a camp there. Meanwhile, the third squad takes their horse and start to disperse around the area in order to find any Villager or any clue around there. Ludmila help tends the wound from the injured soldier, Romain looks after Volya that sleeping peacefully, while Villias and Albert are gathering any clue that they could find.


    Night falls on the village and Volya opens his eyes. He looks around him and could see he is inside a tent. He then searches for his staff and starts to walk outside. There he could see some knights are patrolling around the area with around five knights gathers in the middle of it.


    One of the knights notice Volya and immediately notifies one of the knights in the middle. Albert immediately walks towards the tent where Volya sleeps and see him there. He says,


    "How do you feel, Sir Volya?"


    "Err... How to put it... Still, a little bit exhausted because of the fight. But it''s better than before," answer Volya


    "Good to hear that."


    Volya observes around him and asks him,


    "I believe your task to help this village, right? Why did you and your group didn''t going back to Haegia? Or maybe all of you considerate with my well-being?"


    "Yes. You are one of the reasons we build this camp," answer Albert


    "Then, what is the other reason?"


    "The being that we fight before. We are afraid that they are running rampant around here."


    "Oh... About those zombies."


    "Yes. We are afraid that they will make a problem around here..."


    "You don''t need to worry about that."


    "Huh? Why did you say that?"


    "It looks like they return to their master. But, I can''t spot where they are going..."


    Albert looks at Volya for a while and then he could hear Volya says,


    "But, something really concerns me... Why suddenly their master calls them back..."


    "Why are you really sure that they are back to their master?" asks Albert


    "Ah... About that... How to put it... Hmm..." says Volya


    "Is it because something with the flow around here?" asks Villias that follows Albert not long after he asks permission to see Volya.


    "Ah... So you understand about that terms? That''s will make everything easier to tell," says Volya with a surprised face.


    "I know a little about it. But, I could grasp what you will tell us here."


    "Yes. The flow of mana changes... As if they are withdrawing from the area."


    "Then, we could make that the last priority until we found them again," says Villias as he starts to walks towards the middle of camp.


    "If you say so, then we must check of the other one," says Albert as he follows Villias.


    Volya smiles at them and starts to walk towards his tent. He thinks that he isn''t needed again, and he chooses to leave them there and continues his walk towards Wildespring. But before he enters the tent, Villias shouts at him,


    "Where are you going, Sir Volya?"


    "Huh? Did you still need me?" ask Volya


    "Yes. With your knowledge of the area around here, hopefully, you could help all of us."


    "But... I..."


    "Please, will you lend your hand to the problem that arises around here?"


    Volya looks at Villias for a while and then remembers how his father will help everyone that in need. He then sighs and says,


    "Alright. I will help you. And I believe the string of fate have something to say about this."


    "Huh? Did you say something?" asks Villias


    "No... I will help you," says Volya


    Volya then walks towards the middle to gather with the other. And the moment he walks there, the wheel of fortune starts to move again. And it will change his fortune in the future.


    Meanwhile, not far from the tent, a man with a white robe observes them. He smiles at all of them, especially at Volya. He then says,


    "Hopefully, this action will not make us cross path again Volya. And hopefully, you will not meet the same end as our father."


    And with that, he starts to walk towards the deep of the forest and vanish from there.

 13 Chapter 13 - Team Up

    Morning comes around the forest, two-man are on their horse moving towards the road. One of them is a magus that supposedly going back to Wildespring, but because of a certain event, he needs to help the other on the way. His name is Volya Portar.


    Meanwhile, The other man is wearing a brown cloth with grey long shorts. He also wears chainmail behind the cloth and wearing a shoulder pad with a leather gauntlet. He brings his sword and put it on his belt, and also several knives. He is one of the knights that Volya''s helped in the last two occasions and now he is appointed by his leader to investigate one village together with Volya. His name is Romain Ambros.


    Both of them got an assignment from Villias to help nearby village from a band of bandits with Volya assigned to blend them and gains trust from the villager.


    Volya then looks at the sky and says,


    "By looking on the map that you show me yesterday... Around this time, I should have arrived at Wildespring..."


    "Ahahahahaha... If you don''t want to help, you should be said so," says Romain


    "But, I don''t want to owe something from the other. You already give me some time to rest and some food. That''s why I must repay that to all of you."


    "Alright... Alright... I get it."


    Volya then looks around him and mumbles,


    "But, I can''t believe this forest hide a lot of outlaws... Why did my forest critters didn''t tell me about it..."


    "Your forest critters?" ask Romain that overhear that.


    "Ahahahaha... You know, I could communicate with animals. If I didn''t have someone for me to communicate... Of course, I will become insane."


    "Wait. You could talk with an animal?"


    "Yes. My pesky hawk is the one that informs me that you enter the forest with a band of bandits back then. If he didn''t tell me, maybe it will become a bigger problem at the forest." answer Volya as he laughs a little bit.


    "Wow... A hermit and a magus... You are really something, Volya."


    "Ahahahahaha... It''s nothing."


    Both of them laugh together and then suddenly Romain says,


    "But, it''s really strange for Sir Villias and Sir Albert only appoint us for this mission."


    "I have a sneaky feeling, that appointment to keep both of us low profile." assumes Volya.


    "Is that also including me using this civilian outfit?"


    "In order to make us blend more with the villager, we need to act and wearing the same thing as them."


    "You got the point there."


    "But, actually... What are we according to plan?"


    "Huh? Didn''t you hear what Sir Villias says last night?"


    "No." answer Volya without any guilt and full of pride.


    "Haaa... Really?"


    "Ahahahahaha... So, what are we going to answer if the villager asks us?"


    "Just say that I am an adventurer, while you are a mage that I need to escort," answer Romain


    "Alright... I believe that should make them believe us."


    Romain only sighs after hearing Volya answer that cheerfully. After a while, Volya then asks Romain,


    "For some reason, you loosen up a bit. Is there something happen to you?"


    "Huh? Did you even ask that?! You are the one that asks me to loosen up a bit." says Romain quite surprised


    "Ah... Yes... I am the one who asks you for that. I forgot."


    "You are really something, Volya... Really something."


    "Oh come on... Not everyone has a good memory." protest Volya


    Romain only laughs a little bit, but his mind is full with something else. Right before they left, Albert and Ludmila calls him and gives him another mission. He also remembers the face that shown by both of them back then as they appoint him to look and observe Volya for a while. Even if they believe what Volya explained last night, they still not fully convinced as it looks like a coincidence.


    Romain sighs and then hears Volya asks him,


    "Huh? What is it, Romain? Something in your mind?"


    "Ah... Nothing," answer Romain


    "Hmmm... Is it about a woman? I believe someone on your stature will have one or two admirers, right?"


    "Ahahahaha... Unfortunately, no."


    "Then, what about the maid and the counter clerk at Belcrest? I remember that you have a chat with her."


    "You know that girl... Eh... Wait, you say that your memory isn''t that good."


    "Well, my memory could remember some of the useless things or juicy stuff. A lot of it to be honest... Ahahahahahaha."


    Romain only could sigh once more and feels that both Albert and Ludmila concerns are baseless. Until he hears Volya says,


    "Haaa... I can''t believe all of you could believe me to this extent..."


    "Huh? What do you mean, Volya?"


    "You know... Most of the people that I met will always cautious everytime I act like this... Especially when I tell them something."


    "..."


    "I know... That they will not believe it if they didn''t see it by themselves. And that''s the hardest part."


    "..."


    "But, all of you could easily believe me without any proof... I''m quite relieved as it''s something a drag for me to show it to them. Especially in this case."


    Romain could see Volya''s disappointed smile. And from that smile, he knows that Volya isn''t the type that could easily refuse any request. And from that, he will tell Albert and Ludmila about that.


    Volya looks in front of him and asks Romain,


    "What about you? Do you need proof to believe something?"


    "Me... Sometimes I need it... But if I already believe the person, I don''t need any proof." answer Romain


    "Then, do you believe what I tell you about those zombies?"


    "Some of me shouts to find out the proof... But ever since you help us at Wildespring back then, it''s enough for me to believe that you are an honest person."


    "Thank you for believing me."


    "No worries."


    Both of them continues their journey in silence until Romain asks him,


    "Volya, I have one question."


    "Go ahead."


    "If the zombies attack us, is there any possibilities for them to infect us too?"


    "Depends on the type of magic cast on them. If they include a curse, then yes it could infect us," answer Volya


    "Then, how to differentiate those who have a curse and don''t from an eye of a commoner?"


    "That''s quite difficult. But, if the caster wants to use them as an outbreak, they will protect the one with a curse or maybe use them as the spearhead."


    "So, there is two possible condition. How about the last time?"


    "None of them have that curse."


    "Is that so... Then, what is their master plan for this?"


    "To be honest I don''t know because I just saw this yesterday."


    Romain nods a little bit and then looks around him. The dense forest really reduces the visibility around them and that really worries him. He later stops his horse, steps down from the horse, and looks on the map that he brings. Volya also stops and looks around him.


    Volya feels someone is watching them from the forest, but he can''t locate the location. But, that feeling suddenly was gone as if the one that watching them didn''t have any intention on them that vulnerable at all.


    Romain then calls Volya and says,


    "From here, we will find a crossroad. There are three villages from each road. If we walk straight the road, we will arrive at Woodcrest Village. The village is well-known as the village of carpentry."


    "As stated in the name, huh?" says Volya as he looked at the map.


    "Yes. But, we will not take that road because we didn''t find any bandit activity around there."


    "Hooo... Alright. What about the other paths?"


    "If we take the right path, we will arrive at Orbarrow Village. We once sent several messengers there, but the moment they return they told us something fishy there."


    "Hmmm... What about the other paths?"


    "The other one is a village under the protection of Wraitus Kingdom. So, it''s better if we didn''t make any mess there."


    "Do we have permission from them?"


    "No... This is Haegia''s expedition after we receiving a lot of requests around this area."


    Volya nods and then they agree to continue again. But before they start moving again, something really fast hit Volya''s head and makes him fall to the ground. Romain looks behind and immediately runs at him. He helps him to stand up and looks at his face. From there, he knows that Volya really mad and then he says,


    "Volya, are you alright?"


    "Well... Before I fall, it''s alright," says Volya as he keeps looking on one tree.


    "Err... Then, we need to proceed with caution as..." says Romain that interrupted by Volya,


    "No. I must make this even with that pesky hawk."


    "Huh? Hawk?"


    Romain looking around him and spots one hawk sits on one of the branches and looks like laughing at Volya. Romain peeks at Volya that show disgust at the hawk and then hears,


    "I will definitely roast you, pesky hawk..."


    "Err... Volya, calm yourself."


    "Like hell, I could calm myself after what it did to me!"


    The hawk suddenly flies again and hit Volya on the head once more. Volya once again falls to the ground, with Romain this time only laughs after see it. The hawk flying around Romain a little bit and then sits on Romain''s shoulder pads. Romain pats the hawk and then says,


    "In my opinions, I think it''s quite tame."


    "For stranger! But not for me the one who looks after it for many years!" shouts Volya will full of frustration.


    "Just calm down, Volya. Ahahahahahaha."


    The hawk nods as if its agree with Romain. Romain then looks at the hawk and then says,


    "I think this hawk want to join us... What about we let it follow us?"


    "Let it follow us? After what it did to me?" protest Volya


    "Well, I believe this hawk could help us in our mission. Am I right?"


    The hawk nods at Romain and then looks at Volya. Volya only could sigh after sees the hawk looks at him and then stands up on his own. He then looks at the hawk with disgust and then says,


    "Alright, you could join us... As long you didn''t make any mess with us!"


    The hawk looks really happy and flies around Romain several times. Volya then says,


    "Then, how long will it take for us to arrive at our destination?"


    "Around 1 hour from here. We should have arrived there before nightfall," answer Romain


    "Alright, let''s move now... I don''t want to arrive there quite late."


    Romain nods and the two of them together with a hawk start to walk again towards their destination, Orbarow Village.

 14 Orbarrow

    Romain and Volya gather at the main room of their lodging at Orbarow Village. Volya looks around him and casts a spell that will cause everyone to disoriented when they entering their lodging or eavesdropping their conversation.


    Meanwhile, Romain looks outside while sitting on the chair and observes the village from there. He then says,


    "Just as I thought, something fishy is happening here."


    "But, we didn''t have any proof of it or any sign of bandit activity at this village except the destroyed building and the story from the villager," says Volya as he finished his spell.


    "Either the bandit really gone from this place completely or they already establish something in this village."


    "Hopefully it''s not something bad."


    Volya takes out all every clue that could help them there. Meanwhile, Romain looks at the sky and then says,


    "That hawk... Will it find something at the forest?"


    "I don''t know... The village and the forest here near the border of Wildespring. But because of the location quite far from where I live, none of us knows anything around here." answer Volya


    "I just hope it will back with good news."


    "Don''t worry... That pesky hawk will find something and back in one piece. It''s good for it to fly before we enter the village."


    Romain only sighs and trying to remember what really happened yesterday. When they arrived at the gate of the village, they could see something fishy there. Especially when the hawk that follows them suddenly fly really high.


    Volya looks at the hawk that gone and then mumbles,


    "What happened with this village? This village looks deserted... And this smell..."


    "Huh? What did you smell?" ask Romain


    "Smell of blood... Damn it, I should have decline back then," says Volya as he curses his decision back then.


    "Blood?... But from the road and everything here, I didn''t see any foul move here."


    "Err... I don''t know how to describe it... It''s just..."


    Before Volya could say anything, Romain gives a sign that they need to enter the village to reduce any suspicion from the villager or bandits that eyeing the village. Volya nods and follows Romain.


    When they enter the village, they could see a barren land where all of the agricultural equipment already broke with their field didn''t have a chance to bring something for their villager. The situation really contrasting with the forest near them.


    Some of the building has been razed, with the building around the middle of the village that still intact. Both of them stops in front of the biggest home in the middle of the village and observe around them. Volya could feel a lot of people are watching them from the four building around them.


    Romain looks at Volya and nods after seeing Volya''s sign. Romain then step down from his horse and shouts,


    "I am Romain Ambros, the adventurer that accepting mission from the Guild at the Haegia Kingdom. Right now I am in the middle of escorting this Royal Mage back to his residence on the other side of the forest. Because night will fall soon, would lend us lodging for one night for him?"


    None of them answers him. Romain then looks at Volya and then they acting like Volya ask him for lodging as it''s not good for a royal to sleep in the wilderness. But, none of the villagers come out from their hiding.


    Romain and Volya look at each other and then they tried another thing in order to lure them away from their hiding. Until they could hear someone calls them weakly,


    "Young traveller... Hurry up... Come here..."


    Volya and Romain look around them to find the source and could see an old man that calling them to one of the building. Romain looks at Volya and then they enter the building after Volya gives him a sign to follow it.


    When they enter the building, they could see the room isn''t that big and the lighting only from the candle around the room. It has one big table in the middle with six chairs around there. At the side of the room, there stand two broken cabinets near there. The entire room looked like being looted by someone else for a long time ago.


    Romain and Volya walk towards the table and they notice one old man stand at the walkway near the stair. Romain didn''t lower his guard when the old man walks towards them. The old man then asks them,


    "Young traveller... Lord Mage... Why both of you passing through this village?"


    "It''s me the one who asks him to wander off a little bit and wondering the area around here when we are taking our leave from Haegia. The reason is really simple, I want to see a new thing in order to help me in my study of new magic when observing nature," answer Volya.


    "But, did you know this place is really dangerous?" asked the old man full of fear.


    "I didn''t fear that as I found one brave adventurer when I am staying at Haegia. I believe that he could protect me from them."


    "But... Their number is enormous..."


    Volya continues to lie at the old man in order to convince them, and Romain quite impressed with him as he knows that it''s hard for him to lie when it is necessary. Volya continues to ask the old man until he asks him,


    "What happens with this village? The condition of this village is really worrying especially with the razed building and broken tools around here."


    "About that..." says the old man


    Romain and Volya could see that the old man scared of something. There is a long pause there until the old man gives a sign to someone. Two minutes later, both of them really surprised to see a lot of men there. It''s around 20 peoples there and they look hostile at Romain and Volya. Until the old man gives a sign and all of them put down their weapon.


    Romain really surprised with that and look at Volya that as cool as a cucumber. Even though he looks really calm, inside his mind he praises the wheel of fate to let him alive again after his bad acting. The old mand then says,


    "I''m sorry... Young traveller... Lord Mage... It''s just a lot of adventurer that lies to us..."


    "That''s alright. I understand after seeing the condition of this place," answer Volya after hears that.


    "We are really sorry about that..."


    "Then, could you tell us what really happens at this village."


    The old man looks around and then he tells him about several bandits that act like an adventurer. After they accept them in an open arm, they ransacked the place and leave them. Not long after that, another band of bandit come and asked them very high demands in order to protect them from another bandit. Volya then nods and asks them,


    "Could you describe it to us the leader of the bandit that make a mess here? Or maybe his name."


    "Why do you want to know that? That''s really dangerous for you, Lord Mage." says one of the villager.


    "After hearing all of your stories, I can''t keep a blind eye for your problem. And if I didn''t help all of you here, it will taint my family name."


    "But..."


    "You don''t need to worry about payment as I don''t care with payment from helpless people like all of you."


    The old man looks really surprised after hearing what Volya just says. The old man looks at the people behind him and then walks away with them. Romain then walks towards Volya and whispers,


    "Do you find anything strange around here?"


    "I don''t know as it''s really gloomy here..."


    "Do you think we could believe them?"


    "Probably we could believe them. But, we still need to stay vigilant," answer Volya


    Romain nods and then looks around them once more. Suddenly, the old man comes back together with one young maiden. The young maiden looks at them with a frightened face, with Romain looks at her for a while and then looks at Volya. She is wearing a dark brown maid outfit and she looks at Volya at Romain for a while before the old man says,


    "I will introduce her to all of you... She is my precious daughter."


    "He... Hello..." answer her.


    "Why did you bring her here?" asks Volya


    "Because you said that you will help us... I just... want to tell you something." answer the old man


    "Go on... I will hear it out."


    "The bandit leader says that he will take my daughter away if we didn''t pay anything the next time he visits this village."


    "What kind of payment did they ask?" asks Romain


    "Any kind of food... or some money."


    "Food... With the condition of this village, I doubt all of you already meet your quota," says Volya


    "That''s why we can''t do anything and lives in fear," shouts one of the villagers.


    "Then, what about the other woman? Why I only see one here?" asks Romain


    "They already take them."


    Both Romain and Volya look at each other and they understand something. Volya then closes his eyes and asks them,


    "When will they ask for their share?"


    "Around one week from now," answer the old man


    "Then, I will change all of my plan for the next week. I will pay you with extra money later because of this," says Volya


    "Sir, yes Sir!"


    All of the people there really surprised and they want to say something about Volya''s decision. He then smiles and says,


    "Did you think I will let the chain that holds this village stay still like this? I will break them... For the greater good."


    All of them really jubilant to hear that and they jumping together as if they happy with Volya''s decision. And after that, they send Romain and Volya to their lodging there and today they just trying to find some clue.


    Romain then sighs and asks Volya,


    "I remember that you sneak out around dusk. What are you doing?"


    "As a mage, you need to prepare something if there is a battle. Preparation is everything and we need to use our wits to put them to our advantages," answer Volya as he continues to look at the information that he gathers.


    "In another word, you use this village as a trap."


    "Yes. That''s the only way to lure them. After all, I have a sneaky feeling that the villager also an accomplice."


    "Is that so..."


    "But, just like I said before... I don''t have any clue about it."


    "Alright... I know... I know..."


    "Good to hear that."


    "Then, the one that you did this morning is..."


    "Yes, I am making several magics circle around the village to make a bigger one. I need some time to make them around the village."


    "How long did you need to make that circle?"


    "Two circles a day."


    "How many did you need?"


    "Probably around ten or twelve of them."


    "And what kind of magic you will use?"


    "That''s a secret... Ahahahahaha"


    Romain nods and then walks towards the desk. He takes one of the document that he got from Albert. He then says,


    "From this report, there is stated that a lot of adventurers that died from this mission. Is this the reason that you think they are an accomplice?"


    "More or less. All of them act innocent, but I have a sneaky feeling that they are lying," answer Volya


    "There also a possibility of the number of the bandit is enormous."


    "I know."


    Suddenly they hear someone knocking on the door and they know it the old man''s daughter from the voice that calls them. Romain then says,


    "Let''s we stop for a while. We have a guest."


    "I agree."


    Volya then cleans up the desk, while Romain walks towards the door. Before Romain opens the door, Volya snaps his finger to stop his magic. Both of them nod at each other and Romain opens the door. When he opens the door, they could see the woman looks at them full of hope and hears she says,


    "Please... Save me..."

 15 Plan Preparation

    Four days already passed since Volya and Romain arrived at Orbarrow. While they are there, Volya gathers several pieces of information regarding the bandit activity while Romain continues to train his body and mind in the middle of the forest near the village. He also waiting for Volya''s hawk back with another information from around the forest.


    The latest information that they got is the name of the bandit leader. That night, Volya and Romain looks at the paper and Volya says,


    "At least that pesky hawk does his job really well."


    "Felipe Gomes... I can''t believe I will hear his name again," says Romain


    "Huh? You know him?"


    "Yes. Sir Villias once catch him on one of his mission. But, because of Wraitus Empire also wants his head, we send him there."


    "Let me guess, it''s either he runs away or they let him go."


    Romain shakes his head. Volya quite surprised and asks him,


    "Then how did he could stay alive until now?"


    "A man with a white robe," answer Romain


    "Huh?"


    "He suddenly stops his carriage and says that even someone like him could repent. At first, none of us believes him."


    "..."


    "But, suddenly Felipe becomes really kind and smiles a lot and that makes us from Haegia and Wraitus becomes uncomfortable with him. In the end, we agree to let him loose as we believe him already change just like that man says. But, my guts are right all along."


    Volya then sits down at the chair and looks at the fire at the candle. He then mumbles,


    "A man with a white robe..."


    "Huh? Did you know him Volya?" asks Romain


    "I''m not quite sure as the Church people also wear that kind of robe."


    "Yes, we are thinking that he is part of the Church. We must follow his plea as the Church influence is really big at this island."


    Volya only sighs and looks at the ceiling. The Church is the organization that believes there is a God that made this world and one day will come back to the world. They will gather many scripture and artefacts from around the world to prove what they believe. In the process of searching those artefacts, they share their belief in every village and become as big as now.


    But, some people think that they are aiming for something. And from some of the rumour, their target is the Library of Knowledge that resides inside Wildespring Forest. No one knows their reason for that, but the leader of the Church always says that it''s for the greater good.


    Romain looks at Volya for a while and then asks him,


    "Volya, do you remember that girl back then?"


    "That girl? Oh, the Old Man''s daughter. Yes, I remember her." answer Volya as he continues to look at the notes in front of him.


    "From the information that I get from her, most of the woman here are already sold as a slave. Not only the woman from this village, but even any female adventurer also sold as a slave when the bandit attacks them."


    "A slave, huh..."


    "And the one who always buys them is a woman with a name Alma Taylor."


    "Huh? A woman?!"


    "Yes."


    "Wait, how in this world that girl knows it?"


    "She is spared before being sold as they know that she is the one who could act innocent to deceive us."


    Volya sighs and rubs his forehead while thinking a bit. Romain smiles a little bit and then asks again,


    "How about your preparation at this village?"


    "It''s enough."


    "Did they find your magic circle around here?"


    "Yes. They know that I am a mage and immediately look around the village. And with some of my circle preparation are broken... Then, I would assume that they have a mage in their rank."


    "That''s bad news."


    "But, you don''t need to worry as I already move some of it outside the wall of the village and hide it well. And the last time I check it, they are still intact. So I could say that it isn''t a big problem until now."


    "Ok... That''s good news. But, we need to stay vigilant with their action."


    "I know... Then, what about you? Did any of the knights will help us when they come?"


    "I just got an information that Lady Ludmila and Sir Albert units will come to help us. The nearest one to this village is Lady Ludmila''s unit."


    "Alright. With all of the preparation already set, we will start it tomorrow. Just remember that you are only going out to gather some wood."


    "I know. Just make sure that you stay home until evening."


    "I will."


    "But, will they come to this village?"


    "They will come as they have a prey here. But, this time the prey could bite back at them."


    Both of them smirks and goes back to their room to take some rest, with Volya takes all the scroll with him. The next day, nothing happens in the village and that makes Romain really surprises. He continues to act like normal at the forest and get a piece of information from Volya''s hawk,


    ''There is no suspicious movement around the forest.''


    Around 4 pm, Romain going back at the lodging and could see Volya that looks at the outside of the house. He then smiles and says,


    "So... That what they will do, huh..."


    "What is it, Volya? Did you know that your hawk just tells me that there is nothing suspicious around here," asks Romain


    "Ah... I know about that."


    "Then, what did you mean by they will do something?"


    "It seems someone really suspicious with us and some of them find out the knights that suddenly making camp around here. With the addition of they already find my magic circle, of course, that will add more on their suspicion."


    "It seems..."


    Romain then looks outside from the house and could see the villager walking in a group of two. Volya then says,


    "It seems they already find out that I am not from royal blood."


    "Huh? How did they know that?" ask Romain that really surprised


    "Every act that I did while at this village after that meeting didn''t show that I have royal blood. Even when I am eating with them, they know that I am not comfortable with that thing like royal usually do at dinner."


    "Well, we are on rush back then. Should have asked Lady Ludmila to come with us."


    "That''s the worst choice from any person from your Kingdom, you know." mocked Volya


    "Well, I must agree with that."


    Both of them laughs together and then they gather in the main room. Volya takes out his paper and then tells him about what he found in the village. Romain nods after hears most of the information and then asks him,


    "Then, what should we do next? They are on high alert, of course, they will not attack this village with both of us still here."


    "Hmmm... I am thinking that you should back to Haegia."


    "Huh? Of course, I will reject that!" says Romain quite annoyed


    "No... No... What I mean is, let me alone in this village in order to lower their caution"


    "Why did you ask me... Wait..."


    "So, it seems you already know what inside my mind, huh."


    "Haaa... But, it still really dangerous for you."


    "You don''t need to worry about it. I''m used to doing everything alone."


    Romain looks at Volya and then sighs. He then walks towards him and hit his head really hard. He then says,


    "Alright, I will follow your plan. But, is your preparation will be alright?"


    "I already move some of them outside from the village wall. So, it should be alright... I hope."


    Romain then sits down and then looks on the note in front of him. After that, he takes a deep breath and then says,


    "If you say so... Then, how much ruckus that I must make tomorrow?"


    "As big as you can," answer Volya with an evil smile


    "Let''s make them confused with this..."


    Both of them nods together and with that Romain starts to pack his belonging while looking outside his room. Meanwhile, Volya stays in the main room and mumbles,


    "I must do it... In order to free them... From the chain that holds them. I will change their fate for the greater good. That''s what you hope right, Father."


    Volya then walks back towards his room and start to sleep for his plan tomorrow.

 16 Battle of Orbarrow

    The next morning, everyone at Orbarrow could hear a loud shout from Volya and Romain''s house. Some of them immediately run towards the house and could see Romain already pack his belongings and outside the house.


    He then points his sword at Volya and says,


    "Just like I said yesterday if you want to retain my service you should pay more!"


    "You insolent fool, do you dare to talk like that to me? I pay you a hefty load of payment and you still want me to pay more? Who do you think you are?" shouts Volya full of anger


    "Bah... I don''t care. Even if you are a royal or even one of the Senate members at your place, I will not accept this kind of treatment!"


    "We still have a contract, do you remember! I could inform the Guild at my city and tell them to ban you after your action today, mongrel!" shouts Volya once more and show him his contract.


    "A contract, huh? Do you think that could hold me from this deal? No... Because our deal is different from when we start to walk from Haegia!"


    Both of them continue to debate and make more villager gather around them, including the woman that ask them to help her out. The moment she sees them fighting, she fears that no one could help her again.


    All of the villagers mumble at each other as they are afraid to stop their fight. Until Romain suddenly dashes towards Volya and swing his sword. Volya immediately cast a defensive spell, but Romain swings his sword at the item on his hand.


    Romain slashes the contract and then he shouts,


    "With this, our contract is done!"


    Romain then sheathes his sword and takes his belonging with him. Volya falls to the ground and then shouts,


    "How dare you do that to a someone with high stature like me?!"


    Romain didn''t care with that and continue to walk towards the exit of the village. The Village Elder then walks towards Volya, while her daughter was running towards Romain. The Village Elder help Volya to stand up and ask him,


    "Are you alright, Sir Volya?"


    "I''m alright... It just really annoys me that he made fun of me!" says Volya agitated


    "But, with he gone... What could you do when the bandit come?"


    "They will feel my wrath! I can''t accept this type of humiliation!" shouts Volya


    Volya continues to curse Romain, while the Village Elder looks behind him. All of them nods at him after that they tried to calm Volya a little bit. It needs thirty minutes to calm him down, and now the Village Elder is talking with Volya at Volya''s lodging. He asks him,


    "Are you sure that you will be alright alone? The number of the enemy is enormous!"


    "I know you already say that. But, I will not back down as it will taint my family name," answer Volya


    "But, are you really sure about that? If something happens to you, your family will..." says the Village Elder that interrupted by Volya,


    "You don''t need to worry about anything."


    Volya smiles at him while tried to calm the village elder. After that, he explains his plan to the Village Elder and then after that, the Village Elder leaves him alone. Volya takes a deep breath and then see his hawk already waiting for him. He walks towards his hawk and gets a message. He then smiles a bit and says,


    "I will observe this place a little bit..."


    Volya continues to observe the village from inside the building until someone knocks on the door. He then walks towards the door and opens it to see the young woman is staring at him with disbelief. She then immediately says,


    "Why did you do that? Didn''t both of you promise me to help me?"


    "Yes, we did. And I will continue it," answer Volya


    "But... What could you do alone?"


    "A lot..."


    Volya smiles at the young woman, told her something, and then asks her to leave him alone. After she left the house, Volya takes a deep breath and says,


    "How long will they come to this village? I believe, with they know that I am not a Royal and only a mere mage, they should come here soon enough. Who doesn''t want to chew a weak prey like me?"


    After that, he chooses to act like normal for around three days there. He continues to interact with the villager regarding what they usually produce at the village. Even, he also gets a piece of information that most of the time, people from Wraitus and Ostonorid will come there to buy some of their delicacies.


    And then that night, Volya suddenly wakes up from his sleep and looks around him. Someone passing through the trap that he hides near the entrance of the village. He then mumbles,


    "Their number around one hundred people... That''s really massive. Will my magic suffice for that?"


    He then walks towards the window and could see the village already covered with mist. Volya then smirks and says,


    "So, they made this mist in order to confuse and send shivers to any adventurer that come. Really interesting... Maybe I could use this technique when I am back to Wildespring later."


    After that, he hears someone knocks on the door. He immediately lit up the candle and walks downstairs. He then opens his door and could see a lot of mobs that waiting for him with torches. He could see the villager of this village also gathered there with their spear, pitchfork, club, and sword.


    He then hears someone shouts,


    "Sir Mage, please follow us now..."


    "From your tone, it seems you already know something about me, huh?" mocked Volya


    "Yes... That''s why we will not act like back then. It''s enough for us to serve a liar like yourself," says the old man that walks to the front


    "My... My... Does a hypocrite say something like that? I can''t believe that."


    "I don''t care about that."


    "Then, could you tell me... How many Adventurer and Knights that all of you already lied to and become your victim?"


    The old man smiles and then says,


    "A lot of them. And most of them really valuable to be sold as a slave!"


    "Is that so..."


    "Then, you will join them..."


    "I have a question... Did that young woman also one of you?"


    "That one? Oh... No... She isn''t. Rather, we use her so every people that tried to help us will show their pity and later tried their best to help her. She doesn''t have a bad intention, but in the end, everything will be the same."


    "Indeed... What a pity."


    Suddenly, two people with a spear walk towards Volya and order him to follow them. He smiles at them and without any objection follow them. All of them really surprised to see that and really puzzled as most of the people will fight back in that kind of situation.


    Volya suddenly stops and asks them,


    "Hey... You want me to move, right? Then, why are you still stay there?"


    "Ah... Yes..."


    Volya smiles and then continues to walk with them. In the middle of the night, several torches moving along the road at Orbarrow. Until all of them gathers in the middle of the village. In front of the Village Elder''s house, there is a seat created by several skulls. Near the seat is an axe that covered with blood, to intimidate someone who sees it.


    Volya stops and observes around him. He could see some mage inside the sea of people around him. Suddenly, all of them shout really loud together with one man that walks towards the seat.


    A man around his 40 with very big muscles and a bald head. He has a lot of tattoo around his body and also scar. He then looks at Volya and then asks one of the men near him,


    "Are you sure this person has a connection with the knights that we saw several days ago?"


    "We don''t know it yet. At the time when he is here and the knights made their camp almost like a coincidence."


    "Is that so..."


    The man then looks at Volya and could see that Volya is really calm. He really puzzled with that and then he sees Volya walks towards him and kneels in front of him. Later he says,


    "O Great Bandit Leader, Felipe Gomes. It''s an honour for me to meet you."


    Everyone really surprised to hear that, including Felipe. Felipe then looks at Volya and asks him,


    "How did you know my name?"


    "Every word that spoken by man will be fly together with the wind that flies around the world. And what I do is really simple, I hear what they say and keep it to myself," answer Volya as he stands up from there.


    Felipe really impressed with him and then raises his hand in order to make everyone around him to lower their voice. Volya smirks and then asks him,


    "Could you tell me, where is the original villager of this village?"


    "All of them are the villager of this village," answer Filipe


    "Is that so? But, when I ask them about the speciality of this village, they always give me a different answer."


    "This village has a lot of specialities."


    "Then, what about the mass grave at the north of this village?"


    Filipe really surprised that Volya knows about that and then laughs really hard. He then asks him,


    "How many did you know about us?"


    "I don''t know... As perception from each person is different about the information that they have. My Father always teaches me to think about that when they ask such a question," answer Volya


    "My... My... You are indeed interesting."


    "Thank you very much."


    "Then, what about your Knight friend? Where is he?"


    "Just like all of you see several days ago... We have a disagreement. So, he chooses to back to his country."


    "No... What I mean is... Those knights from Haegia."


    "I don''t have any connection with them. Or maybe, I just tangled into their mess and makes me meet all of you."


    "Is that so?"


    "Yes. I should have declined their plea back then."


    "Then, what is your connection that made them knows you?"


    "An event in the past when they are trapped at Wildespring Forest," answer Volya


    Felipe looks at Volya and stays cautious at him after hearing that. Volya looks at Felipe and really surprised with his reaction. From there, he knows that the man in front of him is the one that leads the bandit that attacking Haegia''s knight back then. He smiles a little bit and then remembers something that Romain told him about Felipe.


    Volya stands up and then asks him,


    "I have another question..."


    "..."


    "Or it seems you don''t want to hear any of my questions as I could feel your bloodlust from here."


    "Ehehehehe... So you are the one who killed Simon and Kaffer. I will avenge both of them now."


    The mobs around Volya also can''t hold themselves and looks ready to attack Volya anytime. Volya then says,


    "Alright... But, if I still stand up here... You must answer my question."


    "If you still stand up," says Felipe full of anger


    Volya smiles and then could feel someone stabs him with a spear from behind. He looks below him and could feel blood fall from there and then says,


    "My... My... You are really impatient..."


    "Look here, Sir Felipe! I get him" shouts the one who stabs Volya


    "Good... Good..."


    Felipe then stands up from his seat and he could see Volya stands at the middle of the mobs and makes a sign to keep silent. Felipe then looks the one that being stabbed and could see one of his men that stabbed there. He then shouts,


    "What the hell are you doing! You stab your own man!"


    "Huh? What do you mean... Ah... Wait... Why..."


    "Why... Why... did you..." the man then fall to the ground and died


    Felipe then takes out his axe and points in one direction. He later shouts,


    "That wretched man is over there! Kills him!"


    The man near Volya immediately attack him and they later realize it''s another of their man. Felipe then could see a lot of Volya there and immediately orders them to attack him or he will do it himself. The condition there is a mess, full of disarray and a lot of shouting of pain. One by one of the bandit falls on their own friend hand with their mage just realize that they are stands up in front of a very big magic circle that glowing faintly. The mage then shouts before murdered by their friend,


    "This son of a bit... Argh!"


    Meanwhile, at the entrance of the village. Volya already stands there with the young woman. They could hear the shouts from there and Volya immediately smiles at it. He then asks her name,


    "Come to think about it. I never know your name. Could you kindly tell me your name?"


    "Ah... My name is Maria Bulyakov. The daughter of this village elder." answer the young woman.


    "My name is Volya Portar. A mage that lived at Wildespring. Nice to meet you."


    "Ah... Nice to meet you, too."


    "Then, is that old man really your father?"


    "No. My father is murdered by Filipe when they attack this village. They keep me in captive and later use me to lure another adventurer to meet the same fate as this village..."


    "I''m sorry to hear that."


    "That''s alright... I just hoping that... Someone will help me... From this hell..."


    Volya smiles at her and then says,


    "At the end, you succeed. I know that you still feel guilty about it, but I know that your intention indeed pure."


    "Eh..."


    "With this... You are freed from the chain that holds you. How do you feel about it?"


    Maria could see Volya''s smile and then nods. She then cries on his chest as now she is a free woman. Not long after that, they could see a group of knight comes to them. He knows the one that leads them is Ludmila, and Romain also there.


    Romain steps down from his horse and walks towards Volya while takes off his helmet. When he sees Volya with Maria, he jokingly says,


    "My... When I leave you alone, you take further steps, huh."


    "Ahahahahaha... I just console her. Nothing more." answer Volya


    "But, from here... It seems both of you really intimate."


    Maria immediately stays away from Volya and she could see one of the knights is walking at her. The knight takes off the helmet and then Maria could see a woman face there. The knight is Ludmila Karychenko. She then says,


    "Young Lady... Are you one of the villagers here?"


    "Yes, I am," answer Maria


    "Then, you don''t need to worry. We are here for your aid."


    Maria could see the knights are prepared to attack the bandit that inside the village. Ludmila then orders one of the knights to look after Maria. Maria later told them the location of the woman that still being captive, and Ludmila immediately sends a messenger to let Albert attack the encampment.


    Ludmila then walks towards Volya and Romain that talking about something and then asks Volya,


    "Sir Volya, are you sure the leader is inside the village?"


    "Yes, he is. But, don''t kill him..." answer Volya


    "Why did you say that?" asked Romain


    "I have several questions for him."


    Ludmila and Romain nod and they enter the village together with Volya. When they walk towards the middle of the village, they could see a pile of corpse there, with the remaining people still fighting with each other, including Felipe.


    Volya then walks towards the seat and then sits there. He only looking when Felipe kills the last people and with that Volya snaps his finger. He then smiles, claps his hand, and says,


    "Felipe... You are indeed a strong people."


    "Huh? You..."


    "Just look around you... You are indeed a beast."


    Felipe then looks around him and could see his men already dead and the knights already gathered around him. He also could see the banner of the knight and says,


    "Oh... Haegian... I can''t believe they catch me again."


    Felipe then drops his axe and raises both of his hand to the air. Volya then asks him,


    "I thought you will fight back, Felipe."


    "With the current condition and the possibility that you still have something in your sleeve... I must think twice to attack all of you."


    Felipe then sits down on the ground and Volya stands up from the seat. He then says,


    "Then, do you remember our deal?"


    "Yes. You still stand there... You could ask me any question." answer Felipe


    "Then, do you remember about the man with a white robe back then?"


    "A man with the white robe? Ah yes... I remember. He is a very nice guy that helps me get away from that cage."


    "Then... Is he have a silver hair and always holding a dark brown book on his belt? Is he around his 25?"


    "Huh?"


    "Did this man have a clear blue sky eye and look really gentle?"


    "No... No... The one that saves me is a man with a white beard and looks really old."


    Volya looks really disappointed from that answer and then tells Ludmila,


    "I have done with it."


    "Are you sure?"


    "Yes. The rest is on you, Lady Ludmila."


    "Ok... Thank you for your help, Sir Volya."


    "Your welcome."


    Volya then walks towards the entrance with Romain also following him. Volya then asks him,


    "Why are you following me? Is she orders you to do that?"


    "No... It''s just I feel like something interesting will happen if I follow you," answer Romain


    "Haaa... I want to take some rest and then backs to my home."


    "Ahahahahaha... I believe you will get that soon."


    Romain and Volya continue to talk with each other until they see Albert and Villias'' army that just liberated the woman that being held captive. Romain waves at them and then he says,


    "The mission is a big success."


    "But, it almost failed if they didn''t come at all," answer Volya


    "At least, we could say that the goddess of fortune is on our side."


    "Yeah... You are right."


    "Thank you very much, Volya. It''s nice to get your help."


    Romain smiles at Volya as he offers to shakes hand with him. Volya smiles at him, shakes his hand, and then says,


    "You are welcome, Romain."


    And with that, the mission officially ended with the victory on Haegia''s side.

 17 Good Bye, Old Home

    Volya opens the door at his house and he could see a ferret is sleeping on his bed. Not only that, the bats are surprised with him that suddenly come back. He then laughs really hard and says,


    "I''m back!"


    The mouse that hiding at hole comes out from there and they immediately run towards Volya, together with the ferret that surprised to see him. The fox that sees him from outside, immediately run towards him and run around him. Some of the bird immediately land on his shoulder, and all of them asks him about his condition. He then says,


    "Ahahahahaha... I''m fine... Did all of you miss me?"


    All of them then following Volya that puts down his coat and puts his staff near the wall. One of the foxes looks at the door and could feel someone is coming. From there, they could see two people holding their mouth. They are Romain and Ludmila.


    Volya later smiles and points to outside. He then says,


    "If you want to vomit, just go outside of this house. Go to the left and you will find an apple tree. Just vomit near the apple tree there."


    "A... Alright." says both of them


    Both of them immediately run away towards the place that Volya just says. At the same time, some of the animals ask him about them. Volya then immediately answer,


    "Don''t worry... They are our friend. They will not do any harm to you."


    Volya then looks at the outside of his house and says,


    "Then, while waiting for them... I will tell all of you the story about my experience while I am away."


    Volya then tells them his story, until both of them back. Volya then says,


    "Welcome back!"


    "Hah... Hah... I can''t believe it... My mind almost exploded because of it..." says Ludmila


    "I already warned both of you, right? But, none of you hears me," says Volya


    "I know... Urgh..." says Romain


    "Ahahahaha... But, I believe all of you will be accustomed to it if I use it again. And please do remember that we will use that portal again to going back to the edge of Wildespring Forest."


    "Spare us your bravado!" shouts both of them.


    Volya only laughs after hearing them shouts. Ludmila takes a deep breath, then looks around the house. The house is really small as it only has two room. A bedroom and dining room. At the bedroom, she could see one table with a chair with a lot of book on the table and candles, a cupboard, and one bed. Meanwhile, in the dining room, she could see another table and some cutlery there. Ludmila then looks at Volya and says,


    "For a house at Wildespring, this is really tidy. Especially with you that leave this house for more than one weeks."


    "Ahahahaha... Those little critters are helping me a lot," says Volya as he points to the animal around him.


    "Is that so..."


    "After all, since my stepfather made this house, all of them already helped us."


    Ludmila and Romain look at each other and then observes the room once more. Romain then takes one of the books and asks Volya,


    "Are you sure that you will leave this house? This house is something important to you, right?"


    "I know..."


    Volya could see all of the animals really surprised after hears that and all of them gathers around him. He then says,


    "You know... If the lady of fate really made me meet all of you more than once, that means they want me to do something with it. That''s why... I accept that..."


    "But, you could decline that..." says Ludmila


    "No... I must accept it... In order to know the reason and keep moving forward."


    Romain and Ludmila look at each other and they could see all of the animals gathers around Volya as if they are really concerned with Volya''s decision. Volya then smiles and says,


    "Before I meet all of you, I am hoping to talk with other people. And what Sir Albert offers to me is one way to fulfil my wish."


    Volya then pats the ferret that sits on his lap and then says,


    "I know it''s really hard for me to leave this house... But, I also can''t decline what the lady of fate offer to me. No one knows really well about the future, as there is a possibility that I will glad to accept that offer or I will curse my decision."


    "Then, how about we give you some time to rethink your decision again?" asks Romain


    "No... I already decide it. That''s why I will say goodbye to all of my friends here." answer Volya


    The moment Volya says that all of the forest critters that sits around Volya suddenly run away from the house, except the Ferret. He then smiles and then says,


    "And I think I need to understand how a normal people interact with each other... And know their norm a little bit."


    "If you say so..." says Ludmila that still unsure about it.


    "After all, Father once said it to me... To find out my own life in the future and never back down when I already choose something."


    Volya then stands up and takes some of his cloth into a sack together with around five books with him and several of his possession. Ludmila and Romain look at each other and observes the room once more. Romain then says,


    "This house really calm... I like it."


    "I agree with you..." says Ludmila


    "And then... Huh?"


    Romain could see a picture of two-man with Volya. One of them looks really old, while the others have a gentle face on him. Before Romain could ask anything, Volya says,


    "They are my family that help me when I am young. Unfortunately, my Father already passed away... While my brother already missing several years ago."


    "We are sorry to hear that," says Ludmila


    "No... No... I know that both of you will ask me about that picture, that''s why I explain it before you ask that," says Volya as he smiles at them.


    Volya then asks Romain to gives him the hand to takes some of the possession near the table. Romain nods and helps Volya a little bit, while Ludmila sits there waiting for them with the ferret that looking at her. She then plays with the ferret while waiting, until she realizes that Romain and Volya look at her and smile. She immediately stands up and says will full of embarrassment,


    "Did... Did both of you already done?"


    "Yes, we are... But, if you want to continue to play with that ferret... We will wait, Lady Ludmila." jokes Romain.


    "No... If you already..."


    "We still have some time, Lady Ludmila. After all, I am still waiting for the other forest critter to come. Or maybe, you want me to bring that ferret with me?" says Volya


    Romain and Volya laugh together while Ludmila mad at them. After that, both of them apologized to Ludmila and Volya made a sign to the ferret to enter his sack. The ferret nods and immediately enter the sack and let the head out from the opening there.


    Ludmila and Romain looks at Volya and he says,


    "This ferret always with me since I am staying with my Father. So, it''s natural for me to bring it to my new house. After all, this ferret is my family when they are gone. Is there any rule regarding pet at Haegia?"


    "You don''t need to worry about it as we let everyone to have their pet," answer Romain


    "Good to hear that."


    Volya smiles at them, while the ferret nods at the knights. Volya then walks towards the door, with Ludmila and Romain that joining him. When they leave Volya''s house, they could see all of the animals of the forest already gathers there. Volya then walks towards the animals and then says,


    "I will come back here one day. So please don''t forget about me and keep this house safe. Promise?"


    All of them nods and move closer to Volya. Volya hugs them and smiles at them, while Romain and Ludmila look at them, smile, and laugh together. After that, the three of them leaves the house to meet with Albert once more.


    Volya then looks at Romain and Ludmila, summons a magic circle and says,


    "Then, let''s go back now."


    "Wait... Wait... NO!!!" shouts the two of them as Volya drags them passed through the teleportation magic in front of them.


    And with that, the wheel of fate moving once more with another chain is removed. And with the steps that Volya takes, it will make him closer to what he wishes for.

 18 New Home

    Volya Portar is in the middle of cleaning his new room in the city of Ironforge. The house is given by Albert to him as gratitude for helping them catching Felipe, together with giving him citizenship at Haegia.


    He stops for a while and observes the lively street in front of his house. A lot of children are running on the street, with their parents that talking with each other. There also some knights that patrolling around Ironforge and greets everyone that they meet.


    After that, Volya looks at the room that he occupied. The room quite spacious with one wardrobe to put all of his clothing, one chest to put his book, a study desk, one chair, mirror, and one bedroom where his ferret is sleeping peacefully. Even with those items of furniture already in place, there still a lot of space there.


    He then sits down on the chair and tried to remember the house given by Albert. The house has two floors with three rooms on the first floor and another two rooms on the second floor. It has two bathrooms, one kitchen, one dining room, and a living room. Also, it has a lot of furniture inside it. With that kind of facility, it is too much only for him.


    And then there is another problem. When he got the key from Albert, he also knows that it is free for rent for the first six months. But, after that, he needs to pay the rent there like the other citizen at Ironforge. After remembering the number that he saw, he immediately shouts once more at his room,


    "I MUST FIND A WAY TO GET THAT MONEY BEFORE SIX MONTHS! AND LEGALLY"


    Because he suddenly shouting out loud, the ferret startled and looks at Volya. It sighs, walks towards Volya, and pats his head that crying on the table. Suddenly, they could hear someone knocking on the door and asks him,


    "Hey, Volya! Are you alright? Why are you suddenly shouting like that?"


    "I''m sorry... It just I am really frustrated with my current situation."


    "Really frustrated," says the voice one more.


    "Haaa... I will talk about it when I already finished cleaning my room. Did you already done your work, Romain?"


    "Yes, I am. But, I still confused where should I put my armor and weapon at... Maybe you have some suggestion?" asked Romain that becomes his housemate.


    "We are only two people here... Why don''t you use one of the empty room on the first floor. That should suffice, right?"


    "You are right! Thank you for reminding me that!"


    After that, Volya could hear Romain that going to the first floor. Volya then sighs and then plays with his ferret for a while. At least, he isn''t alone at the house. But, the problem is Romain Ambros becomes his housemate there. The knights that always follow him since he is at Ironforge.


    He then mumbles,


    "Did he become my housemate because Sir Villias or Sir Albert orders him? I wonder about that..."


    The ferret then looks at Volya and tells him that at least someone could help him pay a little bit for the rent later. Volya sighs and nods as if he agrees with what the ferret just said. He then stands up and leaves the room to meet Romain that waiting at the dining room on the first floor.


    When he arrives there, he could see Romain that wearing a brown leather shirt with dark blue trousers there. He already finished drinking a tea and notices Volya there. He then says,


    "Hey there, Volya!"


    "Haaa... I can''t believe it... You become my housemate," protest Volya


    "Rather than you live alone, right?" jokes Romain.


    "Well, you are right about that."


    Volya then sits across Romain and asks him,


    "Then, why are you staying with me? I believe your family house should be at Ironforge, right?"


    "Yes. But, I believe if I stay with you... I will get an unforgettable experience that could help me become stronger," answer Romain


    "What if nothing happens when you stay with me?"


    "Well, I doubt it will never happen... Especially knowing that every time I meet you always together with an interesting event."


    "Really?"


    "Yes, I am."


    "Then... Why did you family let you do this?"


    "I am already old enough to live alone, Volya. I''m not their spoiled child anymore. After all, this is my own decision and they support my decision."


    Volya then sighs to show his defeat, while Romain chuckles a little bit. He then takes out his sword and starts to clean it a little bit. Meanwhile, Volya''s ferret looking around the first floor and could see the kitchen really clean and looks really satisfied with it before coming back to joins the lads at the dining room.


    Meanwhile, Volya looks at the ceiling and thinks about what he needs to do to gain the money. He then tries to get every possible thing that he could offer to get money.


    The first one is becoming the fortune teller at Belcrest. He is used to reading a lot of people fortune, but it depends on the number of people that visiting Belcrest. And there is a possibility that he already looks at every people at Haegia and the number of the customer will decrease.


    The second one is a storyteller for children. It''s a viable job, but he doesn''t know what is a good story for children as what his father''s stories are not suitable for children. And also he doesn''t know how the children at Ironforge will behave when he tells them some stories.


    And the last one as a merchant. He knows which one is a better item between two items. The problem a lot of people already trick him when he tried to bid an item and from there he knows that he isn''t good to become a merchant.


    He tried to find another way to get money until Romain notices him. Romain then sheath his sword and asks him,


    "What inside your mind, Volya?"


    "Ah... Well..."


    "Just tell me what is it... I could help you a little bit," says Romain


    "A... Alright..."


    Volya then explains it to Romain about the payment that he needs to pay after six months. He then tells,


    "After six month, I need to pay 100 silver coins each week."


    "Huh? Only 100 silver coins?" says Romain with a puzzled face


    "Why did you really surprised like that? Oh yeah... You are also part of the noble..." says Volya as he sighs


    "No... No... What I mean is... The cost is really cheap for a house like this and at this strategic location."


    "Eh?"


    "The usual rent cost at this location around 250 - 500 silver coins a week. There must be a reason for them giving you a really cheap rent cost like this."


    "Huh?"


    "Last time someone who help Sir Albert also get a house and the rent also around 250 - 300 silver coins. Why suddenly you get this house really cheap like that?"


    "Ummm... Is there any connection between the cheap rent with the scared face that some townfolks when they see me entered this room yesterday?"


    "This house? Scared face? Ah..."


    Romain suddenly realizes something, walks towards his room, and takes out Ironforge map. He then asks Volya to points out the house location and after he points it out, Romain then says,


    "Now that makes sense."


    "Make sense?" asks Volya with a puzzled face


    "Some say that this house is cursed..."


    "Cursed?! Why did you say that?" says Volya as he panicked a little bit.


    "I''m not quite sure, but the legend of this house quite bad... Especially with three murder case that happens at this house. Even this house once burned down completely before someone says to build this house again. After we rebuild this house again and tried to rent it to another people, no one dares to stay here."


    "Three murder case?!"


    Volya then falls on his knee and realize how dreadful the house is. He just realizes that Albert gives this house for him only because he is a mage. He probably thinking that it will fine because he have a lot of magic thing at his disposal.


    He then shouts full of frustation,


    "So that''s the reason!"


    "Well... That''s the possible reason though. A bad name will make the rent plummeted." answer Romain


    "I agree..."


    Volya suddenly looks at Romain, or behind Romain to be more precise. Romain really surprised and asks him,


    "Ummm... Volya... Why are you really focused like that?"


    "So... That''s the reason why there are two people that staring at us..."


    "Staring? With ill intent or..."


    "They look really angry... With that empty white eye and black shadowy body...they point their finger to you."


    "Hey... Hey... You must be kidding right?!"


    Romain then immediately cowers in fear and not long after that he could hear Volya laughs really hard. Romain then points his finger at Volya and shouts,


    "You!"


    "Ahahahahaha... Look at your face. It''s really hilarious!" says Volya as he laughs really hard


    "Urgh... You will pay for it later!"


    "Ahahahahaha... Sorry... Sorry..."


    Both of them continues talking about the incident that happens at the house in the past until they notice Volya''s ferret looking at one the room intensely.


    Volya and Romain look at each other and Romain says,


    "Don''t say... There is a ghost at this house!"


    "You know... I''m joking right?" says Volya as he looks at Romain again


    "Please... Please..."


    The ferret continues to look at the door, then looks at the two-man at the room, and smirks at them. Knowing the ferret tricks both of them, Romain then stands up, takes out a knife, and says,


    "I will skin you alive, you annoying white fur!"


    "Calm down, Romain... Calm down," says Volya as he tried to hold Romain down


    The ferret looks really satisfied and leaves them alone in the dining room. After the ferret leaves, Volya then tells Romain that his ferret loves to play some pranks and then promises him that the ferret will behave in the future. Romain takes a deep breath and then says,


    "If you say so..."


    "Again... I''m sorry about that," says Volya apologetically


    "That''s alright... That''s alright... Rather, I forget what we are talking before." says Romain


    "About rent of this house..."


    "Ah yes, now I remember."


    "You says about the history of this house that made this house really cheap."


    "Yep... And now I remember that you are wondering how to pay it, right?"


    "Yes. Especially after six months already passed."


    "Hmmm... I could pay everything if you want to."


    "No... No... I don''t want to owe you a lot of money."


    "Well, I could pay half of it, right?"


    "Yes... 50 silver coins."


    "Then, you still wondering what kind of job that meets your specification, right?"


    "Yes."


    Volya then tells him every possible job in his mind, and Romain agrees with the positive and negative side of the jobs that told by Volya. Volya then sighs and continues to think about what the job that he needs to take in order to survive at Ironforge, something that he never thinks about when he still lives with his father.


    Romain tried to help Volya and then looks outside. He could see a lot of people walking around, and could see several mercenaries that just come back from their mission. He then stands up and says,


    "I think I know one..."


    "Huh?"


    "I will lend you some money to buy the form."


    "Eh? Huh?" says Volya that really puzzled.


    "If you follow me, you will understand what the jobs are..."


    "Where are we going?"


    "Let''s go to Belcrest!"


    And with that Romain pull Volya to Belcrest.

 19 Adventurer

    "Just tell me, why are you dragging me to Belcrest?!"


    That''s the question that Volya ask Romain when they are walking to Belcrest. Romain didn''t answer him until they arrived at Belcrest. He opens the door and immediately walks towards the second floor. Volya follows him and now he could see the second floor thoroughly.


    The second floor has a lot of long table with long chair for people to gathers together. It also has a chute for people that want to post their request and a request board near the chute. At the north side of the room, there are three stalls. The first stall is the place where people want to change their currency depending on the rate there. The second stall is the place where people want to register their mission from the request board and report it when they have done it. And the last one is used for those who want to know more about Ironforge and Belcrest.


    About the request board, every 24 hours Albert will gather all of their requests and sort it depending on the type of request. He will decide which one that could be done by the military, which one that will need more manpower with addition from the military, and which one that could be given by the mercenaries.


    After they passed through Albert, the leader of the guild will put the request on the request board after the guild leader sort it from the difficulty given by Albert.


    Volya could see a lot of request already posted there and a lot of people are gathering there to find their suitable mission. They are the mercenaries that life depends on the mission posted there. Not only from Haegia, but the mercenaries also come from a different country and will gather at the place that needs them the most. Some of them have heavy armour, the other has light armour, and even some of them only using a leather armour. They even don''t care if they are men or women, everyone is equal if they could show their skill to them.


    Volya admires the mercenaries after he met with a group of mercenaries when he is young. They have a great story and looks free with their life. They even don''t care about his father stature back then. He only could smiles as the mercenaries that he sees now really have a free spirit in their life and looks like enjoying their choice.


    Volya then continues to walk with Romain that already calling him. He walks to Romain and says,


    "Let me guess it... You want me to become..."


    "Yes, a mercenary... Or an adventurer, the way most of them call themselves," says Romain


    "But, you know... I want to stay at Haegia... Not wandering around like all of them."


    "Well, you could take every mission that posted at Belcrest. But, sometimes you could take the mission that posted from outside of Haegia, so you could see the other country too."


    "What if it runs out of request?"


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    "I doubt it with the world condition right now."


    "Well... You are right about that¡­ But still¡­." answer Volya that thinking about that.


    He then stops at the third stall with Romain that knocks on the table there. He then says,


    "Hey, Lucia! Are you there?"


    "Eh? Big Bro? Why are you here?" says one woman with black twin-tail hair that called as Lucia


    "Ehehehehe... I just want to ask if it is possible for me to become a mercenary here," answers Romain


    "Huh? Are you already given up to become a knight?"


    "No... No... Sir Villias ask me to take a leave for a while from Knight to become stronger."


    "In other word, they throw you away from knight..." says Lucia once more


    "That''s... Not..."


    "You know, she is right from the way you say it," says Volya


    "Don''t add salt to the wound, damn it!" shouts Romain


    Lucia and Volya laugh together and then they notice each other. Lucia then says,


    "Ah... You are the fortune teller that came to Belcrest back then, right?"


    "Yes, that''s me," answer Volya


    "My, my... If you are here then, are you going to open your services again?"


    "Err... No..."


    "Huh? Then why are you here?" says Lucia with a puzzled face


    "He will register together with me to become a mercenary, or Adventurer how they usually call themselves," says Romain


    "Huh? Both of you?"


    "Yes. You know, he already becomes the resident of Haegia after his feats before and he needs to make some money for himself. And he thinks that fortune-telling alone is enough to pay his rent and his daily life."


    "He... Hey, Romain... Don''t blurt it out!"


    "Of course he will have a very high value here, after all, he is a mage!"


    "Romain!" shouts Volya that embarrassed


    Lucia looks at Volya and then at Romain once more. She then sighs and searching for something. After that, she asks someone to take over her place for a while and get out of the stall.


    The moment she gets out from the stall, Volya could see her. She has black twin-tail hair and has the same eye colour as Romain. Her height around 145 - 150 cm, but her asset is quite big in Volya''s eye. She is wearing a black frilly maid uniform and brown boots.


    She then looks at Volya and says,


    "Hmmm... Let me guess, you need money to pay something, right?"


    "Yes..." answer Volya


    "And this is your last resort, right?"


    "Ye... Yes..."


    "Haaa... I believe that muscle head is the one that drags you here," says Lucia as she looks at Romain


    "Yes..."


    "Ah... I haven''t introduced myself, right?"


    Lucia then bows at Volya and says,


    "My name is Lucia Ambros, the second child of Ambros family and the clerk that working at Belcrest. Nice to meet you."


    "Ah... My name is Volya Portar, a mage. Nice to meet you," answer Volya as he bows at her too


    "Ehehehehe... It''s good that my muscle brain brother could have a sane person like you as his friend."


    "You make me fluster..."


    "Then, back to business... You want to apply as an adventurer, right?"


    "Yes."


    "Alright, here the form. You only need to fill it first, I believe my idiot brother will be the one that pays the fee."


    "Tha... Thank you."


    "Then, I will leave you for a while."


    Lucia then walks at Romain that waiting for her and then says,


    "So, you will become an adventurer, too?"


    "Well, while I am away from any knight job. Rather than doing nothing, right?" answer Romain


    "Yes, it is."


    Lucia then peeks at Volya and then asks Romain while handing him the form,


    "Why are you persistent to help him? Do you have some kind of debt to him?"


    "Sort of..." answer Romain


    "What did he do to you?"


    "You should know that he is the one that helps our Queen back then."


    "Only that?"


    Romain then looks at Volya for a moment and remembers their conversation back then. He then says,


    "No..."


    "Then, what else that makes you persistent with that? Our Father is concerned with that you know..." says Lucia


    "He... Just make me realize that I still need to learn. And based on the experience when I am with him... I know that I could become better people."


    Lucia looks at Romain and then sighs. She then hits her brother''s chest and says,


    "Alright, if this isn''t fruitless... I believe you could change our father mind."


    "Ahahahahaha... I believe I could do that in the future."


    "And then... Will you back to become a knight? That''s your dream since you are young..."


    "I will... When Sir Villias and Sir Albert need my hand."


    Lucia could see Romain''s eye and knows that he isn''t joking right now. His eye is full of hope and determination, just like when he is young. Lucia then smiles and says,


    "And I believe, this is your way to find a woman for your life... Am I right?"


    "Well, I didn''t think about that right now..." answer Romain quite embarrassed.


    "Ahahahahaha... Just like usual... Here, your form. Just fill all of them and I will take care of it later."


    "Thank you, Lucia."


    Romain then walks towards Volya with Lucia and could see Volya struggled with something. They could see that Volya couldn''t hold the wooden pen easily and the form becomes a mess.


    Volya notices both of them already in front of him and says with a red face,


    "I... I... I never use this thing... So... Err... Could I get another form?"


    "Are you a child?!" says Lucia


    "Well, he is a hermit that lives in the forest... Of course, he will struggle with that," explains Romain


    "Well... Hmmm..."


    Lucia thinks for a while and then smiles at Romain. From there, Romain knows what inside her sister mind and hear,


    "I will give him another form... But, you will get an extra charge for that."


    "Alright... I will pay it," says Romain


    "So, better you help him a little."


    "I know... I know..."


    Romain then sits down beside Volya and could hear Volya apologetic for that. Romain let it slide and then they continue to fill their form. Romain checks Volya''s form and gives it to Lucia. After she gets the form, she takes them inside to process it. She also asks them to stay there for one hour.


    One hour later, Lucia comes out from the room and walks towards Romain and Volya. She then gives them a bracelet with a name on it. Lucia then explains,


    "This bracelet is the identification information for both of you. It has your name on it and your address. Please use this bracelet whenever you take any mission or finish any mission at any tavern or guild across the continent."


    "Why must we use this bracelet?" ask Volya


    "This job is really dangerous, with a lot of people died without we know their origin nor their name. That''s why we create this bracelet for identification and bring it back to their respective home and country if they die at their mission," explains Lucia


    "A... Alright," answer Volya as he put his bracelet


    "Then, I will explain the rules here as an adventurer or mercenaries."


    Volya and Romain look at Lucia and they hear her says,


    "The first rule, you are only eligible to take the mission based on your current rank. But, you could take a higher rank mission if there are at least two adventurers that have a higher rank than you."


    "Could you tell us about our ranks?" asks Romain


    "Both of you are a newcomer... Of course, your rank is E. Do you have any question before I continue it?"


    "About the rule where we could take a higher rank mission. If we have two Rank A adventurers, could we take a Rank A mission with them?"


    "Ah... I''m sorry if this confuses you. The maximum higher rank mission that you could take is two-level above you. So if you are on rank E, the maximum level that you could take is the rank C mission. Even if you have two ranks SS adventurers with you, you only could take that level." says Lucia


    "There must be a reason for that..."


    "Yes. A lot of newcomers is died on their first mission because of this. They are underestimating the mission because they have a connection and tried to tackle a rank A or higher mission. Especially after an incident involving a group of Orcs and a group of Goblins."


    "A... Alright."


    "Do you have any more question before I continue it?"


    "No." answers Romain and Volya.


    "Alright, for the next one please follow me," says Lucia


    The three of them walks towards the request board and Lucia then says,


    "Here where you could take your mission. As you can see, Sir Albert already gives the rank on the mission with different colour stamps on them."


    Romain and Volya could see the different colour stamps at the end of each request there. They could see a blue, yellow, green, black, and red stamp on different request. Lucia then continues,


    "The blue stamps indicate a gathering mission. You need to gather the number of items from what the client specified here."


    "What if we gather more than what the client specified?" asks Volya.


    "They will become your possession and the client will not pay it."


    "A... Alright."


    "Ok, the next one is the yellow stamp. This colour indicates an escort mission. Either you protect any goods or protect any important nobles across the globe." continues Lucia


    "How about the green one?" asks Romain


    "The green one is an expedition mission. You will help the knights or local army to find or eliminate the threat in the area. Usually, you will help them in term of logistic, path-finding, or manpower."


    Volya then looks at the request with green stamps and could see some village there. He then nods and then hears Lucia that continues,


    "The black stamps is a capturing, elimination, or hunting mission. You should know from there what you should do, right?"


    "Yes... But, what about the number there?" asks Volya as he points it to some of the mission


    "Ah... That''s the difficulty of the monster that you hunt. The bigger the number, it becomes more dangerous." says Lucia


    "I remember that usually, the knight will help when the mission if the number is higher than 7." continues Romain


    "Yes. Usually, the one that sent a black stamp mission with a number higher than 7 is the military." continues Lucia


    "Alright... Then what about the red one?"


    "A war mission."


    Romain and Volya surprised and they look at the description. Romain immediately knows the area of conflict. That''s where Haegia is having a war right now, near the forest at the eastern side of the mountain with the local tribe. Lucia then says,


    "You don''t need to worry, only those who have rank SSS could take that mission."


    "A... Alright," says Volya


    "Then, I will tell you the second rule. Every time you already finished your mission, please return to us or any guild with a letter for escort and gather mission or proof for hunting and expedition mission. It will determine whether you already did your job or not."


    "What is the maximum days to finish any of that mission?" asks Romain


    "It is stated in the description. If not, the maximum is one month after you take that mission."


    Romain and Volya nod and then Lucia continues to explain about how to culminate points to rank up and any punishment if they failed the mission. At the end of the talk, Lucia says,


    "And the last rule is... Don''t die."


    "Huh?"


    "A lot of adventurers failed this basic rule... That''s why I emphasize this rule."


    Romain and Volya smiles and says together,


    "You don''t need to worry. We will not die."


    "Good to hear that. I will back to the counter. If you have any question, just come to my counter. And if you have chosen any of the mission, just go to mission counter. See you later then."


    Lucia then bows and leaves the two of them there. Romain then smiles and asks Volya,


    "Do you understand all of them?"


    "Some of it... Wait, don''t say that you..."


    "That''s... A lot of information in one day..."


    "How in this world you could become a knight?!"


    "Luck? Ahahahahaha."


    "Haaa... How about we tried to find a good mission for us first?"


    "You are right..."


    But after thirty minutes, the two of them can''t find any of it. Volya then says,


    "Could I gather that money before six months?! I doubt it."


    "Please... Keep looking... We will find one..."


    "Urgh... If only we get help from higher-level adventurer..." says Volya


    Both of them sighs until they could hear a woman says,


    "Then, let me help you."


    "Ah... Thank... You..."


    Both Volya and Romain were surprised to see the woman that stands beside them with another woman beside her. Volya then shouts,


    "Yo... Your Excellency?!"

 20 Grigory Romanov

    Romain and Volya are sitting at one the table at Belcrest together with Helena Estrudiantes, the Queen of Haegia, and Ludmila Karychenko, one of the Great Knight of Haegia. Both of them are wearing a different outfit from usual, rather they look like the adventurer around them.


    Helena is wearing a pair of gauntlets, with an iron breastplate, pauldron, and iron greaves. She also brings a pair of a sword with her. Meanwhile, Ludmila armours are lighter than Helena as she only uses a breastplate, vambraces, and iron greaves.


    Helena then looks at Volya and Romain for a while and then smiles at them. She then says,


    "It seems that both of you officially become an adventurer."


    "Yes... We just finished filling the form and hearing the rule from Lucia," answer Volya


    "Good to hear that. It will make me easier when both of you already know the basic of the rule."


    Volya and Romain then look at each other and nod. Volya then ask Helena,


    "Your Excellency, why are you here? I believe you should be at Onryx..."


    "I just feel really bored there. And I immediately run to this place after hearing that both of you going to register to become an adventurer," answer Helena


    Volya looks at Romain in empty eyes and Romain only gives him a sign to let it slide for a while. Volya then sighs and understand how carefree the queen of that country is. And he is really surprised that the Knight can''t do anything about it, even one of the Great Knight is following her.


    Ludmila knows what inside Volya''s mind and says,


    "Right now, Lady Helena is running away from Sir Villias and Sir Mikhail. She feels that their lecture will be really long and boring."


    "Huh? Sir Villias giving our Queen a lecture? That''s really strange..." says Romain


    "Wait... Ludmila... Don''t continue..." says Helena that becomes panicked.


    "It''s because Lady Helena tried to sneak out to follow all of us in the last mission."


    "Last mission? Oh, the mission where I meet you again..." says Romain


    "That mission... Where I dragged into a bigger mess..." says Volya as he looks away from them


    "Yes... And Sir Mikhail says that..."


    Helena suddenly covers Ludmila''s mouth and says,


    "Just... forget everything Ludmila says... Ok?"


    "A... Alright," answer Volya and Romain


    "Good..."


    Volya then looks at Helena''s hand and could see the same bracelet as Romain and him. Not only her, but Ludmila also have one. Before Volya asks anything, Helena says,


    "Before I become a queen, Ludmila and I are a partner as an adventurer. That''s why we become really close like this."


    "But, I didn''t see the difference when you are a Queen and an adventurer. Still clumsy. Still carefree without thinking anything. Like a fool," says Ludmila that makes Helena cover her mouth once more


    Volya and Romain only could laugh a little after hearing that. Volya then asks Helena about from who she knows that they are registering as an adventurer. Helena then answer,


    "From Sir Albert, he always informs me when there is something interesting at Belcrest."


    "So... Two Great Knight is behind her... Really..." says Volya as he looks on the ceiling


    "You don''t need to sweat that! I believe everything will be fine..."


    "But, you are Our Queen... Of course... That''s really..." says Volya that suddenly see a knife on the table with Helena that smiles at him.


    "What will happen with me?" asks Helena with a smile.


    "No... Nothing..."


    "Good... And please don''t say that I am a Queen when we are on our mission. Just call me Helena Petrov."


    Romain and Volya looks hesitant with that until Ludmila says,


    "You don''t need to worry about it, Romain... Volya... Helena always likes this when she is acting as an adventurer."


    "But..."


    "I say... Don''t worry," says Ludmila once again with a sharp gaze.


    Romain and Volya nod at her and then looks at Helena. They started to think if their idea will backfire soon enough. Helena then smiles at them, and asks them,


    "So, have you choose any mission with you?"


    "Err... Not yet, as I am still learning which one that suitable with both of us alone," answer Volya


    "Well, judging on how easy you are on walking through the terrain, especially when you are helping Helena back then... I believe a capture or hunt mission should fairly enough for both of you and it will be easier for you to know the system by doing this," says Ludmila as she looks at Romain


    "Hmmm... Three knights with one mage... Hey, Volya could you use some healing magic?" asks Helena


    "Yes... I could do some small-scale healing magic," answer Volya


    "Good to hear that."


    "Then, I will find one mission for your first mission," says Helena as he stands up


    Helena walks towards the board, leaving Romain and Volya with Ludmila. Volya then looks at Helena for a while and then asks Ludmila,


    "My lady..."


    "Call me, Ludmila... Please," says Ludmila


    "A... Alright..."


    Volya then takes a deep breath and says,


    "Ludmila, could you tell us why our..."


    "Helena..." says Ludmila with a sharp gaze


    "... Helena really eager to help us..." says Volya as he looks away as he feels really pressured with that.


    Volya then looks at Romain and makes a sign that Ludmila never acts like this when he meets her. Romain only answers that this is the Ludmila that every knight know.


    When Volya looks at Ludmila again, he could see that Ludmila still think the answer to that question. She then says,


    "I believe she is interested in you..."


    "Huh?"


    "In the last few incidents involving our country, you always there... It''s like you will attract something interesting in Helena''s eye," continues Ludmila


    "Err... Isn''t that a bad sign? It''s like I will bring calamity, no?" says Volya with a surprised face


    "But, for her... That''s something interesting..."


    "Really... For someone around that age..."


    "Ehem..."


    Volya could feel another intense glare from Ludmila and looks away once more. When he looks at Romain, he could see that he is drinking a cup of tea without care of what will happen to Volya next. Ludmila then sighs and says,


    "I must agree with you, as every time you are around... There is a problem occurs... With addition her age..."


    "Ye... Yes..."


    "But, I think this is a good exercise for me to protect her more."


    "Huh?"


    "And probably... I could understand other people more... And hopefully, know the other better."


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    Ludmila then realizes what she just said and immediately says with a red face, "Ahhh... Please forget about that..."


    Romain and Volya look at her with a blank stare and thinks the same thing, ''She is cute when flustered''.


    Ludmila then tried to drive the conversation to something else, until Helena comes back with a mission on her hand. Volya could see that it is a level D rank mission. She then says as he observes Volya for a while,


    "Because both Ludmila and I are level S adventurer, of course, you could takes this mission."


    "A... Alright... Huh... What is it, My Que..." says Volya


    "Helena..." interrupts Ludmila as she kicks Volya under the table weakly


    "... Helena..."


    Helena at first quite surprised to see what happened there and then she burst in laugh. She then looks at Romain that looks away from them and then asks him,


    "So, Romain... Could you tell me what happens here?"


    "Err... Something where Volya didn''t want to say your name casually..." answer Romain


    "Then, what about you?"


    "About me... As long I didn''t get reprimanded later, I think I will be fine... After all, you already ask me to do that... Helena..."


    "Good to hear that ahahahahaha."


    Helena then looks again at Volya and mumbles,


    "Hmmm... I forget what I am tried to say before..."


    She then looks at Volya once more and nods. She walks towards Ludmila and whispers something to her, meanwhile, Volya and Romain looks at the mission that Helena choose and they could see the mission,


    ''Hunt or Capture the bear at the top of the mountain''


    Volya then looks at Romain and immediately says,


    "No... I don''t know about this bear demeanour nor this bear name... I never meet with any animal aroundHaegia..."


    "I know you will say that, as you are a secluded hermit that only lives around Wildespring," says Romain


    "Good... And judging by the mission and its rank... Isn''t it dangerous for a new one like me?" says Volya with restless face


    Romain could see Volya''s face, immediately taps his back, and then says,


    "You don''t need to worry about it, Volya. I will become your shield for this mission... After all, I am used to protecting someone while I am under Sir Albert."


    Volya looks at Romain for a while and then he smiles at him. He then says,


    "Thank you very much, I really appreciate it."


    "Then, it should be safe if I say that you will be fine at this mission..." says Romain with full of confidence


    "Romain... Do you remember that Lucia says a lot of people died because of that? Because of someone full of confidence and they will slack off soon enough..." says Volya as he says something


    "Well... At least I am confident that you will be saved."


    Volya and Romain continue to chat about what they should do before the mission started until they notice that Ludmila that looks like daydreaming and Helena that smiles at them. Volya then says,


    "Ah... I''m sorry about that, it''s just I am really eager to start my first mission..."


    "That''s alright, I understand that. A lot of young people also looks like you when they will tackle their first mission," says Helena as he tried to wake Ludmila from her daydream.


    "Is... Is that so..."


    "Yes... Hey, Ludmila... Wake up... Don''t daydream about them..." says Helena as she shakes Ludmila


    "Huh... Huh? Eh?" says Ludmila that surprised to see them again after daydreaming.


    "Alright... Because everyone is already back to your sense... Let''s go to one of the armouries," says Helena


    "Armory? Why are we going there?" asks Romain


    Helena then looks at Volya and points at him. She then says,


    "Are you sure to bring him under armour? Look at him... He only wears a shirt and pants... Only that! With that in your mind, I believe he will only survive for one sec at the mission..."


    "Helena is right," says Ludmila


    "Err... But, I live in the forest only by this cloth... So..." says Volya that surprised to see Helena comes really close to him.


    She then glares at him and says,


    "Even if you already live there with that... That doesn''t mean you will save now..."


    Helena then stands up and drags Volya towards the stair. On her way, she continues to scold Volya, while Ludmila and Romain only look at each other and laugh a little bit. They then follow them towards one of the armouries near Belcrest.


    Thirty minutes later, Helena arrives at one of the armouries. Its name is ''Ironfudge''. She then opens the door and immediately shouts,


    "Uncle Romanov! Are you still here?"


    "Huh? Helena? Why are you here? And with that cloth..." says the middle-aged man with brown hair that showing the sign of ageing that comes out from behind the stall


    "Hello, Uncle Romanov... How are you?"


    The man is one of the blacksmiths that lived around Strongbourne and he is a close acquaintance of Helena. His name is Grigory Romanov. Grigory observes Helena for a while and then says,


    "Let me guess, you are running away from Sir Mikhail and Sir Villias, right?"


    "Ahahahahaha... Yes," answer Helena


    "Really... You are such a troublesome Queen, Helena."


    "Ah... Come on, Uncle Romanov. You should know that their lecture is really boring."


    "Alright... Alright... I will keep my mouth shut for this. Like usual, right?"


    Helena and Grigory then laugh together and the others could hear their laugh. Grigory then notices Ludmila there and says,


    "Oho... Even Ludmila is following you... And..."


    "Ah... Hello..." says Romain


    "Ah... One of Ambros family brat huh..."


    "Yes, I am... My name is Romain Ambros. Nice to meet you."


    "Ah... Nice to meet you, Romain. My name is Grigory Romanov."


    He then looks at Romain for a while and asks Helena,


    "Did he follow you by someone order or something? I believe he is one of the promising knights under Sir Albert and Sir Villias rank. Am I right?"


    "Ah... No, he isn''t following me under any of those knights order. It''s fully from his heart content," answered Helena


    "Huh? What do you mean?"


    "You know, Sir Villias orders him to learn from the outside world," says Helena


    "Learn from the outside world? From who?"


    "From the man beside him," says Helena as she points at Volya


    Grigory then looks at Volya and immediately recognize him. He then points at Volya and says,


    "Ah... The fortune teller that helping Helena at Wildespring!"


    "Yes... That''s me... My name is Volya Portar. I am the new residence of Ironforge since yesterday," says Volya


    "The new residence? That''s mean you will open your fortune-telling stands at Belcrest again, right?" says Grigory


    "If I have a chance and permit though, hahahaha"


    "Too bad... Too bad... My daughter really loves to hear the fortune from you."


    Grigory then laughs and then asks Helena again,


    "So, what do you want, for now, Helena?"


    "I need new armour for both Romain and Volya..." answer Helena


    "Armor? For them? Oh... Do they become an adventurer?"


    "Yes, they are."


    "My... My... So that''s why he didn''t know whether he will open the stallor not."


    Volya then nods to hide his embarrassment. Grigory then laughs and says,


    "Alright... Come here and take a look two of you... Hopefully, you could find suitable gear for you."


    Grigory walks towards the other room, but Volya and Romain only stay still. Volya looks at Helena and Ludmila, and then says,


    "You know... I don''t have any money to buy any of it..."


    "Don''t worry, Ludmila and I will pay for it, "answered Helena


    "Eh?!"


    "Just don''t worry," says Helena once more push Volya towards the door.


    Romain only could smile at them and following Volya to enter the other room. Forty minutes later, Romain and Volya come out from the room with Grigory that looks really happy.


    Because Romain can''t use his knight armour and weaponry, he buys a new one to becomes an adventurer. He is buying a pair of iron gauntlets, an iron helmet, an iron breastplate, a pair of iron greaves, a leather armour under breastplate, a round shield, and two swords with different length.


    Meanwhile, Volya only buying something lighter. He is buying a pair of leather greaves, chainmail with a leather gauntlet that also protecting his neck in front of it, and two knives.


    Helena really surprised with what Volya buys and then asks him,


    "Are you sure about that? You are still under threat with that..."


    "Even with Romain''s armour, he still under threat, right?" asks Volya


    "Still..."


    "I am this team mage and healer... So, I need to move freely... After all, I don''t want any of you to pay too much for this." says Volya as he smiles at them


    Helena wants to say something, but Ludmila stops her and says,


    "Then, we will try our best to keep you safe."


    "Thank you."


    "Then, I believe you didn''t buy any gauntlet because you will use the one that I gave you back then."


    "Yes... It''s still in a good condition," says Volya


    They continue to talk about Volya''s and Romain''s armour until they notice Grigory smiles at them. Helena then says,


    "Ah... We are really sorry about the ruckus..."


    "You don''t need to worry about it, Helena. It just reminds me of you and your group back then. Really lively and makes a lot of ruckuses here," answer Grigory


    "I''m sorry..."


    "No... No... It''s something good to see this workshop becomes lively like this again. I''m happy with that."


    The four of them really surprised to hear that, until Grigory says,


    "Alright... Helena, Ludmila... Looks after this greenhorns."


    "Yes, Uncle Grigory," says Ludmila and Helena


    "And then... Romain, Volya... Hopefully, you will become a good mercenary... And keep both of them safe, for our Kingdom," says Grigory as he looks at Romain and Volya


    "We will."


    "Good. Then if you need a new weapon or armour, just visit me. Probably I will give a good discount for all of you... Ahahahahaha"


    The four of them then leaves the armoury after some chat with Grigory. They then walk towards the gate of Ironforge and Helena says with a smile,


    "Hopefully, you will enjoy it... Romain, Volya."


    Romain and Volya quite surprised to see that, and then they smile and says,


    "Of course we will."


    And with that, they start their first mission.

 21 First Mission

    At the middle of Snowmarsh Mountain Range, at the Kilyakov Mountain. Four people are climbing on one side of the cliff with ropes that holding each other. They''re moving slowly under the harsh wind that blowing from the side. One of them is Volya Portar, the new residence of Ironforge and the new Adventurer.


    He looks above him and immediately shouts,


    "I WILL NEVER BELIEVE WHATEVER MISSION THAT ANY OF YOU CHOOSE ANYMORE!"


    When he is shouting, one snow hit his face and he immediately cleans his face with one hand still holding on the cliff. He then hears someone that laughing from someone above him. A man laughs. He then says,


    "Just shut up, you Muscle Brain!"


    "Ahahaha... I must agree with Ludmila and Helena when we are walking here that you need some training before doing this," mocks the man


    "I know... I know! Just shut up, Romain!"


    The man above him is Romain Ambros. He then continues to move steadily from one side to another side without any problem. Volya can''t hide his anger at him and then looks again above him. The other two members of his team also already move really fast without any problem. They are Ludmila Karychenko and Helena Estrudiantes.


    Volya only could sigh with that and continues moving slowly. But, the wind from the other side is really strong that he moves really slowly and hoping his grip will strong enough when he moves there.


    He then mumbles,


    "I should not follow him... I should have made that fortune-telling stall rather than this mission... I should have..."


    "Hey, Volya! Are you still there?!" shouts Romain


    "Yes... I am... Wait... Hey! Don''t shout!" shouts Volya


    "Good to hear that! We will start moving again!"


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    "Wait... Wait for me... Huh?"


    Volya notices that his rope already cut off and it dangling below him. His face becomes really pale as he looks below. He then tried to find the reason why the rope cut off like that and could see it''s because of one of the rocks there quite sharp. He curses his fate for a while, rethinks what he should do next, and then hears again that Romain says that they will move again.


    Volya then immediately move again, but because he is in a rush, he lost his grip and start to fall. He closes his eyes and says,


    "Ah... I think it will be my end..."


    As he started to fall he screams to his heart''s content,


    "I HATE ALL OF YOU!"


    As he starts to fall, every memory from his past flashes in front of him. The memory when he is with his sister. The moment when he is with his Foster Father and Brother. The moment when he is living happily in the forest. And the face of his hawk.


    The hawk smirks at him as if saying that he is pathetic. Volya immediately back to his sense and notice that already hits the snow below him. From there, he notices that he fall not too far as it still near the ground. He then sighs and says,


    "Maybe... I will let them finish the mission alone..."


    He then notices what he just said and remembers that his father scolds him because he said the same thing in the past. Especially about working with someone and they should have the same workload to get the rewards. He then sighs and looks above him.


    Volya judges the location of their target, scales it a little bit, and then mumbles,


    "I believe I could fly safely there... And..."


    He then calculates the speed of the wind that blowing from either side of the cliff and says,


    "I believe I could be safe on the way there. Alright then..."


    Volya then points his hand to below him and a white magic circle shows there. He focuses himself a little bit and then says,


    "Let the flow of the wind lift me across the clear blue sky, Fly!"


    The magic circle immediately vanished and he starts to levitate. As he levitates across the cliff, he stops near Romain that surprised to see him flying. Romain then says,


    "Wait... You have that magic?!"


    "Yes, really convenient magic, right?" mocks Volya


    "You little... If I know you have that magic, maybe we could use that magic to..."


    "I can''t do that..." answer Volya


    "Huh?! Why?"


    "Because... I only could lift one person... So... Yeah."


    Romain looks at Volya a little bit and then he notices Volya makes a sign that he will go first and mocks him. Volya then levitates passing through Helena and Ludmila. He smiles a little bit at them and as he going through them, he could hear Helena shouting something under the heavy wind blows,


    "Care... Bear... Cold"


    "Huh? Care? Bear? Bear... As in bear with them or the animal that we will catch or slay? Well, I will see it by myself to see what she means..."


    Volya then continues to levitate until he sees the cave. He lands on near the cave and observes around him. The wind around the area become more ferocious and the snow thicker there. He then says,


    "The wind will become a problem... And the snow really annoys me."


    Volya then covers himself with his cape and looks at the cave near him. The cave entrance is around 3-meter tall and 4 or 5-meter width. The entrance is covered with snow and rock. He then walks there and could see a footprint there. A bear footprint. After seeing that, he says,


    "So... Our target is here..."


    Volya then crouches and checks the footprint closely. He immediately understands that their target is a big bear that could maul them without any hesitation. He then stands up and walks towards the cliff again.


    That''s where he hears an angry voice comes from the cave. He peeks behind him and could see the bear is come out from the cave. Volya stands still near the cliff and tried to remember what he should do if he encounters any bear at Wildespring.


    The bear looks at Volya and starts to stand up. Volya looks at it and he understands that the bear is irritated with his presence. He then nods and says,


    "Ahahahahaha... Mr Bear... I''m..."


    The bear immediately shouts really hard after hearing that. Volya a little bit startled and says,


    "Ahahahaha... I''m sorry... Mrs Bear... I just... passing through... Yeah... Passing through... So, will you kindly let me go?"


    The bear still stands still and he understands that the bear is really irritated with something. Volya observes the bear a little bit and he could see that the bear is wounded badly. He then mumbles,


    "Damn it... That''s the reason why she is in a bad mood..."


    Volya gazes at the bear and then starts to walk back slowly towards the cliff. The bear following Volya and suddenly charged towards him. Right before the bear could get him, Volya already jumps towards the cliff and levitates there. He then starts descending the cliff to meet with Helena, Ludmila, and Romain that still on their way.


    He then tried to remember what their client said about the mission,


    "This bear is making a big problem around the road, so the village is making a trap to catch it. Unfortunately, the bear is run away and become more ferocious."


    Volya then looks above and then he tried to find out the reason why the bear suddenly attacks them. He remembers that the bear around Wildespring will choose to run away when they meet human or some of them come close to them because all of them are curious about a human before the human drive them away.


    They also will choose to look at the human from afar, except the one that is really close to Volya. Until he remembers when one of the bears with violent and aggressive at him. He then says,


    "Don''t say that there is a bear cub inside the cave?! That makes a lot more sense."


    He then tried to think the reason why the bear really ferocious. Even when the location of the village is quite far from the cave. He then mumbles,


    "Bear usually will never attack those who are far from their home... Heck, they even don''t care about the territory. Most likely it involves the cub. Did they attack the cub? Or maybe the cub is the one that makes the ruckus and hurt itself on one of the villager''s trap?"


    He continues to descend until Helena notices him. Helena then shouts,


    "Volya... What happened up there?"


    "Ah... Helena..." says Volya that really surprised that he already near the three of them that climbing on the cliff


    "Volya, did you get or maybe find the bear?" ask Ludmila that below Helena


    "More or less... Yes..." answer Volya


    Helena notices that Volya is thinking about something and immediately orders the other to move to the right before they move towards the cave. And with that, their hunt begins.

 22 Plan

    Helena, Ludmila, Volya, and Romain are stopping near the road that leading to the cave where the bear lives. Helena and Ludmila look at the road to the cave, while Romain observes their surrounding.


    Meanwhile, Volya searching for something near the road. The road is near a small group of fruit plants that is withering because of the snow there. He then looks at the other end of the road, where he could see a forest there. Volya then asks Romain,


    "Romain, could you tell me about that forest. Is there any village there?"


    "Oh... Yes, there is three villages and one indigenous tribe village at the end of theforest," answer Romain


    "Could you explain to me about them."


    "Of course..."


    Romain then tells Volya the three villages that work under Haegia rule. They are Norinovo Village that produces woodcraft around Haegia, Kumevir Village that produces a lot of fruit-based cuisines, and Katov Village that produces a lot of blacksmiths that working at Ironforge. After hearing Romain''s explanation about each village, Volya then asks him,


    "Could you tell me, from which village is the one that posted that mission?"


    "I believe it''s from Norinovo village," answer Romain


    "Where is that village located?"


    "If you take this road towards the forest, you could reach the village around 20 km from the entrance of the forest," answer Romain again as he points in one direction


    Volya looks at the location that Romain pointed and thinks a little bit. Suddenly, Ludmila ask Romain,


    "Romain... Did you remember where the Villager puts their trap around here?"


    "Huh? I''m not quite sure about that," answer Romain


    Helena then joins them and they notice that Volya is walking around along the road towards the forest. Helena tried to call him, but it''s futile as he continues to walk there. Helena then sighs and asks the other to follow Volya.


    Volya stops near the forest entrance and then looks around him. He then checks the land near him and notices someone already puts a trap there. He then looks at the tree near the trap and notices that the tree is producing some fruit that could stay around the strong snow.


    Not long after that, he hears something moving inside the forest. Volya then starts to run towards the source and see some deer that running away after seeing him. When he stops, he also hears the sound of a river flowing freely near it. He then closes his eyes and understands a little bit about the bear behaviour.


    Helena walks behind Volya, looks at him, and then asks him,


    "Volya, what is inside your mind about all of this?"


    "Ah... I''m sorry to make all of you worried about me... It''s just really unusual for the bear to attack human like this," answer Volya as he tried to remember any bear attack related incident at Wildespring


    "The bear? Did you mean the one that we will hunt?" ask Romain


    "Yes."


    "So... What''s in your mind?" ask Ludmila


    Volya smiles a little and then looks around him. He then says,


    "I believe the bear usually search their food from this area."


    "This area? Isn''t it quite far from their cave?" ask Romain


    "Well... You could see from the abundance number of fruit around here with the addition of some animal that makes this forest as home."


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    "Huh?"


    "Also, I could hear a river flowing near us. This place indeed a strategic place for them to find their food. With the addition to another plant that bears fruit near the cliff already withered because of the weather."


    Helena, Ludmila, and Romain tried to remember the area around them and notices that they are indeed near a river. Volya then sighs and says,


    "And I believe we as human also see this forest as a good place to find the food. And in order to protect themselves and catch any prey, they put a lot of trap around here. Especially when the weather is this hard."


    "You are right about that..." answer Ludmila


    "Is the weather around here always this hard?" ask Volya


    "Not really... This year the weather hit really hard. Even I wonder if the villager could survive in this area alone," answer Helena


    "And I believe Norinovo village is specialized in making a trap to protect them when they are trying to cut the tree around here. To be honest, their trap is really good that it needs good eyes to find one," continues Ludmila


    "Then, what are you going to pull from all of that?" ask Romain


    "The reason why the bear becomes more ferocious," answer Volya as he smiles at them.


    Helena and Ludmila look at each other and then ask Volya to continue the explanation. Volya then explains,


    "The bear isn''t a type of animal that will attack a human without any reason. Usually, when they are moving towards us, that means they are curious about us. Especially something that we usually bring."


    "Is that so... Then most of the story about the bear is..." says Ludmila that interrupted by Volya,


    "Not really... As there is one case where the bear will become aggressive and ferocious."


    "When is it?" ask Romain


    "When they have a cub. They will become really protective of their offspring and will attack without hesitation," answer Volya


    Helena nods a little bit and then she says,


    "Let me guess, this area is a hunting ground for those bear."


    "Bingo," answer Volya


    "And because the villager put a lot of trap around here, the trap catches the cub and hurt it in progress." continues Ludmila


    "Yes... Yes... Because the bear is a curious animal and usually they will not notice the danger until they feel it. And with the cub is the one that gets hurt, the mother becomes really angry like this," says Volya as he sighs knowing the problem that makes this incident happens.


    Helena and Ludmila look at Volya as they disbelieve about what they just heard. Meanwhile, Romain looks at Volya and asks,


    "Why do you really sure about that?"


    "I have some bear friends at Wildespring... And some of them become really nasty when they are together with their cubs. I still remember when one of them mauls me because I am too close with their cubs." answer Volya as he laughs it off.


    "Are you sure this bear will act the same like that?"


    "Yes."


    "Why are you sure that this bear has a cub with it?"


    Volya looks at Romain and then says,


    "Did you forget that I already arrived at the cave first before all of you. When I observed the cave entrance, I see a small footprint together with the bigger one. From there, I know the cub still alive and trying it best to move."


    Romain looks at Volya and he understands that Volya is really concerned with the cub. Romain then sighs and thinks that if they kill the mother or captures it, what will happen with the cub. When he thinks about it, the animal also acts like a human in order to protect their own offspring.


    Volya then says,


    "I remember that we either catch it or kill it. If possible, rather than catch her... I want to move her to another part of this forest."


    "You know... We could either catch it or kill it. If you think we could catch it, then we will do it," says Ludmila


    "Hopefully we could catch her... But, with her condition..."


    Volya seems in deep thought and hears some suggestion from Ludmila and Romain on how to catch the bear. Meanwhile, Helena looks around and notices where they are standing right now. The location of the trap and Norinovo only around 20 km, but the location quite odd.


    She then looks at the road that leads to the cave. She also remembers the terrain of the cave from Volya. She looks at the sky and could see that the weather indeed on their side. Helena then nods a little and then says,


    "I think I get a plan for this one."


    "Huh?" says the other three


    Helena then smiles at them and explain what is her plan.

 23 The Cub

    Romain and Helena already arrived in front of the cave and observed the area around it. Helena looks really focused, while Romain a little bit nervous with the cave in front of them. He looks around and then at his shield.


    Helena peeks at Romain and says,


    "Just make sure that the bear paws didn''t hit your side."


    "I know..." says Romain


    "Our problem right now is our armour isn''t as robust as the military issue. The bear could easily tear it apart with it sheers force," says Helena


    "Just like what Volya explains..."


    "Or are you worried about both of them?"


    Romain looks at Helena and nods at her. Helena then says,


    "You don''t need to worry about them. Ludmila is a seasoned adventurer like me. And don''t forget that she is one of the Five Great Knight of Haegia."


    "..."


    "Or you are worried about Volya?"


    "Yes."


    "Hehehe... I believe he will be fine. He is quite knowledgeable about animal nature. And I believe he could understand when to run or to fight."


    "You are right, My Queen..." says Romain


    Helena only smiles at Romain and then starts to lit the torch. She then throws it to the cave entrance and prepares her sword. Meanwhile, Romain prepares his sword and shield before the beast charging on them.


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    Not far from there, Volya and Ludmila observe their movement from the air. Volya doing some experiments by trying lifting two people using his ''fly'' magic. Volya looks below, then at Helena and Romain, then at Ludmila, and then asks her,


    "Why did Helena really emphasize on she will become the bait for this plan?"


    "That''s how our Queen usually devises her plan. By making herself as bait, it will easier to trap the enemy," explains Ludmila


    Volya looks at Ludmila with disbelief and then looks at Helena that already attract the bear out from the cave. Romain and Helena then run from the cave with the bear chasing them.


    Ludmila and Volya then nods and land in front of the cave. Ludmila then searching for a twig to become a torch, while Volya looks at the cold cave in front of them. He then walks there and says,


    "O thy fire spirit, light the path in front of me and banish the darkness from me. Will-O-Wisp!"


    Ludmila could see a small magic circle on Volya''s hand. She is quite intrigued by that and see the magic circle already vanished. And at Volya''s palm, Ludmila could see a small fire suddenly fly from his hand and flying around Volya''s head.


    Volya looks at Ludmila and says,


    "With this fire, it will be easier for us and for you to use your weapon, right?"


    "..."


    "Ludmila?"


    "Your power indeed really amazing," says Ludmila


    "Huh?"


    "You know... No one in Haegia could use magic. But with you here, you become the one and only mage in Haegia."


    "Is... that so... I thought magic is something usual around here, especially with a lot of adventurer and mercenaries around here," says Volya with a surprised face


    "Yes... And to be honest, I am glad that you join us."


    Volya looks at Ludmila''s honest smile and smiles back at her. He knows that Ludmila didn''t lie about it. They then enter the cave with Ludmila walks behind Volya to make sure that the bear will not attack them.


    The cave isn''t that big, but it still has space for them to manoeuvre around. Volya orders the fire to split into several small fires and orders them to move ahead from him and Ludmila. Meanwhile, Ludmila looks around the cave and notices that there is an animal carcass near them. She walks towards the carcass and finds out that the animal died around five days ago.


    They continue to walk until they arrived at a bigger place in the cave. Volya then scatters his fire spirit to light inside it. When he does that, he could hear something is in pain.


    Ludmila looks around and notices a small brown fur is hiding behind a rock. She then shouts,


    "The cub is here, Volya!"


    "Where is it?" ask Volya


    Ludmila points at the rock and Volya immediately see the brown fur. He then walks towards him, but the cub makes a stance to attack him. Volya notices the bear cub action, then squats down, and then says,


    "You don''t need to worry, buddy... I will not hurt you."


    But the bear cub still agitated. Volya then moves slowly to the bear cub and stretch out his hand at the bear. The bear sees that as aggression and immediately claws it. Volya startled a little bit and that makes Ludmila draws her sword. Ludmila''s action makes the situation becomes worse and the bear continues to hide behind the rock.


    Volya looks at Ludmila and says,


    "Ludmila... Could you sheath your sword, please? You make it scared..."


    "But..." says Ludmila a little bit worried when she sees Volya''s hand


    "You don''t need to worry about this. The wound isn''t deep."


    "Al... Alright..."


    Ludmila then sheats her blade and see Volya tried to approach the bear once more. Volya knows that bear is scared with them, especially after the villager attacks them and hurt it.


    Volya then moves slowly once more, smiles when he nears it, and says,


    "Come here... I will check your wound. Don''t worry, the bad human already put down its weapon."


    The bear cub looks at Volya and then at Ludmila. But, it still shows a sign of agitation at them. Volya smiles again at it and sits down there. He makes a sign of someone that wants to play with it.


    Volya even makes several playthings with the rock near him and even creates it from the bones around. Little by little, the bear cub comes out from it hiding and move at Volya. Volya could see that the bear is limping and when it on his reach, he immediately catch it.


    The bear cub fights back, even it could claws Volya''s hand several times and tried to bites his neck. Volya tried his best to avoid the bite and makes a green glowing magic circle. He immediately says,


    "The flow of ether, lend me the miracle given by God. As I pronounce thy name, protect and heal us from any harm. Healing Light!"


    The magic circle vanishes and a small light manifests on Volya''s hand. The light then flies to the bear that still fights back and closes the wound on the bear.


    Volya notices that the bear cub start to gain its power back, so he let it free. The bear cub runs away from Volya and starts to attack Volya. When it tried to move again, it notices that its leg already healed. It stops for a while and looks at Volya that laugh with Ludmila that tried to help him up.


    Volya then says,


    "With the cub healed... It should be fine."


    "..."


    "Ludmila?"


    Ludmila suddenly pulls Volya''s hand, takes out a bandage, and wrap it up with it. Volya quite surprised and hears Ludmila says,


    "You are really something, Volya..."


    "Huh?"


    "You are the same with Helena... Selfishly acting on anything," says Ludmila


    "Well... It''s because..."


    "No... You are people of Haegia. It''s my job to protect you. Even when I am working as an adventurer," says Ludmila as she continues to patch Volya


    "..."


    "So..."


    "I know... I will be careful next time," says Volya


    Ludmila surprised to hear that and after she finished patch Volya, she hits his head weakly. After that, she says,


    "Let''s go... I don''t want to make another mess here..."


    "Yeah, you are right."


    Right before Volya walks away with Ludmila, the bear cub hugs Volya''s leg as if the cub shows gratitude to him. Volya looks at it and then smiles. He then carries the bear cub and says,


    "Let''s go now... Let''s meet your mom and I will heal your mother, too."


    "Yeah... Let''s go," said Ludmila


    "But... I wonder what happen with them right now..."


    Ludmila and Volya only look at each other and walks away from the cave with the bear cub that really happy with Volya.

 24 The Bear

    Meanwhile, on the other side of the plain. Romain and Helena are making a formation to protect each other. Romain prepares his shield and observes the bear movement.


    While Romain holding his shield, Helena notices the bear is covered with scars from the villager that attack it. She then says,


    "The villager really hurt her badly..."


    "I could see from here. I wonder why the villager can''t kill it by themselves," says Romain


    "Romain..."


    "Huh?"


    Romain peeks at Helena and could see the face of someone that quite disturbed with something. She then asks Romain,


    "Do you remember Sir Villias family crest?"


    "Yes, I remember... There is a bear on the crest," answer Romain


    "Yes... And judging from that, of course, Haegia will protect the bear populace from the hunter," continues Helena


    Romain just remembers about that and he just notices something. He then says,


    "So that''s why they said to kill or capture it and only specified to talk with the client about the mission."


    "Yes. ''Kill'' is meant for the people that come from outside of Haegia. While ''Capture'' is meant for the people that come from inside of Haegia," says Helena


    "Now I know why the number bears decreasing each year..."


    "Some shady person wants their fur to be sold... And I believe it comes from the same person."


    "That''s cruel..."


    Inside Helena mind, she is thinking about how to get away from the bear alive and catch the person who issues the mission. And from there she notices something. She says,


    "Wait... How in this world that mission could be passed from Sir Albert''s cunning eye?"


    "Huh?"


    "Sir Albert will never pass this mission to be posted on the mission board."


    Romain notices that and he now understands the oddity of the mission. But, Romain notices the bear will make another move and start to charge on them.


    So, Romain holds his shield and pinned on the ground with the bear on him. He tried his best to protect his head, while the bear continues to press him to the ground.


    Helena then draws her blade and charges towards the bear. She kicks the bear a little bit to draw its attention and jump back to safety. The bear let Romain go and chase after Helena.


    Romain then takes the nearest rock and throw it on the bear. He then prepares his shield as the bear continues to charge on Romain. That is Helena plan.


    Helena and Romain will waste the bear time by encircling the bear, while Ludmila and Volya enter the cave to heal the cub. If they already have done, Volya will send a sign to Helena and Romain so they will run to the cave.


    Helena notices that Romain almost exhausted, so she throws the bear with another rock. But, rather than the bear chasing her, it chooses to continue attacking Romain.


    The bear then swings its paw and send Romain to the ground his shield thrown away. Romain could feel his left arm bone is broken. He then notices that the bear starts to attack him once more. So, he blocks the attack with his sword. But, it isn''t easy with only one arm.


    Romain tried his best to hold the bear, until Helena dashes at the bear. She uses her body to push the bear. But, it''s useless as the bear now looking at Helena with disgust.


    Helena then jumps back and prepares her sword. She knows that fighting an animal is more unpredictable than fighting a human. She prepares her stance and waiting for her chance to parry the bear.


    The bear starts to attack Helena but stops when it notices something comes from her cave. A very bright light. It immediately runs away towards the cave to check her cub.


    Helena and Romain look at it dumbfounded before they notice something. Romain then says,


    "Don''t say that is Volya''s signal."


    "What? If that true..." says Helena that quite panicked


    "Let''s go!"


    Romain stands up without caring about his broken arm and Helena immediately dashes towards the cave.


    Meanwhile, Volya just finished using his magic to call his friend with Ludmila looks like playing with the bear cub that being carried by Volya. Volya then says,


    "I believe the one who will come first is its mother."


    "That''s good... Wait... Who will come first?" asks Ludmila that notices what Volya just said


    "This cub''s mother..." answer Volya as he strokes the cub bear that licks on his face.


    Ludmila then looks at Volya with a scarred face and shouts,


    "Are you crazy?! If that really the mother... We should..."


    "It''s no use... I could hear the bear is closing fast," says Volya


    "Gyaaaaa... You must be really kidding me!" shouts Ludmila as she falls on to the ground


    Volya smiles at Ludmila for a while and then puts down the bear. The bear cub then hugs Volya''s leg as it waiting for its mother. Little by little, the mother bear is coming near and Volya could see the furious face from it.


    He then looks at the bear cub and says,


    "Go meet with your mother..."


    The cub looks at Volya and then nods. The bear cub then running towards its mother. The mother notices that and immediately slowing down. Then, the mother stops near the bear cub and licks it.


    Volya observes the mother bear and notices a very big scar on its body. He then takes a deep breath and walks towards the mother. Ludmila notices that and tried to stop him, but Volya makes a sign that everything will be fine.


    Romain and Helena tried to catch up with the bear and notices Volya that walking towards the bear. Helena immediately shouts,


    "Volya! Don''t come near it!"


    But, Volya didn''t care with the warning. He walks slowly until the mother bear notices him. The mother Bear made a stance that will attack Volya, but the bear cub holds its mother leg. The mother Bear quite surprise and see Volya''s hand near its face.


    The mother bear wants to bite it, but hesitate a bit because its cub is holding her. Volya then touches its face and then touches the scar. He immediately notices that the mother bear is holding the pain.


    He then smiles and a magic circle appears on his hand. Volya closes his eyes and says,


    "The flow of ether, lend me the miracle given by God. As I pronounce thy name, protect and heal us from any harm. Healing Light!"


    The magic circle disappear from his hand and it shows up around the bear wound. Volya then touches the bear face and strokes its fur. He then says,


    "Just wait a moment... Your wound will close soon."


    The bear looks a little bit less suspicious with Volya and lets him tends her wound. Volya continues to strokes its fur until the wound fully healed.


    When Helena and Romain already near Volya, they look really surprised. Even they see that Ludmila falls to the ground after seeing what really happened there. Volya already sits on the snow with the bear cub on his lap and the mother bear is sitting in front of him. They look like having a long chat together.


    Helena immediately runs towards Ludmila and help her stand up. She then asks her,


    "What happens, Ludmila?"


    "Well... Volya does something amazing. You will not believe it, Helena," answers Ludmila full of joy


    "Is... That so..."


    Meanwhile, Romain walks towards Volya and asks him,


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    "Hey, Volya... What are you doing to it?"


    "Oh... I just ask her about what happens around here," answer Volya


    "Huh?"


    Volya then continues to ask the bear and Romain notices that the bear is understood what Volya said. Before Romain continues to ask him, Ludmila suddenly says,


    "Before both of you arrived here, he said that he chants magic so he could talk with the animal."


    "Is it?"


    Romain looks at Volya and notices that Volya already finished talked with the bear. Volya stands up and says,


    "Okay... The bear said that someone puts the trap around the forest. But, it says it''s not the villager that put them."


    "Huh? Not the villager?" says Helena after hearing that


    "Yes. Someone not from the village near it..."


    Helena closes her eyes for a while and then looks at the bear and its cub. She then says,


    "Volya, could you tell them that we will protect them and everyone around her? It''s my promise as Queen of Haegia."


    "You know... The bear told me that they already know that as someone from her group has been protected by several knights on several occasions," says Volya


    "Eh?"


    "And they ask me... Could you catch the one who put the trap around here? It''s their request to all of us as they think we are someone trustworthy."


    Helena looks at the bear that looks at them and then smiles at it. She then says,


    "Then, could you tell them to move away from this place first? I will tell the villager that it''s because someone puts the trap around here. I also will tell them that we already fend off the bear away."


    "Then... You are..." said Volya


    "Yes and I already told you that we will protect them."


    Helena smiles at Volya that really happy. She then walks toward the bear and pets it. She then looks at Volya and says,


    "Could you tell them this?"


    "What is it?" asks Volya


    "I want to takes some of its furs... To show that we indeed already killed them. After that, I will start the investigation for the poachers around."


    "I will try to tell her..."


    Volya then explains something to the bear in which the bear complies. Helena then takes some of it and then pats its furs once more. After that, Volya continues talking with the bear while Helena says,


    "It''s better we let him for a while... Let''s go to the village."


    Helena looks at Volya that looks already lost in conversation with the bear and its cub and then leaves him be. With this, she leaves him alone and their first mission finished.

 26 Misfortune

    Volya looks around the dining room and then sighs for a while. He then drinks the tea that served by Romain, while Romain helping Lucia at the kitchen. When Volya takes a sip, he says,


    "You put too much sugar, Romain."


    "Huh? Did I?"


    "Did you want to kill me with this? By giving a lot of sugar on my drink?" jokes Volya when he sees Romain get out of the kitchen.


    "He didn''t mean to do that, Volya!" shouts Lucia from the kitchen


    "I''m just joking you know."


    "You know... I always put three spoonfuls of sugar on my drink!" explains Romain


    "Could you show me which spoon that you use for this tea?"


    "Of course this spoon!"


    Romain shows a table spoon at Volya. Volya then sighs and says,


    "I thought you use a teaspoon for this one."


    "If I use the teaspoon, like hell I could taste the sugar!" says Romain


    "Now I wonder... Do you want to drink tea or drink the sugar..."


    "Of course the tea," says Romain with a stern face


    "I''m just joking... Go help your sister before she starts to yell at us."


    "You are right."


    Romain immediately goes back to the kitchen to help her sister that starts to yell. Volya only laughs a little and then tried to drink once more until he feels it''s inedible.


    It''s been three months since he finished his first mission. Since that time, he knows more people from the guild and blacksmith area. But, this time he chooses to take some break after finished his last mission with Romain, Helena, and Ludmila.


    Volya then stands up, takes the newspaper given by Albert to the residence of Ironforge, and read the article there. There is a face of relieve when he reads it. At least he knows the last incident didn''t make much fuss at any city and village of Haegia.


    Not long after that, Lucia comes out from the kitchen with food ready on her hand. She puts the food on the table and then hears Volya says,


    "Thank you very much, Lucia. I really appreciate your help."


    "Really... You always protest with anything we serve to you. I think it''s better if you help me a little," says Lucia as she looks at Volya


    "Well, do you remember about that rule?"


    "Rule?"


    "Yes... The rule where I will not use any magic in daily life."


    "Ah..."


    "Of course you remember when I help you at the kitchen that time? When I burn the pan."


    "I remember that..."


    "And you remember when I make something purple-ish... Like something out from this world?"


    "..."


    "And do you remember when I make something inedible to eat for the three of us?"


    "Alright... Alright... I know."


    "It''s good that you still have commons sense to help my stomach and Romain''s."


    Lucia only sighs and thinks that Volya only makes the mess in order to run away from the daily activities there. Romain then comes out from the kitchen with several plates. He then looks at Lucia that thinking about something and says,


    "I''m sorry to trouble you, Lucia. Especially in the last three months..."


    "Or maybe for the rest of our life," says Lucia with a smile


    "Urgh."


    "But, that''s not a problem... I could hone and experiment more on creating a new food. Especially I have two people that will eat it first hand," says Lucia with a smile


    Volya and Romain don''t dare to face her and look away from her. Lucia laughs a little at them and says,


    "Go ahead eat them before the food cold."


    "Yes!" said both of them when they notice the food in front of them


    Lucia smiles at them as they eat them happily. When they already finished eating, Volya helps Romain to clean the table while Lucia notices the teacup on the table.


    She walks there and then asks Volya,


    "Volya, how sweet is the tea that my stupid big brother made for you?"


    "Really sweet... I believe I could die because of that," answer Volya from the kitchen


    "It''s not that sweet!" says Romain


    "Hmmm..."


    Lucia sips the tea and then smiles. She then says,


    "Yup... Too sweet."


    "What?!" says Romain as he rushes from the kitchen


    "Well, you really like sweet things since you are young. Mom always said that is the only sweet side of you," says Lucia as she takes the cup to the kitchen


    "My... my... Your mother said that?" says Volya that notices Lucia puts the cup near him


    "Yes... And you know... My big brother level of sweetness is far above everyone. Of course, it''s will too sweet for the other."


    "Is it?" says Volya as he starts to clean the other plate


    "Yes!" said Lucia cheerfully


    "It''s my past you know..." said Romain that starts to put the plate to the drawer


    Lucia looks at Romain and then says,


    "Maybe... I could tell you some of his embarrassing moment when he is a child."


    "I''m all ear," says Volya looks really interested


    "Cut it out!" shouts Romain that start to flustered


    Both Volya and Lucia laugh together and then Lucia asks Volya to add another rule on the board. After he added the new rule for Romain, Volya sits down on one of the chairs with Lucia sits down in front of her. Not long after that, Romain sits together with them.


    He then immediately asks Volya,


    "So, are you going to get any mission today?"


    "Hmmm... I want to take a break now... The last mission..." says Volya as he looks on the ceiling


    "I know... I know... And that''s a wise decision for you to take a break," says Romain


    Volya only sighs and notices his ferret walking down the stair and immediately run towards Volya''s lap. It then sleeps on his lap with Volya chuckles a little bit. Volya then says,


    "My, my... It knows that I am restless and tired right now..."


    "Even we could see it from your face, Volya," says Lucia as she points at Volya''s face


    "Ahahahahaha... Of course... After I used two high-level magic on the last mission, I will feel like this..."


    "But, I can''t believe our Rank D mission will become a terror like that. I believe Sir Albert should check more on the mission description in the future," says Romain as he tried to remember what happened in the last mission.


    Lucia looks around her, looks unsure, and then says,


    "You know... There is an emergency situation from the guard around the area and the difficulty raised to rank B mission..."


    "Huh? Is that so?" says Volya quite surprised


    "Our guild just get the notification around three hours after all of you leave for the mission," explains Lucia


    "Then, why none of the knights informs us about it?" asks Romain


    "The number of monster movement is abnormal and even it''s really hard to find all adventurer around the area to inform that change," answers Lucia


    "So... We actually don''t need to kill those Trolls?" says Volya


    "Actually yes... I''m really surprised that both of you tell us that you manage to kill two Trolls," says Lucia as he looks at the window behind her


    "Then... That mission... and our action..." says Romain as he looks at the storeroom.


    The storeroom is empty because Romain needs to repair his armour at Grigory''s Armory. Lucia notices that Romain feels really irritated with the truth and tried to cheer him on. Meanwhile, Volya sighs and asks,


    "Why did we didn''t get any bonus for killing those Trolls?"


    "Sir Albert actually wants to give you a bonus for that..." answer Lucia


    "But?"


    "Uuuuu... How to put it..."


    "Ah... I know... Because of the result of the mission, right? What a misfortune for me."


    Lucia only could sigh hearing that remarks from Volya and notices Volya becomes more agitated. He then asks Lucia while stroking his ferret,


    "Then... How is Helena and Ludmila condition? I remember that Ludmila seriously injured back then."


    "Right now, she is treated at Military Hospital. Her condition already stable and she could give an explanation to Sir Villias about the mission," answer Lucia


    "Sir Villias... Argh..." says Romain as he becomes more frustated


    "Then... What about Helena?" asks Volya


    "She is resting at the Capital City and I believe Sir Mikhail is reprimanding her for her action... Especially after coming back injured like that," answer Lucia


    Both Romain and Volya immediately sigh as a sign of resignation. They are preparing their mind if they are expelled from the kingdom. In order to change the conversation, Lucia then asks Volya,


    "Volya, did you already safe enough money to pay this house rent?"


    "Well... If the price still the same, my answer is yes... But, if Sir Albert punish me by giving a higher price, then... I''m screwed," answer Volya


    "Oh come on! Please be positive!" shouts Lucia as she stands up, shakes Volya, and surprised Volya''s Ferret


    "Don''t worry about it, Lucia... I already think positive..." says Volya


    "Good to hear that..."


    "I already find a good alley to stay at Ironforge... The place if comfy and not crowded. I believe I will stay there if they drive me away from this house," continues Volya


    "Argh! Big Bro! Help me a little bit will you? Both of you live together in this house, right?" said Lucia


    "If... they drive me away from this house... Then I will back to my mansion... And I believe they will not accept me on the knight rank again..." answer Romain


    "Big Bro!"


    "Or maybe... I will back to Wildespring..."


    "Uuuuuuhhhhhh! Why both of you acting childish like this?!" says Lucia with puffy mouth


    Volya and Romain look at Lucia and laughs together. They then pat her head and that make Lucia sighs. She then says,


    "You know... I doubt Sir Albert or Sir Villias will punish both of you"


    "Why did you think that?" asks Volya


    "Just look at here... It''s already a week since that incident, but none of them makes any move to punish both of you," explained Lucia


    "You... You are right..." says Romain


    "I believe Lady Ludmila and Your Highness Helena tried their best to protect you. So, both of you should be at ease right now..."


    Romain and Volya look at each other and looks a little bit relieved. At least that fact assures them that they will not be punished. Lucia smiles at them and then asks them about what will they do soon. They immediately talk about taking another mission around one week from now after Grigory finish repairs Romain''s armour.


    After one hour chatting, Romain notices something and asks Lucia,


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    "Lucia... Are you taking a day off today?"


    "Ah! I almost forgot!" says Lucia a little bit panicked


    "Go prepare yourself."


    Lucia then runs towards one room to change her cloth while Romain stands up to help Lucia on preparing her belongings. Volya smiles at them and then continues to stroke his Ferret fur. His Ferret looks happy and then suddenly stand up.


    Volya looks at his Ferret and hears someone knocking on the door. His Ferret jump from Volya''s lap and Volya says,


    "I will open the door! You don''t need to worry about it."


    Volya then walks towards the door with his Ferret on his feet and open the door. The moment he opens the door, the time seems like frozen around him. Not only that, he could feel chill on his spine as he sees the person in front of him. His eyes immediately become like a dead man and he starts to sweat. His Ferret immediately touches Volya leg to show its pity to him.


    In front of him stands two Hight Knight of Haegia. They are Albert Martin and Villias Pavlov. Not only that, there are a lot of knight behind them and looks like they will beat him soon.


    Volya looks below, move slowly, and then says weakly,


    "Please... Come in..."

 28 Arkmunster

    Six horses gallop their way through the mist of the mountain. Their rider wearing a cape as they move quickly towards the fortress at the base of the mountain.


    The first two riders are Helena Estrudiantes, the Queen of Haegia Kingdom, and Ludmila Karychenko, one of the Great Knight of Haegia. Ludmila joins the expedition as her punishment from the last incident with Helena, while Helena feels she needs to join them to make sure that her presence could lift the morale around her.


    The second group consist of Villias Pavlov and Albert Martin. They are the one who responsible for the current expedition and protecting the village that they will visit.


    And the last one is Volya Portar and Romain Ambros. They agree to joins Villias and Albert to protect the village and find the magician that make a ruckus around Therious.


    Volya looks around him and could see the scenery is really bland. He only sees a cliff around him and then he only sighs. After that, he looks in front of him and sees Helena.


    Volya then asks Albert that directly in front of him,


    "Sir Albert..."


    "What is it, Sir Volya?" ask Albert


    "Why Your Highness follows us for this mission? I believe she can''t leave the Kingdom for a while..." asks Volya


    "About that..."


    "This is Sir Mikhail and King Paulo decision..." answer Villias


    "Huh?"


    "Yes... I think the village that we will visit have someone that Queen Helena knew in the past," continues Villias


    "Is... that so..."


    "And she could rally and lift the morale of the knight near the village," says Albert


    "Hopefully..."


    Volya then looks again at Helena and says,


    "Isn''t it dangerous for you to keep Your Highness joins such a dangerous mission like this?"


    "Yes... And we are aware of that..." answer Albert


    "Then... Why did both of you let her join us?"


    None of them answers Volya question and from there Volya knows that Helena is someone who is really stubborn. But, he must admit that some of the knights told him that when Helena around she could lift their morale and her tactics acumen is on top notch.


    He only could sigh and hears Helena shouts,


    "We already near Arkmunster Fortress! We will take some rest there!"


    Volya then immediately looks in front of him and could see a very high wall with some metal bars protecting three wooden doors. Two small doors and one bigger door.


    That fortress is Arkmunster Fortress, the Fortress that becomes the entrance to Haegia Kingdom. Everyone needs to pass through the Fortress to visit and leave the Kingdom.


    Helena stops in front of the small door and shouts,


    "I am Helena Estrudiantes, the Queen of Haegia Kingdom! Open the door now!"


    Five minutes later, the metal bar is lowered and the wooden door is opened. The six of them enters the fortress and could see a lot of knights are waiting for them.


    One of the knights walks towards Helena and bow in front of her. He then says,


    "Welcome at Arkmunster, Your Highness."


    "Thank you very much, Sir Phillip," answer Helena


    She then dismounts from the horse and gives her weapon and armour to the other knight that walks towards her. After that, they walk towards Ludmila, Albert, Villias, Romain and Volya.


    Volya dismounts from his horse and looks around in awe. Even if he already through the fortress several times, this is the first time he waits inside the guard room.


    The room is spacious and he could see a lot of weapon at one side of the wall, knights walking around the room with two of them looking on the lookout, and several knights are looking on the road below.


    The road is the only safe road for everyone that visiting Haegia, because of the natural condition of Snowmarsh Mountain where the weather quite unpredictable.


    Romain looks at Volya, taps his shoulder, and says,


    "It looks like this is the first time you wait here, huh?"


    "That''s right... It''s the first time I wait here as I usually passed through that road every time," answer Volya as he points at the road below


    Romain then laughs a little bit and then says,


    "Did you know... A lot of young children at Haegia dreaming to work here as a knight and protecting Haegia from any aggressor."


    "Hmmm... Looking by a lot of knights stationed here, I must agree with you," says Volya


    "That''s right!"


    "And judging by your answer, you are one of the young children that dreaming of protecting Haegia from here, right?"


    "That''s right!"


    Both of them laughs together until they notice Phillip already behind them. Phillip then looks at them and then says,


    "Long time no see, Volya!"


    "And... you are?" asks Volya with a puzzled face


    "Did you really forget me?" says Phillip


    "Err... Yes?"


    "Sir Phillip... You should bear with him... It''s hard for him to remember someone name," says Romain as he taps Volya''s back


    "Is it?" says Phillip


    "Phillip... Phillip?" says Volya as he tried to remember something


    Ludmila notices them chatting together and joins them. Villias and Albert observe them and then Villias says,


    "I could see that they are full of energy right now."


    "Yes, you are right. And we need their energy for this mission..."


    "This mission... Already took a lot of our people lives... We need to stop it, right here and right now!" says Villias as he notices Helena walking towards him.


    "You are right, Sir Villias... We need to protect our own people¡­ I will not let anyone falls to this magician hand" says Helena as she walks towards Phillip, Ludmila, Volya, and Romain.


    Villias and Albert follow behind Helena and then they start to discuss the mission. Phillip is the one who starts it,


    "If I remember correctly, all of you will depart on the mission to kill the undead..."


    "That''s right..." answer Villias


    "Unfortunately after the attack on Volkorov Village, none of us could find any of their traces," continues Phillip


    "That''s why we bring Volya to our group for this mission," says Albert as he points at Volya


    "Volya? Oh... That''s the reason why you are here, Volya."


    Phillip then looks at Volya and says,


    "With you the one that capable of using magic at Haegia joining this mission, then magic is one of the possible reason of this calamity."


    "Most likely, that''s the reason..." says Volya as he isn''t sure about it yet.


    "But, the modus operandi almost the same with the village when we meet Volya back then," says Romain


    Phillip, Helena, and Ludmila look at Volya and then Helena asks Volya,


    "Could you tell me, what are they?"


    "They are used to be human..." answer Volya


    "Then, they already died, right?" asks Phillip


    "If this undead is indeed the one that we fight back then, I will say that their body already dead, but their soul still bound to their body," explains Volya


    "What do you mean by that?" ask Villias


    "They are dead and alive at the same time... They can''t control their rotten body, but they could feel and see what they have done to other people," answer Volya


    "That''s cruel..." says Ludmila


    Volya then looks around him and notices that Phillip looks in deep thought. He then asks him,


    "What in your mind, Sir Phillip?"


    "Ah... I just think that the one who bound the soul to their decayed body must be someone who done forbidden magic before. At least I know from some magic ethic from the adventurer that pass through this fortress," answer Phillip


    "That''s right... They indeed use forbidden magic in this incident," says Volya


    Albert and Villias looks at them and then Villias asks them,


    "Then, Sir Volya... What should we do to stop them?"


    "If the magus that hold their soul didn''t put any curse inside it, you could order your unit to cut the undead hand and leg. I will burn their body later on... But, please be careful if your men attacked by the undead..." answer Volya


    "Curse? What do you mean? Is their body have something special that could kill our men?" asks Albert


    "Hmmm... Maybe you could say that the magus is the ''Puppeteer'' that control the ''Puppet'', the undead, around. As the one who owns the ''Puppet'', they could add anything they like for their advantages in order to entertain people," answer Volya


    "So, there is a possibility that some of the undead will have special magic inside them..." says Helena as she sits down and tried to think what their plan next.


    "Then, do you have any idea what type of magic that controlling the undead?" asks Phillip


    "Again... If this is the same person, I could say that it is Death Inducement, Soul Bind, and Mind Erosion. Those three are three magic that could destroy the world in the wrong hand..." answer Volya as he sighs for a while


    "Hmmm... Maybe I could find some information from the adventurer about the mage that using that magic..."


    "I doubt you will find them, as those three are a type of forbidden magic..."


    "You... are right..."


    "And... For someone from the kingdom without magic, you are quite knowledgeable about magic, Sir Phillip." praises Volya


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    "Maybe... It''s the forte of becoming the leader of this fortress..."


    Both of them laughs a little, and immediately notices Romain that asks them,


    "If the undead has another curse inside them... Could you help us against those curses?"


    "I could... But..." says Volya


    "What is it, Sir Volya?" asks Helena


    "It depends on the type of curse in them..."


    Everyone could see that Volya really worried and then his face changed. It''s full of determination. He then says,


    "But, I will try my best to help everyone there. I know I could do it!"


    After hearing Volya''s determination, all of them smiles at him. Helena then asks him,


    "Then, do you know the sign of someone who will become an undead?"


    "Unfortunately, I''m not quite sure..." answer Volya


    Helena immediately smiles, stands up from her seat, and shouts,


    "Alright! Then we need to be more cautious than before! So, prepare yourself from now!"


    "Sir, Yes Sir!" shouts every knight in the fortress


    "And Volya, we really need your help for this mission."


    "I will help all of you with all of my might, Your Highness," says Volya as he smiles at her


    "Good to hear that!"


    The moment she said that the scout already arrived at the fortress and report their finding to Phillip. He then relays the information to Helena and she immediately orders her group to move.


    As soon Helena group already leaving the fortress, Phillip looks at their figure and says,


    "I pray for all of your safety..."

 29 Flower Crown

    Morning already comes to Woodcrest Village and the group already arrived there in the dawn. Right now, Helena, Albert, and Villias are having a meeting with the elder about the incident that happened near their village. Meanwhile, Romain and Volya are waiting outside.


    Volya looks at the sky and then says,


    "The weather is really hot today..."


    "Of course... We already near the start of summer," answer Romain


    "Summer... I remember when I still live at Wildespring, I usually soaked myself with the water at the lake..." says Volya


    "Ahahahahaha... At least you will not feel it at Ironforge."


    "Huh? What do you mean?"


    "You hasn''t noticed that we are entering summer after we left Ironforge, right?"


    Volya just notices that and looks at Romain with a surprised face. Romain immediately laughs and says,


    "Of course you will not feel that as our mountain known as the ''Eternal Snow Mountain''. Even in the heat of summer, the area still cools like usual."


    "You... Are right..." answer Volya looks unsatisfied


    "What is it, Volya? You seem not satisfied..."


    "You know what? I will call it HAX! No way one region could stay cool like that!"


    "Ahahahahaha... Our Kingdom called Hax by the one and only person that could use magic in our Kingdom."


    Both of them then continues to chat, until Volya notices that Ludmila is sitting at under the tree. She takes out her helmet and let her light brown hair showed to the world.


    Not long after that, a young man is walking towards her and bring her a flower. The moment the young man do that, Volya could feel an intense glare from somewhere else towards the young man. Ludmila looks really surprised and hears the young man cheesy pick-up line.


    Volya then looks at Romain and says,


    "Are you sure to let him do that to your superior?"


    "Just leave it..." answer Romain as he smiles at Ludmila


    "Huh? Are you sure?"


    "Yes... And he will know the reason why she is dubbed as the hardest girl to get at Haegia."


    "Huh?"


    The moment Romain said that Volya could hear Ludmila says,


    "I really appreciate your gift... But, I believe you should look in the mirror before you meet with me..."


    Volya could hear the moment when the young man heart is broken. He then comments,


    "Harsh..."


    "Indeed..." answers Romain


    "Hmmm... Did she do that because she has a husband at Haegia?"


    "No... She is still single."


    "Single? I believe she should be thinking about that from now..."


    "Why you said that Volya?" ask Romain with a puzzled face


    "Well... For someone like her age..."


    "Before you continue it... Do you know her age?"


    "Let me guess... Around 30s?"


    "You are wrong."


    Volya looks at Romain with disbelief and then Romain says,


    "One thing for sure, she is four years younger than our Queen."


    "Huh? Younger than our Queen?! I thought they are of the same age?!" says Volya with a surprised face


    "Ahahahahaha... For your information, our King married our Queen when she is 25."


    "25..."


    "And now it''s already four years since that fateful day."


    "29... If my sister still around, her age will be around there... Huh... Wait... You said four-year younger?"


    "Yes... She is..."


    "Isn''t that mean... She is around your age, Romain?"


    "It is."


    "My... Even your rank is lower than her... And both of you at the same age... AND SHE IS A WOMAN"


    "Do you want me to punch your face?" asks Romain as he smiles at Volya


    Volya immediately apologizes to Romain and notices that Ludmila already walking towards them. Ludmila then looks at them and says,


    "What did both of you talking about? Did you talking about me?"


    "Yes, we are," answer Volya as he smiles at Ludmila


    "My... Is it about the young man that comes to me?" asks Ludmila again


    "Yes, it is."


    "Hmmm... So, you think that I should have accepted his feeling?" asks Ludmila again


    "No... Not about that ahahahahaha," answer Volya


    "Really..."


    "If you accept him... There will be a big turmoil at our homeland..." said Romain weakly


    "Huh? What is it, Romain?" ask Ludmila


    "No... Nothing!"


    Romain immediately laughs together with Volya as he sees Ludmila''s face. Not long after that, several children approaching Ludmila and Romain. They ask them about knighthood and how they look at them with awe.


    Volya then sits at the porch and smiles at them. He then looks around him once more and he knows that he needs to protect this small village from the harm that approaching them.


    He then looks at the village gate and notices several girls that just come back from outside of the village. When they come back, some man immediately walks to them and asks them where they are gone too and tells them about the situation out there.


    Volya observes them, looks relieved, and then he notices one familiar woman that talking to one man. The moment they eyes meet, the woman immediately waves at Volya and drags the man near her.


    When she arrives in front of Volya, he immediately notices her from her long dark brown hair. She stops in front of Volya and says,


    "Is that you, Sir Volya?! Is that really you?!"


    "Err... Yes..." answer Volya


    "I can''t believe that I meet you again here," continues the woman


    "Ummm... I''m sorry... But, who are you?"


    The woman looks at Volya, surprised, and then smiles at him. She then says,


    "Did you really forget about me, Sir Volya?"


    "Err... Yes..."


    She then smiles again and says,


    "It''s me... Maria Bulyakov, the girl that you save at Orbarrow."


    Volya looks at her for once more and immediately remember about her after hearing the village name. He stands up and says,


    "My... You look livelier than before, Maria."


    "Yes, I am."


    "And... Who is it?" asks Volya


    "Oh... He... Well..."


    "Your lover huh..."


    Volya immediately laughs at her and then says,


    "At least I''m glad that you meet someone that cares about you..."


    "Yes... And hopefully, you will find a girl that will take care of you," answer Maria


    "Hopefully, ahahahahaha."


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    Both of them laughs together and then notices the man beside Maria looks suspicious at Volya. Maria immediately told him about the time when Volya saves her from the bandit and the aftermath of the battle. The man really surprised to hear that and then bows at Volya. He then says,


    "Thank you for saving Maria back then..."


    "It''s not a big deal... I''m just doing my part to help everyone around me," answer Volya


    Maria, her lover, and Volya continues to chat with Ludmila and Romain observing them. Ludmila then says,


    "Seeing this... We must stop this madness..."


    "I agree... I can''t let this village fall. No matter what."


    They nod together and then notices several girls gather around them. They really surprised to see them and notices that they put a flower crown on them. Not only two of them, but they also put one on Volya.


    Maria then explains it to Volya,


    "This is our village custom to everyone that visits this village."


    "Is that so..." says Volya as he touches the flower crown.


    "Hopefully, you will remember your stay in this village and finish your job without a problem... Sir Volya."


    "I will..."


    Maria then walks together with her lover with her friend also walks around to give the flower crown to another soldier that visit the village. Ludmila and Romain walk slowly to Volya and notices he shows a nostalgic face. Before Romain could ask him, Volya then says,


    "It really reminds me of that girl... How long is it since I meet her back then, I wonder... And how is she..."


    "Ummm... Volya?"


    "Ah... I''m sorry about that... It''s just..."


    "Naaa... We will not pry on your past..." explains Ludmila as she pats Volya''s head


    "Thank you... Oh, what about we go meet with our Queen now? I believe they should be done right now."


    Ludmila and Romain notice that and then they nod at Volya. They immediately walk and leaving Volya behind. Volya smiles at them, touch the flower crown, and says,


    "What are you doing now, Gracia?"

 31 Pas

    Volya opens his eyes and notices that he is already sleeping on the bed. He looks around and sees Romain reading a report from the patrol group at the desk near their bed.


    Romain immediately notices Volya and says,


    "You finally awake."


    "Ummm... How long did I sleep?" ask Volya


    "Only one day and everyone panicked when they saw you unconscious... Especially Sir Albert and Sir Villias."


    "Even though they already saw that magic and the aftermath before yesterday''s incident, they still surprised huh..."


    Volya then sighs and then looks outside the window. He could see the Village Elder is holding a funeral for his daughter and everyone is gathered there. He also sees Albert, Villias, Helena and Ludmila stand among the villagers.


    Romain stands up from his seat and looks at the crowd. He then says,


    "The Village Elder confesses everything that happens to his daughter to his villager after you unconscious."


    "Did any of them..."


    "Some of the villagers have sympathy for him, but some not..." answer Romain without looking away from the window.


    Volya only could smile weakly and then notices Romain is looking at him now. He then asks Volya,


    "Then, do you want me to make some food for you?"


    "Anything without sugar, please... Or I will be unconscious forever," answer Volya


    "Ahahahaha... Good to hear that. Give me a moment."


    Volya smiles at Romain and then stands up from his bed. He walks towards the desk. There he could see a report and a mail on the desk. He then proceeds to read the report from the patrol group and leaves the mail alone. He then mumbles,


    "Still no sign of the mage? It concerns me..."


    Volya then continues to read all the reports until Romain comes back with sandwiches. He looks at Volya and then says,


    "Most of the patrol group didn''t see any undead around here. And even none of the patrol group outside this perimeter."


    "It is as if everything is already calming down," says Volya as he eats the sandwich.


    "Indeed..."


    "Is this mage magic already run out? Or this mage already moves to another region... We never know..." continues Volya as he stands up and stretches his body.


    "That''s still no good as the mage continues to wreak havoc on this island..."


    "But at least it becomes a little bit calmer, no?"


    Romain looks at Volya and then at the gathering crowds outside. He smiles and says,


    "Indeed, it''s become calmer."


    Volya smiles and then lean on the window as he observes all of the villagers. He then notices Maria and her lover at the crowds as they are mourning together with another villager. Romain notices Volya and then says,


    "Are you missing the girl that you mentioned before?"


    Volya was surprised to hear that and looked at Romain that sits down on one of the chairs. He then says,


    "I could see that from your face, Volya. The same face that you made when Maria gives that flower crown to you."


    "Hahahaha... You are right," answer Volya


    "Hmmm... If you have something in your mind, you could tell it to me or maybe Lucia," says Romain as he laughs at Volya


    "Maybe..."


    Volya then walks to the chair and sits across Romain. Romain then asks him,


    "Then, could you tell me about that girl and why are feels like you will never meet them again..."


    "About that..."


    "Well, if you don''t want to..."


    Volya then sighs and then says,


    "Alright... I will tell you."


    Romain smiles at Volya and then prepares himself to hear Volya''s story. Volya looks at the window and then start to tell the story,


    "I once met a girl when I was still young. That girl has fine chocolate bisque hair and clear blue eyes. We meet in the middle of a flower field and play there while my father is talking with her mother."


    Volya paused for a while and then looked at the flower crown that was already withers at the desk. He then continues,


    "That time, we made a lot of flower crowns and had a nice chat."


    Romain could see that Volya enjoys that moment, so he then asks him,


    "Then, what made you think that you couldn''t meet her again?"


    "Oh... About that.."


    "Yes?"


    Volya takes a deep breath and says,


    "Did you know some of the magic artefacts?"


    "Hmmm... Not really... Is that the reason why you can''t meet them?"


    "That''s one of them... Because her mother is creating a philosopher''s stone... an omnipotent stone that could heal anything and gives the bearer almost unlimited mana, but the process is gruesome."


    "Huh?"


    "You know... I''m still a child back then, of course, I didn''t know anything. But it seems my father is scolding her mother about that."


    "Why do you say gruesome?"


    Volya looks at Romain with a serious face and says,


    "From one book that I read while I am still at Wildespring, to make one philosopher stone, you need a lot of sacrifices."


    "Sacrifice... Wait, don''t say..."


    "Yes... The human soul."


    "So, that''s the reason why she is missing..."


    Romain then notices that Volya face serious and that surprised him. Volya then says,


    "That''s what I think at first... Until I see my father''s journal that mentions that her family already settled down and doesn''t care about that artefact anymore."


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    "Huh?"


    "And from that journal, I know that they still possess the stone... But, even he didn''t know where it was."


    "Then... Why..."


    Volya looks at Romain and says,


    "Someone is targeting them and attacking their house..."


    "Attack their house... Why are you sure about that?" asks Romain


    "The flower field is burned down and the house has become a ruin... I see it with my own eyes... And that happens after someone murdered my father..."


    "..."


    "When I arrived there, I only saw her mother dying and asked me to find her before her death..."


    Volya then slams the table in front of them and says,


    "If only... If only I learned these magic faster..."


    "Hey..."


    "I could stop him from murdering my father and her family..."


    "Eh?"


    "And I could know his reason..."


    Romain tried to calm Volya down and then remembered the time when Volya lost his cool when a band of bandits attacked Maria''s village. He knows that it has a connection with a man that he mentions that time.


    Volya then takes a deep breath and then continues,


    "That''s why... I want to meet her again... and apologize to her."


    "..."


    "Do you think... Could I meet her again?"


    Romain looks at Volya for a moment and then says,


    "Yes, you could... I believe that. We are talking about you."


    "Thank you..."


    "And could you tell me her name? Maybe I could ask the patrol unit or any adventurer to tell you when they meet her."


    "Of course..."


    "Could you tell me?"


    Volya looks at Romain and then says,


    "Her name is Gracia Ravelli."


    "Alright... I will tell Lucia about it. Just hope someone finds her soon."


    "Ahahahaha... Hopefully"


    Romain then looks at the message on his desk and Volya notices that. He then says,


    "When I check the desk, I see one mail there... Is that from your parents?"


    "Ah... Did you read the mail?" asks Romain


    "No... That''s none of my business as the mail is something private for you."


    "..."


    Volya notices Romain looking down for a while and then hears him ask Volya,


    "Volya... Do you remember when you read my future..."


    "Your future? Ah... That''s when you first introduce yourself, no?"


    "Yes..."


    "What is it?"


    "Well... You know... My father thinks it''s a good time for me to find a bride..."


    "Hmmm... Let me guess, that message is about your father will introduce some women to you, right?"


    "Yes..."


    "Isn''t that good?"


    "No..."


    "Eh?"


    Romain looks at the crowds and then says,


    "As someone with prestigious family blood, I envy everyone else in terms of finding their woman."


    "..."


    "I hate the custom where I need to marry another prestigious family blood... I hate that."


    "Don''t say that you have someone in your mind..."


    "Not yet... But, I want to find my own happiness. And I believe with what you told me back then... And I believe this is one of the branching points in my life."


    Volya looks at Romain, smirks, and says,


    "Then, why not tell your father what is inside your mind?"


    "I''m ready for that," answer Romain


    "My... You are really something, Romain. Then good luck with that."


    "Yup... I need that. And good luck to you to find that girl."


    Volya smiles at Romain and then looks at the gathering crowds. He then notices a knight is approaching the crowds. The knight approaches Helena, Albert, and Villias and after that, the three of them are surprised.


    Volya immediately stands up with Romain asks Volya,


    "Did something happen?"


    "One knight approaching Helena, Sir Villias, and Sir Albert..."


    "Huh?"


    "And the three of them run away to their hut. Something bad will happen soon..."


    Volya walks towards the window and notices the flow of mana in the wind is changed. He then says,


    "Romain... Prepare your armour. Sooner or later, Sir Albert or Sir Villias will give us an order."


    "If you said so..." answered Romain as he stood up.


    It needs around ten minutes for Romain to wear his full armour, while Volya wearing his steel gauntlet, full-body chainmail under his cloth, and preparing several one-time usage magic scroll.


    The moment Romain and Volya are ready, someone knocks on the door. Volya walks to the door, opens it, and sees Albert stands there,


    "Prepare yourself! The enemy is approaching!"

 33 The Knigh

    At the same time Volya healing the knights at the back camp, Helena is leading the army and swinging her sword to chop off one of the undead head. She then rallies her unit,


    "Hold the ground! If we let them slip, it will doom the village behind this camp!"


    Every knight immediately shouts and continues to hold the undead as they push the undead further to the gate. Not long after that, Ludmila run towards Helena,


    "The number of undead on the east side of the already dwindling, Helena."


    "Are you sure about that, Ludmila?" asks Helena


    "Yes, I am sure. After the last wave, we didn''t see another undead come."


    "That''s good... What about the western side?"


    "I didn''t get any information from them."


    Helena looks at Ludmila and could read that Ludmila is quite hesitant about something. She then looks at the unit in front of them and asks Ludmila,


    "Is there something happening, Ludmila?"


    "Huh?"


    "Even if you use the helmet, I could read your body language. There must be something wrong about it."


    Ludmila looks at Helena and then takes a deep breath. She then says,


    "I just got a piece of information from the scout and archer that stationed at the outer wing of the east side of the camp. They mention that there is a small group of undead passing through the east side."


    "Huh? They already passed the barricade?!" says Helena


    "Yes... I just sent a small group of cavaliers to hunt them. But, they haven''t come back yet..."


    Helena then looks at the group and notices the number of the exhausted units is increasing each passing time. She grits her teeth and suddenly hears someone approaching them. One cavalier unit stops near them and report,


    "Your Highness. Lady Ludmila. I want to report that the small number of undead that passed through our barricade in the east has already been eradicated."


    "Already eradicated?" asks Ludmila


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    "Yes, Lady Ludmila. We find some undead already dead because someone slices them and someone burns them down. And also, for some reason, there are a lot of plants that hold them."


    "Huh?"


    "Should we continue our investigation?"


    After hearing that report, Helena immediately smiles and says,


    "So, Sir Villias and Sir Albert already send them here..."


    "Your Highness?"


    "I order you and your team to patrol and attack any undeads that pass through the east side again," orders Helena


    "Ah... Sir, Yes Sir!"


    After the cavalier leave them, Ludmila says,


    "So... Sir Albert and Sir Villias sending Romain and Volya to help us rather than help them to protect the village. Why did they suddenly change their plan?"


    "I believe Sir Albert gambles on Volya will find the source in this mess..."


    Helena and then notices a group of knights already back to full recovery and orders them to exchange with the exhausted unit. She then says,


    "Then, I could say we don''t need to worry about the eastern side."


    "Yes..."


    "But, the western side didn''t give us any information about their condition... It worries me."


    "You are right, Helena..."


    They observe the skirmish in front of them and notice that there is more knight in the front line. Ludmila peeks behind her and notices more knights coming to their aid. Helena smiles at the knights that charge to the front and says,


    "I will return to the frontline... After you finish reorganizing the east side group, help us in the middle area or western area."


    "I will, Helena... Just wait for me."


    Helena immediately runs towards the knights and leads them once more. Ludmila looks at Helena and then at the knight that comes from behind her. She then says,


    "The number of knights that comes here... Isn''t Helena already sent some of them to take some rest..."


    Not long after that, she notices one knight is running at her. The knight stops and says,


    "Lady Ludmila, here is the message from Lady Katrina."


    "Lady Katrina? Sure, tell me now," answer Ludmila


    "Lady Katrina said that Volya already helps the knight to recover faster."


    "Volya already help them? That''s a piece of good news. What about Romain?" asks Ludmila as she smiles after hearing the news


    "Romain is helping the western side right now. I believe the morale there is lifted with Romain presence," said the messenger


    "Good to hear that... But, I know that you are hesitant about something. What is it?"


    The messenger looks at Ludmila and then says,


    "Sir Volya is exhausted from helping us, but the last time lady Katrina checks him, he is gone from the camp."


    "Huh?"


    "We don''t get any information and right now we are searching for him"


    Ludmila surprised after hearing the report from immediately looks the messenger and then the messenger continues,


    "Lady Katrina is searching for Volya right now... Just hope that she finds him soon..."


    "..."


    "I will..."


    "I believe you don''t need to search for him. He must be on the western side to find Romain."


    "Huh?"


    "Just say that... It''s a hunch. But, I believe he already finds the mage location."


    The knight looking at Ludmila and after hearing what Ludmila says, the knight leaves her. Not long after that, the group from the eastern side are gathering near her. Ludmila shouts,


    "I will divide your team here. Two groups of crossbowmen and one group of halberdier will help Your Highness in the middle area. Two groups of Cavalier will become your protector to the area."


    The selected groups'' nod at Ludmila and then Ludmila continues,


    "The other group that consists of two groups of swordsmen, one group of Halberdier, and one group of crossbowmen, follow me to the western side. We will help them now!"


    "Sir, yes sir!"


    Ludmila immediately runs with her group to the western side to find out that most of the undeads already obliterated in a gulf of flame. Ludmila stops and then asks the knights there,


    "What happened here?"


    "Ah... Lady Ludmila..." said one of the knights when noticing Ludmila comes at their aid


    "What happens here?"


    "At first Sir Romain comes to help us and command us. The moment he joined and led us, the number of undead started to dwindle and the injured knight less than the time without a leader." answered the knight


    "Just a moment ago, Sir Volya is coming to help us and Sir Romain. And suddenly there is a big red mark in the sky and not long after that, it is raining. Not a normal rain, it''s raining flame!" answered the other knight


    "And in the split second every undead has burned to death again!" continues another knight


    Ludmila looks at the front her once more and mumbles,


    "They are reliable..."


    She observed around her and noticed that the two guys were missing. She then asks them,


    "Where are they now?"


    "I believe Sir Volya asks Sir Romain to join him. He said something about the location of the mage and rushed to the forest." answer one of the knights as he points at the forest entrance near them


    "Then, why did any of you didn''t help them?" ask Ludmila baffled after knowing that


    "Sir Volya told us to stay away from this and continue to protect the camp. If the number of knights is lessened because of some of us following him, it will cause a big catastrophe to the village." answered one of the knights


    "And he mentioned that the mage is still sending the undead legion to here, so we need to prepare ourselves." continues the other knights


    Ludmila looks at the knight and then at the forest entrance. She knows that the situation is dire, but she is concerned with the two-man condition. Especially after hearing that Volya just fell because he is exhausted from using his magic.


    But, before she could do anything one of the knights reported that a horde of undead is coming to them. She looks at the forest entrance and then at the horde of undead. She closes her eyes for a moment, takes out her sword, and shouts,


    "Prepare yourself! We will stand our ground and protect this area! Don''t let any of them leave our place!"


    "Sir, yes Sir!"


    As her unit prepare themselves, Ludmila looks at the forest entrance once more and says,


    "Please stay safe, both of you..."

 34 Resolution

    Romain and Volya are venturing through the forest after Volya told Romain that he knows the location of the mage. And it''s been ten minutes since they left the group of the knight. Romain walks in front of Volya and then says,


    "Volya... Are you sure about the mage?"


    "Yes..." answer Volya as he panting


    Romain peeks behind him and could see that Volya is tired. Before Romain could say anything, he could hear that Volya falls to the ground. He immediately looks behind and runs towards Volya. Romain immediately says,


    "Are you sure that you want to continue it? I think you should take some rest."


    "No... I can''t..."


    "Why?"


    "If... If I didn''t do it now... More people will..."


    Romain looks again at Volya and then notices that Volya is hiding something. He walks to Volya, pushes him to the tree so he is sitting, and then says,


    "What is it, Volya? I could read it from your face."


    "Huh?"


    "What is it?"


    Volya looks down and then hears that Romain takes out his helmet. Romain then says,


    "If you didn''t open up now, it will end horribly for us."


    "..."


    "And when I see your face right now, it reminds me of me when we are taking the mission that almost killed Helena."


    Romain then walks to Volya and says,


    "Before we fight that troll, I notice the sign of the troll there. But, I''m not quite sure whether that is a troll''s mark or another animal. And because you seem relaxed, I think it should be fine."


    "..."


    "But when we meet the troll, some part of me starts to blame myself and because of that I am hesitant for what my next step is, Helena and Ludmila injured too much."


    Volya keep silent about that, and Romain continues,


    "If possible I want to make sure that you will not hesitate about this mission. I don''t want us to become another victim because someone is hiding something."


    Volya starts to look down and Romain is disappointed with Volya''s action. He then puts on his helmet, starts to walk away from Volya and waits for Volya to take some rest.


    Around five minutes later, Volya suddenly says,


    "I think... I know who is the mage that is causing this problem..."


    "Huh?" says Romain as he quite surprised that Volya suddenly says something


    "From the mana that I gather, I know who the one that owns this mana and magic."


    "If you know... Who is it?"


    "At first I didn''t want to believe it... I want to deny the truth..."


    Romain looks at Volya for a moment and starts to walk to Volya. Volya continues,


    "I... don''t want to..."


    "Volya..." says Romain suddenly


    "Huh..."


    "Who is it? Maybe I could help you..."


    "..."


    "And maybe we could prepare a plan for it... Who is it?"


    Volya looks at Romain and then says,


    "Do you remember the girl that I am searching for?"


    "Ah... yes, I remember that... Wait... Don''t'' say that"


    Volya takes a deep breath and then continues,


    "The mage that causes this havoc is her... The one that causes the problem in this world is her, Gracia Ravelli. The girl that I am searching for until now."


    Romain keep silent about it and then Volya continues,


    "I want to save her... But, I know that everyone in this part of the kingdom and guild wants her head..."


    "That''s right. Everyone in the kingdom and guild will try to kill him."


    "That''s why... Until now, I am trying to find a way to save her..." continues Volya as he looks at Romain


    "But, I believe you still don''t know what you should do..."


    "Yes..." answered Volya as he looked away from Romain.


    Romain then closes his eyes, thinks for a while, and says,


    "I think... I will help you."


    "Huh?"


    "I will use my connection to help you. I believe I could make Sir Albert on our side... But, I doubt about our King and Sir Villias."


    "Wait... No... I don''t want your family to be involved in this mess..." says Volya after he heard what Romain says.


    "I don''t care... I will help either way. And believe me... Now my chance to help you after you help me so many times."


    Romain reaches out his hand to Volya. Volya surprised to hear what Romain just said, chuckles, and says,


    "You are an idiot..."


    Volya then accept Romain''s hand and then says,


    "Alright... Don''t blame me if your family disowns you, Romain."


    "Well, at least I have a house to stay and rebuild my honour from scratch... Ahahahahaha."


    "Really... You are an idiot..."


    "Well... WE are a bunch of idiots!" answer Romain


    Both of them laugh together with Volya standing up. He then says,


    "Alright... Let''s meet with her... And I believe she already notices us."


    "Hee... Are you sure about that? Are you ready to fight her?"


    "Yes, I am. As long as you support me... I believe I could survive from this ordeal"


    "Is that so? Good to hear that!" shouts Romain


    As soon Romain shouts that the two of them looks at the forest and shouts together,


    "Let''s do this!"


    Volya''s doubt still lingers in his head, but at least now he knows that Romain will help him no matter what. And he from this conversation and his experience, he knows that Romain always keeps his word no matter what and a trustworthy person.


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    While Romain now understands that Volya''s mentality isn''t as strong as he believes. His mind is as fragile as a crystal ball. But, at the same time, he knows that Volya is also a strong person that could rally and entice the people around him with his kindness and stubbornness. And that moment, he feels like he knows someone at the kingdom with that trait. As he tried to remember who the person is, Volya already prepares his staff and shouts,


    "Looks like we have a lot of guests... Are you ready, Romain?"


    "What a rude guest... And of course, I am ready!" Romain shouts back at Volya and prepares his shield and sword.


    With that, they continue their mission to find The Smiling Angel of Death.

 35 Meeting

    Volya and Romain almost exhausted after they killed waves after waves of the mage''s legion. And now they already take a breather. Volya then says,


    "It''s been 1 hour since we left the camp..."


    "Yet, we still have not found the mage... Am I right?" asks Romain


    "No... More like, it''s almost like we didn''t move away from our first location."


    "Is it?" said Romain as he drinks his water


    Volya sits down and then observe the area around them. He could feel that the source of the residual mana was almost out of control. As he looks at the direction of the source, he notices that the source becomes a little bit closer.


    "Or maybe... We are closer than we thought," said Volya


    "Huh?!"


    "The source is moving closer to our location... Are you ready, Romain?"


    "Seriously... This girl doesn''t give us time to rest, huh..."


    "Don''t complain as... Huh?"


    Volya hears something moving from the forest near them. As he tried to see it, he felt it moving faster. Before he could react, a black spike came out from the forest and grazed his face.


    Romain noticed what happened, took his shield, and felt something stabbing the shield hard. The same black spike that hits Volya. Volya immediately wipes the blood from his cheek and then says,


    "I believe... She doesn''t want to meet us..."


    "My... Your childhood friend is so scary." jokes Romain


    "Did you forget... We still have not concluded that this mage is indeed my childhood friend, right?"


    "Well... Yes"


    "And... Huh?"


    Another black spike comes from the forest and this time the spikes focused on Volya. Volya immediately jumps away and he could see another spike coming from the forest. Romain immediately dashed to Volya and used the shield to hold the attack.


    Romain could see another black spike coming and says,


    "This mage... Hell-bent wants to kill you."


    "..."


    "Maybe you know something?"


    Volya didn''t answer Romain''s question and notices the attack already stops. Romain then says,


    "The attack is stopped..."


    "It looks like the mage wants to..."


    Before Volya finished talking, another black spike comes out from the forest and almost hit Volya''s head if he didn''t react fast enough. The black spike scratch Volya''s face once more. Even though he moves his head a little, his eyes fixated to one area.


    Romain immediately dashed to Volya and asks,


    "Are you alright, Volya?"


    "The mage becomes closer..."


    "Huh?"


    Romain looks at the direction where Volya is looking now. Little by little, he could see a woman with long bisque chocolate hair walking at them. The woman wearing green ragged cloth and her hand holds a staff.


    For every step the woman takes, Romain could see the plant around her start to wilt. The moment Volya looks at the moment, he immediately knows how dangerous she is. Romain then says,


    "This girl..."


    "Her magic is going rampant... She can''t control it and it kills everything around her..."


    "Kills?"


    "It accelerates the time around her... In other words, it still kills you."


    "Urgh..."


    The woman then looks at Volya and Romain. Both of them could see her turquoise eyes and they know that her eye is lifeless. The woman suddenly laughs after seeing them and then says,


    "Mother... I found him... I found one of them..."


    "Huh?"


    Romain and Volya quite startled to hear that and they could see the woman continue to laugh for some time. Romain looks at Volya and gives signs to Volya,


    ''Is that the girl you are searching for until now?''


    ''From the eye colour and the hair... It''s almost the same... But, I''m not quite sure...''


    ''Is that so... What about your mana reading thingy?''


    ''...''


    ''Volya?''


    Before Volya could answer the question, the girl stops to laugh and looks directly at Volya. The girl then says,


    "Portar..."


    "..."


    "Portar Family... Murderer... I must... Find... Kill... Find... Kill..."


    "..."


    "Ahahahahaha... I''m sorry... I''m sorry..." said the woman as she looked at Volya and Romain.


    The woman looks down for a while and then says,


    "Then... What are you doing here, Portar? Are you going to kill me? Like what you have done to my mother?"


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    "Huh? You..." said Romain as he looks at Volya


    Volya keeps silent after hearing that question and focused his eye on the woman. The woman notices that and then laughs. She then continues,


    "Did you... forget... about it?"


    "..."


    "I still remember it... I still remember it... The day when... Portar leads people... To kill my mother... To destroy our home... To destroy our garden... I still remember it... The eyes of disgust shown by Portar that day... The day under the moonlight..." continues the woman as she starts to laugh again


    Volya closes his eyes, while the woman continues to laugh. Romain moves little by little to Volya, while he prepares his sword and shield. Before Romain asks the woman, Volya suddenly asks,


    "Are you... Gracia?"


    The woman stops laughing and looks at Volya. She then smirks and says,


    "Did you... Forget me? Did you?"


    "Many years have already passed since we last met... Of..."


    "So... You indeed... Forget... me..."


    The woman looks down and looks at her hand. Volya looks at her hand and notices a withered flower ring there. All the evidence is shown in front of him and he is certain that the girl is Gracia Ravelli. The girl that he tried to find for many years.


    Volya looks at Romain and gives him a sign that he will strengthen his armour and weapon for this battle. And also he tells him to not kill her. Romain nods and prepares any action from the woman.


    ''Gracia'' suddenly laughs again and then looks at Volya. She then said,


    "Ahahahahaha... That''s alright... That''s alright... It''s much easier... VOLYA PORTAR!"


    "..."


    "And... I''m indeed Gracia Ravelli... The daughter from the Ravelli family... That your family murder in the past!"


    "..."


    "And with this... You... will... meet... My Mother~"


    Without chanting her magic, Gracia pointed her staff at Volya and Romain, and a black spike immediately flying towards them. Volya immediately jumps behind Romain and Romain holds his shield.


    Romain immediately says,


    "How did she use the magic without chanting her spell?"


    "There is some mage that could do that... I assume that she learn it by herself," answer Volya


    "Do you know how to beat that kind of mage?"


    "If you want me to be honest... I never fought another mage in the past."


    "Urgh..."


    The black spike suddenly stops attacking them and Romain peeks from behind his shield. Gracia already vanished from there. He then says,


    "Volya... That mage..."


    "Huh?"


    Volya immediately looks at Gracia location. No one stands there. Volya and Romain protect each other back after knowing the situation. Romain looks around and notices another undead comes at them. There are a dozen of them.


    He then proceeds to fend them off and cut their leg. When one of them is near Romain, he will hold the other with his shield and slash his target. Rinse and repeat.


    At that moment, he notices something. He didn''t hear Volya saying anything. The moment he looks back, he notices Volya already missing from there. He immediately shouts,


    "Volya!!!"

 36 End of Legend

    The moment Romain attacks the undead, Volya notices a black spot in front of him. From the mana emitted from the black spot, he knows that Gracia is hiding under the black spot.


    Before the black spot could do anything, Volya mumbles,


    "I should take her away from Romain... Her magic is too dangerous for Romain now..."


    As the black spot started to materialize, Volya''s eyes changed from blue to yellow. He points his finger at the black spot and says,


    "We need some space together..."


    A magic circle immediately created between him and the black spot. A surge of mana immediately comes out from Volya''s hand and he says,


    "Let''s move out from here..."


    And with that, both of them moved to an area not far from their location. A grass field at the end of the forest. Volya immediately falls on his knee and his eyes back to normal. He panting quite hard and then looks at the dumbfounded Gracia.


    The moment Gracia notice Volya''s intention, she smirks and says,


    "My... you want me... to spare your friend''s life..."


    "..."


    "And yet... You kill my mother..."


    Volya looks at Gracia and then tries to stand up. He then looks at ''Gracia'' and says,


    "Gracia..."


    "What is it... Murderer..."


    "I will tell you something... I''m not the one who kills your mother..."


    "So... you still try... To deny it..."


    "Yes... I will never kill your mother or do any harm to you, Gracia..."


    ''Gracia'' eyes become emptier and looks at Volya as she tilts her head. When she does that, Volya could see stitches from Gracia''s neck. Before he could ask something, Gracia said,


    "Is that so..."


    "Huh?"


    "Then... Why did... I see you... Come to my place... And burn my home?"


    "..."


    "Then... Why did you... come and burn... my mother''s garden?"


    "Gracia..."


    "Why did you... Why did you... TAKE AWAY MY HAPPINESS?!"


    A surge of mana immediately comes out from Gracia''s body and a black spike immediately comes out from the ground and flies towards Volya. Volya eyes immediately changed to yellow colour, snaps his finger, and says,


    "Stone Shield"


    The ground in front of Volya starts to raise and make a shield to protect him from the attack. The black spike stabs the ground as soon it hits the stone shield. Before Volya could react, Gracia starts to swing her staff. From the staff, Volya could see a black blade coming through the staff. When he looks at it, the staff becomes a scythe.


    Gracia immediately swings her staff and it cuts through the shield. Volya leaps away to safety, only to see Gracia using a black flame. He then points at Gracia with a blue magic crest. He then says,


    "Air Shield"


    A condensed air stand between him and Gracia. The black flame flies away at him and it immediately blows up in front of him. The explosion caused Volya to be thrown away from it. As Volya rolls on the ground, he notices another black spike coming at him. He uses wind magic to push him away to safety.


    Volya takes a moment to observe Gracia. He knows that he almost reaches his limit after using three consecutive magic spells, but Gracia is still fine.


    He mumbles,


    "How... How did she couldn''t... Huh?"


    He suddenly remembers Gracia''s mother''s work. A Philosopher''s Stone. A magic artefact that could enhance the mana pool and mana usage of the user. When he looks at Gracia, he notices a bright red stone embedded in her chest. From the stone, he could feel the surge of mana from there and a black mist from it.


    He takes a breather and then stands up and tries to observe the situation more. Gracia''s action becomes more erratic knowing Volya still stands up there. At that instance, Volya could see a black spirit holding Gracia''s hand.


    Before he could observe it more, he leaps away from Gracia''s black spike. He continues to leap away from every Gracia''s attack. He looks at his own body and he could see scratch all over his body. Blood spilt to the ground as he continues to defend himself from Gracia''s attack.


    He then mumbles,


    "That black spirit... It''s... Identical to the one that stands behind him... Don''t say..."


    Gracia suddenly stops attacking and says,


    "Mother... Your killer is trapped now... Let''s feast on his dead body shall we?"


    When Volya hear Gracia calls the black spirit as her mother, he speculates that the black spirit is the one who stirs Gracia''s mind. And maybe it''s the one who stirred the mind of others.


    He then checks his own body and mana pool. From there he knows that he could at least use three or four consecutive magics. After that, he couldn''t move at all for around a week. If he failed to free Gracia from her chain, then it''s dead-end for him.


    He prepared his mind and body as he tried to stand up. He takes a deep breath and notices Gracia is smiling at him. A smile of someone that joyous to know that they could finish their prey.


    Before he could do anything, Gracia already swings her staff. The black spike scatters around the area and closes any gap for Volya to run away. From there he knows, it does or dies for him.


    As he gathers his breath, he could feel a black spike coming at him. He immediately moves his hand and summons a windshield to protect him. He then mumbles,


    "Three left..."


    He then makes a stance to dash at Gracia. From the ground, a yellow magic circle is created below Volya''s shoes. As the yellow magic circle is gone, Volya crosses his hand and starts to dash at Gracia. Volya then mumbles as he runs to Gracia,


    "Two left..."


    Gracia that notices that starts to create more black spike and throws it at Volya. The windshield could hold most of the black spike, but little by little the windshield starts to crack.


    When the distance between him and Gracia becomes half of it, the windshield starts to shatter and some of the black spikes scratch Volya''s body. But, he ignores the injury as he continues to dash.


    Gracia that notices Volya become closer, starts to swing her staff again. This time, a black flame starts to gather on her staff and she throws the fire to Volya.


    Volya notices that and a bright red magic circle created in front of him. The magic circle immediately vanished and Volya moved his hand. From his hand flame starts to gather and he throws it at the black flame.


    The flame hits each other and creates a big explosion. Gracia is quite surprised to see that and then smiles as she knows that the explosion is near Volya. But before she walks, Volya jumps out from the smoke and pins Gracia to the ground.


    Volya is already full of bruises and scratches all over his body, but he ignores that as he could see the black entity starts to panic. A big black magic circle created under Gracia and a lot of black spikes and black mist gather around them.


    The black mist starts to suffocate Volya, while one black spike pierces through Volya near his shoulder. Volya starts to scream in agony, but he immediately focused on Gracia.


    Gracia screams full of hatred in front of Volya,


    "So... You are trying to kill me now!"


    "No! I will not kill you!"


    "Liar! You will burn me... With your fire magic... Like what happens to my mother!"


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    Volya clicked his tongue and then he could feel other black spikes pierce his other shoulder. He then says,


    "No... I will not kill you... I will... Save you..."


    "Huh?! Save me..."


    "I will save you from this monster... clutch! From the chain... THAT HOLDING YOU!"


    A white magic circle created on Volya''s hand and he then continues,


    "O Lady of fate... Please listen... my prayer... Let thy hand... free... the chain... of darkness..."


    Volya''s eye colour comes back to normal and at the same time, the magic circle vanished. He then touches Gracia chest and shouts,


    "Fate Breaker!"


    A white hand materialized from Volya''s back and it tried to get rid of the black entity. There is a struggle from the black entity, and Volya could see Gracia screams in agony.


    The black entity retaliates and sends another black spike to pierce Volya''s body. The last attack hurt Volya and he started to lose consciousness from the blood loss and lack of oxygen. But, he tried his best to stay awake as he must save her.


    The white hand little by little drags the black entity away and it succeeds in doing so. As the black entity already has gone from Gracia body. The black mist and black spike start to vanish.


    Gracia opens her eyes and notices Volya that pins him down. She then says,


    "Volya... Portar..."


    "Gracia..."


    "..."


    "I made... a promise... to... your mother..."


    "Eh?"


    "I will... find you... and protect... you..."


    "What..."


    "And... I will tell you... her last... word..."


    Volya then touches Gracia''s cheek. He knows that his mana is already depleted, but he knows that this is the only way to convince Gracia. Gracia closes her eyes as Volya touches her cheek.


    As Gracia opens her eyes, she could see her mother. Her mother is smiling at her and then she hugs her. Her mother then whispers her last wish to Gracia,


    "Forgive your mother... As I selfishly put the stone on you..."


    Gracia, already full of emotion, can''t say anything to her mother and starts to cry. Her mother then continues,


    "But... I think... That stone could become my gift... Stay strong, my daughter... I will pray for your future..."


    Her mother then wipe Gracia''s tear and continues,


    "So, continue smiling at everyone..."


    As she finished saying that, Gracia''s mind started to fade again. As she opened her eyes, she could see the clear blue sky above. The bird is flying around the sky as they play around with the other. She also could see and feel the tranquillity of the forest around her.


    And then she notices battered Volya. He smiles at Gracia and says,


    "Welcome back... Gracia..."


    "Volya..."


    "It''s good... you are back... and... I''m sorry..."


    "I''m... I''m..." says Gracia as she trembles and cries again


    "I¡­ never¡­ kill your¡­ mother¡­"


    "Please¡­ stop talking... your wound is¡­" said Gracia as she tried to stop Volya bleeding


    "And¡­ I am not¡­ a liar¡­ I will never¡­ lie¡­"


    "Please¡­ Volya, stop¡­"


    "If only... I come... faster... or... find you... faster... you... will not..."


    Volya starts to lose his consciousness and falls on Gracia that shouts out his name.

 37 Beginning of Life

    It''s been more than a week since the fight between Gracia and Volya. After the battle between them, Romain finds them after hearing Gracia cries for help. When he arrived there, he could see a distressed face of Gracia with her hand trying to stop Volya''s bleeding and Volya unconscious near her. At that time Romain tried to attack Gracia, but when he sees that Gracia showing a different eye inside it and her remorseful face, he stops his attack.


    He then offers his help to bring Volya back to the camp, and in exchanges, she will follow him and orders the undead to go away from the camp. Gracia agrees with the condition and they go to the camp.


    At the camp, there was a big commotion when the three of them arrived there. Especially Helena and Ludmila after seeing wounded Romain, injured Volya, and Gracia. They were even surprised to see Gracia could fend off all of the undead there.


    When Romain explains who she is to Helena, Ludmila, and the camp leader tried to capture and kill her. But, Romain stands in front of Gracia after sending Volya to the physician. When the other people ask why he protects the murderer, he said,


    "I made a vow to Volya that I will help him to protect her... Even if that means I must fight all of you, I will do it. And even if I must fight Sir Albert, Sir Villias, or even... Our King."


    Most of them start to back down, even Ludmila stops after seeing Romain''s resolution. Helena looks at Volya and then Gracia and orders them to return to Ironforge with Gracia under the watch of Romain. She also sends a messenger to Villias and Albert about their situation.


    And now, Volya just wakes up from his bed with his ferret sleeping on his body. When he tried to stand up, he could feel a sharp pain on his body.


    He then looks at the mirror near him. He could see his body full of bandage and then says,


    "My~... My body really..."


    Suddenly he hears someone open the door. There he could see two girls walking to his room with one of them bringing a wash bin. One of them is Lucia, while the other is a woman with long chocolate bisque hair and wearing a grey dress. That girl is Gracia.


    When they notice Volya already awake, Lucia immediately dashed to Volya and hugs him. She bombarded Volya with many questions, and when she notices that Gracia stands there and looks apologetic.


    Volya smiles at her and says,


    "Why are you still standing there?"


    "..."


    "Are..."


    "I''m sorry..."


    "Huh?"


    "I''m sorry... For what I have done... to you..."


    Volya looks at Gracia that stands at the door near a candle. Lucia looks at them and then says,


    "Because of me... You..."


    "That''s alright... I know that you are confused at that time..."


    "But..."


    "As I said, it''s fine... I know how you feel though..."


    "..."


    "And I promise you to tell what your mother told me, right?"


    "Huh?"


    "Lucia... Could you leave us alone?" asks Volya


    Lucia looks at Volya, and then at Gracia. She nods and leaves the room. After Lucia leaves, Volya makes a sign for Gracia to sit beside him. After she sits beside her, Volya pats her head and says,


    "Your mother said... To find you and to help you grow to become a good girl."


    "Eh..."


    "And look at you... You have grown so much since I last met you. I still remember that you are crying in the garden."


    "..."


    "I will never forget about you... Never..."


    "I..."


    "Don''t blame yourself... I should have found you sooner, but alas, fate says the other way."


    Gracia starts to cry again with Volya weeping her tears. He then says,


    "It''s alright... I forgive you and will never blame you. So, don''t cry and I''m here to protect you"


    Gracia nods after hearing that and starts to smile and wipes her tears. They then chat a little bit until Lucia knocks on the door. She asks them to go down as the meal is ready. Lucia and Gracia helping Volya to stand up and help him go downstairs.


    They start to eat with Volya and hear what Gracia has done for the last week until he notices the house is missing one person. He then asks Lucia,


    "Where is Romain? Is he taking any mission?"


    After hearing that question, Gracia and Lucia suddenly stop eating. Volya looks at them and asks the same question until Lucia says,


    "Big brother is in the middle of hearing... For Gracia''s trial case. Right now he is at Onryx for that."


    "Eh?"


    "You know... He does that to fulfil his promise to you, Volya."


    "I... I''m sorry..."


    Lucia looks at Volya and then chuckles a bit. She then says,


    "It''s not your fault. It''s his choice after all..."


    "..."


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    "But, I believe today is the verdict day... The prosecutor should be here..."


    After she said that they could hear a knock at the door. Volya''s face changed as he worried with Gracia, while Gracia already resolved to accept any punishments for every of her wrongdoing.


    Lucia looks at them, stands up, and opens the door. Volya suddenly tried to stand up to stop Lucia and fall to the ground. Gracia was surprised to see Volya''s action and ran at him to help him.


    When Lucia opens the door, the three of them could see a bunch of knights standing there. And they know some of them are Ludmila, Villias, Albert, and Phillip. And there stands another man behind those knights. An old man wearing a white robe and red cloak. His grey hair shows how old he is and the face showed the experience and wisdom that he has. On his hand, there are two parchments.


    When Lucia sees them, she immediately kneels and looks down. Before Volya could say anything, Ludmila and Phillip already entered the house and stood between Volya and Gracia. The situation at the house is chaotic and the people at Ironforge are quite intrigued with the commotion.


    The old man enters the house and says,


    "Gracia Ravelli... Please come at me now."


    Gracia looks at the old man and then looks at Volya. She smiles at him and she could see an overwhelming emotion from Volya''s face. She then looks at the old man, walks towards the old man, and bow in front of him. She then continues,


    "I''m Gracia Ravelli, the Smiling Angel of Death... The one that has been making havoc across Therious"


    The old man looks at Gracia and then opens one of the parchment. He then continues,


    "My name is Mikhail Firenze, the leader of the magistrate of Haegia. Under the order of King Paulo Estrudiantes, I will give you the verdict and punishment."


    Mikhail then read every crime from the parchment. Every murder, every ransacking, and every action that Gracia has done, Mikhail reads it in front of Gracia and she didn''t deny it at all.


    After Mikhail reads all of Gracia''s crime, he looks at Gracia and says,


    "And the punishment that I gave to you is... Death penalty"


    Volya heard that surprised and tried to pass through Phillip and Ludmila, but they stopped him. Meanwhile, Gracia isn''t surprised to hear the verdict, looks at Volya, smiles at him, and says,


    "Don''t worry, Volya... I''m ready and I know... My crime is severe."


    "Gracia..."


    "With this... I could... meet my mother and apologize... To your father..." continues Gracia


    Mikhail then orders Albert to execute the punishment. Gracia kneels in front of Albert, looks at him, and smiles. She then looks down and closes her eyes as she prepares for the punishments. Volya tried to stop them as Albert walks closer to Gracia and stands behind her.


    The process is fast with Volya closing his eyes when Albert takes out his sword. After that, Mikhail says,


    "Gracia Ravelli opens your eyes..."


    Both Volya and Gracia were surprised to hear that and Volya could see that Gracia was still there. The difference is her hair is cut short. Mikhail then open the second parchment and says,


    "But, most of the people that you murder are the scoundrel that making havoc around our territory. Even you exterminate one well-known group of scoundrels on this island."


    "..."


    "Not only those scoundrels, some villages that provide help for the scoundrels also destroyed thanks to you. With that in mind, we decide this is the punishment for you..."


    Mikhail takes the hair that falls to the ground and says,


    "This hair is the sin for every murder that you have done until now."


    "Eh..."


    "And with this, The Smiling Angel of Death is already dead. But, Gracia Ravelli stay alive as a new human"


    Gracia start to cry and Mikhail says,


    "Stand up, young child... And now you are already free..."


    Volya starts to crawl to Gracia, with Phillip and Ludmila leaving him. As soon as he is near Gracia, he starts to hug her. They start to cry together with Volya says,


    "Thank God... Gracia..."


    Gracia nods at Volya and then she looks at Mikhail and says,


    "Sir Mikhail... I, Gracia Ravelli, will always remember this event and will work hard... for this kingdom!"


    Mikhail smiles at them and orders all of the knights to follow him and leave them be. But there is only one knight left. The knight walks at them, takes off the helmet, and there a tearful Lucia looks happy. That knight is Romain and he looks relieved.


    He said,


    "It''s indeed a long battle... But, we are victorious now... Volya."


    "Thank you... Romain" answer Volya as he looks at Romain


    With that, it starts the end of The Smiling Angel of Death and the start of Gracia Ravelli in the world. The start of her happiness that has been missing for many years.

 39 Gracia - Hesitation

    At Belcrest, Gracia is sitting at one of the tables on the second floor with two knights saving her sitting in front of her. They are Ludmila and Phillip, two of Five Great Knights of Haegia. In front of them are two cups of tea and a glass of beer. They visit Belcrest after Ludmila asks them to go there for a chat.


    Before they come, the building is crowded with many men and women gathering on the first floor. Most of them are Adventurers that are searching for a party, travelling merchants that are waiting for an escort and selling items, and bards that are telling their story.


    After they enter the building, it''s become a bit quiet with some men looking at Gracia and Ludmila. Of course, it''s a rare occurrence for them to see the Great Knights of Haegia walking with one beautiful woman that they never saw before. Some of them tried to hit on them until they saw Phillip walking with them. Because of that, Phillip now asks Ludmila,


    "Ludmila... Is this your intention dragging me to Belcrest with you? For assurance that no one will hit on both of you?"


    "Which one will you choose? Follow me so no one will assault us or you see more men heartbroken because of me?" asks Ludmila as she chuckles


    "Ah... So you already heard the gossip about yourself, huh?"


    "Of course I know."


    "From who?"


    "Romain."


    Phillip only facepalms himself after hearing that. He and Ludmila then look at Gracia that a little bit tense knowing they are the Great Knights of Haegia. He then says,


    "Gracia, you don''t need to worry... We will not file anything to you..."


    "Ummm..."


    "You..."


    Before Phillip could continue it, he heard someone walking at them. When he looks behind he could see Villias and Albert are walking towards them. Albert looks at the three of them and then greets them,


    "Good afternoon everyone. What a rare combination to see the three of you here?"


    "Good afternoon, Sir Albert and Sir Villias too," answer Ludmila as she sips the tea


    "Good afternoon, Sir Albert and Sir Villias!" answer Phillip


    "Umm... Good... Afternoon..." answer Gracia weakly


    Albert and Villias then looks at Gracia until Villias asks her,


    "It''s really rare to see you alone, Gracia..."


    "Y... yes..." answer Gracia


    "Are you..."


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    Before she heard the question, Gracia immediately answer,


    "I... I''m not trying to... kill... I just... want to know... this city more... Because... I am this city... citizen now."


    Villias and Albert were quite surprised to hear what she said. Suddenly, Albert chuckles and Villias only smiles. Villias then says,


    "Don''t worry, I will not suspect you. I already see how you do your best to integrate into this city."


    "Eh..." said Gracia surprised


    "To see you do your best like that is enough to convince me." continues Villias


    "And seeing you live like a normal girl is indeed an assurance. I think the decision to let you live with Volya and Romain is the best decision we made ahahahahaha," said Albert as he laughs at them


    Gracia''s face becomes red and Villias continues,


    "So you don''t need to worry about it. We believe you already change, especially with those guys around you."


    "Th... thank you..." answer Gracia


    "But, why are you here? Aren''t you said that you are looking around the city?" asks Albert suddenly


    "Ummm..."


    "I am the one who invited her to Belcrest, Sir Albert. It''s after some scoundrels chasing her in the alley," answer Ludmila as he looks at Albert


    Albert and Villias look at Ludmila and then have a little chat. They nod at each other and says,


    "Thank you for the information. Is the one who chased Gracia more than one?"


    "Yes" answer Gracia


    "Then, we could say these are the people that we are searching until now," said Villias


    "Gracia, could you describe the people?" asks Albert


    Gracia looks at them and then describes the people that chase her in the alley. After finishing that, Albert immediately leaves them and writes something in a paper. Meanwhile, Villias says,


    "Thank you very much, Gracia. These two people are some people that are causing a ruckus lately around Ironforge. With your help, we could arrest them now."


    "Eh?"


    Villias then takes out 50 silver coins from his pocket and says,


    "Here is your reward... Thank you very much."


    "But... I..."


    Villias then nods and leaves her dumbfounded. Ludmila and Phillip only could smile seeing Villias and Gracia interaction. Gracia looks confused and looks at Ludmila and Phillip. She then says,


    "But... I didn''t..."


    "You are the one that discovers them. Of course, you deserve it," explains Phillip


    "But..."


    "Just keep it, Gracia. Maybe with that money, you could help someone," said Ludmila


    "Help someone..."


    Gracia looks at them and asks them,


    "What could I do to help Volya and Romain with this money?"


    "Hmmm... Maybe help them to pay the house?" said Phillip


    "House... They pay for the house?"


    "Yes, they are."


    "Is... this enough to help them?"


    Phillip and Ludmila look at Gracia and nod at each other. Phillip then says,


    "Unfortunately, no."


    "Eh?"


    "And that''s why they are taking some mission," continues Phillip


    "Some of their money is used to pay the house, and use the rest for food, cloth, etc," said Phillip


    "Then... When I am... At their house... I... didn''t..."


    Gracia looks at the money on her hand and looks dejected after knowing that from Phillip. Ludmila immediately nudges Phillip until he notices Gracia''s face. Phillip didn''t continue explaining to Gracia until Ludmila said,


    "Maybe you could help them from now"


    "Huh? How?" said Gracia surprised


    "How... That''s the biggest question..." said Ludmila


    "Maybe you could help the kitchen at this guildhall?" said Phillip


    "But... I can''t cook well..." answer Gracia


    "Or maybe help serves?" continues Phillip


    Gracia didn''t answer Phillip''s suggestion. Phillip continues to give her a suggestion until Gracia said,


    "I... can''t do any of that..."


    "..."


    "For many years, I only know... How to kill someone... How to hunt someone... How to... hurt someone..."


    "Gracia..." said Phillip as he showed a concerned face.


    "Most of the time... When I tried to help... It will end... with failure... I..."


    Ludmila immediately sighs, flicks Gracia''s forehead, and says,


    "Gracia... If you continue to think negatively like that, you will never grow."


    "..."


    "If you think you can''t do something, how about to try it first? If you mess up, try to improve it."


    "But..."


    "You know... the first time Volya registered himself to become an Adventurer, I saw him having difficulty using the wooden pen when he used it for the first time. But look at him now, he could use it without any problem," said Ludmila


    "Eh?"


    "No one could do something right for the first time. That includes me ahahahaha... My first meeting with Queen Estrudiantes isn''t something that we could say... a nice thing. But as we grow and learn with each other, we grow to become better even until now," continues Ludmila


    "..."


    "Then... How about you tried it first before you said you can''t do it?"


    Gracia looks at Ludmila that smiles at her gently. Gracia looks down for a while and thinks everything that Ludmila said to her. Meanwhile, Phillip looks at Ludmila and says,


    "My... Is this the reason why everyone always comes to you for counselling?"


    "Maybe~"


    "What a wise person, you are."


    Ludmila only smiles at Phillip and they notice that Gracia looks at them. Her face is different from before and she shows a resolution from her. She then says,


    "I... I will try..."


    "Good to hear that, Gracia," said Ludmila


    "Then, the question is what kind of job that is suitable for her?" asked Phillip


    Ludmila thinks for a while and notices Lucia is helping someone with a form. She then claps and says,


    "I think there is one work that is suitable for her for now..."


    "A work that suitable for me?" said Gracia


    "Wait... Don''t say..." said concerned Phillip when he sees Ludmila face


    "Yup... Become an adventurer."


    There is a temporary silence between the three of them until Gracia and Phillip said together,


    "Eh?! Adventurer?!"


    "Yup. Adventurer... I believe a lot of people will try to help. Even when she is making a mistake," explained Ludmila


    "But..." said Gracia, a little bit panicked.


    "So, you don''t need to worry."


    "No no no no... I believe what Gracia thinks is... Is it wise for her to become an Adventurer?" asked Phillip


    "If you are talking about her as that person... You don''t need to worry."


    "Why?"


    "Because the guild only knows that ''The Smiling Angel of Death'' already executed and Sir Albert already gives the hair as the proof," explained Ludmila


    "But... Is that enough? What if someone meets her before?" asked Phillip


    "I think it should be fine... There is a contrast difference between her and Gracia... Because this Gracia is cuter and brighter than her. They will think of her as somebody else."


    Phillip only could facepalm himself after hearing Ludmila explanation. Ludmila then continues,


    "Then, are you going to try my suggestion, Gracia? I will help you to settle with Adventurer life and I believe Volya and Romain will help you too."


    Gracia looks at Ludmila for a moment and thinks for a while. She then makes a firm face and says,


    "I will try that."


    And with that her life as an adventurer started.

 40 Gracia - Resolution

    At Belcrest, a lot of people are gathering around the main hall to give their trade secrets or their journey story. Some of them are adventurers that tell their story, while the other are adventurers that will be told their story later.


    And now Volya just opens the door after finishing his mission. His team member congratulate everyone and the team leader asks Volya,


    "So, are you sure that you will not join us to drink together?"


    "Ah... I''m sorry... I have one friend that is waiting for me now. I know she is must be lonely when I left her back then," answer Volya


    "My... A woman... Wait, isn''t Romain also staying with you? This girl shouldn''t feel lonely at home, right?" said his team leader


    "Well... He is in the middle of training with The Great Knight of Haegia... I doubt he will come back soon."


    "Ah yes... I remember that."


    "Then, once again I''m sorry about it."


    "That''s fine... After all not everyone''s schedule is the same."


    "Then, hopefully, we could team up again in the future," said Volya


    "Yup... It''s nice to have you on my team!"


    They then split up in the main hall. When Volya starts to climb up the stairs, the door opens again with exhausted Romain. He immediately calls Romain and just runs at him. Volya then says,


    "So... How is your time with The Great Knight?"


    "Today is exhausting... Even though there is no Sir Villias nor Sir Albert there..." answered Romain


    "Ahahahaha... Good for you."


    "What do you mean by good, huh?" replied Romain as he sighs more


    "Then, let''s meet up with Lucia now. Her shift should be finished soon, right?"


    "Should be..."


    They then walk to the second floor and notice Lucia a little bit stressed. Volya then walks to her counter, put her mission identification, and says,


    "Lucia! I already have done the job."


    "Huh? Ah... Volya..."


    "Huh? What is it? Why is your voice a little bit dejected like that?" asked Volya


    "Well... You see..." said Lucia


    "It''s because two people just came to her and asked for something from her," said another clerk. A woman with short black hair wearing the same uniform as Lucia and a little bit taller from her standing besides Lucia. Her name is Selene Siggurdotter, Lucia''s friend at Belcrest.


    Volya and Romain look at each other with a puzzled face. Romain then asks her,


    "What do you mean? Are those people harassing her?"


    "Nope," answer Selene


    "Or maybe they are a little bit pushy to her?" asked Volya


    "Bingo," said Selene with a smile


    "Come one, Selene... If it''s other people... It should be fine..." said Lucia that started to annoyed


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    "Huh? If it''s other people?" said Romain and Volya


    Selene only chuckles while the two men become more puzzled with her reaction. Before Volya asks them a question, Selene then points at one direction and says,


    "Well... Those people are still sitting there with one of them helping the other."


    "Huh? Are you sure it''s fine for us to disturb them?" asked Volya


    "If it''s them... It should be fine," answered Selene as she smiles at Volya


    Every time Volya takes a mission and makes a team with another adventurer, he knows when Selene smiles like that it''s never a good thing. He then sighs and says,


    "Alright... I will look at... them..."


    The moment Volya peeks at the direction where Selene pointed at, he notices a woman with a bisque chocolate colour is writing something on the desk with two knights in front of her. He knows the woman, while Romain that also peeking at the point also knows the woman and the two knights.


    Romain then says,


    "Isn''t that... Gracia, Sir Phillip, and Lady Ludmila?"


    "Wait... Those knights are Phillip and Ludmila?!" said Volya shocked


    "Why are they... Wait... Don''t say..."


    "Did Gracia do something bad here?" asked Volya to Selene and Lucia


    "Well... It''s not something bad..." answered Selene


    "No... For me it''s something bad already," said bemused Lucia after hearing Selene answer


    "If she didn''t do something bad..." said Romain


    "Don''t say that she is..." continues Volya


    "That''s right... You guessed it right..."


    The three of them immediately paused for a moment, until Lucia said knowing the three of them are an idiot,


    "Before we continue it... Are you sure that the three of you are on the same page?"


    "Of course!" said the three of them with Romain showing a proud face, Volya with a worried face, and Selene with a teasing face.


    "Then... What is it? Answer it together..."


    The three of them looks at each other and said together,


    "She will join the knight rank with Ludmila..." said Romain


    "She will leave Haegia..." said Volya


    "She will become Adventurer~," said Selene


    They look at each other with Romain and Volya looks at Selene for a moment. After that, they laugh together with Lucia said,


    "Looks! The Guild didn''t pay me enough to become your straight man role!"


    "Oh, come on Lucia... If you were always angry like that, your face will full of wrinkle soon," teases Selene


    "Come on, Selene!"


    While Lucia and Selene having their banter, Volya and Romain are quite surprised to hear that from Selene. Volya is the one who asked them,


    "Are you fine with her choice to become an adventurer?"


    "It''s fine," said one girl from behind him with full of pride


    When Volya looks behind him, he can see that Ludmila, Phillip and Gracia are standing behind him. Ludmila then continues,


    "Everything will be fine"


    "But... What if..." said Volya before Ludmila cuts him


    "What if someone knows about her, right?"


    "..."


    "You don''t need to worry about that. None of the adventurers knows about it and the main guild only knows that the mage already dead,"


    "With the addition, there is a contrast difference between her and the mage, Ludmila said it will be fine," said Phillip


    "And Gracia looks eager to become one," continues Ludmila


    Volya can''t hide his surprised and says,


    "You... Already put that into... consideration..."


    "Yes," said Ludmila


    Before Volya could ask anything, Gracia walks to Volya and says,


    "Volya..."


    "Eh, Gracia..."


    "I choose this... to help you..."


    "Eh?"


    "You know... To repay... your kindness..."


    "..."


    "That''s why... I will do this..."


    Volya and Romain could see the determination from Gracia ''s face and they only could smile a little. Romain the taps Volya''s shoulder and says,


    "So, what''s your decision about this, Volya?"


    "You know... If she is determined for it... Then, so be it," answer Volya


    "Eh?"


    "But for some earlier mission, please follow what I said... I will become your teacher and guide in your mission," continues Volya


    "And I will become both of your shields," said Romain full of pride


    "But, after you finished your training first, Romain," teases Ludmila


    "I know, I know..." said Romain after hearing Ludmila


    Gracia looks at all of them and a tear starts to fall from her eyes. Everyone looks at her and some of them start to panic. She then starts to laugh and says,


    "Thank... you..."


    Everyone that hears that start to smile and Volya says,


    "You''re welcome, Gracia."


    "Then, now isn''t it time for Lucia to explain the basic of Adventurer," said Phillip as he points at Lucia


    "Wait... Isn''t that Selen job now?" protest Lucia


    "And after that, we will buy new gear for Gracia... Where should we buy that..." said Ludmila regardless what Lucia''s protest


    "What about Uncle Grigory''s armoury? I believe he could help us with that," answer Volya


    "That''s a good idea... I also need to ask him about my broken sword whether he already finished repaired it or not," continues Romain


    As they start to talk about what they should do next, Gracia smiles at them until Volya looks at her and says,


    "Welcome aboard, Gracia! Let''s do our best from now on."


    Gracia looks at Volya and nods at him. She then joins the conversation with the other.


    One week already passed, Volya is standing near the door with Romain already outside the house. Romain already finished his training with the Great Knight of Haegia and he is back to take some missions from Belcrest.


    And in the last one week, Volya helped Gracia to know the basics of Adventurer and visit Grigory''s armoury to buy some gear.


    As they chat around, Volya looks at the staircase. There Gracia is wearing a dark green robe, a brown belt with a knife on the back, and a bag. On her hand is the new staff that she could conjure if she is in danger.


    Gracia then looks at the ferret that is waiting for her near her usual chair. She lifts it and puts it on the chair and says,


    "Artimus... We are going to take our first mission... So, take care of the house while we are away, alright?"


    The ferret looks at Gracia and nods at her. She then pats it''s fur and then walks to Volya and Romain that are waiting for her.


    As they leave, the house becomes quiet once more. The ferret starts to yawn, curls itself, and sleeps on the chair. It will wait for them to come back and revive the atmosphere in the house again.


    And with that, their story as a group starts and later on it will grow and make its name to the world.

 41 Lerwick

    One coach is moving slowly through the calm forest near Azalea. Even though the place is calm, the driver and his helper are always on alert because of the bandit activity around the area.


    When one of them is taking the leash, the other will look around for any movement from the forest. They will do that to make sure their passengers get the highest comfort when using their coach.


    Meanwhile, inside the coach, four people are sitting inside it. One of them is wearing full armour and takes off his helmet. He looks outside from the coach''s window and lets the wind blow to his face.


    Not long after that, he sighs and says,


    "I can''t believe it at all... That we manage to do that in time..."


    His friend who sits across from him looks at him and smiles. He then asks,


    "About what, Romain?"


    "Of course what I mean is our house payment to Albert. We are barely late to pay for it, Volya" answer Romain as he sighs once more.


    They are two Adventurers that live in the Kingdom of Haegia. Romain Ambros, the knight of Haegia, and Volya Portar, the mage. After several circumstances, they live together and become adventurers after Romain''s suggestion.


    Volya then laughs and said,


    "At least we didn''t pay late and need to pay any fine, right?"


    "Well... You are right..." answer Romain


    "And thanks from the payment of our last mission, we even could pay in advance for the next four months," continues Volya


    "Really... You are too easy-going for this..."


    "Oh come on!"


    Both of them laugh together and then Romain looks outside the window again. He then mumbles,


    "The scenery here is contrasted with the scenery at Haegia."


    "Of course!" said Volya


    "Ah... So you heard me, huh..."


    Volya only laughs and Romain continues to look outside. Volya then looks at besides him and observes the woman beside him. A woman with long bisque chocolate hair and wearing a green robe. She looks focused on reading the book that she brought from Haegia. She is Gracia Ravelli, another resident of Haegia.


    Noticing that she is lowering her guard, Volya then touches Gracia''s cheek and she startled. With a red face, Gracia said,


    "Volya... You..."


    "Oh come on, you look so serious and easy to tease," answer Volya


    "Eh?"


    "And... The urge to tease is bigger than my restraint," tease Volya


    "Seriously, Volya!" said Gracia with a red face and flicks Volya''s forehead.


    Romain can''t hide his laughs and says,


    "Come on, Volya. Stop teasing her."


    "I know... I know..." said Volya


    "And look here... Only several hours ago both of you showing a sour face and intention to kill," said Romain


    Volya and Gracia look at each other and remember what happened before.


    After their coach leaving Haegia territory, they passed through checkpoint owned by Wraitus Empire.


    Wraitus empire, led by Emperor Sartak, is the neighbouring empire near Haegia. Their territory mostly at the northern part of Azalea near the territory of Haegia and spread from east to west. Their territory is right in the middle between Haegia and Azalea, and also between two other empires and kingdoms with Azalea, making it an empire with an unique territory.


    Wraitus empire is one prominent empire that excels in horse riding and they use it to extend their border until their current territory. And because they win their war against the other three kingdoms, they always look down on other kingdoms and will do anything they like to everyone that passes through their territory.


    And that''s what happened at the checkpoint. Wraitus put a high toll fee only for passing through their territory and their army is far from word friendly.


    If only their fourth member didn''t intervene, there will be a big ruckus at the gate and causing them a bigger problem.


    Volya and Gracia now look at each other and then look at the fourth member of their team. She is none other than Helena itself, the Queen of Haegia.


    Volya takes a deep breath and tries to ask her, but Gracia cuts him,


    "Helena... Why did you join us?"


    Helena notices Gracia asks her and then smiles. She then answers her,


    "It''s because I heard from Albert that the three of you will take a mission at Ostonorid, especially Lerwick village,"


    "Eh? From Sir Albert?" said Romain


    "Yes. He told me about it and at the same time Uncle Mikhail asks me to send these two letters to someone at Lerwick," answer Helena


    "But, why must you be the one that sends this letter? Why don''t you ask other people to send it?" asks Volya


    "It''s because one of the recipients is my old friend when I am still an adventurer. That''s why I volunteered to send this letter," answer Helena calmly


    "And our King accept that?" said Romain


    "Of course he accepts that," answered Helena with a smile.


    Romain and Volya only could facepalm themselves after hearing Helena answer.


    Ostonorid Empire, their destination, is another Empire at Therious Island. They take the eastern part of the island as their territory and they have the biggest territory from all kingdoms and empires there. With the sea on their back and a lot of areas where they could create plantations, they prosper themself by trading with other kingdoms and empires with their commodity.


    The current emperor is Theofilo Anderson, the twelfth emperor of Ostonorid, and under his name, Ostonorid goes back to its golden age.


    Compared to their neighbour Wraitus, Ostonorid is well-known with their longbow, magic, and siege weaponry. But, their cavalry is also on par with Wraitus'' cavalry, and they need that to protect their vast area.


    Gracia then looks around and then says,


    "Why Big Sis Ludmila didn''t join us?"


    "Ludmila? Ah... She doesn''t want to meet her because she knows several questions that will be asked by my friend to her," answered Helena


    "Also... Isn''t it dangerous for you to join us?" asks Gracia again


    "I''m not worried as I know all of your capabilities. Rather, why did all of your looks more concerned than usual?" asks Helena


    Gracia looks at Volya and Romain. All of then nods and Volya says,


    "First, I''m afraid if someone besides the recipient of the letter knows about your status. It''s will cause a huge ruckus at their empire,"


    "You don''t need to worry... I''m well-known as an adventurer there. Rather, not many know that I already become a queen at Haegia as I use my other name when I become adventurer," answer Helena


    "Then, the second one is..." said Volya


    "A serial killer is lurking at Lerwick. Even it still occurring until now. If the serial killer targeting you and you either injured or died, it will cause tension between Ostonorid and Haegia," continues Romain


    "You don''t need to worry about that. About injured, it''s the same package that you get when you become an Adventurer. And if killed, I doubt that will happen. Especially with the three of you here," answer Helena with a smile


    Both of them were a little bit frustrated after hearing Helena''s answer. Helena then looks at Gracia and Volya, and says,


    "There is another reason why I must join you."


    "Huh?"


    "One of the recipients is also Uncle Mikhail''s old friend. He is one of the Royal Mage from Ostonorid."


    "Royal Mage?" said the other three


    "Yes. And it''s because Uncle Mikhail wants both of you to meet that Royal Mage," continues Helena as she points her finger at Volya and Gracia


    "Eh? Why?"


    "It''s because..."


    "I''m sorry to interrupt your conversation, Your Highness. But we already arrived at Lerwick," interrupts the coach driver


    "Ah... Thank you very much,"


    As the coach stops, Helena immediately leaves the coach and pays the fee to the driver. She leaves Volya and Gracia dumbfounded at the coach until Romain taps their shoulder. He then says,


    "Well... It''s better if we work harder this time."


    "I agree," answer Gracia


    "And let''s finish this mission as fast as possible," said Volya


    The three of them nod at each other and leave the coach. As Volya stepped outside the coach, now his new adventure starts at a new place.

 42 Cha

    Volya is sitting on the chair with a desk in front of him. The candle on the desk lights the room where he stays at Lerwick.


    On the desk, paper scattered across it. Even some of them are falling to the floor.


    He sighs and looks at the unfamiliar yet nostalgic scenery in front of him. The clear night sky full with stars and the city that is asleep. He only heard the footsteps of the guard that patrols the area.


    He then backs reading the paper and looks at the mirror. He could see his tired face reflected. He then chuckled and says,


    "If Helena or Gracia see this face, they will lecture me for a long time."


    He looks at the paper once more and resolves,


    "After I finish this one, I will take my sleep."


    Right now, Volya, Romain, Gracia, and Helena are in the middle of a mission to protect one of the nobles of Ostonorid that live at Lerwick. His name is Reginald Lawrence, and from the mission description, he stated that a killer is targeting him.


    Before he met him, Volya thinks that he will act like the noble at Haegia. Kind and easy to approach if there is a problem.


    After he met him, that impression vanished at their first meeting. Volya even hoped that his mission finished as soon as possible. He treats his subordinate poorly and looks down on him and his teams.


    Not only that, but Reginald also didn''t mention that he also hired another group of Adventurers to protect him. And when they ask whether he will pay full to both parties, he said that it will be split to both parties and he will not pay more than stated.


    At that time, one person from the other team showed his disapproval to Reginald and that is enough to make Reginald furious. He immediately ordered his knight to take his head to him. Without any complaint, the knight drags the person and executes it in front of everyone. His friend tried to save him but Reginald''s knight held them.


    Volya also tried to help the person. But judging from Reginald''s action until now, he knows that he needs to be careful or it will harm Romain, Gracia, and Helena.


    After the commotion, Reginald immediately ordered the adventurers to do their job and dismiss them. Volya then gathered all of the adventurers and made a little plan with help from Helena.


    After they separate their way to their inn, Volya gathers Gracia, Romain, and Helena to discuss what they need to do. From that discussion, Helena agreed to not reveal who she is and see Reginald''s action from the eye of a commoner.


    And they also discuss the difficulty to send the letter without anybody noticing them as Reginald ordered his knights to watch over the adventurers with a group of two until three knights.


    Now, it''s been a week since that incident. All of them work as stated on their contract, but Volya noticed something. The number of knights that follow him is increasing in the last few days. From there he knew that Reginald is suspicious of him.


    He then sighs once more and mumbles,


    "There is no document that mentions this serial killer. Why did they don''t have such a document for a big crime like this?"


    He then looks at the ceiling for a moment and hears someone knock on the door. From the number of knocks, he knows who comes to his room this late. He then says,


    "Just open the door and come in. I didn''t lock the door."


    The door is opened and a man with greyish hair and wearing a beige shirt, leather armour, and dark chocolate pants stand at the door. On his face, Volya could see a scar across his nose and he lost sight on his left eye.


    Volya immediately stands up and offers the seat to him. That man is Markos Luis, the leader of the adventurer team that protects Reginald. He is a well-known adventurer at Ostonorid and many adventurers admire him. Even there is a myth that if someone joins his team, their future as an adventurer is bright.


    As Markos sits on the chair, Volya closes the door and asks him,


    "It''s really rare for you to come to my room this late, Markos. Is there something happening?"


    "No... I just want to meet you and have a little chat," answer Markos


    Volya nods at Markos, walks to his bed, sits on the bed, and snaps his finger. A white magic circle created under them and vanishes into thin air. He then asks,


    "Do the knights still follow you?"


    "Yes, they are. What a drag" replied Markos


    "Do they wait outside like the one that follows me or they wait in front of my room?"


    "They only wait outside. The innkeeper hate them and immediately kick them out," jokes Markos


    "Hahahahaha... Nice one, innkeeper."


    Both of them laugh a bit and then their faces start to become serious. Markos looks at the paper and asks Volya,


    "Do you have any new clues?"


    "Unfortunately, no. It''s really strange for incomplete information from an official document. Even they didn''t mention about a murder at all," replied Volya


    "So, he hides any incident at Lerwick."


    "It seems that''s the case."


    "What a bummer..."


    "What about on your side? Do you get any information about him or the serial killer?"


    "About that... We are in the middle of gathering information about Reginal Lawrence. I remember his foul rumour at Guild Hall at the Capital."


    "That''s good. If you find out anything, please inform me."


    "The same goes for you. Please inform me if you find something from the paper."


    Both of them nod at each other and then silence falls on the room. But not for too long as Volya asks Markos,


    "Markos, you are the well-known adventurer at Ostonorid, right?"


    "If you put it that way, I could say... Yes, I am," reply Markos


    "Then, do you have any information about any serial killer at Ostonorid? Especially at Lerwick."


    "Unfortunately, because there is some serial killer at Ostonorid, I''m not sure whether they do their crime at Lerwick or not,"


    "Maybe you could list some of them?"


    "Sure... Like the Londinium Slasher, The Twin, Brunwick Stabber, and Smiling Angel of Death..."


    Volya can''t hide his surprise after hearing the last name. He can''t believe that Gracia created terror at Ostonorid.


    Markos looks at Volya and smiles. He then continues,


    "At least one of them is here..."


    "What do you mean?" asks Volya as his skin becomes a little bit pale.


    "The Smiling Angel of Death..."


    "Isn''t she already..."


    "The Guild already mentions that she is already dead. But, I see her with my eyes again..."


    "..."


    "And I see her here..."


    "..."


    "And it seems she got a new name. Gracia Ravelli."


    "It''s..."


    "When I saw her again, I could see that a lot of things had changed about her. In the past when I fought her, she was like an undead. Doesn''t have any will and moves around aimlessly."


    "..."


    "But now... She is different. Maybe I could say that, The Smiling Angel of Death is already dead. But she is reborn as a new girl. A cute and pure girl that I saw for the last one week."


    "Eh?"


    "So... What did you do to change her?"


    "Well... I can''t put it into words..."


    Markos looks at Volya''s embarrassed face and laughs at him. After he stops laughing, he then says,


    "It seems you are the reason for her to change to become better."


    "It''s almost true..." replied Volya


    "Huh? What do you mean?"


    "I think I am also responsible for her actions in the past as the murderer. She is just confused with everything..."


    "Eh? What do you mean that you are also responsible?"


    Volya only could shake his head as a sign that he also wants to know what happens to Gracia. Markos could see it from Volya''s eye.


    Markos smiles a bit at Volya, stands up, and strokes Volya''s hair. He then says,


    "I think it''s better if we go back to our main concern now."


    "You are right, Markos," said Volya as he smiles at Markos


    "Then, what should we do now as the lack of information becomes the stumbling block for us?"


    "Hmmm..."


    Volya closes his eye for a while and then says,


    "I think it better if we do our job as usual."


    "Eh?"


    "I will ask you and Valeria to patrol the east side of Reginald''s palace," continues Volya


    "Like usual..."


    "And then I will ask Miklos, Dominik, Anna, and Frida to patrol the western and northern side of the palace with Gracia and Helena,"


    "Oh... You switch Alfred and Dominik for tomorrow''s shift, huh."


    "Yes. Romain and Alfred will protect the main door and will follow Reginald everywhere."


    "That seems like a good plan to me."


    "Could you tell your team about this plan? I will ask the other three tomorrow morning."


    "I will tell them about it."


    "Thank you, Markos."


    Volya then takes one of the papers from the floor and reads it again. Markos observes the young man in front of him and remembers what happened after the incident with his friend.


    At first, his team worked at their own pace and disregarded help from Volya''s group. Even they didn''t care about Volya''s suggestion.


    But after Helena assured them about Volya''s suggestion, their coordination with each team improved. Even they could know each team member better now.


    Markos then takes a deep breath and asks Volya that is focused on reading the paper,


    "Then, what will you do tomorrow?"


    "I will guard the roof and inform you if something fishy happened near the palace. After all, I am the only mage that could use that type of magic in this group," answered Volya


    "Ahahahahaha... Too bad Reginald executed my friend back then. If he was still alive, he could help you."


    "Well... Because I am alone, it''s easier for me to manoeuvre. And also that makes me the freest person from all of us."


    "I believe free is the wrong word to choose for this situation, Volya."


    "Is that so?"


    "It is"


    Both of them then laughs together until Markos said,


    "And you know, it''s been a long time since I met Helena again. And I''m surprised that she became your team member."


    "Huh? You know her?" asks Volya


    "Yes, I know her. She is one prominent adventurer and I could say that she is indeed talented."


    "Hmmm..."


    "I don''t know why she suddenly vanished from the world of an adventurer. At first, I think she already finds her goal."


    "Her goal?"


    "Yes... To find her brother."


    Volya looks at Markos for a moment and then he only smiles as he knows the reason why Helena''s time is limited as an adventurer. But after hearing that goal, he suddenly thinks whether she already met her brother or not.


    He then closes his eyes and hears Markos said,


    "At least I know that she still hasn''t found her brother yet. I think she is only taking some breather from the adventurer world."


    "I think so..."


    "And hopefully she finds her brother."


    "I hope that could happen soon."


    Both of them nods at each other and Markos notices that he takes a long time at Volya''s room. Because he didn''t want to cause any suspicion, he prepares to leave the room. Before he leaves the room, he looks at Volya and asks him,


    "Before that, Volya... Are you sure you don''t want to move to Ostonorid?"


    "Yes, I told you back then that I will not move out from Haegia. I just become their citizen and I will never betray them," replied Volya


    "If that''s your answer, then I can''t change it. See you tomorrow, Volya."


    "See you, Markos."


    After Markos leaves the room, Volya sighs a little as he looks at the ceiling. He then mumbles,


    "Why is the information about the killer so few in the official document? Is that true that he is being targeted by the killer? And about the rumour about him that Markos mentioned, does it have a connection with the incident at Lerwick?"


    He then looks at the paper once more and he remembers what his father taught him at Wildespring. He then mumbles,


    "To know how someone will act, we should try to think and act like our target... If I am Reginald, what will I do and why must I clear that information from the official document..."


    He then sighs once more and scratches his head a bit. After thinking a little bit more, he then chooses to sleep first before thinking about this problem further.

 43 Missing

    Morning comes at Lerwick and the villagers start their activities. At the same time, Volya just leaves the inn alone. He already informs Helena and Markos that he will come late as he wants to check some shops at Lerwick.


    As he leaves the inn, he could see the three guards that will follow him until he arrives at Reginald residence. He ignores them as he greets any passerby that approaches him.


    Volya starts to walk and this time he looks around the village as well. He notices that the building in Lerwick is higher than the building in Ironforge as Lerwick was created on grassland and without the roof of the cave above it.


    The distinctive part is most of the building at Lerwick using wood as the base material and they use the rock as the foundation. Those differences are enough to catch Volya''s curiosity.


    As he continued to walk, he arrived at the market area of Lerwick. The type of commodity that they sold is identical with the one at Ironforge, but the number of the armouries are less than the one at Ironforge''s market.


    He continues to look around until he notices two familiar faces coming out from one of the shops. One of them is a man wearing black armour and a morning star on his belt. While the other one is a woman wearing beige cloth, leather armour, dark brown pants, and a leather belt with several small pouches at the back of the belt.


    They are Alfred di Manfredi and Anna Frederikstand, two adventurers that join Markos'' team. Alfred is well-known as the ''Stonewall'' as he will stand still even when he is wounded greatly. While Anna is well-known as the dagger user that could kill someone from afar and even on close range.


    Volya smiles at them, run towards them, and says,


    "Morning Alfred! Morning Anna!"


    "Huh?" said both of them as they look behind them to see that Volya is running towards them


    "It''s a rare occurrence to see both of you here," continues Volya


    "The one that should be said is us... Ahahahahaha" replied Alfred as he laughs at Volya


    "What did both of you do here?"


    "Oh... I just accompany Anna to buy some of her poison material," replied Alfred again


    "And what are you doing here, Volya?" asked Anna


    "Ah... I just want to see this village with more detail. It''s been a week, but I still lost sometimes," answered Volya as he scratches his cheek.


    The three of them laugh together until Anna remembers something. She looks around and notices that the guard vision is blocked by the villager. She then whispers to Volya,


    "Volya, have you heard this message?"


    "Message? What message?" asked Volya


    Anna looks at Alfred and from there both of them nod. Alfred starts to walk with Anna following him. The surprised Volya tried to ask again about what the meaning of that question, but Anna already says,


    "Follow us... Markos is waiting for us at Reginald''s mansion."


    It takes around 30 minutes to walk from the market to Reginald''s mansion. As soon they arrived at the mansion, one of Reginald''s knights welcomed them curtly. Before Volya replied the knight, the knight shouts,


    "Where have you been? Hurry up, Lord Lawrence has something that he needs to tell all of you!"


    "I already told Markos..." replied Volya that the knight in front of him cuts him with,


    "I don''t care about your reason! For what reason do I hear reason from a lowlife like you? Come in!"


    The guards that follow the three of them immediately push the three of them to follow another guard. The three of them don''t have any choices other than follow them.


    As they walk inside the mansion, Volya looks at all the statues and paintings in the hallway. For commoners, they will think the owner is a kind, fine, and refined man. But, Volya already knows the man and he feels disgusted with it.


    The guards lead them to a room and order them to wait there until they are called. Volya only sighs and notices the other members of the team already gathered in the room.


    Volya could see a distressed face from Markos and Helena, while Gracia tried to calm them. Meanwhile, Romain is talking with the other three members.


    They are Valeria Asimov, a well-known archer from Ostonorid, Frida Vargas, a dual-wield swordsman that excels in one-on-one combat, and Miklos Kovac, a spearman from Ostonorid.


    Volya passed them with Alfred and Anna, and then asked Markos,


    "What happens, Markos?


    "..."


    "Hey... Markos!" shouts Volya


    "Ah... Volya... You already come..." replied Markos


    "What happens?"


    "About that..."


    "We didn''t find Dominik''s whereabouts since he left our party last night," said Helena


    "Dominik?"


    Volya observes the people inside the room and notices that the person called Dominik is missing. Dominik Mistratel, the missing man, is Markos'' best friend and last night he gets a sudden mission and left the party.


    Volya peeks at Romain and gets a nod from him. So, he takes a deep breath and asks,


    "Have you checked this building?"


    "Yes, I am," replied Markos


    "Do you find anything?"


    "Yes... A cracked stone" replied Markos


    A cracked stone is a code devised by Helena and Markos to tell the team that Reginald was surely involved in one incident. Volya then continues,


    "Are you sure about that?"


    "Yes... The sign is there..."


    Volya then tried to remember what Dominik said before. He mentions that the guard needs help to protect Reginald as the killer seems to start to make its move.


    He can''t conclude anything for this situation and he could see that both Helena and Markos also stumbled upon the same roadblock. But, the three of them agree with one thing,


    ''How Reginald knows that yesterday the killer is making its move and targeting him?''


    That fact is enough to raise suspicion from Helena, Markos, and Volya. But before they could brainstorm and assess the situation more, the door opened and the knight shouts,


    "Sir Reginald called all of you to his dining room! Move your sorry ass now!"


    All of the adventurers in the room can''t hide their disgust, but they can''t do anything about it. Right before Volya walks, Markos taps Volya''s back and whispers,


    "I think... this is the best situation..."


    "To throw the bait? Are you sure?" asks Volya


    "Yes, this is our opportunity..."


    "But, are you sure to use your friend''s missing incident as the reason behind it?"


    "I know it''s wrong, but I believe he will forgive me if it''s for collective good."


    "So be it."


    Volya then makes a small gesture to Helena and she nods at them. Right before the knight shouts again, all of them start to walk to Reginald''s dining room. And at the same time, three people are preparing their bait for Reginald. As they arrived at the dining room door, their battle started now.

 44 Conflic

    The moment the knight open the door, they are greeted with Reginald shouting at his maid. Volya could see the lavish meal that Reginald takes and he also could see a disgusted face from him. Reginald shouts,


    "Are you going to poison me with this raw meat?"


    "But, you ask us for..." answer one of the maids before the maid interrupted by Reginald as he throws the meal to the floor,


    "Silence! Do I even permit you to talk back?"


    "I''m sorry... Milord..."


    All of the adventurers tried to hide their anger at Reginald on how he treats his subordinate. Volya observes him and remembers what his father said in the past,


    "A person with power will act differently to their subordinate. So, don''t be surprised if you see a man with power that treats the other warmly and then you see a man with power that treats the other as an animal."


    Volya only could sigh and then he could hear that Reginald says,


    "Oh yeah... I forgot that all of you haven''t eaten yet, right? Go eat this meal while you clean the room."


    The maid looks at the food and they look disgusted to see the raw meat on the floor. But, their hunger beats their reasoning that some of them start to take the meat.


    Reginald smirks at the maid and then notices the adventurers already gathered in the room. One of the knights that escort the adventurers walks to Reginald and in the process steps on the food. The knight then says,


    "I already gathered all of them, milord."


    "Oh, thank you... Takes a long stroll, eh?"


    He then looks at the adventurers and says,


    "Welcome, all of you..."


    After that, his face changes into a sour face. He then asked all of the adventurers,


    "Do you know what happened last night?"


    "Aside from my friend Dominik chosen by you to protect you and doesn''t find him until now, then none of us know anything," answer Markos


    "Seriously? Did your team even already glue together? If not, how could you assure me that you could protect me?" asks Reginald


    "I''m sorry to interrupt, but even though we are working as a team, that doesn''t mean we know everything about them. Especially, if there is a case where one of our members taken away without any notice," answer Volya


    "Is that so..."


    "Then, could you tell us what happened last night? Maybe it has a connection with Markos'' disappearance." continues Helena as she bows at Reginald


    Reginald only smirks at them and then continues,


    "Alright, because all of you are obedient, then I will tell it,"


    He clears his throat and then says,


    "Because of all of your incompetence, last night the killer almost killed me!"


    "..."


    "And thankfully, your friend is there. The one named Dominik" continues Reginald


    "What happened to him? Where is he? Is he injured?" ask Anna


    "Calm down... Let me continue it first,"


    "But..."


    "Milord said to calm down! So, shut up and stay there!" shouts the knight


    "Oh, my Dear Knight... Please don''t act too hard for them. It will hard to tell this tragic news to them," said Reginald


    "Tragic news?" mumbles Helena


    "Yes, your friend fought valiantly against the killer. Unfortunately, he died on the spot."


    All of the adventurers were quite surprised to hear that news, especially Anna. But, Volya, Helena, and Markos smell something suspicious from the news. But they stay silent to hear more from Reginald.


    Reginald smiles at the adventurer and continues,


    "Because of his incompetent, the killer run away and lurking in the dark again."


    All of the adventurers start to show their displeasure at Reginald, but they remember that Markos and Helena ask them to act calmly against them even if it''s really hard to do it.


    Alfred then walks to the front and asks Reginald,


    "Then, could you tell us where he fought against the killer?"


    "Around here... At the garden near one of the fence," answered Reginald


    Volya peeks at Gracia, who is always checking the garden. Gracia only gives a weak shake as the answer. Something missing from the explanation from Reginald.


    Helena and Markos notice that Volya just confirmed something from Gracia and they could see Volya using his telepathy magic to them.


    ''Something amiss... Gracia didn''t find Dominik''s body nor any blood at the garden.''


    Hearing that, Helena raises her hand and makes the adventurers stop asking any questions. She then bows and asks,


    "If possible, could we see the body of our deceased friend?"


    "About that..." replied Reginald as he looks at one of the knights


    "We already threw away your friend''s dead body! It''s something unsightly to have a dead body on Milord''s properties, especially when he will have a party soon!" explains one of the knights


    Hearing that answer, Valeria immediately shouts,


    "You can''t do that to the deceased body!"


    "Why are you shouting? Haven''t I already told you that it will become an unsightly view for this mansion?" answer one of the knights as the knight walk to Valeria


    "At least let us see his body first, so we could take him back to Mistratel family," said Frida as she looks at Reginald


    "Huh? That will take too long as we find his body at dawn. We need to make sure nothing is unsightly in this area!" answer the other knights


    "Then, let us see their combat place," said Romain


    "Why do you need that for?" asked Reginald


    "So we could make a good countermeasure against the killer and maybe we could find any lead for the killer," answer Markos


    "Unfortunately, we can''t grant you that wish. And you don''t need to worry as we already assign the guard to check the place and find any lead to the killer," answer another knight


    "Then, why did you even hire us to begin with?" asked Valeria


    The tension between the adventurer group and Reginald becomes tenser.


    Meanwhile, Helena notices several blunders from Reginald''s action and peeks at Volya. Volya notices Helena''s sign, becomes a little bit tense, and he feels someone nudge him a bit. He could see that Gracia is a bit worried about what Volya will do next. Volya smile and says,


    "Don''t worry... Everything will be fine."


    When the situation is almost out of control, Helena raises her hand and her action gets everyone''s attention. Volya then walk to Helena, bows at Reginald, and says,


    "Lord Lawrence..."


    "What is it, young adventurer?"


    "According to the contract signed by you, if one of our team members died in the middle of the mission then we could check their body and takes them back for proper burial," continues Volya


    "Huh? Is there even a clause for that?!" asked one of the knights


    "Yes. You could find it on part 3 of the contract number 2, regarding team member that died when taking a high-level mission with a high chance of death, especially when protecting people as honourable as you," continues Volya as he reads the mission contract


    "You must be kidding me..."


    "On the next number, it mentions that we have our rights to investigate the scene of our deceased members. So, we could find any clue and make sure the safety of our client," continues Volya


    "You..."


    "Then on part 3 number 4, it''s mentioned that you need to pay the burial cost for the deceased member."


    "Are you going to blackmail us with that? I believe something like that never exists in the contract!" said one of the knights


    Volya then smiles and flicks off the contract to them. He then says,


    "Since the first incident, the clause has already been activated. But because you let us send back the body of our friend, we didn''t chase you with this clause. Unfortunately this time it''s different. Because of your group''s reluctance to cooperate with us, we will remind you of this contract."


    "Let me see the contract! And you, take my contract into my chamber!" shouts Reginald


    One of the knights walks to Volya and forcefully takes the contract copy from Volta''s hand, while one his maid runs to Reginald''s chamber. The knight gave the contract and Reginald checks the validity of the copy. He could see that no one tampers the copy.


    When the maid returned with the contract, Reginald read every line of the contract and his face became pale. The line that Volya just mentioned indeed stated on the contract.


    He gulped and mumbles,


    "Why is this line now?"


    "Huh?" said Helena that overheard that


    "Nothing... And if this is true... it will inflict financial loss on me... Maybe I must..."


    "I''m sorry, but it''s better if we continue with this contract. If you cut the contract short, you also need to pay more for it. You will lose more money in the end," interrupt Markos


    "Huh?"


    "You could find it on the contract. On the last page," said Volya


    Reginald notices that he already lost against the adventurers and because he didn''t want to make more trouble with them right now, he then sighs.


    He immediately throws the contract and says,


    "Alright... What do you want now?"


    "We have three wishes," answer Volya


    All of the people in the room were quite surprised to hear that answer from Volya. Even Helena and Markos are also surprised as they already speculate that Volya will only ask for two wishes.


    Reginald can''t hide his anger as it showed with his red face and asks Volya,


    "What do you want, young Adventurer? Or maybe any of you know what his wishes are?"


    "Alright... First, let us investigate the fighting scene and also Dominik''s body. We need all the information to protect you from this killer," answer Volya


    "You can''t do that as I..." replied one of the knights that interrupted by Reginald,


    "Not a problem... I will set an appointment with your group soon."


    The knights are quite surprised after hearing Reginald''s answer. Volya then continues,


    "Then the second one, please let us walk freely in this town without the eye from your knights."


    "Ah... So that is your plan. You want to overthrow our lord, huh?!" shouts one of the knights


    "No... This mission is based on mutual trust between us and our client. With this kind of treatment, how could we trust each other?" asks Helena


    "Do you distrust all of us?" asks Markos subsequently


    "Yes... We..." said the knight before Reginald says,


    "I assign them to protect and assist all of you."


    "Then why did your knight regiment didn''t help Dominik when he is attacked? If he is fighting in this area, isn''t the knight that assigned to him also help him in the fight?" asks Volya


    "What do you mean..."


    "If the fight is fierce, then your knight will notice the fight and help him. But, I could see the knight that is assigned to him before standing here with shining armour. We could see that they aren''t assigned to protect all of us at all," replied Markos


    Reginald can''t hide his anger as the adventurer starts to humiliate him more. And he can''t execute them as it will raise more suspicion on him from the adventurer guild.


    So, he said,


    "Alright... I accept your condition!"


    "Thank you very much, Kind Sir," said Volya as he bows


    "Then what is the last one?"


    Volya smiles at Reginald, points at the maid corps, and then says,


    "Could you give them a proper meal? They already work quite hard for you, so isn''t it better if you give them one?"


    "Eh?" said one of the maid


    "If you treat them well, I believe they could serve you better in this mansion," continues Volya as he smiles at the maid


    Reginald look at the maid and then says,


    "Alright... I will give them a proper meal."


    "Thank you," said Volya


    The tension in the room becomes tenser, especially between the knights and the adventurer group. Reginald looks around him and then shouts,


    "Leave this room at this moment! I don''t want to see any of you right now!"


    "As you wish, milord!" said Markos as he leads the adventurers'' group to bow at Markos


    They then leave the room and let the knight close the door behind them. After they walk a bit far from the room, Volya starts to shake and fall on his knee. All of them could see his tense face. He then says,


    "That experience... Stressful for me. If it takes a bit longer, I definitely will fall to the ground like this ahahahaha..."


    "Eh? You could feel that?!" said Anna that surprised after seeing Volya action in the last week


    "Yes..." said Volya as Romain helps him to stand up


    Markos suddenly chuckles and pats Volya''s back. He then says,


    "At least you are brave enough to say it."


    "Why did you choose me to say that? You are more senior than me, Markos!" protest Volya


    "Well... As I said, you have potential. And this incident shows me that you indeed will have a bright future in Adventuring live,"


    "Or... Will end miserable soon enough," jokes Volya


    "Oh come on! Don''t feel down like that! At least we become more independent as he will take away his knight to check on us right now..." said Helena as she pats Volya''s back


    "You are right..."


    All of them then laugh together after seeing Volya''s face right now. Their laughs end with Frida asks all of them,


    "Then what should we do now?"


    "Hmmm... At least I know we can''t check the scene today," answer Miklos


    "Then... The usual stuff, maybe?" asked Anna as she looks at Volya


    The other adventurers look at Volya and he notices it. He immediately says,


    "Wait! You want me to assign the task to all of you?! Isn''t Markos already giving the task for all of you?"


    "Well, with one of the member is died, we need to tweak the plan a bit," answer Markos


    "And we know that from Markos that you help him to assign the team for the last three days," continues Alfred


    "Urgh..."


    "Just do what they want, Volya. Isn''t it good that they trust you now?" said Romain as he laughs a bit


    Volya sighs at them and then looks around them. He then says,


    "If you are really alright to ask me to assign all you, then..."


    Volya takes his time to think for a moment until he said,


    "Markos, we will do with our original plan for today. Minus Dominik."


    "I also thinking that is our best action now," answer Dominik


    "And Helena, I think we should do our errand tomorrow after Reginald''s knight didn''t follow us anymore," said Volya


    "I agree with that..."


    "Oh, you have errands at Lerwick?" asked Frida


    "Yes, we have one," answered Helena


    "And because of that, tomorrow Helena, Gracia, Romain, and I will not join your mission for a while. Maybe until the noon," continue Volya


    "It''s not a big problem for us," said Valeria


    "And we will need Markos help for tomorrow, too," said Romain


    "Huh? You need me?" asked Markos


    "Yes, because you know this town better than us," said Helena as she points to the outside


    "Then, who will lead this group while the three main leaders are gone?" asked Anna


    "Ummm... I think uncle Alfred could lead all of you for a while," said Gracia


    "Oho... You choose me to lead the other, Gracia?" asked Alfred


    "Yes."


    "So be it! I will lead this group tomorrow if there is no objection from the other," said Alfred as he laughs


    None of the adventurer objects and Volya reconfirms again about their plan for today. After all of them confirm it, they continue their day as planned.


    Meanwhile, at the dining hall, the knights under Reginald are gathering around him and asking him about the permission given by Reginald. Until one of them said,


    "Let me execute them! Like what we do to their friends!"


    "And then cause more ruckus at the Adventurer Guild? No! We will not get any food because of that," answered Reginald


    "But..."


    "We need them... To wake him up..."


    "..."


    "And we can''t taint our hand with blood anymore. Three people in their group is a sly fox."


    "Then... What should we do?"


    "Call that woman..."


    "Eh? Are you sure?"


    "After all..."


    Reginald then whispers at all of the knights and end it with,


    "Do you understand?"


    "Understood!"


    "Then leave this room..."


    "Sir, yes Sir!"


    After they leave, Reginald rests on his seat and said,


    "Lord Gyallos... This will become a big problem..."


    "Are you sure about that?" asked a sound from his back


    "Yes... Tell Lord Gyallos, I could take care of this roadblock."


    "Sure~"


    Reginald then slams his hand on the table and shouts to the empty room. For the first time in his life, someone wins against him. And humiliate him.


    And he will never forget about it. Never.

 45 Unexpected Encounter

    The next day, Volya, Romain, Gracia, and Helena already gathered at the main plaza near the fountain. All of them are wearing a lighter outfit as they already mentioned Alfred that they will take some time today. Romain and Gracia are talking about the citizen and they seem to disagree with the sweets that they just bought, Helena is looking at the sky and takes a deep breath to smell the fresh air, and Volya is waiting for someone as he looks around the plaza.


    At last, Volya notices Markos is running to them. He stops in front Helena and says,


    "I''m sorry, Valeria has a little note for me."


    "That''s alright, we just arrived at this fountain though," answer Helena


    "Still..."


    "If Sister Helena said that, it''s fine Uncle Markos," said Gracia as she smiles at Markos


    "Alright, if you said so..."


    Markos then looks at Volya, who is a bit vigilant around them. Markos then smile and says,


    "You don''t need to worry. The knight that following me is no more,"


    "So, we could conclude that he keep his promise," said Volya as he smirks a bit


    "Which is good," said Helena


    Markos then laughs and then asks them where they want to go today. Helena answered,


    "I want to go to Sylvaria District because I want to meet with my old pal. She said that she also has a surprise for me there."


    "Sylvaria District of Lerwick... Oh, that one is on the east side of this city," answer Markos


    "The east side, huh..."


    "If possible, could I know the name of the resident? If she is ex-adventurer, maybe I know the exact home of her," said Markos


    Helena looks at Markos and then smiles at him. She then mentions Alexandra Higginbottom, one adventurer that already retired after her marriage. Hearing her name, Markos smile and says,


    "I know the way... So, let''s go."


    "Nothing less to expect from the Best Adventurer of Ostonorid," praised Helena


    "Compared to your feats in the adventuring world, I''m nothing to you, Helena," replied Markos as both of them laughs together


    Markos then leads the way to their destination. Markos explains a bit about Lerwick as he doesn''t have the time to show the city to the four of them. And one thing that he likes to explain is the two towers on the east and west side of the city. The tower at the west main attraction is the clearer view of the mountain area, while the tower at the east could see the river area.


    As Markos explains it, Gracia seems to listen keenly to his explanation. Until they arrived at a house made from brick. Helena then says,


    "I will enter the house alone. All of you could wait outside as Alexandra asked me to enter the house alone."


    "Sure, we will wait outside. But, if there is something suspicious just give us a signal," said Romain


    "Oh come on, Romain. No way Helena''s friend will do that, right?" said Volya as he chuckles a bit


    "Well... It''s better to prepare for anything, right?"


    Both of them then laughed and let Helena enter the house. As they are waiting outside, Gracia and Romain continue their debate about sweets. Markos asks Volya what happened with them, and he gives him a simple explanation about what happened this morning.


    Markos then looks at Volya and asked him,


    "Volya, do you remember what he said yesterday?"


    "About the clause?" asked Volya


    "Yes... Isn''t it strange for him to say that?" replied Markos


    "Maybe the clause just added after a lot of adventurers didn''t come back after taking a mission to protect him?" said Romain that overheard Volya and Markos conversation


    "That''s one plausible reason, right?" asked Gracia


    "You are right, Romain, Gracia... That means there should be a record about the previous adventurer that taken this mission," said Markos


    "Could you take some of the data about it, Markos?" asked Volya


    "Of course I could, I will give the information to you after I get that,"


    "Thank you. After that, I will process the data..."


    "And we will have a meeting at late night again to talk about it," said Markos that suddenly notices a surprised face from Gracia


    Gracia then walks to Volya a bit with wide-open eyes and asked,


    "Volya... Did you do all-nighter again?"


    "Err... Only... Once..." answer Volya


    "Is it? Because Uncle Markos said as if you already have done it several times,"


    "Err..."


    "Maybe... I will tell Sister Helena about it... Or maybe Sister Lucia after we arrived home," said Gracia as she smiles at Volya


    "Please spare me, Gracia!" said panicked Volya as he pleads to Gracia.


    Gracia and Romain look at Volya and they laugh together. Even Markos also laughs at him. He then says,


    "You are indeed like a different girl, Gracia..."


    "Eh? What do you mean, Uncle Markos?" asked Gracia that is surprised


    "You are... The Smiling Angel of Death, right?"


    Gracia is taken aback as she meets someone who knows her past. Markos smiles at her, pats her head, and says,


    "I indeed fought you once in the past and even you spared me back then..."


    "I..."


    "Even though your crime indeed intolerable, but I already know that The Smiling Angel of Death already died a long time ago,"


    "Eh?"


    "And the one in front of me is Gracia Ravelli, a new girl that lives anew."


    "..."


    "Seeing you as a pure girl reminds me of my daughter. And hopefully, your past will not drag you down and you will continue as a better girl."


    "I... will... become better... person..." said Gracia


    "Good girl. And I believe Romain and Volya here could help you. I believe you could become a legendary team in the future together."


    Romain and Volya remains silent after hearing that from Markos and lets him continues,


    "So, if any of you need help at Ostonorid... Just call me, I will try my best to help all of you as I know that all of you are a trustworthy person,"


    Volya, Romain, and Gracia looks at each other and then says together,


    "We will..."


    "Good to hear that hahaha hahaha... Seeing all of you indeed reminds me of my past though ahahahahaha."


    Not long after that, they could hear a little scream from Helena. A surprised scream. Markos suddenly on alert and says,


    "Did Helena..."


    "That scream... That is her scream..." said Volya as he prepares his staff


    "Did... Someone attacks Sister Helena?" said Gracia


    "Hopefully... Not..." said Romain


    All of them then gather and prepare themselves to open the door in front of them. But after several minutes to think about the plan, the door opened.


    A woman is smiling at someone inside and she notices Markos at the front. She immediately says,


    "Captain Markos? What are you doing here?"


    "Ah... Alexandra..."


    "Hmm? Perhaps you are Helena''s teammate in this mission?" said Alexandra


    "Yes. Did... something happen with Helena?"


    "Ah... Nothing bad... Just she meets with someone inside."


    "Is that so..."


    Not long after that, Helena walks to the front with a flustered face and a man with short black hair and green eyes. His skin is a bit pale, yet his face is full of expression. The moment Gracia, Volya, and Romain see the man, their skin becomes a bit pale and they start to look around. They know that he is Paulo Estrudiantes, the king himself.


    Markos looks at the man and feels like he has seen him somewhere. Alexandra then says,


    "I can''t believe someone like you could find a husband, Helena..."


    "Come on, Alexandra... Please stop it..." said Helena


    "Don''t be shy, Helena. To be honest, your story indeed interesting," jokes Paulo


    "Oh yeah, isn''t all of you need to meet with him? Isn''t it bad for all of you to make him wait?" asked Alexandra


    "Ah yes, you are right. Pardon our intrusion," answer Paulo


    Paulo then looks at the other four and notices the gaze from Volya, Romain, and Gracia. He then winks to tell them that he will explain it later. Meanwhile, Markos then asks Helena that finished chatting with Alexandra,


    "So... Your husband will join us?"


    "Yes... To our next destination," answer Helena with a red face


    "Then, where are we going now?" asked Markos


    "To Lord Gill''s mansion."


    Hearing the name, Markos was quite surprised. He wanted to ask another question, but seeing Paulo asks them to walk now, he chooses to remain silent for this time. He also observes Paulo a bit and tries to remember where he had seen him before.


    Markos shakes his head and then leads them to Gill''s Mansion. Volya could see Markos'' surprised face and asked him,


    "Do you know about the owner of the mansion?"


    "Ah... Yes. Because the owner is a well-known person in this empire," answer Markos


    "Who is it?"


    "The owner of the mansion is Thomas Gill, one of the Royal Mage from Ostonorid,"


    Markos then explained about the Royal Mage to Gracia, Volya, and Romain that seems intrigued with the history. While Markos explained it to them, Helena walks to Paulo and asks,


    "Honey... Why are you here? Did Mikhail know about it?"


    "Yes, he knows. Rather, I choose to go here after we got a piece of information from Sir Thomas," answer Paulo


    "Eh? A piece of information?"


    "Yes, it''s also a request from Sir Theofilo itself," continues Paulo


    "Huh? But, why must you be the one that comes here?"


    "And why do you force yourself to send that letter?" teased Paulo


    "About that..."


    "Just kidding," said Paulo as he grabs Helena''s hand and kisses it


    "You are really..."


    "And for your question... It''s because Sir Theofilo wants to meet with me at Sir Thomas'' house,"


    "Eh?"


    "He predicts something fishy at this city and needs to prepare a retaliation if his prediction is right," explains Paulo


    "A prediction?"


    "Yes... And if his prediction right, it will cause a problem not only for Ostonorid but also for Haegia,"


    "If you said so..."


    Paulo smiles at Helena and then looks at the other three members from Haegia. He then says,


    "And for the three of them... They are looks lively,"


    "Yes, they are. They always like that every day," replied Helena as she smiles


    "These young'' un will lead our kingdom in the future. And seeing how they are energetic, together with the one at Haegia, I could see our Kingdom could reach another Golden Age ahahahahaha,"


    "I agree with you, it will happen,"


    "Oh yeah, Mikhail is thinking about something..."


    Paulo then whispers something to Helena and that makes her surprised. He then says,


    "Don''t tell anyone about it, ok?"


    "Sure, because I believe it will be an exciting future for Haegia," replied Helena


    Both of them laugh together and notice the other four are looking at them. They then explained that they are talking about something from their hometown, and Markos let it slide. Except for Volya and Romain, as they gaze at them.


    Thirty minutes later, they arrived at a garden with a white mansion at the end of the garden. The garden is full of white lilies around them. Markos then says,


    "This is Sir Thomas Gill''s Mansion. As you can see, it looks empty as... Ah... Hey! Where are you going?!"


    Paulo and Helena ignore Markos'' question and walk together to the middle of the garden. The other four look at each other and follow them. As they walk to Paulo and Helena, Markos asks Romain,


    "What with them? And why do I feel like I know Helena''s husband? Maybe you know him?"


    "My answer is..." said Romain


    "You will know it shortly," continues Volya as he smiles


    Gracia smiles and nods at Markos. Markos can''t believe what he heard, but because everyone already walks, he follows them. And that moment he could hear a voice that will surprise him for the rest of his day.

 46 Reques

    As the six of them walking through the fountain, they could hear an old man voice around them,


    "Welcome, the King and Queen of Haegia..."


    Hearing that voice, Markos looks around and then looks at Paulo and Helena for a moment. He then looks at Romain and asks as he points at Paulo and Helena,


    "Wait... King and Queen of Haegia... Don''t say it was them?"


    "You will know it soon, right?" jokes Romain as Markos still show his disbelief.


    The old man voice then continues,


    "Sir Paulo Estrudiantes and Lady Helena Estrudiantes, welcome to my mansion. Please enter my home from the opened door. And then..."


    The voice paused for a moment and says,


    "Volya Portar, Romain Ambros, Gracia Ravelli, and Markos Luis... Please come on in, too..."


    Paulo and Helena immediately walk to the door. They are followed by the other four. While walking passed the door, Volya could see that Markos started to sweat after he knew the truth about Helena and Paulo. Even before he could say something, all of them are amazed at the room that they are entering now.


    In the middle of the room, an old man around 50 years old with blonde hair is sitting on the chair. He is wearing a white shirt with brown pants and wearing a monocle. Seeing the visitor already gathered in his room, he started to stand up, bows at them, and says,


    "Welcome, King and Queen of Haegia at my humble house. And for you too, young adventurer. My name is Thomas Gill, one of the Royal Mage from Ostonorid."


    "The honour is mine, Sir Gill," answered Paulo as he bows at him


    The other members are following Paulo and bow in front of Thomas together. After that, Thomas says,


    "Please follow me, Sir and Lady Estrudiantes. Sir Brigandy and Our Gracious Lord King Anderson are waiting for you on the second floor,"


    Hearing that, Markos'' skin starts to become pale. Even though he has already become an adventurer for many years, this is the first time in his life to see and hear two kings from different kingdoms gathered and have a talk.


    When Thomas is talking to Paulo and Helena, Markos looks quite scared with the situation, while Romain and Volya look quite normal for such a situation. Rather they are focused on the surrounding to make sure that nothing will cause harm for their King and Queen.


    And at that moment, Volya could see that Gracia was looking at the bookshelf near them. He could see that most of the book is about low until mid-tier magic that is usually used by many mages. And Gracia looks intrigued to see one of them.


    When Gracia starts to move, Volya, who stands right beside her, nudges her and gives her a signal.


    ''Please calm down for a moment... I know the book is interesting, but we need to show our manner first.''


    Gracia looks at Volya and nods at him. She then looks at Thomas and sometimes at the bookshelf.


    Thomas didn''t miss that action and started to smile at Volya and Gracia. He then says,


    "I will lead the King and Queen to the room above. The four of you could stay in this room for a moment."


    He then peeks at Volya and Gracia and says,


    "And if you want to, you could read the book from the bookshelf, young lady."


    Gracia is quite surprised and she starts to blush from embarrassment. Thomas laughs a bit and then starts to lead Paulo and Helena to the second floor.


    Volya then says,


    "At least he already gives us permission to read,"


    "Yes..." said Gracia as she nods weakly with a blushed face


    Volya laughs a bit at Gracia and then he feels someone is dragging him. He then feels someone is embracing him around his neck. He then looks beside him and could see Romain also got the same fate. The one who embraces them is Markos.


    Markos takes a deep breath and says,


    "So... For the last one week... I am talking casually with a queen... A queen from another kingdom."


    "Yes," answer Romain


    "And all of you already hide that fact?" asked Markos


    "Yes, we are..." answer Volya


    "As Helena''s order to all of us," continues Romain


    "And I called her casually as if nothing matters..." said Markos


    "Well... If we called her ''Your Highness'', she definitely will kick our ass," jokes Volya


    "And... The reason she is missing for several years because... She is already married to the King of Haegia..."


    "About that... ask Romain..." said Volya as he pointed at Romain


    "Sure... Maybe I could answer that question," replied Romain


    Both Volya and Romain laugh together until they feel the grip become stronger. They peek a bit at Markos and they could see a scared face. He then says while trembling with fear,


    "What if... The King doesn''t like it? What if they will be punished for every word that I said..."


    Romain and Volya look at each other and then pat Markos'' hand. Markos suddenly feels someone tugs his cloth and sees Gracia is smiling at him. Gracia then says,


    "Don''t worry... Big Sister Helena will not punish you nor Big Brother Paulo,"


    "Are you sure about that?" said Markos


    "Yes," said Gracia as she smiles widely


    Markos starts to sob and then says,


    "Please stay pure like this, Gracia..."


    "Ah... Eh... Okay?" said Gracia as she shows a puzzled face


    Both Volya and Romain start to laugh again and this time Markos is a bit mad at them. Romain then proceeds to explain a brief history that he knows about Paulo and Helena''s past, he even mentions Ludmila working as a knight at Haegia. Hearing that Markos was quite surprised and then asked him more questions.


    At that time, Volya smiles at them and notices Gracia is holding a book. She is looking at the book, then at Volya, and then at the book again. She then points at the book and says,


    "I can''t read it..."


    "Eh?"


    "I... Can''t read it... It''s really hard..."


    "Could I see it?"


    Gracia gave the book to Volya and they tried to read the book together. When Volya reads it, he also can''t read it. Volya looks at Gracia and starts to say,


    "I''m sorry... But, I can''t read it too..."


    "Is that so..." said Gracia as she also tried to read it


    "To begin with what is this alphabet?"


    "That alphabet is Thoran Language, the ancient language used by the early tribe that once lived at the south part of Therious Island," explained someone with a soft voice


    Both of them were quite surprised and they could see Thomas standing behind them. He smiles gently at them and then continues,


    "It''s rare to see two young mages that aren''t affiliated with any big magus family, yet they still show interest to pursue magic."


    Volya and Gracia look at each other and then they hear Thomas remember something. He then snaps his finger and Volya could see a glimpse of a magic circle on Thomas'' finger. Thomas was quite surprised when Volya was startled and looking at his hand, but his surprise changed to a smile.


    Not long after that, four cups flew in front of the four guests in the room. Thomas then bow at them and says,


    "Let me introduce both of you myself, my name is Thomas Gill, the leader of Gill Family and member of the Royal Mage."


    Hearing that Volya and Gracia bow at him and they introduce themselves one by one,


    "My name is Volya Portar, a mage from Haegia and an adventurer. It''s an honour to meet you, Sir Thomas."


    "My... My name is Gracia Ravelli, a mage from Haegia... and an adventurer... It''s an honour to meet you!"


    Thomas smiles at them and then looks at Volya. At the same time, Romain and Markos looking at their direction and Romain start to ask Markos,


    "Will it be fine for them..."


    "Maybe..."


    "Then, we only need to watch, right?"


    "Yes..."


    Thomas overheard their conversation and smiled at them. Romain and Markos immediately notice the sign and look surprised with that. But, they comply with Thomas'' request where he wants to have a little chat with Volya and Gracia alone.


    Thomas then looks again at Volya and says,


    "Portar... That''s a name that I haven''t heard for a long time."


    "Eh?"


    "And I know that he only has one child back then, a child with silver hair and a stiff face. Just like the child mother."


    "..."


    "Yet, I never know that he had another child. Maybe you are a different Portar family than I know."


    "..."


    "Could you kindly tell me who your father is?"


    Volya looks at Thomas and then answered,


    "I never remember about my father as he is the one that sold me to become a slave with my sister,"


    "Oh... A different..." said Thomas that is interrupted by Volya


    "But, I could tell about my foster father name Damien Portar and also my foster brother Dimitru Portar,"


    "Foster father? Ah... So, he adopts you."


    "Yes, he is."


    "Is it because he bought you as a slave in the past?"


    Thomas looks at Volya''s hand and Volya only smiles. He then says,


    "I believe it''s really rude to ask such a question, Sir Thomas."


    "Ohohoho... I''m sorry, young man. It''s just the old habit of mine," answered Thomas, smiling and bowing a bit at Volya.


    "But because you ask me and apologize, I will let it slide. After all, when I see you, I know that you are a wise and kind man,"


    "You flutter me a bit, young man."


    Volya then lifts his right arms and shows the mark of a slave. He then continues,


    "Rather than bought me, he brings me freedom. He releases me from the shackles that bind me and save everyone at that time,"


    "Hoo... Let me guess, he attacks the slave camp?" asks Thomas


    "Yes, he is,"


    "It''s indeed something that I could expect from him. From one of the greatest mages that is well-known in reusing the residual mana of the world and use it for himself. The person that is loved by the world."


    Volya looks in awe after hearing the praise to his late foster father from Thomas'' mouth. Thomas then stops for a moment and then asks Volya,


    "Then, could you tell me... What happens to him? Is he still alive?"


    "Unfortunately, someone murders him..." answer Volya


    "My... That''s too bad..." replied Thomas with a dejected face


    Volya shakes his head and then says,


    "Please don''t show that face... My father always said that he was already happy with his life and enjoys everything about it. He always said to smile when remembering him,"


    "Indeed... Something that he will say in his deathbed" replied Thomas


    Thomas then asks a bit about what Damien Portar has done after meeting with Volya, and Volya happily tells everything about him. After he finishes telling his story, Thomas nods and then looks at Gracia.


    Thomas then walks at her and smiles a bit. He then continues,


    "The old you already died, and you reborn as a new person..."


    "Eh?"


    "The Smiling Angel of Death..."


    The other three looked surprised and startled after hearing that question. Even Gracia''s skin becomes a bit pale. She then asks Thomas,


    "How you could... know..."


    "Sir Damien once taught me how to differentiate between each residual mana in the world. From there, I could see the original owner of the mana..."


    "..."


    "And the residual mana that emits from The Smiling Angel of Death is identical with you,"


    "What if..."


    "What if there is someone who has the same residual mana type as yours? Unfortunately, that will never happen. Just think that the residual mana is like your fingerprint. No one has the same fingerprint,"


    "..."


    Thomas then looks at Volya and says,


    "And I believe you know about it, and before she takes his job as an adventurer, you put it into your consideration,"


    "You are... almost right..." answer Volya


    "Unfortunately, the mage that could read the residual mana is indeed rare..."


    "Eh?"


    "So, you could say that she is safe for now. As far I know, she is a new person now..."


    Thomas then walks to Gracia and pats her head. He smiles at Gracia and then asks her,


    "Then... You must be the daughter of Theresa Ravelli, am I right?"


    "Eh? You know... Mother''s name?" answer Gracia with a surprised face


    "Of course, she is well-known as the mage that is chasing for the magic artefact..."


    Gracia looks at Thomas and then asks him about her mother a bit. Thomas smiles at her and then he nods. He then tells her that her mother is someone who loves to talk about the magic artefact until she met Gracia''s father. Everything is fine for her until her husband died and her mind becomes a bit twisted.


    Volya, Romain, and Markos could hear the sadness from Thomas'' voice and they tried to act calmly. That''s when Thomas continues that at least he knows that she does it for love. In the end, he asks her,


    "Then, what happens with your mother?"


    "She is killed..." answer Gracia immediately


    Thomas was a bit surprised after hearing that answer and he also surprised to see Gracia''s wrath shown on her eyes. Before Thomas could say anything, Volya suddenly closes Gracia''s eye from the back and says,


    "Come on... Don''t show such a face..."


    The surprised Gracia immediately move her head to hit Volya and says,


    "Mooo... Volya... Don''t do it..."


    "Ahahahahaha... Now it''s better..."


    Gracia immediately pouts at Volya, while Thomas was quite surprised to see that. But he immediately laughs a bit.


    Both Volya and Gracia are a bit surprised to see that until Thomas said,


    "It seems you are the catalyst to stop her, huh?"


    Both Volya and Gracia look at each other and they smile at each other after hearing that. They nod at Thomas with Thomas continues,


    "I''m terribly sorry for the rude question to both of you."


    "Ah... That''s alright. We know that you will not do any harm for us... Rather only curious about us..." answer Volya


    Thomas chuckles a bit at Volya, and then his face changes to a serious one. His tone also has changed when he asks his last question,


    "Then... What about both of you becomes my pupil and joins our kingdom at Ostonorid?"

 47 Plan

    After hearing Thomas'' question to them, both Romain and Markos were quite surprised to hear that. And this time, Markos looks more interested in the conversation.


    He still remembers that Volya rejected him in the past. He thinks that because he is only a mere adventurer. But this time is different, as the one who asks him is one of the Royal Mage of Ostonorid, Thomas Gill.


    Volya and Gracia look at each other and then bow together to Thomas. Volya then says,


    "We are terribly sorry, but we can''t accept your request..."


    "Oh... Could you tell me your reason, Volya?" asked Thomas.


    Volya then looks at Thomas, smiles at him, and says,


    "Even though your request intrigued us, we can''t leave our new home..."


    "Your new home..."


    "Yes. We are now a proud Haegian, and we will never betray them," said Volya full of confidence


    Thomas then nods at him and laughs. He then says,


    "What a shame as I know both of you have a great potential to become a better mage,"


    Thomas then sighs and then continues,


    "But maybe I could still teach you... You don''t need to become part of Ostonorid but still, become my pupils. I believe these offers didn''t break your allegiance with Haegia."


    Volya and Gracia look at each other and they look like they are considering Thomas'' offer.


    Romain who watches them immediately walks to them and embraces them from the back. He then says,


    "Why did both of you hesitate? Isn''t this the best choice for both of you to help our Kingdom further?"


    "But..."


    "Are you worried about something? Is it about whether someone in our kingdom will permit you?" asked Romain


    "Yes..."


    Romain smiles and then says,


    "Well, as a member of the Ambros family, I could give the permit for both of you."


    Both Volya and Gracia are quite surprised to hear that and they start to argue with Romain.


    Thomas smiles at them and then touches his chin. He then says,


    "What a lively group..."


    "Eh?" said Markos


    "When I see this, it feels like our Kingdom is right behind Haegia... The young person in Haegia is lively and their King and Queen always helping their people..."


    "..."


    "But, we can''t compare them... Ostonorid is different from Haegia. They have their own culture, so do we."


    Thomas then smiles at them and continues,


    "I hope... We could ally with them to throttle our kingdom further."


    "I hope so," replied Markos, smiling at the other three that are arguing.


    Not long after that, Paulo and Helena just finished their meeting with a man with short blonde hair and a dark brown eye. He is wearing a civilian outfit, but he emits his royalty. That man is Theofilo Anderson, the king of Ostonorid.


    When the three of them look at Volya, Gracia, and Romain that are arguing, Paulo immediately bows because his people make a ruckus while Helena immediately stops them. Helena then says,


    "Come on three of you... This isn''t Haegia... And don''t make a ruckus in front of the King of Ostonorid..."


    Hearing that the three of them stop arguing and start to bow at Theofilo. Theofilo only laughs and then says,


    "Your men are indeed lively, Paulo."


    "I''m sorry about that," replied Paulo


    "You don''t need to worry about that. It''s better to have lively young people like this."


    "I believe your young man also as lively as them, Theofilo," said Paulo


    Theofilo then looks around him and then asks the person behind him,


    "Is it alright to ask them about the mission, Andrei?"


    "Yes, it''s alright... If the Queen of Haegia praises them, we could believe them..." answer the man


    Volya, Gracia, Romain, and Markos heard that and became a bit surprised. The man then walks to the front and then says,


    "My name is Andrei Brigandy, one of the Royal Mage from Ostonorid. And with this, I need your help with one mission..."


    Before Andrei could say anything, Volya already raised his hand. But, Helena interrupted Volya,


    "We already agree with King Theofilo about this, and let them explain what is the mission."


    "Eh? Then, what about our Adventurer mission?" asked Romain


    "Just heard their explanation first... And I''m sorry about them..." said Helena to Andrei


    Andrei nods and says,


    "I''m aware that some of you will not accept it at the spot because of your mission, but we need your help this time."


    Volya and Markos look at each other and Markos says,


    "We will hear the mission first and from there we will make our decision..."


    "Then, please tell us what is the mission," continues Volya


    Andrei looks at Theofilo and then he says,


    "Could you help us investigate Reginald for his treachery activity?"


    "Eh?" said the two of them


    "We have some informant that told us that he probably will start a rebellion under certain cult," continues Andrei


    Volya and Markos look at each other with Gracia and Romain only could gulp hearing that. Theofilo suddenly says,


    "We already heard everything from Queen Estrudiantes on how you work as a team, also that you are working under him now. That is the best opportunity to find more clue about this,"


    "And what you need to do is find it and help us to imprison him," continues Andrei


    Volya suddenly raises his hand again and before Helena interrupted him, he immediately asked,


    "What would happen if Reginald finds out about our activity?"


    "We will deny any ties between you and us," answers Andrei as he looks at Volya coldly


    Everyone in the room can''t hide their worry after hearing Andrei''s answer except Theofilo, Paulo, and Helena. Volya then looks at Andrei and answer,


    "If we manage to get the clue and manage to imprison him, what would we get?"


    "Just as I thought... What you after is the prize..." answer Andrei


    "My late father always said, it''s easier to mobilize a group if we could get their attention to the prize. The better the prize is, the easier to mobilize them..." replied Volya


    "Your late father, huh..."


    "Yes..."


    Andrei walks towards Volya and then raises his hand towards Volya''s face. Both of them look at each other with a stern face and Andrei prepares to cast magic, before Thomas start to interfere,


    "My, my... Andrei, I never know that you develop a hot-blooded character like this~"


    Andrei looks at Thomas that stops him and then smiles. He then continues,


    "I only want to see... What kind of person he is... Is he a real deal or only a jester,"


    "If he is a jester?" asked Thomas


    "I will obliterate him as he could make this plan fail..." replied Andrei


    Volya gulps a bit and at that time Andrei notices Volya''s hand is making a sign to stop. When he looks behind Volya, he could see Gracia and Romain is ready to take action depending on his action. Even he could see Volya''s other hand is preparing a magic circle.


    Andrei then smiles again and then continues,


    "And from this, I''m sure about one thing... You are not a jester,"


    "..."


    "Yet, you are really brave to say that in front of the King from another Kingdom together with the Head of Royal Mage from another Kingdom. Do you know that could be punishable by death?"


    "Yet... None of you showed an intention to punish me..." replied Volya


    Andrei is a bit surprised to hear that answer from Volya and starts to laugh. He then looks at Theofilo and says,


    "My King... He is an interesting person..."


    "I could see it from here... And I presume, he is the person that you are talking about, Paulo?" said Theofilo as he looks at Paulo


    "Indeed he is," answered Paulo


    "A once free man that isn''t restrained by any kingdom... Nothing less than I expected of him," replied Theofilo as he looks again at Volya with a smile.


    At the same time, Markos drags Volya a bit and says,


    "Volya... Please keep your manner in front of them!"


    "..."


    "Volya..."


    "Markos... Couldn''t you see that he is testing us now?" said Romain weakly at Markos


    "Huh?"


    "They want to see whether we are a trustworthy person or not... This is our chance to stop more adventurer death on Reginald''s hand..." said Volya to Markos


    "..."


    "And I believe... The cult is the one... that drives him to do everything..." continues Gracia


    "Is that so..."


    Andrei then looks at the four adventurers and then says,


    "I could say that all of you are trustworthy... Then what prize do you want?"


    Volya looks at Andrei and then gives a sign to Romain and Markos that he never thought it will work and they will ask about the prize. Romain only chuckles a bit, while Markos is a bit scared with that sign. Until Gracia walks to the front, bows at Andrei, and says,


    "If possible, could you grant any of us permission to enter the kingdom without any problem?"


    "A permit to enter our Kingdom?" said Andrei


    "Yes..."


    Andrei closes his eyes for a moment, and then he says,


    "I can''t give you that..."


    "Eh?"


    "Because... How could we give something that never exists..."


    Gracia looks surprised at Andrei, looks at Volya for a moment, and nods at each other. Before Andrei asks the same question, Volya then says,


    "Then, could you help us with money for each Adventurer?"


    "If that what you want, then so be it..." said Andrei


    "But, give more portions of the prize for Dominik''s family," continues Volya


    "Huh? Why is that?"


    Volya then explained the current situation that they are in. Theofilo and Andrei look at each other and then they agree with Volya''s request. After that Andrei summon a paper and says,


    "We will sign this pact... If you dare to betray us, I will know immediately. We will give you a capital punishment from Ostonorid as you help the traitor that wants to overthrow this kingdom!"


    "Sir, yes Sir!" replied Markos, Volya, Romain, and Gracia


    "And I only want you to sign this!" said Andrei as he points at Volya


    Everyone in the room is surprised by that, yet Volya didn''t falter. He then walks towards Andrei and says,


    "I accept it..."


    Andrei nods and lets Volya read the paper first. After that, he signs it and with that, the pact is sealed. Andrei then continues,


    "Don''t let us down..."


    "No, I will not let you down... Rather, I believe I could believe everything will be fine," replied Volya with a smile

 48 Rolling

    In Thomas'' mansion, most of the people there already left the mansion. Except for Theofilo, Andrei, and Thomas himself. Before the other left the mansion, they prepared the plan for Andrei''s mission for the adventurer group with help from Paulo.


    At the end of the plan formatting, most of the people agree and with that Paulo chooses to leave Ostonorid to go back to Haegia, leaving Helena''s safety to the adventurer''s group as he believes they could protect her.


    Right now, Thomas is sitting on one of the chairs and reading the letter given by Helena, while Theofilo and Andrei are discussing another matter.


    Andrei then looks at Thomas and then says,


    "That man..."


    "Did you mean Volya? He is indeed an interesting person," replied Thomas as he continues to read the letter


    "Heh... Even if you think something like that... Then, he is indeed genuine,"


    "Nothing less to expect from someone adopted by the Portar Family," said Thomas


    Andrei looks at Thomas with disbelief and then Thomas continues,


    "Even I''m surprised to hear that,"


    "... Is that the reason why you took interest in him?"


    "And also the last line of the Ravelli family... The girl with the green robe,"


    Andrei becomes more surprised to hear that. Thomas then explained to Andrei that both of them have become Haegia''s citizens and it will be hard to sway them to Ostonorid. He even tells him that he already asked them.


    Thomas then continues,


    "And I even ask them whether they want me to teach them or not..."


    "My... This is the first time I heard Sir Thomas Gill wants to put someone under his wing," said Andrei


    "Ahahahahaha... This is a good experience for me,"


    Both of them laughs and then Andrei says,


    "If both of them indeed study under you, I must make sure my child should be on the same level as them later,"


    "Did you mean Theodore?" asked Thomas


    "Yes... And I believe it will light up his desire to learn more about magic..."


    "Ah... because none of the mage around his age as bright as him, huh," said Thomas as he laughs a bit


    "Indeed,"


    Both of them then laughs together and then Theofilo walks at them and says,


    "I''m sorry to use your mansion as the base operation for this mission, Sir Thomas,"


    "That''s alright... The honour should be mine, My Lord..." replied Thomas as he bows at him


    "Then, I will leave everything on your hand. If there is a problem or almost near the conclusion of the mission, inform us," continues Theofilo


    And with that, Theofilo leaves the mansion using the back door. Andrei still stay with Thomas and asks him,


    "Then, why were they still hesitant about it?"


    "A man that once not shackles with any kingdom..." replied Thomas


    "Ah... Once they adopted by a kingdom, they will make sure that they will not taint their kingdom," said Andrei


    "That''s right,"


    "That''s too bad..."


    "But, this letter could assure them a bit,"


    "Huh? What do you mean?"


    Thomas then explained the content of the letter to Andrei and he nods at him. Andrei then says,


    "Then, I must make sure my son is intrigued with them..."


    "Ahahahahaha... Hopefully, they could rival your son," said Thomas


    "I have a sneaky feeling... That he will take the interest on them,"


    Both of them then laugh together and Andrei immediately leaves the mansion to his resident. Thomas then looks on the letter again and says,


    "Fate indeed something, my dear friend... Your last line and also your adopted son..."


    He then summons a small painting that consists of three-person. He looks on it and then mumbles,


    "It''s too bad we can''t meet again... But, don''t worry... I will take care of the two of them..."


    And with that, he prepares to write a response letter that will be sent back to Haegia.


    At the same time, at the corner of Lerwick. Reginald is walking with his knights towards one of the houses. He opened the door and couldn''t see the inside of the room.


    He walks slowly inside the room until he sees a candle lit. Near the candle, a girl is sitting in front of it.


    Before Reginald could say anything, the girl says,


    "What do you want?"


    "I have another task for you..." replied Reginald


    "Another task, huh..."


    The girl looks at Reginald and he could see an injury caused by burning on her face. She then says,


    "Who should I kill now?"


    "It''s her..."


    Reginald gives her a paper and she immediately reads it. When she reads the paper, she says,


    "Ah... So that''s the reason..."


    "Huh?"


    "Nothing... I will accept this mission..."


    "But for your information... The target isn''t her alone,"


    "Ara... So it''s more than one?"


    "Yes, but I will not let you kill all of them at once,"


    "Alright... I will follow you... Because of the contract that we sign..."


    Reginald smiles at her and then leaves her alone. The moment he leaves the room, the girl immediately throws a knife on the door and says,


    "That fat man didn''t know anything about you, huh..."


    She then laughs a bit and says,


    "Hopefully you could satisfy my bloodlust now... The Smiling Angel of Death... Ehehehehehe... Ahahahahahaha"

 49 Distrus

    Morning comes at Lerwick. Volya comes out from the inn with full determination. He takes a deep breath and starts to walk towards Reginald''s mansion.


    Today he walks there alone as Romain, Gracia, and Helena has a plan with other adventurers that morning. Besides that, he is also on alert to see whether Reginald already breaks his promise or not.


    He looks around swiftly and didn''t see anyone following him, and with that he says,


    "At least he still keeps his promise,"


    Volya then starts to walk through the plaza and have a little chat with some of the merchants. At least he knows that there is a battle between Wraitus with some bandits near Azalea again. Not only that, but he also heard a rumour about another Kingdom preparing a war conquest against a small tribe.


    He takes those pieces of information on his notes and then continues to walk. He then notices a group of villagers are gathering at the middle of the plaza and at the middle of it he sees a woman with long blonde hair is singing there with her guitar.


    Volya then mumbles,


    "Wait... When did I see her before?"


    But put that question aside and continued to walk to Reginald''s mansion. When he approaches the intersection, he notices a man walking towards the same destination as him.


    So, he runs towards him and shouts,


    "Hey! Markos!"


    Markos looks behind him and notices Volya is running towards him. He then stops until Volya in front of him and greets him,


    "Morning, Volya"


    "Morning, Markos" replied Volya


    "You looks more energetic than ever,"


    "Ahahahaha... We need that energy for today," said Volya


    Both of them laugh together and start to walk to Reginald''s mansion. When they are walking, Markos says,


    "Lord Reginald didn''t send his knight again..."


    "Which is good~," said Volya with a smile


    "Yet, I''m a bit suspicious about something,"


    "Is it about the report that he was gone in the afternoon yesterday?"


    Markos looks at Volya and nods at him. Volya then says,


    "It seems he is indeed planning on something..."


    "So, it''s not only us, huh..." replied Markos


    "Yup,"


    Markos looks at the front and he could see Reginald''s mansion at the end of the road. He then asks Volya,


    "Then, what will we do today?"


    "Hmmm... That''s a hard question..." answered Volya


    "Even you could hit the stumps, huh..."


    Volya only shrugs when he hears Markos'' comment on him. Markos then continues,


    "At least we still not get any clearance to check Dominik''s body and their fighting place,"


    "If that''s the case... We will do the usual one," replied Volya


    "Ah... Only patrolling and protecting him,"


    "Yes,"


    "Even if he gives a task that is out of any reason?"


    "Yes... We can''t do anything about it,"


    Markos only sighs at him and then heard Volya continues,


    "And I will ask the other to get any information subtly,"


    "Are you sure to not tell them about our plan?" asked Markos suddenly


    "It''s better we keep working as usual for a while and they know nothing for a while. And after that let Helena do the job of telling them everything,"


    Markos closes his eyes for a moment and then tries to remember what happened yesterday. Even though it already happened yesterday, he still feels the pressure from their meeting with the King of Ostonorid and King of Haegia.


    Volya looks at Markos for a moment and teases him,


    "Are you still afraid of what happened yesterday?"


    "Of course, I am!" said Markos


    "Ahahahahaha... Even I still feels it until now,"


    "Huh?"


    Markos looks at Volya with disbelief and then asks him,


    "All of your action back then is only an act?!"


    "No..."


    "Huh?"


    "It''s not an act... But when I remember my action again at night, I contemplate myself that time..."


    "Heee..."


    "I immediately notice that my action is indeed impolite. Even if I know one wrong move we will be annihilated there..."


    "..."


    "But, when I think about it again now... The thrill is something, hehe hehe..."


    "Haaaah... You are indeed a strange and interesting person, Volya."


    "Is it?"


    "But, please be careful when you are talking,"


    "I know... I will read the situation first and also read the eye and the face first..."


    "Huh?"


    Volya looks at Markos with a smile and says,


    "My father taught me how to read someone else by looking at their eyes and their facial expression. I even could know whether they tried to do something at us with a lie by observing their face,"


    "Wow... That''s a very nice skill to have," said Markos with an awe


    "Isn''t it? And that''s the main reason I know that he is testing us..."


    Markos smiles at Volya and thinks that this man will have a great future. With his current skill and possibly a new skill that he gained in his life as an adventurer, of course, Volya could become a legend.


    They continue to walk until they almost reach their destination. That''s when someone is bumping into Markos.


    Markos immediately shouts and looks at the direction of the person that bumping with him,


    "Hey! Where are you going?"


    Volya looks at the direction and he notices a small magic circle on Markos'' cloth. Before the magic circle is vanishing into thin air, he immediately reads the main component of the magic circle, the word around it and the residual mana from the magic circle.


    From there, his face becomes a bit sour. Markos that didn''t notice it, immediately says,


    "What with that guys..."


    "Markos..."


    "Huh? What is it?"


    "Let''s continue to walk..."


    "A... Alright..."


    Markos then starts to walk again. But, this time he notices Volya is making a sign at him. A sign to come closer at him and a sign that something is planted on him.


    Volya looks around and then walks a bit closer. Volya then creates a small white magic circle and then pushes his finger to Markos without anyone noticing.


    Markos looks at Volya and tries to ask him, but Volya gives him a sign to wait for a moment. Volya then checks himself and notices the same residual mana from the magic circle on Markos'' body.


    He creates the same magic circle and touches himself. After that, he says,


    "We are being followed..."


    "Huh? But I..."


    "I think it''s someone else... or something else..."


    "..."


    Volya then continues to walk and explains what he sees before. Markos looks at Volya and asks him,


    "Did you think that someone did the same to the other?"


    "I believe so," replied Volya as he noticed they are near the mansion


    As they arrived in front of the gate, Markos looks at the mansion and then says,


    "Just as I thought, this will never be a smooth sail for all of us,"

 50 Call

    Two days already passed without any hiccup. And in that time the five of them still not get any information regarding Reginald''s activity nor Dominik murder case. Even with the help of the small critters that live at Reginald''s mansion, it still leaves them empty-handed.


    Not only that, Volya and Markos feel that Reginald already prepared with this as he will order both of them with a lot of duties around the mansion. A mundane yet a lot of them.


    Even until this day, Reginald orders Romain, Markos, and Volya to get several escorts for him and his colleagues.


    It''s been thirty minutes walk from Reginald''s mansion. They arrive at the alley that leads to a well-known Brothel of Lerwick. They then start to wander to the alley and notice a stark disparity between it and the main road.


    Markos then apologize at them and says,


    "I''m really sorry about it,"


    "Why should you feel sorry? There''s nothing wrong here," replied Volya


    "But..."


    "There''s nothing you could do with the development of a city, Markos," said Romain


    "Still..."


    "I believe all of them stay here and work here because they need to survive in this city. There''s nothing with it," continues Romain


    "..."


    "And I know as you are a proud Ostonoridian, it''s something unsightly to show such places to people from outside of the Kingdom,"


    "You are right..." replied Markos


    "But, you don''t need to worry about us. Especially with this guy over here," said Romain as he points at Volya


    "And even there is a specific district for this service at Ironforge, ahahahahaha" said Volya suddenly.


    Both Romain and Volya start to laugh together and talk about Lucia. At the same time, Markos looks at them, smile, and mumbles,


    "These young''un is something... I need to keep up with pace if I don''t want to be left behind in this world,"


    After that Markos asks Volya,


    "Volya, did Reginald request for a specific escort from this district?"


    "Hmmm? Give me a moment..."


    Volya then takes out a note from his pouch and reads it. After that, he answers him,


    "He is asking for several escorts name,"


    "Several?!" said Romain with a surprised face


    "Hmmm... It seems he wants to appeal to someone while increasing his prestige," replied Markos as he rubs his chin


    "Prestige?" asks Volya


    "Yes. The lower class noble from Ostonorid usually will hold this type of party to show their wealth to other nobles. If the party is a success, it will raise their prestige at the eyes of other nobles," explained Markos


    Romain and Volya look at each other and then at Markos. Markos could see a disgusted face from them and says,


    "I hate it, too..."


    All of them then laugh together and then start to walk again. While walking to the brothel, Volya asks Markos,


    "If he wants to hold such a party, then he will invite other nobles. Do you know who he invites to his mansion?"


    "Hmmm... I believe he will invite two of his best buddy, Arran Williams and Trevor Jones," replied Markos


    "Are we going to check the two of them, too?" asks Romain


    Volya and Markos look at each other and they nod. And with that Volya notices their work becomes messier and harder than usual.


    Suddenly, Romain puts his hand on his sword handle. The other two stop and peek at Romain. Markos also prepares his hand on his sword handle, while Volya prepares his magic circle.


    Markos then asks him,


    "What is it?"


    "It feels like someone is following us..." replied Romain


    The three of them are on high alert until they make sure nothing around them. After that, Markos says,


    "I believe it''s just some random drunkard,"


    "Maybe..." replied Romain as he looked in one direction.


    "It''s better if we didn''t make any mess right now..." said Volya


    "You are right..." answered Romain again as he looked away from there.


    They then start to walk again until they arrive in front of a big building that looks distinct from its surrounding.


    That building is ''Silky Honey'', the biggest brothel at Ostonorid, and the one at Lerwick is their first store.


    Romain looks around and then notices some men already leaving the store with a satisfied face.


    And he immediately says with a flustered face,


    "Ummm... So..."


    "Well, what we need to do now is just enter the store, put in the request, and then back to the mansion. Easy~," said Volya as he starts to walk to the door


    "Eh... Wait... Volya!"


    Markos only laughs after seeing them and follows them to enter the store.


    As the three of them entered the store, they could see a lot of tables where a man is sitting together with their woman and waiting for their turn to use the available room.


    At one side of the store, they could see a girl doing a pole dance that attracts many customers.


    Romain looks around with a flustered face, and because of that Markos teases him a bit. Meanwhile, Volya is leaving them behind to the receptionist.


    On his way to the receptionist, a lot of escorts tried to seduce him. But, he declines all of it and continues to walk. Because of that, all of them change their target to Romain and Markos that are left behind.


    When Volya arrived in front of the receptionist, she asks Volya,


    "Good afternoon kind Sir. Are you going to relieve your desire in-house? Or are you going to bring them home?"


    "I''ll take some home... As I come here with an order from my hirer," replied Volya as he gives her the list of escort that he will take


    "Oh my... So, you are an Adventurer,"


    "Yes, I am,"


    "Then, who is the one that hires you?"


    "Reginald Lawrence,"


    The moment Volya mentions that name, he could see a sour face from the receptionist. After that, she calls another girl and mentions something. She then tells Volya to wait for a moment.


    Volya then sighs and hears Romain calls him,


    "What is it, Volya?"


    "Ah... It''s nothing..." said Volya as he looks behind and immediately falls silent.


    Volya sees several escorts gathering around Romain with a flustered face and Markos. He then laughs and says,


    "What would happen if I told Lucia about it?"


    "Ah... Please don''t tell her!" said Romain


    "Ahahahahaha... Don''t worry... I will DEFINITELY tell her," said Volya as he thumbs up at Romain


    "You little!"


    Markos only smiles at them and tells the escort to not bother right now. He then stops their fight and asks,


    "You know, I always hear one woman come out from all of your mouths, Lucia. Who is she? Is that your lover, Volya?"


    "Ah... No, she isn''t my lover. Rather she is Romain''s little sister," replied Volya


    "Hooo... Romain''s little sister, huh... Could you tell me more about her?" asks Markos


    "Hmmm... For a woman that still grows, she is quite a beauty with a breast that could fill a man hope,"


    "Is it?"


    "Yes... And also she is a good cook... And..."


    "Volya! Stop it!" said Romain as he hits him on the head,


    "Ahahahaha... I''m just joking. But, I could say that she is indeed a beauty," said Volya


    Markos looks at Volya and then says,


    "You know, I''m not sure that you are not her lover now..."


    "Ahahahahaha... The more I know him after living with him under one roof, the more I don''t want him as my brother-in-law," said Romain as he points at Volya


    "The feeling is mutual," said Volya


    Both of them start to mock each other and then laugh together. Markos then says jokingly,


    "So that''s the reason both of you really close. Don''t say that Gracia also stay with both of you,"


    "Yes," answer both of them together,


    "Wait... You are joking, right?" asked Markos with a concerned face


    "No... We are not joking," answered Volya


    Markos looks at them, facepalm himself, and says,


    "To live in one house with two lonely men like you... Poor her,"


    "Wait... Who did you mean by a lonely man?!" said Volya


    "Ahahahahaha... Your comment indeed identical with what my sister said," continues Romain with a smile


    "Eh?"


    Volya and Romain proceed to tell him about what happened when Gracia stayed at their home. After hearing that, Markos immediately burst with laugh until Volya called by the receptionist,


    "Ms Taylor called all of you. Please follow my friend here,"


    "Eh? Why?" asked Volya


    "Just follow her,"


    Volya, Markos, and Romain look at each other, and nod. Volya then says,


    "Let me discuss with my friend first,"


    "Sure,"


    Volya then gathered the other two and says,


    "Are we going to proceed to meet with this Ms Taylor or we will leave this store and make an excuse later on?"


    "Knowing his temperament, I will choose to meet with this Ms Taylor," said Markos


    "I also will choose to meet with Ms Taylor... I wonder why we need to meet her? And who is she?" said Romain


    "That''s my question, too..."


    Volya then looks at them and says,


    "Stay on alert..."


    They nod and then Volya replies to the receptionist that they will meet with Ms Taylor. After that, the receptionist asks one of her friends and she escorts the three of them to meet with Ms Taylor.