Today I woke up early, I have to make some preparations if we are going inside the forest.Usually magical beasts and monsters reside in forests throughout the Azure kingdom.The difference between magical beasts and monsters is that magical beasts can manipulate mana whereas monsters cannot.A magical beast is always stronger than a monster of the same tier.The nearby forest adjacent to our village is filled with monsters of the first three tiers and magical beasts of the first two tiers.A tier 2 swordsman can effortlessly defeat a tier 2 monster but only a swordsman whose tier is higher than that of a magical beast can defeat it.
“Oh it's unusual to see you so early.”
“I promised Euphy and the others that I will play with them.”
“Hmm well don’t wander too far and be here at lunchtime”
“Yes mom”
I went to my father’s room.At this time he should be patrolling the village.I opened the broad chest lying near his bed.
“Here it is.”
I took out my shortsword-a gladius.My father specialises in using a heavy sword like the greatsword and many youths in the village tend to use longer swords but the idea of using a long sword or a heavy sword never appealed to me.When I said that I wanted to use a shortsword, My father was skeptical at first but nonetheless consented.As for the reason why I chose this gladius, It was easy to use and practice with and unfortunately unlike my father I do not have a tough physique or the strength to wield a heavy sword.So I wield my gladius with my right hand and a round leather shield with my left.I also stored some medicines and antidotes in my backpack.
“Now all I have to do is go out without my sister noticing”
“What are you doing brother?”
“Huhhh”
Standing in the entrance was my sister with a curious expression
“Ahh...I was searching for a whetstone to sharpen my sword.”
“Weren’t you about to go outside and play with your friends.Why would you need a whetstone now?”
Why is she damn sharp at times like these.
“Lara, The baker nearby makes delicious cheesecakes.Would you like to have some in the evening?”
“Really? Thank you brother dear.Have a safe trip.” said Lara with a gleeful grin
Phew this girl.I left my house and made my way to the secret spot where we planned on meeting up.
“Ah there he is.”
When I entered the cave everyone was standing around the table and analysing the map.
“Hey is it really safe to enter the forest.”
“What,You got cold feet before we even entered the forest,Euphy.”
“Wh-Who is scared? I just wanted to know if you guys are capable of fighting the monsters.”
“No problem.Rudolf is a swordsman in the early stage of tier-1 and I am an intermediate tier-1 Spearman.Hey Clement what stage are you in ?”
“ Supreme-stage tier-1 swordsman” I lied
“Whoa..a supreme stage you say? You should be the strongest in our age group in this village.”
“Yeah usually only those who are 15 years old will be in the supreme stage of tier 1.Children who are 13 can barely enter the intermediate stage.”said Rudolf with a disheartened face.
In our village the norm is for children to start training in their chosen weapon from the age of ten.For six months we train to enter the early stages of tier-1 and one and a half year to enter the intermediate stage, for the next four years we endeavour to enter the supreme stage and finally step into tier 2. However the talent of a person in magic is dependent on his natural aptitude and bloodline.While a good aptitude determines how fast you can make progress in magic.A person’s bloodline determines the extent to which he can become strong.While a commoner can only hope to reach tier 3 in his entire life, A noble can reach the extremities of tier 5.The monarch’s bloodline however has the potential to reach tier-6 and even in rare cases the legendary tier-7.
My true tier level is in the early stages of tier 2 but my father warned me to hide it so as to conceal the fact that I am a noble-born.My father too hid his original tier strength and claimed that he was a tier 4 retired soldier in an effort to hide his identity as the former commander of the western troops so as to not cause a commotion in this small village.
“Hey Clement, can you use magical moves?”
“What nonsense are you spouting Rudolf.Only when you are tier-2 can you use magic driven moves with your weapon.” retorted Hugh.
When you first enter the early stage of tier 1, you can sense the mana inside you and the surroundings and at this stage a person should be well versed in their weapon’s basic moves.In the intermediate stage, a person should be able to make refined moves with their weapon and can also subconsciously strengthen their body with mana.Whereas a person in the supreme tier-1 stage can use mana to strengthen his/her body at will for a short period of time.
“Don’t worry you will reach the intermediate stage soon.”
“Thank you Clement but hearing it from you doesn’t sound reassuring.”
I smiled wryly.After we scrutinized the map, We went inside the forest.The forest was dense with tall trees which should be at least 50 metres in height.This forest provides us with many raw materials for medicine and the materials from the monsters here sustain the livelihood of many hunters in the village. Hugh and Rudolf led the group while I secured the rear.Euphy was walking alongside me while Petra was treading ahead of us.
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“Argh..This place is so dark.The foliage envelops most of the sunlight.” said Euphy while trembling in apprehension.
Although watching this hot-headed girl acting all meek and frightened is quite fascinating, It wouldn’t do any good for her to be on edge the entire journey.So I offered some reassuring words.
“It's alright, We are all in this together” I said while holding her hand
“Wh-Wh-What are you holding my hand for!!!”
“Ow ow hey don’t hit me”
“Hahahaha Clement don’t try anything out of character”
“Yeah, always be the introverted and quiet kid we all know and love.”
Hugh and Rudolf laughed in derision.It is vexatious that I couldn’t retort to that.Since I spent most of my days inside my house before I met these guys, I was always considered a mysterious person by the village kids and my father’s fake identity as a tier-4 retired swordsman made it difficult for them to approach me.
“You guys are as close as ever.” said Petra with a playful smile.
“No way…”
There is no way we are close but in a sense it could be true as I have spent more time with Euphy than the others because of her being my neighbour and our fathers are close.
“Hugh don’t get too close to it and Rudolf support him”
After some time we met two lesser werewolves which are tier 1 monsters.These are wolf-like monsters which are larger and stronger than a regular wolf.They have razor sharp teeth and usually hunt in packs.It seems these two strayed from their pack.Hugh and Rudolf were fighting one of them together.
“It seems I have to take care of you”
The other wolf snarled at me with bloodshot eyes
I unsheathed my gladius and stood in my fighting stance.The wolf lunged at me viciously.I blocked it with my shield and stabbed it with my sword.The wolf retreated and put some distance between us.Not giving it the chance to recover I strengthened my right hand with mana and sped up towards it. I then plunged the blade into its chest.
“Whoa that fast.You are good with that sword”
“Well I have been practicing with this sword for quite some time.”
“Yeah but still even if you are in the supreme stage,This speed is incredible.”
“No, you are exaggerating it.Any tier-1 supreme stage would be able to do this.”
“Is that so..”
I guess I am overdoing it.I should slow down a bit in order to make it seem like i am still in tier-1.Hugh has been practicing with the older boys in the village so it should be difficult to fool him.We carried on in the same route traversing deeper into the forest.We came across some lesser werewolves but nothing out of the norm.
“There it is”said Hugh satisfyingly.It was a large cave with a small semicircle opening.The opening was shielded by many vines which obscured it.
“I wouldn’t have noticed it if you hadn”t told me it was here Hugh.”
“Well it is a hideout so it's only natural that it isn’t easily visible.”
We pushed the vines in the way and went inside.When Hugh told me that this was an abandoned hideout used during the war, I thought that most of the resources and weapons would be depleted but the place was stored with weapons and scrolls.The centre was occupied with a huge table.Quills and maps were sprawled across the table.In the sides of the cave were many chests filled with magic items and monster materials.
“Hey Hugh, is this a hideout or your family’s treasury?” asked Rudolf
“Yeah, Though this place is dusty and old.It is filled with many valuable things.” said Petra as she eyed the magic items in the open chest.
“ My father said that his whole squad used this place as a hideout and after the war ended they abandoned this place, collecting only their belongings but they didn't take any of their deceased comrade's possessions with them.”
“Did you ask for your father’s permission to come here?” I asked Hugh.
“No, You really think he would give me permission.”
Well that explains it.I suppose the surviving squad members didn’t want to take their dead comrade’s belongings for themselves as they felt it was morally wrong to do, so they abandoned it here.I wonder how Hugh’s father would feel if he realises that his son and his friends are pillaging his dead friend’s possessions.
“To think that we are going to rummage through some dead people’s possessions gives me an unpleasant feeling.” said Euphy
“Yeah I don’t think we are supposed to do this.It will be a dishonourable deed to do for the soldiers who died for the country.”said Petra
Petra is a very patriotic person who holds our country in high esteem so surely she wouldn’t approve these kinds of actions.
“But it would be quite a waste to leave all these behind right.”
“Yeah these things can be sold for a high price- whoops I mean It's a waste to let these weapons used by the past soldiers to perish in this dark place right.”
Their eyes were filled with extreme greed but I couldn’t hold it against them, The weapons used in the war were issued by the imperial capital.These goods are a treasure trove for aspiring warriors like Hugh and Rudolf.Even I desire to scavenge a thing or two from this place.
“No, doing something this disgraceful.If you still insist then I’ll inform your parents about what happened here.You guys aspire to be soldiers who wish to protect and fight for this country right? Then act like soldiers and not like bandits.”
Sigh.This girl is so righteous.Although Rudolf and Hugh were dissatisfied they submitted to Petra’s conditions.It’s not like I absolutely needed anything from this place so I too consented in the end.As we were looking around the place, I discovered a rather peculiar crystal.
“This is..” I mumbled to myself.It was rather shocking to find something like this here in the southern side of this kingdom moreover in an abandoned hideout.
“Is this some kind of joke?”
What I found was a mana explosive.If this magic item is supplied with mana and thrown, then it will explode over a radius of 20 metres.The explosion is so powerful that it can kill a tier-4 soldier.However, If the opponent is cautious then it would be easy for him to dodge.So it is mostly used in an ambush as a pre-emptive strike and decrease the enemy’s numbers in war.
“Such a rare magic item.Even in the imperial capital, It is very expensive that only nobles can afford it.”
Although Petra warned us not to take back anything with us, I am not an idiot to leave behind such a valuable item .If someone comes across this place they will surely loot this place clean so I better take this for myself when I have the chance now.I stealthily put the explosive in my bag.I wonder how much I would get if I sold it to the old man in the magic item store.
“Heyyy.Earth to clement” said Euphy
“Huh”
“Don’t give me a ‘huh’ now.You had quite a perverted smile on your face.What are you spacing out for?"
“Ehh no, you are imagining it”
“hmmm”Euphy was staring at me suspiciously.
“ whatever.”
She then went to look at the maps on the table.I was on my way to the table when I sensed it.A powerful mana presence which sent a chill down my spine.
“What happened, You look like you saw a ghost,” Rudolf asked me.
“Be quiet”I replied and concentrated to trace that presence
Rudolf, who was startled by my grim reply finally perceived the strong foreign presence.
“Hey, Wh-What is happening.”
Instead of replying, I shoved him and went to the entrance of the cave.
“What in tarnation is that?”
A few metres ahead of us many people emitting strong magic energy were marching.Each of them wore a silver chainmail armour and donned a bright-coloured cape.
“That cape..”
That cape was blood-red in colour with a majestic phoenix pattern in golden colour imprinted on it.That phoenix exuded a lofty aura which invoked fear in the common people.It was the same phoenix which the Azure kingdom feared and that kingdom worshipped,The Scarlet Kingdom.