Something was not right.

Hubert was beginning to wonder if his intuition had any bases, he didn't remember anything close to what was going on. Leaving aside the strange situation of the carriage outside, his Disciple-tier skill 『Miasmic Pulse』 had only heightened his uneasiness. Through the use of this ability, it was possible to feel the innocuous density in the air at that moment, as if the wind itself had made room for the rain to fall.

No, he had had a similar experience on the battlefield before.

When the commander channeled significant amounts of energy, Hubert recognized that the air had become heavy and difficult to bring inside the lungs. As if the wind itself had its own agenda, having somewhere better to be than giving him breath.

Before the commander could put his concerns into words, the sawmill door opened. A beautiful woman dressed luxuriously with long red hair entered the room.

However, Hubert was experienced enough to realize that appearances were sometimes deceiving. There were red flags all around her presence, even her smell. That detail would have been brushed aside by most elemental warriors, but not his heightened perception, awakened when he advanced to Disciple due to his great battle expertise in the past, Hubert did not doubt that the aura that was around this tiny woman was of malignant origin.

"Hey sorry to barge in at such a weird time, can I step inside?" She kindly asked—the naïveness of a child could be felt through her voice.

"Yeah, I guess you c—"

As Marcus was about to invite her in, he was suddenly interrupted by Hubert.

“No you cannot. Who are you?”

Her hands had a smell that reminded Hubert of times he didn’t really want to think of anymore. Beneath that perfume aroma, he could sense…death.

A sadistic smile appeared on the girl's face.

"This is not the way to talk to a lady ... But no need to worry, I will step inside anyway."

"I'm Lucretia Umbra, nice to meet you too Commander…Hubert is that it?"

“That’s impossible, they all perished over four centuries ago.” Hubert interjected.

“We were all betrayed, it's true. My beloved siblings and grandchildren taken from this world in a single night of terrors. Still, from the hatred I thrived. And so I ascended a step they hoped I never would." She said, scowling in the direction of her pale hands.

Hubert shivered and his muscles tensed up.

“What are you?”

Marcus was looking confusedly at his commander, who was acting unusual. Soldiers would often act very rude towards one another, but when it came to relations with nobles they were expected to be treated with respect. It had not been more than six months since Marcus had to memorize Elba's army code of conduct to join the kingdom's forces, so he was almost certain that there was some law not to lack respect in the front of nobles such as that woman.

And if there was no such law, in his opinion it should exist. For every soldier was well aware that for every ten armor worn by them, at least eight were financed by the richest noble families in Elba, a gentle investment for the protection of the kingdom.

"H-How do you know my name?"

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“I had a little chat with the boys inside the outpost over there. I can’t say they provided me any fun, I guess they were too busy running for their lives.”

Following her index finger to where she pointed, Marcus saw a man being thrown out of the window. However as crazy as it looked, for him, it didn’t feel real at all. There was absolutely no noise from the glass being shattered.

He couldn’t possibly know, he wasn’t strong enough. He lacked the Third Step to realize that the entire hut had been isolated, not by the rain but by 『Calamis - Sound Barrier』, therefore no sound could get in or outside that area for five minutes.

And five minutes was all it took.

“You aren’t like them are you Hubert? I don’t want you to break my heart like they’ve done. Tell me where Alaeria Fenathus is located and I’ll let you go unscathed.”

“Fenathus… What could you possibly want with—”

“No…”

Shaking his head in response, the commander pulled the sword from its sheath and prepared for battle.

As a dutiful commander from the Kingdom of Elba, he knew very well that giving information to the enemy was unacceptable, House Fenathus was amongst the ancient houses with most tradition. Unfortunately, there were no ways to escape the direct confrontation, especially with another soldier watching their conversation, the least he could do was show the young private how an exemplary Disciple, no, a soldier behaved when intimidated in such a way.

“I’ll leave as soon as I hear where she is, I can give you my word.”

“No, you won’t leave at all. You’ve come all this way and wounded my company, killed my comrades. Stole them from their futures like they were nothing. Those were good people, good men.”

“That’s a honorable speech commander, but I doubt you can do anything about it either.”

“Those who stand with justice can’t possibly lose. The Nine Gods are watching and they shall condemn you for your atrocities through my sword!”

A cry of a stern voice from a male soldier which had seen war echoed across the room. Not wasting time, he quickly dashed towards the girl with his sword in hand. Running in the direction of Lucretia he jumped and delivered a cutting blow. Casually taking a step back, the girl dodged and teased the man with the scar on his mouth.

“Why is it, this unwillingness to just think the slightest bit? Just tell me where she is.”

Marcus was watching the battle from the corner of the room. Frightened and unable to call for help or escape from that sawmill, he saw the commander who had been treated as the best duelist of the entire company among the soldiers— yet even him was showing difficulty keeping up with her.

The cloak hanging from his back moved with every severe attack he made. Although the commander was a tall soldier, his best days were behind him. Appearing fatigue shortly after his initial attack, it was clear to Marcus that his commander would need help in that fight.

"Sir let me join you in battle!" He eagerly raised his ax.

The woman giggled as soon as she heard the proposal.

“Oh my, oh my! Two strong soldiers ganging up on a frail girl, do your human consciences not think? Isn’t there something off with your sense of honor? Does all logic fade away in eternal blightness at a time of need?”

“Stay out of this private! Don't let her looks fool you!”

“I don’t mind two men coming at me, personally. It would not be my first time either... ”Lucretia replied as she fanned herself.

“Besides, reinforcements simply mean more insects for me to step on.”

That sent chills down Marcus's spine, although she appeared to be a helpless young woman in her twenties, the tone of voice did not imply that it was a bluff.

Disregarding the comment, Hubert kept his eyes on the approaching noblewoman. At that distance, any movement that could be seen from her shoulders could have been his last. The five keen senses would not be enough to deal with someone like her. The high heel could be heard hitting the wood, slowly approaching him as if she was in no hurry to end the confrontation.

Trying to keep his composure and calm, he took a deep breath and tapped into the elemental energy. This woman in front of him was certainly powerful beyond comparison, letting more soldiers interfere in the battle would only limit their chances of survival.

“To come this far north and challenge a hardened Disciple near breaking through Sentinel to a duel is beyond stupidity.”

The man replied in a low voice. Opening one of his hands, he channeled elemental energy around the environment and invoked his technique.

『Ignis - Circle of Ashes』

Smoke began to appear slowly through the cracks in the wood on the floor. Pressure so intense that the ground started to tremble. From beneath, fire began to pour from the ground, spreading through the entire sawmill. Flames circled the entire terrain around the two combatants, making a circle of flaming fire. Completely ignoring the water that still fell from the sky torrentially, the fire did not seem to have a natural origin, so it could not be easily extinguished with just water.

“Private, run towards my tent and signal our position with the Light Crystal! I'll hold her off!”