Mash waited with Jill until she had recovered. Another few teleports and she had returned with his brother, Red, and all of the remaining prisoners. They were all quickly escorted away this time. The knights were prepared this time and didn’t panic upon the arrival of new people. It helped that they had been warned by the general. It was handled professionally, and the prisoners were never given the chance to flee or even protest. They were hauled away without even getting their injuries treated. Although none of them had anything too bad. The worst Mash had seen who was burned and frostbitten at the same time. An odd combination, but the knights didn’t bat an eye at the sight now. Either his brother’s presence or the generals were enough to dispel any disorder among the knights.

At the end of it all, Mash was prepared to leave and find Luke but was stopped. A man in a uniform rather than armor had approached him. Well not him, the man had approached Jill specifically. When he stepped into Mash’s domain, Mash stared in surprise. He didn’t feel anything from the man. No emotions, mana, or life. Even Red, who was an undead, gave off an aura of life. It was almost like the man didn’t even exist. Priscilla didn’t seem to know anything either. Mash stared hard at the man and tried to figure out what was happening. He didn’t wear armor but had a stiff purple uniform. It looked like the same uniform he saw on his brother but was dyed yellow. That wasn’t the kingdom’s colors, and Mash wondered why someone was wearing something like that. The uniform stood out, its garish color separating the man from everyone else.

“The General has requested your presence. Now, please follow me.”

The man could only be described as prim. From the stiffness of his uniform to his stoic voice, he was even primmer than a servant would be. His hear was heavily greased and combed back away from his forehead. He even had a small mustache that was kept to perfection and curved slightly near the ends. He finished speaking and turned abruptly. His uniform billowing out a little at the motion. Without waiting for a response, he started walking away. Jill glanced at Red, who only responded with a shrug. She then turned her gaze to him, and he just shrugged too. The only thing refusing would accomplish, was a whole lot of nothing.

The shrugs done, they decided to follow the prim man. The man hadn’t turned around once, so the three of them had to walk quickly to catch up. Despite the importance of the people inside, the building itself was plain. It was made of stone brick that was organized simply. Simple rooms lined straight hallways. He had caught glimpse of a simple training ground that was much smaller than the one his brother had at home. The man didn’t give them much time to explore and only stopped once. He paused beside a door and turned to face them.

The door wasn’t fancy or anything. The door was just like any other, and the man opened it for them. He stood at the side and said nothing. His gaze was fixed on them, but he just stood there ominously. It was sufficiently creepy, and the three of them rushed in to avoid his eyes. The inside of the room wasn’t particularly special either. It had a simple wooden desk, and the general sat behind it. Arthur was there too, but he stood and looked through a window that was behind the desk. It was aimed toward the city. Other than his brother, Mash noticed that Luke was there too. he sat at one of four chairs that were laid out in front of the desk.

There were some papers on the desk, and it wasn’t hidden at all. Mash could easily snoop, even without using his domain. Although his domain didn’t let him actually read simple text. It was strange, but normal ink would just blend into the paper whereas magical ink would be plain as day to his skill. Mash didn’t bother with trying to peep. It wasn’t his business, and he didn’t want to get more involved than he already was. The only thing he wanted to do was head back north and fight more monsters. He got the sneaking suspicion that fate had something else in mind for him.

“Please, sit down.”

The general spoke more politely now than she had before. Mash didn’t know if that was a good sign or a bad one, but he followed the others as they took seats beside Luke. The wooden chairs they sat on were simple and it creaked loudly as he sat. His body was heavier than it looked, and he was by far the heaviest among them. Mash was a little worried, but it managed to hold him.

Mash heard the door behind him close, and the general leaned forward on her desk. She was still wearing most of her armor. Only her helm sat on one corner of the desk. The metal plates ground into the wooden table as she leaned on her elbows. She was about to speak, but Arthur barreled over her opportunity.

“The General wants to recruit you for war. Specifically, Jill.”

He spoke flatly, his tone was perfectly controlled. Mash seemed to be the only one who seemed to know that his brother was angry. Arthur didn’t want him to accept the offer. His dislike radiated off of him like an aura, but his brother’s face and voice gave nothing away.

Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

“Although, you are all welcome to join. High leveled individuals are always valuable."

Mash nodded along. He knew some of this already and would've expected people to approach them earlier. Recruitment was something every kingdom partook in, and that would even extend to kidnapping at times. Perhaps that was what the previous group has planned. Or maybe they would've used him to get at his brother and sister. That seemed more likely to him.

Mash considered what he wanted to do. The idea of fighting and killing countless people sounded sickening. Images of the people he had already killed hung in his mind. Even if the people were invading his home, he didn't want to kill so many people. They would just be following the orders of another, and in any case, he didn't care who ruled. The adventurers guild was an independent organization, but its many members didn't adhere to that code. No matter what king ruled, he would continue to live the way he wanted. Although, he had been paying his taxes. Well, Jill had been paying them for the entire group. Mash had actually forgotten that adventurers needed to pay for things like that. His thoughts were wandering and he snapped back to the conversation as Jill replied.

"We wouldn't mind helping if Arthur asked, but I don't want to become a pack mule or anything."

Jill hadn't consulted with the rest of the group. Although her words received nods from all of them, Mash included. It was reasonable and the plain truth as far as he was concerned. If Arthur asked for it, Mash would join the battle without hesitation. His brother looked happy with the response. His brother's face didn't actually change, but now there was a gleam of triumph in his eyes. The general’s face scrunched up for a moment but only a moment.

“So, if I’m understanding this correctly, you will place one of those marks on Arthur and aide him in dire straits. You also have some method for instantaneous long-distance communication that functions independent of either person.”

She glanced at his brother’s forearm. Priscilla’s body could be seen coiling around it. The cloth of his uniform wasn’t thick enough to hide her body. That alone wouldn’t have alarmed Mash. It was the incredible accuracy of her statement. He had thought that she had a method to read classes, but it seemed like she could read far more than that. She was hinting that she knew some or all of what their skills did. Both situations were a little mind-boggling. He had never heard of any items or skills that let someone do that. Mash couldn’t keep his mouth shut any longer.

“What level are you?”

Jill and Red turned to him. Mash hadn’t been listening to what Jill had said in response. He just hoped he didn’t miss anything too important. The general was also staring at Mash, and he had to wonder if he had interrupted her by mistake. Interrupting his friends was one thing and doing the same to a renowned general was an entirely different matter. Mash coughed awkwardly as the silence lingered.

“Sorry…”

Mash apologized and trailed off as his brother stared at him. Even without any words, Mash could tell that Arthur was chastising him for his rudeness. Asking someone for their level was considered inappropriate at the very least and could even lead to fights in some situations. He really should not have asked that, but to his surprise, the General started chuckling. She seemed more amused than offended.

“Ha. The last person to ask me that was young Puck. And I will give you the same answer I gave him. I am the highest leveled person on this continent.”

There was so much confidence behind the grin she gave, that Mash could only believe that she was being completely honest. The words passed into Mash’s ears, and he froze. The highest what? No that didn’t make any sense, what about the gods? What about the world owner? Now that he was thinking about it, would the world owner even have levels? He knew that levels weren’t a comprehensive statement of strength, but still, how?

At that moment he would’ve joined the knights if he thought it would get him a straight answer. That probably wouldn’t happen, right? He shook his slightly but was intensely focused on the older woman now. It might be a little cheap, but now he was a little more invested in the conversation. He was always listening, but now he was paying way more attention. Red spoke before anyone else could, her voice was cold and haughty.

“You are using a skill aren’t you. My grandfather had something similar.”

The first part of her statement was for the general, but the latter was directed at everyone else. Mash instantly started letting out his anti-magic. His instincts, or rather Priscilla’s instincts kicked into overdrive. She started forcing him to use anti-magic, but it didn’t work. He couldn’t notice anything change. His domain didn’t show him anything either. Despite all that, he trusted Red. He jumped to his feet and pushed the chair back so that it would fall loudly. He didn’t know what the skill’s trigger was or if there was a way to break it, but he would try. The chair clattering didn’t seem to change anything either. It didn’t even serve to draw anyone’s attention.

[Priscilla, did you notice anything?]

[Nothing, is she certain? I should be able to notice any changes.]

Mash felt Priscilla was scanning his body thoroughly, but she was getting no results. Jill tried to teleport out. The space around her blurred, and she vanished for an instant, but she reappeared in the same place. Instead of stopping her from teleporting, it was more like she had just teleported in place. Their escape plan was gone now too. Fighting was a terrible option, but Mash couldn’t think of another. He didn’t want to fight the General, especially not if what she had said earlier was true, and he was suspecting that it was. Behind the door was the servant, and Mash suspected that the man would be stronger than he had appeared. So he threw his fist at the ground. Claws started growing up his arm, as the muscles puffed noticeably.