A few hours later, Kael was sitting inside a lavish carriage, reading the documents the Marshal had given to him.
These were the details of his test, and after reading through them, Kael couldn’t help but feel anxious.
“They are all fools…
To think they would send a student to protect an entire town…
What in the hell are they thinking…”
He groaned.
Just thinking about taking responsibility for over 500 lives made his head ache. Yes, he had been training hard and improved quite a lot, but…
Was he capable of leading soldiers and protecting so many lives…?
Kael was doubtful.
Then suddenly, his eyes fell on a bag of coins that were kept beside him and he couldn’t help but chuckle as recalled what happened before.
…
‘Take it.’
Elira spoke as she threw the bag of gold coins at Kael.
‘Huh? Marshal Therian gave me money to stay in i-‘
‘Take it.’
Elira repeated herself.
‘But why give so much?’
Kael frowned.
He could tell there were about 100 Gold Coins in here, Marshal Therian barely gave him 200 Silver Coins, that was just 2 Gold Coins, and Kael, who had read quite a lot about the Kingdom, knew that it was more than enough.
“So much? Boy, I just randomly grabbed whatever came into my hands. Now unlike you, I have things to do, so go away.’
Elira ordered, shooing Kael away.
And Kael just stared at this woman and…
‘You are the one who is in my room…’
The Mage’s face twitched as she quickly walked away and Kael could swear he saw her stumble.
…
‘Heh.’
Kael chuckled, soon however, he shook his head.
“No, I can’t lose focus here.”
To avoid the future he saw in his vision, he needed to do this.
His past self must have shown weakness here. He needed to do better than that.
“Alright, let’s begin.”
With his regained motivation, he started reading the details again.
“So, a town surrounded by dense forests on the east and a river on the west.”
Kael muttered to himself as he recalled the town’s layout. He had already burned the picture into his mind.
“Three main entrances: the north gate, the south gate, and bridges over the river on the western side.
A population of 500 villagers, including 50 capable armed Tamers who can fight.
Ten large, heavily armored corrupted beasts are reported to attack the north.
The east will be attacked by a pack of swift and agile beasts moving through the forest.
And then a pack of flying ones who will attack…
Well, who knows where.”
Kael sighed.
“We are being attacked from all sides. How am I supposed to handle all the directions on my own…?”
This is what he had been wondering for the past few hours. He had read the documents again and again, trying to think of something, a plan to protect everyone, but no matter how much he thought about it…
It seemed impossible.
“The supplies and defenses are all basic too.
Food, medical supplies, a small stockpile of oil barrels, and some barricades.
I have no clue why they didn’t give me more.”
Kael sighed.
He wasn’t being greedy or impractical here. In this world, because everyone had access to the Sanctuary, storage was never an issue.
After all, people could always store their stuff in the Sanctuary, and while there was a risk of losing stuff forever if the said person was dead, it was still a perfect way to store supplies.
‘He is just stingy.’
Kael snorted inwardly as he then turned to the next page and was somewhat relieved.
“This is somewhat useful.”
He glanced at the picture of two cannons on the northern wall. Kael could tell they would be an extremely important defensive resource.
Not just them, Kael looked out of his carriage and saw three Drakthar soldiers riding along with his carriage.
“Two archers and a mage, huh…”
Kael muttered as suddenly, his eyes turned golden and a translucent screen with their information appeared in front of him.
[Name: Lyra Windshade]
[Race: Human]
[Age: 25]
[Level: 22]
[Strength: 38]
[Agility: 58]
[Speed: 52]
[Stamina: 42]
[Defense: 28]
[Mana: 12]
[Intelligence: 17]
[Charisma: 20]
[Strengths: Pinpoint Accuracy, High Mobility, Versatile Tracking Skills]
[Weaknesses: Low Durability, Limited Stamina, Weak Melee Combatant]
…
[Name: Aria Starfall]
[Race: Human]
[Age: 26]
[Level: 22]
[Strength: 18]
[Agility: 25]
[Speed: 28]
[Stamina: 30]
[Defense: 20]
[Mana: 55]
[Intelligence: 42]
[Charisma: 26]
[Strengths: Large Mana Pool, Intelligent Strategist, Versatile Magic]
[Weaknesses: Fragile Physique, Slow Recovery, Melee Weakness]
…
[Name: Sarah Swiftwind]
[Race: Human]
[Age: 27]
[Level: 21]
[Strength: 36]
[Agility: 55]
[Speed: 50]
[Stamina: 40]
[Defense: 30]
[Mana: 10]
[Intelligence: 18]
[Charisma: 22]
[Strengths: Exceptional Agility, Evasive Maneuvers, Skilled Archer and Tracker]
[Weaknesses: Low Physical Defense, Relatively Low Stamina, Weak in Prolonged Melee Combat]
…
‘At least one of them is familiar.’
Kael thought inwardly as he glanced at Sarah, who was riding a magic beast that looked like a white horse.
‘But to think he would send all long-range fighters…
Even the Marshal is worried about the flying ones, huh…’
Kael thought inwardly, trying to come up with a plan and simulating the situation in his mind again and again.
Time passed just like that. The next day, at around 10 in the morning, Kael and his party finally reached Estwyn Town.
Their carriage stopped just outside the gates of Estwyn.
Two guards stood at the entrance. Their armor was battered, and the exhaustion in their eyes was impossible to miss. The two of them stiffened when they saw the carriage and gripped their spears more tightly.
“Who goes there?”
One of the two guards called, his voice steady but tired.
At his question, Kael stepped out.
While Sarah could deal with all these formalities, Kael wanted to get familiar with this place.
After all, in his very first lecture, the Marshal couldn’t stop stressing how important it was to know your surroundings before taking any action or making any plans.
Kael stepped forward and glanced at the guards.
“My name is Kael Carter,”
He said firmly.
“I’m here on orders from the King.”
“Let them through!”
A shout was heard. The guards exchanged glances before they nodded to each other and opened the giant doors.
Kael and his party entered the town.
“So this is the Hero they’ve been talking about?”
Once Kael and his party walked in, the guard questioned as he turned towards another guard with a frown on his face.
“Isn’t he too young…?”
The other guard had a similar expression.
“I heard he was just summoned…”
“And they already sent him to protect us? We asked for reinforcements, not a burden.”
The two guards sighed.
Kael, with his senses now much more enhanced than before, could easily hear them talk. He, however, didn’t react to it for now and decided to observe.
The gates of Estwyn were a grim sight.
They were made of reinforced wood and iron. However, from the scars all over the place, Kael could easily tell their condition was anything but good.
It wasn’t just the gates.
Estwyn Town itself seemed on the edge of ruin.
The streets were eerily quiet, with only a few people moving about. Many of the buildings were damaged, their roofs caved in, and their walls patched with uneven planks.
While Kael observed the town, the townsfolk observed him. They stopped whatever they were doing to watch him as he passed.
Some stared openly, their expressions filled with suspicion. Others muttered to one another, shaking their heads.
“So that’s the Hero?”
“Doesn’t look like much, does he?”
…
*Estwyn Town’s Picture*