The evening sky gradually darkened as the campfire crackled softly, casting a warm glow on the faces of the trainee knights and the Vice Captain, Sir Lucas. Carlos stood tall, his eyes scanning the area as the trainees finished their dinner. The day had been long, but their travel had gone smoothly so far, with no unexpected delays or incidents.

“Alright, everyone,” Carlos called out once they were done, his voice carrying authority and calm. “Finish up and head to your tents. We leave at first light.”

The trainees nodded, their faces reflecting a mix of exhaustion and readiness. They began to disperse, moving towards their respective tents. Sir Carlos watched them, a sense of pride swelling in his chest. He was a trainee not too long ago, but now he had a squad of his own. These young men and women were growing into fine knights, and their camaraderie was a testament to their training.

“I’ll be going too then, Captain,” the Vice Captain, Sir Lucas, walked over and said. Carlos patted his shoulder and nodded, allowing him to leave. Usually he’d stay up to guard the night, but there was another volunteer today, as he’d been for the past few days.

As the camp settled into a peaceful quiet, Carlos’ gaze shifted to Iskandaar. The young noble was engaged in conversation with a few of the trainees, his eyes bright with curiosity. Carlos couldn’t help but smile slightly at the sight.

Iskandaar had been asking questions incessantly since they had started their journey, showing eagerness to learn and understand the world around him. Like many nobles, he wasn’t used to life in the wild, and couldn’t even track the day’s hours properly, but he was learning. It was harder than it sounded, but he worked to memorize them properly.

He was even practicing an odd movement technique that even Carlos had a hard time wrapping his head around. Overall, he was showing good qualities, and a few of the trainees were slowly learning to open up to him. Although most couldn’t understand his determination and only saw him as spoiled for not knowing even the most common of things.

To Carlos, it was a stark contrast to the young master he had known before. This change was... refreshing. Perhaps the Count had been more right than he realized; there was something different about Iskandaar, and Carlos hoped it was a lasting change.

“Captain,” one of the trainees called out, snapping him from his thoughts. “Do you need anything else before we retire for the day?”

“No, that will be all for tonight. Get some rest,” Carlos replied with a nod.

As the last of the trainees disappeared into their tents, the camp grew quiet, save for the soft crackling of the fire and the occasional rustle of leaves. Carlos took a deep breath, feeling the cool night air fill his lungs. He glanced back at Iskandaar, who was now sitting alone by the fire, lost in thought.

“Looks like it’s just you and me for the night watch,” Carlos said, approaching the young noble. “You sure you wanna do it today, too? You’ve been at it for a few days.”

Iskandaar looked up and smiled. “It seems so. I don’t mind the company.”

They settled into a comfortable silence, the fire between them casting flickering shadows on their faces. The night watch was a routine part of their travels, and Sir Carlos found it to be a good time for reflection. It helped him understand this young noble better, and he found that most of the rumors about him were false, at least now they were.

“So we should be in Lockdarn by tomorrow, Sir Carlos?” Iskandaar’s voice broke the silence, his tone curious.

****

“So we should be in Lockdarn by tomorrow, Sir Carlos?”

“Should be. We’ll leave when the sun rises, so we should be there by 9 in the morning.” The 5th Knight Order’s Leader informed me.

I wasn’t familiar with travel time estimation and stuff like that, too used to Map Apps for travel back in my world. So I appreciated this knowledgeable man. The knight trainees under him always gave me a look whenever I asked seemingly common questions, but Sir Carlos, this man, was patient enough to always answer. He seemed like the type who loved being asked questions.

Curious birds like me who didn’t know anything but at least always asked to learn stuff, were probably his favorite people. No wonder he was so friendly with me despite my reputation.

Good guy.

“So it takes four days to reach Lockdarn from Romer, I see,” I noted.

It’s been three days since we left the City of Romer. It was nighttime now, and Sir Carlos and I were staying awake to keep watch. Since I had asked him to stay awake and keep watch together on the first day, I had to live by my words. That was why, both last night and tonight, we were keeping watch together.

After the wolf lady left that day, the night had gone past uneventfully. Last night too was nothing past usual. So far, tonight was looking peaceful too. I was bored by this monotony.

But like my kickboxing coach used to say, ‘Never say it’s too boring.’ I shouldn’t have said that. The leaves bustled, bushes trembled, and screeches suddenly filled the surroundings. We were under attack.

“Kreach—!!!”

“Kreach! Kreach! Kreach!”

“Young master, it’s goblins! Stay behind me!” Sir Carlos stepped in front of me, and let out a shout to startle everyone awake. Commotion spread through the campsites, as one by one, knights began to come out with swords and spears at hand.

In my leisurely chatting, and because everything had been peaceful for a while, I had lost focus on my Demonic Sphere. In my defense, the technique wasn't perfect yet, I could only muster its full effectiveness with my eyes closed. It was already wonderful that I could use it somewhat while keeping my eyes open.

Since it was not yet the perfect technique shown in the game, I failed to notice these monsters.

I also yanked out my sword, ready for battle. Goblins, little green monsters with bead-like eyes, began to surround us from all directions. Sir Carlos took in a deep breath, “Haap!” and swung his sword horizontally, sending a burst of Sword Aura forward.

My eyes widened a little as I watched the sizzling arc of aura rush ahead. It cut through the air, the wind screaming in response, and slammed against the green little shits. Blood splashed outward from the goblins; dozens of them were caught in the face of the technique.

“K-Kreach! Kreach!” At once, all the goblins turned around and ran off. One of them stumbled and fell to its face, and I stepped forward to stab its back, right above where the heart should be, with considerable force. It let out a yelp before going limp.

[You've killed a Level 8 Goblin.]

[Experience points earned.]

I withdrew my sword and looked at the fleeing goblins. They had attacked us, underestimating our strength, and that mistake cost dozens of their lives. I looked at the cause of it, Carlos of the Knight Order, who ran toward me with a concerned face.

“Are you alright, young master?!”

So that’s the power of a Level 49?

Impressive. He handled the situation before it could even begin. His single attack made all of those goblins run for their life. Despite my fighter background, or maybe exactly because of it, that showcase of strength was intense.

How strong would I be when I reach the 4th Ascension?

****

Excluding the wolf lady incident and the goblin incident, the journey from Romer to Lockdarn was smooth. We hadn’t encountered any further trouble. On the fourth day of our journey, around 10 O'Clock in the morning, we found ourselves at the gate of the Lockdarn City.

“Damn, that carriage is…”

“Shh, don't look! It's the Romani Ruffian!”

Some of the passersby noticed the family emblem on my carriage and spoke among themselves. The knights riding the horses shot them a look, which sent them scurring away. I wasn't surprised by their reaction, let alone offended. I too would bad-mouth a piece of shit.

Still, my reputation is far from the best outside the mansion. It was bad in the mansion too, until I slew that Thief a week ago. Yet still, these trainee knights thought badly of me before I displayed my situation reading skills with the wolf lady. I had also slain a goblin when everyone else was stunned by Sir Carlos’ display of power to make a move. It earned me good favor points.

Although I doubt they'd trust me with anything too big, I’ve at least earned some favorable impression from them. It wasn't on the level of ‘respect’ as of yet, but it was a start. I'll try to solidify that into respect during these few days. It wouldn't hurt to have the family's knights look at me in a good light, after all.

“We're here to rest for a few days,” Sir Carlos’ horse paddled before my carriage, stopping in front of the city gate, as he spoke to the guards. “I trust you to take care of us till then. Here,” saying so, he handed them a scroll.

From the little glass window in my carriage, I couldn’t see what was inside the scroll. But if I had to guess, it most certainly contained the Wolf Subjugation Order from the Count.

The guards read over it and quickly nodded, sweating a little. A Count Family wasn't that big of a deal in the grand scheme of the Empire, but Romani County was a bit special. It wasn’t unusual for them to be nervous before the family emblem, especially because it was I who rode the carriage, the ruffian known for his rude and irrational personality.

“Please, head inside.” One of the guards said, handing the scroll back to Sir Carlos. “We'll alert the Baron and prepare an inn for you all.”

Inn? That prompted me to peek my head out of the carriage. “Did you just say ‘inn’?” I scowled at him. “Am I so beneath Baron Lockdarn that he wouldn't even treat me as a proper guest? Or are the Baron's guest houses occupied already?”

I wasn't acting like a piece of shit for no reason. Father had predicted this, that the Baron might not take us to his guest house. And if that happened, he had given me permission to push my authority to get into the guest house. Something odd was going on.

“Looks like the young master is quite angry,” Sir Carlos said in a sympathetic tone. I found that overacting, this man could act for shit. Naturally, he was into the plan too.

“B-but that’s what the Baron said, we…”

When the guards started to talk back, he shook his head, saying in a low voice, “You guys know how spoiled and rotten he is. You think he'll stay at an inn? Please inform the Baron about this. Otherwise, he'll probably force us to return from the gate and complain to the Count about this… Although young master Iskandaar is a troublemaker, he’s still the Count’s son. What’ll happen when he hears that his son has been disrespected like this? Tsk, tsk.”

“Argh, these Nobles…! You really have it hard, sir Knight.” One of the guards whispered something I'd have missed if I wasn't keeping my senses heightened. Brave guy.

I withdrew my head back into the carriage and waited. Since the last few days, I've been using my Demonic Sphere all the time. It wasn't perfect, but it did its job. It gave away sometimes if I wasn’t focused, like last night, but it was still leagues better than pressing my ear against the carriage wall and eavesdropping. I could still hear what they were talking about around me.

This was one of the other ways to speed up the progression rate, I realized over the last few days. By learning a technique that the System didn't teach me itself, I pushed ahead the progression.

Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

As it rose, I slowly realized the true way to perform the technique, while at the same time getting access to another technique as per the usual increase. The progression fraction of the Heavenly Demon skill tree was 8.45% right now, I should get access to a new technique upon touching 10% soon.

Ten minutes later, the guard returned to talk with Sir Carlos again. They talked a few ten meters away from the carriage, but I managed to hear it all. The Demonic Sphere was useful.

“So the Baron said yes… But he said only the young master can stay at the guest house.” The guard said. “Everyone else must stay at an inn.”

This time, it was Sir Carlos’ turn to get mad. “Is the Baron telling us to leave the young master without any protection?! Tell him to come here and say that to my face!”

“S-sir, please calm down! We-”

“Sir Carlos, it's alright,” I peeked out of the carriage again and said. “Leave a few trainee knights with me, while you stay in some inn with the rest of the group.” I looked at the guard, “I'm sure the Baron would at least allow me a few bodyguards, no?”

I stared into the eyes of the guard. He gulped, looking away, and quickly ran back into the city. He returned a while later and nodded. “He said it's alright… as long as it's trainee knights.”

See, that was too suspicious.

How could the Baron not allow Sir Carlos, who was a 4th Ascension Knight, but everyone else? What the hell was going on in the Baron’s mansion, anyway?

Sir Carlos and I exchanged glances, and although he looked unsure, hesitant to let me go alone, I nodded to gesture to him to rest assured. If they wouldn't allow the only person they perceived as dangerous to go there, we had to play by that rule and move likewise.

****

My carriage moved through the bustling city. If something was wrong with the Baron, the citizens didn't seem to know, or care. They were living life as usual. I didn't know if that was a good thing or not.

The wheel moved through the cobblestone path, leading me towards the center of the city. There were a lot more guards here, compared to the outskirts of the city where guards were rare.

This was where the Knights and I had to part ways. Sir Carlos and I exchanged glances, he nodded at me and then looked at two of his promising trainees.

“You two, step forward,” he said and the two knights did, their horses stepping ahead. “Be sure to take care of the young master well. If I learn about any mistakes in your behavior, later on, there will be trouble. So be careful.”

Sir Carlos made sure to scold them beforehand in case they acted up. I understood why he did that since one of the two trainee knights was a familiar face. It was someone I had a history with, albeit barely.

Tyrone, one of the stronger trainee knights, was one of the two who would be staying at the guest house with me. He reluctantly bowed to me.

Did he hold resentment for the defeat he faced against me a week ago? The other trainee knight beside him seemed respectful enough, though. If Tyrone had any weird pranks planned, this guy seemed to be someone who'd stop him.

“Greeting, young master,” the other trainee said. I recognized him as Rony. We've exchanged some words before during our journey.

“Then, I'll see you later, young master,” Sir Carlos looked at me and said. I nodded.

The two trainees rode a horse on either side of my carriage. We moved towards the Baron's mansion, while Sir Carlos and the rest of that group moved towards the inn that the Lockdarn city guards had prepared for them.

…..

While the Baron hadn't greeted me at the city gate, he waited for me at the gate of his mansion.

It was a grand villa he stood in front of. Although smaller than my new home, it was still a piece of architecture. It wasn't small by any means. Were Barons of the Empire this rich?

“Welcome to my humble abode, young master,” the Baron said with a nod and a nervous smile when I got out of my carriage.

AD_4nXeqArVeyThFx_jGKzECwkU2gjesWM_RHGt8aiBBIOtU13pLoLftXh5MF-26o_Aawa1pDq4AxUG9niocLxlaNzqqHQYie7N3YSJB98LgPlcWlVfqbSmYMBcq3OMs1l2C1AASAXc72ni4dkmkhYN3pso0JwEw?key=ldQmuJCLSurEQm9bGh-YXQ [https://lh7-rt.googleusercontent.com/docsz/AD_4nXeqArVeyThFx_jGKzECwkU2gjesWM_RHGt8aiBBIOtU13pLoLftXh5MF-26o_Aawa1pDq4AxUG9niocLxlaNzqqHQYie7N3YSJB98LgPlcWlVfqbSmYMBcq3OMs1l2C1AASAXc72ni4dkmkhYN3pso0JwEw?key=ldQmuJCLSurEQm9bGh-YXQ]

I observed his expression for a moment.

[Level 21]

Was he nervous because he had rejected me and I forced my way inside regardless, fearing that I might hold resentment, or was he scared that I might find out what was going on in his mansion?

The Count seemed to believe that the Baron was the victim here if something suspicious was indeed going on. I leaned towards that too, deciding to trust the Count’s judgment, but I couldn't leave the possibility that the Baron was involved in this matter willingly. Not before I saw proof that said otherwise.

I bowed toward him, a fist on my chest. “Forgive me for insisting inside, Baron Lockdarn. It is a pleasure to meet both of you.”

By both, I referred to the woman beside him. He's a lucky man, I couldn't help but comment when my eyes fell on the woman who stood with her arms locked around him.

That must be the Baroness. She matched the description I heard about her, and she was stunning.

The Baron wasn't a bad-looking man. Most nobles were touched by Mana, and people with Mana had quite some benefits. They had better skin, a body that barely smelled when sweaty, and generally better bone structure than normal. In short, people with Mana looked similar to celebrities from my previous worlds. The Baron wasn't an exception.

And yet, beside his wife, he looked like a normal man. With brown hair and glossy purple eyes, she was an exotic beauty rare to find in these parts of the Empire. And her level made me a little curious about her.

[Level ???]

What the fuck is that?

How did I meet two powerhouses in a matter of four days?

A mere countryside Baron had a wife who was at the 6th Ascension or above? He was just Level 21 himself. What the hell was going on?

Am I overthinking this? Maybe it was normal in this world. This was still a patriarchal society; if you were a rich man, you could probably get a powerful and beautiful woman. Was that it?

No, that couldn't be. At her power level, she could literally burn a city and the emperor would take her side, that was how valuable she was. Could this just be love? My head hurt trying to figure this out.

“My, I wasn't expecting the young master to be so respectful,” the lady opened her mouth, speaking with a smile. “As the scholars say, rumors should never be trusted.”

“And yet rumors often undermine facts,” I raised my head and said with a smile. “When the rumors said the Baroness was a beautiful woman, it never specified she was a Goddess walking the mortal plane.”

She burst out laughing while the Baron smiled awkwardly. I wasn't flirting with a married woman, I was just giving some polite compliments.

“Oh, my... I like the young master a lot, and we've just met,” she said. “But please, enough chit-chat at the gate. We can't keep an important guest such as you standing here. Please come inside.”

I nodded and followed the two of them as they led the way. Two escort knights followed a few steps behind, chatting amongst themselves.

“Damn. When I heard the young master was a disgusting womanizer, I wasn't expecting him to be so smooth.” Rony whispered to Tyrone, who scoffed. My Sphere allowed me to eavesdrop.

“Smooth? How could he say that to a married woman right in front of her husband?! That was disgusting!” Unfortunately for Rony, his fellow knight wasn't aware of the game and its rules.

Losing interest in their conversation, I stared at the back of the woman in front of me. I scowled, wondering what was going on. Was this really normal?

Or was she related to the mess that we've come to investigate?

****

The Baron and Baroness led me to the dining room. The hallway we walked through was grand, and I kept an eye out for anything unusual. Like any other Noble mansion, the walls were filled with paintings and pictures. There were general artworks, family pictures, and other stuff.

I passed my eyes over them in leisure as I walked. I noticed something odd there, but the detail was so minor that I chose not to ponder over it.

We continued walking, but all three of us stopped on our path when something odd came across us.

“Oh, what's this, Baron?” I asked the Baron, while my eyes rested on the maid in front of us.

She was cleaning the furniture, her headdress was a little messy. She didn't look like someone who was used to her life as a maid yet, that was why she had that wardrobe malfunction.

Seeing us, she quickly tried to fix the headdress, but in the process, she completely exposed the part that the headdress was pressing down.

The Baron looked pale, while his wife frowned. I whistled, “I didn't know you fancy Demi-Human servants? It's okay, I won't judge, they taste good.” I made that dirty comment to make the situation seem lighter than it actually was. I didn't want them to get alert for no reason, after all.

The maid scowled upon hearing that before quickly hiding it. The Baron chuckled nervously, “Ah… yes… Demi-Humans are good…”

“Haha,” his wife's smile was still as amicable as usual. She didn't look nervous at all, unlike him.

I looked back at the maid, properly this time. She had white hair and wolf ears poking out of her head, although, unlike the wolf lady from a few nights ago, she had light skin.

For a moment I wondered if this world had wolf girls spread around everywhere until my eyes fell on her Level.

[Level 38]

Yeah…

If it wasn't obvious already, that was not a maid.

What the fuck was wrong with this villa?

“...Let’s continue to the dining room. I'm hungry.” I quickly said, unwilling to waste any time here. Soon, we reached the room.

It was a grand room, with chandeliers shining down at us. Servants cleaned around the room, a few too many to be normal. My Demonic Sphere caught their eyes watching my every move. And my eyes caught a red glint in their eyes; those did not seem like normal people's eyes.

If I hadn't met the wolf girl from earlier, I wouldn't have thought much of it. But now that I think about it, they must be hiding their ears using some magic spell. Their tails were tucked under their pants and skirts.

This entire villa… it was littered with these Wolf Demi-Humans. What the hell?

Soon, food was served, and I began to have a good meal. However, there was an issue.

“And this is the Barony's special dish. If you'd open your mouth,” the Baroness said too close to me, instead of sitting with her husband opposite me, as she fed me some exquisite fried fish.

I did not mind being fed by a beauty, but what the fuck was going on? What's she trying to do here?

“Mhm,” I munched on the fish. At least it was tasty. The Baron's uncomfortable expression ruined much of the taste, though. I could understand why.

Unlike my polite compliments at the gate, this was indeed flirting. What was this woman doing?

“You seem to like it a lot?”

“It has a rich taste. The cook is talented.”

She giggled, “Oh my, I'm the one who cooked it.”

I did not believe that. She's trying to bait me for compliments, while also complimenting me herself. She was trying to get closer to me.

Why? My reputation was not great. If she really wanted a young noble to have an affair with, there must be better choices.

I decided to play along for now, throwing her some compliments that got her giggling.

“Since you like this so much, how about more for dinner?” She looked at her husband, “Honey, you wouldn't have dinner tonight, as usual, right? In that case, may I have dinner with him at the guest house?”

Immediately as she said that, my Demonic Sphere sensed eyes locked around us. From upstairs, from the kitchen, and from all over the mansion. The mansion’s servants, or people dressed as them, were staring at her the moment she said that.

“Sure,” the Baron nodded slowly.

Ah, I get it now. This entire place has been… compromised.

The Baroness wanted to meet me in a private setting, away from the stalking eyes. It was a cry for help, most certainly. Did she want me to bring her to my room so that she could explain the situation to me?

I hope I wasn't reading the situation wrong.

It could also be that she was seducing me to have private space with me, and then deal with me silently. Unlikely, but possible. Although she probably wouldn't want trouble from killing a Count’s son, in this world of magic there must be some mind control magic or stuff like that.

The servants could have given her that look of shock that she wanted to deal with a Count’s son. Was she a Demi-Human too? Hiding her ears by using some kind of magic, or what?

Reminds me of the paintings I saw in the hallway. The Baron had pictures with his wife there. She did not have purple eyes.

This woman wasn't the Baroness, whoever she was.

So which one of the two possible situations was going on?

…Should I take the risk and accept the bait? At this point, I probably had no other choice.

I wrapped a hand around the ‘Baroness’ waist, pulling her closer. “Mhm, certainly. I wouldn't mind having dinner with the Baroness tonight.”

She blinked, looking at my hand, and then looked back at my eyes with a seductive smile. “It's my pleasure.”

Fuck.

Hopefully, this wouldn't get me killed.

****

Lilian peeked into the dining room, where the Romani Family's young master was flirting with the Baroness. She frowned.

After reaching Lockdarn City with her mother last night, she was handed this maid outfit so that she could blend into the crowd and keep an eye out on the Baron and Baroness. They couldn't be allowed to ask for help from the outside world, no matter what.

However, right now, she didn't frown because that woman was flirting with that Romani boy – that Baroness apparently always flirted with young men – but because of her suspicion towards the Romani boy.

Is that him? She wondered. Earlier, when he met her in the hallway, she had smelled him from a close proximity. She couldn't guarantee it, but he smelled familiar to the smell she had memorized from that shop in the black market.

Plus he matched the description. Although he looked dark rather than truly dark-skinned, the shopkeeper might have just meant this when he said dark-skinned.

If he was anyone else, she'd have attacked him and interrogated him. But as a Count’s son, if he were to get hurt and he called reinforcements, all of their plans would be wasted.

The situation at the mansion would be leaked.

Dammit. Lilian grumbled. The cup was possibly right under her nose right now, but she couldn't go to confirm it. What a frustrating situation. At this rate, the Matriarch will die…

She grumbled. She had to find a way to sneak up on him and interrogate him, no matter what. But she had to do it in a way that wouldn't alarm him to summon an entire army in this city.

She looked at the Baroness, glaring at her. If not for that cheating woman, she'd have approached him already.