'I'm bored'….
...
The moment we set out on our journey to reach Estelle academy, I found myself surrounded by the mesmerizing beauty of nature.
The landscape was adorned with lush greenery, where vibrant trees stood tall, mountains pierced the sky, and crystal-clear rivers meandered through the terrain. Initially, I was utterly awestruck by the sheer magnificence that this world had to offer.
Some plants, which I had never encountered before, emitted an ethereal glow during the night, casting an otherworldly radiance upon its surroundings.
What truly left me astounded, though, were the colossal trees that reached heights surpassing even the tallest skyscrapers in my home city. These towering giants seemed to touch the heavens, their canopies creating a living, verdant skyline that dwarfed any man-made construction.
"What a truly breathtaking view", truly a testament to the majesty of nature itself.
...
....
.....'It's truly breathtaking but'
"If you see the same scenery over and over again, you'll eventually get bored of it" I said absentmindedly.
"What are you yapping about?" Aria asked.
Oh yeah, I forgot about this girl, we've been riding in the same carriage since day 1, even though I wanted to ride the same one with Analise.
Analise is riding the servant's carriage just behind ours, Analise said it's not appropriate for me, her master to ride in the same carriage as hers, I didn't really mind riding in the servant's carriage though.
When father called for us last time, I thought it was something important, but he only talked about useless stuff like be careful and don't ruin the family's reputation, though I wished he could say that while looking at me straight, it ruined his whole serious father moment when he kept avoiding my eyes.
It took some time but now I remember most of what happened last time, I don't know what the Goddess did, but somehow, I've gained a status like system, and those brilliant swords the Goddess shot at me messed with my authorities and sealed most of it.
"Hey!" Aria exclaimed.
"What?" I replied, while gently touching my ear she didn't have to shout so close to my ear 'seriously what's with her now'
"Stop ignoring me!" Aria said angrily, looks like ignoring her for almost 3 days reached its limit huh, anyways I ignored her again and opened my status screen.
Seeing me blatantly ignoring her again Aria puffed, veins were popping off her head, I guess even a self-proclaimed dignified lady like her, is still just a human, having no one to talk to for hours until the day ends must be tiring.
Solitude really has a way of humbling even the most poised individuals, and Aria was no exception.
[Name: Adrian Vulter Tellus (Ian Astrea)]
[Lv: 91] [Gender: Male]
[Age: 18 (23)] [Title: The anomaly]
[Mana: 5000/5000] [Aura: 8000/8000]
[Recovery Speed: A (85/100)] [Agility: S (98/100)]
[Stamina: A (88/100)] [Strength: S (95/100)]
[Intelligence: A (82/100)] [Willpower: A (86/100)]
....
....
I ignored the rest of my status details and opened the quest section.
Quests: 18! (Active quests) [click for more info]
[click]
1. [Heal 100 innocents'] [Reward: random XP, random stat +3]
2. [Cure 100 innocents'] [Reward: random XP, random stat +3]
3. [Protect the Innocent] [Reward: mana +500 aura +500]
4. [Meet the saint] [Reward: Saint's blessing]
5. [Slay the Beast] [Reward: Beast fangs]
6. [Protect the Sage] [Reward: Sage's loyalty]
7. [Kill 100 demons] [Reward: demon slayer trait +30% more damage on demonic entities]
8. [Purify the Corrupted Forest] [Reward: Elf queens blessing]
9. [Revive the Guardians] [Reward: Guardians call]
10. [Quell the Elemental Chaos] [Reward: chaos mana]
11. [Kill/Save the Blood Monarch] [Reward: ???]
12. [Reforge the Sword of Destiny] [Reward: ???]
13. [Unearth Lost Relic] [Reward: ???]
14. [Eradicate the Plague of Darkness] [Reward: ???]
15. [Secure the Forbidden Knowledge] [Reward: ???]
16. [Stop a Celestial Collision] [Reward: ???]
17. [Restore the sun] [Reward: ???]
18. [Kill the Demon King] [Reward: ???]
My head throbbed from simply reading through it. Initially, I considered it a mere coincidence that the first four quests mirrored exactly what Tristan, the protagonist of this novel, had accomplished in the initial volume. However, as I continued to read through the remaining quests, I became increasingly certain.
The subsequent quests were all events that unfolded in the next five volumes. A perplexing thought struck me: "did that crazy Goddess, make me the protagonist of this world? What about Tristan then?'
Did Tristan also have this status system? Did he make all those decisions in the novel based on the quests provided for him, I held my chin in thought.
'No, I don't believe that's the case' The Tristan I've read in the novel possessed a commendable character and demonstrated genuine kindness. This is precisely why he symbolized the virtue of kindness at the academy. Furthermore, in Tristan's personal monologues, there was no indication of a system guiding and preparing him for his destined path'
'Hah what should I do about this' I sighed, should I really take his place? 'I don't even know the reason on how I got into this world!' and now you're telling me to replace the protagonist.
Lost in my thoughts, I was jolted as the carriage came to an abrupt halt. Aria, who sat ahead of me, stumbled forward during the sudden stop, and her head collided with my chin. "I can't help but miss seatbelts," I mused, reflecting on the differences in this world, particularly the astonishing speed at which the horses traveled.
"Ouch, it hurts" Aria said painfully while gently rubbing her forehead, "what's going on?"
Suddenly clashing noises and explosions could be heard outside the carriage.
"Young lady, young master, please stay inside the carriage" one of our knight escorts explained "a group of bandits suddenly ambushed us, but don't worry we'll take care of it immediately"
"What kind of bandits would dare to assault a carriage bearing the emblem of the Tellus duchy? Are they idiots?" Aria inquired.
Although I frequently disagreed with Aria, I couldn't help but share her bewilderment. Despite our modest company size, the knights of the Tellus household, especially the feared Black Wolf Order, were renowned throughout the empire. It seemed inconceivable that mere bandits would have the audacity to challenge us in this manner.
Sounds of swords clashing and scream of dying men encompassed our surroundings, even the carriage has little ventilation over the huge sounds of explosion surrounding us, at first I got worried about the situation on Analise side but quickly rest assured as I could feel the magic surrounding their courage activating properly, you could say we were perfectly safe inside our carriages as it's layered with advance protection magic, as I was just waiting for all of this to end quickly, Aria seemed to be acting uneasy.
Hmm? She's shaking, well that's surprising I thought she would be used to this kind of stuff, 'is this her first time getting ambushed?' well I guess that's understandable she is part of the great house of Tellus After all, an Ambush would've never crossed her mind.
"Hold it right there you evil villains!"
Out of nowhere, a man's anguished cry pierced the air, drawing the attention of all. I glanced out of the carriage window and spotted a tall, red-haired young man with crimson eyes.
'That guy, don't tell is he, who I think he is?'
I walked out of the carriage, to get a better view, "hey what are you doing? The knights told us to stay inside!" Aria shouted; I just ignored her again "hey wait for me" Aria said impatiently
"Why did you follow me?" I asked "I don't know okay; it's just I had a feeling that being with you would be much safer than being alone in that carriage"
'I guess she's not wrong about that' I then continued my attention on the unexpected situation at hand.
The red haired-man gripped an enormous bastard sword, clad in tattered attire, surrounded on all sides by the lifeless bodies of the bandits. He locked eyes with the remaining bandits and raised his voice in a defiant shout.
"I'll give you two choices," he declared, his voice resolute. "Depart immediately and find redemption in a new life elsewhere, or meet your demise in agony, leaving only your ashes scattered upon this ground."
Both the knights and bandits stop their clash and focused on the young man.
"Huh? Did you all hear that?" a disheveled man with a bald head and a thick black beard exclaimed. Seemingly the leader of the group
"Hahahaha!" The bandits erupted in hysterical laughter.
"Redemption, he says! Hey Robert, did you hear that? Redemption!" one bandit chimed in, struggling to hold back his laughter.
"Or meet your demise in agony," another bandit mocked, imitating his words sarcastically while stifling a grin.
"It appears this young man fancies himself a hero. Give it your all, boys!" the bald man ordered, pointing his axe menacingly at the red-haired man.
"Yes, boss!"
"The latter it is, then," the red-haired man replied with a visible glint of irritation in his eyes. He was not pleased with the bandits' earlier taunting. Suddenly, his blade ignited in red flames.
"You're all dead!" with a fierce glare the young man smirked and swiftly dispatched the oncoming bandits.
With each strike of his sword flames burst forth, every cut he did melted flesh and bones a single strike was all it took for the flames to spread and consume the unlucky individual caught by it, with a speed unbelievable for ordinary humans he quickly cut through the coming 20 bandits that dashed for him, going from one bandit to another he made a beautiful display of his swordsmanship
The bandit captain realizing the situation was no joke, started chanting, while ordering his men to distract the red-haired man, the number of screams increased as quickly as they faded.
"O, spirit of the earth so grand, Rising from the depths, by ancient hand. Rock and soil, your essence true, I call upon your power to renew"
An orange magic circle appeared beside the bald-headed bandit, and a boar taller than an average adult man, made out of rock and dirt appeared.
"A spirit!" a knight in our escort group shouted, looks like they didn't expect the bandit leader to be a summoner.
"Get him!" The bald captain ordered his spirit to attack, while he made a turn to try and attack the young man from the left side, the mage bandits were already preparing to shoot their magic in case the young man dodge right.
"Destructive Flame Arts!" "Inferno Blade Strike!" shouted the red-haired man, his body was suddenly ingulfed in a burst of crimson red flames which hastily made its way towards his sword, he slashed horizontally, the earth spirit boar got cut in half, its body known for its defensive capabilities, was cut like butter after turning into molten lava, the hard rock and dirt that once protected its body proved to be useless in front of the young man's sword strike.
With his spirit dead the bald captain fell to the ground while coughing up chunks of blood, although there are benefits in making a contract with a spirit, such as the spirit's blessing and spirit will, not many people sign a contract with them, as part of your soul would have to pay the price in case of their untimely defeat.
The bald captain attempted to rise but could only manage to prop himself up on his knees. Gasping for breath, he fixed his gaze on the approaching young man before him. It was only at that moment that he noticed the insignia adorning the young man's earrings.
"You, so you're a member of the Darja clan, eh?" the bald captain remarked, his emotions a mix of amusement and bewilderment at the series of unfortunate events he had been compelled to face. First, he had been unjustly coerced into assaulting a Tellus carriage, and now he found himself pitted against a member of the Darja family, renowned as the most formidable practitioner of flame arts in the entire empire.
He watched as he saw his man quickly getting dispatched by the Tellus knights.
"Seriously what bad luck" said the bald captain with visible regret in his eyes.
A sword them came right between his throat "do you surrender?" said the red-haired man.
"Are you seriously asking me that? Just do it already!" the bald captain shouted
"My apologies, I suppose that was impolite of me" the fiery-haired young man remarked before raising his enormous bastard sword to bring matters to a close.
"Stop" a sharp voice prevented the young man from ending things there.
His gaze settled on the pair drawing near. One of them was a young man, much like himself, with hair as dark as ebony and eyes as gray as ash. The other was an enchanting beauty, her golden blonde hair cascading like sunlight, and her eyes a mesmerizing shade of crimson red were approaching him.
"You two are?"
"Oh, where were my manners"
"My name is Adrian Vulter Tellus"
"This here is my little sister Aria Tellus"
"We would like to express our gratitude for our unexpected savior, but first may I know thy name?"
.....
"Oh, forgive me my name is Alex Darja" Alex said absentmindedly 'hmm, did he just get lost in thought while staring at Aria?'
'I guess that confirms It I had my suspicion but he really is Alex Darja, with a tall and muscular build and that fiery red-hair and eyes, combined with that unique fiery personality, I've finally met him the main protagonists' best friend Alex Darja Estelle academy's virtue of Diligence.'
I then continued to explain things at hand "Even though you are our savior and we greatly appreciate you for that can you please spare this man's life at least for the time being" I explained
"Our family is quite famous you see so there's not a lot of bandits around who has the courage to try and ambush us, and from the looks of it he's not one of those bandits either, someone may have coerced him into attacking us you see, so he's valuable for information"
'Is this guy even listening to me?' and why do you keep staring at Aria when I'm the one talking here'
A growing concern started to emerge within me, prompting me to exercise my authority just to be sure.
[Authority: Eyes of the wondering crow: {Passive}] although it's an authority stated as passive, I have to actually focus on my eyes in order to activate its true effect.
It's a skill that enables me to perceive a person's mental state, although it's not identical to mind reading, it comes quite close to it.
[Alex: enchanted by Miss Aria's beauty!]
Oh no! comeback Alex! don't let this bitch fool you.
'She belongs to the streets'