CHAPTER 28 p1
Even in a crowded room, Nelly could pick out Karsus with a single glance.
He was the only person she knew so well in this world. Even if his appearance changed, even if her eyes were blindfolded, she could still recognize him by perception alone.
This red-eyed young man in a black mage’s robe had a head of unkempt white hair, his bangs so long they almost covered his eyes. But this still didn’t detract from his beauty. In fact, the cold and withdrawn aura about him only made him more eye-catching.
Nelly froze on the spot, numbly forcing her gaze toward Melissa. Melissa also seemed to be taken aback by the young man’s appearance, but she quickly returned to normal. She gave a few awkward laughs, but before she could speak, the white-haired young man had already moved.
He stumbled back three steps, putting a long distance between them, then pulled a red-leather-bound magic book from the wide sleeve of his robe and hastily flipped it open to hide his face. In a voice so low it was almost inaudible, he said, “Please don’t touch me.” He paused, then added in a cool, clear tone, “And please don’t come near me.”
Although his words were sharp and intimidating, the young man’s voice trembled slightly at the end, betraying his extreme nervousness.
His fair knuckles rested on the dark red leather of the book, turning even whiter from the force, a clear sign of his unease.
Nelly had just come to her senses when she was once again bewildered by this unexpected development. What’s with this feeling of a shut-in from the global village stepping out of an all-night manga cafe and encountering the world for the first time?!
“Sorry, sorry!” Melissa was still as cheerful as ever. She turned her head, cleared her throat, and explained to Nelly, “This is Kal, a mage from Karinthia. I was chatting with some traveling merchants last night and heard that he was also going to the Demon’s Lair, so I invited him to join us. What do you think?”
Melissa looked like she was asking for praise, clearly very proud of having recruited a new teammate.
A vein throbbed on Nelly’s temple. She glanced at “Kal,” who still had a “don’t come near me” look on his face, and said flatly, “Are you sure he’s willing to join us?”
“Of course!” Melissa said, taking a step toward Kal. “You’re going to the Demon’s Lair too, right?”
He silently backed away to maintain the distance and answered softly from behind his book, his voice lacking confidence, “Yes…”
“It’s on the way. How about we go together?” Melissa patted her chest heroically. “I’m the great hero chosen by the goddess, you know!”
So, Lord Hero, you didn’t even make an agreement with him last night. You just got up early to corner him! Nelly grumbled inwardly and took another careful look at this shut-in mage. The strong sense of familiarity that had pained her heart at first glance was gone. Could it just be a coincidence?
Doubtful, Nelly tugged on Melissa’s sleeve and asked in a low voice, “Did he say where he’s from? Why did he come all the way from the distant Karinthia to the Demon’s Lair?”
Karinthia was located in the far south of the Wildia continent, a mysterious desert. Although it was one of the eleven domains under the rule of the Merloh dynasty, outsiders knew very little about it.
Before Melissa could answer, Kal spoke up. “I… am a mage from Naxier. I came north for revenge.”
“Naxier?” Melissa repeated blankly. She was stunned for a moment before her voice rose. “The oasis Naxier by the Dead Sea, the one that trains the most outstanding mages on the entire continent?”
The mage clearly couldn’t handle Melissa’s dramatic reactions. He trembled as if startled and took half a step back, but then he stood a little straighter with pride. “Yes.”
But Nelly was still a little suspicious. “Why didn’t you take the main road directly to the Demon’s Lair? Why did you come here first?”
The novice village was located in the northwestern frontier marquisate of Nafaray. A line connecting it to Karinthia would practically be a diagonal across the continent.
According to the script, the game began after the Demon King descended and annexed two counties in the northeastern corner of Wildia in one fell swoop.
The demon army continued to advance eastward with great momentum, pressing toward the border. As the last piece of pure land in the northeastern corner of the continent, Nafaray, under the pressure of the approaching army, had its land routes to the other domains cut off by the demon army, and its sea routes on the other three sides were also on the verge of being severed. The situation was precarious. The marquis led his officials to pray to the three goddesses for protection and summoned the fated hero. The hero’s first task was to take a boat across the treacherous Sea of Mermaids to ask for help from the royal capital, Mez.
Under these circumstances, instead of taking the relatively clear main road from Karinthia directly to the Demon’s Lair, and instead going to the trouble of coming to the isolated Nafaray, Mr. “Kal’s” purpose was indeed suspicious.
“Because of the Demon King, there was a problem with the teleportation circle…” As he spoke, Kal’s voice grew lower and lower. From his slightly flushed fingers, one could imagine that the mage must be blushing furiously at this moment.
“Mages are very sensitive, and besides, he’s from Naxier… Don’t be so aggressive, Nelly,” Melissa patted Nelly, who wanted to continue her interrogation, and signaled her to let Kal off the hook. “So, are you interested in going to the Demon’s Lair with us?”
Kal lowered his magic book slightly, revealing his red eyes from under his bangs. “I am.”
In just a moment, the shyness and annoyance in his tone were replaced by a distant coyness.
What’s with this condescending tone?! Without the status of a hero, he wouldn’t even be able to find a boat out of Nafaray right now. Nelly took another careful look at the mage Kal, and the more she looked, the more confused she became. Her gaze met his, which was peeking out from the edge of the book. He flinched in near panic, ducked back behind the magic book, and as if that wasn’t enough, he slowly inched backward again.
Melissa’s face immediately brightened upon receiving his consent. “Then let’s go! Nelly, what’s the next quest?”
Nelly knew she couldn’t win against her, so she could only adjust her mindset. “Go to Canossa for an audience with the Lord Marquis.”
“Oh, oh!” Melissa strode out of the inn first. Nelly quickly followed, and with a worried glance back, she saw the mage Kal hesitantly take his first step.
Their gazes met again, and both of them trembled.
Kal silently raised his magic book back to his face, clearly sensing the unfriendliness in Nelly’s attitude.
His sensitive gesture only made Nelly more uncomfortable. It was as if she were the one with persecutory delusions, scaring a shut-in mage of noble birth.
Nelly twitched the corner of her mouth and decided not to provoke him for the time being. She would wait for a chance to be alone and ask the system clearly. She didn’t want to repeat her mistake and guide the Demon King himself to fight the Demon King again.
The road from the novice village to the marquisate’s main city was naturally a good stage for the hero to fight monsters and level up.
It was just that the hero’s combat power was truly worrying, so this journey was naturally not going to be easy and peaceful.
“Damn it! Why are they so much stronger than the monsters in the village!” Melissa shouted as she released her skills and hacked at a menacing, demonized pine tree.
To be fair, compared to her initial lack of skill, Melissa had made great progress—although she was still far behind the expected progress, with time, she might not be unable to become an outstanding swordswoman. With that thought, Nelly unconsciously turned to look at Kal, who was also watching from the sidelines.
He sensed her gaze and pulled his hood tighter, moving further away from her.
“Ahem, aren’t you going to help, Mr. Kal?” Nelly couldn’t help but feel awkward at this and asked in a softer tone.
“No.” This time, he answered crisply, but he clearly regretted it afterward, cautiously peeking at Nelly’s reaction from behind his hood.
He looks… like a little white rabbit facing the big bad wolf.
Nelly replied drily, “Is that so?”
In that brief exchange, Melissa had finally dealt with the demonized pine tree. Panting heavily, she strode between the two of them and casually patted Kal’s shoulder. “The next monster is on you!”
Kal froze, then backed away again to maintain a safe distance, stubbornly repeating in a low voice, “Please don’t touch me. Please keep your distance.”
But Melissa just raised an eyebrow, unconcerned. “Don’t be so sensitive, Kal. I won’t hurt you or laugh at you. As for Nelly, if you don’t like her, it’s fine to say so!”
Lord Hero, is it really okay to sell out your own spirit for a mage of unknown origin?
Kal glanced at Nelly, then slowly pulled his hood down to his chin and said softly, “She hates me.”
This childish, tattletale-like tone made Nelly not know whether to laugh or cry. She didn’t want to get entangled any further and simply turned around. “Mr. Kal, you’re overthinking it. Let’s go, Melissa. If we keep this up, we won’t even make it to the inn by dark.”
Melissa replied with a cheer and continued to walk along the deserted path between the fields with high spirits.
They had only taken a few steps when two cold, crisp words came from behind them.
“Stop.”
Nelly felt a chill run through her. That’s Karsus’s tone.
In that instant, Nelly was surprisingly calm.
Deep down, she had never believed the system’s guarantee. When she had seen that face, she had already had a vague premonition. Now, it was just the worst-case scenario becoming a reality ahead of schedule.
Nelly took a breath, but before she could turn around, two dazzling white lights flew past her.
With a loud boom, the light orbs landed heavily in front of Nelly and Melissa.
In the blinding light, sharp claws and teeth appeared on the ground. A closer look revealed that they were demonized ground vines. These branches lay dormant underground, just waiting for travelers to step into their trap. If Kal had been a moment slower, both Nelly and Melissa would have been tied up by these thorny vines.
With just one hit, the demonized ground vines were annihilated.
Just his ability to react in an instant and his casting speed were enough to prove that the mage from Naxier was not just an empty name.
Melissa’s mouth fell open in amazement. “Amazing!” She flicked her silver hair and turned around, so excited she almost pounced on him, but she held back at the last moment. “As expected of Naxier!”
Nelly lowered her eyes and took a deep breath to calm her racing heart. Perhaps she really was being paranoid and had wronged him. In the end, Wildia was a game world. It wasn’t impossible for the data to be recycled and for a Kal with the exact same appearance to be created…
“Thank you.” She tried to smile and sincerely thanked Kal.
He was clearly stunned, his shimmering red eyes widening. He then snapped his magic book shut and said in a lofty, nonchalant, low voice, “A piece of cake.”
Melissa looked back and forth between them, a satisfied smile on her face. She rubbed her chin. “Alright, I’ll take care of the next monster!”
Faced with a demonized ground vine of the same level, the Lord Hero was not so graceful.
“It has barbs, it hurts…” Melissa jumped just in the nick of time, narrowly avoiding another wave of poisonous branches, but she was almost tripped by another vine, and for a moment, she was in a fluster.
Nelly sighed. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed that Kal was staring at her thoughtfully, and she jumped in surprise. His reaction was also quite strong. After almost frantically pulling his cloak hood back on, he still didn’t feel safe and simply opened his magic book again to use as a shield.
Am I that scary…