The sound of the flames echoed...

Screams of desperation and pain. The palace of the paladin Lin Keeper was burning down...

"Get out quickly! All of this will turn to nothing soon," Elio shouted, pointing to the exit. "Damn it, why did it have to be this magic? I hope the necklace works."

Elio searched every room for his son while the lava continued to consume the palace.

Outside, one could see that soon, there would be nothing left. A large number of mages used water and earth magic to prevent the lava from spreading further.

"Everything will be fine, the necklace will be delivered," shouted Rei, the most powerful mage in Alahead.

"Please, Rei... Help Elio," the paladin Lin said, kneeling on the ground and crying.

"It's too dangerous, Lin... I'm so sorry, but we have to wait."

Suddenly, the lava turned blue, and everyone was terrified of the disaster unfolding.

"My God... This is getting worse," Rei said with rising concern, flying into the air with his magic and beginning to create a large green shield that covered the entire palace. "Dig deep holes around the shield!" he shouted as he watched the lava consuming what was left of the palace.

Rei's green eyes reflected astonishment and worry at the catastrophe, illuminated by the bright blue color of the lava. From those bright green eyes, the scene shifted to a pair of eyes, one blue and one red. His hair was red, he wore dark purple pants, black boots, black gloves, a blue shirt, a red vest, and a blue coat. On his belt, there was a badge of recognition. He walked under the rain with a large backpack on his back, his empty gaze reflecting only sadness, which the rain seemed to intensify.

Louis had just arrived in the eastern lands, in a kingdom called Ystir. He was looking for a place to stay, but no one would accept his money, as it came from a kingdom not many knew of.

"What will I do now...? I didn’t expect this to happen, and they wouldn’t take the gold I have either. Should I present myself to the king?" Louis thought as he kept walking on the sidewalk. "Huh... It seems the rain is starting to let up... I better figure this out on my own."

As he kept walking, he noticed a flyer offering something...

"A fast and careful delivery person is needed. Location: Kingdom center, North Street... Hmm, I could do this and earn the money I need to stay somewhere," he said as a person with an umbrella walked past him.

"Hey, kid, you should find some shelter from the rain, or you'll catch a cold," said the man as he continued on his way.

"Ever since I turned twelve, I’ve never caught a cold again..."

As Louis headed towards the center of the kingdom, he saw incredible things: technology he had never seen before in his own land, but what amazed him most were the cars.

"How amazing... They’re like carriages but without horses. This place is wonderful!" he thought as he smiled. "I also see many people with their rune companions. I remember those with rune magic have a mark somewhere on their body, and thanks to that mark, they can summon their companion... Well, that’s enough distraction, I have to move on."

Louis managed to reach the address on the flyer, although he had to ask around a lot since he didn’t know the place.

"This must be it... I hope no one has taken the job," he said, setting his backpack aside and, concentrating, dried all his clothes using magic.

Louis took a large bag from his backpack and then used his hand to completely dry the backpack.

"Good..."

He rang the doorbell and waited... until a short man with a mustache and brown hair, dressed in a gray suit, opened the door.

"Wow... Do you need something?" the man asked, surprised to see Louis.

"Good... um, afternoon. I wanted to ask if the delivery job is still available," Louis said with little expression.

"Yes, come in... Professor Maxwell handles the interview. I’ll take you to his office," he said kindly, letting him in.

"Thank you very much, my name is Louis A. Keeper," Louis said seriously, bowing his head a bit after entering the house.

"Huh? Nice to meet you, Louis. I’m Hanks Morthener, this way..."

"I felt... warmth? How odd," Hanks thought.

Inside, the house had a large wooden staircase upon entering. The walls were entirely made of wood, and there was a window stretching from left to right. Hanks led Louis to Professor Maxwell’s office.

Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

"Professor, a boy is here looking for the delivery job," Hanks said after knocking and opening the door when the professor said to come in.

"Perfect, send him in..."

"Come, Louis," Hanks said, letting him in.

"Good afternoon, sir. My name is Louis A. Keeper," Louis said seriously, bowing his head again.

"Nice to meet you, Louis. I’m Professor Maxwell. Do you have a resume?" he asked as he sat down at his desk. "Hmm, I felt something odd... warmth?" the professor thought.

Professor Maxwell was a tall man with white hair and a beard. He wore a gray vest and a black jacket, and his right arm was mechanical.

"Resume...? No, what is that?" Louis asked, a bit confused, but maintaining his serious demeanor. "Whoa, his arm is mechanical," he thought without showing any signs of surprise.

"Heh, you’re not from here, are you?" Professor Maxwell asked, smiling slightly.

"No, sir... I’m from the northern lands," Louis answered honestly.

"Northern lands... Interesting... Alahead Kingdom, right?" he said after thinking for a moment and recalling the news he had read.

"How did you know?" Louis asked seriously.

"There were reports of an affiliation between the church and your kingdom," he responded frankly.

"Huh? Really?"

"Yes, didn’t you know?... Well, I’d like to give you the job, but you’re not from around here..."

"Please give me at least one job. I need a place to stay, and no one accepted my money at any hotel," Louis replied sincerely, with warmth in his words.

"Huh? Again... this warmth," the professor thought while listening to Louis. "Hmm... Alright, the rain has stopped, so I need you to bring some parts to a forge nearby. If you can bring them to me within the estimated time, I’ll hire you," he said, standing up and handing Louis a letter.

"Alright, I accept," Louis said, taking the letter.

"Perfect. The address is in the letter. You have 20 minutes, starting... now," the professor said, checking the wall clock.

"I’m off, then!"

Louis quickly left the office and ran towards the exit. Professor Maxwell watched him leave the house from a window in his office.

"Let’s see... Glomequerry Forge, located in... kingdom center, South Street... It shouldn’t be too hard," Louis said, reading the address and dodging a couple of people as he ran.

Thirty minutes later...

"I shouldn’t have expected anything from that boy," the professor said, looking at the clock.

"Call your boss, old man!" the sound of a door slamming against the wall was heard.

"What’s going on?" the professor asked, surprised, quickly getting up from his desk.

A group of six men entered the professor’s house. Two of them stood out: one had a golden gun and wore a golden mask, along with a hat, a blue shirt with gray stripes, and black pants with black shoes. The other, with a spear on his back, wore a gray mask and was dressed entirely in gray.

"You better leave, or I’ll call the guards!" Hanks said angrily.

"Please, those idiots are useless. If you don’t want a bullet in your head, call that Maxwell guy," the golden-masked man said mockingly, pointing the gun at Hanks’ head.

"Who the hell are you?" the professor asked furiously, arriving at the entrance without descending the stairs.

"You must be Professor Maxwell. I need you to hand over the piece that boss Yeynos commissioned," replied the one with the spear on his back and a gray mask.

"Yeynos..." the professor said, slightly afraid.

"I took too long... I hope they can exchange the gold I have... Huh?" Louis thought as he arrived at the professor’s house with the items he had requested and saw the six men.

"Hey... who are you? Professor, is everything alright?" he asked, noticing their weapons.

"Louis... I must not let him get involved," the professor thought. "You should leave, Louis. We’ll talk later."

"No, not now. This boy is in this. Wow, look at his eyes, they’re different... Hey, are you some kind of freak or what?" the golden-masked man said mockingly as he approached, showing Louis the weapon.

"Maybe so..." Louis said, grabbing the barrel of the gun.

"Let go, you bastard!"

"Louis!"

Louis let go of the gun and punched the man in the stomach, making him stagger and fall to the ground.

"You idiot, how dare you!" the gray-masked man shouted, charging at Louis and knocking him out of the house.

"Damn it, ahh my weapon! Get that brat!" the golden-masked man shouted as he saw his gun with a crushed barrel, quickly dropping it due to how hot it had become.

Before the others could leave, two smoke bombs fell near the door, and Hanks closed it.

Disculpa por la confusión. Continuaré traduciendo la historia sin problema. Aquí va:

"Idiots... You come to my house and treat me and my employees like trash... Now no one is leaving without a bullet in their face!" he said angrily as he descended the stairs, his mechanical arm starting to charge energy, and with his left hand, he put a mask on his face.

Meanwhile, Louis kicked the man with the gray mask to get him off. Quickly, he pulled a katana from his backpack and kicked the bag next to the professor's things. In the background, many people could be seen fleeing the area, and the professor's house door shut.

"You think you're brave attacking a man of Mr. Zthur," said the man with the gray mask, grabbing a spear from his back.

"I don't know who he is, and I don't care," Louis replied, starting to attack. The sword clashed with the spear swiftly, the spear clearly having the advantage due to its longer reach, but Louis was merely testing his opponent's skills.

Gunshots echoed from inside the house.

"What happened? You're not so tough anymore," said the man mockingly.

The man lunged at Louis, aiming to strike Louis in the head. Louis stepped back, and the man drove the spearhead into the ground, using it to swing and kick at Louis. Louis dodged, but then the man pulled the spear out and pointed the blade at Louis' neck. Louis blocked the attack with his katana and, with strength, forced the masked man back.

"You're good, but not better than me!" he shouted angrily.

Once again, he lunged forward, attacking Louis from the side. Louis positioned the sword low and countered the strike. Both weapons clashed, and sparks flew from the powerful impact.

"You think you can beat me?" he said furiously, trying to overpower Louis.

"Of course, it's very... *simple*," Louis replied calmly as his other hand generated heat, and his black glove turned red.

Louis lifted the spear's blade with his sword, using all his strength, and struck his opponent in the chest, burning his clothes and leaving him with burns.

"Bas...tard," the man groaned in pain, kneeling with his head on the ground.

He tried to lift his head, but Louis approached and struck him on the head with the hilt of his katana, causing him to fall completely to the ground.

Meanwhile, the professor and Hanks had captured everyone.

"You'll pay for this, old man!" said the one with the golden mask.

"You'd better shut up. I can shoot you in the head as easily as you aimed at my friend and the kid. Besides, didn't you say the guards are worthless?" the professor replied angrily, aiming his mechanical arm at him and removing his mask.

"Damn it..." he muttered in defeat. "Tryl will beat the kid, and then he'll finish off the old man, I'm sure of it!" he thought as Hanks tied him up along with his companions.

"Here's another one," Louis said, opening the door and dropping the spear-wielding man on the floor.

"It can't be, Tryl lost... Huh? His chest is burned. What did you do to him, freak?" the golden-masked man asked angrily.

"He's fine, but he didn't stand a chance against a paladin," Louis said seriously, sheathing his katana in his backpack.

"A paladin, *you*?" the masked man asked, surprised.

"What happened here?" a knight asked, arriving at the scene.

"I'm Professor Maxwell. These idiots broke into my house with weapons, and I simply defended my home. Apparently, they work for Zthur," the professor said, making his mechanical arm return to normal.

"Zthur, huh? Guys, come here! We need to get these men to the cells," the knight shouted. "Good thing we were nearby."

"Yeah, because normally, you don't even show up when called. Your security is dropping significantly," the professor said indifferently.

"I'm sorry about that, sir..."

"I'd better leave, I don't want to be a bother... I'll have to present myself to the king," Louis thought as the professor talked to the knight. "Here you go, professor," he said, handing him a bag.

"Thank you very much, Louis, for everything. By the way, you said you're a paladin. What are you doing here?" the professor asked, taking the bag.

"I'm trying to change my life... Well, I should go," Louis said sincerely, remembering why he had come as he walked out of the house.

"Wait, are you planning to present yourself to the king?" the professor asked, placing a hand on Louis' shoulder.

"Yes, I have no other choice." Louis replied, turning to face the professor.

"Don't do it. The current king won't help you at all, and he might even expel you from the kingdom. I propose something: stay at my house for as long as you're in the kingdom, and in return, you'll just deliver my packages. What do you say?" the professor said seriously and with concern.

"Really? You'd do that for me?" Louis asked, surprised.

"Of course. Besides, you're a paladin, and having you here will be very helpful."

"Alright, then I accept, and thank you as well," Louis said, bowing his head. "Wait a minute! If I had said from the start that I was a paladin, would you have accepted me?"

"Of course, immediately," the professor replied, laughing as he patted Louis' head.

"Wow... Well, it's time to start this new life," Louis thought as he entered the house, and Hanks closed the door.

End of Chapter.