"Also? Did you talk with someone else about this?" Zairus frowned since he hadn't seen his son talking with anyone. "Well, this is a common thing, and… Lord Ekirenton should know by now that we are a valuable force to have on his side. Although many strange things that happened helped us a lot, they were suspicious… also… well, never mind."

It seemed like something was bothering Zairus as well, but he didn't want to share that with Gaius yet. That was probably for the best since the timing wasn't ideal and he likely had something troubling him. It was better to deal with that later since they had a bigger problem ahead of them.

During those days, they received some food that was better than rations and could actually be cooked, which helped lift everyone's spirits a bit. Good food was the most common type of mood enhancer and had no downsides, after all.

Although they walked without being in a hurry, they reached the capital of Ekireton's territory in just three days. The place was quite large and protected by a massive wall, with a stone base and an upper half made of wood… it seemed like a strange combination since it could be burned down, but it didn't look like it had been attacked even once. The walls were thirty meters tall, so they looked quite reassuring.

The city was big enough to house eighty thousand people already, but more than ten thousand people had come for the event, so they would have to camp outside and wait for the ceremony that was going to take place the next day. Gaius was already used to camping, but that didn't mean he wouldn't trade it for an actual bed if he had the chance.

"I don't know how much I will receive, so I guess I should tell the others to sell the things they got during the battle…" Gaius considered while squinting his eyes. "They ate the animals they hunted, but they still had a bunch of fur and the equipment they acquired… it's amazing how much loot is left behind after battles."

Gaius gave the order for Rein and Relia to handle that and split the money into two parts. One part would go to Gaius, and the other would go to his soldiers… they needed some payment, even though they hadn't received any until now. Living a second life was supposed to be a good enough payment, but Gaius couldn't say that when he was in a similar condition as them. He truly couldn't tell if one day Angela would get sick of him and then he would go kapoof.

Although some people went to check things in the city once they finished setting up their tents, only a handful of the villagers did that… They wanted to return home, even though the war hadn't lasted long. The adults were sick and tired of war, and the kids who had lost a father or grandfather felt firsthand what they would have to deal with if they chose that path.

Gaius thought they would have some peace until the next morning, but much to his surprise, while he was thinking about the future, he saw some people wearing flashy armor walking around and talking with some of the soldiers. The conversations were brief, so it seemed like they were only informing a few people of some things… until they reached the area where the villagers were camping.

"... Gaius, don't say anything, all right?" Zairus asked. "Just nod with your head, and if you have to say anything, just say that I will think about it."

Gaius frowned after hearing that… it seemed that something troubling was happening behind the scenes without him knowing. Still, he didn’t have time to ask his father about it since those people were heading toward him.

Eventually, Gaius recalled that the person leading the small group was the commander during the war… he couldn’t recall his name, but he was a tall, black-haired man with brown eyes who carried a blue spear. He wasn’t as muscular as Zairus, but he had a certain presence… Gaius soon confirmed who he was.

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

Kennil Lv 85

Health: 1010/1010

Mana: 160/160

Stamina: 670/670

Strength: 130

Endurance: 75

Adaptability: 35

Magic: 14

Resistance: 38

Wisdom: 22

Dexterity: 72

Perception: 72

Luck: 32

Free points: 00

“He is certainly strong… still, for someone who reached that level of influence, it seems like he had to fight quite a bit, and this seems odd,” Gaius thought. "Angela was right... just getting stronger by fighting isn't enough, there are plenty of ways to get rid of someone powerful. Even if they can split boulders with a single punch, people need to sleep and eat too."

“Captain Zairus… this is your son, am I right?” Kennil asked.

“Captain?” Gaius frowned.

“Yes, sir…” Zairus replied without a hint of enthusiasm in his voice.

“You still don’t seem that interested in the proposal, huh?” Kennil said while studying father and son. “No matter, it isn’t a question that needs to be answered right now… In any case, I just came to inform you two that we noticed your hard work, and you will be called forward tomorrow during the ceremony to receive extra rewards. My lord values and wishes to reward those who worked extra hard for his people.”

“Understood,” Zairus nodded.

Kennil left the area after nodding as well. He didn’t seem like an arrogant fool, or maybe it was just his way of acting toward those who could become valuable resources for the territory and the lord. In any case, Gaius quickly understood his situation… to keep his family on their good side, they gave Zairus a title and probably wanted Gaius to head to their territory to be trained and then grow there to become loyal to the lord as well.

“It seems that we were observed during the fights, am I right?” Gaius asked while looking at his father. “By the way, congratulations on the promotion, father.”

“Yeah, I don’t like the promotion at all, and you’re right,” Zairus said and then sighed. “The commander offered that you could expedite your training… While you’ve already shown some skills, we know you can improve much with proper guidance. We also realized that you focus on using the bow, even though you could become even more effective with a spear, so the commander said he could work on your courage.”

Gaius furrowed his eyebrows when he heard that… he only used the bow because he didn’t have to wait for the enemies to get closer to deal with them. Also, he had talked with Angela a few days ago, and she explained some other things about his powers and the abilities he gained from multiple people. Several of his soldiers had granted him Bow Mastery and Spear Mastery, and he seemed more skilled with Spear Mastery because he had to do more with that kind of weapon.

However, all the experience and skills that his soldiers had related to their main skills could be used by him. That was why he was able to handle a spear even though he only trained with basic techniques… it was because he had the experience of dozens of people who had trained with the weapon for years. He didn’t have the knowledge directly, but he had instinctual access to it.

"Your mother will have many reasons to be against that, but it isn’t a bad idea for your future…" Zairus added. "Ekirenton will treat us better, and we will receive better treatment and pay fewer taxes now that we are working in his ranks… it would be better if we could avoid wars and conflicts, but we can’t if we want to remain in this place. Regardless, you can think about it for a few months before deciding."

Gaius nodded; he should have known that something like this would happen given what he did during the short war… but that wasn’t too bad per se. He wasn’t interested in becoming anyone else’s minion, but he was interested in the opportunity to become more free. He felt bad for Kaira, who would see her only child leaving home at that age, but she was a bit too overprotective, and Gaius technically wasn’t an eight-year-old boy.

In any case, Gaius didn’t have to think too much about that. He would have to follow some orders if he decided to be trained by the people of that city, but he wouldn’t have to train all day, every day, and he should be able to gain some benefits if he showed results as well… that should help him, his family, and his village. He also could kill Ekirenton and turn him into his minion. That should be enough to make it worth the while... hopefully, he will learn enough of combat in a couple of months before he obtains control of the state.

"Wow, I am really thinking like a villain..." Gaius thought while furrowing his eyebrows.