Book 2 Chapter 4

**Episode 28**

After lightly preparing myself to go to the black market, I exited the gates of Delaiten.

A peculiarity, if there was one, was just that my left hand was tightly wrapped in bandages because of the runes of the mental barrier sometimes glowing on their own?

As I walked, enjoying the flowery spring sunlight, at that moment, a party of eccentric adventurers appeared before my eyes.

"What? Uh, let go, aren't you going to let go of this? Hey!"

And I was instantly kidnapped, seized by the hand of a giant—written as 'monster' but read as 'Bart'—and taken all the way to the Golden Rose Adventurers' Guild building.

"No, they're giving an commendation for the last incident, and I thought it's not right for you, the protagonist, to be absent."

As I struggled, held by Bart's shoulder, Rem, who was walking beside me keeping pace, explained with a chuckle.

"Alright, I get it, but just put me down for a bit."

"No, it's a human palanquin. The protagonist deserves this kind of treatment."

"I don't need it! Enough, do I really have to receive that?"

"It's not just happening at the branch level; the Alliance Southern Headquarters stepped in, brother."

"From headquarters?"

The Golden Rose Adventurers' Guild branch was located in the Second District, where minor government offices were situated. But on the plot in front of it, a stage for the protagonists and a wooden fence for spectators had been set up.

Outside the wooden fence, not only adventurers but also passersby and merchants gathered and whispered, wondering what was going on.

When Bart's party arrived, guild employees made a fuss and escorted the four people onto the stage, and uncomfortable gazes poured in from all directions.

"It's Bart of Black Steel."

"The archer next to him is Rem, the Drunken Archer."

"But who's that mage?"

"Black hair and red eyes… He looks aristocratic, like the genius (calamity) young master of the Ludwig family?"

"Nah, would the heir of a prestigious family be crazy enough to act as an adventurer?"

Ugh, what a waste of time.

Rain let out an annoyed sigh and said to his party members.

"How big of a deal was that thing back then for them to make such a fuss like this?"

"It was a big deal."

Rem, who had been pleasantly enjoying the public's attention, raised an eyebrow as if dumbfounded.

"Bart is a disciple of the Seven Swords of Ilseong, and I am a disciple of the Drunken Archer. But you blew away something that both of us struggled with in one go, didn't you?"

"Actually, what's the possibility that Rem is weaker than he thinks?"

Rain, with innocent eyes, tilted his head and asked.

If Kiez had been there, with one arrow woven with magic, he would have pierced the heart of the Rat-Spider Queen and the black magic circle.

"Kiiyak!" With a grotesque scream, Sammy held back Rem, who was about to kick Rain. Bart snickered.

"From your perspective, it might seem that way. But neither Rem nor I had ever felt a lack as we ascended to Silver rank. Until the last incident…"

Bart muttered in a bitter tone and wiped the smile from his lips.

Almost simultaneously, a powerful presence that made the fine hairs on one's skin stand on end swept through the area like a wind, and the spectators instinctively straightened their backs.

And as the branch door opened, stunned exclamations broke out from everywhere.

"Wow…?!"

"Th-that person…?!"

"It's Leoren, the Bow Star…!"

The being dispatched from the Southern Headquarters of the Alliance Empire was none other than Leoren, the Bow Star.

The Empire, under the Emperor, gathered the greatest martial artists of the era, granting them immense power and honor while also imposing the duty to assist the Emperor, and they were called the Four Martial Stars Under the Emperor (皇下四武星).

A total of four stars (星) existed, and they are as follows:

Sword Star, Spear Star, Bow Star, Magic Star.

These individuals were sometimes produced from famous families or dojos but were also often chosen from among adventurers.

No, it should be said that there was no difference. For those who emerged into the world from famous families or dojos mostly became adventurers.

"Huh…?"

Rain, who had been watching the situation indifferently, couldn't help but open his mouth involuntarily the moment he saw Leoren's features and equipment.

His disheveled hair, as if he had just woken up, was verdant green, carrying the colors of fresh foliage, and beneath it, his eyes sparkled with intelligence; he was a middle-aged man in his 40s.

His beard was sparsely and untidily grown, as if he only groomed it occasionally, hinting at his lazy personality.

'Kiez…'

But his features and personality traits were too similar to Kiez, Rain's comrade 300 years ago.

Above all, the bow on his back—that pure white bow staff entwined with vines of life—it was clearly Kiez's White Iris Bow (白菖弓) Cerwebon, made from a branch of the World Tree.

As I stared blankly at it, Leoren, who approached yawning as if he was dying of sleepiness, opened his eyes wide.

"Well, well, who is this?"

On the other hand, Rem, who received that gaze, made a disgusted face and frantically waved his hand as if to say, "Go away."

"Wh-what is it?"

"Oh, oh oh oh, what on earth is our little darling doing here?"

"You've mistaken me for someone else."

"You kicked out of the dojo, even dyed your hair, and have been living as an adventurer, puhahaha! Are you trying to imitate me? You, did you get permission from your big brother—"

"—Argh, you're really noisy. Just go away!"

Leoren, who had been roaring with laughter, clutching his stomach, playfully patted Rem's head as if understanding, then turned to Bart.

"Hmm, I can tell just by looking. You're the leader of this party."

"That's right."

"They say you took down that variant; you certainly look strong."

"…"

"That tomboy must be quite troublesome, isn't she? Please take good care of her."

"Rem is my party member. There's no need to ask for special care. We fill each other's weaknesses."

"I like that even more. You'll soon reach platinum rank too."

Leoren patted Bart's shoulder as if to encourage.

Before being appointed as a Bow Star, Leoren was an adventurer ranked an astonishing 6th in Platinum class, making him, in essence, an immense senior.

And after exchanging brief greetings with Sammy, Leoren, who had come and stood before Rain, suddenly tilted his head.

"That's strange, I feel like I've seen you somewhere before."

"?"

"Not your face, but your impression, let me see some documents… Ludwig? Rain Ludwig? Just as I thought! You were that old man Skargi's grandson!"

Skargi was the previous Magic Star, so he had a friendship with Leoren in his later years. Leoren laughed heartily, then patted Rain's head as if he found him cute.

"Yes, cooping yourself up in a room to study magic will only make you lose a lot of hair, it's not good. A man should know how to play outside."

"…"

"But are you hurt somewhere? Why are you wearing a bandage on your left hand?"

At that moment, Rain couldn't say anything. He just pouted his lips and held back his laughter.

To others, he seemed overwhelmed by the Bow Star's praise, but that wasn't the reality.

'If Kiez had been able to speak…'

Wouldn't they have had this kind of conversation?

If Kiez, in his childhood, hadn't falsely testified in court to save a friend, and consequently had his tongue pulled out, becoming mute…

At that moment, *thump-thump*, the White Iris Bow on Leoren's back pulsed strongly and exhaled the breath of the World Tree in all directions, making Leoren flinch in surprise and grab the bow.

"No, why is this thing suddenly acting like this?"

One of the Three Divine Dragons, Water Dragon Yeriserica, imbued the breath of intelligence into the World Tree, which is famous as a tree capable of fragmented thoughts and judgments. That characteristic was also true for the White Iris Bow made from a branch of the World Tree.

'It's been a long time.'

Rain, in his mind, greeted the White Iris Bow for the first time in 300 years.

'Have you been well?'

Strange… Leoren tried to calm its magic by grabbing the bow, but the White Iris Bow only wailed even louder.

It had never done this before.

As people whispered, "That's the White Iris Bow Cerwebon," "It's amazing," and "The hero party's bow," Rem shouted at Leoren.

"No, you came to give a commendation, don't show off your heirloom, just give it quickly and disappear… please!"

Leoren eventually left the excited bow hanging on his back, and received the commendation from the headquarters attendants.

"In a moment of sudden crisis, taking the initiative and protecting fellow adventurers… Why is this so long? In short, you did well, so the Adventurer Headquarters awards a commendation for the adventurous spirit of the said party."

Ah, so that's what it was.

It seemed that rather than the fact that they caught the queen, Rem and Bart's desperate actions to protect other adventurers at that time became the reason for the commendation.

And it seemed they had staged such a grand event for other adventurers to emulate that self-sacrificing adventurous spirit.

"The reward is two gold coins, and each party member will also receive 500 Alliance Contribution Points."

500 Contribution Points?

Adventurers applauded and whispered.

"That's an incredibly generous reward, isn't it?"

"How many points was the goblin (小鬼) subjugation that beginners often do? Wasn't the contribution point 3?"

"The condition for Steel rank to upgrade to Bronze rank is 400 contribution points, isn't it?"

Sammy, who was standing next to him, let out a hollow laugh.

"Congratulations, brother. It hasn't been long since you became an adventurer, and you're already going to get a Bronze plaque."

Is this something to be congratulated for?

Since I have no intention of succeeding as an adventurer, not particularly… Still, it's better than nothing, I guess.

"This should be enough, right? I have a lot of things to do, you see. You guys take care of the rest."

Leoren, who completely ignored the remaining ceremonial procedures, put his arm around Rem's neck and chuckled as he dragged him somewhere. Immediately after that, several adventurers flocked and sent Bart offers.

"You defeated the queen this time?"

"Come to our guild, Bart. The guildmaster really promised to treat you well!"

"With this contribution reward, Rem has also reached Silver rank, so come to our guild with Rem. We promise better conditions than anywhere else."

Of course, to Sammy or Rain, who were just supporting roles, no attention came at all. Since they knew it was caught using a scroll, it was natural.

'If I wait to greet them and then leave, they'll probably bother me with after-parties or whatever again…'

Staring at Rem and Bart, who were surrounded by guild officials, Rain quietly stepped into the crowd.

'I need to quickly get books from the black market and dedicate myself to magic training. I need to acquire the magic power to use the mental barrier.'

His heart was filled with excitement.

No, from yesterday, in fact, he couldn't do anything at all. Even when he tried to do magic training, he couldn't concentrate…

Camitishia.

- Mental Barrier, Flowing Venerable.

- Required Magic Power: 20,000 (Warning - Current Caster's Magic Power: 12,564).

The mental barrier is a sage's realm that only two people in this world have reached, so I cannot perfectly explain it either.

"Humans lack understanding of truth and thus cannot rule the entire world like gods, but in the mental world, where one is the creator, the story is different."

These were the words left by the 2nd Sage Riot Warden, who reached Renpage (6-star), in his treatise, "To Truth."

Although he ultimately could not reach Shin-Sage (7-star) like the 1st Sage Emitsa Page, it goes without saying that he was still a great figure.

And now a similar power has come to me… My heart rate spontaneously quickened, and the smile wouldn't leave my lips.

'The 33% success rate for combination and 66% increase in power is probably because it's still a trial version. The story will be different once I truly reach 6-star.'

So quickly, finish all my tasks as soon as possible and go to train my magic power… It was then that my steps involuntarily quickened.

"Rain Ludwig, counterfeit, even if you go that way, you won't be able to reach the bl-ack m-arket~!"

With a loud voice, as if meant for everyone in the world to hear, Rain flinched in surprise for a moment and had to stop.

The black market…?

That's strange. No one knew I was going there, no, there's exactly one person. Karen the librarian.

"As the 'Children of Gold' became more active, those who operated the black market in this city fled. It's a temporary closure, that's what it is!"

Who is it? Feeling the cold beat of his heart, he turned around, and saw a man.

In a tattered, yellowish-brown robe and a worn fedora, the man, when their eyes met, smiled faintly.

Then he removed the trumpet shape he'd made with his hands from his mouth, and approached, waving genially like a friend he hadn't seen in a long time.

"I'm from the Magic Alliance (魔法盟). Do you have a moment?"