Even Chenzu and Milia were looking toward the direction of Wingston as we flew back to Kyushu. The aura itself almost seemed visible, like a black haze. Harmony and Lucas felt it but couldn’t make out much of the details as rookies. Even with her charms, Mandi didn’t have the ability to sense magic, only sensing the oppressive mood and wondering what was going on. Her words revealed the brat to be as sharp as knives, I’d give her that.
“I know everyone’s detecting something magically, but can you explain to me what’s happening?” she asked.
“I don’t really know for sure,” I said. It wasn’t a total lie, but as I looked at the poor girl, the feeling in my gut soured. If I told her, she’d probably beg me to go save them. This was what happened when you failed to hide your strength from everyone. They expect an invincible man. They rarely thought about what would happen if one met their match or something overwhelmingly strong with experience, professionals that trained for God knows how long.
However, this also included Gwendolyn. I caught her off guard and maybe pinned the woman down with killing intent alone, but that didn’t mean she didn’t know how to handle herself in a situation like this. She also trained in her craft for years, gaining the title of Red Star.
While I didn’t have any particular friendly attitude toward the city owner, she was the mother of my newest adorable apprentice. Not that I was going on some ridiculous evangelism journey to try to change every person on the planet. With nobles, one could just forget about that. The further away from them I got, the better. I knew it wouldn’t be long before I’d end up slapping some of them on a near monthly basis at this rate.
Mandi didn’t seemed too convinced by my words. Gazing into the glistening orange eyes, I decided to give her a hint. “For now, we’re going to have to trust in your mother.”
That alarmed the girl, but I simply couldn’t do anything about that right now. Mandi’s family were not worth dying for, nor was this my problem.
Let’s just be honest. I wasn’t sure I stood a chance against the Black Knight and his group of magician elites. Fuck, they could actually fly. What were they, Dragon Ball characters? What the hell?
“Are you sure about this?” Chenzu asked after a good deal of silence. “If you have to go, let’s go. I can suppress this level of power, bring it down to a manageable state, temporarily. It will be up to you to bring out your spell book and go all out.”
“I… don’t have a spell book,” I said.
Chenzu nearly fell off the griffin, his eyes wide, taken aback. “But that’s impossible! There’s only a certain amount of mana your body can take before a spell book partner is needed to help regulate it, help you unleash tiered magic. With what’s going on over there, you’ll probably need grand tier, or even stronger.”
“Let’s just say he’s special,” Milia said. “He can cast one powerful spell, but his fighting style is the most unique in the world as a potion maker.”
I shrugged. “I’m not a fighter, just your humble potion maker.”
“Yeah, you can fool young lasses, but you cannot fool a beastkin’s keen eyes,” Chenzu said. “Much less hide your natural aura, one which only a master magician could possess. You’re something else, my friend, in a potion maker’s body. The fact that you’re choosing to fight this way only makes you scarier. Not a soul will be able to predict you.”
Milia shook her head. “Interesting, is it not? But Chenzu is right about the situation. Within that aura, I can sense the possibility of slaughter.”
“There’s no way kingdom officials would go that far just to find one guy, right?” I asked, not caring if I let details slip out to Mandi. She likely guessed the scenario anyway. Or was at least suspicious. She did know of our previous visit to Wingston and the plan to destroy the hero’s trail.
“I do not know for sure,” Milia said, “but they could classify this as aiding the enemy, and who knows what will happen.”
“The hero isn’t an enemy, right?” I said, confused. “He’s the world’s hero. Their search for him is just for some selfish girl who’s probably in love with him over his titles.”
“Princess Ling is…”
“Frightening,” Mandi finished.
I turned to her, eyes questioning. “You two met her? What’s her deal? Shouldn’t she be focused on important things?” I asked, still failing to grasp just how differently this world did things.
“Returning the hero to the capital is important, given that he broke the Lord Ruler’s promise, right?” Milia said. “Honestly, I’m not sure about showing ourselves to the Black Knight. If it attracts Ling’s attention, we’ll have to go into hiding. Even master magicians aren’t too sure about facing her in an all-out fight.”
“The Black Cross,” Chenzu mumbled, pale. “Nasty, nasty fellows. Cold and ruthless.”
“That strong? Is she a master magician herself?” I asked Milia.
“May as well be,” Milia said. “With access to nearly infinite resources and likely her own Dao, the last thing we want to do is make an enemy of her.”
“We’ve got a business to run,” I said. “In this kingdom, nonetheless. We can’t risk getting banned or exiled. But…” I sighed, trying to rack my brain for any ideas.
“What if you disguise yourself?” Lucas suggested.
I looked at him. “Not a bad idea, kid. But then comes the problem of actually standing up to the knights.”
“You don’t have to fight them,” Harmony said, eyes worried. She was already holding my arm as if I planned to just leap away.
I looked at the brat, placing a hand on top of her head. “Maybe not. We’ll have to slip in undetected, get a grasp of the situation, and figure out what to do then.”
“Please check to see if Hector and Rose are okay,” Mandi said. “My brother’s the captain of the city guards. I’m sure he’ll be the first for questioning.”
“Then what?” Chenzu suddenly said. “We go there to observe the situation. What will we do from there, Sir Nate?”
I looked at him, honestly a little moved that he used ‘we’ despite knowing that the Black Cross were behind the ridiculously strong surge of power. Which we still felt as we landed in Kyushu. I wasn’t sure if I could be relieved or not that this aura mostly came from one person, likely the leader.
“We go in disguise, only scout for now,” I said. “In fact, we can hide at the adventurer’s den. If we see Hector and Rose, we snatch them up. I’m almost positive the Red Star went into hiding by the way she sounded, but mostly to delay them as much as possible. She’s… counting on me to come up with something.”
“What a pain she is,” Milia said with a giggle. “I still don’t like her.”
“Neither do I,” I said, patting Mandi on the shoulder. “But we’ll do what we can, so don’t give me that look, kiddo.” Mandi placed her face into my chest, eyes teary. “I need you to be tough.” I made eye contact with her as she pulled away, wiping her eyes. Addressing all the teenagers, I continued. “You’re my apprentices, right? One day, you’re going to be the talk of the kingdom, should you choose to be. Hell, you may become the talk of this town, its mascots or something. You’ll need to become… ruthless. Or at least strong as hell, without losing yourselves. Try not to focus solely on this fighting shit, but what you actually want to do in life.”
As the group climbed off Wingy to prepare for what was likely going to be a smuggling of wanted people, Harmony couldn’t help but chastise herself for being weak. And for betraying Milia. Not because she’d done anything; however, her feelings for her potion teacher only grew stronger, almost becoming ravenous. A stupid schoolgirl fantasy.
However, she wasn’t a homewrecker, nor some courtesan. She could control herself, even if being near him sometimes caused her mind to briefly go blank. Her love, however, was beginning to change. She realized that maybe it was just admiration. That despite seemingly to have nothing when he arrived at her town, instead of despairing, he built everything from scratch.
He didn’t want violence, but it came to him, even now.
This only solidified Harmony’s resolve to not let her master down. Perhaps he was just that big brother she never had. Her solution to this problem would be to meditate on it, slay it like any obstacle. Let nothing get in her path to getting strong enough to protect her town and her friends.
The hero and his party met with us at a food stall and from there, we explained the current situation. They looked troubled, downright guilt-stricken.
“We have to stop them!” Nuwa exclaimed.
“No,” Ramon said. “This is my fault. The Black Cross will kill everyone in that town if they’re convinced I’m hiding somewhere in there.”
“Are you sure?” I asked, alerted. “They are kingdom officials, right? Massacring an entire population of innocent people for one person is fucking insane. They wouldn’t resort to this, right?”
I felt uneasy, being somewhat part of the cause for what could end up as a tragedy. I insisted on seeking Gwendolyn out and now she’d pay the price for it. This far out, they could blame attack on monsters or bandits.
“They’re Ling’s personal elite,” Ramon said. “The leader and strongest among them is Andros. I would suggest avoiding the Black Cross if there was a way to convince them that I’ve moved on, and that the chase is worth pursuing.”
“If they kill an entire city…” Nuwa didn’t finish her sentence.
“Let’s get moving,” I said, my decision made. “Even if we came up with a plan, the result will be the same. We may have to confront them. If we can solve things peacefully, then maybe they’ll leave.”
“No, I think it’s time I turn myself in,” Ramon said. “But… please take care of the party in my stead.”
“Ramon, you can’t be serious,” Maxus said. “What good will you be to the world if you’re imprisoned, forced to stop cultivating, and made into that monster’s plaything?”
“What other choice do I have!?” Ramon snapped. He glanced at the food stall, his voice becoming calm. “I’ve… learned some things since I’ve been here.” He looked at me. “Mostly from you. And maybe Nuwa.” He shook his head. “He expelled his energy out on purpose as a calling card, taking the city hostage. Either I turn myself in willingly or everyone dies, then they may somehow pin that on me.”
“That won’t work against any competent mana examiner,” Maxus said.
“Do you think they’ll not use a corrupted mana examiner?” Ramon deadpanned.
I let out a sigh. “As much as sending you away to your fate would make me happy, I’m going to have to side with your friends. Are you so naïve to think by simply turning yourself in, they’ll go away peacefully? The reality is that the guy in charge is truly pissed off, enraged. He’s going to fuck you up quite good before sending you back to the capital. They may demand the party’s whereabouts from you in order to rack up some bonuses or just kill them outright.”
Ramon sat on a bench, pale, and defeated. It was clear that he had no idea the princess would send her elites after him.
“This… Just what should I do?” he asked, the defeat clear in his voice. “If we fight them, we could maybe take out the Black Cross, but that will certainly put Andros in the grandest of moods. Even if we don’t kill them.”
I watched the hero’s party sulk just a bit longer when an idea hit me. “Thanks to your whining, I have a plan. We need cloaks and some masks for disguises. Except you, Ramon. After that, we’ll take flight. I can’t risk having you leave another trail. We’ll have one shot at this.”
Resolving this as a potion maker was in fact the only solution, or else we’d get in trouble for attacking kingdom forces. Well, we were going to fight, but without showing our faces.
Andros, the Black Knight, stared at his captives, tied to a cross erected at the center of the town. Hours have passed now since the rigorous search for the Red Star or trace of the hero began. He ended up ordering a raid of every single building. For all of the efforts, he managed to capture the staff and the children. The lord and lady of the city were actually out on urgent business according to a butler, who confessed after some pain-induced motivation. The rumored S-ranked adventurer was missing too, which cut off either a lead for questioning or the hero himself. So many games played by these people, all to protect some worthless womanizer.
The citizens were gathering as ordered. Here they would witness the consequences of treating the extensive work of the Black Cross like a game.
He’d give credit to the Wingston children for keeping a strong face amidst certain death. But the lack of despair for being abandoned by the Red Star pissed him off.
“You won’t be executed with fire, your strong element,” Andros said. He didn’t bother manifesting his spell book for these weaklings. Instead, he charged red lightning in his hand. The pressure of the incoming attack actually got widened eyes as it warped and bent space around it. The Black Cross stood in two rows at attention, facing him. “Normally, I’d execute you all at once, but the citizens need to hear your screams. Starting with you, Hector, son of the Red Star.”
He pointed two fingers at the sweating man. The glare of red shone on his face like the light of a torch. Hector appeared to be pleading his case, despite the silencing tape. Andros didn’t care. “For obstructing the duties of the Black Cross, die.”
Abruptly, an extremely powerful blue fireball shot toward Andros. Feeling the intensity of it, the Black Knight actually dodged it. It exploded against the ground, incinerating a hole the size of a pond.
He looked around but did not see the Red Star.
“Wench. I can feel you in the crowd. Come face me, or I’ll kill them all.”
“So this is what the Black Cross have become,” a female voice said from the crowd. “Cowardly hostage-takers.”
“You’re calling us the cowards? Now that’s rich, coming from you,” Andros said. “But I’m glad you could join us, Red Star. Maybe you’ll surrender the hero so that we can be done with this. If not, well.” He fired the lightning toward Hector. As expected, the Red Star appeared in front of him, activating her family’s strongest defensive spirit treasures.
“The hero was never here,” the Red Star said. “You sense no trace of him, yet you dare take my people and treat them in this manner? You attack this city unprovoked.”
“Oh, we were provoked alright, so drop the act, bitch,” Andros said. “You likely knew the risk of alerting us and stupidly took it anyway. A shame. My men’s description of your ways is off. The old you would’ve sold the hero out in an instant, taking our reward, and moving on with your day. What’s changed? There is no way his puny power could’ve convinced someone like you to pick a fight with the Black Cross.” He glanced at the smoking crater.
“You’ve jumped to conclusions, made bad judgements, and attacked my innocent city,” the Red Star said. “If you and your men don’t leave, I’ll make you. The Lord Ruler will be notified of your actions.”
“You could notify as much as you want, but we only mobilize on royal family orders,” Andros said darkly. “Whether it’s the princess or her brothers, or her sister, it matters not.”
The Red Star’s aura began to flare up and Andros knew she’d feebly try to stand against him. He motioned for the plant behind her to do his job. However, to her credit, the Red Star’s sense of danger likely kicked in as she jumped into the air, dodging the dagger. However, that miscalculation left Hector open.
The only reason why he didn’t kill Hector was because he simply saw no point. Even if he could hurt the woman emotionally, Andros simply saw no use to doing so. Not yet. They had answers he wanted. By setting up a public execution, his plan to draw the Red Star from hiding worked.
Stepping forward, still calm, but filled with inner rage that couldn’t be quenched, Andros fired two bolts of red lightning at the landing Red Star. Her translucent shield bubble emerged, but it wasn’t enough to save her from being blasted into a building. In one jump, he landed next to her, but quickly found himself sidestepping another blue fireball.
“Your soul fire is interesting, wench, and if you weren’t a sniveling noble, I’d consider recruiting you into the Black Cross for that alone,” Andros commented, then kicked the woman into the air. He vanished then reappeared in her path and with a red lightning-coated backhand, slapped her to the side. She hit the ground, but quickly got up, her aura raging. Some people watched the fight with awe while others ran. However, civilians were no longer able to flee due to the erected pressure. “I think I’ve had enough of this little exchange of ours. You’ve wasted enough of my time now.”
Andros aimed two fingers at her. “Shall I kill them one by one?”
The Red Star made the mistake of widening her eyes. However, a sense of danger licked Andros’s senses.
He stopped mid-charge as some figures appeared on top of the roof. They were dressed in cloaks and masks of different colors and shapes, and it was impossible to identify any of them. Only one didn’t wear a cloak, the hero himself. That wasn’t the alarming part for Andros. Among the cloaked figures, someone held terrifying power. The figure’s natural presence somewhat reminded him of the Peace Spawner… but there wasn’t a wick of evil from this titan. Interesting. The hero brought someone that could actually fight Andros. But what did this mean?
“So you’ve come,” Andros said. “I certainly hope you haven’t chosen to die today.”
