"Sir Adrian, the count is asking to meet you, and we also have to make a plan on how to attack the beasts who go berserk," Tauras explained the reason for his visit.
"Ok, Sir Captain, lead the way," Adrian replied after a slight pause; he was contemplating his next steps.
They both reached the main tent after a while where the higher-ups were making their plan of execution. They entered the tent after passing through the guards. When they entered, all eyes were drawn towards them, or rather, Adrian.
"Huh? Is he the infamous vice-captain and hero of Antinia?" The count asked Tauras with a tone filled with astonishment, expecting a man in his thirties when he heard that he had taken down that infamous business all on his own.
"Yes, Lord, he is Sir Adrian whom you wanted to meet," Tauras confirmed Adrian's identity as he bowed to the count as a greeting.
"What? This kid is that so-called hero of Antinia!" Valark, the count's son, exclaimed in amazement and disbelief. He was standing beside his father around a circular table.
"Yes, Lord, although I am undeserving of being called a hero, it is indeed I who took down that business," Adrian replied, giving a greeting to all present.
"Haha, good good, really worthy of the hero of Antina. Nice to meet you, Sir Adrian; I am Count Nadino," the count praised, offering his hand for a handshake.
"The pleasure is mine, My Lord," Adrian shook the count's hand while keeping a smile.
"Now that everyone is here, let me explain the plan," the count proclaimed, pointing to the map on the table.
"I will act as the vanguard, while the captain will lead the Knights to slaughter the monsters coming out of the forest. Sir Adrian will slay the monster who escapes from being slaughtered. After that, we will enter the forest to find the reason for them going berserk. Understood?" The count explained the plan to everyone present.
"Yes, Sir!!" Everyone shouted in unison.
After coming out of the tent, Tauras stopped Adrian to ask, "Sir Adrian, which knights would you like to take to do your part in the plan?"
"Viren, Highlogh, Midlogh, and Lowlogh. Just give me these four," Adrian answered.
He wanted the knights whom he knew and could easily work with. As he had defeated them previously, it would be easier to order them.
"Alright! I will send them to your tent after explaining their duty," Tauras said, leaving the tent to go and explain to the other knights.
After 15 minutes, the four knights entered Adrian's tent.
"Sir Vice-Captain, we are delighted to work under your lead," Viren said, saluting along with the other three.
"Good, I will also like to work with you all," Adrian said with a smile on his face.
"We will not disappoint you, Sir!" the four replied in unison.
"Okay, I have somewhere to go, and it will take some time for me to return. Therefore, I would like to ask you all to keep the monsters busy until I return. Can you do that?" Adrian asked, walking back and forth in front of them.
"Yes, Sir! We will follow your order," the four of them replied.
"Alright then, you all can leave," Adrian said, with only his back visible to the knights.
The four knights left the tent, leaving Adrian alone. After turning around, a grin appeared on his face as he muttered, "now let's go and collect my prize for keeping patience for so long."
Adrian sneaked out of his tent and went into the forest, escaping from every eye there. He planned to absorb the stone and return before the monsters attacked. He walked towards the center of the forest without making the slightest sound as to not attract any monster.
"If I remember correctly, it was found in the center of the fores–" Adrian was confirming the location of the stone from his memories when he saw a black big shadow ahead.
"Isn't that a troll? He shouldn't be in this forest. It is quite large too, but in the information provided to the knights, there was no mention of it being here. The information said only the monsters that could be dealt with by 3-star knights were present.
To kill this troll, you clearly need to have combat power above an average 5-star. Looks like they don't know about it, huh? Well, the count should be able to hold on for quite some time to let the knights escape, so it is not that much of an emergency."
"I shouldn't let it notice me and keep myself out of trouble."
Adrian contemplated upon recognizing that big shadow. Adrian took a roundabout route from the troll. When he was close to the troll, he took every step lightly, taking every precaution necessary.
"Huuu," Adrian let out a sigh of relief. "Looks like it didn't notice me. Let's hurry before something unexpected happens."
Clack—
"Shit!" As though the god of bad luck had listened to his words, a rabbit went running from Adrian's side, breaking a stick and producing a noise which was enough for the troll to hear it. The troll hurried to the source of the noise, and upon seeing Adrian, it growled –
GROWL—
It ran toward Adrian, letting out its bloodthirst as it made its intentions clear. Adrian dashed in the direction of the center of the forest.
"Fuck my luck in the ass, Damn it!" Adrian grumbled, running at his top speed, but the troll was slowly catching up. "Haa… haa, what should I do? At this rate, he will catch up to me, and I would have to waste my time with him." Adrian was out of options here. If he fought the troll, the noise would attract other monsters as well as alert the knights, and if he didn't, then he would be caught by that humongous troll.
But when he seemed to have lost all hope, he saw a big tree ahead. He concentrated all the mana at the tip of the sole of his feet, increasing his speed as he took a turn, escaping from the troll's area of sight.
The troll followed the direction of Adrian but was unable to find him. It continued passing every tree in search of his prey but was unable to find him. After a while, it left.
"Huuu," Adrian let out a sigh of relief, sitting on the branch of the big tree he saw previously.
"The camouflaging skill I learned from the Assassin's secret book came in really handy. Thank me for the habit of learning every skill I could." Adrian had used the art of concealing himself as an assassin does. When an assassin had tried to kill the emperor, who was also Adrian's friend at that time, Adrian, in a fit of rage, destroyed the assassination organizations and found their secret book, which had all the skills needed to become an assassin.
He had learned from that book how to conceal one's smell, breathing, and existence. If someone didn't look carefully, they wouldn't be able to notice him.
"Let's be on my way now."
At the camp of the knights------
The scouts were keeping watch for any monster. Two knights were moving, keeping an eye out for any movement from the forest.
The two knights grew restless as they continued their watch, finding the forest's eerie silence unsettling. One of them yawned, expressing his boredom and impatience.
"**Yawn** We've been scouting for an hour now. This forest is as silent as a moonless night," he remarked, his voice carrying a note of weariness.
His companion shared his sentiment, feeling that waiting for the monsters to appear was becoming tedious. "Yeah! We should just move into the forest and kill the monsters instead of waiting for them," he suggested.
The knights considered their options, torn between the desire to take action and the need to follow their orders to secure the area and protect their fellow knights. They knew that venturing deeper into the mysterious forest carried its own risks and uncertainties.
As the knights were busy discussing their options, a pair of red, eerie eyes watched them from the darkness of the forest.