Inside the rattling wagon, a knight huddled in the corner, stealing nervous glances at me. His mouth twitched as if he wanted to ask where his companion had gone, but when I offered no explanation, he wisely remained silent.
I ignored his furtive looks and closed my eyes. The crouched position was uncomfortable at first, but manageable once I adjusted to the wagon’s rhythm.
Still, this coachman’s skills are absolutely dreadful.
I’d get better results using Lancelot as a driver. I clicked my tongue softly and hugged the Divine Archer’s bow closer to my chest.
I couldn’t fathom why they’d bothered bringing my weapon during a kidnapping operation. Perhaps their mental faculties operated on different principles than mine?
They probably planned to sell the bow along with whatever ransom they expected.
The payment must have been substantial.
I dismissed thoughts of these poorly-structured minds and focused on the wagon’s vibrations. The coachman began slowing our pace, and soon the rattling cargo wagon ground to a complete halt.
A massive canyon yawned before us, carved into the face of a precipitous cliff. Judging by the barren landscape, this was one of the roads leading toward the Demonic Realm.
“We’ve traveled quite far,” I murmured, surveying the desolate expanse where not even grass could take root.
Snow-free areas were uncommon in the North, but terrain this cracked and barren was rarer still. Proximity to the Demonic Realm likely caused such effects, though I hadn’t studied the ecological or geological impacts of demonic influence extensively enough to know for certain.
I accepted the phenomenon as fact and moved on.
“Er, excuse me... aren’t you getting out?” The knight in the corner spoke cautiously, clearly eager to escape being alone with me.
When I fixed him with a silent stare, he squeaked and clamped his mouth shut.
“I am.” The moment I spoke, I approached the knight, gripped his head firmly, and climbed out of the wagon with him in tow.
“Aaaaah!”
The cargo wagon rocked violently as we disembarked.
“It hurts! My lord!”
The knight continued his complaints until I glanced at him. He immediately fell silent.
Much better.
I led the now-quiet knight toward the driver’s seat, which sat empty. When I turned my head, the coachman was already fleeing across the wasteland in the distance.
“What’s your name?” I asked the knight.
He jumped at my question, trembling from head to toe. “M-me, sir?”
“Did you think I was asking for my own name?”
“It’s H-Haku, sir.”
“Haku. A fine name.” I nodded approvingly, while Haku regarded me with suspicious eyes, clearly trying to gauge my intentions. That look vanished instantly when I seized his hair.
“Aaaaaaaah!”
“Haku,” I said to the screaming knight, “from now on, you’ll answer my questions precisely.”
“Yes, yes!” Haku nodded vigorously, apparently forgetting I held his head as he shook it around, then cried out in renewed pain.
Is he actually an idiot?
I sighed lightly while studying Haku. However, his mental capacity wasn’t particularly relevant to my immediate needs, so I continued my questioning.
“Is that coachman fleeing over there originally on your side?”
“Huh? Aagh! Yes, yes! That rat is our knight order’s coachman, but when we promised he could become a knight after this job, he was happy to follow us!”
“I see.” I nodded and released the knight’s head. Then I lifted the Divine Archer’s bow, nocked an arrow, and drew the string taut.
Click—
The familiar sound filled my ears as I released the bowstring. An arrow containing no skills or aura sailed through the air.
Whooosh—
The projectile found its mark, embedding itself in the coachman’s neck. He collapsed and breathed his last.
I lowered the bow without emotion, as if I’d just hunted wild game. “That’s finished.”
The knight said nothing, perhaps grateful I’d released his head. I hadn’t expected praise from the fool anyway.
I secured my bow and seized the knight’s head again.
“Aagh!” he screamed, but I paid no attention as we began walking.
After some time, I spotted a group of knights standing guard in the distance. The sentries must have seen me approaching, as they showed signs of panic and ran inward—likely to fetch either the First Elder or Seventh Elder.
Sure enough, when they emerged again, the Seventh Elder accompanied them along with roughly twenty knights.
Quite the welcoming committee.
They seemed to hold me in surprisingly high regard, bringing so many knights for one capture operation.
Though it’s not the First Elder.
The Seventh Elder. A mediocrity who’d barely achieved mid-level Aura Expert. I couldn’t understand what gave such a person the audacity to challenge me directly.
Perhaps he didn’t believe the rumors.
Or maybe he thought twenty knights would suffice. I allowed myself a small smile as the answer became clear.
I approached the knights, but something seemed off about their formation. They hesitated as they looked at me, their faces pale and bodies tense, as if they’d discovered something terrifying.
I tilted my head, wondering at their reaction, then glanced down at my clothes.
Ah. Guess I’m a bit of a mess.
Blood spatter decorated my clothes here and there, with sticky fluids and bits of flesh clinging to various spots. Yet despite the stains, the fabric remained perfectly neat without a single wrinkle.
The stark contrast seemed to unnerve them.
I lost myself… It’s been so long.
I couldn’t remember the last time anger had consumed me enough to warrant torture. It hadn’t happened often, even before my regression. Perhaps during my wandering days.
I chuckled softly, feeling unexpectedly nostalgic for those times.
“...Mmph!” The knight in my grasp let out a groan he’d been suppressing.
I ignored him and slipped my hand inside my coat. The knights flinched again.
How pathetic.
I withdrew a cigarette from my inner pocket. The expressions of those who’d tensed, expecting a weapon, finally relaxed.
“Ah...”
“Damn it.”
The knights muttered among themselves, apparently embarrassed by their reaction.
I paid them no mind and placed the cigarette between my lips, then struck a match and lit it. Soon a red ember glowed at the tip like a firefly.
I inhaled deeply and exhaled grayish smoke.
Whoooo—
The knights tensed at my every movement. If they intended to react this way, I couldn’t understand why they’d attempted to kidnap me in the first place.
Idiots.
I maintained my expressionless demeanor and continued walking forward. Eventually, the distance between myself and the knights closed to within striking range.
“Stop.” One of the knights pointed his sword at me, though his hands trembled as he spoke.
If you’re going to threaten someone, at least don’t let your weapon shake.
These people clearly didn’t understand the fundamentals of intimidation.
I ignored his command and continued walking. One step. Two steps. With each step I took, the knights retreated.
“What the hell are you doing!” the Seventh Elder’s bellow finally snapped them to attention, and they gripped their weapons with renewed determination.
At that moment, I released my grip on the knight and continued smoking my cigarette.
“Take him,” I said, exhaling smoke.
The freed knight immediately scrambled on hands and knees toward the Seventh Elder, his expression clearly conveying I’m saved now.
I casually raised my bow toward the fleeing knight.
Whooooosh—! Thunk.
An arrow pierced his heart, and the corpse collapsed.
The entire sequence lasted less than five seconds.
The knights wore dazed expressions, unable to process that their comrade had died before their eyes.
“Ahh… Did you think I was going to spare him?” I sneered at the knights and dropped the shortened cigarette to the ground.
Hiss.
The ember died with a feeble sound.
The Seventh Elder, having witnessed this entire display, glared at me with blazing eyes. “You brat! How dare you kill a knight of a Ducal House! I spared you once, and still your arrogance knows no bounds!”
Arrogance... Could such words really come from his mouth?
I said nothing in response. Instead, I released a thick cloud of aura around me.
<Crushing Presence>
A terrifying, unseen force swept over the knights, tearing their formation apart in an instant. Like prisoners shackled by invisible chains, they couldn’t move their feet. Their trembling legs buckled, and they fell right where they stood.
Among them, only the Seventh Elder remained upright, staring at me with defiant eyes.
Only then did I address him directly. “You’re the one whose arrogance has gone too far, no? Kidnapping a direct descendant of House Berg and still expecting to live—that’s true arrogance. What could be more presumptuous?”
“How dare you spew such nonsense? You’re nothing but a brat with lucky blood!”
“Sounds like you had the wrong parents. Dear oh dear... I do offer my condolences.”
“You bastaaaaard!”
The Seventh Elder roared while unleashing Aura filled with rage. Ferocious energy rolled off him in waves—enough to make any other Expert-level knight soil themselves.
So he didn’t earn his Elder title through politics alone.
I nodded toward the Seventh Elder approvingly. “Good projection. With those vocal skills, becoming a court crier at the Imperial Palace wouldn’t be beneath you.”
Court crier at the Imperial Palace.
What an honorable position that would be—one that others coveted but couldn’t obtain.
Apparently not honorable enough for the Seventh Elder, judging by how he ground his teeth hard enough to crack them.
“How dare you utter such nonsense,” he snarled, his face turning red as if it might burst.
Yet he still didn’t attack me directly.
I continued speaking. “Why is this nonsense? Don’t you know best how precious talent truly is?”
“What?”
“You must understand how miserable it is to lack natural ability. Isn’t that right, twenty-year veteran Aura Expert?”
BOOM!
The Seventh Elder launched off the ground and charged at me.
“I’ll kill youuuuuu!”
<Heaven-Cleaving Sword>
A sword technique with a name that could only be described as absurdly grandiose came crashing down on me—a vertical slash that, for all its pomp, was little more than a brute-force swing, Aura blazing but utterly lacking in finesse.
I eyed the enraged Seventh Elder, allowing the corner of my mouth to curve upward.
Imagine falling for such simple provocation.
This was why manipulating individuals with inferiority complexes proved so effortless.
I raised my bow toward the descending sword and uttered quietly, “Buckshot.”
KABOOM!
Arrows exploded in front of the Seventh Elder like a deadly constellation.
“Guurgh—!”
The Seventh Elder’s body became riddled with wounds as he gasped for breath, his attack momentum completely broken.
I gazed down at the bleeding Elder and finished with clinical detachment.
“You see? You truly have no talent, do you?”