Yuma completely descended the mountain.
He easily recognized the name of the gigantic village before him.
It was boldly written, after all.
Astes Empire Capital, Barnak.
Along with knowing the name of the capital, he confirmed that reading the words of this world wouldn’t pose a problem.
‘Something feels off.’
However, the atmosphere in the capital was unusual. Soldiers bustling about as if searching for someone, alongside a handful of knights.
It seemed they were looking for someone already inside the capital, as only two individuals were posted outside to keep watch.
Without hesitation, Yuma headed towards the gate.
“Stop.”
Yuma halted at the guard’s command.
The guard stared at Yuma’s appearance—tattered leather clothes.
But.
‘What’s with this aristocratic face…?’
A handsome face.
And the noble aura radiating from him oddly exerted pressure.
“Are you a noble?”
“No.”
Yuma pulled something from his pocket.
It was a merchant’s badge.
“A third-grade merchant of the Rokein Guild…?”
A nameplate indicating a third-grade merchant.
Yuma presented a merchant badge that was one of the belongings he found in Aron’s pouch. It seemed to be something taken from a merchant he had killed. If it was found on a thief in the mountains outside the capital, it certainly belonged to a guild related to the capital. He decided to use it.
Yuma tensed himself.
Ready to draw the hidden dagger, the [Black Dragon Bernac's Tooth], at any moment.
‘I should order a custom-made hideout for a dagger, like a wrist guard that I can quickly draw from.’
Yuma began to think one by one about how to survive in this world with his abilities.
The guard continued to gaze at Yuma’s charming face. Seriously, that ridiculously handsome face.
“Is there a problem?”
Yuma stared back at the guard.
Even though he spoke informally as if he were a noble, it oddly didn’t make him feel uncomfortable. Even those words seemed to carry a sense of dignity.
‘Must be the son of a guild leader or something.’
A well-groomed son.
“No, go on in.”
“Thank you.”
Yuma casually accepted the merchant badge back. And he entered grandly.
Into the empire capital, Barnak.
*
A girl with black hair sat in the busiest restaurant in the capital.
The girl wore a gray robe and sat still. She seemed unable to shake off a sense of tension, continuously tapping her index finger on the table.
Drrrr—
At that moment, the restaurant’s door swung open.
The girl’s eyes landed on a man with dark gray hair, Yuma.
Yuma had just bought a top and bottom for 300 cents at the clothing store and came straight to the restaurant.
After buying a 300-cent outfit and pants, he headed straight to the restaurant.
A white shirt paired with a navy coat. And black pants that matched the coat.
That was Duke Yuma’s appearance. It was a combination that suited his gray hair perfectly.
The girl felt a noble aura emanating from Yuma and widened her eyes. It was an energy that a mere mortal could not possess. The pressure was palpable.
‘No way.’
She doubted something for a moment, but soon shook her head.
‘Impossible.’
There was no urgency or anger from the people chasing her. They simply had apathetic looks as they gazed at the world.
The girl and Yuma’s eyes met.
However, Yuma seemed uninterested in her and merely glanced over before immediately looking away and sitting in the next spot.
The girl picked at her spaghetti, eating a couple more bites. She needed to fill her stomach.
And now, she had to get up soon.
Before the people tracking her barged in.
Setting down her fork and roughly adjusting her clothes, she tried to stand up.
Bang─!!
The door opened with a loud crash this time.
What followed from the direction of the door was a murderous intent.
It was an aura so intense that all fifty people in the restaurant could feel it.
Shiver, shiver…
The arms and legs of the citizens trembled violently.
Clang!
A waitstaff dropped the dishes they were holding. A small shard embedded in their left leg, but they were so consumed by fear that they didn’t even notice.
The source of this ominous presence was a man with red hair.
“I’m here to check if the beast I’m looking for is here.”
The hulking man slowly walked into the restaurant. After taking ten steps, he looked to one side and smirked.
“There it is, the beast.”
It was right where the black-haired girl in a gray robe was sitting.
“You little witch’s spawn. What are you doing among humans?”
The man raised his right hand. Red aura gathered in his palm, radiating a destructive energy.
“My name is Keingal. I am a member of the Empire’s Ten Elders.”
Keingal did not hide his status, reaching as high as master.
The Ten Elders of the Empire. The strongest among the Astes Empire’s ten fingers.
As they realized such a person was emitting an awful murderous intent towards them and could potentially attack, fear instantly gripped them as if standing on the edge of a cliff.
“What I’m chasing now is the witch’s daughter. As you all know, she’s the daughter of the hell witch Vinesse, who met her end at the hands of the Empire’s Ten Elders after burning down two cities in this Empire.”
The name of the hell witch Vinesse sent a ripple of fear through the crowd.
“That’s a hell of a mess.”
“Here comes Hell Witch Vinesse!”
“Vinesse’s daughter is here…?”
Keingal grinned wide enough to show his yellow teeth.
“Come out right now, or all these innocent humans will die.”
A swirling mass of red energy still danced above Keingal’s right hand.
Crunch─
He saw the girl clenching her fist as if ready to crush something.
It looked like she was about to lift her head with determination.
But then, Keingal opened his mouth again.
“…Why are you still stuffing your face?”
Keingal’s gaze was fixed on Yuma.
Clatter
He glared at Yuma, who was calmly eating soup despite the danger looming over them.
That guy had been annoying since the moment he walked in. Even with the murderous intent he’d intentionally spread, that guy just kept eating.
“What the hell are you?”
Gray hair. Blue eyes. An inexplicable air of nobility. But there was no tangible sense of strength about him.
Yuma wiped his mouth with a napkin and replied.
“Do your job. I’m in the middle of mine.”
Keingal’s expression twisted even further at Yuma’s nonchalant answer.
“I have my job too. Until just a moment ago, there was only one, but thanks to you, now there’s an extra.”
Keingal’s right arm, which was aimed straight ahead, swung solely towards Yuma.
“Die first, you clueless lowlife.”
A red flash erupted from Keingal’s right hand. The round red sphere, ‘Red Star,’ lunged fiercely at Yuma.
Boom!
It tore through the air with monstrous force.
Yuma remained seated, unbothered.
Thud─
He merely set down his fork.
‘…Huh? Is that guy all talk?’
Was he merely exuding an air of elegance?
The girl panicked, quickly starting to cast a shield spell at Yuma’s seemingly calm acceptance of death.
‘Too late!’
But the mass of red energy had already reached right in front of Yuma. At that moment, Yuma’s right arm moved.
Breeeeing──!!
The skill, Parrying.
It deflected the opponent’s ranged attack like a pro.
And it was also Yuma’s specialty, “Don’tScrewMeOver.”
Skill [Absolute Counter] ensured the Red Star ricocheted back accurately at Keingal.
Amplified by ten times the power.
Banggg!!
A terrifying explosion engulfed the restaurant.
“Ugh, ugh… you bastard.”
Thick blood flowed from Keingal’s mouth.
“W-what have you done…?!”
Boom.
Keingal’s upper body was literally blown open. His spine was nowhere to be seen. All that was visible was the scenery beyond the restaurant.
Keingal’s body slowly toppled backward.
Kuw───ung
Instant death.
Keingal, one of the eight of the Empire’s Ten Knights, was dead.
After what felt like an eternity of silence.
“Ahhh!!!!!”
“Ahhh!!!”
Men, women, and children screamed and rushed out of the restaurant.
Only two remained inside.
Excluding the trembling employee and the restaurant owner, it was just Yuma and a girl.
“Did you help me?”
The girl stared at Yuma.
Yuma looked back at the golden-eyed girl with his blue gaze. Only then did he seem to finish his meal and put down his fork.
“I realized that the one they were after was you, but I had no such intent.”
The girl’s gulp echoed at his nonchalant reaction, as if it was no big deal.
The corpse right in front of the door.
He had killed Keingal, one of the Empire’s Eight Knights, with a single blow.
A swordsman who had reached the level of a Sword Master.
‘I definitely countered with a dagger.’
In a chaotic battlefield, even a master-level opponent could be killed in a single strike by Keingal’s ‘Red Star.’ Yet, he had deflected that ‘Red Star’ and instantaneously ended his life.
“The one I killed.”
The girl listened intently to Yuma’s words.
“Do you have any idea how strong he was in this world?”
Her golden eyes widened in surprise.
There was a different nuance in the way he casually bragged about his achievement. It seemed she truly didn’t know about it. About the Empire’s Ten Knights.
‘Did she train somewhere in the mountains?’
But she looked too aristocratic for that.
“The Astes Empire’s Ten Knights… they are the sword of the Empire. They heed the Emperor’s commands. And naturally, they are strong. Excluding hidden hermits, saying they are the ten strongest in the Empire wouldn’t be an exaggeration.”
As soon as the girl finished speaking.
At the wide-open restaurant door.
Kugugu───!
About thirty armored knights lined up.
“K-Keingal!!”
They gasped in horror. The Empire’s Eight Knights, the Sword Master, who could not be scratched even if they all charged at him, lay dead. With a huge hole in his chest, quite absurdly so.
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