Recently, the area around the territory has been so thoroughly scoured every dawn that the bandits are nearly extinct. Because of this, it has become quite a task to hunt down the bandits.
But what is this?
Not long after leaving the mansion, Veris encountered a heavily armed group. It seemed that the battle was nearing its end, as numerous corpses filled the space.
"Are those guys heretics?"
"Yes, they are known as demon worshippers or members of a Demon Cult."
"I see, so that's the case."
Veris turned his gaze to the young priestess wearing an ill-fitting, loose nun's habit.
It was evident that they had trained in some sinister mana, as a strange aura surrounded them.
The dozens of knights who had turned their backs on the world were all clad in white armor, clearly indicating they were holy knights of the sacred order.
"What can two kids do?"
"I'll separate their blood and flesh and use them for research."
However, Veris's confident demeanor was absurd from the perspective of the demon worshippers.
They were strong. Although they were stationed at a secret research facility on the outskirts of the empire, it was clear that a passing child could do nothing against them.
Of course, there is a saying in the world to be cautious of the elderly, children, and women, but that was merely a proverb.
"Subdue those two. Keep them alive."
Whoosh!
At the command of their leader, the group raised their weapons and charged. Even now, the black mana swirling around them seemed to threaten Veris and Cecilia.
"Run, run away! I'll hold them off here!"
Cecilia shouted with a look of despair as the heretics charged with grotesque laughter.
If her assumption was correct, this boy didn't seem to be much older than her. Therefore, she felt a strong desire to protect this stranger facing a great crisis, even if it meant throwing herself into danger.
To save the weak and not hesitate to give, that was the teaching of the order.
"How are you going to stop them?"
"…What?"
The enemies were already exuding a menacing killing intent from just a short distance away.
Yet, despite this, Cecilia could only stammer in response to Veris's calm tone.
"You look weak at first glance."
Saying this, Veris looked at the enemies ahead.
Skills?
Unfortunately, to put it bluntly, such things were unnecessary. With this overwhelming status backing him, it meant that ordinary enemies wouldn't even be able to touch a hair on Veris.
"There's something you should say at a time like this."
"Y-you fool! I said to run away!"
He drew his sword. It was a blunt training sword made for practice. But if the one wielding it wasn't an ordinary trainee, the story would change.
"…Power, overwhelming."
- Whoosh!
A radiant light burst forth from the sword.
Even the holy knight handling white mana looked like a firefly before the sun, a literal explosion of light.
In an instant, the majestic mana that dominated the battlefield rushed over the enemies like a wave, sweeping them away.
"W-what?"
As the wonder brushed past him, the ten who had charged with grotesque laughter vanished in an instant.
It was a horrific sight. Just the light emitted from the sword had turned those who couldn't evade it into a handful of blood.
"Y-you…"
Cecilia could only stare blankly at the boy, even as the brutal scene unfolded right before her eyes.
This boy had easily sent the evil group that had even defeated the holy knights, proud of the sacred order, to the afterlife with a simple swing of his sword.
It felt as if a knight from legends, a divine apostle fulfilling the will of the heavens, had appeared before her.
* * *
"Move quickly!"
The leader of the demon worshippers shouted as if possessed.
No matter how one thought about it, it was an event beyond common sense.
It was already strange that the investigation team from the sacred nation had appeared in this place, which maintained ironclad security. Although they had managed to annihilate them using the forbidden magic known as "corpse bombs," the appearance of the young boy right after was an existence that had far surpassed the walls of common sense.
Identity? There was no way to know. The one cloaked in a similar black robe had taken the lives of ten of his comrades with just a single swing of his sword.
Faced with such a miraculous sight, the leader chose to flee rather than fight. Fortunately, the boy did not pursue them, allowing them to escape to the research facility, but the problem started right then.
It was a research facility operated in a decentralized manner by the Demon Cult. Therefore, if they were discovered here, it meant death for them all.
Of course, dying in an explosion along with the research facility wasn't a bad outcome either. But if they could survive, it would be most desirable to destroy the evidence and escape.
"Destroy all unnecessary materials and only take the important documents. What we need to take is not trivial research data!"
This research facility was the culmination of a lifetime of effort. Naturally, it would have been the cleanest solution to obliterate the facility with black magic, but the man's lingering desires rejected that idea.
"I can't fall here. If this experiment succeeds, I will surely be confirmed as one of the Twelve Black Seats of the order!"
With the goal so close, the man gritted his teeth at the sudden turn of events.
"What are the Twelve Black Seats?"
"You fool, you don't even know what the Twelve Black Seats are? No, more importantly, do you even understand the current situation…?"
As he turned to scold his subordinate, the man suddenly felt a chill run down his spine.
A very youthful voice. It was slightly curious, with a tone that seemed to look down on them.
"How…"
"What naive fools. Did you think I would just let you go?"
As the blade approached, the man closed his eyes. This was a disaster. An unavoidable calamity akin to a natural disaster.
* * *
[ You have defeated powerful enemies. Achievements unlocked, skills will awaken! ]
[ With sufficient mana mastery, mana experience points increase by 50. ]
[ Mana stat has reached its maximum. Achievements unlocked, skills will awaken! ]
"Oh."
As he watched the morning sunrise, Veris let out a small exclamation at the continuous system messages.
He would have liked to sit down and slowly check them, but he couldn't do that because of the girl clinging to his back.
"What's wrong?"
"Nothing, it's just…"
The girl had light green hair and eyes. Perhaps due to her small stature, the nun's loose habit fluttering around her made her look quite cute.
This girl introduced herself as Cecilia. She was a trainee priestess of the sacred nation and had been assigned as a healer for the investigation team.
Veris requested her to keep quiet about what had happened today. They had simply fought against the demon worshippers and emerged victorious, but at the end of the battle, all the holy knights had perished due to forbidden magic, and only Cecilia had managed to escape by luck. That was the story they agreed upon.
The reason was simple. Veris didn't want to reveal his power to the world.
Think about it. Even those child prodigies who received the spotlight at a young age on Earth did not all lead happy lives. Rather, he had seen many times how they were ruined by the expectations of the public or those around them.
"…Thank you."
"What for?"
"For saving me, Veris. And… for carrying me."
The girl said this, blushing as she buried her face in Veris's shoulder. Just as she said, she was currently being carried by Veris on the way to Count Vitelbach's territory.
There was a church of the sacred order there, and Veris intended to report the situation and request assistance.
Additionally, this situation was quite embarrassing for the girl. She couldn't walk due to her legs giving out. Moreover, even though he was a boy of a similar age, allowing contact with a strange man was also awkward…
"It's nothing much. I'm more worried about you."
"…Worried?"
"Because it was a terrible experience."
"That's true."
Cecilia felt as if tears were about to burst forth again.
The members of the holy knights, whom she regarded as brothers, sisters, or even children, had all bravely perished in the investigation team. Cecilia was the only survivor.
If it weren't for this boy, she would surely have met a terrible end after experiencing such horrors. Veris's appearance at that scene had truly been an incredible stroke of luck for her.
"Veris, you're… from a noble family, right?"
"Eh? How did you know that?"
"Even though you covered yourself with a robe, your skill level is clearly something that wouldn't be possible without training from a very young age. Of course… just because someone has trained from a young age doesn't mean they're all that strong."
"You have a good eye for detail."
"And looking at your confident tone and actions, you didn't seem like an ordinary person."
"Yeah."
"Then… it might be nice to meet again later when you enroll in the academy."
"Huh? Do priests also enroll in the academy?"
"Although I belong to the order, there are also priest candidates who train at the academy."
"That's nice. It would be great to see you at the academy."
Veris nodded at her words.
He was almost ignorant of the affairs of the sacred nation, but it seemed that there was indeed an elite group in that world as well.
Well, priests are different from human holy knights who are responsible for the team's stamina; they are responsible for healing.
It seemed that they were treated as valuable human resources here as well.
"We've arrived."
As they chatted about various things, they soon reached the capital of Count Vitelbach's territory.
The castle and church visible in the distance signaled the end of this encounter.