Kane had originally planned to observe the situation within this troop honestly and to escape when the accompanying warriors let their guard down.
However, less than two hours into the journey with the group, they had emerged from the forest onto the open plains.
Thanks to the soldiers—and the middle-aged Baron leading them—not forbidding the captives walking among them from whispering to each other, Kane had gathered the destination of their march as well as a fair bit of information about the land of Korlos from the others around him.
Gazing towards a city with formidable walls in the distance, hands tied, Kane couldn't help but mutter to himself with unease, "This is bad, very bad..."
How do I put it?
This continent called Korlos is indeed a bizarre place.
Not to mention anything else, the shift of its seasons alone is vastly different from the world Kane knew.
In Kane's original world, there were four seasons within a year: spring, summer, autumn, and winter, each cycling in turn.
But in the land of Korlos, while also featuring these four seasons, the transition between summer and winter is measured in years, not by months like spring and autumn!
For instance, the current summer in the land of Korlos, having lasted for 16 years, is about to end. It will soon be followed by an autumn of just over three months, which then gives way to a winter that will also need to endure for over 16 years!
And winter, coincidentally, is the season when the Corpse Demons, who stay buried underground throughout spring, summer, and autumn, reawaken!
The Corpse Demons are, in turn, the nemesis of all living beings...
Furthermore, during the frigid winter when cultivation becomes impossible, though creatures across the globe vigorously store food during the summer, such unfathomably long and harsh winters extending up to 16 years would surely plunge the farming civilizations of the land of Korlos into a crisis of food scarcity!
Faced with all of this information casually revealed through conversations among others, how can one not feel like the land of Korlos teeters on the brink of an apocalyptic precipice?
And here I am, somehow meant to figure out a way to “transfer” people from my original world to this one with utmost haste.
Alright, facing this kind of situation, it's no wonder Kane feels thoroughly disordered.
However, he first needed to put aside these thoughts and start figuring out solutions for the imminent dilemma he would soon face.
After all, their destination was the Demon Hunter Troop, a force devoted to combatting independently formed entities of darkness and chaotic creatures.
The dangers ahead were evident—after all, the world's authorities habitually dispatched prisoners of war and criminals, those devoid of human rights, into the Demon Hunter Troop.
Kane was far from being a weakling, but having lived in the era of peace for more than twenty years without the taste of a real battle, being sold to such a militant group for a meager sum of two gold coins made him feel as if he was living on borrowed time.
As he gazed at the golden wheat fields swaying with the gentle breeze and the beautiful estates nestled on both sides of the road, he couldn't deny the beauty before his eyes.
However, after learning all this information, he couldn't genuinely appreciate it. Somehow, he dwelled on the last words 'he' spoke to him in his consciousness three days ago: "It's time to say goodbye. Here's a little tip: when you have settled down over there, remember to visit the library in Helensburgh frequently..."
Could it be that 'he'…or himself from another time and space, also encountered these circumstances when first arriving in the land of Korlos?
The more he thought about it, the more likely it felt. Gaining a sense of solace from the thought, at least another version of himself had managed to tackle a situation similar to his own, hadn't he?
If this were an inescapable deathtrap, 'he' wouldn't have broken through space-time barriers to warn him after thirty-two years, right?
Self-consolation seemed to be the only course for the moment. After stabilizing his frantic emotions, Kane began to pay attention to the recurring restless urgings that emerged deep within his soul, urging him to visit certain places.
Very much like the 'system' he had developed.
Or perhaps, a male innate instinct that triggers when a boy is on the verge of manhood.
This strange feeling was connected to his 'Treasure Seeker' ability.
Understanding that these mental calls were from his 'Treasure Seeker' trait, detecting unclaimed treasures, and drawing him to explore, Kane quietly marked the locations where he felt this pull. When he eventually earned his freedom, he would revisit these places, hoping the treasures they hid would prove beneficial.
Thus, after another half-hour passed, the group finally crossed the vast wheat fields outside the city and reached the back of the queue entering Leon City.
The middle-aged baron, without slowing down his spirited horse, didn't choose to enter the city as Kane had imagined. Instead, he turned left onto a cobblestoned path.
At the same time, several of Kane's companions consciously slowed down their pace.
Seeming to read their minds, Zack pulled an arrow from his quiver at that moment, rested it on the longbow in his left hand, and announced menacingly,
“You lot, don't think I'm unaware of your schemes. You're quite welcome to try. Killing you here would at most cost the baron a few gold coins. Don't assume this would cause him any trouble. Even in this territory of Marquis Ramsden, your fate as thieves would still lead you to the Demon Hunter troops.”
“Of course, it's also possible that, once inside Leon City, the mood of any guard captain might just lead them to swiftly execute you fools on the spot. Throwing your bodies to the wilderness for the wolves to clean up is not off the table either.”
Under such threats, the group involuntarily turned pale, clearly lacking the courage to test the truth of his words. They promptly quickened their pace, catching up with the main body of the procession that had neither stopped nor slowed down from the beginning.
As for Kane, having resolved to join the so-called Demon Hunter troops, to stabilize and gather more information about this world, naturally, he wasn't about to stir up trouble at this critical juncture.
Moreover, the “thieves” referred to by the middle-aged man, excluding Kane, the other twenty-eight were essentially ordinary Commoners who, unable to survive under the exploitation of their lords, were forced to take up arms in a life of raiding and stealing.
As to whether they were good or bad, innocent or not, having weathered the harsh, deceitful society for over a decade, Kane, even knowing this, obviously wouldn't further comment.
After all, who can clearly articulate the definitions of good and bad, of right and wrong?
After about another twenty minutes’ walk, passing through vast graveyards, the group of over forty people finally stopped before a mountain's base.
Looking at the giant fortress, its handmade log walls standing over ten meters high, connected to the external walls of Leon City, it was clear they had reached their destination. Kane, like the rest of the group, hastened his steps.
"Whoosh—thud!"
Eyeing the arrow quivering in the ground before him, the middle-aged baron at the front of the group instinctively tightened the reins.
"Knights, state your business!"
A crisp female voice echoed from the fortress's direction.
Aware that the Demon Hunter corps' influence amongst humanity had waned, the baron surely comprehended that a starving camel is still larger than a horse.
Thus, even being misidentified as knights—a notion typically seen as an insult to any noble under normal circumstances—did not rile up the baron, accustomed to his lofty status back in his lands.
Instead, with a smile, he called out, "Brethren of the Demon Hunters, please inform Captain Stanley Ford that Jack Dorne, the lord of the Dorne kingdom, has arrived to deliver twenty-nine volunteers who wish to join the Demon Hunter troops."
After a moment, as the gates, opened by a middle-aged man adorned in black, embellished armor wearing a black cloak, creaked, the fortress welcomed them in, and the momentarily paused procession stepped forward once again.