In the carriage, Rogelio and his party had been traveling for three days.
Rogelio: "So how long until we reach Valoria Kingdom?"
Jacob: "We're close to Valoria Kingdom now. In two days, we'll reach it."
They had been traveling peacefully when suddenly...
Thea: "There's an enemy!"
Everyone looked at her, confused.
Jen: "Um, we don't see any enemy."
Thea: "Because they're still far and approaching at high speed."
Rogelio: "So, another bandit?"
Thea: "They're much stronger than your ordinary bandit. They're close, prepare yourselves!"
Jacob: "How can you know this—"
Suddenly, Dean, staying on the carriage ceiling, saw a figure from afar and drew his bow, shouting, "Enemy!!"
Dean then released a barrage of arrows, but Razel, from afar, had already sensed it just before Dean fired the arrows and effortlessly dodged them.
Razel then ordered his companions, "Commence the attack! Kill everyone and secure the item!"
Arel, A-rank agent: "Yes, sir!"
Yon, A-rank agent: "Yes, sir!"
The three of them then dashed forward faster to attack.
Everyone got out of the carriage and assumed defensive positions, with Jacob at the front.
Razel, who was leading the attack, dashed at Jacob, closing the distance instantly.
Jacob: "Shit, he's fast!!"
Jacob then raised his shield to defend, but Razel punched Jacob's shield so hard that it pierced it, hitting Jacob in the chest and sending him flying. Jacob, who was hit by the punch, lost consciousness.
Everyone was shocked and shouted, "Captain!!"
John, consumed by anger, drew his dagger and dashed toward Razel.
Razel, relying on his sharp senses and superior speed, effortlessly dodged the attack. In one swift motion, he grabbed John by the head and slammed him to the ground with brutal force.
John's body went limp as he lost consciousness.
Everyone then realized that these enemies were A-rank.
Jen and Ralf, wasting no time, swung their swords horizontally at Razel.
But Razel, already sensing the attack, vanished.
Dean shouted, "Above you!!"
Razel, mid-air, spun downward, gripping his sword, and attempted to slash Jen.
Dean aimed at Razel, but without knowing, Arel was already behind him, attempting to slash his head.
Ralf, who was looking upward at Razel, didn't notice that Yon was already close to him and was about to slash his head.
The events happened so fast that no one noticed the two enemies, except for Thea and Rogelio.
Arel was about to slash Dean, but sensing Thea behind him, he dodged her vertical attack. Thea wasted no time, rotated her body, and released a powerful kick that sent Arel flying into the forest.
Dean: "Damn! Are you really a D-rank?"
Thea – A-rank agent of Duke Agnus on a secret mission.
Meanwhile, Rogelio, realizing the extreme danger of the situation, muttered, "Time walk."
Rogelio, who froze time, moved Ralf so the sword wouldn't reach his neck.
Rogelio wanted to kill Yon but didn't do it, as it might raise suspicion. Instead, he moved to Jen, raised Jen's sword, and got her back in her original position, lowering her stance, preparing for an attack.
One minute passed, and Rogelio then released his power.
Yon slashed at Ralf and missed Ralf's head, only slashing the air. He was confused.
Ralf then noticed Yon and swung his sword.
Yon sensed it, took a step back, and said, "What just happened?"
Meanwhile,
Razel, mid-air, spun downward, releasing a powerful slash from above. Jen, raising her sword, blocked it, but the attack was so strong that she dropped to her knees, her nose bleeding as her body absorbed the impact.
Razel: "How did she block it? I was sure she didn't raise her sword. What just happened?"
Rogelio, after releasing his power, dashed at Razel and swung horizontally. Razel sensed it, used Jen's sword as a stepping stone, and dashed at Rogelio instead, performing a horizontal slash aimed at cutting off his head.
Razel was so fast that Rogelio couldn't guard against it. Rogelio then muttered again, "Time walk," ducked, and quickly released his power.
Razel was shocked that Rogelio was able to dodge him. Suddenly, Razel felt a pain in his stomach as Rogelio stabbed him. Razel got angry and punched Rogelio downward with all his might.
Rogelio attempted to time walk, but Razel was too fast. Rogelio got hit in the face, smashing into the ground. Razel stepped backward, bleeding, while Rogelio tried to stand up, almost losing consciousness.
Razel: "He survived that?"
Meanwhile,
Yon, determined to kill Ralf, gripped his sword and attempted to kill him in one go when suddenly...
A person from the sky punched Yon's face downward, cracking the ground. Yon lost consciousness and was bleeding, smoke rising from the ground.
Razel saw this and shouted, "Yon!!!"
Razel: "I didn't sense him. Who the f**k is this guy—"
Before he could finish, the smoke was swept away by the wind, and Razel saw a man in a blue robe, wearing silver armor with the symbol of a knight apprentice. Razel then realized that it was a Valorian knight apprentice.
Arel, who was in the forest, saw this and attempted a surprise attack.
Arel dashed at the apprentice knight and swung his sword horizontally, but the apprentice knight, already sensing it, stopped the tip of the sword with only his hand.
Arel tried to pull the sword, but he couldn't.
Razel: "Using only his hand to stop an A-rank sword? How strong is he?"
Razel, realizing the difficult situation, shouted, "Retreat!!"
Apprentice Knight: "I don't think so."
He then rotated his body, kicking Arel hard, sending him flying into a tree, losing consciousness and bleeding.
The apprentice knight suddenly vanished.
Razel: "Where did he go?"
Before he could finish, the apprentice knight appeared in front of him, attempting to punch. But a man in a robe suddenly appeared between them, stopping the apprentice knight's punch and kicking him. The apprentice knight blocked it and stepped backward.
Everyone was shocked that someone was even stronger than the apprentice knight.
The robed man suddenly vanished along with the three agents.
Rogelio, barely managing his consciousness: "He was so fast that we didn't even see him pick up the enemy. Who was that?"
"To be able to dodge and survive an attack from an A-rank... you're quite something. You even wounded him. I'm Drake, by the way," the apprentice knight said.
"I'm Rogelio, a D-rank adventurer," Rogelio replied.
Drake: "D-rank??" He looked at Rogelio with a confused expression.
The C-rank adventurers then helped the others stand up, especially Jacob and Jen.
Drake: "Don't worry, my companions will arrive in a moment. They'll help you."
He turned to Thea.
Drake: "I think you and I need to talk."
Thea and Drake spoke privately about the situation. Shortly after, Drake's companions arrived, riding horses and wearing silver armor. They were Valorian warriors.
Days later, the party finally arrived at their destination.
Drake: "Welcome to Valoria Kingdom."
It was Rogelio's first time seeing the castle of Valoria. He muttered in awe, "Wowww!"
Drake: "Is this your first time here?"
Rogelio nodded.
Drake: "Well, we need to pass through the Agnus City Gate before we can enter the kingdom's main entrance. You can't get into the kingdom without going through the city first."
At Agnus City, Thea said her goodbyes, while the rest of the party continued their journey to the kingdom.
Rogelio: "So, Thea isn't a D-rank?"
Dean: "Yes, the strength she showed is that of an A-rank."
Drake: "She's an A-rank agent of Duke Agnus on a secret mission. It's probably better if you don't know too much."
Everyone fell silent.
The party finally arrived at the gates and entered Valoria Kingdom.
Rogelio: "It's really beautiful!"
In Lumira Kingdom, Heist City
Razel made his report:
"The mission failed, sir. The Valorian apprentice arrived and interfered."
Duke Heist: "There were three of you—A-rank agents—and you couldn't even complete a simple mission? You're pathetically weak! If it weren't for Aron, all of you would have died!"
The Duke angrily shouted, "Get out of my face!!" and threw a bottle of wine at Razel.
As Arel walked out of the office, he muttered, "If I ever see the person who stabbed me, I'll kill him!!"