Chapter 2 - The city of Tomes


Author's words

Wow, this is the longest chapter I've done until now. Next one will definitively be shorter, but it will set the scene for the main storyline. I don't know if I did better than the last chapter, but I hope it will still entertain you. If you find mistakes, please let me know. I am not a native speaker and, sometimes, I have no idea if what I'm writing is coherent or not in English. That is why I would be glad to receive your feedbacks, doesn't matter if they're heinous.

— Sasugasm


Part 1

After almost half an hour of walking, Ester and Kabal could now see the origin of the smoke — it came from a human city standing close by a lake.

Citizens were surging from the entrance with their family, transporting everything they could in big linen bags or wooden carts. Some were using horses or donkeys to pull their belongings — wealthy people or nobles for most of them. Yet, it was clear that a majority of the fugitives were poor or servants of the fleeing lords.

Their eyes, as well as the ambient sounds, betrayed the panic in which they all were. Cries could be heard all along the long lines formed by their precipitate departure and the kids — usually so noisy and full of energy — remained silent. All Kabal could see was a crowd full of agitation and citizens hurrying to leave their home.

The city stood behind this scene.

Dark smoke emanated from the right side and many buildings had fallen into ruin due to the fire which, for some part, still burned brightly. But in spite of the apparent defeat, the imposing stone walls still conveyed the feel of an unconquerable fortress — you could ask yourself what kind of army had breached this perfect defense.

At this sight, Ester was the first to react, she had a vivid look and seemed genuinely interested in the fleeing citizen.

"Incredible ! You could expect no more from an unknown world . There is so much to learn in this city, aah, I'm getting excited. This town must have roughly 10000 inhabitants — maybe less ? Do they have books about their knowledge ? Mhh— I should probably capture some of them."

The elf noticed that she had let herself get carried away and quickly apologized to Kabal :

"Ah— forgive me for my unacceptable behavior, Kabal-sama. I have no excuses to explain my conduct. I can only accept my punishment to redeem myself."

Kabal was a bit embarrassed by the sudden apologize. He didn't feel like she had done anything wrong — in fact, Ester only showed her interests. If it made her happy why would he not let her do what she want ? Like the proverb says, a happy worker is a productive worker.

"You did nothing wrong Ester... Having interests in new knowledge is a good thing, and you shouldn't be afraid to show it. Furthermore, we're here to get information. That is our exact goal to interest ourselves in the people of this city. I will never punish you for this."

"I do not merit such kind words ! We exist only to serve the Supreme Beings. It is natural that we should obey your orders."

Kabal let out a sigh — acting as a ruler was more energy consuming than what he had thought. He constantly had to make decisions, and he doubted that he could go on like that for too long. He had chosen to enter the city, but he was far from convinced about his judgment — uncertain about how the citizens would react at his sight.

"Let's head toward the gate..."

As Ester and Kabal progressed toward the entrance, more and more people stared at them. They were launching hateful, frightened or even questioning look but never tried to engage the two of them. Kabal continued even though he did not like being the center of attention — especially when he was supposed to be discrete. Anxiously, he glanced at Ester as to say "you know what to do if it goes wrong", and, in response, the delighted elf nodded to show that she had understood.

Approaching the gate, they oddly passed the entrance without being stopped by the two sentinels. Instead, they received a friendly welcome and a warning about the attack that the city had just undergone.

Ester was right. Hopefully, the orcs left before we came...

Kabal still found it odd that the guards didn't pose any questions. He had prepared a lot of answers and excuses to be authorized in the city, but none had served a purpose.

Perhaps they had been scared by his full high-level armor ? He had taken out his helmet because it was impairing his vision, but the rest was nonetheless intimidating.

Shrugging his shoulders, he continued along the road — believing that he was just lucky.

Now that he managed to enter, he could get to the second part of his plan — searching for a place to eat and sleep. He envisaged to ask someone where he could find such things, but he did not spot someone approachable in the vast amount of citizens who seemed to dodge him like the plague.

Instead, he wandered through various streets in his research.

The city was near empty compared to its immense size, but Kabal didn't find it weird considering the recent attack. He was more disturbed by Ester who was following behind, trying to look impassive, but sometimes exposing a rictus betraying disgust or excitement. Everything interested her, but she kept her mouth shut due to the respect she held for her master. Her behavior was unsettling for Kabal because he had no idea on how he should manage it.

Hopefully, after ten minutes of awkwardness spent walking the streets, a seemingly poor citizen finally accosted them when they passed in the market district.

"Can I help you, M'lord ?"

His honeyed tone showed his interest in a reward for his service — exactly what Kabal wanted.

"Erm— We are travelers. We are searching for a place where we can rest and eat."

"A traveler ?... Ah ! You must mean you're from the great south ! I sure know a good inn, the owner is stubborn and wouldn't leave the city — even if orcs would break down in her house, eh. Although I'm not sure if it will be to your taste."

Kabal quickly noted that it was better to say he was from the south — instead of a stranger.

"Anything will be fine, if you can show us the way."

"It will be my pleasure. Follow me !"

Kabal couldn't trust this man, but he followed him anyway. He had felt his incredibly low potential and believed that the citizen couldn't harm him — or at least it would not come from his doing. Out of this conclusion, he followed the poor guy throughout the city market.

Kabal was observing everything he could as they progressed through the different outdoor stores and remarked that he couldn't read any of the shop's signs. Now that he thought of it, it was already weird that he could understand the language of this civilisation.

Shouldn't they have a foreign language or something like that ?

He remembered that he could even talk to the orcs before that. Something was definitely out of the ordinary and Kabal felt that the reason was important — but he decided to ponder these thoughts later.

The poor citizen stopped in front of a large two-storey timber framed building, with a small walled yard and garden. It seemed to be well positioned — adjacent to a guarded warehouse in the market district, and with an air of satisfaction, the man confirmed that this building was the one he described earlier.

"We arrived at destination M'lord. This is the inn I was talking about. The owner is called Pestry. I'm sure she will find you what you want."

The commoner was watching them intently while rubbing his hands, probably waiting for his reward.

*sigh* Let's give him something...

Kabal had thought of the price of low-level items in YGGDRASIL and had come to the conclusion that two golden coins should be enough for such a service. He feared that it would have been insufficient and had doubled what he initially wanted to give — making it four. Taking the gold from his inventory, he gave it to the man with word of thanks :

"Umu… I appreciated your help, take this as a sign of my satisfaction."

The commoner took the gold coins and inspected them with a suspicious look. After what seemed to be an internal struggle, he thanked Kabal and left with his reward — a little bit unsettled.

Maybe four gold coins was a bit too much...

Kabal watched him go, trying to guess the citizen's intention by his expression but could tell nothing else than his confusion. With the man going out of sight Kabal entered the inn without further delay.

A collection of fine tapestries was hanging on the walls, and the innkeeper was cleaning the floor. She stood up as the two of them entered the inn and welcomed them cheerfully.

"Come in ! Make yourself at ease !"

As soon as she saw Ester, the women took a different tone — as if she was afraid. The change in her expression did not escape Kabal's attention, but he did not ask her about it.

"Would you like two separate rooms or just one ? Each contains two beds with woolen mattresses, and I will do my best to suit your taste."

"Just one will be enough, what about the price ?"

"I wouldn't dare ! You don't need to pay anything."

This is really weird… I doubt that these people would gladly offer free services to random customers.

Kabal asked himself if these people could recognize players, like Ester identified him as her master earlier. If it was a known phenomenon in this world, the citizens could be considering him as a threat — like a dangerous stranger whose goal is unknown. Depending on the answer, he risked getting in trouble. No— He was confident that it would cause him disfavors.

But for now, he fainted ignorance and pursued his affairs — he couldn't afford to show that he was suspicious if he wanted to guess the women's intent.

"Fine then, it will be one room for both of us. I am hungry, do you serve breakfast ?"

"Of course ! Let me prepare it for you. Should I make one for your slave too ?"

My slave? Is she talking about Ester ?

Kabal was a bit shocked to hear this. He did not have the impression of abusing the elf. Perhaps was he actually mistreating her without knowing ? He wondered if the citizens falsely detected signs of ill-treatment due to their customs — or was it because elves were usually taken as slaves ?

In any way, he had to clear up the misunderstanding — and make sure he wasn't acting with contempt toward Ester.

"If you are talking about my companion over here, I will ask you not to insult her. Does it look like I am mistreating her ?"

He just thought of another possibility —

Could humans be at war against elves, as they are against orcs ? It would explain the reactions from the citizens because bringing an enemy in the city would undoubtedly be viewed as hostile.

Crap... Why didn't I thought of this before ! If these people hate elves, I am definitely in trouble.

Kabal watched closely to observe the reaction from both Ester and the innkeeper. One seemed delighted to be called his companion while the other was panicking and stammered in a low voice :

"I— I'm so confused ! I did not want to insult your partner, p— please accept my apologies ! I'm sure I can make up for my mistake if you allow it... Forgive me, my lord."

Kabal could only look at the innkeeper with doubtful eyes — it was abnormal. While he understood that Ester would be willingly exaggerating on her mistakes, why would a random citizen do the same ? There was definitely something he missed…

"Well… As long as you understand."

"Thank you, my lord ! I promise that I won't disappoint you. I won't make you wait any longer, I'm off preparing your meal. You can sit wherever you like."

Kabal wondered if the citizens exaggerated their reactions to keep him in control while setting up a way to deal with him. It would be a common strategy — to prepare the ground and overwhelm the opponent with a bigger advantage — and he couldn't help but think there was an intellect behind the weird behaviors of the citizens.

Preparing himself for this eventuality, he quickly whispered to Ester when the women left the room.

**Stay on your guard, the owner is acting strangely. She may be hiding something.**

— **Should I force her to talk ?**

What the hell is up with this way of thinking. No — just no !

— **Don't do anything stupid. We are just here to observe.**

— **Understood, Kabal-sama**

The two of them sat on the first table they encountered and patiently waited for their meal. It was still early in the morning, and Kabal had not yet eaten anything; even though he wondered if it had any sense in a video game.

While patiently waiting for his breakfast, he thought of an idea. Could [Message] work to contact people from YGGDRASIL ? —

Following this idea, he first tried a GM request…

— which failed.

How surprising.

He then tried to contact his friend list, calling them one by one, although none resulted in a success. Even if he had guessed that he would be alone in this world, it made him a bit sad to actually be faced with this reality — he still had a faint hope that he wasn't the only player in the world.

Ester was watching Kabal with a questioned look as the latter went through all this scene. In response to her worry, he couldn't help but jokingly try an experiment.

"[Message]."

— It connected.

"What is it, Kabal-sama ?"

Kabal heard the voice twice, echoing from two sources at the same time — one from Ester mouth, the other directly from his mind.

I thought [Message] could only be used to communicate with players ?

He just discovered a valuable piece of information that would undoubtedly serve him, but now, he had to explain his weird behavior to Ester. He terminated the [Message] spell and quickly thought of a reason.

"Uhh... I was just trying to see if I could still use [Message] to communicate with the others… It's for… uhh… I want to try to contact the other guardians."

"I see... So we can locate Erebus this way."

Eh, that's actually not a bad idea.

Proud to come up with this response so quickly, Kabal attempted to use the [Message] spell once again. This time, he tried to contact the first NPC which came to his mind. His first thought was for Equinox — an enchantress of the fairy race whose utility resided in supportive spells which could be cast on anything, including weapons and armors.

"[Message]."

— The cast immediately terminated, implying that it failed.

Does it mean that Equinox doesn't exist in this world ?

He had thought of this possibility, but he wished to be wrong. Since this world was obviously obeying to different rules, he hoped that the reason for this failure was a bit different — Ester had mentioned that Erebus was "shrouded in an impenetrable fog" and Kabal believed this was the cause of the spell's failure.

Deep inside, he hoped that the [Friend Calling Horn] would work to summon the others like he did for Ester. If it failed, he would surely find another way to gather them because he couldn't pass on their loyalty. To survive in this world, they would become a not negligible ace.

"I suspected it... I will have to summon the others like I did it for you."

Ester was showing concern as she understood the situation. She enquired about her worry, intently watching her master.

"Is it, by chance, linked to this world ?"

"I don't know… But probably."

As Kabal finished his sentence, Ester took a different expression. She suddenly demonstrated a look of pure hatred and rage — which was obviously not destined for him.

"I do not know the details, but if someone is responsible for the isolation of Erebus, I promise that I will do my best to find the enemies and smash their arrogant opposition."

He felt a bit warm and couldn't help but look pleased with this declaration. No one was responsible for his situation, at least that was what he thought — yet, hearing Ester make such statement made him happy. She was clearly infuriated for his sake — and due to what he believed to be a trivial matter. It was rather unusual for Kabal to get such support, making him take a genuine smile.

Not long after this, the innkeeper, Pestry, came with the breakfast.

"Forgive me for the waiting."

She walked toward the table Kabal had chosen and put a pitcher of wine in front of Ester, followed by rather fine cutleries and plates — those were without a doubt of high quality. To complete it, a fruit basket and roast fowl was positioned in the center, served in a painted pottery. She also carried a salt cellar filled with a ridiculous amount of small white grains and gave to the both of them a bowl of light soup with a loaf of bread.

"I hope you enjoy your meal. I stay at your service if you need anything else."

"Thank you."

As soon as Pestry left the room to carry on other tasks, Kabal looked at the food with an uneasy look.

I didn't expect a full lunch to be served. What I'm gonna do with all that food ?

He had thought she would give him a bread or cereals to eat — a light meal at least. Kabal knew he shouldn't expect to eat the same things as the modern world, but he was still a bit unsettled by the nature and the quantity of the meal.

He looked at the soup with a doubtful look. Out of curiosity, he filled his spoon with a mouthful of the liquid and brought it to his mouth — but as he was about to try a sip, Ester interrupted him.

"Should I remove the [Ring of Sustenance] ?"

Oh ?

Kabal glanced at her with round eyes.

He should have thought of that earlier, but now it was plainly evident — he wouldn't need to eat or sleep if he carried the [Ring of Sustenance]. This ability was an incredibly useful asset in this world, and he would assuredly use it without restraint. But, for now, it was too late to equip the ring considering that he just ordered a meal — he would just eat this time and carry it in the future.

"Do as you wish, but by courtesy for our host, we should at least eat what we were served. I believe it would be seen as insulting not to finish our plate."

With Ester nodding, he started to eat with an air of dissatisfaction at the weird texture in his mouth.

The meal was consequent, and as such, it took them quite a while to finish it — perfect for Kabal to reflect on what he learned. For the entire time, he didn't engage in a new conversation and thought of the reasons that would push citizens to act like this in his presence.


Part 2

Uuuh… I've eaten too much.

Finishing his bread, Kabal relaxed in his had found the breakfast to be quite dull, not to say that he forced himself to take every bite. However, the meat had tasted way better than he could have ever imagined — making him want to come back and eat some again.

Having finished to eat, he could now carry on to the next part of his plan.

Since eating and sleeping was a trivial matter now that he had the ring, he could concentrate on collecting intel. His lack of information was most likely the only danger that could kill him right now — especially after seeing the weird reactions from the citizens. A dangerous threat could appear any moment, one which could have been avoided if he had basic knowledge of this world — that was, of course, if he wasn't already targeted.

Aaaah ! I'm thinking too much.

Exhausted to think of the best option, Kabal decided to be careless and head to the market. He wanted to relax a bit and couldn't find any better option than to make a bit of tourism. It was a new world after all, and Kabal was excited at the thought of the unknown. He wanted to explore the region and find new monsters, he wanted to see how far he could go and what he could do. Determined, he turned to the elf and exclaimed his intention.

"Ester, we're going out. Can I ask you to cover your ears ? People are reacting strangely when they see you, and I don't want to end into trouble."

To Kabal's relief, she seemed to understand the underlying reason behind this demand and took action reverently.

"I will do as you wish, Kabal-sama"

In a beautiful way, the she-elf prepared herself to cast a spell.

As she began, Kabal watched her with panicking eyes and stood up to refrain her from using such techniques — using magic in a city could be seen as an act of aggression, and he would not allow her to do something so stupid.

But before he could stop her, he recognized the magic she was using — plus she was acting in such way that it was practically impossible to spot.

It seemed that she understood the situation very clearly and had cast a renowned spell that was almost impossible to detect — although very easy to break. It was a high-level illusion, used — in this case — to make her ears seem ordinary to the sight of others. Kabal would not have thought of a better choice in this situation and smiled out of relief to have a talented partner following him.

"Let's go."

Ester followed him silently to the exist. But as the elf passed the door, she launched a terrific glance at the inside. If one were in the inn, he would clearly have felt the immense killing intent she just threw his way — it was so condensed that it would have killed a weakling right on the action.

As natural as possible, she quickly returned to her usual look when Kabal informed her of their destination.

"I want to go to the market district. There is something I want to see over there. I hope I am not rude by making you follow me like that and asking you to cover your ears..."

Ester smiled to him with gentleness.

"Of course not, that is my pleasure to fulfill the expectations of the Supreme Ones."

With this matter settled, they retraced their steps to an outdoor store in the market district. This time, they did not catch the attention as they wandered the streets, apart from few comments about Kabal's full armor.

Does it mean that Ester was the cause for their commotion ? What a pain...

Arriving in front of the large stand, Kabal stopped and observed the items. The shop exposed all sort of things, going from food to carved wood animals or even clothes. Although they did not have the data crystals which dropped from the monsters of YGGDRASIL — which seemed odd to Kabal. A seemingly rare sword had still caught his attention when he passed by an hour ago, being the reason of his visit.

He watched the decorated handle — magic seemed to flow from the blade. The potential level of the sword interested him but he wasn't sure that he had the right to touch it. With uncertainty, Kabal addressed the seller.

"Umu... Can I see this sword ?"

The old men had an empty stare but forced himself to look at his new customer with a smile. The merchant instantly recognized a potentially rich client as soon as his glance went past Kabal's armor — and he took a delicate tone in consequence.

"Ah ! You've got quite the eye. Here, take it ! Do you feel the power emerging from the blade ? It is imbued with magic."

The shop owner handed the sword to Kabal who took it with a firm grip.

As soon as he touched the sword, he felt a faint power emerging from his hand. He recognized the magic at once, as if he had always known which sword he was holding. It was a bit different than the interface from YGGDRASIL, but he quickly understood how it worked.

Piercing effect mhh ? Around level 25 based on its power. Quite shitty.

"How many for the sword ?"

"I know for sure that the blade is ancient, 200 years at least. It belonged to a great knight who named it Ulfberht, from what I've heard."

He pointed at some symbols that were carved into the sword.

"The sword in itself is holding a great story, you can see it from its scratches and the runes over here, plus it is carrying magic. I doubt you'll find a better sword and that's why I will not go below 500 golden coins. "

The old man stared at his customer with a look who clearly implied that he was proud to own such an item. But, in its turn, Kabal was a bit skeptical.

This sword is supposed to be high quality ? He even gave me its name. Is he trying to scam me ?

Even if Kabal just learned that 500 golden coins were a high cost for these people, he couldn't believe that a low-level sword would be sold at that price. In YGGDRASIL, the sword would have sold for 30 gold coins at most and anyone coming from the DMMO-RPG would have not believed the merchant.

As such, Kabal thought of a way to clear up the real intent of this lie.

An idea crossed his mind, and he felt it was perfect to unsettle the merchant — and eventually see if he was lying. To the astonishment of both the old man and Ester, Kabal pulled up a trinket from his inventory and presented it to the shopkeeper.

"How much should I pay on top of this to get the sword."

The merchant looked at the odd talisman with expert eyes.

"I see that this is a magic item… What is it ?"

"It's a charm that anyone can use. It allows you to use a tier 4 explosion spell every hour or so. Considering the power output, I am relatively confident that this is ten times stronger than this sword."

Kabal's smug eyes met those of the merchant, who looked like he couldn't believe what he just heard.

"Don't make fun of me, magic of the 3rd tier is already considered elite. To say that you own such a treasure, I can not simply believe you..."

Kabal couldn't help but snort at this surprising answer.

3rd tier spell ? Elite ? I feel like this is a joke.

"Ah.. Sorry. There is no lie in my statement. I would gladly demonstrate it right in front of you, but I am not sure the guards would appreciate. Do you know someone who can appraise it for me ? It would settle down the matter."

"There is no need to go that far ! I believe you. Still… 4th tier magic. It's hard to imagine. I am afraid that I will have to decline the offer."

Hard to believe ? It's harder to believe that this worthless item is considered a treasure.

"I understand. I guess this is my fault to offer such an unfair exchange. I would have doubted myself and refused the deal too. To be honest, I was interested in the story of the sword more than its abilities."

"I don't want trouble, but if you have golds, I will be glad to give it to you."

Kabal was reluctant to give the merchant his money. If he guessed correctly, it was potentially a huge amount to pay, and it was common sense not to show his wealth to avoid thieves.

"I haven't got any money on me. I was hoping to trade it for the trinket but I don't have any other solution to offer. I won't cause you any more trouble, thank you for letting me see the sword."

"It was my pleasure ! If you ever need, you know where to find me."

Kabal greeted him and departed from the store.

Doubt was still flowing through Kabal's mind — it was too much an act to be true. The old man had probably something else in mind. But he couldn't see that Ester was an elf.

Could it be that he wanted to misinform him ?

Am I paranoid ? Anyway, this is becoming exhausting… I have to settle this quickly.

Walking along the road with a pensive face, Kabal suddenly stopped when he felt an odd emotion that he recognized at once. His phoenix had returned from a seemingly long trip — and the beast had entered the range in which Kabal could sense him. Along with his reappearance, a big flow of information went past his master's mind — every single data that the bird had collected were directly transferred to his memory as if Kabal had experienced them himself.

I see… It can't be everything. There has to be something else.

The information gathered by his phoenix greatly unsettled him. For a moment, he felt isolated, alone and couldn't help but look down on the road. He even questioned the meaning of his presence in this world as well as his life. He remembered the merchant words in a moment of despair and realized something.

It didn't take him long before he took a decision and, with a new determination, he lifted his head with a plan to advance further.

First, he had to discover if the merchant was lying or not, and the return of his pet gave him a good idea to settle this.

With a smile on his face, he headed to the center of the market while quietly giving orders to his phoenix. Ester who had watched her master go through all these emotions had a terrified expression and couldn't help but ask about the situation.

"Did something happen ?"

Kabal was confident in his plan and instantly answered the question.

"My summoning returned with some information. I came up with some plan to settle down something about this world. I will ask you not to intervene if you are not ordered to."

Ester expression softened as she recovered her usual smile.

"As expected of Kabal-sama. To build up a scheme with so little information, you truly deserve the title of Supreme Being. Rest assured that I will follow your orders as long as I live."

They walked toward a place filled with a considerable amount of citizens and there, they waited —

They were still in the market district, where residents surged from everywhere — even after the orc attack. It was clear that the place was usually overcrowded due to the mess scattered everywhere, but the number of merchants was nonetheless still consequent. Kabal sat on a low stone wall and waited about 5 minutes with Ester standing at his side.

They finally heard an odd sound resembling a gust of wind. Flying at an extraordinary speed in the sky, it was Kabal's phoenix. He was unusually bright and exerted fire from every part of his body.

As the giant bird entered the sight of the city, more and more citizens watched him — frightened — as if they were withstanding a meteorite coming their way. Everyone held their breath waiting for the creature to do something — it was the first time they saw a phoenix but everyone knew from instinct that it was a terrible danger.

The inhabitants were used to face beasts, and it would not overly concern them when such an event would happen. But for the first time of their lives, they were terrified to face this encounter. It was as if they knew their fate if the Phoenix were to attack the city.

And, as the fear gradually raised to the point of panic, Kabal's pet dove into the air at a ludicrous speed — causing a sound shockwave to emanate from the point of acceleration. With horror, the citizens watched the monster land on the market district with a powerful shock — lifting a big cloud of dust.

Civilians ran away in disorder as the phoenix emerged from the thick brown fog. What could they do against this monster ? Their despair was even greater after the recent events. The orcs were gone and they had thought that the worse was in the past, but now, they were faced with an ever more significant threat, as if God wanted them to die.

Kabal's pet began watching his surrounding and, by virtue of his master's order, rose from his full height while flapping his wings. The hot winds formed by this movement could have killed anyone passing in front of him — but there was no one to oppose the phoenix. At the same time, he launched a loud shriek, powerful enough to cause a heavy silence when the monster came back to a normal state.

From a human point of view, the scene could be seen as a maneuver to impress the enemies, or to assert dominance on a newfound territory — but there was no contestant, the phoenix could just freely roam the streets.

The monster tilted his head — anxious to move somewhere else. His orders consisted of simple actions, and he had no idea of what to do next. The link he shared with his master told him that Kabal was observing quietly from his position, and he craved to come back to him — but the order he had was to wait for an opponent.

Hopefully, a clinging sound caught its attention and he instantly turned toward the source.

A man in full armor appeared on the plaza — putting himself in a defensive position as he tried to find a weak spot in the phoenix's defense. He was muscular, resembling one of the gladiators of the ancient Rome except he held a frightened expression that he tried to hide.

"W— What the hell is this ? Is it one of the monsters of legend ?"

The magic weapon that he held in his hand instantly caught Kabal attention — and was apparently recognized by a citizen hidden behind a store.

"It's Bale, from the first adventurer circle ! We are saved !"

With a newfound force, the frightened adventurer couldn't help but react at the sudden faith that the citizen had in him. He could distinctly see two eyes staring at him from the big mass of fire, but they weren't terrifying him anymore. As to confront his fear and build a bit of courage before attacking, he yelled at the form in the shadow with a high-built voice.

"I'm not gonna let a monster impress me !"

The warrior rushed into the monster and, in less of a second, he used five techniques that were unknown to Kabal — making the latter take a surprised expression.

What did he just do ? Gosh, I hope Spyro won't die from this.

Complying with the order he was given and reacting to the men techniques, the Phoenix rolled into a ball — forming a compact fire wall. The warrior closed the distance between him and the monster in a second and launched a straight-line swing which crashed into the solid barrier formed by his opponent — resulting in a tremendous shock who propelled the dust away.

With round eye, Bale stepped back and held his burned hand with a small screech.

"Guh ! … That's all I could do ? What kind of power am I facing ?"

So weak. But that also mean that I won't have trouble surviving.

Having watched the whole scene, Kabal decided to react. He had seen enough and came to the conclusion that the merchant was probably not lying about the sword — Ulfberht was most likely a legendary item for these humans.

Bored by the news, Kabal approached the men with a broad smile and, seeing him drawing near, the adventurer instantly formed a shield out of his body while shouting at him.

"Fall back ! Haven't you seen the power of that monster !"

"You're mistaken. My pet have done nothing wrong. He was just searching for me when you attacked him. He wouldn't attack anyone unless I would tell him to do so."

"...Uh ?"

The man in full armor was left dumbfounded. He lowered his sword in astonishment and stood still watching Kabal — making the latter want to tease him.

"You've never seen a Beastmaster ? I'm sure you know people who fight with their beast."

"If that is true, it is no mere beast you brought up in this city ! Are you crazy ? Who are you anyway ? I've never heard of someone owning a crazy-ass fire bird."

Everything is working as intended. Now, if I've got an enemy in this city, he will think I am a beastmaster. And the best part is that I learned how weak they are.

"My name is Kabal. I am just passing by in the city. Forgive me for my pet behavior, he was told not to cause any trouble."

Bale looked at him with a doubtful look.

"Well.. I guess you had no ill intent. But next time, try not to frighten everyone with your uhm… what is it anyway ?"

And now I can gain his trust.

"It's a phoenix, the rarest of its race. It has several abilities, but its most powerful consist of reviving when he dies with a fire close to him."

Bale looked behind and saw Ester.

"And who is the beauty following you ?"

"This is Ester. She's an elf but you don't have to worry, she is loyal to me."

Now tell me what is the matter with elves.

Bale looked at him with round eyes and bowed down with haste at the declaration.

"I— I am confuse... I did not know you were a royal noble. Please accept my apologies for treating you like that."

A royal noble ? …

Kabal was a bit startled by these words. It explained the reactions everyone had toward him until now, but he couldn't understand why being followed by an elf could be linked to the nobility. He didn't even know how to react to something like that. What was he supposed to say ? That it was a misunderstanding ?

"How rude. If Kabal-sama has to be something, he could not be something so low as a noble. Please refer to him as a Supreme One."

Ester who had remained passive the whole time suddenly addressed Bale in a disgusted manner.

Why did she have to aggravate things ! Now he's definitely gonna think I am abusing my power to make her say such things...

"Forgive me for my ignorance, I am certain you deserve the title."

Kabal thought that the man accepted everything too easily. He just had to tell him that Ester was an elf or that the phoenix was his, and the warrior took his words as the truth. It was weird, and he couldn't help but ask out of curiosity :

"You call me noble when you have never seen my face. Can I ask you what made you come to that conclusion ?"

"I know that we are forbidden to see the face of those close to the king, but I am afraid that having an elf by your side blow your cover away. We all know that only one of the royal nobles, or the king himself, are worthy of the supreme-quality slaves that they represent. I've also heard that you inspire people around you. To be honest, I can't deny the last point. There is no mistake possible, you can only be one of the king close nobles."

Interesting. But that hardly explain anything… What if I played along, to see what I can discover.

"I will ask you not to talk to anyone about this. I want to be as discreet as possible."

As soon as Kabal finished his sentence, a whole battalion of armed soldiers entered the plaza and circled the phoenix. The commander who ordered this formation took a step forward as he recognized his friend.

It was a man in the quarantine wearing a luxurious armor and harboring a mustache in "ω". He was on horseback and had half-closed eyes — as if he was jaded of everything.

"Bale ! What are you doing here ! I thought you were in Porthea ?"

"My old friend Golvarn ! You can withdraw your troops, this beast belongs to one of the king relatives. There is no need to worry."

After calling out his troops, Golvarn turned back to Kabal.

"A royal noble here ? Then the situation must be more dire than I thought… Let me present myself, I am Golvarn, the Lord in charge of this city. As you may know, we've been attacked by an army of orcs. It appears they managed to break through Fornost."

The Lord had a desperate look as he explained the situation to Kabal, but you could see a faint glimpse of hatred emanating from his eyes.

"We don't know when they will come back and we haven't got enough manpower to repel them. We need reinforcements quickly if we want to survive. And there is also the matter of the magic disaster…"

The last sentence piqued the curiosity of Kabal.

"The magic disaster ?"

"You don't know ? Well, if you arrived just now, it may be comprehensible... When we were attacked by the orcs, a third party used an unknown spell who devastated an entire grove not far from here. I believe it can't be the orcs doing because they were as surprised as we were."

Shit, that was me.

"I see… That's a complicated matter."

There was a vague tension coming from Golvarn as he uttered the next words.

"May I ask you what you are planning to do in this city — if I'm not intrusive ?"

Urgh… What should I answer ?

"Aerm… I can't talk about it, it's secret. Let me just ask you one question, who's the strongest men you know of ?"

It was obvious that Kabal was trying to change the subject because he didn't want to have to justify himself. But apparently, it had a significant impact on Golvarn because the latter suddenly became guarded while answering the question.

"That would be Nayaka, without a doubt. He's the strongest even among the elites."

Kabal pointed at his pet. He had found the perfect way to collect information and could support his hypothesis that the humans of this world were indeed incredibly weak.

"Do you think he could take on this phoenix by itself ?"

Golvarn was a bit bewildered at this question.

"I'm not sure… Bale have fought side by side with the king's son, he may be more suited to answer."

"If I can bring my valuation I would say that, although Nayaka's incredible, I doubt he stands a chance against this beast. I used one my most powerful combo, and I didn't even leave a scratch... But if he carried one of the treasures, that would be another matter."

Kabal's mind reacted when Golvarn mentioned the word "treasure" and instantly guessed that he had to dig deeper into this. Even if he was now relatively certain that even the strongest human was below the level 60, he couldn't assess the same for their items. There was a possibility where they could have a dozen of supreme-quality or World-Class Items. Even if he doubted it, it was better to stay safe.

As he was preparing his next question, he remarked that a heavy tension had grown as they had talked. The two men who had a serious look until now were now looking at him with frowned eyebrows.

Did I do something wrong… ?

Ester had been watching the whole time couldn't help but react at the pressure. She had remained calm until now, but an unrelenting fire was about to be unleashed when she stepped forward with her eyes alert.

"Can I be allowed to talk, Kabal-sama ?"

Kabal instinctively responded in the affirmative.

"Uh... Sure, go ahead."

Ester turned to the noble with a despising look and casually said the words she was craving to say.

"You are as clear as the water. If you think we don't know what you are planning to do, you are mistaken. My master is tolerant, but I doubt he will let this behavior pass if you keep having such thoughts."

What ?

"We are not planning to do anything except if you intend to eliminate the errors that the kingdom created. Even if I grow an animosity toward the royal nobility, I still believe in their skills and hold respect toward their orders."

Ester was showing a wicked smile as she articulated the next sentences.

"Your animosity come from nothing else but jealousy. Your own lack of skill must make it hard for you to get recognized by those who follow you. Could it be the reason who made you inherit an orc city you couldn't defend ?"

When did she learn that ?

Golvarn was clearly enraged by the last words but tried to remain as calm as he could.

"Being defeated is usually of the responsibility of the upper hierarchy. You're playing your own words against you."

"But you were given enough time to turn this into a victory when the orcs left. What have you done in the meantime ? Do you have prisoners ? What about your information network, have you begun to rebuild it ? Perhaps the upper hierarchy was right to put you into a worthless city — you can't even shine when you are given the occasion."

The Lord was shocked at this declaration, implying that Ester stroke a nerve. It was as if Ester knew exactly what Golvarn had done for his whole lifetime and directly pressed on the perfect string to crush him — resulting in the noble to take a saddened look.

"You know that's not the truth. You perfectly know what is wrong, so why are you still serving them."

What the hell is happening ? Did I miss something ?

Startled by the conversation who unfolded before him, Kabal finally decided to react. He understood little of what just happened, but one thing was sure, the situation was on the brink to become a fight.

"That's enough. Ester, come back. I'm sorry for my subordinate behavior. You have to understand we are not your enemies. Please accept my apologies on her behalf."

Ester instantly bowed down and went back to her position — behind Kabal.

To gain the trust of the two men standing in front of him, he thought of a way to substantiate himself and stumbled upon an idea. He had heard the word "Fornost" in the conversation from earlier and thought it could be an excellent location to gather information as well as serving as an alibi for his presence.

"I don't want to cause harm to you or this city if that is what is troubling you. I was passing by to get to Fornost and saw smoke coming from here. I just told my pet to roam the sky in search of the attacker and came to help as fast as I could. My job is to take care of the orcs, but since they're gone, I will be glad to heal your wounded."

Bale had his eyes wide open, as if he couldn't believe what he just heard and Golvarn demonstrated an astonished look. The two men seemed to have lost all animosity as the lord bent his head in apologize.

"If that is really your will to help us and go to the frontline, you are kind of unique for a royal noble. Maybe that is why it infuriated the elf so much. I can only be sorry for my behavior. I will chose to believe in your words and help to the best I can. You carry an aura that makes me want to trust you."

The word "aura" triggered something in Kabal's mind.

Oh… I haven't thought of that, but could my [Devotion Aura] actually work on these people ? That would explain why they are so prompt to believe what I say.

— [Devotion Aura]

It was a passive learned by most fighter classes. Its activation consisted of substantially increasing the defense and the attack speed of the friendly characters around. But in this world, it appeared it had another effect — making people having the will to devote themselves to its user.

Kabal took a broad smile as he understood that. A brilliant idea came to his mind, and he would definitively put it in place.

"I am glad that you understand my concern, we can still be friends if you want. Can you guide me to your injured so I can heal them ?"

"Sure. But I don't think you will be able to do much, not to doubt your intention."

He addressed the battalion that had been in stand-up until now.

"Stay on your guard and protect the peace of the city ! I have closed this matter — the monster we thought as a threat is a friend — but the orcs can come back at any moment ! Now, scatter and help with the defense !"

Golvarn then turned back to Kabal and his friend.

"Then if you allow me to show you the way. Bale will follow us for your protection, I think you have no objection having a first circle adventurer by your side ?"

Even if he had no idea what it meant, Kabal could easily guess that a "first circle adventurer" was a good rank. He couldn't tell Golvarn that it was pointless to assign him a guard, seeing how weak they were, but he nonetheless accepted the offer.

"Sure. I hope I am not asking too much by letting everything rest on your shoulders. I will do my best to repay you this favor."

"You don't have to, you are the one helping me and not the opposite. Bale, you are okay with that ?"

"I can't refuse a demand if it comes from you, Golvarn."

Kabal nodded to imply he was ready to go and quickly glanced at Ester to see if she was alright — but it seemed it was pointless. She was delighted by what just happened and looked at her master with sparkles in her eyes, as if she was saying "as expected of Kabal-sama".

Kabal looked back at what he had done, and couldn't help but feel uncertain — on contrary to what Ester seemed to think.

Did I do well ?

Wanting it or not, his future was on a trail that could not be stopped now. He believed that he just had to continue forward and slowly but steadily do what was needed to reach his new-found objective — establish an invulnerable bastion on this island as a base to explore the world.