'Avifauna Empathy... so this is how the black beast could follow me and watch my every move,' Keegan thought. Though he'd managed to figure out the black beast's tracking method, he simply couldn't believe it possessed such an ability. A gifted monster, indeed.

Though reading the description of the ability, Keegan realized he might have been a bit hasty in opening his status window. He had a vague idea of what his new ability could do, but reading it only confirmed his suspicions.

'But limited range?' Keegan thought. This gift would have been incredibly useful for what he was about to do in this land if only it had a wider range.

He closed the status window, unknown as to when he'll open or if he'll ever open again.

Avifauna Empathy.

The blue bird remained on his shoulder. Strangely, it felt like there were two scenes in his view. He could see and hear what the bird was seeing and hearing, though a little distorted.

It then flew high and when it reach a certain distance, say 40 meters he estimated, their connection was cut, the bird suddenly dropped in the air for a moment before it managed to flap it wings before it could completely hit the ground, it looked confused at its surrounding before flying away.

'A radius of 40? Well, that's not very far.' He sighed. Oh, how much better it would have been if he could have eyes all over the continent with this ability. But alas...

He wondered if he could train and improve this ability. However, considering his first ability showed no signs of growth, the chances seemed low.

"Hair.... your eyes,...the same in home?" Russ suddenly said, his demeanor still has an awkward tone to it, not knowing how to act around him.

It took a moment before Keegan understood what he was referring.

"Ah, hair..." He ran his hands through his hair. It did indeed look strange, the color black having been tainted with orange, though not completely. This happened when he acquired his dragon's breath ability. His eyes, however, had always been that color.

Though he did wonder if gaining this new ability change something in him too, no it definitely did, whether it can be seen physically is another matter.

"Somewhat..." he answered. Russ seemed like he wanted to ask more questions - questions that were on his mind, his family's, and perhaps everyone else in the village. But the language barrier prevented them from having a more in-depth conversation.

Keegan sighed, he hoped to have a normal conversation soon. It was a struggle dealing with the situation, he'd rather fight that beast again and pay it back for what it did to him.

Speaking of that beast, where is it now he wondered? He had managed to gravely injured it before falling into a river. But judging how it didn't finish him, it either died or retreated because of its injury.

As the hours passed, they encountered few travelers as well, but none approached him, given his appearance and demeanor.

When the sun reached its highest point, a castle came into view, its gray walls adorned with blue accents. Banners with a symbol of a bird etched fluttered from its walls, which stood more than 6 meters tall. The highest part of the keep soared to over 20 meters.

Outside the walls, rows of houses could be seen, bustling with people of all walks of life.

They had reached Castle June.

----------------------------------------

"I told you we should've taken some! Those blasted - I mean, castle guards - have probably taken a few of their own with them..." Elmer grumbled, trailing off as his friend shot him a warning look.

"It's done... No point regretting..." Arnuld said, though the tone of his voice says otherwise.

"Just think," Elmer continued, "if we'd grabbed a few of these gems, I could've bought a new house for my wife-to-be... You could've opened your own tavern."

Arnuld's face now bore a touch of regret.

"With the money, we could be drowning in wine right now...." Elmer added last with a sigh.

Arnuld sighed as well, "That man was a lord..."

" Yes but from a foreign land, where did he was found again?"

"Just by Goru river, apparently a washerwoman found him..."

Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.

"Are we sure he's a foreigner?" Arnuld asked, shooting a sidelong glance at his friend. "The distance of the sea from here, even by the straightest route, takes two days. And while the forest isn't as perilous as the infamous ones, it's still dangerous to traverse on foot. Unless, of course, he was carried by the river for two straight days..."

"Hell if I know, but I haven't seen someone like him in these lands.."

"You barely explored this region..."

"Think about it," Elmer grumbled. "We've never seen anyone like him here, especially with that hair. Is that normal where he's from? Anyway, the man's been unconscious for days at least. How could someone survive that long without help? He was practically dead when they found him, unconscious and abandoned. Taking something from someone who was as good as dead shouldn't matter, right?"

Arnuld sighed and looked up at the sky. "Come on," he said to Elmer, "let's get some lunch." He then grabbed his spear and helm, as they rose from where they'd been perched.

"Do you supposed we'd get latrine duties this week?" Elmer asked, grabbing his own spear and helm.

"I hope not."

"Yes me too, I don't want to head to the brothel smelling like shit."

"As if your face isn't enough to drive them away.."

"Screw you"

As they approached the lunch hall for the town guards, they overheard a faint commotion – more like gossiping and murmuring really. The two exchanged a look, wondering if trouble had arrived. They followed the pointed gazes of some people to see what was happening.

In the end, there were left stunned.

The subject of their conversation just moments ago were walking towards them, no, towards the castle.

Seeing the person who they had concluded, dying or dead by now, whole and walking, shock filled their eyes.

It was only when the man got closer when Arnuld snapped out of his state.

"I'll inform the castle!" He said, quickly turning around and headed towards the castle gate.

"Wait, I'll join you!"

----------------------------------------

'Hmm, maybe I should have hidden my hair color,' Keegan thought, noticing people murmuring and glancing pointedly in his direction.

He saw from some distance what looked like two guards suddenly dashing towards the castle.

No doubt people of the town didn't forget about his appearance by their reaction.

He wondered how would the lord of the castle react. Nobles have certain etiquettes surrounding them. Stealing another lord's property is usually looked down upon, but this was a different land, and he was from a distant one.

He just hoped it wouldn't be bloody. The last thing he wanted was for the lords of these lands to declare him a criminal. That would hinder his goal greatly.

Taking a closer look at the houses and buildings, he noticed the prominent use of stone and wood in their architecture, particularly the large wooden columns. Most striking, however, was the vibrant use of color. While blue dominated, some houses displayed accents of orange, yellow, and red.

If the towns in his previous land were proper medieval-like towns, this place gave him a certain sense of fantastical wonder.

Truly the world has much to offer.

When they reach a certain distance, Keegan turned towards Russ who was fidgeting, no doubt unsure and uncomfortable about the upcoming matter.

"Stay here...I go." Keegan said which greatly relaxed Russ as he nodded.

Soon, he continued on towards his destination. Then, from the alleys, he spotted what he assumed were town guards judging by their appearance. He wondered if he'd be apprehended before even reaching the gate, but they simply watched him, unsure of how to proceed.

Soon, he stood before a large wooden gate, roughly twice the height of a man. The castle guards standing above the wall, clad in armor that resembled brigandines but differed in some details, watched him with wary and threatening expressions on their stone faces.

He stopped about 6 meters from the gate. A new person emerged from the top of the wall, grizzled and older by his white hair. Before he could speak, Keegan beat him to it.

He cleared his throat and shouted, "I come retrieve my weapons!"

His shout hushed the surrounding area. Everyone waited with bated breath. Moments passed before the elder on the wall finally spoke.

"We have nothing...what... You have! We take nothing that is ours by...!"

Because his voice was loud Keegan was able to make out and understand most of his words thought it was still too quick for him, but what he understood didn't bode well for him.

"My weapons, you take... without my will!"

His words infuriated everyone on the wall. He heard the ominous creak of bows being nocked and drawn, and every eye glared down at him from the above the wall.

Fury contorted the elder man's face, his body trembling with contained rage. "...Are you calling us..."

Keegan didn't understand the last word because of the way the man said it, but if he had to guess it was "thieves"

By now, the number of castle guards on the wall had swelled. More archers lined up, nocking their arrows and aiming directly at him. It seemed his few words had struck a nerve. Even the large heavy crossbows' he'd noticed earlier, especially the one positioned closest to him, few as they were, were now pointed in his direction.

Keegan, however, wasn't fazed in the least. His passive yet fearless demeanor seemed to unnerve some of the guards.

He pondered his next move, even considering his plan to sneak inside the castle at night. Suddenly, the elder lord and the guards shifted their attention away from him, their gazes fixed on something behind him. Keegan followed their line of sight, turning to see what had captured their interest.

Two well-groomed horses, ridden by warriors clad in full chest plates, layered and plated shoulder guards, and thigh guards, came into view. They wore open-faced helmets. Behind them, a luxurious carriage pulled by four horses was coming towards the gate.

The carriage sported a vibrant green and gray color scheme, matching the armor of the two mounted warriors. Seeing this, all the castle guards lowered their bows and stood at attention.

Orders barked from above the wall. The castle gate groaned open, and a group led by the elder man from before emerged.

The guards behind him jabbed spears at him, barking orders in short, harsh shouts even though he could barely understand some of the words.

The elder man leading turn livid at this and almost wanted to shout, but seeing the approaching carriage was getting close he refrained from doing so.

The guards' yells died down as the approaching carriage came closer. They had looked ready to skewer Keegan like a porcupine, but the new arrival put a stop to their threats. Watching all these, Keegan sighed, 'What a mess'