"Miss, get inside quickly!" The short fat man jumped in surprise and quickly pulled the carriage curtain down. His face then changed as he glared at Nidhogg and the others, speaking sternly: "You all..."

"Sir, we didn't see anything, don't worry," a seasoned rogue knight chimed in.

The short fat man then looked at Nidhogg and the others. After they feigned ignorance, he coldly snorted and drove the convoy out of the city.

"Why worry? Once we reach Bangar City, I'll officially become a wizard apprentice..." the young girl in the carriage grumbled, her voice faintly reaching Nidhogg and the other knights. Nidhogg was a bit surprised; could there be a formal wizard intending to take this girl as a disciple?

That night, Nidhogg and the five rogue knights sat around a campfire drinking and eating dry food, while the short fat man and the young girl sat by another fire near the carriage, eating prepared exquisite meals.

After half a day together and knowing they would be working together for over twenty days, the burly rogue knights had become somewhat familiar with each other, laughing and boasting.

The burliest man among them had the nickname "Grizzly," boasting about his past adventures involving black wizards and mutated beasts—a typical talk for a rogue knight. Another intimidating-looking fellow, who was quiet, was known only by his nickname "Cobra." The rest were twin brothers nicknamed "Hammer" and "Axe," who were chatterboxes and seemed to get along famously with Grizzly.

Nidhogg took a swig of the fiery liquor passed by Grizzly, grimacing as he swallowed, feeling the intense burn.

"Haha, Boss Tyrant is tough! This Dragon's Tongue liquor is a specialty from my hometown; most people get drunk just by smelling it, hahahaha..." Grizzly laughed heartily, biting into his jerky. After Nidhogg's impressive display of strength by tossing the unfortunate big man earlier, the group had given the fearsome-looking Nidhogg the nickname "Tyrant," making him their unofficial leader.

Nidhogg didn't speak, but took another deep swig of the liquor. At this moment, he seemed to abandon the wizardly demeanor, behaving like a boisterous knight, downing drinks and food with abandon—a sight that would shock Nina, Bingham, and others out of their wits.

However, Nidhogg had a different thought in mind.

The art of disguise through the morphing technique requires not only a change in appearance but also a convincing "performance." In a way, what Nidhogg was doing could be seen as a form of disguise training.

"Hey, hey, what do you think about over there..." Axe started babbling again, the conversation inevitably turning to women after eating and drinking, though the camp only had one girl, and she was just a child.

"Idiot, do you want to lose your life talking about the wizarding lord?" Hammer knocked his brother on the head, growling softly. He didn't know the child wasn't a real wizard at all.

At that moment, Cobra stood up silently and walked away, seemingly going to practice his martial skills, the only method knights had for training their bodies and combat abilities. Grizzly and the others kept chatting, but Nidhogg wasn't too interested.

Suddenly, Nidhogg's eyes lit up. Perhaps learning some martial skills from these knights could help in exploring his physical capabilities. With this thought, Nidhogg approached Cobra...

Over the next ten days, the convoy progressed steadily without any disturbances. As the self-appointed leader of the rogue knights, Nidhogg took his role seriously, acting like a true rogue knight, constantly scouting for potential dangers. This impressed the other knights lounging lazily on the carts, unaware that Nidhogg was using this as a form of training.

This "vigilance" seemed to pay off. One day, as Nidhogg led the convoy, he suddenly signaled them to halt.

"Tyrant boss, what's up?" Grizzly shouted, while the short fat man poked his head out from the carriage.

"Something's off up ahead," Nidhogg replied calmly. He acted like a seasoned knight, accustomed to such situations, remaining composed. Ahead lay a dense forest, a perfect spot for a bandit ambush with no nearby towns.

Hammer and Grizzly ran up, and Hammer frowned, saying, "From past experience, there shouldn't be bandit gangs around here. Boss, are you sure something's off?"

A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

Nidhogg nodded; he certainly wouldn't reveal that he sensed the group ahead using his predatory instincts.

Soon, the bandits emerged from the forest themselves, a group of fourteen, subtly surrounding the convoy. Nidhogg and the others grabbed their weapons, glaring at the bandits, though neither side acted hastily.

The short fat man approached with a sycophantic smile, tossing a small bag of silver coins to the bandit leader, saying, "Consider this a token for you gentlemen to have a drink, and please let us pass."

A tacit rule existed between bandits and rogue knights: if merchants hadn't hired rogue knights, bandits wouldn't hesitate to plunder, taking it all. But if knights were hired and both sides risked heavy losses in a fight, they typically settled with a small payment, as they all lived by the sword and didn't need to fight to the death.

The bandit leader weighed the money bag, looked at the rogue knights, and shook his head, saying, "Normally, I'd let you pass. But unfortunately, today a guest requires you to stay, so..." The bandit leader sneered and motioned for his men, who charged forward with malicious laughter.

The short fat man panicked, looking at the bandit leader in disbelief.

"Damn it! Do they think we’re just for show? I’ll take down these punks!" Grizzly roared, brandishing his axe to charge. Cobra, Hammer, and Axe, eyes red with despair, seemed ready to fight to the death, incensed by the bandits' breach of rules.

Suddenly, a bloody scene silenced everyone. Both the bandits and the caravan stared in shock at the dripping greatsword.

"Ah..."

A ghastly scream tore through the air. The bandit leader, now a head shorter, stared in disbelief at his broken sword and bisected body. Screaming in horror and despair, his upper half tried to crawl away, leaving a trail of blood and organs as if trying to flee from the demon before him—a gruesome scene.

Nidhogg froze too.

He had instinctively swung his sword at the bandit leader, having no martial skill. The bandit leader, seeing Nidhogg’s inept attack, didn’t care, ready to counterattack, having killed many "rookies" like him.

However, when he tried to block Nidhogg’s sword, the unexpected, immense strength from the sword shocked him. His eyes widened in disbelief, and then—boom—Nidhogg's greatsword sliced through the leader’s sword and body, cutting him in half.

Neither the bandits nor the caravan saw the mental calculations; they only saw Nidhogg “casually” swing his sword, and the bandit leader being effortlessly cut down—a scene of ease.

"You... damn, this... Boss Tyrant, this..." Grizzly stammered, not knowing what to say. His bald head conveyed a tinge of sympathy for the crawling bandit leader’s half-body. Unsure whether to fight the stunned bandits or not, he hesitated with his axe.

Hammer, Axe, and Cobra had been ready to fight to the death but were now floored by this unexpected turn of events, leaving them bewildered.

Nidhogg himself was unsure of what to do.

He had intended to fight the bandits longer, using the morph as an advantage, thinking that as long as his head wasn’t cut off, he could explore his physical limits. But it seemed his training had paid off; his strength now far exceeded a typical knight, leading to such an unexpected outcome.

Nidhogg hesitated, wondering whether to continue fighting the bandits.

"Legendary knight! He's a legendary knight!" came a trembling shout from the bandits, pointing at Nidhogg in terror. It seemed the only explanation for why their leader was effortlessly cut down.

Grizzly, Cobra, Hammer, and Axe all looked at Nidhogg with reverence, while Cobra, usually silent, couldn’t help but ask, "Are you truly a great legendary knight?"

A legendary knight is someone who has trained their body to its utmost potential, able to harness their blood energy in battle. Legendary knights often serve as loyal followers to wizards, gaining mystical enhancements and potentially embarking on a powerful path unique to knights.

However, this path often leads to despair, as less than a handful of legendary knights have ever reached the combat level of a fourth-tier wizard.

"Er... something like that."

Nidhogg decided to admit it. Anyway, after reaching Bangar City, they would part ways, and it was unlikely they’d meet again. (Wizard apprentices and knights have vastly different concepts of time and space—a wizard apprentice has a minimum lifespan of 200 years, while a knight's future depends on their next meal…)

Upon hearing Nidhogg's admission, both the bandits and the caravan were shocked. A legendary knight was rarer than a wizard, the ultimate goal for many knights.

"Cackle, cackle, a legendary knight, wonderful..." a sinister, evil laugh came from behind the bandits. As the figure came into view, the caravan's shock turned to fear as they shouted, "Black wizard!"

A hallmark of black wizards is the ominous gray aura of death surrounding them (low-level black wizards do not suppress this; high-level ones use mental power to do so). This is due to absorbing some mysterious energy from killing many humans, an energy composed of negative emotions like resentment, despair, and fear.

Only the Holy Tower is said to be able to completely conceal this negative energy, grooming black wizards into witch hunters instead.

The black wizard had a youthful face, appearing only around sixteen or seventeen, but this elicited no other thoughts beyond absolute terror. To the civilians of the wizarding continent, black wizards are synonymous with death.

"Wait!"

The girl from the carriage suddenly burst out, frantically holding a strange black card. The black wizard paused upon seeing it.

Nidhogg was also taken aback.

Nidhogg was surprised because this black wizard seemed... too weak?

The black wizard had somehow eluded Nidhogg's perception despite his 30-point mental power, not realizing he was facing a wizard apprentice. This made Nidhogg wonder about the state of the wizarding world if such a weak black wizard could roam freely on the continent.

Nidhogg observed the black wizard with an almost curious fascination.

Perhaps he should preserve this rare experimental specimen intact? (Would using black wizards as experimental specimens invite retaliation from the black wizard community?) Or perhaps he should decapitate the target and turn it in as a task to his mentor?

After all, this was a legendary black wizard...