Warlock of the Magus World

by Stayrr

What happens when a scientist from a futuristic world reincarnates in a World of Magic and Knights? An awesome MC is what happens! A scientist’s goal is to explore the secrets of the universe, and this is exactly what Leylin sets out to do when he is reincarnated. Dark, cold and calculating, he makes use of all his resources as he sets off on his adventures to meet his goal. Face?

28. 851

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Loot

The flag representing the black skeletons was slowly lowered from the battleship's mast, replaced with the bright red flag of the Scarlet Tigers.

"The old Scarlet Tiger is already at the bottom of the sea, but the crew shall now give it a new life. The Black Skeleton shall henceforth be called the Scarlet Tiger!" Leylin announced this decision as he stood on the deck, which immediately attracted cheers from his men.

Compared to the previous Scarlet Tiger which had been built on top of the Black Tiger, this ship was deserving of being Crowe's flagship. Not only was it fully covered in a layer of magical armour, giving it a shocking defence, just the size of the vessel and the water it displaced far exceeded his former ship's.

Ḥowever, Leylin had benefitted at his opponent's expense. All of this was now his. "Robin Hood, allocate some of the men to start up the battleships behind as well!"

"Aye, boss!" Robin Hood rubbed his hands together excitedly. The fleet of ships under the Black Skeletons was extremely luxurious. There were more than ten large battleships, and none of them was inferior to the previous Scarlet Tiger. The Scarlet Tiger pirate crew could truly eat their fill this time.

"Drive the ships off first, then we'll replenish our manpower and depart for Hygar Island to take part in the naval battle!" After destroying two large pirate crews in one go, the remaining slaving fleet armed with military equipment was the only force that Marquis Louis was left with. How could Leylin let them off?

However, he was now facing a severe lack of manpower. After barely being able to start up the vessels, there were few people left to participate in battle.

Such a situation made Leylin laugh bitterly.

'I'm afraid that these large-scale warships have to be kept safe for a period of time. The number of men I'm bringing with me to the naval battle this time round might not take up more than five large boats…' He clearly had such huge ships, yet didn't have enough manpower. This was the predicament that Leylin was currently facing.

He even wanted to let his family's bodyguards disguise themselves as pirates, but quickly gave up that idea. After all, his adversaries this time round were different from pirates. They were a military fleet under an influential nobleman, whose name would not be revealed for purposes of secrecy. The bodyguards of his own family perhaps might not dare to take action.

It was needless to mention the effects of bringing them here. Leylin didn't want to lose them. Hence, he could only bring his own men to engage in war, but unfortunately, the majority of his subordinates had sacrificed their lives during the previous explosion.

But these were all trivial matters. When news of the Scarlet Tiger destroying the Black Skeletons and Tigershark Pirates spread, there would be plenty of pirates pleading to join him. The two fleets started to part ways, while Leylin hid in the captain's room and looked through his gains.

Crowe's cabin was very spacious, and had all kinds of vibrant oil paintings and other artworks on the walls. They were evidently accumulated over his long life as a pirate.

"Crowe's private treasury is just a small matter. After all, most of his riches are on the magical battleship under my feet. What's truly valuable is the wizard's equipment!" Leylin unabashedly occupied the golden seat embedded with precious jewels that once belonged to Crowe. He sized up several items on the table with bright eyes.

The first thing that came into his line of sight was an old-fashioned leather pouch.

"A Bag of Holding!" Leylin's eyes brightened. He had been envious of this legendary piece of equipment that was standard for high level wizards. It was a pity that it was hard to purchase one even with the Faulens' current financial resources.

But now, Boruj had actually taken the initiative to deliver it to him. A personal Bag of Holding would definitely have curses and other mechanisms on it, but they could not hide from the A.I. Chip's scans. Leylin easily broke them.

The Bag of Holding was close to ten cubic metres in size, which pleasantly surprised Leylin. In a corner of the space was a messy heap of gold coins and gems that he estimated to be worth tens of thousands of gold kronas, but it was actually the pile with the lowest value.

"So many… So many high level spell-casting materials… and wizardry books…" Leylin's smile became wider. These were all items that couldn't be bought with money. When his eyes paused upon a few ancient-looking scrolls, his smile was the brightest it could ever be.

These scrolls were adorned with complex designs, and the scrolls themselves were made using leather from some sort of animal. There were even traces of its scales on the surface. As Leylin gentle caressed the scrolls, he could sense a subtle layer of mental deterrence.

'This is the power of a dragon! Dragon skin was used to make these few scrolls!' Leylin's eyes glistened as he slowly opened the scrolls.

[Beep! Spiritual energy data detected, initialising scan.]

The scrolls contained a multitude of magic circuits and strangely-shaped writing. This was a way of storing information that allowed a huge amount of characters and resources to be stored within the relatively small scroll. Although there were still other kinds of encryption on it, Leylin felt that they were not worth mentioning.

The A.I. Chip immediately prompted. [Decryption complete. Transmitting to memory…]

Following the A.I. Chip's voice, Leylin first saw a row of words: "Re: Structure of the magic circuit within the low-level wizard tower…"

'As expected, are these the materials that Boruj prepared for his own wizard tower?' Leylin scanned through the next few scrolls. Apart from techniques to construct a wizard tower, there was also information about defensive golems and methods of manufacturing their bodies.

'Who would've thought that Boruj was also a master of golems? But what a pity… Everything he had prepared now belongs to me.' Leylin was full of ambition. As a wizard, the benefits he could reap from the assistance of a wizard tower on his path of advancement would be unimaginable.

'Speaking of which, there still seem to be large quantities of raw materials on the Baltic archipelago that Marquis Louis had prepared for the wizard tower, especially mithril and pure gold. It's practically priceless!'

Leylin secretly made a decision. He quickly stowed the Bag of Holding away, and looked over a few other items. The radiance of the Identify spell kept flickering on Leylin's palm.

'A magical staff that stores enchanted missiles, and an anti-detection cloak? Not bad…' Leylin evaluated the items one by one, and his gaze finally fell on a black ring.

After the Identify spell flashed, the relevant information was revealed and digitalized by the A.I. Chip before being presented in front of Leylin's eyes.

[Name of item: Wizard Ring. Weight: 11 grams. Materials: Obsidian, wizard alloy, dragon blood. Effects: Addition of one spell slot allocated to all spell slots below rank 5 (exclusive to wizards). Description: This is a ring that possesses formidable magic powers, and will likely be coveted by other beings. A brilliant smelter could possibly strengthen the material.]

"This ring might just be Boruj's best piece of equipment!" Leylin sighed. "It's definitely a far cry from the legendary Lich Ring, which allows a single addition to all of the wizard's spell slots, but it's still a godly tool for a lower-ranked wizard!"

Leylin estimated a high price of five hundred thousand gold coins for just Boruj's equipment. It showed how affluent wizards were, especially the high-ranked ones. Any of their equipment chosen at random could be sold at a sky-high price!

'This ring!' Leylin gently stroked the surface of the black ring. He could feel faint traces of spiritual energy from it.

"Dragon blood was added to this ring when it was forged, but it seems to be mixed with something else as well…" Leylin muttered to himself. "If matched with other precious materials, it does indeed have room for improvement. However, my current wizard rank is inadequate…"

After a few rounds of scanning and verification, Leylin wore the Wizard Ring on his left hand. At that instant, his statistics changed. [Leylin Faulen. Age: 16. Race: Rank 10 human wizard. Strength: 5.2. Agility: 6.5. Vitality: 6.3. Spirit: 10. State: Healthy. Innate skills possessed: Robust, erudite and multi-talented. Spell slots owned: Rank 4 spell slots (3), rank 3 spell slots (5), rank 2 spell slots (7), rank 1 spell slots (???), rank 0 spell slots (???)]

To a wizard, every increase in spell slots meant a significant upgrade in terms of strength. Leylin could imagine the trouble he would face if the existence of this ring was discovered by other wizards.

"Perhaps I should add a form of concealment to it. It can't emit such a strong halo of magic light at least, it's practically asking to be a target…"The setting sun was painted blood red.

Numerous tattered and fragmented remains of a ship were drifting across the surface of the sea in the vicinity of Hygar Island.

Dozens of floating corpses belonging to the mariners of Baltic archipelago were strewn everywhere. Some of the dead bodies had been immersed in the seawater for so long that they had inflated, and appeared extremely terrifying.

A flag that represented Marquis Louis' influence was slowly bobbing up and down in the water, and a big part of it seemed to have been burnt off at the edges.

After taking a while to rest and reorganise themselves, Leylin and Odge had brought their men, taking their main battleships to fight the military fleet.

Dealing with the Pirates' Tide had already been a problem, but with the addition of Leylin and Odge the situation on the battlefield changed drastically. Under attack from both sides, the military fleet was instantly defeated. Even the commander-in-chief was hit by an artillery shell, and he died on the spot.

Numerous ships were attacked and they sank one by one. Countless mariners of the Baltic archipelago were either dead or injured.

The two pirate crews raised their flags bit by bit in the afterglow of the setting sun, and left the battlefield one after the other. Next, they would pillage the territories and harbours belonging to Marquis Louis separately. They could make up for their losses this round, and conveniently strike it rich.

"Our honeymoon period with the Barbarians has already passed…" Leylin exhaled deeply as he stood on the deck, watching them leave.

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Storm and Capture

Following the complete fall of Marquis Louis' men at sea, remarkable changes immediately occurred to the situation offshore.

Leylin and the Barbarians originally had no choice but to ally in their fight against Marquis Louis' oppression. However, with the Black Skeletons and Tigershark Pirates destroyed, that pressure had completely vanished with the sinking of the military fleet he'd painstakingly built. Now, a rivalry formed between the two crews.

As there was still a gigantic cash cow right in front of their eyes, the conflict between both sides certainly hadn't escalated to a great extent. Still, it was already impossible to prevent future fights.

Leylin had long prepared for this.

"Set sail! Let's go to the Baltic Harbour, straight into the base camp of that old fox!" Leylin's order was accompanied by cheers from his pirates. They started up the Scarlet Tiger, which was like a gigantic creature of the sea as they headed towards the Baltic Archipelago.*Thump! Shatter!* The sharp and clear sounds of glass and chinaware falling onto the ground could be heard, occasionally interspersed with bellows of rage.

The maids and subordinates in the marquis' residence did not even dare to breathe heavily, fearful of becoming the target of his fury. Ever since news of William's death had made its way here, Louis had sunken into a state of complete hysterial. Several servants had been dragged out and beaten to death, including a few personal female servants that Louis once favoured greatly.

Under such circumstances, it was understandable that the servants were being silent out of fear. For some reason, Tim was secretly very elated upon seeing the situation. He was even filled with the rejuvenating pleasure of someone having taken his revenge.

'Has that damn William been completely fed to the fishes?' Tim laughed maniacally inside, yet did not dare to show it. 'If that old fellow knows about this intelligence report, will he get so angry that he'll breathe his last?'

"Father! We have the latest news of our family's fleet!" Tim's voice was a mix of unease and apprehension, as though he was a criminal waiting to be executed.

"Come in!" Marquis Louis' voice came from the within the room as he tried to repress his anger. Tim sneered secretly, and entered.

The marquis' study was currently very messy. Shattered glass and porcelain shards were strewn across the floor. On the desk lay a dead body, totally void of life.

It was a young and beautiful female servant. Her eyes seemed to show a longing for survival, and her body was covered with traces of abuse, particularly the bruises on her neck, which were the main culprits that led to her death.

"Someone, tidy up this place!" Marquis Louis adjusted his shirt collar. With his order, an expressionless butler entered with a few maids, and they quickly cleared up the entire study room.

When the door closed, only Tim and Marquis Louis were left. Seeing that the marquis had seemingly regained peace after venting his anger, Tim suddenly felt a chill in his heart for some reason.

"Father…" Tim tried his best to make his voice appear more sorrowful.

"Speak… Have those bunch of morons been completely wiped out?" Marquis Louis sat on his soft armchair, his expression without a hint of grief or delight.

"Yes. Our family's military fleet was besieged by the Scarlet Tigers and the Barbarians, and has confirmed to have been totally defeated near the Baltic archipelago."

What Tim did not expect was that Marquis Louis' expression did not change much after hearing such earth-shattering news, as though he had long predicted it.

"I know… After the Black Skeletons and Tigershark Pirates were destroyed, our family's fleet walked down the same road as well? Heh heh… From today onwards, the Gold Thornblossoms' authority over the Dambrath seas will be thoroughly destroyed…"

The marquis' eyes seemed unusually bloodshot. It was the pain and insanity of having his life's work ruined.

However, Tim actually felt more at ease after witnessing this. He would be assured only if the marquis was in such a state.

"Give instructions to prepare to leave this place!" Marquis Louis said to Tim.

"Leave? To where?" Tim seemed rather puzzled.

"Return to the mainland, the Dambrath capital. It's no longer safe here with the great loss we've suffered in our strength. Those pirates will frantically pounce on us like starving dogs. We must leave as soon as possible while their mind is still on the other ports and wealth."

Marquis Louis explained indifferently as he gazed at Tim with a gentle look in his eyes. "Tim, you're now my only adult son. As long as we live, the kingdom will not let the Baltic archipelago have a change of ownership."

The delayed trust made Tim feel as though there were two hot streams crashing into his eyes. He pouted, but said nothing in the end.

Boom! Boom! Boom!* Muffled cannon blasts sounded in the study, interspersed with the whistles of pirates. No matter how good the sound-proofing was, the noise could not be blocked out.

"What's going on?" Marquis Louis ran to the window and opened it. The sounds became clearer, and he could see many clouds of black smoke. There were even silhouettes of hordes of pirates.

"How could they intrude so quickly? What about the fort and sentinel points that the team of guards had set up? Why aren't they of any use? Could it be…"

Marquis Louis could finally smell conspiracy. Although he had lost his soul after his beloved son died in battle and after his maritime fleet was entirely wiped out, the marquis who had endured the test of battle immediately reacted at this critical juncture, but it was all too late.

He suddenly turned around, and immediately met with a pair of eyes resembling a wolf's!"Kill!" "Heh heh… Charge!"

Numerous pirates roared wildly. After destroying the battery and several guard assembly points, the other pirates spread themselves out like maniacs. They charged towards to the refined stores and enormous mansions like wild dogs.

Smashing sounds could be heard everywhere, and lone pirates with luxurious silk hung around their necks and their pockets stuffed with huge amounts of jewelry and gold coins could be seen scuttling across the streets from time to time.

Of course, there were bound to be massacres and death, and even little children could not run from their fate. Women were being disgraced in many dim corners, as they let out sorrowful cries.

Restraining the pirates like they were a military troop would be a joke. These pirates were excited by the tremendous amount of wealth here after they had abruptly broken into the place. They were like rats that had fallen into a rice vat, and had exposed the most despicable side of humanity.

In order to cause the greatest amount of wreckage, Leylin had even lowered his standards. He'd recruited a huge bunch of inferior pirate vassals, and brought them here. These were the scum of all scum, and they instantly displayed their powerful destructive abilities.

One could see that the entire harbour wouldn't regain its popularity in the next few years after this ended.

On the largest battleship equipped with magical armor—the Scarlet Tiger— Leylin put down the telescope in his hands as he revealed a satisfied expression.

"Excellent. That's right, kill them all, rob them all, burn them all! When we depart, all I need is to see a wasteland!" Leylin was now wearing a silver mask, and so was Isabel.

They were still noblemen after all, and naturally had to be mindful. Otherwise, they would meet with trouble in the kingdom if they left some magical image behind. Even though the mask covered his expression, Leylin was now like a respected devil of the underworld. His aura made other pirates retreat one by one, their faces filled with panic and fear.

The Baltic archipelago was the feudal land of the kingdom after all, and Leylin could not brazenly occupy this place openly. Thus, he wanted to completely destroy everything here, and turn this beautiful and wealthy archipelago into a purgatory. It would never be able to contest for the spot of an offshore trading centre with Faulen Island henceforth!

"You will see it!" Isabel's eyes were rather bloodshot. Her aura once again began to rise sharply.

Such slaughter and chaos were evidently a demon's favourite. If she was able to conduct a ritual before they pillaged the place, perhaps they would reap even greater profits.

But Leylin wouldn't let her do that, of course. Once devils and demons were involved in something, it would definitely attract the attention of the church. He was still unable to contend against those colossal beings.

"Tim's map of the port's defences shows that there are still some forts, and also the residences of several people in authority and their strength. It can't get any easier to raze this port to ruin." A harbour was completely different with intel on it than without. Tim had an extremely high status, which was of huge benefit to Leylin as a spy.

At this moment, Robin Hood came forward to report to Leylin. "Boss! The troops stationed here have already been completely wiped out. Ronald is currently bringing our men to attack Marquis Louis's mansion." His body was covered with many bloodstains, and there were even pieces of meat and other items hanging from the blade of his sword.

"Marquis Louis must die here! The others don't matter."

Marquis Louis was an old fox after all. If he escaped, there might be other troubles that would ensue. Leylin wasn't that idle to fool around with him.

"That Tim…" Robin Hood seemed like he wanted to say something but stopped himself.

"Depends on his luck. Marquis Louis has a few other children who are not of age yet anyway. We just need someone to succeed the Gold Thornblossom family, so that their feudal land will not be confiscated by the kingdom."

Leylin waved his hands. "Come with me, there are even more important things to do!"

To Leylin, two places here were the most important sources of wealth. One was the official residence of the marquis, and the other was naturally where Boruj gathered the materials for his wizard tower.

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Assassination

Boruj was a high-level wizard who led a luxurious life and had a respectable position across the entire Dambrath Kingdom. The only reason he was following Louis in developing the outer seas was because the marquis had promised to construct a wizard tower for him.

This was a wizard tower, something all high-level wizards needed to conduct more profound research into other planes. It was how they raised their ranks. High-level wizards with the protection of a tower were miles ahead of vagrants with nothing to their name.

Given the many advantages, there was no doubt that the construction of a wizard tower was just as horrifying in its expense. Even the cheapest one costed more than two million gold coins.

Leylin was sure that Marquis Louis had invested close to half of his trade profits into this wizard tower which was still under construction. For him, this was equivalent to a gift from heaven. If he could completely plunder these supplies, it would be much easier for him to build a wizard tower for himself in the future.

Leylin had already found the construction blueprint unique to the wizard tower in Boruj's bag of holding, but the base materials were also very precious. Marquis Louis had spent a endless amount of money and manpower to transport them from remote parts of the distant mainland.

He brought his men to the designated location for the wizard tower by following Tim's map. There were already several camps here, and a simple foundation for the tower had already been laid.

"If we really had let him build his wizard tower, we absolutely wouldn't have been able to break through the port's defence today. It's even possible that we'd have suffered a total defeat," Leylin said with a lingering fear to the people next to him, as he saw that the project had just begun.

However, the camp was now in chaos. Many corpses were strewn messily across the place, and it was filled with pirates in a killing frenzy as they dashed from one room to another.

"Stop them!" Leylin waved his hands. He didn't have a twinge of mercy for those random pirates who went crazy with bloodlust and lacked discipline.

Robin Hood brought his men over and started hacking frantically at the other pirates right away. When several of the pirates who were roaring away were beheaded, the remaining few finally came to their senses.

"Put down the things you robbed, or you will die here." Leylin spoke indifferently, looking as terrifying as a devil to them.

Under the threat of death, most of the pirates obediently threw out the items in their hands, and rushed towards the port. There was also an endless amount of wealth there, and giving up their lives here was not worth it at all.

However, there were still a minority of the pirates who coveted and could not let go of the riches in their hands. With a wave of Leylin's hand, Robin Hood and his men immediately went towards those stubborn pig heads.

"Open the storehouse!" Once they were done purging the entire area, Robin Hood grabbed a person who seemed to be in charge. Using his blade that was covered in fresh blood, he forced him to open all the storehouses one by one.

In that split second, Leylin's men were immediately dazzled by a colourful radiance.

"Diamonds, ironwood, the core for configuring puppets, and so many wizarding alloys… Not bad, not bad, these are all goods that aren't available overseas, and are necessary to build a wizard tower."

On top of that, Leylin had even found a tiny warehouse after cracking a tiny mechanism, which stored copious amounts of mithril and pure gold. These two metals could absorb magic very well, and were precious materials required in many wizarding items.

'These are probably only a part of it!' Leylin sighed sorrowfully. "Slave trading is indeed the most profitable business!"

This was undoubtedly the reason why his family didn't engage in the trade of refined sugar and fish floss for long, or else they would have been able to accumulate an unimaginable sum of wealth.

"Organize the men. Move all of this onto the Scarlet Tiger, and specially assign people to guard it!" Leylin instructed Robin Hood. Then, he brought Isabel and the others next to the marquis' residence which had already been besieged.

Ronald was now launching a violent attack with his men, but the people inside were resisting tenaciously. What Marquis Louis had accumulated over the decades wouldn't be destroyed so easily. Even if they had already gotten rid of most of his men at sea, there would still be faithful officials appearing at times like this.

However, their pointless resistance dissolved into nothing after Leylin appeared. With just a few fireball spells, the entrance to the marquis' mansion was completely blasted open, revealing the interior of the building in all its dazzling and glorious splendor.

Isabel dashed in like a valkyrie, her black magical longsword taking in its fill of hot blood. She didn't have any mercy whatsoever towards these foes who had caused her family to perish.

Leylin called Ronald over and gave him a grim order, "Ronald, tell those pirates that the entire marquis' mansion and a few of the other important storehouses are ours. Anyone who dares to covet them will be killed right away!"

He wasn't some kind of saint; he had gathered all these miscellaneous pirates here only to strengthen his influence. He was already kind enough to let them plunder the place wilfully, how could he give them the greatest benefits?

"Yes, young master!" Ronald was brimming with enthusiasm and vigour. He, too, had a burning hatred towards Marquis Louis' family. Now that he had gotten his revenge, he was full of so much admiration towards Leylin that he would kneel at his feet.

The entire process was going rather smoothly. While Ronald was directing his men to empty the stores, Leylin had already obtained a battle report from Isabel.

"The entire mansion has crumbled completely. Other than Tim and a few others, the rest have been arrested, and even Marquis Louis was found dead in his study, is that alright?"

"It's enough, let's go!" Leylin sneered as he scanned the city centre. A few places were still rather tranquil, and were even radiating light—that was the location of the church!

Even a bishop would be unable to obstruct the tsunami of pirates, and could only passively rely on the powers of the god in their church to strengthen their defense.

Leylin certainly wouldn't be so foolish as to let his men attack the church. As for the other miscellaneous pirates who had already lost their minds, he naturally didn't have to bother about them anymore.

Moreover, Leylin's attack this time was achieved by catching the marquis off guard. If the other churches reacted and even colluded with each other, it would be very troublesome for him.

"Yes, young master! The other pirates?" Ronald saluted with his right hand on his chest.

"They came for wealth, and will now die here because of wealth. Isn't it perfectly normal?" Under the influence of a crazed atmosphere, there would only be a handful of pirates who would eventually discover danger, promptly wrap up their business here, and leave. Besides, if they could achieve this, then they would naturally have the right to continue living.

The Scarlet Tiger and a few battleships departed the harbour, which had already degraded into a living hell. They even lit up a few large fires, yet it did not attract the attention of many pirates. Those soaking in madness and slaughter would always have a relatively slow reaction towards the outside world.

A few rays of holy light obstinately shot out from the flames, even protecting the surrounding civilians. It was just that there seemed to be a few shadows within the rays of light emitting from the church.

"Heh heh… The church of the God of Murder? We will settle our debts one day…" Leylin smiled sarcastically. The look in his eyes was serene, yet it seemed to contain a devilish glint."Respected bishop, all the pathfinders have assembled, and are ready to set off any moment!" A young female priest looked across the refugees in the plaza of the church, her face flushed red with indignance and her gaze filled with pity.

"Those damn pirates! The light of our God will purify them completely one day!" The young female priest said, aggrieved.

The elderly bishop's eyes seemed to contain the entire world, yet they were also brimming with a soft luster. He slowly started to pray to the sculpture of Ilmater in the centre of the church.

"Dear god, take pity on the common people! Alice, you have to understand that our forces are unable to contend against all those pirates outside. We must wait for a suitable opportunity…" The bishop's voice was aged but resolute, yet seemed to have some sort of calming powers that allowed the young female priest to attain peace within her heart.

At this moment, a figure hurriedly ran in. "Sir! A priest of the church of Lathander is requesting to meet you!"

"Very well, invite him in quickly!" There was a glimmer of joy on the bishop's face.

Lathander the Morninglord was a deity with a formidable occult force. He bore an intense hatred towards all kinds of evil and sordid behaviour, and his priests were unyielding towards cracking down on dark forces. With the assistance of his pathfinders in quelling the entire harbour, there would be hope in restoring peace!

"Respected bishop!" A priest with lustrous golden hair, clothed in a Morninglord priest gown entered with quick steps, an extremely resentful expression on his face. "Our church will dispatch all the forces we have on hand to attack those vicious people. I hope we will be able to receive your help!"

"But of course, we will not shirk our duty. I- Eek!" The bishop turned to look at his chest, stunned. A black dagger had been thrust into it, the blood like a blooming rose as it spread under it unceasingly.

A malicious curse immediately invaded the wound, one that even a divine spell couldn't dispel.

"You… You're not a Morninglord priest…" The bishop slowly collapsed. In the final moments of his life, he saw the priest's face change weirdly, and it eventually became the face of a sinister person. He started slaughtering everyone around him as he laughed maniacally, and the young priest Alice fell into a pool of blood.

"Shadow Jump!" After assassinating the bishop, the assassin who was above rank 15 immediately mobilized a high-level technique and vanished into thin air. With the convenience of the shadow plane, he had arrived somewhere else when he reappeared.

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Change in Events

"My lord, Ilmater's bishop has fallen!" The high-ranked assassin respectfully reported to the people next to him.

"You did well!" Beside him was evidently the bishop of the God of Murder at Pirates' Cove. At some point in time, he had come to the Baltic archipelago and hidden himself in the shadows, killing the regional bishop of the God of Suffering.

"Master, please accept this offering from your humble servant!" Seeing a broken ray of light amidst the sea of fire, the bishop of the God of Murder flushed as he knelt and began to pray. This light belonged to the church of suffering.

A pair of powerful eyes focused on this area, strong enough for even the high-ranked assassin to sense. This was the strength of the god that he believed in, of Cyric the God of Murder!

His eyes filled with elation, and the radiance of divine force flickered into existence.

'Grace of the Gods! It's the grace that will raise his ranking permanently!' The high-ranked assassin saw the light shining on the bishop's body, as well as the increase in his aura. The bishop's eyes burnt with more fervour as he began to pray silently, "Dear master Cyrik, you are…"The unrestrained acts of the pirates continued for several days. The Scarlet Tigers and Barbarians acted separately, conducting surprise attacks on all of the Baltic archipelago's ports and cities. There were also other 'fake' pirates mixed in, following their bosses as they wreaked havoc while robbing all that was in front of their eyes. This was a feast for pirates!

Cyric's priests seemed to be acting from the shadows in these outrageous events, apparently with the God of Murder's divine force mixed in. It made it seem like there really was a conspiracy afoot.

It was even said that the chaos and massacre here had attracted the attention of demons and devils from the abyss. Someone had personally witnessed their marks on the ruined corpses from the calamity.

This immediately caused concern in the Dambrath Kingdom. An investigation team formed of elite priests and paladins of the God of Justice Tyr swore to find the main culprit and punish them.

Accompanying the investigative team was a special envoy sent by the king, responsible to confirm the survival of the descendants of the Together with this investigative team was a special envoy sent down by the king. He was responsible for confirming the survival of the descendants of the Golden Thornblossom family, as well as the cause of Marquis Louis' death. Of course, that was all a front. What truly attracted one's attention was the Baltic archipelago, and the fertile territories on the seas.

It was a pity that they were destined to be disappointed. After the pirate attack, the Baltic archipelago had lost over 50% of its population and much of its amassed wealth. The other ports and cities were burnt to nothing, turning into dead regions no merchants were willing to go to.

Trading in the outer seas had begun to shift towards other noble families' islands. The Faulen Island obviously got the most out of it, and began to develop rapidly. It even began to try taking over the spaces that Marquis Louis had left behind, laying its hands on the slave trade.

Leylin had now assembled his subordinates on the Scarlet Tiger ship, announcing a decision.

"I plan to leave for a while, I plan to travel the continent." Leylin looked solemn as he saw his trusted aides in the captain's room. This was a decision he had made after careful deliberations.

There was no way around it. He had gone too far this time, and it was necessary that he hide it out for a while. In addition, the outer seas were now gaining even more attention from even the gods. It was truly an unsuitable area for him to continue keeping a low profile.

"After I leave, the Scarlet Pirates will be under Isabel's command. You must listen to her as you do me, is that understood?" After all the members left, Leylin made Isabel stay behind.

"Are you really leaving?" Isabel gazed at Leylin's handsome face, looking reluctant.

"I've no choice! While everything might seem great with us now, we still need to be cautious!" Leylin's eyes were on Isabel as he began to instruct her, "I've already completely broken off relations between the Scarlet Tiger pirates and the family. I've even killed off all the disloyal ones, so it should be fine for you to take over. As long as neither of us are caught, it's impossible to get real evidence!"

The only connection between the Faulen Family and the Scarlet Tigers was Leylin. Without him there, the investigators could only watch helplessly. The churches and the kingdom naturally still needed evidence to act openly.

"And though the Barbarians have parted ways with us, I'm not worried about them. We have power on the surface!"

"Power on the surface?" Isabel looked doubtful.

"Yes. After I get back, I'll suggest that Father build a military fleet of our own. This is something pirates will never be able to do." Leylin's eyes flickered with extraordinary intelligence.

"There are only two sides of the outer sea, the light and the dark. In the dark, there's the Scarlet Tiger pirates contending with them, but they can't do anything against us in broad daylight. After all, commerce will never be able to match up to the power of nobility! With this advantage, we'll definitely be able to suppress them, turning into the next Marquis Louis and gaining supremacy in the outer seas!"

Leylin shared his complete development strategy, "Do you understand what I'm saying?"

"We just have to make our foundations stable?" Isabel was intelligent.

"Yes, it's all about stability! Once we completely take over the outer seas, the churches won't be able to do anything even if they know about our actions."

"What do you mean?" Isabel was astonished.

"It's power!" Leylin waved his hands, "As long as the outer seas are under our control, the churches can't put us on trial even if they know we've sinned. They have to spread their own faith as well."

With his abundant life experience, what could Leylin not see through?

"Look. Even if Marquis Louis was involved in the sinful slave trade, with his hands dipped in blood, he had control over the profits in the outer seas and had close relations with the kingdom. Even a priest of the God of Justice couldn't put him on trial!"

Leylin's eyes blazed with ambition, "As long as we're superior on the outer seas, those churches will only be able to lower their heads to us!"

Obviously, Leylin had failed to mention something. At the beginning, they could learn to do what Marquis Louis had, but after that, there had to be changes. He already had a plan for that.

In order to control the outer seas, his own strength was also vital. He believed they needed a Legend in charge at the minimum, but if everything went according to plan it was still feasible. By the time his family had gotten to that point, he'd have become a Legend himself.

This was the realm of Legends, people who had a say in the entire World of Gods! After all, the gods couldn't descend to the prime material plane in their own bodies, only able to do so through incarnations that weren't much stronger than high-ranked Legends.

Of course, Leylin only had the guts to do this in the outer seas, where the gods' organisations were frail. Otherwise, he would just be seeking his death!

"With those pirates in the middle being scapegoats for us, the churches won't go after us right away. Our Scarlet Tiger pirates must be aware of this!" Leylin estimated that the Barbarians would not grow hostile to them right away. Instead, they would absorb the surrounding pirates and increase their strength.

For this reason, however, they would attract even more attention, and unknowingly take the brunt of it from the Scarlet Tigers. Meanwhile, the Scarlet Tigers would keep a low profile and amass more power, waiting for an opportunity to rise.

Only after his plans were completely explained did Leylin leave, feeling at ease. Seeing Leylin's figure flying in the horizon and turning into a black spot that eventally disappeared, Isabel turned with an icy look on her face.

"Gather all the leaders. We are to hide in the deep seas for a period of time!"

"Understood!" Ronald shrank back. He had a feeling that after the head left, the "Scarlet Witch" that struck the outer seas with terror would return.

Ronald was aware that she would not make allowances for anyone else, destroying anyone she caught. He did not dare complain and jogged away from the deck.

With Isabel pressurising them, the Scarlet Tigers pirates carried out Leylin's plans exceedingly well, hiding in the deep sea.

Dambrath only held a small portion of the outer seas, and the further out one went the more dangerous it was. It was rumoured that there was a country of aboriginals at the depths of the sea, protected by the gods. Of course, this was just a rumour.

The Scarlet Tigers' actions wisely allowed them to evade a round of unrest. The organisations of the outer sea and the enraged nobles of the Dambrath Kingdom combined forces with the church, beginning a new round of purging the outer sea pirates. Even the navy was employed.

The priests and paladins of the God of Justice could be seen roaming around at this point. The pirates that had just started to get arrogant were put in a tough spot as they were stabilising themselves. Many were exterminated, and even the Barbarians suffered huge losses with no choice but to do things on the sly.

Whatever it was, the sea was vast. The Dambrath Kingdom had no way to maintain the huge expenses of the navy, and this could only terrorise the region for a while. After the navy left, this would still be the pirates' territory!

The reshuffling from this new round continued. The Faulen Family would make use of their status as nobility, trading their two profitable goods into becoming the hub of the outer seas. Of course, that was all in the future.

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Emon City

Emon was a port city along the coast of the Dambrath Kingdom. It relied on the flourishing trade of the outer seas to develop, and at one point had over ten thousand free citizens making up its society. The lights never went out at night, and it created the image of prosperity.

However, the Pirates' Tide in the outer seas, especially after the ransacking of the Baltic archipelago, stopped the sea trade for a while. Many small merchants had even committed suicide in the sea out of bankruptcy, leading to a further decline in prosperity.

This was all until one day, when a young man in grey robes came to the city gates.

"Entry fee is a copper coin!" As they had been standing guard here for a long time, the two guards had developed great insight. Noticing that this young man was not to be messed with, they did not create much trouble. After handing over the fee, the young man entered Emon City.

The city's roads were desolate, with guards patrolling everywhere. Since this was a port on the sea, there was a theoretical chance of pirate attacks, and those timid aristocrats and nobles were scared stupid by the Pirates' Tide, increasing the city's security. Most of them had probably hidden themselves further inside the mainland by now.

"I'll probably need to go the Mercenary Guild later!" After finding an inn, the young man slipped his hood off, revealing curly hair that was as dazzling as gold and a handsome face.

This was obviously Leylin. After taking care of all the matters and handing over all sorts of materials to Ernest, causing him to go giddy in his ecstacy and begin construction of a wizard's tower, Leylin openly left Faulen Island, taking a ship to the continent.

Of course, this was in the name of travel and learning, something that was a matter of course for wizards. He currently held a recommendation letter from Ernest in his lap, something that would allow him to train in the capital's Wizards' Guild for a while.

Leylin had intended this trip for a while, there was nothing that Ernest could teach him anymore. And with Boruj's bag of holding, he could now move about with more ease. 10 cubic metres of space was huge, and he could put his tent, rations, and essentials inside it, making things less difficult for him.

After getting on the coast, Leylin was like a drop of water that disappeared into the river of people. Things were rather sensitive right now, and he did not want to cause any trouble.

Travelling at this point was a very troublesome matter. If he lacked proof of free citizenship from the city hall or some other documents like that, he'd be treated like a runaway slave or indentured farmer. The rest of his life would be spent in jail or bankruptcy.

Of course, if he showed his proof of nobility, all cities would leave their doors wide open for him. But he wasn't foolish enough to do that.

If he became a mercenary, he would be able to move about with no obstruction in most areas, though the guards would roll their eyes at him. Mercenaries who broke order were one of the most headache-inducing issues for security officials.

The Mercenary Guild was located by the Warriors' Guild, one of their requirements was that one was a Professional.

Of course, this wasn't too hard. If he trained for many years, could use a few weapons proficiently and had a certain amount of experience, he could easily be certified as a rank 1 fighter.

Leylin entered the Warriors' Guild that was guarded by two burly warriors, in the distance seeing shrines to the gods of warriors and war. There were even a few resident priests in the guild, overseeing everything. They were in charge of healing injuries, even though it obviously came with a price.

Behind the Warriors' Guild were a few bigshots. Without their support both on the surface and in the shadows, it would have had no chance to spread throughout the continent. Since warriors were the most common Professionals amongst the many races, becoming one did not require much talent.

"Is this Mister's first time here?" After seeing Leylin's entrance, a maid welcomed him while watching him with a strange look.

After all, most warriors were muscled, and it was rare to see people like Leylin.

"Yes. I would like to apply for the fighter test!" Though the Wizards' Guild was more suitable for him, and being a wizard would gain him more respect, Leylin was here to stay out of trouble. He naturally wouldn't do that. He was not even planning to use the recommendation letter Ernest had given him.

"Please come with me!" The maid brought Leylin to the second level of the guild. There were many little rings here, where warriors were fighting hand-to-hand or battling it out. While they were using wooden swords, people would still get injured.

At this moment, a priest that had been waiting at the side would be useful.

"Please register first. May I know which rank would you like to take the test for?"

As if afraid that Leylin did not understand well and because of his face, the maid explained to him enthusiastically, "Our tests here are conducted based on varying levels of strength. You'll need to fight against a similarly-ranked or two lower-ranked opponents for a period of time to be able to pass the test, and there are often casualties…"

"Thank you for your good intentions. I'll do what I can!" Leylin came to a counter and put in his particulars, filling up the form.

"Let's see. Your name is Ley, you're 18, and you want to take the test for a rank 5 warrior?" Sitting at the counter was a withered old man. He lifted his glasses and looked at Leylin, who was outside, "Young man, don't try to push yourself too far. A rank 5 warrior can already use their qi, and some have even grasped battle techniques. You could maybe try rank 3…"

"What? You're choosing the rank 5 test?" The maid looked astonished, her sharp voice causing surrounding people to gather around and watch.

"Why didn't you listen to me?" The maid stamped her feet, pretty flushes appearing on her cheeks.

"I've already made up my mind, I'll do this!" Leylin furrowed his brows. While he had lied about his age, this was still shocking.

Of course, it wasn't that bad. It was much better than being a 16 year old rank 10 wizard, and he then nodded, "Please accept this application."

"The application fee is 10 copper coins!" After Leylin paid up, the old man sighed helplessly, "Teenagers these days…"

"Interesting! I haven't seen such an interesting kid for a long time! Let me be his opponent!" A forthright voice sounded out, and immediately after a burly man who was two heads taller than average pushed the crowd away as he walked over. His upper body was naked, the muscles solid like granite. There were several scabs from blades on his face, emanating red light that made him seem more menacing.

"It's the Bone Shatterer, Fafnir. This guy's in for it!"

"It's rumoured that he's a savage person who likes to pinch and shatter his opponent's bones. Why's he suddenly causing trouble for a kid?"

"It should be for a woman, right? He's been interested in Nina for a long time!" This immediately caused the maid to blush beet red, "Fafnir, what are you doing?"

"Nothing much. I'm a rank 5 warrior anyway, so isn't it normal for me to be an examiner? Am I wrong?" Fafnir watched Leylin, a malicious smile on his face.

"What about it?" He looked at the old man at the counter.

"You can give up on this test and come back tomorrow," The old man sighed. He probably did not want to see a young man like Leylin having such a great setback.

Leylin was speechless inside. He hadn't expected to meet such a vulgar person.

"It's fine, he'll do." Wait till tomorrow? He didn't have that much time to waste.

"I won't worry about you anymore!" This nonchalant attitude resulted in Nina leaving while fuming in anger. Meanwhile, a crisp explosion could be heard produced from Fafnir's hands.

"Kid, you're dead meat. I want to pinch and shatter all the bones in your body bit by bit. Hope that you won't hurt bad enough to call for your mother…" While brushing past him, Fafnir looked at Leylin and made a gesture as if slitting his throat.

"Don't worry. Isn't there a priest? I actually hope you brought enough money…" Leylin rolled his shoulders and picked up the long sword used for the testing.

As it was wooden, the handle was very light. However, there was a layer of metal on the blade that made it seem more durable.

The two slowly walked into the ring, and the judge then waved his right arm downwards. "Ready? Begin!"

"Destroy him, Bone Shatterer!"

"I'm supporting you, kid. Hang on!" The other bored warriors immediately began to jeer, and a few got the bets going, on how many moves Leylin could take from Fafnir.

Nina reappeared in the audience, watching the centre of the site anxiously.

"Kid, repent in hell!" Fafnir yelled as he charged.

This speed and technique was far from what Jacob had at the beginning, and Leylin could only shake his head inside. However, he did need to conceal his strength too, and he only dodged 'by a hair's breadth', sword swinging onto his opponent's shoulder.

"Stop wasting time! I've things to do!" A faint layer of qi emanated from Leylin's body.

"It's qi! This guy's already activated qi!!" The onlookers exclaimed.

"This kid's not bad!" Fafnir immediately began to get serious, and he wrapped himself up in these rays as well. An opponent who had already activated qi was not so easily defeated.

"Battle technique: Shatter Bones!" He accelerated, charging towards Leylin.

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Mercenary

"Fafnir actually used a battle technique!" The audience all exclaimed.

"How boring!" Leylin slipped past the opponent's slashing while his wooden sword pierced forward.

"Battle technique: Charge!" An immense force struck Fafnir, causing his huge body to fly like a sandbag. However, Leylin's attack hadn't ended yet. He seemed to turn into a gust of wind, sticking close to the hulking man who was in mid-air.

Crack!* *Crash!* Terrifying sounds of bones shattering were heard. When Fafnir fell, his arms and legs were all twisted at strange angles, and he even fainted.

"How is it? Did I pass?" Leylin looked at the judge, who seemed dazed.

"Oh. I announce that Ley has passed this test!" He finally said, as if he'd woken from a dream. The surrounding crowd began to make a ruckus.

Leylin cared little about this, and he went to the counter. This time the crowd opened up a path automatically, respecting the strong.

The old man chuckled as he asked, "Hehe… I don't often make mistakes! Kid, any interest in learning here for a period of time?"

"No thanks. I still have something urgent to do!" Leylin had seen that this old man was about rank 10 as a warrior. This was pretty good, but he'd almost killed a dozen high-ranked warriors himself on the outer seas.

"Alright! Sigh, young people these days…" The old man lethargically flung a copper badge to Leylin, as well as a piece of parchment, "Take it. This is your warrior badge and verification. That'll be two silver kronas."

This was slightly too expensive and seemed to be on purpose. However, since he was very efficient, Leylin paid the bill and quickly left.

After walking out of the warrior guild, Leylin went to the Mercenary Guild next door. The gold behind the counter revealed a professional smile, "Welcome. May I know if you are here to issue a mission or to apply for remuneration?"

"I'm here to apply to be a mercenary!" Leylin stated his purpose.

"Please go to counter number 3!" Applying to become a mercenary was very simple, and only required proof of one's Profession. After seeing Leylin's rank 5 fighter badge, the person in charge of counter 3 happily helped him with the proof of being one.

As a newbie, Leylin had no choice but to become a copper-grade mercenary, which was the lowest rank. Only after completing multiple missions could he advance. However, being verified as a mercenary and Professional. He would be able to enter the large cities in the future.

For Leylin, who looked towards becoming a god, focusing on raising his mercenary ranking was a joke.

'Since my path is now decided, next is go to the Dambrath Kingdom and study at the Wizards' Guild… Or should I go to another country… It's said that Moonlight City in the north has a whole set of information on magic. The city owner might even be someone chosen by the Goddess of the Weave, and many of their advanced wizard spells can be compared with the elves. I can consider training there for a while…'

Information on high-ranked spells in this world was highly confidential, and if Leylin wanted to gain this knowledge he would have to enter some large organisations to be acknowledged.

Of course, he could also ignore that and focus on raising his wizard ranking first. However, his battle might would then be pitiful. If a high-ranked wizard only grasped a few spells, that would be a disgrace to all of the same rank as him.

'Come to think of it, I wonder if the spell models of varying ranks in the Magus World can be modified to be used in the World of Gods? But the amount of time required for that would be too terrifying…'

Leylin had a tentative plan to make the path of Magi available to the World of Gods. It was an all-inclusive path that centered around the truth, and of all the paths to power it was very flexible and adaptable.

It was plausible to conduct research into producing Magi in the World of Gods, people who could cast spells without the Weave. However, that would require a great deal of processing power. Most of the A.I. Chip's resources were focused on the analysis of the Weave, and in a situation where it had no spare time to run simulations in this area he could only shelve his plans for now.

'Research on casting spells without the Weave is definitely a huge taboo in the World of Gods. I'm afraid I'll only be able to do something in that field after I become a Legend.'

Leylin stroked his chin, 'But if I'm able to get information on this, even if incomplete, the A.I. Chip's rate of analysis will be increased by a great amount… I'm sure there were many Magi participating in the Ancient War who had the same thoughts as I do now…'

While thinking this, Leylin entered the mission hall in the Mercenary Guild. Numerous large fireplaces were blazing in the place, making the hall seem cozy. The many mercenaries were split into their own cliques. Some were drinking and making merry, while others were gazing at the huge mission board at the centre of the hall, discussing things amongst themselves occasionally.

The aroma of strong rum, coupled with that of roasted meat and bread, lingered in Leylin's nose.

"High-grade mission: Purging ogres! Only mercenary groups that are gold-ranked and above may take this on." This mission was on the top of the board, written in huge bold font. The great rewards caused many mercenaries to drool at the sight, but few dared to go forward.

"Yeah! I heard that a bunch of ogres migrated towards one of the main paths to the capital. They've already attacked numerous caravans and passersby, it's no wonder that the rewards are so plentiful!"

Hearing the surrouding mercenaries whispering amongst themselves, Leylin had a better understanding of the mission.

'An ogre tribe? No wonder it's a high-ranked mission!' Leylin nodded inside. The classification of mercenaries was very simple. The lowest was copper, followed by silver and gold. Gold mercenaries were already high-grade and possessed immense experience, and were usually powerful Professionals.

Above gold-rank, was said to be Mithril and Platinum. However, in general, they would not be in such people a small city like Emon City.

Gold-ranked mercenary groups were powerful troops with numerous gold-ranked mercenaries. Only this level of strength would be effective against an ogre tribe.

Leylin looked at the bottom of the mission board. There were many missions to clear ogres out here and there, from the lowest ranked to powerful ogre shamans. All that one was required to do was bring back their ears as proof, and the difficulty was lower. Once in a while, a few mercenaries would go over to discuss before taking on the missions.

"A large-scale ogre tribe has more than 200 ogres. The shamans will have bloodlines, with abilities similar to magic. On top of that, the ogres themselves are resistant to magic…" Leylin muttered to himself.

"I won't be able to handle this myself unless I take the long route. However, that'll consume a lot of time, and I'll need to pass through a few dangerous regions, and the danger isn't all that different from the ogre tribes. There are even drake tribes there…"

"Seems like I'll have to wait for some large-scaled mercenary groups to complete missions or join some caravan…" Leylin mumbled to himself. He was preparing to go the capital, and even without Ernest's recommendation letter, he had enough power to enter the Wizards' Guild. Over there, he would be able to obtain the newest intel and the like.

"On top of that, even if I were to prepare to travel to the north to train, I'll definitely need to pass through the Dambrath Kingdom…" Leylin sighed. He went to the front desk counter near him belonging to the guild, "Give me cider. Are there any missions soon that will take me to the capital? The best would be those with large groups. I want something safe!"

As he said this, a silver krona appeared in his hand, emitting a tempting light in the air.

"Do you have urgent matters to attend to in the capital? That's no problem at all. A large caravan is going there soon, and they're recruiting people because of those wretched ogres!" Seeing the light in Leylin's hands, the attendant gulped and then responded. A tyrant like Leylin obviously gained more abundant and specific details.

After setting a time with the attendant, Leylin headed to the entrance of the Mercenary Guild. The streets of Emon City were very desolate, probably having to do with the double blow with the sea trade and the ogres.

Seeing the many stores that were closed, Leylin was about to return to meditate in his inn when a grey-robed person blocked his way.

"Mister, please whip me ruthlessly!" In front of Leylin was a young female in grey robes. She was pretty and was clad in coarse sackcloth clothing, and there were also many scars at her neck and cuffs.

Currently, she was standing in front of him with a look of anticipation, two hands holding a thorny whip. The numerous tiny thorns looked extremely sinister on it.

She looked pure and holy, ready to die for a just cause, and had a resoluteness that only belonged to crazed followers. There was even a hint of anticipation.

"What's with this… a trap?" Leylin's eyes went past the crazy woman and landed on a little girl next to her. She was holding a donation box of the church, and after noticing his attention was on her, she especially shook the box such that the coins inside made sharp and crisp noises.

Leylin saw a strange holy emblem at the little girl's chest.

"So you're a priest of the Mistress of the Whip!" Thankfully, Leylin had seen much in the world and recognised her identity.

"Yes! Please help with our praying ritual and allow my soul to obtain redemption through suffering!" The female answered seriously, and then thrust the whip into his hands.

"I… I… I…" Leylin was completely speechless now. He wanted to escape, but the passersby thought nothing of it. Some even looked over with knowing smiles.

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Misunderstanding

The Goddess of Weeping, also known as Mistress of the Whip, was called Amyter. She was a kind-hearted goddess, and her teachings included having her followers redeem their souls through suffering.

It was like when a forest was larger, birds were all the same. In the World of Gods, a few exotic gods existed, and this crying female was one of them.

The God of Suffering, Ilmater, taught his followers to suffer and endure the pain, but Amyter was different. She even requested that her priests and followers abuse themselves and obtain redemption through suffering!

Oh Gods! Even if Ilmater requested his followers to endure, he never wanted them to actively abuse themselves!

Hence, in simpler terms, Amyter's followers were a bunch of insane people who abused themselves, especially the priests.

Whenever there was a huge celebration, Amyter's priests and followers would gather, using lashes, wooden cangues and even red hot brands to 'pray'. This would earn themselves favour from the goddess, and amongst the divine spells the goddess granted were some that raised one's endurance of pain.

Gods like these had no market amongst regular commoners and were rarely seen. Leylin had almost not recognised her at the beginning, though she seemed to be welcomed by some exceptional enthusiasts.

This priestess of the goddess walked along the streets, praying for passersby to bestow pain on her to gain donations. This was an event that their church retained.

"I apologise, but I believe in the God of Knowledge, Oghma… This is just…" Leylin knew he was no pervert and immediately used an excuse.

"The goddess taught us not to mind the identity of the person inflicting pain on us, because they give us the redemption that is in suffering. We need to be grateful towards them… Please help me with my prayer!" The priestess looked resolute.

"I…" Leylin was rendered speechless. In addition, an increasing number of people were gathering, and he wanted to escape as soon as possible.

Just as Leylin tossed a gold coin to the little girl's donation box and raised the whip, as if preparing to finish it in one go, he suddenly felt his hair stand on end. It was like he was being stared at by some terrifying beast.

Knowing something was off, he dodged, evading a frightening qi slash.

Crash!* The powerful qi blade of light swept the area Leylin had stood at and smashed the limestone behind him to smithereens, revealing the strength of the person who had launched the sneak attack.

Along with this attack came the dainty call from a young girl, "Ah… Such despicable behaviour of bullying women is just an insult to my way as a knight. I, Rafiniya, won't let you off!"

"Which moron is it?"

Leylin turned back furiously. It was bad enough being requested to abuse someone by their request, but he was now being treated as a thug who was bullying the weak. Even with his thick skin, he was beginning to get ashamed.

"You dare do this but not admit to it? Everyone on the streets saw your violent behaviour, you despicable bastard!"

The person who had attacked him was a young and beautiful female knight, her wine-red long hair tied into a ponytail. Her pretty cheeks were now flushed in her anger, eyes fixed on Leylin and shooting out hatred. It was as if she could not wait to bite off a piece of flesh from Leylin.

"A high-ranked knight? Have you even made sense of the situation yet?" Leylin looked at the way this knight was dressed and the tall warhorse behind her, rather surprised.

Though they were still a physical Profession, knights were far removed from warriors. Not only was their armour extremely expensive, but a warhorse that one could ride into battle was not so easily obtained.

A warhorse was worth over ten times as much as a regular one, and on top of that it needed a specialised groomer and other service Professionals in charge of it. In exchange, it allowed a knight's destructive power to be far ahead of a warrior's.

In addition, high-ranked ones could, after affirming their faith, turn into knights of gods, learning to cast spells. Such Professionals were the ideal prince charming in the hearts of many young girls.

'To be able to become a high-ranked Professional at such a young age, this doll must have a pretty good background. She should be nobility…' Leylin sized her up. Through the attack just now, he could estimate that she should be at or above rank 10 as a knight.

'A.I. Chip, scan!' He commanded on the inside.

[Beep! Mission established, beginning scan…] The A.I. Chip loyally carried out his instructions, and soon enough, a passage of information was relayed.

[Name: Rafiniya. Gender: Female. Strength: 10 Agility: 6 Vitality: 7 Spirit: 5(Estimate). Rank 10 Knight. Abilities: 1. Abilities increase from 11-19% in power when mounted. 2. Armour: Full body knight armour has increased physical defence, but led to a similar decrease in resistance towards magic.]

'As expected of a high-ranked Professional, She even has a boost from her mount!' Leylin nodded inside. However, brazenly sizing her up was only making her more angry.

"What's wrong with this city? How can these hoodlums commit such evil in broad daylight? Has this place turned into a city praying to the devils and demons?"

The female knight's chest bounced up and down. The teasing gazes of the passersby only made her more infuriated.

"Please withdraw your unfair allegations!" At this moment, the priestess of Amyter stood out. "Our Lady Amyter, opposes all evil! In addition, you need to apologise for interrupting my prayer ceremony, else you'll be profaning our Lady!"

"Huh! What? W- Why?" Rafiniya's mouth widened slowly, and she looked stunned.

Following that, a patrol guard separated the crowd and came up to them, staring at the female knight with malicious intent, "You've destroyed the appearance of the city. Based on city hall law number 329, you must pay a fine of 10 gold kronas, or else we'll have to place you in prison…""Oh God of Justice! This actually happens? There's no such person at my old place…" After the ruckus, the surrounding crowd, patrolling soldiers and the priestess quickly left, leaving Leylin and the female knight Rafiniya behind.

However, her face was like a huge red apple. This was her shame. However, at the mention of the goddess's name, the girl immediately halted. No matter how preposterous and strange this goddess' style was, she was still a goddess! She needed to show respect at least on the surface, or she'd risk being put on trial by the other churches.

"You must be from another area, right? This goddess really doesn't have a great reputation, but it's best to find out about stuff like this before leaving on travels. The consequences of doing something taboo will be dire…" Leylin gravely reprimanded her, controlling his urge to laugh.

After the fine had been paid, the priestess of Amyter had requested a very strange compensation of Rafiniya— she wanted the knight to whip her ruthlessly!

Leylin 'kindly' handed his share of this matter over to the girl, getting her to do it as an apology. It was obviously humiliating for this knight who seemed noble and refined to lash a weak person like a scoundrel.

Thankfully, everything was soon over, or else Leylin reckoned Rafiniya would probably commit suicide.

"I understand!" She went over to the side of her war horse, showing her back to Leylin to hide her embarrassment, "I apologise for what happened just now. I shouldn't have treated you that way before making sense of the situation!"

As a knight, Rafiniya still did as should be based on the code of honour. At the very least, she had done well upholding justice, and was willing to change after learning that she was in the wrong.

"My name is Rafiniya, and I'm a travelling knight. Nice to meet you!"

"Mm. My name is Ley; I'm a mercenary." Leylin scratched his head.

A travelling knight? That was practically a joke! It was well-known that knights had huge requirements when it came to logistics. Without a professional groom and someone maintaining armour as well as weapons, a knight was useless.

Leylin looked at the warhorse behind her sympathetically. As expected, it was already looking dispirited and showed signs of malnutrition.

'It's already strange that a noble lady is training to be a knight. She's even travelling alone. How open is her family? Or is this perhaps one of those people who are escaping marriage?'

Being eyed by Leylin, Rafiniya lowered her head, slightly ashamed. She abruptly got onto her war horse, elegant and speedy, showing the results of bitter training, "Though there was a misundering in our meeting, things thankfully ended well. May I know the way to the Mercenary Guild?"

"Head east, and you'll find it quickly!" Leylin was speechless at this young girl, who looked like she'd been brainwashed by stories of knights.

"Thank you very much! Someday, under the guidance of fate, we'll meet again!" She naturally urged her handsome horse forward, and the mount snorted as it darted away.

"But that's the west. You're going in the wrong direction…" Leylin watched the direction in which she had left, but she had already disappeared.

"High-ranked knights who are directionally challenged are really quite rare. Sse didn't prepare much and is adventuring. Hopefully, she won't get attacked by ogres or gnomes and become jerky…" Leylin silently prayed for her and then returned to his inn.

For him, all that had happened today was merely a fun event in the long journey that was life. It was not worthy to ruminate over.

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Employer

The gates opened, and a huge large group of merchants left Emon City. All sorts of flags flew, with over five middle-scale groups and tens of other small ones in the caravan. There were also too many independent merchants to count.

The group was like a museum for the races of the World of Gods. Humans, dwarves, gnomes, halflings, half-elves, and many other half-bloods mingled, leaving Leylin's mind blown.

There were a lot of Professionals amongst the mercenaries, but there wasn't a single leading commander so everything looked chaotic with all sorts of people mixed in. Leylin saw a few dwarves riding wild boars running past him while hiccuping. He was rendered speechless.

'There are even more races than the types of pirates I'm in charge of… The Professionals are all a mess…' These mercenaries allowed Leylin to have a better understand of the Professions in the World of Gods.

From the most common warriors, thieves, squires, and assassins to the higher-grade knights, gunmen and archers, Leylin could also see some low-ranked bloodline holders as well as druids. They were attached to those large mercenary groups and were employed by the medium-ranked merchant groups.

As for the weak group that Leylin was a part of, they were employed by a small merchant group with no other choice. With their route interrupted, not being able to drop their goods off was one thing, but the terrifying fines of violating contracts was enough to render their families bankrupt.

In this world with deities, those protected by the gods could have their church dispatch priests and paladins to demand payment, and even the king would not dare renege on a debt. Waukeen loved doing this with her wealthy church, and of course the fee was very high.

Hence, under the threat of going bankrupt, these merchants had no choice but to force themselves onto a path blocked by ogres.

However, they were no fools. They issued a few large missions, and recruited enough mercenaries and helpers to form a huge caravan. This have them enough strength to protect themselves.

However, Leylin had his doubts about the strength of these low-ranked Professionals. They were destined to be cannon fodder!

"Everyone of the Night Halls, I entrust the fates of me and my sister to you!" Before they left, their employers had come to see them personally. It was a pair of noblewomen who seemed like sisters.

"Haha… Don't worry, *hic* … With Old Pam around, those darned ogres will die as they come!" The leader of this little group, at least in name, made his promise while patting his chest. This hiccuping dwarf with a red brandy nose was called Pam. He was a rare gunslinger, though the butt of the gun at his waist was already filled with rust. Leylin felt like the firearm was just scrap metal at this point, only useful as a hammer in close combat.

Leylin hadn'e even remembered all his 'teammates' here yet.

'Besides that inferior dwarf gunman Pam, there's a halfling thief, a human archer and me, a warrior. This is really the worst of the worst. We only met yesterday through the attendant at the Mercenary Guild… These sisters were obviously made a fool of by that attendant…'

Leylin never expected for there to be fraud organisations like this in the World of Gods, established temporarily to trick customers. Still, he had no intentions of changing anything.

'Though they tried to swindle people, the bit of commission you paid got you a rank 10 wizard. You've really made a huge profit!' he thought inside.

At this moment, the noble lady in the horse carriage sighed, knowing that she had dug a hole for herself.

"Everyone…" The hanging curtain in the carriage was pulled to reveal the corner of a beautiful face. She looked to be about 25 or 26, more mature than most young women. However, one could see sorrow from her furrowed brows, as if she had some doubts.

"In order to ensure the safety on this trip, I've especially invited an adventurer! She is a high-ranked knight, and I'm sure she'll get along well with everyone!" The noblewoman looked apologetic, but the person who paid money was the leader here. Pam, knowing how much weight the Night Halls carried, only mumbled a little but agreed.

"A new adventurer? And a high-ranked knight at that. It's… her?" Leylin suddenly had a bad feeling.

"Sorry that I'm late, Sister Hera!" A black warhorse streaked through the gates of the city like lightning, and the tender voice of a female could be heard from the knight on her mount.

"Rafiniya!" Hera, who was inside the horse carriage, revealed a tender smile that caused Old Pam and the rest to look dazed.

The knight quickly arrived at the carriage and flipped over to get off the horse, revealing a face that Leylin was exceptionally familiar with.

"Sister Hera!" Rafiniya first pulled at Hera's hand enthusiastically, and then looked at the mercenaries nearby.

"Hello, everyone! I'm Rafiniya, and we're going to adventure together— huh…"

Halfway through introducing herself, Rafiniya abruptly stopped, eyes widening. "Ley, you bastard, you actually cheated me!"

The tender voice of a young girl, as well as her appearance, made it easy for people to have misconceptions. The dwarf Pam discreetly gave Leylin a look of approval, while the human archer seemed envious.

"I didn't, you're just a person with a poor sense of direction!" Leylin touched his nose and rolled his eyes, not feeling like speaking to this girl who was directionally challenged.

"Who did you say has a poor sense of direction?" Rafiniya was immediately like a kitten who'd had her tail stepped on. She burst out in anger.

"Do you know each other? That's even better! Come here, Rafiniya. Tell me about what happened yesterday…" Hera came to mediate, and it was evident that she was very tactful.

"But…" Leylin focused on Hera's hands. They were rough, and there even calluses at the side. They were much like the hands of the maids in Leylin's manor, and her clothes were rather simple. The edges were slightly whitened. It was obvious that she did not have a good family background, but had employed Leylin and the others in the name of a noble.

'A noble born of a commoner? Or does she have a more troublesome identity? Did she get Rafiniya because she seemed to have a great status? She's quite shrewd…' Leylin watched Rafiniya enter the carriage, and the sounds of laughter could be heard once in a while. He shook his head inside.

He did not discriminate against Hera. All methods were valid when one's survival was at stake. As long as it didn't affect him, he wouldn't bother unveiling her plot.

"Tsk! Ley, look at that warhorse! It's even taller than the two of us. I'll bet you that this horse has a value of at least 200 Gold kronas!"

Old Pam was now demoted to a horsekeeper and was gloomy. He temporarily took care of Rafiniya's horse on her behalf. The sight of a dwarf leading a tall horse was rather amusing, though the man himself did not realise this. His hands kept caressing the black horse while muttering, "A pity… What a pity… Look at how she's abused this good horse! This colour of the coat and the abrasions would make those horse peddlers reduce their prices…"

"Please, she's a lady of a noble family and didn't even bring a horsekeeper when she came out. It's already good enough that she didn't starve it to death…" Leylin laughed as he patted Pam's shoulders, which gained the man's approval.

"Mm, mm," Pam kept nodding, "I'm not bragging, but my father's father was once a horsekeeper for the city owner. He was able to raise even the best warhorses with heavenly bloodlines till they were plump and healthy…"

"That doesn't seem right…" Leylin was speechless as he shook his head. Dwarves usually liked to brag, not to mention those that had taken alcohol.

At this moment, a gold krona was thrown from the window and hit Pam's head.

"Take care of this horse and it's yours!" Golden rays shone in Pam's eyes, and he didn't even get mad, "No problem at all! Old Pam will help you take care of this treasure, esteemed lady!"

'Inexperienced.' This was Leylin's evaluation of Rafiniya. There had been many eyes fixed on her horse, and after seeing the gold krona she had casually tossed away, those gazes turned to greed and malice.

Even the halfling thief and the human archers had changed expressions now, they were up to no good.

They were all mercenaries who'd banded together for now. Why would they trust each other? On dangerous roads, they could easily become robbers and bandits.

'Even if Rafiniya's a rank 10 knight, she won't be able to evade the plots against her.' Leylin could practically predict the fates of these three noble ladies.

'Ogres are the best cover. As long as someone's careful, they can push the blame to the devils. After all, would they actually contend with those ogres?' Leylin took a look at his surroundings. The merchant groups had mostly gathered, though the people in charge of a few medium-sized groups had no intentions of leaving, as if waiting for some important people.

'Could they have banded together and recruited a high-ranked Professional?' Just as Leylin was wondering, an elite team appeared from Emon City. The leader was a middle-aged man wearing shining armour, a resolute expression on his face. Under his thick eyebrows were a pair of radiant eyes.

Behind him, a pale eagle flag fluttered in the wind.

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Ashen Hawks

"It's Lord Siegfried of the Ashen Hawks!"

"With him around, Old Pam's at ease now!" The dwarf Pam exclaimed excitedly.

'Powerful' was Leylin's first impression of the man. Siegfried was at or above rank 15, and there were even energy traces from magic items on his person. That wasn't all; the members behind him were the cream of the crop as well, and Leylin even spotted a wizard among them.

While she was clad in black wizard robes, that unique spiritual temperament could not deceive Leylin. However, she did not seem to have a high rank and had only made contact with the third level of the Weave.

Seeing the mercenary group of the Ashen Hawks meet with the medium-scaled merchant groups, as well as the subsequent signal they set off, Leylin asked by Pam's side, Is that Siegfried very powerful?"

"But of course. Lord Siegfried is the only mithril mercenary in Emon City! Mithril, you know? On top of that, he's a high-ranked warrior who's gone through numerous battles. Our city hall even invited him to take charge of the garrison, but he rejected them…" At the very mention of Siegfried, Old Pam talked non-stop, as if he himself was a member of the Ashen Hawks.

The Hawks had a huge reputation, and it resulted in an uproar amongst the large merchant groups. Be it the mercenaries or merchants, all of them had delighted looks on their face, as if just having them around meant their safety was guaranteed.

'Yet another bunch of tragic people who place their safety in the hands of others…' Seeing this, Leylin sighed inside, 'No matter how powerful he is, he'll definitely be protecting the few medium-sized merchant groups that hired him first and foremost. How could he stay by your side like Pam would? There are over a hundred ogres…'

While some were still immersed in their fantasies, the mixed bag of people set off.

'How boring…' Leylin was now dressed like a fighter, armoured in moderately new leather. At his waist was a longsword made of steel, the grip wound with coarse rope that allowed him to unsheath it smoothly at any time.

The large caravan moved very slowly. Apart from the leadership problems, food, water, and camping at night were huge issues for them. Even proper legions couldn't manage such a thing well, forget this ragtag group. Sometimes they didn't even make it past a few kilometres a day.

Leylin had already expected this, and he stayed in his group while at ease. With so many people present, he would only be used as cannon fodder to bait the ogres out if they ended up meeting. That would allow him to escape successfully.

He'd already made up his mind. Once he passed the danger of the ogres, he'd immediately leave this large group and proceed on his own. As for the matter of the commission and trust, would he even care?

Leylin thus had nothing going on for now. He'd made a deal with a merchant for one silver, and was allowed on one of the carriages. Besides his requisite patrolling duties, the only things he did were resting, meditation, and secret research.

'A.I. Chip, show me my current stats!' Leylin commanded.

[Leylin Faulen. Age: 16. Race: Human, Rank 10 Wizard. Strength: 5.2. Agility: 6.5. Vitality: 6.3. Spirit: 10. Status: Healthy. Feats: Sturdy, Erudite. Spell Slots: Rank 4(3), Rank 3(5), Rank 2(7), Rank 1(???), Rank 0(???)] [Analysis of the Weave: Level 0 100%, Level 1 100%, Level 2 37.31%, Level 3 16.78%, Level 4 2.01%.] The A.I. Chip loyally carried out his orders.

'My spiritual force is greatly disproportionate to the time I've spent meditating. With the reduced effect of the Devilblood Dagger, I can't advance so easily anymore. I can only try to raise my other stats to 10 points…'

In Leylin's view, raising of his other stats was a process of perfecting his own genes. Once they all broke past a certain limit, they could give him a pleasant surprise.

Leylin took a quick look at his stats and shifted his attention to the Weave's analysis, his most important work.

'Slow as ever…' Leylin could do nothing about this. The Weave was under Mystra's control, and she was a powerful goddess. The A.I. Chip analysing the Weave already went against the will of the gods. He couldn't do much without alerting her.

'The speed's decreased after it started on level 2. It would be unnoticeable if not for my increase in rank… Perhaps I should use another method…' Just as Leylin was pondering over what he should do, an unwelcome guest opened the door of the truck.

"Sister Hera has already explained everything to me. I'm sorry!" Just from the voice, Leylin could tell that this was Rafiniya and he opened his eyes. Even in the darkness of the truck, he could see her flushed face.

"I accept your apology. Are we done now?" Leylin gestured for her to leave.

"How can you do this?" Rafiniya's embarrassed face reddened further, but this time in fury, "I'm here to apologise to you, yet you're acting so rudely? Besides… Pam and the others are…"

"I've done my tasks for the day. Pam and the others are just unwilling to put in the effort… Also…" Leylin stood up. Just the natural elegance in his movements caused the knight to shrink backwards in retreat, as if she'd her own father in his fury.

"Also… who is it that keeps staying in the employer's carriage? And who keeps evading patrol duty?" Leylin's eyes rested on Rafiniya, causing the knight to lower her head. At this moment, she realised that this Ley indeed was doing his duty unlike her.

"That– That's different! I'm a girl!" Rafiniya stomped her foot, "Who knew travelling was so tedious? There's grime everywhere, and nowhere to even walk on. It's even harder to find a washroom…"

Her subconscious thoughts were poured out in front of Leylin. Noticing his half-smile, she couldn't help but go beet red and lower her head.

"So now you know the hardships of travelling? Don't be fooled by the glamour of heroes on the surface. In truth, they could be suffering more than you… Go home, little lady!" Leylin rarely showed kindness such as this. He only did it because all it required was for him to speak a bit.

"You sound like you know a lot, but do you really?" Rafiniya turned and left, as if she had gotten used to and annoyed by these lectures. Leylin only sighed, "Rebellious children…"

The days passed, and the ragtag group got closer to the region rumoured to have ogres around. They hadn't met trouble before this, their numbers enough to scare off vagrants and those with malicious intent. Within the group however, the bandit Professionals had bad luck. No matter where they went, they were watched vigilantly.

When it came time to camp, they did it on a flat field. Numerous mercenaries constructed lofty tents and lit bonfires. Hot water was then poured into pots; with the addition of their rations, some wild vegetables that a few older mercenaries found outside the camp, and jerky, it was cooked into a savoury stew.

Pam hugged his rum bottle while salivating at the pot, occasionally taking a drink.

"Everyone's worked hard today!" Hera and Rafiniya got off the horse carriage, and the mercenaries of the Night Halls sat around the bonfire.

After spending some time together, Leylin now had another opinion regarding Hera. While she was a slight schemer, it was because of her living conditions. She did not regard herself to be much better than those mercenaries who were working hard.

With his experience, Leylin could naturally tell if she was sincere or putting on a front. Her younger sister seemed to be called Yalani, and was protected well by her sister. She spent most of her time on the carriage, and even Leylin had only seen her a few times before. That meant Hera was aware of the dangers outside.

After Hera brought the dinner that had just been made back to the carriage, Old Pam impatiently drank his rum and began to chatter on.

However, in the long chilly night, there was little to while the time away. Hence, the other members approved of it tacitly. Rafiniya especially seemed to have fun, and probably even took Old Pam's stories to be true.

"Hello. May I know if this is Lady Hera's carriage?" At this moment, a person in charge of one of the merchant groups walked over.

"What is it? Please tell me!" Rafiniya blocked the way. Days before, there were a few guys who were lusting over the beauty of the sisters. She'd kicked them out, but she was now on her huard.

The person in charge who had been rejected frowned, but then put on a smile, "Well, we're reaching the dangerous regions where the ogres appear. Lord Siegfried told me to come inform everyone to remain vigilant at night. Remember to send people to patrol the area…"

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Lorent

Once they sent the man away, the mercenaries all had imposing expressions on their faces. Only Rafiniya was cheerful as she took out her sword with an eager look on her face, "We finally get to fight?"

This expression of hers immediately attracted displeasure from her comrades. "In that case, you can be the first to go on patrol tonight!" Leylin unceremoniously dealt her a blow, damping her energy. Old Pam didn't dare to say anything, but he secretly gave Leylin a big thumbs up.

Seeing Rafiniya huffing angrily and ducking back into the carriage, Leylin and the others smiled in a carefree manner. Only, Leylin's smile was rather dark as he turned back to look at where Rafiniya had gone to.

'This… It feels like something might have happened…'At the moment, another special group entered Emon City. Their leader was a paladin in bright silver armour, the piercing light of which caused the city guards at the gate to inch away from them. Their faces were filled with reverence and awe as they looked at the divine light on the paladin's chest.

"Our intel says that they vanished without a trace once they went ashore." His badge was based on a blue shield, with a warhammer balanced on top of a scale as the insignia. A holy light lingered about it.

"A paladin of the God of Justice!" Someone would call out in a low voice from time to time, and the street thugs and hooligans all completely disappeared without a trace.

The divine light that this paladin possessed was of course that of the God of Judgment, Tyr. That god possessed powerful divine force and was committed to his cause of fighting against evil. The zealous paladins under his command were the greatest nightmare of all evil organisations.

"Leylin Faulen… This insignificant little noble must be in cahoots with that earlier Pirates' Tide. He can't run from us!" The paladin had a resolute expression on his face, "Under the divine glory of our lord, all evil must be punished!"

"Paladin Lorent! Do not forget the teachings of our God. Without a trial, that person still has the status of an aristocrat, so please watch your words and manners!" An old priest warned from behind the paladin.

The God of Justice's priests were serious about punishing evil as well, but unlike the radical paladins they knew that the world wasn't black and white. They had learnt to compromise, which was the only reason that Tyr's church had survived to this point. This priest's eyes were filled with sorrow, but they were soon flooded with determination.

"Only… The lives of thousands of civilians on the outer seas, as well as the disappearance of tens of thousands of innocents must be answered for. He must cooperate with our investigation. The God of Justice will never let an evil man off, and neither will he misjudge an innocent person!"

"Praise the Lord!" Several high-ranking members of the church began to pray from behind the priest.

This was an investigation team that'd been sent by Tyr to the outer seas of the Dambrath Kingdom. There were several high-ranking paladins and priests in their numbers, and once they reached the outer seas they were shocked by the atrocities committed by those evil pirates.

When the Pirates' Tide spread its sails, it almost destroyed the entire Baltic archipelago. Only a few small noble fiefs managed to escape the purge unharmed. Since the pirates took no prisoners and left none alive, it had been very difficult to gather evidence.

After passing through many obstacles, just when they had finally almost pinned their culprit as the Pirate Cove and Scarlet Tiger pirate crew, they discovered a small noble family who seemed to have played a very important role.

The unstoppable investigation team immediately arrived at Faulen Island, only to be told the news that Leylin had long since left.

In desperation, the investigation team could only divide into two groups and continue to investigate the outer seas. They proclaimed the doctrine of the God of Justice, and the group immediately went back to the continent to apparently request Leylin to cooperate with their investigation.

In reality, once they were within the grasp of these paladins, even the most cunning of nobles could not live for more than a day! The priests of Tyr did not lack in divine torture spells that could force their target to surrender. Sometimes, even a simple 'Detect Alignment' was able to solve many problems.

In the presence of powerful gods, the minor nobles who were caught with evidence did not have any power to resist. In turn, if there was no evidence, even high-ranking bishops could not directly put a noble on trial.

Leylin had long broken off the relationship between Faulen Island and the Scarlet Tigers, so unless they could catch him the investigation team could not take any measures against Baron Jonas and their fief. He'd taken care of this before deciding to travel abroad.

"Damn… These nobles ignore the suffering of so many civilians, and instigate one disaster after the other…" A female priest said resentfully.

"Be cautious!" Although the paladin thought the same thing, on the surface he still restrained his female companion's actions.

The spread of faith in the prime material plane did not curb the power of secular loyalty. It caused the churches a lot of frustration.

"We cannot completely cleanse the world of all its filth, but we can continue to judge every sin we see. Ultimately the world will be purified" The paladin Lorent said strongly, "Raphael, notify the town hall that we need their help, as well ast those left behind…"

After several days, Lorent and his party were able to find several of Leylin's suspected identities.

"This one can also be ruled out!" Within a splendid and opulent mansion, many guards were left sprawled in confusion on the ground, including several strong Professionals. The paladin Lorent regretfully put down a pale-faced young noble who was trembling all over in fear.

"However, he has also committed numerous crimes. He's promoted imprisonment, murder, corruption, and countless other things. Hand him over and have the town hall dispose of him!" The female priest. Raphael, glared with disgust at the trembling young noble, as if she had seen a maggot. Allowing this maggot to continue living was almost like an insult to her god.

Although she dearly wanted to directly kill the noble, she managed to endure it.

"Those mercenaries are so mobile that it is very difficult to distinguish between them in such a short period of time even with our capabilities. However, the larger merchant groups in recent times are very suspicious!"

"I was thinking the same thing." Lorent turned and left, leaving behind a scene of disorder, "We have already tarried here for far too long, we must speed up…"

After a short while, the newly gathered investigation group strolled out of the gate of Emon City. The rest of the city officials and nobles watched them from far away as they breathed a sigh of relief, wry smiles on their faces.

The investigation group left, but they'd swept up a lord, two nights, and an extremely unlucky noble by pure coincidence during their stay. Even the various gangs had been exterminated. Emon City had been cleansed, and was now much more safe. However, they had left behind a huge mess.'Is this feeling of being chased because of that investigation group from the God of Justice? Looking at the time, they should have arrived at Emon City by now…' His keen perception and meticulous way of thinking let Leylin guess the truth in just a moment.

'Tyr… Haha, in the eyes of many nobles, this powerful god is not at all inferior to the God of Plague…' Leylin laughed coldly to himself, 'However, if I do not become a high-ranking wizard and build a wizard's tower, I fear I won't be able to return to Faulen Island.'

The situation was more dire this time. If Leylin's father was like the Marquis, or even a noble of the kingdom, he wouldn't be suppressed like this. However, the Faulen Family pitifully didn't have such a background. As a result, were they to be caught by the investigative team it would spell disaster for them. The paladins of the God of Justice were not harmless vegetarians.

Naturally, even the God of Justice's most resolute paladins had to learn to compromise, and once Leylin displayed his greater power and strength, showing that their reward was not worth the efforts, it would not be impossible to erase this matter.

'No! I just need to let Dambrath Kingdom's officials handle it, then this entire matter will not concern me,' Leylin's eyes shone brightly, 'Even the God of Justice's priests need to pay attention to evidence. It looks there are still many more things for me to do in the kingdom…'

Of course all of this was based on the fact that Leylin would remain a noble wizard, and his crimes wouldn't be exposed. If he was thought of as an invader from another world, or a believer in devils, then he would be endlessly pursued by all the gods, and all the kingdoms on the continent would unite against him.

'Interesting, it really is interesting!' Leylin's original plan was to leave Faulen Island to train after his work there had been completed, rapidly advancing in rank until he became a god, and finally linking up with his original body.

He was still following that plan, and the Faulen Family was developing rapidly. Although the investigative group was troublesome, he could still resolve that issue.

"Be careful! The footprints of an ogre have been discovered ahead!" At this moment, news came from the carriage in front of them, stirring up the entire merchant group.

After they had entered the region, Leylin could not continue to hide and be lazy. He had to fulfill his duty as a mercenary, accompanying his employer's carriage to protect it. Through the carriage's gauzy curtain, he could see two similarly frightened pretty faces.

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Ogre

"It's alright, the mercenaries will protect us!" Hera kissed her sister's forehead, which helped Yalani calm down.

"I'll go and take a look!" Rafaniya had already gotten off the carriage and put on her knight's armour and steel gloves. The warhorse she sat on let out a snarl, rushing to the front of the group.

The horse had showered Pam's head and face with dust, and he hadn't managed to dodge in time. Even his beard had been filled with pebbles, the comedic performance causing the girls in the carriage to laugh quietly. Hera's stern eyes seemed to have softened.

"These little bitches are really… Phooey…" Old Pam spat out the sand in his mouth, his hand going to his gun case. He'd polished most of the rust off, and it now smelt of gunpowder. Leylin still believed that it wouldn't be as useful as a hammer in melee, though.

Leylin was sceptical as to whether this dwarf, who had not even reached rank 5, was brave enough to fight against a high-ranking knight with his life, Although dirtying their beard was a very serious insult for some dwarves, Old Pam seemed to have assimilated into human society, and become crafty and sly.

Or perhaps it could be said that after working with humans extensively, he had learnt to be cowardly and picked up a few bad habits. Naturally, the dwarf would perhaps not agree with this assessment.

Leylin could not detect the slightest trace of a dwarf's stubborn and tenacious temper from Old Pam. When Rafiniya flew back like the wind, he was already eagerly leading her warhorse along for her and even received a silver krona as a tip.

It must be said that Old Pam could indeed look after warhorses well. Over the past few days, Rafaniya's originally malnourished mount now looked very energetic. The noblewoman had already expressed the desire to hire the dwarf as her personal horsekeeper, and Old Pam looked rather satisfied with this arrangement.

"What's happening up ahead?" Leylin did not particularly care about Old Pam's future career, and immediately asked about the state of affairs in front of them.

"A few scouts and thieves have reported that they've discovered the footprints of an ogre. The imprints are fairly fresh, and it looks like it was just half an hourglass ago. We should be ready to get into a fight at any time…"

After hearing Rafiniya's statement, all the mercenaries immediately grew nervous. The halfling thief and the human archer couldn't help but grip their weapons more tightly.

Pam involuntarily began to inch closer to Rafiniya's side. On the whole, this young lady was the most powerful deterrence in their entire group. Since danger had befallen them, she could adapt the fastest and had the highest chance of escaping.

"Well, Rafiniya, you will protect me, won't you?" Old Pam looked at Rafiniya hopefully.

"Are you not a mercenary?" The young lady had always been completely disdainful towards soft-boned cowards like him.

"Heavens… Do it for Nick's sake, you can't treat your horsekeeper like this. Pitiful Old Pam will be torn to pieces by the ogre, and who would look after your Nick then?" Old Pam's tears were about to overflow from his eyes, and he clung to Rafiniya's legs with all his might.

Nick was the name that Old Pam had given to Rafiniya's warhorse in passing.

"Very well, very well! It's a knight's duty to protect the weak!" Rafiniya was rather scared of the expression on his face.

"Oh! I admire you, great knight…" Pam immediately started to babble without stopping.

"However, your pay as my horsekeeper will be cut in half!" Rafiniya had learnt a lot after travelling with them, and could even haggle over prices now.

"Out of the question, the most is 10%!"

"40%! You think I can't find any other horsekeepers? My family has a dozen!"

"30%! You can't lower it by any more, otherwise Old Pam can't even afford to drink watered-down rum!"

"Deal!" The lady knight was still rather young and inexperienced when all was said and done. She had retreated in defeat under the dwarf's pitiful tactics, and Leylin could not help but find it funny.

Just at this moment, a dismal cry came from the front. "Ogre! The ogre is here!"

"Stay alert!" "Stand guard!" Leylin took out his steel sword in a flash, his vigilant eyes attentively watching the uproar in front of him.

Aside from the cacophony of human voices, the sounds of strange roars and clashing weapons now sounded out.

"The ogres have really appeared!" The halfling in the squad immediately took out his dagger and hid in the shadowy corners of the carriage. The human archer climbed on top of the carriage to find somewhere suitable for himself, and his wooden bow that he usually carried on his back was now grasped in his hand.

"Ogres? I've been waiting for you for a long time!" Rafiniya excitedly got up and reined in her horse, immediately changing direction.

"Wait, I'll come with you!" She heard a man's voice come from behind her and her eyes widened in response. "When did you come?"

No one knew when Leylin had mounted the warhorse and sat behind Rafiniya. To this high-ranked knight, this was completely unimaginable.

A knight and her horse were meant to be one entity, and being approached like this without even noticing was very dangerous if the man had malicious intent. Rafiniya's heart turned icy, and the attitude of the man seated behind her back made it difficult for her to bear.

"Perhaps you should be a thief instead! Get down immediately, Nick won't like this at all!" At this point, the closeness of their bodies was rather strange, and Rafiniya began to lightly blush in response.

"Be a good girl, let's go!"

"I'm not a child!" Rafiniya protested weakly, but Nick bolted out like a black whirlwind beneath them.

At this moment, Rafiniya revealed her superb horsemanship. Even in the situation where she had someone riding behind her back, she passed through the chaotic troops and obstacles to make her way to the front of the caravan.

Many carriages were in retreat, and several mercenary groups were already brandishing their swords and bows in a semicircle.

Standing across the defensive troops were a group of enormous monsters, with fewer than 20 amongst their numbers.

"Are these ogres? This is the first time I'm seeing them!" Rafiniya curiously peered at the monsters in front of them.

The very first ogre was nearly 3 metres tall, with the torso of a man. It looked like an obese fatty, with dark-grey skin, a thick neck, greasy matted hair and vile sarcomas all over its body. There was a wide and flat nose under its beast-like eyes and it had exposed its jutting black teeth, making it look as malevolent as a devil.

The one standing at the very front was the chief of this group of ogres. It wore simple tanned animal skin around its waist. The other ogres were completely in the nude, everything flopping about.

"It smells awful!" Just over a dozen metres away, a putrid stench directly assaulted her nostrils, making Rafiniya involuntarily cover her nose.

"Not bad! It looks very similar to the image in the illustrated handbook of ogres, only we haven't seen its different variations such as the two-headed ogre and the ogre shaman…" Leylin now sized up the ogres opposite him, his blue eyes shining brightly for reasons that an ordinary person would find difficult to accept.

'A.I. Chip, scan the ogre's stats!'

[Beep! Initiating mission, beginning scan… Data is being collected, generating graphics!] The A.I. Chip loyally executed Leylin's command.

In a short space of time, a hologram of an ogre was projected before Leylin, along with detailed information about its stats.

[Name: Unknown, Race: Ogre, Gender: Male, Strength: 7, Agility: 3, Vitality: 10, Spirit: 1. Feats: Regeneration: Ogres possess extraordinary regenerative abilities, and can survive for a very long period of time even if they have their heads cut off. 2. Armour Skin: The grease on an ogre's skin mixes with dirt to become a separate layer of natural defense, its effects are comparable to normal leather armour, with no resistance to magic.]

'These stats are comparable to an average rank 7 or rank 8 fighter, and it's only an ordinary ogre…'

'In addition, these ogres have powerful constitutions, and terrifying regenerative capabilities. The cells in their body must be much more active than in ordinary people, and if the Devilblood Dagger can absorb it, then perhaps it could raise my vitality by 2 or 3 points, reaching the 10 point bottleneck!' Leylin was now looking at these ogres like they were an enormous treasure chest.

Even by the most conservative estimates, this ogre tribe could raise his vitality by 1 or 2 points; it was equivalent to being blessed by the grace of a low-ranking god.

However, Leylin simply did not dare to provoke such a huge group of ogres by himself. He even needed to rely on the others for protection before he was certain he could pass through this region safely.

However, the large caravan group was currently pit against the ogres, and Leylin saw his chance.

"It's just a scattered group of ogres, no need to worry!" At this moment, members of the Ashen Hawks rushed over, led by the impressive high-ranking fighter Siegfried who Leylin had previously met.

Seeing that there were fewer than 20 ogres against them, Siegfried's expression relaxed.

"There aren't any shamans. There's few enough that the other mercenaries and carriages can gain experience from it. It won't be as frightening in our next encounter then…" Siegfried was fully aware that if the strengths of their large caravan group could be united, then it would not be a problem at all for them to pass through this region.

However, humans were often knocked down by their fear of the unknown, especially when these ogres had such a frightening reputation in the rumours. It made it much easier to trigger collective panic, and that would be even more devastating to them than a tsunami!

As a result, it was very important to let these cowardly merchants know about these ogres in advance.

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First Fight

"The Ashen Hawks will keep everything under control in the rear. The rest of you, advance!" Siegfried reined in his horse and allowed his members to form a defensive line behind him.

"The reward for beheading them and the contributions and monetary reward from the mercenary guild will all be yours!" Siegfried was deeply aware of the weak points of humanity, and was shrewd and ruthless enough to immediately throw out more bait to entice the others.

Several medium sized mercenary groups immediately began to desire it, but before they could discuss their decision more, the ogres across from them could not wait any longer.

"Ow ow!" The ogre who stood at the very front threw its ferocious mouth wide open like a beast and let out a terrifying roar, the unknown animal bone it gripped in its hand becoming a huge club that swept across like a fierce gale.

Bang!* The bone club pounded at the shields of the Shield Fighters at the very front, and a dull sound could be heard. Several mercenaries immediately collapsed, their arms snapping loudly.

The general strength of an ogre was around 5 or 7 points, equal to the strength of an elite rank 5 fighter. It was something that ordinary mercenaries simply could not contend against.

As if responding to their chieftain's roar, the ogres behind him brandished their enormous clubs and hammers, or even raised their bare fists to throw themselves at the mercenaries. Several medium sized mercenary groups had their frontlines collapse immediately, and their leaders shouted commands to no avail. Everyone could tell that Siegfried's expression grew dark.

'The data and attributes of this world do not exactly follow the superposition principle. The sum of two actions does not necessarily equal the effect of each of the actions performed alone…' Leylin watched the scene, but began to ponder other matters.

After experiencing so much in the World of Gods, he finally realised that the attribute data was different in this world.

'Although ordinary people have an average level of 1, it seems more difficult to advance further on. Even breaking through the bottleneck of 1 for all my stats was very difficult in the beginning, and I spent quite a lot of effort to do so. After raising my stats to 5, every time I raised my stats by 1 level, it became several times more difficult to do so again. After I reach 10 points, the disparity will become even more obvious…'

Leylin had a premonition that after his average attributes reached 10 points, every time it was raised by 1 would perhaps be equivalent to the sum effects of his previous advancements. His overall strength would increase and he would grow considerably. This sort of exponential increase was different to what he was used to.

Whooosh!* A strong gale blew across the region, and Leylin subconsciously noticed a shattered armour fragment on the floor, with mottle bloodstains all over it. This shifted his attention directly to the battlefield.

"Kill those dark-skinned bastards!" A medium sized mercenary group's leader bellowed, radiating a tremendous force of qi.

These ogres were few in number, and did not even have a tenth of a medium sized mercenary group's number. After the medium-ranked Professionals went to stall the ogres, the superiority in numbers became clear.

"Ha! Kill!"

Ten low-ranked mercenaries grasped their pikes and grouped together in a simple formation, tightly trapping an ogre in their circle. Even these simple group attacks could not be deciphered by the ogre's brains, and along with the captain's command, ten pikes stabbed through one like vipers.

"Ow ow…" The ogre raged, and although it had caught the head of two pikes, many more pikes pierced through its body. Great quantities of fresh blood flowed forth, and the ogre struggled continuously but was firmly trapped by the prison of steel pikes.

The alliance of ten low-ranking Professionals had the power to seriously hurt an ogre. The pikes used by these mercenaries seemed to have been remodelled, with the spearhead containing bloody grooves and barbs. Once one pierced a target, it would undoubtedly spread the wound and cause a hemorrhage.

Blood spurted out like a torrential fountain, and although ogres were proud of their shocking regenerative ability, it could not save the life of this one.

The ogre's roars grew fainter, and the light in its eyes also began to dim. Its enormous corpse finally thudded onto the floor, mixing fresh blood with dirt to form a strange mottled pattern.

"Ow ow! Ow ow!" No matter how stupid a brain the ogre chieftain had, watching many of its clansmen being surrounded and cut down made it began to roar, shattering the arm of an unlucky mercenary in its hands.

The sound of its cry had changed from its earlier frenzied state, and seemed very curt. The other ogres who heard the sound began to fall back, and some even turned their backs and paid the price of being struck by the mercenaries to flee the battlefield.

"Hey! Don't even think of running away, cowards!" At this moment, Leylin felt the black warhorse beneath him immediately gallop off, advancing towards the ogre chieftain.

The other mercenaries were astonished when they saw a black warhorse carrying a slender knight, directly leaping over the crowd to arrive at the frontline. There was even a fighter seated behind her who seemed like he did not know whether to laugh or to cry.

Knight Battle Skill— Charge! Knight Battle Skill— Braveheart Knight Battle Skill– Sharp Qi!

A powerful glowing flame burst out from Rafiniya's lance, and many mercenaries cried out "High-ranked knight!" in astonishment. The warhorse had been reinforced by many battle skills began to gallop even faster, and overtook the ogre chieftain in a flash.

"Ha!" Rafiniya thrust her lance with great force, and as it had been reinforced by Sharp Qi it immediately shattered the ogre chieftain's defences. The lance pierced through its chest and exited through its back, and sblood suddenly began to rain down.

As a rank 10 knight with a noble steed, armour and a lance, if Rafiniya could not take down an ogre who was merely equivalent to a rank 7 or rank 8 fighter her master would probably throw himself into a lake.

"Good! Who is that?" Siegfried had watched the battle from the side, and his eyes landed on the high ranking knight. This was a powerful Professional, and it often represented a good background. Not everyone could afford to raise a master knight.

"They're not from the medium-sized mercenary groups, perhaps they're wandering mercenaries!" A wizard clad entirely in black robes replied from his side, her eyes flashing.

"A wandering mercenary? It looks like there's still a lot of talent at the bottom of the barrel. Send some men over to speak to them!" Siegfried stroked his chin, feeling rather curious about the knight's identity. At this point, the wizard nodded indifferently.

"Haha… So the rumoured ogres are only at this level?" Rafiniya strung up the ogre chieftain's corpse on a pole, a playful voice coming from within her armour. Leylin could tell that there was some uneasiness hidden in her slightly shaky voice.

"Hey hey… Shouldn't you let me down first?"

"Ah! How are you still here?" As expected, Rafiniya had already forgotten all about Leylin during her earlier charge, and only recalled that there was still someone seated behind her now.

At the same time, Leylin heard her mutter to herself, "Awful, how awful, it's so dirty… I don't want this lance anymore…"Although Rafiniya had intervened at the very end, the fight had spread towards the caravans, and after she had finally charged towards the ogre chieftain, the rest of the ogres ran even quicker. In the blink of an eye, they seemed to have disappeared into the dense shrubs by the road, which made the mercenaries who wanted the reward money feel crestfallen.

Rafiniya had won the credit, and seemed to be in a trance-like state. She did not even respond to the men sent over by the Ashen Hawks, and finally Leylin had to present himself and chat with them.

Only after returning to their own carriage did Rafiniya reap the reverent gazes of the others, and usually this little lass would have been so happy that if she had a tail, it would be rapidly wagging.

However, the girl seemed most preoccupied with throwing away her steel lance which was covered in the ogre's blood and stench. She went alone into the sisters' carriage, and a faint sound of retching was heard. Leylin reckoned that she still needed some time to adapt.

Old Pam once again had picked up scraps, and collected the lance that Rafiniya no longer wanted. He put it away carefully as if it was some treasured object.

After hearing that Rafiniya had abandoned the ogre's ears as she was afraid of how dirty it was, Old Pam threw a huge tantrum and stomped his feet. He even scolded Leylin loudly for being a wastrel.

The level of his greed made Leylin wonder if Old Pam descended from the blood of a hoarding dragon.

"Haha… If those ogres come again, Old Pam will let them taste the power of my gun… HURR…" Old Pam was gripping a bottle of rum in both hands, and belched from time to time, his face completely flushed with excitement.

After fighting the ogres, the entire merchant group began to continue on their journey. However, they had all calmed down and were no longer as afraid as they were before. After passing through their first trial, they had realised that ogres were not up to their level. Although the ogres were very strong, they would still get injured and bleed, and they even took the head of the chieftain as a souvenir.

After the fear had passed, all of their thoughts grew lively again. Even Hera and her sister seemed to smile more.

'Really…' Leylin looked down at the scene and inwardly shook his head, a trace of suspicion in his eyes.

'Why do I feel that there was something off about these bunch of ogres? It seemed like they were using… A plan against the soldiers? What a joke! Even if they had the mental capacity, how could they come up with that idea? Perhaps it was just a coincidence… No, the rumoured two-headed ogres or ogre shamans would perhaps have this sort of intelligence…'

'If it's true, then things will become interesting…' Leylin's lips curved into a meaningful smile.

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Trap

The events proceeded according to Leylin's expectations. Several ogres came up to challenge them once in a while, from five or six to over a dozen at a time. Obviously unable to harm their large group, they would run away with their tails tucked between their legs, sometimes leaving numerous corpses behind.

Many mercenaries were terrified at the beginning, but as time went on, they would lie on their fronts on the carriage roofs and watch the pathetic ways the ogres fled while bursting out in laughter.

This relaxed attitude even infected the Ashen Hawks. Leylin found that besides Siegfried and that wizard, the other members seemed to overestimate their enemies.

"There are two more days till we get out of this region. It's the easiest mission Old Pam has ever done!" As the group proceeded, the dwarf, Pam, clung to his bottle of alcohol as if it was precious, and his brandy nose shone brilliantly.

"I never want to see those disgusting vermin again…" Rafiniya's resentment was obvious. Ever since the time she had tried to show off, she had not participated in the attacks on the ogres. It seemed that this little lady had been scared stupid by the painful experience.

Awoo…* At this moment, the terrible cries of the ogres sounded ahead of the group. Old Pam contentedly hiccupped, not the least bit affected by the sounds.

"Hic… again, again! The ones giving us money for free are back… I wonder who'll be lucky enough to get the ears of the ogres. The rewards are very good…"

"Things aren't going to be so easy…" Leylin unsheathed his own longsword, looking grim.

"What do you mean?" Pam had some suspicions, but his expression quickly changed. Continuous cries sounded from all directions, concealing a terrifying intent that even caused the warhorse Nick to neigh in distress.

"Damn it, there are so many of them!" Old Pam's bottle fell to the ground, creating a crunching sound. However, he had no time to feel sorry for his treasure, and instead immediately whipped out the firearm at his waist.

Tak tak! Tak tak!* Ahead of the group now was pure chaos. Many merchants abandoned their goods and fled for their lives the way they'd come, creating an even larger uproar. There were many casualties among the mercenaries, and a huge number of tall figures could be seen in the distance.

"It's a trap! We've been surrounded!"

"Help! There are over 200 ogres!"

"Damn it, where are the Ashen Hawks? Where's Siegfried? Could he have already died by the hands of the ogre shamans?" Many voices mixed together, and everyone next to Leylin instantly paled.

They were then drowned out in a chaotic stream of people, forced along with the crowd. Helpless as leaves in a typhoon, they had to flee for their lives.

"Sister Hera!" Rafiniya yelled, jumping onto the horse carriage and taking over the job of the horsekeeper who had disappeared, holding tightly onto the reins. The halfling thief looked like he wanted to help but was incapable enough to, and disappeared into the masses.

As for the human archer? That fellow had gotten onto Rafiniya's precious horse, Nick, and galloped off quickly when the chaos had started. Rafiniya had needed to control the horse carriage and had no time to care about this, which allowed the archer to successfully steal the horse.

Wails and shrieks could be heard again and again, and the roars and cries from the ogres behind them were the strongest catalysts. The entire large caravan group completely fell apart.

The crowd pushed and squeezed their way through. In order to get on their way, they did not mind pointing their weapons at their own people.

With such a huge confusion, Leylin quickly disappeared along with the carriage. Of course, this was his intention.

'So this actually was a trap! Though it's just a pocket formation 1, I didn't expect that that these ogres were so intelligent… I really can't look down on them anymore.'

At the moment, the cumbersome horse carriage was like a broken sailboat in a tsunami, on the verge of being destroyed at any moment. The dwarf Pam from before had already disappeared. Based on his physique, Leylin could only pray that Pam was not trampled to death in the chaos.

'It's my chance!' Leylin's figure nimbly danced through the crowd, heading in the opposite direction. The cries of the ogres were even more clear there, and the horrifying sounds of tearing flesh rang out.

'The main forces of the ogres should be here. I can take perfect advantage of this chaos, furthermore…' Leylin's eyes glinted coldly.

The ogres did not hold a numbers advantage over the mercenary group. They could try to defeat them heads on, but it would come at a terrible cost. Instead, they'd set up an ambush, even leaving an escape route at the back.

This wasn't out of goodwill. Their goal was to further incite chaos among the group— when there was still a chance of escape, not everyone would be courageous enough to look forward and risk their lives. In order to have a chance at survival, how many would not hesitate to strike at their own companions?

More importantly, pursuing scattered soldiers was a battle that practically could not be lost.

'Only the two-headed leaders or ogre shamans could come up with such a plan…' Leylin's eyes glinted, 'So the only way to survive is to head in the opposite direction and break through this formation. Their main forces are here, and there'll be many scattered soldiers and prisoners. There'll be little chance of people pursuing me. As long as I get a quick horse and sprint for a while, I'll be able to get out of this ogre-filled region…'

Those who could see this path and take it were truly determined, and held perseverance. It was a pity that Leylin could see practically nobody who'd come to the same decision as himself.

Perhaps, there were a few intelligent merchants would have been able to understand this, but their panic had lowered their ability to think by a great amount. Or perhaps they were aware but lacked the strength to do this, and could only go along with the crowd and pray to the Goddess of Luck to aid in their escape.

'Furthermore… If I don't go to the frontlines, where will I get high-ranked ogres to absorb strength from?' Leylin burst into an empty large horse carriage.

He was no longer dressed in leather armour, and the steel longsword that he usually used was tossed aside. He'd dressed himself in black form-fitting clothing, using the same to hide half his face like a common thief.

The ring of wizardry glimmered faintly from his left hand on occasion, and there was a cold bloody light that flickered in the cuffs of his right hand, like the tongue of a poisonous snake.

The further he got, the lesser people there were. Flags, carriages, armour and weapons were abandoned everywhere. Blood flowed without end, forming dark red puddles on the ground.

A few ogres occasionally munched at incomplete corpses, just the sight alone enough to terrify someone. There were a few mercenary groups still immersed in battle. At the heart of it, the Ashen Hawks' flag stood tall.

"Captain, our brothers can't hold on for long!" The wizard waved her arm, and Inspirational Boost and several similar spells were cast unceasingly. It allowed the mercenaries nearby to perk up.

The Ashen Hawks and a few other midscale mercenary groups had previously held back a large portion of the ogres, allowing the merchant groups a chance to escape. An unending stream of ogres still surrounded, even outnumbering them at this point.

"We bought them the time time to escape, we've done our jobs! Prepare the spells; the entire team will scatter and leave. Let's meet up again at the Giant Rock Town we passed by earlier!" Siegfried now had surging qi twining around his body. His armour emitted a slight luster, and surprisingly enough it was a magic artifact that had a high grade.

His giant silver-white blade was now stained with the blood of the ogres.

Heaven Breaker! The terrifying might of the battle technique of a high-ranked fighter was much more powerful than Rafiniya's. Qi burst out like an arrow, instantly resulting in massive casualties amongst the ogres. There were even some cracks in the encirclement.

"Break out!" Siegfried urged his horse on madly, but while passing by the wizard, he spoke in a low voice, "Let's break out through the front and meet at the largest city ahead!"

As a veteran captain of a team, Siegfried was not as righteous and great as he appeared to be. In reality, good people never made it for long as mercenaries. As long as he and the wizard lived, the Ashen Hawks could be rebuilt at any point.

'Just from the perspective of a mercenary, he's done very well. He shouldn't be reprimanded for what he said at the last bit…' At the sidelines of the battlefield, Leylin hid in the shadows and hugged his arms while evaluating Siegfried, 'But.. The ogres this time aren't quite so simple…'

He looked past the encirclement right in front of him. At the back, he saw a hint of intent to kill.

Chain Lightning! The black-robed wizard tore a scroll, and silver-white lightning chains exploded, leaping through the group of ogres. Those who were struck collapsed with a cry, a charred smell transmitting and opening a path for the wizard.

Upon seeing this, the wizard was delighted. However, before she could do anything else, a powerful magic undulation was transmitted from afar.

"Crap!" The wizard's expression quickly changed.

1. Military tactic, enemies lured into narrow enclosed 'pocket' area, their entrance/exit is surrounded by soldiers to seal up the 'pocket', isolating the enemy.

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Two-headed Ogres

These new ogres were more than two metres tall. They were dwarves given the ogre standard, but they had tattooed bodies and barbaric runes with unknown purposes.

"Ogre shamans!" The black-robed wizard exclaimed to herself. Shamans were the ogres who held bloodlines, ones who would awaken abilities similar to magic with age. They were the decision makers of ogre tribes. It was surprising that they lay in wait here.

The black-robed wizard suddenly had a premonition of a great catastrophe.

"Roar…" The ogre shamans gave the black-robed wizard no time to think. The tattoos and runes on their bodies shone layer by layer amidst their roars, their innate abilities as bloodline holders allowing them to cast such spells without learning or memorising anything. However, they still had the support and usage of the Weave.

Magical power gathered together, and numerous huge fireballs glowed orange as they tore apart the wizard's frail armour. The wizard was burnt to ashes along with the horse she rode.

"Lena!" Siegfried's eyes turned red, and he turned back despite having broken out of the siege, charging straight for the shamans.

While he might cold and selfish, Siegfried still prioritised his true friend and lover. The death of Lena immediately made him hot-headed, filled with the desire and impulse for revenge.

Clang!* A silver-white longsword was smashed mid-air by a large black claw hammer, producing a dull and loud sound.

The terrifying recoil allowed Siegfried to somehow regain his composure and take a proper look at his opponent. This was a two-headed ogre who was over four metres tall, its skin a frightening blood-red with scales on it. One of its two fierce-looking heads was larger than the other, disgusting saliva dripping from the canine teeth. The thing rode a deformed earth lizard with a similar number of heads, although one of those was just a huge tumour with vague features.

Roar…* The two-headed ogre exclaimed, brandishing a giant, black claw hammer that had come out of nowhere, charging towards Siegfried.

The horrifying strength from its astounding physique caused Siegfried to retreat. While his warhorse was fierce, it was no match for the ogreish beast. It was already spewing white froth, evidently unable to continue.

After the appearance of the two-headed ogre, the rest of the shamans and ordinary ogres seemed to have found a pillar to rely on, and began to pursue and kill the other mercenaries.

With the help of the shamans, the casualties of the mercenaries were immense. Only a few successfully broke out, and none of them dared take a look back and fled.

"There's even the two-headed ogre commander and ogre shamans!" Leylin exclaimed, eyes constantly flickering as he called up their stats.

[Name Unknown. Race: Ogre (Mutated) Gender: Male. Strength: 16, Agility: 7, Vitality: 15, Spirit: 6. Description: Two-headed ogres are mutants that occasionally appear in ogre tribes. Their two brains often leave them stuck between being wise or confused. Of course, there are exceptions where the intelligence of the ogres evolves. After evolution, the two-headed ogres are more powerful than ordinary ones. They, who have advanced in their wisdom, usually become the commanders of the ogre tribes.] [Name Unknown. Race: Ogre (Shaman). Gender: Male. Strength: 5, Agility: 4, Vitality: 9, Spirit: 10. Feats: 1. Regeneration. Ogres have extraordinary regeneration abilities, and even if the head is detached, they can still survive for a long period of time. 2. Bloodline Holder: The ogres who have activated the bloodline of primordial spellcasters possess abilities similar to magic. However, the type of spells and number of times spells can be cast depends on how far the bloodline has been awakened.]

'Pretty good stats. If I can devour all of them, things will be more perfect…' The Devilblood Dagger silently appeared in Leylin's hands. The devilish head hummed, as if speaking to its thirst for flesh and blood.

"Now!" When Leylin stepped out of stealth, the dagger had already pierced the throat of an ordinary ogre.

Terrifying devouring force exploded, causing the other party to instantly turn into a withered corpse. A hot stream of energy flowed into his hands from the dagger and rose along his arm, followed by a prompt from the A.I. Chip.

[Beep! Host has gone through a one-time amplification from the Devilblood Dagger. Strength 0.1, Vitality 0.05.]

'As expected of the ogres, they have very dense life energy!' Leylin sighed in praise, feet still moving. It was like a death god had begun to dance, the dagger glinting with blood.

Afterwards, he jumped onto a masterless warhorse, riding away in a cloud of dust. The mercenaries had no idea what was happening beside them, nor did the simple-minded ogres. All they saw was a vile human jumping out and killing a number of their people.

Roar!* Amidst the furious roars, an ogre shaman brought a few elite ogre warriors and gave chase.

The two-headed ogre who was their commander was still contending with Siegfried. He was a high-ranked human warrior and not so easily defeated, and it could only let out a few cries that nobody could understand. A few ogres quickened their movements.

A handsome brown horse sped through the path, followed by a few boosted ogres. This strange group of a human and his pursuers soon covered a long distance.

There was a limit to the duration of a strength buff. Just as the shaman began to despair, it was was delighted to see that the human in front of it had stopped.

"Just one ogre shaman? What a disappointment." Leylin reined in the warhorse, seeing the little team that had pursued him while looking disappointed.

However, the simple-minded ogres did not care for what kind of expression Leylin had on his face. In reality, if not for the lead of the two-headed ogre, they might not even know how to set up the simplest traps. Hence, after seeing their foe, all of them charged forward.

Tattoos lit up on the shaman's body, turning into countless small fireballs.

Flight of the Dragon! The rays from a spell flashed at Leylin's side, and immediately after he elegantly soared from the back of the horse rapidly.

This advanced version of Fly allowed wizards to change directions quickly, and for those with great control like Leylin it only served to make them stronger.

Rumble!* The warhorse that had been struck by the flames didn't even have the time to produce a miserable cry before it turned into a pile of ash. Leylin's figure, on the other hand, was like an eagle as he swooped down from the sky.

Roar!* Leylin easily dodged a few fireballs, and a blood red light glimmered as he pierced through an ogre's throat.

With these quick attacks, the enraged shaman's spells had been emptied, and it had turned into someone even weaker than a normal ogre.

"Even if you can use magic, you're too simple-minded to use it well." A crimson tornado blew past, and the ogres that now had no defence became prime targets for the airborne Leylin. After a few pass-bys, the ogres collapsed one by one. At the end, the bloody dagger struck the shaman's forehead.

[Beep! Host has gone through a one-time amplification from the Devilblood Dagger! Vitality 0.2. Agility 0.1. Strength 0.2.] The A.I. Chip's voice sounded.

Ogres had strong muscles and flesh, and were comparable to middle-ranked warriors. They weren't easily found in such great numbers. However, Leylin's spirit state stayed constant, which was a pity.

After hitting the threshold that of 10 points, the Devilblood Dagger had become much less effective. If not, the once-Sovereign King of Gluttony, Beelzebub, could use just the Devilblood Dagger to establish a terrifying army that would get stronger the more it fought. He'd be able to take over the prime material plane.

'Since I've confirmed his location…' Leylin thought about it, and then flung dust behind.

"Dust of Disappearance! Spell of Invisibility!" Once the spells were cast, his body grew transparent and slowly disappeared into thin air.

As a wizard, Leylin naturally had considered using a flying spell and passing through this region, but he'd then abandoned this thought. The ogre-infested region was vast, and it was impossible for him to identify Beelzebub's location. There were also limitations when it came to flying spells. If the place he landed was where Beelzebub moved about, or if he caught the attention of ogres and was attacked with magic or crossbow attacks… Leylin was not willing to take on the consequences.

As he was right now, it was impossible for him to win against the two-headed ogre commander, much less the joint attack from numerous huge ogres.

Now though, with a general understanding of where the ogres were located and with their attention focused on the human merchant organisations as well as the mercenaries, Leylin was confident in being able to sneak back.

After all, an opportunity to see so many ogres was rare. Leylin also wanted to raise his abilities all the way to 10 points.

With the help of an invisibility spell, Leylin successfully returned to the battlefield, the ordinary ogres unable to discover him at all. Unless a shaman had awakened a detection spell and used it at the right time, he was safe.

The battle was already reaching its end. Many mercenary bodies were strewn everywhere, turning into the ogres' rations. Only the central battlefield still had sounds of a fight.

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Another Meeting

At the centre of the battlefield were the high-ranked warrior Siegfried and the two-headed ogre commander.

Siegfried's body was now soaked in blood, and his warhorse had long since disappeared. There was a massive wound on his thigh now, and he could only use the silver-white longsword as a crutch to stay upright.

Opposite him, the two-headed ogre only seemed a little ruffled, but had no large injuries. Just from its heaving chest, it was obvious that much of its energy had been exhausted, and it might even have suffered internal injuries.

The few shamans nearby surrounded the two along with the regular warriors. Evidently, the victor had already been decided. Unless he got some assistance or pulled out a powerful magic scroll, the future of this high-ranked warrior would be bleak.

"Huff, huff… So I'm finally going to die?" Everything in front of Siegfried was a blur. Watching the two-headed ogre closing in, his limbs were like lead, with no strength in them whatsoever.

"Lena, I'm coming to keep you company!" The various scenes from his life appeared in Siegfried's mind, finally stopping on the instant that the black-robed female wizard smiled.

Afterwards, he watched the large claw hammer strike down, the target obviously being his brain. If nothing went wrong, his head would have burst apart like a pumpkin.

However, the lady luck seemed to favour him at that moment. The huge claw hammer stopped still in mid-air, and the two-headed ogre's expression was filled with fury and shock. A crimson dagger appeared through its chest.

"What's going on?" A hint of doubt flashed on Siegfried's face, and his body began to involuntarily rise.

A young man with a draconic expression had grabbed hold of his arm and was flying speedily, the winds that struck Siegfried's face were so strong that he could feel pain. At his back were the enraged howls of the ogres, as well as a few useless fireballs or lightning arrows.

'Hold Person! As well as Flight of the Dragon! Have I been rescued by a passing wizard?' Siegfried suddenly felt a hope for survival.

At this moment, he saw the wizard doing a pretty turn in mid-air, evading the attacks of the shamans on the ground. He pointed downwards with his right hand, and terrifying black corrosive clouds descended and blocked the views of many ogres.

Cloudkill! Leylin, who now had nothing to worry about, flapped his wings and carried Siegfried away from the battlefield.

Feeling his head spin as he flew, Siegfried crumpled to the ground, the smell of soil and crisp grass having him him involuntarily take a few greedy breaths. It was only at this moment that he could size up the wizard that had saved his life.

'Very young, but his magic abilities far exceed Lena…'

Siegfried respectfully lowered his head. He knew that there were many spells that could help maintain one's youth. The wizard who looked young in front of him might very well be an old freak with mood swings.

'But he looks rather familiar… Wait!' Siegfried struggled to get up, "Are you the fighter who was accompanying that high-ranked female knight, Ley?"

"You actually remember me?"

"Whatever it is, thank you for saving me!" Siegfried thanked him sincerely, and tacitly did not ask questions regarding Leylin.

"Don't worry about it. I just couldn't bear to let this go to waste!"

"Couldn't bear to let what go to waste?" At that moment, Siegfried felt an unprecedented sense of danger, but he who was grievously injured had no way to resist. At the moment of his death, all he saw was a blood-red dagger piercing his throat.

'If he was going to kill me… why save me?' Siegfried closed his eyes with this question inside his head, while Leylin felt the immense power gained from the Devilblood Dagger.

A two-headed ogre commander and a high-ranked warrior on top of that; it made him feel slightly full.

At this moment, the prompt of the A.I. Chip sounded in Leylin's mind. [Beep! Host has gone through a two-time boost from the Devilblood Dagger. Strength2.5, Agility1, Vitality2.65, Spirit0.001.]

A hot stream flowed from the dagger to all parts of his body, and was greedily absorbed by his cells. Leylin lifted his right arm, the slender palm holding within it strength that was now not lacking when compared to the ogres. On top of that, there were even constant after-images from it.

"I'm quite close to having all my attributes at 10 points, reaching the fundamental first step of perfecting my genes…" Leylin mumbled, looking at his stats. There were already changes.

[Leylin Faulen. Age: 16. Race: Human, Rank 10 Wizard. Strength: 8. Agility: 7.6. Vitality: 9.2. Spirit: 10. Status: Healthy. Feats: Sturdy, Erudite. Possessed Spell Slots: Rank 4 spell slot (3), Rank 3 spell slot (5), Rank 2 spell slot (7), Rank 1 spell slot (???), Rank 0 spell slot (???)]

"Vitality is already very close to the bottleneck. Besides, a stronger body is more suitable for my spiritual force…" Regular wizards commonly had powerful spiritual force but weak bodies. Leylin, however, was entirely different. Alongwith powerful spiritual force, he also had a terrifying vitality and strength comparable to holy warriors!

"Things will only be perfected when my vitality matches my spirit. Strength and agility are both important as well… Are these the laws governing the World of Gods?" Leylin sighed, and his hands then began to search the high-ranked knight's body in a practiced manner. As a high-ranked fighter and the captain of the large mercenary group, the Ashen Hawks, he should have some good items on his body. Leylin never let chances like these pass by, but was left disappointed.

"Besides the magical armour and weapons, he doesn't even have a bag of holding? Does that mean all mercenaries are poor, and even a first class captain is the same?" Leylin only managed to find a few magic artifacts and a coin pouch from Siegfried's corpse. There were tens of gold kronas inside, as well as a few cards from the church of wealth, which would come up to around ten thousand kronas.

It was a pity that these cards were bound to the user and had to be authenticated to use. After his death, nobody could take out that money unless they could deceive the verification methods of divine force, as well as deal with the rage of the Goddess of Wealth. When it came to those who vied for coins with her, the Goddess of Wealth would probably become even more crazed than an enraged dinosaur!

For regular bandits, such a profit was a great wealth enough to squander away for half a lifetime, even though the crystal cards could not be converted. However, Leylin cared little for this.

'Something's off! To take care of such a large mercenary group, the Ashen Hawks as well as wizard, he should have more wealth than that. Could there be other hiding places? In that case…' Leylin quickly peeled off Siegfried's clothes and checked everything inch by inch.

Finally, he found something. At an area near his chest on the shirt, there was a difference in terms of texture as compared to the surrounding regions. If one did not look closely, it was impossible to identify.

This method of concealment immediately aroused Leylin's interest. He quickly cut out this material and began to unravel this riddle.

'Mercenaries use potions of invisibility at most. With the A.I. Chip's simulation tests, they're easily found, but with a wizard by his side, it might be necessary to use magic…' Such intricate decryption work obviously was not a huge issue for Leylin. Soon enough, after being soaked in a solution, the fabric of the shirt was dyed a light yellow.

Reveal All! Appraisal! Rays from a series of spells appeared, and light red lines appeared on the parchment to form a map.

"A treasure map? Interesting!" Leylin memorised the map in an instant. Upon seeing the name of the region in the corner, the sides of his lips quirked slightly.

"So it's in the Dambrath Capital? I should take a look then…" After hastily tidying up the traces here, Leylin then left the area.

"I took care of the two-headed ogre, and without a leader, there will probably be unrest amongst them. There'll even be power struggles for the new commander position; they likely won't have the energy to pursue me. The merchant group have walked quite a distance, and I'll be able to reach Gloomwood Castle a short distance away. That's an important checkpoint into the kingdom. After that, I'll enter the central plains, where I won't be threatened by the ogres…"

Leylin found his way and began to hasten towards Gloomwood Castle.

"Sigh… I should have kept the warhorse. I'm going to have to walk there with my own two feet. I hope I'll find a few lost warhorses. Even if they're worn out, I'll still take them…" Just as Leylin was mumbling, his expression suddenly changed, "What the hell, there really is one!"

His expression abruptly showed delight as he turned to the right. A couple hundred metres ahead there was a black dot eventually turned larger, and the regular sounds of trotting were heard. After that, a figure being carried on the back of the horse entered Leylin's sights.

However, after he got closer, Leylin's smile widened.

"Hey, we meet again!" Leylin took the initiative to draw close and greet him, while the other party looked as if he had seen a ghost.

"Damn it– No, I mean… Ley! Why are you here?" In front of Leylin was that human archer who had stolen Rafiniya's warhorse amidst the chaos. As for his name? Leylin had never taken notice of that.

He had actually dared break out of the siege by fleeing in the opposite direction and succeeded! His luck and guts were not to be underestimated. However, he did not seem to be in the best condition now. Not only did he have injuries, the large wooden bow that was always by his side had disappeared.

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Coincidence

"I don't care what you're thinking right now. Give me that warhorse!" Leylin watched him, his eyes full of ridicule.

"He… hehe… I'm only borrowing it from Rafiniya. I was going to…" The archer had a forced smile on his face, but then his expression suddenly changed, "Look there!"

Without waiting for Leylin to turn, he raised his arms and shot three spring-loaded arrows towards Leylin's face.

"Go!" After shooting those arrows, the archer did not even give Leylin another look. Instead, he whipped the horse he was mounted on, wanting to leave as soon as possible.

He could tell that Leylin had no injuries at all and was in a much better state than he was. To be able to break out of the encirclement of the ogres without injury meant that Leylin was not someone he could contend with at this point. Hence, the archer firmly chose to flee.

"A great decision, though it's a pity that it's pointless…" A magic missile flew from Leylin's hands. With a strange trajectory, it sent the arrows flying, and without losing power struck the archer's back.

Pak!* The archer suddenly flew from the horse, a terrifying sunken wound on his back.

"You– You're a wizard!" The archer struggled, eyes full of longing as he reached towards the skies fiercely with fingers like chicken claws. His body thrashed around wildly as if he was in the throes of death. Seconds later, he stopped moving.

Having lost its new master, Nick stopped galloping. The warhorse whinnied as it began to leisurely nibble at the grass on the side.

"I'm your master now." Leylin moved forward and grabbed Nick's reins, swinging onto its back without hesitation as he announced his ownership.

Nick had no objection whatsoever to his actions, as expected of a warhorse with no integrity. Or perhaps, it had a one-track mind and had no ability understand something so profound. As Leylin squeezed his thighs against the horse, the black warhorse immediately seemed to turn into a streak of lightning and began to speed ahead on the ground.

As a knight's mount, it was obviously more spirited than other horses, and Leylin found it wonderful.

He wasn't too far from their previous battlefield, and there was the occasional luck, or perhaps unfortunate, person who had escaped the ogres' pursuit. Leylin chose to pay no attention to their cries for help.

Even if those merchants showed off their sparkling gold kronas, they meant nothing to him. After all, the added wealth of all these little merchants might not even be enough to make up the amount of gold krona that he used in a single experiment. Why would he bother with this?

However, after passing by a small forest, something unexpected happened. Nick, who had been tame all this while, suddenly went mad and dashed into the bushes.

"Why is it doing this? Don't tell me…" While he could forcefully control the horse, Leylin only pulled at the reins for a bit and then gave up.

In his opinion, there was no harm in doing something if it was convenient for him, and he could even save his own party without putting in a lot of extra effort. He had no idea how effective his help would be, though.

After passing through the thick layer of black brambles, a desperate scene appeared in front of him.

A carriage that had lost its mount had collapsed to the side, whereat Hera and her sister were embracing each other and shivering. Numerous terrifying ogres surrounded them, eyes full of unconcealed greed.

Rafiniya was holding her sword with both hands, her armour full of holes. There were traces of ground flesh and blood on it, and it was clear she had experienced countless bitter battles.

The female knight now had a deep wound on her thigh, where one could even somewhat see the bones. This made the girl grit her teeth, crystalline tears appearing at the corners of her eyes. Despite it all, she maintained the determination on her face. Without her protection, Hera and her sister would long since have become rations for the ogres.

Putting two and two together, Leylin had a general idea of what had happened. After being separated in the streams of people, they had run wildly all over the place. With Rafiniya's help, they took care of many enemies and had finally arrived here.

"However, if they chose this direction purposely instead if accidentally, Hera is more wise than I previously assumed…" The three ogres that were attacking them were normal warriors, and there were no shamans present. They may be huge threats to the heavily injured Rafiniya, but they were nothing at all to Leylin.

"Hey, beautiful ladies. Good morning!" Leylin seemed to arrive like an unexpected guest, leisurely greeting everyone as if he had coincidentally and naturally bumped into them on his afternoon stroll.

"Nick!" Rafiniya saw her black warhorse, eyes blazing, "And Ley! You darned thief! If not for my companion being stolen, how would I have…"

Leylin was completely immune to the words of this female knight. Upon hearing her words, he merely rolled his eyes, automatically tuning her out.

Growl…* After seeing Leylin's appearance, the few ogres with simple minds had no other thoughts as they pounced forward.

"My longsword was discarded just now. What a pity…" Leylin patted at his warhorse, and Nick was able to leap in a way it was unable to usually. It jumped over the ogre's head and came to Rafiniya's side.

"Give me that sword." Rafiniya initially looked ready to refuse, but for some reason she felt a sense of terror as she looked at Leylin's calm face. She obediently handed it over.

'Strange… why did I…' Before she had the time to ponder this, however, her little mouth opened in shock and amazement.

"Not bad!" Leylin shook the knight sword in his hands. As a high-ranked knight, Rafiniya's equipment was all of a high grade. Whether it was her horse or her sword, they were much better than what he had before.

The glaring brilliance of qi burst forth from Leylin's hands.

Battle technique: Qi Strengthening! Battle technique: Charge! Battle technique: Cross Slash!

Leylin's figure instantly turned into a streak of black, and the longsword was enveloped in the luster of qi as he began his assault on the three barbaric beings.

Cross-shaped light-rays flashed ahead, and three malicious heads flew off. Even after the corpses of the giant ogres crumpled to the ground, Rafiniya still seemed to be in disbelief.

'On top of being able to activate Qi, his advanced battle techniques and his proficient battle techniques are even better than my teacher's…' Rafiniya looked absent minded, not even able to catch her longsword properly when Leylin tossed it back.

The battle techniques Leylin had just shown were not inferior to the most powerful person she'd ever seen, and that was a high-ranked paladin!

"Thank you." At this moment, Hera hugged her little sister as they stood up, eyes full of gratitude aimed at Leylin. If not for Rafiniya and Leylin, she and her sister would long since have turned into jerky for the ogres to stockpile. There was no way to even escape.

As for Leylin's sudden 'disappearance', this lady rationally chose not to pursue this. Things were very dangerous now, and in a situation where Rafiniya was gravely injured, they were in need of Leylin's protection. Leylin did not even need to harbour malicious intent. As long as he abandoned the three girls, they were in deep trouble.

She immediately spoke out, "Thank you Mister Ley. I'll increase the commission once we reach the town, I'm sure it will satisfy you."

She had especially lowered her own status while speaking, and Leylin nodded on the inside.

"Wait… If you're going to talk about raising the commission, then poor Old Pam should have a part of it too!" At this moment, the carriage at the side completely fell apart, and a dwarf with a broken leg rolled out like a ball.

"Things were completely chaotic when we were surrounded. Thankfully, we had Rafiniya protecting us, and we also bumped into Mister Pam after that…" Hera smiled forcefully as she explained the situation to Leylin. He merely rolled his shoulders, speechless at the dwarf's luck in keeping his life. Or perhaps, he was really blessed by the Goddess of Luck?

Leylin and the group set out immediately after some rest and reorganisation. This was still a danger zone, after all.

However, the horse carriage from before was now useless. Leylin had no choice but to modify the remains of the carriage to a handcart, allowing Hera, her sister and Rafiniya to squeeze together. They had to bring the dwarf Pam along as well. The warhorse, Nick, was regrettably demoted to a worn-out old horse, exerting all its strength to pull the cart forward slowly.

"You didn't see it, but three ogres pounced towards Old Pam! Each of their mouths were as large as my head…" From atop the cart came Old Pam's bragging with gusto. Rafiniya squeezed forward, looking at Leylin.

"When are you returning Nick to me?"

"Give me a ransom in exchange. Don't forget, this warhorse is something I got from winning against the archer. This is a place is protected by the laws of the kingdom. If you want the horse, go look for the archer…"

Sitting atop Nick, Leylin spoke seriously. This was much like the thinking of a bandit.

"Damn it, that archer's corpse should have already entered the stomachs of the ogres!" Rafiniya mumbled to herself, occasionally muttering words like 'thief'. At the end, she unwillingly tossed a gold card at Leylin.

"These are all my savings. I have nothing more…"

"That's not bad…" Taking a look at the numbers, Leylin then began to whistle contentedly, "Deal! It's yours!"

Rafiniya then gloomily found out that she was unable to ride Nick due to her injuries. Everything seemed to stay the same as before.

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Gloomwood Castle

"Thank you, Ley!" Rafiniya's voice sounded after a while.

The female knight was no fool. She knew that without Leylin, they really would have died at the hands of the ogres, disappearing into their mouths. She obviously didn't want to die like that, and just the thought of it already left her in fear.

All those adventure books were scams! There were no romantic heroes and beautiful princesses. Rather, there were thieves and bandits, as well as ogres who ate people alive!

"So… Now that your fantasies have been destroyed, will you still continue adventuring?" Leylin asked in curiosity.

"Of course. This is my path as a knight!" The female knight's voice was filled with resolution. "As long as I can endure, evil will be destroyed by my hands one day. With my work, the world will regain its beauty!"

"…" Leylin rolled his eyes speechlessly. This directionally-challenged moron seemed to show no signs of waking up to reality.

"What kind of expression is that?"

"No, I was just thinking that you're very suited to becoming a paladin of the God of Justice. Really!"Thankfully, the Goddess of Luck finally showed mercy on them, allowing their little group to leave the region where the ogres had wreaked havoc.

If not, once Leylin was surrounded by the ogres, he would probably abandon everyone and make a path for himself to escape. Besides him, everyone, including the warhorse Nick, would become rations and jerky for the ogres.

"Are they all confused because of the commander's death?" On the way, he bumped into a few members of the merchant groups who had been separated, and even a few thieves and the like.

It was a pity for them that even Rafiniya had learnt to steel her resolve. The high-ranked female knight who had regained a portion of her strength did not need much energy to take care of these people.

All that had continued until this day, when a small city with a black wall appeared in front of Leylin.

"We're here, this is Gloomwood Castle. After this place, we will reach the central plains of the Dambrath Kingdom, the territories there managed by people directly subordinate to the king." After seeing this city, Rafiniya screamed in joy. Hera and Yalani smiled, looking as if a weight had been lifted from their shoulders.

They were only halfway through their long trip, but the exhaustion and terror was more than enough to leave them in fear.

"Halt! Stop the vehicle for an inspection!" At the city gate, Leylin's group of strangely-dressed adventures were immediately stopped by the guards.

'Oh? These soldiers seem pretty strong… And they're Professionals who have seen blood already.' Leylin saw Hera going up ahead to negotiate with them, his brows furrowing slightly. With his experience, he could obviously see that the guards were stronger than usual. They could even be people in charge of Professional groups, incomparable to the previous party.

He could sense tens of elite archers aiming their weapons at this area from the shadows, leaving him with a sense of danger.

'To even give me a sense of danger… These archers should have equipment like the Spellslayer Arrow. How wealthy…' Leylin shot a glance towards the top of the city wall discreetly, and then maintained a nonchalant face as he looked at Hera and the rest.

After checking the proof that they were mercenaries and nobles, the middle-aged soldier who seemed to be the leader headed over to them.

"Terrible events have occurred at Gloomwood Castle lately. Don't stay long if you don't have business here."

"Thank you for kind intentions. Officer, is this about the ogres?" A hint of curiosity showed in Hera's eyes.

"The ogres? They're far from real devils…" The middle-aged soldier sneered, but did not elaborate. Only when he passed by Leylin and the other mercenaries did he warn them, "Don't stir up trouble inside, or else…"

His threatening words immediately angered Rafiniya. Leylin and Old Pam, on the other hand, had met such situations before. They rolled their shoulders back in answer, though it was not obvious whether they truly took heed of the advice.

"Hmph…" The leader did not argue about this with Hera, looking disappointed. He waved his hand, "Go on!"

"The strength of this legion doesn't lose out to the ogre tribes…" Leylin hung his head, eyes flickering with wit.

'Seems like the kingdom's power and soldiers are the true trump cards of the human race in the World of Gods. Those inferior mercenary groups can't be compared at all…' Leylin could finally see the aura of a nation's soldiers, with as many sharp swords as there were trees in the forest and as many pikes as there were thorns in a bush. They might even have the support of wizards and priests. The mid-ranked officer just now had an aura very similar to a high-ranked warrior, and he had evidently gone through numerous battles. The aura of someone who had seen blood in battle was something most mercenaries could not match.

'With how he spoke, something definitely happened here…' The desolate streets and the tight security in the city left Leylin frowning.

"We plan to rest here for a while. We might also need to buy a carriage and recruit a few more mercenaries…" Hera said once they found an inn, looking tired as she spoke to Leylin and the rest.

"Mm, we do need a new carriage." Rafiniya was obviously approved of this plan. They had finally made it to a human city with great difficulty, and she could not wait to get some good rest. For a lady of nobility, there was nothing harder to endure than filth and grime. It was a pity that there was no lack of these on the journey, especially for mercenaries. That the poor girl hadn't already gone insane showed the resolve she'd gained from her knight training.

Pam approved of this well. He was already itching to exchange the ogre ears for the commission, as well as buy a new batch of rum.

"Alright, we'll meet here three days from now."

Leylin nodded without much care. He was now slightly curious about the events in Gloomwood Castle.

"Wait, Ley! Your friend is in need of your help! My injuries need healing from a priest…" When the time to part came, Old Pam grasped Leylin firmly, eyes gleaming with tears.

Looking at the state he was in, Leylin had no choice but to roll his shoulders back and bring Old Pam, with his broken leg, along. The dwarf worshipped the God of Warriors anyway, and the church wasn't too far off from the Mercenary Guild.

"Divine spell— Cure Moderate Wounds!" Holy light shone from the priest's hands at the church of warriors, and the injury on Pam's thigh quickly recovered. A new layer of tender flesh grew out.

"The fee is 5 kronas!" The priest looked pious, but did not lower the fees at all. Most churches functioned by getting money for healing the wounds of their followers.

The gods needed money themselves to construct their extravagant churches. More importantly, they needed to lure in worshippers with more generous conditions. Old Pam, who was usually miserly, paid up happily and did not dare take advantage of this at all. Only after he left the church did he look regretful.

"If not for our employer wanting to leave in the next few days, Old Pam would rather look for a doctor or potioneer. Damn it, 5 kronas! How many bottles of rum would that get me… Oh, mighty God, Old Pam did not say that on purpose…"

Old Pam continued to mumble, "No! This should be included in the fees we get from our employer. You'll back me up, right, Ley?"

Leylin pretended not to hear anything, walking to the entrance of the Mercenary Guild with the dwarf. Old Pam impatiently exchanged the ogre ears to make up for his losses, while Leylin went to the mission hall.

The hall was much smaller than the one in Emon City. A few mercenaries were seated there, and whether in terms of quality or quantity they seemed to be lacking.

This strange atmosphere was explained after Leylin looked at the mission board.

"High grade mission: Track down traces of devil followers. This mission is extremely dangerous. Please think over it carefully before choosing it."

"High grade mission: Investigate the evil god ceremony in the home of Lord Wokdo."

"High grade mission: Investigate cause of death of Baron Faylen."

Numerous high grade missions were hung up in a row, looking marvellous. It was a pity that few mercenaries dared take them on.

'Interesting. A devil?' A smile rose about Leylin's lips all of a sudden. As he recalled the unusual mobilisation of the troops, as well as the worried look on the mid-ranked officer's face, everything grew clear.

Gloomwood Castle was in a strange state because of the activities of devil worshippers. These high-difficulty missions were usually left to the churches and nation's troops. It was no wonder that the mercenaries were not interested.

However, them having no interest did not mean that Leylin was the same. He'd always been curious about hell and the devils in this world. Beelzebub's memories had ensured that he knew as much about them as an Archduke, but theory and reality were two separate things.

'Based on his memories, there are nine levels of hell here. Each have their own rulers governing them, as well as a few public regions… To be able to break through the restrictions of the dimension and arrive at the prime material world to spread belief… This is something that only a ruler of the same rank as him could accomplish…'

At his most powerful, the Sovereign King of Gluttony, Beelzebub, was as strong as a Magus who'd comprehended laws. At the very least, he was stronger than the lesser gods here.

It was no wonder then that the traces of devils had set the city on high alert.

The scene that the soul seed had projected at the beginning appeared before his eyes once again. 'I wonder how that little guy Tiff is doing now? He received the power of the soul seed from my main body. If he managed to adapt to it, he should be rather strong now…'

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One After Another

When their souls had first battled for control of the body, Leylin had managed to help Tiff out, bestowing formidable powers on him. It was intended to be an experiment; not only would a surviving Tiff be of huge aid to him, but it would also give him some rare results.

How could he not have left himself a counter against the powers he had originally bestowed? Furthermore, who could compare to the ancient Magi with regards to the control over the soul force.

'My soul force wasn't originally accustomed to the laws of the World of Gods, and couldn't help but diminish continually. But Tiff was a native. Hence, there was still a possibility that he could be sustained by absorbing the powers that I left him. In view of that, his stats would…' Something flashed in Leylin's eyes.

It made sense for soul force from other worlds to be unable to survive in the World of Gods. But the strength that Leylin left for Tiff was like a seed, and it changed him completely. Furthermore, as long as the foundation was there, no matter how far Tiff advanced in the future, he would not be able to resist the influence Leylin held over him.

If Leylin exploited him correctly, Tiff would be an advantageous pawn for him.

'I was staying overseas back then, and did not care much about the mainland. Thus, I also didn't ask about Tiff, but it's an entirely different matter now. The time is ripe,' Leylin decided.

"Greetings, copper-ranked mercenary, sir! Can I help you?" The maid behind the counter asked in a professional but mechanical tone after she saw the identify proof Leylin handed over. It was all she'd do for a copper-ranked mercenary.

"Show me the details of the top 3 missions!" Leylin wasn't bothered at all about it.

"The missions of those devil worshippers?" The girl raised her head, and scanned at Leylin with a look of derision. "Superior missions could only be accepted by a mercenary ranked gold and above, so please work on raising your grade!"

"I was not thinking of taking it, I just wanted to catch a glimpse of the report. I remember all mercenaries have the authority to do this, am I not right?" Leylin furrowed his brows.

"That- That's right…" The maid unwillingly replied. It was probably her first time encountering someone like Leylin, "But details are only free for those at the silver grade and above, you have to pay 10 coppers!"

"That's no problem at all!" Under her contemptuous gaze, Leylin threw 10 coppers on the table and grabbed the documents from her hands, before heading towards the corner seat to look into them. Being able to obtain information for such a price was already a profit for him.

But after reading the first few sentences, Leylin's expression darkened. Surprise, astonishment and all sorts of other expressions flashed across his face before it landed on a sinister smile, "Old friend…"

He dropped his eyes to one of the sentences,

"…the victim's carcass was badly damaged and parts of the flesh were missing…"

"…when the Baron was found, he was kneeling on the ground in a bizarre manner, pouring blood. His tongue was severed and forced down his throat…"

"…the soldiers launched surprise attacks on a few dangerous locations but gained nothing in return. The thieves found pentagrams used to commune with other dimensions in the flooring of the house, and determined it to be the coordinates to the ninth level of hell…"

'A sacred emblem with the image of a twisted fang… Only devotees of Beelzebub would adopt such a method of murder…' Leylin smiled as he read on. If he had to choose a devil to face, he'd definitely choose this one whom he'd fooled previously.

'The fellow should still be asleep. The region of hell that he was occupying will soon be overturned. Furthermore, he is unable to receive prayers nor provide spells for his followers, their faith might be challenged…' Leylin's eyes shone, he's found the perfect prey.

'If you piece all these reports together, it's the prelude to a big bloody sacrificial ceremony, and the target is that Beelzebub…' Leylin's rich experiences along with Beelzebub's memories allowed him to see everything clearly within seconds.

'I'm afraid this is those worshippers' last resort, given that they haven't been able to communicate with him for a long time.' Leylin's expression wasn't looking too great. Big, bloody sacrificial ceremonies would affect the whole city, and the death toll would number greater than a thousand.

But of course, all this was useless. No matter how much they sacrificed, Beelzebub would not regain consciousness. Instead, this would attract hostility from the gods. Most importantly, Leylin would be dragged into this whole mess!

'Well, I guess I'll gladly receive Beelzebub's followers.' This empty church had lost the protection of its god, and was also compatible with the law of devouring he had grasped. To Leylin, this hollow shell was a big present.

Though most of the members were the cruelest dregs of society, or even unusual beings and demonic creatures, its sheer size was enough to make Leylin jealous. He had to accumulate all of this himself to become a god in the future.

As for Beelzebub, he was long out of Leylin's consideration. He walked out happily with his gains, and turned into a dark alley…

Once he made sure nobody was around, Leylin's aura transformed into that of a god. "My follower, Tiff!" he made a solemn call, and a strange energy dispersed.

Moments later, Leylin opened his eyes, his expression looking weird, 'With such a short distance, is he in the Dambrath Kingdom?'

A dark shadow was moving at great speeds through the broad plains. It stopped all of a sudden, revealing a pale, aged face.

He looked emotional, and was even tearing up. He immediately knelt on the ground as he managed to choke out his next words, "My great lord, Kukulkan! Have you finally heard me?"

This man looked a lot like Tiff, but it wasn't the boy from back then anymore. A large amount of energy circulated around his body.

"My God…" Tiff looked staunch after his prayer. Ever since Eldath's church had destroyed everything he had, he'd set himself on the path of rebellion. This was why he was a wanted criminal throughout the World of Gods.

Thankfully, the power Leylin left him back then helped him through the toughest period of his life. As a result, the bogus about Kukulkan that Leylin had once made up had warped into his absolute faith.

"I can't believe I felt the power of you as I went out to keep an eye on the devil worshippers, my Lord…" Tiff's body compressed into a stream of shadows, and sped towards Gloomwood Castle. He was even faster than a rank 15 Professional.At the same time, in the campsite of the ogres.

Roar! Roar!* The ogre warriors waved the large warhammers in their hands in they fought, using magic as an aid every now and then. It was a pity that all of their efforts were nothing but a joke to the paladins.

'Smite Evil!' 'Divine Punishment!' Piercing holy light shot out from Lorent's sword, and broke an ogre's warhammer in a split second with its immense strength before slicing his head off. On the other hand, the clerics who had mastered divine spells from the God of Justice were also killing off the ogre shamans with no issues.

"How dare you see humans as food! The sins of this ogre tribe are unforgivable!" Lorent wiped his sword on the skin of one of the ogres beside him, and flashed a face of disgust. Flesh started showing.

"The vile ogres only deserve death!" The ogres in the campsite fell into chaos, merely ants to the high-ranked paladins and priests.

A ear-piercing growl sounded from the other side before low gasps and silence ensued. It was unsettling.

"Managed to get anything out of them?" Lorent looked at their team's interrogation officer as he walked out, hands still freshly dyed in the ogres' blood.

"They don't have the biggest brains, and what they do have is reserved for fighting and eating. Even if I tried my best, the only information I got was that their leader was killed by a human wizard who then escaped…" The officer looked mildly disappointed, "If only we could use A memory extracting spell… But that would be trespassing into the domain of evil…"

Lorent was discontented with the officer's attitude and mindset, but he did not want to create any conflicts at this point in time. "That is enough… At the very least, the possibility of the wizard being Leylin is high…

"It was probably this ogre tribe that attacked them first, forcing them to retaliate…" he said as he nodded.

"Then what are we waiting for now, let's chase after them! My tools are getting impatient…" The officer licked his lip, his disgusting and sinister expression making Lorent look away. He wondered how someone like this managed to sneak into the investigative team.

The team continued their journey after sweeping the ogre site clean and headed towards Gloomwood castle."I'm afraid I can't stay for long…"

Leylin was changing his disguise at the moment. Things that could expose his identity, like the Ring of Wizardry, could absolutely not be worn. He even had to alter his hair colour and change his face's shape.

'But, judging by the God of Justice's hatred for devils, if his followers find out that there are devil worshippers within this castle, would he still put in so much effort and look for me?' Leylin smiled sinisterly.

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Act

Leylin looked at himself in the mirror, and was satisfied with his new appearance. He originally looked like a westerner in the World of Gods, with bright golden blonde hair and clear blue eyes. However, his locks were now dyed black, and his eyes were a rich dark with blood-red sclera. His new appearance Exuded a never-ending aura of evil.

"With this extent, I don't think anyone will associate me with the young master of the Faulen Family." Leylin wore a sinister looking silver mask over his face and disappeared into the darkness.

Obviously, a change in appearance wouldn't be enough. Thus, when Leylin reappeared his whole body seemed to have undergone an even greater and more terrifying transformation. He looked as if he were someone wrapped in mysteries, sinister energy encircling his body with a charming trace of the power of laws.

Once all the brilliant energy had fused into his body, Leylin completely resembled a devil who had ascended from hell, and even the aura of his soul had changed. A sense of power and danger emanated from his body in waves, and the surrounding space seemed to fold in on itself, as if everything was being devoured.

This was divinity! Only a divine power could accomplish this! Leylin had now become a divine being who grasped some power in the domain of devouring!

'This imitation isn't bad at all.' Leylin looked at his new self and nodded in approval. His understanding of the law of devouring had already reached a peak. Only after he acquired Beelzebub's divine force and divinity could he advance to become a rank 7 Magus. In the World of Gods, this would be considered as having achieved godhood.

His understanding of the law would not disappear with reincarnation. Though it was tough to create and draw out divinity from nothing, it was still an effortless task for the A.I. Chip to imitate the aura and appearance of a divine being with the power of devouring.

'I definitely cannot ascend to godhood solely in the domain of devouring. Even if I do that, I'm afraid I'll be sent straight to hell. Even if I'm going to go there in the end, I can't be thrown down so passively…'

There was also another advantage of being in his current form. Divine beings were practically immune to scrying spells, and Leylin, an otherworldly guest, was obviously immune too. It would be an absolute joke if anyone tried to gain more information on him through scrying.

"The show has begun," Leylin turned his gaze to the bright moon before his silhouette suddenly blurred and disappeared into the darkness.

Most of Beelzebub's truesoul and divinity had been devoured by Leylin, along with a hundred thousand years of his memories as a devil. Thus, all of his followers were nothing but tragic beings in front of Leylin.

Everything was stored in his A.I. Chip, included Beelzebub's methods to communicate with them, or his habits and disposition and even the list of bishops and demons in different regions of the prime material plane.

Beelzebub's followers were unable to hide from Leylin, and thus Leylin had already made his plans after strolling about the castle.

Leylin's deified incarnation arrived in front of a vast building. Two guards there were loyally carrying out their responsibilities, making sure the entrance was secure.

'Even security officers fell to the attacks, no wonder they could carry out the blood sacrifice of an entire city so brazenly…' Leylin put both his hands behind his back and swaggered into the mansion.

The moment he stepped into the vicinity, he couldn't help but take a deep breath at the aura of evil within. He would have been completely unable to sense the soul undulations so precisely without the divinity that his current body possessed. Evil forces continued to circulate in Leylin's surroundings, making the glow of his imitated godhood even brighter. It seemed as if it was turning his pretense into reality.

'Eye of the Divine!' Through his imitated divine powers, Leylin was able to use something like magic to make himself invisible to the tight security. Once he passed through, he followed his instinct to a descending passageway behind a rock garden that was obviously concealed.

"The stench of human blood… and the aura of low-ranked devils…" Leylin sniffed, but did not plan on making his way further.

"Who's that?" His movement had alerted a nearby watchman, but he deliberately lowered his voice, seeming like he didn't want to blow the matter up.

But in the darkness, a handful of otherworldly beings have already felt their way towards Leylin, obviously with the intention of mounting a sneak attack. However, when he saw these creatures up close, he didn't know whether to laugh or to cry at the sight of them. "Are these what you are relying on? Devil priests like these? Is this an insult?"

Through his night vision, he had already seen who his attacker was—an amalgamation of badly damaged human carcass parts and heads. It looked like a massive ball of flesh. This inferior devil was of the lowest grade, and it was also the most common cannon fodder in the ninth level of hell.

The A.I. chip sent over the creature's data to him.

[Inferior devil. Strength: 3 Agility: 1 Vitality: 5 Spirit: 0.1 Description: This is a common magical creature found in hell, usually a reincarnation of deceitful humans. Its IQ equates to that of a retarded human, and it is easily controlled by high-ranked devils. Feats: 1. Fire Immunity, Poison Immunity. 2. Cold Resistance. 3. Acid Attack]

"Scram, you lowly ants!" Leylin said icily, using the language of the devils of hell.

Instantly, those poor devils were rendered completely defenceless under Leylin, someone who was as good as a near Archdevil. They immediately fell under his control.

The watchmen were left in shock, "W-Who are you exactly?"

"You aren't qualified to know that."

They did not dare to retaliate even as Leylin walked further in. Naturally, that was perhaps because they felt the intrinsic quality of a devil within him. Once he pushed through a door covered in fresh blood curses, a room that looked like a dining hall appeared in front of Leylin.

Fresh, steaming flesh was laid on the long dining table, and many worshippers raised their heads to look at Leylin who was an unwanted and unexpected guests. In their shock, they forgot to even wipe off the remnant blood from the side of their lips.

"What's going on? Sybar, why did you let an outsider in?" The plump noble seated right in the centre sounded unhappy, and put on an resentful expression.

'The bloody banquet. Isn't this another one of Beelzebub's favourite ceremonies?' Leylin recognised the ceremony being conducted.

"All you maggots, can't you tell?" Leylin's voice was low but powerful, exploding with the dignity of divinity.

"This- This is the divine force of our Lord!" A devil priest yelped out of surprise, and the whole room suddenly followed him as they knelt down before Leylin.

"My Lord, you haven't made contact with your followers for 20 years…" Tears filled the eyes of the priest.

"I have received the gift of our Lord and have become his Chosen and his substitute to lead you! Any objections?" Leylin announced bluntly.

Pretending to be Beelzebub's Chosen and a divine being would allow Leylin to take control of all his followers as well as his priest network in the prime material world.

This was Leylin's goal. He'd grown jealous of what was formed by a hundred thousand years of operations by an Archdevil. Moreover, he already had the Manderhawke Plate.

"None at all!" The priest was the first to surrender his loyalty to Leylin, dropping to his knees and kissing Leylin's boots.

"Hold up, even if he has the favour of our Lord and and has gained divinity, what give him the rights to take control of us completely?" A royal raised up his opinion from the crowd, feeling like his interests were breached.

But he was silenced shortly after. A crimson blade was pinned into his throat in a split second, and the terrifying power of devouring had sucked him dry in no time.

Many took in sharp breaths and others cried out in surprise, "The Devilblood Dagger!"

"Any more objections?" The blade returned to Leylin's hand as the carcass of the royal turned to ash, and in return Leylin gained the respectful gazes of almost everyone in the room. As Beelzebub's worshippers, they definitely knew what the Devilblood Dagger could do.

One had to have sacrificed the flesh of more than ten thousand humans and high-ranked priests to receive such a terrifying weapon. One needed to prove their strength to complete the sacrificial ceremony and survive for so long, and the Devilblood Dagger confirmed Leylin's.

"Great Lord, we pledge our loyalty to you!" Many followers chanted.

"Very well! Our Lord is currently injured and needs time to recover. My mission is to act on behalf of his conscient, and bring together all the churches in the prime material world to restore our Lord's health with enough faith and followers." Leylin said halfheartedly.

"I see…" Most of them had already guessed that Beelzebub was hurt, but at this point in time it was too late for them to turn their backs on Leylin.

"Now, I'll give out the first mission. A team of paladins is heading towards us, I'll need your help." With his divinity, he was a Chosen of the church. He could sometimes even override the church head's authority!

After confirming his identity, Leylin deployed every follower with specific roles and ordered them to stall those paladins. These people were no match for them, but they were proficient at plots to stall time, as well as scheming and intrigue.

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False God

"In addition, stop performing large-scale blood sacrifices. There's no need for such obstructive activity before you hear further from me, especially something that'll attract the attention of the churches," Leylin reminded them again before leaving.

"Of course, Chosen of our Lord!" The devil priest answered without hesitation, not that he had any authority to go against Leylin's words. Moreover, the reason for their enormous blood sacrifices was to attract Beelzebub's attention. Now that he had already sent a substitute, there was no need for that anymore.

"Lord's substitute, please grant us your name!" The aged devil priest plucked up his courage to ask right before Leylin left.

"My name?" Leylin smirked beneath his mask. "My name is Kukulkan!"

The power of faith essentially came from fear and obedience, respect and admiration, or from one's soul force. Godhood originated from that as well. With a specific name, great power, and falsely assuming the identity of Beelzebub's Chosen, he could win the reverence of these devil worshippers. He could even disseminate and spread Beelzebub's faith before usurping everything.

However, this was the only mature organisation of Beelzebub's that Leylin found somewhat acceptable. When he would build his own church in the future, these people would not be of much help. After all, Leylin would not want his own church to be a gathering point for devil worshippers.

The next step was to cancel certain blood sacrifices and evil rituals that violated his core values. This was the domain of a benevolent god, and also an essential step for a divine being to gain extensive approval in the prime material plane.

"Lord Kukulkan, we will do as you wish and prepare for the recovery of our Lord!" Leylin was startled from his reverie as he watched the devil followers shouting his name loudly. A special energy akin to soul force enveloped him within the zealous ambience.

The false divine power of devouring almost went out of control and wanted to swallow this energy to transform completely, but Leylin resisted it.

'The power of faith?' Leylin signed internally before disappearing into a private room.

"You heard the Lord's orders!" The devil priest straightened his back and looked at all of the followers, especially directing his gaze at the nobles. Having lost the powers that the devil bestowed upon him, the arrival of this divine being allowed him to regain some confidence.

"Get the tasks done quickly so that we can welcome those paladins of the God of Justice!" There was no room for reconciliation between devil worshippers and paladins. If they met, it would be a fight to the death.

While one paladin was more than enough to slaughter an entire room of devil worshippers, strategy, allocation of manpower, and hidden actions would make things difficult for them.

"Of course!" A few of the nobles laughed sinisterly, the shadows they cast on the wall behind them looking like terrifying demons themselves.'I can't believe I have to play to dress up as god and play the devil twice in a day…' Leylin had currently arrived outside the city.

He looked around vigilantly. His appearance of a powerful divine being was but a pretense, and he himself was only a rank 10 wizard. Had the devil worshippers just now rebelled against him, he was not sure that he'd have been able to suppress them. However, as he'd borrowed the superior aura of a high-ranked devil, he was certain he wouldn't lose out.

However, him pretending to be a divine being, on top of his possession of the Devilblood Dagger, was enough to scare the hell out of those followers. Moreover, those who had offered sacrifices to the devils already had shackles on their souls. If they did not wish to be tortured even after death, they had to act according to Leylin's wishes.

'Compared to dealing with those low-ranked followers, this needs more attention…' Leylin pulled himself together with a slight sigh, and a thread of flames appeared on his figure, taking the shape of a flame-winged serpent. The small blaze lit up the Gloomwood, giving off a demonic feeling.

'He's here!' Leylin turned quickly. A black spirit was running towards him so quickly that it couldn't be followed by the naked eye.

'Advanced Barrier!' 'Advanced Protection!' 'Advanced Invisibility!' A few enormous spell barriers were erected, separating the area from the outside world completely.

'A high-ranked Professional? No, he's even stronger than Odge and Boruj, almost a Legend…' Leylin inwardly assessed as the person he was thinking of arrived in front of him.

"Tiff!" Formidable divine power circulated around the area, making Leylin seem like a god as he called out to Tiff. At the same time, the aura of his original form also rolled off his body.

"You're not my God, but you have his power!" Tiff was indeed standing in front of Leylin, but he did not look like his previous self. His hair was now greying at the temples, and his vigilant eyes glared unwaveringly at Leylin.

Leylin felt several different probing spells targeted at him immediately, and if not for the fact that he was the original body and had the A.I. Chip's help in concealing his abilities, it would be have been difficult to deal with the fellow.

Brilliant divine power floated above Leylin's hand as he stared Tiff in the eye, "So, do you still have any suspicions?"

"I wouldn't dare! You are the favoured one of my Lord!" Tiff pressed his right hand to his chest as a form of respect and bowed, showing his acknowledgement of Leylin's identity.

Strong beings like this were not easily subdued. Honestly, if Tiff were to make any moves, he would have found out that Leylin was only a pretentious false god. Once he figured that out, taking care of Leylin would be as easy as popping a bubble.

"Since you've summoned me, what can I help you with?" Tiff still looked suspicious about the whole situation.

"Our Lord has already defeated the Archdevil Beelzebub and I've received orders to take over everything Beelzebub has in the prime material plane!" He kept to the truth. Tiff was the one person Leylin trusted the most here, even if he seemed doubtful of everything right now.

Even if the boy decided to go against him, Leylin could use the power he'd formerly left with Tiff to make him turn back.

'However, he was able to use the energy I left behind as a foundation to receive magical powers and become similar to a bloodline holder… Or should I say half-chose? He's somewhat talented…' Leylin seemed to have already seen beyond Tiff's facade.

"You've defeated the Archdevil? The Sovereign King of Gluttony?" Tiff's voice involuntarily cracked. He had obviously heard about this earth-shaking rumour. The loyalty of these worshippers, who'd already lost the magic abilities bestowed by the devil, had long been shaken. Some information had spread out.

Worshippers in the prime material plane were shallow. If Leylin had waited to make his move a couple of decades later, Beelzebub's people would have almost completely disappeared. Thankfully, that was not the case.

"Mm. I'll need your help, how much manpower do you have in the Dambrath Kingdom?" Leylin asked. Unless his background wasn't optimal, a near-legend like Tiff would have a certain amount of influence.

"I've created an organisation with faith in our Lord. There are fewer than 300 followers right now, and the highest ranked among them is a Baron…" Tiff clenched his teeth, and told Leylin unwillingly. The familiar soul suppression was too strong on him, and he had no choice but to speak the truth.

'An organisation in worship of me?' Leylin was pretty taken aback. 'To sustain a miniature organisation without the support of divine power… He has a lot of potential…'

The difference between true and false gods was that one could grant their priests divine spells and other powers, ranging in ranks from rank 1 to rank 9. With the great power separating their planes and the prime material plane, the highest rank of spell a powerful devil or demon could bestow upon their worshippers was rank 5. Anything past that would require a blood sacrifice to go through, or have some other such restriction. This type of worship of false gods would suffer a unanimous crackdown by the true gods.

Demigods were similar. Without enough power to grant high-ranked spells to their followers, they were not widely spread. The Feathered Snake God, Kukulkan, that Leylin had made up previously was an otherworldly demigod who was still in deep sleep! He would not be able to grant even a rank 1 spell.

Leylin felt a special respect for the fact that Tiff could still sustain worship for Kukulkan under conditions like these, to the extent of enticing a baron. While he'd have used his own methods for it, it was still rather amazing.

'But I can't let this situation continue for too long... I'll soon have to give them some hope!' Leylin decided. A god that was unable to respond to prayers and grant spells would be eliminated like Beelzebub sooner or later.

'If his original form is still recovering from his injuries, it doesn't make sense for me to confer divine spells in his stead!' Leylin's original form as a near rank 7 Magus was from another world after all, and the World Will of the World of Gods was hostile towards his power. Not to mention the amount of energy that would be consumed by crossing the crystal sphere shell. If he were to use his original form to bestow divine spells, he would quickly go bankrupt and even die.

'The only way is to advance to become a Legend is the and condense my divine force. By doing that, I'll have the most basic capability to respond to my followers.' Leylin gritted his teeth.

"Devout follower of our Lord, Tiff! I have something for you to do. Let us meet at the capital city of the Dambrath Kingdom."

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Fiancé

After listening to Leylin's declaration, Tiff glanced at him with a serious look. It resembled the sharp gaze of a hawk, as if he was trying to pierce through the defense of the divine power to see Leylin's true form.

"I follow my God's will!" Tiff disappeared into mid-air after finished his sentence, and everything that had just occurred seemed like an illusion.

'He has magic abilities similar to a Chosen of my original form, and he's a high-ranking ranger or thief…' Something flashed across Leylin's eyes as he headed back to Gloomwood Castle.

He wasn't worried in the least about having his identity leaked. After all, his divine powers were enough to keep everyone in the dark. Even if Tiff eventually found out that he was Leylin Faulen, he would be under the impression that Leylin had received favour from his original form and had divine powers bestowed upon him.

'Well, now that I have Tiff I can launch many of my plans…' Though it was already confirmed that Leylin would take over all of Beelzebub's followers, he still needed someone to take over the operation and carry out the work of a commander. It looked like Tiff was very suitable for that position.

Apart from being sufficiently powerful, he had good leadership abilities as well. If the conditions were right in the future, he wanted to nurture Tiff into his first pope.

"Pouring power into the natives, and allowing then to adapt and change into a form that is accepted in the World of Gods… This is a very good issue to pursue." Leylin had a profound look in his eyes.

Through his short time with Tiff just now, Leylin had already learnt much from the energy that emitted off his body. It had given him a general direction for his plan to induct Magi into the World of Gods.

"This method of forcibly pouring power into a subject should have failed for sure. My success with Tiff was a fluke, and should be considered a rare case." Given his experiments in various worlds, Leylin was sure of this, "Thus, I'll still have to observe this specimen, and test how it will change under different circumstances…"

Leylin immediately ducked into an alleyway. When he reappeared, he had already returned to his appearance of a mercenary.

"Well, I guess I can only scare people with my divine form…" Leylin sighed and returned to the inn.

"I, Rafiniya, a high-ranked knight, successor of the way of the knight, pledge my life to fight against evil."

Before he stepped into the door, the young female knight's voice could already be heard and that gave Leylin an immediate migraine.

"What's going on?" He walked in suspiciously before seeing a fully-armoured Rafiniya raising the knight sword in her hand in a pledge.

"Oh! Heavens! Ley you're finally back!" Old Pam waved his hand at the side and said, "This lady knight here was all ready to fight upon hearing that there were traces of devil worshippers in the castle. No one was able to persuade her…."

Hera, who was standing beside Old Pam, couldn't help but smile helplessly. As for Yalani, she had already had enough of everyone and escaped to her room.

"Don't those devil followers run rampant at night? I want to rescue the innocent commoners from the hands of these devils! Ley, let's do it together, shall we?" Rafiniya spoke righteously, but unfortunately she seemed to have grown more sensible, as she was ready to drag the powerful-looking Leylin along.

"My dear Miss…" Leylin was rendered speechless too, "Look at the time now, please rest soon!"

Honestly speaking, why would he go against his own men? Were Rafiniya to go alone, it would probably end up with him saving her instead of her saving the world. She just might have ended up repenting her choices from within the stomachs of those worshippers.

"Rest? The people of the city are currently suffering from the devastation of devils and you want me to rest?" Rafiniya looked holy and staunchly declared, "None of you shall stop me!"

"Then, do you still remember the rule that all knights need to abide by? To keep their promises?" Leylin sat down, and even had the mood to ask the servants for a pot of red tea and some snacks. After all, he had been so busy the whole night that he ought to have some rest.

"Knight Commandment 54: I must comply with the contract and keep my promises and oaths!" Rafiniya was rather familiar with that.

"Good! So don't forget, you're still under Hera for now!" Leylin wiped his lips gracefully with the napkin, "What if your employer decided to leave the castle tomorrow?"

"That's right! Rafiniya, I'll be leaving tomorrow to head towards the Dambrath Kingdom!" Hera caught on to Leylin's acting real quick and continued the show and spoke meekly, "You won't abandon me and my sister, would you?"

"I-" Rafiniya froze, the two knightly virtues of defending the just and keeping her promises circling her mind. She looked very conflicted.

Hera only managed to thank Leylin after they'd managed to send Rafiniya back to her room, "This is all thanks to you, Ley! If not I'm really afraid of what Rafiniya would have done."

"Don't mention it, I wanted to leave earlier too. After all, anything that has the least bit of contact with the devils will always be problematic.." Leylin was speaking against his conscience, but it received agreements from both Hera and Old Pam. The horrible image of the devils had long been deeply ingrained into the minds of commoners by the gods.

This was especially true of Hera, Hera who decided to give up on her original plans to rest. There were still many cities they could rest in on the way, and they didn't necessarily have to stay here and deal with the devils. Even if Leylin hadn't mentioned it first, Hera had plans of leaving earlier.

"Then, I guess, goodnight everyone! We're leave here tomorrow, as soon as possible!" Leylin rose to bid them all goodnight, but he was smiling in his heart. Due to his interception, the activities of the devil followers had already been stopped. However, he didn't have to mention that to them.The next day, a well-supplied mercenary team hit the road. Rafiniya sat alone on Nick and led the way with a sulky expression on her face. Hera and the others were sensible enough to not disturb her.

Hera seemed to have learnt her lesson and did not hire any more mercenaries. She only found a more down-to-earth horsekeeper and a horse carriage. It seemed as if she had placed all of her trust and safety in Leylin.

"After we pass Gloomwood Castle, we will reach the central plains of Dambrath Kingdom, which is also the most important agricultural base. The king has gathered most of the military force here and the security of this place is generally great."

Honestly, Leylin thought that if the sisters were bold enough, it would be completely safe to continue the journey with just a few servants. But they were evidently shocked by the ogres previously, and would rather raise the commission than leave Leylin's side.

"But to be able to hire a high-ranked knight and a rank 10 wizard with this price, it's still considered not bad." Leylin didn't have any other opinions. He didn't feel pressed for time currently. After all, whatever plans he'd left behind were enough to stall those paladins for a long time.

It was definitely impossible for the devil worshippers to face up against paladins, but they could indeed admirably fulfil the task of delaying them without showing any traces of themselves. This was sufficient time for Leylin to reach the Dambrath Kingdom with no worries, and he could even start planning his next step with ease.

Thus, he was currently in a relaxed state and even had the mood to tease Rafiniya. Wasn't it the duty of a devil to push a pure and resolute person to hell? Though Leylin only held the memories of an Archdevil, he wouldn't mind giving it a try.

As expected, everything was like what Leylin had predicted. After entering the central plains, the security of the surroundings became much better and they could see little villages along the sides of the roads. There were even standby guards and patrolling militia.

Large-scaled bandit organisations would not be able to survive here. As for ogres and other dangerous beasts? They were wiped out by the king's men long ago. The only few exceptions that Leylin and gang met were small-scaled bandit groups with fewer than 20 members. Even Old Pam could face them, not to mention Rafiniya.

Days later, the outline of a huge city started showing in the horizon.

"We're finally here! Dambrath's capital!" Hera pulled the curtain of the carriage to the side, and excitement filled her eyes. If not for Leylin and the rest, she and her younger sister might have already died on their way here.

"Dambrath Kingdom, it is rumoured that the first generation king killed an evil dragon along with his followers and distributed the earnings from the dragons to the commoners. From then on, he built a city and developed it into a kingdom."

Rafiniya couldn't help but show signs of admiration, yet Leylin found it funny. Stories that praised kings like these were nothing out of the ordinary, their sole purpose to make these kings seem more divine and lawful. Well, those civil servants could say anything they wanted, but Leylin would not believe a single world they said.

"Killing an evil dragon? This isn't even an environment that dragons favour…" But obviously, no one cared nor did they hear Leylin's grumbles. Even Yalani peeped her head out of the carriage to check out the surroundings, and listened to Rafiniya's story with glee.

After they'd all reached the capital, Hera brought the horse to an aristocratic area on the east and they arrived in front of a prestigious mansion,

"We were able to reach the capital safely all thanks to you guys! Thank you for all of your protection along the way, my fiancé and I will definitely repay you!" Suddenly, the normally quiet Yalani spoke up, with a trace of arrogance on her face.

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Contempt

"Ohoh… Fiancé? Hera, you actually brought your sister here to get married?" Rafiniya was the first to shout, her eyes seemingly full of stars, "Gallant adventurers protecting the beautiful princess, who has come to the imperial capital to meet her prince. There's nothing more romantic than this…"

Pam and Leylin said their congratulations, making Yalani blush a little, but Leylin was rather flabbergasted. He had thought that this journey revolved around Hera, but who would have thought that the final lead was actually Yalani, the young lady who hadn't even reached adulthood yet?

'Plus, her elder sister is the one sending her off to get married? Such a tradition doesn't seem to exist in the kingdom. Did something happen to their elders?' Leylin could sense that something was not right.

Seeing the mercenaries make a racket in front of them, the two bodyguards standing at the gate of the mansion could no longer hold themselves back. "What are you doing? Don't you know that this is the viscount's residence?"

A bodyguard walked out. He was wearing a brand new set of armor, wiped so conscientiously that it was shining without a single speck of dust on it. He towered over Leylin and his company, his eyes filled with disdain.

The reputation mercenaries held in the imperial city was only slightly better than that of bandits and gangsters. They were never a synonym of law-abiding citizens, and the nobles even loathed having any sort of relation to them. It would be so embarrassing!

As for the fiancé and so on? The bodyguard sized up Hera and her sister, who were dressed plainly, and evidently chose not to believe them. Yalani tugged at the hem of her elder sister's skirt, then turned to look at her own clothes. Her family wasn't very well off to begin with, and they had encountered huge misfortune. After a long and arduous journey on foot, even their best clothing would look like beggars' rags.

She and her sister now looked like unsophisticated girls from the countryside, entering the city for the first time.

The young lady lowered her head, and practically wanted to bury her head underground. "Young sir…"

Hera was flushed red, but could only pick herself up and negotiate. "I'm from Emon City…"

She simultaneously took out a small cloth bundle that she treasured. Peeling it open layer by layer, she revealed the medal of a noble family that was in good condition. Perhaps it was the effect of the badge; the bodyguard glanced at Hera before taking the badge in to inform others, even if he was still doubtful.

Leylin and his company waited in the wind for more than half an hour. Rafiniya had grown rather impatient by the time the entrance to the viscount's mansion finally opened slowly. Someone who looked like a butler walked out, his face plastered with a professional smile.

"May I know who is the young miss from the Lanta family?" Hera inhaled deeply and walked forward, with a smile to please. "I'm Hera Lanta! She's my sister, Yalani!"

This was their reality: they had no choice. She and her younger sister had no one to rely on in the imperial city, and they could only attach themselves to Yalani's viscount fiancé if they wanted a good life. They couldn't leave a bad impression on the butler whom he trusted as well.

"Respected young ladies, please follow me in. The viscount is waiting for you!" The butler bowed at the side.

"Also… They are the mercenaries I hired. I was able to make it safely to the imperial city all thanks to them…" Hera looked over at Leylin and the rest and explained herself.

"Mercenaries?!" Disdain was apparent in the butler's eyes, and only Rafiniya, who was riding a warhorse, made him do a double take. "But the viscount only mentioned two ladies…"

"Hera, you guys head in first! We'll just wait a while longer at most…" Leylin smiled as he said to Hera. He glanced at the scornful look in the butler's eyes, and inwardly smiled to himself. 'This expression… Does he treat Hera and her sister like poor relatives who came knocking because they ran out of money? Interesting, interesting!"

Leylin magnanimously forgave the butler's offense because he was watching a show. He even pulled Rafiniya back, someone whose expression showed that she had a belly full of anger, leaving her with no one to vent it on. Leylin was laughing so hard to himself that his stomach was about to start cramping.

Hera sent him an appreciative look, then took her sister's hand as she walked into the entrance.

"Ley, look at them! That expression!" Rafiniya's hair was completely about to explode, like an enraged kitten. "Ahh… I can't take it. At worst, I won't take the commission this time…"

"You don't have to take it if you don't want to, but don't drag the rest of us down…" Leylin's sarcastic blows at the side met with Old Pam's common sentiments. His eyes went watery. "Missy! You can't let poor Old Pam leave without a salary…"

"You haven't gotten your salary? Just the mere ogre ears we got on the way should be enough of a profit…" Rafiniya mumbled to herself, but her temper did not flare up.

In actual fact, Hera and her sister didn't have many assets to begin with. The two announced that they would raise the commission on the way, but after half the journey their group was stunned; the amount of cash they had on them was not even enough to pay what they'd promised before!

Furthermore, they hadn't paid half of the coachman's commission and the fee for the carriage at the Gloomwood Castle!

Although Rafiniya didn't give a hoot about that little sum of money, she couldn't not care about the others. After hearing what Leylin and Old Pam said, she could only walk away while fuming. "Anyway, I won't demand the money, you guys can split it among yourselves…"

"Oh, Rafiniya! You're really the most kindhearted lady in the world!" The dwarf, Old Pam, immediately cheered. Even the coachman at the side revealed a smile. He had gained a deeper understanding about this strange team of mercenaries after spending time with them.

Rafiniya didn't lack money at all, and neither did the mysterious Ley. The only remaining people who would split the money would be him and Old Pam. People of the lower class never once minded having an extra share, even if it was just a few copper coins.

Clang!* The main door swung open once again. Yalani's arm was hooked onto a young nobleman's, while Hera and the butler were standing behind them.

"These the mercenaries you employed? There's even a dwarf? I think joining a circus would be more suitable for it… Oh, right, have you seen the the Golden Dwarf Circus?" This youthful nobleman had a wan face and very dark eyebags, making him look like a person whose body had been wasted entirely on wine and women. He appeared very depressed, and completely disregarded Leylin and company, turning around to chat with Hera instead.

"Daniel, Rafiniya and Leylin are both extremely powerful Professionals…" Hera smiled cordially as she began to turn the nobleman's attention to Leylin and the others. "I believe that they'll be of help to you if you win them over…"

Although she had started to notice that Daniel was harbouring malicious intentions, Hera still tried as much as possible to indirectly make her point, even though this made Rafiniya shoot a resentful look at her. She was indeed trying her best to 'help' Leylin and the others from the bottom of her heart.

Rafiniya aside, the only way out for civilian Professionals was to wait upon a noble family. This way, if they did great service decades later, they might be able to receive their master's favour, and obtain the position of an honorary knight or a lord.

With this, they would be able to seek a piece of territory and gain a hereditary title. From then on, they would have entered the ranks of the upper class. In actual fact, that was how Leylin's grandfather started out, just that the person he had vowed his loyalty to was the king.

"Hm… You're right!" Viscount Daniel couldn't help but swallow a mouthful of saliva as he stared at Hera's full bosom. As compared to his fiancée, who was still a young girl, her sister was evidently a much more mature woman. Of course, it would be perfect if he could have both of them.

Under the beauty's pleading, Daniel finally looked at them in the eye reluctantly as he sized them up. "You are very lucky. I, Viscount Daniel, am willing to accept all of you as my followers. Kneel and swear an oath!

"And you! You can be my honorary knight, my personal one…" When his gaze fell on Rafiniya, Daniel's eyes clearly got brighter, and his eyes lingered for a little longer on her slender thighs. His butler, however, was trying his best to bite his lips, and didn't say anything.

He understood his young master's character very well, and knew that he would absolutely turn a deaf ear to any advice. But how could he promise to take them in as followers so easily, especially when there was also a dwarf and a coachman in their party?

However, the young master would regret his decision after a few days at most, and give them a random position as a guard or a servant or something. They would be satisfied anyway.

Even if they were servants, people in the viscount's mansion were a notch higher than average civilians! This was an established theory in the butler's mindset.

"What? Aren't you going to quickly thank the viscount for his grace?" Hera signalled at Leylin and the others with her eyes.

She thought that she had found the best way out for these mercenaries. After all, compared to living a life of brushes with death, what was so bad about being a nobleman's subordinate?

It was an unavoidable fact that although she was sharp-witted, she had a rigid mind. Or perhaps this was the way nobles thought.

"Mighty master, I, Pollan, hereby swear that…" What exceeded her expectations was that Rafiniya, Leylin and even Old Pam did not move an inch, only the coachman leapt forward with bright eyes.

"We are extremely grateful for your kindness, distinguished viscount. Unfortunately, I do not have any intention to serve a noble family. We are here just to settle our commission…"

"You all…" Hera was flushed with anger. This was the first time she felt hateful towards Leylin. How dare he decline her good intentions? Did he not know that there was a world of difference between a noble and a civilian?

Even Rafiniya frowned at this move, not appreciative of Hera's 'kindness'. Now that she thought herself to be the mistress of the viscount's mansion, Leylin's actions instantly made her feel like her pride had been hurt.

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Imperial Capital

'Interesting! Her change in status actually brought about such a huge change in her mentality so quickly?' Leylin found it meaningful that the sisters had begun to change so quickly, despite being of the same status as them a little while ago. The mere change in their status made these two sisters act in such an unfamiliar way.

As they required Leylin's protection on their journey, they had chatted with him in an amiable manner. But now that they had reached the imperial capital and had someone to rely on they drew the line, dividing their position and social class in the blink of an eye.

Leylin used Beelzebub's memories to analyse most of her thoughts in a flash.

'Excellent. Such an interesting soul will be the best candidate to corrupt and degrade into a devil… A vain heart…' Just as Leylin was considering whether he needed to corrupt her, the rightful master, Viscount Daniel, finally spoke. "Hmm, if that's the case, then forget it. Give them a sum of money and make them leave quickly. What would others think if they saw them?"

"Yes, young master!" The butler standing behind Viscount Daniel tossed out a small bag of coins. "Take the money and get lost, you greedy vultures!"

"You…" Rafiniya instantaneously felt as though she could no longer recognise her her close friend, and suddenly became dispirited.

"Let's go…" As she patted her mount's head, Nick immediately let out a whinny, while Leylin scratched his nose and followed behind Old Pam, who had picked up the bag of money.

Viscount Daniel's voice could be heard faintly as they left. "Why would you bother with those country bumpkins. Hera, Yalani, let me take you to…""Repulsive! Abominable! Why did Hera and Yalani turn out this way? Did they fall under the spell of a devil that took control of their hearts?" The young female knight finally yelled after they had walked a distance.

"Alright. These nobles are all revolting. Old Pam has seen it all. Only gold never lies!" Rafiniya was totally speechless at his greed for money, and could only roll her eyes after hearing what he said. Leylin, on the other hand, asked interestedly, "Why didn't you just swear to become his follower right away? He's a nobleman after all!"

"If I did that, the elders would kill me! Besides, do you think a dwarf will be conferred a title in a human country?" Old Pam winked, exposing his innate cunning self, "Old Pam would rather than drown in rum than slog his guts out for a noble and end up with nothing…"

"Haha… You are a clever dwarf indeed…" Rafiniya was still a young lady after all, and was immediately amused by his humorous tone…

Leylin was the first to suggest disbanding when they reached a crossroad. "If there isn't anything else, should we part ways here?"

"Part ways? Aren't we going to get paid for the mission at the mercenary association?" Rafiniya was surprised, and also a little reluctant for some reason.

"I have other things to do." Leylin declined tactfully, but even Rafiniya could read between the lines: he wanted to be alone. Once she understood this, she even had the urge to cry.

"Then… where will you be going?" The young female knight still asked stubbornly.

"I intend to stay in the imperial capital for a period of time, then begin my journey once again. My objective is not clear yet, perhaps I will make a trip to Silverymoon City up north. Goodbye…" Leylin seemed as though he was waving elegantly as he left.

But Rafiniya and Old Pam did not realise that a gloomy thread of light had already wound itself around Rafiniya's body like a strand of hair, one that disappeared almost instantly.

'The mark of a devil. I look forward to the moment when your soul falls from grace…' The low mutter of a devil sounded in Leylin's heart.

There were a few reasons he occasionally did right by Rafiniya and the others. For one thing, they were his group and saving them was a matter of course, but another reason was to observe the souls of people and attempt to corrupt them.

Leylin wasn't a masochist. Why would he insist on waiting outside the viscount's mansion otherwise? Did he lack that small sum of money? It was only at the actual scene that he could grasp the most subtle undulations of the soul and guide it!

'From the looks of it, Hera and her sister have been consumed by vanity. With just a slight push, it would be perfectly normal for them to be lured in by the devil. Rafiniya, on the other hand, has the purest soul. Once she's corrupted, she will possess strength that will make all the other devils drool…'

Once a soul like Rafiniya's fell from grace, it would be extremely enticing for any formidable devil. However, Leylin was already a near Archdevil, and he naturally didn't have to resort to such unclassy behaviour. It was out of prudent consideration that he decided to personally make a trip down to experiment on average human souls.

Since his main body had already robbed Beelzebub of all it had, having dealings with the underworld and other devils would be unavoidable. Even Leylin himself had a few devilish characteristics.

Souls in the World of Gods were different from those of the Magus World after all, and Leylin had to personally verify this matter. When he was in the outer seas, the people of his family were unsuitable to experiment on. As for those pirates, their souls were even similar to those of devils wreaking havoc!

Only Rafiniya and the others made Leylin's eyes light up. This was precisely why he left made the mark of a devil on her, making it convenient for him to track and monitor her at any time.'All of these other matters can be put to one side. There are even more important matters to attend to on this trip to the imperial capital!'

The first problem that Leylin had to resolve was to cleanse himself of any suspicions of his piracy. Otherwise, the priests and paladins of the God of Justice would always follow him like houseflies, which was impossible for him to defend against. Even if he destroyed one group, others would emerge to come after him.

However, both Leylin and the nobles were very skilled when it came to distorting the truth and covering up evil deeds.

'It's simple in theory. As long as His Majesty makes a statement to conclude the case, it will be sufficient! After confirming the murderer, even the church of the God of Justice would be unable to continue investigating…'

Leylin was very clear on the fact that he currently was not considered a suspect. Even the priests and paladins of the God of Justice could only 'seek his assistance in their investigation' at the very most.

However, if they really did so, it would be all over for him! Which noble didn't have a crime penalty tied to them, or wasn't implicated in a grey area? Once a single event was uncovered, it would be linked to even more. He wouldn't even be able to think of walking out of the church alive at the end of it all.

His only path was to nip this in the bud; the church's hand was reaching too far.

'Once the king makes his final conclusion, it will be difficult for even the church to overthrow it. After all, they must respect the royalty in this region. The network of connections that the Faulen Family has is insufficient for this…'

Leylin was in deep thought. 'It would be best if a member of his majesty's inner ministerial circle spoke on my behalf, and he would have to be a very important person. The network that Beelzebub left behind would probably come in handy in this aspect…'

The higher one's status as a noble, the easier one would become corrupted and collaborate with the devil. The same happened to the king of Dambrath, and even the person in charge that Beelzebub had personally appointed himself before he entered dormancy. It was undeniably a form of mockery towards the gods.

'Let me see… In the list of names of the chiefs in charge in the Dambrath region, the one situated in the Dambrath Kingdom's capital is…' Leylin browsed through the information that the A.I. Chip had recorded. An odd smile gradually crept onto his face. 'Interesting… A devil?'

In Beelzebub's memory, the imperial capital of Dambrath was obviously the main disaster area where devils wrecked havoc. He had even specially dispatched a devil over for the convenience of control.

Although she was suppressed by the prime material plane, she should still have the strength of a high-ranked Professional. She had even mastered a few special concealment techniques to help Beelzebub's believers successfully avoid countless searches by the churches.

"A smart chap," Leylin evaluated her indifferently. If Leylin had used his true strength to subdue her, then the outcome of the fight wouldn't even need to be considered. Unfortunately, fairness didn't exist in such matters from the start.

With Beelzebub's memories, Leylin had control over a trump card that could instantly make him an archenemy!

"But before I subdue her, I'll go meet an old friend!" A strange smile flashed across Leylin's face."Damn it! Damn it! Those loathsome nobles all have their eyes on my territory, and have completely forgotten about their friendship with the Golden Thornblossoms…" Also in the imperial capital was Leylin's old acquaintance. Viscount Tim had returned from the imperial palace, crestfallen.

Being a spy, he'd fortunately escaped the unforeseen event of the Pirates' Tide, and had even brought a portion of the family's wealth to the mainland. Soon after, he began to take action in the imperial capital in hopes of obtaining the title of Marquis of the Gold Thornblossom family, as well as the territories in the Baltic archipelago.

However, reality had slapped him in the face. Once the old marquis had passed away, his original relationships had all become invalid. Those nobles of the imperial capital with their insatiable appetites had started planning to split up the Baltic archipelago; the profits from oceanic trade were enough to make these nobles go green with envy.

After multiple trips to the palace to meet with the king, he realised that His Majesty also seemed unenthusiastic about his requests.

'Although we are blood relatives, the benefits are irresistible to others. Unless someone with real authority is willing to support me… I didn't bring a lot of gold coins, who should I choose…' Just as Viscount Tim was pondering over that, a servant entered to ask for instructions. "Sir, there's another noble requesting to see you. He displayed the Faulen Family's badge…"

Ping!* The exquisite porcelain cup in Viscount Tim's hand fell onto the floor right away.

"The Fau… Faulens!" Tim covered his forehead. "Is he still not going to let me off?"

In his heart, there was no difference between Leylin and other demons and devils. Ironically, that was indeed the truth.

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Truename

After much consideration, Tim still gave the command. "Let him in!" He met Leylin with a solemn and tragic expression on his face, and was startled by the youthful face before him.

"This is the first time we have met, Viscount Tim. However, we have already made many deals in the past. I'm Leylin, Leylin Faulen. Pleased to meet you."

"Get out, all of you!" Tim rudely chased his subordinates out, and fiercely shut the door and windows. Leylin was even considerate enough to add a magical protective screen.

"I've already done as you requested. Why have you still come here?" Tim asked in a rage, but Leylin could still see the fear and weakness under his tough and unyielding expression.

"Don't take offense, alright? After all, we had a really pleasant time working together before, didn't we Viscount Tim?" Leylin said with a light smile.

"You damn bandit, you absolute savage…" The veins on Tim's face bulged grotesquely, "Aren't you afraid I'll inform on you to the king and the church?"

"What do I have to be afraid of?" Leylin laughed exaggeratedly, then whispered next to Tim's ear, "After all, the person who killed the old marquis wasn't me!"

Once the words left Leylin's mouth, Tim immediately curled up on his seat and started crying bitterly, as though his spine had been ripped out of him. "It's you guys! You guys forced me…"

"No one forced you… If you came clean to the old marquis, both of you could have fled before the pirates came…" Leylin sneered. "Also, you don't have to make yourself look pitiful in front of me. You really should hire a new acting teacher."

The cold look in Leylin's eyes told Tim that the wizard had seen through him.

"If that's the case, then why did you still come and look for me?" Tim took out a napkin to wipe the tears on his face. He calmed down in an instant, and his expression was even gloomy.

"Haha… Good! That's the person I want to negotiate with!" Leylin clapped his hands, "Of course, the same as last time. A deal!"

"A deal? Speak!" Tim wasn't even half as timid as earlier.

"I will help you obtain your title and territory, and in exchange you will end all suspicion on me." Leylin was very direct. Tim was the key person in his plan to cleanse himself of suspicion. After all, if even the victim proved Leylin to be innocent, what else could anyone say?

"End all suspicion? Tsk tsk… Seems like the investigation team of the God of Justice is giving you trouble!" Tim folded his arms in front of his chest.

"Just a little, but you can forget about haggling. I have many other options as well, just that things would become a bit more troublesome. But the only person in the entire imperial capital who can support you in your obtaining a title of nobility is me!" Leylin appeared extremely enigmatic.

"I need to see what you're capable of," Tim did not agree at once. The Faulen Family's head was just a baron after all, and Tim did not believe that his influence would extend beyond the outer seas.

"You'll soon see!" With an indifferent smile, Leylin got up to leave.

Now was the time to utilise the devil network. Leylin made turns here and there in the imperial capital, as though he was just strolling around, and finally arrived at an entertainment club.

"Young master, we are not open yet…" The doorman said awkwardly. Leylin examined his surroundings. This place was evidently a street filled with the entertainment facilities of the imperial capital. There were similar buildings all around, just that the streets were rather deserted; after all, not every noble was so idle as to come over to play around in the day.

"I know…" Leylin stretched his right hand open in front of the doorman. A bizarre magic pattern appeared in the centre of his palm: a thorny rose. The colour of its petals changed continuously as time elapsed.

The doorman's face changed drastically upon seeing this mark. "Come in with me!" he said as his aura changed, and his languid gaze brightened up greatly. After vigilantly glancing around Leylin's surroundings, he opened the main door and let Leylin in.

Pink veils greeted him everywhere when he entered through the main door. There was a strong scent of perfume here, and wine bottles and scented handkerchiefs were strewn across the floor. A smooth arm or sleek thigh would peek out from the cracks of the doors from time to time. The entire place was filled with an exotic atmosphere.

The doorman led Leylin to the deepest corner of the club straight away, into a hidden private room.

"Let me meet with the person in charge!" Leylin no longer bothered to conceal his identity. His eyes turned blood red, and he emitted traces of the aura of the devil.

"Yes, sir!" The doorman performed a ceremony exclusive to followers of the devil, and retreated respectfully. He even seemed to be trembling as he could distinctly sense the aura of a powerful devil radiating from Leylin.

The boss arrived swiftly. The devilish undulations radiating from her made Leylin smile.

"Oh! Handsome young master, were you looking for me?" A relaxed voice said. Leylin then saw a beautiful and alluring lady enter the private room.

She was clothed in a crimson evening gown, which revealed half of her snowy white shoulders. Her eyes were glistening as she coquettishly entered the room. With a gentle tap of her right foot, the door of the private room closed slowly. As she shut the door, the high slit in the hem of her gown inadvertently revealed her smooth thigh, as well as her pretty little feet and her toenails that were painted with daffodil juice.

She didn't seem to be wearing anything under her luxurious clothes, and she radiated an aura which was infinitely tempting.

'A rare creature!' This was the first thought that came to Leylin's mind. She was even more attractive than that fox lady, Madam Tillen, whom he had met previously. She was an already-extinct Creature that could make men go crazy.

"It's me!" Leylin looked her up and down without even bothering to be polite. Her clean, bare feet that stood upon the carpet were especially attractive and flirtatious. However, what he said made her face change drastically in a split second. "As expected of a high-ranked pleasure devil, one that graces the beds of men…"

"A pleasure devil? Are you joking, young man?" The beautiful lady covered her mouth demurely, and even appeared a little pale. This was a natural reaction that normal people would give after hearing about a devil.

"No need for this pretense. Since I know about this place, it means that I already know everything about you that there is to know, including your real identity…" With a flick of Leylin's hand, a magical barrier formed immediately. Shadowy divine force suddenly erupted from his body.

"Master's divine force!" This fake divine force made the attractive lady across him cry out in surprise. It was as though her fog of disguise had been pierced, revealing her true form. The amorous smile persisted, but her pupils had turned a strange burgundy. Her violet hair was topped with a curved horn characteristic of devils, and she appeared charming and adorable. Her feet had also turned into a pair of cloven hooves.

A layer of strange purple runes appeared on her body. They were like tattoos on her skin, yet they had a bizarre charm to them. Although one would recognise her as a devil with one look, she was more attractive than before.

"So you're the divine one that appeared in Gloomwood Castle: Kukulkan!"

The pleasure devil looked at Leylin restrainedly, fear showing on her changed appearance. As the priest in charge of the entire Dambrath Kingdom, she'd certainly paid close attention to Leylin's appearance then. The worshippers from Gloomwood Castle wouldn't dare hide anything from her either.

If not caring about costs, she could receive news rapidly from across the kingdom.

"Yes, it's me!" Leylin had his hands behind his back, and seemed extremely mysterious. His divine force was suppressing the devil opposite him.

"Are you here to add me to your party? Hehe… What a pity, but without master's orders, I will not comply with you." The pleasure devil watched Leylin with vigilance. As a high-ranked devil, she had personally seen Beelzebub before, and knew that he was absolutely impossible that it would bestow his divinity on other devils.

"I'm afraid that's not for you to choose, Lady Delia! Or perhaps I should call you… Adelius Dodocrow Menjfakel Anconina…" Leylin uttered a string of complex and tongue-twisting syllables. When the pleasure devil heard this, she immediately turned wild.

"How… How did you know?" Her expression changed drastically. With a wave of her hand, a powerful magic force appeared in the private room once again, similar to a large-scale confinement spell formation.

The reason why Lady Delia was so anxious was entirely because Leylin had just uttered her truename. A truename that was reserved for devils!

High-level devils had unique truenames, and these were their greatest secret. They were almost as important as their lives! Once it was divulged, even ordinary wizards would be able to easily imprison them, and enslave them or boss them around!

As the Sovereign King of Gluttony who had control over her, it was only natural that Beelzebub knew the truename of this pleasure devil, and could cast a deadly curse on her at any time. This was the greatest form of control he had.

Leylin, who had stripped Beelzebub of everything he owned, had obtained the truenames of all the devils Beelzebub controlled from his memories. It was this trump card that he counted on.

"Why? Do you want to hit me?" Leylin smiled weakly. The rune representing Lady Delia's truename had already flown into his palm. His terrifying divine force was like a vicious dragon, ready to smash the rune into pieces at any moment.

"No! Don't!" The pleasure devil cried out in alarm, and knelt on the floor. "I am willing to obey your orders, master!"

As a devil, she would of course treasure her life. As for loyalty and moral principles, they had long been fed to the dogs.

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Strategy

"Good! I won't deprive you of your position, but you must use all the resources you have to assist me." Leylin glanced at the pleasure devil in front of him and nodded indifferently. With Beelzebub's divine force and knowledge of her truename, this devil would even agree if Leylin said he was a reincarnation of the Sovereign King of Gluttony.

With her life under a threat, it was not difficult to make requests of her.

"How vast are your connections? Can you influence the king?" Leylin asked bluntly.

"Master, I secretly have control over around a thousand followers. Two are earls, and five are viscounts… I can also indirectly affect two marquises and a duke…" Delia immediately reported to him. Beelzebub was completely ignored by the two of them, such is the sad fate of the loser.

"Only Marquise Louise can influence the king. She is the king's lover, and his newest conquest." The pleasure devil bit at her lips, looking very seductive. In order to survive and gain higher status, she did not mind using her own body. Hence, after the scare, she still unwittingly displayed her beauty in front of Leylin.

She was very confident. No matter how resolute a human was, they wouldn't be able to resist her charms.

"Marquise Louise?" Leylin was astounded. He had not expected this devil to be so effective as to influence the highest class of the kingdom.

Madam Delia finally explained how it was done to Leylin. Like other devils, she first used her pleasure house to attract nobles, and tempted them into their falls. Shady methods had allowed her to gain control of a large number of noble families' madams and ladies.

Making use of these social nobles, she frequently held dinner parties for the fallen, attracting even more to join. This network was like a virus that constantly expanded.

Recently, Madam Delia herself had personally guided the Marquise, Madam Louise, to try out some forbidden pleasures and successfully captured her. She had become devil worshipper and was even sent to the bed of the king.

Delia herself had the true body of a devil, and it was impossible for her to bypass all the detection methods and the wizards inside the court. However, it wasn't an issue for pure humans.

"I now have control over a batch of noble ladies, and they are all followers of the master. If you like them…" Madam Delia licked her lips, sending him an invitation that was very attractive.

"If I'm free in the future, I'll give it a try…" When it came to such a sweet invitation, Leylin did not hesitate to accept. He did have these needs usually anyway.

"Hehe… our services here will definitely satisfy you, master…" After hearing Leylin's promise, Madam Delia seemed to feel relieved. At the very least, while she still had value, Leylin would not get rid of her. Her entire body relaxed, which only made her seem more charming.

After understanding the power she held, Leylin nodded and sat on a couch nearby.

"Have you heard of Viscount Tim from the Baltic archipelago?"

"Him?" Delia shot Leylin a glance, seeming to be guessing at Leylin's relationship with the person in question.

"I've heard of him. He used to be the commoner son in the Gold Thornblossom Family, and he's scheming to get a position as the Marquis, as well as land…"

"What do you think are the chances of him succeeding?" Leylin laced his fingers together.

"There are many nobles hoping to obtain the Baltic archipelago. There is a marquis eyeing it, but the other party is the nephew of the king. While he did not do well and had his land attacked by pirates, that's the problem with the previous marquis. His tragic story already earned him pity points, and I expect that he can get what he wants at the end. I'm not sure how much or what he'll have to hand over in exchange though…"

Delia was a devil after all, and had also worked in the Dambrath Imperial Capital for many years. She, who had seen these power struggles countless times, could easily guess what would happen.

"Does master wish to help him?"

"No. Dispatch some of our people to make contact with him, but don't give him anything too substantial… I'm sure you're great at that…" Leylin stroked his chin.

"Dangling a carrot in front of a donkey's eyes so he can see it but not eat it, and therefore get him to struggle hard in vain? Hehe… master, you're terrible!" Madam Delia grinned brightly. Truth be told, devils were the best at using benefits to entice humans, unceasingly tightening the ropes around their necks or getting them to sell their souls.

"It's good that you understand. Do this for now, I'll inform you about other things in the future…" Leylin stood up, completely ignoring her astounding beauty and looking ready to leave.

"Master, aren't you staying?" Madam Delia was truly surprised.

"No, I still have many things to do in the capital. I'll come over whenever I have time…" Leylin always drew a clear line between work and pleasure.

Seeing this, Delia could only watch as Leylin left. Only after his figure completely disappeared did she look grim, "Damn it! How could he have my master's strength and know my true name? Just a look at him makes it obvious that he's a steel-hearted freak who wouldn't treat his underlings more leniently because of their beauty…"

It was the greatest misfortune of a pleasure devil to fall under such a master. However, with her truename in his grasp, Delia could do nothing else.

"Damn it. DAMN IT!" She could only begin to curse hatefully.

The other servants and dancers watched their boss fearfully. Only they knew what violence and darkness was hidden under her perfect and beautiful face. Hence, they all wished they could turn into ostriches, burying their heads in the ground.

Upon seeing this, she yelled even more violently. "You dwarf swines, get working! Do you want to get whipped?"

Days later, Leylin had changed into noble clothing and headed out of the church of wealth. Using the transfer services of the church, he'd received a large amount of gold from Faulen Island. Due to the fall of the Baltic archipelago, the family's profits from trade had risen bit by bit, which gave Leylin even more abundant funds.

Wizard training could not be sustained without money. They needed it for their expensive experimental materials and magic tomes.

"Tim's side has also surrendered. Everything is going well. I might go to the imperial capital and train for a while, since the Wizards' Guild can give me access to any materials below that given to high-ranked wizards. With help from my connection with mentor Ernest…"

Leylin looked at the distant wizard tower that reached through the clouds, and his eyes couldn't help but glint. His plans were going extremely smoothly. After seeing Leylin's strength, Tim's side had easily agreed to the deal.

After all, compared to what the other nobles could want from him, Leylin only needed Tim to confirm the deal and asked a low price. With Leylin having evidence of Tim having murdered the old marquis anyway, it was impossible for them to go their separate ways. Hence, as long as he was still in the outer seas, he would have to consider Leylin's stance. After considering it comprehensively, Tim naturally knew what to choose.

With proof of harm, Leylin would just need to create a ruckus, forcing the king to make an announcement and with proper documentation, make everything official. What would the church of the God of Justice be able to do then?

"On top of that, even if the king finds out the truth in the future, he won't acknowledge that this is the truth. He'll stubbornly protect the legitimacy of his reputation. He represents the dignity of a kingdom, so how could the king announce something that might be wrong? For his own reputation, he would rather allow absurd events like this. Such is the sorrow of those with power…" Leylin's lips quirked up into a cold smile.

Offending a king just for the son of a baron, who was only guilty of piracy and therefore less of an issue than associating with devils and demons? Was that worth it? The priests of the God of Justice would have to consider this properly.

With this done, Leylin, who was now considered clean, could revert to strutting around on the streets in his original appearance. Come to think of it, there was no crime pinned to him. At most, there were only suspicions.

"Now that I've shown my face outside the church of wealth, the others should emerge soon, right?" Leylin had never doubted the rate at which intel flowed between large organisations. After all, even Madam Delia had a huge intel network, much less the churches.

With the transfer of money at the shrine, his status, name and all other information were exposed.

"I'll be waiting!" Leylin chuckled and walked into the Wizards' Guild.

The Wizards' Guild was less cheery than the Thieves' Guild or Warriors' Guild, but in turn it was filled with a solemn, stately aura. Two magic puppets loyally guarded the place, emanating magic light. There were evidently spells of eternity cast on them.

'With such an air of wealth and extravagance, as well as their expenses… It's no wonder that there's only one Wizards' Guild in the Dambrath Kingdom.'

"Welcome! May I know which services you require?" A wizard apprentice received him and bowed towards him with etiquette that befitted wizards.

"I am Leylin Faulen of Faulen Island. I'm here to take the wizard ranking examination." Leylin had a bright smile on his face.

If he planned to study in the Wizards' Guild, he'd obviously need to have his rank verified. The rigour of this was far greater than what warriors underwent. He even had to make clear whom he'd learnt from before and what he'd studied. Wizards were a bunch of serious people!

However, Leylin was already prepared for this, and was therefore unafraid.

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Black and White

Meribald was a 367 year old high-ranking wizard, although he preferred to be called a scholar. With the power of his magic, even at his age he was plenty vigorous, and had very supple skin as though he was a young man. Only his greying hair betrayed his age, but it seemed more like an accent to his wisdom and foresight.

He had served as president of the Wizards' Guild in the Dambrath Imperial Capital for over a hundred years, and had handled innumerable major events. He had also awarded numerous medals to talented wizards, and judged notorious ones. By now, he'd begun to think his still and unfeeling heart would no longer receive any blows.

He hadn't expected how stunned he would be today.

Meribald pushed his spectacles up, his finger brushing against the uneven imprints on the identification document. There was no problem with the magic imprint! That was what his abundance of experience was telling him, but he was horrified by what the results of his investigation meant.

"Proof of nobility! Wizard Ernest's testimonial! And the final round of examination of the documents didn't meet with any issues! In that case, this young noble, who is just sixteen years of age, is really a rank 10 wizard? In Azuth's name…" Meribald's jaw slowly dropped as he looked at the young man in front of him.

With such innate skill at his age… Meribald wondered whether he was about to witness the birth of the kingdom's wizarding Legend.

"Excuse me, guild leader. Is there any problem?" The question raised by the young wizard across him shook Meribald from his reverie.

"Of… Of course not! Congratulations, wizard Leylin!" Meribald secretly sighed as he placed his magic imprint on the wizard ranking document. This document would be filed away as proof of Leylin's identity as a wizard.

"From today onwards, you are a mid-ranked wizard as verified by the Wizards' Guild! May Azuth bless you…" Although this was not the deity he believed in, Leylin still lowered his head respectfully to express his humility.

Meribald passed Leylin a wizard robe enhanced with a 'Remove Dust' spell and other coats of arms and documents. When conducting the ceremony, Meribald could see Leylin's love of magic and the pursuit of truth in his eyes; this same look once existed in his eyes when he was younger!

'Perhaps only such a person will truly have the ability to break through into the realm of Legends, and become a being that I can only dream of…' Meribald gasped in admiration to himself, a warm hearted expression on his face. He kindly gave some advice to Leylin as well. "Wizard Leylin! Although you have already entered the ranks of a mid-level wizard, I suggest that you study in the imperial capital's Wizards' Guild for a while. A few of the latest philosophies and models in magic are present here, and will be very important for you right now."

"That is precisely what I wish for, distinguished guild leader!" Leylin performed a wizard's bow to the high-ranked wizard. His movements were unbelievably graceful.

'I didn't expect that things would get this troublesome. It seems like the talent I displayed made me quite outstanding. However, I can't get the attention of the other guys without doing so…' Leylin secretly gave a bitter laugh.

A sixteen-year-old rank 10 wizard! Such innate talent seemed rather horrifying. After verifying his rank, a few old fogeys immediately acted as though they had suffered a stroke, and even involved the guild leader.

Fortunately, he'd already earned his fame as a genius wizard. All of his improvements had been witnessed by Ernest, and it had saved him a lot of trouble. With regards to the Devilblood Dagger and other items that would easily be associated with evil, Leylin didn't carry any of them with him.

'Proof that I'm a rank 10 wizard. Even if I travel abroad, it's enough for me to receive preferential treatment…; Leylin fiddled with the wizard insignia in his hand. It was decorated with a silver moon and stars, and there a sense of indistinct beauty to it. In addition, it was also bound to its wizard owner, and outsiders would absolutely be unable to make a counterfeit copy.

"Leylin Faulen!" A few men carrying the symbol of a high-level inspector stood at the door of the wizard guild. A team of guards crowded around Leylin, intercepting him.

Leylin even saw a few priests of the God of Justice among the team, watching him with judgeful stares.

'They're only here now? It's a little late… Or are they afraid of the power of the wizard guild?'

"Is anything the matter?" Leylin asked the inspector in front of him with a smile.

"You are suspected of a crime in the open seas. I need you to assist in our investigations!" The inspector said expressionlessly.

Judges, public security officers, policemen and the like all advocated righteousness, and were the main source of followers for the God of Justice. Leylin wouldn't be surprised if they had the backing of the church of the God of Justice or if they were tipped off by them.

"If I say no?" Leylin looked at him ridiculously.

"You do not have the authority to reject!" With a wave of the inspector's hand, a few guards immediately closed in.

"You…" Leylin gaze was as harsh as lightning, and he raised his voice by a few notches.

"Don't tell me you dare to apprehend an innocent nobleman in the imperial capital? And slander a noble mid-ranked wizard in front of the wizard guild at that!"

Noble! Wizard! Once these two upper-class identities were revealed, many guards immediately retreated in fear.

In their plain and simple thoughts, this was definitely a struggle between influential powers. Why should they take part? Aren't they afraid of getting into trouble for being involved?

After witnessing this scene, the inspector knitted his brows. But before he could take his next course of action, the intense sound of a horse's hooves could be heard.

"His Majesty decrees that Leylin Faulen will enter the palace and have an audience with the King!" An imperial knight dressed in a splendid suit of armor dismounted his steed and displayed a document to the inspector with the king's royal seal stamped on it. "His Majesty wishes to convene a legislative hearing with regards to this, and has specially gathered Viscount Tim to testify…"

For some reason, Leylin's peaceful state gave the inspector a bad feeling. However, he couldn't stop this from happening, or he would be declaring war on the law that he had vowed his loyalty and devotion to.

"You know… Even when things seem black and white, there will always be infinitesimal shades of grey existing between them. Isn't that right, Sir Inspector?" Leylin mounted the horse and taunted.

"Even with Viscount Tim bearing witness, His Majesty definitely will not let you off." The inspector's face changed drastically, but he eventually chose to have faith in the king.

"I'll wait and see," Leylin smiled lightly as he disappeared into the end of the road along with the knight.

"We'll wait in front of the main entrance of the court. I don't believe it…" The inspector bit his lip and waved his hand firmly. Evidently, the unease he felt had become stronger.

"What a pity… If Lorent and the others can reach in time…" The priest of the God of Justice sighed. "Even if that's the case, the sinner must receive trial and punishment!"The events that followed progressed like a stage play. Numerous people appeared on stage one by one like marionettes at Leylin's fingertips, and evil got the last laugh.

With the victim, Viscount Tim, testifying personally, as well as the instigation by Marquise Louise, when her husband was asleep, Leylin didn't even need to open his mouth to speak. When it came to such matters, taking part in them himself would lead to a loss. He had to maintain the reserved and cold attitude of a noble.

The inspector's last trace of persistence was thoroughly smashed to smithereens with the king's single statement.

'With regards to the murder of the Gold Thornblossom Marquis in the open seas, our investigations have confirmed it to be a crime committed by the pirate crew called the Barbarians. I hereby order the arrest of the leaders of the aforementioned, namely Odge and Tillen…"

"Why? Why did it turn out like this?" The inspector knelt on the floor with tears in his eyes as he began to sob silently.

"Because this was a misunderstanding to begin with! In actual fact, I'm proud of how the kingdom has such a responsible and diligent inspector like you…" Leylin happened to walk out at this moment, and saluted elegantly to the inspector upon hearing him. He had the attitude of a person who was trying to put a stop to the enmity between them with a smile.

There were now two more titles to his name. One was his identity as an imperial wizard, and the other was as an honorary viscount. They weren't of much use, but they had a nice ring to it. He had received them after entertaining the king.

Even though the king used to be brilliant when he was younger, he was clearly addicted to wine and women at present. As long as it didn't involve his authority and prestige, the king wouldn't have any reaction. Leylin had his methods of handling such an old fellow.

What made him happier was that after this statement was issued in writing, no one else would give him trouble about the pirates. He could also conveniently hinder the Barbarians. What wasn't there to be happy about?

"Why…" Leylin smiled gracefully as he skillfully mingled with the circle of nobles in the imperial capital, and was even chatting cheerfully with Viscount Tim as if they were blood brothers. Seeing this, the inspector sunk completely into perplexity. At this moment, his faith was even in danger of being shattered.

"My child… Justice has always been lonely. The road of people persisting in justice is inevitably filled with thorns, but we believe that the ultimate victory will definitely belong to us!" The priest's warm hand landed on the inspector's shoulder, becoming his sole support.

'The God of Justice? Hmph!' Leylin's expression didn't change, but he sneered secretly to himself.Outside the imperial capital, Lorent and company could finally see the city walls after a challenging trek.

"We finally made it. According to our intelligence reports, he's in the city. He can't run away this time!" Lorent's face was filled with excitement, and also a little fury at the same time.

Previously in Gloomwood Castle, they had first been impeded by the matter regarding the devil worshippers. As compared to pirates, the movements of devil worshippers were obviously much more important. But after busying themselves with it, they discovered that it was a false alarm. Not only that, they had wasted a huge amount of time, and even let their original target get to the imperial capital!

Fortunately, with the church's information network, he had nowhere else to run to now.

"Prepare to accept punishment, Leylin Faulen!" Although they hadn't met, Lorente had already sketched an image of him in his heart: cunning, savage, and full of evil! This noble should have been burnt alive at the stake!

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Visiting

"Hold up, Lorent!" The high-level priest in the team walked forward at this moment.

"What's the matter?" Lorent furrowed his brows. The priest's expression gave him a bad feeling.

"I got the latest news through a Sending spell. The king has already issued a statement: the Barbarians have been found guilty of setting loose the Pirates' Tide on the open seas. With Viscount Tim as a direct witness, there's no hope of saving this situation…" The priest was visibly upset, but still informed the others of the latest news.

"We can't continue to investigate him as a subject. This mission must be abandoned."

"Then our hard work? Those thousands of innocent lives lost at sea? Will it go to waste just like that?" Lorent seemed to burst into an indignant red-hot flame, and suddenly drew his sword and shattered an enormous boulder next to him into pieces.

"There is nothing we can do. We can't go against the king's authority directly…" The priest had a helpless expression on his face.

Although there would be no problem overturning the entire Dambrath Kingdom if the church of the God of Justice was mobilised, the crux of the matter was that the powers of the church were spread across the entire mainland. It could not control the entire Dambrath kingdom.

Besides, the human kingdoms regarded the church overriding the king's authority as taboo. Success would only cause more problems than it gave benefits.

Other churches were also eyeing them covetously, like tigers stalking their prey. They wouldn't allow the church of justice to become the most powerful party here.

"Are we just going to let that noble escape his punishment?" Lorent's eyes were bloodshot.

"Of course not! The kingdom's statement represents His Majesty's pride, and we can't overthrow that of course. We can no longer accuse him of being a pirate, but we can search for other crimes…" The priest was very experienced in this aspect. After all, this was not the only noble family who had ever committed such deeds.

"However, we can't act against him for the time being. Let's carry out other missions first!"

"No! I want to stay here, and I won't go anywhere else until he admits to his crime!" The paladin said willfully. He was a bullheaded individual, and once he made up his mind, it would be impossible to hold him back.

The priest could only sigh helplessly upon seeing this.A luxurious carriage slowly came to a halt on the roadside.

"Here. Careful, it's slippery!" Viscount Daniel was clothed in an extravagant suit. He alighted from the carriage, followed by Yalani and her sister Hera.

However, the pair of sisters were now dressed in splendid attire, and appeared very sweet and charming. Yalani blushed as she gazed at Daniel, her face lit with joy. This young girl was just fourteen years old, yet she had now lost her immaturity, and had the bearing of a mature and sophisticated woman.

Hera stared at the unmarried couple in front of her, and could only sigh helplessly to herself. She was so astute, but how could she not have realised the changes in her sister's body?

'Daniel is too impatient, and Yalani… Sigh… How could she have let Daniel get his way so easily? They didn't even have a simple wedding…' Hera sighed secretly to herself, and recalled the way Daniel looked at herself.

His gaze felt invasive and was brimming with wildness, even mixed with a distinctive sense of violence. It was as though she was meeting a wolf face to face.

Hera had seen her fair share of such looks, yet none gave her such immense pressure; this was the tragic part about having to rely entirely on someone else!

If not for Daniel's inclination towards fooling around instead of settling down, perhaps Hera herself would have been taken advantage of by him.

Grief suddenly overwhelmed her.

'Rafiniya and… Ley, I wonder how they're doing?' Hera quite liked little Rafiniya, and the mercenary named Ley had also left a deep impression on her. He was powerful and mysterious, his eyes filled with an unprecedented purity that could make one feel at peace.

'Forget Rafiniya, even that Ley guy rejected my good intentions!' But resentment crept into her heart in a split second.

"Madam!" The butler bowed respectfully and supported Hera as she alighted from the carriage, even passing her a handkerchief adorned with exquisite embroidery.

"Thank you very much!" Hera accepted it gracefully, and suddenly felt much better.

'You can be a mercenary for the rest of your life, Ley! When you're old, perhaps one day you will regret declining my offer then as you're chatting with your grandchildren…' Hera gripped the handkerchief tightly. It was only now that she realised why he left such a deep impression on her.

"Yalani, the person we're about to visit is a viscount— no wait. Perhaps I should now address him as Marquis Gold Thornblossom… This marquis just inherited his title, and a large fief off the mainland…" Hera could head Daniel constantly speaking from ahead of her. She could even detect an unconcealable envy from the tone of his voice.

That's right, envy! This was huge territory and the title of Marquis, things that Daniel couldn't obtain even if he worked hard for the rest of his life!

After interacting with and observing him for a short period of time, Hera could roughly tell that Viscount Tim actually wasn't as rich as he appeared to be. Living in the imperial capital was extremely expensive, after all.

Daniel was still giving strict instructions ahead. "Yalani, you must bear your manners in mind. After all, he's a noble that hails from a royal family, and has high demands when it comes to etiquette…"

"Also… Hera!" Daniel suddenly turned around, and abruptly stopped in his tracks, which almost made Hera bump into him.

"I'm… I'm very sorry!" Hera was slightly flushed as she curtsied in apology.

"It's alright…" Seeing Hera's mature and beautiful face, Daniel was slightly intoxicated by her, but quickly came to his senses.

"The main point is, Marquis Tim is still very young, and he's never even had an official engagement. Do you know what this means?" Daniel looked into Hera's eyes.

"Could it be…" Hera felt a chill in her heart, but surprisingly didn't reject the idea. Becoming the wife of a marquis was simply a dream that she had never even dared to think of previously.

Although competition for the spot of his actual wife would be fierce, it would be a great help to her small family in any case as long as she managed to have some sort of relationship with him.

'I'm afraid Daniel thinks the same way. He wants to get into Marquis Tim's good books through me, and even take a step further by getting support from him…' Hera was rather sorrowful. She suddenly turned to look at her younger sister, who was tugging at Daniel's arm. She, too, was wearing her best clothing, and her face was filled with both arrogance and vigilance, just like when she was hugging her own doll when she was younger.

'Afraid that I'll take her husband's favour away from her? What a naive lass, I'm not her enemy…' The two sisters shared similar facial features, and were both nobles in their own right, which would arouse the interest of males.

'I hope Daniel won't do that, or else…' Hera grieved secretly, yet could only force out a stiff smile. "Rest assured, brother-in-law, I know what to do."

"That's great!" Daniel continued walking ahead, relieved.

The Gold Thornblossom Marquis' mansion was indeed more imposing than theirs. It was said that this was just his temporary residence, but the entrance to his house was long filled with carriages, practically all of them belonging to nobles. The struggle for title and territory in the Baltic archipelagos had just passed. Those nobles who were on the lookout naturally had to express their goodwill, and even wanted to receive a share of profits from the overseas trade. In fact, Daniel was one of them.

Viscount Daniel clearly hadn't thought that it would be such a grand occasion that the house would be filled with distinguished guests. Hera and Yalani could only accompany the viscount to the tiny drawing room and continue waiting.

After several hours, Yalani had already made countless complaints, and even Hera was starting to get a little impatient. A young noble then entered through the door.

"Daniel, my friend!" He embraced Daniel cordially, and hurriedly looked over at Hera and her sister. That kind of expression made Hera's heart sink. "Are these the beautiful sisters from the noble family you mentioned? They seem pretty good!"

Tim rubbed his hands together. In fact, ever since that incident, there had been a demonic fire burning in his heart, waiting to be unleashed. Daniel wasn't even some figure with authority. But on account that he had such a pretty fiancee and sister-in-law, perhaps Tim could consider his request…

After enjoying the taste of immense power, Tim's eyes seemed to be ablaze. Yalani tugged her fiance's hand tightly. But the flattering smile on Daniel's face that Yalani had never seen before made him seem like a stranger.

'Something interesting has happened!' Leylin wandered around Marquis Tim's mansion with his hands behind his back.

In reality, this mansion was entirely his. Without the Faulens having a residence in the imperial capital, Leylin had moved into the place to create the idea that he and Tim were like blood brothers to outsiders.

After all, the Gold Thornblossoms had bought this place specially to use as a stop-over in the imperial capital. Its surroundings and all that were much better than those of hotels.

Tim had been scared out of his wits by Leylin's tricks. Once Leylin showed some interest in this place, he immediately transferred the deed and other things over, offering the entire estate to him. Hence, as a matter of fact, this was already his territory.

Leylin thought of how he still had to stay in the imperial capital for a while longer to study in the Wizards' Guild. His family also needed a place to lodge in the imperial capital as well, so he accepted it without caring about politeness.

'It's better to have Tim in the outer seas than a stranger. There are so many opportunities for our family businesses to collaborate…'

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Reversal

Leylin was rather satisfied with the current situation in the outer seas on the whole. Were external powers to take root there, extra variables would arise. Marquis Tim was someone he understood very well, so it was fine for him to be there.

Being fully aware of the Faulens' abilities, Tim definitely wouldn't stupidly declare war on his own initiative. In fact, Leylin believed that the powers he revealed during this operation were sufficient to intimidate him.

Given that Tim had already completely surrendered himself to him, Leylin didn't mind letting Tim have a taste of success. After all, Tim was the most influential nobleman in the outer seas, and at the same time, he was a vassal of the royal family. It would be a good thing if Leylin could bind Tim to his chariot of war through a mutually beneficial alliance.

No matter how deep one's hatred was, it would melt like ice and dissolve in the face of sudden huge profits. Moreover, there were only a few 'misunderstandings' between them. Still, although Tim had already expressed his will to pledge his allegiance to him, Leylin certainly wouldn't put down his guard against him.

"Ooh…. No…."

"Boohoo… Sister… Daniel… Save me!"

A familiar voice could be heard from the room. The guards and maids in the area undoubtedly recognised Leylin, and roughly knew his relationship with their master. They even knew about the transfer of the estate, and thus could only stare blankly at him as they didn't dare to stop him.

"Interesting! How should we play this game?" The corners of Leylin's lips curled into a smile as he pondered over this. Shortly after, he suddenly pushed open the door that had been tightly shut.

"What's going on? Tim, my friend? I think I hear an unusual voice!" Leylin scanned the room with a 'puzzled' expression. Daniel stood at the side, his face as red as an apple, while Tim's pants were already half undone. The pair of beautiful sisters stood next to the office table, weeping.

"Oh, Leylin!" Tim greeted Leylin as if it wasn't awkward at all, and gave Daniel an introduction at the same time. "He's a court wizard, an honorable viscount. This is Sir Leylin. My closest friend!"

Tim then turned to Leylin and said, "This is Viscount Daniel!"

"Sir… Sir Leylin!" Daniel felt that Leylin looked rather familiar, but he had long forgotten the mercenaries from earlier, hence he still bowed calmly. Court wizard! Honorary viscount! Although these were empty titles, they also represented an exceptional amount of glory!

He could even be favoured by His Majesty, and Marquis Tim was also his good friend. Just these facts were enough to crush Daniel completely.

"Good day, Sir Daniel!" Leylin had a doubtful expression on his face as he gestured towards Hera and her sister, whose clothes were all over the place.

"Oh! This is a pair of sisters that Daniel sent over from a noble family. What do you think? If you like them, I can give them to you for a while…" Such occurrences were extremely common among nobles and were not worth paying attention to. Tim had evidently misunderstood Leylin's gesture.

"Yes! Although I've popped the younger sister's cherry, I didn't touch the older one. She might even be the purest of all virgins…" Daniel was obviously an expert in this field as well.

It was just that from his supposed point of view, that statement seemed wrong. Perhaps he didn't even intend to actually marry the younger sister, and was just toying with her, thus he could just offer her as a gift without the slightest bit of hesitation.

Hera gave up all hope upon realising this. However, when she saw Leylin once more, her expression suddenly changed drastically. "Ley? You're Ley! Are you here to save us?"

"Ley?" Yalani was using the clothes on the floor to cover her chest as she sized up the noble who had hastily barged in. He really did look exactly like the mercenary from earlier, just that he now had the air of a noble.

"Ley… The mercenary?" At this point, Daniel had finally realised why Leylin looked so familiar. Wasn't this Ley the mercenary who had escorted Hera and her sister to his doorstep previously?

It was just that this was a court wizard, an honorary viscount! Compared to a mercenary who was worth as much as mud, they were obviously on two different ends of society. Even Daniel couldn't immediately see the connection between the two.

Hera felt as though her face was burning hot, and was ashamed to death. She quickly came to her senses.

To think that she thought she had magnanimously given Leylin a way out! Who would have thought this Ley was so secretive that even Marquis Tim, whom Daniel was trying to curry favour with, would be afraid of him?

All her previous actions were probably clownish in his eyes, right? No matter how much adversity they had met with earlier, Hera did not waver. Now, for some reason, streams of tears had begun to flow uncontrollably from her eyes.

"Erm… You guys know each other?" Tim scratched his head as he looked at the people around him, who seemed to be caught in an awkward situation.

"Yes. We met once on the way to the capital…" Leylin spoke very ambiguously. "Viscount Daniel is my friend as well. If there isn't any other trouble…"

Since it was such a trivial matter, Tim did not particularly mind helping Leylin save face. "No problem. I agree to the matter you raised previously!" Tim said as he clapped Daniel's shoulder, who immediately showed a joyful expression.

"Thank you so much! Thank you Marquis Tim, and Viscount Leylin! Thank you so much for your help…" Daniel was so emotional that he couldn't even speak clearly, and could only incoherently express his gratitude towards Leylin and Tim.

'Hehe… I heard that Yalani is Daniel's fiancée! He actually even brought her here for this purpose, just to receive a tiny amount of benefits,' Tim secretly viewed Daniel with disdain, but did not show it. What he was more interested in was the relationship between Leylin and the sisters.

What were women worth to him? If he couldn't get these two, he could find others. However, if he could use the sisters to discover Leylin's weak points or the people he held dear, that would be absolutely perfect.

Due to Leylin's deliberate interruption, the situation that had been about to occur naturally couldn't continue. Hera and Yalani swiftly rearranged their clothing. "Thank… Thank you…" Hera muttered as they brushed past him, her voice as low as a mosquito's buzz.

"It's nothing much." Leylin looked at Hera, whose face was flushed, and Yalani, who was visibly silent. The corners of his lips suddenly curved into a strange smile. "If you feel like you can't stay on in his place, perhaps you can look for Marquise Louise!"

"Marquise?" Hera obviously noticed the honorific.

"Yes." Leylin had to forcefully hold back his urge to laugh. This woman had just crawled out of a trap, yet was about to fall into an even deeper abyss. "Oh, and Lady Delia as well. Go straight to them, I believe they'll definitely help you."

"Thank you! Thank you! Leylin, you're really such a nice person!" Hera looked at Leylin, who was helping them 'wholeheartedly', then recalled her attitude towards them earlier. She started to sob so hard that it was silent.

Leylin watched as the sisters departed, and could even hear Yalani and Daniel screaming and quarreling not long after. Seeing this, Leylin's smile grew wider.

'My dear Delia! I found you a pair of vain souls, don't let me down… What will they become with your exploitation? Pleasure devils? Or lust demons? I look forward to it…'

"Sorry for disturbing a happy occasion, Tim!" Leylin turned to Marquis Tim, who was next to him.

"No matter. It's my pleasure to be of use to you, sir!" Seeing Leylin in this state, Tim suddenly felt a chill in his heart for some reason. Trying to pry into Leylin's thoughts was really such a foolish decision.Tim eventually left the capital and returned to his territory, the Baltic archipelago. However, with a handwritten letter of alliance from Leylin, Tim now had a little more confidence to continue surviving in the outer seas, and also develop new areas.

After Tim had left, the enormous and magnificent mansion now belonged entirely to Leylin. Tim was even smart enough to leave behind a huge sum of operating funds for Leylin to squander, which pleased him greatly.

With Ernest's recommendation letter, Leylin successfully met another high-level wizard, Simell, and even obtained the authority to conduct experiments alone in Simell's wizard tower.

Although the president of the Wizards' Guild, Meribald, had made the same gesture of goodwill, Leylin eventually chose Simell after thoroughly considering the matter.

After all, given that he was the president of the Wizards' Guild, choosing Meribald would bring about a lot of trouble, but with Simell, it would purely be a working relationship. Additionally, Master Simell had remarkable academic achievements in alchemy, which appealed greatly to Leylin.

Through his studies, he had gradually fused the alchemy techniques of the Magus World and this world into one, allowing him to regain his original ability as an alchemic Grandmaster.

After reading extensively through the Wizards' Guild's latest magic research and the library resources, Leylin's understanding of magic continuously grew deeper.

Time ticked by, and two years passed within the blink of an eye. Winter had passed and spring had just begun. After the harshest season had passed, the giant trees in the garden were impatiently sprouting their tender buds, full of vitality.

In the study room of his mansion, Leylin was half reclined on his chair. His eyes were slightly shut as he connected to the A.I. Chip.

'A.I. Chip! Display my current statistics.' Leylin inwardly commanded.

[Leylin Faulen. Age: 18. Race: Rank 10 Human Wizard. Strength: 8.1. Agility: 7.8. Vitality: 9.2. Spirit: 10. Condition: Healthy. Feats: Sturdy, Erudite, Multitalented. Spell Slots: Rank 4(3), Rank 3(5), Rank 2(???), Rank 1(???), Rank 0(???)] [Progress of Weave analysis: Rank 0 Weave 100%. Rank 1 Weave 100%. Rank 2 Weave 100%. Rank 3 Weave 53.71%. Rank 4 Weave 31.99%.]

The A.I. Chip faithfully executed Leylin's order, and displayed a row of data.

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Map

The lack of changes to his stats and wizard ranking was within Leylin's expectations. After all, he had used the Devilblood Dagger to advance in rank before, and couldn't be as arrogant now that he was in the capital. The bottleneck was understandable.

What he HAD gained with the materials here was that he'd managed to complete the analysis of the 2nd level of the Weave, removing the restriction on spell slots for it.

'Though I haven't been working hard on increasing my wizard ranking to avoid arousing suspicion, I have already accumulated enough resources. There won't be any problems with becoming a high-ranked wizard. Once I leave the capital, I'll be able to advance quickly…'

Leylin was very happy about his progress in power, but there was something that made him frown. Since two years ago, he'd already sensed a malicious intent circling the surroundings of the capital, and felt a sense of someone watching him. He had a feeling that if he were to leave all of a sudden, he would immediately be met with a terrifying attack.

'Is it that bunch of evil paladins of the God of Justice?' This was the capital after all. If Leylin made his mind to hole himself up, the other party could only watch on helplessly. Leylin had a general idea about who those people hiding in the shadows were. He was planning to take care of the problem in one fell swoop when he left.

"I've recorded most of the information that I can from the Wizards' Guild. There are only a few aspects of research left, and those are nearing completion. Dambrath is a small country after all, and it's already amazing enough that they have reserves suitable for up to rank 15 wizards…"

After the experiences over 2 years, Leylin had the chance to move once more. As for the destination? Leylin already had numerous choices, with Silverymoon City in the north as his most fitting choice.

"But before leaving, there are a few things I need to handle… I should use this opportunity to take a look there…" A map appeared before Leylin's eyes. This was the sacrifice from the unlucky captain of the Ashen Hawks, who had been a high-ranked warrior.

"The scope of the map is generally the capital, but there have already been changes to the names of places and their locations. Even with my abilities, I've only just incidentally found this place… I never expected it to be there. What kind of surprises are lying in wait for me?" Leylin mumbled to himself, before getting up and leaving the room.

"Young Master!" "Young Master!" The maids and servants that Leylin saw on the way bowed to him with exceptional respect.

They were well aware that he was not just a noble, but also a powerful wizard. He was practically the same as those people in the legends of old!

"Mm." Leylin looked very calm as he hummed in answer, and it was enough of a response for his servants to feel grateful for.

While walking on the streets, Leylin's wizard robes gathered reverence from many. His symbol which marked him as a rank 10 wizard gave rise to even more cries of awe. Leylin had gradually gotten used to such treatment. In no time, he arrived in front of a tall wizard tower.

"Leylin!" A few low-ranked wizards who were similarly in wizard robes were already waiting there. A delicate and pretty female wizard took the opportunity to greet him, her eyes gleaming at the sight of him.

"Mm. Julia, Jale, Angelo. Good afternoon!" Leylin nodded, with a gentle and calm expression on his face. These wizards were all Simell's students. He was currently studying with them under Simell, and they therefore they were somewhat like classmates.

"Senior Leylin, help me take a look at this bottle of 'Exploding Potion'! I've tried it so many times but to no avail…" Julia produced a fiery-red test tube, almost leaning against him.

She knew very well what kind of background he had. Not only did he have exceptional talent at magic, his family had control of the tremendous trade in the outer seas!

Such status had turned Leylin into a sort of prince charming for many ladies in the capital. Some had even taken the initiative to proclaim their love for him, but unfortunately, Leylin politely rejected all of them. In his opinion, that sort of thing was just too boring. If he wanted to enjoy himself, there were more than enough means to do so at Delia's place. Why would he waste effort on this?

The warm treatment he received from the women made other male wizards shoot envious looks at him, but Leylin was completely unperturbed.

He took the test tube and took a quick look at it, "There are errors in the settling time of the neutralising agent. Also, the spell was cast far too early…"

While he had only made a few comments, many wizards suddenly looked enlightened.

"Alright! If there's nothing else, I'm going in." After casually chatting with others, Leylin entered the wizard tower, leaving behind gazes of envy.

"Mentor Simell gave Leylin the authority to enter the wizard tower as he wishes. That's something only a few disciples get the chance to have!" Julia gazed at the tremendous wizard tower with an envious expression.

"He is a rank 10 wizard, the most powerful magic genius here! If you get to rank 10, mentor will also give you that right…" A male wizard beside her glanced at the badge at his chest. The symbol that implied his status as a rank 5 wizard had always been the source of his pride, but it only seemed unsightly now.

"We really can't match up to that talent…" The few other wizards were around rank 5, and could only smile wryly at each other after hearing that sentence.

"Grandmaster Simell!" Leylin had rather good luck. Simell hadn't been performing any experiments, rather resting in the entertainment room outside.

"Oh, it's Leylin. Come in, take a seat!" Simell was a very spirited old fellow, less than a metre tall with a kindly look on his face.

Strictly speaking, Leylin was not his disciple. Their relationship was similar to modern-day postgraduate students who helped their mentors with experiments, and things were easy and comfortable between them.

After hearing that, Leylin did not hold back and sat down, exclaiming, "Grandmaster Simell, I hope to get the authority to enter Alchemy Room Number 1!"

As he spoke, he placed a golden card on the table. While he was free to do as he wished, there was still a price to pay. Leylin knew this very well.

"Mm, looks like you're finally preparing to begin! Have you gathered all the materials?" Simell chuckled as he glanced at Leylin's left hand.

"Thanks to you, I've collected everything. I still need to perform the last step in lab conditions within the wizard tower…" Leylin rubbed the ring on his left hand.

"Mm, I'll authorise the tower genie to let you in. Also, please take Julia and the others into your care a little. I don't have that much time…" Simell spoke.

How could ordinary, low-ranked wizards or wizard disciples compare to Leylin in his extravagant spending? Every day, they could only accumulate spell slots, and then through brewing potions or smelting items at an elementary level, gain rewards of a few gold coins.

For those who were unlucky, they would have to copy large quantities of spell scrolls and slowly save them so that they could be exchanged for spellbooks and other materials to break through. Some mentors would just completely forget their students. Simell having Leylin help out meant he was already quite kind.

"Alright, I got it!" Leylin got up and took his leave. Within the alchemy lab, Leylin took off his Ring of Wizardry on his left hand.

This ring that could increase the number of spell slots of rank 5 spells by 1 was like a divine artifact for low-ranked wizards. It was also made of unique material with possibilities to strengthen it further. Through his studies under Simell and his own ideas, he had finally found a way to strengthen the item.

"Tower genie, do I have the right to go in yet?" Leylin asked bluntly.

"Master has authorised wizard Leylin Faulen to use Alchemy Room Number 1, as well as the elemental pools, particle accelerator, rank 2 magic puppets…" A robotic voice sounded. This was the tower genie of the entire wizard tower.

With its help, a wizard's abilities could be displayed to the limits. However, the tremendous price to create one meant that even if many wizards hoped to have one of their own, they couldn't go through with it.

Mithril, adamantine, and all sorts of items were shifted out of Leylin's bag of holding.

"It took me such a long time. I finally have a way to use it…" Leylin had a smile on his face, the Ring of Wizardry already on the table. Dazzling lights enveloped the ring.Seven days later, Leylin gazed at the brand new ring in his hand, a look of satisfaction on his face.

The A.I. Chip immediately showed the stats.

[Item Name: Ring of Wizardry. Weight: 15g. Materials: Obsidian, Wizard's Alloy, Dragon Blood, Mithril, Adamantine, Rainbow Feathers. Effects: 1. Spell slots for all spells under rank 6 increase by 1. (Specific to Wizards) 2. Secondary rank 5 spell, Wail of the Banshee. (Available for use once every 7 days). Power is comparable to a weaker version of Wail of the Banshee. Description: This is a powerful ring that other existences might covet. Its materials have been utilised to bring out its utmost power. Close to becoming a Legendary item.]

The Ring of Wizardry now seemed darker in colour. The powerful magic rays from before had completely disappeared.

"Mm! After refining the soul force on the ring, I get a rank 5 spell? Wail of the Banshee, a rank 5 sound attack spell? Not bad!" Leylin was very content with this improvement.

Wearing the ring that was now slightly heavier than before on his left hand, Leylin got up and left the wizard tower. He had accomplished all that was possible for him to do here, and there was now nothing holding him back from leaving.

'All that's left is this map…' Leylin looked through the information the A.I. Chip supplied as he muttered to himself.

'The names here are the original ones, and it's been hundreds of years since some of these places had these names… Seems like this isn't Siegfried's treasure map but something even more mysterious…' Leylin even had the suspicion that Siegfried had not explored the map enough, because there were far too many riddles here, to the point that Leylin was left scratching his head in his confusion.

Thankfully, Leylin had had a lot of time in the past two years. He'd whiled his free time away trying to decode the map. Recently, he had finally begun to discover its true secret!

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Dark History

"This secret was hidden so carefully. I'm growing more and more interested." Following the map, Leylin arrived in front of the capital's library.

The library was in the central district, a place mostly visited by nobles. In an era where the passage of information was strictly regulated, the so called public library actually only catered to a few high-ranked people like scholars and wizards. Leylin was a frequent visitor, to the point that even the doorman recognised him.

"Mister Leylin!" He called out sweetly, not surprised at all at Leylin's arrival. Leylin had frequented this place in the last two years, using it to augment his database on the World of Gods. With the various databases in the A.I. Chip having gradually been filled to completion and its foundations completed, his visits had also grown more infrequent.

The library was as tranquil as ever. The white marble building stood tall, seemingly eternal, and the only sounds within it were the rustling of turning pages.

The interior of the library was very spacious and empty. Next to the rows upon rows of bookshelves were a few rattan seats, where many scholars rested.

In these two years, some had become acquaintances that Leylin was on nodding terms with. They would nod at him if they caught his eye, before bending their heads down and wading into the sea of knowledge again. Everyone quietly did their own work, and Leylin loved this atmosphere.

'I never expected that something I've been trying hard to find was right by my side!' Leylin sighed inside, arriving in the deeper parts of the library.

It was rather dim inside, and many of the tomes on the shelves had already fallen apart. Numerous scattered pages were sandwiched in worn-out book covers. The sight already left people dizzy.

While the area had already been tidied up, a putrid smell from printing ink still lingered in the air. This region was where the library piled up random books and documents, and very few ventured here.

'The results of only passing on knowledge to the elites means that once society collapses, information can no longer be passed on…' Leylin looked at the thick layer of dust on the shelf and sighed at the thought. Of all the historic records that he had gathered, from the invasion from the Magus World till now, there were many blanks in the middle. This was the result of a loss of culture.

Descriptions of the dawn of the gods was a taboo amongst taboos. If any scholar dared tread on this forbidden zone, they would end up put on trial by large churches and burnt at stake.

'Trying to conceal it won't solve anything. Even rank 1 Magi of the Magus World know already about the ancient Final War, and have been working hard to regain the glory of the ancient times. The World of Gods is more conservative… Is it because the World Will is asleep, or is it a restriction on the gods?'

Leylin's eyes shone as he arrived at the depths of the library. This was a very remote area where it was exceptionally quiet. Not a soul was in sight, and even the cleaners rarely came here.

"Not bad, not bad! That saves me a lot of trouble." Leylin sized up the surroundings, nodding in satisfaction. A transparent magic barrier isolated this place from the outer world. Just in case, Leylin had added a layer of illusion such that anyone who came here would only see a mess and darkness, with volumes and trash lying around.

"The immemorial elf of spring…" Leylin slowly chanted a passage of a mysterious incantation. This was something he had obtained from the map, where the secret incantation to activate it was hidden in the poem next to the map.

'They actually use the Mek Coding which has been lost to history, hiding the secret incantation at the beginning of every line. If not for the A.I. Chip analysing it against a sea of data, it would have been impossible to decode it…

'There's even a restricted time where it can be opened. It has to be after the ancient 'Spring Sacrificial Ceremony', or there won't be a response. Why do I find this method so familiar…' Leylin looked at the changes to his surroundings with interest. This method of maintaining secrecy and such elaborate set-ups reminded Leylin of Magi.

Indeed, Magi! Only they, who pursued the truth with the most extreme of harshness could think of something so intricate, with coding and an incantation that was complicated to the extreme. It only served to further his anticipation.

"This is the beginning of spring, and the ceremony just passed. It's 2 o'clock in the afternoon, and it matches with the poem, 'The scorching sun travels to the northern corner of the sky'…" Leylin muttered, eyes glinting.

A specific time, place and secret incantation. With these three requirements fulfilled, an ancient bookshelf suddenly creaked.

'It's not a magic formation. I didn't notice anything when I scanned this place earlier. Such concealment techniques…' The glint in Leylin's eyes brightened.

The shelf shifted away, revealing a path that led downwards. However, Leylin did not descend.

'If I didn't interpret it wrongly, I'll only enter a dimensional maze if I go there. Even high-ranked wizards could die there… The real treasure is here.' Leylin headed to the shelf that had shifted, a spell formation appearing at his fingertips.

This was not a spell model of the Weave used by wizards, but a real, higher-grade model similar to that in the Magus World! Countless rays of light fused together like a loop to form a special three dimensional rune.

"In the name of sklngla, open!" Leylin chanted. The spell model in his hands flashed and disappeared into the shelf. The light quickly dimmed, and nothing changed. However, a hint of delight showed on his expression. He knocked at the back of the shelf, and a hollow sound resounded.

"The solid wooden shelf became hollow…" Leylin mumbled to himself, "The item wasn't actually hidden here but in another void node. Only at certain times with the correct incantation will it link with space and time in order to show the true treasure…"

His expression constantly changed, "Such a method of overlapping space and time is practically a reproduction of methods in the Magus World!"

Slightly agitated, Leylin used the dagger to slash at the shelf to take the treasure that his predecessor had hidden. At this stage, he was certain that Siegfried had never come here and only been lucky to get the map.

The shelf itself was small. Even though it was hollow, only a thick black book made of parchment paper was there. This was the harvest from Leylin's exploration.

"I sense… an aura similar to Magi… There must have been Magi who comprehended laws conducting experiments here trying to induct Magi into the natives…" Leylin was in no hurry to begin reading. After verifying it was harmless, he immediately kept it in his bag of holding and quickly began to clear the traces of his presence.

After he left the library, the shelf had been silently shifted back to its original position. Even the wooden planks that had been hollowed out were exchanged.

Once he had returned to his residence, he sent the servants away and went to his underground secret room. After activating his protection spell formation, Leylin made himself a hot cup of tea and began to look through his profits this time.

Past the black cover, much of the parchment paper had rotted. There were strange, twisted letters on it, with a unique air to them.

"It's the Amidix Script used in ancient times! Thankfully, I've seen content on this before… The A.I. Chip already has enough data to analyse it…" Leylin began to interpret the words in the book.

'The stars in the horizon are falling! I… I've seen the falling meteors when a true god dies! They are a group of powerful gods from another world. They call themselves… Magi!'

"Is this a record by natives of the final war? Interesting, interesting!" Leylin read on.

'The sky is crying, the earth is wailing… The continent is in pieces in an instant. After the paramount high gods sank into slumber, the battle god Ares and Mother Earth fell one after another…'

'The Magi and the gods brazenly showed their strength. A careless attack seemed to consume what had accumulated in the universe over millions of years…'

As so much time had passed, there was still damage despite the perfect protective methods. It made it more difficult for Leylin to interpret.

'… In the dark era… A god from another world descended. It called itself the Distorted Shadow, a great rank 8 Magus!'

'The Distorted Shadow enlightened humans and imparted great power of magic…'

"The gods all sent down their avatars, ruthlessly killing all who had inherited the power of distortions…'

"The rejection by the world eventually caused the fall of the Distorted Shadow…"

The gods finally defeated the Magi and sealed off the World of Gods, establishing a network to fend against magic to prevent something similar from happening again…"

'Year 327 of the Dark Calendar. Another generation of people with extraordinary powers emerged. They successfully went through experiments to break away from the Weave, and called themselves arcanists. They had powerful arcane arts that allowed them to burn mountains and fill seas. Even the gods feared them…'

'Year 981 of the Dark Calendar. The Arcane Empire was destroyed, and thus began the age of the gods… Arcanists became taboo. Any spellcasters who did not use the Weave were listed as wanted and annihilated by the churches of various gods…'

Eventually, the dark history of the gods showed itself before Leylin.

"As expected, experiments to make Magi natives were conducted before, and they succeeded as well… All during the dusk of the gods." The rise of the arcanists evidently was a result of this. Those obscure methods to cast spells were a mutated version of spell models from the Magus World.

"It's far too troublesome to simulate a profession out of nowhere. Even with the A.I. Chip it'll take a long time. But if I can get an arcanist's inheritance…"

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Taking The Bait

Leylin was inspired. Truly, truly inspired from the bottom of his heart. Compared to the emasculated profession that was wizardry, the arcane arts were practically built for his sake. If he could change professions and become an arcanist, his power would definitely grow.

He was also very interested in the inheritance of the ancient Magi who had comprehended laws. It was a pity that most of the content in the notebook were records of history. There were only a few sentences that mentioned arcanists.

"A matured path to power and an account of experiences will be a much better reference." Leylin's eyes shone as he scanned through the book, hoping to find any clues regarding arcanists.

Arcanists had solved the problem of being rejected by the World of Gods. While they had been celebrated for a short while, they soon became taboo and intolerable to the gods. All information about them had been destroyed, and this was the first time Leylin was seeing descriptions of them.

Through the A.I. Chip's precise analysis and research, Leylin finally found a place that somewhat had connections with arcanists. However, once he found the location on the map, his expression changed.

"I never thought it'd be here." Leylin unhurriedly memorised the landmark and then stowed the black notebook away.

"From the tone and clues, the person who wrote this must have been an arcanist. In that case, their words should be trustworthy…"

Arcanists were the result of the painstaking work that ancient Magi had done to adapt to the World of Gods. Though it was not as if Leylin could not begin his own research into the department, it would be a massive waste of time. He wouldn't be able to go as far as what those Magi had. He had to get the arcanists' inheritance!

"But it's coincidentally in the north… This is just…" Leylin sighed, "I guess I'll need to bring my schedule forward. Thankfully, I don't have anything else to do in the capital. All the information accessible to wizards below the higher ranks has been recorded…"

At this thought, Leylin headed outside and clapped his hands, "Men!"As the first son of a baron and honorary viscount, Leylin's status made him a nobody in the capital. His leaving would not raise any ruckus… except from those who had their eyes on him, of course.

Crack!* The wooden cup cracked, clear water splashing out from the gaps in his fist.

"What? He's finally leaving?" Lorent was still in his paladin attire, though he now looked rather haggard, and his eyes were bloodshot. Ever since his decision to hang on to Leylin, he had been hiding in the shadows of the capital, waiting for his target to mess up.

Unfortunately, that little noble was very slippery. He basically did not leave his residence, and the places he frequented were like the Wizards' Guild and places for nobles that were guarded tightly. He had not even left the capital, making the paladin grind his teeth the entire time.

His target seemed to have noticed that he was being spied on, and had been unbelievably kind in his daily actions to the point where it was unquestionable. He lacked the terrible vices some nobles had, and he was practically the model that all nobles should have sought to emulate.

Since he could not find other proof of him committing crimes, Lorent obviously could not do anything to him. After wearing down his patience, Lorent had already decided to make his move and take Leylin in!

However, this was something he was doing in private. He could not attack a noble in public in the capital, or the church would be the ones that would not let him off! While Lorent detested Leylin, he had no plans to die together with him. Hence, the operation had been put on hold till now.

"There'll be plenty of opportunities once you leave the capital! You will definitely be punished for your crimes!" Lorent mumbled to himself, face gleaming majestically righteously. It was as if he was the personification of justice and kindness.Days later, a carriage slowly left the range of the capital.

A few bandits that had been eyeing it definitely saw a young noble getting on the carriage and immediately sent out a person to inform the people at the back.

"A bunch of troublesome flies…" Leylin was evidently the one inside. His eyes were now closed, obviously having discovered the people peeping on him long before.

'The followers of the Sovereign King of Gluttony in the Dambrath Kingdom have all been gathered and managed by Delia. The faith is still spreading…' After making sure that the bait was now on the hook, Leylin strangely thought of something else.

In two years, he had reorganised the devil worshippers in the entire Dambrath Kingdom, and with Delia's power as a pleasure devil, it was easy to control them.

At the thought of Delia, Leylin was reminded of the depraved balls that she hosted for the fallen. He had to admit that she was very fascinating and knew how to enjoy herself. A certain pair of noble sisters were on the verge of becoming famous, and Leylin watched their souls in secret to find that they were just one step away from falling to become devils.

'Seems like I'm rather proficient in the abilities of devils… But even if they transform, those sisters will only become regular devils. Only souls that are exceptionally pure and determined will be even more powerful after falling, turning into the most terrifying devils…'

Leylin suddenly recalled the female knight, as well as the priest and paladins of the God of Justice. Those souls were the ones that had devils extremely thirsty for them. The purer a soul was, the greater the possibility that a legendary being would be born when it fell.

"She might be going north too…" Leylin thought back to the scene from before when they'd bade farewell, a slight smile about his lips, "Till then…"

The carriage slowly rode out of the gates of the capital, and there appeared a wide expanse of wheat fields at both sides. After walking past a few ranches, signs of human activity gradually grew more sparse.

"Master…" The voice of the coachman was heard from the front, "I sense a wave of enemies nearby!"

He was evidently not a regular coachman. It was unknown what kind of methods he had used to conceal the powerful energy undulations on his body.

"Don't worry about it. Go on!" Leylin chuckled nonchalantly, "The fish couldn't wait any longer and took the bait…"

He'd tolerated the paladin for long enough too.

Smite Evil! The other party had more tolerance than Leylin had anticipated. After driving into a low forest of shrubs, golden light in the shape of a crescent shot out from the roadside, the target evidently the carriage Leylin was in.

The paladin's Smite Evil glowed incomparably hot, and held purifying power. It was very formidable against the undead, devils, demons, and all other evil. Even Leylin did not want to contend with this purification energy.

Intense magic rays flickered from the carriage, and Leylin tore through a few spell scrolls.

Magic Barrier! Dragon's Breath! Fireball!

Boiling hot flame energy met the evil slash in the air. Qi and flames shot everywhere, exploding in resplendent heat and light. A magic protective layer had already risen in the surroundings, having the effects of preventing probings and prophecies.

These were Leylin's accumulations over these two years. Not only had he learnt more spell models, he also had the wealth and physical resources to make suitable magic items and scrolls for himself.

"Evil will be punished! Leylin Faulen, you will be put on trial for the loss of innocent lives in the outer seas today!" Lorent had on a full set of paladin armour, the rays of light on his expression dazzling to the extreme. There was even an unusual flush on his face.

"Hehe… Paladin? Haven't you seen the kingdom's decree and statement?" Leylin pulled the fabric of the carriage and walked out. He seemed to be teasing the paladin, "The pirates in the outer seas have nothing to do with me. As a follower of the God of Justice, are you holding fast to your own justice by trampling over the law?"

Evidently, when it came to battles of the tongue, Leylin absolutely dominated him. Lorent immediately turned red.

"Ah… It's because there are so many evil maggots boring into the holes in the laws that criminals like you can get away with any crimes! Today, I, Lorent, will end all these mistakes!" Knowing he could not refute Leylin, Lorent chose to use his own method to defend his justice.

Holy light filled his longsword, and a powerful qi even more powerful than Siegfried's exploded. Shrouded in this light, the paladin seemed even more unsullied. It formed another layer of translucent armour, completing his original metallic breastplate.

'Paladins are all so troublesome! Not only are they immune to many negative effects, they have a terrifying vitality that gives them resistances to all sorts of illnesses…'

"Unfortunately, I am not your only opponent…" The spell that Leylin had prepared for a long time was launched. "Hold Person II!"

Even if his opponent had resistance to magic, he still hesitated for a moment in the face of Leylin's high-grade spell.

The coachman, who had been cowering aside, suddenly made a move. A black dagger instantly appeared in his hands, allowing him to break through the protective barrier and appear in front of Lorent.

The dagger, which concealed a powerful curse, broke straight through Lorent's defences and formed a huge wound on his chest.

"You… Tiff The Defiler!" Lorent retreated, rays of divine healing spells flickering on his body. His habit of holding back when it came to commoners made it such that he did not have his guard against the ordinary-looking couchman, and he had been ruthlessly attacked by Tiff.

"You're actually banding together with someone like him? This crime alone could you send you to be burnt at stake!" Lorent glanced at Leylin, who was in front of him, looking delighted because he'd finally found evidence of Leylin committing a crime!

"Is that so? That's only possible if you can send that information on!" Leylin shrugged his shoulders.

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Perfect Body

Indistinct shouts and cries could be heard, causing Lorent's expression to change.

"We've been surrounded, and their numbers are huge…" A high-ranked assassin suddenly appeared from the shadows, a demonic claw with sharp nails poking out from his chest.

The assassin mumbled and collapsed, revealing the figure of a high-ranked pleasure devil behind him.

"You're actually colluding with a devil!" Lorent yelled, unhesitatingly striking out. He had been overwhelmed with shock. This noble seemed to have some terrifying secret that surpassed his imagination.

"Quick! The confusion spell that I set up won't last for long. We can't let even one person go!" Leylin's expression was icy.

After two years, Tiff and Delia were now completely under his thumb. He had gathered the strength of all the devil worshippers to kill Lorente in order to ensure it was done!

"Don't worry, master!" Delia had now completely demonified herself. With Tiff, who had almost legendary strength, it was no problem to kill a mere high-ranked paladin.

Given that they were of factions that were natural enemies, with hatred accumulated between them, things blazed the moment they started fighting. All sorts of spell undulations rained destruction on the region.

It was a pity that Lorent's extraordinary willpower and strength made no difference. A high-grade devil and a near-Legend Professional were enough to crush him. His surrounding comrades all cried out for the last time in their lives, gnawing at his soul like ants.

"Has it… has it reached this state?" Lorent's eyes were slightly blurry, with a black dagger stuck into his chest. His longsword had disappeared long ago, and his armour was full of holes from the devil's corrosive fire.

He panted. There was no remorse for losing his life, instead indignance and pain that justice was not served,

"Why… Why are there people like you in the world!" He looked at the young wizard drawing close, eyes like saucers and even blinking bloody tears.

"Because devils run amok in this world!" Leylin seemed to sigh, and the Devilblood Dagger slammed into Lorent's forehead.

The Devilblood Dagger trembled. This was a high-ranked paladin who was subordinate to the God of Justice, definitely the strongest person it had ever absorbed strength from! It transmitted terrifying, berserk draconic energy to Leylin's body, sending it in waves. It eventually cried out, unable to take the burden.

'My Devilblood Dagger was made on Faulen Island. I hadn't used any high-grade materials, which is why it can't take this pressure…' Leylin's eyes glinted. A dark luster shot into the dagger from his hands.

"Woo Woo…" The skull at the end of the dagger roared, numerous tiny blood vessels extending and latching onto all parts of Lorent's corpse.

Something that looked like a tumour was absorbed from these blood vessels. Powerful holy force was transformed, to the point that the dagger itself showed signs of breaking.

Ting!* Finally, with a sad cry, the Devilblood Dagger shattered with a dull sound.

But the moment before it cracked, Leylin felt the transfer of tremendous life energy. The A.I. Chip's prompt sounded:

[Beep! Host has gone through a one-time boost from the Devilblood Dagger. Strength 1.9. Agility 2.2. Vitality 0.8.]

Leylin's current stats were abruptly refreshed, [Strength: 10. Agility: 10. Vitality: 10. Spiritual Force: 10.]

The massacre and all of Lorent's life force had pushed the rest of Leylin's stats to the bottleneck of 10 points. Alike to 1 point, this was an incredibly difficult hurdle in the World of Gods, showing how tough breaking through was.

Leylin now heard a sharp ringing sound from his soul. After his various stats had broken through, a long-awaited power spread throughout his body and limbs, landing him in a strange state.

The A.I. Chip's prompts continued to show. [Beep! Host's various stats have reached 10. Obtained Feat: Elementary Perfect Body.]

An introduction to this feat followed. [Elementary Perfect Body. As the host's genes have gone through their initial upgrades, host has obtained a quality unique to exceptional creatures in the World of Gods. Body now possesses elementary resistances to poison, fire, cold, and corrosion. Endurance in various environments has increased.]

"So having a property of 1 all round is a threshold for regular beings. 10 is the threshold for exceptional creatures…" Leylin's eyes flickered. His current stats had changed.

[Leylin Faulen. Age: 18. Race: Human, Rank 10 Wizard. Strength: 10. Agility: 10. Vitality: 10. Spirit: 10. Status: Healthy. Feats: Sturdy, Erudite, Elementary Perfect Body. Spell Slots: Rank 4(3), Rank 3(5), Rank 2(???), Rank 1(???), Rank 0(???)]

After breaking through this bottleneck of extraordinary power, Leylin felt the limitations on the advance of his spiritual force loosen. It now grew extremely lively, to the point that he was only a step away from making contact with the 5th level of the Weave.

"Deal with the aftermath according to my orders." Leylin slowly exhaled, as if he had gone through a complete transformation.

"Understood, Master!" Madam Delia respectively bowed, her flaming tail and devilish wings playfully bouncing about. While they already knew his identity on the surface before, Delia and Tiff were now even more reverent towards him.

On the surface, he seemed ordinary, which meant what was hidden underneath that front was something more terrifying. For Delia, who had been a devil for numerous years, she understood this fully well.

As for Tiff, an existence that had been invaded by Leylin's soul force for years, the effect of Leylin himself being in front of him was obvious.

"Good! Tiff and I will go ahead secretly. Delia, you're in charge of the network in the Dambrath Kingdom as well as the surrounding followers…" Leylin gave instructions for his plans.

Once everything went as he had planned, Leylin turned to gaze in the direction of the imperial capital.

"The next time I return, things will be completely different…" Leylin's eyes shone.Great azure waves roiled and crashed in the vast sea, and ice sheets and a snowy barren island could faintly be seen in the distance. A few seagulls soared in the horizon, occasionally letting out a few clear cries.

A merchant ship heading north was speeding through the winds and waves. The sailors controlling the ship had tanned skin, their hands full of dark calluses gripping tightly on the mooring rope as if it was their life and everything.

"The oceans in the north are slightly different from the outer seas of Dambrath in the south." At this point, the guests had all returned to the hold of the ship, and only Leylin and Tiff who was disguised as his butler were on deck.

In the face of such a sudden stormy sea, Leylin did not find it hard to adapt. Rather, he began reminiscing about his time with the Scarlet Tigers.

'The kingdom's navy has long since returned. I wonder how Isabel and the rest have been doing…' Leylin gazed at the huge waves afar, yet he did not seem to see them. He instructed Tiff, "Legends are active in Silverymoon. Your identity is sensitive, so once we reach the northern lands you don't have to follow me. Try to gather some forces in secret…"

"Understood!" Tiff pressed his right hand to his chest, looking exceptionally solemn. In this period of time, he was now certain that this little noble must be the chosen one of the feathered serpent god, Kulkulkan, and could even be the child of the god…

"Come to think of it, we're finally reaching the northern harbour…" Leylin nodded, noting that the ship had already successfully passed through the storm.

The World of Gods was vast, and hastening on the journey was an exhausting and dangerous matter. Even as a medium-ranked wizard and with Tiff who was on the verge of becoming a Legend protecting him, it still required much effort to reach the north from the south.

They set off from the Dambrath Kingdom and headed north, passing through numerous human kingdoms and bypassing a few regions belonging to other races. They had even met with danger a few times.

The horse carriage had been relinquished after that, and they switched to a ship. The entire journey took around a year's time.

"Welcome, esteemed young master!" The leader of the sailors came over, a trace of respect in his gaze. To be able to take on such huge waves without even a twitch meant this noble was a true man of the sea! That meant he was worthy of being respected by these sailors.

"Mm! We're finally past that stormy area…" Leylin laughed.

"Recently, the sea tribes in this area have been very irritable. The tsunami was caused by an angered deep sea whale. Thankfully, our druid managed to calm it down in time…"

His expression was grim, "If this situation continues, I'm afraid we'll have to give up on this route and invite a great or even legendary druid to investigate the cause…"

Leylin had to admit that druids were extremely proficient at protecting the environment and placating dangerous species. Being closely attuned to nature, most druids were elves, though there was no lack of humans and other races. This was even more obvious in Silverymoon.

"So we're finally reaching the jewel of the northern lands…" Leylin exclaimed in admiration.

Silverymoon was the city of wizards. This legendary city was also called the jewel of the northern lands!

The city was protected by the Chosen of the Goddess of the Weave, who was also her daughter. She represented the peak of magic among humans, and every year countless wizards were attracted to this place so they could further their studies and train.

Silverymoon contained the most advanced research on magic, and the imperial palace even held information about legendary spells!

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