The trio encountered many people on their way to the city gates, coming and going from the giant entrances.

Kelsein was a giant city with ten gates for people to enter and exit, each with its armored guards and squad.

William had explicitly gone to the fourth gate since he knew the people here.

However, as he was still in Homer's appearance, things were different, and he couldn't interact with them how he truly wanted to, but the disguise was enough for now.

Getting close to the gates, they entered through the left side and headed straight towards a booth where they would get inspected.

Glancing at the guards, William couldn't help but smirk as things were going his way.

The guards were the same guards he had met in his previous life when he had run away with Rose.

Back then, it was only thanks to these guards, that they had made it through, since the two of them had lost their identities.

They were kind to lost and vulnerable children who had no backing and could be easily kidnapped and sold. They even sheltered them for some time since they had no place to sleep at night.

'One would call us naive for believing that people would help us for free, but in reality there are still kind people in the world, they just aren't many.'

William thought, a nostalgic feeling permeating his whole body.

He remembered how anxious he was those days, to the point that he couldn't sleep. He had stood at the door of the room with a knife in his hand, letting Rose rest in peace while waiting for them to do anything suspicious, but nothing like that happened.

He realized he had nothing to worry about only after learning about their background, where he was staying, and their story.

The guards who took him in had recently become part of the Red Dragon squad, the squadron that controlled the fourth gate. They were Jordan and Peter, two very average-looking youths with amicable smiles.

They both came from an orphanage and were never adopted, resulting in them growing up and giving their all to support the orphanage that kept them alive.

Becoming guards was just due to their hard work and diligence, wanting to do their best to protect the weak and innocent, causing them to awaken their aura.

William was an intelligent kid since he was young and never truly trusted anyone unless they had won it, and these two had won his trust with their pure-natured beliefs.

Even after the war had begun, as middle-aged men, they had done everything in their power to help all the ordinary people who had nowhere to go and no way to save themselves.

Sadly, their ending was tragic, as the people who killed them were the apparitions created by the common folk they tried so hard to protect.

The duo approached the disguised siblings as they were ordered to descend from the carriage and be inspected.

William signaled to his siblings not to speak lest they expose themselves.

"Before that, can we get a private meeting with the two of you?"

He asked, his voice matching that of the honest Homer.

[Sound Mimic] was an apprentice-level spell that distorted the sound of someone's voice to copy any sound, and William had used it to recreate Homer's voice.

Although this wasted his much needed mana even further, he had no choice but to use it. The spell circle was similarly etched on a piece of fabric.

Adam and Rose glanced at him in wonder while the guards frowned, not understanding what he wanted them to do.

After a few seconds of talking with each other, the guards brought them away from the still-waiting crowd, signaling for other guards to take their posts while they were escorting the siblings to an isolated area.

"So what is the meaning of this? Why did you want to talk to us alone? Don't tell me you want to bribe us?"

Said one of them, killing intent evident in his eyes.

William shook his head and waved his hand.

Suddenly, Homer's, Tyler's, and Kirk's frames started deforming like smoke.

The two guards instantly became vigilant, as aura congregated on their entire bodies, ready to attack at any moment.

A flame sword and a black spear appeared in their hands, respectively. These were their aspects: Flame Sword and Dark Spear. Although they were basic aspects, they had incredible power and potential as weapons since they grew with their user.

After a few seconds, the smoke was gone, and the three kids' figures were visible.

The two guard's eyes opened wide in disbelief at the scene, unaware of what was happening.

Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site.

"Who are you! How dare you use magic in front of the guards of the empire!"

Shouted one of them as he pulled out his sword.

The two of them were now much more on guard than before.

William smiled bitterly at their aggression, but he understood how they felt. His siblings glanced at him, not knowing what to do.

"My name is William Virtu and these two are my elder brother and younger sister."

Said William, prompting the others to announce their names.

"Adam Virtu."

"Rose Virtu."

After announcing their names, the two guards looked at them with strange gazes.

"Isn't that the surname of the holy knight, Malcolm Don Virtu? Are these three his children?"

Muttered one of them as he asked his friend.

"Well, I did hear that he had three kids, one girl and two boys, the eldest was said to be a genius in the sword, just like his father, his name was Adam I think… but I never heard of any of his children being able to use magic."

Said the other guard, his wariness lowering slightly, but it was still there.

"Do you have anything to confirm your identities?"

He asked with a solemn gaze.

William nodded and showed them his family emblem. It was an emblem created by a master blacksmith and infused with the blood of the royal who possessed the title so that it couldn't be faked. The symbol would shine if the individual holding it had the holder's bloodline.

Feeling the aura and seeing the emblem shine, the two finally lowered their guards.

"So it seems you really are Lord Malcolm's children, what are you doing here and not on the white dragon squad?"

Asked one of the guards, perplexed.

The white dragon squad was the squad that their father led, so it would be the right thing for them to assume that they would head to that squad.

Although the ten squads in the city were just sub-squads of the leading squadrons of the empire, they were of a higher grade than even the capital guards.

William and his siblings shook their heads at that question.

"We can't…"

Said Adam, killing intent running rampant in his amber eyes.

William spoke up before the guards could ask why that was the case.

"Our father is probably no longer the true squad leader. We barely escaped with our lives, while our mother has become a hostage, so we can't take any risk into heading there."

He said straightforwardly, not hiding anything about the situation from them.

The duo opened their eyes wide once more. This day was full of non-stop revelation for them.

"Just what do you mean by that? What is going on?"

They asked in unison, bewildered by William's statement.

William spent the next five minutes explaining what they had gone through and revealing to them that he was a third-stage apprentice mage.

He wasn't afraid of revealing it in the least. Even though a twelve-year-old third-stage apprentice was incredibly rare, it would only be a matter of time before he became a first-stage mage. By then, he wouldn't be so open about his skill level; after all, the more hidden trump cards, the better. But for now, he needed as much support as possible.

"Wow, a third stage mage apprentice at such a young age. No wonder you were able to fool even us with disguise magic, though if it was a sub-leader he would've easily seen through it. Anyway, from what you have told us, we can't really help with the situation, nor can we report to our superiors, since they might be involved with this whole fiasco."

Said one of the guards, speaking his thoughts out loud.

"All we need is for you to let us in with the identities of our disguise, we will take care of things by ourselves from there."

Said William, not going into too much depth with his explanation.

The two guards frowned, unsure if they should do such a thing. Although they were kind people, they still had to keep this job to help the orphanage, and this was a risky move for them.

William knew what they were thinking, so he continued speaking,

"Your jobs will be under no risk. The identities of these three are of criminals, but they have a connection to baron Max Byrd."

Hearing his words, the two of them paled in fright, but soon after, they calmed down, understanding the meaning behind William's words.

"So, that was the case, now it all makes sense. If baron Byrd is involved in this matter, even if we let you through, he won't even comb through us and will directly look for the three…"

Muttering one of the guards, his expression now relaxed.

The other guard also nodded at his words.

Adam and Rose stared at them weirdly, unaware of what was happening.

'Why are they being so cryptic? Can't they just speak like normal humans?'

Adam thought, rubbing his glabella in displeasure.

William looked at their confused gazes and explained, clearing any doubt.

"Baron Byrd is a ruthless guy that thinks he is the smartest, but in reality he is mostly brawn and no brain. He doesn't go through any normal civilians, guards or even captains due to his ego, using only his 'goons' to do the job. Most of the goons are criminals with a cleared record, so they don't dare to interact with guards, even if they are now free of any charges. I mean, if you think about it, he is searching for criminals that did his dirty job for him, so why would he use the soldiers when he would be exposed for treason against the empire for his actions of freeing criminals with his status? Although, that being said, the one's that will come after us are probably no ordinary criminals."

His explanation was rather long, so Rose had lost interest mid-way while Adam had a look of enlightenment.

"No wonder this guy always loses to father, with that intelligence of his, how did he even come up with this plan?"

Adam muttered, confusion once again, clouding his face.

William smiled mysteriously at his question and said nothing.

'You have no idea how deep this enmity runs. If that bastard Byrd was the last boss, then I wouldn't need to come here.'

He thought to himself while chanting, reactivating the three magic circles. He had previously deactivated the spells by no longer supplying them with mana, so he had to reactivate them.

His mana was already running low, and the disguise spell would only hold on for roughly ten more minutes, so they had to get things sorted fast.

Soon after, a mist covered the three siblings, transforming them into boorish men.

Looking at this scene, the two guards couldn't help but sigh in admiration.

A talent like William was indeed rare for magicians in the Thelwedean empire.

Exiting the isolated area, they returned to their carriage, and things proceeded smoothly.

The other guards looked at them weirdly but still found nothing wrong with them or their carriage; with the help of the two guards, they let them pass with no trouble.

William couldn't help but click his tongue at how lax the security of this place was. Having one connection allowed you to bypass all of it.

However, as soon as he entered the city, he frowned. He could already sense multiple demonic seeds in the area.

'I guess it had already started long ago.'

He thought, understanding how dire the circumstances were.

'The fact that demonic seeds have already been planted and some are already sprouted so early means that our doom has been impending since before my birth. Thankfully, I can sense the demonic seeds, so things will become easier.'

He could sense the demonic seeds due to his familiarity with them. These people didn't even bother hiding, thinking they would never be detected since the demons had yet to start the full-on invasion. They weren't like Sylmare, who had been hiding it with her powerful mana.

William had already adjusted his plans with this discovery, making it his main priority after getting rid of his family's enemies and settling in Kelsein.

The carriage drove into the city, and the people crowing the road made way, allowing them to pass.

The two guards stared at their departing figure and prayed for them.